Katharine Hepburn Trivia Quiz

Answer: Corning Glass Company

Katharine's maternal grandfather was the younger brother of Amory Houghton, who ran Corning Glass. Her grandfather committed suicide while Hepburn's mother, also named Katharine, was still a teen. The elder Katharine made sure that her uncle paid for her and her younger sisters' post-secondary education at Bryn Mawr following their mother's death soon after their father's. Kate's mother became an advocate for women's rights and birth control in the early 20th century.

Answer: Dorothy Parker

The play was "The Lake", produced by Jed Harris and marked Kate's return to Broadway following her Hollywood success. She later admitted she was terrified that night and walked through her performance. Although the show was a sell-out, she was horrified to learn that Harris wanted to take it on the road.

She offered him every cent she had to get out of her contract - Harris took her up on her offer and depleted Kate's $13,675.75 bank account.

Answer: Ginger Rogers, Eve Arden, Lucille Ball

This is a good movie - it's the one where Kate utters the line "The Calla Lilies are in bloom again". FYI - Bennett, Dee and Parker were Hepburn's co-star's in the 1933 (and best yet) version of "Little Women".

Answer: Cary Grant and Jimmy Stewart

Louis B. Mayer, head of MGM, listened to Kate's request and gave her Cary Grant and Jimmy Stewart as only a couple of years before she had been listed as box office poison. Kate had a huge hit on Broadway in 1939 with this Philip Barry play. Her "significant other" at the time - Howard Hughes - lent her the money to buy the rights so that she could would have the starring role in the film. Rent this movie -you will love it!

By the way, Kate's first choices were Clark Gable and Spencer Tracey. Both were unavailable.

Answer: Baseball

Kate's character, Tess Harding, a political columnist decries the attention paid to baseball instead of world affairs. Spencer Tracy plays a sports writer, Sam Craig, with the same paper. To end the feud and begin their relationship, Tracy takes the sports-challenged Hepburn to a Yankees game. This movie is special as it marks the beginning of their real life 27 year love affair.

Answer: State of the Union

In the opening credits of "State of the Union", Hepburn's name is spelled Katherine, instead of Katharine. Kate is the estranged wife of a politician played by Tracy. Look out for Angela "Murder She Wrote" Lansbury - she plays a woman in her 40's, when in real life she was actually in her 20's.

Answer: Laurence Olivier and Vivien Leigh

Hepburn and Kanin rode in the car with Olivier and Leigh on the way to the ceremony. During the drive, Olivier got lost and the "nearly weds" had a big fight with their friends stuck listening in the back seat. Olivier and Leigh were married for nearly 20 years and were known as "the" golden couple of English theatre.

Hepburn became friends with Bogie and Bacall while filming "The African Queen", released in 1951, after the couple had been married several years.

Answer: Diana Barry

According to legend, Grant was heavily favoured for the starring role of Anne, but as an American, producers were hesitant to give this most famous of Canadian female characters to her. The prized role went to Canadian Megan Followes. Grant did a fabulous job as Anne's best friend and kindred spirit, Diana Barry.

Answer: Mary, Queen of Scots and Eleanor of Aquitaine

Kate won her 3rd Best Actress Oscar for her portrayal of Eleanor of Aquitaine in 1968's "Lion in Winter". In this film, she starred with Peter O'Toole as her husband Henry II, a young Anthony Hopkins as her son Richard the Lionheart and former James Bond actor Timothy Dalton as Philip of France. Kate also starred in the John Ford directed 1930's version of Mary, Queen of Scots.

Answer: fishing cap

Hard as it is to believe, Hepburn and Fonda had never met before filming began. She lent Fonda a favourite fishing cap of Tracy's to wear. Another wonderful film and the last silver screen hurrah of two acting legends.