Friday, February 12, 2016

Valentine ear candy; Papa Razzi’s delivers; Hearts and Mayflowers; An eponymy appliance; Rue the date; “I’ll take Paul Lynde to block!” Prime-ordinal soup; Beastie altar boys; Duelin’ with the devil; Third time’s a charm, quatrieme fois est viral; Oh say, can you ceaselessly headbang?

PUZZLERIA! SLICES: OVER e5 + pi3 SERVED

Welcome to our February 12th edition of Joseph Young’s Puzzleria!

Like Cupid with his bow and Eros, we shall be shooting a quiverful of high quality quizzicals your way this week. The sharpest arrow in our quiver is an amazing challenge created by patjberry, a creative and prolific puzzle maker and Puzzlerian! His puzzle, which appears directly beneath our main MENU heading, is titled “Classic Rock Slice: Valentine ear candy.” Thank you, Patrick, for once more hitting the bulls eye of beautiful, bountiful bafflement… and for being generous in sharing the upshot with us.

Other darts we hope will hit the target this week are a brand-name morsel; a gated estate appetizer; a household wordplay dessert; and seven (count ‘em, seven!) “piggyback” puzzles ripping off Will Shortz’s fine “first-second-third” Sunday puzzle.

So, pull a pencil and paper (and a box of chocolatesfrom your quiver, draw back your bow, and have a fun and fine ol “Valentime” taking aim at our puzzles.

Morsel Menu

Corporate Morsel:
Hearts and Mayflowers

Name an American corporation and brand founded more than a century ago. Spell it backward and divide it into two equal parts.

The first part is a slang term associated with a particular St. Valentine’s Day. The second part is a food often associated with Thanksgiving Day.

What are this brand, slang term and food?

Appetizer Menu

Gated Estate Appetizer:
Papa Razzi’s delivers

Now that I live in a mansion on a gated estate, I own three dogs – a Chihuahua, Pekingese and Toy Fox Terrier. When I lived in a one-room flat, I owned a Great Dane, Irish Wolfhound and Leonberger. I guess that means I possess a haphazard pet-size sense. But I do have a canny (or should that be “uncanny”)  housekeeping sense. Whenever I notice my dogs beginning to shed, I leash them up, don my Lugano Diamonds Sunshades, and venture outdoors. I try to shed the paparazzi if I sense their presence, but if they do manage to snap an “unselfie” of me, I zap a phased hertz pulsation in the vicinity of their cameras’ digital image sensors with my taser gun.
 
Embedded in the paragraph above are three strings if 16 consecutive letters. Each string contains the same sixteen letters. Thus you can rearrange the letters in any one of those strings to form a product (singular form) that certain businesses will be delivering plenty of this weekend.

What is this product? Fill in the blanks:
__ __ __ __ __ - __ __ __ __ __ __
__ __ __ __ __


MENU

Classic Rock Slice:
Valentine ear candy

Take a compound word that begins with a “D” that you might see on one of those little Valentine candies with messages on them. It was the first word in a mid-1970’s debut album title by a mixed-gender rock group.

Another group released a mid-1970’s self-titled debut album with a compound word as its final word. The singular form of that word also might appear on one of those little Valentine candies. The name of this group begins with the name of its lead singer (like Dion and the Belmonts, for example).

The first part of that second compound word is the name of the first group. The second part of the singular form of the compound word is a word spoken by many people who partook in a 1970’s-era fad, including the solo performer of a hit novelty song recorded in 1975.

Four letters in the final word of the second group’s name can be rearranged to spell the title of a mid-1970’s rock ballad by a third group known for its hard rock songs as well as for its members’ unusual appearance. The group’s name is one you would definitely see on one of those little Valentine candies. The lead singer of the ballad, whose stage surname rhymes with the name of the group, doesn’t seem to be playing his instrument during the song.

Remove the last letter from the ballad’s title and place the remaining letters to the right of the subject of a 1974 novelty song about another 1970’s-era fad. A decade later, this third rock group would do something akin to this fad – something that altered their appearance but not as radically as partaking in the actual fad would have.

Switch the first letter of the ballad’s truncated title with the first four letters of the 1974 novelty song’s subject word to form the two-word title of a late-1970’s hit song by a popular solo artist. The title is a famous location from literature, although the characters usually found there are never referenced in the song.

The title of this artist’s debut solo album, which was released in 1971, suggests what one might say to a confectioner who sold the aforementioned Valentine candies bearing messages such as, say, “I loathe you” or “You make me sick” instead of sweet messages such as “Be mine” or “Miss you.”
 
Name all these 1970’s rock artists and all their song or album titles.

Hint: The last six letters of the 1974 novelty song’s subject are the same as the last six letters of the word spoken in the 1975 novelty song.

Hint: In the 1974 novelty song the name of a woman is mentioned several times. The first three letters of that name are the last three letters of the rock ballad’s title.  

Ripping Off Herman And Shortz Slices:
Prime-ordinal soup

This week’s NPR Sunday puzzle from Will Shortz was submitted by Jon Herman. It reads:
If PAJAMA represents first and REBUKE represents second, what nine-letter word can represent third?
(You can find the answer here.)

I have created seven “piggyback” puzzles that “rip-off” (or “riff-off”) this NPR challenge: 

# ONE:
If FECUND represents first and SURD represents second, what six-letter word can represent third?

The other six puzzles:

# TWO
Beastie altar boys
If PRIEST represents first and BEAST represents second, what six-letter word must represent third?

# THREE
“I’ll take Paul Lynde to block!”
A baby girl is born on December 31st, born shy by just seconds of not qualifying as an income tax deduction. Her parents name her Ginger

As an adult, her gig as a football photojournalist requires Ginger to master a basic principle of photographic composition – one in which photographers break down any image into horizontal and vertical thirds. So, whenever Ginger focused on the subjects of her photos, she saw them not as helmeted “gladiators” but as X’s and O’s on a diagram with an imaginary tic-tac-toe grid superimposed. Her goal was to frame the focus of her composition into the “center square,” as if it were Paul Lynde!

Explain how words of the same color in the paragraphs above are related. Can you identify another two-word piece of text that could be printed in red letters? 
(Hint: the other two-word piece is adjacent to already existing red text.)


# FOUR

Third time’s a charm, quatrieme fois est viral
If JALOPY represents first, REBUKE represents second, and CIRCUS represents third, what six-letter word can represent fourth?

There are a few handfuls of possible correct answers to that question, but we are seeking only words that begin with an “N.” There are two possibilities. One is an adjective, the other is an adverb.

# FIVE
Duelin’ with the devil
Place the three phrases below in the correct order – first, second and third:
1. Although he is not human, the devil errs, and idler revs are his workshop.
2. Luigi departed the all-you-can-eat-and-drink Italian buffet, wove as he drove, got stopped by a cop, took a breathalyzer test, and blew only zero because of his new orzo belly.
3. If you get locked in a blog duel with competing puzzle blogs, the worst thing you can do is go be dull, for the next sound you may hear is that of an old bugle playing “Taps.”
Hint: “Babel” and “Nimrod” are random bible words.
Hint: There is a pair of compatible and matching anagramatic clues in each of the three sentences and in the above hint.

# SIX
Rue the date
If February is first but not ninth, rank the following words as first, second and third:
Bionic, empty, eczema
Hint: Are you there? Ranking the three words is easier if you are there, if you are present, if you are hanging around. And, if you close your anemic eye.

# SEVEN
Oh say, can you ceaselessly headbang?
“A rock anthem can inflame youths.”
Rank the colored words in the statement above – first, second and third.

Dessert Menu

Household Wordplay Dessert:
An eponymy appliance

Name an appliance found in many households. Take a verb for an undesirable thing the appliance might do during its operation. Divide the verb in two and place the first half at the beginning of the appliance and the second half at the end of the appliance.

The first five letters of this result, reading from left to right, spell a unit of measurement associated with the operation of the appliance. The last five letters reading from left to right spell an internal part of the appliance.

Replace one letter with a different letter in the surname of the pioneering eponymous inventor (after whom the unit of measurement is named) to form a word that might be used to advertise a particular capability of the appliance.
Hint: If you assign each letter of the alphabetic a numerical value from 1 to 26 (A = 1, B = 2, C = 3,… Z = 26), the sum of the letter and its replacement is 27.

What is this appliance? 
What is the unit of measurement associated with the appliance?
What is the internal part of the appliance? 
What is the “undesirable thing the appliance might do? 
What is the word possibly used to advertise the appliance?
Who is the pioneering eponymous inventor?  

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 Tuesdays 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.

48 comments:

  1. Valentine's Day is a real bummer for the loneliest guy in town.

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  2. Happy upcoming Valentine's Day everyone! Enjoy the puzzles(especially mine)!

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  3. Just got home from being out; had NO idea this was "Darwin Day." Very sorry to read your comment, Paul...i.e. am so sorry that you are the 'loneliest guy in town." Sad to say, I join you on that front, however, from the female perspective. : o ( Sigh.....

    Haven't even glanced at the new puzzles yet.

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  4. I had a feeling you were female, VT, from a few posts back, but I wasn't sure I should say anything.

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  5. Ah, pjb, I didn't realize that at this point, everyone didn't already know I was a girl! : o )

    Just managed to solve the Appetizer. Am stuck thus far on the Morsel; still haven't read anything else.

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    Replies
    1. Well, VT, I just wasn't sure about the name Teddy, and then you made one of those side faces. I don't think guys do them that much. Good luck with my puzzle!

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    2. I've never known how to put on regular Emojis. [So I just use the 'side faces.) Maybe guys don't use those much either, though?

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    3. I meant guys probably don't use regular Emojis.

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    4. I hope you noticed I tried to do a wink there.

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    5. This comment has been removed by the author.

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    6. I think looking at the emojis I accidentally deleted my last post. Sorry.💟

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    7. Didn't show up. This website should allow emojis.💜

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    8. Those were supposed to be hearts.

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    9. Yes, pjb, I did notice the wink! And the heart emojis would have been cute. Thanks!

      Delete
  6. If it's any consolation, guys, I too am alone, sitting watching Charlie Brown not getting any valentines. My mother just went to a banquet a few hours ago. I don't feel lonely, though.

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  7. VT, are you still there? I'd love to find out if you've gotten to my puzzle yet! I realize pop and rock music aren't really your thing, but I go with the music I like. I grew up in the 70s, don't know about you. Great time to be alive, I think. Granted, we had to wait a few years for cable TV, but it was worth it. I'd do it all over again if I could.

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    Replies
    1. I'm here, pjb.....just turned on the computer for the afternoon, and just now saw your post. No, I haven't yet gotten to your puzzle. It was so long, that it seemed intimidating, and I didn't even begin to get a start on it. Yes, and then when I saw all the 'rock music' stuff, I figured I'd be in for endless Googling, to even attempt to make any progress.

      I have stuff to do outside and in the house this afternoon and evening, so I may well not even have time today to try. Perhaps tomorrow?

      Delete
    2. Actually, pjb, I've made some progress!!!! I believe, with extensive Googling and some luck at long last, I figured out the compound "D" word, the song and group that go with it; next stumbled upon the person PLUS group #1 name, whose last word works with the additional comments you make about it; I BELIEVE I have the 'fad word' and the song that goes with it (not absolutely sure).

      So at the moment, I am stuck on trying to find the hard rock group and its four-letter song title. No luck on that front as yet.

      Delete
    3. CORRECTION: typo above.....should have read ""upon the person PLUS group #2 name..."

      Delete
  8. BTW, Lego, I'll need a few hints for that last appliance puzzle.

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    Replies
    1. pjb,
      Fess, John, Ted, Hoagy. Think surnames.

      LegoMcMurphyNeedsToSeeADentistAfterBreakingHisCrown

      Delete
  9. OKIE DOKIE, Patrick!! I am thrilled to say, that eschewing all the chores I have to still do, I have SOLVED your puzzle all the way through. It was a beast! Fortunately, I seem to be pretty good at internet research, because other than ONE of the groups and one soloist, I had never heard of ANY of these folks. (Of course, what else did you expect to hear from my non-rock-loving/only classical-musical loving typing fingers?)

    Anyway, thanks for the challenge! I am pleased to have completed it! I especially liked the famous spot from literature reference, the relevant TV show being a favorite of mine.

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  10. Oh, yes, in case you might have needed it, I was going to suggest there is a TV show currently in production based on the characters in the literary location, and for whatever reason one of those characters is portrayed by a woman. Just something you other solvers may want to keep in mind.

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  11. Pretty tricky clue for that appliance puzzle. Sure, I know Fess and Hoagy by their surnames, but still what does that have to do with the answer? This week's Sunday Puzzle is way easier.

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    Replies
    1. Nicholson/Black and Ireland/St. John.

      LegoHopingSolvingThisPuzzleIsNoUphillClimb

      Delete
  12. I will say something about one of the puzzles this week(not mine)sounds delicious. I could go for one right now.

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  13. Lego, I do get something from your last hint, but I still don't get the connection to an appliance. Got anything else while it's still early Tuesday?

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    Replies
    1. pjb,
      'Tis an appliance that Joni Mitchell and Al Stewart sang about this appliance. I once posted a quatrain about it on Puzzleria!
      The appliance makes an appearance in one of the answers to this week's P! puzzles!

      LegoHartJohnny

      Delete
  14. 11th hour clues for my 1st, 2nd, 3rd
    Ripping Off Herman And Shortz Slices:
    Prime-ordinal soup puzzles

    # ONE:
    Misspell FECUND as FECOND and SURD as SIRD.
    # TWO
    Rambler…
    # THREE
    baseball
    # FOUR
    Calendar
    # FIVE
    Competition
    # SIX
    Politics
    # SEVEN
    Pronouns

    LegoSeventhComethEleventh

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  15. I didn't say "I" was "the loneliest guy in town."
    Besides, my Valentine's Day wasn't awfully lonely; Papa John invited me over to his hut to play dominos.
    In other words, I got the morsel and the appetizer this week, and that's all.

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  16. I got the appetizer and part of the prime-ordinal soup puzzle (1, 2, and 7). But I was one of 32 people who sent in the correct answer to Will's last puzzle, and did not get the call. Life goes on! :) --Margaret G.

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  17. Once again, I have solutions to only TWO of the puzzles (not doing so well of late. And a guess on the Morsel T'giving food. Sigh). Here they are:

    MORSEL: YAM?

    APPETIZER: Strings: HAPHAZARD PET SIZE; SHED THE PAPARAZZI; I ZAP A PHASED HERTZ; Phrase: HEART-SHAPED PIZZA
    ***********************************************************************************************
    CLASSIC ROCK SLICE:

    Compound Word/Song: DREAMBOAT (Annie) by GROUP #1: HEART

    GROUP #2: TOM PETTY AND THE HEARTBREAKERS

    70s Fad: BREAKER (i.e. CB radio) and its associated 1975 Novelty song: CONVOY by C.W. McCall (Bill Fries)

    3rd group: KISS (Lead Singer: Peter Criss) HIS SONG: BETH

    1974 Novelty song: THE STREAK (by Ray Stevens)

    [KISS appeared in public without make-up in 1983.]

    STREAKER & BET --> late 70s song "BAKER STREET" Solo Artist: GERRY RAFFERTY

    1971 Debut Solo Album: CAN I HAVE MY MONEY BACK?

    HINTS: Same last six letters: REAKER; Woman's name in The Streak: ETHEL

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  18. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  19. Guesses for the DESSERT's undesirable verb included: LEAK, DRIP, OVERFLOW, BURN. But I got nowhere with it.

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  20. Way to go, VT! I will admit, once everything else was added to my puzzle, it got to be a bit wordy. My original puzzle was just STREAKER/BET-H/BAKER STREET. Lego helped me out with the Valentine element.

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    Replies
    1. Thank you, PJB! [She said, batting her eyelashes demurely.....]

      Delete
  21. 1. MAYTAG(GAT used in the St. Valentine's Day Massacre, YAM eaten at Thanksgiving)
    2. HEART-SHAPED PIZZA(yum!)
    3. HEART(Dreamboat Annie); (Tom Petty and the)HEARTBREAKERS; BREAKER used in Convoy by C.W.McCall; STREAKER used in The Streak by Ray Stevens, also including the name ETHEL; BETH by Kiss sung by then-drummer Peter Criss, who didn't play drums on the song; STREAKER BETH do the necessary operations to get BAKER STREET by the late Gerry Rafferty, whose first solo album was actually called "Can I Have My Money Back?" Kiss would appear on MTV years later for the first time ever without their makeup. Though it wasn't exactly streaking, it was revealing to the point those who witnessed it were quite shocked as a result.
    #ONE FECUND, SURD, THIRST
    #THREE GEHRIG, GEHRINGER, HORNSBY, MATHEWS, ROBINSON, BAKER
    #FIVE GOLD and BLUE, SILVER and RED, BRONZE and YELLOW
    5. RADIO? (Jack and Jill by Raydio)

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  22. Lego, I hope you noticed I took the liberty of describing my puzzle's answer so you wouldn't have to ask me to do it later.

    ReplyDelete
  23. RADIO, FADE, FARAD, DIODE, CAR AD?(FM RAD?) Michael Faraday

    ReplyDelete
  24. This week’s official answers for the record, Part 1:
    (Note: I am holding back a part of one of my answers this week, because of a comment I posted on Blaine’s blog about 10 minutes ago.)

    Morsel Menu

    Corporate Morsel:
    Hearts and Mayflowers
    Name an American corporation and brand founded more than a century ago. Spell it backward and divide it into two equal parts.
    The first part is a slang term associated with a particular St. Valentine’s Day. The second part is a food often associated with Thanksgiving Day.
    What are this brand, slang term and food?

    Answer:
    Maytag; gat; yam

    Appetizer Menu

    Gated Estate Appetizer:
    Papa Razzi’s delivers
    Now that I live in a mansion on a gated estate, I own three dogs – a Chihuahua, Pekingese and Toy Fox Terrier. When I lived in a one-room flat, I owned a Great Dane, Irish Wolfhound and Leonberger. I guess that means I possess a haphazard pet-size sense. But I do have a canny (or should that be “uncanny”) housekeeping sense. Whenever I notice my dogs beginning to shed, I leash them up, don my Lugano Diamonds Sunshades, and venture outdoors. I try to shed the paparazzi if I sense their presence, but if they do manage to snap an “unselfie” of me, I zap a phased hertz pulsation in the vicinity of their cameras’ digital image sensors with my taser gun.
    Embedded in the paragraph above are three strings if 16 consecutive letters. Each string contains the same sixteen letters. Thus you can rearrange the letters in any one of those strings to form a product (singular form) that certain businesses will be delivering plenty of this weekend.
    What is this product? Fill in the blanks:
    __ __ __ __ __ - __ __ __ __ __ __
    __ __ __ __ __

    Answer:
    Heart-shaped pizza
    The three 16-letter strings of letters (shown in bold, above) are:
    haphazard pet-size
    shed the paparazzi
    I zap a phased hertz

    Lego…

    ReplyDelete
  25. This week’s official answers for the record, Part 2:

    MENU

    Classic Rock Slice:
    Valentine ear candy

    Take a compound word that begins with a “D” that you might see on one of those little Valentine candies with messages on them. It was the first word in a mid-1970’s debut album title by a mixed-gender rock group.

    Another group released a mid-1970’s self-titled debut album with a compound word as its final word. The singular form of that word also might appear on one of those little Valentine candies. The name of this group begins with the name of its lead singer (like Dion and the Belmonts, for example).

    The first part of that second compound word is the name of the first group. The second part of the singular form of the compound word is a word spoken by many people who partook in a 1970’s-era fad, including the solo performer of a hit novelty song recorded in 1975.

    Four letters in the final word of the second group’s name can be rearranged to spell the title of a mid-1970’s rock ballad by a third group known for its hard rock songs as well as for its members’ unusual appearance. The group’s name is one you would definitely see on one of those little Valentine candies. The lead singer of the ballad, whose stage surname rhymes with the name of the group, doesn’t seem to be playing his instrument during the song.

    Remove the last letter from the ballad’s title and place the remaining letters to the right of the subject of a 1974 novelty song about another 1970’s-era fad. A decade later, this third rock group would do something akin to this fad – something that altered their appearance but not as radically as partaking in the actual fad would have.

    Switch the first letter of the ballad’s truncated title with the first four letters of the 1974 novelty song’s subject word to form the two-word title of a late-1970’s hit song by a popular solo artist. The title is a famous location from literature, although the characters usually found there are never referenced in the song.

    The title of this artist’s debut solo album, which was released in 1971, suggests what one might say to a confectioner who sold the aforementioned Valentine candies bearing messages such as, say, “I loathe you” or “You make me sick” instead of sweet messages such as “Be mine” or “Miss you.”

    Name all these 1970’s rock artists and all their song or album titles.

    Answers:
    Dreamboat Annie,” by Heart
    “Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers”
    Convoy,” by C.W. McCall features the word “Breaker,” which is CB (Citizens’ Band) radio lingo.
    Heartbreakers – ar/eakers = He + tb >> “Beth,” by Kiss, a rock ballad sung by Kiss drummer Peter Criss
    Beth – h + Bet; The subject of the 1974 novelty song is a “Streaker” (“The Streak,” by Ray Stevens)
    Kiss “unmasked” on MTV in 1983; that is, they removed their stage makeup (perhaps their mascara had been “streaking”)
    Such “unmasking” is somewhat akin to “undressing,” as streakers did.
    Streaker Bet >> B + aker Stre + et = “Baker Street,’ by Gerry Rafferty. Arthur Conan Doyle’s character Sherlock Holmes lived at 221B Baker Street in London.
    Rafferty’s debut solo album was titled, “Can I Have My Money Back?”
    Hints (refer to puzzle in blog): Streaker – St = reaker = “Breaker” – B
    “Beth” – B = eth; “Ethel” is admonished thrice in “The Streak.”

    Lego…

    ReplyDelete
  26. This week’s official answers for the record, Part 3:
    (Note: I am holding back a part of one of my answers this week, because of a comment I posted on Blaine’s blog about 25 minutes ago.)

    Ripping Off Herman And Shortz Slices:
    Prime-ordinal soup
    This week’s NPR Sunday puzzle from Will Shortz was submitted by Jon Herman. It reads:
    If PAJAMA represents first and REBUKE represents second, what nine-letter word can represent third?
    I have created seven “piggyback” puzzles that “rip-off” (or “riff-off”) this NPR challenge:

    # ONE:
    If FECUND represents first and SURD represents second, what six-letter word can represent third?

    Answer: THIRST
    FECUND = First + sEC(O)ND
    SURD = Second + th(I)RD
    THIRST = THird + fIRST

    # TWO
    Beastie altar boys
    If PRIEST represents first and BEAST represents second, what six-letter word must represent third?

    Answer: PAJAMA

    # THREE
    “I’ll take Paul Lynde to block!”
    A baby girl is born on December 31st, born shy by just seconds of not qualifying as an income tax deduction. Her parents name her Ginger.
    As an adult, her gig as a football photojournalist requires Ginger to master a basic principle of photographic composition – one in which photographers break down any image into horizontal and vertical thirds. So, whenever Ginger focused on the subjects of her photos, she saw them not as helmeted “gladiators” but as X’s and O’s on a diagram with an imaginary tic-tac-toe grid superimposed. Her goal was to frame the focus of her composition into the “center square,” as if it were Paul Lynde!
    Explain how words of the same color in the paragraphs above are related. Can you identify another two-word piece of text that could be printed in red letters?
    (Hint: the other two-word piece is adjacent to already existing red text.)

    Answer:
    Lou Gehrig (an anagram of “her gig” was a “1st”baseman.
    Rogers Hornsby (“born shy”) and Charlie Gehringer (“her Ginger”) were second basemen.
    Brooks Robinson (“is born on”) and Eddie Mathews (“saw them”) were third basemen. So was Ron Santo (“not as”).


    # FOUR
    Third time’s a charm, quatrieme fois est viral
    If JALOPY represents first, REBUKE represents second, and CIRCUS represents third, what six-letter word can represent fourth?
    There are a few handfuls of possible correct answers to that question, but we are seeking only words that begin with an “N.” There are two possibilities. One is an adjective, the other is an adverb.

    Answer: NUBILE, NOSILY
    JAlopy = JAnuary
    rEBuke = fEBruary
    ciRCus = maRCh
    nubILe + NosILy = aprIL
    Hint: Third time’s a charm, quatrieme fois est viral:
    Third time’s (month’s) a charm (which anagrams to March), (fourth time {month} is viral (which anagrams to Avril, which translates to April)

    Lego...

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    Replies
    1. Now that the deadline for submitting answers for the NPR puzzle has passed, the complete answer to the ROHASS #3, above, ought to read:

      Brooks Robinson (“is born on”), Frank "home Run" Baker ("break") and Eddie Mathews (“saw them”) were third basemen. So was Ron Santo (“not as”).

      Lego"BloopSingle"Lambda

      Delete
  27. This week's official answers for the record, Part 4:

    ROHASS, continued:

    # FIVE
    Duelin’ with the devil
    Place the three phrases below in the correct order – first, second and third:
    1. Although he is not human, the devil errs, and idler revs are his workshop.
    2. Luigi departed the all-you-can-eat-and-drink Italian buffet, wove as he drove, got stopped by a cop, took a breathalyzer test, and blew only zero because of his new orzo belly.
    3. If you get locked in a blog duel with competing puzzle blogs, the worst thing you can do is go be dull, for the next sound you may hear is that of an old bugle playing “Taps.”
    Hint: “Babel” and “Nimrod” are random bible words.
    Hint: There is a pair of matching anagramatic clues in each of the three sentences and in the above hint.

    Answer: The first phrase should be placed second; the second phrase should be placed third; the third phrase should be placed first.
    Why?
    The pair of compatible and matching anagramatic clues in the first hint are “Babel” and “Nimrod,” the 11 letters of which can be rearranged to form the words “medal” and “ribbon.”
    The 8 letters of either of the matching anagramatic clues in the third phrase – “blog duel” and “old bugle” – can be rearranged to form the words “gold” (medal) and “blue” (ribbon).
    The 9 letters of either of the matching anagramatic clues in the first phrase – “devil errs” and “idler revs” – can be rearranged to form the words “silver” (medal) and “red” (ribbon).
    The 12 letters of either of the matching anagramatic clues in the second phrase – “blew only zero” and “new orzo belly” – can be rearranged to form the words “bronze” (medal) and “yellow” (ribbon).

    # SIX
    Rue the date
    If February is first but not ninth, rank the following words as first, second and third:
    Bionic, empty, eczema
    Hint: Are you there? Ranking the three words is easier if you are there, if you are present, if you are hanging around. And, if you close your anemic eye.

    Answer:
    First: empty
    Second: eczema
    Third: bionic
    Why?
    In the February 9th GOP New Hampshire Primary, the order of finish was Donald Trump, first; John Kasich, second; and Ted Cruz, third. But because “February is first but not ninth,” we instead must look at the February 1st GOP Iowa Caucuses results: Donald Trump, first; Ted Cruz, second; and Marco Rubio, third.
    TRUMP – RU = TMP = MPY >> eMPTy
    CRUZ – RU = CZ >> eCZema
    RUBIO – RU = BIO >> BIOnic
    Hint: Ranking the three words is easier if you are (UR or RU) there, present, hanging around in “eRUmpty,” “ecRUzema” and “RUbionic”… and, if you close (make disappear) your “anemic eye.” The superfluous letters in “eTRUMPy,” “eCRUZema” and “RUBIOnic” – ey, eema, nic – can be rearranged to form “anemic eye.”


    # SEVEN
    Oh say, can you ceaselessly headbang?
    “A rock anthem can inflame youths.”
    Rank the colored words in the statement above – first, second and third.

    Answer:
    First: inflame
    Second: youths
    Third: anthem
    InflaME contains two first person singular pronouns
    YOUth contains one second person singular/plural pronoun
    anTHEM contains one third person singular pronoun

    Lego…

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  28. This week’s official answers for the record, Part 5:
    (Note: I am holding back a part of one of my answers this week, because of a comment I posted on Blaine’s blog about 2 hours ago.)


    Dessert Menu

    Household Wordplay Dessert:
    An eponymy appliance
    Name an appliance found in many households. Take a verb for an undesirable thing the appliance might do during its operation. Divide the verb in two and place the first half at the beginning of the appliance and the second half at the end of the appliance.
    The first five letters of this result, reading from left to right, spell a unit of measurement associated with the operation of the appliance. The last five letters reading from left to right spell an internal part of the appliance.
    Replace one letter with a different letter in the surname of the pioneering eponymous inventor (after whom the unit of measurement is named) to form a word that might be used to advertise a particular capability of the appliance.
    Hint: If you assign each letter of the alphabetic a numerical value from 1 to 26 (A = 1, B = 2, C = 3,… Z = 26), the sum of the letter and its replacement is 27.
    What is this appliance? radio
    What is the unit of measurement associated with the appliance? farad
    What is the internal part of the appliance? diode
    What is the “undesirable thing the appliance might do?” fade
    What is the word possibly used to advertise the appliance? faraway
    Who is the pioneering eponymous inventor? Michael Faraday

    Answers: See bold print above.

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