John Frankenheimer Quiz Questions and Answers
1. Where was John Frankenheimer born?
A) Los Angeles, California
B) Queens, New York
C) Chicago, Illinois
D) Boston, Massachusetts
Answer: B) Queens, New York
2. What was John Frankenheimer’s initial career aspiration before directing?
A) Professional tennis player
B) Actor
C) Screenwriter
D) Cinematographer
Answer: A) Professional tennis player
3. In which branch of the military did Frankenheimer serve, where he discovered his talent for handling a camera?
A) Navy
B) Army
C) Air Force
D) Marines
Answer: C) Air Force
4. Which television network hired Frankenheimer as an assistant director in 1953?
A) NBC
B) CBS
C) ABC
D) PBS
Answer: B) CBS
5. What was John Frankenheimer’s first feature film?
A) The Young Savages
B) The Young Stranger
C) Birdman of Alcatraz
D) The Manchurian Candidate
Answer: B) The Young Stranger
6. How many live television dramas did Frankenheimer direct in the 1950s and early 1960s?
A) Around 50
B) Over 100
C) Over 150
D) Around 75
Answer: C) Over 150
7. Which actor collaborated with Frankenheimer on five films, starting with The Young Savages?
A) Burt Lancaster
B) Frank Sinatra
C) Rock Hudson
D) Kirk Douglas
Answer: A) Burt Lancaster
8. Which 1962 film is considered John Frankenheimer’s most remarkable cinematic work?
A) Seven Days in May
B) The Manchurian Candidate
C) Birdman of Alcatraz
D) All Fall Down
Answer: B) The Manchurian Candidate
9. What was the primary theme in Frankenheimer’s films, as described by the director himself?
A) Exploring family dynamics
B) Romantic relationships
C) Pushing characters to their physical or emotional limits
D) Historical accuracy
Answer: C) Pushing characters to their physical or emotional limits
10. Which film marked Frankenheimer’s first use of color cinematography?
A) The Train
B) Grand Prix
C) Seconds
D) The Fixer
Answer: B) Grand Prix
11. Which historical event influenced the release context of The Manchurian Candidate?
A) Cuban Missile Crisis
B) Vietnam War
C) Korean War
D) Watergate Scandal
Answer: A) Cuban Missile Crisis
12. Which film features a World War II resistance leader reclaiming French art treasures?
A) Black Sunday
B) The Train
C) Seven Days in May
D) Ronin
Answer: B) The Train
13. How many Emmy Awards did Frankenheimer win in the 1990s for television movies?
A) Two
B) Three
C) Four
D) Five
Answer: C) Four
14. Which television movie directed by Frankenheimer won a Golden Globe for Best Miniseries or Television Film?
A) Against the Wall
B) The Burning Season
C) Andersonville
D) George Wallace
Answer: D) George Wallace
15. Which Frankenheimer film is described as a “surreal and disturbing tale” about a man seeking a new identity?
A) The Fixer
B) Seconds
C) The Gypsy Moths
D) I Walk the Line
Answer: B) Seconds
16. Which actor played the lead role in Frankenheimer’s The Fixer?
A) Alan Bates
B) Burt Lancaster
C) Rock Hudson
D) James Garner
Answer: A) Alan Bates
17. What was the budget of The Train, which received an Academy Award nomination for its screenplay?
A) $3.5 million
B) $6.7 million
C) $8.2 million
D) $5.1 million
Answer: B) $6.7 million
18. Which film did Frankenheimer direct that was a sequel to a 1971 classic?
A) Black Sunday
B) The Island of Dr. Moreau
C) French Connection II
D) Ronin
Answer: C) French Connection II
19. Which Frankenheimer film used split-screen techniques to depict racing action?
A) The Train
B) Grand Prix
C) Ronin
D) The Horsemen
Answer: B) Grand Prix
20. Which director’s influence is noted in Frankenheimer’s handling of train sequences in The Train?
A) Alfred Hitchcock
B) Orson Welles
C) Sergei Eisenstein
D) William Wyler
Answer: C) Sergei Eisenstein
21. What personal struggle did Frankenheimer face during the 1970s and 1980s?
A) Financial bankruptcy
B) Alcoholism
C) Legal disputes
D) Health issues
Answer: B) Alcoholism
22. Which Frankenheimer film was a critical and commercial disappointment but later gained a cult following?
A) Seconds
B) The Young Savages
C) The Horsemen
D) Prophecy
Answer: A) Seconds
23. Which anthology series did Frankenheimer contribute to with episodes like “The Comedian”?
A) The Twilight Zone
B) Playhouse 90
C) Alfred Hitchcock Presents
D) Studio One
Answer: B) Playhouse 90
24. Who was Frankenheimer’s favorite actor growing up?
A) James Cagney
B) Humphrey Bogart
C) Robert Mitchum
D) Marlon Brando
Answer: C) Robert Mitchum
25. Which film did Frankenheimer direct that starred Robert De Niro as a former CIA agent?
A) Ronin
B) Black Sunday
C) The Island of Dr. Moreau
D) Reindeer Games
Answer: A) Ronin