Saturday, March 14, 2020

Today’s Saturday Stumper

Today’s Newsday Saturday Stumper, by Brad Wilber, was surprisingly easy, aside from the southeast corner. But man oh man that southeast corner. It had arcana: 60-D, three letters, “Onetime North Island herbivore.” It had a tricky spelling: 48-D, six letters, “Trifling.” It had general weirdness: 59-A, eight letters, “Verdict of disapproval”; 64-A, six letters, “Creatively turbulent.” And it had a clue that reminded me of what must be my considerable distance from current trends in entertaining (62-A, eight letters, “Cutlery carrier”). I’m glad that those clues were not the whole puzzle.

Some clue-and-answer pairs I especially liked:

11-D, seven letters, “Boston Public Library muralist.” Because Boston.

16-A, eight letters, “Fashion effect aka ‘manscara.’” Not that I use the stuff.

25-D, seven letters, “108 Odyssey fellows.” I always like seeing Homer in a crossword. The 108 is an extra treat. And that is the number, which a reader can work out by adding numbers as Telemachus gives them in book 16.

36-A, four letters, “‘A nightingale who sits in darkness,’ per Shelley.” I like to think that my late friend Rob Zseleczky is pleased whenever Shelley turns up in a crossword.

46-A, five letters, “Many a paperweight.” Mine are rocks and tile trim.

And another one of the clue-and-answer pairs that baffle me until I begin typing them out: 58-D, three letters, “Fellow from Wheeling.”

No spoilers: the answers are in the comments.

comments: 5

Michael Leddy said...

For once I’m determined to get every answer into one comment. No misses!

MOA. MEASLY. ITSAMESS. YEASTY. TEATOWEL.

Here’s how to make a cutlery roll from a tea towel.

SARGENT. See here and here.

GUYLINER. SUITORS. POET. PRISM. ELI. Groan: WheELIng.

shallnot said...

MEASLY: like the measles?

TEATOWEL: what gets wet as it dries?

Steven

Michael Leddy said...

That’s clever. But wouldn’t any towel get wet as it dries? Am I missing something?

Geo-B said...

Are the tile trim paperweights souvenirs of your father?

Michael Leddy said...

Yes, pieces of trim that he removed and saved when tearing down old walls. I just remembered: I have a picture of one on an older post. I also have old porcelain faucet handles that used to be paperweights. Now they’re decor.