Prison Break
◆ · Di Wendy Walker · Pubblicato 2024-09-01T05:00:09.872Z
Meta Prompt
The meta answer is an eight-letter phrase.
Happy September, Muggles! Hope you find this puzzle to be Smooth Sailing indeed, unlike the way a prison break should be.
The photo shows our local county prison, which made the international news a year ago when the five-foot-tall double murderer Danilo Cavalcante escaped by crabwalking up a brick wall and over a fence. He eluded his pursuers for two crazy weeks but was finally captured, behind a farm equipment store and wearing a stolen Philadelphia Eagles hoodie, by a handsome Belgian Malinois named Yoda (extra rations for this good boy!). Cavalcante is serving a life sentence without parole for the murders and on Aug. 30, 2024, was sentenced to an additional 15 to 30 years for the escape.
(Full story and great photos: https://www.inquirer.com/crime/danilo-cavalcante-hearing-prison-break-20240830.html.)
Back to the puzzle: thanks to Alan Kennan, Cap'n Rick, and a friend who wants to remain anonymous for test-solving, and as always to Joe Ross for his formatting lessons. Nudges later today!
Lunchtime nudges: You know how Mike Shenk's puzzle titles are often literal? Well, this one is, too. How do you suppose BREAK might be literally applied in a crossword grid?
Well, yeah, it might mean the break at the end of each row, but that would be too tricky for an SSS puzzle, especially one on a holiday weekend (Labor Day here in the USA). The black squares in the grid would certainly be a more obvious breaking point, don't you think?
Go back to the title. PRISON (or, perhaps, synonyms thereof) is what has been broken.
Controllo se esistono file di gioco salvati...
Classifica (aggiornata ogni ora)
- Schmeel solved 2024-09-01T09:48:22.985Z
- Pair O Ducks solved 2024-09-01T10:22:40.818Z
- Capn Rick solved 2024-09-01T12:26:38.690Z
- Darth solved 2024-09-01T12:45:03.502Z
- Alex Sisti solved 2024-09-01T12:52:27.342Z
- kymike solved 2024-09-01T13:02:35.976Z
- LarsCaine solved 2024-09-01T13:30:11.730Z
- Hector solved 2024-09-01T13:34:31.346Z
- JM solved 2024-09-01T13:37:02.899Z
- Meg solved 2024-09-01T13:37:46.844Z
- boharr solved 2024-09-01T13:47:17.286Z
- Bird Lives solved 2024-09-01T14:12:05.129Z
- BarbaraK solved 2024-09-01T14:51:20.438Z
- woozy solved 2024-09-01T14:53:25.766Z
- lbray53 solved 2024-09-01T15:01:31.339Z
- KayW solved 2024-09-01T15:07:10.075Z
- Mwoychick solved 2024-09-01T15:25:26.852Z
- Qmark solved 2024-09-01T15:30:29.430Z
- ajk solved 2024-09-01T15:44:23.146Z
- Gutman solved 2024-09-01T15:57:35.547Z
- andeux solved 2024-09-01T16:10:41.534Z
- Carolyn solved 2024-09-01T16:10:47.177Z
- hoover solved 2024-09-01T16:11:45.275Z
- Sharkicicles solved 2024-09-01T16:50:15.424Z
- kurtalert solved 2024-09-01T17:18:58.465Z
- whimsy solved 2024-09-01T17:49:50.921Z
- Cindy Weatherman solved 2024-09-01T18:21:28.996Z
- DIS solved 2024-09-01T18:30:41.445Z
- Kent D solved 2024-09-01T18:57:36.707Z
- MatthewL solved 2024-09-01T19:48:51.279Z
- frostyjhammer solved 2024-09-01T19:50:27.565Z
- Jeremy Smith solved 2024-09-01T20:06:37.207Z
- Anita and Steve solved 2024-09-01T21:42:40.325Z
- Laura M solved 2024-09-01T21:59:32.167Z
- ReB solved 2024-09-02T02:51:59.028Z
- Abide solved 2024-09-02T03:53:14.759Z
- I K Snamhcok solved 2024-09-02T04:29:00.430Z
- ELSavage solved 2024-09-02T04:54:17.652Z
- rjy solved 2024-09-02T05:59:49.217Z
- Berto solved 2024-09-02T13:18:40.677Z
- imontoo solved 2024-09-02T14:26:52.293Z
- Cindy Heisler solved 2024-09-02T16:10:23.011Z
- DrTom solved 2024-09-02T19:01:35.875Z
- Tyrpmom solved 2024-09-02T20:58:44.908Z
- Tim solved 2024-09-02T21:24:44.781Z
- DCBilly solved 2024-09-02T21:56:15.374Z
- Kulea solved 2024-09-03T05:56:36.693Z
- SJ solved 2024-09-03T13:22:19.686Z
- Eric Porter solved 2024-09-03T14:14:24.288Z
- edestlin solved 2024-09-03T21:37:35.370Z
- Mr Tex solved 2024-09-04T07:06:20.679Z
- CPJohnson solved 2024-09-04T18:24:15.530Z
- michaelm solved 2024-09-05T17:19:57.682Z
- Mikey G solved 2024-09-08T06:42:14.608Z
- Jaclyn solved 2024-09-14T22:32:19.952Z
Commenti
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- Capn Rick 🤓4:43 · 2024-09-01T12:27:18.338ZOnce again, great job, Wendy! I really enjoyed this one.
- Wendy Walker costruttore · 2024-09-01T16:54:19.211ZThank you, Cap'n Rick! My puzzle benefited greatly from your suggestions, as I recall!
- Darth 🤓8:35 · 2024-09-01T12:46:10.247ZLoved it! Thanks, Wendy!
- Wendy Walker costruttore · 2024-09-01T16:54:29.435ZThank you, Darth!
- boharr 3s · 2024-09-01T13:47:32.062ZThanks Wendy
- Wendy Walker costruttore · 2024-09-01T16:54:39.475ZThanks for solving, Bob!
- Bird Lives 12s · 2024-09-01T14:15:41.662ZMy pre-fill guess turned out to be the answer, but finding the eight cells was much fun. Nice to know that Mr. Cavalcante is back in the hoosegow.
- Wendy Walker costruttore · 2024-09-01T16:55:36.850ZThanks, Jay! It was a wild two weeks indeed -- and I wasn't even within the search perimeter like my brother was!
- Sharkicicles 2s · 2024-09-01T17:01:18.609ZYou mean the CHOOSE GOWN?
- woozy 14:55 · 2024-09-01T14:54:51.418ZWoot! What a fun one.
- Wendy Walker costruttore · 2024-09-01T16:55:48.418ZGlad you liked it -- thank you!
- Mwoychick 🤓8:48 · 2024-09-01T15:25:36.051ZGreat puzzle, Wendy!
- Wendy Walker costruttore · 2024-09-01T16:55:58.154ZMark, thanks so much!
- Qmark 3s · 2024-09-01T15:30:43.102ZLoved it...thanks Wendy!
- Wendy Walker costruttore · 2024-09-01T16:56:14.115ZYou are so welcome! Thanks for the kind words!
- Carolyn 2s · 2024-09-01T16:11:28.945ZThanks for the Sunday morning break!
- Wendy Walker costruttore · 2024-09-01T16:56:38.315ZYou are very welcome! Thanks for solving!
- ajk 🤓5:19 · 2024-09-01T15:44:52.827Zjust as fun the second time around :) nice job
- Wendy Walker costruttore · 2024-09-01T16:56:26.315ZMy loyal test-solver -- thanks, Alan!
- hoover 3s · 2024-09-01T16:14:26.758ZNicely done! Initially I found only four symmetrically placed themer pairs, so I was doing all sorts of stuff like trying to fill in the blank, take the first letter of both, take the last letter of the first and the first letter of the second, and even take the find alternate entries. Then I saw PEN/CAN and realized I was missing half the themers.
- Wendy Walker costruttore · 2024-09-01T16:57:23.203ZYep, exactly! There were a lot of constraints on this one, which explains clunkers like "LAST OM."
- ELSavage 🤓5:32 · 2024-09-02T04:57:12.453Zor "one rah"; but I don't think of them as clunkers, they were just silly fun.
- whimsy 🤓13:34 · 2024-09-01T17:59:05.367ZMe too!
- Sharkicicles 2s · 2024-09-01T16:50:30.408ZVery fun. Thanks!
- Wendy Walker costruttore · 2024-09-01T20:01:13.883ZYay! Glad you liked it. Thanks for solving!
- Wendy Walker costruttore · 2024-09-01T16:53:16.974ZAll of you: thank you so much for your kind words! I am so grateful for this community! Cavalcante's escape caused quite a tizzy in this part of the world. Schools -- which had opened only days before -- were shut down. The internationally famous Longwood Gardens, where Danilo was hanging out for a while, was closed. Heavily armed (and armored) federal and state law enforcement officers commandeered our local fire station as their headquarters -- not coincidentally, the usually poor internet reception improved markedly! We locals kept the police well stocked with water and snacks (and of course treats for the K-9s).
- kurtalert 🤓3:52 · 2024-09-01T17:19:50.106ZPhew - glad I saw BIG HOUSE and pulled up a synonym list, because I was never going to get STALAG and STIR! Very fun.
- Wendy Walker costruttore · 2024-09-01T20:00:57.155ZThanks so much for solving! Glad you enjoyed it.
- whimsy 🤓13:34 · 2024-09-01T17:57:34.328ZWonderful work, Wendy! A smooth puzzle but not always a smooth sail for me -- I was going stir crazy finding the last couple. Tried one or two methods to get the 8 letters, and then I knew what I was on to when I started to get O,N, T.... Thanks for the puzzle and for educating me on just how many synonyms there are for the hoosegow. (Ooh, just remembered clink too; our favorite!)
- Wendy Walker costruttore · 2024-09-01T20:02:13.986ZThanks for solving, Whimsy! There certainly are a LOT of synonyms for prison, aren't there! Originally I had NICK and a few other British terms but one of my test-solvers gave that idea a hard no.
- Berto 1s · 2024-09-02T13:21:49.225ZThat led to my downfall lol. Got there in the end!
- MatthewL 🤓6:51 · 2024-09-01T19:50:27.938ZGood gracious -- tried every possible way to order the letters before finally coming up with the right one. Thanks for the puzzle, Wendy!
- Wendy Walker costruttore · 2024-09-01T23:38:44.638ZIt's always the last one you try, isn't it! Thanks so much for solving!
- frostyjhammer 🤓5:52 · 2024-09-01T19:51:49.508ZVery nice construction, and a very fun solve, thank you.
- Wendy Walker costruttore · 2024-09-01T23:37:33.039ZWow, those are words every constructor loves to hear! Thanks for solving!
- Anita and Steve 18s · 2024-09-01T21:42:57.782ZVery nice! Great construction!
- Wendy Walker costruttore · 2024-09-01T23:39:06.558ZThanks so much for the kind words!
- Abide 🤓7:38 · 2024-09-02T04:10:33.402ZI had the eight "prison break" synonyms early on, before any nudges. But kept focusing on letters before and after the words. I finally made an educated (second) guess, and eventually figured out the mechanism from these comments (which don't really spell it out either). I guess the fourth nudge escaped!
- Wendy Walker costruttore · 2024-09-02T11:55:05.251ZSound work, Peter! Thanks for solving!
- ELSavage 🤓5:32 · 2024-09-02T04:54:57.550ZAnother great nightcap; glad you mentioned it during the zoom call.
- Wendy Walker costruttore · 2024-09-02T11:56:07.691Z"Mentioned" being a nice way of saying "Right! You guys aren't getting any nudges until you do my SSS! I have my stats to think about here!" Thanks for solving, Eric!
- whimsy 🤓13:34 · 2024-09-02T19:32:35.086Z
- rjy 3s · 2024-09-02T06:04:11.810ZSO impressed with the idea and execution. Elegant with the symmetry, and to find words that you could split into other words to deliver the letters you needed - wow. Really well done!
- Wendy Walker costruttore · 2024-09-02T12:00:29.843ZWow, thank you! So glad you enjoyed it. When I post my reveal I will also post my worksheet so you can how this puzzle evolved.
- ReB 4s · 2024-09-02T02:58:03.115ZFun puzzle to solve. Once I saw "BIG HOUSE" the game was afoot. Really tight title, both to give the theme (PRISON) as well as to direct me to look at where the theme words split (BREAK). Lining the words up at the breaks quickly generated the answer. Great job here.
- Wendy Walker costruttore · 2024-09-02T11:54:06.772ZThanks for the kind words, Bob! My original meta answer was going to be "prison break" -- and then after solving Mike Shenk's UNDERWRITER puzzle I realized what an awesome and instructive title "prison break" would actually be.
- imontoo 3s · 2024-09-02T14:28:05.887ZTotally forgot about the SSS yesterday!
Clever and fun, Wendy!- Wendy Walker costruttore · 2024-09-02T20:03:07.172ZThanks very much! Glad you enjoyed it!
- Cindy Heisler 2s · 2024-09-02T16:13:15.711ZI had the eight prison breaks from the start. I can't believe it took me so long to see the answer. Very fun meta. Thanks, Wendy!
- Wendy Walker costruttore · 2024-09-02T20:03:26.283ZOh, well done, Cindy! Thanks for solving!
- Tyrpmom 🤓13:32 · 2024-09-02T21:01:45.813ZJust as fun for Monday.
- Wendy Walker costruttore · 2024-09-03T12:18:42.382ZThanks so much for solving!
- DCBilly 16s · 2024-09-02T21:58:30.046ZThis preyed on my hidden word weakness. I only had 4 of the 8 before the second set of nudges!
- Wendy Walker costruttore · 2024-09-03T12:20:38.182ZGlad you solved, Bill! There seems to be a bifurcated response to this puzzle. People are either (1) finding the hidden words immediately and then not knowing what to do with them or (2) needing a nudge to spot the hidden words and then immediately getting the answer.
- DrTom 5s · 2024-09-02T19:11:01.095ZReminds me of the story of the shepherd who was taking out insurance on his flock. He was quoted a price based on the age of his prime, and oldest, ewe and when he balked at the age based estimate the agent told him, "Then why not just take it on the lamb?"I have to say I was expecting to see CHOOSE and GOWEST and thought you were going there with ACHOOFun puzzle, and I remember the dust up when that prisoner escaped, heck every County in PA swore he was there.Thanks Wendy or maybe PSHAW THANKS?
- Wendy Walker costruttore · 2024-09-03T12:18:30.639ZHaha -- thanks, Dr. Tom!
- michaelm 🤓7:09 · 2024-09-05T17:40:18.945ZA hip joint you constructed for us, not even a single hokey pokey! Really enjoyed SSS on a Thursday, thanks Wendy!
- Wendy Walker costruttore · 2024-09-07T12:54:38.332ZSo glad you solved, Michael! Thank goodness there are so many "prison" synonyms, right?!