google.com, pub-2774194725043577, DIRECT, f08c47fec0942fa0 L.A.Times Crossword Corner: Sunday January 25, 2009 Norma Steinberg

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Jan 25, 2009

Sunday January 25, 2009 Norma Steinberg

Theme: Face It

23A: Flirtatious signal: EYE CONTACT

25A: Snoop-for-hire: PRIVATE EYE

54A: Reporter's talent: NOSE FOR NEWS

73A: Meager: HAND-TO-MOUTH

103A: Scarves and such: NECK PIECES

105D: Sweater style: TURTLE NECK

36D: Old hearing devices: EAR TRUMPETS

39D: Performed without a score: PLAYED BY EAR

My theme title would be "Funny Face" because it's twisted and browless. The EYES are facing each other, so are the EARS (symmetrically). The NOSE is sitting above the MOUTH, but not directly.

Interesting to have two NECKS gridded below the MOUTH. But what animal has two NECKS? Guess it's just a wordplay of "NECK and NECK" here.

Clues I disliked:

1D: Took straw: DREW. Bad letter duplication. Besides, why not "Sketched"? It fits today's "Face" theme nicely.

5D: Manuel's hands: MANOS. HAND is already an answer for the puzzle, though it would be tough to clue MANOS without mentioning "hands".

Clue I adored:

65A: Interest free? BORED. Just brilliant.

Easiest Sunday puzzle I've ever solved. No googling. Did get help from my husband on several entries.

Across:

21A: Classic Alan Ladd Western: SHANE. Wikipedia says Edith Head, who won eight Oscars (out of 35 Academy nominations), was the costume designer for SHANE.

32A: Fruits with hard rinds: GOURDS. Cubumbers also belong to the gourd family, they don't have hard rinds though.

43A: Reconnoiter: SCOUT. Garrison Keillor writes a weekly column for our Star Tribune every Sunday. I don't know why he calls himself "The Old SCOUT".

52A: Leafy veggie: KALE. How to cook KALE/mustard green properly? They taste terrible when stir-fried.

53A: River island: AIT. Is there any famous AIT in the US?

58A: Vestibule: FOYER. Here is Degas's "Le FOYER de la Danse" again.

61A: Theater sections: LOGES. Was President Lioncoln sitting inside a LOGE when he was assassinated?

76A: Bellicose deity: ARES. Greek God of War. The Roman equivalent is MARS. The Norse counterpart is THOR, right?

78A: Abominable snowman: YETI. Myth or legend?

83A: Author of "Siddhartha": HESSE (Hermann). See the book cover. Unknown to me. Wikipedia says Hermann won Nobel Literature in 1946. He also wrote Steppenwolf . This name sounds familiar to me somehow. Oh, "Born to be Wild".

85A: Small cooker: GAS RING. Oh, I did not know this is called GAS RING in English. But why "cooker" instead of "burner"?

87A: Georgia University: EMORY. Interesting, I just found out that this university does not have a football team. How strange!

91A: Jargon: PATOIS. The plural is still PATOIS. What is the difference between PATOIS and argot?

95A: Herschel's planet: URANUS. I guessed. Have never heard of this astronomer/composer. He discovered URANUS in 1781.

109A: Related on mother's side: ENATE. AGNATE is "Related on father's side".

110A: Ex-Spice Girl Halliwell: GERI. Ginger Spice, the girl with one knee on the ground.

111A: Pundit's newspaper pg.: OP-ED. Who is your favorite columnist? I like David Brooks.

Down:

15A: Humphrey Bogart film: "High __": SIERRA. Have never seen this movie. The only Bogart movie I've watched is "Casablanca".

16D: Iowa State city: AMES. The Cyclones.

35D: Anatomical networks: RETIA. Singular is RETE.

44D: Mudville batter: CASEY. Ah, baseball, "CASEY at Bat". "... But there is no joy in Mudville — mighty Casey has struck out."

55D: Man who portrayed Chan: OLAND (Warner). Got the answer from across fills. Charlie Chan often commented "Ah So", a Japanese expression actually.

56D: Mechanical man: ROBOT. I like the position of ROBOT in this grid.

57D: Marsh of mysteries: NGAIO. Last time MARSH is clued as "Ngaio of mysteries".

62D: Combat mission: SORTIE. Pilot's mission, to be exact.

65D: Fights: BOUTS. Boxing term. The answer did not come to me immediately.

69D: Rhyming verse: POESY. Dictionary says POSY is a variant of POESY, meaning "a brief verse or sentimental phrase, especially one inscribed on a trinket". Sounds romantic.

77D: Boxing proximity: RINGSIDE. New term to me. Boxing is too hard for me to watch.

79D: Awareness of one's position: BEARING. Are you OK with this clue?

81D: Cheesecake picture: PINUP. This is probably the most famous PINUP. Hugh Hefner told NPR that Betty Grable was "his inspiration for founding the Playboy empire".

92D: Designer Simpson: ADELE. Have never heard of this designer name before. I am used to seeing ADELE clued as "Fred's dancing sister".

95D: John Ruskin's "__ This Last": UNTO. No idea. Is this a very well-known essay?

C.C.

44 comments:

Dr. Dad said...

Good morning, C.C. and all.

Haven't done the XWord yet. Just stopping by to say hello. I will be working on the puzzle shortly but have a few errands to do beforehand.

Today is A Room Of One's Own Day so keep everyone out of your room. Don't let them invade your space. And for Apple lovers, it is Macintosh Computer Day.

Have a great Sunday.

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

Dr. Dad,
I want Van Gogh's room at Arles. I bet you will have a new record for a Sunday puzzle. What's the difference between a loan and a grant?

Democrat,
"I guess without hammers nails would be lonesome". I like it. Very philosophical.

Dennis,
I've never hear of FPO before. Thanks.

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

Dick,
Joshua Bell's $3.5 million violin is a STRAD. I linked his metro video on the blog once or twice when we had STRAD in the grid.

Kazie,
Thanks for the six Latin *IVE cases yesterday. Definitely need time to digest and absorb.

Crockett,
I failed to catch the GOOSE/goose duplication yesterday. Thanks. Two of the dictionaries I consulted list BLACKMARKETEER as a verb also.

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

Camelsahara & Steve,
Thanks for RSO.

Ink & Kazie,
This is what I found regarding Aage pronunciation, similiar to what Anonymous said @6:07pm: "With a mouthful of mashed potatoes, mumble Owen without the N and you will be close enough."

Gator Mom,
Hope your husband recovers soon.

Jimbo,
16-pound hammer? Is that the weight of your bowling ball?

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

Martin,
I am not angry at you. I do miss your clever comments though. Nice SLITTED picture. You should live in Vietnam. Happy Spring Festival! Kung Hei Fat Choi!

Argyle,
So, what is "the parable of the TARES"? "'If you appreciate the tuning so much, I hope you will like the playing more". I don't get the meaning. I just memorized the seven canonical hours you gave to us last night, so I am ready for the test (might forget all of them after lunch).

Dick said...

Good morning CC and all. Wow, did this one ever make up for the last two days. I completed the puzzle in under one half hour with out any help. I did guess at Hesse for 83A and it turned out to be correct. Not much to add to this puzzle other than to say it helped the ego, but I am not sure if I learned very much.

Argyle said...

Good Morning, all you early Sunday risers

Interesting to have two NECKS gridded below the MOUTH. But what animal has two NECKS? Guess it's just a wordplay of "NECK to NECK" here.

I think you mean "NECK AND NECK" indicating a close race.

53A: River island: AIT. Is there any famous AIT in the US?

Three Mile Island, scene of a near-disastrous accident at a nuclear plant in 1979. Manhatten(too big?), Alcatraz(in a bay, though)

Argyle,
So, what is "the parable of the TARES"? "'If you appreciate the tuning so much, I hope you will like the playing more". I don't get the meaning.


The enemy of a man came in the night and sowed darnel in the man's newly sown wheat field. When it sprouted and they could see what had been done, the servants came to the man, asking if they should pull up the darnell. He said no because his wheat would pulled up, too. When it came time to harvest, he sent the workers into collect the darnel first and burn it. Because the wheat heads were bent over, it was easy to cut the heads off the darnel because it stood up straight. Afterward, they could harvest the wheat in the usual way.

The parable is similar to winnowing the wheat from the chaff. Come the judgement day, there will be no problem separating the good from the bad.

How's that for someone who doesn't go to church?

'If you appreciate the tuning so much, I hope you will like the playing more". I don't get the meaning.

Ravi Shankar was on stage, tuning and adjusting his sittar. When he was finished, the people applauded. They thought he was playing a number.

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

Argyle,
Yes, "Neck and Neck", thanks. Thank you also for all the other answers. Your awesomeness is mind-blowing.

Now tell me what's the difference between a loan and a grant. And what is a "a Bologna Lip"?

Also, theme answer:
Dome Light
Flat Broke
From the Hip
Clark Gable

Theme title: On the Roof. Why?

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

Clear Ayes,
How does Edwardian style differ from Victorian style?

kazie said...

Promisemethis,
Thanks for the swimsuit collection last night. I feel a lot better about my own body after seeing those!

Jimbo,
Don't feel inferior. My language knowledge has been developed over the 33 plus years that I've taught French and German. Latin, though just a vague memory as far as details go, has always stood me in good stead for interpreting aspects of English that would have been a mystery otherwise, because the teachers I had in high school were fantastic. Anyone with a good language background will tell you that the two years in high school that is usually considered enough won't do you much good. I Had five years in school plus four in college, and all those years teaching and using mine, but am still constantly learning more!

No puzzle for me today, but I'll still look over all the posts out of curiosity.

Chris in LA said...

@ CC:

HIP, GABLE, DOME & FLAT are all types of roofs.

No big issues with the puzzle today - a couple of googles & oneacrosses, but not unusual for a Sunday.

Hope all have a great day!

Argyle said...

Thank you, Chris in LA, for my "duh" moment. It is so obvious once someone else points it out.

Now tell me what's the difference between a loan and a grant.

Not so much these days; A loan was suppose to be paid back and a grant is a contingent gift. Grant money used for something other than what it was granted for would have to be paid back.

Argyle said...

Up north, our Canadian neighbors have the Ile de Montreal in the St. Lawrence River.

Argyle said...

And if anybody needs a Sunday puzzle fix, then this TMS Sunday Puzzle should fix them good. It looks nasty today and it's a "comment". Theme: Silly Talk

kazie said...

c.c.,
I think patois is a local dialect of a lower class, like peasants, and jargon is occupation related.

Dennis said...

Argyle, a fun puzzle; thanks. It was nice having a decent Sunday puzzle to do. BTW, the theme was 'Double T'.

Dick said...

@argyle I just printed your puzzle. Will let you know later how it went. Hopefully, a little tougher than today's.

g8rmomx2 said...

Hi c.c. and everyone:

Well, I messed up on the following: I had Poemy instead of Poesy, Besme instead of Hesse, Boosted instead of Hoisted and Patoos instead of Patois. I actually knew the last word, but didn't recheck my answer. Otherwise the puzzle went well.

c.c. Thanks for your comment concerning my husband's recovery. I think it will be a long recovery, but already his tingling down his arm is gone and hasn't had a headache in the last two days so we are hopeful most of his problems will go away in time.

How about the following clues:

Type of combat: Hand to Hand

Tom Cruise/Nicole film: Eyes Wide Shut

Viral Disease: Hand Foot and Mouth

In Agreement: See Eye to Eye

Social Blunder: Foot in Mouth

Survivor Song: Eye of the Tiger

Close Race: Neck to Neck

Well, Back to nursing...have a wonderful day everyone!

Dick said...

@gr8mom hope your husbands recovery goes fast and smooth.

Argyle said...

Dennis said @10:15 AM
Argyle, a fun puzzle; thanks. It was nice having a decent Sunday puzzle to do. BTW, the theme was 'Double T'.


Yes, Dennis, that 'Double T' was fun but it was last week's.

Dennis said...

Argyle, do you then have a link to today's? Last week's is where your link took me.

Argyle said...

Try cut and paste.
http://www.poststar.com/media/pdfs/7-sunday/xword.pdf

Clear Ayes said...

Victorian period - 1837 -1901
Edwardian period -1901 - 1914

late Victorian room interior
Natural light was considered a bad thing, so windows were hung with heavy draperies. Rooms were jammed full of furniture. Walls were painted dark, or covered in dark wallpaper. Every table, shelf and mantle was cluttered with objects.

In an Edwardian room light was allowed into rooms. Walls and wallpaper were lighter colored. Drapes could hang straighter so they didn't cover the window. Rooms were larger and had less furniture, so that it was easier to live in them. People were proud of living in "modern times." By today's standards, they were still full of clutter and the furniture was ornate -- but much less so than in Victorian rooms.

Fashion changed many times during Queen Victoria's reign. The crinolines of the 1850's gave way to the bustles of the 1870's.

The era from 1895 to 1914 was called La Belle Époque. Art Nouveau architecture was introduced and ladies wanted to look like an Edwardian fashion plate. Think of the movies My Fair Lady and Titanic. Camille Clifford was Charles Dana Gibson's famous model for the epitome of 1905 beauty, the Gibson Girl.

Linda said...

cc; Don`t get the Sunday Puzzle...but to answer your "wheat/tares"question, it`s from a parable taught by Jesus. It talks about an enemy (the devil) sowing tares (non-believers/hypocrites) among true believers. His advice to the reapers(angels) is to let the tares grow along with the wheat so as not to damage the wheat. The tares will be burned after the fields are harvested (this destruction/burning will come after the Judgements, Bema for believers, Great White Throne for non- believers). You can read the whole story for yourself in Matthew 13.

Now...is Monday Chinese New Year? I jumped the gun last week.

Anonymous said...

Puzzle doesn't appear on Sunday But I thought I'd chime and explain the following:

I liked the movie : Prairie Home Companion. Lindsay Lohan & Mya Rudolph were awesome!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IsQs0oZLvYg


In 2004 Keillor published a collection of political essays called Homegrown Democrat, and in June 2005 he began a syndicated newspaper column called "The Old Scout," which often addresses political issues. The column also runs at Salon.com.

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

Enjoy some smooth Jazz this Sunday........ Dave Koz Honey Dipped.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8W6mu0vC4IE

Argyle said...

Chinese New Year begins at 1:55am CST on Monday 26 according to one source. The time is based on China and the whole world celebrates at the same time. (I hope that's right, CC.)

DoesItinInk said...

This was the easiest Sunday puzzle I can recall. The answers just kept coming and only slowed down when I nodded off for a bit.

@cc…interesting way of describing how to pronounce Aage, but not something to try when anyone else is around, I think. As for the “Unto This Last”…no, these essays are not well known.

Auntie Naomi said...

Hi C.C., I also do not get the Sunday puzzle, but thought I would pop in anyway.

Looks like I will be going to the 'Music and the Brain' lecture, C.C. My sweetie's brother and sister-in-law (Bob and Marnie) are coming down from Madison to see her ailing mother who will turn 99 next week. I knew that the lecture would be of interest to them, but I was unsure what their plans might be. Turns out they want to go.
On a related note, Democrat, at a dinner party at Marnie's brother's house in Miami a few years back I met Mya Rudolph's grandmother or aunt or something. She was bragging about how she's in tight with all the 'kids' because they love Mya :)
I am not a big fan of smooth jazz. Some of the jazz I listen to could well be played on a smooth station, though. Like this one.

Linda said...

g8rmomx2:
Did your husband have the surgery that goes through the front of the throat to fix a vertebra in the neck? If so...it does produce very quick pain relief(and other symptoms such as tingling and deadness.) Our dear friend who recently had that surgery had donor-bone replacement. He`s doing very well...he just craves foods he never liked before, wants to listen to music he never liked and he can dance now when he couldn`t before! He says he hopes the donor-bone came from someone "born-again" because he wants ALL of him to go to heaven! :)
Glad your hubby is doing well.

Anonymous said...

Is the character Charlie Chan chinese?

Also, do yourself a favor. Watch these two Humphrey Bogart films, 'The Maltese Falcon' and 'The Big Sleep'. Then let me know how you liked them.

Anonymous said...

C.C.
The comment on the Bogart movies is from LUXOR.

g8rmomx2 said...

Hi c.c. and everyone:

Dick: Thanks so much, he is doing much better today, after he got out of the hospital and got some TLC.

Linda: What a hoot! I can only hope that he dances and does all the things he couldn't do before. His trouble was C-5-6 and C6-7 I believe. He had a fusion done which was thru the front, his right side. He had a partial disc removal, (forgot the name of the procedure), two huge bone spurs removed that were impinging on his nerve and lots of scraping and cutting going on. Then they did do a metal plate and a bone graft, so maybe he will start dancing! The Doctor said it was a lot more extensive than he anticipated even from the films. We are sooooooooooo happy so far with his response to the surgery. I feel very blessed! Thanks for your concern.

Crockett1947 said...

@g8trmomx2 Wow! Sounds like a complete tune up! That's fantastic that he is doing so well.

@argyle Thanks for the alternative puzzle. Sounds just like him!

Dennis said...

g8rmomx2, that's great news that he's out of the hospital so quickly - the sooner a person can get away from those places, the better. It also sounds like you both have positive attitudes, which I really believe goes a long way in helping the healing process.

Dennis said...

Argyle, I did cut and paste your link, but it gave me the same 'Double T' puzzle.

WM said...

g8trmomx2: My mom had a similar surgery 20 years ago when she was 63 and it did wonders for her. She was still a world traveler up until about 2 years ago, so the long-term prognosis is VERY positve. Glad to hear he is doing well.

We don't get the Sunday puzzle, they substitute the NYTimes xword. Waded through most of it but cheated bits. I am trying to get where I can complete the whole puzzle someday without checking anwers. The Norma Steinberg puzzle looked like fun and actually do-able(I am never sure if that is a real word).

Argyle said...

Dennis, I have know idea how you can be traveling back in time.

http://www.poststar.com/

click on Arts/Life, then click Puzzes / Comics

scroll down to Sunday Puzzles and click Sunday Crossword Puzzle

All pages should be Sunday, January 25, 2009

Dennis said...

Argyle, still got me the same puzzle, even though everything in the header says 1/25. Thanks for trying, but for whatever reason, it's not working.

Argyle said...

For you, Dennis.

Time Warp

Martin said...

You should live in Vietnam.

Oh I absolutely adore women from Vietnam! Thing is, I found when I was in high school and university that it was exceedingly difficult to penetrate into the local Vietnamese community, or into any of the individual women within that community for that matter. Anyway, I'm happy where I am now, be it Taiwan or the Philippines.

Martin

Anonymous said...

92D: Designer Simpson: ADELE. Have never heard of this designer name before. I am used to seeing ADELE clued as "Fred's dancing sister".

Adele "Cold Shoulder"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uGwH-x4VoH8

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adele_(singer)

Anonymous said...

Hi promise,

Thanks for the Pat Matheny!

Anonymous said...

"That's Brigid O'Shaughnessy, she shot Miles Archer with a gun she got from Thursby, she shot Miles Archer so we're sending her over."

Argyle said...

HAPPY NEW YEAR