Saturday, November 30, 2019

Today’s Saturday Stumper

Today’s Newsday Saturday Stumper is credited to “Lester Ruff.” That’s the pseudonym Stan Newman uses for easier Saturday Stumpers of his making. Today’s puzzle though seemed to me decidedly not easy, though still solvable. I’d change the byline to Maura Ruff.

Some choice clues: 1-A, ten letters, “Stumpery clue for ‘broom.’” 13-D, nine letters, “What the Remember the Milk app helps with.” (I nerded out there.) 37-A, three letters, “Blower, briefly.” 45-A, ten letters, “Hippie quest.”

A clue that baffled me, even after I had the answer: 27-A, three letters, “Letters associated with ticker tape.” Another: 54-D, four letters, “Guy from Jericho.” Maura Ruff, you sneak!

No spoilers: the answers are in the comments.

comments: 5

Michael Leddy said...

WITCHCRAFT. (I got stuck trying to think of something having to do with whiskers.) TODOLISTS. TEL. INNERPEACE.

TAE. ERIC. I stared and stared before I figured them out: Thomas Alva Edison. J[ERIC]HO.

joecab said...

Super tough for me, and I still ended up having a wrong square: TEST LAW/SLAW instead of TEST LAB/SLAB

Michael Leddy said...

I filled in TAE as my last answer and thought, This can’t be right. I hope we see more of Maura Ruff, as long as she lets us know what we’re in for.

joecab said...

That one I knew and got early on. But I never got ERIC until your post. D'oh! The cryptic crossword solver in me is ashamed.

Michael Leddy said...

I wondered, at least briefly, if there’s some guy named Eric in the Bible. :)