Wednesday, February 7, 2024 - A crossword to sing about
Today's crossword was (mainly) a blast from the past, featuring a series of diverse musical hits with one common lyrical feature. Can you tell what LOLA, POKERFACE, MYGENERATION and CHANGES all have in common? If not (or even if you can), have a listen to today's podcast, where we answer that poser, and have our usual erudite, witty, and chances-of-winning-the-lottery-enhancing analysis of today's puzzle. Show note imagery: LUCID Air, capable of going from 0 to 60 in under 2 seconds, a...
8 Feb 202414min
Tuesday, February 6, 2024 - AISLED? That's wild! đ
A terrific Tuesday crossword by Victor Barocas. We found the answer to 59D, Lacking clutter", NEAT, to be ... NEAT. We judged the answer to 44A, Perfect, IDEAL, to be ... IDEAL. Finally we found the answer to 61A, Positive Instagram responses, LIKES to be worthy of a lot of ... ok, you know how this ends đ . In addition to our hopefully cogent crossword analysis, we also have a nail-biting Triplet Tuesday segment, so listen in, play along, and ... enjoy! Show note imagery: ...
7 Feb 202419min
Monday, February 5, 2024 - Holy toledo, Batman, our best lines are in a crossword!
A fun Monday crossword by Desirée Penner and Jeff Sinnock, who are about as persistent a crossword constructing duo as you'll ever meet: their first crossword (this is their second) took 123 tries before they got it published in the NYTimes. Talk about grit! Today's crossword is quite colorful, and, once you solve the crossword, we mean that literally: the themed answers get redrawn in the style of a comic book, with fonts and colors that look like they came right off of a DC or MARVEL artist...
6 Feb 202415min
Sunday, February 4, 2024 - EGAD, there's an AXOLOTL in this crossword!
The puns fly thick-and-fast in a grid that is filled with panache, pizzazz, and other classy words that start with the letter p. Just consider 99D, School name that sounds like a Canadian territory, UCONN (brilliant!!); or 77D, What might lead to a bridge?, VERSE (bravo!); and 44A, Anatomical stabilizer, TOE (bodacious!). We've got all the deets in today's exciting episode, so download, have a listen, and then impress your neighbors with your (possibly) newly acquired knowledge of AXOLOTLYs a...
5 Feb 202420min
Saturday, February 3, 2024 - To write a crossword this good? That *is* ROCKETSCIENCE đ
A delightful Saturday crossword by Carolyn Davies Lynch and Jeff Chen - edited adroitly, as always, by Will Shortz. Your intrepid cohosts had vastly different experiences solving today's puzzle, but they both agreed that it contained a cornucopia of clever clues. Deets inside, as well as the winner of this week's JAMCOTWA (Jean And Mike Crossword Of The Week Awardâąïž). Show note imagery: Sir Georg SOLTI, conductor extraordinaire We love feedback! Send us a text... Contact Info: We love listen...
4 Feb 202413min
Friday, February 2, 2024 - A MAGNA crossword!
Today's crossword, a debut by Ryan Judge, was a major challenge. There was no theme, just a slew of diabolically deceiving clues, leading to a remarkably enjoyable solving experience. Beyond that, it's Friday, and we have a fascinating fact for Fun Fact Friday, and listener mail! So have a listen, and as always, let us know what you think - crosswordpodcast@icloud.com. Show note imagery: DRMARTENS, we presume We love feedback! Send us a text... Contact Info: We love listener mail! Drop us a ...
3 Feb 202424min
Thursday, February 1, 2024 - Today's crossword is a real HEADTRIP!
An astonishing Thursday crossword by Simeon Seigel, with a mind-boggling theme that's almost impossible to describe, and absolutely impossible to forget, in a grid that is RIFE with NOB-scratching posers. In short, we loved it, and the author, Simeon Seigel, should take a bow. Show note imagery: Adolph OCHS, who purchased the New York Times in 1896 and promptly lowered the price from 3 cents per issue to a mere 1. We love feedback! Send us a text... Contact Info: We love listener mail!...
2 Feb 202417min
Wednesday, January 31, 2024 - A crossword with BOOBOO in the grid? Heart be still!
Although we strive mightily to provide a fair, impartial review of each and every crossword, that goes right out the window when our favorite cartoon bear, BOOBOO, graces the grid. Fortunately, for the sake of our reviewing reputations , that does not happen often: BOOBOO has shown up a total of 12 times in the NYTimes crossword, and only one of those explicitly references Yogi's pal and straight man (er, bear). Show note imagery: The AMSTEL river in the Netherlands, which, as fa...
1 Feb 202416min
