I love how they got the joke wrong… it’s meant to be “why do French people only have one egg for breakfast?” “Because in France ONE EGG is UN OEUF”… yes the meaning is the same but half the punchline is that ONE is UN and together UN OEUF sound like ENOUGH. Details people… details :)
The plural of incident is incidents. Any copy editors around?
A very enjoyable puzzle though I agree with one of the other commenters that "prude" rather than "priss" is what most people think of when they think of a "strait-laced person."
@TommyD That mistake, which I made too, makes it interesting.
Solve only momentarily complicated by the fact that both LICHEN and LICHEE grow on trees.
Found the following after doing an archived puzzle and reading the Wordplay column and comments. A Twitter exchange between Deb and a solver that went viral (it gets racy but all in good fun):
https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/ishmaeldaro/fill-my-squares-daddy
7
Ah, Matt. An old “flame.”
Personally, I think it reads better, but if you’d like to see it live:
https://youtu.be/C2WDY8evh5Y
2
@Puzzlemucker
Oh my goodness...what a find!!
1
What time is the next day's puzzle available if you are an online subscriber?
@Stacey Fabrikant 6 p.m. EST on Saturday or Sunday, 10 p.m. the rest of the week.
10 pm ET Tue-Sat puzzles; 6 pm ET Sun+Mon puzzles.
This is one of those puzzles where the theme is great but knowing it does not help my solve.
And one of these days I'll remember: when referring to acts in a play, you always use roman numerals.
Nonetheless, a great way to spend my Tuesday afternoon.
2
Should've figured out the theme with 21A, but had PRude instead of PRISS, ORkin instead of ORTHO, and NIMH was a no-know. Not my fastest Tuesday ... 🙄
1
I'm failing to understand how "Changing from artificial blond back to brunet" corresponds to the process of "RE-DY[ING]." Wouldn't "REDYE" imply the opposite of a person's artificially-dyed hair fading back to its natural color?
Dennis,
You're assuming brunet is the natural color; I didn't.
@Barry Ancona So the person is dying their hair from one artificial color to another artificial color? OK, I guess. Still not my first interpretation, though. To me, the fact that the clue describes blond as being "artificial" implies that the color it changed "back to" would be natural, which in this case is brunet.
Dennis,
Tuesday-level misdirection.
Love. A. State. Themed. PUZZLE! I cannot keep my Eastern European nations straight - (neighbor of a Latvian? ¯\_(ツ)_/¯) but I definitely knew some of these! My home state has two, one is as long as Hawaii's but is about peninsulas, the other is "tuebor" (I will defend).
3
I've got a problem with STET vs STIT and APNEA vs APNIA !
@David S an "e" appears to be the preferred spelling for both?
Oswald,
Make that the correct spelling for both.
4
In the spirit of enjoying the cultural references in the NYTXW, I've started a to build a playlist on Spotify of songs referenced in the daily puzzle. The Playlist is https://open.spotify.com/playlist/0vxpMh06oxbZz1YCwGfiic?si=ZV1yMHw6SRawTMJGujeasw
Today I added the "Marine's Hymn" by the Mormon Tabernacle Choir and "Dream a Little Dream of Me" by Ella Fitzgerald
I've also set up a spreadsheet that anyone can comment to add a new song, following the template I've set up. I think it'd be fun to see what kind of list gets put together. https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/13Ld8gVTHnIOMN0ePvgmPue7lyYi054TSPnkgd2e275A/edit?usp=sharing
9
Ooof!! An oeuf with the oeuf full puns.
6
The puzzle was fast and fun. But I’m really curious about something: Deb said ROTI had appeared 102 times and only 8 of those referred to the Indian flatbread. What was the reference for all the others? I’m having trouble thinking of other meanings.
@Shari Coats
Almost all the other references are to the French word for 'roast' or 'roasted.'
In 1943 it was clued as "Dutch East Indies island."
1
@ Shari Coats
What ROT I here for nought, in despair that I ought to be working and not idling away my time on Wordplay, what indeed, pray tell, but to say that one needn’t be fluent in Hindi to utter “ROTI” ever so nonchalantly, so trippingly on the tongue.
5
Thanks. I guess roasting makes sense.
Dirigo!
The "Wisconsin" statue on top of the State Capitol Building, with her right arm extended FORWARD, has a badger on top of her helmet. Not making this up.
15
@retired, with cat
Thank you so much for that image.
2
@Frances - here's an image of that image:
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/ca/Lady_Wisconsin.jpg
9
@retired, with cat
In Wisconsin, that consider a badger of honor.
But an oeuf of that.
20
I did not understand the egg joke at all until I came here. I still feel like it’s missed me.
1
@Frances “an oeuf” sounds like enough
@Cindy ... so they only eat one egg because one egg is enough.
@Frances
Be thankful it missed you.
3
Fine Tuesday puzzle with excellent choice of entries for the STATE MOTTO words.
I wonder if Lewis will chose 66A as one of his favourites? It was mine.
2
ACT III is when Hamlet gives his "Esse, or not esse" soliloquy. [North Carolina]
Good thing it was left at that, because 'quam videri' doesn't scan nearly as well.
With regard to today's grid, it's interesting to note that Cicero used the NC motto in his essay On FRIENDSHIP. "Few are those who wish to be endowed with virtue rather than to seem so"... Is there a touch of sarcasm there?
Aside from the language differences @DavidC mentions, it's interesting to note the differences in the content of mottoes selected over the centuries.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_U.S._state_and_territory_mottos
While South Carolina and North Dakota seem to have been unable to decide, Georgia may have got it right way back in 1798: Wisdom, Justice, Moderation.
Pax vobiscum, Boys 'n' Berries
3
I always thought that the truncated, “Esse quam videri,” without the rest of Cicero’s, “Bonus malebat,” was a rather unfortunate giving in to our American tendency to abbreviate. A bit stalkerish, even, if you translate “videri” literally.
But, quidquid Latine dictum sit altum videtur: just say it in Latin and come across as highfalutin you (it) shall.
3
Do the people on the French isle of Corsica also just have one egg for breakfast?
Oeuf corse.
And by the way, what do you call a Frenchman wearing thong sandals?
Phillippe Philloppe.
24
@Steve L
How about a French person (not necessarily a nun but probly a female-style person) wearing a non-sandal thong?
Soeur Sourire.
My apologies, Sister
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=10mMDtpfcQM
5
Phillipe Philloppe! 🤣😂
@Steve L Boooooo.
Or the Scottish soldier in WW 1. “French is easy. If I want an egg I ask for ‘Un erf’. If I want two I ask for ‘Twa erf’. Silly boogers give me three, I give one back.”
8
I really enjoyed this one! No way would I have made the leap from HOPE to [Rhode Island], or any of the others for that matter, but darn was it fun trying to figure out *how* they related! I always solve in an "All the Across, then all the Down, then go wherever there's a large clump of letters filled in" style. That phrase really kills at parties... Anyway, I really liked the theme and I thought the fill was much fun. I got a bit nervous upon seeing the author when I opened the grid - Peter has a great puzzle subscription that challenges your solving skills - but he was (mostly) Tuesday kind. Great way to start a Tuesday!
4
Absolutely loved today’s delightful exchange between Ms. Amlen and her editor.
10
@Annie Patterson I have a feeling it's more like a discussion amongst equals. https://youtu.be/GMS8O9dNLrQ
Peter's puzzles are always thought provoking. Today I was prompted to look up Ohio's state motto, wondering if would fit in a grid. Nope: "With God, all things are possible." This was submitted by a 12 year old boy!
I always thought our motto was, "Birthplace of Aviation." That's a much newer line used for more promotional purposes.
As I said, Peter's puzzles are thought provoking. .. and educational!
Thank you, Peter!
3
Okay, I know that some clue/answers are crossword staples, but "NARC" not just two days in a row, but in the SAME PLACE in the grid? Come on, guys!
4
Visiting the list of state mottos, I was struck by the fact that, other than English, Latin, or English and Latin, there is only one exemplar for any other language:
Spanish (Montana)
French (Minnesota)
Italian (Maryland)
Greek (California)
Chinook (Oregon)
Hawai'ian (Hawai'i)
Samoan (American Samoa)
Such a striking range of mottos - some really inspired or inspiring, some worthy of Chamber of Commerce ads from the 1950s. An interesting diversion this morning.
8
@DavidC
Having a special soft spot for the 'Land of Enchantment', I looked for New Mexico: Crescit eundo -- It grows as it goes
Sounds summat like Clifford, the Big Red Dog, si?
3
@David Connell Interesting! Especially Maryland,
I think it’s Washington state rather than Oregon with the state motto in Chinook. It is Alki, meaning bye and bye or into the future. I don’t think it was ever officially adopted but it is widely accepted and is listed on the state’s web site.
Oregon has “Alis volat propriis”, Latin for "She flies with her own wings".
1
Cindy,
You don't happen to live in Alki, do you? (My sister's husband is from West Seattle.)
An unusually crunchy Tuesday that made me happy. Skimming the convoluted theme clues, and therefore not really getting the gist, made the puzzle harder -- so that was a good thing. When I don't need a theme to solve, I usually ignore it, or as in this case, semi-ignore it.
Then I initially misinterpreted, thinking it was The Friendship State and The Hope State and The Forward State (that one really sounded peculiar) and The Industry State. Sort of like The Empire State where I live -- only the ones in the puzzle were ones I never heard of. Then -- big Aha -- it dawned on me. MOTTOS. Friendship! Hope! Forward! Industry! So much better this way. So this is what I say. Nice!
4
Hi @Nancy!
I'm new to crossword puzzles and am wondering what is means when you refer to a puzzles as "crunchy." I've seen a couple people use it in the comments and want to be hip with the lingo :)
Thanks!
@Laura -- I HATED this term for xwords, absolutely hated it when I first started to read crossword blogs. I believed then that the word "crunchy" should be strictly confined to cereals and cracker jack. For perhaps my first two years (on The Other Blog, not this one), I resisted. No matter how often I saw "crunchy" used in this context, I refused to use it myself. But eventually I gave in. If you can't fight 'em, join 'em.
It means "challenging". I have no idea how this usage began. Perhaps in the sense that crunchy foods give your teeth a workout? At any rate, I now use the word a lot. It's a convenient shorthand that's understood by the crossword community. And sometimes "challenging" implies a harder puzzle than the one you're referring to. "Crunchy" to me is challenging-lite. Yes, you have to work, yes, you have to think, but you don't have to struggle or suffer.
4
@Nancy
Thank you so much! This was very insightful. "Challenging-lite" makes perfect sense now that you've described it that way :)
The presence of ORCHID prompts me to ask whether there are any other Nero Wolfe fans here.
5
Hand up here! Amazon Kindle puts a random title on sale for $1.99 every month. The Spelling Bee fan and I have a growing collection.
1
@Kevin If you're Amazon Prime you can borrow up to 10 "Prime Reading" books at a time for free, and they currently are offering a few Nero Wolfes (by Goldsborough) in the list of available titles.
@Janet
Many years ago, long before the Will Shortz era, I read all the Nero Wolfe mysteries. I was intrigued by the fact that he did the NY Times Sunday crossword puzzle in more than one mystery. I tried one and failed miserably. I started doing other crossword puzzles, learned all the usual crossword fill words (river names, etc) and tried one again a couple of years later. Success!
1
Solving one of Peter Gordon's creations is always a pleasure, like reading the term paper of a bright student who did the research and cared about the writing. It flows: things fit together, and yes, there are a few surprises. And when it's done, you almost wish you could start all over and do it again.
BTW, in Kevin Costner's old film "The Untouchables," Billy Drago plays a mean and nasty Frank NITTI (20 across).
7
archaeoprof,
Hand up for Bruce Gordon in the older TV show.
2
In reference to the clue for 1 across: Why does Norway have barcodes on the sides of its ships?
To scan the navy in.
9
@Ken
Um, the clue for 1A is "Polio vaccine developer Salk" (JONAS).
How does that relate Norwegian bar codes?
2
In case there's another dumkopf besides me that had to search it...
https://imgflip.com/i/2f8lqm
1
Leapy,
I was expecting to find a link to Jonas Salk.
2
Frank NITTI was a forerunner of Murder Incorporated. An INDUSTRYLEADER as Crime Lords sought to apply Deming principles to pest control, squealed Tom salaciously.
Felt like a Monday as I finished in record time. Looked for Excelsior in the grid, but alas. As a young dk I could never figure out why the NY State motto was named after packing material.
Thanks Peter.
3
@dk
EXCELSIOR iS WORD play.
2
Enjoyable! I'm looking FORWARD to the ORCHID Show at the NY Botanical Gardens next week!
2
Here is the site for help with the SPELLING BEE. You can customize the search according to the hints you need. https://www.shunn.net/bee/
3
@Olivia Mattis thanks! i'll never not make QB again! :)
William Shunn seems a very interesting and talented person.
3
@Olivia Mattis Shunn sometimes lists “bingo: yes” . Any idea what that means?
@Deb I have lived in 2 states with 1-word mottos: Eureka & Friendship. All the other places I’ve resided had multi-word mottos. The former Spanish territory of Florida has an English motto, England & Quebec have French mottos, while Maryland & Connecticut have Latin ones.
1
@Kevin Davis
I believe Maryland's questionable motto, "Fatti maschii, parole femine" (Manly deeds, womanly words) is Italian, not Latin.
2
@Steve L
I stand corrected. It looked Latin at first glance. Thanks.
Oh, and I forgot having lived in DC with a 2-word Latin motto, and a 3 month hospital stay in NJ, with its 3 word English motto.
Don't Italian and Latin have the same geographical origin?
1
As usual with Peter, this is excellently crafted; as unusual with Peter, not a prolific pool of pop culture. The zippy solve revved up my brain, even as it missed having wordplay to wrangle with. State mottos are not an area of interest, but post-solve perusing of puzzles is, so:
* Every time I look at that LORRY right above STATE, my brain sees SORRY STATE.
* NITTI / VIDI / ROTI / TRIPOLI
* Because we have the Edmonton OILERS in the puzzle, when I see HEATS I think of the Miami basketball team, and even though it's an S more than the real name, I love saying it with that S.
* SWISS / PRISS / LASS / PASS
* SPREE / SKEE / See ya!
4
LETTER BOXED THREAD
S-T (7) T-Y (7).
Given solution yesterday.
1
@Liane
I had the same as you again today.
@Liane
S-R (8), R-Y (5)
@Lou
W - D (8), D - Y (6)
1
Nice theme. Smooth solve. Who could ask for anything more. Seeing ELLA and 'Do the Right Thing' (both big favorites) was a nice bonus.
Georgia's motto is "Wisdom, Justice, Moderation." Would be quite happy to see the appearance of any or all of those sometime soon.
10
@RiA,
Great minds, my old. I too picked Georgia's moot motto out of the lineup.
1
Excelsior, NY
2
@Roger Reed
Try using that to begin a phrase (Other than "Excelsior is New York State's motto). 😁
Excelsior is ecologically preferable to packing peanuts or plastic air bags.
2
@Barry Ancona @ Steve Faiella
aka wood woll, excelsior was once used to stuff teddy bears.
That's probably enough info on which to base a clue, though starting a phrase would be a challenge.
1
I enjoyed the column as much as the puzzle! Several giggles. Clearly one word in a state motto is un oeuf. Dirigo!
8
Fun state motto fact: Illinois' motto is "State Sovereignty, National Union." The "new" state capitol was built in the 1880s. In 1986 when the stained glass in the dome was cleaned we learned that there was a misspelling of the motto: "... Sovereignity ..."
How's that for efficient, Deb? Four words and a misspelling enshrined in the capitol dome.
http://www.ilstatehouse.com/dome.htm
9
@dlr Ha! They would have benefited from a copy editor.
2
SPELLING BEE
24 words, 83 points, 1 perfect pangram.
8
@Kevin Davis For February 25!
First 2 frequency:
BU x 9
CL x 3 CU x 2
LU x 4
NO x 1 NU x 1
UN x 4
12
I noticed in today’s crossword that 2 of yesterday’s Bee words were included: riot & roti.
Hints for today:
Irish, cowboy, or nautical term for young man
Steer, or actress Sandra
2 spellings of swindle or cheat (obsolete)
Clock bird
Thin out
Doozy (slang)
Slow-witted person, slang abbrev.
Remove an obstacle, perfect pangram
Disable a gun
Geeky
Open a secure door
26
@Dave timely missing work: BUBO, as in Bubonic Plague.
Was the C6 vocal little birdie added to the hive's dictionary? I seem to remember complaining about it not being included before? Maybe a different spelling. My grandparents had a mechanical one hanging on their wall that fascinated me as a tot. It would appear in a timely fashion. I really liked its door had a little latch that kept it inside and quiet at night.
7
SPELLING BEE THREAD
02/25/20
Center Letter: U
6 Letters: B C K L N O
24 WORDS, 83 POINTS, 1 PANGRAM=Perfect
First Letters:
B x 9, C x 5, L x 4, N x 2, U x 4
Word Lengths:
L4 x 13, L5 x 5, L6 x 4, L7 x 2
Grid
4 5 6 7 Tot
B 5 3 - 1 9
C 2 2 1 - 5
L 4 - - - 4
N 2 - - - 2
U - - 3 1 4
Tot 13 5 4 2 24
61
@Greg Thanks for the Grid. 2 odd words starting with 'BU' (different spellings of the same thing) that I never heard before - I feel cheated ! 3 words that didn't appear are BUBO, BLUB and NUBUCK.
20
@Greg
First 2 frequency:
BU x 9
CL x 3 CU x 2
LU x 4
NO x 1 NU x 1
UN x 4
20
@Steve — found one spelling of the word by accident and then tried a variant once I saw your post. Wouldn’t have guessed it otherwise.
2
I caught STATE and MOTTO before any of the theme answers and immediately thought "Egad! Latin..." But then I remembered it was still Tuesday and all was once again right with the world.
6
Nice one! Very simple theme and interesting fill. I loved the OEUF joke. Having not one, not two, but three PERSONAL NAME / BRAND NAME crossings made it a challenge, which was solved by an educated guess, a wild guess and a quick peek into the answer key for 46A.
But you won't get me again. The phrase "MICHAEL CHE GUEVARA, Argentinian comedian" is now forever saved in the dominant storage portion of my brain, the Department of Mostly Useless Information.
3
and Elke
My solving experience today can be summarized as a cross country/state road trip:
1)Dirigo (Maine) "I lead " to
2) Ad Astra per Aspera (Kansas) "to the stars thru difficulties " to
3) Eureka (California) "I found it ".
Heading back toward the North and the future (Alaska).And the OILERS.
6
And overall, New Mexico: Crescit eundo, it grows as it goes. :-)
1
Would have been really easy if only I had remembered ROTI from a day or two ago, and was into lawn care or henchmen.
2
Not American and didn't know any of those mottos. Plus the full is super janky. Not too hard (except NITTI crossing ORTHO, which seemed awfully cruel for a Tuesday), but not very fun either.
2
@Ron
American for over 84 years and I didn't know any of those mottos either.
10
@Ron same exact trouble for me. I’m American and knew none of these. When I got the theme I kept trying to fit “Lone Star” in for Texas 🤦♀️ Was fine in the end except for the NITTI/ORTHO cross as well.
2
@Ron
I think the point was to discover that these state mottos were each just one common word. Very few state mottos--New Hampshire's "Live Free or Die" comes to mind, because it's on the license plates, and it's a bit controversial--are known by many people.
New York's motto is also one word--EXCELSIOR--but it's not an English word. Many New Yorkers have heard of this motto, but on the other hand, most Americans have heard of their own state's motto.
Other states with one-word mottos are California (EUREKA), Maine (DIRIGO) and Washington (AL-KI or ALKI). However, none of these are English words.
3
It’s a good thing that in her column @deb encouraged us to “Please feel free to list your objections in the comments” because God knows this group is timid. The likelihood of unsolicited objections showing up here is extraordinarily low. 😉
63
Hahahahahahaha
29
@pmb
They say Laughter is the best medicine but I'm not sure about the coffee-out-the-nose part.
10
@Leapfinger
If you have a cold you want to try anything that works.
6
@Deb, your "translation" of the Hawaiian motto reminds me of a pronunciation guide to volcanos:
Eyjafjallajökull -- pronounced "that Icelandic volcano."
Bárðarbunga -- "that *other* Icelandic volcano"
26
@Adina
Sometimes Iceland is kind to non-Icelandic speakers. When their first glacier melted and made the news a few years back, it was the one named Ok.
3
2D - old joke
3D - old ad
53D - old peripheral
😀
4
@pmb
Most 28Ds are old as well... 😉
2
Sunday CHEAPO
Monday SICKO
Tuesday CREEPO
We're really seeing the best of humanity these days.
34
@Andrew Good catch! Wednesday PSYCHO?
4
@Andrew
Well, it IS Harvey Weinstein week.
7
I finished it (or so I thought) but the puzzle gods were not satisfied. I looked and looked and it took me *forever* to see that I had mistyped ROTI as RORI - evidently I was stuck on the idea that the Capone henchman's name must be similar to NITRO. And I am very familiar with rotis, so it wasn't any kind of Natick. It was just a Dumbo (with a silent B). Drat.
9
Nice quick Tuesday. Liked the theme, even though I didn't appreciate it until I got the revealer.
2
PRUDE before PRISS.
Otherwise a straightforward solve even though none of the mottos were familiar.
Excelsior !!
30
an oreo walks into a mustard bar...
4
I remember a long-ago piece by the writer Calvin Trillin in which he suggested the Nebraska license plate motto be changed from "The Cornhusker State" (or whatever it was at the time) to "A Long Way Across".
4
@RichardZ
I guess Mr. Trillin never drove across Texas. I drove across both states, and Texas wins, believe me.
7
As a wise man said after driving across Texas and Nebraska, "There's not much out there, but there's a lot of it."
17
Nebraska is exciting compared to Kansas, especially when combined with Eastern Colorado.
1
If you didn't like this puzzle, what's the motto with you?
(Just stating a fact.)
33
A fan of this space, I’m still puzzled about Sunday’s entry. Please, can someone ‘splain?
2
@Tammy - Do you mean the theme of Sunday's puzzle?
If so, here's a stab:
the words of a normal phrase (Cover Girl is a brand of makeup products; Stocks and Bonds are investments) get a "re-" added onto the beginning of them, which changes the meaning of the whole phrase. The new phrase is clued with a pun or funny clue. That's about it.
Tammy,
On the other hand, if by "this space" you mean Mike's puns, on Sunday, following the theme of adding "re" to change the meaning of a phrase, "mind your own business" was turned into "remind your own business" with respect to forgetful employees.
This puzzle cries out for a @Henry Su creative narrative about JONAS, ELLA, CHE, and EVA taking off on a cross-country SPREE in an SUV RENTAL and playing SKEE ball in Westerly, Rhode Island, eating OUEFs in Eau de Clair, Wisconsin, going on a GILA photo safari in Brownsville, Texas, and finally REACHing Park City, Utah to eat ROTI with SOBA before watching a remake of “The Secret of NIMH” at the Sundance Festival.
https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/reptiles/g/gila-monster/
13
Oof. Eau de Claire.
1
@Puzzlemucker
Double oof, I de claire. I don't think there's any DE in EAU CLAIRE.
Of course, in Florida, they keep it simpler. Clearwater.
5
@Steve L and PM
If the Eau is Claire why is the Bay Green?
6
This puzzle is a Tues (in other words, a short Tuesday).
7
I had added ROTI to my crosswordese- to -know list either Friday or Saturday. It crossed with MOA and I was stuck. I also have Frank NITTI on my list as that has appeared once before in the 6 weeks I've been a regular solver. I love when something on my word list shows up!
6
I count 10 instances of ROTI clued as the Indian flatbread, but the interesting thing is that they've all been since 2010. Previously, nearly all instances of ROTI were clued as the French for "roast" in one way or another; then suddenly, that type of clue fell off the face of the earth.
Personally, I like a nice garlic NAAN much more.
8
@Steve L NAAN is definitely better than ROTI. Flatbreads need the leavening!!!
2
However try a Malayan roti, a fluffy hand-stretched delight
2
@Steve L
I am a faan of naan but a homemade ROTI by a cook who knows what she is doing is sublime! Thin, flaky and delicious! Especially with a spicy curry alongside.
3
Breezy solve, but for the life of me I was stumped after finishing at the connection between Rhode Island and DIAMONDs. I HOPE no one else falls for that!
1
Fast and fun. My state motto is "Manly Deeds, Womanly Words." Yup.
5
An enjoyable puzzle in any state.
4
I always understood the joke to be "One egg is UN OEUF."
10
And one ROTI is a boeuf.
3
@Andrew
A boeuf what? The only thing I see a boeuf your comment is an egg.
3
Didn’t know the old joke, so had to get a bit of checker help, which might have been unnecessary with “un”. It makes more “cheesy joke sense” to me.