The Puzzler with A.J. JacobsHello, Puzzlers! Puzzling with us today: our very own Chief Puzzle Officer, Greg Pliska.
Join host A.J. Jacobs and his guests as they puzzle–and laugh–their way through new spins on old favorites, like anagrams and palindromes, as well as quirky originals such as “Ask Chat GPT” and audio rebuses.
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"The Puzzler with A.J. Jacobs" is distributed by iHeartPodcasts and is a co-production with Neuhaus Ideas.
Our executive producers are Neely Lohmann and Adam Neuhaus of Neuhaus Ideas, and Lindsay Hoffman of iHeart Podcasts.
The show is produced by Jody Avirgan and Brittani Brown of Roulette Productions.
Our Chief Puzzle Officer is Greg Pliska. Our associate producer is Andrea Schoenberg.
Hello, puzzlers, Welcome to the Puzzler podcast the rock Salt on your snowy puzzle Sidewalk. I'm your host, A J. Jacobs, and let's start with a quick puzzle. Name a famous rapper who has two sets of repeated letters in his name. So by repeated letters, I mean like the name Harry Potter, which has two r's in a row and first name Harry and to t's in a row in the last name Potter. So this rapper has a name like that. Now it happens that the two repeated letters in this rapper's name are O, N, G O and g oh in the first name, g in the second, which is appropriate because he is an og hip hop artist. The answer to this brain teaser after the break, Welcome back to the Puzzler.
I'm a J.
Jacobs and I am here as always with Chief Puzzle Officer Greg Pliska.
Welcome Greg, Thank you AJ. And that's a nice I like that opening puzzle. It is not my wheelhouse. I admit to not being a hip hop expert, right, It's not the music I grew up with exactly. I mean, it dawned in my college days. But I am so I'm not going to be as conversant. I was gonna say, Biggie Smalls, Oh, but you specified the double letters, and I now I've got like snoop oh, oh, I got it. Snoop Doggy.
You did it.
You had the aha moment.
We're talking cool Biggie and it was like, Snoop Biggie. Oh no, wait, I know that rapper.
It is nice Snoop dog with twogee's and the dog.
Yeah, Snoop dog.
I have just happened to I am not a hip hop expert either, but I was delighted that the letters happened to be O G. I didn't plan that, but it was on my mind because this week, as you know, our guest was the awesome Zach Sherwin. He's a comedian. He performed at your Awesome Mohunk Weekend or a Wonderful World of Words. But he's also a performer on Epic Rap Battles of History, which is this insanely popular YouTube series like sixty million per video. And since today is Friday and we often take listeners on a tour inside the Puzzle Lab, one of our stops is going to be about Epic Rap Battles of history. We also have of course, Greg has been monitoring the news Ticker and has a puzzle inspired by Puzzle News. And finally we've got some feedback from the listening public. But first let's go to the Puzzle Laboratory bench where we create the puzzles, and today we have associate puzzler Andrea Schoenberg. So, Andrea, what do you have on the lab for us?
Well, in honor of Zach Sherwin being the guest this past week, I have some lyrics here taken from five different epic rap battles of history. And your job, Aj and Greg is to identify the historical figure or famous character who is either doing the rapping or being referred to in the rap.
I say, okay, it does because these rap battles are very funny. They have you know, it'll be like Alexander the Great versus Iven the Terrible, right, so and and they'll have people playing each of the characters and doing a rap based on and it's very clever. It's not like dumb down. It's like very clever learned lyrics about these people, or at least I think.
So.
We'll see. We'll see when Andreia gips but the ones i've heard. Have that? All right, Andrea, I'm up for the challenge.
Okay, here we go. I drop rhymes like they're falling from an apple tree. You're no match for me. You got a batch degree. I got a unit of force named after me.
Oh yeah, okay, I got it.
Yeah, and the apple tree.
The apple tree is a big giveaway. But then there's a unit of force named after Sir Isaac Newton.
Sir, but I don't know, Yeah it was.
It was taken from a rap battle between Isaac Newton and Bill Nie Newton versus Bill Nye.
You just got a batched degree. Nice?
All right, here's another one. Your egos just so distracting. Free speech doesn't mean just keep yapping. And you killed God, so I gotta ask did he die of shame when he made your mustache?
Very good? All right, I think I got you.
Think it's a philosopher, right, a German philosopher.
Yeah, actually this one I know because I watched it and preparation for Zach. So I'll let Greg answer.
It's Nietzsche, right, It is Nietzsche.
And who was he battling? Andrea?
It was taken from a rap battle between Western philosophers and Eastern philosophers the one Involtaire and uh, I forget who the third Western was, but against sun Zu allowed Zoo and Confucius got nice.
I guess they don't declare when you have to vote on a winner. So is that right generally? Anyway?
All right, very great Nata was famed for saying that God was dead or apotheesizing, right, that there was no God.
Right, yes, he said God was dead. That was the big headline, and he had a huge mustache.
All right, here's another one. This is a short, just a couplet. I'm the Queen of TV and I'm here to destroy you. So check under your seat because I got something for you.
All right, I got, I got it?
Got? I mean who else would be the queen of TV?
Right of course?
And she go ahead, Yeah, she said look under your seat. And well, we're the cars under the seat. Now, that doesn't make sense to me.
They were very big seats.
Okay. Well, Oprah was the Cooeen of TV, and she is famous for saying, you get a car, you get a car. But I guess she also said look under your seat and get a gift. Those are two separate things, because sitting in cars, don't fit under the seats. But I don't know who she was Ellen DeGeneres. Is that who she was battling? Rose?
Exactly?
Yes? Ellen?
Wow, well done Oprah versus Allen?
Now Ellen, there's a lot more to do with Ellen, I imagine, because she's had some some issues. But back then it must have been harder to write. All right, good one, What else you got for us? Andre?
All right? Next one? You think you're so chic up in your fancy palace, getting low on Mark Antony, tossing Caesar solid. You wear too much eyeliner for anyone to adore you. You might as well be working the door at Sephora. I got an ask that won't quit. You had an ASP and got bit.
Nice, very good nice. So that's definitely Cleopatra. Yes right, you got that from Mark Anthony and and also the asp. Who do who's she battling? Agent?
In this case, she was battling Marilyn Monroe versus Marilyn Monroe.
Okay, I was thinking Kim Kardashian or j Low because I guess yeah, Marilyn also very good? All right, all.
Right, last one, you can't rhyme against the dark side of the force. Why even bother so many dudes been with your mom? Who even knows if I'm your father?
That is some slut shaming. And I don't know.
I guess right, but it is Darth Vader.
Yes, and the mother is the mother of Wait, I'm confused. The mother is not Princess Leah because.
He is just doing a he's doing your Yeah, your mom thinks it's not Darth Vader versus Podme, it's Darth Vader versus somebody else.
Well, actually it's Darth Vader versus Adolf Hitler. Of course.
You know, if you want to go dark, you gotta go dark. Yeah, there you go.
I think they have They have three different Darth Vader versus Hitler battles.
It three Wow, So was that important as well?
They kept going back to you.
Yeah, very good, thank you, Andrea, as I said, very well, cadenced, you have a future.
And uh.
And now that brings us to the second stop in our whirlwind tour of the Puzzle. Last, Greg, you have been monitoring the news, take news all puzzle related news? Yes, yes, and I don't know what you found. Actually I found.
Some news, so that you know, the New York Times Games app and game section is very very popular. Yes, and they've released some information about the twenty twenty four statistics in the games. They're not, you know, they pretty cagy about all of it. But Everydeen Mason was on the Today's Show recently and she's the editorial director of the New York Times Games New York Times Games, and she talked about there we released some of the statistics about the games in twenty twenty four. So instead of just telling you, I'm gonna quiz you about these.
Fair enough, all right, right? A quiz about a puzzle about puzzles. Very meta.
So, according to this appearance on the Today Show, the total number of puzzles solved in twenty twenty four, not the number of solvers, but the total number of puzzles solved?
Oh right?
Was it a eleven point one million, B one hundred and eleven million, C one point one billion or D eleven point one billion?
Interesting? I have a yes, I have a guess. I'm just gonna say, because I feel we underestimate how popular the New York Times puzzles are, I'm going to go with whatever. The crazy one was one hundred and eleven trillion.
The top one, eleven point one billion. Yeah, you are correct. Yes, the high number, eleven point william one billion puzzles solved, right, and they gave the rankings for how the most played to the least played of four of the puzzles. They go through all of that. I want to hear connect in alphabetical order. The puzzles are connections, right, the mini crossword okay, strands yeah, and wordle.
And we're okay, I'm gonna have a popularity.
From the most popular to the least. What would you say?
I would say, all right, wordle is still number one.
You are correct. Wordle is number one. Five point three billion solves for wordle.
I feel it just had so much uh and yeah, so much.
Two.
I'm going to say Connections is sumber two just.
Because correct billion connections.
Now the other two, I don't know. The other two crosswords. That's a tough one. Strands, I predict will eventually overtake crosswords, but I don't know if it's done it yet, because it is a little easier than crosswords, and people like easy. So I'm going to I am going to say, though, mini crossword than strands.
You're correct. Minni crosswords two point one and strands one point three. I also I would put them in that order because the crossword is more accessible. Right, people recognize what a crossword is, whereas strands you gotta You're like, wait, I'm supposed to do what and look for things with what? And it's you know, it takes a it's not as familiar. Where's the crosswords super familiar? So yes, you've got that very I'm like, this is all right. Let's talk about the most popular game. That's the word. What was the most popular opening word in twenty twenty four?
Okay, meaning the most people played?
Most people play this, this, This was played the most times. Is the opening word?
Okay?
It's a word that has four vowels in it?
Oh? Okay. I only know a few words like that. Yeah, I'm going to I The only one that comes to mind is one that I've actually played. Is an opening word?
You?
Is it a?
You? Most partly right, because you've got four different vowels, So you put it in there and you you have a good shot of getting your vowels locked in pretty quickly. What's your starting word? What do you like to start I don't.
Play wordle anymore. I play a lot of the others, But when I did it, it was this word that I'm now forgetting. Uh, but it was but some AI program said it was the best word. It was a word for a young hawk, I believe. Do you know what it is? Maybe Andrea could look it up? What do your what's your what's your opening?
I would use a tone a lot at O, N, E because those are very common letters and you sort of get a good chance of getting some hits early on the actual the wordles Automated assistant did did also say what the best starting word is?
Which is what did they say?
Which is slate?
Huh? Interesting?
So lately interesting?
Yeah, that's a good one.
Well, let me let me give you an extra credit.
All right.
This is the longest spelling B pangram of the year. It appeared on January eighth, twenty twenty four. And for those of you who don't know, in spelling B, you get seven letters, and you find all the words you can make with those letters, including at least one word that uses all of those letters, known as the pangram. So this word is sixteen letters long, wow, and it uses the letters that were given that day. This was January eighth, of last year. The letters were A, I, L, N, O, T and Z. The letters are AILNO, T and Z. What is the sixteen letter word that was the longest spelling b pangram that you can make using just those letters?
All right, come back on Monday to discover what that word is and for our final stop on the Puzzle Lamb Tour. We always checked in to see what the listeners have been contacting us about, and we got a lovely one from listener Mike Okrim. What did Mike say?
Yes, So we got a letter and Mike said, Hi, Greg Aj and Andrea. I saw a T shirt and it made me think of a possible puzzle for the show, and he sent a photo and here he is. We have an image of him and a T shirt with Arnold Schwarzenegger as the Terminator. He's wearing a Willie Wonka's top hat and the writing on the T shirt says, come with me if you want to live in a world of pure imagination, which is a mashup of the Terminator's famous line come with me if you want to live and uh Willi Walk's famous song come with me if you want to be in a world of pure imagination. So Mike writes, I know you do something similar with names like George Michael Jackson Brown, but this takes it up a notch with movie quotes.
That is good.
Nice.
First of all, I like George Michael Jackson Brown. That's like a triple George Michael Jackson Brown. And then yes, I love the idea of a mash up before and after movie quote. So, Andrea, you said to me you've got you came up with one. So maybe what is it? And we'll let Greg guess because you already showed it to me. What is What do you got?
Okay, Greg? This is what Renee Zellweger said to Barbers Streisand in the movie Funny Jerry maguire girl.
All right, I know the Jerry McGuire. Well, the jeremcguire quote that I know is show me the money.
That's what that is. That is another famous.
That's not the rene Es Eelwegger's character doesn't say that. She says something about their relationship and I can't remember what it was. And then it's the Barber Streis and Funny Girl quote.
Yes, the first thing she says in the movie.
Hello everybody, Hello world.
Hello, she's I think she's talking to herself, is that right?
Yes, Hello beautiful in the mirror, Oh gorgeous.
Yes, that's it.
You had me at Hello gorgeous. Yes, dread that one up. More guesses than a wordle game right there for sure.
Well if we love that idea, thank you so yeah. More life please And and by the way, listeners, if you have any mashup quotes, they don't even need to be movies, they could be any kind of quotes, send them on in and uh and thank you for listening. If you want more puzzling fun, check out our Instagram feed at Hello Puzzlers, where you post original puzzles and lots of other fun stuff. And we will make you here on Monday for more puzzling puzzles that will puzzle you puzzling me.
Hello puzzlers, It's Greg Pliska here from the Puzzle Lab with the extra credit answer from our previous show.
We played a little Thursday game with me and aj Aj gave me a puzzle he called polar bare knuckle boxing, which is mashing up two phrases that have the same homophone in the middle of them. And the extra credit clue was a show that consists of all the flubs made by wealthy spouses on a Bravo television show, and that would be a blooper Real Housewives. Blooper Real Housewives. So Blooper Real and Real Housewives matched up. I did a puzzle with Aj called get Her Together, where you have two words and you add two letters to the first word to get the second word. Your extra critic clue was a hat adorned with an explorer, and as a hint, I said that explorer was capitalized. That, of course, is a Dora Fedora. Take the word Dora as in Dora the Explorer and add the Fi at the front. So put on your Fedora, watch a round of blooper Reel Housewives, and come back and play puzzles with us tomorrow. Thanks for playing along with the team here at the Puzzler with AJ Jacobs. I'm Greg Pliska, your chief puzzle Officer. Our executive producers are Neelie Lohman and Adam Neuhouse of New House Ideas and Lindsay Hoffman of iHeart Podcasts. The show is produced by Jody Averragan and Brittany Brown of Roulette Production, with production support from Claire Bidegare Curtis. Our associate producer is Andrea Schoenberg. The Puzzler with AJ Jacobs is a co production with New House Ideas and is distributed by Epic Todd Hard ass actually rearrange those letters. It's distributed by iHeart Podcasts. If you want to know more about puzzling puzzles, please check out the book The Puzzler by AJ Jacobs, a history of puzzles that The New York Times called fun and funny. It features an original puzzle hunt by yours truly, and is available wherever you get your books and puzzlers. For all your puzzling needs, go visit the puzzler dot com. See you there,
