This is a MELA Quiz run by Mihir Shrivastava on the IIT KGP Quiz Club's session of 8th Jan 2022.

1. Strangeways, Here We Come
A MELA Quiz by Mihir Shrivastava
08-01-2022

2. Rules
• 26 directs, two written rounds
• +10/0 on bounce
• +10/-5 on pounce
• Points are not conserved
• Complete answer required for a pounce unless stated otherwise
• Please don’t Google ¯_(ツ)_/¯

3. Q1.
Lillehammer is a quaint Norwegian town famed for its ski resorts which hosted the 1994
Winter Olympics. It is also the setting for a 2012 crime-drama X, which follows the story of
a New York born gangster who tries to start afresh in Lillehammer. The name X is a nod to
the town with just one letter changed so as to reference the female dog the protagonist
owns.
While the show was not particularly popular outside Norway, it was a significant milestone
in the history of an entertainment company Y, which had recently pivoted its business
model and was venturing into the production business.
What was the show’s name?
What dubious ‘first’ the show achieved vis-à-vis its production company’s history?

5. Lillyhammer
First Netflix original. (It was only partly funded and
produced by the company. House of Cards was the first
full Netflix Original)

6. Q2
Although the band had the nickname ‘The Alcoholics’, X was fired from the band he co-founded
for being a wild drunk. When X was fired in 1983, he was sent on a bus ride back home while the
band recorded their debut with another guitarist using some of the best material he (X) had
written. On a seemingly endless bus ride, he fumed for a while, and then decided to write some
new lyrics. Since he didn’t have any paper, he wrote on the back of a handbill from Senator Alan
Cranston. A message on the front of the card, which referred to the stockpiling of nuclear
weapons read, “The arsenal of __________ can’t be rid.” After considerable thought, X decided
the term (the blank) would make a cool name for a metal band, especially if it was misspelled as
Y.
ID X and Y

8. X: Dave Mustaine
Y: Megadeth

9. Q3
On the next slide is a statue on Stanley Street in a European city.
The statue was inspired by the protagonist of a 60’s hit song. The song weaves the tale of a
lonely old woman who leads her life in solitude and is finally buried without much fanfare.
The writer of the song has often remarked that this character was completely fictional,
although he may have been sub-consciously influenced by a name on a gravestone in a
churchyard where he met his future bandmate.
It is also one the first rock song to feature a violin ensemble.
ID the song.

12. Eleanor Rigby by The Beatles

13. Q4
This design movement took its name from the shortened form of Exposition internationale
des arts décoratifs et industriels modernes, held in Paris in 1925. It combined modern
styles with fine craftsmanship and rich materials. During its heyday, it represented luxury,
glamour, exuberance, and faith in social and technological progress. It was a pastiche of
many different styles, sometimes contradictory, united by a desire to be modern. In the
1930s, during the Great Depression, this style became more subdued. New materials
arrived, including chrome plating, stainless steel, and plastic. The first use of the term was
in 1966, where it was the title of an exposition on the subject, although it can be argued
that Le Corbusier was the first to use the term in the title of an article, he published about
the 1925 expo, EXPO. ___. ____.

16. Art Deco

17. Q5
Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile is an American biographical crime thriller
released in 2019 based on the life of prolific serial killer Ted Bundy based on the memoirs
of his girlfriend Elizabeth Kendall.
What was the real-life inspiration behind the title of the movie, something related to the
life and in most part, death of Ted Bundy?

20. The remark made by Edward Cowart, the presiding
judge, while he was sentencing Bundy to death.

21. Q6
In the 1984 mockumentary Spın̈al Tap, the band releases the album Smell the Glove under
the Polymer label.
The artwork was dubbed sexist, thus prompting the label company to ditch the original
artwork and ship the album in a different cover, which was much in contrast to the
graphical original cover. When the band members raise their concerns, Polymer rep Bobbi
Flekman points out something a band did to the artwork of their album in the late 60s and
how it later became their (then) highest selling album.
Which album did Flekman use to defend the company’s decision?

24. The White Album by The Beatles.
Polymer changed the cover to plain black.

25. Q7
Legendary director Alfred Hitchcock had a knack of appearing in his own movies as an
extra. In fact, he has appeared in 39 of his 52 surviving movies.
Surprisingly, Hitchcock managed to make a cameo in his war time drama, Lifeboat (1944).
In this movie, all the action takes place on a lifeboat after an Allied ship and a German U-
boat sink each other.
How did he managed to appear on-screen?

27. He appeared on a
weight reduction advertisement in a newspaper.

28. Q8
The 20th Century Fox fanfare, which accompanied the logo was originally composed by
Alfred Newman, a longtime head of the music department of Fox in 1933. In 1953 an
extended version to accompany the CinemaScope films. By the mid-70’s, the logo and thus
the fanfare was phased out. However, a certain enthusiast of the logo and the fanfare
insisted of having it in his new project X. The logo and the fanfare, have since enjoyed a
rebirth and have become ever-present.
In the words of its composer, the theme music of X meant to be an extension of the Fox
fanfare, although it has achieved iconic status in its own right.
ID the project X.

31. Q9
X is one of the few recurring characters in a classic animated series which debuted in 1940.
She appeared in a total of 19 episodes, although she is visible only in her complete form in
only three of them. In later episodes, starting from 1954, she was replaced by less
controversial character/s as the animators believed that she was a stereotypical character
that did not work well in the modern context.
Her name is a subtle nod to the fact that her complete body is rarely shown and only a
part of it is visible, often wearing a certain accessory.
ID X.

33. Mammy Two Shoes

34. Q10
Clos-Normad is an ornamental garden in Giverny, France which was first conceptualized by
a certain X who was enchanted by this place while looking out of a train window in 1886.
The garden and the estate are currently under the care of the Foundation ______ _____
and is open to public.
The garden features a wealth of ornamental and exotic plants as well as a huge number of
flowering plants belonging to the family of Nymphaeaceae as well as a traditional Japanese
bridge which was immortalised by X.
ID X. What are the plants belonging to the Nymphaeaceae family commonly known as?

36. Claude Monet.
Water Lilies.

37. Q11
Located in East Kent in England on the banks of river Stour is the historic cathedral city of X.
The Archbishop of X is the primate of the Church of England and the worldwide Anglican
Communion. The city's cathedral became a major focus of pilgrimage following the 1170
martyrdom of Thomas Becket, although it had already been a well-trodden pilgrim
destination since the murder of St Alphege by the men of King Canute in 1012. A journey of
pilgrims to Becket's shrine served as the frame for _______ _______ ‘s 14th century classic
___ ________ _____, often regarded as the work that popularized the English vernacular in
mainstream literature as until then most serious literary works were in Latin or French.
ID X. Who wrote the classic?

39. Canterbury.
Geoffrey Chaucer.

40. Q12
X is a genre encompassing numerous pop-oriented music styles popular in the late 1970s
and the 1980s. X moved away from traditional blues and rock sounds and incorporated
disco, reggae and post-punk. Bands like Talking Heads, The Cure, The Police, Blondie,
Duran Duran and Devo are considered X artists.
In general sense, X is a two-word term which may refer to an introduction of fresh and
unconventional ideas in any form of art.
Unlike the X artists which were commercially driven, bands such as Suicide, Sonic Youth,
DNA and Dinosaur Jr were called Y bands, as a reaction to the pop-oriented X groups. Y is a
pun on X and conveys that they (Y) were unlike X, by slightly altering the first word of the
term.
ID X and Y.

42. New Wave and No Wave.

43. Q13
Before he went on to become one of the greatest exponents in his field, X was a jobless
teenager who happened to get his hands on a camera and roamed the streets of 40’s New
York and took a series of photograph that bring forth his aesthetic and creative genius. He
once remarked – “I think aesthetically recording spontaneous action, rather than carefully
posing a picture, is the most valid and expressive use of photography”. He quickly made a
name for himself by telling stories through photos, which eventually led him to moving
pictures and his place in the Filmmakers Hall of Fame.
ID X.

48. Stanley Kubrick

49. Written Round
• Six Questions.
• Identify the characters for 10 points each.
• Find the connect among all the characters. (It’s not the studio!)
• 10 points for the connect

50. 1.

51. 2.

52. 3.

53. 4.

54. 5.

55. 6.

56. Hint for the Connect

58. Answers

59. 1.

60. Bugs Bunny

61. 2.

62. Willy E. Coyote

63. 3.

64. Elmer Fudd

65. 4.

66. Porky Pig

67. 5.

68. Pepe le Pew

69. 6.

70. Marvin the Martian

73. Q14
Neuromancer is a 1984 science fiction novel by William Gibson. It is one of the most well-
known books of the cyberpunk genre and has inspired many subsequent works.
It follows the story of a washed-up computer hacker, Henry Case in the city of Chiba, Japan
whose brain was damaged by mycotoxin rendering him unable to access the virtual reality
dataspace ______. He is suicidal and an addict and is on the top of the hit list of the drug
lord Wade. Upon being attacked, he is saved by a street samurai Molly Millions who is a
mercenary for ex-military officer Armitage in exchange for his services.
What landmark work in the cyberpunk genre was inspired from this novel?

75. The Matrix.

76. Q15
X is a small town on the North Sea coast in East Yorkshire famous as a holiday resort and a
tourist town.
From 1253 till the 18th century, the town hostel a trade festival attracting merchants from
all over Europe.
The festival is documented in the form of a folk song which was reworked and released in
1966 by Y.
The song tells the story about a person who visits the festival and asks someone to tell his
love (who lives in the town) to perform him impossible tasks such as sewing him a shirt
without a seam and washing it in a dry empty well.
ID X.

78. Scarborough
Simon & Garfunkel wrote the song Scarborough Fair.

79. Q16
In 1958, Gibson released the Flying V. It offered a radical, futuristic design that was a
departure from Gibson’s other offerings like the Les Paul and ES semi-hollows. The guitar
became popular with players looking for a something that looked distinctive and has a
powerful sound.
The guitar, although initially a commercial failure did become popular among a certain
group of people that have been on the receiving end of discrimination since the dawn of
human civilization. The basic design element of the guitar, a departure from the traditional
design offered respite to certain guitar players who were otherwise left with no choice and
had to resort to unconventional methods.
Who is this often discriminated community and why did they adopt the Flying V?

82. The Flying V became popular with lefties.
Its symmetrical design allowed them to use the
right – handed guitars flipped without much
hassle.

83. Q17
Shown on the next slide is a painting by Vincent van Gogh which went under the hammer
in 1998 for 71.5 million USD.
What is the title of this aptly named painting?

86. Self Portrait Without Beard.

87. Q18
In the subsequent slides you will see the images of Gran Hotel de la Perla and Café
Iruna, located in the Spanish city of Pamplona. These landmarks have become
immensely popular with tourists since the first quarter of the 20th century as they
were featured in the debut novel of this legendary author. The work follows a
group of Anglo-American friends who journey from Paris to the Festival of San
Fermin in Pamplona.
What work and by whom?
Which modern classic features this festival prominently and also borrows some
plot ideas form the aforementioned work?

92. The Sun Also Rises by Ernest Hemmingway.
Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara.

93. Q19
In the subsequent slide you will see the image of a drawing room.
What happened just after this moment?

97. Q20
The Bogside massacre was an incident that took place on 30th January 1972 in the Bogside
area of Derry, Northern Ireland in which fourteen unarmed protesters who were on the
streets on their off-day were killed by the 1st Battalion of the Parachute Regiment of the
British Army. The incident caused huge uproar in the UK and Ireland and fuelled Irish and
Catholic hostility towards the British army and support for IRA increased.
The massacre popularly known as X Y, was commemorated by which band in a 1983 song?

100. Sunday Bloody Sunday by U2.

101. Q21
Ten Little Indians is an American nursery rhyme that was first composed in the mid-19th
century.
Although many versions of the rhyme exist, including a modern one without the obvious
racist undertone, the most famous of them all could be found at the beginning of a 1945
masterpiece wherein the racist words were sometimes replaced with appropriate
substitutes.
ID the work and the relevance of the rhyme to it.

104. Corresponds to the plot line of And Then There Were
None by Agatha Christie.

105. Q22
When this album was released in 1967, it was a commercial failure. Its controversial
content led to an instantaneous ban from various record stores and many radio stations
refused to play it. Although it failed commercially, partly due to poor publicity and the fact
that the material on it was way ahead of its time, the album was one of the first instances
of what we now call ‘alternative rock’. A decade after its release, the album began to
attract wide praise from rock critics. Christgau wrote in his 1977 retrospective review for
The Village Voice that the record had been difficult to understand in 1967, "which is
probably why people are still learning from it. It sounds intermittently crude, thin, and
pretentious at first, but it never stops getting better.” In 1982, Brian Eno remarked that
while the album initially only sold approximately 30,000 copies, "everyone who bought
one of those 30,000 copies started a band.“
ID the album.

107. Velvet Underground & Nico

108. Q23
In 2007, Cadbury launched their own production company, aptly titled X. The name stems
from a promise that the company makes about a product, which also features visually on
its packaging.
The most popular advert produced by the company is the Gorilla.
In the advert, we meet a gorilla sitting behind a drum kit, nodding along to a classic song
by a drummer-turned singer as he later gets into the groove and starts kicking in the
drums.
What was the name of the production company?
Which song, by whom?

112. A Glass And A Half Full Productions.
In the Air Tonight by Phil Collins.

113. Q24
Saviour of the World is one of the many depiction of Jesus Christ in which he is shown
making a cross with his right hand and holding a crystal orb in the right, representing the
celestial sphere of the heavens.
Why was this depiction of Jesus in the news a few years ago?

115. Salvator Mundi by Da Vinci,
the most expensive painting ever sold.

116. Q25
Once the revered sages Nara-Narayanan were meditating in the holy shrine of Badrinath
Temple situated in the Himalayas. Indra, the king of the Gods, did not want the sage to
acquire divine powers through meditation and sent two apsaras to distract him. Seeing
what was unfolding, Narayanan placed a flower on his thigh and from it rose a nymph
whose beauty was unmatched. Since she originated from the ___ of Narayanan (Sanskrit
word for thigh), she was called X.
Incidentally, X is also the chief protagonist of a popular song from the 90’s whose
cringeworthy cover we had to endure couple of years back.
ID X.

118. Urvashi

119. Q26
With this work, X wanted to reach a wider audience, something that people before him
had tried and failed at. One of his friend in the Cambridge Press advised him that “for
every equation you put in, the sales will drop by half”. X took this advise to heart as he set
upon working on his magnum opus although one can only speculate if this work would
have sold 20 million copies had he not included that one equation, perhaps the most
famous of them all.
ID the work/author and the equation.

121. A Brief History of Time by Prof Stephen Hawking
e=mc2