More Who Wrote the Book First? Quiz

Answer: Harper Lee

Harper Lee published "To Kill a Mockingbird" in 1960. It was a critical and a popular success. The book won the Pulitzer Prize and became assigned reading in many high school English courses in North America. The narrator in the story is a six-year-old daughter of a southern US lawyer who is hired to defend an African American man who has been falsely accused of raping a white woman.

The young girl, nicknamed Scout, confronts the racial divide when she disperses a lynch mob that arrives to kill the accused.

She and her brother and their friend also make friends with a local recluse named Boo Radley. In 1962, the book was made into a movie starring Gregory Peck as the lawyer Atticus Finch and Mary Badham as Scout. Robert Duvall also made his theatrical debut as Boo Radley in the film. "To Kill a Mockingbird" was nominated for a number of Academy Awards, which include winners for Best Actor (Gregory Peck), Best Screenplay Based on Material from Another Medium (Horton Foote), and Best Art Direction - Black and White (Alexander Golitzen, Henry Bumstead and Oliver Emert).

Answer: Mario Puzo

"The Godfather" was published by Mario Puzo in 1969. It tells the story of five Mafia families in New York City. The story involves the shooting of the head of the Corleone family and the ensuing issues when both of his sons take over. When they seek revenge, one of the sons is murdered and the other takes control of the Mafia family.

The single son gains control of the organized crime empire that was created by his father, exacts revenge for his brother's murder, and moves the family and its business to Las Vegas from New York City.

The novel sold over nine million copies over two years, and stayed on "The New York Times Best Seller" list for 67 weeks. In 1972, Francis Ford Coppola directed "The Godfather" film. It starred Marlon Brando, Al Pacino, James Caan, Richard Castellano, Robert Duvall, Sterling Hayden, John Marley, Richard Conte, and Diane Keaton.

The film was extremely successful both at the box office and at various awards ceremonies. It was made on a budget of $6-7.2 million, and earned $246-287 million at the box office. "The Godfather" also won three Academy Awards, five Golden Globe Awards, and a number of other awards for its music, direction, and writing.

Answer: Margot Lee Shetterly

The entire title of this 2016 non-fiction book by Margot Lee Shetterly is "Hidden Figures: The American Dream and the Untold Story of the Black Women Who Helped Win the Space Race". The book tells the story of three African-American women who worked at NASA from the 1930s through the 1950s.

At the time, the mathematics and engineering careers were dominated by men. These women were employed as "computers" (the actual job title), and broke through discrimination and stereotypes to contribute to the work at NASA.

For example, one successfully calculated the rocket trajectories for the Mercury and Apollo missions. A movie called "Hidden Figures" that is based on the book was also released in 2016. There are some differences between the book and the movie, but even Shetterly states that that is understandable given the constraints of having to put all characters and storylines into a movie that is only a few hours long.

The movie was made with a budget of $25 million, and made $231.3 million at the box office.

Answer: Lauren Weisberger

Weisberger published "The Devil Wears Prada" in 2003. The novel tells the story of a young woman who is fresh out of college who dreams of a career in publishing. She lands a job as an assistant to the editor-in-chief of a fashion magazine. Unfortunately, her boss places unrealistic demands on her and drives a wedge between the young woman and her family and friends. One day, she has had enough, so when her boss places one last demand on her, she swears at her boss and is immediately fired.

The novel ends with the main character finding alternative jobs to fund her unemployment.

In 2006, a movie of the same name was released. The comedy-drama stars Meryl Streep and Anne Hathaway in the lead roles. The film was both a critical and a theatrical success, being nominated for many awards and being the 12th highest-grossing film worldwide in 2006.

Answer: Richard Hooker

The actual title of Hooker's novel is "MASH: A Novel About Three Army Doctors". The story of a mobile army hospital during the Korean War was published in 1968. It tells of the relationships between a number of surgeons and nurses, along with their relationships with the commanding officer, the chaplain, and many others who staff the unit.

There are good-natured tricks played on one another, and plenty of drinking back at "the swamp", or tent where the surgeons stay, but it is also clear that the surgeons are highly skilled and dedicated to their jobs.

In 1970, the movie "M*A*S*H" was released. The name differs slightly from the "MASH" that was used in the book only for stylistic reasons. The drama-comedy movie tells the story of the characters at the mobile army hospital.

It starred many big names at the time. There was a further "M*A*S*H" series that ran on television from 1972 through 1983. However, despite having the same characters, only one actor who appeared in the film also appeared in the same role on the television series. Gary Burghoff, who played Radar O'Reilly, was the only actor who made the transition from film to tv.

Answer: Pierre Boulle

This novel by Pierre Boulle was published in French in 1952, with an English translation by Xan Fielding published in 1954. It tells the story of how prisoners in a WWII POW camp are forced to build a bridge that will provide a railroad connection between Bangkok and Rangoon.

In the book, the train plummets into the river below, which is caused by a charge that is placed there by one of the characters. The bridge suffers only minor damage. In 1957, the novel was made into a movie of the same name.

The epic film is over two-and-a-half hours long and stars many big Hollywood names. It was the highest-grossing film of 1957, and won seven Academy Awards. There are a few differences between the book and the movie. In the book, the bridge is not destroyed when the train hurtles off the bridge due to a small explosion that is placed there by the men who are building the bridge.

However, in the movie, the bridge is destroyed by the explosives that are placed there by the POWs. Despite the differences, it is said that the Boulle, the author of the book, enjoyed the movie.

Answer: William Peter Blatty

William Peter Blatty published the horror novel "The Exorcist" in 1971. It tells the story of a young girl who becomes possessed by the devil. When her mother, an atheist, turns to the church for help with her daughter's disturbing behaviours, a priest visits with the girl.

When he becomes convinced that she is possessed by a demon, he asks permission from his bishop to perform an exorcism. Given his inexperience in performing the ritual, an older, more experienced priest is asked to do the exorcism, with the initial priest acting as an observer/assistant.

When the older priest suffers a heart attack and dies during the ceremony, the younger priest takes over, and invites the evil spirit to leave the girl and enter his own body. When it does, he throws himself out the window to his own death, thus getting rid of the evil spirit.

The film, which came out in 1973, starred a number of actors and actresses who were relative unknowns at the time. There were also accidents and injuries on the set that caused delays and an inflated budget.

Despite that, the film was considered a success. It was nominated for ten Academy Awards, and won two - Best Screenplay Based on Material from Another Medium (William Peter Blatty) and Best Sound (Robert Knudson and Chris Newman). The film also made $441.3 million on a budget of $12 million.

Answer: Ken Kesey

"One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" by Ken Kesey was published in 1962. It tells the story of a sane man who faked insanity in order to serve a prison sentence in a psychiatric hospital instead of on a work farm. In the hospital, he leads the other patients in rebelling against a nurse who is very strict and doesn't seem to care about the patients.

After a number of rebellions inside the hospital, the main character is sent for a lobotomy. When he returns in a vegetative state, one of the other characters smothers him and escapes the hospital.

The 1975 film stars Jack Nicholson in the main role, but also has many other fine performances by other actors and actresses. The film was extremely successful, going on to win the "top five" Academy Awards, including the Best Actor for Jack Nicholson, Best Actress for Louise Fletcher, Best Direction for Milos Forman, Best Picture, and Best Adapted Screenplay for Lawrence Hauben and Bo Goldman.

Answer: Thomas Harris

"The Silence of the Lambs", published by Thomas Harris in 1988, is actually a sequel to his 1981 book "Red Dragon". Both books star Dr. Hannibal Lecter, a serial killer who eats his prey. In "The Silence of the Lambs", a young FBI agent named Clarice Starling is sent to interview him in prison for information that could lead to the arrest of a new serial killer who is terrorizing the eastern US. Lecter trades clues about the potential killer for information about the agent's life growing up. Eventually, a Senator's daughter is kidnapped by the new serial killer.

The FBI agent goes to her rescue, and Hannibal Lecter escapes during a transfer from one institution to another. The book won the 1988 Bram Stoker Award for Best Novel, and the 1989 Anthony Award for Best Novel.

In 1991, the book was made into a film of the same name. It stars Jodie Foster as Clarice Starling, and Anthony Hopkins as Dr. Hannibal Lecter. It won the "top five" Academy Awards: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Screenplay, Best Actor and Best Actress. Only two other films in the 20th century managed to win the "top five", including "It Happened One Night" (1934), and "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" (1975).

Answer: Truman Capote

Truman Capote wrote the novella "Breakfast at Tiffany's" in 1958. In it, an unnamed narrator talks about his 1943 friendship with a neighbour named Holly Golightly. She has moved to New York from the south, and is unemployed. She seems to survive on socializing with men who take her to clubs and restaurants.

She also receives money and gifts. Capote does not describe her as a prostitute, but instead calls her an an "American geisha". The narrator of the book slowly gets to know Holly over the course of a year.

A film of the same name starring Audrey Hepburn was released in 1961. She plays Holly Golightly in the movie that does differ a bit from the book. For example, the movie takes place in the 1960s, not the 1940s like the book. Also, in the movie, Holly falls in love with the male protagonist, but in the book there was no love affair.

The movie was nominated for five Academy Awards, and won two - Best Music Score of a Dramatic or Comedy Picture (Henry Mancini), and Best Original Song ("Moon River" - Henry Mancini and Johnny Mercer).