The 1950s quiz
20 questions about the 1950s, from quizzes all over the archive. New mix gives another lot; the link always brings back this mix.
1. Which top 10 hit of 1959 by 'The Browns' tells the story of little Jimmy Brown?
2. Until its abolition in the late 1950s, what was for more than one and a half centuries the principal device used for execution in Spain?
3. In the US what was known as Armistice Day until 1954?
4. Which chart topping Christmas song from Bony M was originally recorded by Harry Belafonte in 1956?
5. Who had a hit with "Blue Suede Shoes" in 1956
6. Which knighted actor stars in the 1951 film The Man in the White Suit?
7. Who played Louis Armstrong in 1954 film The Glen Miller Story?
8. The worst accident in motor racing history occured in 1955 and claimed the lives of more than 80 spectators. Where was this tragic race held?
9. On Christmas day in 1950 what was stolen from Westminster Abbey?
10. Which two popular singers played a role alongside John Wayne in the 1959 western Rio Bravo? One point for each correct answer.
11. "I have always depended on the kindness of strangers." is a quote from which classic 1951 film?
12. Where did Russian troops crush an anti-Soviet uprising in 1956?
13. What kind of films were banned in Monaco after April 18, 1956?
14. How did Christine Jorgensen make headlines around the world in Dec 1952?
15. In 1958 the first in what became a prolific series of Carry On Films was released. What was its name?
16. In film, Hitchcock's 'Vertigo' was made in which decade?
17. Which communist country remained outside the military alliance of eastern bloc countries in 1955?
18. What was the name of the Russian space probe that was the first to land (or crash) on the moon Sept 13, 1959?
19. Which British current affairs magazine first appeared in 1961, having evolved from a school publication edited by Richard Ingrams, Willie Rushton, Christopher Booker and Paul Foot at Shrewsbury School in the mid-1950s?
20. Kudryavka or 'little curly' made headlines around the world for a few days in November 1957 under another name. What was it?
ANSWERS
1. Three Bells
2. Garrote
3. Veterans Day
4. Mary's Boy Child
5. Elvis Presley
6. Sir Alec Guinness
7. He played himself
8. Le Mans
9. The Stone of Scone
10. Dean Martin and Ricky Nelson
11. A Streetcar Named Desire
12. Hungary
13. Grace Kelly films
14. The first or one of the first to undergo a sex change operation
15. Carry on Sergeant
16. 1950s
17. Yugoslavia
18. Luna (Luna 2)
19. PRIVATE EYE (eyebath)
20. Laika
Where these questions come from
- Brown Quiz 2
- Pauls Quiz 440
- 1950s Quiz 1
- Christmas Quiz 11
- Shoes Quiz 1
- Pub Quiz 92
- Pub Quiz 23
- Pauls Quiz 301
- Christmas Quiz 5
- Pauls Quiz 298
- Pub Quiz 116
- Trouble Spots Quiz 1
- Pauls Quiz 291
- Pauls Quiz 184
- Movie and Moviestars Quiz 4
- Easy General Knowledge Quiz 4
- Behind the Iron Curtain Quiz 1
- Pub Quiz 96
- Connections Quiz 66
- Pub Quiz 126
Questions are chosen because they mention a year from the decade. Now and then one is only loosely about it: press New mix for another lot.