To bee or not to bee

You know the 52 top spellers from the five northern counties are going to square off tomorrow at North Idaho College, with the winner advancing to the Scripps National Spelling Bee in Washington, D.C.

But maybe you didn't know this:

• The first national spelling bee, sponsored by the newspaper in Louisville, Kent., took place in 1925. It featured 19 contestants.

• Frank Neuhauser won that inaugural event by correctly spelling "gladiolus."

• Scripps Institute took over the bee in 1941.

• With the exception of the war years of 1943-45, the bee grew steadily from the 1920s to the 1970s.

• The bee boomed between 1980 and 1990, when the number of contestants doubled.

• TV has sure helped with exposure, even though the bee is essentially a newspaper-backed event. NBC did the first TV showing in 1946. Now, ESPN covers daytime competition and ABC in the evening.

• Even though "spelling bee" first appeared in print in 1875, the term "bee" buzzes back quite a ways. Meaning a gathering for an activity, spinning bee dates back to 1769, husking bee to 1816, apple bee to 1827, and logging bee to 1836.

• Girls rule and boys - well, they don't exactly drool but they do trail their female counterparts. Girls lead 45-41 (some years there have been co-champs).

• The Coeur d'Alene Press is proud to bee - sorry, be - the bee's sponsor for Idaho's five northern counties. Our partners at North Idaho College do most of the work; we just pay the bills, including all expenses for the winner and a guardian to represent our region in the nation's capital.

We heartily applaud every contestant who will be standing nervously at the microphone tomorrow at NIC and wish to remind them that to get that far, they've already proved their spelling mettle.

Or is that medal?