A Wing and a Prayer Trivia Quiz

Answer: Tom Cruise

Born in Syracuse, New York, Tom had an abusive father and grew up in relative poverty, sleeping in cars and living in trailer parks for most of his childhood. The family was always on the move with his father chasing employment, and Tom attended 15 different schools in the course of 14 years.

Despite this inauspicious start in life, he went on to become one of Hollywood's most successful actors.

Answer: Jobs

At the age of 19, Steve Jobs and his friend Dan Kottke dropped out of Reed College in Portland Oregon and travelled to India in search of spiritual enlightenment. In 1976, Jobs founded Apple along with Steve Wozniak and Ronald Wayne, but he was forced out of the company in 1985. By 1997, Apple was almost bankrupt and asked Jobs to return, which he did, returning the company to profitability and resounding success.

Answer: Babe Ruth

Born in 1895 in the Pigtown neighbourhood of Baltimore, Babe Ruth was sent at the age of 7 to a Catholic reformatory and orphanage, where he stayed for 12 years. He rarely attended classes and spent much of his time wandering in the dockyards, drinking alcohol and chewing tobacco. Everything changed when a monk by the name of Brother Matthias took him under his wing and became a father figure to him, encouraging him to put his energy into baseball.

He was nicknamed 'The Bambino' and 'The Sultan of Swat', and his professional career spanned 22 seasons.

Answer: Lucille Ball

Lucille Ball attended drama school in New York City with Bette Davis. Her instructors told her she would never succeed as an actress and advised her to try a different profession. She proved them all wrong when she and husband Desi Arnaz launched 'I Love Lucy' on CBS and it went on to become one of the longest running TV shows in history. Lucille Ball succeeded against all the odds and is remembered as one of the greatest comediennes ever.

Answer: Demi Moore

Born in Roswell, New Mexico, Demi Moore had an unstable childhood, moving home more than 30 times with her mother and stepfather, who were both heavy drinkers. She dropped out of high school at 16 to try her hand at acting and modelling and powered her way to superstardom against all the odds.

Answer: Utah

It was not until the age of 62 that Colonel Harland Sanders' career at the helm of KFC took off. He had previously worked as a steam engine stoker, an insurance salesman, a gas station operator and finally a roadside restaurant owner, having dropped out of school and left home at the age of 13. Success might have come to him late in life, but it certainly came on a grand scale across the globe.

Answer: Tupelo, Mississippi

Elvis Aaron Presley was born in Tupelo just 35 minutes after the delivery of his stillborn twin brother. At school, he was regarded as a mama's boy and a loner who played trash hillbilly music. His early attempts at a musical career were unsuccessful and he took a job as a truck driver.

Indeed, Eddie Bond famously advised him to keep on trucking as he would never make it as a musician, after he auditioned for the latter's band. How wrong can you be?

Answer: Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone

J K Rowling may now be richer than Queen Elizabeth II, but things were not always like that. Seven years after graduating from Exeter University, she was a depressed, divorced, unemployed mother living on state benefits and struggling to make ends meet. Her subsequent journey to fame and fortune is a real-life rags to riches story.

Answer: Marilyn Monroe

Marilyn Monroe, born Norma Jeane Mortenson, had a troubled childhood during which she was placed in multiple foster homes and an orphanage. Her mother was diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia and her stepfather abused her. Her career, first as a model and later as an actress, was slow to take off, but determination eventually paid off big time.

Answer: Steven Spielberg

Stephen Spielberg is one of the most successful movie directors of all time, with numerous blockbusters to his credit, but life was not always a walk in the park for him. At school, he experienced bullying and prejudice on account of his Orthodox Jewish religion, and when he applied for a place at the University of Southern California's School of Cinematic Arts, he was rejected on account of his mediocre grades.

But perseverance and determination eventually paid off and led to a glittering cinematic career.