13 trivia questions and answers for Halloween fun.
- Is the pumpkin a fruit or a vegetable?
- What is the Romanian Language word for “son of the devil” or “son of the dragon”?
- What was the name of the ancient Celtic (or druidic) festival for the “end of summer” that eventually became the basis of Halloween?
- Ehrich Weiss died on Halloween, 75 years ago. What was he better known to the world as?
- What horror movie great voiced the character of cartoon villain Ratigan in Disney’s “The Great Mouse Detective “?
- This little Halloween favorite has 3.57 calories per piece, and comes in different varieties for other holidays, like Reindeer (for Christmas), Indian (for Thanksgiving), Cupid (for Valentine’s) and Bunny (for Easter). But 75% of the annual production goes towards Halloween. What is this trick-or-treat classic?
- Which country celebrates “The Day of the Dead” instead of Halloween?
- Which company runs a Flavor Graveyard on their website?
(A) M&Ms (B) Ben & Jerry’s (C) J-ELLO (D) Coca-Cola
- What is anthropophagy?
- What reluctant horror-story hero was enamored with the beautiful Katrina Van Tassel?
- In ” The Nightmare Before Christmas “, what was the name of Jack’s ghostly, dead pet dog?
- Who are we talking about in this old 19th-century children’s rhyme:
_____________, born on a Monday, christened on Tuesday, married on Wednesday, took ill on Thursday, worse on Friday, died on Saturday, buried on Sunday. This is the end of _____________.
- A planchette is most commonly used during what “supernatural” activity?
- Pumpkins are fruits. A pumpkin is a type of squash and is a member of the gourd family, which also includes squash, cucumbers, gherkins, and melons.
- Dracula! The real person Dracula was based on was named Vlad “Dracula”, that is the son of (also Vlad) “Dracul” – word meaning both “the devil” and “the dragon” in Romanian. He lived – between ca. 1431 and 1476.
- “Feast of Samhain.” There is no evidence that there was a Celtic death god named Samhain. There is some evidence that an obscure character named Samain or Sawan played a minor role in Celtic mythology, but he is little mentioned and was not associated with death. “Sam” and “hain” mean “end of” and “summer” to the Celts. The Celts, who only celebrated two seasons (summer and winter), believed that the veil between this world and the next was thinnest at this time of year, the end of October. They believed that the souls of dead friends and relatives returned, often inhabiting the bodies of animals, such as black cats. Samhain was also a new year’s celebration, as the Celtic year stated with winter.
- Harry Houdini, magician famed for his escape acts. Born Ehrich Weiss, he named himself after the French magician Robert-Houdin.
- Vincent Price. Shortly before his death, he said that one of his most favorite roles was the voice of Professor Ratigan in the Disney feature, especially since two original songs had been written for him.
- Candy Corn!
- Mexico. It is called “El Día de los Muertos” and celebrated on November 1st.
- (B) Ben & Jerry’s. Some of the dearly departed flavors are Coffee Coffee BuzzBuzzBuzz, White Russian, Peanuts! Popcorn! and Dastardly Mash!
- It’s another name for cannibalism, the eating of one’s own kind. “Cannibalism,” by the way, is derived from the Spanish word for the Caribs, a West Indian tribe that is believed to have practiced cannibalism.
- Shy schoolmaster Ichabod Crane, from “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” by Washington Irving.
- Solomon Grundy. A different version of the rhyme is: Solomon Grundy, born on a Monday, christened on a stark and stormy Tuesday, married on a gray and grisly Wednesday, ill on a mild and mellow Thursday, worse on a bright and breezy Friday, died on a gay and glorious Saturday, buried on a baking, blistering Sunday. This is the end of Solomon Grundy.
- A planchette is used with a Ouija or spirit board, sometimes called an indicator or pointer. It is usually triangular or heart-shaped and supported by casters. It moves to spell out messages or answers to questions.