Play "Twenty One" | American Experience | PBS (2024)

When Charles Van Doren faced these questions on the NBC quiz show "Twenty One," he held a hidden advantage: he had already been provided with the answers. In an honest game, how would you match up?

Question: 1 of 12
Subject: World War II
Lake Ladoga played a large part in a particular phase of World War II. Name the two countries whose troops opposed each other at Lake Ladoga.

Finland and Russia
Germany and England
Italy and the United States
Norway and Germany

Question: 2 of 12
Subject: Medicine:
The necessity for cleanliness and sterilization was not realized until the middle of the nineteenth century. What is the name of the surgeon who introduced sterilization to the operating room?

Louis Bisio
Andrew Harmond
Joseph Lister
Stephen James

Question: 3 of 12
Subject: Fashion
What synthetic fiber has almost completely replaced silk in women's stockings?

Rayon
Nylon
Acetate
Banlon

Question: 4 of 12
Subject: Founding Fathers
One of the first American statesmen to protest taxation by the British was a man from Massachusetts who said, "Taxation without representation is tyranny." Name him.

John Adams
Josiah Quincy
Everett Hale
James Otis

Question: 5 of 12
Subject: Winston Churchill
Winston Churchill wrote a series of six brilliant books chronicling the events leading up to and including World War II. Name three of them.

"The Gathering Storm, Triumph and Tragedy, The Grand Alliance"
"Defence and Honor, Their Finest Hour, A Call to Arms"
"The Hinge of Fate, The Cauldron of Fire, Comfort and Sacrifice"
"Battle and Betrayal, The Final Contest, Closing the Ring"

Question: 6 of 12
Subject: Queens
The wife of King Ahab was a cruel and willful woman; she favored the idolatrous worship of Baal and persecuted the prophets of Jehovah. What was her name and what country did she rule?

Bathsheba ruled Sodom
Esther ruled Capernaum
Vashti ruled Judea
Jezebel ruled Palestine

Question: 7 of 12
Subject: The Civil War
Because of a disagreement with his commanding general, Ulysses Grant was virtually placed under arrest for a brief time early in 1862. Who was the commanding general of the Union army at that time?

Halleck
Hooker
McClellan
Burnside

Question: 8 of 12
Subject: Boxing
Name the three heavyweight champions immediately preceding Joe Louis.

James J. Braddock, Max Baer, Primo Carnera
Sugar Ray Robinson, Max Baer, Max Schmeling
Max Schmeling, John Sullivan, Jersey Joe Walcott
Primo Carnera, John Sullivan, Max Baer

Question: 9 of 12
Subject: Movies and Movie Stars
In 1954, the Oscars for the best supporting actress, best director, and best story screenplay writer all went to people who worked on the film "On the Waterfront." Name those people.

John Ford, director; Harold Loessen, writer; Celeste Holme, supporting actress
Elia Kazan, director; Budd Schulberg, writer; Eva Marie Saint, supporting actress
John Huston, director; Dennis Brookings, writer; Vivien Leigh, supporting actress
Joseph L. Mankiewicz, director; Kenneth Ryan, writer; Eleanor Parker, supporting actress

Question: 10 of 12
Subject: Explorers
Pizzaro was an early Spanish explorer who discovered and conquered an advanced civilization. Tell us the civilization he discovered, the country this civilization was in, and the leader of the civilization at the time of the conquest.

The Aztecs of Mexico were led by Montezuma
The Toltec of Brazil were led by Balahancha
The Incas of Peru were led by Atahualpa
The Mayas of Guatemala were led by Chahanitza

Question: 11 of 12
Subject: Newspapers
The grandsons of Joseph Medill, two of the most successful journalists in the county from 1914 on, were the owners and managers of the "Chicago Tribune" and the "New York Daily News." Who were they?

Robert R. McCormick and Joseph Patterson
Edward Johnston and William W. Bennett
James Edward O'Brien and Tyrone Root
Phillip T. Blanchard and Robert David Leary

Question: 12 of 12
Subject: Kings
It's well known that some of Henry the VIII's six wives fared better than others. He divorced his first wife, Catherine of Aragon, and married his sixth, Catherine Parr, just a few years before he died. Name the second, third, fourth and fifth wives of Henry VIII and describe their fates.

Anne Boyleyn, divorced; Jane Seymour, died in childbirth; Anne of Cleves, beheaded; Catherine Howard, beheaded
Anne Boyleyn, died in childbirth; Jane Seymour, beheaded; Anne of Cleves, divorced; Catherine Howard, beheaded
Anne Boyleyn, beheaded; Jane Seymour, died in childbirth; Anne of Cleves, divorced; Catherine Howard, beheaded
Anne Boyleyn, beheaded; Jane Seymour, beheaded; Anne of Cleves, died in childbirth; Catherine Howard, divorced

Answers from 1 to 12.
Finland and Russia's troops opposed each other at Lake Ladoga.
Joseph Lister is the surgeon who introduced sterilization to the operating room.
Nylon has almost completely replaced silk in women's stockings.
James Otis said, "Taxation without representation is tyranny."
Winston Churchill wrote "The Gathering Storm, Triumph and Tragedy, The Grand Alliance."
Jezebel, wife of King Ahab, ruled Palestine.
Gen. H. W. Halleck was the commanding general of the Union army early in 1862.
James J. Braddock, Max Baer, and Primo Carnera were the three heavyweight champions who preceding Joe Louis.
The 1954 the Oscars for "On the Waterfront:" best supporting actress, Eva Marie Saint; best director, Elia Kazan; best story screenplay writer, Budd Schulberg
Pizzaro discovered the Incas of Peru, who were led by Atahualpa.
Robert R. McCormick was the owner and manager of the "Chicago Tribune" ; Joseph Patterson was the owner and manager of the "New York Daily News".
The second, third, fourth and fifth wives of Henry VIII and their fates: Anne Boyleyn, beheaded; Jane Seymour, died in childbirth; Anne of Cleves, divorced; Catherine Howard, beheaded