tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post7834709422570119457..comments2024-03-29T10:29:48.789-04:00Comments on Rex Parker Does the NYT Crossword Puzzle: Former captial of Crete / THU 3-11-10 / * Savahl couture label / * Green 1987 LPGA Rookie of year / Rathskeller coolerRex Parkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16145707733877505087noreply@blogger.comBlogger95125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-68224640660090523402010-04-15T14:47:17.238-04:002010-04-15T14:47:17.238-04:00Easiest Thursday since Tammie Green won her rookie...Easiest Thursday since Tammie Green won her rookie award. Methinks Ron Cey should be in the NYT crossword far more often, if not for his unusual name, at least in homage to his awkward yet effective running style which led him to be labelled forever in the knarly knolls of baseballese as "The Penguin".Waxy in Montrealhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04395751487137805245noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-71072907993151120142010-04-15T12:50:19.299-04:002010-04-15T12:50:19.299-04:00I liked it - easy but satisfying. Except for the 5...I liked it - easy but satisfying. Except for the 58D natick. I wanted AAHS for 54D before going with ASoS (spelling? scratch head). That left me with DERiO BOK--acceptable until I came here and found it was my first name. D'OH<br /><br />bleter -- me whining and snivelling.TimeTravellernoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-24039931268286294192010-04-15T12:46:28.399-04:002010-04-15T12:46:28.399-04:00A note from syndication land...
Today is the 98th...A note from syndication land...<br /><br />Today is the 98th anniversary of the sinking of the RMS Titanic.<br /><br />Interesting coincidence.Scortchhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05476651490237052437noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-79972011541618422472010-03-12T16:49:52.479-05:002010-03-12T16:49:52.479-05:00I'm happy to have done a Thursday at all, so t...I'm happy to have done a Thursday at all, so today was a good day. Nevertheless, I cannot suppress my couple of WTFs...<br /><br />Not only do I recoil at Martin's explanation of "Alphabet web", what the hell is "Variety"? <br /><br />I think there is a golf course in South Hadley, Mass that has "KNOLLS" in the name. To me it was a great clue. I used to live there. Even so I forgot the name. Why? I was busy doing ORALS, which is *not* defending a thesis.<br /><br />Finally, "expresses wonder"? Wonder does not mean ignorance! Wonder is a magical state of mind that one hopes to encounter frequently, but ASKS is so flaccid a clue and so far off the essence that one wonders who made up the clue. Me asks.Stephenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16911901473993027184noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-89743205818015535672010-03-12T16:49:22.735-05:002010-03-12T16:49:22.735-05:00I'm happy to have done a Thursday at all, so t...I'm happy to have done a Thursday at all, so today was a good day. Nevertheless, I cannot suppress my couple of WTFs...<br /><br />Not only do I recoil at Martin's explanation of "Alphabet web", what the hell is "Variety"? <br /><br />I think there is a golf course in South Hadley, Mass that has "KNOLLS" in the name. To me it was a great clue. I used to live there. Even so I forgot the name. Why? I was busy doing ORALS, which is *not* defending a thesis.<br /><br />Finally, "expresses wonder"? Wonder does not mean ignorance! Wonder is a magical state of mind that one hopes to encounter frequently, but ASKS is so flaccid a clue and so far off the essence that one wonders who made up the clue. Me asks.Stephenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16911901473993027184noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-91063537685724545822010-03-12T15:07:44.795-05:002010-03-12T15:07:44.795-05:00I submitted a comment that the Wordplay moderator ...I submitted a comment that the Wordplay moderator apparently felt was off-putting, namely, the following, "Susan, since you stated that, who remembers Joe Palooka?" well being that I'm still oxygen dependent, not only do I readily recall Ham Fisher's hugely popular comic strip, but I also remember JP's most formidable ring opponent, the riotously rotund, "Humphrey Pennyworth!"CaseAceFoshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08790502576006684050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-20322922323243333692010-03-12T00:10:17.877-05:002010-03-12T00:10:17.877-05:00@sandy: thank you!
@HudsonHawk: right!@sandy: thank you!<br />@HudsonHawk: right!machttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06794371617847975218noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-80871385560675465042010-03-11T23:29:37.551-05:002010-03-11T23:29:37.551-05:00This felt like my fastest Thursday ever. I was sh...This felt like my fastest Thursday ever. I was shocked how fast it went down. I took it to bed assuming I'd fall asleep before finishing it (as I often do with late week puzzles) I even left my book in the living room, thinking I wouldn't need it. I ended up having to get up to retrieve it after the puzzle went so quickly. I'm sure I'll be put back in my place on Fri and Sat.nebraska dougnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-6432562538826795212010-03-11T23:18:25.041-05:002010-03-11T23:18:25.041-05:00This week's relative difficulty ratings. See m...This week's relative difficulty ratings. See my <a href="https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=35115061&postID=3588389571383499624&isPopup=true" rel="nofollow">7/30/2009 post</a> for an explanation. In a nutshell, the higher the ratio, the higher this week's median solve time is relative to the average for the corresponding day of the week.<br /><br />All solvers (this week's median solve time, average for day of week, ratio, percentile, rating)<br /><br />Mon 6:35, 6:55, 0.95, 40%, Easy-Medium<br />Tue 11:47, 8:53, 1.33, 97%, Challenging<br />Wed 9:57, 11:47, 0.84, 13%, Easy<br />Thu 13:35, 19:21, 0.70, 4%, Easy<br /><br />Top 100 solvers<br /><br />Mon 3:36, 3:40, 0.98, 49%, Medium<br />Tue 5:24, 4:31, 1.19, 87%, Challenging<br />Wed 4:43, 5:46, 0.82, 12%, Easy<br />Thu 7:06, 9:16, 0.77, 9%, Easy<br /><br />This ranks as the 8th easiest puzzle for all solvers (relative to the day of the week) of the 225 I've tracked since last June.sanfranman59https://www.blogger.com/profile/15118732156312301425noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-26782873016076514132010-03-11T22:57:35.091-05:002010-03-11T22:57:35.091-05:00@william e emba, @glitch, @banana--many thanks for...@william e emba, @glitch, @banana--many thanks for the explanation!Charles Boglehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15667976595355657752noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-11483085550947805282010-03-11T21:41:05.157-05:002010-03-11T21:41:05.157-05:00All good until BoSox/XKES cross. I mean huh?
Oh w...All good until BoSox/XKES cross. I mean huh?<br /><br />Oh well.Ceahttp://jamsandchutney.wordpress.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-54435162346139589982010-03-11T21:15:57.603-05:002010-03-11T21:15:57.603-05:00Um, well some knowledge of Spanish-related surname...Um, well some knowledge of Spanish-related surnames helps with CEY, in case one is not old enough to get the name via sheer memory. (He was a Great.) <br /><br />Maybe I have just cooked too many meals, but TASTED popped up at once, and I would have had to struggle to find TESTED. (This is not a dare, dear constructors!) <br /><br />captcha is 'nessitab'-- pill that one just MUST have! after solvingElainehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13195458656221202202noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-91324880019640450142010-03-11T21:11:34.072-05:002010-03-11T21:11:34.072-05:00@Glitch-
Funny you should mention PEN-a-lope. As...@Glitch-<br /><br />Funny you should mention PEN-a-lope. As a youngster reading about the Trojan War and Odysseus's problems getting home -I was too young for reading the Iliad and the Odyssey - I had major problems parsing Greek names. I remember being embarrassed by pronouncing Achilles name as A-chiles.Bill from NJhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10103923612595508277noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-9395364830688860432010-03-11T20:59:42.424-05:002010-03-11T20:59:42.424-05:00@Bill nj
Until I found out about the Berman pun c...@Bill nj<br /><br />Until I found out about the Berman pun connection, Cey = Cy = Sigh, phonetically, in my head.<br /><br />Goes way back to when I first read the name *Penelope* and verbalized it as PEN-a-lope.<br /><br /><br /><br />.../GlitchSneaking a 4thnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-61202816131451312342010-03-11T19:33:26.414-05:002010-03-11T19:33:26.414-05:00This one posed no trouble for me as I recalled in ...This one posed no trouble for me as I recalled in the Maleska Era the word CANEA popped up from time to time. Thank you, Glitch, for detailing its actual dates - all in1996 - and it is funny how we crossword people dig things up out of the recesses of our brains.<br /><br />And I may not be reading you correctly, but Ron CEY pronounces his name to rhyme with SAY, not CY, hence Chris Berman's pun.<br /><br />@Edith B-<br /><br />It never ceases to amaze me how our solving experience can be so similar. I had the exact pattern of thinking that you did for the "mashup" of names at TAMMIE/EMA/CEY.Bill from NJhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10103923612595508277noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-89331649879158465742010-03-11T18:56:28.797-05:002010-03-11T18:56:28.797-05:003-and-out comment.
I love it (and find it strange...3-and-out comment.<br /><br />I love it (and find it strange) that an individual BoSox is a BoSox (or Red Sox is a Red Sox). But it's true--you can check their web page.Stanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02681342234536407419noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-54004897386310498572010-03-11T18:50:59.062-05:002010-03-11T18:50:59.062-05:00Late to the party defending the theme here, but al...Late to the party defending the theme here, but all comments on Naticks and solving experience aside, this thing is built like a brick s&*thouse.<br /><br />Other than 'Shazaam' (sp.?), the across theme phrases are the most easily recognizable 'incantatory' ones in the language. Who didn't get them with a few crosses? And they happen to break down into 10-11-10 on the grid. And the diagonal question and answer are just as recognizable.<br /><br />I'm agreed on the Naticky bits. But thematically, this exceeds expectations for a Thursday.Stanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02681342234536407419noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-13039028557740448182010-03-11T18:41:44.587-05:002010-03-11T18:41:44.587-05:00@william e emba
It appears this is the NYT debut ...@william e emba<br /><br />It appears this is the NYT debut of LUCRETIA<br /><br />Not ever hear[ing of] Berman, the US part of the clue was a personal olaf. Picked CeY because it sounded like the award (Cy Young).<br /><br />CANEA has appeared 3 times, all in 1996. Good memory!<br /><br />Appreciate you agree with my 1:27<br /><br />That's 3.<br /><br />.../GlitchGlitchhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14940000404613329056noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-46277022192590630372010-03-11T18:33:03.537-05:002010-03-11T18:33:03.537-05:00I think the reason for CAENA, CHANIA, and HANYA ar...I think the reason for CAENA, CHANIA, and HANYA are all options is because the first letter, at least as written in the Arabic alphabet, depicts a sound that is guttural, has no real equivalent in English and sounds like the German CH in "Ach"...<br /><br />@Andrea, I love the DEREK Bok/Bo Derek story. His name always rang a bell with me but I never made the connection!foodiehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13052189131129098616noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-83812893455825226972010-03-11T18:20:44.544-05:002010-03-11T18:20:44.544-05:00As a Dodger fan of the 70s had no trouble coming u...As a Dodger fan of the 70s had no trouble coming up with their third baseman, Cey, but c'mon how many Dodgers surnames are there with three letters??<br /><br />XKE was a gimme so that immediately gave me BoSox as a rival. On the whole, very enjoyable Thursday puzzle - and I never bother with the circled clues, just happy to do the puzzle.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-71630826983835130632010-03-11T17:26:43.977-05:002010-03-11T17:26:43.977-05:00Pretty easy, except for the NE, because I had Goog...Pretty easy, except for the NE, because I had Google APPS at first, and then went with BIO-balance, and it took forever to unwedge myself. Yet I'm sure we've seen LUCRETIA Garfield before.<br /><br />I had absolutely no trouble getting CEY, because Rex went on and on about him about six months ago.<br /><br />I'm sure CANEA has been in the puzzle before. As it, I'm familiar with it because of WWII.<br /><br />2D was clued "Paddlers' craft", not "Paddler's craft". So there is more than one paddler, hence possibly more than one boat. Very sneaky, but I didn't even notice until someone asked here.william e embanoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-33891656443295616212010-03-11T17:16:10.177-05:002010-03-11T17:16:10.177-05:00@fergus,
The most common definition of "acro...@fergus,<br /><br />The most common definition of "acronym" allows inclusion of several initial letters. Most <a href="http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/acronym" rel="nofollow">dictionaries cite "radar"</a> as an example. (The first two letters are contributed by "radio," of course.)<br /><br />The related abbreviation, the initialism, differs from an acronym in not being pronounced as a word. Thus, "FBI" is not an acronym, but an initialism, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acronym_and_initialism" rel="nofollow">per this definition</a>.<br /><br />That said, there are authorities who define these terms differently. I wouldn't be surprised if you might find one who demotes an acronym that involves multiple letters to initialism. But most cite radar as an acronym.<br /><br />BOSOX is up for grabs. The irregularity is that the "SOX" component is not a shortening of the contributing word at all, so it's not clear that it's an initialism at all.Martinnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-13734606797470905882010-03-11T17:15:19.762-05:002010-03-11T17:15:19.762-05:00@fergus - Regarding NABISCO as an acronym (and was...@fergus - Regarding NABISCO as an acronym (and wasn't it refreshing to see Oreo in the clue rather than the answer?): The Wikipedia article on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acronym_and_initialism" rel="nofollow">Acronyms</a> has more information than anyone could want.<br /><br />And for everyone, you can find "Captcha" mentioned also, if you are persistent.Bob Kerfufflehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02615811802419025933noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-12477988963167626452010-03-11T16:47:28.827-05:002010-03-11T16:47:28.827-05:00Thank You @HudsonHawk. Man oh man, the weird thin...Thank You @HudsonHawk. Man oh man, the weird things you sports people do over on that channel! But, the truly stupid thing (I noticed upon reading Andrea’s post) is that I had the E in CEY from the diagonal, but it got knocked out somewhere along the way. Doh!Clarknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-34745419214956827352010-03-11T16:39:42.832-05:002010-03-11T16:39:42.832-05:00So, NABISCO is an Acronym? I guess hat would have...So, NABISCO is an Acronym? I guess hat would have to allow BOSOX to qualify as well? Had always thought that the term applied only to the use of the component words' first letters.fergushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17056002311944010536noreply@blogger.com