Foursomes - October 2016

Hello Dear Readers! So what kept us busy and quiet all summer? We were on Jeopardy. Taped in July, aired September 30th. Took up a lot of mind space and time.
We lost to a dude who went on to be the fifth winningest player ever. You can read more on our personal blog here.

Notorious Marcel said, “this was a remarkable example of Erica's Powers of Actualization. You were just like, ‘I'm gonna be on Jeopardy!’ And then a year later you were!” Which is cool to frame it that way: not as a loss, but as a victory for powers of Make Dreams Come True.

Next dream to make come true: write and sell a screenplay. Here are the loglines of current projects:

• manic pixie dreamboy
• superhero Brokeback Mountain
• a veterinarian becomes a back alley doctor for humans
• a cop is in prison for a crime he didn't commit, and that prison is … Guantanamo Bay

The Theme!

Good ol' Foursomes. Rotational symmetry and left‑to‑right orthography of the twelvers latticing the grid to yield a unique solution. We had massive trouble in the northeast at the end, in particular with clues 7A and 8D. Could not solve! Consulted thesauri, consulted Sweet V, consulted an anagram generator. Nuthin. Buh!

Our downfall lay in misinterpreting this clue:

• Actor who falls short of depth, they say? (4)
  (depth = PIT) they say = PITT

And what Maltby Jr and cohort were going for was DEPP. So, like

• (short of DEPTH = DEP) they say = DEPP

Yah ok. Anyway we went for PITT and got stuck in the pits at the end:


Sidenote, we were discouraged to read that the final straw in the Jolie‑Pitt marriage was an intense fight on the private plane between Brad and one of the kids, and that because the fight took place in the air that meant it came under federal jurisdiction so the FBI was investigating whether child abuse occurred. Which is a severe bummer.

Anyway ok so then we were left with

• 7A) Measure import, leaving nothing out (4) = D ‑ ‑ P ?

which is impossible, and

• 8D) Beautiful girl, who comes in periodically (4) = ‑ E ‑ I ?

which coulda still been the correct answer, PERI, but then that meant 7A would be D ‑ RP. DARP? DORP? No.

So then we brought in Sweet V to help us check our assumptions. Could it be that we had a busted orientation? And that the puzzle almost works from that busted orientation? Diabolical, right? But plausible, because we had done what we often do with these types of puzzles, which is solve a bunch of clues and then Just Start Writing in Answers and If Something Comes Up Busted Just Print Out a New Puzzle and Start Over. That's the official name of the method.

Anyway so those twelvers that lattice the grid can indeed work at a different orientation. But then that means two of the foursies end in C, which is a non‑starter.


Which brings us to here and now, when we were able to look up the answer to the puzzle. DEPP and PINT, not PITT. PERI. We assume that the Beautiful Peri in question is none other than the Gilp sheself:


Dear Readers are challenged to offer a more beautiful Peri in the Comments!

Highlights!

• 1A) Sweet covering for dirty pictures (8)
  dirty PICTURES = PIECRUST

Anagrama always beloved by this ma'amma!

• 10A) Part of a foot (in Chinese) (4)
  IN CHinese = INCH

Applause at the restraint in not referencing foot binding, many thanks from the Tacky Harper's Cryptic Clues community.

• 14A) Running hot and cold in the nethermost, a ticklish situation (12)
  neTHERMOST A TICklish = THERMOSTATIC

Never hearda THERMOSTATIC but this is a daring wordspanner indeed!

• 15A) Dooms criminal to live here? (5)
  DOOMS criminal = SODOM

Thought it was MOODS for a long while. We live within our emotions, interpret all of the world through our feelings. Maybe too poetic for the Harper's. Instead, Biblical. Nice.

• 19A) Property changes just before the end, as it should be (8)
  PROPERTY changes just before the end = PROPERLY

We liked this! Very nice, crisp, surprising.

• 21A) Minarets constructed with fancy exteriors (8)
  MINARETS constructed = RAIMENTS

Really truly thought the word was RAINMENTS. Do people say it with the “N”? [practises saying “raiments” out loud] Ok we don't actually say the “N” but we think it. Like a flavor you can't taste, but you know it's there.

• 22A) End up auditioning a role in Young Frankenstein (4)
  auditionING A = INGA

The role played by the glorious Teri Garr! “Would you like a roll in ze hay?”

• 25A) Multiple divisions make this come, or it dissipates (12)
  MAKE THIS COME or it dissipates = TRICHOTOMIES

On thin ice as a “word” but it's an anagram, so, we give it a pass.

• 29A) The second George Bush leaves New York, it's a transformed island (6)
  ((The second George Bush = W) leaves NEW YORK = NE YORK) transformed = ORKNEY

Took a while to pull out ORKNEY on this one. Margin notes say YONKER?? and ROKNEY??

• 30A) Ravel opera: I'm finding more than one outlet (7)
  Ravel OPERA I'M = EMPORIA

Oooh v nice! Much in love with the phenomenon of words that, by rights of their opposing prefices, should be antonyms, but are in fact synonyms or near synonyms. flammable/inflammable valuable/invaluable. Andddd ravel/unravel is another! It doesn't mean to knit it up or spool it up nice. Nope. You can destroy the sweater with ravelling OR unravelling. Pulling this string, as we walk away.

• 31A) Buggy having a silent star's first name (4)
  (Buggy = NIT) having A = NITA

Now that we've survived 2014: Year of Bed Bugs, other typically noxsome arthropods have no bad power over us. Silverfish, centipedes, even lice and mosquitos which do actively seek to consume our blood and body, now it's like, “oh hey there buddy, you get along now you scoot!”

Automatic Highlight for babe Nita Naldi:

• 3D) As poor cart rich off, he's got your back! (12)
  A SPOOR AS POOR CART RICH off = CHIROPRACTOR

Were the anagram fodder and indicator obvious, yes. Yes they were. “A spoor cart rich” maybe the clunkiest turn of phrase in the puzzle in years. Uh WOOPS so, our bad, misunderstanding the kerning on the printed PDF vsn of the puzzle, many thanks to Dear Reader Jordan for pointing out!

And none'less a glorious anagrama, one of our first solves of the puzzle, so it's an automatic Highlight!

• 6D) Teams stay alternatingly appealing (5)
  TeAmS sTaY alternatingly = TASTY

A tight and tasty clue indeed!

• 7D) Awkwardly said “Welcome,” bringing in guys in a row (12)
  (awkwardly SAID = DISA) (Welcome = GREET) bringing in (GUYS = MEN) = DISAGREEMENT

Lovely! Enjoyed the play on “row.” It rowed our boat. Gently. [whispered] So gently.

• 9D) Is carpet bombing customary behavior for the British? (8)
  IS CARPET bombing = PRACTISE

Intense! War and colonialism! And, is it customary behavior for the British? Post WWII, we mean? Also, our margin notes say TEACRISP.

• 16D) Pet old Italian leader in private? Quite the opposite! (6)
  (old Italian leader = DOGE) in (private = GI)? Quite the opposite! = GI in DOGE = DOGGIE

We're starting to get the rhythm of these very tiresome [Ed Wynn voice] “Opposite!” clues. This one we liked automatically for invoking not just DOGGIE but DOGE!

• 15D) Agents called back about ostentatiously elegant show—it qeuires a splash! (8)
  ((Agents = REPS) called back = SPER) about (ostentatiously elegant show = RITZ) = SPRITZER

Was certain this would work out to SPLATTER until 22A just wouldn't flow as A‑‑A. Can anyone explain what is the deal with LaCroix? We knew it as a regional brand of Midwest sparkling water. But now it seems to be a national thing, a crappy hipster thing? Like how PBR is a thing? How did that … like, when did that … Was it in a movie? Or a song? We're getting old, Dear Readers.

• 17D) Big talker I owe for The Sound of Music (8)
  (Big talker = ORATOR) I (OWE for the sound = O) = ORATORIO

We thought “oratorio” must be a super specific opera talking thing WOOPS. Tis not! Tis so much more.

• 23D) Three notes that sound disheartened! (5)
  sound (disheartened = CORED) = CHORD

Mwa! Delicious!

Lowlights!

• 11A) Pop singer about to televise meeting leader (7)
  (Pop singer = CHER) about (to televise = AIR) = CHAIRER

“Chairer”? No. Beyond being impossible to say. Like “draw‑er” as in “someone who draws.” Second, how about a fresh pop star in the mix. Kesha. Riri. Sia. How about an old one. Sade. So classic! Everybody loves Sade.

• 12A) Some Reds wearing Spanish flowers—yes, in Germany (6)
  wearing (Spanish flow‑wers = RIOS) (yes in Germany = JA) = RIOJAS

Seen this FLOWERS > RIVERS many many times, many many. Just once, FLOWERS > UTERUSES. Once. Please.

• 18A) Fellow traveler, initially in pursuit of negative feedback (4)
  (traveler initially = T) in pursuit of ((negative = NEG) feedback = GEN) = GENT

Thought this was BOOT for a while (BOO + T). NEGATIVE > NEG too on the nose, yah? Funner ways to get to NEG. New England gangster. Or a reference to pickup artistry.

• 24A) Plow maker does making noise (5)
  Plow maker = (does = DEER making noise) = DEERE

Seems like there's gotta be a smoother way to clue this, sound a little more like a native English speaker, non? Sidenote, our favorite thing to say in Romania this summer was, “stiu ca vorbesc cum vorbitora nativa, dar ințeleg nu mai puțin.” Which means, “I know that I speak like a native speaker, but I only understand a little.” Except that the construction for “native speaker” is not something that an actual native speaker of Romanian would ever say. So the statement is inherently a paradox, which we like, and it always made people laugh, which we love.

• 5D) Southern meat dish, almost like a kebab (8)
  (Southern = S) (mean dish = HASH) (almost LIKE = LIK) = SHASHLIK

This is a super smooooooov clue, reads just like real talk from real humans! But yields … shashlik? Wutt? We don't shashlike it. The clue, not the food. The food looks good:

• 13D) Novelist after part in Titanic, they say! (6)
  (part in Titanic = STERN) they say = STERNE

Gross. Tried forcing “Jack” and “Rose” several rounds. Then “[the unsinkable] Molly.” We'd hearrrrrrrd of Laurence Sterne and Tristram Shandy, and even earmarked desire to watch the 2006 film because Coogan. Gotta love the Coog! Naturally of course, this month's Nerd Hot Guy:

• 20D) Final musical sections that produce titters (7)
  produce TITTERS = STRETTI

Never hearda. So, obv we don't like it.

• 26D) Frost's poetry, when read aloud (4)
  (poetry = RHYME) when read aloud = RIME

AhhhhhhHHHhhhhh. No. Poetry doesn't have to rhy— buh. We worked hard to make this come out as BOBS as in “Bob's” somehow.

• 28D) Navy man known for a balanced performance? (4)
  Navy man = known for a balanced performance = SEAL

Tried to work this out as a proper name, like Admiral Byrd, or Philippe Petit. Anyway also there's one lady SEAL, at least, kinda sorta. GI Jane!

The Tacky

• 31A) Violated when rolling a joint (8)
  VIOLATED when rolling = DOVETAIL

Ai, hell no to this uncomfortable date rapey clue, this gross scene of being groped while high.

OH MANG speaking of which, WHOW what a surprise in the US political news! Not that the guy is awful, and not even that he was caught being awful on tape. But that this time, the shit sticked. It's stuck to him. The glamour wore off.

Obv we mean glamour:


 and also glamour:

Glamour originally was a term applied to a magical-occult spell that was cast on somebody to make them see something the spell-caster wished them to see, when in fact it was not what it seemed to be. In the late 19th century terminology, a non-magical item used to help create a more attractive appearance gradually became known as 'a glamour'.

Source: La Wikip

Ok anyway and so now we're wondering if maybe when the dust clears on 2017, he'll end up indicted. Maybe for fraud, maybe assault. Who knows. And she'll be in the big house with the power to pardon him. But she's not pardoning no she's just Laughing and Laughing! Lighting a whiskey‑soaked t‑shirt on fire, LOCK HER UP emblazoned on it, melting in the heat.

We dream :)

We've missed you. Come comment :)

News Clippings - September 2013

Triumphant return, everyone! We hope you all had lovely summers. Welcome back to TackyHarpersCrypticClues.blogspot.com.

For la Septembre, the theme: symmetrical halves to the grid, except for the two 1As. The puzzle title was “News Clippings” and each clue was a double-threat that read like a headline, preceded by an appropriate(ish) newspaper section which—most incredible puzzle instruction in Harper's ever—was included “just for fun.”

Just for fun!

So had our thinking caps been properly strapped on we would have keyed in on the theme of Ye Old Media Papre of Yestreyeer and potentially nailed the 1As early, as opposed to dead last:

• 1A) Obituary: CREATOR OF PROBITION (“THE MAN WITH THE VITAMIN”) DIED—NAME INVOLVED IN PERJURY SPREAD IN PROMINENT LETTERS (6,8)
  creator of prohibition = BANNER
  (the man = HE) + (vitamin = A) + (died = D) + (perjury = LIE) + (name = N) = HEADLINE

Do you get it? “BANNER HEADLINE” in the puzz right where the banner headline is on a newspaper: By the way, that clueing for HEADLINE is just, like, excruciating.

This puzzle was hard. Since we were such a dodo about 1A and thus couldn't enter any fill until the triumphant end, we brought out the big guns to keep track of which answers jibed together.

Big guns, you ask? That's right. We brought out the Scrabble board and the markers. And, luckily, most of our first answers were in what turned out to be the left half of the puzzle, and we were able to make some wild conjectures that led to accurate inferences that put this one to bed in two days. Not one of the glorious single-sittings of summer 2012, tis true. But still flowing nice and steady, like a river, or a morphine drip.

Highlights!

• 10A) Science Page: ENGINEER GREETED CLEAN ENERGY SOURCE WITH EXHAUST PIPES DECENTRALIZED WHEN IT GETS DARK (7,7)
  GREETED * anagram = DETERGE
  (energy = E) + (exhaust pipes = VENTING) * decentralized = EVENING

An especially nice flow between halves (“clean energy”).

• 14A) Automobile News: BEING INSIDE FIRST-CLASS RETRO CONVERTIBLE (AND IN STATE!) MAKES ME BLURT: PEOPLE CAN LOSE THEIR HEADS AFTER RIDING IN THIS! (7,7)
  ((first-class = A1 = AI) * rev = I A) + (AND IN * anagram) = INDIANA
  ME BLURT * anagram = TUMBREL

From etymonline:

tumbrel (n.) mid-15c., “two-wheeled cart,” ... Notoriously used to take victims to the guillotine during the Reign of Terror.

Dark! “Death Cart: the cart that drives you to your death!”

• 17A) TV Review: DISCOVERED BACK IN POLYVINYL DWELLING WITH A BLUE COLOR, OLDER MAN IN DADA IS DEPICTED IN GREAT TV SERIES (6,6)
  polyvinYL DWELling * rev = LEWDLY
  (man in Dada = RAY) + (great = G) + (TV series = ER) = GRAYER

Mmm that wordspanner reversal in the first half! YES. Blast from the past on that TV reference but we forgive, we forgive.

Also just now, in real time, our lovely boyfriend Sweet V whilst reading over our shoulder asked, “Ray? How is that Dada?” V is from Romania, the same nationality as key inventors of Dada. He speculates that Dada was a Romanian joke about art, right to art's face. Having had close contact with a Romanian for nearly a year we speculate same.

But V'd never heard of Man Ray. Man Ray! His photos were no joke! Man Ray is an automatic Highlight! While we're on the topic of TV series—great TV series —check out Noah Wyle still hitting his marks on that first ER monologue. YES! Love!



Noah Wyle! You are this month's TackyHarpersCrypticClues.blogspot.com Nerd Hot Guy!

Young and clean cut (cheetah print!)

Older and tastefully grizzled

• 1D) Gossip Column: BREAKING WIDE: I PLACE DOTTY HANGING AROUND WILLIS' EX! SEEING EACH OTHER AGAIN? I'LL BE WRITING IN ANOTHER DAY (10,10)
  I PLACE (Willis' ex = DEMI) * anagram = EPIDEMICAL
  double synonym = BACKDATING

“Back dating” as in “those two? Are they back dating again?” Mmmmmmmmok we'll allow it!

Speaking of Willis's ex, here's Demi Moore and the Kootch deboarding, and oh-so-gently received by TMZ. TMZ, that most generous of media. And also if right now you're like, “uh your blog has a typo, it should be Willis',” dude, no. Possessive singulars ending in s take the apostrophe and s. Get out dat Strunk & White. Open 'er up. What does it say. You're welcome. We know. Yes, everyone does it “Bruce Willis'.” Yes, we know it looks funny the other way. Sometimes the truth is hard.

This clue also reminds us of Jackie Harvey's Gossip column in The Onion. “Item!”

• 6D) Business News: STRIKE SUPPORTS, LEVERAGED OUT, SWAMP INTERNAL WORKING (SHOWN IN HD), WRITES INTERIOR (10,10)
  ((strike = S) + LEVERAGED) * anagram = EVERGLADES
  (INTERNAL * anagram) + HD = HINTERLAND

Two glorious anagrams! Hinterland! Very nice. Always enjoy when an indicator is in fact anagrind material. Fresh take!

• 11D) Fashion News: A FAST-MOVING NUMBER, NIGHTGOWN'S STARTING TO GET FASHIONABLE—YET SHIFTS, OLD MAN, GO RIGHT OVER ALMOST NOTHING (6,6)
  (nightgown's starting = N) + (fashionable = IN) + YET = NINETY
  (go right = GEE) + (almost nothing = ZER) = GEEZER

“Ninety” like driving fast, in miles per hour, on an American highway mmmmmmmmmmmmmmok we'll allow it. “GEE” like in how you get your team of oxen to go left. We learned that from Reading Rainbow probably 25 or 30 years ago in the episode where LeVar Burton goes to an Amish farm.

GEE and HAW. Never know what's gonna resonate, what's gonna stick with you and be of use.

Lowlights!

• 7A) Empoyment Want Ad: A LOW-RENT EX-SERVICEMAN, UNOFFICIALLY I'M PURSUING PUBLIC RELATIONS IN PARTICULAR (4,4)
  A LOW * anagram = AWOL
  (public relations = PR) + I'M = PRIM

Just didn't like. Maybe it was the reference to public relations? Also, we were sooooo certain that the first half would play on VET and thus we built a neurological dead end and brought our sleeping bag and just camped out for a couple days.

When your intuition has you on the right track then sometimes that can work and you say, “mmmm! I'm like Columbo up in here, sniffing it out! Your book smarts will never defeat my qi!” but when it doesn't you're just like, “argh! Why did I let myself be guided by feeling?”

• 12A) Western Hemisphere: A LATIN PRESIDENT SIMILARLY GERMANIC, ENDS UP IN WILD (5,5)
  A + (Latin = L) + (president = IKE) = ALIKE
  GERMANIC ends = MANIC

O mang, took forever thinking up synonyms for “Germanic” and only getting “Teutonic” which is way more than five letters, and didn't break up into neat components as a synonym for “wild.” But then, like the girl next door, the answer we were looking for was right there in front of us. (whispered: right there, the whole time)

• 2D) Police Blotter: CROOKED PUNK WARY OF NOT FINISHING RAN OFF IN VAN WITH ITALIAN FLOWER (4,4)
  WARY * anagram = AWRY
  ((OF * not finishing = O) + RAN) * anagram = ARNO

Every time with that flow-er = river. Every time. Just one time, let's see flow-er mean “menstruater.” Fresh take!

Also, any Dear Readers out there know how to parse “van” here? There is such thing as Van Arno but we doubt that is the reference.

• 3D Sports Page: BALLOONS APPEARING WHEN OPENERS IN DETROIT, DENVER, SEATTLE RUN OVER—MAVERICK'S I, NETS 12—ODDLY MENTION BOXING RING (8,8)
  (D + D + S + I + NETS) * anagram = DISTENDS
  MENTION + (ring = O) * anagram = NOONTIME

More tortured clueing on that first half. Booo!

• 5D) Washington Beat: HOUSE COVERAGE OF OLD REPUBLICAN STANDING UP FIRST ON REVERSING CASES REGARDING MUSICIAN IN HISTORY FIRE! (4,4)
  OF + (old = O) + (Republican = R) = ROOF
  ON * reverse * cases + (regarding = RE) = NERO

Of course the famous musician is Nero. #ofcourse note! Wikipedia tells us that Nero probably wasn't fiddling during the Great Fire. So the next time someone brings it up like at a party or in a Huffington Post comment or something you can say, “ACTually ... !” Then everyone will say, “thank you for letting us know.”

• 13D) International News: RULER OVERTHROWN, SIREN ON CART SOUNDS FOR BRITISH SPY (5,5)
  RULER * anagram = LURER
  (ON + (cart = DRAY)) * homophone = ANDRE

From W'k'p'd'a:

John André was a British Army officer hanged as a spy by the Continental Army during the American War of Independence.

Never hearda. But, there you have him.

The Tacky!

Let's call out what we always call out, and what we always call out is male normativity.

• 16A) Advertising News: PRESS FOR DIRECTIONS—THEN YOU'LL SEE ME NAME STAR'S TREAT TASTIER (7,7)
  (directions = N E W S) + ME + (name = N) = NEWSMEN
  TASTIER * anagram = ARTISTE

Meh. All the Press is All Man? Tell that to Cokie Roberts. To Maura Liason. To Connie Chung. We could go on. To Mi-chele Norris. To Audie Cornish. To what's her face, the mean blonde one. Tip of the tongue. Anne something.

(Googles ... )

Ann Coulter! She was the first hit for “mean blonde republican,” by the way. Not a comment on her politics, just on how she conducts her public persona(e). And w/r/t tackiness qua sloppiness, is the noun “artiste” really symmetric to the possessive modifier “star's”? Mmmmmmmmmmno. It is not.

Also

Did you, Dear Readers, check the specs on some BULLSHEET in the puzzle footer this month?

Beginning with this month's puzzle, the sender of the first correct solution opened at random, rather than the senders of the first three, will receive a one-year subscription blah blah

O RLY. Is Ye Olde Meedia exactly raking it in these days and no, certainly not. Do we begrudge them cutting corners with respect to the puzzling fanbase why YES we most certainly DO.

Anyway. Here's our winning puzzle from April, hanging proudly in the kitchen:

If you feel something, say something. Leave a comment.