Five Hundred Quizzes And Other Gallimaufry

Answer: D

In this modern world, Roman numerals are still used, often for decorative purposes.

They are commonly used in television and movies to indicate the dates of copyright. Many clocks and watches also use Roman numerals to indicate the hours.

Answer: Indianapolis 500

The track at Indianapolis dates to 1909 and the first '500' was hosted in 1911. This was to be a rival to the Le Mans 24-Hours race in France. Five hundred miles was decided upon as being the distance a car could drive in hours of daylight.

Speeds on the track increased steadily and the first 200mph+ speed was recorded in 1982 by Rick Mears. By 2020, the all-time fastest speed was that of Eddie Cheever, Jr., 236.103 in 1996. Those speeds were achieved on specific laps.

Answer: A Monkey

Most countries have their own slang for various amounts in their own currency.

"Only Fools And Horses" was the story of a pair of brothers who were wheeler-dealers at local markets in East London. They could get you anything you wanted cheaply, especially if you were not too particular about provenance.

A survey in the UK in 2015 ranked "Only Fools And Horses" as the greatest comedy show ever on British television. [Source: yougov.co.uk]

Answer: Fiat

The first Fiat 500 Tolino was made in 1936. Several more generations were made over successive decades.

In 2007, a newly updated generation was launched. Suffice to say that modern Fiat 500s were more sophisticated, larger, and more expensive than the original.

Answer: Internal server error

In all, any of eleven 500 server errors can blight your enjoyment of playing a quiz by one of Funtrivia's (many) brilliant authors.

The 500 "Internal Server Error" is a generic message that means the server has failed to fulfil a request.

Answer: Babe Ruth

For those of you who know nothing about baseball but do recognise the biggest names, if you lumped for Babe Ruth on that basis, then you got the right answer. (Or you may have thought I was using reverse psychology and Babe Ruth was too obvious to be true and guessed somebody else.)

Staggeringly (or perhaps not), of 20,000 players in the history of the biggest leagues, only 27 had scored more than 500 home runs by the time this quiz was written in November 2020.

August 11, 1929, was the date on which Babe Ruth became the first to enter the 500 home run club. He was to go on to make a total of 714. It was not until 1974 that Hank Aaron passed that tally.

Jimmie Fox was the second entrant, getting there on September 24, 1940.

Answer: Scotland

The North Coast 500 is a route that stretches 516 miles (830kms) around the northern, western and eastern seaboards of Scotland. The traditional starting and finishing point is at Inverness Castle.

Rugged landscapes and wild coastlines are there to be seen. While some people have driven the route in three days (including stops of course) tourist guides recommend a minimum of five days and up to ten to see all its beauty.

The best time to see the attractions is between May and September when all will be open and the weather will be at its best.*

* Disclaimer: As anyone who has ever travelled in the Highlands of Scotland knows, wet weather gear and insect repellent are always good to have on hand.

Answer: Dr Seuss

Published in 1938, this was the first of two adventures featuring a young pageboy called Bartholomew Cubbins.

Despite its age, some critics have commented that the story is as relevant today as it was in the 1930s. It is the story of how Bartholomew stands up to bullying at the court of a king.

Answer: Bobby Bare

Bare rewrote this from another song "500 Miles" written in 1961 by the folksinger Hedy West. That one is thought to have been based on an older piece called "900 Miles" she had heard at her family home in Georgia. Bare used the same melody.

The Hedy West lyrics were:
"If you miss the train I'm on, you'll know I am gone
You can hear the whistle blow a hundred miles A hundred miles, a hundred miles, a hundred miles, a hundred miles
You can hear the whistle blow a hundred miles...

The verse five refrain was: "Lord I'm one, Lord I'm two, I'm three, Lord I'm four
Lord I'm five hundred miles away from home
Away from home, away from home, away from home, away from home
Lord I'm five hundred miles away from home."

Bobby Bare had more than 50 top 30 songs on the Billboard Hot Country charts between 1958 and 1985. These included the number one "Marie Laveau" in 1974.

Answer: Euchre

Euchre itself is based on the much older French game of Écarté .

Five Hundred is a game for three players using 32 cards and a joker and has similarities to bridge and whist. Tricks earn points and the winner is the first to 500.