"Louis Zamperini" Comprehension

Louis Zamperini’s life was off to a rough start until __________ suggested he join the track team.

• his mother

• his 8th grade teacher

• a police officer

• his brother Pete

In the 1936 Olympics, Zamperini’s final lap time was impressive enough to earn him a meeting with…

• President Roosevelt.

• Jesse Owens.

• Adolf Hitler.

• Katharine Hepburn.

Why didn’t Zamperini get to compete in the 1940 Olympics in Tokyo?

• He couldn’t afford a ticket to the tryouts.

• The Olympics were canceled because of World War II.

• He had already enlisted in the Army.

• He missed the qualifying time by .03 seconds.

Upon deployment, what was Zamperini’s assignment?

• bombardier on the B-24 Liberator

• pilot on the B-19 Flying Fortress

• navigator on the B-19 Flying Fortress

• tail gunner on the B-24 Liberator

What happened to the chocolate bars?

• A shark bit off the section of the raft that held the chocolate bars.

• They melted in the hot sun and the liquid mixed with ocean water.

• McNamara panicked and ate them all the first night.

• An albatross stole them all.

For how long was Zamperini stranded at sea?

• two weeks

• 33 days

• 47 days

• two years

What happened when Zamperini and Phillips finally reached land?

• They were immediately captured by the Japanese.

• They found themselves alone on a desert island.

• They were helped by a local tribe of natives.

• They were greeted by German soldiers.

Why did Zamperini return to Japan when he was 81?

• to confront his captors

• to carry the Olympic torch

• to visit Naoetsu

• to search for Phillips

Find the sentence that reveals the nickname Zamperini earned in college.

• On May 27, 1943, Zamperini and a crew of ten other men took off in Green Hornet to conduct a search for a missing aircraft and crew.

• From there, he continued on to a running career at the University of Southern California where he earned the nickname “Torrance Tornado.”

• Deployed to the Pacific island of Funafuti, he received the dreaded assignment of bombardier on the B-24 Liberator, a warplane so dangerous it was coined the “Flying Coffin.”

Find the sentence that reveals the location of Zamperini’s first deployment.

• Deployed to the Pacific island of Funafuti, he received the dreaded assignment of bombardier on the B-24 Liberator, a warplane so dangerous it was coined the “Flying Coffin.”

• Zamperini was transferred to Hawaii and assigned to another B-24, Green Hornet, notorious among the pilots as a defective lemon.

• Zamperini would end up at Naoetsu Camp in northern Japan, enduring more starvation, disease, and unspeakable torture until Japan was liberated in late 1945.