Historic Fiction Trivia Quiz

Answer: I, Claudius

"I, Claudius" (1976) is the title of the series about the first Roman Emperors, from Augustus up till Claudius.
Derek Jacobi (born 1938) is a British actor who started his career in the National Theatre in London, next to Sir Laurence Olivier and Peter O'Toole. His first major movie role was Cassio in "Othello" (1965) and Jacobi's breakthrough on television was "I, Claudius".
The series started with Claudius presenting himself to the audience: "I, Tiberius Claudius Drusus Nero Germanicus this-that-and-the-other..." as he is about to start a biography of his family, from about 24 BC. Jacobi presented Claudius as a stammering would-be idiot with a clubfoot, and he did quite convincingly.
Jacobi won the BAFTA for best TV actor for his role as Claudius.
Brian Blessed (born 1936) played Augustus and Sian Philips (born 1933) played his wife Livia. Tiberius was played by George Baker (1931-2011) and John Hurt (1940-2017) played a very nuanced Caligula - not the raving mad as many historians think, but someone who lacks every moral conscience and gradually descends into another world.

Answer: Roots

"Roots" (1977) was a mini-series about Kunta Kinte, a young African who was around 1765 and sent to America as a slave. It follows his story and that of his daughter Kizzy, his grandson George, and his great-grandson Tom up till 1870, when the remaining family members gain their freedom.
LeVar Burton (born 1957) started his career with "Roots". Later on he would play Geordi LaForge on "Star Trek: Next Generation".
The other main roles in "Roots" were played by Leslie Uggams (Kizzy), Ben Vereen (George) and Chuck Connors (Tom).

Answer: The Winds of War

"The Winds of War" (1983) was a mini-series of seven episodes (each a bit longer than two hours) about the period 1933-1941. The protagonists are the (fictitious) family Henry, including a Jewish girl in love with the youngest son.
Victor Henry was appointed to various missions in Berlin, London and Moscow, primarily to assess the fighting capacity of the respective countries in case the USA would be implied in another worldwide war. He gave the point of view of a well-informed American military, while his daughter Madeline showed the point of view of the average uninterested American civilian. One of Pug's contact persons, the German general Armin von Roon, provided the German point of view, and Natalie Jastrow (the love interest of the youngest son) provided the Jewish point of view.
Mitchum (1917-1997) was best known for his movies, especially "Night of the Hunter" (1955) and "Cape Fear" (1962). "The Winds of War" was the first television series in which he acted, and he would play the same role in the sequel "War and Remembrance" (1988-1989).
Several historic characters are portrayed by supporting actors: President Franklin D. Roosevelt (Ralph Bellamy), Adolf Hitler (Günter Meisner), Hermann Goering (Reinhard Kolldehoff)...

Answer: War and Peace

Tolstoy's novel "War and Peace" has been made into at least three movies (of which the 1956 version directed by King Vidor is the best known) and at least two TV mini-series.
Paul Dano, James Norton and Lily James are the protagonists in the 2016 mini-series "War and Peace", six episodes of little more than an hour each.
The story is set in aristocratic Russia in 1805 (the rise of French Emperor Napoleon) and 1812 (defeat of the French army in Russia). Pierre Bezukhov started as a fierce supporter of the French ideals, but gradually he turned into a real patriot.
Dano (born 1984) is best known for his movies "Little Miss Sunshine" (2006) and "Ruby Sparks" (2012). On the little screen he played in some episodes of "the Sopranos" (2002-2004).
Norton (born 1985), who played the role of Andrej Bolkonsky, starred in some other television series too: "Happy Valley" (2014-2016) and "Grantchester" (2014-2017).
Lily James (born 1989), who performed as Natasha Rostova, debuted in the TV series "Just William" (2012). She played the title role in "Cinderella" (2015) and "Pride and Prejudice with Zombies" (2016).
Historic characters in "War and Peace" (2016) are Napoleon Bonaparte (played by Matthieu Kassovitz) and General Mikhail Kutuzov (role by Brian Cox).

Answer: Black Sails

"Black Sails" started in 2014 for at least four seasons (the first limited to eight episodes, the other running for ten episodes each). It focused on pirate activity in the Caribbean Sea during the period 1680 -1715.
The real pirates involved are Jack Rackham (role by Toby Schmitz), Anne Bonny (played by Clara Paget) and Edward Teach aka Blackbeard (role by Ray Stevenson). The fictive pirate Long John Silver is portrayed by Luke Arnold.
The first two seasons concentrate on a treasure carried by a Spanish ship, while the third and fourth series deal with the fight for power between pirates and the British Empire on the island of New Providence, the main island of the Bahamas.

Answer: Masada

"Masada" was released in 1981 and counted four episodes, for a total screen time of 6 hours 34 minutes.
Peter O'Toole (1932-2013) played the Roman general Cornelius Flavius Silva, appointed to Judea around 69 AD. He is best known for his role as Lawrence of Arabia in the eponymous movie from 1962.
Peter Strauss (born 1947) played the role of Eleazar Ben Yair, the zealot who led a rebellion against the Romans. When the Roman legions close in, the rebels took their refuge on a rock called Masada - only to witness the Romans constructing a large up-hill avenue to storm the rock. So finally all the rebels took their lives.
Peter Strauss has acted in several TV (mini-)series, including "Rich Man, Poor Man" in 1976-1977 and "Tender is the Night" (1985).

Answer: North and South

"North and South" started with two seasons of six episodes each, released in 1985-1986. The first season covered the period 1842 to 1860, while the second season dealt with the American Civil War itself. In 1994 a third series of three episodes (covering the immediate aftermath of the American Civil War) was added.
The first season tells about the meeting between Orry Maine and George Hazard, and the friendship between their families that develops in an era where the northern and southern states of the USA grow more and more hostile one to the other.
Patrick Swayze (1952-2009) is best known for his movie roles in "Dirty Dancing" (1987), "Point Blank" (1991) and "Donnie Darko" (2001). In television series, he played one of the protagonists in "North and South" (1985) and the title role in "The Beast" (2009).
James Read (born 1953) has played in several television (mini-)series, including "American Dreams" (2002-2005) and "Wildfire" (2005-2008). He also played a supporting role in "Legally Blonde" (2001) and "A Lot Like Love" (2005).

Answer: The Borgias

The Borgia family has inspired several TV series, as well as dozens of movies. After all, there are not that many families of which the father became a Pope, while two of his children have been marked in history as serial killers.
In the 2011-2013 series "The Borgias" the main roles are played by Jeremy Irons, François Arnaud and Holliday Grainger. In the 2011-2014 series "Borgia" the same roles were filled by John Doman, Mark Ryder and Isolda Dychauk.
The story follows the trials and tribulations of Rodrigo Borgia, a cardinal from Spanish descent aiming for the highest office available (the Pope) and his family. Rodrigo became indeed Pope Alexander VI in 1492, up till his death in 1503. Rodrigo's son Cesare preferred a career as a general and is rumoured to have staged several murders, including the murder on one of his brothers. Rodrigo's daughter Lucrezia was given out in marriage with the sole purpose of stabilising the power base of Rodrigo, but she was also rumoured to have poisoned many of her lovers and husbands.
Jeremy Irons (born 1948) is best known for the TV series "Brideshead Revisited" (1981) and the movie "The French Lieutenant's Woman" (1981). He won an Emmy and a Golden Globe for his supporting role in "Elizabeth I" (2005), as well as an Oscar for "Reversal of Fortune" (1990).
François Arnaud (born 1985) started his career in the TV series "C.A." (2007) and "Taxi 0-22" (2008). His first award was for the movie "J'ai tué ma mère" (2009).
Holliday Grainger (born 1988) began acting in the TV series "All Quiet on the Preston Front" (2004). Her best known movie roles are Diana Rivers in "Jane Eyre" (2011) and Anastasia in "Cinderella" (2015).

Answer: Vikings

"Vikings" started in 2013 with nine episodes. The second and third season had ten episodes, climbing to twenty episodes each in seasons 4, 5 and 6.
Gustaf Skarsgard (born 1980) is one of many family members involved in acting: his father Stellan and his brothers Aleksandar, Bill and Valter all are actors.
Gustaf (born 1980) started his career in 1989 in the movie "Täcknamn Coq Rouge" (translated as "Codename Coq Rouge"). In "Vikings", he plays Floki, a talented shipbuilder serving with king Ragnar Lothbrok (role by Travis Fimmel). The story follows Ragnar pillaging various locations in Europe (from the Abbey of Lindisfarne in 793 until Paris in 845).

Answer: Victoria

"Victoria" started in 2016, starring Jenna Coleman as the young Queen Victoria and Tom Hughes as Prince Albert. The first season (eight episodes) covers the period 1837-1840, from Victoria's coronation up till the birth of her first child. The second season comprised once again eight episodes, completed with a Christmas Special, and covered the period 1841-1846.
Jenna Coleman (born 1986) starred in several TV series, including "Emmerdale Farm" (2005-2009), "Titanic" (2012) and "Doctor Who" (2012-2015).