BY JOVE, this puzzle RAISES ROBERT to Elke's level, and just in time!
Nice solve, and a Happy Dominion Day to all you Canucks!
(ps: Don't bother with complaints about the C-word, as I R one myself)
Terrible clue for DRUG CARTELS. Tried early on, and hoped, that the answer for "Competing groups in Mexico" would be MARIACHI--um... something. Glad to hear this was not the original clue by Mr. Kravis, but a truly nasty edit inflicted upon his much better clue. Incomprehensible.
4
Nice puzzle Andy! A welcome change of pace from the usual stacked entries common to un-themed puzzles.
After getting the northwest quickly I thought I’d zip right through this puzzle. Boy, was I wrong!
Milton Berle was Mr. Television. I KNEW that for sure. This the middle of the puzzle was a total mess for more than an hour. I finally read Ms Lovinger’s article.
Finished the thing, but unhappy with UNCLEMILTIE.
BY JOVE, IT(‘)S OVER
2
Neat puzzle -- had to look up 32A and started off with AMINUS in 18A (can't run a car on good grades, can you?) but fixed that quickly. Expected 27D to be EISWEINS but nope.
24A puzzled me for the longest time -- a churro can be rolled up when it is made ... but Caitlin fixed that. One needs a good ear ...(LOL)
Kudos to Andy.
Short on time, so have to comment without reading the other comments. Tough! Got it in just over an hour, but had to run the alphabet on the Natick DEREK and AVADUVERNAY (parsed the latter as AVADU VERNAY :) (After reading Caitlin's column, I did a head-slap about "Derek.")
Is BROTOX a neologism, or just made up by Mr. Kravis? If the latter, I strongly feel a "?" is needed at the end of the clue (even on a Saturday!). OCTANE was slow coming -- kept thinking of classroom grades (high B or low A?). Took a while with SPATLESE, but another head slap after getting it. Ditto for DXC: Had DXX for too long. Don't understand the clues for GRANOLA or TEAR, btw.
Loved the clues for BRR, ROLLEDR, NOSE, and CTEAMS and learned a new word: LOGY!
After Thursday (Whew!) and yesterday, this one wasn't as bad feared. I'm hoping tomorrow's will be rebus- or trickery-filled!
Granola bars. Tear was a verb in my youth, as in tearing around when one’s in a hurry.
Aha. Thanks, Trish!
I don't think it's necessary to finish a puzzle in order to enjoy it, which is good for me, because today I would not have finished before reading the comments.
The Spelling Bee should have its own comment space, doncha think?, cuz that one can be strung out to a full day.
Within moments of starting the puzzle, I realized that ‘adorbs’ was going to be a legitimate answer. I had to turn off my iPad and walk-off my resentment. After returning to the puzzle, I came upon ‘brotox’ and realized I should probably take my Lisinopril.
I don’t object to slang. In fact, I find it important to ‘cement’ the shared vocabulary of your readers by iteration of useful words. However, ‘brotox’ is hardly a useful slang term. I will take this one step further: it is the equivalent of another Kardashian.
Stop making stupid people, and in this case, stupid words, famous.
7
Or, you could quote the end of Rowan and Martin's show: "Velly intelesting ....but shtooopid...."
3
I don't like "cutesy," as opposes "cute" stuff. The word "ADORBS," totes or otherwise, is an example of the former. Yuck!
But it did give us a look at the clip in the column, which was definitely "cute." For those who don't know, I adore pandas. Human babies don't push the same buttons for me as puppies and kittens though. Also, my beloved Jessica had some things to say about who and what is cute. She won a hug and an ear-scratch.
Wanted EAT A (something), so EAT ALIVE took a while.
Didn't know SPATLESE, or that AVA DUVERENAY had directed "A Wrinkle in Time."
Didn't know the YAO/NBA stuff. No surprise there.
Was uncomfortable with the "Mexican" reference with regard to DRUG CARTELS, given the hate-filled rhetoric aimed at Mexicans and other Latinx that we are all exposed to every day. It could so easily have been avoided, as it was in the original, and very clever, clue.
My A/C is still in the shop, due home (after payment of ransom) on Monday. I played the old-lady-at-risk card and the fixer promised to try to get it to me today, but that didn't happen. Is it dangerous to take more than one cold shower an hour?
Wish me luck.
9
Good luck with the A/C. Like you, I can't bear the heat. If you sit right in front of it a fan does do more than stir up the hot air, so hope you have a good fan.
Good luck, DL.
No A/C sounds just awful. Sorry to hear that.
This week, it seemed Friday was Saturday and Saturday was Friday.
3
Based a comment or two 37a tripped up some. That clue is a great example of why a hopeful solver has to pay close attention to how the clues are written. I remind myself several times during a puzzle and still....
In this case the clue says ‘Mr Television by another NICKNAME’. So, if you know that Mr TV is Milton Berle then you know MB is his name not his nickname and the clue asks for a nickname. The answer is the only other nickname I know for him and the clue for me was why I didn’t have to get the answer on the downs.
You’re all pros, but we newer puzzle solvers need all the help we can get.
4
Rich in Atlanta: I don't see your OT question for research triangle people. Did you ever post it? Did it get eaten by the emus?
2
Liz, sorry. A) Got busy. B) Realized this is really not the proper the place for the questions. C) Replies will disappear.
Having said that... Dr. J and I are probably going to move in the near future. There are multiple options, but I've long wanted to move further north. She is somewhat willing but probably not as far north as I would like, so I was looking at compromise locations.
One would be Raleigh/Durham. Just a few hours from the kids, and while I know we'll never find another place like Clarkston, I would still like some diversity and the area does seem to have a fairly diverse population. Plus I assume that the presence of the Universities is unlikely to leave us in the midst of a whole bunch of people on the opposite end of the political spectrum (putting that as mildly as I can).
So, I was going to ask you guys for any thoughts about areas we might focus on - a couple of old retired people but not ready for a senior citizens home. Just a quiet neighborhood, nice people, etc.. Plus any other information about the area that we may not have considered.
As I said, this is not the place for that and I don't want to flood the blog with disappearing replies. You and I, at least, could communicate elsewhere and that might be a better option.
Rich, I'll contact you elsewhere.
I had ASSTSA (Assistant State Attorney) for Position in prosecutor's office, giving me REMARRIES for Like Frank Sinatra. I got the Almost There message and even after going back over the entire puzzle could not find my error so had to Reveal Puzzle. I'm so disappointed to have broken my current streak!
1
For those who are still struggling with today's Spelling Bee, and who read the comments from Newest to Oldest, just a warning to skip Nice Cuppa's reply to Chungclan a little ways down. There are lots of spoilers, including the pangram. On the other hand, I never would have got the pangram, so I saved some time today.
(For once there was a reply that I would't have objected to if it had disappeared...)
1
My apologies. I generally post so late that everyone's done for the day. But my comment that the Dictionary has changed was my point (e.g. British variants with -our instead of -or are now allowed), and we are now faced with a slew of new allowable obscure words. And I did not want anyone else to waste their time on such ROTL.
2
I realize now that you were actually performing a valuable service. I had only half-read your response when I saw that there were answers included, but I now see how ridiculous (or obscure at least) those "words" are. I had managed to get both the American and British example you gave, but I would never have got any of the other examples. Makes one reluctant to want to play any more...
"I know others have mentioned this, but I'm really tired of posts showing and disappearing."
Hi Mark,
Stick around; the problem should be be solved in our lifetime. While we wait for the fix, please note that it is only replies that disappear, not thread-starting posts, which is why I am replying to your post without using "reply." It will be harder to follow the thread, but the replies shouldn't vanish.
1
" it is only replies that disappear, not thread-starting posts"
How do we (you) know that? If an original post, whether it inspires a thread or not, disappears, would we be aware that it had ever existed?
Deadline,
We are *all* aware that after x number or y bytes of replies, replies start to disappear. Crossword staff have acknowledged the problem and there is a new team trying to fix it. Knock on wood -- we haven't seen any "duplicate" replies for more than 24 hours, so maybe the new team is onto something.
While we've all had posts that never posted, I have not had the experience -- nor have I heard any reports -- of an *original* post appearing and then disappearing. Have you?
I have.
That was part of what was behind my rage quit earlier. Original posts do appear and then disappear.
Replies ditto. The "reply count" doesn't match the replies that can be displayed. The order of replies has nothing to do with the posting order. Posts are quarantined without charges indefinitely. Oh, wait a minute - I just figured it out. We're in America!
Tired of winning...
I know others have mentioned this, but I'm really tired of posts showing and disappearing.
I'm not a frequent poster here, but have been participating more because I really enjoy the blog and love my fellow solvers.
But I think I'm going back to just reading and not posting.
5
Please, Mark, add your voice to ours by complaining via the Feedback link.
They claim to be working on the problem (shouldn't they have done that before launching the new veresion?), but I don't trust them not to drop the whole thing unless we keep complaining.
I object. Spaetlese is spelled thus, not as in the puzzle. The German is spätlese, for late-lying, which is Romanized a spaetlese. I call foul!
2
Accents and diacritical marks are consistently ignored in crossword puzzles, so Spätlese without the umlaut is quite acceptable. I think that using "ae" for "ä" is really an anglicism and therefore, to my way of seeing it, less correct. I just picture the umlaut in my mind's eye.
4
Not quite there on the German orthography - ae (ue, oe) is the original German spelling from the middle ages; later on, the modifying (= umlauting) vowel e was written as a small superscript above the principal vowel; later still, that superscript e devolved into two dashes or dots. But all three versions are still found in German names and printed materials (the middle version is a German correspondent to our "ye olde", indicating musty antiquarianism).
Particularly, Germans replace ä with ae when the text is to be machine-readable. The family Schütz will usually be provided with airline tickets made out to the family Schuetz.
Thanks, David. I should have stopped my comment after the first sentence. The rest was an unfounded assumption.
Late to the party (farmers' market, hose-schlepping, weeding, herb-picking) but delighted to have finished a daunting Saturday themeless.....followed by the Saturday Stumper in the same sitting!
Maybe it was the second cup of coffee?
Stay safe in the heat, everyone! (It's hellish out there already.)
3
I am surprised that so many found this puzzle relatively easy for a Saturday. I definitely struggled with it, never having seen A Wrinkle in Time, not knowing that UNCLEMILTIE was ever referred to as Mr. Television, and totally unfamiliar with LOGY. But I enjoyed some of the clueing...I'm looking at you ROLLEDR...and what are Saturdays for, if not to challenge.
1
You should print Stan Newman's NewsDay puzzle every Saturday--The Saturday Stumper is well-named. It is actually harder than the NYT puzzle, and I can't always finish it, but it's educational.....
Thanks. I'll give it a try.
Saturday Stumper?? (Not that I'm interested in another difficult puzzle on Saturday!)
Challenging, yet enjoyable and solvable!
The cultural trifecta referred to by the constructor held me up esp. the German wine and Mr Television, who very likely predated my arrival to these shores in the mid-80s
2
After crossing which body of water, xwords?
Thursday, Friday and today all took me several minutes longer than my averages. When I made my first entries today, I thought it was going to go better than usual.
Loved the clues for JIGSAW and FELONS; labored for a good while over FAJITA. I wanted EASE INTO rather than LEAD INTO. That NW corner is what really dragged for me. I thought EGG YOLKS might be in churros. GRANOLA was hidden from my consciousness and EAT ALIVE does not roll off my tongue. This all made for a very satisfying slog.
1
This was a quick solve for me today, 21 minutes shorter than my Saturday average. It was indeed totes ADORBS.
Incidentally, because I missed a B in that word, I had YAO Ming working as a school teacher and member of the NEA for awhile. Then I recalled he played basketball.
I'm old enough to know who Milton Berle was, but just barely too young to have seen him in his heyday as Mr. Television. I mainly recall him as an object for light mockery in the Warner Bros. Bugs Bunny cartoons.
That was a fun Saturday puzzle.
2
I sped through most of this puzzle, but had a dickens of a time in the NW. I started with AGED, but thought it would be 'adored' before ADMIRE and I was sure the clue Bar food was related to starving or dieting. And that ____EDR had me fooled until I took a break. When I got to ADORBS, I knew I had to re-think 1D. Other than the NW, my only write-over was pOkY before LOGY. Happy last day of June!
A new Saturday record for me, 1/3 of my average time. [Takes a bow.]
5
RESPECT.
3
Mr. Rauschenberg was *not* a so-called Abstract Expressionist — along with his personal and professional parter, Jasper Johns, he is generally considered a Neo-Dadaist or Proto-Pop Artist.
Mr. Kravis writes: "I tried to mix high culture (ROBERT Rauschenberg, SPATLESE wine) with pop culture (AVA DUVERNAY, UNCLE MILTIE)"
I guess I've got no culture at all because these were all completely unknown to me. UNCLE MILTIE seems well-known to everyone else, so I'm not sure how I've never heard of him before. (I've heard the name Milton Berle, but couldn't really tell you a thing about him.)
On the other hand, I filled in CONSTANTINE right away, and that was a big help getting started.
I ended up with four unknown letters at the end and knew they weren't in my knowledge base at all. What do you all do in that situation? I make my best guess and then hit the "check puzzle" button. If it's one or two letters I'll do my best to finish without checking, even spinning through the entire alphabet. But with four unknowns, going through the 26^4 possible combinations doesn't seem feasible. So, no gold star for me today.
4
I'll go to Deb or Caitlin who may not only provide the answer but explain it. When that doesn't work, remember Google and Wikipedia. Helps the answer to stick better than just going through the alphabet. Also, if you check the answer key in Wordplay it doesn't affect your score -- which make my runs highly fictional.
Absolutely come to the blog when something makes no sense! One of us or another commenter will weigh in. We have allll been there, trust me.
1
Bess, I hear what you are saying and find myself in similar situations on occasion. However, I don't find that the possible combinations are 26^4, because one can usually narrow things down a lot by guessing the most likely letters that would work in both directions. In most cases this eventually works for me, but in very extreme cases, and where time is not available to me, I will use Google to get one of the entries, and go on from there. I still would rather guess than use Google though.
Online solving allows us to "plug in" random letters until we achieve success. Solving on paper, however, does not afford this luxury.
On my first pass through, I had 5A as ‘TOPGUN.’ Took me a while to give up on that. Also had the last few letters of 24A in the tricky NW corners and, as a baker, I was concerned that no ingredients end with a ‘DR.’ But happy to report that I was over 5 minutes faster than my usual Saturday.
What's worse, sometimes it's AIR ACE (even worse is the WAR ACE....and no one ever said either one.....except maybe Will & Co.)
1
"no one ever said either one.....except maybe Will & Co."
And Snoopy, for AIR ACE, I think. Happy to say I never heard WAR ACE before today. Ugh.
The fact that MILTONBERLE is the same number of letters as UNCLEMILTIE was a nice bit of confusion - the cluing that allowed for either a real name or a nickname answer makes me think it was intentional.
ALIT being clued as 'Set down' hits my ear funny. 'Set' takes an object, in my view - flying things can touch down, but not set down. If you want to be set down, find someone else to be the subject of the sentence.
5
I think the issue is that “set” - as a verb - is both present and past tense, so in this case the clue could have been “touched down”, but that would have been easier than an end of week puzzle would like.
A possible linguistics explanation:
Set [oneself] down = alight or alit (present / past)
Rick Box's ear is correct as far as current usage: the reflexive direct object is required for this construction. But it may in future be no longer expected or required.
Example:
"He combed his hair" - was formerly in need of the direct object "He combed him his/the hair." (German still uses this construction). Same for such verbs as "dressed", "shaved", "hied"...
"I got me a new wardrobe" - now considered substandard English or marked speech. This was once 100% pure Good English. Same with verbs such as "bought", "found", "made"...all are made (modern) standard by changing the direct object "me" to the explicitly reflexive "myself."
Set (itself) down is perhaps not as far along the road of erasing the reflexive object pronoun as "got me (something)."
Trust George Herbert:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eGfspIG-5to
The clue, at least in AL, says "another nickname."
"Set down" as past tense sounds fine to me, with or without an object.
In almost 7 years of solving, I can promise that I have never before been successful on a Friday and Saturday back to back, so this was a first for me. My long time goal is to just once have a seven day streak (unofficial since I solve in Across Lite). And this had to be the week I bombed on a Thursday. Oh, well - if I can just get tomorrow's puzzle, I might actually have a shot.
The puzzle: Wasn't easy for me, but a few gimmes and then other things becoming apparent from the crosses was just enough. UNCLEMILTIE (with just 2 crosses at the end) and ECIGARETTES (3 crosses) were a big help. Didn't know 32a from the clue, but knew the name. Biggest dim-witted moment was at 42a. I spent a while (and a break) trying to remember... Harry LIME, but never did. I even remembered Holly Martins and almost every other detail of that film. And it never dawned on me that since 'The Third Man' took place in post-war Germany, 1941 made absolutely no sense for that film. Finally dissuaded by the crosses (and finally remembered).
Wish me luck for tomorrow.
Very OT question for our research triangle contingent in a reply.
6
Rich, I also managed to complete yesterday and today and Thursday was a bust for me as well.
I didn't really enjoy this puzzle, although I did like ROLLEDR.
I just didn't think was particularly challenging. I finished in 14:20 (for me that's unheard of for a Saturday) and I wasn't even particularly trying to be speedy.
Good luck tomorrow, Rich
1
The Third Man is set and filmed in postwar Austria, specifically Vienna. Have to put this in my all-time favourite movie.
3
After my first pass from NW to SE, I was a little worried about this one, but with the help of UNCLEMILTIE and AVADUVERNAY, everything FELLIN to place pretty easily--two minutes under my average for a Saturday!
Thanks, Andy Kravis, for a good start to the day.
re: yesterday's Spelling Bee
I object to the following omissions:
faro
farro
cloaca
cloacal
and the delicious but slightly toxic Hawaiian staple, kalo
for recipes and safety tips, see https://www.cds.hawaii.edu/kahana/downloads/curriculum/SectionII/Unit5/5...
1
Yes, that CLOACA(L) combo should have been added the FIRST time we all complained about it! They often omit bio/med/sci terms, and it's just annoying.
It seems that today's SPELLING BEE has adopted a NEW DICTIONARY. It now allows British spellings, e.g. COLOUR; and a host of archaic or obscure (including the PANGRAM!) or basically foreign words – I counted 7 that I'm sure would not have passed muster before today (they are not in my MAC-dictionary of American and British English, which includes a host of words (including CLOACA(L) not accepted in previous BEEs.), which were necessary to reach GENIUS level:
BRULOT, CLOTBUR, CLOU, CLOUR, ROTL, ROTOLO, TRULL
I found this one incredibly challenging (yawning white expanses after several trips through the clues). Had to leave and come back a few times. Almost gave up on the NW corner. And yet! I persevered and finished it, no lookups, so intensely satisfying. Persist, people! You know more than you think you do (at least that's what I always find).
On the other hand, my fragile self-esteem is still shaky as I am not yet a genius on Spelling Bee--the pangram is eluding me. But I will persist.
5
I can't get today's pangram either (or, not so far.) So tiresome when the old synapses won't fire....
2
I'm usually pretty fast with the pangrams, but today's has not come to me either. I will persist as well.
This was an enjoyable puzzle, but Robert Rauschenberg is not really considered an abstract expressionist....He's more of the next generation and a precursor to other things like pop art along with Jasper Johns.
1
Neo-Dadaist would have better, but he started as an Abstract Expressionist, so I give it a (museum) pass.
2
With big answers succumbing with few letters (REMARRIED, DRUG CARTELS, CONSTANTINE) , and UNCLE MILTIE dropping in with none, this puzzle crumbled under my momentum, a rare Saturday event. I don't know if it was me or the puzzle, but the cluing felt easyish as well. No LOGY here.
Nice cross of the crane arm and RAISES, and rare mini-theme of double-L's (6), and terrific clues for GRANOLA and JIGSAW. This puzzle was balm after my scraping and scrapping through the past two, satisfying my Libra stasis-loving sensibilities. Thank you, Andy!
3
Will have to think about those 'stasis-loving sensibilities'...
Given the Hollywood rumors about Mr. Berle, I shuddered at the cross of UNCLEMILTIE and EXCITED...
5
Shame on you, Stu.
You're supposed to be thinking about the TV show.
This was a pretty fast and smooth solve for me. A few minor missteps (the spelling of DUVERNAY among them). I liked FELONS and FELLIN near each other. After entering FAJITA I was thinking 61A may be ASSaDA.
1
I believe that one has one "S".
1
Yesss!! Metoo thought that FELONS FELLIN was downright FELLINiesque.
BY JOVE, I made it, with a little bit of help from Google on the names and a lot of luck.Like Suejean, I found it easier the yesterday.
In the MINI: although the clue to 1D is acceptable, SCHMUTZ came into English from German via Yiddish, in which it is preferentially transliterated as SHMUTZ, without the C .
See e.g. http://www.dictionary.com/browse/shmutz
1
I'm not sure that I would call this easiest Saturday ever, but I did get on with it a lot better than yesterday. I liked the three wine entries, although AGED wasn't clued that way. I have a late harvest Alsace wine in my fridge, perhaps I'll open it tonight, BY JOVE. I love a good sweet wine.
Keep those fun Saturdays coming, Andy.
2
Thought of you, suejean, 27D.
Never heard of SPATLESE.
I'm only seeing two wine entries. I must have missed something.
I think that suejean was seeing AGED as it related to wine, although not clued as such. (The other two were 23A and 27D).
Sweet suejean, I've had trouble raisin much appreciation for trockenbeerenausLESE.
Better SPAT than never, I guess.
(supply your own umlauts, pls)
Never realized that the biggest challenge for me is not necessarily solving the puzzle (which,honestly I have now been doing for half a century), but,rather, is keeping up with the references here to (say)"NW corner" or SE section". I actually have to pause and visualize where in the square(rectangle?) those references point.
Is there such a condition as "directionaly challenged"?
Disoriented?
I've heard of 'aggravated mopery', but this might be a case of 'aggravated mappery'. Will look into getting you a comp pass, Memorable G.
Awfully easy for a Saturday, even though only CONSTANTINE and UNCLE MILTIE were gimmes of the long answers. Just over half my average.
I'm pretty sure this is my first Saturday solve with no lookups (even spelling!). Woo hoo!
15
Great Scott! (pun intended) :-)
5
LOL
Today's puzzle was quite a relief after Friday's and Saturdays's slogs. Average time and with much less stress.
Everything went pretty smooth until the SE, when at 52a Edsel Ford TOOK C[ENTER] STAGE in the opening act, and the show kind of died. But I became EXCITED when I recalled a gift from yesterday's puzzle - the reserve squad, or B TEAM! That really helped me to see that 44d backup's backups would surely be the C TEAM. Then Tennessee ERNIE Ford belatedly arrives for Scene II, ousting his disgraced imposter, and the show goes on.
So thanks Will Shortz, for tossing me that nice little bone. It's really nice when a hard-won entry from a prior puzzle assists in solving a subsequent one.
2
I could recount a story about rolling one's Rs, but the emus would not approve.
3
Dutch for ‘heavy’ is zwaar, so I think LOGY may come from ‘laag’, which means low.
1
Coke machine is a way better clue than the rather offensive Mexican reference.
10
“Coke machine” may indeed be a better clue, but is the clue given actually offensive, or merely unflattering?
Assuming it’s true that there are drug cartels in Mexico, and I am pretty sure there are, can one be offended by an inconvenient statement of reality?
2
Given the popularity of Narco Corridos, I think we can safely conclude that Mexico has a problem with Drug Cartels.
It would be offensive to suggest that ALL Mexicans are involved in the manufacturing and distribution of drugs, but observing that SOME are is simply a factual statement, and I don't believe there is much use in taking offense at facts.
"South of the border" might have been a better clue, and still accurate, as there are cartels operating in Central American countries as well.
Sure, there are drug cartels in Mexico, but the clue kind of implies that's the only thing that's going on in Mexico, when of course it's a small part of actual life in Mexico. Maybe my discomfort with the clue is more a reflection on media/political coverage focusing on the cartels than it is with the clue itself, which as you say, is a reflection of reality, or at least our perception of it.
3
Brief speed bumps wanting APexam, WBa and pOkY, but I quickly came across the correct letters. Don't eat bar food, but loved the clue. Churros I do eat (and pronounce properly). My younger daughter beat me to 32A and advised that 35A is passe (they're apparently just called vapes now), but would not have known 37A. Neither of us had heard of BROTOX. She did not believe ADORBS. Do you say BY JOVE to a MATE? (Let's not DWELL on that.) A Law & Order re-run was on as we filled in 61A. We had tortillas and beans for dinner, but no FAJITAs. She took care of 8D and showed 47A by leaving 45A for me. We ADMIREd the cluing, and everything FELLIN quickly.
3
I’d never heard of BROTOX either but after having ••O•OX the neologism seemed obvious.
1
There was no consternation here either, David; just loud groaning.
I tried BOYTOX first.
At least Andy didn't throw UNCLE MILTIE into the "antiquated" category.
I think that getting a toehold was the hardest part; once I got a couple words in it actually went very quickly and ended up being one of my faster Saturday times.
Liked the chess clues, "penmen?" and "bar food" clues, and I think that "coke machines" would have been a great clue.
2
Now I’m depressed. I remember watching Uncle Miltie on Texaco Star Thester which means I’m older than dirt.
3
Nobody did a double take like Miltie. Welcome to the dirt pile, Michele.
1
Old is fine, Michele. Depressed is for when you *can't* remember watching Uncle Miltie.
I'm Older than Dirt, but we didn't get a TV until 1958, and I never saw UNCLE MILTIE--my folks favored Lawrence Welk--so I can't remember him.....except in puzzles.
1
A fun Saturday. Would have gotten my Saturday best had a not spelled it DUVERNeY (the German cross meant nothing for me) and spent a few minutes tracking that down.
I particularly enjoyed getting GRANOLA and BROTOX.
1
“Coke machine?” FTW!! I laughed out loud when I read that! A lost opportunity, Will, for a top ten all-time clue.
5
At my 12th BIRTHDAY party, one of my friends laughed and Coke shot out of his nose.
5
Patrick, relating your story to "Coke machine" created a very unpleasant image. But thanks for sharing anyway!
Caitlin,
The answer key is mistakenly behind the XWP paywall and cannot be accessed by other subscribers. Please have it fixed.
Requested.
Done!
Tinker to Evers to Chance.
Well turned double play!
I had a lot after the first couple of passes--even BROTOX! but the NW corner stumped me for a while. A word ending in -EDR?? Had to be wrong, but I was sure of the D and R. Tried AGED and couldn't make it work with anything, took it out; tried ELI (had to be ELI) but nothing was working, so took it out; put them both back in. Finally came up with GRANOLA--don't know why it was so hard to think of--and ran the alphabet for the W in DWELL, and voila, everything solved immediately.
2
"Coke machines, for example" for DRUG CARTELS is a BRILLIANT bit of cluing, but it would have been a lot more difficult!
4
Easy Friday and Saturday after an unusually hard Thursday. This Saturday offering looked imposing, but fell quickly once I started to work it.
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That looked intimidating after a first pass, but it all came together for me very quickly. It's a new Best Time for a Saturday for me, but I still found it challenging, rewarding, and satisfying.
We'll done, Mr. Kravis!
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