Sunday Puzzle: Can you guess these stars?

On-air challenge: Every answer today is the name of a famous person past or present, in which the first two letters of the first name followed by the first two letters of the last name spell a four-letter word. I’ll give you the four-letter words and the famous people’s fields. You give me their names.
 

Ex. LINE, Action film star  –>  Liam Neeson

1. NEAR, Astronaut

2. ROAM, Explorer

3. DUEL, Jazz musician

4. PARE, Colonial patriot

5. SEGO, Singer/actress

6. NITE, Inventor

7. WISH, Playwright/poet

8. WISH, Puzzlemaster

Last week’s challenge: I was at the 184th convention of the National Puzzlers’ League, in Dallas. It’s a four-day event of word puzzles and games shared with about 160 fellow enthusiasts. One of these is Sandy Weisz, of Chicago, who sent me this puzzle: Think of a famous actor and a famous actress who co-starred in a classic movie of the past. The actress’s first name, when reversed, and the actor’s last name, spelled forward, are similar romantic gifts. Who are these film stars?

Challenge answer: Meg Ryan > gem-> Billy Crystal (“When Harry Met Sally”)

Winner: Darryl Nester of Bluffton, Ohio
 

This week’s challenge: This challenge comes from listener Mark Scott, of Seattle. Take the name of a famous actor of the past. Say it out loud, and phonetically you’ll describe what a famous general’s horse did. Who is the actor and who is the general?

Submit Your Answer

If you know the answer to the challenge, submit it here by Thursday, July 25th 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.