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But The Cat Had Nine Lives Trivia Quiz

These 'lucky' recipients and nominees of the Darwin Awards maybe would have said "but the cat had nine lives...". We can only be grateful that these humans didn't.

A multiple-choice quiz by lones78. Estimated time: 7 mins.

Author
lones78

Time
7 mins

Type
Multiple Choice

Quiz #
324,183

Updated
Dec 03 21

# Qns
10

Difficulty
Tough

Avg Score
6 / 10

Plays
423

Awards
Top 35% Quiz

One at a Time - Single Page - Timed Game

Question 1 of 10

1. The Darwin Awards winner in 1998 threw his wife off the balcony of their eighth-floor apartment yet she survived and he was the one who died. How? Hint

She became tangled in power lines and, as he jumped towards her, he missed and hit the ground

He was shot by neighbouring children playing with guns

He jumped after his wife but hit the power lines and was electrocuted

The balcony collapsed as he threw her. She then landed on top of him thereby killing him and saving herself

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Question 2 of 10

2. One 2009 Darwin Award nominee was killed after attempting a 'controlled slide' down which mountain in Oregon? Hint

Bear Mountain

Grass Mountain

Saddle Mountain

Laurel Mountain

3. A 2002 Darwin Awards nominee from the United Kingdom died whilst jumping between multi-storey carparks. Whilst this may seem a little dangerous to most people, there is a legitimate 'sport' dedicated to this type of thing. Which of the following is NOT related in any way to this bizarre practice? Hint

Kwanzaa

Parkour

Yamakasi

Freerunning

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Question 4 of 10

4. A 2004 Darwin Awards nominee, 28-year-old Fabio, managed to kill himself in front of his friends when demonstrating to them his new spy gadget. What was this gadget? Hint

An exploding shoe bomb

An electrified belt buckle

A watch/laser that burns the eyeball

A single shot pistol, shaped like a pen

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Question 5 of 10

5. A Darwin Awards 2008 nominee was killed by an elevator in Zatec (north-west of Prague, Czech Republic). What caused the elevator to turn deadly? Hint

The man electrocuted himself tyring to 'hotwire' the elevator so he could reach his destination quicker

The man got stuck in the doors of the elevator as it was moving and got squashed between floors

The man climbed through the top of the elevator as it reached its highest point

The elevator fell on the man after he managed to saw through the steel cable supporting the elevator

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Question 6 of 10

6. Wayne from Pennsylvania (USA), a 1997 Darwin Awards nominee, said to a friend "I'm a man, I can handle it". He died when he visited a bar instead of a hospital after being bitten by what type of animal? Hint

A cobra

A sea snake

A black widow spider

A bear

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Question 7 of 10

7. I am sad to say that this one happened in my home town of Perth, Western Australia. A 2000 Darwin Awards nominee was killed by a forklift. It was what he was doing at the time he was driving that made this death highly unusual. What was our forklift driver doing when he was killed by the forklift? Hint

The driver was swooped by a territorial magpie during breeding season

Talking on his mobile/cell phone

Filming a forklift safety training video

Trying to lift a piece of machinery too heavy for the forklift, hence crushing himself and the forklift

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Question 8 of 10

8. Most people have probably heard of the strange warning labels on electrical and mechanical equipment but this story may be part of the reason for warning labels on chainsaws. An Italian man (2002 Darwin Awards nominee) was found dead after having been 'attacked' with a chainsaw. Further investigation revealed that the man had been 'attacked' by his cousin. Why? Hint

The cousin was showing off how great his new chainsaw was and slipped, chopping off the victim's leg

The two men were trying to claim on several insurance policies by causing 'permanent disablement' to the victim

The man and his cousin had been drinking and decided to 'juggle' chainsaws while they were running

The victim actually cut himself with the chainsaw whilst trying to frame his cousin for the act

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Question 9 of 10

9. A 2003 Darwin Awards nominee, a Los Angeles real estate attorney, electrocuted and killed himself in a most unusual way. He was cleaning his pool at the time but how did he manage to electrocute himself? Hint

He used the metal pole in his hands to try to dislodge a palm frond caught in overhanging power lines

He was cleaning the pool in an electrical storm and the metal pole he was holding was hit by lightning

A mouse had chewed through the wires to the pool pump thereby electrifying the water in the pool, which of course our victim was touching

He didn't electrocute himself, he actually drowned when he fell in the pool and got tangled in the pool cleaner hose

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Question 10 of 10

10. An English Darwin Awards nominee (2006) was found by police dead in his apartment with several stab wounds to his body. With investigators finding no evidence of foul play the truth emerged when investigators spoke to the victim's wife. What was the victim doing at the time of his death? Hint

He tripped on a rug and fell on the knife he had armed himself with whilst checking out a ruckus outside the apartment

The victim set off his own booby trap when returning home after a night drinking

The victim and a friend (after a few drinks) were 'fencing' using kitchen knives

Testing out his new stab-proof jacket, whilst wearing it

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Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. The Darwin Awards winner in 1998 threw his wife off the balcony of their eighth-floor apartment yet she survived and he was the one who died. How?

Answer: She became tangled in power lines and, as he jumped towards her, he missed and hit the ground

This strangeness occurred in Buenos Aires in 1998. During a 'marital dispute' a man threw his wife off the balcony. She got tangled in the power lines and, as he jumped towards her (it is unclear as to why he jumped) he completely missed her and hit the ground. The woman managed to make her way to a nearby balcony, surviving her ordeal.

2. One 2009 Darwin Award nominee was killed after attempting a 'controlled slide' down which mountain in Oregon?

Answer: Saddle Mountain

Eighteen year-old, Jacob "Jake" Gillett, climbed to the top of Saddle Mountain where he told friends he would attempt a controlled slide down the mountain and would meet them at the bottom. After friends couldn't find Jake, the authorities were called in. Jake's body was found the following day approximately 1,000 feet below where he attempted his slide.

Grass Mountain can be found in Vermont, Laurel Mountain is in Pennsylvania, and Bear Mountain is in California.

Answer: Kwanzaa

Parkour and freerunning are used interchangeably to describe the "physical discipline of training to overcome any obstacle within one's path by adapting one's movements to the environment" (Wikipedia). Yamakasi are a group of French practitioners of Parkour.

Kwanzaa is a week-long US celebration honouring the heritage and culture of African Americans.

Marc (the intrepid building jumper) had already completed the jump earlier in the day but returned after a few drinks with his friends. He misjudged the distance of the jump, landed, wobbled backwards and fell to his death.

4. A 2004 Darwin Awards nominee, 28-year-old Fabio, managed to kill himself in front of his friends when demonstrating to them his new spy gadget. What was this gadget?

Answer: A single shot pistol, shaped like a pen

After explaining to his friends how the pistol-pen worked, Fabio demonstrated by holding the pen to his left eye and pushing the button/trigger. The gadget worked like a charm. Fabio ended up with a .22-caliber bullet in his left occipital lobe.

5. A Darwin Awards 2008 nominee was killed by an elevator in Zatec (north-west of Prague, Czech Republic). What caused the elevator to turn deadly?

Answer: The elevator fell on the man after he managed to saw through the steel cable supporting the elevator

The would-be thief was trying to steal the steel cable from the unused elevator in a granary so he could 'cash-in' at a scrap metal yard. After a fair bit of damage to his hacksaw, the man finally sawed through the cable causing the elevator to silently plummet to the bottom of the shaft, where our intrepid thief was taking a quick break.

Answer: A cobra

Wayne picked up his friend's 'pet' cobra from its tank and was promptly bitten by it. Instead of visiting the hospital, Wayne told his friends "I'm a man, I can handle it" - famous last words. Wayne died later that day after bragging to his friends over a few drinks that he had been bitten by a cobra, not realising that cobra venom is a slow-acting central nervous system toxin.

Answer: Filming a forklift safety training video

The 52-year-old was killed filming a forklift safety training video. The driver wasn't wearing his seatbelt and was travelling at high speed over uneven terrain. This, coupled with driver error, was the reason (according to subsequent investigations) for the fatality. A crushing blow from the forklift!

Answer: The two men were trying to claim on several insurance policies by causing 'permanent disablement' to the victim

The death of the victim was an accident. The men hatched a plan to collect insurance money by causing 'permanent disablement' to the victim. Unfortunately, the cousin sawed off the victim's left leg and hit a major artery causing the victim to 'bleed out'. In November 2001, the cousin was arrested and charged with murder and insurance fraud.

Answer: He used the metal pole in his hands to try to dislodge a palm frond caught in overhanging power lines

The victim learnt in a very short space of time that metal poles, especially those used to clean pools, do not mix well with electricity of any form. A stray palm frond in overhanging power lines was eventually the victim's downfall. He just wanted the place to look neat and tidy.

The victim's family also sued both the pool supply store and the utility company for failing to disclose the dangers of poking a metal pole into power lines. Who would have thought that it was just common sense?

Answer: Testing out his new stab-proof jacket, whilst wearing it

That's right, the victim chose to test out his new stab-proof jacket when wearing it instead of, say, putting it over a chair or on the ground, or any place other than on a live body. The coroner decided on the death being accidental via 'misadventure'.

Source: Author lones78

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor Snowman before going online.
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