1.Just me, or does the show value seem really cheap?
2.Can’t they fix it?
On the actual Crosswords themselves, Where can I buy a book of Crosswords like these?! I want to start doing crosswords, but I’m ((apparently)) not that much of a wordsmith to crack Newspaper Cross words, even on Monday. I also like the word play, and the trivia aspects also. You can get far with out a superb vocab.
I haven’t seen the show, but it sounds like you need to start with the xword books sold at news stands. Very easy and with the answers in the back of the book. Once you get your oar in and learn the crossword staples, you move up to hard & harder
Better yet, maybe, Google crossword puzzles and start online. Cheap as it comes.
I’ve caught it a couple of times–especially last week when Jeopardy (which airs at the same time in my area) had the kids on.
I agree, the production values seem really low. If I were watching it someplace that had cable, I’d probably assume it was a moderately ancient rerun on the Game Show Network or something.
But, since Jeopardy competes with it, I will probably mostly watch Jeopardy.
I saw it in my hotel room a month or so ago and was surprised that the level of difficulty for the questions was much higher than I’m used to seeing on just about any non-Jeopardy game show. I did find it a bit of a bummer, though, that a player who’s in the back doing nothing the whole game can get a last-minute steal and become a finalist, displacing a good player, based on one (often lucky) question.
When I saw the first post, I thought that someone was going to come in here and point out to the OP that this show is actually some ancient rerun from the '70’s. I caught a few minutes once recently and that’s exactly what I thought. I’m very surprised to learn that this is a current show – it’s not just the production values, but the show’s tone that seem very old-fashioned.
I’m scheduled to be a contestant on Crosswords next month!! I spent a few months this summer as a “test” contestant when they were doing run-throughs of the show, and actually got to meet Merv Griffin a few times. He was a lovely man.
But the puzzles are very tough. And the whole idea that you can get a lot of questions right and then get booted off your podium is rough.
I believe the man who puts together the crossword puzzles from the show works for USA Today, so if you want to practice similar puzzles, check out the USA Today website.
I’ve done a few crossword tournaments, and I found the puzzles for the few shows I watched tough, especially because you have to hurry and answer a particular clue. The booting off part is the big negative for me.
Anyway, I actually get the feeling that I can do MGC’s puzzles alot better than those in print. Do crossword puzzles in print resemeble MGC’s and do I need to try a few more?
Will Shortz is indeed the New York Times puzzlemaster. The puzzlemaster for Merv Griffin’s Crosswords is Timothy E. Parker, who, looking on Amazon.com, has a Merv Griffin’s Crosswords book coming out.
