tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post3413729505050776520..comments2024-03-28T06:29:33.354-04:00Comments on Rex Parker Does the NYT Crossword Puzzle: Master of cartoon dog McBarker / THU 3-22-18 / Dutch financial giant / Relative of exempli gratia / Lucia di Lammermoor baritone Rex Parkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16145707733877505087noreply@blogger.comBlogger130125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-37228948512425795492018-04-26T15:35:16.740-04:002018-04-26T15:35:16.740-04:00Had it all done fairly easily 'cept for SUVS i...Had it all done fairly easily 'cept for SUVS instead of GMCS. Since I don't know MIRA, that really messed up the NE corner. And....I put in MONEY for MOOLA at first - that's actually kinda old slang that never caught on much. If I didn't have my set of slang flash cards I wouldn't have known that. <br /><br />But once GMCS did get parked properly the rest fell into place. <br /><br />Always loved ROCKINROBIN. Tweet, tweet, tweet!<br /><br />Diana, Lady-in-Waiting for CrosswordsDiana,LIWnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-86005570549810836782018-04-26T15:19:40.316-04:002018-04-26T15:19:40.316-04:00A disappointing non-themer, non-Thursday puzzle fo...A disappointing non-themer, non-Thursday puzzle for me. The theme is some repeat words in some of the clues? Please.<br /><br />Examples of genuinely clever clues: See those for VALLEYGIRL and HIGHC.<br /><br />Unknowns but got 'em: MOOLA clued by "Cheddar", ROCKINROBIN clued by "One with lot of tweets".<br /><br />Unknowns and didn't get: EDM, PAM, and the crosssing KEPTMAN.<br /><br />Known but trouble spelling: DALAI.<br /><br />Oh, and wanted MAJOR Ira OWNER instead of you know what.<br /><br />Eagerly looking forward next Thursday's puzzle.leftcoastTAMnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-82045726899887210222018-04-26T14:18:09.086-04:002018-04-26T14:18:09.086-04:00A different sort of Thursday, but not a rebus (YEA...A different sort of Thursday, but not a rebus (YEA), so it has that going for it.<br /><br />Oddly, ROCKIN ROBIN was my last fill-in, which had me chagrined, but did give me HIGHCS, a devilishly clued answer. I was actually looking for a, ugh, rebus there.<br /><br />Didn't know JOFFREY (don't watch G of T, but JAMA was a gimme.<br /><br />Overall, medium for me, but fun and sprightly.<br /><br />rainforestnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-7619893431705804922018-04-26T13:41:09.897-04:002018-04-26T13:41:09.897-04:00Dammit Jim, you're a doctor not a Vulcan.Dammit Jim, you're a doctor not a Vulcan.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-42979543533520967952018-04-26T12:58:44.559-04:002018-04-26T12:58:44.559-04:00THE experience was ruined for me when I saw that t...THE experience was ruined for me when I saw that the "One with a lot of tweets" wasn't DONALDTRUMP, or MR/US PRESIDENT, all of which fit. Oh well. <br /><br />This one was all over the place. ROCKINROBIN was in my wheelhouse, but the only Mann of pop I know is Manfred--too long. Why clue MIRA as a really obscure foreign film director instead of DOD Sorvino? Cheddar = MOOLA?? Never heard that one. YEA big?? Not big around here.<br /><br />More hangups: the infamous RSL (random SILENT letter). I HATE that! Stop doing that!! AND EDM?? Not a clue. But, like, finally seeing, like, VALLEYGIRL, like opened up the NW. Like REVSUP, like. As if!<br /><br />IRAISE eyebrows at MADELOVE--and then MOTHERDUCK. But all is forgiven: my way in was the late, great Leonard NIMOY. (BTW, @"Deforest Kelley," so is he, so show a little respect and don't borrow his name for a meaningless post.)<br /><br />Lots of stuff to both like and dislike. It averages out to a par.spacecraftnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-13836267409458763982018-04-26T10:34:46.099-04:002018-04-26T10:34:46.099-04:00Doesn’t THE MAJORITYOWNER of this blog usually get...Doesn’t THE MAJORITYOWNER of this blog usually get perturbed or BEMUSEd when THE theme is all in the clues? Maybe not so much when THE subject is as “fresh” as social media. I’M_MOBILE with my TELE phone, but can find no use for that stuff; I’ll leave it for those who wish to be perennial eighth-graders.<br /><br />THE MAN MAN thing is obvious. Does anyone actually put two AMENs back-toback?<br /><br />I think that YEAh baby AIMEE Mann belongs more in the alt-rock or folk categories, but “Charmer” is pretty poppy-catchy: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tcpXTUT0-7o<br /><br />THE theme is alright, if you had a clue, now let’s all have a BEER.<br />rondonoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-3937465624860174802018-04-26T09:43:26.858-04:002018-04-26T09:43:26.858-04:00RECLINER & TANKER
PAM, THE VALLEYGIRL, MADELO...RECLINER & TANKER<br /><br />PAM, THE VALLEYGIRL, MADELOVE most IDLE EVES<br />ATBAT MAN’s behest, MOTHERDUCK, there is no stoppin’!<br />But, YEA, MAJORITYOWNER Bruce Wayne believes<br />PAM is BEMUSEd, AS_HE knows she’s also ROCKINROBIN.<br /><br />--- MRS. ENRICO ASSANGE<br />Burma Shavenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-9328514971723275592018-03-24T04:40:03.348-04:002018-03-24T04:40:03.348-04:00"Older Solvers", Pretty funny. Frank Za..."Older Solvers", Pretty funny. Frank Zappa (OK, Moon Unit Zappa) wrote Valley Girl in 1980. I met him about then...and am still mentioning it now! You should be at least 40 to know the reference. As Rex Pointed out, age helps for RockinRobin, which I thought was one of the cuter themers. I am sure there are still active octagenerians on this list, and maybe THEY are the "older solvers" to whom you refer. pcardouthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00607780240384801553noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-58443292622979608282018-03-23T08:02:49.623-04:002018-03-23T08:02:49.623-04:00High C is not a pitch. It’s a note.
High C is not a pitch. It’s a note. <br />PeterThomashttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04830709669823593966noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-9213243369814660932018-03-23T05:40:34.589-04:002018-03-23T05:40:34.589-04:00That last comment is disgusting. Should be delete...That last comment is disgusting. Should be deleted.<br /><br />I didn't get the puzzle's theme at first. Left the house, returned and it all suddenly clicked, so I got it. Liked it.<br /><br />One exception: Did not like the "wifey" clue, with "the Mrs." My mother would have objected to that term decades ago. And today, don't see how that gets a pass in the NY Times puzzle. <br /><br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-2818659635393248902018-03-22T22:47:55.751-04:002018-03-22T22:47:55.751-04:00Good ol’ Black Joe, ROFLMAO.Good ol’ Black Joe, ROFLMAO.Oldflappyfrommississappynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-31746441187659088332018-03-22T22:43:50.203-04:002018-03-22T22:43:50.203-04:00This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-17859760519539412912018-03-22T22:42:02.357-04:002018-03-22T22:42:02.357-04:00@Good ol' Joe 10:21
I know, right? Now you kno...@Good ol' Joe 10:21<br />I know, right? Now you know why Rex has such a dislike to Will. Some of the puzzles that make it in makes you want to go, Huh?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-53332552706046668562018-03-22T22:21:42.404-04:002018-03-22T22:21:42.404-04:00When I see a puzzle like this I think of those NYT...When I see a puzzle like this I think of those NYT submissions I have had rejected. My rejection note says something like “Thanks, Will just wasn’t excited enough about the theme”. And I think “fair enough, it was good but not ground breaking”. It doesn’t wound me. But then I see a puzzle like this and I think “Will was excited by this theme?”<br /><br />And then I think about the hours I spent making sure my fill doesn’t have SAYTO, HIGHCS, and AMI side-by-side. And I conclude I should have spent those hours getting a tan or learning ballroom dancing. Good ol' Joehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07127333106595395817noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-18386783256647570522018-03-22T18:54:02.095-04:002018-03-22T18:54:02.095-04:00I realize that “Game Of Thrones” has a lot of char...I realize that “Game Of Thrones” has a lot of characters with oddly spelled names. But do I really need to watch that show in order to fill in the puzzle? I find guessing at Tolkien-esque proper nouns tedious.Joehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08316379159031860155noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-11087560558706370092018-03-22T18:45:28.844-04:002018-03-22T18:45:28.844-04:00So I'm sitting at the bar in this Mexican rest...So I'm sitting at the bar in this Mexican restaurant in my neighborhood, and guess what song just played? Bobby Day's version of "Rockin' Robin"! Fun fact: The music and lyrics of "Rockin' Robin" have been in the public domain since 1987 because no copyright renewal was filed (copyright renewal was mandatory at the time).<br /><br />AREA MAN? Really? And PICKET FENCE would have been better at 49a, imo.<br /><br />I was thinking the clue for 20a could have been "No thpeaking!" But you still have the initial S so it would be inconthithtent.<br /><br />Now I want to hear Carl Carlton's "She's a Bad Mama JAMA".Joe Dipintohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07922691457886440325noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-89273717398624884522018-03-22T18:14:39.753-04:002018-03-22T18:14:39.753-04:00VERY late to the party. But just wanted to say tha...VERY late to the party. But just wanted to say that I enjoyed the push-back offered by the puzzle, and feel proud of myself for persevering until the end, completing it in just a minute over an hour, with no googles, and no mistakes.<br /><br />Thursdays are always slower for me than they need to be, because I start off wondering whether there will be a rebus. I wanted MANFRED to pair with 15A's "Mann", so I was on the lookout for a rebus for the first half hour, until I got MOTHER DUCK and decided that it was just goint to be normal words. Filled in the South fairly quickly, but the North and NW took me awhile. I had "and" at first for 8D, and "soy" for 9D, so thought that 17A would end in "... dandy." Was pleased to see 8D change to "PER", which is a well-established meaning for the slash (/), though rendered less evident thanks to all the other uses to which the slash is now being put.<br /><br />Probably nobody will read this, so I'll just end here with a thanks to Mr. Ross Trudeau.'merican in Parisnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-79685373399212245842018-03-22T18:03:12.689-04:002018-03-22T18:03:12.689-04:00Yes, please! Although not in today’s puzzle same g...Yes, please! Although not in today’s puzzle same goes for ole, aloe, oars and a host of other constantly repeated—and boring—3 and 4 letter fill answers. Outside The Boxhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07701774235535205077noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-35480634646550686712018-03-22T17:14:07.940-04:002018-03-22T17:14:07.940-04:00I have some high DDDDs.I have some high DDDDs.Stormy Danielsnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-39401131589630317622018-03-22T17:07:14.670-04:002018-03-22T17:07:14.670-04:00For a Thursday, this puzzle sucks.
Barry Frain
E...For a Thursday, this puzzle sucks.<br /><br /><br />Barry Frain<br />East Biggs, CABarry Frainnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-7570711568304789362018-03-22T16:33:39.673-04:002018-03-22T16:33:39.673-04:00Decades ago, my friend’s brother got an unwanted n...Decades ago, my friend’s brother got an unwanted nickname when he got arrested for a traffic offense. The local newspaper headline started with “City Man cited . . . “, not AREAMAN, but same idea. City Man stuck, with variants like El Cit soon to follow.<br /><br />Kind of boring for a Thursday, no? The puzzle, not my anecdote. Right?Chip Hiltonnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-862980492691368242018-03-22T16:19:37.720-04:002018-03-22T16:19:37.720-04:00This week's relative difficulty ratings. See m...This week's relative difficulty ratings. See my 1/2/2018 post for an explanation of my method. In a nutshell, the higher the ratio & percentage, the higher my solve time was relative to my norm for that day of the week. Your results may vary.<br /><br />(Day, Solve time, 26-wk Median, Ratio, %, Rating)<br /><br />Mon 4:42 4:14 1.11 79.7% Medium-Challenging<br />Tue 5:27 5:22 1.01 55.4% Medium<br />Wed 5:14 6:00 0.87 27.7% Easy-Medium<br />Thu 11:11 10:01 1.12 67.3% Medium-Challenging<br /><br />This one was pretty far from my sweet spot. I spent more than half of my solve time in the SW quadrant, in large part because I misspelled JOFFREY as geoFREY, didn't trust that a KEPT MAN and a gigolo were the same thing, had no idea about EDM (electronic dance music, apparently ... I assumed it was Emo) and misread the clue for RAJA and had RAni. There were a few other sticking points: parsing HIGH C'S, MIRA Nair, YEA big, Mr. MAGOO had a dog.sanfranman59https://www.blogger.com/profile/15118732156312301425noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-39028492212622178792018-03-22T16:16:38.813-04:002018-03-22T16:16:38.813-04:00Indeed, this oldster got "rockinrobin" o...Indeed, this oldster got "rockinrobin" off of "valleygirl" and presumed the answers would all be song titles. Really stopped me dead on "majorityowner". Easy but weird. Davidnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-78442044350481330642018-03-22T16:09:15.665-04:002018-03-22T16:09:15.665-04:00@John Hoffman, an AT BAT is one turn at the plate ...@John Hoffman, an AT BAT is one turn at the plate for a hitter. It is used in calculating some of the many statistics in baseball. If, for example, a players has four AT BATs during a game and gets one hit, then that player has a batting average of .250 (or just 250) for that game. <br /><br />Some turns at the plate, however, are not used in calculating batting statistics. Any sacrifice, such as a bunt or a fly ball that advances a runner, does not count as an AT BAT. (So even though the hitter made an out, it doesn't hurt the hitter's batting average.) The same is true for going to first base on four balls. As the clue says, "A walk is not counted as one". Anoa Bobhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16185183023273883700noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-63295368604225741832018-03-22T16:00:19.941-04:002018-03-22T16:00:19.941-04:00Loved the puzzle. I got the first two long answers...Loved the puzzle. I got the first two long answers and kept thinking, "how do they connect?" Filling in subsequent theme answers didn't help, until--bam--it all connected.<br /><br />Curious, is Ross Trudeau the son of Garry Trudeau and Jane Pauley? If so, when his mother left the "Today Show" that was the end of it being an actual news program. Now it's "Entertainment Tonight 2.0". Oh well...back to shoveling out 8" of snow.<br /><br />Airymomnoreply@blogger.com