Cool Zooms, Part I Trivia Quiz

Answer: Dr Doolittle

Doctor Doolittle is the main character in a series of books of Hugh Lofting. His first appearance was in 'The Story of Doctor Doolittle' in 1920, where we learn that the doctor prefers looking after animals to humans. John Doolittle finds he can talk to the animals, and his adventures begin.

Numerous adaptations have been made, including animations, movies, stage productions and video games.

Leith90 was told to write this question by her cat.

Answer: New York City, USA

Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson was born in 1964 in the Upper East Side of Manhattan, New York City. The family moved to England the following year but relocated back to Washington DC in 1966. They would return to England again, in 1969. He would study at Eton and become President of the Oxford Union before securing a job with London's Daily Telegraph. In 2001 he was elected MP for Henley, served as a junior shadow minister under David Cameron and would be elected Mayor of London in 2008. Re-elected as Mayor in 2012 he oversaw the city's running of the 2012 Olympic Games, introduced the New Routemaster buses and was at the forefront of the campaign that would lead to the banning of alcohol consumption on London's public transport systems. He would become Prime Minister of the United Kingdom in 2019.

Phoenix Rising's pollucci19 was not elected to write this question, he simply managed to grab it while no one was looking.

Answer: Switzerland

Rossini's 'William Tell' is based on the play of the same name by the German author Friedrich Schiller and the Swiss folk legend about the eponymous character. It is set in the 14th century during the period where Switzerland was under the control of the Habsburg Empire and is about Tell and his compatriots' fight for their nation's freedom. The famous apple scene also makes an appearance when Gesler, the Austrian governor, forces Tell to choose between shooting an apple from his son Jemmy's head or both of them being killed anyway.

The most famous music from the opera is probably its overture, the final part of which - 'The March of the Swiss Soldiers' - was used as the theme for 'The Lone Ranger'.

This question was shot into the quiz by Fifiona81.

Answer: Hong Kong

First built in 1845 on drained rice paddies, and to satisfy the horse racing needs of the local British population, the race course is situated on Hong Kong Island within the Happy Valley area. This is one of two tracks run and administered by the Hong Kong Jockey Club; the other is Sha Tin. The Jockey Club has a legal monopoly on wagering on the many hundreds of horse races held at Happy Valley each year. Profits are distributed to local charities and to support community activities.

Question provided by MikeMaster99 who thought this might be his only opportunity to interact with this sport without losing his money!

Answer: C

Importantly, the question asked for the letter "alphabetically" not numerically. If it had been the latter then the answer would have been "I", representing the number one. The easiest way to attack this question would have been to start with the letter "A"... is there a Roman numeral represented by "A"? (No). OK then, is there a Roman numeral represented by "B"? (No). "C" then... ahh yes, "C" represents the number 100.

This question was produced by Phoenix Rising's pollucci19 who would love to see himself live to be a hundred. (PS) The pun was intended.

Answer: A bus

Released in 1994, 'The Adventures of Priscilla: Queen of the Desert' is a quirky comedy about a couple of drag queens and a transgender woman on a trek to Alice Springs to perform a show. Before their trip from Sydney to the outback, Adam Whitely, aka, Felicia Jollygoodfellow, played by Guy Pearce, names their bus 'Priscilla. Queen of the Desert' and christens her with a bottle of champagne.

The movie has become a cult classic in Australia, to the extent that a replica of the bus, complete with stiletto on the roof, paraded around the arena at the closing ceremony of the Sydney 2000 Olympics.

This question was dragged out of the mind of leith90, who makes no apologies for it.

Answer: 9

For the recent additions of Hawaii and Alaska, a new 50-star flag, designed by Bob Heft, was first raised above Fort McHenry (Baltimore, MD) on July 4, 1960. The stars are arranged with five rows of six stars staggered with four rows of five stars.

Phoenix Rising member mike32768 managed to hoist up this question, even though he generates waves with his poor ability to follow directions.

Answer: Fencing

Fencing is the sport where two competitors attempt to score points by successfully touching their opponent with the tip of their sword and first appeared in the Olympic Games in 1896. It developed as a sport during the 18th and 19th centuries when swordsmanship became a popular pastime for upper class men rather than required knowledge for going into battle. The rules governing the sport were originally developed in Italy although the French school of fencing became more prominent in the 19th century, a fact that probably explains why some of the key terms and instructions are still commonly given in French. A bout begins with the two fencers being told to be "En garde!" (on guard), then asked if they are "Prets?" (ready), before finally being given the instruction "Allez!" (go).

Cette question est entrée dans le quiz avec l'aide de Fifiona81 (et Google Translate).

Answer: Flightless parrot found in New Zealand

The kakapo (Strigops habroptilus), also called the 'night parrot' and 'owl parrot' is a ground-dwelling, flightless bird from New Zealand. The International Union for Conservation of Nature has them listed as critically endangered, with the population dropping as low as 49 individuals. Genetic mapping and transfer to predator-free islands are aimed at building numbers. The kakapo is nocturnal and an excellent tree climber. Ground nesting makes it extremely vulnerable to feral cats.

This question was squawked in by Phoenix Rising Team member MikeMaster99.

Answer: Yogi Berra

There is a fierce rivalry between the American League New York Yankees and the National League's New York Mets. It is rare for a player to represent both in his career. Lawrence Peter (Yogi) Berra played 19 seasons (1946-1963, 1965), most for the New York Yankees, the last with the Mets. In 1964, he was the Yankees' manger but becoming the coach and player for the Mets in 1965, staying on as their manager until 1976 when he returned to the Yankees as coach or manager. In 1986, he coached the Houston Astros for four seasons before retiring. Mr Berra was as a player, coach or manager in every one of the 13 World Series that New York City baseball teams won from 1947 to 1981 inclusive.

He was almost as famous for his malapropisms and paradoxical statements such as, "I really didn't say everything I said". Exactly.

The question was pitched by Phoenix Rising player 1nn1 who ticked two bucket list items in one trip with a Yankee Stadium match in the Bronx and a trip to the Yogi Berra Museum in New Jersey.

Answer: Charles de Gaulle

Charles de Gaulle was a wartime hero for France. After WWII, France struggled with its government oversight. M de Gaulle came out of retirement to establish a new government after the Fourth Republic was dissolved. He and a cabinet ruled by decree until he was elected, in 1958, president in what was to become the Fifth Republic of France. His quote is a reference to the many different regions and cultures within France. However he succeeded in uniting the country and became one of France's most revered citizens.

This question was écrit par Phoenix Rising team member 1nn1, a known Francophile.

Answer: Donald Pleasence (The Forger)

The Great Escape film was based on Paul Brickhill's 1950 nonfiction story of a mass escape from a German POW camp. It was a very loose account - for example the film featured several Americans, though in reality there were none among the escapees.

In the film, Flight Lieutenant Colin Blythe (The Forger), played by Donald Pleasence, suffered from advancing and severe loss of vision and was to be denied participation in the escape. His good friend, Flight Lieutenant Hendley (The Scrounger), played by James Garner, insisted on taking him along even though it would be risky to travel with him.

Steve McQueen played Captain Virgil Hilts (The Cooler King), known for his numerous escape attempts and subsequent lockups in the camp prison (the cooler).

James Coburn was Flying Officer Louis Sedgwick (The Manufacturer), and handy at building things.

Charles Bronson played Polish RAF officer Flight Lieutenant Danny Velinski (The Tunnel King). Somewhat ironically, the tunnel king was claustrophobic.


Phoenix Rising member mike32768 quickly stepped forward to volunteer for the mission of creating this question - it's one of his favorite movies, regardless of its deviation from reality.

Answer: Hastier

"Sheriat" is canonical law in the Islamic faith based on the Quran and other religious Islamic sources. It defines the religious and secular duties of a Muslim and prescribes penalties for wrongdoing. In Muslim-majority countries, sheriat law often complements the legal framework.

"Sheriat" is alternatively spelt as "sharia" or "syariah".

This question was lawfully drawn up by Phoenix Rising team member purelyqing.

Answer: Playing cards

In fact, Nintendo still make these cards, and even have a Mario version. Though not their main means of making money, the company produces the cards as a kind of 'tip of the hat' to their history. The original cards were all handmade.

The name of the particular cards produced by Nintendo is 'Hanafuda' meaning 'flower cards'. Decorated with floral motifs, the deck consists of 12 suits (months), each of 4 cards. Each of the four cards in the suit is slightly different, and the suits are represent by plants such as willow, chrysanthemum, peony, wisteria and cherry blossom. While the Hanafuda cards were slow to catch on, once the Yakuza started using them in their gaming venues, the cards became very popular.

This question was dealt to you by Phoenix Rising member VegemiteKid.

Answer: Kurt Russell

The 1979 made-for-television film "Elvis" was directed by John Carpenter and starred Kurt Russell as the "King of Rock and Roll". Filmed in just 30 days, and released two years after Presley's death, the biopic scored higher on the television ratings than "Gone With the Wind" and "One Flew over the Cuckoo's Nest" which showed on different networks.

Kurt Russell acted with Elvis Presley in the 1963 "It Happened at the World Fair", then later lent his voice as Elvis in "Forrest Gump" and was an Elvis impersonator in the 2001 movie "3000 Miles to Graceland".

Leith90 belted out this question, despite the fact that she can't sing.

Answer: Richard

Michael Richard Pence was born in 1959, in Columbus, Indiana. He was selected as the 48th Vice President of the United States, succeeding Joe Biden, and assumed office in January 2017. Prior to this role he'd been the 50th Governor of Indiana.

This question was inaugurated by Phoenix Rising team member purelyqing.

Answer: Matthias

The New International Version of the Bible in Acts 1:18 states "With the payment he received for his wickedness, Judas bought a field; there he fell headlong, his body burst open and all his intestines spilled out." and Acts 1:21-22 "Therefore it is necessary to choose one of the men who have been with us the whole time the Lord Jesus was living among us, beginning from John's baptism to the time when Jesus was taken up from us. For one of these must become a witness with us of his resurrection.". The selection was narrowed down to two men: Joseph called Barsabbas (also known as Justus) and Matthias. After praying the apostles cast lots and Matthias was selected.

Although offered the job as the 12th apostle, Phoenix Rising member lg549 turned it down and settled for just writing this question about the events.

Answer: New South Wales

Much of the border including that at Cameron Corner between Queensland, South Australia and New South Wales lies along the Dingo Fence that runs for more than 5,600 km (3,480 mi) throughout much of Australia. Interestingly, because Cameron Corner is located in three states in three different time zones, New Year's Eve is celebrated at three different times at locations extremely close together.

This question was cornered into the quiz by Phoenix Rising team member Triviaballer.

Answer: Joseph Heller

Chief White Halfoat is a Native American, who joins the Army as a last resort. He is an assistant intelligence officer, who is illiterate. Doc Daneeka is the camp's doctor and shares a tent with the chief. That is the only thing that they share, as they hate each other.

Captain 'Aarfy' Aardvark is a navigator who seems to be too dumb to realise that war is dangerous. Hungry Joe is a pilot who knows only too well what war is about. He ends up being suffocated by his tentmate's cat, who liked to sleep on Joe's face.

Major ___ de Coverly is a bit of a mystery. His demeanour is so terrifying that nobody is game enough to ask his first name. He spends much of the war tossing horseshoes.

The book that these, and many more, interesting characters come from is the anti-war satirical novel, 'Catch 22', published in 1961.

This question may, or may not, have been brought to you by ozzz2002.

Answer: Merry Christmas

Neil Papworth was part of the team developing a Short Message Service Centre (SMSC) for Vodafone UK and was chosen to install and test the software. Initially the idea was for it to be used essentially as a paging service.

Since mobile phones didn't yet have keyboards, he typed the message out on a PC. Richard Jarvis was enjoying his office Christmas party at the time he received the message.

This question was texted in by Phoenix Rising member lg549.