Facts on Famous People Trivia Quiz

Answer: The Birdman of Alcatraz

Stroud lived from 1890 to 1963. He spent the greater part of his life in various prisons, from 1909 until his death. Originally committed for twelve years for murder, he proved to be an exceptionally violent prisoner. During his first stint for murder, he assaulted several people, and in 1916 stabbed a guard to death. He spent the remainder of his life in solitary confinement, segregated from all but the most necessary of human contact for an agonising forty-two years.

During his time in prison, Stroud found a nest filled with injured birds. He took them and cared for them until they were old enough to care for themselves. It was from this experience that his interest in birds sprang, and, over the years that followed, he became known as an expert in the field of ornithology. Most of this work was centred on canaries, the only birds he was allowed to have. He wrote two acclaimed books on his work, "Diseases of Canaries" and "Stroud's Digest on the Diseases of Birds". He also contributed to several important strands of bird pathology, and discovered a cure for one avian disease.

Because of all the letters he received, which involved the prison authorities having to read and copy each one, attempts were eventually made by those who controlled Stroud's life to put an end to his avian activities. This went as far as attempting to have him transferred. Stroud resisted, but to no avail. He was transferred to Alcatraz, where he spent the remainder of his life - and where he was not allowed to keep his beloved birds. He switched to studying law and writing to fill in his time instead. He wrote "Bobbie", which was an autobiography, and "Looking Outward: A History of the US Prison System from Colonial Times to the Formation of the Bureau of Prisons". The Warden, however, banned their publication. He died, from ill health, at the age of seventy-three, on 21 November, 1963, having spent all but nineteen years of his life in prison. With forty-two of those years in solitary confinement, this seems to well and truly qualify as cruel and unusual punishment.

Information for this question was obtained from the following site:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Stroud

Answer: He wore a set of miniature boots

Romans soldiers wore very sturdy boots for their long campaigns and military service in all parts of the Empire. The Roman word for one of these boots is "Caliga". From the tiny age of three, Gaius was taken by his father, General Germanicus, on many of his campaigns in northern Europe. Germanicus had a small soldier's uniform and miniature soldier's boots made for the child. It was the soldiers in these campaigns who endowed the child with the nickname Caligula. It gave them much amusement to see the little boy dressed in his uniform, with a sturdy little caliga on each foot, attempting to stride around the camps as his father did.

Information for this question was obtained from the following site:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caligula

Answer: She liked to go to funerals

Martha Wise, nee Hasel, was born in Ohio. She married a much older man in 1906, but the marriage proved to be an unhappy one. She was made to do all the work on his farm as well as in the house, and was no better off than she had been in her unhappy childhood. Even when she was heavily pregnant, her husband made her feed the pigs and plow the fields. As an excuse to get out of the house now and then, she began attending funerals of people with whom she'd been acquainted. There she could sit peacefully, with not a thing to do.

This method of relaxation and escape grew to appeal to her more and more however, and, following the sudden death of her husband, she began to attend the funerals of everyone, regardless of whether she had known them or not. People began to look at her oddly but her only response, when queried about her strange hobby, was that she enjoyed funerals. Then her behaviour grew even stranger. She began to weep and wail openly at all funerals, travelling far and wide to attend same. No matter who the deceased was, Martha wailed.

One Thanksgiving, when visited by several members of her family, the guests all fell ill after the meal. One subsequently died. The following year, on New Year's Eve, the same thing happened. This time two people died. That's when the authorities began to investigate. They discovered that Martha had ordered large quantities of arsenic from her local drug store, saying she needed it to kill rats. When questioned, she soon confessed to the murders and the attempted murders. She said that the reason she had done this was so she could attend more funerals, because there weren't enough of these being held locally.

Martha was sent to jail in 1925 and not released until she was 79 - for good behaviour. However, none of her relatives would allow her to live with them. All the local nursing homes refused to take her in as well. Martha had nowhere else to turn, so went back to jail instead, where she passed away nine years later. I can't make up my mind whether this story is funny, horrifying or terribly sad. It doesn't record whether anyone attempted Martha's own funeral. Well, apart from herself, that is.

Information for this question was obtained from the following site:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martha_Wise

Answer: The first man on the moon under the Apollo program

That's a pretty amazing record when one thinks of it - the alma mater of the first and last man (in the 20th century) to walk on the moon. Purdue has a reputation for outstanding engineering curricula and has played a very influential role in the history of American aviation. Not only has it seen the first man on the moon (Neil Armstrong), and the last man to walk on the moon in the 20th century (Eugene Cernan) graduate from its ranks, but also Gus Grissom from the Mercury space program. By a quirk of fate the university was founded in 1869, one hundred years before the first man walked on the moon.

We all know those historic words spoken by Neil Armstrong when he first stepped onto the lunar surface. That phrase, "That's one small step for [a] man, one giant leap for mankind" has well and truly secured its place in the history books. I think however that Eugene Cernan's words are also worthy of note as he left the lunar surface for the last time as part of the magnificent Apollo lunar missions:

"America's challenge of today has forged man's destiny of tomorrow".

Information for this question was obtained from the following sites:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martha_Wise
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neil_Armstrong
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eugene_Cernan

Answer: They rioted

Igor Fyodorovich Stravinsky was born in Russia in 1882, and died in America in 1971. He composed for ballet, concerto, symphony, piano works, and many other instruments. As well as his homeland, he also lived in Switzerland, and moved constantly between the two countries until the outbreak of World War I. He was unable to return to Russia for another fifty years. He took up permanent residence in France because of this, and, in 1939, on the outbreak of the Second World War, he moved to America. The three countries of Russia, France and America thus have an equal right to claim him as a national composer.

From the time he was in his late thirties he had also acquired a mistress, and set up two separate establishments, spending time in either place until his wife's death in 1939. He then married his 'stand-by' wife on his arrival in America and the two remained together until his death in 1971. On the premiere of "The Rite of Spring" in Paris in 1913, the audience, comfortably used to elegant compositions for many years, were shocked and shaken by Stravinsky's choreography and the intense rhythmic dramatics and dissonance of his composition. When this disturbing music and choreography began to portray fertility rites on the stage, half the audience had had enough. Catcalls, whistles and boos began echoing round the theatre, loud arguments sprang up between "...supporters and opponents of the work ...soon followed by shouts and fistfights in the aisles". This degenerated into a full blown riot, and even the police, who were called in to restore order, could not do so. The disaster continued for the rest of the performance.

Information and quotes used in this question was obtained from the following sites:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Rite_of_Spring#Premi.C3.A8re
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stravinsky
http://encyclopedia.thefreedictionary.com/rite+of+spring

Answer: Raw meat

Ernest Halliwell was born in England in 1864. He developed a love of cricket from when he was a young boy, and followed his enthusiasm for the game right through to the top levels of play. This included representing the country of South Africa as captain of their international cricket team. From 1892 to 1902 he played eight test matches for that country. He has been described as "the best wicket keeper in the world". To protect his hands from the fast ball deliveries of some bowlers, Halliwell took to lining the inside of his wicket-keeping gloves for extra padding. It is noted that he was the first wicket-keeper to do so. One would hope he was also the last to do so. There's an awful lot of handshaking that goes on after a game of cricket.

Information for this question was obtained from the following site:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ernest_Halliwell

Answer: His arm is buried somewhere else

Stonewall Jackson (1824-1863) was shot during the night following a successful engagement against the Union army at the Battle of Chancellorsville. He and his staff were returning to camp and were mistaken by his own men for the enemy. They thought his approach was a "damned Yankee trick!" Three bullets hit him. Two of these were in his left arm. The poor man was also dropped from the stretcher that was carrying him back to "safety". The wounds to his left arm were so bad that it had to be amputated. The chaplain buried it near the battlefield site in Orange County.

Eight days later, Jackson died from pneumonia. He was buried in the cemetery at Lexington. It wasn't until 1921 during army training exercises that the arm, buried in a wooden box, was found by General Smedley Butler. He had been told by a local farmer that the arm could be found there and set out to disprove this. He reburied the arm in a metal box and had a plaque erected to mark the spot. General Jackson, long dead to the world, remains 'armless and armless to this day.

Information for this question was found from the following site:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stonewall_Jackson#Death

Answer: One of the Swiss Guards knocked it flying

Morse (1791-1872), who was brought up as a strict Calvinist, was a fervent leader of the Anti-Catholic movement in America in the 19th century. Such was his obsessive hatred of Catholics that he even ran for the position of Mayor of New York on the platform of refusing admittance of Catholic immigrants into the country. He only received 1,496 votes. Morse also worked his bigoted little heart out to attempt to unite Protestants to ban all Catholic businesses and institutions (schools in particular) in the country; and to forbid any Catholic from being granted work in public office.

Because his brother was the editor of the powerful "New York Observer" during this time, Morse had many letters published in that paper in which he urged people to fight Catholics everywhere. It's interesting to note though that photographs of Morse in his later years show him with a fine row of medals adorning his chest - most of which were bestowed on him by Catholic countries. Why he ever visited Rome in the first place is a mystery. Perhaps he went there for the express purpose of insulting the Pope. Who knows? (Miss O'Hara, please send the following telegram to Mr Morse: "When in Rome, do as the Romans do")

Information for this question was obtained from the following site:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samuel_Morse#Death

Answer: Bob Dylan

Singer-songwriter Dylan was born in Minnesota in 1941. His song-writing output is astonishing, with many of his great numbers resounding through every era of modern music. He has written rock, folk, country, popular and Christian songs, and his performing style changes from performance to performance accordingly. It's almost as if he doesn't know whether to protest, rock or pray. Along the way he has managed to offend everyone at one time or another as well, yet still continues to perform and draw in massive crowds well into the 21st century. He's an amazing and unique artist, even if he does look like a cockatoo.

A few - just a few - of his most popular songs include "Blowin' In The Wind", "A Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall", "The Times They Are A-Changin'", "It Ain't Me, Babe", "Like A Rolling Stone", "Lay Lady Lay", "Knockin' On Heaven's Door" and "Just Like A Woman".

Information for this question was obtained from the following site:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bob_Dylan

Answer: Ayatollah Khomeini

The Ayatollah Khomeini (1902-1989) was the religious and political leader of Iran following the overthrow of the Shah in 1979. He held this position until his death. His importance in the world of Islam cannot be denied, nor the fact that he was a popular leader of his country. Yet he was also responsible for the deaths of thousands of people during that time as well. He was an educated man, both in traditional subjects, religion and religious laws, and the philosophies of ancient Greece. He was also fascinated by literature and poetry and had a collection of many works of same, particularly that of poetry. On his death it was revealed that he had written three volumes of poetry himself. Before he became involved in politics, he worked as a lecturer in many of the top seminaries of the time, and also wrote many articles on philosopy, law, religion, mysticism and ethics. His resume would impress even the most hardened of critics.

When the Shan of Iran introduced a series of reforms for the country to bring it more into line with the west, Ayatollah, who saw all these moves as submitting to American and Israeli interests, moved into the political arena. Exiled for most of the years that followed, he continued to work behind the scenes for his ideals, a return to his country's old Islamics values, and the removal of the Shah. As a result of his agitations and the swelling Islamic movement in Iran, and when the Shah left the country in January 1979 for health treatment for the cancer that killed him, Khomeini returned. This instigated an absolute turmoil of opposing ideals in Iran for the months that followed and many, many lives were lost. He was installed as Supreme Leader of Iran in November that year. Khomeini, however, wasn't content to stop at that. He believed in spreading Islamic rule to the rest of the world and began setting these ideals into action as soon as possible. The world continues to deal with this to this day, well into the 21st century.

Under his rule in Iran, all westernised influences were banned, Islamic law was put in place everywhere, and strict dress codes and acceptable behaviour were sternly enforced. When complaints began to be heard by him about the sharp drop in the standard of living since his return, that is when he made the somewhat comical remark in the question above. Other actions and comments by Khomeini stressed the importance of being a martyr over a comfortable life and his belief that economics were for asses. Under his rule, poverty rose by a staggering 45 percent and large number of Iranians began to leave the country. these included between two to four million "entrepreneurs, professionals, technicians and skilled craftsmen". Extremely harsh punishments were meted out as a matter of course, thousands of political opponents were executed, freedom of speech was denied, critical newspapers were shut down, Kurdish people were attacked, and religious minories were disadvantaged. Yet, despite all this, his death in 1989 saw an outpouring of grief in Iran that has never before been witnessed.

Information for this question was obtained from the following site:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ayatollah_Khomeini