"Stuck In The Middle" April 28, 2023

[MikeMillerwsj]

The contest answer is GLUE. The four longest Across answers each begin and end with the same three- or four-letter chunk, and the middle letters spell a word (like ASK in ETCH A SKETCH) that begins the clue for another answer. The middle letters of those answers, in grid order, spell the contest answer.

This was one of our recent favorites and solvers clearly agreed: We had 2,587 entries and fully 94% found the ingenious solution, well over our usual rate around 75%. A decent turnout for SAGA (18... can someone explain why?), plus OREO (3), GELL, OARS, PRIM and a few others.

Congrats to this week's winner: Ron Papritz of Amityville, NY!

[MMe]

A decent turnout for SAGA (18... can someone explain why?)

Middle letters of the themers are:

AI
A
S
GE

Adding a healthy dose of get-this-over-with, it clearly must be SAGA.

[ron]

I won!

[Deb F]

I won!

Yahoo. Love it when a Muggle gets the win! And the mug. Congratulations and enjoy!

[BethA]

For some reason, maybe the use of the word “letter” in the clue which is also used in the meta prompt, it seemed to me that 62D was supposed to be used to solve the meta. So I was expecting the letters from the first step to be an acronym or initialism that we would then find a 4-letter word by expanding its second letter.

Would you believe that I actually googled UGEL to see if that was an acronym??

For years, Mike consistently used the initial order of the theme answers to form the final answer. So I got that ingrained. I know that in recent years, things have changed and sometimes the resulting grid order is used instead.

Thus my DUH moment on Friday morning!

[The XWord Rabbit]

Answers to your Rabbit's trivia test:

The New York Times began regularly publishing a crossword puzzle for the Sunday edition beginning in 1942. This cast iron doorstop “Crossed Out” was manufactured by Hubley later that same decade as the crossword craze swept the nation.

The Schmoo made his first appearance in Al Capp’s comic strip “Li’l Abner” in 1948.
It soon became a licensing phenomenon, as explained by Col. Sherman Potter in the
Episode “Who Knew?” of M*A*S*H



Bugs Bunny gets the last word in the “Rabbit of Seville”: “Next!”

The spire atop the Empire State Building was designed to serve as a mooring mast for docking dirigibles. Only once was it actually used for that purpose, as the dangers of doing so became immediately clear, what with high winds and insufficient space needed for crewmen to tether an airship.

[woozy]

In the 70s there was a Saturday Morning cartoon called "The New Schmoo". I was startled and disappointed in that it had *nothing* to do with Li'l Abner.

I think question one is a trick question. The cartoon in question had no spoken dialog? It ended with Bugs Bunny and Elmer Fudd getting married.

EDIT: oh read the posts.

Wednesdays sure come earlier these days.

[Bob cruise director]

rsz_dumbfoundedrabbit.jpg


Answers to your Rabbit's trivia test:

The New York Times began regularly publishing a crossword puzzle for the Sunday edition beginning in 1942. This cast iron doorstop “Crossed Out” was manufactured by Hubley later that same decade as the crossword craze swept the nation.

The Schmoo made his first appearance in Al Capp’s comic strip “Li’l Abner” in 1948.
It soon became a licensing phenomenon, as explained by Col. Sherman Potter in the
Episode “Who Knew?” of M*A*S*H



Bugs Bunny gets the last word in the “Rabbit of Seville”: “Next!”

The spire atop the Empire State Building was designed to serve as a mooring mast for docking dirigibles. Only once was it actually used for that purpose, as the dangers of doing so became immediately clear, what with high winds and insufficient space needed for crewmen to tether an airship.

For those of the younger generation, Lil Abner was the Doonesbury of its day. A schmoo was all things to all people. It would clean up around the house, willingly be sliced and fried for generations and anything else you can think of.

And as the followup Lil Abner trivia - what was the organization called SWINE

[Bob cruise director]

The contest answer is GLUE. The four longest Across answers each begin and end with the same three- or four-letter chunk, and the middle letters spell a word (like ASK in ETCH A SKETCH) that begins the clue for another answer. The middle letters of those answers, in grid order, spell the contest answer.

This was one of our recent favorites and solvers clearly agreed: We had 2,587 entries and fully 94% found the ingenious solution, well over our usual rate around 75%. A decent turnout for SAGA (18... can someone explain why?), plus OREO (3), GELL, OARS, PRIM and a few others.

Congrats to this week's winner: Ron Papritz of Amityville, NY!

Another muggle wins the mug. Congratulations @ron

[JerryF]

I won!

Yahoo. Love it when a Muggle gets the win! And the mug. Congratulations and enjoy!

Congrats!

[woozy]

For those of the younger generation, Lil Abner was the Doonesbury of its day.

Um, what's a doonesbury?

.... or so I imagine a member of the younger generation might ask....

And as the followup Lil Abner trivia - what was the organization called SWINE

Ooh, I can't quite remember but I'm pretty sure Joanie Phoanie was involved.

(My uncle, who knew the real inspiration for Joanie Phoanie, was amused how right Capp got in his old age.)

EDIT: Google is your friend: