Non-Fiction Books of the 1980s Quiz

Answer: Mathematical formulas and equations

Hawking was told if he insisted on keeping the mathematical material, the sales of the book would be cut in half. He retained only Einstein's E=m*c squared, as mentioned in the introduction.

The sub-title of the book is "From the Big Bang to Black Holes". As a result, in spite of his disability and speech issues, he has become a familiar image. The movie "A Brief History of Time"(1991) was a documentary about Hawking, not about the book. In 2014 a biographical film, "The Theory of Everything" opened to critical acclaim.

Answer: Andy Rooney

During World War Two, Rooney gained experience and some fame while working on the military newspaper "Stars and Stripes". After the war he became a television writer working for Arthur Godfrey and Garry Moore and later on some individual projects. When the opportunity came in 1978 for a regular segment on "60 Minutes" he took it and was there until a couple of weeks before his death in 2011. His segment was routinely the most anticipated one of the program.

Rooney played the part of a cranky old man daring to say the things that many people thought but would not say. This got him into trouble with minority groups and gay people, although he seemed never to have done so in a vicious degrading way. This once led to a three month suspension from CBS with loss of pay.

Answer: All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten

Robert Fulghum is an Unitarian minister, artist, and musician. He worked at many jobs, but with the publication of "All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten" he brought a smile to lips of the most cynical. The book also contains short stories, fables, and poems. The media has had fun with parodies based on this book.

In case you were wondering, there are the other twelve:

"5. CLEAN UP YOUR OWN MESS.
6. Don't take things that aren't yours.
7. Say you're SORRY when you HURT somebody.
8. Wash your hands before you eat.
9. Flush.
10. Warm cookies and cold milk are good for you.
11. Live a balanced life - learn some and drink some and draw some and paint some and sing and dance and play and work everyday some.
12. Take a nap every afternoon.
13. When you go out into the world, watch out for traffic, hold hands, and stick together.
14. Be aware of wonder. Remember the little seed in the Styrofoam cup: The roots go down and the plant goes up and nobody really knows how or why, but we are all like that.
15. Goldfish and hamster and white mice and even the little seed in the Styrofoam cup - they all die. So do we.
16. And then remember the Dick-and-Jane books and the first word you learned - the biggest word of all - LOOK."

Answer: Laughter

Cousins said that he had to train himself to laugh in order to experience the endorphins that laughter might generate. He was particularly fond of the old Marx Brothers' films and could laugh at the same scenes over and over.

He worked in many liberal causes as an activist. His awards for his work included the Eleanor Roosevelt Peace Award in 1963, the Family Man of the Year Award in 1968, the United Nations Peace Medal in 1971, and the Niwano Peace Prize in 1990. His proudest moment was when Albert Einstein called him to Princeton University to discuss issues of nuclear disarmament and world federalism.

In spite of his liberal stance, he was firmly against women in the work place, as he felt it took too many jobs away from men.

Answer: Blue Highways

The blue highways on maps are less-used roads connecting generally small towns and hamlets. Moon wrote about the towns and the people he met, such as a born-again Christians, runaways, a monk, a log cabin restorer, a Nevada prostitute, fishermen, Hopi Indians, bartenders, country stores owners, and farmers. And he told their stories.

It is doubtful whether anyone could duplicate his journey today. Fast food joints, interstates, urban sprawl, decline of mom/pop stores, and technology have dug deep into the America of this book. None-the-less, just for its portrait of those times and the nostalgia it evokes, it is worth another read. I have read it several times and always find something new.

Answer: The book and the TV show appeared at the same time to complement each other

No one in our times did more to promote public understanding of science. The television series with thirteen episodes corresponded to the thirteen chapters of the book so facts and data could be referenced, just like in a classroom.

Sagan published over 600 articles on science during his life and won recognition and awards too numerous to mention. His 1980 series and book are his most associated achievements.

Answer: The Art of the Deal

"The Art of the Deal" is both an autobiography and a guide book for success. If Trump was not the first one to say, "greed is good", he certainly epitomizes it. The business model has almost religious overtones. Trump has led a flamboyant life with his marriages, his hair, his television appearances and the TV series "The Apprentice", and his term as the President of the United States, which was not without controversy.

Answer: Howard Cosell

Wherever Cosell went he created controversy, as he did in his autobiography "I Never Played the Game". His 'tell it like it is' credo transformed sports broadcasting. Sportscasters had been known for color commentary and play-by-play but Cosell's use of analysis and context brought television sports reporting to the level of hard news reporting.

Cosell loved boxing but campaigned for stricter rules when opponents were mismatched. He was at the 'Rumble in the Jungle', the 'Battle of the Sexes' between Riggs and King, and the ill-fated 1984 Olympics.

Just a few of Cosell's more controversial situations: First broadcaster to refer to Muhammad Ali by his new name rather than Cassius Clay; set up a political controversy when during the World Series when he commented that "The Bronx is burning", referring to a nearby fire sending candidate Ronald Reagan flying to New York, an area Jimmy Carter had just visited; announced the death of John Lennon during Monday Night Football; referred to a black football player as a 'little monkey' which led to his being fired from Monday Night Football.

Answer: Jeff Smith

Smith graduated from the University of Puget Sound with a degree in philosophy and sociology, and then from Drew University Theological School to become a minister in the Methodist Church. After some church posts, his love of food prompted him to open a deli and cooking school in Tacoma, WA.

He once said about his books and television programs, "Frugal doesn't mean cheap. It means you don't waste your money". He had a way of explaining cooking. I remember his recipe for sausage gravy "don't spare the black pepper". Again, the printed books cross publicized the PBS television cooking shows.

Jeff Smith's high flying career crashed in 1997 when seven men filed a civil lawsuit against him, charging him with sexual abuse. No criminal charges were filed and the suit was settled out of court for an undisclosed sum in 1998. He died of a heart attack in 2004.

Answer: Angela Davis

Most pictures of Angela Davis show her with an Afro hair style. She ran as vice presidential candidate twice for the Communist Party USA. Ronald Reagan, as governor of California, tried to fire her from her teaching job at UCLA, but the action was reversed by the court.

In 1970 Jonathan Jackson, a 17-year-old African-American high-school student, took control over a courtroom in Marin County Jackson, armed the black defendants, and took as hostages Judge Harold Haley, the prosecutor, and three female jurors. The police began shooting at the escape vehicle, and the judge and the three black men were killed. Later, it was found that Angela Davis had purchased the guns used. When charges came for her arrest, she went into hiding until apprehended at a Howard Johnson motel by the FBI. Richard Nixon announced the capture and labeled her "a dangerous terrorist".

Davis was tried, and the all-white jury returned a verdict of not guilty because ownership of guns did not imply knowledge of how the guns might be used. Her legal expenses were paid by the Communist Party, private donations, and United Presbyterian Church.

Following her retirement from UC-Santa Cruz, she has been on lecture tours including appointments at Syracuse University and UCLA.