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Structure
Interesting Questions, Facts and Information
- There are a total of 75 general entries. We are selecting 30 for display.
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 Interesting Questions, Facts, and Information
 Ben Hur .
Haya Harareet. Haya Harareet was bon in Haifa, Palestine.
| What was the name of Judah Ben-Hur's love interest in the movie? | 'Ben-Hur' (1959)
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Quintus Arrius. After Judah saved his life, Arrius later adopted him.
| What was the original year of release in America for the silent version of 'Ben-Hur'? | 'Ben-Hur' (1959)
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Charlton Heston . Charlton Heston was born in Evanston, Illinois.
| We all know the title of this multiple Oscar winning film, but what is the subtitle of 'Ben Hur'? | 'Ben Hur', Part I
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A Tale of the Christ. This title is from the book upon which the film is based, 'Ben Hur: A Tale of the Christ'. The tale of Christ is the subtext that runs through the entire film. The beginning of the film features the birth of Christ, while at the end we see Christ being crucified as Ben Hur looks on. Though not made completely clear in the film, Ben Hur is supposed to be converted from Judaism to Christianity by the end of the film.
| Upon which U.S. Civil War General's work is the story behind the film 'Ben Hur' based? | 'Ben Hur', Part I
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Lewis Wallace. Lew Wallace was a General from Indiana who fought for the Union side during the U.S. Civil War. He wrote his very popular novel 'Ben Hur: A Tale of the Christ' in 1880, and is now more well-known for it than for his exploits during the war. During his lifetime, he saw his book become a very popular stage hit, but never saw it come to life in the cinema (he died in 1907).
| 'Ben Hur' was nominated for 12 Oscars, and won 11 times! In which category did the film fail to win an Academy Award? | 'Ben Hur', Part I
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Best Screenplay. While William Wyler won for Best Director, Charlton Heston and Hugh Griffith won for Best Actor and Best Supporting Actor, respectively. Karl Tunberg failed to win for his screenplay, and there is an interesting story behind why this is so. Apparently, Wyler had difficulty finding a quality screenplay, and sifted through over 40 before finally settling on Tunberg's. Wyler thought the screenplay, based on Wallace's book, of course, still needed much fine tuning, so he selected Gore Vidal to improve the quality of the dialogue. After disagreements on tone and style between Wyler and Vidal (Vidal insisted on creating a homoerotic air between the Ben Hur and the Messala characters), Wyler turned to Christopher Fry, who completed the screen writing. Unfortunately, the studio failed to recognize either Fry or Vidal's work, and gave the credit solely to Tunberg. Wyler protested and lobbied for Fry, but the die had already been cast.
| At the beginning of the film we see a Roman legion marching toward Jerusalem. A change in command for the Roman troops in Judaea has been ordered by the Emperor. Who will be the new commander of the garrison? | 'Ben Hur', Part I
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Messala. Messala, played by Stephen Boyd, will be the young and ambitious new commander of the Roman legion in Jerusalem. It so happens that Messala is an old friend of our hero, Judah Ben Hur. Soon after Messala accepts command from the battle-weary Sextus, he meets with his old friend...and the rivalry begins!
Judah. It might be important to note at this point that there Judah Ben Hur is not an historic person, but rather a hero made up by Wallace to represent the repressed Jewish population under Roman rule. We find that Judah Ben Hur is a devoted religious man and a patriot, both anathema to his friend Messala, who insists on his friend's loyalty to the Roman Empire.
| Ben Hur lives in Jerusalem in a stately home with which two relatives? | 'Ben Hur', Part I
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Mother and sister. Ben Hur's sister is called Tirzah (played by Cathy O'Donnell, sister-in-law of Wyler) and his mother is Miriam (portrayed by Martha Scott).
| Ben Hur's family is a rather wealthy trading clan of Judaea. The family business is run by a steward named Simonides. Simonides has a beautiful daughter who is the slave property of the house of Hur. What is her name? | 'Ben Hur', Part I
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Esther. Esther is portrayed by Haya Harareet, the only Israeli national among the cast (she was born in Haifa, Palestine, in 1931). This was only one of seven films in which she made an appearance.
| For what seemingly insignificant action are Ben Hur and his entire family imprisoned by the Romans? | 'Ben Hur', Part I
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Accidentally dropping a piece of tile from a rooftop. Ben Hur and his sister Tirzah gaze from their rooftop as the new governor marches into Jerusalem. Unfortunately, a couple of tiles give way on the roof under Tirzah's hands, hitting the road below. The governor is knocked off of his horse, but lives. Messala sees this as his opportunity to teach the recalcitrant Jews a lesson, and imprisons Tirzah and Miriam. Ben Hur is sent to the galleys.
| On his way to the slave galley, where he will become a rower, Ben Hur encounters Jesus Christ for the first time. What is the nature of their meeting? | 'Ben Hur', Part I
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Christ gives water to Ben Hur. We never see the face of the actor, Claude Heater, who portrays Christ in the film, he only appears from behind. While Ben Hur is marched to the galley, Christ administers some water to our fallen hero in defiance of the Roman guards. The guard who commands that the prisoners be given no water seems overawed by Christ's presence.
Thank you for having tried this first installment, please feel free to try the other quizzes in this series.
| We rejoin Ben Hur in the rowing cabin of a Roman warship, where he has been consigned by his former friend Messala. What number has Ben Hur been assigned? | 'Ben Hur', Part II
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41. We discover that Ben Hur has been on this particular ship for a month, and that he has served as a rower for three years on other ships, an extraordinarily long time it seems.
| According to Quintus Arrius, the new consul and Commander of the Roman fleet, what specific emotion keeps a man alive? | 'Ben Hur', Part II
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Hate. Quintus Arrius tests Ben Hur by whipping his back. Ben Hur immediately turns toward Quintus Arrius, but does not attempt to fight back. According to Quintus Arrius, Ben Hur's 'eyes are full of hate'. This is good, according to the consul, as 'hate keeps a man alive'.
| Quintus Arrius tests the mettle of his rowers by putting them through a rigorous regimen of rowing speeds. What is the top rowing speed for this ship? | 'Ben Hur', Part II
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Ramming speed. The order of speeds that he commands are: battle speed, attack speed and ramming speed, respectively. Torpedo speed is a figment of my imagination, but it sounds wonderful, doesn't it? We later discover that the rowing sequence was all a test to see if Ben Hur is as resilient as he seems.
| The galley in which Ben Hur rows enters into battle with pirates. The ship is destroyed, but Ben Hur is able to escape. How is Ben Hur able to evade the chains? | 'Ben Hur', Part II
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Quintus Arrius orders his chain unlocked. Quintus Arrius apparently admires Ben Hur's faith and steadfastness, and hence orders his chain to be released. When the ship is rammed, he is easily able to escape, and in the meantime he helps several other prisoners escape their bonds by killing the guard and taking his keys.
| During his triumphant return to Rome, Quintus Arrius is honored by the emperor himself, played by George Relph. Which Roman emperor does Relph portray in the film 'Ben Hur'? | 'Ben Hur', Part II
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Tiberius. Tiberius honors Quintus Arrius with a baton of victory. The Emperor then asks about Ben Hur, the savior of his victorious naval commander. The following day Tiberius officially bestows Ben Hur as a slave to Quintus Arrius.
| Ben Hur will soon return to Judaea to locate his mother and sister. Who is to become the new Roman governor of Judaea, replacing Gratus? | 'Ben Hur', Part II
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Pontius Pilate. Pontius Pilate is portrayed quite marvelously by Frank Thring in this film. Of course, Pilate was the actual governor of Judaea during this time, and is said to have ordered the execution of Christ. Thank you for playing this quiz. If you enjoyed it, I welcome you to try the other installments in my 'Ben Hur' series.
| Ben Hur returns triumphantly to his homeland in Judaea, the newly-adopted son of a Roman consul. Upon his return, Ben Hur is met by one of the three wise men who witnessed Christ's birth, but which? | 'Ben Hur', Part III
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Balthasar . While Ben Hur reclines luxuriously under a desert palm, Balthasar of Alexandria approaches with a query. Could Ben Hur be the wandering rabbi, spreading wisdom across the holy land? Ben Hur denies being Christ, of course, but he does prove strangely interesting to the old, wise man. Balthasar takes Ben Hur with him to meet his Arab friend Sheik Ilderim.
| We are soon introduced to the garrulous Arab friend of the wise man of Alexandria, Sheik Ilderim. Which actor won an Academy Award for his superb portrayal of the magnanimous sheik? | 'Ben Hur', Part III
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Hugh Griffith. Among all of the excellent supporting performances, Hugh Griffith's stands out for its delicious eccentricity. Of the other actors listed, Stephen Boyd played the ultra-ambitious Messala, Currie portrayed the wizened Balthasar and Sam Jaffe the tragic steward of the House of Hur, Simonides.
| Ben Hur returns to his family home in Jerusalem. With whom does he make first contact after he enters the courtyard of his unkept home? | 'Ben Hur', Part III
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Esther. The beautiful Esther has remained in the family home, never having married her fiance in Antioch. Her father Simonides has been kept in prison all the while that Ben Hur has been gone. The elderly steward has just been released prior to Ben Hur's return home.
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