Q 01/05

What was the profession of both of Robert De Niro's parents?

A) Painters

B) Actors

C) Restaurateurs

D) Teachers

Answer · why

A) Painters

Painters both, they were Greenwich Village artists who split when he was a toddler; decades later De Niro hung his father's big canvases on the walls ...

Q 02/05

What childhood nickname did De Niro earn for his pale complexion?

A) Bobby Ghost

B) Bobby Snow

C) Bobby Milk

D) Bobby Chalk

Answer · why

C) Bobby Milk

Bobby Milk was what the street kids of his Manhattan neighbourhood called the pale, sickly-looking teenager, who ran with a fairly tame local crew lon...

Q 03/05

De Niro's stage debut at age 10 was as which character in The Wizard of Oz?

A) The Tin Man

B) The Scarecrow

C) The Cowardly Lion

D) The Wicked Witch

Answer · why

C) The Cowardly Lion

The Cowardly Lion was an apt first part for a shy, sickly-looking boy, who found that performing was what eased his shyness.

Q 04/05

De Niro was introduced to the Stanislavski system at the New York conservatory of which acting teacher?

A) Sanford Meisner

B) Michael Chekhov

C) Stella Adler

D) Viola Spolin

Answer · why

C) Stella Adler

Stella Adler had studied with Stanislavski himself in 1934 and came home teaching actors to build a role from imagination, not just their own memories...

Q 05/05

Which director cast De Niro in Greetings and Hi, Mom! before he ever worked with Scorsese?

A) Roger Corman

B) Francis Ford Coppola

C) Brian De Palma

D) John Cassavetes

Answer · why

C) Brian De Palma

Brian De Palma had already filmed him in 1963 for The Wedding Party, but it sat unreleased until 1969, so De Niro's first screen role reached cinemas ...