Figures and letters

Of the figures and the letters is a play televised created on January 4th 1972 by Armand Jammot, resting on competences in calculation and on the knowledge of the vocabulary of the candidates. Diffused on the second channel of ORTF, on Antenna 2, France 2 then on France 3 since the return to school 2006, it is also repeated by TV5. It is the oldest always diffused emission of French television.

The play is currently presented by Laurent Romejko, Arielle Putlog-hole-Prat and Bertrand Renard, these two last controlling the validity of the solutions suggested by the candidates.

History of the emission

  • 1965 : Armand Jammot creates then on Sunday, September 19, 1965 the emission the longest Word , restricted with the letters (pullings of 7 letters), animated by Christine Fabréga and diffused every 2 weeks after the Sunday meal. The play also calls upon the general culture. Each candidate draws with the fate a figure and that which falls on an odd figure must answer a question about a subject various.
  • 1968 : The emission becomes weekly.
  • 1972 : January 4th, the emission is famous figures and letters , becomes daily and is presented by Patrice Laffont with the complicity of max Favalelli for the longest word and of Fabien Buhler, Alias Mr Calcul , for the Account is good . On this occasion, Eddie Warner composes celebrates it music of the emission, entitled Western Patrol. Initially diffused before the Tv news of 20:00, the emission will be moved later in middle of afternoon.
  • 1975 : Bertrand Renard, then candidate, gains 12 matches brilliantly. He integrates the team of the emission at the request of Armand Jammot, to replace Fabien Buhler.
  • 1976 : First “Cut of the champions” in Monaco, gathering the 8 best players of the emission over the former season, gained by Gilbert Lamic.
  • 1983 : First “Great tournament” with Nimes, gathering all the best players of the discipline, gained by Franck Dubois of Patellière. Later, the Great Tournament will take place with Antibes.
  • 1985 : First “Cut of the clubs” gained by the club of Paris.
  • 1989 : Laurent Cabrol becomes presenter.
  • 1992 : max Meynier becomes presenter, quickly replaced by Laurent Romejko.
  • 1992 : Laurent Romejko becomes presenter.
  • 1998 : Death of Armand Jammot on April 19th.
  • 2000 : Departures of Yvette Plailly and Arlène Tempier. New credits, new decoration, introduction of the Duels. Time reduced to 45 seconds for the figures (instead of 50) and to 30 for the letters (instead of 40). The calculation of the points is slightly modified.
  • 2005 : The “tournament of the legends” devotes Pierre-Marie Billy.
  • 2005 : New decoration, new preparing.
  • 2006 : The emission migrates on France 3.
  • 2007 : The " Tournament of Familles" is gained by the team Thomas-Eric, members of the club of Plan-of-Cuques (13).
  • 2007 : New decoration

Organizers

In 2006, the emission is presented by Laurent Romejko, assisted by Arielle Putlog-hole-Prat and Bertrand Renard which is given the responsability to control the validity of the answers of the candidates. But since the creation of the emission in 1965, of many people followed one another on the plate:
  • Christine Fabréga was the first presenter (1965), followed Patrice Laffont (1972), Laurent Cabrol (1989) and max Meynier (1992).
  • to assist them, one remembers especially max Favalelli, very popular near the public for its humor and its culture. But let us not forget OJ Frachon, old of the Compagnons of the song which held this role a short moment, like Bénédicte Galey and Arlène which drew the plates from figures, announced the account to be found and offered the gifts to the candidates.
  • Yvette Plailly, referee and organizing of the emission, supervised the selection of the candidates. Assistant of Armand Jammot since the beginnings in 1967, it withdraws in September 2000. Patrice Laffont becomes producer of the emission then.

The original Type-setter of the topic of the Figures and the letters is Eddie Warner. Since the beginning of the emission the topic was declined in three versions.

Course of the play

The play opposes two candidates. As its title indicates it, it is based on two types of tests: the account is good (based on the numbers) and the longest Word (based on the letters). In the televised version, there exist also the duels .

the account is good

The goal of this test is to obtain a number (from 100 to 999) starting from elementary operations (+, −, ×, ÷) on natural whole , on the basis of randomly drawn numbers (from 1 to 10,25,50,75 and 100). When the emission was not computerized, the play comprised twenty-four plates: numbers from 1 to 10 present into double specimens and numbers 25,50,75 and 100 present in only one specimen.

Then 6 values are drawn.

Failing to find the account exact, it is necessary to try to approach some more close possible.

; First example:

drawn Numbers: 3,100,8,8,10,6
Result requested: 680

6 × 100 = 600

8 × 10 = 80
600 + 80 = 680

; Second example, using the factorization of 111 = 3 × 37:

drawn Numbers: 3,75,2,4,1,1
Result requested: 888

75 - 1 = 74

3 × 4 = 12
74 × 12 = 888

the longest Word

In this test, the two candidates decide each one their turn if they wish that a Voyelle or a Consonne be drawn with the fate, until obtaining 9 letters. The payment imposes that there are at least two vowels in the pulling of letters. The goal is to find the longest word possible by using the letters which were drawn, thus approaching the principle of the Anagramme. As in all the sets of letters, the Diacritique S are neglected.

Example

  • With following pulling:
I R U R E T E NR I
it is possible to obtain the INTERIOR word.
  • With following pulling:
S I NR the U.S.A. MR. O R
it is possible to obtain the words PORPOISES and SUBMARINE.

Allowed and refused words

  • In a general way, is allowed:
    • female ,
    • plural ,
    • Infinitive S,
    • the Participle S last present and ,
    • the made up words.
  • In a general way, is not allowed:
    • the Abbreviation S,
    • the Verb S combined (except for infinitive, of the participle present and the last participle),
    • the proper names,
  • the dictionaries of reference of the emission are Petit Larousse illustrated and the Petit Robert .
  • For the competitions organized by the clubs everywhere in France, various specialized works written by famous players are used as reference to avoid any litigation: the Glossary of the sets of letters (by Jean-Claude Arrighi), Colard (by Jacques Colard)…

Duels

After the fourth blow of letters, in the middle of the part, two duels are played. There are several alternatives:
  • the traditional one, which consists in finding two words referring to a topic given starting from a pulling of 9 letters;
  • One in another : with a pulling of nine letters and indices, to find a word of nine letters and another word, included in the first, one being a proper name, the other a common noun;
  • Good the Orthography : a word is proposed and gaining it is that which spells this word in a correct way the first;
  • the mental Calculation : it is a question of carrying out a calculation of the style " (- 50) + (24* (2-3))+ (42+8) - (3* (6+ (3* (9+6+3))))+204" of head.

It in each alternative is assigned time a 30 seconds to find the answers awaited.

  • If nobody answers before the 30 seconds, no point is allotted.

  • If a candidate answers correctly, five points are allotted to him.
  • If a candidate answers badly, three points are allotted to its adversary.

Champions of the television game

Through the years, many champions illustrated themselves thanks to direct televised play Of the figures and letters , some reaching a significant approval rating near the general public.

Let us quote among most famous:

  • Pierre-Marie Billy : winner of the Tournament of the legends (2005), Masters (1991) of the Cut of the Champions (1999) and better player of the history.
  • Etienne Chazal : winner of Masters with 3 recoveries (1984,1985,1993).
  • Jean-Paul Rope-maker : double winner of Monte Carlo (1980,1981) and Masters (1987).
  • Simone Ménesguen : double winner of Monte Carlo (1978,1979).
  • Christian Quesada : Only player to have gained the three great televised tests: Winner of Monte Carlo (1987) Masters (1989) and Cuts Clubs (1991).
  • Olivier Suys : winner of the Cut Armand Jammot (2001) and of Monte Carlo (1994).

Derivative products under license

Board games

Several versions with the format board game of the plays the longest Word and the account is good were marketed, sometimes separately, sometimes gathered in only one box.

One currently finds a version out of box gathering the two plays, published by Ravensburger and which one can find in specialized store or large surfaces.

Video games

Various commercial software available, is produced for example by Microïds or Mindscape.

Software

Programmation of the Account is good

Because of computing the time and quantity of memory limited which one laid out, the Programmation of the Account is good on computer was formerly delicate for reasons of combinative Explosion. The approximate solution simplest was to use a technique of branch and bound which gave at least what was found of nearer to the objective during the tests. Various Heuristique S is conceivable for the exploration of the tree. This constraint disappears for a small number of figures and a fast machine of the class of those existing today.

First program of the longest Word

the longest Word was one of the very first sets of letters available on PC (under DOS), programmed by the normalien Marcus Dornbusch and marketed by the editor ViFi Jeux Nathan. Its vocabulary and its program held on two Disquette S of 360 KB placed simultaneously in the machine (the PC/XT provided with a Hard drive was then not announced yet). It was very fast thanks to a sophisticated Structure of data and gained practically constantly on any human user when it played in limited time. cheat codes made it possible to increase its vocabulary when gaps there were found.

Recent programs

Kitsune is a free play of " account is bon".

Among the applet Java, let us quote the account is good

Programming of the Account is good

The account is good was presented like programs in SVM.

  • Programming in BASIC in number 2 of January 1985.
  • Programming in Turbo C++ in number 99 of November 1992.

Around the emission

  • In 1986, Patrice Laffont and Bénédicte recorded a disc in duet entitled I decipher his letters .
  • Arlène was also singer before officer with the emission, with titles like Mandolino Rock , First love, the first sorrow , or of the credits of cartoons. It now presents the Sunday Sunday morning on France 2.
  • the organizer Laurent Broomhead made his first appearance televised in this emission as a candidate, whereas it was still student in preparatory classes of mathematics.
  • In 2003, a hoax was assembled and diffused on Internet by Remi Gaillard, alias no matter who . Installed in the public, it made believe that it had found the good account (contrary to the candidates) while counting anyhow: it finds 395 while making: 9×75=95, 8+3=100, 83÷9=200, 95+100+200=395. The video is available on www.nimportequi.com (in the section " impostures").
  • Unknown the produced four sketches parodying the emission:
    • sketch Belgium : the presenter asks the candidates, Mr. Van Brr and Mr. Van Krr, to choose the plates. With 0.0.20.1 .6. they must find VLM. The presenter begs the televiewers to write to him if they included/understood something.
    • sketch the United States : the presenter proposes to the candidates a pulling letters whose solution is the name of the sponsor of the emission, a mark of Céréale S.
    • sketch Israel or Of the figures and figures : after a blow of figures, Mr. Cohen announces his solution. He arranges the results of his calculations as good seems to him, haggling near the presenter and of his adversary Mr. Samuel at cost of reduction and interests.
    • sketch Poland : in a decoration Black and white austere enlightened with the Flashlight, the presenter, after having greeted the televiewers of a " welcome with the fifteen minutes of good mood of television polonaise" pronounced of an extinct voice, invites the two working candidates, Mr. Ribinski and Mr. Vassilievitz, to play with the two remaining letters, P and C (in reference to the Acronyme of the Communist party). When the presenter proposes better than the “1 letter” proposed by the candidates, he is quickly recalled to the order by those.
  • Some winks with the Cinema also:
    • in 1979, in the film Bronzed ski , a peasant of mountain has a television in his farm and looks at the emission. He extinguishes his station whereas he finds a word longer than the candidates, with word BLUMAIZE.
    • in 1985, in the telephone sounds always twice!! , first film of the Unknown , Seymour Brussel (then member of Unknown) parody Bertrand Renard by making operations on a black board, with in point of organ credits of the emission.
    • in 1990, in Tatie Danielle , the character éponyme interpreted by Tsilla Chelton, looks at television and one hears the credits in his entirety. When its organizer Laurent Cabrol appears, Tatie Danielle changes chain by insulting it with its usual spite.
    • in 1994, in the City of the fear , the inspector Patrick Bialès (interpreted by Gerard Darmon) is promoted principal police chief Cannes by gaining the regional final of the Chiffres and the letters thanks to pulling L.O.R.I.C.P.I.S.E with the word POLICE OFFICERS (one sees Patrice Laffont).
    • in 1996, in an air of family , the owner of the bar " The father tranquille" , interpreted by Jean-Pierre Bacri extinguishes his television after having looked at the emission. One guesses the music of the credits and the actor whistles the air during a few moments.

References

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