Aha-ah Trivia Quiz

Answer: Monsters

"Aaahh!!! Real Monsters" was one of Nickelodeon's very first Nicktoons, and aired from 1994 to 1997. It followed the story of three lovable little monsters - Ickis, Oblina, and Krumm - as they learn how to scare humans of New York City in their underground city dump school. Oftentimes we see the characters above ground to scare humans as class assignments.

Though their intent was to frighten, the show made the characters shine in a way that made monsters a little less scary for a young, impressionable salami_swami.

Answer: Aftershave

Many people immediately associate Macauley Culkin's screaming face when they picture the 1990 film "Home Alone". In a famous scene, the young Kevin, having been left behind by his family, tries some of the "grown up" things he has not yet gotten to do. Oftentimes, when you shave your hair and apply aftershave, it stings. Having watched his father experience this sting on multiple occasions, Kevin mimics this "pain" with an icon scream; "aaaaaaahhh!"

Answer: Imogen Heap

Imogen Heap released "Ellipse" in 2009, which debuted on the US Billboard 200 at number five and topped the US dance charts. The album was created using many different sounds not typical in popular music, including a kitchen sink dripping, the sliding of a hand across a banister, and a theremin. Though "Aha!" was not a single, it did gain further popularity in 2012 when Pentatonix released a cover of it, including a similarly eerie music video alongside it.

Though the song is a personal favorite of mine, many will likely be more familiar with her work on the song "Hide and Seek", an equally chilling, but far more depressing, song about divorce's affect on a child. The bridge of this song gained even more popularity when it was sampled in Jason DeRulo's "Watcha Say".

Answer: Bart Simpson

Nelson Muntz first appeared in the fifth episode of "The Simpsons" in 1990. He is initially an antagonist that Bart asks his grandfather to help battle in "Bart the General". Over the years, however, his character softened and he developed into more of an anti-hero than a true antagonist. Throughout the show's several decades, he has bullied the majority of characters in one way or another, but has also been considered a friend to them as well. Sometimes, the bullying is simply pointing and saying "Ha! Ha!" if something bad happens to a character, not even caused by Nelson's bullying persona.

Answer: Coca-Cola

The satisfaction of a sip of a soda is a sound that many brands have taken advantage of; you can hear the sound of a can opening, the pouring of soda over ice, or a bottle being depressurized, followed by a sip, and an "AHH!" Coca-Cola took full advantage of this in an entire campaign in 2013, and fan designed ads were provided all over social media. Coca-Cola is also often credited as the creator of the modern image of Santa Claus.

He was around for years before, but Coca-Cola popularized the red-suited grandfather figure that we know today way back in the 1930s.

Answer: Gorillaz

The 2005 song "Feel Good Inc." by the virtual band Gorillaz begins with a very catchy "ahahahahahaha" followed by "feel good". Though this upbeat and peppy song makes me smile when I hear it begin to play, the actual video is less than peppy. The theme of the song is a bit more sinister; the "feel good" is intended as a mantra to say everything is going to be okay even when it's not. Regardless of the underlying themes involved, the song was incredibly popular and even won a Grammy for Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals.

Virtual bands were around much longer than the Gorillaz, and it is often said that the original virtual band was Alvin and the Chipmunks. However, it was not until the Gorillaz that the term became popular.

Answer: Wasp

In 1977, Arnold Menke received a package from his colleagues with several insect specimens in it. When he got to this newly discovered Australian wasp, he understood it had not been found before, and said "Aha! A new genus!" (He saw this as a eureka moment).

He was with Eric Grissell, who responded with a skeptical "Ha". As some manner of joke, the new insect became known as the Aha ha. It is not the only wasp found in the genus Aha, there is a second species known as the A. evansi.

Answer: Wilhelm Scream

The Wilhelm scream originated from sounds used in the 1951 film "Distant Drums". Several sounds were created, the fifth of which was used in the film when a soldier gets pulled underwater by an alligator. The fourth take, thought to be recorded by "Purple People Eater" singer Sheb Wooley, ultimately became known as the Wilhelm scream (named after Private Wilhelm from the 1953 film "The Charge at Feather River". In the film, Private Wilhelm gets shot in the thigh with an arrow, and the sound is heard).

The Wilhelm scream really did not become popularized until it was used in "Star Wars", and subsequently, all "Star Wars" and "Indiana Jones" films used the scream until Disney acquired Lucasfilms. The sound became so popular, some films even used the sound ironically or humorously throughout the following years.

Answer: Egyptian

A'ah, also known a Iah, was a moon god, who was god of both time and fertility. It is said he created the lunar calendar, and lost a game of Senet to Thoth which increased the days on the calendar from 360 to 365. The extra five days allowed Nut to birth Osiris, Horus, Nephthys and Isis, as she was cursed to not bear any children during any of the 360 days that existed before these five moon days were added. A'ah eventually evolved into the god of the moon, moonlight, and time; Khonsu.

In the Marvel comics, Moon Knight gains powers from Khonshu, who is directly influenced by the Egyptian gods A'ah and Khonsu.

Answer: Big Enough

"Big Enough" was released by Kirin J Callinan in 2017 on his album "Bravado". The song is about two feuding cowboys who put aside their differences, finally releasing that this world is "big enough" for all of us. The song features Molly Lewis whistling up to the sky, and Jimmy Barnes screaming.

He is a translucent figure in the sky, and according to Barnes, to get the iconic sound he "screamed like a banshee for five minutes". Upon the song's release, it garnered attention around the globe, and Jimmy Barnes' scream was used all over the internet and included in many pop culture references. If you have never seen the video or heard the song, it's absolutely worth a watch.