google.com, pub-2774194725043577, DIRECT, f08c47fec0942fa0 L.A.Times Crossword Corner: Monday January 12, 2009 John Underwood

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Jan 12, 2009

Monday January 12, 2009 John Underwood

Theme: OPERA (52D: Highbrow entertainment)

10A: Berg opera: LULU

20A: Gounod opera: FAUST

26A: Bizet opera: CARMEN

41A: Puccini opera: MADAMA BUTTERFLY

51A: Strauss opera: SALOME

63A: Bellini opera: NORMA

71A: Verdi opera: AIDA

Well, I've only heard of CARMEN, AIDA and MADAMA BUTTERFLY. Actually, I thought it's MADAME. Nevertheless, I still got all the opera names sans cheating. The intersecting clues certainly helped.

John Underwood always amazes me with his theme ideas, so simple and original. Interesting how he could turn LULU into a "Berg opera". I wonder if he is a real opera fan or just constructed this puzzle with some research.

Across:

5A: Laminated rock: SHALE. Here are some SHALE rocks. Wikipedia says it's the most common sedimentary rock.

15A: "Rodeo" composer Copland: AARON. Have never heard of "Rodeo", the so-called "cowboy ballet".

16A: Genesis character: ENOS. Adam's grandson. Sometimes it's clued as "Slaughter of Cooperstown". This name Slaughter sounds very menacing. My husband told me our surname Burnikel means "Don't kill the child" in Viking language. Does your family name carry any special meaning also?

17A: Tolkien creatures: ORCS. The baddies. ENTS are those talking trees. Learned from doing Xword of course.

40A: Ottoman official: AGA. Can also be spelled as AGHA.

62A: Shakespearean curse: POX. Oh, so that's how Shakespeare cursed. Is it like our "damned"?

64A: Egyptian cross: ANKH. Is that the sun god Ra at the bottom of this gold ANKH? This word is very close to SIKH in spelling.

Down:

2D: Hebrew scroll: TORAH. How is it different from Talmud?

4D: University of Montana city: MISSOULA. See this map. I got it from the across fills. Wikipedia says Jeannette Rankin, the first woman to be elected to the U.S. Congress, was born and grew up here. In fact, she attended the University of Montana. And to this day, she is the only woman to be elected to Congress from that state. What's the matter with Montana then? Is it a red state?

11D: Early computer OS: UNIX. How "Early"?

26D: Trophy shelf: MANTEL. I always confuse MANTEL with the "loose cape" Mantle. I wonder how many of those Mickey Mantle fans made mistakes spelling his name when they asked for his autograph via mails.

43D: Inflated language: RHETORIC. Bacon once said: Histories make men wise; poet, witty; mathematics, subtle; natural philosophy, deep; moral, grave; logic and RHETORIC, able to contend.

53D: Virtuous: MORAL. Do you know why Bacon said "moral, grave"?

59D: First name in spy: MATA. MATA Hari. She looks so exotic.

60D: Letters on a cross: INRI. Abbreviation of Latin "Iesus Nazarenus Rex Iudaeorum". Funny how letter I became letter J.

66D: Casablanca cap: FEZ. It's called tarboosh in Egypt. Most of them seem to be in red color.

C.C.

66 comments:

Dennis said...

Good morning, C.C. and gang - a good start to the week; a small ball peen for me. Being somewhat 'rough around the edges' compared to our more refined members, I don't know that many operas, other than what I've remembered from previous crosswords. Although this one was really loaded with them, fortunately the perps gave me enough letters to avoid g-spotting. I thought this was a very well done puzzle.


Today's words of wisdom: "Luck is a dividend of sweat. The more you sweat, the luckier you get". -- Ray Kroc

Today is "Feast of Fabulous Wild Men Day" - DFettes, have a ball.

Make it a magnificent Monday. Off to the gym.

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

Dennis,
This puzzle is loaded with operas because they are the theme of his puzzle. I seldom sweat, guess that's why I can't find luck in life. I felt so indescribably sad that Eagles won yesterday.

Martin,
Can you tell me more about the Colossus of Constantine you linked yesterday? What's the symbol of that upward pointing finger?

Chris,
I've seen LESE clued as both "__ - majesty" and "__ -majesté " before. Thanks for STEMMERS.

Dougl,
I just noticed that LILLE used to be called LISLE. Your suggestion "Boos to Bees" should inspire someone to create such a themed puzzle.

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

Kazie,
Thanks for SUA. What's the meaning of "rugging up"? I've never seen rug used as a verb before.

Clear Ayes,
Thanks for the Frank MCGRATH picture yesterday.

Calef,
Wow, I did not expect hootch to have such a complicated root.

Dan S & Leslie,
ABSTEMIOUS & arsenious, outstanding examples. Thanks.

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

Linda,
Very nice picture, but why "Spoil Me" on your husband's shirt?

Gator Mom,
Thanks for the detailed explanation on "Cracker".

PromiseMe,
I am glad to hear your computer is fine. I liked the way you used "borked".

Argyle,
Nice theme answers yesterday. I always thought Raggedy Ann is only a girl.

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

Barry G,
I think your "hammer" struggle on Saturday is a pure fight, my "gavel" is Google-assisted.

Lola,
How long have you been solving TMS puzzles?

Dr. G,
Thanks for the blue dot explanation. Where is Almerimar? Down which coast?

Dick said...

Good morning CC and all, a very workable puzzle although I am not a fan of opera. The ones I did not know were easily obtainable from the perps.

Dennis a Turnpike Superbowl is a real possibility. Go Steelers or in the Pittsburg vernacular Go Stillers.

Sort of a cold day here today. Hope you all have a great Monday.

Anonymous said...

Hi Ms. [didn't see your name],

I enjoy your page and your commentary. Your answers saves me some grief because when I got stuck on a puzzle, which I usually do, I had to wait for next week's paper for the solution.

I assume your native tongue is Chinese. If so you must be brilliant to solve these puzzles in English.

We have quite different interests. I'm an old conservative and despise rock music among other things.

I didn't like today's puzzle. The clues for the theme words were lousy [I thought]. I also get stuck on the names of actors since I don't know them and don't want to.

The author on your page was indicated as Josiah Breward. In our paper, the author was listed as Ed Voile.

Thanks again for your page.

Don C.

Dr. Dad said...

Good morning.

To answer C.C.'s question:

The term "Torah", or Five Books of Moses or Pentateuch, refers to the entirety of Judaism's founding legal and ethical religious texts. The Torah is the most holy of the sacred writings in Judaism. It is the first of three sections in the Tanakh (Hebrew Bible), the founding religious document of Judaism, and is divided into five books, whose names in English are Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy.

The Talmud is a record of rabbinic discussions pertaining to Jewish law, ethics, customs, and history. It is a central text of mainstream Judaism, second only to the Hebrew Bible (the Tanakh) in importance.

Didn't know all of the operas but got them from the perps. I agree with Dennis - a nicely done puzzle that was a bit difficult in spots but not too bad.

Today is (in addition to Dennis' "Feast of Fabulous Wild Men Day (count me in)), National Clean Off Your Desk Day, Handwriting Day, and Secret Pal Day. All In The Family premiered on this day in 1971.

Have a great Monday.

Barry G. said...

Morning, all!

Well, I guess I don't know quite as much about OPERA as I thought I did. FAUST, AIDA, MADAMA BUTTERFLY and CARMEN (which I performed in college) were all gimmes, but I've never heard of LULU or NORMA. I've heard of SALOME, but didn't know it was by Strauss (and I just looked it up and discovered it's by Richard Strauss, not Johann Strauss the Waltz King).

Overall, however, this was not a difficult puzzle. The only tricky bit was the NE corner. LULU was unknown, as I said, and UNIX didn't come immediately because I didn't really think of it as an "early" computer operating system. Looking it up, however, I see it was originally developed in 1969 at Bell Labs, so I guess that is pretty early.

Oh -- and GIBE threw me for a bit of a loop, since I've always used it to mean "agree with" instead of "scoff." I just looked that up as well, however, and (after a bit of consternation) discovered that the word I've been using all this time is actually spelled "jibe." Jibe and GIBE are pronounced the same, but have totally different meanings. Or, at least, they can. One definition of Jibe is simply an alternate spelling of GIBE. But, while Jibe can be used to mean GIBE, the reverse is not true, since the "agree with" sense of Jibe has an unknown origin and is not related to GIBE. Learn something new every day, eh?

Barry G,
I think your "hammer" struggle on Saturday is a pure fight, my "gavel" is Google-assisted.


True. I've been doing this long enough that any puzzle that drives me to Google is, by definition, a "hammer" for me. Especially since I do the puzzles on paper and often am nowhere near my computer, so Google is not even always an option while I'm solving.

On a related note, I keep a shelf of reference books at home in the dining room (including the compact OED and an unabridged Webster's dictionary), and I used to refer to them quite often while doing puzzles. Lately, however, I rarely look at them, since most of the entries that tend to stump me these days can't be found within those books. Just look at Saturday's "hammer" puzzle -- I doubt I could have found LCS, RABI, HATARI, ILSE, LARI or MCGUINN in any of them. Maybe I could have found ALMERIA or BLOUSON, but that's about it.

Martin said...

Had the same experience today as C.C.: I expected a hammer as soon as I caught onto the theme but I found the down clues surprisingly straightforward and was able to finish with virtually no googling. The only part where I got hung up was with MISSOULA: it was a complete unknown for me and I had MISSOALA (thinking that "Most remote, briefly" meant ALT, short for altitude) which didn't look right so I googled it. It was only when I had MISSOULA that I realised that ULT was short for ultimate. Boo. It's not easy getting an entire word from two letters (LT). Oh and I also had MADAME BUTTERFLY but that would have meant that "See the world" was TREVEL so I figured MADAMA was Italian whereas MADAME was French. I also wanted NOBLE for MORAL, ADD for TEL and IOTA for ATOM: I only got ATOM after I looked at the clue again and saw the question mark. Oh and the plural for focus is FOCI, not LOCI. Can anybody think of a better clue for LOCI?

10D "Popularized myth": LEGEND. It's actually the other way around, isn't it? When a LEGEND becomes popularized, people add their own little details and then eventually keep their own little details and do away with the parts that were true until all that is left is myth. C.C. is probably familiar with the mythology surrounding the Chinese princess Chang E: she was most likely a legendary historical figure but so many different versions of her life story got invented that -so I've heard-nobody knows what is legend and what is myth.

C.C., UNIX predates Windows. On a PC the default operating system is DOS (Disk Operating System). Windows runs on DOS. When you turn on your computer and you see a black screen with the words "Windows is loading", that's DOS. A computer that runs with a UNIX operating system is faster than a computer that runs on Windows so most physicists to this day prefer to use UNIX computers to run programs. I suspect most engineers would also prefer to use computers that run on UNIX because they'd also be easier to write programs on. According to Wikipedia, UNIX dates back to 1969, DOS was developed between 1981 and 1995 and the earliest version of Windows dates back to 1985.

C.C., the Colossi of Constantine and Nero (and presumably the one in old Rhodes) were shattered. All that remain are bits and pieces. All I did was go to google images and type in "Colossus Rome". If I don't specify "Rome" I get the X-Men character.

Don, C.C. used to have her name on the blog (as part of her e-mail address) and, in fact, she posted her family name today. Evidently she trusts that the regulars here aren't stalkers but she's apparently careful enough not to make it too easy for any crazy people that might be out there.

Martin

KittyB said...

Good morning, all.

I enjoyed this puzzle. While I still think of myself as a musician, wind band is my forte, not opera, so I was pleased to find the opera clues came easily. I don't consider any of them to be obscure but I was betting that LULU and NORMA would be the difficult ones for those who are not aficionados.

I find my method of completing the puzzle has changed since I began visiting your blog, C.C. I used to do a run through the across clues, and then come back to fill in the downs. This time I wasn't positive of an answer until 10A and I ended up completing the puzzle in a clockwise direction. Needless to say, the short words helped.

C.C., I discovered your interviews on Saturday. They are fascinating! Congratulations on getting the puzzle makers to respond.
I'm still working on the Sunday puzzle, so I'll have to come back later to read your comments to the gang on the Sunday discussion. I didn't know that LISLE has changed it's spelling to LILLE.

Dr. Dad, thanks for the info on the Torah.

Barry, I had the same response to the clue for UNIX.

We were swamped with snow in the western Chicago suburbs Friday night into Saturday, got a little more yesterday, and can expect more this week, with a HIGH for Thursday of -2F! It's a good week to stay in and do crossword puzzles! Happy Monday, everyone.

Anonymous said...

Hi All --

Stumbled on this Blog. I am addicted to Crosswords and do three every day. I love the interaction among all the posters here. So different from other blogs where many try to reach heights of nastiness by out poison penning each other.

Dennis said...

SWAPNA, we're indeed a disparate group that, for the most part, gets along very well. Good of you to join us; I hope you enjoy the ride.

kazie said...

Hi all! and welcome to SWAPNA and any other recent ex-lurkers I've not acknowledged.

This turned out to be an easy one for me, though like several others here, I thought I'd get stuck when I saw all the operatic clues. However they fell in easily. The only stumbling block was trying to figure out why MADAME was MADAMA. I just g-spotted it now, and that was the first spelling to come up, despite my cuing MADAME. I guess we all learn something doing xw's.

Barry,
Thanks for JIBE/GIBE. I never thought much about it, but that's just another example of English confusion.

c.c.,
I've never thought about "rugging up" before, but I suppose it could be an australianism. I just meant putting on a lot of clothes.

Our family name is German and has something to do with gypsies, though it resembles the Czech word for gypsy more than the German, which is Zigeuner.

Anonymous said...

Hey CC & Jeannie Good Morning and Good Morning to all who blog here.

10:16 for me today.

I have heard of Carmen, Madame Butterfly, Aida and Faust.

Faust was mentioned in the Kurt Russell/ Val Kilmer/Sam Elliott movie Tombstone by Jason Priestly when a touring company came to perform segments of operas.


Get your daily dose of Metallica here:

All Nightmare Long

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MF_oAXS65bg

In a video from the website www.Metclub.com, Kirk Hammett explained the origins of the video. He bought the film from a fan for $5 in Russia and soon forgot about it. After digging it up and watching the animated film, he was fascinated by it, researched about its background, and asked a friend's Russian girlfriend to translate parts of it. Following this, Hammett had been trying to incorporate the film into one of the band's music videos.

Anonymous said...

that is "Akhenaten" heretic pharaoh who is always depicted by the sun's rays streaming over him. He denounced all the deities except Ra...the sun
Also father to tutankhamun .

It was my life's dream to go to Egypt. It came true TWICE in 06..........

I'm still in awe.
Dawn

Anonymous said...

mark - Buenos Aires

Shakespear might say to an innkeeper "a pox on you for watering down my beer" so I suppose "damn you" is an equivalent.

Argyle said...

Argyle,I always thought Raggedy Ann is only a girl.

Raggedy Andy is Raggedy Ann's younger brother by five years.(1920 for Andy and 1915 for Ann)

Raggedy Ann and Andy: History and Legend

Razz said...

C.C. - "Razzberry,
What is yung2?"
from Saturday

I'm guessing that the word below is from the Foxworthy clip...if so:

I think it is the the string
"Do you want to?" in which the do is assumed and the yan to is squished together.

Example: Did you eat? (jeet) Reply, "No, do you want to? (yan to?)

Otherwise, I'm clueless on yung2

lois said...

Good morning CC et al, A breeze for me today (Dennis time)...love starting the wk that way. I'm with you, CC. Only have seen Madam'e' and not Madama...but love that opera. I just love opera period.

Today's words of wisdom seem a little off to me...I think it's more like "getting lucky" makes you sweat.

I LOVE the 'Today is'...and man, I'm going to really enjoy this one, starting w/a 'fabulous'lunch, since I'm off today. 'Having a ball' is the plan...it's on the menu.

Barry Silk is in DC this coming wkend. Anyone going?

Enjoy your day.

Linda said...

CC: The "spoil me" was a birthday banner he and his twin sis had to wear on their Jan 4th birthdays (which they share with Dick and his Mom). They were good sports.
On "pox"...the entire curse was "fie and a pox on you(or yours)". Pretty strong language back then! On the pic; Not too bad for the "elderly."
:)
swapna; Welcome to CC`s blog. Unfortunately, we too get "nastys" at times...We just call them out and then ignore them (that IS what we do, isn`t it, fellow-bloggers?)

razzberry" ...only we in the south say it more run-together and like "yuhount to?" )with lots of jaw dropping and mouth "action".

Anonymous said...

Good morning C.C. at all (it still is morning here in SW FL).
Since opera is my passion, I loved this puzzle, and did it in record time for me. I am not a quick one on these puzzles.
C.C.< I don't understand your comment about how Underwood "could turn LULU into a Berg opera." That's what it is. Your link is about something else.
Back to "cracker". Having lived in Naples, FL, for 20 years, the topic comes up fairly regularly in the local paper. It is always explained as referring to the early Anglo cracking of whips on mules.

Dr.G said...

C.C., Sorry to learn of your sadness, but Iggle Land is exstatic.
Is 44A correctly answered with OKD? Shouldn't the correct answer be okEd?

Lola said...

C.C.
I've been solving xwords for so long I don't remember when I got started. But, I used to give up without finishing most of the time. When I retired from the Post Office four years ago I had more time to devote to them, and I found my skills were improving as I continued to solve. When I added Google to my tool chest, I almost always finished, but it felt more like research than puzzle solving. Early last Spring I discovered this sight, and really enjoy coming here for a more in depth understanding of the clues. Now it is rare for me not to finish a puzzle in less than 20 minutes sans Google. I guess doing anything on a regular basis improves your skill.

The only sticking point I had on today's puzzle was the Madama-Madame quandary.

Thanks again for all the enjoyable interchange.

Anonymous said...

Just wanted to thank you for your research. I have a passion to finish each puzzle, so I used to take the extra time daily to do the Internet research when I couldn't quite finish a puzzle. Now I just go to your site and have it all done for me. I'm almost 86 years old and have a lot of things to finish before I leave this planet, so appreciate the extra time you have given me. I also enjoy the other little tidbits of info you provide. - Florence in Beaverton, Or.

g8rmomx2 said...

Hi c.c. and all:

I did know Faust, Carmen, Aida and Madama Butterfly (although I had Madame and changed it because of Travel on the down word). I actually thought they made a mistake! I vaguely heard of Lulu, but did not know Salome or Norma and only got them from the perps. Like Martin I also googled Missoula, and then was able to easily fill in the others.

Promiseme: I have actually thought of bringing my flute out, but was afraid I might scare my husband and dog away, lol! BTW I see your from Broward County. I moved from Coral Springs in 2004 and now live on the other coast of FL. My one daughter lives in Sunrise, FL and is going to Nova U for her PHd.

Linda: Nothing mentioned in articles or the celebration, however, in this latest article it was said they did not believe he would be drafted in the first round. Still waiting to hear about Harvin and Spikes. I hope they will be staying.

Have a wonderful day everyone, off to the gym!

Dr.G said...

SWAPNA
Welcome and ditto to your observation about the site.

Sallie, I agree with your Lulu confusion. As you said, there is no connection.

carol said...

Good morning C.C. and gang - I really liked this puzzle and I dislike opera. That said, I actually got all of the them. I was surprised that it was "Madama" instead of "Madame", but "travel" has to be spelled with an "a".
I expected a real hammer when I saw that the constructor was John Underwood, but I just flew through this, sort of amazed myself :)

Welcome to Swapna and Florence...we all do get along here, and try to help each other. We can and do get a little ribald sometimes, but it's all in fun.
Florence, when I am 86, I sure hope I can still do c/w puzzles! Good for you!
As they say, "use it or lose it". :)

Linda said...

CC: Most of us native Floridians still think 'Cracker' came from the Spaniards and was an epithet about the native-homesteaders being "Quaker" as in non-Catholic. A good example of native "crackers" can be seen in the movie "The Yearling" filmed in the area where my Dad grew up. The east coast was 'civilized' first because a rich railroad man built a line just to bring his family down for the winter. (the original snow birds!)
The west coast was more populated with homesteaders and "cracker-cowboys" from the near west and southern GA and AL. There is a Cracker Homestead, with all the out buildings included located in a museum area in Perry, FL.
The REAL natives are the Seminole Indians. There are still some living in and around Lake Okeechobee. They live in open-sided huts where their electric refrigerators and such form a "wall" of sorts. They are a tall, caramel-skinned, attractive people. Before the lake nearly dried up, people came from all over the world for the fishing season (early fall). If this is TMI, sorry. Once a teacher, always a teacher.

Clear Ayes said...

Good Morning All, I didn't have to sweat over this puzzle, but I was very lucky. Both my parents were opera buffs and I heard LP recordings of all the theme operas numerous times as a child. Classical music and opera were favorites of my father to wake us up on Sunday mornings....Groan...I remember it so well. It was tough at the time, but I do appreciate opera now.

For those of you who are fans, here's one of the best Cio-Cio Sans, Renata Tebaldi singing Un Bel Di Vedremo from MADAMA (or Madame) BUTTERFLY. Since Verdi was Italian, he probably spelled it MADAMA and it was eventually anglicized to MADAME.

Kazie, did you know that Noel Coward wrote a song titled Zigeuner for his operetta Bittersweet?

Linda, Thanks for the most recent "Cracker" information. I did see the movie, The Yearling as well as Cross Creek which was based on The Yearling's author Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings' life in rural Florida in the 1920's.

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

Sallie & Dr. G,
LULU is the singer in "To Sir with Love", a movie I really liked. In the past year, our editor has also clued LULU a few times as "Humdinger". "Berg opera" stuck me as very obscure. Then I thought John Underwood might be a huge opera fan.

Linda et al,
Thanks for answering my various questions. Will respond tomorrow morning. Oh by the way, Linda, what does "As you wish" mean to you?

kazie said...

clear ayes,
Thanks for the Bronhill link. I didn't know about Zigeuner, but recognized her name right away, she was quite famous at home, since she's another aussie.

Crockett1947 said...

Good morning, everyone. I'm not an opera fan, but I was able to get all of these, some through perps.

We've certainly got ten more Oregonians here of late. Welcome lola, uesless organ, florence, and all of the others.

Have a great Monday.

pnutsoccer said...

I enjoy the "Crossword Corner" - a friend clued me in. I would also like to do the Sunday crosswords, but do not know how to get them. I tried to google them. I guess they come from the Chicago Tribune book that must be bought. Please help. Thanks!

Dr.G said...

Dr. G,
Thanks for the blue dot explanation. Where is Almerimar? Down which coast?
C.C.The map which you gave shows Almerimar along the coast SW of Almeria.

Dennis said...

Linda, great information - thanks.

Pnutsoccer, the Sunday one is not available online, unfortunately for the large majority of us.

G8rmomx2, how did you like Coral Springs? It's one of the areas that was recommended to us.

Clear Ayes said...

Whether it is an opera, a painting, a book, a garden, a sunset, the people we love, or even great rock music,

A Thing of Beauty is a Joy for Ever

A thing of beauty is a joy for ever:
Its loveliness increases; it will never
Pass into nothingness; but still will keep
A bower quiet for us, and a sleep
Full of sweet dreams, and health, and quiet breathing.
Therefore, on every morrow, are we wreathing
A flowery band to bind us to the earth,
Spite of despondence, of the inhuman dearth
Of noble natures, of the gloomy days,
Of all the unhealthy and o'er-darken'd ways
Made for our searching: yes, in spite of all,
Some shape of beauty moves away the pall
From our dark spirits...

- John Keats

embien said...

8:05 today despite my never having seen an opera and knowing less than nothing about them. My only unknown was MADAMA BUTTERFLY (always thought it was MADAME).

I was also thrown by UNIX being an "early" computer OS since it was developed by Bell Labs after I graduated college (I was in the computer industry so was quite familiar with it--just never thought of it as "early").

"A POX on both your houses" is a common quote from Romeo & Juliet, hence "Shakespearean curse". (I think the original line in the play was "a plague o'both your houses".) http://www.answers.com/topic/a-plague-on-both-your-houses

Auntie Naomi said...

Good Afternoon,

The puzzle went pretty quick for me today. 8:34.

C.C., Nothing is wrong with Montana. I think the fact that it was the first state to elect a woman to congress says a lot about it. Montana is considered a swing state.

Unlike Dick, I LOVE opera. I have seen all of the ones in the puzzle except for NORMA and LULU. I have a recording of the latter, though. It is a shame that Alban Berg never got to finish it himself. The first opera I ever saw was his 'Wozzeck'. I was invited by the man directing it, a very charming older gentleman who took a liking to me. He claimed that he had formerly been involved with the Met and I thought he might be putting me on. Once I went to the first rehearsal I knew he was for real. Much later I discovered that my new friend, William Henry Butler, had written the libretto for what is probably the most famous American opera, Mourning Becomes Electra. That opera was, of course, based on Eugene O'Neill's play.
Other than Mozart, Florida Grand Opera almost never puts on German language operas. With the heavy Jewish population here, I can understand why they don't schedule Wagner. It is too bad, though. I would love to see Parsifal. They did do SALOME a few years ago. The woman in the title role sang the part wonderfully, but I think she should acquiesce to those who say she should allow a lolita-ish ballerina to fill in for her during the Dance of the Seven Veils.

Missoula was a gimme for me. I have been there many times.

Like Barry, I do the paper version and I am not near my computer. I sit out by the river and watch the iguanas shake their heads. I never use Google. If the puzzle was in Chinese, I am sure no amount of Googling would help me. I applaud C.C.'s ability.

Crockett1947 said...

@promisemethis The Met does live High Def broadcasts to selected movie theaters across the nation. Google MET opera and look for the HD link. Good luck.

JD said...

Good morning C.C. and all oldies and newcomers,

Seeing rather quickly that the theme was opera, I went with the "downs" 1st, and was able to fill it all in a few rounds. I"m not a fan of opera, but like Clearayes, was awakened to them on Saturday mornings , like the H.M.S. Pinafor..."I'm called Little Buttercup..." It still lingers. I had not heard of Gounod or Berg.I knew Carmen, but not Bizet, and I have read the story of Aida to my class for many years. I think I mentioned awhile back that Disney is making Aida into a movie starring Beyonce, but I think it will be animated. Did anyone see the Elton John musical?

Barry, enjoyed the jibe/gibe info as I was going to use a j also, but knew how to spell legend.

And Argyle, I read that whole article on Raggedy Ann, as we all had those dolls as kids.Thanks.. sent it to my sister. hmmm what makes a legend is a very interesting topic.

Dr. Dad, thanks for info on the Talmud

Linda, very much enjoyed the "cracker" up date.When I told my husband that my family called me their "little cracker" since I was born in Atlanta, he said I couldn't be a cracker since I wasn't from FL(he grew up in Naples.. before high rises,etc).He seems to be right.

Have a great day all

Clear Ayes said...

Argyle, When I was a stay-at-home mom with a baby, I needed a source of part-time income. I made Raggedy Ann and Andy dolls and sold them in gift shops on consignment. My granddaughter has a large one I made for my daughter about 40 years ago. I still have the pattern.

J.D. I love Gilbert and Sullivan too.

Don C. We hope you will enjoy C.C.'s site and come back. Tell us what you do like. Even though rock music and actors aren't on your list of favorites :o), I'm sure you'll find other posters who follow your interests.

I'm afraid National Clean Off Your Desk Day will have to wait for a day or two. I have a very busy rest of the day. It does give me inspiration because my desk definitely could use a thorough going-over.

Have a fine day, everyone.

Anonymous said...

Afternoon everybody,
Enjoyable puzzle today. I had madame, not much for opera, like jazz.
My Parker name comes from the word "parcarius" which means keeper of the park or estate, or shepherd; indicating an active life out of doors.
Have fun ,
Geri

Anonymous said...

A prety quick puzzel even not knowing all the operas outright.

A bit of trivia about the UNIX system is the 2038 problem. Now I might not get this 100% right from memory, and I am sure the problem has been fixed by now, but earlier UNIX could nor record dates past January 19, 2038. This had to do with the fact that the systen stored time in seconds past a fixed date (some point in 1970 I think) and was limited to a fixed number of digits for counting the seconds. So, if one were calculating a 30 year mortguage from the 2008 time frame the system would not give the correct results.

Seattle John

Linda said...

Dennis:
If you are considering relocating to FL...Ocala is lovely...lot`s of thorough-bred horse ranches, good golfing...close to Don Garlit`s museum AND close to Gainesville! In my considered opinion...either coast would be a move you`d probably regret. Horrible traffic especially during "snow-bird' season, high taxes and insurance...too much strain on utilities and you`re hurricane bait! Pluses; Winter is 10 days long (and even THAT is stretched out), you can wear flip-flops and shorts year round and the fresh seafood is fantastic! Nothing soothes stress like lying in the sun listening to the waves come ashore, but only to visit.

And CC: You`d be close to several spring training camps!

CC. "As you wish" is from "Princess Bride"...It`s what "Farmboy" always told the girl when she ordered him around. (You should watch the movie if you haven`t). In the movie, he meant "I will do what you ask...not because I`m compelled to...but because I wish to please you...but don`t push me too far!" I got all that from one glance from those blue, Cary Elwes` eyes!
In general...I think it would mean,"You`re in charge...and even though I may not agree...I will comply."

Superfrey said...

Really late to the plate today.... I was in mourning the GIANTS loss to the EAGLES... The EAGLES played better and deserved to win though... It still hurts..Looks like an all PA Super Bowl.
Very nice puzzle.... I knew all of the Operas so it was a snap....a no googler.

Superfrey said...

Dennis if you ever get the urge to move to Florida.... go to Naples... great restaurants, a philharmonic... great beaches... lots of golf... I used to snowbird to Jupiter but switched to become a Neopolitan... liked it so much I moved down from Ocean County, NJ....blah blah blah...

dougl said...

I've heard Missoula is a nice place, it's also home of their state univ (college towns are usually pretty interesting).

Interesting trivia on MT being the first state to elect a female -- I also heard Wyoming was the first to ratify the constitutional ammendment giving women the vote. Independent thinkers out there.

Dennis said...

Linda, Superfrey, thanks for the great info - I'm pretty well hooked on the SE coast - I love the Ft. Lauderdale/Boca/W. Palm area, need to be near the ICW, and enjoy the South Beach lifestyle. Been planning towards the FL move for almost ten years now, and will hopefully be down there this year.

Just did get back from Boca last week, and I was completely blown away by the incredible number of foreclosures - anywhere from $100K to $6.1M. They even have buses taking people around to the different foreclosure properties.

Auntie Naomi said...

DougI,
Yes, Missoula is the home of the University of Montana. Bozeman is home to Montana State University.

C.C., One thing to bear in mind about Jeanette Rankin having been the only women Congressperson from Montana is that, unlike US Senators, the number of US Representatives that a state gets is determined by the size of its population. When I was growing up, Montana had a population of about 750,000. It was allowed two US Representatives. Today, even though the population has grown a bit(it is now about 900,000), due to changes in law, it has only one. Compare that to Florida's 25. The entire state of Montana, which is larger than all but Alaska, Texas and California has only half as many people as Broward County where I live, which has about 1.9 million.

Anonymous said...

TO C.C. SHAKESPEARE CURSE: POX
Pox used in this text is not a 'curse word'. It's a curse as in a 'witches curse'. I think it referred to small pox or the plague.

Anonymous said...

i always thought the ankh was a symbol for life in heiroglyphics.

NYTAnonimo said...

LULU
FAUST
CARMEN
MADAMABUTTERFLY
SALOME
NORMA
AIDA

Linda said...

Dennis:ICW...Inter-coastal waterway...?
Have you tried smoked mullet yet?

Dennis said...

Linda, yes on the ICW. And no, have not had smoked mullet - outside of shrimp and lobster, I don't eat much seafood.

Auntie Naomi said...

Linda and Dennis,
ICW is INTRAcoastal waterway.

Dennis said...

Promise me, yes it is.

g8rmomx2 said...

Dennis:

My husband was with the Federal Government at the time and we chose Coral Springs to live although he drove to Miami everyday. Coral Springs has excellent schools, everything you would want to go to is within 5 to 10 minute drive, shopping, groceries, theaters, etc. Boca Raton from my house was about 10 minutes. Traffic is not bad, very nice homes. We had the best neighbors ever and still get together with them. If you are looking for a home rather than a condo or apartment than Coral Springs is great. If you are looking to buy a condo then Sunrise and Plantation Florida have a lot of areas. My daughter lives in Sunrise in an apartment across from the Sawgrass Mall. Beautiful place! Good luck with your search.

Martin said...

A bit of trivia about the UNIX system is the 2038 problem. Now I might not get this 100% right from memory, and I am sure the problem has been fixed by now, but earlier UNIX could nor record dates past January 19, 2038. This had to do with the fact that the systen stored time in seconds past a fixed date (some point in 1970 I think) and was limited to a fixed number of digits for counting the seconds. So, if one were calculating a 30 year mortguage from the 2008 time frame the system would not give the correct results.

In my mind's eye I picture somebody working on developing a time machine early in the year 2038and running a simulation on an old UNIX machine: he'll see the date on his computer suddenly change to 1970 or so and he'll think "Oh my God! It worked!", not realizing that the date on his computer just reset.

Martin

Auntie Naomi said...

"Coral Springs has excellent schools, everything you would want to go to is within 5 to 10 minute drive, shopping, groceries, theaters, etc."

Not to mention Incredible Ice, the Florida Panthers practice facility. I live near the ICW, though, so Coral Springs is way out in the burbs for me.

Clear Ayes said...

C.C., You do ask some tough questions!

According to Merriam Webster Dictionary the definition of MORAL is "a passage pointing out, usually in conclusion, the lesson to be drawn from a story"

Grave is defined as "meriting serious consideration,or having a serious and dignified quality or demeanor"

When Bacon says that "histories make moral(s) grave", I think he is pointing out that humans should take very seriously the stories that are recounted in history. We can learn valuable lessons from those stories.

A couple of validating quotes about history -

George Santayana, "Those who cannot learn from history are doomed to repeat it."

David C. McCullough, "History is a guide to navigation in perilous times. History is who we are and why we are the way we are."

Tra...Laa

Dennis said...

G8rmomx2, thanks so much - very helpful information. I think we'll probably end up east of 95.

JD said...

Well done, Clear Ayes!

Anonymous said...

Eveing to those of you who are still lurking.

I was thinking that I might have missed the boat today. I thought maybe there was going to be a run on the meaning of last names.
After re reading all again tonight I saw where C.C had mentioned the meaning of her last name.
Whew!
My earlier post was about my last name.
See ya all tomorrow,
Geri

Auntie Naomi said...

Yes, very well done, ClearEyes.
You may be right-on-the-mark. My take was that those who are, supposedly, highly moral are often a real stick-in-the mud. They have no fun, want no fun, want nobody else to have any fun and, therefore, have a very grave aspect. Perhaps I just see it that way because I, on the other hand, am so gay :D

g8rmomx2 said...

Dennis:

My husband said there used to be great deals at Light House Point which is east of I95, waterfront and non-waterfront property. Do you want to be on the water? My husband knows everything about that coast pretty much. He said to look from Flagler county south depending on what your looking for, proximity, price, water, etc. Also, just be aware that you will be in the "rat race" he said if you are in Dade or Broward county east of I95. But, if you can afford to live on the ICW, nothing is better. If you have any questions let me know. He moved to Miami when he was 2 and didn't leave until he was in the service, then he moved back there. We were in Coral Springs for 9 years. So, ask away.