Ken Jennings's Trivia Almanac (216 page)

DECEMBER 30

1853
F
OR
$10
MILLION,
the United States buys from Mexico what is now southern Arizona and New Mexico, in the Gadsden Purchase.

BUY ANY MEANS NECESSARY

1.
The first newspaper William Randolph Hearst ever bought was what city’s
Examiner
?

2.
The Yankees bought Babe Ruth for $100,000 in 1919, but only after the Red Sox had turned down the White Sox’s offer to trade what player for him?

3.
In 1987, whose skeleton did Michael Jackson offer to buy for $1 million?

4.
Why did an Internet casino spend $28,000 for a grilled cheese sandwich auctioned on eBay in 2004?

5.
What did a Dallas clothing manufacturer sell to
Life
magazine for $150,000 in 1963?

1956
A
YOUNG
B
OLIVIAN MAN
throws a rock at the
Mona Lisa,
damaging the lower right corner. As a result, the famous painting is placed behind bulletproof glass.

GRIN REAPERS

Trivia that will bring a smile to your face.

1.
What country joined the world’s nuclear powers by detonating “Smiling Buddha” in 1974?

2.
Who can turn the world on with her smile?

3.
What four-word slogan appeared below the ubiquitous yellow smiley face of the 1970s craze?

4.
What actress had her smile insured with Lloyds of London for $10 million despite always wearing braces in her most famous role?

5.
What did she say when “She Smiled Sweetly,” according to the Rolling Stones?

1975
T
HE
M
ALAGASY
R
EPUBLIC
is renamed the Democratic Republic of Madagascar after a not-so-democratic military coup puts socialist president Didier Ratsiraka in office.

A CONSPIRACY OF CARTOGRAPHERS

What’s the current name of the country that was once called…

Easy

1.
Siam

2.
Persia

3.
Rhodesia

4.
Ceylon

5.
Zaire

Harder

1.
Upper Volta

2.
British Honduras

3.
Bechuanaland

4.
Dutch Guiana

5.
Kampuchea

Yeah, Good Luck

1.
Trucial States

2.
Dahomey

3.
The Gilbert Islands

4.
Basutoland

5.
New Hebrides

DECEMBER 31

1946
B
ETTER LATE THAN NEVER!
President Truman signs a document officially proclaiming “the cessation of hostilities of World War II.”

AND IN THE END…

1.
What recurring James Feni-more Cooper character is called “Hawkeye” in
The Last of the Mohicans
?

2.
Until his 1997 retirement, who was the last NHLer to be playing without a helmet?

3.
What movie’s last line is “Mein führer, I can walk!”?

4.
Despite his claim to have a “truly marvelous proof,” what French mathematician’s “Last Theorem” went unproven for 350 years?

5.
Which character writes the final message “Good-bye” at the end of the last
M*A*S*H
episode?

6.
Who was the last surviving member of the Warren Commission?

7.
What musician played Pontius Pilate in
The Last Temptation of Christ
?

8.
What showman’s last words were “How were the receipts today in Madison Square Garden?”

9.
What’s the last letter of the Greek alphabet?

10.
The “Juneteenth” holiday celebrates the last state to, in effect, abolish slavery. Which state?

11.
What was the last major-league team to add lights for night games at its home field?

12.
On January 27, 2006, what communications company sent its last message, having long since switched over to financial services?

13.
Who was the last king of England to die in combat?

14.
What John Wayne film is the last picture show in
The Last Picture Show
?

15.
Who sang “One for My Baby” as Johnny Carson’s last guest?

1982
NBC
CANCELS ITS
daytime soap
The Doctors
after a twenty-year run, throwing a young Alec Baldwin out of work. (It’s weird to see the phrase “Baldwin out of work” without the words “Billy” or “Stephen,” huh?)

HAPPY TRAILS

Who made these TV sign-offs famous?

1.
“Good night and good luck.”

2.
“Good night and may God bless.”

3.
“Go home!”

4.
“Say good night, Gracie.”

5.
“And that’s the way it is.”

6.
“Grease for peace.”

7.
“And so it goes.”

8.
“Good night, Mrs. Calabash, wherever you are.”

9.
“That’s the news and I am outta here!”

10.
“Courage!”

December Answers

DECEMBER 1

BAD MEDICINE

1.
D

2.
B

3.
J

4.
E

5.
I

6.
G

7.
A

8.
C

9.
F

10.
H

FAR AND AWAY

1.
Guam

2.
Pluto

3.
London

4.
Captain Nemo

5.
Robert Peary and Matthew Henson (to the North Pole)

6.
Sydney and Los Angeles

7.
The
Santa María

8.
South Africa

9.
Perth

10.
The moon

DECEMBER 2

A HASH OF BROWNS

1.
Edmund

2.
Topeka

3.
Angels and Demons

4.
“Say It Loud—I’m Black and I’m Proud”

5.
Iron Chef

6.
LaDainian Tomlinson

7.
Sudden deafness

8.
She was the first test-tube baby

9.
Joe Shlabotnik

10.
Leroy

11.
“Well, nobody’s perfect.”

12.
Cosmopolitan

13.
Dan Quayle criticized his single mom, Murphy Brown

14.
Flight attendant

15.
Two missing fingers on his right hand (“Three Finger”)

ALL WISHED UP

1.
Canadian films

2.
Boom box

3.
“…Baby One More Time”

4.
Solomon

5.
Jonathan Frakes

DECEMBER 3

ZOOROPA

1.
Goats

2.
A monkey

3.
A cat

4.
A bear (suit)

5.
An elephant

6.
A horse

7.
A sheep

8.
A panther

9.
A dog

10.
A butterfly (tattoo)

LOVE THROUGH THE AGES

Easy

1.
Paul McCartney

2.
Humphrey Bogart

3.
Demi Moore

4.
Elizabeth Taylor

5.
Catherine Zeta-Jones

Harder

1.
Paul Simon

2.
Jerry Seinfeld

3.
Britt Ekland

4.
Sophia Loren

5.
Cary Grant

Yeah, Good Luck

1.
Tony Randall

2.
Anna Nicole Smith

3.
Clint Eastwood

4.
Rupert Murdoch

5.
Céline Dion

TELL ME, BABY

1.
E

2.
I

3.
F

4.
J

5.
G

6.
C

7.
H

8.
D

9.
B

10.
A

DECEMBER 4

BOTTOM TO TOP

1.
A prized postage stamp (the airplane was printed upside down)

2.
M. C. Escher

3.
The Indian Ocean

4.
Royal Wedding

5.
e

6.
Tears for Fears

7.
Poland

8.
Gilbert and Sullivan

9.
Hewlett-Packard (“hp” upside down looks like “dy”)

10.
Peter

INTO THE WOODS

1.
C

2.
D

3.
I

4.
H

5.
F

6.
B

7.
E

8.
J

9.
A

10.
G

DECEMBER 5

BIZARRE QUIZ TRIANGLE

1.
North Carolina’s

2.
A Tale of Two Cities

3.
“Scalene”

4.
Female pubic hair

5.
Fenway Park

6.
Ed Grimley

7.
Opium

8.
Delta

9.
A fire

10.
“Particle Man”