On-air challenge
Today's puzzle is titled "In at the Finish." I'm going to give you a clues for two words.. Add -IN at the end of the first word to get the second one.
Ex. Bit of smoke / Arctic bird --> PUFF, PUFFIN
1. Shopping area / President Van Buren
2. Fancy home beside the sea, maybe / Opposite of a hero
3. Fine powder / Actor Hoffman
4. Terse / Jane who was an original cast member of "S.N.L."
5. Actor Lundgren of "Rocky IV" / Intelligent sea creature
6. Item on a bracelet / Brand of bathroom tissue
7. Bit of ammunition / Short news report
8. Force of gravity on Earth (2 wds.) / Tchaikovsky opera "Eugene ___"
9. Gillette razor brand / Vehicle in a Duke Ellington jazz standard (2 wds.)
Last week's challenge
Last week's challenge came from Dan Moren, of Somerville, Mass. Name a well-known U.S. geographic location in six letters. Move the last letter two places earlier in the name and you'll get a regular English word. Say that word out loud. It will sound like a well-known geographic location abroad. What places are these? Here's a hint: Neither place name is a city.
Answer: Denali --> Denial (The Nile)
Winner
Mary Ann Paulukonis of Pittston, Pennsylvania
This week's challenge
This week's challenge comes from Robbie Ellis, of Chicago. Name two well-known colleges or universities from the same state. The last letter of one is the first letter of the other. Change each instance of this letter to the same new letter to get the names of two other well-known colleges or universities. What four schools are these?
If you know the answer to the challenge, submit it here by Thursday, October 8 at 3 p.m. ET. Listeners whose answers are selected win a chance to play the on-air puzzle. Important: include a phone number where we can reach you.
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