I was all set to discuss an article I read in the paper today that discussed the great job the CEO at Random House, Gina Cetrello, was doing in marketing books (here), then I saw an article that trumped that one, . . . trumped it quite easily in fact.
As a person with a palindrome last name, I thought I was fairly well attuned to the world of palindromes. Just knowing the word and what it is is usually enough to secure a firm footing in that world. Naturally I was surprised to find that not only are there true "palindromists" out there, but there is also "Palindromists Magazine" and a "World Palindrome Competition." The full article (here) goes into some but not enough detail, but does provide the highlights of the competition.
My favorite palindrome is:
"A man, a plan, a canal,... Panama!"
Who wouldn't love that. It has a purpose, a statement, historical significance, and takes a second or two to reveal itself. The winning entrant in the World Palindrome Championships is certainly no better:
"Devil Kay fixes trapeze part; sex if yak lived."
Long? Sure. Makes sense? Historical significance? Nope and nope. The winner, Mark Saltveit, said he liked his other entry more. I agree.
"I tan. I mull. In a way, Obama, I am a boy – a wan illuminati."
I think though that in terms of being relevant, the third one of Connett's is the best.
" 'Not Newt!' Ron's snort went on."
But, and the article provides only a teaser, we read what had to be the best of the bunch, "MIT Professor Nick Montfort placed fourth with a long palindromic poem about Star Wars, titled The Millennium Falcon Rescue."
Why isn't that provided in the text!
4 comments:
Thanks for the note! A couple of minor corrections -- your title is missing the n in Palindromist, and I wrote "Devil Kay fixes trapeze part; sex if won" which narrowly edged John Connett's "Not Newt, Ron's snort went on" 169-165 for the win. I also wrote the Obama one you quote.
You can find full results, including Nick's "Millenium Falcon Rescue" on the Palindromist Magazine's web site at http://www.palindromist.org/results
As for significant, guilty as charged but keep in mind, Leigh Mercer had years to write "A man, a plan, a canal: Panama." We only had 75 minutes and had to meet 3 constraints Will Shortz gave us on the spot.
Thanks, Mark
Thanks for the corrections, Mark. Sorry for the erroneous citations. Having never created an original palindrome, either over years or within 75 minutes, I appreciate the effort and congratulate you on the win.
Thank you very much. Given your last name, I'm surprised that you haven't written a few yourself. Too easy, perhaps. :)
Also, I meant "significance" not "significant" of course. It's easy to make mistakes...
Love the first lines....
Glad you liked the first lines. I started a last lines thread too, but it didn't garner much interest. I'm thinking I need to try and resusitate it. What's worse . . . the middle lines thread dropped like a thud. I thought that would be awesome, to find the line that was in the very heart of the book. Turned out to be way too much of a pain to identify and the epiphanies were long in coming.
Glad you like the blog. Wish it was as clever as "So I've become a Taoist missionary. Which means I stay home and mind my own God-damned business."
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