Constructor: Elizabeth C. Gorski
Relative difficulty: Pretty Easy
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THEME: Number-One Friends — Theme answers are familiar phrases, the first words of which are all names of White House dogs.
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Hi, everybody. It's PuzzleGirl again and this write-up is going to be super super short. As you probably know, today was a big day. Lollapuzzoola 7! The puzzles were great this year and the day really couldn't have been any more fun. Brian and Patrick have done such a great job with this tournament! Congratulations to the big winners, Jon Delfin (Express Division) and Patti Varol (Local Division). Lots of other trophies and prizes too. Seriously, what other tournament rewards people for cheating (Jonah Wolf), worst handwriting (Joon Pahk), and singing a cheesy 1980s novelty song (Adesina Koiki)? Too much fun!
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If you want to get the tournament puzzles (and trust me, you do), surf on over to the LP7 website and order them for $10. Tell them PuzzleGirl sent you.
So let's do a quick recap of this puzzle. Of course, the first thing you want to do with a Liz Gorski puzzle is take a look at the grid and see what awesome thing she has done with it. I thought this one was a teddy bear, but turns out it's a dog, which is also pretty cool.
Theme answers:
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I had the most trouble in the southwest corner where MILLIE SMALL was completely unknown to me. I vaguely remembered that MILLIE was the name of a White House pet, but I don't recall ever seeing the word MARL (121A: Earthy deposit) and I wasn't 100% sure on RAMA (115A: Any of nine kings of Thailand), so I was a little surprised to see Mr. Happy Pencil.
Other than that, I think I'll just say that I noticed some fun cluing and a bit of Scrabbliness. I don't understand 68-Across at all: Max Peel, for example: Abbr. (ANAG). But I'm sure I'll feel stupid when you explain it to me. Favorite entries for me include TEST RIDES (50A: Motorcycle demos, e.g.) and CYCLOPS (One with an eye for a storyteller?) and favorite clues are probably 100A: What a packing person may pack (PISTOL) and 89A: Modern know-it-all? (SIRI).
And with that, I'm afraid I must leave you. With any luck, Rex will be back tomorrow.
Love, PuzzleGirl
Relative difficulty: Pretty Easy
THEME: Number-One Friends — Theme answers are familiar phrases, the first words of which are all names of White House dogs.
Hi, everybody. It's PuzzleGirl again and this write-up is going to be super super short. As you probably know, today was a big day. Lollapuzzoola 7! The puzzles were great this year and the day really couldn't have been any more fun. Brian and Patrick have done such a great job with this tournament! Congratulations to the big winners, Jon Delfin (Express Division) and Patti Varol (Local Division). Lots of other trophies and prizes too. Seriously, what other tournament rewards people for cheating (Jonah Wolf), worst handwriting (Joon Pahk), and singing a cheesy 1980s novelty song (Adesina Koiki)? Too much fun!
So let's do a quick recap of this puzzle. Of course, the first thing you want to do with a Liz Gorski puzzle is take a look at the grid and see what awesome thing she has done with it. I thought this one was a teddy bear, but turns out it's a dog, which is also pretty cool.
Theme answers:
- 24A: *What to call a female ambassador [the Johnsons] (HER EXCELLENCY)
- 116A: *Pairing up for safety [the Clintons] (BUDDY SYSTEM)
- 3D: *Cleaning supply [the Bushes 43]
- 15D: *"My Fair Lady" co-star [the Reagans] (REX HARRISON)
- 67D: *Singer with the 1964 #2 hit "My Boy Lollipop" [the Bushes 41] (MILLIE SMALL)
- 70D: *Egg order [the Obamas] (SUNNY SIDE UP)
- 62A: What the answer to each of the six starred clues starts with (WHITE HOUSE DOG)
Other than that, I think I'll just say that I noticed some fun cluing and a bit of Scrabbliness. I don't understand 68-Across at all: Max Peel, for example: Abbr. (ANAG). But I'm sure I'll feel stupid when you explain it to me. Favorite entries for me include TEST RIDES (50A: Motorcycle demos, e.g.) and CYCLOPS (One with an eye for a storyteller?) and favorite clues are probably 100A: What a packing person may pack (PISTOL) and 89A: Modern know-it-all? (SIRI).
And with that, I'm afraid I must leave you. With any luck, Rex will be back tomorrow.
Love, PuzzleGirl