A Motley Medley of Firsts Quiz | By The Numbers

Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. During the expansive 19th century, which western US state or territory first allowed women the right to vote in 1869?

Answer: Wyoming

One of the prime motivations for allowing women's suffrage was far from altruistic. The right to vote was considered a publicity stunt to attract more marriageable women to the sparsely populated territory. There were approximately six men for every woman in the territory at the time.

Source: History.com

(submitted by rbutcher42)

2. A notable first which shocked the comic book community occurred when Gwen Stacy, then girlfriend of Peter Parker (Spider-Man), became the first major comic book character to die. From which New York bridge did Gwen plummet to her doom?

Answer: George Washington Bridge

The exact identity of the bridge from which the Green Goblin hurled Gwen Stacy has for decades been the subject of controversy. The Brooklyn bridge was the one drawn by the artist in "Amazing Spider-Man" #121, but the editor (Stan Lee) mistakenly named it as the George Washington Bridge, which thus became the official venue for this ground-breaking 1973 drama.

(submitted by rhubarbj)

3. In 1914, a young girl named May Pierstorff was the first person ever sent by United States Mail Parcel Post, when she was shipped to visit her grandmother. In which sparsely populated Western state - location of the Sun Valley resort - did little May travel?

Answer: Idaho

May Pierstorff was four years old and her parents wanted her to visit her grandmother in Lewiston, Idaho, which was 160 miles from their home in Grangeville, Idaho. Convenient transportation was not available in many of the Western states in those days, particularly away from cities, so her parents did the next best thing - they took her to the post office and told the postmaster they wanted to ship her to her grandmother. The postmaster looked up the regulations and found out that he was not allowed to ship live animals, but he could ship live baby chicks. He therefore classified May as a baby chick, charged the Pierstorffs 53 cents, and affixed the stamps to a tag tied to May's coat. She was put in the post office truck and taken to the mail baggage car under the care of the train baggage officer. She was supposed to spend the night at the Lewiston post office since parcel post packages were to be delivered the next day; however the postmaster was a kindly soul and took her to her grandmother that night.

Source: "Significa" by Irving Wallace, David Wellechinsky and Amy Wallace.

(submitted by motibutton)

4. South African batsman Herschelle Gibbs made cricketing history during the 2006/2007 ICC World Cup in the West Indies when he became the first player to hit six sixes from a single over in an international cricket match. At which cricket ground was this remarkable feat achieved?

Answer: Warner Park, St. Kitts

During the 2006/2007 ICC World Cup clash between South Africa and the Netherlands in the St. Kitts capital of Basseterre, Herschelle Gibbs smashed every single ball of Dutch bowler Daan van Bunge's fourth over for six, becoming the first player to do so in any form of international cricket - including one-day games, Test cricket, 20/20 fixtures and World Cup matches.

The Dutch captain, Luuk van Troost, later commented: "I told Daan after the third ball went for six: 'Try to bowl a quicker one' and he said: 'I just did'." Van Troost also remarked: "Before the game we said to ourselves: 'Let's make history today'. Well, we made history..."

(submitted by rhubarbj)

5. Oganesson (Og), formerly Ununoctium (Uuo), was a late addition to the periodic table of elements. Uuo does not occur in nature and must be synthesized in a particle accelerator. At which nuclear laboratory did the first synthesis in 2002 take place?

Answer: Flerov LNR - Dubna, Russia

First synthesized in 2002 at Russia's Flerov Laboratory of Nuclear Reactions by workers from the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research in Russia and the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in the USA, Oganesson has the highest atomic weight of any known element (294). A four month-long experiment produced a single atom of Og - which decayed less than a millisecond later. Only two more of the instantaneously-decaying atoms had ever been produced by 2012, both in a 2005 experiment.

It's amazing to think that the atomic weight can be measured from a sum total of three atoms, each existing for less than 1/1000th of a second.
(Source: webelements.com)

(submitted by rhubarbj)

6. In 1996, the IBM-developed supercomputer Deep Blue played a six-game chess match against Russian chess Grandmaster Garry Kasparov. The opening game of the series sparked a world media sensation as Deep Blue won, becoming the first computer to win a game against a reigning chess World Champion under tournament regulations. In which 'loving' US city did this historic event take place?

Answer: Philadelphia

Despite losing the opening game, Kasparov - widely regarded as the greatest chess player of all time - went on to win the match 4-2.

A rematch was held the following year (1997) in New York City, and on this occasion it was a case of "rage against the man" as Deep Blue won the six-game match by a score of 3.5 to 2.5.

The 'loving' epithet in the question refers, of course, to Philadelphia's nickname of 'the city of brotherly love'.

(submitted by rhubarbj)

7. In the western United States, you will find many avid fans of the In-n-Out burger chain. It is family-owned, with a simple menu and even a 'secret menu'. It also has the distinction of being the first drive-thru in the state where it was founded. Where, in 1948, did the first In-n-Out open its doors?

Answer: Baldwin Park, CA

Fans of In-n-Out often wait patiently in long drive-thru lines for a 'double-double'. The well-known jingle: "In-n-Out, In-n-Out. That's what a hamburger's all about" has been hummed for decades.

(submitted by Scerv)

8. In April 1917, Jeanette Rankin became the first woman to be sworn in as a member of the United States Congress. What "Big Sky" state was she elected to represent?

Answer: Montana

Rankin was a suffragette, and before her election had helped lobby to give Montanan women the right to vote in 1914. Rankin is also well-known for being the only member of Congress to vote against US participation in both World War I and World War II. Upon her vote against entering World War II, she stated: "As a woman I can't go to war, and I refuse to send anyone else". Her vote was the only vote against the resolution. After her congressional service, she was active in the Pacifist movement and led several protests against the Vietnam War.

(submitted by Scerv)

9. Which city hosts a Caesar Salad Festival every year to commemorate the creation of this famous salad there, by restaurateur Caesar Cardini in 1924?

Answer: Tijuana (Mexico)

Many people mistakenly think the salad is named for Julius Caesar, rather than for its inventor, Caesar Cardini. The story goes that in a rush on a busy weekend, Cardini assembled a salad from items he had available. Now, as with many food firsts, there is some debate over the claim that Caesar Cardini is the original inventor of the salad. Cardini's brother Alex claimed he invented the salad (Alex's Aviator Salad), and several employees of the restaurant at the time have also laid claim.

In 1948, Cardini obtained a patent on the dressing. While Caesar Salad has several variations, most recipes will contain: romaine lettuce, croutons, egg, olive oil, lemon juice, Worcestershire sauce, garlic and black pepper, dressed with Parmesan. Many people, including my dear husband, claim a Caesar is not a Caesar without anchovies. Caesar Cardini was against the practice.

The world's largest Caesar Salad was prepared in Tijuana on October 20th 2007, weighing 7,246 lbs.

Sources: guinnessworldrecords.com, www.kitchenproject.com, whatscookinginAmerica.net

(submitted by Scerv)

10. "Operation Overlord" was the famous codename for the Allied invasion of Normandy during World War II. Less well-known are the codenames of the various components which made up this overall battle plan. What was the codename of the D-Day attack which put the FIRST Allied troops onto French soil?

Answer: Operation Deadstick

Deadstick, Mallard and Tonga were all British Army airborne operations on D-Day, but Operation Deadstick saw the first Allied personnel of the assault touch ground when Staff Sergeant Wallwork crashed his glider into the barbed wire surrounding a Caen canal bridge at 00:16 on the morning of June 6th 1944.

Operation Neptune was the codename for the Allied amphibious landings on the beaches of Normandy.
(source: wikipedia.com)

(submitted by rhubarbj)

Source: Author dsimpy

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

A Motley Medley of Firsts Trivia Quiz

This Comedy of Errors team quiz explores a few of the historical or momentous - or even just downright strange - 'firsts' that have occurred around the world. Do you know where they happened?

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