"The Puzzle Sister" Breaks Into Print

Regular followers of The Puzzle Brothers will no doubt have noticed the name Tracy Meyer bandied about here. Today, Tracy has another reason to be proud (besides that diamond on her left-hand ring finger that's been there since last Saturday). She will soon be receiving her first credit on a published crossword and it's going to be for The New York Times! Tracy helped me with the theme for this puzzle (coming up with the majority of the theme entries, in fact), and I'm afraid I can't tell you much more about it until it's published. So congratulations to Tracy on her first puzzle!

What's even more fun is that Tracy's getting her two daughters involved in the puzzle world! So you might be seeing more Meyers (or more Mackeys, if they happen) at the big tournaments before too long!

"Wordplay" Set For October 16 PBS Debut

As part of its "Independent Lens" series, PBS will be broadcasting the Patrick Creadon documentary "Wordplay" on Tuesday, October 16. Please check your local PBS station schedule for airtime. I believe that this is the first time that "Wordplay" will be airing on television in any form.

"Wordplay", as you may already know, profiled New York Times crossword editor Will Shortz, some of his colleagues, and solvers competing at the American Crossword Puzzle Tournament, at that time held in Stamford, Connecticut.

Get Your "Crosswords" Early

NBC has announced a special primetime network broadcast of "Merv Griffin's Crosswords". The show will air one time only on Saturday, September 8 at 8:30 p.m. (NBC publicity simply titles the show "Crosswords". Hmmm....

This is similar to a stunt MyNetwork is running to promote Twentieth Television's "Temptation", by giving that new syndicated show a network window.

"Crosswords" will begin airing in syndication on September 10, and syndicator Program Partners has announced that a whopping 225 episodes will be produced during the first season to keep repeats to a minimum.

UPDATE: Due to an NBC scheduling change, the prime-time broadcast of "Merv Griffin's Crosswords" has been cancelled. It will still begin in syndication on September 10, but will just not have the primetime preview.

Meet Bonnie Gentry

Here's a nice article from the Arizona Republic about constructor Bonnie Gentry.

Two New Online Puzzles - Try Them Today!

One of the things that we're going to be ramping up as we head into the tournament season is our online puzzle offerings. I am kicking our new fall season off a little early with two new puzzles, "Abbott and Costello Meet..." and "ER Will Not Be Seen Tonight." Robert will soon be opening his archives as well.

"Crosswords" Creator Griffin Dead Of Cancer, 82

(Edited from a previous post)

Merv Griffin, the 82-year-old talk-show icon and game show creator who was rediagnosed with prostate cancer in July, has died.

Griffin's newest show, "Merv Griffin's Crosswords", with Ty Treadway as host, is set to premiere September 10 on stations around the country. The show reportedly will keep its name as a tribute to its creator.

Griffin, who started as a band singer with Freddy Martin's orchestra, hosted a late-night talk show for CBS that went up against similar offerings from Johnny Carson on NBC and Joey Bishop on ABC, then took his show into syndication where it did much better thanks to earlier time slots in most markets.

Griffin was responsible for creating two of the biggest game shows of all time - "Jeopardy!" in 1964 and "Wheel of Fortune" in 1975. Although they did well on network television, the syndicated versions - entering their 24th and 25th seasons in the fall, respectively - made Griffin a very wealthy man. He also had interests in closed-circuit racetrack betting very early in that game, and also owned hotels and other real estate, including (at one time) the Resorts hotel in Atlantic City, New Jersey.

Meanwhile, "Merv Griffin's Crosswords", presently in production at Tribune Studios in Hollywood, is still looking for contestants. Give the contestant staff a call at (323) 762-8282 if you think you've got what it takes to play the crossword game.

"Merv Griffin's Crosswords" Books Due In October

St. Martin's Griffin is going to be publishing five volumes of "Merv Griffin's Crosswords" tie-in books, edited by Timothy Parker, who is going to be supervising the puzzles used on the show.

There will be three full-size volumes - 100 Easiest Puzzles, 100 Easy Puzzles, and 100 Easy To Hard Puzzles, and there will also be two pocket volumes. It is not known if these are going to be puzzles actually used on the show, or if they are from the Universal Puzzle archives.

Search on Amazon for these and other crossword titles, and anything you buy helps fund our activities.

Puzzle People People "People Puzzlers"

People Magazine has just issued a new compilation of People Puzzlers, the popular 13x crosswords that appear weekly in the magazine.

The book includes 100 puzzles, a staggering new 90 puzzles plus ten classics. Constructors are Stephanie Spadaccini, John Greenman, and Fran and Lou Sabin.

Look for this book on newsstands.

New Definition For EDD

"Merv Griffin's Crosswords" announcer Hall

The Case Of The Missing Crossword

Anyone know the whereabouts of the print version of today's Wall Street Journal crossword - "Singling Out" by Alice Long - please comment. Robair says he can't find it in the print paper. I did the puzzle online this morning.

UPDATE: The puzzle in question was not in the print edition; instead appeared a blurb saying the print puzzle would be back next week.

It's Like A Crossword Tournament Without Letters!

The Philadelphia Inquirer has announced the first Sudoku National Championship, hosted by Will Shortz. It will take place from October 19-20 at the Pennsylvania Convention Center in Philadelphia.

Besides Shortz, who has overseen the production of almost as many sudoku books as New York Times puzzle anthologies, participants will include crossword creator Merl Reagle, World Sudoku Champion Thomas Snyder, and World Puzzle Champion Wei-Hua Huang.

The tournament will take the form of a compressed ACPT: games and social opportunities Friday night, then into the trenches on Saturday. Contestants will have the opportunity to choose their skill level in three rounds of competition plus a bonus round before the finals later that afternoon. The awards dinner will be early Saturday evening. The grand prize in the expert bracket is $10,000, the Intermediate champ gets $5,000, and the easy grand prize is $3,000.

Registration for the tournament and all activities is $50 for adults and $10 for children 17 and under. For more information, visit the web link in the sidebar.

My Summer Puzzling

Well, I have been writing puzzles, but I did a lot of solving this past week while relaxing at the beach (if you were on the 75th Street beach on LBI, that was me with the puzzle book and the Mets hat). I tore through a book of easy New York Times crosswords in just a couple of days, and have been working some Sundays as well. I've got about eight puzzles to do in S&S 255 and have just started the newest one (256). I've also been working out of Stanley Newman's 100th book and the big book of Maura Jacobson New York puzzles.

I also just got a new pair of reading glasses, as closeup vision is starting to go south a little with age. It's definitely helping and hopefully it will help even more as I start seriously training for the 31st ACPT (Feb. 29-March 2 at the Brooklyn Bridge Marriott) in the fall. Again, it's my aim to improve. I'd love to crack the top 50 in '08.

So What Was This "Cross-Wits" Like, Anyway?

Ralph Edwards Productions struck gold in the late 70's with the one-two punch of the weekly "Name That Tune" and the daily "The Cross-Wits". Based on Jerry Payne's busted "Crossword" pilot you may have seen online, it paired contestants with teams of two celebrities, solving crossword puzzles (more like kris-krosses) that all had a subject. If you or your celebrity partners guessed a word (off some really clever clues and sometimes daffy ones too) you got ten points per letter and additional points if you solved the puzzle. The winning contestant got to pick one celebrity as partner to try to guess ten words in a crossword to win a car.

The late Jack Clark hosted the program, which ran for five years and in many markets (including New York) replaced an earlier Clark-hosted show, "Dealer's Choice". The show was briefly revived in the 80's as "Crosswits".

Copies are very hard to find, but they're in Ralph Edwards Productions' vaults. The company has made brief clips from the program available; so go over there and watch some "Cross-Wits".

"Time Out New York" Intros Weekly Crossword

That's a crossword puzzle - or a third of it - on the cover of this week's Time Out New York magazine. The current issue of the NYC listings magazine - kind of a younger, hipper sibling to New York, which has featured a crossword by Maura Jacobson since the 1970's - has now added a weekly crossword puzzle, which will be constructed by the younger, hipper Brendan Emmett Quigley.

To herald the new weekly puzzle, there is a section of games (not unlike "Pencilwise" in Games Magazine) which features a lot of games-like puzzles, including a cryptoquotes, mazes, a cryptic by Cox & Rathvon, and a logic problem by 2007 Stamford finalist Francis Heaney.

The cover puzzle (also by BEQ) is actually a third of a crossword grid, although there is a diagram given on the inside as well as a set of clues.

"Ooooh! My show has a new name!"

First, it was "Let's Play Crosswords." Then, for a brief time, it was "Let's Do Crosswords."

Finally, it's now settled. The new name of the crossword game show soon to start taping in Chicago and on your TV's this fall is... "Merv Griffin's Crosswords".

Like the man says, "Oooooh!"

Will Shortz Raises The Rates Again

I just got word that Will Shortz has once again raised his rates for puzzle contributors.

The lucky person who constructs the June 3, 2007 Sunday puzzle will be the first to enjoy the new rates, which for Sunday puzzles will be a cool grand, up from $750. The daily rate is increasing too to $200. These once again put the Times at the forefront of the puzzle industry as far as contributor rates (until, of course, Peter Gordon decides to go his traditional one dollar more for Sun dailies).

New Crossword Compiler 8!

Antony Lewis just emailed us advising us of the new release of Crossword Compiler, the popular construction program. Version 8 includes new types of puzzles, more robust word and definition lists, and more options for producing finished puzzles. Please get more information about Version 8 at www.crossword-compiler.com and soon you'll be making puzzles that are almost as good as The Puzzle Brothers'!

Trip Payne's Site

We've long admired the puzzlework of Trip Payne. His work is now on display at his own website, tripleplaypuzzles.com. Everything you need to know about Trip and where his puzzles are going to pop up next.

Bill Clinton, Cruciverbalist

Is this going to be another partnership in the grand style of Cox & Rathvon? Tunick and Burstzyn? Venzke and Daily? Check out this special crossword from the New York Times with a grid by Cathy Millhauser and clues by former President Bill Clinton.

"Let's Play Crosswords" Solves Its Host Problem

Ty Treadway, a name more associated with soap operas as both actor ("One Life to Live") and talk host ("Soap Talk"), crosses over to game shows and has been named host of "Let's Play Crosswords". The show is set to begin production sometime this summer in Chicago.

Thursday May 3 LA Times

Seems like Robert's been making quite a few LA Times appearances lately, but this Thursday it's Dave's turn, with a themed 15x.

Download .PUZ file (must be a member of cruciverb.com)
Do Puzzle On LA Times Site

More Stamford Ink

David Lieberfarb of the Newark Star-Ledger was competing in the 30th Annual American Crossword Puzzle Tournament and filed this report. He did note the New Jersey top three finishers, but we think he got Robert's geography mixed up with another solver with the same last name. It appeared right alongside the Sunday Los Angeles Times puzzle in the print edition. Thanks to Tracy's mom for sharing the story with us!

That Wacky Trip Payne

As April Fool's Day nears, the annual ritual of the Wacky Weekend Warrior is resurrected at the hands of Trip Payne, with Peter Gordon lurking somewhere about. I did it this morning and there's a few good chuckles in there. Available tomorrow in the print New York Sun, or wherever .PUZ files are kept.

New In Print...

If you click above, you can order this New York Times crossword book of 75 puzzles published during the spring and summer of 2006. The indicia usually indicates the date range of puzzles published and the ending date is July 26, 2006.

Thanks, Will! I belong to the ages now.

Stamford - Final Report

TYLER TRIUMPHANT

In an eerie recreation of the movie "Wordplay", Tyler Hinman has again won the American Crossword Puzzle Tournament title, at the expense of Al Sanders. Sanders finished the championship puzzle by Stanley Newman first, but had one letter wrong. Tyler won the trophy for the third year running and this year's prize check of $5,000. Francis Heaney (shown at right in the photo above) was a distant third, not even finishing the final puzzle.

In another development, the B class has an asterisk this year. Due to a judging error, Howard Barkin was awarded duplicate B prize money. However, he will stay in B class for next year's tournament.

The breakdown of winners:

Geographic: West, Al Sanders; Connecticut, Ron Osher; New England, Kiran Kedlaya; New York City, Francis Heaney; Long Island, Kathy Konarck; Upstate NY, Zack Butler; New Jersey, Howard Barkin; Mid-Atlantic, Dave Tuller; South, Trip Payne; Midwest, Tyler Hinman; Foreign, Fraser Simpson.

Juniors: Tyler Hinman; 50's, Ellen Ripstein; 60's, Doug Hoylman; Seniors, Arthur Schulman; Rookie: Eric LeVasseur.

Special $100 gift certificate prizes for the 100th, 200th, etc. finishers: 100 - Fraser Simpson; 200 - Sandy Fein; 300 - Kim Blanchard; 400 - John Reid; 500 - George Sneddon Jr; 600 - Francoise Kemp.

As for the Puzzle Brothers, Robert maintained 20th place finish while Dave improved to 65, but it's likely there was a mistake on the final puzzle that dropped him down from 44th and out of the C finals. We'll be back strong next year. For now, we're taking a few days off from puzzling. Good bye for a while.

Stamford - A Finals

Only 25 points separated Francis Heaney, Al Sanders and Tyler Hinman. Robert reports the A clues are very tough. Being busy blogging, I haven't had a chance to really solve this so there's no way to tell how I would have done had I made the C or B finals. Congrats to all those guys and gals by the way. I'll be up there with you next year, I swear.

The blank grids have been put up and Will is now summoning the three finalists into the room. Al will be at the left, Tyler in the middle, and Francis on the right. There is only a 2 second head start for Tyler. Al's been in 8 playoffs, Tyler three and Francis, one.

Shouts of "Go Al!" come from the room, hoping he doesn't repeat his ZOLAESQUE mistake of 2005. Francis is the last to put his headphones on. We begin the finals.

"Stanley made the clues up over a three-day 'Goodfellas' festival," jokes Neil. Tyler is working the right side center first, Al top left corner, Francis top left as well. Francis has 1-Across but has gotten into a trap. Al's making minimal progres, and Tyler seems stymied in the corner. Now he's writing fast. Tyler now has a mistake too. The last time Stan did a finals puzzle for a tournament we were at, no one solved it correctly. Merl with another anagram! Where does that gift come from?

Al has no mistakes so far and seems to be doing good so far. Tyler isn't doing a lot of writing right now. Francis has fixed one of his problems. Tyler now has the bottom left done. Al is working very carefully. Tyler has another mistake. He's fixed something. Doing finger erasing. Not very sanitary but it saves seconds. Tyler may be able to put something together here, and Al is still grinding away. Francis is still having some problems. "The trap door underneath the podium has opened up," says Neil. Al has now made a mistake. He's assuming a plural in -S. Not always. 8:00 left. Al finished 1-Across, which was his 2005 downfall. Francis is still a little slow. Tyler has one corner left to go and then a few spots to fill in. (Careful there!)

Al's got a letter blank in a corner - hope he checks it. No one seems particularly close to finishing after 10:00 of solving. This one could... go... all... the... way... down to the wire! Merl notes "'I hate you' has all the vowels once, including Y." Tyler has one corner to go but another mistake. Al's filled in that missing square I was worried about. Now he should find his mistake. Will he? Tyler is staring at his blank corner. Francis still in this thing? Al is now working the bottom. Still has one mistake though, so does Tyler. Tyler now has one less mistake. This is going to be a nail biter. 3-1/2 minutes left and they've all got the same mistake. Al is almost done and he's gotta find that mistake. Tyler is now working his bare corner.

Tyler has now fixed the mistake everyone had. Tyler is close to being done. Al is close to being done. Tyler has one square left. Tyler is now stuck with 2 squares done. Al is done with one letter wrong. Tyler is done perfect. Francis is still working. Al as given Tyler his congratulations. Francis has run out of time.

3rd - Francis Heaney
2nd - Al Sanders
1st - your 2007 ACPT champion, Tyler Hinman

More later!

Stamford - B Finals

In the B division, we have Bryon Walden, Eric Maddy, and Eric LeVasseur. They are now working with harder clues. And now, Neil Conan and Merl Reagle take their places at the mikes. Will explains the background noise tapes. "Someday I may sell it as a sleep inducer." The puzzle begins with Eric M, then Byron, then Eric L.

"It's a beautiful day for a crossword puzzle championship!"

"LET'S PLAY TWO!"

Neil makes a really bad pun on referring to Eric as "Eric L." "By the way, Byron's clues are printed backwards for payback for last year's finals." Merl has some fun with anagrams. As always I can't talk specific puzzle details as these puzzles continue as saleable items. Eric L has a big mistake in the upper left so far but has recovered. Eric M. is working on the bottom. Byron seems to have a foothold in the upper left. More anagrams for Merl. "If you want to write these down for later..." and then also riffs on his tournament puzzle. Byron is working the left which is good because it gives starts of words. Byron's got some of the bottom done now and has begun attaching the right. Again, I can't see what Eric L. is doing because I am on the far left of the room relying on AC power. Byron still needs the right corners. Stan's written some nice clues for this puzzle. 9:00 left. Byron has must one corner to go. BTW, there is a word in the clue that's repeated in the grid. Ugh. Byron is finishing up. Byron is looking it over and declares done. Eric L. is getting closer now. Eric M. is lagging behind. Eric L. then finishes with about 7:24 but has gotten one letter blank. So Eric M. can take his time and doesn't know it. Eric M. finishes at 5:55

3rd - Eric LeVasseur (one letter missing)
2nd - Eric Maddy 8:13
1st - Byron Walden 6:50

As Bob Murphy once said, "Fasten your seat belts!"

Stamford - C Finals

The contestants in C are Gerry Tansey, Anne Erdmann, and Katie Hamill.

Will started by giving the contestants instructions while their headphones were on. 30 years and he'll get it right someday. The puzzle is by Stan Newman, who 25 years ago today won at Stamford. Anne starts first, then Gerry, then Katie. Anne has some words filled in at upper right so far. Gerry has a 1-Across then erases it. Hard to see what Katie is doing from my vantage point. Anne's got the upper left about done. So does Gerry. Katie seems to be working in the same part of the puzzle. Did I Mention a 15 minute time limit? Yes. Jerry has one of the long words. This is an 8/6 stack format. Anne has made progress into the left center of the grid. Jerry too is working his way diagonally. Nobody seems close to done yet. Gerry is working the bottom right now. Looks like Anne is the farthest along. Gerry has now finished the bottom right corner and has moved to the left center. Anne's wrapping up the bottom now. Who's gonna finish first? Katie's made some headway and she has indicated first done. Anne and Gerry are still working. Anne is next, then Gerry finishes with about 8 minutes left.

3rd - Gerry Tansey
2nd - Anne Erdmann
1st - Katie Hamill

Sunday Stamford - Puzzle 7

Whew! Most of us are now done with the tournament, but for nine, it will get more intense as the C, B and A division finals play out in the ballroom. Puzzle 7 was by Bob Klahn and Puzzle 8 will be by Stan Newman.

Unofficially (and since ranked stats were not available), Tyler Hinman and Francis Heaney were tied for first, with Al Sanders, Trip Payne and Ellen Ripstein also in the hunt.

Your Puzzle Brothers are doing well. Bob was 20th after the first six puzzles (one place ahead of Amy Reynaldo) and I was 44th, a vast improvement over last year with no mistakes going into the final round.

And that former talk show host? No threat. Phil Donahue placed 631st after the first six puzzles.

Our next dispatch will be LIVE from the finals. See you in a little more than a half hour!

Is It Sunday Already?

Neither Puzzle Brother felt like staying out late and playing games this year. So, we took the rest of the night off.

We did play some games while everyone else who hadn't seen "Wordplay" was watching a bonus screening. We got some great pictures of game playing, unfortunately we're having a little issue with FTP access and can't put any more pix up until we get back later tonight.

In the meantime, it's now time for breakfast and getting cleaned up, and at 9:00, we'll do Puzzle 7. Hopefully not the last one for either of us!

Saturday Night Almost Live!

First of all, we had the special puzzle by Francis Heaney. He constructed a 15x using words that should be in more vocabularies. Erin McKean, who has a great blog called Dictionary Evangelist, is actually making a documentary show about words and their usage for Discovery Channel, and there was a film crew taping the proceedings. The winner of the special puzzle was Patrick Jordan (Trip Payne actually finished first but had an error in his puzzle) and two others were chosen at random, j!m jen!sta and Mark Maximov.

We had three entertaiments tonight! First, Will ran by us the puzzle you'll hear tomorrow on the NPR show. You are given a definition for a 7-letter word, remove first and last letters, and you get a five-letter word that you have to guess the definition of.

Then, a wonderful skit: What if "Wordplay" were a musical? We were treated to the first few minutes of such a musical, featuring Stella Daily, Vic Fleming, Harvey Estes and Ben Tausig.

Finally, an hour long collection of "Wordplay" outtakes and promotional appearances, including Will's stints on "Late Show" and "Charlie Rose" and the joint appearance of Will and Merl Reagle on "The Oprah Winfrey Show". We got to see some of the contestants whose profile footage was cut out of the film, including Zack Butler, Scott Weiss and Doug Hoylman.

Right now, Patrick Creadon is hosting a screening of the film downstairs, but I think people want to play games, so at least a portion of the ballroom has already been converted back. We'll check back with you on Sunday morning with standings, and then later Sunday morning, our ALMOST LIVE coverage of the C, B and A division finals! You wanna know who won? Keep it here! We'll have it as soon as Blogger will let us!

The Quiet Man Speaks!

Unbelievably, this is my first post since landing on Planet Stamford yesterday evening. What took me so long? Maybe since I take the competition aspect of this thing a bit seriously, breaking each puzzle down into the time I expect to finish it in, anticipating whose puzzles will show up where (Paula Gamache first basically a given), monitoring the early returnees, getting feedback from those who have fallen. And bumping into the folks I generally see once or twice a year, with twenty old friends bumped into on the way to the registration desk alone.

I am doing very well on the competition front, having saved up 112 minutes in solving the six puzzles. The rough solves as advertised by Will Shortz weren't terribly Waldenesque, with Cathy Millhauser and Merl "The Evil Genius" Reagle providing the supposed brain strains. It looks very good at this point for me to carry that New Jersey trophy back to Eatontown, if not the bragging rights for all PathMark employees everywhere.

Talking to the constructors, now my merry mentors, has provided many colorful stories. Byron Walden told me a great story about how the clue Last character seen in "Casablanca" was a homage to a clue from a British cryptic (Joiner character in "Pyramus & Thisbe" (9)). Rich Norris talked of the traps laid and super clues placed in today's New York Times. And Merl Reagle, that jolly old elf, never stops being Merl Reagle.

Tonight is kick back mode, with "Wordplay" outtakes and a contest centered around a Francis Heaney puzzle which will include a combo words not seen since the dawn of Farrar and words Shortz hasn't even learned existed yet. The action will be videotaped for a Discovery Channel show focusing on words. Then comes a batch of great board games in the main ballroom, and an informal video program presented by the Brothers which will include three epsiodes of the 1986 version of "Crosswits" and some crossword-related surprises. Tomorrow, the final two puzzles, one by Stanley Newman, the other by Bob Klahn. And the awards -- and maybe some glory thrown in.

Six Down, Two To Go!

Hello all!

We are now relaxing after Puzzle 6. The 4-5-6 went down smoothly for me (a ACPT first!) and I'm fairly confident of good news tomorrow when the standings are released.

Mike Shenk did Puzzle 4, Merl Reagle did 5 (a sneaky but gettable one) and Maura Jacobson, as always, did Puzzle 6.

We're going to be uploading more pictures as the events of the next day or so unfold. For now, we're taking a well-earned rest.

saturday am @ Stamford

The morning session is now complete. Puzzle#1 was constructed by Paula Gamache. The people who seemed to do the best on it were:Tyler Hinman, Robert MAckey,Scott Weiss and Dave Mackey. Puzzle #2 was constructed by Patrick Merrell. Al SAnders, Stella Daily, Trip Payne, and Dave and Robert Mackey all seemed to put in their best efforts. Puzzle # 3 was constructed by Cathy Millhauser. Stella Daily, Trip Payne,Tyler Hinmna, DAve and Robert Mackey all seemed to put it their best. Look back for the afternoon results and more pics.

First Pics From Stamford!

Click here for new images every day. We have some images of some of last night's speakers and some of the contestants and judges. Enjoy!

Greetings From Stamford

Okay, the cold hard facts.

As of just before 8:00 p.m. this evening, there were 682 contestants entered for the tournament. So much so, that we're using a second auxiliary ballroom and rotating contestants in and out of it (except for the A-listers, who must stay in the main ballroom). Will's capable associate Doug Heller will run the tournament in the auxiliary ballroom.

There are 250+ first timers this year including one man who gave his occupation as "former talk show host". Hmmmmm. We won't let the cat out of the bag on that one just yet.

Zack Butler won the Norwegian contest, and a crew that included Dan Katz (we couldn't hear all the names because of the poor sound system) won the 30 years timeline game so well executed my Mr. and Mrs. Scott Weiss.

Tracy and I are in for the night, and Robert is still downstairs playing games. Tomorrow we should see some pix. But for now, enjoy three new puzzles from us, just for you. (Tech problems precluded the uploading of the fourth puzzle.) Even if you're not at Stamford, it's our little way of saying "wish you were here". Click the names on the sidebar and they'll load into Across Lite. Have fun!

Good night until tomorrow from Stamford.

The 2007 Dysfunctional Crossword Family Reunion

This is the last year we kick it Stamford style. Next year we'll be cookin' in Brooklyn.

Within the next 24 hours, some 650-700 puzzlers and maybe a few non-puzzle types will be rendezvousing one last time at the Marriott in Stamford (except for those of you who booked late and must stay elsewhere) for the 30th American Crossword Puzzle Tournament. Will has confirmed the tournament site next year will be the New York Marriott at the Brooklyn Bridge, which has a much larger space for the expected crowds as crossword puzzling continues steamrollering in popularity. (They have got one smaller meeting room named for Jackie Gleason, which is coolness itself.)

We don't have any official affiliation with the tournament, but we'd like to think we did a darn good job blogging about the tournament last year (including our Almost Live finals coverage), so we're going to do it again. Puzzle Brothers staff and management will be wearing their PB-T's on Saturday and Sunday morning, soon to be available through Cafe Press along with other items for all you acolytes.

Don't be strangers, folks. Say hi to any of us. Me, Bob, and Tracy. We'd love to hear your stories and perhaps maybe Tracy can take some pictures of you. We will have much more in the way of picture galleries (those 2006 galleries will soon be moving to our site, when we have some more time not occupied by training for Stamford and stripping bathroom wallpaper).

This is our last dispatch from here. Next time you hear from us, it will be Friday night in Stamford... one last time.

Stamford No More

Here's where the 2008 tournament is going to be held, according to an article in the Stamford Times.

Somehow "Brooklyn" doesn't have quite the same ring to it.

Fresh New Puzzles Coming!

On Friday, to celebrate the beginning of the Tournament, the Puzzle Brothers will be posting up four new original crosswords! (Joy!)

Interesting Article!

Here's an article from today's Newark Star-Ledger about the upcoming Stamford tournament.... and you'll never guess who they managed to wrangle an interview out of!

Stamford Habitue Helps Make Jeopardy! History

Stamford veterans and NPL members will immediately recognize the gentleman at left as Scott Weiss. You have him to thank for this history making moment on last Friday's episode of "Jeopardy!" - for the first time in 5,190 episodes, all three players wound up with the same exact score. All three men will return on Monday to play another game.

Using his vast store of knowledge honed from years of advising College Bowl at his school (Mount St. Mary's University in Maryland, which took 4th place in the recent Region 3/4 Championship Tournament), Scott already has banked $61,001 in his three days on the program. He's also done well at Stamford, too. A scan of the last ten years or so shows him placing consistently in the top 30, with an 11th place finish in 2004.

We wish Scott all the best on "Jeopardy!" and at the tournament next week.

Photo Courtesy Sony Pictures Entertainment

Record Number Of Competitors Expected For Stamford Tourney

The 30th annual American Crossword Puzzle Tournament is already shaping up to be the biggest ever - and this is more than a week before Will Shortz gives the command to turn the papers over and begin solving.

We hear from one of our sources that there are approximately 620 registrations for the tournament so far; we're not sure if this includes non-competitors. It would almost certainly mean that this year's contestant pool will be the largest ever. Last year's tournament saw a record 498 contestants try their skill. I'm sure Will expected a bump in tournament attendance in the wake of "Wordplay", but you think he could have expected this many people coming to the tournament when he started it 30 years ago? (The earliest years of the tournament saw approximately 150 contestants per year, mostly from the New York metropolitan area.)

As a result of the huge number of people scheduled to descend on the Mariott, one change has been made to Friday evening, where Allie's Restaurant traditionally hosts the dinner party held by members of the New York Times crossword forum (the Cru). Marriott management has negotiated a buffet dinner in lieu of eating at Allie's. The menu will include grilled flank steak, lemon chicken breast and penne pasta. Additionally, reservations are not being accepted for the restaurant the two evenings of the tournament. My advice is to try to find some good food off site. (Paging Tim Zagat...)

"Nobody Puts Nucky In A Corner!"

While we're counting now the DAYS until Stamford, I wanted to put in a plug for Simon & Schuster #254. As you well know, 7x7 corners are a very hard thing to pull off. Frank Longo's done it in a 19x called "Four Corners" which includes four 7x7 corners, and of course it's at a price - this creates four alleys of 3-letter words. But it's a nice construction nevertheless and there's not a lot to quibble with in the corners. Pick up a copy and give it a try.

One Month To Go!

Exactly one month from today, I will wake up in a hotel room at the Stamford Marriott - probably off maybe three hours sleep from playing parlor games into the night - wipe the sleep out of my eyes, shuffle downstairs, and await THE STANDINGS.

Yep, that time is drawing near. We're exactly 26 days from the beginning of the 30th American Crossword Puzzle Tournament, and this is probably the final go-round at the Stamford Marriott as Will Shortz is looking for a new venue for the expanding tournament.

Yes, it's a tournament, and yes, it's competition. But this is perhaps the best time of year to meet and greet your favorite constructors and solvers you've seen in the movie "Wordplay", as practically everybody who's anybody in the world of crosswords comes to the tournament. There are lots of opportunities for public social gatherings and cliqueish room parties.

If you haven't already registered (and why haven't you?), go to the American Crossword Puzzle Tournament website and join the fun.

As for us, our reportage of Stamford is going to be much improved over last year with the addition of a third correspondent, Tracy Meyer, on Team Puzzle Brothers. Additionally, we will be blogging live from the finals again, so if you can't make it to the tournament, point your browser right to the Puzzle Brothers and refresh to your heart's content as you get the latest updates direct from Stamford and fresh pictures of the goings-on.

Now, on a personal note, let me strike my own fear into the hearts of my competitors. My times have been improving. I have been training with such diverse materials as New York Magazine crosswords (as there is always a Maura Jacobsen puzzle in the tournament) and the most recent compilations of New York Sun crosswords (I just finished the Thursday volume). I haven't been doing as much online solving because I really don't want to get caught up in what other solvers are doing. I've gotta worry about my times. My goal this year is to get into the top 100. Considering I was 107th last year and 185th in '05, I can do it.

FoxTrot Makes The Crossword Scene

The answer to the punchline is, "No, but I've never had reason to try."

April 2007 Games Magazine

Now on newsstands, featuring the first solo 21x by Puzzle Brother Dave, "Presidential Portrayals." Enjoy!

Last Tango In Stamford

As alluded to in our year-end wrapup (see sidebar for link), Will Shortz has sent out an e-mail to 2006 American Crossword Puzzle Tournament participants that confirms that this will likely be the final year for the tournament at the Stamford Marriott.

"After 30 years at the Stamford Marriott Hotel, the event is likely moving to a new and larger site in 2008," states Shortz in his mass e-mailing. Last year's tournament drew about 500 competitors,

In other tournament-related news, Shortz and ace constructor Merl Reagle help Oprah Winfrey kick off the February Sweeps on Thursday with an appearance on her talk show as part of an episode entitled "How'd They Do That?"

Rex Parker Did The New York Times Crossword...

...his blog is a lot of fun and here's what he thought about the Tuesday, January 16 puzzle.

Also, I don't know what the land speed record is for getting paid, but I found a $135 check in my mailbox two days after my puzzle ran. Thanks, NYT!

We're Here!

We are pleased to soft-open our new domain, http://www.thepuzzlebrothers.com. It's all you've already come to know and maybe also love about The Puzzle Brothers.

The first thing I promise you is a much better picture of The Puzzle Brothers on our masthead. (We will get Tracy on it stat.)

You'll also notice that we're going to be featuring puzzles of our own design here. Please, please, please, do not distribute these puzzles. These puzzles are our creations, for some reason or another editors didn't want them, so you get them for free. We'll put a few up a month.

Robert has authored a little treatise on what we thought to be the best and worst in the puzzle world this year. Follow the link to your left to read it.

Tomorrow, Robert is going to be interviewed for a major New Jersey newspaper on being quite possibly the top solver from New Jersey these days. We'll definitely pass along word when it's published.

But for now, enjoy our new site, and our old blog, and please note we're still tweaking some design aspects of the site. We'll get it right yet.

Yours puzzlingly,
Bob and Dave Mackey
THE PUZZLE BROTHERS

Times Has Come Today

Dave Mackey, that rakish Puzzle Brother guy, gets his third publication in the New York Times today. Have fun! (New York Times Premium Crosswords)

Merv Griffin Bringing New "Crosswords" To NATPE

How they'll resemble for-real crosswords is anyone's guess, but Merv Griffin's got some new ones up his 81-year-old sleeve.

Program Partners, the syndicator behind the recent success of anything with the name "DeGrassi" on it, has optioned "Let's Play Crosswords", based on a concept by the creator of "Wheel of Fortune" and "Jeopardy!", to this week's NATPE television programming convention in Las Vegas. We'll keep you posted on the success of this venture.

Crosswords and game shows have been blended before with varying success: some formats were hits, like "The Cross-Wits" (a celebrity-driven show featuring kriss-kross style puzzles, the more recent version of which boasted Merl Reagle as a writer) and "Scrabble" (which boasted some very clever crossword-style clues for its words), and some were flops (a 1960's pilot called "Crossword" which was hosted by perennial Groucho toady George Fenneman is as dull as dishwater).

ACPT Registration Now Available

The registration forms are now available for the 30th Annual American Crossword Puzzle Tournament, to be held March 23-25 in Stamford, Connecticut. (The chances are mighty good you knew that already.) The Friday night games will feature a special "Time Capsule" contest with a $200 cash prize, a visit from a Norwegian crossword editor, and special Norwegian-style crosswords constructed (in English, thank goodness) by Frank Longo.

The Sunday luncheon awards presenter this year is Richard Maltby Jr., the Broadway composer and cryptic crossword constructor.

Site Expansion News

We are soon going to be moving to our own domain! We will soon be located at www.thepuzzlebrothers.com. Bookmark us now so you don't be caught by surprise one day when we've moved out, leaving old, half-completed Harle crossword books with cover illos by John Langton in our wake. We will be expanding to include more blog coverage as well as some of our own original puzzles for you to solve gratis! (That's free, y'know.) Robert is going to be working on an all-new site design which will incorporate our blog and the galleries of the tournaments and events we have already covered.

Look soon for our take on the year in puzzles, including the puzzles that grabbed us the most and the events that helped make 2006 a memorable one for crossword fans. And of course, with Stamford looming near, the Brothers (along with the lovely Tracy, who will be blogging and shooting pix) are getting ready for another trip to visit "the dysfunctional crossword family", as Merl Reagle so nicely put it.

Planning Further Ahead

Will Shortz's Wonderful World Of Words will be in residence at the Mohonk Mountain House in New Paltz, New York, the weekend of November 9-11, 2007. The Puzzle Brothers are already marking their calendars.

Puzzle Brothers Pre-Holiday Double Header

We've got twice the puzzles and twice the fun for you in the Los Angeles Times this week. Links will soon magically appear to the online applet version and the .PUZ files (for cruciverb.com members only) for...

Dave's Wednesday, December 20, 2006 puzzle Solve Online or Download Puzzle File

Robert's Saturday, December 23, 2006 puzzle Solve Online or Download Puzzle File

Happy Holidays to all our friends, and watch for some big news concerning our long overdue site expansion.... and remember... STAMFORD IS ONLY THREE MONTHS AWAY!

Stan's Stickler: Will It Stump You Today?

If you remember the exploits of the Brothers at the Paramus-based Community Blood Services tournament a few months ago, you will remember that the final puzzle, by Stanley Newman, was quite a bear for the competitors, notably the A clues. Stan has given Joe Solver a bit of a break today by supplying the B clues for this puzzle as it appears in today's Newsday. Good luck!

Crossword Creators Shine Again On "Twenty-One" Reruns

GSN has announced that they are taking the reruns of the short-lived NBC quiz show "Twenty-One" out of mothballs, beginning Wednesday, January 3 at 10:00 p.m. and rerunning the following Sunday evening at 7:00 p.m.

Crossword fans may remember New York Sun puzzle editor Peter Gordon's appearance on the show, as well as that of his "second chance" helper - Newsday puzzle editor (and all-time champion from "The Challengers") Stanley Newman.

If You're Not Shopping On Black Friday

Check out the Friday New York Times crossword puzzle (a themeless, of course), authored by Puzzle Brother Dave. Hope you enjoy it.

You must be a subscriber of NY Times Crosswords to do the puzzle online, on the timed applet or in Across Lite.

Have a great Thanksgiving weekend!

LA Times Puzzle by Robert Mackey!

Do it online at the LA Times website or download it if you're a member of cruciverb.com.

Pleasantville Tournament

Dan Katz Wins Tenth Pleasantville Tournament

Dan Katz proved to be the best puzzler at Friday night's Tenth Annual Pleasantville Crossword Tournament, hosted by Will Shortz and benefitting the Pleasantville Fund For Learning. All three finalists (chosen from the best times on each of three upcoming New York Times puzzles) completed the puzzle for Thursday, November 2 - and I know you will all be talking about this puzzle on Friday, November 3 - in under seven minutes, and Katz had the fastest time.

The Puzzle Brothers also made a statement as team solvers, winning one of three pairs of trophies in the Team competition. (Dave and Bob actually had the best team time on all three puzzles, finishing the Tuesday, October 31 puzzle by Patrick Blindauer ahead of all other competitors.) The two other pairs of trophies were awarded to the runner up solvers on two of the other puzzles. All winning contestants also won their choice of puzzle books from St. Martin's Press, publishers of the New York Times crossword puzzle books.

Among the crossword luminaries acting as judges were former Stamford champions Nancy Schuster and Ellen Ripstein, and ace constructors Jim Page, Paula Gamache, Fred Piscop, Pat Merrell, Frank Longo, and Patrick Blindauer.

Dan Katz photo by Dave Mackey; Puzzle Brothers photo by Tracy Meyer

A Pleasantville Way To Spend An Evening

Pleasantville, New York is best known for being the headquarters of two things: Reader's Digest and Will Shortz.

This Friday, Mr. Shortz runs a puzzle tournament in his own backyard as the 10th Annual Westchester Crossword Puzzle Tournament is held at the St. John's Episcopal Church, 8 Sunnyside Avenue. The tournament puzzles will be advance copies of the New York Times puzzles for Monday, October 30 through Thursday, November 2. (This will effectively recuse The Puzzle Brothers from the timed applet for four days.)

The tournament, said to be friendly and informal, will benefit the Pleasantville Fund for Learning. It costs $30 to enter as a single competitor, or $45 to enter in the team competition. Your Puzzle Brothers will be in the team competition.

The festivities begin at 7:30 p.m. and for more information, call the Village Bookstore at (914) 769-8322$

Welcome Back, Cruciverb

After what seemed like an eternity, Kevin McCann's indispensable cruciverb.com website is back online. He had been having some major connectivity problems that have just now been rectified.

I would encourage you to give Mr. McCann a little something for your troubles, if you're not already a member. Being a member gives you access to the incredible database of puzzles as well as access to Los Angeles Times puzzles as .puz files, among other niceties.

Robair's Weekend Thank-You's

Now that the dust has settled on the second Community Blood Services Crossword Tournament, it's time for me to publicly thank some people who make events like this the high points of my life.

BONNIE SIROWER: Our gracious, word loving presenter, whose tireless work organizing events like this for CBS is appreciated by not only the folks who help her but most importantly the folks who need the help with anything blood related.

WILL SHORTZ: His presence at these events ultimately give them weight and importance, and we couldn't have a more enthusiastic cheerleader for the formal and informal events he presides over.

NANCY SCHUSTER: One of the many examples of living crossword history we have, full of great stories of her battles with Farrar, her days at Dell, and the bad old days of the ACTP...and as we saw with the six puzzles this weekend, still one hell of a super editor.

HELENE HOVANEC: Though not as hands-on as she is at Stamford, we are comforted by her presence at Ridgewood as well.

ADAM COHEN, PAULA GAMACHE, LIZ GORSKI, PATRICK MERRELL and MICHAEL SHTEYMAN: For crafting a stellar set of first-round puzzles, each with their own winning personality and style.

STAN NEWMAN: For what turned out to be a particularly brain-busting finals -- so much so, in fact, that if you superimposed the three finals boards over each other there would still be letters missing.

HOWARD BARKIN: He was my odds-on favorite to take this thing, as his ascent in competitive solving has been particularly rapid...close to me minute by minute and just squeezed me out of the first-place spot in the finals by one minute. A job well done, Howard, and you will be one to watch in the future.

ELAINE LIPPMAN: Another fantastic solver and returnee to the finals, always brings it every finals. Congratulations on your second-place finish.

ERROL FLYNN: I needed you to unlock that top corner, still barren with two minutes left. Tally Ho, Robin.

THE FIELD: Too many to name by name, but a special huzzah to Barry Weprin for taking the B title.

BOOKENDS: I was not sure that this bookstore would be an apt place to hold this, but apparently it is a heavy hitter in the world of celebrity bookings and maybe one of the last great indie book sellers in the East. Thanks for giving us a nice place to solve.

And all the sponsors who supplied us with food, drink, wine, cheese, wraps.

Two special thank-yous end this thing. A big shout out to my fellow Puzzle Brother Dave, for notching his best-ever finish in a tournament, the first where he did not make an error on a puzzle.

And finally, big thanks to BLOODY, as we have called him, the omnipresent smiley-faced blood drop who pretty much symbolized the weekend and gave us plenty of opportunities for prop comedy. More importantly, he represented the real aim of this weekend: helping people who have had medical problems with their blood, which can often debilitate the entire body. We hope that Bonnie Sirower and her troops can stage this event again next late summer/early fall, because it's a good time for a good cause.

Ridgewood Wrap-Up

OH NO HE DIDN'T!

Bob Mackey Repeats As CBS Tournament Champ

The partially-filled in grid was all that the Puzzle Brothers' own Bob Mackey needed to successfully defend the championship of the annual tournament benefitting the Community Blood Services Foundation in Bergen County, New Jersey.

After the first brace of puzzles, Howard Barkin was in first place, Bob just behind by a minute of solving time, and Elaine Lippman (last year's runner-up) was third. All three puzzlers struggled with the Stanley Newman-constructed puzzle. No one finished, so it came down to correct words, and Bob was declared the winner.

The other Puzzle Brother, Dave Mackey, finished tenth in his best tournament showing to date.

Barry Weprin Triumphant In CBSF B Finals

In the B division final, it was Barry Weprin's day as he cruised to a 10:05 completion time using an easier set of clues on the same grid. Rick Thompson, who had placed first going into the B finals, finished in 13:05, and Pat Whitehead, seeded second, came through with a 13:20 finishing time. Weprin is seen here accepting his trophy from New York Times crossword editor Will Shortz.

The official results will be posted Tuesday on the Community Blood Services Foundation website and will be linked to at that time. More photos will be forthcoming within the next few days.

Greetings from Ridgewood...

The second annual Community Blood Services Foundation crossword tournament is underway at the Bookends book shop in Ridgewood, about a couple of miles from last year's location, Care One at the Cupola.

We've had three pretty good puzzles so far from Adam Cohen, Patrick Merrell and Michael Shteyman. Two puzzles yet to go from Elizabeth C. Gorski and Paula Gamache, and the final puzzle will be by Stanley Newman.

We will have a much fuller report as well as unofficial results later on plus pictures sometime tonight.

Your Puzzle Brothers are doing quite well so far in the tournament.

Still Time To Join The Fun In Jersey!

Just a reminder this Friday and Saturday is the 2nd Annual Puzzle Tournament benefitting Community Blood Services Foundation. Still time to register online, but be aware that online credit card transactions aren't working so be sure to bring your cash or credit card and you can pay there.

The tournament will be held this year at Bookends, on 232 E. Ridgewood Avenue in Ridgewood, NJ. The Friday night Sudoku festivities get underway at 7:00 p.m., and registration for the Crossword tournament begins at 8:30 a.m. the next morning.

Your donation will help Community Blood Services save lives by enabling collection of blood products, processing of bone marrow donors, and collection of umbilical cord blood that can help save the lives of people with leukemia and lymphoma.

Look for both Puzzle Brothers to be on hand, and hopefully we will have our trademarked "almost live" reportage in words and pictures you all so enjoyed at Stamford.

Saturday Morning Confusion served up by Robert

Here, then, is the September 16 offering from the Los Angeles Times, authored by Robert.

LA Times Puzzle for today

Of course, if you click on the link after September 16, it won't be there. However, members of the Cruciverb website are entitled to a copy of the .PUZ file. Either way, enjoy it.

I test solved this puppy when Robert submitted it, and even with Rich Norris' enhanced clueset it still took me a tick over eight minutes.

Double Dave

Now out on the newsstands are the November 2006 issues of Games and Games World of Puzzles. Dave Mackey contributes a puzzle in each magazine: Games features "Child of Mine" and GWOP contains "The AP Wire".

In addition, GWOP features its annual Puzzle Book Roundup, as it compiles a sampler of puzzles from the season's new puzzle books. Featured are puzzles from Trip Payne's new effort for Sterling, "Pop Culture Crosswords", which I picked up a week ago and have found hugely entertaining, as well as entries from Emily Cox and Henry Rathvon (a cryptic) and Frank Longo (a themeless).

"Wordplay" DVD Release Set For November 7

Genius Products, Inc. has announced the DVD release of "Wordplay". It will be in stores on Tuesday, November 7. The DVD, retailing for $24.95, will feature a commentary track with Will Shortz, interview footage, and "The Five Greatest Puzzles Ever Made" featurette.

How much wrong stuff can fit in one movie review?

Thirty some odd years ago, when Joe Adamson wrote one of the seminal texts of animation history, "Tex Avery: King of Cartoons", Mr. Adamson coined a phrase that just about summed up the sloppiness of documenting animation history up to that point: he said the writer might as well have been writing about the Myrna Loy Westerns of Alfred Hitchcock.

Reading this very funny compilation of "Wordplay" review errors gave me that same Myrna Loy Western vibe.

Thanks to Trip Payne for compiling it.... and gee, you didn't even include our favorite from the Star-Ledger review about Shortz hosting the Stamford tournament every weekend.

Sajak's Puzzle Empire Grows Thanks To Atari

Pat Sajak Games, the "Wheel of Fortune" host's thriving puzzle and game enterprise, will seek out new territory this holiday season. The company has partnered with Atari to begin publishing PC and console versions of its winning online word and puzzle games.

First up this fall will be "Pat Sajak's Lucky Letters", the exceptional crossword/game-show crossover which will feature Sajak's voice offering encouragement to players. There will be three play variants and game enhancements not available online. Sajak said in a press statement that he is proud to be affiliated with Atari due to their high level of quality over the years.

Sajak's company now produces many online games (such as "Blackjack Bowling"), as well as three distinct Penny Press titles: "Get-A-Letter Crosswords", "Get-A-Letter Variety Puzzles", and the new "Get-A-Clue Sudoku".

Gridbusters: Humans vs. Computers!

The Slate has reprinted one of the best parts of Matt Gaffney's new book, "Gridlock". He basically teams up with Byron Walden to see if their team or the team of Peter Gordon and Frank Longo can do a better and more imaginative fill of a grid. Judges include some fair-to-middling X-worders like Tyler Hinman, Trip Payne, yada yada. Interesting stuff and required reading for those who construct, or someday want to.

Sign O' The Times

Dave Mackey is now in the bigs with his first published New York Times puzzle, which is now online and will appear in the Wednesday, July 26 print edition of the newspaper. Congratulations!

Jersey Tournament Adds Sudoku, Is Earlier This Year

The annual crossword tournament mounted by Community Blood Services Foundation in northern New Jersey is being pushed ahead on the schedule a few weeks from when it was held last year. The now two-day affair is set for Friday, September 29, and Saturday, September 30, at Bookends in Ridgewood.

The festivities kick off Friday night with a Sudoku competition with a $100 first prize and trophies for the top three finishers in Junior (12-17) and Senior (18+) divisions. The puzzles will be prepared by Will Shortz, who has a number of Sudoku books on the market.

Saturday's crossword competition features puzzles edited by Nancy Schuster and designed by some of the top constructors featured in The New York Times, Penny Press/Dell and Newsday. Competitors will include last year's champion, Robert Mackey. (The other Puzzle Brother, a sidelines observer last year, will be joining the fray this year too.)

There is competition in A and B divisions, with A division comprised of anyone who has placed in the 30th percentile or higher in any puzzle tournament, and B for everyone else. Winners will share $500 in prize money, and will each receive a trophy. Trophies and books will also be awarded to the top contestants in the Rookie division, top contestants from several geographic regions, age groups (including juniors under 21, 50’s, 60’s, and Senior Citizens 70+), plus "the coveted Handwriting Award." Starbuck's (remember them?) is providing continental breakfast. Lunch is "on your own" this year, a change from last year's buffet. A wine and cheese reception will follow the competition.

If you want to come to Ridgewood for a day of crossword fun, visit http://www.communitybloodservices.com/php/puzzle_PHP.php and fill out the form. Of course we hope to see you there - who are the Puzzle Brothers to miss a good time when crosswords are involved?

"Something Smells" In My Mailbox

September 2006 Games Magazine arrived at my home today, and among the puzzles in there is a 2-star 15x called "Something Smells" by one of the Puzzle Brothers. The other Puzzle Brother will be in the September World of Puzzles with a puzzle called "Happy N-Dings".

Other puzzle highlights include a cryptic from Bob Stigger, Pencil Pointers by Frank Longo, crosswords from Annemarie Brethauer and Alan Olschwang, a 23x by Randall Hartman, and an Ornery from Mike Selinker.

Here's Another Wordplay Review

This time from MAXIM Magazine. (I haven't actually gotten the issue with the review in print yet, but I'll be otherwise distracted when that issue comes to my house.)

http://www.maximonline.com/entertainment/reviews.aspx?p_id=12009

Constructor Kendall Twigg dies

Sad news to pass along this morning: constructor Kendall Twigg, who took up the craft of puzzlemaking just a few years ago in his mid-80's, has passed away three weeks after being hospitalized after a fall.

Like so many nascent constructors, Mr. Twigg received much guidance and inspiration from Nancy Salomon, and then eventually branched out from under her tutelage and produced a number of puzzles on his own. Most recently, Mr. Twigg was producing later-week difficulty pizzles.

A quick guide to when Kendall Twigg was published in the LA Times and NY Times, based on Barry Haldiman's databases...

NYT Mon 07/19/04 (with Nancy S.)
NYT Mon 11/01/04 (with Nancy S.)
LAT Fri 11/19/04 (with Nancy S.)
NYT Mon 11/29/04 (with Nancy S.)
LAT Tue 12/28/04
LAT Fri 03/11/05 (with Nancy S.)
LAT Fri 06/03/05
NYT Mon 08/01/05
LAT Sat 08/27/05
LAT Sat 01/07/06

Thank you, and rest in peace, Kendall.

Another Modest Proposal...

Today's Los Angeles Times crossword puzzle by the always reliable Nancy Salomon is - you guessed it - another marriage proposal puzzle.

As in a puzzle that appeared several years ago in the New York Times (January 7, 1998, by Bob Klahn - here's the background info and here's the puzzle, if you're a registered user), one of the bottom theme clues is WILLYOUMARRYME, and one of the crossers is YES, clued appropriately (with the same exact clue from the Klahn puzzle, in fact).

E-mails to puzzle editor Rich Norris asking for more information were not returned, but I would assume the intended result was achieved.

If you want to do today's puzzle, either download the .PUZ file at Cruciverb or do it at the LA Times website.

Quote Of The Day #2

From the "Wordplay" review in the Newark Star Ledger (a fine newspaper that carries the Los Angeles Times puzzle):

And then, finally, it concentrates on a crossword-puzzle tournament which Shortz hosts every weekend in Stamford, Conn.

This Just In: Tyler Hinman has won Stamford for the 36th week in a row, eclipsing Trip Payne's old record of 35.

Quote Of The Day

Scanning a lot of the coverage of the "Wordplay" movie, opening today in NYC, I found this interesting quote from Patrick Creadon.... obviously he's spent a lot of time in our world, but how he can fit this answer into 12 squares is a little beyond my ken...

Will mentioned a really great clue the other day, which was, "It turns into a different story." It was a like a 12-letter word, and the answer was, "Spiral Staircase." Isn't that great?

Crosswords 101

Thou Shalt Not Repeat Theme Answer Words Elsewhere In The Diagram, Particularly In The Same Section Of The Puzzle.

Will at Borders: a brief report

Well, thanks to the Lincoln Tunnel being clogged (forgot you only have one tube going into New York at that hour), Bob and I pulled into NYC just a tad late to hear Will's opening remarks at Borders on Tuesday night. For about thirty minutes Will fielded questions from the crowd, the usual sort of questions Will gets about his job.

Then, a contest! (Oooh!) Will distributed copies of the New York Times puzzle for June 14, 2006 and offered prizes for the fastest solvers, and two bonus drawings for passes for the "Wordplay" movie when it starts its run in NYC.

Suffice it to say that one Puzzle Brother won his passes to the film legitimately, finishing first in just over 4 minutes to the gasps of the crowd, and the other (who wasn't quite so fast) lucked out in the drawing. (So now you know why we're not on the NYT applet today.)

Will then signed copies of the companion book to the "Wordplay" movie (published by St. Martin's Press), a neat little paperback that actually includes crosswords you can solve from the NYT and the entire brace of puzzles from both the 2001 (Ellen Ripstein's year) and 2005 ACPT's. The book pretty much follows the contour of the movie and even includes information on how you can make your own crosswords.

Will Shortz at Borders Next Tuesday

In conjunction with a tie-in book to the movie "Wordplay", Will Shortz will be doing an in-store at Borders, 10 Columbus Circle, on Tuesday, June 13 at 6:00 p.m. The Puzzle Brothers, both somehow omitted from the movie, will also be in attendance.

UPDATE: As part of the promotion of the film, Will Shortz will be appearing on "Late Show with David Letterman", Monday, June 12, at 11:37 p.m. EDT on CBS. Paris Hilton will also be on the show... wonder how long it would take her to do a NYT themeless? (Speaking of, congrats to Robair for finishing in an utterly blazing 4:46 on this past Saturday's NYT puzzle, making my 15:02 look absolutely sick by comparison!)

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!