Note also that the letters paired with U, read from top to bottom, are STARWARS. Very clever!
I wasn't sure whether Caitlin didn't notice that or thought it was so obvious that it didn't need a mention.
@Avi Oh, I thought I thoroughly got the theme, but I totally missed that! Thanks so much for mentioning. Love it!!
@Avi OMG they are too. I started trying to read the extra letters before I’d got all the way through or figured out the theme properly. At that point my understanding was “rebuses with a U for some reason”, and I was trying to figure out why MAYTHEFOrceBEWITHYOU wouldn’t fit in the reveal (and with too _few_ letters of all things, so a problem unlikely to be resolved by a rebus in that entry at least). I hadn’t thought about today’s date yet either, obviously 😅 Thought they might spell out a physical force or something (strong, weak, electromagnetic??), but didn’t have enough solved to make head nor tail of it Once I figured the theme out and finished the puzzle I didn’t think to go back and try to read them again!
@Avi I totally missed that that’s crazy!
@Avi WOOOOOOOOOW! I didn't notice at all, but now that I do, that's amazing! Bravo, Brandon Koppy! That takes this puzzle to a whole 'nother level.
@Avi That.s what I call an EastUregg!
@Avi Wow, nice catch! I hadn't noticed that, so I appreciate your pointing it out. Although I'm old enough to have seen the original movie when it first came out (in George's own county, no less!), I haven't kept up with a lot of the newer offerings. (Other than the nine main movies.) But I'm currently watching season 2 (which will be the final season) of "Andor," which is a very good series. Check it out if you haven't already.
@Avi Noticing this helped me figure out the placement of a few of the rebuses before I had enough letters for their crosses.
I love the backstory, that Brandon came up with this puzzle idea in January, realized it HAD to be done, realized that it was very late in the game to have it come out the first week of May, then fashioned the grid – designed and filled it! – in ONE DAY, then clued 140 answers in TWO DAYS, then hurried it in. I repeat, in single day he crafted a puzzle with such hard-to-attain features (symmetrical theme answers whose fourth letters are rebuses, the first letters of which spell STAR WARS) – and the result doesn’t feel forced! Nor do the clues feel hastily thrown together. Furthermore, the answer set includes sixteen NYT debut answers, including lovelies NON-GMO, SENSUALITY, ELICITING, and DO I EVER. On top of that, there are excellent original clues, such as [Book reviews, of sorts] for TAX AUDITS, and [Baby monitors] for NANNIES. This is a backstory with notes of talent, skill, and passion. It is a story with a very happy ending – an impressive and pleasing-to-many puzzle that successfully landed on the day it was born to land on. So yes, I’m wowed by what led up to your puzzle, Brandon, as well as grateful for the splendid outing it gave me. Standing O!
@Lewis I’m surprised Caitlin didn’t mention the first letters of the rebuses (rebi?) spell out STAR WARS. Maybe I missed it.
@Lewis I too was astounded that Brandon had put this together in that time frame. Mind. Blown. 🤯 It was such an elegant puzzle, perfect for a Sunday and particularly timely. Chef’s kiss 🧑🍳💋
@Lewis I love your comments! They always make the day better! Thank you.
"I can't eat this spaghetti with a spoon." "Use the forks, Luke." (That pun is the Obi-Wan that I know.)
@Mike Come now, Kenobi straight with us please? I did not think you would stoop Solo. Wookie here, I know that you know a shipload of puns!
@Mike “I’m not doing a rebus today.” “Artoo.”
@Mike I only like spaghetti with Spaceballs.
A tour de force! Bravo, Brandon. Sunday POY contender in my book. U?
@Barry Ancona Yes. After I realized "No slashes required".
I love that the rebus squares are the fourth square in each theme answer. That, on top of the first rebus letters spelling STAR WARS, and having all the theme answers have the letter count to enable them to be symmetrically placed -- is masterful puzzle construction. Bravo, Brandon!
@Lewis WOW!!! I did not at all see that even-more-extra sparkle in the grid! It doesn't seem @Caitlin did, either. So all the things about this puzzle you mention in your other post -- how quickly the constructor came up with the idea, created and filled the grid with the rebus squares in the correct position -- plus as Caitlin noted, each rebus ending in U. And then that the *first* letter in each rebus spells out STAR WARS *in order*. Just WOW!! Thank you so much, Lewis, for your insights -- for your careful daily review and the surprises you unearth!
@Lewis I’m thinking that the revealer actually refers to the fourth letter rather than the fourth box, as it’s those letters that spell out STAR WARS, which I didn’t realize until I started reading the comments.
I’d done the Saturday puzzle with its front-and-center zoomies just a few minutes before I started on this one, so I still had dogs on my mind (apologies, Señor Gato; we love your zoomies just as much) when I came across the RHODESIAN Ridgeback. Ohh, the memories… We were once the humans who belonged to a very special Rhody/Rottie mix. I’ve read that, if you’re a dog person, you will love all the dogs to which you’ll belong in your life. But that there will be that one dog—or three—who will be extra special. You’ll understand her—or them—in a way that runs more deeply than with the rest of your dogs, and she—or they—will see through all the way to the very essence of you. My first dog was that dog. Then, of the three I had when I met my husband, although I loved all of them equally fiercely, my Rhody/Rottie was my second “that dog.” My husband used to say that if she’d been born a person (and if you asked her, she *had* been), she would’ve been me, and had I been a dog, I would have been her. We were two of a kind. After she left us, followed within a year by our other two dogs, I thought I couldn’t do the happiness-always-ends-in-such-pain cycle again. But then The Dog found us, and she turned out to be one of those special dogs again. Incidentally, The Dog, the New Mexico desert product that she was, had a horror of KUDZU. But that’s another story. And now only Señor Gato is left to execute joyous zoomies before BED CHECK. And execute them he does, dogblesshim.
@Sam Lyons Lovely reflections on those special dogs who connect with you so deeply. It moved me to think of our latest doggie. We have a little Aussie right now who loves us so much we feel almost unworthy, and also a little guilty because the urge to herd is so deep I almost wish there was some kind of rent-a-sheep option for just such animals. I mean, sometimes we humans are not allowed to be in different rooms in the house. We're corralled and barked at and hustled together. I admire his leadership abilities and his joy in life. It's love all right, but I don't know if this Aussie is The One.
@Sam Lyons Thank you for sharing these memories. Of all the cats I've adopted or fostered over the years, THE ONE was a scruffy boy who seemed to have every physical ailment possible (heart, immune system, no teeth [husband nicknamed him Droolius Caesar]) but was the sweetest little soul. The first day we brought him home from the shelter, he slept on my chest all night. He was such a good boy. We only had him for three years before his little heart finally gave out (after many trips to the cardiologist... thank god for pet health insurance). He's our only cat buried in the backyard because I couldn't bear to watch the traveling veterinarian take him away after taking away his pain. I'm not crying. You're crying. 😭
Yoda one who thought this would be easy. Leia’d flat by clue 12, Luke’d hopeless, Han’d over my will to live. Obi-Wan was my only hope.
@Caroline I miss my "companion".
Loved it, from the goofiness of KSTEW to the surrealism of blow-up dolls, wurlitzer organs and Vitruvian Man...great cluing, not often-encountered entries -- Statelier, Lettuce Wrap -- and the tie-in words, like Lord Vader, Cloaks, and to end it on "Miss You," seems like a beautifully constructed grid. My Woonsocket (I.e., a semi-Natick) occurred in the cross of Heman and Semisonic. I did choose the right letter in the end, but I debated Hexan / Sexisonic, and was leaning that way until a voice much like Alec Guinness's spoke within me, and statelier tones I have never heard: "John Ezra...remember, use the Force young kudzu...but meantime catch me at the West End--I'm in a revival of Ibsen's A Doll's House, K-Stew plays the blow-up doll and I play...what do I play? Piano! It's a musical after all. Au revoir, my little lettuce wrap, miss you!" And with that, the voice was gone...did y'all hear that voice inside your crania?
@john ezra I'd have thought the Mighty WURLITZER would have been more stately than a plain old PIANO, but I had forgotten it was a grand one, so all makes sense.
@john ezra Trying again to post a reply... This keeps happening to me: I'm so frustrated I want to cry! The opposite of my happy little comment...
@john ezra I tried posting this to you in Sam Lyons' thread where it was relevant but it doesn't seem to have gotten through properly: One of these might interest you, and your furry mate, or maybe you can find something closer: <a href="https://raspberryridgesheepfarm.com/About.aspx" target="_blank">https://raspberryridgesheepfarm.com/About.aspx</a> <a href="https://workngsd.com/herding" target="_blank">https://workngsd.com/herding</a>
I bet Eddie would say he D/Un did this P/Uzz.
@Dave K. Someone is obsessing over Eddie...
@Dave K. I noticed Ediie has not commented yet. I am here for that!
How are more people not commenting on the fact that the 1st letter of the rebus squares spell out Star Wars! Brilliant!! Such a fun puzzle for today- May the fourth be with you all!
@Laura M Good for you to find that! :^) I hadn't seen it until reading your comment.
Laura, Because some people read the comments from oldest to newest and know it has already been mentioned quite a few times since yesterday.
First thread on the subject: <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/shared/comment/47a3qr?rsrc=cshare&smid=url-share" target="_blank">https://www.nytimes.com/shared/comment/47a3qr?rsrc=cshare&smid=url-share</a>
@Laura M I didn’t realize this until I saw your comment! Although, early on, when I first caught on to the rebus element, I was wondering if there was a pattern like that. Just had not gotten to the revealer yet! Thanks for pointing this out— I loved this puzzle, and this element really makes it a *chef’s kiss!*
S+U T+U A+U R+U W+U A+U R+U S+U WOW!!! I hear the STAR WARS theme playing in my head! The FORCE is clearly strong with U, Brandon Koppy!
I briefly wondered if "Big name in organs" might be pancreas. Don't worry, I didn't wonder too long, but it did amuse me.
@HeathieJ I thought about intestines so you're not alone!
@HeathieJ Ha! W U R L I T Z E R A B D O M I N A L Holds a heck of a lot of intestines, stomach, liver, spleem . . . not so much an organ as a volume conductor 😉
when i figured out the theme, i caught such a wave of admiration/amusement that it made me giddy. gosh i’m so glad i got into crosswords. how great to have a natural source of dopamine like that.
Companion who might take your breath away - BLOWUPDOLL was completely inspired. Bravo 👏🏾 👏🏾 👏🏾 👏🏾 👏🏾
That is a ridiculously cool concept. Why I love crosswords. Bravo on finding a way to make it work!
Brandon constructed this whole grid on one day? I'm in awe!
Well, wookiee there! We got us a rebus! RU kidding me?? I enjoyed this immensely. I found it clever and fun, with just the right amount of Chewie. What a great way to start a Sunday.
Well, that grid was a bit of all rite! Makingdo with the usual Sunday grid? Too tired for beerpong, yet ready for something chewier than lettucewraps? Want a departure from statelier solves? DO I EVER! It's been ages since I've had to urn it. FSTOP the press! Just spat my vodka out. Could it be anemia in the crania? I asp you this - is it me or U that scoots over eight times? On a Sunday? Brandon Koppy! A heman who brings solvers to their knees and moisture to their palms. He's the Lord Vader that cloaks the gold star. He's a Vitruvian man who shocks the tildes off lesser Ns! His ginzu knife got past the kudzu of adnauseam oreos, enos and onos. His wordplaying Wurlitzer puts odienary pianos to shame! Sure. I'll barre it all like a friendly blowup doll and admit it - the terra solva is abetter place when you can seeto letters in one square! Bedcheck. Gotta turn down the hifi. Now where's that sleep mask?
@Whoa Nellie This is brilliant.
@Whoa Nellie What you said to @Rich in Atlanta -- right back atchya! <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/shared/comment/47abm8?rsrc=cshare&smid=url-share" target="_blank">https://www.nytimes.com/shared/comment/47abm8?rsrc=cshare&smid=url-share</a> Also what @Sam Lyons said.
@Whoa Nellie Whoa Nellie! it's fun, fun, fun, til yer daddy takes the t-bird away
Re: Semisomoc: I always liked “Every new beginning comes from some other beginning’s end.“
As a GenXer, it was the GINSUKNIFE/SURE crossing that gave it away - “but wait, there’s more! … operators standing by”
@Squirreljam But were the operators really standing by? We’ll never know…
But wait… there’s more! If you look at the letters that are rebused with the U in puzzle order, it spells out… Star Wars. I’m sure I’m not the first one to notice
Whenever I see KUDZU the word, I think of my mom commenting on its overwhelming presence on the backroads in Arkansas. May she RIP.
@Red Carpet Same for my dad in Georgia. According to him it was brought over to control erosion on train embankments and then got out of control. I suppose I could check if that’s true now, but prefer to stick with pre-internet lore.
And the first letters of the rebuses (rebae?) spell Star Wars!!
@DrLisa 'Rebus' is the plural of 'res.'
@DrLisa Cool that you point that out! I didn’t notice it! (And neither did Caitlyn, apparently, or chose not to mention it in the column!)
@DrLisa AND the rebuses (rebus) are all in the fourth place of the answer! clever constructing
Happy Star Wars Day in advance! (And to the Star Wars haters, sorry guys. It's our time to shine.) I LOVED this puzzle, even without noticing the added bonus of the SU squares spelling out Star Wars, which I learned of in the comments here. I should have suspected there was more to it when I noticed there were two SUs, two AUs, and two RUs, but it didn't occur to me to check. GINSU KNIFE told me right away there were rebuses, and LETTUCE WRAPS confirmed that the rebuses would be letters followed by U, so I didn't need the revealer to solve the puzzle, but it sure was a delightful discovery. I miss going to movies at the Castro Theater in San Francisco and hearing the Mighty WURLITZER played before the show. <a href="https://youtu.be/Bqw7Wgk4nQ4?si=-VkLBY6CZFLtk1Uy" target="_blank">https://youtu.be/Bqw7Wgk4nQ4?si=-VkLBY6CZFLtk1Uy</a> This puzzle has quite a few entries I didn't know, but its brilliance is that all of them except one filled in easily from crosses. (The only remaining square where I had to run the alphabet at the end was the cross of SDSU and DNA, but I think if I had taken time to mull it over, I could have gotten DNA without knowing the song just because it's logical.) I mean seriously, if you didn't know VITRUVIAN MAN but could get it 100% from crosses, that's good construction in my book. YMMV. And now I have "Closing Time" stuck in my head even though I didn't remember the name of the band, and now that I see it, I'm not sure I ever knew it, but that song was ubiquitous in 1998.
@Beth Oh my gosh that song takes up rent free space in my brain way too often!! Trying to avoid an earworm today!
@Beth @HeathieJ My Closing Time song: Leonard Cohen Live in London <a href="https://tinyurl.com/3p5m3657" target="_blank">https://tinyurl.com/3p5m3657</a> That site also has a black and white "Official Version" with a much younger Cohen and surreal imagery but the words are less intelligible.
@Beth "I mean seriously, if you didn't know VITRUVIAN MAN but could get it 100% from crosses,"... You are exactly right, almost. I didn't get it from the crosses. I knew the down cross at the (RU) was D_G. But combine the letter search for whatever the clue was...Doctor's order, or something...with the possibility of a rebus was just a bit much for me. It's a little embarrassing to admit that, because I'd found all the other rebuses, and didn't think twice about them when I was running through *single* letters for D_G. So...that's how you can *not* get VELOCIRAPTORMAN, or whatever it was, from the crosses.
Whew. And Wow! When I glanced at my desktop calendar this morning, MAYTHEFOURTHBEWITHYOU had actually popped into my head. But I was still well into the puzzle for a good long time before I had enough crosses for the reveal to finally dawn on me. I should probably go buy some lottery tickets. Anyway... this is just one truly amazing feat of construction. Can't even imagine how much work it must taken to... first - find all those possible answers with a 'U' in the needed position, and then... somehow manage to work them all into a grid pattern. Wow. Just wow. And, of course I had a puzzle find today. REALLY unusual one. I'll put that in a reply. ....
@Rich in Atlanta As threatened: A Sunday from February 25, 1973 by Arnold Moss with the title "Daffy edibles." This one seemed a bit inconsistent to me, but... whatever. Anyway... some clue/answer examples: "Give Rose a buzz" CAULIFLOWER "Gold standard" FOURTEENCARROTS "Tell an old joke" SPINACHESTNUT "Prestidigitator's request" TURNIPACARD "Cease-fire bid" LETTUCEHAVEPEAS "Lower take-home pay" CELERYCUTS And there were more. Here's the Xword Info link: <a href="https://www.xwordinfo.com/PS?date=2/25/1973&g=115&d=A" target="_blank">https://www.xwordinfo.com/PS?date=2/25/1973&g=115&d=A</a> Oh... and I couldn't help but wonder if an old punchline had ever appeared in a puzzle. In short - "All we are saying is... GIVEPEASACHANCE. Yep - that was an answer in a Wednesday puzzle from January 8, 1992. I'm done. ...
@Rich in Atlanta Very fine post! It's amazing how a puzzle can elicit so much creativity between constructors and solvers (like you).
Back when Episode I first released in theaters, my friends and I went and had a blast. Everyone was dressed up, greeting each other with the stereotypical “May the Force be with you.” You could pick out the Catholics in the crowd easily back then because they’d all reflexively respond “and also with you.” Nowadays, it’s “and with your spirit,” but I still get a little chuckle every time I hear it. Bravo on the incredibly tight turnaround for this puzzle—a delight from top to bottom!
@Edward I still have to repress the also with you, lol.
@Edward As an overage ex-altar boy, I remember it as “Dominus vobis cum”, and the response as “Et cum spiritu tuo”. Which would predate “and also with you”. If my memory serves me correctly.
A rebus for Star Wars day! I’m so happy! Fantastic puzzle as well, a joy to solve from beginning to end. Rebus lovers, make your voices heard today as our favorites are becoming far too rare!
Aaand 365 in a row. This one came quickly, and if it wasn’t for Abettor would have been close to a PB.
@BR Congrats! That’s quite the feat.
Loved, loved, LOVED it! So clever, and a fun Sunday solve! Perfect timing for this one. Thank you, Brandon, for a magnificent puzzle.
I’m not a Star Wars fan (despite being prime Gen X), but because today is my birthday I immediately knew the revealer. I’ll consider it my first gift of the day :)
@Annabelle Happiest of birthdays to you. May the year be with you.
I hate the Star Wars-fication of May 4th, a date that should instead be remembered for the massacre of college students in Kent, OH by National Guard soldiers: <a href="https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kent_State_shootings" target="_blank">https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kent_State_shootings</a>
@ol fishman Alternatively: Haymarket Riot/Massacre (1886) All of an Italian football club killed in plane crash (1949) Armed forces of Apartheid-era South Africa kill 600 people in Angola (1978) Margaret Thatcher becomes British PM (1979)—Twenty UK sailors killed on HMS Sheffield during Falklands War (1982) Over a hundred people killed in plane crash in Nigeria (2002) Massive tornado nearly completely razes town of Greensburg, Kansas (2007) Any day of the year is going to have numerous tragedies that occurred on it if you look into it.
@ol fishman Especially this year, when American citizens and legal residents are being persecuted for protesting, it bears remembering that Kent State was a specifically American tragedy.
@ol fishman You can be annoyed by a trend without pretending like you have some moral reason for do so. I refuse to believe you actually expect people to sit around reverently on May 4th thinking about Kent State victims. I bet you left the house yesterday and enjoyed a fine Saturday despite it being the anniversary of not one, but two tragic air disasters.
ol fishman, I don't know about you, but I'd rather not see a "Four Dead in Ohio"-themed Sunday Crossword.
Just the wurst! (Bunless cookout entrees, that is.)
Very clever, and what the "fourth" letters spell out is a nice little extra!
I was away this weekend, and did the puzzle late, but I'm a big Star Wars fan, and I LOVED the theme! Genius that it was BOTH the fourth letter AND they spelt out Star Wars.. Thank you, Brandon.
@Amy I didn't catch the rebuses spelled out Star Wars. Thank you!
I wish it could've lasted longer but I enjoyed the levels of "aha" throughout. Fun, clever. Thank you, Brandon! NB: For a moment I thought we were in chemistry land with AU for GOLD or something.
MAJOR fan of rebuses here. Thank you Brandon for a stellar (!) puzzle!
The last square to fall was the RU in VITRUVIANMAN. Never heard this so could have been any letter for all I knew. On the crossing down, well, why would a doctor order a DOG or a .. DEG(ree?)? Stumped, I started admiring the theme and counting the eight squares it referenced. Ohhhh - I only have seven! The RU was then easy to place. A nice instance where the theme helped the solve. Fun, smooth puzzle - well done!
@Joe That square was my downfall. I totally forgot it could be two letters.
Good theme ruined by two Naticks. ARRID/DELLA and WURLITZER/KUDZU. Could have brute forces one of them, but not two. Well, time to watch the ponies
Steven, 1. Enjoy the race. 2. Shocked you had problems with the two crosses.
I'm joining the chorus of oohs and aahs and wows for this puzzle. Masterpiece! Though I got the rebuses and the spelled-out STAR WARS, I completely missed out on the fact that the rebuses are all the fourth letters of the entries! And of course this is intrinsicate to the revealer, which is making me feel like a doofus for not seeing it. So many layers, my head is spinning in a great way. Thank you, Mr. Koppy! (You spin me right round, baby, right round, like a record, baby, right round... <a href="https://youtu.be/PGNiXGX2nLU?si=YPnkNELo9DNqm5Tk" target="_blank">https://youtu.be/PGNiXGX2nLU?si=YPnkNELo9DNqm5Tk</a>)
Another little easteUregg: 66D -- TBIRD -- goes back to George Lucas' earlier movie, American Graffitti. He made that movie as a total unknown on a miniscule budget. It was all filmed outdoors, except the dance, filmed at Tamalpias High. I think he went to High School there, or close by. The movie was a big hit, and made Lucas the money to do his real dream -- Star Wars. Suzanne Summers, in her first 'real' movie role, drove that little white 1956 Thunderbird that had Richard Dreyfus drooling after her. He was also an unknown. I think the only known actor in the movie was Ron Howard. So many others got their start in American Graffitti, including Harrison Ford. I'm partial to that movie because I own a duplicate 1956 TBIRD that my dad bought knew. I've had it since 1980. But our real claim is that our actual 1956 DeSoto is in the movie, driven by my brother-in-law. And my Sister-in-law was at the dance. They were both in high school and got non-paying jobs as extras, just for fun. My husband and I drove the 1956 De Soto the first year we were married, then gave it to his brother because it was too old to drive cross-country when we moved to Boston.
Loved it. I was trying to make “May the Force Be With You” fit, in which case I was going to complain that all the U’s should be in rebuses, but once I noticed the date and had the proper revealer I was mollified. LORD VADER was a great bonus. Great fun!
The reply is hidden, so I'm reposting it here: New Yorkers should know... "The largest Wurlitzer organ originally built (in terms of pipes), was the four-manual / 58-rank (set of pipes) instrument at Radio City Music Hall in New York City. The Music Hall instrument is actually a concert instrument, capable of playing a classical as well as non-classical repertoire." <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wurlitzer" target="_blank">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wurlitzer</a>
My favorite Sunday in a long time! Such a clever theme. Great work!
I'm so ANGSTy about the comments section glitches. I was about to copy my comment just in case and poof, all gone. It never used to do that.😭 Anyhow, SIGHING, that aside, I enjoyed the puzzle a lot! Also really enjoyed the nice long nap I took between the Saturday and Sunday puzzles. It's been a puzzling, but thoroughly unproductive, day. Great theme! Didn't take much to fill in the revealer but it ELICITed much gladness! And, importantly, it explained the little issues I was having throughout the grid. I suspected a rebus but I tend to fill around and be patient until I uncover enough. It was a delight. Only wish I'd figured out the part about the rebus squares spelling STARWARS myself. I found out thanks to Avi in NYC mentioning it below. Definitely increased my enjoyment and respect for the puzzle. So glad we didn't have to wait until 2031. Note to self: slow down to review the puzzle better once complete, especially when there are fun tricks. BLOWUPDOLL! Ha!! I highly recommend the movie "Lars and the Real Girl," if you have watched it. Really good and sweet movie. AGES filled in way too fast as "Goes from zero to 60." I'm not quite at 60, but where I am feels like it's happened in a snap, so the visual of pressing on the gas for AGES was poignant. INNIE! I wonder if my INNIE likes to do crossword puzzles too. Hmm. I'm sure she likes VODKA though... loved the clue for that at 108D. Cheers and MAYTHEFOURTHBEWITHYOU! 🍸
@HeathieJ Yeah, "Lars and the Real Girl" was surprisingly poignant. I have to admit Ryan Gosling has taken on some very interesting and challenging roles. Even if I do despise him because he's devastatingly handsome.
@HeathieJ I feel your pain in losing your comment. I must have been influenced by all the news stories about the passing of Pope Francis because I first read the INNIE clue as Conclave Umbilicus, which has all kinds of weird pictures floating through my head. (Tried to watch the recent season of Severance last night but had trouble connecting to Apple TV+, so my INNIE will have to wait.)
@Francis I thought of that movie, as well.
Great puzzle! I love that the letters next to the U spell STAR WARS. I always take the time in puzzles like this to see if the special letters spell anything, and this time I wasn't disappointed. I'm not even a SW fan, but I appreciate the bonus. Tom Waits "Closing Time": <a href="https://youtu.be/ZGWJ5XiwbV0?si=-ym2AmEc11g8sE7H" target="_blank">https://youtu.be/ZGWJ5XiwbV0?si=-ym2AmEc11g8sE7H</a>
@Nancy J. Thank you for this. The first time I heard Tom Waits was sometime in 1976. I was living in Seattle, where a friend and I had moved after college because it was 2000 miles from the small coal mining town where we’d lived. I didn’t have a car…I didn’t need one, being in Seattle with its mass transit, and with my living two miles from the bank where I’d gotten a job, I often walked. I had no interest in banking, but was drawn to it because T S Eliot had been a banker and I thought I was a poet. One day, a senior VP needed some documents run to one of our branches and asked if I’d take them. When I said I didn’t have a car, he gave me the keys to his…I forget the make, but it was a small, silver sports car of some kind. It was a stick shift and while I’d learned on a car with a manual transmission, I’d not driven one in a few years…and I’d certainly never driven one in Seattle, with its hills. At every stop light I was struck with near panic that I’d get my timing with the clutch wrong, stall out and roll back into the car behind me, wrecking my boss’s boss’s very expensive car. It wasn’t the smoothest drive but I did get to the branch without incident, and as I pulled into the parking spot at the curb, Tom Waits’ “Step Right Up” came on the radio. I’d never heard anything like it, so I sat there, transfixed until it was over. The next time I was in a record store, I bought the album, then another, and I’ve been a fan since. So, thank you for sharing this.
@Nancy J. I have to be better at taking that time to see if they spell out something. Hopefully this experience will cement that in my mind.... I so wish I would have caught the spelling out of Star wars myself.
Ah, this was great. I got GINSUKNIFE right away, although I wasn't sure where to put the rebus to make it work. I continued to zip through, on pace for a good time, but I got stalled in the top right. Not familiar with the play in question, so I started with ALBEE, which was way off on the wrong track. VITRUVIANMAN? saw it a mile away, but as with one or two of the other rebuses, I wasn't quite sure where the rebus should go; didn't pick up on the fourth square element of it until the end. Great start to a dreary Sunday.
Late story: was at a music jam. Break time. Someone said “May the fourth be with you.” Jim: “hey, that was in the XWP today. I don’t get it.” Various people: “it’s Star Wars!”, “It’s today’s date!”, “It’s a pun, Jim!” Jim: “yeah but so what? Why couldn’t it be June the fourth?” Everyone: “It’s MAY the force be with you!” Jim: “OOOOOH.”