Muffin's Common Bond Quiz #3

Answer: Duke Ellington

"Sir Duke" was Stevie Wonder's sixth number one hit on the Billboard Top 40 charts. He paid respect to the great Duke Ellington who had passed away in 1974. In this composition, Stevie Wonder also paid homage to the other three named artists: Basie, Miller and Satchmo, in addition to the great talent of Ella Fitzgerald. If ever there was an anthem for greats of the Big Band era, this was it.

Answer: Cat Ballou

Lee Marvin showed his great versatility in his dual role as a drunken stumble-bum and a hired gunfighter in "Cat Ballou". The former role was a far cry from the image of the tough, no-nonsense guy he was used to portraying.

Answer: Montgomery Clift

With three Oscar nominations for Best Actor and one for Best Supporting Actor, Montgomery Clift is often rated amongst the "best actors ever" by many film experts. This very handsome actor was keenly sought-after for starring roles but rejected most, including "Sunset Boulevard" and "East of Eden".

He was often cast as the sullen, working-class character, similar to the parts played by fellow Nebraskan Marlon Brando and James Dean.

Answer: March 17th

March 17th is when the Irish population celebrates a holiday in honour of their most commonly recognised patron saint, Saint Patrick, who is colloquially known as "Saint Paddy". Expatriate Irish people around the world fondly recognise this day even without an official holiday. St. Patrick's Day does have an amount of influence abroad with many innovations, such as the drinking of green beer (which is often supplied by brewers in Australia).

Rob Lowe, who starred in "Brothers and Sisters" and "The West Wing", was born on this day in 1964, as was Patrick Duffy of "Dallas" fame in 1949.

Answer: Natalie Portman

Natalie Portman was born Natalie Hershlag in Jerusalem, Israel in 1981, and came to America at the age of three. Since beginning her professional acting career at the age of thirteen, her star has continued to rise with a host of award nominations since 1997.

These include success with the Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role for "Closer" in 2004. Earlier, she was given the Young Star Award for her performance in the 2000 motion picture comedy "Where The Heart Is".

Answer: Mona Lisa

The "Mona Lisa", also known as "La Gioconda", is considered by many art critics to be the most famous painting in the world. This is borne out by the varied interpretations of the "mystic smile" in songs, books, and movies.

Answer: Unforgettable

The plot of the movie "Unforgettable" concerns Dr. David Krane (Ray Liotta) who has been unsuccessfully framed for murder. Dr. Krane sets out to solve the murder by taking an experimental drug and then experiencing other people's memories.

Answer: Kool and the Gang

Kool and the Gang's "Jungle Boogie", which was lifted off the band's "Wild and Peaceful" album, gave the group a brief return to the limelight. However, it didn't lead to any sort of resurgence in continued popularity.

Answer: Citizen Kane

"Citizen Kane" was nominated for nine Academy Awards in 1941, but won only one for Best Original Screenplay. After a series of problems involving the film's release and distribution, caused mainly by intimidation and boycotts by the Hearst media outlets, film studio RKO shelved it until it was dusted off in 1956. Progressive revivals on TV ultimately saw it reach a deserved "classic" status. Since 1962, the British Film Institute (BFI), by way of its magazine "Sight and Sound", has ranked "Citizen Kane" the number one greatest film ever (critics' poll).

Answer: Nat King Cole

The legendary Nat "King" Cole tragically passed away in 1965 at the age of 45, but left behind a string of hits that have been covered by many top performers over the years. Two of these will be referred to in the explanation of the nine clues, but others include "Ramblin' Rose", "Smile", "Pretend", "Too Young" and the much covered "Route 66", which was originally sung by Nat.

A great many awards came his way over a twenty-five year period and he was posthumously inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame by Ray Charles in 2000. He showed his great talent and personality in other areas by being the first African American to be awarded his own TV variety show in 1956.

So, now, onto the clues:

1. Nat Cole married Maria Hawkins ELLINGTON in 1948 - Maria was not related to "Sir Duke", but had formerly sung with the band.

2. Along with comic actor Stubby Kaye, he sang the ballad of CAT BALLOU in the movie.

3. Nat was born in MONTGOMERY Alabama in 1919.

4. MARCH 17TH was Nat's birth date.

5. In 1991 his daughter NATALIE dubbed her father's vocals and sang along with him to record the song that took out the Grammy for "Record of the Year".

6. MONA LISA was Nat's biggest hit when originally included in the Paramount Pictures' movie "Captain Carey USA". It won the 1950 Academy Award for the Best Original Song and went on to spend eight weeks on top of the Billboard charts and became a universal hit.

7. UNFORGETTABLE was the song referred to previously in question #5.

8.Nat was under the impression that smoking the mentholated KOOL brand cigarettes kept his voice low, and was in the habit of smoking quite a few before a performance. I guess that it's hardly debatable why he finally succumbed to lung cancer.

9. Quite early in his career he formed a band named "The Nat King Cole Trio". They performed the Rodgers and Hart song "This Can't Be Love" on the soundtrack of "CITIZEN KANE".