Long-time puzzler, first-time commenter.
This puzzle was so good it made me create a username and password solely for the purpose of congratulating the makers. So good, y’all.
Too bad that Jeff Chen's take on Jim Horne's clue for ARCHIMEDES didn't make it. I will henceforth remember that his famous water-lifting mechanism "really screwed things up".
Deb - streak in jeopardy. 12:00 finish = blue not gold ??
Just gotta go on record as lauding the clue for APOSTROPHE. LOL!
2
@Ron. The thing about that clue that really impressed me as that the quotation marks that delineated the two phrases being referred looked like they were delineating titles.
The Times wouldn't have been able to get away with this if their crossword-clue stylesheet requ iui red italics instead if quotes to indicate a title.
Like many others here, I wanted JOCKSTRAPS instead of SPORTSBRAS. I kinda think I inspired several constructors when I wrote long ago in the Comments objecting to yet another somewhat smutty clue for BRA/S. I wrote, How about JOCKSTRAP insead of BRA? I'm pretty sure BEQ was the first to use it.
Anyway, I don't usually try Friday puzzles, but today's wasn't too hard, and I had fun with it. Lots of great clues here. I especially liked the ones for Camera shy and apostrophe.
See ya Monday, guys!
2
This was not super hard. About half my average Friday time. But it was enjoyable. The misdirections were excellent and I got a good chuckle out of APOSTROPHE. Particularly since ARISTOCRAT fit, and matched letters with the real answer in several places.
2
I enjoyed this puzzle overall, and really enjoyed the clue for BOA, which was the last one I solved.
The clue for PFUNK bothered me, though. Parliament FUNKadelic is the name of the band, not the style of music that they play.
1
@Anne-Marie It’s “George Clinton and the P-Funk All Stars” though. Definitely a thing!
1
When Clinton merged his two bands, Parliament and Funkadelic, the resulting super group was known as the P-Funk All Stars. Perhaps in an effort to ease tensions, Clinton wrote for and spoke of a new form of music known as P-Funk (though reportedly, the opposing members of the respective groups kept separate quarters and tour buses even after the merger)
P-Funk actually stands for Psychedelic Funk, here.
I see Deb and I think alike. Yes, it should have been JOCKSTRAPS and not because it was one of the first clues I thought I had but because it was different. SPORTSBRAS lets the side down (no pun!) and shows us that the Canadian guy, Mr. Horne, isn't quirky...just careful.
2
Whoa whoa whoa ... Latin?
Awesome puzzle ... crafty misdirection right at the finish gave me pause after crossing more than a few uncertainties.
Thanks!
1
I am a very sick man or have spent too much time in EDs. Why else would anyone audition D.O.A. for 21A?
7
LOL!!!
Orbach, is that you?
@Mean Old Lady Sorry. Not me.
1
@Tony Yes, despite not being able to imagine what DAT might refer to. I’m usually pretty good with baseball clues but Card > St. Louis Cardinals > holders of BAT(s) was unlikely to come together without help. Especially when DOA made so much sense ;)
words i can solve for, but i never listened to the rolling stones. i do wish puzzle makers would work on cross WORD puzzles and not use names and albums etc.
@david g sutliff The clue actually refers to the magazine Rolling Stone. So you could have said that you never listened to Jimi Hendrix.
Some folks yearn for a kind of "pure" puzzle, with no wordplay or popular references. However, I think most of us enjoy a modicum of both. I sometimes am peeved by two popular references that cross each other, since my knowledge of popular culture, particularly TV and movies, is limited. However, I recognize that the editors and constructors have to hit a sweet spot that appeals not only to me, but to my many peers who also solve puzzles.
8
I wish crossword puzzle setters would leave out clues referring to sports heroes of any ilk. But I wish the clue had been about the Rolling Stones because I ran through a whole mental check-list of their hits before I realized it was about "Rolling Stone".
You're in luck, PeeTee! This does not cover all of them, but we ran a piece on famous sports names that appear frequently in the puzzle, as well as how you might see them clued.
Hope it helps!
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2017/04/19/crosswords/CROSSWORDS-sports-names.html
2
Any puzzle that has both Jimi Hendrix and George Clinton is good with me.
I thought "jock strap" but didn't fill it in.
Was happy to see CAMERASHY and ARCHIMEDES. Also QUENCHED, as clued (I wanted ANNEALED, but that is slow cooling, and the crosses made it quickly impossible.....)
I did think there were a lot of old standards among the answers: EMT, ORCA, ALE(S), ODE(S), UPDO, DORA and the southwest corner stack of INRE, OLAV and NYSE.
1
Solid Friday puzzle, nothing less than expected from two solid veterans of Cruciverbia. Thank you, Jeff and Jim.
MARSLANDER sounds like a native of Marsland.
I never needed to PEEK, I could always tell what was inside the wrapped box under the Christmas tree. "How?", you may ask. It's a gift.
The most terrifying GONG blast in all of music is at the very end of the clip below, from "Church Windows" by Ottorino RESPITE:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IBBsFMIC18Y
Happy Friday all.
8
Surely you mean Ottorino RESPIGHI? Or is there a pun I’m missing?
I think our Lazslo is indulging in a little wordplay...
I interpreted 21D “Card holding?” differently, nothing to do with Saint Louis in particular. On a baseball card, the photo may show the player holding a BAT. Alternative path to the same destination!
4
Legit. 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle is an exquisite example. 1948 Leaf Stan Musial for double points.
A poor clue and answer. So obscure as to be arbitrary
4
JR,
I'm quite sure that Charley and Jason and I aren't the only three people here who did not find the clue and answer obscure.
5
This is the day the Big Bee solution from last week comes out on the Crossword page. I got both pangrams and the requisite total of 25 for Genius, but I'm mystified that my additional 6 words were not on The Longo List: AORTIC, RACHITIC, TORAH, HOORAH, AHCHOO (per a Wee Bee entry a while back), and possibly CHACHA (Is it hyphenated? Than how did CHICHI make it? I had both on my page.)
3
@Mean Old Lady I'm familiar with the Spelling Bee but what are Big Bee and Wee Bee? I only have online access so perhaps I'm missing something from the print version?
@Louise - big bee is the weekly "A little variety" Spelling Bee by Frank Longo. The wee bee is the daily one you play online. https://www.nytimes.com/puzzles/spelling-bee
1
@Louise: The "Wee Bee" is the daily SB (online) that is the subject of so much discussion here. The "Big Bee" (print only) is a weekly SB that appears in the back of the NYT Sunday Magazine and has different rules.
Very enjoyable. Particularly liked seeing Purple Haze which I got with a couple of letters; all in my brain. :)
5
This one threw me off for a while as I had entered PURPLE RAIN. More of a Prince fan than Jimi Hendrix, I guess.
1
Congratulations on the book, Jeff Chen - first in a series and published by one of the premier imprints in the children’s book field. This former children’s librarian is mightily impressed with your new venture!
4
Yes, I had JOCKSTRAPS for sometime at 26 down until I realized it was wrong. I also misread 11 down and thought they were referring to Rolling Stones the group rather than Rolling Stone the magazine. I then couldn't come up with a Rolling Stones song starting with a 'P' with right number of letters. Good Friday overall though.
2
Shocked that I only needed 2 helps to get through this one, I had to look up PURPLE HAZE, then got completely flummoxed with BAT, and the blog got that to me as the last fill. ROOT ON is not something I ever heard said, which didn’t help, as I was suspicious of that though I didn’t know what else that could be.
A week of below average times, no snails this week. :)
1
If I post a comment about 33 across, will I become a snob?
1
@msk
Only if you're quick to judge. :-)
2
Started off with CANNONSHY, so that obviously held me up for a bit. But finally came through without PEEKing or POUTing. I'm surprised no one earlier has questioned the clueing of INNAMEONLY, which to me implied neither actual nor theoretical. Yet the crosses could not be denied.
1
@Dag Ryen,
Scroll down and read @Andrew's (from Ottawa) comment.
@Henry Su
Sorry. Missed that. A lot of comments to read when you join the party as late as I do.
@Dag Ryen, no worries. :-)
On the first pass through, I had hardly any fill. I put JOCKSTRAPS in for 26D. When it became clear it was SPORTSBRAS I was pleasantly surprised and upset that my immediate bias was to male gear vs female. Thanks for this! You know what they say when you assume!
1
I had SLAM for 10A and a blank in 22A SPOT ??T....LURP was just so confusing to me, but you know these rock groups have such weird names and song titles....
This was definitely easier than the usual Friday, but the fun Comments made up for it...
Lively, entertaining, and very well clued. When the cleverly clued CAMERA SHY came to me in a nanosecond (I've been doing crosswords for too long), and the entire NE corner was filled in in a flash, I thought this was going to be too easy for a Friday. But it got more challenging, at least for me, as it went along. Some thoughts:
APOSTROPHE (55A) should be in the running as Clue of the Year.
When I saw "Bit of percussion" at 50D, and had ---G, I wanted baNG. (Don't like loud noises).
Re 37A: Thomas Pynchon really said THAT? Guess I won't be writing or painting anything artistically worthy anytime soon.
What an odd and unfamiliar way to clue QUENCHED (31A). I just learned something. Chances are I won't remember it, though.
I learned what a "DAD joke" is right here on the blog. Along with "DAD bod". Oh, DAD, poor DAD...
Nice clue for NYSE (59A). And I also liked the two Christmas clues. A fun puzzle.
8
@Nancy - we had seen APOSTROPHE clued similarly before. Checking xwordinfo (ha!), I found it had been in last year's puzzle - almost exactly a year ago, clued as "Marker's mark?":
https://www.xwordinfo.com/Crossword?date=1/17/2018&g=66&d=A
In fact, if not for the 16 rows in that puzzle, it'd be in the same exact position in the lower right corner of the grid too.
@Wen
Doesn't this clue seem far, FAR more deceptive to you than that one??? This one makes you think you're looking for a person who appears in both Shakespeare plays -- someone like Lysander or Titania or Violenta.
@Nancy - true - this one was certainly more elaborate, deepening the misdirection.
I find that I can often overthink the clues which leads me astray. Being able to spot the potential misdirecting clues helps.
At 11D I was briefly horrified by the thought that "PURPLE rAin" might be the #2 Greatest Guitar Song of All Time. It ranks #19.
2
Oh bliss! What a balance of great solves (TALES OF WOE! MARS LANDER! ) and great clues: THATS A RAP ( I tried cut, and end), and BOA was very surprising, in a good way); and the clue for apostrophe. Thank you!
1
Can someone help me understand the new Letter Boxed game? There seem to be numerous ways to use all of the letters in words as stated in the rules, yet there seems to be a "solution" that I have not yet found.
I have also decided that for any Canadian clues going forward, I will not give the clue number, but just the clue. That will give Canadians out there a little extra challenge.
Example: Like the Senate's second thought.
1
@Andrew
There is a solution that's the NYT solution that seems to have fewer words than what they tell you. So there isn't necessarily a single solution, but there is one that they came up with that might maximize the word length and minimize the word count.
As long as you use up all of the letters to create a set of words that is within the number they stated, you've "solved" it.
So for example, the NYT solutions for the last couple of days were:
HYDROGEN-NEWFANGLED
GALACTIC-CACOPHONOUS
I couldn't have seen those words. I guess the point is to train yourself through experience to be able to create such words.
Today, I have two solutions so far:
FLATULENT-TOPS-SUCH
CONTUSE-ELEPHANTS-SELF
I don't know if we are worried about spoilers or anything, but since there is no one right solution, I am not sure it matters.
3
@Wen
It's a curious puzzle in that it's clearly a challenge to solve the puzzle in fewer words, but unclear whether the solver should attempt to maximize or minimize total letter count within that minimum number of words. Thinking it was the latter I satisfied myself with GUNSIGHT-TOPICAL yesterday.
1
Thanks Wen and Evan,
At first I thought one needed to find the number of words stated (four words today). Once I discovered that you can re-use letters that of course became a non-challenge. I am guessing then that one must find the fewest number of words possible, but has anyone been notified that they have "solved" correctly? Or is it simply an exercise in putting words together?
I loved this puzzle. Nicely clued long entries, that were not crossed with awkward fill, made this a gem. Perfect balance of difficulty and cleverness. Kudos!
3
Wow, what a great Friday puzzle! Loads of appealing entries: CAMERA SHY, MARS LANDER, many more of course. Wow! And I actually did the puzzle with no scars, a rarity for me on any day of the week.
My favorite clue--the only one I gave a smiley to, although I was probably ungenerous today--was 55A "Character in 'All's Well That Ends Well' and 'A Midsummer Night's Dream.'" I had nearly all the letters filled in when I suddenly saw APOSTROPHE and got it. Thanks, Jim & Jeff!
Like Ms Amlen, I was expecting or hoping that 26D would turn out to be JOCKSTRAPS. But no.
Happy Friday, everyone! We're to have a cold wet weekend here in NC. A great time to hunker at home with some puzzles!
6
P-Funk is not a style of music. It’s short for Parliament Funkadelic, and the funk music it plays. It’s like saying that Picasso is a style of art. If I say, Make my funk the P-funk, I don’t want a style of funk. I want P-Funk. Uncut Funk. The BOMB.
2
@Matthew S "P-Funk (also spelled P Funk or P. Funk) refers to the repertoire, musical style, and/or group of performers associated with George Clinton. The term is variously known as an abbreviation of Parliament-Funkadelic, Psychedelic Funk,[1] Pure Funk, or Plainfield Funk. [...] The etymology of the term P-Funk is subject to multiple interpretations. It has been identified alternately as an abbreviation of "Parliament-Funkadelic", "pure funk" or "Plainfield Funk", referring to Plainfield, New Jersey, the hometown of the band's original line-up. The liner notes of CD versions of the Motor Booty Affair album suggest that the "'P' stands for 'Pure.'" The breakout popularity of Parliament-Funkadelic elevated the status of P-Funk to describe what is now considered to be a genre of music in its own right."
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/P-Funk
1
A) Wikipedia is not authoritative. But...if you bother to read the wiki article, you’ll note that b) all of the artists sited as proponents of the *style* were in fact members of the band at one time or another. Supporting my contention that in practice, p-funk refers not to a style, but to a band, and that band’s music.
@Matthew S And if *you* read the article, you would see that it makes the point, with documentation, that it is, indeed, proper to refer to p-funk as a genre.
As for Wikipedia's veracity -- the people who make such claims are ALWAYS the people who have been proven wrong by a Wikipedia citation. Many studies have show that Wikipedia is wrong just about as much as any traditionally edited encyclopedias. Would you care to support YOUR position with some actaul, you know, citations in support of it?
You bet it is okay to get stuck on Friday. For my dime,’tis darn near a given as I endeavor toward hopes of solvation. The SW was where all the mud splashed onto the tires today. 24d, by its very nature, prohibited acquisition of any degree of lucidity toward an answer. My focus was scattered every which way ‘cept toward DISPERSION. And the vague character of the pair of verticals next door to 24d would only TOSS fuel on the fire. The rest of the grid posed much less of a threat to my solve. I did stall at the onset in the NW, actually entering needle shy crossing funded. Solvent did not fit but I came AFLOAT and had an inner laugh about the inoculation phobia I still suffer from today. And next week I am in for some cortisone treatments. Ugh!...Enough about my TALES OF WOE. Here’s one from Jackie Wilson.
https://youtu.be/Jfm5nP43FAw
With CURBed Enthusiasm,
Bru
3
@brutus
I almost entered NEEDLE SHY....but I figured it would not fly and I was right. It's amazing all the people out there who get woozy at the thought of a mere stick. (That said, I stopped giving blood after a Red Cross tech mangled a vein so badly that it took 6 weeks to recover. I have one of the rarer types, but enough was enough!)
2
This was a *perfect* Friday puzzle! Tough, but fair. But the star here is the cluing! It started off right away with 1A, "Afraid of getting shot" for CAMERASHY, and continued throughout. My faves: 16A "Slanted Writing", 48A "Works toward one's passion", 55A (My favorite) "Character in......", 21D "Card holding", 26D "Supports for some athletes", and more! Great start to the weekend!
I all ready keep track first and second level stats for my puzzle solutions (average and standard deviation).
As a measure of misdirection I’m also going to track candidates for Lewis from Asheville’s weekly top 5. I see 4 in this puzzle.
1
Really nice puzzle, or from my solving perspective - four nice puzzles. I'm a big fan of funk music so that went in early and helped me get little toeholds in the four big sections. I worked out three of them in reasonable time and then got a bit stuck on the nor'easter.
I often hesitate to fill in early guesses on short answers, and today that included SPAM and ORCA. It didn't dawn on me later to give those a try; Instead I got focused on 39a with just the 'D' in place. Finally came up with DOZEN. That in turn gave me PURPLEHAZE. Then SPAM and ORCA went back in and I worked out the rest in short order.
Lots of lively long answers and solid fill everywhere else. I suspect that contributed to making this a bit easier than most Fridays.
1
George Clinton plays Tipitinas around Christmas so PFUNK is something can do at that time of year. Alas, this year he did not. Also missed my boring DAD opportunity as every year I opine: Parliament is the same as they were 40 years ago. Just like Iggy Pop. A few years ago I introduced my son to Mr. C whom I had photographed circa 1970. One of 2-3 times I was perceived as cool DAD v. b double o, double r ing DAD.
Major misstep was Purple Rain. Ring tone on my phone is Little Red House. I lifted my head to the sky and asked for Jimi's forgiveness, He was busy with Prince and said he would get back to me.
Great content and a solid solve.
Thanks J&J
8
@dk
TO ME, Jimi never came off as a SNOB, always exhibiting a SOBER sense of fairness and understanding so I believe that you can rest assured your plea for absolution will be accepted, sans penance.
4
@dk Also started with Purple Rain, but don't feel bad...it's got some pretty great guitar work as well!
1
I miss Jimbo....he would laugh with me, since I didn't understand a thing about this thread's contents!
4
I get to say chuffed again as that was my feeling on getting ARCHIMEDES with no crosses, not sure I could have done that with the other suggested clues, although I am familiar with the Archimedes' screw.
When I filled in 26D with jockstrap I knew Deb would be pleased. As I had to take it out I predicted her last paragraph.
So, for the puzzle over all, I really enjoyed it, so many nice long answers, like others, loved the groaner APOSTROPHE. What a great pair of constructors!
10
“Bow wow wow yippy yo yippy yay, bow wow yippy yo yippy yay” (Clinton, 1982)
5
I googled and cheated my way through this puzzle, and was able to continue my 5-day streak.
There’s just one left that I don’t get, DOZEN - dirty or daily follower, anybody care to explain?
3
You can create common two-word phrases by following either of the words in the clue with the answer: DIRTY DOZEN, DAILY DOZEN.
1
The Dirty Dozen is a classic war flick. I think of the daily dozen as a fitness routine, but maybe that one has other meanings as well.
@Pork,
Dirty DOZEN, daily DOZEN.
1
Best part of the puzzle for me were five long answers: CAMERA SHY, TALES OF WOE, PLAYED GOD, IN NAME ONLY, and PURPLE HAZE. My favorite clue -- that lovely one for APOSTROPHE -- was written in Will's office, according to the XwordInfo notes. Then there's the cross of DAD and DNA TEST, source of many moments of stress, I'm sure.
We come to expect a dusted and polished (minimal ugly fill) grid from Jeff Chen, but once you take that for granted, you overlook the talent and effort that went into making that happen. It is worth a GUSH every single time!
7
Wow! This puzzle was sick, dude! I was proud to fill in PURPLE HAZE with only the P in place. I somehow got ARCHIMEDES and MBA STUDENT with just a few crosses, so I totally missed the EMU until I read the column. I never thought I would miss the EMU!
I didn't know P-FUNK and assumed that it was PFUNK, pronounced a bit like PFFT.
I've already nitpicked 25D in another post. Since I have created the Canadian Clue Corner, (nice to meet you, Jim!), I am starting to feel the pressure to publish or perish. Here is a Friday-level clue for 55A: Prominent feature of St. John's.
1
@Andrew
St. John's, yes, but of course, not Saint John.
Interestingly, in the US, the Domestic Names Committee of the U.S. Board on Geographic Names discourages the use of the APOSTROPHE in place names on the theory that it implies private ownership of such towns.
According to wsj.com,
The Domestic Names Committee of the U.S. Board on Geographic Names has granted only five possessive apostrophes, mostly under public pressure, in 113 years:
Martha's Vineyard, Mass., 1933. ...
Ike's Point, N.J., 1944. ...
John E's Pond, R.I., 1963. ...
Carlos Elmer's Joshua View, Ariz., 1995. ...
Clark's Mountain, Ore., 2002.
3
Steve,
I don't know what the committee had to say about it, but Bedloe's Island in Upper New York Bay was only renamed Liberty Island in 1956.
1
@Steve L,
And mountains too. For me a famous example of the U.S. convention is Pikes Peak.
I enjoyed this puzzle very much but I have a nit to pick with the clue for 25D. IN NAME ONLY would seem to me the opposite of the clue "Theoretically, but not actually".
As a totally hypothetical example, if one were President IN NAME ONLY, that would say to me that the person is *actually* the President, but not really anything that one would expect a President to be.
22
@Andrew
I wonder if you're thinking of any President in particular. I know Canada has a Prime Minister, so maybe you're looking to any nearby country...
5
@Andrew,
And, hypothetically, if such a person PLAYED GOD with people's livelihoods, that wouldn't be Presidential, right?
12
True. But I think if we look at the connotation of ACTUALLY we could say that same president is not, in our opinion, behaving as an ACTUAL president would.
1
SPELLING BEE
32/127 pangram, no bingo
A - 2 - 1x4, 1x8
E - 0
H - 2 - 1x6, 1x7
L - 2 - 1x6, 1x7
T - 4 - 2x4, 1x5, 1x8
W - 21 -11x4, 4x5, 4x6, 2x7
Y - 1 - 1x4
I don’t think I can remember seeing such a heavily weighted bee where the centre letter makes up the first letter in 2/3s of the words. @Wen would have those stats.
Hint: Other than the pangram go for compounds for the longer words.
12
@BarbJ
Doesn't accept the *WELLAWAY, *WHATTHEHAY or its close sibling.
@Andrew
I'm surprised the 8-letter t was accepted. Kind of slangy, no?
1
@BarbJ A personal best on the crossword, and Queen Bee without peeking at the clues! Nice way to start the day.
6
Just when I breathed a sigh of relief that “it’s a wrap” wasn’t ‘’bra”, there is “support...! Why not put that word out of the game, along with the men’s “unmentionables”? Clues for it are never clever and it’s not a word we encounter in conversation among strangers.
AND who “roots on” a team? Pigs root on roots looking for acorns, if they are loose in a forest...
There, my curmudgeonly contribution for today.
2
@Esther Lee
Apparently people do root teams on.
https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/root%20on
No mention of pigs there.
1
@Esther Lee
A BRA isn't a wrap so much as a means of support. A BOA or shawl is a better example. I'm not sure why BRA should be considered an "unmentionable" or put out of the game, unless we've moved back into some kind of Victorian era when presidents and congresswomen don't spout profanities without a second thought.
And JOCK(STRAP) has appeared twice, most recently on Sept. 6. The full word appears less because it's rather long, and the short form is hindered by the fact that it starts with J, a relatively difficult letter to cross. But there's no ban on it.
STRAP can be clued in many other ways.
Andrew handled the "roots on" part, so I'll leave it at that.
1
I don't have a problem with BRAs appearing in the puzzle, but why does the clue need the "some" modifier? As we've said many times, it's a clue not a definition. 40A clues EMT as "checker of vitals" even though not all (or even most) checkers of vitals are EMTs. Many athletes wear SPORTSBRAS, so can't it simply be clued as "supports for athletes"?
2
Wow, this site is messed up lately. Comments system completely broken. No way to access any items on the Wordplay page, which can't finish loading ads that don't appear. Two days and counting with serious issues. Yay.
@David Connell,
We missed you yesterday!
Unlike some, I love themeless puzzles. I enjoyed the rhythm of the phrasing in the long entries. The word play was great!
More please.
8
Here’s to George Clinton, the funkiest governor New York has ever had. Enjoyed the puzzle’s flow, from purple haze to dispersion, it was scattered but had a jazzy rhythm.
5
Had a few miscues, which is par for a Friday, but no lookups!
1A: As an RN, I've run into a lot of folks who want to avoid getting shot(s)—my favorite patient answer to my question, "In which arm would you like to get this?" was "Yours!" (It didn't work.) On the other hand, I like to take pictures, and my family sometimes is CAMERA SHY.
I had SCRAM before SCOOT, but ORCA fixed that and gave away PURPLE HAZE; and I'll admit to BLOOD (another nurse thing) and JOCKSTRAP before the real answers became obvious.
I liked the clue for BOA, which is not only a wrap, it's what a constrictor does.
10
I hung onto BLOOD for far too long, until it became clear it was clotting up that whole section.
15
The clue you wanted _did_ get into the Times. Apparently the xword puzzle blog has looser standards than the puzzle itself.
4
and Elke
Yea- no TALES OF WOE about not being able to post tonight. Am no longer in a (P)FUNK over it and won't POUT.
Despite the ALES , remained SOBER enough to assertively enter at 26D 'Jockstraps' which went along nicely with the O of the 'blood' which needed to be typed. Or so I thought....
So now my question is: why are men's supports 'unmentionable' but SPORTS BRAS are not ? Will an EMU answer ?In an OP-ED COLUMN ?
Re ORCAs. on the Seattle news this evening, a relatively large pod of them was shown in Puget Sound . Beautiful.
At prom time , a --STUDENT , all DRESSed up and with requisite UP DO, better not be CAMERA SHY .
Liked ARCHIMEDES , APOSTROPHE and MARS LANDER .
Thanks for the XWP Comment history , it QUENCHED my curiosity.
I'll stop GUSHing now and maybe (or not) retire with some RED Chianti.
Welcome back, J @ J.
5
@Elke--
I think the presence of the J and K in JOCKSTRAP probably make that a much more difficult word to fit into a puzzle.
I'm not so into themeless puzzles, but I really enjoyed this one.
My most common challenge is typing the right letters into the grid. I mean quite literally, doing the INPUT. And today, I typed CURB as CUBB, so I had ABCHIMEDES, and kept thinking "I've never heard of a scientist named A.B. Chimedes. I must be wrong."
True strong. :-)
6
I am wondering why the puzzle calendar has the days wrong. (this has been the case for a long time, and from time to time I have had a flash of worry because I thought I had missed a day) t has the first of January as a Sunday, when it was actually a Tuesday, and today, the puzzle for the 11th is listed as being a Wednesday puzzle, etc, etc. This seems like an easy thing to fix . . . ? I tried to include a screenshot but am not allowed to, I don't think.
@Peggy Poznanski
What puzzle calendar? If you mean the one in Archives, mine is correct.
What type of device are you using, and what browser?
@Steve L
I am confused by this question as well. At first I thought it referred to the fact that Deb's column is dated the day before the puzzle. (e.g. today's column says Jan. 10, 2019 followed by "FRIDAY PUZZLE".)
However on re-reading the post, it seems that things are more askew than that. I don't know of a puzzle calendar either so I am quite curious too. FWIW, both of the dates quoted would have been correct for 2017...
You can certainly send a screenshot to tech support. My calendar doesn't have that issue either. I can see why that would be annoying.
An enjoyable puzzle. One question: I thought "rad" was a term of praise. Does 56D, "sick, dude", mean the same thing?
@Backup,
Yes, it's slang for "cool" or "awesome."
2
@Backup
It does seem rather sick, but “sick” is now considered a term of praise!
@Andrew There was a time in ancient history when "bad" meant good....
Um, is this today Wednesday?
Like Alan Young, I found this puzzle a bit easy for a Friday. At first glance, the vertical stacks in the NE and SW and the horizontal stacks in the NW and SE looked daunting but they came together pretty smoothly with a few crossings. My favorite clues were for 1A and 55A. The former, being strategically placed as the first entry I always look at, had me mumbling to myself, "Ok-aaay, I guess we'll have to come back to that one." The latter had my brain working overtime to dredge up Shakespearean roles beginning with the letter "A" until enough crossings (e.g., FIRE OPAL, NESTLE) revealed its true "character."
In addition to the Christmas no-nos PEEK and POUT (hey, aren't we past Epiphany now?), I liked the pairings of TUBA and GONG (the former is "big"--no doubt--but the latter is more than a "bit" of percussion, dontcha think?), TOME and ODES (some "poetic" license in reinterpreting the former), SOPHS (the college kind!) and SOBER, and a DNA TEST for finding DISTANT relations.
Thanks, Jeff and Jim, for starting our solving weekend with a fun and lively grid!
1
@Henry Su
Friday is the new Wednesday. It's been a week of easier than usual puzzles except that Monday was the new Tuesday. Quickly polished this one off in 15 minutes (even after checking for an error for a minute).
That said, I always enjoy a Jeff Chen (with or without Jim Horne) puzzle for new and different fill. Nice looking grid too. Just cracked easier than expected for the day of the week. Thanks Jeff and Jim.
1
@Liane, yes. I too am appreciating Jeff and Jim's creations. Very smooth going down, with no bitter aftertaste.
@Henry Su I have never even done more than copy down Debs answers and get a few Friday clued answers. So I'd have to agree since I finshed it. Of course I used Debs clues, but getting corners and crosses was so fun!
1
A typical Friday for me. Nothing much (CAMERA SHY, SPAM, PEW, EMU, OUR, RED; and BLOOD before INPUT) after a first Across pass, but then bit-by-bit progress—slow at first then speedy after awhile. I was never really stuck, just slow progress at times.
1
Wow has it been that long? It seems like last week that we tuned in every night to the Jim and Patrick show. I am now feeling old.
The clue for APOSTROPHE was brilliant, but lots of other great ones as well. Don't be strangers, you two.
13
Quite the puzzle. The misdirecting clues were a lot of fun. But I've come to expect the misdirections, so while quite brilliant, some of them are, the clues didn't mislead too much.
Really liked the vertical triple stacks - the juxtaposition of very unrelated long entries - especially the PURPLE HAZE, ARCHIMEDES and MBA STUDENT.
I'm tired of DADs getting a bad rap for telling bad jokes. Time to move on from that cliche, no matter how true it is.
ROOT ON definitely felt a bit forced.
QUENCH - as a fan of videos (Internet or otherwise) of metal work, especially swords, that was a gimme. You know what else was a gimme? DORA. I'm not sure what that says about me.
Deb, thanks for the history lesson of Wordplay's history. I'm relatively new here compared to many, and that kind of information can't be found, so a periodic re-telling of the lore that gave rise to Wordplay is a good idea.
15
@Wen
DAD jokes are part of the DAD BOD(y) of work.
6
@Paul
As a DAD who's been known to produce many groaners (the louder the groan the better) I'm filing that one away for future use. Thanks.
4
@Wen
"I'm tired of DADs getting a bad rap for telling bad jokes. Time to move on from that cliche, no matter how true it is."
That's a tough comment to analyze. Let's see. I'm a DAD and I tell bad jokes. I'm not sure anyone's getting a bad rap for it. A bad rap implies an unjust accusation, and this is merely a fact of life. You acknowledge that it is true, so if you are uncomfortable with the cliché, I am suspecting that it might be guilt by association. Time to embrace the groaner!
When I was younger, DADs were just cookies, but now OREO has that monopoly, (and no discussion of APOSTROPHEs here please). So now I am ready to concede that DADS are simply a bad joke.
1
In 1972, the Northwestern University student body voted to change the team name from the Wildcats to the Purple Haze. It passed, but the trustees vetoed the change.
11
Our son graduated from University of Evansville (Indiana)...the teams are The PURPLE Aces...(all too easy to modify ACES...)
@PaulSFO, I love this story. The trustees should have kept the more distinctive name, IMHO. Too many Wildcats out there. I've always loved the schools with colors as part of their team name (e.g., Red Storm, Green Wave).
@Henry Su
The St Johns team was dubbed the Redmen in the 1920s for the color of their uniforms. Native American imagery was added later. It was as Redmen they were known in the basketball glory days of McGuire, McGuire, and McGuire, (Coach Frank, guards Dick and Al. Al later became a noted coach and TV commentator). They became the Red Storm prior to the 1994-1995 college year.
Deb, thanks for the nice little history of Wordplay! I started doing the puzzle online and reading Wordplay at Christmas 2011, and while I knew Jim and Patrick were involved earlier, I didn't know for how long, etc. So it's good to know.
I found this puzzle to be nicely chewy (without actually breaking any teeth over). Not much was obvious the first time through. I enjoyed seeing answers like APOSTROPHE and ARCHIMEDES and P-FUNK and PARANOIA. I was surprised by the meaning of QUENCHED here, not that there was any reason to know it--just a different meaning of the word. And PURPLE HAZE? I had to look at the list of Rolling Stone's greatest guitar songs. It comes in second to Johnny B. Goode, and ahead of Cream's Crossroads. It's definitely an interesting list of songs!
7
@Liz B And Cream's 'Crossroads' is a re-make of Robert Johnson's 'Cross Road Blues,' which is the source of the legend that he sold his soul to the devil at a crossroads in exchange for his guitar-playing skill.
You led me to look at that list. Interesting, and probably a nice place to start a lot of arguments.
5
Nice Friday puzzle, guys (and the comments are working so I can say so). With everything else that goes on here, TOME the original ARCHIMEDES clue would have been fine. I mean, there's an EMU in the puzzle already.
9
With CAMERASHY and PURPLEHAZE being so easy to guess, I thought this was too easy for Friday. But then I was equally confident that 26D was JOCKSTRAP, crossing BLOOD at 30A, so that slowed me down for a while!
The cluing for SPOTLIT and SWUM struck me as a bit strained, somehow, but I loved the long entries.
3
Ditto for BLOOD and CAMERA SHY, but I needed some crosses for PURPLE HAZE.
3
NO TALES OF WOE here! Pretty much in my wheelhouse. PURPLE HAZE brings back fond memories.
3