09.26.13 — Instrument

Thursday, September 26, 2013

Puzzle by Tom Pepper and Victor Barocas

Edited by Will Shortz

CLOCK (41A. Instrument that hints at the missing parts of certain answers in this puzzle), along with twelve answers on the perimeter constitutes the interrelated group of this clever Thursday crossword:

1. HALF (10A. 50%)


2. FACE (13D. Acid-burned Bat-villain)


3. RING (38D. Like some circuses)


4. PART (63D. Like barbershop harmony)


5. SPOT (72A. Fin)


6. SIDED (71A. Like a die)


7. SEAS (70A. Sailors’ domain)


8. DAYS (58D. Length of a Beatles “week”)


9. WEST (26D. Popular women’s shoe seller)


10. BEST (1D. Annual Car and Driver list)


11. BALL (1A. It has a red stripe in pool)


12. DOZEN (5A. A gross)

Other — BOLO TIES (40D. Western party wear), DEATH STAR (58A. Darth Vader locale), EGG / YOLK (32A. With 29-Down, “golden treasure” in a Bilbo Baggins riddle), ENTER / INTO (18D. With 23-Across, sign, as a contract), GO TO SLEEP (36D. Drift off), HIGHER ED (10D. Colleges and universities, informally), I AM A CAMERA (65A. Play that was the basis for “Cabaret”), for the film, HERE, LEANING ON (3D. Using for support), SCOTIA (53A. Part of the British Isles, poetically), SHIPSHAPE (21A. Neat), SIAMESE CAT (17A. Blue-eyed pet).

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09.25.13 — LINES

Wednesday, September 25, 2013

Puzzle by Victor Fleming and Bonnie L. Gentry

Edited by Will Shortz

LINE (58D. Word that can follow each part of the answers to the six starred clues), along with the six answers constitutes the interrelated group  of this Wednesday crossword:

HOT WATER (17A. *Deep trouble, informally)

HARD TIME (65A. *Felon’s sentence, maybe)

BOTTOM LAND (3D. *Low-lying acreage)

AIR SUPPLY (9D. *Deep-sea diver’s concern)

BUS SERVICE (30D. *Campus transportation, maybe)

DATE BREAD (34D. *Fruity loaf)

Other — ANAGRAM (38A. Hated to death, say?), BRONCO (2D. It’s more useful when It’s busted), DOSSIERS (70A. F.B.I. files), EBB TIDES (1A. Coastal backflows), EREBUS (7D. God of darkness), LITTERS (58A. Kittens come in them), RUPTURE (24A. Burst, as a pipe), SECRET (11D. Under wraps), TABOOED (54A. Made illicit).

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09.22.13 — Light of Heart II

The Burning of the Houses of Lords and Commons, 16th October 1834

J. M. W. Turner, exhibited 1835 -- Turner witnessed the burning of  Parliament from a boat on the River Thames.

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Sunday, September 22, 2013

Letterboxes, Puzzle by Mike Selinker / Edited by Will Shortz

A note accompanies this crossword:  In this special prize crossword, the completed solution conceals a familiar three word phrase related to the puzzle’s theme. 70 Across provides a hint on how to find it.

The New York Times requested that crossword blogs do not publish the solution until after the competition deadline, 6:00 pm Eastern on Tuesday, September 24.

READ THIS GRID IN BRAILLE (70A. How to get a message out of the boxes), along with FEEL THE LOVE in Braille constitutes the main feature of this bright Sunday crossword.  The solver is to imagine the letter O within the eleven boxes.

The four longest answers begin with HANDLE, PRESS, TOUCH and CONTACT appearing to be related to the Braille activity:  HANDLE WITH CARE (23A. Words on a fragile package), PRESS SECRETARY (31A. Mouthpiece for the head?), TOUCH TONE PHONE (107A. Rotary alternative) and CONTACT POISONS (118A. DDT and others).

Other — AETHER (51A. Material beyond the terrestrial plane, in medieval science), AVATAR (59D. Film set on Pandora), CONNECT / THE DOTS (1D. With 97-Down classic puzzle type), DEMONIAC (44D. Frenzied as if possessed), Cartoonist GAHAN Wilson, HARARE (14D. African capital), ISOGONS (48D. Shapes like squares), ORBISON (76A. “Only the Lonely” singer), OPORTO (16A. Italian wine city), SHLEMIEL (20D. Oaf), STACIE and STASI (40A. Strawberry blond sister of Barbie; 45d. East German secret police), SWEDES (117A. Anders Celsius and Greta Garbo, for two), THEM! (9A. Classic sci-fi film billed as “a horror horde of crawl-and-crush giants”), TURNER (101D. English landscapist famous for “The Burning of the Houses of Lords and Commons“).

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09.23.13 — E. T.

Tuesday, September 24, 2013

Puzzle by Kevin Christian / Edited by Will Shortz

Two individually circled letters, E. and T., tie together the following in this very friendly Tuesday crossword:

OUTER / SPACE (13A. With 59-Across where [circled letters] came from)

REESES / PIECES (14D. With 41-Down, composition of a trail followed by [circled letters])

DREW BARRYMORE (20A. Child actress who appeared with [circled letters])

SPIELBERG (25A. Creator of [circled letters])

PHONE HOME (45A. What [circled letters] wanted to do)

FLYING BICYCLE (49A. Means  of escape for [circled letters])

Best Original SCORE (award for the film with [circled letters])

GHOST (35D. Costume for [circled letters] on Halloween)

Other — ATE DINNER and TO GO (3D. Had an evening meal; 15A. Like a drive-thru order), DOOR BELL (8D. Avon commercial sound), EAR DOCTOR (32D. One using an otoscope), “Little Latin LUPE Lu” (1966 hit); MOBILE BAY (33D. Locale of an 1864 Civil War blockade), SHINGLES (37D. They’re “hung out” by professionals), STABILITY (5D. What a gyroscope may provide).

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09.23.13 — ROLL

Monday, September 23, 2013

Puzzle by Susan Gelfand / Edited by Will Shortz

IT’S TIME TO ROLL (34A. “Let’s go!” … or a hint for the ends of 20-, 28-, 41- and 52-Across), SLICE AND DICE (20A. Food preparation cutting technique), THE THREE R’S (28A. School basics), GOO-GOO EYES (41A. Look of infatuation) and COSTUME BALLS (52A. Fancy dress affairs) constitute the interrelated group of this Monday crossword.

Other — IMAM and IMARET (44A. Muslim leader; 44D. Turkish inn), MALAWI (45D. African land whose name consists of three state postal abbreviations), MEN’S ROOMS (18A. Places where only guys go), SORCERERS (8D. Wizards), STOOD OVER (32D. Watched protectively), VICE VERSA (55A. In the opposite direction).

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For the equinox…

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09.22.13 — Rameau's Niece — the Acrostic

Sunday, September 22, 2013

ACROSTIC, Puzzle by Emily Cox and Henry Rathvon

This Sunday’s difficult but ultimately delightful acrostic draws a quotation from Rameau’s Niece by Cathleen Schine.

Although she considers herself happily married to a gregarious Englishman who teaches at Columbia University and is an inveterate quoter of poetry, Margaret Nathan, author of a best-selling scholarly biography, finds that her equilibrium is thrown when she chances upon Rameau's Niece , the manuscript of an 18th-century French erotic novel. Haunted by the sensual images that passages from Rameau's Niece have triggered, Margaret finds herself sexually attracted to a woman friend, a gay male friend, her dentist, and several other acquaintances, and she begins to question the viability of her marriage. ~ Library Journal

The quotation:  EDWARD HAD NO DIFFICULTIES AT DINNER PARTIES.  IF HE HAD BEEN SEATED BESIDE A ROCK, HE WOULD HAVE QUICKLY BEGUN AN ANIMATED DISCUSSION OF ITS LAYERS OF GRANITE … OR LIME, ITS LIFE UNDERGROUND, ITS JOURNEYS AND ASPIRATIONS …

The author’s name and the title of the work:  CATHLEEN SCHINE, RAMEAU’S NIECE



The defined words:



A. Insouciant, nonchalant, CAREFREE

B. Martial at with disarming moves, AIKIDO

C. Conversational forum groupings, THREADS

D. Samuel Butler’s mock-heroic knight, HUDIBRAS

E. Transparent, crystal clear, LIMPID

F. Delaware Bay or Long Island Sound, e.g., ESTUARY

G. Happen as a result; come after, ENSUE

H. Improvising musically; indulging in mental play, NOODLING

I. Attraction for devotees, SHRINE

J. Yellow card, in soccer, CAUTION

K. Prevent, forestall (2 wds.), HEAD OFF

L. Behavior of one hell-bound, INIQUITY

M. Display of mild interest, NIBBLE

N. Ghost in Noel Coward’s Blithe Spirit”, ELVIRA

O. Given celebrity treatment, in a way, ROASTED

P. Shoe brand that traces back to Jesse Owens at the 1936 Berlin Olympics, ADIDAS

Q. 2003 Oscar vehicle for Charlize Theron, MONSTER

R. Make a great display of enthusiasm, EFFUSE

S. One who renounces a belief or cause, APOSTATE

T. Not fair, UNJUST

U. Wham-O’s first product, which inspired its name, SLINGSHOT

V. Home to the University of Delaware, NEWARK

W. Succinctly stated (3 wds.), IN A WORD

X. Given proper instruction, EDIFIED

Y. Aegean island group, CYCLADES

Z. Occasion to say “That’s all she wrote”, ENDING



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The full paragraph of the quotation:  Edward had no difficulties at dinner parties.  If he had been seated beside a rock, he would have quickly begun an animated discussion of its layers of granite or sandstone or lime, its life underground, its ocean journeys and aspirations for the future.  Intoxicated by this encounter, he would regale Margaret with tales of the rock’s history, which he would tell with such enthusiasm and such grace that she would laugh and hope that some day she too might sit beside a stone at dinner.  And the stone?  It would sigh and bask in its newly realized glory, its importance and beauty, necessity and dignity — I pave roads and build towers, I form mountains, I rest on the throats of gracious ladies! ~ Cathleen Schine, Rameau’s Niece

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09.22.13 — Light of Heart

The Burning of the Houses of Lords and Commons, 16th October 1834, J. M. W. Turner, exhibited 1835 — Turner witnessed the burning of  Parliament from a boat on the River Thames.

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Sunday, September 22, 2013

Letterboxes, Puzzle by Mike Selinker / Edited by Will Shortz

A note accompanies this bright Sunday crossword:



In this special prize crossword, the completed solution conceals a familiar three- word phrase related to the puzzle’s theme. 70- Across provides a hint on how to find it.

When you have the answer, 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 Tuesday, Sept. 24, will receive copies of The New York Times Crossword Puzzles 2014 Day to Day Calendar, courtesy of Andrews McMeel.

The New York Times requested that crossword blogs do not publish the solution until after the competition deadline, 6:00 pm Eastern on Tuesday, September 24.

Update, Tuesday, September 24, 2013:

READ THIS GRID IN BRAILLE (70A. How to get a message out of the boxes), along with FEEL THE LOVE in Braille constitutes the main feature.  The solver is to imagine the letter O within the eleven boxes (visible only in print-outs).

The four longest answers begin with HANDLE, PRESS, TOUCH and CONTACT appearing to be related to the Braille activity:  HANDLE WITH CARE (23A. Words on a fragile package), PRESS SECRETARY (31A. Mouthpiece for the head?), TOUCH TONE PHONE (107A. Rotary alternative) and CONTACT POISONS (118A. DDT and others).

Other — AETHER (51A. Material beyond the terrestrial plane, in medieval science), AVATAR (59D. Film set on Pandora), CONNECT / THE DOTS (1D. With 97-Down classic puzzle type), DEMONIAC (44D. Frenzied as if possessed), Cartoonist GAHAN Wilson, HARARE (14D. African capital), ISOGONS (48D. Shapes like squares), ORBISON (76A. “Only the Lonely” singer), OPORTO (16A. Italian wine city), SHLEMIEL (20D. Oaf), STACIE and STASI (40A. Strawberry blond sister of Barbie; 45d. East German secret police), SWEDES (117A. Anders Celsius and Greta Garbo, for two), THEM! (9A. Classic sci-fi film billed as “a horror horde of crawl-and-crush giants”), TURNER (101D. English landscapist famous for “The Burning of the Houses of Lords and Commons“).

————————

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Puzzle available on the internet at

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