tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post1812268803386512948..comments2024-03-29T11:47:42.710-04:00Comments on Rex Parker Does the NYT Crossword Puzzle: Hartmann of talk radio / FRI 11-29-13 / Tod's sidekick on Route 66 / One shot in cliffhanger / Ray Charles's Georgia birthplace / Home to Bar-Ilan univ / Her last film was High SocietyRex Parkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16145707733877505087noreply@blogger.comBlogger71125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-9336449146460196722014-01-04T00:11:09.204-05:002014-01-04T00:11:09.204-05:00For once, a Friday was right in my wave length. T...For once, a Friday was right in my wave length. Tore through the west coast then crashed in Boston. Have never heard of JEWISHRYE, but it sounds so good I've got to get some. PLASM held me up, it needs an 'A'. <br /><br />Needed a Google, so a DNF, but I enjoyed it. Thanks Mr. White.Gingerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07156872089175084024noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-83158798434564546662014-01-03T17:32:49.461-05:002014-01-03T17:32:49.461-05:00Well, I finished the grid with no wrong squares fo...Well, I finished the grid with no wrong squares for a change, so there's that, but I had one answer right for the wrong reason: I was sure "El Dorado" was a musical western movie from the '60s, starring none other than Elvis Aron Presley. I'm still claiming victory.Dirigonzohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03903353503511480168noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-46299783192495729162014-01-03T15:09:56.659-05:002014-01-03T15:09:56.659-05:00Almost finished- always misspell BEaNE and couldn&...Almost finished- always misspell BEaNE and couldn't see HERCULES, because I was looking for one of those "HARDL" kind of answer and, obviously, couldn't find one that fit!! Also labored too long over PLURALS, but that said, I enjoyed the challenges of this one. Also enjoyed the explanation of CLICHE. <br /><br />@spacecraft: Try looking for a new Captcha. Lately the alphabetic impossibles seem to be followed by number "words"- long, and require attention, but readable!DMGnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-44305780725404137122014-01-03T15:08:06.192-05:002014-01-03T15:08:06.192-05:00Uneven Friday effort, IMHO. Loved PUDDYTAT & M...Uneven Friday effort, IMHO. Loved PUDDYTAT & MELBLANC, KELLOGGS, MINTJELLY and ONEORTWO. But the NE corner is really a mess with ACTA, PLASM and LINC. Also, the Eldorado clue seems pretty obscure; in my world, EAP is more closely associated with an Employee Assistance Plan.<br /><br />Up here JEWISH RYE is usually referred to as KIMMEL RYE - great for our famous smoked meat sandwiches.<br /><br />When did my old phone number morph into a captcha?<br /><br />Waxy in Montrealhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04395751487137805245noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-33330528919073217322014-01-03T14:26:56.454-05:002014-01-03T14:26:56.454-05:00@Spacey - I think ALAR is a chemical, now banned, ...@Spacey - I think ALAR is a chemical, now banned, that was sprayed on fruit trees. I don't know what it was supposed to do, but the substance was possibly toxic to people and animals.<br /><br />When I saw that *Sylvester* wouldn't fit, PUDDYTAT went right in, as did MELBLANC. Enjoyed the puzzle, only slowed down in the NE. I thought the lymph fluid was just lymph. I'll have to Google PLASM. <br /><br />I hate to see the NRA get any space in the puzzle. Good Friday.rain forestnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-57332405037675888212014-01-03T12:00:55.384-05:002014-01-03T12:00:55.384-05:00Even OFL gives it a medium, yet lots of you found ...Even OFL gives it a medium, yet lots of you found this EASY??? Know what was easy for me? the SW corner. My big hangup in the NW (NO, DUH!) was getting stuck on Sylvester, which I must've tried seventeen different ways as a rebus, wondering where the double-letter went. Finally, after about an hour of this I worked again on the downs and hit on the DTS (trust me, I worked in a hospital and you don't want to deal with a patient so afflicted) and there stood that D. Oh, wait! Not the stupid cat's NAME! It's what Tweety CALLED him! D! U! H!<br /><br />But other areas put down as easy, like the NE, were a big struggle for me. Took forever to suss out the groaner PLURALS (I really wish they wouldn't DO that!) and had no idea who LINC was.<br /><br />Started with the GRACE KELLY/KELLOGGS gimme, and after changing OHjOY to OHBOY and finally figuring out that JEWISHRYE is a thing, did the east and center. I was ATWAR with the rest of it, except for the SW breather. And even there, where 47d filled in on crosses, what in the WORLD is this?:<br /><br />"Creator of bad apples?" = ALAR<br /><br />HUH????<br /><br />Finished, with no help, but OHBOY!<br /><br />And as if to make the experience complete, we return to totally illegible captchas. You know, you guys keep on making this too much of a hassle, and I may just pack it in. I don't need this!spacecraftnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-42241889351948257562013-12-03T19:42:30.106-05:002013-12-03T19:42:30.106-05:00You just seem to dislike and criticize any clue th...You just seem to dislike and criticize any clue that gives you trouble, and love any puzzle that you can sail throughandyn840@gmail.comhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17001613260435940433noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-18713751012477544522013-12-01T14:16:11.383-05:002013-12-01T14:16:11.383-05:00So, what Do Bostonians call their beans?So, what Do Bostonians call their beans?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-31731911055935236472013-11-30T21:12:15.800-05:002013-11-30T21:12:15.800-05:00"A noun is another noun."
Thank you for ..."A noun is another noun."<br />Thank you for that explanation, and the interesting history of the term. It all makes more sense now. I just had to make the mental shift away from an adjectival answer.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-78490559179070466752013-11-30T18:16:00.029-05:002013-11-30T18:16:00.029-05:0015. Many a predictable plot : CLICHE
“Cliché” is a...15. Many a predictable plot : CLICHE<br />“Cliché” is a word that comes from the world of printing. In the days when type was added as individual letters into a printing plate, for efficiency some oft-used phrases and words were created as one single slug of metal. The word “cliché” was used for such a grouping of letters. It’s easy to see how the same word would become a term to describe any overused phrase. Supposedly, “cliché” comes from French, from the verb “clicher” meaning “to click”. The idea is that when a matrix of letters was dropped in molten metal to make a cliché, it made a clicking sound.<br /><br />So many a predictable plot is <b>a CLICHE.</b> A noun is another noun.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-70408761505678015782013-11-30T18:06:22.631-05:002013-11-30T18:06:22.631-05:00Tried to post this earlier, hope it doesn't po...Tried to post this earlier, hope it doesn't post twice. Am I the only one bothered by CLICHE as an adjective? I've always understood it to be a noun. Adj form: CLICHED. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-49442659889823817082013-11-30T16:13:27.345-05:002013-11-30T16:13:27.345-05:00Rex, ELO did indeed have an album called Eldorado....Rex, ELO did indeed have an album called Eldorado. My favorite ELO album, with the classic hit "Can't Get It Out of my Head."Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05075339985924474962noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-88206091560311406332013-11-29T22:37:03.470-05:002013-11-29T22:37:03.470-05:00This week's relative difficulty ratings. See m...This week's relative difficulty ratings. See my 8/1/2009 post for an explanation and my 10/15/2012 post for an explanation of a tweak I've made to my method. In a nutshell, the higher the ratio, the higher this week's median solve time is relative to the average for the corresponding day of the week.<br /><br />All solvers (this week's median solve time, average for day of week, ratio, percentile, rating)<br /><br />Mon 6:29, 6:07, 1.06, 79%, Medium-Challenging<br />Tue 9:06, 8:12, 1.11, 76%, Medium-Challenging<br />Wed 8:59, 9:44, 0.92, 31%, Easy-Medium<br />Thu 17:52, 17:14, 1.04, 60%, Medium<br />Fri 24:01, 19:47, 1.21, 86%, Challenging<br /><br />Top 100 solvers<br /><br />Mon 4:08, 3:46, 1.10, 85%, Challenging<br />Tue 5:36, 5:01, 1.12, 79%, Medium-Challenging<br />Wed 5:28, 5:37, 0.97, 42%, Medium<br />Thu 9:52, 9:56, 0.99, 47%, Medium<br />Fri 12:15, 11:32, 1.06, 61%, Medium-Challengingsanfranman59https://www.blogger.com/profile/15118732156312301425noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-84238186813425634272013-11-29T21:12:43.790-05:002013-11-29T21:12:43.790-05:00Sometimes it seems the Times puzzle makers are ext...Sometimes it seems the Times puzzle makers are extraterrestrials who have observed the earth, and can kind of fake it when they want to walk among us … but just get those little things wrong.<br /><br />GYROS are ubiquitous "fare" or "food" at street <i>fairs</i>, and other "festivals", but are not particularly to be found at a "food festival" … unless it's a Greek street-food festival, I guess.<br /><br />Keep trying, ETs.<br /><br />I don't think they know what MERE means, either. Davidnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-53299100404117281812013-11-29T19:06:32.537-05:002013-11-29T19:06:32.537-05:00Forgot to add that mint JELLY is an abomination wi...Forgot to add that mint JELLY is an abomination with lamb. Now ... fresh mint SAUCE is a different story -- one I won't tell here although I was the unwitting butt (as it were). Normhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10032302346488486116noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-24471390816278829112013-11-29T18:13:59.852-05:002013-11-29T18:13:59.852-05:00I must have watched and read at least a zillion ad...I must have watched and read at least a zillion ads for Levy's real JEWISHRYE as a kid. I was so surprised that @Rex had never heard of the stuff - would have been no less surprised if he said "Scotch tape? I've heard of tape - but "scotch" tape?<br /><br />Medium Friday here, fun solve and nifty cluing. How can you not love PUDDYTAT? EAP had to fill for us, and I think I like @Steve J's comment on HERCULES . . makes sense. . I think.Mohair Samhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16502840715719161565noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-18348054296714199792013-11-29T17:44:34.766-05:002013-11-29T17:44:34.766-05:00I plopped in POpE before POLE because I thought it...I plopped in POpE before POLE because I thought it still might be Thursday. Just testing.<br /><br />A New Yorker is honorary Jewish by at least 50% and consequently would know about the rye.<br /><br />Favorite clue and answer: CHARLIE as lead-in to delta.<br /><br />Questiniahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06225633428852696530noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-40407581855502964182013-11-29T17:03:35.105-05:002013-11-29T17:03:35.105-05:00Thanks for the EAP explanation; I had it right, bu...Thanks for the EAP explanation; I had it right, but had no idea what it meant. This one was a struggle for me, but I eventually got it, which is about right for a Friday. A few days ago, a few of us listed categories of clues we dislike most:<br />1. Hip-hop slang. (Illin??)<br />2. Rock songs and artists, especially rap<br />3. Harry Potter trivia<br />4. Apple computer slang. (force quit, one of the answers on Black Saturday, Nov 16th, worst puzzle of recent memory. "sync" yesterday.)<br />5. Text slang. BFF, etc.<br />6. Characters from TV shows I never watched. (Opie. One clue for Opie was "Bee's charge." In my list of worst clues ever.)<br /><br />Never heard of Dian Parkinson, but this puzzle managed to avoid my personal annoyances. I enjoyed it.OISKhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16808675378318214461noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-74928389558130220432013-11-29T17:01:09.084-05:002013-11-29T17:01:09.084-05:00Piece of Thanksgiving pie except for NE which stop...Piece of Thanksgiving pie except for NE which stopped me cold well, like a nor'easter. <br />Route 66 too old for me. The cluing for arcade not good IMHO. A shed does not 'hold' tools. 'acta' musta beena bita crosswordese I have not seen before. Plurals...OK, coulda shoulda on that one but can never get used to self-referential clues including all those ones that end up with the first letter of the word as the answer. Execrable. <br />Also nearly at the limit for question mark clues. <br /><br />Rex - Never heard of Jewish rye and you live in gotham? Well, maybe having lived in Boston I know nobody calls them Boston Baked Beans. Maybe it's assumed if you're in situ. <br /><br />Without a cluehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05294278534419140718noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-49294908490783223952013-11-29T16:22:27.080-05:002013-11-29T16:22:27.080-05:00@LaneB - El Dorado (as @Carola explained above) is...@LaneB - El Dorado (as @Carola explained above) is a poem written by Edgar Allen Poe. EAP<br /><br />Too exhausted to do this one last night, saved it for today and loved it esp. all the food items. Hand up for shYEST before COYEST. Also had sitSDOWN before LIE. Other than those two little hiccups, one of the easiest Fridays (for me). They are usually pretty tough.chefwenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03999206352243329280noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-26643740806930524022013-11-29T15:55:37.155-05:002013-11-29T15:55:37.155-05:00Any time I come close to finishing on Friday I'...Any time I come close to finishing on Friday I'm slightly surprised. This time, with a little Google help I completed the grid but ended up with some mistakes which put me in the DNF group. Particularly hated NODUH which aren't words I've ever seen, ACTA which refers to some court I've never heard of, ALTA which just as easily could have been ALbA and EAP which I still don't understand.<br /><br />The clues for JREWING and JULEP were great and took me forever to figure out, but then I'm not the swiftest greyhound on the track. Nice puzzle with a clever Jewish overlay.LaneBnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-37925342970344992912013-11-29T15:24:17.656-05:002013-11-29T15:24:17.656-05:00@Lewis - It sounds like your wife and I are kindre...@Lewis - It sounds like your wife and I are kindred spirits, pie-wise :)Carolahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15971759975067250908noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-28669672018977757452013-11-29T13:55:52.081-05:002013-11-29T13:55:52.081-05:00@Sir Hilary, I don't think there's such a ...@Sir Hilary, I don't think there's such a thing as ACTA as judicial records, outside of crosswords, unless you go back way further than MEL BLANC. If you google (soon to be "former trademark", by popular demand? Like the way the Brits clean their houses by hoovering?) you see pages of references to the AntiCounterfeiting Trade Agreement followed by professional journals with Latin names like <i>Acta Chiropterologica</i>. I gave up before ever coming to references using ACTA in a sentence.<br /><br />I don't understand @Rex's p.s. TEXTese for Okay thanks good-bye? (Btw, I don't think kids use abbrevs like LOL, TTFN etc any more, if they ever did. They say "haha" not ROFLMAO.)Ellen Shttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00473445503706985149noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-61892066951875379482013-11-29T13:53:42.795-05:002013-11-29T13:53:42.795-05:00Perfect puzzle for day after Thanksgivukkah.
Jewis...Perfect puzzle for day after Thanksgivukkah.<br />Jewish subtheme right off the bat (YIDDISH, ISR, JEWISHRYE) with so many leftover foods.<br /><br />Had to sleep on it to get NE corner, as MERE did seem to confirm serUM, but I loved how it could sort itself out by morning. I'd rather have a running clock that said the puzzle took me eight hours + than a DNF.<br /><br />@ralfbunker<br />Thanks for posting Tom Pepper's beyond brilliant puzzle!<br /><br />Hand up for initially having shYEST, POpE, BAn and HUNTERS in the wrong space.<br /><br />I'm in the camp that AFIRST gives one pause AT FIRST, but since it's such a different concept than just the plain FIRST, it feels definitely like a real thing.<br /><br />The bookends of PUDDYTAT and MELBLANC definitely feel like the seed answers to me, fun ones at dat...<br />And I would echo all those above who enjoyed by enjoying all the spiffy answers without zeroing in on the shorter ones.<br /><br />Bizarre that people who have been doing puzzles for umpteen years can't accept that there are short words and occasional abbrev to make an otherwise interesting puzzle!<br />This was not one where the preponderance of the shorter fill overwhelmed or negated the myriad good stuff. <br />Eg EAP to get JULEP JREWING and a tough clue for PENALTY, that leads to ALBANY that fixes the POpe POLE confusion? Right on!<br /><br />And I love the Shrödinger coinage, hard to remember and spell (just realized I could make an ümlaut on my ipad...AFIRST for me!) but it sounds so science-y and erudite and the right amount of mysterious...love it! Thanks, Joon... <br />(and @r.alphbunker for the embedding...as well as @carola and @aliasZ for your embedded treats as well!)Anima Coolit Mintjellysnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-1862080694758861702013-11-29T13:49:29.945-05:002013-11-29T13:49:29.945-05:00Two more musical references beg to be noted today....Two more musical references beg to be noted today.<br /><br />Carlo Gesualdo, also known as Gesualdo di Venosa (1566–1613), Prince of Venosa and Count of Conza, was an Italian nobleman, lutenist, composer and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carlo_Gesualdo#The_murders" rel="nofollow">murderer.</a> As a composer of the late Renaissance, he is remembered for writing intensely expressive madrigals and sacred music that use a chromatic language not heard again until the late 19th century.<br /><br />César Franck (César-Auguste-Jean-Guillaume-Hubert Franck, 1822–1890) was a composer, pianist, organist, and music teacher. Born in Liege, in 1858 he became organist at the Basilica of Sainte-Clotilde, Paris, a position he retained for the rest of his life. He became professor at the Paris Conservatoire in 1872. Franck wrote several pieces that have entered the standard classical repertoire, including symphonic, chamber, and keyboard works.<br /><br />[Both courtesy Wikipedia]<br /><br />Here is the sacred motet, <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JZAs9LjJAHU" rel="nofollow"><i>Tristis est ANIMA mea</i> (Sorrowful is my soul)</a> by Carlo Gesualdo. How could a murderer write such heavenly music?<br /><br />César Franck composed this symphonic poem in 1882, inspired by the ballad <i>Der wilde Jäger</i> (The Wild Hunter) by the German poet Gottfried August Bürger (1747-1794). It is called <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ftBWhW27Xk" rel="nofollow"><i>Le Chasseur maudit</i> (The Accursed HUNTER).</a><br /><br />Enjoy your long weekend.AliasZhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03477396362209386037noreply@blogger.com