Leonard Mason Smith, 86, died of 'none of your business'

Leonard Smith hated pointless bureaucracy, thoughtless inefficiency and bad ideas born of good intentions. He loved his wife, admired and respected his children and liked just about every dog he ever met. He will be greatly missed by those he loved and those who loved him. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that you cancel your subscription to The New York Times.

‘New York Times’ Obit Writer Margalit Fox Retires

In the summer of 1994, I joined The Times as a copy editor on the Sunday Book Review. It was a marvelous section, awash in smart, lively colleagues and enticing, tottering stacks of books. But I pined for a writing job, and as my years on the copy desk wore on, I feared my own epitaph would say little more than “She changed 50,000 commas into semicolons.” (H/T Peter Elikann)

Mary Farrell left one crossword puzzle unsolved

A ruthless Scrabble opponent, and a dogged master of crosswords, we send her home with one last puzzle: 1. Where Mary has gone. 2. It comes in iron or a legal folder. 3. Hank's credo " ______ give an inch". 4. Bumble ___. 5. English beverage, with a pronoun. 6. Opposite of 'different'. (H/T Peter Elikann)

Kathleen Dehmlow, 80; let’s cut to the chase

In 1962 she became pregnant by her husband's brother Lyle Dehmlow and moved to California. (H/T Peter Elikann)