tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post878364364411443790..comments2024-03-28T12:23:36.637-04:00Comments on Rex Parker Does the NYT Crossword Puzzle: One of renters in Steinbeck's Tortilla Flat / FRI 1-13-17 / Family name in Sir Walter Scott's Bride of Lammermoor / First one was modified Ford D-Series truck / Author with restaurant at Eiffel Tower named for himRex Parkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16145707733877505087noreply@blogger.comBlogger88125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-45458136066337180562017-02-25T04:28:50.114-05:002017-02-25T04:28:50.114-05:0041a. ARE [Updated art?] does this clue fool anyone...41a. ARE [Updated art?] does this clue fool anyone with any crossword experience? <br />Clues were too obvious for a Friday. <br />3d. STOLENBASES clue was rather verbose: [Record stat for major-leaguer Rickey Henderson]<br /><br />Lou 5a.DOBBS is a hate spewing shitgibbon. <br /><br />Smokin' at the Half Note, Wynton Kelly Trio with WES Montgomery is amazeballs!<br />Listen to it 100 times and one day you'll wake up with a whole new view of the world.<br />"Not surprisingly, Brad Mehldau and Pat. Metheny cite the same album — “Smokin’ at the Half Note,” with Wes Montgomery on guitar and Wynton Kelly on piano — as formative. "(April 8, 2007 NYT)<br /><br />Don Byasnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-50863728220971611862017-02-17T21:58:48.763-05:002017-02-17T21:58:48.763-05:00I'm with @Passing Shot on this - I finished it...I'm with @Passing Shot on this - I finished it, same day even, so it must be easy. I have no idea how you all do the Friday puzzle on a regular basis. I can almost never do it; mostly I give it a once-over, and if I can only get three or so entries, I just close the page. Today there was lots of stuff I didn't know: DOBBS, ASHTON, ANNLEE, BORNTHISWAY, PARODYACCOUNT, PABLO, but I always figure that's part of what crossword puzzles are about - puzzling out words you don't know, based in part on how letters can form words: DO_BS is probably going to be DOBBS. <br /><br />I've only heard of GESSO used as filler on cars, was very unsure of that answer for a long time.wcutlerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08615799228069705972noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-60669769745361268212017-02-17T20:02:42.748-05:002017-02-17T20:02:42.748-05:00@Rainy - The Shakers are a Christian sect located ...@Rainy - The Shakers are a Christian sect located in New England states. They are well-known for their simple furniture, made by hand, and their chastity. No sex. Waiting in purity for the second coming. <br /><br />They began in the early 1800's, but their numbers have greatly dwindled, as you can imagine. Last I heard there were a few "recent converts" left - a handful. I had an aunt who used to work at a Shaker museum. <br /><br />Diana, Lady who knows about waitingDiana,LIWnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-42116390183993505502017-02-17T16:00:54.974-05:002017-02-17T16:00:54.974-05:00Oh what the heck, I'll comment. I'm not a...Oh what the heck, I'll comment. I'm not a morning person, and yesterday I babysat my grandson for 8 hours. Spending that time with a 17-month old who doesn't sleep is a workout. So had some WHISKY last night and slept in. There. I know you all wanted to hear that.<br /><br />Did yesterday's puzzle in the late afternoon - liked it a lot. SPLIT IN TWO, just like 3 themers. <br /><br />Today's was also a treat. I think I am in the minority when I say that I remember EFREM Zimbalist Jr. from 77 Sunset Strip (Kookie, lend me your comb).<br />Don't know ANN LEE (what's a Shaker?), and my upper lip curls at the mention of Lou DOBBS. HAVEL was nice, and I didn't try to see it as a reference to an American Prez. <br /><br />There was A LOT of good stuff in here and some great cluing. Really liked it.<br />rain forestnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-83040195612553878552017-02-17T15:07:00.979-05:002017-02-17T15:07:00.979-05:00Didn't find this easy. Keys to finishing:
...Didn't find this easy. Keys to finishing:<br /><br /> POPEMOBILE (good one)<br /> RYEWHISKY (unknown, spelling)<br /> BORNTHISWAY (lost memory)<br /> PARODYACCOUNT (okay)<br /> HAVEL (nice misdirect)<br /> COSANOSTRA (another good one)<br /><br />Actually, they all were good.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /> <br /><br /><br />leftcoastTAMnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-10332382595101094502017-02-17T13:44:42.312-05:002017-02-17T13:44:42.312-05:00Had it 95% done, so knew it would get an easy rati...Had it 95% done, so knew it would get an easy rating from Rex.<br /><br />Had SKiresoRts up top, and checked for accuracy, so that brought on a dnf. But once SKATEPARKS was in I completed it. Not that I've heard of an entire park devoted to skating - rinks yes. "aramas" yes. Part of a park - yes. But I'm not bitter.<br /><br />I love it when those long answers come to me and make the solve easier.<br /><br />Diana, Lady-in-Waiting for CrosswordsDiana,LIWnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-40374311572817894532017-02-17T13:42:47.549-05:002017-02-17T13:42:47.549-05:00Great puzzle. Second day in a row for fair, fun, a...Great puzzle. Second day in a row for fair, fun, and rewarding solves. Very satisfying to complete.<br /><br />Easy? NOT!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-32416795884437463112017-02-17T12:40:11.591-05:002017-02-17T12:40:11.591-05:00IVE got one write-over today, smack dab in the mid...IVE got one write-over today, smack dab in the middle, that A in SAX started out as an E. That long across coulda been a PARODY E-something at that point, but no. Just LUST causing that, I guess, but no yeah baby to confirm it, except Lady Gaga in the clue I spose.<br /><br />STOLENBASES a real gimme. I woulda clued DOBBS as the F-Troop bugler, that’s Friday tough.<br /><br />A rare happening that the POLICE are on top of the COSANOSTRA. And now I see @spacey beat me to the punch. Great minds.<br /><br />I, too, was wondering about the E-less RYEWHISKY. Explained above.<br /><br />A fine puz, this one. Thanks to OFL for the BORNTHISWAY video. Yeah baby.<br />rondonoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-35711286818702664102017-02-17T12:17:37.136-05:002017-02-17T12:17:37.136-05:00I asked the chief of POLICE what he was doing abou...I asked the chief of POLICE what he was doing about the COSANOSTRA problem. He replied "We're right on top of it. See?" and showed me this grid.<br /><br />ATON of this stuff I didn't know. Probably true of many--but different stuff for different folks. Those who do not follow sports might go "Ricky WHO??" For me that was a welcome gimme. OTOH, I never read "Little Women" (gasp!), but still knew the family name was MARCH, so that was, like, a half-gimme. Finally remembered Lou DOBBS to clear up the north.<br /><br />Is PARODYACCOUNT a thing? Tech-savvy I am NOT. This looks like one of those "phrases" that Wheel of Fortune puts together: random words juxtaposed that don't at all yield a common phrase. But the down letters were insistent. The rest of the middle section made more sense and thus came quicker. Had SEEY______ but waited, saving myself a w/o. I too was thinking See ya later at first.<br /><br />DOD Lady Gaga led me into the south. Didn't know the album (I know, maybe, five album titles in the entire history of music), but with __RNTH_____ to start I grokked the rest. The title explains a lot about her, I guess. Someone above actually LIKED those single-letter jobs? TENK, GENX, TYPEA? Wow, we really ARE different folks. If we absolutely must have ADE in our puzzle, bring back George. I know it's yet another PPP, but at least it's a WORD. Either that or clue it as a suffix. Please.<br /><br />Despite the nits picked above, I thought there was much to admire here. Certainly the triumph factor is high. Maybe not OSKAR material, but a birdie. spacecraftnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-15757939404749972852017-02-17T11:43:41.491-05:002017-02-17T11:43:41.491-05:00SENSES EVOLVE
IVE DECIDEd PORE GENXers ARE LOST O...SENSES EVOLVE<br /><br />IVE DECIDEd PORE GENXers ARE LOST ORE BLASÉ,<br />OUR night OWLS never ACTUP NOR RAVE like TYPEA.<br />Their SIN is LUST for the LURE<br />to ASK for SAX that’s SEW PURE,<br />they’ll say, ”SEEYOUSOON, we were just BORNTHISWAY.”<br /><br />--- OSKAR “LUTE” HAVEL<br />Burma Shavenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-83153605482448251042017-01-14T10:20:40.905-05:002017-01-14T10:20:40.905-05:00@paulsfo - The title includes the surname, the ans...@paulsfo - The title includes the surname, the answer is the character's first name. Seems fine to me.Zhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16181544219511150272noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-46517544699811115192017-01-14T09:35:44.141-05:002017-01-14T09:35:44.141-05:00I've never seen another "title character&...I've never seen another "title character" clue where the answer *wasn't* actually in the title. Does that clue seem illegitimate to antone else, for OSKAR?paulsfohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07721639286466422944noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-29178259127767254462017-01-14T08:26:11.809-05:002017-01-14T08:26:11.809-05:00@QuasiMojo - This@QuasiMojo - <a href="https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=GvXUORrQoZ8" rel="nofollow">This</a>Zhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16181544219511150272noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-20781514381325851142017-01-14T00:56:24.935-05:002017-01-14T00:56:24.935-05:00It's a classic novel. Ltitle Women.It's a classic novel. Ltitle Women. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-2763051893812396622017-01-13T20:29:55.053-05:002017-01-13T20:29:55.053-05:00This comment has been removed by the author.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10376254457254702735noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-37840643607892607192017-01-13T19:15:56.486-05:002017-01-13T19:15:56.486-05:00Yep, easy for me too. ste before MME was my only...Yep, easy for me too. ste before MME was my only erasure and most of this was in my wheelhouse, e.g. Ricky finished his career with the Padres so his record was discussed a lot on the local sports page. <br /><br />ASHTON was a WOE as clued, but @numinous, if the clue had been say "Mila's sitcom co-star" or "Demi's ex"....<br /><br />Solid with plenty of zip, liked it!<br /><br />Re: Just how hard was the Tues. puzzle: Neil Patrick Harris was on a morning show today and they cut to him waiting to come on doing the NYT puzzle. They said something about being smart and doing a Fri. puzzle and he said it was Tuesday's. They asked him how long he'd been working on it and he said since Tuesday. jaehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03385568014046336373noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-5340803758649809412017-01-13T17:24:44.169-05:002017-01-13T17:24:44.169-05:00A big, big thanks to the person who changed my Rex...A big, big thanks to the person who changed my Rexworld life by introducing me to the F3 key! I've been using it...and using it...and using it to track down unannotated references to previous comments. Just today alone, I tracked down Malsdemare's reference to Lindsay; Leapfinger's ref to foxeroni; GILL's ref to jberg; Quasi's ref to Z -- the list goes on. I might not have bothered in the past, but it's all so effortless now. And who, oh who, I wondered, told me about the F3 key? For the life of me, I couldn't remember. I <i>never</i> would have remembered. But I tracked it down. How did I track it down? <i>I used the F3 key!</i> And so I can now thank the person responsible. <i>Thank you, @r.alphbunker!</i>Nancyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16737377749030219974noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-41545447038726907422017-01-13T16:45:26.173-05:002017-01-13T16:45:26.173-05:00Ok, this may be apocryphal but I recall reading th...Ok, this may be apocryphal but I recall reading that Scotch whisky is spelled with no E. Irish whiskey gets spelled with an E to help distinguish them. In the Americas, Bourbon is spelled whiskey while Canadian RYEs are whiskys. I have to wonder because the difference between Scotch and Irish was supposedly decreed but to my mind that came before English spelling was becoming fixed. <br /><br />When I taught Basic Faire Accent at Renaissance Faire workshops in Southern California I worked from a pamphlet based on scholarly works. I've no idea what they were. However, I did some reading in a book I found of sailors tales that was printed in the original random spellings of the age. What amazed me was that I could hear the voices in my head pronouncing in just the way I was teaching. So it would seem too me that spellings were based on the way the writer would say the words. Numinoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01263999193499725814noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-3635769855316531712017-01-13T16:26:13.066-05:002017-01-13T16:26:13.066-05:00Who can forget 77 Sunset Strip and the star with t...Who can forget 77 Sunset Strip and the star with the name @Loren couldn't pronounce? I mighta wanted it spelt EFRaiM but I managed to give him his E in the end. My first in-laws were both painters so GESSO is solidly in my awareness. Especially since father-in-law used to paint on the textured side of Masonite. <br /><br />@mathgent, I suspect Chuck Norris's taciturnity in films probably has to do with his ability, or lack thereof, to read lines. I think his prowess was in other areas.<br /><br />@Quasi, I've been in several Museums of Natural History that all had dioramas. Haven't there been some movies set in Natural History Museums where characters from the dioramas come to life and do stuff? <br /><br />WES Montgomery was a gimme. The Bride of Lammermoor? Lady GAGA albums? Little women? Residents of Tortilla Flat? I figured out PABLO at least. The only ASHTON I know is Kutcher. I haven't got round to reading it yet but I vaguely knew about the MARCH sisters. BETH dies? Really? Damn! now it's ruined for me. So I did a little bit of googling and finished this in just about average time which would also be @Rex X 10. Not a bad puzzzle at all.Numinoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01263999193499725814noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-81967191207251001002017-01-13T16:10:49.605-05:002017-01-13T16:10:49.605-05:00@jberg, I never read it as a girl because other gi...@jberg, I never read it as a girl because other girls told me it was sad. So now that I'm of a certain age and know, I'm going to read it anyway. My plan is, "Don't get attached to Beth!"<br />I am not a robotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-39597281823886937132017-01-13T15:50:41.825-05:002017-01-13T15:50:41.825-05:00@jberg....HahHee. Do you know who else died? GL...@jberg....HahHee. Do you know who else died? GLEN in TWD.....!GILL I.https://www.blogger.com/profile/05605766053820226324noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-20743708810964416712017-01-13T15:44:02.737-05:002017-01-13T15:44:02.737-05:00Confused the Ricoh printer with a camera and put N...Confused the Ricoh printer with a camera and put Nikon in there, so with the P in first and an N in last at 19D I slapped down Paddy wagon and thought I was brilliant. Guess how far that got me? Not very! MUSEUM display didn't help matters either. Know Lady Gaga, couldn't name a tune of hers if I tripped over one. Said to husband "what the hell Is a George DIckel?<br /><br />So, yeah, this one was a struggle, but I got through it without a cheat. I'm pretty happy about that.chefwenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03999206352243329280noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-83683076904133808202017-01-13T15:08:32.453-05:002017-01-13T15:08:32.453-05:00I've never read Little Women, so I'm very ...I've never read Little Women, so I'm very annoyed about the spoiler in today's puzzler. There should have been a warning, so I could have gone out and read it before I finished solving.<br /><br />EFREM and ODIN were the only proper nouns I actually knew from the clues (plus a few crosses, since-- as others nave noted -- practically all the weekdays are named for gods); I'd heard of Lou DOBBS, but not of the book, or whatever, mentioned in the clue. But the long acrosses were so appropriate that I shared @Rex's experience, getting each one from a letter or two. Same with STOLEN BASES -- never heard of the guy, but the B was in the wrong place for RBIs, so that had to be it. I did know BORN THIS WAY, and want to echo @triggerfiner's thanks for the video. Wow.<br /><br />Helpful hint: you just remember that Burkina Faso used to be called Upper Volta, and that the Volta Dam was a huge boondoggle perpetrated by the first elected government of GHANA.<br /><br />Welcome back, @Loren, and in top form!jberghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02169065390875378077noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-41986059634579601392017-01-13T14:38:53.414-05:002017-01-13T14:38:53.414-05:00I really enjoyed this "just tough enough"...I really enjoyed this "just tough enough" puzzle. I, too, had to skip around, searching for solid purchase: GNAW, STOLEN BASES (baseball-card-collecting son), ASHTON, EFREM (halcyon days of B&W TV), GESSO, OWLS, then chip chip chip away at it. <br /><br />Loved getting almost SKUNKed by "ARE," couldn't remember BETH''s last name for the life of me, had to get PABLO and Lady GaGa's "BORN..." from crosses. So many pleasures, particularly for me the cross of SKATE PARKS and POPEMOBILE.<br /><br />@Nancy, sorry to make you lose your bet, but <i>Lucia di Lammermoor</i>, which is based on Scott's novel, is one of my favorite operas. And having recently a production at the Lyric in Chicago, I had the ASHTON family in vivid memory.Carolahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15971759975067250908noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-51987286302052629612017-01-13T14:28:08.870-05:002017-01-13T14:28:08.870-05:00Very annoyed about the BETH MARCH answer. As other...Very annoyed about the BETH MARCH answer. As others have noted, she dies several chapters before the end...but AUNT MARCH dies in the very last chapter! Pitiful cluing. Liz T.https://www.blogger.com/profile/16187680177875816357noreply@blogger.com