Saturday, October 31, 2026

The tidbits, trivia answers and word pairs from Facts & Games on Saturday, October 31, 2026. Play today’s games · All past days · All past tidbits

Six tidbits

Commonly confused words

ordinance vs. ordnance

ordinance: A local law or rule. ordnance: Military weapons and ammunition. Ordnance is artillery.

imply vs. infer

imply: To suggest something without saying it outright. infer: To work something out from evidence or hints. The speaker implies; the listener infers.

vain vs. vein

vain: Too proud of your looks. vein: A vessel that carries blood to the heart. Veins carry blood.

discreet vs. discrete

discreet: Careful not to attract attention or reveal secrets. discrete: Separate and distinct. In discrete, the two e’s are kept separate by the t.

waive vs. wave

waive: To give up a right or claim. wave: To move your hand in greeting. You waive a fee; you wave goodbye.

Beatles trivia

1. The Beatles recorded most of their first album, Please Please Me, in a single day. In which month of 1963?Answer: February. The marathon session at EMI’s Abbey Road studios took place on February 11, 1963.
2. Which song opens the album Abbey Road?Answer: Come Together. “Come Together” is the first track on side one of Abbey Road (1969).
3. Which song opens the album Rubber Soul?Answer: Drive My Car. Rubber Soul (1965) begins with Paul McCartney’s “Drive My Car”.
4. How many UK number-one singles did the Beatles have?Answer: 17. The Beatles topped the official UK singles chart 17 times, from “From Me to You” to “The Ballad of John and Yoko”.
5. Besides Paul’s voice and guitar, which sound effect can be heard on “Blackbird”?Answer: Birdsong. A recording of a singing blackbird was added to the track on the White Album.
6. Which 1970 film documented the Beatles’ January 1969 sessions and their rooftop concert?Answer: Let It Be. Michael Lindsay-Hogg’s Let It Be came out in May 1970, after the band had split.
7. Which Sgt. Pepper song did Paul McCartney first write when he was a teenager?Answer: When I’m Sixty-Four. McCartney wrote the tune at about 16 and revived it for the 1967 album.
8. Which Revolver song features a French horn solo?Answer: For No One. Alan Civil of the Philharmonia Orchestra played the horn solo on “For No One”.
9. At which London gallery did John Lennon meet Yoko Ono in November 1966?Answer: The Indica Gallery. Lennon met Ono at a preview of her exhibition at the Indica Gallery.
10. The Beatles’ first full North American tour opened in August 1964 at which venue?Answer: The Cow Palace in San Francisco. The tour began at the Cow Palace on August 19, 1964.
11. In the film Help!, a cult chases Ringo to get back what?Answer: A sacrificial ring. Ringo is wearing a sacred ring that the cult needs for a sacrifice.
12. Who played Paul’s mischievous grandfather in A Hard Day’s Night?Answer: Wilfrid Brambell. Brambell was already famous in Britain from the sitcom Steptoe and Son.
13. On Abbey Road, which song comes right after “Mean Mr. Mustard”?Answer: Polythene Pam. The medley runs “Sun King”, “Mean Mr. Mustard”, then “Polythene Pam”.
14. What is Paul McCartney’s real first name?Answer: James. He was born James Paul McCartney in Liverpool in 1942.
15. What was the name of George Harrison’s 1970 triple album?Answer: All Things Must Pass. All Things Must Pass included “My Sweet Lord” and came out in November 1970.
16. Which song did the Beatles play first on their debut Ed Sullivan Show appearance in February 1964?Answer: All My Loving. They opened the February 9, 1964 broadcast with “All My Loving”.
17. What was the title of John Lennon’s second book, published in 1965?Answer: A Spaniard in the Works. A Spaniard in the Works followed In His Own Write (1964).
18. Which Beatles song mentions Edgar Allan Poe?Answer: I Am the Walrus. Poe is named near the end of “I Am the Walrus” (1967).
19. What was the name of Ringo Starr’s first son, born in 1965?Answer: Zak. Zak Starkey grew up to be a drummer too, playing with the Who.
20. The Cavern Club stands on which Liverpool street?Answer: Mathew Street. The Beatles played the Cavern on Mathew Street nearly 300 times.

Taylor Swift trivia

1. Which instrument did a computer repairman teach a 12-year-old Taylor Swift to play?Answer: Guitar. A repairman who came to fix the family computer showed her three chords on the guitar.
2. Which song did Swift write for the 2010 film Valentine’s Day?Answer: Today Was a Fairytale. “Today Was a Fairytale” was released on the film’s soundtrack in January 2010.
3. What was the lead single from Lover (2019)?Answer: ME!. “ME!”, featuring Brendon Urie, came out in April 2019.
4. What was the lead single from Folklore?Answer: Cardigan. “Cardigan” was released with the album on July 24, 2020.
5. What was the lead single from Evermore?Answer: Willow. “Willow” arrived with the surprise album in December 2020.
6. What was the lead single from Fearless (2008)?Answer: Love Story. “Love Story” came out in September 2008, two months before the album.
7. What was Taylor Swift’s first headlining concert tour?Answer: The Fearless Tour. The Fearless Tour ran in 2009 and 2010.
8. Which member of the National co-wrote and co-produced most of Folklore?Answer: Aaron Dessner. Aaron Dessner worked with Swift remotely during the 2020 lockdown.
9. Swift voiced Audrey in which 2012 animated film?Answer: The Lorax. She played Audrey in the Dr. Seuss adaptation The Lorax.
10. Which character did Swift play in the 2019 film Cats?Answer: Bombalurina. As Bombalurina she sang “Macavity”.
11. Who beat Swift for Best New Artist at the 2008 Grammy Awards?Answer: Amy Winehouse. Amy Winehouse won; Swift was among the nominees.
12. Which Lover song became a No. 1 hit in 2023, four years after the album came out?Answer: Cruel Summer. Fans’ love for it on the Eras Tour pushed “Cruel Summer” to No. 1 on the Hot 100.
13. Which Swift music video opens with a zombie version of her climbing out of a grave?Answer: Look What You Made Me Do. The 2017 video begins in a cemetery with an undead Swift.
14. Swift cheered on Travis Kelce at Super Bowl LVIII. Which team did the Chiefs beat?Answer: San Francisco 49ers. Kansas City beat San Francisco 25–22 in overtime in February 2024.
15. Swift’s cats Meredith Grey and Olivia Benson are which breed?Answer: Scottish Fold. Both are Scottish Folds; her third cat, Benjamin Button, is a Ragdoll.
16. Which song opens the album 1989?Answer: Welcome to New York. “Welcome to New York” is track 1 of the 2014 album.
17. Which song opens the album Reputation?Answer: …Ready for It?. Reputation (2017) begins with “…Ready for It?”.
18. Which song opens the album Lover?Answer: I Forgot That You Existed. “I Forgot That You Existed” is track 1 of Lover.
19. Which Midnights song features Lana Del Rey?Answer: Snow on the Beach. Lana Del Rey sings on “Snow on the Beach” (2022).
20. “Champagne Problems” appears on which album?Answer: Evermore. It is the second track on Evermore (2020).

Football trivia

1. Which Steeler made the “Immaculate Reception” in a 1972 playoff game?Answer: Franco Harris. Harris caught a deflected pass and scored to beat the Raiders on December 23, 1972.
2. Who caught Joe Montana’s pass in “The Catch” in January 1982?Answer: Dwight Clark. Clark’s leaping grab beat Dallas in the NFC Championship Game.
3. Which Hall of Fame cornerback was nicknamed “Prime Time”?Answer: Deion Sanders. Deion Sanders also played Major League Baseball.
4. Which Hall of Fame defensive back was nicknamed “Night Train”?Answer: Dick Lane. Dick “Night Train” Lane set a single-season interception record as a rookie in 1952.
5. Which running back was nicknamed “Beast Mode”?Answer: Marshawn Lynch. Lynch earned the name with his punishing runs for Buffalo and Seattle.
6. Who was the first Black head coach to win a Super Bowl?Answer: Tony Dungy. Dungy’s Colts won Super Bowl XLI in February 2007.
7. In which year did Monday Night Football debut on ABC?Answer: 1970. The first game, Jets at Browns, aired on September 21, 1970.
8. The 1968 “Heidi Game” got its name because NBC cut away from its final minutes to show what?Answer: A TV movie of Heidi. Viewers missed the Raiders’ comeback against the Jets because the network switched to the film on schedule.
9. In which year was the first NFL Draft held?Answer: 1936. Jay Berwanger was the first pick in the 1936 draft.
10. What color is the flag a head coach throws to challenge a call?Answer: Red. Officials throw yellow flags; coaches throw a red one to challenge.
11. Who holds the NFL record for rushing yards in a season?Answer: Eric Dickerson. Dickerson ran for 2,105 yards with the Rams in 1984.
12. Super Bowl I was broadcast by two networks: NBC and which other?Answer: CBS. Both CBS and NBC aired the first Super Bowl in January 1967.
13. Which coach was nicknamed “The Tuna”?Answer: Bill Parcells. Parcells won two Super Bowls with the Giants.
14. Who was the first quarterback to win four Super Bowls?Answer: Terry Bradshaw. Bradshaw won four with Pittsburgh in the 1970s.
15. Super Bowl LVIII was played at which stadium?Answer: Allegiant Stadium. The February 2024 game was the first Super Bowl in Las Vegas.
16. Which Pittsburgh broadcaster created the Terrible Towel?Answer: Myron Cope. Cope introduced the towel for a 1975 playoff game.
17. Which quarterback led the “Air Coryell” offense in San Diego?Answer: Dan Fouts. Fouts threw for record yardage under coach Don Coryell.
18. What jersey number did Joe Montana wear with the 49ers?Answer: 16. The 49ers retired Montana’s No. 16.
19. College football’s award for the best linebacker is named after which Bears great?Answer: Dick Butkus. The Butkus Award has been given since 1985.
20. Which team drafted Eli Manning first overall in 2004 before trading him?Answer: San Diego Chargers. San Diego traded him to the Giants on draft day for Philip Rivers and picks.

Basketball trivia

1. Which Utah Jazz forward was nicknamed “The Mailman”?Answer: Karl Malone. Malone earned the name because he always delivered.
2. Which guard is known simply as “The Beard”?Answer: James Harden. Harden’s beard became his trademark in Oklahoma City and Houston.
3. Who scored 81 points in a 2006 game against the Toronto Raptors?Answer: Kobe Bryant. Kobe’s 81 on January 22, 2006 is the second-highest total in NBA history.
4. The Vancouver Grizzlies moved in 2001 to which city?Answer: Memphis. They became the Memphis Grizzlies.
5. In which year did the Minneapolis Lakers move to Los Angeles?Answer: 1960. The Lakers played their first Los Angeles season in 1960–61.
6. Who won the first NBA Slam Dunk Contest in 1984?Answer: Larry Nance. Nance beat Dr. J in the final round in Denver.
7. Who invented basketball in 1891?Answer: James Naismith. Naismith created the game at a YMCA school in Springfield, Massachusetts.
8. The Chicago Bulls play home games at which arena?Answer: United Center. The Bulls moved into the United Center in 1994.
9. Which Warriors guard’s father, Mychal, was the first foreign-born No. 1 overall pick?Answer: Klay Thompson. Mychal Thompson, born in the Bahamas, went first overall in 1978.
10. Which Celtic made the famous steal to win the 1965 Eastern Division finals?Answer: John Havlicek. Havlicek tipped away Philadelphia’s inbound pass in the final seconds of Game 7.
11. Michael Jordan’s 1989 playoff buzzer-beater known as “The Shot” came over which Cavaliers player?Answer: Craig Ehlo. Jordan hung in the air over Ehlo to win the deciding Game 5 of the first round.
12. Which point guard sparked “Linsanity” with the Knicks in 2012?Answer: Jeremy Lin. Lin went from the end of the bench to a worldwide sensation in February 2012.
13. Which team’s home city is known as “Rip City”?Answer: Portland Trail Blazers. Broadcaster Bill Schonely coined the phrase in 1971.
14. Which Hall of Famer was famous for shooting free throws underhanded?Answer: Rick Barry. Barry’s “granny shot” made him one of the best free-throw shooters ever.
15. Which center was the first player from China taken No. 1 overall, in 2002?Answer: Yao Ming. Houston drafted Yao first overall in 2002.
16. Which team came back from a 3–1 deficit to win the 2016 NBA Finals?Answer: Cleveland Cavaliers. Cleveland beat the 73-win Warriors in seven games.
17. Which veteran point guard is known as the “Point God”?Answer: Chris Paul. Chris Paul earned the nickname for his passing and control of the game.
18. Magic Johnson’s “junior skyhook” won a 1987 Finals game against which team?Answer: Boston Celtics. His hook shot won Game 4 at Boston Garden.
19. LeBron James and Dwyane Wade joined which player to form Miami’s “Big Three” in 2010?Answer: Chris Bosh. Bosh signed with Miami along with James in July 2010.
20. Which forward was nicknamed “The Matrix”?Answer: Shawn Marion. Marion starred for the Phoenix Suns in the 2000s.

Baseball trivia

1. Which Yankee threw a perfect game in the 1956 World Series?Answer: Don Larsen. Larsen’s Game 5 gem against Brooklyn is still the only World Series perfect game.
2. Who hit the “Shot Heard ’Round the World” in 1951?Answer: Bobby Thomson. Thomson’s homer won the pennant for the New York Giants over Brooklyn.
3. Who hit a walk-off home run to win the 1960 World Series?Answer: Bill Mazeroski. Mazeroski’s Game 7 homer beat the Yankees for Pittsburgh.
4. Who hit a walk-off home run to win the 1993 World Series?Answer: Joe Carter. Carter’s Game 6 homer gave Toronto its second straight title.
5. Which Mariners star was known as “The Kid”?Answer: Ken Griffey Jr.. Griffey earned the nickname as a teenager in Seattle.
6. Which Hall of Fame pitcher was nicknamed “Catfish”?Answer: Jim Hunter. Jim “Catfish” Hunter won titles with the A’s and Yankees.
7. Who holds the record of 2,632 consecutive games played?Answer: Cal Ripken Jr.. Ripken played every Orioles game from 1982 to 1998.
8. Who hit 62 home runs in 2022 to set the American League record?Answer: Aaron Judge. Judge passed Roger Maris’s AL mark of 61.
9. Home runs into McCovey Cove land in the water beyond which ballpark?Answer: Oracle Park. The Giants’ park sits on San Francisco Bay.
10. In which year did the Red Sox win their first World Series in 86 years?Answer: 2004. Boston swept St. Louis in 2004.
11. Which Pirates star got his 3,000th hit in his final regular-season game of 1972?Answer: Roberto Clemente. Clemente doubled for No. 3,000 on September 30, 1972.
12. In which year was the first MLB All-Star Game played?Answer: 1933. It was held at Chicago’s Comiskey Park on July 6, 1933.
13. In 2005 the Montreal Expos moved and became which team?Answer: Washington Nationals. The franchise began play in Washington in 2005.
14. Whose home run was taken away in the 1983 “Pine Tar Game” before being restored?Answer: George Brett. The umpires ruled Brett had too much pine tar on his bat; the league overturned it.
15. Kirk Gibson’s famous 1988 World Series homer came off which A’s closer?Answer: Dennis Eckersley. Gibson hobbled up as a pinch hitter and won Game 1 for the Dodgers.
16. Who hit 61 home runs in 1961 to break Babe Ruth’s single-season record?Answer: Roger Maris. Maris hit No. 61 on the final day of the season.
17. What award goes to the best defensive player at each position?Answer: Gold Glove Award. Gold Gloves have been given since 1957.
18. Which song is traditionally sung during the seventh-inning stretch?Answer: “Take Me Out to the Ball Game”. Fans have sung the 1908 song at ballparks for generations.
19. Which Dodgers pitcher gave up Hank Aaron’s 715th home run?Answer: Al Downing. Aaron took Downing deep in Atlanta on April 8, 1974.
20. What does a “6-4-3” double play mean?Answer: Shortstop to second baseman to first baseman. In scoring, 6 is the shortstop, 4 the second baseman and 3 the first baseman.

Hockey trivia

1. Which Flyers enforcer was nicknamed “The Hammer”?Answer: Dave Schultz. Schultz set the single-season penalty-minutes record with 472 in 1974–75.
2. Canadiens star Bernard Geoffrion was better known by what nickname?Answer: Boom Boom. Geoffrion helped make the slap shot famous.
3. Which Russian center, a Red Wings champion, was nicknamed “The Professor”?Answer: Igor Larionov. Larionov was known for his cerebral playmaking.
4. Which longtime Sharks center was nicknamed “Jumbo Joe”?Answer: Joe Thornton. Thornton played 15 seasons in San Jose after starting in Boston.
5. Which trophy goes to the NHL’s best goaltender?Answer: Vezina Trophy. The Vezina is named for Montreal goalie Georges Vézina.
6. Who won the first Stanley Cup in 1893?Answer: Montreal Hockey Club. The club of the Montreal Amateur Athletic Association was awarded the first Cup.
7. Which Hall of Fame goalie, a Chicago Blackhawks star, was nicknamed “Tony O”?Answer: Tony Esposito. Tony Esposito, Phil’s younger brother, played 15 seasons in Chicago.
8. Which Maple Leaf scored a record 10 points in a single game in 1976?Answer: Darryl Sittler. Sittler had six goals and four assists against Boston on February 7, 1976.
9. Which lines determine whether a play is offside?Answer: The blue lines. An attacker can’t cross the opponent’s blue line ahead of the puck.
10. Which Flyers goalie was the first to shoot the puck into the other team’s net for a goal, in 1987?Answer: Ron Hextall. Hextall scored into an empty net against Boston on December 8, 1987.
11. What jersey number does Sidney Crosby wear?Answer: 87. He wears 87 for his birth date, 8/7/87.
12. Which goalie won the Conn Smythe Trophy as Boston won the 2011 Stanley Cup?Answer: Tim Thomas. Thomas beat Vancouver in a Game 7 shutout.
13. Eric Lindros refused to play for which team that drafted him first overall in 1991?Answer: Quebec Nordiques. Quebec traded him to Philadelphia in 1992.
14. What is an empty-net goal?Answer: A goal scored after the other team pulls its goalie. Teams that are behind often pull the goalie late for an extra attacker.
15. Whose overtime goal won the Islanders their first Stanley Cup in 1980?Answer: Bob Nystrom. Nystrom scored in overtime of Game 6 against Philadelphia.
16. Who became the NHL’s first Black player in 1958?Answer: Willie O’Ree. O’Ree debuted for the Boston Bruins on January 18, 1958.
17. The NHL was founded in 1917 at a meeting in which city?Answer: Montreal. Owners met at the Windsor Hotel in Montreal on November 26, 1917.
18. Which team won back-to-back Stanley Cups in 1991 and 1992?Answer: Pittsburgh Penguins. Mario Lemieux led the Penguins to both titles.
19. Which goalie set the modern record for the longest shutout streak, over 332 minutes, in 2004?Answer: Brian Boucher. Boucher posted five straight shutouts for Phoenix.
20. What is the penalty for high-sticking that draws blood?Answer: A double minor, four minutes. Officials usually call a double minor when a high stick causes an injury.

Soccer trivia

1. Which Brazilian striker won the Golden Ball at the 1994 World Cup?Answer: Romário. Romário scored five goals as Brazil won its fourth title.
2. Which Italian star missed the deciding penalty in the 1994 World Cup final?Answer: Roberto Baggio. Baggio’s kick sailed over the bar, and Brazil won the shootout.
3. Which Croatian striker won the Golden Boot at the 1998 World Cup?Answer: Davor Šuker. Šuker scored six goals as Croatia finished third at its first World Cup.
4. Which Uruguayan forward won the Golden Ball at the 2010 World Cup?Answer: Diego Forlán. Forlán scored five goals as Uruguay finished fourth.
5. At the 2022 World Cup, which country became the first African team to reach a semifinal?Answer: Morocco. Morocco beat Spain and Portugal on the way before losing to France.
6. The 2022 World Cup in Qatar was the first played in which months?Answer: November and December. It was moved away from the usual summer dates because of Qatar’s heat.
7. Which club won three straight Champions League titles from 2016 to 2018?Answer: Real Madrid. Zinedine Zidane coached Real Madrid to all three.
8. Which English club won the 2023 Champions League to complete a treble?Answer: Manchester City. City beat Inter Milan 1–0 in Istanbul with a goal by Rodri.
9. Which Spanish club has won the UEFA Cup and Europa League a record seven times?Answer: Sevilla. Sevilla’s seventh title came in 2023.
10. Which club did José Mourinho coach to the 2004 Champions League title?Answer: Porto. Porto beat Monaco 3–0 in the final in Gelsenkirchen, Germany.
11. How far from the goal line is the penalty mark?Answer: 12 yards. The spot is 12 yards, or 11 meters, from the goal line.
12. Where on the field may a goalkeeper handle the ball?Answer: Inside their own penalty area. Outside the penalty area, a goalkeeper plays by the same rules as everyone else.
13. In soccer, what is a “sweeper,” or libero?Answer: A free defender who plays behind the back line. The sweeper cleans up any attack that gets past the other defenders.
14. Which club has won the most Mexican league titles?Answer: Club América. América’s titles include a run of three straight from 2023 to 2024.
15. Which U.S. goalkeeper made a World Cup record 15 saves against Belgium in 2014?Answer: Tim Howard. It was the most in a World Cup match since records began in 1966, though the U.S. lost 2–1 in extra time.
16. Which Italian defender won the 2006 Ballon d’Or after captaining his country to the World Cup?Answer: Fabio Cannavaro. Cannavaro lifted the World Cup in Berlin that July.
17. Which Barcelona midfielder won the women’s Ballon d’Or in both 2021 and 2022?Answer: Alexia Putellas. Putellas was the first player to win the award twice.
18. Which club has won the most French league titles?Answer: Paris Saint-Germain. PSG passed Saint-Étienne’s long-standing record of 10 titles.
19. Which goalkeeper captained Spain to the 2010 World Cup title?Answer: Iker Casillas. Casillas lifted the trophy in Johannesburg.
20. Which country’s national team is nicknamed “La Albiceleste”?Answer: Argentina. The name means “the white and sky blue,” after its striped shirts.

Movies trivia

1. Which 1978 horror film introduced the masked killer Michael Myers?Answer: Halloween. John Carpenter’s Halloween was made for about $300,000 and became a huge hit.
2. Who played Laurie Strode, Michael Myers’ babysitter target, in Halloween?Answer: Jamie Lee Curtis. It was Jamie Lee Curtis’s first feature film.
3. Freddy Krueger first stalked dreams in which 1984 film?Answer: A Nightmare on Elm Street. Wes Craven wrote and directed A Nightmare on Elm Street.
4. Which 1973 film became the first horror movie nominated for Best Picture?Answer: The Exorcist. The Exorcist earned ten Oscar nominations and won two.
5. In which 1982 film does a family’s television become a doorway for spirits?Answer: Poltergeist. Steven Spielberg co-wrote and produced it; Tobe Hooper directed.
6. Who provided Jack Skellington’s singing voice in The Nightmare Before Christmas?Answer: Danny Elfman. Elfman also wrote the film’s songs; Chris Sarandon did the speaking voice.
7. Who directed The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)?Answer: Henry Selick. Tim Burton came up with the story and produced it, but Henry Selick directed.
8. In which 1988 film does Michael Keaton play a rude “bio-exorcist” ghost?Answer: Beetlejuice. Keaton is on screen for only about 17 minutes of the film.
9. Which 1993 Disney film features the witchy Sanderson sisters?Answer: Hocus Pocus. Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker and Kathy Najimy played the sisters.
10. Who was the first actor to win back-to-back Best Actor Oscars?Answer: Spencer Tracy. Tracy won for Captains Courageous (1937) and Boys Town (1938).
11. Which film is the highest-grossing of all time, not adjusting for inflation?Answer: Avatar. James Cameron’s 2009 film has earned more than $2.9 billion worldwide.
12. Which giant monster first stomped onto movie screens in a 1954 Japanese film?Answer: Godzilla. Toho Studios released the original Godzilla in November 1954.
13. Which 1996 Wes Craven film made fun of slasher-movie rules while scaring audiences?Answer: Scream. Scream’s Ghostface killer quizzed victims about horror films.
14. Who played Pennywise the clown in the 2017 film It?Answer: Bill Skarsgård. Tim Curry had played Pennywise in the 1990 TV miniseries.
15. Which studio made Dracula, Frankenstein and The Wolf Man in the 1930s and ’40s?Answer: Universal Pictures. Universal’s classic monsters are still among Hollywood’s best-known characters.
16. Which 2004 horror film introduced the puzzle-loving killer Jigsaw?Answer: Saw. James Wan directed Saw on a budget of about $1 million.
17. Which 1968 George A. Romero film launched the modern zombie movie?Answer: Night of the Living Dead. Romero shot it near Pittsburgh on a tiny budget.
18. In which 1984 film must the creature never be fed after midnight?Answer: Gremlins. Gizmo the mogwai comes with three rules: no bright light, no water and no food after midnight.
19. Which actress was carried up the Empire State Building in King Kong (1933)?Answer: Fay Wray. Fay Wray’s screams made her one of the first scream queens.
20. What is the name of the beach town terrorized by the shark in Jaws?Answer: Amity Island. Jaws was filmed on Martha’s Vineyard, which stood in for Amity.

Television trivia

1. Stranger Things is set in a fictional town in which state?Answer: Indiana. Hawkins, Indiana, is home to the mysterious Hawkins National Laboratory.
2. What do the kids on Stranger Things call the dark parallel dimension?Answer: The Upside Down. Will Byers is trapped there in the first season.
3. Which sitcom's detectives staged an annual Halloween Heist?Answer: Brooklyn Nine-Nine. The heists began in the show's first season and became a yearly tradition.
4. On which 1990s Nickelodeon anthology did the Midnight Society tell scary stories around a campfire?Answer: Are You Afraid of the Dark?. Each episode opened with “Submitted for the approval of the Midnight Society.”
5. The 1990s Goosebumps TV series was based on books by which author?Answer: R.L. Stine. Stine's Goosebumps books have sold hundreds of millions of copies.
6. In the Disney Channel movie Halloweentown, who played the witch grandmother Aggie?Answer: Debbie Reynolds. Kimberly J. Brown played her granddaughter, Marnie.
7. Which Netflix horror series by Mike Flanagan is based on a Shirley Jackson novel?Answer: The Haunting of Hill House. Bly Manor was inspired by Henry James, and Usher by Edgar Allan Poe.
8. What are the call letters of the Seattle radio station where Frasier Crane hosts his show?Answer: KACL. Roz Doyle produced The Dr. Frasier Crane Show there.
9. How many Emmys in a row did Frasier win for Outstanding Comedy Series?Answer: Five. It won every year from 1994 to 1998, a record at the time.
10. What breed of dog was Eddie on Frasier?Answer: Jack Russell terrier. Eddie loved staring at Frasier.
11. On Lost, what was the number of the Oceanic flight that crashed on the island?Answer: 815. Oceanic Flight 815 was flying from Sydney to Los Angeles.
12. Which ABC sitcom won the Emmy for Outstanding Comedy Series five years in a row?Answer: Modern Family. It tied Frasier's record of five straight wins.
13. 30 Rock takes its name from the address of NBC's headquarters, 30 ___ Plaza.Answer: Rockefeller. Tina Fey created the show and starred as Liz Lemon.
14. On Downton Abbey, the head of the Crawley family holds which title?Answer: Earl of Grantham. Hugh Bonneville played Robert Crawley, the Earl.
15. Downton Abbey opens as news arrives of which disaster?Answer: The sinking of the Titanic. The family's heirs were lost aboard the ship in April 1912.
16. Which show swept all seven major comedy categories at the 2020 Emmys?Answer: Schitt's Creek. It won for series, writing, directing and all four acting awards.
17. Which HBO comedy stars Seinfeld co-creator Larry David as himself?Answer: Curb Your Enthusiasm. Much of the dialogue is improvised from an outline.
18. Who plays Michael Bluth on Arrested Development?Answer: Jason Bateman. Michael tries to hold his wealthy, dysfunctional family together.
19. Which singing competition begins with “blind auditions,” where the coaches face away from the stage?Answer: The Voice. A coach who likes a voice presses a button and spins around.
20. The Masked Singer is based on a show from which country?Answer: South Korea. It is adapted from MBC's King of Mask Singer.

Fantasy trivia

1. What is another name for the Nazgûl in The Lord of the Rings?Answer: Ringwraiths. The nine were once mortal kings who were enslaved by Rings of Power.
2. Where is the only place the One Ring can be destroyed?Answer: Mount Doom. The Ring was forged in the fires of Mount Doom, also called Orodruin.
3. Which actor played Saruman in Peter Jackson’s films?Answer: Christopher Lee. Lee was the only member of the cast who had met Tolkien.
4. What is the name of the dragon in The Hobbit?Answer: Smaug. Smaug seized the Dwarves’ treasure inside the Lonely Mountain.
5. Which Marvel hero is a stunt rider with a flaming skull?Answer: Ghost Rider. Johnny Blaze became Ghost Rider after a deal with a demon.
6. Which Marvel vampire hunter did Wesley Snipes play in a 1998 film?Answer: Blade. Blade’s success helped pave the way for later Marvel movies.
7. What title does Doctor Strange hold as Earth’s chief magical defender?Answer: Sorcerer Supreme. He inherited the title from his mentor, the Ancient One.
8. Which actress plays Wanda Maximoff, the Scarlet Witch, in the MCU?Answer: Elizabeth Olsen. Olsen first appeared as Wanda in a post-credits scene of Captain America: The Winter Soldier.
9. Which Batman villain sprays a fear toxin?Answer: Scarecrow. Dr. Jonathan Crane uses the toxin to make victims see their worst fears.
10. What is the name of Gotham City’s asylum for the criminally insane?Answer: Arkham Asylum. Blackgate is Gotham’s prison and Belle Reve holds the Suicide Squad’s villains.
11. Who created Superman?Answer: Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster. The two friends from Cleveland created the Man of Steel in the 1930s.
12. Who played Batman in Tim Burton’s Batman (1989)?Answer: Michael Keaton. Keaton returned to the role in The Flash (2023).
13. What is the name of the Gryffindor house ghost?Answer: Nearly Headless Nick. The Bloody Baron haunts Slytherin, the Fat Friar Hufflepuff and the Grey Lady Ravenclaw.
14. Which hooded creatures guard the wizard prison Azkaban?Answer: Dementors. Dementors drain happiness from anyone near them.
15. Which spell turns a boggart into something funny?Answer: Riddikulus. Professor Lupin teaches it to his class in Prisoner of Azkaban.
16. What is the name of Voldemort’s snake?Answer: Nagini. Nagini was one of the Horcruxes holding a piece of Voldemort’s soul.
17. Who played Dr. Peter Venkman in Ghostbusters (1984)?Answer: Bill Murray. Aykroyd and Ramis co-wrote the film and played Ray and Egon.
18. Which Doctor Who monsters can move only when no one is looking at them?Answer: Weeping Angels. They first appeared in the episode Blink.
19. In Game of Thrones, what are the icy undead lords from beyond the Wall called?Answer: White Walkers. The White Walkers raise the dead as an army of wights.
20. Who plays Katniss Everdeen in The Hunger Games films?Answer: Jennifer Lawrence. Lawrence won an Oscar for Silver Linings Playbook between the first two films.

Broadway trivia

1. Which musical’s first act ends with “Defying Gravity”?Answer: Wicked. Elphaba rises into the air as the first act of Wicked closes.
2. Who wrote Hamilton’s music, lyrics and book and originated the title role?Answer: Lin-Manuel Miranda. Miranda based the show on Ron Chernow’s biography.
3. Nathan Lane and Bebe Neuwirth played Gomez and Morticia in which 2010 musical?Answer: The Addams Family. The Addams Family opened at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre in April 2010.
4. Which comedy legend turned his own film into the 2007 musical Young Frankenstein?Answer: Mel Brooks. Brooks wrote the music and lyrics, as he had for The Producers.
5. Which ghost “with the most” got his own Broadway musical in 2019?Answer: Beetlejuice. Beetlejuice opened at the Winter Garden Theatre in April 2019.
6. Who composed the music for Jekyll & Hyde, which opened on Broadway in 1997?Answer: Frank Wildhorn. Wildhorn wrote the score, including “This Is the Moment”.
7. “Time Warp” comes from which show, a Broadway flop in 1975 that became a cult film?Answer: The Rocky Horror Show. The Rocky Horror Show began in London in 1973 before its short Broadway run.
8. Which musical opens its second act with “Seasons of Love”?Answer: Rent. The whole cast sings it at the start of Act Two of Rent.
9. “Sunrise, Sunset” is sung at a wedding in which musical?Answer: Fiddler on the Roof. Tevye and Golde sing it at their daughter Tzeitel’s wedding.
10. Who originated the role of Glinda in Wicked?Answer: Kristin Chenoweth. Chenoweth starred opposite Idina Menzel when Wicked opened in 2003.
11. Hamilton plays at which Broadway theater?Answer: Richard Rodgers Theatre. Hamilton opened at the Richard Rodgers in August 2015.
12. What was the first musical by Rodgers and Hammerstein?Answer: Oklahoma!. Oklahoma! opened on Broadway in 1943.
13. “Bali Ha’i” comes from which musical?Answer: South Pacific. Bloody Mary sings about the mysterious island in South Pacific (1949).
14. “The Rain in Spain” comes from which musical?Answer: My Fair Lady. Eliza Doolittle finally masters her vowels in the song.
15. Which musical features the song “Corner of the Sky”?Answer: Pippin. Stephen Schwartz wrote Pippin, which opened in 1972.
16. What is Dolly’s last name in Hello, Dolly!?Answer: Levi. The full name is Dolly Gallagher Levi, a widowed matchmaker.
17. “Ol’ Man River” comes from which musical?Answer: Show Boat. Jerome Kern and Oscar Hammerstein II wrote Show Boat (1927).
18. Willy Loman is the main character of which Arthur Miller play?Answer: Death of a Salesman. Death of a Salesman opened on Broadway in 1949.
19. After previews, which performance officially opens a show and is usually when reviews appear?Answer: Opening night. Critics usually see a show near the end of previews and publish after opening night.
20. In which year did Hadestown win the Tony for Best Musical?Answer: 2019. Hadestown won eight Tonys in June 2019.

U.S. History trivia

1. Which famous escape artist died on Halloween in 1926?Answer: Harry Houdini. Houdini died in Detroit on October 31, 1926.
2. Which “Battle Born” state joined the Union on October 31, 1864?Answer: Nevada. Nevada became a state during the Civil War, so its motto is “Battle Born”.
3. Work on which monument officially ended on October 31, 1941?Answer: Mount Rushmore. Carving stopped after sculptor Gutzon Borglum died and funding ran out.
4. Whose 1938 radio broadcast of The War of the Worlds startled some listeners the night before Halloween?Answer: Orson Welles. Welles’s Mercury Theatre aired the Martian-invasion drama on October 30, 1938.
5. In which year did the Salem witch trials begin?Answer: 1692. The trials in Massachusetts ran from 1692 into 1693.
6. Who led Vermont’s Green Mountain Boys during the Revolution?Answer: Ethan Allen. Allen and Benedict Arnold captured Fort Ticonderoga in 1775.
7. Which fort’s defense in 1814 inspired “The Star-Spangled Banner”?Answer: Fort McHenry. Francis Scott Key watched the bombardment of the Baltimore fort.
8. Robert E. Lee surrendered to Ulysses S. Grant at which Virginia village in 1865?Answer: Appomattox Court House. The surrender took place in the McLean House on April 9, 1865.
9. Which frontiersman blazed the Wilderness Road into Kentucky in 1775?Answer: Daniel Boone. Boone led axmen through the Cumberland Gap to open the trail for settlers.
10. Which Lakota leader fought at the Little Bighorn and is honored by a giant mountain carving in South Dakota?Answer: Crazy Horse. The Crazy Horse Memorial has been under construction since 1948.
11. Which constitutional amendment established Prohibition?Answer: 18th. The 18th Amendment took effect in 1920; the 21st repealed it in 1933.
12. Which Union ironclad fought the CSS Virginia to a draw in 1862?Answer: USS Monitor. The Battle of Hampton Roads in March 1862 was the first fight between ironclad warships.
13. Which Quaker founded the colony of Pennsylvania?Answer: William Penn. King Charles II granted Penn the land in 1681.
14. Who founded Rhode Island after being banished from Massachusetts?Answer: Roger Williams. Williams founded Providence in 1636.
15. James Oglethorpe founded which colony in 1733?Answer: Georgia. Georgia was the last of the 13 colonies to be founded.
16. What was the name of Charles Lindbergh’s plane?Answer: Spirit of St. Louis. Lindbergh flew it nonstop from New York to Paris in May 1927.
17. Where were the first shots of the Revolutionary War fired in 1775?Answer: Lexington and Concord. British troops and colonial militia clashed there on April 19, 1775.
18. What was the first U.S. satellite, launched in 1958?Answer: Explorer 1. Explorer 1 went into orbit on January 31, 1958.
19. Rosa Parks’s arrest in 1955 sparked a bus boycott in which city?Answer: Montgomery. The Montgomery bus boycott lasted more than a year.
20. Which huge dam on the Colorado River was completed in 1936?Answer: Hoover Dam. It was finished two years ahead of schedule.

U.S. Presidents trivia

1. Which president was nicknamed “Handsome Frank”?Answer: Franklin Pierce. Pierce was known for his good looks and charm.
2. Which First Lady spoke Mandarin Chinese, which she learned while living in China?Answer: Lou Hoover. Lou and Herbert Hoover sometimes spoke Mandarin to keep conversations private.
3. Who was Franklin D. Roosevelt’s vice president during his third term?Answer: Henry A. Wallace. Wallace served from 1941 to 1945.
4. Who was William McKinley’s first vice president, who died in office in 1899?Answer: Garret Hobart. After Hobart’s death, Theodore Roosevelt was chosen as McKinley’s running mate in 1900.
5. Who was Herbert Hoover’s vice president?Answer: Charles Curtis. Curtis served from 1929 to 1933.
6. Which vice president served under both Thomas Jefferson and James Madison?Answer: George Clinton. Clinton was the first vice president to die in office, in 1812.
7. Which president died on July 4, 1831, five years after Adams and Jefferson?Answer: James Monroe. Monroe was the third of the first five presidents to die on Independence Day.
8. Which president signed the Pendleton Act, which created the civil service exam system?Answer: Chester A. Arthur. Arthur signed it in January 1883.
9. Which First Lady planted the original White House Rose Garden in 1913?Answer: Ellen Wilson. Woodrow Wilson’s first wife, Ellen, created the Rose Garden.
10. Which famous American on the $100 bill was never president?Answer: Benjamin Franklin. Franklin was a diplomat, inventor and signer of the Declaration.
11. What is the nickname of the armored presidential limousine?Answer: The Beast. The heavily armored Cadillac has carried the nickname for years.
12. Where does the vice president live?Answer: Number One Observatory Circle. The house sits on the grounds of the U.S. Naval Observatory in Washington.
13. Which First Lady is credited with first decorating the White House for Halloween, in 1958?Answer: Mamie Eisenhower. For a luncheon in the State Dining Room, Mamie hung skeletons from the sconces and set out jack-o’-lanterns and dried corn.
14. Which instrument did Harry S. Truman love to play?Answer: Piano. Truman practiced piano for hours as a boy and played it at the White House.
15. Whose face on Mount Rushmore was dedicated first, in 1930?Answer: George Washington. Washington’s face was dedicated on July 4, 1930.
16. Dwight D. Eisenhower’s presidential library is in which Kansas town where he grew up?Answer: Abilene. Eisenhower is buried there too.
17. What is the president’s annual salary?Answer: $400,000. Congress raised the salary to $400,000 starting in 2001.
18. Who traditionally gives the president the oath of office?Answer: The Chief Justice. The Chief Justice of the United States usually swears in the president.
19. Which two future presidents signed the U.S. Constitution?Answer: George Washington and James Madison. Adams and Jefferson were abroad in 1787.
20. About how many rooms does the White House have?Answer: 132. The residence has 132 rooms and 35 bathrooms.

Geography trivia

1. What is the highest mountain above sea level?Answer: Mount Everest. Everest, on the border of Nepal and China, rises about 8,849 meters.
2. Bran Castle, often linked to Dracula, is in which country?Answer: Romania. The castle stands in the Transylvania region.
3. The region of Transylvania is ringed by which mountain range?Answer: Carpathian Mountains. The Carpathians curve around Transylvania’s plateau.
4. What is the capital of the Philippines?Answer: Manila. Manila sits on Manila Bay on the island of Luzon.
5. What is the capital of Wales?Answer: Cardiff. Cardiff has been the Welsh capital since 1955.
6. What is the official capital of the Netherlands?Answer: Amsterdam. Amsterdam is the capital, though the government sits in The Hague.
7. Stonehenge stands in which country?Answer: England. The stone circle is on Salisbury Plain in Wiltshire.
8. Which canal links the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea?Answer: Suez Canal. The Suez Canal crosses Egypt.
9. Port wine is named after Porto, a city in which country?Answer: Portugal. Porto sits on the Douro River in northern Portugal.
10. Which famous waterfalls straddle the border of the United States and Canada?Answer: Niagara Falls. Niagara Falls is shared by New York and Ontario.
11. What is the capital of the Canadian province of Alberta?Answer: Edmonton. Edmonton is Alberta’s capital, though Calgary is its biggest city.
12. The International Date Line roughly follows which meridian?Answer: 180°. It runs through the Pacific, opposite the Prime Meridian.
13. What is the world’s longest continental mountain range?Answer: Andes. The Andes stretch about 7,000 km along South America’s west coast.
14. Which city lies on two continents, divided by the Bosporus?Answer: Istanbul. Istanbul spans Europe and Asia.
15. Which ocean surrounds Antarctica?Answer: Southern Ocean. The Southern Ocean circles the whole continent.
16. What is the capital of Uganda?Answer: Kampala. Kampala sits near the shore of Lake Victoria.
17. What is the capital of Malaysia?Answer: Kuala Lumpur. Kuala Lumpur is home to the Petronas Towers.
18. What is the capital of Zimbabwe?Answer: Harare. Harare was called Salisbury until 1982.
19. The Komodo dragon lives wild only in which country?Answer: Indonesia. It lives on Komodo and a few nearby Indonesian islands.
20. What is Africa’s second-longest river?Answer: Congo. The Congo is second only to the Nile in Africa.