Quotes From Will Rogers Trivia Quiz

Answer: argument

William Penn Adair Rogers was born in 1879, the last of eight children, on a ranch in the Cherokee Nation, in an area that would later become Oklahoma. He learned the roping skills while working the ranch, and dropped out of school after the tenth grade and began driving cattle. He was always proud and never shy about his Cherokee heritage.

It was in 1902 that he left to work in Argentina, but had no success there. He got a job tending livestock on a ship to South Africa. There he visited Texas Jack's Wild West Show and was hired at twenty dollars a week as the "Cherokee Kid". His grand finale was the "Crinoline", a feat where the size of a lasso increases to encompass the performer, his horse and lastly, the audience--some of the reports say that he was able to form a lasso of 100 feet in circumference.

Answer: But not often

Will had wanted to be one of TR's "Rough Riders" but was too young when he tried to volunteer in 1898. He met Teddy Roosevelt in 1900 during a roping contest and Rough Riders' reunion in Oklahoma City.

After working with the Texas Jack's Wild West show, Will had left with a letter or recommendation for the Wirth Brothers Circus in Australia. He toured with the circus until returning to the U.S. in 1904.

Upon his return, he began working vaudeville shows, with his horse "Teddy" (several sources say it was named for Teddy Roosevelt). His original act had no spoken words, but sometime after he began working his show in New York, he began adding commentary and earning laughter. By the time the quote above was added to his show, he was no longer working with his horse partner, "Teddy".

Answer: papers

Will Rogers performed in the Ziegfeld shows from 1915 to 1922. Will's show started as a "dumb" show, with no talking. He then started adding commentary about his rope tricks. It was still later when he began making commentary about the folk in the audience and current events. It was his wife, Betty, who suggested that he talk about what he read in the daily papers. Thus his act transitioned from rope stunts to humor.

The "Midnight Frolic" was a show on the roof of the New Amsterdam Theatre that started after the "Ziegfeld Follies" were finished.

Answer: captured

In the news, Pancho Villa had been responsible for the execution of sixteen US citizens and raided Columbus, New Mexico. In response, President Wilson sent Brigadier General John "Black Jack" Pershing and several thousand troops to capture him.

The performers knew that President Wilson would be coming to the show, and Will, though he had an extraordinary case of stage fright, created new material for this performance, much of which would not be used again. When Will told the joke, the audience looked first to see how the President reacted. When the audience saw the President laughing, they joined in.

President Wilson went backstage and thanked the troupe with "Gentlemen, you have complimented me by helping me put aside my cares". The Abbot of the Friars (head of the organization), George M. Cohan, thanked the President for coming to the show. According to a "New York Times" article from May 31, 1916, the President responded with "I'd travel ten times that distance to listen to a man as wise as Will Rogers."

Answer: applaud

This marvelous twenty-two minute film was really a vehicle for Will to show off his roping skill, and used the slow-motion technology to show how some of the tricks were done. Will also wrote the title cards for the film.

The "Guinness Book of World Records" added a record for Will and a feat using three lassos, one for the rider, one for the horse's neck, and one for the horse's legs. That feat was duplicated in the film.

Will ultimately starred in 71 films, 50 silent films, and 21 talking pictures.

Answer: somebody

This first article appeared on December 24, 1922. Eventually, the column was distributed to approximately 600 daily and weekly papers. Will's writing style matched his speaking style and as he said "That's the way I write it, and that's the way I want it to lay." Most editors agreed, though some couldn't resist tweaking here and there.

Households all over the country anticipated his columns, and several sites report that folk would read his column first and then read the rest of the paper. His humor brought news items to the public in a distilled, down-home manner. When he didn't write about the news, he would fill in with an article about his current activities.

In 1926 the "New York Times" began publishing his daily telegrams titled "Will Rogers Says", of 150 words or less from wherever he happened to be.

Answer: they don't come in contact with me

This created quite a hullabaloo. Will, who was never as comfortable at a microphone without audience feedback, never thought that anyone would actually believe the President would say such a thing. Will had not said that he was impersonating President Coolidge, his entry to the mimicry was "I want to introduce a friend of mine who is here and wishes to speak to you".

The remainder of the gag was "I am proud to report that the country as a whole is prosperous. I don't mean by that that the whole country is prosperous, but, as a whole it is prosperous. That is, it is prosperous for a whole. A hole is not supposed to be prosperous, and we are certainly in a hole. There is not a whole lot of doubt about that." The final sentence was the quote in the question above.

Apparently many thought that President Coolidge was really there and had actually spoken. Will was asked to clear up the situation on air and in print. In fact, he sent a letter to President Coolidge apologizing. President Coolidge responded that he "found the matter of rather small consequence".

Answer: experiment

The idea came from magazine editor Robert E. Sherwood. Because Coolidge had declined running with "I do not choose to run", Will's slogan was "He chews to run", a reference also to his gum chewing habit.

On election day "Life" sent a telegram to Will stating that "you were elected President by the Great Silent Vote of this nation."

Answer: automobile

Hoover, recognizing Will's popularity, was hoping for a positive outcome by appearing with him. This broadcast has since been labeled "Bacon and Beans and Limousines". This was a time when people were waiting in line for food, and Hoover lost the next election because people felt he was unable to help.

Will also toured cross country several during the depression to try to raise money for the Red Cross and other relief efforts.

Answer: like

Will repeated the statement many times. During a 1930 speech he said, "When I die, my epitaph or whatever you call those signs on gravestones is going to read: 'I joked about every prominent man of my time, but I never met a man I dident like.' [sic] I am so proud of that that i can hardly wait to die so it can be carved."

Will died on August 5, 1935, at the age of 55. He was an avid aviation passenger and was flying with Wiley Post who was trying to find a way to fly from Alaska to Russia. His typewriter was found next to him on the crashed plane. He was mourned by an entire country as extra newspaper editions were printed, and radio stations went silent for the day.