Common Bond: What Actor? Trivia Quiz

Answer: Chicago

Chicago, which despite popular belief is not the capital of Illinois, is the largest city in Illinois and in the Midwest. Founded in 1833 on the shore of Lake Michigan it is also known as "Chi Town", "City of the Big Shoulders", "The 312" and "The City that Works".

Answer: Class

The word you're looking for is 'class'.

'Head of the class' is the smartest student in the class.
'Class clown' is the funniest kid in class.
'In a class by itself' is something that is top-notch and stands out.

Answer: Anastasia

Grand Duchess Anastasia of Russia, along with her sisters Tatiana, Olga and Maria, brother Alexi and parents Tsar Nicholas and Tsarita Alexandra, were believed to have been killed in 1918. However, many women have claimed to be Anastasia, the most famous being a woman named Anna Anderson.

In 1922 Anderson claimed to be the murdered Romanov and created a complicated story of how she escaped the sad fate of her family. However, Anderson had spent time in a mental hospital prior to this claim and she was never accepted as the real Anastasia by the Romanov family.

In 1991 the bodies of the Romanov family were found and exhumed and Anderson's DNA did not match, proving her claims to be false. Many movies have been made about this fantastic story including the 1956 Ingrid Bergmana and Yul Brenner film "Anastasia", the 1965 musical "Anya" and the 1997 animated musical adaptation, also titled "Anastasia".

Answer: Ireland

The Republic of Ireland is the home of Irish step dancing, Celtic music, the Blarney stone, U2 and, unfortunately, Sinead O'Connor.

The actual island of Ireland is made up of two parts, The Republic of Ireland (which takes up 5/6 of the island), and Northern Ireland (the final 1/6) which is part of the United Kingdom. The capital of the Republic of Ireland is Dublin and their national flag consists of three vertical stripes of green, white and orange.

Answer: Chicago White Sox

In 1919 the Chicago White Sox were in a dispute with their owner, and this dispute was taken advantage of by a local mobster who offered the players money to throw the World Series. Players Buck Weaver and "Shoeless" Joe Jackson changed their minds and tried to play their best.

When the truth came out the players were sued, eight players were suspended for life, and the team became known as the "Black Sox". In 1988 the movie "Eight Men Out" chronicled this sad time in baseball.

Answer: Stand by Me

"Stand By Me" is a coming of age story of four 12 year old boys living in Oregon in 1959. The boys set off into the woods to find the body of a kid their age who had gone missing and was presumed dead. Gordie, played by Wil Wheaton, was particularly interested in the body as he was still haunted by the accidental death of his older brother a few months prior.

Answer: Jeremy Piven

American Actor Jeremy Piven has been in dozens of movies but really hit main stream success with his role as super agent Ari Gold on "Entourage". He is the son of Byrne and Joyce Piven who founded the Piven Theatre Workshop in Chicago. Many famous actors have trained there including Joan and John Cusack, Rosanna, Patricia and David Arquette and of course, Jeremy Piven.

Answer: The Runaway Jury

"The Runaway Jury," first released in 1996, was made into a movie starring Gene Hackman and Dustin Hoffman as two Southern lawyers in 2003. Although the two legendary actors had known each other for more than thirty years this was the first time they worked on a film together.

Answer: Serendipity

Serendipity can also mean:
1. The faculty of making fortunate discoveries by accident.
2. The fact or occurrence of such discoveries.
3. An instance of making such a discovery.
In 2001 a movie bearing this title was released in which a couple met by accident and through a strange course of events reunited seven years later even though both were engaged to marry someone else.

Answer: John Cusack

Congratulations to those who solved the puzzle!

Here's a rundown on how the clues relate to the talented Mr. Cusack.

1) John Cusack was born in Evanston, Illinois (just north of Chicago) on June 28, 1966, and considers Chicago his home. In many interviews he talks about his homelife in Chicago and says that he roots equally for the Chicago Cubs and the Chicago White Sox (although this angers other Chicago natives who say you must pick a side).
2) He made his feature film debut at age 16 in "Class" a 1983 film that also marked the big screen debuts of Andrew McCarthy and Virginia Madsen.
3) John Cusack provided the voice of Dimitri, a man who recognizes peasant girl Anya as the real Romanov princess Anastasia in the 1997 animated feature "Anastasia".
4) John considers his ethnicity to be "Black Irish", meaning a person of Irish descent who had dark hair and dark eyes as opposed to the traditional red haired Irishmen.
5) John Cusack played real life baseball player George "Buck" Weaver in the film "Eight Men Out" (1988) about the Chicago "Black Sox" scandal.
6) John had a small part in Rob Reiner's "Stand By Me" as the aforementioned older brother of Wil Wheaton who died in a car accident as a teenager.
7) Jeremy Piven is a longtime friend and former roommate of John Cusack. John attended the Piven Theatre Workshop in Chicago, and the two have been in more than ten films together.
8) John starred as Nicholas Easter in the 2003 film "Runaway Jury".
9) John starred as Jonathon Trager in the 2001 film "Serendipity."
Hope you enjoyed the quiz!