They Came From Louisiana Trivia Quiz

Answer: Huey P. Long

Huey P. Long was born in Winnfield, LA and was assassinated in 1935. He was widely considered a contender for the presidency against Franklin Roosevelt in 1936. He was a United States senator when he died, but served as Governor of Louisiana from 1928-32, bringing many reforms to the state.

He is one of two Louisianians in Statuary Hall. His brother Earl was Governor of Louisiana three separate times and his son Russell was a United States senator from 1948-87.

Answer: Popeye's Famous Fried Chicken and Biscuits

Alvin Copeland was born in New Orleans and founded "Popeye's Famous Fried Chicken" in 1972 in the suburb of Arabi. Many people believe its namesake is the cartoon character, but he maintained it was named for Jimmy "Popeye" Doyle in "The French Connection".

He later bought "Church's Fried Chicken" in 1989 and lost both in bankruptcy in the 1990s. He operated a chain of restaurants named "Copeland's", among others. He was famous in New Orleans for his extravagant Christmas light displays, which were continued even after his death in 2008. "Popeye's" has over 1800 restaurants in 40 states.

Answer: Louis Armstrong

The airport in New Orleans is named for Louis "Satchmo" Armstrong, a jazz trumpeter, band leader, actor, and singer. He was nicknamed "Satchmo" or "Satchel Mouth" because of his large mouth, a result of his unusual trumpet playing style.

Answer: Tyler Perry

Tyler Perry was born Emmitt Perry, Jr. in New Orleans and has created the TV shows "House of Payne" (2007-09) and "Meet The Browns" (2009). He is most famous for bringing the character of "Madea" to life. He has also directed several movies including: "For Colored Girls" (2010), "Why Did I Get Married?" (2007), and "Madea Goes To Jail" (2009).

Answer: Anne Rice

Anne Rice was born Howard O'Brien in New Orleans and wrote books such as "The Vampire Chronicles", "The Queen of The Damned", and "Memnoch the Devil". Her book "Interview with the Vampire" was made into a movie starring Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt in 1994.

In 2002, "The Queen of The Damned" was made into a movie featuring R&B singer Aaliyah. She returned to Christianity in 1998 and wrote two books about the early life of Jesus. In 2010, she renounced Christianity, but kept her faith in Christ.

Answer: Lee Harvey Oswald

Lee Harvey Oswald was born in New Orleans and joined the Marines. He then defected to Russia, came back to the U. S. with a wife, then tried to go back to Russia. He was also the founder and only member of the "Fair Play For Cuba" Committee. However, the events of November 22, 1963 render anything he previously did insignificant.

Answer: Ellen DeGeneres

Ellen DeGeneres had a sitcom called "Ellen" on ABC from 1994-98, where her character admitted she was gay shortly after Ellen did so on "Oprah". She then had "The Ellen Show" on CBS from 2001-02. From 2003, she was the host of the syndicated talk show, "Ellen: The Ellen DeGeneres Show".

She was the voice of "Dory" in the movie "Finding Nemo" (2003). She was born in Metairie, a suburb of New Orleans.

Answer: P. G. T. Beauregard

Pierre Gustave Toutaint-Beauregard was born on a sugar cane plantation in St. Bernard Parish in 1818. He dropped the hyphen from his name, and later in life, didn't use his first name. He finished second in his class at West Point and was the first Brigadier General in the Confederate Army.

After the war, he fought for civil and voting rights for freed slaves. Beauregard Parish is named after him.

Answer: Richard Simmons

Richard Simmons' real name is Milton, but he gets angry when you call him that. He was born in New Orleans, LA and was overweight before he created his workout program. He has released many exercise videos including the "Sweating to the Oldies" series. He has also authored many books on exercise and healthy eating and had his own TV show in 1980.

Answer: Landrieu

The Landrieu family has held many public offices over the course of 50 years, beginning with Maurice "Moon" Landrieu. Father to Mary and Mitch Landrieu, he was born in New Orleans and was a state representative, judge, city councilman in New Orleans, and mayor of New Orleans. He later became Secretary of Housing and Urban Development under President Jimmy Carter

Mary Landrieu is the only person in this quiz not born in Louisiana. She was born in Arlington, VA and was a Louisiana state representative and state treasurer before becoming a United States senator.

Mitch Landrieu, born in New Orleans, was a Louisiana state representative, then became lieutenant governor of Louisiana, and subsequently the Mayor of New Orleans.