Diehard fans of certain television shows have a special reason to head to local bars on the weekdays. It’s called Trivia A.D.
Trivia A.D. is a small company started by a Hoboken resident that organizes television trivia events at bars throughout the area, often drawing packed crowds on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and other non-traditional bar nights.
“All my life, my friends have been telling me to enter a Seinfeld trivia contest because I have such an asinine amount of Seinfeld knowledge,” said David Oliver, the owner of the company. “But nothing really ever existed.”
So Oliver, along with a few friends, began Trivia A.D. The first television trivia night was for Seinfeld, held in New York City, in 2008.
“We had almost 200 people show up,” he said.
Now, the Hoboken resident is expanding the trivia events to his home city.
Over the past few months, the company has held trivia events at local bars for TV shows and movies including Seinfeld, Arrested Development, Back to the Future, and Harry Potter.
“At one bar they usually don’t even open their back room on a Tuesday, but the night we came in it was completely full,” Oliver said. “And there was an overflow area with 20 people.”
The trivia events are free and no tickets are required, but sometimes there is a drink minimum for participants.
“The nice part about this business is that the people who come to the events have an emotional and sentimental connection to the shows,” Oliver said. “It reminds them of a fun time that they can relive again. The only way to really relive your favorite movie or television show is to watch it again or be quizzed on it.”
Oliver said the trivia events do not work for every show.
“It’s hit or miss sometimes,” he said. “The bigger shows like Seinfeld, Saved by the Bell, Sex and the City, we always get a large crowd for those.”
For more information about Trivia A.D. and for a schedule of upcoming events, visit Facebook.com/TriviaAD.
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He said the company tried events for HBO shows like The Sopranos and Curb Your Enthusiasm, but the crowd was much smaller.
Oliver said many fans of Trivia A.D. make recommendations for future events on the company’s Facebook page, which helps him decide which shows to use in the future.
Oliver said he and his friends think of all of the questions for the trivia event.
“There’s a lot of time that goes into this,” he said. “My weekends are dedicated to Trivia A.D. Last weekend I watched 29 episodes of Arrested Development for trivia, and I wrote questions down. It’s a pain but it’s also fun.”
Prizes are usually gift certificates to the hosting venue, Oliver said.
But Oliver has sometimes provided attendees with other prizes, including visits from “celebrities.”
“I did the first Seinfeld trivia in Tom’s Restaurant [a diner visited on Seinfeld] and I was so surprised to how well it was received,” Oliver said. “I had Brian Kranston [an actor on the show] send me an autographed copy of his script of the ‘Yada Yada’ episode…and we had two actors come to the event out of the goodness of their heart. They were so well received; it was amazing.”
Oliver said Trivia A.D. is doing what it can to help boost the local bar and restaurant economy.
“It’s something that’s very valuable to the community and businesses,” he said, adding that he hopes to expand the company to give it a bigger presence. “For starters, we’re going to meet with Clearview Cinemas, and hopefully we’ll be able to do a movie and a trivia night.”
For more information about Trivia A.D. and for a schedule of upcoming events, visit Facebook.com/TriviaAD.
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