Theme: Divided Countries - Country names (8) are divided and span across mostly two words in each familiar phrase.
27A. Weather unit: DEGREE CELSIUS. The divided country is GREECE (100A. Country divided in 27-Across).
45A. "I'm outa here": TIME TO GO HOME. Embedded is TOGO (22A. Country divided in 45-Across).
58A. Like always: AS PER USUAL. Contains PERU (79D. Country divided in 58-Across).
77A. Makes a special effort TAKES PAINS. Included is SPAIN (68D. Country divided in 77-Across).
89A. FleetCenter predecessor BOSTON GARDEN. Holds TONGA (3D. Country divided in 89-Across).
111A.Without breaking the rules FAIR AND SQUARE. Enclosed is IRAN (122A.Country divided in 111-Across).
16D. Donne words before "entire of itself": NO MAN IS AN ISLAND. Harbors OMAN (48D. Country divided in 16-Down).
44D. Words sung before placing hand to hip: I'M A LITTLE TEAPOT. The split country is MALI (56A. Country divided in 44-Down). The only theme entry broken into three words. My favorite.
Normally the country names are simply circled in this type of theme scheme. I like how the constructor goes one step further, challenges himself construction-wise, and places each country name in the grid. This puzzle also has 146 entries, two more than our LAT Sunday limit 144.
Our first Havey Estes puzzle since the switch. He has constructed quite a few LAT in the past. His penchant for cross-references today reminds me a bit of John Lampkin's style, though John's Sunday is often a pangram. This one does not have letters J & X.
As the norm with our Sunday puzzle, plenty of entertaining clues. My favorite is ACNE (118A. Bad marks in high school?).
Across:
1. __-mouth: MOTOR. A person who talks excessively. New expression to me.
6. Bethlehem visitors: MAGI
10. Ennui: BLAHS. Tried BLASE first.
15. Piece of cake: SNAP. I liked last time's "IT'S A SNAP" better.
19. Superior to: ABOVE. And OVER (4D. Superior to).
20. Like a dust bowl: ARID. Why isn't "dust bowl" capitalized? We also have GOBI (91D. Asian expanse). Gobi Desert.
21. Bug: EAT AT
23. Established districts: ZONED
24. Shade of blue: NILE. Like the color of this car.
25. On the move: ASTIR
26. Ed who played Mingo on "Daniel Boone": AMES. Recognized his mug when I googled.
30. Like a good knight: GALLANT. Nice play on "good night".
32. Flat-pancake filler: AS A
33. Silents star Jannings: EMIL. The first-ever Best Actor Oscar winner.
34. Power source: ATOM
36. Puts in a bad light: TAINTS
37. Deposed '70s despot: AMIN (Idi)
38. Request to Fido: BEG. And ALPO (115A. Rover's bowlful).
40. Fund-raising targets: ALUMNI
42. Punxsutawney prophet: PHIL. The groundhog.
49. Sunblock letters: SPF. Gorgeous summer day here in Minnesota.
52. Word with strip or relief: COMIC. This clue made me laugh.
54. "Is it soup __?" : YET
55. Tyler Perry's "Diary of __ Black Woman": A MAD. Not familiar with the movie.
57. Cruising locale: SEA
62. "Star Wars Episode II" attack force: CLONES. Obtained the answer via crosses.
64. More 47-Down: LANKER. And GAUNT (47D. Very thin).
66. Rural room renter: INN. Triple alliteration.
68. Bashes: SHINDIGS. Not your everyday crossword fill.
70. Colony resident: ANT
71. Strikes, e.g.: PROTESTS. I always think of baseball when "strikes" are called for in crossword.
73. General nicknamed "Old Blood and Guts": PATTON. Cold guy.
74. Start of a simple game TIC. Tic-tac-toe.
75. Poet Amy: LOWELL. Clear Ayes posted her poems on the blog before.
76. Lets out, say: ALTERS. Nailed it.
80. Fearful reverence: AWE
83. Troubles: ILLS
84. Went lickety-split: TORE. SPED, anyone?
85. Canadian prov. whose capital is Charlottetown: P.E.I. (Prince Edward Island). Got me.
86. Cartridge contents: TONER. Alliteration.
88. Wedding notice word: NEE
94. Says further: ADDS
95. "Growing Pains" star Alan: THICKE. Have never heard of the guy nor the sitcom.
97. Sch. with a Lima campus: OSU (Ohio State University). Lima, Ohio.
98. Three-piece suit piece: VEST
102.Swedish import: SAAB
105.West Wing adjunct: AIDE. Was picturing an added building rather than person.
106.One not acting well: HAM
109.Cracks up over: ROARS AT
116.Polite turndown: NO SIR
119.Racing family name UNSER. And STP (117D."The racer's edge"). I think EddyB is in Indy 500 today.
120.Dark purple fruit: SLOE
121.Emcee's task: INTRO
123.Lapel attachment: ID TAG
124.Strokes: PETS
125.Colorado ski mecca: ASPEN
126.Bit of progress, figuratively: DENT. Make a dent.
127.11-Down feature NOOSE. And LASSO (11D. Will Rogers prop). We also have LARIAT (67A. Cattle drive need).
Down:
1. Publisher of Zoom-Zoom magazine: MAZDA. No idea.
2. English horn relatives: OBOES
5. Turn in for money: REDEEM
6. "The Pink Panther Theme" composer: MANCINI (Henry). Not on my radar. Wikipedia says he also composed "Moon River".
7. Disney mermaid: ARIEL
8. Breathing organ: GILL. Oh, for fish.
9. Caesar's big date: IDES. Of March. And ET TU (39D. Brute's rebuke?).
10. Humdinger: BEAUT
12. Communications co.: AT&T
13. Nixon chief of staff: HAIG (Alexander). "I'm in control here".
14. Bedrock, e.g.: STRATUM
15. Big Red: STALIN. Kept thinking Pete Rose of the Big Red Machine.
17. Bond, for one: AGENT. James Bond.
18. Newsgroup messages: POSTS
28. Send out: EMIT
29. He did a Moor good, then harm: IAGO. The bad guy in "Othello".
31. Rich fabric: LAMÉ. Does "Rich" mean "deep-colored" here? Looks silky.
35. Taj __ : MAHAL
37. Ring icon: ALI
38. Cold draft: BEER: Great clue.
41. City served by Ben-Gurion airport: LOD. Always have trouble with this city.
42. IBM products: PCS
43. Tilling tool: HOE
46. Mike of "54": MYERS. Easy guess. Have never seen "54".
50. Fabric fold: PLEAT. We also have PLAID (71D. Flannel shirt pattern). I tend to confuse these two words.
51. Weapons of the unarmed: FISTS. Loved the clue.
53. Straight shooting, so to speak: CANDOR
56. Gourmet mushroom: MOREL. Delicious!
59. Hides: SKINS. Noun. Tricky!
60. Hanging convenience: PEG
61. "__ you asked ...": SINCE
62. Circus employee: CLOWN
63. Hot gossip, with "the": LATEST
65. Forks over, with "up": ANTES
69. Berry of "Monster's Ball": HALLE. I like her in short hair. You?
70. Pulitzer-winning poet Conrad __: AIKEN. Foreign name to me. Why "__" after Conrad in the clue?
72. Lyon king: ROI. Good pun on the "Lion King".
74. Island starch source: TARO
77. Shopping aids: TOTES
78. Bathroom luxuries: SPAS
81. United: WED
82. "Grey's Anatomy" settings, briefly: ERS
84. "For shame!"" TSK
87. Granola bar bit: OAT
89. Ecolutions pens: BICS. What does Ecolutions stand for? Eco-solution?
90. "1984" setting: OCEANIA. South Seas region.
92. Easy to get: EVIDENT
93. Rorem and Beatty: NEDS. Is Ned Rorem very famous?
96. Sci-fi series about people with special powers: HEROES. Have never seen this series.
99. Costume sparkler: SEQUIN
100.Understanding: GRASP
101.Actress Esther: ROLLE. Another stranger to me.
103.Flaming: AFIRE
104.Composer Copland: AARON. Alliteration.
105.Former UN leader Kofi: ANNAN. I have his autograph.
106.Can't help but: HAS TO
107.Fields of study: AREAS
108.On-ramp sign: MERGE
110.A whole lot: TONS. And ACRE (113.Lot, maybe). Lot echo.
112.Fridge foray: RAID. Alliteration.
114.Nullify: UNDO
Answer grid.
Happy LXXIst Birthday to EddyB!
C.C.
27A. Weather unit: DEGREE CELSIUS. The divided country is GREECE (100A. Country divided in 27-Across).
45A. "I'm outa here": TIME TO GO HOME. Embedded is TOGO (22A. Country divided in 45-Across).
58A. Like always: AS PER USUAL. Contains PERU (79D. Country divided in 58-Across).
77A. Makes a special effort TAKES PAINS. Included is SPAIN (68D. Country divided in 77-Across).
89A. FleetCenter predecessor BOSTON GARDEN. Holds TONGA (3D. Country divided in 89-Across).
111A.Without breaking the rules FAIR AND SQUARE. Enclosed is IRAN (122A.Country divided in 111-Across).
16D. Donne words before "entire of itself": NO MAN IS AN ISLAND. Harbors OMAN (48D. Country divided in 16-Down).
44D. Words sung before placing hand to hip: I'M A LITTLE TEAPOT. The split country is MALI (56A. Country divided in 44-Down). The only theme entry broken into three words. My favorite.
Normally the country names are simply circled in this type of theme scheme. I like how the constructor goes one step further, challenges himself construction-wise, and places each country name in the grid. This puzzle also has 146 entries, two more than our LAT Sunday limit 144.
Our first Havey Estes puzzle since the switch. He has constructed quite a few LAT in the past. His penchant for cross-references today reminds me a bit of John Lampkin's style, though John's Sunday is often a pangram. This one does not have letters J & X.
As the norm with our Sunday puzzle, plenty of entertaining clues. My favorite is ACNE (118A. Bad marks in high school?).
Across:
1. __-mouth: MOTOR. A person who talks excessively. New expression to me.
6. Bethlehem visitors: MAGI
10. Ennui: BLAHS. Tried BLASE first.
15. Piece of cake: SNAP. I liked last time's "IT'S A SNAP" better.
19. Superior to: ABOVE. And OVER (4D. Superior to).
20. Like a dust bowl: ARID. Why isn't "dust bowl" capitalized? We also have GOBI (91D. Asian expanse). Gobi Desert.
21. Bug: EAT AT
23. Established districts: ZONED
24. Shade of blue: NILE. Like the color of this car.
25. On the move: ASTIR
26. Ed who played Mingo on "Daniel Boone": AMES. Recognized his mug when I googled.
30. Like a good knight: GALLANT. Nice play on "good night".
32. Flat-pancake filler: AS A
33. Silents star Jannings: EMIL. The first-ever Best Actor Oscar winner.
34. Power source: ATOM
36. Puts in a bad light: TAINTS
37. Deposed '70s despot: AMIN (Idi)
38. Request to Fido: BEG. And ALPO (115A. Rover's bowlful).
40. Fund-raising targets: ALUMNI
42. Punxsutawney prophet: PHIL. The groundhog.
49. Sunblock letters: SPF. Gorgeous summer day here in Minnesota.
52. Word with strip or relief: COMIC. This clue made me laugh.
54. "Is it soup __?" : YET
55. Tyler Perry's "Diary of __ Black Woman": A MAD. Not familiar with the movie.
57. Cruising locale: SEA
62. "Star Wars Episode II" attack force: CLONES. Obtained the answer via crosses.
64. More 47-Down: LANKER. And GAUNT (47D. Very thin).
66. Rural room renter: INN. Triple alliteration.
68. Bashes: SHINDIGS. Not your everyday crossword fill.
70. Colony resident: ANT
71. Strikes, e.g.: PROTESTS. I always think of baseball when "strikes" are called for in crossword.
73. General nicknamed "Old Blood and Guts": PATTON. Cold guy.
74. Start of a simple game TIC. Tic-tac-toe.
75. Poet Amy: LOWELL. Clear Ayes posted her poems on the blog before.
76. Lets out, say: ALTERS. Nailed it.
80. Fearful reverence: AWE
83. Troubles: ILLS
84. Went lickety-split: TORE. SPED, anyone?
85. Canadian prov. whose capital is Charlottetown: P.E.I. (Prince Edward Island). Got me.
86. Cartridge contents: TONER. Alliteration.
88. Wedding notice word: NEE
94. Says further: ADDS
95. "Growing Pains" star Alan: THICKE. Have never heard of the guy nor the sitcom.
97. Sch. with a Lima campus: OSU (Ohio State University). Lima, Ohio.
98. Three-piece suit piece: VEST
102.Swedish import: SAAB
105.West Wing adjunct: AIDE. Was picturing an added building rather than person.
106.One not acting well: HAM
109.Cracks up over: ROARS AT
116.Polite turndown: NO SIR
119.Racing family name UNSER. And STP (117D."The racer's edge"). I think EddyB is in Indy 500 today.
120.Dark purple fruit: SLOE
121.Emcee's task: INTRO
123.Lapel attachment: ID TAG
124.Strokes: PETS
125.Colorado ski mecca: ASPEN
126.Bit of progress, figuratively: DENT. Make a dent.
127.11-Down feature NOOSE. And LASSO (11D. Will Rogers prop). We also have LARIAT (67A. Cattle drive need).
Down:
1. Publisher of Zoom-Zoom magazine: MAZDA. No idea.
2. English horn relatives: OBOES
5. Turn in for money: REDEEM
6. "The Pink Panther Theme" composer: MANCINI (Henry). Not on my radar. Wikipedia says he also composed "Moon River".
7. Disney mermaid: ARIEL
8. Breathing organ: GILL. Oh, for fish.
9. Caesar's big date: IDES. Of March. And ET TU (39D. Brute's rebuke?).
10. Humdinger: BEAUT
12. Communications co.: AT&T
13. Nixon chief of staff: HAIG (Alexander). "I'm in control here".
14. Bedrock, e.g.: STRATUM
15. Big Red: STALIN. Kept thinking Pete Rose of the Big Red Machine.
17. Bond, for one: AGENT. James Bond.
18. Newsgroup messages: POSTS
28. Send out: EMIT
29. He did a Moor good, then harm: IAGO. The bad guy in "Othello".
31. Rich fabric: LAMÉ. Does "Rich" mean "deep-colored" here? Looks silky.
35. Taj __ : MAHAL
37. Ring icon: ALI
38. Cold draft: BEER: Great clue.
41. City served by Ben-Gurion airport: LOD. Always have trouble with this city.
42. IBM products: PCS
43. Tilling tool: HOE
46. Mike of "54": MYERS. Easy guess. Have never seen "54".
50. Fabric fold: PLEAT. We also have PLAID (71D. Flannel shirt pattern). I tend to confuse these two words.
51. Weapons of the unarmed: FISTS. Loved the clue.
53. Straight shooting, so to speak: CANDOR
56. Gourmet mushroom: MOREL. Delicious!
59. Hides: SKINS. Noun. Tricky!
60. Hanging convenience: PEG
61. "__ you asked ...": SINCE
62. Circus employee: CLOWN
63. Hot gossip, with "the": LATEST
65. Forks over, with "up": ANTES
69. Berry of "Monster's Ball": HALLE. I like her in short hair. You?
70. Pulitzer-winning poet Conrad __: AIKEN. Foreign name to me. Why "__" after Conrad in the clue?
72. Lyon king: ROI. Good pun on the "Lion King".
74. Island starch source: TARO
77. Shopping aids: TOTES
78. Bathroom luxuries: SPAS
81. United: WED
82. "Grey's Anatomy" settings, briefly: ERS
84. "For shame!"" TSK
87. Granola bar bit: OAT
89. Ecolutions pens: BICS. What does Ecolutions stand for? Eco-solution?
90. "1984" setting: OCEANIA. South Seas region.
92. Easy to get: EVIDENT
93. Rorem and Beatty: NEDS. Is Ned Rorem very famous?
96. Sci-fi series about people with special powers: HEROES. Have never seen this series.
99. Costume sparkler: SEQUIN
100.Understanding: GRASP
101.Actress Esther: ROLLE. Another stranger to me.
103.Flaming: AFIRE
104.Composer Copland: AARON. Alliteration.
105.Former UN leader Kofi: ANNAN. I have his autograph.
106.Can't help but: HAS TO
107.Fields of study: AREAS
108.On-ramp sign: MERGE
110.A whole lot: TONS. And ACRE (113.Lot, maybe). Lot echo.
112.Fridge foray: RAID. Alliteration.
114.Nullify: UNDO
Answer grid.
Happy LXXIst Birthday to EddyB!
C.C.
27 comments:
Good Morning, CC and all. This was a fun Sunday puzzle. I really liked the way the countries were referenced in both the long and short clues. Some of the short clues (ie with the actual name of the country) helped me with the long clues and vice versa.
I also liked how both clues referencing Superior To intersected to create OVER and ABOVE, which also is Superior.
I really wanted Coughs Up (even though it didn't fit) for Forks Up = ANTES.
I never saw Mike Myers in the movie 54.
Probably all young children learn the Teapot song.
My favorite clue was also Bad Marks In High School = ACNE.
We had a shout-out to Buckeye with OSU. I didn't know, however, the school had a Lima campus!
Happy Birthday, EddyB.
QOD: To exist is to changes, to change is to mature, to mature is to go on creating oneself endlessly. ~ Henri Bergson
Morning, all!
Fun puzzle today, especially once I figured out the theme. I was sure I had a problem when I ended up with ASA for "flat pancake filler" at 32A, but after I got the "tada!" I finally got it.
89A was easy for me, since I'm from Boston, but the clue seems a little out of date. The Boston Garden was renamed the Fleet Center, true. But then it became TD Banknorth Garden and is now simply TD Garden. I realize that teams get gobs of needed money from corporate sponsors, but I'm really sick of seeing every arena, racetrack, sporting event, etc., actually named after a company. Especially when the name keeps changing as new sponsors take over. Thank heavens Fenway Park is still Fenway Park...
Re: 46D "Studio 54" was a famous 70's NYC nightclub.
Hello all. I hope that you are having a pleasant weekend. I am saddened remembering those who have passed.
Nice, easy puzzle for this old timer, unlike yesterday's.
Bill G. --Re NCIS. I would guess that the lawyer lady, who snatched up the report, was going to deep-six it. Too bad that Paloma was getting ready to kill Gibbs's dad at the end. Whew!
CC--Ecolutions is the company that makes Bic pens and things made of hemp.
Happy bday Eddy B!
SNH--Your interesting entries would be far easier for a retired teacher such as myself to read if you would use the shift key where appropriate.
This puzzle was fun, with trickery, some obscurity and some memory triggers. The BIC reference to ECOLUTIONS was very unknown.
The most famous television moment for Ed AMES came on the old Tonight show with Johnny Carson.
The only thing I know about NILE BLUE is that it is the chemical used to test the ph of pool water.
Does n’t everboday remembere the TV commercial Zoom Zoom ?
Alan: THICKE recently guested on HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER so he is still around.
West Wing adjunct: AIDE, Cold draft: BEER, Hides: SKINS. and bad marks in high school: ACNE were all wonderful misdirections and expect we will see them again, like we just had TORE meaning going fast, 10 days ago.
A moment of silence and appreciation for all who have served, to the many in our group, I salute you and hope you are all well.
Happy Birthday Eddy B
Good Morning, C.C. Great write-up.
Well this was a SNAP of a Sunday offering.
Only snafu, had void before UNDO for nullify.
Fave was the Donne quote "NO MAN IS AN ISLAND." Reminded me that we are all in this together.
OK, I admit it, the TEAPOT song was rattling through the old bean for most of the fill.
ACNE clue was clever.
SPF sunblock yielded the FISTS, first thought was hands.
BEER, how appropriate. I think a few will meet their fate today.
Happy Birthday Eddy B. enjoy the race.
SNH: Today I recognize I was born in Fort Wayne, Indiana only because of the Indy 500. National Hoosier's Day. Thanks for the incredible embed late last night.
And a special Salute to all our Veteran's past and present.
Good morning, C.C. and puzzlers.
Easy as sunday morning, Lionel Richie, not Mancini, but a lovely song and an apt desription of this puzzle.
I loved the clever theme which helped me clip right along although my first thought was, countries which were in fact divided, then ta da!
Like a good night (gallant), bad marks in high school (acne), hides (skins), ring icon (Ali) and rural room renter (inn) were great clues.
Hand up for "void" instead of "undo;" also "plum" for "sloe" and I wanted "time to depart" not "time to go."
Very nice, Harvey Estes. Thank you.
Happy birthday, EddyB. I hope you are having a blast.
And I hope all have a delightful Sunday!
Good Morning All, For me today's puzzle was all about theme, theme and more theme. Not only were there were eight countries scattered throughout the puzzle, Harvey Estes managed to place them dividedly (is that a word?)in eight phrases. Even with a big Sunday grid, I thought that was very impressive.
I knew 42D PCS, 49A SFP, 85A PEI, and figured out 97A OSU, so abbreviations weren't a problem today. There were lots of other little three and four letter fill, but they went much more easily than usual.
For 64A I had the LA, and I thought LANKIER, as in a tall thin person, but it wouldn't fit. I've always heard the word LANK used to describe long stringy hair, so LANKER took a while. I had to check post-puzzle...and of course the constructor was correct.
I liked seeing both 75A Amy LOWELL and 70D Conrad AIKEN. I like a lot of LOWELL's poems and most of the AIKEN poems I have read. They had a lot in common, both writing in an Imagist style and both were acquaintanced with the talented nutcase Ezra Pound. Pound didn't like LOWELL, but he was a friend of AIKEN.
SNH..we are definitely on the same page here. Thanks for last night's version of the Star Spangled Banner. It was just as it should be. I don't like the way so many singers have personalized it to the point where it sounds like a vocal exercise, a rap song, or a plaintive blues number. I like Jose Feliciano, but he started the personalized anthem trend at the 1968 World Series. Didn't like it then and don't like it now. It's our national anthem for goodness sake!
Happy birthday Eddy B. Enjoy the race!
I bet you thought I was going to post an Amy LOWELL or Conrad AIKEN poem. I was tempted, but I thought this selection by John Donne (16D) was totally appropriate for Memorial Day weekend.
John Donne was a poet and Anglican priest, who became the Dean of St Paul's Cathedral in London in 1621. Donne's early poetry was often satiric and erotic, but after he was ordained in 1615 his prose and poetry became more pious. The following is from "Devotions upon Emergent Occasions", a 1624 prose work that has become famous on it's own merit as poetry. It is a noble and thought provoking passage that relates beautifully to Memorial Day.
No man is an island,
Entire of itself.
Each is a piece of the continent,
A part of the main.
If a clod be washed away by the sea,
Europe is the less.
As well as if a promontory were.
As well as if a manner of thine own
Or of thine friend's were.
Each man's death diminishes me,
For I am involved in mankind.
Therefore, send not to know
For whom the bell tolls,
It tolls for thee.
Had that I'M A LITTLE TEAPOT song rolling through my brain for the whole grid.
Then I clicked on the Hahtool embed. Oh, Nooooo!!!
Finally the NYT bumped it with Itsy Bitsy TEENIE Weenie Yellow Polka Dot Bikini.
Ahhh, the classic's!
I was unable to do the puzzle yesterday, but because it was created by our long time friend, and it was the first from Fred since, I believe January; I did it after doing the Sunday puzzle. I then read the comments (71 on a Saturday!) and I must add my thoughts, which are much like Rodney King’s…
Jerome, you know I am one of your biggest fans, both for all the wonderful information you have shared on the puzzle process, and all the pleasure I have gotten from your wit in your puzzles and your comments. But why such a harsh comment, with a very thinly veiled threat, AFTER Argyle had apologized? We all have bad days, do you agree with every change Rich Norris makes in your puzzles? Do you remember, we had a tiff with Dan Naddor, Hashalom, over his cluing one day? The expression of an opinion, even one that is not thought out and not constructive, is just that - an opinion. Argyle’s opinion cannot be wrong, because it expressed the frustration he felt.
I also believe he inserted his apology because he understood the idea of commenting is to be adding to the process, not just expressing “sour grapes.” I also agree with Fred who wrote, he believed it was the GOAL of Saturday puzzles to be more obscure, more deceptive. I do not hesitate to question what I think was unfair, but obscurity is not unfair, it is just harder to get to.
Fred’s offering was one of the hardest we have had all year, and I believe the reaction by Argyle was so strong because we have been a little spoiled, but there were many things to learn from Fred’s cluing, and I enjoy learning.
I also do not believe it makes C.C.’s blog seem more intellectual to be negative, I try and keep my comments to things I enjoyed, because that is more fun, but I will not stop expressing what I do not enjoy.
Hello everyone. Happy birthday EddyB. SNH thanks for last night's link.
Fun Sunday puzzle. The usual stem-winder, but doable with a little red letter help. (I do it on line because our paper doesn't carry the Sunday LAT cw.)
Puzzle had a good cadence alternating between theme fill and shorter perp assistance. PEI and ROI were gimmes. TOGO was 1st divided country fill, and gave a hint to the rest of the theme fill.
Thought ALTER was very clever.
SAAB - Svenska Aeroplan AB (Swedish Airplane Ltd.) Started out as an aircraft manufacturer and began car making in the late 1940's.
Adding to the comment from Spitzboov the AB represents AKTIEBOLAG, which I beleive is Swedish meaning Stock Company;
which in Norway is AS, AKSJESELSKAP
Happy birthday, EddyB! What an exciting place to celebrate.
Very clever theme! A good Sunday puzzle. I had trouble figuring out ASA until coming here too.
My favorite: 51D Weapons of the unarmed? FISTS
Greetings everybody. Been putting in long hours at work the last several days, so wasn't able to do Friday's, Saturday's, and today's puzzles until today. Holy wow I shouldn't have tried to do more than one hard puzzle at once! Almost injured those "little gray cells." Well, not really, but I did feel sort of light-headed afterwards.
I liked and enjoyed all of them, had a lot of fun making the struggle to solve them completely with as little looking up stuff as possible.
T'was a pleasure to read the blog of the last several days, not only to read all your opinions and points of view, but also to see what makes you laugh, what makes you grouse, what enthuses you, what bores you, what's on your radar and what's not. My my what a diverse and interesting bunch of folks you (we) all are!
Favorite of today was ACNE.
Oh, and our paper doesn't publish the LAT puzzle on Sundays either, so I do it on line. Got tired of the NYT puzzle real quickly. Something about it just isn't fun.
Sincere appreciation for our service men and women, past and present. Best wishes.
Kept wanting to put in TEETH, CLAWS, or FANGS for "Weapons of the unarmed". I was probably thinking of literally unarmed, i.e. having no arms. Funny how the mind works.
Happy Sunday C.C. and friends.
I thought this was a delightful puzzle today. Many fun, misleading clues. Favs were 32A Flat-pancake filler and 72D Lyon king. Also liked the cross of OVER and ABOVE.
Nice to see PEI clued as something other than Mr. I.M.
SHINDIGS-great word.
SNH, thank you for the National Anthem link last night. Beautiful!
Happy Birthday, EddyB.
C.C., I know I don't say it often enough, but thank you for your wonderful blog site and all you do to enlighten and encourage visitors.
Enjoy the day!
Good afternoon everyone.
Whew! After yesterday's uproar, we were all so gentle today. Dennis is correct. C.C. doesn't need the snarls. She has created such a wonderful blog, one that we feel is ours. Thank you one and all.
Never figured out the theme today. Sigh. But tomorrow is Monday, thank heavens. I did get 51 right answers, tho. Wow.
Happy birthday Eddy B. and Tinbeni. Hope your celebrations are worthy of you. In other words, great.
Cheers
Sallie
Thank you but today is not my birthday.
It is the ONLY day of the year I admit that back in August of 1952 I was born in Fort Wayne, Indiana.
Has everything to do with the Indy 500 and lucky Eddy B is at the race.
The other 364.25 days of the year I am 100% Floridian.
Funny how when you leave somewhere at 7 months old, you really haven't made many contacts.
Jayce
Your unarmed comment was a hoot.
Both Sunday puzzles were way on the easy side. Hey, it's a holiday.
Lemonade, thanks for the earlier Ed AMES link....always funny!
EddyB, I hope you had lots of water to combat the Indy heat. GAH and I were looking for you waving from the grandstands, but I guess we blinked. Dario Franchitti really dominated today. I was rooting for Helio Castroneves and he looked very good for quite a while, but it wasn't meant to be. A couple of crashes, and the worst one with Mike Conway wasn't life threatening. That is always good news.
Time to get ready for weekend BBQ #2.
Extra-enjoyable Sunday puzzle, with 8 theme-answers and 8 related countries. It helped solving and enjoyment to have both.
I connect Stalin with red, but until today, not Big Red. Instead, I thought of Clifford the Big Red Dog, and the Big Redgum commercial from the 80's danced around my head for much of the puzzle (the teapot or bikini ditties would have been infinitely preferable to a decades-old commercial). Skins came very quickly, but missed the - in flat-pancake and 'jam' sat there for quite some time, as did 'potty' for 1A. Bashes and humdinger were great clues.
Loved the Ames link, Lemonade. Still laughing...
Tinbeni (from last night) - no subtlety about the avatar. I'm neutral about the Cats/Griz, not having attended either school or lived in either town (I would, however, choose Griz if FORCED to pick sides). Instead, it's just a photo of a bear that's accompanied me here and there for much of the past 20 years.
Must go fight weeds.
Otis
Hi CC and all other passionate puzzle bloggers here,
Today's puzzle was good fun and easy enough for me to get all the fills.
The theme was excellent, and having the eight countries listed in plaintext and in code (hidden in theme answers) was an amazing feat. Add in two excellent 15 letter vertical fills, and I can only say, Well done, Harvey.
Like MJ, I appreciated new clues for old favorites: country name instead of takeout order for TOGO, Can. province not architect for PEI, shade of blue rather than river for NILE. Maybe one day we'll see Measure of business success for ROI instead of a French king ;-)
66A rural room renter = INN. It seems to me, that both sides of this transaction are referred to as renters. Who's the rentee? There are lessors and lessees, no? Gotta love this English language.
Favorite misdirection clues were Bad marks in HS? = ACNE, Bashes = SHINDIGS, and Weapons of the unarmed = FISTS.
I'd like to make three points about yesterday's discussion of comments and criticisms.
Infrequently, true errors by constructors/editors occur. One this week was a clue using Corvettes when the fill was T-Birds. As pointed out on the blog, technically, the clue should have had the abbreviation 'vettes.
In today's puzzle, I can also quibble with 42D IBM products = PCS. IBM sold its PC business to Lenovo Corp five years ago; so it might be Dell, hp, Acer or Lenovo, but technically not IBM.
Second, anyone can dislike a particular clue or fill. For example, I thought today's 89D Ecolutions pens = BICS was extremely obscure, but I've learned from this blog that one person's pain and frustration is someone else's pleasure and joy.
Third, I think CANDOR should reign supreme on this blog. If someone likes or dislikes something, they are allowed to express themselves. If they explain WHY they feel that way, it becomes a more constructive comment. When these opinions are expressed in a hostile manner or as a personal attack, that's where I feel those comments should be limited. If constructors understand why we get frustrated at certain aspects of the puzzles, they can then improve.
Barry, I agree with you. The day Shea Stadium became Citi Field was a sad one.
Happy b-day, EddieB.
And to all those who currently serve or have served in the military, and their families, and especially to those who have lost their lives defending our freedoms, our sincere thanks.
Happy, Meaningful Holiday to all.
Hand up to agree with CA and SNH re: our National Anthem. That was a sensational clip, actually brought tears and gooseflesh! Those faces and the brasses! Wonderful! I hate it when the singer tries to jazz it up!
I pretty much googled my way though this puzzle, though almost everybody else thought it a breeze!
Our local paper doesn't print the LAT puzzle on Sundays, either. Instead there's always a Merle Reagle, which seems much easier. I have been working it in the SF Chronicle and it's so small it gives me a headache trying to read the numbers. I guess I'd better start doing the Sunday one on the net. AT least I can see it, even if it does end up with black triangles from all the typos!
I got the divided country theme all right in pretty short order.
I did like many of the clues, the ones mentioned in other posts, but I felt really worked over after i finished!
Thanks, anyway, Harvey. With a little practice I think I'll be able to handle yours some day! and CC, thanks for all your hard work!
Hello All--I really enjoyed this Sunday puzzle with the countries hidden in the long clues. Once I figured out that was the case, I had a great time filling in the missing countries.
I had a difficult time trying to figure out a synonym for bashes. I wanted someting along the line of hitting something, not shindig. Doh.
All in all a very enjoyable puzzle today.
I especially liked the long clue I'm a Little Teapot. This brought back so many memories of singing with little ones in my pre-school, K and First Grade classes. At the beginning of the school year, we took breaks from sitting and did songs that required motion. I had a whole book of songs, that literally was worn out after my years of teaching.
After several rainy weeks, we are enjoying the most beautiful weather here these last two days. They are skiing in the Sierra as there was a lot of snow in the high country. A very unusual spring for California.
I hope everyone is enjoying their holiday.
Happy Birthday, Eddy B. I hope you are having a wonderful time. I didn't see you at the 500, but I'm like CA, I think I blinked.
What a terrible wreck near the very end of the race. Mike Conway was one lucky fellow to have walked away from that crash.
Dodo said: "I guess I'd better start doing the Sunday one on the net. AT least I can see it, even if it does end up with black triangles from all the typos!"
I agree. I don't like those little triangles. Even though I'm in the minority, I like the LA Times applet for doing the puzzle better than the Across Lite on Cruciverb.
We had a good lunch today at a chain called LA Food Show, a relative of California Pizza Kitchen. Barbara, Bonnie (daughter) and I split an Asian dumpling soup and a great chicken Waldorf salad.
I learned a different version of the teapot song in college. You'd begin it with both hands on hips and sing, "I'm a little teapot, short and stout. Here is my handle, here is my ...? Oh damn, I'm a sugarbowl!"
Hi EddyB. Happy B'day.
Nice post. Thanks to hang up for today.Its little easy and a tricky theme
Crossword Puzzle
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