Tuesday, November 3, 2026

The tidbits, trivia answers and word pairs from Facts & Games on Tuesday, November 3, 2026. Play today’s games · All past days · All past tidbits

Six tidbits

Commonly confused words

desert vs. dessert

desert: A dry, barren region. dessert: A sweet course at the end of a meal. Dessert has two s’s because you want seconds.

ensure vs. insure

ensure: To make certain that something happens. insure: To protect against loss with a policy. Insure is about insurance.

militate vs. mitigate

militate: To be a powerful factor against something. mitigate: To make less severe. Mitigate softens; militate fights against.

flaunt vs. flout

flaunt: To show off proudly. flout: To openly ignore a rule. You flaunt your wealth but flout the law.

marital vs. martial

marital: Relating to marriage. martial: Relating to war or fighting. Martial arts, marital vows.

Beatles trivia

1. Which Rubber Soul song did George Harrison write?Answer: Think for Yourself. George also wrote “If I Needed Someone” for the album.
2. In the film Yellow Submarine, which land do the Beatles set out to save?Answer: Pepperland. The music-loving Pepperland is under attack from the Blue Meanies.
3. Who sings lead on the With the Beatles version of “I Wanna Be Your Man”?Answer: Ringo Starr. The Rolling Stones had already released their own version as a single.
4. Which 1967 Beatles track mixes in a BBC radio broadcast of Shakespeare’s King Lear?Answer: I Am the Walrus. John added the radio snippet live while the song was being mixed.
5. What is the slower version of “Revolution” on the White Album called?Answer: Revolution 1. The faster “Revolution” was the B-side of “Hey Jude”.
6. Which Beatle wrote “Blue Jay Way”?Answer: George Harrison. George wrote it while waiting in a foggy Los Angeles house for a friend to arrive.
7. Which Lennon–McCartney song, never released by the Beatles at the time, was a UK No. 1 for Billy J. Kramer with the Dakotas?Answer: Bad to Me. Billy J. Kramer, also managed by Brian Epstein, recorded several Lennon–McCartney songs.
8. Which producer added an orchestra and choir to “The Long and Winding Road”, to Paul’s annoyance?Answer: Phil Spector. Spector was brought in to finish the Let It Be album.
9. Which album stripped away the orchestral overdubs from the Let It Be recordings?Answer: Let It Be... Naked. It was released decades later, with Paul’s backing.
10. Who ran the Beatles’ official fan club for more than a decade?Answer: Freda Kelly. Her story is told in the 2013 documentary Good Ol’ Freda.
11. Which Revolver song did George Harrison write?Answer: I Want to Tell You. George had three songs on Revolver, the most he had on an album up to then.
12. Which Abbey Road song did John base on Yoko playing Beethoven’s “Moonlight Sonata”?Answer: Because. John asked Yoko to play the chords backwards and built the song from them.
13. “Golden Slumbers” adapts a lullaby by which Elizabethan writer?Answer: Thomas Dekker. Paul found the old lullaby in a songbook at his father’s house.
14. Which Beatles film had the working title Eight Arms to Hold You?Answer: Help!. The title was changed and John wrote the title song for it.
15. A doll on the Sgt. Pepper cover wears a sweater welcoming which band?Answer: The Rolling Stones. The Rolling Stones returned the favor with Beatles faces hidden on one of their own covers.
16. Which song opens side two of Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band?Answer: Within You Without You. George’s Indian-style song begins the second side of the original LP.
17. What was the name of the Beatles’ own early BBC radio series?Answer: Pop Go the Beatles. The band played live versions of many songs on the series.
18. Which character in the film Yellow Submarine is the “Nowhere Man”?Answer: Jeremy Hillary Boob. Jeremy is a tiny, very learned creature who joins the band on the journey.
19. The Beatles’ famous filmed performance of “Hey Jude” first aired on which British TV show?Answer: Frost on Sunday. The clip was filmed at Twickenham Film Studios, with an audience joining in at the end.
20. Who sings lead on “Do You Want to Know a Secret”?Answer: George Harrison. John wrote it and gave the lead vocal to George.

Taylor Swift trivia

1. Which song opens the album Fearless?Answer: Fearless. The title track is the first of the album’s 13 songs.
2. Which song opens the album Evermore?Answer: Willow. “Willow” was also the album’s lead single.
3. Which song closes the standard edition of The Life of a Showgirl?Answer: The Life of a Showgirl. The title track, featuring Sabrina Carpenter, is track 12.
4. Swift wrote which Red song with Dan Wilson of the band Semisonic?Answer: Treacherous. Dan Wilson also co-wrote Adele’s “Someone like You.”
5. Actress Zoë Kravitz is one of the co-writers of which Midnights song?Answer: Lavender Haze. “Lavender Haze” opens Midnights.
6. What was the lead single from The Tortured Poets Department?Answer: Fortnight. “Fortnight” features Post Malone.
7. Which song followed “Shake It Off” as the second single from 1989?Answer: Blank Space. Its music video was filmed mostly at Oheka Castle on Long Island.
8. “Mr. Perfectly Fine” is a “From the Vault” song on which re-recorded album?Answer: Fearless (Taylor’s Version). It was one of the unreleased songs from the Fearless years that she added to the re-recording.
9. Which Folklore song is named after a disco ball?Answer: Mirrorball. She co-wrote and produced it with Jack Antonoff.
10. Which Midnights song is named after a dark brownish-red color?Answer: Maroon. It is track 2 on Midnights.
11. Swift made Folklore largely at home, sending files back and forth with her collaborators, during what?Answer: The COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns. Aaron Dessner and Jack Antonoff worked with her remotely.
12. How many tracks are on the standard edition of Red?Answer: 16. The standard edition closes with “Begin Again.”
13. Swift wrote which Lover song with Louis Bell and Frank Dukes?Answer: Afterglow. The same pair co-wrote Lover’s opening track, “I Forgot That You Existed.”
14. Which song from The Tortured Poets Department did Swift write entirely by herself?Answer: My Boy Only Breaks His Favorite Toys. She produced it with Jack Antonoff.
15. Who produced The Life of a Showgirl with Swift?Answer: Max Martin and Shellback. She recorded the album with the Swedish producers in Sweden.
16. Swift wrote which Fearless song as a gift for her mother?Answer: The Best Day. She played it to her mother as a surprise, with a home-movie video.
17. Which evermore song did Swift co-write with both Aaron and Bryce Dessner of the National?Answer: Coney Island. The National also sing on the track.
18. On which album is the song “The Story of Us”?Answer: Speak Now. Swift wrote every song on Speak Now by herself.
19. On which album is the song “Out of the Woods”?Answer: 1989. She co-wrote it with Jack Antonoff.
20. “Now That We Don’t Talk” is a “From the Vault” song on which re-recorded album?Answer: 1989 (Taylor’s Version). It was one of five vault songs added to the re-recording.

Football trivia

1. Which team plays its home games at Paycor Stadium?Answer: Cincinnati Bengals. The stadium sits on the Ohio River in downtown Cincinnati.
2. Which team plays its home games at EverBank Stadium?Answer: Jacksonville Jaguars. The Jaguars have played there since their first season.
3. Which team plays its home games at Huntington Bank Field?Answer: Cleveland Browns. The stadium stands on the Lake Erie shore in Cleveland.
4. Which team plays its home games at Northwest Stadium?Answer: Washington Commanders. The stadium is in Landover, Maryland, just outside Washington.
5. Which Hall of Fame linebacker was nicknamed “The Mad Stork”?Answer: Ted Hendricks. The tall, lanky linebacker won four Super Bowls, three of them with the Raiders.
6. Who was the first overall pick in the 2011 NFL Draft?Answer: Cam Newton. The Carolina Panthers took the Heisman Trophy winner from Auburn.
7. Who was the first overall pick in the 2010 NFL Draft?Answer: Sam Bradford. The St. Louis Rams drafted the quarterback out of Oklahoma.
8. Who was named MVP of Super Bowl XLVII?Answer: Joe Flacco. He threw three touchdown passes in the Ravens’ 34–31 win over the 49ers.
9. Who was named MVP of Super Bowl 50?Answer: Von Miller. The Broncos linebacker had 2½ sacks and forced two fumbles.
10. Who was named MVP of Super Bowl XXX?Answer: Larry Brown. The Cowboys cornerback intercepted two passes against the Steelers.
11. John Elway’s Broncos beat which team in Super Bowl XXXIII, his final game?Answer: Atlanta Falcons. Elway threw for 336 yards and was named the game’s MVP.
12. Which team did the Tampa Bay Buccaneers beat in Super Bowl XXXVII?Answer: Oakland Raiders. Tampa Bay won 48–21 for its first Super Bowl title.
13. Which backup quarterback, filling in for an injured Phil Simms, led the Giants to victory in Super Bowl XXV?Answer: Jeff Hostetler. The Giants held off the Bills 20–19 in Tampa.
14. Which Olympic 100-meter champion became a Hall of Fame receiver for the Dallas Cowboys?Answer: Bob Hayes. “Bullet Bob” won gold at the 1964 Tokyo Games.
15. Roger Staubach served in which branch of the military before joining the Cowboys?Answer: U.S. Navy. He won the Heisman Trophy at the Naval Academy and served four years, including a tour in Vietnam.
16. Emmitt Smith finished his career with which team?Answer: Arizona Cardinals. He played his last two seasons in Arizona after 13 with Dallas.
17. Johnny Unitas finished his career with which team?Answer: San Diego Chargers. He played one final season in San Diego after 17 with the Colts.
18. Which quarterback was nicknamed “Matty Ice”?Answer: Matt Ryan. He spent 14 seasons with the Atlanta Falcons.
19. What does it mean to “ice” the kicker?Answer: Call a timeout just before his kick. The idea is to make him wait and think about the kick.
20. Who holds the NFL record for career touchdown passes?Answer: Tom Brady. He threw 649 in the regular season.

Basketball trivia

1. Which team plays its home games at Capital One Arena?Answer: Washington Wizards. The arena is in downtown Washington, D.C.
2. Which Hall of Fame center was nicknamed “The Dream”?Answer: Hakeem Olajuwon. His graceful post moves became known as the “Dream Shake.”
3. Which Spurs center was nicknamed “The Admiral”?Answer: David Robinson. He served in the U.S. Navy before he joined San Antonio.
4. Which star called himself the “Black Mamba”?Answer: Kobe Bryant. He took the name from a fast and deadly African snake.
5. Which player is nicknamed “The Brow”?Answer: Anthony Davis. The nickname comes from his famous unibrow.
6. Who was the first overall pick in the 2013 NBA draft?Answer: Anthony Bennett. The Cleveland Cavaliers chose the Canadian forward from UNLV.
7. Who was the first overall pick in the 2010 NBA draft?Answer: John Wall. The Washington Wizards took the point guard out of Kentucky.
8. Who was the first overall pick in the 2015 NBA draft?Answer: Karl-Anthony Towns. The Minnesota Timberwolves drafted the center from Kentucky.
9. Who was the first overall pick in the 2017 NBA draft?Answer: Markelle Fultz. The Philadelphia 76ers traded up to take the guard from Washington.
10. Which college did Chris Paul play for?Answer: Wake Forest. He played two seasons there before the Hornets drafted him.
11. Which college did Jason Kidd play for?Answer: California. He starred at Cal before Dallas took him second overall.
12. Which country is Rudy Gobert from?Answer: France. The four-time Defensive Player of the Year was born in Saint-Quentin, France.
13. Which country is Arvydas Sabonis from?Answer: Lithuania. He won Olympic gold for the Soviet Union in 1988 before joining the Trail Blazers.
14. In which country did Shai Gilgeous-Alexander grow up?Answer: Canada. He grew up in Hamilton, Ontario.
15. How many NBA titles did Bill Russell win as the Celtics’ player-coach?Answer: Two. Boston won the title in each of his last two seasons.
16. Which team did the Miami Heat beat in the 2006 NBA Finals?Answer: Dallas Mavericks. Miami won four straight games after losing the first two.
17. Which team did the Lakers beat in the 2009 NBA Finals?Answer: Orlando Magic. Kobe Bryant won his first Finals MVP award.
18. Which team did the Toronto Raptors beat in the 2019 NBA Finals?Answer: Golden State Warriors. Kawhi Leonard was named Finals MVP.
19. How many seconds may an offensive player stay in the lane at a time?Answer: Three. Staying longer is a “three seconds” violation.
20. Which team drafted Luka Dončić before trading his rights to Dallas?Answer: Atlanta Hawks. Atlanta took him third overall and swapped him for Trae Young.

Baseball trivia

1. Which team plays its home games at Rogers Centre?Answer: Toronto Blue Jays. The stadium opened as the SkyDome.
2. While their Las Vegas ballpark is built, the Athletics play at Sutter Health Park near which city?Answer: Sacramento. They left Oakland after the 2024 season.
3. Who is MLB’s career leader in hits?Answer: Pete Rose. He finished with 4,256 hits.
4. Which pitcher threw the most career shutouts?Answer: Walter Johnson. “The Big Train” threw 110 shutouts for the Washington Senators.
5. Which pitcher lost the most games in MLB history?Answer: Cy Young. He lost 316 games, but he also won a record 511.
6. Which team won the 1995 World Series?Answer: Atlanta Braves. Atlanta beat Cleveland in six games.
7. Which team won the 1990 World Series?Answer: Cincinnati Reds. The Reds swept the heavily favored A’s.
8. Which team won the 2006 World Series?Answer: St. Louis Cardinals. The Cardinals beat the Detroit Tigers in five games.
9. Which team won the 2007 World Series?Answer: Boston Red Sox. Boston swept the Colorado Rockies.
10. Which team won the 2009 World Series?Answer: New York Yankees. The Yankees beat the defending champion Phillies in six games.
11. Which pitcher was nicknamed “Mad Dog”?Answer: Greg Maddux. He won 355 games, most of them for the Cubs and Braves.
12. Which slugger was nicknamed “Big Mac”?Answer: Mark McGwire. He hit 583 career home runs for the A’s and Cardinals.
13. Which Hall of Fame second baseman was nicknamed “Little Joe”?Answer: Joe Morgan. He won back-to-back NL MVP awards with the Big Red Machine.
14. Which first baseman was nicknamed “The Big Cat”?Answer: Andrés Galarraga. He won the 1993 NL batting title with the Colorado Rockies.
15. In baseball slang, what is the “keystone”?Answer: Second base. A second baseman and shortstop are called the “keystone combination.”
16. In baseball slang, what are the “tools of ignorance”?Answer: A catcher’s gear. The name covers the mask, chest protector and shin guards.
17. Which team’s mascot is Slider?Answer: Cleveland Guardians. The fuzzy pink mascot is a fixture at Cleveland home games.
18. Which Phillies third baseman won three NL MVP awards?Answer: Mike Schmidt. He hit 548 home runs, all for Philadelphia.
19. Which ballpark’s outfield walls are covered in ivy?Answer: Wrigley Field. The ivy was planted in 1937.
20. Who was the first Latin American player elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame?Answer: Roberto Clemente. He was elected in a special vote soon after his death.

Hockey trivia

1. Which player was nicknamed “The Great One”?Answer: Wayne Gretzky. Gretzky’s No. 99 is retired across the whole NHL.
2. Which Canadiens star was nicknamed “The Flower”?Answer: Guy Lafleur. Lafleur’s French surname means “the flower.”
3. Which Canadiens center was nicknamed “The Pocket Rocket”?Answer: Henri Richard. Henri was the younger, smaller brother of Maurice “Rocket” Richard.
4. Which goaltender was nicknamed “Gump”?Answer: Lorne Worsley. Teammates said he looked like the comic-strip character Andy Gump.
5. Which Canadiens defenseman was nicknamed “Big Bird”?Answer: Larry Robinson. The tall Robinson won six Stanley Cups with Montreal.
6. Which goaltender holds the NHL record for career playoff wins?Answer: Patrick Roy. Roy won 151 playoff games with Montreal and Colorado.
7. Who was in goal for the U.S. in the 1980 “Miracle on Ice” win over the Soviet Union?Answer: Jim Craig. Craig stopped 36 of 39 Soviet shots in the 4–3 win.
8. Where did the U.S. men win their first Olympic hockey gold, in 1960?Answer: Squaw Valley, California. The Americans beat Canada and the Soviet Union on the way to gold.
9. The original Winnipeg Jets moved in 1996 and became which team?Answer: Phoenix Coyotes. The franchise was later renamed the Arizona Coyotes.
10. Which team plays its home games at Prudential Center in Newark?Answer: New Jersey Devils. The arena opened in 2007 in downtown Newark.
11. Which team plays its home games at Bridgestone Arena?Answer: Nashville Predators. The arena sits in downtown Nashville, near the honky-tonks of Broadway.
12. The NHL’s King Clancy Memorial Trophy honors what?Answer: Leadership and humanitarian work in the community. It is named after Francis “King” Clancy, a star defenseman and longtime Maple Leafs figure.
13. In hockey, what is a shorthanded goal?Answer: A goal scored by the team with fewer skaters because of a penalty. It means the penalized team scored anyway.
14. What is the area between the two blue lines called?Answer: The neutral zone. Neither team’s goal is in it, hence the name.
15. What is a hockey puck made of?Answer: Vulcanized rubber. Pucks are also frozen before games so they bounce less.
16. Who was the first overall pick in the 2003 NHL draft?Answer: Marc-André Fleury. Pittsburgh took the goaltender with the top pick.
17. Who was the first overall pick in the 2007 NHL draft?Answer: Patrick Kane. Chicago chose Kane, who went on to win three Stanley Cups there.
18. What jersey number did Bobby Orr wear for the Boston Bruins?Answer: 4. The Bruins retired No. 4 in his honor.
19. Which Hall of Famer was nicknamed “The Finnish Flash”?Answer: Teemu Selänne. Selänne played most of his career with the Anaheim Ducks.
20. Who scored 153 points and won the Hart Trophy in 2022–23?Answer: Connor McDavid. It was the most points in a season since the mid-1990s.

Soccer trivia

1. Which country has won the Africa Cup of Nations the most times?Answer: Egypt. Egypt’s titles include three in a row from 2006 to 2010.
2. Which Dutch coach is credited with creating “Total Football”?Answer: Rinus Michels. Michels built the style at Ajax and with the Netherlands national team.
3. Which English club is nicknamed “the Red Devils”?Answer: Manchester United. A devil holding a trident sits on the club’s crest.
4. Which Italian club is nicknamed “the Nerazzurri” for its black and blue stripes?Answer: Inter Milan. Nerazzurri means “the black and blues” in Italian.
5. Which English club plays its home games at Elland Road?Answer: Leeds United. Leeds have played at Elland Road since the club was founded in 1919.
6. Which Madrid club plays its home games at the Metropolitano stadium?Answer: Atlético Madrid. Atlético moved there from the Vicente Calderón in 2017.
7. What color card does a referee show to caution a player?Answer: Yellow. Two yellow cards in one game add up to a red.
8. Under today’s rules, how many substitutes may a team normally use in a match?Answer: Five. The five-substitute rule became permanent after being introduced during the pandemic.
9. What is the semicircle at the top of the penalty area called?Answer: The penalty arc. It keeps other players 10 yards from the penalty mark during a penalty kick.
10. In 2022, who became the first woman to referee a men’s World Cup match?Answer: Stéphanie Frappart. The French referee took charge of Costa Rica against Germany in Qatar.
11. Which country beat Colombia in the final of the Copa América held in the United States?Answer: Argentina. Lautaro Martínez scored the extra-time winner against Colombia in the final.
12. Who managed Leicester City to their surprise Premier League title?Answer: Claudio Ranieri. The Italian coach was in his first season at the club.
13. Which Welsh forward scored a spectacular overhead kick in the 2018 Champions League final?Answer: Gareth Bale. Bale came off the bench to score twice as Real Madrid beat Liverpool.
14. Who scored 36 goals in the 2022–23 season, a Premier League record at the time?Answer: Erling Haaland. He broke the 34-goal record shared by Andy Cole and Alan Shearer.
15. Which country has played at every men’s World Cup?Answer: Brazil. Brazil is also the only country to have won the trophy five times.
16. Which national team is nicknamed “Les Bleus”?Answer: France. The name comes from the team’s blue shirts.
17. Zico, Brazil’s great No. 10, starred for which Rio de Janeiro club?Answer: Flamengo. He led Flamengo to the 1981 Copa Libertadores.
18. Which Ivorian striker scored the equalizer and the winning shootout penalty as Chelsea won the Champions League in Munich?Answer: Didier Drogba. His late header forced extra time against Bayern Munich.
19. Which country won the first European championship for women’s national teams, in 1984?Answer: Sweden. Sweden beat England on penalties in the two-legged final.
20. How wide is a regulation soccer goal?Answer: 8 yards. The goal is 8 yards wide and 8 feet high.

Movies trivia

1. Who played the Cowardly Lion in The Wizard of Oz?Answer: Bert Lahr. Bert Lahr came to the role from vaudeville and Broadway comedy.
2. Who played Ilsa Lund in Casablanca (1942)?Answer: Ingrid Bergman. She starred opposite Humphrey Bogart as Rick’s lost love.
3. Who played Luke Skywalker in Star Wars (1977)?Answer: Mark Hamill. Mark Hamill returned to the role decades later in the sequel trilogy.
4. Who played Dr. Peter Venkman in Ghostbusters (1984)?Answer: Bill Murray. Dan Aykroyd and Harold Ramis co-wrote the film and played the other two scientists.
5. Who played boxing champion Apollo Creed in Rocky (1976)?Answer: Carl Weathers. Carl Weathers had played pro football before acting.
6. Who played Westley in The Princess Bride (1987)?Answer: Cary Elwes. Mandy Patinkin played the swordsman Inigo Montoya.
7. Who voiced Mr. Potato Head in Toy Story (1995)?Answer: Don Rickles. Wallace Shawn voiced Rex the dinosaur.
8. In Back to the Future (1985), what is the name of Marty McFly’s hometown?Answer: Hill Valley. The town square and its clock tower are central to the plot.
9. In Raiders of the Lost Ark, which relic are Indiana Jones and the Nazis racing to find?Answer: The Ark of the Covenant. The Holy Grail was the quest in a later film, Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade.
10. In Star Wars (1977), what is the Empire’s moon-sized battle station called?Answer: The Death Star. Luke destroys it with a shot into an exhaust port.
11. Who played Sally Albright in When Harry Met Sally... (1989)?Answer: Meg Ryan. Billy Crystal played Harry; Carrie Fisher played Sally’s friend Marie.
12. Who played hot-headed Sonny Corleone in The Godfather (1972)?Answer: James Caan. Robert Duvall played Tom Hagen and John Cazale played Fredo.
13. In Dirty Dancing (1987), what is the name of the Catskills resort where Baby’s family stays?Answer: Kellerman’s. The resort’s staff dancers include Patrick Swayze’s Johnny Castle.
14. In Field of Dreams (1989), Kevin Costner’s farmer builds a baseball diamond in which state?Answer: Iowa. The field built for the film near Dyersville, Iowa, became a tourist site.
15. In Jurassic Park (1993), which dinosaurs stalk the children through the park’s kitchen?Answer: Velociraptors. The raptors are shown as clever pack hunters.
16. In Avatar (2009), what is the name of the moon where the Na’vi live?Answer: Pandora. The film follows a former Marine sent there in an avatar body.
17. What is the name of the singing snowman in Disney’s Frozen (2013)?Answer: Olaf. Sven is Kristoff’s reindeer; Marshmallow is the giant snow monster.
18. Who played Batman in Tim Burton’s Batman (1989)?Answer: Michael Keaton. Jack Nicholson played the Joker.
19. Which swashbuckling silent star co-founded United Artists with Mary Pickford, Charlie Chaplin and D. W. Griffith?Answer: Douglas Fairbanks. He and Mary Pickford were married and were among Hollywood’s biggest stars.
20. Who won the Oscar for Best Actress for Roman Holiday (1953)?Answer: Audrey Hepburn. It was her first major starring role, as a princess loose in Rome.

Television trivia

1. Which sitcom family lived at 1313 Mockingbird Lane?Answer: The Munsters. Herman, Lily and Grandpa lived in a creaky old mansion at that address.
2. On Happy Days, what was Fonzie’s first name?Answer: Arthur. His full name was Arthur Fonzarelli.
3. Which comedy is set around Paddy’s Pub?Answer: It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia. The gang who run the bar are famously terrible people.
4. Which Diff’rent Strokes character often asked, “Whatchu talkin’ ’bout, Willis?”Answer: Arnold Jackson. Gary Coleman played Arnold, and Willis was his older brother.
5. On The Dukes of Hazzard, what was the name of the Duke boys’ orange car?Answer: The General Lee. The 1969 Dodge Charger was famous for its jumps.
6. What was the name of the talking car on Knight Rider?Answer: KITT. David Hasselhoff starred as Michael Knight, its driver.
7. Who played detective Sonny Crockett on Miami Vice?Answer: Don Johnson. Crockett lived on a sailboat with a pet alligator named Elvis.
8. Which actress played the TV news anchor Murphy Brown?Answer: Candice Bergen. Bergen won five Emmys for the role.
9. Northern Exposure was set in which fictional Alaska town?Answer: Cicely. A New York doctor is sent there to repay his medical school loans.
10. Who played Jill Munroe on Charlie’s Angels?Answer: Farrah Fawcett. Her feathered hairstyle became a nationwide craze.
11. What was the name of the cruise ship on The Love Boat?Answer: Pacific Princess. Gavin MacLeod played Captain Merrill Stubing.
12. On Night Court, Harry Anderson played Harry Stone, who had what job?Answer: Judge. He presided over a Manhattan court’s night shift.
13. Who hosted the American version of The Weakest Link when it first aired on NBC?Answer: Anne Robinson. She also hosted the original British version.
14. Who hosted the Nickelodeon game show Double Dare?Answer: Marc Summers. Contestants who missed questions faced messy physical challenges.
15. James Garner played a private eye who lived in a trailer by the beach on which series?Answer: The Rockford Files. Jim Rockford’s answering machine opened every episode.
16. Buffy the Vampire Slayer was set in which fictional California town?Answer: Sunnydale. The town sat on top of a Hellmouth.
17. Which Netflix miniseries followed a chess prodigy named Beth Harmon?Answer: The Queen’s Gambit. Anya Taylor-Joy won a Golden Globe for the role.
18. Who did Kevin Costner play on Yellowstone?Answer: John Dutton. Dutton ran the biggest cattle ranch in Montana.
19. Bob Eubanks hosted which game show that quizzed married couples?Answer: The Newlywed Game. Couples scored points by predicting each other’s answers.
20. On The Jetsons, who was George Jetson’s boss?Answer: Mr. Spacely. Cosmo Spacely ran Spacely Space Sprockets.

Fantasy trivia

1. Who played Luke Skywalker in the original Star Wars trilogy?Answer: Mark Hamill. Hamill returned to the role in the sequel trilogy.
2. Which Jedi Master trained Obi-Wan Kenobi?Answer: Qui-Gon Jinn. Liam Neeson played Qui-Gon in The Phantom Menace.
3. In the original Star Trek, who was the Enterprise’s chief engineer?Answer: Montgomery Scott. Everyone called him Scotty.
4. What does Starfleet’s Prime Directive forbid?Answer: Interfering with the development of other civilizations. It is Starfleet’s most important rule of non-interference.
5. At the start of Dune, which house has been ruling Arrakis before House Atreides takes over?Answer: House Harkonnen. The Harkonnens are the Atreides family’s bitter enemies.
6. What is the name of Ripley’s cat in Alien?Answer: Jones. The crew often called the ginger cat Jonesy.
7. Who directed Alien: Romulus?Answer: Fede Álvarez. The Uruguayan director also made Don’t Breathe.
8. Who played the Oracle in The Matrix?Answer: Gloria Foster. The Oracle famously offers Neo a cookie.
9. What is the name of the Elvish sword Bilbo gives Frodo?Answer: Sting. Its blade glows blue when orcs are near.
10. Who played Arwen in Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings films?Answer: Liv Tyler. Arwen is the daughter of Elrond.
11. Which Hogwarts house is Cedric Diggory in?Answer: Hufflepuff. He was one of the Hogwarts champions in the Triwizard Tournament.
12. Who played Severus Snape in the Harry Potter films?Answer: Alan Rickman. Rickman played Snape in all eight films.
13. What is the name of Tony Stark’s artificial-intelligence assistant in the early Iron Man films?Answer: J.A.R.V.I.S.. Paul Bettany voiced it before playing Vision.
14. In the Marvel films, what metal is Captain America’s round shield made of?Answer: Vibranium. The rare metal comes from Wakanda.
15. Barry Allen is the secret identity of which DC hero?Answer: The Flash. A lab accident with lightning and chemicals gave him super-speed.
16. At the Daily Planet, what is Jimmy Olsen’s job?Answer: Photographer. He is Superman’s pal and often lands in trouble.
17. Who played the shape-shifting T-1000 in Terminator 2: Judgment Day?Answer: Robert Patrick. The liquid-metal killer could pass itself off as almost anyone.
18. In Ghostbusters (1984), Dana Barrett is possessed by which demigod, known as the Gatekeeper?Answer: Zuul. Vinz Clortho, the Keymaster, takes over Louis Tully.
19. Which Pevensie child is the first to find Narnia through the wardrobe?Answer: Lucy. Her siblings don’t believe her at first.
20. In The Hunger Games, which young tribute from District 11 becomes Katniss’s ally?Answer: Rue. Katniss covers her in flowers after she dies.

Broadway trivia

1. Who originated the role of Tony in West Side Story on Broadway?Answer: Larry Kert. Richard Beymer played Tony in the film.
2. Who originated the role of Mrs. Lovett in Sweeney Todd on Broadway?Answer: Angela Lansbury. She won a Tony for the role.
3. Who originated the role of Sally Bowles in Cabaret on Broadway?Answer: Jill Haworth. Liza Minnelli played Sally in the 1972 film.
4. Which musical is set in a Scottish village that appears for one day every hundred years?Answer: Brigadoon. It was Lerner and Loewe’s first big Broadway hit.
5. Which musical is based on Cervantes’s novel Don Quixote?Answer: Man of La Mancha. It frames the story as a play staged by Cervantes in prison.
6. “Big Spender” comes from which musical?Answer: Sweet Charity. The dance-hall hostesses sing it to their customers.
7. “I Got Rhythm” comes from which Gershwin musical?Answer: Girl Crazy. Ethel Merman made her Broadway debut in the show.
8. “On the Street Where You Live” comes from which musical?Answer: My Fair Lady. The lovestruck Freddy Eynsford-Hill sings it.
9. “Sixteen Going on Seventeen” comes from which musical?Answer: The Sound of Music. Liesl and Rolf sing it in the gazebo.
10. Under Broadway rules, how many seats must a theatre have to count as a Broadway house?Answer: 500 or more. Smaller theatres count as Off-Broadway or Off-Off-Broadway.
11. In theatre, what is “the house”?Answer: The auditorium where the audience sits. A “full house” means every seat is sold.
12. Who wrote the Pulitzer-winning play Doubt?Answer: John Patrick Shanley. He also wrote the screenplay for Moonstruck.
13. Which Kander and Ebb musical is set in a prison in Latin America?Answer: Kiss of the Spider Woman. It is based on a novel by Manuel Puig.
14. Who directed the original Broadway production of Cabaret?Answer: Harold Prince. Bob Fosse directed the film version.
15. “The Telephone Hour” comes from which musical?Answer: Bye Bye Birdie. Sweet Apple’s teenagers spread news of Kim and Hugo’s pinning by phone.
16. “Shipoopi” comes from which musical?Answer: The Music Man. Marcellus leads the big dance number.
17. In The Phantom of the Opera, what is the heroine Christine’s surname?Answer: Daaé. Raoul’s title is Vicomte de Chagny.
18. In Les Misérables, what is the name of the scheming innkeeper couple?Answer: The Thénardiers. They lead the comic number “Master of the House.”
19. In Cats, which cat is chosen to rise to the Heaviside Layer?Answer: Grizabella. She sings “Memory.”
20. In The Lion King on Broadway, which character is a meerkat?Answer: Timon. Pumbaa is a warthog and Zazu a hornbill.

U.S. History trivia

1. Which French explorer founded Quebec City in 1608?Answer: Samuel de Champlain. He built a trading post on the St. Lawrence River that became the heart of New France.
2. Which British general surrendered his army at Saratoga in 1777?Answer: John Burgoyne. Burgoyne’s surrender was a turning point that helped bring France into the war.
3. Which 1819 Supreme Court case upheld Congress’s power to charter a national bank?Answer: McCulloch v. Maryland. The Court also ruled that Maryland could not tax the bank.
4. Whose steamboat, the Clermont, began regular trips on the Hudson River in 1807?Answer: Robert Fulton. It carried passengers between New York City and Albany.
5. Which Mexican general led the attack on the Alamo?Answer: Antonio López de Santa Anna. He was captured soon afterward, following his defeat at San Jacinto.
6. Which 1850 package of laws admitted California as a free state?Answer: The Compromise of 1850. It also included a tougher Fugitive Slave Act.
7. Which Union general was nicknamed “Little Mac”?Answer: George B. McClellan. He built and led the Army of the Potomac early in the war.
8. What did the Dawes Act of 1887 do?Answer: Divided tribal lands into individual plots. Land left over after the allotments could be sold to settlers, and tribes lost much of their land.
9. Who was the founding president of the American Federation of Labor, in 1886?Answer: Samuel Gompers. He led the federation for all but one year until his death in 1924.
10. Which war ended with the U.S. gaining Puerto Rico, Guam and the Philippines?Answer: The Spanish–American War. Spain gave up the islands in the Treaty of Paris of 1898.
11. Who commanded the American Expeditionary Forces in World War I?Answer: John J. Pershing. He was later given the rank of General of the Armies.
12. What were the shantytowns of homeless people during the Great Depression nicknamed?Answer: Hoovervilles. The name mocked Herbert Hoover, who was president when the Depression began.
13. Which character became a symbol of women working in factories during World War II?Answer: Rosie the Riveter. She appeared in songs, posters and magazine covers urging women into war work.
14. What was the name of the Cold War policy of stopping communism from spreading?Answer: Containment. Diplomat George Kennan laid out the idea in the late 1940s.
15. The 1960 lunch-counter sit-ins that spread across the South began at a Woolworth’s in which North Carolina city?Answer: Greensboro. Four Black college students sat at the whites-only counter and refused to leave.
16. Who was the second person to walk on the Moon?Answer: Buzz Aldrin. Michael Collins stayed in orbit aboard the command module.
17. Which Pennsylvania nuclear plant had a partial meltdown in 1979?Answer: Three Mile Island. It was the most serious accident in U.S. commercial nuclear power history.
18. Who drew the famous “Join, or Die” cartoon of a snake cut into pieces?Answer: Benjamin Franklin. He drew it to urge the colonies to unite during the French and Indian War.
19. Pontiac’s War, which began in 1763, was fought by Native American nations against which country?Answer: Britain. It broke out after the British took over French forts around the Great Lakes.
20. Who was the first president of the Continental Congress?Answer: Peyton Randolph. The Virginian presided over the First Continental Congress in 1774.

U.S. Presidents trivia

1. Who was the 12th president?Answer: Zachary Taylor. Taylor took office in 1849 and died 16 months later.
2. Who was the 14th president?Answer: Franklin Pierce. Pierce served from 1853 to 1857.
3. Who was the 27th president?Answer: William Howard Taft. Taft followed Theodore Roosevelt into the White House.
4. Who was the 39th president?Answer: Jimmy Carter. Carter served one term and later won the Nobel Peace Prize.
5. Who was William McKinley’s second vice president?Answer: Theodore Roosevelt. He became president when McKinley was assassinated in 1901.
6. Which vice president under James Madison gave his name to “gerrymandering”?Answer: Elbridge Gerry. As governor of Massachusetts he signed a map with a district said to look like a salamander.
7. Who was Martin Van Buren’s vice president?Answer: Richard Mentor Johnson. He is the only vice president chosen by the Senate, after no candidate won an electoral majority.
8. Bess was the wife of which president?Answer: Harry S. Truman. Bess Wallace and Harry Truman grew up in Independence, Missouri.
9. Julia was the wife of which president?Answer: Ulysses S. Grant. Julia Dent married Grant in 1848.
10. Sherwood Forest Plantation in Virginia was the home of which president?Answer: John Tyler. He named it as a joke about being a political outlaw after his own party expelled him.
11. Spiegel Grove in Fremont, Ohio, was the home of which president?Answer: Rutherford B. Hayes. His presidential library and museum stand on the estate today.
12. Which president’s library and museum is in West Branch, Iowa, his birthplace?Answer: Herbert Hoover. Hoover was the first president born west of the Mississippi River.
13. Which president was called “the Great Emancipator”?Answer: Abraham Lincoln. The name comes from his Emancipation Proclamation.
14. Which president’s boyhood nickname was “Dutch”?Answer: Ronald Reagan. His father said the baby looked like “a fat little Dutchman.”
15. Which president signed the Endangered Species Act of 1973?Answer: Richard Nixon. The law protects threatened plants and animals and their habitats.
16. Which future president once taught Mexican American children at a school in Cotulla, Texas?Answer: Lyndon B. Johnson. He took time off from college to teach there.
17. Which president played center on two national championship football teams at the University of Michigan?Answer: Gerald Ford. Michigan won national titles in 1932 and 1933 with Ford on the team.
18. Which president is buried in Washington National Cathedral?Answer: Woodrow Wilson. He is the only president buried in Washington, D.C.
19. Which president had been a five-star general before taking office?Answer: Dwight D. Eisenhower. He received the five-star rank of General of the Army in 1944.
20. Which president introduced the “Good Neighbor Policy” toward Latin America?Answer: Franklin D. Roosevelt. He announced it in his first inaugural address.

Geography trivia

1. What is the capital of Kazakhstan?Answer: Astana. Almaty, the largest city, was the capital until 1997.
2. What is the capital of El Salvador?Answer: San Salvador. El Salvador is the smallest country in Central America by area.
3. What is the capital of Bhutan?Answer: Thimphu. The Himalayan city sits in a valley on the Wang Chhu river.
4. What is the capital of Serbia?Answer: Belgrade. It stands where the Sava River meets the Danube.
5. What is the capital of Algeria?Answer: Algiers. The country and its capital share a name in Arabic, al-Jazāʼir.
6. What is the capital of Florida?Answer: Tallahassee. It is in the Florida Panhandle, near the Georgia border.
7. What is the capital of Illinois?Answer: Springfield. Abraham Lincoln lived and practiced law there.
8. What is the capital of South Dakota?Answer: Pierre. Bismarck is the capital of North Dakota.
9. Which U.S. state is nicknamed the Volunteer State?Answer: Tennessee. The name honors the many Tennesseans who volunteered to fight in the War of 1812.
10. Which U.S. state is nicknamed the Granite State?Answer: New Hampshire. It is known for its granite quarries.
11. Which river flows through both Dresden and Hamburg?Answer: Elbe. It rises in the Czech Republic and empties into the North Sea.
12. The Allegheny and Monongahela rivers meet at Pittsburgh to form which river?Answer: Ohio River. The Ohio later flows into the Mississippi at Cairo, Illinois.
13. Which country’s flag has blue and white stripes with a white cross in the top corner?Answer: Greece. The flag has nine stripes.
14. Which country’s flag has vertical green, white and orange stripes, with green nearest the pole?Answer: Ireland. Ivory Coast’s flag has the same colors in reverse order.
15. What is the largest lake entirely within Canada?Answer: Great Bear Lake. It lies in the Northwest Territories and straddles the Arctic Circle.
16. Which sea between Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan has shrunk dramatically since the 1960s?Answer: Aral Sea. The rivers that fed it were diverted to irrigate cotton fields.
17. The ruins of ancient Carthage are in which country?Answer: Tunisia. They lie on the coast near the capital, Tunis.
18. Which river forms much of the border between Germany and Poland?Answer: Oder. Together with its tributary the Neisse, it forms the Oder–Neisse line.
19. Which sea lies between the Korean Peninsula and mainland China?Answer: Yellow Sea. It is named for the yellow silt carried into it by rivers.
20. What is the capital of the Australian state of Victoria?Answer: Melbourne. Melbourne is Australia’s second-largest city.