tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post3228548941693480448..comments2024-03-28T18:01:16.957-04:00Comments on Rex Parker Does the NYT Crossword Puzzle: Knucklehead * Paul Winchell dummy old TV / TUE 3-9-10 / Blue-skinned deity / Classic tale dactylic hexameter / Cinematic scene changerRex Parkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16145707733877505087noreply@blogger.comBlogger125125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-35339754940355229822010-04-29T02:38:19.201-04:002010-04-29T02:38:19.201-04:00I'm not old and also very new at crosswords, s...I'm not old and also very new at crosswords, so this puzzle was challenging. But once the Dante clues became clear, it was much more pleasant and less frustrating!<br /><br />Re: 14D, which confused me because I didn't know that Fr. = French. Ses is a possessive plural his or hers. it's like "Those are his shoes". The plural relates to the object, not the subject. Thanks for clarifying about the French part cuz I was totally baffled for awhile there.<br /><br />Seriously, egads??? Zounds?? What??Linhhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07935477769446624629noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-2998424647788368892010-04-14T10:45:31.433-04:002010-04-14T10:45:31.433-04:00I had difficulty with this until the theme answers...I had difficulty with this until the theme answers became clear, then it fell apart quickly. I was lucky that I happened to have some of the answers in my memory banks already. The 14x16 puzzle shape seems almost... naughtily unconventional, but I don't know what it really means.sificlighhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11868514448817399728noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-56103479025543122952010-04-13T21:15:22.302-04:002010-04-13T21:15:22.302-04:00WOW! This was a Tuesday? Yowza. Nothing worked l...WOW! This was a Tuesday? Yowza. Nothing worked like it was supposed to. I thought I was AT the "Gates of Hell" untying the Gordian Knot of this bad boy. Just wanted to scrape my tongue after it was over.<br /><br />Big DaddyAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-79520563306244865042010-04-13T19:35:34.898-04:002010-04-13T19:35:34.898-04:00I was surprised to see nobody complaining about 14...I was surprised to see nobody complaining about 14D: (His or Her: Fr.) <b>ses</b>. I checked this with a native French speaker who verified that ses is plural ... which would have been OK if His/Her had been linked with an 'and'. Any French speakers out there who can explain why this clue/answer works?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-42295317750782279822010-04-13T18:02:05.785-04:002010-04-13T18:02:05.785-04:00Is Rex always such a crabby-pants? And doesn't...Is Rex always such a crabby-pants? And doesn't he know that all clues do not have to be aimed at his age group (either a self-centered teenager - doubtful - or someone upset about reaching 40).<br />Like Bob Kay, I knew Eve Arden ... from the Radio!<br />And my tip-off to the related clues came to me from first getting "Alighieri" and knowing that that was Dante; all the others fell into place from that.<br />But it was indeed a hard puzzle for Tuesday.Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15524732666542317807noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-70210484990391679842010-03-11T09:16:48.125-05:002010-03-11T09:16:48.125-05:00Regarding Tuesday, being an older guy, I got Eve A...Regarding Tuesday, being an older guy, I got Eve Arden and Knucklehead Smiff. Paul Winchell used to have a show with Jerry Colonna [sp?] on Sundays on ABC. BUT, like Rex, I got "wiped" out on wi_e.Bob Knoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-17797293358747688302010-03-10T12:59:56.622-05:002010-03-10T12:59:56.622-05:00Snuffy's last name Smith is spelled Smif in th...Snuffy's last name Smith is <i>spelled</i> <a href="http://gbuddy.blogspot.com/2006/05/where-have-you-gone-barney-google.html" rel="nofollow">Smif</a> in the Barney Google hillbilly dialect, usually by <a href="http://www.kingfeatures.com/features/comics/bgoogle/aboutMaina.php?date=20100202&view_comic=Get+Comic" rel="nofollow">Sheriff Tait</a>. That's why I had absolutely no trouble filling in SMIFF without hesitating.<br /><br />I was mistaken about the size of the puzzle. It's actually one square smaller than the usual 15x15, so my solving time was a medium-hard.william e embanoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-89294442935924984092010-03-09T23:49:34.573-05:002010-03-09T23:49:34.573-05:00@artlvr: I, as an epigone, defer to the superior k...@artlvr: I, as an epigone, defer to the superior knowldge of you vastly more experienced solvers. All I am saying here is that words like OBOL are, (apparently old time), crosswordese and should not be put into the category of "Adjacent horrible fill".<br /><br />Also, I apologise to @wmeemba for crasly pointing out a mistake which he probably realized as soon as he hit the publish key. My bad. <br /><br />BTW, there are two Cornelias at my church. Typical attendance ~120 @ the 10AM service. Admittedly, they are also of a "certain" age.<br /><br />It's now 8:45PM PST so, on to Wednesday.Rubehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04773241241484881566noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-4042502139267062572010-03-09T23:32:26.119-05:002010-03-09T23:32:26.119-05:00Maybe my age is showing, but I agree with the othe...Maybe my age is showing, but I agree with the other codgers that this puzzle was not that hard.<br /><br />Rex, I think that your youth is showing.<br /><br />OlgeezerAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-4244759926654228392010-03-09T22:51:17.242-05:002010-03-09T22:51:17.242-05:00Yes, awesome Ventures clip. @JenCT, I would like y...Yes, awesome Ventures clip. @JenCT, I would like your son's band.Stanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02681342234536407419noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-86733029246204960372010-03-09T22:38:13.146-05:002010-03-09T22:38:13.146-05:00I found this challenging. But I did learn a bunch ...I found this challenging. But I did learn a bunch of new words. I got a surprising amount of fill just through general knowledge. Heck I even knew the Doonesbury character went to MIT just because. I found the south to be much easier then the north. <br /><br />I just noticed this but lots of A name<br /><br />ALIGHIERI, AMATI, ARSENIO, ARDEN, AEGIS. <br /><br />I had to look up ALIGHIERE since I just know him as Dante. I like the theme. Still, overall I can't complain. I did learn that you can use the word AEGIS to mean protection which I've never heard of.Lukehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16737623629003356329noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-61128848990621715962010-03-09T22:37:55.487-05:002010-03-09T22:37:55.487-05:00I liked it.I liked it.fikinkhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06324570637549775751noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-40170250704440390992010-03-09T22:02:19.773-05:002010-03-09T22:02:19.773-05:00@ Rube -- Both OBOL and LER (see above) are true o...@ Rube -- Both OBOL and LER (see above) are true old timey crosswordese to a number of us besides @wm e emba, not usually calling for comment! If you're wondering how long that implies, I've been doing NYT xword puzzles on and off for over fifty years -- more regularly these days because I can make the time and because I've found Rex's blog and enjoy his comments, together with those of everyone else chiming in on topics and names unfamiliar to me. <br /><br />@ Sfingi -- Delighted to hear that your son's name is DANTE and I hope you'll save a copy of today's homage for him. <br /><br />@ Elaine -- My apologies for saying Southerners use "y'all" in both singular and plural without realizing that most wouldn't! <br /><br />@ Doc John -- Super to hear you have a FOO Dog lamp. <br /><br />The captcha is knoscor, which I read as "knows Cor" -- that's me, Cornelia, a name not much seen these days but often found in ancient Rome! (3 and out).<br /><br />∑;)ArtLvrhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03869528391374878601noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-26996551047692016402010-03-09T20:47:15.739-05:002010-03-09T20:47:15.739-05:00107 comments later and there is finally someone fo...107 comments later and there is finally someone for whom OBOL was a gimme. Congrats @weemba. Personally, I don't think OBOL is all that bad as fill goes. If you're into things Ancient Greek, this would be straightforward.<br /><br /><b>However</b>, @weemba, you get A+'s for your knowledge of Popeye and Nancy, but you got Snuffy Smith (not SMIFF) from Barney Google wrong, as has been pointed out here by others. FWIW, even as a pre-teen back in the 50's, I disliked Nancy... thought it had "jumped the shark", to use a contemporary term.Rubehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04773241241484881566noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-80550729601753743632010-03-09T20:34:58.085-05:002010-03-09T20:34:58.085-05:00@Glitch: Nothing wrong with a challenging Tuesday....@Glitch: Nothing wrong with a challenging Tuesday. Last Tuesday's was challenging as well, and as I recall most people liked it. Problem for many with this one is that the fill just wasn't very good.<br /><br />@ACM: forgot to reply earlier to your Doonesbury origin questions. You're correct about the Yale/Pillsbury angle. Alex is Mike Doonesbury's daughter, who apparently now is at MIT (which I did not know, as I stopped reading some years back when I stopped getting dead trees delivered to my doorstep daily).<br /><br />@Rex: I wasn't sure what domain in which to place Ooxteplernon. Seeing as how LER was some Celtic sea god, maybe he should be in the depths. In fact, I think I remember a story about how he and Poseidon battled it out on the ocean floor way back when. Poseidon won, and got to be the god of the sea and earthquakes and such. Ooxteplernon lost, and had to console himself with being the god of crap fill.Steve Jhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15185067739452052656noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-76870749256221698402010-03-09T20:16:33.893-05:002010-03-09T20:16:33.893-05:00a bit oversized?a bit oversized?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-9073095176697895322010-03-09T20:04:35.795-05:002010-03-09T20:04:35.795-05:00I liked it. I had a terrible time starting in the...I liked it. I had a terrible time starting in the NW--not helped by not even noticing the clue for 1D TUBULE, which I bet I would have guessed, but once I had the DIVINE COMEDY in the middle, I filled in the rest of the theme answers quickly (OK, I was a bit hesitant over the spelling of ALIGHIERI, but I had the gist) and finished in a slow Tuesday time. Considering the puzzle is a bit oversized, I rate it medium.<br /><br />I thought OBOL was a gimme. Well, almost. I knew it was OB?? and hesitated a bit thinking of OBUS (as in, full name is OBOLUS).<br /><br />The DASH was clued with a 3em dash in the print version.<br /><br />I got SMIFF easily since I read "Barney Google" daily (I think we saw him once three years ago). As for cartoons usurped by later walk-ons, the two most famous are probably Popeye taking over "Thimble Theatre" and Nancy taking over "Fritzi Ritz". Shortz even got fooled by one of these: once upon a time he clued "Popeye" as the comic strip drawn by E C Segar. That never happened.william e embanoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-80000624711577109012010-03-09T19:35:40.788-05:002010-03-09T19:35:40.788-05:00What a day to come late to Rex Parker's blog--...What a day to come late to Rex Parker's blog--so many lively comments for this puzzle. I solved it while watching a piece of Mama Mia at the auto service shop this morning. I was glad for the challenge and thought the puzzle was great; got the theme with pieces of ALIGHIERI. Like Rube, I wondered if this was going to be an Alice in Wonderland puzzle. <br /><br />DH (who hated this puzzle and gave up a few minutes ago) says there are also hemiOBOLs; he was really looking for a drachma, though. <br /><br />Not many write-overs, but I had trouble with the ANTE and first entered WAGE.PlantieBeahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01960277851368508036noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-88353153996562431802010-03-09T19:10:54.996-05:002010-03-09T19:10:54.996-05:00Great puzzle...for a Thursday!Great puzzle...for a Thursday!PIXnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-38382854744799453052010-03-09T19:09:34.392-05:002010-03-09T19:09:34.392-05:00Yes, I agree, it should have been a Wednesday, but...Yes, I agree, it should have been a Wednesday, but I loved this puzzle! My only write-overs were <br />tubule for tubula, and "ye" took care of that, and then I had a problem that took a little longer: "the gates TO hell"... not knowing obol and smiff (and for that matter, Eve Arden and this Alex Doonesbury (although I read it when I'm reduced to getting the Herald Tribune). I think knowing Dante and his last name, the Divine Comedy, and figuring the words (almost) of those lines, and, most importantly, being lucky in the order of solving clues, made this puzzle just slightly harder than an ordinary Tuesday, and much more interesting. <br /><br />@Chip Hilton: sorry..... Now the ladies!<br /><br />What a job it was to read all these comments....<br /><br />E-pore?machttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06794371617847975218noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-35293128537596220372010-03-09T19:09:16.490-05:002010-03-09T19:09:16.490-05:00Amount of money that can be raised - instead of ra...Amount of money that can be raised - instead of raised, it should have said "upped", as in "up the ante." I've never heard anyone say "raise the ante."Rick Steinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07009276420241058996noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-41756211661190029972010-03-09T18:55:49.755-05:002010-03-09T18:55:49.755-05:00@mitchs -
Ooxteplernon was born 10/30/09. Here&#...@mitchs -<br /><br />Ooxteplernon was born 10/30/09. Here's the <a href="http://www.xwordinfo.com/ShowPuzzle.aspx?date=10/30/2009" rel="nofollow">filled grid.</a><br /><br />(I would link to the unsolved puzzle, but I don't know how!)Bob Kerfufflehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02615811802419025933noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-34379064485078328532010-03-09T18:45:27.253-05:002010-03-09T18:45:27.253-05:00[Warning - *there he goes again alert*]
Why the k...[Warning - *there he goes again alert*]<br /><br />Why the kvetching over a *challenging* Tuesday?<br /><br />Those who only solve early week get a chance to experience a thrill like an OMG Klahn Friday.<br /><br />Solving the puzzle is many things, but an entitlement is not one of them ;)<br /><br />[/warning]<br /><br />..../GlitchGlitchhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14940000404613329056noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-31678475346092061762010-03-09T18:38:38.564-05:002010-03-09T18:38:38.564-05:00""OBOL-SMIFF" is the new word for &...""OBOL-SMIFF" is the new word for "Adjacent horrible fill.""<br /><br />Couldn't agree more. The whole thing was a true circle of hell for me.mexgirlnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-85150096553941031172010-03-09T18:23:34.810-05:002010-03-09T18:23:34.810-05:00This was relatively easy for me because of the the...This was relatively easy for me because of the theme and oldster stuff. I once dreamt I did a cw with clues all about me. This was close.<br /><br />What I did not know, but fell in: I've seen the FOO dog (real and ceramic) but didn't know its name. The OBOL apparently is the coin you give to Charon to cross the Styx. I've seen the same as Sicilian antiques called Litra (like lira?) with wheat, dolphin, chariot or Gorgon. Third - FLO Rida (but did know GHETTO blaster. Don't know Alex Doonsebury.<br />Didn't notice WIPE, which I didn't know.<br />Had "lacks" for LOSES, at first.<br /><br />EVEARDEN is an oldsters' name to know. She had the most unusual voice. If the yung'uns don't know her they shoud grab a listen. I only heard her (didn't see), on radio.<br /><br />I asked hubster about Knucklehead, one of Paul Winchell's puppets. Hubster began to sing a song. "We gotta go now...scotty watty doo da doo." But he thought it was Smith, and I had that for a while. After all, hubster couldn't read yet, then. I hear PW was a troubled man.<br /><br />Does Zounds equal EGAD? Zounds, we learned in S. means "His Wounds." So it's sacreligious. Does EGAD really mean "O God"? <br /><br />@Rex - Could ANTE here be like the "handle" at a track bet? <br />Please don't call the beautiful blue Rama ugly stuff!<br /><br />Finally, back to Dante. To begin with, I named my son Dante (middle name, Trowbridge). I wanted an Italian name, but not a spaghetti bender name (Guido, Torquato, Nunzio, Pasquale) or a family name (Rosario=Russell) where ten people turn around. Dante is short for Durante, meaning enduring.<br />I have a dozen translation of the 3 books of the Comedy, and many illustrated sets. <br />Hubster's war story: He was in charge of the gas chamber at Fort Devens, Ayer MA and put up a sign, in Italian, "Lasciate ogne speranza, voi ch'intrate," drawn by a professional draftsman in the unit. He was rough on the entire brigade using max CS pellets (7). Gen. Santini gave him a Letter of Commendation, and it helped the unit win the Bell for Adano award, (which they called the Bell for O'Donnell.) But that's a different literary reference.<br />With the clue, "Opening line," I thought it might be the first line - "In the middle of the road of our life." ("Nel mezzo del cammin di nostra vita")<br /><br />@Miguel - Ha ha. Circles.Sfingihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06903616949048940858noreply@blogger.com