answers: to kill a mockingbird trivia quiz

These are the answers to the quiz here.

Image by x-ray delta one via Flickr

1. 1960. Though the story is set in the 1930's, it is told from the point of view of a grown Scout and therefore was written, and published, later. The film came out soon after, in 1962.
2. Monroeville, Alabama. Director Robert Mulligan wanted to film the movie on location in Monroeville, but found the town so changed with postwar development that they opted instead to use a backlot at Universal Studios, with a replica of the Monroeville courthouse for the trial scene.
3. Amasa Coleman Lee. Harper Lee's mother's maiden name was Finch, Atticus's surname.
4. Alice Ghostley. Esmerelda was the nervous, vanishing maid on Bewitched (1969-72), but Ghostley was a well-regarded Broadway actress at the time she was cast in the movie.
5. Robert Duvall. Duvall was recommended by the screenwriter Horton Foote, who had been impressed by his performance in a Foote play a few years earlier. They were to work together often over their careers.
6. Banana Boat Song (Day-O) by Harry Belafonte. Peters later became known for roles in Star Trek and Soylent Green.
7. Truman Capote. I thought this fact was better known, but only one person in our group got it. Harper Lee later helped Capote with the researching of In Cold Blood, as noted in the movies Capote and Infamous.
8. Rock Hudson. Astounding, isn't it? But Hudson was a huge star and box office draw in 1962. It was eventually decided that Hudson was too young at 36, and the part was offered to James Stewart. Stewart rejected the part, believing the film to be too liberal and controversial.
9. great acting
10. Jean Louise. You knew it wasn't Thelma Louise, right? :)
11. a freestanding closet. The chifforobe figures prominently in the trial, where Mayella Ewell testifies that she asked Tom in to help "bust up a chifforobe. " Tom later testifies that he had broken up the chifforobe months before, but that she had asked him in to reach something on top of a different chifforobe.
12. all of them. This was included so that everyone will get at least one answer correct.
13. Best Actor—Gregory Peck, Best (Adapted) Screenplay—Horton Foote, Best Art Direction (Black & White)—Henry Bumstead, Alexander Golitzen and Oliver Emert.
14. Brock Peters. Any of them might have been a possibility, however. Peck remained close with Badham and Lee to the end of his life. He was also friends and neighbors with Michael Jackson, frequently riding horses with him at Neverland. Jackson helped plan Peck's funeral service.
15. none. Except for the movie, whose set she visited and which she publicly admired, Lee has rejected all commercialization of her novel.

Tie-breaker Question: It is ranked number 25 on the AFI's 10th anniversary list of greatest American movies of all time.

to kill a mockingbird trivia quiz

Last year my friend Cathy casually mentioned that she tries to watch To Kill A Mockingbird every fall. It's a fall movie, she explained, with the climactic scene occurring on the evening of a Halloween pageant at the school.

I was intrigued. My sister and I watch White Christmas every holiday season, largely because it was broadcast each Christmas Eve where we grew up; but it never occurred to me to have an annual movie for other times of year.

So I invited Cathy and some other friends over this past weekend to watch To Kill A Mockingbird on our screen. We served big bowls of popcorn, chocolate and tea; people arrived in the rain with blankets and bottles of wine; and we started as we often do around here—

—with a trivia quiz. C and I have played on a trivia team on and off for some years now, and we enjoy the format. Knowledge, even trivial knowledge, makes everything more interesting, doesn't it? We always hand out a small prize—this year it was a used copy of the 50th anniversary edition of To Kill A Mockingbird.

Below is the quiz as given. It helps to begin with some common ground: that the movie was adapted from the book by Harper Lee, who based it on people and events from her childhood. Some of the questions were quite easy, especially if you know the book or the movie. Some were fairly esoteric. Most were facts lifted wholesale from trivia and movie websites. My only contribution was to turn them into multiple choice questions, which makes the quiz relatively fast and easy and gives everyone a fair shot at each question.

To Kill A Mockingbird

trivia quiz

1. What year was To Kill A Mockingbird published?
• 1936
• 1949
• 1957
• 1960
2. The events take place in Maycomb, Alabama. The model for Maycomb was Harper Lee's hometown of:
• Magnolia Springs, Alabama
• Maytown, Alabama
• Mobile, Alabama
• Monroeville, Alabama
3. Atticus is one of the more unusual names in American literature. What was Harper Lee's father's real name?
• Abraham
• Amasa
• Ambrose
• Arthur
4. Which actress from the tv series Bewitched made her film debut as Stephanie Crawford?
• Agnes Moorhead (Endora)
• Alice Ghostley (Esmerelda)
• Elizabeth Montgomery (Samantha)
• Marion Lorne (Aunt Clara)
5. Which actor from The Godfather made his film debut as Boo Radley?
• Al Pacino (Michael)
• James Caan (Sonny)
• John Cazale (Fredo)
• Robert Duvall (Tom Hagen)
6. Brock Peters, who played Tom Robinson, also sang background vocals on:
• Alley Oop
• Banana Boat Song
• Twist and Shout
• Unforgettable
7. The character of Dill was based upon which childhood friend of Harper Lee?
• Bill Haley
• Jimmy Carter
• Truman Capote
• William Styron
8. Gregory Peck was not the first choice to play Atticus. Which actor was?
• Gary Cooper
• Fred MacMurray
• James Stewart
• Rock Hudson
9. When Harper Lee saw Gregory Peck in costume, she remarked that he looked just like her father, down to the little pot belly. Peck replied, "That's not a pot belly, Harper—that's..."
• a beer belly."
• great acting."
• my wallet. These pants have no pockets."
• padding from wardrobe."
10. What is Scout's given name?
• Harper Louise
• Jean Louise
• Mary Louise
• Thelma Louise
11. What is a chifforobe?
• a type of chair
• a freestanding closet
• a framed mirror
• a dressing gown
12. Mary Badham, who played Scout, didn't continue her acting career for long, but her brother John Badham became a director. Which of the following films did he direct?
• Dracula
• Saturday Night Fever
• Short Circuit
• War Games
13. To Kill A Mockingbird was nominated for 8 Academy Awards and won 3. Name one of the 3 categories in which it won:
• ______________________________
14. Who performed the eulogy at Gregory Peck's funeral in 2003?
• Brock Peters (Tom Robinson)
• Mary Badham (Scout)
• Harper Lee
• Michael Jackson
15. To Kill A Mockingbird has also been adapted into a play, which is performed annually in Harper Lee's hometown. How many times has Harper Lee seen the play?
• none
• once
• twice
• she has attended every peformance since its debut in 1990.

Tie-breaker Question: 

What is To Kill A Mockingbird's ranking on the AFI's 100 Greatest Movies of All Time? _________________________________

How nerdy can I get about these things? Well, you can click here for a printable .pdf file if you like. I'll post answers tomorrow.

Meanwhile, I'm curious: do you have a movie you watch every year?

zombie piñata

One year it suddenly happens: instead of making cute scarecrows and smiling jack o'lanterns, you find yourself creating a zombie piñata for Halloween. It happens because you have always thought that beating a sweet little animal figurine until it splits open is brutal and barbaric, and because your child is obsessed with zombies to the point of revising his zombie attack plan every few weeks.

You live in a rural neighborhood without much trick-or-treating to speak of and like to take something to the in-town Halloween festivities when you can...so the idea of the zombie piñata begins to take shape. Your child can play out his zombie defense strategy while also having fun with his friends. No animals will be harmed, only an undead creature who means to suck out your brains, anyway.

Your first try in conventional papier mache looks more like an insect than a face and must be abandoned.

Then you remember a package of craft plaster wrap, the kind used for maskmaking and bellycasting...you find a hapless victim willing husband and make a mask of his face after carefully laying down some plastic wrap.

Your model falls asleep, and his open mouth provides the zombie with the perfect roaring facial expression.

Plaster wrap turns out to be the perfect medium for impulsive last-minute ideas like this, drying as it does in under half an hour instead of the days that papier mache require. In short order, the head is filled out using a balloon and some inflatable packing filler from the garage.

Painting is the fun part. There is a base coat of white, a grey-toned flesh wash, and of course, the requisite purple bruises and red blood.

In the paint box is a squeeze tube of glow-in-the-dark puff paint, and this is added to make eyeballs and lips.

You never thought you would have fun making something this horrible and grotesque. But it's so much fun, it dominates your weekend. You even forget to make food for yourself and your family.

Clothing from the abandoned scarecrow is added, and the head is filled with candy and glow-sticks.

The pièce de résistance: a sound chip connected to a tilt switch, which responds to gravitational position. When the zombie is swung, he will roar:

monterey bay aquarium

The reason we go to Monterey each year is for Homeschool Day. The aquarium generously sets aside several Mondays each fall to allow homeschooling families free entry. This is a huge, huge gift and we have used it for nine years now.

This year our time was shortened by C's evening midterm, which meant we could only stop by our favorite exhibits before starting the drive home.

sardines in Open Sea

rockfish in the Kelp Forest

purple-striped jellyfish

moon jellies

sea turtle

white-spotted rose anemone in Rocky Shore

The aquarium is built over the site of the old Hovden sardine cannery and retains a few boilers, along with an exhibit explaining Doc Ricketts' contribution to the fields of marine biology and tidal ecology.

Just outside of the aquarium is Cannery Row, made famous in Steinbeck's novel of the same name. If you look up, you'll see that the trinket shop is actually the original model for Lee Chong's general store.

Science, history and literature: I love how the Monterey Bay Aquarium integrates it all. This was likely our last year to attend Homeschool Aquarium Day, but we still plan to come and visit whenever we can.

P.S. My friend Jen and her family have been longtime traveling companions to Monterey, and she also went down again this year. Please read her take on the aquarium sea horses at her blog post here.

a day in carmel

"If you should look for this place after a handful of lifetimes:

Perhaps of my planted forest a few

May stand yet..."

                      ~"Tor House," Robinson Jeffers

Image via Wikipedia

Hawk Tower at Tor House, Carmel, California

Our annual trip to Monterey changes up a little every year. This year we spent a full day in nearby Carmel, precipitated by the fact that S was now 12 and could finally join a tour of Tor House. Tor House is poet Robinson Jeffers' handbuilt home on a cliff overlooking the Pacific. We have been waiting years to be able to do this and were not disappointed. Unfortunately, cameras (and even handbags) are not allowed on the tour, so I only have a few outside shots to share.

It's quite amazing to think of Jeffers writing all morning in his Hawk Tower, a place S deemed "Harry Potter-ish" for its turrets and hidden staircase, then spending the remainder of the day hauling and setting huge pieces of granite as he extended the house from one tiny cottage to a walled compound with multiple additions. He also planted over 2000 trees (alluded to in the poem above) along the property's edges. This was a busy man.

The grounds also incorporate pool table slate, ship ballast, and discarded marble from a remodeled bank; as well as old statuary, a portion of the Great Wall of China, and other exotica from the Jeffers' and their friends' travels. These occasional insets of random material give the house a sense of surprise and wonder on top of its gorgeous natural beauty and cozy simplicity.

More surprises can be found in the town of Carmel itself, where Hugh Comstock's twee little cottages are sprinkled throughout the downtown neighborhoods. In fact, many of Carmel's homes are similarly designed to be quaint and original (and...expensive).

"Hansel"

We ended the day walking around Point Lobos, home to Monterey Cyprus trees and orange algae.

I'd miscalculated my knitting time on this trip and stopped by a yarn shop thinking I could start a new project. The store's ball winder was broken, so this did not happen; but I couldn't resist a skein of custom-dyed yarn the owner had commissioned to reflect the colors of the beach.

Why don't all local yarn shops do this? I'm thinking the colors here would be tomato red along with other agricultural colors like green, gold and deep brown. What are the dye colors of your area?

apple hill & apple crisp

We've had so many things we've been wanting to get to lately that I casually threw out the idea of skipping our annual trip to Apple Hill, only to hear, "Aww. But we always go." It was C, my 17 year old, and you have no idea how hearing this warmed my heart.

This is how we get ready for our favorite fall day trip: we load a cooler in the trunk

pack sandwiches and audiobooks

and try to remember to keep the car door closed when loading.

What's changed over the years is the time that we leave. When the kids were small, we could head off first thing in the morning. These days...well, you work with what you've got.

Apple Hill has more than just apples.

There's a variety of fall produce, including pears

pumpkins

brussels sprouts

and chestnuts

You can pick apples, yes, but you can also take short hikes on trails that some of the farms have made through their properties, pick pumpkins, browse handmade crafts, fish from stocked ponds, look at the Larsen family antiques, and listen to loud Bavarian polka music while eating sauerkraut. On weekends you can watch the cider presses and apple processing machines in action. 

This year, with our late start and Game One of the World Series due to begin at 5, we opted for a pared-down drive along the scenic roads with stops at a few favorite farms. We always pick up some microbrew for D at Jack Russell Brewery

and visit Grandpa's Cellar for the special pies.

Yesterday it rained all day so the three of us pared, cored and sliced a box of Granny Smiths, tossed them with lemon juice,

and put them in ziploc bags to freeze.

Sometime this winter there come be a day so cold and rainy, we will not want to leave the house. On that day, we'll slip the contents of one of our bags into an oven, fill the house with the scent of warm baking fruit and cinnamon, and feel instantly cheered again.

Apple Crisp Topping (simplified from Baking Illustrated)

6 Tbs flour

1/4 c light brown sugar

1/4 c granulated sugar

1/4 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

1/4 tsp salt

5 Tbs cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces

3/4 c coarsely chopped nuts

Process first 6 ingredients in a food processor just to combine. Add butter and pulse until mixture looks like dry sand, then cornmeal. Add nuts, then process again in a few brief pulses.

Distribute evenly over apples and cook at 375 degrees for 40 minutes. Increase oven temperature to 400 degrees and continue baking until fruit is bubbling and topping turns deep golden brown.

frank o' melon

This is what happens when your kids get older: one year they suddenly don't want to go to the pumpkin patch, not even to run through the corn maze, not even if we were to call up friends. It broke my heart.


We got all the way to Halloween Day without a pumpkin in the house, except for a few feeble little things we grew over summer. It wouldn't have mattered, except a jack o'lantern is required in our neighborhood if you are passing out treats. DH and I figured we'd pick something up when we went out for groceries. But there were none, no pumpkins at all. 


The did have...watermelons? In October? And I thought a watermelon might be easier to carve than a pumpkin, anyway, so we brought one home. I've never been good at carving pumpkins, but a watermelon seemed like fun.

It was pretty easy to slice off the top and hollow it out. At first I thought I'd go all the way to the white rind, but then realized the red flesh might be useful. So a tiny, last-minute layer of red is in there, too.

Here's the hair:

And here's where having a bit of red added some nice, bloodshot color to the eyes:

A little working of the scar, some neck plugs, and the Frank O' Melon is born:

I might look for watermelons next year, too.

homemade halloween costumes (iPhone)

Halloween feels most...Halloweenlike...(by which I mean most like Halloween as I remember it, well before the advent of the sexy costume and the expensive lawn decor) when the kids have some involvement in creating their costumes. We have had years when we bought particular costumes or props, but it's more fun to make something—and most fun when the maker is also the costume wearer.

As soon as they were able to, I used to ask the kids to draw a picture of the costumes they envisioned. From there we'd figure out how to put them together; there was always at least one step the kids could do themselves. The point wasn't to approximate anything manufactured or even Martha Stewart-style homemade, but simply to learn how to actualize an idea. Even as a tot S could tell us that he wanted to be a fire truck, not a fireman, and that the truck should have wheels and lights (above).

This process paid off the year C made a wraith costume, because I had no idea what a wraith was and was unable to help him work it out. Undeterred, he designed a simple robe pattern from newspaper, sewed it together, and even fashioned a funky hood using wire and a black stocking to obscure his face. I can see by the date on the photo that he was 11, the same age S is this year.

This year S decided he wanted to be an iPhone. He knew exactly how he was going to make the costume, too, so tore ahead with his project, accepting only minimal help. Apparently in our family 11 is the age at which costuming confidence really takes off.

Step One involved finding some stiff-but-lightweight board material (in this case, foamcore from OfficeMax), cutting off the corners, and spray painting it black.

Next he located an Apple logo, printed the outline, cut it out, and glued it to one of the boards. I thought it might be the perfect time to explain ratios and proportions...but it wasn't. S wanted it done quickly and preferred to eyeball everything. He said, "It's a costume, Mom! It's for one night. It'll look good enough." And he was right.

We lucked into finding a set of app images ready to print, but it would have been only another few steps to create our own using a screen shot of the phone and a postermaking site. These were arranged and glued to the front boardpiece.

The costume was finished with shiny duct tape and a recent discovery: metal strapping. Metal strapping is thin, flexible, galvanized steel, pre-punched with two-different sized holes into which one can insert nails, screws or bolts. A roll costs a dollar or so. How many ways will we find to use this, I wonder?

The duct tape became the edge of the phone—

—and the strapping shaped into a shoulder harness from which to hang it all.

Voila! A sandwich-board iPhone, visualized and largely created by S himself. It was quick and inexpensive to make, should hold up through the night of Halloween unless there's rain and most importantly, it turned out just like its creator wanted it to. Nothing better than that.