Source: NationalToday.com
108 Years of Delight
Did you know that the first crossword puzzle was created by Arthur Wynne and published on December 21, 1913 in the New York World Newspaper?
Wynne’s puzzle was diamond shaped and contained no internal black squares. However, it was so popular with readers that within a decade crossword puzzles were featured in almost all American newspapers.
I grew up watching my Dad pour over crossword puzzles and helping my Mom solve the weekly puzzles on NPR.
Puzzle Master
Will Shortz (the Puzzle Master for NPR’s “Weekend Edition Sunday”) became the crossword puzzle editor of The New York Times since 1993.
When he started at the Times, Will some modest modifications to the crosswords. Such as adding the Constructor bylines to the daily puzzles instead of anonymous. He had the puzzles become increasingly harder each day of the week to provide something for every skill level.
The puzzle that Will edited which elicited the most response appeared on Election Day, 1996. The clue to the middle answer across the grid was “Lead story in tomorrow’s newspaper.” The answer appeared to be “CLINTON ELECTED.” Because of intentional ambiguity in the crossing clues, however, the answer could also have been “BOB DOLE ELECTED”—either fit.
Source: CrosswordTournament.com
World's First Crossword Puzzle
By Arthur Wynne, December 21, 1913
from The New York World
