Which Does Not Belong? Trivia Quiz

Answer: Alfred Hitchcock

Frank Capra won the Oscar three times: in 1934 for 'It Happened One Night' - which also won Clark Gable a Best Actor award, Claudette Colbert an Oscar for Best Actress, and Robert Riskin an award for the screenplay, as well as winning the Best Film Oscar; in 1936 for 'Mr. Deeds Goes To Town'; and in 1938 for 'You Can't Take It With You'. John Ford won 4: 'The Informer' (1935); 1940's 'The Grapes of Wrath'; 'How Green Was My Valley' in 1941; and again in 1952 for the John Wayne starrer 'The Quiet Man'. William Wyler was another three-time winner: for 1942's 'Mrs. Miniver', 'The Best Years of Our Lives' in 1946, and the magnificent 'Ben-Hur' in 1959. Sir Alfred Hitchcock never won a coveted award for himself, although 'Rebecca' did pick up the 1940 Best Picture award.

Answer: Aries, the Crab

Aries, the first sign of the Zodiac, is represented by a Ram. The Crab is, of course, Cancer.

Answer: Titus Flavius Sabinus Vespasianus, 'Vespasian'

Augustus, the first Emperor of Rome (reigned 27BC - 14AD), was the grandnephew of the famous warrior-statesman Gaius Julius Caesar. 'Caligula' - the name means 'Little Boots' and was given to the boy in his childhood by soldiers in the Roman Army - sat on the throne from 37AD till 41AD, when he was assassinated.

He was the grandnephew of Augustus's successor, Tiberius. The infamous Nero, the great-great-grandson of Augustus who 'fiddled while Rome burned', ruled the Empire from AD 54 until the year 68, when he committed suicide. Vespasian was declared Emperor about a year after Nero's death, following a power struggle between Rome's most powerful generals.

He held control of the Empire until his death in 79, the first man to sit on the throne for an extended period who was not directly related to the Emperors who had come before him.

Answer: Michael Myers

Freddy, the 'son of a hundred maniacs' from the 'Nightmare on Elm Street' series, was burned to death by the parents of the children he murdered while alive, and came back from the grave to gain revenge. Jason of 'Friday the 13th' and its sequels was a young boy who drowned at a summer camp because of the inattention of counsellors - he also decided that post-mortem was a good time to return to wreak havoc on Crystal Lake. And Pinhead, of 'Hellraiser' infamy, was... well... demon to some, angel to others, he was definitely not of this Earth. Michael Myers, however, although in my opinion one of the scariest villains in movie history, was merely a man - seemingly indestructible, but not already dead.

Answer: Germany

New Zealand hosted the first tournament for the prize of the William Webb Ellis Trophy, or 'World Cup' of rugby, in 1987. It was England's turn in 1991, whilst South Africa was given the job in 1995.

Answer: Leeway

The word 'lynch', meaning to execute without benefit of legal trial, comes from the name of William Lynch, a sea-captain of the early 19th century infamous for his harsh disciplinary methods which often led to the killing of crew members. 'Boycott' - to abstain from having dealings with a certain person or company, as a way of protest - comes from the name of Charles Boycott, a land agent in 1880s Ireland. Residents of County Mayo refused to deal with him in any way, as a way of showing their displeasure at continued English occupation of their country - and his name soon became a synonym for any such action. Pyrrhus was a Greek military leader whose forces inflicted defeats upon the powerful legions of Rome twice in 280-279B.C., but at extremely heavy cost to his own armies.

A 'pyrrhic victory', then, is one gained at great cost, in any situation. 'Leeway', another term with nautical associations meaning a drift due to wind direction, does not derive from the name of any Captain Lee but from Old English 'hleo', meaning shelter.

Answer: bonsai

Kamikaze - literally, 'divine wind' - is usually associated with the 'suicide bomber' pilots of the Second World War, who deliberately aimed their explosive-filled planes at enemy targets, often inflicting heavy casualties but of course killing themselves in the process. 'Banzai', a word meaning 'ten thousand years', was a war-cry uttered by Japanese fighters and was a reference to the length of time the Japanese Empire was expected to last. 'Shogun' was for many hundred years the title given to the highest-ranking general in all of Japan (in fact the word itself means 'supreme general'): in effect, a military dictator. 'Bonsai', meanwhile, is a gardening term referring to the art of cultivating 'dwarf trees'.

Answer: George

Leonard Marx chose the stage name Chicko, but due to an early printing error on a poster, became world-famous as Chico Marx. Adolph never spoke a word in a Marx Brothers movie, but was known the world over as Harpo. Julius, the third-youngest Marx, was perhaps the most famous of all, as Groucho. George Marx? Well, maybe there is one, somewhere.

A cousin of Karl, or, God forbid, Richard. But not a comedian as far as I know.

Answer: Spirit of the Dead Watching

'Starry Night' (1889), one of van Gogh's most well-known paintings, was characteristic of the ominous blues and intense yellows used by van Gogh throughout his career. The earlier 'Potato Eaters' (1885) was a portrayal of the typically robust peasants with whom Vincent had contact during his years in southern Belgium and northern France, whilst 'Doctor Gachet' (1890) was a portrait of his friend and physician who looked after him during many of his frequent descents into madness. 'Spirit of the Dead Watching' (1892) was a work by van Gogh's friend - and enemy - Paul Gauguin.

Answer: Faramir

Samwise Gamgee, Frodo Baggins's faithful companion, was one of four Hobbits who were selected by the wizard Gandalf to undertake the journey to the Dark Land of Mordor, the others being Frodo himself, Peregrin Took and Meriadoc Brandybuck. Boromir, son of Denethor, represented the race of Men along with Aragorn, son of Arathorn. Legolas Greenleaf joined the group for the Elves. Along with Gimli, son of Gloin, for the Dwarves, and Gandalf himself, these nine set out from Rivendell to cast the Ring into the fires of Mount Doom, the only place where its evil could be vanquished. Faramir, the second son of Denethor and brother of Boromir, became important in the events to come, but was not one of the original travellers.