Black Is The Color! Trivia Quiz

Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. An old Celtic folk song begins slowly, "Black is the color of my true love's..." what?

Answer: Hair

The song is often sung as slowly as a dirge, but it is a love song. "Black is the color of my true love's hair, Her lips are like some roses fair, She's got the sweetest smile and the gentlest hands, And I love the ground on which she stands."
There are several variations on the lyrics and 'my true love' can be male or female.
The origin is thought to be in Scotland, though some think it came from Appalachia. Joan Baez, Nina Simone, Sinead O'Connor and Celtic Thunder, among others, have recorded it. The best renditions of the song are generally those with one person singing and one or no instrumental accompaniment.

2. This Led Zeppelin song was released as a single with "Misty Mountain Hop" on the B side. What's the name?

Answer: Black Dog

"Hey hey mama said the way you move..." Robert Plant belted it out with his amazing vocal range, and it became a hit all over, making many top 100/500/1000 R&R song lists. The song was recorded at Headley Grange studios, England, where a black Labrador, nameless and on his own, wandered about at the time (1971). The song had nothing to do with the dog, of course.
"Paint It Black" was a Rolling Stones hit with a catchy Arabian melody.

3. What is the nickname of the U.S. police van used for picking up suspected criminals?

Answer: Black Maria

The name has also been used for an anthology of drawings by Charles Addams, a 1991 novel by Diana Wynne Jones, a book of poetry by Kevin Young, an American racehorse, a song by Todd Rundgren, a Canadian rock band, a fighter aircraft and a film studio created by Thomas Edison.

4. Shakespeare's sonnet 147 has an angry tone and ends "...For I have sworn thee fair, and thought thee bright, Who art as black as hell, as dark as night." To whom is this thought to be addressed?

Answer: The Dark Lady

In this sonnet Shakespeare describes his own love as a fever, and is obviously angry with the person addressed, but there has never been a conclusive answer to the question of who it was except for the speculation that the last ten or so sonnets were for his 'Dark Lady'.

5. What became the name ascribed to Elizabeth Short after her grisly murder in 1947?

Answer: Black Dahlia

Her body was found in Leimert Park, L.A., CA. She had been cut in half at the waist and her mouth mutilated by a knife. The body was also 'posed'. Because of the sensational aspects of the crime, the scene was trampled by the press and others who were more interested in the lurid details than in the killer being caught. Elizabeth had not yet reached her 23rd birthday when she died. Though there were many false confessions, her killer has never been found.

6. When the band Black Sabbath were being formed, they may have taken their name from which source?

Answer: Boris Karloff horror film

After tossing their former name, 'Earth' (another band was using it), they were supposedly inspired by a movie marquee advertising the 1963 horror film. Black Sabbath were known as 'doom metal' and have been named by MTV as the greatest metal band of all time. VH1 ranks them at second place after Led Zeppelin.

They have sold over 70 million records worldwide and entered the U.K. Music Hall of Fame in 2005, and the U.S. Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2006.

7. Which of these was a dance craze in the U.S. before the depression era?

Answer: Black Bottom

The Black Bottom was a dance that started around 1919 and went through various changes. It was something like the Lindy and the Charleston mixed with boogie-woogie, and was the rage in the flapper era. It involved some fancy footwork and agility to avoid being kicked by one's partner.

8. "The Black Shield of Falworth" is often cited as the film in which an American actor delivers a line in a strong New York accent. Which actor actually said this line in a different film?

Answer: Tony Curtis in "Son of Ali Baba"

The line in "Son of Ali Baba" is "This is the palace of my father, and yonder lies the Valley of the Sun."

9. Who, in British history, was known as "The Black Prince"?

Answer: Edward, Duke of Cornwall

The eldest son of King Edward III and Philippa of Hainaut, Edward was born in 1330 and died in 1376. During his lifetime he was prominent in many important battles and was a cunning strategist. He was probably called the Black Prince because he wore black armor.

He held many titles and was the first duke in England. Edward wed his cousin, Joan, the 'fair maid of Kent', and was the father of King Richard II.

10. The character 'Black Peter' is associated with which European country's Christmas traditions?

Answer: Netherlands

'Zwarte Piet' is the helper, and sometimes slave, of Sinterklaas (Santa Claus). Piet arrives by boat from Spain in the first week of December. He is greeted by a parade, and gives out sweets and entertainment for children, often visiting schools and stores. His role expanded in the 20th century where multiple Piets emerged, such as 'Hoofd Piet', the Head Peter and 'Rijm Piet', the Rhyme Peter.
Zwarte Piet is traditionally dressed as a Moorish page, and it may be he who determines which children have been good or bad.
The origin of the tradition may be from Scandinavian mythology, as the 'Wild Hunt of Wodan (Odin)' where he was accompanied by his two ravens, Huginn and Muninn, Thought and Memory. The ravens listened in at chimneys and reported to Odin who in each household was good or bad.
Piet might also portray an evil figure converted to good or enslaved for the good by Sinterklaas.

Source: Author alexis722

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor LeoDaVinci before going online.
Any errors found in FunTrivia content are routinely corrected through our feedback system.

Black is really the absence of color. But there are so many shades and hues of black that we think of it as one. Here's a mixture of black shades. Enjoy!

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