Always a crossword

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Jul 27, 1999

Although the first elementary crossword puzzles appeared in England during the 19th century in children's puzzle books, journalist Arthur Wynne is popularly known as the crossword puzzle inventor. Wynne's diamond-shaped puzzle, with no black squares, appeared in the New York World on December 21, 1913. However, when Richard L. Simon and M. Lincoln Schuster chose a crossword puzzle book as their inaugural project for their fledgling publishing firm, they created an evergreen trend. The first ever produced compilation of 50 crossword puzzles went on sale on April 10, 1924. Almost a half million were sold in a year. They were sold with a pencil and eraser.

The fad became a full-fledged American pasttime and in 1942, The New York Times printed its first Sunday crossword puzzle. In 1950, it began printing a daily puzzle. When Will Shortz became the newspaper's fourth crossword puzzle editor in 1993, he became the youngest person to edit the puzzles. He is also the only holder of a degree in enigmatomolgy, the study of puzzles, from Indiana University. He was preceded as editor by Eugene Maleska and Will Weng, two esteemed puzzlemakers. Margaret Farrar, the first crossword editor, served from 1942 to 1969.

One of the changes Mr. Shortz made at the newspaper was giving each crossword puzzle designer a byline. These crossword puzzle constructors belong to one of the world's smallest occupations. Daniel Stark and his wife have constructed more than 10,000 crossword puzzles since 1989. Stark estimates that 100 to 200 people sell more than five puzzles each year in the United States. Most likely, there are only about 10 American constructors who enjoy a significant income from selling puzzles.

Mr. Shortz founded the American Crossword Puzzle Tournament in 1978 and has served as captain of the U.S. team. For more information about crossword puzzles, continue this journey at these web sites.

An interesting article about Will Shortz, puzzle editor of The New York Times

BRILL'S CONTENT http://www.brillscontent.com/features/sh...

If you are interested in a degree in enigmatology of any other degree program tailored to individual interest and goals, review this site

IUB-INDIVIDUALIZED MAJOR PROGRAM http://www.indiana.edu/~imp/

These puzzlers aren't crosswords, but you might become cross trying to figure them out. New York Times Crossword Puzzle editor and Weekend Edition Puzzlemaster Will Shortz challenges public radio listeners each week.

NPR's Weekend Edition: Sunday Puzzle http://www.npr.org/programs/wesun/puzzle/

The home site of a crossword puzzle constructor, Bob Klahn

The Crossword Beast http://www.magpage.com/~bobklahn/index.h...

Much needed help to fill in the blanks. Includes two-letter to five-letter words, Old Testament Names, Kings of Judah and Israel, Greek, Roman, Norse and Egyptian Mythology.

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