AYESHA RASCOE, HOST:
Time to play the Puzzle.
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RASCOE: Joining us is Will Shortz. He's puzzle editor of The New York Times and puzzlemaster of WEEKEND EDITION. Hey there, Will.
WILL SHORTZ, BYLINE: Good morning, Ayesha.
RASCOE: So Will, will you please remind us of last week's challenge?
SHORTZ: Yes. I said, think of a famous writer with a three-word name. I said the first two letters of the last name, followed by the first two letters of the middle name, followed by the first two letters of the first name would spell an adjective that describes this author today. Who is it? Well, the author is Edgar Rice Burroughs, who's most famous for creating Tarzan. If you take those letters, you get buried, and Edgar Rice Burroughs - his ashes are indeed buried today.
RASCOE: There were more than 1,400 correct responses, and this week's winner is Cary Seidman of Cleveland Heights, Ohio. Congratulations, Cary.
CARY SEIDMAN: Thank you very much.
RASCOE: So how long have you been playing the Puzzle?
SEIDMAN: Oh, I don't remember ever sending in postcards, but I've been sending in the entries online probably 10 years.
RASCOE: OK. And you have a connection to NPR, but that's not how you got on here. You taught a beloved reporter here at NPR. Is that correct?
SEIDMAN: Yes, I did. The health and medicine reporter Selena Simmons-Duffin was in my class for two years, in seventh and eighth grade.
RASCOE: And you were a middle school science teacher for how many years?
SEIDMAN: Fifty.
RASCOE: Fifty years. That is a commitment. We thank you for that.
SEIDMAN: OK.
RASCOE: (Laughter). Are you ready to play the Puzzle?
SEIDMAN: I think so.
RASCOE: OK. Take it away, Will.
SHORTZ: Yeah, Cary. I know you're ready for this. Also, Ayesha, every answer today is a word or name ending in -net in any spelling. For example, if I said a small room in which to eat meals, you would say dinette. Here's number one - a person with brown hair.
SEIDMAN: Brunette.
SHORTZ: That's right. An old crime show with the catchphrase, just the facts, ma'am.
SEIDMAN: "Dragnet."
SHORTZ: That's right. A puppet manipulated by strings.
SEIDMAN: Marionette.
SHORTZ: That's it. A soldier's weapon used for stabbing.
SEIDMAN: Bayonet.
SHORTZ: A wind instrument akin to an oboe.
SEIDMAN: Oh, maybe cornet, but I don't think that's right...
SHORTZ: Hold that answer for later.
RASCOE: OK. OK. What's another - I don't know...
SHORTZ: It sort of looks like - it's a reed instrument that sort of looks like an oboe...
SEIDMAN: Clarinet.
RASCOE: Oh.
SHORTZ: Clarinet is right. How about a brass instrument related to the trumpet?
SEIDMAN: Now I'll do cornet.
SHORTZ: There's your cornet. A percussion instrument that a dancer clicks.
SEIDMAN: Castanet.
SHORTZ: You got it. Old French Queen Marie blank.
SEIDMAN: Antoinette.
SHORTZ: That's it. Singer Tammy.
SEIDMAN: Wynette.
SHORTZ: That's it. Here's - list goes back a ways. Blank Rankin. She was the first woman in Congress.
SEIDMAN: Jeanette Rankin.
SHORTZ: Excellent. Blank Funicello, one of TV's original Mouseketeers.
SEIDMAN: Sure. Annette.
SHORTZ: Very good. Comedian Carol.
SEIDMAN: Burnett.
SHORTZ: OK. Here's a little bit of trivia, President Joe Biden's middle name.
SEIDMAN: Robinette.
SHORTZ: Excellent. Newspaper chain that publishes USA Today.
SEIDMAN: I don't know that one.
SHORTZ: Do you know this, Ayesha?
RASCOE: Yeah. Gannett.
SHORTZ: Gannett is it.
RASCOE: Yeah.
SEIDMAN: OK.
SHORTZ: How about villainous superintelligence system in the "Terminator" films?
SEIDMAN: I don't know that one, either.
RASCOE: Oh, I know this one.
SHORTZ: I bet you know this one, Ayesha.
RASCOE: Yeah, Skynet.
SHORTZ: Skynet. Good job. Here's your last one. Something a baby sleeps in.
SEIDMAN: A bassinet.
SHORTZ: You got it. Nice job.
RASCOE: Well, you did a great job. How do you feel?
SEIDMAN: Fun. It was fun, a lot of fun.
RASCOE: For playing our Puzzle today, you'll get a WEEKEND EDITION lapel pin, as well as puzzle books and games. You can read all about it at npr.org/puzzle. And, Cary, what member station do you listen to?
SEIDMAN: We are longtime members of WKSU.
RASCOE: Glad to hear that. That's Cary Seidman of Cleveland Heights, Ohio. Thanks for playing the Puzzle.
SEIDMAN: You're welcome. Thanks for having me on.
RASCOE: OK, Will, what's next week's challenge?
SHORTZ: Yes. It comes from listener Patrick Macintyre (ph) of Seattle, and it's a little tricky. What item containing a silent U is commonly found in kitchen drawers? So that's the puzzle. What item containing a silent U is commonly found in kitchen drawers?
RASCOE: When you have the answer, go to our website, npr.org/puzzle, and click on the Submit Your Answer link. Remember, just one entry, please. Our deadline for entries this week is Thursday, June 13 at 3 p.m. Eastern. Don't forget to include a phone number where we can reach you. If you're the winner, we'll give you a call. And if you pick up the phone, you'll get to play on the air with the puzzle editor of The New York Times and puzzlemaster of WEEKEND EDITION, Will Shortz. Thank you, Will.
SHORTZ: Thanks a lot, Ayesha.
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