Happy 10th crossword my love!! Endlessly proud <3
@Rafaela G-F Thank you! I love you!
One who is against squishing the bug on the sidewalk ???? antidepressant
@Esmerelda Honestly, very good.
Excellent. Really, really excellent. Inventive, spunky, and energetic. You know how when electrons enter an excited state, they zigzag around like mad? That’s what this puzzle did for my neurons. Did I mention this was an excellent puzzle?
@Sam Lyons I thought of you when I saw clues and answers referring to Aeneas, Dante's "Inferno," and Joyce's "Ulysses." And I agree this was a fun puzzle.
@Sam Lyons Semi-literate slob that I am, I don’t recognize the “banquet of the mind” quote. But Google suggests you’re riffing on Alexander Pope’s translation of “The Odyssey.” Yea, verily?
These theme answers are not easy to come by. • The last word of the answer must have an even number of letters. • Each half of that word must be a word in its own right. • That word must conclude an in-the-language phrase. Whew! So, say, you come up with a word like HIPPIE that can break into HIP and PIE, and a hip pie can be a thing, maybe even a funny thing. But then you have to find a common phrase that ends with HIPPIE and can make sense with “hip pie”. And I, at least, haven’t. So, back to the drawing board. Here, Garrett came up with seven – seven! Furthermore, they fit the letter-count requirements of symmetry. High props for that! I got in a good mood right from the start, when BAIUL popped out, a figure-skating name lying dormant in my brain for some 30 years. The mood escalated when I uncovered MAKING AN IMP ACT – Hah! It continued to rise as some swaths filled in with a splash, while others made me do delicious work. Garrett, your creation was clever, fun, and satisfying. Thank you for a splendid outing!
@Lewis Lewis, I loved your posts at the other site. Since I left there and came here, I have missed your insights and positivity. I don't read every comment here, and may have missed some of yours before today, but this morning your signature style has brightened my day.
And with that, my streak hits FIVE YEARS. Whoa.
@Chet Wow. I'm lucky to make five days.
@Chet Congrats! In two months, I'll hit 4 years.
For five (or more?) months I've been intentionally breaking my streak every month, to avoid the lure of extrinsic motivation
@Chet Congratulations on your streak.
@Paul It’s a little bit like Cal Ripken, Jr. sitting out one game a month so as not to break Lou Gehrig’s record. Doesn’t seem like it serves any purpose. But you do you. My streak, a little longer than yours, abides. And will until I have an emergency that physically prevents me from doing a puzzle.
@Chet, Woohoo! That’s a heck of a streak! Congratulations!! 🍾🎉 (I’m about two weeks behind you 😊)
@Chet Utterly amazing! Well done!!
@Chet Wow, nobody interrogated you if you looked up answers, etc.
[The highest number of oniony bread rolls one can store?] MAX BIALYSTOCK
Avocets/Beaucoup tripped me up a bit. One of those puzzles where you had to sit with it, come back to it, then it comes together. The best type of puzzling.
@David Steinberg Looked at the letters I had and thought Avocet is a word, is that what it is? Seriously, I'm A Moron.
Good puzzle overall, though not a fan of so many abbreviations. I call foul having IMED and DMED appear in the same puzzle.
@Radonculous PUH-REACH!!!!!!
@Radonculous On the other hand, I enjoyed the progression of IMED, DMED, and DQED.
Ooohwee!! I definitely would not call that breezy, unless breezy has a definition I don't understand, which is certainly possible, as I've learned out here many times. Anyhow, it was quite hard for me. There were several times where I had crossings that I just did not think I was going to manage without lookups. Somehow I did manage without but I was a little bit weary of it in the end and was getting close to doing a reveal for the last few crosses because I'm ready to move on to watching the next couple episodes of The Residence. Woman cannot live on puzzles alone, after all! Still, I kept at it a little longer because I haven't had to reveal or use help in a good while and I'd like to keep it that way. It was just a lot that was out of my wheelhouse. Definitely a slower than average one. Anyhow, I enjoyed the theme and the fun entries. My favorite was WHATSTHEDAMAGE, followed by LOVEHOTELS. Figuring out the theme fairly early on when the dam one came to me quickly, certainly helped me quite a bit in getting some of the tough for me fill. Anyhow, it's now martiniOCLOCK so off to Netflix we go!
I learned [Dad, in Korean] by watching KIMSCONVENIENCE. Fun to be able to effortlessly drop both entries in this weekend. I expect to see UMMA on Monday, for the full cycle.
@Pezhead I learned APPA from its appearance in the May 6 crossword.
@Pezhead I learned Appa when my son chose that name for his Chow Chow. He chose it based on the sky bison character in Avatar: The Last Airbender. I googled it and happened to catch the Korean meaning along the way.
The cross of SAWEETIE and AENEAS, Holy Mother of Zeus and St. Francis. I really, really wanted a clean solve. I had SuWEETIE and AENEuS. Just an brutal cross for my background. The puzzle seemed a bit rap heavy. I about threw in the towel with 23A. But I thought the theme was hilarious. Everyone of them was a delight, especially LOVEHOTEL. Does anyone know the difference between IMED and DMED, both of which appeared today? 96A. I should try to remember that any piece of apparel I don't recognize must have something to do with a bra. If there is ever an architect with three of five letters that *isn't* PEI or IMPEI, I'm in trouble.
@Francis TIL Aphrodite had a lot of kids.
@Francis - Instant Messenger and Direct Message
@Barry Succinct, brief, to the point, to a fault. But I have no idea what you're saying.
Francis, Maya LIN is an architect. She appears here frequently. <a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Maya-Lin" target="_blank">https://www.britannica.com/biography/Maya-Lin</a>
@Marc Schmied Ok, thanks, but is there a functional difference? Do I do one thing with one app and the other with a different app?
@Francis You may not recognize Maya Lin's name, but I'll bet you have seen (at least in photos) her best-known work, the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C. It's pretty impressive that she was a 21-year-old architecture student when she won the design competition. <a href="https://youtu.be/mL9rrCJkBJs?si=62hk2tnJ-ohwFGP6" target="_blank">https://youtu.be/mL9rrCJkBJs?si=62hk2tnJ-ohwFGP6</a>
@Francis Someone might be able to do something with Alvar Aalto, a Finnish architect—five letters first name, five letters last name. An architect I knew said when he worked in Aalto's atelier in Helsinki, the director Michelangelo Antonioni had visited one day and commissioned Aalto to design a floor lamp for him. Erik, dreaming of meeting Antonioni's partner and muse the beautiful actress Monica Vitti, offered to deliver the lamp in Rome. He said he was so afraid the lamp might be damaged during the flight that he kept it with him in the cabin. The next day, carefully dressed and tonsured, he took the lamp to Antonioni's apartment, almost trembling in anticipation of meeting the gorgeous Monica, and rang the doorbell. A maid answered the door, Erik introduced himself and explained about the lamp. The maid took the lamp, thanked him, and closed the door. Not even a glimpse of Monica Vitti. He laughed when he told the story, but I suspect a tiny bit of disappointment still lingered. <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alvar_Aalto" target="_blank">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alvar_Aalto</a>
@Francis I had several crosses that I was unsure of. One that helped: I remembered that AENEAS (vaguely recalling the Aeneid) has an almost symmetrical name. Since it's in the crossword often enough, just remembering that fact helps me.
@Dutch Iris Thanks for sharing the story about Erik’s disappointing non-encounter with Monica Vitti. (I recognized her name but couldn’t put a face to it. Looking her up, I can see why Erik would want to meet her.)
You know you are getting old when ... the caption for a photo of Laurel and Hardy needs to include "a comedy duo".
I loved the theme and the clever wordplay. Still, too many obscure (to me) words and references made this a tough journey. RECTO, BIALY, APPA, EHUD, AVOCETS and OLLAS were just a few of my roadblocks. I was able to guess/ force my way past all of those, but it was the letter linking A_OU and RO_EO that made me finally give up and —quite literally— take the L. I guess you could say I admired this puzzle more than I enjoyed it.
@Heidi I still can’t figure out what a ROLEO is unless it’s a rodeo for rolling logs? This puzzle was unpleasant for me 😔
Lara, Yes, it is. This was the 47th appearance of ROLEO in the NYT Crossword. First was: Sun May 9, 1948 98A Logrolling contest. Willard N. Jordan Farrar
@Lara I think he's Jumiet's bae in that play by that guy.
I keep making the mistake of attempting Sunday grids... I used to enjoy them in the past but recently I haven't had any fun with them, at all. I must remember my own advice next week: skip Sunday, Andrzej! The theme... There was an element of wit to it, I suppose, but generally I perceived it as yet another set of groaners. Can't a Sunday theme be truly smart, for once? The puzzle was notable for featuring my wife's and mine least favorite artists. She can't stand RADIOHEAD, and my ears bleed when I hear LETO's 30 Seconds to Mars: it's one of the few bands I have blacklisted on Spotify 🤣 Of course I was clueless about most of the names and abbreviations, as always. I also did not understand other terms in either the clues or answers. Some of them: Verso? RECTO? Bandeau? HAP? OLLAS? I had LEIs for luau strings, and I was so proud of it! Before I started doing NYT puzzles, all I knew of Hawaiian terms was, predictably, aloha. ALAS... The first thing to come to my mind when I see the name OLD TOWN is of course the one in Warsaw. As a kid I loved its narrow streets and quaint houses. In a way it's only some 25-30 years older than me, however. It was completely destroyed by the Germans during WW2, as were 90% of the city's buildings on the West bank of the Wisła (Vistula). It was reconstructed in the 1950s so meticulously it was then given UNESCO World Heritage status. Here is a 90 second video showing some before and after images: <a href="https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Gu7PY2mzgto" target="_blank">https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Gu7PY2mzgto</a>
@Andrzej I guess it depends on what you consider truly smart... I did enjoy the humor of the themers, myself. That said, I also had leis to begin with and found this a very hard one for many of the same reasons you mentioned... And made many of the same mistakes. I wearied of it after a while. Yeah it's always hard to know if that's the puzzle or if it's just me
@CB I wish I did, too! In my mind there is nothing smart about groaners though ☹️
@Andrzej I also struggled with this one. Too many things I just don't know 😒
@Andrzej Thanks for the video. It is beautiful, sad and inspiring all at once.
@Andrzej Thanks for the video. It makes me want to visit Warsaw someday. Verso and RECTO are printing terms that I learned years ago. Verso is the left-hand page of an open book and (as you might guess), recto is the right-hand page. Why the Latin? I guess the book makers didn’t want doctors and lawyers to have all the fun. Yes, the puzzle’s theme had some groaners, but I was amused by a few of the theme answers. Sorry you weren’t.
@Andrzej I fared OK with the fill, getting the unknowns on the crosses. But I'm with you on those puns. They were really hard puns to find, given the structure imposed by the theme, so kudos to the constructor for that. And it's not that I don't like puns ... But Theodore Bernstein made a useful distinction between good puns and bad puns in his (now somewhat outdated by still excellent) book "Miss Thistlebottom's Hobgoblins: The Careful Writer's Guide to the Taboos, Bugbears and Outmoded Rules of English Usage". Just by the nature of the theme, these were pretty much fated to fall into Bernstein's category of disposable groaners, rather than puns for the ages. (That's me editorializing, by the way, not Bernstein's original words.) That's fine, though. I'd have preferred something involving rebuses or contorted fill, but lots of people seem to hate that sort of thing. So I just winced my way through, and once I understood the rules, the theme gave me some fill I might otherwise have hung up on. I was glad to get it over with, though.
@Eric Hougland If you do decide to visit, we will have to get in touch. I could give you and your husband a tour of some very Warsaw-y places most tourists probably never see. @Oikofuge You phrased that much better than I could ever have. Thank you.
@Marcia Fidler There is very little hate towards Germans here these days. We have been peaceful neighbors for decades, and most of us appreciate it. I've never seen any Germans being treated badly anywhere, and I am usually welcomed warmly in Germany, as a Pole. We remember our histories, of course, but we have learned from them. I think of the horror of Warsaw's destruction with the same sadness as when I consider the plight of Dresden, or Nuremberg, or other German cities. If anybody may expect any outright hostility, it's Russians, but even so I haven't heard of any violence against them.
@Andrzej I’m vacationing on the Big Island (Hawaii) right now, so UKES came right to mind Aloha! 🌺🌸
What a fun, breezy puzzle. Each of the themers gave me a chuckle, but MAKING AN IMP ACT was my favorite. When I was working as a massage therapist, I had a client who participated in ROLEOs and was a high-level birler (log roller), so that went right in. One of the things I liked best about that job was the diverse clientele I had the opportunity to interact with. I worked on nuns, sex workers, orthopedic surgeons, clowns, accountants, HOTEL maids, musicians and people with hobbies from BASE jumping to stamp collecting. Spending an hour each week or so in such a private setting often got them talking, and I learned so much from them. Occasionally, that knowledge helps with crossword puzzles.
Nancy J., If I missed someone else posting this, no regrets: The Log Driver’s Waltz <a href="https://youtu.be/upsZZ2s3xv8?si=fj8kw43fSEm4pVR0" target="_blank">https://youtu.be/upsZZ2s3xv8?si=fj8kw43fSEm4pVR0</a>
@Nancy J. The term to 'birl' is still I'm common use in Scotland for spinning or rolling and I'm guessing this is where 'log birling' originates.
@JohnWM Thanks for the song. The link wouldn’t play for me because YouTube knows I don’t live in Canada, so here’s one for those of us in the USA (complete with goofy animation): <a href="https://youtu.be/KDlPtJw0vQE?si=Y_s4d7xLoyX3nVmd" target="_blank">https://youtu.be/KDlPtJw0vQE?si=Y_s4d7xLoyX3nVmd</a> I’m a bit surprised that I had never heard this song before. The NPR affiliate in Austin had a long-running Saturday morning program called “Folkways” that we listened to almost every week. This song would have fit in perfectly.
@JohnWM That's great! And just as catchy as (and more appropriate than) the other song I was thinking of. Though it also fits 96A... <a href="https://youtu.be/FshU58nI0Ts?si=f6D_8-2gnL7Ek2SM" target="_blank">https://youtu.be/FshU58nI0Ts?si=f6D_8-2gnL7Ek2SM</a>
This was tremendously entertaining - all very cute themers and some (WHAT'S THE DAMAGE and SALESPERSON, for example) I'll giggle over for the rest of the day. Also wanted to agree that MRSWHO would be incredibly difficult if you've not read A Wrinkle in Time - but if you haven't, please from the bottom of my bachelor's-degree-in-children's-literature heart give it a try. It doesn't read like a kids' book or particularly like science fiction or fantasy, all things it's generally classified as and two of which I don't usually particularly like. It's... lovely. Lovely and thoughtful and just an excellent read. I actually like Wind in the Door, which follows it, even better, but Wrinkle is the one to start with. MRSWHO - and her friends Mrs. Which and Mrs. Whatsit and of course Meg and Calvin and Charles Wallace - are literary companions of the highest possible order. Wishing everyone a happy (and safe) Sunday.
@Regine It's been a very long time since I read "A Wrinkle in Time" (and I passed on the movie) so I don't remember anything about it, apart from the Tesseract. But it was a stepping stone to a lifetime of enjoyment of science fiction, so I second your recommendation.
@Regine, A Wrinkle in Time, with its two companion books, remain among my favorites of all time. I read them again every few years. I suggest them to my third grade students every year; that's the age I was when I first read it.
@Regine Sales/Son, "The youngest isn't really pulling his weight, we may have to let him go".
I really appreciate a puzzle where the themed answers are so thoughtful and fun, as well as clever. For me it clicked at MAKE AN IMP ACT. Great job, Garrett Another reminder that it is Mental Health Awareness Month, since OCD is an answer in today’s puzzle. OCD is something that has been made light of, but it is really not a laughing matter. I suffered from debilitating OCD when I was younger. In one of its many manifestations, I would go back and check my front door dozens of times to make sure I had locked it. I didn’t go out much, it was too exhausting. Fortunately, I have worked through my anxiety for the most part and enjoy a fairly normal life. I cringe when I hear people use the term casually and/or callously.
@Mark I’m sorry to hear that you had to struggle with OCD in your younger days. I’m glad that you’re better now. Thanks for the reminder that May is Mental Health Awareness Month. I was surprised to learn earlier today that this goes back to 1949. As some Wordplay readers know, my father and three of my siblings — Mark, Sharon and Kurt — died from Huntington’s Disease or related causes. It was painful to see them struggle with the cognitive and emotional challenges of HD such as delusions, depression, anxiety and obsessive behavior. I’m fortunate that I didn’t get the genetic mutation that causes HD. But I have had my own mental health issues, including a period about 10 years ago when I often thought about suicide. I’m thankful that that period is over. If you know someone who needs help with a mental health issue, please do what you can to see that they get professional help. No one should have to try to deal with those issues alone. Thank you.
@Mark I'm glad you're doing well and can enjoy your life. Two of my siblings struggle terribly with OCD, so I cringe as well when people make light of it. It's good to see people talk about their struggles, though. It removes some of the undeserved shame that people deal with.
@Mark and @Eric and @Nancy J. Wonderful to see these posts. As a teacher and as a mother with children who had 'challenges' I came to know a number of other families who worked (and struggled) to help their offspring in the face of social stigma, health insurance strictures, and general life issues. I was sincere in assuring myself and others that there IS a place for everyone. The son of a friend worked at the university radio station, and if a program was to start at 2:01 a.m., believe me, that OCD kid had it On The Dot. They loved him!
I didn’t read the title, but the penny dropped pretty quickly with GRAND RAP IDS. However, it wasn’t until I finished and read the title that the amazing symmetry was revealed for me. I was just enjoying the silliness of the word play. So clever.
I am always amazed by the puzzles. There is NO way I could put them together. But I love solving them. Thanks!
MAKING AN IMP ACT! I snorted so loud!
I liked the themed answers a lot but the rest of the grid was a bit trivia-heavy for me. Absolutely adored GROUCHOMARXMUSTACHE and WHATSTHEDAMAGE though
While this was a very easy puzzle, I really enjoyed solving it, because most of the wacky bisections of the last word made me smile or even occasionally chuckle. A good puzzle is sometimes more about providing a pleasant diversion than wracking one’s brain.
Loved MAKING AN IMP ACT - excellent puzzle!
Enjoyable puzzle. Another reminder to check the title before I start! I’m curious whether 116A (ERUPT, clued with “Blow”) was an intentional homage to Mount Saint Helens? Today is the 35th anniversary of its eruption in 1980. It was a Sunday morning then, as well!🌋
@CatMomAF 45th anniversary. I remember the date because it it was my grandfather's birthday as well. (His 75th.)
@CatMomAF - Although I understood the punny theme today - breaking up the last word - I didn't realize the words were being exactly halved until I read the column. I don't like to check the puzzle title beforehand because (on the Android app, at least) that's also where hints can appear that I don't want to see.
@CatMomAF Kilauea has been erupting this week.
I found this Sunday puzzle both clever and groanworthy. I guess Home Alone is an example of MAKINGANIMPACT. I had chest for trunk which made that little section at the bottom tougher than it should have been, until I found TORSO. Bonus points for including AVOCET, perhaps our most beautiful and graceful wading bird. I spent a few years splitting time between Ardmore and San Diego, and one of the great joys of spending time in SD was living walking distance from a spot reliably frequented by AVOCETS in season.
Isn't the Grand Puba the head of the Loyal Order of Water Buffalo, the lodge of Fred Flintstone and Barney Rubble?
Great puzzle, my favourite of the year. Every time I solved one of the theme clues I laughed out load. Thanks Mr. Chalfin!
Fun Sunday word play with enough little challenges to wake the brain. Thanks Garrett!
The main clues were great - the fillers were nasty, RBG, BIALY, ALAI, BAIUL, SAWTEE, ALOU, LETO, CIAO, IMPEI, APPA, PESCI, TYRA, HAP?, TIG, EHUD, RHODA,DQED, ROLEO, PETCO, USMA, ARO, that is not all of them, SCREW was the first clue I entered thanks DEB :) Ah well tomorrow is another day.
@Spmm Agree! The themed entries made me smile, but the fill was just frustrating. Needed several look ups and finally just gave in and checked the puzzle.
@Spmm Baiul was the 1994 gold medalist over 30 years ago. The last of the Alou brothers retired in 1979. Rhoda went off the air in 1978. So it helped to be of a certain age on a lot of this. But the late IM Pei and the Alou brothers live on in Crossland so take note. Jai Alai comes up occasionally too.
@Spmm You might have seen HAP in “mishap”.
@Gina D The brothers, yes, but Felipe’s son Moisés retired in 2008. All of them were big stars.
Here in the UK, long ago, we used to have a lovely TV programme entitled "One Man And His Dog", in which hill shepherds and their dogs competed to move sheep around in very precise ways. I tell you this because the first time I saw ROLEO on TV, I thought it should be called "One Man And His Log." (And, yes, women are involved in both activities. We're going back a few years, and the chance to play with a line from the children's "... Went To Mow" song seems to have trumped any impulse to find a gender-neutral title for the shepherding contest.) Anyway, that's how ROLEO became a gimme for me today.
@Oikofuge Loved One Man and his Dog, thnkas for the memory
@Oikofuge Love seeing the trials and the amazing Border collies--even on television it is thrilling.
@Oikofuge Sheepdog trials are still a thing in Devon. Amazing skills displayed by both man and dog. The sheep are just along for the ride!
@Oikofuge By happy coincidence, the annual Scottish Games were held yesterday, just down the road from me in Fair Hill, Maryland. And yes, there was a demonstration of sheepherding, and it was impressive.
@Helen Wright Sheepdog trials also take place all over Scotland, every summer.
Second Sunday puzzle in a row that is chock full of arcane trivia. As a daily puzzler for over a decade, it’s disappointing to see grids with 20%+ clues that are either answered instantly or will remain blank without a Google search. I count 31 in today’s puzzle.
I gather you are counting proper nouns? Without getting into whether today's count was or was not particularly high, it's not a know-or-look-up proposition; many proper nouns can be filled from crosses. I know: that's how I filled some of them today.
@Ben Biggs - Oh, come on. Gaps in your knowledge (or in mine) do not define "arcane trivia." I only needed one lookup today. I'm sure many solvers needed none. And I guarantee you there were gimmes for you and me that stymied others. We all know different things. That's what makes them puzzles, isn't it?
@Ben Biggs FWIW I haven't done a Google (or other online) search on crossword clues in over two years, but have a 99.3% puzzle completion rate (out of 1125 puzzles) despite not being familiar with quite a lot of the "arcane trivia". (I'm 55 years old, FWIW.)
@Ben Biggs I didn’t need to Google anything thanks to my NY native spouse (BIALY)
Ellen, You are married to a Bialy?
@Ben Biggs, yet you give us no examples to support your whining. There were a few names I didn't know today, and "roleo" wasn't in my vocabulary, but they were easily discerned through crosses. (I did spell Saweetie incorrectly on my first pass.)
Got it! It wasn't that difficult, but it sure was LOooooong! And I was in a Double Natick with _A Wrinkle in TIme_, a Band from 1987, and "Pauperism." I had _ AG_ and finally figured it out with that last clue, but it was the final entry in the (seemingly endless) puzzle. It must have taken Quite A While for Garrett to come up with that many themers! Wow. I note that OLLA is still not "a word" to the Beekeeper. Today's endless Bee blithely ignores a good-sized list even after admitting (at long last) a sailing term that has been spurned for some years now. Anyone else think that a "bandeau" dispenses with the BRAsiere entirely? (I know, I know, but I had to try it...) Hope those in the path of the tornado activity (Kentucky and Missouri, especially) are surviving. We had most of the day devoted to a seemingly endless series of thunderstorms, with at least one strike that rattled the windows. Just as the rivers had started to go down....
@Mean Old Lady Second you on the BEE. And even though it did admit that nautical term, it still wouldn't accept it with ING appended. And still won't accept many other nautical terms.
Rock group with the 1992 hit "Creep"? I refuse to believe this was 33 years ago.
@Dru Right? I am not old. I am not old.
@Dru LOL. I have massive gap in my popular culture knowledge in the 1990s because that's when I had my kids. Unless it's children's literature, Disney, or dinosaur-related, the 1990s are a black hole of knowledge to me!
@Dru Ouch. That means I've been out of HS for 33 years. I only wish I've been as productive as Thom Yorke since then. 😂
The author and editor of the puzzle are displayed before those of us online press play. Why not the puzzle name too? That we halve to check it manually is just poor interface design! [Emus aren't real]
Matt, The Sunday title is a clue. The clues are not displayed before you press play. Not an interface issue IMO. [Emus are real, also IMO]
@Matt R. and @Susan E. I wholeheartedly agree. Assuming the intended presentation of the puzzle is as it appears in the Magazine, it would be nice if we subscribers could also enjoy the title and Mr. Shortz's comments without having to open the Wordplay column and see potential spoilers. (Unless it's the price we pay for not having three pounds of paper driven to our homes every week.)
@Eric Hougland Yep! In the app, we only get the date, constructor, and editor before hitting Play, which opens the grid. We can only see the title by hitting the "i".
@Eric Hougland Maybe I meant "nope." Same digital experience to be sure. I guess I just miss getting the Magazine and reading the title and notes before starting the solve.
@Matt R. For those who had difficulty finding the title on the app(s); if the "i" icon has a flashing circle around it, it indicates that there is some information available. When you click on the "i", you'll find a title on Sunday puzzles, and notes or special instructions for other puzzles when applicable. Otherwise, you get the constructor's name and a link to the Wordplay page.
Definitely groan-worthy, which I greatly appreciated. Especially liked the DAM AGE and HOT ELS answers, but MUST ACHE and IMP ACT were winners as well. The title was very helpful and it clicked with the first themer. A fun one! Thanks, Garret!
Nice one! I must have read and said the word 'salesperson' thousands of times but never once factored it into 'sales per son'. This is some fine crossword puzzle alchemy at work: selecting a mundane term and transforming it into something new, shiny, and surprising.
All right - first things first. Writing, "Laurel and Hardy, a comedy duo..." is like captioning a photo of a five dollar bill with, "Abraham Lincoln, a president..." Sheesh. I was not surprised when my completed grid did not generate the happy music. I had, I think, five guesses at problematic crosses. What did surprise me was I only needed one lookup, SAWEETIE, to earn my gold star. I guessed wisely today. Thanks for the fun!
Peter C., The "comedy duo" reference in the caption was addressed earlier, and (IMO) with a bit more tact. <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/shared/comment/47jojc?rsrc=cshare&smid=url-share" target="_blank">https://www.nytimes.com/shared/comment/47jojc?rsrc=cshare&smid=url-share</a>
Fun solve! I liked DAM AGE best. I always spell it BIALI for some reason and I always have to circle back and fix it. The answer CAPE had me thinking the trick was going to be that COD was hidden somewhere. I guess you're supposed to infer which one. Hope everyone has a nice Sunday.
@Lpr I had to circle back and fix poppY, which I’m told is an acceptable way to order a poppyseed bagel in the NYC area.
@Lpr I think that Cape Cod is known as The Cape.... I only think I know that because I went out there last summer.... We, in Midwestern rebellion called it, The Cod.
HeathieJ, I winced at the answer, but the constructor is from New York, where Cape Cod is often called the CAPE. ("Provincetown" would need rebuses.)
@Barry By that logic, the answer could have been (Plymouth) ROCK. I looked around for the missing cod for a while.
This was a lot of fun. Some of the themers fell into place before I knew why, but I eventually saw them all. Very cleverly constructed. Probably more than the usual number of rappers and other pop culture figures I'd never heard of, but that's just something to live with. Beat my average, so Sunday is off to a good start.
I've been away from the puzzles for quite a while. What a welcome back puzzle! It is one of my all-timw favorites. Kudos to Garrett Chalfin.
Wow, 23:50 for that fun puzzle -- I feel almost invincible now! Funny how if you sit with things long enough, the answers sort of bubble up. Great construction today!
A clever theme, but with some iffy clues (e.g., CAPE, BEAR, RAVE), and too heavy on slang and pop culture for my taste.
Loved the theme, the halving. Very clever! Fave = Groucho. Did not love IM/DM in the same puzzle (ugh) and, as others have said, too many rap/pop culture references (not Boomer friendly) but I solved via the crosses anyway.
So I was driving up Main Street in Lake Placid, looking for a parking space, and my sister cried out, "Oh my God, that's Oksana BAIUL!" And there she was on the sidewalk heading to the ice rink. So I had that going for me today. And I did know AVOCET is a wading bird. but I think they're mostly on the West Coast. Much more likely to see Yellowlegs at the CAPE.
@Grant since the topic is lake placid….NYS had a policy when it was spending on the Olympics that everything built had to have a purpose after the Olympics. So the athlete’s dorms in the Olympics village was slated to be a prison. Which meant cold cement walls and bars on the doors.
Working through the archive, I’ve solved a lot of crosswords with themes similar to this one’s, but more often than not the wordplay has been lame. This, though, was fun and funny. Congratulations to Mr. Chalfin!
A classical observation about Aeneas. Since i know of him mainly through the Roman version of his history, as founder of Rome and imputed ancestor of Caesar, i have always identified his mother by her Roman identity: Venus. Of course, seeing that he existed originally in Greek legend, Homer, the clue is perfectly fair, just for a moment misdirecting.
@Patrick J. I wish he'd spelled his name Aeneus.
Before I looked at the length, I thought the answer to 38D might be TLC, who also have a song called “Creep,” so it was great to see that answer appear elsewhere in the puzzle. Coincidence?
I concur with other commenters that there were too many rap/rock references. I realize that this hugely important to a newly graduating collegian but to the rest of us it is obscure trivia.
Asher, I celebrated my 55th college reunion a few years ago and I had no trouble with "rap/rock references" in this puzzle (using clues or crosses). You don't have to listen; if you just keep reading it isn't obscure.
@Asher so…two out of the top three music genres globally? 🤔 <a href="https://www.unchainedmusic.io/blog-posts/top-music-genres-in-order-the-most-popular-genres-worldwide" target="_blank">https://www.unchainedmusic.io/blog-posts/top-music-genres-in-order-the-most-popular-genres-worldwide</a>
@Asher I dunno -- rap has been a thing since well before I was a "newly graduating collegian" almost 4 decades ago. And " rock" of course has been popular since before I was born. You are welcome to your opinion. But please, don't frame it as "to the rest of us". I don't listen to much modern rap, but it's an insult to call it "obscure trivia"!! Really, try thinking laterally! For example, while I have heard of Grand Puba, I am not familiar Grand Daddy UI. But the answer is not at all a stretch -- and if it is, way to boost the ole brain cells!
@Asher I'm ten years older and felt right at home. Funny how we can all experience it differently.