The tension was palpable.

New Jersey eighth-grader Katharine Close had just spelled her first word correctly at last week's Scripps National Spelling Bee finals. "Weltschmerz" thrust her competitor, Finola Mei Hwa Hackett, to the sidelines. Now there was only one challenge blocking her path to victory: "ursprache," of German origin. Katharine looked confident and slowly, clearly spelled it. The last letter hung suspended in the air, and spectators leaned in with the kind of anticipation you'd expect during the final moments of a Super Bowl overtime.

It's true: Millions of television viewers tuned in for the climactic finale of a spelling bee. It's just the latest development in a several-year-long expansion of bee-related media attention and movies that demonstrates a wacky development: America is a nation suddenly fascinated with competitive spelling.

While many kids would rather perfect their jump-shot or saxophone skills after school, a growing number of bright youngsters with a passion for the alphabet (or perhaps a desire to prep for their SAT tests) are perusing the dictionary in their free time -- and their bookish hobby is paying off. Spelling bees are netting major rewards for their winners (Close took home more than $42,000 in cash and prizes for her triumph), and are capturing the imagination of Hollywood filmmakers and television executives alike.

Credit the phenomenon's combination of unscripted reality-show drama, fierce competition and quiz show-esque brain-bending that attracts both kids and their folks alike -- somehow, a pursuit formerly branded as insufferably geeky is infiltrating pop culture.

The first indication that bees could grab a mainstream audience came with the acclaimed 2002 documentary "Spellbound." The film, which profiles eight teenagers as they chase the top prize at the 1999 National Spelling Bee, became a moderate commercial success, and was even nominated for an Oscar in the Documentary Feature category.

Following "Spellbound," the bee made the leap to feature films. Based on a best-selling novel, 2005's "Bee Season," featuring Richard Gere and Juliette Binoche, used a young girl's quest to become a spelling champ as a way to examine a fragile family's dynamic.

And most recently, Laurence Fishburne and Angela Bassett starred in "Akeelah and the Bee." The movie focuses on a 12-year-old African-American girl from the ghetto who discovers she has a knack for spelling. With mentoring from a supportive teacher, she vies to compete in the National Spelling Bee.

Why are spelling bees such good fodder for onscreen drama? "Every time you make a movie, it's a gamble," said Michael Paseornek, president of production for Lions Gate, the company that released "Akeelah." "Every time you make a movie that breaks the mold, it's an even bigger gamble. But we believed in the spirit and message of this movie. Someone at ESPN called it the best sports movie of the year. To us, it wasn't about a spelling bee. It was about people."

Banking on the idea that viewers can enjoy rooting for a speller the way they get behind, say, an "American Idol" contestant, spelling bees have been making strides on the small screen, as well.

This year ABC aired the National Spelling Bee's championship rounds during primetime. Though the competition has been televised in the past on ESPN, this marks the first time that a major network has featured the bee. "It has the making of a great primetime special," explained Andrea Wong, executive vice president, Alternative Programming, Specials, and Late-Night for ABC Entertainment. "There are great characters in these kids, real jeopardy, real stakes and a tremendous amount of drama."

The Bee became more attractive to the network once the E.W. Scripps Company, which runs it, introduced a time limit on responses and Wong took a second look at "Spellbound." "Good Morning America" anchor Robin Roberts hosted the event, which pulled in an estimated 8.5 million viewers. Roughly 14 million people tuned in for the last 11 minutes of the broadcast and witnessed Katharine Close spell her way to victory.

Despite the uptick in media interest in the spelling phenomenon, it'll be awhile before anyone can tell whether bees have accomplished a truly challenging feat: convincing kids that being smart is cool.

"I'm hoping it tells kids that it's a great thing to be smart and academic," said Wong. "For us, we really wanted to celebrate these kids and their achievements."