My five favorite original clues from last week (in order of appearance): 1. What a king might sit on? (5) 2. It's kept in the loop (4) 3. Bargain hunters, of a sort (6) 4. Get off to a flying start? (4) 5. Nonmetric unit ... or a metric unit (4) SLATS BELT UNIONS TAXI FOOT
@Lewis I thought these clues were all, unequivocally, really great! (More often than not, I'll love most but not all the ones in any given weekly list. This set was particularly exemplary, IMHO.)
What did the scalper in Vietnam standing in front of a restaurant to tourists who couldn't get a table? "I got some PHO TO SHOP." Good classic theme set! Little trickier than your usual Monday.
@john ezra So, that's why a Bún Chả people were blocking the entrance! 😉
Deb: Sorry to hear that you and Sam are not feeling well. Get better soon!
5D got me to thinking about the true origin of the concept of the “blind carbon copy”. I didn’t have the patience to spend long enough to explore the web as fully as I might, but I did find one comment suggesting that the term pre-dates the internet, which is what I had always thought. Back in the good(?) old days, when we used carbon paper to make duplicates of letters prepared on a typewriter, one would simply add the letters “bcc” to the carbon copy intended to be sent to someone (B) other than the intended recipient of the original letter (A). In this way, B would know about A but would realize that A would not know about B. Speaking of typewriters, I am reminded of an incident when Sam was quite young, but old enough to be comfortable with the use of computers and their peripheral devices. She came into my office at home and was fascinated by an IBM Selectric typewriter sitting on a desk. She wanted to know what it was. I fed a sheet of paper in and turned the machine on. Then I began hitting a few keys at random to show her how it worked. I went back to my desk and listened as Sam experimented with the keys. Then she caught me off guard with her question, “Dad, how do you make it print?”
@Strudel Dad pretty sure carbon paper predates typewriters and was used in handwriting letters. That was until NCR paper was invented. No Carbon Required
@Strudel Dad Your typewriter story took me back to the days. When I first saw word processing on a computer I was thrilled. No more piles of paper when retyping. But then printing was another story. Not only was the computer big and clunky and in separate pieces but you had to separately buy a printer. It seemed ridiculous.
@Ann - and do you remember when printers came with either serial or parallel ports, which required different cables and different set up procedures? Printers were the bane of my technological existence for years.
Hmmm… Mr Youngs wishes "The Producers" had been his inspiration for this puzzle? Well, his wish has become my inspiration for… this. ~ ~ ~ [see two links at bottom if you want for lyrics to original song and the YouTube audio from orig Broadway version if you wanna sing along while reading. My version here starts at the 52s mark of YouTube vid] ~ ~ ~ I Wanna Be A Constructor by Becca (by way of Mel Brooks) ✏✏✏ I spend my life a-commenting With Wordplayish folks And cooking— kugels, ramen things— And posting odd jokes I have a secret desire In my soul deeply hid It sets my heart afire To see me… in the grid 🎶🎶🎶 I wanna be a constructor getting featured on Wordplay I wanna be a constructor Lunch on AHI every day I wanna be a constructor Building rebi, puns and pain I wanna be a constructor And drive EvaH insane! I wanna be a constructor wielding OREOS, BRAS and EWES I wanna be a constructor WHO WILL NEVER USE "EMUS"!!!!" I wanna be a constructor spurring Comments of delight I wanna be a constructor And see my name "Becca [IL]" on site! CROSSWORD GIRLS: She wants to be a constructor BECCA: Sell it, girls! CROSSWORD BOYS: Of a great big Sunday smash BECCA: Don't forget the drive-by's! CROSSWORDERS: She wants to be a constructor Crossing TWAIN with JOHNNYCASH She wants to be a constructor Tease our brains 'til we cry OUCH! ECO! WOAH! OWL! OOOH! She wants to be a constructor With a great big Thursday ADO!! BECCA: I wanna be! (She wants to be!) >>>>
@Becca [cont'd] >>>> BECCA: I wanna be! (She wants to be!) I wanna be! (She wants to be!) I wanna be the greatest, grandest And most fabulous Constructor in the world! CROSSWORDERS: She wants to be a Constructor She wants to play with the DITS and the DOTS BECCA: I just gotta be a constructor Making puns until I plotz CROSSWORDERS: Making puns 'til she plotzes! BECCA: I wanna be a constructor Show the world just what I've gotzes I'm gonna put on grids That will enthrall 'em BECCA AND CROSSWORDERS: Read my name in Rachel's column! [OK Sam's, or Deb's, or Caitlin's] BECCA: I wanna be a constructor 'Cause it's everything, it's HOT! I wanna be a constructor Hold everything! What I am I doing here? Mr. Hardroch [*name that sounds the most like Bialystock] was right! There is a lot more to me than there is to me! Top-notch grid, I wanna get on! [🎶🎶🎶 with full orchestra 🎶🎶🎶] I'm gonna be a Constructor Clue the grid and fill with RUM (WRY and RYE and WREAK and ONE) (Rife with rebus, snark and pun) I'm gonna be a Constructor Look out Wordplay, here I come!! CROSSWORD BOYS AND GIRLS AND COLUMNISTS: WORDPLAY, HERE SHE COMES!! ~ ~ ~ 🎭🎭🎭 I Wanna Be a Producer, Broadway Soundtrack <a href="https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=VepUJlQ_W5c" target="_blank">https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=VepUJlQ_W5c</a> Lyrics <a href="https://www.allmusicals.com/lyrics/producers/iwannabeaproducer.htm" target="_blank">https://www.allmusicals.com/lyrics/producers/iwannabeaproducer.htm</a>
Classic Monday theme, well executed, and elegant, given that the show words in the theme answers carry a different meaning than what they mean in the theater. Biggest takeaway for me was learning super-shutout GOLDEN SET. I let my eyes gaze for a few moments on the completed grid, and they kept seeing connections: • Lovely word ladder in the West, with SEES / SEEP / PEEP. • A given-name fest: UMA, MARK, ELENA, ANGUS, VERA, ISAAC, PETE(s), and wannabe HUE. • A string of schwa-tails: PINA, INCA, TUNA, UMA, ELENA, VERA. • Two answers that make proper names when “line” is appended: AVE and VASE. • Long-O enders: CAMEO, ECO, PICASSO, AMIGO, EMO, VIRGO and wannabes PUTONASHOW and RESEW. Best moment for me was when, after seeing all these theater words, suddenly, in a reprise from “Gypsy”, whose LP my mom played often in my youth, the epic tune “Everything’s Coming Up Roses” started playing in my head, sung brassily by Ethel Merman. I couldn’t get rid of it, and I don’t want to! So, thank you, Christopher, for a big boxful this morning – this was grand!
Cute theme and a smooth Monday solve. A number of things that weren't dawning on me immediately but everything fell together with some crosses. Not quite a record time, but well under my average. 15 letter answer that dawned on me today, inspired by 10d, was VIETNAMVETERANS. That was an answer once - in a 1998 puzzle. And... 10d was quite appropriate for this day for me. With apologies, will just note that my former company commander, who has remained in touch with us after all these years, late yesterday posted a list of names from early 1970 for Memorial Day. 47 names... over a 5 month period. I'm done. ..
Rich, One commenter last night was "hoping for a holiday theme." For some, sadly, it was there. Too many names... ......
Well, as if wordplay weren't enough, we now have a play IN words! This was a little crunchy for a Monday, but still a lot of fun. Lots of other showbiz terms as well, I think he CUEd us in and hit his MARK with this one… we just needed a CAMEO to add to the mix. Boffo! Christopher! Thanks Deb & Sam, I hope you both are through the worst of whatever you came down with and are on the road to recovery.
@JayTee According to Mr. Google, "Experience a full English tea service with unlimited samplings of loose leaf tea, handmade tea sandwiches, nut-free scones and sweets, served on vintage dinnerware." Personally, I love scones! ;-)
Always be careful when whizzing through a puzzle, solving in only one direction. You may get caught napping, and wind up nitpicking until you hear your own SNORES. Fun puzzle Christopher Young. A dandy Monday. Thank you.
That was a GIMME. New PB. Not only did I finally break the Roger Barrister barrier, I broke the mile record by a second. 3:42, no mistakes
@Steven M. Appears you also broke the 'Bannister' Still, kudos for PBs.
@Steven M. 3 seconds better than my time! Also a person best by 20s or so.
Like Deb, I enjoyed all the theme-adjacent fill. Fun, as a Monday puzzle should be.
no 8:30 class tomorrow so I get to stay up late and do the crossword (and catch up on Bridgerton hehe). ASARULE i only do a crossword on the day of, so I started right at midnight (but made a snack halfway through). still finished in 8:59 though!! not my Monday PB but I still GIVEPROPS to myself for only one google search (sorry Ms. Kagan and whoever the Mad Men are). any Motorsport fans in the crossword-dom? the Formula 1 Monaco Grand Prix and Indy 500 really PUTONASHOW on Sunday (though the latter more than the former)!! 🏎️🏁 Dearest Emus, I’m afraid I finished my midnight snack but I have some vanilla bean gelato I can share if you’re willing to watch Bridgeton with me 🍨🐝
We are a sick house, as well, so I'll be brief for a happy change. This might have been a personal best for me if my emu addled brain hadn't accidentally entered EMu At 28 down, making the across entry PuDCAST. 😂 What a happy typo though! Cracked me up! Another sacrifice to our EMu overlords! Sam and Deb, hope you both feel better soon!
A British scone isn’t a ‘pastry’. It’s more like fluffy bread. Made with far less butter and sugar than the American version. Larry David would love them…
Jonathan Baldwin, Definitely not like American scones, but more fat content than bread, so perhaps a pastry after all? Hope to hear on this from Bill in Detroit, our resident pastry chef. .........
@Jonathan Baldwin My Delia Smith recipe says to use a pastry cutter on the butter and to roll out the dough on a pastry board. Does that make them pastries? Personally, I wouldn't consider an American scone to be a pastry either, despite its higher fat content. Nevertheless, my response to the clue was immediately "scone." The brain and language both work in mysterious ways, as does butter.
UM, A very nice start to the week. Well done. "Keeping Up Appearances" among our all time favorite BritComs and even purchased the complete DVD series. But, I don't recommend binge watching.
A lovely set of GIMMES for a quick Monday, but, I say old bean, a scone is not a pastry. It’s a moreish, firm, cake-like delicacy, preferably served warm from the Aga, with lashings of tea. Sadly denied me since I gave up the demon sugar. Yes, love The Producers’. Eerily, I was humming Springtime For (you know who, in case I fail the emu test), whilst filling the grid and before I read your comments Mr Young.
@Helen Wright A lot of Brits are complaining that, as one of them said, the description of a SCONE as a pastry is "wobbly". I suspect that, being two nations divided by a common language, our problem is not with the definition of a proper British SCONE, but rather with our definition of a pastry. Perhaps the Brits define pastry a little too narrow for SCONES to be included, but it seems to me that perhaps we consider a wider range of baked goods as pastry than the Brits do. To me, pastry in general includes everything from small, sweet items like tarts and muffins to full-sized cakes. In short, anything found in a bakery that isn't classified as bread. And yes, American SCONES are different from British ones, and Brits might not consider either of them pastries, but most Americans probably would. (I haven't seen any complaints from Americans that SCONES aren't pastries.) Also, on a personal note, Helen, your comment proclaims your British bona fides like a plum pudding at Christmas. Aside from "I say old bean", which I took as intentionally humorous (or humourous), you've used "moreish", "Aga", "lashings" and "whilst", not to mention the period-less (dot-less?) "Mr". BTW, Aga ranges are available in the US, but they are high-end and not widely known. (We don't call them cookers, either.) After 436 appearances as an answer, AGA has never been clued as the oven brand.
I'd say all the clues were GIMMEs. Not a record but finished in under 10 minutes. I'm not complaining though (Christopher, I promise, don't yell at me 😄). I'm a busy person so I enjoy puzzles I can solve quickly.
12D SCONE is a bit wobbly. A scone in Britain is not a pastry, but a sort of stodgy cakey thing you serve with jam and cream. Good puzzle though!
Did this puzzle right after the Sunday funfest crossword (as a night cap). Lots of fun, faster than usual (I briefly stalled when I misread a clue), and I got a kick out of seeing UMA again (though clued differently than yesterday). I've also been sick all week, but feeling better.... I hope Sam and Deb feel better soon too.
@Janine What is going on? Is it flu-like? Or just an annoying cold? Hope you all get better soon! emu food more emu food
Encore, encore! The constructor wrote "I’m not sure what led me to settle on O.E.D. and DOESKIN. I probably should have gone with RED and something starting with DRESS." I think maybe he should have for some bonus theme-adjacent material points. "Dresser" as in set dresser or costume dresser might have been nice. Minor nit. Porn isn't considered NSFW for those of us who work on porn sets.
@ad absurdum Alas, I remember once when a candelabra got knocked over, and caused the petroleum jelly to ignite. Restraints were in use. Not a pretty sight. Definitely not a safe work environment. OSHA was called. Consensual emus.
@ad absurdum Of course it is! You're just not up on the latest acronyms. On your porn set— and I assume you only work on the best of the best, no "pizza boys", just the most upscale delivery boys from Caviar and no vinyl, polyester or "Mattress Firm" specials, just leather, silk and Saatva— on your set, porn (which voice-typing just now hilariously filtered as "p***") is definitely NSFW: Nicely Sexy Fun Whoopie. Hope that helps!
Happy Memorial Day! Remembering all who died serving their country. I'm planning a lazy day that will surely include a trip or two to the crossword archives.
Thanks, Christopher, for a sunny Monday puzzle with a delightful theme. And happy to learn 24A. Sam and Deb, feel better soon. Lot of sickness over here, too.
Fun puzzle. Easy and still interesting! emu food more emu food
The problem with Monday puzzles: Over Too Soon! 'Fraid the crowd at NYT CrossWorld doesn't realize what makes 'pastry' ...pastry! Add to that the fact that some so-called SCONES out there resemble monadnocks or simply basic drop-biscuits, and you've gotten so far afield that protests are pointless... Well, I'm off to a guild meeting with a tray of cranberry-orange cookies; I hope to disavow all knowledge of their provenance, as they turned out looking like...well, fake SCONES.
@Mean Old Lady "'Fraid the crowd at NYT CrossWorld doesn't realize what makes 'pastry' ...pastry!" I was sure you were going to tell us... (Bill the pastry chef thinks the clue passes muster.)
A few hours ago Steve L posted a play list of three songs relevant to the holiday today. I enjoyed all of them and was appropriately moved. While I was watching these a teaser scene for a completely unrelated YouTube video appeared in the upper right corner. ( As this is in no way relevant to Steve L’s post I certainly didn’t want to enter it as a reply.) It was an interview with Steve Poltz, of Rugburns and later Jewel notoriety. In the video he tells a remarkable story of a meeting he had with John Prine. Anyone with some free time on a (hopefully quiet) holiday afternoon may want to take a look at this: <a href="https://tinyurl.com/3euupsph" target="_blank">https://tinyurl.com/3euupsph</a>
@Hardroch What a great story! Thank you for sharing that link.
Not quite a PR, due to clumsy typing, but I really ripped through this, in some cases filling in the answer without even looking at the clue because I could see from the crosses where it was headed. Lots of fun. A trivia detail (not a complaint): according to my dentist, nobody has used novocaine in decades. Even the thought of it seems barbaric. I don't remember for sure what the current popular variant is, maybe xylocaine. (And maybe both of those should be capitalized.) But the clue didn't say it had to be a current product, and novocaine is certainly the colloquial term.
@J-J Cote My dentist uses lidocaine. Even with anesthesia, my trip to the dentist is a pain. He rewards me after the visit with small samples of floss, paste and even brushes. Are these bribes to encourage me to return?
@J-J Cote I’m glad you came down on the side of “colloquial term” here as I immediately filled in NOVOCAINE without giving it a second thought. To do anything else would have been a manifestation of Steve L’s TCS. If anyone has any interest, however, there are two distinct classes of local anesthetics. The “amino-esters” including cocaine (still used in ENT when I was doing that sort of thing), procaine (trade name NOVOCAIN), and benzocaine (like in sun burn sprays). One reason these are not used much these days in dentistry is that they more commonly elicit allergic responses than the other type, “amino-amides”. This latter group includes lidocaine ( trade name Xylocaine) and many others. Enough of that, clue was a good one despite being technically inaccurate in today’s practice.
I just want to point out that TMD Sonoma Somewhere taught me a new expression yesterday in these comments which I will now add to my repertoire: DBAD Just sayin’…. — — — — — — — — —
Hardroch, I trust you noticed today's UMA clue. .......
SW quadrant messed me up right at the end, where I had DOESKEN and couldn't for the life of me figure out how I would be fitting SUEDE in there. Other than that, tore through this one - full of GIMMEs and good fun!
Well, I knew we were either making a movie or producing a piece of theater, but I never thought the revealer would be something as mundane as PUT ON A SHOW. I was contemplating something more like THEATER BOXES or HOLLYWOOD SQUARES. OTOH, it's Monday. And Monday is allowed to be mundane and chock-full of GIMMEs. This is a smooth, well-made grid that's almost completely completely free of proper names -- and for this I must GIVE PROPS. But it's impossible for me to get excited by a puzzle that's so lacking in challenge. I did learn that a BEARD is a symbol of marriage for Amish men. I thought they all wore them. So there's that. Anyway, I'm hoping for more challenge tomorrow.
Leapfinger, oh Leapfinger! I saw your post on the Wordle Comments section but they had closed it to new comments by the time I saw your name. Nice to see you too!! Not riding the motorcycle for a couple years now, after getting COVID made me very weak in the knees I have some trepidation about getting back on it. Some weeks my resolution to get back on it is stronger, sometimes it is weaker. The way of all flesh alas... Actually Wordle has solved its spoiler problem by closing the Comments section specific to a particular day long before the next day's puzzle is posted. Anyway, hope to see you there again. I usually finish the Saturday crossword puzzle too late to write posts on Wordplay that anybody's going to read, the crowd having flocked over to commenting on newer puzzles by that time.
Was hoping a holiday theme but liked the theme just the same. Maybe 4th of July?
@Matt Here's a holiday playlist: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ydWhRObVxrM" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ydWhRObVxrM</a> <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0GQo5iVZUik" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0GQo5iVZUik</a> <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p7WyN3FOnPA" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p7WyN3FOnPA</a> As Miley's dad reminds us, all gave some, but some gave all.
Sorry here but I am not a fan of the latest crossword editing. The puzzles over the past few weeks have been much easier and less challenging as a rule. When I can knock out a Friday puzzle in 30 minutes, and a Wednesday in15 I am less than satisfied. Yes there are some signs of interesting construction but in general I find the misdirection clues more plebian. I now look forward to solving much less ardently.
@sugardaddy Sorry, it's plebeian, not plebian. Good thing that wasn't one of today's crossword answers. emu food more emu food
@sugardaddy agreed! They feel like crosswords from 10-20 years ago too. Far less wordplay, more rote fill. If this keeps up I’ll let my subscription lapse and just do the free games.
Strands #85 “Noodle on this one” 🔵🔵🔵🔵 🔵🔵🔵🟡 If there are levels of difficulty in Strands the way there are in the NYTXD, and if the days of the week similarly align, today's Strands was appropriately "Monday level". Quick and fun! // For anyone else sharing, please refrain from any spoilers until there are at least 3 replies, so the spoilers are hidden past the View All Replies button...
@G Strands #85 “Noodle on this one” 🔵🔵🔵🟡 🔵🔵🔵🔵 Not much noodling today. As you say, a "Monday level." Likewise with the xword and Spelling Bee. A welcome respite! (And yet...wordle in 5. Ouch!)
@G Strands #85 “Noodle on this one” 🟡🔵🔵🔵 🔵🔵🔵🔵 Pretty easy today. I wish I could say the same about today’s Connections, which has me stumped after quickly getting yellow and green.
Been to Cuba numerous times, read the Pulitzer Prize winning “Cuba: An American History” completely twice among other resources on the island. Agree that it is shaped like a crocodile but have never heard it referred to as El Crocodile as it was in yesterday’s crossword.
You can have different SHADES of a HUE. But a HUE is not a SHADE.
Memorial Day and my dear late grandmother’s birthday, and there she is: a Veronica who was always Vera to friends and family. When I started graduate school, a few months went by before I realized I hadn’t called her - so I did. We had a nice conversation. Later that day, she suffered a stroke that she never recovered from, passing away four months later. Vera is Latin for “true.” One of our posters here keeps reminding us to let our loved ones know they are loved. I say, amen.
Porn? Really!? Can we please maintain some semblance of decorum??! Other than that, it was an enjoyable puzzle.
@Eva H. I didn't see any porn in the puzzle. I did see PORN, though. Writing a word doesn't make it indecorous. PORN is a real word for a real thing. What you see is a word, not what it stands for. At least I know what to get you for Christmas. (Pearls to clutch. Get your minds out of the toilet.)
@Eva H. I know it when I see it. So does Tom: <a href="https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=iaHDBL7dVgs" target="_blank">https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=iaHDBL7dVgs</a> (poisoning emus in the park)
I was surprised to see the term "scalper" used in this puzzle. These words become normalized but, regardless of context, this is connected to an anti-Native American slur.
@Dawn There are lots of words that have unpleasant connotations and connections. Scalping in terms of removal of skull coverings happened, but was NOT strictly a Native American custom. There is evidence from both Europe and Asia that the practice was done in much older societies. That aside, the most common first definition today, after surfing through several online dictionaries, is, paraphrased, "buying at regular price and reselling to make a quick profit".
@Dawn I never thought of that. It's good to be made aware.
#50 A. give props to.Who does one give props to nowadays? PEEPS.
@Susan Today is the 29th time PORN has been a NYT crossword answer. The first time was in 1973.
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