Thumbnails
50 puzzles with Editor comments — 1/15/2014 to 9/20/2014
Showing 50 out of 583 total with editor comments.
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| S | T | R | E | A | K | S | L | E | A | D | U | P | ||
| Q | U | I | R | R | E | L | L | A | N | G | I | N | A | |
| U | N | D | E | R | D | O | G | S | T | R | E | W | N | |
| A | N | D | A | S | P | E | C | T | R | A | T | I | O | |
| D | E | L | T | S | L | O | S | E | S | E | P | |||
| S | L | E | W | A | P | E | X | P | O | L | L | |||
| O | P | T | I | C | S | O | D | D | Y | |||||
| P | R | O | J | E | C | T | R | U | N | W | A | Y | ||
| C | L | A | U | S | R | I | F | L | E | |||||
| L | A | I | T | C | O | M | O | R | A | V | E | |||
| A | Y | N | S | H | U | N | A | S | T | I | N | |||
| M | A | G | I | C | T | R | I | C | K | S | H | O | F | |
| A | R | E | N | O | T | C | O | C | A | C | O | L | A | |
| T | E | A | R | U | P | S | T | U | N | T | M | A | N | |
| O | A | R | E | R | S | S | P | A | R | E | S | T |
The Thursday-Saturday puzzles this week were all created by constructors in their early 20s, part of a new generation of puzzlemakers. I don't have any hard figures on constructors' ages, but my gut feeling is that the median age has declined by about 15 years since I started in 1993 — from around 55 then to 40 now. Someone should do a study.
| B | I | T | E | A | S | I | A | N | M | A | M | A | S | ||
| L | O | O | P | C | A | S | E | Y | A | G | A | V | E | ||
| O | W | N | S | A | L | E | R | T | R | A | M | O | N | ||
| C | A | S | I | N | C | U | E | A | L | I | B | I | S | ||
| L | A | I | T | A | A | S | I | N | A | R | E | ||||
| C | O | R | O | N | A | E | L | I | O | N | S | ||||
| A | R | E | N | A | K | I | L | N | T | A | G | S | |||
| N | Y | U | S | A | S | I | N | S | E | A | U | N | O | ||
| E | X | P | O | R | O | M | E | M | U | R | A | L | |||
| R | A | I | N | Y | I | M | I | T | A | T | E | ||||
| E | A | S | I | N | E | Y | E | N | I | C | E | ||||
| A | L | L | E | Y | S | Y | A | S | I | N | Y | O | U | ||
| S | T | A | N | D | I | A | M | B | S | S | O | B | S | ||
| Y | E | N | T | A | Q | R | C | I | U | I | L | I | E | ||
| A | R | T | S | Y | S | C | A | T | S | L | O | T | S |
Years ago my friend Evie Eysenburg, one of the New York Times crossword testers, was at Bloomingdale's buying something. The clerk had to call the credit department to verify Evie's information. For clarification the clerk spelled Evie's last name "E as in 'eye," Y as in 'you,' "S as in 'sea' ..." — which left the person in the credit department going "Wha-a-a-at??!" She and I have been laughing about this ever since.
After I told this story to Joel, he and I tried to think of a name in which every letter could have a confusing "clarification." He cleverly turned the result into a Thursday theme.
| G | A | T | E | S | P | A | T | W | R | I | S | T | ||
| O | A | R | S | E | R | L | E | H | O | R | N | E | ||
| T | R | A | P | C | O | A | X | Y | U | K | O | N | ||
| T | O | N | Y | T | O | N | I | T | O | N | E | |||
| I | N | S | E | N | T | B | I | O | W | A | H | |||
| L | O | N | D | O | N | O | N | T | A | R | I | O | ||
| E | R | U | P | T | S | A | O | K | L | I | D | S | ||
| L | A | C | E | S | P | I | K | V | I | T | A | E | ||
| E | Y | E | D | G | I | L | R | E | T | I | N | A | ||
| M | O | N | S | O | O | N | S | E | A | S | O | N | ||
| I | N | T | R | Y | E | R | I | P | G | M | A | |||
| O | N | A | N | D | O | N | A | N | D | O | N | |||
| B | R | A | V | E | U | R | I | S | C | E | N | T | ||
| E | A | G | E | R | T | A | C | O | I | S | E | E | ||
| E | M | E | R | Y | S | W | A | N | S | K | Y | S |
Today's puzzle, along with those for Monday, Wednesday and Thursday this week, were used last Saturday at the 7th annual Bay Area Crossword Tournament, in Oakland, Calif. The event was run by Andrew Laurence to benefit the Families of Spinal Muscular Atrophy.
| L | E | W | I | S | A | C | T | S | A | B | S | |||
| A | L | A | S | K | A | N | O | E | L | L | O | U | ||
| B | E | L | L | Y | D | A | N | C | E | R | D | Y | E | |
| O | G | L | E | V | R | O | O | M | J | A | Z | Z | ||
| R | Y | E | H | I | C | O | E | N | O | |||||
| F | I | S | H | A | N | D | C | H | I | P | S | |||
| E | M | M | A | P | E | E | L | O | N | C | U | E | ||
| V | I | E | T | D | R | E | C | K | D | A | R | E | ||
| E | L | W | A | Y | P | R | I | S | O | N | E | R | ||
| R | O | L | L | O | F | T | H | E | D | I | E | |||
| L | U | L | U | S | N | L | G | P | S | |||||
| Q | U | A | Y | E | V | I | T | A | D | R | E | I | ||
| U | R | L | B | E | A | N | S | P | R | O | U | T | S | |
| I | S | E | U | C | L | A | S | A | V | E | A | S | ||
| T | A | X | D | E | U | S | J | E | L | L | Y |
Andrea's original manuscript had her own name, ANDREA, at 13A. While I don't mind inside jokes in constructors' puzzles, they shouldn't detract from the fill — which, unfortunately, is what happened here. The corner also came with E LEE, RLS and ERLE. The revised corner is much cleaner.
As is the case with many of Andrea's puzzles, this one is pangrammatic. I don't give a hoot about pangrams, which I don't think most solvers notice. At the same time, I don't mind them, as long as the fill doesn't suffer. The rare letters J, Q, X and Z can spice things up. In this puzzle all four of the rarest letters have been squeezed into the upper-right and lower-left corners, with the only real casualty being the unappealing ISE at 62A. Otherwise, nice. So this pangram's fine.
BTW, Andrea visited me a couple of months ago, and we saw Ian Hunter (formerly of Mott the Hoople, one of my favorite old bands) at a local music festival. I'm sure she and I were the only people among the thousands at the outdoor concert trying to make a crossword theme together!
| A | D | E | P | T | C | O | L | U | M | N | I | S | T | |
| T | O | S | E | A | P | R | O | N | O | U | N | C | E | |
| T | W | O | A | M | L | E | T | T | E | R | B | O | X | |
| A | N | T | H | E | M | I | N | S | E | R | T | |||
| C | H | E | E | S | E | B | A | L | L | I | T | E | M | |
| K | E | R | N | S | I | N | E | S | N | A | R | E | ||
| E | R | I | S | C | O | A | T | I | N | G | ||||
| D | E | C | B | A | D | G | I | R | L | C | A | T | ||
| C | O | L | O | R | T | V | C | H | I | A | ||||
| I | M | H | I | P | M | A | G | I | B | E | R | G | ||
| N | O | U | N | L | E | M | O | N | G | R | A | S | S | |
| C | O | M | E | L | Y | G | R | A | P | P | A | |||
| I | N | A | M | O | R | A | T | A | I | D | E | A | L | |
| T | E | N | A | C | I | O | U | S | M | I | N | C | E | |
| E | Y | E | S | O | C | K | E | T | M | O | S | E | S |
One tricky answer to clue here was BAD GIRL (34A), as almost any clue could be seen as sexist. BAD GIRL has a negative connotation that BAD BOY does not, which seems unfair. The clue I ended up with, "Biker chick, perhaps," was my attempt to be neutral — which I think it is.
| M | O | O | S | E | A | G | O | P | E | A | C | H | ||
| A | V | A | I | L | L | E | A | C | U | R | I | E | ||
| T | A | K | E | S | P | A | R | T | P | R | I | D | E | |
| V | I | E | A | H | S | S | E | L | ||||||
| G | R | E | E | T | E | R | A | S | N | E | R | |||
| F | O | E | C | A | D | G | L | O | ||||||
| L | O | T | B | A | R | O | N | A | L | O | H | A | ||
| A | D | A | A | T | T | O | S | S | F | O | X | |||
| B | E | G | E | T | H | U | N | C | H | A | V | E | ||
| D | H | L | P | E | R | G | E | D | ||||||
| T | R | Y | S | T | S | T | A | T | L | E | R | |||
| B | E | E | R | A | W | P | O | L | ||||||
| I | N | T | E | R | F | I | R | E | W | A | T | E | R | |
| G | O | R | M | E | T | N | N | E | M | E | R | Y | ||
| D | R | O | I | D | A | G | A | R | O | X | I | E |
This year's Lollapuzzoola tournament was the first one I've missed in its seven-year history. On the day it was held, I was flying to London for the World Puzzle Championship. Patrick and Brian visited me before the tournament to borrow some supplies, though, and they told me about some of the cool things they had scheduled, including this. I asked if I could run it in the Times. But for when? It didn't feel wacky enough for a Sunday variety puzzle, or open enough gridwise for a Saturday. So I scheduled it for a Thursday (today), which is typically the hardest theme day. I know this hybrid of a crossword/variety puzzle is not to everyone's taste. I'm prepared for the "hate" comments! Still, solvers who love this will probably really love it, so I think it's worth running.
BTW, I changed a few of the tournament clues to make them slightly easier and less trivia-oriented than the originals. For example, not all solvers may know that "Pinky or The Brain, e.g." (Patrick's clue at 1A) is a MOUSE, or that "Guitarist Saul Hudson of Guns N' Roses, familiarly" (28D) is SLASH. These would have been stumbling blocks for many solvers. So I tweaked the puzzle here and there (not much) to make it more accessible.
Meanwhile, I'm just happy to introduce Lollapuzzoola to a wider audience.
| L | O | B | D | A | C | H | A | S | C | R | A | G | ||
| A | M | O | U | P | H | O | L | D | H | E | L | L | ||
| M | A | N | N | E | R | I | S | M | S | U | N | I | E | |
| B | R | O | I | L | C | E | S | A | B | A | B | A | ||
| N | E | M | O | D | U | B | L | I | N | |||||
| A | C | C | E | D | E | N | A | T | T | Y | ||||
| S | A | L | T | W | A | L | L | S | O | C | K | E | T | |
| A | R | E | E | D | S | E | A | S | H | A | M | U | ||
| P | O | W | E | R | S | T | R | I | P | E | R | I | N | |
| N | A | N | A | S | R | C | C | O | L | A | ||||
| P | A | S | S | G | O | T | O | O | K | |||||
| A | N | T | I | S | T | W | O | S | E | P | I | A | ||
| S | T | Y | X | F | I | E | L | D | T | R | I | P | S | |
| T | I | L | T | U | N | S | E | A | L | K | O | I | ||
| A | C | E | Y | R | A | T | T | L | Y | E | D | S |
Anytime a puzzle contains triply-checked letters, like the circled ones here, there are likely to be compromises in the fill. The middle section of this grid has more unappealing entries than I like — especially CES, SDS, NLERS, ALAI, ASTA, SNO, and DAL. So the question becomes ... is the "aha" strong enough to outweigh the puzzle's weaknesses? In this case, obviously, I thought the answer was yes.
| O | L | D | A | G | E | P | E | N | S | I | O | N | E | R |
| R | E | E | D | U | C | A | T | I | O | N | C | A | M | P |
| R | A | C | E | T | O | T | H | E | B | O | T | T | O | M |
| V | O | S | S | K | E | N | S | |||||||
| W | E | N | T | F | E | A | R | H | M | O | ||||
| A | S | S | E | T | A | L | L | O | C | A | T | I | O | N |
| I | T | T | O | Z | M | A | I | S | O | L | D | E | ||
| T | O | R | I | N | O | C | A | P | L | E | T | |||
| I | D | U | N | N | O | R | O | A | M | B | R | O | ||
| N | I | C | K | E | L | A | N | D | D | I | M | I | N | G |
| G | E | T | D | A | D | A | A | L | D | O | ||||
| C | H | A | W | P | O | L | A | |||||||
| P | A | T | R | O | N | A | G | E | H | I | R | I | N | G |
| G | R | E | A | T | G | R | A | N | D | N | I | E | C | E |
| S | T | E | M | L | E | S | S | G | L | A | S | S | E | S |
I have a feeling today's puzzle won't be liked by some of the crossword bloggers, as the grid's vocabulary isn't the most scintillating, and it has a lot of three-letter words. Still, the fill is solid, and 17A, 38A, 25D, 26D and 43D are quite nice, so to me this is worthy. Most of all, the gimmick with the black squares is just ... wow!
| D | E | P | P | D | E | C | O | R | M | I | C | A | ||
| O | V | E | R | O | C | U | L | O | A | S | A | N | ||
| C | A | N | O | F | W | O | R | M | S | G | A | N | G | |
| S | C | H | M | O | R | E | C | R | E | A | T | E | ||
| P | R | I | V | Y | C | O | U | N | C | I | L | |||
| D | A | K | T | A | R | I | E | N | T | S | ||||
| E | T | A | S | O | C | T | A | N | A | T | T | Y | ||
| L | I | Z | W | C | H | A | N | D | Y | E | R | A | ||
| I | T | A | L | O | Y | E | T | I | P | R | O | D | ||
| K | A | O | S | O | C | E | A | N | I | A | ||||
| J | O | H | N | F | K | E | N | N | E | D | Y | |||
| E | A | S | T | S | I | D | E | I | D | O | S | O | ||
| S | R | T | A | H | E | A | D | S | T | A | R | T | S | |
| S | E | A | N | A | M | P | E | D | Y | E | A | H | ||
| E | D | N | A | T | A | S | E | S | S | O | Y | A |
This puzzle reminds me of a supposed "themeless" crossword that Will Weng once ran, in which each of the long answers contained a synonym for "rear end." After publication, when the hidden theme was pointed out to him, the proper-minded Weng embarrassedly expressed regret about publishing it. I wonder what he would have thought about today's theme?!
| D | A | M | N | P | L | A | S | M | N | A | S | H | ||
| O | D | I | E | R | A | S | T | A | U | M | N | O | ||
| T | E | X | T | B | O | O | K | E | X | A | M | P | L | E |
| S | N | E | L | L | W | I | P | E | ||||||
| R | O | O | M | T | O | I | M | P | R | O | V | E | ||
| S | T | R | I | V | E | L | A | B | E | L | ||||
| P | I | T | S | M | R | E | M | E | L | O | N | S | ||
| L | G | A | B | E | E | R | N | U | T | E | O | E | ||
| A | L | B | E | I | T | D | E | S | I | S | M | S | ||
| N | O | L | A | N | H | U | S | T | O | N | ||||
| B | O | A | R | D | M | E | E | T | I | N | G | S | ||
| F | L | A | T | C | E | A | S | E | ||||||
| C | O | L | L | E | G | E | E | X | P | E | N | S | E | S |
| A | R | E | A | I | R | K | E | D | U | S | E | S | ||
| P | E | E | P | C | O | E | D | S | E | Y | R | E |
I'm very impressed with Ethan's clues. Most of these are his. Lots of good ones, but my favorites are 10D, 12D (I did not know that!), 32D and 38D. I also like 64A, which is a tricky answer to handle. When I consider submissions, I pretty much ignore the constructors' clues, which I know I can revise myself, if necessary. But I do give some preference to contributors (like Ethan) who I know write good clues, and I tend to publish their puzzles more quickly after acceptance.
| G | I | Z | A | J | A | P | E | S | E | G | A | D | ||
| A | C | E | D | I | W | O | N | T | M | A | L | I | ||
| P | E | R | L | E | M | E | S | T | A | M | S | G | S | |
| C | O | A | L | S | H | I | P | M | A | T | E | S | ||
| S | U | S | I | E | Q | T | H | E | A | R | E | |||
| A | B | U | M | U | S | T | Y | R | U | N | I | C | ||
| M | E | M | O | A | K | A | P | I | C | K | A | T | ||
| D | E | L | I | M | E | A | T | S | ||||||
| N | A | P | A | L | M | E | R | R | B | A | S | E | ||
| E | T | H | Y | L | S | S | G | T | S | P | E | W | ||
| T | R | A | I | A | N | Y | U | P | P | I | E | |||
| L | O | S | E | S | T | E | A | M | I | L | E | S | ||
| O | P | E | L | L | E | G | A | L | T | E | A | M | S | |
| S | H | I | M | A | Z | U | R | E | A | S | I | A | ||
| S | Y | N | S | S | E | A | T | S | D | E | C | O |
The published puzzle today looks quite different from what the constructor sent me. Allan had the theme answers running vertically, which I didn't see any reason for. So I switched the Acrosses and Downs, so the main theme entries would read the usual way. A couple of corners were polished, too. The thing I probably like most about this puzzle is the bonus, "explainer" theme entry, TAMES, at 30D, crossing the "M" of DELI MEATS. A very elegant touch.
| M | I | S | S | U | S | A | B | R | O | W | S | B | V | D | T | A | G | |||
| E | N | L | A | C | E | S | R | E | N | E | C | L | A | I | R | A | P | R | ||
| C | H | A | L | L | A | H | B | O | W | E | D | H | E | A | V | E | B | R | A | |
| C | A | N | V | A | S | O | O | R | T | F | B | I | M | O | O | N | ||||
| A | L | T | O | H | O | N | D | A | W | A | T | T | A | F | F | R | O | N | T | |
| S | E | S | B | E | L | S | P | O | L | E | A | Y | E | S | ||||||
| S | A | L | A | A | M | I | N | C | E | L | E | M | ||||||||
| D | W | E | L | L | F | I | E | R | C | E | S | U | S | S | L | A | V | E | ||
| G | R | A | I | L | S | T | O | O | N | P | A | Y | T | E | L | L | ||||
| N | U | T | S | O | C | A | R | O | L | J | I | N | N | E | N | T | O | |||
| A | G | E | T | H | U | G | O | D | D | F | O | D | D | E | R | T | O | R | ||
| S | L | R | S | Y | E | A | S | W | U | S | S | Y | U | T | U | R | N | |||
| H | A | R | T | P | I | T | C | A | R | E | A | S | H | A | M | E | ||||
| W | A | R | D | E | N | H | A | I | R | Y | P | E | E | P | H | O | L | E | ||
| S | T | A | R | A | R | E | H | A | M | P | E | R | ||||||||
| I | N | R | E | C | R | A | B | S | A | I | D | J | A | M | ||||||
| H | O | W | T | O | U | G | H | H | A | V | E | R | I | G | A | L | O | S | E | |
| A | M | I | S | B | E | A | O | T | O | E | N | L | E | A | S | T | ||||
| Z | E | N | B | E | S | T | P | I | C | T | U | R | E | W | I | N | N | E | R | |
| E | G | G | I | N | T | E | R | N | E | E | S | S | A | R | D | I | N | E | ||
| L | A | S | O | S | S | E | N | T | R | E | E | Y | E | L | E | T | S |
My assistant Joel and I edited this puzzle together over a large pizza at a local pizzeria a few weeks ago. There wasn't a lot to edit, actually, as Joel writes good clues.
| C | R | O | W | D | S | O | U | R | C | E | A | L | E | |
| H | O | N | O | R | S | Y | S | T | E | M | L | A | X | |
| I | N | A | N | U | T | S | H | E | L | L | O | R | C | |
| R | E | G | M | A | T | E | L | E | B | E | A | U | ||
| P | L | E | B | R | E | R | I | N | E | V | I | S | ||
| S | Y | R | U | P | R | I | C | O | B | E | D | E | ||
| C | A | P | N | E | D | R | O | R | E | M | ||||
| R | A | C | H | A | E | L | T | O | S | P | A | R | E | |
| E | D | H | A | R | R | I | S | M | V | P | ||||
| A | D | E | N | M | A | C | Y | P | E | T | I | T | ||
| R | I | C | A | N | T | H | A | R | D | A | M | E | ||
| E | T | H | N | O | S | M | M | I | V | I | G | A | ||
| X | I | N | M | A | R | I | A | C | A | L | L | A | S | |
| I | V | Y | A | N | D | T | H | E | N | S | O | M | E | |
| T | E | A | R | E | S | T | A | S | S | U | R | E | D |
While I don't place any arbitrary limit on the number of proper names in a puzzle — it all depends on how familiar they are, how they cross, and how they're clued — the high number of names in this puzzle definitely pushes the limit. A particular concern here was the combination of LEBEAU, EMLEN, and NEVIS in the upper-right. If you don't know these names, two of which are sports-related, you could be in trouble. This is the reason for the extra help in the clue for 21A.
| A | D | P | A | G | E | S | A | R | B | S | I | C | ||
| N | E | A | R | I | S | H | M | A | E | S | T | R | O | |
| N | O | T | A | S | T | E | I | N | A | T | R | A | P | |
| A | R | I | B | O | L | D | N | A | V | Y | ||||
| N | O | E | L | O | U | T | E | R | A | R | M | |||
| N | E | P | H | E | W | S | R | E | C | U | E | |||
| I | T | T | R | O | A | N | I | S | N | T | I | T | ||
| D | I | A | R | I | S | T | M | O | D | E | R | N | E | |
| E | G | R | E | S | S | W | A | W | A | E | S | S | ||
| S | E | E | T | O | F | A | C | A | D | E | S | |||
| T | R | A | I | N | C | A | R | R | S | V | P | |||
| T | W | A | D | D | L | E | A | S | I | A | ||||
| T | A | N | L | I | N | E | O | F | F | S | E | T | S | |
| S | I | S | E | N | O | R | M | O | D | E | L | A | S | |
| A | R | C | G | E | S | B | R | A | S | A | L | E |
Is BRA SALE (63A) a legitimate crossword entry? Is it a "thing"? I debated a long time about this, ultimately deciding it sneaked by. Sometimes a good clue can salvage a weak entry, and I thought this one made the answer work.
| P | R | I | S | M | D | E | B | T | H | A | U | L | ||
| S | A | N | T | A | A | R | E | A | O | G | R | E | ||
| A | D | A | R | K | M | A | R | C | O | P | O | L | O | |
| L | I | L | I | E | S | T | O | N | E | |||||
| M | I | L | K | P | U | N | C | H | A | D | L | I | B | |
| E | E | L | E | R | S | F | I | N | E | |||||
| T | E | T | A | T | N | O | A | M | O | E | B | A | ||
| O | N | E | A | C | R | E | I | F | O | R | G | E | T | |
| P | E | N | N | E | Y | A | C | R | O | E | D | S | ||
| I | M | O | N | S | H | E | E | T | S | |||||
| C | Y | R | U | S | M | I | S | S | P | I | G | G | Y | |
| L | A | S | E | H | O | N | O | R | E | |||||
| M | E | N | L | O | P | A | R | K | I | N | D | I | A | |
| P | A | N | E | C | R | E | E | N | E | R | D | S | ||
| S | U | E | D | A | S | S | N | T | R | Y | S | T |
A few weeks ago Vic Fleming visited me at my home in Pleasantville, N.Y., on his drive from the South to New England. We played table tennis at my club, had dinner together, and talked shop. Good fun. He's not a bad table tennis player either! Dinner would have included Vic's friend Bill Clinton, who's a big New York Times crossword solver, and who lives in next-door Chappaqua — but, unfortunately, Clinton was away that evening.
| S | T | E | M | A | S | S | T | P | A | B | S | T | ||
| T | O | T | E | P | O | L | O | R | O | U | T | E | ||
| A | L | T | A | P | R | O | F | E | L | M | O | S | ||
| B | L | U | N | D | E | R | B | U | S | S | B | L | T | |
| T | R | A | Y | S | T | E | T | L | E | Y | ||||
| Z | E | S | T | E | R | T | E | N | S | E | ||||
| I | N | T | O | W | G | A | M | E | T | A | B | L | E | |
| N | Y | U | M | Y | B | A | D | E | A | T | ||||
| C | A | M | E | R | A | M | A | N | U | P | E | N | D | |
| B | E | A | M | S | P | H | A | S | E | S | ||||
| A | P | L | O | M | B | A | K | R | O | N | ||||
| L | I | E | B | O | B | B | L | E | H | E | A | D | S | |
| L | A | B | E | L | O | N | U | S | L | E | A | K | ||
| I | N | U | S | E | L | E | T | T | E | R | I | E | ||
| N | O | M | A | D | O | R | Z | O | D | O | S | E |
One tiny thing I debated on this puzzle was whether or not to clue UH-OH (42D) as "Oops!," as the main theme answers are. But doing so would naturally have led solvers to look at its symmetrical mate, DREW (21D), which cannot be clued as "Oops!," causing a letdown. It would have looked like the constructor had tried to do something but failed. So ultimately I decided to clue 42D nonthematically.
| A | M | B | I | T | F | O | U | L | B | E | D | S | ||
| P | E | A | C | E | A | D | Z | E | A | R | I | A | ||
| E | A | C | H | C | L | U | E | I | N | P | S | S | T | |
| X | T | C | S | A | C | T | A | T | A | M | I | |||
| F | A | D | P | E | P | S | S | I | T | A | R | |||
| E | R | R | O | L | T | H | E | P | U | Z | Z | L | E | |
| S | E | A | G | O | D | A | T | O | N | E | ||||
| P | E | T | S | U | L | L | I | E | D | S | T | Y | ||
| M | E | D | E | A | T | E | M | P | E | R | ||||
| I | S | M | I | S | S | I | N | G | R | O | L | E | S | |
| Q | U | A | S | I | A | X | O | N | B | I | T | |||
| T | I | N | C | T | S | A | A | A | T | E | A | |||
| E | T | T | U | T | H | E | L | E | T | T | E | R | N | |
| S | O | R | E | A | U | D | I | O | W | N | E | D | ||
| T | R | A | S | T | R | U | E | P | A | D | D | Y |
Big props to Frank Longo for helping me edit this puzzle, which jointly took us many, many hours. More than half of the clues are editorial changes. Our goal was to write clues that sound as normal as possible. Most of them, I think, turned out pretty well. And the ones that don't sound normal (like "Umber at the opera," "Sci-fi character remembered for her large bus," and especially "Program that asks 'Are we aloe?,' e.g.") show a wacky humor. I know some solvers will hate this — it's not a crossword, blah, blah, blah — but once in a while, it's nice to shake things up.
| B | B | Q | S | A | N | D | W | I | C | H | H | E | H | |
| S | A | U | D | I | A | R | A | B | I | A | I | N | O | |
| T | R | A | I | N | S | I | G | N | A | L | B | A | M | |
| A | H | I | G | A | V | E | T | E | A | M | O | |||
| R | O | L | L | E | E | W | E | S | D | C | O | N | ||
| S | P | A | Y | F | R | A | N | K | G | E | H | R | Y | |
| S | T | E | A | L | R | O | Y | A | L | I | S | M | ||
| M | I | L | S | L | R | |||||||||
| I | T | S | M | A | G | I | C | I | P | A | D | S | ||
| D | E | E | P | T | H | R | O | A | T | A | R | T | Y | |
| C | A | T | E | T | R | A | P | P | H | Y | L | A | ||
| A | M | I | G | A | R | A | G | A | F | U | N | |||
| R | U | N | B | L | I | S | T | E | R | P | A | C | K | |
| D | S | T | L | A | K | E | O | N | T | A | R | I | O | |
| S | A | O | E | Z | E | R | W | E | I | Z | M | A | N |
As I may have mentioned once, SDI (4D) is an entry I'd like to ban from crosswords, as it's a long out-of-date initialism. But here, since it crosses the lovely stack of BBQ SANDWICH, SAUDI ARABIA, and TRAIN SIGNAL, I had to make an exception.
| M | E | D | A | L | S | C | A | P | T | U | R | E | S | |
| B | I | A | L | I | K | G | R | O | U | P | O | N | S | |
| A | R | T | I | F | I | C | I | A | L | B | R | A | I | N |
| S | E | E | T | H | A | E | N | D | S | |||||
| Q | U | A | S | H | P | D | A | |||||||
| G | E | T | U | P | T | H | E | C | O | U | R | A | G | E |
| O | R | E | O | R | U | S | T | K | I | X | ||||
| L | A | S | D | O | R | O | T | H | Y | I | V | E | ||
| A | S | L | A | T | O | I | A | V | E | R | ||||
| N | E | A | R | T | O | O | N | E | S | H | E | A | R | T |
| U | S | E | E | N | T | E | R | |||||||
| S | T | A | B | Z | A | C | D | R | E | |||||
| Y | E | L | L | O | W | B | R | I | C | K | R | O | A | D |
| N | A | K | E | D | E | Y | E | K | L | U | T | Z | Y | |
| C | L | A | S | S | I | S | M | S | E | N | S | E | S |
This Tuesday-level puzzle is timed to coincide (as closely as possible) to the 75th anniversary of "The Wizard of Oz," which will be next Monday. The intersection of HEROINE (23D) through three theme entries is particularly elegant. The circled O-Z in the lower-right is a nice touch, too.
| W | H | A | T | N | A | S | A | S | W | A | B | T | L | C | ||||||
| P | H | I | L | O | O | D | I | N | N | O | B | U | H | E | E | |||||
| W | R | I | T | I | N | W | R | O | N | G | A | W | A | Y | W | E | G | O | ||
| D | E | I | S | T | I | O | S | G | O | R | P | C | I | A | R | A | ||||
| J | A | C | K | I | N | C | O | K | E | R | O | C | K | I | N | R | O | L | L | |
| S | K | Y | N | O | S | E | S | W | A | T | H | E | L | D | O | P | A | |||
| I | M | F | R | O | T | I | S | A | S | H | A | K | A | N | ||||||
| S | P | A | T | I | A | L | L | O | L | L | T | H | A | R | I | D | E | |||
| N | E | W | S | S | T | A | N | D | L | E | D | A | G | G | R | E | S | S | ||
| A | R | E | A | S | R | A | P | V | I | D | E | O | E | E | O | |||||
| G | E | D | S | B | A | R | R | I | N | G | R | I | L | L | B | I | N | G | ||
| I | N | O | C | O | N | G | E | A | L | S | H | O | M | I | E | |||||
| E | V | E | N | I | N | G | S | E | R | I | S | T | H | A | T | A | L | L | ||
| L | E | A | P | E | R | M | S | A | H | L | S | O | U | R | C | E | S | |||
| M | R | S | P | R | E | O | P | C | A | S | E | S | L | Y | ||||||
| S | T | Y | L | I | G | R | A | V | E | N | M | I | N | I | Z | E | E | |||
| T | I | M | I | N | A | G | A | I | N | S | H | O | W | I | N | T | E | L | L | |
| C | O | M | T | E | Y | N | E | Z | A | J | A | O | A | S | I | S | ||||
| M | A | N | P | U | R | S | E | C | U | T | T | I | N | P | A | S | T | E | ||
| A | L | E | C | I | T | E | K | N | E | E | N | U | T | T | Y | |||||
| P | S | Y | K | E | E | L | S | E | E | R | A | P | S | E |
At one time Caleb was the youngest crossword constructor I had published in the Times — just 15 years 3 months old when he made his debut in 2008. When 14-year-old Ben Pall came along and debuted in 2009, beating Caleb's record, Caleb shook his fist in indignation and screamed "No-o-o-o!!" Or so he told me. Anyway, I replied that Caleb will now have to live to be the oldest New York Times crossword constructor in order to hold an age record again. This past Monday, Bernice Gordon set a new "oldest" record of 100 years 7 months, so Caleb (or anyone else) has a real challenge.
As for the puzzle, Caleb, in his typical way, packed the grid with lots of modern culture like CIARA, KESHA, SASHA (Fierce), EMOJI, VINES, ZUNE, a character from "Inglorious Basterds," a quote from "Anchorman" (the last two of which I removed), and one or two "young" references I didn't even understand myself.
I do think there's a place in the Times for a puzzle like this that skews young — just as there's a place for puzzles that skew old. Over time I hope things balance out.
| Z | A | Z | U | P | C | B | S | B | A | B | K | A | ||
| S | L | I | M | E | R | L | E | A | P | L | A | N | ||
| A | P | P | L | E | P | I | E | S | N | O | U | R | I | |
| C | A | R | I | B | B | E | A | N | S | E | A | |||
| A | M | O | U | N | T | S | R | E | T | T | O | N | ||
| R | E | D | T | E | A | H | A | I | R | L | I | K | E | |
| C | H | E | S | S | M | O | C | S | E | T | E | S | ||
| T | I | R | A | D | E | S | ||||||||
| A | T | M | S | M | E | R | C | H | A | J | J | I | ||
| R | H | A | P | S | O | D | Y | A | I | L | E | E | N | |
| R | E | L | I | E | F | R | A | N | L | A | T | E | ||
| P | A | C | I | F | I | C | O | C | E | A | N | |||
| T | I | R | E | S | S | U | P | E | R | G | L | U | E | |
| I | L | I | U | M | A | B | E | L | E | U | R | O | ||
| C | L | A | P | S | K | A | R | L | S | C | I | S |
I think Jeff intended 16A, A PLAN, to be a bonus theme entry, since it's part of the classic palindrome "A man, a plan, a canal — Panama." Also, 37D, MALARIA, is sort of thematic, since this disease famously plagued the construction of the Panama Canal. But I couldn't think of a way to clue these in reference to the theme that wasn't awkward or that didn't give the theme away. The fact that they didn't have symmetrical theme answers on the other side of the grid was a concern as well. So even though the entries relate to the theme, the puzzle doesn't explicitly say so. They're Easter eggs, of a sort.
One clue note: Jeff's original clue for 48A, RELIEF, was "Marketers spelled it with seven letters ending in an S" — in reference to the old Rolaids catchphrase "How do you spell relief? R-O-L-A-I-D-S". My 22-year old assistant Joel had no idea what this clue meant. Apparently the old Rolaids ad campaign has not stood the test of time. Since I generally like solvers to understand clues, at least after they see the answers, I decided to do something else.
| L | T | D | S | E | R | R | P | A | L | S | ||||
| S | H | O | P | A | L | E | A | H | O | L | I | C | ||
| D | E | L | I | B | E | P | I | E | R | A | T | E | ||
| G | E | N | T | V | A | L | L | E | B | E | N | |||
| T | A | O | S | A | I | R | D | A | R | E | ||||
| E | M | U | C | I | T | R | O | E | N | M | A | R | ||
| L | E | T | M | E | B | E | A | N | O | M | A | L | Y | |
| R | E | E | D | D | E | M | O | |||||||
| D | E | L | I | L | A | H | T | R | A | I | T | O | R | |
| E | M | O | O | M | I | C | R | O | N | O | B | I | ||
| L | E | A | R | G | R | E | H | O | E | D | ||||
| U | N | D | E | R | H | U | S | P | A | S | S | |||
| I | D | I | D | N | W | I | T | T | D | O | I | T | ||
| S | E | N | D | S | A | S | L | A | N | O | T | E | ||
| E | D | G | Y | Y | E | E | O | N | Y | X |
As Jason noted, when I first accepted this puzzle last spring, the answer at 16A was PEROG/ATIVE. Perhaps I didn't notice the misspelling because the entry was broken into two parts. Anyway, it wasn't until I came to editing that I thought "Hmm, that doesn't look right." I returned the grid to Jason for a fix — which he managed to do with even better fill than before. I hope the puzzle's trick gives solvers a nice "aha!"
| S | T | E | P | P | E | B | U | G | J | U | I | C | E | |
| M | E | N | I | A | L | U | N | I | O | N | R | E | P | |
| A | N | G | E | R | M | A | N | A | G | E | M | E | N | T |
| C | A | R | T | I | N | S | I | L | O | S | ||||
| H | E | R | B | R | I | C | W | I | S | P | ||||
| A | N | D | I | A | L | L | A | T | I | N | G | L | E | |
| S | T | E | N | T | U | S | E | R | N | O | W | |||
| S | H | O | R | T | H | A | I | R | ||||||
| M | O | B | A | N | A | T | S | E | E | Y | A | |||
| T | H | E | B | R | E | W | E | R | S | I | C | E | D | |
| G | O | Y | A | R | O | C | K | L | S | D | ||||
| O | N | C | E | A | B | R | O | K | A | W | ||||
| L | A | N | G | U | A | G | E | B | A | R | R | I | E | R |
| O | C | C | U | R | R | E | D | W | E | I | R | D | O | |
| D | E | E | P | E | N | D | S | L | A | S | S | O | S |
I debated for a long time whether or not to highlight the four hidden language names in this puzzle's grid ... but ultimately decided it would be more enjoyable if solvers had to find the hidden names themselves. Hope I'm right!
| E | S | S | B | E | T | A | A | R | F | B | A | C | H | R | O | Z | ||||
| M | O | P | A | V | O | W | B | Y | U | E | N | Y | A | E | W | E | ||||
| B | I | O | H | E | R | E | X | C | E | L | L | E | N | C | Y | X | E | R | ||
| O | R | T | S | R | I | S | E | O | P | A | L | O | H | S | O | |||||
| S | E | R | A | P | E | N | A | D | I | R | O | R | N | A | T | E | ||||
| S | E | E | F | I | T | O | N | E | N | D | P | E | D | R | O | S | ||||
| M | A | T | T | S | N | O | L | L | E | U | S | H | E | R | ||||||
| B | O | O | R | S | T | E | S | T | R | I | D | E | S | A | C | I | D | S | ||
| O | B | V | I | A | T | E | S | C | I | E | D | R | I | N | K | S | I | N | ||
| R | O | E | W | H | I | T | E | H | O | U | S | E | D | O | G | O | E | O | ||
| G | E | R | M | A | N | A | G | C | L | A | W | S | N | U | B | |||||
| I | N | N | B | O | W | W | O | W | A | C | U | |||||||||
| M | A | L | L | O | A | L | T | A | R | O | E | G | U | N | S | E | R | |||
| O | N | E | L | B | S | I | R | I | O | P | I | E | E | N | T | R | E | |||
| A | N | G | I | E | A | S | I | F | T | E | S | S | B | Y | A | G | E | |||
| N | E | W | E | L | L | H | P | S | E | R | S | P | I | S | T | O | L | |||
| M | A | S | S | E | S | S | O | D | I | U | M | |||||||||
| P | E | R | M | T | O | M | A | T | O | P | A | S | T | E | D | E | E | M | ||
| R | A | M | A | B | U | D | D | Y | S | Y | S | T | E | M | E | T | T | U | ||
| O | R | E | L | E | S | C | A | P | E | R | O | U | T | E | U | T | E | S | ||
| M | A | R | L | A | C | M | E | O | F | F | S | P | E | R | K |
An earlier version of this puzzle had the answer CHECKERS MATCH at 24A, clued as "'Jumping' competition [the Nixons]". One of the puzzle testers, though, Frank Longo, pointed out that the Nixons' dog Checkers died in 1964, five years before Nixon took office, so Checkers was never a WHITE HOUSE DOG (62A). That was a great catch, preventing an error from getting into print. On top of that, Frank reworked the upper-middle portion of the grid with the new theme entry HER EXCELLENCY. Thank god for Frank!
| G | A | N | G | N | A | M | L | E | A | P | S | A | T | |
| A | M | E | R | I | C | A | O | I | L | R | I | C | H | |
| S | O | M | E | T | H | I | N | G | S | F | I | S | H | Y |
| O | R | E | E | D | Y | S | A | S | T | E | R | |||
| H | O | S | E | S | O | S | M | I | S | O | ||||
| O | S | I | S | O | N | E | U | P | S | N | O | I | ||
| L | O | S | E | R | S | T | A | I | L | E | N | D | ||
| R | O | C | N | G | O | |||||||||
| A | L | L | T | H | A | T | S | O | N | N | E | T | S | |
| L | E | E | E | R | I | T | U | I | N | R | E | |||
| A | T | A | N | S | T | A | N | C | A | D | ||||
| M | I | N | E | D | R | U | B | E | A | L | I | A | ||
| O | N | T | H | E | W | A | T | E | R | F | R | O | N | T |
| D | O | O | R | M | A | T | L | O | O | K | S | E | E | |
| E | N | S | U | I | T | E | T | O | P | S | E | E | D |
In the first version of this puzzle, which I sent to test-solvers, the clues for 17A and 58A did not reference the three swimming "fish" symbolized by black squares in the middle of the grid. However, after only one of the four testers noticed the fish, I added bracketed remarks so that solvers could appreciate the extra layer to the mini-theme.
| L | E | N | D | S | M | C | A | T | L | U | S | H | ||
| A | D | O | U | T | A | R | C | H | A | S | I | A | ||
| D | I | T | S | Y | N | O | C | O | M | M | E | N | T | |
| I | S | I | T | J | U | S | T | M | E | O | R | |||
| D | O | O | M | O | P | S | M | U | N | I | S | |||
| A | N | N | I | K | A | S | T | O | R | A | G | E | ||
| T | A | C | K | I | E | R | M | O | W | |||||
| A | R | E | T | H | E | R | E | O | T | H | E | R | ||
| F | L | U | I | N | S | P | I | R | E | |||||
| S | A | N | R | E | M | O | K | I | S | S | E | R | ||
| U | N | S | E | T | C | I | A | G | A | Y | E | |||
| A | N | A | G | R | A | M | S | O | F | E | M | |||
| K | A | T | E | S | P | A | D | E | I | T | I | S | I | |
| F | L | A | W | A | G | R | A | V | I | R | U | S | ||
| C | A | B | S | S | E | E | N | S | T | E | P | S |
While I don't usually like quip themes so much, this joke seemed fresh and made me laugh. It's a shame about the three entries containing "IT" (20A, 58A and 38D). But because "it" is such a minor word, this duplication doesn't bother me so much.
| J | U | J | U | B | L | O | T | F | R | A | S | |||
| E | V | A | N | R | O | T | H | C | L | O | T | H | ||
| T | A | X | I | R | I | T | A | A | E | T | N | A | ||
| C | O | R | N | O | N | T | H | E | C | O | Q | |||
| A | S | H | E | N | K | A | N | T | ||||||
| T | H | E | F | A | Q | F | O | U | R | E | S | T | A | |
| M | I | A | T | B | A | R | B | R | O | I | L | |||
| O | F | T | I | S | A | D | O | R | A | I | N | C | ||
| S | T | U | M | P | E | R | A | S | T | K | O | |||
| T | Y | P | O | J | E | R | R | Y | Q | U | I | L | T | |
| D | O | R | M | U | P | S | E | T | ||||||
| Q | U | E | E | N | S | I | Z | E | Q | E | D | |||
| U | T | I | L | E | N | O | N | U | I | C | B | M | ||
| I | N | N | E | R | E | L | O | I | K | O | B | E | ||
| D | E | E | D | M | A | S | K | E | S | Q | S |
I've noticed that the crossword blogs often comment on constructors jamming in the high-value Scrabble letters (J, Q, X and Z). It's a good point that these shouldn't be used to the overall detriment of the fill. However, by virtue of their rareness, they tend to increase the freshness of a puzzle's vocabulary. So all things being equal, I like them. Case in point: the upper-left corner in Brendan's puzzle, which has two J's and an X.
| C | O | B | S | H | O | S | T | M | A | R | S | H | ||
| A | L | O | E | A | B | L | E | A | L | O | H | A | ||
| P | E | T | E | R | S | O | U | T | C | A | M | R | Y | |
| N | O | T | S | O | E | R | R | S | D | E | E | D | ||
| L | A | M | B | P | A | T | S | D | O | W | N | |||
| B | R | E | W | P | U | B | A | L | I | |||||
| O | A | F | S | G | I | S | T | I | N | S | E | L | ||
| N | N | E | J | A | C | K | S | U | P | O | X | O | ||
| O | D | D | J | O | B | Y | E | T | O | R | E | O | ||
| A | G | O | T | E | M | P | E | S | T | |||||
| M | A | R | K | S | O | F | F | S | A | U | L | |||
| I | D | E | A | S | A | L | T | G | L | O | S | S | ||
| L | I | A | R | S | C | A | R | R | I | E | S | O | N | |
| N | O | R | T | H | E | R | I | E | N | E | H | I | ||
| E | S | S | A | Y | T | E | M | P | T | R | O | T |
Lynn Lempel is always a joy to edit because a) her grids are so clean and b) her clues are so good. I rewrote only eight clues in her entire puzzle.
| T | A | K | E | S | T | O | B | O | A | T | E | R | ||
| O | N | A | L | E | A | S | H | I | M | B | U | S | Y | |
| A | G | R | I | C | O | L | A | P | I | E | R | C | E | |
| D | E | M | O | S | O | V | I | E | T | N | A | B | ||
| S | L | A | T | E | E | N | D | P | E | R | E | |||
| N | O | V | A | S | F | U | D | G | E | |||||
| M | A | R | G | I | N | O | F | E | R | R | O | R | ||
| B | E | F | O | R | E | I | F | O | R | G | E | T | ||
| B | A | T | T | L | E | S | C | A | R | R | E | D | ||
| E | T | H | E | L | F | E | R | M | I | |||||
| S | T | A | R | P | O | T | S | A | L | M | A | |||
| T | E | D | F | U | R | R | O | W | S | A | A | B | ||
| I | R | O | B | O | T | I | R | I | S | H | P | U | B | |
| R | U | N | O | U | T | P | E | T | P | E | E | V | E | |
| S | P | E | A | R | S | S | T | A | N | L | E | Y |
Hi Jeff,
While I don't award "points" to crossword entries (as in your example), your general way of assessing crossword quality is the same as mine.
When I look at any crossword submission, which I prefer to do on paper, I mark up the answer grid — a check mark for an entry I like (on rare occasions two checks for one I really, really like), a minus for an entry I don't, and an "x" for one that's wrong or truly awful. The size of the mark indicates the depth of my feeling about it, so a bit of crosswordese might get a small minus, a stupid obscurity a big one.
When I'm done, I pull back and look at the puzzle overall to make a decision. An "x," of course, almost always means rejection. If there are no x's, then I judge whether there are enough entries that excite me to outweigh the ones that don't.
You're right that too many minuses will sink a puzzle even if there's lots of good stuff. I don't set an arbitrary limit on weak entries, but more than five, especially if they're bad, will put the puzzle in dangerous territory.
The bar for acceptance keeps getting raised. Many of the puzzles I published 10 years ago wouldn't be accepted today. Even marginal yeses of a year or two ago might be nos now.
That said, to me crossword quality is a matter of balance. Unlike some other editors and commenters on the crossword blogs, I will accept some crosswordese and obscurity in a puzzle (assuming it's fairly crossed and clued), if the upside is strong enough. Sometimes I think it's worth having a subpar entry in order to set up other material that's great. The greater the great stuff, a little more subpar there can be. Squeaky clean isn't always best.
My bottom line is that a puzzle should be judged as a whole, as ordinary solvers judge puzzles, not on just the least appealing entries.
| B | L | O | W | A | D | I | E | U | W | O | E | S | ||
| Y | O | G | A | N | E | S | T | S | I | L | S | A | ||
| F | I | L | T | H | Y | R | I | C | H | L | E | A | N | |
| A | R | E | T | O | O | T | H | E | C | L | O | U | D | |
| R | E | D | A | N | G | R | A | D | ||||||
| G | R | E | A | S | Y | S | P | O | O | N | S | |||
| C | E | D | E | D | S | T | E | I | N | V | A | L | ||
| E | X | A | M | S | P | U | R | N | P | E | P | E | ||
| L | I | T | G | H | E | N | T | A | C | N | E | D | ||
| S | T | A | I | N | E | D | G | L | A | S | S | |||
| R | A | E | E | R | N | C | H | A | ||||||
| S | P | L | I | T | P | E | A | G | E | N | D | E | R | |
| I | R | A | S | D | I | R | T | Y | W | O | R | D | S | |
| Z | O | N | E | O | N | E | A | L | L | O | G | O | ||
| E | W | E | S | G | E | S | T | E | O | M | E | N |
This week's Monday-Thursday puzzles were used for the Akron Crossword Puzzle Tournament. Here are some notes from the organizer, Deb Papa:
"Before we began Puzzle #3 I shared your information about Alex Vratsanos being a 21-year-old college student that you had purchased a first puzzle from when he was 18-years-old. The room buzzed with excitement as the competitors discussed this amongst themselves. Thank you for this information, everyone enjoyed learning something about the puzzle maker.
You had also emailed that Puzzle #4 had a tricky theme. I didn't let anyone know until after the championship round. This was the first time no one finished the championship puzzle 100% correct! None of the finalists answered 28 across correctly. (They didn't get the "2" in the first box.)
Since this was our 5th year of tournament, I have also compiled some statistics. In 5 years we have had 10 different people on the Auditorium stage for the Championship Round. Of these 10 people, 3 have been on stage twice and 1 woman has been on stage an amazing three times!
Before we began, during intermissions, and even afterward at least six different people approached me thanking the library for having this tournament. They appreciate that it is well-organized and enjoy working the crossword puzzles that you send. Thank you once again for the crossword puzzles for the 5th Annual Akron Crossword Puzzle Tournament. We are already looking forward to next year!"
| S | C | A | R | C | E | F | A | C | A | D | E | |||
| O | H | I | O | A | N | A | M | A | Z | I | N | |||
| D | O | N | T | T | A | L | K | A | B | O | U | T | ||
| M | A | S | T | S | M | O | E | A | R | R | I | D | ||
| A | P | E | Y | E | A | P | L | E | N | T | Y | |||
| Y | O | U | R | S | E | L | F | W | E | S | A | L | E | |
| A | P | P | A | L | L | S | O | A | R | L | E | D | ||
| G | O | L | F | O | P | E | L | |||||||
| A | R | P | B | O | B | S | O | D | I | S | T | S | ||
| S | E | A | T | W | I | L | L | D | O | T | H | A | T | |
| I | D | I | O | C | Y | O | A | S | R | N | A | |||
| A | R | D | O | R | A | M | Y | W | H | I | N | Y | ||
| A | F | T | E | R | Y | O | U | L | E | A | V | E | ||
| F | O | O | D | I | E | P | O | R | T | E | R | |||
| T | R | O | O | P | S | S | T | E | E | L | Y |
While I have the greatest respect for Stan, both as an editor and a person, I don't completely agree with his puzzle philosophy. Specifically, I don't think crosswords have to avoid all difficult words. A crossword consists of two parts, apart from any theme — the grid and the clues. In my opinion the challenge can come from either part. Completing an interesting difficult answer can be just as rewarding to the solver as solving an interesting difficult clue.
By an "interesting difficult" answer I don't mean an insect genus or a 50-mile-long river in Russia. I mean something that's stimulating, amusing and/or useful to know. Honest people can disagree about what words meet this criterion. But presumably someone who likes crosswords also likes learning words and exploring the richness of the English language. This means that crosswords don't need to be limited to the 10,000-20,000 most common words — which can get overused besides.
Another problem with Stan's philosophy is that it can lead to blandness of vocabulary and overcaution in themes. I don't judge a puzzle by its worst entries. I judge it by its overall effect. An ambitious theme may require compromises. A great entry or combination of entries may require compromises. I think average solvers judge a puzzle on its balance. I do, too.
So I admire Stan's "fussiness" and attention to using only common vocabulary. I'm happy to publish crosswords of this sort. I just don't think every crossword has to be like this.
| H | O | D | S | B | A | S | K | J | O | J | O | |||
| A | N | O | N | I | L | I | E | S | O | D | O | I | ||
| J | K | R | O | W | L | I | N | G | B | O | S | O | M | |
| J | P | M | O | R | G | A | N | M | A | H | A | L | O | |
| Z | O | E | S | S | E | C | L | A | N | |||||
| E | X | J | E | T | L | A | H | T | I | |||||
| A | R | B | E | A | T | S | I | N | E | N | V | Y | ||
| R | A | F | T | C | R | O | C | I | A | G | E | E | ||
| L | Y | L | E | H | A | N | K | E | R | E | R | S | ||
| E | N | J | O | Y | A | B | R | A | M | |||||
| P | O | T | J | O | S | M | O | N | A | |||||
| I | N | C | A | P | S | J | M | B | A | R | R | I | E | |
| N | E | H | R | U | J | C | D | I | T | H | E | R | S | |
| E | L | E | C | T | A | T | I | T | O | M | I | T | ||
| B | R | O | Z | I | S | I | S | P | O | S | E |
(Will is taking a break from contributing Notes so he can focus on preparing for the upcoming American Crossword Puzzle Tournament.)
| A | C | T | S | L | A | D | Y | P | O | R | C | H | ||
| L | O | O | P | E | L | I | A | A | D | I | E | U | ||
| E | M | I | R | A | M | O | K | R | O | B | O | T | ||
| C | A | L | E | N | D | A | R | Y | E | A | R | |||
| E | L | S | A | D | D | I | M | P | ||||||
| I | M | O | C | H | U | C | K | Y | E | A | G | E | R | |
| S | A | R | A | S | O | T | A | S | I | N | A | I | ||
| A | R | C | S | T | E | N | P | M | D | I | N | O | ||
| A | S | H | E | S | D | I | A | M | E | T | E | R | ||
| C | H | I | C | K | E | N | Y | A | R | D | E | R | S | |
| S | Y | D | I | O | U | T | S | P | ||||||
| C | A | N | A | R | Y | Y | E | L | L | O | W | |||
| G | A | T | O | R | N | O | I | R | A | E | R | O | ||
| O | H | A | R | E | C | O | P | E | T | A | C | O | ||
| P | A | R | K | A | E | K | E | D | O | R | A | L |
A little crossword news: the 15th Westport Public Library Crossword Contest was held this past Saturday. About 120 crossword enthusiasts from Connecticut and New York competed. The puzzles consisted of the Monday-Wednesday NY Times puzzles (Feb. 3-5) plus the Thursday from the following week (Feb. 13).
Andrew Kravis, of Manhattan, was the first in the room to finish each of Puzzles #1-#3, in approximately 3:05, 3:15, and 3:40, respectively.
On the playoff puzzle, #4, conducted on large boards among the top three solvers, Glen Ryan was the first to finish, in 8:05 but sadly, he left a square blank. Andrew finished right behind him, in 8:17, and his solution was complete and perfect, so he won. Jesse Lansner finished perfectly in 10:37, so he was second. Glen took third.
| H | A | W | S | L | E | E | R | S | A | T | U | N | U | M | ||||||
| O | L | I | N | S | I | N | R | E | A | C | H | W | H | O | L | E | ||||
| R | E | D | E | E | M | T | E | R | M | I | T | E | K | A | H | U | N | A | ||
| E | X | E | R | C | I | S | E | R | S | D | U | R | A | N | D | U | R | A | N | |
| B | A | N | D | O | L | E | R | O | P | O | L | O | S | H | I | R | T | |||
| K | I | A | T | C | M | B | I | C | ||||||||||||
| H | O | W | C | O | S | T | E | A | U | O | A | K | S | T | S | A | ||||
| I | N | H | A | L | F | I | N | A | K | N | O | T | K | O | S | H | E | R | ||
| H | E | A | V | E | H | O | O | L | E | I | C | E | N | T | R | E | E | S | ||
| A | N | T | E | U | H | O | H | T | A | C | O | A | S | T | O | |||||
| T | D | S | B | M | I | N | O | R | R | O | C | O | C | O | C | O | N | |||
| D | O | R | A | E | P | I | T | A | P | H | K | A | T | O | ||||||
| S | N | O | W | I | N | F | E | L | I | C | I | A | W | R | I | T | H | E | ||
| I | O | N | E | S | K | Y | E | E | S | E | R | E | H | E | A | T | E | D | ||
| N | E | E | K | I | E | L | D | H | S | M | O | O | D | I | R | E | ||||
| G | L | I | B | N | E | L | L | T | E | N | S | A | S | S | N | |||||
| S | E | N | D | S | E | A | B | I | R | D | T | O | S | H | ||||||
| O | R | D | A | I | N | W | I | L | L | F | U | L | H | O | T | P | O | T | ||
| T | O | O | D | L | E | O | O | I | O | N | I | C | E | H | O | L | E | S | ||
| T | A | N | S | S | H | O | C | O | O | F | O | R | R | A | N | K | ||||
| O | D | E | S | O | P | E | D | T | E | W | E | Y | O | S |
This puzzle has everything — a fresh, literary theme, beautifully executed, with a bonus visual element, and a handsome construction to boot. Besides the theme I like DURAN DURAN, POLO SHIRT, IN A KNOT, HEAVE-HO, IONE SKYE, HOT POT, TOODLE-OO, NO HOPE, and THE ROBOT. This should make for a relaxing few hours for most solvers ... or a "relaxing" 6-8 minutes for crossword champion Dan Feyer!
| B | A | R | B | A | R | A | B | U | S | H | B | E | E | |
| E | Q | U | I | V | A | L | E | N | C | E | R | R | R | |
| F | A | S | C | I | N | A | T | I | O | N | O | I | L | |
| O | B | E | S | D | R | A | F | T | W | A | K | E | ||
| G | A | S | M | O | M | M | Y | L | E | D | S | |||
| M | A | M | B | A | M | A | D | C | A | P | ||||
| A | H | E | A | D | E | X | F | O | L | I | A | T | E | |
| C | A | R | R | O | L | L | L | E | A | D | S | I | N | |
| E | M | I | L | N | O | L | D | E | K | I | T | E | S | |
| D | O | C | E | N | T | E | X | M | E | T | ||||
| M | A | N | A | F | S | T | A | R | M | E | W | |||
| Z | E | K | E | K | L | E | I | N | P | I | S | A | ||
| A | L | A | Y | O | U | R | M | A | J | E | S | T | Y | |
| G | E | N | O | L | I | V | E | G | A | R | D | E | N | |
| S | T | E | U | N | D | E | R | E | X | P | O | S | E |
This puzzle by Canadian Will Nediger has a lot of fine vocabulary. My favorite entries, besides BARBARA BUSH at 1A, are YOUR MAJESTY, OLIVE GARDEN, HAM OMELET, ERICA KANE, ALARM BELL, BETAMAX, FLEX-TIMER, L.A. LAKER, ERIK SATIE, and WE DID IT. And hardly anything undesirable. That's expert puzzle-making!
| L | E | T | S | D | O | T | H | I | S | T | H | I | N | G |
| A | N | I | M | A | T | I | O | N | S | T | U | D | I | O |
| H | A | D | A | L | O | N | G | W | A | Y | T | O | G | O |
| A | M | I | C | I | S | T | A | L | U | N | G | S | ||
| B | E | E | K | B | E | I | N | G | S | O | L | E | ||
| A | L | S | V | A | L | E | T | E | D | T | E | D | ||
| N | E | U | T | E | R | D | O | T | E | S | ||||
| A | D | P | A | G | E | S | F | E | L | T | T | I | P | |
| X | A | X | I | S | V | O | Y | A | G | E | ||||
| A | M | A | S | A | M | I | S | E | N | C | O | T | ||
| R | A | N | D | M | U | L | A | N | N | O | T | E | ||
| A | R | A | I | L | L | E | U | G | A | B | O | R | ||
| B | A | N | D | E | D | A | N | T | E | A | T | E | R | S |
| I | C | A | N | N | O | T | T | E | L | L | A | L | I | E |
| C | A | S | T | O | N | E | S | S | P | E | L | L | O | N |
I accepted this puzzle by Chris only recently, but liked it so much that I moved it to the top of the pile. A gorgeous construction.
| P | I | S | M | O | B | U | R | Y | E | R | G | O | ||
| A | M | P | E | D | A | R | E | A | P | E | E | K | ||
| W | H | A | T | S | B | L | A | C | K | W | H | I | T | E |
| N | O | M | E | E | L | L | A | E | E | N | S | Y | ||
| O | S | A | Y | L | O | A | M | |||||||
| A | N | D | R | E | D | A | L | L | O | V | E | R | ||
| L | E | E | T | Y | R | O | H | E | R | E | T | O | ||
| A | M | A | J | D | U | D | A | C | I | D | ||||
| N | O | L | O | S | S | S | O | A | R | A | D | O | ||
| T | H | I | S | N | E | W | S | P | A | P | E | R | ||
| A | D | I | A | A | K | I | N | |||||||
| V | E | R | N | E | R | A | G | E | K | I | E | V | ||
| A | S | U | N | B | U | R | N | E | D | P | A | N | D | A |
| M | A | N | E | N | O | I | R | A | R | D | E | N | ||
| P | U | T | S | O | W | L | S | W | A | Y | N | E |
This is only the seventh Times crossword I've published that has two different "correct" solutions (these are the other six). This time, tho, the two different solutions hinge on just one square. The critical clue at 24D is quite pretty. I like the punchline at 63A, too.
| S | A | L | A | F | E | D | U | P | J | P | E | G | ||
| E | M | I | T | I | L | O | S | E | O | A | S | T | ||
| R | O | B | E | V | I | T | A | E | H | Y | P | O | ||
| U | L | Y | S | S | E | S | S | G | R | A | N | T | ||
| M | E | A | T | Y | E | S | Q | O | N | E | ||||
| S | N | E | A | K | U | N | P | I | N | |||||
| P | R | S | E | L | G | I | N | B | A | Y | L | O | R | |
| H | O | H | O | S | I | N | A | I | C | A | B | O | ||
| A | D | A | M | S | A | N | D | L | E | R | Y | E | N | |
| S | I | D | E | A | S | A | L | A | D | |||||
| E | N | O | B | I | T | V | E | I | L | S | ||||
| W | O | O | D | R | O | W | W | I | L | S | O | N | ||
| D | E | B | I | E | A | T | E | R | M | O | P | E | ||
| E | N | O | L | A | C | T | I | I | A | L | E | E | ||
| W | A | X | Y | S | K | O | R | T | R | A | Z | R |
How did Michael find the four examples of this lovely theme? I have no idea. For consistency's sake I do wish they'd all been either like 37A and 59A, with the three circled letters together, or like 20A and 44A, where the circles are separated. But that's probably asking too much. Anyway, having two of each type at least maintains a balance.
| S | T | E | M | I | L | K | S | S | I | T | U | P | ||
| P | A | P | A | N | O | A | H | C | O | W | L | S | ||
| A | C | I | D | F | O | R | A | R | U | I | N | S | ||
| S | O | C | C | E | R | M | A | M | B | O | S | A | T | |
| A | V | A | S | T | A | L | O | T | ||||||
| S | A | P | P | E | R | S | P | L | I | T | U | P | ||
| N | T | H | R | E | A | C | H | S | N | A | R | E | ||
| A | E | O | N | D | R | O | O | P | K | E | G | S | ||
| F | I | N | E | D | C | L | E | A | R | B | E | T | ||
| U | N | E | A | R | T | H | R | I | G | O | R | S | ||
| B | R | A | N | D | I | A | N | A | ||||||
| P | S | I | S | T | R | U | C | K | D | U | M | B | O | |
| A | L | L | O | T | O | B | O | E | C | O | A | T | ||
| R | A | B | B | I | L | A | N | E | H | A | R | T | ||
| S | T | O | I | C | L | I | S | T | O | N | T | O |
Themes like today's that work phonetically are usually funnier than ones that go by spelling. And going by my funnybone, all four theme answers today are good.
| S | T | A | B | U | H | O | H | M | A | C | H | O | ||
| T | R | U | E | S | O | L | O | A | L | L | E | N | ||
| A | I | R | T | R | A | V | E | L | G | E | E | S | E | |
| L | E | A | S | E | I | D | U | N | N | O | ||||
| L | D | S | P | E | A | C | E | K | E | E | P | E | R | |
| P | E | N | N | M | E | T | A | M | A | |||||
| L | I | F | E | L | I | N | E | O | A | T | E | N | ||
| I | R | I | S | D | O | L | C | E | B | R | E | D | ||
| K | A | B | O | B | F | A | C | E | C | A | R | D | ||
| E | N | O | L | O | S | R | O | W | S | |||||
| D | I | N | N | E | R | T | A | B | L | E | S | H | E | |
| A | E | N | E | I | D | R | A | P | I | D | ||||
| N | I | C | A | D | T | I | M | E | S | H | A | R | E | |
| C | A | C | T | I | C | E | L | L | A | D | E | N | ||
| O | N | I | O | N | H | U | B | S | B | E | D | S |
While "words that go with" sorts of themes have become quite common, this one is a cut above the rest, in my opinion, because the shared word, TIME, connects with both halves of the other theme entries. That's elegant. Also, there are five theme examples, besides the "revealer," which is a lot. And the revealer itself is fun.
| Z | O | M | B | I | E | S | W | A | M | P | E | D | ||
| A | N | O | M | A | L | Y | S | O | S | U | E | M | E | |
| G | E | T | I | N | T | O | W | R | I | T | E | I | N | |
| A | T | O | S | O | D | A | D | A | I | N | T | Y | ||
| T | O | R | A | N | E | W | T | O | N | S | ||||
| R | O | C | C | O | L | O | A | F | M | S | G | S | ||
| A | M | Y | T | A | N | L | P | G | A | U | L | U | ||
| T | A | C | I | T | U | S | S | O | B | E | R | U | P | |
| E | N | L | S | M | O | G | D | E | L | E | T | E | ||
| D | Y | E | S | B | O | O | B | S | H | E | E | R | ||
| T | E | S | T | B | A | N | I | N | N | S | ||||
| U | N | L | O | C | K | S | N | E | E | O | F | T | ||
| R | A | I | N | O | U | T | D | R | L | A | U | R | A | |
| N | U | T | E | L | L | A | S | T | I | N | G | E | R | |
| S | T | E | R | I | L | E | S | A | S | H | E | S |
I accepted today's puzzle by James Mulhern in August 2012. A few weeks ago, just as I was editing it, he wrote me again out of the blue that he wanted to improve the construction. Was there time, he wondered? Well, yes. Good timing. And he made the grid better, too. I admire James's attention to quality.
| A | R | C | T | I | C | W | H | O | S | T | H | A | T | |
| W | A | H | I | N | E | H | O | W | A | R | E | Y | A | |
| S | T | A | N | C | E | A | M | E | N | A | M | E | N | |
| P | L | E | A | R | T | E | S | D | A | R | K | |||
| A | O | K | S | M | O | T | E | H | E | N | S | |||
| M | I | L | E | H | I | G | H | C | L | U | B | |||
| I | S | I | S | S | U | E | S | T | O | P | I | T | ||
| C | O | N | C | I | S | E | Y | E | S | O | R | N | O | |
| O | N | E | A | R | M | S | U | V | K | O | O | K | ||
| P | E | E | R | P | R | E | S | S | U | R | E | |||
| T | R | E | S | A | E | T | N | A | D | D | S | |||
| H | E | I | R | A | W | E | S | L | I | M | E | |||
| E | S | P | O | U | S | E | D | S | I | T | A | R | S | |
| P | L | E | A | S | E | G | O | A | V | E | R | T | S | |
| S | A | N | D | B | A | G | S | C | A | N | Y | O | N |
Not surprisingly, Ian's puzzle is the first Times crossword ever to have the entry MILE-HIGH CLUB. The term was probably a little too racy for my predecessors. But how to clue it? Ian's clue was "Group getting some air play?" I liked the misdirection of this, but the usage of the word "play" here felt too loose — and maybe too racy for the Times audience. Another clue I considered was "Group whose membership qualifications are up in the air?" — but that felt too easy. And "Set of screws on an airplane?" was just too rude. So I finally settled on what you see here.
| F | I | G | J | O | N | A | S | S | U | M | E | |||
| I | N | O | A | V | E | C | S | L | U | R | R | Y | ||
| E | V | A | M | I | M | I | T | E | N | S | E | R | ||
| N | E | W | K | I | D | O | N | T | H | E | B | A | D | E |
| D | R | A | I | N | D | U | E | T | S | |||||
| S | T | Y | X | S | H | E | B | O | O | Z | E | |||
| W | H | E | R | E | B | U | X | O | M | |||||
| B | U | T | C | H | E | R | B | P | A | R | T | I | E | S |
| A | T | S | E | A | A | Q | A | B | A | |||||
| A | Z | U | L | L | U | N | E | D | R | E | W | |||
| L | A | N | D | O | S | U | E | D | E | |||||
| I | C | E | B | B | U | S | T | E | R | M | O | V | I | E |
| D | O | N | A | L | D | E | L | O | I | E | B | B | ||
| A | P | O | G | E | E | S | E | A | R | A | L | I | ||
| S | E | W | E | R | S | A | R | K | L | E | T |
This is the second day in a row in which a Times constructor is making a debut. Michael Hawkins hails from Gastonia, N.C. The print and online versions of his puzzle necessarily have different numbering. The print version is the first puzzle I can remember in which the solver is supposed to number some of the black squares — either present or (as in this case) missing!
| L | O | B | S | H | I | S | T | T | H | E | S | W | ||
| A | C | R | E | I | N | T | O | A | B | A | T | E | ||
| S | T | A | N | G | U | A | M | L | E | T | U | S | ||
| H | A | N | S | C | H | R | I | S | T | I | A | N | ||
| A | N | D | E | R | S | E | N | R | A | M | O | N | A | |
| T | E | S | L | A | B | U | S | F | I | X | ||||
| E | V | I | C | T | E | D | C | A | K | E | ||||
| H | A | N | S | E | L | A | N | D | G | R | E | T | E | L |
| O | N | E | S | L | E | S | S | E | E | S | ||||
| S | K | A | T | E | N | L | A | M | E | R | ||||
| T | H | R | O | W | S | P | A | N | O | R | A | M | A | |
| B | R | O | T | H | E | R | S | G | R | I | M | M | ||
| A | B | E | A | R | A | T | T | Y | I | T | I | S | ||
| T | I | E | T | O | N | E | O | N | T | A | T | E | ||
| H | B | R | E | W | K | R | O | C | Z | I | T | S |
Constructor Jared Banta of Superior, Colo., makes his debut today with a very clever theme idea. Generally solvers (especially new ones) don't expect a rebus element on a Wednesday, so I'm girding myself for complaints about the lower-left and upper-right corners.
| W | O | R | D | W | O | O | D | W | O | O | T | |||
| C | I | D | E | R | A | B | L | E | E | B | R | O | ||
| O | L | D | I | E | T | E | E | M | M | E | M | O | ||
| R | E | E | N | A | C | T | S | I | M | A | R | E | T | |
| D | E | R | I | D | E | E | A | S | E | D | ||||
| N | E | D | S | B | E | N | E | A | T | H | ||||
| C | A | B | D | A | V | I | S | S | I | C | K | O | ||
| O | W | E | N | R | E | S | E | T | T | I | T | O | ||
| R | E | V | E | L | L | E | N | I | N | D | S | T | ||
| K | E | Y | W | E | S | T | T | E | E | S | ||||
| S | T | E | E | P | R | U | P | I | A | H | ||||
| C | A | R | W | A | X | L | I | S | T | E | N | T | O | |
| O | G | E | E | U | P | A | S | R | E | T | R | O | ||
| O | R | N | E | A | L | T | A | A | D | R | I | P | ||
| K | O | O | K | L | O | O | K | L | O | O | P |
Todd's grid ended up with a lot more crossword-y stuff than I like — especially WILE E, OBER, OR ME, ORNE, UP AS, AGRO, A-WEE, ISE, ADRIP, and A TRIP. But a theme like this, with fixed answers around the perimeter, is difficult to pull off, and I think the result here is worth the compromises. On the plus side, I like KEY WEST, CAR WAX, NEWSWEEK, and especially WE MADE IT.
| H | D | T | V | T | U | D | O | R | P | U | P | S | ||
| A | R | O | O | I | R | A | N | I | A | P | I | A | ||
| L | I | N | C | O | L | N | M | E | M | O | R | I | A | L |
| S | P | E | A | R | P | A | I | R | I | N | G | S | ||
| B | E | D | E | L | E | T | T | E | A | |||||
| J | E | T | C | I | V | I | L | R | I | G | H | T | S | |
| A | M | A | K | E | E | N | Z | O | E | |||||
| M | I | K | A | M | L | K | J | R | D | A | W | N | ||
| E | T | D | E | P | O | S | I | I | I | |||||
| I | H | A | V | E | A | D | R | E | A | M | R | N | A | |
| N | E | S | U | S | E | G | R | A | B | |||||
| A | T | T | A | C | K | A | D | R | E | M | I | X | ||
| W | E | A | R | E | F | R | E | E | A | T | L | A | S | T |
| A | R | N | E | O | M | A | N | I | O | M | A | R | ||
| Y | O | D | A | R | E | N | D | S | W | A | W | A |
11D and 29D in this puzzle both run through two horizontal theme entries. I appreciate it when a constructor takes the time and effort, as here, to find lively answers for these important spots.
Liz, btw, is the first Times constructor to benefit from the paper's new pay rate — $300 for a daily puzzle. That's still not a lot, considering the amount of time and skill it takes to create a first-class crossword. But it's a lot better than the $40 that The Times paid when I started in 1993. And it's much more than any other daily newspaper currently pays. I will keep working to increase the rate further, because the contributors deserve it.
| B | A | N | A | N | A | G | R | A | M | S | U | S | M | |
| A | D | O | B | E | R | E | A | D | E | R | G | E | E | |
| T | I | J | U | A | N | A | T | A | X | I | G | A | G | |
| E | D | I | T | E | R | A | S | A | B | R | A | |||
| S | A | V | C | L | U | T | C | H | S | O | O | N | ||
| S | E | T | H | P | A | L | O | P | O | U | F | |||
| A | E | C | T | E | R | Z | E | T | T | O | ||||
| I | L | O | V | E | L | A | F | A | I | R | S | E | X | |
| F | A | C | E | P | A | L | M | E | N | S | ||||
| I | V | A | R | R | E | U | P | G | E | E | Z | |||
| D | A | R | N | A | C | R | O | S | S | R | A | G | ||
| I | T | I | S | I | D | I | P | W | A | N | E | |||
| D | O | N | T | A | X | O | N | O | M | I | S | T | S | |
| I | R | A | E | J | E | C | T | O | R | S | E | A | T | |
| T | Y | S | S | A | S | H | A | F | I | E | R | C | E |
David Steinberg, who turned 17 in November, was the most published constructor in the Times last year. He had 15 puzzles published in 2013, nosing out Ian Livengood, who had 12.
| S | H | O | R | E | H | O | T | E | L | B | A | R | S | |
| M | O | P | E | D | A | N | I | M | A | L | F | A | T | |
| O | N | E | L | S | S | A | N | I | T | A | R | I | A | |
| G | E | N | I | E | A | S | I | R | E | C | A | L | L | |
| G | Y | M | C | L | A | S | S | E | S | K | I | E | L | |
| I | B | I | S | M | E | I | R | T | O | D | D | S | ||
| E | E | K | B | O | A | S | F | O | P | |||||
| R | E | E | N | A | C | T | L | I | S | S | O | M | E | |
| O | T | O | M | A | N | S | P | A | Y | |||||
| S | A | A | B | S | L | E | V | I | J | A | K | E | ||
| A | R | G | O | D | I | M | E | S | T | O | R | E | S | |
| B | E | E | T | H | O | V | E | N | R | A | T | S | O | |
| O | N | T | H | E | M | E | N | D | A | N | I | O | N | |
| T | O | W | E | L | E | T | T | E | I | N | S | U | M | |
| S | T | O | R | M | D | O | O | R | L | A | T | T | E |
Kevin Der makes a crackerjack themeless. Entries here I like include HOTEL BARS, ANIMAL FAT, AS I RECALL, GYM CLASSES, DIME STORES, BEETHOVEN, STORM DOOR, HONEYBEE, OPEN MIKE, NO BOTHER, BLACK OPS, OP ARTIST and EYES ON ME. That's a lot of nice stuff! Nothing really bad either.
| H | O | G | A | D | A | M | L | A | R | S | O | N | ||
| A | N | E | C | D | O | T | E | A | M | A | N | D | A | |
| C | A | N | O | E | I | S | T | D | O | T | E | O | N | |
| K | N | E | W | T | E | E | D | I | C | E | R | S | ||
| R | E | F | A | R | F | H | R | S | ||||||
| S | T | A | R | E | S | L | A | C | E | S | ||||
| C | A | T | S | U | P | G | O | D | O | T | ||||
| H | O | E | D | O | T | T | E | D | I | R | E | A | ||
| P | A | I | R | S | U | N | B | E | L | T | ||||
| B | E | L | L | A | P | E | O | P | L | E | ||||
| V | A | N | P | J | S | D | R | E | ||||||
| D | O | T | A | G | E | A | T | M | Z | A | H | N | ||
| A | I | M | L | O | W | Y | O | U | D | O | T | O | O | |
| P | L | A | T | T | E | N | U | T | R | I | E | N | T | |
| S | A | N | Y | O | S | E | T | T | U | D | E | E |
The thing I like most about this puzzle is that every one of the six I's in the grid has D-O-T immediately over it. In other words, there are no I's left "undotted."
| J | A | C | O | B | C | O | D | A | B | A | B | A | ||
| A | R | O | M | A | A | S | A | P | A | F | E | W | ||
| G | E | O | G | R | A | P | H | Y | B | S | T | A | R | |
| S | A | P | B | L | E | A | T | P | I | E | T | Y | ||
| L | A | T | H | O | S | I | E | R | ||||||
| E | M | B | E | R | O | W | N | U | P | N | S | C | ||
| V | O | L | T | A | I | R | E | M | E | M | O | I | R | |
| A | D | A | M | O | N | L | Y | U | A | O | N | E | ||
| D | E | C | E | I | T | L | I | P | S | Y | N | C | S | |
| E | L | K | B | A | D | G | E | H | A | T | E | S | ||
| E | R | A | S | E | L | O | O | N | ||||||
| F | O | Y | E | R | C | A | D | R | E | C | U | E | ||
| E | V | E | N | C | A | R | I | B | B | E | A | N | C | |
| M | A | D | D | O | N | I | N | O | W | E | T | O | ||
| A | L | P | S | S | T | A | G | X | E | N | O | N |
Bernice Gordon turned 100 last Saturday. This puzzle makes her the first known centenarian ever to have a crossword in the Times (or anywhere else for that matter).
I had the honor of attending a beautiful birthday party for Bernice in Philadelphia on Sunday — an elegant affair at the Four Seasons hotel downtown. About 70-80 people attended, mostly family and friends. I was the only puzzle person besides Bernice herself. The event was covered by the AP, the Philadelphia Inquirer, and the local ABC station. The Inquirer reporter asked me why I published Bernice's puzzles — what makes them special? Well, I said, first, she still constructs a mean puzzle. I think today's is one of her best. Second, a lot of solvers know Bernice's story and are thrilled every time they see her byline. And, third, I just revere Bernice and want to honor her 60+ year record of making crosswords for The Times. I hope to keep publishing her when she's 101 and beyond.