To get you in the spirit of VH1’s “The World Series of Pop Culture,” here’s a quiz to challenge you. The first 10 questions are from the show. Get enough of them right, and maybe you should be forming a team for future “World Series” seasons. Find answers on Page 32.
1. Relief pitcher-turned-bartender Sam Malone on the sitcom “Cheers” was known by what nickname when he took the mound for the Red Sox?
2. In a 1996 video for their song “Big Me,” the Foo Fighters parodied TV commercials for what popular candy?
3. In the 1987 movie “Can’t Buy Me Love,” high school nerd Ronald Miller plots to become one of the in-crowd by renting a popular cheerleader with money he had saved to buy what?
4. What is the name of the local watering hole where Jack, Janet, and Chrissy hang out on the classic sitcom “Three’s Company?”
5. On the HBO series “Entourage,” Kevin Dillon (right) plays Johnny “Drama” Chase, an often out-of-work actor best known for his role on what fictitious sci-fi series?
6. What 1994 R.E.M. song was inspired by a bizarre story about anchorman Dan Rather being attacked by a mysterious assailant on a New York City street?
7. On the cartoon series “Scooby-Doo,” Scooby and his teenage sleuth friends drive around in a multicolored van known as the what?
8. In the 1986 movie “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off,” Ferris (right) gets a table at a fancy restaurant by claiming to be Abe Froman, a man who holds what unofficial title in the Windy City?
9. The lyric “I miss the earth so much, I miss my wife/It’s lonely out in space” is from what well-known Elton John song?
10. In the 1993 movie “Groundhog Day,” Bill Murray’s character, Phil Connors, is awakened every morning by what song playing on his alarm clock?
11. Who shot J.R.? We need the character name and actor or actress who played the role?
12. What “legendary” sax player is idolized by Lisa Simpson (right)?
13. Finish the Third Eye Blind lyric: “I want something else to get me through this …”
14. Pre-Gwyneth, pre-Jen, pre-Angelina Brad Pitt dated which Oscar-nominated celebrity?
15. What’s the name of Matthew Broderick’s character in the 1998 film remake of “Godzilla”? Hint: The character is named after the creature man who designed the revamped Japanese monster.
16. From which TV show did the phrase “jump the shark” originate?
17. What actor bid Indiana Jones “Adios, senor” shortly before meeting his demise in “Raiders of the Lost Ark?”
18. How many minutes make up a day in the life of a year in the song “Seasons of Love” from Jonathan Larson’s musical and film “Rent”?
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19. When she came out of the closet on April 30, 1997, what device did TV’s Ellen Morgan accidentally use to declare her sexuality? And to whose character was Ellen (right) speaking?
20. Which two-time Oscar-nominated actress had her only scene–as investigator Hal Slocumb’s wife–cut out of the final version of “Thelma and Louise?”
21. The shooting death of what actress is said to have inspired Brad Silberling’s film “Moonlight Mile?”
22. Which film saw the unlikely pairing of director Robert Altman and a story by John Grisham?
23. What composer wrote the song “Sooner or Later (I Always Get My Man)” sung by Madonna in the film “Dick Tracy” (right) ?
24. Which two half-Jewish celebrities–if “put together”–would make a “fine looking Jew,” according to Adam Sandler’s “Hanukkah Song”?
25. What future Central Perk frequenter, known only by the nickname “4B,” failed to heed good advice from Detective John Kelly on the first season of “NYPD Blue”?
HOW WELL DID YOU SCORE ON PAGE 31 QUIZ?
Answers
1. “Mayday.”
2. Mentos.
3. A telescope.
4. The Regal Beagle.
5. “Viking Quest.”
6. “What’s the Frequency, Kenneth?”
7. The Mystery Machine.
8. The Sausage King of Chicago.
9. “Rocket Man.”
10. “I Got You, Babe.”
11. Kristin Shepard, played by Mary Crosby.
12. “Bleeding Gums” Murphy.
13. “semi-charmed kind of life.”
14. Juliette Lewis.
15. Character is Dr. Niko Tatopoulos. Real creature man is Patrick Tatopoulos.
16. “Happy Days.”
17. Alfred Molina.
18. 525,600.
19. She used an airport public address system; Laura Dern.
20. Catherine Keener. The scene is viewable in the film’s DVD.
21. Rebecca Schaeffer.
22. “The Gingerbread Man.”
23. Stephen Sondheim.
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24. Paul Newman and Goldie Hawn.
25. David Schwimmer.
How pop culture savvy are you?
0-6: Make sure Osama bin Laden isn’t in that cave you’ve been hiding in.
7-13: Chime in at cocktail parties when you actually know something; otherwise, keep your glass full.
14-21: This level makes you bright enough to be cool at cocktail parties but not obsessive
22-25: OK, this is obsessive.