Author Topic: Scrabble coming to ESPN (Read 10178 times)

brianhenke · « **Reply #30 on:** November 10, 2003, 02:52:25 AM »

[quote name=\'johnnya2k3\' date=\'Nov 10 2003, 12:45 AM\'] I saw the Scrabble thing, and I have one comment...

Could Boggle be next??? There was a "King of the Hill" episode in which Peggy competed in the state Boggle championships and won.

Jonathan Allen, hoping a Simon or Jenga tournament won't be in the horizon. [/quote]

I've seen the KOTH episode where Peggy played Boggle.

Now on to Scrabble. Get this everybody...Scrabble is a Chris Berman Top 10 Play of the Week on SportsCenter! Someone should have told Boomer that this tournament was taped in August, according to the National Scrabble Association. (Game 3 of the finals was not telecast, but you can see how it was played at My Webpage.

You may not know this, but I have played Scrabble under those conditions (the 25-minute chess clock, the different tiles from regular game, etc.). I have not yet entered a tournament (but I did go to one at the Drake Center in the early 90s).

I have played Scrabble Blitz on Games.com, as well. One time I got AALII with my first tiles, and knowing that it makes an acceptable word, used it as my first word while every other player was stumped!

Brian

Wary blue waters?

We want some more pro wrestling (STILL) and NASCAR questions!

Matt Ottinger · « **Reply #31 on:** November 10, 2003, 09:45:59 AM »

I thought the show was a pleasant enough diversion. I'd read the book "Word Freak", in which Stefan Fatsis (co-host of the ESPN show) so colorfully described many of the top players, so it was fun to see them and match them to the written descriptions. Still, the way it was structured and edited, there was almost no chance to play along the way the other champs in the "stadium room" could, and way too much time was spent explaining the game to non-players, who probably weren't watching in the first place.

I don't ever see it rivaling the poker shows that are becoming so popular because you don't have the instant drama and of course the prize money is so much lower. But as an annual novelty program on a football Sunday, it'll probably do just fine.

goongas · « **Reply #32 on:** November 10, 2003, 11:53:30 AM »

I saw the show as well and thought it was ok. It did a good job of explaining the nauances of tournament Scrabble (the analysts they had were good), but they spent too much time on player profiles, etc. (much like the Olympics), instead of actual gameplay.

clemon79 · « **Reply #33 on:** November 10, 2003, 01:24:54 PM »

[quote name=\'brianhenke\' date=\'Nov 10 2003, 12:52 AM\'] I've seen the KOTH episode where Peggy played Boggle.
[/quote]
Congratulations.

Quote

You may not know this, but I have played Scrabble under those conditions (the 25-minute chess clock, the different tiles from regular game, etc.).

And last night I found that any Scrabble-diehards interested in purchasing a set of those tournament plastic tiles (designed to frustrate the practice known as "brailling) may do so at http://www.protiles.net. I think the ones they used on the show were the "Green Tile With White Letter, item S32W.

Brakus · « **Reply #34 on:** November 11, 2003, 01:02:57 AM »

[quote name=\'wxfrcaster\' date=\'Nov 7 2003, 12:53 AM\'] For those curious, here's the answer to the question, What does ESPN stand for, from the ESPN FAQ:

[ESPN is] a subsidiary of ABC, Inc., which is a wholly owned subsidiary of The Walt Disney Co. The Hearst Corporation has a 20 percent interest in ESPN. [/quote]
Which really gets my goat whenever someone in the newspaper or whereever says, "ESPN is owned by the Walt Disney Company" when in actuality they are only majority owned by Disney; Hearst owns the minority stake.

And I still maintain that the National Spelling Bee was done a hundred times better when C-SPAN covered it live. None of this "fit for time" taped business, and no commentators either.

zachhoran · « **Reply #35 on:** November 11, 2003, 09:43:23 AM »

[quote name=\'Brakus\' date=\'Nov 11 2003, 01:02 AM\']

And I still maintain that the National Spelling Bee was done a hundred times better when C-SPAN covered it live. None of this "fit for time" taped business, and no commentators either. [/quote]
WHat years did C-Span run live coverage of the Bee(not sure if I've mentioned this before, but I was there in 1985)?

zachhoran · « **Reply #36 on:** November 11, 2003, 09:45:39 AM »

[quote name=\'cyberjoek\' date=\'Nov 7 2003, 12:22 AM\'] Yes they do air Magic: The Gathering Tourneys (and until two years ago the National Geographic Geo Bee) on ESPN 2, [/quote]
PBS ran the last hour or two of the Geography Bee in its early years(it began in 1989 IIRC)

Obgameshow: Alex Trebek has hosted the Geography Bee for all 15 years of its existence.

Brakus · « **Reply #37 on:** November 12, 2003, 04:33:48 PM »

[quote name=\'zachhoran\' date=\'Nov 11 2003, 09:43 AM\'] WHat years did C-Span run live coverage of the Bee(not sure if I've mentioned this before, but I was there in 1985)? [/quote]
IIRC it was during the early '90s, because I distinctly remember it in 1993 and 1994. I also remember CNN covering the final round of the Bee live one afternoon.