Herbie Rides Again Trivia Quiz

Answer: Alonzo Hawk

"Herbie Rides Again" introduces us to the villain Alonzo Hawk during the opening credits. He is seen gloating over the demolition of historic buildings whilst he is sat in his chauffeur driven car with Maxwell the chauffeur. There is a giant wrecking ball hanging from a crane, a hydraulic crusher and detonators which Hawk presses with glee.

There is a poster announcing a new Hawk shopping centre to open soon. We are shown a caricature of the quintessential hard capitalist showing no mercy in achieving his ends. Even the Colosseum in Rome would be a good site for another shopping centre and a car park.

Answer: Volkswagen Beetle

Herbie is a white Volkswagen Beetle painted with three stripes. There is a blue, a white and a red stripe running from back to front along the centre of the car. His trademark number 53 is painted boldly on the front and on the sides.

"Herbie Rides Again" is the 1974 sequel to the 1969 Herbie film called "The Love Bug". In the debut "Herbie" film, we saw Herbie being used as a racing car. Now he has a new owner because Jim Douglas from "The Love Bug" has gone to Europe to drive foreign cars. Ownership of Herbie has passed to Mrs Steinmetz, an eccentric old lady played by actress Helen Hayes. Mrs Steinmetz is a widow who lives in a now solitary Victorian fire house in San Francisco. She refuses to sign Hawk's papers allowing him to demolish the fire house and build his planned Hawk Plaza shopping centre. Hers is the only property still standing in the area. He schemes and plans to use his naive nephew, Willoughby Whitfield, played by actor Ken Berry, to try to get Mrs Steinmetz to sign the paper. This is Willoughby's first assignment as a lawyer.

Answer: Chicken jousting tournament

Willoughby turns up at the fire house where he is made to feel unwelcome by Herbie, who traps the edge of his foot, and by the orchestrion which plays the tune "Do Not Trust Him Gentle Maiden" after Willoughby insultingly calls the fire house a fire trap. Only Mrs Steinmetz welcomes him and offers him a cup of tea. However, she shows no interest in Hawk's offer of a cheque for the house.

When former neighbour Nicole Harris, played by actress Stefanie Powers, whose property has been demolished by Hawk, enters the house, Mrs Steinmetz introduces Willoughby as a man from Mister Hawk's. Nicole assaults him with a punch.

Later, Willoughby is persuaded reluctantly to ride with Nicole in Herbie where he calls Herbie "an ordinary, unattractive little car". When Willoughby tries driving, he calls Herbie "your ordinary, rather stupid looking..." to which Herbie reacts by driving erratically. Willoughby is sceptical of Herbie's abilities.

Herbie takes them over the Golden Gate Bridge on route to Ye Chicken Jousting Tournament. This is a parenthesis in the story. We are introduced to The Red Knight, the chicken jousting champion. Two cars must race towards each other. The driver who loses his nerve and swerves out of the way first is a chicken. When Nicole gets out of Herbie, the car does not allow Willoughby to leave with her. Herbie drives towards the Red Knight with the apologetic Willoughby pleading "I believe". The Red Knight loses his nerve, swerves out of the way, and Herbie wins. Willoughby apologises to Nicole and offers her lunch.

Answer: Boiled lobster

Willoughby and Nicole are sat outside at the dinner table together. There are boats anchored in the river nearby. A waiter places bibs, with pictures of lobsters on, around their necks. They both try to explain their side of the story to one another. Nicole says that Willoughby couldn't possibly know what a no good Hawk is. She talks about her home being demolished. They continue their conversation about Hawk until Willoughby says, "I couldn't believe Uncle Alonzo would do a thing like that". This confession of a family association with Hawk annoys her. Nicole loses her temper again and hits Willoughby with a boiled lobster. He is knocked over and splashes into the river.

In the next scene, back at the fire house, Nicole calls Mrs Steinmetz "Grandma" several times whilst they are talking, but Nicole was not introduced as the granddaughter when she first encountered Willoughby. She could be just using this as an affectionate name for Mrs Steinmetz.

Answer: One cylinder hair dryer

Willoughby prepares a speech to give to Uncle Alonzo about resigning from his first assignment, disapproving of Hawk's intention of building what Willoughby calls a concrete ant hill. He sees Nicole, from a distance, leaving the fire house, going to work dressed in her Global Airlines uniform. After this, Mrs Steinmetz leaves the fire house where Willoughby tells her what he intends to do. Mrs Steinmetz hints that she would like Willoughby and Nicole to see more of each other.

The next scene is in Hawk's office. Mr Barnstorm is on the telephone telling Hawk that he is waiting with his digging equipment to start work on Hawk Plaza and that time costs money. When Willoughby gets close to Hawk's office, he hears him shouting, using threatening language, so he goes to a phone booth to ring his uncle. He pretends to be leaving the country on a Swedish ship. Afterwards Hawk says that he is betrayed but never beaten. He intends to use harassment against Mrs Steinmetz. He will start by stealing her car, Herbie.

Hawk tells his team of lawyers that he started work as a car re-possessor. He has the necessary equipment in a briefcase with him. Herbie allows himself to be stolen. Hawk says "... except a six-year-old kid could steal this one cylinder hair dryer". Herbie suddenly stops in the middle of a junction and can't be moved. The police, including the traffic commissioner, try to help but Herbie can't be pushed out of the way. Herbie pushes back causing a pile-up. They try to tow Herbie away, but he pulls the police car back, then causes the police cars to crash against one another, quickly reverses and the two police cars crash. Herbie opens his driver side door, forces Hawk out of his seat, and escapes.

Answer: I need to buy a rifle too

Willoughby now sees Uncle Alonzo as a villain. He is disguised with a false beard and moustache as he phones his mother from a phone booth to tell her about how he feels. Nicole is stood nearby. She can hear what he is saying. She pulls the false beard off his face causing him some pain again.

Mrs Steinmetz tells Herbie that it is time to go to the market. She has a basket to put her shopping in. Soon after they leave home, Mrs Steinmetz starts preparing her shopping list by saying out loud, "half a dozen tomatoes and broccoli".

The chauffeur Maxwell and four of the lawyers are in pursuit of Herbie, but Herbie senses them closing in. There is now a car chase through San Francisco. Herbie is cornered, but he drives himself at a right angle to the ground, defying gravity. Hawk is on the telephone to his henchmen. There is a chase up a multi-story car park; a chase through the Palace Hotel where a cake gets knocked over; and a chase up one of the spans of the Golden Gate Bridge which is seen by Hawk's secretary Millicent from his office. Mrs Steinmetz talks to Herbie as though it was just a normal ride. He levitates through the air defying gravity. This whole scene of the car chase is one of the climaxes of the movie.

There is a quieter scene back at the fire house with Mrs Steinmetz, Nicole, Willoughby and Herbie. Willoughby will not be returning to Missouri. He has agreed to help the ladies to fight against his uncle. Mrs Steinmetz would like Nicole to take a romantic interest in Willoughby, but Nicole says, "Just let nature take its course". Mrs Steinmetz says she needs some more broccoli, so Nicole and Willoughby take a drive in Herbie to get some, but Herbie has a mind of his own.

Answer: Retired cable car no 22

Hawk's chauffeur Maxwell sees Herbie with Nicole and Willoughby driving down to the beach. Maxwell tells Hawk about this by using the telephone in Hawk's car. Hawk replies, "Don't let them return to the fire house until after dark". Maxwell sees an opportunity with a man who is fishing and having a picnic. He tells Maxwell that this is the only road there is from the beach. Maxwell pays him $50 to obstruct the road for two hours.

Willoughby and Nicole are sat relaxing and talking on the beach whilst Herbie rides up and down chasing the birds. When they drive back up the road from the beach, there is a van blocking the way. The bribed man says that his rear axle is frozen. Herbie turns and drives over the jetty and into the Pacific Ocean. He floats along the ocean followed by a shark. Willoughby then asks a surfer the way to San Francisco. The surfer answers him and then in shock falls over into the water.

They return to the fire house after sunset and they notice that the retired cable car no 22 has disappeared from the garden. Mrs Steinmetz is sat on the stairs with all her possessions gone. They were taken in a big truck. They go to a warehouse called "Alonzo Hawk Van & Storage" to look for their possessions. The orchestrion starts playing "Land of Hope and Glory" to alert them to where he is hidden, but then they are confronted by two armed security guards. Herbie helps them all to escape from the warehouse.

We see Herbie pushing Number 22 up the hill on their way home. A drunken man sat on the sidewalk (pavement) sees Number 22 coming up the hill with the orchestrion playing music. He puts his hand out as though it is a bus and climbs on board. This is where he first meets Mrs Steinmetz, on retired cable car number 22 whilst she is sat doing her knitting.

Answer: Classical music concert

When the drunken man, who is smartly dressed wearing a Stetson on his head, sees Mrs Steinmetz doing her knitting on the driver's seat of Number 22, he says, "Aren't you a might old to be a stewardess?" Hawk is in his office thinking that he has won until he gets a call from one of the security guards. Back on Number 22, the man introduces himself as Judson. He owns a herd of cows and he is visiting San Francisco. There is another car chase between Herbie and Hawk's car until Hawk's car crashes.

Judson and Mrs Steinmetz are oblivious to everything that is going on around them. They talk about the portrait of the late Captain Steinmetz. Now Number 22 is running downhill out of control. It crashes through a wall and into the middle of a concert where people in evening-wear are quietly listening to Saint-Saens' "The Swan" from "Carnival of the Animals". Herbie is in pursuit with Nicole and Willoughby. As they chase out through the other side, an old man in the audience asks, "Is that anyone we know?" Back on the main road, Willoughby stands upright on Herbie, hangs onto Number 22 and climbs on board. He puts the brakes on.

Back at the fire house, Mrs Steinmetz plans to see Hawk in person to reprimand him for what he has done. Willoughby tries to stop her, but she climbs into Herbie and drives away. Hawk is in his office being massaged by his secretary Millicent. He only has three lawyers left. The others have been sacked, but they refuse to consent to the demolition of the fire house without a legal permit.

Answer: Fire hose

Next, there is a scene with a window cleaner being reprimanded by Hawk. When the window cleaner goes back down to the ground, he tells Mrs Steinmetz that Hawk's office is on the 28th floor. Herbie drives onto the window cleaner's lift. Mrs Steinmetz presses the button to take it up, but Willoughby tries to stop them. He clings onto the lift. Hawk rings Loostgarten Wrecking Company to tell him to demolish the fire house even without a permit. Herbie, Mrs Steinmetz and Willoughby go up to the floor where they stop at Hawk's office. The window is still open. Mrs Steinmetz eavesdrops on Hawk telling someone what he plans to do. She presses the button to start the window cleaning device. Foam is squirted into Hawk's office making a mess everywhere. Herbie chases Hawk through the foam. In the middle of the chase, Willoughby appears from the foam and says, "Uncle, now is a good time to explain". Hawk wants to strangle him, but the chase continues through the other rooms and onto the ledge of the windows. You've got to have a head for heights. Herbie is persuaded to stop the chase.

Back at the fire house, they find the telephone number for Loostgarten Wrecking Company. Willoughby mimics Hawk's voice and tells Loostgarten to wreck 343 Olyander Heights instead. That is Alonzo Hawk's address. Hawk is in bed ringing his doctor because it is three o'clock in the morning and he can't sleep. He is told to count sheep, but the sheep are followed by Herbies with jaws and it becomes a nightmare. Loostgarten wrecks one wall of Hawk's house, but stops when he sees Hawk shouting at him.

Hawk rings Mrs Steinmetz and pretends to repent of what he has done. There is a headline in the paper saying, "Hawk Gives Up". It was just a phoney story, a trick.

Next, Nicole and Willoughby are seen relaxing at the riverside dinner table. Judson is having dinner as a guest at the fire house with Mrs Steinmetz. Bulldozers and other wrecking vehicles are causing an earthquake, damaging the house with their movements outside. They are besieging the house. Herbie lights up his headlights and drives out to seek help. Hawk uses a loudspeaker to warn Judson and Mrs Steinmetz to leave the house. Herbie drives up to the restaurant and sounds his horn so that Nicole and Willoughby will go with him. Herbie hurries back to the fire house with other Volkswagen Beetle cars on the route driving themselves in pursuit, following Herbie.

Mr Judson puts Captain Steinmetz's helmet on and uses an old fire hose as a weapon against the besiegers. Two of them run away, but then the hose bursts. There is no more ammunition.

Answer: Arrested by the police

Herbie and the other cars turn up at the fire house as though they are the cavalry coming at the last minute to save the day. They sound their horns and chase all the wreckers away.

Hawk is in a Jeep with his chauffeur. They crash into the bulldozer which is being driven by Loostgarten himself. "How dare you crash into me", shouts Hawk, so Loostgarten uses the bulldozer to tip him and his chauffeur out of the Jeep. Herbie and the other cars chase Hawk who is running away on foot. Willoughby wants Herbie to stop chasing Hawk, so he says, "If you don't stop, you won't be invited to the wedding". Herbie brakes suddenly, followed by the other cars.

A police car comes onto the scene with its sirens wailing. Hawk nearly gets run over, so they serve to avoid him and crash into another car. The Police Commissioner steps out of his car looking angry. "It's you again Mr Hawk". Hawk pleads for them to save him as he repeats "They're after me". He says there are hundreds of cars after him, but when he points to the distance, they are not there. The commissioner says, "Would you mind coming down to my place of business" as they drag him away without bothering to read him his rights.

The last scene is back in daylight at the fire house with the fire bell and Number 22's bell ringing, then the orchestrion playing "Here Comes the Bride". The cars reach up and form an archway with ribbons across as Herbie drives Nicole and Willoughby between them and past children who are watching and throwing rice, a tradition at weddings. The movie finishes with a view of San Francisco as we see the credits.