10.23.11 — Take IT From The Top

Cousin Itt by Don Forkner

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Sunday, October 23, 2011

TAKE IT FROM THE TOP, Puzzle by Joe DiPietro / Edited by Will Shortz

IT is missing from the beginning (top) of seven long down entries of common phrases in this solid Sunday crossword, with question-marked clues defining the results.

• STANDS TO REASON (3. Gets up for the debate?)
• GOES WITHOUT SAYING (7. Beats it and won’t explain why?)
• DEPENDS ON THE SITUATION (8. Proof that a “Jersey Shore” character has an incontinence problem?)
• RUNS IN THE FAMILY (13. Arrest an entire crime syndicate?)
• DOESN’T TAKE A GENIUS (33. Eschews Mensa material when going to parties?)
• REMAINS TO BE SEEN (42. Contents of Lenin’s Tomb, e.g.?)
• SERVES YOU RIGHT (50. Merits at least a 20% tip?)

Other — ANOMALY (93D. Departure from the norm), ARMENIA (2D. Asian republic), AS SWEET AS PIE (110A. Incredibly nice), ED GRIMLEY (32A. Neurotic Martin Short character), IDEAL GAS (115A. Matter in statistical mechanics), OPENING NOTES (24A. Tone setters for conductors), PEACE SIGN (100A. V formation?), SAME SEX (94D. Untraditional, as some marriages), SENT MESSAGE (26A. Item in a certain e-mail folder), TAX SALE (1D. Transference of property to pay assessments), TO A HALT (67A. How some cars screech), TURN ON A DIME (107A. Change quickly), XMAS TREE (22A. Holiday purchase, informally).

Six-letter — AMIENS, ASIAGO, ATTILA, AVISOS, DENSER, DYNAST, ELAINE, EMPLOY, EYELID, HASSLE, HELENA (20A. Queen City of the Rockies), IN A TIE, LADLES, NO RISK, ONEISH, PREMED, SALVIA, SEESAW, SESTET and SETSAT.

A Naiad by John William Waterhouse, 1893;

a water nymph approaches the sleeping Hylas.

Five — AD REM, ANDES, CAROM, DAM UP, DELIA, ENSUE, EYDIE, GET IN, GORKI, HOSED, INSET, KNEAD, NAIAD (47D. Aquatic nymph), PASTE, PLAYS, RASPY, REAPS, RECON, Times ROMAN, RUSTY, SALAD, SANKA (79A. An instant), SASSY, SHEBA, SPEAR, STEIN, ULTRA, UNITS, YALIE.

Short stuff — ADZE, AGES, AGO and AGOG, AIR, ALE and AVE, ARTY, ASS, BAG, BARE, CAA, DAYO and ODAY, DOS, DUES, EAT, EHLE, ELO and ELY, GEO, ICET, IMS, ITT (44A. Cousin who‘s “altogether ooky“), KSU, LIST, LTS, LEN and LIN and LINO, LUNA Park, classic Coney Island amusement locale, MEN, METO, MNO, NEED, NEST, NEWS, NONU, OAS, OPEC, POP, PPG, PSI, QUI and QUIT, RAN (65A. 1986 film based on “King Lear“), RAZR, SIDE, SIT, STD and SYD, STYX, TASS, TURF, UAE, UNI, URSA and USSR, WEE and WEEP, WII, WREN.

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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. Onetime propaganda source; 5. Portmanteau; 8. Obstruct; 3. Brings in; 18. Funny Johnson; 19. See 6-Down; 21. Prefix with light or sound; 28. A couple of Spaniards?; 29. E-mail alternatives; 30. Source of the Amazon; 31. South Carolina’s state bird; 35. Not discounted; 36. Give up; 38. Start of a 1957 hit song; 40. Press and fold, say; 41. Packing order?; 42. Oxidized; 43. Agree (with); 45. Vague early afternoon time; 47. Like certain investments; 49. Soaked; 53 To the point, to lawyers; 57. Succeed; 59. Bridge expert Culbertson; 60. Go back and forth; 62. Some are cohesive; 64. Territory; 66. How some games finish; 67. How some cars screech; 69. Plant known as “seer’s sage” because of its hallucinatory effect; 71. Loser; 72. Skinny; 74. Screenwriter Ephron; 75. Somme place; 76. Prefix with magnetic; 77. Old fishing tool; 81. Blowup, of a sort; 82. “… but possibly untrue”; 84. Peeper protector; 86. Wield; 88. Uncorking noise; 90. His debut album was “Rhyme Pays”; 91. Grating; 92. W. Hemisphere grp.; 95. Queen’s land; 97. Like average folks, in Britain; 98. Enthralled; 102. Shop chopper; 104. Bounce (off); 105. Mil. Officers; 106. Avg. level; 116. Bulldog; 117. Dispatch boats; 118 Neighbor of Oman: Abbr.; 119. “Pride and Prejudice” actress Jennifer; 120. 9-Down holder; 121. Pickup line?; 122. One of the Chaplins; 123. Underworld route. — DOWN: 1. Transference to pay assessments; 4. Certain poetic output; 5. Reveal; 6. With 19-Across, far back; 9. Heady stuff; 10. Entire “Reservoir Dogs” cast, e.g.; 11. Athlete’s attire, informally; 14. Inits. In ‘70s and ‘80s rock; 15. Slayer of his brother Bleda; 16. Like some majors; 17. Impudent; 20. Longtime ESPN football analyst Merrill ___; 23. Protected images, for short; 25. Russian novelist Maxim; 27. Fancified, say; 32. Singer Gorme; 34. “Drag ___ Hell” (2009 movie); 36. “Star Wars” character ___-Gon Jinn; 37. SALT party; 39. Dashboard choice; 46. Settle in; 48. The Wildcats of the N.C.A.A.; 51. “Airplane!” woman; 52. King or queen; 53. Hard Italian cheese; 54. Slower to pick up; 56. Phone button trio; 58. ___ Minor; 61. Break down; 63. A bar may offer it; 68. One-dimensional: Abbr.; 70. Flat flooring; 73. Minute; 78. Scout’s mission; 80. Assertive comeback; 83. 118-Across is in it; 85. Super Bowl IV M.V.P. Dawson; 87 Scoring stat for N.B.A.’ers; 89. Wallop; 91. Motorola phone line; 95. Changes; 96. Give a hard time; 99. Soup kitchen implements; 100. They’re shown by X’s, O’s and arrows; 101. Luggage attachment; 103. Some annual bills; 104. Major org. representing entertainers and athletes; 108. Anita of jazz; 109. Desideratum; 111. ___ fit; 112. Brooklyn’s Flatbush, e.g.: Abbr.; 113. Go unused; 114. Symbol for electric flux.

10.22.11 — Crossing Words

Julius Caesar and the Crossing of the Rubicon, Francesco Granacci, 1494

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Saturday, October 22, 2011

Puzzle by Patrick Berry / Edited by Will Shortz

Across — 1. Treaty signer with Ger. In 1939, USSR; 5. Horse of a sort, ARAB; 9. Eddie Fisher’s “Oh! My PAPA”; 13. Campaign/election analyst NATE Silver; 14. Oven brand, AMANA; 15. Resting, say, ABED; 16. Nickname since 1999, AROD; 17. Exceedingly hard to see, FAINT; 18. Really small amount, IOTA; 19. Stage-sharing speaker, PANELIST; 21. Oxen might be put in it, TANDEM; 23. Find contest’s meta-answer by reading THE FIRST LETTERS of these clues; 25. Tenth Commandment word, WIFE; 26. Heraldic drawing, ARMS; 27. Incline, SLANT; 29. Seven PINES (Civil War battle site); 31. Workers who play?, DJS; 34. Enclosing fence, PALE; 35. Equipped for a ride, perhaps, SHOED; 36. Kite part, BEAK; 37. Saddler’s aid, AWL; 38. Goes across, SPANS; 39. Role for Young, WELBY; 40 Insults playfully, GUYS; 41. Diminutive battery size, AAAA; 42. Solvers must FILL EVERY CIRCLE in the grids to determine the grids’ proper order; 49. Rat Island natives, ALEUTS; 50. Expenses for globetrotters, AIRFARES; 51 Anarchy, RIOT; 52. Drunken jag, SPREE; 54. Islander’s need, maybe, BOAT; 55. Not mad, SANE; 56. Outer parts, PEELS; 57. Real-time, LIVE; 58. Day on old calendars, IDES; 59. Exterior area, YARD; 60. Ruptured couple, EXES.

Down — 1. Suitable’s opposite, UNAPT; 2. “Princess” in its Hebrew translation, SARAH; 3. Evade while being questioned, STONEWALL; 4. Label anew, REDEFINE; 5. Lay up, AMASS; 6. Activist/singer Bonnie RAITT; 7. Former Texas governor ANN Richards; 8. Assaulted, in a way, BATTERED; 9. Muralists’ needs, PAINTS; 10. One that might be humble, ABODE; 11. PETER Ustinov of “Topkapi”; 12. Second or sixth in a series, ADAMS; 14. Lighted, AFIRE; 20. Elevate, LIFT; 22. Accepters of deposits, ATMS; 24. Driving divisions, LANES; 27. Évian, for one, SPA; 28. Regulation, LAW; 29. Astronomical appearance, PHASE; 30. Nonneutral particle, ION; 31. “Death of Sardanapalus” painter Eugène DELACROIX; 32. Hit that begins a one-two, JAB; 33. It’s what’s up, SKY; 35. Strip since 1961 that’s printed in black and white, SPY VS SPY; Causing only minor irritation, say, BEARABLE; 38. Raw beef fat, SUET; 39. Oliver Twist, e.g., WAIF; 40. Seat cushions?, GLUTES; 41. Spread, ACRES; 42. Iranian tongue, FARSI; 43. Narrative set in the Bronze Age, ILIAD; 44. Genre film director Sergio LEONE; 45. Worth more to collectors, say, RARER; 46. Output, YIELD; 47. Run along, LEAVE; 48. Democratic senator ESTES Kefauver; 53. Shepherd’s pie tidbit, PEA.

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All the puzzles this week, from Monday to Saturday, have been created by one person, Patrick Berry. Have your solutions handy, because today’s puzzle conceals a meta-challenge involving the solution grids of all six. When you have the answer to the meta-challenge, e-mail it to: crossword@nytimes.com. Twenty-five correct solvers, chosen at random, whose entries are received by 6 p.m. Eastern time on Sunday, Oct. 23, will receive copies of “Will Shortz Picks His Favorite Puzzles: 101 of the Top Crosswords From The New York Times.” Only one entry per person, please. The answer and winners’ names will appear on Friday, Oct. 28, at nytimes.com/wordplay.

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Click on image to enlarge.

Puzzle available on the internet at

THE NEW YORK TIMES — Crossword Puzzles and Games.

10.21.11 — Crossing Over

The name destroying angel applies to several similar,

closely related species of deadly all-white mushrooms in the genus Amanita.

They are among the most toxic known mushrooms,

containing amatoxins as death caps do.

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Friday, October 21, 2011

Puzzle by Patrick Berry / Edited by Will Shortz

Three fifteen-letter crossover entries are featured in this frustrating, fragmented and fumbling, but ultimately foxy Friday crossword:

• TERRI FLEW INCHES (6A. Country singer Gibbs glided a short distance?), wrapping around or crossing over the line becomes WINCHESTER RIFLE clued as (9A. Old West gun, crossing over?)
• ELDEST ROY IN GANG (35A. Cowboy Rogers as part of a posse after some younger namesakes joined up?), DESTROYING ANGEL (36A. Poisonous gilled mushrooms, crossing over?)
• CHARTER ISLES LIE (60A. Leasable tropical locales aren’t truthful?), LESLIE CHARTERIS (64A. Simon Templar's creator, crossing over?)

Crossing over from down to up in the same column: 50. Takes to the cleaners, FLEEC / ES; 51. Off-ROAD / ERS (sturdy bikes); 52. Natalie Portman’s birthplace, ISRA / EL; 55. Overused plot device, CLIC / HE; 59. Winter protection?, FLU / SHOT; 60. TD Garden team, CE / LTICS; 61. Curtis of hair care, HE / LENE; 62. Chilling, say, ID / LE; 63. Set of channels?, SE / AWAY.

Crossing over from right to left in the same column: 5. Like some store-brought nuts, SHE / LLED; 16. Corporate treadmill, RAT RA / CE; 21. Nitwit, AS /S; 34. What Newton’s first law of motion concerns, I / NERTIA; 40. Presenters’ bits, LEAD-IN / S; 50. Source of much plywood, F / IR; 55. Resolve, CL / EAR UP; 66. Reach the top, SUCC / EED.

Other — ASSIGN (18D. Give out), BEAKER (31A. Chemist’s container), CAMBODIAN (15D. Language in which “yes” and “no” are “baat” and “te,” respectively), EMCEED (39A. Like a roast), INLAID (52A. Like a crown’s gems, maybe), NESSIE 29D. What the “Surgeon’s Photo” supposedly depicts), PIRACY (13A. Illegal copying), TRIFLE (58A. Matter barely worth mentioning).

Et cetera — ABA, AMFM, ANN, ASTRO, ARDEN, ATEAT, AXIS, CRAM, DISC and DISS, DRIP, EDEN, EGAD, ELATE, ENTRY, EVADE, FERN, FEY, G-MAIL, GPS, GRADE, GYM, IDI, IRA and IRE, ITEM, KNEE, LEV, MAID, MEL, NATL, NBA, NIN, ORALS, PST, PURR, RAP, REX, SIN, SNL, TIS.

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"CROSS" WORDS CONTEST — All the puzzles this week, from Monday to Saturday, have been created by one person, Patrick Berry. Have your solutions handy, because the Saturday puzzle conceals a meta-challenge involving the solution grids of all six. When you have the answer to the meta-challenge, mail it to: crossword@nytimes.com. Twenty-five correct solvers, chosen at random, whose entries are received by 6:00 p.m. E.T. Sunday, Oct. 23, will receive copies of "Will Shortz Picks His Favorite Puzzles: 101 of the Top Crosswords From The New York Times." Only one entry per person, please. The answer and winners' names will appear on Friday, Oct. 28, at http://www.nytimes.com/wordplay.

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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: 2. Bring joy to; 11. Doing time; 12. Nautical leader?; 19. Org. with a draft; 20. Where somebody might be spotted; 43. Every mirror image has one; 46. L.A. winter hrs.; 48. Common female middle name; 56. Stressful tests; 65. Slip around. — DOWN: 1. Sleep-preventing sound, perhaps; 3. Poetic contraction; 4. Bookkeeping notation; 7. First name in despotism; 8. Plant with fiddleheads; 10. Learn the hard way?; 14. “The ___ Daba Honeymoon” (1914 #1 song); 17. Knock; 20. Free Web-based correspondence service; 21. “This Week in Baseball” host Allen; 23. “As You Like It” setting; 24. Particular; 25. Piece in the game Othello; 27. Whimsically odd; 28. Letter from school?; 30. Distressed; 32. Impact point for a spoons player; 33. “Dear me!”; 37. 1976 Broadway musical based on Henry VIII’s life; 38. Henry & June” author; 42. Banker’s recommendation, for short; 44. TV show with the most Emmy nominations, informally; 46. Pet sound; 47. Torrent; 49. Part of NBC: Abbr.; 53. Heat generator?; 54. Grad sch. Composition; 57. Chaim Potok’s “My Name is Asher ___”.

10.20.11 — Zebra Crossings

Thursday, October 20, 2011

Puzzle by Patrick Berry / Edited by Will Shortz

Black + white crisscross in eight squares of this Thursday crossword.

• [BLACK] BART + [WHITE]NER (8A. Toothpaste ingredient; 8D. Famously polite Old West stagecoach robber)
• LAMP [BLACK + WHITE] SALES (12A. Some soot; 13D. January department store events)
• [BLACK] ADDER + [WHITE] WASH (25A. 1980s Rowan Atkinson sitcom; 25D. Cover-up
• [WHITE] MATTER + [BLACK + WHITE] AND [BLACK + WHITE] (36A. Like zebra crossings), + BACK IN [BLACK] (15D. Iconic AC?DC album with the song “You Shook Me All Night Long”) + [WHITE] MATTER (36D. Some nerve tissue)
• KAREN + LILY [BLACK + WHITE] (43A. Best Supporting Actress nominee for “Five Easy Pieces”; 31D. Untainted by corruption)
• VANNA [WHITE] + [BLACK] ANTS (40D. Woman of letters?; 58A. Nest-building pests)
• JACK [BLACK + WHITE] EGG (44D. Star of 2010’s “Gulliver’s Travels; 59A. It’s whipped to make mousse)

Other — ASLANT (46A. Biased), BANANA OIL (18A. Insincere flattery, in slang), BEAN TREE (49A. Pod-bearing plant), BE SEATED (20A. Request to an interviewee), CARNEY (22A. “Harry and Tonto” star), CLOCKED IN (53A. Started one’s shift), FIRE TRAP (37D. It‘s worthy of condemnation), SPREADER (4D. Butter knife, e.g.).

Five-letter — AIMEE Mann, ALONE, ALORS, AROMA, BABES, DENSE, DROWN, LE ANN Rimes, NAILS, SEEDS, Jimmy SMITS, SPUNK, TAILS, TEENS, VENTS.

Short stuff — ACHE, ALL, AMOR and AMOS, ARAB, BBC, BEDE, BEE, BITE, BRAD, CAN, DAB, DINE, EAST, EDIE (10D. Sedgwick in Warhol films), EMTS, FOAL (37A. Livery delivery), HEN, HUNK, JUTS, KIA, LEI, LONG, NEON, PALE and PALS, PAST, SEW, SLAB, SLUG, SPAS, RATS, RELY, RONA Jaffe, TAR.

X, cross, cross, + … hmmm. No comment.

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"CROSS" WORDS CONTEST — All the puzzles this week, from Monday to Saturday, have been created by one person, Patrick Berry. Have your solutions handy, because the Saturday puzzle conceals a meta-challenge involving the solution grids of all six. When you have the answer to the meta-challenge, mail it to: crossword@nytimes.com. Twenty-five correct solvers, chosen at random, whose entries are received by 6:00 p.m. E.T. Sunday, Oct. 23, will receive copies of "Will Shortz Picks His Favorite Puzzles: 101 of the Top Crosswords From The New York Times." Only one entry per person, please. The answer and winners' names will appear on Friday, Oct. 28, at http://www.nytimes.com/wordplay.

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Click on image to enlarge.

Puzzle available on the internet at

THE NEW YORK TIMES — Crossword Puzzles and Games.ENDEND

Remaining clues — ACROSS: 1. Steamy places; 5. “EastEnders” network; 14. Fellah or fedayee; 16. The Venerable ___ (old English historian); 17. Then, to Thierry; 23. “___, ‘tis true I have gone here and there”: Shak.; 24. Burlesque bit; 28. Material you might look through; 29. Every last bit; 32. Items wrapped in friction tape; 33. Many arcade-goers; 34. Gift upon arrival, maybe; 35. Winged god; 38. Follow a pattern, say; 39. Jimmy of “The West Wing”; 40. Title role for Joe Pesci; 41. House sitter?; 42. Mates; 44. Sticks out; 45. Eat in style; 55. Hunger enhancer, sometimes; 56. Typical romance novel love interest; 57. “What rotten luck!”; 60. Bud drinker?; 61. Former life. — DOWN: 1. Sarcophagus lid; 2. Like Death’s horse; 3. One of the Minor Prophets; 5. Nurslings; 6. Fastener in a punched hole; 7. Pink-slip; 9. Unreactive element; 11. Bank; 19. Filed things; 21. Organic sealant; 24. Bird feeder tidbits; 25. Cover-up; 26. Mann of rock; 27. Go under; 28. Volcano features; 29. Unlucky in love, say; 30. Country singer Rimes; 33. Call option?; 39. Gumption; 43. Sorento manufacturer; 45. Packed with ideas, as an essay; 46. Soreness; 47. Shot of liquor; 48. Protracted; 49. Snack; 50. Novelist Jaffe; 51. First-aid experts, briefly; 52. Defender in a bridge column; 54. Lightly apply.

10.19.11 — Cross Words

Wednesday, October 19, 2011

Puzzle by Patrick Berry / Edited by Will Shortz

Five clues utilizing the word “cross” as “annoyed” constitute the interrelated group of this somewhat cross Wednesday crossword — UP IN ARMS (17A. The cross baby was …), SEEING RED (24A. The cross motorist stuck at a stoplight was …), BESIDE HIMSELF (37A. The cross man who’d been cloned was …), IN A LATHER (52A. The cross woman taking her bubble bath was …), INCENSED (62A. The cross aromatherapy patient was …).  Hmmm ...Cross!? — third day in a row!

Other — ALTERS, AMELIA (8D. Whimsical 2001 film set in Paris), ATHENA, BERLIN, Big BERTHA, Guinea-BISSAU, DROWSE, ELBOWS, GAS BAG (47A. Endless talker), GLADES, HAREMS, HIT LIST (44A. People on it get offed), I AM SAM, ICICLE (3D. Freezing point?), MAULED, REPEAT, RETAINS (32A. Doesn‘t give up), STEAMS, STEEDS, TALENT, UNREAD, USURPS.

Five-letter — BIBLE, CABAL (33A. Group with revolutionary ideas), EDIFY, ELSIE, LIMBS, MEADE (56A. Gettysburg general), RAN UP, RECAP, “Walk Away RENEE“, VISTA.

Short stuff — ABLE, ADS (13D. Net surfer‘s annoyances), AHA, “ARE You Experienced?”, ASAP, BAR,BEIN, CAW, DSL modem, DUH (58D. “Everybody knows that!”), ELO, ENUF, ETTA, FEAT, GAPE, HUB, MCI, MUG, NEW, ORR, PALS, PAUL, Pistol PETE, PILL, PHI, RIAL, RNA, SAD, SAIL, SEC, SELL, SPA, URI, USS, VETS, WEE, YEWS.

No need to throw things!

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"CROSS" WORDS CONTEST — All the puzzles this week, from Monday to Saturday, have been created by one person, Patrick Berry. Have your solutions handy, because the Saturday puzzle conceals a meta-challenge involving the solution grids of all six. When you have the answer to the meta-challenge, mail it to: crossword@nytimes.com. Twenty-five correct solvers, chosen at random, whose entries are received by 6:00 p.m. E.T. Sunday, Oct. 23, will receive copies of "Will Shortz Picks His Favorite Puzzles: 101 of the Top Crosswords From The New York Times." Only one entry per person, please. The answer and winners' names will appear on Friday, Oct. 28, at http://www.nytimes.com/wordplay.

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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. Swiss canton; 4. Good at one’s job; 8. Parthenon dedicatee; 14. Short time to wait; 15. Mast attachment; 16. Brutalized; 19. Places for patches; 20. Brief summary; 21. Book that might contain birth records; 23. Homeboys; 29. Cooks, as some vegetables; 36. Author of several New Testament epistles; 42. Pistol ___ (Oklahoma State’s mascot); 43. Amassed, as debt; 55. Item in a box with seven compartments, say, 57. Windows operating system released in 2007; 58. Drift off; 64. Lacking in knowledge; 65. Exploit; 66. Jimi Hendrix’s “___ You Experienced?”; 67. Muslim palace divisions; 68. English churchyard trees; 69. Nava vessel inits. — DOWN: 1. Seizes unlawfully; 2. Already-aired episode; 4. “Now!”; 5. Object from Mars?; 6. Legs and such; 7. Milk carton mascot; 9. Currency unit in the 21-Across; 10. Big airport; 11. “Rockarial” band, for short; 12. Just out; 18. Grp. That sends things up; 22. Once-divided city; 25. Stare in shock; 26. Iranian coin; 27. Adequately, to Li’l Abner; 30. Company acquired by Verizon in 2006; 31. Piteous; 34. Big ___ (German W.W. I cannon); 35. What a teacher likes to hear from a pupil; 37. 1960s hippie event; 38. James of jazz; 39. Trader’s option; 40. Desktop item, often; 41. It might make you sweat; 42. 21^st letter; 45. 2001 drama whose title is taken fro “Green Eggs and Ham”; 46. Mounts; 48. Do some political damage control; 49. Guinea-___ (West African nation); 50. Lets out, maybe; 51. A&E police drama set in South Florida, with “The”; 53. Impart pearls of wisdom to; 54. “Walk Away ___” (1966 top 10 song); 57. Ones out of service?; 59. Molecule involved in protein synthesis; 60. Boston Garden legend Bobby; 61. Diminutive; 63. Unlovely bird sound.

10.18.11 — The Missing Link

Love Snakes by Cliff Fraser

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Tuesday, October 18, 2011

Puzzle by Patrick Berry / Edited by Will Shortz

Four common-word answers where the first letter and last letters of each phrase make up each clue’s common word constitutes the interrelated group of this fragmented but friendly Tuesday crossword. The missing material is indicated by a cross between ...  hmmm! … yesterday, a substituting X …  is it too early to guess?!

17A. Starch: a cross between STARSKY AND HUTCH?
25A. Pimple: a cross between PURE AND SIMPLE?
44A. Hisses: a cross between HUGS AND KISSES?
57A. Beetles: a cross between BEER AND SKITTLES?

Other — AMSCRAY (5D. “Take a hike!”), BED TIMES (9D. Parents set them for kids), Charles DARNAY, hero of “A Tale of Two Cities”, DISBANDS (37D. Breaks up), IMPALA (49A. Classic Chevy model), KIRSTIE (42D. Alley seen on TV), LAURELS (10D. Prizes in early Olympics), LIMPED (24D. Walked with one foot asleep, say), SUBARUS (40D. Outbacks and Foresters), TARZAN (22A. Swinger who loves Jane).

Maureen O'Sullivan and Johnny Weissmuller, Tarzan the Ape Man,

directed by W. S. Van Dyke, 1932.

Et cetera — ACME, AGAR and AGUE, ANNA, ANTI and ANTZ, ARK, ASEA, ARK and ASK, ASTI, AWLS, BAAS, BABY, BEG, BRA and BRR, CAHN and KHAN (13D. “Come Fly With Me” lyricist Sammy; 18D. Title that’s a homophone of 13-Down), CHER, DEER, Mountain DEW, DROPS, EARNS, ELEGY, ENNUI, ESAU, EYES, FAYE, GALA, GARB, GAYE, GLEN, GPA, HARP, IBET, INCA, INERT, INRE, JABBA, JUST, KALI, KANYE, LAIC, LIRE, MACS, MESA, PEAR, PERM and PERU, RAY, REACH, Messenger RNA, RUN, SAFE, SCORN, SWAP, TARS, TIS, TNN, ULNA, UNARM, WKRP.

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"CROSS" WORDS CONTEST — All the puzzles this week, from Monday to Saturday, have been created by one person, Patrick Berry. Have your solutions handy, because the Saturday puzzle conceals a meta-challenge involving the solution grids of all six. When you have the answer to the meta-challenge, mail it to: crossword@nytimes.com. Twenty-five correct solvers, chosen at random, whose entries are received by 6:00 p.m. E.T. Sunday, Oct. 23, will receive copies of "Will Shortz Picks His Favorite Puzzles: 101 of the Top Crosswords From The New York Times." Only one entry per person, please. The answer and winners' names will appear on Friday, Oct. 28, at http://www.nytimes.com/wordplay.

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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. ___ the Hutt (“Return of the Jedi” villain); 6. Stuff to wear; 10. Not of the clergy; 14. Take a weapon from; 15. Flue symptom; 16. “The King and I” governess; 20. “___ the season …”; 21. Oscar winner for “Moonstruck”; 23. Underwire garment; 24. Pre-euro Italian currency; 31. Sad poem; 32. Pinnacle; 33. Call at first base, maybe; 37. What Visine is dispensed in; 38. Sunbeam; 39. Apple Store offerings; 41. Concerning; 42. “Love Lockdown” singer West; 47. Word before “Boy,” “Love” and “Come Back” in titles to #1 songs; 48. Construction project in Genesis; 52. Leatherworking tools; 54. No. on a college transcript; 60. Isaac’s eldest; 61. Rural road sign; 62. Like helium; 63. Deck hands; 64. Cashless transaction; 65. Seen-it-all feeling. — DOWN: 1. Merely; 2. Not a fan of; 3. Sounds in “Old MacDonald Had a Farm”; 4. Reaction to a cold snap; 6. “Let’s Get It On” singer; 7. Petri dish gel; 8. Choose flight instead of fight; 11. 1998 animated film loosely based on “Brave New World”; 12. Machu Picchu resident; 19. Instrument on Ireland’s coat of arms; 23. Panhandle; 25. Salon treatment; 26. Forearm bone; 27. Get through to; 29. Contempt; 30. Makes at work; 34. Dunaway of “Chinatown”; 35. They may be lazy or wandering; 43. Pump; 46. Malevolent Hindu goddess; 49. “That doesn’t surprise me!”; 50. Mountain with a flat top; 51. Distinctively shaped fruit; 52. On the ocean; 53. Les Nessman’s station in a 1978-82 sitcom; 54. Isolated valley; 55. Home of former U.N. Secretary General Javier Pérez de Cuéllar; 56. Italian wine region; 59. Spike TV, once.

10.17.11 — What Say?

Nympheas 1926 Claude Monet

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Monday, October 17, 2011

Puzzle by Patrick Berry / Edited by Will Shortz

The sound of a plural K is replaced with a singular X in six entries of this kick-off-the-week Monday crossword — LAND MARX (20A. Catch Groucho while fishing?), SAD SAX (22A. Blues player’s instrument?), BLANK CHEX (29A. Cereal that doesn’t really taste like anything?), HYPER LYNX (42A. Wildcat that can’t sit still?), TIE TAX (51A. Levy paid by white-collar workers?) and TUMMY TUX (52A. Formal wear for one’s belly?).

Other — FLARES (48A. Burning emergency signals), LILY PAD (44D. Large leaf on which a frog may repose), MELEES (25A. Chaotic battles), RAN AMUCK (5D. Rampaged), REDDEST (9D. Most sunburned), SENDS IN (4D. Submits, as a manuscript), TENEMENT (37D. Slumlord‘s building), WHAT SAY (40D. “How about it?).

Five-letter — ADIEU, AROSE, ASET, ATARI, AT SEA, DUG IN, FATWA, FIRED, HAHAS, KAPUT, LEONA, LEXUS, MIXUP, NAILS and NEILS, PEPYS (28D. 17^th-century diarist Samuel), PITAS, SATIN, STIN, TAPAS, USAGE.

Short stuff — AGIN, ALAS, ALDA, AURA, AVON, BFF (29D. Teen girl‘s close chum, for short), DART, DATA, DDAY, DEAL, DIVA, DOPY, DUE, EEL, ELON, ERAT, EROS, FDR, IDES, IDYL, ITAL, MEEK, NENA (60A. “99 Luftballons“ singer), NUNS, PONE, RATS, RAVE, REAM, SAW, SEMI, STYX (12D. River of Hades), TATE, TEND, TEX, TILE, TOGA, UNIT, VSIX, WENT, XENA.

A note accompanies today’s crossword: All the puzzles this week, from Monday to Saturday, have been created by one person, Patrick Berry. Have your solutions handy, because the Saturday puzzle conceals a meta-challenge involving the solution grids of all six. When you have the answer to the meta-challenge, mail it to: crossword@nytimes.com. Twenty-five correct solvers, chosen at random, whose entries are received by 6:00 p.m. E.T. Sunday, Oct. 23, will receive copies of “Will Shortz Picks His Favorite Puzzles: 101 of the Top Crosswords From The New York Times.” Only one entry per person, please. The answer and winners’ names will appear on Friday, Oct. 28, at http://www.nytimes.com/wordplay.

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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. Fateful day for Caesar; 5. All-night dance party; 9. Laboratory maze runners; 13. Scrabble draw; 14. Completely confused; 16. The “E” in Q.E.D.; 17. Stratford-upon-___; 18. Manicurists treat them; 19. Sluggish from sedatives; 24. 18-wheeler; 26. French farewell; 28. Falafel holders; 31. Period of duty; 35. 1930s-’40s prez; 36. Beyond repair; 38. Expected to arrive; 39. Islamic decree; 45. Dances to Hawaiian music; 47. Astronaut Armstrong and others; 50. New ___ (35-Across’s program); 56. Cupid, to the Greeks; 57. What an electric meter indicates; 59. Corn bread; 61. Fabric that’s glossy on one side; 62. Feudin’ with, say; 63. June 6, 1944; 64. Left the scene; 65. Numbers to be crunched. — DOWN: 1. Type used for emphasis: Abbr.; 2. Hard-to-please celeb; 3. North Carolina university; 6. Creator of the game Missile Command; 7. Engine type pioneered by the Buick Special; 8. Snakelike fish; 10. Got out of bed; 11. Spanish finger food; 15. Plus column entry; 21. Easily cowed; 23. “Regrettably …”; 25. Scramble; 26. Alan who played Hawkeye; 27. Object thrown in a pub; 30. Laugh track sounds; 32. Pastoral poem; 33. Convent residents; 34. Common cowboy nickname; 41. Otherworldly glow; 43. 500 sheets of paper; 46. Upscale marque owned by Toyota; 48. Dismissed from “The Apprentice”; 49. Helmsley known as the Queen of Mean; 50. Began eating; 51. Look after, as a bar; 52. London art gallery; 53. “Animal House” party costume; 54. Peck, pint or pound; 55. Leather-wearing TV princess; 58. Lumberjack’s tool.

10.16.11 — Getting in Shape

Paul Klee, Gradation, Red-Green (Vermilion), 1921,

The Pierpont Morgan Library, New York

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Sunday, October 16, 2011

GETTING IN SHAPE, Puzzle by Joel Fagliano / Edited by Will Shortz

Six answers clued as “See highlighted letters intersected by this answer” constitute the interrelated group of this Sunday crossword — OVAL OFFICE, SQUARE INCH, DIAMOND NECKLACE, ARTIFICIAL HEART, LOVE TRIANGLE and ARCTIC CIRCLE — along with the highlighted letters (circles on the internet, gray squares on the dead wood edition) spelling out OFFICE, INCH, NECKLACE, ARTIFICIAL, LOVE and ARCTIC in the shape mentioned in the answer.

Other — ABRIDGED (17D. Missing parts), AFRAID SO, AFRICANA (59D. Ashanti wood carvings), ALGERNON, COME QUICK, EIGHTEEN, FREE WILL, IT’S A CINCH, LAKE ERIE (34D. Site of a key battle in the War of 1812), LOIS LANE, MEALTIME, PACMAN and GAME OVER (13A. Well-known maze traveler; 116A. Message seen after 13-Across dies), RECORDER, TRUE FACT (20A. “I kid you not!”).

Battle of Lake Erie by William H. Powell, 1865

Mid-size— ACHEBE, ARMADA, AT WORK, BOREDOM (63D. Reason to doodle), CLUTCH, DOCILE, ELNINO, GUESSER, KEITEL, KNOWN AS, LENSES, LOUVRE, NL EAST, PALMER, PICK OFF, POLLOS, PROPEL, RACE CAR (85A. Palindromic vehicle), REDFORD, SETTERS, TENSION.

Five-letter — AIOLI, ARLES, ARULE, BIDEN, CIVIL, CODAS, DOGGY, ENERO, “ … ERE I saw Elba”, ESTEE, HURLS, ICING, KAPUT, MIATA, NEIGH, OFFER, ORNOT, PALIN, PECAN, REINK, RIFFS, SKEET, TIARA, TOKEN, TOMAS, TRACE, UNCUT (23A. Full length).

Boy a Red Vest by Paul Cézanne, 1888-1890

Short stuff— AAAS, ACHE and ACME, ADEN, AGEE and AGES, AIMS, AINT, ALB, ALUM, AMIE, AMOS, AOL, ARCH, Cézanne’s “Boy in A RED Vest”, ARLO, ASS, AVI, AWL, BEES, CEO, CHE, CIS, CUT, DEL, EAT, EDS, EEL, EONS, EREI, ESC, ETD, FAIL and FAIR, FCC, HRS, ICEE, IDEA, IGOR, ILK, IMAC, IMUS, IRR, KERN, LIS, LRON, MDI, MEH (67D. “I’m less than impressed”), MIA and MIR, NARC, NAST, NETS, NFL, NPR, OCTO and ORCA, OHNO, OWER, PEI, PNC, POOL, PTAS, REC, ROE and RUE, RUNE, SAL, SYST, TAIL, TDS, TEL, THUS and TOSH, VCRS, VEER, WISE.

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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. Small amount; 6. Nab, as a base runner; 19. Slings; 20. “I kid you not!”; 22. “Things Fall Apart” author Chinua ___; 26. Game hunters; 28. Business card abbr.; 29. Friend of Fifi; 30. Fleur-de-___; 31. Frozen beverage brand; 32. One in debt; 34. Author ___ Hubbard; 35. Guess on a tarmac: Abbr.; 36. Geological feature on a Utah license plate; 38. Polite; 40. Some batteries; 41. Speak horsely?; ___ hall; 44. Tennis’s Berdych; 45. Type; 46. Golfer nicknamed “The King”; 47. Year Michelangelo began work on “David”; 48. As ___ (usually); 49. Charades participant, e.g.; 52. Newsroom workers, for short; 53. “Unfortunately, that’s the case”; 55. “Hurry!”; 57. Obedient; 58. Umpire’s ruling; “I ___ the day …”; 61. Priestly garment; 64. Folkie Guthrie; 65. Repeated musical phrases; 67. Mazda model; 69. Facility often closed in the winter; 71. Home state for 86-Across: Abbr.; 72. Soviet space station; 73. Zig or zag; 74. Home to the Venus de Milo; 76. “Easy as pie”; 80. Majority figure?; 82 Teans’ org.; 86. Cheney’s successor; 87. 82-Across stats; 88. Launch; 90. Jack or Jenny; 91. Beginning of an año; 92. Eggs in a sushi restaurant; 93. Freshen, as a stamp pad; 94. Isn’t wrong?; 96. Popular pie flavor; 97. Ends; 98. PC key; 99. 1977 thriller set at sea; 100. Comedy Central’s “___.O”; 101. Prefix with -gon; 103. Pointed tool; 104. “… ___ saw Elba”; 105. Co. that owns Moviefone; 106. Commonly called; 114. Child’s pet; 115. Phenomenon associated with the Southern Oscillation; 117. Setting for van Gogh’s “Café Terrace at Night”; 118. Phillies div.; 119. Drama has it; 120. Shooting sport. — DOWN: 1. So; 2. Character in “The Hobbit”; 4. Critical situation; 5. Cosmetician Lauder; 6. They have mtgs. In schools; 7. Not std.; 8. Share; 9. Harvey of “Reservoir Dogs”; 10. Two-for-one, e.g.; 11. Flunk; 12. Media watchdog org.; 13. “Going Rogue” author; 14. Rheumatism symptom; 15. 1969 film with an exclamation point in its title; 16. When the table is set; 17. Missing parts; 18. Realizes; 21. Jewel holder; 25. Book after Joel; 27. Cousin of an oboe; 33. Sassy; 35. Flotsam or Jetsam in “The Little Mermaid”; 36. Fleet; 37. He played the candidate in “The Candidate,” 1972; 39. “___ in the Morning”; 40. ‘10 or ‘11 person, now; 41. Buster; 42. Shop posting: Abbr.; 44. Follow; 45. Aviation pioneer Sikorsky; 46. Designer of the pyramid at the 74-Across; 51. It’s for the birds; 54. Garlicky mayonnaise; 55. “___ for Cookie” (“Sesame Street” song); 56. Totaled; 66. Apple debut of 1998; 68. Mouse in a classic Daniel Keyes book; 70. Contact ___; 73. RCA products; 75. “I didn’t mean to do that!”; 77. Quite a schlep; 78. “Do the Right Thing” pizzeria owner; 79. Thomas who lampooned Boss Tweed; 81. “You have no ___”; 82. “Tell Me More” network; 83. Age-old philosophical topic; 84. Fictional reporter; 86. Buzzers; 89. ___ Park, home for the Pittsburgh Pirates; 95. Bonus to something that’s already good; 96. Spanish chickens; 97. Active; 99. Doubting words; 100. Representative; 102. Musical symbols that resemble cross hairs; 103. Gulf of ___; 104. A very long time; 105. Top; 106. “Show Boat” composer; 107. Writer James; 108. The “S” of TBS: Abbr.; 110. Unaccounted for, briefly; 111. Take sides?; 112. Prefix with culture; 113. Boss of bosses.