google.com, pub-2774194725043577, DIRECT, f08c47fec0942fa0 L.A.Times Crossword Corner: John Lieb

Advertisements

Showing posts with label John Lieb. Show all posts
Showing posts with label John Lieb. Show all posts

Feb 18, 2024

Sunday February 18, 2024 John Lieb

Theme: "Position Papers" - Each common phrase is rephrased as if it's a periodical fitting the people in each clue. 

23. Periodical for prosecutors, defense attorneys, and judges?: FULL-COURT PRESS.  A perfect clue to start with.

41. ... for con artists?: SNOW GLOBE.

44. ... for kitchen remodelers?: CABINET POST.

67. ... for aspiring entertainers?: YOU DESERVE A BREAK TODAY.

88. ... for potato chip aficionados?: CRUNCH TIMES.

91. ... for scuba divers?: DEEP VOICE.

112. ... for clockmakers?: SECONDHAND NEWS.

 I feel they all work great except 67A. Noun phrases work the best for this type of "Periodical for..." or "Favorite paper for ...", right?

So nice to see John's byline again. From Boswords website, John "teaches Math and coaches football and baseball at The Roxbury Latin School." I had a few email exchanges with John over the years. He's super nice and a true gentleman. He's one of those few who are skilled at both themed and themeless grids.

John Lieb

Across:

1. "Doctor Who" airer: BBC.

4. Comedian Wong: ALI. Her father is Chinese. Wong is Cantonese. In mainland China, we use Wang.

7. North African expanse: SAHARA.

13. Flying disc game: KANJAM. Wikipedia says this game is developed in Western New York.

19. Traffic regulator in a construction zone: FLAGMAN.

21. Chemical cousin: ISOMER.

22. First-string units: A TEAMS.

25. Xterra maker: NISSAN.

26. Yalies: ELIS.

27. Promo: TEASER.

28. Altercations: SET-TOS.

29. Commoner: PLEB.

30. Paint brand sold at Home Depot: BEHR. Exclusively at Home Depot.

31. Canoe material: BIRCH.

34. Foreign policy gp.: NSC.

36. Support: AID.

37. Rooney of "Women Talking": MARA.

38. Guitar accessories: CAPOS.

40. 880 square feet, for a pickleball court: AREA. Oh hi, Big Easy!

46. Drift: TENOR.

47. Captain Nemo creator: VERNE.

49. Geek: DWEEB.

50. Org. created two years before the 1896 Athens games: USOC. Fresh clue angle!

53. Major work: OPUS.

54. Cape __, Massachusetts: ANN. And 88. Cape __, Massachusetts: COD.  Must be John's clues.

55. Actor Vigoda: ABE. He was in "The Godfather".

58. "Monday Night Football" channel: ESPN.

61. Pod members: WHALES.

63. Everyone: ALL.

65. Missed the mark: ERRED.

71. Physicist Mach: ERNST.

72. Squeeze (out): EKE.

73. Gaming tile: DOMINO.

74. Retired jets: SSTS.

75. Kama Sutra topic: SEX. Any of you familiar with Shunga? I don't want to link and bring troubles to our blog.

76. Informal greetings: HIS.

78. Sonic the Hedgehog platform: SEGA.

79. Gaming cubes: DICE.

81. Paris river: SEINE.

83. Ohio home of Minor League Baseball's RubberDucks: AKRON. Makes sense. Rubber.



84. Shel Silverstein's "A Light in the __": ATTIC.

95. Granola bar bits: OATS.

96. Sag: DROOP.

97. Private aid gps.: NGOS.

98. "Insecure" star Issa: RAE.

99. Sample on a swab: DNA.

100. Soul singer Baker: ANITA.

102. Gear parts: COGS.

103. Cross products: PENS. I've only used Pilot.

104. Like hot yoga: SWEATY.

108. Venus flytrap snack: INSECT.  Carnivorous plant.

110. Sandy sediment: SILT.

111. Margaret Atwood's homeland: CANADA.

116. Spring river phenomenon: ICE RUN.

117. Amp toter: ROADIE.

118. Takes the plunge: RISKS IT.

119. Talks to online: SKYPES.

120. Bays, e.g.: INLETS.

121. Sigma follower: TAU.

122. Show with an early a.m. after-party: SNL.

Down:

1. Fave pal: BFF.

2. Offside boundary in hockey: BLUE LINE.

3. Picked in class: CALLED ON.

4. Gremlins, or where some saw "Gremlins": AMCS.

5. Southeast Asian language: LAO.

6. Yet to be delivered: IN UTERO.

7. Instrument that dates to the Mughal Empire: SITAR.

8. Nile vipers: ASPS.

9. Biblical peak: HOREB. Learned from doing crosswords.

10. Alaskans, Hawaiians, etc.: AMERICANS.

11. Hi or low follower: RES.

12. "__ longa, vita brevis": ARS.

13. "Citizen __": KANE.

14. Bickering: AT IT.

15. Jay's home: NEST.

16. "All the President's Men" Oscar winner: JASON ROBARDS. He played Ben Bradlee.

17. Stockpiles: AMASSES.

18. Yahoo! rival: MSN.

20. Smooth-talking: GLIB.

24. Post-injury regimen: REHAB.

28. "Grey's Anatomy" production company: SHONDALAND. Founded by Shonda Rhimes.

29. Bygone: PAST.

30. The Orioles, in box scores: BAL. Baltimore. And 37. Baseball VIPs: MGRS.

32. Broccoli __: RABE.


33. Cost-of-living fig.: CPI.

35. Purr-former: CAT. Agnes-like clue.

39. In stitches: SEWN.

40. Mimic: APE.

42. Hurts: WOUNDS.

43. Increase in complexity, perhaps: EVOLVE.

44. Passionate activists: CRUSADERS.

45. Moral principle: TENET.

48. Fencing sword: EPEE.

51. Yelps of pain: OWS.

52. Charcuterie board accompanier: CHEESE TRAY.  Want some?

56. Tuckered out: BEAT.

57. Ice cream brand: EDY'S.

58. Peepers: EYES.

59. Vexed: SORE.

60. "Groundhog Day" town: PUNXSUTAWNEY. What a sparkly fill.

62. "Raiders of the Lost __": ARK.

63. Actor Assante: ARMAND. He's in "Private Benjamin".

64. Wearable wreath: LEI.

66. Met, as a challenge: ROSE TO.

68. Set of principles: ETHIC.

69. Enticing sales acronym: BOGO.

70. Showy carp: KOI.

77. With sharp resolution: IN HD.

78. Having doubts: SKEPTICAL.

80. Cleveland NBAers, for short: CAVS.

82. Nav. rank: ENS.

83. Mine, in Marseille: A MOI.

85. Indefatigable: TIRELESS. There's a guy who swims the whole session with his snorkel on, probably 30 laps non-stop. I think it's cheating.

86. "Things never go my way!": I CAN'T WIN.

87. Copyright symbols: CEES.

89. Rifle: RANSACK.

90. Cyclotron particle: ION.

92. Pre-flood Biblical patriarch: ENOCH.

93. Custardy dessert: EGG TART. Sure miss the smell of freshly baked egg tarts in Guangzhou. Very flaky.

94. Like a negative number squared: Abbr.: POS. John is a math teacher.

101. Battery terminal: ANODE.

102. Hands over: CEDES.

103. Flamingo hue: PINK.

105. Wyatt of the Old West: EARP.

106. Together, in music: A DUE.

107. Souvenirs from an island vacation?: TANS.

109. Bit of pique: SNIT.

110. California sch. of Padres legend Tony Gwynn: SDSU. San Diego State University

111. Prefix with gender: CIS

112. __ Lanka: SRI.

113. Geological stretch: EON.

114. "Candyman" director DaCosta: NIA.

115. Gateway Arch city, for short: STL.

C.C.


Sep 17, 2022

Saturday, September 17, 2022, John Lieb

 Saturday Themeless by John Lieb

John is from Philadelphia but now lives in West Roxbury, MA. where he teaches math at Roxbury Latin School. He attended The Haverford School in Haverford, PA and studied math at Williams College in Williamstown, MA.

I have never written up any of John's puzzles but a search shows he has had LA Times constructions back to at least 2014. His FaceBook page contains personal information and this wonderful picture.  
As for the picture, John was kind enough to write:  The story of the outfit is that at my school, the day before Spring Break is a dress down/costume day, and the Elvis costume was my outfit a few years back. Fun to walk around as the King for a day...

I am happy to add this for John: Also, it would be great if you could mention Boswords, a series of online crossword competitions that I co-direct ... our Fall Themeless League is starting up in a few weeks and if solvers want to see more info, they can go to www.boswords.org

Across:

1. Consultant on a family history project, perhaps: GRANDPA - All those resources have passed away and I missed a chance to consult. 

8. Spot for a note to self: POST IT.


14. Braided accent piece: ROPE RUG.


15. Univision language: ESPANOL.


17. "Ya feel me?": AM I RITE - Slang variation of a slang expression 



18. Get more out of: RECYCLE.

19. Delivers à la Tig Notaro: DEADPANS - 7 minutes worth


21. Elite: A-LIST.

22. Calls a ball a strike, say: ERRS 


23. Contracts of confidentiality, briefly: NDAS - We had "HUSH MONEY" last week as a possible part of Non Disclosure Agreements

25. Bone: Prefix: OSTE - From the Greek word ostéon meaning bone

26. __ milk: SOY - For lactose intolerant people

27. "Do you see anyone laughing?": READ THE ROOM.


30. Cannery row: TINS - Rows of cans from a, uh, cannery


31. Put on the line?: AIR DRY - Very common sight in my yute but rare to see now


32. Grasped: HELD.

33. Amy and Molly in "Booksmart," e.g.: PALS 4. Amy and Molly in "Booksmart," e.g.: NERDS.


34. Fills a flat again: RELETS.


36. Church recess: APSE.

37. YA novel by Matt de la Peña about a gifted athlete: BALL DON'T LIE Synopsis


39. "Scrumptious!": YUM.

42. Time toggle: AM/PM.

43. Lacking direction?: LOST.

44. Object formed by two faces in a classic illusion: VASE.
45. Augurs: BODES.

47. Jumps on a scale?: PAY HIKES - No weighing or musical intervals 

49. "This is bad, even for you": A NEW LOW.


52. Phoenix team: THE SUNS.

53. Pass on to one's followers, say: RESHARE - A common FaceBook activity

54. Device that is never free of charge?: IONIZER.


55. Uranus, e.g.: SKY GOD.


56. HS class with a mean teacher?: AP STATS - A mean (or average) would be a very introductory part of an Advanced Placement Statistics class


Down:

1. Marks: GRADES.

2. Horror film pioneer: ROMERO - George ROMERO is said to have started the Zombie craze with this 1968 "classic" where death does not 6. Cut short: PUT AN END TO life

    
3. Place with great buzz?: APIARY.

The Sweet Cheeks Farm and APIARY in N.J.

5. Dullard: DRIP.

7. Handouts from a chair: AGENDAS.


8. Each: PER.

9. Sugar suffix: OSE - dextrOSE, fructOSE, glucOSE, lactOSE, maltOSE, sucr
OSE

10. Adoption org.: SPCA - My wife would walk out with all the pets in the Society For The Prevention Of Cruelty To Animals shelter.

11. Word game option for Swifties: TAYLORDLE A variation of WORDLE based on Taylor Swift

12. Teeth lost by some hockey players: INCISORS.


13. Novelist who fought in the Crimean War: TOLSTOY.

Lt. Leo TOLSTOY

16. "They're gonna do what they're gonna do": LET 'EM - Bad advice for a substitute teacher 

20. __ trombone: SAD - We all know this sound but I, for one, did not know it had a name. Jazzbumpa?


24. Shuttle stop: Abbr.: STAtion 

27. Stirred (up): RILED.

28. Toy also called a kangaroo ball: HIPPITY HOP.


29. Sabotage with a magnet, maybe: ERASE - It may or may not do it.


30. "I need to understand": TELL ME WHY which you can say to the 32. Troubleshooting locale: HELP DESK. They might reply, "Uh, maybe you got a magnet too close to your hard drive."

34. 1976 debut punk album: RAMONES - This punk group with its plethora of vowels and low scrabble value consonants is on the bill often here

35. NBC show Jay Mohr writes about in "Gasping for Airtime": SNL - His struggle with anxiety and trying to get his "stuff" on the air at Saturday Night Live.


36. Ancient French region: ALSATIA - Also ALSACE is in France's far NE corner on the border with Germany. It has changed so often during the centuries that it is not quite French and not quite German.


37. Fictional king who "lived among men and learned much": BABAR.


38. Leading: TOP.

39. Japanese crime syndicate: YAKUZA.


40. Early web forum: USENET.


41. Salutation abbreviation: MESSRS - Plural for mister  

44. Pop in: VISIT.

46. Foundry waste: SLAG - Byproduct of steel production


48. Female lobsters: HENS.

50. Two places higher than bronce: ORO.

Plata          ORO          Bronce

51. Join: WED.