Is that a Will Shortz NYT puzzle? I have no idea, either!

"Bitter end" refers to the fact that the end of each of those theme answers could be coupled with bitter:
Bitter Cold
Bitter Lemon
Bitter Enemy
Bitter Truth
Bittersweet

[And obviously, "R" is the end of "Bitter."]

I see in my database that that's a NYT puzzle from '06. You won't find a lot of those kind of answers anymore, as Will as stated that he doesn't want to publish that style of theme anymore. Though I occasionally see it in the LA Times.

Keep puzzling!

Yes, it is from my NYT puzzle calendar. Will Shortz edited it. I am thinking more about it and realize the "R" clue means to add to the end of the word "bitterend" So it becomes "bitter ender". Stone cold must be death, the bitter end. I get nutra sweet and honey lemon, plain truth I don't get, "sworn enemy might be someone you fight to the bitter end?
Sheesh, and this was a TUESDAY puzzle!
Jo

Excellent, Nathan! The NYT puzzles almost always trip me up. I just don't have time to work on them in order to improve. I am a whiz on solving the Cryptogram. I love word puzzles, but I don't like Sudoku.

Jo, if you finished it, that is a good accomplishment. So often the theme isn;t apparent until after you have finished them, so it wasn't a lot of help as you work on the puzzle -- at least for me, who is not especially good at them.

My BF adores the NYT puzzles and even went to some tournament (dork). He did okay for his age group but the big winners were astounding.

I so miss Eugene Maleska!!

Me too, Linda. We used to sit around in our college cafe and work the puzzles as a group. We were pretty impressive in the early part of the week.

Wow! I'm thrilled to see this post! I'm I think Will must have changed his mind. This is from yesterday's paper:

Clue # 17:Binoculars
Clue # 25:Detergent
Clue # 48:Heartbeat
Clue # 57:Quesadilla

Clue # 35: Essential part necessary for fulfilling a goal...or what 17-25-48-and 57-Across all have? The answer is ....Name of the game

The letters B-O-A-R-D-E-E-R-H-A-R-E-Q-U-A-I-L are all circled in the answer.

I am stumped! I've completed the whole puzzle (no holes!) but I can't figure out what they're talking about. I'm going to have to run out to the mailbox to get the paper! HELP!

Thanks.

Sherry

Boar
Deer
Hare
Quail

All things that are hunted... and start with that same letter in the clue? Huh???

Oh, dopey me. I see it now. They are all hunted; ie, "game".

Oh, thank you, jojoco! I've been driving Hub crazy over this one. I saw hare and quail, but, doh! saw "board" and "eer" instead of boar and deer. What a dunce! The Name of the game!

Thanks a million! I'm going to hunt you up next time I get stuck!

Sherry

My yesterday's puzzle was different.....why?
Started with "simp" as 1 across....

Huh. That's odd. My paper is dated Tuesday, Jan 19, 2010. Puzzle by Zoe Wheeler, edited by Will Shortz. #1 Across is..."#1 position," answer "Acme." We have the NYT home delivered, comes in the same bag with our Milwaukee Journal Sentinel in the wee hours every day. The NYT is printed at the MJS plant.

Yesterday's front page headline is "Fleeing the Devastation, and the Uncounted Dead" over a pic of people crowded into a bus bound for Les Cayes. Do you think they print different editions for different parts of the country? Hub says No...he's a retired journalist.

Today's paper is still in the mailbox. It's cold and damp and I haven't gone out yet. When I do, I'll see what today's puzzle is and post it.

Sherry

The NYT crossword, unlike other syndicated crosswords, syndicates one week back. Meaning that the puzzle you see in the actual New York Times will be the puzzle everyone who reads a paper with the syndicated puzzle sees one week later.

-Nathan

Nathan, you're certainly a trove of knowledge, I didn't know that about the syndication.

So, did all you puzzle addicts see the fun movie Wordplay? Loved it!

Here is a link that might be useful: Wordplay

I knew that.....but thought Sherry got her puzzle from a syndicated paper like I do.
The reason I know is when I would visit the NY area and do the sunday puzzle....then come home and the next sunday....have no puzzle to do!!!

My BF gets the NYT, but I do them in the Philadelphia Inquirer and am always a week behind him.

Yes, that's that's the tournament he went to, the one that was featured in Wordplay.

Very interesting about syndication. Thanks. My friend is a syndicated political cartoonist; his work appears immediately...for obvious reasons. Hub and I didn't realize the syndicated NYT puzzle was a week behind.

No, I didn't see Wordplay. Maybe I'll look for it. I love crossword puzzles and am pretty good. But my mother, and her father, well, they had a standing challenge to beat each other every Thursday on the diagramless puzzle that appeared in the old Chicago Daily News. First one to call the other won! After a couple hours, mom worried every time the phone rang - "Please, don't let it be Pop!" she say.

My mom is now 86 and has severe short-term memory disorder so she can no longer live alone, or remember any thing that occurred in the past six years, but she can still do a diagramless puzzle. She confounds her doctors.

Anyway, I digress. This was fun and helpful. Thanks, everyone. Oh, and I've completed today's puzzle. Ta Da!

Sherry

And my ditsy mom would do the very strange puzzles from the London Times....but didn't know what compound interest was!!
I think puzzle solving is a different kind of smart...

Sherry your story reminds me of a student I had once in fourth grade. The kid could barely read or do math, but he was an oragami savant. He could just look at an oragami figure and almost automatically figure out how to make it, didn't even need to follow any directions most of the time. The world is full of wonders. I love oragami but can't do it to save my life.

I hope all you puzzlers saw this episode of The Simpsons.

Here is a link that might be useful: Simpsons episode

DH and I love crossword puzzles, and subscribe the the Crossword Puzzle Club, which sends 6 puzzles per month. We also just picked up one of the books of NYT Sunday Puzzles from Half Price Books. They are all a lot of fun.

Sally

Really Pi$$ed....that section of my paper was missing today!

I just love Will Shortz, especially on Sunday. When I finally solve it, I feel so darned smart ;-) Love to have that "ah ha" moment when I figure out what the puzzle's theme is all about.

I can work his puzzles through Thursday, have problems on Friday and don't even try on Saturday. I think it's a mental thing! (Meaning my mind isn't that bright.)

I am lost. Thankfully, I only love the cryptograms and the logic puzzles. These seem too confusing for me.