Anyone else, with JOSIE already in place at 13A, decide that "Item in a trunk" (13D) had to be JUNK? Everybody has some, or so they say. !!!! !!!!
@Steve L I currently have a rACK shoved in the back of my SUVs for reasons uninteresting to anyone except me. Granted, the back of an SUV isn’t a trunk. But it acts as one. Guess what I confidently plugged in for my _ ACK spot. rOSIE as a band frontwoman? Sure, why not.
@Steve L GUILTYASCHRGED for junk in the trunk. The corner took forever because I couldn’t imagine it could be anything else.
Caitlin writes: 99D. I’m a sucker for a good homophone like this: “School name that sounds like a Canadian territory.” The correct solution is UCONN, which sounds like Yukon, in wordplay that is really fun even though it’s not as showy as Manitoba or Saskatchewan. ____________ Manitoba and Saskatchewan are provinces, not territories, so I'm having Nunavut. !!!!
@Steve L - ha ha ha Nunavut: <a href="https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=6VMcFrS1RwQ&pp=ygUiY2FuYWRpYW4gaW1taWdyYXRpb24gZm9pbCBhcm1zIGhvZw" target="_blank">https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=6VMcFrS1RwQ&pp=ygUiY2FuYWRpYW4gaW1taWdyYXRpb24gZm9pbCBhcm1zIGhvZw</a>%3D%3D Out and about
@Steve L I loved that one (too)! emu food more emu food
@Steve L It seems to me that, for the purpose of a crossword, "territory" could work for any piece of land (the old "clue, not definition"), so I think Caitlin is not wrong. In fact, it would be clever misdirection if the clue referenced "territory" and the answer were a province. Good finishing pun, though. B.C.-ing you...
What a joyful jazzy dance of a puzz. If I had to make a wish on an eyelash a half hour ago, it would have been for a puzzle like this, so funny and charming in a 1950s Damon Runyon kinda way, and it's been retroactively granted. I caught myself humming: you say axolotl I say axolatl you say llano I say llana llano llana Ella Elsa Odesa Odessa! Let's fill in the answer: RIPS OFF! I just loved the gay atmosphere of the whole thing, like living in a breezy campy Guys 'n', well, Guys musical, between bi flag and gaydar up top, God save the queen down below and six inch or foot long (wink) in the middle, how befitting, where the good cop and bad cop consort the loan shark, a shady TRIO, where please be seated offers a pew to the arse directly beneath, where the crime boss smiles as he sits on the bride's side of the aisle, rejoicing in how his bribe has paid off; if it hadn't, well, meet my friend Mr. Zeta from Etna here, he's handy with an axe they tell me, and me, I'll be happy to visit you in the hospital, autograph your cast, you get what I'm sayin'? where the confession the bad cop finally elicits is "Guilty as charged! Now tell me I'm pretty." Where sip that martini & digest that olive joggling at the bottom of it are foremost on the crime boss's mind, if he had to make a wish right then.
@john ezra This is possibly your funniest post ever.
@john ezra Your ability to turn a crossword puzzle into an entertaining stream-of-consciousness narrative is amazing. Someday I’d like to construct a puzzle for your review, just to see what you might reveal about my inner psyche. Well done.
My students said they didn't know what y = x looked like, so I had to draw the line. (That's plane to see.)
@Mike One hates to be derivative, but . . . that's not a particularly steep learning curve.
@Mike If x=y, what's your problem? (Other than mixing up algebra and geometry, you're doing fine. Maybe you could try some trigonometry; word is that you're the worst shot in the class.)
Well, this one lit up my play-dar, my love of worldplay. Every theme answer was a riddle that, when the answer became clear, brought a “Hah!”. On top of that, outside the theme, again and again there were excellent pun-based clues – more riddles that brought more smiles. Such as: [Light-headed sorts?] for MOTHS. [Not down, in a way] for SIP. [Sense of orientation] for GAYDAR. [Passage of rite?] for AISLE. All the time I hear “Dad joke” as a put down. But, IMO, there are good and bad ones, and the good ones entertain. Daniel (the constructor) is of the same bent per his notes: “I tried hard to include only answers that activated my dad joke sensors and made me simultaneously smile, chuckle, and groan.” Well, Daniel, they did all that for me. I left your puzzle thinking, “Now THAT was fun!”, feeling like a kid leaving a playground. Thank you, Daniel. This was a hoot!
And, Daniel, may I add, I also learned from your notes that this final puzzle is the culmination of 22 previous iterations. Twenty-two iterations of a Sunday puzzle! That is SO inspiring to me, your drive for excellence and your persistence. Bravo, sir!
@Lewis You know that gaydar isn't love of gays, right? Maybe word-lust is a better descriptor?
Loved, loved, loved the cross with BIFLAG and GAYDAR. GOD SAVE THE QUEEN(s). Lovingly form the city by the Bay.
@ED L-O-L-A Lo Lo Lo Lo LOLA is right up there with BIFLAG and might be feeling left out of the group right about now?
@ED Thank heavens this clue died in 2015: Straight Line? I DO Here’s hoping The Supremes leave it in the dustbin of history.
[Post flyspecking, rises out of his chair in indignation, cartoon vapors streaming from his head:] “‘JOGGLE??!’ Jiggle, juggle, toggle, even boggle, but ‘JOGGLE’?” [Storms around, pours coffee, returns, looks at OED online, expecting triumph upon seeing the word ‘archaic.’ But it is not there.] Except for my final minutes of drama, very enjoyable puzzle.
@Deanosaur spectacular comment! at the same level as this spectacular puzzle
Last line YOU GOING TO EAT THAT? Straight line WHAT DOES CIS MEAN AGAIN? Crooked line I NEVER EVEN MET HER! Best Thurs-Sun. puzzle combo since 1967. Thank you, Daniel, for adding to my laugh lines. Loved the theme and your cluing.
@Puzzlemucker - whenever someone's comment tickles me just as much as the puzzle, I feel like half the time it's got your name on it. ☺️
My daughter is in scouts and they had an entire camp outing with an axolotl theme. Can't wait to tell her that helped me solve the puzzle today!
@Joe The axolotl is the theme animal for this year’s GS cookie sales. There will be lots of girls across the country excited when they earn their axolotl incentives for attaining their goals. Shameless plug to support the largest girl-led business. Buy some cookies today!
Nice to see the Puzzle Team adopt the Ukrainian spelling of Odesa rather than the Russian one!
@Jacques M ODESsA is a town not too far from me, and there's also a Smyrna. Weird, because Russians and Ukrainians never settled in Delaware. Swedes, definitely.
JOGGLE? Seriously? Liked most of this but LLANO and AOXLOTL crossing almost broke my 400+ day streak.
I came here also to complain about joggle
@Eric I stopped puzzling to google if "joggle" was a real word. It is, but I hate it. Lol
Yes. This puzzle as a whole was so much fun, and I found all the puns so delightful, that I am willing to let this be the one and only time I complain about joggle in the comments.
Tremendously enjoyable, even though it took me FOREVER to solve. I was quite sure that “Assembly line” had to be something like PRAISEBETOTHELORD, but nothing was fitting in. What added tens of minutes to my solve was being so sure that 36A was JAMS. Not to mention DOG (quite the clever pun for “Hound”, thought I) rather than NAG. Though I was not familiar with UCONN, as a Canuck it wasn’t hard to get there since we have only three territories (as opposed to our 10 provinces); I doubted there was a homophone for NORTHWEST (which wouldn’t fit anyway); and I was having NUNAVUT. Got a chuckle out of 1D in light of the raging controversy on one of our national newscasts reported on a few days ago — must have been a slow news day — about the hole-less bagel (which of course is a contradiction in terms) that was being produced by Canada’s most famous bakery, St. Viateur, evidently as part of a promotion with Kraft’s Philadelphia Cream Cheese that would allow a bigger schmeer, leading, presumably, to higher sales for the cream cheese maker. Lots more I could add, but I really should go to bed, now.
@Strudel Dad Amen! I was totally trying to work with praise be to the Lord for the longest time... Glad I'm not alone!!
@Strudel Dad no self-respecting bagel-eater is going to put Philadelphia cream cheese on their bagel, with or without a hole.
Strudel Dad, You may use "schmeer" in the provinces, and it is acceptable, but in New York (home of The Times and its Crossword) it is "schmear." In the Crossword grid: schmear 11, schmeer 0.
Just here to say that JOSIE brought me some joy and I was très amused to fill in junk (in the trunk!!) but now am feeling a little deflated that the answer is actually JACK. I mean. Wasted opportunity. 😂😂😂
Thought of a few added examples: Clue: “Side line?” Ans: FRIESORONIONRINGS Clue: “Main line?” Ans: FORYOURENTREE Clue: “Trap line?” Ans: WHEREWEREYOUTHENIGHTOFTHEMURDER Clue: “Land line?” Ans: FASTENYOURSEATBELTS Clue: “Bee line?” Ans. CANYOUUSETHEWORDINASENTENCE Clue: “Crow line?” Ans: MINEISBIGGERTHANYOURS Clue: “Flat line?” Ans: SORRYNOTFUNNY Clue: “Bread line” Ans: CANYOULENDMEATWENTY Clue: “Hot line?” Ans: ITSLIKEANOVENINHERE Clue: “Open line?” Ans: ONENOTRUMP
Sorry you had a lot of trouble constructing this one. But, it was very much worth it! I had a good laugh with every one of the theme answers as they emerged. Excellent!
6-down was delightful enough as sense of (sexual) orientation. Its intersecting with 1-across pride flag was hilarious.
This was one of the most fun Sunday puzzles in a long time. The theme was engaging, and many of the clues were quite clever, especially the "person of interest" one. Well done!
Still sweating from Thursday’s anxious struggle (without circle overlays) I felt soothed by this amiable Sunday puzzle. It seemed almost old-fashioned and reminded me of when I sort of thought I was smarter. For those poor souls who note this is my second post regarding recovery from Thursday, I promise it is the last. Loved UCONN and AXOLOTL!
@M. Biggen The circle-less Thursday puzzle was something of an ordeal. The scars will last a while. It’s a shame, because that puzzle might have been fun and possibly easy with the circles. But we’ll never know, will we? I loved seeing AXOLOTL, too. It’s a favorite word (thanks, Frank Herbert!) and they’re such cute little critters.
I really wanted “Rich with metaphor” to be Adrienne!
@J. Goldberg Too good to let pass without an example: “Aunt Jennifer’s Tigers” (Adrienne Rich) (1951) Aunt Jennifer's tigers prance across a screen, Bright topaz denizens of a world of green. They do not fear the men beneath the tree; They pace in sleek chivalric certainty. Aunt Jennifer's finger fluttering through her wool Find even the ivory needle hard to pull. The massive weight of Uncle's wedding band Sits heavily upon Aunt Jennifer's hand. When Aunt is dead, her terrified hands will lie Still ringed with ordeals she was mastered by. The tigers in the panel that she made Will go on prancing, proud and unafraid.
@J. Goldberg ? (The following is only to trick the emu software, so feel free to stop reading. It would be nice if I could leave a comment with just the above, but I strongly suspect it wouldn’t pass muster. Or ketchup. Sorry, I can’t seem to stop typing.)
I definitely cracked up at JunK in the trunk until I realized my error.
@Joya To be fair, the constructor made the error, in a way, since junk would have been a much better answer. Like you, I had it in there for a long time and only very reluctantly accepted it had to be something else in the end. . . . . Emu goes muu.
@Joya Yeah, this brought back a recent painful memory. Just before Christmas I had a flat, on a cold night about a 100 miles from home, only to discover that my jack--which I had never used--was frozen in the open position. I couldn't wedge it under my car.
This was my favorite Sunday in quite a while. It may have been a slog and a half to create, but it was pure joy to solve. Thank you, Daniel, if I filled out a user experience questionnaire, you would get all 10's. This week had the best run of Thursday - Sunday puzzles I can remember. If Jeff was still doing POW, I don't know how he would pick just one.
What a great week of puzzles! I loved all the theme entries today and the nod to Canada… a Yukon reference, Ottawa, Feist… then I remembered Josie and the Pussycats (and Riverdale) were filmed in Vancouver and Seth Rogan played the Green Hornet and Canadian geese famously fly in vees. I suppose if the subject in 110A were Canadian though, the answer would now be GODSAVETHEking. After all this, I certainly felt the need to pronounce 117A the way my high school English teacher insisted, shed-jyool. Thanks for a lovely Sunday puzzle!
@Katie ROFL I can hear it, I can! TY
This comment is unrelated to today’s puzzle but forgive me as I have no one else with whom to share this. I had some free time today while waiting for someone so I turned to the archives. I just finished the puzzle from January 9, 2020 and it was awesome! It has 520 comments so you can imagine it caused a stir too! Today’s puzzle and then that one?! What a day! Haha.
(Second try, so apologies in advance if it reappears later...) [Zip line?] [Time line?] SORRY, WE'RE OUT OF THAT ITEM I'M IN THE MIDDLE OF A SENTENCE Et tu, emu
OT: NYT just jacked up crossword subscription `MORE THAN 25%!!!' from 39.95 to $50!!! Less value, higher price. Wanna bet if this comment makes it past the emus? Just what I need as I enter 5th week of chemo!
@Robert Michael Panoff Hope your treatment is successful. Sending you some good vibes from the Ocean State
Bob, Your comment made it past the emu. Now get yourself past the chemo. Best wishes, Barry JACK up is junk (see 12D).
@Robert Michael Panoff I am sure we are all pulling for you! Yeah, they hiked the price around the same time they purged the long-time fathful employees/staff--when I went to renew in August, there was the extra surprise, lying in wait. (One more annoyance: the Newspaper Version still says $39.and change.) Hang in there!
Tag line? (see 69A) Who’s in this here photo? <a href="http://tinyurl.com/yem32y7u" target="_blank">http://tinyurl.com/yem32y7u</a> That smiling face needs tagging. Is it the crossword constructor or the genial fellow who appears almost every day on wordplay? Is it the yoga instructor or the person who serves Wiley his cat crunchies? Is it…. The AlphaDoppelTotter?? Yes to all the above, it is our LEWIS. (No shade to today’s Daniel, just couldn’t resist a clue for 69A.)
This is my first candidate for Sunday POY. The theme answers were all amusing (though I struggled a bit with TELL ME I’M PRETTY and SIX INCH OR FOOT-LONG, neither of which rings as familiar as GUILTY AS CHARGED or GOD SAVE THE QUEEN). “Word after stink or pink” is the best clue for EYE in a long while. And there’s an AXOLOTL! Thanks, Mr. Grinberg!
@Eric Hougland Go into a Subway and ask for a “Turkey breast on multigrain”. The reply will be “SIX-INCK OR FOOTLONG?” They don’t serve emu meat at Subways.
Oh, THAT Subway. I was headed in the wrong direction on that clue for ever so long. Clever theme and an enjoyable Sunday solve.
Whew. And Wow! Quite a workout for me and had to do some googles just to get going (or you could say I had to AXOLOTL questions), but then it was just a ton of fun working out each of theme answers. Really clever clue/answer combinations there. Ended up being a very, very enjoyable solve and a quite amazing feat of construction. Puzzle find today was another one with some quite clever clue/answer combinations. A Sunday from November 23, 1980 by John M. Samson with the title "Typecasting." A couple of clue/answer examples: "Movie starring a Venus?" AFAREWELLTOARMS "Film starring Dinah Shore?" ONTHEWATERFRONT Here's the Xword Info link: <a href="https://www.xwordinfo.com/PS?date=11/23/1980&g=58&d=A" target="_blank">https://www.xwordinfo.com/PS?date=11/23/1980&g=58&d=A</a> ...
Plopped in Z for a perfectly spy final letter in the SE. Expected 🎶 . No gold ⭐️ . No nuthin. Hunted for a typo. Ten minutes at least. GRAMMy/OVyTE I knew I’d heard ovite, and figured they spell it with a y across the pond. Not a native, a nimrod. But I’m a nimrod who loved this puzzle! SIRYESSIR! But SIXINCHORFOOTLONG is now on a list of my all-time favorites. So much fun in the clueing, but the theme stole the show! So very glad you persisted, Mr. Grinberg! Haven’t read the comments yet, but I’m guessing it’s a “Chorus line” of LOVEDTHISPUZZLE
@CCNY …speaking of typos.. *apt* not sly *natick* not native *uber- sloppy nimrod* not regular-grade nimrod Ouch.
A great example of playing with words to come up with a fun Sunday theme. I was glad to see that Daniel’s hard work was appreciated u most solvers.
JOGGLE?! This had me second-guessing crossing words I thought were rock-solid. Tried in vain to make JIGGLE or JOSTLE work. Still not convinced it's right!
@Travis I struggled here too. It is actually a word though that means to shake slightly.
My first gold star Sunday. More puns, please!
This crunchy puzzle was great fun and sparked a memory for me. I had lived in Connecticut for a number of years before I understood - in one revelatory moment - why the UConn sports teams call themselves the Huskies!
@Connie TIL why UConn is called the Huskies. Thank you Connie.
@Connie To think I never wondered why they are called the Huskies. It's not like UConn is some obscure team either. They are a basketball powerhouse in both men's and women's basketball and they're always on TV. I must have watched them a million times. You learn something new every day.
Kato, the resident housecat who helps me with my morning crossword, was pleased to see his name in the New York Times this morning. He enjoyed it almost as much as watching Carolina send Dook back up the road to Durham with an L last night. A good win and a good puzzle. Thanks to Mr. Grinberg for the latter.
I thought this was a particularly well-clued puzzle. Not gimmes, but things I could work out without being reduced to tears.
@Jeff Z Just thinking about a guy named Jeff EVER being reduced to tears. Thanks for the chuckle.
What a fun puzzle! Uncomplicated but fun theme, and wonderful fill and clueing. And my corner of the world, OTTAWA, makes an appearance - though the tulip festival seems a long way off, with all the snow we have at the moment. A reference to our Winterlude festival would have been more seasonally appropriate.
@Michele G Constructors never know when their puzzle will be published.
This was a fun, breezy Sunday for me. I quite enjoyed the wordplay of the themed clues and had a ton of fun solving! Pretty big quibble with 14D, though. An OPIATE is naturally derived (e.g., opium or heroin), as where an opioid is synthetic (e.g., fentanyl, oxycodone, etc.). One would not prescribe an OPIATE after surgery. I realize this may not be a commonly known distinction, but it’s a big one that matters.
@Mike C. You’re correct about the distinction between OPIATEs and OPIoids, but it’s a distinction that is largely lost on many people — which is why some dictionaries treat the words as synonymous.
@Mike C. According to Wikipedia, codeine is an opiate, i.e. naturally occurring. And isn't codeine sometimes prescribed for pain management after surgery? Especially in combination with Tylenol?
@Mike C. In the UK, where they are a little more concerned about helping with pain, heroin may be part of a drug cocktail given to patients....
Theme entries were a mix of misdirection, amusement, and cleverness; I really enjoyed them. It took some crosses before I got the hang of it. Pretty quick completion for me, relatively speaking, at 37% faster than my average.
Really enjoyable puzzle today. I had GLADLY instead of GAMELY and JUNK in my trunk (don't we all?) but once I sorted that it was smooth fun sailing.
SIX INCH OR FOOT LONG, anyone from Philly will tell youse guys it ain't the real thing. But as crossword fare, we CAN'T COMPLAIN. Will cop to enjoying the eye-rolling clues -- that's right, GUILTY AS CHARGED.
What do Wiccan genies grant? Three witches? Already, I can here the moans & groans.
@brutus Where HAVE you been, you Brute!?? Glad to see you. Pls try not to drown.
It's already past noon in NYC, so I'm more than a little late. DHubby may be coming down with "the bug" (Sorry, honey) because he slept in quite late. Everything was a bit late... but I decided I could sit up at the DR table for breakfast. To celebrate, DHubby brought out my "special occasion" jar of sourwood honey (best honey in the world!)...but he got into it first, which may explain why I found it on the tablecloth, my hands, the back of my clipboard upon which the crossword lay, etc. After I managed to clean things up, I was dizzy and wobbly, so I'm horizontal again. I had to read the column to be sure that, Yes, I did indeed "get the theme"....the problem is, this Punch needed to be spiked. GLADLY before GAMELY PAMPA before LLANO (already in the margin) No real misdirects, challenges, chuckles. ...but I'm just grateful it wasn't like Friday's brutal massacre, so congrats anyway to Daniel Grinberg!
@Mean Old Lady Hope your DEARHUBBY does not have Covid! Crossing fingers here. TTYL emu food more emu food
@Mean Old Lady P.S. SIR, YES, SIR is a response to an order, not just some 'expression of respect.' The salute shows respect toward a superior/officer.
@Mean Old Lady hope you keep getting better, and hope DHubby doesn't get sick.
Re: 15D Private line? Cute and not unexpected answer, but in my time as a private I never said SIR YES SIR, and in all my time in the service I never heard anyone else say it. In Basic, I said "Yes Drill Sergeant." After that, it was "Yes Sergeant" (or "Yes Sergeant Major") for NCOs and "Yes Sir" for officers and civilians. (If you're thinking of hearing it in movies about OCS, the candidates are not privates.) ANZACs do not say Yes Emu.
@Barry Ancona I recall a private getting very nervous in the presence of a high ranking officer and throwing in more “sirs” than necessary.
Another late-night finish for me, slowed by a hectic day and then getting sucked into watching the Grammys, of all things. But guess what! The awards show was what actually clinched the puzzle for me!! I hadn't noticed I had AEREOLAs, and couldn't for the life of me figure out how SA_RNS could answer "Brings in". Not to mention, the nickname was drawing a blank until... Jay-Z was awarded the Dr. DRE Global Impact award. Dr. DRE, our old crossword friend! Deserving of a gold star in my book. Woo hoo!! Nice, fresh fill throughout this puzzle. I'm a little surprised at the comments saying the theme was mundane... While the aphorisms for the most part came easily enough for me, it was re-reading the answers in light of the clues that got them to sing! I especially liked "Fine line?". If you CAN'T COMPLAIN, you sure are feeling fine! And with that, happy Monday all!
OK. I didn’t want to have to take the mantle here, NYT, but you keep insisting… Stop trying to make SEISM(S) a thing! Stop with the feeble misdirection, that crust is flaky, at best! We have enough on our Sunday plates! Don’t be a jerk: it’s SPASM(S)! That is all. cc: emu handler
Loved this puzzle! And only just now understood JACK in the trunk. Didn’t love JOGGLE, but that’s what it had to be. Overall fully satisfying. And I thought the Subway Line was hilarious.
Not a fan. Vague theme and longest words felt arbitrary. So so.