To Infinity and Beyond Trivia Quiz

Answer: April 4th 1965

Robert John Downey Jr was born in Manhattan, New York on the 4th April 1965. His father, Robert Downey Sr, was a film-maker and actor and his mother, Elsie Ann, was an actress. He spent most of his childhood in the Greenwich Village area of New York where he experienced a Bohemian lifestyle. He has an older sister, Allyson.

Answer: The Pick-Up Artist

Downey got his first leading role in James Toback's 1987 film "The Pick-Up Artist" which also starred the actress Molly Ringwald. In the film he plays Jack Jericho, a womanising teacher who falls for museum guide Randy Jensen (played by Molly Ringwald). On its release the film got mixed reviews with the main critcism being weak central characters who fail to ring true to life.

Answer: Chaplin

"Chaplin" was a 1992 film produced and directed by British film director Richard Attenborough telling the story of the life of the British comedian Charlie Chaplin. Downey undertook extensive preparation for the role to enable him to portray the comedian accurately.

As Charlie Chaplin was left handed Downey learnt to perform various acts with his left hand even though he is right handed. The film also starts British actor John Thaw as Fred Karno, a British music-hall impresario and Canadian actor Dan Aykroyd as Max Sennett, an early American film producer, who gave Charlie Chaplin his first break when he arrived in America from England.

Answer: California Substance Abuse Treatment Facility and State Prison, Corcoran

Downey was introduced to drugs at an early age. His father was a drug addict who allowed his son to smoke marijuana from the age of six or seven. During the late 1990s he was arrested on several occasions for possession of many drugs including cocaine, heroin and marijuana.

After failing to turn up for a mandatory drugs test he was arrested and sent to the California Substance Abuse Treatment Facility and State Prison in Corcoran, Kings County. Although he was sentenced to a three year term he was released after just under a year.

Answer: Kiefer Sutherland

When both Downey and Sutherland moved to Hollywood as budding actors they shared an apartment for three years. They appeared together in the 1988 drama "1969" which dealt with social tensions caused by the Vietnam War. They have remained good friends and in 2014 were seen together in London, England, shopping for antiques.

Answer: The Brat Pack

The Brat Pack was a nickname given to a group of young actors that appeared in several films together during the 1980s. Although Downey is not considered one of the key members of the group he appeared with several of them in a variety of films such as "The Pick-Up Artist" (1987) with Molly Ringwald and "Weird Science" (1985) with Anthony Michael Hall.

Other members of the Brat Pack include Rob Lowe, Demi Moore and Ally Sheedy. The name the Brat Pack is a play on words from the Rat Pack group of actors from the 1960s whose members included Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin.

The Frat Pack is a nickname for a group of successful young actors from the 1990s which included actors Ben Stiller and Owen Wilson. The Prat Pack is something I just made up.

Answer: Ally McBeal

Ally McBeal was a very successful legal TV comedy drama set in the ficticious Boston law firm Cage and Fish. Calista Flockhart played the eponymous main character of the drama and it ran from 1997 to 2002. Downey had been sentenced to a three year prison term but after one year it was deemed he had spent enough time behind bars so he was released with a $5,000 bail.

A week after his release Downey was cast as Larry Paul in the drama, Ally's love interest during the fourth season of the show. Unfortunately due to his on-going issues with drug addiction he had to be written out of the show. Even so he was nominated for an Emmy award for Best Supporting Actor a Comedy series and won a Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actor in a mini series.

Answer: Gothika

Downey married his first wife, Deborah Falconer, in 1992 and they had a son in 1993. However due to his drug abuse and stays in prison and rehab, the marriage broke down and they were divorced in 2004. Downey met Levin, who is a film producer, on the set of the psychological horror film "Gothika" in 2003 and they were married in 2005. Downey has stated that it is because of his wife that he managed to kick his drug and alcohol habits and he has been drug free since 2003.

The couple have children Exton (born 2012) and Avri (born 2014) and together they have founded a production company called Team Downey.

Answer: Jude Law

The 2009 film "Sherlock Holmes" was directed by British film director Guy Ritchie and starrted Robert Downey Jr as Sherlock Holmes and Jude Law as Dr John Watson. The film also starred Mark Strong as the aristocratic serial killer Sir Henry Blackwood and Rachel McAdams as Irene Adler, the romantic interest for Holmes.

It received favourable reviews on its release and spawned a 2011 sequel "Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows". A third film is due for release in December 2020. Downey won a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor for his perfomance in the film.

Answer: Tony Stark

The 2018 film "Avengers: Infinity War" is the 19th film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and the eighth to star Robert Downey Jr as Tony Stark and his alter-ego Iron Man (except for an uncredited cameo in the 2008 "The Incredible Hulk"). Stark is the CEO of Stark Industries, a company he inherited from his father after his parents, Howard and Maria Stark, were killed in a car crash.

He has used his billionaire fortune to design electro-mechanical suits to help maintain the safety of the Earth. In the film "Avengers: Infinity War" the Avengers and the Guardians of the Galaxy join forces to try and prevent the intergalactic despot Thanos from carrying out his plan to "re-balance" the universe. Without giving too much away, the film ends on a cliff-hanger with loose ends to be tied up and questions that will not be answered until the sequel to the film is released.