NPR Sunday Puzzle (Jul 5, 2015): Ira Saw Three Emigrants Restock Large Wands

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Jul 5, 2015): Ira Saw Three Emigrants Restock Large Wands:

Q: The seven words in the following sentence have something very unusual in common — something that almost no other words in the English language share. What is it?

Ira saw three emigrants restock large wands.

I guess we can ignore "salt layer board thing"?

Edit: Those anagram to last, early, broad and night.

A: The words are anagrams of words in the Star-Spangled Banner: AIR, WAS, THERE, STREAMING, ROCKETS, GLARE, DAWN'S

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Jun 28, 2015): In the Company of a Famous Singer

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Jun 28, 2015): In the Company of a Famous Singer:

Q: Name a major American company. Drop its first and last letters, and the remaining letters in order will name a famous singer — both first and last names. What company is it?

And rearrange the singer's full name to name something you might see in the military.

AL GREEN --> GENERAL

A: WALGREENS --> AL GREEN

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Jun 21, 2015): I am a Monarch

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Jun 21, 2015): I am a Monarch:

Q: Take the phrase "I am a monarch." Re-arrange the 11 letters to name a world leader who was not a monarch but who ruled with similar authority. Who is it?

I read the clue incorrectly the first time. Hopefully you'll do better.

Hint: Better dead than read (or something like that)

A: CHAIRMAN MAO

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Jun 14, 2015): Head and Shoulders Above the Rest

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Jun 14, 2015): Head and Shoulders Above the Rest:

Q: Think of an adjective that describes many shampoos. Add the brand name of a shampoo in its basic form. The result, reading the letters in order from left to right, will name a famous musician. Who is it?

For some reason I keep coming back to The Jonas Brothers.

Edit: The initials of TJB have also been used as an abbreviation for Tijuana Brass.

A: HERBAL + PERT = HERB ALPERT

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Jun 7, 2015): Let Me Entertain You

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Jun 7, 2015): Let Me Entertain You:

Q: Name a famous person in Washington, D.C. — 7 letters in the first name, 5 letters in the last. Drop the last sound in the last name. The result — phonetically — will be the first and last name of a famous living entertainer. Who is it?

A: Loretta Lynch (attorney general), Loretta Lynn (singer)

NPR Sunday Puzzle (May 31, 2015): What comes first?

NPR Sunday Puzzle (May 31, 2015): What comes first?:

Q: A simple challenge: Think of a 5-letter word that can precede "chicken" to complete a common two-word phrase. Change the middle letter to get a new word that can follow "chicken" to complete a common two-word phrase. What phrases are these?

Not to complain but we were up late helping our son move back from college, so I apologize for the late post.

Edit: My clues were complain (roast) and back home (roost).

A: ROAST chicken --> chicken ROOST

NPR Sunday Puzzle (May 24, 2015): What's your Occupation?

NPR Sunday Puzzle (May 24, 2015): What's your Occupation?:

Q: Take the phrase "merchant raider." A merchant raider was a vessel in World War I and World War II that targeted enemy merchant ships. Rearrange the letters of "merchant raider" to get two well-known professions. What are they?

Sorry, didn't see that one coming so I wasn't prepared. You'll have to sift through the lists to find a pair of occupations on your own.

Edit: My clues hinted at the Radar Tech and Miner professions, but they may not be the intended answers.

A: RADAR TECH and MINER or RANCHER and MAITRE'D

NPR Sunday Puzzle (May 17, 2015): Traveling Around The Globe

NPR Sunday Puzzle (May 17, 2015): Traveling Around The Globe:

Q: Name a country with at least three consonants. These are the same consonants, in the same order, as in the name of a language spoken by millions of people worldwide. The country and the place where the language is principally spoken are in different parts of the globe. What country and what language are these?

On the lists I checked, both the country and the language rank somewhere in the middle.

Edit: The hint was "rank" which contains the consonants in one of the answers.

A: UKRAINE --> KOREAN (alternate answers on the NPR website)

NPR Sunday Puzzle (May 10, 2015): 5 Letters, 1-2-3 Syllables

NPR Sunday Puzzle (May 10, 2015): 5 Letters, 1-2-3 Syllables:

Q: The letters of the one-syllable word "groan" can be rearranged to spell "organ," which has two syllables. Here's the challenge: Think of a common one-syllable, five-letter word whose letters can be rearranged to spell a common two-syllable word — and then rearranged again to spell a common three-syllable word. I have two different answers in mind, and it's possible there are others, but you only have to think of one.

Are plurals allowed?

Before I edited it down, my full hint was going to be "Who can help me? Are plurals allowed? Thoughts?" But that seemed a little too obvious.

A: AIDES, ASIDE, IDEAS or AIMED, AMIDE, MEDIA

NPR Sunday Puzzle (May 3, 2015): Everything, Including The Kitchen Sink

NPR Sunday Puzzle (May 3, 2015): Everything, Including The Kitchen Sink:

Q: Think of a common two-word phrase for something you might see in a kitchen. Reverse the words — that is, put the second word in front of the first — and you'll name a food, in one word, that you might prepare in a kitchen. What is it?

Growing up my mother insisted we eat everything on our plate. If you didn't finish your lima beans at one meal, she starved you, and you had nothing but those lima beans until you ate them.

Edit: The phrase "she starved you" anagrams to Shrove Tuesday.

A: CAKE PAN --> PANCAKE