Alternative Names Trivia Quiz

Answer: Jay Z

Shawn Corey Carter was born in Brooklyn, New York in 1969. He grew up to become Jay-Z and then Jay Z, a rapper and entrepreneur. He has sold more than 100 million records and received over twenty Grammy Awards, becoming one of the best-selling musicians of all time.

He has expanded his pursuits; he co-owns the 40/40 Club in New York, and was co-creator of the clothing line Rocawear. He also married Beyonce in 2008. Can life get any better?

Answer: Alan Alda

You may know this actor as "Hawkeye" Pierce from the hit TV comedy "M*A*S*H", but he was born with the name Alphonso D'Abruzzo. He adopted the stage name of his actor father, Robert Alda, to become Alan Alda. Alan was born in New York City in 1936, and has appeared as Arnold Vinick on "The West Wing", and in films like "Crimes and Misdemeanors".

In the 1980s he was considered the prototype of the 'sensitive man', and has won multiple Emmy and Golden Globe Awards.

Answer: Toni Morrison

If you heard the name Chloe Ardelia Wofford, would you have any idea it was the Nobel and Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist Toni Morrison? Chloe was born in Lorain, Ohio in 1931. Her writings depict the black experience in America, with themes which span generations, and include vivid characters and dialogue. Among Toni's best-selling works are: "The Bluest Eye" (1970), "Song of Solomon" (1977) and "Beloved" (1987).

In 2012, she was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

Answer: Ann Landers

Columnist Esther Pauline "Eppie" Friedman Lederer (1918-2002) was better known as advice expert Ann Landers. But did you know that Eppie was not the creator of her pseudonym? In 1943, Ruth Crowley was writing for the "Chicago Sun-Times" under the appellation Ann Landers, when Lederer took over the column ("Ask Ann Landers") in 1955, and became a national celebrity. On another note, Eppie had an identical twin sister, Pauline Esther "Popo" Friedman Phillips (1918-2013) who became known as Abigail Van Buren.

She began writing her own advice column in 1956; it was called "Dear Abby".

Answer: Lewis Carroll

"'Twas brillig, and the slithy toves/Did gyre and gimble in the wabe". Do you recognize the quote? It comes from the poem "Jabberwocky" by Lewis Carroll. British author, mathematician, deacon and photographer Lewis Carroll was born with the name Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (1832-1898). Aside from his poems, e.g., "Jabberwocky" and "The Hunting of the Snark", he gave us the wonderful children's classics "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland" and "Through the Looking-Glass".

Answer: Sandra Dee

If you ever watched the movie "Grease", you may be familiar with one of the songs, "Look at Me, I'm Sandra Dee", which was sung by Stockard Channing. Youngsters may have wondered about the reference; Sandra Dee (1942-2005) was a child model who became an actress.

She starred in films which included "Gidget" in 1959, "A Summer Place" (1960) and "Tammy Tell Me True" in 1961. At the time, she was held up as the epitome of adolescent, feminine purity. She was born in Bayonne, New Jersey, with the unfriendly marquee name of Alexandra Zuck.

Answer: Bo Diddley

Is anyone familiar with the name Ellas Otha Bates? Ellas was born in Macomb, Mississippi in 1928, and was adopted by his mother's cousin, Gussie McDaniel. He assumed Gussie's surname in 1934, to become Ellas McDaniel - still don't recognize him? Well, he grew up to become an R&B singer, song-writer and guitarist named
Bo Diddley (1928-2008). Known for his square guitar, his use of rhythms and beats not only provided a transition from blues to rock and roll, it also served to lay the foundation for hip hop. In 1987, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Answer: Ayn Rand

Russian born Alisa Zinov'yevna Rosenbaum (1905-1982) emigrated to the United States in 1926, arriving in New York City. She moved to Chicago, Illinois for a short time and then set out for Hollywood, California to realize her dream of becoming a screenwriter. Under the pen name Ayn Rand, she sold her first screenplay, "Red Pawn" to Universal Studios in 1932.

Her first novel, "We the Living" was published in 1936. From there she went on to pen "The Fountainhead" in 1943, and "Atlas Shrugged" in 1957, both of which espoused her philosophy of "Objectivism".

Answer: Anne Rice

Howard Allen Frances O'Brien is a woman? Yes, that is the birth name of gothic fiction writer Anne Rice, born in New Orleans, Louisiana, in 1941. She is best known for her "Vampire Chronicles", beginning with the 1976 novel "Interview with the Vampire", with the protagonist Lestat.

As for her given name, it seems her mother was a 'Bohemian' (an early 'beatnik') who named Anne after her father, Howard, thinking that giving her a male name would give her an advantage in a male-dominated world. Anne legally changed her name in 1947.

Answer: Vin Diesel

Action star Vin Diesel was born in Alameda County, California in 1947, with the name Mark Sinclair. He and his fraternal twin brother were raised in New York City by his mother and step-father, Irving H. Vincent. He began acting on stage at the age of seven in a children's play, "Dinosaur Door".

His first major film role was in "Boiler Room" in 2000. From then on, his rise to stardom was "Fast and (the) Furious" in the street racing franchise, beginning in 2001, and as Riddick in "Pitch Black" and "The Chronicles of Riddick".