Puppet on a String Trivia Quiz

Answer: Gerry Anderson

Gerry Anderson's first puppet production was "The Adventures of Twizzle" in 1957, and over the next thirty years he produced several more shows of this genre. During this time he also created several space-themed real-life shows such as "UFO" (1969) and "Space: 1999" (1975). In 2005 a computer-animated sequel to "Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons" was released. Called "Gerry Anderson's New Captain Scarlet" it cost ₤23 million to produce.
Gerry was made a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in 2001.

Answer: The Goatherd Song

In the movie, the puppet performance is put on for the children's father, with Maria (Julie Andrews) singing the song. The puppetry in the show was performed by master puppeteers Bil Baird and Cora Eisenberg.

In the stage production of 1959, Maria sings the "Goatherd Song" to comfort the children during a thunderstorm, whilst other productions have the song at fairs or a concert.

Answer: Pinocchio

Pinocchio was a fictional character first created in 1883 by Italian writer, Carlo Collodi. "Pinocchio" is a wooden puppet made by a lonely carver, and is brought to life by a fairy. In order to become a real boy, Pinocchio, with the help of his conscience, Jiminy Cricket, must learn to be "brave, truthful and unselfish".
Walt Disney released "Pinocchio" as an animated movie in 1940.

Answer: Mr Squiggle

Mr Squiggle is a marionette with blue hair and a pencil for a nose. Once a show he flies down from his home on the moon to draw pictures from squiggles sent in by children. Inevitably they were drawn wrong way up and Mr Squiggle would jump around saying "upside down". Over the course of the show he was aided by one of several female assistants, and the bad tempered blackboard whose catch cry was "hurry up!"
The show first screened in 1959, and continued until 1999.

Answer: Howdy Doody

Howdy Doody was a pioneer in children's television, and was created and produced by Roger Muir.
Buffalo Bob not only provided the voice of Howdy Doody, he was the host of the show as well. Other puppets on the show included Heidi Doody (Howdy's sister), Dilly Dally and Flub-a-dub. Other human characters included Clarabell the Clown, who never spoke until the final episode, and Chief Thunderthud.
The original Howdy Doody marionette is on display at the Detroit Institute of Arts.

Answer: Andy Pandy

Originally only twenty-six fifteen-minute episodes were made, but they were shown repeatedly on television for twenty years! In 1970, new episodes were filmed, this time in colour. In 2002, a new series of Andy Pandy was made, although with the advances in technology, the new Andy was not a puppet. Stop-motion engineering, like that used to create "Wallace and Gromit" and 'The Nightmare Before Christmas" brought Andy Pandy to life.

Answer: Thunderbirds

"Thunderbirds" was an Anderson production, which first screened in the U.K. from 1964. Although only 32 50-minute episodes were made, the series has had a resurgence in its popularity since 1991 when the series was re-screened.

The series has spawned spin-offs in the form of two puppet movies: "Thunderbirds Are Go" (1966) and "Thunderbird 6" (1968); a live stage show called "Thunderbirds FAB" (1984); books, video games and extensive merchandising. A live-action "Thunderbirds" movie (2004) promised much but delivered little, to the disappointment of fans worldwide. Possibly, had Gerry Anderson had been involved, it would have stayed true to the original series and therefore may have been a bigger hit.

Answer: Diet Coke

Diet Coke's "Love it Light" campaign features three fashion magazine workers: Eleanor, Bernadette and Irene dancing to "She's a Maniac" from the 1983 movie, "Flashdance".
Diet Coke hired London ad shop "Mother" to create the catchy ad that screens in Canada, Australia, New Zealand and Europe.

Answer: Team America: World Police

"South Park" creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone got the inspiration for "Team America: World Police" after watching an episode of "Thunderbirds" on television, but it took them two and a half years before the idea became a reality. Unlike "Thunderbirds" where the creators tried (rather unsuccessfully) to hide the strings, Parker and Stone accented them.
In true "South Park" style where nothing is sacred, "Team America" satirists politics, terrorism, the musical "Rent", and several Hollywood stars including George Clooney, Alec Baldwin and Matt Damon.

Answer: Bill and Ben

"Bill and Ben, The Flowerpot Men", the brainchild of Freda Lingstrom and Maria Bird, first screened in Britain in the 1950s, with a second series made in 2001. Bill and Ben live behind a shed in a garden with their friend Little Weed, who looks like a mixture of a sunflower and a dandelion. Each week a small mishap would occur and the narrator would ask, "Was it Bill? Or was it Ben?"
Peter Hawkins, who voiced the Daleks from "Doctor Who" created the language spoken by the two flowerpot men, which sounded very much like gibberish.
A major change in the 2002 series involved Little Weed, who went from only saying "weeeeeed" in the first series to speaking English in the second, and helping Bill and Ben in their adventures.