google.com, pub-2774194725043577, DIRECT, f08c47fec0942fa0 L.A.Times Crossword Corner: Sunday December 7, 2008 Arlan and Linda Bushman

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Dec 7, 2008

Sunday December 7, 2008 Arlan and Linda Bushman

Theme: Must "C" Movies

23A: Movie about George M. Cohan's sweet tooth?: YANKEE DOODLE CANDY (DANDY)

43A: Movie about interpreter fees?: COST (LOST) IN TRANSLATION

63A: Movie about a rain forest chef?: THE JUNGLE COOK (BOOK)

91A: Movie about a kennel owner's purchase: A FISTFUL OF COLLARS (DOLLARS)

114A: Movie about a versatile container?: A CAN (MAN) FOR ALL SEASONS

16D: Movie about a dance troupe?: THE CAST (LAST) WALTZ

62D: Movie about a sleuth's heavenly helper? THE CLUE (BLUE) ANGEL

Such a clever theme. Perfect theme title as well.

I thought of the movie "Some Like it Hot", but the "C" change will result "Come Like it Hot", probably too DF. "Annie Hall" is a great candidate too, but it's impossible to clue "Annie Call" grammatically. "Fargo" (Cargo) does not have enough letters to be a theme answer.

Of the above 7 movies, the only movie I've seen is LOST IN TRANSLATION. And the only movie I've never heard of is A FISTFUL OF DOLLARS.

I seriously doubt the GOLD clue (109A: Fort Knox cache) is the constructors' original. They are far too experienced a team to make clue/answer (65D: Military stronghold: FORT) duplication mistake.

The cluing mistake for DETENTE (17D: International accord) somehow comforts me. I thought I am the only one who is often confused by DETENTE and ENTENTE. What can I say? Confused minds think alike?

I loved the clue for SPA (117D: Bath, for one). Very clever. Bath is a city in England famous for its spas. See the map? It's to the west of London, close to Bristol.

Across:

1A: Fuzzy fruit: KIWI. Fuzzy indeed. But really we don't call KIWI "Chinese gooseberry" in China.

5A: Use elbow grease: SCRUB. I wonder why NASA prefers SCRUB over cancel when they call off the shuttle launch.

10A: 6-pointers: TDS. I still think "NFL" is needed in the clue for abbreviation hint. 6 is not good enough for me.

19A: Seed protector: ARIL. Testa is the hard, outer coating.

20A: Bath sponge: LOOFA. This is how it looks like before it enters your bathroom. Very tasty when stir-fried with a little bit of meat.

21A: Location of Bradley University: PEORIA. I googled. Caterpillar Headquarters is based here also. And WACO (57A: Baylor U. location). U should not have been abbreviated. Dr. Pepper Museum is in WACO.

29A: Printer's measures: PICAS

30A: Beckham's game: SOCCER. We call it football in China.

36A: Yarn bundle: HANK. Like a skein? I've never heard of HANK used as "Yarn bundle" before.

37A: Close-knit group: CLIQUE. Coterie is one letter too long.

39A: Salami type: GENOA. Can you believe that I've never had salami?

40A: Adriatic gulf: TRIESTE. See Gulf of TRIESTE. It's at the north end of Adriatic Sea. New to me also. Such a sad looking word, so close to TRISTE in spelling.

48A: Deserve: RATE. How so? I wanted EARN.

50A: "Leave it to Beaver" co-star: TONY DOW. Would not have got his name without the surrounds.

63A: Grilled sandwich: PANINI. This veggie PANINI looks so good. When do you use the singular form panino then?

67A: Bremen exclamation: ACH. I guessed. Not familiar with this city/state Bremen.

75A: Twisted treat: PRETZEL

79A: Rose extract: ATTAR. I wonder how many rose petals it takes to make a drop of rose oil.

80A: Rhine siren: LORELEI. Also spelled as LORELEY, which can also refer to the rock along the Rhine River where the siren LORELEI lured the sailors. Too bad, Kazie, I simply forgot it again. All I could think of is Circe.

83A: Legendary Hun king: ATLI. I can't understand why Attila the Hun is also called ATLI.

89A: Disco of "The Simpsons": STU. Learned his name from doing Xword. MOE is the bartender in "The Simpsons".

96A: Hack's question: WHERE TO

99A: Baker's item: PIE PAN. What kind of pie did you have for Thanksgiving?

104A: Ancient letters: RUNES. The first six letters of RUNES are F, U, TH, A, R, K, hence Futhark.

108A: "Over the Rainbow" composer: ARLEN (Harold). Normally I like the original song, but this medley of "Over the Rainbow" and "What a Wonderful World" is so beautiful.

110A: Osaka Okay: HAI. The same with "Cantonese Okay". "Mandarine Okay" is "Shi".

119A: Block: SCREEN

123A: Grandstander: HOTDOG

Down:

1D: Danny or Stubby: KAYE. Got this name from across fills. I know neither of them.

5D: Make glossy: SLEEKEN. New verb to me.

6D: Musical wrapups: CODAS

9D: Undesirable individual: BAD PENNY. New slang to me.

15D: "Banana Boat" shout: DAY-O. I've never heard of "Banana Boat" before. I like that guy's voice. The tune sounds so similar to "Come Mr. Taliban".

18D: Breathing device: SNORKEL

24D: Boredom: ENNUI

33D: Brainpower meas.: IQ TEST. Nice answer.

39D: Small cave: GROT. Only knew grotto. Also, I did not know that cavern is a big cave. Always thought cavern is smaller.

44D: Final strike: THREE. Great clue. Oh by the way, Babe Ruth’s jersey number is 3. Mantle's is 7. Kirby Puckett's number is 34. He died too young.

55D: Hit by the Stones: ANGIE. Is that Mick Jagger? He looks so different.

60D: Kin of CHiPs: LAPDS. But the official acronym for California Highway Patrol is CHP, isn't it?

63D: Opinion leader: PUNDIT

64D: Biotic beginning?: ANTI. Antibiotic. Very unexpected clue.

66D: Home decor co.: IKEA. Do you like the Swedish style food at IKEA?

73D: Bout-stopper: TKO (Technical knockout). The clue needs "for short".

82D: Immature newt: EFT

83D: Estrange: ALIENATE. I like this word "Estrange". I also like espouse.

86D: Hines footwear: TAP SHOES. I guessed. Have never heard of "Hines footwear" before.

89D: Eddied: SWIRLED. I wanted TWIRLED.

94D: Richly appointed: OPULENT. I did not know that "appoint" can mean "furnish".

103D: Monteverdi opera "L'__": ORFEO. Another google. ORFEO is Italian for Orpheus. He shouldn't look back when he tried to bring his wife Eurydice from Hades. Kind of like Lot's wife Pillar of Salt story, isn't it?

104D: Pine product: ROSIN. Never know when to put ROSIN and when to put RESIN.

106D: Pulverize: MASH

107D: Behold, to Guido: ECCO. Italian for ECCE I presume. Guido is the guy who invented the musical notation. Remember the ELA (Guido's high note)?

111D: Egyptian cross: ANKH. Very easy to mix ANKH with the Punjab religion SIKH.

C.C.

25 comments:

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

Martin,
Can you tell me the difference between AVER and AVOW?

Dennis,
What is "chocolate vinyl shake"? Why "vinyl"? I like your take on the addition of SMUT in the clue yesterday.

Chris,
By "iron-chef" style, you meant "Iron Chef of America", right? Your 8:21am comment yesterday made me hungry. Are you the cook in your house? Do you like sashimi also?

Kittyb,
Happy Birthday to your mother.

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

All the anons yesterday,
Thanks for CAPE Coral & GOLDBRICK. Hope you guys can leave a name next time.

Johnboy,
Thanks for the further explanation on MACH and the L'chaim link.

Gatormom,
Nice to see you again.

Clear Ayes,
Thanks for the TRIOLET poem and the Aly Khan information. He is indeed the guy I was thinking of. Isn't it strange that those those Khan princes and princesses do not belong to any specific country?

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

Kazie,
What a clever way to remember STERE.

J.D.,
Nice Socrates quotes yesterday.

Carol,
The ruby red grapefruit juice contains cochineal extract. Yikes!

Dougl,
Thanks for the great explanation on RASTER & vector.

Chris in LA said...

Good morning CC etal,

Good day today - googled pretty much the same places.

CC: I suppose I refer to "iron-chef" in the generic sense of the term - take what you have (leftovers or whatever's in your cupboard) and play around with them until you get something edible. I enjoy Sashimi as well, but have found it depends on the chef - sometimes the pieces can be too big.

"A Fistful of Dollars" is an old Clint Eastwood "spaghetti western" - so named, as far as I know, because they were mostly shot in Italy. Pre - "Dirty Harry" these films were mostly B-movies where Clint got his start.

I kind of agree with you on TKO needing "abbr.", but think the term is common enough relative to boxing as to stand on its own. Oscar bailed in the 8th round last night - a TKO (which counts as a knockout in the opponent's stats, which I think is wrong as he didn't "technically" get knocked out). Not much of a boxing fan, though, so what do I know?

Re: 56D "Hines footwear" - Gregory Hines was a terrific tapdancer - made a film with Barishnikov called "White Knights" - silly movie, but some terrific dance scenes. If you enjoy ballet & tap, it's worth a look-see.

Happy Sunday to all!

Dennis said...

Good morning, c.c. and gang - first time this season I've had to pull the paper out of snow; I'm getting the itch to go someplace warm already.

c.c., I've always thought the shakes at McD's and others had the consistency of liquid vinyl, and given all the stuff that's in them, it's probably not that far off.

Thanks for the take-off "Come Mr. Taliban". And there's only one person who can do "What a Wonderful World" justice -- Louie Armstrong. One of my favorite all-time songs, it's been my touchstone for savoring each day for 40 years now.

Time to brave the elements and finish the Christmas decorations; I can almost hear the whirr of the electric meter already.

Have a great, relaxing day.

Martin said...

Can you tell me the difference between AVER and AVOW?

a·vow
tr.v. a·vowed, a·vow·ing, a·vows
1. To acknowledge openly, boldly, and unashamedly; confess: avow guilt.
2. To state positively.

state
tr.v. stat·ed, stat·ing, states
To set forth in words; declare.

a·ver
tr.v. a·verred, a·ver·ring, a·vers
1. To affirm positively; declare.
2. Law
a. To assert formally as a fact.
b. To justify or prove.

af·firm
v. af·firmed, af·firm·ing, af·firms
v.tr.
1. To declare positively or firmly; maintain to be true.
2. To support or uphold the validity of; confirm.
v.intr. Law
To declare solemnly and formally but not under oath.

Sorry I didn't answer this question yesterday. As you can see, the difference is very slight. Based on the definitions above, I would say that when you confess to something then you would use AVOW but when you accuse somebody of something you use AVER.

Martin

Martin said...

I've always thought the shakes at McD's and others had the consistency of liquid vinyl, and given all the stuff that's in them, it's probably not that far off.

Dennis, you're not the first person to realize that milk and liguified plastic looks the same.

mel·a·mine
n.
1. A white crystalline compound, C3H6N6, used in making melamine resins and for tanning leather.
2. A plastic made from such resin.

Martin

Martin said...

C.C., 10A was "Distribute widely" and should be SPREAD. (I wanted EXPORT or UPLOAD [ie onto the internet].) "6-Pointers" was the clue for 16A. I had TDN because I didn't pick up on the fact that the clue was plural.

I got most of the them answers eventually. I got stuck on KIWI: I kept thinking PEACH but I knew that didn't fit. I read "In the middle of" to refer to an action (ie "I'm in the middle of something right now") so I had DOING for a long time. I also had DIESEL instead of FILL UP.

I think you drew a blank on 101A because you didn't give any of the perps either. I just figured it out.

98A UTILS (I wanted BILLS)
101A SPORTED (I wanted DID WEAR)
92D FURLONG = A unit for measuring distance, equal to 1/8 mile (201 meters).
93D UTTER (I wanted RIGHT).

Martin

Martin said...

Martin,

Lets do some math:

1 Litre=1000 Cubic Centimeters (ref
CRC Press Std Math Tables)

1 Cubic Meter = 100cm x 100cm x100cm = 1,000,000 Cubic Centimeters

Dividing out we get

1 Cubic Meter = 1000 Litres

Signed,

A*** Retentive Engineer


Ultimately it didn't matter because the answer was STERE and not kilolitre.

Martin

Anonymous said...

Great puzzle!!! Thank you Mr and Mrs Bushman. I thought that i was going crazy until it hit me about the clue. Then it was just some reflective thinking to get to the clue. I did miss "Hotdog" and the opeara( L'orfeo". What a good way to start my early Sunday morning.

I wish you all Merry Chrsitmas. but I wonder where this year has gone. As i get older, it seems that the time moves faster.

The only bad this week was my team got beat by Florida. Tim Tebow was just too much for Alabama. He should get the Heisman again this year. I would love to be his sport's agent for the pros.

Luck and good wishes to all

abogato in Alabama

kazie said...

c.c.,
When you said Bath is in the west of London, it sounded like it was in London itself. It would be better to say "to" the west of...

Hank implies a more dissorganized bundle. Skein is a measured quantity.

I'm not sure of the origin of the expression "to rate" something, but it does mean "to deserve".

Espouse and estrange look like they're related to French épouse (spouse), and étranger (strange or stranger), don't they?

Danny Kaye is an old comedian (1913-1987).

Helen Mirren was also in the "White Nights" movie. I recommend it for the dance, but also for the glimpse of Russian Gulag life and the Cold War atmosphere.

"Bad penny"--I remember hearing of people who "keep turning up like a bad penny"--those you don't want to see any more.

Grot may be related to the French grotte, meaning a cave--final e is silent.

Mick Jagger wasn't so ugly when young, was he? Neither was Keith Richards.

IMBO to see "Australia" now.

Mr. Ed said...

Lest we ever forget... A day to honor those who died and the veterans who survived December 7th, 1941. Let us never forget the servicemen of yesterday so their ultimate sacrifice will never have been in vain! While were at it, let's also remember those who are serving us today!

While in Hawaii recently, I took most of these pictures at the Arizona Memorial. Being ex Navy (TAD Guantanamo - Cuban Missile Crisis 1962), the Arizona visit was very profound for me.

A few of these pictures came from official historical archives. The remainder are what I saw on my visit. So, I offer you this short slideshow of Pearl Harbor.

Thank You!

Clear Ayes said...

Good Morning All, I can't comment on today's puzzle, except to suggest:

Movie about a relative at the door? - AUNTIE CAME (MAME)

Movie about a Mafioso fish? - THE COD(GOD)FATHER

Movie about confining a male of the species? - CAGING (RAGING) BULL

C.C. I made an apple pie and a cherry pie for Thanksgiving. My sister brought a pumpkin pie. I have an easy recipe for Hot Water Pie Crust. I do use half butter and half shortening. It is reminiscent of Marie Callendar pie crust, which I like a lot.

Chris In LA, Gregory Hines was a very talented dancer. It's a shame that he died so young.

Kazie, Enjoy Australia.

Carl, Thank you for the Pearl Harbor slides.

DoesItinInk said...

A very easy puzzle, and a fun theme. I got YANKEE DOODLE CANDY very early on and filled in COST IN TRANSLATION before getting any crosses. I had a few trip ups in 16D, wanting at first to fill it in with “The Last Dance”, but the name of that movie is actually “Save the Last Dance”. Everything else came easily.

This is an interesting piece about what makes Over the Rainbow such a satisfying song. I though of this when I saw Judy Garland singing the song in Australia. 

BTB…Friday night I went to see Slumdog Millionaire. It has been receiving rave reviews, all deserved, but it is not a film for the light-in-heart.

@Chris in LA…thanks for the Gregory Hines link. Though I got TAP SHOES from the crosses, I read the clue as “Hanes shoes” and was a bit confused about the reference.

@Carl…thank you for the slide show of Pearl Harbor. I visited the memorial on Pearl Harbor Day perhaps 30 years ago on my way to Australia. It was a very solemn experience.

@kazie…do let me know what you think about Australia!

@all regarding the pronunciation of Mach Ernst: I was hasty in stating his first name was pronounced Max. I was an engineering student, and actually Max was how his name was commonly pronounced in my classes. I guess that Max is the “midwestern” way of pronouncing his name, which is different than the correct way of pronouncing his name. My apologies.

lois said...

Good afternoon CC et al, Interesting puzzle. Not real hard, just real big. Don't do Sun. very often. Loved the CCR reference.

Carl, thanks for the Pearl Harbor slide show. Very nice. Interesting that the OK and MO were both there.

Dennis, how much snow are you getting? I'm still laughing about yesterday's puzzle with 'marine bottom' and 'fungi' . I thought of you and Argyle both with those clues. Wonder if Argyle turned the other cheek as well. Funny stuff!

Chris in LA said...

All this "Over The Rainbow" talk causes me to want to share my favorite version from The Blanks also known as Ted's band from the TV show "Scrubs"...

If you get a chance, hit the "Underdog" link on the right - it's great, too.

kazie said...

Well, we're back. After the drive home through increasing snow, I was beginning to wonder if we'd made the right decision to go today, but it was wonderful! So nice to see the magnificence of the scenery, to see "old friends" among the actors--those I knew from many previous movies, like Bryan Brown, Jack Thompson and David Gilpilil.

When the aboriginal children's resettlement program touched on in this movie was officially ended in 1973, we were living in Sydney, but had no knowledge of it. One of our very political friends talked often about Aboriginal rights, but I can't remember even her saying anything about that. I only found out about it years later, and recently there was a TV program about it here that I saw.

For me a lot of nostalgia in the accents and atmosphere. Hated Fletcher of course, loved Jackman.

Anonymous said...

C.C., Re attar of roses: according to roseotto.com: "It takes approximately 60,000 roses to produce just 1 oz of Rose Oil (Rose Otto) That's about two & half dozen roses to make just one drop."

Anonymous said...

I would hate to have anyone not drinking ruby grapefruit juice because of the comments on this blog. It does NOT contain cochineal from insects. It is made from ruby red grapefruit which is fairly common in this part of Florida. And it is delicious, either as a juice or as whole grapefruit.
Had a half this morning and enjoyed it enormously.
Bon appetit.(sp?)

JD said...

Hi C.C. and all,
Had to check in to see what we missed.

Carl, your slide show was perfect! Visiting Pearl Harbor is a very moving experience.

Danny Kaye was not only a comedian, but he could sing and dance. His specialty was reciting tongue-twisting songs and monologues. My favorite movie as a child was "Hans Christian Anderson." Great songs! I think he sang "Inchworm" in that one. He was also in "White Christmas" with Bing Crosby.

For Thanksgiving, I made a pecan pie, bought a pumpkin pie from M. Callendar's, and, my daughter, Shelby, made an apple gallette (YUM!)

Elbow grease made me laugh. When I was 7 we were refinishing a piano that had 4 or 5 old coats of paint on it. I must have asked what I could do to help, so my parents sent me to the corner market and ask for some elbow grease. I did and everyone, but me, got a big kick out of it.

kazie said...

Sallie,
That spelling is fine. Only addition would be the acute accent, but most people leave those out in English anyway.

My Thanksgiving desserts were pumpkin pie and a cherry-cream-cheese dessert that is a family favorite. Bon appétit, or as the Germans say, Guten Appetit!

Carl,
Thanks for the slide show--It brought back memories of my own visit there. Today as we were leaving Madison. I noticed flags at halfmast, and it reminded us of what day it was.

Anonymous said...

C.C.,
Hey, Mr. Taliban is the same song. Just a take on Bush using the song.

Yes, that is Mick Jagger, probably about 30 yrs. younger.

"A Fistful of Dollars" is a spaghetti western starring Clint Eastwood, also about 30 yrs. ago. It's okay, wouldn't waste my time on it but once, but men seem to love watching endlessly. An example is my husband and son.

Pies, hmmmmm? Sweet Potato pie is great!! A true Southern delicacy.

Terri

Anonymous said...

86 D
Hines footwear
Gregory Hines, actor, tap dancer, even made a movie about tap dancing

Unknown said...

63A: "Panino" is indeed singular in Italian meaning little bread or sandwich. In English "Panini" has become the accepted term for a grilled sandwich and I have heard Paninis used as plural here.

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

Thanks, John.