Monday, March 5: The Williamsburg Spelling Bee

Monday, March 5

The Williamsburg Spelling Bee
Pete's Candy Store, 709 Lorimer St., Brooklyn
(Lorimer St. between Frost and Richardson / L or G train to Lorimer)
7:30pm
Free



From "broccoli" to "triskaidekaphobia," come test out your spelling in a bar backroom filled with smart people and beer. Free, open to all (21+). Signup begins at 7pm -- first 18 people get to play. Three-strikes-you're-out policy means more participation for everyone. Hosted by founder bobbyblue and comedian Jen Dziura. Winners get nerdy prizes and qualify for the annual Finals.

Pete's: 718-302-3770
www.williamsburgspellingbee.com
www.petescandystore.com

Grand Prize courtesy of Vine Wine

February 6th Winners

1st Place: Ben Kusmin
2nd Place: Tamara Glenny
3rd Place: David Henry Haan

Congratulations! All three winners qualify for our annual Finals (date TBA).

Anecdote: I Cared About Spelling Before You Were Even Born

I just realized how many years it's been, and I'm still mad at my third grade teacher, who corrected "ice cream sundae" to "ice cream sunday" in at least eight spots in my "My Favorite Thing" essay that she handed back on the very last day of school so I didn't have a chance to complain.

YOU ARE STILL WRONG, MRS. E!

Here's Wikipedia on the "sundae", not to be confused with sundae, "a Korean dish made generally by boiling or steaming cow or pig's intestines that are stuffed with various ingredients."

I'm sure most people who elect to attend an adult spelling bee have some kind of similar tale of childhood pedantic rage.

- Jennifer

Funniest Spelling Bee Videos

How cute is this kid, being asked to spell a ridiculous word?

Spelling Bee - These bloopers are hilarious

More of the same here, including the very uncomfortable white kid asked to spell "negus":



Come on out to the next Williamsburg Spelling Bee on Monday, February 6th. Winner gets a gift certificate to Vine Wine, which we are certain will improve your spelling.

Thanks to Vine Wine

Ever walk by this on your way to the bee?

Looks familiar, right? This is our new friend Vine Wine at 616 Lorimer St.

Talitha from Vine is standing up for spelling by providing gift certificates to the first place winners for the next three bees! So come on out to the next bee!

Monday, February 6

The Williamsburg Spelling Bee
Pete's Candy Store, 709 Lorimer St., Brooklyn
(Lorimer St. between Frost and Richardson / L or G train to Lorimer)
7:30pm
Free

From "broccoli" to "triskaidekaphobia," come test out your spelling in a bar backroom filled with smart people and beer. Free, open to all (21+). Signup begins at 7pm -- first 18 people get to play. Three-strikes-you're-out policy means more participation for everyone. Hosted by founder bobbyblue and comedian Jen Dziura. Winners get nerdy prizes and qualify for the annual Finals.

Pete's: 718-302-3770
www.williamsburgspellingbee.com
www.petescandystore.com

Spread the Word: We always need prize sponsors. Stand up for spelling!

Sincerely,
Jen

p.s. As befits a Williamsburg wine store, Vine is open until 10pm, so you actually could even stop in after the bee.

January 2nd Winners

Congratulations to the winners of our first bee of 2012!

1st Place: Marcus Bones
2nd Place: Mika Cheng
3rd Place: Noam Schuldenrein

 All three winners qualify for our annual Finals, to be held in late 2012.
 
From left: Marcus, Bobby, Mika, Noam, Jen

 
Your hosts!

More photos here.

Come back Monday, February 6th for the next installment. Everyone, win or lose, is welcome back at every bee up to the Finals.

Join the mailing list by text

Technology is crazy. When the Williamsburg Spelling Bee began in 2004, there was Friendster! Friendster, mind you! And no one was sitting in the audience looking up words on their phones. Oh, how times have changed.

The Bee Begins Anew on January 2nd, 2012

Monday, Jan 2

The Williamsburg Spelling Bee
Pete's Candy Store, 709 Lorimer St., Brooklyn
(Lorimer St. between Frost and Richardson / L or G train to Lorimer)
7:30pm
Free

From "broccoli" to "triskaidekaphobia," come test out your spelling in a bar backroom filled with smart people and beer. Free, open to all (21+). Signup begins at 7pm -- first 18 people get to play. Three-strikes-you're-out policy means more participation for everyone. Hosted by founder bobbyblue and comedian Jen Dziura. Winners get nerdy prizes and qualify for the annual Finals.

Pete's: 718-302-3770
www.williamsburgspellingbee.com
www.petescandystore.com

Spread the Word: We need prize sponsors! Previous sponsors have included the OED, Bananagrams, Neighborhoodies, Gotham Girls Roller Derby, and numerous Broadway and off-Broadway shows. We love nerdy stuff, but we also love gift certificates for fancy dinners; nerds gotta eat, too!

Interview with Bee Founder bobbyblue

INTERVIEW Willamsburg Spelling Bee with BOBBY BLUE (founder) by Tom Edmondson

This interview was done by Tom Edmondson the producer of The Tenth Voice on 90.1FM which is the only scheduled LGBT radio show in the Kansas City area and has been since 1991. Tune in every Saturday 1-2pm on 90.1FM and listen online www.kkfi.org

From Tom Edmondson: This is "Part 2 of the Bobby Blue Interview". He is the founder of the Williamsburg Spelling Bee ans was interviewed in Oct/2011 and is a totally out music artist and that is why I gave him a 'voice' on my radio show and his story and music put in the ears of our listening audience.

The Williamsburg Spelling Bee Rules

In preparation for the recommencement of the bee in 2012, here's what you need to know:

The Rules

1. Signup starts at 7pm and we take the first 18 people.

2. Open to everyone who’s legally allowed to be in a bar. Occasionally, teens have come with a parent, but the bar has final say on who comes in.

3. Three-strikes-you’re-out — you get two “freebies”!

4. Beer is encouraged. In fact, buying alcohol is what keeps the bee going, so please do!

5. Everyone is welcome to participate in every spelling bee up to the Finals, when the winners of the season’s previous bees will square off for the championship!

6. You don’t actually have to say the word before and after spelling it, but it’s a nice idea. If you start spelling a word and you lose your place, you can start over without changing anything, but once a letter comes out of your mouth, it’s set in stone.

7. If you’re Canadian (or even if you aren’t), you can say “zed” for “z” and “double-l” instead of “l, l”; however, all spellings must be American-style.

8. You can’t bring pen and paper up to the mic, but you can pretend to write on your hand if you want.

The Williamsburg Spelling Bee's Season Thirteen Winner is...

Noam Schuldenrein!

Congratulations also to finalists Carolyn D'Aquila, Ben Kusmin, Amanda Emerson, Jonathan Lill, David Henry Haan, David Zheng, Jenny Brown, and Timmy Tofu.

Here is everyone trying to fit in a hallway! (Noam is the one with the trophy! He's also a bit younger than our other contestants. Pretty impressive.)

Congratulations, Noam!

We'd also like to acknowledge that Amanda Emerson is a really good speller who made a "verbal typo" (g instead of j), which won her the sympathy of everyone. Amanda has been our "winningest" contestant this season. Go Amanda!

More photos here.

May 30 Spelling Bee Results

1st Place: Noam Schuldenrein
2nd Place: Tamara Glenny
3rd Place: Amanda Emerson

Photos here.

Come back NEXT WEEK, June 6th, for the Finals!

Then we'll be back in 2012!