In 1983, Newman founded the American Crossword Federation, an organization dedicated to the modernization of crossword puzzles. He has also published 16 crossword books, directed dozens of crossword events and created more than 1,000 puzzles. Newman's newest four books, "The Expert's Books Of Crosswords," are published by HarperCollins. In 1990, he was part of the first U.S. team to win the World Crossword Championship. (The four members created a world-record puzzle measuring 160 feet long in a 24-hour period.)

Newman is the leader of the "contemporary" crossword school, whose goal is to make crosswords fun and accessible for today's audience. In 1988, after five years of research and correspondence with crossword fans, he began the Newsday Crossword puzzle. With its emphasis on general knowledge and clever solutions, it soon gained a wide following and became a favorite of experts and amateurs alike.

He has a bachelor's degree in mathematics (magna cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa) from Brooklyn College and a master's degree in statistics from Rutgers University, and he has also taught these subjects at the college level.

Some of Newman's hobbies include traveling, playing the piano and collecting autographs of famous musicians, but his favorite is learning the old and new facts that are so integral to his crossword puzzles. And in 1990, his hobby paid off when he won a record $112,480 on "The Challengers" game show. He and his wife live in Massapequa Park, N.Y., with their three children.