Crossword Editor STILL not Proofreading Well Enough!

Last August I did a blog entry about the careless proofreading of Timothy Parker, editor for USA Today Crossword. (See August 24 blog "Crossword Editor not Proofreading Well Enough.) Apparently, this editor still has a problem with the distinction between singular and plural.

In yesterday's puzzle, Clue #4 Down was "Artists with skin canvases." http://puzzles.usatoday.com/ I knew the answer would have something to do with the word "tattoo," but I wasn't sure whether these artists should be called "tattooers" or "tattooists." I was sure, however, that the answer needed to be PLURAL.

The words going across suggested that the first seven letters should be t-a-t-t-o-o-e. Okay, but that would make the artists tattooes, which didn't sound right to me. That sounded more like designs than the people who create them. I fiddled a while with the rest of the puzzle and finally concluded that the last letter for the answer to Clue #4 down had to be an "r."

Foul! Not fair! As I said in my previous blog on this subject, crossword puzzle solvers rely on crossword puzzle creators (and their editors) to use correct grammar. The answer to Clue #4 Down "Artists with skin canvases" turned out to be "tattooer," which is SINGULAR.

This is the third error I've found in six months in puzzles edited by the same person. I'd like to suggest that Timothy Parker join forces with the headline editor at Fox News and plan a seminar on Grammar Glitches.