Same Role/Different Actor Trivia Quiz

Answer: The A-Team

John 'Hannibal' Smith was the head of "The A-Team". The plot revolved around a group of former 'special forces' soldiers, i.e., in the Vietnam (TV)/Iraq War (film) veterans who escaped from a military prison, having been incarcerated for a crime they didn't commit (of course!).

The team included Hannibal, Face, B.A. Baracus and Murdock; they somehow always found time to help the 'little guy' from the big, bad bully before they went on the run again. The TV show which ran from (1983-1987) featured George Peppard as Hannibal, while the 2010 movie starred Liam Neeson.

Answer: Dukes of Hazzard

Seann William Scott and John Schneider both played the part of Bo Duke. Scott was in the "Dukes of Hazzard" movie in 2005, while Schneider played opposite Tom Wopat (as cousin Luke Duke) in the long-running TV series (1979-1985). They were "just some good old boys, never meaning no harm", yet they were always getting into trouble in rural Hazzard County, usually being chased by the police in their red Dodge Charger, the General Lee.

Answer: The Fugitive

Dr. Richard Kimble was accused of murdering his beloved wife in "The Fugitive". The 1993 movie starred the wonderful Harrison Ford in the role of the wrongfully accused man. Creator Roy Huggins gave us the TV series first (1963-1967) with the same plot, starring the enigmatic David Janssen as the 'man-on-the-run', determined to find his wife's killer, i.e., 'the one-armed man".

In both cases, Kimble was being hunted by an almost obsessive lawman named Gerard; for some reason, in the movie his first name was Samuel, on TV it was Philip.

Answer: Clueless

"Clueless" was a coming-of-age movie loosely based on Jane Austen's 1815 novel, "Emma". Alicia Silverstone played the lead role of shallow, rich Cherilyn 'Cher' Horowitz in the 1995 movie, set in the properly superficial city of Beverly Hills, California. "As if!" The TV show (1996-1999) featured Rachel Blanchard as the stylish, match-making Cher, going through the trials and tribulations of adolescence.

Answer: Get Smart

Did you miss it "by that much"? Maxwell Smart first appeared as the lead character on the TV show "Get Smart" (1965-1970). At the time, spy movies were all the rage, e.g., James Bond and Derek Flint. This comedy turned these serious, action-packed films on their head. Smart, not so much, had a shoe phone and a 'Cone of Silence'.

The show was both ground-breaking and hilarious, as Agent 99 from CONTROL fought the forces of KAOS. In 2008, someone decided to capitalize on the TV show's popularity and made "Get Smart" into a film, with Steve Carell (of "The Office") as Agent 86, this time fighting Russian terrorists. Again, not so smart!

Answer: M.A.S.H.

I think most of us 'old-timers' are familiar with Dr. Benjamin Franklin 'Hawkeye' Pierce from the TV show "M.A.S.H." (1972-1983), set at the front during the Korean War (and lasting longer than the actual war!). The adventures of the doctors and staff at the 4077th mobile army surgical hospital ranged from melancholy to merry - an amazing feat.

The TV show was based on Robert Altman's 1970 movie with Donald Sutherland (President Snow) originating the role of Captain Pierce.

Answer: Miami Vice

Who could forget Jan Wenner's stylish theme song for the TV crime drama "Miami Vice" (1984-1990)? And speaking of stylish, the clothes worn by Crockett and Tubbs set the standard for the decade. Crockett and Tubbs dealt with the lightweight clothing, the 'dark' themes and a crocodile named Elvis. Detective Ricardo 'Rico' Tubbs was played by Philip Michael Thomas. Has anyone seen him recently? The "Miami Vice" movie was released in 2006, with Jamie Foxx playing Ricardo Tubbs, dealing with an assault on those he loves.

Answer: Buffy the Vampire Slayer

The character of Buffy Summers, vampire slayer extraodinaire, could be found originally in the 1992 movie called "Buffy the Vampire Slayer". In the film, our heroine was portrayed by Kristy Swanson, who later appeared on the TV show "Psych". But the bigger, better more popular Buffy was introduced to us five years later on the TV show "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" (1997-2003); coincidence, I don't think so! This time Sarah Michelle Gellar is chosen as the one who must slay the demons and vampires of Sunnydale (ironic, eh?), all while going through the pains of adolescence.

Answer: Wild, Wild West

You have a good, well-written TV show called "The Wild, Wild West" (1965-1969) starring Robert Conrad and Ross Martin, and you wait 30 years to turn it into a rotten film; my question is why? The TV show was about two Secret Service agents who work for the government (think low-budget Bond in the USA).

The agents work for President Grant on a private train outfitted to fight evil. Jim West plays the handsome lead 'G-Man', while Ross Martin is Artemus Gordon, gadget-maker and master of disguise. Three decades later, Barry Sonnenfeld gives a movie version with Will Smith as West and Kevin Kline as Gordon. Again, why?

Answer: Bewitched

I used to love the witch Samantha Stevens, as played by Elizabeth Montgomery on "Bewitched" (1964-1972). I can still hear the theme song in my head. Although no one else has made the connection, I think she may have begun the seeds of the feminist revolution - a woman who could change things with just a twitch of her nose.

She even twitched her husband into someone else, and we were not supposed to notice. In the next century, i.e., 2005 to be exact, Nora Ephron (whom I admired greatly) chose to update the comedy in the movie of the same name; this time with Nicole Kidman as Isabel/Samantha. Too bad!