992. What began as a simple word game in 1913 sparked a nationwide craze just a decade later, causing a moral panic and changing American publishing forever. This week, Ben Zimmer, a prolific crossword constructor and language commentator, takes us through the crossword puzzle's surprising early history and enduring legacy. He also explores the modern crossword scene, including competitions, digital tools, and how new puzzle constructors are shaping the future of the game.

Links mentioned in the show:

* Wall Street Journal piece on the centennial of the crossword craze: https://on.wsj.com/3U3zMPk

* Crossword Craze: https://crosswordcraze.today/

* Daily Crossword Links: https://dailycrosswordlinks.com/

* Slate crosswords: https://slate.com/crossword

| Edited transcript with links: https://grammar-girl.simplecast.com/episodes/zimmer/transcript

| Please take our advertising survey. It helps! https://podsurvey.com/GRAMMAR

| Grammarpalooza (Get texts from Mignon!): https://joinsubtext.com/grammar or text "hello" to (917) 540-0876.

| Subscribe to the newsletter for regular updates.

| Watch my LinkedIn Learning writing courses.

| Peeve Wars card game.

| Grammar Girl books.

| HOST: Mignon Fogarty

| VOICEMAIL: 833-214-GIRL (833-214-4475).

| Grammar Girl is part of the Quick and Dirty Tips podcast network.

Audio Engineer: Nathan Semes
Director of Podcast: Brannan Goetschius
Advertising Operations Specialist: Morgan Christianson
Marketing and Publicity Assistant: Davina Tomlin
Digital Operations Specialist: Holly Hutchings

| Theme music by Catherine Rannus.

| Grammar Girl Social Media Links: YouTube. TikTok. Facebook. Instagram. LinkedIn. Mastodon.

References for the Aging segment

van Boxtel, W, Lawyer, L. Sentence comprehension in ageing and Alzheimer's disease. Lang Linguist Compass. 2021;e12430.

Payne, B. R., Gao, X., Noh, S. R., Anderson, C. J., & Stine-Morrow, E. A. (2012). The effects of print exposure on sentence processing and memory in older adults: Evidence for efficiency and reserve. Aging, Neuropsychology and Cognition, 19(1–2), 122–149.

Ben Zimmer

Best podcasts with Ben Zimmer

The crossword craze — now and then — with Ben Zimmer

Remember Everything You Learn from Podcasts