Jack Sullivan

@Eddie I guess you didn’t done do it.

@David Meyers If you pan in, you’ll see it looks just like a castle.

@Nancy J. I was sure it was going to be bone spurs.

@Barry Ancona Is it possible that you are feeding a troll?

@Dale M The periods come from the NYT style book. Initialisms like PBJ, BLT, and FBI, where each letter is pronounced, get capitals and periods. Short acronyms like ICE and NASA get caps but no periods. I subscribe to the NYT but not their style book.

Is a panda a bear? Yes and no. A giant panda is a bear. A red panda is not a bear. Maybe Schrödinger had a panda too.

@Sadie Sharkey You’re right, of course. But, in defense of the editors and the Schlossbergs, the clue reads “..translates to..” and not “..means..”. Ocean monk is a literal translation but it misses the mark as a definition.

There may be a Three Sisters in the Grand Tetons. Six peaks.

Glim is a Scottish word for light. I was sure I heard the line “douse the glim” in a Marx Brothers movie but I couldn’t find a reference. Here’s a quote from poet Conrad Aiken: “It’s time to make love, douse the glim; The fireflies twinkle and dim; The stars lean together Like birds of a feather, And the loin lies down with the limb.”

I seem to remember that someone suggested a term for crossing names, since natick isn’t technically correct. The suggestion was nXn, pronounced “Nixon” It never caught on, but I always think of it when I see crossings like ERMA/MARA or IMAN/SAGAN. David Connell may have coined the term.

@Steve L With all due respect to Cambridge and M=W, I don’t hear the last syllable of saguaro as a schwa here in AZ. It sounds to me like suh-WAH-ro. Arizonans have problems with the Spanish G: think Guadalupe, Agua Fria and guacamole, The hard G is common, but not universal.

The first rule of the fight club is…….. The New York Times welcomes strong opinions and criticism of our work, and does not hesitate to approve critical comments as long as the criticism relates to the article in question. The following will not be permitted …… ……… Excessive comments on the moderation policies of The New York Times. The New York Times will not allow comments to become bogged down with discussions of our moderation policies, and the Community team will moderate accordingly. This whole thread might not last long.

Maybe the clue should have been “Italian city that is home to…..’. I think that would have been a better signal.

@Grumpy “And DRIP is not a sound, its a thing that makes a sound.” Maybe in Canada, eh?

I play Spelling Bee on my iPad. Since the banner was added, there is a annoying screen blip every time I enter a word. Way to go , NYT.

I also had an email exchange with the tech staff, first with the automated assistant, then (presumably) with a real person. We were never able to get on the same wavelength and the glitch finally disappeared. I wonder if the first response to all inquiries is “reboot your device and clear the cache”.

Do people who say “dipthong” also say “ampitheater”?

Just completed a puzzle in which ABU was clued “___ Bakr, first caliph of Islam.”

@John If you order spaghetto, you’ll go home hungry.

@Nancy J. Why did the editors decide that they had to italicize the theme entries? They were specifically identified in the clues for the mini entries.

@Steve L Bernini did operas?

Yogi said a lot of things he didn’t say.

I started enjoying Spelling Bee when I decided to aim for Genius level without using four letter words. It’s less annoying and tedious than trying for QB, but still a challenge (for me).

@Jacob He may solve on paper. The newspaper version was the only printing option. No large print available so you have to deal with very small print.

@kieran Agenda (things to be done in Latin) is a foreign plural that became singular in English so the plural is agendas. Panini - paninis. As for agendae, think octopi.

@Francis Seven appearances in the NYT crossword in the last 25 years. I didn’t remember any of them, though. It took me four tries but I was surprised at the answer.

@Teresa I agree. Jane was never as popular as Taylor.

@Bruce I seem to recall a few references to “Usonian”.

@Marjie If 30A had been CIRCUMCISN, the revealer would have to be “HELLOLESSMAN”.

@Barry Ancona True, the four clues are rebuses. But you have to cross the rebicon to get the answer.

@Kathleen880 You could try the LA Times, Newsday, and the New Yorker. I’d add the Wall Street Journal, but they have a Friday puzzle that you would not like.

Please do not feed the trolls. It just encourages them.

My favorite Teri Garr line was from “Young Frankenstein “ and it’s only three letters —- “Oof”.

Let’s not forget Stephen Rea. I think he may out-appear Issa or Norma Rae.

Here’s how I came to terms with Spelling Bee: Play to Genius level but no four letter words. Gold stars for getting a pangram first and hitting the Genius number on the nose.

And Eileen works at the International House of Pancakes.

@Eric Hougland Check Sam’s column for the reference.

Nick Jonas returned to Les Miz to play the role of Marius in the West End version. He also appeared as Marius in the 25th anniversary ensemble that is shown on PBS occasionally. There are some great voices in that presentation. Nick was ok.

@Sue Here is how I reduced my frustration with Spelling Bee: 1. Forget Queen Bee 2. No Four letter words 3. Set the target at Genius Extra credit for hitting Genius on the nose. Double extra credit for Genius without any pangrams.

How long before the plural of platypus is platypi? Now that I’ve used it, maybe M-W or The Free Dictionary will include platypi in a future revision. And when platypi appears in the NYT crossword, causing general outrage, the defense willl be “If it is listed in a dictionary, it’s fair game.”

@Steve L Abominable it may be, but Cheez Whiz was, for me, a must have for the classic cheesesteak. It was always “wiz wit”, Cheez Whiz and onions. I have admit that I eventually weaned myself and now it’s provolone wit.