I’m here commenting over two years later so I doubt many, nor the constructor, will see this but I loved this puzzle. The grid layout as a PANDA is so cute!
I started doing crosswords during the pandemic in Oct 2020 as a way to pass time. Recently, I’ve started working my way through the archive. It’s interesting reading the comments going back during the height of this stressful time. Although COVID is still very much a thing, and there will always be naysayers (sometimes myself included), comments definitely are getting more positive. Sorry to the constructor for the timing of your puzzle. It was a delight. :)
2
@Kim
I’m here years later. Read your comment:)
Loved this puzzle
I thought PANDA was CANDY. Didn’t help.
1
@Nobis Miserere
CANDY never does.
@Leapfinger Unless it's chocolate. Then it always helps!
2
Late to the party, such is life. Very pretty puzzle, but count me in the minority for whom this wasn't quite fun. I'm quite used to the challenge and delight of figuring out answers I have no clue about, with the help of crosses, cognates, and (as I believe I've seen @Barry Ancona say "because English"). Sadly, none of these helped me with VERISMO x MUR, being well below remedial proficiency in both Spanish and Italian. I can live with the "VERI" part of VERISMO as a cognate, but the "SMO" seems to require language proficiency. In my opinion, a cross like this should not have got past the editor's desk.
VERISMO doesn’t necessarily require language proficiency per se, but familiarity with opera, even just as a listener, would help. That and “bel canto” and a few other terms are as common to opera lovers as any of the pop culture/pop music names I can only hope to get from either crossings or having encountered them in puzzles before, and honestly it seems to me that this balance usually tilts toward pop culture, but maybe I’m just particularly aware of how often I find something utterly outside my frame of reference.
2
@Rajeev
Thinking of mach-ISMO helped.
1
I saw the panda face, but then I forgot it. When I had -AND- at 17A, it was a mystery to me until I left it for awhile - I came back and the panda said to me, "PANDA." And it all filled in -- except SOL - G, in he key of C, what does that mean even?
Very enjoyable!
@Mary Remember Sound of Music? Do re mi fa SOL la ti do.
4
At least the clue wasn’t “a needle pulling thread”
@Grant Oh my goodness, why did I not know that? Thanks!!!
I sure would have liked the “P” and “A” circled - would have been cute (and better justify the departure from the rule of every block having a cross).
2
I was a little bothered by the P and A of 17A lacking any crosses. I consider crosses on every square, in conjunction with the 3 letter minimum as a pretty basic requirement of American style crosswords. Artistic license I guess. I suspect that a similarly recognizable visual could have been created without breaking that rule, though I acknowledge that getting it all to work out one way or another was an admirable accomplishment.
2
My first thought for 26A was ROB
3
Naticks for me were cells 6 and 23 (either A or I). I had to go back and forth trying various letters until I hit on the right combination.
Like others, my first thought for 17A was CLOWN.
Gosh, not OREO(S) again ...
Favorite clue was for ECOLI. 😊
4
Maybe it's a sign of the times that so many saw skulls today. Perhaps I've just spent too much time watching pandas play to mistake that face.
Maybe I am too paranoid about the virus pandemic but the first thing I thought when I saw the grid was SKULL. Which obviously did not fit anything. Small nit to pick as others have noted the zoo in DC is the National Zoo which also did not fit.
FYI, in case it hasn't been widely announced. I just got an email that starts thusly:
"As a public health precaution due to COVID-19 (coronavirus), the Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute is temporarily closed to the public starting Saturday, March 14."
No matter what you call it, it's closed.
3
I put "PUPPY", then "CLOWN", then when I got "BLACKANDWHITE", I put "MIMES"
5
@Alina LOL
Thank you, thank you, Deb for linking to a commentary on the offense of non-natives using the term SPIRIT ANIMAL.
A small nit: there are two recognized spellings for PESCATARIAN. The clue have included Var.
16
@EllenKCMO I got stuck for a while because of this.
5
@EllenKCMO
It's an end of the week puzzle; expect variant spellings and so forth without indicators.
@EllenKCMO As a word lover and speaker of American English, the most borrow-heavy language ever, I do not recognize the concept that there are words or phrases I shouldn't use because somebody else thought them up.
1
One more thing, @Deb, PRO : con :: plus : minus
5
@Grant Or in the world of technology: iPhone XS Plus and the iPhone 11 Pro?
I saw the Rorschach blot as a Panda right away, making this a super-easy puzzle, apart from the obscure Broadway person. (In other words, anyone other than Tony Randall.) As a kid growing up in Montgomery County, MD, I got to see Ling Ling and Hsing Hsing at the National Zoo several times, but I wanted 40A to be NBS (National Bureau of Standards) but that's in Gaithersburg, not Bethesda. When your Dad's an electrical engineer, you get taken to the NBS and MARCONI's transmission tower on Cape Cod.
3
If puzzle stress drives you into a frenzy of rage today, you might become a Kung Fu Panda.
5
Oh, Wow!
Today was a double delight for me, both the beloved PANDA and the recognition of abused apostrophes with ITS. (Both my love of PANDAs and my rage at misused apostrophes are probably disproportionate, but so be it.)
I don't speak French, but MUR was an early gimme for me. Surprised that it wasn't for more solvers, since MUR figures in wall-related words in so very many languages, including English. PLUS, it helped me recall VERISMO.
Wanted one of those "American Idol"-type talent shows before ESPN.
Took me a while to recall LEA SALONGA, and longer to remember the spelling. "Miss Saigon" seems so long ago ....
And of course I didn't know the IVERESON person.
Favorite clue/entry combo: E.COLI.
I remember NEAPOLITAN ice cream from childhood. I disliked it almost as much as I disliked OREOS. That strip of strawberry could so easily have been taken out to leave more room for chocolate. The vanilla is optional, but much improved with chocolate sauce.
Wasn't familiar with RENFAIRE, but it was deducible.
With gratitude to Alex, Will & Co., Deb, commenters. My PANDA thanks you, my Inner Grammarian thanks you, and I thank you.
12
@Deadline My only regret from my year spent in China is that, while I did visit Chengdu, I didn't make it to the Wolong giant panda reserve.
With you 100% on the strawberry ice cream, BTW.
2
@Grant
Oh, how sad that you missed the reserve. One of the things on my bucket list that I'm never going to get to do.
1
@Deadline, this was definitely a Deadline puzzle. I thought of you with the OREOS, with Starbuck's and IT'S apostrophe, and then (of course) when I finally realized my Daisy Mae Beagle was really your Puns & Anagrams. The only Deadlinish icons missing were -- you got it --- Sondheim and Hats!!
Dang! I would have gotten Harissa. One of my favorite flavoring's.
3
@Tom Wild
I just cancelled a snarky reply. That's how good a mood I'm in, thanks to the PANDA.
4
This was a bit of a meat grinder, although I am now embarrassed that I didn't even notice the panda face in the grid. I did think once I grasped the "Panda" theme, it would all fall into place. Wasn't as simple as that.....
My law firm Verismo, Salonga & Marconi will be contacting the author.
10
Would it be tasteless to describe this puzzle as a PANDAmic?
7
12A I think it is PLUS as in Pros and Cons, pluses and minuses.
1
The number 13 is considered lucky in many cultures.
If you are worried about a Friday being the 13th of the month, you have bigger problems to worry about.
If you got this puzzle done fast, it's a Panda Express.
(I can't bear these anymore.)
17
@Mike
Or you might call it PANDAmonium.
2
@Mike
GTYR.
1
Re all the yelling about pescatarian/pesceterian: there just ARE variations in spelling of words used in English! Why are we so resistant to it? Spelling is not handed down to us from on high. It’s a living language.
11
@Shari Coats
Well, let's just have alternetive spellings for all wurds!
Took me a bit to see that 23A does not start with I and 37A did not start with AT. Friday tough!
As soon as I saw the grid I though PANDA, so this was an easier Friday than usual for me. Crosses were kind for some of the more difficult fill—such as the basketball player, and DISTAL, and VERISIMO. Sad that the puzzle is finished for now and I have to deal with the scary reality we are in now. I wish I could just stay in puzzle land.
1
So, if VEGETARIANS eat vegetables, and PESCETARIANS eat "pesce" (fish), what do HUMANITARIANS eat?
22
@Steve L
A more varied diet than PROLETARIANS...
5
@Sam Lyons
I guess the most restricted diet has to be UNITARIAN.
4
@Steve L
I made a vegetarian chili with Beef, Buffalo, and Lamb. All vegetarians.
7
PESCETARIAN? Come on. It's even underlined as an error as I type this comment.
I’ve heard it used.
1
@Shari Coats
The issue is not one of use, but of spelling. Which is amply covered in previous posts.
"It's even underlined as an error as I type this comment."
Cheryl,
GIGO.
Hooray, a theme on Friday!
3
Things people call the Zoo here when they want to be clear:
The National Zoo
The Smithsonian Zoo
The National Zoological Park
The DC Zoo
The Washington, DC Zoo
The Zoo
Panda Palace
(list shortened for illustration)
"The Washington Zoo"
3
@Oswald If one wants to dismiss any confusion, The National Zoological Park would be the preferred choice. Unfortunately, "Washington Zoo" could describe so much more than the home for the pandas.
10
I love Deb Amlens blogposts but I cannot read them any more now that she is posting the theme before the tricky clues. That takes all the fun out of solving. Couldn’t you please go back to doing the tricky clues before smacking us with the big reveal???
11
@Clementine Munch-Thore Maybe I'm missing something but aren't you supposed to complete the puzzle then read the Wordplay column and its comments afterward? I always thought that was the intended order of things.
2
Tony,
Some people who cannot complete the puzzle unaided turn to Tricky Clues in the column for help. They want help with a clue or two, they don't want the theme (if any) given away.
2
Sigh.
8
Another puzzle where I end up with two empty squares (had five when I gave up last night, but guessed at how to fill _E_ISMO this morning and so got the S of VOWS and PLUS). Finally went to the column hoping Deb might give away the strange word SOL_ASIS (assuming my crosses were correct) or N_C or _I_AL. Disappointed to find no hint at all, but I'd go back to the puzzle for one more try. And the blinders fell off!
17A stayed blank until late, but I knew it had too be an animal because it was in some ZOO. Then I tried squinting at the grid. Aha!
2
I don’t have the puzzling history that so many here have, which seemed to be a PLUS today. Also, I’ve a decent command of Français, so no outrage from me about MUR. I know that the zoo in Washington is called the National Zoo, but IT’S also the ZOO in WASHINGTON—maybe would’ve liked a DC, but whatever. Anyway, this puzzle was doable but chewy enough for me.
My complaints at the moment are directed at the Universe for putting us all in this frustrating (and worse) situation. [Insert something stronger than ACK here.]
8
Am I the only one who had MUNCH for PANDA at first having seen “The Scream” in the picture?
Do concur with others on the misnaming of the Zoo. Unfortunate, that. But the Friday theme was fun - and it was just a few related words and phrases. And an adorable picture (or terrifying, depending on your state of mind, apparently).
@Steve
I started SMILE --> CLOWN --> PANDA
3
@Steve I like that one! I had CLOWN at first.
@martha I had ZEBRA first, after solving 10D BL
ACKANDWHITE, and the ...ZOO part of 11D. Had not yet related to the image formed in the grid.
A mix of somewhat hard and very easy, with crosses that helped immeasurably with the harder answers. I love PANDAs, so I found this puzzle quite adorable. And I haven't read y'all yet, nor am I good with grid art, but could that be a PANDA face staring up at me?
I had no idea while solving if the unchecked 17A would be a word such as, say, HANDS or something more like A AND P. Who knew that today was National PANDA Day? Certainly not me. But if anyone deserves a Day, they do. And, between WASHINGTON ZOO and BLACK AND WHITE, PANDA soon became obvious. One of the better tribute puzzles, I'd say -- really cute.
4
@Nancy
It’s not Nat’l Panda Day today. That’s Monday.
I prefer red pandas.
1
@Frances
The red PANDAs are adorable too.
1
@Deadline
Did someone say Red Panda? If you following basketball, you know this amazing halftime act. She's been doing it for probably 20 years now.
I'm sure there are better videos out there, but here's a link to one. Believe me, worth your watch. It will make you smile. And we need to smile (which could have been the theme answer instead of PANDA).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=480z8gPkEz0
1
I would say I’m disappointed at not having a difficult themeless, but embarrassingly it took me twenty minutes since I could not for the life of me see that I had entered WASHISGTON ZOO. Not on purpose, I just put in SIP without thinking twice about it. Took me far too long to find. Also NIP, NIT, NIH, it looks a little inelegant.
I don’t have a problem with VERISMO/MUR, verisimilitude should get you there. I don’t understand the LADDER clue. League standings have a shape? Why didn’t AES work off the run in the hose thing?
2
I’d like to officially protest PESCETARIAN as a variant of PESCaTARIAN. It looks too much like a misspelling of PESkyTARIAN, which is a person who eats gnats. Or people who kick airline seats from behind. (Both of which are currently out of season.)
12
@Sam Lyons It's interesting how such a heated and divisive issue like reclining airline seats seems so trivial now.
2
@Tony S
Oh, I’d still get heated about it if I got kicked. I belong to the Kind and Unreclined tribe (except on overnight flights) and _will_ shoot daggers at the person behind me who can’t control their knees.
It’s just that there won’t be anybody behind me when I fly out next week. Plus I’m a vegetarian.
@Sam Lyons
Replacing the A with an E changes the pronunciation of the C to a soft C instead of a hard C, which is correct. I eas surprised by this cluing.
1
Unless there's a page 2 of the Angry Flower's diatribe that I missed, it does not seem to address the particular issue in 21A, that for 'it', and pronouns in general, 's is not used for the possessive, only for the contraction with 'is'.
2
I am never sure when to mention the previous week's Big Bee, but this last one left out many words: catarrh, piccata, haptic, rachitic, chapati, chica--that have been allowed in crosswords and/or are in the dictionary...
That said, I didn't ever make it back to the puzzle and overlooked many obvious regulars. Still, hit genius+, so that will have to do.
Seeing as how we have Schrödinger puzzles, could today's perhaps not be called a Rorschach puzzle, given the variety of responses to what was actually depicted in the grid art?
5
Fridays are not a day for themed puzzles. This is not acceptable as a Friday puzzle. Perhaps you should expand it into a Sunday puzzle with the same picture layout. But not Fridays. Please cease and desist in this practice.
1
@Jeff lol
3
@Jeff but we live in crazy times now jeff
4
Themed, schmemed, rebus, schmebus, just do the damn puzzle.
18
Over 100 comments in, and no one has pointed this out yet:
It's Friday. We don' need no stinkin' theme on a Friday.
5
@Steve L But....
at least there weren't any badgers.
...
5
Rich,
Not the WASHINGTON ZOO, but...
https://bigbearzoo.org/american-badgers/
2
I’m so glad that Deb addressed the potential SPIRIT ANIMAL problem! When filling it in I was a bit uneasy, but I should trust the admirable Ms. Amlen never to let that kind of thing slip by. Also, I am delighted by Bob the angry flower, it made my morning!
6
@Jo
I clicked on Deb's link about SPIRIT ANIMAL, but it wouldn't let me in without paying. So the rest of Deb's remark about the entry, and your comment, went over my head. Google and Urban Dictionary didn't help.
First of all, every single one of our stores is out of toilet paper. ACK! It would be better if I were a PANDA!
Anyway, the first thing I saw upon printing out the puzzle was the adorable grid art. Talk about brightening my toilet paperless day! Thank you, Alex Eaton-Salners!
Plus the art helped me figure out that we are celebrating National PANDA Day. Who doesn't want to celebrate PANDAs? They are too cute for words.
Plus, Alex included the hilarious JOAN Rivers. If she were with us today, we'd be laughing about the Coronavirus. Don't yell at me. I know it's serious. But, still, we'd be laughing at something irreverent Joan wise-cracked.
Thank you, again, Alex, for cheering me up! You did a spectacular job!
8
@Johanna
In the grocery store this morning there was a guy pushing one cart and pulling another. They both only had toilet paper in them. I don't understand it
3
coloradoz,
Agreed. If you aren't also stocking up on food, you won't need that much toilet paper.
10
@Barry Ancona 😀
Some may find it interesting that helium, neon, argon, krypton, XENON and radon are now called Noble gases, though at one time (pre 1962) they were called INERT gases. INERT means chemically unreactive. Though XENON is highly unreactive, it has been made to react with other elements such as fluorine and oxygen. A safer choice for this clue would have been “like helium” since helium is the most inert of this group. Initially, I did fill in NOBLE for this clue, but quickly realized it did not work. In reality not a very big deal, but it is an interesting topic in chemistry.
6
@Robert Kern I too had NOBLE at first !
1
@Robert Kern I tried GASSY and NOBLE before settling on INERT. As a chemist, I am annoyed almost every day by the perfectly good words Spelling Bee won't let me have.
2
My search engine tells me that March 16th is National Everything You Do Is Right Day, but I couldn't figure out how to fit that in... Neither did JACK-O-LANTERN (looking at the grid). And SMILE wasn't making sense for the downs. Finally figured it out though!
3
First, it's the NATIONAL ZOO, not the WASHINGTON ZOO.
Unknown actress with weirdly-spelt name.
French word for 'wall.' SRSLY?
Wrong guess for how to spell PESCETARIANS (computer has that underlined as incorrect. )
ICK is just as likely as ACK--maybe even more so. Apt.
Even the PANDA theme and painted grid isn't a solace for the 4 wrong letters. Hope it's not a sign for how my day is going to go. I have a lot to do.
We made a pilgrimage to MARCONI's tower when we vacationed on Cape Cod. (Yes, a Nerd Family's idea of a good time!)
4
@Mean Old Lady Agree I about the National Zoo(logical Park) and pescatarians. Google has 10x the hits for 'pesca' than for 'pesce'. Never heard of the actress but that's OK (there are a lot of them) but it's unfair to cross her name with one of those unwords like ACK. I was OK with MUR - one of the very few gimmes for me. I have never used Ctrl-Shift-Esc to get to Task Manager - always Ctrl-Alt-Del but I gather it is a Windows 8 feature, from about the time I switched to a Mac.
@Andrew As a long-time DC resident before moving to New Mexico, I also was a bit nonplussed that the author got the zoo name wrong.
@Mean Old Lady Nevertheless, the clue and answer are fine as written. (The word" informally" is there for a reason.)
5
Tied for my best time ever on a Friday-PANDAmonium ensues! Very fun puzzle which, at first, was daunting. VERISMO was not the first thing I thought of and Opera Buffo doesn’t fit. But as a musical theatre buff (not buffo) I quickly got LEA SALONGA, and my daughter is a PESCETARIAN, and they told MARCONI wireless was phony, so the rest came fairly easily as BLACK AND WHITE!
5
Regarding the number of words in French for “wall.” I’m reminded of the scene in Sophie’s Choice in which Meryl Streep complains that English has multiple words for the concept of “speed,” which in French is rendered simply as “vite.” Somehow, when I saw the movie as a tween, that made more of an impression on me than the horrifying choice itself, which I appear to have ignored.
1
I would have said "vitesse"; "vite" means quickly.
3
Amazingly, even though I speak almost no french having last taken a course in 1990 or so, MUR was the very first answer I filled in this puzzle.
So a shout out to my long ago French TA at Indiana University, Xavier Bonet. The phrase "le loup foux est sous le mur", an exercise in pronunciation from his class, has stuck with me all these years, which I hopefully remember correctly translates to "the crazy wolf is under the wall".
And as an additional note, that class is where I first laid eyes on the woman who 3 years later would become my girlfriend with whom I will be celebrating our 25th wedding anniversary this August. Funny how one entry in a crossword puzzle can bring up such great memories.
Merci Xavier! Wherever you may be.
28
@Rob "Excellente idee! Mais demandez a maman d'abord!" The full extent of my available French. Brain residue from 7th grade, circa 1972.
5
@Deb Probably already pointed out elsewhere, but I'll leave this anyway: PROS and CONS = PLUSES and MINUSES.
And you weren't alone. I immediately filled CLOWN and stuck with it way way way too long, then changed it to MIMES after I got BLACKANDWHITE (because that works right?). It wasn't until I just couldn't make the crossings works that I had my PANDA aha moment and the rest was gravy.
3
Extra, extra read all about it: Veteran solver felled by ham handed typing, crowed Tom callously.
ESC turned into EaC. EEK.
Late breaking news. Acme is a pretender to the SF Mayor’s seat. I have offered to be the First BF (FBF). More to come as events unfold. Right now I need to shop for a little black t-shirt for those formal occasions of State. Context: Since 1966 or so my attire has been Levi button fly 501s and a t-shirt. I have two Harris Tweed jackets (both about 40 years old and going strong) for more formal settings. T-Shirt of choice these days is by Duluth Trading or Marine Layer.
Given that I have been robbed of the gold I shall spend this Friday the thirteenth wallowing in misery and self pity.
Thanks Alex.... Do you know what is BLACKANDEHITE and red all over? A PANDA in a......
4
Pescatarian is misspelled in the puzzle, per Merriam Webster. Irritating
2
Julia,
No, it isn't. Look again.
https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pescatarian
Calming? Soothing?
The puzzle spells it pescetarian
Okay, okay ... it’s an irritating variant
3
60 blocks does not a Friday puzzle make. Clues could have made it Monday friendly but were they ginned up so the constructor gets a cycle?
1
Although I'm sure IT'S happened for others, this was a first for me: having met a person named in a crossword answer. My wife and I were fortunate to meet Ms. Salonga in October 2015 after her performance in a preview of George Takei's Allegiance. Gotta think many of you have met Ms. Rivers, for starters.
Too bad it didn't catch on, as it illuminated the tearful history of the Japanese internment camps with a gripping story, and fine music and performances.
5
@Brad
Thanks for cluing me in to the correct parsing of this name. Not being familiar with the individual in question, I thought her name was LEASA LONGA, LEASA being a creative spelling of LISA.
Loved today’s puzzle! I’m continually amazed by the creativity and ingenuity of the puzzle creators, and today’s puzzle adds to my wonder. It was a fun solve for me - one where I started out with very few answers and then everything began to fall into place. The combination of the “panda” grid and the entertaining fill is top-notch - thank you, Alex!
7
@SPB Absolutely! It was so fun to open it up and see something completely unexpected.
1
Fun puzzle. Not a complete success for me, but for once I don't really care. Like others, just happy to see a Deadline tribute puzzle. Random thoughts:
Re: 16d. Would a modernized version of the play be titled "Miss Ho Chi Minh City?" The neighbor I mentioned a couple of days ago is from there and she says 'Saigon.' I don't think anybody but the government uses the new name.
Answer history search today was for MUR. Almost any 3 letter combination could be useful fill in a puzzle but it's making its debut in the Shortz era even though it appeared 31 times pre-Shortz. Makes me wonder if it was on his "don't use" list.
Lastly, the puzzle reminded me that it's been a while since I've gone to see the PANDAs at Zoo Atlanta. Realized this is probably not the best time to do that, but an online search revealed that they have a live "Panda cam." It's on, but it's dark. I'll check it out later.
4
@Rich in Atlanta
It's later. It's light. It works. For anyone who loves pandas:
https://zooatlanta.org/panda-cam/
..
2
@Rich in Atlanta
This is fantastic!
1
@Puzzlemucker
My off and on experience so far...
Eats shoots and leaves.
4
LOVED this puzzle and the Wordplay column! Like Deb my Brooklyn-bred husband also saw a clown. Guess who saw a PANDA?
3
Ack. ACK? I quote.
ACK immediately brought back to mind Bill the Cat
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_the_Cat
6
@Joe
Bill always said AACK.
2
@D Smith Maybe from the cartoon “Cathy”?
1
Three observations:
* I took one look at the terrific grid art, thought "panda", and when I came to 17A, I slapped that word right in.
* ITS -- I'm terribly guilty of putting that apostrophe in when I shouldn't. I see it all the time in re-reads of my writing.
* Words I once knew but forgot until one or two crosses retrieved them: OZMA, IVERSON, VERISMO.
Pandas, cuddly beings that they are, make me smile, and it sure is a good time for anything smile producing. There was also grit overcome and memories re-awakened in this one, so I left it in a very nice place, and thank you very much for that, Alex!
4
Might an underpaid secretary be referred to as an INDENTERed servant?
8
@Mike R That usage would be marginal.
9
I saw a space invader in pixel art and filled ATARI...
Like others I couldn't recall seeing any BLACKANDWHITE CLOWNS at the WASHINGTON ZOO but persisted for way too long. Thank you Alex; needed a smile today in this March of 2020 where each day feels like Friday the 13th.
Um, Deb, that photo was kind of a spoiler. You think we can't see that panda in the window over in Jersey???
10
@AudreyLM
Not to mention, the George WASHINGTON Bridge! And guess what swim in the Hudson River? Fish, i.e., a major hint to PESCETARIANS. Where did Allen IVERSON play basketball? You guessed it, Philadelphia, which is only a 100 miles or so from the GWB. Sure, the photo is not in BLACK AND WHITE. Deb’s too sly for such an obvious giveaway.
(AudreyLM, you rock!)
4
@AudreyLM Hahahahaha!
1
LETTER BOXED
C-D(9), D-T(4)
I couldn’t tell you what the second word means. I just tried the leftover letters!
2
@Andrew
Same solution here. It means a dull blow - kind of opposite to a crack.
@EskieF So I had the same first half as you two but added one letter to the second D-T and got a much more common word.
Fun puzzle but I still don't get 5 down. SOANDSOS for "dastards?" Isn't a "dastard" a bad person? I first put down VILLAINS but erased it when I couldn't get it to cross. But SO AND SOS? That just means people whose names you don't know, right?
Please enlighten me here.
2
@Chris Tharp
All I can tell you is that my mother used the term endearingly on me if I had been a naughty boy. It is less common now, but it dates from a time when euphemisms were used to describe a nasty person. Nowadays we just go directly into an explicit tirade, preferably on Twitter...
2
@Chris Tharp I actually called someone a so and so this morning, but that's mainly because I gave up profanities for lent.
11
SO AND SO is used when you want to call someone an unprintable name but can’t. In today’s society there are fewer unprintable words so its used less.
7
VERISMO and MUR may have caused others problems, but they were gimmes to this francophile opera lover, and started me off very happily. My final struggle was with LEA SALONGA, (which I parsed LEASA LONGA), even though I saw the original production of Miss Saigon on Broadway, and it being based on the VERISMO opera Madama Butterfly.
I thought BLACK AND WHITE might have been clued as “Like 17 and 24 across “, and ESPN has less and less competition by the day.
7
@Andrew
Her brother, Gerard Salonga, is a conductor and pianist. One of his arrangements was performed in Winnipeg. Probably not enough of a connection to qualify for the Canadian clue of the day (which I miss), but thought you would appreciate.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gerard_Salonga
1
@Puzzlemucker
Maybe I will have to reinstate the Canadian clue of the day then. If so, I would nominate MARCONI, whose first transatlantic (OVERSEES?) radio message was received in Eastern Canada.
5
@Andrew
Great! I actually discovered Gerard Salonga as I searched the grid for a possible Canadian clue of the day (anything for a distraction these days!). Did not know that about MARCONI. Where would be without him, especially now?
SPELLING BEE GRID
A D K L N P R
WORDS: 30, POINTS: 90, PANGRAMS: 1, BINGO
First character frequency:
A x 3
D x 4
K x 1
L x 4
N x 3
P x 12
R x 3
Word length frequency:
4L: 18
5L: 9
6L: 2
8L: 1
Grid:
4 5 6 8 TOT
A: 1 1 1 - 3
D: 3 1 - - 4
K: - 1 - - 1
L: 4 - - - 4
N: 3 - - - 3
P: 5 5 1 1 12
R: 2 1 - - 3
TOT: 18 9 2 1 30
Two letter list:
AN-2 AP-1
DA-3 DR-1
KA-1
LA-4
NA-3
PA-8 PL-3 PR-1
RA-3
59
@Doug & @Kevin: Thank you both, as ever, for the grid and list. @Mari, if you see this, you are missed. Mend soon.
10
@Doug Thanks! I misread the grid today and spent a frustrating time looking for a nonexistent PA-7. That's what I get for being too lazy to count. Turns out the one I was missing was only 5 letters. I've lived in Arizona too long to think of it.
2
**S P E L L I N G B E E H I N T S**
30 words, 90 points, 1 pangram.
12
Hints: The animal featured in today’s crossword makes an appearance. Other unusual words are ones we’ve had recently.
Other hints:
Greatly dismay or horrify
Musty
Greek letter
Thin & tall (noun here, but usually an adj.)
Indian bread
Nothing, Spanish
Dark cloud or coffin covering
Arthropod sensory appendage
City of recent FL school shooting, pangram
Flat surface, adj.
What pirates make you walk
Cpl. O’Reilly of M*A*S*H nickname
S African money
Taxi queue or foul smell
31
@Kevin Davis
Missing a P5 that I don't think is on the list - I have the XWD theme animal, a trick, a board, and a warm jacket...
@Chungclan
Adjective describing addresses in Saint Peter's Square
6
Another hand up for CLOWN before PANDA.
Perhaps I should avoid Rorschach tests
8
@RAH i couldn't decide between a clown or a skull. PANDA was a very late candidate.
LEISA (ICK) LONGA was my undoing (ACK ... SALONGA), ending my PR streak at 63. I've not seen "Miss Saigon," nor do I reckon I ever will.
Who besides me stopped reading today's blog to go and order the book hyped therein?
1
@NickS
LEISA LONGA doesn't exist. LEA SALONGA does, and is a well-known stage actor.
@NickS
Lea Salonga was also the singing voice for two Disney characters—Jasmine (Aladdin) and Mulan.
My best time for a Friday.
I thought the grid was a skull. I read it was supposed to be a panda, went back and looked again...nope, still a skull.
3
Delightful!
Alex, there were no circles on the app version but I drew them in (had to print a copy from the web site). You’re right, they’re perfect! I may even dig out some googly eyes I have for origami projects.
Thanks for a great puzzle!
3
As a younger solver, I'm of two minds about this. I enjoyed the theme and how it all came together, but some key fill really stunk for those of us with different cultural proclivities.
VERISMO feels staid where HARISSA would have been contemporary and fresh. I'm less miffed about Ms. SALONGA because Google tells me that I ought to be familiar with her.
3
Not a huge fan of this. Friday, I guess.
First the Saigon lady cross with yikes? I had LEI/ICK, then LEE/ECK, then gave up.
Then, a French/Italian cross? Yikes that square did me in, as well.
Cute panda though! Why did they omit the circles? All the AND answers make sense now. P AND A
I thought the NIH answer followed by the clue about something from China, was ironic?
3
I thought it would be a good day for the Irish and then the Danes before PANDA. Not that I think the Irish or Danes belong in the WASHINGTON ZOO.
1
and Elke
A reprieve of ENOUGH ?
I note that the constructor made sure the wedding ties are well tied-- 1D -"wedding words " are VOWS and , since once may not NOT be ENOUGH, there is 32D "wedding words" -I DO.
Also noted that the NIH runs right into BLACK AND WHITE. Sure wish the current resident of the -WHITE house had not left the NIH with NOT ENOUGH funds to do its job...
There are also the BLACK AND WHITE cookies---OREOS.
Cute PANDA face and puzzle.
6
This was more of a Wednesday than a Friday puzzle, though it was just oddball enough for a Thursday. I thought Fridays were unthemed, and this was as themed as a puzzle can be
1
from the clueing to the grid to the answers it was an unfulfilling slog from beginning to end
3
Wall: Fr.
Perhaps the worst crossword clue I've ever seen.
Boo, hiss.
8
@Michael Dawson It was our weekly nod to Matt Bai. Personally, I'm always grateful when my high school French devient utile.
7
@Michael Dawson Wall in French? I thought it was much more straightforward than most of the clues...I looked it up and just moved on.
3
@Michael Dawson
You didn't know it this time, but for the next time, think of where murals are found.
9
I wish Pescatarian hadn’t made it as the vegetarian fish. It implies only fish. Can a pescatarian eat linguine alla Vongole? I’ve been a vegaquarian for 40 years and invented (IMHO) a far better term.
13
I, too, wavered between clown and PANDA. I also had trouble with spelling PESCETARIAN and I am one!
Fun Friday puzzle. Enjoyed the thises AND thats.
I may blast through the archive in the coming weeks, as the rest of my life is cancelled.
5
OOOFFFfffff
In Minnesota sometimes folks say UFF-DA but it means the same thing.
Geez that hurt. So many good building blocks throughout this puzzle - some fairly straightforward things, TEAROSE, a well-clued ECOLI, INERT, IRA, ITS and OREOS, then a lot of things to distract from the obvious - HIE, NSC, NIH, ESC, ACK, SEA, MUR ... even the longer clues had something askew.
Way over my average and three times longer than last week’s breakthrough.
For the record my hang-ups were IRA, (N-E-O-P-Olitan), SEA (I don’t know...LIA?), ACK (or is it EEK or ICK?!?!) and MUR, (SUR, CUR, IOR, EOR, TUR) but especially GAIN...I tried FAIN, FEIN, BEIN, ISIN and back to FEIN for quite awhile...
Probably half an hour throwing three or four letters at a time into VERISMO and 16-Down before I caught onto GAIN.
It’s a small victory in a pretty lackluster week but if it’s the only one I get I’m happy with it.
Kudos.
3
"Indenter" is okay with me. But when did "renfaire" burrow its way into the language?
2
@alex
Maybe if the jousting is done with lightsabers, it’s a Kylo REN FAIRE?
Oh wait. That was yesterday’s puzzle.
18
@alex
I've heard variations on that since the early 90s, and possibly before that. Kansas City had the Renaissance Festival or RenFest, there are Renaissance Fairs or Faires in a lot of places; so I could see RenFaire as a legitimate nickname.
8
@alex
It's all over the place. For example, google "PA ren faire" and you'll see many instances of it, even on their own website.
2
This was a new personal best, just 25 seconds above 30 minutes. I only looked up what the National Day was and what a wall is in French, which is excellent for me on a Friday.
"Bad place for a long run" started off as "pier", moved on to "nose" until close to the end when it rightfully became HOSE.
In the south west corner, I also incorrectly had "SSN", "bin" and "garb", leading to "WHITE" looking like W_rTs. Well, it seemed to fit with MOLE, the face design, and my also incorrect nOSE!
4
@Aarglefarg -- Hah!... on "pier" and "nose".
2
I had puppy instead of panda for the longest time and kept nervously thinking “sure puppies can be black and white...right?”
1
@Zoe
I thought it might have to do with cats at first, since I thought the grid was supposed to be a skelton mask, and Halloween (my favorite holiday) has black cats. Then I saw the BLACK-AND-WHITE cats and thought of my late beloved tuxedo, Spats.
Had to hang my head after that one.
@Deadline
I saw the Rorschach blot as a Panda right away, making this a super-easy puzzle!
https://fcbuy.ir/
Almost 3 min. faster than last Friday. Once I read the 1st paragraph of @Deb’s clues, I zipped through the rest. I had to fix the spelling of NEAPOLITAN, but IRA corrected me.
I remember NEAPOLITAN ice cream fondly from childhood -- liked the chocolate best, then the vanilla and finally the strawberry!
6
@judy d
Me too! Except I only ate the chocolate, so my brother would ask why I didn’t just get that flavour 😄
I really liked some of these answers. I didn’t know the 16th was National PANDA Day. But I don’t think it would be my SPIRIT ANIMAL; mine would probably be the sloth.
Allen “THE ANSWER” Iverson - Some of these basketball players’ nicknames are awesome.
I knew it was something like PESCETARIAN (var. PESCATARIAN), but didn’t figure out the exact word until I solved the surrounding clues.
For “Rivers of New York City” my mind automatically went to JOAN Rivers, although I kinda of doubted a little since she is no longer with us.
When I saw the clue “Tony-winning actress for “Miss Saigon””, I knew it had to be LEA SALONGA, which I didn’t get at first because of a few missteps. She has the most amazing voice.
There are many varieties of the TEA ROSE, including ones named after famous people, like Princess Diana, Betty White, Audrey Hepburn, to name a few. It would be so cool to have a flower named after yourself.
Great puzzle!
5
@JH I hereby nominate the JH Bunchberry :)
1
I looked at the puzzle and my first thought was "What an awesome hockey goalie mask!". I'm glad the day is about over.
2
Regrettably, a perfectly timed puzzle for the bear market.
23
I live walking distance from the zoo in Washington, but it is the National Zoo, not the Washington Zoo.
22
@Charles Cerf Which is why "informally" is added to the clue.
7
@Charles Cerf As a fellow DC resident, I concur. I actually hesitated to fill it in thinking it couldn’t possibly be the right answer. Washington Zoo??? That’s like when people say they’d like to visit “THE Smithsonian Museum.” (There are dozens.)
Incidentally, this is the second time I’ve caught an erroneous DC clue. Another fairly recent crossword included a clue that referred to DC’s “B Street.” (B streets were changed to Independence and Constitution ages ago.) C’mon, NYT! If you don’t know it, don’t include it! ;-)
5
@Jody
"If you don't know it, don't include it!"
Donald Rumsfeld would slot this into the category of the "unknown unknowns" — the things we don't know we don't know. :-)
12A, Pro means plus as in the pros and cons, or plusses and minuses.
18
I had no idea it was going to be PANDA Day; in fact I was kind of hoping for CANDY Day. But my biggest PESky spot was PESCETARIAN, which I was so sure was spelled PESCATARIAN that even when I had the highly suspect SAA, I just resisted changing it to SEA for the longest time. Well, all things come to those who get it wrong the first time and have to think again, as the old saying should go.
13
@Millie
Not knowing the spellings of PESCETARIAN and LEASA LONGA was my undoing. I was lucky to escape with a single natick gig.
2
I had the same problem you did. I checked, and “pescatarian” is an acceptable spelling, if not the more common. Oh well.
2
@Millie
I'd never seen PESCATARIAN spelled any other way either, but a quick dictionary search shows that PESCETARIAN is an alternate form (or vice versa, depending on what you're looking at).
I prefer the former because of pronunciation issues. The latter seems like a fish out of water.
8
Too bad a puzzle like this is not suitable for a Monday- it would be so appropriate to have the panda face on actual National Panda Day! In other notes, long answers always get me so nervous, even though I just nibble away at them letter by letter until things fall in place. I'm almost always under my average time in solving, but I think my anxiousness for each puzzle is on the upswing.
3
Well, at first glance I thought it was a giant scary clown as well. But I quickly had enough letters in 10D to tell me that that was BLACK AND WHITE, and therefore PANDA. PANDA is much less scary!
The constructor notes are interesting. I think I would have gotten HARISSA & SUR much faster than I got VERISMO and MUR, although I knew MUR. There are many famous climbs in the French & Belgian professional cycling world that are called MURs--the Mur/Muur de Grammont, the Mur de Bretagne, the Mur de Huy. And Philadelphia has the Manayunk Wall.
4
Deb,
PROs are pluses, while cons are minuses.
20
This puzzle is for Deadline!
12
@Barry Ancona It's what we all thought. She's probably working on her comment at this very moment.
2
and Elke
I miss her updates of the denizens at the zoo in Washington DC.
1
@Barry Ancona Is Deadline connected to the National Zoo?
Yesterday I was undone by a French/exclamation cross: MIDI/MAA. Tonight, I was NOT undone by a French/exclamation hiccup. I had LEi/iCK before recalling her name is LEA, and VERIStO/tUR before trying VERISMO/MUR and getting the happy music. I suspect this is a POW! because even though it was somewhat easier (for me) than other AES creations, it was so much fun with such a happy “theme.” I salute you, Mr. Eaton-Salners. It is a gift to be able to delight, especially during challenging times, and you did just that with this puzzle. My heart is singing.
9
Yes, same two squares were the issue for me. I had to run the alphabet with the LEi/iCK in place, then again after I tried LEA/ACK until I got it. I had no clue on VERISMO/MUR.
Solving this one pencil and paper I would never have known when I had it.
3
In honor of REN FAIRE and a certain upcoming holiday, a local Irish fiddler, Dylan Foley, who is one of the best in the world, with “Ruby Hoy”:
http://rubyhoy.com/dylan-foley
(Scroll down for the video and song).
2