1. In this 1955 black-and-white movie, a giant octopus puts a python-like stranglehold on the Ferry Building, forcing it to come crashing down.
a. The Creature from the Black Lagoon
b. The Day the Earth Stood Still
c. It Came From Beneath the Sea
2. “You’ll never see a trailer behind a hearse,” writes Denzel Washington in his book A Hand to Guide Me. “The Egyptians tried that, and it didn’t work.” His reference, of course, was to the treasures left in the great tombs of Egypt; the Tutankhamun exhibit at the de Young features an assortment of such artifacts. Which age-old adage is Washington getting at?
a. The grass is greener on the other side of the hill.
b. You can’t take it with you.
c. A rolling stone gathers no moss.
3. This French farm-girl turned knight-in-shining-armor-on-horseback graces the approach to the entrance of the Legion of Honor. She is the patron saint of France. The national heroine in question?
4. “We were all about love, caring, and giving,” said Beverly Lee, co-founder of this American singing group which recently came to town and gave it their all in The Rrazz Room of the Nikko Hotel.
a. Martha and the Vandellas
b. The Marvelettes
c. The Shirelles
5. The poignant Verdi work performed this summer at the War Memorial Opera House showcased the most sought and precious prize of all—lasting love.
a. La Traviata (1853)
b. Giovanna d’Arco (1845)
c. Aida (1871)
6. A San Francisco street fronting Rainbow Grocery salutes the ancient Egyptian goddess of fertility, who also happened to be sister and wife of Osiris.
a. Haight Street
b. Ramona Street
c. Isis Street
7. “I would say it’s easy to play a villain. I think that everybody has a little villain in themselves, you know?” says San Francisco ballet dancer:
a. Tina LeBlanc
b. Anthony Spaulding
c. Sarah Van Patten
8. One overcast day in 1916, in a fit of unchecked passion, Queen of the Barbary Coast Tessie Wall popped her gambler husband, Frankie Daroux, with a pistol on the street. As the police hauled her in, Tessie shouted:
a. “Keep yer mitts off me, you creeps. I didn’t do nuthin’.”
b. “Wait and see. You ain’t seen nuthin’ yet.”
c. “I loved that man. Damn him! That’s why I shot him.”
9. Red-bricked Roosevelt Middle School on Arguello at Geary is the handiwork of this architect who grew up in the Mission and never went to college:
a. Timothy L. Pflueger
b. Irving Morrow
c. Julia Morgan
10. This summer at the Grand Teton Music Festival at Jackson Hole, Wyoming, the SF Chorale performed Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony under the baton of SF Opera’s Donald Runnicles and vocal coaching of Ian Robertson. In 1974, “Ode to Joy” vocal finale was adopted as the national anthem of:
a. Madagascar
b. Rhodesia
c. Cameroon
Answers
1. c
2. b
3. Joan of Arc (1412–31)
4. c
5. a
6. c
7. b
8. c
9. a
10. b
Victor Turks grew up in San Francisco and lives in the Richmond with his wife, Michiko, their three boys, a pug, a cat, and a tankful of goldfish. He teaches English at City College.
