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PLEASANTVILLE, N.Y. Will Shortz, crossword puzzle editor for The New York Times, calls the Village of Pleasantville home. Shortz, an avid table tennis player, opened The Westchester Table Tennis Center in Pleasantville in May of 2011 and has previously appeared on television sitcoms such as The Simpsons and How I Met Your Mother, playing himself. The Daily Pleasantville recently talked with Shortz about living in the village.
What is your favorite part about Pleasantville?
Will Shortz: I like that its a walking village. I live near downtown and I can walk to the train station, restaurants, the Jacob Burns Film Center. I can do anything I want basically on foot.
What is your favorite local business in Pleasantville and why?
WS: The Jacob Burns Film Center its wonderful having a resource like that thats just a few blocks away and its nice that it attracts cultured people from all over the county to Pleasantville.
What does it mean for you to own your own table tennis center in the village?
WS: We do for Pleasantville in a small way what the Jacob Burns does in a large way, which is attract interesting and cultured people from all over the region to play table tennis here. We have the largest table tennis facility in the country and monthly tournaments that attract some of the best players in the world, and its very satisfying to see all the tables full and players of all levels playing and having a good time.
Have you ever referenced Pleasantville in any of your crossword puzzles over the years?
WS: [laughs] No, I think that would be self-indulgent.
Whats one area of the village that you would like to see improved?
WS: I wish we had a hardware store here. That would be nice. I always have to drive over to Berger Hardware in Hawthorne or Home Depot to buy stuff. I wish we had a place in town where we could buy basic stuff like that.
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