Subject: Re: The Twin Peaks chess game
From: ekw@world.std.com (Elliott C Winslow)
Date: 1991-04-08, 20:26
Newsgroups: alt.tv.twin-peaks,rec.games.chess

The previous reference thought he had seen this story line before.
Indeed, more than once.  The main reference has to be Kurt Vonnegut,
and I think it's in _Welcome to the Monkey House_, but I'm not sure.
The more recent reference is a Mr. David K. Mellott in the April 1990
Chess Life, a story called _Unexpected Move_.  Vonnegut's version took
place in Asia, I can't remember if it was Vietnam or the Pacific during
World War II or Korea.  The Mellott version had it take place in a
concentration camp in Germany.

I was working at Chess Life as assistant editor when this story came
in, and read it.  The editor at the time was very concerned that it
would be taken as offensive.  But for whatever reason, she went ahead
and ran it.  Shortly after the issue was mailed, we got a
communication from Mark Ginsburg suggesting we look at the Vonnegut
book.  I had wondered why that book had been in the Chess Life
library!

The comparisons between the two "implementations of this plan" are
just at you might expect.  Vonnegut's (IMHO) genius at the short story
shows clearly, while Mellott might consider returning his payment.  As
for the Twin Peaks version -- I have yet to view more than a few
minutes of TP, so I'm not hooked.  I read the foolishness about Agent
Cooper's Blackjack "prowess" (and the rec.games.gambling group's
absurd discussions of when you hit a 17 against a 10, or whatever),
and I'd have to suggest that the moves to this game go in the same bin
(or null).

---
  Elliott Winslow IM  {uunet,xylogic}!world.std.com!ekw
  (718) 429-5793 {apple,pacbell,hplabs,ucbvax}!well!ekw