Passed Away in 2021 Trivia Quiz

Answer: Philip Mountbatten

Prince Philip of Denmark and Greece renounced all his titles when he married Princess Elizabeth in 1947. At this time he became a naturalised British citizen, and adopted his maternal grandparents' surname of Mountbatten (His four children by the queen, therefore, have the surname of Mountbatten-Windsor). He was a third cousin of the Queen; their great-great grandmother was Queen Victoria.

At his death in 2021 he was the longest-serving consort in written history (1952-2021). He was known for his forthright manner, his occasional public gaff, and his utter devotion to the Queen. His work-rate was Herculean; Prince Philip undertook 22,191 official engagements and gave 5,493 speeches during his career. He mocked himself that he was the "world's most experienced plaque un-veiler."

When he retired at 96 he was told by a member of the public "I'm sorry you're standing down," the prince retorted, "Well I can't stand up much longer!" He was two month's short of his 100th birthday when he died. It would have been interesting to see what his wife would have written in the letter she sends to all centenarians.

He died on 9 April 2021 after a short illness.

Answer: Michael Collins

Michael Collins became a household name when he was part of the three man Apollo 11 crew that landed on the moon. One of only 24 men to do so, he nevertheless did not walk on the moon as his two colleagues Armstrong and Aldrin did. He was needed to keep the lunar module orbiting the moon while the other two were performing scientific work on the lunar surface. In his autobiography was this passage, "this venture has been structured for three men, and I consider my third to be as necessary as either of the other two".

Before he was an astronaut he was a fighter pilot and test pilot for the US Air Force and after retiring from NASA a year after Apollo 11, he was offered a position in the US Department of State as Assistant Secretary of State for Public Affairs. He went on to become the director of the National Air and Space Museum, until 1978, when he then became undersecretary of the Smithsonian Institution. In 1980, he worked as vice president of LTV Aerospace. He was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1969 and the Congressional Gold Medal in 2011.

He died aged 90 at home in Naples, Florida.

Answer: Olympia Dukakis

Olympia Dukakis was born in Massachusetts in 1921. She made a name for herself as a theatre actress appearing in over 130 stage productions. She was cast in over 60 movies, winning a Best Supporting Actress Award for her role in "Moonstruck (1987) as Rose (Cher's Loretta's mother), and also an Oscar winner for Best Actress in the same movie. Her brother, Michael, ran for US President in 1988, and she fervently supported him. In a post-public career, she mentored and taught drama students at NYU for 15 years, and was a passionate believer and campaigner for women's rights and LGBT rights.

She passed away on 1 May 2021 aged 89.

Answer: F. W. De Klerk

Frederik Willem de Klerk was state president of South Africa from 1989 to 1994. During this time he led the government to dismantle apartheid and implemented universal suffrage. He allowed anti-apartheid marches, and freed imprisoned anti-apartheid activists, with Nelson Mandela being the most well-known such prisoner. As president, he dismantled South Africa's nuclear weapons program. He became President Nelson Mandela's Deputy President in the ANC-led coalition of the new South African Government. Mr De Klerk retired from politics in 1996.

He was jointly awarded the 1993 Nobel Peace Prize "for their work for the peaceful termination of the apartheid regime, and for laying the foundations for a new democratic South Africa."

He died from complications from Mesothelioma on 11 November 2021, aged 85.

Answer: Mary Wilson

Mary Wilson was one of the three original Supremes when the Motown chief, Berry Gordy, formed a vocal group in 1961 after a brief stint as The Primettes. The Supremes became the most successful Motown group and the best-charting female group in U.S. chart history. The group reached number one on Billboard's Hot 100 twelve times, ten of which included Ms. Wilson on vocals. She outlasted the other three Supremes, Barbara Martin (in 1962), Florence Ballard (in 1967), and Diana Ross (in 1970), leaving the group in 1977.

She went onto be a best selling author with the release of her first autobiography, "Dreamgirl: My Life as a Supreme", which was a New York Times Best-Seller and repeated the effort with her second autobiography "Supreme Faith: Someday We'll Be Together". Mary Wilson was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1988 along with Diana Ross and Florence Ballard as members of the Supremes.

Ms Wilson died from cardiovascular illness in her sleep on February 8, 2021.

Answer: David Gulpilil

The indigenous actor from the Yolngu nation was an actor, dancer and painter from Arnhem Land, who raised awareness of the world about Indigenous Australians
His movie career started with "Walkabout" (1971) opposite Jenny Agutter. He could hardly speak English at the time. He had starring roles in "Crocodile Dundee" (1986) and "Rabbit Proof Fence" (2002). His director on the latter movie, Phillip Noyce, described him as "arguably the most experienced and accomplished film actor in Australia". In 2014, Mr Gulpilil won a Best Actor award at the Cannes Film Festival for his performance in "Charlie's Country".

When he was not working, he returned to his family near the remote community of Ramingining, 500 kilometres east of Darwin.

Witiyana Marika, a Yolngu elder and Gulpilil's son by tradition, said on his passing in November 2021, "He was a proud, black man,...A proud black boy, becoming famous ... a fine Yolngu man, who came out from the bush..."[That] made him very, very powerful, and the people accepted him and that whole world saw it."

Answer: Christopher Plummer

Christopher Plummer was born in Toronto Canada in 1929. His parents were not involved in the theatre, but Mr Plummer mentioned in his 2008 autobiography that he was the second cousin of British actor Nigel Bruce, known for portraying Doctor Watson to Basil Rathbone's Sherlock Holmes in the 1930s. He never attended university, but made his stage debut in 1948, making a name for himself playing Shakespearean characters.

His film debut came much later in 1958, when Sidney Lumet cast him in a minor role as a writer in "Stage Struck". His film star status ascended quickly and he is probably best known for playing opposite Julie Andrews in "The Sound of Music" (1965). He went onto portray leading roles in many movies, though he did not receive his first Academy Award nomination until 2009 for his portrayal of Leo Tolstoy in "The Last Station". He won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance in "Beginners" (2011).

He died peacefully at his home in Weston CT, on February 5, 2021, at the age of 91.

Answer: Cloris Leachman

Cloris Leachman, born in 1926 in Des Moines, Iowa, was interested in theatre at a young age, appearing in productions at the local Drake University. Upon graduating high school she enrolled in Northwestern University studying education. She first became noticed when she entered the Miss America competition in 1946 as Miss Chicago and was entered in the last 16. She then moved to New York City, where she studied acting under Elia Kazan at the Actors Studio, appearing in a few productions on and off Broadway. Throughout the 50s and 60s she played many roles in television including in "Lassie", "Rawhide", and "The Twilight Zone".

She had her cinematic break in 1971 in the movie, "The Last Picture Show". Director Peter Bogdanovich correctly predicted she would win an Academy Award, which she duly did as Best Supporting Actress. She continued to work in television, particularly in the "Mary Tyler-Moore Show". She was inducted into the Television Academy Hall of Fame in 2011. She worked on three Mel Brooks' movies including "High Anxiety" (1977), "Young Frankenstein" (1974), and "History of the World Part 1" (1980). She played her final role in 2021's "Not To Forget", which starred five Academy Award winners: Cloris Leachman, Louis Gossett Jr, Tatum O'Neal, George Chakiris, and Olympia Dukakis.

She passed away on 27 January 2021 from a stroke and COVID complications. She was 94.

Answer: Charlie Watts

Charlie Watts was not the original Rolling Stones' drummer when he joined the band in January 1963, but he was the only member, along with Keith Richards and Mick Jagger, to have played on every one of the band's studio albums until his death.

He trained as a graphic artist (and was responsible for some of the artwork on the group's albums). When he joined the band he was more interested in jazz and maintained a jazz band as a side project - The Charlie Watts' Quintet. It was Brian Jones who convinced him to join the Stones, where Mick Jagger would introduce him to audiences as "The Wembley Whammer".

He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1989, and into the UK Music Hall of Fame with the Rolling Stones in 2004. He was one of the greatest drummers of all time.

He died on 24 August 2021 aged 80.

Answer: Captain Tom Moore

Captain Sir Thomas Moore, born in 1921, was more readily known as Captain Tom when he hit the public eye at age 99! He had a distinguished career in WWII in the army in India and Burma. After the war he became an armoured warfare instructor.

On 6 April 2020 in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic, he intended to walk 100 lengths of his garden to raise money for NHS Charities Together, with the aim of raising £1,000 by his 100th birthday in 24 days time. The media ran with this remarkable story which went global, and by the time his birthday came around he had completed the laps and raised 30 millions pounds. He received the BBC Sports Personality of the Year (Helen Rollason Award) at the 2020 ceremony. On 17 July 2020, he was knighted by the Queen for his efforts.

He died on 2 February 2021 from COVID-related pneumonia.