Another "Geezer Test"

Here's another quiz for seniors, or Geezer Test; at least that's what Rebekah calls it. My score was 13.5/15.

1. After the Lone Ranger saved the day and rode off into the sunset, the grateful citizens would ask, Who was that masked man? Invariably, someone would answer, I don't know, but he left this behind. What did he leave behind?________________.
2. When the Beatles first came to the U.S. In early 1964, we all watched them on The _______________ Show.
3. 'Get your kicks, __________________.'
4. 'The story you are about to see is true. The names have been changed to ___________________.'
5. 'In the jungle, the mighty jungle, ________________.'
6. After the Twist,The Mashed Potato, and the Watusi, we 'danced' under a stick that was lowered as low as we could go in a dance called the '_____________.'
7. Nestle's makes the very best . . . . _______________.'
8. Satchmo was America's 'Ambassador of Goodwill.' Our parents shared this great jazz trumpet player with us. His name was _________________.
9. What takes a licking and keeps on ticking? _______________.
10. Red Skeleton's hobo character was named __________________ and Red always ended his television show by saying, 'Good Night, and '________ ________. '
11. Some Americans who protested the Vietnam War did so by burning their______________.
12. The cute little car with the engine in the back and the trunk in t he front was called the VW. What other names did it go by? ____________ & _______________.
13. In 1971, singer Don MacLean sang a song about, 'the day the music died.' This was a tribute to ___________________.
14. We can remember the first satellite placed into orbit.. The Russians did it It was called ___________________.
15. One of the big fads of the late 50's and 60's was a large plastic ring that we twirled around our waist. It was called the __ ______________.

Answers below the fold.

01. The Lone Ranger left behind a silver bullet. 
02.. The Ed Sullivan Show 
03. On Route 66 [EE: I never watched this show; I thought the answer might be Trix breakfast cereal]
04. To protect the innocent. 
05. The Lion Sleeps Tonight 
06. The limbo [EE: huh? I thought this was long before those other dances. Got it right, though.]
07 Chocolate [EE: loved the way the dog snapped its mouth shut at the end].
08. Louis Armstrong 
09. The Timex watch 
10. Freddy, TheFreeloader and 'Good Night and God Bless.' [EE: I couldn't remember the name, but I remembered the sign-off]
11. Draft cards (Bras were also burned. Not flags, as some have guessed) 
12. Beetle or Bug 
13. Buddy Holly 
14. Sputnik 
15. Hoola-hoop 

Comments

[Nick Rowe]

Well, I passed that one (10/15), but I'm pleased to say I failed your previous test miserably! (In my case the tests are slightly harder because they have a North American focus, and I spent my youth in the UK).

Now, a semi-serious question: my guess is that people in their 40's and 50's will do much better in the second test than in the first test, because the material covered in the first test is from an earlier date, when they just weren't around. But, will people in their (say) 60's do worse in the second test than in the first test?

In other words, is culture always and everywhere (to a certain extent) youth culture?

More provocatively, is culture just a way to get hitched/laid? (when you settle down, you stop buying music).

[Rondi]

Hmm. I got them all right, but I wasn't alive during a number of them. I guessed the Nestle one (what else could it have been?). Most of these are constantly referenced in popular culture. So it seems to me if you pay even a bit of attention to the world around you, you would know these, even if you were born, say, in the '70s. So rather than a geezer test, I would call it an "Are you awake?" test! (o:

[EclectEcon]

I think you're right, Nick, that this quiz on average deals with topics that are slightly more recent than those on the first quiz. But many of these are also from the 50s.

Your second point puzzles me, though. Most of the questions seem to ask about advertisements and television or radio programmes, not music. There are a few about music, but not many.

To me the questions ask (a) did you watch much television in the 50s? (b) did you listen to the radio much in the 50s? and (c) how's your long-term memory?

[smitty]

i only got 9/15 (yay? maybe?). I didn't get the red skelton ones at all, but I was puzzled because I'd thought it was Skelton, not Skeleton (web search makes me think I'm right), so at least I'd heard of the guy. Too young to have seen his stuff though. Other than that question, I'd probably agree with Rondi, so I guess I'm not super awake...

[Fraser]

I got 10/15...i'm 24 years old, and grew up very sheltered from pop culture (parents didnt really listen to music, rarely went to movies and had very limited access to TV). I would say the first quiz might have been a better one i think i only got 2 or 3 right on it.

[whosonfirst]

The test is pretty easy. I'd say 13.5 out of 15 is a failing score.

[whosonfirst]

And just to be a real pain in the ass, I'll point out that it was the Hula Hoop and not Hoola Hoop.

[Fred]

...It's also Red Skelton, not skeleton. I got 14/15 on this test.

[EclectEcon]

Sheesh, you'd think that after my posting on correct grammar, I'd have done a better job proof-reading this test. I didn't even catch the Skelton gaff; I saw the hoola-hula hoop, and I remembered some knock-offs with various names, so I let it ride.