Odd Habits Trivia Quiz

Answer: Alfred Hitchcock

In a number of countries and cultures the number thirteen is a bearer of ill omen, even more so when that number is attached to Friday. This may be because of its close association with death; for example, there are, traditionally, thirteen steps to the gallows and there were thirteen people at the Last Supper. As if to highlight this point the Old Christians Rugby Union team, out of Montevideo, boarded Uruguay Air Force Flight 571 on Friday the thirteenth in 1972. The plane would crash into the Andes with only sixteen of the forty passengers surviving. This incident became renowned for the cannibalism that the survivors were forced to resort to stay alive and would later be the subject of a number of books, television shows and feature films. Sadly, Tupac Shakur was also gunned down on a "Black" Friday (13 September, 1996) and Princess Diana would lose her life when the car she was driven in crashed into the thirteenth pillar of the Pont de l'Alma Tunnel in Paris.

Alfred Hitchcock, the master of suspense who directed the 1972 film "Frenzy", was born on "Black" Friday in 1899 but did not die on either a Friday or the thirteenth. He passed away as a result of renal failure on the 29th of April (a Tuesday) in 1980; his funeral mass was held the next day (Wednesday) and his ashes were scattered across the Pacific Ocean on the 10th of May, (a Saturday). The picture attached represents "The Birds", Hitchcock's celebrated 1963 horror film.

Answer: Taylor Swift

Henry Ford shied away from doing deals on Friday the thirteenth, Paul Getty was always anxious if there was a group of thirteen at his table and President Roosevelt simply refused to dine with a group of thirteen people.

Taylor Swift (hopefully you cottoned onto the fact that she isn't a gentleman) only sees good in this number;
Her company is called Management 13.
She created a twitter handle of @taylorswift13.
She was born December 13.
Her first album went gold in 13 weeks
Her first number one hit, "We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together", has a 13 second intro.
She claims that whenever she has won an award she has been sitting in a seat, row or section that bore either the number 13 or the letter "M" (the thirteenth letter of the alphabet).

As an aside Mark Twain, once invited as the thirteenth party to a dinner event, reported that it was indeed bad luck, the host had only provided sufficient food for twelve guests. The picture attached shows a vehicle moving "swiftly".

Answer: Irish

Actors can be a superstitious lot. Don't you dare say aloud the name of Shakespeare's play "MacBeth" in a theatre or you are likely to be assailed for raining down any number of forms of bad luck on the show. If you happen to speak it out aloud you are able to reverse the curse. First of all you will need to leave the theatre. Once outside you will need to spin around three times, spit, curse and then knock on the door before you can be allowed back in. Save yourself all this trouble and just refer to "MacBeth" as "that Scottish play", everyone will know what you're talking about.

Colin Farrell has his own superstitions and lucky charms. If you (somehow) managed to pull his pants down on his first day on the set of (say) "Phone Booth" (2002) or the remake of "Total Recall" (2012) you would have spotted him wearing the above named boxers all bedecked in shamrocks with "the luck of the Irish" printed on their waistband. Colin also possesses, what he calls, a lucky belt. The belt was a present to him from his father many years ago and is of great sentimental value to him. So much so that he has spent more than £3,000 in repairs and modifications to it over the years. In 2011 it went missing and Farrell was so desperate to track it down that he offered a reward of £16,000 for its safe return.
The picture... yes, that's what a shamrock really looks like.

Answer: Cat

Spilling salt is reportedly bad luck because it is an invitation to the devil to enter your house but, Giada is keen to point out, you can remedy that by throwing some of that salt over your left shoulder with the right hand. However, it is the cat that really worries her.

As far back as the sixteenth century it was considered that if a sick person lay in bed upon which a cat had rested, that person would not recover. Giada, the granddaughter of the legendary filmmaker Gino de Laurentiis, has, so far, done a great job in keeping the cats out, is a celebrity chef, has been a Food Network host and has published a number of books. Two of those, "Giada at Home" (2010) and "Weeknights with Giada" (2012) have topped the New York Times Best Seller lists.

Answer: Missy Elliott

Whilst "Shake Your Pom Pom" was only a minor hit for Missy in 2008, "Lose Control" had previously gone gold for her in 2005 and "Work It" had been an even bigger success by going platinum for her in 2002. A multiple Grammy Award winner Missy Elliott has sold over thirty million records in the USA alone.

Black cats though will stop her cold in her tracks. She has told interviewers that if she has become aware of one crossing her path she will turn around and go back home. On one occasion, she advised, she requested her driver to find an alternate route to the airport as she'd spotted a midnight coloured moggy on the other side of the road.

Answer: Mick Jagger

It appears that if the Rolling Stones lead singer lends his support to a particular team then poor luck is likely to assail that team. Jagger's reputation as the angel of ill omen didn't just appear at the 2014 event, it manifested during the previous World Cup in 2010 in South Africa.

His home team, England, underwhelmed and ignominiously crashed out 4-1 to Germany in the round of sixteen. Some would be quick to exclaim that this was not the fault of the Glimmer Twin as it seemed to be a perennial problem for England in large tournaments. That said, the day before that clash he'd sat with US President Bill Clinton and offered his support to his country before their game against Ghana.

The States went down 2-1. A week later, when Brazil took on The Netherlands in the quarter finals, Jagger was spotted in the stands wearing a Brazilian jumper. Brazil lost 2-1. During the 2014 World Cup he tweeted his support of England against Uruguay.

They're wishing he hadn't, they lost 2-1. Worse, it left them at the bottom of their pool and they failed to progress through the group stage. At a gig in Lisbon Mick stood in front of a capacity crowd and duly told the audience that Portugal would win the World Cup.

They failed to make it to the knockout stage. In Rome he stood before 70,000 people and told them "not to worry, Italy would defeat Uruguay". They lost 1-0 and were eliminated from the tournament as a consequence. In the semi finals of the 2014 event the home team, Brazil, was smashed by Germany seven goals to one. They blamed Mick Jagger because of his support for them and christened him "Pe' Frio". Literally this means "cold foot", but it is also a term used to describe an individual who brings bad luck.

Answer: Christian Bale

Little wonder he's the star of "American Psycho" (2000) and the Christopher Nolan trilogy of "Batman" films, this man is used to putting his life on the line. He is even flippant about it, commenting "I do that" when asked about his penchant for challenging superstitions. His first good fortune arrived at the age of seven when Steven Spielberg cast him in "Empire of the Sun" (1987). The world stood up and took notice and they have not stopped looking since at his prodigious talent.

Side notes. The "Holy" catchphrase used in the question was a clue to those who are familiar with Robin's sayings in the "Batman" television series. They invariably ended with "Batman" just prior to the exclamation and became a lasting and loved part of the "Batman" culture. Joan Armatrading released an album entitled "Walk Under Ladders" in 1981. Kristin Chenoweth and Emma Roberts, both from television's "Scream Queens" would blanch at the sight of Christian Bale strolling under a ladder as both are terrified to do so. They may not be aware that there are ways to remedy the situation if they should (accidentally) walk under one.
They can retrace their steps backwards under the ladder.
They can say the words "bread and butter" as they walk under it or
They can cross their fingers and keep them crossed until they spot a dog.
The picture, showing a batsman, is a rather lame attempt at a pun photograph.

Answer: Penelope Cruz

Rubbing Buddha's tummy is supposed to bring about good fortune but I have never heard of rubbing one's head to deliver the same effect. Certainly, there is an old adage that rubbing a black person's head will help to ward off evil spirits, which is a somewhat different concept to bringing about good luck. There are also some thoughts floated that rubbing a bald person's head (any colour) could be a source of good fortune and George R. R. Martin will advise that the same result will arrive by rubbing the head of a dwarf. Whatever you may believe, rubbing her head has certainly not caused Penelope Cruz any harm. A star of the films "Blow" and "Vanilla Sky" (both 2001) she became the first Spanish actress to win an Academy Award for Acting ("Vicky Cristina Barcelona" (2008)).

Some people believe that knocking on wood is also a source of good luck. On the contrary, it is supposed to ward off evil spirits. Benicio Del Toro is a firm believer of this, so much so that he has gone to the extraordinary length of having a ring specially made with a wooden centre in place of a stone so that he can "knock on wood" whenever he chooses to.

As for the picture... the cow is massaging its head.

Answer: Lying on the floor

Star Jones is a former attorney who became the original host of the ABC talk show "The View" and would later win the scoop of being the only reporter allowed to interview O.J. Simpson during his civil trial.

Tamron Hall used to be the anchor for the NBC News and eventually became one of the co-hosts of "Today's Take" which filled the third hour of NBC's "The Today Show".

Both women take care never to leave their purses on the ground, not only because of their belief in the old proverb that "a purse on the floor is money out the door" but it is also bad Feng Shui. The incorrect answers listed above are also adapted from idioms; "A heavy purse makes a light heart", "To tighten the purse strings" and "A silk purse cannot be made from a sow's ear".

Answer: Britney Spears

Jennifer Aniston, voted People Magazine's "Most Beautiful Woman of 2016" and one of the stars of the TV series "Friends", is a nervous frequent flyer. This is out there but the following is her routine that ensures she feels comfortable about the flight she is about to embark on; (a) she touches the outside of the plane and then (b) enters the plane with her right foot first. Whatever floats your airboat.

OK, I've teased you long enough. Why does Megan Fox, the star of the "Transformers" and "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" series of films, need to listen to the lady who had hits with "My Prerogative" and "Toxic" whilst flying? "Because" as she explained in an interview with Conan O'Brien, "it is not my destiny to die while listening to Britney Spears."
As for the picture... well, they're asparagus "spears".