Monday, August 23, 2021 - WOWZA!
HOWSWEETITIS and TWOTHUMBSUP pretty much summarizes our review of today's frothy , fun, and nostalgia-hued puzzle by Bruce Haight. Who can't help but smile at 49A, "The Jackie Gleason Show" catchphrase, HOWSWEETITIS, or the delicious twist that would always follow 39A, "Columbo" catchphrase, JUSTONEMORETHING? Probably all the people who weren't even born when these shows aired, aka 50% of the New York Times audience! Fortunately, the crosses were gentle, but it would be interesting to h...
24 Elo 202110min
Sunday, August 22, 2021 - Anagrams Galore!
A perfect Sunday crossword by Stephen McCarthy, with some extraordinary anagrams. For your consideration we offer 5A, It might be put on for stage PAGEANTRIES, GREASEPAINT, and 42A, You might be MARVELING AT this as it whizzes by, MAGLEVTRAIN. These are just two of the 10 jaw-droppingly good anagram-related clues that grace this puzzle. The other clues weren't too shabby either. Who could resist 106A , Five-letter word that replaces a four-letter word? BLEEP, or 22A, Member of a no...
23 Elo 202113min
August, 21, 2021 - SYNAPSES, Assemble!
Today's crossword was a Saturday, hence the call for all SYNAPSES on deck. Jean's responded as usual, and she whizzed through today's crossword; Mike's also responded as usual, which is why, although he did TRY, he ended up BTEN in the vicinity of 50A, Synthetic material also called frozen smoke, AEROGEL (not AEROSOL). Life is just FULLOFSURPRISES! Still, overall a good puzzle, we give it a 4.5 squares on the JAMCR scale. We love feedback! Send us a text... Contact Info: We love listene...
22 Elo 20219min
Friday, August 20, 2021 - No STALEJOKE Here
There was not a STALEJOKE to be found in today's grid. There might have been one at some point, but Will Shortz undoubtedly would've ULTIMATELY exercised his VETOPOWER to set things straight. There were lots of fun clues in today's puzzle, too many to list here, but we do have to give a shoutout to 48A, Superhero misidentification, ITSAPLANE, as well as acknowledge the two sporting sleights of hand, 3D, A's, but not B's or C's, TEAM, and 24A, Cowboys' headgear, HELMETS. Nice!! It's Fun...
21 Elo 202113min
Thursday, August 19, 2021 - Great Clues GALORE
A crisp Thursday offering from the pen of Oliver Roeder, today's crossword had lots of sparkling clues. The pièce-de-résistance was 36A, Life preserver? ... or a hint to six squares in this puzzle, CEREALBOX (and we'll just pause here to let that sink in 😀). Other clues worth applauding for included (this is not an exhaustive list by any stretch) 17A, Stand-in for the unnamed, ETAL (nice!); 62A, Org. known for counting backward, NASA (outstanding!); and finally, an example of painstakin...
20 Elo 202111min
Wednesday, August 18, 2021 - Oh You PARTYANIMAL, YOU!
A BLANKCANVAS is how crosswords (and podcast episode write-ups!) begin, but then with a little AGILE thinking you end up with ... a WHITELEPHANT? No, a PLUM puzzle that's just ready to pick! We hope that you'll pick, download and listen up to today's podcast, featuring Jean's deft explanation of today's theme, as well as a loving recitation of a William Carlos Williams poem about fruit! We love feedback! Send us a text... Contact Info: We love listener mail! Drop us a line, crosswordpodcast@i...
19 Elo 20218min
Tuesday, August 17, 2021 - A Relaxing Dip
Today's crossword had lots of dipping - a NIB in INDIAINK, BREAD in CHEESEFONDUE, etc. Jean's favorite clue in the grid was 18A, Small part in a superhero film?, ANTMAN, and Mike was enthralled with 14A, Parts of clown costumes, REDNOSES, just because he likes the idea of REDNOSES. It's Triplet Tuesday, and Mike flames out spectacularly -- the details are all within, so download and listen up. We love feedback! Send us a text... Contact Info: We love listener mail! Drop us a line, crosswordpo...
18 Elo 202110min
Monday, August 16, 2021 - A Noteworthy Crossword
Monday's are generally regarded as the easiest of the New York Times crosswords, but that doesn't mean that they aren't a lot of fun. This one had a lively theme, the opportunity to misspell 14A, Visually challenged "Mr." of cartoons, MAGOO (Mike thought it was MCGOO for a time), and a clue that's guaranteed to induce a chuckle or three, 45A, One who says that you're not on the ball?, FLATEARTHER. In short, Freddie Cheng has set the bar high for crosswords for the rest of the week, whic...
17 Elo 20218min
