RI guy
Newport, Rhode Island
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Newport, Rhode Island
How about a shout-out to Joel Fagliano? Here's a baseball metaphor for y'all. Imagine what it might be like to be an early career relief pitcher called in from the bullpen to replace Bob Gibson or Sandy Koufax. Pretty daunting assignment. That's the crossword equivalent of what Joel is doing. Along with the team, he's producing terrific work under what must be trying circumstances. We all hope to see Will Shortz back in The Big Chair soon. Will, if you're reading: we're all rooting for your return to good health! But this is no slight to Joel's great work filling in for you. My two cents. Happy Sunday.
Thanks so much to both constructors for today's puzzle. I enjoyed it very much. Jeff Chen, if you're reading these comments, I want to express my thanks for your years of hard work with xwordinfo. I very much miss your daily commentary, but respect your decision to discontinue writing in. Here's hoping that you write the occasional commentary. I can't speak for the community but I'm really sure you are missed by many people. Thank you.
Like many others I found this one quite difficult. How tough was it? Twice my Friday average. Good thing that I enjoy a challenge. ISPEPSIOK - favorite answer today. The editors wondered if this was in the language--really? And to be clear, no server has ever asked "Is Coke OK?"
What's that word "where the cross involves two proper nouns, neither of which is exceedingly well known" ? Hmm, oh yeah, it's where my wife lived for ten years Natick! Glad to have learned about PHILLISWHEATLEY. Had never heard of her. As for OPIE, I am familiar with the lad from the Mayberry which is how this one has been clued in nearly each o(but not all) of its 202 appearances. The swing era bandleader and musical director for the Judy Canova Show turned radio actor? Not so much. But, the puzzle is in part about learning and not whining. With that in mind, TIL: "Andy Griffith named his character's son "Opie Taylor" on The Andy Griffith Show after Opie Cates, whom Griffith and producer Sheldon Leonard both liked.[" (per Wikipedia)
As a book person I adored this puzzle. My wife and I were married in a library two years ago--The Redwood Athenaeum here in Newport. S/O's for things I really enjoyed: --The clue for FRANKENSTEIN - laugh out loud funny --WHOA, never Woah --88 Across - anything that reminds me of Gilda RADNER brings a smile to my face --Amy Lucido's reference to rot13 - it's one variant of a substitution cipher originally used by Julius Caesar for his correspondence
This was an ambitious and interesting feat by the constructor. For me, the pleasure and impact of solving this was greatly diminished by a poor effort by the editing team.
Character played by Kieron Moore in "David and Bathsheba" (1951) / URIAH Yeah, I am a little weak on my "73 year old movie featuring an obscure actor whose last IMDB reference was a single appearance in 1974 TV show that I've never heard of called The Zoo Gang" trivia. I have heard of URIAH Heep though---both the Dickens character and the band. But I got there through the crosses.
1 Down was a layup for me. That's where I met my wife 13 years ago! Great way for me to start today's puzzle, one week shy of our wedding anniversary.
FESSUP, who doesn't think about about having some NACHO cheese on a HOTDATE? I loved this puzzle. Tough going--but highly enjoyable.
This constructor’s puzzle from 2008 occasioned blogger/curmudgeon Rex Parker to introduce the term ‘Natick’ for an unfair crossing, typically of proper nouns.
@Barry Ancona That is hilarious, Barry.
I have a few comments that are all over the map: --SKA & SOCA. Every daily solver knows the former. I'd never heard of the latter. Learning new things is one of the joys of solving (for me, anyway). --Loved "Some clerical workers." PRIESTS --I always spell the answer to 18A as slyer so that hung me up a bit. (Or is it a tad?) --Any reference to AREAFIFTYONE gets a thumbs up here. --Really wanted "loo" instead of LAV. Another hang-up for me. --Didn't get the trick until I read Caitlin's write-up. And then...I didn't care. Nice architectural trick, I guess, but those things typically do not resonate with me. YMMV which I respect 100%.
To quote Ron Swanson is Parks & Rec: "You had me at Meat Tornado."
30 Down & 19 Across--I see what you did there, Kathy & Jeff. For those of you who have not seen The Big Lebowski, "The Dude abides" is Jeff Bridges last line in the movie. Here's a 3 minute clip of the ending featuring that line and SAMELLIOTT: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M7LKsqMQP9g" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M7LKsqMQP9g</a>
I asked ChatGPT how many Star Trek TV episodes and movies have been produced. The answer--drumroll, please--963! How many of these have I seen? Glad you asked: zero. With those numbers, there must be a big audience for this puzzle's subject. Hope all you Trekkies out there enjoyed the elaborate and loving construction today; I'm just not among that group. Having said that, I applaud the feat by Mr. Newton. Also, bonus points for the pangram.
Having gone to college in the 70's the answer to 39 Across, "Blotter letters" was a gimme. LSD was the obvious answer--until it wasn't.
Having gone through all of the comments from oldest to newest, I am happy to see that so many people enjoyed this puzzle. But if the subject matter is way outside your wheelhouse (raising hand), then you may have a different reaction. This one played liked bar trivia night for me. Got through it, eventually, but it was a slog. Having said that, any puzzle that references Steely Dan will always get a thumbs up from me. Seen the Dan live 22 times, most recently in Boston opening for The Eagles. Hope y'all enjoy your Sunday and keep those scaries away.
@deb "...the second is more of a hobby. Kind of like the difference between table tennis and Ping-Pong." Low-key Will reference?
Can we get the ARHAT trifecta? Tune in tomorrow.
TIL why the Bacardi logo features a BAT. From the brand' site: "The iconic Bacardi bat logo came about when Doña Amalia, the wife of our founder Don Facundo, spotted a colony of fruit bats in the rafters of the first Bacardi distillery in Santiago de Cuba. Symbolizing good health, family unity and good fortune, she knew the bat was the right choice to symbolize Bacardi."
Nice puzzle. Thank you sir for your fine effort. As for the editors, I would have preferred a different clue for 68D, maybe something related to the noted inventor.
@Robert Michael Panoff Hope your treatment is successful. Sending you some good vibes from the Ocean State
@surfertom007 Another Newport guy~! I do know BOOMROASTED and I just turned 70 a few months ago. I attribute this to my colleagues at work, most of whom are fairly recent college grads. I pick up a ton of current slang and the like form them and it's a delight for me to have them as my associates and friends.
Our esteemed columnist Deb used 120 words to explain how to successfully complete this morning's puzzle. To me, that is a sign of a less than optimal user experience. I solved on the web; left the T squares blank and did not receive any notice once all of the other squares were filled in. After reading Deb's not, I inserted the letter T as indicated and received credit.
@Andrzej Same here! Also weak on the Bible despite 13 years of Catholic school. Or maybe because of 13 years in Catholic schools.
So. Many. Challenges. --"Decamps" instead of RECEDES was rough because I'm not a film guy and never heard on ANDRA Day --"Atad" instead of ABIT --"Fees" instead of DUES --Misspelled PLANETARIA --Typo in IPADMINI --AAVE ? Totally new to me, but good to learn this. Daily lil learnings are a plus point of the puzzle-solving experience for me The following were layups for me: PICTIONARY, RICKSTEVES,GETAWAYCAR, THATSNEAT, PEABODY,MACBETH,THANE. Rough going all-in-all but exactly what I'm looking for in a Saturday. Thank you...
Years ago, I was drinking a bottle of EVIAN when it occurred to me that it was 'naive' spelled backwards. Haven't bought one since then. ILLSTOP now.
@Alex Yup. I spent 15 years of my career in typography-related businesses. I stared at that thing for the longest time before I parsed EMDASH. Often a dash used in that way indicates a continuation of some kind from an adjacent clue which is where I focused initially. Pretty ARCANE but, hey, it's a Thursday.
@Kosta in France Hi Kosta, "Natick" is a term coined by crossword blogger Rex Parker. Here's his description: "A long time ago, I was solving this puzzle and got stuck at an unguessable (to me) crossing: N. C. WYETH crossing NATICK at the "N"—I knew WYETH but forgot his initials, and NATICK ... is a suburb of Boston that I had no hope of knowing. It was clued as someplace the Boston Marathon runs through (???). Anyway, NATICK— the more obscure name in that crossing—became shorthand for an unguessable cross, esp. where the cross involves two proper nouns, neither of which is exceedingly well known. NATICK took hold as crossword slang, and the term can now be both noun ("I had a NATICK in the SW corner...") or verb ("I got NATICKED by 50A / 34D!")"
This puzzle played easy for me--finished in ~60% of my average Sunday time. Generally, I Like the work of these two constructors, but I was a tad disappointed in today's offering. To be specific, I was able to solve the puzzle without considering the back half of the theme clues. This made the puzzle a nice architectural accomplishment, for sure. But the trick didn't contribute anything to the solving experience, for me. BTW, I had ArNOLD first but knew that it could end up being AHNOLD.
I always appreciate the constructor's effort as solving the puzzle is a wonderful way to start my day. Now, channeling Larry David & Jerry Seinfeld*--having said that... here's another architectural feat yielded a subpar user experience, for example: -Very choppy grid resulting in a ton of short answers -Bonus clues were irrelevant to completing the grid so the trick was a big "so what!" for me This constructor seems to enjoy this kind of trick. His "Blank Expressions" Sunday puzzle from May 1, 2022 used something similar. Hope everyone here enjoys their Sunday. * "Having said that..." clip from Curb: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O5DCns_n9_M" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O5DCns_n9_M</a>
@Times Rita Yup, you're right--old school crosswordese. 25 in the Will Shortz era, 92 pre-Shortz. ECARTE was last used on October 1, 2023 and clued as "Cousin of euchre" which is using crosswordese to clue crosswordese. I actually kinda like that.
@David Connell CHARMS not charts.
@GR Today especially we need more commenters like you. Thanks very much!
@Anita Terrific S/O for The Great Elephant Migration, a 'must see' if you live in NYC. Previous stop was right here in Newport RI. What an amazing exhibit.
TIL these things -Australia and KALAMAZOO have the same number of letters. It was the second thing I entered and the first (of many) that I yanked out. -If you have these letters in place SA_A_IHAT, one possible answer is "Salami Hat" which has new product potential for sure. That did not need to be erased as I knew that it must be something else. The obvious correct answer occurred to me a moment later. -Ballet is not anywhere close to my wheelhouse, so I needed every cross to get TALLCHIEF. Loved reading Wikipedia about her after I finished up the puzzle. -TAOISEACH. Wow, no idea which is rather embarrassing as I attained Irish citizenship almost 2 years ago. -I learned the definition of roister, a word I had never before encountered. There's a restaurant by this name in Chicago where they invite you to roister. <a href="https://www.roisterrestaurant.com" target="_blank">https://www.roisterrestaurant.com</a>
@John Hahahaha. I was thinking "Maybe there's a place for a small charcuterie board on top of the hat so your friend with the beer hat has something to snack on during the game."
TIL that like Gerald Ford and William Howard Taft, the answer to 75A also applies to today's constructor. Boola boola! The puzzle felt like one huge, cringey dad joke. As a contemporary of Mr. Niederman and a father of four, I found it highly amusing. He's quite an interesting person and if you care to learn more about him, check out this 2009 Vanity Fair article: <a href="https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2009/09/squashs-numbers-guy?srsltid=AfmBOorT9OtJa_lbLUDrbN1j2Rm6Uh1TcHTTvARGkcJc3lfbBm1oeZOp" target="_blank">https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2009/09/squashs-numbers-guy?srsltid=AfmBOorT9OtJa_lbLUDrbN1j2Rm6Uh1TcHTTvARGkcJc3lfbBm1oeZOp</a> BTW, Rex Parker did not care for the puzzle. Shocker, I know. Guy needs to find some bliss. Our own Eric Hougland reviewed the puzzle on "Diary of a Crossword Fiend" and supplied the link earlier in these comments. I always enjoy Eric's point of view.
Regarding 1Across, It was my understanding there would be no math. <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mKAnk2XVnDE" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mKAnk2XVnDE</a>
Big fan of the MARTINI. Since 007 was referenced, here is a recipe for the Vesper Martini. Note: this contains a modification from the instructions that Bond gave to the bartender because Kina Lillet is no longer available. • 3 parts London dry gin • 1 part vodka • 1 part Lillet Blanc • Angostura bitters* Combine the ingredients in a mixing glass with ice. Stir until well-combined and a bit of water is introduced into the drink, about 30 seconds. Drop a little bit of Angostura bitters into the bottom of a chilled glass, then strain the drink into the glass. Express a lemon twist over the drink and serve promptly. You can float a thin slice of lemon if you like. *Note: I recommend this ingredient which introduces a bitter quality to the Lillet Blanc that Kina Lillet had but the current version lacks. Enjoy responsibly.
@surfertom007 Fear Of Missing Out Another example of info I pick up from my early career work colleagues in the their 20's. As a septugenrian, I would be otherwise unlikely to know this.
For me, this was not "a" puzzle, more like five largely separate small puzzles. That lessened my enjoyment. Having said that, I loved SEXT crossing ITSHOT. And TIL what DARESSALAAM means plus that he flag of ANGOLA features a machete and half of a gearwheel. Please, no more AI puzzles. I beg you.
@Steve It's referring to something turning bad, like a 3 week old tomato in the bottom of the veggie drawer in your fridge.
@Ruby Probably a generational thing--maybe like mine when having to figure out musicians from the last 20 years. If you were following the Olympics or middle distance running in the 80's (30+ years ago, when I had hair...) then Seb COE would be well known. He's been in the puzzle a fair amount, but COE is more often clued by the college in a crossword favored state, Iowa. Here's a bit about Seb from Wikipedia: "As a middle-distance runner, Coe won four Olympic medals, including 1500 metres gold medals at the Olympic Games in 1980 and 1984. He set nine outdoor and three indoor world records in middle-distance track events – including, in 1979, setting three world records in the space of 41 days – and the world record he set in the 800 metres in 1981 remained unbroken until 1997."
@Eric I agree. GOESIPO is not in the language. IPO standalone sure is. Example- "XYZ Co IPO'ed at a valuation of $..."
@Andrzej I must correct you, sir. You are not spamming; you are making valuable contributions to this forum. I look forward to your commentary.
@Nancy. J I really like this helpful and well-meaning suggestion of yours. Wish there were more of this ILK and fewer of the pejorative kind. Thank youu!
Really not great with my knowledge of Shakespearean fairy queens. I had the M and the A; did not want to do the alphabet run; looked at 29 Down and confidently filled in S. Yess, MAS! While that answer was wrong it did make 29 Down pretty funny.
@George Wow, that is quite an accomplishment! Congratulations.
The clue for GOON is fine as it is. Appropriately vague given the day of the week. Just gonna say though, that GOON as an answer has some big time 'dook' potential. Happy Easter, weekend if you are among those you celebrate. If you are not, please be aware that there's a lot of chocolate out there...