Do You Remember 1999? Trivia Quiz

Answer: 'Notting Hill'

With a gross of more than $500m, 'Notting Hill' is comfortably one of 1999's Top 10 box office successes. Written by Richard Curtis, who had previous success with 'Four Weddings and a Funeral', 'Notting Hill' again provided Hugh Grant with a starring vehicle for his particularly English brand of feel-good comedy. Julia Roberts co-starred as Hollywood star Anna Scott. Roberts earned a Golden Globe Best Actress nomination for her performance.
The top-grossing films of 1999 are 'Star Wars 1: The Phantom Menace', 'The Sixth Sense', 'Toy Story 2' and 'The Matrix'.
The alternatives are three films for which Julia Roberts earned Oscar nominations... 'Steel Magnolias', for which she was nominated in a Supporting role was released in 1989. 'Pretty Woman', which earned Roberts her first Best Actress nomination was also earlier, in 1990. Roberts finally won an Oscar for her performance as the title character in the docudrama 'Erin Brockovich', which was released in March 2000. Only one of these three was in the Top 10 grossing movies for their respective year -- 'Pretty Woman' was #4 in 1990.

Answer: Rod Stewart

London-born, honorary-Scottish rock icon Rod Stewart has seven children by five different mothers, three of whom he has been married to. Born in 1945, Stewart's first child, Sarah, was born in 1964 to art student Sussanah Boffey. His seventh child, Alastair, was born in 2005 to model Penny Lancaster, who became Stewart's third wife in 2007.
Stewart's 8-year marriage to his second wife, Rachel Hunter, ended in separation in 1999, although the couple were not officially divorced until 2006. Bizarrely, Stewart's obsession with model railroads (he has a 23 x 124-foot layout in his California home) was blamed for contributing to the breakup of the marriage. How many other rock stars can blame their marital woes on Hornby?
The alternatives are all now in long-term marriages, although none of them to their first wife. Bowie's first marriage, to Angela, lasted through the 1970s. He has been married to supermodel Iman since 1992. Richards fathered three children with his girlfriend of 12 years, actress Anita Pallenberg. He has been married to former model Patti Hansen since 1983 and they have two children together. Starr's 10-year marriage to his first wife, Maureen Cox, ended in 1975. The oldest of their three sons, Zak, the drummer for Oasis and The Who, gave Ringo the first Beatles-grandchild in 1985. Starr married former Bond-girl Barbara Bach in 1981.

Answer: 'You Needed Me'

Written by Randy Goodrum, 'You Needed Me' was originally a US #1 single for Canadian Anne Murray in 1978. Curiously, although it stalled in the Top 5 without topping the Country Chart, it still won 'Song of the Year' at the Academy of Country Music Awards. The Murray version just failed to break into the UK Top 20. When Boyzone released their version in May 1999, they narrowly edged Geri Halliwell's debut single, 'Look at Me', into the #2 spot. Other cover versions have been recorded by Kenny Rogers and Dottie West (in 1979) and by Anne Murray and Shania Twain (in 2007).
Of the alternatives, Boyzone's cover of the Bee Gees single, 'Words', gave them their first UK #1 single in October 1996. Rita Coolidge also had a hit with the single, in 1978, and it was a regular feature of Elvis Presley's stage show in the early 1970s.
'No Matter What', written by Andrew Lloyd Weber and Jim Steinman for the 1996 musical 'Whistle Down the Wind' provided Boyzone with their best-selling and only Platinum single. The best-selling boy-band single of the decade, 'No Matter What' established two new records for the band -- as the first artists ever to achieve 12 consecutive Top 5 singles with their first 12 releases, and also as the first Irish artists to achieve four UK #1 singles. A cover version of the song was later recorded by Meat Loaf.
'When the Going Gets Tough, the Tough Get Going' was Boyzone's penultimate UK #1, in March 1999. It had previously been a UK #1 single for Billy Ocean, in 1985, when it was also the theme song for the film 'The Jewel of the Nile' starring Michael Douglas and Kathleen Turner.

Answer: Hilary Swank

Hilary Swank's film career began in the early 1990s, with a part in 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer' and then as the troubled young teen taken under Mr Miyagi's wing in 'The Next Karate Kid'. The decade closed with her collecting the Best Actress Oscar for her performance as the transgendered man Brandon Teena in 'Boys Don't Cry'.

She would collect a second Oscar five years later as the boxer Maggie Fitzgerald in 'Million Dollar Baby'. Of the alternatives, Meryl Streep was also nominated in 1999, for her performance as inner city New York violin teacher Roberta Guaspari in 'Music of the Heart'.

This was the twelfth Oscar nomination of Streep's career: as of 2009 she holds the record with 15 nominations to her name. Julia Roberts won for 'Erin Brockovich' in 2000, her first win and her third nomination. Gwyneth Paltrow received her first Oscar nomination in 1998, and won for 'Shakespeare in Love'.

Answer: 'Millennium' -- Backstreet Boys

The Backstreet Boys' album 'Millennium' established sales records with the most shipments in the US in a single year (more than 11 million) and the most albums sold internationally in the first week (2.2 million). With more than 1.1 million copies sold in the US alone in the first week, it shattered the previous record held by Garth Brooks. The record of more than 500,000 sold on the first day also established a new record, although that was surpassed by both Britney Spears and N Sync the following year.
The album earned five Grammy nominations and spent a total of 93 weeks in the Billboard Album Chart, 10 of them in the #1 slot. Although the biggest hit single from the album, 'I Want it That Way', stalled at #6 in the US singles chart, it made #1 in more than 25 countries, including the UK. Three other singles from the album also made it into the Top 40 of the Billboard chart.
Of the alternatives, 'Baby One More Time' was Britney's debut solo album. It made #1 in the US and the title track went to #1 in the singles chart -- her only US #1 single prior to 2008. This remains her best-selling album, with more than 25 millions worldwide sales. It is also the best-selling debut album in the US by both a solo female singer and by a teenager.
'*NSYNC' was the self-titled debut album of America's newest boy band. It sold more than 10 million copies in the US alone in 1999.
'Significant Other' was the second studio album by Florida nu-metal band Limp Biscuit. Their 1997 debut album, 'Three Dollar Bill, Yall$' had sold only moderately, but 'Significant Other' debuted at #1 in the US chart, selling almost 1 million copies in the first week.

Answer: Alf Roberts

Alf Roberts first appeared in 'Corrie' in 1961, shortly after the show began. He was only a semi-regular character for the first two years, and then disappeared altogether in 1963. He returned in 1971 and remained a regular cast member until his death on January 1 1999. Roberts began as a Post Office worked but eventually took over the grocery shop at 15 Coronation Street. He was also involved in local politics and had two spells as Mayor of Weatherfield. Bryan Mosley, the actor who played Roberts, died aged 67 on February 9 1999.
Of the alternatives, Mike Baldwin joined 'Corrie' in 1976. He died aged 64 in 2006. Actor Johnny Briggs MBE, who played Baldwin, born in 1935, comfortably outlived his character.
Stan Ogden joined the show in 1964 and spent 20 years as the long-suffering husband of Hilda until his death aged 65 in November 1984. Stan's latter days and death as a result of a heart attack were necessarily off-screen due to the actual death of actor Bernard Youens, who had died three months earlier.
As 'Coronation Street' approaches its 50th Anniversary in December 2010, Ken Barlow is the only member of the cast left from the show's very first episode in 1960. Born in 1932, actor William Roache MBE is the longest-serving actor in any British soap. Only Don Hastings, whose role as Bob Hughes on the American soap 'As the World Turns' began two months before 'Corrie' debuted, has appeared continuously for longer as the same soap character.

Answer: Little Eva

Eva Narcissus Boyd was born in North Carolina in 1943. It was as 'Little Eva' (a character in Harriet Beecher Stowe's 'Uncle Tom's Cabin') that she achieved fame with the release of the 1962 hit single 'The Loco-motion'. The single was written specifically for her by Carole King and Gerry Coffin, for whom she had worked as a maid and babysitter. She was diagnosed with cervical cancer in 2001 and died aged 59 on April 10 2003.
The alternatives all died in 1999... Singer Dusty Springfield OBE was born Mary Isabel Catherine Bernadette O'Brien in London in 1939. She died of breast cancer aged 59 on March 2 1999, just 10 days before her induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Violin virtuoso Yehudi Menuhin was born in New York City in 1916. He acquired British citizenship in 1985 and was awarded a Life Peerage in 1993, when he took the name Lord Menuhin of Stoke d'Abernon. He died aged 82 in Berlin, Germany on March 12 1999.
Jazz Saxophonist Grover Washington jnr was born in Buffalo NY in 1943. He died of a heart attack aged 56 on December 17 1999.

Answer: 'Deep Space Nine'

'Star Trek: Deep Space Nine' premiered on January 3 1993. The seventh and last season closed with Episode #176, which was first broadcast on June 2 1999. 'DS9' was a spin-off from 'The Next Generation', and began while 'TNG' was still running. There were numerous crossover episodes and two main 'TNG' characters, Lieutenant Worf (Michael Dorn) and Engineer Miles O'Brien (Colm Meaney) became regular members of the 'DS9' cast. Michael Dorn has appeared in more episodes within the 'Star Trek' franchise than any other actor. Of the alternatives, 'The Next Generation' first appeared in 1987. 178 episodes spanned seven seasons and the series ended in May 1994. 'Voyager' debuted two years after 'DS9', in January 1995.

It also survived for seven seasons, with the 172nd and final episode broadcast in May 2001. 'Enterprise' was introduced in September 2001.

Its relatively short run of only four seasons (98 episodes) came to and end in May 2005. Note that all four spin-off series lasted longer than 'Star Trek: The Original Series', of which there are only 79 episodes (three seasons).

Answer: Rachel Weisz

Rachel Weisz won the 2005 Supporting Actress Oscar for her performance opposite Ralph Fiennes in 'The Constant Gardner'. Born in London in 1970, 'The Mummy' and the 2001 sequel, 'The Mummy Returns', were her first starring roles. Brendan Fraser ('Crash' and 'George of the Jungle') co-starred with South African Arnold Vosloo playing the title role. In 2002, Weisz co-starred with Hugh Grant in the adaptation of Nick Hornby's 'About a Boy'.
The alternatives are three more winners of the Best Supporting Actress Oscar: Jennifer Connelly won in 2001 for 'A Beautiful Mind', Jennifer Hudson in 2006 for 'Dreamgirls', and Penelope Cruz in 2008 for 'Vicky Cristina Barcelona'.

Answer: Raymond Burr

Raymond William Stacey Burr was born in British Columbia, Canada in 1917. He appeared in more than 60 films in the decade following WWII. It was on the small screen that he achieved fame, though, first in the title role of the courtroom drama 'Perry Mason', which ran from 1957-1966, and then as the wheelchair-bound detective in 'Ironside' (1967-1975). Burr died of cancer aged 76 in September 1993.
Of the alternatives, Ernie Wise, the surviving half of the comedy duo 'Morecombe & Wise', died aged 73 on March 21 1999. The partnership that is probably Britain's best-loved double-act of all time lasted more than four decades, from 1941 until Morecombe's death in 1984.
The performance by DeForest Kelley as Dr Leonard 'Bones' McCoy in the 1991 film 'Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country' completed a 25-year involvement with the franchise. Born in January 1920, Kelley was the oldest of the main cast members in 'Star Trek: The Original Series'. James 'Scotty' Doohan was younger than Kelley by only about six weeks, but all of the others were at least 10 years younger. Kelley died of stomach cancer aged 79 on June 11 1999. He was the first of the main 'TOS' cast to die.
William John Owen Rowbotham MBE was born in 1914. Although his film career began in 1945, it was only in the 1970s that he became widely known. He first played the character of Compo Simmonite in 1973. He continued to portray the scruffy, working-class pensioner in the old woolen hat until his death at the age of 85 on July 12 1999. At 27 years, 'Last of the Summer Wine' is the world's longest-running comedy series.