Hall of Fame

Every year, players who have achieved certain milestones in Celebrity Goo Game are inducted into this Hall of Fame, to celebrate their excellence and their influence.

LaVonne Lemler, 2016 Inductee
For all of the fun of solving goos and the tension of the competition, one of the best things about Celebrity Goo Game is the community of people that you join when you play for a while. You get acquainted with some pretty nice people, and in this game, it's possible that no one is nicer than LaVonne Lemler. She's the first and sometimes only player to congratulate the winner of each round. She never has a bad word to say about other players' goo creations; she treats even the very difficult goos as a reason to push herself to play better. Players don't often see it in public, but she sends private messages just to be nice, like remembering anniversaries and celebrating birthdays. Even through personal transgressions against her and her family, like false accusations of cheating and a betrayal by a personal acquaintance, she has taken the path of forgiveness and civility. The game is a richer, happier experience because of the geniality that characterizes every interaction with LaVonne. more…

Erik Bates, 2013 Inductee
Erik Bates is not a typical champion of Celebrity Goo Game. He didn't win until playing for almost a decade. He has solved about one out of every three goos since joining, often taking breaks from the game and missing weeks at a time. He does not have the same reputation as some other players of being an aggressive competitor, dedicated to winning. more…

Samir Mehta, 2013 Inductee
Some of the qualities that help players achieve big scores in Celebrity Goo Game—competitiveness, ambition, ruthlessness—are self-centered, but that doesn't mean that someone can't rise to the ranks of the game's best players without being generous and conscientious, too. Case in point: The 2017 inductee to the Hall of Fame, Samir Mehta, has distinguished himself across Funeratic with his decency (arguing various positions with compassion toward society's least fortunate), charitableness (spending hours on the phone giving advice about the law and life), integrity (sticking to his moral code in the face of changing times and attitudes), and good taste (seeking out each year's best films and spreading the word about them). Funeratic is lucky to have many honorable members, but Samir has proven himself foremost among them, to the benefit of everyone he enobles with his influence. more…

Russ Wilhelm, 2010 Inductee
No list of Celebrity Goo Game's most exalted players would be complete without the champion who dominated it throughout the late 2000s, Russ Wilhelm. After a taste of success early in the game, winning in only his second round, he defeated fierce competition in the succeeding years and won two back-to-back rounds in 2008, repeating the feat in 2009. This made Russ by far the most frequent winner of the game's latter era of daily goos, conquering one out of every three rounds that he played. Russ's perennial victories have made his name synonymous with what it means to win the game in the years leading up to his well-deserved 2010 induction into this hall of fame. more…

Steve West, 2009 Inductee
It's tempting to regard Steve West's triumphant success at the goo game as mere natural talent. After all, he roared into his first victory with only 37 goos under his belt, one of the fastest times in game history. But the key to Steve's continuing achievements is his ceaseless dedication to the game. He doesn't skip any goos, he carefully researches every answer until he's sure he's right, and he pays attention to game traditions and obscure rules to avoid wrong guesses. These smart habits and his spirited enthusiasm for the game have made him a formidable contender round after round. Steve modestly claims that he's no good when the tournament goos are timed and thus he can't sufficiently research them, but there's evidence to the contrary: Two of his three victories have come from besting other skilled players at timed goos. Maybe he really does have a gift for the game after all... more…

Denise Sawicki, 2004 Inductee
With her self-deprecating wit, Denise Sawicki would probably be modest about deserving a place in the Goo Hall of Fame. But fortunately for her, the numbers don't lie: A remarkable (and never since beaten) string of 59 consecutive correct guesses, at a time when there was still a week's delay between each new celebrity. 316 correct guesses in total, second only to the Goo Masters themselves. A winner's trophy. A Golden Imelda. And the fear of her peers: Denise so rarely guesses incorrectly that if she cannot get a certain goo, it might as well be impossible. To win a round is to emerge triumphant over a half-dozen or so expert players who stand on the verge of victory themselves; Denise is the most consistent member of that club, round after round holding her own no matter how many players enter the fray against her. more…

More inductees: Chris Lemler (2013), Mike Rothstein (2013), Joanna Woods (2011), Justin Woods (2011), Kelly Lee (2011), Amy Austin (2010), Steve Dunn (2009), Lori Lancaster (2007), Mike Eberhart (2006), Aaron Fischer (2004), David Mitzman (2004), and Matthew Preston (2003).