Presidential Trivia Answers (Sept. 13 & 14)

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(1) QUESTION: One presidential candidate banged his knee on a car door during his campaign. The injury led to a serious infection, and some historians speculate that it contributed to a gaunt, tired look that did not help him during a subsequent presidential debate. Which candidate?

ANSWER: Richard Nixon. The infection was bad enough that he had to be hospitalized at Walter Reed Army Hospital, and he was off the campaign trail for two weeks. He was still recovering when he famously debated the more telegenic JFK.

(2) QUESTION: In what year was the first formal debate between two vice presidential candidates held?

ANSWER: 1976. Then-Senator Walter Mondale (D) faced off against Senator Bob Dole (R) in Houston, Texas.

(3) QUESTION: Which President was presented a red carnation at a debate and came to believe that it brought him good luck?

ANSWER: William McKinley. He developed the habit after the election of 1876, when he was running for a congressional seat. His opponent presented him with a bright red carnation before their debates. When McKinley won the election, he apparently began to view the red carnation as a bit of a good luck charm. He often wore one on his lapel, and he was even wearing one on the day that he was assassinated. Reportedly, he had removed the carnation and given it to a young girl in the crowd moments before the assassin began shooting at him. Since then, the State of Ohio has designated the scarlet carnation as the state flower. The Ohio Statehouse has also designated September 14, the date of McKinley’s death, as its Red Carnation Day.