+
“A balm for the soul”
  review on Goodreads
GOOD PEOPLE Book
upworthy

game shows

Can you solve this "Wheel of Fortune" puzzle?

Is there any game show that allows contestants to royally embarrass themselves on national TV quite like “Wheel of Fortune”? There’s always someone going viral for taking a big swing and missing on a phrase that seemed pretty apparent to the casual viewer.

And when you take a big loss on a “Wheel of Fortune'' word puzzle, there are a lot of folks shaking their heads at home. More than 8 million people watch the game show every night.

The latest victim of the wheel is Gishma Tabari from Encino, California, whose fantasy-inspired whiff of a common phrase earned her a lot of groans and some support from those who thought her imagination was inspiring.

The 3-word puzzle read: “TH _ _ RITI _ S _ GR _ E,” and Tabari offered the answer, “The British Ogre.” The guess surprised host Pat Sajak, who responded, "Uh, no.” Tabari must have missed that there was a space between the R and the E in the puzzle, so ogre would have had to be spelled with 2 Rs.


She also probably wasn’t aware that England isn’t a place known for its ogres.

The correct answer was: “The Critics Agree.”

The answer inspired a lot of activity on X, where people couldn’t believe someone could come up with such a fanciful answer to a puzzle with such a straightforward solution.

Michael created a lovely Photoshop image of what could be the British Ogre.

Not everyone had a problem with the guess.

The incorrect guess is an opportunity for the world to learn that ogres aren’t a significant part of English folklore. Sure, there are characters in English myths and legends that have ogre-like qualities, such as Grendel from "Beowulf," the monstrous creature that terrorizes the mead hall of King Hrothgar. There’s also the Boggart, a mischievous spirit much like a hobgoblin and trolls, which appear in some English tales although they originate in Scandinavia.

If you’re looking for ogres in Europe, France is the best place to go.

The word ogre is of French descent and comes from the name of the Etruscan god of the underworld, Orcus. Orcus is a large, ugly, bearded giant who enjoys consuming human flesh. Ogres are primarily known for eating children, which they believe will give them eternal life.

As for “Wheel of Fortune,” the show will undergo significant changes over the next few years. The show’s host, Pat Sajak, 76, has announced that he is stepping down from the show at the end of the 2024 season after hosting it for 41 years. In September 2024, radio host and “American Idol” emcee Ryan Seacrest will take over the hosting spot.

Seacrest says that changes to the show will be minimal once he takes over.

“With this game show, it’s such a success and has been for generations,” Seacrest said in a new interview with People. “You don’t mess with it, just don’t mess with it. Just get out of the way, say ‘good evening,’ and let’s play.”


This article originally appeared on 3.13.24

In a similar vein to CNN's Crossfire, or when your grandfather opens up about his views on "the Northern problem," contentious political debate is coming to Norway. The Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation's new show, Einig?Einig?(Agreed?) takes the bitter, aggressive, spiteful intensity we know to be public political debates out of contention and replaces them with a system that rewards positivity and politeness. The goal of the show isn't to find where the political opponents contend with one another, but instead it aims to bring them together over opinions on which they can both agree.

Einig(?) aims to take the competition out of politics and replace it with camaraderie. Imagine if instead of Trump and Clinton lambasting each other for their checkered personal histories, they instead spent their time on television coming together to agree that Katz's Deli truly makes the best pastrami in Manhattan.


The rules of the game are simple: don't interrupt or attack your opponent, but instead try listening to their arguments and understanding where they're coming from. The show is not live, and the guests are informed that the flashy argumentation and ad hominem attacks that make political debates such a viral, engrossing spectacle will be edited out in favor of civil, laid-back conversations about the issues. Gro Engen, the editor of Einig, describes the show as trying to "re-create that type of atmosphere" where the cameras are off and the guests are just speaking their minds to each other, perhaps over a cup of coffee, or what I can only assume is the Norwegian equivalent: snow-juice.

There's no moderator for Einig, in an effort to open up discussion by placing the responsibility on the contestants to foster multidimensional conversations on a diverse array of topics, ranging from abortion to tax legislation. The thesis of the show is simple: if there's no parental guidance, eventually the kids will discover that manners are the only way to get anything done. Tired of the political debate format that only perpetuates the "us vs. them" mentality that makes political discussion such a cage match, Einig recognizes that political issues stem from dilemmas that societies are placed in charge of solving, and by letting moral opponents form a framework of discussion around each dilemma at hand, the discussion can focus on intellectual compromises rather than emotional attacks.

The show was first released before their elections in September of 2019, before a Norwegian election that ended up surprising the pollsters as the smaller parties in Norway's multi-party system made large gains on the majority-holding Labour Party. Perhaps this proves exactly what Einig was setting out to do: voters are not divided along clear party lines. Instead, they (ideally) hold complex political opinions that vary from issue to issue, and platforms like Einig can help political candidates better express how they've drawn the conclusions they form their opinions around.

It would be interesting to imagine Joe Biden and Donald Trump in an unmoderated forum like Einig for their debates this fall. So much of American politics is boiled down to the highlights and soundbites of each debate, but if our candidates were able to casually sit down and sparse things out over a cup of coffee in a polite setting, maybe our political system would stop rewarding the loudest and brashest among us, and instead elevate complex thinkers and well-reasoned intellectuals to public office. Or maybe the U.S should let itself be annexed by Norway. Really, anything seems possible these days.

via Gold and or smith / Twitter

On Thursday night, the Canadian version of "Family Feud" delivered one of the most unforgettable moments in game show history.

The game came down to one last question to decide whether the Dubois or the Tomlin family would be the winner.

"Real simple," host Gerry Dee said at the podium. "There's one question – only one answer. Whoever gets it, they're playing for $10,000, that's it. Whoever gets it wins the game."

He then asked the question: "Name Popeye's favorite food."

Before he could even get the whole sentence out of his mouth, Eve from the Dubois family chimed in and said ... well you gotta watch the video.