Notable People Born on May 15th Quiz

Answer: Trini Lopez

Trini Lopez followed up his debut hit with a version of "Lemon Tree" in 1965. "If I Had A Hammer" and "Lemon Tree" had been charted by Peter, Paul and Mary. Born Trinidad Lopez, III, in Dallas he performed regionally before relocating to Hollywood. While performing at PJ's he was signed to Reprise Records by producer Don Costa. "If I Had a Hammer" was his first US Billboard top ten hit, reaching number three.

It was followed by 13 more hits between 1963 and 1968. He became interested in an acting career and was cast as one of the prisoners in "The Dirty Dozen" (1967). British Invasion era singer P.J. Proby was born James Marcus Smith on November 6, 1938, in Houston. Guitarist Freddie King was born Frederick Christian King on September 3, 1934, and became known as "The Texas Cannonball". Freddy Fender was born Baldemar Garza Huerta on June 4, 1937, in San Benito, Texas.

He scored his first number one Country hit in 1974 with "Before the Next Teardrop Falls".

Answer: Eddie Arnold

Eddie Arnold had something in common with Elvis Presley. Both were managed by Colonel Tom Parker. Arnold became one of country music's most enduring stars, selling more than 85 million records between 1943 until he passed in 2008. He was only 16 when he made his debut on WTJS-AM in Jackson, Tennessee, eventually getting a job with the station.

He made his first solo appearance on "The Grand Ole Opry" in 1943 and three years later he had ten songs hit the Top Ten. Arnold hosted such shows as "The Eddy Arnold Show", "Ozark Jubilee" "Eddy Arnold Time" and "Today on the Farm" in the fifties and sixties. Honky Tonk artist Lefty Frizzell was born William Orville Frizzell on March 31, 1928. Country music pioneer James Charles Rodgers was born on September 8, 1897. James Travis Reeves was born on August 20, 1923, and scored many country music classics such as "He'll Have to Go".

Answer: Joseph Cotten

After appearing on Broadway in "Philadelphia Story", Joseph Cotten's first film appearance was in a 1938 short film titled "Too Much Johnson", directed by Orson Welles. He went on to star with Welles in "Citizen Kane" three years later. Other films involving Cotten and Welles included "Journey Into Fear" (1943) and "The Third Man" (1949). Among his many other film roles were a serial killer in Alfred Hitchcock's "Shadow of a Doubt" (1943), a Western release titled "Duel in the Sun" (1946) and "Niagara" (1953) with Marilyn Monroe. He retired at age 75 and passed from complication from throat cancer 13 years later in 1994.

Glenn Ford was born on May 1, 1916, and worked with Cotton in "The Money Trap" (1965). Martin Henry Balsam's birthday was November 4, 1919. He appeared with Joseph Cotton in the 1970 film, "Tora, Tora, Tora". James Maitland "Jimmy" Stewart was born on May 20, 1908, and was in the cast of "Airport '77" with Joseph Cotton in 1977.

Answer: James Mason

James Mason was born in England and appeared in many British short films and movies before appearing in his first Hollywood film in 1949. His unique voice resulted in him initially being cast as villains in such films as "Julius Caesar" (1953). After being cast in "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea" and "A Star Is Born" he was in "North by Northwest" (1959), "Lolita" (1962) and "Lord Jim" (1965).

He was nominated for three Academy Awards and won a Golden Globe. Mason was one of the original actors in the running to play James Bond and was later considered to play one of Bond's nemeses. Mason passed from a heart attack in Lausanne, Switzerland. Kirk Douglas was born on December 9, 1916, and worked with Mason in "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea". Robert Newton came into the world on June 1, 1909, and worked with Mason in "Hatter's Castle" (1942). Peter Lorre was born on June 26, 1904, and also worked with Mason in "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea".

Answer: Madeleine Albright

Madeleine Korbel Albright was born in Prague, Czechoslovakia, and spent her high school years in Denver. Her first political appointment under President Clinton was as ambassador to the United Nations. She later became the first female Secretary of State, but was ineligible as a presidential successor because she was foreign-born.

After her tenure as Secretary of State she founded the Albright Group, a strategy consulting firm in Washington. Warren Christopher was born on the 27th of October, 1925, and was President Clinton's first Secretary of State. William Sebastian Cohen was born August 28, 1940, and served as Secretary of Defense under President Bill Clinton from 1997 to 2001. Norman Y. Mineta was born November 12, 1931, and was a Democrat who served as Secretary of Transportation under President George Bush beginning in 2001.

Answer: Anna Maria Alberghetti

Anna Maria Alberghetti's father was an opera singer and her mother was a pianist. By the age of six she had sung on the Isle of Rhodes with a 100-piece orchestra. When she was a teenager she began appearing in films. Some of her roles included "The Medium" (1951), "The Last Command" (1955) and "Here Comes the Groom" (1951).

She worked with Jerry Lewis in "Cinderfella" (1960) and his former partner, Dean Martin, in "Ten Thousand Bedrooms" (1957). She also earned a Tony Award in 1962 as Best Actress for her role in "Carnival!". Claudia Cardinale was born on April 15, 1938, in Tunisia.

She had roles in "8½" (1963), "The Professionals" (1966), and "The Pink Panther" (1963). Gina Lollobrigida's birthday was July 4, 1927, in Subiaco, Italy. In addition to being a Lancome model Isabella Fiorella Elettra Giovanna Rossellini acted in "Blue Velvet" (1986) and "Death Becomes Her" (1992).

She was born on June 18, 1952.

Answer: Emmitt Smith

Emmitt Smith was a Florida native. While playing for his high school team in Pensacola he almost set a national record with 106 touchdowns and 8,804 yards. He signed with the University of Florida and broke their single game rushing record, carrying 39 times for 224 yards and 2 touchdowns in his first game.

When he played for Dallas he became the only running back to ever win a Super Bowl championship, the NFL rushing crown, the MVP award and the Super Bowl MVP in one season (1993). He also won the "Dancing With the Stars" competition in 2006. Randall Lee "Randy" White was born January 15, 1953, and was a lineman and linebacker at University of Maryland before playing for the Dallas Cowboys in 1975. Robert Lee "Bullet Bob" Hayes was born December 20, 1942, and was an Olympic sprinter who became a wide receiver for the Dallas Cowboys. Michael Irvin was one of "The Triplets" with Troy Aikman and Emmitt Smith who took Dallas to three Super Bowl wins in the nineties.

Answer: Lenny Welch

New York native Lenny Welch took his version of the standard, "Since I Fell for You", to number four on the US Pop charts in 1963. He followed up with "Ebb Tide" the following year. His version of "Ebb Tide" was included on the soundtrack of "Sweet Bird of Youth" (1962). Lenny was also the first singer to record a vocal version of "A Taste of Honey".

In 2005 he released an album titled "It's All About Love", his first album release since 1967. Tommy Edwards was born on February 17, 1922, and had a top ten hit in 1958 with "It's All in the Game". "It's Just a Matter of Time" was one of Brook Benton's many fifties hits.

He was born on September 19, 1931. Lloyd Price was born on March 9, 1933, and had such fifties hits as "I'm Gonna Get Married" and "Lawdy Miss Clawdy".

Answer: The Exorcist

In 1975 Mike Oldfield received a Grammy for Best Instrumental Composition for "Tubular Bells - Theme from The Exorcist". He began his career playing guitar in clubs while marketing "Tubular Bells". He was turned down by several labels until the fledgling Virgin Records agreed to record the song. Oldfield played 20 instruments on the recording.

After the song was used as the theme to "The Exorcist" it made the Top Ten on the US charts. He has continued to record and many of his songs have been used on soundtracks.

He released "Music of the Spheres" in 2008. "Asylum" was released in 1972 and starred Peter Cushing and Britt Ekland. The 1979 release, "Carrie", featured Sissy Spacek, Piper Laurie and John Travolta. Bruce Davison, Elsa Lanchester and Ernest Borgnine were part of the cast of the 1971 thriller, "Willard".

Answer: Brian Eno

Brian Eno had a chance meeting with sax player Andy Mackay that resulted in an invitation to join Roxy Music. He began working with them in the studio and soon began appearing on stage in elaborate costumes. He left the group in 1973 and for the next four years produced four albums that centered around progressive synthesizer music. During his career he has collaborated with such artists as David Bowie, David Byrne, U2 and Robert Fripp. Keith Noel Emerson was born on November 2, 1944, and was a founder of Emerson, Lake and Palmer. Richard Christopher Wakeman was born May 18, 1949, and is known for his work with Yes and his solo releases. Matthew Charles Fisher's birthday was March 7, 1946.

He was a member of Procol Harum and his organ work can be heard in the 1967 release, "A Whiter Shade of Pale".