google.com, pub-2774194725043577, DIRECT, f08c47fec0942fa0 L.A.Times Crossword Corner: Thursday June 19, 2008 Michael T. Williams

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Jun 19, 2008

Thursday June 19, 2008 Michael T. Williams

Theme: QUIP

17A: Start of a Casey Stengel quip: THE YANKEES

21A: Part of 2 of quip: DON'T PAY

40A: Part 3 of quip: ME TO WIN EVERY DAY

54A: Part 4 of quip: JUST TWO

63A: End of quip: OUT OF THREE

Ah, the Stengelese, I admire so much his philosophical wit! A very intelligent man: "They say Yogi Berra is funny. Well, he has a lovely wife and family, a beautiful home, money in the bank, and he plays golf with millionaires. What's funny about that?"

My understanding of Casey Stengel's life mainly comes from the Mickey Mantle and Joe DiMaggio books I've mindlessly leafed through. When I think of him, I think of the "Most ball games are lost, not won" quote. I always thought of him as a Yankees/Mets Manager. Did not know until this morning that he had played for both NY Giants and Brooklyn Dodgers before. That's amazing. Who else could claim that he played/managed all the 4 MLB teams in NY?

Good to see PEDRO (32D: Cy Young winner Martinez) in today's puzzle. I wish JOSH (54D: Kid) were clued as "Red Sox pitcher Beckett" and MINE (35A: Planted explosive) clued as " Outfielder's cry". It would have been a great baseball themed puzzle.

Had to flirt with Google again this morning. Had difficulty getting into this Michael T. William's wavelength. It's odd to get a QUIP puzzle from him.

ACROSS:

6A: Autobahn auto: AUDI. Regarding yesterday's OLDS (36D: Antique auto), I think Richard @ 1:35pm explained it very well. REO would be a perfectly fine answer for the "Antique auto" clue.

10A: __ does it: THAT. "EASY" does it Tiger! See you at the Masters next year!

14A: Pita fiber: ISTLE. I only knew "Pita" as the TASTY (10D: Delectable) flatbread topped with hummus. Had no idea that it can also be a fiber-yielding plant. ISTLE is a new word to me. Here is the definition: "a fiber from any of several tropical American plants of the genus Agave or Yucca, used in making bagging, carpets, etc."

16A: Dynamic intro?: AERO

20A: Singer Brewer: TERESA. Completely unknown to me. Mother TERESA & TERESA Heinz Kerry, yes.

23A: Camera-ready copy: REPRO

26A: Let down: LAY. Here is Eric Clapton's "LAY Down Sally".

30A: Disarranged: TOUSLED. This is Kate Moss' classic "Tousled, Just Out of Bed" look.

37A: Boot binding: LACE. And 9D: Boot cushion: INSOLE. How you guys could segue the topic yesterday from SCORIA into boots and sandwich is beyond me.

38A: Roeper's co-host: EBERT (Roger). He has not been on the show for a longtime. I don't think he can talk now.

44A: Murder: DO IN. Here is another great line from the great Casey Stengel: "Being with a woman all night never hurt no professional baseball player. It's staying up all night looking for a woman that DOes him IN".

47A: Ability to walk aboard: SEA LEGS. Is it gimme to you? I've never heard of "SEA LEGS" before.

52A: Mature: ADULT. "As youth lives in the future, so the ADULT lives in the past: No one rightly knows how to live in the present."

58A: Stevedore: LOADER

68A: Collection of artifacts: HOARD. Really? I thought HOARD has a negative "greedy" connotation.

71A: Some lilies: SEGOS Utah State Flower SEGO Lily.

DOWN:

5D: Wonderland service: TEA SET

7D: A. Godfrey's instrument: UKE (Ukulele)

11D: Dickens hypocrite: HEEP (Uriah). From "David Copperfield".

13D: Singer Orlando: TONY. Ah, got him this time, the "Tie a Yellow Ribbon" singer. This is the list of 2008 TONY Award Winners. That "In the Height" actor (Lin-Manuel Miranda) sounds extremely talented.

18D: City on the Tyrrhenian Sea: NAPOLI. Italian name for Naples. Here is the map. I am not familiar with the Tyrrhenian Sea at all.

22D: 2000 candidate Ralph: NADER. He wrote "Unsafe at Any Speed".

24D: Kagali's country: var.: RUANDA (Rwanda). New to me also. Dictionary says "RUANDA" can also refer to the "Bantu language".

25D: Seminole chief: OSCEOLA. I forgot his name again. How can I remember him?

27D: Goldman and Lazarus: EMMAS. I know neither of them. Got the answer from across clues. Oh, Another Goldman (Steven) has written a book titled "Forging Genius: The Making of Casey Stengel".

31D: Taxed: LEVIED

33D: Egghead: BRAIN. That's what he wished.

34D: "Funny girl" composer: STYNE. Another unknown. Pieced together from the across clues.

41D: "The Man Who ___ There": WASN'T. Cohen brothers' film. I wish the clue was "Rome _____ built in a day", it would form a mini Italy sub-theme with ITER (3D: Roman way) and 18D: NAPOLI.

42D: Completely surround: ENGULF. Lois has probably got her copy of "When You Are ENGULFed in Flame".

48D: Tim Burton film: ED WOOD. Here is more information about the film, starring Johnny Depp. I've never seen it.

49D: Three-hanging vegans: SLOTHS. What? SLOTHS do not eat meat? Are you sure?

53D: Lake near Reno: TAHOE. Could have been clued as "Chevy offering" to pair up with 6D: AUDI.

57D: Yorkshire river: OUSE

59D: Move with a mouse: DRAG

60D: One Saarine: EERO. His father is Eliel.

64D: Thoughtful letter: TLC. Oh I need some.

Alright, the last one, 1D: Skater Katarina: WITT. I did not know her. Wikipedia says she is in the World Figure Skating HOF now. I'm bad, I'm bad...who's bad?

C.C.

75 comments:

Kim said...

CC,

I'm with you on this one, and to make it worse, doing these online sucks. I just don't like it, but unless I can get out and find a Washington Post, looks like the only way.

I don't like not being able to scan the entire puzzle for the clues. Well, probably no baby for 11 days or so unless she goes on her own, so I have plenty of time!

Everyone have a great day!

Zhouqin (C.C.) Burnikel said...

Good morning Kim,
FYI, Washington Post carries this TMS puzzle from Tuesday to Thursday.

Katherine said...

Good morning CC, Kim and gang.
I don't think I would like doing the puzzle on line either. I hope you can find the Washington Post Kim.
I had a little trouble with this one, but then again, I don't have the time to spend that I would like.
I do remember Teresa Brewer well. She was big back in the day. I got 47D CC, that was a "gimme" for me. And I always thought it was Rwanda too. That one threw me off. Great links today CC.
Have a good day everyone.
You guys were all so funny yesterday. When I got home from work I read all the blogs. Made me laugh.

Dennis said...

Good morning, C.C. & gang - thought this was a decent puzzle, except for a couple things you pointed out, C.C.: sloths are NOT vegans - they eat lizards, etc, as well as leaves, and 'hoard' means to amass, not necessarily artifacts.
As far as 'sealegs', that's something you develop after a few days aboard ship, where you can walk almost normally even on a pitching sea.

lois, what's the body count so far? I didn't see anything on the news yet about volcanoes in OK.

melissa bee - now what do I do?

Almost the weekend - make it a great day today.

Kim said...

Thanks for the info CC. I thought it would be in the paper everyday. I'll have to make due.

Dr. Dad said...

Good morning!
Arena is back again. So is Ashe.
Nova returns with PBS. And don't forget art deco, iter, Oslo, and Tony Orlando. All of them are old friends.

Istle is new to me as well. Looked it up after I got it from the perps.

Lgend holds that the St. Patrick rid the slithering
reptiles from Ireland's shores as he converted its peoples from
paganism during the fifth century A.D. Scientifically though, there are no snakes in Ireland for the simple reason they couldn't
get there because the climate wasn't favorable for them to be there. There is however, one reptile, the viviparous lizard. so Erin is not "reptileless."

Emma also fits for Emma Horton (played by Debra Winger in "Terms of Endearment."

Happy Juneteenth (aka Freedom Day, Emancipation Day) that commemorates the announcement of the abolition of slavery in Texas. It is the oldest known celebration of the end of slavery.

Dr. Dad said...

Dennis is right. Sloths main diet consists of leaves and buds from the Cecropia tree but they do eat insects, lizards, and carrion and are classed as omnivores, not herbivores.

Dennis said...

Today is also "National Sauntering Day" - sauntering is defined as 'strolling aimlessly, happily'. So go for a walk and see where you end up. I'm shooting for OK.

Superfrey said...

Nice puzzle. Of course, I like Casey... he had a way of using humor to get his point across to players. He was The Eternal Optimist.
Kim... Washington Post only publishs the puzzle Tues thru Thur. I wonder why just those days?
We have been inundated with rain the last few days.... hope that worked it's way up to your part of FL

Bill said...

Better than yesterdays!
14a & 8d; Had an "s" instead of a "t". I think we've sewen ISTLE before but didn't remember.
Had JEST for 54d so 62a and 69a needed help. 47a was a gimme, Heard it a lot. 25d was also a gimme since we have a village of the same name about 15 miles north.
Dennis, If you're going to SAUNTER to OK be sure to wear moccasins so you can sneak up on LOIS and surprise her!!

Bill said...

SEWEN???? What the devil does that mean??
Should be SEEN!

Dr. Dad said...

Dennis, wait for me. I'll saunter down to NJ from RI and we can head for OK together. Look out Lois, here we come!

Dick said...

Good morning all. Not too bad today but need help in the center section. I had spelled 24D as Rwanda which took me awhile to get 23A Tousled.

Now with Katrina Witt us guys have our ice skating film also. Katrina, I think, had an ongoing affair with an Italian down hill skier during and after the Olympics several years ago.

Barry G. said...

Morning, all!

I really liked the quip today and was actually able to figure out most of it without help from the perps.

The center section of the puzzle, however, left me stumped for a good long time. The terrible trio of proper names (OSCEOLA, NAPOLI and RUANDA) really threw me for a loop, especially since I had TUSSLED instead of TOUSLED for 30A. The fact that I didn't know whether 20A was THERESA or THERESE didn't help matters any.

I eventually tried putting in TOUSLED for 30A, though, and after that things fell into place. It helped that I've at least heard of NAPOLI and RUANDA (RWANDA), despite the fact that OSCEOLA was (and still is, for that matter) completely unknown to me.

Oh -- and I couldn't believe that ISTLE was a real word, but it fit the perps and it was at least pronounceable enough to possibly be a real word. Let's see if I can remember it the next time it shows up...

Dick said...

Drdad if you and Dennis are going to OK can I hook up with you and meet you somewhere along the PA Turnpike?

Dr. Dad said...

I just went back and read the remaining comments from yesterday and almost peed my pants laguhing!! God forbid the people who are coming in late in the day to see how quickly we fall from grace into the well of sin. Not to mention new visitors. They must think we are completely nuts, not just dysfunctional. Can people get to the comments section on the blog site that references this one? We'll be famous if they can.

Dick said...

One other dumb thing today I read the 59A clue as Move Like a Mouse and put in Dart for the answer. This also screwed me up for awhile. I do not agree with 68A Hoard clued as Collection of Artifacts. This could have been clued better.

Dr. Dad said...

Dick, when we saunter down that way, you are welcome to join us. After the turnpike we swing southwest for a bit and we're home free!

Dick said...

Dennis I don't think I got your 5:51am INBREED comment from yesterday. Any comment?

Dick said...

Drdad if we look into the sky and see anything that resembles your photo we will know that we are close to Lois and her brood.

Dennis said...

Dick - it was just an incest joke. If you ever saw my sister, you'd KNOW it was a joke...

Dick said...

Dennis thanks for the answer but I cannot believe that about your sister. Oh well it was funny.

Barry G. said...

One other dumb thing today I read the 59A clue as Move Like a Mouse and put in Dart for the answer.

Heh. I originally read the clue as "Movie with a Mouse," which threw me for a bit of a loop. ^_^

Kim said...

Superfrey,

We had a little rain before I left yesterday. For some reason, and I don't know if its because I live between the turnpike & 95, the rain misses us alot. My hubby said we got a little yesterday.

As for the Post, I don't see why they would carry a puzzle only 3 our of 7 days.

Have a great day everyone!

Dick said...

Dennis thanks for the answer but I cannot believe that about your sister. Oh well it was funny.

Dick said...

Barry I guess we should go back to school and learn to read or get new reading glasses.

Barry G. said...

Sadly, I just got my first pair of reading glasses. I refuse to wear them unless absolutely necessary in a vain attempt to avoid acknowledging that I'm getting older (I'm turning 42 next week, which is great if your a Douglas Adams fan, but not so great otherwise).

Zhouqin (C.C.) Burnikel said...

Dennis,
Is ISTLE a gimme to you?

Barry,
Re: ISTLE. Maybe it's easier to remember it if we can somehow connect it with thISTLE, or whISTLE.

Dick said...

Cc thanks for the thistle hint in remembering istle. I probably will not forget it next time.

Barry enjoy as it gets worse from here on.

MH said...

Another struggle day. Got the quip with no problem but still couldn't get the middle of the puzzle with OSCEOLA, NAPOLI, REPRO, RUANDA, TOUSLED, & LACE missing. I should have gotten LACE but the others....I mean, really, REPRO for Camera-ready copy? Repro is short for reproduction, the thing that is created from the camera-ready copy. Also too many obscure cities, obscure rivers, and obscure seas in this one for me. Not to mention obscure proper names. Oooo I sound grouchy, but I'm not. I'm off for a long weekend to Pismo Beach. Ta-ta.

Dr. Dad said...

C.C. - thanks for visiting my blog. Still just playing around with it and don't know exactly what I'll put there.

tigerslaw said...

Shoule be Eire, not Erie. Puzzle misspelled 45A.

Dick said...

tigerslaw 45A is ERIN not ERIE

Dick said...

drdad where does one find your blog?

Dr. Dad said...

Dick, click on "drdad" in one of my comments and it brings you to my profile. At the bottom is listed "Dr. Dad's Blog Spot." I'm just doing the daily Jumble answer, holiday observances, and the day in history. Nothing real exciting yet and certainly not as successful as the "Star Tribune Crossword Corner."

Dennis said...

C.C., yes, I'd seen 'istle' a few times in the past.

drdad, congratulations and good luck with the blog; I'll definitely visit, as I do the Jumble, Crytogram and Sudoku each morning as well.

Der Katze said...

OSLO. The on-line version of this puzzle clued 67A as "Norway's Capital", but my newspaper had it clued as "City on the Aker river".

melissa bee said...

good morning c.c. and all,

rushing out to work, after rushing through the puzzle. same stick spots as the rest of you.

it's so civilized here at 9am .. okay i'll start.

@dennis: put your lips together and blow.

Danielle said...

Never heard of either Emma! Emma Goldman was a famous American communist who is an important character in the movie REDS (61D) and Emma Lazarus wrote "The New Colossus," the poem that's inscribed on the Statute of Liberty - "Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breath free"

Danielle said...

It's not KATRINA Witt, it's KATARINA, and she wasn't just a gold-medal winning figure skater, but a major cultural figure (does SOLD OUT issue of Playboy tell you anything?)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Katarina_Witt

Danielle said...

Hey Kim,

I'm sorry if I missed something in the conversation that makes the following comment stupid and pointless, but I can't do the puzzle online either - I just print out the puzzle at the Chicago Tribune website:

http://www.chicagotribune.com/features/chi-sa-crossword-htmlpage,0,1710056.htmlpage

Dennis said...

Danielle, welcome, glad you found our ever-growing group. C.C. has done a simply amazing job of creating and nurturing this blog, and the 300k + hits speak to her efforts.

And Melissa Bee........I will if you will...

carol said...

Hi C.C. and all, sort of tough today as I couldn't seem to get enough to go together so it didn't help perps of "hors" :)
Anyway thanks to C.C. and Mr. Google I finally got it solved..took too long though..Dennis would have a good laugh.

Lois: Look out, you have fun "sauntering" your way, and in 3D too!
a.k.a. Dennis, drdad and Dick. They will show those OK cowboys how to ride! YIPPEE AYE KY - oops, I mean
YIPPEE AYE KI YEA.

melissa bee said...

re: sloths .. i have a couple of them living under my roof (one just graduated), and i can assure you - they'll eat anything.

@c.c.: i loved your egghead/brain link. aw, you need some TLC? how is your ankle?

@kim: i'm with you, i dislike doing puzzles online. the weird part is i usually complete them faster .. i just miss the tactile connection of pen to paper.

@drdad: i did not understand that snakeless clue, thanks for the explanation.

@mh: i also disliked the 'repro' fill.

@dennis: i already am. 42d me.

@danielle: welcome.

@carol: 3D .. cute.

Dick said...

Danielle you are correct it is pronounced Kata rina and it is very distinct when pronounced. Welcome to Ccs site. She does a great job and you will enjoy her work. Some of her attendees are a little weird but you will get used to it.

melissa bee said...

@dick: i resemble that remark.

@drdad: nice blog .. i may have to start doing the jumble again. and c.c. is so QUICK about noticing what her unruly bunch is up to. bill's comment to me the other day inspired me to blog some stories, and c.c. commented literally hours after i posted them.

c.c.: smooch. (some TLC)

Danielle said...

Crossword puzzle freaks are "a little weird"?? C'mon!
I've been reading this blog for awhile, but never posted until today. I admit, I never looked at the comments section - just the puzzle answers. I hail from Syracuse, NY, but I'm a recent transplant from the thriving metropolis of Philadelphia. And I'm not weird, really!

Dennis said...

danielle - give it time, we'll get you there.

Dick said...

danielle please heed Dennis' advice as we have ruined a lot of good people here except for Lois, Carol, and melissa. They were bad when they arrived.

Maybe you and I are related as my inlaws live in Watertown.

lois said...

Good afternoon CC & DF's: Enjoyed this puzzle but had the same snags as already mentioned. Lol'd w/ 'planted explosive'. Wondered if it was a personal reference. All the thunder and lightning last night made me think I had missed the 2nd coming! Holy lava bomb! Everything is still in tact though waiting for Melissa bee & the Dudes to 'come'. Now that will be a major pow wow!!! make a lava bomb seem like a gnat's fart. Holy nuclear hotwick! "Come on!" Everything is OK in OK, "rearin'" to go!

Dennis: the body count is 'just two out of three'...still standing.
I'm just warmin' up! 'Hoard'ing a herd of good men is hard and vice versa, but I was born ready! Got the Army guys all at 'attention!' Busy day!!!! What a round up!!!

Carol: I don't think we'll be 'sauntering' anywhere, but the thought of doing everything in 3D is sooooo very exciting!

Welcome, Danielle.

Dick said...

danielle see what happens as soon as Lois arrives. Everything goes downhill. But all the DFs like it.

Anonymous said...

Suffering with a urinary infection,
thought this puzzle would be an anondyne to my suffering, I had to
abandon it, city on the Aker river?
city on the Tyrrhenian Sea? Move with a mouse? Mouse on my computer?
I wasn't in a good frame of mind to
day. I hope Friday is better with a
cup of Lady Grey Tea! edward

Danielle said...

My husband runs the Texas Roadhouse up in Watertown(that's a terrible photo):

http://www.texasroadhouse.com/restaurant/246/

DFs? All I can think of is Darn Fools (which shows my age!)

Maybe I'm a LITTLE weird. Check out my blog and judge for yourself (fair warning - I mostly rant and rave about politics):

http://masurskyland.blogspot.com/

Dr. Dad said...

DF's - DysFunctionals. As you can see, some of us are.

Dennis said...

danielle, actually, dick's to blame (jeez, melissa/lois, how many times have you used THAT line?) for the disfunctional nature of our group. Ask anybody.

Dennis said...

melissa, re: your 1:25 -- shouldn't that be the other way around? Or is that some sort of kinky California thing?

melissa bee said...

@lois: you do sound busy. that's good because i might not make it .. i'm kinda tied up with dennis.

@danielle: you'll really be better off here if you're quite weird. but i'm not suggesting anything.

@dennis: bite me.

Dennis said...

Bite??!?? I was right!!

MH said...

Just checking in for the afternoon after a long hot drive from San Jose to San Luis Obispo. Yes in the yellow car (see pic) in 90+ weather. Forget Mr. Google, I'm going with Mr. Coors. It's amazing how this blog devolves after about 10AM or whenever Lois checks in.

Danielle, welcome. My daughter attends Cornell, not too far away, and I've flown into Syracuse many a time for a vist to Ithaca. It's a nice part of the country - in the spring and fall.

Dick said...

Danielle is that your husband Larry? If so I will look for him the next time I am in Watertown.

Anonymous said...

Good evening everyone!

@ Danielle R.E. Dennis' 1:51 comment, BE AFRAID BE VERY AFRAID! LOL Also? some free advice, Never give Dennis a hint as to you location (ask Lois and Mellisa)
I join others in welcoming you and they are so right, C. C. does such an excellent job of running this site

I am going to have to get up in the middle of the nite on more time I guess to check on the Dennis/DrDad/Lois/mellisa soapopera installment for today (sigh)

Thank you every one for the great tmes I have every time I am here
Seeya The Whoo!

carol said...

Welcome Danielle!! You will find our group randy, rowdy and risque but that is how we are! Lois is a teacher and well versed in the "3 R's" not to mention other things. Right now she is in Oklahoma "Riding, Roping and Rubbing" at least that is what her comments lead us to believe! She may be doing more but we will have to wait for the next news flash.

melissa bee said...

@dennis: i can see your freak flag from here.

Dennis said...

melissa - as long as you can see what it's on...

melissa bee said...

@dennis: i pledge aliegance, to the freak flag ..

Dennis said...

Jeez, how often do you see the flag salute?

melissa bee said...

are you sweet talking me?

Dennis said...

Noooo....I'm way too naive for anything like that. I'm just here to learn things. Any suggestions?

melissa bee said...

yeah, check your email

Dennis said...

lol, I think that's illegal in most states...

NYTAnonimo said...

I agree with you Barry on the middle of this puzzle's difficulty with RUANDA, OSCEOLA and NAPOLI. Took me awhile to wade through that.

Keep us posted on your progress Kim and good luck.

Minor quibble on 58D in yesterday's puzzle-Tot's block is DUPLO not LEGO.

Anonymous said...

C.C. and gang, think I'll have to throw a bucket of water on my computer to cool it off! Just caught up with Wednesday and Thursday's comments. Lois, Carol and Melissa Bee are on a roll - you girls are gonna drive the guys crazy.

Only two googles Wednesday, but several today. Didn't know the variant spelling of Ruanda, and I can never remember Osceola. Never heard hoard used as a collection of artifacts. That seems odd. Had a little trouble yesterday with quad cities - couldn't get Bettendorf. See others had the same problem.

Dr dad, checked out your blog. I do the jumble daily as well. I tried to add a comment but it didn't work; don't know why. Enjoyed the info you posted. There's a good site called thewordfinder.com that can help with lots of word games - jumbles, scrabble, etc. I usually get the jumble quickly, but once in awhile the brain won't sort out a word.

C.C., really enjoyed all the links. Thanks.

Happy Friday to all.

Kit

lois said...

Holy Hotwick Banana!!! Dennis is waving and therefore 'flying' a questionable flag from a questionable flag pole. I think we ought to notify the FFA (beings how he's such a morel man and all)as well as the FAA (for the same reason). What d'ya think?

Zhouqin (C.C.) Burnikel said...

Der katze,
I don't understand why Williams keeps tinkering with the puzzles after they are sent to print. The uCLICK on-line version sometimes differ greatly from the syndication.

Danielle,
Welcome!

Melissa,
Ankle is almost healed, thank you.

Zhouqin (C.C.) Burnikel said...

Lois,
What is "Holy Hotwick"? I've never heard of this expression before.