Stately People (Part 3) Trivia Quiz

Answer: True Romance

Pam Grier played Alabama in the 1971 film "Women in Cages" of which Quentin was a big fan. He named the lead character in his script for "True Romance" "Alabama Whitman", and she was played by Patricia Arquette. In the original script Tarantino even wrote a line in which the male lead, Clarence Worley, comments on Alabama's name, saying that it sounded like a Pam Grier character. Tarantino's admiration for Pam Grier led to him writing "Jackie Brown" for her.

Answer: Hopalong Cassidy

Lucas McCain was the name of "The Rifleman", the TV character played by Chuck Connors, which was not a radio series. Same with Ben Cartwright, played by Lorne Greene on TV's "Bonanza", also not a radio series. And we all know that The Lone Ranger's sidekick was none other than Tonto.

Andy Clyde was the actor who played California Carlson in both the radio series and film series of westerns about Hopalong Cassidy (played by William Boyd). Writer Clarence E. Mulford created the characters in a series of short stories and novels, starting in 1904.

Answer: The trader injures a horse he sells to Kansas in a scam

"The Rifleman" series took place in the 1880s, several years after the Civil War had ended, and the Arkansas Derby didn't debut until 1904. And the Lewis and Clark Circus didn't actually open until almost a century later--in 1994. Kansas and his wife bought a horse from Colonel Bourbon who injures it in the hope that Kansas will return the horse and ask for half price back. Lucas McCain, played by Chuck Connors, investigates Bourbon's horses, and buys Kansas's lamed horse. Lucas realizes that Bourbon is operating a scam and that the horse he sold Kansas was stolen and was being sought by two outlaws interested in collecting the reward for it.

Answer: a musical variety troupe facing financial hard times

The variety troupe called themselves the "Dinky Doos" and while beset by financial difficulties, run into and befriend a philanthropic Miss Trant who infuses them with funds to continue. There are some more romantic hijinx, but all works out in the end of course. The character Ethel Georgia is a kind of sex bomb in this musical comedy although her part is a non-singing one. Actress Marcella Swanson played Ethel Georgia in the 1931 Broadway production of "The Good Companions" lasting 68 performances at the 49th Street Theatre. Actress Agnes Bernelle played her in the 1957 British film version.

Answer: His favorite football player

Al Pacino played Tony Montana, "Scarface", a character that screenwriter Oliver Stone named after his favorite football player, 4-time Super Bowl winning quarterback Joe Montana of the San Francisco 49ers. For such a picturesque nickname as "Scarface", Tony Montana is only referred to by that nickname once in the movie, and even then it was spoken in Spanish--"cara cortada."

While the movie details the gangster world of early '80s Miami, Florida and the cocaine-fueled violence there, perhaps the most prominent example of criminal gangster activity in the state of Montana these days is perpetrated by the Bandidos Motorcycle Club who participate in activities such as auto theft, extortion, prostitution, murder, theft, and like in "Scarface", drug-trafficking. They are located in various U.S. states, but in Montana, their activities seem concentrated in Missoula.

Answer: Steve Dalkowski

Miles Zuniga, Joey Shuffield, Tony Scalzo are all members of the American rock band Fastball, but none of them had a fastball like the legendary Steve Dalkowski, who died in 2020 of the coronavirus along with battling other demons like alcoholism and dementia. Davey Johnson, the late Major League manager and player, had faced some of the fastest pitchers in history (Nolan Ryan, Bob Gibson, Sandy Koufax, and others on that level) and he maintained that "Steve Dalkowski threw harder than anybody I ever saw." The problem however, was that he threw wildly. A lot. He would wind up walking more batters than striking them out. But tales of his unprecedented speed abound. Johnson recalled how one day he asked Dalkowski 'You can throw a ball through that fence, can't you?' And so Dalkowski did. "Right through those 1-by-6 boards." One time, in 1957, when he was only 18, he faced perhaps the all-time greatest hitter in baseball, Ted Williams, in spring training. Williams saw one pitch, didn't swing, and the catcher held his glove right there where the pitch came, high and inside. Williams walked away, vowing never to stand at the plate against Dalkowski again. Ted Williams, the hitter with the most renowned batting eye in history, said, "I never saw it." In 1963, managers suggested he dial back on his power, maybe to 80% so he could get some semblance of control. His speed was still unmatched. Sadly though, his drinking was a constant liability. And one day, while fielding a simple bunt he blew out his arm and never pitched again. The stories still float around though: how a catcher would put a raw steak in his glove to help protect his hand, and how one time according to Hall of Famer Cal Ripken, a Dalkowski fastball broke the umpire's iron mask, and sent him to the hospital.

Nebraska has its share of professional baseball teams. Founded in 2001, there is the Lincoln Saltdogs of the American Association independent league. There is the Omaha Storm of the Triple A Pacific Coast League--they were founded in 1999.

Answer: Rhode Island Red

"The Pony Express" was about a bad guy California Senator Glen (played by Al Hart) who tries to exploit the new Pony Express to create a California Republic separate from the United States, but our hero, Unionist Frisco Jack Weston played by actor Ricardo Cortez thwarts the effort. Actor Wallace Beery played the reserved Rhode Island Red in a comic role in the otherwise action/adventure film.
The Cold War superhero Fighting American debuted in 1954 from the creators of Captain America, at Marvel Comics. The legendary comic artist Jack Kirby was on the project, teamed with writer/artist Joe Simon. Among the villains featured were Poison Ivan, Tokyo gangsters including a tall, lanky, goateed Uncle Samurai, and a dowdy female Soviet spy named Rhode Island Red.

There have been many noteworthy movies shot in the United States' smallest state. Nominated for a Best Picture Oscar, "Moonrise Kingdom" (2012) for instance, was filmed in several Rhode Island locales such as Bayfield Farm, in South Kingstown, Conanicut Light and Fort Wetherill State Park, Jamestown, Rhode Island, Long Pond in Hopkinton, Naragansett Bay, Newport, Rockville, Stepstone Falls in West Greenwich, Tiverton, Trinity Episcopal Church in Newport, Watch Hill, and Yawgoog Scout Reservation, in Rockville.

Answer: The Love Bug

Hackett's character Tennesee Steinmetz is a close friend of the film's lead character, race car driver Jim Douglas, played by Dean Jones, a frequent performer in Disney films. Tennessee is an auto mechanic teamed with Douglas, and is the first to suspect that the Volkswagen Beetle that followed Douglas home is sentient; Tennessee names the car "Herbie" after his uncle Herb.

There's plenty of auto racing to be experienced in Tennessee. There is for instance Nashville Superspeedway in Gladeville which is scheduled to hold the NASCAR Cup race in June of 2021. The oval track was built in 2001. There is also the Fairgrounds Speedway in Nashville, noted for being the oldest continually active race track in the country. There are in addition, NASCAR races in Bristol Motor Speedway in Bristol, Kingsport Speedway in Bloomington, Memphis International Raceway, and Smoky Mountain Raceway in Maryville.

Answer: Oscar Wilde

In The Canterville Ghost" by Oscar Wilde, Virginia Otis is the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Otis who have taken their whole family to move from America to Canterville Chase, a mansion in England. The resident ghost, however, isn't happy about the new arrivals. Virginia meanwhile is the object of the Duke of Cheshire's affections. Virginia is 15-years-old when the story begins, and described as being brave, sensitive, caring, and a bit of a tomboy. She befriends the ghost eventually and even winds up married to the Duke of Cheshire.

With over 170 places claiming paranormal happenings, the state of Virginia ranks at the top of the National Register of "Haunted Locations." Colonial Williamsburg, Monticello, Jamestown, and Mount Vernon are amongst the most popular haunted hot spots for visitors. Part of the reason for all the ghosts are the many numerous battlefields that held skirmishes in both the American Revolutionary War and the Civil War.

Answer: Ingrid Law

The Newbery Honor is given to books in the children's literature genre. Although all the writers who are choices did receive Newbery Medal honors, they all passed away before 2009. Ingrid Law is the New York Times bestselling author who wrote the fantasy novel, "Savvy" about a young girl, Mississippi Beaumont, who is on the cusp of turning 13-years-old, and when that happens to every member of her family, that person acquires a special power. That power turns out to be an unusual one: she can read people's minds when they have ink on their bodies. That's weirdly specific.

There have been countless works of fiction that are set in the state of Mississippi, such as "As I Lay Dying," "The Sound and the Fury" and "Absalom! Absalom!" by William Faulkner, "The Help" by Kathryn Stockett, John Grisham's legal thrillers "The Runaway Jury," "A Time To Kill" and "The Chamber," and the play "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof" by Tennessee Williams.