universe

In August, New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani hosted a citywide scavenger hunt, inviting voters to scour the boroughs in search of historic political sites. (Grand prize: a bag of chips.) Clues for it were written by veteran puzzle maker Natan Last, who has long endorsed the idea that puzzles at their best blend politics, community and a nerdy good time.

If you missed the hunt, Last’s book, “Across the Universe,” delivers similar pleasures. Though its subtitle — “The Past, Present, and Future of the Crossword Puzzle” — suggests a history tome, Last approaches the subject essayistically. Crosswords, for him, are arguments on behalf of things: of what qualifies as “common knowledge,” of what role puzzles should play in informing a citizenry, of how wordplay and slang snake into the mainstream. “The crossword is a uniquely capacious artifact ready to absorb and recast any group’s predilections and passions into puzzle form,” he writes.

That may seem like making too much out of an everyday diversion. But as Last points out, crosswords have long been a miniature version of America’s larger culture wars. Crosswords’ popularity exploded in the 1920s in various newspapers; Ernie Bushmiller, cartoonist of “Nancy” fame, exploited the “crossword craze” in a strip called “Cross Word Cal.” But killjoys swiftly arrived to dismiss it as paleolithic brain rot. The New York Times, now the best-known purveyor of crosswords, thought the puzzle beneath it, and didn’t offer one until 1941. (“The last adult in the newsroom,” Last smirks.)

The New York Times’ crossword is synonymous with its current editor, Will Shortz, who gave the puzzle a refresh in the 1990s, jettisoning academic jargon and obscurities in favor of layered puns and pop-culture references. Last recalls working as Shortz’s intern in 2009 and loving the experience. But Last is also the point of the spear among constructors who insist there’s plenty of room for improvement: tokenized ethnic terms, lack of gender parity among constructors, double standards (“erotica” is acceptable, but “gay erotica” isn’t?), a narrow view of what readers know or will accept. “The bar is on the floor,” USA Today crossword editor Erik Agard tells Last.

Last’s public statements on this subject, he writes, are often met with eye rolls: “Oh, so now the crossword puzzle needs to be woke?” But that high dudgeon, he notes, is “as good a proof as any that it’s not just a puzzle.” Not for the solvers he speaks to, who use their puzzle routines as calming influences or mementos of relationships. Not for constructors like India-born Mangesh Ghogre, who came to the U.S. on a specialized visa to make puzzles and who cleverly works Indian themes into his grids. And certainly not for institutions like the New York Times, which has made games a profit center in a news industry that’s often hemorrhaging cash.

Last’s range and intelligence help sell the importance of the crossword, then and now. Still, its lack of a direct throughline can be frustrating. Like a particularly manic solver, he attacks the subject in an across-and-down fashion, here contemplating the impact of AI on the game, there considering what role crossword-style wordplay had on Modernist writers like T.S. Eliot and Gertrude Stein, now contemplating the 1920s crossword craze, now skipping to its 2020s COVID-prompted renaissance. It’s all relevant, and Last is a bright and witty guide through all of it. He demands a certain comfort level with disorientation, though.

Still, that’s kind of the point: For him, puzzles should motivate solvers to be more than half-thinking box fillers. Instead, we should be comfortable learning new ideas through the puzzle. Mamdani’s scavenger hunt didn’t play a big role in his eventual election to the mayorship in October; it probably didn’t even play a small one. But it spoke to the concepts of play, surprise and diversity that the crossword at its best represents for Last. Maybe you don’t have immediate recall on the word “Haudenosaunee” (the Native name for the Iroquois Confederacy), but what’s so bad about a crossword puzzle introducing you to it? Like every other section of the paper, the crossword can bring the news. It can evoke — and shape — a culture.

Arrest warrant issued for missing Thai mogul Anne Jakkaphong Jakrajutatip, as co-owner investigated in Mexico.

The Miss Universe competition has been overshadowed by legal drama as its owners face charges of fraud in Thailand and an investigation into drugs and weapons trafficking in Mexico just days after the latest pageant concluded.

The Miss Universe Pageant, which once belonged to United States President Donald Trump, has been owned by Thai mogul Anne Jakkaphong Jakrajutatip and her company, JKN Global, since 2022.

Jakrajutatip is wanted in Thailand after she failed to attend a Bangkok court hearing this week over a 30 million baht ($930,000) legal dispute with an investor in JKN Global. The Bangkok South District Court said on Wednesday that it had issued an arrest warrant for Jakrajutatip, whose current whereabouts are unknown, according to Thai media.

Jakrajutatip and JKN Global have been facing major balance sheet problems since 2023, when the company began to default on payments to investors, according to the Associated Press news agency. The company filed for rehabilitation with a Thai bankruptcy court in 2024, and reportedly owes about3 billion baht ($92.63m), according to the Associated Press.

Earlier this year, Jakrajutatip and JKN Global were sanctioned by Thailand’s Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for publishing “false or misleading information” in the company’s financial statement, and were fined 4 million baht ($124,000).

The SEC statement said JKN Global did not fully disclose to investors that it signed an October 2023 agreement to sell 50 percent of its shares in the Miss Universe Pageant to Mexican businessman Raúl Rocha Cantu and his company, Legacy Holding Group USA Inc.

Jakrajutatip resigned from all positions in the company, but she is still a shareholder following the sanction, according to AP. She also did not attend the latest Miss Universe competition in Bangkok earlier this month.

Cantu is facing separate legal troubles in Mexico, where prosecutors said on Wednesday that he was under investigation for alleged arms, drug and fuel trafficking between Mexico and Guatemala, according to the AFP news agency.

Prosecutors charged 13 people in connection with the case, although Cantu has not been formally named yet, the AFP said.

The Miss Universe Pageant concluded on November 21 following a series of scandals throughout the competition season, including allegations that the competition was rigged.

Nov. 26 (UPI) — The co-owners of the Miss Universe Organization are facing charges: Rocha Cantu of Mexico on accusations that include drug and fuel trafficking, and Jakkaphong “Anne” Jakrajutatip of Thailand with failing to appear at a hearing involving fraud.

The pageant has been embroiled in other controversies this year, including Jakkaphong out as CEO, financial instability, accusations of rigged judging and resignations by two of them, and protests by several contestants.

Prosecutors confirmed to media in Mexico that Cantu was formally charged by federal authorities in Mexico on accusations that include drug trafficking, illicit fuel distribution, weapons smuggling and participation in organized criminal activity.

The Attorney General’s Office requested an arrest warrant, the Spanish version of Forbes reported.

His multinational criminal network allegedly was operating for years under the guise of legitimate business structures.

According to court documents, an operation involving the illegal purchase and transport of fuel from Guatemala into Mexico. Fuel was allegedly altered to disguise its origin and avoid regulatory detection. The modified fuel was then sold through front companies tied to Rocha Cantu.

Also, he was allegedly involved in obtaining firearms and funneling them toward criminal groups in several Mexican states.

Rocha’s company in early 2024 purchased 50% of Miss Universe shares from JKN Global Group Public Co. Ltd., which is owned by Jakkaphong.

JKN acquired the rights to the Miss Universe pageant from IMG Worldwide LLC in 2022.

Donald Trump owned Miss America from 1996 to 2015 and sold it to WME/IMG.

Jakkaphong became the first transgender woman to own the Miss Universe Organization.

In 2023, Jakkaphong was charged and released on bail, but she failed to appear as required for a court hearing in the fraud case on Tuesday in Bangkok, the Independent reported.

She failed to notify the court about her absence and was determined to be a flight risk, the Bangkok South District Court said.

A hearing has been scheduled for Dec. 26.

On Monday, JKN denied reports that Jakkaphong had liquidated the company’s assets and fled the country

In 2023, Jakkaphong and her company were sued for allegedly defrauding Raweewat Maschamadol in selling him the company’s corporate bonds.

Raweewat said he lost $930,362 in the investment.

JKN defaulted on payments to investors beginning in 2023 and debt rehabilitation procedures with the Central Bankruptcy Court began in 2024.

The company says its debts are $93 million.

After Thailand’s Securities and Exchange Commission accused her of falsifying the company’s 2023 financial statements, Jakkaphong resigned from all company positions in June.

She is still the company’s largest shareholder.

Jakkaphong, who starred in reality shows in Thailand, was not at the 74th Miss Universe competition in Bangkok on Nov. 19.

Fatima Bosch Fernandez of Mexico was crowned Miss Universe 2025. She earlier walked out from the pageant after being berated by a Thai pageant executive.

Shortly before the finals, Gabrielle Henry, who is Miss Jamaica, fell and ended up in intensive care at a hospital.

Two judges reportedly resigned with allegations of judging misconduct.

And Thai police investigated allegations that event publicity included illegal promotion of online casinos.

On Sunday, Brigitta Schaback, who represented Estonia, announced that she was stepping down from her title.

The next day, Olivia Yace, who was the pageant’s fourth runner-up as Miss African and Oceania, also resigned. She added that she was also removing herself from “any future affiliation with the Miss Universe Committee.”

Days before the pageant began on Nov. 2, Mario Bucaro of Gautemala succeeded Jakrajutatip, who resigned from the position on June 20.

BANGKOK — A court in Thailand said Wednesday that it has issued an arrest warrant for a co-owner of the Miss Universe Organization in connection with a fraud case.

Jakkaphong “Anne” Jakrajutatip was charged with fraud then released on bail in 2023. She failed to appear as required in a Bangkok court on Tuesday. Since she did not notify the court about her absence, she was deemed to be a flight risk, according to a statement from the Bangkok South District Court.

The court rescheduled the hearing for Dec. 26.

According to the court’s statement, Jakkaphong and her company, JKN Global Group Public Co. Ltd., were sued for allegedly defrauding Raweewat Maschamadol in selling him the company’s corporate bonds in 2023. Raweewat says the investment caused him to lose $930,362.

Financially troubled JKN defaulted on payments to investors beginning in 2023 and began debt rehabilitation procedures with the Central Bankruptcy Court in 2024. The company says it has debts totaling about $93 million.

JKN acquired the rights to the Miss Universe pageant from IMG Worldwide LLC in 2022. In 2023, it sold 50% of its Miss Universe shares to Legacy Holding Group USA, which is owned by a Mexican businessman, Raúl Rocha Cantú.

Jakkaphong resigned from all of the company’s positions in June after being accused by Thailand’s Securities and Exchange Commission of falsifying the company’s 2023 financial statements. She remains its largest shareholder.

Her whereabouts remain unclear. She did not appear at the 74th Miss Universe competition, which was held in Bangkok earlier this month.

This year’s competition was marred by various problems, including a sharp-tongued scolding by a Thai organizer of Fátima Bosch Fernández of Mexico, who was crowned Miss Universe 2025 on Nov. 19. Two judges reportedly dropped out, with one suggesting that there was an element of rigging to the contest. Separately, Thai police investigated allegations that publicity for the event included illegal promotion of online casinos.

On Monday, JKN denied rumors that Jakkaphong had liquidated the company’s assets and fled the country, but there has been no immediate reaction regarding the arrest warrant. She could not be reached for comment.

Jakkaphong is a well-known celebrity in Thailand who has starred in reality shows and is outspoken about her identity as a transgender woman.

Saksornchai writes for the Associated Press.