#08 - Periodically Sondheim: His Puzzling Magazines

Barry Joseph and guest Andrew Parr page through Stephen Sondheim's passion for puzzle and game magazines. From Sondheim's early fascination with cryptic crosswords to his last major interview about puzzles, this episode uncovers how these collections provided inspiration for his works. Discover how Sondheim managed and preserved his assemblage, hear contributions from renowned puzzle creators, and explore the generational impact of Sondheim's puzzling endeavors. Make sure to get the book everywhere books are found, ⁠⁠or click here⁠⁠. 00:00 Introduction and Welcome 00:42 Introducing Tonight's Episode 01:56 Meet Andrew Parr 03:43 Andrew's Puzzle Box Journey 05:22 Connecting with Sondheim 08:13 Sondheim's Puzzle Collection 13:56 The Doyle Auction Experience 23:13 Unboxing Sondheim's Collection 25:34 Stephen Sondheim's Quest for Eye-Witness 26:41 The Significance of Games and Puzzles Magazine 28:29 Games Magazine and the 4-Star Puzzler 29:36 Stephen Sondheim's Puzzle-Solving Habits 36:55 Sondheim's Markings and Interests in Games 42:58 The Impact of Sondheim's Collection 47:08 Concluding Thoughts and Reflections Special Links: Results from Sondheim auction Andrew Parr’s True North Puzzles Dr. Nicholas Phillips’ AffineCreations Games World of Puzzles magazine The Strong Museum of Play Colm Molloy Ann Morrison Mateo Chavez Lewis Thanks to everyone who contributed behind the scenes to this episode, specifically transcription and text editing by Jenny Westfall, the musical stingers composed by Mateo Chavez Lewis, and the theme song to our podcast with lyrics and music by Colm Molloy, and sung by the one and only Ann Morrison, who created the role of Mary in Merrily We Roll Along. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices