Halloween Midi

 

When I was a kid, Halloween was my favorite holiday. And while I may have outgrown trick-or-treating, I still enjoy many of the traditions that come with Halloween -- namely, pumpkin carving with apple cider and donuts, and watching my list of annual Halloween movies. The list includes Practical Magic, Halloweentown, The Nightmare Before Christmas, and the film around which today's puzzle is based. I've recently added Beetlejuice to the list in recent years as well. The two grid-spanning entries going across are related to the film in question, and in your down clues you'll find some quotes from the film to really put your knowledge to the test! Here in Hollywood, there's a movie theater owned by Disney called the El Capitan that screens this film every year. And, since both the film and the theater are owned by Disney, they have a ton of the original props, sets, and costumes from the film on display in the theater. (The same is true for The Nightmare Before Christmas). Because of COVID, this of course isn't happening this year, but here's hoping the tradition returns in full force next year! I hope you all find a safe way to celebrate today! When I carved pumpkins with my niece last night, I carved "2020" into my pumpkin because I honestly couldn't think of anything scarier. Happy haunting!

Amanda

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Theatre Thursday #23

Happy birthday to the lovely lady pictured above, whose life story inspired the musical at 11-Across. The film version, starring Barbra Streisand, was the highest grossing film in the United States in 1968, and the show boasts such hits as "People" and "Don't Rain On My Parade". Sorry not sorry if either of those earworms get stuck in your head for the rest of the day 😊🎭

Amanda

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Midi Puzzle

 I don't know what it is, but the past couple midis I've made have been just so much fun to construct and even more fun to clue. I hope this translates into your solving experience! The clue for 4-D might indicate that the entry itself may elicit a chortle, but I have to say writing the clue definitely elicited a chortle as well. Hope your week is off to a nice start! 🧩

Amanda

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Puzzle #22: "A Little Bit Extra" by Amanda Rafkin & Ross Trudeau

 

It's great to be back with another Amanda/Ross collab! I wish I'd remembered to set this to post last night, but alas I didn't remember until I sat down this morning to watch football, so here were are to provide you with a puzzle to do over lunch instead of over breakfast! We hope you enjoy!🧩

Here's Ross: I think the idea for this puzzle came to me when I was considering bringing my cat on a 2-couple podding trip, and the revealer was my best frame for bringing my cat too. (I didn't).

Too bad, Ross. I think that would have been a memorable trip.

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Midi Puzzle

 

I've been enjoying the Boswords themeless league so much, and last night's was particularly exciting because it was my puzzle being solved! If you've heard the crossword world talking about it and you're not yet participating, you can still go to the Boswords website and sign up and even get a discounted rate. Or you can just purchase the pack of puzzles if you can't show up live every Monday night. But the conversations have been a ton of fun to watch, as have been the live solves from some of the community's best speed solvers. All in all it's been something really fun to look forward to each week. I made this midi puzzle while I was still riding high on the excitement of this week's tournament. I hope you enjoy! 🧩

Amanda

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Midi Puzzle

 

This was the first puzzle I made after taking the week off last week, so naturally I went all out and had a very good time. In fact, I didn't even intend to make this puzzle -- I just started messing around with making a midi and then started having fun with the clues, and the next thing I knew...*poof* a puzzle! As it so often happens when you don't go out of your way to do something, I happen to really like this one. Go figure! I hope you enjoy it too 😊🧩

Amanda

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Theatre Thursday #22

 

Hello everyone! Usually, a big part of what I love about Theatre Thursdays is writing the post about the show the puzzle is about. But today, I'm thinking that less is more. On Friday, the filmed version of the show I seeded this puzzle with about is going to be streaming on Amazon Prime amidst the most important election of my lifetime, and perhaps of yours too. This show is one of the most critical pieces of theater I have ever seen in my life and, in my opinion, should be mandatory viewing for all Americans. I urge you to take advantage of this incredible gift we're being given and take an hour and a half to watch this show. I guarantee you that you'll be better for it. In the meantime, enjoy this puzzle and I'd love to hear your thoughts about the show if you do choose to watch it.

Amanda

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