Question 1

True or false: Henry Fonda was a lifelong Democrat and campaigned for Franklin D. Roosevelt's presidential elections.

Accepted Answer

True. Fonda was a committed liberal Democrat, campaigned for FDR in 1940 and 1944, and later supported Adlai Stevenson and John F. Kennedy.

Question 2

True or false: Henry Fonda served in the U.S. Navy during World War II and was awarded a Bronze Star.

Accepted Answer

True. Fonda enlisted as a quartermaster, served on the destroyer USS Satterlee, and earned a Bronze Star for his service in the Pacific theater.

Question 3

True or false: Henry Fonda originally turned down the lead role in 'The Grapes of Wrath' because he thought the script was too political.

Accepted Answer

False. Fonda actually campaigned for the role of Tom Joad and was thrilled to play it; the film earned him his first Oscar nomination.

Question 4

True or false: Henry Fonda never appeared in a television series because he considered the medium inferior to film.

Accepted Answer

False. Fonda starred in the TV series 'The Deputy' (1959–1961) and made guest appearances on shows like 'The Dick Powell Show' and 'The American Sportsman'.

Question 5

True or false: Henry Fonda was the only actor to win an Oscar for a role originally played on Broadway by his daughter Jane Fonda.

Accepted Answer

False. Jane Fonda never originated a Broadway role that Henry later played. Henry won his only Oscar for 'On Golden Pond' (1981), co-starring Jane.

Question 6

True or false: Henry Fonda's distinctive nose was broken twice: once in a childhood accident and once during a stage fight.

Accepted Answer

True. He broke it as a child falling from a wagon, and later an actor accidentally hit him during a Broadway performance of 'The Farmer Takes a Wife'.

Question 7

True or false: Henry Fonda was the first actor to win both a Tony Award and an Academy Award for the same role.

Accepted Answer

False. No actor has won both a Tony and Oscar for the same role. Fonda won a Tony for 'Mister Roberts' (1948) but never played it on film; he lost the Oscar for that film to Marlon Brando.

Question 8

True or false: Henry Fonda was an accomplished painter and exhibited his artwork in New York galleries.

Accepted Answer

True. Fonda painted landscapes and portraits as a serious hobby, and his works were shown at the Hammer Galleries in Manhattan during the 1960s.

Henry Fonda Trivia Questions