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ESCAPE ROOM

New York Times, Sunday, November 11, 2018

Author:
Eric Berlin
Editor:
Will Shortz
Blog:
59-Across : Words of denial
TotalDebutLatestCollabs
436/23/200211/29/20203
SunMonTueWedThuFriSatVariety
1413521521
RebusCircleScrabDebutFresh
361.5223969%
Eric Berlin

This puzzle:

Rows: 21, Columns: 21 Words: 142, Blocks: 70 Spans: 1 This is puzzle # 41 for Mr. Berlin. Sunday freshness: 55%
Notepad: CROSSWORD CONTEST
This crossword represents an escape room, with four articles you'll need hidden inside. After you complete the grid, follow the directions at 41-, 70- and 99-Across to find what to do next. Working correctly will lead you to a four-word phrase with a total of 12 letters. That is your answer.
When you have it, send it by email to: crosswordcontest@nytimes.com. Twenty-five correct solvers, chosen at random, whose entries are received by 6 p.m. Eastern time on Tuesday, Nov. 13, will receive copies of The New York Times Crossword Puzzles 2019 Day-to-Day Calendar, from Andrews McMeel. Only one entry per person. The answer and contest solution will appear next week. The winners' names will appear in the issue of Dec. 2.
Jeff Chen notes:
My first escape room experience involved a former MBA classmate standing over me and my brother, yelling "SOLVE IT, SOLVE IT FASTER, SOLVE IT NOW OR WE AREN'T GOING TO ESCAPE!" My ... read more
Jim Horne notes:
Now that the contest is over, we can reveal the answer. The rebus squares have KEY in one direction, and a single letter in the other. Collecting those four single letters, we get A, T, W ... read more
1
L
2
E
3
A
4
R
5
A
6
M
7
E
8
N
9
B
10
A
11
S
12
K
13
S
14
C
15
H
16
I
17
N
18
O
19
O
R
S
O
20
L
A
C
KEY
21
O
C
H
R
E
22
O
A
T
E
R
23
U
R
S
A
24
G
I
G
S
25
R
U
R
A
L
26
S
W
E
D
E
27
E
D
28
S
E
L
29
T
30
A
S
31
I
M
A
32
R
E
KEY
33
S
34
T
R
A
U
B
35
P
I
N
C
36
H
E
D
37
I
C
E
38
P
39
O
40
P
41
L
E
T
T
E
R
42
S
O
N
T
H
E
K
E
43
Y
S
44
R
Y
E
45
O
R
E
L
46
A
T
T
E
S
T
S
47
N
E
K
48
O
49
C
A
S
E
50
B
A
D
A
51
T
52
E
A
S
Y
53
I
54
P
S
O
55
N
A
T
56
S
A
57
I
N
T
S
58
M
T
A
59
W
60
A
S
N
T
61
M
62
E
63
S
64
P
65
H
66
P
O
C
O
67
M
E
A
T
68
S
69
E
C
O
L
E
S
70
P
L
A
71
C
E
T
H
E
72
M
I
N
T
H
E
73
C
O
R
N
E
R
S
74
A
U
R
O
R
A
75
S
E
G
U
E
76
D
A
N
E
77
D
E
E
78
T
S
A
R
I
S
79
T
80
M
R
S
81
G
A
S
S
E
82
S
83
S
O
N
84
A
85
S
E
A
86
H
A
T
H
87
N
I
88
C
89
A
90
D
91
L
92
A
S
T
G
93
A
S
P
94
I
95
V
O
R
I
E
96
S
97
M
E
D
I
98
I
V
E
99
R
E
A
100
D
N
E
W
D
O
W
N
101
W
O
R
D
S
102
L
E
S
103
S
104
S
O
105
N
I
E
L
S
E
N
106
O
I
L
E
R
S
107
O
KEY
D
108
O
K
E
109
V
O
N
110
D
W
E
E
B
111
O
112
U
113
T
R
E
114
J
E
S
115
S
E
116
I
117
K
I
D
118
O
R
119
A
120
N
121
U
N
I
T
E
122
A
R
E
S
T
123
A
I
D
A
124
N
A
T
O
125
R
O
A
S
T
126
I
S
L
E
Y
127
S
M
O
KEY
128
S
L
E
D
© 2018, The New York Times11/11/18 ( No. 25,205 )
Across
1
Shakespearean father of three : LEAR
5
"I agree!" : AMEN
9
Enjoys the sun : BASKS
14
Pants material : CHINO
19
Approximately : ORSO
20
Sycophant : LACKEY
21
Earth tone : OCHRE
22
Movie with a shootout at high noon, maybe : OATER
23
___ Major : URSA
24
Band bookings : GIGS
25
Outside the city : RURAL
26
Any member of Abba : SWEDE
27
Automotive debut of 1957 : EDSEL
29
Some univ. hirees : TAS
31
Turkish inn : IMARET
33
Horror writer Peter : STRAUB
35
Stole, in slang : PINCHED
37
Cold treat : ICEPOP
41
What's needed in order to escape this crossword : LETTERSONTHEKEYS
44
Sandwich loaf : RYE
45
Pitcher Hershiser : OREL
46
Declares to be true : ATTESTS
47
Indie rocker with the 2009 #3 album "Middle Cyclone" : NEKOCASE
50
Not doing well : BADAT
52
A snap : EASY
53
___ jure (law phrase) : IPSO
55
Tobacconist ___ Sherman : NAT
56
Virtuous ones : SAINTS
58
N.Y.C. subway org. : MTA
59
Words of denial : WASNTME
63
Round fig. : SPH
66
A little, musically : POCO
67
Charcuterie stock : MEATS
69
Lycées, e.g. : ECOLES
70
What to do with the items referenced in 41-Across : PLACETHEMINTHECORNERS
74
Natural light display : AURORA
75
Move smoothly to the next thing : SEGUE
76
Great ___ : DANE
77
Billy ___ Williams : DEE
78
Like Russia prior to 1917 : TSARIST
80
One of a couple : MRS
81
Neon and others : GASSES
83
Apollo, to Zeus : SON
84
Offshore : ASEA
86
Possesses, to the Bard : HATH
87
Kind of battery : NICAD
91
Final desperate effort : LASTGASP
94
Tickle the ___ : IVORIES
97
Prefix on some first-aid products : MEDI
98
"___ had it!" : IVE
99
After following the instructions at 70-Across, how to escape this puzzle : READNEWDOWNWORDS
102
Not as much : LESSSO
105
Ratings pioneer : NIELSEN
106
Edmonton athletes : OILERS
107
"Fine with me" : OKEYDOKE
109
German name component, often : VON
110
Uncool one : DWEEB
111
Unconventional : OUTRE
114
James of the West : JESSE
116
"Just foolin'" : IKID
118
Algerian port : ORAN
121
Get together : UNITE
122
"Give it ___!" : AREST
123
Verdi soprano : AIDA
124
Grp. founded by 12 countries : NATO
125
Luau, basically : ROAST
126
Brothers' name in R&B : ISLEY
127
Symbol of fire prevention : SMOKEY
128
Vehicle that requires no fuel : SLED
Down
1
Name one can "skip to" : LOU
2
Goof : ERR
3
Confidently said : ASSERTED
4
Pre-GPS staple : ROADATLAS
5
Subject with variables : ALGEBRA
6
Daily ___ (British paper) : MAIL
7
Part of some physicals: Abbr. : ECG
8
Attribute of many political ads : NASTINESS
9
Soup with a red color : BORSCHT
10
Prefix with pressure : ACU
11
React with fear or delight : SHRIEK
12
Ralph and Alice, on old TV : KRAMDENS
13
Actress Ward : SELA
14
Trig function : COSEC
15
Native Iowan : HAWKEYE
16
Citizen of: Suffix : ITE
17
Actor Beatty : NED
18
It's mined, all mined! : ORE
28
Common middle name for girls : SUE
30
Constantly fidgeting, say : ANTSY
32
Game with 42 territory cards : RISK
33
Slovenly type : SLOB
34
Prefix with byte : TERA
35
"Famous ___" (slogan on Idaho license plates) : POTATOES
36
Pause : HESITATE
38
Went on and on : PRATTLED
39
Yiddish cries : OYS
40
Second of April? : PEE
42
Wretched smell : STENCH
43
"Hey! That hurts!" : YEOW
48
Kind of Hollywood romance : ONSCREEN
49
Literary scholars debate what's in it : CANON
51
Getting to the point? : TAPERING
54
Solution to a maze : PATH
57
Specks : IOTAS
58
They might drop down : MENUS
60
Almost forever : AEONS
61
Nothing more than : MERE
62
Latin 101 word : ESSE
63
Petty disagreement : SPAT
64
Also : PLUS
65
Beleaguers : HARASSES
67
Horrible headache : MIGRAINE
68
Anesthesiologist's concern : SEDATION
71
"The Bridge at Narni" painter : COROT
72
Internet sensation : MEME
73
Nut whose name sounds like a sneeze : CASHEW
79
Shock, in a way : TASE
81
Flowering evergreen shrubs : GARDENIAS
82
Bucks : SIMOLEONS
85
Administrants of corporal punishment : SPANKERS
86
"Can you explain that further?" : HOWSO
88
Requiring intellect : CEREBRAL
89
It might end in a ZIP code: Abbr. : ADDR
90
Ph.D. requirement: Abbr. : DISS
91
Tiny "tiny" : LIL
92
Forum greeting : AVE
93
Former Yankee nickname : AROD
95
Soft and smooth : VELVETY
96
Happy wintertime news for schoolkids : SNOWDAY
100
Semi fuel : DIESEL
101
Golfer Michelle : WIE
103
Kinds : SORTS
104
"Awesome!" : SWEET
108
California city north of Ventura : OJAI
110
Mythical queen of Carthage : DIDO
111
Your and my : OUR
112
It has a big deck : UNO
113
Aunt: Sp. : TIA
115
Toledo-to-Columbus dir. : SSE
117
A Kardashian : KIM
119
Dined : ATE
120
Silent approval : NOD

Answer summary:
4 unique to this puzzle, 1 debuted here and reused later, 5 unique to Modern Era but used previously.

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