tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post1122338384631462742..comments2024-03-28T07:04:40.875-04:00Comments on Rex Parker Does the NYT Crossword Puzzle: Island once called Serendip / SAT 11-30-19 / 1975 hit with classic saxophone solo / Alternative to Leyden Boerenkaas / Eponymous candy man / Funny Morgan / Bliblical starting material / Noted parliamentary measure of 1773 / Renowned London street in literatureRex Parkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16145707733877505087noreply@blogger.comBlogger95125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-59465151112210773252020-01-12T05:21:52.167-05:002020-01-12T05:21:52.167-05:00this puzzle was OK. The clues were boring and conv...this puzzle was OK. The clues were boring and conventional. Try harder NYT.<br />classic sax solos:<br />“Waiting on a Friend,” The Rolling Stones with Sonny Rollins on tenor saxophone, from Tattoo You (1981) feels like the 1980's on MTV.<br />“Just the Way You Are,” Billy Joel with Phil Woods on alto saxophone, from The Stranger (1977) <br />I'm sure there's something from David Sanborn, and Michael Brecker too.Tom Scottnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-90418587726854001632020-01-06T09:32:10.450-05:002020-01-06T09:32:10.450-05:00Thank you D,LIW and Strayling!Thank you D,LIW and Strayling!thefogmanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01870509029973778266noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-22540920500728028842020-01-04T22:55:46.169-05:002020-01-04T22:55:46.169-05:00@Foggy - I agree with Strayling - it's a "...@Foggy - I agree with Strayling - it's a "kind" of compensation. <br /><br />Took all day to do the puzzle. Lots of wrng paths for me to go down. Had to check some answers, so not a total/fair/complete solve for me. <br /><br />Diana, LIW<br /><br />PS I have a book with a funny story about the three princes of Serendip, but could I remember CEYLON? ha!Diana, LIWnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-60197406909983163322020-01-04T19:54:04.551-05:002020-01-04T19:54:04.551-05:00@thefogman: REMIT is used in the sense of remittin...@thefogman: REMIT is used in the sense of remitting a payment. A payment is compensation. I view the question mark as a sort of apology from the compiler.straylinghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13536180563789923012noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-74962194543391699212020-01-04T16:11:10.735-05:002020-01-04T16:11:10.735-05:00Had some fun with this, but...
the "Abyssini...Had some fun with this, but...<br /><br />the "Abyssinia" pun was a definite groaner, I have yet to get my mind around PHAT, the two OUTs were a bit intrusive, and TTYL, TATA, and TOTO seemed a bit much. <br /><br />First time I've seen MJOLNIR, or heard of Brown BETTY. Also thought BOXSTERS sounded a bit down-scale for the Porsche brand, and OLINE seemed an awkward abbreviation. Yet...<br /><br />actually liked it and did have some fun, though not without a look-up or two.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />leftcoasternoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-35368339653641693752020-01-04T16:06:22.698-05:002020-01-04T16:06:22.698-05:00This was an easy/hard puzzle for me. Started imme...This was an easy/hard puzzle for me. Started immediately with AZTEC, CEYLON, and CORAL, but I thought I had two OUTs and so would not work. Went to the centre of the puzzle which was easy enough, but the rest I kind of crawled through. In fact, when I finished, I wasn't sure about MJOLNIR, TRACY, or AEON (though that one seemed to be somewhere in my head.<br /><br />BORN TO RUN was a gimme. Did I ever mention that I "discovered" Bruce Springsteen in 1973 when I bought a copy of Greetings from Asbury Park. None of my friends had ever heard of him. I got to see him in early 1975 in a 2600 seat theatre for a 4-hour concert. Amazing.<br /><br />Anyway, as it turned OUT both examples of that word were correct and all my guesses were correct, so "yahoo".<br /><br />Thought the puzzle was a good one.rainforestnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-76519781424687616892020-01-04T15:19:24.949-05:002020-01-04T15:19:24.949-05:00C'mon now, I was a Scandinavian Area Studies m...C'mon now, I was a Scandinavian Area Studies minor at one time and Mjölnir was a toughie for me. Is Thor *that* big these days. And lotsa folks found Mjölnir interesting, but not one mention that it has become a neo-Nazi symbol. I guess the blogosphere is more concerned about finding ways to be offended with sexism. Put that in your Brown BETTY and smoke it.<br /><br />Who ZEROESOUT at 9:00 a.m.? And was Casey at DABAT?<br /><br />1d 2d 3d gimmes, so a very nice start. 2d for me is, of course, yeah baby REESE Witherspoon. My duel was at nooN for a while and my RISER was a newEl. <br />PHAT puz.<br />rondonoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-3741867733812152362020-01-04T14:57:01.387-05:002020-01-04T14:57:01.387-05:00ENERGY USER
ADAM catches TDPASSES,
he'll ESCA...ENERGY USER<br /><br />ADAM catches TDPASSES,<br />he'll ESCAPE and OUT LEAP everyone,<br />the OLINE SURE OUT CLASSes,<br />aand it's ARGUED ADAM'S BORNTORUN.<br /><br />--- LAERTES MJOLNIRBurma Shavenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-21803204598036724282020-01-04T13:16:45.043-05:002020-01-04T13:16:45.043-05:00Agree with "mathgent".... too many pisse...Agree with "mathgent".... too many pissers. Rejected.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-19452009696961972212020-01-04T13:06:56.569-05:002020-01-04T13:06:56.569-05:00This comment has been removed by the author.thefogmanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01870509029973778266noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-21690017927184407012020-01-04T12:41:51.676-05:002020-01-04T12:41:51.676-05:00Can somebody please explain the question mark at t...Can somebody please explain the question mark at the end of the clue for 26D - Compensate for something? REMIT. I still don't get it. Normally a question mark hints at a pun or wordplay of some type. I don't see any of that here...thefogmanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01870509029973778266noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-80859981736508292672020-01-04T12:37:00.676-05:002020-01-04T12:37:00.676-05:00This comment has been removed by the author.thefogmanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01870509029973778266noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-70196603964646394572020-01-04T11:52:50.875-05:002020-01-04T11:52:50.875-05:00Easy-medium, he says. I'll kill 'im. I awa...Easy-medium, he says. I'll kill 'im. I awarded myself mammoth triumph points for this one. Challenging everywhere--even in that little apple (or PEAR?) core of a center. I'm with OFC on that one. Alternative? Hardly. Comparing apple cider to PEARJUICE is ALOTALIKE comparing apples to...well, pears.<br /><br />Trouble spots: the whole grid, practically, but I mean extra:<br /><br />--> I do not SOAK my laundry, but I do SOrt it. Huge delay fixing that.<br /><br />--> I was dueling on the lAWN before DAWN. Kinda made it hard to see.<br /><br />--> That feisty middle, where my force-strong entry was yoDa. Always like him I did. When finally rid of him I got, the puzzle I solved!<br /><br />I know my friend @rondo will gravitate to REESE Witherspoon for yeah baby, but I'd like to take this opportunity to introduce to the DOD circle one Abigail Hawk, who plays BAKER on Blue Bloods. BTW, I also immediately noticed the connection between the sax solo clue and the iconic "BAKER Street--" including the word "Street" as in "E Street Band."<br /><br />The final solution--besides uncovering JEDI--was a stab in the dark on that cheese clue, hoping that the "-kaas" syllable stood for cheese. In German it's "kase," pronounced "kay-za;" close enough. DOD honorable mention to the '40s pinup girl BETTY Grable. And now, hoping that the Eagles' OLINE will stand staunch against the SeaHAWKs (hi again, Abby!) tomorrow, I award--what else?--an EAGLE!spacecrafthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09125304293611865503noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-57795554405914951442019-12-01T21:59:37.430-05:002019-12-01T21:59:37.430-05:00Heh heh. Yep. Was going to add this very comment, ...Heh heh. Yep. Was going to add this very comment, but figured I'd better scroll through first, as someone had doubtlessly thought the same thing.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04432212743916707779noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-66917878232033791862019-12-01T00:39:00.611-05:002019-12-01T00:39:00.611-05:00PEAR JUICE - This was a gimme for me because I onc...PEAR JUICE - This was a gimme for me because I once had a pear tree. And the cluing? I would have said “unfermented perry” had I been cluing it for a Saturday puzzle. Richardf8https://www.blogger.com/profile/17529101042863259910noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-9904050773984954232019-12-01T00:29:15.378-05:002019-12-01T00:29:15.378-05:00@Z, is that like "I know you are but what am ...@Z, is that like "I know you are but what am I " ?? New Years resolution, 1 month in advance: I will not respond. Ever. Frisbee...TJSnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-85066217853549982212019-11-30T23:24:54.246-05:002019-11-30T23:24:54.246-05:00@TJS- No serious person would suggest that Michael...@TJS- No serious person would suggest that Michael Jordan wasn’t a top 5 all-time player. It’s debatable whether he’s the GOAT. That guy/gal Z is just a troll. Don’t take (insert preferred pronoun) seriously. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-82137854201408055122019-11-30T20:17:24.786-05:002019-11-30T20:17:24.786-05:00@Nancy, you are on FUEGO today! SYNESTHETES may be...@Nancy, you are on FUEGO today! SYNESTHETES may be my favorite wrong answer of all time!<br />Just chose the Taconic (Satanic in local parlance) today over I-87 coming home from Montreal. Shorter and no tolls, but man the narrowness and curviness! Plus you see so many deer just waiting to pounce as the day LATENS toward EEN. I couldn't imagine how it would even be legal to put a 16 year old learner on that road - they can't drive in NYC. Come to think of it, I think they can't drive on the parkways either, so maybe laws have changed since your day. Teaching a 17yr old now, and it is tough in this area to find appropriate roads.<br /><br />Pivoting to sports, OLINE is the offensive line.<br /><br />@Z, jumping in as devil's advocate:) MJ as greatest certainly arguable. Although: Team did extremely well in his absence with Pippen, an under-rated player at the helm. Plus, that team had Steve Kerr, one of best 3 point specialists ever and Rodman, best rebounder and provocateur. MJ also had people like Craig Ehlo and John Starks against him at the same position.<br />I love all the candidates on your list, but not as GOATS. I would love to see Lebron and MJ go head to head in their prime to settle this. Kareem and Wilt suffer from recency bias.<br /><br />Too bad Rex doesn't read the comments, if true, bc I remember last time he claimed never to have heard of PEARJUICE (not that long ago), readers offered many suggestions for where one might see or hear of it. At the very least, he can't make that claim today.:)burtonkdhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02775521394938142484noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-74036922365284505412019-11-30T19:51:26.636-05:002019-11-30T19:51:26.636-05:00To be fair, the saxophone part in "Baker Stre...To be fair, the saxophone part in "Baker Street" isn't really a solo, it's more of a repeated instrumental hook that serves as a de facto chorus for the song, which otherwise doesn't have one. Gerry Rafferty apparently played it on the guitar in early demos of the song.<br /><br />The saxophone part in "Born To Run" on the other hand does sound like an improvised solo inserted as a break between verses. It only lasts about 18 seconds though, and Clarence Clemons is completely absent from the rest of the song. Is it really a "classic" solo? When I try to think of it I can only recall roughly the first two bars. But prominent saxophone interludes weren't common in pop songs in 1975, so maybe it did stand out at the time. By 1978 sax solos were much more ubiquitous.<br /><br />@Kathy, you're probably thinking of Men At Work's "Who Can It Be Now" (1982), which also had a catchy repeated sax riff. Joe Dipintohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07922691457886440325noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-24031531563074360782019-11-30T18:47:50.997-05:002019-11-30T18:47:50.997-05:00When I saw references to the "gender count&qu...When I saw references to the "gender count", I first thought it was satire! Seriously? We are counting gender references?? <br /><br />Nice puzzle, and I finished it despite problems with the SW - I should know another, slang equivalent for "dope"? Phat chance... Got Mjolnir from the crosses, same for "Born to Run," TTYL, <br /><br />oisk17https://www.blogger.com/profile/08487852763731817532noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-6691871984069096492019-11-30T18:17:11.566-05:002019-11-30T18:17:11.566-05:00@anon/4:32
BETTY can be "Feminist Friedan&quo...@anon/4:32<br />BETTY can be "Feminist Friedan" or "Actress White" but aren't those Gimme City?<br /><br />There are a number of WWII bombers with 'BETTY' in their names and/or with BETTY Grable on the plane. Not to mention baked goods. Lots of clues that aren't gimme.<br /><br /><br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-16461443053745987482019-11-30T18:16:00.571-05:002019-11-30T18:16:00.571-05:00BETTYs
DAWNs
REESEs are harder.
TRACYs have a whol...<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Betty" rel="nofollow">BETTYs</a><br /><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dawn_(name)" rel="nofollow">DAWNs</a><br /><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reese_(name)" rel="nofollow">REESEs</a> are harder.<br /><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tracy_(name)#Female" rel="nofollow">TRACYs</a> have a whole “female” section to make it easier. <br /><br />In case I haven’t cudgeled you over the head with the obvious enough, all it would take is a teensy weensy bit of googling to make a Saturday puzzle a little less blind to roughly 50% of the human race. <br /><br />@TJS and @Hoops Fan - Wowser. If I were so inclined I could make a better argument for MJ*. But I’m not so inclined because he’s over-rated.<br /><br />Way OT Z is outta here.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />*Win Shares per 48 and PER are flawed stats, but way better than “championships.”Zhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16181544219511150272noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-28646342524292247112019-11-30T17:57:16.388-05:002019-11-30T17:57:16.388-05:00@kitshef, agreed, and if it was the only point of ...@kitshef, agreed, and if it was the only point of reference I was referring to, it would not have much relevance, but when you look at a players career achievements, championships have to be taken into consideration, especially in a sport that involves only five men on a court at one time. But thanks for your response.TJSnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-21748191988777721202019-11-30T17:36:47.885-05:002019-11-30T17:36:47.885-05:00@Petri: Great comparison. The people who bemoan ...@Petri: Great comparison. The people who bemoan the War on Christmas are mirror images of the crossword scolds who faint at perceived racism and sexism in the puzzle. They’re basically the same people. Keep the X in Xmasnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-57852305140294473802019-11-30T17:32:31.428-05:002019-11-30T17:32:31.428-05:00@TJS - in a team sport, titles is a useless measur...@TJS - in a team sport, titles is a useless measure. Otherwise you would say:<br />Bob Horry (7) was a better basketball player than Wilt Chamberlain (2)<br />Johnny Murphy (5) was a better baseball player than Willie Mays (1)<br />Earl Morrall (3) was a better quarterback than Dan Marino (0)<br />Dick Duff (6) was a better hockey player than Wayne Gretzky (4)<br /><br /><br /><br />kitshefhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10014225555838850414noreply@blogger.com