Theme: Name That Phrase - Common phrases are humorously reinterpreted and clued as if the last word were two people who share the first name.
20A. Robinson and Thomas?: BALLPARK FRANKS. A pair of Major League Baseball players. Frank Robinson is a former player and manager in the 60's and 70's. He was an outfielder, most notably with the Cincinnati Reds and the Baltimore Orioles. He served as the first African-American manager in Major League history and is in the Baseball Hall of Fame.
Recently retired designated hitter and first baseman, Frank Thomas became one of baseball's biggest stars in the 1990s, playing for the Chicago White Sox. Nicknamed "The Big Hurt".
37A. Owens and Henry?: COUPLE OF BUCKS. Buck Owens (1929-2006), was an American singer and guitarist and is a member of the Country Music Hall of Fame and the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame. Owens called Bakersfield, CA, home and pioneered what came to be called the Bakersfield sound.
Buck Henry is an American actor, writer, film director, and television director. Noted for his dry sense of humor, Henry hosted NBC's Saturday Night Live ten times.
54A. Garfunkel and Tatum?: PERFORMING ARTS. "Art" Garfunkel is an American singer, poet, and actor, best known as half of the folk duo Simon & Garfunkel. In particular, he is remembered for being the lead singer on the #1 hit single, "Bridge Over Troubled Water".
"Art" Tatum Jr. (1909 – 1956) was an American jazz pianist and virtuoso and is widely acknowledged as one of the greatest jazz pianists of all time. He was nearly blind. (He also had an encyclopedic memory for Major League Baseball statistics.)
Argyle here.
I had fun doing this puzzle but I had trouble deciding what to call the theme. The first and third phrases can be said to describe the people associated with them but what to do with a COUPLE OF BUCKS. Won't buy ya' much. Maybe I'll let C.C. decide.
A lot of alliteration today. No links today, but feel free to put in your own links. As a group, we have gotten real good at it and always interesting.
Across:
1A. Indiana senator Evan: BAYH.
5A. Half a '60s pop group: MAMAS. And the Papas
10A. News article: ITEM.
14A. Start of a crystal ball user's prediction: "I SEE".
15A. Dedicatee of Beethoven's "Bagatelle in A Minor": ELISE.
16A. Haydn sobriquet: PAPA. "Father of the Symphony" and "Father of the String Quartet", Joseph Haydn (1732 – 1809) was an Austrian composer.
17A. __ monster: lizard: GILA. Poisonous.
18A. Patty Hearst's SLA alias: TANIA. She was abducted by the Symbionese Liberation Army in the 70's.
19A. Landed: ALIT.
23A. Sense of self: EGO.
24A. Poor offering: ALMS.
25A. Skewered fare: KABOB.
27A. "Impossible!": "NO WAY!".
29A. Where the buffalo roam: LEA.
31A. Fruity refreshment: ADE.
32A. Argue: QUARREL.
36A. Passed with flying colors: ACED.
40A. PBS science series: NOVA.
41A. Most corpulent: FATTEST.
42A. Do an impression of: APE.
43A. Jay-Z's genre: RAP.
44A. Point of contention: ISSUE.
48A. City of Light, to Cole Porter: PAREE. Paris.
50A. Memphis middle name: ARON. Memphis was the home of Elvis ARON Presley.
53A. Cease: END.
58A. Lively style: ELAN.
59A. Sylvan setting: WOODS.
60A. Muddy area: MIRE.
61A. Legendary Asian beast: YETI.
62A. Sweden neighbor, to a Swede: NORGE.
63A. Heavy hammer: MAUL.
64A. Let up: EASE.
65A. Marksman's game: SKEET.
66A. Corrida encouragements: OLÉs.
Down:
1D. Nickname of London's Great Bell: BIG BEN. In the clock tower at the north end of the Palace of Westminster in London, England.
2D. Italian region known for its cheese: ASIAGO. We haven't discussed cheese lately.
3D. Brick road color: YELLOW. Some cheese color, too.
4D. Cure: HEAL.
5D. Heavy rock?: METAL. Another musical genre.
6D. Frighten: ALARM.
7D. Weasel cousins: MINKS.
8D. "Yeah, right!": "AS IF!".
9D. Char: SEAR.
10D. Bucky Beaver's toothpaste: IPANA.
11D. Sass, with "to": TALK BACK.
12D. 45-Down parts: EPISODES.
13D. Wrestling surface: MAT.
21D. Settle a debt: PAY UP.
22D. Wanted poster letters: AKA.
26D. Garden plot: BED.
28D. Color similar to robin egg blue: AQUA.
29D. Baseball field?: LEFT. Center and right would be the other two fields.
30D. Hamburg's river: ELBE.
33D. A, in communications: ALFA. Alfa, Bravo, Charlie, etc.
34D. Gather: REAP.
35D. Balderdash: ROT.
36D. Play segments: ACTS.
37D. Bargain for reduced charges: COP A PLEA. In a judicial court. And 43D. Court arbiter: REF. On a sports court.
38D. Pigs out: OVER EATS.
39D. Taking advantage of: USING.
40D. Doze: NAP.
45D. Story published in installments: SERIAL.
46D. Like lies: UNTRUE.
47D. Ford failures: EDSELS.
49D. Ford from Tennessee: ERNIE. But he was a success.
50D. Luigi's love: AMORE. Italian
51D. Mountain feature: RIDGE.
52D. Start: ONSET.
55D. Holds the deed to: OWNS.
56D. Rank-and-file chess piece: ROOK. But it can't move on a diagonal.
57D. Firearm filler: AMMO.
58D. CBS symbol: EYE.
Answer grid.
Argyle
20A. Robinson and Thomas?: BALLPARK FRANKS. A pair of Major League Baseball players. Frank Robinson is a former player and manager in the 60's and 70's. He was an outfielder, most notably with the Cincinnati Reds and the Baltimore Orioles. He served as the first African-American manager in Major League history and is in the Baseball Hall of Fame.
Recently retired designated hitter and first baseman, Frank Thomas became one of baseball's biggest stars in the 1990s, playing for the Chicago White Sox. Nicknamed "The Big Hurt".
37A. Owens and Henry?: COUPLE OF BUCKS. Buck Owens (1929-2006), was an American singer and guitarist and is a member of the Country Music Hall of Fame and the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame. Owens called Bakersfield, CA, home and pioneered what came to be called the Bakersfield sound.
Buck Henry is an American actor, writer, film director, and television director. Noted for his dry sense of humor, Henry hosted NBC's Saturday Night Live ten times.
54A. Garfunkel and Tatum?: PERFORMING ARTS. "Art" Garfunkel is an American singer, poet, and actor, best known as half of the folk duo Simon & Garfunkel. In particular, he is remembered for being the lead singer on the #1 hit single, "Bridge Over Troubled Water".
"Art" Tatum Jr. (1909 – 1956) was an American jazz pianist and virtuoso and is widely acknowledged as one of the greatest jazz pianists of all time. He was nearly blind. (He also had an encyclopedic memory for Major League Baseball statistics.)
Argyle here.
I had fun doing this puzzle but I had trouble deciding what to call the theme. The first and third phrases can be said to describe the people associated with them but what to do with a COUPLE OF BUCKS. Won't buy ya' much. Maybe I'll let C.C. decide.
A lot of alliteration today. No links today, but feel free to put in your own links. As a group, we have gotten real good at it and always interesting.
Across:
1A. Indiana senator Evan: BAYH.
5A. Half a '60s pop group: MAMAS. And the Papas
10A. News article: ITEM.
14A. Start of a crystal ball user's prediction: "I SEE".
15A. Dedicatee of Beethoven's "Bagatelle in A Minor": ELISE.
16A. Haydn sobriquet: PAPA. "Father of the Symphony" and "Father of the String Quartet", Joseph Haydn (1732 – 1809) was an Austrian composer.
17A. __ monster: lizard: GILA. Poisonous.
18A. Patty Hearst's SLA alias: TANIA. She was abducted by the Symbionese Liberation Army in the 70's.
19A. Landed: ALIT.
23A. Sense of self: EGO.
24A. Poor offering: ALMS.
25A. Skewered fare: KABOB.
27A. "Impossible!": "NO WAY!".
29A. Where the buffalo roam: LEA.
31A. Fruity refreshment: ADE.
32A. Argue: QUARREL.
36A. Passed with flying colors: ACED.
40A. PBS science series: NOVA.
41A. Most corpulent: FATTEST.
42A. Do an impression of: APE.
43A. Jay-Z's genre: RAP.
44A. Point of contention: ISSUE.
48A. City of Light, to Cole Porter: PAREE. Paris.
50A. Memphis middle name: ARON. Memphis was the home of Elvis ARON Presley.
53A. Cease: END.
58A. Lively style: ELAN.
59A. Sylvan setting: WOODS.
60A. Muddy area: MIRE.
61A. Legendary Asian beast: YETI.
62A. Sweden neighbor, to a Swede: NORGE.
63A. Heavy hammer: MAUL.
64A. Let up: EASE.
65A. Marksman's game: SKEET.
66A. Corrida encouragements: OLÉs.
Down:
1D. Nickname of London's Great Bell: BIG BEN. In the clock tower at the north end of the Palace of Westminster in London, England.
2D. Italian region known for its cheese: ASIAGO. We haven't discussed cheese lately.
3D. Brick road color: YELLOW. Some cheese color, too.
4D. Cure: HEAL.
5D. Heavy rock?: METAL. Another musical genre.
6D. Frighten: ALARM.
7D. Weasel cousins: MINKS.
8D. "Yeah, right!": "AS IF!".
9D. Char: SEAR.
10D. Bucky Beaver's toothpaste: IPANA.
11D. Sass, with "to": TALK BACK.
12D. 45-Down parts: EPISODES.
13D. Wrestling surface: MAT.
21D. Settle a debt: PAY UP.
22D. Wanted poster letters: AKA.
26D. Garden plot: BED.
28D. Color similar to robin egg blue: AQUA.
29D. Baseball field?: LEFT. Center and right would be the other two fields.
30D. Hamburg's river: ELBE.
33D. A, in communications: ALFA. Alfa, Bravo, Charlie, etc.
34D. Gather: REAP.
35D. Balderdash: ROT.
36D. Play segments: ACTS.
37D. Bargain for reduced charges: COP A PLEA. In a judicial court. And 43D. Court arbiter: REF. On a sports court.
38D. Pigs out: OVER EATS.
39D. Taking advantage of: USING.
40D. Doze: NAP.
45D. Story published in installments: SERIAL.
46D. Like lies: UNTRUE.
47D. Ford failures: EDSELS.
49D. Ford from Tennessee: ERNIE. But he was a success.
50D. Luigi's love: AMORE. Italian
51D. Mountain feature: RIDGE.
52D. Start: ONSET.
55D. Holds the deed to: OWNS.
56D. Rank-and-file chess piece: ROOK. But it can't move on a diagonal.
57D. Firearm filler: AMMO.
58D. CBS symbol: EYE.
Answer grid.
Argyle
82 comments:
Good morning, Argyle, C.C. and gang - normally, I don't get too excited about a Tuesday puzzles, because it's typically a fairly easy and straightforward solve. Not so when it's one of Jerome's. I loved the theme, matter of fact, I laughed out loud when I got 'Ballpark Franks'. The puzzle itself was fairly easy, but the cluing was great.
I have no idea why I remembered it, but 'Ipana' came to mind immediately with the 'Bucky Beaver's toothpaste' clue. That, and 'Brusha Brusha Brusha'. I spelled Patty Hearst's alias as 'Tanya' at first, which took a minute to realize. Needed perps to get 'Papa' Haydn; thanks for the education , Argyle. 'Norge' is one of those words I learned from years of stamp collecting back in the day. And of course, I loved the long down fills.
Jerome, thanks for a fun morning; we need more of your work.
Today is National Missing Children Day.
Morning Argyle, C.C. and the rest.
How wonderful, a week beginning with two of our main men; first a bright John Lampkin, and then BAM (thanks Emeril) a Jerome joyride!
Starting out, I love the MAMAS and the PAPA, and the theme was once again charming, though if you do not know baseball, it may have started slowly. The perps would have helped everyone to get home anyway, but I consider FRANK ROBINSON one of the greatest players of all time, and I believe still the only player to win the MVP in both leagues.
I am sure our country music fans will remember BUCK OWENS, while BUCK HENRY is most famous as writer, who co-wrote the screenplay for THE GRADUATE and co-created GET SMART as well as performing his very dry humor on SNL and with equally crazy STEVE MARTIN .
I am sure we all quickly got ART GARFUNKEL, and should remember the great jazz pianist ART TATUM right JzB?
I enjoyed the diverse six letter stacks in the corners, and the eight letter minis in the opposite corners, all that and only 4 three letter fill.
Thanks JG.
Morning, CC and all. I loved this puzzle. Of course, there were misleading clues. BALLPARK FRANKS made me think of hot dogs, which, of course was the intent.
I never heard of ART TATUM, so was trying to figure out how Tatum O'Neal corresponded to Art Garfunkel. (Yeah, I know that would have been mixing a first name with a surname.)
We saw MAT as a wrestling item recently.
Papa Hayden's dead and gone, but his memory linger on with beautiful music
Ahhhh, aren't they cute. And to think the mink's cousin is such a Weasel.
I would have preferred seeing ALPHA instead of ALFA, but of course the former doesn't fit.
Bucky Beaver was before my time.
I hope Kazie isn't flying on Quantas after reading this article.
QOD: Trying to define yourself is like trying to bite your own teeth. ~ Tennessee Williams.
Good morning Argyle and All, another easy puzzle today. I made a couple of spelling mistakes, but they were easily corrected except for 1A where I had Beyh and not Bayh. The E looked as good as the A to me. Everything else fell into place very quickly. The theme exposed itself very quickly when I got “Ball yard Franks.”
At first I could not decide if the answer to 2A was Mamas or Papas so I had to wait a bit there until I got a down fill. Loved the group back when.
I kept trying to put Norse for 62A and then I saw 51D as ridge and that solved the problem there.
Another busy day outside today as the temps are heading into the 80’s for the remainder of the week. Hot, but beats the he*l out of snow.
Hope you all have a great Tuesday.
Good Morning Argyle, CC and All,
What a great puzzle! Excellent clues with just enough twist. My biggest snag was Rep instead of Ref. Thinking of a lawyer as a rep. Pawn for Rook since there are only two rooks. Not much of a chess player. New the Franks but only recognized Art Tatum and Buck Henry. I remember watching Buck Owens on Hee Haw. Great puzzle Jerome!
We're having summer weather here. It's been really nice. Hope it holds through the weekend. My wife's family is having a picnic this weekend. Seven kids on her side and a million cousins! Quite a happening in farm country.
Thanks for the write up Argyle. Informative as usual.
Have a great day!
FYI RE 43D, A REFEREE IS ALSO AN ATTORNEY APPOINTED TO ARBITRATE LEGAL MATTERS. IT'S NOT ABOUT SPORTS.
Pretty easy puzzle again today. 14 minutes to finish. Clever theme.
Looks like a great Tuesday puzzle, Jerome. I'll find out for certain later in the week when it arrives in my mailbox.
Nice write up as ever, Argyle, although I've trained my brain and eyes to skim the clues so none of it sticks. Most of my teachers and my first wife would agree that I am capable of doing that. She once said she thought I only asked for advice so I'd know what not to do.
But I really logged on to say that there was also an earlier major league baseball player name Frank Thomas. I believe he played mostly for the Pirates. In 1957, I paid $19.95 of my own money for the Frank Thomas signature model glove. Only those of a certain age (and certainly not Hahtool) will know how much that was.
In 1992, after doing a lot of damage over the years playing in a softball league, I sent the glove to the Glove Doctor in Oakland, California and had it rebuilt for $56. It now only appears at family reunions, where I play ball with the kids (no softballs allowed) while the 40-somethings sit on their fat asses on the air conditioned porch.
And Hahtool, of course you don't know Bucky Beaver, you are just a kid, or as Dennis might say, a young thing.
Anyone care to join me in the hay field today?
I always get Ipana confused with The Girl from Ipanema
I'm a little rusty I guess that happens when you get out of practice.
Windhover, you are too kind!
pebbles said@ 6:16 AM
FYI RE 43D, A REFEREE IS ALSO AN ATTORNEY APPOINTED TO ARBITRATE LEGAL MATTERS. IT'S NOT ABOUT SPORTS.
It can be but they don't have to be attorneys. And it can be about sports.
Let's see what Lemonade714 has to say.
Morning, all!
Bit more challenging than yesterday's puzzle, but still not too bad. Part of the challenge was that, while I grokked the theme early on, I didn't actually know who most of the people in the theme answers were.
The other challenging bit was the SW corner. I needed every single crossing to get COPAPLEA. I just had a hard time parsing the clue and the more letters I filled in the less correct it looked.
The rest of the puzzle was nice and smooth, although I don't think I will ever remember Evan BAYH's last name...
Good morning all!
Great puzzle today, though as predicted, not being either a sports or country music fan, didn't realize the theme until the ARTS, which gave me the theme immediately, and I knew the others would be names so got them too.
Also had some trouble in the north because I had to divorce SCARE for ALARM before all the others would work. And I wanted QUIBBLE for QUARREL at first. Otherwise, smooth sailing.
I love ASIAGO cheese. I think it's better than parmesan in a lot of things.
I was thinking about a walk before the heat sets in again this morning, but now thunder is rumbling around I have an excuse to do my final packing instead.
WH,
I don't envy your job in the hay today at all. My DH grew up on a farm where he helped with haying a few times after we moved back here, and it looked like a horrible hot job to me (a city slicker), but he said he loved it. Nostalgia I guess.
QANTAS is a wonderful airline, great friendly service always and a good safety record (Remember the Rainman quote?). But they're a bit more expensive than most, and I'm flying United from here this time because that was the best deal when I booked it.
My trip to the NT is on Qantas, however, so I was glad to see they don't recycle the plastic utensils on those flights. The name BTW, relates to its original routes: Queensland and Northern Territory Air Service.
Good morning Argyle and all. Great puzzle Jerome. Thank you.
Enjoyed today's opus. Not difficult but well-clued. No searches needed. Perps helped with the theme fills. ELISE was a WAG; IPANA just flew into my brain.
ARON - What else could a Memphis middle name be?
NORGE - I knew our constructor's Norwegianness would come out somewhere.
Hamburg an der ELBE - Views of the harbor with the Hamburg Lotsenchor (ship's) Pilot Chorus
Tschüß
Nice puzzle, Jerome! Argyle, lets' see what we can do about some links.
Draem A Little Dream of Me, and Fur Elise, and Gila Monster and Papa Haydn and Tania and that's enough!
Ipana was a blast from the past!
Letter phonetic letter
A Alpha (not ALFA!)
B Bravo
C Charlie
D Delta
E Echo
F Foxtrot
G Golf
H Hotel
I India
J Juliet
K Kilo
L Lima
M Mike
N November
O Oscar
P Papa
Q Quebec
R Romeo
S Sierra
T Tango
U Uniform
V Victor
W Whiskey
X X-ray
Y Yankee
Z Zulu
Kazie, we have a local bakery that makes an asiago cheese bread! Can't keep it in the house because it so darn good! I had QUIBBLE as well and had to adjust.
Happy Tuesday, all.
Kazie:
It's my second favorite job on the farm. The other
is mostly rainy day and evening work.
Argyle, Great write-up, yet again!
The themes were good, three seemed sparse.
Yesterday NYT led to a CheeseBurger lunch. Today I think I'll have some BALLPARK FRANKS.
ELISE I only know through crosswords but I entered it knowingly.
Liked seeing the PAPA showing up with the MAMAS.
YELLOW brick road is the one I like to follow.
ROOK was clever since they move on the "Rank & File" (Up & Down and Sideways/Across).
Alpha, Bravo, Charlie ... ALFA though is how it sounds.
EDSELS plural seemed a stretch.
Nothing new or learned but a FUN Tuesday.
I thought I was in trouble when I had to hit the g-spot for 1-across., Bayh (I hate doing that). But after I got that little jump start I was able to pick my way through the puzzle. Not being a baseball fan in the least I didn’t know Frank Robinson or Frank Thomas but with some help from the perps was able to confindently put in “ball park franks”. Very clever, but I don’t recommend that brand of hot dog. You really don’t want to know why they “plump when you cook them”. I knew a couple of bucks (Owens and Henry) and also knew the performing arts – well at least Garfunkel. Most of my perp help interestingly enough were “E” words. Elise, Elbe, and Ernie. I got Ipana from the song Jan sang in Grease. brusha, brusha, brusha. Thanks Jerome for a very fun puzzle today. I always enjoy your work.
Kazie, enjoy your fabulous trip! I just know you will have a fantastic time. Will you be able to see any relatives?
Windhover, I’d throw hay with you any day as long as your pond is a good place to cool off.
Re: NATO @ 9:16
Alfa is also correct and is used by the Navy. See Task Group ALFA. (Your humble avatar with self aboard is 2nd ship in left column.)
From Wiki:
Alfa (ICAO, ITU, IMO, FAA)
Alpha (ANSI)
That was a fun puzzle, both the theme and the fill. There were a lot of words I don't remember seeing in a puzzle before.
Spitzboov
I figure ALFA had to be right also since they do check this stuff.
How many times have we seen a comment: "Is xyz really a word?"
When I lived in Zagreb one of the first words I learned in Croatian was Fala (Thank you) yet it was spelled Havla, go figure.
The NYT today was the easiest ever. But it did have shout-outs to ARGYLE, EDDY and WH (with BALE).
Hi all -
I had fun with this one too....I also spelled 18A as TANYA but realized my goof up after I got 8D. (still not used to 'as if').
29A had me going for a while, thought of OK and Lois but no go there.
10D Loved seeing ol' Bucky Beaver again! Hated that toothpaste!!! Geez, the stuff tasted like soap to me, and since it was always on sale (I wonder why-LOL) my Dad always bought it. I noticed that HE used the Colgate tooth POWDER though). Anyone remember toothpowder? Do they still make that? I would think it would be very abrasive.
Loved the long clues/answers..great job Jerome! 37A had me going for a minute...didn't know those guys were 'bucks'... :0
Tinbeni, you forgot Jeannie with kabobs. Here is a very flavor filled kabob recipe.
Moroccan Chicken Kabobs
1 ¼ lbs of uncooked boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into 1-inch cubes
Marinade:
Juice from ½ of an orange
½ tsp ground coriander
½ tsp ground ginger (I use the fresh root grated)
½ tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp ground cumin
1 clove of garlic minced fine
½ tsp salt
½ tsp fresh ground pepper
1 red pepper cut in chunks
1 yellow pepper cut in chunks
1 lg sweet onion cut in chunks
1 lb of small button mushrooms (optional Dennis)
Marinate the chicken overnight in the marinade and skewer the chicken alternating with the veggies. Cook on the grill on medium heat turning the kabobs every 10 min cooking on all four sides. I serve this with rice or cous cous.
Jeannie, your blondness is showing...Tinbeni said the NYT puzzle not this one had shout outs.
Good mornin' all. Thanks for the positive comments! I look so much better with a grin on my mug.
Quarrel, Quibble, Quarter, Quality, and others, I tried them all. Man, that area of the grid gave me fits. That center section took as much time as the rest of the puzzle.
COP A PLEA. Simple, well-known phrase, but hard to get no matter what the clue. I can see why it might be troublesome, but it was my favorite fill word. OLES... I won't bring that up. Or the Navajo Rug Award.
Spitzboov- Thanks. Some folks love the 'Gotcha!' game. Fact is there's tons of backup support for ALFA as a communications code word for A.
Dennis- You might have more of my puzzles if I wasn't going through writer's block. I feel like a batter in a .190 slump. Any ideas, coach?
Sure -- more, uh, dalliance. Gets everything reenergized.
Of course, that's my same answer for most things...
Good morning everyone. A very enjoyable puzzle, Jerome, and nice write-up, Argyle. Thx.
Lemonade, I believe you are correct. Frank Robinson appears to be the only baseball player to have won the MVP in both leagues: 1961 Cincinnati Reds (NL) and 1966 Baltimore Orioles (AL). Great player, so-so manager.
Mamas and Papas - one of the all-time great 60's groups. Crockett, your clip honored Mama Cass Elliott, clearly the best voice of the group. Here's I Saw Her Again (Last Night) highlighting the group's wonderful three-part harmony.
Jerome, a 16A clue "JOHN PHILLIPS OR DENNY DOHERTY" for PAPA would certainly have been too obscure, but "I can dream, can't I?"
Evan Bayh's father, Birch Bayh, was also Indiana's senator for 18 years. To continue the baseball theme, a clue of BIRCH AND EVAN BAYH could be filled with INDIANA SENATORS, which would have to be better than those dreadful Washington Senators.
Lots of fun. Have a great day, all.
Dennis:
If you were my doctor I would never ask for a second opinion.
Jeannie:
Come on in, the water is fine.
Jerome, good to see another puzzle from you! 37A was my favorite fill COUPLE OF BUCKS, along with YELLOW BRICK ROAD – reminding me of my father in several ways – thanks for that.
The only problem I had was 62A NORGE, but the perp finally gave me the G.
6D Frighten: ALARM BTW, if anyone is looking at alarm systems, please steer clear of the company Pinnacle! I hope nobody here works for them, but my dealings with them really have been most ‘frightening’, or annoying to say the least.
@Jerome: I love this Name Game play.
Good morning. My meager puzzle skills, don't allow me to add to puzzle commentary but,Buck Owens came up in a newspaper cartoon this week. Beethoven woke up screaming from a nightmare, where he envisioned the evolution of music. His cartoon bubble had in it Buck Owens, and Roy Clark on Hee Haw just a picken' and a grinnin'! Good Day
DALLIANCE. Should I CALL DIANE?
Good Morning All, A terrific Tuesday puzzle for Jerome, lots of solving fun.
I worked the Downs first, which made the theme answers pop out pretty easily, even though I wasn't too sure of the baseball playing FRANKS.
Of course when I got to 51D "Mountain feature" I confidently put in ARETE. A little crossword knowledge is a dangerous thing!
I liked the cross of SEAR and BALL PARK FRANKS. I like hot dogs a little charred on the BBQ, rather than just boiled.
Was there a "Chubby" subtheme with BALL PARK FRANKS..."They plump when you cook 'em!", OVEREATS and FATTEST?
Kofaxmaravich, Not obscure at all, "Phillips or Doherty" would have been a good one for PAPA. Less difficult than "Robinson and Thomas" for me. Thanks for the link, one of my favorite M & P songs.
No real problem with reusing plastic utensils that Quantas has had professionally cleaned/sterilized. I've been in too many restaurants where I've had to ask for replacement metal utensils because of dried on food. I once knew a guy who brought his own utensils to restaurants. Everyday life can be gross!
GAH and I are planning a New Zealand trip in October. We'll be flying Air New Zealand, which has an excellent safety record. (Ok, there was that one time in 1979.....) I'll have to check about their utensils.
Uh Oh! Dr. Dennis?!!
Good day, Argyle, C.C. and puzzlers.
Ole, Ole, Ole, Jerome!
Seeing your hame on this puzzle made my heart sing; I knew it would be fun, and was!
Not being any kind of sports fan I did not know anything about either Robinson or Thomas, but "ball park franks" was funny enough. I knew it must their first names.
Hand up for knowing Tania, but spelling it with a y, Tanya and also recalling Ipana. We actually had that discussion not too long ago.
Another hand for holding out to see if "mamas" or "papas" would emerge; it quickly did.
I love Simon and Garfunkel, so Art was a given. Didn't readily recall Art Tatum.
Asiago also fell easily because I love cheese, almost any kind (read Limburger here). Casera is a favorite.
This was great fun. Thank you Jerome.
Basesball field? left: clever clue
I'll link later.
You all have a wonderful, lovely Tuesday!
Hi everybody.
Lovely puzzle today, enjoyed it immensely. When I do them, I like to take my time, do them slowly, and savor each entry. Even so far as to go back and read the clues for words that I filled in only from the perps.
Try as I might, I don't get LEA for "Where the buffalo roam." I'm sure as soon as one of you explains it, I'll go "D'oh!"
I got PERFORMINGARTS first, which helped me quickly get the other name pairs. Very clever! I love this stuff!
I knew Papa Haydn right off the bat, as I did Elise, as Beethoven's piece is better known as "Für Elise" (for Elise). Baseball clues clobber me, though, as I know virtually nothing, nothing I tell you!, about baseball or any sport for that matter.
NORGE I got for the same reason Dennis did: from stamp collecting. LOL, I also remember Norge being the brand name of a washing machine.
Best wishes to you all.
Mainiac, God forbid.
BUT...if I was, you know what type of doctor I'd be.
Good morning Argyle, CC, et al., Interesting puzzle. At first I thought it was going to be a real head banger but then a perp or two would fall into place and the whole section would fill.
Carol and I were on the same wavelength. For 29A, I wanted OKL but it didn't work. If there is a 'lea' in Ok, it's for the cows. No self respectin' buffalo would ever touch a lea let alone roam on one.
For 37D, I wanted 'cop a feel' which didn't work at all but it made me laugh.
Now, as Dennis "said" (but not 'indicated'), a little 'amore' in 'bed' and even better perhaps one that is located in 'paree' would help 'heal' the 'onset' of writer's (or rider's) block. Where there is "no will", there is 'no way'. So put an 'end' to those negative thoughts and start enjoying the better 'end' of the 'performing arts'. In addition, the 'ego' surely 'wood' also improve and may even 'end' up being the size of 'big Ben', which, on second thought, could lead to yet another 'issue'.
Maybe we should just settle for one the size of a 'ball park frank'. It's all good.
Hello, everyone!
Just motoring along, doing the puzzle, when I got hit between the eyes with an old memory.
When I was a kid in the fifties, I had very prominent front teeth. The other kids called me Bucky Beaver. So, 10D brought me up short. I'd completely forgotten. I guess I wasn't scarred for life by the name-calling. I did remember Ipana, though.
Otherwise, a very pleasant time filling in the puzzle. Lots of fun.
Going down to the Aullwood creek with the kid today. Wonderful way to while away a hot afternoon.
Have a great day, y'all!
Peace.
Okay, I figured LEA out. Thanks!
Jerome:
I'm two weeks behind in solving the LA Times puzzles, but when i saw your name on today's puzzle I jumped you to the head of the line.And I'm glad I did, you gave us a most enjoyable puzzle! I absolutely loved your theme! Every theme answer put a smile on my face. Your clues were clever and your fill was solid. I really liked NOWAY and "Baseball field?": LEFT.
Jerome, when I get writer's block I pull out a big pile of solved crosswords and go thru the themes until my brain starts percolating. I call it priming the pump. Or I'll pull out a crossword puzzle dictionary or a thesaurus and go thru them until something clicks. Eventually I start spinning off new ideas, but sometimes it can take a couple of days before I come up with something really usable.
Hi gang -
Jerome -
Great, fun puzzle. Blocked or not, you da man! Got a smile from NORGE - very cool (so to speak.)
I had a start with the 5A, though. Oh, no, you've got the Tse tse syndrome?!? Instead, you pulled off what I didn't think was possible - a legitimate "half a" clue. Turns out I didn't have a clue. Kudos, amigo.
I also had PAWN for ROOK, before I sussed the clue. And you got me with AKA. I had DOA.
MAMMAS, but only one PAPA.
MAUL is a noun you don't see every day.
Tinbeni -
I'm pretty sure "xyz" is not a word.
When I was in the 8th grade, one of the first girls to exhibit some curvature also had a bit of an overbite. We called her "Bucky Beaver" as children will do. Seems mean, in retrospect. No DF intended.
Lemonade -
Tatum was truly one of a kind - and my Toledo home boy.
Places to go, things to do, people to see. Busy, busy day.
IMBO.
JzB who OWNS 4 trombones and a euphonium
gloom despair and agony on me....
was reminded today of the worst trade in red's history!(frank robinson for milt pappas) i was too young to be broken hearted over it, but my grandpa would remind me of it for years as we rested after working in the garden. "the reds said frank was an old 30...he won the triple crown the next year and a couple of world series."
i guess the silver lining is the memory of my grandpa....who is responsible for all my early baseball knowledge(and tomato knowledge).
dennis: what about the problem "doctor, it's hurts when i do this?"
'Don't do that.'
Damn, I gotta get a license.
Hello All--Today's puzzle was a tad harder than usual for a Tuesday, however, I made it that way by misspelling Tani(y)a and Mau(w)l and putting in Obesest for Fattest. I'm not sure that Obesest is even a proper word! I finally did finish with corrections as the perps filled in.
I've been catching up on the blog for the weekend. I did do the puzzles, and wanted to verify my answers.
Our grandson's graduation was wonderful. We are truly proud grandparents. There is something to the saying that our "hearts were full."
Welcome back Southern Belle, and welcome in, Mike L. Good to see you both.
Also, Bon Voyage to Kazie and Eddie.
I'll have to catch up on today's blog later on as I'm trying to catch up on the chores here at home.
Good afternoon puzzle people,
Good Tuesday puzzle, Jerome! The theme emerged after I changed 'ballpark figure' to 'ballpark franks' and noticed that two Arts were in the clue for 54A.
I liked your links, Hahtool. The mink was adorable, but I though the weasel was pretty darn cute too. Haydn might be "dead and gone" now, but it appears that quite some time elapsed before his parts reunited. The bit in your link about Brahms seeking inspiration from Haydn's head on his desk made me ponder whose noggin might offer me inspiration. Haven't come up with an answer - seems almost comically macabre.
A chilly 53 degrees and overcast. Gloomy, but I prefer it to the 90's anyday! (I think the garden does too.)
Heard this month: If April showers bring May flowers, what do May flowers bring?
(smirgliP :A)
OtB
pilgrims!
doctor? i was hoping for something along the lines of your earlier diagnosis!! something like "you're doing it wrong..try it this way"
Otis:
June weddings.
January births.
or,
Good times, bad times,
You know I had my share. *
Apologies to Led Zepp, et al.
Since it's 'all about me', my immediate thought on seeing 1A and the theme clues is that Jerome had it in for me. I got the BALLPARK part quickly, so decided it had to be a sports theme. I fixated on Terrell Owens And Chad 'Ochocinco' Henry. I never got to Buck even though I was in the Crystal Palace last week. When I got the answer filled, I was thinking that they had to be NBA Bucks.
Hand up for Tatum O'Neal. She's the only Tatum I know. And for Quibble. And Tanya. But COP A PLEA came immediately and I, too, don't have a clue what ancient memory IPANA came from.
My Scottish half must be dominant over the Swede, I thought of Norse and Norde before I finally got that fill.
LEA was 100% perps. I didn't read the clue until I got here and read some of the comments. I figured it was someone's name.
Jerome, the having it in for me part is just an attempt at humor. My paper doesn't list authors. Have you any suggestions on what we could do to change that? 1. You guys deserve the credit for what you do. 2. It really could affect the approach we solvers take. OH, did I remember to say I loved your work? Dally a bunch, we need that block gone.
If you read the Gila monster article through, it says the venom causes intense pain and improves memory. I'm pretty sure I can remember not to touch one without that treatment.
Thanks, all, for the discussion on ALFA. It was my one QUIBBLE until I got here, even though it did get me QUARREL.
The Hog is calling before the rain arrives.
"See" you in a month, Kazie. Enjoy your trip
Sorry, Chickie, it's 'most obese'.
Otis - ALLERGIES!!
SNH - The Doc was right. Your desired answer is the response given to "It hurts when I do IT like this."
gunghy: you are right...i could blame it all on a typo.
btw, all of this made me think of john cougar mellankamp. you know...c'mon baby make it hurt so good...
I know the feeling.
Gunghy- Dally I will, if the tally will rally.
Puzzle author's byline- When Rich prepares the puzzles for syndication he sends them with the name of the writer. Why some editors on the receiving end omit the name is a mystery. I urge you to email the editor of your local paper and request the crossword author be given credit. I've a sense that some editors think the puzzles are computer generated and not actually crafted in the mind of a real, live human being. I'm positive they don't realize that many solvers have favorite authors and would like to know, rather than guess, who wrote the puzzle.
Please write. You'll be doing a good turn for the constructing. community.
@Dennis,
Absolutely no question in my mind!
I wish I was born a bit smarter and attended Med School.
Gunghy, thanks,I knew obesest wasn't a real word, but it fit for a while!!
Fattest was too easy.
We did have the Ipana discussion a while back. It wasn't everyone's favorite toothpaste. I'm with you Carol. I think is was soapy tasting. Not a good thing when you are trying to get your kids to do a good job of brushing.
We have rain and more cold weather here today. I envy those nice spring temperatures, but I know the minute we get something up in the 90's we'll complain again. We're never satisfied.
Season finale, NCIS, just a reminder.
Even though we did not know most of the people, we managed to do the whole puzzle unassisted. Lea was the last fill. We went up North for the weekend to celebrate our 58th anniversary. Stayed at a wonderful
B & B. Also, visited out son and DIL. Great weekend even though it was in the 90's. I had taken along the Saturday CW but gave up on it pretty quickly since I had neither a dictionary nor an Internet to help me.
Have great trips, Eddie and Kazie. We will miss you. Although I've done it several times in the past, just thinking about leaving home for a month seems very daunting.
Congrats, Jerome, on a good puzzle.
Dot
New word (for me) learned on Who Wnats to be a Millionaire?
kerf: a slot made by a saw or torch in carpentry
I expect to see this in a future xwd or used in Scrabble.
I've really enjoyed the links, especially Steve Martin and Buck Henry. LOL
Jerome, You do make a good puzzle!
This one was lots of fun. I'm sure you'll be whipping them out soon; that block can't last very long, whatever the docs say. You know they all think they're God.
Hand up for Tanya. Are we sure that wasn't the way the news spelled it at the time?
Boy, if you're not into baseball and mid-20th century pop music, might as well forget everything but the perps. I'd never get any of these theme phrases if I didn't have them lil helpers! Got through it in short order, though, even in my ignorance!
Good hearing from you, Dot. You and I are pretty much contemporaries and I think we do pretty well, that being the case.The only name I knew was Art Garfunkel, but I got the answer before I looked at the clue. I wonder how well some of our younger friends would do with the Big Band and Jazz age.
Jerome, Mike L. and some of you other newbies, couldn't you at least tell us where you hail from? Jere, I'm not Norse but I come from Norse country and 'Gunderson' was once a neighborly sound, along with Jorgenson, Kjerstad, Bergquist, Lunseth, Bjornstad,and on and on and on!
dodo, I checked, and sure enough, it was spelled 'Tania'. I'd have thought the same as you and most everybody else that it was 'Tanya'. Live and learn.
Kaz, have a wonderful, fun-filled time, and be sure to take lots of pictures so we can go there vicariously.
Lucina, I think we've actually seen 'kerf' before, unless I'm thinking of another puzzle. Gang?
Further on 'Tania': Patty Hearst adopted the name because she was "inspired by the nom de guerre of Haydee Tamara Bunke Bider, Che Guevara's comrade". Not sure I see the connection between the two names, but there it is.
Jerome I've got your key word for your next puzzle; guaranteed to end your block. Plunk this one in the center and work out from there: CRWTH. Yeap, its a word!!
Haydee Tamara Bunke Bider most often went by her nick-name: Tania. Too tired to link again.
5 and out.
WH mentioned kerf when talking about his Wood Miser. Comments
Ooh, I thought Argyle said Final Season of NCIS. Big night for TV. Also, NCIS LA (good though not as good), The Good Wife, Lakers, Dodgers and UP, the Pixar film. Thank goodness for DVRs.
Jerome, if you're looking for a theme, maybe you could do something working foofaraw, kerfuffle, hoohaw, hubbub, etc. into a puzzle.
A throughly enjoyable puzzle; it went much better than Monday's. I rarely notice the theme, but this time I saw it and also made good use of it! A big THANK YOU to Jerome!
I was pleased to see that "Big Ben" was clued as the name of the bell; it is not the name of the clock.
Dick -- I had the same question about 5A Half of a 60's pop group. I knew the group, but which half? I put in the two A's and the S, which were sufficient to lead me to answers for 6 and 9D.
Looking at 15A Beethoven's dedicatee -- I hadn't heard of it by that designation. But I already had _L__E, and Elise jumped up and waved at me. The title is "Fur Elise". A simple but elegant piano piece, one of my daughter's practice pieces when she was in grade School.
That done, I looked at 5D Heavy Rock. With Papa Haydn and Beethoven, I was thinking music, and "Heavy Metal" came to mind. With that, 5A had to be MAMAS.
16A Haydn Sobriquet -- once I remembered what the second word meant, I instantly wrote PAPA.
Manic -- enjoy the summer weather! Here in San Jose, we're having February weather: cloudy and intermittent rain.
BarryG -- I also had trouble with 1A senator Evan's last name. I had B_YH from the perps. My big new crossword dictionary didn't have the name of 2D Italian cheese region. I picked up my well-worn 1959 crossword dictionary and found ASIAGO.
Otis -- in Wisconsin, we used to say: May flowers bring June Bugs (referring to a particular local beetle). We didn't know enough bug-ology to know that it was actually a beetle. Bug or beetle, they came in nightly droves, attracted to the lights in the business district. By late evening, they literally covered the sidewalks.
Lucina- Kerf is a very common word among us carpenters. If I had a hundred bucks for every kerf cut I've made I could hang up my hammer and have a whole lot more beers.
Gunghy- OK, the ball's in your court. You create the CRWTH theme and I'll do the fill and clueing.
dodo- Grandparents are from Norway. Parents born in North Dakota. I was born in Berkeley California. Live in Healdsburg, Ca. North of San francisco about an hour's drive.
Dennis- Poor Patty. Little rich girl got caught with her pants down. Money buys the best of justice.
And to all, one more thanks! Big time!
I asked a 6 year old and he said that "Mayflowers bring Pilgrims." So there you have the definitive answer.
Kazie: He also said, "Will that lady get a headache from being upside down so long?" He has a computerized globe and knows where Australia is.
Perhaps you should take some aspirin :)
The long answers were clever today. I still think it takes some sort of genius to have such a theme and still fit the grid...plus write the clues. Favorite: Italian cheese region "asiago" simply because it`s so much fun to say! I used to sass my Mom with words like
"so retarded" to which she would say, "I`ll so your retarded!" I wish I could sass her with "asiago" just to hear her say "I`ll asi your ahgo (sic)."
Happy Anniversary, Dot and Irv. Glad you had a nice celebration with family.
Jerome, it amazes me how many people on this blog have North Dakota roots. Where were your parents from originally (if I may ask)?
The puzzle was most enjoyable, especially all the musical clues.
Missed the first 1/2 hour of NCIS finale. Could someone fill me in PLEASE??? Thanks.
Noooooo -- I had to record it - won't be able to see it until tomorrow.
The Norge reference and comments about the Norwegians reminds me of the discussion of a couple of weeks ago about Syttende Mai. Someone said if I went to the celebration I should eat some Norwegian food for them. I did not get there on the 17th but last Saturday we ate lunch at the Norsk Nook in Osseo, WI where they serve Lefse wraps with Norwegian meat balls, as well as other meals with Lefse. If you're ever travelling that way its worth the little detour to eat there - but be sure to save room for pie!
Dot
Liz- My father was born in Cooperstown N.D. My mother, Valley City. For some reason that none of my brothers or my other sisters can understand, one of my sisters, a native Californian, decided thirty years ago that going back to her 'roots' would be cool. She lives in Valley City, freezes her butt off all winter and bitches about the heat and humidity in the summer. In the Fall she's grumpy about Winter coming and in the Spring she's pissed because Summer is on the way. Yet she loves North Dakota. I've been there twice. I vowed that I'd shove a shovel up my nose before there would be a third time.
Jerome, all I know about North Dakota I learned from "Fargo". I assume you've seen the movie. Enjoyed it? Well, maybe not enjoyed it so much as appreciated the art form? I thought it was spectacular though I would have a tough time watching some of the unpleasant parts again.
Go Lakers! Go NCIS!
Thanks again to all the well wishers.
ARBAON,
I have a dish towel somewhere showing the world map from an aussie perspective. I must take a photo of it sometime to show you. It looks pretty strange with all the maps upside down and the southern hemisphere on the top.
However, my headache is more likely to come from the time en route. I just figured tonight, that from the time I board the first plane in Madison (1:45 pm) until I get off in Sydney (6:25 am local time Friday) will take a total of 25.67 hours including airport time and flights.
If I don't have time before leaving to call in tomorrow, have a great month everyone, and I'll try to call in sometime.
Bill G- "Fargo" is one of my all-time favorite movies. However, it reminds me of just how far the Viking heritage has turned to a wimpy characature. Think of the husband. What a spineless punk. Heaven forbid, it reminds me of my uncles that wore wool caps with flaps that covered their ears because it was cold. Give me, please, the bravest explorers history has ever known rather than wheat farmers with a winter sniffle that's agitating.
Jerome:
Somehow I had a feeling you would know "kerf" since you had mentioned being involved in carpentry. I find it a quirky, interesting word; words are one of my passions.
NCIS, like CSI Thursday, left us with a cliffhanger. Something to anticipate next season.
You all have a restful good night!
Kazie, again, Bon Voyage!
Hi,
I like answers to the "What do May flowers bring?" posted here better than the answer I was given when told the joke!!! The original answer (I wrote it backwards) was Pilgrims - a groaner that came from a friend who works in elementary schools. Told my sister recently (she's a teacher, nearing 20 years), and I had to explain it to her. Made me laugh as I watched the rain this week.
'Night.
Otis
Argyle, you have an amazingly acute memory! I don't even recall reading that, although I am sure I did. Thanks.
BillG, If all you know about N. Dak. you learned from Fargo, it's not much since the movie was really about Minnesota, as you probably know. I loved the movie mainly because of the accents!
Jerome, I was born and raised in Grand Forks, went to UND and then split! But it looks lots better now than it did in the 30s and 40s when I lived there.
Dot, I never liked lefse much but I adored fattjeman (sp?). Whoever commented on the humidity must have hit a strange weather cycle. It was always very dry in 'olden tymes'. Little chilly in winter, though.
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