Weekly Quiz - Pre 2019
Ringo Starr
RASHI, RAMBAM and RAMALAMADINGDONG will be on vacation next week, so this week’s question will have to satisfy you for two weeks. If you find yourself starved for more Jewish trivia questions and answers, you can download our trivia books - just click here.
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Ringo Starr was just inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Everyone knows of Brian Epstein’s role in discovering and promoting the Beatles. What role did another Jew play in Ringo’s earlier life that contributed to his future success as a Beatle?
A. Prior to joining the Beatles, Ringo was the drummer for another Liverpool band, Rory Storm and the Hurricanes. Rory Storm, whose real name was Richard Stern and who was Jewish, is credited with giving Ringo the professional career start that eventually led him to the Beatles.
B. In 1946, Ringo, then known as Richard Starkey, received as a birthday gift from Eleanore Goldschmidt, his Jewish next door neighbor, a toy Dick Tracy decoder ring. This was the first ring he ever owned, and he went on from there to develop a love of rings which eventually led to his adopted name of Ringo.
C. Growing up, Ringo was friends with Manfred Mann (whose real name was Manfred Lubowitz). Ringo was invited to Manfred’s bar mitzvah, the first time that Ringo had ever been in a synagogue. At the reception, everyone (including Ringo) danced a hora while the band sang the a capella Chassidic chant Ai Diddy Die, Diddy Die. At school the next week, Ringo told his friend Manfred how much he enjoyed dancing to that doo-wop “diddy diddy” song. Five years later, inspired by that memory, Manfred wrote the song "Do wah diddy diddy dum diddy do" and asked Ringo to play drums on the recording. Rory Storm heard the record and invited Ringo to join his band, which eventually led to Brian Epstein asking Ringo to replace Pete Best in the Beatles.
D. As a child, Ringo suffered from many serious health problems. At age six he developed an infection as a result of appendicitis, which eventually left him in a coma. Because of England’s system of socialized medicine, his family was able to obtain medical care at the Royal Liverpool University Hospital despite their inability to afford the expensive treatment. Ringo’s parents credit Dr. William Shearer (who was Jewish), the hospital’s Director of Pediatric Care, with saving their son’s life. The Beatles song With a Little Help From My Friends, sung by Ringo and which starts with a “shout out” to Billy Shears, is an homage to Ringo’s doctor.
E. Ringo’s parents had divorced when he was five. When he was thirteen, his mother married a Jewish man, Harry Graves, who was a music fan. Graves introduced Ringo (then known as Ritchie) to the music of performers including Dinah Shore, Sarah Vaughan and others, and on Christmas Day 1957, he gave his step-son his first drum kit, which included a snare drum, a bass drum, and a cymbal fashioned from a garbage can lid.
Hillary
In 2008, at a fundraiser honoring Rahm Emanuel, Hillary Clinton described her relationship with him using a Jewish reference. What did Hillary say?
A. You know, Rahm and I have been through a lot together. Now, there’s a word my family always used when I was growing up to describe the relationship you have with someone who understands where you come from, your roots, your values. That’s the word we used in the Rodham household in Park Ridge, Illinois. The word was…“landsman.” So, Rahm, we’re proud to consider you a landsman, an honorary member of the Rodham clan.
B. You know, Rahm and I have been through a lot together. Now, there’s a word my family always used when I was growing up to describe someone who always did the right thing, who always put others first, who always showed caring and compassion. That’s the word we used in the Rodham household in Park Ridge, Illinois. The word was...“mentsch.” So, Rahm, we’re lucky to have someone as special as you in our world, someone whose very being defines the word mentsch.
C. You know, Rahm and I have been through a lot together. Now, there’s a word my family always used when I was growing up to describe the feeling you have when someone you care deeply about does well in life. That’s the word we used in the Rodham household in Park Ridge, Illinois. The word was…“naches.” So, Rahm, I take great pride, great naches, from your success.
D. You know, Rahm and I have been through a lot together. Now, there’s a word my family always used when I was growing up to describe the relationship you have with someone who has shared triumph and hardship with you. That’s the word we used in the Rodham household in Park Ridge, Illinois. The word was...“mishpucheh.” So, Rahm, we’re lucky to have you as part of our family.
E. You know, I’ve been friends with Rahm’s father Gazzi, for many years. I remember attending Rahm’s bar mitzvah, and how moving it was when I heard the words, “Ya’amod, Rahm ben Gazzi ha-Maftir.” I saw the look of pride in Gazzi’s eyes at that moment as his son was called up. Rahm ben Gazzi. Rahm ben Gazzi. I knew that moment would always stay with me, and even now those words follow me every day. Rahm ben Gazzi. In my dreams (and nightmares) I still keep hearing those words. Ben Gazzi. Ben Gazzi.
Iran & Israel
In 1998, despite the fact that Israel was called an “illegal state” and a “parasite” by Iranian president Mohammad Khatami, there was a controversy when it was reported that Israel and Iran were in fact involved in some type of business dealings. What was the controversy?
A. California pistachio growers were unhappy that Israel was importing most of its pistachios from Iran. Israel claimed that it was importing its pistachios from England and Germany, which was suspicious as these countries do not produce pistachios. And as Israeli wholesaler Moshe Mussafi stated, “It’s no secret. The taste [of the Iranian nut] is better.”
B. Israel was reported to have sold antitank guns and shells to Iran for use against the regime of Saddam Hussein of Iraq. Israel denied the claim, but Iraqi newspapers printed pictures of unexploded shells launched from Iran toward Baghdad that had Hebrew writing on them.
C. While Israel had been a major importer of Iranian oil under the regime of the Shah, it was assumed that this trade had ended with the Iranian revolution in 1979. However, the New York Times reported in April 1998 that despite the Ayatollah Khomeini’s reference to Israel as the “Little Satan,” he had allowed Israel to continue purchasing Iranian oil as Israel paid with American dollars, which were very valuable to the Islamic government of Iran.
D. Iran was the world’s largest producer and exporter of pomegranates. However, in 1998, the crop suffered from a disease known as Alternaria Fruit Rot, which decimated the harvest. Concerned that their enemy Iraq, the second largest exporter of pomegranates, would overtake the market, Iran secretly purchased 10,000 kilograms of Israeli pomegranates which they relabeled as Iranian in order to fulfill their outstanding orders.
E. In July 1998, a strike by Mifal Ha-Ashpah, the Israeli waste removal company, left garbage piling up in the streets, causing a serious health problem in the hot summer weather. The rat population proliferated, leading to the threat of epidemic diseases spread by the rats. Benjamin Netanyahu, serving in his first term as Israeli Prime Minister, secretly met with Iranian president Mohammad Khatami in Aqaba, Jordan, to arrange for the purchase of 20,000 Persian cats to use for the control of the rats. The cats were flown into Israel on board an El Al flight dubbed “Operation El Ali Katz.”