The Magic Call

Minutes just before the announcement, the Prize Awarding Institution calls the Nobel Laureates to inform them that they have been awarded the Nobel Prize. These calls can come at unexpected times and reach Nobel Laureates in unexpected places. Here are some recollections of those special moments when the "magic call" came through.

	Up in the Air Richard Ernst was on a flight from Moscow when he was informed by the captain that he had been awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry. See the video. »
	Out Shopping Reinhard Selten was with his wife shopping and nobody was around to answer the call. See the video. »
	At the Dentist Günter Grass was due at the dentist when the call came through from Stockholm. See the video. »
	At the Pub "Well, Robin and I often have a beer down by the riverside at this time of year." Barry Marshall got the call in an Australian pub. Read or listen to the interview. »
	He Needed a Cup of Coffee Amartya Sen heard the phone ringing at 5 a.m. and thought something tragic had happened. See the video. »
	At a Meeting César Milstein was in the middle of a meeting when the call came through. See the video. »
	At a Country House in Provence Ivan Bunin received the phone call in "a poor country house in an old Provencal town." Read the speech. »
	At Home James M. Buchanan was planning to spend time with his wife at their country place, when the telephone call from Stockholm came. Read the article. »
	Say That Again? When Louis J. Ignarro was told that he had been awarded the Nobel Prize he was left wondering whether he had heard correctly! See the video. »
	You Must Be Joking! William F. Sharpe thought it was a joke when the phone call came. See the video. »
	He Needed Some Proof James A. Mirrlees asked politely for some proof when he received the call. See the video. »
	In Pitch Blackness "Things are going to get even more confused before they get better," Roy J. Glauber commented in a telephone interview. He received the call at 5:36 a.m. Read or listen to the interview. »
	A Black Hole in Her Head Elfriede Jelinek remembers the day when the call came from the Swedish Academy in Stockholm. Read the interview. »