NPR Sunday Puzzle (Sep 15, 2024): A Fancy Capital Entree

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Sep 15, 2024): A Fancy Capital Entree

Q: Name a U.S. state capital. Then name a world capital. Say these names one after the other and phonetically you'll get an expensive dinner entree. What is it?

Change the last letter of the dinner entree to the letter directly to its right on a standard typewriter keyboard. Rearrange to name something we might fear.

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Sep 8, 2024): Watercraft on Water

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Sep 8, 2024): Watercraft on Water

Q: Take the name of a watercraft that contains an odd number of letters. Remove the middle letter and rearrange the remaining ones to name a body of water. What words are these?

How close are you to the answer? Are you hot or cold?

Edit: Similar to a puzzle from Jan 21, 2018. You might see a gondola (basket) below a hot air ballon or gondola (lift) at a cold ski resort. But most often you'll see them in the Venice Lagoon.

A: GONDOLA --> LAGOON

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Sep 1, 2024): TV Personality of the Past

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Sep 1, 2024): TV Personality of the Past

Q: Name a famous TV personality of the past. Drop the second letter of this person's last name. Phonetically the first and last names together will sound like a creature of the past. What celebrity is it?

You can drop all instances of that letter and you still get the same answer.

Edit: DINA-SORE

A: DINAH SHORE --> DINOSAUR

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Aug 25, 2024): Single Consonant Name

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Aug 25, 2024): Single Consonant Name

Q: The word NONUNION has four N's and no other consonant. What famous American of the past -- first and last names, 8 letters in all -- has four instances of the same consonant and no other consonant?

I don't have a clue to help you identify the person... or do I?

Edit: The vowels in "identify" are the same vowels in the answer.

A: Eli Lilly (founder of the pharmaceutical company).

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Aug 18, 2024): A Famous Movie Star

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Aug 18, 2024): A Famous Movie Star

Q: Think of a famous movie star -- .first and last names, nine letters in all. The third, fourth, fifth, seventh, and eighth letters, in order, name a profession. The star's last name is something that this profession uses. Who is the movie star and what is the profession?

In one role, this actor played a [redacted].

Edit: My redacted clue was "king" as in Billie Jean King.

A: EMMA STONE --> MASON, STONE

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Aug 11, 2024): Six Letter Food Items

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Aug 11, 2024): Six Letter Food Items

Q: Think of a popular food item in six letters. Change the last two letters to a K to make a common five-letter word in which none of the letters are pronounced the same as in the six-letter food. What food is this?

Add the letters in the word DOTES to the food item, rearrange to get a place that was popular in the last century.

Edit: DISCOTHEQUE

A: QUICHE --> QUICK

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Aug 4, 2024): Famous American Women

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Aug 4, 2024): Famous American Women

Q: Think of a famous American woman with a two-syllable last name. The first syllable is spelled like a body part, but isn't pronounced like one. The second syllable is pronounced like a body part, but isn't spelled like one. Who is this famous woman?

Her middle name can be rearranged to mean "brigade".

Edit: Her middle name was MARY which anagrams to ARMY.

A: Amelia EARHART

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Jul 28, 2024): Movie Numbers

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Jul 28, 2024): Movie Numbers

Q: Think of a classic movie title in which the initials of all the words up to the last one, in order, spell the number of letters in that last word. The number of words in the title is for you to discover. What film is it?

The last name of a main character sounds like a word meaning "accomodations".

Edit: The Wizard of Oz was Oscar Zoroaster Phadrig Isaac Norman Henkle Emmannuel Ambroise Diggs (digs = accommodations)

A: "The Wizard of Oz" --> TWO, OZ

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Jul 21, 2024): For General Audiences

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Jul 21, 2024): For General Audiences

Q: Take the name of a famous actor of the past. Say it out loud, and phonetically you'll describe what a famous general's horse did. Who is the actor and who is the general?

I need an "L" to make my answer work.

Edit: "L" is 50 in Roman numerals; Grant is pictured on the $50 bill.

A: CARY GRANT --> CARRY (ULYSSES S.) GRANT

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Jul 14, 2024): Classic Movie Couple

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Jul 14, 2024): Classic Movie Couple

Q: Think of a famous actor and a famous actress who co-starred in a classic movie of the past. The actress's first name, when reversed, and the actor’s last name, spelled forward, are similar romantic gifts. Who are these film stars?

Somehow I don't think it's Fay Wray and King Kong.

Edit: It was a different "classic" film set in New York.

A: Meg Ryan, Billy Crystal ("When Harry Met Sally") --> GEM, CRYSTAL