Q 01/05

In which Massachusetts mill town was Jack Kerouac born in 1922?

A) Worcester

B) Lowell

C) Springfield

D) Fall River

Answer · why

B) Lowell

He learned English only at six and kept a marked accent into his late teens.

Q 02/05

Kerouac's family spoke which language at home during his childhood?

A) Italian

B) French

C) Portuguese

D) Polish

Answer · why

B) French

His parents were French-Canadian, and the family called him 'Ti Jean'.

Q 03/05

Which two writers are named alongside Kerouac as pioneers of the Beat Generation?

A) Ken Kesey and Hunter S. Thompson

B) William S. Burroughs and Allen Ginsberg

C) Norman Mailer and Gore Vidal, his rivals

D) J. D. Salinger and John Updike

Answer · why

B) William S. Burroughs and Allen Ginsberg

The core group, with Lucien Carr and a Times Square hustler, met around Columbia University in 1944.

Q 04/05

Kerouac's older brother Gerard, later the subject of Visions of Gerard, died of what at the age of nine?

A) Poliomyelitis

B) Rheumatic fever

C) Diphtheria

D) A car accident

Answer · why

B) Rheumatic fever

Four-year-old Jack later said Gerard followed him through life as a guardian angel.

Q 05/05

Kerouac won a scholarship to Columbia University for his talent in which sport?

A) Baseball

B) Football

C) Boxing

D) Track

Answer · why

B) Football

He was a high-school running back; Boston College and Notre Dame also made offers.