tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post3468733972621337429..comments2024-03-29T01:22:33.864-04:00Comments on Rex Parker Does the NYT Crossword Puzzle: Boss Tweed lampooner / WED 1-2-13 / Singer/actress Luft / Actress Pflug / Japan's largest active volcano / Hit for Guy Lombardo 1937 Jimmy Dorsey 1957 / FDA banned diet pill ingredient / Italian city that is title setting of Walpole novel / Newsgroup system since 1980 / Rex Parkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16145707733877505087noreply@blogger.comBlogger92125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-86689260490120870522013-02-06T19:14:36.530-05:002013-02-06T19:14:36.530-05:00Got all the ugly, but none of the win. DNF (rare f...Got all the ugly, but none of the win. DNF (rare for a Wed.) because of the SW corner and never did get the theme until I came here. Very clever, now that I see it. However, when theme failure occurs (thankfully also rare)even a clever one means I have to admire the constructors cleverness, but don't get the zing of pride over my own.Cattenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-83958770164267728792013-02-06T17:28:12.373-05:002013-02-06T17:28:12.373-05:00I only gave up on vOlARE when I remembered the SEG...I only gave up on vOlARE when I remembered the SEGO lily from a recent puzzle - unfortunately I never changed the l, and SO RARE never appeared - DNF. I saw "The Bridge Over the River KWAI" at the drive-in theater with my parents when I was 11 or 12, so that was my first word to go into the grid. FRuiT became FROOT very late in the game when "iNRAMPS" seemed unlikely.<br /><br />And I would like to add, so as to soothe any sensibilities that were offended by my remarks yesterday, that I found the prime-time comments to be very educational today; esoteric, maybe, but educational nontheless.Dirigonzohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03903353503511480168noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-18755644674249877062013-02-06T16:32:58.420-05:002013-02-06T16:32:58.420-05:00@DMGrandma - YES - If you guess wrong, it's a ...@DMGrandma - YES - If you guess wrong, it's a DNF, so if you guess right, IMO it's a win! However, it's possible you had heard of Joe Torre anyway. He was in the broadcast booth for the Angels during the late 80's. As I remember, you're in SoCal and it's possible you heard of him at that time. So maybe your guess wasn't as random as you thought.Gingernoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-88159922727789065862013-02-06T14:59:45.604-05:002013-02-06T14:59:45.604-05:00I actually finished this one. But, to quote Rex, i...I actually finished this one. But, to quote Rex, it was an "ugly win". Finding the fruits helped some. Got it down to obscure author/sports figure crossing. Almost quit there, but decided TORRE seemed possible, and put it in. Question. Should a pure guess count as a win?DMGrandmanoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-37723430776775651482013-02-06T13:49:39.279-05:002013-02-06T13:49:39.279-05:00Loved the theme, thought it was clever and helpful...Loved the theme, thought it was clever and helpful. If some pretty iffy fill is the price we pay then it's worth it.<br /><br />SO RARE is now running through my head. It's a really lovely tune, recommend a listen. Gingernoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-51901081249873353212013-02-06T11:48:30.070-05:002013-02-06T11:48:30.070-05:00Let me add one more FROOT to this salad: the ugli!...Let me add one more FROOT to this salad: the ugli! There's so much awful fill...well, just a few mentions...give ARAP (care)? Never heard anybody say that. A rat's ass, maybe. AY as a cry of sorrow? Not that I'm aware. Last time I saw this word in print, it was in Shakespeare, "A Midsummer Night's Dream:"<br /><br />"AY, do, go on, persever..." Bard? Would you "give ARAP" to elaborate?<br /><br />YAH! is what Jon Arbuckle yells when he's startled. Shame on you, Garfield.<br /><br />Obscurities? Too MANY. Sorry, but for me, though I did finish it, the ambitious theme did not save it. And one more idiocy: "Amo, amas, I love_____-" well, if you want to make that rhyme, you have to say "A loss!" Either way, I never heard that little ditty, which deserves its obscurity. It's inane.<br /><br />Thumbs--NOT impaling plums--down for this one. Should have gone back to the drawing board.Spacecraftnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-71453194035835869882013-02-06T08:10:12.121-05:002013-02-06T08:10:12.121-05:00Where on earth is "YAH" a "Cry of D...Where on earth is "YAH" a "Cry of Derision?"Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-49258012062636858932013-01-03T16:28:16.077-05:002013-01-03T16:28:16.077-05:00@GeneS.
ter in die
aka t.i.d.
as in valium 10...@GeneS. <br /><br />ter in die<br /><br />aka t.i.d.<br /><br />as in valium 10 mg. t.i.d. to tolerate these puzzles lately<br /><br />Dr. redanmanxyzhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08287781952915413013noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-55594238250452811352013-01-03T14:38:14.829-05:002013-01-03T14:38:14.829-05:00Have written prescriptions for 40 years and have n...Have written prescriptions for 40 years and have never used or seen TERGeneSnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-13561267988974983742013-01-03T07:17:43.976-05:002013-01-03T07:17:43.976-05:00Great thoughts you got there, believe I may possib...Great thoughts you got there, believe I may possibly try just some of it throughout my daily life.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><a href="http://www.clarisseo.com/web-design.htm" rel="nofollow">Web Design Company New York</a> Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17195052132204508078noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-41254604338398344232013-01-03T05:38:36.917-05:002013-01-03T05:38:36.917-05:00Wow, @evan...thanks! Hilarious!
And to others for...Wow, @evan...thanks! Hilarious!<br />And to others for explaing the whole NONARAB, MUSLIM/MOSLEM thing, I knew something was amiss, (ALASS?) just not sure what!<br /><br />@Michael 10:17<br />of course there are dictionaries and databases...<br />that's the only problem I have, this is nothing personal to David who is in a class by himself, but the thing is, when folks use databases instead of drawing from their own knowledge, I think they have difficulty discerning what is totally obscure from plausible and gettable (which of course is what an editor is for, but once it's in the grid hard and fast, hard to undo.)<br /><br />Like, in the scheme of things, I would imagine Lorna Luft is less obscure than Joann Pflug, but neither would make it into an early week puzzle.<br />So since David, or other database dependent constructors, don't know these folks from real life experience as opposed to needing that letter combo, they can't gauge the difficulty level and the strength of the databases is important.<br />Some database creators try to "rank" entries, presumably by both how easy it then is to fill the grid as well as how well known or not something is, which of course will wildly vary by sex, age, geography, etc.<br />So I think that while david's (and other young constructors) ideas will be cutting edge and creative and judgable (? is that a word) outside of how old s/he is, I do think the grids will improve as s/he develops a better sense of what is knowable by folks.<br />If you have only been on the planet less than 16 years, even tho there is now Google, etc and the whole world's collective knowledge at your fingertips, you still need experience and firsthand connection with words, names, knowledge in general to make a strong, clean grid not rife with obscurities, which I have to say, this one teetered on the brink of acceptability in that area...tho if Will didn't think they could all be gotten by crosses, he wouldn't have published it.<br />I'm trying to say that a 14 yr old wouldn't know LUFT from NAST, or be able to gauge if we know these things. S/he has to put blind trust in the databases. And that's going to lead to results like this, a mixed bag on many levels but an overall wonderful achievement.<br /><br />acmenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-57134379695558494022013-01-03T01:37:48.535-05:002013-01-03T01:37:48.535-05:00@rgards -- I found this blog in the first place wh...<br />@rgards -- I found this blog in the first place when I was doing the syndicated puzzle. I was googling some clue and one of the hits was a reference on this blog. After a while I began just searching on some of the less common clues or answers + "Rex Parker" and came to see the writeup. So, easier than creating some complicated index, just google some of the weirder words, like "odorize" or ... "Soaper"???<br /><br />@Evan, I should have gone on to a PhD, maybe I could have found that SNL clip, too! But thanks, I enjoyed it. (See, that's why education should be free and public: we all benefit.) <br /><br />@bigsteve46, I get the captcha right on the first try about 2 out of three times. And robots leak in despite its difficulty for humans. And thank you for your 2 cents about non-arab. My first thought was, why Jews? Chinese aren't Arabs either! And then I thought, why aren't there Arab Jews? So thanks for pointing out that there are. I imagine it was a trap for people who think Iranians are Arabs. @David S -- congratulations for that, and thanks for a fun puzzle. As I understand it, Arabs, well, what makes them Arabs is they speak Arabic, while Iranians, or Persians as they used to be called, speak Farsi. And Chinese speak Chinese. Still Muslim (except for the Jewish ones), just not Arab. (That is, there are Chinese Muslims, but not Chinese Arabs.) <br /><br />@Sparky, I sometimes say that too, but more often, I don't give a cRAP, which is how I kept reading the spaces but somehow there wasn't roomEllen Shttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00473445503706985149noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-84723745031005088722013-01-02T23:26:18.394-05:002013-01-02T23:26:18.394-05:00Very cute! Liked using the LOOPS to fill in some ...Very cute! Liked using the LOOPS to fill in some of the FROOTS. Found it on the easier side, as I happened to know most of the proper names (for a change). Carolahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15971759975067250908noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-3392859110970998012013-01-02T23:05:49.786-05:002013-01-02T23:05:49.786-05:00@Sparky: LOL "Actually I say "Don't ...@Sparky: LOL "Actually I say "Don't give rodent's posterior," but that wouldn't fit in the grid."<br /><br />DNF for me, too - although I did know FROOT.<br /><br />Also had VOLARE - my old friend used to say that singing Volare was the cure when you had a song stuck in your head. (Is that what they call an earworm?)<br /><br />JenCThttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18290169184354765840noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-28598723875380951482013-01-02T22:48:09.082-05:002013-01-02T22:48:09.082-05:00@ rgards - I suspect a more likely scenario would ...@ rgards - I suspect a more likely scenario would be for the Editor to provide the publication date for each NYT puzzle in the compilation. Then you can look it up in Rex's archive if it is there. if it's on paper you have to do some typing anyway.<br /><br />Either way you could just e-mail Will, who will at least read and consider it.retired_chemisthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13181126754941899228noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-62237938526102000402013-01-02T22:17:55.734-05:002013-01-02T22:17:55.734-05:00Is there some sort of crossword puzzle dictionary....Is there some sort of crossword puzzle dictionary. If not, I am astonished that a teenage constructer knows Joann Plug, So Rare, Dona Flor, Lorna Luft, usenet, Arrau, Otranto,,,Michaelnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-51087039071057713762013-01-02T22:02:57.590-05:002013-01-02T22:02:57.590-05:00This 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 5:45, 6:12, 0.93, 18%, Easy<br />Tue 7:31, 8:37, 0.87, 14%, Easy<br />Wed 14:17, 11:52, 1.20, 87%, Challenging<br /><br />Top 100 solvers<br /><br />Mon 3:43, 3:39, 1.02, 58%, Medium<br />Tue 4:33, 4:57, 0.92, 18%, Easy<br />Wed 7:54, 6:34, 1.20, 90%, Challengingsanfranman59https://www.blogger.com/profile/15118732156312301425noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-71561028340644829322013-01-02T21:02:53.227-05:002013-01-02T21:02:53.227-05:00Can't stand sugared cereals, but fruit (not FR...Can't stand sugared cereals, but fruit (not FROOT) is nice. <br /><br />Noticed NAST and ARAP on the "other" puzzle. Only other place I've seen give ARAP. I say ratsass.<br /><br />The stuff I didn't get was sports, as usual, so nothing too obscure otherwise. @Rube - yes sometimes we get the breaks, which is great from a 14-year-old. (Thanx David)<br /><br />Muslims/Mooslums,etc. If you say it wrong to the wrong person, watch out.<br /><br />Dona FLOR and Her Two Husbands - a must see. Sfingihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06903616949048940858noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-62353359326045795452013-01-02T19:10:24.256-05:002013-01-02T19:10:24.256-05:00Me, I'm Cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs, so screw this ...Me, I'm Cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs, so screw this puzzle.Sonnynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-67898665038967993372013-01-02T18:01:48.091-05:002013-01-02T18:01:48.091-05:00Made a resolution to join in the party @Rex this y...Made a resolution to join in the party @Rex this year after long being a wallflower. Really enjoyed today’s puzzle (and also yesterday’s), despite the abundance of obscure/clunky fill, which didn’t bother me too much except in the SW, where like others I clung to Volare, believed in vega lily, and tried to imagine carrying an anus. Really wanted Oys instead of Ays, especially after seeing Oy Vey yesterday. I’m a symmetry freak (hated Saturday 12/29), probably for deep neurophysiologic reasons relating to being (almost) ambidextrous, and was especially pleased by the arrangement of the loops today. No problem at all with Froot, though its been years since I was at the table with a box of these. I do remember vividly, as prodigy constructor David pointed out, the yukky color they gave to milk. Thanks to Rex and all for adding much to the fun of doing the puzzles.webwingerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15089901257371442298noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-22659952062492306862013-01-02T17:06:56.149-05:002013-01-02T17:06:56.149-05:00Midday report of relative difficulty (see my 8/1/2...Midday report of relative difficulty (see my 8/1/2009 post for an explanation of my method and my 10/15/2012 post for an explanation of a tweak to my method):<br /><br />All solvers (median solve time, average for day of week, ratio, percentile, rating)<br /><br />Wed 14:12, 11:52, 1.20, 87%, Challenging<br /><br />Top 100 solvers<br /><br />Wed 8:12, 6:34, 1.25, 92%, Challengingsanfranman59https://www.blogger.com/profile/15118732156312301425noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-84298178474574596502013-01-02T16:49:36.364-05:002013-01-02T16:49:36.364-05:00@David Steinberg ... " I built this puzzle wh...@David Steinberg ... " I built this puzzle when I was 14, and it was accepted more than a year ago.<br /><br />Wow, is that humbling. Imagine how brilliant your puzzles will be when you're 18!<br /><br />3 and out.johohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12708487230515532492noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-7049536391419563962013-01-02T16:46:02.028-05:002013-01-02T16:46:02.028-05:00And a five is a "FIN" for some reason......And a five is a "FIN" for some reason...Notsofastnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-3462012693530845512013-01-02T16:34:28.719-05:002013-01-02T16:34:28.719-05:00A sawbuck was a thing used in carpentry. It was X ...A sawbuck was a thing used in carpentry. It was X shaped. X is Roman numeral ten. A sawbuck became a slang for ten " bucks" "C" is Roman for 100. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-61100618420441099212013-01-02T15:43:20.302-05:002013-01-02T15:43:20.302-05:00Apparently you have to be of a certain age and mus...Apparently you have to be of a certain age and musical inclination to consider ARRAU a gimme with no letters and then plunk down SO RARE with only the additional help of, (the very crosswordese), SEGO.<br /><br />Of course, keeping FRuiT too long does not help with the solve time... in fact, gave up last night and had to wait 'til morning to see FROOT.<br /><br />Yes, I agree that there is a lot of ugly fill, but the theme was inspired.Rubehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04773241241484881566noreply@blogger.com