Tuesday, December 10, 2024 - The answer might be UGLI, but the clue is beautiful 😀

This is Adam Wagner's 19th NYTimes crossword, but it is a debut, in a sense - his first Monday puzzle. It was a little crunchier than usual, but the theme made it all worthwhile. Deets inside, so have a listen, and as usual, tell others about us on social media. Shownote imagery: A thaw of ICEBOATS (and if "thaw" isn't the appropriate unit, it ought to be!) about to start racing We love feedback! Send us a text... Contact Info: We love listener mail! Drop us a line, crosswordpodcast@icloud.c...

20 Helmi 202411min

Sid Sivakumar dials it back as he slips into his Sunday best, and this was indeed one of his best Sundays, his fourth for the NYTimes. There were some fine clues in the grid, including 75A, Home to the Great Ziggurat of Ur, IRAQ (we just like the sound of "Great Ziggurat of Ur" 😀); 116A, What hits the ground running, SOLE (ha!); and 55D, So ... or a word following "so", TRUE (double ha!); and a hidden gem at 89A, Windy part of a kite?, REEL (triple ha!). To sum up, we were impressed, ...

19 Helmi 202421min

Spencer Leach and Jem Burch have produced a splendiferous Saturday crossword that entertained, educated, and ... whatever the opposite of enervated is, ah, yes, energized. The highlight of the grid was undoubtedly 60A, Finished, colloquially, DONEZO, although 61A, Drinks are on me!, BARMENU, definitely gave it a run for its money. There was much more to this puzzle, though, and we have all the deets inside. Show note imagery: Speed skater Johann OLAV Koss, winner of 4 Olympic golds and occas...

18 Helmi 202416min

Colin Adams has turned in a fine (debut!) Friday crossword: no theme (as befits a Friday puzzle), but plenty of sharp cluing (as one would also expect). We cover a boatload of them in today's podcast, but even the "also-rans" were quite good. Consider 30A, European airline that was nationalized from 1944 to 2001, IBERIA; 62A, [Violin emoji], OHBOOHOO; and the fabulous 66A, Moving company?, TROUPE. We also have a Fun Fact Friday, and some great listener mail, so ... enjoy! Show note videogra...

17 Helmi 20249min

Years from now, cruciverbalists will be able to say, I remember where I stood (or, more likely, sat) when I finally solved this crossword, it's that good. To find out why, we beseech thee, with all due haste, to downloadeth, listen upeth, and enjoyeth this fine work from Teddy and Rich Katz. Show note imagery: Karl the FOG We love feedback! Send us a text... Contact Info: We love listener mail! Drop us a line, crosswordpodcast@icloud.com. Also, we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by the...

16 Helmi 202415min

Today is Valentine's Day, and the NYTimes Crossword team was ready, thanks to a fabulous opus by Ella Dershowitz. It was a crunchier than usual Wednesday crossword, but all for a good cause - a lovely Valentine's Day theme that we explore, in detail, in today's podcast. Show note imagery: RAPANUI, aka Easter Island We love feedback! Send us a text... Contact Info: We love listener mail! Drop us a line, crosswordpodcast@icloud.com. Also, we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by...

15 Helmi 202418min

A lovely pre-Valentine's Day crossword, clearly a labor of love by Peter Gordon, his ninth in the NYTimes. There was a sizable ... what's the term for a collection of inspired crossword clues? Apparently there is no such word, so we therefore cheerfully seize the nettle and welcome the word clueclub™️ to the English language. Now where were we? Oh, yes, today's puzzle featured a sizable clueclub, including 51D, Bird with a lot of stuffing, LARRY (😀); 2D, Class that covers price ceilings and p...

14 Helmi 202420min

A gentle Monday crossword to get our work week going, with a theme that involved nonverbal answers. For those of you unaware, a nonverbal answer, written in [ ], is meant to evoke a sound or an action, a nonverbal answer. There were plenty of opportunities to practice that today, as you will discover when you (we hope!!) check out today's episode! Show note imagery: Examen de danse, by EDGAR Dumas We love feedback! Send us a text... Contact Info: We love listener mail! Drop us a line, crossw...

13 Helmi 20246min