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.

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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.

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