Relative difficulty: Challenging (***for a Monday***)
THEME: Presidents' Day — theme answers = phrases that have the same initials as US presidents (the number of the relevant president appears in parentheses at the end of each theme clue):
Theme answers:
JUST FOR KICKS (JFK) (17A: On a whim [#35])
LEVI'S BLUE JEANS (LBJ) (23A: Denim pants with a red tab label [#36]
FAMILY DINING ROOM (FDR) (38A: Where domestic meals are enjoyed [#32])
"HAVING SAID THAT ..." (HST) (48A: "On the other hand ..." [#33])
GOING WAY BACK (GWB) (59A: In the distant past [#43])
Word of the Day: ZUMBA (11D: Dance-based fitness program) —
Zumba is a fitness program that involves cardio and Latin-inspired dance. It was founded by Colombian dancer and choreographer Beto Pérez in 2001, and by 2012, it called itself the largest international branded fitness program in the world. (wikipedia)
• • •
Alright, so let's start with stuff I liked. Three of these theme answers are really wonderful standalone answers that I would love to see in any puzzle: JUST FOR KICKS, GOING WAY BACK, and especially "HAVING SAID THAT..." If it took presidential monograms to turn up these phrases, then on some level, I guess this theme was worth it. Having said that ... the theme is just OK. GWB stands out like a sore thumb—just not nearly as 3-initial-worthy as the other entries. The first three are solid, then HST comes along and is like "what about me, I'm in crosswords!" and you're like, "sigh, fine, OK," but then GWB also wants to get in the car and it's like, no. No, this is not a clown car, we are full up. I'm also not really sure about the strength of FAMILY DINING ROOM as an answer. How many dining rooms do you people have!? There's the family room, and the dining room, but the FAMILY DINING ROOM is pushing it all a little far. I'm sure the phrase exists, but I'm also sure its currency is weak compared to the other theme entries. But on the whole, the theme is fine. It holds up. It's about presidents, obliquely, and it's Presidents Day, technically, so there we are. There we are. Sadly, there is the rest of the grid to contend with, and that is where things get very, very rough. Not sure where to start. Well, there's the names. Just an avalanche of names, many of them very crosswordesey, but mainly just ... so many. This puzzle starts with three names, bam bam bam (in the Acrosses). Then it treats us to A-LIST and AABOND, bam bam. But back to names: JAKOB (!) JONG DOWD MILLA (!) OLAV AKELA ESAI EBAN, just an absolute crosswordese and/or "haven't thought of them in decades" onslaught. And then the rest of the crosswordese, some of which I haven't seen in a while: YEGG! LIANA!! ALIA ATTA ATESTS (more "A"s!!). And then DO A SET (right before you EAT A SANDWICH, presumably). The puzzle was relentless in its punishingly dated (or just plain odd) fill. If your fill isn't reasonably polished, the best theme in the world isn't going to save the solving experience. This would've been a tolerable experience with a completely refilled grid. The theme holds up today, but not much else does.
I had no idea ZUMBA still existed. Last I heard of it was sometime in 2012, I think. I had a friend who went to ZUMBA classes. Then she moved away and no one so much as mentioned ZUMBA to me ever again, in any context. I assumed it had gone the way of TAEBO (which, for all I know, is still all the rage ... somewhere). I do want to single out "I'M A FAN" (33A: "Love your work!") and especially "HI, HON" (48D: Spousal greeting) as fun little colloquial answers. I'm a fan of both. I wish more of the grid had that kind of personality. I had UNAPT (UGH, that non-word keeps haunting me) before UNFIT (26D: Not suitable, as for a job), and, most obstructive of all, I had A LONG WAY BACK before GOING WAY BACK (59A: In the distant past [#43]); that one Really felt right. Otherwise, not hard, just slowish for a Monday. Enjoy your day off if you've got one. Otherwise, just, you know, enjoy your day. See you tomorrow. Please enjoy this random outraged tweet.
Yeah, why would anyone know who the (zipless) fuck wrote that book!?
Tough. Exactly what @Rex said about all the names and the non-Monday stuff, plus the grid is 16x15. HAVING SAID THAT, I liked the Presidents’ Day theme answers. So, theme trumps fill and edges this into the “liked it” column. Nice debut.
This was a debut for this constructor and I thought it was great. Instead of the all-too-frequent fill-in-the-blank Monday puzzle, we got one that had a bit of challenge to it. Yet a new solver could make their way through it (and perhaps learn a new word - YEGG).
My take on this puzzle: Just Really Bitchin'. And, please, Don't Judge Thee.
OK prezidentz day... in Canada we actually have a holiday tomorrow but it is... wait for it... Family Day! Yawn. Rex is right about GWB being weak. When I was working as an architect, that abbrev. meant gypsum wall board (aka "drywall"). President Drywall, indeed.
And Rex was right again (I seem to say that a lot!) about all the names. Plus Will can't resist cluing something like VIXEN (that is an actual word) as a name. And on that note: it's not AKELA but actually AKEELAH, and didn't she enter a spelling bee?
Speaking of which... [Spelling Bee: Sun 10:30 to reach pg, but currently stalled at -1. Missing a 5 letter!]
How come an “It Girl” needs to be attractive and sexually appealing, but an ITGUY (51D) only needs to fix Macs and PCs?
Surprised that Rex didn’t comment on 22D REX.
Maunakea to 46D Lead-in to girl. I just left it at AT_A until it filled in organically.
I wasn’t all that thrilled with the theme, as it is only slightly enjoyable because it’s published on a particular day. But, OTOH, it’s a debut and I congratulate you heartily on that, Natalie Murphy.
no carping about the presidents being out of order? smh. but all those names?
I remember yegg from way back when. I don't think you can add an old word. gotta be "add a new word." add an old word is odd. "nothing old under the sun" said nobody ever.
Thank you all for your kind words and good wishes for my brother in law. I spoke with him for an hour today and he still has has his fantastic sense of humor, a good sign.
As for the puzzle, made my first mistake at 1A, not a good omen. Slapped down Momma, thinking about the movie a throw Momma from the Train, totally forgot the MADEA movies, don’t think I ever saw one. When MST didn’t make any sense, I finally remembered MADEA and all was good.
Okay, but this would be appreciably more clever if there was an association between the the theme answers and the presidents whose initials are inside them; for exaample if JFK liked doing things "just for kicks" and if LBJ wore blue jeans (which I doubt were even around in the 60's).
The word "dwarf" in the clue for 8D should be capitalized. That reminds me of a joke. A guy meets a grasshopper and says to him, "Do you know we have a drink named after you?" The grasshopper replied, "You have a drink named Charles?"
Is this a well-known piece of trivia? I just came across it yesterday. What five-letter word has four silent letters?
I started using SONAR as my first word in Wordle about a week ago and it produced two bogeys and a fail. This morning I changed to a new word and got an eagle two. I may have a keeper.
I just got out of bed to have a cup of tea at 2:30 here in California and found that Rex had posted early. I expect that someone will come up with a witty three-word phrase for DJT before long.
The expression is "I'm a big fan" instead of 33A. I'm a big fan of Tyler Perry as an actor and as a person. He was very good in that bad movie Don't Look Up. It was nominated for Oscar for reasons not related to its quality.
So Presidents' Day, though I have a calendar with "Washington's Birthday" for today. GOING WAY BACK, we observed Lincoln's and Washington's birthdays separately on the 12th and 22nd of February. All the themers are fine but I was aware that we use JFK, LBJ, and FDR to refer to those presidents but don't use HST for Truman or GWB for Bush. "HAVINGSAIDTHAT" is one of my least favorite phrases. It always sounds pretentious and "but" would always be a better substitute. There's never been a recall for RITZ snacks so I wanted that for Safecracker. Gotta run.
Brilliant description, @astrotrav 12:06, Natickpalooza indeed! I did finish, but what a tough Monday. And I was expecting a Presidents’ Day theme! The NW would have caused a DNF if it weren’t for the downs. The difficult spots were overall fairly balanced by solvable crosses.
However, since this is a debut, and the puzzle has such high points, I say good job, to Natalie Murphy and I look forward to more.
@mathgent -- And a followup to your second paragraph... how does the answer relate to today's puzzle?
As to today's puzzle, two things especially impressed me, and they would have even had this not been a debut. First, there were eight NYT debut answers. My three favorites, and excellent additions to the NYT oeuvre, being DISCLAIMS, DO A SET, and HAVING SAID THAT. And second, I was impressed with how Natalie found such bright and in-the-language phrases that employed the presidential initials. I’ve been trying to do that with BHO and DDE, for instance, and so far haven’t registered any quality hits.
Speaking of GOING WAY BACK, there were a trio of answers not seen in the Times for quite a while: A-TESTS (9/17), LIANA (7/15), and YEGG (12/14). I love how the second rolls off the tongue, and I adore the wackiness of the third. The puzzle had a significant A-train as well, with 11 answers ending with that letter.
How apt to present an initial-based theme, Natalie, on this, your initial NYT puzzle. And how well you pulled it off. Thank you for a fun solve, and congratulations!
@Mathgent. I'm surprised SONAR (SOund Navigation And Ranging) is a permissible "word" in Wordle. The bar must be low since SONAR is an acronym, not a word. I wonder if PPP are (is?) allowed?
. . . Not to mention 3(!!) Kealoas. In addition to ATT(S)A (already mentioned by #egsforbreakfast), there’s A(N/H)TEST (crossing ATTA, no less) and our old friend ALIA(I). I don’t often agree with #Rex, but he’s right about this puzzle.
Today is a good example of the tail wagging the dog. By that I mean - you start with the requirement to have a theme - then someone comes up with an idea for a pretty good one (and on the appropriate holiday no less) - then instead of asking “does this theme (or grid) work?” - it sure looks like they skipped to “this is a good theme, we have to find a way to make it work”. The result is what you have before you today - a grid with a decent theme and so much collateral damage that the whole thing becomes a complete STINKER. Rex recited the evidence for us in explicit, excruciating details in his blog post. Heck, just the fact that you have MADEA crossing MAJA right at 1A should have been enough to have killed this one.
Feel sorry for the newer solvers who’s experience with the NYT may be tainted by this one (although, fair warning - expect more of the same if you hang around a few days). Seriously, you can’t make this stuff up (well, I take that back - apparently WS can do whatever he wants - AKELA, LINIA, MILLA, YEGG . . .). Give us a break ! ! !
Hee hee, I liked Rex’s closing Erica Jong reference. Otherwise, I thought the puzzle was fine but I was pretty sure that FAMILY DINING ROOM would raise his eyebrow.
Dnfed at MAJA / AMC. Took forever to find the error.
Nevertheless, a fun workout.
@Eniale (3:26 PM yd)
I'd love to see a Zoom event for speed solving the SB (at least up to pg); I'd nominate @okanaganer, @puzzlehoarder & @TTrimble from our group to compete. 🧠 ___ yd pg: (18:03) / W: 4*
Peace ~ Compassion ~ Tolerance ~ Kindness to all 🕊
Blue jeans have been around since at least the 1860's - though Levi Strauss obtained the patent for their particular brand of blue denim pants in 1873.
Anyway, was surprised to learn while doing this his puzzle that I must have slept all the way through the Presidents Day weekend - perhaps even through to Wednesday.
Really must get my alarm clock fixed - if there is anyone left who still fixes such things.
As I started this puzzle I thought “hoo boy, three proper pop culture names in a row”! It was a strange experience because I felt like I flew through the puzzle but the timer indicated otherwise.
I have never heard the term “family dining room”…perhaps they have an “eat-in kitchen”, a family dining room, and a “formal dining room” at Buckingham Palace and Mar-a-lago?
IMAFAN. Agree the fill was name heavy. Agree GWB is a bridge. DONTDOEITHER might've worked. But I think the theme carries the day on this day, and it's fine if it's too hard for a Monday, or a bit of a slog through the fill. Plus I learned YEGG and thought I might do a ROASTHAM next Christmas to break the Beef Wellington routine. Fun Monday.
@chefwen, glad you got your brother-in-law today, and hope for recovery.
Wasn't there a Way Back Machine in the history segment on Rocky and Bullwinkle? This was a bonus Monday in that it took longer to solve than usual, so a bargain. If you work, hope today is a paid holiday.
@egs/Jim C - ATsA has zero appearances in the NYTX. ATTA has 343 appearances, usually with some reference to girl or boy, occasionally with a Kofi ATTA Annan clue, and initially (way back in 1943) clued by Unsorted wheat flour of India.
@Son Volt is correct, although it is likely called something different near you if you aren’t a federal employee.
@mathgent - The puzzles that come out at 6:00 pm eastern usually have a blog post come out at midnight eastern, so you can check for a post on Saturday and Sunday nights.
@Wordler - Acronyms are initialisms that form words. Doesn’t seem odd to me at all that Wordle would accept it.
@Zippy - Well there’s a deep philosophical question for you. Does new to you make something old new? This question is right there with that other great philosophical question, Did LEVI BLUE JEANS exist in the 1960’s?
I couldn’t see the difficulty, thought it was pretty easy but knew Maja and Madea so there’s that. Knew Rexacommie would love the three Dems and vilify the other two; so predictable and boring. Just wish DJT had been in there, would love to have seen OFCL’s eyes bleeding!
I liked this a lot. The presidential initials are embedded in some very nice colorful phrases that are completely in the language. I didn't really pay too much attention to the tiny little circles until after I'd filled the grid all the way down through FAMILY DINING ROOM. Then I actually used the theme to help me get HAVING SAID THAT and GOING WAY BACK. Didn't need to, but it provided some extra fun.
A really good Monday. Wish they all could be like this.
First puz back from vacation and it did not feel welcoming. When is a theme not a theme? You just saw it. Also, a lot of proper names that did not feel particularly Mondayish: ZAC, AKELA, NAN, MAJA, ESAI, MILLA, JAKOB, DOWD, EBAN, JONG.
FAMILY DINING ROOM? what’s next Family Kitchen? Family Backyard? I can see Family Car, Family Vacation... I was Naticked at 1A/1D but guessed right. And I never heard of 25D . Did not like this one...
I like it! Presidents’ initials for Presidents’ Day. Didn’t find it difficult at all but not just another boring Monday either. A debut effort for this constructor. Congratulations Natalie! IM A FAN of this one.
FORMAL DINING ROOM is more familiar to me than FAMILY. And nothing against GWB but it would’ve been nice if the sequence could have remained in the same chronological era with DDE [#34] instead of leaping all the way over to the next century. I’m no constructor but without googling however, I couldn’t think of any way to make that work.
Fascinating that the guy who only recently complained about a fart in a crossword uses another four letter F word in his blog today.
@Unknown (2:13) If you think blue jeans didn’t exist in the 60s, you don’t know much about The Sixties. What else would you expect to see worn to a sit-in? Or a rock concert? Or an anti-war protest? Or a civil rights march? Jeans - preferably bell bottom style - with a T-shirt advertising your chosen cause was the uniform of the day.
What sort of heathens are you folk? There's the servant's dining room, the breakfast room, the family (luncheon) dining room the dining room. I believe it's this way in every house. Next you'll start saying you don't have separate music, reading, snooker, smoking, receiving, sitting and living rooms.
PS I'm a real Smythe, not one of those fake "every Smith a Smythe"
PS Fear of Flying is an awesome book, if you haven’t read it, do so. May be a little dated by now. 30 years ago I was traveling across the country and stopped off at a used book sale in Utah, and picked up Fear of Flying for a nickel. A nickel! Best nickel I ever spent. Years later I was on Jury Duty and in the waiting room at the County Courthouse they had a huge closet full of used books. You could bring an old book of yours and swap it for any book in the closet. So I swapped and got the sequel to the Fear of Flying (it was bad, do not even remember it’s name). So I got Fear of Flying and the sequel for an average of 2 and a half cents each.
Shucky darns....no DJT? Where do I begin? Where do I end? This quiz will continue. Is it Happy Hour yet? Well, I will start by saying that I thought the theme was on the top bodacious meter. Clever. When I saw JFK I wondered if we might be dealing with airports. LBJ took care of that notion. On to the rest.... The good, the bad, and the ugly: The good: The GOING WAY BACK theme answer hit my tee-hee button. So did seeing Erica JONG. Her book "Fear of Flying" was filled with humor, aggressive sex language, casual encounters...the list goes on. I love her rankness....Seeing our no ANGEL Mae West..Man I loved her sassiness. The bad: I think I counted about 22 names. I think JODIE crossing JAKOB... and AKELA crossing NAN was just plain bad for a Monday puzzle. I almost didn't finish because of those names and if I hadn't, I would've had a brain cell discombobulation. The ugly: Well, I don't like or use that word. I always find something nice in ugliness..besides there was nothing ugly here. I really enjoyed your ideas, Natalie. I really hope to see more of your work.
Little MAJA desnuda story: MAJA means goddess in Spanish. It was the first painting during that era that actually showed (gasp) pubic hairs. The horrors! The shame! It's believed that the model was (ready for this?)...Pepita Tudo.....Goya's mistress. Others believed it was the Duchess of Alba (that one is more fun and scandalous). I'm guessing he was forced to paint "La MAJA Vestida" in order for all the tsk taking to go away.
@Z (8:25) I spent 35+ years on the federal payroll. We called it Presidents’ Day. Interestingly enough, the State of Missouri observes both the Federal holiday (officially referred to as Presidents’ Day) and Lincoln’s Birthday on February 12. State offices are closed and employees paid for both.
The holiday today is Presidents Day. Lincoln's birthday was Feb. 12 and Washington's birthday is Feb. 22. The holiday is on the Monday in between. When I was a kid, both days were celebrated.
Of course it’s Washington’s Birthday. The holiday honors the one and only father of our country. No amount of white sales and ad men can change that fact.
I dunno... I thought the 5 presidents were 83% (with US Grant) of those with truly famous middle initials. FDR, LBJ, and JFK made regular headline appearances (in the last case, by his personal request -- until he won the election, headlines called him "Jack," but he thought that was too undignified for a president). In the case of the second Bush, they didn't even bother with the other initials, he was just W. As for Truman, his middle initial was famous because it didn't stand for anything; he insisted that S was actually his middle name, and therefore should not have a period after it.
This one had me GOING WAY BACK to the early 1950s, when I was a Cub Scout, and learned that "The Cub Scout follows AKELA" among other things. That meant that we should look up to our leaders. I didn't read Kipling until years later, so I didn't know the referent.
And at about the same time I read a Superman comic in which our hero corals a bunch of crooks, flies through the air with them and drops them into a box in front of police headquarters, saying something along the lines of "I've brought you a carton of YEGGs." The word was so unusual that it has stuck in my mind since.
I'm with @TJS, one doesn't ROAST HAM, one bakes it. Not that there is any difference in the procedure, but we have to keep up linguistic standards. In any case, I would never roast anything but a goose on Christmas Day.
I loved seeing DAFT in the puzzle, great word. Less lovable: cluing BOA as a fill-in-the-blanks.
@Unknown, there were 4 Democratic presidents, not 3.
Finally-- would one really say LEVI'S BLUE JEANS? Blue jeans, Levi's jeans, jeans, Levi's, but I've never previously encountered that three-word string.
Hey All ! YEGG, old buddy! Where you been hiding? Next, we'll get an OMOO sighting.
Agree with the plethora of names, although I knew almost all of them. #humblebrag
Did notice the 16 wide grid. Do agree that GWB isn't as ubiquitous as the other three-initialed prezs. Maybe it is for Gen AA (isn't that we're on now?) But no JQA? Har.
I have an AMC theater right up the road from me. I also have an AMC Hornet (currently not running 😕), and have wanted to take a pic of my AMC under the big AMC sign, because I'm weird like that.
Speaking of AA, is that James' sister? "Bond, AA BOND."
Agree with the less than ideal 1D, but 1A should be known. Tyler Perry had about 137 MADEA movies made, but yet no one thinks he enjoys cross-dressing? Odd.
HAVING SAID THAT, GOING WAY BACK we wore LEVIS BLUE JEANS in the FAMILY DINING ROOM JUST FOR KICKS. (UGH 😁)
@Nancy from yesterday -- I somehow failed to notice that there was a wit twister yesterday. I fold the paper in quarters to do the xword, and neglected to look at the other side. I'll see if I can find it online.
All the names really ruined this for me. Ugh. One or two, okay, but this was just full of people I've never heard of and never want to hear of again. Also wish the set of presidents made some logical sense and/or had some relationship to the clue.
A little surprised that so many folks found this hard. Got to be the famous Wheelhouse Effect, as I put in MAJA and JUSTFORKICKS off the J and didn't slow down appreciably and bang it was done.
I've been doing crosswords for so long that running into something you only see in crosswords and haven't seen in a long time just elicits a smile. Looking at you, LIANA (not accepted by SB, BTW) and especially you YEGG. Thought you might have died, so a nice surprise to see you're still around. And AKELA, haven't thought of you since my Cub Scout days. How have you been?
I've often wondered why if you put a turkey in the oven you ROAST it but if you put a HAM in the oven you bake it.
Also wondered if the initials were going to be all dems although GWB fixed that. He may be considered left wing by today's standards. And @Nancy nailed it with her DJT suggestion.
In short, a fun time revisiting the crossword archives. My condolences to newer solvers, and I hope you are lucky enough to get your own personal store of crosswordese. Many years of fun.
Congrats on the debut, NM. Nicely Made. Nicely Made indeed, and thanks for the fun.
I did not find this puzzle to be notably harder than other Mondays, except that I’ve no memory of the words RHEA and HASP. The clue for COST — Tag line? — does not (to my mind) work, because a price (e.g., $8.99) is in not a “line.” Tons of tired xword fill (ALUM, OLAV, OBI, DOC, OAR, IRA, IDLES, ICEE, ATTA …). But most notably, the theme is irrelevant to the solve. I figured it out after I was done, and thought “What do presidents have to do with any of this?” This is not to say that the puzzle is worse than most NYT puzzles. I’d say it’s average.
I enjoyed the theme answers and HIHON until I finished and couldn't find the mistake at rEDEA/rAJA. Redea didn't look like a name I know but who knows with names??
Yay Nancy for “Doing jail time.”
What else did people wear in the 60’s besides Levis? Cut-off Levis? Earlier in the decade I had a one-piece playsuit, and a dress made out of a circle that was lime green with big white polka dots. I also had a very long string of beads made out of seeds dyed turquoise. I think my mother had a pair of aqua polyester pants.
Hello. Barbara, here. I’m so glad to hear everyone thought this was hard. I thought for sure I was going to read that @Rex found it easy and I’d have to face the fact that I’ve finally lost my mind. 😮
@Nancy - good one @JoePinto - beat me to it for the GWB being a bridge. Already named for a president, if they rededicated it to #43, it could be the GWBB.
I appreciated some resistance on a holiday, even if somewhat obscure name-based difficulty.
Before coming here, I thought of Rex(eo) in light of 66A, "how do I hate thee, puzzle, let me blog the ways...." Pretty fair today, actually. And I'd like to thank him again for reminding me it has been a good practice not to waste any time on Twitter.
Once again, a lively, fast and easy puzzle. Not knowing much of the trivia was no bother because they filled themselves in just by going the other way with answers. Am also old enough to remember two distinct February holidays (and days off from school) for both Lincoln and Washington -- and remember their portraits hanging in the school rooms of the primary school I attended. I thought the tweet Rex published was offensive and childish and churlish in the extreme -- not saying that about Rex, of course, but about people who sometimes cannot get from A to B without going off the rails. Chacun a son gout, and all that.
Rex needs to hang with people who are proud of their privilege. My law firm represents several high end construction companies, and its becoming common in New England in houses over 6000 square feet to have three dining rooms, a family dining room, a formal dining room and a banquet room. And the presidents in this puzzle most likely to understand that are FDR and JFK.
Yes, it was tough for a Monday but I loved this puzzle! When I saw LBJ I got the theme was for President's Day and I smiled - for the first time in many solves. ESAI, YEGG, LIANA was crossword nostalgia. Who doesn't like running into an old friend? Thanks for a fun solve Natalie!
Wow. So many actors, a few of whom are barely famous. A specific name of a "dwarf" found only in a cartoon movie clued as if otherwise. (And, to add insult, or show our parochial world view, let's throw in the Patron Saint of a society with 10s of dwarves in their mythology, at least 11 of whom have 3 letter names...)
Filled in about a third of the answers without looking at the clues too. I am definitely not a fan of this puzzle.
Yes, your memory is correct. The Wayback Machine was the device invented and used in "Peabody's Improbable History" as a birthday gift from Mr. Peabody to Sherman. This recurring segment of the Rocky and Bullwinkle Show featured the time travel adventures of Mr. Peabody and Sherman.
In was not long before the term entered the popular culture - where it remains today.
I forgot LIANA! That also brought me back to late childhood, when I read maybe 57 novels by Edgar Rice Burroughs. Those are the vines that Tarzan used to swing from tree to tree.
Here's yesterday's Wit Twister in case you can't find it online:
The art world's latest _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _: just draw! No _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ of texture, shape and color! Yet, _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ at heart, I break that law. My brushstrokes thrill me! (Pencils are much duller.)
It's really hard, @jberg -- the first one I couldn't do, ever! It's also really, really inspired, with perfect scansion -- something this versifier doesn't always nail completely. I'd put money on your not getting it, @jberg; neither Joe D nor I could. But this morning, [gasp] before breakfast, I ran to the front door, snatched up my NYT, and looked at the answer; it was driving me crazy! I wouldn't have gotten it in a million trillion years. But NOT because it's unfair. It's very fair!
I'm coming back in my next post with hints that will 1) make it at least possible for y'all to solve it and 2) will STILL give you a real "Aha Moment" if you do. I didn't have that pleasure, alas, but I want to give it to you.
Hints for solving Saturday's Wit Twister, if you'd like them. Skip this post if you want to keep plugging on your own. But you won't get it -- I'm quite sure of that. Scroll way down for hints...
Hint #1: In line #3, the artist is not talking about his rebellious spirit. He's talking about his devotion to his art.
Hint #2: The second (4-letter) word in line #1 is LINE.
Will these enable you to get it? Probably not. The third hint, subtle as it is, might just enable you to figure it out. Work with these 2 for a while. Then, scroll way down for the third hint...
Hint #3: The first letter of the first (5-letter word) in line #1 begins with a "P".
I just laughed so hard about the "book about flying" outrage. I actually tried to read that as a sex-obsessed teenager (Henry Miller, Jackie Collins, Our Bodies Ourselves). I could not get into Erica Jong. I wanted to. I tried to skip to the dirty parts. I couldn't even enjoy the dirty parts. All I remember is the "zipless fuck" theory and how now people want that same idea to apply to takeout and delivery.
@bocamp - Croce’s Freestyle #684 was easy for a Croce. HAVING SAID THAT I missed it by 2 squares in the NE because I didn’t know a product name and I failed to triple check the crosses. Good luck!
DNFed because I put in ITS FUN for 33 across “love your work”. Gave me three proper nouns that I didn’t know going down Tilla, liSna, and ebUn. The other downs were OK
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I’m surprised that nobody mentioned this one: The plural for RBI is not RBIS, it is RBI, as in “Runs Batted In”. Baseball announcers sound almost British when using the abbreviation as a plural noun with the matching verb, as in “His RBI are lower this season.” Swing and a miss.
Surprised by many comments and 🦖’s. No idea why, but this one was very fast and easy (for me.) Nice way to honor some honorable presidents. And yes, there were some fun answers. 🤗🦖🦖🦖🦖🤗
Not A FAN. I time myself in the early week, and this was Wednesday level, and also fell flatter than a pancake. Now this would be a great Sunday puzzle theme, all the Presidential initials from FDR on. I suppose the problems would be: First, who remembers Jimmy Carter's middle initial? And second, you almost have to fit in the four-letter GHWB, universal in his day. FDR, HST, DDE, JFK, LBJ, RMN, those we know, and we will never forget the worst President in history, GWB. His father had the H, and his nickname among the Maureen DOWDs of the world was Dubya).
(Turns out Jimmy's second name was Earl, so he would be JEC).
It does occur to me that WS's job includes "making nice guys out of stinkers", which the Hostess with the Mostes' on the Ball was renowned for, and let me say "Call Me Madam" is far and away the best musical ever written that focused on politics as well as the usual love stories. Irving Berlin's masterpiece. HAVING SAID THAT, I hope for better things tomorrow.
Yeah there was some rough crosswordese, and I think FORMAL DINING ROOM (which fits!) would have been a much better / more in-the-language themer, but I liked this! Tough for a Monday, but that's the cost of being able to run it on Presidents Day. Solid debut.
Five monograms in search of a towel. Wish there had been a revealer to tie this together more, but I did enjoy the puzzle and appreciated the fact that it was harder than the usual Monday. Really liked YEGG.
HAVING SAID THAT is a great themer but not an expression I like to encounter in real life since it’s usually followed by something I don’t want to hear. I am reminded of a rejection letter from a literary manager at a theatre about a play I had submitted for production. She went on and on about how wonderful the script was and then capped her praises with “Having said that, we will not be producing it.”
Had trouble recalling the reindeer at 50d and maybe because of the theme kept coming up with Nixon. Who brings to mind the inscription “Remember My Name.”
Take it all back about FAMILY DINING ROOM. After enjoying the Smythe and anon comments I googled. Besides the people selling tables that you would expect I found a direct link to today's puzzle. The Family Dining Room in the White House. At the official White House you get a history of it starting with John Adams. It is off the State Dining Room. Even Smythe doesn't have one of those.
Odd puzzle. Not exactly A FAN but I was laughing through the solve imagining all the head-scratching. Liked that it wasn’t a pushover. Finished with ItsFuN where IMAFAN should’ve been. Have a cousin tILLie, so tILLA seemed fine. Have to look up the EBAN GUY.
@albatross, thanks - I was too young to know of the sacrifices but my mom relayed a few things. She was not A FAN of his boss, but it’s neat having the signature. Cause of death was lung cancer, yes, smoking-related, though he had quit in the 50s.
c'mon folks!! ya gots yer FAMILY DINING ROOM for Hubby Bubba and da kids, and da formal DINING ROOM for when the cousins (we hope the kids will marry some o dem) come over.
seemed a standard Monday. only write overs data to INFO kinda a kealoa ATfour to ATFIVE when I was a drinking sh!t on Capitol Hill (the one in DC), the Penn. Ave. bars were chock-a-block by 3:45
A rather gloomy Monday experience for me, alas, partly my fault because I thought the numbers were internal references to the grid and I couldn't figure out what JFK had to do with #35 RCA, etc., and partly the puzzle's fault for the - choose your crosswordese - slew, ton, raft, host of names. Starting out with three of them across the top row? Maybe, on a Monday, if they're ROMEO or equally famous, but I thought the array here made for a very uninviting introduction to the puzzle.
But, as I've learned before, reading @Rex and the comments will brighten the scene, today making me appreciate the aptness of the theme and the solid phrases, and making me laugh (thank you, @egsforbreakfast for the IT folk and @mathgent for the grasshopper).
Do-over: data before INFO. Help from previous puzzles: ESAI, AKELA. No idea: MADEA, JAKOB, MILLA.
This was my 987th puzzle through the app, after 20+ years of occasional paper puzzles. Absolutely the worst Monday puzzle I've ever slogged through. This many proper nouns should never ever be allowed on a Monday. Just ridiculous.
My PR on Monday is 3:28 My average is 8:33 (though in the past year anything over 6 is unusual) This took 10:09
I suppose, since the blog allows comments re: Spelling Bee, Wordler, etc. I'll just have to tolerate the Jberg/Nancy twister dialog. Does seem excessive, though.
Rex has lost his mind with his political views. GWB unworthy? Really? FDR put American citizens in concentration camps. JFK cheated on his wife every chance he got (as did LBJ). Speaking of LBJ, can we not agree that the Viet Nam war was worse than Iraq?i
"RBIs or "ribbies" is the traditional term. Technically it should be R'sBI but since we don't do that, I'll stick with the original.
Funny debate on this from time to time on my local sports talk station. Hosts are my age and hate the term RBI. I'm not as opposed to it as they are but agree RBIs is proper." (Gunther on 'The Sand Trap.com')
@jae (11:16 AM)
Thx, ready to embark on it right now! :)
@Wright-Young (11:52 AM)
SB = NYT Spelling Bee (here, & here). ___ td (g: 4:49) (pg: 29:35, which also resulted in QB) / W: 3*
Peace ~ Compassion ~ Tolerance ~ Kindness to all 🕊
What he said, and others here have echoed, is that FDR, JFK and LBJ were commonly used while HST not so much and Bush (maybe as W) never (or rarely) as GWB (George Washington Bridge). Nothing about their achievements or politics.
Loved the puzzle. For a time I had Roast Game for Xmas, great answer. When I finished, no music, could not find an error. Finally clicked check and I had spelled Madea with an i. Doesn't ist look like a suffix?
Ah, President's Day. I finished the puzzle and thought, "So what, presidential initials?" But Jeff Chen reminded me that it's President's Day so the initials do serve a purpose. Funny how that made me like the puzzle, all of a sudden. And funny because I've been reminding myself since this morning that I shouldn't bother checking for mail, neither here at work nor at home, because it's a holiday. No big brain here, I guess!
HAVING SAID THAT, I did roll my eyes at seeing YEGG. And LIANA - Jeff Chen says he's had a lot of complaints over the years about it but my only complaint is that Sam Ezersky doesn't accept it for SB. I try it every time anyway, just in case he's finally changed his mind.
Natalie Murphy, congratulations on your NYTimes debut!
No really, the Federal Holiday has always been Washington’s Birthday. That Wikipedia article I linked to is a nice little primer on the whole thing, but there’s also stuff like federal pay.org and actual government websites.
@Gerrythek - Rex’s point is that Dubya has never been known as GWB, just not nearly as 3-initial-worthy as the other entries. Note that Rex correctly points out that HST is barely worthy. You say JFK or LBJ or FDR and you immediately know who is under discussion. As some have already pointed out, say GWB and people think you’re looking for directions over the Hudson.
@Punkinbugg - The convention for terms like Runs Batted In and Attorneys General when pluralizing the abbreviation is to treat the abbreviation as a unit, so RBIS and AGS. Say “R’SBI” and you’re likely to end up on anti-pedant medication.
Have not read Rex's review nor any comments, so I'm guessing there's nothing original in what I have to say...
This was a really clever and fun idea -- JUSTFORKICKS and LEVISBLUEJEANS are very real phrases corresponding to two US Presidents whose initials are iconic. I would have preferred formalDININGROOM, but I'll accept its more casual sibling, because it works for the third US President with iconic initials.
But that's where we run into a roadblock. The last two themers, while perfectly "in the language," are in service of Presidents whose initials are, at best, familiar enough for one to know who they represent. But, unlike the three above, no one really refers to them as HST or GWB; they're "Harry Truman" or "George W. Bush" (or just "W"). The gap between FDR/JFK/LBJ and any other presidential initials is a massive chasm.
I would have suggested limiting the themers to just those first three and going with 16-wide mirror symmetry. That might have freed the constructor to make formalDININGROOM work and also to rid the puzzle of some theme-constrained junk (DOASET, MILLA, AKELA, LIANA).
A classic case in which less would have been more. A little restraint imposed by the editor could have allowed the constructor to execute at the same high level as that of their idea. Alas, no.
@Gerrythek: can we not agree that the Viet Nam war "was started by Eisenhower"!!! Look it up.
GWB unworthy? Really?
Yeah, Really. Lied us into two wars of choice, and let his Oil Buddies, the Saudis who actually carried out 9/11, off the hook. Just like The Orange Sh!tgibbon (not my coinage, but I cleave) did with that assassination. GOP really means, Grifters, Opportunists, and Plutocrats. And, to pile on, his 'other' name is Dubya, not GWB. 15 of 19 were Saudi, and 2 were UAE, a Saudi surrogate for decades.
Re troublesome plurals: for me, the worst is "data". Some pedantic people insist on saying "the data show...". OK the word originated as the plural of datum, but it has evolved to mean something quite different that is an entity of its own, like water or sunshine. "The water are cold!"... no.
[Spelling Bee: td 6 min. to get to genius, 26 min to get pangram and QB simultaneously (just like bocamp but slower!) That has never happened before, to get the only pangram as the last word.]
"Anonymous Anonymoose said... I suppose, since the blog allows comments re: Spelling Bee, Wordler, etc. I'll just have to tolerate the Jberg/Nancy twister dialog. Does seem excessive, though.” Agreed! can they get a room?
As Rex noted, the crosswordese fill confused this intermediate solver quite a bit. Looking at you Yegg, Akela, Esai and Liana! I do know my presidents, so the freebies helped some... Thanks.
@Nancy, thanks for the Wit Twister - never heard of them but fun! I got it without the hints, starting with line 2, based on the meter and context. Line 3 fell soon after, followed finally by line 1 after a bit of wrangling.
So, @mathgent, at 6:68 posed this trivia question: What five-letter word has four silent letters?
I don't think anyone has answered that yet. But if you do come up with the answer, I have a second riddle, and that is: How does the answer to @mathgent's riddle relate to today's puzzle?
Note that I'm not complaining that @mathgent's trivia question doesn't relate to the puzzle, rather, I'm giving a new riddle based on the answer to his.
I'm blown away, @Wright-Young (4:08), that you solved it. I've never missed solving one, but I couldn't solve today's. It was really tough!!!
As many people here already know, I write them myself -- and two years before Nancy Coughlin's verses started to appear, I sent Will Shortz a hard copy of 41 of what I called my "Anagrammed Poems". He showed no interest at all in my idea for the NYT; he suggested that I instead send my collection to Games Magazine. So imagine my surprise when this exact same format, written by someone else and now dubbed "Wit Twisters", started appearing in the Times two years later.
Here's one of mine:
HEAD SCRATCH AT 40-15 (8 letters)
He -------- every dropshot, every volley, every lob. He -------- his opponent; it's a deft and thorough job. There won't be any -------- since the victory's not in doubt. But can you -------- the signals that his coach was giving out?
If you did the one in the Times today, @Wright-Young, you can probably do this one too. But it is one of my harder ones.
Yeah, I have never seen a bar's happy hour start AT FIVE. Every single one of the (countless) bars I've ever been in start happy our AT FOUR, like normal people.
@nancy -- BEAUX is a terrific guess but if you remove the EAUX you're left with BEE, basically, not BO. This is actually a hint toward the right answer...
@Lewis and whoever Was I being to subtle? @145pm. I heard that wordiddle before but couldn't remember the answer. Went I then A and then ran the alphabet. Had to be there somewhere. I was actually home all day.
@mathgent, @Lewis, love the queue quiz! Nice Q quip from @albatross that flew high over my head as well. @Z clubbed said head into focus. I had to take two pets to the vet so didn't get to offer my guess - aargh. Or Arrgh. Though to be honest if I'm particularly exasperated I do pronounce the h. But the connection to today's (or any) puzzle should be clear!
@Lewis Actually I meant to post: I'm in line at the DMV... but I must have accidentally dropped the in line. So maybe it was too subtle. Or maybe I thought that was too big of giveway. I guess I no longer know what I was thinking but I was surprised the in line wasn't there.
@Unknown wonders if Jeans were around in the 60’s when LBJ was present. How innocent. Levi’s have been around snce the 50’s - the 1850’s when Levi Strauss created the first pair and created an icon.
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Circles, strike one. PPP overstuffing, strike two. #46--in BOTH directions--strikes three and four. Yer [WAY!] out!
I think anybody who insists on putting 46-down in a grid should be forced to clue it "Mohammed who brought down the WTC on 9/11." --And that crossing with the stupid letter-add-on, bad enough for that alone, referring to a WMD! Not cool on many levels.
As a frequent anonymous visitor to Syndiland would say: "Pisser infested. Rejected." Not even DOD MILLA Jovovich can save this. Quadruple-bogey.
Bravo to Natalie on her debut but WS should have helped her to ditch the gimmick for something better. The three-letter monogram balls only worked well for three out of the five themers. One clunker might have been allowable. But not two.
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!")
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153 comments:
Too difficult for a Monday, but I'm not sure this Natickpalooza would have been enjoyable any other day either.
Tough. Exactly what @Rex said about all the names and the non-Monday stuff, plus the grid is 16x15. HAVING SAID THAT, I liked the Presidents’ Day theme answers. So, theme trumps fill and edges this into the “liked it” column. Nice debut.
This was a debut for this constructor and I thought it was great. Instead of the all-too-frequent fill-in-the-blank Monday puzzle, we got one that had a bit of challenge to it. Yet a new solver could make their way through it (and perhaps learn a new word - YEGG).
My take on this puzzle: Just Really Bitchin'. And, please, Don't Judge Thee.
OK prezidentz day... in Canada we actually have a holiday tomorrow but it is... wait for it... Family Day! Yawn. Rex is right about GWB being weak. When I was working as an architect, that abbrev. meant gypsum wall board (aka "drywall"). President Drywall, indeed.
And Rex was right again (I seem to say that a lot!) about all the names. Plus Will can't resist cluing something like VIXEN (that is an actual word) as a name. And on that note: it's not AKELA but actually AKEELAH, and didn't she enter a spelling bee?
Speaking of which...
[Spelling Bee: Sun 10:30 to reach pg, but currently stalled at -1. Missing a 5 letter!]
What Rex said. Especially the FAMILY DINING ROOM comment.
@Joaquin - “Learn an old word” you mean.
How come an “It Girl” needs to be attractive and sexually appealing, but an ITGUY (51D) only needs to fix Macs and PCs?
Surprised that Rex didn’t comment on 22D REX.
Maunakea to 46D Lead-in to girl. I just left it at AT_A until it filled in organically.
I wasn’t all that thrilled with the theme, as it is only slightly enjoyable because it’s published on a particular day. But, OTOH, it’s a debut and I congratulate you heartily on that, Natalie Murphy.
A Q short of a pangram. Also 16 wide again. A nice collection of multiple X J K F V and B. I thought they all were very natural.
GWB does not really compare but heck he was president for 8 years.
I guess Rex is right about FAMILY DINING ROOM. I noticed when solving but I can't say I minded. Theme is a bit thin but solid enough.
AKELA ESAI RHEA JONG and maybe JAKOB might be tough for a Monday. I knew the last two but had to work from crosses on the first 3.
More fun or work than a lot of Mondays.
@Z, Nancy, A.
I added a comment late last night.
To any New Yorker or Jerseyite, the GWB is the George Washington Bridge. Remember "Bridgegate"? So who is this president #43 the puzzle speaks of?
HAVING SAID THAT reminds me of one of my high school history teachers, who always segued between ramblings with "Be that as it may..."
no carping about the presidents being out of order? smh.
but all those names?
I remember yegg from way back when. I don't think you can add an old word. gotta be "add a new word." add an old word is odd. "nothing old under the sun" said nobody ever.
Zippy
Thank you all for your kind words and good wishes for my brother in law. I spoke with him for an hour today and he still has has his fantastic sense of humor, a good sign.
As for the puzzle, made my first mistake at 1A, not a good omen. Slapped down Momma, thinking about the movie a throw Momma from the Train, totally forgot the MADEA movies, don’t think I ever saw one. When MST didn’t make any sense, I finally remembered MADEA and all was good.
Okay, but this would be appreciably more clever if there was an association between the the theme answers and the presidents whose initials are inside them; for exaample if JFK liked doing things "just for kicks" and if LBJ wore blue jeans (which I doubt were even around in the 60's).
Wow that was brutal. First time I've not been able to finish a Monday in over a year.
This might actually have been the most difficult Monday I've ever done to be honest.
The first square in the pussle - top left - was a total Natick. MAJA/MADEA on a Monday?
More like a Wednesday, not a Monday! But I got today's Wordle in 2, so swings and roundabouts...
What about RMN, GRF, J*whatever his middle initial is)C, R(whatever his middle initial is(R, GHWB???? This got me a little DOWD for a Monday.
The word "dwarf" in the clue for 8D should be capitalized. That reminds me of a joke. A guy meets a grasshopper and says to him, "Do you know we have a drink named after you?" The grasshopper replied, "You have a drink named Charles?"
Is this a well-known piece of trivia? I just came across it yesterday. What five-letter word has four silent letters?
I started using SONAR as my first word in Wordle about a week ago and it produced two bogeys and a fail. This morning I changed to a new word and got an eagle two. I may have a keeper.
I just got out of bed to have a cup of tea at 2:30 here in California and found that Rex had posted early. I expect that someone will come up with a witty three-word phrase for DJT before long.
The expression is "I'm a big fan" instead of 33A. I'm a big fan of Tyler Perry as an actor and as a person. He was very good in that bad movie Don't Look Up. It was nominated for Oscar for reasons not related to its quality.
So Presidents' Day, though I have a calendar with "Washington's Birthday" for today. GOING WAY BACK, we observed Lincoln's and Washington's birthdays separately on the 12th and 22nd of February. All the themers are fine but I was aware that we use JFK, LBJ, and FDR to refer to those presidents but don't use HST for Truman or GWB for Bush. "HAVINGSAIDTHAT" is one of my least favorite phrases. It always sounds pretentious and "but" would always be a better substitute. There's never been a recall for RITZ snacks so I wanted that for Safecracker. Gotta run.
Brilliant description, @astrotrav 12:06, Natickpalooza indeed! I did finish, but what a tough Monday. And I was expecting a Presidents’ Day theme! The NW would have caused a DNF if it weren’t for the downs. The difficult spots were overall fairly balanced by solvable crosses.
However, since this is a debut, and the puzzle has such high points, I say good job, to Natalie Murphy and I look forward to more.
@mathgent -- And a followup to your second paragraph... how does the answer relate to today's puzzle?
As to today's puzzle, two things especially impressed me, and they would have even had this not been a debut. First, there were eight NYT debut answers. My three favorites, and excellent additions to the NYT oeuvre, being DISCLAIMS, DO A SET, and HAVING SAID THAT. And second, I was impressed with how Natalie found such bright and in-the-language phrases that employed the presidential initials. I’ve been trying to do that with BHO and DDE, for instance, and so far haven’t registered any quality hits.
Speaking of GOING WAY BACK, there were a trio of answers not seen in the Times for quite a while: A-TESTS (9/17), LIANA (7/15), and YEGG (12/14). I love how the second rolls off the tongue, and I adore the wackiness of the third. The puzzle had a significant A-train as well, with 11 answers ending with that letter.
How apt to present an initial-based theme, Natalie, on this, your initial NYT puzzle. And how well you pulled it off. Thank you for a fun solve, and congratulations!
@Mathgent. I'm surprised SONAR (SOund Navigation And Ranging) is a permissible "word" in Wordle. The bar must be low since SONAR is an acronym, not a word. I wonder if PPP are (is?) allowed?
The federal holiday today is Washington’s Birthday. This trivia fest should have run in TV Guide.
Not an ideal start to the week.
. . . Not to mention 3(!!) Kealoas. In addition to ATT(S)A (already mentioned by #egsforbreakfast), there’s A(N/H)TEST (crossing ATTA, no less) and our old friend ALIA(I). I don’t often agree with #Rex, but he’s right about this puzzle.
— Jim C. in Maine
With LEVI'S BLUE JEANS as an answer, you missed the opportunity to cite the infamous "LBJ Orders Pants" call.
Today is a good example of the tail wagging the dog. By that I mean - you start with the requirement to have a theme - then someone comes up with an idea for a pretty good one (and on the appropriate holiday no less) - then instead of asking “does this theme (or grid) work?” - it sure looks like they skipped to “this is a good theme, we have to find a way to make it work”. The result is what you have before you today - a grid with a decent theme and so much collateral damage that the whole thing becomes a complete STINKER. Rex recited the evidence for us in explicit, excruciating details in his blog post. Heck, just the fact that you have MADEA crossing MAJA right at 1A should have been enough to have killed this one.
Feel sorry for the newer solvers who’s experience with the NYT may be tainted by this one (although, fair warning - expect more of the same if you hang around a few days). Seriously, you can’t make this stuff up (well, I take that back - apparently WS can do whatever he wants - AKELA, LINIA, MILLA, YEGG . . .). Give us a break ! ! !
My five favorite clues from last week
(in order of appearance):
1. Spirit guide? (5)
2. Longing to go to bed (6)
3. Group of commuters? (6)(5)
4. Angled to get attention: Abbr. (4)
5. Lose possession? (8)
PILOT
LIBIDO
PAROLE BOARD
ITAL
EXORCISE
Hee hee, I liked Rex’s closing Erica Jong reference. Otherwise, I thought the puzzle was fine but I was pretty sure that FAMILY DINING ROOM would raise his eyebrow.
Ah, yes. Our "fart" offended professor gets to sneak his favorite word into another commentary.
"Roasted" ham? No, baked ham.
Didn't realise this was Presidents Day so never caught on to the initial gimmick. Puzzle still sucks.
Wordle 247 5/6
🟨🟨⬛⬛🟨
⬛⬛🟨🟨🟨
🟨🟨🟨⬛🟨
🟩🟩⬛🟩🟩
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩
Misread a very makable birdie putt today and bogeyed. 6-under after one hole in round 3.
Thx Natalie; nice challenge for a Mon.! :)
Med-tough.
Dnfed at MAJA / AMC. Took forever to find the error.
Nevertheless, a fun workout.
@Eniale (3:26 PM yd)
I'd love to see a Zoom event for speed solving the SB (at least up to pg); I'd nominate @okanaganer, @puzzlehoarder & @TTrimble from our group to compete. 🧠
___
yd pg: (18:03) / W: 4*
Peace ~ Compassion ~ Tolerance ~ Kindness to all 🕊
@Unknown (2:13 am)
Blue jeans have been around since at least the 1860's - though Levi Strauss obtained the patent for their particular brand of blue denim pants in 1873.
Anyway, was surprised to learn while doing this his puzzle that I must have slept all the way through the Presidents Day weekend - perhaps even through to Wednesday.
Really must get my alarm clock fixed - if there is anyone left who still fixes such things.
We have added someone who didn't know blue jeans were around in the 60's.
I knew "yegg" was gonna trigger @Southside. I just knew it.
Worst....puzzle.....ever.
As I started this puzzle I thought “hoo boy, three proper pop culture names in a row”! It was a strange experience because I felt like I flew through the puzzle but the timer indicated otherwise.
I have never heard the term “family dining room”…perhaps they have an “eat-in kitchen”, a family dining room, and a “formal dining room” at Buckingham Palace and Mar-a-lago?
IMAFAN. Agree the fill was name heavy. Agree GWB is a bridge. DONTDOEITHER might've worked. But I think the theme carries the day on this day, and it's fine if it's too hard for a Monday, or a bit of a slog through the fill. Plus I learned YEGG and thought I might do a ROASTHAM next Christmas to break the Beef Wellington routine. Fun Monday.
@chefwen, glad you got your brother-in-law today, and hope for recovery.
Wasn't there a Way Back Machine in the history segment on Rocky and Bullwinkle?
This was a bonus Monday in that it took longer to solve than usual, so a bargain. If you work, hope today is a paid holiday.
@egs/Jim C - ATsA has zero appearances in the NYTX. ATTA has 343 appearances, usually with some reference to girl or boy, occasionally with a Kofi ATTA Annan clue, and initially (way back in 1943) clued by Unsorted wheat flour of India.
@Son Volt is correct, although it is likely called something different near you if you aren’t a federal employee.
@mathgent - The puzzles that come out at 6:00 pm eastern usually have a blog post come out at midnight eastern, so you can check for a post on Saturday and Sunday nights.
@Wordler - Acronyms are initialisms that form words. Doesn’t seem odd to me at all that Wordle would accept it.
@Zippy - Well there’s a deep philosophical question for you. Does new to you make something old new? This question is right there with that other great philosophical question, Did LEVI BLUE JEANS exist in the 1960’s?
I couldn’t see the difficulty, thought it was pretty easy but knew Maja and Madea so there’s that.
Knew Rexacommie would love the three Dems and vilify the other two; so predictable and boring.
Just wish DJT had been in there, would love to have seen OFCL’s eyes bleeding!
I liked this a lot. The presidential initials are embedded in some very nice colorful phrases that are completely in the language. I didn't really pay too much attention to the tiny little circles until after I'd filled the grid all the way down through FAMILY DINING ROOM. Then I actually used the theme to help me get HAVING SAID THAT and GOING WAY BACK. Didn't need to, but it provided some extra fun.
A really good Monday. Wish they all could be like this.
First puz back from vacation and it did not feel welcoming. When is a theme not a theme? You just saw it. Also, a lot of proper names that did not feel particularly Mondayish: ZAC, AKELA, NAN, MAJA, ESAI, MILLA, JAKOB, DOWD, EBAN, JONG.
I did like the animal row of REX, RHEA, BOA
FAMILY DINING ROOM? what’s next Family Kitchen? Family Backyard? I can see Family Car, Family Vacation... I was Naticked at 1A/1D but guessed right. And I never heard of 25D . Did not like this one...
The ATTA kealoa partner is iTsA, as in "atta boy!" or "it's a boy!"
@mathgent (6:18) -- Here's what I'd like to see for DJT:
DOING JAIL TIME
I like it! Presidents’ initials for Presidents’ Day. Didn’t find it difficult at all but not just another boring Monday either. A debut effort for this constructor. Congratulations Natalie! IM A FAN of this one.
FORMAL DINING ROOM is more familiar to me than FAMILY. And nothing against GWB but it would’ve been nice if the sequence could have remained in the same chronological era with DDE [#34] instead of leaping all the way over to the next century. I’m no constructor but without googling however, I couldn’t think of any way to make that work.
Fascinating that the guy who only recently complained about a fart in a crossword uses another four letter F word in his blog today.
@Unknown (2:13) If you think blue jeans didn’t exist in the 60s, you don’t know much about The Sixties. What else would you expect to see worn to a sit-in? Or a rock concert? Or an anti-war protest? Or a civil rights march? Jeans - preferably bell bottom style - with a T-shirt advertising your chosen cause was the uniform of the day.
What sort of heathens are you folk? There's the servant's dining room, the breakfast room, the family (luncheon) dining room the dining room. I believe it's this way in every house. Next you'll start saying you don't have separate music, reading, snooker, smoking, receiving, sitting and living rooms.
PS I'm a real Smythe, not one of those fake "every Smith a Smythe"
PS Fear of Flying is an awesome book, if you haven’t read it, do so. May be a little dated by now. 30 years ago I was traveling across the country and stopped off at a used book sale in Utah, and picked up Fear of Flying for a nickel. A nickel! Best nickel I ever spent. Years later I was on Jury Duty and in the waiting room at the County Courthouse they had a huge closet full of used books. You could bring an old book of yours and swap it for any book in the closet. So I swapped and got the sequel to the Fear of Flying (it was bad, do not even remember it’s name). So I got Fear of Flying and the sequel for an average of 2 and a half cents each.
Shucky darns....no DJT?
Where do I begin? Where do I end? This quiz will continue. Is it Happy Hour yet?
Well, I will start by saying that I thought the theme was on the top bodacious meter. Clever. When I saw JFK I wondered if we might be dealing with airports. LBJ took care of that notion. On to the rest....
The good, the bad, and the ugly:
The good: The GOING WAY BACK theme answer hit my tee-hee button. So did seeing Erica JONG. Her book "Fear of Flying" was filled with humor, aggressive sex language, casual encounters...the list goes on. I love her rankness....Seeing our no ANGEL Mae West..Man I loved her sassiness.
The bad: I think I counted about 22 names. I think JODIE crossing JAKOB... and AKELA crossing NAN was just plain bad for a Monday puzzle. I almost didn't finish because of those names and if I hadn't, I would've had a brain cell discombobulation.
The ugly: Well, I don't like or use that word. I always find something nice in ugliness..besides there was nothing ugly here.
I really enjoyed your ideas, Natalie. I really hope to see more of your work.
Little MAJA desnuda story: MAJA means goddess in Spanish. It was the first painting during that era that actually showed (gasp) pubic hairs. The horrors! The shame! It's believed that the model was (ready for this?)...Pepita Tudo.....Goya's mistress. Others believed it was the Duchess of Alba (that one is more fun and scandalous). I'm guessing he was forced to paint "La MAJA Vestida" in order for all the tsk taking to go away.
@chefwen...Still sending you hugs.
@Z (8:25) I spent 35+ years on the federal payroll. We called it Presidents’ Day. Interestingly enough, the State of Missouri observes both the Federal holiday (officially referred to as Presidents’ Day) and Lincoln’s Birthday on February 12. State offices are closed and employees paid for both.
.
Wayback Machine.
The holiday today is Presidents Day. Lincoln's birthday was Feb. 12 and Washington's birthday is Feb. 22. The holiday is on the Monday in between. When I was a kid, both days were celebrated.
Of course it’s Washington’s Birthday. The holiday honors the one and only father of our country.
No amount of white sales and ad men can change that fact.
@Nancy 8:51
Amen!!!!
I dunno... I thought the 5 presidents were 83% (with US Grant) of those with truly famous middle initials. FDR, LBJ, and JFK made regular headline appearances (in the last case, by his personal request -- until he won the election, headlines called him "Jack," but he thought that was too undignified for a president). In the case of the second Bush, they didn't even bother with the other initials, he was just W. As for Truman, his middle initial was famous because it didn't stand for anything; he insisted that S was actually his middle name, and therefore should not have a period after it.
This one had me GOING WAY BACK to the early 1950s, when I was a Cub Scout, and learned that "The Cub Scout follows AKELA" among other things. That meant that we should look up to our leaders. I didn't read Kipling until years later, so I didn't know the referent.
And at about the same time I read a Superman comic in which our hero corals a bunch of crooks, flies through the air with them and drops them into a box in front of police headquarters, saying something along the lines of "I've brought you a carton of YEGGs." The word was so unusual that it has stuck in my mind since.
I'm with @TJS, one doesn't ROAST HAM, one bakes it. Not that there is any difference in the procedure, but we have to keep up linguistic standards. In any case, I would never roast anything but a goose on Christmas Day.
I loved seeing DAFT in the puzzle, great word. Less lovable: cluing BOA as a fill-in-the-blanks.
@Unknown, there were 4 Democratic presidents, not 3.
Finally-- would one really say LEVI'S BLUE JEANS? Blue jeans, Levi's jeans, jeans, Levi's, but I've never previously encountered that three-word string.
Thank you!
Hey All !
YEGG, old buddy! Where you been hiding? Next, we'll get an OMOO sighting.
Agree with the plethora of names, although I knew almost all of them. #humblebrag
Did notice the 16 wide grid. Do agree that GWB isn't as ubiquitous as the other three-initialed prezs. Maybe it is for Gen AA (isn't that we're on now?) But no JQA? Har.
I have an AMC theater right up the road from me. I also have an AMC Hornet (currently not running 😕), and have wanted to take a pic of my AMC under the big AMC sign, because I'm weird like that.
Speaking of AA, is that James' sister? "Bond, AA BOND."
Agree with the less than ideal 1D, but 1A should be known. Tyler Perry had about 137 MADEA movies made, but yet no one thinks he enjoys cross-dressing? Odd.
HAVING SAID THAT, GOING WAY BACK we wore LEVIS BLUE JEANS in the FAMILY DINING ROOM JUST FOR KICKS. (UGH 😁)
yd -6, should'ves 3
Four F's
RooMonster
DarrinV
@Nancy from yesterday -- I somehow failed to notice that there was a wit twister yesterday. I fold the paper in quarters to do the xword, and neglected to look at the other side. I'll see if I can find it online.
All the names really ruined this for me. Ugh. One or two, okay, but this was just full of people I've never heard of and never want to hear of again. Also wish the set of presidents made some logical sense and/or had some relationship to the clue.
A little surprised that so many folks found this hard. Got to be the famous Wheelhouse Effect, as I put in MAJA and JUSTFORKICKS off the J and didn't slow down appreciably and bang it was done.
I've been doing crosswords for so long that running into something you only see in crosswords and haven't seen in a long time just elicits a smile. Looking at you, LIANA (not accepted by SB, BTW) and especially you YEGG. Thought you might have died, so a nice surprise to see you're still around. And AKELA, haven't thought of you since my Cub Scout days. How have you been?
I've often wondered why if you put a turkey in the oven you ROAST it but if you put a HAM in the oven you bake it.
Also wondered if the initials were going to be all dems although GWB fixed that. He may be considered left wing by today's standards. And @Nancy nailed it with her DJT suggestion.
In short, a fun time revisiting the crossword archives. My condolences to newer solvers, and I hope you are lucky enough to get your own personal store of crosswordese. Many years of fun.
Congrats on the debut, NM. Nicely Made. Nicely Made indeed, and thanks for the fun.
I did not find this puzzle to be notably harder than other Mondays, except that I’ve no memory of the words RHEA and HASP. The clue for COST — Tag line? — does not (to my mind) work, because a price (e.g., $8.99) is in not a “line.” Tons of tired xword fill (ALUM, OLAV, OBI, DOC, OAR, IRA, IDLES, ICEE, ATTA …). But most notably, the theme is irrelevant to the solve. I figured it out after I was done, and thought “What do presidents have to do with any of this?” This is not to say that the puzzle is worse than most NYT puzzles. I’d say it’s average.
OK, it's Monday.
MONDAY.
You've got "NAN" in your puzzle and went for the nickname of a photographer instead of a British grandma?
How does this happen?
Had to look her up. And I'm gay. I'm thinking that she might be kinda-famous, but she sure as hell isn't Monday-famous.
Also: crossing an E--- Morales who isn't ERIN with a Latin KeaLoa is also soooooo not-Monday.
I enjoyed the theme answers and HIHON until I finished and couldn't find the mistake at rEDEA/rAJA. Redea didn't look like a name I know but who knows with names??
Yay Nancy for “Doing jail time.”
What else did people wear in the 60’s besides Levis? Cut-off Levis?
Earlier in the decade I had a one-piece playsuit, and a dress made out of a circle that was lime green with big white polka dots. I also had a very long string of beads made out of seeds dyed turquoise. I think my mother had a pair of aqua polyester pants.
Getting off of the Wayback Machine now.
Hello. Barbara, here.
I’m so glad to hear everyone thought this was hard. I thought for sure I was going to read that @Rex found it easy and I’d have to face the fact that I’ve finally lost my mind. 😮
@Nancy - good one
@JoePinto - beat me to it for the GWB being a bridge. Already named for a president, if they rededicated it to #43, it could be the GWBB.
I appreciated some resistance on a holiday, even if somewhat obscure name-based difficulty.
Before coming here, I thought of Rex(eo) in light of 66A, "how do I hate thee, puzzle, let me blog the ways...." Pretty fair today, actually. And I'd like to thank him again for reminding me it has been a good practice not to waste any time on Twitter.
"Having said that" should be banned
Once again, a lively, fast and easy puzzle. Not knowing much of the trivia was no bother because they filled themselves in just by going the other way with answers. Am also old enough to remember two distinct February holidays (and days off from school) for both Lincoln and Washington -- and remember their portraits hanging in the school rooms of the primary school I attended. I thought the tweet Rex published was offensive and childish and churlish in the extreme -- not saying that about Rex, of course, but about people who sometimes cannot get from A to B without going off the rails. Chacun a son gout, and all that.
Rex needs to hang with people who are proud of their privilege. My law firm represents several high end construction companies, and its becoming common in New England in houses over 6000 square feet to have three dining rooms, a family dining room, a formal dining room and a banquet room. And the presidents in this puzzle most likely to understand that are FDR and JFK.
Yes, it was tough for a Monday but I loved this puzzle! When I saw LBJ I got the theme was for President's Day and I smiled - for the first time in many solves. ESAI, YEGG, LIANA was crossword nostalgia. Who doesn't like running into an old friend? Thanks for a fun solve Natalie!
Wow. So many actors, a few of whom are barely famous. A specific name of a "dwarf" found only in a cartoon movie clued as if otherwise. (And, to add insult, or show our parochial world view, let's throw in the Patron Saint of a society with 10s of dwarves in their mythology, at least 11 of whom have 3 letter names...)
Filled in about a third of the answers without looking at the clues too. I am definitely not a fan of this puzzle.
@amyyanni (8:22)
Yes, your memory is correct. The Wayback Machine was the device invented and used in "Peabody's Improbable History" as a birthday gift from Mr. Peabody to Sherman. This recurring segment of the Rocky and Bullwinkle Show featured the time travel adventures of Mr. Peabody and Sherman.
In was not long before the term entered the popular culture - where it remains today.
I forgot LIANA! That also brought me back to late childhood, when I read maybe 57 novels by Edgar Rice Burroughs. Those are the vines that Tarzan used to swing from tree to tree.
@jberg (9:38)
Here's yesterday's Wit Twister in case you can't find it online:
The art world's latest _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _: just draw!
No _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ of texture, shape and color!
Yet, _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ at heart, I break that law.
My brushstrokes thrill me! (Pencils are much duller.)
It's really hard, @jberg -- the first one I couldn't do, ever! It's also really, really inspired, with perfect scansion -- something this versifier doesn't always nail completely. I'd put money on your not getting it, @jberg; neither Joe D nor I could. But this morning, [gasp] before breakfast, I ran to the front door, snatched up my NYT, and looked at the answer; it was driving me crazy! I wouldn't have gotten it in a million trillion years. But NOT because it's unfair. It's very fair!
I'm coming back in my next post with hints that will 1) make it at least possible for y'all to solve it and 2) will STILL give you a real "Aha Moment" if you do. I didn't have that pleasure, alas, but I want to give it to you.
Hints for solving Saturday's Wit Twister, if you'd like them. Skip this post if you want to keep plugging on your own. But you won't get it -- I'm quite sure of that. Scroll way down for hints...
Hint #1: In line #3, the artist is not talking about his rebellious spirit. He's talking about his devotion to his art.
Hint #2: The second (4-letter) word in line #1 is LINE.
Will these enable you to get it? Probably not. The third hint, subtle as it is, might just enable you to figure it out. Work with these 2 for a while. Then, scroll way down for the third hint...
Hint #3: The first letter of the first (5-letter word) in line #1 begins with a "P".
I just laughed so hard about the "book about flying" outrage. I actually tried to read that as a sex-obsessed teenager (Henry Miller, Jackie Collins, Our Bodies Ourselves). I could not get into Erica Jong. I wanted to. I tried to skip to the dirty parts. I couldn't even enjoy the dirty parts. All I remember is the "zipless fuck" theory and how now people want that same idea to apply to takeout and delivery.
@bocamp - Croce’s Freestyle #684 was easy for a Croce. HAVING SAID THAT I missed it by 2 squares in the NE because I didn’t know a product name and I failed to triple check the crosses. Good luck!
DNFed because I put in ITS FUN for 33 across “love your work”. Gave me three proper nouns that I didn’t know going down Tilla, liSna, and ebUn. The other downs were OK
Hello everybody i am very happy to say this today about the good work of Dr ostia and i want to say a big thanks' to you sir, I and my family are very happy god will bless you, please if you have any problem in your marriage or your husband or girlfriend cheating on you outside and you are looking for away to bring him or she back please you can add Dr ostia the great spell caster on WhatsApp +4915217824272 or email Ositabello8@gmil.com
I’m surprised that nobody mentioned this one: The plural for RBI is not RBIS, it is RBI, as in “Runs Batted In”. Baseball announcers sound almost British when using the abbreviation as a plural noun with the matching verb, as in “His RBI are lower this season.” Swing and a miss.
A minor nit re consistency....
Presidents Roosevelt, Kennedy and Johnson were all popularly known and commonly referred to by their initials: FDR, JFK and LBJ, respectively.
No so for Presidents Truman and Bush (the Younger) - unless you count the single "W" by which Bush (the Younger) was popularly known.
Surprised by many comments and 🦖’s.
No idea why, but this one was very fast and easy (for me.)
Nice way to honor some honorable presidents. And yes, there were some fun answers.
🤗🦖🦖🦖🦖🤗
Not A FAN. I time myself in the early week, and this was Wednesday level, and also fell flatter than a pancake. Now this would be a great Sunday puzzle theme, all the Presidential initials from FDR on. I suppose the problems would be: First, who remembers Jimmy Carter's middle initial? And second, you almost have to fit in the four-letter GHWB, universal in his day. FDR, HST, DDE, JFK, LBJ, RMN, those we know, and we will never forget the worst President in history, GWB. His father had the H, and his nickname among the Maureen DOWDs of the world was Dubya).
(Turns out Jimmy's second name was Earl, so he would be JEC).
It does occur to me that WS's job includes "making nice guys out of stinkers", which the Hostess with the Mostes' on the Ball was renowned for, and let me say "Call Me Madam" is far and away the best musical ever written that focused on politics as well as the usual love stories. Irving Berlin's masterpiece. HAVING SAID THAT, I hope for better things tomorrow.
Yeah there was some rough crosswordese, and I think FORMAL DINING ROOM (which fits!) would have been a much better / more in-the-language themer, but I liked this! Tough for a Monday, but that's the cost of being able to run it on Presidents Day. Solid debut.
Five monograms in search of a towel. Wish there had been a revealer to tie this together more, but I did enjoy the puzzle and appreciated the fact that it was harder than the usual Monday. Really liked YEGG.
HAVING SAID THAT is a great themer but not an expression I like to encounter in real life since it’s usually followed by something I don’t want to hear. I am reminded of a rejection letter from a literary manager at a theatre about a play I had submitted for production. She went on and on about how wonderful the script was and then capped her praises with “Having said that, we will not be producing it.”
Had trouble recalling the reindeer at 50d and maybe because of the theme kept coming up with Nixon. Who brings to mind the inscription “Remember My Name.”
Super kudos to @Nancy for her take on DJT.
I liked that 48A was an actual Truman quote, from his "Give me a one-handed economist" complaint.
What’s SB, anybody?
Take it all back about FAMILY DINING ROOM. After enjoying the Smythe and anon comments I googled. Besides the people selling tables that you would expect I found a direct link to today's puzzle. The Family Dining Room in the White House. At the official White House you get a history of it starting with John Adams. It is off the State Dining Room. Even Smythe doesn't have one of those.
@egs
Thanks for the guffaw ITGIRL!
Odd puzzle. Not exactly A FAN but I was laughing through the solve imagining all the head-scratching. Liked that it wasn’t a pushover. Finished with ItsFuN where IMAFAN should’ve been. Have a cousin tILLie, so tILLA seemed fine. Have to look up the EBAN GUY.
@albatross, thanks - I was too young to know of the sacrifices but my mom relayed a few things. She was not A FAN of his boss, but it’s neat having the signature. Cause of death was lung cancer, yes, smoking-related, though he had quit in the 50s.
@Nancy 8:51 YES!
Baking vs roasting: the answer.
Nina Simone, b. 2/21/1933, is today’s composer. She might like that there are more than Four Women in Natalie’s grid.
YEGG is about as olde a word as exists. yeesh.
c'mon folks!! ya gots yer FAMILY DINING ROOM for Hubby Bubba and da kids, and da formal DINING ROOM for when the cousins (we hope the kids will marry some o dem) come over.
seemed a standard Monday. only write overs
data to INFO kinda a kealoa
ATfour to ATFIVE when I was a drinking sh!t on Capitol Hill (the one in DC), the Penn. Ave. bars were chock-a-block by 3:45
A rather gloomy Monday experience for me, alas, partly my fault because I thought the numbers were internal references to the grid and I couldn't figure out what JFK had to do with #35 RCA, etc., and partly the puzzle's fault for the - choose your crosswordese - slew, ton, raft, host of names. Starting out with three of them across the top row? Maybe, on a Monday, if they're ROMEO or equally famous, but I thought the array here made for a very uninviting introduction to the puzzle.
But, as I've learned before, reading @Rex and the comments will brighten the scene, today making me appreciate the aptness of the theme and the solid phrases, and making me laugh (thank you, @egsforbreakfast for the IT folk and @mathgent for the grasshopper).
Do-over: data before INFO. Help from previous puzzles: ESAI, AKELA. No idea: MADEA, JAKOB, MILLA.
This was my 987th puzzle through the app, after 20+ years of occasional paper puzzles.
Absolutely the worst Monday puzzle I've ever slogged through.
This many proper nouns should never ever be allowed on a Monday. Just ridiculous.
My PR on Monday is 3:28
My average is 8:33 (though in the past year anything over 6 is unusual)
This took 10:09
Not a Monday puzzle.
I suppose, since the blog allows comments re: Spelling Bee, Wordler, etc. I'll just have to tolerate the Jberg/Nancy twister dialog. Does seem excessive, though.
@Nancy8:51 Perfect and long overdue
Rex has lost his mind with his political views. GWB unworthy? Really? FDR put American citizens in concentration camps. JFK cheated on his wife every chance he got (as did LBJ). Speaking of LBJ, can we not agree that the Viet Nam war was worse than Iraq?i
MFCTM.
Nancy (8:51)
Sir John ... (9:00)
Joseph Michael (11:50)
Carola (12:02)
Interesting discussion re: RBI vs RBIs, here.
"RBIs or "ribbies" is the traditional term. Technically it should be R'sBI but since we don't do that, I'll stick with the original.
Funny debate on this from time to time on my local sports talk station. Hosts are my age and hate the term RBI. I'm not as opposed to it as they are but agree RBIs is proper." (Gunther on 'The Sand Trap.com')
@jae (11:16 AM)
Thx, ready to embark on it right now! :)
@Wright-Young (11:52 AM)
SB = NYT Spelling Bee (here, & here).
___
td (g: 4:49) (pg: 29:35, which also resulted in QB) / W: 3*
Peace ~ Compassion ~ Tolerance ~ Kindness to all 🕊
@Gerrythek
May I suggest that you reread @Rex's post.
What he said, and others here have echoed, is that FDR, JFK and LBJ were commonly used while HST not so much and Bush (maybe as W) never (or rarely) as GWB (George Washington Bridge). Nothing about their achievements or politics.
Loved the puzzle. For a time I had Roast Game for Xmas, great answer. When I finished, no music, could not find an error. Finally clicked check and I had spelled Madea with an i. Doesn't ist look like a suffix?
LBJ pants call is a treasure. Thanks for that.
@A 11:56 Thanx "the answer" GREAT resource
@Nancy 8:51…Funny AND so right!
Ah, President's Day. I finished the puzzle and thought, "So what, presidential initials?" But Jeff Chen reminded me that it's President's Day so the initials do serve a purpose. Funny how that made me like the puzzle, all of a sudden. And funny because I've been reminding myself since this morning that I shouldn't bother checking for mail, neither here at work nor at home, because it's a holiday. No big brain here, I guess!
HAVING SAID THAT, I did roll my eyes at seeing YEGG. And LIANA - Jeff Chen says he's had a lot of complaints over the years about it but my only complaint is that Sam Ezersky doesn't accept it for SB. I try it every time anyway, just in case he's finally changed his mind.
Natalie Murphy, congratulations on your NYTimes debut!
Bad Natick at ZUMBA/ZAC, way too hard for a Monday (or any day, really).
No really, the Federal Holiday has always been Washington’s Birthday. That Wikipedia article I linked to is a nice little primer on the whole thing, but there’s also stuff like federal pay.org and actual government websites.
@Gerrythek - Rex’s point is that Dubya has never been known as GWB, just not nearly as 3-initial-worthy as the other entries. Note that Rex correctly points out that HST is barely worthy. You say JFK or LBJ or FDR and you immediately know who is under discussion. As some have already pointed out, say GWB and people think you’re looking for directions over the Hudson.
@Punkinbugg - The convention for terms like Runs Batted In and Attorneys General when pluralizing the abbreviation is to treat the abbreviation as a unit, so RBIS and AGS. Say “R’SBI” and you’re likely to end up on anti-pedant medication.
@Nancy (8:51) Brava! I keep waiting for at least one of the charges to stick.
@A-Fascinating link and a mystery solved. Thanks for sharing.
I'm at the DMV, letters in hand, trying to solve that morning quiz.
@Z
HST is often used in crosswords and should have immunity here for that reason.
Have not read Rex's review nor any comments, so I'm guessing there's nothing original in what I have to say...
This was a really clever and fun idea -- JUSTFORKICKS and LEVISBLUEJEANS are very real phrases corresponding to two US Presidents whose initials are iconic. I would have preferred formalDININGROOM, but I'll accept its more casual sibling, because it works for the third US President with iconic initials.
But that's where we run into a roadblock. The last two themers, while perfectly "in the language," are in service of Presidents whose initials are, at best, familiar enough for one to know who they represent. But, unlike the three above, no one really refers to them as HST or GWB; they're "Harry Truman" or "George W. Bush" (or just "W"). The gap between FDR/JFK/LBJ and any other presidential initials is a massive chasm.
I would have suggested limiting the themers to just those first three and going with 16-wide mirror symmetry. That might have freed the constructor to make formalDININGROOM work and also to rid the puzzle of some theme-constrained junk (DOASET, MILLA, AKELA, LIANA).
A classic case in which less would have been more. A little restraint imposed by the editor could have allowed the constructor to execute at the same high level as that of their idea. Alas, no.
@Gerrythek:
can we not agree that the Viet Nam war "was started by Eisenhower"!!! Look it up.
GWB unworthy? Really?
Yeah, Really. Lied us into two wars of choice, and let his Oil Buddies, the Saudis who actually carried out 9/11, off the hook. Just like The Orange Sh!tgibbon (not my coinage, but I cleave) did with that assassination. GOP really means, Grifters, Opportunists, and Plutocrats. And, to pile on, his 'other' name is Dubya, not GWB. 15 of 19 were Saudi, and 2 were UAE, a Saudi surrogate for decades.
HST also stands for hormone spermatozoa therapy.
Canon Chasuble 10;34 Agree 100% on the tweet and the insight "not about Rex, of course."
@Nancy 8:15 am: "DOING JAIL TIME"... love it.
Re troublesome plurals: for me, the worst is "data". Some pedantic people insist on saying "the data show...". OK the word originated as the plural of datum, but it has evolved to mean something quite different that is an entity of its own, like water or sunshine. "The water are cold!"... no.
[Spelling Bee: td 6 min. to get to genius, 26 min to get pangram and QB simultaneously (just like bocamp but slower!) That has never happened before, to get the only pangram as the last word.]
Good one. No … great one!
"Anonymous Anonymoose said...
I suppose, since the blog allows comments re: Spelling Bee, Wordler, etc. I'll just have to tolerate the Jberg/Nancy twister dialog. Does seem excessive, though.”
Agreed! can they get a room?
@bocamp Ah, thanks!
The PBS series American Experience recently ran an episode called Riveted: The History of Jeans . Worth a look.
As Rex noted, the crosswordese fill confused this intermediate solver quite a bit. Looking at you Yegg, Akela, Esai and Liana! I do know my presidents, so the freebies helped some... Thanks.
It's great of Kyle Vidpa to put in an appearance (3:06), but where's Sarah?
Thanks, @Nancy ---I'll give it a try before coming back to look at your later post.
@Nancy, thanks for the Wit Twister - never heard of them but fun! I got it without the hints, starting with line 2, based on the meter and context. Line 3 fell soon after, followed finally by line 1 after a bit of wrangling.
Thanks again for sharing!
So, @mathgent, at 6:68 posed this trivia question: What five-letter word has four silent letters?
I don't think anyone has answered that yet. But if you do come up with the answer, I have a second riddle, and that is: How does the answer to @mathgent's riddle relate to today's puzzle?
Note that I'm not complaining that @mathgent's trivia question doesn't relate to the puzzle, rather, I'm giving a new riddle based on the answer to his.
@Lewis (4:39)--
1) My answer to @mathgent's trivia question is BEAUX.
2) BEAUX is a homophone of BO -- who was Obama's dog. And this is a President's Day-themed puzzle.
Am I right?
I'm blown away, @Wright-Young (4:08), that you solved it. I've never missed solving one, but I couldn't solve today's. It was really tough!!!
As many people here already know, I write them myself -- and two years before Nancy Coughlin's verses started to appear, I sent Will Shortz a hard copy of 41 of what I called my "Anagrammed Poems". He showed no interest at all in my idea for the NYT; he suggested that I instead send my collection to Games Magazine. So imagine my surprise when this exact same format, written by someone else and now dubbed "Wit Twisters", started appearing in the Times two years later.
Here's one of mine:
HEAD SCRATCH AT 40-15 (8 letters)
He -------- every dropshot, every volley, every lob.
He -------- his opponent; it's a deft and thorough job.
There won't be any -------- since the victory's not in doubt.
But can you -------- the signals that his coach was giving out?
If you did the one in the Times today, @Wright-Young, you can probably do this one too. But it is one of my harder ones.
Yeah, I have never seen a bar's happy hour start AT FIVE. Every single one of the (countless) bars I've ever been in start happy our AT FOUR, like normal people.
@nancy -- BEAUX is a terrific guess but if you remove the EAUX you're left with BEE, basically, not BO. This is actually a hint toward the right answer...
I'll give the answer to both riddles at 6:00.
Actually, Mathgent's trivia question (6:18) might be better worded thusly: What 5 letter word sounds the same when you take 4 letters away?
@Lewis - Quite the Quizzical Query. I’ll stand over here in line and stop giving hints.
@Z -- Yes, sir!
Okay, the answer to @mathgent's trivia question is QUEUE. When you take away UEUE what's left is Q which sounds like Q.
The answer to my follow up riddle -- that is, the connection of QUEUE to today's puzzle, is that Q is the only letter NOT IN the puzzle.
@Z -- That felt, for a moment, like a PPP!
Got it, Lewis! Thanks for making it clearer in your instructions.
I'll put the awnswer way down at the bottom so as not to spoil it for anyone else.
QUEUE.
Oops. You'd already posted the answer, Lewis, but it hadn't gone up yet when I posted mine.
@Lewis and whoever
Was I being to subtle? @145pm.
I heard that wordiddle before but couldn't remember the answer. Went I then A and then ran the alphabet. Had to be there somewhere. I was actually home all day.
@nancy (5:27) Wow, talk about impressive; what a wonderful new puzzle idea! Sorry to hear what happened with Shortz. :(
I got lucky on the one you posted from NYT; I’m now loving the challenge of yours! Outcome…TBD!
Thanks so much for sharing it…
@albatross shell -- Went right over my head; I'm sorry! But now at my reread, it's very funny.
Anon 12:53,
Amen. But one suggestion, make room for Frantic Sloth and z.
@mathgent, @Lewis, love the queue quiz! Nice Q quip from @albatross that flew high over my head as well. @Z clubbed said head into focus. I had to take two pets to the vet so didn't get to offer my guess - aargh. Or Arrgh. Though to be honest if I'm particularly exasperated I do pronounce the h. But the connection to today's (or any) puzzle should be clear!
@Lewis
Actually I meant to post:
I'm in line at the DMV... but I must have accidentally dropped the in line. So maybe it was too subtle. Or maybe I thought that was too big of giveway. I guess I no longer know what I was thinking but I was surprised the in line wasn't there.
@Lewis 6:22 - Yes indeed it did.
@Lewis6:22 - Feel free to use “Quite Quizzical Query” as it trips off the tongue. A good old daily QQQ is just what the commentariat needs.
Mods -- The last comment on yesterday's blog needs to be deleted.
Dr. Peabody and his pet boy Sherman.
Naked Came the Stranger, by Penelope Ashe... now THAT was some high quality smut!
@Unknown wonders if Jeans were around in the 60’s when LBJ was present. How innocent. Levi’s have been around snce the 50’s - the 1850’s when Levi Strauss created the first pair and created an icon.
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Circles, strike one. PPP overstuffing, strike two. #46--in BOTH directions--strikes three and four. Yer [WAY!] out!
I think anybody who insists on putting 46-down in a grid should be forced to clue it "Mohammed who brought down the WTC on 9/11." --And that crossing with the stupid letter-add-on, bad enough for that alone, referring to a WMD! Not cool on many levels.
As a frequent anonymous visitor to Syndiland would say: "Pisser infested. Rejected." Not even DOD MILLA Jovovich can save this. Quadruple-bogey.
A bit tough for a Monday - perhaps made so in order to accomodate the presidential theme.
Otherwise, when I sussed out the theme it actually filled in a few answers, or bits thereof.
Diana, Lady-in-Waiting for Crosswords
Leave the newbie alone - fun puzzle. Saw the numbers and ignored them; no loss.
I've been doing crossword puzzles for over 60 years, and found this one very easy. Name heavy, yes. But not one that I hadn't at least heard of.
Bravo to Natalie on her debut but WS should have helped her to ditch the gimmick for something better. The three-letter monogram balls only worked well for three out of the five themers. One clunker might have been allowable. But not two.
VIXEN ANGEL
GOINGWAYBACK, IMAFAN,
JUSTFORKICKS FOR what IT means,
HAVINGSAIDTHAT, MILLA can
KICK off her LEVISBLUEJEANS.
--- JAKOB DOWD
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