A CAUTIONARY NOTE IN SITUATIONAL ANALYSIS: "Coincidences do happen," or, "How Super Password gives pause to conspiracy theories."
"Super Password" is one of my favorite game shows ever. But beyond entertainment, there is a lesson to be gleaned from the 1985 Tournament of Champions about coincidental patterns--they do happen. Being the fan that I am, I have seen video of the tournament a number of times (the women in the tournament are quite pleasant to look at). Doing so has shown me how innocent coincidences can start to look like conspiracies, a phenomenon which can overwhelm and deceive lesser minds. They will see it, let their imagination--and often paranoia--run with it, and develop a narrative which at the least far overreaches the reality. Specifically, these coincidences and odd events involve Natalie Steele, the winner of the tournament (and taking home a then-amazing total of $106,000). Rewatching the final three episodes (the ones featuring Shelly Smith and Dick Gautier as the celebrities) of the tournament yields some odd things: 1. Steele wears red practically every day. 2. Steel...