Puzzle One: The Results

Entry One: D (1933)

Tone: With references to Buck Rogers and the use of words like “whiz-bang” and “paper route,” hopefully this felt like a younger version of our writer.

History: In the 1930s, the only “boring new President” they got was FDR, who lasted until 1945, after being inaugurated in March of 1933. GrandPuzzlefather also references his uncle bringing “real wine” this year, a reference to the fact that Prohibition had very recently been repealed.

Milestones: GrandPuzzlefather makes gingerbread cookies, possibly for the first time.

Red Herrings: For the record, “De Reviens” isn’t a real perfume — it is a typo. "Je Reviens” is, and it was introduced in 1932.

Entry Two: B (1934)

Tone: A little less “gee golly” and a little more sarcastic as he complains about school.

History: The Mutual Broadcasting Company, which introduced the world to Larry King, launched in 1934 (the year after Larry King was born).

The narrator also mentions that there was only one day of school before Christmas, and the only December in the 1930s where that would be possible is 1934 when the 24th fell on a Monday.

Milestones: The Flexible Flyer is mentioned for the first time. Just because I like it, here’s a song about such a sled by the great Brian Dewan.

Entry Three: E (1935)

Tone: Hopefully the author’s writing sounds a little bit older and a little more serious.

History: Bing Crosby’s “Silent Night” was first released as a single in 1935.

Our narrator’s grandfather being cheap despite the fact that the government is supposed to be sending him checks is a reference to the fact that Social Security started in August of 1935. (It didn’t really work the way Grandpuzzlefather thought it did, though.)

Milestones: GrandPuzzlefather mentions high school. Burt and Midge make their first appearance here, with a bit of a romance implied with a gift being given to Midge.

Entry Four: A (1936)

Milestones: Our narrator is clearly away from the rest of the family and out of state. Given that they are also referencing essays, we can assume college.

History: Throughout all of the 1930s, there are only four years in which a movie based on a Dashiell Hammett work was not released. However, there’s only one year in which one of those came out in December: 1936’s After the Thin Man.

Red Herrings: Originally I had written “final exams” instead of “papers,” but that would have made it abundantly clear that it was college.

Entry Five: C (1938)

Tone: A (slightly) sophisticated pun in the form of “Yule Log” shows some burgeoning wit. Still fighting with siblings, but showing some maturity with regards to outside relationships.

Milestones: Our narrator missed an entry last year due to travel, so we are still in a college era. That Flexible Flyer from Entry B has rusted out and has been replaced. Burt and Midge now seem to be an item themselves. Still baking gingerbread.

History: “There’s already been one plot to overthrow Christmas!” says our narrator, a reference to a radio play first performed on Christmas of 1938.

Red Herrings: NBC Red has been around since 1927 and isn’t actually a clue. Just a radio station.