The First Crossword Puzzle of The Times
The New York Times ran its first-ever crossword puzzle 84 years ago. Titled "Headlines and Footnotes," the grid featured 23 rows stacked neatly with a smattering of black boxes. The puzzle was created by Charles Erlenkotter, a seasoned constructor, and Margaret Farrar, the puzzle editor. Previously, the paper had dismissed such pursuits, but in the wake of the 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor, Lester Markel, The Times’s Sunday editor, decided it was time for a change.
In a memo to Arthur Hays Sulzberger, the paper’s publisher, Markel urged a bold pivot. He wrote, "We ought to proceed with the puzzle," framing it as an invitation to readers, who were anxious about a world at war, to engage in a bit of playfulness.
