New York Times Crosswords

Welcome

2010-10-18T17:43:00.000-07:00

Hi!

Thanks for visiting. Sorry I can't greet you in person.

This blog has been inactive for years, unfortunately. But crosswords are still great.

Thanks to Patrick Merrill at the NYT crossword blog for the mention.

sincerely,
curtis

Is he talking about me?

2006-11-15T20:26:00.000-08:00

"Among the links to "Blogs" there is at least one where no posting has appeared since March 2006.

I would suggest that bloggers to whom Kevin has extended the courtesy of a link should ask him to remove it if they have not been posting for, say, one month.

In any case, the inactive blog is on a crossword that is likely to be of little interest to the regular visitors to Cruciverb."

If anything, I think there is archeological value to blogs. In the distant future, blogs would be the record of note to how life was at the turn of the millennium. Anyone who wanted to know what life was like then (now), need only search through blogs by keywords. Niche areas, like crossword puzzles, emo music, basket weaving, minor political races, they can all be researched in these archival oral records. To say that these historical accounts are of "little interest" to people, is a myopic insult, not only to me, but also researchers in the 22nd through 25th century.

The Annual Report

2006-08-01T11:51:00.000-07:00

Hi friends,

Just a quick word to keep you abreast of my crossword happenings. I was recently published in the New York Times. Finally! Just within a year of when I started constructing. It was a Monday puzzle, and I recieevd no prior warning about it, so when I booted up my acrosslite for that day, it was a jolly good surprise. You can access that and other puzzles at www.curtisyee.com/crosswords .

Other than that, my output speed has been trickling now that my graduate studies is in full gear. And I'm learning to play the piano. But every now and then, a puzzle will pop up here and there.

Hey Y'all

2006-02-04T17:24:00.000-08:00

It's been a while since I updated my website. The good news is that more and more puzzles of mine are being published, predominantly in the LA Times, a couple in the NY Sun, and my first in the Chronicale of Education. The bad news is that I don't have much time to come up with new puzzles nowadays since my graduate school work is picking up. I've set up a website that has archives of my published work (www.curtisyee.com/crosswords). Other than that, still chugging through the daily NYT.

Word up!

2005-11-28T22:55:00.000-08:00

Hey friends. There is some good news in the last few weeks. First of all, I got my third puzzle accepted at the NY Sun. I've never had a transformation puzzle accepted, so this is good news indeed. Also continuing this trajectory, I finally heard back from Will Shortz on puzzles I sent in last July. Most of it was bad news, and he rejected a good deal of those puzzles, but the good news is, one was straightout accepted and he had three revise and resubmits. The one that got accepted was a pretty modern quote that I was questioning. Even though it's quite funny, I break up the quote in the middle with 2 four-letter, one-word-each entries. So yeah, nary six months after I started in this con, and I'm accepted at the NYT - pantheon of all crosswords. Excitement abound!

Throwback

2005-10-18T10:29:00.000-07:00

Tuesday's puzzle from Jay Leatherman, as I was doing it, reminded me of the days of crosswording before I started doing puzzles. I think this is his second puzzle (his first being a friday) and while it has contemporary theme entries, there are some totally crosswordese words in it. Here are some pretty out there entries I'm surprised at:

Asian goat - TAHR
Persian governers - SATRAPS
Rhone Tributary - ISERE
Lecherous sort - ROUE
Nucleic acid sugar - RIBOSE

And the theme entries are pretty good though (QUITDAYDREAMING, DONTBESONAIVE, GETREAL, ENOUGHALREADY, COMEDOWNTOEARTH). Which makes me so surprised the two mix kinds of crossword puzzles mix at all.

Can it be?

2005-10-10T09:00:00.000-07:00

So soon? After so many months of puzzling, my first puzzle will be appearing in the LA Times (10/10) today. This was a puzzle I was skeptical could be sold anywhere because it's theme is not someone one would associate with crosswords, but good because the themes crossed. It makes you wonder whether was really is that many instances of it that crossing themes could occur. When I tell my friends what it's about, they're not surprised because it is very LA. So hop over to the LA times and find this debut of mine.

I have to say, I was really surprised by how fast the turnaround with Rich Norris is. More surprised is how quick he was able to put it in print. With the NY Sun, there was a 4 month queue, so when Rich told me it would be a month down the line. It made me quite happy. There's another one coming out this month too.

It's been a while

2005-09-10T20:09:00.000-07:00

Hey, I'm sorry that the maintanence of this blog has fallen into complete oblivion. I've widened my crossword regimen to include the NY Sun and the LA Times each morning. Now that I construct crosswords, I've become more critical (snobbish?) about themes, and I really want to see what's out there. Plus, I've sold puzzles to the Sun and LA Times, so I want to make sure I know what kind of puzzles they print. I hate to say it, but Peter Gordon is really doing some cutting edge stuff with his puzzles. I've been rejected there so many times! Anyways! That's what's down with my life now. Thinking up themes all the time. It's really crazy! Anyways, at this point, I've sent 20 puzzles to the NYT, some better than others, and I just play the waiting game now.

O my god

2005-08-11T13:38:00.000-07:00

I have not had much time to update this blog because of my increasing interest in making puzzles. I've actually been doing alright, and sold my second puzzle to the NY Sun this week. Thus covering my initial investment in the crossword compiler. Today I just sent out another batch of puzzles to the NY Times, and from what I heard. It can take up to 6 months before I hear back. Man, that's as bad as research submissions. Except, with crosswords, I actually get paid and so much more people enjoy my work.

Thrusday's Shteyman puzzle was pretty good. I actually had the audacity to finish it and theme was staring in my face. The theme is O-ring, and it literally has a circle of O's in the middle of the puzzle. Moreover, there are no Os anywhere else. This is really clever, and it made me think of themes that come off the page.

Get it out

2005-07-27T11:16:00.000-07:00

Michael Shteyman gives us a running quip today. As a budding constructor, I'm beginning to see how difficult it is to come by quotes that break down exactly. The first one I came across was one by Woody Allen, that broke down into 4 beautiful sets of 15. Alas, it was a quip blue in nature, so it's quite useless. Another way is to paraphrase or make up your own quips.

Today's quip: You can lead a horse to water but a pencil must be lead

There were some tough clues today:

Ampule - Glass vial, usually holding solutions for injections
Emigre - Political emigrant (here clued with Rachmaninoff)

Three pairs

2005-07-26T12:03:00.000-07:00

Lee Glickstein and Nancy Salonmon gives us three pairs of puns today. Quite enjoyable.

Pair of socks? - onetwopunch
Pair of sneakers? - partnersincrime
Pair of pant? - huffandpuff

Cool words:
Electronic journals - blogs
Wise up - getsmart
It ended at 11:00 on 11/11 - wwi
Linen pulp product - ragpaper

So you may have noticed this blog has been subpar recently, and that's because I've been spending way too much time making crossword puzzles. I have foresaken work and alienated friends. I have a few ones that I'm quite proud of and will be sending to Will Shortz soon. Man, what a trip it would be to be published in the NYT. Sorry if I'm disappointing anyone for not keeping this blog up to date. I've been doing the daily puzzles, but don't have time to do intense research anymore. If you're interested in test driving an original puzzle from me, please email me!

Out for a stroll

2005-07-20T11:52:00.000-07:00

A historical puzzle to take us down memory lane. Wait minute, I wasn't even born then. Sorry, but no memories whatsoever.

He was first - neilarmstrong
He was second - edwinaldrinjr
What the two did on July 20, 1969 - walkedonthemoon

So, let's look at the things I didn't know:

Erin Carle - Author and illustrator of chuldren's book - A very hungry caterpillar. Awww. good times.
George Brett - American baseball player, famous third baseman.
Pauline Betz - American female tennis player, winner of Wimbelton, American and French championships.
Joanne Dru - Actress of westerns such as, Red River, She wore a yellow ribbon, Wagon Master. All the king's men.
Sato - 60's Japanese prime minister, who won a Nobel peace prize for having Japan join the Nuclear Non-proliferation treaty.

Imaginary undying flower - Amaranth. From Greek 'amarantos' meaning unwithering, and typified immortality. I quote John Milton in Paradise Lost:

"Immortal amarant, a flower which once
In paradise, fast by the tree of life,
Began to bloom; but soon for man's offence
To heaven removed, where first it grew, there grows,
And flowers aloft, shading the fount of life,
And where the river of bliss through midst of heaven
Rolls o'er elysian flowers her amber stream:
With these that never fade the spirits elect
Bind their resplendent locks."

Tuesday Trip

2005-07-19T11:00:00.000-07:00

Trip Payne gives us four common sayings with the same theme, making it breezy and surprisingly consistent.

"Everything can't work out perfectly" - winsomelosesome
Tactic during police questioning - goodcopbadcop
It's one's word against the other - hesaidshesaid
Not continuous - onagainoffagain

Co-ed

2005-07-18T11:27:00.000-07:00

What I found intriguing about Randy Sowell's puzzle, wasn't that the theme was complex, but rather how there were many intertwining other themes. Mini-themes if you will.

Main clues:
1976 Hoffman/ Olivier film - marathonman
Character who debuted in All Star Comics, December 1941 - wonderwoman
Title song os a 1966 hit movie - georgygirl
Brendan Behan book - borstalboy

Mini-themes:
Darn, as socks - sews
Darn, as socks - darns
WIth 62 across, first two names of Guy de Maupassant - Henri Rene
August 1 sign - Aries
April 1 sign - Leo
Dik Browne's "Hi and ___"
Dik Browne's "___ the Horrible"

Randy had a couple comic book references, and mainly movies and music stuff, so this makes for a pretty breezy yet fun crossword.

Within the elements

2005-07-11T14:09:00.000-07:00

Janet Putney gives us a breezy puzzle to start the week off.

Long clues:
Greeting for Julius - 'hailcaesar'
Mel Torme's sobriquet - 'velvetfog'
Illict reserve - 'slushfund'
Title song of a Prince film - 'purplerain'
This puzzle's theme - 'weather'

This puzzle had the names of three authors, so let's do a
Writer Showcase:

Karel Capek - Czech writer who made the word Robot popular through his play R.H.R (Rossem's Universal Robots).
Edward Albee - American Pulitzer Prize winning playwright, with famous plays like the Zoo Story, the Sandbox, Who's afraid of Virginia Woolf, Tiny Alice, A Delicate Balance, Seascape, Three Tall Women, and The Goat, or Who is Sylvia.
Willa Cather - eminent Pulitzer Prize winning female American author, with works such as O Pioneer!, My Antonia, One of Ours, and Death comes for the Archbishop.

So some of you may know that I've started to try my hand at constructing crossword puzzles. Man, what a long and arduously painful process. Anyways, it paid off today because I keep learning things as I construct. For example, I toyed with using 'etoile' in a puzzle, which is French for a six-pointed star. Lo and behold, it was used today.

I totally blanked out

2005-07-08T12:28:00.000-07:00

Thursday' puzzle kicked my ass. David Quarfoot is one devious fellow, whom I shall curse with my fists waving in the air wildly. I just gave up in the middle of it, and waited till the next day and check my answers. And my friend, the theme is totally crazy out of this world. When it dawned on me, I was like totally swearing my mind out.

Main clues:
Moving aids, or a hint to this puzzle's theme -
Redeemable recyclables -
Like some glasses, in a phrase -
Statement not to worry about -
Pledge, but not really -
Loses ignominiously, on a game show -
Fail, as in a search -
Push ahead , despite exhaustion -
Older couple's home, often -
With 52-Across, how to take some medications -

Anyways, as you may know. I had problems with most of the clues. So brace yourself, this will be a long post.

In progress - afoot

Tricky Clues:
They often have four parts - Chorales
Its name is also its NYSE symbol - IBM
Big bang producer - TNT
One involved in a faceoff - linesman

Minutemen - Umass team name
Okemo - Vermont Ski resort
DSO - Distinguished Service Order, British honorary
Eczema - Dematitis, causes itchy, red, flaky skin.

Things to know:
Welsh Rarebit - A cheesy dish
Lee Grant - actress who won an Oscar for Shampoo, and also nominated for Voyage of the Damned, the Landlord and Detectove Story
Bremen - German port town
Rara avis - a unique or rare person or thing
Ent - Humanoid trees from Tolkien's Middle Earth.

Dante's Inferno's first line - 'Nel mezzo del cammin di nostra vita' which translates to 'in the middle of the journey of our lives'

Laudo manentem; si celeres quatit
Pennas, resigno quae dedit, et mea
Virtute me involvo, probamque
Pauperiem sine dote quaero.
- Carmina (III, 29), Horace

Which translates to:
I praise Fortune while she lasts;
if she shakes her quick wings,
I resign what she has given,
and take refuge in my own virtue,
and seek honest undowered Poverty.

Crossword work out

2005-07-06T14:00:00.000-07:00

Raymond Hamel's Wednesday puzzle gave me a lot of false starts. It took me much longer than usual to get through it, but it was quite satisfying. In fact, I didn't think there was a clue because I was so engrossed in the small details of the puzzle.

The main clues:
Cereal box figure with a hat - capncrunch
Group forcing men into military service - pressgang
Emergency military operation - airlift
Enhancing undergarment - pushupbra
Orange snack item - cheesecurl

But there were a lot of clues I didn't know. I'm surprised I can immodestly admit I got all of them.

Next-to-last Italian queen - Elena
House feature - gable
Word on a biblical wall - mene
Igor Moiseyev - Russian choreographer
Assistance - succor
Don Shula - Longtime Dolphins coach
Trash bins - ashcans
Essay has an alternate definition of attempt, or endeavor

Interesting clues:
Product of dehydration - seasalt
Body of art - torso
Shooter - bbgun
Dairy case item - oleo
Where to put old newspapers, maybe - cage

A relatively closer look:
Gable - A triangular, usually ornamental architectural section, as one above an arched door or window.

Cleo the goldfish was featured in Disney's Pinnochio.

Ulysses was banned in America as it was classified as obscene until 1933.

Hells Canyon is in Lewiston, Idaho, crafted by Snake River.

Press gang - The organisation at the ports charged with obtaining seamen was known as the Impress Service. The Impress service was limited to seizing men who were seamen, a word given a broad interpretation. The age limits were set at 18 to 55 years of age, frequently these limits were ignored.They often dupe and kidnap people into the Navy.

John Brown's Body

2005-07-05T12:21:00.000-07:00

This is Beth Hinshaw's first puzzle in the times, and it's an interesting debut. Not only are the main clues interesting, but a lot of interesting cross words too.

Noted actor's writing implements - seanpennspens
Noted actore's sons - alanladdslads
Noted actor's underarms - bradpittspits

The two interesting clues she go in were :
Workweek letters - mtwtf
'Wheel of fortune' purchases - aeiou
I love serial abbreviations like this. Another one I can think of was the lines on staff, the strings of a guitar.

Things to know:
Peter Yates - director of Breaking Away, Bullitt
Garman Spa - Ems (such as Bad Ems)
Clifford Odets - author of Golden Boy, Waiting for Lefty

Stand and Deliver

2005-07-04T11:28:00.000-07:00

Nancy Salomon gives us a quaint 4th of July puzzle.

Main clues:
With 59-acress, lyric from 'America, the beautiful' - andcrownthygood withbrotherhood
Lyric from 'the Star-Spangled Banner' - homeofthebrave
Lyric from 'America' - letfreedomring

Words to know:
Ingmar Bergman - Swedish director, such as Wild Strawberries, Seventh Seal, Smiles of a Summer Night, High Tension, Persona
Immie - shooting marble
Rhoda's TV Mom - Ida
Yorba Linda, CA - Orange County city

Google Adventure:

Anyways, so I've seen a lot of clues about marble shooting, so I wanted to get a list of common marble jargon. Shop talk, if you will.

Aggie - Marble made out of agate.
Immie - Immitation agate marble, like one made of glass.
Alley - Marble made of marble, as in alabaster.
Bombsies - Dropping you shooter on the target marble.
Histing - lifting you knckles from the ground while shooting.
Knuckle down - To put one knuckle of your shooting hand in contact with the ground.
Lagging - A way of choosing who shoots first. Players roll their marbles toward a line in the dirt (the lag line). Whoever gets closest without going over gets to shoot first.
Kimmies/ Mibs - The target marbles in a game.
Taw/ Shooter - The shooting marble.
Keepsies/ Playing for keeps - you keep all the marbles you win.
Playing for fair - All marbles are returned to owner after the game.
Plunking - Hitting the targets on the fly.

Finally, selected lyrics to the three songs quoted in the puzzle:

The Star Spangled Banner

Oh, say, can you see, by the dawn's early light,
What so proudly we hail'd at the twilight's last gleaming?
Whose broad stripes and bright stars, thro' the perilous fight,
O'er the ramparts we watch'd, were so gallantly streaming?
And the rockets' red glare, the bombs bursting in air,
Gave proof thro' the night that our flag was still there.
O say, does that star-spangled banner yet wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave?

America the Beautiful

O beautiful for spacious skies,
For amber waves of grain,
For purple mountain majesties
Above the fruited plain!
America! America!
God shed his grace on thee
And crown thy good with brotherhood
From sea to shining sea!

America

My country,' tis of thee,
sweet land of liberty, of thee I sing;
land where my fathers died,
land of the pilgrims' pride,
from every mountainside let freedom ring!

What's the use?

2005-06-30T12:09:00.000-07:00

Joe DiPietro gives us a bit of wordplay for this Thursday puzzle. I still can't believe I completed most of them. The clues were consistent and some chuckle-worthy.

Unappropriated financial aid? - 'loosegrant;
Conventional breakfast drink? - 'orthodoxjuice'
Dr. in favor of compensation? - 'seussfordamages'
Low card in the upper elevations? - 'mountaindeuce'
Tale of a ceasefire? - 'trucestory'

At the same time, four long cross-clues were also excellent (kepthouse, placetogo,fullmouth,tablesalt)!!

Things to know:
St. Croix River - river between Maine and New Brunswick
oast - A kiln for drying hops or malt or drying and curing tobacco. (brewer's need)

Twisted clues:
Play boy? - actor
Natural - undyed
Tint part - cameo
Fall locale - eden
It runs down one's arm - ulna
X - ten
Mystery man - mrx
Game pieces - men
It's labels S, not P - table salt
Filing aid - emery
Pronouncement - dictum

What's your type?

2005-06-29T09:00:00.000-07:00

This, my friend, was a fun puzzle, because the first long clue had me guessing right till the end. I got all the other long clues, and it was the first one that had the smartest fill. Good job Mr. David Liben-Nowell.

Person of letters - 'keyboardist'
Home of above - 'asdfhjkl'
Emulate a rookie above - 'huntandpeck'
Emulate a veteran above - 'touchtype'

The Home of the Person is really well done. I was wondering if I was getting the right clues because it was spelling gibberish. Anyways.

Words to know:
Treadle
Elul
Anisette

Who do we appreciate?

2005-06-28T09:00:00.000-07:00

A very standard tuesday crossword, with 4 long clues. However, there were a couple clues that surprised me. Anyways, this one's by Jim Hyres.

Breakfast order - 'twoeggsovereasy'
Lucky charms - 'fourleafclovers'
U.S. senator's salary, eg - 'sixfigureincome'
Bygone music collection -'eighttracktapes'

Surprising clue -
High, in a way - onpot
Foo Fighters

People to know-
Gus Grisson - American Astronaut on Project Mercury
Stan Smith - American tennis player, Wimbledon champion
Marlin Perkins - host of Wild Kingdom, zoologist
Elena Verdugo - 40's actress, of many horror films
Robert Towne - Oscar winning screenwritier, for Chinatown, the Two Jakes, Shampoo, Mission Impossible. Trivia - for his oscar nominated screenplay, Greystoke: The Legend of Tarzan, Lord of the Apes, he credited his sheepdog, P.H. Varzak, making him the first dog nominated for an oscar.

Places to go-
Russia's Lake Onega - Second largest lake in Europe
Coeur d'Alene, Idaho

Not, in Nuremberg - nicht

Google trip - Let's go to Sault Ste Marie

Sault Ste. Marie is French for Rapids of St. Mary. There are several places that share this name, all centered around the rapids in the river that drains Lake Superior, like Michigan and Ontario.

Choices, choices

2005-06-27T09:00:00.000-07:00

This Monday one wasn't bad at all. In fact, I was surprised how consistent the long clues were. Sometimes, you can tell one of the longer clues is a weak link for others, but this one was good. Kurt Mengel and Jan-Michele Gianette sure has tricks up their sleeves:

Choice at a supermarket checkout - 'paperorplastic'
Choice offered at an electronic payment machine -'creditordebit'
Choice at an airplane ticket counter - 'windoworaisle'
Choice at a coffee bar - 'regularordecaf'

Things to know:
Loni Anderson - American Actress, once married to Burt Reynolds, notably WKRP Cincinnati
Georgia Engel - American Film/ TV actress, notably the Mary Tyler Moore show.
Tommy LaSorda - Dodgers manager.

Think outside the box, man!

2005-06-23T12:52:00.000-07:00

Courtenay Crocker III's Thursday crossword puzzle was fiendishly well crafted. Moreover, the theme was out of this world.

City is England - 'chester'
Old musket carrier - 'militia'
Treat Roughly - 'handle'
Architect's aide - 'drafts'
Maid's counterpart - 'servant'
Armed gang member - 'trigger'
Project Mercury objective (and a hint to the above) - 'maninouterspace'

Anyways, even though I completed the puzzle very slowly and all confused because all the main clue were not really related, and some of them really didn't make sense. A stretch for some of them. As I was filling out the puzzle, I suspected it may be the case where more than 1 letter is put in each square, but quickly dismissed that idea because the clues don't fit. However, what Crocker did was even more ingenious! He uses the space outside of the grid! In order for the
clues to work, you have to put the word 'man' in the outer square, which is either before or after some of the clues. Super ingenious!

Anyways, not only did the theme whoop me, but also many of the clues. It's puzzles like these that don't make me think I'm getting any better at this game.

Things to know:
Former Rep. Abzug - Bella
Capital originally called the City of Kings - Lima, Peru

Things I should know by now:
Anatomical Mouths - ora
Yma Sumac - Peruvian singer
Minsk's home - Belarus

(Previously, I might have refered to Courtenay as a she. This is a trememndous error on my part. Official apologies.)

Win, Lose, Draw!

2005-06-22T09:37:00.000-07:00

Verna Suit gives me a Wednesday puzzle that I couldn't figure out. Even though I consider myself somewhat well versed in films and movie trivia, I'm not one to know about much older films. I can tell you more about Police Academy than Casablanca. Sigh. Anyways, today's theme surrounds a 1952 movie.

1952 Best Actor for 37, 38 Across - 'garycooper'
With 49 Across, theme song of 37, 38 Across - 'donotforsakemeohmydarlin'
37, 38 - Subject of this puzzle - 'highnoon'
Costar of 37,38 - 'gracekelly'

Anywas, there were also a lot of things to know:
Big name in siding - alcoa
River of Florence - Arno
1916 battle site - Somme
Lorre's Casablanca role - ugarte
Egyptian God of wisdom - Thoth
Elmo Zumwalt - American Naval Leader during Vietnam

So... Whatcha doin'?

2005-06-21T09:00:00.000-07:00

Nancy Kavanaugh gives us today's puzzle.

One liable to get hurt - 'sittingduck'
Provision for late-arriving spectators - 'standingroom'
Insect that's well camouflaged on a tree - 'walkingstick'
Co-nominee - 'runningmate'

It was a pretty neat puzzle, and I was at the end of my rope with a 12 square block, wondering whether 'skin flick' was a pun or a porno. The answer was 'nudie' and I started laughing.

Things to know:
Capitol of Rwanda - Kigali
Ariel Sharon - Israeli Prime Minister since 2001

We've only just begun

2005-06-20T21:37:00.000-07:00

A neat little puzzle by Alison Donald to kick off the week. Nothing too challenging about it.

Classic Charles Darwin work -"originofspecies"
What the love of money is, they say - "rootofallevil"
The Big Bang, to a physicist - "beginningottime"

Things to know:

Sinn Féin - means "ourselves" or "we ourselves" has been applied to a series of political movements since 1905 in Ireland.
Santa Isabel - Soloman Island Island
Bromo - stomach seltzer
Knit and Purl - stitching method

Crossworld, by Marc Romano

2005-06-20T16:19:00.000-07:00

I just finsihed Marc Romano's new book, Crossworld: one man's journey into America's crossword obsession. I had great expectations for this book, as I was hoping it would do for crosswords, what Mark Fatsis' Word Freaks did to Scrabble. I suspect the sphere for these two books overlap considerably. However, Crossworld is not as exhilarant and enlightening, and while some of this faults on the inherent nature of crossword puzzles, I found the onus on the author's emphasis in the book.

The crossword puzzle tournament takes place over a weekend, as opposed to Fatsis' yearlong pursuit. Romano doesn't interact with as many characters as one would hope. The most exciting parts of the book came from quirky oddballs like Brendan Emmet Quigley and Will Shortz, as well as other puzzle constructors and competitors. However, their appearances were scant mainly because of the authors focus on his own experience. Since crossword is a solitary pursuit, where you compete with a passive constructor, all the thought process dwells in your own mind, and no one else is involved. This I found was the problem with the book, and Romano details a lot of his own thought process and experience of the experiment, from the side effects of taking calming drugs, to checking out females at the tournament, to his falling ill after the tournament. This kind of details and detours make the book more autobiographical than journalistic, and I found this to be both annoying and detracting from crosswords.

I was hoping for more insight to what kind of quirky people would construct puzzles, would do them and would attend this tournament specifically just for puzzling, but the insights on this were minimal. Another source of thrill for me was when Romano describes crossword puzzles, such as their themes and such. But since fewer than 10 puzzles are featured over the tournament, this thrill was also in short supply.

I also found Romano's musing about cultural differences between crosswords and their british counterpart (cryptic crossword) a bit lofty and circumloquatious. He takes a few sub chapters describing possible causes to this divergence, and only a few paragraphs in describing the actual differences. I am also very impressed by the vocabulary of this book, as well as the multitude of cultural allusions, making this a delight to the avid crossword solver. However, the authors style is both intellectual and distracting from the subject at hand, as I felt that too many tangetial comments were made for humorous effect. In short, I felt the emphasis on this book was slightly misplaced, and by making the author the main focus, it gives him ample space to amble on about himself and gives the reader the distracting thought that he's really padding out a shorter book.

You're going down

2005-06-14T09:15:00.000-07:00

Sarah Keller gives us anTuesday with three titles linked by one word.

After 29-Down, a movie starring Diane Lane - "thetuscansun"
After 29-Down, a James Grippando thriller - "coverofdarkness"
After 29-Down, A Drifter's hit - "theboardwalk"
29-Down - "under"

Things I should know by now:
Author of "The Clan of the Cave Bear" - Jean Auel, the story is about wild child Ayla.
Bibi Osterwald - TV actress
Samovar - metal urn

Our google adventure today finds the top 10 longest river of Switzerland. Aar always comes up anyways:

1. Rhine - 375 km
2. Aar - 295 km
3. Rhône River - 264 km
4. Reuss River - 158 km
5. Linth / Limmat - 140 km
6. Saane/Sarine - 128 km
7. Thur - 125 km
8. Inn River - 104 km

Ceci n'est pas une ____

2005-06-13T09:00:00.000-07:00

Eael Reed delivers a pitch perfect Monday crossword, with four clues that can be related with one word, and I didn't get it till I got it.

United Nations' goal - "worldpeace"
Bubbly drink mixer - "seltzerwater"
Musician's asset - "perfectpitch"
Something caught near the end of a race - "secondwind"
Word that can follow the end of the above -"pipe"

Today's Google adventure takes us to the streets and avenues of Atlantic City. There are 22 streets in the game of Monopoly (starting from Go):

Mediterranean Avenue
Baltic Avenue
Oriental Avenue
Vermont Avenue
Connecticut Avenue
St. Charles Place
States Avenue
Virginia Avenue
St. James Place
Tennessee Avenue
New York Avenue
Kentucky Avenue
Indiana Avenue
Illinois Avenue
Atlantic Avenue
Ventnor Avenue
Marvin Gardens
Pacific Avenue
North Carolina Avenue
Pennsylvania Avenue
Park Place
Boardwalk

The original tokens are: a top hat, an iron, a Scottie dog, a battleship, a car, a wheelbarrow, a thimble, a cannon, a horse and rider, and an old boot.

A bit of trivia I found: Marvin Gardens has been mispelt since the first edition, after Marven Gardens.

What this puzzle takes

2005-06-11T15:37:00.000-07:00

Nancy Salomon delivers a very sweet puzzle today, where the theme is united by just one word. It really is dazzling wordsmanship.

Hamburger center - "beefpatty"
Sore throat soother - "lemontea"
Chinese bowlful - "friedrice"
Sweet appetizer - "fruitcup"
Steaming mugful - "hotcoffee"
Word that can follow either half of the above - "cake"

Things to know:
amerind - contraction of "american indian"
Mudville Whiffer - Casey, based on the Ernest Thayer poem, Casey at the Bat.
Daughter of Saturn - Ceres (also Ops)

I think I should know by now who the three sister's are from the Chekov play:
Olga, Masha, Irina

Do you come here often?

2005-05-24T09:56:00.000-07:00

While not really difficult, this puzzle by Mike Torch was a lot of fun, as it emplys a lot of modern and colorful words.

Main Clues:
Never - "whenhellfreezes"
Sometimes - "onceinabluemoon"
Always - "twentyfourseven"

Just these big clues show how hip this puzzle is. But wait, there's more:
Like a multipurpose tool, perhaps - teninone
Big Apple daily, briefly - nytimes
Excused oneself, with "out" - bofed
Dance, slangily - hoof
Internet music-sharing service - kazaa

I'm really surprised they worked in Kazaa and even a self-conscious self-reference to the times itself. Super coolio.

Things to learn:
Lethe - a river in Hades; the souls of the dead had to drink from it, which made them forget all they had done and suffered when they were alive.
Erte - pronounced R-T, the initials of Romain de Tirtoff, french art deco designer.

How 2's

2005-05-23T02:35:00.000-07:00

Robert Dillman shows us what a monday puzzle is all about. Nothing tricky, very straightforward.

Mole - "doubleagent"
Romantic dinner reservation - "tablefortwo"
Small plane - "twinengine"
Poker variation - "deuceswild"

So it gives us four ways to say it.

Things to know:
Reagan attorney general - Edwin Meese
Alba Longa - ancient city of Latium, birthplace of Romulus and Remus

I was also wondering whether in Iraq, they would have modified popular sayings of the US. Instead of TGIF, they might say PAIF - Praise Allah It's Friday.

Added ease

2005-05-19T09:00:00.000-07:00

I'm just gald I got the theme of today's puzzle. One in particular was quite funny. I was about half done before I started looking up a few clues. Just a few.

Blastoff of Spirit or Opportunity? - emissiontomars
Once-beautiful castle? -estateofruin
Moon-pastry? eclairdelune
Three-hanky film? - emotionpicture

Anyways, a lot of fun clues for me to mull through today:
Lord of the ring, once - ali
It follows a line - bus
What Voltaire and Mark Twain were not - realnames
Choice for people who go Dutch - klm

Something I should know by now:
The Jewish Months - Nisan, Iyar, Sivan, Tamuz, Av, Elul, Tishrei, Cheshvan, Kislev, Teves, Shevat, Adar.
Henri Nestle - Chocolatier
Baba - Rum or syrup soaked cakes.
Stele - An upright stone or slab with an inscribed or sculptured surface, used as a monument or as a commemorative tablet in the face of a building.

And lastly, as a means to lift our spirits:

SONNET: POLITICAL GREATNESS

Nor happiness nor majesty nor fame
Nor peace nor strength nor skill in arms or arts
Shepherd those herds whom Tyranny makes tame,
Verse echoes not one beating of their hearts,
History is but the shadow of their shame,
Art veils her glass, or from the pageant starts
As to Oblivion their blind millions fleet,
Staining that Heaven with obscene imagery
Of their own likeness. What are numbers knit
By force or custom? Man who man would be,
Must rule the empire of himself; in it
Must be supreme, establishing his throne
On vanquished will, quelling the anarchy
Of hopes and fears, being himself alone.
Percy Bysshe Shelley

X-treme X-words

2005-05-18T10:51:00.000-07:00

This is a very very special crossword for me for several reasons. I've always wanted to complete a NYT crossword puzzle on my birthday, but never has. And after years of practice, I was finally hoping to do it today. And when I found that it was one by Braendan Emmet Quigley, I was disheartened and swore quietly to myself. I knew of Quigley's caliber of crossword construction, since I've struggled painfully with the special collection of his SuperStar puzzles way back. I was totally unprepared to have to work against his wit.

That said, I am extremely pleased with today's edition because it was challenging, and well constructed. It had a bunch of modern and punny twists. As I was filling it in, I was surprisingly exhilerated. Man, this was a satisfying romp, with 6 themed entries with unusual words because of that.

"Big news!" - extraextra
Fred Sanford player, on TV - reddfoxx
Like some menus - prixfixe
Photocopier "ink" - xeroxtoner
Like some bonds - taxexempt
"The Complete Book of Running" author - jamesfixx

So with this theme, you know there's a lot of crazy words, and Quigley really does come through with some fun and modern clues:
Completely - atoz
Dance version of a song, maybe - remix
USN rank - adm
USN rank - cmdr
60's happening - bein
Overthrow, say - error
Scout master? - tonto
Stunt biker's bike - BMX
Oil, slangily - texas tea

Things to know:
Nehi - A brand of soda, as seen on MASH drank by Radar.
Teena Brandon/ Brandon Teena - Hilary Swanks' oscar winning role in Boys Don't Cry.
James Fixx - 80's fitness guru who popularized running with his book, The Complete Book of Running.
Brent Musburger - Sportscaster
Ira Glass - NPR host of This American Life.
Erno Rubik - Hungaria Inventor, notably for his eponymous cube.
Claudio Monteverdi (1567-1643) - Italian composer, notably for opera Orfeo, and the Vespers of the Sacred Virgin.
Be In - 60's happening, the Human Be-In took place in 1964, Jan 14, at the San Francisco Golden Gate Park, as a landmark of beat culture, counterculturalism and Hippie philosphy.
Prix Fixe - A complete meal of several courses, sometimes with choices permitted, offered by a restaurant at a fixed price.

Turning Tricks

2005-05-17T21:00:00.000-07:00

That's odd, this feels like an April Fools crossword, except it's not April Fools. Weird. This puzzle by Sherry Blackard had several difficult clues.

First trick - disappearingink
Second trick - dribbleglass
Third trick - squirtflower
Trickster's comment after above - thejokewasonyou

Speaking of tricks, I came across this website last night, Prangstgrup, whose hijinks include staging some guerilla musical numbers in some run-of-the-mill places.

Wax on, Wax off

2005-05-16T09:00:00.000-07:00

A fun puzzle with classic word play by Marc Gameroff today. What a great way to start off the week.

Inquiring about the leaving time? - checkoncheckout
Endure a comedy routine? - standforstandup
Substitie for a jittery pilot? - takeovertakeoff

Word I didn't know:
hasp - A metal fastener with a hinged slotted part that fits over a staple and is secured by a pin, bolt, or padlock.

Let's go on a google adventure!

The Four Corner States - Utah, Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado
Eileen Brennan - Actress, notably in the Sting

All I need is a phonebooth and a tight t-shirt

2005-05-12T09:22:00.000-07:00

It's hard. It's funny. It's a Thursday puzzle by Manny Nosowsky. When I figured out the theme, I laughed. With three long horizontal clue, and a vertical one that intersects them all, this was truly a well-constructed puzzle.

Clearly doing evil- uptonogoodatall
At issue - upfordiscussion
Alee - awayfromthewind
Cry in Metropolis while pointing... and a hint to this puzzle's theme - lookitssuperman

Alas, there was so much I didn't know:
Avec - with, opposite of sans (without)
Obtund - To make less intense; dull or deaden.
Enos Slaughter - Baseball player, right fileder for the Cardinals
maul - a heavy long-handled hammer used to drive stakes or wedges

Can anyone explain how FILL is a answer for 'place for change'?

Lyrics to the Irish Lullaby:

Toora, loora, loora
Toora, loora, li
Toora, loora, loora
Hush, now, don't you cry
Ah,
Toora, loora, loora
Toora, loora, li
Toora, loora, loora
It's an Irish lullaby

State-ments

2005-05-11T12:42:00.000-07:00

A bit of punny regional dialect today from Kumar Balani and Lou Sabin.

Georgian's question before a fight? - youmaconfunofme
Montanan's comeback? - yourearealbutte
New Yorker's dare? - okaytroytohitme
Alaskan's sorry cry? - juneauwhatyadid

I'm surprised they got one mild curse into this one, but none the less I'm impressed by this puzzle because it really was a lot of fun. Also, they worked in the home town of my ex-girlfriend. I also realized how poor my American geography is. There also were a lot of fun clues:
Places to find dates? - oases

Words I didn't know:
Parsec - 3.2616 light years, stands for "parallax of one arc second".
Cruet - small glass to hold a condiment, such as vinegar
Steffi Graf - Tennis pro of the 80' and 90's.
Alex Katz - Modern American Artist, leader of modern realism.

And for your information:
Major Cities of Yemen (by size) - Sana'a (capital), Aden, Taizz, Hudayah, Mukalla, Ibb and Dhamar

They had 'eddy' today with the clue of Countercurrent. I remember a really fiendish clue that described it as Current Event. Man, that was a tricky one.

4-way split

2005-05-10T09:00:00.000-07:00

Today's crossword was fun and gives us four ways to split. Well done Nancy Solomon!

Split - getoutofdodge
Split - headforthehills
Split - hitthehighway
With 69 Across, Split - skip town

For the last clue, she even split a split - a meta-split.

The only one I wasn't familiar with was the first, and apparently, it alludes to Dodge City, Kansas. Anyways, a few new words to learn today, but let's start with the ones I know.
rivet, primo, et alii, and I can never spell myrrh

Firth - Scottish term for an arm of the sea, usually an estuary or strait
STP - gas additive

And for today's google adventure, let's look at the close knit family of Zeus!
Zeus - Supreme God of Greek mythology
Cronus and Rhea - Zeus's father and mother
Hades - Zeus' brother, god of the underworld
Poseidon - Zeus' Brother, god of the sea
Demeter - Zeus' Sister, goddess of fertility and agriculture
Hesita - Zeus' sister, goddess of the hearth
Metis, Themis and Mnemosyne - Zeus' first, second and third wife
Hera - Zeus' sister and final wife, goddess of marriage
Ares - Zeus' son (with Hera), god of war
Hebe - Zeus' daughter (with Hera), personification of youth
Athena - Zeus' offsrping (sprung from his head), goddess of wisdom, war and crafts
Plus he's had many affaris with gods and mortals, so those illigit kids number too many!

Unthemed Monday

2005-05-09T09:00:00.000-07:00

I don't think today's puzzle is themed, but I think Jim Hyres put in some interesting and unusual words for the long ones.

Shrinking Arctic Mass - polaricecap
Vary large ham -showboater
Texas' official flower -bluebonnet
Competition on an indoor ring -rollerderby

Well, since there weren't any new words, let's go on a google adventure!
Ionia - Ancient Turkey
Gregg Shorthand - A phoentic writing system developed by John Gregg
And since I'm not one into astrology, I need to learn the signs:
Aries
Taurus
Gemini
Cancer
Leo
Virgo
Libra
Scorpio
Sagittarius
Capricorn
Aquarius
Pisces
Maybe what we need is a handy mnemonic....

(The cru's tratclif helped me out here with the theme. There is indeed one as the last part of each clue is a kind of apparell. I am shamed that I totally missed this.)

and Reversed

2005-05-05T21:24:00.000-07:00

Well, today's puzzle certainly whooped me. Not only the clues, but the theme. So I got three answers and also a the pun the three are connected, and I still couldn't get the theme. What's the connection?

Riding a bike, eg, for most - secondnature
Everyone knows it - householdname
Annual Oct 24 honoree - unitednations
What the three contain, in a manner of speaking - splicedgenes

So I'm thinking how three three clues can be an example of the theme. And my first thought was that these were famous Genes and their last names were split apart. So for example, there's a famous Gene Secure, and if you splice Secure, you can get SECondnatURE. So that got me staring and staring to no avail. I had to refer to the forum to see what others said. And learned that a more appropriate title would be spliced with genes. See, these are all clues with dna hidden in them. While I like clues like this (another one that comes to mind was a puzzle with words like hotellobby, builttoscale and the theme was hidden operas) this was had a misleading theme name. But a valiant effort nonetheless.

A lot I didn't know in this puzzle. There's some words I know the meaning of but didn't connect with the clues to put them in. Like Assay, Limber, Tempest.

Clues to learn:
Hans Christian Anderson's birth city - Odense
Green-skinned dancing girl in Star Wars - Oola (how am I supposed know this?)
Lincoln's first VP - Hannibal Hamlin
Eden Prairie - Minn. town
Frankie Laine sang Moonlight Gambler
Entre Nous - literally "between us" an adverb to specify information is a secret.
Awn - plant bristle (usually found on grass)
Soporific - inducing sleep, so a soporific deliver is monotone.

Cute Clues:
Horseplay? - polo
Put a new handle on - rename
Org. with a mission - nasa

Seriously, who else can they be talking about?

2005-05-04T11:33:00.000-07:00

Today's crossword is themed around a recently elected leader. Seriously, how many ones can there be? 5 long clues and one shorter one at 1-across.

Office of 37-Across - theholysee
Home of 37-Across - vaticancity
Leader elected in 2005 -popebenedictxvi
Title of 37-Across - hisholiness
Predecessor of 37-Across -johnpaulii
Term of affection for 37-Across -papa

This makes me wonder though, do you think the Pope is an avid cruciverbalist? Maybe he solves crossword puzzles between papal edicts?

Straight Ace

2005-05-03T09:22:00.000-07:00

Today's puzzle has four themed clue, and also a two word title in the center, elegantly designed by Gary Steinmehl. The main clues are:

Do embroidery - needlepoint
Old TV show that featured "bachelorettes" with "the" - datinggame
Classic toy for budding engineers - erectorset
It can't light just anywhere - safetymatch
With 41-across, question associated with above - tennis anyone

Things I didn't know:
Charlie Chaplin's brother - Syd(ney)
Apres-ski - Some kind of skiing, not really sure
Mel Ott - NY Giants out-fielder

So, I've recently bought several books of the NYT crosswords to tide me over at night. And I've been digging into the two omnibi of easy crosswords. I've been getting stuck on a lot of them, even though the book purports to be from Mondays exclusively. I feel awfully bad when I can't get some clues, which leads me to believe that NYT crosswords now are a lot more doable. Does anyone else have this feeling?

Something not to find in bed when you wake up

2005-05-02T15:09:00.000-07:00

I'm not sure if this puzzle is themed. The clues seemed unrelated, especially that the first answer was in the format of a themed answer:

Assault - kindofrifle
Citation - courtsummons
Affirmed - corroborated
Rare event in horseracing - triplecrown

So I got all these, but the closest theme I can find was phrases with a hard K sound, which is a really stupid theme. So I checked out the NYT crosswords forum, and found that there was indeed a theme, but it wasn't in my area of expertise. Assault, Citation and Affirmed were all horses that have won the Triple Crown. How am I supposed to know this? Well, for future information, here are all 11 horses that have ever won the Triple Crown. Apparently, a coveted title in horseracing.

Affirmed - 1978
Seattle Slew - 1977
Secretariat - 1973
Citation - 1948
Assault - 1946
Count Fleet - 1943
Whirlaway - 1941
War Admiral - 1937
Omaha - 1935
Gallant Fox - 1930
Sir Barton - 1919

Good Grief!

2005-04-28T11:19:00.000-07:00

(As an update, recently, there is a surge of google searches for this particular puzzle. I am intrigued to as why the sudden interest, so if anyone can leave me a note as to why, it would be great! Highlight to reveal answers)

If I can just get the theme for a Thursday puzzle, it must be a good day. Today's puzzle, by Elizabeth Gorski, was a good and fun one. It has three themed entries as well as a 2 word title hidden in the puzzle. And I love this cute little theme, totally cool.

1962 Peace Nobelist - "Linus Pauling"
Actress in "Hercules and the Amazon Women" - "Lucy Lawless"
"Wall Street" actor - "Charlie Sheen"
Possible title for this puzzle - "Peanuts Gallery"

Cute clues:
Fifth wheels - spares
World Views? - atlases
Centipede's head? - softc

New to me:
Stalags - A German prisoner of war camp for officers and enlisted personnel.
Amernia's currency - dram ( = 100 luoma)
Sade (pronounced shar-day)- R&B, jazz artist, with Smooth Operator, Hang On To Your Love, The Sweetest Taboo, By Your Side and Love is King.
Sor Juana Ines de la Cruz (1648-1695) - Mexican Nun, poet, philosopher and feminist.
1977 Steeley Dan Album - Aja
Alnico - Magnet alloy of iron, cobalt, nickel, aluminum and copper.

On another puzzle last night (not the NYT) I came across a cute little clue:
What happens when the smog lifts? - ucla

Morning sickness

2005-04-27T10:44:00.000-07:00

Today's crossword is a running quote across three lines, compiled by Lyell Rodieck. The quote is cute, but I cannot comiserate because I am not one who owns a pet. "There's no snooze button on a cat who wants breakfast."

Cute clue:
Beaverlike? - eager
Ancient Mariner, e.g. - oldseadog

Things to know:
Linda Ellerbee - NBC, ABC anchor and journalist. Authored And So It Goes and Move On.
Lepidopterist - Butterfly enthusiast
Albedo - a measure of reflectivity of a surface or body, ie planets.
Aspic - a dish in which ingredients are set into a gelatin, made from a meat stock or consumme.

And since Etna comes up a lot, let me do a highschool report on it. Etna is an active volcano on the east coast of Sicily, close to Messina and Catania. It is the largest volcano in Europe, and three times the height of the next largest, Mount Vesuvius. It is one of the most active volcanoes in the world and is in an almost constant state of eruption. Virgil wrote about its eruption in the Aeneid. 20th century eruptions occurred in 1949, 1971, 1991, and 2000. In 2001-2002, the biggest series of eruptions for many years threw up a huge column of ash that could easily be seen from space and fell as far away as Libya, on the far side of the Mediterranean Sea. Here's an Etna webcam.

It grows in Brooklyn

2005-04-26T14:26:00.000-07:00

I must admit, I underestimated today's crossword puzzle. I'm staring at it right now, and I still have a bunch of blank squares that I cannot fill in. Still, I liked the main theme:
Two, to four - squareroot
Holiday dinner insert, perhaps - tableleaf
Troupe member's "closet" - wardrobetrunk
Medulla's place - brainstem
Where ATMs may be found - bankbranch

I liked this witty clue:
Changed locks? - dyed

Things I didn't know:
Perle Mesta - Washington hostess, inspired the Berlin musical, Call me Madam.
Eau de vie - literally "water of life", a white brandy.
"I let a song go out of my heart" - Ellington jazz standard
Daniel Oretga - Daniel Ortega Saaverda, Nicaragua's Sandanista president, '85-'90.

Freedom Fries

2005-04-25T09:20:00.000-07:00

A quick and breezy puzzle by Alison Donald, where 4 clues are united by a common word:
Where actors put costumes on - dressingroom
1950's girl's fashion - poodleskirt
Witty banquet figure - toastmaster
Thanksgiving decoration - hornofplenty
And let's just say the word that can precede this clue is a synonym of freedom.

Here's a list of people I didn't know for this crossword (let's google them!):
Mimi Sheraton: Food critic, notably for the New York magazine and NYT.
Ara Parseghian: Notre Dame football coach, apparently quite famous.
Cyrus Vance: Sec of State under Jimmy Carter
Pierre Loti: French writer of the late 18th, early 19th century. Notable works: The Third Youth of Mrs. Plum, The Disenchanted, The Death of Philae, and Judith Renaudin.
Ryan Nolan: Record-breaking baseball pitcher, notably for the Rangers.

Welcome to the NYT Crosswords Blog

2005-04-21T21:40:00.000-07:00

Hello friends,

I spend an inordinate amount of time doing crossword puzzles. Not just any old crossword, but the most esteemed crosswords for the trivial cruciverbalist. My day begins with a cup of warm tea and an eager mechanical pencil all in the face of the latest NYT crossword puzzle. Unfortunately, I'm not a very good solver, and I can usually finish a Wednesday puzzle with a few empty squares. Completing a Thursday puzzle would be akin to winning a minor lottery. I don't even look at the Friday or Saturday crosswords out of sheer fear. And I can google my way out of a Sunday puzzle.

Often, I print out old puzzles from the archive and complete them instead of listening to my statistics professor in class. Unfortunately, few of my colleagues share the triumph and heartbreak associated with the NYT crosswords. I love puns and wordplay, and a clever crossword really blows my mind. That said, I want to share with everyone who cares about what I think of that day's NYT crossword puzzle, and well as record down witty clues and pretty themes. Also, I would like to record interesting words, or recurring clues that I should know by now.

Just to let you know how dorky I am: there's a picture frame on my work desk with my favorite puzzle ever. Ever. It's not because I was particularly good at it, but it was the first crossword puzzle to totally blow my mind away. It was Patrick Merrell's Oct 24, 2002. A friend and I solved it together. The theme was a secret message hidden in the crossword. And when we finally solved it, it was layers upon layers of revelation and epiphanies beyond anything I thought a crossword can do.

Hopefully, i can ultimately share the joys of solving crosswords with you. But not too much, because I don't want you to be better than I am at them.

One fish, two fish

2005-04-19T10:04:00.000-07:00

I like it when the author of the puzzle, this time David Bunker, incorporates a punny title inside the crossword after giving a list of themed clues. This puzzle had 4 themes and also two that actually intersect with the title in the center of the puzzle. This puzzles main clue: Arboreal rodent; Grizzly, eg; Earth's largest mammal; Western Raptor. A fun and colorful puzzle.

Million Dollar Baby

2005-04-18T09:00:00.000-07:00

Today's main clues are: Suffer a serious blow; Out, so to speak; Give up. A very straightforward puzzle with a theme prime with the clue 'Boxing venue'.

Since it comes up so often, I need to learn my 9 Muses:
Euterpe (music)
Calliope (epic poetry)
Clio (history)
Erato (lyric poetry)
Melpomene (tragedy)
Polyhymnia (sacred poetry)
Terpsichore (dancing)
Thalia (comedy)
Urania (astronomy)