Billy Wilder quiz

More questions about Billy Wilder

These visible examples show the question style. LearnClash turns the full topic into ranked duels and spaced repetition.

1. 1 Easy

   Who plays the band singer Sugar in Some Like It Hot?

   Answer: Marilyn Monroe

   Why: Monroe's contract called for color, but she accepted black and white after color tests made the two men's drag makeup look grotesque.

2. 2 Medium

   What instrument does Marilyn Monroe's Sugar play in Some Like It Hot?

   Answer: Ukulele

   Why: In the band, Tony Curtis's Joe plays the saxophone and Jack Lemmon's Jerry plays the double bass.

3. 3 Hard

   What does C. C. Baxter strain spaghetti with in The Apartment?

   Answer: A tennis racket

   Why: Wilder usually held actors to his script, yet Lemmon was allowed to improvise his singing while cooking this spaghetti.

4. 4 Easy

   Who does James Stewart play in The Spirit of St. Louis?

   Answer: Charles Lindbergh

   Why: Stewart was 47 when he played the 25-year-old Lindbergh of 1927, and he kept to a strict diet to look the part.

5. 5 Medium

   Which Wilder film shared the top prize at the first Cannes festival?

   Answer: The Lost Weekend

   Why: The 1946 Cannes top prize was split 11 ways, with Brief Encounter and Rome, Open City among the other winners.

6. 6 Hard

   Who from the Wild West inspired Wilder's childhood nickname?

   Answer: Buffalo Bill

   Why: His mother spelled it Billie, and he switched to Billy only after he moved to the United States.