Oh, hey, it's the banana peel in your purse because you can't find a trash can.

Alli word. And this is Oligis. This is a podcast about things. This week,

crossword puzzles. Really? Crossword puzzles. There's an Oligis for this.

Hell yeah, there is. So an enigmatologist is someone who studies and writes

word or math or logic puzzles. And enigma comes from the Greek word

for a dark saying or riddle or a tale.

And enigmatology, it's a real discipline. It's a real thing. It was founded in 1974 by a guy named Will Schwarz,

who created his own major in puzzles at Indiana University. And that guy Will Schwarz is now the

head of the New York Times crossword. And this guest has been a friend for years.

He's always been a friend who was cooler than me, smarter than me, by a long shot.

And capable of pulling acts of extreme evil with the gifts he has, but is actually a really

solid dude. And he graduated from Harvard University, little place named Harvard, where he did a thesis

on magic and his written crosswords for the New York Times since 2006. And he also launched this

interactive one-man show called The Enigma Tist, which just had a run last year at the Geffen

Playhouse in LA. And I caught the show and I've wanted to have him on for years, but we were both

traveling and I was taking care of my dad this summer. So we just met up at his home in the

Winding Hills above Hollywood. And we posted up in his living room. But before we give to the

conversation, a quick thanks to everyone at Patreon. Hi, thanks for supporting the show across

the dollar or more a month. And you can submit questions that is at patreon.com slash allergies.

Merch is also available at allegiesmerch.com, including some brand new spirit of health or goblin

damned merch inspired by the vampirology episodes. So get yourself some of that. And thanks to

everyone who is subscribing and rating and reviewing. I read all the reviews, including this

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