# Trivia question: U.S. Presidents **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [May 28, 2012, 11:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-question-u-s-presidents/623396 "2012-05-28T23:53:57Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2012, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-question-u-s-presidents/623396/81 "2012-06-04T18:17:12Z")
> [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](#): > > Neither Jefferson nor Grant (although Twain did help Grant find a publisher for his memoirs). Can I get a lifeline here? **In general** , what was the praise in response to? Knowing what I know about Twain, I just can’t think of any other pre-1910 presidents he might have admired. 😕 ---
**Author:** ![Idle\_Thoughts](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/838e76/32.png) [@Idle\_Thoughts](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Idle_Thoughts)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2012, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-question-u-s-presidents/623396/82 "2012-06-04T19:46:24Z")
> [@etv78](#): > > :rolleyes: I’m well aware of the amendment process. I thought that the order was always POTUS,VPOTUS, SoHoR. > > P.S. this is what I get for reading your post (i.e. you’re on ignore) Just so you know, it’s [against the rules](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=7697065&postcount=13) to say who is on your ignore list (unless you’re in the Pit). Please don’t do this again outside of the Pit. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2012, 11:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-question-u-s-presidents/623396/83 "2012-06-04T23:49:39Z")
> [@42fish](#): > > Lyndon B. Johnson. According to various anecdote collections\*, LBJ interrupted Bill Moyers saying grace to complain that he couldn’t hear what Moyers was saying. Moyers responded, ‘I wasn’t speaking to you, Mr. President.’… Correctamundo! **terentii** , Twain unexpectedly praised a pre-1900 President, in recognition of his simply doing a good job. ---
**Author:** ![etv78](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/d78d45/32.png) [@etv78](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/etv78)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2012, 2:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-question-u-s-presidents/623396/84 "2012-06-05T02:06:32Z")
> [@Idle\_Thoughts](#): > > Just so you know, it’s [against the rules](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=7697065&postcount=13) to say who is on your ignore list (unless you’re in the Pit). Please don’t do this again outside of the Pit. Sorry **Idle**. My bad. ---
**Author:** ![PandaBear77](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/edb3f5/32.png) [@PandaBear77](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PandaBear77)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2012, 3:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-question-u-s-presidents/623396/85 "2012-06-05T03:46:29Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > Gerald Ford. I believe he was the House minority leader. [spoiler]He was also eaten by wolves. He was delicious. [/spoiler] What VP keeled over while making a speech? (Note: he wasn’t a sitting VP at the time.) ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2012, 5:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-question-u-s-presidents/623396/86 "2012-06-05T05:18:41Z")
> [@PandaBear77](#): > > …What VP keeled over while making a speech? (Note: he wasn’t a sitting VP at the time.) Alben Barkley, Truman’s former VP (and the original bearer of the term “Veep”). ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2012, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-question-u-s-presidents/623396/87 "2012-06-05T17:25:04Z")
> [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](#): > > - Don’t look: How many stars on the President’s flag, in all? > > - Don’t look: How many stars on the Vice President’s flag, in all? OK, I’ll give you the answers. It’s 63 and 17, respectively. The President’s has 50 in a circle for the current fifty states, of course, and another 13 over the eagle’s head, for the original 13 states: > **[File:Flag of the President of the United States.svg](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Flag_of_the_President_of_the_United_States_of_America.svg)** > > (All user names refer to en.wikipedia) > Click on a date/time to view the file as it appeared at that time. > You cannot overwrite this file. The following 42 pages use this file: The VP’s has four (one in each corner), and the 13 over the eagle’s head: > **[File:Flag of the Vice President of the United States.svg](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:US_Vice_President_Flag.svg)** > > Design from the Army Institute of Heraldry and Executive Order 11884 > Deutsch ∙ English ∙ فارسی ∙ 日本語 ∙ русский ∙ +/− > \[\[File:Flag of the Vice President of the United States.svg|border|96x176px\]\] > Click on a date/time to view the file as it appeared at that time. ---
**Author:** ![bahia\_hombre](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@bahia\_hombre](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bahia_hombre)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2012, 9:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-question-u-s-presidents/623396/88 "2012-06-05T21:44:54Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > Mrs Hayes was also the first First Lady to be a college graduate. > > Who was the most recent First Lady to not be a college graduate? Who was the most recent First Lady to not attend college (sort of) and to not attend college (definitely)? Who was the first prez to graduate from law school? ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2012, 3:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-question-u-s-presidents/623396/89 "2012-06-06T03:39:14Z")
> [@bahia\_hombre](#): > > Who was the first prez to graduate from law school? William Howard Taft, from Yale Law? ---
**Author:** ![bahia\_hombre](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@bahia\_hombre](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bahia_hombre)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2012, 11:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-question-u-s-presidents/623396/90 "2012-06-06T23:36:27Z")
> [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](#): > > William Howard Taft, from Yale Law? Nope…before Taft. ---
**Author:** ![panamajack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/47e85d/32.png) [@panamajack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panamajack)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2012, 5:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-question-u-s-presidents/623396/91 "2012-06-07T05:54:09Z")
> [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](#): > > - Mark Twain praised which U.S. President? Hey, it could be T. R. Mark Twain did have this to say: > [@](#): > > This is incomparably the greatest victory that was ever achieved by the Christian soldiers of the United States . . . So far as I can find out, there was only one person among our eighty millions who allowed himself the privilege of a public remark on this great occasion – that was the President of the United States . . I am far from blaming him. If I had been in his place my official duty would have compelled me to say what he said. (For those who don’t recognize the quote, Twain is far from praising anyone in this. It’s about the Moro Massacre.) Twain did have positive things to say about Grant, at least in reference to his memoirs. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2012, 7:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-question-u-s-presidents/623396/92 "2012-06-09T07:27:29Z")
> [@bahia\_hombre](#): > > Who was the first prez to graduate from law school? John Adams? He was council for the British troopers after the Boston Massacre (1770?). ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2012, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-question-u-s-presidents/623396/93 "2012-06-11T20:01:09Z")
Will somebody tell me if I’m right or not? I’ve refrained from Googling so far… 😕 ---
**Author:** ![bahia\_hombre](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@bahia\_hombre](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bahia_hombre)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2012, 2:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-question-u-s-presidents/623396/94 "2012-06-12T02:14:05Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > John Adams? He was council for the British troopers after the Boston Massacre (1770?). No. According to my cereal box, he would have been president not too long after the Civil War.. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2012, 5:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-question-u-s-presidents/623396/95 "2012-06-13T05:01:00Z")
Still unanswered: > [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](#): > > - Mark Twain praised which U.S. President? > > - Which President had a dog named Sweetlips? > > - Which said he preferred a preacher “who looks like he’s fighting bees?” Chester Arthur. Everyone thought Arthur would be a hack, since he came from NYC’s Tammany machine, but he turned out to be a pretty good President, incl. backing civil service reform, and Twain was pleasantly surprised by that. George Washington had a dog named Sweetlips. It was Lincoln who liked energetic preachers. Some more questions for you: - Which future President met Theodore Roosevelt in Buffalo, N.Y. not long after T.R. was first sworn into office in Sept. 1901? - Which future President had to borrow money in order to afford to attend his own inauguration? - Which future President saw Jefferson Davis as a captive of Federal troops? - Which three Presidents personally exercised CINC authority in the field? - What typo was made on commemorative pens during the Clinton impeachment trial? ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2012, 9:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-question-u-s-presidents/623396/96 "2012-06-13T09:07:05Z")
> [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](#): > > - Which future President met Theodore Roosevelt in Buffalo, N.Y. not long after T.R. was first sworn into office in Sept. 1901? His cousin Franklin and his new bride Eleanor? > [@](#): > > - Which future President had to borrow money in order to afford to attend his own inauguration? JFK? He never carried cash, and Jacqueline sometimes had to pay for their dates. > [@](#): > > - Which future President saw Jefferson Davis as a captive of Federal troops? US Grant? > [@](#): > > - Which three Presidents personally exercised CINC authority in the field? While in office, on actual battlefields? Washington (during the Whiskey Rebellion and Shay’s Rebellion)? Madison (during the war of 1812)? Jackson (during Indian uprisings)? ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2012, 9:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-question-u-s-presidents/623396/97 "2012-06-13T09:09:25Z")
> [@bahia\_hombre](#): > > No. According to my cereal box, he would have been president not too long after the Civil War. Don’t think it was Grant, who graduated West Point. Andrew Johnson? Benjamin Harrison? ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2012, 9:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-question-u-s-presidents/623396/98 "2012-06-13T09:20:34Z")
> [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](#): > > - Which future President had to borrow money in order to afford to attend his own inauguration? Or it might have been Jefferson, who (despite appearances) lived in a state of perpetual debt. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2012, 1:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-question-u-s-presidents/623396/99 "2012-06-13T13:32:23Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > His cousin Franklin and his new bride Eleanor? > > JFK? He never carried cash, and Jacqueline sometimes had to pay for their dates. > > US Grant? > > While in office, on actual battlefields? Washington (during the Whiskey Rebellion and Shay’s Rebellion)? Madison (during the war of 1812)? Jackson (during Indian uprisings)? No as to the first three (and the one who borrowed money for his own inauguration wasn’t Jefferson, either). Yes, Washington during the Whiskey Rebellion (Shays’ Rebellion was before he took office) and Madison during the War of 1812. The third was not Jackson. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2012, 1:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-question-u-s-presidents/623396/100 "2012-06-13T13:48:44Z")
> [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](#): > > No as to the first three (and the one who borrowed money for his own inauguration wasn’t Jefferson, either). > > Yes, Washington during the Whiskey Rebellion (Shays’ Rebellion was before he took office) and Madison during the War of 1812. The third was not Jackson. OK… Could TR have met with Taft in 1901? Wasn’t he a big figure (no pun intended) in Republican politics at the time? I know that Lincoln actually visited a number of battlefields during the Civil War. Did he ever exercise his options as CINC in the field? Grant was also pretty down-and-out most of the time (the money from his memoirs was about the only thing he left his family, as I recall). [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-question-u-s-presidents/623396.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-question-u-s-presidents/623396.md?page=6)