By geoff
Justin and I spent Friday morning shooting some of the sights in Dubuque before saying a final farewell to Mr. Checkers and Ms. Becky. We hope those crazy kids finally tie the knot someday.
Thursday night we stumbled upon one of Dubuque’s unique locations, the Fenelon Place Elevator. The elevator transports passengers to and from the bluff that sits above lower Dubuque. Some Dubuque residents still live in the mostly Victorian homes that sit on the bluff. The elevator was built by a wealthy banker named Graves back in 1882.
up the tracks of the Fenelon Place Elevator
This is the face Justin makes when your budget forces you to substitute a 127 year old cable car for cranes and aerials.
down the tracks
the view from the bluff
Here’s the elevator’s story: back in the day most people took a 1.5 hour lunch break at noon. Graves lived on the bluff and the roads that led up the bluff, and to his house, took 30 minutes one way for his horse and carriage to reach home. This left the poor guy a measly half hour for lunch. Graves liked to take a nap after lunch so he lobbied the city and ponied up the money to build his own cable-drawn rail car elevator. Needless to say, this guy is my new hero.
On our way out of town we got hung up by some tornado activity in Dubuque and eventually ended up back in Cleveland around Midnight. Many thanks to Mr. Checkers and Ms. Becky. We’ll never forget you.
waiting out the storm at the Dubuque regional airport.
By geoff
Great day today. We spent it inside The World of Checkers Museum with Don “Mr. Checkers” DeWeber and his fiancé, Ms. Becky. I won’t be sharing many photos today. If you want to see the inside of the museum you’ll have to watch our movie or visit the museum (by appointment only) yourself. Let’s just say this: Mr. Checkers has alot of interesting stuff. All of it having to do with checkers.
Justin reports that this has been one of the most interesting King Me shoots so far. Tomorrow we finish up and head home.
Mr. Checkers himself, Don DeWeber.
By geoff
we kicked off the day with a 7:45am flight from Edmonton. Final Destination, Dubuque Iowa.
Main St. Dubuque
Dubuque is a surprisingly charming town that sits on the banks of the Mississippi River. My uncle Roger told me this place was cool. I have to admit that I didn’t believe him at the time. Turns out he was right. Sorry Rog. I guess I will have to start believing ALL of your stories.
Justin and I will spend tomorrow and Friday at North America’s last monument to checkers, The World of Checkers Museum. The museum’s curator, Don “Mr. Checkers” Deweber will show us around and fill us in on Checkers’ days of yore.
We had a few hours to kill before a dinner get together with Mr. Checkers and his friend, Ms. Becky, so we spent some time cruising around the river side.
Justin likes paddle wheels just as much as the next guy. This one sits outside the Mississippi River Aquarium.
Justin Russell, The MIssissippi River and a set of Siamese Ducks. What's not to like?
That ain't no duck beard. Those're Mississippi River bugs!
Mr. Checkers has a monument to Checkers. Dubuque has a monument to beer.
By geoff
Jonathan Schaeffer and Rob Lake were gracious enough to spend the day with Justin and I. As I mentioned in yesterday’s post, Jonathan led a team of computer scientists (including Rob) and checker experts in the creation of Chinook. After 18 years the team successfully developed Chinook into an unstoppable checker playing monster.
Jonathan wrote a great book chronicling his own and the team’s ups and downs in those 18 years. Jonathan’s book, One Jump Ahead is a great read. You can find it here:
http://www.amazon.com/One-Jump-Ahead-Computer-Perfection/dp/0387765751/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1248231040&sr=8-4
The Chinook story on its own is extremely movie-worthy. Most notably, the book tells the story of the long-time friendly rivalry between the Chinook team and Marion Tinsley. “Terrible” Tinsley as he was sometimes known is widely accepted to be the best checker player to ever live. Jonathan and his team went head to head with Tinsley on several occasions in Man v. Machine match ups.
Jonathan and Rob shared their stories of their time spent with Tinsley and other checker luminaries. Jonathan was also a fantastic host and we thank him for his hospitality. He even carried some of our gear! I guess Canadians really are nicer than Americans. Tomorrow is another travel day as we head to Dubuque, Iowa to visit our new friend, Mr. Checkers. See you there.
Johnathan Schaeffer in his teaching office. He now serves as Vice Provost at The University of Alberta.
We even got to watch the man battle the machine he created.
Jonathan Schaeffer and Rob Lake
Justin tried his best not to be grumpy about the close quarters
By geoff
It’s been a few weeks since we’ve been at the blog, it’s been a busy summer. This week Justin Russell and I are hitting the road for some long-awaited production in Canada and Iowa. But first things first:
Major congratulations to my brother, Perry, who assumed Command of U.S. Navy Patrol Squadron 30 on July 17. Awesome job as always big bro! I spent the days leading up to production in Jacksonville, FL celebrating the event.
Justin and I arrived in Edmonton, Alberta late this afternoon. We’re here to spend some time with Dr. Jonathan Schaeffer at the University of Alberta. Dr. Schaeffer and his team spent 18 years developing a computer program that eventually solved checkers. Their program, Chinook, can be played here:
http://www.cs.ualberta.ca/~chinook/
Throughout their time in the checkers world Dr. Schaeffer and his team rubbed elbows with many of the characters in King Me. Tomorrow, they will share some of their experiences with us.
L-R Admiral Bill Moran, Captain Perry Yaw, LCDR Atticus T. Taylor
A reverse view of the ceremony from the front row
Uof A
