NYT Crossword 11/18/17 (Sat.)

Cruciverbalist: Sam Trabucco
Editor: Will Smith

Solving time: 55:15

Puzzle uniqueness: N/A

Words I hadn't known until now: 0

Trivia I didn't know:

ARMBAR - "Restraint technique in mixed martial arts"
GOTTACATCHEMALL - "Pokémon slogan"
DEWLAP - "Something found on a hound"
LLOYD - "Price of R&B"
BILES - "Gymnastics superstar at the 2016 Olympics"

Junk Answers:

PARTI - "Series opener"
PAO - "Kung ___ chicken"
ESC - "Key used to make an exit"

Clever clues: 

TUBA - "Big blow for a musician?"
AVOCADOPIT - "The hardest part when making guacamole?"

Obscure (i.e., really reaching) words: 0

NYT Crossword 11/17/17 (Fri.)

Cruciverbalist: Zhouqin Burnikel
Editor: Will Shortz

Solving time: DNF

Puzzle uniqueness: 0

Words I hadn't known until now: 

DUVET - "Replacement for a top sheet and blanket"

Trivia I didn't know:

CITIBIKES - "Wheel for rent in the Big Apple"
SKOR - "Hershey bar brand"
IMAN - "Model with the Global Chic fashion line"
TRIBECA - "New York Law School's neighborhood"
TOKYODOME - "Home stadium of Japan's Yomiuri Giants"
TINO - "Former Yankee Martinez"
LOWELL - "Pulitzer-winning poet of 1947 and 1974" (Never heard of him)

Junk Answers:

SKOR - (See above)
PRU - "Aetna rival, informally"
LAT - "Many legal terms are in it: Abbr."
ISOK - "Emerges unscathed"

Clever clues:

SHOED - "Had a stable job?"
FELON - "Cooler person?"
CADS - "Bad catches?" (Too clever by half, IMO)

Obscure (i.e., really reaching) words: 0

NYT Crossword 11/16/17 (Thu.)

Cruciverbalist: Alex Eylar
Editor: Will Shortz

Solving time: 17:42

Puzzle uniqueness:

I'll let the Rex Parker site explain it: "Now "See" this! — clues with answers describe the clues themselves..." Example: AWILDGOOSECHASE clue is "See 66-Across" where there is no 66-Across in the puzzle)

Words I hadn't known until now: 

RECURSION - "See 25-Across" (which is where this answer resides,...whatever...)

Trivia I didn't know: 

ROWE - "Host Mike of 'Dirty Jobs' and 'Somebody's Gotta Do It'" (Never watched either show)
MARIO - "Celeb chef Batali"

Junk answers:

EMO - "Kind of look with bangs and eye shadow"
SSN - "Application figure"
PSST - "Alternative to an elbow, maybe"

Clever clues: 

SPACE - "What ' ' contains"
ICON - "Click it"
ABUT - "Be against"
THE - "Not just any old"
SET - "22+ pages of the Oxford English Dictionary"
BUGLE - "Wake-up call?"

Obscure (i.e., really reaching) words: 

TAUTOLOGY - "See 58-Across" (Where the clue is "See 17-Across," the spot the answer is)
RECURSION - (See above)

NYT Crossword 11/15/17 (Wed.)

Cruciverbalist: Steven E. Atwood
Editor: Will Shortz

Solving time: 10:33

Puzzle uniqueness:

Answer BRITISHISMS is clue to five phrases which have common British words in them. Example: FLATRATE ("Flat" being an apartment one lives in).

Words I hadn't known until now: 

COSEC - "Sine reciprocal, briefly" (Not a math whiz)

Trivia I didn't know:

KAHLO - "Frida who was portrayed in film by Salma Hayek"

Junk Answers:

SSNS - "Taxpayers' IDs"
ACTII - "Follower of the first intermission"
NNW - "90° from ENE"
ILE - "Spot in la mer"
PSST - "Furtive 'Hey, you!'"
ISM - "Suffix with sex"

Clever clues:

COPS - "Beat people?" (Though this is somewhat inappropriate if taken the wrong way)

Obscure (i.e., really reaching) words: 

COSEC - (See above)
KAHLO - (See above)

NYTCrossword 11/14/17 (Tue.)

Cruciverbalist: Jerry Miccous and Jeff Chen
Edited by: Will Shortz

Solving time: 14:13

Puzzle uniqueness: 

Answers TRIPLE and DOUBLE (Basketball term) across center of the puzzle are clues to six answers that have three double-letter words and phrases.

Words I hadn't known until now: 0

Trivia I didn't know:

LARS - "'____ and the Real Girl'(Ryan Gosling film)"

Junk Answers: 

GMS - "Baseball execs"
GWB - "Prez with the same initials as an N.Y.C landmark"

Clever clues: 0

Obscure (i.e., really reaching) words: 0

NYT Crossword 11/13/17 (Mon.)

Cruciverbalist: Peter A. Collins
Editor: Will Shortz

Solving time: 05:35

Puzzle uniqueness:

Tribute to "Cool Hand Luke" film with the three words of the title at the bottom of the puzzle, and the quote within the film, "What we've got here is failure to communicate" sprinkled throughout the puzzle.

Words I hadn't known until now: 0

Trivia I didn't know: 0

Junk Answers:

ABCS - "Things kindergarteners learn"

Clever clues: 0


Obscure (i.e., really reaching) words: 0

NYT Crossword 11/12/17 (Sun.)

Cruciverbalist: Ed Sessa
Editor: Will Shortz

Solving time: 29:42

Puzzle uniqueness: "S-Q's Me!"

Taking phrases beginning with a "w" sound and replacing them with "sq." Example: SQUANDERLUST with the clue "Prodigality?".

Words I hadn't known until now: 

DYNODE - "Vacuum tube component"
EDILE - "Early title for Julius Caesar"

Trivia I didn't know:

HASBRO - "Trouble maker"
TAMPA - "Cigar City, so-called on account of a former major industry"
AMHERST - "Birthplace of Emily Dickenson"
SCOTTO - "Soprano Renata"
ELBARTO - "Alter ego on 'The Simpsons'"
ALVIN - "Choreographer Ailey"
FEU - "Pot-au-___ (French stew)"
RIGEL - "Brightest star in Orion"
REDROSE - "Flower colored by Aphrodite's blood, in myth"
ADAIR - "Gilbert who wrote 'Love and Death on Long Island'"
NILEDELTA - "Rosetta Stone discovery"
REYS - "Co-authors Margret and H.A."
IDA - "Polish movie named Best Foreign Language Film of 2014"
LANI - "Civil rights activist Guinier"

Junk Answers:

RANDD - "Corp. budget item"
MRI - "Radiologist's tool, for short"
EER - "Suffix with market"
BTU - "A/C stat"
GIS - "Ones in a mess, informally"
INQ - "Question: Abbr."
FEU - (See above)
CTN - "Cardboard container: Abbr."
SEQ - "Et ___ (Footnote abbr.)"
REQ - "Not an elective: Abbr."
CRU - "Vineyard designation"

Clever clues: 0

Obscure (i.e., really reaching) words: 0

NYT Crossword 11/11/17 (Sat.)

Cruciverbalists: George Barany and Michael Shteyman
Editor: Will Smith

Solving time: 18:38

Puzzle uniqueness: 

Tribute to VETERANSDAY answer, with eleven eleven-letter words in the puzzle (11/11, get it?)

Words I hadn't known until now: 0

Trivia I didn't know:

UGANDA - "World's second most populous landlocked country, after Ethiopia"
SHTETL - "'Yentl' setting"
MARENOSTRUM - "The Mediterranean, to ancient Romans"
RIN - "1/1,000 of a yen"
AON - "Chicago's ___ Center"
QUEENBEY - "Pop icon, to members of her 'hive'"

Junk Answers:

QBS - "Bradford and Bradshaw, for two: Abbr."
RMN - "Presidential inits."
SSR - "Old union member: Abbr."
FAS - "Scale notes"
AWS - "Comments like 'Yer joshin'!'"
IPS - "Computer addresses, for short"
DPI - "Print quality meas."
SRA - "Foreign title: Abbr."

Clever clues: 

PESTCONTROL - "Debugging?"

Obscure (i.e., really reaching) words: 

SHTETL - (See above)

NYT Crossword 11/10/17 (Fri.)

Cruciverbalist: Patrick Berry
Editor: Will Shortz

Solving time: 23:54

Puzzle uniqueness: 0

Words I hadn't known until now: 0

Trivia I didn't know:

OLDMASTER - "Uffizi work"
TULSA - "City that straddles the Arkansas River"
LOON - "Bird called a 'diver' in  the U.K."
NILE - "'Egypt was the gift of the ___': Herodotus"
TITO - Leader of the Partisans in W.W. II"
DION - "'Lovers Who Wander' singer, 1962"
CROATIA - "U.N. member whose capital comes last alphabetically" (Zagreb, ICYI)
PATEL - "Star of 2016's 'Lion'"
NANTES - "Edict of ______ (Huguenot Wars ender)"
HELLBOY - "Superhero with hooves and a tail"
ALDEAN - "Jason with the #1 country hit 'Dirt Road Anthem'"
YEATS - "'Horseman, pass by!' poet"
MESSJACKET - "Bit of attire for a bellhop"
BLUE - "Like Alice's gown in 'Alice in Wonderland'"
ANTOINE - "Fats Domino's real name"
STEUBEN - "Onetime New York company famous for making art glass"

Junk Answers:

ALA - "Like"

Clever clues:

HALFMAST - "Standard position"
WETBAR - "Where people mix at parties?"
DECENT - "Covered, in a way"
GEEK - "Tech enthusiast, say"
HECKLE - "Bad call?"
WHATELSE - "'Am I forgetting anything?'"
RIOTACT - "It's often read metaphorically"
EPITAPH - "Marker writing"
STRAW - "Item dropped in the drink?"
DOCTORS - "Ward bosses?"
GOLFERS - "Club owners"
POTTERY - "Final outcome of a firing"

Obscure (i.e., really reaching) words: 0

NYT Crossword 11/09/17 (Thu.)

Cruciverbalist: Bruce Haight
Editor: Will Shortz

Solving time: 24:38

Puzzle uniqueness:

Last word of phrase is backwards so the final word of the phrase is "back." Example: Clue is "Words of retraction," and the answer is ITAKETAHT. Ergo, "I take that (back)."

Words I hadn't known until now: 

SYRAH - "Variety of dark-skinned grape"

Trivia I didn't know: 

INGRAM - "James or Luther of R&B"
CICERO - "Orator who declared 'Laws are silent in times of war'"
DUMAS - "'The Black Tulip' author"
IONA - "Hebrides isle"
RIVOLI - "Battle of ______ (1979 Napoleon victory)"
KENNYG - "Musician with the 1987 instrumental hit 'Songbird'"
MORDECAI - "He adopted Esther in the Book of Esther"

Junk answers:

PSY - "Liberal arts dept. (Liberal arts?)
UBS - "Credit Suisse rival"
YSL - "Fashion inits."
NIA - "Long in Hollywood"
NOL - "Cambodia's Lon ___"
UTA - "Actress Hagen"
OER - "Poetic contraction"

Clever clues: 

AORTA - "Powerful bloodline?"
SOLARCAR - "Vehicle that gets cell service?"

Obscure (i.e., really reaching) words: 0

NYT Crossword 11/08/17 (Wed.)

Cruciverbalists: Joel Fagliano and Sam Ezersky
Editor: Will Shortz

Solving time: 12:29

Puzzle uniqueness:

Initials of proper name clues which, when combined with the common denominator, makes up a word. Example: Clue "Heart, U2, Slayer" are band names, so the answer is HUSBANDS

Words I hadn't known until now: 

DADROCK - "Genre for Dire Straits and Steely Dan, facetiously" (New one for me)
ARSNOVA - "Classical music style whose name means 'new art'"

Trivia I didn't know:

XENON - "Element next to iodine on the periodic table"
KABUL - "World capital where Pashto is spoken"
ARCADIA - "Domain of Pan, in Greek myth"
AMENRA - "Supreme Egyptian god"
GROSZ - "1/100 of a Polish zloty"

Junk Answers:

LCD - "TV screen inits."
ODON - "Have too much of, briefly"
IMO - "'I believe,' on the internet"
KOS - "Some U.F.C. victories"

Clever clues:

PAROLEE - "Joint release?"
SUMO - "Heavy competition?"

Obscure (i.e., really reaching) words: 

GRENDEL - "Foe of Beowulf"
AMENRA - (See above)
ARSNOVA - (See above)

NYT Crossword 11/07/17 (Tue.)

Cruciverbalist: Greg Poulos
Edited by: Will Shortz

Solving time: 09:52

Puzzle uniqueness: 

Answer WORDOFTHEYEAR clue to seven answers that were Annual American Dialect Society selections. Example: DUMPSTERFIRE.

Words I hadn't known until now: 0

Trivia I didn't know:

KEW - "London's ___ Gardens"
AHMAD - "Jazz pianist Jamal"
ALI - "Sacha Baron Cohen's 'Da ___ G Show'"
NADIA - "Foreign exchange student in 'American Pie'"
DAL - "Lentil dish at an Indian restaurant"

Junk Answers: 

ISM - "Belief, informally"
UIE - "Something a driver may 'hang'"
INO - "Particle physics suffix"
ZSA - "When doubled, a Gabor sister"
RSTU - "Q-V connection"
ESL - "Subj. for U.S. citizens-to-be"

Clever clues: 0

Obscure (i.e., really reaching) words: 0

NYT Crossword 11/06/17 (Mon.)

Cruciverbalist: Max Lauring and Benjamin Lauring
Editor: Will Shortz

Solving time: 06:39

Puzzle uniqueness:

Answer PARTANIMAL clue to seven two-word phrases each beginning with an animal. Example: RATTAIL.

Words I hadn't known until now: 0

Trivia I didn't know:

AMIDALA - "'Star Wars' queen"

Junk Answers:

TSE - "When doubled, an African fly"
ONKP - "Like a G.I. cleaning up after a meal, maybe"
INE - "Suffix with nectar or elephant"
LOS - "The 'L' of L.A.P.D."
STP - "Fuel additive brand"
FIL - "Chick-___-A"
GT - "Driller in R.O.T.C., maybe: Abbr."
EAN - "Suffix with Caesar"

Clever clues: 

NEURONS - "Those getting exciting when thinking?"

Obscure (i.e., really reaching) words: 0

NYT Crossword 11/05/17 (Sun.)

Cruciverbalist: Natan Last
Editor: Will Shortz

Solving time: 43:57

Puzzle uniqueness: "Lane Changes"

Answers are meaning one thing straight across, another that vectors diagonally in circled squares.

Words I hadn't known until now: 0


Trivia I didn't know:

EROS - "Freudian 'will to live'"
ELSA - "Italian novelist Morante"
LABATT - "Molson rival"
WAC - "W.W. II org. whose insignia featured Athena"
BRENDALEE - "Artist with the third most Top 40 hits in the 1960s, behind Elvis and the Beatles"
NERISSA - "Gratiano's love in 'The Merchant of Venice'"
TEMA - "Motif for Verdi or Monteverdi"
TUNA - "Skipjack, e.g."
MAGYARS -'Hungarians"
GIA - "Supermodel Carangi"
KARA - "Russia's ____ Sea (arm of the Arctic Ocean)"
EULER - "'Introduction to the Analysis of the Infinite' writer"
OREO - "Certain fro-yo add-in"

Junk Answers:

OHO - "'Well. well, well'!"
ESS - "Suffix with host"
ARN - "'Prince Valiant' son"
LTDS - "Erstwhile Fords"
PWNS - "Destroys. in gamer-speak"
WCS - "Heads overseas?"
ACR - "From l. to r."

Clever clues: 

ALLABOARD - "Railroad line?"
SOS - 'Line in the sand?"
MOWS - "Does course work?"
PAROLED - "Interrupted mid-sentence?"
EDDIED - "Went for a whirl"

Obscure (i.e., really reaching) words: 

ABACI - "Summers back in the day?"
TABARDS - "Armless coats that may bear coats of arms"

NYT Crossword 11/04/17 (Sat.)

Cruciverbalist: Michael Shteyman
Editor: Will Smith

Solving time: 18:32

Puzzle uniqueness: 

Answer STRETCHTHETRUTH clue to the word "truth" letters spread throughout phrases. Example: BUTTERNUTSUASH.

Words I hadn't known until now: 

LOUCHE - "Disreputable"

Trivia I didn't know:

OPEL - "Automaker with the slogan 'Wir leben Autos'"
OLIN - "Engineering college in Needham, Mass."
UCLA - "Home to the Ronald Reagan Me. Ctr."
MAOTAI - "Strong Chinese liquor"
TENERIFE - "Largest of the Canaries"
WATT - "One joule per second"
AHMADTEA - "Alternative to Twinings"
MOHAWK - "Hiawatha, for one"

Junk Answers:

RCPT - "Rebate requirement, at times: Abbr."
SXSW - "Annual music and film festival founded in 1987, briefly"
AAHED - "Was amazed by, with 'at'"
CALC - "Advanced H.S. class"

Clever clues: 

SIEVE - "One who can't keep a secret"
LEFT - "It's just not right"
CARGO - "Hold things"
ANTLER - "Improvised place to hang a hat, say"

Obscure (i.e., really reaching) words: 

RUTH - "Compassion for the misery of others"
LOUCHE - (See above)

NYT Crossword 11/03/17 (Fri.)

Cruciverbalists: Kameron Austin Collins and Brendan Emmett Quigley
Editor: Will Shortz

Solving time: 24:50

Puzzle uniqueness: 0

Words I hadn't known until now: 0

Trivia I didn't know:

ABIE - "____ the Agent (old comic strip)"
ANNES - "Auntie _____ (pretzel chain)
GOOGLEHANGOUTS - "Platform for chatting"
CATT - "Suffragist Carrie Chapman ____"
ETONCAP - "English headwear with a short visor"
ALTOONA - "Penn State campus site"
OBERLIN - "Ohio school"
MIATA - "Car whose name means 'reward'"
ENTEBBE - "Ugandan city o Lake Victoria"
MARLOWE - "'Hero and Lander poet"

Junk Answers:

DSO - "Cross-shaped mil. award"
SIE - "You, overseas"
ABIE - (See above)
AWGEE - "'You're making me blush!'"
BRR - "Utterance made wile shaking"
ROM - "DVD attachment?"
RIAA - "Gold-certifying org."

Clever clues:

ELSE - "Word after who, what, where, when, why or how"
METEORS - "Things seen in a shower"
TITAN - "God father?"
TESTATE - "Willful?"

Obscure (i.e., really reaching) words: 

ENNEADS - "The Muses and others"

NYT Crossword 11/02/17 (Thu.)

Cruciverbalist: Peter Sagal and Mike Selenker
Editor: Will Shortz

Solving time: 19:42

Puzzle uniqueness:

Tribute to NEWYORKMARATHON (Center across answer) happening first Sunday in November.

Words I hadn't known until now: 

KNOB - "Pinch : salt :: ____ : butter" (Not this definition of the word)

Trivia I didn't know: 

RAES - "Actress Issa and others"
OLAF - "Count of children's literature"
EGYPT - "Where Zagazig is"

Junk answers:

ISLA - "Any of the Galapagos, e.g."
AONE - "Square for a white rook, in chess notation"
RAES - (See above)
ALF - "Interstellar sitcom star"
ISUP - "Was just on deck"
KPH - "European driver's concern: Abbr."

Clever clues: 

ORE - "Early metal?"

Obscure (i.e., really reaching) words: 0