January 8 Birthdays Quiz | January Birthdays

Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. 1821 - This American soldier first saw combat during the Mexican-American War, and served the United States with distinction. However, in 1861, he resigned from the Army to help lead the Confederacy during the Civil War. He won at Fredericksburg, Chickamauga and at Second Bull Run, but led a catastrophic assault at Gettysburg on General Lee's orders. Who was this man that joined the Republican Party after the war?

Answer: James Longstreet

Ironically, James Longstreet's best friend upon graduation at West Point was Ulysses S. Grant, the man who would lead the Union armies during the Civil War. In fact, at Grant's wedding (to Longstreet's 4th cousin), Longstreet served as his best man. Longstreet was wounded in both the Mexican-American War and the Civil War - in the former at the Battle of Chapultepec while alongside George E. Pickett, and in the latter at the Battle of the Wilderness by friendly fire. Following the war, Longstreet became the only senior Confederate general to join the Republicans.

He would die in 1904, suffering from rheumatism, cancer, and pneumonia, at the age of 82.

2. 1935 - This American singer and actor was born in Tupelo, Mississippi, but grew to fame after he moved to Memphis, Tennessee. Over his entire musical career, he had seventeen #1 singles, including the iconic songs "Heartbreak Hotel," "Hound Dog," "Love Me Tender," "All Shook Up," and "Jailhouse Rock." Who is this King of Rock 'n' Roll?

Answer: Elvis Presley

Elvis Presley became the first artist in history with ten US #1 singles, and finished his career with seventeen - his first in 1956 (when he had four total) with "Heartbreak Hotel" and his last in 1969 with "Suspicious Minds." At the beginning of 1969, Presley and The Beatles were tied with sixteen US #1 singles.

The Beatles took the lead on May 24 with the release of "Get Back," but Presley tied them again with "Suspicious Minds" on November 1. Only four weeks later, the Beatles' "Come Together/Something" hit #1 and never looked back. Presley did hold the record for total weeks at #1 with 79 until Mariah Carey's "Touch My Body" entered its 2nd week as the #1 single in 2008, putting her at 80 total weeks. Elvis Presley died (yes, it's true) on August 16, 1977.

3. 1937 - This Welsh singer was the first person to sing the theme song for more than one James Bond movie, which she did for "Goldfinger," "Diamonds are Forever," and "Moonraker." Aside from that, she also had #1 singles in the UK with "As I Love You" in 1959 and "Reach for the Stars/Climb Ev'ry Mountain" in 1961. Who is this woman, made a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire on December 31, 1999?

Answer: Shirley Bassey

Shirley Bassey's first #1 single in the UK, "As I Love You," hit the top of the charts on February 20 and stayed there for four weeks. The previous #1 hit was "One Night/I Got Stung" by someone who also had a January 8 birthday - Elvis Presley. She was so admired by the British Royal Family that Queen Elizabeth II, after naming her a DBE, invited Bassey to sing at the Queen's Golden Jubilee in 2002.

However, the United Kingdom was not the only country to be enthralled by Bassey - she was given the L�gion d'Honneur by France, the highest decoration the country can bestow upon an individual.

4. 1938 - This American television figure was a popular game show host beginning in 1966 with "The Newlywed Game." After well over 2000 episodes, he hosted several other shows, including "Rhyme and Reason," "All Star Secrets," "Trivia Trap," and "Card Sharks." Who is this man, who also hosted "The Newlywed Game" from 1977-1980, 1985-1988, and 1997-1999?

Answer: Bob Eubanks

Aside from working in television, Bob Eubanks also dabbled in the music industry. Before hosting "The Newlywed Game," he was a radio host in California. After a few years, he was given the opportunity to produce several artists, including Bob Dylan, Elton John, The Supremes, and Barry Manilow, and also produced concerts for The Beatles and The Rolling Stones. Once he began hosting, he continued working but mostly in the country music industry.

He managed Dolly Parton and Merle Haggard among others.

5. 1942 - Perhaps the smartest man of his time, this British theoretical physicist began suffering from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (also known as Lou Gehrig's disease) when he was 20 years old. He was named the Lucasian Professor of Mathematics at Cambridge in 1979, and became a Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 1982. Who is this scientist, who wrote the book "A Brief History of Time"?

Answer: Stephen Hawking

Aside from his massively important work in the scientific fields, Hawking has also found himself in many forms of popular culture. He gave his voice to the cartoon version of himself in three episodes of "The Simpsons," and also for the "Futurama" episode "Anthology of Interest I." In film, he appeared on "The 11th Hour," giving explanations for the effects of human activity on the planet's environment.

He was also on television several times as himself - the Discovery Channel "I Love the World" commercial, "The Culture Show," "Alien Planet," "Late Night with Conan O'Brien," "Masters of Science Fiction," "Red Dwarf," "TV Offal," and "Star Trek: The Next Generation." While on the set of "Star Trek: TNG," Hawking was allowed to sit in the captain's chair of the Enterprise, and when he saw the warp core of the ship, reportedly said, "I'm working on that."

6. 1947 - This English musician started his career with the stage name "Davie Jones," which had him confused with The Monkees' Davy Jones, so he changed his name. His first #1 single in the UK was "Space Oddity" in 1975. In the US, he hit #1 with "Fame" in 1975, but didn't have a #1 hit in two different countries until "Cat People (Putting Out Fire)" in 1982, which made #1 in Norway and Sweden. Who is this man, also known as "Ziggy Stardust"?

Answer: David Bowie

David Robert Hayward-Jones changed his name to David Bowie in 1966. From 1973-1974, Bowie released three #1 albums in the UK - "Aladdin Sane," "Pin Ups," and "Diamond Dogs." Unfortunately, the closest that Bowie got to a #1 album in the US was with "Station to Station" released in 1976, which hit #3.

His best-performing song was "Let's Dance" in 1983, which made #1 in the UK, US, Ireland, Norway, Sweden, and Switzerland. In 2005, the "Sunday Times Rich List" estimated that Bowie was worth just over �100 million.

7. 1951 - This American movie director is well versed in the art of making action movies. His first movie, "Nomads," was not well received, but his next three - "Predator," "Die Hard," and "The Hunt for Red October" certainly were. Who is this director, who also earned two Razzie Award nominations for Worst Director and Worst Picture for "Last Action Hero"?

Answer: John McTiernan

John McTiernan made the news outside the film industry in 2006 by being charged in federal court for lying to the FBI. McTiernan supposedly hired a man to wiretap his former wife's phones, and lied about it during a telephone call with the Bureau. He originally pleaded guilty, but once he got new counsel in 2007 he tried to retract the plea, which was denied.

He was sentenced to four months in prison, but upon appeal the sentence was vacated and his plea was withdrawn in early 2009.

8. 1953 - This native Pennsylvanian baseball player pitched for three teams from 1976-1988, earning exactly 300 saves over his career. He won a World Series in 1982 with the St. Louis Cardinals and got a win and two saves during the series. He also won the 1979 NL Cy Young Award when he went 6-6 and earned 37 saves with a 2.22 ERA for the Chicago Cubs. Who is this athlete, elected to the Hall of Fame in 2006?

Answer: Bruce Sutter

At the time he retired in 1988, Bruce Sutter was #3 on the all-time saves list behind Rollie Fingers and Goose Gossage, and #1 in all-time saves in the NL until Lee Smith broke it in 1993 (also pitching for the Cardinals). Sutter made seven All-Star games, four with the Cubs and three with the Cardinals (the third team being Atlanta). Even though he only played four years in St. Louis, his #42 was retired by the team and he entered the Hall of Fame with his plaque wearing a Cardinals cap.

9. 1967 - This American performer started his career out strong when his debut album, "12 Play," hit #2 on the American charts, and included the #1 hit "Bump n' Grind." However, perhaps his most famous song, "I Believe I Can Fly," did not get #1 on the Billboard Hot 100, even though it did in virtually every other country. Who is this man, who was accused and acquitted of having sex with a minor in 2002?

Answer: Robert Sylvester "R." Kelly

The worst that any of R. Kelly's first eight albums have done on the Billboard 200 chart is #2. Five of them got to #1 - "R. Kelly," "TP-2.com," "Chocolate Factory," TP-3: Reloaded," and "Double Up." Those albums produced 11 #1 hits, though only 2 on the Billboard Hot 10 - "Bump n' Grind" and "I'm Your Angel," which he performed with C�line Dion.

He also performed a number of songs for films, including "I Believe I Can Fly" for "Space Jam," "Gotham City" for "Batman & Robin," and "The World's Greatest" for "Ali."

10. 1971 - This baseball player began his career in 1995 with the Oakland Athletics, and earned a greater role after Mark McGwire's departure. After he signed with the New York Yankees, reports came out of his alleged steroids use from the BALCO investigations, and he publicly apologized for using steroids in 2007. Who is this man, who hit his 400th home run in 2009, after he returned to Oakland?

Answer: Jason Giambi

Jason Giambi made five consecutive All-Star games from 2000-2004, including his 2000 MVP Award-winning season. That time frame coincided with Giambi's alleged human growth hormone use that he received from trainer Greg Anderson, which the FBI found out about in 2003. Giambi originally tried to skirt the issue in 2005, vaguely apologizing to his fans, but not saying for what.

In 2007, he finally came out and admitted that he used steroids. During that ordeal, his numbers dropped from his All-Star years to batting around .250 for the seasons on average. Unfortunately for the Yankees, Giambi was also earning over $20,000,000 dollars from 2006-2008 with the team, leading to much criticism.

Source: Author illiniman14

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

January 8 Birthdays Trivia Quiz

January 8 is Postal Day, National English Toffee Day, and World Literacy Day, but can you read into the clues to find out who was born on this day?

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