Famous People with Colours in Names Quiz

Answer: Jack Black

Born in 1969, Jack Black is a rock musician in addition to being an actor. He incorporated both these skills in the 2003 film "School of Rock". He has acted in a variety of other films as well, including 2001's "Shallow Hal" with Gwyneth Paltrow. It's quite a comical movie and has an underlying message about not judging people on face value running through it. Just as an aside, Jason Alexander, who was also in the film, is really funny in the role he plays.

Answer: Dan Brown

American writer Dan Brown (born 1964) favours the genre of thrillers for his books. Though he had written several similar novels, it was in 2003 that he leapt screaming onto the world stage with his novel, "The Da Vinci Code" which incorporates a mishmash of historical facts, Christian beliefs and superstitious twaddle all rolled up into one. I must admit I did find it engrossing when I read it though, but on then reading several of his other works, was disappointed to find they all basically followed the same plot. Always with a long-legged slender beauty aged about thirty who falls madly in love with the hero, Robert Langdom, and who clings to him as he saves the world from certain doom, blah blah blah. Brown says he has a dozen books featuring Robert Langdon boiling away in the pot. Oh dear, more scrawny heroines to digest. Why don't they describe heroines as short and tubby who like chocolate cake and Vegemite? I'd be a cinch to play that role.

Answer: Zane Grey

Grey was born in Ohio in 1872 and given the terrible name of Pearl Zane Grey. What sort of idiots call their son Pearl?? That's an awful thing to do to a child. The poor little fellow was frequently involved in violent fights at school and out of it, and then beaten by his father for doing so. Me, I would have had the parents charged with child abuse from the moment of birth. Pearl Grey indeed. I wonder if Johnny Cash based his song "A Boy Called Sue" on Grey's given name?

When he was fifteen, Grey wrote his first novel - but his loving father tore it to shreds. After graduating from university, Grey wanted to be a writer, but was pressured by his father into becoming a dentist instead, a profession the elder Grey himself followed. However, Grey managed to write late each night after a happy day of extractions and fillings. No doubt as a result of his harsh upbringing, Zane Grey suffered dark moods of depression, anger and mood swings all his life. He was lucky in his choice of wife who stabilised him to a great extent however, but she could never cure him of his ongoing womanising, something he had warned her about before their marriage. This remarkable woman just shrugged her shoulders and viewed his nefarious activities as a disability instead, being canny enough, however, to insist that she always had fifty percent of his earnings put in her name. Books forever associated with Zane Grey are "Riders of the Purple Sage", "The Lone Star Ranger" and "King of the Royal Mounted". I so hope that, on his death in 1939, they didn't inscribe his full name on his headstone.

Answer: Patrick White

Of course we don't pepper all our conversations with "mate" or throw poor innocent shrimps on stupid barbecues, but - sigh - that's how we're portrayed, so we'll just deal with it nobly. Patrick White (1912-1990) is considered one of the major writers of the 20th century. Unfortunately I absolutely detest his works, but that's neither here nor there.

His personal life is much more interesting if you care to view it for yourself anytime on this link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patrick_White. In fact it's quite engrossing. White's pen gave us such novels as "The Tree of Man" in 1955, "Riders in the Chariot" in 1961 and "The Vivisector" in 1968.

His works have seen him gain the Booker Prize and the Nobel Prizes in literature. He declined several other honours eagerly sought for world wide by all writers because he was tired of all the hoo-hah.

His wish was to withdraw into his private world with his long time companion, a Greek army officer whom he had met while serving as an intelligence operator overseas. All up, White was one totally fascinating character, much more interesting (to me) than any of his fictional and vividly drawn literary characters.

Answer: Ian Paisley

Paisley, born in 1926, is one controversial figure to say the least. Vehemently anti-Catholic, vehemently anti-homosexual, vehemently anti-Republic of Ireland, the man appears to have been the very epitome of bigotry. For example, when Pope John Paul was addressing the European Parliament in 1988 on an important world issue, Paisley stood up in the audience and shouted "I denounce you as the Antichrist!" at the poor old Pope. In 1963, when Pope John XXIII died, Paisley organised public protests everywhere against the lowering of flags to mark the passing of the Catholic world leader.

He fought all legislation which was attempting to decriminalise homosexual acts between males over the age of 21 and managed to hold it back for years. As a leading founding member of the Ulster Protestant Volunteers and other groups, he helped organise street barricades and vigilante groups targetting Catholics. Later he drew up hit lists of members of the Irish Republican army. He also established and led paramilitary groups such as the Ulster Resistance and Third Force with their paramilitary agenda of targetting groups who wanted Britain out of Northern Ireland. In short, he seemed to be one rather unpleasant person altogether - but that depends on perspective of course. On finally retiring from politics in 2008, he was made a life peer and Baron of Bannside in 2010 by a grateful English parliament. How odd the world is. In another life time, he was have been classed as a traitor and a heretic. We really need to get our act together, don't we?

Answer: Thomas Gray

Thomas Gray was born in 1716 and died in 1771. Not only a well known writer, he was also a professor at the Cambridge University. As a child he was rather delicate, so spent the greater part of his spare time reading all the great classics. As a young man, he went to university to study law, but instead concentrated on reading great literature written through the ages, and the somewhat lighter literature of his time - well, comparatively speaking at any rate. He was also very fond of music and playing the harpsichord. In his twenties he began writing poetry, and also commenced a much deeper study of the great literary works. This earned him the reputation as one of the most learned men of his time and a predominant poet of the 18th century. His most famous poem is "Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard".

Just to give you a glimpse of the more human side of this writer, though, Gray was terrified of being burned to death in a fire, so he always kept a steel bar installed on a part of his bedroom window where he lived. This meant that, in case of a fire, he could tie his sheets to the bar, and climb down to safety. The image of a sophisticated university professor slithering down a set of sheets tends to make my lips twitch a bit.

Answer: William of Orange

William was born and became Prince of Orange in 1650 in the Netherlands. He was also a grandchild of King Charles I of England and nephew of Charles II and James II of the same nation. His mother was the eldest daughter of Charles I, and his father, who died eight days before William was born, was Prince of Orange, hence William's assuming the title from birth. Poor little thing, and still with no teeth.

He married his cousin Mary Stuart in 1677. Mary was the daughter of the future James II of England, so William's claim on the English throne was based on birthright all round. Poor William. As he grew older, and because he only had one mistress in addition to being married, he was accused to being a homosexual. Multi-mistresses was the hallmark of a heterosexual?? It seemed William was damned whichever way he turned - if you'll pardon the pun.

Meanwhile, back at the ranch, James II of England, on the death of his wife, had married again, this time to a Catholic lassie. James himself was a known papist, all of which well and truly upset Protestant England after all the hassles with religion since Henry VIII first set the Protestant ball rolling. James II lacked all political expertise whatsoever, completely believed in absolute monarchy, clashed violently with his parliament on many occasions and generally was a disastrous leader all round because of his very nature. As a consequence, William and Mary were invited to invade England ("Come on over for a cup of tea and an invasion, do") and take the throne - which is what basically happened in all those troubled times of long ago. James fled abroad, and William of Orange became William III of England, with his wife - whom he genuinely loved I might add - enthroned as Mary II.

Answer: Edward Grey

Edward Grey (1862-1933) was British Foreign Secretary in the early part of the 20th century, Ambassador to the USA in the early twenties, and Liberal Leader in the British House of Lords in 1923-24. He was also known as 1st Viscount Grey of Fallodon, hence his lofty position in the House of Lords. Oh well, pooh-pooh to all that. Lordly is as lordly does (I think I'm related to Forrest Gump). What does impress me, however, is his poignant and profoundly moving quote when World War I finally broke out.

He said, "The lamps are going out all over Europe. We shall not see them lit again in our time." How evocative is that? The poor man was almost blind during the latter part of his life, so sadly I fear he never did.

Answer: Pink

No doubt about it, Pink is a great rocker. Her singing is vibrant, alive and full of energy, and almost old school rock and roll. Born Alecia Beth Moore in 1979, Pink's first writings were much darker than those she entertains us with today. She was performing at various clubs from the age of 14 onwards, and has never looked back since.

Her albums include "Can't Take Me Home", "Try This" and "I'm Not Dead".

Answer: Gordon Brown

Born in Scotland 1951, Gordon Brown was a British Labour Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2007 to 2010. He has a PhD in History, and prior to his political career, was elected Rector of the University of Edinburgh, was a lecturer in Politics at Glasgow College of Technology, and was a journalist for Scottish television.

He didn't marry until the age of 49, and of his three children, his daughter, died from a brain haemorrhage after only a few weeks of life, and one of his sons was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis. Two events, he said sadly, that changed his life forever.