News Media Links
(Links last verified on 1/23/2008)See also Club News & Events
Fenichel Publishes Lying Autobiography
Dennis Fenichel has written and published a series of satirical essays in Titters, Giggles and Tears.You can't believe a word of the autobiographical chapter in Dennis Fenichel's new collection of essays, but it's quite revealing just the same. [Read more]
Minneapolis Star-Tribune Mucks up the "Poo" List
Read through to the end of this account of the Redeye to see where the writer of the piece goes off the rails with a completely bolloxed account of the expurgated word list.A passionate and eclectic group of word fans competed in Bloomington in an intense and unique 48-hour tournament for cash and rank. [Read more]
Redeye players called "Quirky" by Saint Paul Pioneer Press
One Starbucks-addled goofball, a guy from Ohio who wears purple, and our own favorite slasher film actress are featured in this story.What's the word score for Q-U-I-R-K-Y? As the recent best-selling book "Word Freak" showed, players at the top level of competition in Scrabble tournaments can be a little eccentric. But players who come from across the country to play in a marathon Scrabble tournament - about 28 hours of games over a 40-hour period - in Minnesota on the coldest weekend of the year might be classified as downright weird. [Read more]
UPI Picks up Story on Twin Cities Redeye
The venerable United Press International found room for the Redeye on its wire.BLOOMINGTON, Minn., Jan. 19 (UPI) -- Those taking part in a marathon Scrabble contest in Minnesota this weekend say they need to endure both mental strain and quirky competitors to succeed. [Read more]
Mankato Free Press Covers NAST Tourney
The NAST qualifier held December 2, 2007 in Mankato garnered coverage from the local press, and the article (including photos) can be found on-line.Andrew Westberg is already behind when his opponent empties his rack, spilling all seven letters onto the board with the word "untread," netting him 74 points--including the 50-point bonus for using all seven tiles. [Read more]
Jim's Done it Again!
Club member Jim Kramer is in the news again. This time he's defeated a new SCRABBLE®-playing computer program in a best two-of-three showdown for $10,000 held in Seattle on November 18th. From the Seattle Times:At first, it looked like it'd be a rout in this Scrabble stunt set up Friday at lunchtime outside Westlake Center.
It wasn't looking like the best Scrabble player in the U.S. could beat a computer program designed to play the game. Jim Kramer, 48, a soft-spoken proofreader from Roseville, Minn., was getting trounced in Game 1 of the best two-out-of-three competition. [Read more]
His own Wikipedia Entry
Jim Kramer has been immortalized in that modern-day library of Alexandria that is Wikipedia:Jim Kramer (1958-) won the 2006 United States Scrabble Open in Phoenix, Arizona. Kramer has competed in fourteen U.S. championship Scrabble tournaments, and has represented the United States at the World Scrabble Championships three times. [Read more]
Muriel is in the News (Again!)
A new piece about Muriel Linton is on the Internet. There is a nice photo, and an article about one of her paintings at the Evangelical Covenant Church news magazine site.Eighty-three-year old Muriel Linton apologizes on the telephone - "I'm sorry," she says, "but this cold gives me an old lady voice" - before launching into her story. A resident of Bethany Covenant Village for the last 10 years, Linton is bursting to tell someone about her painting called He Leadeth Me. [Read more]
Club 42 in The Rake Magazine, January 2005
(Note: It's now Secrets of the City magazine)Tim Bewer, who has occasionally played SCRABBLE® with us, wrote a piece on our club for the Twin Cities' monthly, The Rake:
It was still early in the game, but Mary Atwood was feeling confident. She had just stacked "NOVA" atop "VOX" to take a 177 to 62 lead over Jim Kramer, and the triple word was blocked. But Jim's fortunes shifted when he ran "POETIZER" down the center of the board for 54 points. [Read more]
Scrabylon Movie Site
The website for the movie "Scrabylon" lists Jim Kramer on its "Players" page:Jim Kramer is one of the few Scrabble experts who earns a living with words. A true gentleman, Kramer is a proofreader in Minnesota and finished third in the 2001 World Scrabble Championships. [Read more]
NPR's "Present at the Creation" Series
SCRABBLE® was the topic of National Public Radio's "Present at the Creation" series on August 19, 2002. An article and accompanying audio, video, and photographic content is posted on-line. Club 42's own Jim Kramer makes an appearance in the photo gallery.Aug. 19, 2002 -- It's one of the most popular games in history. It sells around 3 million sets worldwide each year in 23 different languages. [Read more]