Celebrate Good Times, Come On! Quiz

Answer: Benjamin Franklin

Benjamin Franklin was born on January 17, 1706. One of his sayings was "If you would not be forgotten, as soon as you are dead and rotten, either write things worth reading, or do things worth the writing." Ben was a scientist, discovering electricity with the famous kite/key event.

He was an inventor, creating bifocals to improve vision. As a statesman, he helped to create the Declaration of Independence in 1776 and the Constitution in 1787, among many other contributions. Ben was a printer, and set up his own printing shop with his famous newspaper called "The Pennsylvania Gazette" as well as having created a yearly publication called "Poor Richard's Almanack". Mr. Franklin was also a musician showing his talent by playing several instruments such as the guitar, harp and also the violin.

He even built his own glass harmonica, which made beautiful tones of music by touching the edge of the spinning glass with damp fingers. As an economist, Franklin helped to create and establish the system of American paper currency.

Answer: Pluto

Pluto orbits the sun and lies beyond Neptune. There is a lot of debate on whether or not to class Pluto as an actual planet since Pluto is smaller than our solar system's other planets. As a result of this debate, Pluto has been classified as a "dwarf planet".

There are seven moons in our solar system that are actually larger than Pluto is. Through scientific study, it was decided that Pluto was too small to create orbital discrepancies between other planets so the search for another planet continues, with plenty of doubt that there even is another planet beyond. Pluto has a moon named Charon, which was discovered in 1978.

Answer: Dr. Seuss

Theodor Geisel (Dr. Seuss) lived from 1904 to 1991. Dr. Seuss wrote a collection of forty-six children's books selling more than two hundred million copies. He created so many wonderful characters and has been quoted as saying, "If I were invited to a dinner party with my characters, I wouldn't show up." Geisel was not only an author of children's books.

He also was a political cartoonist. He was an illustrator for advertisements and a documentary filmmaker too. It is amazing to learn that his first book "And To Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street" (1937) was rejected by publishers twenty-eight times. Eventually Random House published this book and Dr. Seuss' popularity soared.

Answer: False

April first is known as April Fool's Day, in some parts of the world. It's a time for playing harmless pranks and jokes on friends and loved ones. Thomas Jefferson's birthday is celebrated on April 13. He was born in 1743 and was the third President of the United States from 1801 to 1809. Earth Day is celebrated on April twenty-second and was first started by Senator Gaylord Nelson to force the need for an Environmental Protection Agency to combat air and water pollution.

Answer: Mother's Day

Mother's Day is celebrated in the U.K. in March and is called Mothering Sunday. Here in the U.S. and in Canada, the second Sunday in May is the time for honoring our moms. Mothers have been celebrated for centuries with such women as Rhea (the mother or the Gods) in Greece, Mary (mother of Christ) and more moms. Eventually this celebration expanded to include all mothers.

In the US, Julia Ward Howe contributed to the establishment of what we now call Mother's Day. In December of 1912 the Mother's Day International Association was developed and promoted the need for an observance to be devoted to mothers. On the ninth of May, 1914 there was a Presidential proclamation declaring the second Sunday of May as Mother's Day.

This custom quickly spread throughout the United States, Mexico, Canada, South America, Japan, Africa and also China.

Although the dates of celebration may vary, according to country and custom, Mother's Day is a worldwide celebration dedicated to mothers.

Answer: Baseball

The Baseball Hall of Fame opened on June 12, 1939 in Cooperstown, New York. Ten candidates were to be selected as inductees into the hall of fame. There were one hundred and eight possible candidates. Since the opening such greats as Lou Gehrig, Jackie Robinson, Stan Musial, Ted Williams, Sandy Koufax, Bob Feller, Willie Mays, Carl Yastrzemski and more have been inducted.

Answer: Amelia Earhart

Amelia Earhart was born on July 24, 1887 in Atchison, Kansas, U.S.A. By 1921 she had completed flying lessons and purchased her first aircraft, the Kinner Airster. In 1922 she set an unofficial flying altitude record for women. This altitude was 14,000 feet.

She purchased a Lockheed Vega aircraft in 1929 and went on to compete in the Women's Air Derby. She finished in third place. Earhart set a women's world flying speed of 181.18 miles per hour in 1930. She won the Harmon Trophy as America's Outstanding Airwoman in 1932 and won this award three years in a row.

In 1937 she completed a trip across the U.S. from east to west in fifteen hours and forty-seven minutes. In a second attempt to fly solo around the world she set out from Miami, Florida in June and disappeared near Howland Island on July 2, 1937. Howland Island is a coral island just north of the equator in the Pacific Ocean and is about 1800 miles southwest of Honolulu, Hawaii.

Answer: Steve Guttenberg

Steve Guttenberg was born on August 24, 1958 in Brooklyn, New York, US. He has appeared in many movies including "Cocoon" (1985), "Short Circuit" (1986), as well as the sequels to the "Police Academy" theme. Besides acting, Guttenberg has been very involved in charity work.

His aim being to improve life and opportunity for youth and for the homeless. He created Guttenhouse, which is an apartment complex for youth after they leave foster care and are making the transition into self-sufficient adults.

Answer: Chapman

John Chapman, also known as "Johnny Appleseed", spent an amazing forty-nine years planting apple seeds in the wilderness of America. He was born in Massachusetts and began creating orchards in Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Kentucky and also in Pennsylvania.

His dream was to prevent hunger by having apple trees everywhere for everyone. It isn't known where his body is buried, having died on March 18, 1845. He was a lover of nature and animals, acting as a missionary spreading the word of the Swedenborgian gospel to adults in return for a place to sleep for the night, and some food in his belly.

Besides celebrating Chapman's birthday as "Johnny Appleseed Day", in some places it is celebrated on March eleventh instead of September twenty-sixth because that is planting season.

Answer: Halloween

Halloween is celebrated on October 31st in many parts of the world. Children will dress in assorted costumes, people will decorate their homes and yards and treats are handed out. Pumpkins are carved into Jack-o'-lanterns with spooky faces. The roots of Halloween lie in the Celtic festival called Samhain and also the Christian holiday called All Saints' Day. Over time symbols, decorations and traditions have evolved, individually according to preferences and customs, in various nations of the world.

Answer: Eleventh

Armistice Day received its name in the US in 1926 and was made into an official holiday in 1938. But not long afterward, WWII broke out destroying the hopes of world peace after "the war to end all wars", WWI. In 1968 the holiday name was changed to Veterans Day and was to be celebrated on the fourth Monday in October. Due to the history of November eleventh, the date was returned to November eleventh in 1978. In Canada the holiday is called Remembrance Day.

The history of November eleventh lies in the burial of unknown soldiers in such places as Arlington National Cemetery, Westminster Abbey and the Arc de Triomphe. Worldwide celebrations for the end of WWI were celebrated at eleven o'clock in the morning. Although the actual date varies from country to country and the name of the holiday varies as well, the celebration and respect is felt all over the world for our fallen military men.

Answer: Annie Lennox

Annie Lennox came into the world on December twenty-fifth, 1954. She was born in Aberdeen, Scotland and has been a member of the Eurythmics duo. Some of her more famous songs include "Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)" (1983), "Here comes the Rain Again" (1984) and "There Must Be an Angel (Playing with My Heart)" (1993).

As a solo artist, she released great singles such as "Why" (1992) and "Walking on Broken Glass" (1992). Her vocals are a very clear and distinctive contralto. She was named as "The Greatest White Soul Singer Alive" by VH1 (Video Hits One). Annie Lennox was also named as one of the 100 Greatest Singers of All Time, by "Rolling Stone".

She studied at the Royal Academy of Music in London, England, learning to play the flute as well as classical music.

In 2010, she won the Harper's Bazaar Lifetime Achievement Award.

Answer: No

Easter is a celebration of the resurrection of Christ in Christian scriptures. As an unfixed civil calendar holiday, Easter's date is moveable, hugely based on the full moon after the first day of spring. Since the full moon is not always on the same date, the date of Easter falls between March twenty-second and April twenty-fifth. Easter is also linked to the Jewish feast of the Passover because of symbolism and where the Passover falls on the calendar.

Answer: Family Day

The holiday, known as Family Day, occurs on the same date as Presidents Day in the US, being the third Monday in February. Family Day is called Louis Riel Day in the province of Manitoba. Prince Edward Islanders call this date Islander Day. Alberta was the only province to regard Family Day as a statutory holiday, meaning that most people had the day off, until Saskatchewan followed suit in 2007.

Answer: The Bee Gees

Written by Barry and Robin Gibb, "Holiday" was released in the US in 1967. "Holiday" was also included on the Bee Gees' album "Best of the Bee Gees" (1969). "Holiday" also was featured in "Nowhere to Hide" (1999), which was a South Korean film. For more than thirty years, "Holiday" was included in the set lists when the Bee Gees performed worldwide.