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Stump the Librarian Contest winners selected

Winners entered challenging questions to win Stump the Librarian Contest

Library patrons submitted challenging questions on comic strips, the Dewey Decimal System and TV programs to win the Newport News Public Library System’s Stump the Librarian Contest.

Jerry Howell took first place in the Newport News Public Library System’s Stump the Librarian Contest.

Library patrons submitted challenging questions on comic strips, the Dewey Decimal System and TV programs to win the Newport News Public Library System’s Stump the Librarian Contest.

The Contest, which ran Feb. 1-28, asked participants to send their most challenging reference questions through the Library’s eLibrarian service for a chance to win prizes valued up to $115.

Winning first place and a VIP Passport valid for two admissions to all Newport News attractions, valued at $115, is Jerry Howell. His question was "What female feline character was shown in a Sunday Garfield strip within the first few years of the comic and was never mentioned again?"

To answer this question, a Library staff member consulted the official website for the Garfield comic strip and TV show, www.garfield.com. The list of characters found that "Arlene" was the only female feline character introduced in the early years of the strip, but Arlene appeared many other times later in the strip, as well. Searching the Sunday strip archives on the website revealed that on Nov. 18, 1979, (more than a year before Arlene appears) a gray female cat with a red bow in her tail and around her neck, appeared in a Garfield strip. In this comic, Garfield lets this cat in his house, but after she eats all his food, he kicks her out. The final frame includes a thought bubble that reads "Love is a fickle thing," the title by which this strip is usually known. This female feline character never appeared in the strip again and was never given a name.

The second place winner is Michelle Lewis, who won a gift certificate for a free spring or summer class through Newport News Parks and Recreation, valued up to $50. Her question was "Who is the only person found in every category of the Dewey Decimal System?”

The Library staff member found a Carnegie Mellon University trivia site that listed Isaac Asimov as the answer and provided this to the patron. But this answer needed a bit of clarification, according to Darla Kincaid, reference librarian at Pearl Bailey Library. Kincaid and Patricia Manzella, senior librarian at Virgil I. Grissom Library, organized the contest.

The Library of Congress online catalog records show that Asimov is the author of record for books that have been cataloged in nine of the 10 major Dewey Decimal categories. However, Asimov never authored or edited a book that was cataloged anywhere in the 100s of the Dewey Decimal system. However, Asimov wrote a foreword for “In the Pursuit of Truth: Essays on the Philosophy of Karl Popper on the Occasion of his 80th Birthday,” edited by Paul Levinson, which is cataloged in the 192s in Dewey.

“The patron's question didn't specify which author has a book in every category of the Dewey Decimal System,” Kincaid said, “and from what we could find, none do, but certainly Isaac Asimov seems to come closest.”

Third place winner Patty Harris also won a gift certificate for a free spring or summer class through Newport News Parks and Recreation. Her question was "What is the only current TV show that does not have a theme song?”

The Library staff member who researched this question determined that several current and recent shows do not have theme songs, according to tvtropes.org, a wiki community that discusses trends in television. Included in the list of theme-less shows are “Kyle XY,” “Desperate Housewives,”; “Lost,” “Grey's Anatomy,” and “Glee.” The most challenging aspect of this question, Kincaid said, was trying to locate a source for information on current television shows that could be considered valid.

The contest was co-sponsored by the Newport News Public Library System and the Newport News Department of Parks, Recreation and Tourism.

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