54 trivia questions from 1966, with answers
Seven rounds about 1966 for a 60th birthday party in 2026 or a 60s night: the year in the news, the space race, sports, films, songs, TV, and famous people born in 1966. Every answer links to its source.
54 questions · 1966 trivia questions with answers · answers included
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The year in the news
- 1
In 1966 the Supreme Court ruled that police must tell suspects they have the right to remain silent before questioning them. What is the case called?
easy
Hint: The warning police read out still carries the same name.
AnswerMiranda v. Arizona.
The 5–4 decision came on June 13, 1966, and overturned Ernesto Miranda's conviction.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miranda_v._Arizona?oldid=1383245755
- 2
Which film actor and future president won his first term as governor of California in 1966?
easy
Hint: He later spent eight years in the White House.
AnswerRonald Reagan.
He beat the Democratic governor Pat Brown, who had already won the job twice.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1966_California_gubernatorial_election?oldid=1382408208
- 3
In 1966 Massachusetts elected the first African American to the U.S. Senate by popular vote. Who was he?
medium
Hint: A Republican, and the state's top lawyer before the Senate.
AnswerEdward Brooke.
Before that he was the state's attorney general, the first African American elected attorney general of any state.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_Brooke?oldid=1378512591
- 4
Which women's rights group was founded in 1966, with a statement of purpose that Betty Friedan first scribbled on a napkin?
medium
Hint: Its short name is a three-letter word meaning "at this moment".
AnswerThe National Organization for Women (NOW).
Friedan and Pauli Murray wrote the statement, and the group counted 49 founders after its October 1966 organizing conference.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Organization_for_Women?oldid=1383289276
- 5
Who was elected prime minister of India in January 1966?
easy
Hint: The daughter of India's first prime minister.
AnswerIndira Gandhi.
She served from 1966 to 1977, and again from 1980 until her death in 1984.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indira_Gandhi?oldid=1383031996
- 6
Which South American country, until then called British Guiana, became independent on May 26, 1966?
medium
Hint: Its old name is in the question, nearly.
AnswerGuyana.
It became a republic in 1970 and stayed in the Commonwealth.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guyana?oldid=1383521259
- 7
Which Caribbean island became independent from the United Kingdom on November 30, 1966?
medium
Hint: The easternmost island of the Caribbean; its capital is Bridgetown.
AnswerBarbados.
It became a Commonwealth realm, with Elizabeth II as Queen of Barbados.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barbados?oldid=1381539314
- 8
Which law, signed by President Johnson in 1966, lets the public ask federal agencies for their records?
hard
Hint: People call it by its three initials: FOIA.
AnswerThe Freedom of Information Act.
It went into effect the following year.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1966_in_the_United_States?oldid=1377606012
The space race
- 9
In February 1966, which country's probe made the first soft landing on the Moon?
medium
Hint: The same country put the first person in space.
AnswerThe Soviet Union's, with Luna 9.
It was the twelfth Soviet try at a soft landing, and it sent back pictures from the surface.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luna_9?oldid=1378541039
- 10
Four months after Luna 9, which probe became the first American spacecraft to soft-land on the Moon?
medium
Hint: Its name means someone who measures land.
AnswerSurveyor 1.
It came down on the Ocean of Storms on June 2, 1966.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Surveyor_1?oldid=1355824890
- 11
In March 1966, Gemini 8 made the first docking of two spacecraft in orbit. Who was its command pilot, three years before he walked on the Moon?
medium
Hint: The first person on the Moon.
AnswerNeil Armstrong.
He and David Scott lost control of the craft during the docking, so the mission was cut short.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gemini_8?oldid=1372844559
- 12
On Gemini 12, the last crewed Gemini flight in November 1966, which astronaut made three spacewalks lasting 5 and a half hours in all?
medium
Hint: Three years later he became the second person on the Moon.
AnswerBuzz Aldrin.
His crewmate was James Lovell, the flight's commander.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gemini_12?oldid=1381403316
- 13
In April 1966, the Soviet probe Luna 10 was the first spacecraft to do what around the Moon?
hard
Hint: It went round, not down.
AnswerOrbit it: Luna 10 was the Moon's first artificial satellite.
It also found the first evidence of mascons, dense areas below the surface that bend orbits.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luna_10?oldid=1378526778
- 14
On March 1, 1966, Venera 3 became the first space probe to hit the surface of another planet. Which one?
hard
Hint: The closest planet to Earth, and the hottest.
AnswerVenus.
The Soviet probe's entry capsule crashed there.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Venera_3?oldid=1356371034
- 15
Lunar Orbiter 1, the first American spacecraft to orbit the Moon, also took the first two pictures of what, seen from the Moon?
hard
Hint: Home.
AnswerEarth.
It was launched on August 10, 1966.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lunar_Orbiter_1?oldid=1368912496
Sports
- 16
Who scored a hat-trick in the 1966 World Cup final?
easy
Hint: An England striker; his third goal came in the last minute.
AnswerGeoff Hurst, for England.
England beat West Germany 4–2 after extra time, and his was the first hat-trick in a World Cup final.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1966_FIFA_World_Cup_final?oldid=1381730610
- 17
Four months before the 1966 World Cup, the stolen trophy turned up in south London, wrapped in newspaper. Who found it?
medium
Hint: He was out for a walk.
AnswerPickles, a black and white collie dog.
He found it a week after the theft, out on a walk with his owner, and was invited to England's celebration banquet.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pickles_(dog)?oldid=1382977549
- 18
What was World Cup Willie, the 1966 World Cup's mascot?
hard
Hint: The animal on England's badge.
AnswerA cartoon lion in a Union Jack jersey.
The jersey said "WORLD CUP".
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1966_FIFA_World_Cup?oldid=1381218843
- 19
In the 1966 NCAA basketball final, which team beat top-ranked Kentucky?
medium
Hint: A school from El Paso; the film about it is Glory Road.
AnswerTexas Western, now UTEP.
Coached by Don Haskins, it won 72–65 with five African American starters, the story of the 2006 film Glory Road.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1966_NCAA_University_Division_basketball_tournament?oldid=1346110226
- 20
Which team swept the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 1966 World Series for its first championship?
medium
Hint: A Maryland team named after a bird.
AnswerThe Baltimore Orioles.
They took Game 4 by 1–0, and the Dodgers had never been swept in a World Series before or since.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1966_World_Series?oldid=1380613664
- 21
In 1966, who became the first woman to run the whole Boston Marathon?
medium
Hint: Her first name is a nickname for Roberta.
AnswerBobbi Gibb.
The race director had written to her that, under the amateur rules, women were not allowed to run that far, so she hid in the bushes near the start, in her brother's Bermuda shorts and a hooded sweatshirt.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bobbi_Gibb?oldid=1372677619
- 22
The two pro football leagues, the AFL and the NFL, announced their merger on June 8, 1966. Which yearly game did the deal create?
medium
Hint: It is still the biggest game of the football year.
AnswerA championship game between the two leagues' champions, later known as the Super Bowl.
The first was played in January 1967, and the leagues fully merged before the 1970 season.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AFL%E2%80%93NFL_merger?oldid=1358133866
- 23
On March 12, 1966, which Chicago star became the first NHL player to score more than 50 goals in a season?
hard
Hint: His nickname was the Golden Jet.
AnswerBobby Hull.
He passed the 50 goals of Maurice Richard, Bernie Geoffrion and his own earlier season.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bobby_Hull?oldid=1382461997
At the movies
- 24
In The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (1966), who played "the Good"?
easy
Hint: He later directed Unforgiven.
AnswerClint Eastwood.
Lee Van Cleef played the Bad and Eli Wallach the Ugly.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Good,_the_Bad_and_the_Ugly?oldid=1383614025
- 25
Who directed The Good, the Bad and the Ugly?
medium
Hint: An Italian; the film's genre is named after his country's food.
AnswerSergio Leone.
It is a 1966 Italian spaghetti Western, and Ennio Morricone wrote its music.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Good,_the_Bad_and_the_Ugly?oldid=1383614025
- 26
In Fantastic Voyage (1966), a submarine crew is shrunk to microscopic size and sent where?
medium
Hint: Think veins, not oceans.
AnswerInto the body of an injured scientist.
Raquel Welch, in her first role at Fox, was one of the crew.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fantastic_Voyage?oldid=1381703565
- 27
Which film about Sir Thomas More won Best Picture for 1966?
medium
Hint: The title says More suited every time of year.
AnswerA Man for All Seasons.
Paul Scofield won Best Actor as More, and Fred Zinnemann won Best Director.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/39th_Academy_Awards?oldid=1380809470
- 28
Elizabeth Taylor won Best Actress for 1966 as Martha in which film?
medium
Hint: The title asks a question about an English novelist.
AnswerWho's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
Richard Burton, nominated as George in the same film, lost Best Actor, and she was so annoyed she held no press conference for two weeks.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/39th_Academy_Awards?oldid=1380809470
- 29
Which 1966 film's title song, sung by Matt Monro, won the Oscar for Best Original Song?
hard
Hint: Two words; the second rhymes with "tree".
AnswerBorn Free.
Monro recorded a shorter version for the closing credits, which let the song qualify for the Oscar.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Born_Free_(Matt_Monro_song)?oldid=1372941307
On the radio
- 30
Which Beach Boys album, released in May 1966, did Brian Wilson produce, arrange and mostly write?
easy
Hint: Animals feature in its title.
AnswerPet Sounds.
Tony Asher wrote lyrics with him, and "Wouldn't It Be Nice" and "Sloop John B" were among its singles.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pet_Sounds?oldid=1382957907
- 31
The Beatles' 1966 album Revolver came with a double A-side single: "Eleanor Rigby" and which other song?
medium
Hint: We all live in one.
Answer"Yellow Submarine".
McCartney and Lennon wrote it as a children's song, for Ringo Starr to sing.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Revolver_(Beatles_album)?oldid=1382958743
- 32
Where did the Beatles play their final paid concert, on August 29, 1966?
medium
Hint: A ballpark in a California city by the bay.
AnswerCandlestick Park, in San Francisco.
It was the last stop of their 1966 U.S. tour.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Beatles'_1966_US_tour?oldid=1370367499
- 33
Billboard's top single of 1966 was written in a cold New York winter by a couple missing the sunshine. Which song?
medium
Hint: All the leaves are brown, and the sky is gray.
Answer"California Dreamin'", by the Mamas & the Papas.
John and Michelle Phillips wrote it in 1963; the band's single came out in December 1965.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/California_Dreamin'?oldid=1382946365
- 34
Nancy Sinatra's 1966 hit says "These ... are made for walkin'". What are they?
easy
Hint: Worn on the feet, up to the knee.
AnswerBoots.
It was Billboard's sixth biggest single of 1966; Frank Sinatra's "Strangers in the Night" was eighth.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Billboard_Year-End_Hot_100_singles_of_1966?oldid=1366264664
- 35
Which Frank Sinatra song won Record of the Year at the Grammys held in 1967?
medium
Hint: A song about two people who meet after dark.
Answer"Strangers in the Night".
It also won him Best Male Pop Vocal Performance.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strangers_in_the_Night?oldid=1378563596
- 36
Which 1966 number-one song did Barry Sadler, a U.S. Army Special Forces medic, co-write and sing?
medium
Hint: Named after the Special Forces' hats.
Answer"The Ballad of the Green Berets".
It spent five weeks at number one on the Billboard Hot 100.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Ballad_of_the_Green_Berets?oldid=1381736998
- 37
Which Monkees hit, recorded in 1966, knocked the Beach Boys' "Good Vibrations" off the top of the charts?
medium
Hint: It begins with "I thought love was only true in fairy tales".
Answer"I'm a Believer".
"Good Vibrations", which Capitol sold as a "pocket symphony", had two weeks at number one before it.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Good_Vibrations?oldid=1382950353
- 38
"96 Tears", Billboard's second biggest single of 1966, was by a band whose name starts with a punctuation mark. Which band?
hard
Hint: The punctuation mark ends a question.
Answer? and the Mysterians.
"California Dreamin'" was the year's number one.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Billboard_Year-End_Hot_100_singles_of_1966?oldid=1366264664
On TV
- 39
Which science fiction series premiered on NBC on September 8, 1966, with an episode called "The Man Trap"?
easy
Hint: Its ship is the Enterprise.
AnswerStar Trek.
NBC canceled it after three seasons and 79 episodes.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Star_Trek:_The_Original_Series?oldid=1383322146
- 40
Adam West got the part of TV's Batman after the producer saw him in an ad for which chocolate milk drink?
medium
Hint: A Swiss food company makes it.
AnswerNestlé Quik.
He played a James Bond-like spy called Captain Q in it; Batman began on ABC on January 12, 1966.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Batman_(TV_series)?oldid=1382572835
- 41
Which band, put together for an NBC sitcom about a band, first appeared on TV on September 12, 1966?
easy
Hint: Their name is a misspelled animal.
AnswerThe Monkees.
The series ran for two seasons, to March 1968.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Monkees_(TV_series)?oldid=1374563845
- 42
Which spy series, launched on CBS in 1966, gave its agents their orders on a tape that would "self-destruct"?
medium
Hint: Its title says the job cannot be done.
AnswerMission: Impossible.
"This tape will self-destruct in five seconds"; the series ran for seven seasons, to 1973.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mission:_Impossible_(1966_TV_series)?oldid=1372810608
- 43
Which actor narrated How the Grinch Stole Christmas! and voiced the Grinch, when CBS first showed it on December 18, 1966?
medium
Hint: His first name is Boris.
AnswerBoris Karloff.
The special took a year to make.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/How_the_Grinch_Stole_Christmas!_(TV_special)?oldid=1382518754
- 44
In It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown (1966), what does Charlie Brown get every time he goes trick-or-treating?
easy
Hint: Not candy, and not soft.
AnswerA rock.
Charles Schulz came up with the rock; when the producer called it too cruel, Schulz and Bill Melendez answered with three rocks.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/It's_the_Great_Pumpkin,_Charlie_Brown?oldid=1383505885
- 45
Which ABC daytime soap opera began on June 27, 1966, and was soon telling stories of the supernatural?
medium
Hint: The title is what a gothic house casts.
AnswerDark Shadows.
Its vampire, Barnabas Collins, arrived in April 1967 and became the show's main character.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dark_Shadows?oldid=1381206703
- 46
Which party game took off after Eva Gabor played it with Johnny Carson on The Tonight Show on May 3, 1966?
medium
Hint: Left hand, red.
AnswerTwister.
Milton Bradley first planned to call it Pretzel, but another company owned that name for a toy dog.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twister_(game)?oldid=1372008502
Born in 1966
- 47
Which boxer, born in 1966, became the youngest heavyweight champion ever, at 20?
easy
Hint: From Brooklyn, nicknamed Iron Mike.
AnswerMike Tyson.
He won the title at 20 years and 4 months.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mike_Tyson?oldid=1383047287
- 48
Which actress, born in 1966, won Best Actress for Monster's Ball (2001)?
medium
Hint: She played Storm in the X-Men films.
AnswerHalle Berry.
She later went to the Razzies in person to accept Worst Actress for another film, holding her Oscar.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halle_Berry?oldid=1383614354
- 49
Which chef, born in 1966, has hosted the American Hell's Kitchen since 2005?
easy
Hint: He was born in Johnstone, Scotland.
AnswerGordon Ramsay.
He also hosts Kitchen Nightmares and MasterChef in the US.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gordon_Ramsay?oldid=1381730284
- 50
Which singer, born in 1966, is the youngest of the ten Jackson children?
medium
Hint: Michael was her older brother.
AnswerJanet Jackson.
She began as a child actress, in Good Times, Diff'rent Strokes and Fame.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Janet_Jackson?oldid=1380247883
- 51
Which comedian, born in 1966, was a Saturday Night Live cast member from 1990 to 1995?
medium
Hint: Happy Gilmore and The Waterboy are his.
AnswerAdam Sandler.
Dennis Miller saw his act in Los Angeles and recommended him to the show's producer, Lorne Michaels.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adam_Sandler?oldid=1383202563
- 52
Which actor, born in 1966, played Jack Bauer in the Fox series 24?
medium
Hint: His father, Donald, was an actor too.
AnswerKiefer Sutherland.
The role won him a Primetime Emmy and a Golden Globe.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kiefer_Sutherland?oldid=1383093706
- 53
Which actress, born in 1966, played the witch Bellatrix Lestrange in the last four Harry Potter films?
hard
Hint: She also played Miss Havisham in Great Expectations (2012).
AnswerHelena Bonham Carter.
She was born in London on May 26, 1966.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Helena_Bonham_Carter?oldid=1383056652
- 54
Which actress, born in 1966, played the painter Frida Kahlo in Frida (2002)?
hard
Hint: She was born in Mexico.
AnswerSalma Hayek.
The role made her the first Mexican actress nominated for the Oscar for Best Actress.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salma_Hayek?oldid=1380755647
Use this set at a 60th birthday party
Read a question, allow thinking time, then invite an answer. Play the guest of honor against the room: they answer each question alone, everyone else answers together, and the side with more right answers wins. Save the last round, Born in 1966, for the end: everyone in it turns 60 the same year as the guest of honor. A guest born in 1966 remembers the 70s and 80s best, so add a decades round for the years they lived through.
Timer and team scores
8 turns × 60 seconds = 8 minutes of play, plus instructions and breaks.
60
Pause whenever the group needs more time.
Team Lime's turn
Team Lime: 0
Team Violet: 0
Team Tangerine: 0
Team Sky: 0
Team Lemon: 0
Team Bubblegum: 0