Thursday, December 11, 2025

One brand, two businesses; PeRSOnaliTY becomes SPORTY; UK exports prestige U.S.tateside; Lifestyles of the rich & nameless? Classic car, contemporary character; Syllabifispoonerization! “Enlightenment, Camera, Action!” Jacks & Jills & Jangly Jingoism; Santo... No, Placido Domingo! Cosmic clouds, neutron stars, pseudonyms!

PUZZLERIA! SLICES: OVER 5πe2 SERVED

Schpuzzle of the Week:

“Enlightenment, Camera, Action!

Name two title characters in a 1600’s tragedy and one title character in a 1700s tragedy.

Rearrange these 21 letters to spell: 

~ the nationality of the latter author; 

~ a one-word synonym of “staged production,”

~ a two-word part of the 1700’s tragedy –a part that begins and ends in a palace, and

~ the fourth and fifth words of a soliloquy penned by the author of the 1600’s tragedy.

What are the two tragedies, nationality, synonym, part of the 1700’s tragedy, and two soliloquy words?

Appetizer Menu

Conundrumbstrik!ng Appetizer:

One brand, two businesses; PeRSOnaliTY becomes SPORTY; Britain exports prestige U.S.tateside; Lifestyles of the rich and nameless? Classic car, contemporary character

One brand, two businesses 

1. 🚗🚆🚌Think of a famous international brand (8 letters) that promotes two completely separate businesses. 

One may help you choose where you want to go and the other may help you get there. 

What are they?

PeRSOnaliTY becomes SPORTY 

2. ⚾🏈Think of the last name of a well-known 20th-century TV personality. 

Rearrange it to form a familiar acronym. Then delete a letter from the acronym and rearrange it to form a common sports word. 

Identify all three – the TV person, the acronym, and the sports word.

UK exports prestige U.S.tateside

3. 💂Name a prestigious segment of British society. 

Drop a letter and rearrange to discover a familiar name. It’s the first name of one famous
entertainer and the last name of another. 

Name the Brits and the entertainers.

Lifestyles of the rich and nameless?

4.👂One has a certain lifestyle, the other is an item most likely used by someone with an entirely different lifestyle. 

They have three consecutive letters in common and are a whisper away from being homophones. 

What are they?

Classic car, contemporary character

5. 🚘A classic old car and a modern movie character are called by the same five-letter
name. 

What is it?

MENU

Treacherous Aquatic Creature Hors d’Oeuvre:

Syllabifispoonerization!

Spoonerize the two syllables of a healthy food to get a body of water and what sounds like a hazardous-to-your-health creature that may be
swimming in it. 

What are this food, water and swimmer?

Uphill-Climb Slice?:

Jacks & Jills & Jangly Jingoism

Name something jacks and jills may do during a competitive event, and two things spectators at the event may do. 

Rearrange the letters of these three verbs to spell an American symbol. 

What are these verbs and symbol?

Riffing Off Shortz and Reiss Entrees:

Santo... No, Placido(!) Domingo!

This week’s MPR challenge puzzle comes from Mike Reiss, who’s a showrunner, writer, and producer for “The Simpsons.” 

Think of a famous living singer. The last two letters of his first name and the first two letters of his last name spell a bird. Change the first letter of the singer's first name. Then the first three letters of that first name and the last five letters of his last name together spell another bird. What singer is this?

Puzzleria!s Riffing Off Shortz And Reiss Entrees read:

ENTREE #1

Think of a famous living singer. Slip the penultimate letter of his surname into the penultimate position of his first name.

The letters of the result, in order, spell a lake in the Adirondacks, the name of a board game, and a “pippy” wooden or plastic rectangular game piece.

Who is this singer?

What are the lake, board game and game piece? 

ENTREE #2

Take a puzzle-maker, first and last names, and the first names of two children he helped “bring to life.” 

Rearrange these 17 letters to spell, in three words, any single instance of various attacks that often involved Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen targeting Saudi Arabia/Israel or Iranian forces, particularly since the 2023 Israel-Hamas war.

Who is this puzzle-maker and what are the names of “his two children?”

Name this three-word term.

(Note: Entrees # 3 through #8 were composed by our friend Nodd.)

ENTREE #3

Think of a famous living singer. 

Remove one letter from his first name and three letters from his last name to spell the name of a bird. 

Who is the singer and what is the bird?

ENTREE #4

Think of a famous deceased singer and remove one letter from her last name. 

The rest of her last name, followed by the first name of a living male singer who was part of a famous duo, will spell a bird. Who are the singers and what is the bird?

ENTREE #5

Think of a famous living singer. 

Change the second letter of her first name to the letter four places later in the alphabet and remove the last letter to spell a word for something relating to birds. 

Move the second letter of her last name to the end to spell a kind of bird. 

Who is the singer and what are the word relating to birds and the kind of bird?

ENTREE #6

Think of a famous living singer. Change the last letter of her last name to the letter two places earlier in the alphabet. The first two letters of her first and last names, plus the new last letter of her last name, spell a bird. The last syllable of the bird is a sound made by this and other birds. 

Who is the singer, and what are the bird and the sound?

ENTREE #7

Think of a famous deceased British singer. Four consecutive letters of his last name spell a bird. 

His complete last name, followed by the first
two letters of the first name of a famous living British singer, spell a younger bird of the same kind. 

Who are the singers and what are the birds?

ENTREE #8

Think of a famous deceased singer. 

The first two letters of her first name, followed by the first letter of her last name, spell a bird.
The last two letters of her first name, followed by the first three letters of her last name plus the fifth letter of her last name, spell where people often go to see birds. 

Who is the singer, what is the bird, and where do people go?

(Note: Entree # 9 was composed by our friend Plantsmith.)

ENTREE #9

Anagram the letters of an American band to get a bird. Then change the first letter in the first  name of the band’s lead singer to get another bird. 

Finally, change an “a” to an “o” in the last syllable of the singer’s surname to get where
either of these birds may be found.

What is this band?

Who is its lead singer?

What are these two birds, and where might you might find them?

ENTREE #10

Swap the first letter of the first name of a famous living singer with the first two letters of his surname. Insert a space someplace within his altered surname, forming a verb and object of that verb.

His altered first name has become a kind of tree.

The 6-letter verb and 4-letter object describe how this singer would transport his adolescent daughter (a member of the United States Equestrian Team) to equestrian workouts and international competitions to prepare for the Team Jumping Competition at the 2020 Summer Olympics held in 2021 in Tokyo (at which she received a Silver Medal).

Who is this singer?

What are the kind of tree, the 6-letter verb and 4-letter object?

Dessert Menu

Geopolitical Dessert:

Cosmic clouds, neutron stars, pseudonyms!

Anagram a two-word geopolitical phrase coined by a writer of fiction who went by a pseudonym. You might well come up with the two-word name of a neutron star within the cosmic cloud, and a bodily sensation that the first word in the star might cause. 

What are the phrase, two-word star, and bodily sensation?

Hint: The bodily sensation is not pleasurable... unless you are a masochist.

Every Thursday 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 Thursday.

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.

59 comments:

  1. Note:
    To place a comment under this QUESTIONS? subheading (immediately below), or under any of the three subheadings below it (HINTS! PUZZLE RIFFS! and MY PROGRESS SO FAR...), simply left-click on the orange "Reply" to open a dialogue box where you can make a comment. Thank you.
    Lego...

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  2. Replies
    1. If I have the right Dessert answer, Google says that the two-word name is not itself a neutron star, but a supernova remnant with a neutron star at its center. The two-word name didn't appear on the lists of neutron stars I found. I got the answer by searching for a geopolitical term coined by an author who used a pen name. I thought of George Orwell and "cold war" but that wasn't it.

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    2. My thanks to Nodd. He has come up with my intended Dessert answer... despite my faulty astrophysics! Nodd's post clarifies very well what this "not-a-neutron-star" (let's call it "Uncle Babar") actually is:
      "a glowing cloud of gas and dust, a supernova remnant, but (which) at its very center lies a rapidly spinning neutron star that powers the nebula with energy."

      LegoWhoIsGratefulThatOurPuzzlerian!CommentersContributeCivilAndPolitePostsThatAreNeverCrabby!

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  3. Replies
    1. I believe there is a connection between A2 and my little ditty last week E9. Behind the eight ball again.

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    2. The place where the birds are found in Entree 9 consists ONLY of the last syllable of the singer’s surname with the letter change, not the entire surname with the letter change. This wasn't clear to me until I solved it.

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    3. I guess the whole changed name, with some spacing and punctuation, could be where you can find a baby bird.

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    4. This comment has been removed by the author.

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    5. Only works for one of the birds!

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    6. I meant just the whole changed last name. But it does work for the changed first and last names, if you limit it to one of the birds.

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    7. I was saying the whole changed last name doesn't describe where the first bird usually has babies.

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    8. E9. Both birds are four letters long. The place where birds can be found is 5 letters.

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    9. SUNDAY HINTS FOR ENTREES 3-8:
      3. He had a sweeter song than the birds.
      4. Her last name sounds like an instrument. His last name is a compilation of songs.
      5. Sauce for the goose.
      6. Change the last letter of the bird to get “the Las Vegas of Asia.”
      7. The deceased singer had a hit song with Jennifer Warnes.
      8. The singer’s husband had a presidential nickname. The bird is mentioned in “The Mikado.”

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    10. Early Monday Hints

      Schpuzzle of the Week:
      The "two-word part of the 1700's tragedy" is an anagram of "A rating number for gasoline indicating its antiknock properties."
      The 1 title of the 1700's tragedy begins with what sounds like bacon's breakfast companion, a Big Sky abbreviation, and what follows the Hebrew scriptures.

      Conundrumbstuck by Chuck Appetizer:
      Chuck may chime in with some hints, or I may be able to post a few, upon request.

      MENU
      Treacherous Aquatic Creature Hors d’Oeuvre
      Syllabifispoonerization!
      The body of water is "man-made," and it rhymes with a common watercraft.
      The creature, spelled backward, is a common first name.

      Jingo Bells Slice:
      Jacks & Jills & Jingoism
      Competitors in the competitive event need not be burly... just "birly!"

      Santo... No, Placido Domingo!
      ENTREE #1
      Think of a famous living singer. Slip the penultimate letter of his surname into the penultimate position of his first name.
      The lake in the Adirondacks, alas, rhymes with ACID! The “pippy” wooden or plastic rectangular game piece, is not a cube, and therefore is not a die... but it does begin with a "D".
      ENTREE #2
      The three-word instance of various attacks begins wit an A, an M and an S.

      (Note: See Nodd's excellent hints for his Entrees # 3 through #8 in his December 14, 2025 at 8:17 PM comment.)

      (Note: See Plantsmith's excellent Entree # 9 hint in his December 14, 2025 at 1:56 PM post.)

      ENTREE #10
      He's the "The Bossest of Bosses..." She's "The Master of Hosses!"

      Geopolitical Dessert:
      Cosmic clouds, neutron stars, pseudonyms!
      Did the Magi, bearing gifts and Bethlehem-bound, bring the Babe Bananas?

      LegoBearingHintsHotFromTheWintryHinterlands

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    11. I'm pretty sure I have the title characters for the Schpuzzle, but the anagramming doesn't quite seem to work. I end up with a T where I need an R to spell the fourth word of the soliloquy. Also the part of the 1700s tragedy referenced doesn't begin in a palace, but does end there.

      I'll bet VT has played the overture for the 1700s tragedy!

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    12. Nodd, I solved it. Can't speak about the part starting in palace, but remember, it's the fourth and fifth words of the soliloquy. You may be trying the third and fourth.

      In any case, I think I have everything now except App 4 and PS's riff. Hopefully we'll get some hints. I had never heard of what "Jack and Jill" do in the Slice before, so I definitely needed a hint for that one. Also, I "demoted" one of my answers for Entree #4 to an alt; my other answer was the intended one.

      Interesting that Jennifer Warnes not only sang with the answer to Entree #7, but also had a hit with another singer in the this week's puzzles, as well as performed as a one-off with another answer to salute someone who was a puzzle answer here recently. That puzzle turned out to be an easy one that we struggled with!

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    13. You're right, Tortie, I was thinking of the third and fourth words of the soliloquy. Apologies to Lego!

      I looked up the text of the 1700s tragedy and that part of it starts with a street scene. The next scene is in a palace.

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    14. At least it seems to be a street scene, as they're shooting crossbows. But they're drinking too, so it could be a tavern, perhaps. It doesn't seem to specify.

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    15. Hmmm, Nodd, I just spotted your comment about the overture and my possibly having played it. I will have to investigate. I have gotten nowhere (well, I only took a brief look on Thurs, solved nothing), and may not even have time to TRY to work on puzzles before Wed.

      As I've said many times now, I no longer have any patience if i can't solve them pretty quickly. But if i can figure out WHICH overture is the answer (to whatever puzzle is involved), I will let you know if I ever played it!! : o )

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    16. VT, it's a Beethoven overture. Pretty often it's performed as a prelude to his symphonies and/or concertos. Lego's hint about the name of the tragedy should help you figure out which one it is.

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    17. Bonus Riff. "I'll take the oysters Rockefeller." with some Grey Poupon."

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    18. What I tried to post last night:

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    19. Yes, Nodd, I pretty much figured out that it is a Beethoven overture, and if it was the one I decided you must mean, I went to listen to a You Tube of it. I can't actually say for sure if I was in an orchestra that played it, as it did not give me that 'instant hit of recognition' that I usually get when I hear a piece I've participated in. This overture I am thinking of might indeed have been possible, altho I have a much better memory of (and sometimes still play for fun...since I actually still have a Xerox of the music itself) a different Beethoven Overture -- one that starts with very fast notes! I don't know of any way to "ID" if I ever did the one that I suspect you are talking about.

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    20. The discussion of Beethoven's work is fitting, given that his 225th birthday was just a day or two ago (not known for sure).

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    21. Beethoven's birthday is always seared in my memory, not only because we were forced in late elementary school music class to MEMORIZE many composer's birth/death dates (I wonder how many other kids actually DID), but because as a rabid Snoopy fan in my teens (and still), my Peanuts calendars ALWAYS noted Beethoven's b'day (thanks to Schroeder's obsession with him.)

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  4. Replies
    1. A3. Take a prestigious segment of British society. Drop one letter and mix to get a not so prestigious segment of society.

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  5. Replies
    1. First week in a while where I've made decent progress by Saturday morning. Currently missing third name, nationality, and part of the tragedy in Schpuzzle, and App 4 (and App 5 may be wrong).

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    2. Oops, also didn't solve the Slice.

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  6. IF YOU HAVE COMMENTS THAT DO NOT PERTAIN TO ANY OF THE FOUR CATEGORIES ABOVE, YOU MAY WRITE THEM BELOW THIS POST. THANK YOU.

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  7. Happy Weekend Eve yet again, folks!
    Mom and I are fine. Bryan and Renae et al are too busy decorating their house for Christmas this evening. Mom and I needed to make a grocery run at Food City(formerly Winn Dixie), so we did that and got supper from Arby's, which is just across the street. I almost had to put some groceries back, though, because there was some trouble with my Synovus card and they almost declined it altogether. Finally, some guy came in and offered to pay for everything I bought regardless. Such a nice guy, but I don't even know his name! Oh well, some people must go around doing things like that around the holidays. Strange, but I couldn't argue with it. It just happened.
    Couldn't solve anything at face value this week, will need hints later on. I've also solved the Prize Crossword(by Tramp)as well as the Private Eye Crossword, which marks the first time in so many weeks that I'd solved everything in the latter. Last few puzzles I'd missed a few answers, and there's never an answer page for that crossword anyway, so I should probably look up fifteensquared.com and check out any answers, if any, that that website might have printed.
    Good luck in solving to all, and please stay safe, and thank God for unanswered prayers like my grocery trip turned out to be. Cranberry out!
    pjbShouldHavePutALotMoreThingsBackAtFoodCitySoSomeStrangerWouldn'tHaveEndedUpPickingUpTheTabTonight!

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  8. Tis the season. And you have never seen this person before? Spooky.

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  9. Testing to see if this will publish, because the post I'm attempting to publish up above in answer to Nodd's comment simply REFUSES to go in.

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    Replies
    1. I STILL can't post in the Hints sectoin above. I do not know what is wrong.

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    2. I think I see it. The post about the Overture that Nodd was speaking of and you said you would try to correlate? Or is there more than one?

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  10. "The time has come,' the Walrus said,
    To talk of many things:
    Of shoes — and ships — and sealing-wax —
    Of cabbages — and kings —"
    Somewhere within the pages of "Cabbages and Kings" is, I believe, William Sydney Porter's original coinage of "banana republic".

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  11. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  12. Schpuzzle: (1/2 post hint: ) ANTONY AND CLEOPATRA, EGMONT, GERMAN, PLAY, ACT ONE, NOT TO
    App:
    1. MICHELIN (tires and Michelin guide/restaurants)
    2. PAAR, AARP, PAR
    3. ROYALTY, TAYLOR SWIFT, JAMES TAYLOR
    4.
    5. WOODY (station wagon, Toy Story)
    Hors d’Oeuvre: OATMEAL, MOAT, EEL
    Slice: (Post hint: ) BIRL, YELL, BET, LIBERTY BELL
    Entrees:
    1. PLACIDO DOMINGO; PLACID, GO, DOMINO
    2. MIKE REISS, BART, LISA; ARAB MISSILE STRIKE
    3. SMOKEY ROBINSON, SMOKY ROBIN
    4. LENA HORNE, BILL MEDLEY, HORNBILL; (alt: DINAH SHORE, BILL MEDLEY, SHOEBILL)
    5. ARIANA GRANDE, AVIAN, GANDER
    6. MARIAH CAREY, MACAW, CAW
    7. JOE COCKER, ELTON JOHN, COCK, COCKEREL
    8. TINA TURNER, TIT, NATURE
    9. DEVO; MARK MOTHERSBAUGH; DOVE, LARK, BOUGH
    10. BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN; SPRUCE, BRINGS TEEN
    Dessert: BANANA REPUBLIC, CRAB NEBULA, PAIN

    PS Riff: ????

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  13. SCHPUZZLE – “ANTONY AND CLEOPATRA”, “EGMONT”; GERMAN, PLAY, ACT ONE, “NOT TO”
    APPETIZERS 1. ALPHABET, GOOGLE MAPS, WAYMO
    2. JACK PAAR, AARP, PAR
    3. ROYALTY; TAYLOR SWIFT, ELIZABETH TAYLOR
    4. PRIEST, PRIUS
    5. EDSEL, Edsel Kellogg III in Unfrosted (2024)
    HORS D’OEUVRE – OATMEAL, MOAT, EEL
    SLICE – BIRL, YELL, BET; LIBERTY BELL
    ENTREES 1. PLACIDO DOMINGO; PLACID, GO, DOMINO
    2. MIKE REISS, BART, LISA; ARAB MISSILE STRIKE
    3. SMOKEY ROBINSON; SMOKY ROBIN
    4. LENA HORNE, BILL MEDLEY
    5. ARIANA GRANDE; AVIAN, GANDER
    6. MARIAH CAREY; MACAW, CAW
    7. JOE COCKER, ELTON JOHN; COCK, COCKEREL
    8. TINA TURNER, TIT, NATURE
    9. DEVO, MARK MOTHERSBAUGH; DOVE, LARK, BOUGH
    10. BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN; SPRUCE, BRINGS TEEN
    DESSERT – BANANA REPUBLIC, CRAB NEBULA, PAIN
    (Did not solve the riff.)

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  14. Indeed, I suspected that EGMONT was part of the Schpuzzle answer (given Nodd's comment about my possiblity having played it).

    The only other puzzle I even had time to solve was. Entree #1, so there is no point in my listing if 'officially.' I didn't even have time to READ whatever hints were given.

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    Replies
    1. Did you see that last weeks winner was from Corvallis? Brock Hamill.

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    2. No, I DID NOT see that, Plantie! I must go have a look!

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    3. Oh, the person was from my beloved MONTANA...the only other Corvallis in the country.

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    4. Yea. Today is supposed to be anniversary of first performance of the Nutcracker - opening to mixed reviews. Who knew?

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    5. I had no idea there was a second Corvallis.

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    6. Yeah, I have found it amazing also...especially since they exist in the very two states where I have lived over half my life now!

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  15. Puzzleria-12/17/25” 51 degrees. Rain incessant
    ‘App:
    1. Michelin, Tires,and tour guides.
    2. Paar, AARP, par
    3. Royalty, Taylor Swift, James Taylor
    4.???
    5. Cobra, Iron Cobra (G.i. Joe) (Woody is much better)
    Hors d’Oeuvre:
    1. Placido Domingo; Lake Placid, Go, Domino
    2. Mike Reiss, Bart, Lisa, Arab missile strike.
    3.
    5. Ariana Grande, avian, gander
    6. Mariah Carey, Macaw, Caw
    7. Joe Cocker, Elton John, Cock, Cockerel
    8.
    9. DEVO; Mark Mothersbaugh; Dove, Lark, Bough, or Mother’s bough with punctuation.
    10.
    Dessert: Banana Republic, Crab Nebula, pain

    PS Riff: Aristocrats - i - (mix)= castrators.i.e. Veternarians.
    Some enjoy Oysters rockefeller and others the Rocky mtn.kind.

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  16. Schpuzzle
    "ANTONY AND CLEOPATRA", "EGMONT", GERMAN, PLAY, ACT ONE, (TO BE OR)NOT TO(BE)
    Appetizer Menu
    1. MICHELIN(restaurant guide and tires)
    2. (Jack)PAAR, AARP, PAR
    3. ROYALTY, TAYLOR(Swift and James)
    4. PRIEST, PRIUS
    5. WOODY(station wagon and character from "Toy Story")
    Menu
    Treacherous Aquatic Creature Hors d'Oeuvre
    OATMEAL, MOAT, EEL
    Uphill-Climb Slice?
    BIRL, YELL, BET, LIBERTY BELL
    Entrees
    1. PLACIDO DOMINGO, PLACID, GO, DOMINO
    2. MIKE REISS, BART, LISA, ARAB MISSILE STRIKE
    3. SMOKEY ROBINSON, SMOKY ROBIN
    4. LENA HORNE(HORN), BILL MEDLEY, HORNBILL
    5. ARIANA GRANDE, AVIAN, GANDER
    6. MARIAH CAREY, MACAW, CAW
    7. JOE COCKER, COCK, ELTON JOHN, COCKEREL
    8. TINA TURNER, TIT, NATURE
    9. DEVO, MARK MOTHERSBAUGH, DOVE, LARK, BOUGH
    10. BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN, SPRUCE, BRINGS TEEN
    Geopolitical Dessert
    BANANA REPUBLIC, CRAB NEBULA, PAIN
    Ashley from Illinois won on "The Floor" earlier tonight.
    RIP Rob and Michele Reiner
    -pjb

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    Replies
    1. That's got to be a great alternative. Priest and Prius. Congrats on your puzzle savvy.

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    2. Also to Nodd as I did not see he had the same selection.

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  17. This week's official answers for the record, part 1:

    Schpuzzle of the Week:
    “Enlightenment, Camera, Action!”
    Name two title characters in a 1600's tragedy and one in a 1700's tragedy.
    Rearrange these 21 letters to spell:
    * the nationality of the latter author;
    * a synonym of “staged production,”
    * a two-word part of the 1700's tragedy -- a part that begins and ends in a palace, and
    * the fourth and fifth words of a soliloquy penned by the author of the 1600's tragedy.
    What are the two tragedies, nationality, synonym, part of the 1700's tragedy, and two soliloquy words?
    Answer:
    "Antony (and) Cleopatra" (Shakespearean title characters); "Egmont" by (Johann Wolfgang von) Goethe;
    German; Play; Act One; "To be or NOT TO be..."
    ANTONY CLEOPATRA EGMONT = GERMAN + PLAY + ACT ONE + NOT TO ("to be or NOT TO be...")

    Lego...

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  18. This week's official answers for the record, part 2:

    Appetizer Menu
    Conundrumbstrik!ng Appetizer:
    One brand, two businesses; PeRSOnaliTY becomes SPORTY; Britain exports prestige U.S.tateside; Lifestyles of the rich and nameless? Classic car, contemporary character
    One brand, two businesses
    1. Think of a famous international brand (8 letters) that promotes two completely separate businesses.
    One may help you choose where you want to go and the other may help you get there.
    What are they?
    Answer:
    Michelin guides, Michelin tires

    PeRSOnaliTY becomes SPORTY
    2. Think of the last name of a well-known 20th-century TV personality.
    Rearrange it to form a familiar acronym. Then delete a letter from the acronym and rearrange it to form a common sports word.
    Identify all three – the TV person, the acronym, and the sports word.
    Answer:
    (Jack) Paar, AARP, par

    Britain exports prestige U.S.tateside
    3. Name a prestigious segment of British society.
    Drop a letter and rearrange to discover a familiar name. It’s the first name of one famous entertainer and the last name of another.
    Name the Brits and the entertainers.
    Answer:
    royalty – y --> Taylor Swift, James Taylor

    Lifestyles of the rich and nameless?
    4. One has a certain lifestyle, the other is an item most likely used by someone with an entirely different lifestyle.
    They have three consecutive letters in common and are a whisper away from being homophones.
    What are they?
    Answer:
    hobo, oboe

    Classic car, contemporary character
    5. A classic old car and a modern movie character are called by the same five-letter name.
    What is it?
    Answer:
    Woody

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  19. This week's official answers for the record, part 3:

    MENU
    Treacherous Aquatic Creature Hors d’Oeuvre
    Syllabifispoonerization!
    Spoonerize the two syllables of a healthy food to get a body of water and what sounds like a hazardous-to-your-health creature that may be swimming in it. What are this food, water and swimmer?
    Hint:
    The body of water is "man-made," and it rhymes with a common watercraft.
    Answer:
    oatmeal; moat, eel
    Answer:


    Jingo Bells Slice:
    Jacks & Jills & Jingoism
    Name something "jacks and jills“ may do during a competitive event. Name also two things spectators at the event may do. Rearrange the letters of these three verbs to spell an American symbol. What are these verbs and symbol?
    Answer:
    Birl, yell, bet; Liberty Bell ("Lumberjacks" and "Lumberjills" both compete in "birling" or "logrolling" competitions.)
    https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/birl
    Riffing Off Shortz and Reiss Entrees:

    Santo... No, Placido Domingo!
    This week’s MPR challenge puzzle comes from Mike Reiss, who’s a showrunner, writer, and producer for “The Simpsons.”
    Think of a famous living singer. The last two letters of his first name and the first two letters of his last name spell a bird. Change the first letter of the singer's first name. Then the first three letters of that first name and the last five letters of his last name together spell another bird. What singer is this?
    Puzzleria!s Riffing Off Shortz And Reiss Entrees read:
    ENTREE #1
    Think of a famous living singer. Slip the penultimate letter of his surname into the penultimate position of his first name.
    The letters of the result, in order, spell a lake in the Adirondacks, the name of a board game, and a “pippy” wooden or plastic rectangular game piece.
    Who is this singer?
    What are the lake, board game and game piece?
    Answer:
    Placido Domingo; (Lake) Placid, Go, Domino
    Placido Domingo => Placido Domino => (Lake) Placid + Go + Domino

    ENTREE #2
    Take a puzzle-maker, first and last names, and the first names of two children he helped “bring to life.” Rearrange these 17 letters to spell, in three words, any single instance of various attacks that often involved Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen targeting Saudi Arabia/Israel or Iranian forces, particularly since the 2023 Israel-Hamas war.
    Who is this puzzle-maker and what are the names of “his two children?”
    Name this three-word term.
    Answer:
    Mike Reiss, Bart (and) Lisa (Simpson)
    Arab Missile Strike

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  20. This week's official answers for the record, part 4:

    (Note: Entrees # 3 through #8 were composed by our friend Nodd
    ENTREE #3
    Think of a famous living singer. Remove one letter from his first name and three letters from his last name to spell the name of a bird. Who is the singer and what is the bird?
    Answer:
    SMOKEY ROBINSON, SMOKY ROBIN

    ENTREE #4
    Think of a famous deceased singer and remove one letter from her last name. The rest of her last name, followed by the first name of a living male singer who was part of a famous duo, will spell a bird. Who are the singers and what is the bird?
    Answer:
    LENA HORNE, BILL MEDLEY; HORNBILL

    ENTREE #5
    Think of a famous living singer. Change the second letter of her first name to the letter four places later in the alphabet and remove the last letter to spell a word for something relating to birds. Move the second letter of her last name to the end to spell a kind of bird. Who is the singer and what are the word relating to birds and the kind of bird?
    Answer:
    ARIANA GRANDE, AVIAN, GANDER

    ENTREE #6
    Think of a famous living singer. Change the last letter of her last name to the letter two places earlier in the alphabet. The first two letters of her first and last names, plus the new last letter of her last name, spell a bird. The last syllable of the bird is a sound made by this and other birds. Who is the singer, and what are the bird and the sound?
    Answer:
    MARIAH CAREY; MACAW, CAW

    ENTREE #7
    Think of a famous deceased British singer. Four consecutive letters of his last name spell a bird. His complete last name, followed by the first two letters of the first name of a famous living British singer, spell a younger bird of the same kind. Who are the singers and what are the birds?
    Answer:
    JOE COCKER, ELTON JOHN; COCK, COCKEREL

    ENTREE #8
    Think of a famous deceased singer. The first two letters of her first name, followed by the first letter of her last name, spell a bird. The last two letters of her first name, followed by the first three letters of her last name plus the fifth letter of her last name, spell where people often go to see birds. Who is the singer, what is the bird, and where do people go?
    Answer:
    TINA TURNER, TIT, NATURE
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  21. This week's official answers for the record, part 5:

    (Note: Entree # 9 was composed by our friend Plantsmith.)
    ENTREE #9
    Anagram the letters of an American band to get a bird.
    Then change the first letter in the first name of the band's lead singer to get another bird. Then "change an "a" to an "o" in the last syllable of the singer's surname to get where this bird may be found."
    Devo => Dove
    Mark Mothersbaugh (M=>L =Lark)
    -bAugh => bOugh

    ENTREE #10
    Swap the first letter of the first name of a famous living singer with the first two letters of his surname.
    Insert a space someplace within his altered surname, forming a verb and object of that verb.
    His altered first name has become a kind of tree.
    The 6-letter verb and 4-letter object describe how this singer would transport his adolescent daughter (a member of the United States Equestrian Team) to equestrian workouts and international competitions to prepare for the Team Jumping Competition at the 2020 Summer Olympics held in 2021 in Tokyo (at which she received a Silver Medal).
    Who is this singer?
    What are the kind of tree, the 6-letter verb and 4-letter object?
    Answer:
    Bruce Springsteen; Spruce, ...brings teen

    Dessert Menu
    Geopolitical Dessert:
    Cosmic clouds, neutron stars, pseudonyms!
    Anagram a two-word geopolitical phrase coined by a writer of fiction who went by a pseudonym. You might well come up with the two-word name of a neutron star within the cosmic cloud, and a bodily sensation that the first word in the star might cause.
    What are the phrase, two-word star, and bodily sensation?
    Answer:
    Banana Republic; Crab Nebula; Pain
    Hint: The bodily sensation is not pleasurable... unless you are a masochist.

    Lego!

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