Purr-sonalities Trivia Quiz

Answer: ailurophobia

Ailurophobia is derived from the Greek words "ailouros" meaning cat and "phobos" meaning fear. Cynophobia is fear of dogs. Doraphobia is fear of the fur or skins of animals. Ichthyophobia is fear of fish.

Answer: Bast or Bastet

The Egyptian Cat-Goddess Bast, or Bastet, was a sun goddess portrayed with the body of a woman and head of a cat. Bast was the defender of cats and those who cared for them. The ancient Egyptians worshipped cats. When cats died, their owners went into mourning and shaved off their eyebrows as a mark of respect. Anyone who killed a cat was subject to the death penalty.

Answer: Ernst Stavro Blofeld

Blofeld is the head of SPECTRE. His first appearance is in "From Russia with Love". Although his face is never seen in this movie, he is immediately identifiable by the white Persian cat that he is usually stroking. The character of Blofeld subsequently appears in a number of James Bond movies - always accompanied by the cat who is never named.

Answer: Julie Newmar

In 1966, when Batman first aired as a television series, Julie Newmar played Catwoman for the first two seasons. In the third season, she was replaced by Eartha Kitt who was "purrr-fect" in the role and gave Catwoman her distinctive voice. Because of the initial success of the television series, the producers decided to make a "Batman" movie as well. Julie Newmar was not available to play the role so Lee Meriwether was cast as Catwoman.

In 1992, Michelle Pfeiffer played Catwoman in the movie "Batman Returns".

Answer: Trim

From Chapter 1: "As it turned out, one of the world's most famous loners, Matthew Flinders, the great navigator who first mapped the coastline of a large and mysterious landmass he would eventually name Australia, was never quite alone, because, you see, he had as his constant companion and fellow explorer a tomcat named Trim".

Answer: Mark Twain

Mark Twain was famous for his love of cats. He had up to eleven at a time and even rented cats for company when he went on vacation. He once said "I simply can't resist a cat, particularly a purring one. They are the cleanest, cunningest and most intelligent things I know, outside of the girl you love, of course".

Answer: Fritz the Cat

When "Fritz the Cat" was released in 1972, it was very controversial but not particularly popular or successful. It was based on the work of cartoonist Robert Crumb who publicly disassociated himself from it. The movie was made as a social commentary about problems such as racism, war, violence, promiscuity and drugs. Jim Davis (creator of another cartoon cat, Garfield) was one of fifty animators who worked on this film.

The fact that the animated movie was a "first" gives it a place in the annals of trivia history, otherwise it is a highly forgettable film.

Answer: Elizabeth I

Nursery rhymes are often disguised descriptions of real people and historical events. However, rather than having a hidden meaning, it is believed that this nursery rhyme relates a real incident involving Elizabeth I, who was well known for her fear of mice. She once stood upon a chair in Parliament when a mouse appeared from the folds of her skirt.

Answer: they have polydactyly (extra toes)

Normally cats have four toes plus a dew-claw on each front foot and four toes on each back foot. Ernest Hemingway was given a six-toed cat, Snowball, by a ship's captain. Sailors believed polydactyl cats were lucky and were superior at catching rats and mice.

Hemingway later acquired another polydactyl cat called Princess. The cats bred and as a result the inherited trait became common in cats on the island. Many Key West cats are descendents of Hemingway's cat and have extra toes. Polydactyl cats are also known by a variety of other names, including Hemingway cats, mitten cats, thumb cats, six-finger cats and poly cats.

Answer: Kuching

Kuching is the capital of Sarawak on the island of Borneo. The Great Cat of Kuching is an enormous white statue with an outstretched left paw which invites visitors to the city. In Chinese tradition, with respect to ornaments or statues of cats, if the right paw is raised, it invites prosperity. If the left paw is raised, it welcomes guests. Kuching also boasts the world's first Cat Museum dedicated to all things feline.