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Quiz about 1776 the Musical
Quiz about 1776 the Musical

'1776' (the Musical) Trivia Quiz


1776, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, and Thomas Jefferson work to create a free and independent United States. And with show-stopping musical numbers!

A multiple-choice quiz by Czolgolz. Estimated time: 6 mins.
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Author
Czolgolz
Time
6 mins
Type
Multiple Choice
Quiz #
328,931
Updated
Dec 03 21
# Qns
10
Difficulty
Average
Avg Score
7 / 10
Plays
231
Awards
Top 35% Quiz
- -
Question 1 of 10
1. The musical opens with John Adams demanding that the delegates of the Second Continental Congress vote to declare independence from Great Britain. The delegates, however, are engaged in a serious debate about a pressing issue. During the song 'Sit Down, John,' what issue is being debated? Hint


Question 2 of 10
2. Adams, who by his own admission is 'obnoxious and disliked,' realizes that the Congress will never support an independence resolution if he proposes it. Benjamin Franklin suggests a more popular delegate put forth the resolution. Who ultimately proposes the independence resolution? Hint


Question 3 of 10
3. All the delegations have very strong opinions on the independence question, save one. Which colony perpetually 'abstains...courteously' whenever a vote is called? Hint


Question 4 of 10
4. The proceedings are occasionally interrupted by a weary dispatch rider with news from General Washington. Reports from the front are bleak: the troops are underfed, underpaid, under equipped, under trained, drunken and syphilitic. The general signs all his correspondence with 'G. Washington.' What musical score always proceeds his name? Hint


Question 5 of 10
5. Some colonies, such as New Jersey, are unanimous in their drive for independence, while others, such as South Carolina, oppose it. Delegate Caesar Rodney, frail and sick with cancer, was forced to ride back from his home state to break a deadlock among the delegates from his colony. Where did Rodney call home? Hint


Question 6 of 10
6. Delegate Samuel Chase refuses to vote for independence, fearing that Washington's ragtag army can never hope to defeat the mighty British forces. Adams and Franklin practically kidnap him and take him to New Jersey to witness the American army's marksmanship. This convinces Chase to vote for independence. Which colony does Chase represent? Hint


Question 7 of 10
7. '1776' was not a musical with a lot of female roles. In fact, there were only two. One was Martha Jefferson, who visits her lonely husband in Philadelphia as he struggles to write the Declaration of Independence. The other is John Adams' wife. What was her name?

Answer: (One Word, first name)
Question 8 of 10
8. The delegates have agreed that one colony voting nay would be enough to end talk of independence. Edward Rutledge tells Adams that in order to gain the approval of the Carolinas and Georgia, Jefferson would have to remove something from the Declaration. What divisive issue did the Southern delegates insist not be addressed by the Congress?

Answer: (One Word, remember, these are Southern colonies)
Question 9 of 10
9. With eleven colonies voting for independence, it seems that Pennsylvania will cast the nay vote which will crush the movement. Everyone is surprised when James Wilson votes with Franklin, rather than with John Dickinson, who vocally opposed independence. Dickinson resigns his post as a delegate. As he leaves, he declares he will do something unexpected. What does Dickinson plan to do? Hint


Question 10 of 10
10. In 1972, '1776' was made into a film. President Richard Nixon, after seeing the film, convinced producer Jack L. Warner to cut one of the songs. Which song was eliminated in the theatrical release? Hint



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Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts
1. The musical opens with John Adams demanding that the delegates of the Second Continental Congress vote to declare independence from Great Britain. The delegates, however, are engaged in a serious debate about a pressing issue. During the song 'Sit Down, John,' what issue is being debated?

Answer: Whether to open up a window

While John rails for independence, the delegates argue whether they should open up a window due to the heat, or if that would result in even more flies in the chamber. Meanwhile, the British flotilla advances on New York Harbor.
2. Adams, who by his own admission is 'obnoxious and disliked,' realizes that the Congress will never support an independence resolution if he proposes it. Benjamin Franklin suggests a more popular delegate put forth the resolution. Who ultimately proposes the independence resolution?

Answer: Richard Henry Lee (Virginia)

The brash and cocky Lee of 'The Lees of Old Virginia' agrees to put forth the independence resolution, as soon as he receives approval from the Virginia House of Burgesses. Upon returning, he reads his resolution for independence. The delegations vote 5-6 to debate the issue for the first time.

Richard Henry Lee was distantly related to Confederate general Robert E. Lee.
3. All the delegations have very strong opinions on the independence question, save one. Which colony perpetually 'abstains...courteously' whenever a vote is called?

Answer: New York

The New York delegation, led by Lewis Morris, refuses to take a stand on any issue, saying that the leaders back in Albany have given them no specific instructions. It is only upon learning that his estates have been burned by the British and that his older sons have joined Washington's army, does Morris find the courage to vote for independence.
4. The proceedings are occasionally interrupted by a weary dispatch rider with news from General Washington. Reports from the front are bleak: the troops are underfed, underpaid, under equipped, under trained, drunken and syphilitic. The general signs all his correspondence with 'G. Washington.' What musical score always proceeds his name?

Answer: A brief drum roll

Washington's dispatches are delivered by a filthy, exhausted courier, who slams the letters down on secretary Thompson's desk without comment. In act five, he sings 'Mama, Look Sharp', relating his experiences at the Battle of Lexington.
5. Some colonies, such as New Jersey, are unanimous in their drive for independence, while others, such as South Carolina, oppose it. Delegate Caesar Rodney, frail and sick with cancer, was forced to ride back from his home state to break a deadlock among the delegates from his colony. Where did Rodney call home?

Answer: Delaware

In the musical, Rodney was dying of skin cancer and had returned to Dover to 'die in his own bed'. This is license on the part of the script writers; in reality, Rodney was commander of the Delaware militia and had returned home to deal with a loyalist uprising. On the night of July 1, 1776, Rodney rode eighty miles in the rain to return to Philadelphia in time to cast a third, tie-breaking vote for the Delaware delegation, enabling the colony to vote for independence.

This feat was memorialized on the Delaware statehood quarter, released in 1999.
6. Delegate Samuel Chase refuses to vote for independence, fearing that Washington's ragtag army can never hope to defeat the mighty British forces. Adams and Franklin practically kidnap him and take him to New Jersey to witness the American army's marksmanship. This convinces Chase to vote for independence. Which colony does Chase represent?

Answer: Maryland

After witnessing the starving American soldiers knock a flock of birds out of the sky, Chase is convinced that Washington's forces just might stand a chance. The other delegates, meanwhile, revel in the silence brought about by Adams' absence.
7. '1776' was not a musical with a lot of female roles. In fact, there were only two. One was Martha Jefferson, who visits her lonely husband in Philadelphia as he struggles to write the Declaration of Independence. The other is John Adams' wife. What was her name?

Answer: Abigail

Though Abigail never comes to Philadelphia, she and John exchange a series of letters, and she appears in his imagination. She believes in her idealistic husband, even when no one else does. Near the end of the musical, she sends him a shipment of saltpeter (for the production of gunpowder) that she and her friends have made.
8. The delegates have agreed that one colony voting nay would be enough to end talk of independence. Edward Rutledge tells Adams that in order to gain the approval of the Carolinas and Georgia, Jefferson would have to remove something from the Declaration. What divisive issue did the Southern delegates insist not be addressed by the Congress?

Answer: slavery

Jefferson included a denunciation of slavery in the Declaration, which angered the slave-owning Southern delegates. Rutledge calls the Northerners hypocrites. Jefferson himself owns slaves, and New England profits from the slave trade, as he demonstrates in the song 'Molasses to Rum.' Franklin, America's foremost abolitionist, urges Adams to compromise on this issue. Adams refuses, leading to angry words between the friends. Eventually, Adams relents and allows the mention of the evils of slavery to be stricken from the document.

The South votes for independence, though Adams feels they've sold out half a million black slaves to achieve this.
9. With eleven colonies voting for independence, it seems that Pennsylvania will cast the nay vote which will crush the movement. Everyone is surprised when James Wilson votes with Franklin, rather than with John Dickinson, who vocally opposed independence. Dickinson resigns his post as a delegate. As he leaves, he declares he will do something unexpected. What does Dickinson plan to do?

Answer: Join the American Army and fight for independence

Dickinson was the chief opponent to independence, and could not bear the idea of fighting England. However, after refusing to sign the declaration, he states he will join the army and fight for the new country, as he is no less a patriot than the others. The Congress applauds him as he leaves the chamber.
10. In 1972, '1776' was made into a film. President Richard Nixon, after seeing the film, convinced producer Jack L. Warner to cut one of the songs. Which song was eliminated in the theatrical release?

Answer: 'Cool, Cool, Considerate Men' (offensive to conservatives)

In 'Cool, Cool, Considerate Men,' John Dickinson and the other wealthy delegates (except for John Hancock) waltz together, and sing about how protecting their wealth trumps any thoughts of American independence. They dance 'always to the right.' Nixon took offense at this portrayal of conservatives as unpatriotic and convinced Warner, a friend of his, to cut the number.

The song was not restored for decades.
Source: Author Czolgolz

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor LadyCaitriona before going online.
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