Philebrities Trivia Quiz

Answer: Richard Gere

Richard Gere was born in Philadelphia, the son of Mayflower descendants, but grew up and was educated in upstate New York. He is one of the most popular and accomplished actors of stage and film, having starred in over fifty such productions, including "Days of Heaven", "American Gigolo", "Pretty Woman", "Primal Fear" and "Chicago". He converted to Buddhism in the 1970s and has been active in support of human rights for Tibet ever since.

Located in the Old City district in Philadelphia, Elfreth's Alley is a National Historic Landmark (as are most of the buildings mentioned in this quiz). The short, narrow street has residences built as far back as 1728 and is still home to full-time residents today.

Answer: M Night Shyamalan

M. Night Shyamalan is a popular filmmaker (producer, writer, director) who was born in India, but whose parents moved to the U.S. with him and his older sister when he was an infant. His family settled in the Philadelphia suburbs, where he was raised and where he was educated through high school. He still resides in the area with his own family and he has set many of his films in and around Philadelphia, including "The Sixth Sense" (1999), "Unbreakable" (2000), "Signs" (2002), and "Lady in the Water" (2006).

Affiliated with The College of Physicians of Philadelphia since 1858, the Mutter Museum houses a collection of medical, anatomical, and pathological specimens, models and oddities. Over the years it has become a repository for such artifacts as a tissue sample from Lincoln assassin John Wilkes Booth, the liver shared by Siamese twins Chang and Eng, and skeletons of extraordinarily tall and small humans.

Answer: Ethel Barrymore

Born in Philadelphia in 1879, Ethel Barrymore was the sister of actors John and Lionel Barrymore, the middle of the three great acting siblings in birth order. An accomplished stage actress who made a sensation in England in 1897-98 (a smitten young Winston Churchill asked her to marry him), Ethel went on to star in dozens of US productions through the first half of the twentieth century. She made her film debut in 1914 and moved to Hollywood in 1940. She won a Supporting Actress Academy Award in 1944 for her role as Cary Grant's mother in "None but the Lonely Heart". She also had prominent roles in "The Spiral Staircase" (1946), "The Farmer's Daughter" (1947), and "Young at Heart" (1954). Ethel Barrymore died in 1959 and there is a theater named after her in the Broadway district of New York City.

If things could be celebrities, the Liberty Bell would be the number one celebrity in Philadelphia. But it wasn't "born" there. It was cast in a London foundry in 1752, shipped to Philadelphia, and placed in the Independence Hall tower. It was later moved to a display area on the ground floor, and then in 1976 given its own display pavilion on the mall opposite Independence Hall.

Answer: Dick Clark

Although Richard Wagstaff Clark was not born in Philadelphia, he moved to the area in his early twenties to pursue his growing career in broadcasting. He will forever be associated with "American Bandstand", an iconic teen music and dancing program which evolved from a local show in the mid 1950s. Because of his natural rapport with young folks, both in person and on-screen, Clark earned the nickname "The World's Oldest Teenager". "Bandstand" spawned numerous imitators and ran for thirty years. In the process Clark discovered and fostered the careers of scores of diverse music legends, including Ike and Tina Turner, Stevie Wonder, The Beach Boys, Simon and Garfunkel, and Talking Heads. Clark was also a visionary producer of game shows, award shows, and "New Year's Rockin' Eve", another broadcasting fixture. Dick Clark maintained a youthful appearance despite being slowed by a stroke in 2004. He died in 2012.

Christ Church, founded in 1695 and located in the Old City district, is the oldest Protestant Episcopal Church in the US. Fifteen signers of the Declaration of Independence were members, and many other leaders of the American Revolution worshipped there. The pews they occupied are marked by brass plaques. Much of the historic church building is still in excellent condition today, and serves an active Episcopal congregation.

Answer: Judith Jamison

Judith Jamison was born in Philadelphia in 1943 and studied music and dance in a variety of local schools and with many revered local teachers, including her own father, who taught her to play several instruments. With Marion Cuyjet she studied ballet, modern dance, tap dance, and even acrobatics; Jamison then went on to train with other famed tutors and choreographers, including Antony Tudor and Agnes DeMille. In 1964 she was invited to join the Alvin Ailey Dance Theater, and performed with the company, touring Europe, Africa, and the rest of the world. Ailey created many ballets for her, including her signature piece, "Cry", which celebrates the emotional journey of black women. Throughout her career the Ailey company was her home, although she appeared with many other international companies, and she even created her own company, The Jamison Project. Upon the death of Alvin Ailey in 1989, Judith Jamison became the full-time director of the Alvin Ailey Dance Theater, and it thrived under her management. She retired in 2011.

Completed in 1753 as the statehouse for the incipient state of Pennsylvania, Independence Hall, became the focal point for American revolutionary activities and the Second Continental Congress. The Declaration of Independence and the US Constitution were both adopted in the building, which is a World Heritage Site.

Answer: Chuck Barris

Charles Hirsch Barris was born in Philadelphia in 1929 and was educated at Drexel University in the city. He started out in broadcasting with the production staff of "American Bandstand", but soon went on to success in the music business as a producer and composer. He then returned to television, and while working on daytime programming in the 1960s, he created several game shows, among them "The Dating Game" and "The Newlywed Game", which became big hits. However, their success paled in comparison to that of "The Gong Show", a talent show spoof which Barris created in 1976 and hosted himself. "The Gong Show" became a cult classic and made Barris the unlikeliest of stars. His 1984 "autobiography", "Confessions of a Dangerous Mind", claimed that he had been a hit man for the CIA. It was made into a feature film by George Clooney in 2002.

Another attraction in the historic section of Philadelphia, the Betsy Ross House is reputed to be the home of Betsy Ross (probably true) and the site where she made the first US flag (probably not true). The oldest part of the House was built in 1740, but the structure was added to and extensively restored over the years, including in 1975, when in preparation for the US Bicentennial remains thought to be those of Betsy Ross and her third husband were moved to a gravesite in its outer courtyard.

Answer: Jeanette MacDonald

Born in Philadelphia in 1903, Jeanette Anna MacDonald was a singer and actress. Trained in dancing and singing from a young age, she began performing on stage at age six. She first appeared on the New York stage in 1919, and in 1929 she made her first musical film, one of the first of the sound era, "The Love Parade", with Maurice Chevalier. She then went on to star in many more musicals prior to embarking on a concert tour of Europe. In 1935 she made her first film with Nelson Eddy, "Naughty Marietta". They would make six more films together through 1942, and although MacDonald would make other successful films, most notably "San Francisco", with Clark Gable and Spencer Tracy in 1936, she is forever linked with Eddy in popular culture.

Opened in 1857, the Academy of Music is the oldest opera house still in use as such in the US. It is home to the Opera Company of Philadelphia and the Pennsylvania Ballet, and was home to the Philadelphia Orchestra until 2001, when the ensemble left to take up residence in a more modern concert hall.

Answer: Bradley Cooper

Bradley Charles Cooper was born in Philadelphia and grew up in its suburbs. Later he went on to earn degrees from Georgetown University and the Actors Studio Drama School. Cooper began his acting career with roles on television, and in 2001 moved to feature films with a small role in "Wet Hot American Summer". He went on to appear in "Wedding Crashers" (2005), "Yes Man" (2008), and "He's Just Not That Into You" (2009), making his breakthrough to stardom in 2009's wildly successful "The Hangover" and its two sequels. Cooper was nominated for a Best Actor Academy Award for 2012's "Silver Linings Playbook", and for Best Supporting Actor for 2013's "American Hustle". Both films were directed by David O. Russell.

Built in 1927 on the University of Pennsylvania (Penn) campus, the Palestra is known as The Cathedral of College Basketball. In addition to being the home of Penn's men's and women's basketball and volleyball teams and wrestling team, the Palestra has been the central venue for the Philadelphia area's Big 5 basketball rivalry among Penn, LaSalle, Saint Joseph's, Temple, and Villanova Universities.

Answer: W C Fields

William Claude Dukenfield was born in Darby, Pennsylvania, in the Philadelphia suburbs in, 1880. He ran away from his poor family when he was eleven, taught himself juggling by constant practice, and at age fifteen began appearing in vaudeville shows as WC Fields. He was successful, touring throughout North America and Europe, and debuting on Broadway in 1906. He perfected his patter during this time, mumbling the sarcastic asides that would become his trademark. Fields appeared in the "Ziegfeld Follies" from 1916-1922. By 1924 he began in films, starring in several silent shorts and features. He made his first sound feature, "Her Majesty, Love", in 1931. Fields made several comedy films in the early 1930s, becoming a movie star in the process. His characters were invariably card sharps, con men, and hustlers. During the late 1930s and early 1940s he made his most famous films: "You Can't Cheat an Honest Man", "My Little Chickadee" (with Mae West), "The Bank Dick", and "Never Give a Sucker an Even Break". The tippling which was so often the butt of jokes in his films was all too real in his personal life, and WC Fields died of an alcohol-related gastric hemorrhage in 1946.

Founded in 1824 and named for the iconic statesman and polymath Benjamin Franklin, The Franklin Institute is a museum, science education center, and cultural repository. Its permanent exhibits include the Giant Heart, an observatory, Electricity, and an IMAX theater. Over the years it has presented exhibits on RMS Titanic, Tutankhamun, Body Worlds, and Grossology.

Answer: Maria Bello

Maria Elena Bello was born in Norristown, Pennsylvania, a Philadelphia suburb, in 1967. After graduating from Villanova University she began her acting career in New York stage productions and on the television shows "Mr. & Mrs. Smith" and "ER". Her first film role was as the bar owner in "Coyote Ugly" in 2000. Maria Bello has become somewhat the darling of US independent filmmakers, having been acclaimed for her roles in "The Cooler" (2003), "A History of Violence" (2005), "Downloading Nancy" (2008), and "Prisoners" (2013).

Far more than a set of stairs for Sylvester Stallone to run up, The Philadelphia Museum of Art, known popularly at the Art Museum or the PMA, is one of the largest art museums in the US. It was established in 1877, although the present building was not opened until 1928. With nearly 250,000 items in its collection, the PMA welcomes almost a million visitors annually.