House Odds

November 8, 2013 9:00 am

Jon Stewart loves crosswords. Norman Mailer did them every morning to keep his “brain slicked back.”

Bill Clinton does them, too. In ink.

But even those canny cruciverbalists never saw a crossword like this.

Introducing David Kwong, the head magic consultant on Now You See Me, distinguished crossword writer for The New York Times and magician — now making house calls for parties in L.A.

Kwong, who studied magic history at Harvard, has a very compelling schtick: he creates an elaborate crossword puzzle using words your guests suggest in real-time, all the while performing magic tricks.  

We defy you to be unimpressed when you watch him in action.

Kwong made the crossword below for the wordsmiths among you.


First person to tweet at us with a picture of the finished puzzle wins two tickets to our upcoming Speak Easy event.

If you’d rather solve a puzzle in person, book Kwong via his website.

The holidays are coming. Get him before spots vanish.

Nota bene: We’ll post the crossword answers on Facebook Sunday afternoon.

The InsideHook Newsletter.

News, advice and insights for the most interesting person in the room.