The Far Out Sixties Trivia Quiz

Answer: Mary Quant

Born Barbara Mary Quant in 1934, Mary Quant became the designer of her times with the mini-skirts, hot pants and textured tights she promoted. She focused on selling to young women, then a novel concept.

Donna Karan launched her first fashions under the tutelage of Anne Klein, but created her own business in 1984. Stella McCartney designed her first jacket in 1984 at age thirteen. She subsequently designed in partnership with Adidas and H & M.

Vera Wang resigned from Ralph Lauren's design house in 1987 to pursue her own design dreams. She has been immensely successful as a bridal wear designer, creating wedding dresses for Ivanka Trump, Mariah Carey, Khloe Kardashian and Alicia Keys among others.

Answer: Simon and Garfunkel

Simon and Garfunkel created an unique folk rock sound in 1966's "The Sound of Silence". Their work in the movie "The Graduate" included "The Sound of Silence" and "Mrs. Robinson." Sadly they had many artistic diagreements and broke up in 1970.

Although they had successful singles in the 1960s, the Everly Brothers got their start in 1957 with "Bye Bye Love". Their perfect harmony became an inspiration to later duos. The Smothers Brothers were a comedy/satirical singing act of the mid to late 1960s. The Two Coins never existed.

Answer: Martin Luther King, Jr.

Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered his "I Have A Dream" speech in August 1963 during a March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. "...I still have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live up to its creed, "We hold these truths to be self evident: that all men are created equal." "I have a dream..." This portion of the speech resonated with many young people of all races. It was a spark in the darkness of segregation. It became all the more poignant after King's assassination in 1968.

Cleavon Little played Sheriff Bart in "Blazing Saddles", a very funny Mel Brooks send-up of the Westerns that had dominated entertainment in the 1950s. It was released in 1974.

Jesse Jackson is a civil rights advocate, a Democratic presidential candidate hopeful in the 1980s and a Baptist minister.

Colin Powell has a distinguished military and political career as the only African American member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the Secretary of State and Commander of the U.S. Army Forces Command.

Answer: The Smothers Brothers

Tom and Dick Smothers were funny before they became a politically satirical comedy act. But their comedy show became a platform for their counterculture views. CBS became unwilling to handle such a risky show and cancelled it.

The Perry Como Show was just a typical bland talent show of its time as was The Andy Williams Show. The Dean Martin Comedy Hour was a skit-driven variety show that relied heavily on Martin's reputation as a heavy drinker and womanizer for its comedy.

Answer: The Breakfast Club

"The Breakfast Club" was released in 1985 and starred Ally Sheedy, Judd Nelson, Emilio Estevez, Anthony Michael Hall and Molly Ringwald as teens learning how to respect people different from themselves.

"Lawrence of Arabia", a 1962 David Lean historical drama, stars Peter O'Toole and Omar Sharif in one of the most visually beautiful movies of any era. It told the story of T.E. Lawrence's and Sharif Ali's fight against the Turks. "The Graduate", a 1967 drama about a young man coming of age in a materialistic, corrupt world, gave Dustin Hoffman his first big film role. "Psycho" is a 1960s Alfred Hitchcock film. He spent his own money to make it when he couldn't get a studio to back it. It really paid off for him. It is now an iconic horror film mostly because of the famous shower scene.

Answer: 2001: A Space Odyssey

"2001: A Space Odyssey" was directed by Stanley Kubrick and released in 1968. The space ship on which five astronauts (three in suspended animation) are traveling to Jupiter is piloted and managed by artificially intelligent HAL9000. HAL, before it is shut down for making errors, tries to save itself by closing up the pilots' life support systems. The ape men are seen at the beginning of the film, learning from an extraterrestrial monolith how to use a bone tool to defeat their enemies. At the end of the movie, the image of a huge in utero baby is seen floating in space. Meaning? Your guess is as good as any.

"The Planet of the Apes" was first released in 1968 and again in 2001. It tells the tale of an astronaut crashing on a strange planet where apes run the show and humans are their slaves. The astronaut eventually discovers that his space ship has acted as a time machine and he is on Earth in the distant future. George Lucas began his epic space drama series with 1977's "Star Wars". It explored themes of good and evil as well as despotism vs free peoples. "May the Force be with you."

1979 saw the first in the space horror series, "Alien." Ellen Ripley, played by Sigourney Weaver, battles a remarkably frightening insectoid life form and thinks she's defeated it. However, it returns for at least three more movies. The original burned itself into the audience's imagination when the infant alien thrust itself violently out of John Hurt's chest.

Answer: France

Yes, France lost Togo, Cote D'Ivoire, Chad, Benin, Mauritania, Senegal, and the Central African Republic in a wave of African countries declaring their Independence. Britain and Spain had African colonies that were ceded independence but not these countries. Portugal held on to its African colonies till the mid 1970s.

Answer: Dallas, Texas

The assassin, Lee Harvey Oswald, shot President Kennedy from the Texas School Book Depository in Dallas on November 22, 1963. None of the other cities mentioned was involved.

Answer: The Rescuers

1977's "The Rescuers" is a cute story of two mice that band together with other animals to find and rescue an abducted orphan.

"One Hundred and One Dalmatians" was released in 1961 as an animated film and then again in 1996 as a live action film. The animated Cruella De Vil scared the socks off of children like me in 1961. In 1964 we watched Julie Andrews bring "Mary Poppins" to life in one of Disney's most beloved live action/animation blends. Evidently, Mary's creator, P.L. Travers disliked it intensely - it was just too upbeat for her. If "Mary Poppins" was sweet, 1960s "Pollyanna" caused instant cavities. An orphan (more orphans) is dumped on her miserable aunt and changes that lady's life for the good with her constant happiness and understanding.

Answer: The Cuban Missile Crisis

The Cuban Missile Crisis rattled people around the world as they contemplated the two giant powers face off with demands and hot rhetoric. The failed Bay of Pigs invasion of Cuba by CIA agents was the ostensible reason for the Soviet Union placing short and medium range ballistic missile in Cuba, less than 100 miles from US borders. Kennedy negotiated with Khrushchev and an agreement was reached that the missiles would be returned to the USSR while America would promise to never attempt invasion again. The world sighed its relief.
None of the other answers were real.