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Quiz about Librarians Gone Mild TV and Movie Images
Quiz about Librarians Gone Mild TV and Movie Images

Librarians Gone Mild; TV and Movie Images Quiz


Let's face it: librarians do not have the best public image. As a librarian, I've dealt with this for years, but do we get a break on film? Judge for yourself.

A multiple-choice quiz by LaLaLoopy. Estimated time: 6 mins.
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Author
LaLaLoopy
Time
6 mins
Type
Multiple Choice
Quiz #
317,786
Updated
Dec 03 21
# Qns
10
Difficulty
Tough
Avg Score
5 / 10
Plays
1314
- -
Question 1 of 10
1. In what movie did Liz Taylor's character exclaim "How dare you and the rest of your barbarians set fire to my library?" Hint


Question 2 of 10
2. What 'buffed' television librarian made the cover of "American Libraries" magazine in September 1999? Hint


Question 3 of 10
3. For two seasons (1989-1990) Kathy Kinney portrayed Ms. Prudence Goddard, a librarian with a sassy attitude, on what classic sitcom? Hint


Question 4 of 10
4. In what movie did the main female character suffer a fate as a spinster librarian when her husband was shown what her life would be like, if he had never married her? Hint


Question 5 of 10
5. One of the most mean-spirited librarians ever portrayed in a movie was played by John Rothman in "Sophie's Choice" (1982). Why was he so vicious to Meryl Streep's title character? Hint


Question 6 of 10
6. In the 1990 indie flick "Salmonberries", k.d. lang (in her movie debut) plays an Inupiat woman named Kotzebue who dresses as a man in order to work on the Alaska Pipeline. Curious about her background, Kotz goes into a small Alaskan library and immediately infuriates the librarian, Roswitha. Why was Roswitha so angry? Hint


Question 7 of 10
7. A librarian named Ruth Brown (born 1891 died 1975) created quite a stir in Bartlesville, Oklahoma. What was Miss Brown's crime? Hint


Question 8 of 10
8. In a scene from the film "Philadelphia" (1993), Andrew Beckett (Tom Hanks) tried to use a Philadelphia law library. A librarian suggested that he study in a private room rather than mingle with the public. Why? Hint


Question 9 of 10
9. There's really no way of avoiding Marian, the librarian in "The Music Man" (1962). At the risk of alienating other librarians who oppose Marian's demeanor, I loved Shirley Jones in the role. At first, she was everything a librarian was pictured to be: aloof, proper, and definitely not interested in the advances of Prof. Harold Hill. Yet, Marian had not given up on romance entirely and sang "My White Knight" describing her perfect idea of a husband. Her mother tried to tell her that the perfect man did not exist because no one could ever meet her standards. Who did Mrs. Paroo mention in the song "Piano Lesson"? Hint


Question 10 of 10
10. An Australian television series called "The Librarians" (debuted in 2007) featured supervisory librarian Frances O'Brien and children's librarian Christine Grimwood. Both women had secrets that would have shocked most people in their little town. What were they trying to hide? Hint



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Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts
1. In what movie did Liz Taylor's character exclaim "How dare you and the rest of your barbarians set fire to my library?"

Answer: "Cleopatra"

Cleo's ire was directed at Julius Caesar (Rex Harrison) who supposedly torched the Library at Alexandria. This 1963, $44 million dollar dud almost bankrupted 20th Century Fox.
Trivia note: Susan Hayward was the studio's first choice to play the Queen of the Nile.
2. What 'buffed' television librarian made the cover of "American Libraries" magazine in September 1999?

Answer: Rupert Giles, as played by Anthony Stewart Head

Despite his often fussy Victorian mannerisms, many librarians felt Giles on "Buffy, the Vampire Slayer" was one of the best portrayals of contemporary librarians. Buffy and the rest of the Scooby Gang respected him for his intimate knowledge of Watchers and Slayers.
3. For two seasons (1989-1990) Kathy Kinney portrayed Ms. Prudence Goddard, a librarian with a sassy attitude, on what classic sitcom?

Answer: Newhart

Ms. Kinney was probably better remembered as the vicious Mimi Bobeck on "The Drew Carey Show". As Ms. Goddard, Kinney created an unforgetable character who was anything but a buttoned-up old maid.
4. In what movie did the main female character suffer a fate as a spinster librarian when her husband was shown what her life would be like, if he had never married her?

Answer: "It's A Wonderful Life" (1946)

In this perennial Christmas favorite, Jimmy Stewart's wife, played by Donna Reed, was pictured as a lonely old maid who was "just about to close up the library." Ironically, there was a librarian in the Multnomah County (Oregon) library system named Donna Reed who had a wonderful time explaining that she was not the actress, not a spinster and was very happy being a librarian.
5. One of the most mean-spirited librarians ever portrayed in a movie was played by John Rothman in "Sophie's Choice" (1982). Why was he so vicious to Meryl Streep's title character?

Answer: Her Polish accent was so thick he couldn't understand her

Sophie Zawistowska loved the poetry of Emily Dickinson and asked the librarian for copies of her books. Unfortunately, her pronunciation of the name sounded like 'Emile Dickins" and the snooty librarian thought she meant Charles Dickens. In a haughty tone, he informed her that Charles Dickens was NOT an American writer and that he did NOT write poetry. She fainted from embarassment.
6. In the 1990 indie flick "Salmonberries", k.d. lang (in her movie debut) plays an Inupiat woman named Kotzebue who dresses as a man in order to work on the Alaska Pipeline. Curious about her background, Kotz goes into a small Alaskan library and immediately infuriates the librarian, Roswitha. Why was Roswitha so angry?

Answer: Kotzebue removed her clothes in order to prove she was a woman

Not only did Kotzebue perform a strip tease, she also began mistreating the books. Roswitha called the police and when they took Kotz away she hissed "the handcuff's will say 'click' and the books will be safe again from you and your kind." Later in the film, the two women became best friends and Kotz helped Roswitha with a family problem in Germany.
7. A librarian named Ruth Brown (born 1891 died 1975) created quite a stir in Bartlesville, Oklahoma. What was Miss Brown's crime?

Answer: She was accused of promoting Communist literature

Ruth Brown became known as one of the defenders of a library's right to provide the public with materials that might be objectionable to some. In 1950, just as McCarthyism was slithering across America, some citizens of Bartlesville complained that Miss Brown was promoting Communism by subscribing to magazines like "The Nation" and "New Republic" as well as purchasing books on the Soviet Union. Before the war, she had antagonized these members of the community by encouraging African Americans to use the library.

She was eventually fired from her position as librarian and became a vocal supporter of civil liberties. In 1956, Bette Davis played a librarian loosely based on Ruth Brown in the film "Storm Center", described as the first anti-McCarthy movie produced by a major Hollywood studio (Columbia).
8. In a scene from the film "Philadelphia" (1993), Andrew Beckett (Tom Hanks) tried to use a Philadelphia law library. A librarian suggested that he study in a private room rather than mingle with the public. Why?

Answer: He suspected that Beckett had AIDS and did not want to disturb other patrons

The library scene was one of the most poignant in this Oscar-winning film. It showed how the fear of AIDS had affected virtually every public place. While some viewers thought the scene was evidence of discrimination, others felt that the librarian was aware of Andrew's condition and sincerely wanted to protect him from patrons who might not be so understanding.
9. There's really no way of avoiding Marian, the librarian in "The Music Man" (1962). At the risk of alienating other librarians who oppose Marian's demeanor, I loved Shirley Jones in the role. At first, she was everything a librarian was pictured to be: aloof, proper, and definitely not interested in the advances of Prof. Harold Hill. Yet, Marian had not given up on romance entirely and sang "My White Knight" describing her perfect idea of a husband. Her mother tried to tell her that the perfect man did not exist because no one could ever meet her standards. Who did Mrs. Paroo mention in the song "Piano Lesson"?

Answer: Balzac, Shakespeare, and all them other high falutin' Greeks

St. Pat and Noah Webster were mentioned, but it was Paul Bunyon, Beethoven, who completed the impossible dream. The ladies of the dance society accused Marian of 'advocating dirty books' by having the works of Chaucer, Rabelais, and Balzac in the library.
10. An Australian television series called "The Librarians" (debuted in 2007) featured supervisory librarian Frances O'Brien and children's librarian Christine Grimwood. Both women had secrets that would have shocked most people in their little town. What were they trying to hide?

Answer: Frances was a racist and Christine was a drug dealer

In 2007, ABC-TV and Australia's Gristmill Studios presented a program that was as daring and sharp as "Weeds" or "Entourage" was in the United States. The show did not make fun of librarians, but presented them as real people with real problems.
Source: Author LaLaLoopy

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor gtho4 before going online.
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Related Quizzes
This quiz is part of series Librarian Quiz Set:

This set includes quizzes about my favorite profession, librarianship. Enjoy!

  1. 10 Questions That Librarians May Need to Know Tough
  2. Dancing Librarians Easier
  3. Librarians Gone Mild; TV and Movie Images Tough
  4. Life as a Librarian Easier
  5. The Library Average

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