Crossword enthusiasts around the world had a birthday to celebrate in December when their beloved puzzle turned 90.
The world’s first recorded crossword appeared Dec. 21, 1913, in The New York World newspaper. Arthur Wynne, a British-born journalist who immigrated to the United States, created the diamond-shaped grid.
The Reveille’s crossword puzzle is a popular between-class activity for many University students. On almost any given weekday during the semester, students can be spotted with a newspaper strategically folded to hide the day’s puzzle from the answers to prevent themselves from cheating.
Many University “solvers” – a crossword-jargon name for puzzle workers – were excited to hear about their pastime’s birthday.
Before she knew the anniversary already had passed, Kasey Dellinger excitedly asked, “Is there a party?”
Dellinger, a communication studies junior, said she often finds Reveille puzzles difficult but always likes to give them a try.
“They’re challenging – which is what they’re supposed to be,” she said. “I don’t get enough time to spend on it because I do it between classes.”
But Eric Penedo, a biology senior, can not always wait until class is out for his “dedicated Reveille time,” in which he starts on his puzzle.
“Sometimes I’ll do the crossword puzzle in one of my classes,” he said.
Penedo said Reveille crosswords seem to make time pass more quickly during “long, boring lectures.”
Tram Tran, an international marketing sophomore, said she makes the Reveille crossword a part of her morning pre-class ritual.
“I usually grab a Reveille, go to the Union and grab a cup of coffee,” she said. “It’s a good way to get my mind to thinking.”
One crossword expert celebrated the anniversary by printing a commemorative puzzle in The New York Times.
Will Shortz, who is the New York Times crossword editor and the “puzzle master” for National Public Radio’s Weekend Edition, published the second rather than the first puzzle ever printed.
“We didn’t reprint the first one because so many had seen it,” he said in a telephone interview from Pleasantville, N.Y. where he works from his home.
The puzzle that Shortz printed had a diamond-shaped grid similar to the first puzzle ever printed.
Shortz also directs the annual American Crossword Puzzle Tournament in Stamford, Conn. This year’s event, which will be held March 12 through 14, will be the 27th tournament.
The contest is open to anyone, and participants may compete in-person or through the mail.
“Crossword mania” hooked Shortz at an early age.
“I’ve been a puzzle fanatic since I was a child,” he said.
By age nine, Shortz was creating his own puzzles, and he first began selling them when he
was 14.
Adding another piece to Shortz’s puzzle is his degree in enigmatology – the study of puzzles. He designed and graduated from his own program at Indiana University in 1974.
Shortz and numerous other sources said he is the only person in the world with a degree in enigmatology. A word search on the Internet for “enigmatology” even brought up the name “Will Shortz.”
In his studies, Shortz has examined changes in crosswords from 1913 to today.
“In the early days they were simply collections of words with dictionary-type definitions,” he said. “Nowadays they encompass all of life.”
Shortz encouraged University students to participate in the tournament, celebrating the crossword puzzle.
“It’s the perfect thing for the modern world,” he said. “It doesn’t require a long attention span.”