google.com, pub-2774194725043577, DIRECT, f08c47fec0942fa0 L.A.Times Crossword Corner: Monday August 18, 2008 Michael T. Williams

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Aug 18, 2008

Monday August 18, 2008 Michael T. Williams

Theme: State Fare

1A: Gators state: FLORIDA

27A: Razorbacks state: ARKANSAS

31A: Rainbows state: HAWAII

49A: Jayhawks state: KANSAS

51A: Cornhuskers state: NEBRASKA

73A: Violets state: NEW YORK

11D: Fightin' Blue Hens state: DELAWARE

39D: Wildcats state: KENTUCKY

Are there any common denominator among those 8 states? Am I missing something here?

I did not know that Violets is the name of NYU's sport teams. I also had no idea that the nickname for the University of Hawaii is Rainbows.

Nice puzzle, very smooth. But I was a bit annoyed by the below clues:

64A: End of cash?: IER. Terrible editorial oversight. See CASH (59D: Money). "Back of front?" would be fine.

68D: Back of station?: ARY. Someone really needs to get creative with "ARY". I am so tried of "Back of the station". How about "End of honor/budget"?

Across:

11A: "Agnus ___": DEI. Have you read "The Da Vinci Code"? I am very intrigued by this whole Opus DEI mysterious secrecy.

14A: Student's performance: RECITAL

15A: Flax product: LINSEED

17A: Tiered bric-a-brac shelves: ETAGERE. I would prefer the clue to be "Tiered bric-a-brac stand".

18A: Radar of "M*A*S*H": O'REILLY. Have vaguely heard of this nickname "Radar" somewhere before. Did not know his full name is Corporal “Radar” Walter O’REILLY. Interesting name.

22A: Former sports org.: NASL (North American Soccer League). Faintly remember this defunct organization (1968-1984) as I was into Minnesota Kicks collection for a very short period of time. But I would not have obtained this answer without the down clues

34A: Fluffy dessert: MOUSSE. I want a piece of this berry MOUSSE.

36A: Accordionist Floren: MYRON. Unknown to me. Wikipedia says he is best known as the accordionist on "The Lawrence Welk Show". What's the meaning of Tico Tico?

44A: Mr. T's group: A-TEAM

55A: Dyer: TINTER. Is this a made-up word?

58A: Gust of wind: SCUD. I am just so used to the "Gulf War missile" clue.

60A: "___ Restaurant": ALICE'S. I got it from down clues. Wow, this is a song title. I thought it was referring to ALICE Waters' restaurant.

65A: Lizard constellation: LACERTA. Latin for Lizard. New to me also.

67A: Ottoman Turk: OSMANLI. Again, I got it from down clues.

Down:

1D: Soft-drink choice: FRESCA

3D: The Cars singer: OCASEK (Ric). "Just What I Needed", for Danielle & Martin.

9D: Cherry brandy: KIRSCH. From German Kirschwasser (Cherry water). Unknown to me also.

10D: Serpent tail?: INE. Lots of ? clues today.

13D: Pastoral poem: IDYL. Idle, Idol, IDYL are all pronounced the same, right?

21D: Shrink time? SESS. I suppose adding an "abbr." in the clue will take way the zest of the "?".

26D: "If I had a ___": HAMMER. I like some of Peter, Paul & Mary's songs.

28D: Shark of golf: NORMAN (Greg). Ha, the Sunday collapse syndrome! Someday I am going to watch the 1996 Masters replay and see how Nick Faldo took away the green jacket from the Shark.

42D: NY gambling parlor: OTB (Off-track betting)

47D: Curcifix letters: INRI

52D: "Sophie's Choice" character: STINGO. Foreign to me. I've never read the book or seen the movie. Dictionary says STINGO is a British slang for "strong ale".

53D: Dancer Ruby: KEELER. I googled her name. I had KEE?ER sitting at this corner for a long time.

61D: Ethan or Joel of movies: COEN. The COEN brothers. I like "Fargo" a lot.

62D: Salinger lass: ESME. ''For ESME With Love and Squalor''. I've never read this short story, have you?

63D: Old World duck: SMEW. I can not see the eyes of that male SMEW. Is he dozing off? Do ducks sleep on the water?

C.C.

106 comments:

Dennis said...

Good morning, c.c. and gang - interesting theme with this puzzle, and certainly one that made it easy to fill in large portions quickly.
Never heard of the 'lacerta' constellation; had to get 'Osmanli' from the perps as well.

c.c., ducks can sleep on the water; we have a couple families that sleep under our dock at night.

In case anyone missed it, both c.c. and clear ayes published pictures of themselves very early in life on yesterday's blog and the pictures are just great; definitely check them out.

Hope it's an outstanding Monday for all.

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

Dennis,
I was expecting a baby Dennis picture this morning. Is Floren MYRON very well-known? Do ducks breed under the water also?

Dennis said...

c.c., I think Floren Myron was stuck in my mind from other puzzles. I've seen ducks mate in the yard, but never in the water. I'll speak with them about it.

Working on a baby picture; I think I have one somewhere of Millard Fillmore holding me.

Anonymous said...

It was harder than it looked: I got halfway down and thought "That's it? I just have to fill in State names?" But there was more to it than that. I wanted SVELTE for SINEWY, ESQ for ENC, APPEARS for EMERGES and SOPHIE for STINGO. (There was a character named "Sophie" in Sophie's Choice so why is that wrong? ;)) I was only able to get emerges after googling ESME, SNEW and STINGO. There were more abbreviations and suffixes, I thought, than usual: STreetS, SESSion, INCorporated, ENClosed, serpentINE, cashIER and stationARY.

The North American Soccer League (NASL) was a professional soccer league with teams in the United States of America (U.S.) and Canada.. I vaguely remember the Toronto Blizzard. (The league folded in 1984.) The stipulation "North American" seems almost superfluous as both Major League Baseball and the National Basketball Association have had Canadian teams. Today's Taipei Times has an article about The Dark Knight saying that it has earned $459.6 billion "domestically" (ie The United States and Canada). Flights from the U.S. to Canada and vice-versa are also handled by "domestic" airports. That's all fine with me: I don't mind Canada constantly being lumped in with the U.S. as long as we don't have to pay American taxes. (Canadians do pay Canadian taxes but means that our money gets wasted locally and not elsewhere, which is good to know.)

My wife gets back from the Philippines this Wednesday. With her here I won't be doing crossword puzzles every day: I've been having fun going to restaurants, reading the newspaper and fillings in CWs but my wife is going to want me to stay home and save money (and help with Ian, our one year old). It's okay: I've got a ton of sudokus that I never got to.

Martin

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

Martin,
I deleted the third paragraph of your original post because it's too much for me.

Dick said...

Good morning Cc and DFs. Not a bad puzzle to start the week. Had some difficulty with the NE corner and could not pull ETAGERE from the recess of my mind. Otherwise I was able to get all by the fills.

Another great day here in the Berg so it is off to the golf course. Have a great day.

Dr. Dad said...

Good morning C.C. and DF's.

A bit of controversy on the name of the Hawaiian temas. They have been called the Rainbow Warriors, The Rainbows, and The Warriors. I think the football and basketball team plus one other team are just called the Warriors so they don't appear to be "sissys' when they take the field/court under the name Rainbows. One team is still called the Rainbows while three teams call themselves the Rainbow Warriors.

A bit of trouble in the lower right corner. The perps helped immensely. Back of station could be either ery or ary depending on which they meant. Only one works for Ottoman Turk.

I think etagere was in a long ago puzzle.

Myron Floren of Lawrence Welk fame. I used to have to watch that dang show as a kid because my parents liked it. He was often paired up with Norma Zimmer.

John "Hannibal" Smith, Bosco "B.A." (for Bad Attitude) Baracus, Templeton "Faceman" Peck, and H.M. "Howling Mad" Murdock. "If you have a problem, if no one else can help, and if you can find them, maybe you can hire... The A-Team."

Radar, as all MASH officiandos know, has an ability to sense/foretell the future, especially incoming choppers.

Dyers can be called tinters - it is not a made up word. When they only apply a bit of color to a fabric, they are tinting the fabric as opposed to more color which is called a full or deep shade.

The Shark's collapse is still considered one of the greatest collapses in sports.

Enough babbling. Today is Bad Poetry Day, and National Homeless Animal Day. The Wizard of Oz premiered on this day in 1939 and Montgomery Ward issued its first catalog in 1872.

Have a great Monday!

Dick said...

Cc and Cleareyes I liked the photos that you posted yesterday. Cc you look so tense. I Guess you did not want to be photographed. Clear eyes is your hair still red?

Anonymous said...

C.C.,

I understand. I won't say "I'm sorry I posted that" because that's not quite true: it's actually good to know where your boundaries lie. The comment I made was not directly related to today's puzzle so you were within your rights to delete it. I'm sorry for offending you. I hope that's enough.

Martin

Dr. Dad said...

Man, can I spell or what? Not!!! Temas = teams, officiandos = aficionado/afficionado.

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

Dick,
When will you post your baby picture?

Dr.Dad,
I did not even realize the ERY could be the "End of the station" too. Why would "Rainbows" appear "sissy"? I've learned that sometimes the 3-letters words are necessary evils to employ in order to create a great theme like today's.

Martin,
Yes, it's enough. I did not quite understand your comment yesterday regarding the "Lantin handle" ANSA. You filled in SNRA and said "I was thinking of the slang term "What's your handle?" meaning "What do you like to be called?". I don't understand your logic here. What is SNRA?

Dennis,
Were you talking about Robert Palmer's "Addicted to Love" when you said the "micro-skirted 'props'" yesterday?

Dr. Dad said...

C.C. - consider Arkansas Razorbacks, Kentucky Wildcats, Florida Gators. All of them fierce, tough animals, reptiles. Then imagine coming onto a football field being called a beautiful and graceful Rainbow. Might work fine for gymnastics but doesn't, in my opinion, fit well with a fighting football team. Of course that argument doesn't say much for my home team of the Cornhuskers.

KittyB said...

Good Morning, C.C. and all.

I thought this puzzle went fairly well, but when I looked it over, I realized I wouldn't have gotten NASL, LACERTA, OCASEK, or SMEW without the fills.

The cross of OSMANLI and STINGO held me up for a while. I read 'Sophie's Choice' ages ago, and it took me a while to recall the character's name. C.C., I've read 'Da Vinci Code.' While the movie is good, the book is better. It lead me to look a little further into the Templars.

I tried Cohn for COEN until EMERGES emerged.

A person who adds color to frosting could also be a TINTER. And, it seems to me that there was something that received a watercolor wash, applied by a TINTER, but I can't remember if that was photographs, comics, or just what. Does anyone remember?

It's well past time to get the day started here. I hope you all have a good one.

Dennis said...

c.c., yes, plus "Simply Irresistable", "I Didn't Mean to Turn You On", and others. Great videos.

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

Katherine,
What's your answer to KittyB's TINTER question?

Anonymous said...

C.C.,

Sorry about that. I was jokingly suggesting SNRA as an abreviation for "Senorita". If you recall, I said "What's your handle?" could mean "What do you like to be called?" The clue was "Latin handle". The expression "What's your handle?" dates back to CB radio. I'm too young to remember that but I think you'd understand from watching movies like Smokey and the Bandit.

"Stationary" means motionless. "Stationery" means paper, pencils, notebooks, etc. So a "stationery" store is a store that sells pencil, paper, etc. and a "stationary" store would be a store that isn't moving, which would be a silly thing to stipulate.

Martin

Barry G. said...

Morning, all!

This puzzle was sooth sailing, a breeze, a walk in the park... right until the very end when the whole thing crashed and burned on me. The entire bottom section was rough. The SW corner was tricky, since I didn't know SCUD (I had no idea it meant anything other than a name of a missile) or LACERTA, but fortunately I was able to get those via the perps.

The SE corner, however, was my undoing. Never heard of OSMANLI and KEELER was also completely unknown to me. So, like C. C., I couldn't get the "L" linking the two. I initially thought that 67A might be the name of some Turkish emperor OSMAN II, but that would've given me KEEIER for 53D, which didn't make any sense. And then I actually considered KEELER for 53D, but that would have left me with OSMANLI for 67A, and what the heck sort of name was that?

Oh -- and I vaguely remembered STINGO, but it didn't help any.

Other unknowns that I was able to get via the perps were NASL and MYRON.

But, seriously -- that SE corner was just nasty. Maybe KEELER is famous enough that she should have been a gimme. I dunno. It just left a bad taste in my mouth. Not that I'm a sore loser or anything....

Katherine said...

Good morning CC and gang. I missed everyone this weekend.
When you put color on a "frosting" or a highlight, it is a toner. I have never heard it referred to as a tinter. We never use that expression. We just "color" people's hair. You usually would never use a "tint" over a highlight or frosting. That would be way too harsh and damaging to the hair.
I got most of the puzzle today. It was pretty easy for me.
I sure do remember Floren Myron. We used to watch the Lawrence Welk show all the time.
It is going to be hot here today. UGH.......I guess I shouldn't complain since summer will soon be gone.
Have a good day everyone.

Barry G. said...

Er...

Make that "smooth" sailing. Although it was also quite soothing there for awhile.

Bill said...

Not bad.
OSMANLI, SMEW, STINGO, LACERTA. All new.
Read 11a as "aNgus ___" for quite a while. Finally opened the other eye and saw "aGnus __" and remembered where I saw it before./
CYA

Barry G. said...

Oh -- and if we're posting baby pics, here is the earliest known photo of moi.

Dr. Dad said...

I have to think about posting an early photo of me.

DoesItinInk said...

No surprises here. This was an easy puzzle that I managed to start at breakfast and complete at red lights on my way to work.

I always confuse Ruby Keeler with Christine Keeler of the 1960s Profumo Affair. They were both performers, though Christine's performances were not always on stage.

Osmanli means 'House of Osman'. Like the term 'House of Windsor', Osman is name of the ruling family of the Ottoman Empire that spanned the period 1299 to 1922. After the fall of the Ottoman Empire, Mustafa Kamal Attaturk became the first president of the Republic of Turkey. He was a visionary who wanted to bring Turkey into the 20th century. He is still revered by Turks, and his picture hangs everywhere in Turkey.

KittyB said...

C.C., I had a different 'frosting' in mind. I don't know if there is a distinction between the words 'icing' and 'frosting' but I was thinking of the sweet covering for cakes when I mentioned tinting frosting. My niece manages a bake shop for a local grocery chain, and she gets frosting by the five gallon bucket, but for special orders, she will occasionally have to tint it.

I don't know that I can lay my hands on my baby picture. I know there is one, somewhere, but I'll be darned if I can remember where.

Dennis said...

Re the rainbow connotation, c.c. - the rainbow symbol can also denote that the occupant (car) or establishment is gay-oriented.

I stuck one of those on the bumper of my buddy's car once; can't tell the stories here, but it was about as funny as it gets.

Katherine said...

Kitty B: That is funny. CC asked me about it, and I totally misunderstood what you meant. I thought we were talking hair! LOL I think I was still half asleep when I read that.

MH said...

couldn't complete the SE corner but got the rest of the puzzle OK. OSMANLI, KEELER, & STINGO got me. And I wasn't completely certain of ESME or the spelling of COEN.

lois said...

Good morning CC & DF's: Just have a minute inbetween detoxing and rehab today. I do love Boston! Agree w/all y'all (plural form). SE corner got me, but the rest was good. Remembering the cute joke w/state names, I was waiting for Alaska to pop up when I saw (what) Arkansas and (what does)Delaware. But it didn't. Except for 'sloes' which made my DT's slow down a moment, this was a very tame puzzle. My A Team is in the van for a while.
Cute baby pictures. I'll add mine if I can figure out how to upload tintype photos.

Enjoy this gorgeous day!

Anonymous said...

CC and gang! Good to be back for awhile before this computer goes 'bonkers'. It's been quite some time and I'm VERY happy all you folks are still here. (Dennis, Dick, DrDad, Katherine, et al). If I remember correctly, CC, you started your blog back in January. Look what you've created! (and thanks!)

Puzzle was fun and relatively easy this AM...thank goodness as work is going to be a 'doozy' for sure and it is really nice to ease into Monday.

I agree with "KittyB", "thought this puzzle went fairly well, but when I looked it over, I realized I wouldn't have gotten NASL, LACERTA, OCASEK, or SMEW without the fills.

The cross of OSMANLI and STINGO held me up for a while."

CC...hope one day you can get to my homeland of Hawaii, (if you haven't already)...then you'll notice that all of Hawaii's license plates have RAINBOWS! (smile)

Gotta run and get ready. Weather in Seattle is finally cooling down from the 90s...thunderstorms all night!

Have a good day everyone!

~AlohaSpirit~ in Seattle, WA

Anonymous said...

1A: Gators state: FLORIDA

27A: Razorbacks state: ARKANSAS

31A: Rainbows state: HAWAII

49A: Jayhawks state: KANSAS

51A: Cornhuskers state: NEBRASKA

73A: Violets state: NEW YORK

11D: Fightin' Blue Hens state: DELAWARE

39D: Wildcats state: KENTUCKY

College Sports teams.

53 Down Dancer Ruby I'm used to "Dee" wife of Ossie Davis.

Anonymous said...

39D: Wildcats state: KENTUCKY

I put ARIZONA at first!

xchefwalt said...

Good morning c.c., DF’s and all! Here in SW Florida, where we all have a big bulls-eye painted on our arses, we eagerly await being blown by Faye and being happier for it. Both myself and g8tormom are right in the path. I will do my best tomorrow to keep you abreast of the situation.

I was pumped at the start of this puzzle as I though we were going for a good ol’ college football theme, until 73a came up (who are they? I’m from NY and I never heard of them). They should have used MIAMI FLORIDA (hurricanes) because (as barry so eloquently stated) the SE corner BLEW! I sailed right through the rest of the puzzle until then, and I’m still bruised from that corner.

I must stock up on storm supplies (bottled water, batteries, beer, club soda for the Jack Daniels, propane, burgers, dogs, brats and more beer).

BTW- I’m loving the baby pictures, I will try to find one of mine. And dennis is correct c.c.- I can see the budding DF in your eyes! (And dennis- Millard Fillmore- FUNNY)

Clear Ayes said...

What a pleasure to start a Monday with a manageable puzzle. The sports team theme showed itself very early on and it was clear sailing most of the way. I didn't know that DELAWARE was the home of the "Fighting Blue Hens", but live and learn. I was also surprised that NEW YORK has a team of "Violets". That name is about as "1960's flower child" as you can get.

My grandmother loved Lawrence Welk almost as much as she loved Liberace. I can remember watching MYRON Floren with her. I laughed to see that Drdad can not only remember Myron Floren but "Champagne Lady" Norma Zimmer too!

The COEN brothers hav made some very terrific movies. It's interesting that they like to work with the same actors over and over. Steve Buscemi and John Goodman have each been in five or six Coen movies. Frances McDormand, who won the Academy Award for "Fargo" has also been in quite a few Coen brothers movies, but then she is married to Joel Coen.

Radar OREILLY from M*A*S*H got his name from his ability to predict the future. He always knew when casualties were being brought in by helicopter before anyone could hear them. BTW, that's another great movie, with a young and very sexy Donald Sutherland as Hawkeye Pierce.

"Sophie's Choice" is a favorite book, so STINGO was a gimme. Meryl Streep was heartbreakingly believable in the movie. Is there any part she can't play?

I did run into a little trouble at the bottom with LACERTA and OSMANLI, neither of which I knew. But the perps in that area were all gettable and I finished off in pretty good time.

Dick & Dennis: Thanks for the baby photo compliments. I hate to admit it, but there is a good reason the baby picture is a nice big one and my current blog photo is just little-bitty. My hair is still red(ish), thanks to Loreal, but nowadays, some stranger with wrinkles hides in my mirror and pops out when I brush my teeth in the morning. What nerve! Who the heck does she think she is?

xchefwalt: We'll keep our fingers crossed for you and the rest of Florida and hope Faye fizzles out quickly.

Barry G. said...

Oh, and C. C.:

Idle, Idol, IDYL are, indeed, all pronounced the same. At least, as far as I know. I stopped being 100% confident in my pronunciation of English words ever since I recently discovered that we here in New England are basically the only people in the English speaking world who pronounce "Don" and "Dawn" exactly the same. So take anything I say with a grain of salt, since we're apparently a bit strange around here.

Maybe that's why we pronounce "aunt" so that it rhymes with "haunt", "jaunt", "vaunt" and "daunt" instead of "ant" like the rest of the country....

Barb B said...

Whoa! I agree with others – SE corner beat me up, just when I was thinking we had an easy puzzle. I did like the theme, and kept thinking about the song about the states --
What did Delaware, boys,
What did Delaware?

C.C., I’m sure that someone will post a link to Arlo Guthrie’s song, (story) about Alice’s Restaurant. One of my all time favorites, along with I don’t want a pickle. Melissa B has graced me with most of his music.

From yesterday’s posts….
Crockett – I drove into Eugene. The restaurant only had the local paper – so I couldn’t work it with breakfast. I had to go to Fred Myers.

Anonymous Lola...
Hey! Another Oregonian! Does that make 6 or 7 of us? Yes, the puzzle in the Oregonian is a fun one; very long, but not that difficult, so I could savor it. It just wasn't the Star Tribune. Guess we just have to do without, and miss on Sunday. I’m looking forward to your future posts.

It's raining here - first in a couple months. Summer is over, I guess, and my tomatoes aren't even ripe.

steve said...

Goodmorning CC etal,
Not a bad puzzle with a few exceptions. I had to look up what epistle meant, would have never got 22a without the perps. It took a while to remember Myron and considering the number of times I watched Lawerence Welk with Mom and Dad it should have come quickly. When I used to give something to my little ones that they didn't like they would say YUK, so that stumped me a little. I had no idea what the lizzard constellation was and never heard of osmanli even though I lived in Izmer for two years.

I thought the clue for scud was way off. In the avaition business scud is the low clouds preceeding a cold front. Flying underneeth them is called scud running. a very dangerious thing to do especially in mountainous areas.

carol said...

Good Morning C.C. and everyone. I had my comment all typed up, but could not get it "published"..ran into a "blogger error" msg but could not get help with that either so I am starting over :)
We have had a strong lightning storm go through our area this morning so stayed off the computer for a few hours. All seems to have settled down now.
Not a bad puzzle, SE corner ruined my day for awhile.

My folks watched the Lawrence Welk show faithfully. I was a teen-ager at the time, and into rock and roll, so I didn't care for the music Welk made. BTW it is Myron Floren, not Floren Myron.

You in Florida, stay safe! Hope ol' Faye runs out of steam before it can do damage!

I love the idea of "baby pictures" being posted here..C.C. and Clear Ayes: really cute pictures!

More later.

steve said...

CC,
I have seen ducks breed on the water but never under it. But there is no telling what a drake mallard might do. A very horney duck if there is one.

Crockett1947 said...

Good morning everyone! SCUD, LACERTA, OSMANLI, OCASEK, STINGO, KEELER, and COEN were new ones to me today. What is the O at the end of the 60A clue? Doesn't make sense to me.

C.C., I love your theme! I can't see anything that those states have in common.

@doesitinink, thank you for the OSMANLI explanation. One more nugget gleaned from this site.

@barry, cute pic.

@drddad, I think I need to find a non-incriminating baby pic to post. It may take some serious digging.

@Anonymous at 10:39 -- there are so many Wildcats teams! Only one Beavers, though.

To all the Oregonian readers out there, maybe we should start a Sunday only Premier Crossword blog. It won't be the same, but we can have something constructive to do on Sunday!

@carol, those were some fine thunderboomers, weren't they? Nice to have the cooler weather and some rain. Early on I lost some comments, so I now make it a habit to copy my comments to the clipboard before previewing or posting. Hopefully that copy can be pasted back in if there is an error.

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

Bill,
You Angus misread made me laugh. The name of the band: "Off the Center" or "Off the Wall", which one?

Barb B,
The puzzle you did yesterday was probably TMS Sunday puzzle, which is different than TMS Daily puzzle, though both edited by Mr. Williams. "Melissa B has graced me with most of his music." What does "graced" mean?

Dennis,
I like those Robert Palmer' song titles. So romantic, don't you think so? Let me know tomorrow about your conversation with the ducks.

Dr. Dad,
Sorry about my earlier 3-letter words response to you. You must be confused. It's not intended for you. I got it mixed up with a private email.

Martin,
I kind of like your version of "Latin handle", so evocative.

Katherine & KittyB,
I was indeed thinking of the hair color TINTER.

Dr. Dad said...

crockett1947 - What O at the end of the 60A clue? The clue reads "_____ Restaurant" and the answer is "Alice's". This gives smew for 63D.

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

Lois,
Pls quit those detox programs. Something has been seriously missing in your posts lately. Tell those 2 celebrities and other professors that they can practice on someone else!

Barry,
I pronounce AUNT the way you pronounce it. I rather like "sooth sailing". Do you like "On the Beautiful Blue Danube"? Sorry you missed the SCUD. It appeared on a Sunday TMS puzzle (with the identical clue) by the same constructor. That baby looked so sweet & happy & well loved. And his forehead has not changed a bit over the years!

AlohaSpirit,
Good to see you again. I was wondering where you had been.

Anonymous @ 10:38am,
Yes, I immediately noticed that every state is clued with its college sports team name. That's why I said it's a great theme & excellent puzzle. I just could not think of a better theme title.

Crockett1947 said...

@drdad, in my newspaper, the clue for 60A is " '______ Restaurant' O." I wondered what the "O" refers to. Must be a typo in our paper.

melissa bee said...

good morning c.c. and all,

nothing to add about the puzzle, once the theme emerged, it all filled in pretty quick.

smiled to see alice's restaurant. won't post that link since it's over 18 minutes long but something shorter instead. i bought his 'live in sydney, 2005' album because of this song, 'in my darkest hour.' it is a double cd, full of great songs, including a very funny version of 'alice' where he talks about forgetting the words during a show. it is easily one of my top 5 favorite cd's.

love the baby pics .. keep 'em coming.

i've never been to band camp and it was crockett and g8rmomx2 who played flute. my fond memories were of band trips as a rifle twirler. drill team and band members on road trips .. need i say more?

Crockett1947 said...

C.C., the puzzle barb b got in The Oregonian was the Premier Crossword by Frank A. Longo. We discussed this last month, I believe. It's the one that has the average time of solution published.

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

Xchefwalt,
Any hole-in-one during the weekend? What's so funny about Dennis "Millard Fillmore holding me" comment. I thought he just meant he is old than liquid.

Steve,
Really? You've seen Duck breeding on the water? "though I lived in Izmer for two years"? Where is Izmer? Why did you live there? Thanks for the SCUD running explanation. Mr. Williams might like your idea and surprise you with such a clue next time.

Crockett1947,
Or you guys can call your local editor and request TMS Daily Crossword Sunday puzzle rather than TMS Sunday puzzle. I am glad you like my theme title. Obviously O is a typo.

carol said...

Crockett, I think the O you are referring to is a mis-print in the Oregonian, since I noticed it too. No one else seems to have it judging from drdad's comment.
Love your idea of a Sunday blog for us.

Clear Ayes, that "old lady" sure gets around for someone her age, she appears in my mirror too. How can we get rid of her? :)

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

Melissa,
"Rifle Twirler", hmmm, that explains.

Crockett1947,
Oh, yes, now I remember it. I got it mixed up with Argyle's Sunday puzzle.

Barb B said...

C.C.

The literal meaning of grace is unmerited favor or blessing.

MelissaB is a very gracious person, and has blessed me over the years by sending me cd's and music downloads without being asked.

As far as "unmerited" goes, who of us really deserves to have such grace in our lives? It's not something to take for granted.

Bill said...

CC, "Off The Wall".
So named because we adapt a lot of different genres to bluegrass. Not always the straight forward
"Flatt & Scruggs" approach. IE: John Prine, Michael Martin Murphy, The Monkees (at least a Nesmith tune).

embien said...

7:45 today, but I'm not sure whether to count it since I guessed at the crosses of OSMANLI, STINGO and KEELER (none of which I've heard of).

c.c.: I used to raise ducks (Cayuga breed) and they do indeed mate on the water and sleep on the water. Given their choice, they will spend nearly all their time on the water (even baby ducklings) except for when they come out to eat or preen their feathers.

You should have seen me freak out when the momma duck took her brood (very young) up the ramp and into the wading pool I was using as a "pond" for them. The ducklings spend most of the first couple days under the hen, as they are quite susceptible to chilling, but after that they are much more hardy than chickens.

@barb b: The Oregonian on Sundays publishes the New York Times Sunday puzzle on a one week delay, so the one in the Aug 17 Oregonian is from the Aug 10 NY Times (blog entry here). The Oregonian also prints the Premiere puzzle back somewhere in the classified section on Sundays, but I never do that one.

Clear Ayes said...

I didn't like SESS for "Shrink time?" I got that it is an abreviation (shrinking) for a psychiatrist "session" I've just never heard it used, "It's time to see my Shrink for a sess." In this connotation it is just too much of a made up word.

The only other way I have heard SESS used is referring to marijuana. That was around the same time Arlo Guthrie was singing "Alice's Restaurant". MelissaB is right. It's a very long song, but here's a YouTube link if you have about 20 minutes to spare.Alice's Restaurant

Barry, what a cute and happy little guy you were. Except for the fact that you have a lot more teeth now, you are very recognizable as an adult.

I have a friend who is in her 70's and originally came from Boston. She has lived in California for almost 50 years and she still pronounces "r" as "ah". Regional accents have almost disappeared since the advent of television, but those from the eastern States, both far north and far south seem to be the most resistant to change. I like the variations and hope they stay with us.

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

Barb B,
Both you and Melissa are very gracious and sweet.

Embien, Steve & Dennis,
Do some ducks breed in the trees?

Clear Ayes,
I thought the "Shrink time?" is rather clever. The answer is shrunk from SESSION to SESS.

Dennis said...

c.c., only the most acrobatic of ducks. Their feet aren't designed to grasp a branch.
Also, I think everybody thought "shrink time" was a clever clue, but that "sess" is a bad abbreviation for 'session'.

Dr.G said...

C.C.

I got to Saturdays puzzle late, so I did it on line. Said it was by Josiah Breward while the same puzzle in the Phil. Inquirer was by Tom Price. How come?

lois said...

Steve: What a moment of enlightenment! I dated a guy named Mallard ...perfectly named!

Chef & g8rmom: I also hope Faye 'peters out' before she gets over something 'firma' and before she does any damage to you guys. Will look forward to your updates.

CC: detox is almost complete. I'm rejoining the sober and functionally disfunctional.

Dennis said...

Lois, a guy named Mallard? Did you get down with him?

Ok, stop groaning.

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

Dr. G,
Tom Pruce is the author. The on-line puzzle credited the wrong guy. This is the 3rd constructor name mix-up since I started blogging.

carol said...

Dennis: "eider" she did or she didn't!

Dennis said...

carol, beautiful.

Maybe there'll be something on the web, but I'll have to find a site where they don't bill you.

Clear Ayes said...

C.C., you're correct about SESS. It just doesn't sound right to me.

You asked about "For ESMÉ With Love and Squalor". J.D. Salinger had a lovely way of writing about children; "Esmé" is one of those stories. He wrote children as full
personalities, who expected their opinions to be considered and respected. The story is included in Salinger's book "Nine Stories".

"The Catcher In The Rye" is his most famous book and unfortunately, he only wrote three others, along with a few dozen short stories.

My favorite Salinger book is "Franny and Zooey", which is about the dysfunctional (classic definition) AND extremely bright Glass family.

J.D. Salinger became quite a recluse and hasn't published any new stories for over 40 years. He must be about 90 years old now.

KittyB said...

Barry, which pronunciation do you use? The d-ahhhhh-n version, or the d-awwwwwww-n?

Or is there another that I didn't think of?

carol said...

Dennis, if you do get a bill, make sure it's not from a quack!!

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

Carol & Dennis,
Wow! Nice down!

Clear Ayes,
I had no idea that J. D. Salinger is still alive. I leafed through "The Catcher In The Rye" several years ago, too many curse words!

steve said...

CC,
I spelled it wrong. It's Izmir,Turkey located about half way up the Agean coast. It is a very nice cosmopolitan city. I did a two year NATO hitch.

About the only duck that I can immagine breeding in a tree might be the Wood Duck. They nest in trees. Probably one of the prettiest duck there is.

Lois, how was your friend Mallard in the water?

Dennis said...

carol, I'm certainly am gonna make sure it's not from a quack....wait for it.....


I'm not about to help him feather his nest...

Crockett1947 said...

@lois, Did your friend Mallard attend the University of Oregon?

g8rmomx2 said...

Hi all,

Interesting that for the first time I have a totally different puzzle than the rest of you. So couldn't check my answers to see if I was correct. I live in Port Charlotte, FL and my paper is the Charlotte Sun. I didn't google anything, so guess I will wait until tomorrow to check my answers.
Getting ready for the storm to hit!

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

Steve,
You are right, wood ducks are so pretty.

G8rmomx2,
What is the theme of your puzzle? Does it have an author name?

Barry G. said...

All right, let's see...

Do you like "On the Beautiful Blue Danube"?

If that's the same as the "Blue Danube Waltz" by Strauss, Jr., then of course! A total classic, and I've always loved the way it was put to use in the movie "2001: A Space Odyssey."

Except for the fact that you have a lot more teeth now, you are very recognizable as an adult.

Errr... I'm not entirely sure if that's a good thing or a bad thing. I guess it's just a thing.

Barry, which pronunciation do you use? The d-ahhhhh-n version, or the d-awwwwwww-n?

Neither. Both Don and Dawn are pronounced "don". As far as I can tell, there's only one way to pronounce them. If it helps, they both rhyme with bon-bon, con, on, gone, non, etc. Of course, they also both rhyme with pawn, lawn, spawn, and fawn. Hence the problem. I simply can't distinguish any difference in the vowel sound.

Clear Ayes said...

C.C., try Salinger's "Nine Stories", very different from "The Catcher In the Rye".

RE: Tico Tico. If any of our ladies need Siren lessons, which would be hard to believe, take a look at the original Siren singing Tico Tico Carmen Miranda

Dennis said...

clear ayes, for some reason, that link's not working.

DoesItinInk said...

Barry: Bon, con and non rhyme. On, gone, pawn, lawn, spawn and fawn also rhyme. But bon-con-non do not rhyme with on-gone-pawn-lawn-spawn-fawn. 'Bon' is pronounced bahn, while 'gone' is pronounced gawn. And Don rhymes with Bon; Dawn rhymes with Gone. Hope this helps.

Jeannie said...

I finally got a chance to work the puzzle and pretty much had the same problems as everyone else so I won't comment on it.

Alice's restaurant is played every year on Thanksgiving Day morning and is a tradition in our family to listen to it while preparing our feast.

As far as all the duck talk, I do believe that the wood duck mates on land but nests in trees. I believe that they are protected here in Minnesota from hunters. Not so the horny mallard but you can't shoot the females. The average chick count for most mallards is 4 chicks.

xchefwalt, had a wonderful time at the B&B but missed you there. How was your company party? I hope the weather held off long enough for a couple rounds of driving, chipping and putting. Hang onto your hats down there you FLA's!

clear ayes, hurray for Michael Phelps and his impressive Olympics showing. I knew he could do it!

Barry G. said...

Bon' is pronounced bahn, while 'gone' is pronounced gawn. And Don rhymes with Bon; Dawn rhymes with Gone. Hope this helps.

Nope, doesn't help a bit. I agree that Dawn rhymes with gone. But here in Boston, gone also rhymes with Don and bon, so you've just given me a tautology. They all just rhyme with "on", whether they are spelled with "one" or "awn".

And I wouldn't say that any of the words rhymes with bahn. Bahn is how we pronounce "barn" around here. ^_^

DoesItinInk said...

Barry: "Bahn is how we pronounce "barn" around here. ^_^" ...very funny! I had a good laugh over that one. Thanks!

Jeannie said...

correction on the wood duck being protected. What I remember hearing was they wanted to raise the limit from 2 to 3 per day, but that didn't fly.

Clear Ayes said...

Dennis, I don't know why the link went flooey, but hopefully this will work. I wouldn't want to deprive you of a look at "The Brazilian Bombshell"Carmen Miranda

Barry, dentally deficient babies are very cute, as were you, but the addition of teeth over the years can only be considered a compliment.

Cokato, great family tradition with "Alice's Restaurant". I'll have to remember that one. We usually spend Thanksgiving at my sister's place. She lives in Sebastopol, CA, which has a very nice downtown restaurant named "Alice's Restaurant".

melissa bee said...

@dennis: you're so punny today, must have gotten up at the quack of dawn.

it's a good thing you're so morel, that's why you're such a fungi.

(boo hiss)

sorry, that was in spore taste. anyway i don't have mushroom to talk.

g8rmomx2 said...

c.c. No theme on my puzzle, just edited by Wayne Robert Williams. My puzzle seemed easier than the rest of you. I guess my theme would be "condensed" but you are better than me on this c.c. Answers: Vacuumpack, Orangecrush, mainsqueeze, traffic jam. Pretty easy and no real problems.

Xchefwalt: Good luck to you. It looked earlier that it might hit between you and me! In any case, bad weather is approaching!!! We are also in need of a "liquor store" run and also ice. Keep me posted!

lois said...

Dennis: get down 'with' him? Oh, yeah, and a few other prepostions. I think he was a cross btw 'wood duck' and Mallard with the best qualities of both. But we did have a good time - we quacked each other up and shook our tail feathers a lot.It was awl good.

Steve: in the water? We were both in our element. I swim like a fish, he swam like duck. I was under and he was on top.

Crockett: No, I think he went to UT...'long-horns' and fitting for his 'mallard' qualities.

Crockett1947 said...

@lois -- I guess only the Oregonians would have caught the reference -- the University of Oregon are the DUCKS!

I wonder if g8rmomx2 got tomorrow's puzzle today?

Lola said...

Hi to all the Ducks out there! It sure was a wild and loud morning around here. I just hope my poor green tomatoes are still on the vine. The squirrels managed to nab all of my strawberries before I even saw them.We have bird feeders on our deck and usually are graced with several Wood Ducks jockeying for a spot to nab the best seeds. Last Spring I watched as what I thought was a Wood Duck got his adult plumage. When the transition was complete we were delighted to discover that a Mandarin Duck had somehow infiltrated the local Wood Ducks. I get the sports theme for the puzzle, but what do the violets play? Have a great rest of the day.

xchefwalt said...

Hi guys! It’s starting to rain, and it looks like the teeth of the storm will get here at about 5 AM. G8tormom is right, it looks to land between Estero and Port Charlotte. I’ll be up in the morning to give you guys a birds eye report.

@c.c.& cokato- no holes in one, no one in holes. I should have commuted from here to the B&B. If anything happens to my house, I’m renting a room there long term- maybe pay my rent in trade.

By cooking of course- what did you think I was talking about??

“Alice’s Restaurant” has been (and is still being) played every Thanksgiving day at 12 noon since I can remember on WNEW 102.7 FM in NYC. I now have it on CD, so even when I cooked, it played in my kitchens (much to the detriment of FOH management and wait staff).

Be safe everyone.

lois said...

Crockett: didn't know about the U of O mascot being the 'ducks'. My 'mallard' was in another U of O (OK = Sooners) territory, which could mean that he was confused as to which he was. So, he may have decided to duck it and take his horny tail feathers sooner to the longhorn state. Well, it's another revelation! That's why the son of a motherless duck went to TX. Well, pluck 'im!

Anonymous said...

Myron Floren was a gimme for me. North Dakotans are required by law to watch the Lawrence Welk show since he was a native NDaker. Not really. My folks watched it religiously but that may have been because it was on the only TV channel we received at the time. Welk's NDak-German accent was wunnerful wunnerful
Clear Ayes, I'm glad you enjoyed Fargo. So many scenes were exactly right for this part of the country. When "Fargo" premiered here at our beautifully restored Fargo Theatre there was a lot of criticism of the accents. "We don't talk like that" was heard a lot. Uh, yes, the older generation definitely does, younger ones not so much. What did you think of "No Country for Old Men"?
Good luck to the Floridians. I'll take a January blizzard anyday.

Dennis said...

walt, et al, good luck tonight - I know you'll be on all of our minds. Hopefully you'll just get a 'brush-by'.

xchefwalt said...

@dennis and all- Thanks for your positive thoughts. the latest has fay on the same track, but staying a tropical storm, not turning into a hurricane.

@bea- thank you also, but I'll take the storm- you don't have to shovel 12" of rain!!

Dennis said...

melissa bee, whatever you're smoking, send some. You've outdone yourself with that last one.

clear ayes, thanks for the video - I somehow can't visualize Lois wearing the fruit basket hat. For long, anyway.

lois, your 4:32 post - just further proof you're off the deep end.

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

G8rmomx2 & Crockett1947,
We did the MAINSQUEEZE puzzle on July 18.

Clear Ayes said...

Bea, your comment about the N.Dak accents was right on. I have relatives who live on a path from Illinois, through Wisconsin and on to Minnesota. They all have the north-midwest speech inflections. Our family was Swedish, rather than German, but the old folks said "wunnerful" too.

I did like "No Country For Old Men" a lot. I thought it deserved the Academy Award and fortunately got it. I know a lot of people didn't like it because there wasn't a "movie" ending. To me it was very daring of the Coens to stay away from concocting a hero, and to just let it end without punishing (kinda)the bad guy. As in life, sometimes things don't end neatly, they just shift to something else.

Barry, I think you'd might as well give up on explaining the Boston accent. It is charming, although a little confusing to an outsider. When my very lady-like friend asks someone to "pass a fahk (fork)" at dinner, she usually gets a raised eyebrow or two.

Dennis, that fruit basket hat could come in very handy for post "Tico Tico" snacks.

Anonymous said...

xchefwalt: Good point. However, no one at our house shovels or even knows how to run a snow blower. That's what snow removal companies are for! The lawn maintenance people just change their equipment come snow time.
The duck discussion reminded me of a great Winnipeg band: the Duhks (pronounced ducks). Check them out on duhks.com

embien said...

I had a nice longish post with some duck education, but blogger swallowed it up.

Here's a link to some duck pix. We raised Blue Cayugas and Black Cayugas. I can explain about the little curly feather on the top of the drake's tail if anyone is interested.
http://www.feathersite.com/Poultry/Ducks/Cayuga/BRKCayuga.html

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

Doesitinink 3:47pm & Barry,
"Bahn is how we pronounce "barn" around here. ^_^" ...very funny! I had a good laugh over that one. Thanks!" Why is it funny?

Xchefwalt @ 5:01pm,
Are you sure "no holes in one, no one in holes"? What kind of food are you going to offer and how are you going to prepare them?

Embien,
Some of the Cayuga look like decoys in the picture. I am interested in curly feathers, explain away.

Barry G. said...

C. C.

You know what they say about trying to explain a joke, right?

The stereotypical Boston accent involves, among other things, dropping the R sound from words that have "ar" in them and replacing it with an "ah" sound instead. So, instead of "car" you get "cah." And, of course, instead of "barn" you get "bahn." So when Doesitinink was trying to expalin to me that "bon" should be pronounced "bahn" I informed him that "bahn" is how we pronounce "barn" here in Boston.

The funny thing about the Boston accent is that the letter R doesn't actually get lost -- it just gets misplaced. So, for example, it may disappear from "car" and "bar" but then gets added to the end of "idea" and "Jessica" to produce "idear" and "Jessicar." Wacky, huh?

Actually, though, I don't have that much of a Boston accent (my folks certainly do, though). Aside from the aforementioned Don/Dawn confusion and pronouncing "aunt" to rhyme with "haunt", I've been told I sound more Canadian than Bostonian. Go figure.

Argyle said...

There is a cassette tape by Fritz Wetherbee that explains all about New England accents and is a riot to listen to. It's called Speak N'Hamsha Like a Native.

xchefwalt - I couldn't understand why you would want to stock up on screaming kids until, DUH, not those kinds of brats!

I met Arlo at the church from Alice's Restaurant but haven't found the restaurant.

Barb B said...

Argyle,

If your comment about not finding Alice's restaurant was for humor, I apologize. When I read it I thought '....but aren't they the same?'

I checked his blog, and found this note.

In 1991 Arlo purchased the old Trinity Church. It was Thanksgiving 1965 that events took place at the church which inspired Arlo to write the song "Alice's Restaurant". Named for his parents, The Guthrie Center is a not-for-profit interfaith church foundation dedicated to providing a wide range of local and international services.

Argyle said...

Maybe the New York Violets is a typo; it's should be the New York Violents.

Barb B, the restaurant is/was in nearby Housatonic, MA.

Anonymous said...

Barry,

I can't hear the difference between "Don" and "Dawn" either but I do hear the difference between "con" and "gone". To hear the difference yourself, pronounce "con" and "gone" without moving your lips: "gone" should sound wrong. Now pronounce them with your mouth open as if you were yawning. Now "con" should sound wrong.

Martin

g8rmomx2 said...

c.c. Thanks! Checked my answers and looks like I got the right answers.

Xchefwalt: Good luck! Yep,it doesn't appear that it will be a hurricane, but still we should get 60-65 mph winds. It has slowed down though to 9 mph so could strengthen when it is over warm waters. We shall see! Thanks to all for thinking of us, will keep you posted!

xchefwalt said...

A little more wind, a little more rain- it’s going to be a wild night.

Yes, c.c., unfortunately I’m positive, no holes in one, no one in holes.

I like cooking foods that excite all the senses, food that you need to keep in your mouth for a long time to savor all the textures and flavors. You will need your fingers and hands to eat some of the foods. I like mixing salt and sweet, hot and cold, sour and tart, and what’s best, is that after the meal if over, everyone shares in the clean up and we get to cook again.

Buckeye said...

Hi, c.c and fellow dfs.

I guess there's advantages to being older than dirt. I got Myron, Keeler, O'Rielly and Alice's Rest. with ease. Had a little trouble with SW but perps got me through. Fun puzzle.

NYU (New York University) are the Violets; That name casts fear in the hearts of their opponents.

Melissabee; Thanks for "In my Darkest Hour." God, how I loved the '60s. I don't remember half of it, but that's all the more reason to love it.

I (tongue in cheek) hope Fay destroys Univ. of Florida. (No injuries to students, faculty etc.) The Gators took away national championships in football and basketball from my Buckeyes.(Sorry g8tormom) Earlier this year, they couldn't do it to us again. They allowed LSU to embarrass us for them.
Seriously, y'all stay safe and secure down there.

Years ago, my aunt (ant) Helen took me on vacation to NYC and while there, Carmen Miranda passed away. Big Headlines in the Times. I still have the paper. Think that hat would fly today? Not! She sang the lyrics to "Tico Tico" so quickly AND in a foreign language. AMAZING!!!

I'm off to watch the olympics and have a steak. I leave you with this pleasant thought; "Good friends are like the stars; you do not always see them, but you know they are always there." Good night, my friends!!

I must be off.

Dennis said...

I was gonna answer some of the non-crossword-related questions, but I see it's pumpkin time. You all have a great night, and especially, good luck to our Gulf Coast Florida friends. Be safe.

g8rmomx2 said...

Buckeye:

My husband and I have a great friend that he plays pool with who is from Ohio and a huge fan needless to say. so we always have a lot of rivalry going on when the games are on! Love to give him gator stuff! GO GATORS!!!!

Danielle said...

Didn't do this puzzle until the evening - crazy day - had to leave work to take my daughter (Alana) to the doctor for an ear infection.

Great theme, even though I didn't know what kind of sport the team names referred to (I guessed some kind of college team, but wasn't sure). I got through it without looking up any, yea for me, but drew a blank on DELAWARE for the longest time, even after I got the W. Especially embarrassing since I lived a stone's throw from Delaware (in Philadelphia) for almost 15 years.

Too many obscure words (and people!) to make the puzzle really fun though - LACERTA? ETAGERE? OSMANLI? SNEW?

Alice's Restaurant (the song) was based on true events (as I think was already mentioned) and was subsequently made into a movie of those events, starring Arlo Gutherie, who wrote and sang the song.

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

Melissa @ 4:14pm,
The best comment of the day!