True-or-False Spectacular Trivia Quiz

Answer: False

The website Snopes.com, a repository for verifying and debunking Internet lore, actually started this rumor, obstensibly to prove how easily people accept what they're told. If you visit the page http://snopes.com/lost/bearflag.asp, there is a very convincing writeup about the faux flag. (Thanks to tantei_kid for this valuable correction.)

Answer: True

Both William B. Hartsfield and Maynard H. Jackson were instrumental in the growth of one of the world's busiest airports. Hartsfield, who served six terms as mayor of the city (1937-41, 1942-61), saw the airport grow from the middle of a racetrack to become a major aviation hub. Jackson, who served three terms as mayor (1973-81, 1989-93), was the first African-American mayor of a major Southern city, and oversaw expansion of the airport to serve international flights. (Thanks to the Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport website, CNN.com and ourgeorgiahistory.com for additional information.)

Answer: False

The Denver Nuggets, Indiana Pacers, New York (later New Jersey) Nets and San Antonio Spurs joined the NBA after the ABA folded in 1976. The Mavericks were one of five teams to join the NBA in the 1980s as the league expanded. (Thanks to the ESPN Sports Almanac 2005 for additional information.)

Answer: False

Built by AT&T and launched by NASA, Telstar I was the first commercial communications satellite, designed to relay radio, television and telephone transmissions to points around the globe. But on December 18, 1958, the Department of Defense launched Project SCORE (Signal Communication by Orbiting Relay Equipment), a satellite designed by the Army, atop an Air Force Atlas ICBM, into a low, elliptical orbit. SCORE was designed to receive messages onto a primary and backup tape recorder, then relay the messages back to ground stations on the earth. SCORE worked for twelve days, and fell back through the atmosphere on January 21, 1959. (Thanks to the Federation of American Scientists and the NASA Glenn Research Center websites for additional information.)

Answer: False

The Spinners opened for singer Dionne Warwick during a five-week summer theater tour of Las Vegas. At the time, both acts were under contract to Warner Communications--Warwick with Warner Bros. Records and The Spinners with Atlantic Records. After that successful pairing, they collaborated on "Then Came You", which hit number one the week of October 26, 1974. (Thanks to the Oz Net Music Chart and discomuseum.com for additional information.)

Answer: True

The tallest national monument in the United States, the Gateway Arch is not an arch, per se, but an inverted concrete and steel catenary. A catenary is a curve made when a chain or cable is held at both ends, allowing the cable to sag. Designed by famed architect Eero Saarinen, the Arch is part of the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial, and is administered by the National Park Service. (Thanks to the National Park Service and stlouisarch.com for additional information.)

Answer: True

U.S. Patent Number 1,413,121 was issued on April 18, 1922, for a wrench that Johnson designed. But he is much better known as a boxer, becoming the first African-American to hold the world heavyweight championship when he knocked out champion Tommy Burns in 1908. Johnson died in a car accident outside Raleigh, North Carolina, in 1946. (Thanks to Wikipedia and about.com for additional information.)

Answer: False

"Nightline" began its long run in 1979 as a fifteen-minute update of the Iran hostage crisis, called "The Iran Crisis: America Held Hostage". Veteran ABC News anchor Frank Reynolds hosted the program until November 26, when diplomatic correspondent Ted Koppel took over.

The high ratings the show received prompted ABC News to expand the show to twenty minutes four nights a week and, on March 24, 1980, give it its more familiar name. (Thanks to "Total Television" by Alex McNeil for additional information.)

Answer: False

Although the Baltimore Colts won Super Bowl V, the first championship game to be played after the 1970 AFL-NFL merger, Dallas linebacker Chuck Howley walked away with MVP honors. Not only was Howley the first defensive player to win the award, he was also the first player from the losing team to win it. Jake Scott won the MVP award in Super Bowl VII two years later. (Thanks to the 2004 National Football League Record & Fact Book for additional information.)

Answer: True

The extreme southwestern corner of North Carolina touches the extreme northeast corner of Georgia. The borders with the other states are much more extensive.

Answer: False

The Department of Transportation was created by an act of Congress on October 15, 1966, while Lyndon Johnson was president. During the Carter Administration, the Department of Energy was created by federal law (1977) and the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare, was split into the Department of Education and the Department of Health and Human Services (1979). (Thanks to The World Almanac and Book of Facts 2005 for additional information.)

Answer: False

Atlanta was not only the first Sun Belt city to host a major-league baseball team, it was also the first Sun Belt city to host a major-league hockey team. During eight seasons there, the Flames made six playoff appearances and boasted two NHL Rookie of the Year winners.

But lukewarm fan support and economic problems forced the team's owner, Tom Cousins, to sell them to Canadian Nelson Skalbania, who moved the team to Calgary. Major-league hockey would return to Atlanta in 1999, when media mogul Ted Turner was awarded the Thrashers franchise. (Thanks to the ESPN Sports Almanac 2005 and sportsencyclopedia.com for additional information.)

Answer: True

Namco boasted great success in the 1980s as both "Pac-Man" and "Ms Pac-Man" gobbled up countless quarters in the video arcades. The ghosts Inky, Blinky and Pinky could be found on both games. In "Pac-Man", Clyde was the fourth ghost, while Sue was the fourth ghost in "Ms Pac-Man".

Answer: True

In a 2005 installment of E! Entertainment Network's "True Hollywood Story" devoted to "Wheel", Merv Griffin related that he asked Jimmy Connors to audition to host the show after Pat Sajak went to work on his late-night talk show at CBS. (Sajak continued hosting the syndicated version of "Wheel" while working on his new show.) Connors loved the show and was a natural to replace Sajak, but NBC wanted to sign him to cover sports instead. So, Griffin sought out another sports star, former San Diego Chargers placekicker Rolf Benirschke, to host.

He lasted just five months, and was replaced by veteran game show host Bob Goen when the show moved from NBC to CBS for two years. (Thanks to "Total Television" by Alex McNeil and E! Entertainment Television for additional information.)

Answer: False

The Secretary-General, who is the chief administrative officer of the United Nations, is selected by the General Assembly upon the recommendation of the Security Council. The United Nations Charter does not specifically prohibit any citizen of any member nation from being Secretary-General.

In fact, many pundits see the appointment of former president Bill Clinton to lead the UN's efforts to help southern Asia and western Africa recover from the 2004 tsunamis as a step to his selection as Secretary-General. (Thanks to the United Nations website, UN.org, for additional information.)