Coma Trivia Quiz

Answer: Robin Cook

Robin Cook, a medical doctor, wrote the novel. He generally writes novels about medicine and public health issues. Cook wrote a story called "Outbreak" about the Ebola virus, but that is NOT the story on which the 1995 Dustin Hoffman movie, "Outbreak" is based.

Michael Crichton is also a doctor-turned-author and was the director of "Coma". He is well known for writing techno-thrillers including several novels-turned-movies like "Jurassic Park", "Disclosure" and "The Andromeda Strain". Mr. Crichton is one of the creators and executive producers of the hit NBC series, ER.

Frederick Forsyth and Ken Follet are also popular authors, both former journalists. Mr. Forsyth wrote "The Day of the Jackal" and "The Odessa File", while Mr. Follet's best known work is "The Eye of the Needle".

Answer: Geneviève Bujold

Born in Canada in 1942, Ms. Bujold was sent by her strict Roman Catholic parents to a convent in Montreal for her schooling. She eventually left the school and enrolled in Montreal's free Conservatoire d'Art Dramatique. In 1969, she starred in the film, "Anne of the Thousand Days" with Richard Burton. For her performance, she earned a Golden Globe Award for Best Actress as well as a nomination for the Best Actress Oscar.

Answer: It might interfere with his desire to be chief resident.

Michael Douglas's character, Dr. Bellows, was reluctant to sympathize with Dr. Wheeler's suspicions mainly due to his desire to be chief resident. Selfishly, he felt if he caused any trouble for the hospital, especially its upper staff members, he'd lose his chance at the promotion.

Michael Douglas was born in 1944 to Kirk and Diana (nee Dill) Douglas. His famous father Kirk ("Spartacus", "The Bad and the Beautiful", "Lust for Life") discouraged Michael and his brothers from acting, but Michael persevered. His big acting break was his role of Inspector Steve Keller along side Karl Malden's Detective Lt. Mike Stone in TV's "The Streets of San Francisco".

Answer: A friend was comatose following routine surgery.

Dr Wheeler's close friend, Nancy Greenly, an otherwise healthy young woman, emerged from a routine operation in a coma. Dr. Wheeler then learned her friend had been tissue-typed, an unnecessary test for her operation. She was told the tissue typing request was generated at random by the hospital's computer as a sort of "quality control". This only made her more suspicious and she began an ethically necessary, but somewhat illegal, look into patient histories.

Greenly was played by Lois Chiles who also played Dr. Holly Goodhead in the 1979 James Bond thriller, "Moonraker".

Answer: Jefferson Institute

The Jefferson Institute was located "in the suburbs". Dr. Wheeler drove to the Institute and pretended to be on a tour with other health care professionals, but slipped away from the group to have a look around. She found evidence that organs were being removed from the comatose patients and overheard employees discussing the value of various human organs.

Answer: Knee surgery

Tom Selleck, with his trademark bushy mustache, played Sean Murphy who was admitted for knee surgery after he got hurt playing football with his buddies. His lapse into coma raised Dr. Wheeler's curiosity further. Murphy's body was later seen on an operating table at the Jefferson Institute, apparently having its organs removed.

Tom is best known for his role as Thomas Magnum, in the 1980s television series, "Magnum, P.I."

Answer: carbon monoxide

Dr. Wheeler's questions inspired the two residents to offer up several rather exotic methods of inducing coma. One resident's final suggestion was to use carbon monoxide as its effects would be quite hard to detect. The actor, Ed Harris, who exclaimed, "Boring!", at his co-worker's suggestion, went on to star in numerous hit movies, including "The Right Stuff", "The Rock", "Apollo 13" and "The Truman Show". He has won the Golden Globe and has been nominated several times for an Oscar.

Answer: Head of Anesthesiology

Dr. George was played by Emmy award winner Rip Torn. Dr. Wheeler's suspicion of Dr. George was understandable for, as head of the Anesthesiology Department, he was in a position to cause and conceal any mischief of the type Dr. Wheeler was questioning. His refusal to co-operate with Wheeler only substantiated her distrust.

Answer: Maintenance man

A maintenance man, having overheard some of Dr Wheeler's inquiries, told her he knew something and asked her to meet him later. Unfortunately an assassin killed the man before he could tell his story. However, Wheeler searched the maintenance area of the basement and found the carbon monoxide tank and requisite plumbing leading to Operating Room 8.

Answer: appendicitis

It turned out that Wheeler's main suspect, Dr. George, the anesthesiologist, was innocent. Dr. Harris, however, was fully involved. Harris (played by Richard Widmark), when confronted by Dr. Wheeler with the evidence, uttered "No decision is easy, Sue. It only looks that way when you're young. When you're older, everything is complicated. There is no black and white, only gray", apparently trying to somehow justify his involvement.

By that point he had slipped a drug into Wheeler's drink, inducing symptoms of appendicitis for which Dr. Harris was going to perform emergency surgery in his favorite operating room. While lying on the gurney, Wheeler implored her friend, Bellows, to study her chart and, then, finally realizing her suspicions were right all along, Bellows took action.