Image: USA Network
About This Quiz
"Obsessive. Compulsive. Detective." With these words, USA Network introduced America to what would become one of the greatest TV detectives of all time. Are you a "Monk" expert? Prove it now with our quiz!
What trauma left Monk unable to leave his home for more than three years?
getting an innocent man sent to the gas chamber
shooting an innocent bystander
his wife's murder
Monk's wife only appeared in flashbacks and on a video tape. It's explained in the pilot that her death sent the once-brilliant detective into a tailspin.
his mother's murder
Which of these words began every episode title?
"If"
"Mr."
"Monk" is a TV version of a "cozy," the mystery-novel subgenre that includes clever puzzles, very little violence, and a gifted individual. As such, it used formal titles, e.g., "Mr. Monk Goes to the Ballgame."
"Monk"
"The"
What was Monk's wife's name?
Anna
Karen
Sharon
Trudy
Trudy was the shining light of Monk's life -- the woman who accepted him despite his quirks, and made him into a better man and better detective.
Advertisement
How exactly did Trudy die?
a car bombing
As a detective, Monk first thought he was the target of the car bombing. But he later learned it was meant for Trudy, who was an investigative journalist.
she was shot
she was poisoned
she disappeared and her body was never found
In what year did "Monk" debut?
1997
2002
"Monk" debuted in the early 2000s and ran through 2010. It was one of the most-watched basic-cable dramas of the decade.
2006
2010
What was the name of Monk's nurse?
Annie
Natalie
Sharona
both #2 and #3
The term "nurse" here is inexact: The job was more like "personal assistant." Sharona (Bitty Schram) filled the job for the first two and a half seasons, and then Natalie (Traylor Howard) took over.
Advertisement
What was Monk's first name?
Andrew
Adrian
Viewers of the show's early seasons will probably never forget the way Sharona would drawl, "Adrian," with a broad New Jersey accent and long-suffering tone.
Mortimer
we never learn this
In which city was "Monk" set?
Boston
New York
San Francisco
The character of Adrian Monk was a northern California native. He worked for the SFPD before a personal trauma turned him into an agoraphobe.
Los Angeles
Where did Monk go to college?
Princeton
Stanford
UC Berkeley
While screenwriters tend to reach automatically for Stanford as the alma mater of any smart Californian character, the writers of "Monk" chose California's public Ivy, Berkeley. This is a plot point in the episode, "Mr. Monk and the Class Reunion."
he is entirely self-educated
Advertisement
Who played Captain Stottlemeyer?
Jeffrey Dean Morgan
Danny Glover
Ted Levine
Ted Levine played Stottlemeyer for all eight seasons. Fun fact: Despite later playing many macho cops or military men, Levine's breakthrough role was that of gender-confused killer "Buffalo Bill" in "Silence of the Lambs."
WIlliam Petersen
Who played Captain Stottlemeyer's wife?
January Jones
Glenne Headly
One of the show's infrequent but hilarious themes was the odd-couple relationship between straitlaced Stottlemeyer and his pacifist, yoga-practicing wife. Stottlemeyer has to hide his gun when she comes to visit, since she thinks he doesn't carry one.
Sharon Lawrence
Sela Ward
Who did Jason Gray-Stanford play?
Randy Disher
Jason Gray-Stanford played Lt. Disher. Many of the show's comic moments sprang from his inexperience and gullibility. However, he was competent enough to become a police chief in New Jersey at the series' end.
Benjy
Dale "The Whale" Beiderbeck
Jack Monk Jr.
Advertisement
Which of these beverages does Monk fear?
beer
milk
Yes, Monk is afraid of the most healthy of drinks, milk. We wouldn't blame him if he were afraid of tequila -- everyone should be!
cherry cola
tequila
About what is Sharona revealed to have a phobia in Season 2?
bridges
elephants
As a child, Sharona saw a little girl fall into an elephant enclosure at the zoo. The girl was fine, but Sharona was left with a lingering fear.
elevators
the number 13
What was the name of Sharona's son?
Benjy
Both of Monk's nurses had children. Sharona was a single mother to Benjy, while Natalie was a widow raising her daughter, Julie.
Bobby
Mark
Trevor Jr.
Advertisement
What reason is given for why Monk won't take psychiatric medicine for his OCD?
he fears pills of all kinds
medication interferes with his deductive skills
In "Mr. Monk Takes His Medicine," Monk does take medication for his OCD, only to have it interfere with his investigative powers. This has been a theme in other fiction with exceptional protagonists (see also "House M.D."), and mental-health professionals have expressed reservations about the message that treating a psychiatric problem (like OCD or bipolar disorder) is medicating away the patient's "specialness" and leaving them without gifts to contribute to society.
he has many allergies
his OCD is so bad that medicine has no effect
What reason was given for Sharona leaving Monk's employ in the third season?
she couldn't stand his demands anymore
she was "discovered" and went to Hollywood
she remarried her ex-husband
Though Sharona's husband, Trevor, was indicated to be unreliable, Sharona nonetheless went back to him and New Jersey in Season 3. This storyline might have been rushed because Bitty Schram left the show over a "contract dispute" (apparently pay was at issue).
she was murdered, a case Monk solved
What was Natalie's last name?
Abrams
Holmes
Teeger
Natalie Teeger was played by Traylor Howard. Though she filled the same role as Sharona, Natalie was quieter and less openly exasperated with Monk's quirks than her predecessor.
Imbruglia
Advertisement
In which military action did Mitch, Natalie's husband, die?
the first Gulf War
Kosovo
Mitch was a military man who wanted to be an astronaut. He died in the Kosovo conflict of 1998 (though in real life, no U.S. troops died in that conflict).
Somalia
Grenada
Who guest-starred as Monk's brother, Ambrose?
Stephen Root
Al Pacino
John Turturro
Ambrose Monk can be compared to Mycroft Holmes in the Sherlock Holmes universe. He's the older brother who is supposedly even more gifted than his detective sibling, though he accomplishes less out in the world.
Stanley Tucci
Which of these actors died during the show's run?
Jason Gray-Stanford (Randy DIsher)
Stanley Kamel (Dr. Kroger)
Kamel was a long-time character actor in film and TV. He died of a heart attack during the show's 6th season, and the producers dedicated an episode to his memory. Headly has since died as well, but it was after "Monk" had gone off the air.
Glenne Headly (Karen Stottlemeyer)
Ted Levine (Captain Stottlemeyer)
Advertisement
Which of these was NOT a "Monk" guest star?
Adam Arkin
Brooke Adams
Snoop Dogg
they were all guest stars
It would take far too much space to name all the notable actors who were guests on "Monk." Brooke Adams should get special note, though: She is married to Tony Shalhoub, and at 25 years and counting, they have one of Hollywood's rare long-term marriages.
Who played Marci Maven, Monk's "number one fan"?
Claire Danes
Kathi Griffin
Bernadette Peters
Sarah Silverman
Detectives have fans? Apparently so. Marci Maven appears in several episodes, and is a murder suspect in one of them.
What was Monk's father's name?
Alan
Jack
Dan Hedaya played Jack. He abandoned the family when the Monk brothers were fairly young, prompting Ambrose to become an agoraphobe long before Adrian did.
Michael
we never learn this
Advertisement
Who did veteran actor Hector Elizondo play?
a long-suffering judge
the mayor of San Francisco
a master criminal
Monk's second therapist
Elizondo played Dr. Neven Bell. He replaced Dr. Kroger, who was said to have died of a heart attack, mirroring actor Stanley Kamel's actual death from a heart attack.
Who did former "NYPD Blue" actress Sharon Lawrence play?
Disher's mother
Natalie's sister
Trudy, in flashbacks
Stottlemeyer's girlfriend
Sadly, Stottlemeyer and his "hippie wife" Karen didn't make it. His relationship with real-estate agent Linda Fusco didn't last either ... because she turned out to be a murderer.
Who plays Captain Stottlemeyer's eventual second wife?
Victoria Principal
Courtney Thorne-Smith
Virginia Madsen
Madsen played a woman named "T.K. Jensen." When Stottlemeyer finds out her first name is Trudy, he suggests sticking with the initials in order not to upset Monk.
Mira Sorvino
Advertisement
Who did Sharona end up marrying?
Monk
her ex-husband
Randy Disher
Randy and Sharona bickered all the time in early seasons ... but we all know what *that's* usually covering up!
Captain Stottlemeyer
Did Monk ever solve Trudy's murder?
yes
While Trudy's unsolved murder haunts and motivates Monk for nearly the entire show, this storyline was resolved in the two-part finale, "Mr. Monk and the End."
no
What was unusual about Frank Nunn, the man who killed Trudy?
he had a prosthetic arm
he had six fingers on one hand
Frank Nunn didn't have a prosthetic arm -- that was a plot point from "The Fugitive." But it's possible the "one-armed man" of that TV show might have inspired a "six-fingered man" on "Monk."
he was seven feet tall
he was a cross-dresser
Advertisement
Other than solving Trudy's murder, what does Monk discover in the series finale?
that he was illegitimate
that Trudy had a daughter
Monk does discover a half-brother as the series progresses, but it wasn't Stottlemeyer. Instead, it's revealed that Trudy had a daughter before she knew Monk. It's also implied that Monk will become a happy surrogate father to the young woman, Molly.
that he and Stottlemeyer are half-brothers
that he has been spontaneously cured of his phobias
How many Emmys did Tony Shalhoub win for "Monk"?
none
one
two
three
"Monk" was a critical darling, and critics especially loved Shalhoub's work in it. He won three Emmys and one Golden Globe.
What was the title of "Monk's" theme song?
"Obsessive Detective"
"It's a Jungle Out There"
Randy Newman sang the title song, which debuted in the show's second season. The line "It's a jungle out there" can be heard in the song more than once.
"You're a Queer One, Mr. Monk"
it didn't have a title
Advertisement
Besides TV, Adrian Monk has appeared in what other entertainment format?
a feature film
a graphic novel
tie-in novels
Lee Goldberg is the author of many "Monk" novels. They sometimes deviate in small ways from the canon of the TV show.
a web series
Which character did Andy Breckman play?
the mayor of San Francisco
Monk's old college roommate
the commissioner of the SFPD
none -- he was the series creator!
Breckman said that while he liked shows about tortured profilers with dark, serious plots, he wanted to create a "playful" series about solving tricky puzzles. And he did, creating a little piece of TV history with eight seasons of "Monk."
You Got:
/35
USA Network