We’re back with an easy puzzle today. Last week’s was pretty hard, right? They won’t get much harder than that, folks – at least not around these parts. Toning it down this week with a once-rejected theme. After a little tweaking – adding a theme entry and a title, giving the fill a little pop – it’s now presented for your solving pleasure. Enjoy and share.
Lollapuzzoola 5 results! First the “Express Division” – these are your speed solvers who’ve done really well in the past at tournaments like Lollapuzzoola and the American Crossword Puzzle Tournament. The idea is that you could solve a hard puzzle on an express train that makes fewer stops:
- Joon Pahk
- Francis Heaney
- Kiran Kedlaya
And now the “Local Division” – for people (like me) who’d need a little more time to solve a hard puzzle on the subway:
- Glen Ryan
- Brendan Emmett Quigley
- Jeff Levinson
The At-Home Division is still being contested; you can still get involved here – but act fast! It’s only available for a limited time. (Your scores must be in by Sunday, August 19.) Guys, these puzzles are really good. I can’t recommend this set enough.
Speaking of acting fast, my friend Ryan Hecht (a former Lollapuzzoola coordinator himself) is running the New York Marathon this November as part of Team ASPCA. For a modest donation (all of which goes toward fighting against cruelty to animals), you can be the proud owner of seven never-before-seen puzzles by some top-notch constructors. (Okay, I wrote one of them. I’m a little biased.) Click here to learn more.
That’s enough cross-promotion. Have you solved this puzzle yet?
Neville Fogarty 
Fun puzzle neville. Thanks! Just donated to Ryan to have the puzzles sent. Pleased to see one of the puzzles is from you.
I got “Olympus” because that fact was a final in the Jeopardy! Tournament of Champions, which reran this week. I thought at the time it was the toughest final ever. And I’ve never heard of “Elrushbo.” I can’t believe I didn’t have any letters wrong there, also because I wasn’t sure about “Williams-Sonoma.” Thanks, Neville.
Crazily, this is the second time recently that Jeopardy! has “stolen” one of my clues. (I know the episode originally aired months ago.) I wrote the puzzle before seeing the repeat; when it came up, I had a laugh and decided to leave it in for people who pick things up from the show. Also, EL RUSHBO is one of Rush Limbaugh’s nicknames for himself. Probably the hardest bit of this puzzle.
that really is a “big” nickname in talk radio. (too easy?)
(No, just right)
Nice puzzle, Neville. Thanks for sharing, as always!
Well done, as usual. You do know you’re making it more difficult for me to get my weekend chores done, right?
That’s the whole idea!