On July 26, 2016, Hillary Clinton was officially nominated as the Democratic presidential candidate. Today’s questions revolve around people named Hillary, Hilary, or Clinton, whether as a first or last name.
One of the regular characters in the television series Cheers has the first name Hilary. Who is that?
Two
Born on 26 July 1739, the fourth vice president of the United States and the first governor of New York was…
Three
Best known for an achievement with Norgay in 1953, he later became New Zealand’s High Commissioner to India and Bangladesh, and Ambassador to Nepal. What is his first and last name, and where did the 1953 achievement take place?
Four
Elected in 1986, this well-known entertainment figure served as the mayor of Carmel-by-the-Sea, California, for a two-year term. Can you identify this individual?
Five
The author of the historical novel The Mirror & the Light, the concluding instalment in a trilogy and the author’s final novel published during their lifetime, is who?
The answers to my earlier post are shown highlighted below.
Space shuttle Atlantis (STS-135) touches down at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, completing the final flight of the Space Shuttle Program. July 21, 2011, Cape Canaveral, Florida. Image (NASA/Bill Ingalls)/Wikipedia
One
On July 21, 2011, the Space Shuttle program concluded with the landing of a shuttle at NASA’s Cape Canaveral. Which shuttle made this landing, marking the end of the Space Shuttle program?
Answer: Atlantis
From the first launch on April 12, 1981 to the final landing on July 21, 2011, NASA’s space shuttle fleet flew 135 missions, helped construct the International Space Station and inspired generations. NASA’s space shuttle fleet began setting records with its first launch on April 12, 1981 and continued to set high marks of achievement and endurance through 30 years of missions. Starting with Columbia and continuing with Challenger, Discovery, Atlantis and Endeavour, the spacecraft has carried people into orbit repeatedly, launched, recovered and repaired satellites, conducted cutting-edge research and built the largest structure in space, the International Space Station. The final space shuttle mission, STS-135, ended July 21, 2011 when Atlantis rolled to a stop at its home port, NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. – NASA
Lyndon B. Johnson at the LBJ ranch, 1972. Image LBJ Library
Two
On this date in 2024, President Joe Biden announced his decision to withdraw from the presidential election. Prior to this announcement, who was the most recent sitting United States president to decline to seek reelection?
Answer: Lyndon B. Johnson
On March 31, 1968, President Johnson delivered a national address that made three significant announcements: he had recently ordered substantial reductions in the bombing campaign against North Vietnam, he was requesting peace negotiations, and he would neither seek nor accept his party’s nomination for re-election.
What was the title of the final book in the Harry Potter series, released on July 21, 2007?
Answer: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
Harry Potter, a fictional boy wizard created by British author J.K. Rowling, is the subject of seven immensely popular novels (1997–2007) and eight films (2001–11). His coming-of-age exploits were further adapted into a play and a book of its script in 2016.
Four
Today in 1954, the Geneva Accords divided what country along the 17th parallel?
Answer: Vietnam
The Geneva Accords, signed in 1954, divided Vietnam along the 17th parallel, establishing a cease-fire and calling for troop withdrawals. The Accords also stipulated all-Vietnamese elections by 1956 to reunify the country, though the U.S. and South Vietnam withheld approval.
On 21 July 1960, Sirimavo Bandaranaike made history as the world’s first female prime minister in which country?
Answer: Ceylon (now Sri Lanka)
Sirimavo Bandaranaike, the world’s first female prime minister, served three terms in Sri Lanka. She carried on her assassinated husband’s socialist policies, promoting Buddhism and Sinhalese culture. However, she encountered economic crisis and defeat in 1965. She subsequently returned to serve two more terms as prime minister (1970–77, 1994–2000).
Five questions today, each requiring a single answer without multiple choices or additional hints.
A space shuttle lifts off from Launch Pad 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, beginning the final mission of the Space Shuttle program. Image NASA.
One
On July 21, 2011, the Space Shuttle program concluded with the landing of a shuttle at NASA’s Cape Canaveral. Which shuttle made this landing, marking the end of the Space Shuttle program?
Two
On this date in 2024, President Joe Biden announced his decision to withdraw from the presidential election. Prior to this announcement, who was the most recent sitting United States president to decline to seek reelection?
Three
What was the title of the final book in the Harry Potter series, released on July 21, 2007?
Four
Today in 1954 the Geneva Accords divided what country along the 17th parallel?
Five
On 21 July 1960, Sirimavo Bandaranaike made history as the world’s first female prime minister in which country?
The answers to my earlier post are shown highlighted below.
Live Aid, John F Kennedy Stadium, Philadelphia. Image Wikipedia
One
The Live Aid concerts were held on Saturday, 13 July 1985 in the UK and the USA. In which two stadiums were these concerts held?
Answer: Wembley Stadium, London and John F. Kennedy Stadium, Philadelphia
Live Aid, a benefit concert for the Ethiopian famine, was held simultaneously at Wembley Stadium and John F. Kennedy Stadium on 13 July 1985. The event, organised by Bob Geldof and Midge Ure, was broadcast to an estimated 1.9 billion people in 150 nations.
British dirigible R.34 at Mineola, Long Island, N.Y. 6 July 1919. Image Wikipedia
Two
R.34 became the first aircraft to make a return transatlantic flight. What seven letter word best describes R.34?
Answer:
R.34, the first aircraft of any type to carry passengers across the Atlantic. Flying from RAF East Fortune in Scotland R.34 completed the first east-west aerial crossing in 108 hours, arriving in Mineola, Long Island on 6 July 1919. On arrival, and to assist the ground crew, Major E. M. Pritchard jumped by parachute and so became the first person to reach American soil by air from Europe. The return journey to RNAS Pulham took 75 hours.
Football used in the 1930 World Cup Final on display at the National Football Museum, Preston. Due to a dispute between the teams, two balls were used in the final, one in each half. This ball, chosen by the Uruguayan team, was used in the second half. Image Wikipedia
Three
Today, in 1930, the inaugural FIFA World Cup began in Uruguay. Thirteen teams participated in the competition. Can you name as many of the four European teams that took part?
Answer: Belgium, France, Romania and Yugoslavia
The 1930 FIFA World Cup, the inaugural tournament, was held in Uruguay to celebrate the country’s centenary and its Olympic football victory. Thirteen teams participated, with Uruguay defeating Argentina in the final to become the first World Cup champions.
On this day, Vice President George HW Bush became the Acting President for the day while the President was undergoing surgery. Who was the President?
Answer:
President Reagan temporarily transferred power to Vice President Bush for about eight hours while undergoing surgery. Reagan sent a letter to the President pro tem of the Senate and the Speaker of the House, transferring Presidential power to Bush. Reagan reclaimed his authority after the surgery, signing another letter in the presence of his chief of staff, counsel and surgeon.
Five
The Dartmouth workshop, widely considered as the first conference on artificial intelligence, was held during the summer of…
1956
1961
1965
Answer:
The Dartmouth Summer Research Project on Artificial Intelligence in 1956, organised by John McCarthy, is considered the founding of AI as a field. The workshop, which brought together experts in computing and cognitive science, hypothesised that machines could simulate human intelligence and learning. The term “AI” was coined during this conference.
The Live Aid concerts were held on Saturday, 13 July 1985 in the UK and the USA. In which two stadiums were these concerts held?
Two
R.34 became the first aircraft to make a return transatlantic flight. What seven letter word best describes R.34?
Three
Today, in 1930, the inaugural FIFA World Cup began in Uruguay. Thirteen teams participated in the competition. Can you name as many of the four European teams that took part?
Four
On this day, Vice President George HW Bush became the Acting President for the day while the President was undergoing surgery. Who was the President?
Five
The Dartmouth workshop, widely considered as the first conference on artificial intelligence, was held during the summer of…
The answers to my earlier post are shown highlighted below.
The remains of Francis Gary Powers’ U-2 (s/n 56-6693, msn 360) are now on display in the Central Armed Forces Museum, Moscow, Russia. Image Wikipedia
One
On 1 May 1960, an aircraft flown by American pilot Francis Gary Powers was shot down over Soviet territory. By what short name is the aircraft commonly known?
Answer: U-2
On 1 May 1960, a US Lockheed U-2 spy plane, flown by American pilot Francis Gary Powers, was shot down by the Soviet Air Defence Forces while conducting photographic aerial reconnaissance inside Soviet territory. The aircraft had taken off from Peshawar, Pakistan, and crashed near Sverdlovsk (now Yekaterinburg) after being hit by a surface-to-air missile. Powers parachuted to the ground and was subsequently captured.
U Thant Island, in East River, New York City, in front of the UN Building. Image Wikipedia
Two
Belmont Island, located in front of the United Nations Secretariat Building in New York City, was, in 1982, officially renamed in with a UN connection. What name was it given?
Answer: U Thant Island
U Thant Island, formerly Belmont Island, is a small artificial island in New York City’s East River. It’s the smallest island in Manhattan and is home to a colony of double-crested cormorants. Belmont Island was renamed U Thant Island on October 7, 1982, in honour of the late U Thant, a former Secretary-General of the United Nations.
An alias the main protagonist is told to use in The Fellowship of the Ring
The first human settlement on Mars in Kim Stanley Robinson‘s novel Red Mars
A fictional character in Ursula K. Le Guin‘s short story The Rule of Names
Answer: Underhill
Underhill answered all three points in the question.
In JRR Tolkien’s The Fellowship of the Ring Frodo Baggins was told by Gandalf to use the alias Mr Underhill from when he left Hobbiton and until they met up at The Prancing Pony in Bree.
Red Mars follows the first hundred colonists on their journey to Mars, their first settlemet, Underhill; their efforts to terraform the planet, and their struggle for independence from Earth’s control. Led by differing ideologies, the colonists debate terraforming and Mars’ relationship with Earth, ultimately leading to a revolution against Earth’s influence.
The Rule of Names is a short story by Ursula K. Le Guin, introducing the Earthsea realm and its magic system. It features the dragon Yevaud and explains the significance of true names in Earthsea. A resident wizard is nicknamed Underhill because he lives in a cave below a hill.
Gandantegchinlen Monastery, Bayangol, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia. Image Wikipedia
Four
With an average annual temperature of 0.2 °C (32.4 °F), and coldest January temperatures dropping to between −36 and −40 °C (−32.8 and −40.0 °F), which capital city holds the distinction of being the coldest in the world?
Answer: Ulaanbaatar
Ulaanbaatar, the capital of Mongolia, is the coldest capital city in the world with an average annual temperature of 0.2 °C or 32.4 °F. It was founded in 1639 as a Buddhist monastic centre and became the country’s capital in 1924, now serving as its cultural, industrial and financial hub.
The Vasari Corridor’s bridge from the Palazzo Vecchio to Uffizi. Image Wikipedia
Five
Florence’s Vasari Corridor is a long, raised passageway that connects Palazzo Vecchio in Piazza della Signoria to Palazzo Pitti. What gallery is found along its route?
Answer: Uffizi
The Vasari Corridor in Florence connects the Palazzo Vecchio to the Palazzo Pitti, passing through the Uffizi Gallery. Stretching approximately one kilometre, it crosses the Arno River at Ponte Vecchio and winds through the Oltrarno district.
On 1 May 1960, an aircraft flown by American pilot Francis Gary Powers was shot down over Soviet territory. By what short name is the aircraft commonly known?
Two
Belmont Island, located in front of the United Nations Secretariat Building in New York City, was, in 1982, officially renamed in with a UN connection. What name was it given?
Three
What one word answers all of these?
An alias the main protagonist is told to use in The Fellowship of the Ring
The first human settlement on Mars in Kim Stanley Robinson‘s novel Red Mars
A fictional character in Ursula K. Le Guin‘s short story The Rule of Names
Four
With an average annual temperature of 0.2 °C (32.4 °F), and coldest January temperatures dropping to between −36 and −40 °C (−32.8 and −40.0 °F), which capital city holds the distinction of being the coldest in the world?
Five
Florence’s Vasari Corridor is a long, raised passageway that connects Palazzo Vecchio in Piazza della Signoria to Palazzo Pitti. What gallery is found along its route?
The answers to my earlier post are shown in bold below. I have included the questions simply for your information.
Joseph Bonaparte, king of Spain, in coronation robes, 1808. Image Wikipedia
On 15 June 1808 Joseph Bonaparte became King of…
Spain—Bonapartist Spain, established in 1808 by Napoleon, was a Napoleonic client state. Napoleon forced the ruling Spanish Bourbons to abdicate and installed his brother, Joseph Bonaparte, on the Spanish throne.
Magna Carta, 1215. Image British Library/Encyclopædia Britannica
Today in 1215, King John of England placed his seal on a charter of liberty and political rights. What is this charter known as?
Magna Carta—a royal charter of rights, was agreed to by King John of England in 1215 to make peace with rebel barons. It promised protection of church rights, baronial rights and limitations on feudal payments.
The Civil War Unknowns Monument, c. 1866. Designed by Montgomery Meigs. Arlington National Cemetery. Image Wikipedia
On 15 June 1864, the creation of a national cemetery on the former Arlington Estate was authorised by the US Quartermaster General Montgomery Meigs. This estate had previously belonged to whom?
Robert E. Lee, Confederate General-in-Chief—Arlington National Cemetery, the largest in the United States National Cemetery System, is one of two maintained by the United States Army. Spanning 639 acres (259 ha) in Arlington County, Virginia, it holds the remains of over 400,000 people. Arlington National Cemetery was built on land confiscated from the private ownership of Confederate States Army general Robert E. Lee’s family by the US federal government. This land was the Arlington Estate. The confiscation occurred due to a tax dispute over the property.
Henry Fitzroy, Duke of Richmond and Somerset (1519-36). Image Wikipedia
Henry Fitzroy, born on this day in 1519, was the illegitimate son of which English king?
Henry VIII—the Fitzroy surname is Norman French for ‘son of the king’. He was the son of Henry VIII’s mistress Elizabeth Blount, younger half-brother to Mary I and elder half-brother to Elizabeth I and Edward VI.
On 15 June 1888 a crown prince became emperor. Due to the death of his predecessors 1888 is the Year of the Three Emperors. What empire had its Year of the Three emperors in 1888?
German Empire—The Year of the Three Emperors, 1888, saw the rapid succession of three German Emperors: Wilhelm I, Friedrich III, and Wilhelm II. The mnemonic drei Achten, drei Kaiser (three eights, three emperors) is still used to remember this year.
Wilhelm I Friedrich IIIWilhelm II
The Year of the Three Emperors, 1888. Left to right Wilhelm I (reign 18 January 1871 – 9 March 1888) Image Wikipedia Friedrich III (reign 9 March – 15 June 1888) Image Wikipedia Wilhelm II (reign 15 June 1888 – 9 November 1918) Image Wikipedia
Historical Highlights connected with today’s date, June 15th.
On 15 June 1808, Joseph Bonaparte became King of…
Italy
Spain
The Two Sicilies
Today in 1215, King John of England placed his seal on a charter of liberty and political rights. What is this charter known as?
Domesday Charter
Magna Carta
Reculver Charter
On 15 June 1864, the creation of a national cemetery on the former Arlington Estate was authorised by the US Quartermaster General Montgomery Meigs. Who previously owned this estate?
Jefferson Davies, President of the Confederate States
Robert E. Lee, Confederate General-in-Chief
Thomas Jonathan ‘Stonewall’ Jackson, Confederate General
Henry Fitzroy, born on this day in 1519, was the illegitimate son of which English king?
Edward V
Henry VII
Henry VIII
On 15 June 1888, a crown prince became emperor, making 1888 the Year of the Three Emperors. Which empire had its Year of the Three Emperors in 1888?
The answers to my earlier post are shown in bold below. I have included the questions simply for your information.
Jacques Cartier by Theophile Hamel, 1844. Image Wikipedia
The first European to describe and map North America’s Saint Lawrence River was Jacques Cartier. He sailed into the river for the first time on 9 June 1534. Who was he?
Jacques Cartier—Jacques Cartier, commissioned by King Francis I of France, sailed into the St. Lawrence River in 1534 in search of gold, spices and a northern passage to Asia. He made contact with the Iroquois nation on Prince Edward Island and believed he had discovered a new seaway to Asia.
Michael J. Fox, 2020. Image Wikipedia
Michael J. Fox was born 9 June 1961, what role did he play in Spin City?
Mike Flaherty—Michael J. Fox, a Canadian-American actor and activist, rose to fame in the 1980s and 1990s through roles in Family Ties, Back to the Future and Spin City. After being diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in 1991, he became an advocate for finding a cure, founding The Michael J. Fox Foundation in 2000. Fox officially retired from acting in 2020 due to declining health.
Lyndon. B Johnson, 1964. Image Wikipedia
On this date, a US President declared a national day of mourning following the assassination of Senator Robert F. Kennedy. Which US president made this decision?
Lyndon B. Johnson—On 5 June 1968, Robert F. Kennedy, a US senator and presidential candidate, was shot and fatally wounded by Sirhan Sirhan at the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles. Kennedy died on 6 June. Sirhan, a Palestinian Christian with anti-Zionist beliefs, was convicted and sentenced to death, later commuted to life in prison.
Patricia Cornwall, 2016 Image Wikipedia
Best known for her Kay Scarpetta novels, which author was born today in 1956?
Patricia Cornwell—Kay Scarpetta, a fictional character inspired by Marcella Farinelli Fierro, is the protagonist in Patricia Cornwell’s crime novels. The name Scarpetta means ‘Little Shoe’ and is a pun on Caligula, meaning ‘Little Boot’.
The US Navy ballistic missile submarine USS George Washington (SSBN-598) underway, circa in the 1970s. Image Wikipedia
On 9 June 1959, the world’s first nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarine was launched. Which of these was it?
USS George Washington(United States)—The world’s first functioning nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarine (SSBN) was the USS George Washington, armed with 16 Polaris A-1 missiles. The Soviets, although having several SSBs, followed suit as part of the arms race, in developing a Soviet SSBN.
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