Q: Start with the name of a blockbuster movie star. Remove the first letter of the first name and last two letters of the last name to get the types of movies he almost never stars in. Who is this?I'm glad Will included "almost never".
Edit: Early in his career, he directed and starred in a couple of independent films.
A: VIN DIESEL --> INDIES
Remove just the first letter and rearrange to get a place to watch today’s game.
ReplyDeletePerform the same operation on the answer movies (remove first letter and last two letters). Rearrange. You get a description of the star’s movies’ soundtracks. (OK, I am not a fan.)
ReplyDeleteAppropriate for blockbusters, though.
DeleteI agree, but shouldn't the operation be performed on just one of the movies?
DeleteConfusion reigns among the sommeliers.
ReplyDeleteYou're right, not a great vintage.
DeleteWhat pairs well with French fries?
DeleteUsed frying oil can be recycled into diesel fuel.
DeleteWine & fries—not a bad combo.
DeleteHmmm, re: on air puzzle >>> Albatross and Happy Days don't end in vowels as the puzzle states. There may have been more inaccuracies.
ReplyDeleteI heard it as only the countries needed to end in a vowel.
DeleteOnly the countries had the restriction "don't end in a vowel".
DeleteAh, I missed that. Not enough coffee. . .
DeleteTh train came in on this one.
ReplyDeleteGot it in no time.
ReplyDeleteGot it. Now, what rating should I give this puzzle?
ReplyDeleteI thought this was tricky. I don't want to add fuel to the fire though.
ReplyDeleteOkay my clue is approximately as indirect as Blaine's clues typically are!
ReplyDeleteHe isn't in a Harry Potter movie, or Night at the Museum.
I'll keep thinking.
ReplyDelete"You just keep thinkin', Butch; that's what you're good at" -- The Sundance Kid
DeleteThe Sundance Film Festival is for independent films.
With a nod to Nodd.
ReplyDeleteAh, of course. My oversight. Sorry about that.
ReplyDelete"Rambling" north from L.A. to San Fran...
ReplyDeleteLegoPostingAVeryObscure(HeHopes)Hint
Happy early Valentine's Day, Blainesvillians All!
ReplyDeleteAnd happy lunar new year, too
DeleteI heard that Dwayne Johnson was making a movie about Wayne Johns.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteNo worries, Dr. K. Great minds and the sincerest form and all that. : )
ReplyDeleteI've seen precisely one of this actor's movies, and it isn't one of his numerous blockbusters
ReplyDeleteRight. This actor wouldn't appeal to posh taste of most NPR listeners.
DeleteCitizens of a certain country would not want the 2nd in the 1st.
ReplyDeleteOr, for that matter, vice-versa.
DeleteGot it! Ed Ocumentaryal
ReplyDeleteLove it!
DeleteKeep 'em coming!
ReplyDeleteOne type
ReplyDeleteHis voice is as popular the rest of him.
ReplyDeleteIn one of his movies he opens fire on a pickleball match with Pachelbel 's cannon.
ReplyDeleteThanks! I think I have it now. --Margaret G.
ReplyDeleteI solved this puzzle quickly.
ReplyDeleteI hope that doesn't make anyone upset. It drives me crazy when I'm having a hard time figuring out the puzzle, and others come on here saying it was the first thing they thought of.
DeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteI agree, Jaws. So for those who may still be struggling, here’s an inside track: Kipling and twain.
DeleteJaws, Sit down and have a glass of red or white...That should help!
DeleteHello, I'm Bobby's mom! Just saw this and wanted to clarify--that's his clue for the puzzle, unrelated to first thing he thought of or actual time to solve. :)
DeleteGreetings, Bobby’s Mom! My apologies. In typical benighted fashion, I took Bobby’s comment at face value. By now I should have learned very little here can be taken at face value (including my own reply, which had not only an overt hint but also a covert one). Puzzle on, Bobby!
DeleteHello Dr. K, You are wonderful and no apologies needed. This group is very fortunate to have you. You bring much Good to this world, and I'm happy to know you. I hope one day to meet you and all the Blaine's blog contributors in person as I think such a get together would be very joyful and fun.
DeleteAs I noted below, my comment was a well disguised play on being FURIOUS, since Bobby was FAST.
DeleteSee my Samuel Johnson quote below.
DeleteFirst of all, I don’t know where you were last week, Blaine, but you were missed around here. Welcome back. Health and happiness to you and yours. Second, I think this is the worst-clued puzzle we’ve had this year.
ReplyDeleteChuck, I second both your first of all (Welcome back, Blaine!) and your second of all, too.
Delete900 last week. I predict 1800 this week
ReplyDeleteMy cousin's musical playing off-broadway in nyc:
ReplyDeletehttps://mcctheater.org/tix/the-connector/
You might like it.
This comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteI think this one is a bit rough on the palate.
ReplyDeleteFeel like seventeen again
ReplyDeleteThere will be an FBI raid in about 20 minutes.
ReplyDeleteThis puzzle might suggest that the posh, highbrow NPR crowd is not totally without masculinity.
ReplyDeleteToo easy. For starters, why give away the actor is a "he"? Solved it in no time at all. Now I think I'd better run to the store to get all the goodies for Super Bowl night! (You know…the commercials!)
ReplyDeleteYes, this puzzle is kind of chauvinistic. It reminds me of the riddle back in the seventies where the answer was, the surgeon was a female.
DeleteHAITI ends in a vowel, but it was accepted. HONDURAS might have been the true answer.
ReplyDelete1) COUNTRIES WHOSE NAMES END WITH A VOWEL
Delete2) BIRDS
3) DOMICILES
4) SITCOMS
Copied from NPR site.
DeleteMy error. I thought it was supposed to not end with a vowel.
DeleteThe category "domiciles" was skipped. What was this even supposed to mean? It could be countries, or various other things.
DeleteCabin or castle, house, apartment, igloo, retirement home or recreation vehicle.
DeleteI'm entering the name in a search and will pick something to watch tonight.
ReplyDeleteThis cannot be clarified without giving away information. Figure out for yourself why the question would be phrased so oddly.
ReplyDeleteI have to say I have never completely watched one of these blockbuster movies.
ReplyDeleteI'm pretty sure you haven't missed much
DeleteAs I said, the posh, highbrow NPR taste isn't ready for this.
DeleteI'll admit that this actor's canon of work doesn't appeal to me. I'm drawn towards intimate, character driven movies, like 2023's The Holdovers. Older movies that I like include Local Hero, Lost in Translation, and Scotland, PA.
ReplyDeleteSure, we ALL do. Because we're all posh, highbrow and oh so gentile.
ReplyDeletePardonnez moi. That's genteel. Although I certainly am a gentile. As is our blockbuster star, btw.
DeleteMay I infer that you have an issue with my taste in movies?
DeleteIt is not genteel to speak of one's gentiles.
Deleteso much depends
ReplyDeleteupon
a prolate
spheroid
laced with
PVC
inside the night
thickens
Oh bravo, Dr. K.
DeleteI have eaten
the nachos
that were on
the counter
and which
you were probably
saving
for halftime
Forgive me
they were delicious
so gooey
and so salty
Plum wonderful!
DeleteHear, hear, Crito.
DeleteYears ago I wrote the following to my better half:
This Is Just to Say
I have drunk
the old milk
that was in
the icebox
and which
you made possible
by buying
new milk
Thank you
it was delicious
so sweet
and so cold
Her reply:
just
stop
it
(and an emoji I don't know how to replicate)
I stopped by the Blainesville blog curious about the reaction to Will's substitute today--a rare phenomenon. After 72 comments, nothing. It's the fourth quarter of a close Superbowl, but you word lovers don't seem like TBI enthusiasts. Greg Pliska's stint struck me as noteworthy. He was introduced with impressive bona-fides that sounded like a logical successor to Will Shortz. I thought Greg did well. He has an eponymous dot-com website.
ReplyDeleteIndeed, it could be Will is trying out successors! Greg's voice was velvety and genteel.
DeleteI still remember the anagram of his name that occasionally came up in the "Ask Me Another" end credits:
DeleteSPARKLE GIG
pjbCan'tGetAGoodEnoughAnagramOutOfHisOwnName,Though(TooManyR's)
I do enjoy listening to The Puzzler Podcast, with AJ Jacobs and Greg Pliska. I did also notice at the start of the puzzle broadcast that "Will couldn't be there," and "Greg is substituting." That leads me to ask if Will is okay. Usually they plan around when he will not be available, by doing things like 2-week challenges. The challenge puzzle comes from AJ Jacobs, not a regular everyday listener. (AJ has been on NPR more, and is a level above the everyday listener.)
DeleteSo, does anyone have more info on all of this?
I also thought the sub did a good job Sunday and wondered if it was a tryout of sorts. If so, Blaine and Lego should get a crack a la Jeopardy! I did notice that at least two hints were embedded in the challenge presentation. WS might or might not have included them. No hint here exactly; just an observation or two.
DeleteChange one letter to get something falling out of favor.
ReplyDeleteRIP former NPR Morning Edition host Bob Edwards.
ReplyDeleteTalk about velvety and genteel. RIP Bob.
DeleteMy earliest NPR coffee mug is a "Morning Edition with Bob Edwards" mug.
DeleteA close friend of mine worked at NPR for many years. Evidently, NPR wanted to go to a two-person format like the other news shows. He didn't. They also wanted him to stop smoking and running outside for a few puffs during breaks. He didn't. I don't know if he quit or they fired him. Either way, he was an early, familiar voice on the network.
It is interesting to me that every time in the past that Will Shortz has been away it is stated clearly why and where he was going. This time nothing at all was said by either the host or fill in puzzle master. The takeaway is that there must be something happening that WS, and perhaps NPR, do not want us to know.
DeleteI’ll plant the idea that the guy is a giant movie star.
ReplyDelete17 oiq
ReplyDeleteI wonder if actor ever goes full commando…
ReplyDeleteIs that like a comic strip, no pun intended, retaining only its writers?
DeleteFull commando is without undies, which sounds like indies.
DeleteComic strip retained only its writers and . . . dropped its drawers?
DeleteI can think of an unflattering word that rhymes with this actor’s name….by the way, my reference to Professor Plum was an indirect “clue” to the Kitchen (room) which is also a part of the Pickleball court.
ReplyDeletePronounce the first name as in French. Switch the order of the names. Phonetically, you get a common sight.
ReplyDeleteCarTalk has posted a new puzzler today that you might enjoy. It is called: The Last Move. It is a chess puzzle.
ReplyDeleteI like it!
DeleteI found it fairly easy, but here's a hint if someone has trouble: there's a very good chance you set it up wrong, even if you read the instructions very carefully and tried to follow them exactly.
I think the less said the better. I too found it easy though.
DeleteHere's the puzzler.
DeleteAnd here (I think) is the board.
DeleteMaybe.
DeleteOK, I've got the answer. I wouldn't say that I set the board up wrong, exactly, but that something it not as it seems.
DeleteCute. Thank you, Jan, for the link and the illustration.
DeleteWhen's the deadline for this here?
DeleteAnd the answer is . . . ?
Deletejan,
DeleteRay has not been posting in a fully predictable manner for a long time now. He probably will post the answer Saturday, but you just have to keep checking. Do you want me to actually post the answer? I thought you had already solved it.
Do you think Ray is still involved with the website? (Tom sure isn't.). This is an old puzzler from decades ago, though I must say they do a good job purging their archives to keep you from searching for the answer. Anyway, I have *AN* answer, and look forward to arguing about it.
DeleteWhat the Hell. The answer is:
DeleteWhite pawn to H8 capturing most likely the Black knight and becoming promoted to a White rook and putting the Black king in double check.
Yes, I have no doubt Ray is in charge, but Tom is perhaps on to another incarnation, or still studying his latest one. You are right about them all being old ones, or at least most are, but I never saw this one until this week.
DeleteThe White pawn was on G7 obviously.
DeleteYeah, that's what I thought. The trick is seeing the bottom row as black's home, not white's.
DeleteI found a reference to this puzzler in a blog from the early 2000s, but not on the Car Talk site.
In an actual game White would promote to a Queen, but that would ruin the puzzle. Also, this endgame would never happen in an actual game, but that is perfectly acceptable in chess puzzles. I remember some years ago I solved a typical White checkmates in two moves puzzle where a pawn was going to reach the 8th row and promoting to a Queen would not have worked, so it promoted to a knight I believe it was. There is no way Tom or Ray created this puzzle. Most of the ones they claim credit for are automotive, and usually not very good either, but a few are.
DeleteJan -- the board in the picture you linked is, of course, *not* correct because the ranks and files are labeled wrong! (The square the rook is on is h8, not a1.)
DeleteYes. I created that before I figured out the puzzle. To correct it would have given too much away.
DeleteAs usual, I’m having more fun with silly wrong answers than actually finding the real one. Personally I’d love to see Jason Biggs in a sequel to Honey I Shrunk the Kids
ReplyDeleteNow that most of us are past the puzzle mania, I thought I would bring to everyone's attention an interesting programme I heard about that explores a little known legal loophole, in the state of Wisconsin, that would have allowed Jefey Dahmer to sue the families of two of his victims. Since this was never pursued, Joe Josafin, an attorney specializing in countersuits, has put together a programmer called Justice in its Fullest: Dahmer's Countersuit. It will be broadcast sometime later this week on public radio stations WHO, out of Xenith, Ohio.
ReplyDeleteNot a word about the irony of someone named "Post" developing a product for Kellogg's.
ReplyDeleteNot five weeks ago, Final Jeopardy!:
BRAND NAMES
Originally called Fruit Scones, the name of this food brand introduced in 1964 was influenced by an art movement of that time
Six years later, a box of Brown Sugar Cinnamon Pop-Tarts came to college with me. One morning, I bit into one too soon, and the sticky filling burned my lip. I wrote a letter to Kellogg's, advising a warning on the package. Weeks later, I got a phone call from them. Thinking I was about to score a bunch of freebies, I described the incident. The caller took me aback when she asked if I was going to be suing them. "No", I said without thinking. End of conversation.
Well, jan, that sure wasn't very compassionate of you. Maybe you did not want or need the money, but think of the poor lawyers who missed out on a windfall due to your only thinking of yourself.
ReplyDeleteVIN DIESEL, INDIES
ReplyDelete"Happy early Valentine's Day, Blainesvillians All!" Valentine's Day and Vin Diesel share initials.
My first thought: VIN DIESEL → INDIES, Independent films, as opposed to major studio productions,
ReplyDelete(or Artistic works produced by an independent company or group as opposed to major studio movies.)
Also, Vin Diesel, someone who doesn't often play in “INDIES” movies, either East Indies or West Indies movies...
VIN DIESEL —> INDIES
ReplyDeleteMy hint about dropping the first letter from the name, rearranging, and getting a term associated with the Big Game was of course “sideline,” which Lancek rightly pointed out had already been posted, in somewhat different form, by Nodd. When I realized what had happened, I was reminded of Samuel Johnson’s reply to a woman who asked how he had managed to misdefine the word “pastern” in his famous dictionary: “Ignorance, Madam, pure ignorance.”
My oblique comment—“Citizens of a certain country would not want the 2nd in the 1st”—oblique because it didn’t specify that I meant 1st and 2nd names (which might have been TMI), was hinting at France (and French), diesel, and wine (vin). Or, of course, “vice-versa.”
About the hint “for those who may still be struggling, here’s an inside track: Kipling and twain”: “inside” is an anagram of “indies,” and Kipling’s poem “The Ballad of East and West” contains the famous line, “Oh, East is East, and West is West, and never the twain shall meet,” which might make one think of the East and West Indies...or not.
And, finally, a sincere “thank you” to Eileen, Bobby’s mother, for her gracious comment. I appreciate the kind words.
Vin diesel
ReplyDeleteOur friend Jeff Zarkin has composed an excellent sextet of puzzles for this week's edition of Puzzleria!
ReplyDeleteThey appear in his always-terrific "Jeff Zarkin Puzzle Riffs" package, and are titled:
1. "Classic description"
2. "MalaDY & RemeDY"
3. "Doing in, doing to..."
4. "Return to sender?"
5. "The world, a stage; our life, a play," and
6. "Morning delight... but not noon or night!"
We upload Puzzleria! late Thursday at around Midnight PST, or likely earlier.
Also on our menus this week:
* a Schpuzzle of the Week titled "Better chemistry, through living... color,"
* a “Your Serve” Hors d’Oeuvre titled “Wanted: Sleuth for con-sequence”
* a Syllabifiable Puzzle Slice titled "Egoist does as egotist dons?"
* an Anagrammatical Dessert titled "Creature, trees, feast & Indies," and
* 11 riff-offs (including a beauty composed by our friend Nodd) of this week's NPR puzzle, titled "Edsel Ford Vin Diesel engine."
That is a total of 21 puzzles – one for each meal of the week!
LegoWhoUrgesAllToJoinUsForALollapaloozaOfZarkinesquePuzzleWizardlry!
I wrote, “Perform the same operation on the answer movies (remove first letter and last two letters). Rearrange. You get a description of the star’s movies’ soundtracks. That’s “din.”
ReplyDeleteAnd if you perform the same operation on the famous indie film "Winter's Bone" you get "BTR noise." BTR makes stuff for customizing racing cars.
DeleteVIN DIESEL, INDIES
ReplyDelete> Hmmm...
Unlike a Mazda gas car, a DIESEL engine doesn't go "Hmmm..."
> Pronounce the first name as in French. Switch the order of the names. Phonetically, you get a common sight.
There are lots of DIESEL vans on the road.
I submitted an alternate answer:
ReplyDelete(Dwayne Johnson) The Rock --> hero
My clue was "17 oiq". Automobile VINs consist of 17 characters, and the letters o, i, and q are not used because they can be mistaken for zero, one, and nine.
ReplyDeleteMy extremely indirect clue: "He isn't in a Harry Potter movie, or Night at the Museum."
ReplyDeleteThose movies were directed by Chris Columbus, whose namesake got confused and called the lands he ran into the "Indies".
I like that!
DeleteVin Diesel, indies
ReplyDeleteVin Diesel--Indies
DeleteI posted:
DeleteI'd better run to the store to get all the goodies for Super Bowl night! (You know…the commercials!)
"Run" as in "fast (and furious)," and Super Bowl commercials often include the kind of action seen in the Fast and Furious Franchise.
I had said, "Got it. Now, what rating should I give this puzzle?" I did not go so far as to suggest the rating XXX, which was a Vin Diesel movie.
ReplyDeleteI then commented on Bobby's post (where he mentioned solving it quickly): "I hope that doesn't make anyone upset. It drives me crazy when I'm having a hard time figuring out the puzzle, and others come on here saying it was the first thing they thought of."
This, of course, was a perhaps too well disguised reference to the Fast and Furious movie franchise. Since Bobby had said it was Fast, I made a comment about being Furious, without actually saying the word. Thanks to the multiple people who expressed concern or sympathy for me.
"There will be an FBI raid in 20 minutes." That's from Boiler Room, with Giovanni Ribisi, Vin Diesel, etc.
ReplyDeleteI wrote Got it in no time, my shout out to Fast and the Furious.
ReplyDeleteWhich was not an INDIE movie.
I said “I feel like I am seventeen … VIN (Vehicle Identification Number is 17 characters)
ReplyDeleteThat's terrible.
DeleteMy clue was referring to “weasel” which rhymes with diesel. Btw, JAWS initially had me thinking the answer to part 2 may be “r-rated” or “g-rated” or something like that.
ReplyDeleteAs noted above, I was making a vague reference to the XXX movie.
DeleteDwayne Johnson's nickname could go the other way - movies he often stars in.
ReplyDeleteVIN DIESEL, INDIES
ReplyDeletepjbBelievesItIsBetterToBeFastThanToBeFurious
I am a bit embarrassed to say that I didn't figure out the puzzle until Thursday around noon. At least I got it in before the cut off. I don't know if I've ever seen Van Diesel or not. If he was in Night at the Museum, I dd see that. I imagine I wouldn't care for his films. But it is interesting how he was a bouncer and changed his name for the screen. And he's made so many movies and so much money. I suppose that's impressive.
ReplyDeleteWhat? Are you telling us that guns are allowed in Kansas? I had no idea. I thought this democratic country was intelligent enough to control such deadly instruments. How could I have got that wrong?
ReplyDeleteRemember though, technically it happened in Kansas City, Missouri...
ReplyDeleteI suppose that is a good point, although, to me, all the Midwest is to be avoided at all costs. Perhaps if I paid even scant attention to team sports I would have known this. Shame on moi.
ReplyDeleteOver/under 1300
ReplyDeleteThis week's challenge: It comes to us from listener Andrew Chaikin of San Francisco, also known as the singer Kid Beyond. Think of a famous character in American literature. Change each letter in that character's name to its position in the alphabet — A=1, B=2, etc. — to get a famous year in American history. Who is this person and what is the year?
ReplyDeleteSuper-easy.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
DeleteThis comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
DeleteNot Cary Grant.
ReplyDeleteAlready solved this week's puzzle.
ReplyDeleteThis week's challenge: It comes to us from listener Andrew Chaikin of San Francisco, also known as the singer Kid Beyond. Think of a famous character in American literature. Change each letter in that character's name to its position in the alphabet — A=1, B=2, etc. — to get a famous year in American history. Who is this person and what is the year?
The U.S. entered World War II in 1941. Too bad Verdi wasn't American.
ReplyDeleteDon't worry, Trump made that same mistake.
ReplyDeletehttps://www.theguardian.com/sport/2020/feb/02/trump-kansas-city-missouri-super-bowl-tweet
Oops. Sorry, Blaine.
ReplyDelete