tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post8630750369506440601..comments2024-03-28T13:41:34.612-04:00Comments on Rex Parker Does the NYT Crossword Puzzle: Music critic Nat / TUE 4-22-14 / 1963 John Wayne comedy western / Onetime SNL-type show / Smoky-voiced Eartha / Insurer with duck mascot / Rex Parkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16145707733877505087noreply@blogger.comBlogger61125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-55112561183567839682022-09-17T13:48:11.840-04:002022-09-17T13:48:11.840-04:00Naticks on a Tuesday?!
The clue for POKE is simpl...Naticks on a <i>Tuesday</i>?!<br /><br />The clue for POKE is simply wrong: it's a combinative form meaning a person. slow-poke is a dawdler; cow-poke is a herder. POKE on its own is ... well, look in Merriam-Webster, for example.<br /><br />AGIO is a term I've probably seen in another puzzle, but it's not something I've run into, even in my international travels. It's simply the "spread", "fee", or some pejorative. Crossing with Uganda's capital airlifts 1A just outside Boston.Prunehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00224476641730508311noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-40829631096576477882014-05-27T15:50:23.516-04:002014-05-27T15:50:23.516-04:00My otherwise pristine grid was spoiled when my sca...My otherwise pristine grid was spoiled when my scanner picked up an APB on the Uhf frequency used by the local cops. IGOOFED. AGIO and LEE were "sounds plausible" guesses (ala @DMG) and HENTOFF went in entirely on crosses.<br /><br />My two pair bow to @Waxy's house.<br /><br />@DMG - I think that's what you call an oxymoronic phrase (or wishful thinking).Dirigonzohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03903353503511480168noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-84123507453744048272014-05-27T15:41:04.863-04:002014-05-27T15:41:04.863-04:00Thin theme, if you can even call it that. I also h...Thin theme, if you can even call it that. I also hunted for some hidden gem in the puzzle to pull the TICK TOCKs together or give them some time-related meaning. CMON, Ed, something? The "Fs" rounding the corner are my grade for this puz.<br /><br />@Waxy, I've got my doigts crossed for you.<br /><br />@DMG, your capcha is an old pirate saying about bygone ethics.Solving in Seattlehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04249420848844874936noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-36837463367670687172014-05-27T14:35:16.825-04:002014-05-27T14:35:16.825-04:00Kept waiting for TICK/TOCK to lead to something, a...Kept waiting for TICK/TOCK to lead to something, and finished wondering if I had missed some cleverly hidden something. Guess not. Did Natick out where the unknown critic crossed the unknown sports figure, but will take credit for correctly guessing the "L" in LEE, if credit is given for "or sounds plausible" guesses. Seem to recall in college test scores deducted some multiple of wrong answers to discourage the just-check-anything guess.<br /><br />No numbers for me today, but I'm sure there is some message in my Captcha: suchwar scrupleDMGnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-15305710160463233772014-05-27T11:14:49.983-04:002014-05-27T11:14:49.983-04:00EEKS. The first shaded area being TICK, I tried to...EEKS. The first shaded area being TICK, I tried to guess what the theme might be. Though [THE TICK!] is one of my fave superheroes, I doubt you could come up with five more 4-letter ones of those. Even if you acronymize The Ever-Lovin' Blue-Eyed Thing to ELBET, or include sidekicks (ROBIN), that's still five. So, maybe we were dealing with insects.<br /><br />Ah, no. The next one--as were they all, BTW--was a gimme. Tsk, @Rex: you're a New Yorker and didn't know the two types of STOCK, preferred and COMMON? So now we have TICK TOCK, and I thought, good grief, we're not just gonna TICKOFF four more seconds, are we? Is that all there is?<br /><br />Uh, yeah. That's it. And in addition to those repeated words, we have two entries ending in OFF intersecting. Plus we have EEKS atop EKES, AOKS, SCTV, AMOF and UTNE...CMON, man!<br /><br />The last themer, with its clue, elicited a chuckle, and saved this one from an F to one of Peppermint Patty's dreaded D-minuses.<br /><br />I thought STUCCO was a material, not a decoration. Just a 3-digit address this time; I've been dealt out. <br />spacecraftnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-14477887934677016572014-05-27T10:23:27.156-04:002014-05-27T10:23:27.156-04:00Quite a bland Tuesday puzzle - didn't really T...Quite a bland Tuesday puzzle - didn't really TICKle my fancy other than AGIO, CLARO and HENTOFF, all new to me but readily available from their crosses. Guessing BOS is a synonym for livesTOCK.<br /><br />Tried to squeeze KERMIT into 33D. Obviously I GOOFED, confusing "Rubber Duckie" with "It's not easy being green".<br /><br />3 5's and a pair of 8's.<br /><br />GO HABS GO!Waxy in Montrealhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04395751487137805245noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-43062250845662828942014-05-27T09:26:13.923-04:002014-05-27T09:26:13.923-04:00Is it a coincidence that McLinTOCK is the blatantl...Is it a coincidence that McLinTOCK is the blatantly sexist movie in which John Wayne shows Maureen O'Hara who's boss by delivering a good swatting to her butTOCK?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-10321412330547716642014-04-22T23:30:07.264-04:002014-04-22T23:30:07.264-04:00"Repent, Harlequin!""Repent, Harlequin!"<br />Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15339432172410182520noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-15060483497989554842014-04-22T21:05:55.611-04:002014-04-22T21:05:55.611-04:00Late to the party. Kinda fun. I'll leave it at...Late to the party. Kinda fun. I'll leave it at that.retired_chemisthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13181126754941899228noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-8966009011913509732014-04-22T16:22:57.965-04:002014-04-22T16:22:57.965-04:00Any reference to a Muppet is a good reference! Th...Any reference to a Muppet is a good reference! That part made me smile.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-76238228362355341782014-04-22T16:15:48.018-04:002014-04-22T16:15:48.018-04:00M&A: 1:40 on that one. Also had no idea abo...M&A: 1:40 on that one. Also had no idea about 4down. Particularly liked 11across.Benkonoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-6481047289500672322014-04-22T16:09:25.622-04:002014-04-22T16:09:25.622-04:00@moly shu: I also put ENTEBBE in at first.
Sure,...@moly shu: I also put ENTEBBE in at first.<br /><br />Sure, this puzzle was pretty terrible. But I still liked it--because the only part I remember is that half moon BUTTOCK.Benkonoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-62511020723843323832014-04-22T15:46:00.305-04:002014-04-22T15:46:00.305-04:00Midday report of relative difficulty (see my 8/1/2...Midday report of relative difficulty (see my 8/1/2009 post for an explanation of my method and my 10/15/2012 post for an explanation of a tweak to my method):<br /><br />All solvers (median solve time, average for day of week, ratio, percentile, rating)<br /><br />Tue 6:42, 8:16, 0.81, 4%, Easy<br /><br />Top 100 solvers<br /><br />Tue 4:33, 5:07, 0.89, 13%, Easysanfranman59https://www.blogger.com/profile/15118732156312301425noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-59270522001031559742014-04-22T15:14:36.821-04:002014-04-22T15:14:36.821-04:00@BobK: yep. 5-D was the clock-stoppin fill I was t...@BobK: yep. 5-D was the clock-stoppin fill I was thinkin of. Always makes me nervous, usin an obscure name that doesn't have the coveted used-before-by-Patrick-Berry immunity. Sorry about that. Leaves speed solvers askin for seconds, I'll betcha. <br />Will try to do better.<br /><br />"Full complEment"? day-um. Wrong again, M&A breath. It's hell bein the comic relief, when U can't spell worth a suey.<br />Will try to do better.<br /><br />On the non-amateur side of the ledger, I had lots of fun solvin this TuesPuz, even if the TICKs and TOCKs started gettin pretty obvious, as time passed. And, like @Lewis, learned what a BOS was, when it ain't wearin Red Sox. <br /><br />M&A<br /><br />Last Silver Bull Wootnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-92017096846746585182014-04-22T14:24:54.743-04:002014-04-22T14:24:54.743-04:00@M&A - My clock stopped at 5:08. 5D was not i...@M&A - My clock stopped at 5:08. 5D was not in my mental database, I'm afraid.Bob Kerfufflehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02615811802419025933noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-56272586375148562022014-04-22T14:17:23.166-04:002014-04-22T14:17:23.166-04:00it's "full complement", not "fu...it's "full complement", not "full compliment"Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-71132783086023429282014-04-22T13:40:51.981-04:002014-04-22T13:40:51.981-04:00p.s.
Hey!-- EEKS and EKES! Reminds me of a complim...p.s.<br />Hey!-- EEKS and EKES! Reminds me of a complimentary runtpuz I once made...<br />www.xwordinfo.com/Solve?id=1932&id2=461<br /><br />The above runtpuz don't tick. But it does have some fill that'd stop a clock...<br /><br />M&AM and Alsonoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-85416767188748642902014-04-22T13:15:29.574-04:002014-04-22T13:15:29.574-04:00This is a puz for the newbies, to give them a feel...This is a puz for the newbies, to give them a feeling of success, and that in itself will override its lack of spark. <br /><br />While not a drudge, I felt no great reward from it. As someone said earlier, it could have been spit out by a machine. A reveal as someone suggested earlier like "are you asleep yet" would have given the puzzle more cohesiveness.<br /><br />Never heard of CLARO or BOS, so thank you for those bits of knowledge, Ed. Someone earlier called Nat Hentoff a random music critic, and no, he is upper tier.<br /><br />I wanted to see BAR after KITT and KAT.Lewishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09709142959535977331noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-90908404505673005982014-04-22T12:58:46.146-04:002014-04-22T12:58:46.146-04:00Hypnotizing theme. As @CascoKid suggests, needs a...Hypnotizing theme. As @CascoKid suggests, needs a punchline. Maybe 8-D could be wENTOFF...? The 8-D positioning ain't super for a punchline, and then you'd have yer crossin OFFs, so... no. <br />Oh, oh, oh ... how'bout if 57-D was DONG? Then U got yer chimes goin for yah at the finish. Good? Or too alarmin?<br /><br />@BobK: I sense your urgent concern, re: the use of the sacred MonPuz MOO/cow combo over here in the TuesPuz. Would normally be a major gaff, but has been deftly balanced by the "Cow genus" = BOS little WTF-er weeject. Nice. Not only that, they threw in KITT for KAT and SINE for COSEC. More primo saves. Downright artistic.<br /><br />Luvin AOKS. Raises the bar. Needs AOKIS, to finish things off, artistically. Kinda like STUCCO does.<br /><br />ahar moment: "Full compliment of dwarfs" = SEVEN. Well, all righty, then. Had always wondered about that. Raises some crucial followup questions, tho...<br /><br />* What if they want to field an NFL team?<br />* What would a full compliment of DWARVES be?<br />* Can I get an extra complimentary dwarf, if I extend my stay?<br />* Do dwarfs ever compliment each other? ("Nice diamond pick!", etc.)<br />* What is a full compliment of Snow Whites? (Can I get an extra set, if I extend my stay?)<br />* What if U get a Grumpy one? Is it because he ain't full? Or didn't get complimented enough as a child? If I can't get more than seven, can I at least do exchanges?<br />* What is a full compliment of weejects?<br />* What do U call a 7 by 7 runtpuz, if U wish to be fully complimentary?<br /><br />M&AMasked and Anonymo5Usnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-65419590037181367072014-04-22T12:53:55.768-04:002014-04-22T12:53:55.768-04:00Anonymous said:
":-) is an emoticon, not an ...Anonymous said:<br /><br />":-) is an emoticon, not an icon."<br /><br />And of course "emoticon" is a portmanteau of "emotion icon". So an emoticon is a type of icon.<br />Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15339432172410182520noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-80336733603924271082014-04-22T12:49:06.976-04:002014-04-22T12:49:06.976-04:00I for one was pleased to see HENTOFF. Nat is a lo...I for one was pleased to see HENTOFF. Nat is a long-time piece of crosswordese (Note: Nat's not a natick.) His daughter, Jessica the Circus Lady, is a long-time friend of mine. I always tell her when her dad makes the puzzle, but this time I got to tell her that her last name was in the puzzle. <br /><br />(FWIW, I once told her that her daughter made the puzzle--sort of. Her daughter Elliana was the first female human cannonball for Ringling. When a puzzle some months back had HUMANCANNONBALL as an answer, I said it counted as Elliana.)Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15339432172410182520noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-62329194722075932722014-04-22T12:42:20.859-04:002014-04-22T12:42:20.859-04:00:-) is an emoticon, not an icon.:-) is an emoticon, not an icon.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-40967221900764559702014-04-22T12:40:28.991-04:002014-04-22T12:40:28.991-04:00To move the theme towards earth day, why not have ...To move the theme towards earth day, why not have a morbid Haiku using the words around the "Ticks" and "Tocks" (with the 's' in area borrowed from the next row down.<br /><br />I go to sea so<br />Entire areas dear<br />Lie open to die<br /><br />So our countdown to destruction at least captures the enthusiasm I had for today's DNF as I choked in the midwest and northwest, and had to Google a few names elsewhere... I guess there is always next week.Dr.CBeckerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05623915552813790158noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-88009043665883373772014-04-22T12:26:55.945-04:002014-04-22T12:26:55.945-04:00Easy-medium. I thought the theme was ok for a Tue...Easy-medium. I thought the theme was ok for a Tuesday, but wanted some revealer--Ke$ha song maybe. Had to verify all the crosses for HENTOFF and the clue for 33d ERNIE seemed hard.jdvnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-11585576744069236642014-04-22T12:24:07.786-04:002014-04-22T12:24:07.786-04:00@mac, I often wondered why cows are sometimes name...@mac, I often wondered why cows are sometimes named Bossie. I suppose its because of their genus -- never thought of that.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com