Q 01/05

In which city was George Bernard Shaw born in 1856?

A) Dublin

B) Belfast

C) London

D) Cork

Answer · why

A) Dublin

He was born at 3 Upper Synge Street in Portobello, a lower-middle-class part of the city.

Q 02/05

Which part of his full name did the playwright insist on dropping?

A) Bernard

B) The initials G.B.S.

C) George

D) Shaw

Answer · why

C) George

He styled himself Bernard Shaw from 1876, and his will licensed publication only under that name.

Q 03/05

Roughly how many plays did Shaw write?

A) About 30

B) More than 100

C) Fewer than 20

D) More than 60

Answer · why

D) More than 60

They range from contemporary satire to historical allegory.

Q 04/05

In which year was Shaw awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature?

A) 1913

B) 1925

C) 1932

D) 1946

Answer · why

B) 1925

Biographer Weintraub wrote that even the Nobel committee could no longer ignore him after Saint Joan.

Q 05/05

Shaw was the first person to win both a Nobel Prize and what other award?

A) An Oscar

B) A Tony Award

C) A Grammy

D) A Pulitzer Prize

Answer · why

A) An Oscar

He called the Academy Award for the Pygmalion screenplay an insult, coming from such a source.