Just a Matter of Luck Trivia Quiz

Answer: Guys and Dolls

"Guys and Dolls" opened on Broadway in 1950, and won the Tony Award for Best Musical. It was made into a motion picture in 1955. It is based on characters created by humorist Damon Runyon. Luck is personified as a woman in many cultures. To the Romans, she was the goddess Fortuna, who ruled men's fates by spinning a wheel.

Answer: A black cat

Finding a penny or a four-leaf clover is considered to bring good luck, as is carrying a rabbit's foot in one's pocket. Black cats, however, are considered very unlucky, especially if one crosses your path. It is believed that this superstition comes from the long-held belief that black cats are associated with witchcraft.

In the 13th century, Pope Gregory IX issued a papal bull called "Vox in Rama" which condemned black cats as instruments of the Devil. They have suffered from a stigma ever since. Studies have shown that black cats take much longer be adopted from animal shelters than cats of other colors, and are more likely to end up being euthanized.

In some cultures, however, black cats are considered to be lucky!

Answer: Mary Poppins

"Chim, chimney, chim, chimney, chim, chim, cher-ee / A sweep is as lucky as lucky can be." No one seems to know for certain why it is considered lucky to meet a chimney sweep on your wedding day, but one popular legend says a chimney sweep grabbed the reins of King George III's horse while it was galloping out of control, saving him from serious injury or even death.

The monarch was so grateful he supposedly invited the sweep to his daughter's wedding. Regardless of how the tradition started, it is still considered good luck to meet a chimney sweep on your wedding day in Great Britain, and many sweeps hire themselves out to attend weddings to ensure happiness for the bride and groom.

Answer: Irish

The Irish are probably one of the unluckiest peoples in the history of the world. They endured centuries of foreign domination, oppression, almost constant warfare, starvation, and prejudice. So how did the expression, "the luck of the Irish," enter the English language? Probably not for the reason you think. During the California gold rush of 1849, many of the miners who struck it rich were Irish.

The Irish, as a whole, were thought to be rather feeble-minded, and their jealous rivals were loathe to attribute their success to their intelligence or hard work.

Instead, when an Irishman made a strike, they blamed it on "Irish luck." And so the phrase, "the luck of the Irish" was born.

Answer: Press Your Luck

"Press Your Luck" was a game show that ran on CBS from 1983 trough 1986. Contestants earned "spins" by answering questions. Each spin would award either a valuable prize or a Whammy. A Whammy would take away all of the cash and prizes a contestant had accumulated up to that point; a contestant who accumulated four Whammies was out of the game. "Press Your Luck" was revived briefly on the Game Show Network as "Whammy! The All-New Press Your Luck," from 2002 through 2003.

Answer: orphan

Bret Harte (1836-1902) was an American writer, most noted for his stories dealing with the California gold rush. "The Luck of Roaring Camp," first published in 1868, is the work that brought him to national attention, and remains one of the best-known of all American short stories. The story begins in a mining camp, where the only female resident, Cherokee Sal (described as "a coarse, and, it is to be feared, a very sinful woman"), dies in childbirth. The miners adopt her infant son, to whom they give the name Thomas Luck.

Harte and Mark Twain were bitter enemies. Twain continued to abuse Harte in print even after the latter's death.

Answer: Yes

"Luck" is derived from the Dutch word "gheluc," and was in use at least two centuries before Shakespeare. The word appears in the plays "A Midsummer Night's Dream," "All's Well That Ends Well," "Antony and Cleopatra," "Cymbeline," "Henry IV Part 2," and "Henry V." It also appears in Sonnet 14: "But not to tell of good, or evil luck, Of plagues, of dearths, or seasons' quality."

"Lucky" appears in "Antony and Cleopatra," "Henry IV Part 2," "Henry V," "Henry VI Part 2," and "The Winter's Tale." Both words had essentially the same meaning we ascribe to them today.

Answer: Charles Luciano

Lucky Luciano was born Salvatore Lucania in Sicily on November 24, 1897. His family immigrated to the United States when he was nine years old. Luciano showed an early aptitude for crime, dropping out of school when he was 14, and starting his own gang. He may have acquired the nickname "Lucky" for his ability to avoid going to jail, despite numerous arrests.

Luciano made a fortune as a bootlegger during prohibition, and is credited with organizing what was called "The Commission" to regulate organized crime in the United States, and reduce the number of feuds and killings that cut into its profits and attracted unwanted attention.

In 1936, Luciano was sentenced to 30 to 50 years in prison for running a prostitution ring. During WWII, Luciano struck a deal with authorities to use his mob connections to prevent strikes by dockworkers, and to ensure the Mafia would cooperate with the Allies during the invasion of Sicily. In return for his cooperation, Luciano was released from prison and deported to Italy in 1946. He never returned to the United States while he was alive, but continued to be involved in organized crime activities until his death of a heart attack in Naples in 1962. His body was returned to the United States for burial in New York.

The other three men were also real mob figures. Siegel's nickname was "Bugsy." Diamond was known as "Legs." Lucchese, whose right hand had been mangled in an industrial accident, was called "Three Fingers."

Answer: Indianapolis Colts

Andrew Luck played his college ball at Stanford, and was twice runner-up for the coveted Heisman Trophy. He was selected as the first pick in the 2012 NFL draft by the Indianapolis Colts. He was a Pro Bowl selection in 2012, 2013, and 2014.

Answer: Dirty Harry

This is one of the most famous lines from the "Dirty Harry" movie series; the other is "Go ahead. Make my day." Harry Callahan asks this question of a would-be bank robber he has wounded, and who is lying on the ground next to a loaded shotgun. As the criminal is trying to decide whether to grab the shotgun, Callahan (who is standing over him) asks, "I know what you're thinking: 'Did he fire six shots or only five?' Well, to tell you the truth, in all this excitement, I've kinda lost track myself.

But being this is a .44 Magnum, the most powerful handgun in the world, and would blow your head clean off, you've got to ask yourself one question: 'Do I feel lucky?' Well, do you, punk?" The criminal surrenders, and Callahan then reveals that his gun is empty.