“Riffs and Summits” BowldlERISing Shakespeare; Curtain comes down on a corp; Grassland, Gridiron Head-Butters; Some Numbers So Summable; “‘Twas a Byzantine Buzz!”

  PUZZLERIA! SLICES: OVER 5πe² SERVED

Schpuzzle of the Week:

BowldlERISing Shakespeare

A character in a Shakespearean play advises a relative, using just seven words, not to play either of two opposite roles – either of which may disturb, agitate or otherwise create discord in the harmony among family members or friends. 

Move the first letter in the first role to the beginning of the second role to spell something that agitates liquids.

Remove the next two letters of the first role (the one that you just “beheaded”) leaving someone who, using an implement, also agitates liquids.

What is this seven-letter Shakespearean text?

What are the two agitators of liquids?

Appetizer Menu

Triple-Threat Appetizer:

“Riffs & Summits” 

The following three Appetizers were composed and contributed by a Puzzleria!n Par Excellence. 

Remote, Remoter, Remotest

[The following is a riff of the August 10, 2025, NPR Challenge.]

1. Take a word meaning remove and another word meaning remove by force. Remove from that string of letters one instance of a vowel that appears twice. 

Rearrange the resulting seven letters to make
a word turned acronym that is remotely related to something many hospitals have. 

What are the two words and the word/acronym? 

Who You Gonna Call?

[The following is a riff of the August 17, 2025, NPR Challenge.]

2. Take the generic name of a well known entity, in two words, 15 letters total, that is often thought of as a misnomer and with which almost everyone comes into contact, perhaps more often than anyone would like. 

Change one letter in the second word to the letter 3 spaces later in the alphabet by adding one straight line. Rearrange the resulting 15 letters to make four words – one which might prompt an encounter with the entity and three associated with reactions which might result from an encounter with the entity. 

What are the entity and the four words? 

Who’s Minding the Store?

3. Assemble the surnames of two heads of state currently in office and in the news side-
by-side with no space. 

Within that string of letters is the surname of another head of state currently in the news. The three are from different countries but all recently assembled in an office in a fourth country. Who are they? 

MENU

Hellenistic Hors d’Oeuvre:

“‘Twas a Byzantine Buzz!”

Take and spell out two letters of the Greek alphabet. Anagram each. (For example, you might write: “delta beta” which might become “dealt beat.”) If you have the right Greek letters and anagram them properly, you will spell something you may do repeatedly vis-à-vis a flute of French vin, and a sound you may make repeatedly in its wake.

What are these two Greek letters and their anagrams?

“Here’s Where The Story Ends” Slice:

Curtain comes down on a corp

Name a U.S.-based corporation. 

Replace two consecutive letters with a six-letter synonym of those letters. 

Insert two periods, two spaces and capitalize a lowercase letter. The result is how a popular movie ended. 

What are this corporation, synonym and movie ending?

Riffing Off Shortz And Young Entrees:

Grassland & Gridiron Head-Butters

Will Shortz’s September 7th NPR Weekend Edition Sunday puzzle, created by Joseph Young of St. Cloud, Minnesota, reads:

Think of a popular commercial name that ends with the names of two male animals one after the other. If you have the right commercial name, its first six letters can be rearranged to spell the name of an N.F.L. team. What is it?

Puzzleria!s Riffing Off Shortz And Young Entrees read:

ENTREE #1

When he encountered a quizzical “Baptist” at the Pearly Gates that led to the hellbound-or-heaven-headed-elevator, Saint Peter the Keykeeper intoned, “_ _ _,   _ _   _ _,  _ _ _ _!”

Rearrange those eleven letters to spell the name of a puzzle-maker.

What did the Keykeeper intone?

Hint: The final six missing letters, sans space, spell a pharmaceutical company founded in 1886.

(Note: Entree #2 was created by our Terrific Riffsmith Plantsmith.)

ENTREE #2

Think of a commercial brand name that starts and ends with a male animal. 

Remove the animal names and mix remaining letters to get a kind of flower. 

The flower name contains a female animal name. 

What is the brand name?

What is the flower?

(Note: Entrees #3 through #8 were created by our masterful riffmeister Nodd.)

ENTREE #3

Think of a sports equipment brand name that ends with the name of a famous singer. 

The first six letters of the brand name can be
rearranged to spell the name of an N.F.L. team. 

Name the brand, the singer, and the team.

ENTREE #4

Write down the brand names of two drinks, the first of which consists of one word and the second of which consists of two. (The second drink was recently discontinued.) 

The first six letters of the resulting three-word string can be rearranged to spell the name of an N.F.L. team. 

The remaining letters can be rearranged to spell the name of another N.F.L. team and the second word in the two-word brand name of another recently discontinued drink. 

Name the three drinks and the two teams.

ENTREE #5

Name a three-part brand name of food products you might buy at the grocery store. 

Switch the sixth and seventh letters to get the name of an N.F.L. team and a word for something needed to play in the N.F.L., especially if you are a quarterback being rushed by 300+ pound defensive linemen. 

Name the food brand, the team, and what an N.F.L. player needs.

ENTREE #6

Name a sportswear brand and an athletic shoe brand. 

Delete the last letter of the shoe brand. The remaining letters can be rearranged to spell the name of an N.F.L. team and a European clothing brand. 

What are the brand names and the team?

ENTREE #7

Think of a two-part cleaning products brand. 

Its letters can be rearranged to spell the name
of an N.F.L. team and the first part of a familiar brand name in the cyber world. 

What are the cleaning brand, the team, and the cyber brand? 

ENTREE #8

Name a European toy and game brand. 

The first half of the name, in order, is an N.F.L. team name. 

The second half, in order, is the first word in a familiar restaurant chain brand name. The second word in the restaurant name is the singular form of the name of two professional sports teams not in the N.F.L. 

What are the two brand names and the three teams?

(Note: Entrees #9 through #10 are terrific riffs composed and contributed by Ecoarchitect, author of  “Econfusions” on Puzzleria!

ENTREE #9

Think of a name for a male animal. 

Change one letter, and the result, in order, is the name of another male animal followed by the name of a third animal that applies both to males and females. 

What are the three words?

ENTREE #10

Think of a name for a male animal. 

Change one letter and the result is the name of a vegetable. 

What are the two words?

ENTREE #11

Replace the fourth letter of a competitor of Instagram with a “d”. 

The result is a superlative adjective that describes the Moody Blues vis-à-vis other rock bands.

What is this Instagram competitor? 

What is the superlative adjective?

ENTREE #12

Remove three consecutive letters in the alphabet from an Instagram competitor.

The result is the first word in the four-word name of a nearly 40-year-old rock band.

What are this Instagram competitor and rock band?

Dessert Menu

Nearly Midnight Or Noon Dessert:

Some Numbers So Summable

Name a word for some marine creatures. 

Its first two syllables suggest a number, as does is third syllable. The sum of those numbers is greater than 11 but less than 12. 

What are these creatures?

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.