Skip To Main Content
Deb Amlen on Muck Rack

Deb Amlen

New York, United States
As seen in: The New York Times, Substack, Flipboard, Smithsonian Magazine, The Boston Globe, Yahoo, WRAL-TV (Raleigh, NC), BUST Magazine, Editor & Publisher, WENZ-FM (Cleveland, OH) and
Covers:  Crossword puzzles and games
Doesn't Cover: I no longer write for tech. Ever. Unless it's a humor gig.
Humor writer/NYT Crossword/Games columnist. Creator of the official, gluten-free Twitter Avocado Verification Program 🥑

Get in touch with Deb

Contact Deb, search articles and posts on X, monitor coverage, and track replies from one place.

Learn more about Muck Rack

Actions

Share this page

Deb Amlen’s Biography

Read Full Bio →

It took me a startlingly long time to discover that writing was the only thing I was kind of good at. This was after a short foray in the tumultuous world of N.Y.C. advertising agencies, where I learned just enough to know that I hated working in advertising. "Six month at each of the major agencies" is pretty much all you need to know about that career.

I followed this up with a career in canine behavioral counseling. I know what you're thinking, but it's not as much of a jump from working in …

Articles

Manny Nosowsky, Whose Wordplay Enlivened Times Crosswords, Dies at 94

|
By Deb Amlen
| Breaking One
Manny Nosowsky, a New York Times crossword puzzle creator who delighted solvers with his witty, pun-filled puzzles for nearly two decades, died May 20 in San Francisco. He was 94. His death, at a hospital, was confirmed by his wife, Debby Nosowsky. Manny Nosowsky had been practicing urology for about 20 years when he faced a sudden bout of health issues. In 1983, at age 51, he gave up medicine and retired. Then he ran into a problem common for people who have stopped working; he had nothing to do.
Open in Who Shared Issue with article?

Manny Nosowsky, whose wordplay enlivened Times crosswords, dies at 94

|
By Deb Amlen
| Editor & Publisher Verified
Posted Tuesday, May 26, 2026 10:55 am Manny Nosowsky, a New York Times crossword puzzle creator who delighted solvers with his witty, pun-filled puzzles for nearly two decades, died on Wednesday in San Francisco. He was 94. His death, at a hospital, was confirmed by his wife, Debby Nosowsky. Mr. Nosowsky had been practicing urology for about 20 years when he faced a sudden bout of health issues. In 1983, at age 51, he gave up medicine and retired.
Open in Who Shared Issue with article?

Manny Nosowsky, Whose Wordplay Enlivened Times Crosswords, Dies at 94

|
By Deb Amlen
| The New York Times Verified
Manny Nosowsky, Whose Wordplay Enlivened Times Crosswords, Dies at 94 For nearly two decades, the prolific puzzle maker, a retired urologist, charmed solvers with his penchant for witty, waggish puns. Manny Nosowsky holds the record for the most puzzles published in The Times.Credit...Photo illustration by The New York Times. Photo, via Megalo Media, Inc. Deb Amlen is a games columnist for The Times.
Open in Who Shared Issue with article?
See all 2,497 licensed articles (2,526 Total)