Friday, March 18, 2011

Brooklyn Is Cookin'

The Puzzle Brothers officially welcome one and all to the 2011 American Crossword Puzzle Tournament. (Yes, there's another tournament going on this weekend, but we're not concerned about that big BYU-Gonzaga game.)

Tournament attendees have been treated to a most entertaining presentation by David Kwong, mixing crosswords and sleight-of-hand. David's been a contributor to several puzzle venues, has worked with the master magician Ricky Jay, and was the "cruciverbal consultant" to the Sandra Bullock movie, "All About Steve".

Ross Beresford (a/k/a "Crosspatch") gave a very interesting demonstration on the differences between US and UK cryptic crosswords, with tournament attendees trying their hand at one of each. Richard Silvestri was responsible for the US version, while the setter of the UK flavour was Don Manley.

Director Will Shortz estimates the number of registered contestants so far at 650, which is ahead of last year's total. More reportage, pictures and videos later!

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