Romantic Pairs
($100) Complete the real-life couple: Katharine Ross and this mustachioed leading man.
Answer: Who is Sam Elliott? The pair met while filming 1978’s The Legacy and tied the knot in 1984.
($100) It was during this big-hair decade that young inventor Rachel Zimmerman created a symbol communication device called the Blissymbol.
Answer: What is the 1980s? The 12-year-old Zimmerman’s invention allowed non-speaking people to communicate using symbols on a touchpad.
$100) Debuting in 1969 and running for decades, this brand’s most famous commercial features an owl asking, “How many licks” to the center of this sweet treat.
Answer: What is a Tootsie Pop? This is one of the longest-running commercials in TV ad history and is often aired around candycentric holidays like Halloween.
($100) Cars driven by this suave spy include the Mustang Mach 1, Aston Martin V8, and BMW Z8.
Answer: Who is James Bond? Since 1962’s Dr. No, when the spy drove a simple Sunbeam Alpine, Bond cars have been getting more luxurious and eye-catching across the decades.
($100) The track and field world records for 100 and 200 meters are both held by this American, also called Flo Jo.
Answer: Who is Florence Griffith Joyner? Both records were set in 1988, one in Indiana and the other at the Olympics.
($200) Joe Pesci and Marisa Tomei are couple Vinny Gambini and Mona Lisa Vito in this 1992 comedy
Answer: What is My Cousin Vinny? The American Bar Association has ranked the film No. 3 on its top legal movies list.
($200) During the 1970s, Erna Schneider Hoover patented a new switching system that helped manage calls from these devices
Answer: What are telephones? Hoover’s patent helped telephone call centers manage a higher volume of calls
($200) In the 1990s, a famous commercial for this soft drink featured Cindy Crawford simply walking to a vending machine.
Answer: What is Pepsi? The commercial first aired during the 1992 Super Bowl.
($200) These, with shoulder harnesses, were required by U.S. law starting in 1968 in all consumer automobiles.
Answer: What are seat belts? Seat belts in their early days were just lap belts, but Volvo began popularizing the three-point belt in the 1960s.
($200) On April 4, 1974, this man tied Babe Ruth’s record with 714 home runs; he would break the record only four days later.
Answer: Who is Hank Aaron? Aaron was congratulated for tying the record by Baseball Commissioner Bowie Kuhn and Vice President Ford.
($400) Goldie Hawn and Kurt Russell take their romance to the big screen with this 1987 flick about an heiress with amnesia.
Answer: What is Overboard? The real-life couple brought their children to the set while filming; the youngest took his first steps there!
($400) Maria Telkes was an inventor nicknamed the “Sun Queen” for her inventions in this kind of energy.
Answer: What is solar? Her career spanned the 20th century and spawned creations like a solar distillation device and a home heated entirely through solar energy.
($400) A 1987 Super Bowl commercial from this beer brand featured a goofy bull terrier named Spuds MacKenzie.
Answer: What is Bud Light? The commercial was successful but drew criticism for being too child-friendly for a beer brand.
($400) The Swedish automaker Saab made these bottom-warming devices standard in 1972.
Answer: What are heated seats (or seat warmers)? Cadillac had debuted a seat warmer option in 1966, but Saab made a heated driver’s seat standard.
($400) A milestone for this chilly sport came in 1972 with the Summit Series, a series of games between Canada and the Soviet Union.
Answer: What is ice hockey? The highlight of the series was Canada’s dramatic win during game eight.
($600) This “Hound Dog” singer and his wife, Priscilla, were one of the “it” couples of the 1960s and early ’70s
Answer: Who is Elvis? The 2023 movie Priscilla examines their marriage
($600) This bulletproof material used for vests and other military gear was invented thanks to scientist Stephanie Kwolek.
Answer: What is Kevlar? During her time working at DuPont, Kwolek created a solid, lightweight material that became known as Kevlar.
($600) Fittingly, an Apple commercial from this year referenced George Orwell’s most famous book.
Answer: What is 1984? The computer brand played off the novel’s idea of conformity to espouse their new PC as breaking the mold.
($600) In the 1980s, French automaker Renault debuted a car that could unlock without the use of these.
Answer: What are keys? The Renault Fuego featured a handheld keyless entry system, much like those commonly used today.
($600) A milestone in basketball came in 1976 when the NBA joined forces with the ABA, which stands for this, creating a strengthened front.
Answer: What is the American Basketball Association? Importantly, the merger introduced the three-point line to NBA gameplay.
($800)A late ’90s teen romance, 10 Things I Hate About You is based on a (much) earlier work by this English playwright.
Answer: Who is William Shakespeare? The Heath Ledger and Julia Stiles film is based on The Taming of the Shrew.
($800) Inventor Patricia Bath created the Laserphaco Probe in 1986, which allowed eye doctors to safely dissolve this vision-disturbing clouding of the eye lens.
Answer: What is a cataract? Bath’s probe is still used today as a painless way to treat cataracts.
($800) In 1996, Budweiser first aired a commercial featuring these large horses, now closely associated with the brand.
Answer: What are Clydesdales? In the original Super Bowl commercial, a herd of horses plays football while cowboys look on.
(800)Dashboards got a futuristic makeover in 1976, when the first of this type of display was unveiled. Bye-bye, analog dials!
Answer: What is digital? The Aston Martin Lagonda was the first car to feature a digital dashboard, paving the way for today’s touchscreen dashes.
($800) In 1984, a White Sox–Brewers game set a record for most of these played
Answer: What are innings? The remarkable game was 25 innings and lasted over eight hours, which also set a record for the longest Major League game.