30th September Quiz: multiple choice
1. Mozart's last opera premiered in Vienna on 30 September 1791, only about two months before his death. Name the opera, and the librettist who also played the bird-catcher Papageno.
2. On 30 September 1938, Britain, France, Germany and Italy signed an agreement handing part of Czechoslovakia to Germany. Name the agreement and the region. What did Neville Chamberlain claim he had brought back?
3. Which young American film star was killed in a car crash in California on 30 September 1955? What make of sports car was he driving?
4. Which southern African country, formerly the British protectorate of Bechuanaland, became independent on 30 September 1966?
5. On 30 September 1967, the BBC launched a new pop music radio station. Name the station, its first DJ, and the first record played.
6. The Berlin Airlift, which supplied West Berlin by air during the Soviet blockade, officially ended on 30 September 1949. What nickname did Berliners give the planes that dropped sweets for children?
7. On 30 September 1927, a baseball legend hit his 60th home run of the season, a record that stood for 34 years. Who was he?
8. An American author born on 30 September 1924 wrote "Breakfast at Tiffany's" and a famous "non-fiction novel" about a murder in Kansas. Name the author and that book.
9. A German physicist born on 30 September 1882 gave his name to a device that detects radiation by clicking. Who was he?
10. A 13th-century Persian poet, traditionally said to have been born on 30 September 1207, is one of the best-selling poets in America today. His followers founded the order of whirling dervishes. Who was he?
ANSWERS
1. "The Magic Flute" ("Die Zauberflöte"). The librettist was Emanuel Schikaneder.
2. The Munich Agreement, handing over the Sudetenland. Chamberlain claimed he had brought back "peace for our time".
3. James Dean, driving a Porsche (a Porsche 550 Spyder)
4. B Botswana
5. Radio 1. The first DJ was Tony Blackburn, and the first record was "Flowers in the Rain" by The Move.
6. "Rosinenbomber" ("raisin bombers"), also called candy bombers
7. Babe Ruth
8. Truman Capote, "In Cold Blood"
9. Hans Geiger (the Geiger counter)
10. Rumi