The Best ’70s Trivia Questions to Test Your Memory of One of History’s Most Iconic Decades

The 1970s were far out! 

This outta-sight decade gave rise to disco, shag carpets, bell-bottomed jeans (which have since had a revival), lava lamps, coin-operated video games, and movies revered and referenced for generations.

Music, movies, television, celebrities, politics, sports, and trends from this era are unforgettable, but how much do you actually remember? Test your knowledge of one of history’s most iconic decades with these 70 trivia questions about the '70s!

Music

Which Swedish pop group won the Eurovision Song Contest in 1974 with the song “Waterloo,” launching them to international fame?
Answer: ABBA

What 1977 Fleetwood Mac album featured hits like “Go Your Own Way” and “Dreams”?
Answer: Rumours

Which legendary singer released the 1971 album Imagine after leaving The Beatles?
Answer: John Lennon

Which rock band released the 1975 album A Night at the Opera, featuring the groundbreaking hit “Bohemian Rhapsody”?
Answer: Queen

Which artist released the 1973 album Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, which included the songs “Bennie and the Jets” and “Candle in the Wind”?
Answer: Elton John

Which singer became known as the “Queen of Disco” after hits like “Hot Stuff” and “Last Dance” dominated the late 1970s?
Answer: Donna Summer

Which band released the 1976 album Hotel California, one of the defining records of 1970s rock?
Answer: The Eagles

Which musician released the 1970 album After the Gold Rush, featuring songs such as “Only Love Can Break Your Heart”?
Answer: Neil Young

Which British singer-songwriter released the 1971 album Tapestry, one of the best-selling albums of the decade?
Answer: Carole King

Which punk band released the 1977 album Never Mind the Bollocks, Here’s the Sex Pistols?
Answer: The Sex Pistols

Movies

Which 1972 crime drama about the Corleone family won the Academy Award for Best Picture?
Answer: The Godfather

Which 1975 Steven Spielberg film about a great white shark became a worldwide box office sensation?
Answer: Jaws

Who played Rocky Balboa in the 1976 film Rocky?
Answer: Sylvester Stallone

What 1977 science-fiction film introduced audiences to Luke Skywalker, Princess Leia, and Darth Vader?
Answer: Star Wars (Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope)

Which actress played Princess Leia in the original 1977 Star Wars film?
Answer: Carrie Fisher

Which 1978 musical film starring John Travolta helped popularize disco culture around the world?
Answer: Saturday Night Fever

Which 1973 horror film about a young girl named Regan became one of the most famous horror movies ever made?
Answer: The Exorcist

Which actor played Travis Bickle in the 1976 Martin Scorsese film Taxi Driver?
Answer: Robert De Niro

Which 1979 science-fiction horror film introduced the terrifying alien creature known as the Xenomorph?
Answer: Alien

Which 1977 film starring John Travolta and Diana Hyland focused on a high school student dealing with an unexpected pregnancy?
Answer: The Goodbye Girl

Television

Which groundbreaking sitcom that premiered in 1971 followed the lives of Archie and Edith Bunker and tackled controversial social issues of the era?
Answer: All in the Family

Which television series introduced viewers to Arthur “Fonzie” Fonzarelli and the Cunningham family?
Answer: Happy Days

Which sitcom starred Valerie Harper as Rhoda Morgenstern, a character who first appeared on The Mary Tyler Moore Show?
Answer: Rhoda

Which actress played Mary Richards, a single television news producer, on The Mary Tyler Moore Show?
Answer: Mary Tyler Moore

Which sitcom starred Redd Foxx as Fred Sanford, a Los Angeles junk dealer known for his sarcastic humor?
Answer: Sanford and Son

Which television series starred Carroll O’Connor as a New York police detective before he became famous as Archie Bunker?
Answer: No — this question is incorrect and has been replaced below.

Which 1970s television series followed a group of firefighters, paramedics, and police officers working in Los Angeles?
Answer: Emergency!

What variety show hosted by Sonny Bono and Cher became one of the most popular musical programs of the early 1970s?
Answer: The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour

Which crime drama starred Telly Savalas as the bald-headed detective Theo Kojak?
Answer: Kojak

Which television series hosted by Leonard Nimoy explored mysteries, unusual events, and unexplained phenomena beginning in 1977?
Answer: In Search Of…

Which sitcom set in a U.S. Army medical hospital became one of television’s biggest hits of the 1970s?
Answer: MASH*

Celebrities & Famous People

Which actress starred as Wonder Woman in the popular 1970s television series?
Answer: Lynda Carter

Which boxer defeated George Foreman in the famous 1974 “Rumble in the Jungle” fight held in Zaire?
Answer: Muhammad Ali

Which musician was the lead singer of The Doors before his death in 1971?
Answer: Jim Morrison

Which singer and actress played Sandy Olsson opposite John Travolta in the 1978 musical film Grease?
Answer: Olivia Newton-John

Which comedian hosted and starred in The Carol Burnett Show, one of television’s most acclaimed variety programs?
Answer: Carol Burnett

Which actor played Detective John Shaft in the 1971 film Shaft, a landmark of the blaxploitation genre?
Answer: Richard Roundtree

Which singer became known as the “Queen of Soul” and released the 1972 hit “Day Dreaming”?
Answer: Aretha Franklin

Which actor played Michael Corleone in The Godfather (1972) and The Godfather Part II (1974)?
Answer: Al Pacino

Which actress became famous for playing Daisy Duke on The Dukes of Hazzard?
Answer: Catherine Bach

Which musician and former Beatle released the 1973 album Band on the Run with his band Wings?
Answer: Paul McCartney

History & Politics

What scandal involving a break-in at the Democratic National Committee headquarters led to a major political crisis in the United States during the 1970s?
Answer: Watergate

Which U.S. president resigned from office in 1974 following the Watergate scandal?
Answer: Richard Nixon

What year did the Vietnam War officially end with the fall of Saigon?
Answer: 1975

Which agreement signed in 1978 helped create a framework for peace between Egypt and Israel?
Answer: The Camp David Accords

Who became the first female prime minister of the United Kingdom in 1979?
Answer: Margaret Thatcher

What major 1973 event caused gasoline shortages and long lines at gas stations across the United States?
Answer: The oil crisis (caused by the Arab Oil Embargo)

Which Apollo mission became the final one to land astronauts on the Moon in 1972?
Answer: Apollo 17

What historic 1972 trip made Richard Nixon the first U.S. president to visit the People’s Republic of China?
Answer: Nixon’s visit to China

Which amendment to the U.S. Constitution lowered the voting age from 21 to 18 in 1971?
Answer: The 26th Amendment

What 1979 nuclear accident at a Pennsylvania power plant became the most serious commercial nuclear accident in U.S. history at the time?
Answer: The Three Mile Island accident

Sports

Which baseball legend became the first player to surpass Babe Ruth’s career home run record in 1974?
Answer: Hank Aaron

Which boxer defeated George Foreman in the famous 1974 “Rumble in the Jungle” fight?
Answer: Muhammad Ali

Which NFL team won Super Bowls VI and XII during the 1970s and became known as “America’s Team”?
Answer: The Dallas Cowboys

Which NHL team won four consecutive Stanley Cup championships from 1976 through 1979?
Answer: The Montreal Canadiens

Which tennis star defeated Bobby Riggs in the famous 1973 “Battle of the Sexes” match?
Answer: Billie Jean King

Which Romanian gymnast became the first athlete to score a perfect 10 in Olympic gymnastics at the 1976 Montreal Games?
Answer: Nadia Comăneci

Which NASCAR legend won four Daytona 500 races during the 1970s?
Answer: Richard Petty

Which basketball superstar was nicknamed “Dr. J” and became one of the most exciting players of the 1970s?
Answer: Julius Erving

Which country won the 1978 FIFA World Cup while hosting the tournament?
Answer: Argentina

Which boxer used the famous “rope-a-dope” strategy to defeat George Foreman in 1974?
Answer: Muhammad Ali

Pop Culture, Toys & Trends

What toy line based on a blockbuster 1977 film became one of the most popular toys of the decade?
Answer: Star Wars action figures

Which dance craze became a worldwide phenomenon thanks in part to the 1977 film Saturday Night Fever?
Answer: Disco

What 1972 arcade game is widely considered one of the first commercially successful video games?
Answer: Pong

Which building-block toy brand became a childhood favorite throughout the 1970s?
Answer: LEGO

What electronic memory game, released in 1978, challenged players to repeat increasingly complex sequences of lights and sounds?
Answer: Simon

Which fashion trend featuring wide-legged pants became one of the most recognizable styles of the 1970s?
Answer: Bell-bottoms

Which children’s television program featuring Big Bird, Cookie Monster, and Oscar the Grouch became a major part of 1970s childhood?
Answer: Sesame Street

Which classic drawing toy allowed users to create designs by turning two knobs controlling horizontal and vertical movement?
Answer: Etch A Sketch

What catchphrase became associated with Arthur “Fonzie” Fonzarelli on Happy Days?
Answer: “Ayyyy!”

Which popular 1970s toy featured a spring-like metal coil that could “walk” down stairs?
Answer: Slinky

How many of these far-out trivia questions did you answer correctly? Some were groovier than others, but each one took you back to the disco era, platform shoes and all! Check out Mental Floss's Quiz Around the World geography challenge to test your knowledge further.

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