Subject: Re: The Twin Peaks chess game
From: kxgj@vax5.cit.cornell.edu
Date: 1991-04-08, 05:59
Newsgroups: alt.tv.twin-peaks,rec.games.chess

In article <27FE21F7.5482@ibma0.cs.uiuc.edu>,
noe@sunc5.cs.uiuc.edu (Roger Noe) writes:
> > Since I can find no previous article cross-posted between these two news-
> > groups, I wanted to invite rec.games.chess readers to comment on this
> > thread of discussion.
> >
> > In the ABC TV series "Twin Peaks" there is a chess game going on between
> > a highly intelligent, resourceful, maniacal and psychopathic killer named
> > Windom Earle and his arch-rival/nemesis, FBI special agent Dale Cooper.
> > (Earle used to be Cooper's partner, more history can be provided upon
> > request.)  Every time Earle (white) captures one of Cooper's (black)
> > pieces, some person dies.  Cooper has enlisted the help of the local
> > chess "expert" to play to a stalemate with as few pieces captured as
> > possible.  Earle now recognizes this "unfair" play and seems determined
> > to inflict massive punishment as a consequence.
> >
> > In article <1991Apr5.100423.1104@ceres.physics.uiowa.edu> jak@ceres.physics.u
>> >>  Here are the moves of the chess game so far, as near as I can tell.
>> >>        Windom                         Coop
>> >>  1.    P-K4                            P-K4
>> >>  2.    P-Q4                            N-QB3
>> >>  3.    PxP                             P-QN3
>> >>  4.    N-KB3                           P-QR3
>> >>
>> >>  Now, I think Windom's next move will be QB-KN5. This is not the best
>> >>move from a fundamentals standpoint, but it attacks the Black Queen, and
>> >>it forces an exchange. Black has to block, preferably with a pawn, because
>> >>if someone dies every time a black piece is taken, the presumably a pawn
>> >>dying is not as drastic as a bishop or knight dying.
> >
> > Any comments?  Bear in mind that not much time is left in the TV season,
> > hence if anything big is going to happen at all, it would seem to be
> > more likely sooner rather than later.
> > --
> > Roger Noe                            roger-noe@uiuc.edu
> > Department of Computer Science       noe@cs.uiuc.edu
> > University of Illinois               40:06:39 N.  88:13:41 W.

I was just wondering if anyone out there with these 2 interests (chess, TP)
has noticed the similarity of this situation to one in a book I read
awile ago (NO idea of author, title, ....).  Anyway, in that story, an
inmate at a Nazi concentration camp was a good chess player.  The commandant
also was a good player and played the inmate(s) for enjoyment.  The best
inmate refused to play so the commandant made a 'deal' -- play a game and
if the inmate won, he'd get a reward (i forget, life?, freedom?..).  If
he lost, he'd get some penalty (again my memory fails).  If he didn't play,
lots of other inmates would die (obviously, the details are sketchy).
They played -- with the other side rule that when a piece of the inmates
was taken, an inmate from from his barracks would be killed (just as in
TP).  The story culminated with the inmate being able to win but only
by sacrificing his queen, which represented, of course, the inmate's son!
The inmate chose to win the game.

I had been thinking that TP was coming to this--Win. just sent notes to 3
prominent women in the story (his "queens"(!)).  I thought he was going
to keep one as a hostage and set up a situation where coop could win
but only by killing the queen (Audrey?).  Would ccop kill, save her?
The recent thread about wind. getting revenge tends to point away from
this theory but keep an eye out for continuing similarities.

Kirk