12.21.10 — Winter

The Letter L, Erté

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Tuesday, December 21, 2010 - Winter Soltice 

Puzzle by Alan Arbesfeld, edited by Will Shortz

In this simple Tuesday crossword, moving the letter L back three spaces in panel boards, mind-boggling, Christmas carols, bottle water and Adam Sandler results in PLANE BOARDS, MIND BLOGGING, CHRISTMAS CLAROS, BLOTTED WATER and ADAM SLANDER.

Other — AT EASE (46D. Free from anxiety), CARRY-ON BAG (29D. Allotment o one, usually, for an airline passenger), DOSAGE, ICIEST, LACERATE (39D. Cut jaggedly), SECANT, THE KINKS (5D. “Lola” band), THIS IS TRUE (11D. “You’re right!”).

Five-letter — ALLAH, AMUSE, ASSES, ATSEA, BLOOM, EASYA, EMEND, EXERT, IBSEN, LANCE, LARVA, LLANO, LOESS, NOMSG, ODETS, OLORD, OPTED, PLANB and PLANK, REACT, SNAPE, TILES, WIMPY, YEARN.

Short stuff — AAS, AIR, ALAN, AMIR, ASET, BENT, BOSS, CAN, DNA, ELHI, ELLE, END, EREI, ERST, ETC, HBO, ILE and IDLE, ISM, ITAL and ITAR and TAR, KERN, LEER, MAG, Gershwin’s “The MAN I Love”, NIX, ODIC, ORB, OVA, RAN, RAPT, SGT, SPCA, TBA, TEN and TIN and TIM, TYRE, YENS.

If Winter comes, can Spring be far behind? ~ Percy Bysshe Shelley

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Remaining clues — ACROSS: 1. Do a double-take, e.g.; 6. Made a choice; 11. Composition of Jack Haley’s Oz character; 14. God, to Muslims; 15. Gaucho’s plan; 16. “Six Feet Under” network; 17. F.A.A. supervisors?; 19. Belief suffix; 20. Start of a countdown; 21. Jerome who composed “Ol.’ Man River”; 22. Dolts; 24. Object to online commentary?; 27. Cosine’s reciprocal; 30. “Waiting for Lefty” playwright; 31. It’s walked on pirate ships; 32. “ … ___ saw Elba; 34. Awaiting scheduling, initially;37. Holiday smokes?; 41. Broadcast; 42. Strong desires; 43. Tickle; 44. Want badly, with “for”; 47. Least amiable; 48. Cleaned up after a spill?; 52. Tilter’s weapon; 53. _O__-Tass news agency; 54. Martinique, par exemple; 57. Heavenly body; 58. Defamation in the Garden o f Eden?; 62. Fertility clinic cells; 63. Potter’s potions professor; 64. Playing pieces in Rummikub; 65. Nat Geo, for one; 66. Snap course; 67. Wield, as power. — DOWN: 1. Totally absorbed; 2. Vogue competitor; 3. Shepard in space; 4. Pink-slip;5. “Lola” band; 6. Start of grace, maybe; 7. Fallback strategy; 8. Subject of a cigarette rating; 9. Shut down; 10. Prescription measure; 12. “The Wild Duck” playwright Henrik; 13. Chinese restaurant request; 18. Out of alignment; 23. Bilko or Friday: Abbr.; 25. Windblown soil; 26. Keatsian or Pindaric; 27. Pet advocacy org.; 28. Grades K-12; 32. Make improvements to; 33. Turned chicken; 35. One calling the shots; 36. “I’d hate to break up ___”; 38. One of four on a Rolls; 40. Mideast potentate: Var.; 45. Catchall abbr.; 46. Free from anxiety; 47. Font option: Abbr.; 48. Burst into flower; 49. Maggot or grub; 50. Hardly macho; 51. Totally lost; 54. Pink slip; 55. Lecher’s look; 56. Once, old-style; 59. Paternity suit evidence; 60. Smallish batteries; 61. Give a thumbs-down.

12.20.10 — Monday Menagerie

Dingo, Perth Zoo, Perth, Western Australia

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Monday, December 20, 2010

Puzzle by Donna Hoke, edited by Will Shortz

CAT’S CRADLE (17A. Game played with strings looped over the fingers), MONKEY’S UNCLE (22A. Self-description of someone who’s surprised), DOG’S AGE (36A. Long time), ELEPHANT’S EAR (50A. Taro) and LION’S SHARE (60A. What a greedy person may grab) are the interrelated group of this Monday crossword.

Other — AIR SHOW (45D. Event for stunt pilots), HUSTLING (20A. Shaking a leg), MR HANEY (25A. Farmer-turned-con man in a 1960s sitcom), OSPREYS (42D. Fish-eating birds), POSTMAN (4D. One who “always rings twice,“ in an old movie), REASSIGN (55A. Move to another job, say), ROTUNDA (10D. Capitol feature), UMPIRED (48A. Called balls and strikes).

Mid-size — ARAIL and ARIEL, BEENE, CADGE, CLONED, CRANKY, EARLS, EPSOM, ETHIC, EZ PASS, LEONE, MARINE, MCCOO (5A. 1960s-’70s R&B singer Marilyn), MEASLY, PASTY, PEARS, STALL, TOILE, TROIS, USENET, ZAIRE.

Short stuff — ACE and ACRE, ADA and AMA, AFAR, ALTS, ASP, ATAD, EHS, ESAU, FAIR, GAIN, GROW, HEAL, IAGO, IRA, LAP and LEAP, LOCH, MBAS, MESS, NEDS, OIL and OLE, OGOD, ONLY, OSLO, OTTO, OZMA (37D. Princess in L. Frank Baum books), QUA, REED, REMO, REST, SEMI, SOLO, SORE, STAG, THAI, WOWS, YADA, ZAP.

Solstice Lunar Eclipse, read NASA article HERE.

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Puzzle available on the internet at

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Remaining clues — ACROSS: 1. Jump; 10. Observe the Sabbath; 14. Norway’s capital; 15. Thin as ___; 16. “Beetle Bailey” bulldog; 19. Spicy Asian cuisine; 21. Feather pen; 28. Not much; 29. Designer Geoffrey; 30. Oklahoma city named for the daughter of its first 4-Down; 31. Many miles off; 35. Docs’ org.; 36. Long time; 40. Hole in one; 41. Song for one; 43. Electrocute, in slang; 44. Former name for Congo; 46. Big hauler; 54. Bosc and Bartlett; 59. Smarting; 62. The “O” in CD-ROM; 63. Disney mermaid; 64. Prayer starter; 65. Meal on a military base; 66. Ashen, as a complexion; 67. Blows away. DOWN: 1. ___ Ness monster; 2. Biblical twin who sold his birthright; 3. Cockpit readings: Abbr.; 5. Jarhead; 6. Ill-tempered; 7. Bum, as a cigarette; 8. OPEC supply; 9. Cheer for a toreador; 11. Body of values; 12. Suddenly stop, as an engine; 13. French fabric; 18. Like Dolly the sheep; 21. Sine ___ non; 23. When said three times, “and so on”, 24. Fawn’s father; 25. Many corp. hirees; 26. San ___, Italian resort on the Mediterranean; 27. “Physician, ___ thyself”; 30. Ile snake; 32. Place to buy cotton candy; 33. Farming unit; 34. Wetlands plant; 38. Loss’s opposite; 39. Modern toll-paying convenience; 47. Quizzical utterances; 48. Early computer forum; 49. Pathetically small; 50. ___ salts; 51. Africa’s Sierra ___; 52. Some English nobles; 53. Un + deux; 56. Othello’s betrayer; 57. “Oh, ___ up!”; 58. Nancy Drew’s beau and others; 60. Napkin’s place; 61. Savings for one’s later years, for short.

12.19.10 — Wide Awake — the Acrostic

A Young Girl Leaning On A Window Sill, 1645 Harmenszoon van Rijn Rembrandt

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Sunday, December 19, 2010

ACROSTIC, Puzzle by Emily Cox and Henry Rathvon, edited by Will Shortz

Wide Awake: What I Learned About Sleep from Doctors, Drug Companies, Dream Experts, and a Reindeer Herder in the Arctic Circle by Patricia Morrisroe supplies the quotation for this delightful Christmas-week acrostic.

When I told my sleep doctor that I’d decided to write a book about insomnia, he informed me that it was a "terrible, terrible idea" and begged me to reconsider. Except for downing a double espresso before bedtime, obsessing about sleep is the worst thing you can do if you’ve got insomnia. And writing a book is the ultimate obsession. The doctor had a good point, but there was one little problem: I already had a book contract. Wanting to please the sleep doctor but not wanting to alienate my editor, I began cataloguing my other health problems. Perhaps I could substitute thinning bones for insomnia? But I wasn’t particularly interested in bones. Bones aren’t mysterious. Bones don’t dream. You can see bones, even when they’re thinning, but sleep is everywhere and nowhere. It’s the great unsolved puzzle, the black hole in the scientific universe. ~ Patricia Morrisroe on Wide Awake

The quotation: CLEMENT C MOORE’S NARRATOR ACTUALLY SEES SANTA WHILE HIS SLEEPING CHILDREN ARE REWARDED WITH VISIONS OF CANDIED FRUIT THE INHERENT MESSAGE WAS THAT SLEEP DIDN’T PAY SO ON CHRISTMAS EVE I’D KEEP A VIGIL AT MY WINDOW

The author’s name and the title of the work; PATRICIA MORRISROE WIDE AWAKE

The defined words:

A. Typical giver of a gift signed “from St. Nick”, PARENT
B. Descriptive of Dylan’s “Blowin’ in the Wind”, ANTIWAR
C. Said with a wink and a nod, TACIT
D. Wearing a winter coat, RIMED
E. Things you can count on?, INTEGERS
F. Yak, gab, gossip (hyph.), CHIN-WAG
G. Somebody who’s up instead of out, INSOMNIAC
H. Insect pests covered with dense, woolly wax, ADELGIDS
I. Occasion for pole dancing (2 wds.), MAY DAY
J. Like mouflons or urials, OVINE
K. Leader of a swift team …, RUDOLPH 
L. … and that leader’s descriptive (hyph.), RED-NOSED 
M. Line from the garment industry, INSEAM
N. Seasonal means of getting clearance, SNOWPLOW
O. Prove wrong, as an assertion, REFUTE
P. Go a bit too far on a stage, OVERACT
Q. Player of St. Nick in a 2003 Will Ferrell film (2 wds.), ED ASNER
R. Contents of a letter to Mr. Claus (2 wds.), WISH LIST
S. Affect deeply, enlist by force, IMPRESS
T. Something in the shape of a triangle, DELTA
U. Ballet jump with fluttery footwork, ENTRECHAT
V. On the go, or off the injured list, ACTIVE
W. Item hanging from the neck of a “zebra”, WHISTLE
X. Likely besmirches of Kris Kringle, ASHES
Y. Aperture with a limited range of view, KEYHOLE
Z. Like some seasonal toymakers, ELFISH

The expanded quotation: Clement C. Moore obviously didn’t have sleep psychology in mind when he wrote “’Twas the Night Before Christmas.” His wide-awake narrator actually sees Santa, while his sleeping children, for all their good behavior, are rewarded with visions of candied fruit. The inherent message was that sleep didn’t pay, so on Christmas Eve I’d keep vigil at my bedroom window, Bumpa’s opera glasses in hand, searching for Santa’s sleigh. I had it in my head that once I caught a glimpse of his reindeer I’d drift happily of to sleep. In those days, a white Christmas often meant a blizzard, so I was usually too excited to waste time in bed anyway. After my father shoveled the driveway, he would build an igloo, which I’d decorate with castoffs from our basement -- a lawn chair, a frayed Oriental runner, a broken Wedgwood candlestick. I’d sit in there and read my Nancy Drew books, pretending I was an Eskimo princess keen on solving mysteries.

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Puzzle available on the internet at

THE NEW YORK TIMES — Crossword Puzzles and Games.

12.19.10 — Total Lunar Eclipse

Lunar Eclipse Montage, 2/20/2008 © Gregg L. Ruppel

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Sunday, December 19, 2010

HOPE FOR CLEAR SKIES, Puzzle by Kevin G. Der, edited by Will Shortz

TOTAL LUNAR ECLIPSE (125A. Event on Dec. 21,2010, viewable in North and South America, depicted visually in this puzzle), CASTING / A SHADOW (137A. With 146-Across, what the center of this puzzle is doing during a 125-Across), TURN RED (What the focus of a 125-Across will do at its climax), AMATEUR ASTRONOMER (94A. Many an avid observer of a 125-Across), CELESTIAL BODIES (66A. Objects of interest in a 125-Across), along with seven squares in an arc above the center of the crossword square reading EARTH, e.g., BRIGHT, DIM, DARK, MOON, DARK, DIM, BRIGHT, and one square below at 143-Down reading SUN, constitutes the interrelated group of this complex (however, topical), leaden (however, celestial) and fragmented Sunday crossword.  Wordplay, The Crossword Blog of the New York Times simplifies it all with an excellent graphic, HERE.

The word-in-a-square entries —

• MANY [MOON]S AGO (26A. A long time past) and [MOON]ING (27D. Youthful prank in a car;
• AFTER [DARK] (29A. At night) and [DARK]MAN (30D. Superhero played by Liam Neeson in a 1990 film);
• [DARK] HORSE (32A. Long-shot candidate) and [DARK] AGE (32D. Era of ignorance);
• ON A [DIM]E (40A. One way to stop) and [DI M]AG (41D. Yankee great Joe, colloquially);
• C[D IM]AGE 47A. Clone of an optical medium’s contents) and [DIM]LY (48D. How things may be lit or remembered);
• [BRIGHT]EN (63A. Remove drapes from, as a room) and [BRIGHT] IDEA (63D. Promising proposal);
• AL[BRIGHT] (69A. First female U.S. secretary of state) and [BRIGHT] SIDE (71D. Optimist’s focus);
• AT THE [EARTH]’S CORE (81A. 1914 Edgar Rice Burroughs novel set in an underground land) and RARE [EARTH] (59D. Terbium or thulium);
• GOE[S UN]DER (140A. Folds) and [SUN] UP (143D. Dawn).

Other across — 1. Not live, ON TAPE; 7. Author Roald DAHL; 11. Shop dresser, ADZE; 15. How something may be veiled, THINLY; 21. “Ball Four” author, BOUTON; 22. Big name in athletic footwear, AVIA; 23. Rama’s kingdom, SIAM; 24. Whence the line “I fear Greeks even when they bring gifts”, AENEID; 25. Feature of some pool balls, STRIPE; 28. Enthrones, CROWNS; 31. Football’s Sanders, DEION; 33. HOW-to; 34. YOM Kippur; 37. “AS I said …”; 38. Glossy black bird, DAW; 42. Mil. Address, APO; 44. Driller?: Abbr., SGT; 45. Kisser, MUG; 48. Wang of fashion, VERA; 50. Lulus, ONERS; 52. Drinking and gambling, VICES; 54. Basic solutions, LYES; 55. Breach, GAP; 57. Dummies, PEA BRAINS; 61. Six-time All-Star third baseman for the 1970s Dodgers, CEY; 72. Not yet delivered, IN UTERO; 74. How some things are made, TO ORDER; 75. Jackie’s #2, ONASSIS; 77. Think probable, DARESAY; 78. Pliny possessive, MEA; 79. Beach seen from Diamond Head, WAIKIKI; 80. Once, in the past, ERST; 88. Like many cakes, ICED; 89. “Honor is A MERE scutcheon”: Shak.; 91. Bygone European capital, LIRA; 92. Subterfuge, PLOY; 93. Track star Owens, JESSE; 109. Atlantic City locale, with “the”, TAJ; 103. Loser to McKinley, BRYAN; 104. Duff Beer vendor, MOE; 105. Spaceship attire G SUIT; 106. Slump, SAG; 109. Slugger Roberto ALOMAR; 111. Jackie’s #1, KENNEDY; 114. Proust’s “SWANN’S Way”; 116. Book set?, LITERATI; 119. Italian lover’s coo, TI AMO; 120. Indian royal, MAHARANI; 122. Deep-dish dishes, LASAGNES; 123. Heads outside together?, TOTEM; 124. Novelty glasses, X-RAY SPEX; 128. Turkish pooh-bahs, AGAS; 131. Flying Cloud, e.g., REO; 132. Student’s stat., AVG; 133. Dub, NAME; 149. To whom Hamlet says “Get thee to a nunnery”, OPHELIA; 150. There from the start, INBUILT; 151. It marks the target on a curling rink, TEE LINE; 152. Munchkins, PEEWEES; 153. Pardner, say, COWPOKE; 154. Commodore’s insignia, ONE STAR.

Down — 1. Delivery people, briefly, OBS; 2. Zero, NOT A ONE; 3. Battle over domain, TURF WAR; 4. Haggling, AT IT; 5. Sailor who debuted in a 1929 comic, POPEYE; 6. Juan’s January, ENERO; 7. Glen Canyon DAM; 8. Actress Gardner, AVA; 9. Dharma follower, HINDU; 10. Tiramisu features, LAYERS; 11. Catalog, ASSORT; 12. Steak DIANE; 13. Veer back, ZAG; 14. Comic Philips, EMO; 15. Aircraft gauges, TACHS; 16. Kind of couplet for Chaucer, HEROIC; 17. “IN OR out?”, 18. Paper for which Murray Kempton and Jim Dwyer won Pulitzers, NEWSDAY; 19. Trace of blood?, LINEAGE; 20. Football meas., YDS; 33. Kind of lane, HOV; 35. How things may be laid, TO REST; 36. Key of Bach’s “The Art of Fugue”, D MINOR; 39. Director Anderson, WES; 43. Amorous skunk in cartoons, PEPE; 46. Golden State campus inits., UCSD; 50. Lincoln Center production, OPERA; 51. 1974 Japanese Nobelist, SATO; 52. Feeling, VIBE; 53. Extended solo, SCENA; 56. Crackerjacks, ACES; 58. Tundra or wetland, BIOME; 50. Father-and-son actors, ALDAS; 62. Actor Morales, ESAI; 64. Prepare to fight, ENARM; 65. “Grey’s Anatomy” extra, NURSE; 67. One of the Islamic virtues, LOYALTY; 68. Grateful response, I OWE YOU; 69. Big name in athletic footwear, ASICS; 70. Column in a dating questionnaire, LIKES; 73. Aquarium fish, TETRA; 78. One getting a lift?, SKIER; 82. “TIE A yellow ribbon …”; 83. Place to put bags, TRUNK; 84. Laugh part, HAR; 85. E.M.T.’s training, CPR; 86. Science, OLOGY; 97. Reagan and others, RONS; 90. Tactic used against Britain by Napoleon, EMBARGO; 93. Boarding aids, JETWAYS; 95. Out-and-out, ARRANT; 96. Protective membrane, AMNION; 97. Beethoven’s “Appassionata,” e.g., SONATA; 98. One that overflows, TEEMER; 99. Fender bender, e.g., MISHAP; 100. Towering, TALL; 101. Jordan’s Queen ALIA International Airport; 102. Smidgens, JOTS; 106. [Just like that!], SNAP; 107. One of the Brontës, ANNE; 108. E.U. group, G SIX; 110. Pot-au-feu, e.g., MEAT STEW; 112. Classic rebuke, ET TU; 113. Observatory feature, DOME; 115. Powder rooms?, ARSENALS; 117. It may be shot during a riot, TEAR GAS; 118. Castaway’s locale, ISLE; 120. The year 1045, MXLV; 121. Japanese “thanks”, ARIGATO; 126. Need for KenKen, LOGIC; 127. Bistro offering, CARTE; 128. Rent-A-COP; 129. Hang open, GAPE; 130. 1968 U.S. Open champ, ASHE; 134. Mine entrance, ADIT; 135. Bart Simpson’s grandmother, MONA; 138. Pitcher, EWER; 139. Suffix with vir-, ILE; 139. Never: Ger., NIE; 142. “Charlotte’s Web” inits., EBW; 144. Italian God, DIO; 145. Forest game, ELK; 147. Clinton or Obama, once: Abbr., SEN; 148. Laugh part, HEE.

At a Lunar Eclipse

Thy shadow, Earth, from Pole to Central Sea,

Now steals along upon the Moon's meek shine

In even monochrome and curving line

Of imperturbable serenity.

How shall I like such sun-cast symmetry

With the torn troubled form I know as thine,

That profile, placid as a brow divine,

With continents of moil and misery?

And can immense mortality but throw

So small a shade, and Heaven's high human scheme

Be hemmed within the coasts yon arc implies?

Is such a stellar gauge of earthly show,

nation at war with nation, brains that teem,

Heroes, and women fairer than the skies?

~ Thomas Hardy At a Lunar Eclipse (1903)

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Puzzle available on the internet at

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12.18.10 — Ladies and Gentlemen

The Hallucinogenic Toreador, Salvadore Dali, 1968-70 

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Saturday, December 18, 2010

Puzzle by Brad Wilber, edited by Will Shortz

Queens and presidents, ladies and gentlemen, mom, an alpha male, a bride-to-be, Sabu, Sharon Stone, Yuri and the Venus de Milo, along with the Nixon Era, Camelot and the Enola Gay with a devastating cargo occupy this solid Saturday crossword.

Across — 1. Aid in deep diving, ECHO SOUNDER; 12. One might use Peter Pan, in brief, PBJ; 15. “Casino” Golden Globe winner, SHARON STONE; 16. Sch. With a 60-foot “Praying Hands”, ORU; 17. Proverbially newsworthy item, MAN BITES DOG; 18. Designer of Alabama’s Civil Rights Memorial, LIN; 19. It displays an array of spikes: Abbr., EKG; 20. Trunk attachment, LIMB; 21. Basic drive, LIBIDO; 23. Take on, ASSUME; 25. Marine muncher on mangrove leaves, MANATEE; 26. Explosion producer, IRE; 27. Smashes, MEGA-HITS; 28. Heroine of Inge’s “Picnic”, MADGE; 31. 1986 Indy 500 winner, RAHAL; 32. Poule’s counterpart, COQ; 33. Sparkle, ELAN; 34. Opposite of frumpish, NATTY; 35. Actor awarded a Distinguished Flying Cross in W.W. II, SABU; 36. On-target, APT; 37. Deltoid ligament, TIBIA; 38. French frost, GELEE; 39. Old Rory Calhoun TV western, THE TEXAN; 41. Disney character prone to spoonerisms, DOC; 42. Period about a decade before the 34-Down, CAMELOT; 43. Person in a pool, BETTOR; 46. “Saving Fish From Drowning” novelist, AMY TAN; 47. Fist pumper’s cry, YEAH; 48. Spider, Snoopy or Intrepid: Abbr., LEM; 50. Football Hall-of-Famer Huff, SAM; 51. Artwork depicted in Dali’s “The Hallucinogenic Toreador”, VENUS DE MILO; 54. “Last Train to London” grp., ELO; 55. Financial option upon leaving a job, IRA ROLLOVER; 56. Father’s alma mater: Abbr., SEM; 57. Tag with a message, often, VANITY PLATE, my favorite?, on a Rolls-Royce, R U N V S.

Down — 1. Woman in all four “Twilight” novels, ESME; 2. R&B’s CHAKA Khan; 3. Pays dearly for one’s crimes, HANGS; 4. Astronomical discovery, ORB; 5. Stain, SOILURE; 6. Good way to arrive, ON TIME; 7. 1972 Bill Withers hit, USE ME; 8. Wreck checker: Abbr., NTSB; 9. U.S.N. and U.S.A.F. div, DOD; 10. Ship with devastating cargo, ENOLA GAY; 11. Queenly, REGINAL; 12. Like some platforms, POLITICAL; 13. Engagement party?, BRIDE-TO-BE; 14. Queenly, JUNOESQUE; 22. “Ridiculous!”, BAH; 24. Plus or minus, say, SIGN; 25. Israel Philharmonic maestro, MEHTA; 27. Après-midi follows it, MATIN; 28. Places to display cuts, MEAT CASES; 29. First mate?, ALPHA MALE; 30. Intergenerational MTV reality show, DATE MY MOM; 31. Home to Mohammed V University, RABAT; 34. When William Safire worked at the White House, NIXON ERA; 35. One may be Protestant, GOT HELP; 37. Shalom Meir Tower locale, TEL AVIV; 38. Entered rehab, e.g., GOT HELP; 40. Three-day holiday, TET; 41. Not just dangerous, DEADLY; 43. Inebriate, BESOT; 44. Rival of Yastrzemski for 1960s A.L. batting titles, OLIVA; 45. Filled anew, as a flat, RELET; 47. Chess master Averbakh, YURI; 49. Hog’s desire, MORE; 52. Book editor Talese, NAN; 53 CO, e.g.: Abbr., MOL.

Ladies and gentlemen, my mother thanks you,

my father thanks you, my sister thanks you, and I thank you!

~ George M. Cohan

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Puzzle available on the internet at

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12.17.10 — Cold as Ice

HATE / TATTOO
(15D. Word on Harry Powell’s left fingers in “The Night of the Hunter”;
19A. Image that stays with you)

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Friday, December 17, 2010

Puzzle by Patrick Berry, edited by Will Shortz

PENCIL SHARPENER (7D. Means of getting the lead out) is the lead entry of this cold-as-ice Friday crossword followed by MOTOR SCOOTERS (29A. Noisy vehicles), a PAROL HEARING (32A. Meeting in which one person is anxious to leave) and WALKIE TALKIES (33A. Staples of old police work).

Other — COCONUT OIL (4D. Natural skin moisturizer), MALAYALAM (29D. Language that reads the same backward and forward), MORISSETTE (28D. Canadian singer with a 1995 album that went 16x platinum), SPECIMENS (11D. Lab stock).

Eight-letter — ALE HOUSE (14A. Tavern), BRACELET (21D. Common glow-in-the-dark item), BURETTES (24D. Liquid dispensers in laboratories), EGG TEETH (51A. Aids in breaking shells), ELLSBERG (12D. Analyst who leaked the Pentagon Papers), NEATEN UP (48A. Declutter), PAT RILEY (32D. Three-time N.B.A. Coach of the Year), TINACTIN (17A. Popular name for toinaftate).

Sixes and sevens — ALL OUT, CLOSER, EASELS (18A. Things holding up the works), MEANIE, RECALL, RIPPLE (16A. Micro wave?), SYMONS, TATTOO (19A. Image that stays with you).

Five — ALIAS, ALPHA, BLUTO (41D. Comic strip bully), CREED, ESSEN, ETAIL, GENTS, KITES, LATTE, MAMET, MANED, ORKIN, SATIE, SIMBA, TRESS, UVULA (26A. Lump in one‘s throat?).

Short stuff — AUTO, BIRD, BRYN, CAPP (4A. Joe Btfsplk‘s creator), CBER, CIA and CSI and PSI, DOA (54A. 1950 film noir) , EGO, HATE (15D. Word on Harry Powell’s left fingers in “The Night of the Hunter”), ICEE, KEPT, LAG, LIAR, OAKS, ONO, OPS, RAGS, RISE and ROSE, RUIN, SIBS, VOLE.

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The following is a list of Patrick Berry’s twelve puzzles published in The New York Times in 2010:

11.14.10 — Two Heads Are Better Than One
10.16.10 — Passiflora Edulis, Et Cetera
09.25.10 — Playing Out September
08.22.10 — NO-R
08.06.10 — The Forgotten
07.09.10 — Vicious!
05.21.10 — Splash!
05.15.10 — Cranking It Out
04.11.10 — Tee
02.07.10 -- The Football Fan
01.08.10 -- As Far As I Can Tell

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Puzzle available on the internet at

THE NEW YORK TIMES — Crossword Puzzles and Games.

Remaining clues — ACROSS: 1. Progress too slowly; 8. Effective salesman; 20. Traffic reporter, you might say; 22. TV Show whose opening music is the Who’s “Who Are You”; 23. Where Alfred Krupp was born; 24. Frequent flier; 25. What an only child lacks; 28. “The Cryptogram” playwright, 1995; 34. PayPal transactions, e.g.; 35. Lock; 36. Welsh word in a Pennsylvania college name; 37. Held back; 38. “I Just Can’t Wait to Be King” singer; 43. Subj. of Stansfield Turner’s “Burn Before Reading”; 44. Attain success; 45. A term may end with one; 46. Full-blown; 50. Malicious sort; 52. Arthur who wrote “The Symbolist Movement in Literature”; 53. Part of the American Greetings logo; 54. 1950 film noir. — DOWN: 1. Milky drink; 2. Cover; 3. Bathroom door sign; 5. Caddy, e.g.; 6. Clairvoyance and such; 8. Ecclesiastical council’s formulation; 9. Embroidery expert; 10. Black ___; 13. Puts up a fight; 26. “Vexations” composer; 27. Mouse lookalike; 30. ___ Man, commercial symbol since the 1950s; 31. Dumbarton ___ Conference (1944 meeting that laid the groundwork for the U.N.);p 32. Three-time N.B.A. Coach of the Year; 33. Monitor toppers; 37. High-strung items?; 39. Slush Puppie alternative; 40. Like horses; 42 Series opener; 44. Leave destitute; 45. Unimpressive attire; 47. 1969 bed-in participant; 49. Roman I.

12.16.10 — Or Not...

Eugène Delacroix. Hamlet and Horatio in the Graveyard. 1839. Oil on canvas. Louvre, Paris, France

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Thursday, December 16, 2010

Puzzle by Charles Deber, edited by Will Shortz

NOT TO BE (38A. Ill-fated .. Or a hint for answering the six starred clues), THAT REMAINS SEEN (17A. *”I don’t know yet!”), BORN WILD (24A. *1968 #2 hit heard in “Easy Rider”), IT HAD YOU (50A *1924 Isham Jones/Gus Kahn song), YOU’VE GOT KIDDING (58A. *”No WAY!”), I WANT ALONE (3D. *Memorable movie quote of 1932) and LUCKY ALIVE (30D. *Like someone who’s had a narrow escape) are the interrelated group of this effervescent Thursday crossword.

Other — BYRONIST (39D. Certain English poetry scholar), ETOILES (21A. Ballet headliners), GRIEVES (42D. Feels a loss), INSIDER (10D. Person with special access), NESTLED (26D. Snug, as in bed), ONE TO TWO (5D. Length in years of a lenient sentence, maybe), PAMELAS (53A. Hollywood’s Anderson and Reed).

Mid-size — ASIANS, 8D. Arthur Miller play “A VIEW From the Bridge”, 51D. “That’s A SORE subject”; GRITS, EXERTS, LESION, LUELLA (29A. English fashionista Bartley), NAÏVE, NETTLE, ON BASE, ORVAL, PREMIX, SHAGGY, SINGE, SOLUTE, TRUES, YEAST.

Short stuff — “Yo te AMO”, AMT, ANS, AOUT, ARIA, ARTY, ATEE, BEL, CSI, EARS, GRR, INKY, KIA, KNEE, KTS, LEER, Bryn MAWR, MUNI, NEE, NEIL, NOEL, NONE, NYET (20A. Comment put in by Putin, perhaps), NRA, OPT, OTIS, OVER, PYRO, RAH and RAM, REATA, REBA, RUNE, SUED, TIA Maria, TOKAY (35D. Sweet wine of Hungary), VIA, WAST, YENS, YON.

I never said, 'I want to be alone.' I only said, 'I want to be let alone.' There is all the difference. ~ Greta Garbo

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Click on image to enlarge.

Puzzle available on the internet at

THE NEW YORK TIMES — Crossword Puzzles and Games.

Remaining clues — ACROSS: 1. “Caro nome,” for one; 5. Gov. Faubus in Arkansas history; 10. Black; 15. Unsuspecting; 16. Second to ___; 22. Decide to take, with “for”; 27. Grp. At home on the range?); 28. To ___ (just so); 33. Air or ami preceder; 34. Biblical verb with “thou”; 36. Aligns; 40. Hit Jerry Bruckheimer TV drama; 41. Scorch; 43. Boozer; 44. Sportage maker; 45. Applies; 46. They may be boxed; 49. Over there; 52. Interview part: Abbr.; 56. Diamond on a record player; 63. Character in “Beowulf”; 64. Alternative to hash browns; 65. Through; 66. People mover since 1853; 67. Vintner’s need; 68. What a rake may do. — DOWN: 1. Tsp. or tbsp.; 2. When repeated, excited; 4. Like many a gallerygoer; 6. Head of the Egyptian god Amun; 7. Thorough; 9. Soup variety; 11. Good name for someone born on Dec. 25; 12. What might give a physical reaction?; 13. Wishes; 18. Old WB sitcom; 19. Substance in a chemistry experiment; 22. In a position to steal; 23. Blend before using; 25. Vaquero’s rope; 26. Snug , as in bed; 31. Wound; 32. Chinese, e.g.; 38. Irk; 42. Feels a loss; 46. Hirsute; 48. Took to court; 53. Fire starter?; 54. Follower of jullet; 55. San Francisco’s public transit system, with “the”; 57. Favorite; 60. Pawn jumpers: Abbr.; 61. Formerly; 62. [Mumble, mumble].

12.15.10 — Joking Victim

Mojos Alley Dumpster 7 by Merrick Brown  

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Wednesday, December 15, 2010

Puzzle by John Lampkin, edited by Will Shortz

Chock Full’O Nuts, cheerleader, chump change and chest protector become JOCK FULL O NUTS (20A. Athlete who has pigged out on snacks at a bar?), JEER LEADER (31A. Chief heckler?), JUMP CHANGE (41A. Skydiver’s amended plans?) and JEST PROTECTOR (53A. Insulation from jokes?) in this weary Wednesday crossword.

Other — AMATOL (25A. Explosive of old), ASSUME (9D. Take on), BURST OPEN (11D. Explode like a puffball), CHATTER (42D. Say “Hey, batter batter batter” and such), ELTON JOHN (33D. “Rocket Man” rocker), FLOUNCE (5D. Walk with jerky motions), MASCOT (44D. Mr. Met, for one), PEN PAL (46A. Friend from afar).

Five-letter — ALLEY (37A. Place for a Dumpster), dumpster is capitalized?, AT BAY, BRONC, ELISE, ETHNO, EVILS, FOLLY, GROUT, IBOOK, JAMUP, KANJI (1D. Japanese writing system), LADLE, LATTE, LORCA, ORING, PENNE, PROLE, SCENT, SERTA, SHADE, SHUTE, STLEO, TENET, THETA, TOPAZ, TRICE.

Short stuff — ABRA, ALPO, AQUA, ATT, BET, CAPO, DUM, FLEX, GLAD, HAM, HARK, IKE, JILT, KITH, LAVE, MIA, NAIR and NOIR, ODIN (18A. Aesir ruler), ONES, OORT and OOZE, ORA, PEAL, POPS, PUCE, QUE, RTE, SCAM, STAR, STP, TLC, TREE, USO, WEEP, WIE, XENO, YEA.

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Click on image to enlarge.

Puzzle available on the internet at

THE NEW YORK TIMES — Crossword Puzzles and Games.

Remaining clues — ACROSS: 1. Friends and neighbors; 5. Bend one’s elbow, e.g.; 9. Cornered; 14. Start of an incantation; 15. Wash up; 16. “On the Beach” author; 17. Hard-boiled crime genre; 19. Perfect Sleeper maker; 23. Interstate-championing prez; 24. Strippers’ tips, often; 28. Special treatment, for short; 29. “___ geht’s? (German “How are you?”); 30. ___ pro nobis; 36. Skewer; 37. Place for a Dumpster; 38. Juan’s “what”; 39. Lavender, for one; 40. Pesky arachnid; 43. Troop-entertaining grp.; 44. Cara ___ (Italian term of endearment); 45. Performer yukking it up; 48. Tickled; 50. Indy letters; 56. Rodeo ride; 58. Astronomy’s ___ cloud; 59. Brand for woofers, but not tweeters?; 60. Cultural prefix; 61. Purple shade; 62. Sound from a steeple; 63. Core belief; 64. Critic’s unit; 65. Primordial stuff. — DOWN: 2. Old Apple laptop; 3. Brief moment; 4. “Listen!,” old-style; 6. Chili server; 7. Escapees from Pandora’s box; 8. Alien: Prefix; 10. Angle symbol, in trigonometry; 12 “Boston Legal” fig.; 13. Truly, in the Bible; 21. Unwise undertaking; 22. Brand once advertised with the jingle “We wear short shorts …”; 26. Circular gasket; 27. Barista’s offering; 28. Back into a corner; 29. Boo-hoo; 31. Copier malfunction; 32. Beethoven dedicatee; 34. Pastel hue; 35. Sct syllable; 36. Bernie Madoff’s hedge fund, e.g.; 39. Parasol’s offering; 41. Leave high and dry; 47. Tubular pasta; 48. Mosaic artist’s material; 49. Spanish poet Garcia ___; 50. Fifth-century canonized pope; 51. Birthstone for many Scorpios; 52. Working stiff; 54. The old man; 55. Banjo accessory; 56. Double or nothing, e.g.; 57. Tpke., e.g.