Letterati, by Paul McCarthy

Letterati: An Unauthorized Look at Scrabble and the People Who Play It, by Paul McCarthy
ECW Press, 2008
285 pages, plus glossary. A few b&w photos. No index.

Where did the Scrabble game originate? How has it developed? Who are the most sophisticated players and what motivates them to travel to tournaments for which there is little financial reward?

From the hustlers of the 1960s New York game rooms to the ultra-devoted tile pushers of today, Letterati spans the history of competitive Scrabble. Along the way, you will find out about the official Scrabble dictionaries, the techniques that expert players use, and how the Scrabble trademark has been defended by the game's current owner, Hasbro. Examining the origins, strategies, changes, and the business behind it all, this is a comprehensive look behind the world's favorite word game.

Photos
--Alfred Butts, Scrabble inventor, with Dave Schulman (1981)
--Ron Tiekert (1983)
--Roz Grossman, Steve Pfeiffer, Bernie Wishengrad and Arnie Alpert (1978
--Stu Goldman (1975)
--Mike Senkiewicz (1978)
--Roz Grossman, Ed Hepner, Mike Senkiewicz, John Ozag, Tim Maneth, Frank Khuenrich, Dan Pratt (1978)
--Al Weissman (1979)
--Mark Nyman, Stan Rubinsky, Joe Edley, Peter Morris (1992)
--Bob Felt and Bob Lipton (1991)
--Trey Wrightm Andre Ornish, Robin Daniel, Chris Xree, Joel Sherman (2004)
--Stan Rubinsky and Mike Baron (1983)
--Alan Frank (1988)
--Steve Pfeiffer and Paul Avrin (1979)
--Shazzi Felstein and Barry Patten (1978)
--Jim Houle, David Prinze, Joel Skolnick (1978)
--Ron Tiekert and Merrill Kaitz (1979)
--Joel Wapnick, Joe Edley, Milt Wertheimer, Barbara Amster (1983)
--Rita Norr (1988)
--Bob Schoenman and Lester Schonbrun (1988)
--Bob WAtson, Joel Wapnick, Joe Edley, Milt Wertheimer (1988)
--Charlie Southwell and Jan Dixon, Mike Martin, (1984)
--Robin Pollock Daniel and Luise Shafritz (1996)
--Jean Carol and Gordon Shapiro (1989)
--Lisa Odom and Robin Pollock Daniel (2004)
--Brian Cappelletto (1991)
--Ann Sanfedele and Adam Logan (1996)
--Bob Watson and Peter Morris (1988)
--Dan Pratt and Mike Weiss
--Charles Goldstein and Jognny Navarezz (1995)
--Trey Wright, Chris Cree, Marlon Hill (2004)
--David Gibson, Lester Schonbrun and Martin Weisskopf
--Joel Sherman and Matt Graham
--Adam Logan, Jason Katz-Brown and Brian Capaletto (2007)
--Jim Neuberger
--Lester Schonbrun and Eric Chaikin (2002)
--John Williams, David Wiegand, Panupol Sujjayakorn (2005)