Match the Dates From "We Didn't Start The Fire" Quiz

Answer: Mao Zedong established the PRC

On October 1st, 1949, Chairman Mao Zedong proclaimed victory for the communist People's Republic of China. "Red China". For generations, power had rested in the hands of the few, and the communists offered a solution to tip that balance in the favor of the powerless.

However, it was not until the aftermath of Japanese aggression in the 1930s that the idea of the masses being enfranchised really took hold. After the Chinese Civil War of 1945 to 1949, Chaing Kai-shek and the nationals retreated to Taiwan Island, allowing Mao and the PRC to slowly gain control over the mainland.

Answer: "The Catcher in the Rye" full novel published

J.D. Salinger started writing short stories while serving in World War II. His character, Holden Caulfield, first appeared in a short story titled "I'm Crazy" in 1945. Over the next 5 years "The Catcher in the Rye" was released in serial installments with the complete work being published on July 16, 1951, as Salinger's only novel. J.D. went by Jerry in life and was a rather interesting character himself.

While many portray him as uber reclusive, he really hated fame and felt like his life was not his own. An interesting tidbit about Salinger is that before being drafted by the army, he had a job as a cruise director making sure the ship's guests were having a good time. So he certainly didn't start off as a recluse.

Unfortunately, the severe trauma of war deeply scared him and is reflected in his writing and maybe influenced his cynicism with the hollowness of fame.

Answer: England got a new queen

George VI died on February 6, 1952, of a heart attack making his daughter, Elizabeth, the new Queen of the British Empire. Queen Elizabeth II has had a remarkably long reign over which so much has changed in the world. Elizabeth II was the first monarch to have her coronation televised.

In fact, the advent and popularity of television since her reign started have made Queen Elizabeth II a constant presence in the public eye, being a challenge that none of her predecessors really had to worry about.

She has been at the center of a real-life "Truman Show" while having to balance the challenges of being a leader. Yet despite all this pressure and lack of privacy, Elizabeth II has thrived and has done remarkably well with her role in British society.

Answer: death of Joseph Stalin

Joseph Stalin died on March 5, 1953, after being in power for 30 years. By the last half of his reign, he had a totalitarian grip on the Soviet Union. Leading up to that absolute power, Stalin had arrested and executed close to 1 million people whom he judged to be a possible threat. Anyone who got too close to Stalin often didn't live long due to his paranoia. Joseph Stalin was born in Georgia and spent most of his childhood in poverty.

He was smart and passionate, often getting in fights and in trouble with the authorities.

His backing of Lenin and the Bolsheviks is what gained him access to power after the communist revolution. Once Lenin died, Stalin took charge and quickly eliminated anyone who could possibly challenge his power.

Answer: Brooklyn's got a winning team

The Brooklyn Dodgers won the seventh game of the World Series against the Yankees on October 4th, 1955, making it their first world championship. The Dodgers were led by Jackie Robinson, Roy Campanella, Pee Wee Reese, Gil Hodges, and Duke Snider, all of whom are now in the "Baseball Hall of Fame". As always, the Yankees were loaded with talent including Yogi Berra, Whitey Ford, and Mickey Mantle. Johnny Podres, from the Dodgers, earned the World Series MVP for his spectacular pitching including shutting out the Yankees in game 7.

Answer: Trouble in the Suez

The Suez Canal opened in 1869 thanks to the combined efforts of France and Egypt. The Canal had an immediate economic and logistical impact since European ships no longer had to go all the way around Africa to access Asia. In time, due to financial strain, the Egyptians had to sell off their shares in the Canal to the British government in 1875.

Now fast forward to 1956 and the rise in power of Egyptian president Gamal Nasser who decided to nationalize the Suez Canal and thus take away the authority the British and French had over the Canal traffic and, more importantly, the profits. The official crisis started when behind the scenes both Britain and France encouraged Israel to invade Egypt. However, the US, the USSR, and the global community did not support the invasion and demanded the three invaders withdraw from Egypt. Some historians mark this event as the end of the United Kingdom as a superpower.

Answer: Sputnik

The global scientific community decided in the year 1955 that 1957 and 1958 would be years of cooperation entitled the "International Geophysical Year". The idea was to work together to advance science for all nations. When this proposed "year" was announced, President Eisenhower proclaimed that the USA would launch a satellite into space. A few days later the Soviets also announced they would launch a satellite. So a race was on.

Originally the Soviets had a complex satellite in mind that would allow multiple scientific instruments to travel and measure the upper atmosphere. However, progress was stalled and the window of opportunity would have meant waiting until 1958. The Soviets wanted to get in space first. So, Sputnik 1 was developed as a very simple sphere less than 2 feet in diameter with a simple radio antenna. Due to the small size, light weight, and simple design, they were able to launch it much quicker. The original complex plans were still used as Sputnik 3. Sputnik 1 spent 3 years in space and made a revolution around the earth every 90 minutes. The radio signal only lasted until the battery ran out of power after 3 weeks. Interestingly, "sputnik" means "satellite" in Russian.

Answer: Bay of Pigs invasion

The "Bay of Pigs" was a botched attempt to overthrow Fidel Castro. The US had backed Fulgencio Batista's overthrow of president Carlos Prio in 1952, but soon after Batista had gained a foothold Castro took over. Castro quickly nationalized all the major businesses and banks in Cuba leading toward Communism. The US wanted to overthrow Castro but grossly underestimated how popular he had become in the eyes of the Cuban people.

He was a national hero to the country's majority poor. Castro had a huge advantage as he knew the invasion was coming! To make matters worse, the disapproving international community caught wind of the operation and Kennedy decided not to provide the vital air support that would have been needed for success. In the end, it was a humiliating loss and many of the Cuban exiles who had taken part were either killed or captured. The invasion only pushed Castro closer to the Soviet Union and made him an even bigger hero in the eyes of the Cuban people.

Answer: Liston beats Patterson

Sonny Liston is often considered one of the greatest boxers of all time. Unfortunately, he was constantly getting in trouble with the law. In fact, Liston first started boxing while in prison. Once out of prison, he struggled to find work and ended up being an intimidator for crime bosses. So in many ways, Liston was an antihero in the public eye. He was considered to be the best challenger for Floyd Patterson who was heavyweight champion at the time, however, due to his crime association, many did not want Liston to have a title shot.

Once the fight finally happened, Liston knocked out Patterson in the first round. In the rematch 6 months later he knocked out Patterson again in the first round! Liston had a huge drinking problem and was undertrained for a bout with Muhammad Ali (as Cassius Clay at that time) on February 25, 1964. Liston failed to answer the bell in the 7th round and Clay was awarded the technical knockout. Sadly, around New Year 1971, Liston's wife found him dead. She had been out of town, so no one is sure exactly when he died. Due to not knowing his actual date of birth, it is assumed he was about 40 years old at the time of death.

Answer: Woodstock

Woodstock was originally expected to have 50,000 festival goers, but by the time the weekend happened, close to 400,000 attended. The four men who planned the concert were Michael Lang, Artie Kornfeld, Joel Rosenman, and John Roberts. All four actually lost money on the event until they were able to produce the movie and soundtrack. It is incredible that things came together as well as they did. For one, the promoters were turned down by many of the local towns and barely were able to secure Max Yasgur's farm shortly before the festival date.

The weather was terrible as rain beforehand made it muddy, and then it continued to rain during the 4 day show. Artist time slots and delays also caused challenges. Jimi Hendrix was the closing act and he did not take the stage until 8:30 am on Monday. By the time Hendrix played, there were only about 30,000 fans left watching. Despite all the challenges, Woodstock will go down as an epic moment in history.