Friday, May 3, 2024

State subtraction, Work & Play, Two X’s, Add an R and watch out! “Onward Dominican soldiers?” “Chuck’s” Ray Charles wordplay; Sterling stout or crude brew? Shift 2 letters, add 1 syllable; Extending more so from the torso?

PUZZLERIA! SLICES: OVER 5πe2 SERVED

Schpuzzle of the Week:

“Onward Dominican soldiers?”

Women and men “of the cloth” are not normally associated with warfare and the military. 

However, there is a “wordplayful,” or lexical,
link
between any Dominican padre – whom one would presume to be peaceful  – and the military display of force known as shock and awe.

What is this link?

Appetizer Menu

Worldplay USA  Appetizer: State subtraction, Work & Play, Two X’s, Add an R and watch out! 

State Subtraction One 

1. 🚗Take the names of two U.S. states. Subtract the letters of the second state from the first. Rearrange the result to give a hypothetical unit to rate miniature model cars.


State Subtraction Two

2. 🌳🌲🌳🌲🌳Take the names of two U.S. states. 

Subtract the letters of the second state from the first state. 

Rearrange the result to give what a forest ranger might do to show the trail.

State subtraction Three

3. 🎅🎄Take the names of two U.S. states. 

Subtract the letters of the second state from
the first. 

Rearrange the result to give what Rudolph et al. might perform on Christmas Eve.

Work and play

4. 🦃Name a hobby. 

Drop a letter from the start to obtain a profession. 

Substitute the second letter of the profession
with this dropped letter to obtain a holiday. 

What are these three words?

Add an R and watch out!

5. 💻Name an occurrence that is seen more and more often in today’s technological world.

Add an R in the middle to yield a frequent result of this occurrence. 

What are the two words?

Two X’s

6. 𝓧𝓧 What relatively common word not
derived from a trademark name contains two X’s?

MENU

Hoppy Hors d’Oeuvre:

Sterling stout or crude brew?

Name a premium beer brand that claims to be mid-single-digit centuries old. Its name seems somehow to sound vaguely cultured and elegant. If you delete its middle syllable,
however, the result sounds like a synonym of “vulgar,” “crude” and “tasteless.” What is this beer brand? What is the  synonym of “vulgar,” “crude” and “tasteless”?

Limberer Limbs Slice:

Extending more so from the torso?

Replace a vowel in a body part with the next vowel in the alphabet to spell an object that
might be described as an extension of that body part. What are this body part and object?

 Riffing Off Shortz And Graham Entrees:

“Chuck’s” Ray Charles Wordplay

Will Shortz’s April 28th NPR Weekend Edition Sunday puzzle, created by Chad Graham of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, reads:

Think of a famous male singer of the past with
two A’s in his name. Drop both A’s and the remaining letters can be rearranged to name a popular make of automobile. What is it?

Puzzleria!s Riffing Off Shortz And Graham Slices read:

ENTREE #1

Think of a puzzle-maker with three identical vowels in his name. Replace these three vowels with one each of the four other vowels in the alphabet, not including “y”. Rearrange these combined letters to spell a phrase consisting of a four-letter adjective and seven-
letter noun that are synonymous with “extreme good taste in conduct and appearance” – a phrase that applies to both this puzzle and its puzzle-maker. 

Who is this puzzle-maker and what is the two word phrase?

Hint: All but one of the letters in the puzzle-maker’s name are found in the first half of the alphabet.  

Note: Entree #2 was authored by a Puzzleria! contributor whose puzzles appear regularly in this space. 

Entree #3 is the handiwork of Ecoarchitect whose “Econfusions” also appear regularly. 

Entrees # 4 through #9 were contributed by Nodd, author of the regular “Nodd ready for prime time” feature on P!

ENTREE #2

"Think of a famous male singer of the past with two A's in his name.  Remove the first and last letters of the name.  Drop both A's and the letters immediately adjacent to the A's.  The remaining letters identify a conveyance.  Who is the singer and what is the identifier of that conveyance?"  

ENTREE #3

Think of a famous male singer of the past. There is a female children's fiction writer (Newbery Award runner-up) who shares the last name of that singer. Drop the letters of the writer's first name from the singer's name and the remaining letters can be rearranged to name a job in a restaurant. Who are the singer and the writer, and what is the job?

ENTREE #4

Think of a famous male singer of the past.  Change the first letter of his name to an R. 
Rearrange to name a make and model of automobile that was produced overseas in the last century. Who is the singer and what is the automobile?

ENTREE #5

Think of a famous male singer of the past.  Six letters in his name are the same two letters, repeated three times each.  Drop four of these
letters and change another letter to an L.  Rearrange to name a famous make of automobile. Who is the singer and what is the automobile?

ENTREE #6

Think of a famous male singer of the past.  

Replace the next-to-last letter of his name with a copy of the third letter.  
Rearrange to name an American sports car model and a car part. 
Who is the singer and what are the car and car part?

ENTREE #7

Take the last name of a famous female singer of the past.  Rearrange to name a past American car model and a word for what is sometimes done with automobiles. Who is the singer, what is the car model, and what is sometimes done with automobiles?

ENTREE #8

Take the name of a famous female singer of the past.  Change the second letter to an E.  Drop three other letters  and rearrange to
name an automobile model. Who is the singer, and what is the automobile?

ENTREE #9

Think of a famous male singer of the past.  Replace an E with a B.  Rearrange to name a vintage American automobile and a famous male contemporary singer. Who is the singer
of the past, what is the automobile, and who is the contemporary singer?

ENTREE #10

Think of a famous male singer of the past with two A’s in his name. Replace both A’s with a single E. The resulting letters can be
rearranged to fill in the blanks in the following statement: The Women’s ___ Movement made many ___ _____. 

Who is this singer? What three words belong in the blanks?

ENTREE #11

Think of a famous still-living male singer with two A’s in his name. Replace both A’s with one O and rearrange the result to get a person who wields  “wrenches” and walks upon links, and
where in his vehicle he might store his  “wrenches.”

Who is this singer? 

Who wields  “wrenches” and walks upon links? 

What is the word for where their wares or “wrenches” are stored?

Where in his vehicle might he store his wrenches?

ENTREE #12

Name a sports venue in a state shaped like a creature. The venue is named after a man with two i’s in his name. But because of an industry the state is known for, “outsiders” may think
the area is named after an American industrial pioneer (with no i’s in his name) whose surname is a homophone of the surname of the man with two i’s in his name.

What is this sports venue?

Who are these two men with sound-alike surnames?

Dessert Menu

Zoological Dessert:

Shift 2 letters, add 1 syllable

Move the first letter of a two-syllable animal two places later in the alphabet (A becomes C, B becomes D, etc.). 
Move its second letter one place later in the alphabet (A becomes B, B becomes C, etc.). 

Move its second letter one place later in the alphabet. 

The result is a one-syllable animal. 

What are these animals?

Every Friday at Joseph Young’s Puzzleria! we publish a new menu of fresh word puzzles, number puzzles, logic puzzles, puzzles of all varieties and flavors. We cater to cravers of scrumptious puzzles!

Our master chef, Grecian gourmet puzzle-creator Lego Lambda, blends and bakes up mysterious (and sometimes questionable) toppings and spices (such as alphabet soup,


Mobius bacon strips, diced snake eyes, cubed radishes, “hominym” grits, anagraham crackers, rhyme thyme and sage sprinklings.) 
Please post your comments below. Feel free also to post clever and subtle hints that do not give the puzzle answers away. Please wait until after 3 p.m. Eastern Time on Wednesdays to post your answers and explain your hints about the puzzles. We serve up at least one fresh puzzle every Friday.

We invite you to make it a habit to “Meet at Joe’s!” If you enjoy our weekly puzzle party, please tell your friends about Joseph Young’s Puzzleria! Thank you.

56 comments:

  1. Replies
    1. OK, so I guess I am officially old now, but why is the font size smaller this week?

      Delete
    2. In the Dessert:
      "Move the first letter of a two-syllable animal two places later in the alphabet (A becomes B,
      B becomes C, etc.)."

      Shouldn't that be "A becomes C, B becomes D, etc." ?

      Delete
    3. You're right, Paul. In fact, I kept trying to do the puzzle wrong (ROT-1 and then ROT-2) rather than the reverse. I'm guessing the incorrect "A becomes B", etc. is what I was following.

      Delete
    4. For Entree #2, I want to make sure I have the instructions right. So, if the singer is RAY CHARLES, it would turn into AYCHARLE and then subtract AY and HAR to get CLE? Since I don't understand what "identifier of that conveyance" means, unless I stumble across the right singer and the remainder makes sense, I don't think I'll be solving this one.

      I did finally solve Entree #3. In the case anyone was wondering, you drop the writer's first name from the singer's full name (not the first) and rearranging the remaining letters of the full name to get the job.

      Delete
    5. Yes, Tortitude, that is the process.
      The poser of the puzzle suggested this hint for the "identifier of that conveyance";
      "It might be an abbeviation."

      LegoWhoWillBePostingHintsSoonAndWillReturnToTheLargerTypefaceInThisWeekend'sEditionofP!

      Delete
  2. Replies
    1. Sunday hints for Entrees 4-9:
      4. Mojo.
      5. Misplaced his ticker, he said.
      6. The first five letters of the singer’s name also anagram to a vehicle.
      7. Had a tune once used by Crocker Bank.
      8. Something people look up to.
      9. “Friends” role.

      Delete
    2. The singer was an actor, he owned a yacht, and was known for taking the helm.

      Delete
    3. Thank you for the hints. I already had #3, but now have #4, 5, and 7 as well.

      I also solved the Schpuzzle. Not as difficult as I thought at first, but since almost every puzzle was difficult for me this week, I hadn't spent much time on it.

      Delete
    4. Monday Hints

      Schpuzzle of the Week:
      This is an anagram puzzle... Oh, and there is a more formal synonym of "shock and awe."

      USA New Worldplayful Appetizer:
      Note: The following hints are courtesy of our friend Ken Pratt, aka "geofan"
      ANSWERS:
      1.
      Hint: The states border each other. The hypothetical unit is somewhat oxymoronic.
      2.
      Hint: What the blazes? Mark my words, and don't disturb the squirrels!
      3.
      Hint: Sometimes the sleigh just gotta make a left or right turn.
      4.
      Hint: The letter in question is an A.
      5.
      Hint: Electricity, Internet; less frequently water or gas.
      6.
      Hint: It’s testamentary, my dear Watson.

      Hoppy Hors d’Oeuvre:
      Sterling stout or crude brew?
      "Tonight... (and then, some alliteration)

      Limberer Limbs Slice:
      Extending more so from the torso?
      Sorry, this is a correction and a hint:
      CORRECTIONReplace a vowel in a body part with the PREVIOUS (not NEXT) vowel in the alphabet to spell an object that might be described as an extension of that body part. What are this body part and object?
      Hint: The body part is a seven-letter word.

      Riffing Off Shortz And Graham Entrees:
      “Chuck’s” Ray Charles Wordplay
      Will Shortz’s April 28th NPR Weekend Edition Sunday puzzle, created by Chad Graham of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, reads:
      Think of a famous male singer of the past with two A’s in his name. Drop both A’s and the remaining letters can be rearranged to name a popular make of automobile. What is it?
      Puzzleria!s Riffing Off Shortz And Graham Slices read:
      ENTREE #1
      The two-word answer ends with an alcoholic beverage and begins with what you might "get" if you "over-imbibe" that beverage.
      ENTREE #2
      The solution "could be" an abbreviation (hint courtesy of the puzzle's composer).
      ENTREE #3:
      (See Eco's hint, above, in our "Comments/Hints" section.)
      ENTREE #4, #5,#6, #7,#8, #9:
      (See Nodd's six hints, also above.)
      ENTREE #10
      "Mamos 'n' _____"
      ENTREE #11
      Anagram "Grace Allen" (not Gracie Allen) to get a two-word song title by the singer.
      ENTREE #12
      Name a sports venue in a state shaped like a creature (a creature that begins with a "W").

      Zoological Dessert:
      Shift 2 letters, add 1 syllable
      Each animal's name is three letters long.

      LegoLibertyLibertyLiberty...

      Delete
    5. Lego, thanks for the hints. I've made a lot of progress including - shockingly! - Entree #1 since yesterday. I'm just missing App #1 (although the border hint certainly narrows things down) and Entrees 8 and 9 now, although I'm not 100% sure about App #3.

      Delete
    6. I meant Entree #2, not Entree #1.

      Delete
  3. Replies
    1. E8. Take a famous female singer of the past- Change second letter to an E, drop three letters and mix to get a kind of musician.
      Singer? Musician?

      Delete
    2. Dessert: Take an animal - move first letter up 2 in A.S. and 2nd letter up one in A.S. to get a place of rest.

      Delete
    3. This comment has been removed by the author.

      Delete
    4. I'm failing miserably on this week's puzzles. Here's a riff:
      Name a famous male singer of the past, 10 letters in total. One letter appears three times; remove all three instances of that letter. All of the remaining seven letters are unique.

      Rearrange the seven remaining letters to produce a two-word phrase that might be a catering demand for someone who is lactose intolerant.

      Now rearrange the seven remaining letters to produce a two-word phrase describing where the singer's first hit record was likely first heard. Note: the first "word" in the phrase is a two-letter state postal abbreviation.

      Who is he, and what are the phrases?

      Delete
    5. Another riff: Name a famous male singer of the past. Two letters each appear four times apiece, while the remaining six letters are unique.

      Who is he?

      (Hint: he shares his first name with the subject of my previous riff.)

      Delete
    6. Was the first singer ever on Ed Sullivan? Did he have long hair.?

      Delete
    7. This comment has been removed by the author.

      Delete
    8. The last big hit for the singer in my first riff contained the last name of the singer in Entree #7.

      Delete
    9. Sorry, misread your questions, PS. Both singers appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show.

      Delete
    10. Hint for E8 riff. Singers stage name rhymes with a kind of fish.

      Delete
    11. Have a possible solution for E8 riff, but no letter changes are required.

      Anagram the singer's name to produce a word meaning "moves from side to side regularly."

      TortieWhoseAnswerAlsoAppearedOnTheEdSulllivanShowAndTheLipSyncingWasRatherBlatantWhenAnotherSingerInTheBandAteABananaDuringThePerformance!

      Delete
    12. lol. What singer was not on Ed Sullivan of a certain generation?
      Maybe Janice Joplin or Jimi Hendrix? Another great Riff. Mine tweaked her stage name and added a vowel.

      Delete
    13. Well, E4 was only on there once, thanks to shenanigans.🤭

      Delete
  4. A nearby house exploded last night. At least one person has died. Apparently it was a gas leak, although further details are not yet available.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Just saw that on ABC news. Total devastation. Retired P.D. officer killed. In South River? Horrific.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes, that's it. Incredibly sad.

      Felt and heard a loud boom at the time, but different feeling than the earthquaker.

      Delete
    2. I hadn't seen this sad news until reading about it here, so went to look it up. So tragic. Gas explosions scare me silly, because one never knows if one has that service to one's house, if it might happen to you, as well.

      Delete
    3. That's not what I meant, Plantie. I meant that when one does have natural gas service, one never knows if, heaven forfend, such an explosion might also happen at one's own home.

      Delete
    4. My son's building in NYC is gas powered. So---.

      Delete
    5. So far I've got Appetizer #5, the Hors d'Oeuvre, Entrees #5 and #10, got the singer for #9 but can't get the wordplay, and the Dessert.
      pjbSaysIt'sNotMuch,ButIt'sAStart

      Delete
    6. If you have the singer for #9, you're doing better than I am. There is an obvious name, but it's "E free" so it can't be right.

      Delete
  6. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Happy Kentucky Derby Eve y'all!
    Mom and I are fine. Maddy didn't want to eat out, so Mom is fixing one of our "Hello Fresh" meals. Somehow we managed to get drive-through food for about a solid week, so we really needed to get these box meals eaten up to make more room in the fridge. Mom has also suggested going to the beach for Mother's Day, which at this point only hinges on whether or not Renae wants to, because ever since my nephew Mason passed on, she doesn't like celebrating Mother's Day. I myself am exhausted just thinking about getting ready to go to the beach, and we have other things happening this month that I'm more concerned about, such as a doctor's appointment, a dentist's appointment, and Mia Kate's dance recital. I kind of hope Renae doesn't go along with the beach idea, but I haven't told Mom. Also, I totally forgot to check P! last night, so this is the first I'm seeing it all. And I feel too overwhelmed by everything else to be attempting any of these puzzles right now. So I've obviously made no progress so far, and I will be checking the hints from time to time, but I'm just not in the mood for all this right now. Please bear with me, it's not you it's me.
    Good luck in solving to all, and please stay safe, and if I talk to you from Ft. Walton next week, you'll know what happened. Cranberry out!
    pjbWillBeDoingThePrizeCrosswordAndPossiblyWordle,Though

    ReplyDelete
  8. Missing just about everything this week so far. I do have Apps #6 and (I think) #2, Entrees #1, 10, 11, 12, and the Dessert.

    ReplyDelete
  9. BTW The beach trip has been cancelled until next month. Renae and Maddy will be going back to Baltimore around Mother's Day.
    pjbHasALittleMoreTimeToPrepareForTheTripNow

    ReplyDelete
  10. SCHPUZZLE ?
    APPETIZERS
    1. ?
    2. ?
    3. ?
    4. AVOCATION; VOCATION; VACATION
    5. OUTAGE; OUTRAGE
    6. EXECUTRIX
    HORS D’OEUVRE – LOWENBRAU; LOWBROW
    SLICE – FOREARM; FIREARM
    ENTREES
    1. CHAD GRAHAM; HIGH DECORUM
    2. ?
    3. ?
    4. JIM MORRISON; MORRIS MINOR
    5. TONY BENNETT; BENTLEY
    6. KURT COBAIN; COBRA; TRUNK
    7. CARPENTER; PACER; RENT
    8. PATSY CLINE; ECLIPSE
    9. LEONARD COHEN; CHANDLER; BONO
    10. BARRY MANILOW; LIB, MEN, WORRY
    11. ART GARFUNKEL; GOLFER, TRUNK
    12. CRISLER CENTER; FRITZ CRISLER; WALTER CHRYSLER
    DESSERT – EMU; GNU
    TORTITUDE RIFF #1 – BOBBY DARIN; NO DAIRY; NY RADIO
    TORTITUDE RIFF #2 – BOBBY GOLDSBORO

    ReplyDelete
  11. Too many of these were solved “Post hint” to mention!
    Schpuzzle: DOMINICAN PADRE anagrams to RAPID DOMINANCE (aka “Shock and Awe”)
    App:
    1. ??? Unless I missed something, I think it has to be WEST VIRGINIA, VIRGINIA (WEST) or NEW HAMPSHIRE, MAINE (SHREWPH) but can’t get anything that makes sense out of these letters
    2. SOUTH DAKOTA, UTAH, DOT OAKS
    3. ??? SOUTH CAROLINA, OHIO, SANTA CURL
    4. AVOCATION, VOCATION, VACATION
    5. OUTAGE, OUTRAGE
    6. EXECUTRIX
    Hors d’Oeuvre: LOWENBRAU, LOWBROW
    Slice: FOREARM, FIREARM
    Entrees:
    1. CHAD GRAHAM, HIGH DECORUM
    2. MARVIN GAYE, VIN (VEHICLE IDENTIFICATION NUMBER)
    3. DEAN MARTIN, ANN MARTIN, MAITRE D
    4. JIM MORRISON, MORRIS MINOR
    5. TONY BENNETT; BENTLEY
    6. KURT COBAIN; COBRA, TRUNK
    7. (KAREN) CARPENTER, PACER, RENT
    8. ?????
    9. ????? (Friends role: thought of (CHANDLER) BING -> BING CROSBY but no “E”s there. GENE CHANDLER? ROSS? JOEY? (Rachel) GREEN? AL GREEN?)
    10. BARRY MANILOW; LIB, MEN, WORRY
    11. ART GARFUNKEL; GOLFER; TRUNK
    12. CRISLER CENTER; FRITZ CRISLER, WALTER CHRYSLER (in Michigan; possibly an alt: don’t understand the “shaped like a creature” reference. Usually people say it’s shaped like a mitten.)
    Dessert: EMU, GNU

    PS riffs: 1. Alt: CASS ELLIOT; CELLIST (Cass rhymes with bass. Cass Elliot was a stage name (Ellen Naomi Cohen was her real name). CASS ELLIOT anagrams to OSCILLATES. Michelle Phillips ate a banana on The Ed Sullivan Show); 2. ANT, COT
    My riffs:
    1. BOBBY DARIN, NO DAIRY, NY RADIO; 2. BOBBY GOLDSBORO

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Tortie, that's impressive that you solved the Schpuzzle and App 2. I had the right letters on App 2 but totally overlooked the anagram.

      On App 1, I came up with the same letters you did based on which states border each other but couldn't get anything intelligible out of them. On App 3, I too came up with "Santa curl" but didn't think it made any sense.

      On Entree 12, I thought maybe the claim was that the state is shaped like a wolverine, based on the "begins with W" hint. It perhaps looks something like a crouching wolverine, or maybe "shaped like" is figurative, based on Michigan residents' affection for the U of M sports teams?

      Delete
    2. I'm not convinced by "Santa curl" and will wait for the official answer.

      Ah, what you say about Wolverine makes sense. I thought maybe it was a werewolf. I guess having sports teams named Mittens wouldn't be too intimidating.

      Oops on your hints for E8 and E9! I was concentrating on music and not cars. Glad to see you solved my two riffs, though.

      Delete
    3. I liked your riffs a lot. Clever and yet readily solvable with some effort. The top part of Michigan could maybe pass for a whale, but that's only half the state.

      Delete
    4. Cass Elliot was a stage name not Mama Cass? I was going to say a vowel was repeated in her stage name- to get Mama. Appropriate for Mother's day- perhaps?

      Delete
  12. You sure you were not a D.J. at some point?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Nope, I'm not a D.J.! But I listened to and read a lot about music.

      Delete
  13. Schpuzzle
    DOMINICAN PADRE=RAPID DOMINANCE
    Appetizer Menu
    2. SOUTH DAKOTA-UTAH=DOT OAKS
    4. AVOCATION, VOCATION, VACATION
    5. OUTAGE, OUTRAGE
    6. EXECUTRIX
    Menu
    Happy Hors d'Oeuvre
    LOWENBRAU, LOWBROW
    Limberer Limbs Slice
    FOREARM, FIREARM
    1. CHAD GRAHAM, HIGH DECORUM
    2. MARVIN GAYE, VIN(Vehicle Identification Number)
    3. DEAN MARTIN, ANN MARTIN, MAITRE D'
    4. JIM MORRISON, MORRIS MINOR
    5. TONY BENNETT, BENTLEY
    6. KURT COBAIN, COBRA, TRUNK
    7. (Karen)CARPENTER, PACER, RENT
    8. PATSY CLINE, ECLIPSE
    9. LEONARD COHEN, CHANDLER, BONO
    10. BARRY MANILOW, LIB, MEN WORRY
    11. ART GARFUNKEL, GOLFER, TRUNK(again)
    12. CRISLER CENTER, FRITZ CRISLER, WALTER CHRYSLER
    Zoological Dessert
    EMU, GNU
    Masked Singer Results:
    POODLE MOTH=CHRISSY METZ(formerly of "This Is Us")
    GUMBALL moves on to next week's show.
    Mom and I are about to have tilapia for supper tonight.-pjb

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Storm heading your way? May miss us here- maybe not.

      Delete
  14. Puzzleria. 5/7/24/ –86 degrees.
    ‘- –Schpuzzle of the Week
    Appetizer Menu-
    Arkansas-Kansas =A.R.
    2. ?
    3. ?
    4. Avocation, vocation, vacation
    5.
    6. Exotoxic
    Hor Dourves
    E1. Chad Graham– High decorum
    E2.

    ENTREE #3

    ENTREE#4- Muddy waters. Ruddy Waters.

    ENTREE #5 Tony Bennet, Bentley

    ENTREE #6
    ENTREE #7
    ENTREE#8.
    Riff1- Cass Elliot -Cess -Elliot -s,o,e mix = cellist, “Mama” Cass- rhymes with bass.
    ENTREE #9

    ENTREE #10
    Entree #11-
    Entree #12. Nebraska (looks l ike a Hippo) -Virgil Eihusen Sports center.
    Entree 13-

    Dessert Menu
    Emu, Ngu
    Riff : Ant to – Cot = a place of rest.
    Tort-riff 1. Tommy James “the Shondells” - 3m’s. Soy jat?



    ReplyDelete
  15. This week's official answers for the record, Part 1:
    Schpuzzle of the Week:
    “Onward Dominican soldiers?”
    Women and men “of the cloth” are not normally associated with warfare and the military.
    However, there is a “wordplayful,” or lexical,
    link between any Dominican padre – whom one would presume to be peaceful – and the military display of force known as “shock and awe.”
    What is this link?
    Answer:
    "Shock and awe" is technically known as "rapid dominance," which is an anagram of "Dominican Padre."

    Appetizer Menu
    USA New Worldplayful Appetizer:
    State subtraction, Work & Play, Add an R and watch out, Two X’s
    State subtraction One
    1. Take the names of two U.S. states. Subtract the letters of the second state from the first. Rearrange the result to give a hypothetical unit to rate miniature model cars.
    ANSWER:
    NEW HAMPSHIRE – MAINE = WHPSHRE → SHREW HP

    State subtraction Two
    2. Take the names of two U.S. states. Subtract the letters of the second state from the first. Rearrange the result to give what a forest ranger might do to show the trail.
    ANSWER:
    SOUTH DAKOTA – UTAH = SODAKOT → DOT OAKS

    State subtraction Three
    3. Take the names of two U.S. states. Subtract the letters of the second state from the first. Rearrange the result to give what Rudolph et al. might perform on Christmas Eve.
    ANSWER:
    SOUTH CAROLINA – OHIO = SUTCARLNA → SANTA CURL

    Work and play
    4. Name a hobby. Drop a letter from the start to obtain a profession. Substitute the second letter of the profession with this dropped letter to obtain a holiday. What are these three words?
    ANSWER:
    AVOCATION-VOVATION-VACATION

    Add an R and watch out.
    5. Name an occurrence that is seen more and more often in today’s technological world. Add an R in the middle to yield a frequent result of this occurrence. What are the two words?
    ANSWER:.
    OUTAGE + R → OUTRAGE

    Two X’s
    6. What relatively common word not derived from a trademark name contains two X’s?
    ANSWER:
    EXECUTRIX
    Lego...

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  16. This week's official answers for the record, Part 2:

    MENU

    Hoppy Hors d’Oeuvre:
    Sterling stout or crude brew?
    Name a premium beer brand that claims to be mid-single-digit centuries old. Its name seems somehow to sound vaguely cultured and elegant. If you delete its middle syllable, however, the result sounds like a synonym of “vulgar,” “crude” and “tasteless.” What is this beer brand? What is the synonym of “vulgar,” “crude” and “tasteless”?
    Answer:
    Lowenbrau;

    Limberer Limbs Slice:
    Extending more so from the torso?
    Replace a vowel in a body part with the next vowel in the alphabet to spell an object that might be described as an extension of that body part. What are this body part and object?
    ANSWER:
    FOREARM, FIREARM
    Replace a vowel in a body part with the next vowel in the alphabet to spell an object that might be described as an extension of that body part. What are this body part and object?
    Answer:
    Forearm; firearm

    Lego...

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  17. This week's official answers for the record, Part 3:


    Riffing Off Shortz And Graham Entrees:
    “Chuck’s” Ray Charles Wordplay
    Will Shortz’s April 28th NPR Weekend Edition Sunday puzzle, created by Chad Graham of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, reads:
    Think of a famous male singer of the past with two A’s in his name. Drop both A’s and the remaining letters can be rearranged to name a popular make of automobile. What is it?
    Puzzleria!s Riffing Off Shortz And Graham Slices read:
    ENTREE #1
    Think of a puzzle-maker with three identical vowels in his name. Replace these three vowels with one each of the four other vowels in the alphabet, not including “y”. Rearrange these combined letters to spell a phrase consisting of a four-letter adjective and seven-letter noun that are synonymous with “extreme good taste in conduct and appearance” – a phrase that applies to both this puzzle and its puzzle-maker.
    Who is this puzzle-maker and what is the two word phrase?
    Hint: All but one of the letters in the puzzle-maker’s name are found in the first half of the alphabet.
    Answer:
    Chad Graham; "high decorum";

    Note: Entree #2 was authored by a Puzzleria! contributor whose puzzles appear regularly in this space. Entree #3 is the handiwork of Ecoarchitect whose “Econfusions” also appear regularly. Entrees # 4 through #9 were contributed by by Nodd, author of the regular “Nodd ready for prime time” feature on P!

    ENTREE #2
    The solution "could be" an abbreviation.
    "Think of a famous male singer of the past with two A's in his name. Remove the first and last letters of the name. Drop both A's and the letters immediately adjacent to the A's. The remaining letters identify a conveyance. Who is the singer and what is the identifier of that conveyance?"
    Answer:
    Marvin Gaye (-M - e -ar - Gay = vin) [VIN (Vehicle Identification Number) is the abbreviation of the unique identification number for a vehicle.]
    ENTREE #3
    Think of a famous male singer of the past. There is a female children's fiction writer (Newbery Award runner-up) who shares the last name of that singer. Drop the letters of the writer's first name from the singer's name and the remaining letters can be rearranged to name a job in a restaurant. Who is the singer, the writer, and what is the job?
    Answer:
    Dean Martin; Ann M. Martin; Maitre D'

    Lego...

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  18. This week's official answers for the record, Part 4:
    ENTREE #4
    Think of a famous male singer of the past. Change the first letter of his name to an R. Rearrange to name a make and model of automobile that was produced overseas in the last century. Who is the singer and what is the automobile?
    Answer:
    JIM MORRISON; MORRIS MINOR
    Answer:
    ENTREE #5
    Think of a famous male singer of the past. Six letters in his name are the same two letters, repeated three times each. Drop four of these letters and change another letter to an L. Rearrange to name a famous make of automobile. Who is the singer and what is the automobile?
    Answer:
    TONY BENNETT; BENTLEY
    ENTREE #6
    Think of a famous male singer of the past. Replace the next-to-last letter of his name with a copy of the third letter. Rearrange to name an American sports car model and a car part. Who is the singer and what are the car and car part?
    Answer:
    KURT COBAIN; COBRA; TRUNK
    ENTREE #7
    Take the last name of a famous female singer of the past. Rearrange to name a past American car model and a word for what is sometimes done with automobiles. Who is the singer, what is the car model, and what is sometimes done with automobiles?
    Answer:
    CARPENTER; PACER; RENT
    ENTREE #8
    Take the name of a famous female singer of the past. Change the second letter to an E. Drop three other letters and rearrange to name an automobile model. Who is the singer, and what is the automobile?
    Answer:
    PATSY CLINE; ECLIPSE
    ENTREE #9
    Think of a famous male singer of the past. Replace an E with a B. Rearrange to name a vintage American automobile and a famous male contemporary singer. Who is the singer of the past, what is the automobile, and who is the contemporary singer?
    Answer:
    LEONARD COHEN; CHANDLER; BONO

    Lego...

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  19. This week's official answers for the record, Part 5:

    ENTREE #10
    Think of a famous male singer of the past with two A’s in his name. Replace both A’s with a single E. The resulting letters can be rearranged to fill in the blanks in the following statement: The Women’s ___ Movement made many ___ _____.
    Who is this singer? What three words belong in the blanks?
    Answer:
    Barry Manilow; Lib, men, worry
    ENTREE #11
    Think of a famous still-living male singer with two A’s in his name. Replace both A’s with one O and rearrange the result to get a person who wields “wrenches” and walks upon links, and where in his vehicle he might store his “wrenches.”
    Who is this singer?
    Who wields “wrenches” and walks upon links?
    What is the word for where their wares or “wrenches” are stored?
    Where in his vehicle might he store his wrenches?
    Answer:
    Art Garfunkel; golfer, (car) trunk

    ENTREE #12
    Name a sports venue in a state shaped like a creature. The venue is named after a man with two i’s in his name. But because of an industry the state is known for, “outsiders” may think the area is named after an American industrial pioneer (with no i’s in his name) whose surname is a homophone of the surname of the man with two i’s in his name.
    What is this sports venue?
    Who are these two men with sound-alike surnames?
    Answer:
    Crisler Center (formerly Crisler Arena); Fritz Crisler, a college football coach who is best known as "the father of two-platoon football"; Walter Chrysler, founder of American Chrysler Corporation

    Dessert Menu
    Zoological Dessert:
    Shift 2 letters, add 1 syllable
    Move the first letter of a two-syllable animal two places later in the alphabet (A becomes C, B becomes D, etc.).
    Move its second letter one place later in the alphabet (A becomes B, B becomes C, etc.).
    The result is a one-syllable animal.
    What are these animals?
    ANSWER:
    Emu, Gnu

    Lego!

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