THE HEADLINES
WHAT'S MAKING NEWS IN THE WORLD OF PROFESSIONAL PIG PASSING
To contact the NPPL email us at: nppl@pigmadness.com
2010 MASTERS CHAMPION - BILL VERGOS!
PAST ARTICLES
GREENE and RAGO enter contest to win Silver Pigs!!
by Hugh Jass January 15th, 2010
Last year the NPPL send out an email to our mailing list about a new contest to win a pair of Gold Plated Sterling Silver Pigs. The contest was administered by the distributor of our amazing game of Pass the Pigs, www.winning-moves.com. Although it is unknown how many from our mailing list actually entered, we do know that two prominent members of the NPPL were hot after those 24-karat Gold Plated Sterling Silver Pigs shown on the right - an estimated $600 value!
The objective of the contest was to make a photograph or short video of the Pigs doing something crazy, imaginative, and original, and the contest lasted from June through December of 2009. Although neither Mark or Elvis were winners, both had fun putting together their short videos. Click on the links below and enjoy a couple of very entertaining videos...
This is a commercial spec spot for Pass The Pigs. Created by Jersey Rain Productions, LLC.
Jeff Bridges ("The Dude"), plus other celebrities, are playing "Pass the Pigs"!!
by Phil Laycio February 8, 2010
LIGHTS, CAMERA, PIGS!! -- The NPPL has known for quite awhile now that Jeff Bridges, Golden Globe and Academy Award winner for his performance in "Crazy Heart", is an avid fan of Pass the Pigs. It was never mentioned on this website before because well...who isn't a fan of this addicting game? Over the years Bridges has introduced the game to other friends on movie sets including Chris Cooper and Tobey Maguire on the set of "Seabiscuit" and Simon Pegg on the set of "How to Lose Friends and Alienate People". Given the game is light and can be carried around very easily, its no surprise the game is so popular on commercial, television and movie sets all over Hollywood and the world. While waiting for the decoration of a set or the lighting of a shot, most crews have plenty of time to whip out the Pigs and play a quick game before the cameras start rolling.
British comedian Simon Pegg and director Robert Weide playing Pass the Pigs on the set of "How to Lose Friends and Alienate People". Photo courtesy of Jeff Bridges.
Jeff Bridges even gives the game kudos on his website, www.jeffbridges.com. After entering the homepage, the “Stuff” section includes artwork linking to what are apparently some of Bridges favorite sites, including the Java game of "Pass the Pigs".
And he isn't the only celebrity-fan of the game. The NPPL has also been told other celebrities are fond of the Pigs such as Jude Law, Ron Howard and The Rock. If Jeff Bridges is reading this, or any other celebrity for that matter, the NPPL would like to call out a formal invitation to join us this summer for PIG MADNESS VI, the biggest and funnest "Pass the Pigs" tournament in the world! (date TDB) And NO, we're not joking!!
One wonders if "The Dude" learned about the brilliant game through colleagues of one of our very own NPPL members, given at least five of them work in production and continue to promote the game. It was NPPL founder Elvis Greene who was introduced to it on a commercial years ago (see the History page) and this writer would not be surprised if the trickle-down effect from Elvis' obsession is still making waves throughout Hollywood production sets to this day.
Says Bridges, "I like to play the game of "Pass the Pigs" when I’m on set. It’s like ‘craps’ for kids, where you roll these little pigs and you get different scores depending on how they land. As you know, I’m a keen photographer, I’m always snapping away on set, and I think I’ve got quite a few of us all playing Pigs!" Bridges was quoted in the February 2010 edition of Men's Journal as saying, "It's great to play with a bunch of people. On the set of "Iron Man", some guys put up some pretty high stakes, it got wild!"
Chris Cooper playing Pass the Pigs on the set of "Seabiscuit". Photo courtesy of Jeff Bridges (taken from the dvd)
Check out these recent articles that mention Jeff Bridges and his favorite game of Pass the Pigs:
Ted Danson and Patrick Fugit playing Pass the Pigs on the set of "The Amateurs". Photo courtesy of Jeff Bridges.
Bill Vergos 2010 Pig Masters Champion........ Indeed!
Los Angeles CA -- On February 27th at exactly 6:08 pm in the heart
of Hollywood, history was made. Bill Vergos became only the second
player in the NPPL to win a Masters championship as well as a
Madness title in what was arguably the most competitive Masters
competition ever! Vergos maintained his calm throwing style throughout
the tournament and rose victorious...once again.
This particular Masters tournament was doomed from the start,
and I'm not even talking about my host venue where there was water
dripping from the ceiling and dog crap littered in by Johnny Derango.
Even the usually reserved Elvis Greene from the East Coast bracket
sent negative e-mails doubting the weight of this particular event.
True, last years Champion Adam Meyer (along with the championship
jacket coincidently) was a no-show. Same for Perry Day, the 2-time
Masters champion whose antics shake up every event, was also nowhere
to be found. The drop-out rate was so bad that the field consisted of
only eight players.....but what an eight they were...
The bar was set early when, in only the second game of the tourney,
John Coscia rolled a Double Leaning Jowler against a surprisingly quick
upstart in myself to take game two of our best of three matchup. MY
APARTMENT ERUPTED and from that moment on everyone involved
meant business. But even Coscia's double jowler was not enough to
launch him into the playoffs on this day. In fact he found himself in a
3-way tie for the last playoff spot that had to be determined by a 3-man
playoff. Three-man playoffs!! Double Leaning Jowlers!! Six oinkers!! I'm
telling you my friends this Masters tournament was a donnybrook!
During all the commotion Eric Fieland quietly took care of business. From the start Fieland threw the most consistent pigs. Keep in mind Fieland had already won a Piganapolis 500 and has finished well in the Madness competitions. At one point Fieland was so confident that in the quarterfinal match between Derango and Vergos, Eric strutted by them proclaiming "It doesn't matter which one of them wins!"
As for me... only Mark Rago's failed sweep of Eric in the final match of the day kept me from finishing last place again. In fact, it was a miracle since Rago had been throwing come from behind pigs all day going on 60 point runs at will. In the end it was his four oinkers that killed him...and saved me! It is sad and pathetic that Rago and I came in 7th and 8th, but with all due respect I missed the playoffs by two games and one that I lost was at the hands of a Leaning Double Jowler. Rago and I beat both Vergos and Fieland in our matches. We weren't throwing bad pigs....everyone else was just throwing better. I must confess I almost threw up when Rago went on his final run but alas Mark Rago will be engraving the trophy this year. Thank the Pig Gods!
The championship was set for the top two seeds - Eric Fieland vs Bill Vergos. The rink was brought out and before you could blink an eye Vergos was victorious! Ironically Fieland, a part-time hockey referee, couldn't get a grip on the championship rink. He kept pigging out left and right...
" I was on the bubble early....and then I swept Derango and I channeled my 2006 Madness Pigs", Vergos stated. "From then on I felt I was going to win!"
....Indeed Bill... Indeed!
1. Bill Vergos 12-9
2. Eric Fieland 12-9
3. Ashley Hurd 11-10
4. Johnny Derango 11-10
5. John Coscia 11-10
6. Matt Janssen 10-11
7. Gary Williams 9-12
8. Mark Rago 8-13
Fieland beat Hurd 3 games to 2
Vergos beat Derango 3 games to 1
Vergos beat Fieland 4 games to 2
NEW!!!
Ask Doctor Jowler is the Dear Abby of the PASS THE PIGS world.
Have a question about Pass The Pigs? Need a solution?
NEW!!!
by Gary Williams February 28, 2010
Doctor Irving Jowler, Ph.D., is a world renowned psychologist, hypnotherapist, and pizza delivery man. He earned his psychology degree from the University of Rangoon in 1992 and received the prestigious "Dangling Watch" award for penmanship by the National Hypnosis and Iron Smelting Institute in 1998. Currently, Doctor Jowler works exclusively with "classic" game enthusiasts to increase their skill in games such as Yahtzee, Connect Four, Battle Ship, Stratego, and Pass The Pigs. It is his hope that one day board games will be considered true sports worthy of Olympic competition. He has mentored and coached numerous professional gaming athletes and is currently the official psychologist and pizza delivery man of the National Pass The Pigs League.
Newcomer Ashley Hurd made quite an impressive debut reaching
the playoffs in only his first try. In fact, some suggest if he hadn't leaned
too hard on his medicinal medicine he might have taken the tournament.
Eric Fieland took him out in the quarter final after one of the most
controversial oinker calls in NPPL history! With Ashley up 2-0 in a best
of 5, Fieland threw a costly oinker that needed a third Master's decision!!
It would have seemed to give Hurd a great opportunity to sweep his way
into the Finals, but all it did was give Fieland the motivation to roll a quick
60 points afterwards, and then take the next 3 games for himself. It was
an amazing battle to the end!
Matt Janssen was up and down all day. Watching his Pigs was
similar to riding a bull. He started the day by being swept, only to bounce
right back and sweep the next match. However Janssen was too
inconsistent and ended up in 6th place and missed the playoffs.
Johnny Derango was up to his old tricks again. Psyching out other
opponents with his onslaught of insults and very poor hygiene. Derango
celebrated his 30th birthday by getting swept 3-0 by Vergos early on.
However, Derango fought back and in the 3-man playoff won a playoff
birth. Sadly that playoff was with his nemesis Bill Vergos who quickly
dispatched Derango to the spectators section for the championship
match.
Cosh enjoying his 2nd Double Leaning Jowler - both in NPPL tournaments.
Vergos now hopes to one day make a living just by playing Pass the Pigs tournaments.
