Spell it on

It’s go time for Josephine Kao, our favorite spelling bee champ!

The 2007 Scripps National Spelling Bee is on as we speak. A look at the list of contestants will take you not just around the United States but also around the world.

With something to prove this year, Josephine, contestant #19, has made it into round 3 . More updates as they become available!

UPDATE 2: As mentioned in the comments, Josephine dropped out in round 6 on the word “tournure“. The contest went on another seven rounds, but the title was still brought back to NorCal when Evan O’Dorney from Walnut Creek knocked “serrefine” out of the park. Great job in representing NorCal, Josephine and Evan!

UPDATE: My sources tell me that Josephine is still standing after Round 4. Only 72 entrants out of 286 are still standing, putting her in the top 24.8 percent. Call in s-i-c-k tomorrow and catch the bee live on ESPN from 7 to 10 AM.

13 thoughts on “Spell it on”

  1. Made it through Round 4 with “Torquemada”

    “Let’s face it – you can’t Torquemada anything!”

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  2. they do proper nouns? maybe i’m thinking of Scrabble but proper nouns seems like the one thing they don’t do in a spelling bee.

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  3. This ain’t your grandpa’s spelling bee, pal. Lucky she didn’t get “Ayurveda” or “Gruyère”. Dang.

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  6. still seems unfair… how do they “use it in a sentence?” “The first Grand Inquisitor of Spain was Torquemada” is only helpful if you know who the first Grand Inquisitor of Spain was. Kudos to Josephine for nailing it though…

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  9. In a semi-related infotainment update:

    Californiamusicaltheatre.com announces “After over 800 performances on Broadway, THE 25th ANNUAL PUTNAM COUNTY SPELLING BEE continues to be a hit in New York and now comes to Sacramento March 5 – 16, 2008. One of the cleverest shows to come from Broadway, Spelling Bee humorously shows us how to win and lose with grace as we watch six young people deal with growing up during a spelling bee. The New York Times raved about the production as “irresistible, riotously funny and remarkably ingenious – gold stars all around.”

    I had the pleasure of seeing this show in SF last June and it was incredible. Kind of “mini” by modern broadway standards, this show only has a cast of 12. In fact in keeping with the shows improvisational roots (was a completely improved show before being written into a full scale musical) 4 of those on stage are actual audience members, plucked from thier seats to perform on stage with the actors as real contestants in a live spelling bee. With no real scene changes, you watch this real time spelling bee go on in front of you as you connect with the heart warming (and breaking) stories of these kids. Get tickets now if your a theater geek, you wont be dissapointed.

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  11. or you could just click Singhcity’s link from the article… but yes, she is out.

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