No Funny Business (A Sitcoms Quiz) - Prelims by Quiz Club, IIT Kanpur

Prelims of No Funny Business, a Sitcoms Quiz conducted by Aditya & Devansh at Quiz Club, IIT Kanpur, on 17 June, 2023.

1. NO FUNNY BUSINESS A QUIZ ON SITCOMS AND TV SHOWS - PRELIMS

2. RULES :- This is a quiz primarily on sitcoms but also has a few questions about other shows sprinkled in. Questions that aren’t from sitcoms have been starmarked. Googling is bad, ogling is worse so be good, do neither. QM is the Lord High Commander of All Justice during the quiz.(If you got this reference I really hope to see you in the finals) Hints will be given on the QM’s discretion if enough people ask for it. Prelims will be a written round and have 20 questions +1/0.

3. CREDITS LHC Booking - Aryaman Goel E-Mail - Divit Shah Poster - Sujal Agrawal Quiz Masters - Devansh Bansal and Aditya Padhi

4. 1. *awkward silence* A : “So, I guess that decides it.” B : “Yup” C : “Hanging out at a coffee place is not nearly as much fun as hanging out at a bar” The scene given above is cited by fans as an example of the show it’s from roasting another show, that the first show is often compared unfavourably to. Give the name of both the shows and in no particular order give A,B and C.

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6. 2. What show is being talked about here?

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8. 3. Mr. White and Mr. Cauliflower are what he was originally supposed to be called. Who is this guy?

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10. 4. V(a woman)plays the role of B in the show W. W is a hilarious show about a quintessential upper class family living in an affluent neighbourhood. X, V’s sister (irl) plays the role of C in the Y franchise . Y has had 3 different TV shows and movie with the same characters. It narrates the story of a joint family that faces many typical problems but manages to solve them in very atypical ways. Both the shows W and Y are based in the same city and have catch phrases and dialogues that are iconic and instantly recognisable among people of all age groups and I am sure none of us will ever get tired of watching Y. Give me V,W,X,Y

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12. 5. Chuck Lorre is also known as ‘The King of Sitcoms’ because he has created many award winning popular sitcoms. Here’s some of his notable work. Give Red Yellow and Blue. Red and Blue gets 0.5 points any o ther combination gets 1.

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14. 6. Joe Biden, Michelle Obama, Madeleine Albright, John McCain are some of the politicians that have made a cameo on this show. It shows the inner workings of local government in the United States of America and has been praised for being a subtle yet hard hitting and of course, hilarious political satire. It’s one of the very few comedy shows to have won a Peabody Award. Name the show (0.5) and its creators(0.25 each)

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16. 7. Ted Lasso is a show about the eponymous character, who is an American football coach moving to London to coach a football team playing in the Premier League. In the 11th episode of the 3rd season his team plays a very successful team from the Premier League and that results in a cameo by a very famous(real) member of the opposition team. Name the person who made the cameo(0.5), his team(0) and what unique feat did the team achieve very recently(0.5).

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18. 8.* “March 2nd,1955. A young black woman is arrested for refusing to give up her seat on a bus to a white man in Alabama. Civil rights leaders in the ACLU rush to her side and she will be a symbol of the struggle against segregation. Her name is _____(A)_____ and she is 15 years old. She’s also unmarried and pregnant. Civil rights leaders in the ACLU decide that ___(A)___ is not the best foot forward and stand down. 8 months later _____(B)_____ happens, but during those 8 months, a brilliant and charismatic young minister gets the attention of the community and is chosen to lead the bus boycotts. If ___(A)___ doesn’t get pregnant, if they’d gone in the spring instead of 8 months later, _____(C)_____ is a preacher you’ve never heard of in Montgomery.” This is a part of a monologue made by the protagonist of the show ‘The Newsroom’ in an episode. Give me A(1),B(0.5) and C(0.5).

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20. 9. The creator of this show said that he loosely based 3 of the characters on this show after his own children, Hannah(15), Alexa(13) and Griffin(11). What show is this(0.5) and who is the said creator(0.5)?

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22. 10. X and Y are 2 of the most prolific comedians and comedic actors of all time. It just so happened that one day the 2 happened to wander onto the set of F.R.I.E.N.D.S and asked the writers if they could be included in a scene. The writers happily obliged given the stature and popularity of the actors. Because their appearance on the show was so unplanned the writers didn’t have any roles or lines for them so the actors just ad-libbed their entire performance and thus the entire 90 second sequence was completely improvised. This is the story of one of the funniest cameos on the show. Give X and Y for 0.5 points each.

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24. 11. The first season of this show was supposed to act as a test-run for the series. Reviews throughout the debut season remained mix but ratings steadily declined, which didn't give the cast and crew much hope about the show's future. But due to the sudden burst of fame that the main character X had after the release of Y, the show was renewed for another season and it went on to win the Emmy in the same year for it's second season. Identify X and Y.

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26. 12. "I actually made this(show)as a way to poke fun at the idea of getting cease and desist letters. At the time (October 2006) I had nothing to lose and my original intention was to call this 'back to the future: the new official universal studios cartoon featuring the new Doc Brown and Marty McFly' and then I'd just sit back and wait for a letter from their lawyers to arrive. That's actually why it's so filthy. I was just looking to 'troll' a big studio." This was a comment made by the creator of this show who also happens to voice the two main characters. Guess the show.

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28. 13. In countless interviews, MacFarlane has claimed that the basis for this Family Guy’s character X was a security guard he once knew while attending RISD. MacFarlane described the man as having a “big thick Rhode Island accent, everything was said at this volume, absolutely no self editing whatsoever.” As it turns out, in 2013, ABC 6 news was able to identify Paul Timmins, the former director of public safety at RISD, as MacFarlane’s inspiration for the character. “I'm very proud of it," Timmins joked , still wearing his signature white button-up and glasses. "I am clearly the visual of X because the character of X is an idiot." Identify X.

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30. 14. While eating dinner at a restaurant, Dan Povenmire drew a quick sketch of a "triangle kid" on butcher paper . He tore it out and called Marsh that night to report, "Hey, I think we have our show." The triangle doodle sparked rapid development of characters and designs. Povenmire decided that his sketch "looked like X," and named Y after a friend who "owns more tools than anyone in the world." Id X and Y, the titular characters of the show.

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32. 15. Filmed Before a Live Studio Audience Don't Touch That Dial Now in Color We Interrupt This Program On a Very Special Episode All-new Halloween Spooktacular Breaking the Fourth Wall Previously On The Series Finale Exhaustive list of what?

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34. 16. Connect.

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36. 17. Connect.

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38. 18. Connect.

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40. 19. Connect.

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42. 20. Space Force is a Netflix original which centers on a group of people tasked with establishing the sixth branch of the United States Armed Forces, the United States Space Force. Diana Silvers plays Erin Naird, Mark's teenage daughter. She is often found behind the counter at the military base's Snack Shack named _____ _____. What was it punnily named on a very famous American astronaut?(Blanks aren’t indicative)

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44. ANSWERS

45. 1. *awkward silence* A : “So, I guess that decides it.” B : “Yup” C : “Hanging out at a coffee place is not nearly as much fun as hanging out at a bar” The scene given above is cited by fans as an example of the show it’s from roasting another show, that the first show is often compared unfavourably to. Give the name of both the shows and in no particular order give A,B and C.

46. 1. How I Met Your Mother F.R.I.E.N.D.S A - Ted B - Marshall C - Barney

47. 2. What show is being talked about here?

48. 2. Brooklyn Nine-Nine

49. 3. Mr. White and Mr. Cauliflower are what he was originally supposed to be called. Who is this guy?

50. 3. Mr. Bean

51. 4. V(a woman)plays the role of B in the show W. W is a hilarious show about a quintessential upper class family living in an affluent neighbourhood. X, V’s sister (irl) plays the role of C in the Y franchise. Y has had 3 different TV shows and movie with the same characters. It narrates the story of a joint family that faces many typical problems but manages to solve them in very atypical ways. Both the shows W and Y are based in the same city and have catch phrases and dialogues that are iconic and instantly recognisable among people of all age groups and I am sure none of us will ever get tired of watching Y. Give me V,W,X,Y

52. 4. V - Ratna Pathak Shah W - Sarabhai v/s Sarabhai X - Supriya Pathak Y - Khichdi

53. 5. Chuck Lorre is also known as ‘The King of Sitcoms’ because he has created many award winning popular sitcoms. Here’s some of his notable work. Give Red Yellow and Blue. Red and Blue gets 0.5 points any other combination gets 1.

54. 5. Red - The Big Bang Theory Blue - Young Sheldon Yellow - Two and A Half Men

55. 6. Joe Biden, Michelle Obama, Madeleine Albright, John McCain are some of the politicians that have made a cameo on this show. It shows the inner workings of local government in the United States of America and has been praised for being a subtle yet hard hitting and of course, hilarious political satire. It’s one of the very few comedy shows to have won a Peabody Award. Name the show (0.5) and its creators(0.25 each)

56. 6. Parks and Recreation

57. 7. Ted Lasso is a show about the eponymous character, who is an American football coach moving to London to coach a football team playing in the Premier League. In the 11th episode of the 3rd season his team plays a very successful team from the Premier League and that results in a cameo by a very famous(real) member of the opposition team. Name the person who made the cameo(0.5), his team(0) and what unique feat did the team achieve very recently(0.5).

58. 7. Pep Guardiola Manchester City Treble

59. 8.* “March 2nd,1955. A young black woman is arrested for refusing to give up her seat on a bus to a white man in Alabama. Civil rights leaders in the ACLU rush to her side and she will be a symbol of the struggle against segregation. Her name is _____(A)_____ and she is 15 years old. She’s also unmarried and pregnant. Civil rights leaders in the ACLU decide that ___(A)___ is not the best foot forward and stand down. 8 months later _____(B)_____ happens, but during those 8 months, a brilliant and charismatic young minister gets the attention of the community and is chosen to lead the bus boycotts. If ___(A)___ doesn’t get pregnant, if they’d gone in the spring instead of 8 months later, _____(C)_____ is a preacher you’ve never heard of in Montgomery.” This is a part of a monologue made by the protagonist of the show ‘The Newsroom’ in an episode. Give me A(1),B(0.5) and C(0.5).

60. 8.* X - Claudette Colvin Y - Rosa Parks Z - Martin Luther King Jr

61. 9. The creator of this show said that he loosely based 3 of the characters on this show after his own children, Hannah(15), Alexa(13) and Griffin(11). What show is this(0.5) and who is the said creator(0.5)?

62. 9. Modern Family Steven Levitan

63. 10. X and Y are 2 of the most prolific comedians and comedic actors of all time. It just so happened that one day the 2 happened to wander onto the set of F.R.I.E.N.D.S and asked the writers if they could be included in a scene. The writers happily obliged given the stature and popularity of the actors. Because their appearance on the show was so unplanned the writers didn’t have any roles or lines for them so the actors just ad-libbed their entire performance and thus the entire 90 second sequence was completely improvised. This is the story of one of the funniest cameos on the show. Give X and Y for 0.5 points each.

64. 10. X - Robin Williams Y - Billy Crystal

65. 11. The first season of this show was supposed to act as a test-run for the series. Reviews throughout the debut season remained mix but ratings steadily declined, which didn't give the cast and crew much hope about the show's future. But due to the sudden burst of fame that the main character X had after the release of Y, the show was renewed for another season and it went on to win the Emmy in the same year for it's second season. Identify X and Y.

66. 11. X - The Office Y - The 40-Year-Old Virgin

67. 12. "I actually made this(show)as a way to poke fun at the idea of getting cease and desist letters. At the time (October 2006) I had nothing to lose and my original intention was to call this 'back to the future: the new official universal studios cartoon featuring the new Doc Brown and Marty McFly' and then I'd just sit back and wait for a letter from their lawyers to arrive. That's actually why it's so filthy. I was just looking to 'troll' a big studio." This was a comment made by the creator of this show who also happens to voice the two main characters. Guess the show.

68. 12. Rick and Morty

69. 13. In countless interviews, MacFarlane has claimed that the basis for this Family Guy’s character X was a security guard he once knew while attending RISD. MacFarlane described the man as having a “big thick Rhode Island accent, everything was said at this volume, absolutely no self editing whatsoever.” As it turns out, in 2013, ABC 6 news was able to identify Paul Timmins, the former director of public safety at RISD, as MacFarlane’s inspiration for the character. “I'm very proud of it," Timmins joked , still wearing his signature white button-up and glasses. "I am clearly the visual of X because the character of X is an idiot." Identify X.

70. 13. Peter Griffin

71. 14. While eating dinner at a restaurant, Dan Povenmire drew a quick sketch of a "triangle kid" on butcher paper . He tore it out and called Marsh that night to report, "Hey, I think we have our show." The triangle doodle sparked rapid development of characters and designs. Povenmire decided that his sketch "looked like X," and named Y after a friend who "owns more tools than anyone in the world." Id X and Y, the titular characters of the show.

72. 14. Phineas and Ferb

73. 15. Filmed Before a Live Studio Audience Don't Touch That Dial Now in Color We Interrupt This Program On a Very Special Episode All-new Halloween Spooktacular Breaking the Fourth Wall Previously On The Series Finale Exhaustive list of what?

74. 15. Titles of WandaVision episodes.

75. 16. Connect.

76. 16. Tarak Mehta ka Ooltah Chashmah cameos by Bollywood celebrities

77. 17. Connect.

78. 17. All these shows were created by Michael Schur

79. 18. Connect.

80. 18. Cameos by the spouses of cast members in Brooklyn Nine Nine.

81. 19. Connect.

82. 19. Jim Parsons or Sheldon Cooper both work.

83. 20. Space Force is a Netflix original which centers on a group of people tasked with establishing the sixth branch of the United States Armed Forces, the United States Space Force. Diana Silvers plays Erin Naird, Mark's teenage daughter. She is often found behind the counter at the military base's Snack Shack named ____ _________. What was it punnily named on a very famous American astronaut?

84. 20. Meal Armstrong