tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post8009760307409053058..comments2024-03-29T05:08:37.783-04:00Comments on Rex Parker Does the NYT Crossword Puzzle: Campus VIP / Stylized drama —FRI, Nov 6 2009— Far Eastern pilgrimage destination / Tall Roman column named after him / Future Lies Ahead comedian 1958Rex Parkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16145707733877505087noreply@blogger.comBlogger86125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-88299134532655976122009-12-12T01:20:12.048-05:002009-12-12T01:20:12.048-05:00My wife also also got TRAJAN's Column immediat...My wife also also got TRAJAN's Column immediately. She was just dozing off as I read the clue to her. She muttered "Trajan" and drifted off...BassManPDXhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15675654080672254349noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-65158841069049693072009-12-12T00:31:27.868-05:002009-12-12T00:31:27.868-05:00This one was rough for me, and I finally had to as...This one was rough for me, and I finally had to ask my crossword-hating wife for help to get TALUS and JULIETTE BINOCHE. After that it was some lucky guesses and running the alphabet on a few.<br /><br />TALUS is interesting because the talus bone of some animals was used as a die in gambling ("roll them bones"). <br /><br />AKELA rang a bell from way too many years ago when I was in Cub Scouts:<br /><br />The Law of the Pack<br /><br /> The Cub Scout follows Akela.<br /> The Cub Scout helps the pack go.<br /> The pack helps the Cub Scout grow.<br /> The Cub Scout gives goodwill.BassManPDXhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15675654080672254349noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-65814052241267165762009-12-11T20:16:52.689-05:002009-12-11T20:16:52.689-05:00I cannot believe that I am the only person that di...I cannot believe that I am the only person that did not understand "sexist" as "unpc".......I don't get it. PLEASE someone tell me what it is all about: captiva9999@sbcglobal.netAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-76008451679847357202009-12-11T17:53:09.367-05:002009-12-11T17:53:09.367-05:0048A: Occasional medicine dropper? FDA. Are you awa...48A: Occasional medicine dropper? FDA. Are you aware the person or persons responsible for lacing Tylenol with cyanide in the fall of 1982 has never been identified.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-56550064797099019932009-12-11T17:15:40.540-05:002009-12-11T17:15:40.540-05:00Just realized that I was thinking Rodney King - Ro...Just realized that I was thinking Rodney King - Rodney Page used to be the director of Ecumenical Ministries of Oregon. I would guess that Rod Page did have convictions, but not of the same variety as Rodney King.Singernoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-46437864844454153762009-12-11T12:43:09.279-05:002009-12-11T12:43:09.279-05:00Syndiland responds - I couldn't remember JULIE...Syndiland responds - I couldn't remember JULIETTE BINOCHE's first name. Had druid (PAGANS), der (EIN), akera (AKELA), bankers followed by sellers (TELLERS). Saw CHEVROLET immediately, got FILE and FDA relatively quickly, I CLAUDIUS popped out. DANKE was easy, as was EDNA and ICIER. OGLE and ALPHA MALE were gimmes, but MOUNT FUJI took a long time, as did the entire NE. I wanted a name for Page with convictions. I thought it would be a famous jailbird, but the only Page I could come up with was Rodney.<br /><br />The puzzle took me about 45 minutes with two Googles (JULIETTE and SAHL). I thought it was SAHL, but Googled it anyway. Bah.Singernoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-36879340919333900332009-11-07T16:04:50.264-05:002009-11-07T16:04:50.264-05:00Firefox v. 3.5.5 is out, you might want to see if ...Firefox v. 3.5.5 is out, you might want to see if that fixes the bug.Danielhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08329032090073997616noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-63120100589519363082009-11-07T09:33:59.758-05:002009-11-07T09:33:59.758-05:00@Anon 7:45a (in case you check back)
hotDOG = FRA...@Anon 7:45a (in case you check back)<br /><br />hotDOG = FRANKfurterGlitchhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14940000404613329056noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-90027287335844639872009-11-07T08:34:50.561-05:002009-11-07T08:34:50.561-05:00Never got the lower left. "Hamburger's ac...Never got the lower left. "Hamburger's acknowlegement"? Come on, that's just bad. "Best in show" also got me. Had no idea who Akela is, and I guess the viol is no longer made ("had")- tell that to the composers who are writing music for it.<br /><br />I supose if I left it for another day, I might have worked it out, but it was time to get on with my life.Willhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09382385095545716698noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-36684515947507488352009-11-07T07:45:19.281-05:002009-11-07T07:45:19.281-05:00why is dog the answer for Frank>why is dog the answer for Frank>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-79662449146136432922009-11-07T03:20:48.034-05:002009-11-07T03:20:48.034-05:00@michael
Yes, I too got JOSIE bec I was thinking a...@michael<br />Yes, I too got JOSIE bec I was thinking about the Josey Wales film too (I think with Clint Eastwood) so it was one of those things where I got the right answer for the wrong reasons, even with a different spelling) and I do think there needs to be a name for that...<br />other than "doing crosswords"!<br /><br />Someone at my Scrabble tournament referred to "playing a crossword" and it inexplicably bugged me to pieces.<br />"Solving a crossword"... "Doing a crossword"...yes. "Playing a crossword"??!! Ick.andrea and the pussycatsnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-31431952048794816792009-11-07T02:49:36.357-05:002009-11-07T02:49:36.357-05:00Got everything else, but never heard of TRAJAN, an...Got everything else, but never heard of TRAJAN, and never heard of "The Ballad of JOSIE", so I'm stuck trying NOSIE, POSIE, ROSIE, etc. Once again, a complete solve thwarted by the two proper name cross.Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10167461942166131977noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-61284237907729373962009-11-06T22:41:48.864-05:002009-11-06T22:41:48.864-05:00Wasn't able to get to the puzzle until late to...Wasn't able to get to the puzzle until late today but really enjoyed it!<br /><br />@treedweller: I can't see a reference to "The English Patient" without thinking That English Patient Movie. <br /><br />@crosscan: Totally thought Josie and the Pussycats would be a fun clue when I finally got that answer. <br /><br />Love the clue for ILLER and agree with Rex that's the only way to clue it.PuzzleGirlhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06835502266781516627noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-80688527398550873802009-11-06T22:32:49.705-05:002009-11-06T22:32:49.705-05:00I kept think that "Ballad of Josie" shou...I kept think that "Ballad of Josie" should be "Ballad of Josie Wales" and had to google to see that I was confusing two movies and it was "Josey" Wales anyhow.<br /><br /> I thought this was easier than Thursday's, which I couldn't finish because of the NW. <br /><br /> I've heard "prexy" but in terms of real-world speech, it's equivalent to "Frisco."Michaelnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-2222926994464554942009-11-06T22:02:46.003-05:002009-11-06T22:02:46.003-05:00This 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 5:48, 6:57, 0.83, 14%, Easy<br />Tue 9:38, 8:39, 1.11, 77%, Medium-Challenging<br />Wed 12:16, 11:47, 1.04, 65%, Medium-Challenging<br />Thu 16:33, 18:26, 0.90, 24%, Easy-Medium<br />Fri 26:11, 26:00, 1.01, 55%, Medium<br /><br />Top 100 solvers<br /><br />Mon 3:07, 3:42, 0.84, 15%, Easy<br />Tue 4:56, 4:26, 1.11, 80%, Challenging<br />Wed 5:55, 5:46, 1.02, 63%, Medium-Challenging<br />Thu 7:40, 8:53, 0.86, 16%, Easy<br />Fri 12:19, 12:22, 1.00, 54%, Mediumsanfranman59https://www.blogger.com/profile/15118732156312301425noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-22634973561611564202009-11-06T21:20:28.255-05:002009-11-06T21:20:28.255-05:00So far, I have not seen Rex admit that he was stum...So far, I have not seen Rex admit that he was stumped. Am I wrong? It just seems to me that a cross of two names that one simply does not recall can stump even the world's foremost puzzle champion. Am I mistaken?Mr. Bennett 310https://www.blogger.com/profile/10577316804438304788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-47502836415671700782009-11-06T20:52:19.725-05:002009-11-06T20:52:19.725-05:00@mac: Absolutely! And spelled backwards, we get &q...@mac: Absolutely! And spelled backwards, we get "god", which brings us back to the 3-letter-word OOXTEPLERNON cult that started on this blog!Ulrichhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02086202853174403008noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-80290059053025776202009-11-06T20:35:53.023-05:002009-11-06T20:35:53.023-05:00I needed all the crosses to get JULIETTE BINOCHE.
...I needed all the crosses to get JULIETTE BINOCHE.<br />Unfortunatelyt, one of those was NILES, which I needed all the crosses to get. (I guessed RILES.)<br />Otherwise, a fun puzzle.<br />Did I learn about TRAJAN's column in art history? Or visiting the Astoria column?Karen from the Capenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-54472393616766354292009-11-06T20:13:03.708-05:002009-11-06T20:13:03.708-05:00@Ulrich: do you think the "dog" in the S...@Ulrich: do you think the "dog" in the SE is a phonetic signature?machttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06794371617847975218noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-29042930731220901422009-11-06T16:55:40.815-05:002009-11-06T16:55:40.815-05:00@Bob Kerfuffle: that's it! And I had forgott...@Bob Kerfuffle: that's it! And I had forgotten the sequel, Miss Nelson is Back. <br /><br />Great literature is unforgettable, isn't it.archaeoprofhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17956231727789223463noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-84199663461550741872009-11-06T16:55:00.271-05:002009-11-06T16:55:00.271-05:00@andrea violacarla binoche michaels: I just spent...@andrea violacarla binoche michaels: I just spent a few minutes with Google images, and WOW, you are beyond correct! I shall be waiting patiently in case Mlle. Binoche wishes to stop by!!CoolPapaDhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11542059534657415505noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-30193136738525108302009-11-06T16:07:02.052-05:002009-11-06T16:07:02.052-05:00Medium for me and a fun puzzle! ICLAUDIUS was my ...Medium for me and a fun puzzle! ICLAUDIUS was my gimme. I needed some cross to ferret out JULIETTE and I've seen the movie. (Elaine was right about it BTW).jaenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-58872556558802442302009-11-06T15:59:29.134-05:002009-11-06T15:59:29.134-05:00@mac : I was given an obvious alpha mare to ride ...@mac : I was given an obvious alpha mare to ride for my french riding adventure. That experience cemented my conviction to only have geldings! My daughter's mare was very submissive and sweet. What a difference!nanpillahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05548473809500612699noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-72813663139099863952009-11-06T15:32:04.562-05:002009-11-06T15:32:04.562-05:00Midday report of relative difficulty (see my 7/30/...Midday report of relative difficulty (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 of my method):<br /><br />All solvers (median solve time, average for day of week, ratio, percentile, rating)<br /><br />Fri 26:14, 26:00, 1.01, 57%, Medium<br /><br />Top 100 solvers<br /><br />Fri 13:00, 12:24, 1.05, 70%, Medium-Challenging<br /><br />Rarely do I have the patience to stick with a puzzle for more than about 30 or 40 minutes. This one kept my interest for 56 minutes and I had the satisfaction of completing it without resorting to Google/Wikipedia (although I did confirm a few answers along the way). I found the NE and the SW to be more challenging than the other quadrants. It took me way longer than it should have to recall UMASS, SAHL, DANKE and NILES (unforgivable since I was born and raised about 60 miles from there and McKinley made his name in my home county). I'm better off doing puzzles in the morning when my brain is functioning better, but I usually can't spare the time before heading off to the office so I generally do them before retiring for the night.sanfranman59https://www.blogger.com/profile/15118732156312301425noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-69022180101849641592009-11-06T15:29:49.582-05:002009-11-06T15:29:49.582-05:00@archaeopfof:
Miss Nelson is Missing.
Love that ...@archaeopfof:<br /><br /><a href="http://books.google.com/books?id=RE96I7BFGcwC&printsec=frontcover&dq=%22Miss+Nelson+is+Missing%22&ei=rIb0SvLOC6q-ygSJ3OT1Bg#v=onepage&q=&f=false" rel="nofollow">Miss Nelson is Missing.</a><br /><br />Love that Google Books!Bob Kerfufflehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02615811802419025933noreply@blogger.com