Sci-Fi Channel Trivia Book [Paperback]

John G. Betancourt (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Fair warning--these are not the same old trivia questions that can be answered by any namby-pamby SF person-come-lately who considers themselves a fan. Many of these are very tough, very obscure, very, very, well, trivial! Can you name the character actor who appeared on "The Adventures of Superman" playing hoods named Lefty, Carni, and Leftover Louie? Do you know how far away the planet Zann is from Earth? Do you know what famous science fiction author also wrote one of the Ellery Queen mystery novels? If so, you'll clobber your friends at these questions.

Review

Fantasy and horror trivia from the TV channel will delight fans of science fiction and the channel alike, posing intriguing questions and presenting a range of trivia facts. The question-and-answer format provides checklists and so may not be suitable for library lending; but consumers will find it an excellent gift choice for any science fiction fan. -- Midwest Book Review

Product Details

• Paperback: 422 pages
• Publisher: Berkley Trade (November 1, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 157297110X
• ISBN-13: 978-1572971103
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,849,366 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

John Gregory Betancourt (b. October 25, 1963 in Missouri) is a writer of science fiction, fantasy and mystery novels as well as short stories. He has worked as an assistant editor at "Amazing Storie"s and editor of "Horror: The Newsmagazine of the Horror Field," the revived "Weird Tales" magazine, the first issue of "H. P. Lovecraft's Magazine of Horror" (which he subsequently hired Marvin Kaye to edit), "Cat Tales" (which he subsequently hired George H. Scithers to edit), and "Adventure Tales" magazine. He is the writer of four Star Trek novels and the new "Chronicles of Amber" prequel series, as well as a dozen original novels. His essays, articles, and reviews have appeared in such diverse publications as "Writer's Digest," "The Washington Post," and "Amazing Stories."

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Sink Your Teeth Into This One...., October 8, 2002

By 

L. Shirley "Laurie's Boomer Views" (Huntington Beach,CA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Sci-Fi Channel Trivia Book (Paperback)

So...Your waiting your turn to get on the family computer,or your watching the Oscar's (hoping this will be the year they give a nod to sci-fi/horror films,)and they're having one of those musical numbers, or worse...your cable's gone out and you have to watch Star Trek IV with commercials....what to do? Pull out your copy of "The Sci-Fi Channel Trivia Book" and have some fun!
It claims it is the Ultimate Triva Challenge, and for Sci-Fi/Horror Buffs IT IS! There are 1,000 questions to challenge you and your friends. Test your knowledge on Movies, Television, and even Comic Books. The questions are divided into those three main topics, plus a fourth called "Wormhole" which has a little bit of everything.There are point values for each question ranging from 10-50 pts. and each pt. value has about 50 questions in each. Even some the 10 pointers are quite challenging. From Movies 10 pts: What football star was the other head in the 1972 Ray Milland film "The Thing With Two Heads?" From Television 50 pts: Name the Outer Limits episode where a couple is pursued by tumbleweeds controlled by an alien intelligence. In the book you do get to pick from multiple choice answers and the actual answers are in the back (NO PEAKING). There's a bonus section in the back also, a survey of Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers on their favorit books, authors, etc.
What I really enjoyed about it is the wide variety of questions, if there's one subject your not great at, you'll get em on the next! Also you can play alone or with as many people as you want. This would make a great stocking stuffer for the sci-fi fan in your life (or for yourself).
"May the force be with you" Laurie

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Not So Trivial Pursuit, March 30, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Sci-Fi Channel Trivia Book (Paperback)

The SciFi Channel has done it! They've challenged our minds and memories with simply oodles and oodles of great trivia questions. Separated into four categories (movie, television, comics and wormhole - a miscellaneous hodgepodge of questions) these questions get progressively more difficult as you move along through the chapters. The questions go from 10pts to 40pts and believe me, the 40pt questions will cause all but the most die-hard fan of the genre to run away screaming!

The only complaint I have is that looking up the answers in the back of the book is sometimes tricky since the questions are numbered 1-50 in EACH point range instead of a flat 1-200 in each category.

Another great aspect of this book, besides its potential for a great evenings fun with other sci-fi fans is the fact that it includes recommended reading lists and the lists of favorite books and movies of members of the SFFWA. Recommendation lists like this give fans a chance to cross into genres that they might never have entered without a little nudge.

A definite must-have for fans and collectors of sci-fi and it makes a great companion book to the cd-rom of the same name.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This book is cool!!!!!!!, March 30, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Sci-Fi Channel Trivia Book (Paperback)

This book is relly cool! I got a lot of the answers right on the trivia.