Reflections on Life Trivia Quiz

Answer: Jimi Hendrix

Surprised? I certainly was! Jimi Hendrix (1942-1970) was, unfortunately, a member of the exclusive "27 Club". He left us far too soon and is still thought to be one of the best and most influential guitarists of all time; but I never realized that, aside from playing his guitar upside down and left- handed, he was also something of a philosopher.
However, a similar comment from the former Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes (1809-1894) was attributed to him almost a century earlier, "It is the province of knowledge to speak, and it is the privilege of wisdom to listen."

Answer: Katharine Hepburn

Katharine Hepburn (1907-2003) was a Hollywood star for over 60 years. Kate was a feminist before there was a name for it. She said "I have not lived as a woman. I have lived as a man. I've just done what I damn well wanted to, and I've made enough money to support myself, and ain't afraid of being alone". She also said, "If you want to sacrifice the admiration of many men for the criticism of one, go ahead, get married."
She never married but had a life-long affair with Spencer Tracy, lived to be 96 years old, and died in the house she was born in.

Answer: John Wooden

All the incorrect answers were football coaches. John Wooden (1910-2010) lived just four months shy of 100. He spent his many years very productively as a basketball player at Purdue before becoming one of the 'winningest' college coaches of all time.
He was head coach of UCLA and led the Bruins to seven consecutive NCAA championships between 1967 and 1973. Wooden coached his team to win 10 NCAA national championships in a 12 year period. In both 1964 and 1967, the "Wizard of Westwood" coached his teams to 30-0 seasons. He certainly was one of the greatest college coaches ever.

Answer: Mother Teresa

Of all the choices given, it is the humble Agnes Gonxha Bojaxhiu (1910-1997), Blessed Teresa of Calcutta (Kolkata), MC, Albanian Roman Catholic sister and missionary, to whom the quote is ascribed. Mother Teresa founded the 'Missionaries of Charity' which had to adhere to four vows: chastity, poverty, obedience and giving "wholehearted free service to the poorest of the poor".
She was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1979, beatified in 2003 and, with Pope Francis' assistance in December 2015, Mother Teresa is on her way to being recognized as a saint.

Answer: Stephen Hawking

Did you pick the correct Stephen or did you choose the comedian, Stephen Colbert? No, it was the smart guy, Stephen Hawking, who was born in Oxford, England on January 8, 1942. I guess when you're that brilliant, you figure out that life is too funny to be taken seriously. Hawking is confined to a wheelchair due to amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (AML or 'Lou Gehrig's disease') in 1963 since the age of 21.

The doctors gave him two years to live! In the meantime, he has been married twice, has children and grandchildren.

He has authored several books, e.g., "A Brief History of Time", and was depicted by Eddie Redmayne in "The Theory of Everything" in 2014.

Answer: Alice Walker

The incorrect choices are all well-known authors, i.e., Toni Morrison wrote "Beloved"; Gloria Naylor penned "Mama Day"; Terry McMillan gave us "Waiting to Exhale". It was, in fact, Alice Walker who is responsible for the above comment. Walker was born in 1944 in Georgia and received a Pulitzer Prize in 1983 for her novel "The Color Purple" (1982). Besides being an award winning author, she is also an activist credited with coining the term 'womanist' for African-American feminism.

Her stories deal with subjects like rape, sexism, racism and poverty...but also the power of family and spirituality.

Answer: Marshall McLuhan

If you picked Marshall Dillon from "Gunsmoke" or Marshall Mathers (Eminem) or Marshall Artz as the correct answer, do not pass "GO" and do not collect any points for self-esteem. Marshall McLuhan (1911-1980) was a Canadian philosopher of communication theory.

The phrase was introduced in his book "Understanding Media: The Extensions of Man" in 1964. He believed that the medium itself, rather than the content it carries, should be the focus of study. He indicated that "a medium affects the society in which it plays a role not only by the content delivered over the medium, but also by the characteristics of the medium itself".

Answer: Maya Angelou

All of the choices include 'strong women', but Maya Anjelou (1928-2014) author, poet, and activist was, perhaps, one of the strongest women to grace the planet. She recited her poem "On the Pulse of Morning" at President Clinton's Inauguration in January 1993. She was a fierce civil rights activist, and is responsible for seven autobiographies (she had a lot to say!), books of essays, poems, plays, movies and TV shows over a 50 year period.
Another of her many sayings: "If you don't like something, change it. If you can't change it, change your attitude. Don't complain."

Answer: Benjamin Franklin

The language of the above quote may give you a hint as to its author. Yes, it was Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790), "Poor Richard" himself, who seemed to know how to use time wisely; he would have had to, considering all the many vocations he practised, i.e., printer, politician, statesman, postmaster, scientist, inventor, 'renaissance man', in addition to being one of the Founding Fathers of the United States.

Born in Boston, he ran away to Philadelphia at 17 and helped establish the University of Pennsylvania, the Philadelphia fire department and, of course, was the 'key' to electricity.

He also said "By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail".

Answer: Mae West

The final correct answer is one of the most provocative women of her era (no, not Taylor Swift). It was Mae West (1893-1980) who was an actress, singer, writer and sex symbol, with a career spanning over 70 years.
Among her other classic bawdy comments is "Too much of a good thing can be wonderful". One of the major problems she faced in her time was censorship; when asked about the censors' attempts to impede her, she characteristically replied: "I believe in censorship. I made a fortune out of it".
In 1959, her autobiography "Goodness Had Nothing To Do With It" was published and became a bestseller.