Q: Think of a a major American corporation of the past (two words, 15 letters altogether). Change the last three letters in the second word and the resulting phrase will name something that will occur later this year. What is it?Mazda Motor is a Japanese corporation, so that's not it.
Edit: Mazda was a registered trademark of General Electric for a line of incandescent light bulbs.
A: GENERAL ELECTRIC --> GENERAL ELECTION
Add a letter to the beginning of the second word to get the name of a past product of a different corporation in a related field.
ReplyDeleteNice
DeleteIf I remember correctly, I used one of those products a time or two.
DeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteOh yes, Nodd, nice observation. I, too, hve used that product decades ago.
DeleteWhen I took a typing class in high school, the IBM Selectric had only been on the market a few years, and we had only two of them in the classroom, but I think I got to use one a couple of times.
DeleteAlmost too easy, for anyone who follows the news - or the ups and downs of the Stock Market.
ReplyDeleteThe "of the past" part was news to me. I guess I haven't been keeping up.
DeleteThis ranks as one of the easiest NPR Sunday Puzzles.
ReplyDeleteThe "Notify Me" button still isn't working.
ReplyDeleteI know.
DeleteWhy can't something be done about this annoyance?
DeleteThis needs to be fixed by Google/Blogger. It's across the whole of Blogger for any blogs that have embedded/nested comments. I can switch to full page commenting without nested replies, but the experience is pretty bad. I just want them to get this working again, but I can't seem to find anyway to get this escalated to Blogger. Posts on the Blogger Community Forums just get ignored.
DeleteYeah, I too have used your previous links and posted with zip in return. I also know it is blogger and not you or any other blogs, but I am amazed that it has been going on this long now. It seems obvious to me that it is not blogger intended because the Notify Me box is still there. I think Putin must be behind it.
Delete@Buck Bard, what do you see as the top alternatives? Any features that a different platform provides that you'd see as really beneficial?
DeleteThis comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteSorry, Blaine! (I thought it was “loose” enough.)
Delete450 correct answers last week.
ReplyDeleteCome on! This was not a major corporation!
ReplyDeleteOh jeez, good point. Wow, what a faux pas!
DeleteStill, there's a grain of truth in the official description.
The corporation was mentioned in a Columbo episode, and very much in the context of that which will occur later this year.
DeleteI look forward to your explanation on Thursday. For the answer I submitted, incorporation papers were filed, it was listed on a major exchange, and was on multiple lists of top earning companies over the years. I'm not sure in what way you feel it was not major, or not a corporation.
DeleteDifferent thinking. . .
DeleteThis comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteGot it.
ReplyDeleteI am reminded of a professional wrestler.
DeleteEasy. Came to me quickly...
ReplyDeleteAn earlier, similar event has garnered a lot of attention in my home state.
ReplyDeleteYes, super easy puzzle today.
ReplyDeleteSix of the fifteen letters of the event make up a color that’s relevant to it.
ReplyDeleteFor those who’ve solved this easy NPR puzzle, the letters I was referring to in the event are letters 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, and 14, but rearranged.
DeleteThank you Chat GPT. Solved it immediately.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteIt’s been relatively clear where I live and I’ve been seeing many stars.
ReplyDeleteThe event came to me right away.
ReplyDeleteEveryone have a good week.
ReplyDeleteStarting yesterday, and continuing for the next 8 days, the dates will be palindromes: 4/20/24 to 4/29/24.
ReplyDelete... in the United States only.
DeleteWow! A.novena of palindromes.
Delete32
ReplyDeleteConnection to Saturday Night Live, which is probably true of many puzzles.
ReplyDeleteOof, the fact that AI can apparently solve this puzzle cannot be a good thing. At least I solved it as well!
ReplyDelete(they bring good things to life!)
DeleteIt shocks me that this puzzle is not that specific.
ReplyDeleteMy back brain got it, so I tried ChatGPT ... and received the answer: "'American Telephone & Telegraph' becomes 'American Telephone & Attack'". Well, "ATT - ACK" works for me ...
ReplyDeleteIs it the full name of the company, an abbreviation of the company, or an abbreviation of the company? Is it the name of the event or the first name of a person who has been involved with the event?
ReplyDeleteAn abbreviation of General Electric is GE, so my question asked, "GE or GE?" That is like the name George. George Washington and George Bush were in general elections.
DeleteI think chatgpt watches Columbo.
ReplyDeleteSee my earlier post. :)
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DeleteYes, I saw it. Took a few tries though.
DeleteChatGPT worked for me too - I was on a totally different track - but it had the wrong answer for the wrong reasons.
DeleteThe puzzle is easy this week, but not everything here is. Blaine's hint, for example.
ReplyDeleteGeographic clue: Southwest Florida.
ReplyDeleteOne second-tier actor has a tight connection to both.
ReplyDeleteGreat clue! So does one not-so-bad author. A connection to one, anyway. And he had no fondness for the second-tier actor.
DeleteIncidentally, there is an anecdotal story involving this grade B actor which I'll save for Thursday.
DeleteI think my slump is over. Got this one right away!
ReplyDeletepjbThinksBecauseHe'sNeverUsedVenmo,MaybeThatMustBeWhyHeDidn'tGetLastWeek's
Reminds me of:
ReplyDeletePARIS
IN THE
THE SPRING
I have a product of the company's founder, with his name and face on the label.
ReplyDeleteMade public = NOISED (anagram of EDISON)
DeleteThe puzzle doesn’t specify whether the company is currently still in business or not, I guess that leaves the choice of interpretation to us would-be solvers.
ReplyDeleteRearrange a 7-letter word associated with the company to get what an aggressive driver might do with an older model Chevy.
ReplyDeleteNot like Victor Frankenstein.
ReplyDeleteCombine the three replacement letters and the three letters they replace. Rearrange them to spell a literary technique employed by Ibsen, Shakespeare, Shaw, Poe, Austen, Swift and O. Henry.
ReplyDeleteLegoWhoDeemsThisPuzzleEasilySolvableButAlsoClever
I get an adjective.
DeleteSame
DeleteThank you, Musinglink. You are of course correct. Careless wording on my part. I should have written: "...Rearrange them to describe many of the works penned by Ibsen, Shakespeare, Shaw, Poe, Austen, Swift and O. Henry.
DeleteLegoAttemptingToSmoothOutHisWrinkledProse
Well, you tried. That's the important thing.😊
DeleteIt's Earth Day. Too late to fix anything. Enjoy the music as the Titanic sinks. Think happy thoughts.
ReplyDeleteHappy thought: Once things get bad enough and Elon Musk leaves for Mars, we'll be rid of him.
DeleteBecause many of you are finding this week's NPR puzzle to be relatively easily solvable, here are two puzzles perhaps more challenging: the first from a recent Puzzleria! and the second from the current Puzzleria!:
ReplyDeleteFrom March 14:
A perceived lack of awareness about a particular issue was the impetus for an event that was intended to help remedy, or at least alleviate, that issue.
Name that event by translating into Pig Latin a synonym of one of the eleven different nouns in the first two sentences of this puzzle.
Those nouns are:
1. lack 2. awareness 3. issue 4. impetus 5. event 6. Pig 7. Latin 8. synonym 9. nouns 10. sentences 11. puzzle
What are that word and its synonym that you must translate into Pig Latin?
What is the event?
From The Current Puzzleria:
Name things musicians play.
Five interior letters spell how some musicians play.
The remaining letters are an anagram of one of the games people play.
What do musicians play? How do some musicians play? What is one of the games people play?
Hint: Take the first five letters and the last letter of the things musicians play. Add a g. Rearrange these seven letters to spell a plural word for parts of what "some musicians play" and for parts of the equipment used in the "game people play."
LegoBeggingBlaine'sIndulgence
Thanks, Lego. They were fun. Am I permitted to reveal the answers now? Or should I wait?
DeleteIf you really want challenges, check out the Apps from the "mysterious contributor" on Puzzleria! this week.
DeleteI'm still stumped by #1 and #3 even with hints.
Thanks, Dr. K. It is always a pleasure hearing from you. And congrats on your "solvification." You may reveal your answer to the March 14 puzzle any time you wish. But please hold off on revealing your answer to the current Puzzleria! puzzle until noon PDT on Wednesday, when solvers begin revealing their answers in the Puzzleria! Comments Section.
DeleteAnd Tortitude, who is herself a skilled and accomplished regular puzzle-maker on Puzzleria! ("Tortie's Slow but Sure Puzzles"), is 100% correct about the "Appetizing" puzzles penned and contributed by the "mysterious contributor" on this week's Puzzleria!... Quite challenging!
LegoGratefulToBlaineForThisGreatBlog!
Of course. As soon as I posted the above, I realized the 2nd answers were off limits for a while. That said, here's the answer to #1:
Deletelack —> a (ā) dearth —> Earth Day.
Thanks again, Lego.
It seems like Dr. K -for Kryptonite- could blow through those Apps.
DeleteThanks, Plantsmith. I wish I had as much confidence in myself as you do.
DeletePlantsmith, Kryptonite is no joke. I know it from personal experience.
DeleteLately I've noticed the puzzles seem so simple, the answers come lightning fast. Then I rack my brains for clues, and have no creativity or motivation going. I'm burnt out.
ReplyDeleteI suspect 90% of the submissions will be correct this week.
ReplyDeleteLet's see some alternate answers! I have one that almost works:
ReplyDeleteTrump University -> Trump Universe
(Note: this is not an endorsement of Trump!)
Musical Clue: Dan + Shay
ReplyDeleteCool!
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteA black bird walks into a crowbar and has a rusty nail.
ReplyDeleteA heavily perspiring ballerina stumbles into a barre and does not appear wet.
ReplyDeleteMy frustration with recent puzzles is that they are ambiguous with regard to what information we are supposed to submit. When they say "What is it?", does 'it' refer to the corporation or to the occurrence?
ReplyDeleteIf I understand correctly, they accept submissions up until 3 p.m. EST, but call someone almost immediately after that, so I imagine a scenario where a spreadsheet is generated from our responses, and they do a search for the correct answer. If I give both possible answers - corporation and occurrence - I could be disqualifying myself, should their search be for an exact answer that includes only one of them, like a script that evaluates "if ViewerResponse = 'Mazda Motor' then FlagCorrect = True".
I'm probably waaaay overthinking this, but I would like to know how you all address this. Is there an unstated rule that says "give only the first unknown phrase" or "give both the original and the resulting phrases"? Or does it not matter as long as either the original or resulting phrase is submitted?
Perry,
DeleteThank you for providing us with the first real puzzle we have had in quite a while.
And all the King's horses, and all the King's men were embarrassed.
ReplyDeleteWe don't know exactly HOW they choose the "winner," either. Chances are, they don't pull 'em out of a hat. There's something weird here.
ReplyDeleteWhatever their system is, it seems pretty random to me.
ReplyDeleteI was on the air several years ago and less than a month later, my name was selected a second time! I told the producer that I would be happy to play again but it would probably tick-off some long-time listeners so if he’d rather give the opportunity to someone else, that’d be fine with me. How many lapel pins does someone need after all? He was very thankful and took me up on my offer. I’ve never been called again.
I meant less than a "year" later.
DeleteIf anyone here is troubled by falling asleep too easily at night, or sleeping too soundly, let me recommend Annie Jacobsen's new book, "Nuclear War: A Scenario".
ReplyDeleteIn the alternative, catch some cable news?
DeleteCame up with it Sunday, neglected to submit until 10 minutes ago. Hopefully I unwittingly gamed the system to favor my name getting picked.
ReplyDeleteI was reminded of running themes in two separate TV shows - neither of which are Columbo.
30 Rock had a running ribbing of General Electric, the parent company of NBC, through its run, and How I Met Your Mother had a running gag of mock-saluting at phrases that begin with military ranks, i.e. corporal punishment or, say, General Electric.
DeleteGeneral Electric --> general election
ReplyDeleteLast Sunday I said, “It’s been relatively clear where I live and I’ve been seeing many stars.” Think stars. Think Generals. Think General Electric // general election.
GENERAL ELECTRIC, founded 1892 → GENERAL ELECTION
ReplyDeleteGENERAL ELECTRIC >>> GENERAL ELECTION
ReplyDeleteMy Hint:
"Come on! This was not a major corporation!"
One cannot be both a general and a major at the same time. I hope no one thought I was being critical of this puzzle. Far be it from my ever doing such a thing. No, I was simply providing some clarification along with a tiny hint.
Saw your comment, figured there was a kernel of truth in it....
DeleteYes, but let's keep that private. Okay?
DeleteAt the risk of receiving Corporal punishment, I looked up the various Army ranks in Private and Generally speaking, Major General ranks between Brigadier General and Lieutenant General.
DeleteScarlett,
DeleteYes, but major and major general are not at all the same. A major rank is the first level of a field grade officer. Then one progresses to Lieutenant colonel. Colonel is next, and is the last grade before the general ranks. It begins with brigadier general and then major general and eventually lieutenant general before it ends in the rank of general, which is a full general ranking at 4 stars. Beyond that there have been a handful of 5 star generals, or admirals. This referred to as General of the Army, although it may also apply to the navy, etc. One person achieved this ranking twice. There's an easy puzzle for you to solve. Who was it? Keep in mind that all of this is just speaking generally, of course.
Note: We would also have had a Field Marshall during WWII, except they did not think it wise to have Field Marshall Marshall. Catch 22 all over again.
Is it U.S. Grant (one posthumously)?
DeleteNo, and not George Washington either. It was Hap Arnold. He was a 5 star general of the army during WWII and ran the Army Air-force. After the war ended the Air Force was created, which he then ran as an Air Force 5 star general. James Gould Cozzens served under his command, and that is how he came to write the Pulitzer winning novel award in 1949: Guard Of Honor.
Delete"Henry Harley "Hap" Arnold was an American general officer holding the ranks of General of the Army and later, General of the Air Force. Wikipedia"
Thanks for the history lesson. I always learn from you and others on this thread.
DeleteGENERAL ELECTRIC —> GENERAL ELECTION
ReplyDeleteHINT: “Six of the fifteen letters of the event make up a color that’s relevant to it.”
and
“For those who’ve solved this easy NPR puzzle, the letters in the event I was referring to are letters 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, and 14, but rearranged.”
—> not red, white, or blue but G + E + N + R + A + O —> ORANGE
GENERAL ELECTRIC, GENERAL ELECTION
ReplyDelete> This ranks as one of the easiest NPR Sunday Puzzles.
Major (as in American corporation) and General (as in Electric) are both military ranks.
> 32
Germanium has atomic number 32 and atomic symbol Ge
> I have a product of the company's founder, with his name and face on the label.
It's an Edison Amberol Record cylinder, like this one.
> Not like Victor Frankenstein.
GE said they bring good things to life.
Jan, as a record collector--vinyl and shellac--I'm intrigued. Do you have the equipment, a cylinder phonograph, to play it?
DeleteNo. It's just a curio now.
DeleteWe are proud to present a Puzzleria! this week that is “Chuck-full of wonderstruck, thunderstruck sticklers!” Yes, our friend Chuck has prepared a four-pack of appetizing puzzles for his always-electifying "Conundrumbstruck by Chuck" feature. They are titled: "Flipped flight," "Phonetic affliction," “In The Beginning...” and "Burma Shave?"
ReplyDeleteAlso on our menus this week:
* a Schpuzzle of the Week titled “Where do you put a potable?”
* a Healthcare Hors d’Oeuvre titled "Prevention versus Recovery,"
* a Presidential & Publishing Slice titled "Namesake and pen name,"
* an “Ouch That Smarts!” For Smarties Dessert titled “The Agony and the Anodyne,” and
* 13 riff-offs of this week's NPR challenge titled “General Electric vs General Election,” ten of which were composed by our friends Winkin', Blinkin' and Nodd... Oops! I mean Plantsmith, Ecoarchitect and Nodd!, all three who, like Chuck, are regular puzzle-contributors to Puzzleria!
That's 21 puzzles... just solve three per day and you'll be ready for next week's P!
LegoWinkin'Blinkin'N'Thinkin'
General Electric/General Election
ReplyDeleteMy, Stock Market comment was a reference to The Dow Jones Index. General Electric was one of the 30 components of The Dow from 1907 to 2018, the longest continuous presence of any company in The Dow.
GENERAL ELECTRIC, GENERAL ELECTION
ReplyDeleteSuper easy puzzle. 'Nuff said.
sdb, I enjoyed your clue about GE not being a major corporation (but a general one ;-)).
I noticed you did. :-)
DeleteWhereas I completely did not see where you were going with that. I guess I don't rank as high with you now.
DeleteJAWS,
DeleteI'm giving you a pass on that because it was making me laugh a bit. You can regain some points if you can see the humor in the 3 one liners I posted yesterday and Tuesday above.
Yeah, I liked that too -- I added "Still, there's a grain of truth in the official description," alluding to a kernel, and all of them being officers. (If not for the problem of TMI, that might have set off an avalanche of puns!)
DeleteGeneral Electric, general election.
ReplyDeleteMy comment was referring to the NJ primary election for Senate. I wouldn't do it justice to describe it, but suffice to say it involves "Gold Bar" Menendez, the governor's wife (who rang up endorsements with no relevant experience), Andy Kim (not the "Rock Me Gently" guy!), unfair ballots (likely unconstitutional - even NJ's Attorney General said so), and lawsuits.
My home state. Plus ça change...
DeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteGeneral Electric--General Election
ReplyDeleteGeneral Electric, General Election. Not a hard one this week.
ReplyDeleteI still don't get Blaine's Mazda hint, but I wanted mainly to end a comment with "for example," which abbreviates to GE backwards.
ReplyDeleteEdison Mazda?
DeleteYes. Fun to learn something new and enlightening
DeleteI knew about it from Maxfield Parrish.
DeleteGeneral Electric, general election
ReplyDeleteGeneral Electric general election. Rickster's comment about a second tier actor was no doubt a reference to Ronald Reagan. Reagan was the host of GE theater for several years in the 1950's until sometime during the Kennedy years, when he was fired by GE, at the request of Bobby Kennedy. The reason was that GE wanted fat government contracts and would be willing to lose its star, Reagan, to get them. Michael Reagan, his adopted son, tells this story with disdain to this day! I think it's kind of funny. I think Reagan went on speaking engagements also, in the name of GE. I also referred to a not-so-bad novelist. This is a reference to Kurt Vonnegut, who worked for GE in public relations before he found success as a novelist.
ReplyDeleteMy first summer job, centuries ago, was at AC Spark Plug - a division of General *Motors* - making missile guidance systems(!) My first half-hour of employment consisted of being shown a film of Ronald Reagan with a bright red tie telling the evils of the Red terror. All I could think was: "This guy sells Boraxo?" Check it out on YouTube.
DeleteThat is a gem. Thanks. It really trickles down.
DeleteYou got it, Musinglink.
DeleteSorry I'm late to the party…
ReplyDeleteGENERAL ELECTRIC — GENERAL ELECTION
My clues:
The corporation was mentioned in a Columbo episode, and very much in the context of that which will occur later this year.
That Columbo episode is “Agenda for Murder” (S9 E3). It includes a scene with a conversation between the characters of Governor Montgomery and Congressman Mackey. Mackey says: “We’re selling off the U.S.—a piece here, a piece there. What’s next? General Electric?” Montgomery then tells Mackey he will be running for president, and he wants Mackey as his running mate. Meaning, there is a general election ahead.
Geographic clue: Southwest Florida.
I was thinking of Thomas Alva Edison, obviously a pioneer in the field of electricity. As the Wikipedia article says: “Ultimately, his entrepreneurship was central to the formation of some 14 companies, including General Electric.”
I could have posted a New Jersey geographic clue, but after Blaine blog-administered an earlier post, I chose to be more cautious, and settled on the more remote association with Fort Myers, where Edison had his winter home, now part of the Edison & Ford Winter Estates (which I have visited—twice).
GE is not mentioned on the Wikimedia list of defunct companies, yet, probably because the decisive split only occurred a few weeks ago. The split has been recorded on the GE Wikipedia entry, though, where it is noted that GE is defunct as of April 2, 2024.
Good research. Schenectady would have been a dead giveaway, so Florida was better. I might check out that Columbo episode.
DeleteI had commented that I was reminded of a professional wrestler. The replaced letters in Electric reminded me of Ric Flair. I didn't want to narrow it down any more, because I didn't want to slip into TMI.
ReplyDeleteI've been out of the country for some weeks. I just wanted to say how happy I am that Will Shortz is back!
ReplyDeleteOver/under 2000 to 2200, I think.
ReplyDeleteGENERAL ELECTRIC, GENERAL ELECTION
ReplyDeletepjbAlsoKnowsTheReplacedLettersAndTheReplacementLettersCanAllBeCombinedToSpell[IRONIC]
Hey, I was enthusiastic about the Trump Bible. Not anymore: https://youtu.be/i_6TVa7scKM?si=Uu9EwZfS_AueREpH. This guy tells the truth about the low quality, overpriced, made-in-China scam that this is.
ReplyDeleteThere is a more interesting major corporation in 12 letters that has several puzzle possibilities. Okay, I will help you out here. It is WESTINGHOUSE. Insert a 3 letter word that is important come November. WIN will work. Now we have: WEST WING HOUSE. Now insert a color just before the last syllable. WHITE is the color word. Now we have WEST WING WHITE HOUSE.
ReplyDeleteEdison and Westinghouse feuded bitterly at first for the municipal electrification business. Edison was the direct current promoter, Westinghouse was for alternating current, which ultimate won out. Edison contended (correctly) that AC was more dangerous. When AC was chosen for the first execution by electric chair, Edison pushed for the process to be called "being Westinghoused".
DeleteMy clue - “The puzzle doesn’t specify whether the company is currently still in business or not, I guess that leaves the choice of interpretation to us would-be solvers.” - “specify” was an opposite reference to “general”; “currently” was a reference to “electric”, and “choice” was a reference to “election”
ReplyDeleteMazda, of course, derives from the title Ahurs Mazda, the ancient Persian name for the Supreme Being.worshipped by Zoroastrians, or Parsees.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteTo tie up my loose ends, here are the two Puzzleria! Puzzles I posted on Blaine's Blog on Monday, along with their answers. (Open THIS LINK to access the current Puzzleria!):
ReplyDeleteFrom March 14:
A perceived lack of awareness about a particular issue was the impetus for an event that was intended to help remedy, or at least alleviate, that issue.
Name that event by translating into Pig Latin a synonym of one of the eleven different nouns in the first two sentences of this puzzle.
Those nouns are:
1. lack 2. awareness 3. issue 4. impetus 5. event 6. Pig 7. Latin 8. synonym 9. nouns 10. sentences 11. puzzle
What are that word and its synonym that you must translate into Pig Latin?
What is the event?
Answer
LACK, DEARTH; EARTH DAY
From Last Week's Puzzleria:
Name things musicians play.
Five interior letters spell how some musicians play.
The remaining letters are an anagram of one of the games people play.
What do musicians play? How do some musicians play? What is one of the games people play?
Hint: Take the first five letters and the last letter of the things musicians play. Add a g. Rearrange these seven letters to spell a plural word for parts of what "some musicians play" and for parts of the equipment used in the "game people play."
Answer:
Instruments;
Strum;
Tennis
Hint: Guitar, banjo, oud and mandolin players strum strings. Strings are also parts of tennis rackets.
Lego(NotToBeConfusedWithJoeStrummerOfThisGroup
This week's challenge comes from listener Chad Graham, of Philadelphia. Think of a famous male singer of the past with two A's in his name. Drop both A's and the remaining letters can be rearranged to name a popular make of automobile. What is it?
ReplyDeleteI was going to say "Another one of those vague wordings," but "What is it?" clearly refers to the make of automobile, so that will be the answer I submit (if I submit; I often play just for kicks).
ReplyDeleteAnother easy puzzle
ReplyDeleteHe made a commercial for a competitor.
ReplyDeleteAnd the "Notify Me" function is back!
ReplyDeleteIt is?
Delete2600 correct answers
ReplyDelete