Jean & Mike Do The New York Times Crossword

There was cause for much celebration at JAMDTNYTC HQ, as the J of the aforementioned podcast made her triumphant return to the studio. She  chose an auspicious day to do so, because the crossword was awash with theme clues, which she spotted with unnerving accuracy.We also have a Triplet Tuesday™️ segment for your enjoyment.Show note imagery: Ah, yes, we remember the dreaded EDITWARS of aught-six, We love feedback! Send us a text...Contact Info:We love listener mail! Drop us a line, [email protected], we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there and strike up a conversation!

Today's crossword — a joint effort by Andrea Carla Michaels and Dena R. Verkuil — had a lot of appeal, and if that generates peals of laughter, then this sentence will have done its job! Being a Monday, the puzzle was straightforward: its mission was to entertain and entice, not (as sometimes happens later in the week) confound and confuse. As today's episode can attest, it succeeded on all fronts.Show note imagery: SHEL Silverstein and Johnny Cash, writer and singer, respectively, of "A Boy Named Sue".We love feedback! Send us a text...Contact Info:We love listener mail! Drop us a line, [email protected], we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there and strike up a conversation!

Today's crossword — a very nice piece of work by Henry Lin-David and Frank S. David — featured an adorable, tiny escape room! You can't miss it — it's right in the center of the grid — and you also can't escape it, because the room is entirely walled off from the rest of the grid by black squares. This is only the 31st time, in the entire history of the NYTimes crossword, that the puzzle has included a disconnected region (it's hard to have crosswords if words don't cross!), but it is all for a very good cause. Check out today's episode for all the deets.Show note imagery: On the left, a cake topped with STREUSEL; on the right, an apple strudelWe love feedback! Send us a text...Contact Info:We love listener mail! Drop us a line, [email protected], we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there and strike up a conversation!

It's not often that we get to haul "effervescent" out of long-term storage, dust it off, and plant it where it needs planting, but today is one of those days, for the crossword, by Adam Wagner and Michael Lieberman, was terrific. The puzzle was not the hardest Saturday we've seen — in part because the Pop Culture Meter was close to 0 — but the clues were just delights, every one of them an intricate work of a master crossword constructor / punster. Deets inside.Show note imagery: MOTHRA and Godzilla, in such a frightening battle that they scared all the colors away 😱We love feedback! Send us a text...Contact Info:We love listener mail! Drop us a line, [email protected], we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there and strike up a conversation!

Considering that this is Robyn Weintraub's 37th Friday crossword(!),  she has certainly earned the sobriquet, the Queen of Fridays. We hope she wears her crown at a jaunty angle, in honor of the many jaunty clues in today's puzzle. We enjoyed the bait-and-switch of 6D, Sounds of fall?, THUDS; the spirited defiance implied in 13D, "Keep Commerce Human" website, ETSY; and the somewhat esoteric (at least from Mike's perspective), 23D, Fabric related to chambray, DENIM.TLDR; Another fine Robyn Weintraub puzzle, worth every one of the 5 squares, on the JAMCR scale, that we hereby bestow upon it.Show note imagery: Pretty much every 10th building in major Canadian cities, Tim Hortons (no apostrophe!)We love feedback! Send us a text...Contact Info:We love listener mail! Drop us a line, [email protected], we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there and strike up a conversation!

Today's crossword, by Simeon Seigel, featured another "puzzle-within-a-puzzle", and we loved it, from 1A, TikTok stars, to many, IDOLS, all the way down to 61A, Filler akin to "like ..." or "I mean ...", YKNOW — and everything in between. A few non-themed clues stood out, among them 6A, Locale for an old flame?, WICK (very nice!); 53D, Completely savage, PAN (we were not ready for that one!); and the "duh, of course"-inducing 27A, New Year's date, concisely, ONEONE. There were more, and they are in today's episode, so check it out and then let us know what you think!Show note image: Golf club taxonomyShow note videography: a WAVETANK, in motion: We love feedback! Send us a text...Contact Info:We love listener mail! Drop us a line, [email protected], we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there and strike up a conversation!

Our cohosts had very different experiences, solving today's puzzle. Jean cruised through it like the QE2 on a serene summer's day; Mike's journey was more reminiscent of the Vasa's, thanks to a series of stupefying own goals, although he did eventually emerge from the depths, sputtering and muttering oaths like "what the deuce!". Details of the full saga are one click away, so download, listen up, and ... enjoy!Show note imagery: The Vasa, a 17th century Swedish warship that sank in Stockholm harbor just as it was beginning its maiden voyage.We love feedback! Send us a text...Contact Info:We love listener mail! Drop us a line, [email protected], we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there and strike up a conversation!

We are pleased to report that Sunny Maharjan has joined the elite pantheon of NYTimes crossword constructors. This, his debut, is a gem. It was a quick solve (especially for Jean), but the theme was a hoot and a half (which we conjecture is a well-known adage, somewhere — we just don't know where). What we do know is that the rest of the grid had some abfab clues, such as 67A, College, to Aussies, UNIS; 15D, Shape of conchiglie pasta, SHELL (ok, now we know); and 1D, Jaguar's home, JUNGLE (not, as Mike originally theorized, GARAGE).Beyond the crossword analysis, we have a Triplet Tuesday™️ segment for your enjoyment, and another listener-inspired edition of So, That's How You Pronounce It!. Enjoy!!Show note imagery: Dame Judi DENCH, playing M alongside a person who definitely likes their MARTINI shaken, not stirred.We love feedback! Send us a text...Contact Info:We love listener mail! Drop us a line, [email protected], we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there and strike up a conversation!

For the of you who are feeling nostalgic for Muzak, you have two choices: this crossword, or Urgent Care 😀. We recommend the former, because Jeff Chen and Stephan Prock have put together a wonderful Monday offering, as we discuss in today's episode.We are also pleased to announce our JAMCOTWA™️ (Jean And Mike Crossword Of The Week Award) for this week, namely [REDACTED: SEE PODCAST FOR ALL THE DEETS].Show note imagery: Regardless of how you spell it, ODES(S)A is one cool city!We love feedback! Send us a text...Contact Info:We love listener mail! Drop us a line, [email protected], we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there and strike up a conversation!

John Kugelman has written 24 crosswords for the NYTimes, including an impressive 17 Sundays. Today's was novel, in that for the first time it featured color illustrations — Gray Lady indeed! Both cohosts found the puzzle to be a challenge, definitely crunchier than usual for a Sunday — filled with fascinating clues and quite a few bedeviling naticks*. We loved it, and thereby bestow upon it 5 squares on the JAMCR scale.Show note imagery: Aww, it's a SHIHPOO ❤️*A natick consists of two clues whose answers cross and are both unknown to the solver.We love feedback! Send us a text...Contact Info:We love listener mail! Drop us a line, [email protected], we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there and strike up a conversation!

Both cohosts found today's crossword easier than yesterday's, but just as entertaining. It featured some phenomenal clues, including those discussed on today's episode, but here are a few more to whet your appetite:29A, European landmark whose name begins with an "A" in classical literature, ETNA (curious!)1A, Made chitchat, SCHMOOZED (curiouser!!)31A, Reduced price?, AMT (curiousest??)We also have a poker aficionado set us straight on the question of poker rivers in today's listener mail.You'll definitely want to check out all that, and you can do so, very easily, by clicking on the ol' play button, somewhere in the vicinity of where you are reading these words.Show note imagery: Definitely not your typical African lions, doing the lion dance in Qinhuangdao, China.We love feedback! Send us a text...Contact Info:We love listener mail! Drop us a line, [email protected], we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there and strike up a conversation!

Both cohosts struggled mightily with today's crossword, the third from Julian Xiao since 2024. Here are just a few clues, to give you a taste of the difficulty level (spoiler alert: it's high):28A, Cooking term whose name is composed of two synonyms for "criticize", PANROAST (excellent!)57A, System by which all speech is protected?, SECURELINE (tricky and a debut)23D, First country to elect a female prime minister (1960), SRILANKA (nice!)We cover quite a few more in today's podcast, and have a terrific Fun Fact Friday segment / game for your enjoyment, so get it now, hot off the presses (um, so to speak)!Show note imagery: The Shanghai Maglev, the fastest passenger train in the worldWe love feedback! Send us a text...Contact Info:We love listener mail! Drop us a line, [email protected], we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there and strike up a conversation!

If it seems like you've been seeing Zhou Zhang's name in the crossword a lot, lately, you are not imagining things: her name has appeared in the masthead a whopping 7 times ... and the year's not over! The reason she is appearing so frequently is as obvious as today's crossword was sublime — she writes clever, quirky clues that make you think, smile, and feel great once, or if, you've figured them out. Check out today's podcast for a profusion of examples. Show note imagery: An example of Labanotation, a dance notation used by choreologists to capture dance moves.We love feedback! Send us a text...Contact Info:We love listener mail! Drop us a line, [email protected], we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there and strike up a conversation!

Mac Motz has produced a mmmmagnificent debut crossword. We are not entirely sure how he came up with the theme, but we thought it terrific — we are such suckers for alliteration. Who could resist 46A, Making out openly or a mobile device, in brief, PDA; or 12D, Member of a membership, TIER; or 50D, Mouth moistener, SALIVA. We could go on and on, because every single clue had the same alliterative structure. Stupendous! This definitely merits a full and enthusiastic 5 squares on the JAMCR scale.Show note imagery: UPS, née The American Messenger Company We love feedback! Send us a text...Contact Info:We love listener mail! Drop us a line, [email protected], we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there and strike up a conversation!

This was a relatively rare event, a double debut for Paul Hudes and Margot Kohn. Kudos to both for an excellent job. The theme sparkled, and clues like 53A, Like Javan rhinos, RARE; 29A, Risky bets, FLIERS; and a reference to Mike's favorite beverage, 22D, Locale of Coca-Cola's headquarters: Abbr., ATL kept us thoroughly engaged.After analyzing the crossword, there is a Triplet Tuesday segment in honor of, well, Tuesday — and Jean makes short work of it.Show note imagery: A Javan rhino, one of, if not the, rarest large mammals on Earth, with just over 70 known to exist.We love feedback! Send us a text...Contact Info:We love listener mail! Drop us a line, [email protected], we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there and strike up a conversation!

This was another fine Monday crossword by Christopher Youngs. The theme was delicious, and the clues maybe a tad more feisty than usual for a Monday. As an illustration, consider 37A, Took shots first, then paid for them later, RANATAB (nice!); 50A, "Need an ark? I Noah guy," e.g. PUN (argh!); and 43D, Tetra- minus one, TRI (indubitably 🧐).In honor of Monday we have picked out our JAMCOTWA, a doozie of a crossword that really tickled our fancy. Deets inside.Show note imagery: The Inuit village, of Oopungnewing, near Frobisher Bay, Baffin Island, about 160 years ago.We love feedback! Send us a text...Contact Info:We love listener mail! Drop us a line, [email protected], we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there and strike up a conversation!

Today's crossword relied on an anagram-adjacent concept, that of a letter bank: all the letters in the clue can be used as many times (but at least once) in the answer. Once you realize this (which may only happen once you get the revealer figured out), you can rule out answers that include non-banked letters, considerably shortening the solve. 😀 What makes the puzzle particularly challenging (and therefore fun!) is the need to recognize the names in the answer based only on an unrelated name. Both cohosts were able to get through this, Jean through talent and encyclopedic knowledge, Mike by repeating his mantra, aka the Galaxy Quest theme — never give up, never surrender*. There were a slew of difficult (read: abfab) head scratchers in today's crossword. We don't have enough room to list all of them(!), but these certainly got our attention: 82D, Barolos e Brunellos, VINOS; 52D, John ___ Day (California commemoration), MUIR; and 42D, Double-breasted pieces of menswear, POLOCOATS.Show note imagery: John MUIR, environmentalist extraordinaire!*unless it's a Saturday Sam Ezersky puzzle, in which case knock yourself out 😀 We love feedback! Send us a text...Contact Info:We love listener mail! Drop us a line, [email protected], we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there and strike up a conversation!

Rafael Musa and Kate Chin Park have put together an awesome Saturday crossword, tough, fair, with some absolutely magnificent cluing. Both cohosts had to follow the advice of 42A, Put your backs into it, TRY — while reconciling that with the Yoda's famous quote and meme, "Do or do not. There is no try".We've covered some of our favorite clues in the podcast, but others stood out as well. We were enthralled with 35A, Ones giving a toast at an outdoor party?, PATIOHEATERS. 😀 Right beneath it was the nicely misleading 37A, Court session, perhaps, TENNISLESSON (ah, that kind of court...). Finally we had the rarely spotted 11A, Half-spoken, half-sung passages of an opera, ARIOSI. Show note imagery: Three of the founders of TECHNO — Juan Atkins, Kevin Saunderson and Derrick May — in their native habitat, aka the recording studio.We love feedback! Send us a text...Contact Info:We love listener mail! Drop us a line, [email protected], we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there and strike up a conversation!

Jack Hatchett seems to be getting a good handle on Friday crosswords. This marks his second in just over two months, and both have been quite entertaining. Today's did include a large dollop of pop culture, which Jean barely noticed, but caused Mike to mutter "heavens to murtagroyd!", and, in particularly sticky corners, "what the deuce!", while en route to victory. We have all the deets inside, plus a Fun Fact Friday segment that just may cause you to adjust your travel plans. Have a listen, and let us know what you think!Show note imagery: BRER Rabbit, getting ready to do something very tricky indeedWe love feedback! Send us a text...Contact Info:We love listener mail! Drop us a line, [email protected], we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there and strike up a conversation!

We wouldn't say that today's crossword had a boring theme, au contraire. But you still might think about snoozing as you solve, for reasons that will become abundantly clear once you've looked at the puzzle. Apart from the non-snoozefest of a theme, we did admire 38D, French bread?, EURO (trés drôle!). We also were astonished that 56A, Large storage unit, GIGABYTE, was a debut. Finally we loved the nostalgia-inducing 31D, "Heavens to Murgatroyd!", EGAD. EGAD!Show note imagery: The mysterious, awe-inspiring NAZCA Lines, of Southern Peru. We love feedback! Send us a text...Contact Info:We love listener mail! Drop us a line, [email protected], we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there and strike up a conversation!

Today's crossword, a collaboration between John Kugelman and Lance Enfinger, had a bonus puzzle within a puzzle. First, there was the traditional 15x15 grid we all know and love (to solve); then we had the theme, whose revealer seemed to be more of a concealer. Fortunately, the light eventually dawned, so we've got the full 411 right here for your listening pleasure.Show note imagery: The one, the only, it's Mr. Rockhead Sylvester Nate Oscar George Slate (really, that's his full name!).We love feedback! Send us a text...Contact Info:We love listener mail! Drop us a line, [email protected], we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there and strike up a conversation!

Bryan Kaproth-Gerecht's debut NYTimes crossword is a marvel, with an insanely clever theme brilliantly executed. We can't say enough good things about it, but in today's episode, we give it the ol' college try.We also have a Triplet Tuesday™️ segment to test your mettle, so have a go, and let us know how you did!Show note imagery: There's nothing like a quick holiday getaway to Saturn's largest moon, [NAME REDACTED TO AVOID SPOILERS], for a little water skiing, er, hydrocarbon skiing 😀 We love feedback! Send us a text...Contact Info:We love listener mail! Drop us a line, [email protected], we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there and strike up a conversation!

Steven Jopek is making his debut in the NYTimes, so kudos, congrats, huzzah, etc., etc. Although after the fact the crossword seemed like a typical Monday, during the solve it seemed to put up just a bit more resistance than usual, although, of course, YMMV*.One thing that stood out: we were impressed by the progression represented by 44A, She, in Portuguese, ELA, 40D, Actor Idris, ELBA, and 57A, Jazz great Fitzgerald, ELLA. It's that attention to detail that gets you, well, published in the NYTimes.  😀 We've also picked our JAMCOTWA™️ (Jean And Mike Crossword Of The Week Award) for the week, and had to reach waaaaay back to find it. How far back? Let's just say that we are currently seeking chiropractic treatment to recover from the effort. Medic!Show note imagery: ANGELFALLS, Canaima National Park, Venezuela, the world's tallest waterfall.*or if you're on the Metric system, YKMVWe love feedback! Send us a text...Contact Info:We love listener mail! Drop us a line, [email protected], we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there and strike up a conversation!

Today's puzzle marks Jill Singer's debut Sunday NYTimes crossword, which playfully pays homage to a now passé form of coinage. We'll let you mull over that cryptic hint, or, if you can't wait, simply download today's episode, where all will be revealed. Show note imagery: One of our favorite stores, which, if you stretch it a lot, is indeed related to today's themeWe love feedback! Send us a text...Contact Info:We love listener mail! Drop us a line, [email protected], we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there and strike up a conversation!

Today's crossword was, by Saturday standards, quite straightforward. But since a) Friday's crossword was a real battle royale, and b) today's clues were suitably amusing/intriguing/educational, we are not complaining, quite the contrary. Our analysis waits within, so have a listen, and, as always, please let us know what you think!Show note imagery: A Box Jellyfish, in search of a Lens Crafters that offers quantity discountsWe love feedback! Send us a text...Contact Info:We love listener mail! Drop us a line, [email protected], we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there and strike up a conversation!

This, Adryel W. Robles Ojeda's second NYTimes crossword, was uber difficult, thanks to a plethora of relatively obscure names, abetted by some rather cryptic crosses: we loved it (as today's podcast makes clear). As an example of the cryptic crosses, we had 29D, Diamond wear, MITT (nice one!); 49A, Especially ornate, ROCOCO (we definitely had to dredge that out of long-term storage); and 7D, Sport similar to pétanque, BOCCE (a clue that helped ...not at all 😀, which was surely the point). tldr: this was a delightful piece of work, definitely worth 5 squares on the JAMCR scale.Besides the crossword, we have a Fun Fact Friday segment which may be of particular interest to those of you suffering from, well, just about any malady at all (although remember, we are not medical doctors, and under no circumstances, whatsoever, should you listen to us as opposed to persons who are, you know, qualified 😉).Show note imagery: The Schaezlerpalais' Festival Hall, in Augsburg: it doesn't get much more ROCOCO than this!We love feedback! Send us a text...Contact Info:We love listener mail! Drop us a line, [email protected], we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there and strike up a conversation!

Most of the time, Thursday themes do something unexpected with the answers, but occasionally the twist involves the clues. Hoang-Kim Vu has provided a sparkling example today, and apart from our Yoda reference in the title, we'll provide no spoilers here, but fear not — we will take a deep dive into that theme, and of course take a gander at the rest of the grid, in today's podcast.Show note imagery: Some MIT Mystery Hunt contestants, ready to start SherlockingWe love feedback! Send us a text...Contact Info:We love listener mail! Drop us a line, [email protected], we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there and strike up a conversation!

Kareem Ayas has a real knack for writing entertaining crosswords, and those skills are on full display today. The theme was LOL, and there were marvels throughout the grid. Besides those mentioned in the podcast, we had the sly 59D, Important stretches, ERAS; the quintessential garden path of 45A, Cats and dogs, for example: NOUNS; and in the "but of course" realm, 41A, President who was a heavyweight wrestling champion in college, TAFT. Very nice indeed, absolutely worth 5 squares on the JAMCR scale.Show note imagery: Trampoline BED cleaning, an obscure but important life skill (eh, at least if you have a trampoline!) We love feedback! Send us a text...Contact Info:We love listener mail! Drop us a line, [email protected], we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there and strike up a conversation!

Kudos and congrats to Jeremy Venook on getting his debut crossword in the NYTimes! 🎉🥳 He had us when he name-dropped URIAH Heep, and kept us enthralled with a theme that was ideal for a Tuesday. Well done!Speaking of Tuesday, we have, as per custom, a Triplet Tuesday™️ segment, and this time Jean's the interrogatee. How'd she do? The answer is as close as your download button! 😀 Show note imagery: RIAN Johnson (l) on the set of Star Wars: The Last JediWe love feedback! Send us a text...Contact Info:We love listener mail! Drop us a line, [email protected], we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there and strike up a conversation!

You would expect that someone who has published 85 (!) NYTimes crosswords, including 31 Mondays, would craft a fine Monday puzzle, and your expectations would be met and then some. Zhouqin Burnikel has produced a picture-perfect Monday, with a lemon meringue of a theme and some awesome clues. Some that did not make into the podcast include 49D, Sound asleep?, SNORE (😀); 36D, "Sounds like a plan!", LETS (😀 😀); and clearly the greatest song of all time, anywhere, 10D, 1963 Kingsmen hit with a repetitive title, LOUIELOUIE (😀 😀 😀). Nice work, Zhouqin!Show note imagery: Daniel R. Day, aka DAPPERDAN, the "Godfather of Hip-Hop Fashion".Show note videography: Speaking of mondegreens, what may be LOUIELOUIE, by the Kingsmen 😀 We love feedback! Send us a text...Contact Info:We love listener mail! Drop us a line, [email protected], we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there and strike up a conversation!

This marks Sam Brody's fourth NYTimes crossword, and we found it quite appealing. The theme was suitably punny, and we learned oodles. For instance, we now know 40D, Bum, CADGE, Mike can now speak knowledgeably about 95A, Fiber also known as viscose, RAYON; and both cohosts can now confidently spell 31A, Water nymphs of Greek myth, NYIAD ... no, half a mo, NIAID, no ... come back tomorrow, we'll have it figured out by then. 😀 😀 Show note imagery: Some dizzying OPART!We love feedback! Send us a text...Contact Info:We love listener mail! Drop us a line, [email protected], we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there and strike up a conversation!

This was a challenging Saturday crossword, requiring that both cohosts really put their backs into it — which, since we are talking about crosswords, involves moving hardly a millimeter while staring at their screens with an intensity that could melt untreated glass (fortunately, their computers come with Apple's optional "stare resistant coating" 😁).The crossword represents Blake Sonecker's sixth Saturday opus. We thought the clues were great, greatly deceiving, and a lot of fun — definitely worth a full 5 squares on the JAMCR scale. Check out today's podcast for the full 411.Show note imagery: Japan's kitchen, aka OsakaWe love feedback! Send us a text...Contact Info:We love listener mail! Drop us a line, [email protected], we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there and strike up a conversation!

Zhou Zhang is gradually working through the days of the week: this crossword marked her Friday debut. The only days on which she has not published are Tuesday and Saturday, but we expect those in short order.We also expect, based on prior experience, great cluing, and Zhou Zhang certainly does not disappoint here — every clue pulled its weight, and the puzzle as a whole was fabulous. Deets inside.Based on a Fan Mail note (thanks, Los Angeles Fan!), we have a Fun Fact Friday™️ segment on mondegreens. For even more mondegreens, check out Dr. Barber's slightly retro but very funny list.Show note imagery: Jesse Tyler Ferguson, playing Truman Capote in the one-man show Tru.We love feedback! Send us a text...Contact Info:We love listener mail! Drop us a line, [email protected], we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there and strike up a conversation!

Killian Olson has put together a very crunchy Thursday crossword for your puzzle-solving pleasure. We found it to be quite the workout. The theme was dazzling, with lots of bamboozlement throughout the grid. Killian (as reported in xwordinfo.com) identified several clues that he was particularly proud of: 31A, Dessert often eaten before the ides of March, PIE (delicious!); 73A, Last term in a math lecture series?, NTH (definitely getting math vibes here...); and 40D, Casual gaming site?, SOFA (nice 'un!).Show note imagery: Megan Thee Stallion, bravely defying convention by wearing an orange dress on a red carpet.We love feedback! Send us a text...Contact Info:We love listener mail! Drop us a line, [email protected], we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there and strike up a conversation!

This midweek crossword was short (well for some: YMMV) and sweet, with a theme that did a fine job of melding two of our favorite activities: cruising the web, and cruising NE Wisconsin. It also included some great clues, such as the historically helpful 30D, Tabard ___, locale in "The Canterbury Tales", INN (RIP: it burned down in in 1676); the wry and dry 48D, It's on the up and up, ASCENT 😀; and our favorite typographic embellishment, 22D, Little flourish on a letter, SERIF.Show note imagery: All that's left of the Tabard INN 😢🏨We love feedback! Send us a text...Contact Info:We love listener mail! Drop us a line, [email protected], we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there and strike up a conversation!

Today's crossword, a debut (😃) by Wade Bednar, combined music and  dynasties — specifically Chinese dynasties — in an absolutely ingenious way. But Wade didn't slough off when it came to clues, either. Thanks to the wonders of HI* we can admire 56A, "Abso-freakin-lutely!", DOI; 25A, Lollygag, IDLE; and the best of the lot, 18D, Head of a noted animal rescue project, NOAH. 😀 😀 We also have a Triplet Tuesday™️ segment, translating bemusement into amusement since ... well, we're not really sure when we started them, but it's been a while!Show note imagery: When you eat at a restaurant, there's an exceedingly good chance that the food you're eating traveled on a SYSCO truck.*Human IntelligenceWe love feedback! Send us a text...Contact Info:We love listener mail! Drop us a line, [email protected], we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there and strike up a conversation!

Nate Cardin's 8th NYTimes crossword was a quintessential Monday puzzle. For one thing, it didn't have QUINTESSENTIAL in the grid. This is not particularly surprising, though, because even though QUINTESSENTIAL is a common enough word, and shows up in, among other places, the XWord Info Word List, it has never appeared in the grid! Still, there's always tomorrow ...Apart from the missing QUINTESSENTIAL, today's puzzle was quite enjoyable, as we explore and expound upon in today's podcast.We have also chosen our JAMCOTWA™️ (Jean And Mike Crossword Of The Week Award), so have a listen, and then let us know your thoughts!Show note imagery: The 1990s sitcom STEPBYSTEP, with a rather large cast of characters, evidentlyWe love feedback! Send us a text...Contact Info:We love listener mail! Drop us a line, [email protected], we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there and strike up a conversation!

Making any Sunday crossword is definitely not easy. Making one with a two-high stack of grid spanning answers is amazing; and making one with 2 two-high stacks, in one puzzle, is so difficult that it has only happened 3 times in the history of the puzzle, including ... today. It is with a combination of awe and, well, more awe that we therefore doff our hats and yell huzzah in the general direction of Kansas City, MO, home of Erik Agard, for having accomplished this (almost, but not quite) impossible feat. Deets inside.Show note imagery: Tristan and ISOLDE (with an I!)We love feedback! Send us a text...Contact Info:We love listener mail! Drop us a line, [email protected], we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there and strike up a conversation!

This was Kameron Austin Collins' 20th Saturday NYTimes crossword, and his name at the top of the marquee is pretty much an ironclad guarantee that we're in for a good time. We laughed, we learned, and ... we were grateful that the esteemed KAC didn't turn up the crossword-difficulty level to 11, something that he is wont to do. Besides the crossword we have some exciting Fan Mail audio, setting us straight on the mondegreen lurking in "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer". Check it out!Show note imagery: That shoe — which for all the world looks like it is grinning at us — is not just any shoe, it's a DANSKO 😃We love feedback! Send us a text...Contact Info:We love listener mail! Drop us a line, [email protected], we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there and strike up a conversation!

This is Jesse Cohn's fourth Friday NYTimes crossword, and it checks all the right boxes:Tough, but not soul-crushing ✅Educational ✅Highly entertaining ✅So, it's definitely in the running for this week's JAMCOTWA™️ (Jean And Mike Crossword Of The Week Award). The suspense builds! 😀 In other news, we have a fascinating fun fact for Fun Fact Friday™️: have a listen and be prepared to be amazed/educated/entertained.Show note imagery: The Opportunity ROVER's self-portraitWe love feedback! Send us a text...Contact Info:We love listener mail! Drop us a line, [email protected], we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there and strike up a conversation!

Today's podcast title — we promise! — will seem quite droll, even, dare we say it, chuckleworthy,  once you've sussed out today's theme. We won't say any more about that here, but invite you to have a listen as we explore Dena Verkuil and John Kugelman's latest oeuvre.Show note imagery: The Farm, by Joan Miró — winner of the Guggenheim International Award and clearly master of the surrealWe love feedback! Send us a text...Contact Info:We love listener mail! Drop us a line, [email protected], we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there and strike up a conversation!

If you took a look at this crossword and decided that it's time to split, we commend you on your choice of metaphor. Daniel Bodily has constructed a puzzle that pays homage to, and yet goes beyond, one crafted by Joel Fagliano way back in the "carefree" days of 2020. It was apparently a beast to construct, but clearly worth the effort, as we discuss in today's podcast.Show note imagery: George BOOLE, creator of Boolean Algebra, without which pretty much every single shiny gadget you own would not work 😱We love feedback! Send us a text...Contact Info:We love listener mail! Drop us a line, [email protected], we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there and strike up a conversation!

If you like weddings, have at least a passing knowledge of Indian words, and enjoy puns, then you should find today's crossword theme quite satisfying (as was the case for both cohosts). The rest of the grid also held some delights: 58D, Battery for a mouse, AAA (ah, that kind of mouse); 55D, Where Anheuser-Busch is "BUD", NYSE (informal and instructive, very nice); and 14A, So-called "servebot" in tennis, essentially, ACER (just as long as the servebot isn't powered by AI 😉🤖)In honor of Tuesday, we have a Triplet Tuesday™️ segment, and today Jean demonstrates her commanding knowledge of ... everything 😀  Show note imagery: An enrobed OREO 😀 🍪We love feedback! Send us a text...Contact Info:We love listener mail! Drop us a line, [email protected], we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there and strike up a conversation!

Willa Angel Chen Miller's crosswords normally show up on Friday, so we were slightly concerned to see her name here on Monday, but she has done an excellent job, with some straightforward but well-crafted clues. Besides those mentioned in the podcast, we have 43D, Rewards for excellent employees, RAISES; 7D, Eve's man, ADAM; and something we're all familiar with here in NE Wisconsin (although fortunately not at this exact moment), 63A, Winter forecast, SNOW. ❄️We've picked our JAMCOTWA™️ (Jean And Mike Crossword Of The Week Award), and while there were many (well, 7 to be precise) to choose from, this one just cried out for recognition, so there it is.Finally, we have some fabulous listener mail, eh. 😉Show note imagery: The inspiration for Winnie-the-Pooh, Winnie (l), with his owner, Harry Colebourn (r).We love feedback! Send us a text...Contact Info:We love listener mail! Drop us a line, [email protected], we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there and strike up a conversation!

This was an awesome Sunday crossword by Ralph Sharaga (a debut for him) and veteran constructor Doug Peterson (this is his 61st!). The theme was absolutely hysterical, and the rest of the grid glistened with guffaw-inducing clues. Among our favorites were: 14D, Race prior to a race?, REV (delightful); 97A, Safari destinations?, URLS (ha!); and we enjoyed the 180° change of tone in 47D, Opposite of "You'll pay for that!"?, ONME.Show note imagery: MAE Jemison, the first black astronaut in space, looking fly!We love feedback! Send us a text...Contact Info:We love listener mail! Drop us a line, [email protected], we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there and strike up a conversation!

Saturdays are typically the most challenging crosswords of the week, and today's was a splendid mental workout, with some absolutely stellar clues, including 33A, Field whose prospect are looking up?, ASTRONOMY 😉. Jean found the crossword to be a challenge, and Mike's egregious unfamiliarity with "Days of Our Lives" actresses definitely pushed him to his limit. In short, both agreed that Zachary David Levy's debut Saturday crossword was abfab, worth 5 squares on the JAMCR scale.Show note imagery: SUSANLUCCI, winning her first Best Actress Emmy on her 19th nomination, after 18 consecutive losses.We love feedback! Send us a text...Contact Info:We love listener mail! Drop us a line, [email protected], we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there and strike up a conversation!

Rafael Musa was in his element today — over 50% of his crosswords have appeared on Friday. We were therefore unsurprisingly KEENON on today's effort, which featured a bevy of fine clues that left us ALLSMILES. Deets inside.Our Fun Fact Friday™️ segment involves one of the world's most popular textile patterns. To keep up the suspense, we won't tell you what it is right now, but we do get AROUND to it in today's episode. 😉Show note imagery: If today's image seems cryptic, we would like to draw your attention to a word that we'd never seen before today, 35D, Formal pause in a line of poetry, CAESURA We love feedback! Send us a text...Contact Info:We love listener mail! Drop us a line, [email protected], we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there and strike up a conversation!

This was a fine Thursday crossword by Joel Woodford, with a nifty theme that was surprising, entertaining, and — bonus! — gave us a chance to use "nifty" in a sentence. Our favorite clues included 22A, It may be padded or slapped, KNEE (🤔); 66D, It might be left hanging, ART (😀); and 23A, Do you read me?, NOVEL (😂). There were definitely more, check out today's episode for the very best-of-the-best.Show note imagery:  ERMA Franklin, Aretha's sister and a brilliant singer in her own right.We love feedback! Send us a text...Contact Info:We love listener mail! Drop us a line, [email protected], we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there and strike up a conversation!

If you find the aroma of fresh popcorn wafting from the grid, that means you've really gotten into the spirit of this absolutely endearing crossword by Rebecca Goldstein*. It had everything that we want to see in a Wednesday crossword: a highly ingenious theme, clues that make you sweat, and a terrific payoff. This undoubtedly deserves 5 squares on the JAMCR scale, for reasons described herein.On a logistical note, we are going to be taking the next few days off for some R&R. If you haven't already subscribed to this podcast, this would be a great time to do so, so that when we come back — next Thursday — you can pick up where you left off.Show note imagery: Nope, those definitely aren't Betty Davis eyes ... more like Devon Rex eyes.----------------------------------------------------* or, there is a remote chance that your computer is on fire, in which case you should seek IT help immediately 😀We love feedback! Send us a text...Contact Info:We love listener mail! Drop us a line, [email protected], we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there and strike up a conversation!

This was a superlative Tuesday crossword, thanks to some really sparkling clues. The theme — which we discuss extensively in today's episode — is the icing on the cake, but we found numerous other gems in the grid. The "Most-Fun-Clue" award goes to 62A, Things assayers assay, ORES; the "Most-Fun-Answer" award has to go to 17A, "Easy-peasy!", BADABINGBADABOOM 😀; and the "Most-Intriguing-Clue" award surely belongs to 6D, Japanese city that's home to the Chinese Sofukuji Temple, NAGASAKI.As tradition dictates, we have in addition to our usual crossword analysis another Triplet Tuesday™️ segment, with Mike in the hot seat this time around. Did he manage to elude the banana peel, or did he do a verbal pratfall on his way to ignominious failure? Today's episode has all the answers.Show note imagery: The astonishing Chinese Sofukuji Temple, built in 1629 (but you  wouldn't know it!)We love feedback! Send us a text...Contact Info:We love listener mail! Drop us a line, [email protected], we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there and strike up a conversation!