Don't Count The Crossword Out Yet

Op-ed piece from The Kansas City Star (that's what I are) from someone who thinks there's still a place for crosswords in a Sudoku world. (Thanks to Van Vandiver for the link.)

Stella Daily Lost on "Jeopardy!"

Stella defends some of her wrong responses on her blog, but that Final Jeopardy! practically screamed out "Harper Lee". Oh well, we enjoyed watching Stella on TV for a half hour.

Stella Daily on "Jeopardy!"

Stella Daily has been playing a game of "I've Got a Secret" with us for the past several months. Now the secret's out (and we've been sitting on this news, at Stella's behest, since Stamford): the talented constructor and speedy solver is a contestant on Friday night on "Jeopardy!". If you want to see a video clip of Stella, please go to the "Jeopardy!" Hometown Howdies" page. GOOD LUCK STELLA!

"Nipple" Clue Hits The USA Today Puzzle

Say it ain't so, Timothy Parker! At about 5:30 this morning I was really shocked to see a really suggestive clue in the usually milquetoast USA Today crossword.

Weeks after constructor Lynn Lempel and editor Will Shortz opened up a major can of worms with the presence of the word SCUMBAG in a New York Times grid, the USA Today puzzle by Stella Daily and Bruce Venzke yielded the clue "Nipple ring (var.)" for the word AREOLE.

AREOLE (a variant of AREOLA) is usually clued in terms of botany or general biology/anatomy, but never to my knowledge in terms of being the dark area surrounding the nipples in humans. Yes, we all have nipples (most of us, anyway), but there's a part of me that thinks this subject is still not fair game for crosswords.

My two cents.... discuss.

Our First S.A.Q. (Seldom Asked Question)

Most websites have F.A.Q.'s. Here, we have S.A.Q.'s, Seldom Asked Questions. Our first question was sent in by.... gee, this question is so seldom asked, I don't think anyone's ever asked it.

Are you guys related to Walter Mackey?

Gee, that's a good question, whoever you are that didn't ask it. For the uninitiated, Walter Mackey is the name of the gentleman who concocts those "Super Sudoku" puzzles for Dell's Sudoku magazines. They're the devils where you have a 16x16 grid and need to not repeat a number in any row, column, 4x4 box or (and this is the killer) long diagonal.

As far as we know, Walter Mackey is not related to the Puzzle Brothers. Nor is there a Walter Mackey in our family who gets confused for the creator of those s.o.b. Super Sudokus.

Thank you for not writing! More soon, so keep it here, dear!

Not Just A Job...A Career

My initial appearance in Games World of Puzzles is now out, in the July 2006 issue. It's a 21x called "Career Day". Run out and buy some copies and give 'em to orphan kids or shut-ins. You'll be glad you did.

The Biggest Joke In Crosswords Today

"Look how fast I did the Times Puzzle today! 57 seconds!"

So probably says the kook known as fwongstaal on the New York Times Crossword Puzzles timed applet. Every single damn day.

Guess what? It isn't funny anymore.

And we're going to do something about it.

We made a proposition to the New York Times online contingent at the Stamford tournament two months ago that anyone with what is regarded as a "superhuman" time on the New York Times timed crossword applet should be thrown out of the forums. We'd still like to see that happen, but we have something more intriguing to propose, and we're not so sure how the progress on this is going.

We believe there can be some sort of "cookie" on the site itself or on the user's computer that if a solver opens up the non-times Across Lite version of the puzzle, the solver can not compete on that day's timed applet. We think it's possible to do. And we think, at this point, with the ten or fifteen jerks who think it's a riot to cheat on the applet, it's necessary.

We also think every one of the other good solvers on the applet -- Barry Haldiman, Tyler Hinman, Susan Hoffman, Amy Reynaldo, Byron Walden, and a few others we're too modest to mention -- is appalled that this should keep going on with nothing in place to stop it. We've got to start putting some serious pressure to stop this cheating. Take a look at it this way: the SudokuFun website, which features a new Sudoku game nearly every ten minutes, almost never has cheaters. There is a healthy honor system in place over there, with their moderator James Pitts promising from the start that anyone who cheats by using solving applets would be banned for life from the site. Why can't it be that way at the Times?

This little board of "Today's Best Times" means absolutely nothing when you take into account the dozen or so scurvy little cheaters. So the last part of this is a challenge. Those of you who "do" this puzzle on the timed applet in under two minutes...how about starting tomorrow, you do the puzzle on the timed applet at 10PM sharp, once it goes up, before you have even seen the puzzle? Then you'll be one of two things: hailed as a superfast solver, or totally humiliated. Better yet, why don't you go to Stamford next year? If you can solve a puzzle in 57 seconds as you claim, fwongstaal, surely you can beat Tyler Hinman. There's an easy $4000 for you right there. And if Tyler wins, it's $4000 of your money he wins. That oughta make it damn interesting.

So the screws are on, you cheaters...and the joke is over. Don't insult the real solvers anymore by cheating.

Mark Your Calendars

The 30th Annual American Crossword Puzzle Tournament is scheduled for March 23-25, 2007. Our calendar is already marked in ink.

"Wordplay" Set To Rock Tribeca

Patrick Creadon's incredible documentary "Wordplay" is a selection for this year's Tribeca Film Festival, set to begin next week in New York City. The film will be screened on Wednesday, May 3 at 5:30 and Thursday, May 4 at 1:30 at AMC Loews Lincoln Square, and on Saturday, May 6 at 4:30 p.m. and Sunday, May 7 at 1:30 p.m. at AMC Loews Village VII. All tickets are $12.00.

There is a great poster out for the film. It has a crossword grid in the background, random letters morphing into a Benday rendition of Will Shortz's giant head, and a group of puzzlers standing with New York Times puzzles - namely, Al Sanders, Ellen Ripstein, Tyler Hinman, Merl Reagle, Trip Payne and Jon Delfin.

On a related subject, Nancy Shack has completed the DVD of the goings-on at Stamford this year. You can watch the Friday night Sudoku and Ken Jennings Quiz Bowl games, as well as all three finals and the awards ceremony. Plus, letters to Will Shortz. The video runs 2 hours, 22 minutes, and costs $3.50 for a DVD and $5 for a VHS. I've already got mine on order, and the price makes it a great bargain. You may order if you've got a PayPal account by clicking here.

Word Of The Day: SURI

We start a new feature here after a week or so off for vacation, and that's the "Add of the Day", where we take a word that isn't in Crossword Compiler yet and recommend you add it, because in a few weeks the word will be everywhere.

Today's word is SURI. Why should you add this word? Because it's the name that Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes gave their illegitimate hellspawn -- err, new baby daughter, born just yesterday. And if you've read the news, it was supposedly a "quiet birth", performed without painkilling drugs, and with barely any conversation in the room.

We had hoped Tom would more fully subscribe to this, as far as boasting of eating the mom's placenta. Which makes him no better than a cat. How's that cord tasting right about now, Tom?

Anyway, the new word for the day is SURI...learn it, live it, love it!

Other Starbucks Griping....

Amy Reynaldo and Trip Payne didn't win this thing, either. And they're as hacked off as we are.

Starbucks Contest: It's Over

Don't even bother. They have their winner, and I am guessing that the winner probably figured out what would be the most cutesy-pie correct answer possibility and called in at 5:00 p.m. with the correct answer WITHOUT benefit of solving the crossword.

Playing "Games" In July

The Puzzle Brothers will be represented in the July Games after a bit of while off, with my first appearance in the magazine. The puzzle will be a 21x21 offering called "Career Day". Still to come in Games (or World of Puzzles) will be a smaller puzzle called "Something Smells". We'll keep you posted on that one.

Coffee Clash: Starbucks Contest To Continue

It appears that there is no clear winner yet in the Starbucks Coffehouse Crossword Challenge, with reports from several bloggers and their teams noting good numbers of entrants who were able to get in under the wire. According to one report, Starbucks and contest runner Marden-Kane had their 750 "tied" first-responsers within fifteen minutes of the phones being open.

It will continue today for myself, and the many others in the x-wording blogosphere, with a phone call slated to come sometime after 11AM EDT with the location of the tiebreaking puzzle #1, edited by Will Shortz.

As is our policy here, we will not be the clearinghouse for any information regarding the puzzle unless it is clear that there are final winners announced (or they step forward and basically crow). But we must thank one of our favorite puzzlesmiths, Patrick Berry, for putting together a dazzling array of puzzles within puzzles for this contest.

Monday 4/3 NYT (spoiler if you haven't done it yet)

The most salient feature in the Monday Times puzzle is the use of the word SCUMBAG as one of the longer Down entries. There's been a lot of talk about it on several blogs, including a posting to the NYT forum by puzzle editor Will Shortz that reads in part:

...When I accepted [Lynn Lempel's] puzzle, the thought never crossed my mind this word could be controversial.

Merriam-Webster's 11th Collegiate and the American Heritage Dictionary both define "scumbag" only in the "scoundrel" sense. Random House does give both meanings, labeling the [used condom] one "vulgar" but the second one merely "slang."

In light of the above dictionary citations, I still think the word is acceptable for crossword purposes. Given the reaction to it, tho, I doubt I'll use it again.

Lynn Lempel also authored today's USA Today puzzle; the word SCUMBAG is nowhere to be found there.

Fresh Reagle Ink

Here's a little article about Merl Reagle, from whom I still have a fresh, undone AARP puzzle sitting on my desk to do. I doubt I would have finished as well as I did in Stamford if that Sunday puzzle were not a Reagle.

Read about Merl

(Thanks to Ennie for pointing out the link)

Sunday, April 2 LA Times

The April 2 puzzle is "OO-EE" by your obedient humble Puzzle Brothers!

New York Times, Wednesday, 3/29

If you are registered at the NYT and have a subscription to the puzzles, please be sure and do today's puzzle, which was constructed by the late, great Frances Hansen.

Feel The Payne!

March 31, 2006 Sun Puzzle - Wacky Weekend Warrior by Trip Payne

Congratulations To The Winners

TWO-FER TYLER

Puzzle Brothers Both Take Home Trophies; Ken Jennings Wins C and Rookie Crowns

It's over in Stamford, where the 29th American Crossword Puzzle Tournament has ended. There are going to be more pictures, but here's a few shots of Will Shortz congratulating now two-time defending champion Tyler Hinman, and right below, both of the Puzzle Brothers who won trophies - Dave won the D Division (placing 106th overall), and Bob won for top score among people from New Jersey (18th place overall).

The big news from the tournament was the success of Ken Jennings, who won C Division and top rookie. We have some other pictures and they'll be coming up soon.

(Will Shortz and Tyler Hinman picture by Dave Mackey; Puzzle Brothers picture by Barrie Fein)