It is a mild exaggeration for me to say that I do not know a heart
from a spade. I actually played bridge for a little while in college
at the University of California in about 1966-67. I got about ten
master points but never send them in.

I even played with Al Lawrence as my partner in several sessions in
the Game Room or in the Bear's Lair at the University of California at
Berkeley. In case you think that makes me a good player, actually
these were money games. The idea was that Mike Lawrence was the best
player in the world and I was the worst player in the world.
Therefore, we played for money against a partnership of above average
ability. We always won. All I had to figure out how to do is always
have Mike Lawrence be the declarer and under no circumstances be the
declarer myself because I was terrible at that. I could defend a
little bit however.

I always had money in my pocket because I was President of the Sexual
Freedom League then so therefore I never had any financial problems
and I could afford to play in the big money games in the Bear's Lair
without fear of losing.

I was amazed how Mike Lawrence could figure out every card in
everybody's hand and know the exact result of the hand after only
three rounds of play. He would say "Down One" or "Making" or something
like that after only three rounds of play and everybody would just
throw in their cards and another hand would be dealt.

I could never understand how they did that.

Sam Sloan

"samsloan" schrieb im Newsbeitrag
...
On Feb 24, 9:05 pm, johnny_t wrote:
Sam Sloan wrote:
I am about to publish a book about bridge. However, somebody told me
that nobody plays bridge any more.

Is that true? Is bridge play up or down?

Would it be a waste of my time and money to publish a book about
bridge?

Sam Sloan

There is probably at least a viable market for reprints of historically
interesting out-of-copyright bridge books. The key is to give rebirth
to the historically interesting part.

You have done it with chess books, I see no reason you can't expand in
the same vein.

Yes. That exactly is what I plan to do.

Personally, I do not know the difference between a heart and a spade.

Sam Sloan

Then my advice is to don't bother. You are coming in with the wrong
attitude. I am quite sure that no first time bridge book writer wrote the
book to make lots of profit, which seems your primary interest. If you don't
start with a story you want to tell, it's not going to work.

Gerben

On Feb 25, 10:21 am, samsloan wrote:
On Feb 24, 9:05 pm, johnny_t wrote:



Sam Sloan wrote:
I am about to publish a book about bridge. However, somebody told me
that nobody plays bridge any more.

Is that true? Is bridge play up or down?

Would it be a waste of my time and money to publish a book about
bridge?

Sam Sloan

There is probably at least a viable market for reprints of historically
interesting out-of-copyright bridge books. The key is to give rebirth
to the historically interesting part.

You have done it with chess books, I see no reason you can't expand in
the same vein.

Yes. That exactly is what I plan to do.

Personally, I do not know the difference between a heart and a spade.

Sam Sloan

It might make some money. I'd say the popularity of bridge is about
the same as chess.

On Feb 25, 3:31 am, "Gerben Dirksen" wrote:

Then my advice is to don't bother. You are coming in with the wrong
attitude. I am quite sure that no first time bridge book writer wrote the
book to make lots of profit, which seems your primary interest. If you don't
start with a story you want to tell, it's not going to work.

Gerben

I am not writing the book. The book is already written by a good
player. I am trying to decide whether to publish it or not.

Sam Sloan

"Gerben Dirksen" wrote in message
...

Here he is; the man who brought contract bridge to the United States, and
published from our town.

Ely Culbertson, born July 22, 1891, Ploesti, Rom.
died Dec. 27, 1955, Brattleboro, Vt., U.S.

American authority on the card game known as Contract Bridge who later
abandoned the game to work for world peace.

Culbertson was the son of an American oil explorer and lived as a boy in
Russia. He was educated in Geneva and Paris. In his youth he was a
revolutionary agent in the Russian Caucasus, ... /EB

Brattleboro was thus famous for Kipling's residence, printing the first
bibles in the usa, and also the firsr /contract/ bridge titles. Culbertson
published:-

a.. Contract Bridge Blue Book (1930)
a.. The Strange Lives of One Man (1940)
a.. The World Federation Plan (1942)
a.. Total Peace (1943)
a.. Must We Fight Russia? (1946)
a.. Culbertson on Canasta: a Complete Guide for Beginners and Advanced
Players With the Official Laws of Canasta (1949)
Phil Innes

Here he is; the man who brought contract bridge to the United States

Ely Culbertson

Well, not exactly. Auction bridge was popular in the US when
Culbertson was still in his early teens, and it was Harold Vanderbilt,
of the US, who introduced the scoring changes in 1925 that gave us the
game we know today. It was Vanderbilt's social standing and
visibility that were largely responsible for contract taking over so
quickly. Culbertson saw what was happening and did a great deal to
publicize the game, and had considerable success as a player and was
the first person named to the Bridge Hall of Fame, so his place in the
history of the game is secure -- but "brought it to the US"? No.

David

"David Babcock" wrote in message
...

Here he is; the man who brought contract bridge to the United States

Ely Culbertson

Well, not exactly. Auction bridge was popular in the US when
Culbertson was still in his early teens, and it was Harold Vanderbilt,
of the US, who introduced the scoring changes in 1925 that gave us the
game we know today. It was Vanderbilt's social standing and
visibility that were largely responsible for contract taking over so
quickly. Culbertson saw what was happening and did a great deal to
publicize the game, and had considerable success as a player and was
the first person named to the Bridge Hall of Fame, so his place in the
history of the game is secure -- but "brought it to the US"? No.

Yes - you are in the right of it David, I should have made greater emphasis
on the /scientific/ aspect of the new 'contract' idea. Whether this
statement "Culbertson suggested to the bridge-playing public that the
Culbertson System of bidding was superior to the systems of his rivals" is
entirely candid, or a somewhat hyperbolous means to sell his books, is
certainly the contestable aspect of things - as you mention above.

And somewhat equivocally tested;- in this anecdote from Wikipedia:-

Culbertson-Lenz match
This took place between December 1931 and January 1932 at two New York
hotels, and was called "The Bridge Battle of the Century". Sidney Lenz was
the leader of a group of players opposed to Culbertson's domination of the
game, and who called their bidding system the Official System. Culbertson
challenged Lenz to a match, wagering $5,000 against his opponent's $1,000,
with the money to go to charity regardless of the outcome. The match was
played as rubber bridge, with 150 rubbers being played. Culbertson played 88
of these with his wife, Josephine, partnering one of Theodore Lightner,
Waldemar von Zedtwitz, Howard Schenken and Michael Gottlieb in the
remainder. Lenz played with Oswald Jacoby for the first 103 rubbers, but
Jacoby then resigned following a heated difference of opinion over a
defensive play. For the rest of the match Lenz's partner was Cmdr. Winfield
Liggett Jr. Culbertson's team won by 8,980 points.

-------

Tell me something about Bridge players - my own teacher was a guy who was on
"Omar's Flying Circus", and needless to say, quite good! And in exchange for
the pain of teaching a novice bridge, I taught him chess.

Is there, in your experience much mutual interest in the games? I know many
ardent chess players have never tried Bridge, while others seem to like all
'deep' games.

I also note your previous comment about chess and bridge being perhaps
equivalent in popularity - and while I have no datum to permit any comment
of my own, I did read with amusement some months ago that Bill Gates and his
Tennessee buddy billionaire tried to give away - how much was it? A $million
to NY City schools if they would teach bridge.

They were unsuccessful! Though, it did occur to me at the time that if the
very evident success of Gates and Buffett suggested that bridge aided modern
management practices, and my premuption being that they tried to encourage
the game by entering it to mainstream curricula, then they were commenting
on something lacking in US education.

The same is true, you see, about chess - where there is a mass of anecdotal
support for its benefit, academically, psychologically, but also in terms of
socialization of students, harnessing agrression in culturally permitted
ways, and so on ... everything in fact except academic acceptance.

Have there been successfully entries of bridge into mainstream education
anywhere in the Western World? If so, can you please cite me a reference?

Cordially, Phil Innes

Vermont USA

[excuse my presumption that you are American]


David

On Feb 25, 8:31 am, Bob Lipton wrote:
Chess One wrote:
"David Babcock" wrote in message
...
Here he is; the man who brought contract bridge to the United States

Ely Culbertson
Well, not exactly. Auction bridge was popular in the US when
Culbertson was still in his early teens, and it was Harold Vanderbilt,
of the US, who introduced the scoring changes in 1925 that gave us the
game we know today. It was Vanderbilt's social standing and
visibility that were largely responsible for contract taking over so
quickly. Culbertson saw what was happening and did a great deal to
publicize the game, and had considerable success as a player and was
the first person named to the Bridge Hall of Fame, so his place in the
history of the game is secure -- but "brought it to the US"? No.

Yes - you are in the right of it David, I should have made greater emphasis
on the /scientific/ aspect of the new 'contract' idea. Whether this
statement "Culbertson suggested to the bridge-playing public that the
Culbertson System of bidding was superior to the systems of his rivals" is
entirely candid, or a somewhat hyperbolous means to sell his books, is
certainly the contestable aspect of things - as you mention above.

And somewhat equivocally tested;- in this anecdote from Wikipedia:-

Culbertson-Lenz match
This took place between December 1931 and January 1932 at two New York
hotels, and was called "The Bridge Battle of the Century". Sidney Lenz was
the leader of a group of players opposed to Culbertson's domination of the
game, and who called their bidding system the Official System. Culbertson
challenged Lenz to a match, wagering $5,000 against his opponent's $1,000,
with the money to go to charity regardless of the outcome. The match was
played as rubber bridge, with 150 rubbers being played. Culbertson played 88
of these with his wife, Josephine, partnering one of Theodore Lightner,
Waldemar von Zedtwitz, Howard Schenken and Michael Gottlieb in the
remainder. Lenz played with Oswald Jacoby for the first 103 rubbers, but
Jacoby then resigned following a heated difference of opinion over a
defensive play. For the rest of the match Lenz's partner was Cmdr. Winfield
Liggett Jr. Culbertson's team won by 8,980 points.

-------

Tell me something about Bridge players - my own teacher was a guy who was on
"Omar's Flying Circus", and needless to say, quite good! And in exchange for
the pain of teaching a novice bridge, I taught him chess.

Is there, in your experience much mutual interest in the games? I know many
ardent chess players have never tried Bridge, while others seem to like all
'deep' games.

I also note your previous comment about chess and bridge being perhaps
equivalent in popularity - and while I have no datum to permit any comment
of my own, I did read with amusement some months ago that Bill Gates and his
Tennessee buddy billionaire tried to give away - how much was it? A $million
to NY City schools if they would teach bridge.

They were unsuccessful! Though, it did occur to me at the time that if the
very evident success of Gates and Buffett suggested that bridge aided modern
management practices, and my premuption being that they tried to encourage
the game by entering it to mainstream curricula, then they were commenting
on something lacking in US education.

The same is true, you see, about chess - where there is a mass of anecdotal
support for its benefit, academically, psychologically, but also in terms of
socialization of students, harnessing agrression in culturally permitted
ways, and so on ... everything in fact except academic acceptance.

Have there been successfully entries of bridge into mainstream education
anywhere in the Western World? If so, can you please cite me a reference?

Cordially, Phil Innes

Vermont USA

[excuse my presumption that you are American]

David

1: Culbertson's book written in the wake of the 'Bridge Match of the
Century' was published by a Philadelphia firm.

2: Culbertson was living in New York City at the time. He later owned
about six houses, including Connecticut; bought the place in
Brattleboro some time later than the events under discussion.

3: 'Gates' Tennessee buddy' is Warren Buffett, who was born in Omaha,
raised there and Washington D.C., worked for a few years in NYC and has
lived again, for the past forty or so years, back in Omaha. While it is
possible he may have visited Tennessee, I can't think of any visit I
have ever heard of.

4: As I can't think of why anyone in the chess newsgroups might be
interested in this discussion, I have removed them from the list.

Chess people are a large part of this discussion -- including the OP
and the one you just responded to.

Charles


Otherwise I notice no inaccuracies in your assertions, except that I
thought that all of Omar's Bridge circus members were Egyptian or
European. But I might be mistaken.

Bob

"Charles Brenner" wrote in message
...
On Feb 25, 8:31 am, Bob Lipton wrote:
Chess One wrote:
"David Babcock" wrote in message
...
Here he is; the man who brought contract bridge to the United States


Tell me something about Bridge players - my own teacher was a guy who
was on
"Omar's Flying Circus", and needless to say, quite good! And in
exchange for
the pain of teaching a novice bridge, I taught him chess.

Is there, in your experience much mutual interest in the games? I know
many
ardent chess players have never tried Bridge, while others seem to like
all
'deep' games.

I also note your previous comment about chess and bridge being perhaps
equivalent in popularity - and while I have no datum to permit any
comment
of my own, I did read with amusement some months ago that Bill Gates
and his
Tennessee buddy billionaire tried to give away - how much was it? A
$million
to NY City schools if they would teach bridge.

They were unsuccessful! Though, it did occur to me at the time that if
the
very evident success of Gates and Buffett suggested that bridge aided
modern
management practices, and my premuption being that they tried to
encourage
the game by entering it to mainstream curricula, then they were
commenting
on something lacking in US education.

The same is true, you see, about chess - where there is a mass of
anecdotal
support for its benefit, academically, psychologically, but also in
terms of
socialization of students, harnessing agrression in culturally
permitted
ways, and so on ... everything in fact except academic acceptance.

Have there been successfully entries of bridge into mainstream
education
anywhere in the Western World? If so, can you please cite me a
reference?

Cordially, Phil Innes

Vermont USA

[excuse my presumption that you are American]

David

1: Culbertson's book written in the wake of the 'Bridge Match of the
Century' was published by a Philadelphia firm.

Surely, but written where?

2: Culbertson was living in New York City at the time. He later owned
about six houses, including Connecticut; bought the place in
Brattleboro some time later than the events under discussion.

Pardon me, I was unaware of what events these are. I rather thought he
stayed here, previous to buying a place? The town was after all, a 'spa',
and thought that is as facetious a claim as many Vermont and New York
exclmations, nevertheless, people came.

3: 'Gates' Tennessee buddy' is Warren Buffett, who was born in Omaha,
raised there and Washington D.C., worked for a few years in NYC and has
lived again, for the past forty or so years, back in Omaha. While it is
possible he may have visited Tennessee, I can't think of any visit I
have ever heard of.

Ah... well, at least I know something!

4: As I can't think of why anyone in the chess newsgroups might be
interested in this discussion, I have removed them from the list.

Except of course what I wrote about bridge being adopted in any curriculum.
But, let me take that as a pass, I having opened 2 clubs! being a 23+ point
conversational item!

Chess people are a large part of this discussion -- including the OP
and the one you just responded to.

Charles

Surely... ?


Otherwise I notice no inaccuracies in your assertions, except that I
thought that all of Omar's Bridge circus members were Egyptian or
European. But I might be mistaken.

Yes. A man who after 6 hours of play can say about the second hand, which we
defended;- do you remember your club holding [when spades were trumps, and
the 2, 9, J, and then compares with a similar hand just played, and a deceit
possibly thereon, and after being 'in wine' for the interim period; such a
person is a 'player'. Possibly an extremely strong player, though admittedly
not on the evidence of any such meagre anecdote.

I apologise if such references ruffle feathers, or if local knowledge
deflates historiographies, but I too am a player

Cordially, Phil Innes


Bob

On Feb 24, 10:02 pm, samsloan wrote:
It is a mild exaggeration for me to say that I do not know a heart
from a spade. I actually played bridge for a little while in college
at the University of California in about 1966-67. I got about ten
master points but never send them in.

I even played with Al Lawrence as my partner in several sessions in
the Game Room or in the Bear's Lair at the University of California at
Berkeley. In case you think that makes me a good player, actually
these were money games. The idea was that Mike Lawrence was the best
player in the world and I was the worst player in the world.
Therefore, we played for money against a partnership of above average
ability. We always won. All I had to figure out how to do is always
have Mike Lawrence be the declarer and under no circumstances be the
declarer myself because I was terrible at that. I could defend a
little bit however.

I always had money in my pocket because I was President of the Sexual
Freedom League then so therefore I never had any financial problems
and I could afford to play in the big money games in the Bear's Lair
without fear of losing.

I was amazed how Mike Lawrence could figure out every card in
everybody's hand and know the exact result of the hand after only
three rounds of play. He would say "Down One" or "Making" or something
like that after only three rounds of play and everybody would just
throw in their cards and another hand would be dealt.

I could never understand how they did that.

Sam Sloan

If you are an old acquaintance of Michael's, write to him for his
advice. His email is on his web page: http://www.michaelslawrence.com/


Andrew