Theme: Heard Down Under
23A: Cookie made with Chianti instead of figs? WINE NEWTON (Wayne Newton)
25A: Wood for sashes?: WINDOW PINE (Windowpane)
34A: Blue Danube relative: PURPLE RHINE (Purple Rain)
50A: Discovery of the mother lode?: MINE EVENT (Main Event)
76A: Put an "X" where you want to cut the cord?: MARK TWINE (Mark Twain)
90A: Female chiropractor?: LADY OF SPINE (Lady of Spain)
105A: Squall at sea?: BRINE STORM (Brainstorm)
107A: "I never forget a face," e. g.: MEMORY LINE (Memory Lane)
Hmm, the Aussie/Kiwi (Down Under) long A pronunciation does sound long I, doesn't it?
LADY OF SPINE is my favorite theme entry. I thought of Nobel Peace Laureate Aung San Su Ki. She is a real LADY OF SPINE.
Lots of interesting clues in today's puzzle. I had several V-8 moments. Normally I am not fond of ALER (American Leaguer) or NLER (National Leaguer), but today's clue (48A: Ray or Jay) is outstanding. Tampa Bay Rays & Toronto Blue Jays. Nice rhyme.
I was also happy to see MINN (11D: Gopher's home?) again. Golden Gophers is the sports team for the University of Minnesota. I collect those adorable Goldy bobbleheads.
Across:
1A: Titanic obstacle: BERG. The last known Titanic survivor just died last month. She's 2-month old when she boarded Titanic.
9A: Opening frames: JAMBS. I need a "door" hint in the clue.
14A: Try: STAB. Have a try/STAB.
18A: 19th century tale of South Seas travel: OMOO. One more letter, the answer would be TYPEE/MARDI.
19A: Reach via radio: RAISE. Dictionary defines RAISE as "Make contact with by radio", then it gives an example: couldn't RAISE control tower after midnight. New meaning to me.
21A: Girl George?: ELIOT. George ELIOT, who's a "girl". Playing on Boy George. I suppose you can clue SAND as "Girl George" too.
22A: Lobby for: URGE
27A: Like some pens: ERASABLE. Have never used one.
28A: Collect little by little: GLEAN
30A: Snack maker's gizmo: POPPER. Popcorn POPPER.
32A: Samples from a doctor: PILLS
33A: Atheistic: GODLESS. I hope there is a God.
40A: Symbol of penance: ASHES. Oh, that's how we have Ash Wednesday.
41A: Dismayed cry: OY VEY
42A: Carpenter who sang: KAREN. I like her "We've Only Just Begun".
46A: Vientiane native: LAO. It's literally "old" in Chinese. LAO Tzu is literally "old master".
47A: Highest in order: UPMOST. Only knew uppermost.
49A: Scout outing: HIKE
53A: Malt drier: OAST
55A: Yankees' captain: JETER (Derek). I have his rookie card.
56A: Small biological cavities: AREOLES. Why "cavities"? They are just nipple rings.
57A: "I'll say": AND HOW
60D: Had right to: CLAIMED
63A: Unit of work: MAN-HOUR. Normally the answer is ERG.
65A: "My cousin Vinny" Oscar winner: TOMEI (Marisa).
68A: To boot: NO LESS. Why? They are not synonymous to me.
70A: Abates: EASES UP
74A: Hot spots: OVENS. Nice clue. I was thinking of North Korea/Iran.
75A: Money maker: MINT
78A: Buck, for one: MALE. "Tom, for one" too.
81A: Eats into: ERODES
83A: UV index monitor: EPA
84A: Letters on a lunch menu: BLT. Also PBJ. This bento lunch box looks so inviting.
85A: Woolly, perhaps: OVINE. Stumped. Hope ewe got it.
86A: Brilliance: ECLAT
87A: Jellied garnish: ASPIC. Why "garnish"? My grandma always made us ASPIC during Chinese Spring Festival.
89A: Incline: SLANT
92A: Thanksgiving activity: BASTING
95A: Inn group: MAIDS. Great clue.
97A: Troop troupe sponsor, briefly: USO
98A: Frequently traded, in the stock market: ACTIVE. Like the stupid GE stock.
99A: Ballet with a hoedown: RODEO. No idea. It refers to Copland's ballet RODEO I suppose.
100A: Create financial trouble for: STRAITEN. New word to me.
109A: Tartan wraparound: KILT
112A: Work in the cutting room: EDIT
114A: German seaport: EMDEN. See upperleft? North Sea port. I've never heard of it.
116A: Carmine's family?: REDS. Had to check dictionary for "carmine".
Down:
1D: He beat Holyfield twice: BOWE (Riddick). No idea. Have never heard of this boxer. I only remembered Tyson bit Holyfield's ear.
2D: Islamic title: EMIR
3D: Columnist Barnett: RONA. Or Author Jaffe.
4D: Completely loses it: GOES APE
5D: High range: TREBLE. Guessed.
6D: Ketch kin: YAWL. Both two-masted sailboats.
7D: Toy with a tail: KITE
8D: Paul Anka's "__ Beso (That Kiss): ESO. Literally "that".
9D: Lapidary's product: JEWEL. Did not know the meaning of "lapidary".
10D: Item on a forged document, perhaps: ALIAS
12D: Physique: BOD. Needs "slangily", right?
13D: Brief visit: STOPOVER
14D: Price factor: SUPPLY. Plenty of corn & soy in the market this year.
16D: Hooey: TRIPE. To some, it's a delicacy.
16D: David Copperfield's second wife: AGNES. No idea. Have never read "David Copperfield". Thought of Claudia Schiffer, ex-girlfriend of David Copperfield.
17D: Round at the bar: BEERS
20D: Fire trucks: ENGINES
24D: They're at your fingertip: NAILS. My favorite clue.
26D: God for whom Wednesday was named: WODEN. Always thought Wednesday is named after Odin. Dictionary says WODEN is "Anglo-Saxon god identified with Odin."
29D: 2001 U.S. Open champ Hewitt: LLEYTON. I could picture his face. His name escaped me.
32D: Turn on one foot: PIVOT
33D: "Earth in the Balance": GORE. Wikipedia says his "An Inconvenient Truth" is based on this book.
34D: Balearic Islands capital: PALMA. Sigh, both the clue and the answer mean nothing to me. Ibiza is wild.
35D: Carrier that merged with Piedmont in 1989: USAIR. Not familiar with the Piedmont Airlines.
36D: River through the Lake of Geneva: RHONE
37D: Entices: ROPES IN
38D Choir offering: HYMN
39D: '80 Bond portrayer: DALTON (Timothy). Love the current 007 Daniel Craig.
42D: Buckwheat dish: KASHA. I tried buckwheat porridge once. Terrible taste. Cold buckwheat soba noodle is delicious.
43D: Sharp quality: BITE
44D: Strings of islands?: UKES. Nice clue too.
47D: Optic layer: UVEA. Latin for "grape".
49D: Talmud tongue: HEBREW. Talmud is literally "instruction".
51D: Tertiary Period epoch: EOCENE. I forgot. EO is prefix for "early". EOCENE is characterized by the advent of the modern mammalian orders, says the dictionary. And it occurred from 55 to 40 million years ago.
52D: "American Psycho" author: ELLIS. No idea. The book sounds horrifying.
54D: USN VIPS: ADMS (Admirals)
55D: Knight game: JOUST
57D: Arabian Sea's Gulf of __: ADEN
58D: Hack's question: WHERE TO. Hack is taxi driver.
61D: Point in time: MOMENT
62D: Slur over: ELIDE
64D: Symbols of might: OAKS
65D: Crypt: TOMB
66D: Kind of round: OVAL. Indeed.
67D: Get all gooey: MELT. Reminds me of Dali's "The Persistence of Memory".
69D: Metal playing marble: STEELIE
71D: Basso Cesare: SIEPI. No, no, nope. Total stranger to me.
73D: Word spoken with a two-fingered sign: PEACE
76D: Gets into shape: MOLDS
77D: Forever partner?: A DAY. Forever and A DAY.
79D: Fade away: EVANESCE. Another new word to me.
80D: Double checker?: KING. Checkers. Here is Embien's explanation: You make a "king" in checkers by putting another piece on top, thus a "double checker" (the checker piece).
82D: Colts' home before Lucas Oil Stadium: RCA DOME (1984-2007). I guessed. Wikipedia says it's similar in design and appearance to Twins' Metrodome.
85D: Oil source: OLIVE. I was in the crude oil direction.
87D: Ore analysis: ASSAY
88D: Third-party candidate, perhaps: SPOILER
89D: Is frugal: STINTS
91D: Like many mammals: FURRED
92D: Spongy cake: BABKA. The cake with raisins and rum. Diminutive of baba, Polish for "grandmother".
93D: Bitter: ACRID
94D: Underground gate: STILE. Subway turnstile.
95D: "What has God wrought?" sender: MORSE
96D: Commercial developers: AD MEN. Excellent clue.
99D: Route for Bob and Bing: ROAD. ROAD to....
101D: It's a drag: TOKE. OK, TOKE is "a puff of a marijuana cigarette".
102D: Phenomenon measured by a marigraph: TIDE. Had to check the meaning of marigraph: a device that automatically registers the rise and fall of the TIDE.
103D: Oklahoma city: ENID
104D: Trawling gear: NETS
108D: Costar of Teri, Felicity, et al.: EVA (Longoria). From "Desperate Housewives"
Answer grid.
Happy Birthday, Linda, wherever you are!
C.C.
23A: Cookie made with Chianti instead of figs? WINE NEWTON (Wayne Newton)
25A: Wood for sashes?: WINDOW PINE (Windowpane)
34A: Blue Danube relative: PURPLE RHINE (Purple Rain)
50A: Discovery of the mother lode?: MINE EVENT (Main Event)
76A: Put an "X" where you want to cut the cord?: MARK TWINE (Mark Twain)
90A: Female chiropractor?: LADY OF SPINE (Lady of Spain)
105A: Squall at sea?: BRINE STORM (Brainstorm)
107A: "I never forget a face," e. g.: MEMORY LINE (Memory Lane)
Hmm, the Aussie/Kiwi (Down Under) long A pronunciation does sound long I, doesn't it?
LADY OF SPINE is my favorite theme entry. I thought of Nobel Peace Laureate Aung San Su Ki. She is a real LADY OF SPINE.
Lots of interesting clues in today's puzzle. I had several V-8 moments. Normally I am not fond of ALER (American Leaguer) or NLER (National Leaguer), but today's clue (48A: Ray or Jay) is outstanding. Tampa Bay Rays & Toronto Blue Jays. Nice rhyme.
I was also happy to see MINN (11D: Gopher's home?) again. Golden Gophers is the sports team for the University of Minnesota. I collect those adorable Goldy bobbleheads.
Across:
1A: Titanic obstacle: BERG. The last known Titanic survivor just died last month. She's 2-month old when she boarded Titanic.
9A: Opening frames: JAMBS. I need a "door" hint in the clue.
14A: Try: STAB. Have a try/STAB.
18A: 19th century tale of South Seas travel: OMOO. One more letter, the answer would be TYPEE/MARDI.
19A: Reach via radio: RAISE. Dictionary defines RAISE as "Make contact with by radio", then it gives an example: couldn't RAISE control tower after midnight. New meaning to me.
21A: Girl George?: ELIOT. George ELIOT, who's a "girl". Playing on Boy George. I suppose you can clue SAND as "Girl George" too.
22A: Lobby for: URGE
27A: Like some pens: ERASABLE. Have never used one.
28A: Collect little by little: GLEAN
30A: Snack maker's gizmo: POPPER. Popcorn POPPER.
32A: Samples from a doctor: PILLS
33A: Atheistic: GODLESS. I hope there is a God.
40A: Symbol of penance: ASHES. Oh, that's how we have Ash Wednesday.
41A: Dismayed cry: OY VEY
42A: Carpenter who sang: KAREN. I like her "We've Only Just Begun".
46A: Vientiane native: LAO. It's literally "old" in Chinese. LAO Tzu is literally "old master".
47A: Highest in order: UPMOST. Only knew uppermost.
49A: Scout outing: HIKE
53A: Malt drier: OAST
55A: Yankees' captain: JETER (Derek). I have his rookie card.
56A: Small biological cavities: AREOLES. Why "cavities"? They are just nipple rings.
57A: "I'll say": AND HOW
60D: Had right to: CLAIMED
63A: Unit of work: MAN-HOUR. Normally the answer is ERG.
65A: "My cousin Vinny" Oscar winner: TOMEI (Marisa).
68A: To boot: NO LESS. Why? They are not synonymous to me.
70A: Abates: EASES UP
74A: Hot spots: OVENS. Nice clue. I was thinking of North Korea/Iran.
75A: Money maker: MINT
78A: Buck, for one: MALE. "Tom, for one" too.
81A: Eats into: ERODES
83A: UV index monitor: EPA
84A: Letters on a lunch menu: BLT. Also PBJ. This bento lunch box looks so inviting.
85A: Woolly, perhaps: OVINE. Stumped. Hope ewe got it.
86A: Brilliance: ECLAT
87A: Jellied garnish: ASPIC. Why "garnish"? My grandma always made us ASPIC during Chinese Spring Festival.
89A: Incline: SLANT
92A: Thanksgiving activity: BASTING
95A: Inn group: MAIDS. Great clue.
97A: Troop troupe sponsor, briefly: USO
98A: Frequently traded, in the stock market: ACTIVE. Like the stupid GE stock.
99A: Ballet with a hoedown: RODEO. No idea. It refers to Copland's ballet RODEO I suppose.
100A: Create financial trouble for: STRAITEN. New word to me.
109A: Tartan wraparound: KILT
112A: Work in the cutting room: EDIT
114A: German seaport: EMDEN. See upperleft? North Sea port. I've never heard of it.
116A: Carmine's family?: REDS. Had to check dictionary for "carmine".
Down:
1D: He beat Holyfield twice: BOWE (Riddick). No idea. Have never heard of this boxer. I only remembered Tyson bit Holyfield's ear.
2D: Islamic title: EMIR
3D: Columnist Barnett: RONA. Or Author Jaffe.
4D: Completely loses it: GOES APE
5D: High range: TREBLE. Guessed.
6D: Ketch kin: YAWL. Both two-masted sailboats.
7D: Toy with a tail: KITE
8D: Paul Anka's "__ Beso (That Kiss): ESO. Literally "that".
9D: Lapidary's product: JEWEL. Did not know the meaning of "lapidary".
10D: Item on a forged document, perhaps: ALIAS
12D: Physique: BOD. Needs "slangily", right?
13D: Brief visit: STOPOVER
14D: Price factor: SUPPLY. Plenty of corn & soy in the market this year.
16D: Hooey: TRIPE. To some, it's a delicacy.
16D: David Copperfield's second wife: AGNES. No idea. Have never read "David Copperfield". Thought of Claudia Schiffer, ex-girlfriend of David Copperfield.
17D: Round at the bar: BEERS
20D: Fire trucks: ENGINES
24D: They're at your fingertip: NAILS. My favorite clue.
26D: God for whom Wednesday was named: WODEN. Always thought Wednesday is named after Odin. Dictionary says WODEN is "Anglo-Saxon god identified with Odin."
29D: 2001 U.S. Open champ Hewitt: LLEYTON. I could picture his face. His name escaped me.
32D: Turn on one foot: PIVOT
33D: "Earth in the Balance": GORE. Wikipedia says his "An Inconvenient Truth" is based on this book.
34D: Balearic Islands capital: PALMA. Sigh, both the clue and the answer mean nothing to me. Ibiza is wild.
35D: Carrier that merged with Piedmont in 1989: USAIR. Not familiar with the Piedmont Airlines.
36D: River through the Lake of Geneva: RHONE
37D: Entices: ROPES IN
38D Choir offering: HYMN
39D: '80 Bond portrayer: DALTON (Timothy). Love the current 007 Daniel Craig.
42D: Buckwheat dish: KASHA. I tried buckwheat porridge once. Terrible taste. Cold buckwheat soba noodle is delicious.
43D: Sharp quality: BITE
44D: Strings of islands?: UKES. Nice clue too.
47D: Optic layer: UVEA. Latin for "grape".
49D: Talmud tongue: HEBREW. Talmud is literally "instruction".
51D: Tertiary Period epoch: EOCENE. I forgot. EO is prefix for "early". EOCENE is characterized by the advent of the modern mammalian orders, says the dictionary. And it occurred from 55 to 40 million years ago.
52D: "American Psycho" author: ELLIS. No idea. The book sounds horrifying.
54D: USN VIPS: ADMS (Admirals)
55D: Knight game: JOUST
57D: Arabian Sea's Gulf of __: ADEN
58D: Hack's question: WHERE TO. Hack is taxi driver.
61D: Point in time: MOMENT
62D: Slur over: ELIDE
64D: Symbols of might: OAKS
65D: Crypt: TOMB
66D: Kind of round: OVAL. Indeed.
67D: Get all gooey: MELT. Reminds me of Dali's "The Persistence of Memory".
69D: Metal playing marble: STEELIE
71D: Basso Cesare: SIEPI. No, no, nope. Total stranger to me.
73D: Word spoken with a two-fingered sign: PEACE
76D: Gets into shape: MOLDS
77D: Forever partner?: A DAY. Forever and A DAY.
79D: Fade away: EVANESCE. Another new word to me.
80D: Double checker?: KING. Checkers. Here is Embien's explanation: You make a "king" in checkers by putting another piece on top, thus a "double checker" (the checker piece).
82D: Colts' home before Lucas Oil Stadium: RCA DOME (1984-2007). I guessed. Wikipedia says it's similar in design and appearance to Twins' Metrodome.
85D: Oil source: OLIVE. I was in the crude oil direction.
87D: Ore analysis: ASSAY
88D: Third-party candidate, perhaps: SPOILER
89D: Is frugal: STINTS
91D: Like many mammals: FURRED
92D: Spongy cake: BABKA. The cake with raisins and rum. Diminutive of baba, Polish for "grandmother".
93D: Bitter: ACRID
94D: Underground gate: STILE. Subway turnstile.
95D: "What has God wrought?" sender: MORSE
96D: Commercial developers: AD MEN. Excellent clue.
99D: Route for Bob and Bing: ROAD. ROAD to....
101D: It's a drag: TOKE. OK, TOKE is "a puff of a marijuana cigarette".
102D: Phenomenon measured by a marigraph: TIDE. Had to check the meaning of marigraph: a device that automatically registers the rise and fall of the TIDE.
103D: Oklahoma city: ENID
104D: Trawling gear: NETS
108D: Costar of Teri, Felicity, et al.: EVA (Longoria). From "Desperate Housewives"
Answer grid.
Happy Birthday, Linda, wherever you are!
C.C.
30 comments:
Wow, I have never been first. A Sunday of bad puns. Happy Fifth!
TEPEE is a TYPO for TYPEE?
While aerole does have an anatomical definition, it also has a biologic one:
1. areole
a. Biology A small space or interstice in a tissue or part, such as the area bounded by small veins in a leaf or the wing of an insect.
To boot: NO LESS. This is one of those puzzling phrases from my youth, where grown ups would say things like, “he has a car and a truck, to boot.” I think it comes from English speaking Canada, but I do not know why it became synonymous with additionally. The dictionary was no help BOOT nor does it explain why we BOOT or REBOOT our computers.
The puzzle had some good and some bad cluing. Hot spots: OVENS. This is a very cute clue. On the other hand I hated STRAITEN , which while apparently accurate, is really very obscure. I know people can be in dire straits, but I have never heard or read this word used this way.
Item on a forged document, perhaps: ALIAS. I think this is totally bogus, as the two concepts are not related.
Commercial developers: AD MEN, on the other hand is a great clue.
Sunday puzzles are just long, but I am up early, so have a great day all.
Good Morning!
LOL nipple rings "I'll say": AND HOW
Thank you, C.C.
Today, getting the theme early definitely help get the other answers; I liked that.
Good morning, C.C. and gang - I absolutely loved today's puzzle, replete with misleading and clever clues. I'm with Argyle - getting the theme early on certainly made things go a lot more smoothly. I'm also with Argyle on the morning wake-up picture; thanks, C.C., nice way to start the day.
I was clueless on 'Basso Cesare', and although I've never seen 'straiten' used that way, I've often heard of people being in financial straits, so I bought it. Lots of clever, deceptive clues, such as 'opening frames', 'girl George', 'high range', 'strings of islands', 'double checker', and 'commercial developers'. C.C., I knew you'd be happy to see 'Gopher's home?'.
From last night: Windhover, most eloquent, as always. While I might not be as enamored with the current administration as you, I am an eternal optimist and certainly feel that in a lot of aspects, it's a marked improvement. Kazie, no, we didn't 'break the bank' - I doubt the bank even knew we were there, lol - but we did manage to get a bit of our money back. It's like the old story of the guy at the race track who says, 'Thank God I broke even - I need the money'.
A most Happy Birthday to Linda today.
Lemonade, good to see you this morning - I hope each day is getting a little easier.
Today is Build a Scarecrow Day, and Workaholics Day. Kinda lost, falling on a Sunday, and a holiday weekend to boot.
Thanks for all the kind Birthday wishes...I feel every year this AM..."company" for three days and another to go...but I`m honored they cared enough to come to our "houseparty."
Going out of town to visit old friends and "Do" Mexican, I hope a lazy pool day tomorrow...
For cyberfriends Windhover and Jimbo...I suspect the real Truth lies somewhere between your two opinions.
You`re both valued contributors, to me...I would suggest this: When you invest in someone`s life, it changes you perspective of them entirely. Since we`re commanded to pray for "those in authority," I know from long experience, it does give you compassion and insight you can get no other way. Putting up with and trying to govern recalcitrant, opinionated, pig-headed people like me takes much grace and wisdom for any President or One in authority...and no man/woman rises to that office without God`s permission...so pray for them "that we might lead peaceable, orderly lives..."
I get a free pass on what I write today...it`s my birthday! :) Right Mrs. CC?
Good Morning All, Although we weren't out very late last night, I just couldn't defog my brain enough to finish up this puzzle.
I got all the theme fills and groaned with each one of them. Maybe bad puns are just not to my taste. Hey Jerome, that isn't saying they weren't well done, they just didn't appeal to me.
About "To boot" and NO LESS
This is undoubtedly only a funny coincidence, but Boothill Graveyard in Tombstone, Arizona has the following grave marker:
Here lies Lester Moore,
Four slugs from a .44,
No Les, no more.
George Eliot was Mary Anne Evans, English novelist who wrote "Silas Marner", Adam Bede" and "Middlemarch". She used a man's name in order to be taken as a 'serious' writer during the Victorian era.
Clear eyes- I'm an unabashed lover of terrible puns and whacky phrases, even though I realize they are the gutter dwellers of humor. People either enjoy them or despise them. I completely understand why you don't appreciate them. Attila the Hun, Lizzy Borden, and Richard Nixon loathed them as well...;)
@C.C. I agree that TO BOOT and NO LESS do not have the same connotation. They are used in the same place, at the end of a sentence, but that's all they have in common.
TO BOOT means also, or in addition, something extra, usually for no further effort or cost:
I ordered air conditioning on my new car and got power steering and power brakes to boot.
NO LESS means "I am surprised (shocked, amazed, disturbed) at that statement, and I think you might agree with me."
Brett Favre wants to keep on playing football, and with the Vikings, no less.
Here's the explanation of to boot:
"Boot could at one time exist alone with the idea of profit or advantage (along with its opposite, bootless). Shakespeare uses it this way in Antony and Cleopatra: “Give him no breath, but now / Make boot of his distraction” — in other words, take advantage of his being distracted. It also turns up in several terms from feudal times that referred to the right of tenants to take materials from the manor for their own use, such as firebote, hedgebote, and housebote, in which it can be translated as “benefit”."
Can anyone tell me what it means "Read the Notepad for info about the hidden answers in this puzzle"
That is, in the LA Times Sunday Calendar puzzle by Merle Reagle.
It sometimes appear in the other puzzles and I'm sure I'm missing something.
Thanks
Al:
I have often have used the expression : To Boot
Checked it out and like your first explanation best.
Back to the c/w, almost done after a little cheating.
Best to all,
Geri
Roger,
In Across Lite (not Los Angeles Times Sunday Calendar Puzzle website), click View, then Notepad. It says:
This puzzle contains the names of 11 famous U.S. forts, all reading across. But five of them have been "breached" by black squares--for example, "Collins" (as in Ft. Collins, Colo.) might appear like this: protoCOL/LINSeed (with a black square separating them instead of a slash). One fort has even been breached twice. Can you find all 11? Answers next week.
Lemonade,
Re: TYPEE. My bad. Thanks.
Jerome,
Now I am a Magnus follower. Nice posts, as always.
Al,
Great examples on "To boot" and NO LESS. Did you find Notepad in LA Times Sunday Calendar Puzzle (the website)?
Clear Ayes,
What exactly is a pun? I thought today's puzzle is simply a long A to long I shift.
Dennis & Argyle,
Re: AREOLES. I actually thought of linking "Duchess of Villars and Gabrielle D'Estrees" earlier.
Linda,
Yes! Hope you are having a great day.
Windhover,
Hmm, I'd like to meet you someday. You surprise me so often.
Thanks for the tip about Across Lite.
I'd never heard of it before.
50:17 today. I can't remember struggling so hard in an LA Times puzzle before. I definitely never got on the constructor's wavelength. I'm usually a fan of bad puns, but for some reason I never appreciated this type of pun (using the "Oz" pronounciation). I got all the theme entries and was still wondering what the big deal was. Even with the altered pronounciation, I didn't see all the "puns". Ugh.
@c.c.: 80D: Double checker?: KING. Chess. Double check. Totally out of my ken.
c.c., this is referring to checkers, not chess. You make a "king" in checkers by putting another piece on top, thus a "double checker" (the checker piece).
C.C. The theme fill shifts from the long A sound to the long I sound makes the questions and answers puns with an Oz accent.
The definition of a pun is pretty standard; "A play on words, either on different senses of the same word or on the similar sense or sound of different words."
"To pun is to treat homonyms as synonyms." - Walter Redfern, (Puns, 1974)
So, (Kazie, I'm assuming that "Spain" and "spine" are pronounced the same way) if you were a resident of Melbourne or Sidney and asked what a female chiropractor is called, high hilarity would ensue with the answer "Lady of Spain/Spine". Or maybe it is only a pun to Americans who think they can imitate an Australian accent.
Here's an excellent American pun by a master:
"Time flies like an arrow. Fruit flies like a banana." - Groucho Marx
Happy birthday, Linda.
Al, Thanks, I've always thought Atilla and Lizzie were somewhat misunderstood. ;o)
Hello All--This CW took me a LONG time to do, and didn't finish it all. I had to come to the site to see C.C.'s answers. I couldn't picture an Underground gate for the life of me. Stile came with the perps, but I thought I was still wrong. Thank you C.C.for the Subway gate connection.
I really liked the Opening frames and Girl George clues as well as Strings of islands.
Evanesce is a totally new word for me,so Ovine was not a given. Did ewe get it? No! I "sheepishly" own up to this and other problems today.
Toke was also an unknown. I learn something new everyday.
Clear Ayes,
Spain and spine wouldn't sound the same in a true Oz accent (think Paul Hogan). It would be more like spine and spoin. I, of course, have an international accent after so many years here!
Got the theme early (A to I sounds), without even thinking of the Oz accent thing. But it didn't reduce my need for red help. A few good clues, but mostly groaners, I thought.
Happy birthday, Linda!
Clear eyes- Good one from Groucho. I think it was him that said- "Outside of a dog a book is man's best friend. Inside of a dog it's too dark to read"
Clear Ayes, I mean. Sheesh!
Hi gang -
Though I love puns, I think homophone substitution is ultimately an unsatisfying theme. Just imagine all the thought and planning that has to go into this kind of construction - really, really clever.
But . . .
Pretty much agree with the pro and con comments already made.
Here is the full orchestral version of HOE DOWN from Rodeo. I've played this piece.
I was thinking AREOLES were the air sacs in the lungs, but those are alveoles. Danged latin BOD parts! The lady in the picture is not OBESE. Is that a lily?
Had ALER filled in but didn't get it, till I came here. Tigers lost again to MINN today.
After I had deSTRAITENED the rest of the puzzle, BRINE STORM was the last thing to fall, just after the NE corner. I had put the puzzle aside and was back AT IT over lunch, when POPPER popped out at me. That supplied SUPPLY, I took a STAB at 14A, stopped for BEERS, and finally got WINDOW PINE. Had WILLOWxxxx for a long time. What a PANE!
Before my ACTIVE WIT ERODES, I should CEASE. AND HOW! OY Vey.
Cheers!
Linda, Thanks for your words you said it the best. We must pray and it was a classy way to "end" the discussion. I do come here to enjoy a neutral field of crossword.
A very Happy Birthday to you!
Happy Sunday! My neighbors are still setting off fireworks, so they're terribly patriotic and/or still drunk!
I bumbled around the grid: choked on "Palma" and spit out 87A (aspic)— C.C., your grandma's aspic must have been better than my mom's—hers made us want to yell "What hath God wrought?" Even the book "Joy of Cooking" describes aspic as "used to mask food."
I think 14A is a bum clue: 'Stab' isn't a
tidy synonym for 'try' because one 'TAKES a stab' at something, not just 'stabs'?
"Dovey" clued by "lovey" (39A) was as lame as "pocus" paired with "hocus" but USO clue is clever.
And did anyone else think Retief Goosen won the 2001 US Open, not Hewitt (29D)?
I misread 109A as "Tarzan wraparound," saw that I had four letters to play with, and confidently wrote down "JANE"—whooops! Took awhile to fix that! straighten all that out.
G'night,all!
More about puns:
"Grammar is a dull subject, from which to run. A pun is a sharp object, to run with."
(unknown)
First response from Tarrjo's day off missing LGJ and not doing a puzzle in two days. We were supposed to have our authentic Chinese dinner Saturday night but the weather was too good once Brady got home. We got invited to Sierra's parents home for a BBQ and fireworks. (Illegal) BTW.
Linda, and Windhover, I would not like to be in the same room as you debate religion. Linda keep your faith, and Windhover, keep your open mind. I am sure by now that you two admire and repsect each other.
C.C. some of the nicest people I have ever met were in Vancouver, Canada. LGJ and I made a chicken/shrimp stir fry with veges tonight. I cheated and we made fried cream cheese/crab wantons instead of egg rolls. It was still too nice outside to spend time rolling eggrolls. I did manage to get him in the house long enough to help me fill the wontons.
Please if there is a God...no Brett Favre in the Vikings future.
Good evening all
Only have done 1/2 of the puzzle; Sun. is a tad too long.Loved wine newton, and oy vey.Although Catholic, I grew up in a Jewish neighborhood and picked up many of their sayings, also the love of fried bread.
Linda, Happy Birthday!!
CA, loved your last night's response, well said.
Tarrajo, yours too @8:17.
Amen to politics and religion! I don't think it would be respectful to CC if we all chirped in with our beliefs.
I loved that you decided to make won tons. They are so much fun. Haven't made them since kids were little.Now I'm counting WW points. wine=2
Tarrajo -
A fitting place for Favre to end his carreer would be here with the Lions. It's where quarterbacks and coaches go to die.
Cheers!
I am sorry I didn't acknowledge your birthday Linda. JD, if Favre comes here I don't know quite how I can root for them (Vikes). As you know Brady and I are big Vikings fans.
Oops -I think I mixed up golf &
tennis (Hewitt & Goosen) so now you know whythey keep me
off the courses & courts!
Mea Culpa, I have "ovine", er, wooly brain tonight!
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