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Quiz about Scandals That Rocked the Nation
Quiz about Scandals That Rocked the Nation

Scandals That Rocked the Nation Quiz


Everyone loves a scandal, or at least reading about it in the newspaper or watching it on the news. See how many of these scandals you can identify.

A multiple-choice quiz by nmerr. Estimated time: 5 mins.
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Author
nmerr
Time
5 mins
Type
Multiple Choice
Quiz #
347,940
Updated
Dec 03 21
# Qns
10
Difficulty
Average
Avg Score
8 / 10
Plays
4858
Awards
Top 10% Quiz
Last 3 plays: Guest 173 (10/10), BarbaraMcI (9/10), Guest 70 (9/10).
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Question 1 of 10
1. The year is 1984. The location is New York City. A 37-year-old white man shoots four African-American teens on the subway. All four teens are badly injured but survive. The shooter is tried and acquitted of all charges except carrying an unlicensed gun. What is the name of this man who took the law into his own hands? Hint


Question 2 of 10
2. In 1938 a well-known actor/director produced a particularly realistic radio show on Halloween night. It was so realistic that it caused widespread panic. It was also an act of deception. American citizens were fooled into believing that earth was being taken over by aliens. Which actor was behind the hoax? Hint


Question 3 of 10
3. The PTL (Praise the Lord) Club, a TV show that was a mix of sermon, talk show, and fundraising, began in 1976. Headed by a charismatic televangelist who owned the PTL Network, the show ran for many years. As the PTL Network coffers increased, so did the lavish lifestyle he enjoyed with his wife and business partner, Tammy Faye. It all came crashing down in 1987. Name this disgraced televangelist. Hint


Question 4 of 10
4. Back in 1994, a former pro football player was accused of murdering his ex-wife, Nicole, and her friend, Ron Goldman. Defended by a "Dream Team" of lawyers, which ex-ballplayer was eventually acquitted of all criminal charges? Hint


Question 5 of 10
5. Imagine that you are watching a TV quiz show in 1956. The show is called "Twenty-One." Every correct answer is rewarded in cash. However, the questions are so difficult that many contestants don't score at all. The show becomes boring. The lone sponsor, Geritol, threatens to withdraw from the show. Then a winner emerges. He is handsome, intelligent, and comes from a famous literary family. Who is he? Hint


Question 6 of 10
6. This head-turning movie star was born Julia Jean in 1921. She had one child, a daughter, from her marriage to Stephen Crane. When the actress became mixed up with a gangster who became increasingly more violent with her, her daughter fatally stabbed him during one of his violent rages. It was a lurid scandal that made headlines. What is the name of the actress involved in the scandal? Hint


Question 7 of 10
7. The year was 1919. Engaging in gay sex was against the law. In an attempt to remove gay men from the Navy, officer Ervin Arnold, with the full knowledge and support of the Assistant Secretary of the Navy, came up with an undercover scheme that scandalized the nation and put the Navy itself on trial. Who was Assistant Secretary of the Navy at the time of the scandal? Hint


Question 8 of 10
8. Anyone with a TV set in 1991 will remember the constant replaying of the beating of an African American man by three white L.A.P.D. officers. The man had been pulled over for drunk driving. A civilian onlooker shot a home video of the beating that was replayed over and over on news reports. Who was the man that was badly beaten? Hint


Question 9 of 10
9. He's a rock'n'roll pioneer, country music singer, songwriter and is known as "The Killer." In 1957 he became known for something else. He married his thirteen-year-old cousin, Myra. Who is this controversial singer? Hint


Question 10 of 10
10. During the 1920s, in the southern region of the U.S., syphilis was a big problem for poor, uneducated African American communities. Since syphilis was incurable at that time, the U.S. Public Health Service decided to start a program to deal with the problem. The P.H.S. got together with a well known African American university to carry out a program that was supposedly aimed at helping those communities affected by the disease. What resulted was an unethical study that betrayed African American men and their families. Which university took part in this unethical study? Hint



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Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts
1. The year is 1984. The location is New York City. A 37-year-old white man shoots four African-American teens on the subway. All four teens are badly injured but survive. The shooter is tried and acquitted of all charges except carrying an unlicensed gun. What is the name of this man who took the law into his own hands?

Answer: Bernhard Goetz

The crime was set in motion when one of the teens asked Goetz for five dollars. According to Goetz, this triggered his explosive reaction. He had been mugged three years earlier by African Americans. He explained to the jury that he carried a gun for protection. Each of the four teens had criminal records, although they were not armed at the time they were shot.

The mood of New York City in 1984 and rampant crime played a big part in Goetz's acquittal. The crime and subsequent trial put New York City in the spotlight and forced the city to take crime more seriously.

It did and continues to do so, significantly lowering the city's crime rate over the years.
2. In 1938 a well-known actor/director produced a particularly realistic radio show on Halloween night. It was so realistic that it caused widespread panic. It was also an act of deception. American citizens were fooled into believing that earth was being taken over by aliens. Which actor was behind the hoax?

Answer: Orson Welles

With his commanding voice and great acting skills, the 23-year-old Welles convinced many radio listeners that the space invasion was real. In his own defense he claimed that he only wanted to entertain the public. He later apologized but it took a long time for the public to forgive him. It also raised questions about whether or not radio programming needed more regulation.
3. The PTL (Praise the Lord) Club, a TV show that was a mix of sermon, talk show, and fundraising, began in 1976. Headed by a charismatic televangelist who owned the PTL Network, the show ran for many years. As the PTL Network coffers increased, so did the lavish lifestyle he enjoyed with his wife and business partner, Tammy Faye. It all came crashing down in 1987. Name this disgraced televangelist.

Answer: Jim Bakker

After Jim Bakker's fall from grace he handed over his ministry to Jerry Falwell, a rival televangelist who discovered that the PTL Club was in truth financially strapped. Bakker paid so much to his lover, Jessica Hahn, to keep their affair quiet that the PTL Club was on the verge of bankruptcy. Bakker was sentenced to 18 years in jail for fraud and cheating his followers out of $158 million.

He was paroled after serving five years. Unbelievably, many of Bakker's followers stood behind him through it all.
4. Back in 1994, a former pro football player was accused of murdering his ex-wife, Nicole, and her friend, Ron Goldman. Defended by a "Dream Team" of lawyers, which ex-ballplayer was eventually acquitted of all criminal charges?

Answer: Orenthal James Simpson

O. J. Simpson's murder trial had the nation riveted to their TV sets. Simpson's legal defense team was first led by Robert Shapiro, then Johnnie Cochran. On October 3, 1995, the jury rendered the verdict of not guilty of the murders of Nicole and Ron. O.J. might have avoided time in prison back in 1995 but on December 5, 2008 he was sentenced to 33 years in prison for armed robbery.
5. Imagine that you are watching a TV quiz show in 1956. The show is called "Twenty-One." Every correct answer is rewarded in cash. However, the questions are so difficult that many contestants don't score at all. The show becomes boring. The lone sponsor, Geritol, threatens to withdraw from the show. Then a winner emerges. He is handsome, intelligent, and comes from a famous literary family. Who is he?

Answer: Charles Van Doren

The producer of "Twenty-One," Dan Enright, wanted to boost ratings so he fed the answers to Van Doren. Van Doren's unbelievable three-month winning streak netted him $100,000, pretty good for back then. "Time Magazine" put him on their cover and called him the "Wizard of Quiz." Van Doren's good fortune was about to end.

A contestant, standing by to play the quiz, found a notebook backstage with all the answers written in it. Other contestants came forward to testify. As a case against the show's producers went before Congress in 1959, Van Doren cracked under the pressure and confessed all.
6. This head-turning movie star was born Julia Jean in 1921. She had one child, a daughter, from her marriage to Stephen Crane. When the actress became mixed up with a gangster who became increasingly more violent with her, her daughter fatally stabbed him during one of his violent rages. It was a lurid scandal that made headlines. What is the name of the actress involved in the scandal?

Answer: Lana Turner

Cheryl Crane, Lana's fourteen-year-old daughter, confessed to stabbing her mother's lover, Johnny Stompanato. The public sided with Lana and her daughter, although there were some who believed that Lana herself was the real killer. Due to Cheryl's young age, there was never a trial and the medical examiner who presided over a special court didn't require Cheryl to testify. Lana Turner, ever the actress, took the stand at the inquest and tearfully recounted the events leading up to Stompanato's death.

Her daughter, she explained, was merely protecting her mother from the actions of a violent man. The jury acquitted Cheryl of the murder charges after only 30 minutes.
7. The year was 1919. Engaging in gay sex was against the law. In an attempt to remove gay men from the Navy, officer Ervin Arnold, with the full knowledge and support of the Assistant Secretary of the Navy, came up with an undercover scheme that scandalized the nation and put the Navy itself on trial. Who was Assistant Secretary of the Navy at the time of the scandal?

Answer: Franklin Delano Roosevelt

Officer Ervin Arnold found that Newport, Rhode Island, where he was stationed, had a large gay community within the Navy. He was a conservative living in conservative America and didn't like what was happening. He decided to do something about it. Arnold recruited a number of officers to help him in a sting operation.

The officers had the full backing of Franklin Delano Roosevelt. The plan was to recruit straight Navy men to party with and seduce the gay sailors. They were then ordered to write reports detailing their sexual exploits. Seventeen sailors were caught and some were sent to jail. Word got out about the unethical operation.

The newspaper editor of the "Providence Journal" wrote a series of articles demanding an investigation into the Navy sex sting.

This led to the Senate hearings in 1921. The Navy, and particularly Roosevelt, were condemned for endangering the lives of the young men involved and the lives of the gay sailors who were seduced and beaten. This case was one of the first to fully document the discrimination toward homosexuals.
8. Anyone with a TV set in 1991 will remember the constant replaying of the beating of an African American man by three white L.A.P.D. officers. The man had been pulled over for drunk driving. A civilian onlooker shot a home video of the beating that was replayed over and over on news reports. Who was the man that was badly beaten?

Answer: Rodney King

When he was released from the hospital, Rodney King was badly bruised. His leg, cheekbone, and eye socket were broken, and he was left with permanent nerve damage to his face. He had also been shot with a stun gun. TV viewers were appalled at the police brutality. Everyone, including the mayor of L.A., wanted the police chief, Daryl Gates, to step down and Gates resigned.

The three officers involved in the beating were charged with excessive force and assault with a deadly weapon. Their trial was moved outside of L.A. and a predominantly white jury acquitted the officers. Later, after much rioting and vandalism in the streets of South Central L.A., the officers were tried in L.A. with a racially mixed jury.

This time Commanding Officer Stacey Koon and Lawrence Powell, the officer behind the beatings, were found guilty and sentenced to 30 months in federal corrections camps.

The third officer was fired from the L.A. police force.
9. He's a rock'n'roll pioneer, country music singer, songwriter and is known as "The Killer." In 1957 he became known for something else. He married his thirteen-year-old cousin, Myra. Who is this controversial singer?

Answer: Jerry Lee Lewis

After he married Myra, Jerry Lee's career took a nosedive. The public could not accept the fact that he married a relative and one so young. Also, he was still married to his second wife at the time Myra became his bride. Years later, once he started recording country ballads, his career took off again.

Interestingly, televangelist Jimmy Swaggart and country music crooner Mickey Gilley are Jerry Lee's cousins. His cousins seem to take a prominent place in his life.
10. During the 1920s, in the southern region of the U.S., syphilis was a big problem for poor, uneducated African American communities. Since syphilis was incurable at that time, the U.S. Public Health Service decided to start a program to deal with the problem. The P.H.S. got together with a well known African American university to carry out a program that was supposedly aimed at helping those communities affected by the disease. What resulted was an unethical study that betrayed African American men and their families. Which university took part in this unethical study?

Answer: Tuskegee Institute (University)

The plan was to find poor, uneducated African American men with the disease, monitor them until they died, and perform autopsies on the bodies in an effort to better understand the disease. The unfortunate men were told they had bad blood, not specifically syphilis.

They were offered free meals, medical exams and burial services for their assistance in the study, none of which they ever received. It wasn't until the 1940s that syphilis was treated with penicillin. By the time the men had died, they had unknowingly passed the disease on to their wives, girlfriends, and to those children born after being infected.

In 1972 the Associated Press found out about the study and released a shocking article in the New York Times. People were horrified.

In 1973 a class action suit was filed on behalf of the participants of the study and their families. In 1997 President Bill Clinton issued an official apology on behalf of the study's participants, their families, and the entire African American community.
Source: Author nmerr

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