“Famous Nathan: A Family Saga of Coney Island, the American Dream, and the Search for the Perfect Hot Dog” a book by Lloyd Handwerker, a grandson of Nathan Handwerker, the founder of Nathan’s famous was released yesterday. Lloyd Handwerker will give a talk about the book tonight at Greenlight Bookstore in Brooklyn.

In the book, Lloyd Handwerker corroborates the claim made by Mortimer Matz in a 2010 New York Times interview that the 1916 origin story for Nathan’s is a fabrication.

(image from page 5 of the book)
update Jun 23Daily Beast has an article about the book with this paragraph about the contest:

So, what would Nathan have thought about the modern-day popularity of the hot dog eating contest? Lloyd was a bit hesitant when I asked him. “Some of the old timers are disgusted by it,” he admitted. While he wasn’t sure if his grandfather would have agreed with them, he “couldn’t deny the advertising impact on the company.” But on the other-hand “he hated waste” and each night he even inspected the garbage to see what people weren’t finishing.

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With one qualifier left, here are the winners of the previous competitions:

Wild Card Leaders

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Flashback 2011 to Cleveland Scene’s profile of Scott Bickel (RIP) which included this section on how he hoped his competitive eating career could reverse the fortunes of his hometown:

The cult of Beefcakes Bickel has sprung forth from a specific time and place: post-LeBron Cleveland, a cityscape in a desperate scramble for self-esteem. The years of losing seasons, national punch lines, the very public breakup with our hero — it’s all taken its toll, shrinking our civic ego to that of a touchy teenager’s, always sucking in that gut and checking the fly.

Is relief on the way? With the city’s pro athletes useless to salve our wounds, a cottage industry has cropped up among the amateur ranks: the search for a championship — any championship whatsoever — for Cleveland. From women’s boxing to ultimate fighting to Harry Potter fandom, newsmaking residents are eager to bring distinction back home. Prime-time glory? Not exactly. This is ESPN3-caliber fame.

Bickel is the latest — perhaps greatest — of them. He decided early on that his mission would not be merely about himself, but about Cleveland. Some would raise championship banners. Bickel will raise hot dogs.

In January 2012, Scott Bickel took his life by jumping off a bridge.

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Results part 1 | part 2

1) Miki Sudo 8 pounds in 8 minutes, won in overtime
2) Michelle Lesco 8 pounds, lost in overtime
3) Steve Hendry 6.75
4) Juan Rodriguez 6.5
5) Andrew Gutierrez 5
6) Doug Ecks 4
7) Mary Bowers 3.75
8) Leslie Ryder 3
9T) Jon Davis 2.5
9T) Haywood

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update June 20 Full results Part 1 | Part 2

Read the rest of this entry »

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Bully The LSB posted a page from a comic book where Superman cooked and served food for an eating contest for Daily Planet employees that was to have awarded a sports car. Jimmy Olsen was one of the competitors.
updated Jun 19 A commenter noted that the page was from a 1958 Jimmy Olsen comic. Here is the cover and plot summary.

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