"Two Bs or Not Two Bs?"-Both Names Begin with B Quiz

Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. Barbara Boxer was born in N.Y. on November 11, 1940. In 1962 she graduated from Brooklyn College with a degree in Economics. Before becoming a Democratic senator from CA, she held a job as a stockbroker, and is also a published novelist. When she ran for the senate in the 1992 elections, what was her campaign slogan?

Answer: Barbara Boxer Gives a Damn

Barbara Boxer began serving as a Democratic senator in 1993. Prior to that she was a member of the House of Representatives. The opening for the senate seat came as a result of the retirement of the long-serving Senator Alan Cranston.
She has voted against U.S. involvement in Iraq, said "nay" to Desert Storm and was strongly opposed to the Vietnam War.
Barbara Boxer has authored a brace of novels: "A Time to Run" (2005) and "Blind Trust" (2009).
She has even made appearances as herself on several TV shows, including "Murphy Brown" (1994), "The Gilmore Girls" (2002) and "Curb Your Enthusiasm" (2007).

2. Bill Bradley is a true renaissance man. He was born July 28, 1943 in Crystal City, MO. He has been a Rhodes Scholar, a college and professional basketball star, a three term Democratic senator from New Jersey (1979-1997), a one-time presidential office-seeker, and a prolific author. From which university did he graduate?

Answer: Princeton

Bill Bradley graduated from Princeton University in 1965. He sought the Democratic nomination for president in the 2000 election. Bradley spent two years as a Rhodes Scholar at Oxford before joining the New York Knicks. He had previously won a gold medal in the 1964 Olympic games held in Rome as a member of the U.S.A. basketball team. "Dollar Bill" was a two-time National Basketball Association champion as he played a major role for the 1970 and 1973 New Yorkers. Bill Bradley was elected to the NBA Hall of Fame in 1983 and had his number "24" retired by the Knicks in 1984. He has penned numerous non-fiction books including "We Can All Do Better" (2012).

Interesting fact: Bill Bradley turned down over 70 college scholarships so that he could become a Princeton Tiger.

3. Betty Buckley, born July 13, 1947, is a multi-talented actress, singer and song-writer. After graduating from Texas Christian University, she headed for the bright bulbs of Broadway. In 1969 she made her debut on the Great White Way in the musical "1776". She will always be best remembered for her role in "Cats", which ran for 18 years. She also will be associated with the role of "Abby Bradford" on a popular TV family comedy from the '80s. Can you name that show?

Answer: Eight is Enough

Betty Buckley played Abby Bradford in 102 episodes of "Eight is Enough", from 1978-1981. She introduced the role in the show's second season.
Her portrayal of Grizabella in Andrew Lloyd Weber's musical "Cats" earned her the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical (1983). "Cats" played on Broadway from 1981-2000. Ms. Buckley's singing of "Memory" is one of Broadway's all-time highlights. She also appeared in "Pippin" (1973) and "Sunset Boulevard" (1994).

Interesting fact: Betty Buckley has also appeared in 15 movies, the first of which was "Carrie" (1976), based on the Stephen King novel.

4. Ben Bova was a six-time winner of the Science Fiction Writers of America's (SFWA) Hugo Award for for editing. He won those while at a Sci-Fi magazine called "Analog". This spooky, scary scrivener has written over 100 works of fiction and non-fiction. In 2006 he won the SFWA's John W. Campbell Award for a fictional creation. Which outstanding, out-of-this-world work was the novel he won it for?

Answer: Titan

Ben Bova was born in Philadelphia on November 8, 1932. In his youth he was an accomplished combatant in the sport of fencing. The prolific author-editor is a graduate of Temple University, and he began his novel writing career with "The Star Conquerors" (1959). Among his various fictional works are the Sam Gunn and Chet Kinsman series. He also pens The Voyagers and The Grand Tour series.
Ben Bova was the president of the SFWA from 1990-1992 and is also President Emeritus of the National Space Society.

5. One of the most popular "sex-kittens" of the 1950s-1960s was the beautiful French actress-singer-model and author Brigitte Bardot. Born in Paris in 1934, she first aspired to become a ballet dancer. She is most famous for the film "And God Created Woman" (1956). Before she became an actress, she worked as a model. She was first discovered when she graced the cover of a popular magazine at the age of 15. Can you pick the proper publication?

Answer: Elle

Brigitte Bardot began acting in 1952 in a film titled "Crazy for Love", and four years later under the direction of her then-husband, Roger Vadim, she made "And God Created Woman". (He didn't make many like HER!). Over her entertainment career, which ran from 1952 to 1973, she made over 45 movies and recorded 80 songs. When her career ended she took up the role of animal-rights activist. Ms. Bardot has also written five books, including her autobiography: "Initials B.B." (1996).

Interesting fact: In 1974, she celebrated her 40th birthday by appearing in her birthday suit in "Playboy" magazine.

6. Two-time Academy Award winning composer, pianist and music conductor Burt Bacharach is one of the giants of America's music culture. For decades, starting in 1957, he and lyricist Hal David teamed up to write songs for many of the world of entertainment's top singers. The main beneficiary of Bacharach's compositions was Dionne Warwick. He wrote the music for over a dozen songs for her. Which of the following is NOT one of them?

Answer: The Look of Love

Burt Bacharach composed "The Look of Love" for Dusty Springfield in 1967.
He has written more than 75 songs and 35 albums in a career that has spanned six decades. After a stint in the U.S. Army he arranged music and toured with the legendary Marlene Dietrich. Bacharach's two Academy Award winning songs were "Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head" from "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid" (1964), and "Arthur's Theme" -Best That You Can Do- from "Arthur" (1981).
His instrumental arrangement of Dionne Warwick's "Alfie" (1966) earned him a Grammy Award.

7. Barbi Benton was a model who was best known for her time spent with Hugh Hefner, the founder of Playboy Enterprises. But she was more than just "eye candy", as she was also a singer and an actress. She was a regular on "Hee-Haw" appearing in over 50 episodes of the show which ran from 1972-1983. Which of the following statements about the beautiful Barbi Benton is bogus?

Answer: She is a former Playboy Playmate of the Month

It's hard to believe, but "Playboy" founder Hugh Hefner's honey never had the honorary homage of "Playmate of the Month". She did appear on several monthly covers and gained plenty of exposure for her ample assets in pictorial layouts on three occasions. She also starred in a short-lived sitcom, "Sugar Time" (1977-'78), was a frequent guest star on "Fantasy Island" and "The Love Boat".
In 1975, Barbi Benton showed off her pipes, taking "Brass Buckles" to number five on Billboard's Country Singles list.
Barbi Benton was born as Barbara Klein in New Yok City, January 28, 1950.

8. Beau Bridges is the son of actor Lloyd Bridges and the older brother of thespian Jeff. He has made over 50 Hollywood movies, including "Norma Rae" (1979) with Sally Field, and "The Hotel New Hampshire" (1984), which co-starred Jodie Foster. In 1989 he was teamed up with his brother Jeff as they played a pair of musicians with Michelle Pfeiffer as the sultry, sizzling songstress who joins their act in what is probably his best remembered performance. Can you recall the name of that flick? (Careful.)

Answer: The Fabulous Baker Boys

Beau did a lot of TV acting as well, appearing in 32 episodes of "The Agency" as CIA Director Tom Gage (2002-2003). Earlier he had appeared in 32 episodes of "Ensign O'Toole" (1962-1963). In between he made his Broadway debut in "Where's Daddy" (1966). In 1991 he won an Golden Globe for "Without Warning: The James Brady Story". Beau Bridges has been honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, located at 7065 Hollywood Boulevard.

Interesting fact: Michelle Pfeiffer's scintillating portrayal of Susie Diamond in "The Fabulous Baker Boys" earned her an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress.

9. Barbara Pierce Bush has the distinction of being the wife of a U.S. President, the mother of another U.S. President, and the mother of a U.S. governor. She was born in Flushing, N.Y June 8th, 1925, and at age 19 she married George Herbert Walker Bush, on January 6, 1945. Her hubby would later become known as "41", when he became the 41st President of the United States. She is also a distant cousin of the 14th U.S. Commander-In-Chief. Can you pick the proper president?

Answer: Franklin Pierce

Barbara Pierce Bush is the distant fourth cousin of the 14th US president, Franklin Pierce, who held the office from 1853-1857. Her son George W. Bush was the 43rd President of the Union, and son Jeb was the 43rd governor of Florida. During her tenure as first lady and beyond, she has been a strong advocate for literacy.

In 1989 she saw the opening of the Barbara Bush Foundation for Family Literacy, which has since raised over $15 million to help adults as well as children learn to read. On January 20, 1989 Barbara Bush became the second oldest woman to begin her tenure as first lady at age 63, behind only 65 year-old Anna Harrison, wife of America's ninth president, William Henry Harrison.

10. Upon his retirement following the 2007 season, Barry Bonds had established many records and recorded some amazing statistics. While many claim some are tainted because of alleged steroid useage, they are still quite remarkable. He played 21 years in the National League, first with the Pittsburgh Pirates (1986-1992) and then with the San Francisco Giants (1993-2007). When he hit 73 home runs (HR) in 2001, whose single season HR record did he break?

Answer: Mark McGwire

Bonds slammed his historic 73rd HR of the year off L.A. Dodger pitcher Dennis Springer on October 7, 2001. Bouble-B-Bonds hit it in front of his hometown fans at Pac Bell Stadium. His career stats read like something out of "Ripley's Believe It or Not". He had a lifetime batting average of .298 with 762 HRs and 1,996 runs batted in. He was a 14-time All-Star and he was voted the National League's Most Valuable Player seven times.

Interesting fact: When McGwire hit 70 HRs in 1998, he broke the previous record of 61 hit by Roger Maris in 1961. Babe Ruth was the first man ever to smack 60 dingers in a season (1927).

Source: Author paulmallon

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor bloomsby before going online.
Any errors found in FunTrivia content are routinely corrected through our feedback system.

Big Ben, Buster Brown and Bugs Bunny all have first and last names that start with the letter "B". Alas, they are not real, hence they are ineligible for this quiz. The 10 following people are as real as real can "B". Enjoy!

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