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Relative difficulty: Easy
Theme answers:
This has to be a real promposal, right? I'm going to have to go check, aren't I? Sigh, hang on ... OK, short answer: no. Longer answer, Ruby is the constructor's wife. He makes her a puzzle every year on their dating anniversary. They've been together eight years this year. I have no idea if they ever actually went to prom. Anyway, it's obviously a very sweet thing to make a puzzle for your wife, and a very cool thing to get said puzzle published in the Times, so if you think I have anything terribly critical to say about this puzzle, think again. For once, I'll just let things be. Mostly. The only "negative" for me is that the questioner seems like someone who won't take 'no' for an answer. I get that he's asking a plastic, fluid-filled toy and not an actual human being, but I can't help it if my initial reaction to the haranguing of the 8 Ball was "hey, buddy, no means no." But the repeated questioning is all in good fun, and really does accurately reflect a certain kind of teenage anxiety, the magical thinking that precedes a high-stakes moment that you want to turn out for the best. Not that this kind of magical thinking is exclusive to teenagers. Just emblematic. I mean, we all know plastic, fluid-filled toys don't have ESP, right? Right? Please say 'right.' (Also, ESP is not a [Helpful skill for guessers], as it is not a skill to begin with, it's a non-existent thing, thank you for coming to my ongoing TED Talk on the fictionality of ESP and the NYTXW's continuing campaign of ESP legitimization). Happy eighth anniversary of being together, Daniel & Ruby! Magic Eighth!
- "MY SOURCES SAY NO" (16A: "Will Ruby go to prom with me?")
- "ASK AGAIN LATER" (32A: I repeat: "Will Ruby go to prom with me?")
- "WITHOUT A DOUBT" (37A: Third time's the charm: "Will Ruby go to prom with me?")
A demonym (/ˈdɛmənɪm/; from Ancient Greek δῆμος (dêmos) 'people, tribe' and ὄνυμα (ónuma) 'name') or 'gentilic' (from Latin gentilis 'of a clan, or gens') is a word that identifies a group of people (inhabitants, residents, natives) in relation to a particular place. Demonyms are usually derived from the name of the place (hamlet, village, town, city, region, province, state, country, and continent). Demonyms are used to designate all people (the general population) of a particular place, regardless of ethnic, linguistic, religious or other cultural differences that may exist within the population of that place. Examples of demonyms include Cochabambino, for someone from the city of Cochabamba; Tunisian for a person from Tunisia; and Swahili, for a person of the Swahili coast. [...] Several linguistic elements are used to create demonyms in the English language. The most common is to add a suffix to the end of the location name, slightly modified in some instances. These may resemble Late Latin, Semitic, Celtic, or Germanic suffixes, such as -(a)n, -ian, -anian, -nian, -in(e), -a(ñ/n)o/a, -e(ñ/n)o/a, -i(ñ/n)o/a, -ite, -(e)r, -(i)sh, -ene, -ensian, -ard, -ese, -nese, -lese, -i(e), -i(ya), -iot, -iote, -k, -asque, -(we)gian, -onian, -vian, -ois(e), or -ais(e). (wikipedia)
• • •
The puzzle was very easy, as a special-occasion puzzle should be. You want people to be able to solve it! Imagine if you made Ruby a puzzle and she couldn't finish. You don't want your dedicatee to hate you. If you make puzzles on commission, for any audience that isn't already crossword aficionados, then Easy is the way you want to go. Back in 2010, I made an "XC"-themed puzzle for my grandma's 90th birthday where all the theme answers contained "XC" (the Roman numeral for "90"), e.g. PHOENIX COYOTES, BOXCARS, etc. My grandma was the first adult I ever saw solving crosswords when I was a child, so I thought it would make a nice (and fitting) gift. And while my heart was in the right place, the difficulty level of the puzzle ... was not. It wasn't hard, just ... too hard for the crowd at a ninetieth birthday party at the BPOE in northern Idaho. Too hard for non-regular solvers. Probably not too hard for my grandma, I don't remember. I wrote about it all here, and the puzzle is still out there (solve it if you want—I haven't thought about this thing in fifteen years!)
[wow this song is way darker than I remembered]
There were a few potential stumbling blocks, all of them minor. 3D: "New and improved" and "For a limited time only" looks like it wants a plural answer, that is, looks like it should end in "S," but instead we get a collective noun, no "S" ending (ADSPEAK). I didn't get the KIT part of DNA KIT right away. The only word my brain wants following "DNA" is TEST, so I just let crosses help me out there (23D: 23andMe mailing). Weren't 23andMe the ones that stole everyone's data, sold it, and went out of business? I feel like something bad happened there. Oh yeah, they went into bankruptcy earlier this year and there was some (great) concern about whether customers' data was going to be sold. I think my sister did a 23andMe test once and discovered that we ... are white (dum dum Dum!). Like, you know, northern European / British, mostly. Real exciting stuff. Moving on: If you weren't here (solving, or at my blog) last month, then DEBOSE might've posed a problem today, but if you were here, then (hopefully) you were like "AHA! Multiple AHAS! I remember her! She was Word of the Day on Sep. 21!" Or maybe you just knew her because she's a famous actress. One person in the puzzle whom I knew but did Not get (easily) from his clue is Jules VERNE (48A: Author of "L'île Mystérieuse"). I know his 20,000 Leagues, and his Journey books (to the Moon, to the Center of the Earth) and the balloon book (Around the World in 80 Days), but L'île Mystérieuse was mystérieuse to me. This probably should've been Word of the Day today:
The Mysterious Island (French: L'Île mystérieuse) is a novel by Jules Verne, serialised from August 1874 to September 1875 and then published in book form in November 1875. The first edition, published by Hetzel, contains illustrations by Jules Férat. The novel is a crossover sequel to Verne's famous Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Seas (1870) and In Search of the Castaways (1867–68), though its themes are vastly different from those books. An early draft of the novel, rejected by Verne's publisher and wholly reconceived before publication, was titled Shipwrecked Family: Marooned with Uncle Robinson, indicating the influence of the novels Robinson Crusoe and The Swiss Family Robinson. Verne developed a similar theme in his novel, Godfrey Morgan (French: L'École des Robinsons, 1882).The chronology of The Mysterious Island is incompatible with that of Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Seas, which begins in 1866, while The Mysterious Island begins during the American Civil War, yet is supposed to happen 16 years after Twenty Thousand Leagues. (wikipedia)
That's all for today. Will I be back tomorrow? [Shakes 8 Ball] ... 'Concentrate and ask again'?? ... stupid 8 Ball ... [smacks 8 Ball] ... 'It is decidedly so.' That's better. See you then.
[Follow Rex Parker on BlueSky and Facebook and Letterboxd]
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ReplyDeleteCongratulations Ruby and Daniel!
Very easy puzzle, as @Rex said. My only overwrite was minor: I thought volleyball and racquetball were invented in aMer[ica] before I realized they were invented at the YMCA (6D). No WOEs, but I got VERNE (48A) from crosses and I didn't know why I knew DEBOSE (31D) until I came here.
Finished it with one cheat, to get DOREMI. I also had "entranced" before ENGROSSED. Never heard of a MAGICEIGHTBALL, so I wasted time trying to figure out who Ruby was. Definitely a puzzle for the younger generation.
ReplyDeleteI'm 78 and we had magic eight balls in elementary school. I recognized the tone of the answer right away.
DeleteI’d actually be surprised if the younger generation knew what it was.
DeleteThe younger generation meaning boomers lol? The magic 8 ball was a cultural phenomenon in the 1950s and 60s.
DeleteThe 80th anniversary edition of Mattel's Magic 8 Ball is available online.
DeleteDid you go to the prom with Cleopatra? Magic 8 Balls have been out since the 50s, and have been referenced in countless movies/tv shows/etc.
DeleteMy 14-year-old has a magic eight all that she still occasionally consults so definitely a cross-generational thing.
DeleteBob Mills is a legendary troll poster who pretends not to know ANYTHING in order to wind people up. He's awesome!
DeleteI went to the prom with Cleopatra.
DeleteI bet Caesar was mad about that.
DeleteBob, I have to say that today you inspired some pretty funny comments…ie Marc Antony and Brutus.
DeleteFun I guess - nothing highly nuanced but warm and inviting. The EIGHT BALL revealer was poorly placed and an afterthought but I understand the play. The grid is well filled.
ReplyDeleteGuster
The mid length stuff was solid - ENGROSSED, TREE LOT, GEYSERS, UPROARS etc are all top notch. Knew of KATE but needed some crosses first. ADELE is becoming a puzzle stalwart along with ODIE and OREO.
The Soft Boys
Another easy one but an enjoyable Wednesday morning solve. Let’s see if the Yanks can get even tonight.
RUBY’s Arms
Don't even need to click to know what the Guster link is. Huge fan of theirs. That tune is amazing, culminating with the Miles-ish solo at the end. Always a hit live. Thanks so much for the endorsement/reminder!
Delete@Bob. I feel for you. I had DoremE/pEco and both seemed so right.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Eric. I took French in school, but that word never came up in class.
DeleteIt’s do re mi. The musical notes.
Delete@Anon 7:30 AM: indeed, not very likely to come up in French class. It really is pretty much limited to music instruction.
DeleteI was thinking this would be tough if you didn't know what solfege was, and sure enough. I don't think I knew the word until I was 50.
DeleteI liked it. My first thought was “Who is this Ruby person and why are they in the puzzle?” and the second thing that came to mind was “Why are these answers so pedestrian?”. Solving north to south, I remember hoping for a kick-ass reveal, and lo and behold, out of the blue comes this reminder of a time gone by that I haven’t thought about in twenty years. I don’t frequently get jazzed by the themes, but this one did it for me.
ReplyDeleteI agree with earlier posters that the clue/answer combination for DOREMI was (brutally) cumbersome. Hopefully experienced solvers (or musicians) will have an easier time with that one. Similarly, Demonym was totally unknown, but crosses came to the rescue and I had forgotten all about it until I saw it pop up as Rex’s WOTD.
Thanks also to OFL for following up and bringing us the backstory regarding the theme - it’s even more satisfying to know that there is a real Ruby and she is lucky enough to have a life partner who could pull this off successfully.
No one caught that AMSTERDAM is not a capital?
ReplyDeleteBuddy…
DeleteYeah, kinda sorta: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capital_of_the_Netherlands
DeleteThough Amsterdam is not the seat of Government (that would be The Hague) the Constitution of the Netherlands is very specific about Amsterdam being the Capital. I suspect this has to do with the Netherlands being a Constitutional Monarchy. The official home of the Monarch is Amsterdam (thought the King does not actually live there): it is where he is sworn in and inaugurated and where the the Royal Palace of Amsterdam is located and at which he hosts state visits and and official events/receptions. No one actually lives at the palace, however.
DeleteESP is absolutely a thing! There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio... But no, the MAGICEIGHTBALL ain't it!
ReplyDeleteYou're welcome to try to prove it. Too bad for you, you're too late to win a million bucks from the James Randi Educational Foundation, the prize offer for anyone who could demonstrate ESP under controlled conditions.
DeleteI think you mean ESPN. That's definitely a thing.
DeleteMean Girls said it best. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=qObzgUfCl28&pp=0gcJCRsBo7VqN5tD
DeleteHere's the best Ruby song... it's by David Rawlings and Gillan Welch... beautiful tune... https://youtu.be/x668-BgXDMM?si=mev6ElIkVMeekIdF
ReplyDeleteSweet. Thanks for that link.
DeleteI'll counter that with Ruby Soho: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0P9QMkm9Eew
DeleteDidn’t guess the revealer until I uncovered MAGIC, and when the answer finally came in a flash, it brought not only a sweet “Hah!”, but it also shot me back into my kid-mind, the actual fun feeling the Magic 8 Ball evoked back then, even images of the answers slowly appearing in its window.
ReplyDeleteThat was cool, and then I was utterly charmed by the puzzle’s backstory in Daniel’s notes, drenched in love.
So, enthusiastic thumbs up.
Then I started wondering more about the Magic 8 Ball, found out:
• Inside the device is a floating 20-sided die that offers 10 positive responses, five noncommittal ones, and five negative ones.
• You cannot take a Magic 8 Ball through TSA, although one can go in checked luggage.
• Live lobsters, however, are allowed through TSA (in clear plastic spill-proof containers).
Many smiles from your puzzle, Daniel, and that’s a gift. Congratulations on your NYT debut, and thank you!
Hey All !
ReplyDeleteNice sentimentality in the puz construction, seems like it could've ran on Tuesday. I finished it quicker than YesterPuz.
Interesting way to handle the 14's. They tend not to like to fit nicely in a grid (unless you make the whole puz 14 wide.) But, you end up with the three-Blocker section on the edge, which is unsightly. Also nice placement of the 13's, as they tend to come with those Blocker-chunks on each one, but both the 13's are incorporated into one bunch. Nice.
Wonder if any of his other "To my wife" puzs have been published? Too lazy to mosey over to xwordinfo to find out.
MY SOURCES SAY NO F'S, but it does have a ROO. Hopefully @pablo doesn't utter an OATH. Har.
Welp, have a great Wednesday!
No F's
RooMonster
DarrinV
Mr. Speer's class is the best at crossword!
ReplyDeleteMy second grade teacher was Ms Speer. She was a first year teacher. She said my lower-case p’s had too big a gap between the stick and the loop. I failed handwriting. This was 35 years ago. Is she still teaching?
DeleteI had YSO and SKA on the first two themers and that’s all I needed. I had a magic eight ball. And at a certain age, real or not, you bank on that thing. This puzzle was a breeze. And a bit of a melancholy reminder of the innocence of youth.
DeleteITT before APE
ReplyDeleteOde to Joy was written by Schiller, not Beethoven. However, Beethoven incorporated it into his Symphony No.9 .
ReplyDeleteWell, Schiller wrote the poem, which Beethoven set to music. The clue is fair.
DeleteI guess it depends on what you mean by "written." Schiller wrote a poem called "Ode to Joy." Beethoven used it as inspiration, rewrote the text rather extensively, set it to music, and, as you say, incorporated the result into Symphony No. 9. That is the version that most people are familiar with, and it is certainly not wrong to call it "Beethoven's Ode to Joy."
DeleteA musical setting of a poem generally takes the same title as the poem. For instance, C.D.F. Schubart’s poem “The Trout” was set to music by Franz Schubert. It certainly is not wrong to say that Schubert wrote “The Trout.” (Unless you mean the poet and are autocorrected.)
DeleteJust found Bernard Herman’s score for “Mysterious Island” on YouTube. Good stuff! In1961 he was just coming off “Vertigo” and “Psycho,” among others. No wonder this had a big effect on me in my tender years.
DeleteCame across the clue for Ms. DEBOSE and thought, “Oh, that actress who was word of the day a couple of weeks ago. Now, what’s her name?” (Crickets.)
ReplyDeleteThe 1960s movie version of The Mysterious Island, with Ray Harryhausen’s giant stop-motion animals, made a big impression on me as a kid, so VERNE dropped right in today.
And I’m always delighted to see the ODE to Joy in the puzzle!
Wouldn’t Without A Doubt just be Confirming the original My Source Says No ?
ReplyDeleteWhat did the College founder say when someone asked what gave him the right to exclude gay people from admission to ORU?
ReplyDeleteI AMORAL!!!
I think the entire solfège goes: I'm DOREMIng of a white Christmas...
I'm totally ENGROSSED in Fresh Air on NPR.
Would tennis be better if games were simply won by the first player to get 4 points? WITHOUTADOU(B)T.
I glued a ball to my stomach. It's my ABSORB.
I think Trump's address to the assembled top brass at Quantico the other day qualifies as a WARRANT.
Easier than a basic Monday, but I do swear by the MEB (Magic Eight Ball) as well as the Magic Highball. Thanks and congrats, Daniel Trujillo Diaz. And say hi to Ruby for me.
It took me more than a few beats to decipher what I AMORAL! was about. What a funny name Mr. Roberts had. I wonder if he had a brother named Anal.
DeleteKeep 'em coming! They're just so delightfully EGGY.
Easiest Wednesday in recent memory. A charming puzzle none the less, and I legitimately did not know that MAGIC EIGHT BALL would be the revealer until I came to it, even though that was probably inferable even WITHOUT ESP (instead I had vague whisperings of "She loves me, she loves me not" floating in the old brain box).
ReplyDeleteI'm still puzzling over GATE for receipts. My guess is that it might have something to do with ticket sales at a sports stadium (?). WITHOUT A DOUBT this is what I found most puzzling about the puzzle.
Love me some Greek roots. Today we had Demonym (Demo- "people" plus -nym "name"), so people name, like the ChinESE. And we also had ISOmorphic (Iso- "same" plus -morphic "form"), so said of two things that have the same form. (This word has many, many USES in mathematics.) None of this requires specialized knowledge, by the way, because everyone has seen these roots in many, many words (democracy, pseudonym, isobar, anthropomorphic). So even if you've never seen the word "demonym" before, you can sort of mix and match to figure it out.
Happy Hump Day, as they say!
The gate - the total amount of money collected from ticket sales for an event (sporting or live performance)
DeleteI also love those Greek roots. Used them all the time as a young man without really making the connections. Then I went to live in Greece and there they all were: iso, idio, pseudo, and many more. My favourite, probably because it was when the light first turned on, was the oh so common τηλέφωνο (telephone). Distant sound.
Delete@Anon 10:12 AM -- thanks! Nice to have a definition.
Delete@Les. Yes, indeed! Somewhat relatedly, there were a lot of people who flew into high dudgeon when the word "television" was first introduced. A Greek-Latin hybrid! The abomination! (There's also "sociology", among many others.) But that ship has sailed and I doubt you can find that many people anymore who are bothered by it.
Some of the readers out there might follow, at least sporadically, the National Spelling Bee. Now those kids really know their roots (and not just Greek and Latin but lots of other stuff). In some sense, they have acquired a fantastic education, as a means to an end.
I liked this puzzle even though I knew MAGICEIGHTBALL by name only, somehow missed any connection with one in the past. Most frustrating was being unable to recognize YMCA initially despite all the sports I played there over the years. One incident I remember was when a group of us playing basketball had to give up the court to a couple of volleyball teams. A number of the bballers were complaining that volleyball was a kinda sissy sport but after watching a few thunderous spikes came away with a completely changed impression.
ReplyDeleteI picked up my Swiss Army Knife and uses clicked in; Is that cheating?
ReplyDeleteKnew what was going on immediately after MYSOURCESSAYNO but wondered how long ago people stopped looking at a MAGICEIGHTBALL, which was obviously going to be the revealer, and of course it was.
ReplyDeleteEasy peasy. Someday I will know all of ADELE's songs, but only from doing crosswords. Hello to KATE, nice to meet you, and hello again to Ms. DEBOSE. Maybe now I'll remember your name. We just had a discussion of solfege notation on the so vs. sol rhymes with sew, easy there. I totally missed the clue containing demonym, my bad, as it's a great word to learn. Happy to see it has nothing to do with demons.
Another other ROO. No comment.
Nice backstory about the inspiration for the puzzle. Our fist date anniversary is next week, but it slightly predates the constructor's, as it was in l966. I picked a wild aster for my now wife way back then and have found a place where they grow near us so I can keep that annual custom alive.
Nice memory-evoking Wednesday, DTD. Hope your Day To Day experiences with the love of your life have been as good as mine, and thanks for all the fun.
Happy 8th dating anniversary -- on the 8th -- to Ruby and Daniel!
ReplyDeleteEASY?? NE -- Pop "star" crossed with a brand name; a little further down -- two more names crossed with a reference to one of the more obscure works in an otherwise well-known author's canon (in French, no less); 23D -- gratuitously obscure reference ("23andMe"?!) in the cluing.
ReplyDeleteAnonymous 9:44 AM
DeleteWow
You seem really annoyed. I assume by the quotation marks you say Adele is not famous. She is.
Love this adorable puzzle
ReplyDeleteLucky Ruby to have a puzzle constructed, accepted & published in honor of your 8th dating anniversary!
ReplyDeleteI never know if it's CERA or Cena but this was pretty easy. Congrats on your debut Daniel & many more anniversaries you two :)
Can someone in NYS check on OFL? Today's column is so uncharacteristically joyful that I worry. Is he running a high fever? Trying to send a secret message to escape a dangerous situation?
ReplyDeleteI think just trying not to be mean about a love note.
DeleteNot really a "thing" growing up in Britain but have learned of the MEB since though never actually seen one. My souffles are airy not eggy so took two cups of coffee to finally see it!
ReplyDeleteMine are also airy (hopefully) but also EGGY. Cheesy, too.
DeleteThis has to be one of the oddest puzzles I've ever done.
ReplyDeleteBut now I find out that there's a sweet backstory.
It's really very, very sweet. But this is still one of the oddest puzzles I've ever done.
Pretty easy; the theme was fun, mostly trying to remember what the possible answers were. I thought the DNA thing might be a KIT, but waited for the answers anyway; and I thought it very unlikely that my hairy Hallowe'en costume would be an Ass, but I still hoped. The only real difficulty was remembering what the MAGIC EIGHT BALL was called, but I managed to dredge it up with no crosses.
ReplyDeleteAlso, "Go to prom?" I've only ever heard "Go to the prom," but maybe there has been a generational shift.
Nah, I doubt it was generational…I’m pretty sure where I’m from it was said both ways and it was same for my kids in a different area.
DeleteI loved all the mythology/artowrk/poetry discussions yesterday, so that act was hard to follow...but today offered up some sweet nostalgia. All my friends and I had Magic 8 Balls in the early 60s (and now we are all IN our sixties!). Most enjoyable..thanks, Daniel!
ReplyDeleteIs ESL still used? Around me districts transitioned to ELL (English Language Learner) since students may not necessarily be learning a second language, but a third or perhaps a fourth. Sadly, I think I only know 1.25!
ReplyDeleteThis cracked me up. I share your designation of the .25…and that’s a cumulative amount…(sadly)
DeleteWe had a Magic Eight Ball in the house when I was a kid in the fifties. Probably a Christmas present. Didn't pay much attention to it.
ReplyDeleteHow did Rex know that this was an anniversary puzzle? Was it mentioned on Wordplay? I don't think he reads it.
Ruby is one of my favorite Ray Charles songs, despite having this line. "Ruby, you're like a song/You don't know right from wrong."
Jeez, I didn't know about L'ile mysterieuse either, but it's French, kind of fantasy-sounding, and 5 letters, who else is it going to be?
ReplyDeleteHere's a little solfegefrom Woody Guthrie.
jberg
DeleteI think you made a good point about “L’Ile mysterieuse”
But I am not sure because it was my favorite Verne book.back when I was young. So gimme for me
An additional musical comment might be in order: https://youtu.be/jymS_7zyy7c?si=hh1Q68lXLQpdrEsy
ReplyDeleteI had a MAGIC EIGHT BALL back in the day. I don't remember ever getting such a positive answer as 37A, but after 16A filled in, I knew exactly what kind of theme we had. MAGIC EIGHT BALLs were mostly what you asked questions of when you had a friend over and yes, the questions were almost always related to whoever you had a crush on.
ReplyDeleteSo ARMENIA and IRAN share a teeny border with each other. I went to Google Maps to check it out and ran into Nakhchivan next to that border which is described as an exclave of Azerbaijan. New info that I will remember for possibly 24 hours. You can't say I'm not trying to expand my knowledge base :-).
I didn't know the author of "L'Île Mystérieuse" but I got it after I had __RNE in place. On the other hand, I think I've got Solfège down now.
Thanks, Daniel Trujillo Diaz!
Yes! MAGICEIGHTBALL and the Ouija board were when you spent the night with a friend, and the questions asked were about crushes. Slumber parties usually involved a seance, but I don’t think we sought out specific “spirits”, any old friendly spirit would do.
DeleteYep, very easy even with tracking down typos. The theme was immediately obvious.
ReplyDeleteDEBOSE (I clearly didn’t pay attention last month) and VERNE (as clued) were it for WOEs and raP before BOP was my only costly erasure.
Glad the prom date worked out, liked it.
Our little winery is named Ruby Vineyard, so loved the puzzle, average for me. Really appreciate the Ruby songs folks are posting to add to our playlist in the tasting room. Cheers
ReplyDeleteCongratz to Ruby darlin, on makin her NYTPuz appearance(s).
ReplyDeleteCute puztheme with a cute background story.
Grokked out the puztheme mcguffin pretty quick. Used to own one of them magical 8-balls. Tossed it, after it got hopelessly frozen up and no longer answered my crucial questions, a la Pam Bondi. I think maybe its inner brain goop thickened up with age ... ditto, for my magic 8-ball.
staff weeject pick: ESP. Seems somewhat puztheme-related.
some fave stuff: DNAKIT [debut, along with TREELOT and a coupla them 8-ball answers]. ADSPEAK & clue. DIEOUT/WITHOUT recyclin.
Thanx for the game of 8-ball, Mr. Diaz dude. And congratz to U and yer Ruby on yer primo debuts.
Masked & Anonymo6Us
... now, a puz that will probably steal some of yer nanoseconds ...
"Stolen Moments" - 7x7 12 min. themed runt puzzle:
**gruntz**
M&A
Good one on Ms. Bondi M & A!
DeleteIf esp drives you crazy try lie detectors where a hustling excop hooks someone up to a blood pressure monitor looks them in the eye and decides if they’re lying. Hint: who’s paying the lie detector operator? Hint 2 don’t be poor or black
ReplyDeleteAlmost crushed by the trivia, but eked it through.
ReplyDeleteI'm always complaining about too many names, especially names I don't know. But I'm pleased to report KATE and DEBOSE were the only Unknowns today, and what a pleasant change. Oh and the theme was obvious after the first two themers; haven't we've seen a MAGIC EIGHT BALL theme before?
ReplyDeleteI thought we’d had something about MAGICEIGHTBALL in past also.
DeleteI'm surprised OFL did not mention the jacket David Puddy (Elaine's boyfriend on Seinfeld) wore in a couple of episodes.
ReplyDelete"You got a question? Just ask the Eight Ball."
I guess I’ve lived a sheltered life because I don’t recall anything about a magic eight ball. At first, I thought this was going to be something to do with a Ouija board. Didn’t really affect my solve though, other than wondering who on earth Ruby was. Found it pretty easy overall. Anyway, happy anniversary to Mr. and Mrs. Puzzle Constructors.
ReplyDeleteI worked in a church office for many years; one of the more progressive sorts of churches, I should add. We kept a Magic Eight Ball on the secretary's desk because it was so delightfully random and added some frivolity to what could sometimes be a very serious place. Spiced up some coffee breaks, too.
ReplyDeleteYou referenced Kenny Rogers and the First Edition's "Ruby, Don't Take Your Love to Town," whose narrator is a Vietnam War combat vet now rendered paraplegic, whose wife goes out every night with other guys, leaving him alone in his wheelchair (he even threatens to kill her at the end of the song) and Donald Fagen's "Ruby, Baby," but for some reason you ignore Ruby and the Romantics, whose biggest hit in the early '60s was very apropos for the theme of the puzzle, in which love remains unrequited, until it is requited. The song is called "Our Day Will Come."
ReplyDeleteOh I really liked this one, and even more so when I learned the back story. A bit on the easy side for a Wednesday - maybe it should have come out yesterday and it would have been a Ruby Tuesday :o)
ReplyDeleteNo real hold-ups - I did have AIRY for 50D for a bit instead of the correct EGGY (Like souffles) so without those two "G's" both the revealer - MAGICEIGHTBALL, and ENGROSSED took a few seconds longer than they should have, but really just a *very* slight hiccup.
Not much in the clever cluing department today but the puzzle was just so charming that I didn't notice until well after the fun solve.
Daniel - you're making the rest of us husbands look bad! Ruby - you're a lucky woman! And yes, I'm sure Daniel is lucky as well...
Nice to see that @Rex has a soft spot for a true crossword puzzle love letter, wish I'd thought of it. But then I'd need a Magic thirty three ball to coincide with *my* anniversary as well as the chops to construct a puzzle (I don't)
I think I read that this was a debut - what a feat! Great stuff Daniel, keep them coming!
I don’t think I ever had a magic eight ball but I am sure I played with one as a child a long time ago. But I had no clue as to what the standard answers were. So I needed the revealer to get the connection. The theme phrases were very easy to get though I think that especially made the puzzle easy. But it was fun to do.
ReplyDeleteMuch-too-easy Wednesday to follow yesterday's much-too-easy Tuesday. Move each puzzle back a day and we'd be OK.
ReplyDelete> ESP is not a [Helpful skill for guessers],
ReplyDelete> as it is not a skill to begin with, it's a
> non-existent thing
I knew you were going to say that.
(I agree, by the way, the number of people who seem to believe in ghosts and astrology and homeopathy and the like astounds me. I mean, maybe they're useful metaphors, but charlatans get rich off of that junk.)