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Quiz about The Real Historical People Called it Ragtime

The Real Historical People Called it "Ragtime" Quiz

"Ragtime", a sweeping musical about the changes in American culture during the early 1900s, features many real historical figures relating to the central fictional characters. See if you can identify the ways in which real people feature in the show.

A multiple-choice quiz by merylfederman. Estimated time: 4 mins.

Author
merylfederman

Time
4 mins

Type
Multiple Choice

Quiz #
363,334

Updated
Dec 03 21

# Qns
10

Difficulty
Average

Avg Score
7 / 10

Plays
2051

One at a Time - Single Page - Timed Game

Question 1 of 10

1. "Father", one of the fictional main characters, is an amateur explorer who meets which real-life professional explorer and Admiral on a trip to the North Pole? Hint

Ernest Shackleton

Robert Scott

Roald Amundsen

Robert Peary

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Question 2 of 10

2. "Now I'm the girl on the swing!" sings which real-life vaudeville showgirl back home? Hint

Ella Fitzgerald

Evelyn Nesbit

Ruby Keeler

Peggy Shannon

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Question 3 of 10

3. "My Harry's not guilty!" cries the showgirl - "'cause Harry is out of his mind!" Which "Harry", married to the showgirl, killed the showgirl's lover? He was "a violent man!" Hint

Harry Morgan

Harry Gold

Harry Thaw

Harry Ellis

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Question 4 of 10

4. Can't have a love triangle without the third point - which real-life architect was the murdered lover of the vaudeville showgirl? Hint

Stanford White

Coalhouse Walker

Tateh

Emiliano Zapata

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Question 5 of 10

5. The fictional character of "Mother's Younger Brother" was inspired when he heard someone speak "At Union Square". Which real-life rabble-rouser was so inspiring to him? Hint

Emma Goldman

John Lewis

Eugene Debs

Margaret Sanger

6. "At the apex of the American pyramid," we find two men. One of them created the prized possession of fictional main character Coalhouse Walker Jr., and has a song named for him where he sings about his invention. Which of these high-achieving men is this? Hint

Guglielmo Marconi

J. P. Morgan

Henry Ford

Thomas Edison

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Question 7 of 10

7. After his mother dies, this historical figure "reach[es] for danger, darker and stranger," and also features in a bizarre dream sequence of one of our central fictional characters. Which "master of getting free" is this, who would "[make] the people gape"?
Hint

Rudolph Valentino

Baron Ashkenazi

Will Conklin

Harry Houdini

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Question 8 of 10

8. Coalhouse takes over a library named for and owned by another man "at the apex of the American pyramid," a wealthy robber baron who emerges as a villain towards the end of the play. Who is it? Hint

J.P. Morgan

Andrew Carnegie

Henry Ford

Cornelius Vanderbilt

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Question 9 of 10

9. After the assassination of William McKinley, the visit of which Vice Presidential candidate and future president is heavily guarded? Hint

Teddy Roosevelt

William Jennings Bryan

Woodrow Wilson

William Howard Taft

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Question 10 of 10

10. When Coalhouse has taken over the library, his hero, an inspirational black leader, is called in to talk him down from his terroristic pursuits. The historical figure is able to convince him to stand down and turn himself in by proclaiming "but your own son, you abandon, to be raised on white men's truths". Who is this? Hint

W.E.B. Dubois

Booker T. Washington

Jelly Roll Morton

Donald Byrd

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Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. "Father", one of the fictional main characters, is an amateur explorer who meets which real-life professional explorer and Admiral on a trip to the North Pole?

Answer: Robert Peary

Father is surprised that Admiral Peary's first mate is Matthew Henson, a black man - he remains civil upon meeting this historically accurate character, but it is clear that he is just small-minded enough to have problems with other races.

2. "Now I'm the girl on the swing!" sings which real-life vaudeville showgirl back home?

Answer: Evelyn Nesbit

Evelyn Nesbit, a young woman with a past, ended up gaining quite a bit of notoriety due to her involvement in "the trial of the century", where her husband was the defendant.

3. "My Harry's not guilty!" cries the showgirl - "'cause Harry is out of his mind!" Which "Harry", married to the showgirl, killed the showgirl's lover? He was "a violent man!"

Answer: Harry Thaw

Harry K. Thaw, a man with a history of mental illness, did not handle his wife's prior relationship well, and he was tried for the murder of her lover. This was one of the first and highest-profile instances of being found not guilty by reason of insanity, and sentenced to life in an asylum for the criminally insane.

4. Can't have a love triangle without the third point - which real-life architect was the murdered lover of the vaudeville showgirl?

Answer: Stanford White

Stanford White was an architect, and figures in the vaudeville representation of both crime and trial in the satirical song "Crime of the Century". This song both presents the crime of Harry Thaw killing Stanford White, and parodies the breathless sensationalism of the media hype.

5. The fictional character of "Mother's Younger Brother" was inspired when he heard someone speak "At Union Square". Which real-life rabble-rouser was so inspiring to him?

Answer: Emma Goldman

Anarchist Emma Goldman enters the story as the substantial, powerful counterpart to Evelyn Nesbit (who was Younger Brother's prior infatuation). Younger Brother always needed something to believe in, and found the ideology of Goldman more compelling than the sex appeal of Nesbit.

Answer: Henry Ford

Henry Ford sings the delightful song "Henry Ford" along with Coalhouse Walker Jr. They extol the virtues of mass production and the Model T as advances obtainable by normal people. "Every worker, a cog in motion - well that's the notion of Henry Ford!"

Answer: Harry Houdini

Harry Houdini serves as a representation of what immigrants are capable of achieving in America - but only with a whole lot of luck. Edgar, our central character with actual supernatural powers, is the "real" version of Houdini's simulated magic. The two "magicians" meet a few times over the years, including in a dream sequence Edgar has when violence hits the city in the form of Coalhouse's gang.

8. Coalhouse takes over a library named for and owned by another man "at the apex of the American pyramid," a wealthy robber baron who emerges as a villain towards the end of the play. Who is it?

Answer: J.P. Morgan

J. P. Morgan's library provides the setting for the final showdown. Emma Goldman applauds Coalhouse's takeover of the library and most of the other main characters are frightened and appalled by it. Mother's Younger Brother is part of the gang at the time and Father is sent in as well to help negotiate a conclusion.

9. After the assassination of William McKinley, the visit of which Vice Presidential candidate and future president is heavily guarded?

Answer: William Howard Taft

Teddy Roosevelt is president at this time, and William Howard Taft is campaigning in the area when Sarah tries to speak to him, with tragic results due to the hypervigilance of the crowd and his security detail. She is killed upon suspicion of carrying a gun.

Answer: Booker T. Washington

Booker T. Washington is a figure of controversial appeal in this story. Coalhouse idolizes his achievement, but Washington is incredibly strict with other African Americans, saying that they must live "exemplary lives" to prove themselves to the white people who might otherwise be afraid of them.

Source: Author merylfederman

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