Patrick Berry Explained

Patrick Berry
Years Active:1993–present

Patrick D. Berry (born 1970) is an American puzzle creator and editor who constructs crossword puzzles and variety puzzles. He had 227 crosswords published in The New York Times from 1999 to 2018. His how-to guide for crossword construction was first published as a For Dummies book in 2004. One of the most revered constructors of his time,[1] [2] Berry has been called the "Thomas Pynchon of crosswords".[3] [4]

Career

Berry grew up in Boca Raton, Florida, and often solved Dell Magazines variety puzzles and tried to write his own crosswords in his youth.[5] He discovered cryptic crosswords in 1992 and had his first cryptic constructing effort accepted by Games magazine.[5] His first published variety puzzle appeared in Games April 1993 issue.[6]

Berry continued writing puzzles for outlets such as The New Yorker, Harper's Magazine, and the American Crossword Federation's Tough Cryptics newsletter.[5] He invented several variety puzzle formats, such as Rows Garden, Some Assembly Required, Boxing Rings, and Snake Charmer.[3] [6] After the publishing house he worked for shut down in late 1997, he became a full-time "freelance puzzler" ("a very dubious career choice").[5] [6] He began constructing and editing American-style crosswords for Games World of Crosswords, a sister publication of Games, on a freelance basis.[5] [6] His first New York Times crossword was published on Friday, September 17, 1999.[7]

Wiley, the publisher of the For Dummies book series, approached Berry around 2003 to write a book of crossword puzzles; Berry wanted the book to include a how-to guide on crossword construction, an idea that Wiley approved.[8] Crossword Puzzle Challenges for Dummies, marketed more as a puzzle book than as a resource for aspiring constructors, was published in March 2004.[8] After it had gone out of print, Berry reacquired the rights, updated it, and republished it as a PDF ebook, the Crossword Constructor's Handbook, in 2015.[3] [9] [10]

Most of Berry's 227 crosswords for the Times—published from 1999 to 2018—were themelesses or Sundays.[7] [11] He constructed a six-puzzle meta suite (a series of related puzzles) for the week of October 17, 2011, at the request of editor Will Shortz.[12] [13] He has regularly written variety puzzles for The Wall Street Journal and formerly edited the Chronicle of Higher Education crossword.[3] [14] He began writing weekly novelty word puzzles for the New York Times variety page in 2015 and has been on The New Yorker puzzle roster since 2018.[15] [16] Puzzle suites are occasionally released on his website, A-Frame Games.[6]

Berry was awarded the Merl Reagle "for lifetime achievement in crossword construction" at the American Crossword Puzzle Tournament in 2021.[17]

Personal life

As of 2018, Berry lives in an A-frame house in Athens, Georgia.[6] [18]

Notes and References

  1. News: Evan Birnholz's guide to the Oct. 16 Post Magazine crossword, 'Mind the Gap, Part II'. Birnholz. Evan. October 16, 2016. The Washington Post. November 9, 2023. PB1 is one of the greats in the crossword business.. December 19, 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20181219034448/https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/style/wp/2016/10/16/evan-birnholzs-guide-to-the-oct-16-post-magazine-crossword-mind-the-gap-part-ii/. live.
  2. Book: Raphel, Adrienne. Thinking Inside the Box: Adventures with Crosswords and the Puzzling People Who Can't Live Without Them. Penguin Books. 2020. 9780525522102. 39. Patrick Berry, one of the top constructors alive..
  3. News: Patrick Berry Is the Thomas Pynchon of Crosswords. Kassel. Matthew. December 3, 2015. Observer. November 8, 2023. November 12, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20231112021826/https://observer.com/2015/12/patrick-berry-is-the-thomas-pynchon-of-crosswords/. live.
  4. News: The Best Crossword Puzzle Books, According to Will Shortz and Other Crossword Obsessives. Reid. Hilary. April 7, 2020. The Strategist. November 8, 2023. November 9, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20231109062503/https://nymag.com/strategist/article/best-crossword-puzzle-books.html. live.
  5. News: Clued in: Carrboro resident has his ups and downs crafting crossword puzzles. O'Kelly. Kevin. June 12, 1998. The Chapel Hill News. B4–B5. Newspapers.com. November 9, 2023. November 9, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20231109062505/https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-chapel-hill-news-berry/134873046/. live.
  6. News: 60 Seconds With Patrick Berry. Amlen. Deb. January 22, 2018. Deb Amlen. The New York Times. November 8, 2023. November 12, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20231112021826/https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/22/crosswords/who-made-my-puzzle.html. live.
  7. Web site: Patrick Berry author page. XWord Info. November 8, 2023. November 9, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20231109062505/https://www.xwordinfo.com/Thumbs?author=Patrick+Berry. live.
  8. News: Doubleheaders. Horne. Jim. November 13, 2010. The New York Times. November 8, 2023. Patrick Berry is considered a master of modern word puzzles.. November 9, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20231109062506/https://archive.nytimes.com/wordplay.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/11/13/doubleheaders/. live.
  9. Book: Berry, Patrick. Crossword Constructor's Handbook. 2015. 2004. 3. subscription. November 9, 2023. November 9, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20231109062505/https://aframegames.com/store/?download=21. live.
  10. News: I Love And Hate My Stupidly Expensive Crossword Puzzle Device. Pareene. Alex. March 6, 2023. Defector. November 8, 2023. November 9, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20231109062505/https://defector.com/i-love-and-hate-my-stupidly-expensive-crossword-puzzle-device. live.
  11. News: Friday, Nov. 21, 2008, crossword by Patrick Berry. Horne. Jim. November 20, 2008. The New York Times. November 8, 2023. November 9, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20231109062504/https://archive.nytimes.com/wordplay.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/11/20/unmentionable/. live.
  12. News: Inside Patrick Berry's Brain: A Review of the 'Crossing' Words Contest. Amlen. Deb. Deb Amlen. October 24, 2011. The New York Times. November 8, 2023. November 9, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20231109062507/https://archive.nytimes.com/wordplay.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/10/24/contest-berrys-brain/. live.
  13. Web site: Cross Word Contest. XWord Info. November 8, 2023. November 9, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20231109062505/https://www.xwordinfo.com/Contest. live.
  14. News: Belmont and Preakness, for Two. Merrell. Patrick. May 20, 2010. The New York Times. November 8, 2023. November 9, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20231109062505/https://archive.nytimes.com/wordplay.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/05/20/belmont-and-preakness-for-two/. live.
  15. Web site: Good Puzzle News in The New York Times Magazine. Shortz. Will. 2015-02-19. The New York Times. 2024-02-26.
  16. News: Introducing the Weekend Crossword. Liz. Maynes-Aminzade. Nicholas. Henriquez. David. Haglund. April 5, 2019. The New Yorker. November 9, 2023. November 9, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20231109062505/https://www.newyorker.com/puzzles-and-games-dept/crossword/introducing-the-weekend-crossword. live.
  17. News: Annual MEmoRiaL Award. American Crossword Puzzle Tournament. November 8, 2023. November 9, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20231109062504/https://www.crosswordtournament.com/info/merlaward.htm. live.
  18. News: About Patrick. aframegames.com. November 8, 2023. November 9, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20231109062505/https://aframegames.com/store/?page_id=140. live.

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