I inferred from 39A and its four-letter answer that there would be four instances of Harry/Sally.
"Looking for that Spark" - February 12, 2021
-
- Posts: 1005
- Joined: Sun Mar 22, 2020 2:35 pm
-
- Posts: 48
- Joined: Thu Jan 23, 2020 6:20 pm
Yes, the meta was clear. But is Harry 5 an Easter Egg (a literal rabbit hole), an additional theme element that we haven't cracked, or a flaw?flyingMoose wrote: ↑Mon Feb 15, 2021 12:23 amI inferred from 39A and its four-letter answer that there would be four instances of Harry/Sally.
Edit: Matt says it was not intentional.
- oldjudge
- Posts: 1695
- Joined: Fri Apr 19, 2019 4:16 am
- Location: Pasadena, CA
Also, (FI)eld+(RE)id=FIRE. I’m still trying to visualize that pair.
- Tom Shea
- Posts: 621
- Joined: Thu Apr 11, 2019 6:37 am
- Location: Freedonia, NH/VT/HI/Earth
Duke's at lunch and Hula for dinner for us. If you can plan ahead it's not so hard getting a table at either place. Knowing the bartenders helps also.
Edit:
Need to mention the best line of the movie was uttered by Carl Reiner's wife (and Rob's mother) - "I'll have what she's having."
Rufus T. Firefly
-
- Posts: 22
- Joined: Wed Nov 25, 2020 4:08 pm
According to numerous references, the title of the movie is "When Harry Met Sally...", including the dot dot dot. That's what I submitted. Does it matter?
- mheberlingx100
- Posts: 565
- Joined: Sun Jul 14, 2019 11:39 am
I saw it but wasn’t bothered, as I thought the confirmation of the crossing letters spelling FIRE was good enough for me.
- Colin
- Posts: 569
- Joined: Sat Apr 13, 2019 11:57 pm
I really wanted it to be The Loooooove Boat with Adam and Isaac in the grid. But as an engineer, I had to solve the reverse-engineering-style meta and only the Harry/Sally connections could do that. Nice one Matt!
One world. One planet. One future.
-
- Posts: 154
- Joined: Sat Apr 20, 2019 4:57 pm
I was just describing that scene to a friend who (amazingly) hadn't seen the movie. So good. The context was the lengths people will go in an effort to spare someone's feelings!Tom Shea wrote: ↑Mon Feb 15, 2021 4:42 amDuke's at lunch and Hula for dinner for us. If you can plan ahead it's not so hard getting a table at either place. Knowing the bartenders helps also. :lol:
Edit:
Need to mention the best line of the movie was uttered by Carl Reiner's wife (and Rob's mother) - "I'll have what she's having."
- Wendy Walker
- Posts: 1859
- Joined: Thu Apr 11, 2019 7:44 pm
- Location: Unionville, PA
I submitted the title with the three dots, too, but I don't think it matters.Bob Kerfuffle wrote: ↑Mon Feb 15, 2021 6:52 am According to numerous references, the title of the movie is "When Harry Met Sally...", including the dot dot dot. That's what I submitted. Does it matter?
Good luck, fellow Muggles!
- LadyBird
- Posts: 926
- Joined: Fri Apr 17, 2020 4:20 pm
- Location: Chicagoland
When putting in my order earlier at the Tiki Bar, I so wanted to say "I'll have what she's having", but too much of a spoiler!Tom Shea wrote: ↑Mon Feb 15, 2021 4:42 amDuke's at lunch and Hula for dinner for us. If you can plan ahead it's not so hard getting a table at either place. Knowing the bartenders helps also.
Edit:
Need to mention the best line of the movie was uttered by Carl Reiner's wife (and Rob's mother) - "I'll have what she's having."
We watched it again last night. What fun. Based on when it came out, we probably first saw it when we were dating.
- boharr
- Moderator
- Posts: 3365
- Joined: Fri Sep 06, 2019 8:57 am
- Location: Westchester, NY
If you went down the RabbitRun rabbit hole looking or a fifth Harry, you could find a Sally (if you pushed it) to go with him. Yeats, who/which crosses RabbitRun, wrote a poem called Down by the Salley Garden. And if you wanted to go all phonetic (as these constructers often do), looking at 21D Yeats, you could arrive at Sally Yates, the former deputy attorney general.Martin wrote: ↑Mon Feb 15, 2021 12:40 amYes, the meta was clear. But is Harry 5 an Easter Egg (a literal rabbit hole), an additional theme element that we haven't cracked, or a flaw?flyingMoose wrote: ↑Mon Feb 15, 2021 12:23 amI inferred from 39A and its four-letter answer that there would be four instances of Harry/Sally.
Edit: Matt says it was not intentional.
-
- Posts: 533
- Joined: Fri Jun 05, 2020 7:38 pm
- Location: Iowa
Regarding the Rabbit Run answer, I read that book last year as part of pandemic reading of some classic fiction. I enjoyed it but not enough to read the remaining Rabbit books. Am I missing much by not finishing the series?
- boharr
- Moderator
- Posts: 3365
- Joined: Fri Sep 06, 2019 8:57 am
- Location: Westchester, NY
The Rabbit books are terrific. Things change as Rabbit ages. That said, if Rabbit Run didn't really float your boat, I'm not sure the others would. Still, that leaves plenty of other books to read.
-
- Posts: 1739
- Joined: Sat Dec 28, 2019 10:09 am
What was the point of the FIRE? It was completely inconsequential with respect to getting the name of the movie. It kind of made me feel that the setter was showing off their mad meta construction skillz.
- Annabelle
- Posts: 223
- Joined: Sat Apr 18, 2020 4:26 pm
I had the same urge with my order at the bar, but also resisted. Very fun movie and THE classic line!LadyBird wrote: ↑Mon Feb 15, 2021 8:30 amWhen putting in my order earlier at the Tiki Bar, I so wanted to say "I'll have what she's having", but too much of a spoiler!Tom Shea wrote: ↑Mon Feb 15, 2021 4:42 amDuke's at lunch and Hula for dinner for us. If you can plan ahead it's not so hard getting a table at either place. Knowing the bartenders helps also.
Edit:
Need to mention the best line of the movie was uttered by Carl Reiner's wife (and Rob's mother) - "I'll have what she's having."
We watched it again last night. What fun. Based on when it came out, we probably first saw it when we were dating.
- HunterX
- Posts: 1245
- Joined: Fri Dec 04, 2020 9:17 pm
- Location: Philadelphia, PA
I wouldn't go there. Though... easier to imagine than Sally Field and Harry Houdini!
- HunterX
- Posts: 1245
- Joined: Fri Dec 04, 2020 9:17 pm
- Location: Philadelphia, PA
I did not submit with the dots. But I agree that it shouldn't matter, based on what we've read here in the past about the method of determining the winner. (I used to wonder whether things like an apostrophe, which can't be used in the on-line submission, or ALL CAPS mattered.)Wendy Walker wrote: ↑Mon Feb 15, 2021 8:08 amI submitted the title with the three dots, too, but I don't think it matters.Bob Kerfuffle wrote: ↑Mon Feb 15, 2021 6:52 am According to numerous references, the title of the movie is "When Harry Met Sally...", including the dot dot dot. That's what I submitted. Does it matter?
- MikeM000
- Posts: 579
- Joined: Mon Aug 24, 2020 11:31 am
- Location: Metro Detroit
I think it makes sense especially from the POV of using these as introductory metas to show new solvers the different ways puzzle elements interact and provide the confirming 'click'. With just Harry/Sally crossings, it looks more like a themed crossword. By taking the crossing letters and making a grid entry that fits thematically with a 2nd definition of a title word, it adds fullness and confirmation to the meta and familiarizes people to matching up the grid, clues, and title.
The only odd thing to me was that FIRE wasn't in the bottom right...
- ky-mike
- Posts: 2201
- Joined: Thu Apr 11, 2019 4:22 pm
- Location: Near Louisville Ky
Since this is part of a series of puzzles to help bring new meta solvers into the fold, it is demonstrating one technique of a meta construction. This one was pretty easy for seasoned solvers, but may not have been quite as easy for those newer to meta-land.
-
- Posts: 282
- Joined: Fri Sep 18, 2020 11:48 am
- Location: Palo Alto, California
I think Mr Porter nailed it. And if so I would never have gotten the right answer.Eric Porter wrote: ↑Fri Feb 12, 2021 12:50 am Like many here, I had the answer before fully understanding the mechanism being discussed in recent posts. If you get that, you'll have even less doubt.
I pondered whether Matt had that mind for the actual answer but dumbed the meta down a little because as Mike Miller explained, this month's puzzles are tailored to beginners.