Trivia
Trivia Question
What connection does It's a Wonderful Life have with Sesame Street?
Answer
Bert and Ernie, the iconic characters from Sesame Street, are often believed to be named after Bert and Ernie, two minor characters from Frank Capra's 1946 film It's a Wonderful Life. However, this connection is largely considered coincidental.
The characters were created by Jim Henson and Frank Oz and first appeared in the pilot episode of Sesame Street*in 1969. According to sources within the Sesame Street production team, while the names may have been inspired by Capra's film, they were not directly intended as a reference to those characters. Instead, their dynamic was influenced more by the relationship between Henson and Oz.
Trivia Question
Clancy was a baseball fan. How did his passion for baseball play out?
Answer
Tom Clancy was a part-owner of the Baltimore Orioles, his hometown Major League Baseball team. Clancy not only enjoyed writing military and espionage thrillers but also took an active role in the community as vice-chairman of the Orioles' community activities and public affairs committees. This connection to baseball highlights a different facet of his life beyond his well-known literary achievements.
Trivia Question
Erik Larson drew inspiration to write “The Devil in the White City” from a book that was recently turned into a Paramount TV miniseries. What was the book?
Answer
Reading Caleb Carr's novel "The Alienist" in 1994 piqued Larson's interest in 19th-century murderers. The immersive historical setting of Carr's book prompted Larson to consider writing about a real-life murder from that era.
Trivia Question
John Grisham has a passion for a particular sport. What is it?
Answer
John Grisham coaches Little League baseball. Despite his fame and success as an author, Grisham has maintained a connection to his love of baseball by volunteering as a Little League coach in his community. This reflects his lifelong passion for the sport, which he had initially dreamed of pursuing professionally before turning to law and writing.This involvement in Little League also demonstrates Grisham's commitment to his local community and his desire to stay grounded despite his celebrity status. It's a reminder that even highly successful authors can maintain interests and hobbies outside their writing careers, contributing to their communities in meaningful ways.
Trivia Question
As a Hollywood writer, William Faulkner was a drinking buddy with another notable author. Who was it?
Answer
John Fante
See the trivia question below
Trivia Question
John Fante wrote screenplays with what renowned author in the 1940s?
Answer
William Faulkner
John Fante wrote screenplays with renowned author William Faulkner in the 1940s. The two were drinking partners and collaborated on movie scripts during this period. This collaboration between two significant literary figures is particularly intriguing, as it highlights Fante's connections in the Hollywood scene and his versatility as a writer, working in both novels and screenplays.
Trivia Question
Dan Brown set his novel "Origin" in two cities in Spain. One was Bilbao. What was the other one?
Answer
Barcelona
Trivia Question
John Steinbeck wrote or co-wrote a few Hollywood screenplays. One starred Marlon Brando. What was the movie?
Answer
“Viva Zapata!" (1952): Steinbeck wrote the screenplay for this biographical film directed by Elia Kazan, which depicts the life of Mexican revolutionary Emiliano Zapata. The film stars Marlon Brando in the titular role and received critical acclaim, earning several Academy Award nominations.
Trivia Question
“A Thanksgiving Memory,” first published in 1967, is largely autobiographical set in Monroeville, Alabama.
Who wrote it?
Clue: It was a long way from here to a meal at Tiffany’s.
Answer
Truman Capote, author of Breakfast at Tiffany's
Trivia Question
In an early scene of "The Da Vinci Code," Robert Langdon stumbles upon a murder at the Louvre. To evade the pursuing authorities who mistakenly consider him the perpetrator, he makes a daring escape by leaping from a window located in a restroom adjacent to the room showcasing the Mona Lisa.
Why is this impossible?
Answer
In a Master Class video, Dan Brown clarifies the restroom does indeed exist, but it is positioned on the opposite side of the room from where he situates it in the book. In that location, it would be impossible to have a window.
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