"Tanks" for the Memories Trivia Quiz

Answer: armoured, heavy fire power, moves on a continuous track

The armored fighting vehicle known as the tank dramatically and permanently changed military strategy and warfare in the first half of the twentieth century. The first tanks were designed by William Foster & Co. in Lincoln, England in 1915, and France developed its version soon after. Both countries desperately sought a way to put an end to trench warfare, the horrendously draining stalemated situation which developed along the front lines in World War I.

The continuous track instead of more vulnerable wheels was a key breakthrough, allowing the vehicles to traverse rough terrain and simply roll over enemy obstacles.

The prototype of the first generation of British tanks was "Little Willie", and it can still be viewed at The Tank Museum in Bovington, England. "Willie" led to the development of the Mark I tanks, which were the first tanks to see combat, during the Battle of the Somme in September of 1916.

Answer: Sherman

The Medium Tank, M4 was the basic workhorse tank for the Allied forces during WWII. British military personnel named it The Sherman as a nod to William Tecumseh Sherman, Union general during the American Civil War. The US developed and manufactured the Shermans, taking into account British expertise on the subject.

Many tanks were eventually given to the British and Soviet forces on a lend-lease program. For the majority of the European War, the Sherman tanks were superior to the German and Italian light and medium tanks. Design features enabled them to be repaired and returned to action quickly, giving the Allies numerical superiority in tank force also.

Answer: Tank McNamara

"Tank McNamara" debuted in 1974, taking advantage of the burgeoning sports scene in the United States at the time, as the National Football league in particular really started flexing its muscle as the most powerful force in the professional sports industry.

In the beginning, Tank, the lead character, was portrayed as a bumbling ex-jock who committed humorous errors in his new job as a sports reporter and commentator. In the following years his character has been fleshed out to include his basic goodness, social conscience, and romantic life as a bachelor.

The strip was created and originally written by Jeff Millar and illustrated by Bill Hinds. Millar died in 2012 and Hinds also took over the writing at that point. The strip is not shy about addressing current controversial issues affecting the sporting scene, such as steroid use, gambling, athletes speaking out about politics, and domestic violence.

Answer: citerne d'essence

Mille Bornes is a traditional French card game created in 1954 by Edmund Dujardin. The concept comes from the stone mile markers on many French roads, which are called "bornes". The game's object is to complete a one thousand mile journey by playing mileage cards. Each player or team tries finish their own journey while at the same time trying to impede that of their opponents. Generally, the first one to reach the destination scores the most, but numerous other special achievements can augment the score.

Translating more precisely from the French as "gas tank", the card in question enables the holder immunity from the "out of gas" ('panne d'essence' in French) hazard card played by an opponent, and scores bonus points if played at the most opportune time. Great card game. Give it a try!

Answer: James Garner, Shirley Jones, C. Thomas Howell

In this movie, Garner plays an army officer (Zak Carey) on his tour of duty at a base in Georgia. He gets involved with town law enforcement while defending a prostitute who's taking a beating at a local bar. It's the classic jurisdiction struggle, and it gets more complicated when Zak's son is implicated on a trumped up drug charge. The film is no all time classic, but it is good enjoyable action. You can imagine how a tank becomes a featured player in the drama. The movie also features an inventive, multi genre score by Lalo Schifrin.

The other three actor groups and the 1984 movie they starred in:
Ford et al- "Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom"
Murray et al- "Ghostbusters"
Stanton et al- "Paris, Texas"

Answer: tank top

The name "tank top" comes from tank suits; one piece bathing suits worn in the 1920s in tanks (swimming pools). The upper body garment so prevalent in today's hot weather climates is worn by men and women. It generally consists of a light weight, sleeveless, scoop necked t-shirt with thin straps of material going over the shoulders. "A-shirt" is short for "athletic shirt", and "singlet" is a term in common use throughout the UK, although in the US this can also mean a one piece garment worn by wrestlers. "Semmit" is a similar term seemingly confined to Scotland. "Wife beater" as a name for this item is in wide use, often naively and without negative connotations, even in the fashion industry. On the other hand, some find its use offensive and think it should be phased out.

This usage first appeared as the result of American movies in the 1940s which featured rough, usually working class males acting out violently against women. These characters, such as Marlon Brando's in "Streetcar Named Desire", were often depicted wearing white sleeveless undershirts. (info from FT member zbeckabee's excellent and definitive entry in FT's "Question and Answer" section).

Answer: Sex, Love & Pain

Tank, born Durrell Babbs in 1976 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, is a recording artist and producer who had put out six albums as of 2016. He was raised in Washington, D.C., and gave up a promising athletic career to pursue music. His career in music gained traction when he landed a spot as a backup singer on the artist Ginuwine's big 2001 tour.

His debut album "Force of Nature" came out soon after. "Sex, Love & Pain" is his third studio album and it featured two singles; "Please Don't Go" and "Heartbreaker."

Answer: to dress provocatively

To "tank up" or refuel is an obviously derivative slang usage. When a business or project of any kind tanks or "goes in the tank", it fails, being metaphorically consigned to the storage tank as a failure. The intransitive verb usage has also been applied to the stock market, as in "After the extent of the hurricane damage became known, the market tanked".

The sports usage meaning "to lose deliberately" is more recent. Here's one of the earlier quotes I found, from women's tennis pioneer Billie Jean King in 1975: "When the men don't feel like trying, they 'tank'[give up]. I've never tanked a match in my life, and I never saw a girl do it".

In US professional sports, the term has come in to vogue to describe teams deliberately losing to enhance their position in future player drafts.

Answer: meat shield

Also known as a meat shield, a tank is a style of character in gaming. Taking its name from the military concept of "human shields", tanks (or meat shields) generally redirect enemy aggression to themselves in order to protect their allies. In most games they are lower level soldiers, appearing as large, heavily armored individuals who can take lots of fire power, thereby shielding other more vulnerable characters from fatal attacks. Sometimes they die in the process, or are already dead and still absorb the punishment before exploding or disintegrating.

Answer: Transit Authority of Northern Kentucky

This transportation system chiefly serves the Northern Kentucky suburbs across the Ohio River from Cincinnati, Ohio. Buses are the primary mode of travel. The area of service includes Kenton, Boone and Campbell counties. It was created in 1973. Florence, Kentucky sits astride Interstate 275 twenty miles southwest of Cincinnati.

The quasi Italian answer is a red herring. "Treno" is a transportation train and "allenare" as a verb means to train or instruct.