Alex Barry
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Milwaukee
AWOL is not even a close synonym for M.I.A. The former refers to a violation of strict rules of presence and readiness, and can result in severe military discipline. The latter refers to the potential loss of a service person, often as the result of enemy engagment.
The second half of the themed answers totally escaped me. Thanks for the explanation, Caitlin!
I find people who argue to be disagreeable. But I really dislike FEUDISTS.
Great final result! I love the animation. Props to Jacob for his vision and to the Times' IT staff for making it real. Happy Christmas, all! đ
Clever and fun! Excellent Monday level, with a neat bit of intricate design and an extra reward upon completion. Very enjoyable!
Who else thought of Basil Fawlty when they got to 36A? There's also a nod to one of Polly's memorable lines at 6D. Fun reminders of some great entertainment!
I find appalling the regular use of vulgarity and the steady lowering of standards in this new era of NYT puzzles. As our society lamentably wallows in a decline of dignity in public discourse, so seems to follow the course of NY Times puzzle contributors, assisted and abetted by uncritical editing. There's no excuse or rationalization for the 8A entry. It's a rude and discordant word that few would use in polite mixed company. Basic, attentive editing could have easily altered it to be CRAMPED, by 11d being MER, and 14d being DEPRESS, and a clever clue could easily have been substituted for "Can". Just as the editors regularly see fit to permit the inclusion of, or cutesy cluing for, a vulgar term for the buttocks (or its equally rude British equivalent), today's puzzle is indicative of an abandonment of a formerly reliable level of decency on this page. It's a slippery slope, and very unfortunate.
Hit my 365-day mark with this toughie. House guests a year ago compelled me to miss a day in my prior solving streak, but since then, no house guests, no missed puzzles. Win-win! I guess.
A nice breezy puzz, not too laborious for this Labor Day. A day I hope you all celebrate safely and enjoyably. And if you can make the scene at a local protest demonstration, bless you!
@Katie Right on, Katie! Stay safe, stay warm, stay strong.
This one was tough! One of the most difficult in my recent memory. All sorts of vague clues, very clever misdirects and near-naticks. Had I tried to work out this one on a printed copy my erasures might have worn holes in the paper. Finally filled in all the squares after two hours with a few breaks, but only got the "close but not quite" result. Went over the grid repeatedly looking for a typo or other mistake. Finally decided to try ZETAS instead of BETAS, and got the happy music. I'd had no idea of the crossing author's name and had been satisfied with FRAN BEN, as awkward a name as that sounds. Well, I'm on a few meds right now that are leaving me a little lightheaded, so I'll be happy to tell myself that some of my difficulties were due to that condition, in hopes of preserving my self-esteem.
@Jon with all respect, your cultural awareness quotient is seriously low if you're not conversant with all the names of the immortal Marx Brothers (Karl is not one of them). It doesn't matter what your age is, or what X, Y or Zed letter is ascribed to your generation. I recommend beginning with Duck Soup or A Night at the Opera, and continuing through every installment of You Bet Your Life.
@Pete Townshend Well you're pretty great yourself, maestro! Leader of the Greatest Rock & Roll Band in the History of the Universe... The kids are alright!
TIL I learned GOHAM (or is it GO HAM?). Guess it had to happen one day.
This was a fun one, although a little easier than many Fridays. OTOH, there were some sneaky misdirects and clever clues. Enjoyed!
@Nick "Tsk tsk" is legit. "VSOP" is legit. "Dats", not so much
Lots and lots of music to enjoy in this one, much of it overt and obvious, and some more slyly referential. We had The Boss, La MĂ´me Piaf, Miss Peaches, la Selenita, a hit West End musical, and the ubiquitous (and brilliant) Mr Eno. Then we had prog giants Yes; a line very close to the lyric of an old Jackson 5 hit single; the energetic former Van Halen frontman popped up (twice); and in Latin, the second word of an ancient liturgical chant. And who else thought of Buffy and the great track by Bif Naked, "Lucky", when entering 5D?
@Marshall Walthew Eli's Comin'... a big hit for Three Dog Night.
@Marcia Fidler I once mistakenly used peppermint extract instead of an equal amount of vanilla extract when making a pumpkin pie. I began to "scent" some hints of my error while the pie was baking.
Real fun! Very clever wordplay. Not difficult at all, but rewarding withal.
@Sam Lyons Fascinating information from someone obviously a scholar of language. Thank you! One that drives me nuts is the local grocery chain which styles itself as Pick 'n Save. Aberrant behaviour I say!
Solved quickly, and really enjoyable. Lots of very fresh and clever cluing of common fill, little if any pop trivia, and an amusing theme that entertained as it developed from top to bottom. Great fun!
Was anyone else reminded of Augustus "Gussie" Fink-Nottle when entering the answer for 104D? Certainly one of Bertie Wooster's more memorable and eccentric friends. A bit of a LOON, quite.
A little slow going for a Tuesday til I sussed the word play in 56A. After that much smoother, and a lot of fun. Clever theme.
@Dave S Right? It was 9D that clicked for me. Those guys have been my personally creepiest crawlers since one ran up my 4-year old leg when I slipped one of my beloved cowboy boots on. Yikes!
Working through the theme before reading Sam's notes, I read FRAYSFRAYS as "rephrase" rather than "paraphrase". Kinda works that way too.
I had a few moments of puzzled levity thinking the answer for "Arsenic's realm... " was DATENIGHT. I believe some daring ingenues of the past would toy with belladonna to brighten their eyes for a salon full of suitors, and I was trying to imagine how the really clever ones had learned to repurpose arsenic for some other form of allurement.
@snufkin Both Mr Altman and Mr Fellowes would be surprised to learn that.
I also made note of the Bach/ĂŠtude clueing. Having loved JSB and his works for many years, the curious pairing struck a chord with me. I see there have been sharp opinions expressed on both sides, but I chose not to join the movement and add voice to the chorus, lest my words might only fall flat. Aside from that, I enjoyed the solve, and have no score to resolve with the composer of today's puzzle. By the way, if you're ever at an Oktoberfest-themed piano recital, and the newcomer beside you asks "What's a Steinway?" just raise your krug and reply "Empty or full?"
@Remi Lightbulbs are commonly designated by their wattage, which provides the consumer an idea of the light output. Lumens are also listed, but are not the customary standard.
No offense or insult intended to the globe trotting little parasites, but "nematode" is the go-to identifier I use when speaking of that one who shall not be named. It suits exquisitely, and I've used it to good effect for years.
@Katrina S. Well done!
Loved seeing PRELL make the scene! I'm old enough to remember their old television spots. One ad touted its "New!" unbreakable plastic bottle at a time when other shampoos and the like were still in silppery-when-wet-and-soapy and hazardously breakable glass. Another featured the ever-so-slow descent of a pearl (Prell - pearl) dropped into the top of a full (plastic) bottle. This proved beyond a shadow of a doubt that Prell's rich thickness would guarantee luxurious lather and amazing results! Gotta wonder if it's a first-time appearance in the NYT Crossword.
Good puzzle. Fair and reasonably challenging, although it seemed a bit easier than usual for a Friday. I really wanted 1A to have something to do with the father of the bride, and for a while I was kinda seasonally fixated on EASTERsomething... at 12A. Got it all sorted in the end though. TIL that a SKULL emoji is sent in reply to a funny text. I guess none of my texts have ever been funny enough cos they've never once elicited such a response. Not sure what I'd have thought if they had.
@Bea I heard long ago that easier puzzles can be the most difficult to set. Unavailable to use is the vast lexicon of arcane trivia, foreign words, literary references, etc., to be substituted with common words and phrases familiar to the most casual of solvers. Pity the constructors for the easy level pages of the Dell Puzzle magazines. Day after day coming up with moderately challenging but generally easy-does-it solves within the standard format of size and symmetry.
@Nancy J. My favorite one!
I believe producer (and later, Sir) George Martin is more often considered the "Fifth Beatle" for his profound contributions to their sound, and their general well-being. Stu Sutcliff was never the fifth. When he was playing with the lads, the combo was a quartet, and Sir George was still well off in their future.
I had forgotten that nâ° = 1. Still made it through and enjoyed the theme. TIL there's lye in some hair products. UGH!
The solution for 36A brought this swell tune right up to the front of my mind. And I'm happier for it! <a href="https://youtu.be/wHB6muY-6WI?si=F_YMPA9BNvSLLf2e" target="_blank">https://youtu.be/wHB6muY-6WI?si=F_YMPA9BNvSLLf2e</a>
Upon solving 58A, who else immediately thought of the iconic Alison Steele? Here she is, nearly 52 years ago. Some here may have even listened to this very broadcast when it originally aired. <a href="https://m.mixcloud.com/rob-frankel/wnew-fm-1972-09-03-alison-steele" target="_blank">https://m.mixcloud.com/rob-frankel/wnew-fm-1972-09-03-alison-steele</a>/
@B The great Charlie Chan would answer a phone call by saying "Yes, please." I was a big fan of his in my younger days, and that was an affectation I adopted until late in my 20s, much to the mirth of my friends.
@Steven M. I have what's got to be an apocryphal best of 2'31" listed for a January Monday of 2021, the eleventh to be precise. I think the good emus must have removed all pauses between my entry choices, much the way the pharma shill on radio flies through a time-compressed cautionary paragraph on the side-effects, contraindications and mortal dangers charitably attributed to this week's new wart removal poultice. Im sure I never really hammered out a NYT CW in 2.5 mins, but the stat pleases me and I dine out on it often.
@Bill That orchestration was my gateway to classical music well over 50 years ago. I picked up a copy of the 1969 release by the New York Philharmonic led by Thomas Schippers right after having my mind blown by Emerson, Lake and Palmer's 1971 adaptation, and wondering to myself "Who's this Mussorgsky cat, and why is he with ELP?" I continue to enjoy prog and most other music from the 60s and beyond, but my greatest joy since that long-ago revelation has been my continuing exploration and study of the classical genre. I still have both of those vinyl recordings, by the way.
@Nancy J. Vegetarian here. I regularly make a dish with flageolet beans, diced tomatoes, onions, green olives, and a rotating option of greens, including collards, kale and mustard. One of my favorite creations.
@Oikofuge Thank you for this!
Anyone else immediately think of Napoleon Dynamite when they came to 25A? "It's pretty much my favorite animal. It's like a lion and a tiger mixed... bred for its skills in magic."