Deb, I'll overlook much, much more than a piddling 'BOA constructor' for the protracted pleasure I had from the high-larious review by Pete Wells of Guy Fieri's Manhattan restaurant.
I'm almost sorry it closed so I can't share the experience.
I still don't get 1A. I've been doing crosswords for years, and have never seen an image used, only letters, numbers, and occasionally other symbols. Further, I thought a rebus was using more than one letter per box; EWE and YOU both of three letters. What am I missing?
@Ryan it refers to a different type of rebus entirely, one that doesn't appear in crossword puzzles. It's the type of rebus that uses pictures in place of words to form a phrase.
Just heard about the terrible gas explosion in Durham.
I hope that all of our Wordplay friends down there are okay.
4
Deadline,
That was about ten this morning, and RMP and Leapy have posted this afternoon (and without mentioning it)....
Deadline,
I was about 2 blocks away from it, in a building that's undergoing renovations and is surrounded by scaffolding so they can replace the roof tiles and work on windows. We heard a big boom, our building shook, and I thought at first that some of the scaffolding had collapsed--a great clatter of falling stuff and shattering glass. But I don't think there was any actual damage to our building. We were told to evacuate about 45 minutes later, as people thought they smelled gas and everything had to be checked out. The streets in that whole area are blocked off and it made it very difficult to get around. The guys who were working on the roof saw the explosion and then saw that building just crumble slowly to the ground and burst into flames. There are a lot of old tobacco warehouses in that neighborhood (Liggett & Myers) that have been converted into apartments and condos, so lots of people were stuck outside their homes all day while the fire was put out and everything was checked for safety.
2
@Liz B
I was/am visiting Wofford in SC, but my office was about 1/2 mile away. No problems except traffic. They kept switching the casualty count. And without minimizing the human toll, the multi-million dollar Porche collection was clearly the worst of the collateral damage.
Thanks for your concern and kind words.
1
Started late and had a good time nonetheless -- thought I would have to do a lot of lookup and surprised myself by doing only one. After looking at the comment count (220? yikes...) I also decided to comment now and look at other remarks later.
48A is the real puzzle theme.
1
A Pitcher’s Duel After a Wild Tuesday
We AROSE to a REBUS
Still seeing BIN and NIB,
DUB and BUD, ERG and GRE,
Wondering if MR T
Were MR T or MR Seaver,
Always up for a DOUBLEHEADER,
Reminded of Satchel Paige,
AHA, he never QUIT
O, one for the AGEISTS,
Blocked so long from THE TOP,
Yet at 45, a 3.06 ERA,
Just a little more ICE
And he’d be on the MOUNDS
today.
5
Nope.
Gloriana,
What was the question?
2
@Barry Ancona
Open question perhaps?
1
Not bad for this newbie on a Wednesday puzzle! But everything was indeed in my "wheelhouse," from the nautical "focsle" to the sports clues...and I just did learn what a "rebus" is the other day, and with help from my fellow commenters I learned how to work it using my laptop. It's not every day that all the answers seem to pop up and wave at me inside my little brain, but I'll take it! Fun, fun!
10
I loved this puzzle! My last two to fill in SCLASS and SPARE. I think it speaks volume about who I am.
But EROICA- easy peasy!
2
I’m sitting in a salon having a pedicure because the temp here was 80 yesterday and will be again today. Sandal weather. The pollen is covering everything like a fine coat of chartreuse snow. That means baseball!
This puzzle was so much more fun for me than yesterday’s.
Had a bit of trouble in the north central area with AQABA and QUITO. Didn’t help that I started with Mobil rather than AMOCO. Didn’t know fighters got POINTS during a fight though I was familiar with Technical Knockout... just didn’t know what it meant.
mmmMOUNDS was one of my absolute favorite candy bars, right behind aaahAlmond Joy. Damn adult onset diabetes!
I’d like to see a DOUBLE HEADER of the Cubs and Cardinals someday. Maybe have a COLD ONE (just ONE lest I EGEST) and hope the day’s not TOO DARNed HOT.
Toes are nearly dry, then I’m off to the car wash so my car’ll be clean and blue again FOR A CHANGE.
:-D
4
@Just Carol
In boxing, winning ON POINTS and a TKO are not the same thing.
A TKO is awarded when the referee decides that the losing boxer is incapacitated to the point where he cannot continue to fight, and it would be unsafe for him to try to do so. He is not actually knocked down to the canvas, but the match is over.
A TKO may be awarded even if the incapacitated boxer is ahead on points, which are rewarded for dominating a round and are taken away for being knocked down. The point system is complicated, but it is not related to the TKO.
https://coolmaterial.com/feature/how-to-score-a-boxing-match/
1
@Steve L
This is the reason I like baseball. Thanks for explaining the difference in points and TKO. Maybe I’ll remember if I hit it in another puzzle or on Jeopardy! someday.
;-)
2
@Just Carol
Enjoyed your post very much. Here, it's not quite baseball weather yet, although we did have our ring ceremony yesterday nonetheless. Well at least we're not getting a blizzard. And yeah, who does't love Mounds and Almond Joy bars? My faves when I was a kid.
1
Anybody else have "complete games" before DOUBLE HEADERS? Kids, a complete game is when a single pitcher pitches the entire game. Now with teams using so-called "openers," complete games now appear to be a relic.
2
@Julian
Openers, middle relievers, closers. . .
1
@Robert Michael Panoff
Non-finishers, non-starters, blowers and possibly a non-blower.
I found the theme today very weak. After "wON ON points" and "tOO darn hot," I was expecting the other two themed answers to repeat something to mimic repeated games in a doubleheader. I was disappointed when I uncovered the actual trick.
1
Hello, crossword crowd. Can anyone explain ERG to me? I am baffled.
Thanks!
1
It’s a unit of Work in Physics. Related to a Joule I think.
3
@LisaMarie
Since it has the same units as WORK, ERG is often clued related to ENERGY, too. 1 Joule (same as the force of 1 Newton acting for 1 meter) is 10,000,000 ergs. So it is just a "bit" of work
5
@Robert Michael Panoff and @LisaMarie
Thank you! My last physics class was 20 years ago - guess that bit of knowledge didn't make it!
2
E__ERS led me to a quick fill in of Fielders...which led me astray for longer than I'd have liked. And REBUS puzzles have continued to evade me in more than one way now.
Didn't catch the theme but now that I know, I rather like it!
A long slow solve for me today. But aside from looking up AQABA, I did finish on my own!
4
I viewed my first professional baseball game from the Owner’s Box at the old Tiger Stadium. Got to meet Earnie Harrell (the most *genuine* person I have ever encountered in nearly 77 years) and enjoyed fine wine, whole poached salmon, braised beef tips and Black Forest torte whilst rubbing elbows with Tom Monaghan (the *dullest* person I have ever encountered). Most people I’ve described the experience to say that I had still not “been to a baseball game”. That requires sitting with the sun in your eyes for several hours, spilling mustard on your pants and having beer spilled down your back by the lout behind you. I tried that for my LAST baseball game. Nearly YAWNED myself to death!!
I enjoyed today’s puzzle much more than either experience (except for meeting Ernie).
I DO think that Tuesday’s and Wednesday’s puzzles got mixed up this week. Todays was solved in a little over half of my Wednesday average and a third of yesterday’s puzzle!! Three passes and OUT! Everything but 34A and 60A was in my “Wheelhouse” but they filled in readily with crosses.
But could someone clarify whether 57A refers to SCARFing UP or SNARFing DOWN?
3
@PeterW
That's "Ernie Harwell"!!
I assume most fans will know that - but I felt the need to correct my typo.
@PeterW In the fall of 1968, I was starting my second year of college in Wisconsin. My dad was the manager of a radio station in my hometown in upper Michigan, and they carried all of the Tiger games. Because of that, the station was offered tickets (I don't recall how many) to the World Series games in Detroit.
My dad called me and asked if I was interested in going with him and attending a couple of games. To this day, I can't explain why I decided to decline. In fact, the only games I could have attended were the Saturday and Sunday games in Detroit, and the Tigers lost both of those, but still... one of the great world series of all time. I at least could have said I attended a game.
Still have vivid memories of that series- especially the last two games, with McLain and Lolich both pitching on two days rest. Been a Tiger's fan all my life, but it will never be better than that year.
2
@Rich in Atlanta
Great story! I was almost 10 years old and 1968 was my first year following baseball, what with the hoopla 'round here after the Impossible Dream and everything. But I do remember following that World Series and rooting for the Tigers; McLain and Lolich but also Bill Freehan. Also didn't hurt that they were beating the Cardinals.
Thirty six years after I started following baseball, my team finally won a World Series (only 86 years after their last one!) And like I said above, we had a nice little ring ceremony yesterday, cold and all. It's been worth the wait!
2
Here’s one for the AGEISTS. Twosome, old buds, on the back nine. Their game has waned as their age waxed, but they play as SPARE time (they’ve a lot) allows. A sliced drive bounced around a few trees (non-SEQUOIAS) plopping at the base of a Pin Oak. Arriving at the ball, the players say a frog near the ball. “Kiss me and I’ll be your princess at your beck and call forever.” The shooter grabs the frog and puts secures it in his bag. His friend says “why didn’t your kiss the little bugger?” “Why? At my age, I’d rather have a talking frog.” ⛳️
7
Sports.
Baseball yet.
Not my wheelhouse. Nor my ballpark.
Not only was the puzzle all about baseball, with a smattering of other sports, but my beloved Wordplay comments section turned into a series of essays and history lessons on both the sport and the business. Oy.
WON ON POINTS? Does that mean that the winning contestant didn't succeed in turning the losing contestant into a bloody pulp? Disappointing?
How come MOUNDS wasn't clued with that little hill the pitcher stands on?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CrrINlVFMmQ&list=PLYfEaYrMwItSWru2K9GUWOElH4WQKnaHE&index=2
Looking forward to some wonderful Thursday trickery.
7
Deadline,
Sporting of you to suggest a baseball clue for MOUNDS.
And yes, a boxing match not ending in a KO or TKO is WON ON POINTS.
(I hear Thursday will be Wednesday.)
4
@Deadline
This from the Flin Flon MB satellite of the renown home office in Moose Jaw SK concerning mascots in of the wide, wonderful world of sports: Alberta U, is the sole athletic enterprise I could find that honors your avatar. Oddly, the majestic Panda, for whatever reason, is only the women’s mascot. Men identify as Golden Bears. 🥌 Closer to your liking, there’s more than a smattering of Wildcats adorning center ice and jerseys. Too many to mention but KU in Lexington and the U of A in Tucson and KSU in Manhattan complete the my trifecta.
1
@Deadline
"Does that mean that the winning contestant didn't succeed in turning the losing contestant into a bloody pulp?"
Could very well HAVE turned the loser into a bloody pulp, but since he didn't knock him out, the decision was based on the judges score card on points.
1
EGESTS really threw me. I thought for sure I got one of the across answers wrong. I guess I learned something new today!
7
@Bronwyn The second I filled that in, I googled the definition with the same thought!
@Bronwyn
INgress - Egress
INgest - Egest
Opposite directions, to be sure, but the more common form of EGEST is "PUKE" - - I think.
4
@PeterW
There's a story abut P T Barnum (of he and Bailey fame) in the early days of circus performances. He had a big sign set up on the grounds that said "This way to the Giant Egress" where people flocked to go -- and found themselves outside the circus.
1
Durham has been made famous by our glorious pollen: Story from UK's The Sun (which we could hardly see yesterday):
https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/8830700/hayfever-skies-yellow-pollen/
1
43D was my fav clue, out of many good ones. The upper right corner was my downfall. I held onto 'Bounty' wayyy too long, remembering a fellow traveller to Sudan who fell upon the Bounty Bar in the hotel's minibar with heart-felt relish after a week along the Nile. He's a fellow NYT XWP solver, so John, if you are out there, this one's for you. (12D)
1
Complete Game by a pitcher is as rare as a Doubleheader and has the same number of letters, so slowed me down a bit
4
@ColoradoZ I had the same first thought, and "nowadays" pushed me toward Complete Game since that's far more rare than it used to be while I have the impression that doubleheaders have always been uncommon.
2
Since we have Cole Porter in todays crossword puzzle, here is Ella Fitzgerald singing Too Darn Hot. Amazing! Here is a Youtube link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PlMWW4R1ZBM I highly recommend the Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Cole Porter Songbook album.
10
BRILLIANT album!
2
@Robert Danley
Brava! And thanks for the link Robert.
WfC, take note. This is what is meant by "classic." And "timeless."
3
@Amy
I also highly recommend Ella singing Summertime from the Porgy and Bess recording with Louis Armstrong. She sends chills up and down my spine with the opening phrase on that one!
1
SPELLING BEE!
35 words - 170 points - 1 pangram - bingo
Ax7 Dx11 Lx4 Nx2 Rx5 Ux3 Yx3
4L 5L 6L 7L 8L 9L
A 1 2 1 1 1 1 (7)
D 3 6 1 1 - - (11)
L 1 - - 2 1 - (4)
N 1 1 - - - - (2)
R - 4 - 1 - - (5)
U - 1 2 - - - (3)
Y 3 - - - - - (3)
9 14 4 5 2 1 (35)
31
@David Connell - nearly all words end the same way except for two other letters; one of those letters only ends words that begin with the letter of the day.
Don't forget your foreign currency. And one unusual Latinate word, which is singularly useful today.
5
@David Connell
Foreign currency did it for me. The spanish version could have been if you've seen Juan, you've seen Amal.
5
I just finished gathering dirty clothes to be washed, then took a break to look at today's Bee and found the pangram immediately - imagine that!
Still have 34 words to go, on the next break.
3
My baseball calendar has at least one double header each weekend this month. Perhaps double headers are rare in professional baseball, but that's not the only baseball out there. Local college home games are the only baseball I watch. It's a lovely way to spend a spring Saturday, but in my neck of the woods you'll want an OVERCOAT because it will not be TOO DARN HOT.
5
@Bess
SAT + UNH ≠ SUNHAT?
4
Indeed. Baseball caps are generously supplemented with wool scarves and mittens.
Incidentally, my teenager just returned (literally within the hour) from Portland on his first-ever solo trip. He was rather nonplussed by the blanket of snow that greeted him on his return from your land of lush greenness.
2
I lived in NH & VT for 35 years; the best part about Oregon is that our pipes don't freeze and I don't have to shovel the rain.
Speaking of DOUBLEHEADER, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gD6fhMLWPNs .
3
@Lewis
Loved it. I had forgotten about those guys. I was thinking Terry and Terri from Monsters University:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KeUgC4_1qA8
2
When I saw 1A and quickly filled in REBUS, I thought that the constructor was making me a wonderful promise of all the goodies that lay ahead. Alas, it was not to be. But a girl can dream.
What we had instead was a perfectly respectable puzzle that offered little in the way of surprise, excitement or challenge. AGEISTS (41A) was nicely clued. Other than that, I yawned at the theme, most of the fill, and most of the clues. But the clue/answer for 43D made me remember -- from a long, long time ago -- the best New Yorker cartoon I ever saw. Let me share it with you:
We're in an office and it's dark outside. A well-dressed executive is standing at the window, his back to us, looking out -- shoulders slumped, hands clasped behind his back. A tired-looking cleaning woman is behind him, on her knees, mopping up. She's speaking. The caption is: "I understand sir, truly I do, but it's also lonely at the BOTTOM."
22
@Nancy,
That was a *perfect* word description of a cartoon! Knowing the source of the cartoon, I could redraw it myself from your description (IF I could draw).
3
Yesterday's offering was a tough act to follow, but Mr. Arbesfield's puzzle does a fine job with his DOUBLEHEADER. Not only does his surname include a baseball term, the grid gives us ACES, MOUND, and -- in a SADDER vein -- DOSED.
In non-baseball news, it was good to see ASSET Thompson again.
And Cole Porter (an answer on Jeopardy last night) is timeless. Not only is his Kiss Me Kate back on Broadway, TOO DARN HOT does not get old -- IMHO -- no matter what AGEISTS may think.
6
@CS
Different ASSET.
Really enjoyed this fine puzzle, especially the reveal.
Here's an idea for a doubleheader: every now and then, the NYT should publish two puzzles in one day.
And the crossing of 6A and 7D made me realize that I have been to both AQABA and QUITO.
7
@archaeoprof
I like the double header idea. On Thursday we could have a themeless in addition to the usual trickery ( I'd probably skip the themeless).
2
@archaeoprof
Baseball's traditional day for doubleheaders was Sunday.
Guess what? If you tune in on Sundays, there will be at least two puzzles for you to do.
3
@Steve L
The size of the NYT Sunday puzzle doesn't count?
Today's record for shortest post is three letters. Let's see if we can't do better.
I enjoyed seeing FOCSLE FUEL across one of the rows. These days I could use a little climate change however.
For those of you who didn't get enough of the theme, here is my musical contribution:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vkR7u_sOtHI
2
My first thought for "More blue" was AZURER. Pretty lame, I'll admit.
My only real AHA moment came at 33D.
Have to be at work IN AN HOUR.
Over and out.
3
OK.
1
@Steve L
A+
My app timed me (without my consent) and then let me know that this Wednesday may have been way too easy. The solving experience was pretty fleeting today. For a moment I thought we might be dealing with a themeless, but then I realized that one and one make two and there you go. Fizzle.
Here’s my theory. Yesterday’s puzzle was so outstanding that today’s was a “sacrifice”. Isn’t that a baseball term, btw? As long as almost any puzzle was going to disappoint in comparison, Will threw us one that was sure to go plop.
On the upside, REBUS was an excellent start. I’ve gotten used to thinking of it just as a bunch of teeny letters crammed into an eensy space. I really liked FOCSLE. It’s a familiar term that looked wrong but right when I spelled it. A bit of indecision is a good thing. We don’t see AQABA or QUITO very often in puzzles. It was a change to give them some thought because I’m quite sure I’ll never visit. I fell for redwood before SEQUOIA even though I suspected it was too convenient. I knew there was this other word but I needed the Q to get my memory working. I’d prefer to visit a SEQUOIA than those other above mentioned Q joints, no offense to the natives. I don’t do altitude or deep sea diving on the advice of a physician, but I’ll hug a tree anytime. I remembered “AD Age” but not ADWEEK. “TOODARNHOT” was an unknown but I’ll give it a listen in a minute. It can’t be bad if Porter wrote it.
3
In regard to FOCSLE, which I got with the 'C' crossing (hmmm - C crossing?), am I the only one who thought of Richard Henry Dana's 'Two Years before the mast?'
2
@Rich in Atlanta
Besides my earlier mention of the word, it also reminded me of popsicle. A vivid memory of my frozen concoction vendor days, is when I parked at Palmer Square in my trusty Good Humor wagon while an Art Fair was underway. Emptied the truck in a couple hours. Toward the end, “all I have left are Jumbo Jet Stars” was my announcement to the lengthy queue that was a constant at my wagon. Dual ‘sickle sticks of several flavors. The sugar on-a-stick was the last item to sell, but sell they did. I’ll have to google Dana.
1
Rich,
You are not the only one (and I thought I saw at least one prior cite on the site) ... and fun pun!
2
@Barry Ancona Whoops. You're right.
I always try to read every comment before I post. I must have skimmed that one.
I found this very easy for a Wednesday even without getting the theme.
1
Another zippy solve.
Today’s oft reference nautical term brings to mind the phrase “eighty-sixed.” 86’d is a common restaurant/bar term that means ejected or removed from the menu. The origin of 86’d is oft discussed. One source is nautical, a reference to thrown overboard. Another refers to a bar once on 86th in NYC.
I would welcome any information on the origin of 86’d. Along with Burt, Ernie, muppets, Its a Wonderful Life and Universal Healthcare it keeps me awake during nap time.
Thanks Alan
1
The entire puzzle was a shower of gimmes--NOT that I'm complaining. I enjoy a mild misdirection in the cluing (well, I enjoy groaning when I catch on to a late-week stumper, too) but today's were not even speed bumps.
Let's see: Coast Guard vet for a father, fan of O'Brian's sea novels and _The Bounty_ Trilogy.... um, yep: FOCSLE was a gimme. (Could only stand _Moby Dick_ in small doses, once.)
Lived in Ohio for a combined total of 23 years--Cincinnati (Big Red Machine) and Cleveland (The Tribe)--no choice but to know baseball. (Still love Joe Morgan and Omar Vizquel!)
It's not that I didn't enjoy this puzzle--I did. It was just over too soon, esp since I used PuzzAzz (fast typist)... I guess I'll slip over to BEQ's place and get his Monday freebie!
5
@Mean Old Lady
Gimme a shower of no brainers over a cloudburst of naticks any day E, yes?
1
"Let's see: Coast Guard vet for a father, fan of O'Brian's sea novels and _The Bounty_ Trilogy.... um, yep: FOCSLE was a gimme."
MOL,
I've found that wider reading and wider experiences are often the difference between gimmes and "100x bad fill." I'd guess you didn't find AYE SIR last week too far out of your wheelhouse either. Check out those library books, and check your privilege.
1
@Mean Old Lady I am in total agreement on both the Aubrey/Maturin series and Moby Dick.
I had ‘in a bed’ but had to rake away that miscue, knifing RAW BAR onto 1d...On FO’C’S’LE, this newbie rocked my world. Yesterday, I was brushing up on my Dickinson and came across another newbie, fascicle. Invoking literary license, these two words are the same thing, only different...Baseball reveal was a welcomed sight but the natick at square 9 wasn’t. I know of jpeg, mpeg but BIT MAP, nope. Lucky guess resulted in a solve. Narrowing it down to an s/b choice I took the fork in the road and it got me to Oz. Yogi’s (he of 27 World Series rings) sage advice worked like a charm. Crunchy Wed. creation, thanks Alan A. et al...ANN Miller is “TOO DARN HOT” as she dances on the furniture during this clip.
https://youtu.be/WS_YAKZH3lw
TACTfully,
Bru
2
I guess this one was in my wheelhouse. StarteD with As but soon was filling Ds along the way> I pretty much went top to bottom but the SW corner wasn't quite as smooth and took some back an forth. Still set a new record for Wednesday. In spite of that I didn't see the homophone theme until I read Deb's blog. Interesting nuance.
1
this sailor's favorite clue was Focsle however no one lived in the Focsle on the ship i was on.
2
Patrick,
You must be a young salt!
2
@Barry Ancona lol, I don't know about that. I was on an aircaft carrier for 5 years in the '80s. The Focsle' was the cleanest area of the ship and was used for ceremonies and chapel.
1
Patrick,
You're younger than some of the salts in my family. My mother's brother was on a carrier in the Pacific in WWII, his eldest son was on a carrier in the Pacific 30 years later.
2
Meh.
1
@Tamara
Ahem.
2
If I hadn’t read _Moby Dick_ and _Ahab’s Wife_ this year, I wouldn’t know what a fo’c’s’le was either. I recommend _Ahab’s Wife_ by Sena Jeter Naslund. Excellent novel! And fun puzzle today, for us math and crossword lovers.
2
JR,
Glad to see some people still read. It's helpful for learning words one may not otherwise encounter.
4
@JR I liked Ahab's Wife considerably better than Moby Dick.
I originally posted this comment on the wrong article. It's a great story though called "From Generation to Generation" by Kate Fox. Give it a read, it's a great story!
------------------
Very quick solve today.. almost a new record. Not because I'm a crossword whiz, just because almost everything was in my "wheelhouse" as we like to say. I liked the theme! As an ex software developer, the multiples of two have been burned into my brain for so long that I notice them immediately, so that helped too. Very enjoyable solve today!
1
@Steve Faiella
Now we know who posts comments before reading the column.
1
@Steve L
Hand up here ....
I loved seeing the inclusion of ANN Patchett (one day her last name will show up in a NYT puzzle!), whose novels I find very moving, filled with heart. She is also an ardent advocate of independent bookstores, and owns one herself, in Nashville.
Still a little hung over from yesterday's puzzle, so I couldn't help but notice that today's has, in addition to two palindrome answers (OVO, AHA), at least 10 emordnilaps, including the four-letter ETNA and the five letter TESSA (the others are threes).
9
@Lewis
If that hangover lingers Lewis, IN AN HOUR, HAVE A COLD ONE with a raw egg and a dash or two of Worcestershire Sauce. 🍺
3
I seem to be the only one who found yesterday's puzzle easier ( I did read the note). Just a few unknowns for me today, the car, candy bar , computer image file, actress, and I don't understand 12D.
This is not to say I didn't enjoy the puzzle. The reveal certainly helped with the theme; I didn't have either of the first 2, but could go back figure out what those first words must be and of course helped with the next two. All in all a fine Wednesday puzzle.
I'm also very pleased that I can now get the puzzle the way I always did, but love knowing that XWord Info works if I am stuck again. In fact I'm off to read Jeff's comments now.
3
@suejean
12D contains two Americanisms around beer drinking. Brewskies is a slang term for beer, and COLD ONES is *also* a slang for beer (we have a lot of slang words for beer).
4
@suejean You're not the only one. I was stuck in sections of the top half for a long time (and the bottom didn't exactly come quickly either). Lots of things just weren't dawning on me.
1
@Steve Faiella
COLDONE (with Italian pronunciation), would be an excellent brand name for an Italian beer catering to American tourists...
7
For some unfathomable reason, I managed to get FOCSLE the first time I saw it, though by then I had a couple of downs to assist. I also had redwoods before SEQUOIAS (which I find to be a rather beautiful word).
American sports will always evade me however, and NFLER left me ko'd rather than having WON ON POINTS.
I'm also avoiding ERG at any opportunity I get at the minute, considering it's the acronym for the hard-brexit European Research Group.
2
@Scootem
Don't feel bad about NFLER. The NFL is about the biggest thing there is in American sports, but "NFLER" is purely a crossword invention. No one says "NFLER". Ever.
Tom Brady is in the NFL. Tom Brady is an NFL star. Tom Brady plays in the NFL.
Not: Tom Brady is an NFLER.
4
@Steve L
As Jet fan,’That Brady’ is an anomalie excentrique, and consistent to boot.
LETTER BOXED
W-S ; S-Y For a change, just giving total, which is (13). And this isn't meant as a hint
@ColoradoZ
I found several solutions, all rather large in spite of all making use of the same small prefix. Tied for the shortest was M-R(11) R-Y(5)
@Phil P
(5) (8)
Was lukewarm about the puzzle theme. Had redwoods before SEQUOIAS and bugged before NAGGED, which I like better as an answer for the clue "pest"ered. Anyway. I guess I've read enough of Patrick O'Brian's Aubrey-Maturin novels that FOCSLE did not seem like a Saturday word. Here's a musical clip from Master and Commander.
https://youtu.be/j8BAlrOsTqM
5
Ughhh, this was not for me. I try not judge a puzzle on its worst entry, but FOCSLE is so bad. That is not a Wednesday word, maybe passable to make your Saturday triple stack work, but it has no business here. NFLER and the 3 letter glues are terrible too. It's also unnecessary since this is 70 words, add black squares and clean up the fill. 70 words isn't impressive when the only thing I see is FOCSLE. DOUBLE HEADERS is a fine theme, but the themers themselves fall flat. Not being AGEIST, but TOO DARN HOT doesn't feel crossworthy anymore. The other three elicited no reaction from me other than "oh, okay". There were SO many places to take those themers, why these? If your theme is a "first words hinted by a revealer" it must be really well done because it's been done a hundred times. The only good thing about this puzzle are the clues. I really like the clues, but not enough to save this whole thing.
Good Fill: GUISE QUITO QUOTAS RAWBAR AGEISTS COLDONES DOGOODER SEQUOIAS(!) UNIVERSE ; theme was flexible, expected more here
Bad Fill: DEE ERG OVO REA VUE NFLER(god no) ADWEEK ASSORT BITMAP EGESTS FOCSLE(no x100) ONRICE ; FOCSLE and NFLER are reason alone to redo this
Best Clues: 1-A ewe for you, say ; 41-A Ones who never listen to oldies? ; the clueing was the only good thing about this puzzle
Worst Clues: 49-D A Lion, but not a Tiger, informally (oh my, you coulda added a Bear, why not?)
tl;dr Good clues, but low word count caused this to be yucky, poorly executed
3
ohhhhh I see, Lions and Tigers both teams from Detroit (thanks @Henry Su). Okay fine, not the Worst Clue anymore. That honor now belongs to [13-A Casts out] because EGESTS is already Bad Fill and the clue should really be more like [Excretes from a cell]. Casts out implies more of shunning someone from a group which is not what EGESTion is.
2
What about a worm cast? A prime example of EGESTion I believe.
3
@Alan Hunter
That would be an excretion (via the cloaca or vent)....
The mother bluebird EGESTS partially-digested food into the hatchling's open beak.
(That should throw WillFC into a tizzy, given his refined aristocratic tastes.
5
Far easier than yesterday’s puzzle. A perfect Tuesday puzzle on a Wednesday?
Yesterday? A perfect Thursday puzzle on a Tuesday.
Lesson: Don’t havr expectations going in. Some puzzles will be easier and some will be harder than you might expect.
Just deal with it and don’t complain (or gloat) about how long it took.
7
For those of you who are not baseball fans, here's a quote for you from the late hall of fame Chicago Cubs shortstop/first baseman, Ernie Banks...
'It's a great day for a ballgame, let's play two."
Banks played his entire career from 1953-71 for the Cubs. He never made it to a World Series, but will always be known as Mr. Cub.
In 2017, Pearl Jam released a live album/concert film recorded at Wrigley Field, and titled 'Let's Play Two'.
17
Reminds of an occasion, when after a seriously intense, productive, energetic working group session the chair reported “ Yesterday we had a two day meeting...”
8
@Deacon Poisson As soon as I finished the puzzle, I wondered who would beat me to an Ernie Banks reference. You win.
On the off chance that anyone is curious:
ERNIEBANKS has been an answer in 7 puzzles.
BANKS clued to 'Ernie' - 3 times.
ERNIE has been an answer in 376 puzzles. Clued to "Banks" - 50 times.
And lastly, LETSPLAYTWO has never been in a puzzle, nor has LETSPLAY or PLAYTWO. Seems like there might be a theme there somewhere.
2
"Let's play two" is also Ernie's epitaph.
http://tinyurl.com/yymh5fj2
Mr. Cub is laid to rest in Graceland Cemetery just a few blocks up Clark Street from Wrigley Field. His plot is adjacent to a small lake around which are the graves of some of Chicago's most notables, including Potter Palmer and city architect Daniel Burnham.
It's not a great day (weatherwise) for baseball in the Windy City, but they are hoping to play two just the same -- Sox in the afternoon in corporate-sponsor-of-the-year stadium and Cubbies in the evening at the second oldest major league park.
@ Deacon Poisson Thanks for opening the tributes
@ Rich in Atlanta Thanks for Ernie's "stats".
2
DNF at 34:11, EROI_CA was a mystery, and couldn't see ACES for Maven. Plus I was convinced that NLFLER could not possibly be right, and I hit the reveal button in frustration. I'm learning to look at xwordinfo, so I can see NFLER has appeared five times before, but really a terible word.
2
@Tim Carey
NFLER five times and FOCSLE seven times, somehow people convince themselves that after it's used once it's somehow not terrible anymore. I'm with you.
"EROI_CA was a mystery, and couldn't see ACES for Maven."
Tim,
If your post is indicative of your solve, you may want to try solving at a time when you're more awake. "Mavens" was plural and your mystery must have been EROI_A. I gather you couldn't see the C. There's a C in Cambridge (but alas, also in Natick).
2
The cluing for 49-D ("A Lion, but not a Tiger, informally") made me wonder which cities besides Detroit *currently* have professional sports franchises with team names that are close enough in association to work:
Oakland: A Raider but not a Warrior
Dallas: A Cowboy but not a Ranger
Miami: A Dolphin but not a Marlin
Atlanta: A Falcon but not a Hawk
Kansas City: A Chief but not a Royal
Baltimore: A Raven but not an Oriole
And TIL that the Lions were so named out of a recognition of the popularity of the Tigers when the franchise was purchased and relocated from Portsmouth, Ohio (where they were called the Spartans).
11
You’ll have to take Oakland off the list in a few weeks; the Warriors will decamp for newer, shinier quarters in San Francisco next season.
2
Bears/Cubs, Flyers/Eagles
5
@Henry Su
Hard to beat for poems about loss:
Mets/Jets/Nets
1
and Elke
Wow, a puzzle with a REBUS and Math, on a Wednesday to boot.
The theme revealer of DOUBLE HEADERS and FO'C'S'LE leads me to wonder :
Larry (NJ) nicely defines the FO'C'S'LE basically as the crew's living quarters on a ship. So if the crew is co-ed, would there be
DOUBLE HEAD(ER)S on that ship ? ;)
Andrew- O Canada- saw on the CBC that snow and ICE is in your corner. Of course, if you have no power, you did not read this. Bet it can't be TOO DARN HOT for you. Hang in there- am sending hot air East . not COLD ONES.
TESSA V(irt)UE knows what to do with ICE.
2
@Robert and Elke,
Your hot air would be most appreciated here!
"More blue" BONNET reminded me of the Montreal race track which I am sure you must remember.
I'm not as familiar with WESSON as I am with WESTON, owners of Loblaw's, Holt Renfrew, and probably most of the rest of the country.
1
@Andrew - You rang?
1
@David Connell
Don't tell me he owns your town too?!!
The new leaderboards are a nice feature, but it would be great if there were a way to view results from previous days.
There are leaderboards??
1
@Emily
Where might one find the leaderboards?
Unless things have changed since Sunday, the leaderboards are only for the minis, you have to sign up and you can't see them from your phone app. I see where they can be accessed on my laptop. I don't know about iPads.
2
I like the theme for this one. It worked for me. Just the right amount of layers for a Tuesday (or even a Monday, had the word count been lower).
I can see how deciding to run a puzzle on Tuesday versus Wednesday would force some tough calls. But yesterday’s puzzle was definitely tougher than today’s, and its clueing novelty – which made it *that much* more of a challenge to solver and constructor alike – is exactly the kind of je ne sais quoi that would’ve made it perfectly suited for a Wednesday.
4
Kind of a silly "theme," but easier than yesterday.
5
Compared to yesterday's semordnilap, this a quick puzzle--only a second off my Wednesday best. I didn't even notice the theme until I read Deb's column. Phonetics not required for this solve.
TESSA makes yet another appearance, this time clued as the actress. Apt crossing of AFFIRM and I DO.
7
@Henry Su
Yes, this was fast one. Easy as WON, TWO, FOR.
2
@Henry Su, I thought you were going to say I DO like AFFIRM TESSA
My bad.
That was sposed to be AFFIRM TESSAERA
Hello again sports fans. Here is Hal with his daily report. Tonight, Hal has a special guest who needs no introduction.
Hi gang. This is Gary Gnu with the Gnus. Today's puzzle is extremely worthwhile on several levels. First, there is the obvious "double header" homonymic series. Second, the series headers double from one entry to the next. Finally, because they double (give me a break, I am on a roll here) from one entry to the next, you are getting what could be your first exposure to binary numbers. Binary numbers have been the mainstay of computer science for almost 200 years, folks. That's a long time, even in Gnu Years.
Thank you, Gary. Always a pleasure to have your take on things and not just because you work for peanuts and flowering shrubs. Not to mention that we love your facial hair (that is singular for those of you who are listening in tonight).
OK folks. Mission accomplished! As you were! Carry on! Dismissed.
15
@HALinNY
There are 10 kinds of people in the world: those who understand binary, and those who don't.
Isn't it a little late for gnu year's?
16
@Steve L ... actually there are 11 kinds of people in the world. Those who know how to count and those who do not.
It is never too late for "gnu year's" and you should not be getting more recos than I get.
10
@HALinNY
Are you off to your FOCSLE?
I enjoyed this puzzle. I'd say more but...
it's TOO DARN HOT:
https://youtu.be/Y8akvxDJQVc
Apparently it's not TOO DARN HOT to dance.
For Beethoven fans, here's the EROICA
https://youtu.be/nbGV-MVfgec
3
Beethoven originally dedicated the symphony to Napoleon, until he declared himself Emperor and started adding to his empire. Beethoven did not approve, and was also wary of alienating his other patrons, so he dropped Napoleon’s name and used the more generic “Eroica.”
5
I wonder if yesterday’s could be called DOUBLEHEADER, too?
14
You baseball nerds are absolutely wonderful. I can see that I’ll have to check back to read more of the comments.
2
Fun puzz. Here's a trivia question: In June of 1997, what didn't happen before a Major League Baseball game that had never not happened before? The first person to answer correctly gets, um... COLD ONES - a sickspach. I have quite the ASSORTment. (But you'd have to come here.)
6
@Suzy M.
Did Toronto play Montreal for the first time, so that the only anthem played was O Canada?
17
The commissioner didn’t put his hair piece on ? This is a cold one of a different sort.
2
@Steve L
You win!
5
Back when the season started no earlier than the second week in April, many teams' schedules were set up so that two games would be played on the same day, intentionally. There is no reason, with a 25-man roster, that a team couldn't do this weekly, but two things happened:
1. In the 70s, players won the right to move from one team to another under certain circumstances after decades of belonging to the same team forever unless they were traded. This resulted in salaries skyrocketing, as teams could bid on the available stars, thus requiring more cash coming in to pay them with. Owners, having to pay billionaire salaries to their superstars, realized that they would get more money with 81 scheduled home dates, rather than about 70.
2. Games got considerably longer. In the Miracle Mets' 1969 World Series victory, games began at 1:00, and were all over by 3:20. Now, games go longer than 3 hours each. A doubleheader beginning at 1:00 could end way after dinnertime, and one that starts at 6:00, as they used to, would go on until way past midnight. Even longer if there are extra innings or a rain delay, or God forbid, both.
Now, doubleheaders are used only when a game has to be rescheduled, and often, they play a day/night doubleheader, which isn't really a doubleheader. It's a day game, and later, a night game, with separate admissions.
And now you know why the season starts in late March, when grounds crews sometimes have to shovel snow before they can play ball.
9
On #1 take a look at the Seitz arbitration decision. Interesting look at contract law, which was clearly going against the owners. The owners said free agency would bankrupt them. Steinbrenner bought the Yankees for a fire sale price under $10 MM all in, now worth $4 B. Free agency hasn’t killed the golden goose, but the goose sure is getting fatter.
On # 2, pitch count way up. Don’t have the exact data from past years, but last year pitch count was about 4.3 per at bat. I would guess 50 years ago it was more in the low 3 range. 80 extra pitches per game x 30 seconds each leads to longer games. Not sure how MLB counters it, but what they have implemented so far is eye wash. Analytics has shown the value of walks, a strikeout is really no worse than any other type of out, and the cost-benefit of hitting a three run homer dictates looking at more pitches.
End of rant.
8
Young @Brian — Baseball games would again be 2 hours and circa 100 pitches if home plate umpires were given instructions to call strikes in the legitimate strike zone. Instead, the zone has been de facto reduced to the size of a dinner plate to give batters a big advantage.
TV pays the bills, and TV wants three hours worth of commercials, plenty of scoring and pitching changes. And club owners like three hours of concessions revenue instead of two.
Free agency didn't bankrupt owners; it just meant that my grandkids can't go sit in the bleachers for 50 cents as I did at Tiger Stadium long ago.
My first major league outing was a Sunday DOUBLEHEADER on my birthday at Wrigley Field, with the Cubs' Bob Rush and Johnny Schmitz facing Cincinnati's Ewell Blackwell and Ken Raffensberger.
Yes, I'm old. And I did EATLIKEAPIG when the hot dog vendor ("Red Hots! Getcha Red Hots!") came up the aisle.
12
@Grandpa Brian
I remember all of those names. Blackwell had a unique sidearm delivery. Guess that means I'm old, too.
In those days, I think the newspaper cost a nickel and the New York City subway token was either five or fifteen cents (after 1953).
1
could have switched yesterday's puzzle with today's. REBUS clue is very cute!
6
This puzzle was scheduled for Tuesday, but because of the rain yesterday we're playing it today.
(Very nice Tuesday puzzle, at that.)
28
Deb, I think there are too many apostrophes in FO'C'SLE in the column!
Getting the theme answers here was easy enough, but then I had to think about how they worked with DOUBLE HEADER. Which I did figure out before coming to the column. This went much faster than Tuesday's puzzle for me!
3
Liz B,
The link in the column is to the M-W entry (which shows it correctly, as you have).
1
fo’c’s’le is correct, and I believe is the only word in English with 3 apostrophes. It’s a contraction of forecastle, which is a contraction of forward castle. It dates from a time when naval weapons were arrows and spears, and ships had a semicircular wooden shield at the bow with arrow slits in it (I have a painting showing one on an oar-propelled ship, but no way to easily post it here). Like a castle on the forward end of your boat.
On sailing ships of the 18th and 19th century the cold, wet fo’c’s’le was where seamen slept, as in “Two Years Before the Mast”. Bo’s’ns slept in slightly more comfortable quarters amidships.
13
@Larry
And the clue that it’s a multiple (phonetic) contraction is bo’s’n, which is a contraction of boatswain.
3
Musing on 35 across. In the late 1960s, my Mets would typically play in about 20 doubleheaders a season. None scheduled for this year, they may end up in a couple of Mother Nature doesn’t cooperate.
The world has changed.
BTW, cool puzzle.
6
@Brian
Sunday doubleheaders were quite common back then. Twi-night doubleheaders less so. Doubleheaders these days are usually make-up games and require a ticket for each game,
1