google.com, pub-2774194725043577, DIRECT, f08c47fec0942fa0 L.A.Times Crossword Corner: Sunday February 22, 2009 Michael T. Williams

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Feb 22, 2009

Sunday February 22, 2009 Michael T. Williams

Theme: Canine Collection

32A: Simpson's pooch: SANTA'S LITTLE HELPER

50A: Disney pooch: OLD YELLER

82A: Comic strip pooch: MARMADUKE

103A: Roy Rogers' pooch: BULLET THE WONDER DOG

7D: Cartoon pooch: DOGGIE DADDY

24D: Silver screen pooch: RIN TIN TIN

69D: Cartoon pooch: AUGIE DOGGIE

71D: Animated pooch: SCOOBY- DOO

Scroll down the first page to read Argyle's post on Barry's special puzzle for us.

Our TMS crossword superstars ASTA and LASSIE are missing.

I had never heard of DOGGIE DADDY or AUGIE DOGGIE or MARMADUKE. But they were quite inferable. The upper right corner where CALX /HRA/GORE-TEX intersect was impossible for me.

I also went through huge trouble filling in CROTON. I wonder why the constructor did not pick up Peggy NOONAN for clue 110A ("Gentleman prefer Blondes" co-star). Is Tommy NOONAN a very famous name? All I could think of is Marilyn Monroe. I like Peggy NOONAN. Bush's former speech writer Michael Gerson also writes very well-reasoned piece, though I often disagree with what they say.

I think "Ancient" needs to be added to the EDOM clue (55A: Dead Sea kingdom). I also disliked the clue for DIA (101A: Dist. across). It should be "Dist. across a circle".

Across:

15A: Shamus: TEC. Did not know "Shamus" is a slang for detective.

21A: Old-time actress Menken: ADAH. She was in our puzzle yesterday. Dumas' love interest.

22A: Govt. med. grp.: HRA (Health Reimbursement Accounts). Not a familiar grp. to me. I wanted HMO.

23A: Pat who shot Billy: GARRETT. Unknown figure. A real photo of Billy the Kid with gun is probably very valuable now.

31A: Waterproof fabric: GORE-TEX. I forgot. It appeared in our puzzle before. Used in raincoat I suppose.

28A: Xmas honcho: ST. NICK

35A: Sahl and Drucker: MORTS. MORT Drucker is the MAD cartoonist.

38A: Laura of LPGA: DAVIES. Here is Laura Davies with John Daly. Funny pair. I've seen her several times in person. She never uses tee. She just kicks in the ground with her shoes and forms a little bulge to put her ball on. There is another Laura in LPGA, Laura Diaz. She used to be very good.

44A: Lower layer of Earth's outer crust: SIMA. Silica and Magnesium. I forgot of course.

46A: McKellen and McShane: IANS. Did not know the English actor IAN McShane.

48A: Strasbourg's region: ALSACE. The pink area: ALSACE-Lorraine. I think the food there is very German.

57A: Shinto gateway: TORII. TORII gate. I finally remember this name because of Angels' TORII Hunter (ex-Twin).

60A: Violin-maker Amati: ANDREA. Good to know. AMATI if often clued as "Valuable violin".

68A: __ buena: YERBA. Not a familiar herb to me. Kind of mint.

73A: Comic Crosby: NORM. I wanted BING. Have never heard of NORM Crosby.

77A: Come to pass: OCCUR

96A: Lay it on thick: BEDAUB. Besmear. What a waste of two letter BE.

99A: Danube tributary: ISAR. OK, see here. Click on it, the map will enlarge. The river flows through Munich.

102A: Floral clusters: CYMES. No idea. My goodness, so many names for flower clusters.

107A: Skip like a stone: SKITTER. Did not like the SKI repetition.

112A: Long-haired felines: PERSIANS

114A: Space juice?: TANG

115A: __ de Saint-Exupery: ANTOINE. No idea. He was a French author. His image was on France's 50-franc note before Euro.

117A: Noninvasive med. exams: MRIS

118A: 2501: MMDI

120A: "Born on the Bayou" grp.: CCR (Credence Clearwater Rivival). Here is the song.

125A: J. J. Pershing's troops: AEF (American Expeditionary Force). Was this a gimme to you? I've never heard of General Pershing or his WWI troops.

Down:

2D: Reaches base after a bunt: BEATS OUT. Nick Punto needs to learn how to bunt. He is just awful.

3D: O'Higgins of Chile: BERNARDO. Another google. His position sounds like that of our second President John Adams, right?

5D: Alaska city on Baranof Island: SITKA. This has become a gimme. Largest city in the US by area.

11D: Brits. flyboys: RAF (Royal Air Force). Churchill had a famous saying about RAF: "Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few." History has really been made by a few.

13D: Macmillan or Wilson: HAROLD. Both served as Prime Minister of the UK.

14D: Everest guide: SHERPA

15D: Franz Kafka novel: THE TRIAL. Know the book. Have never read it though.

16D: First name in mysteries: ERLE. ERLE Stanley Gardner.

17D: Crumbly metal residue: CALX. Struggled mightily with this weird word. It just looks so wrong, with LX together.

27D: Granary pests: WEEVILS

29D: Indians' third baseman of the 1950's: AL ROSEN. I have this card (reprint). He once said: "The greatest thrill in the world is to end the game with a home run and watch everybody else walk off the field while you're running the bases on air. "

34D: Lincoln's V.P.: HAMLIN. No idea. I thought it's Andrew Johnson. Why did President Lincoln ditch him after the first term then?

51D: Noted drama school: YALE. Easily inferable. Who are the famous YALE drama graduates?

52D: Catcher Howard: ELSTON. First African-American to play for the Yankees.

54D: Brown shade: SIENNA

60D: Agamemnon's father: ATREUS. Had to google again. Agamemnon is the brother-in- law of Helen of Troy. Obviously he played a huge role in the Trojan War. When he returned home, he and his concubine Cassandra were killed by his wife, who was then murdered by their son, who was being pursued by Erinyes (the three Furies) in this picture I linked a few months ago.

63D: Def. mil.grp.: TAC (Tactical Air Command). SAC is Strategic Air Command. Both are unfamiliar abbreviations to me.

76D: Group fund: TONTINE. No idea. What is it?

78D: Two dots over vowels: UMLAUTS. Like the two dots above Häagen-Dazs.

84D: Cardinals: RED BIRDS

86D: Mortarboard tosser: GRAD. These guys.

88D: Daryle of gridiron: LAMONICA. Sigh. Maybe Daryle LAMONICA can send me his autographed card. Then I will remember him. La Monica, what a strange name.

93D: Gandhi's title: MAHATMA. The title was given to him by Tagore.

97D: Last syllable of a word: ULTIMA. The next to last syllable is penultima.

98D: Vaguely outlined: BLEARY

100D: Make over: REVAMP

102D: New York reservoir: CROTON. This word gave me the most trouble. I stared at ?R??ON there forever. Have never heard of the CROTON Reservoir.

104D: Banks of Wrigley: ERNIE. This is his rookie card. He is a HOFer of course. 1954 is also Hank Aaron's rookie season.

108D: Berry and Norton: KENS. Easy guess. KEN Norton is multi-time world champion heavyweight boxer. Ex-Marine. Three KEN Berry's here, I don't know which one the constructor was thinking.

C.C.

23 comments:

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

Lemonade,
Interesting *esce suffix explanation. Thanks. Can you give me some examples on how ASTOR family "had much influence on many presidents"?

BobR & Crockett,
I plan to netflix "The Seven Samurai". Saw the Chinese version long time ago. Could not remember the details.

Crazyhorse,
Nice to see you again. Is your Chicago Tribune Saturday puzzle the same as my Sunday one? By the way, this Sunday puzzle is not available on line anywhere.

Clear Ayes,
Do you agree with Kazie and Barry G's take on Goethe's quote "It is in self-imitation that a master first shows himself"? I'd like to hear your interpretation.

Dr. Dad said...

Good morning and Happy Sunday!!!

This wasn't too bad for a Sunday. Again, a bit of g-spotting. Managed to get all the theme answers from either knowledge or perps.

Where oh where was Deputy Dog and Huckleberry Hound and Dick Dastardly's dog Mutley? Not to mention Goofy and Pluto? Well, you can't fit them all in to a puzzle.

It has been determined that the photo of Billy the Kid is a "reverse" photo as Billy was right handed. In the photo you can see that his gun belt is done up as if he did it with his left hand (the end of the belt after it goes through the buckle points to his right. For a right handed person the end of the belt points toward their left). Something I saw on The History Channel. The photo is indeed valuable. As an aside, in the movie "Young Guns II" Pat Garrett was played by William Peterson, aka Gil Grissom of CSI fame.

Ian McKellan - Erik Lehnsherr/Magneto of the "X-Men" movies and Gandalf of the "Lord of The Rings" movie trilogy. He may reprise the role in "The Hobbit" movie.

Persian (long haired felines) follows Barry Silk's "speak Persian" from his tribute puzzle.

Pershing's troops was a gimme because I am familiar with him - he was an instructor of military tactics at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Pershing held this post until 1895. While in Nebraska, Pershing attended law school and graduated in 1893. I am from Nebraska and attended the same university for my Ph.D. There were several plaques, etc. dedicated to him.

Tenzing Norgay is the most celebrated Sherpa. Here is the most famous photo of him. In 2003, as part of the 50th anniversary of the first ascent, his son, Jamling Tenzing Norgay climbed Everest with Peter Hillary, the son of Edmund Hillary.

It wasn't that Lincoln did not choose Hannibal Hamlin for a second term. Back in those days, the Vice President was chosen by nomination at the nominating conventions (unlike today where the Presidential candidate chooses his running mate and they run together on the ticket). In June 1864 the National Union Party Convention chose not to nominate Hamlin for a second term. They nominated Unionist Democrat Andrew Johnson of Tennessee as his replacement, in the apparent belief that Johnson would add more to the ticket for the fall election.

The Ken Berry I think of is the one who played in "Mayberry RFD" a direct continuation of "Andy of Mayberry" and "The Andy Griffith Show." He also starred in "Mama's Family" with Vicki Lawrence.

Today is George Washinton's Birthday, Girl Scout Thinking Day, and Recreational Sports and Fitness Day. The Academy Awards are tonight. I really hope Heath Ledger wins (he should).

Have a great Sunday.

Auntie Naomi said...

Good Morning C.C. and CO.,

"one of my best friends is now the assistant GM of the Kings after many years as the Flyers' goaltender"
WOW Dennis ... That is SOOOOO cool!
You must be referring to Ron Hextall.
Does this mean you are Kings fan?

wolfmom, The Shepard's(sic) Pie tastes pretty good, but it is a bit wetter than I would like. I also was a bit short on the potatoes, which were not quite wet enough. Next time I will simmer the filling for much longer. As for the potatoes, I wound up leaving about a half inch around the edges uncovered. This may have actually made it look more picturesque. Adding the Ras Al Nahout was a good idea. I used a couple of tablespoons this time around. Next time I will use more of it. I have been tossing around ideas for my own version of this, a 'Caribbean Shepherd's Pie', substituting Ox Tail for lamb, using an African Adobo in place of the Morroccan spice and using a Saffron Rice/Chèvre topping.

I am eagerly awaiting the movie 'The Hobbit'. I cannot think of anyone better to direct it than Guillermo del Toro.

I am off to do the NYT Sunday XW. Good luck with the TMS one, guys.

Anonymous said...

If you sign up for Ffrench in college you had to read from the writing of Antoine de Sainte-Exupery reader about his flying career. It was hard to ranslate because of the descritive words in the text. Good puzzlek but still have some objection to using unknown people or things to make the puzzle work. Unless you just happen to know, you have to look it up on a search engine/

did anyone have troulbe with 70 across and64 down.???

abogato from alabama

Anonymous said...

abogato from alabama, 70a: SET SAIL. 64d: LIU

Dick said...

Good morning CC and all,..not so bad today, although there were several unknowns, but most dropped to the perps. The most difficult clues, for me, were 76A Group Funds, 115A de Saint Exupery and 60A Amati. I don't know if I have ever seen Amati's first name before. The NE corner caused havoc for me until I guessed 15D "The Trial" and that helped to get the remainder of that corner. However, I had no clue as to 22A HRA and just guessed.

Hope you all have a great Sunday.

Lemonade714 said...

Good morning C.C.,

It is hard to point to a single place to examine the role the Astors played in American politics, as the family had influence for many generations. My favorite way to get information would be through the historical novels of Gore Vidal, beginning with “Burr” and up through “The Golden Age.” John Jacob Astor was at one time the wealthiest man in America, from the fur trading business. His descendants (another esce word) lived in Manhattan in wonderful mansion, which later became the site of the Waldorf Astoria Hotel.

Ian McShayne is the lead actor in the wildly popular, incredibly profane HBO series “Deadwood.” I first saw him on PBS on the British import “Lovejoy.”

Hannibal Hamlin is important in the Lincoln/Kennedy assassination coincidences, because his birthday was 8-27-1809 and LBJ’s birthday was 8-27-1908, a numerical anagram. This along woth Kennedy’s secretary being named Lincoln, Lincoln’s named Kennedy, the Johnsons vp etc.

A Tontine, is a now illegal family fund, where money is placed in trust and not paid out until there is only one survivor. It led to many family killings.

Laura Diaz has been playing better, and I bet she wins this year. She has taken time off for the birth of her children.

Norm Crosby was famous for screwing up words, it was his comedy.

I really enjoyed St. Exupery’s writing, and remember “Vol de Nuit” fondly for many reason.

Enjoy the day.

Clear Ayes said...

Good Morning All, I'm stopping by here first and then will check in with Argyle's entries for Barry Silk's puzzle.

C.C. About Goethe's quote "It is in self-imitation that a master first shows himself"?

I am not very familiar with Goethe, other than knowing he was an 18th Century writer and philosopher. I looked up his Wikipedia entry to see if I could get some additional insight to what the quote could mean. I got a lot of interesting information and only a little insight. I'll have to put some of his writing on my "to do" list.

Barry G. had a very reasonable explanation of the quote.

The only other meaning might be that Goethe was talking about mastery of one's self. By imitating, or repeating, your own best mental processes, behavior and emotions you are most likely to become capable of mastering your own destiny. Goethe was obviously a man who had control over his own life's path.

Veering off in another direction, I also think it is Ken Berry, the actor who was referred to in 108D. He was also the star of the TV series F Troop for a couple of years in the 1960's. Ken was married to my cousin for quite a few years. He was (and probably still is) a very nice, charming and friendly guy.

Anonymous said...

31A Waterproof fabric - I think it's Goretex with 12D bring adage

Anonymous said...

General Pershing was known as "Black Jack" Pershing when he led the American troops in WWI. He also led our troops in a foray into Mexico just prior to WWI. The purpose was to destroy Poncho Villas forces who had crossed the border and killed a number of Americans in Columbus, New Mexico. Many of the troops were State Guardsmen, my father & uncle among them from Massachusetts.

Amy Reynaldo said...

Hello, C.C. It's been a while since I stopped by here. I haven't seen the Sunday puzzle, but reading your post—oy! It's unusual for me to encounter more than one or two truly unfamiliar words in a New York Times Sunday puzzle. This one has about 15, including one of the theme entries.

Argyle said...

2D: Reaches base after a bunt:

I've been looking for an excuse to post this: What are the five ways a player can reach first base without hitting the ball?

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

Lemonade,
Thanks. You have such a wide range of knowledge. Laura Diaz is a fiery lady.

Amy,
What a surprise to hear from you! Good luck with ACPT.

Donnie,
Your post prompted me to read more about "Black Jack". Thanks.

Argyle,
I can only think of three ways: Intentional walk; 4 balls; Hit by a pitch.

Auntie Naomi said...

Amy, Publish your book for the Kindle, please.

C.C., What is ACPT?

Argyle, Was there something DF about your baseball question?

Crockett1947 said...

@argyle If the pitcher throws the ball out-of-bounds while in contact with the rubber, the batter-runner is awarded first base.

@promisemethis American Crossword Puzzle Tournament, I think.

Argyle said...

Argyle, Was there something DF about your baseball question?

No, it was a recent Puzzler on Car Talk but I'd heard it before.

Argyle said...

Crockett1947 said...If the pitcher throws the ball out-of-bounds while in contact with the rubber, the batter-runner is awarded first base.

If that applies to pro ball, then there are SIX ways.

Argyle said...

Crockett1947, I can't find anything that supports your contention. Do you have a site that would help?

Crockett1947 said...

@argyle Here you go!.

Argyle said...

CC, You only have two; intentional walk is still just a walk on balls.

And Crockett, your's is just a dropped third strike rule that, because the ball went out of bounds, the player need only walk down to first instead of running.

Crockett1947 said...

@argyle If the pitcher throws to first base (to pick off a runner) and throws the ball into the stands (out of bounds), the batter-runner would be awarded first base. At least that's what I gleaned from reading.

Crockett1947 said...

@argyle The situation does apply to a dropped third strike that goes out-of-bounds as well.

Dennis said...

Crockett said:
@argyle If the pitcher throws to first base (to pick off a runner) and throws the ball into the stands (out of bounds), the batter-runner would be awarded first base. At least that's what I gleaned from reading.

That's incorrect - the runner(s) can advance, the batter does not.