HALLOWEEN
wednesday, october 31, 2007
ken stern / will shortz















difficulty factor: surprisingly not too bad at all!


theme: TRICK OR TREAT: the words "trick" AND "treat" both fill six squares and are each read... one across and one down! (now THAT's a CRAMALOT!)

• 4D PRE-TREATMENTS
• 20A TRICKS OF THE TRADE
• 11D ST. PATRICK
• 27A RETREATS
• 33A TREATISE
• 33D TRICK OR TREAT
• 44A HAT TRICK
• 39D PEACE TREATIES
• 53A JEANE KIRKPATRICK
• 49D CARD TRICK
• 65A ENTREATY

the lack of symmetry in the answers (in the norteast/southwest corners) chafed me a bit - in an "adrian monk" kinda way... oh... and just shy of a pangram... no 'z'... "a 'z'. a 'Z'. my kingdom for a 'z'" (king ken the stern to sir will shortz in king ken III, act 5 scene IV), but all things considered, i did enjoy the puzzle!

although her politics scare me, in the thriller 7D KLUTE, jane fonda was quite compelling.

==============================
in the "not necessarily explained just by the answer" category
==============================

• 10A amt. at a car dealership MSRP (manufacturer's suggested retail price)
• 14A ancient marketplace AGORA (AG-er-uh: greek meeting/market place)
• 45A some urban legends HOAXES (see: http://www.snopes.com/)
• 46A aussie's neighbor KIWI (slang for new zealander)
• 24D hawaiian dress MU'UMU'U (traditional spelling)
• 38D like the onion SATIRICAL (see: http://www.theonion.com/)
• 54D "get smart" org. KAOS (from the 1965-70 mel brooks/buck henry comedy tv show)
• 59D choices for chicago commuters ELS (elevated trains)
• 60D cavs, on a scoreboard CLE (cleveland cavaliers)

==============================


keep on keepin' on...

dann
all elements of the puzzle (grid layout, clues, and answers), NYT, NY Times, and The New York Times logo are ©2007 The New York Times

1A big stingers WASPS 6A johnny fever's workplace, in 1970s-80s tv WKRP 10A amt. at a car dealership MSRP (manufacturer's suggested retail price) 14A ancient marketplace AGORA (AG-r-uh: ancient greek meeting/market place) 15A mixed bag OLIO 16A siouan tribe OTOE 17A some horizontal lines X AXES 18A carries LUGS 19A birthstone of someone born on halloween OPAL 20A professional secrets [TRICK]S OF THE TRADE 23A muslim holy man IMAM 26A amanda of "the whole nine yards" PEET 27A off-site meetings, maybe RE[TREAT]S 28A promoted, as a pawn QUEENED 30A took to court SUED 32A went bad TURNED 33A formal discourse [TREAT]ISE 34A "choosy moms choose _____" JIF 37A ham it up EMOTE 38A _____ pop SODA 39A ride the ______ (sit out a baseball game) PINE 40A heros SUBS 41A red in the middle RARE 42A large, at starbucks VENTI 43A elec. day, e.g. TUE 44A hockey feat HAT [TRICK] 45A some urban legends HOAXES 46A aussie's neighbor KIWI (slang new zealander) 47A like some old stores TEN CENT 48A early seventh-century year DCIV 50A wander ROAM 52A whirlpool EDDY 53A u.n. ambassador under reagan JEANE KIRKPA[TRICK] 56A shows AIRS 57A entr' _____ ACTE 58A certain flower girl NIECE 62A focal point NODE 63A honolulu's home OAHU 64A reese of "touched by an angel" DELLA 65A plea EN[TREAT]Y 66A swill SLOP 67A balance sheet listing ASSET 1D candle material WAX 2D turkish title AGA 3D red _____ SOX 4D stain looseners on washday PRE-[TREAT]MENT 5D lip SASS 6D gobbled up, with "down" WOLFED 7D movie for which jane fonda won an oscar KLUTE 8D starboard RIGHT SIDE (of a nautical vehicle) 9D you might strike one POSE 10D docked MOORED 11D mid-march honoree ST. PA[TRICK] 12D map lines ROADS 13D new york cosmos star PELE 21D like some columns OP-ED (opinion/editorials) 22D fig or fir TREE 23D hurdle for mensa membership I.Q. TEST 24D hawaiian dress MU'UMU'U 25D organism needing oxygen AEROBE 29D born NEE 31D can. neighbor U.S.A. 33D something said while holding a bag [TRICK] OR [TREAT] 34D having bad luck, say JINXED 35D mean INTEND 36D spunky FEISTY 38D like the onion SATIRICAL 39D war enders PEACE[TREAT]IES 41D uncooked RAW 42D designer diane _____ furstenberg VON 44D honey site HIVE 45D rope material HEMP 46D "sexual behavior in the human male" author KINSEY, alfred charles 47D begin, as a hobby TAKE UP 48D two-sport sanders DEION "neon" 49D entertainment from a magician CARD[TRICK] 51D brand name in lawn care ORTHO 53D chimpanzee researcher goodall JANE 54D "get smart" org. KAOS (from the 1965-70 mel brooks/buck henry comedy tv show) 55D "... _____ bottle of rum" AND A 59D choices for chicago commuters ELS (elevated trains) 60D cavs, on a scoreboard CLE(veland) 61D nag (at) EAT

tuesday, october 30, 2007
gary steinmehl / will shortz

difficulty factor: yet again, my stubbornness cost me a bit here

theme: as suggested at 57A: "misspells, say, as a ghost might at 20A, 28A, 37A and 50A?": MAKES A BOO BOO. here a li'l misspelling spell is cast upon a fairly common expression and... switch-a-roo! a goulish pun is born...

• 20A HUMPBACK WAIL
• 28A BATTLE CREAK
• 37A FARM GROAN
• 50A BELL AND HOWL

hey all... happy halloween een!

(late start due to a doctors appt... don't ask... all's well...)

was it just my stubbornness or was this a tad nastier that a tuesday puzzle should be? i painted myself into a "manic" corner at 18A PANIC... and again at 30D REGAL with "royal"... and i just couldn't seem to recover...

oh, well...

i useta love saturday mornings as a kid... not many cartoons, but the real mc coys, sky king and 10A FURY were great! (what WAS the other show?! there were FOUR half hours...)

my favorite clue/answer today was 36A "theory's start": IDEA. no publishing, writing, proving, testing, positing... or anything else till the very idea is formed... brilliant!

i'm...

-ed!

.

.

.

.

.

keep on keepin' on...

dann

all elements of the puzzle (grid layout, clues, and answers), NYT, NY Times, and The New York Times logo are ©2007 The New York Times

1. peak 5. chattered incessantly 10. tv horse introduced in 1955...or a plymouth model introduced in 1956 14. partiality 15. seeing red 16. prime draft status 17. drug-yielding plant 18. opposite of serenity 19. cartoonist al 20. scary sound from the ocean? 23. park, e.g., in n.y.c. 25. "sting like a bee" athlete 26. having seniority 28. scary sound from a war zone? 33. juillet's season 34. kodiak native 35. physics unit 36. theory's start 37. scary sound from a cornfield? 41. splinter group 44. motel-discount grp. 45. sales slips: abbr. 49. galley implement 50. scary sound from a steeple? 53. tedious 55. boot part 56. "whew!" 57. misspells, say, as a ghost might at 20-, 28-, 37- and 50-across? 62. abominate 63. african antelope 64. hot rod's rod 67. _____ lackawanna railroad 68. countryish 69. boot part 70. card game for three 71. walk leisurely 72. stealth bomber org. 1. charles gibson's network 2. a.f.l.- _____ 3. cane cutter 4. biblical son who sold his birthright 5. wavelet 6. language whose alphabet starts alif, ba, ta, tha... 7. child's caretaker 8. suffix with hypn- 9. part of a bottle or a guitar 10. kind of point 11. helpless? 12. filled to the gills 13. big fat mouth 21. country just south of sicily 22. moo goo gai pan pan 23. lawyers' org. 24. kilmerof "the doors" 27. _____ irvin, classic artist for the new yorker 29. cowlick, e.g. 30. fit for a king 31. blunder 32. "long _ and far away ..." 36. creep (along) 38. name that's an anagram of 27-down 39. _____ de mer 40. egyptian dry measure equal to about five-and-a-half bushels 41. soak (up) 42. tag for a particular purpose 43. neighbor of slovenia 46. co. addresses, often 47. a duo 48. crafty 50. tournament pass 51. like some music 52. musically improvise 54. sport utilizing a clay disk 58. hospital shipments 59. styptic agent 60. part of a fishhook 61. island with waimea bay 62. gentlemen 65. meadow 66. shoemaker's helper, in a fairy tale

monday, october 29, 2007
fred piscop / will shortz

difficulty factor: this one was pretty much a walk in the park

theme: a slightly different parsing on common "-ation" words

• 17A GENE RATION
• 10D FORE STATION
• 56A REV ELATION
• 25D CARBO NATION

==================================

oh, boy! almost an entire posting about one of my favorite subjects... 29D PIXIES

well, no... as interesting as pixies are, that's not gonna do it... how about 9D TAN LINES?!

that could almost do it, but... no... how 'bout... somethin' a tad closer t' me heart?

while beer is purportedly the beverage second only to water both in age and popularity, and the production of beer uses many varying ingredients, methods and traditions, all beer goes through a brewing process. which style of brewing discipline distinguishes the two major types: ale and 1D LAGER.

a starchy grain (typically barley, rice, wheat or corn - although others are used in different localities) is first "steeped" in water. enzymes are then added with flavoring agents (most typically hops, fruits, and herbs). at this stage the sugary concoction is called "wort". finally, the addition of yeast causes fermentation - the anaerobic conversion of sugar to carbon dioxide and alcohol - to occur.

ale is fermented "fast and high" (the ale yeast resides at or near the top of the vat under temperatures between 60 and 75 degrees fahrenheit for about a week) typically producing flavoring by-products called aromatic esters, which are described by aficionados as "grassy", "woody" and "fruity" among others. major ales include: bitter, amber ale, brown ale, pale ale, porter, stout, and wheat beer [doesn't that last term add an element of confusion?!]

lager - derived from the german word for "store" - on the other hand is brewed "low and slow" (the lager yeast resides at or near the bottom of the vat at temps ranging from 40 to 55 degrees fahrenheit for, in some cases, up to two weeks.) during the second phase of the lagering process, lasting one to three additional weeks, it is stored at temps just above freezing allowing it to clear some and mellow. the prolonged cooler conditions reduce the production of aromatic esters and other flavoring byproducts (allowing the bold hops flavor to be more apparent), and increase the carbonation, resulting in a more standardized "crisper" tasting beverage. while there are other (mostly germanic) lager styles, pilsner is by far the most widely produced, especially in america. bock, vienna, märzen and pale lagers also hold a measure of lager popularity.

although there are exceptions, typically ales and lagers are restricted by taxation laws (!) to containing between 3% and 6% alcohol by volume (abv).

i'm thirsty! (and... it's five o'clock somewhere!)

keep on keepin' on...

dann

all elements of the puzzle (grid layout, clues, and answers), NYT, NY Times, and The New York Times logo are ©2007 The New York Times
1. started a cigarette 6. sail supporter 10. rooters14. left one's seat15. gumbo vegetable16. track shape17. allotment of heredity units?19. parks who pioneered in civil rights20. our language: abbr.21. took the blue ribbon22. room to maneuver24. nuclear power apparatus27. top 10 tunes28. hole-punching tool29. slender cigar 33. prefix with -hedron36. is false to the world37. get from _____ (progress slightly)38. battle of the _____ (men vs. women)39. stadium section40. studied primarily, at college42. holder of 88 keys43. caveman's era44. vintage automotive inits.45. tennis great arthur46. mediums' meetings 50. stewed to the gills53. king kong, e.g.54. lacto-_____-vegetarian55. sitarist shankar56. preacher's sky-high feeling?60. twistable cookie61. turn at roulette62. decaf brand63. give an alert64. direction of sunup65. sticky problem1. hearty brew2. jim carrey comedy "me, myself & _____"3. kingdom east of fiji4. milk for all its worth5. pay-_____-view6. travel by car7. closely related (to)8. sign at a sellout9. bikini wearers' markings10. tv channel for golfers?11. state frankly12. shuttle-launching org.13. murder18. delinquent g.i.23. greek h's25. pasta-and-potato-loving country?26. former rival of pan am27. safe place29. mischievous sprite30. director kazan31. claim on property32. prefix with dynamic33. scots' caps34. coup d'_____35. japanese p.m. during w.w. ii36. mantel38. equine-looking fish41. take a siesta42. split _ soup 44. fishing line winder46. paid out47. nickels and dimes48. call to mind49. sunken ship finder50. furrowed part of the head51. dr. zhivago's love52. 1964 dave clark five song "glad all _____'53. hertz rival57. mileage rating org.58. cleopatra's biter59. eastern "way"

SUNDAY, october 28, 2007
talking heads
ben tausig / will shortz

difficulty factor: for a sunday puzzle, this had some very saturday moments! it was a good test.

theme: talking heads: constructor tausig 84D PUNNED IT o' plenty! he took a bevy of pundits LAST names and inserted them in fairly amusing [groan... giggle... smile... groan... laugh... groan again] expressions!

• 25A FRANKEN SENSE [frankincense]
• 27A WHY PAY MAHER [why pay more] (?!)
• 46A LIFE OF O'REILLY [life of riley]
• 64A YOU'RE GETTING COULTER [you're getting colder!]
• 77A DO THE LIMBAUGH [do the limbo]
• 104A DONAHUE DARE [don'-a-you dare!]
• 106A IMUS BE OFF NOW [i must be off now...]

there were come great images congered in this puzzle. many great pieces of arcane info dredged from many areas of life and learning. and just a bit of drek.

by 55A "carnatic pieces" i hope the cluer meant "the plural of 'component'", as carnatic music (which derives its name from the root karnatak - a region in southern india) is based in the use of two ethereal elements in interaction within a 'piece': the raga (representing the melody) and the thala (representing the rhythm/time structure.) [thank you, mr.tobin!]

regarding 37A "natural riser" : HEAT... i remember my chemist father saying, "heat rises" perhaps thousands of times while i was growing up... as a side bar, my older brother and i shared bunk beds as kids. i made use of this expression by bucking for the lower/cooler bed in the summer and the upper/warmer bed in the winter! i'm not sure he ever knew why... for other reasons (like open doors... heat rushing IN in the summer, and OUT in the winter) my dad was also very fond of touting that "HEAT travels from hot to cold!" other than repeating this at a ear-peircing volume for the benefit of my own forgetful lads when they were younger, i've never made much use of it. but just growing up in proximity of such a fountain of wisdom, i garnered 17D EASY A'S in science courses.

2D UTA HAGEN two days in a row?! she was good... but THAT GOOD?!

c'mon... a 9D BURR is much more commonly a rough edge or area remaining on the surface of a material that is REMOVED by sandpaper... or a "power-driven shop tool". (and, yes, i'm aware that there is a very specific rotary file used for smoothing rough edges left on a (mostly metallic) workpiece, but i'd bet that upwards of 90% readily understand the former usage, and less than 1% are remotely aware of the latter... well... til now... still, i suppose it's marginally better than the overused "hamilton foe" reference.)

103D "...RSTU..." to borrow a phrase from yesterday... OMIGOSH!

i say 11D MIN(ute)... you say 43D MINUTE... (in the same puzzle?) let's call the whole thing off!

34A MAZ (bill mazeroski) is perhaps most noted for his game 7, 9th-inning home run hit, which won the game and thus the 1960 world series for the pittsburg pirates 10-9 against the ny yanks.

there was so much more to mention... so catch the other blogs!

==================================
in the "your mileage may vary" category:
==================================

best clue of the day: 29a "unaided perception"

best answer of the day: 81D FOR SHAME

worst clue of the day: 107D "black pride cut, informally"

worst answer of the day: 57D CYCLO (now, i prob'ly just messed up here with that 'o' but if i didn't... yuck!)



keep on keepin' on...

dann

all elements of the puzzle (grid layout, clues, and answers), NYT, NY Times, and The New York Times logo are ©2007 The New York Times

1. pirate spirits 5. jarhead's rank: abbr. 8. presidential candidate born in hawaii 13. kids may take them to school in boxes 19. authors' list ender 20. corn product 21. japanese apples named for a mountain 22. like bollywood films 23. writer steel 25. al's impressions? 27. "what did bill do to earn this check, anyway?"? 29. unaided perception 30. sum in english 31. protected by law 32. "a la recherche du temps perdu" author 34. 1960 pirates world series hero, familiarly 35. vietnam's _____ dinh diem 36. first name in beauty products 37. natural riser 38. flirt 40. it might make you sick 42. bit 43. capital of lorraine 44. flavorful seed source 46. half of an athletic pair 48. bill's biography? 53. deutsch article 54. flair, e.g. 55. carnatic pieces 56. sequel's sequel 57. lonely trucker, perhaps 59. maestro toscanini 62. have a bawl 63. go postal 64. "and tonight's guest is ... ann!"? 68. old english bard 69. 2007 hall of fame inductee ripken 70. seconded 71. ages and ages 72. lou gehrig's disease: abbr. 73. andrea _____ 75. "_____ time" 76. ger. neighbor 77. dance like rush? 81. excites 85. "just _____!" 86. boring 87. many a fed. holiday 88. when doubled, a robin williams character's catchphrase 89. as a friend, in france 92. set of web pages 93. hawaiian staple vegetables 95. _____-x 96. chem. unit 97. rags' opposite 100. judd of"numb3rs" 101. mantel piece 102. like the era of highest sheet music sales 104. phoning phil and hanging up immediately? 106. don's parting words? 109. number revealer 110. disconcert 111. spinning 112. "helping doctors help patients" org. 113. singer braxton 114. comes after 115. laughs heartily 116. sunday delivery: abbr. 117. an nco 1. joe louis arena team 2. tony winner for "who's afraid of virginia woolf?" 3. frequent end of an anniversary toast 4. boo-boo 5. a synthetic 6. clooney or rooney 7. like baseball shoes 8. iced 9. power-driven shop tool 10. 1977 double-platinum steely dan album 11. clock div. 12. beginning of a noted political admonition 13. high _____ 14. perturbs 15. carded 16. the silver screen 17. what astrophysics and advanced calculus probably arent 18. reaction to pepper, maybe 24. overhang 26. mer filler 28. snicker syllable 32. red rose 33. triple-header, maybe 37. magazine exec in a robe, familiarly 39. _____ lilly 41. partner of kissed 43. wee 44. be a benefactor 45. ex-yankee hideki 47. "the galloping gourmet" host graham 48. riga resident 49. roman symbol of power 50. sheet material 51. yarn spinners 52. litter cry 54. qualifying round, informally 57. pedicab alternative 58. back 59. mushroom with an umbrella cap 60. wrestler flair famous for the figure four leglock 61. where angels come from 63. hot 65. word before primaire or secondaire 66. style with dark clothes and heavy eyeliner 67. look like a creep? 68. deplorable 73. pleasing 74. hoffman who once backed a pig for president 76. like human vision 78. cut-up 79. hgts. 80. ajman's home: abbr. 81. "tsk!" 82. arizona state flowers 83. perfect 84. what the puzzlemaker did to the name in each of this puzzle's theme answers? 87. position in a rhythm band 89. see 90-down 90. with 89-down, historic part of nw europe 91. some seal hunters 92. rabbi's instrument 93. material for a whitesmith 94. illustrator silverstein 98. they may come to une tete 99. a.f.l's partner 100. laughs heartily 103. set before v 104. action figure? 105. some "csi" figs. 107. black pride cut, informally 108. pbs supporter

saturday, october 27, 2007
brendan emmett quigley / will shortz

difficulty factor: three outta five band-aids; not nearly as bloody as i expected upon first perusal


theme: none

====================================

well, mr. quigley... that makes three appearances in three weeks: today, last sunday, and the preceding saturday in tandem with mr. quarfoot... all very good puzzles!

there are a few things that are subject to my whimsy today.

from "the sneetches and other stories" a collection of shorter works, comes 25A dr. suess' "too many daves"...

also on the children’s literature front, in 37D AESOP's "the mischievous dog", a man's dog used to stealthily work his way near folks and bite them without warning. the man hung a collar with a bell around his neck to thwart the dog’s secrecy. the dog only saw that folks noticed him more, and became prideful. eventually he came across another dog who chastised his arrogance and stupidity. "don't you see that it marks you as being a dog people need to be warned about!? the moral (my favorite part of aesop's tales) being that infamy doesn't equal respect... or admiration... or some such thang.

legendary italian-american film director frank 43D CAPRA (born francesco rosario capra) was at the helm of a cary grant classic 'arsenic and old lace', and two of my jimmy stewart favorites 'mr. smith goes to washington' and 'it's a wonderful life', among many, many others.

46D EL ORO is the southernmost COASTAL province in ecuador, but there are two more that are further south than it: LOJA and ZAMORA-CHINCHIPE!

my dad was an 34D AQUA VELVA man. (i am not.)

65A TOMATO RED... how descriptive!

====================================

in the "your mileage may vary" category:

====================================

best clue of the day: 12D "about -faces"

best answer of the day: 58A DON'T I KNOW!

worst clue of the day: 19A "real-estate ad statisitc"

worst answer of the day: 18A ROILY

lotsa other things i really liked... and didn't... but so little time!

keep on keepin' on...

dann
all elements of the puzzle (grid layout, clues, and answers), NYT, NY Times, and The New York Times logo are ©2007 The New York Times

friday, october 26, 2007
david quarfoot / will shortz
















difficulty factor: ouch! mis-reading and stubbornness got in the way

theme: none

okay , short post today, sorry, life happens...

wow! what a great puzzle! difficult but fair, and not a lotta painful croswordese. i thought it was one of the best puzzles this year.

56A opposites hiver [HIVE-airre] and èté [eh-TAY]... winter and summer... ah, french!

hmm... today 32A: TROUNCES, yesterday jounces. tomorrow... bounces? pounces?

i mis-read 29D "alb coverer" as "ab" coverer and insisted on TUMMY for way too long... messin' up a whole buncha virginia/north carolina stuff... doh!

what the hell's up with 55D and 58D?! i don't get it...

and i was certain something was amiss when P and G started 19A... aaaarrrggh!

okay, today's pop quiz: examine the following pictures closely... which is the odd one out?! 2D YOKO ONO, 53A ALF, or francis albert 25D SINATRA


holy crap! i almost forgot fred's flintstone's boss... 38D MR. SLATE! that just would't be right.

===================================================
in the "your mileage may vary" category:
===================================================

best clue of the day: 22A "miss gulch biter"... be-yoo-tiful
best answer of the day: 17A ONE FLAT
worst clue of the day: ? i couldn't find a real bad one!
worst answer of the day: (ditto above)


keep on keepin' on...

dann

all elements of the puzzle (grid layout, clues, and answers), NYT, NY Times, and The New York Times logo are ©2007 The New York Times

thursday, october 25, 2007
susan harrington smith / will shortz
















difficulty factor: not too bad for a thursday; it sure has it moments, however!


theme: a VERY cynical 18A ITALIAN 55A PROVERB: 23A "TO TRUST IS GOOD. 36A NOT TO 44A TRUST IS BETTER."

================================

the intensely private, and therefore, mysterious greta garbo (born greta lovisa gustafsson) was a swedish-born actress during the 1920s and 1930s. except during the first years of her career, she completely avoided publicity of any kind. she claimed that the famous line attributed to her: "i [Vant] to be alone," was never spoken by her; she insisted she said, "'i want to be let alone.' there is all the difference." according to ms. garbo, she was reclusive in part because she was "self-obsessed, depressive, and ashamed of her latrine-cleaner father." there are also those who maintain that her sexuality in conflict with religious mores of the time is major grounds for her shunning the limelight. her biographer barry paris stated that she was "technically bisexual, predominantly lesbian, and increasingly asexual as the years went by."

the massive news, sports, and entertainment complex known as 19A CNN center is located at 1 cnn center, marietta street, atlanta, georgia, usa.

"the 27A GILBERTS" (gilbert islands) were a hotbed of world war II activity during 1943-44.


election to membership into phi beta kappa society honors the quality and breadth of a collegiate student's undergraduate academic achievement, and will typically be conferred upon fewer than ten percent of each graduating class. a student who exhibit at least a 3.75 grade point average in liberal arts classes, as well as other specific and non-specific criteria is eligible for selection by other members who review student records each spring to identify candidates. each honoree traditionally receives a KEY...

a 37D DUET is a musical composition for two performers. somehow, sonny and cher managed to perform as a pop/rock duo throughout the 1960s and 1970s. (somebody must've dug those two crazy kids cuz they sold over eighty million records in that period!) they were one of the first of the somewhat likeable "hippie" acts to hit mainstream television with their own show "the sonny and cher comedy hour" on the ultra conservative cbs network.

================================
in the "your mileage may vary" category:
================================

best clue of the day: 48A "fighters for jeff davis"... it works for me!

best answer of the day: 41A RATIONAL... i have an appretiation for things that are logical, rational and provable.

worst clue of the day: 33A "kind of cup"... oh, forget it

worst answer of the day: 32D PRATTLE ON... i just lile the expression...


keep on keepin' on...

dann
all elements of the puzzle (grid layout, clues, and answers), NYT, NY Times, and The New York Times logo are ©2007 The New York Times

wednesday, october 24, 2007
patrick blindauer / will shortz

difficulty factor: no e.m.t. needed, but a few scrapes...



theme: latin phrases... freakin' LATIN PHRASES!

• 4D. ECCE SIGNUM
• 18A. TERRA FIRMA
• 20A. HABEAS CORPUS
• 40A. AB OVO
• 31D. SINE QUA NON
• 62A. SEMPER IDEM
• 59A. AIEA IACTA EST

who knew mr. pasquale was gonna be right about needing latin again in life well past the tenth grade? why did i not heed his oft-repeated, impassioned warnings? why?!

well, to be honest, i only recognized the expressions TERRA FIRMA and HABEAS CORPUS as wholely memorable entities. i recognize SIGNUM and SEMPER from other expressions... and the rest was... well, it was all so... so... latin t' me! second day in a row that the crosses really saved the day!

having been around since near the advent of such things as skivvies, 37D BVD's were once almost synonomous with men's underwear. but, once and for all bvd does not stand for anything other than the initials of the three founders of the company - bradly, vorhees, and day. and while the bvd company, founded in 1876, was acquired by fruit of the loom in 1976, it still survives as a subsidiary.

we have a pool of "visitors" today quite diverse in realities, interests, and ages.

legendary hockey player bobby 11D ORR (born robert gordon orr); the late great funny, funny man 36D LOU costello (louis francis cristillo) best known as the backward, bungling half of the comedy team of Abbott and Costello; and even fictional character 6D ALEC ramsey (portrayed by kelly reno [pictured here] in the 1979 film version of 'the black stallion')

violin virtuoso 2D ISAAC stern was born in kreminiecz, russia and immigrated with his parents to america when he was ten months old. dame nellie 3D MELBA (born helen porter mitchell) the first - and foremost - australian opera soprano to achieve international recognition; basketball player 49A SHAQ (born shaquille rashaun o'neal); and best-selling american feminist writer erica 32A JONG (born erica mann) most famous for a zipless WHAT?!

and roundin' out the crew, mrs. berra's baby boy, yankee great yogi 8D BERRA (born lawrence peter berra)


in the "your mileage may vary" category:

best clue of the day: 66A "they're rather pointless"... misleading... brilliant!

best answer of the day: 54D HIDER... it brought out the kid in me

worst clue of the day: 35A "bottom of a lily"... why? why?!

worst answer of the day: 55A RUST... haven't we exhausted this subject? i think of shades of green, gold, crimson, and orange... but it was much better than "ocher"!


keep on keepin' on...

dann

all elements of the puzzle (grid layout, clues, and answers), NYT, NY Times, and The New York Times logo are ©2007 The New York Times

tuesday, october 23, 2007
alan arbesfeld / will shortz















difficulty factor: probably didn't even require a band-aid - but once you got one out, mom useta say, "if you don't need it now... you're gonna!" not bad at all; all crosses benefitted each other...

theme: 59A "what the starts of 17A, 26A, 37A, and 52A are": THINGS that can be DRAWN!

• 17A CURTAIN CALL
• 26A BATH SPONGE
• 37A BLOOD STREAM
• 52A GUN SLINGER

there were five "visitors" today. the first, henry james, was arguably one of the most educated, prolific, and significant american writers and critics of his time. his belief that narrative fiction, which was best when drawn solely and purely from the writer's own viewpoint and experience (not borrowing from others, or propagandizing), was truly an art form... an art form where brevity - getting to the intended point - was of the absolute finest. hence, today's [most googled] quote at 21A: "IN ART economy is always beauty." not that he always practiced what he staunchly professed. throughout the late 1800s and early 1900s, his sometimes wordy - and always worldly - philosophical writings spanned the subjects of biography, travel, and literary and arts criticism, in the form of 20 novels, 112 stories, 12 plays, a substantial number of literary criticisms, and his own voluminous daily journals which were published posthumously.

the second visitor was 25D BOBBY KNIGHT the patient, humble, shy, reserved collegiate basketball coach...

and the third was singulaly named, rock 'n' roll hall-of-famer 39D DION (born dion di mucci) who with the belmonts (named for belmont avenue, in the bronx) had nominal success on the charts in the in the late 1950s. after going solo, his first #1 hit was "runaround sue" followed the next year by the clued song.


sometime singer, "the gong show" judge, and game show panelist 41A JAYE p. morgan (born mary margaret morgan, and called "j.p." when she was class treasurer of her high school [a reference to financier john pierpont morgan]) and 47A ILKA chase round out today's guests.



in the "your mileage may vary" category:

best clue of the day: 55A "clobber, biblically"... what's not t' like about that?!
best answer of the day: 12D I FORGOT... it works for me!
worst clue of the day: 60A "suffered from"... hey, i had a bike as a kid and i didn't suffer.
worst answer of the day: 20A "amateurish"... as in the league... or... the current president?! (gee, that would make it one of the better answers!)


keep on keepin' on...

dann

all elements of the puzzle (grid layout, clues, and answers), NYT, NY Times, and The New York Times logo are ©2007 The New York Times

monday, october 22, 2007
lynn lempel / will shortz
















difficulty factor: none; easy even for a monday


theme: this was a stretch at best; a rather weak, asymmetrical effort with three lame gimmes, just to get to 57A LITTLE BO PEEP.

• 19A lawreceE WElk
• 34A cLAM Bisque
• 42A faiR AMount

while this puzzle was mostly a breeze, it didn't sit very well with me. i can't explain 'why', either.

the only answer i did not know, 41A NAURU, was amply covered by the crosses.

robert edwin 55D PEARY (on the left) was an american adventurist/explorer whose dubious claims of being the first to reach the [geographic] north pole have been clouded in controversy ever since he made them. but prior to that he extensively explored greenland by dog sled in four major expeditions in the late 1880s and early 1890s. his "success" relied substantially upon borrowed customs, tools, and clothing of the native peoples he encountered and befriended. the boastful peary even claimed that the ages old use of makeshift supply depots along his travel routes were his own "peary system". the doubt, by some, of his assertions did have at least one positive effect: it caused roald engelbregt gravning amundsen (on the right) to be more critical when recording his harrowing exploits to the south pole several years later.

not since homeroom have these two been together... 19A LAWRENCE WELK and 25D RAQUEL WELCH (and btw, shouldn't that be 36D?!)

i'm glad t' see comedy greats jack 59D PAAR (born jacques harold paar ), and mort 37D SAHL (born morton lyon sahl)

in the "your mileage may vary" category:

best clue of the day: 13A "scuttlebutt"... i just like the word!
best answer of the day: 30A GOD... amen!
worst clue of the day: 12D "cloud's site"... wait a minute... what grade are we in?!
worst answer of the day: 6D OCHER... and yes, there is yellow ochre (my preferred spelling), red ochre and brown ochre... boy ochre wouldn't occur to me when describing fall leaves!


keep on keepin' on...

dann
all elements of the puzzle (grid layout, clues, and answers), NYT, NY Times, and The New York Times logo are ©2007 The New York Times