google.com, pub-2774194725043577, DIRECT, f08c47fec0942fa0 L.A.Times Crossword Corner: Friday July 30, 2010 Ron and Nancy Byron

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Jul 30, 2010

Friday July 30, 2010 Ron and Nancy Byron

Theme: Brrr! - R is added after B in each two-word B-starting familiar phrase, which then goes through a spelling change, but maintains the same vowel sound.

18A. Short-lived agitation? : BRIEF STEW. The base phrase is beef stew. Long E sound remains the same after the transformation, from EE combination to IE. BEAD/BREAD wouldn't work due to 1) same letter combination; 2) sound change.

24A. Government security for the blind? : BRAILLE BOND. Bail bond. Does Playboy really have a Braille version? Long A sound. With AI combination.

34A. Places to buy orthopedic products? : BRACE STATIONS. Base stations. Dennis said "A base station typically has satellite stations, but it's the hub". Long A sound also. Just letter A. Different from the above AI combination.

50A. Reserved section for an eight-time stolen base champ? : BROCK'S SEATS. Box seats. Hall of Famer Lou Brock. I was unaware of his stolen base record. Short O. Serious changes on this one, including the unexpected X to CK'S transformation.

56A. Place with thugs in tents? : BRUTE CAMP. Boot camp. oo sound.

What other vowel reconstruction can you think of? I came up with long I: Bide Time. Bride Time. But it has a verb phrase to noun phrase change. Not really fit the above before & after both noun phrase pattern. Besides, it has no spelling modification.

A themeless-like 72 words, with the average word length 5.31. By comparison, last Friday's Donna Levin "Hat Pun" has an average length of 4.97. I suppose some of the scrabbly letters (J, Q, V, X & Z) will return tomorrow. None today.

Favorite clue today is IN A SLUMP (38D. Making out too much lately). Making "out" in baseball. I was picturing kissing "make out".

Across:

1. Like volcanoes : CONIC. Are all volcanoes cone-shaped?

6. John follower : ACTS. Bible book after John.

10. IRS workers : AGTS. CPAS popped into my mind first.

14. Item of rodeo gear : RIATA

15. K follower : MART. Thought of LMNO, but then the clue would be plural "K followers". I like the "follower' echo.

16. Qatar University city : DOHA

17. Cold : ALGID. Real word.

20. Blues legend Smith : BESSIE. Wikipedia says she's referred to as "The Empress of the Blues". Stranger to me.

22. Una y __ vez: time and time again : OTRA. Only know it means "other" in Spanish.

23. Alley prowler : TOM. Short for tomcat?

26. Rahm Emanuel's talent agent brother : ARI. The "Entourage" agent Ari Gold is based on him. Minor agent & AGT (10A) duplication.

27. Ballpark fig. : EST (Estimate)

28. Flee : LAM. Yeah, lam can be a verb.

29. Whale's blowhole, e.g. : NOSTRIL. Didn't come to me readily.

31. "I'll have a grande decaf triple vanilla 2% __, please" : LATTE

33. "Earth's Children" series author : AUEL (Jean)

39. Toast opening, across the pond : 'ERE'S. "Here's to...". The H sound is dropped in Cockney dialect. Safe traveling across the pond, Barry G!

40. Bluebirds, to some : OMENS. Omen of what?

41. Stand-up guys? : NO-SHOWS. Was thinking of the stand-up comedian. There should not be a dash between "stand" and "up", even with the question mark, correct?

45. Part of un giorno : ORA. "Hour" in Italy. Giorno = Day. Unknown to me.

46. "Buy __ drink?": bar come-on : ME A

49. Ring stat : TKO

53. Sushi selection : EEL. Yummy!

54. Vintner's prefix : OENO. As in oenophile.

55. American Society of Magazine Editors annual awards : ELLIES. Whom is it named after?

59. Extreme : ULTRA

60. Software test version : BETA

61. "Hooked on Classics" record co. : K-TEL. New to me.

62. Spiteful sort : MEANY. Meanie also.

63. Paradise : EDEN

64. '60s-'70s Japanese leader : SATO (Eisaku). Japan's prime minister from 1964-1972. Nobel Peace Prize winner 1974. I can never remember his name.

65. Jimmies : PRIES

Down:

1. Actor who was a 1932 swimming gold medalist : CRABBE (Buster). Tarzan actor. Another stranger to me.

2. Former Texas team : OILERS. Houston Oilers. Now Tennessee Titans. Who knows? Not I! Don't even watch the Vikings.

3. Pesters : NAGS AT

4. "Who's there?" answer : IT IS I

5. Lincoln rival : CADILLAC. Awesome fill.

6. Dipl. official : AMB (Ambassador)

7. Tree pod also called the locust bean : CAROB. I peeked at the answer sheet.

8. Neptune's largest moon : TRITON. So many moons are named after Greek gods.

9. Canned heat : STERNO. On the buffet table.

10. Some pop-ups : ADS

11. "No time to talk now" : GOTTA RUN. Love this entry.

12. Conjectures : THEORIES. Always use "conjecture" as verb.

13. Board producer : SAWMILL. Fresh entry.

19. They don't last : FADS. Good clue.

21. Make ecstatic : ELATE

25. Initial response team, for short : EMTS

30. New Mexico county or its seat : TAOS

31. Small hair piece : LASH. D'oh, eyelash.

32. DDE's command : ETO (European Theater of Operations)

34. Negotiated : BROKERED

35. Steadfast : RESOLUTE

36. Wildly : AMOK. Run amok.

37. Unlike filibusters : TERSE

39. 1976 raid site : ENTEBBE. A Ugandan city. On Lake Victoria. I've never heard of Operation Entebbe. Educate me, Vidwan!

42. Double-reed instrument : OBOE

43. Ruins : WRECKS

44. Beethoven's "Hammerklavier," e.g. : SONATA. What does "Hammerklavier" mean, Kazie?

46. Tiki cocktail : MAI TAI

47. Endless, in poems : ETERNE. Archaic for "eternal".

48. Tests : ASSAYS

51. Under-the-sink brand : COMET. Scrub cleanser.

52. "Oklahoma!" aunt : ELLER. Aunt Eller. Clear Ayes likes "Oklahoma!". She loves nearly all the musicals.

57. You might get one at the pool : TAN. Can't fool me.

58. Mahmoud Abbas's gp. : PLO (Palestine Liberation Organization). Abbas succeeded Arafat.

Answer grid.

Here is a recent photo of our handsome, witty & caring counselor Lemonade714. I'll continue to show the key blog contributors in the next few Fridays.

C.C.

91 comments:

Dennis said...

Good morning, C.C. and gang - I actually had a good foothold in the NW, but it didn't last long. Wasn't until the SE that I started making steady progress, but I still had problems/unknowns all over the place. I liked the theme a lot, but 'brief stew' certainly served as an appetite suppressant.

Loved the deceptive clues like 'Stand-up guys', and 'Making out too much lately'. Had a fair amount of g-spotting, including the Qatar University city, 'part of un giorno' (even though I knew what it meant, I didn't know the Italian word for 'hour'), and the magazine editors' award name.
C.C., Buster Crabbe also played Tarzan, Flash Gordon, and Buck Rogers, all action heroes from the '30s.

vidwan, from yesterday, please remember the post limit is 5.

Today is National Cheesecake Day and National Father-in-Law Day.

Did You Know:

- Porcupines are excellent swimmers because their quills are hollow.

- Travelling by air is still the safest means of transportation. More people are killed by donkeys annually than are killed in plane crashes.

- Arachibutyrophobia is the fear of peanut butter sticking to the roof of your mouth.

Dick said...

Good morning all, a very slow slog this morning with lots of trips to the G spot. There were just too many unknowns to make this a fun solve. There were some clever clues, as mentioned by Dennis, but the cleverness got lost in the number of unknowns. Oh well, maybe tomorrow will be better.

Off to the golf course for the day.

Hope you all have a great Friday.

Hahtoolah said...

Good Morning, CC. This was a toughie for me. Typical Friday level. It took me a while to cotton onto the theme. BRAILLE BOND was my first theme clue, and I realized that each of the theme fills began with BR. Still, I didn't immediately connect BRAILLE BOND with Bail Bond until a got a couple other theme clues.

I very confidently wrote down CAT for Alley Prowler. It took some convincing to change it to TOM. Yes, CC, Tom is short for Tomcat.

My favorite clue was Lincoln Rival = CADILLAC.

Interesting to see both ENTEBBE and PLO in the same puzzle. Raid on Entebbe was a movie based on the historical event. Benjamin Netanyahu's brother, Yonathan, was killed in the raid.

QOD: It's not a good idea to put your wife into a novel; not your latest wife anyway. ~ Norman Mailer

Dr. Dad said...

Good morning all. Got the theme answers quickly but stumbled in the southern corners.

Hammerklavier literally translates to 'hammer piano.' This might be because the composition by Beethoven is considered to be one of the most difficult for the piano.

I like cheesecake and so far, I am not a father in law.

Turns out it is Cell Phone Courtesy Month. It's also National Talk in an Elevator Day,and System Administrator Appreciation Day.

Harry Houdini was the first person to fly an airplane on the continent of Australia.

A phonophobe fears noise. A nyctohylophobe fears dark wooded areas or forests at night. Arnold Schonberg suffered from triskaidecphobia, fear of the number 13. He died thirteen minutes from midnight on Friday the thirteenth.

Have a great Friday!

John Lampkin said...

Good morning C.C. and happy solvers,

Congratulations to the Byron team for pulling off a very difficult idea to work with. Because of the spelling shift constraint, my guess is that this puppy took a lot of head scratching and not just combing database wordlists. I hope they stop by to say hello and shed some insight as to how they did it.

C.C., I couldn't think of another possible theme entry either. Maybe Jerome will uncork one. Someone go wake him up.

Dennis,. sorry to break it to you, but there is some embarrassing misinformation in your post. Arachibutyrophobia is NOT the fear of peanut butter sticking to the roof of your mouth. It is the fear of being bit on your rear end by a spider.

John Lampkin said...

What I mean is, it's such a strange word so let's take it apart to parse its meaning:
ARACH = spider
BUT = well, you know

or maybe I'm wrong. ;-)

Lemonade714 said...

Good morning all, I was unfamiliar with these constructors and also found this to be a difficult slog. There was some wit (CANNED HEAT, STAND-UP GUYS) some interesting trivia, ENTEBBE, ELLER and the theme seemed very fresh and skillfully done. The closest I could come was NEON TAGS: BRIGHT SIZED

Considering all of the things we have to fear in our lifetimes, it is amazing there is not only a PHOBIA related to peanut butter, but a cure! John, you have to work the TYRO part in your definition, so maybe it includes fear of being stung by a spider in a newly liposuctioned derriere.

We made it to Friday, ciao.

Vidwan said...

C.C.: You mentioned moi ? How perfectly horrible !!...(but thank you.). I saw all your Ginger roots pics yesterday ... Very, Very nice.

Re: Entebbe' ... I MUST defer to our resident experts, Lemonade and Hahtool ... Mr. Kool Aid and Madame Legal Aid. They will be glad to give you an entire treatise and a legal discovery as well.

Dennis, (respectfully )... for the record ... this is post no.1. ...

Dennis said...

John, it turns out that it's actually a fear of a spider sticking to peanut butter on your butt.
Thanks for pointing out the error.

C.C., I'll be glad to fill you in on Entebbe, offline. I spent some time studying the Operation back right after it happened, due to its daring and successful outcome. The U.S. copied several components of it with their unsuccessful Operation Eagle Claw, where we attempted to rescue the Iran hostages.

HeartRx said...

Good Morning C.C. et al.

Wow, I knew I was going to have a hard time with this one when I realized that the first answer that I filled in was 31a. “LATTE” ! 5d. of course had me thinking of President Lincolns campaign. So “CADILLAC” was a real Doh moment. There are so many others – 27a. “EST”, of course I thought the baseball field instead of estimate. 41a. Stand-up guys just had to be comics, didn’t it? (C.C. I agree, that it should not have a hyphen in this clue). Then I confidently filled in “BARTERED” for 34d. Some many mis-steps today, but eventually got it all sorted out with only a few gg’s (15a. 20a. 64a. 1d. 7d. 8d. 39d. 52d) …Okay, a LOT of gg’s !!

And C.C. - maybe 55a. was named for
HER ??

Dob said...

Just discovered this site after doing the puzzles for quite a while.

A special on auto repairs would be a Brake Sale.

harrietv said...

Go ahead, make me feel old. Am I the only one who remembers Entebbe? (Though I didn't know that the one man killed was Netanyahu's brother.) Am I the only one who watched Lou Brock steal bases?

How come someone called Hahtool doesn't comment on the cat-related clues?

Dennis said...

Dob, excellent.

harrietv, why would that possibly be a concern?

HeartRx, I screwed up 34D too, only I put 'dickered'.

Spitzboov said...

Good morning everyone.
Dob; welcome

A good tough one. Lots of B's. Got the first toeholds in the NE, and gradually planted small anchors clockwise with the NW last to fall. For Lincoln, was thinking of the President until finally CADILLAC helped with BRACESTATIONS. D'UH. No lookups needed though. WAGS included DOHA and ASSAYS. After getting BETA, ENTEBBE was a gimme. Thought k-MART, NOSHOWS, BROCKSSEATS, and CONIC were very clever. 'ERES was good, too. Did not know OTRA or ALGID.

Hasta la vista

Anonymous said...

HeartRx - 55a.Ellies. Your linkup is very cute. For those who may not be familiar with the glamorous lady ( including me), it is Donna Douglas, who played Elly Mae Clampett on the TV series, 'The Beverly Hillbillies'.

kazie said...

I definitely slogged through this one. I gave up on avoidance and hit the g'spot for all the unknowns, which were many, and eventually got it all out.

Additional problems included eats at, thinking comedian for stand up, and looking for a political Lincoln opponent. But it all took way too much time to be fun.

Hahtoolah said...

Hariettv: I thought I did comment on the cat clue. My hahtoolot are not hahtoolim/ tomcats.

HeartRx said...

@ Anon. at 9:02,
My bad...I should have included her role on the TV show. But I forget that not everyone is "in my head" and thought "The Beverly Hillbillies" was known by all :-P

@C.C.,
Would "BREAD POST" fit the rules for today? ("Leavened email?")

@Dennis,
Only reason I didn't think of "dickered" for 34d. was that, by then I knew the beginning letters for 34a. had to be "BR"...So much for teasing out the theme to get a leg up on this one !!

HeartRx said...

@Dob,

Welcome! I am a "Newbie" too, and really enjoy this site. It gets my brain jump-started each day!

I dont think "BRAKE SALE" fits the rules, because when you remove the "R" there is no spelling change for "BAKE". But maybe someone else could confirm?

Zcarguy said...

Morning all,

I had a feeling today was gonna be a toughy ,
after an easier Mon- Thursday Puzzels.
Am in the same boat as most of you , Gspoting quite a few
being an auto broker 34d came easy, I liked 38d tho I woulda liked it clued " going out too much lately" instead.
7d " carob " is a favorite molasses of mine , mixed with sesame seeds paste mmm yummy, try it.

Entebbe was a gimme and a good movie, it was also a very well executed operation by the Israeli commandos,
to rescue a PLO hijacked plane during Idi Amin tenure.
I have a feeling that also led to his undoing.

" gotta run " to Sacramento today , hope y'all have a good Friday.

Anonymous said...

Carob- locust bean, is used as a diluent ( cheap filler ) for chocolate, just as chicory is used as a cheap substitute ( ~ adulterant )for coffee. Not too common in the US because both chocolate and coffee are relatively inexpensive.

Boots said...

Ron & Nancy, I loved your puzzle so clever. I breezed down the west getting all the BR words except for Brock even though I had broc_seats forever. I finally got the top east when I decided cat was a tom. Then I confidently put in short for 37D then when I got stations I changed it to timed and just could not come up with a synonym for short even though I had the T! Oh well. I wonder if there's a phobia for the fear of brain death.
John, thanks for naming my spider. I'd always called it the garden spider. I enjoy spiders and protect them so I guess I don't have aracnophobia.
Have a good day all. I had a terrible day yesterday so hoping for a better one today.

Tinbeni said...

TIKI cocktail?
Well I put a little umbrella in my Scotch glass.

This was a slog.
Figured out it was Friday, "add a letter, get wachy phrase" day.

BRAILLE BOND got the themes rolling.
Knew Neptune's largest moon was TRITON or I would have entered the alphabet run, lmno, at K-MART.

Who's there? IT IS I! Why is this showing up so often?

Is Am.Soc.of Mag. Editors award, ELLIES common knowledge?

OK, what did I like?
8 time stolen base champ, BROCKS SEATS.
Thought both IN A SLUMP and NO SHOWS were cleverly clued.

Grumpy 1 said...

The theme is not BRRRR, it's GRRRR! I growled many, many times as I paced to and fro through this puzzle. (Note to self... buy more erasers!)

ALGID is a total unknown, solved only by the crosses. Like most others, I was thinking of Abe, not GM for 5D. I also had BARTERED at 34D.

The NE corner and N middle fell fairly easily and gave me the theme. The keys were 13D SAWMILL and 11D GOTTA RUN (although I started with GOT TO RUN). Those just seemed to pop right into place and gave me some good anchors. The theme helped fill the SW.

I really like BRAILLE BOND! Really, all of the theme entrys were great.

As I said yesterday, I was expecting a butt-kicker today. The constructors didn't let me down.

Tinbeni said...

Grumpy1
C'mon, you (down in Naples) and I (up here in Dunedin) often say "it is ALGID outside" during the winter.

Gunghy said...

Yesterday, I had to work hard and it pi**ed me off. Today I had to work harder and the longer it took, the more I liked it. What gives? But what a wonderful theme!!! (Once I finally caught on, anyway.)
A nitpick: Shouldn't 38 down be making outs or making an out?
I had to look up the 'L' in the ELLIES/ELLER cross. Otherwise I slogged through with tons of perp help and several WAGs.
A braille edition of Playboy really gives new meaning to "I only read it for the articles."
C.C., Volcanoes don't have to be conic. It's just the form most likely to occur when lava and ash are thrown out of a single hole. Mons Olympus on Mars is an example of a Plateau volcano. It's Higher than Everest and larger than the US.
Also, the Planets are named for gods. The moons are named for lesser characters; Titans, Fates, etc.
Back shortly, I'm tired of getting the 'this is too large" message.

daffy dill said...

Algid - cold and clammy: an abnormally low body temperature during a high fever. New word for me.

Toughie today. I wanted Douglas instead of CADILLAC, but it didn't fit. I thought cat was the "alley prowler," and that messed up SAWMILL. After looking at it a while, I got my wits about me and changed it to TOM. I entered "it's me" instead of "it is I." Even though I know the latter is gramatically correct, most people say "it's me."

There weren't too many givens today, but ENTEBBE was one for me. CAROB was also a given because we used to use it instead of chocolate during our "health foods" years. In fact, I still prefer it to chocolate.

I didn't even try to get the theme, although I knew it had something to do with the "br" at the beginning of all the clues.

Gotta run. See y'all!

Gunghy said...

John, your phobia take is cute, but the reality is neat as well.
The genus and species of peanut is Arachis hypogaea. Arachis does come from spider. It was so-named because after it flowers, it thrusts the developing seeds down into the ground to self plant. Someone decided this looked like a spider. Hypogaea means under the earth, by the way.
Butyro comes from butyric acid. It's triglyceride is a major component of butter and a big factor in the flavor. Butyric acid, itself, has a foul odor and is formed as butter spoils. (Also found in B.O. and vomit and used in carp and catfish bait and as a disruptor in whale-wars and at abortion clinics.)
So, arachibutyro = spider plant butter.
Guess I better try to do something productive. See you all later.

dodo said...

Hi, all,

Only a minute but I had to get this in: brain/bane=?. Thought maybe somebody could do something with it. I couldn't

Must get ready for Lucina and co.

Anonymous said...

Hi,

My mother in law really loves your site and downloads the LA Times puzzle from there daily. However, for the last couple of days she's been having difficulty accessing the puzzle and today cannot get it at all. I've tried and also get a 404-Not Found error.

Would you know if this Is a problem with our internet provider or with your link? My mom-in-law is going into puzzle withdrawal!

Thanks for the help.

Ellen

Anonymous said...

Hi, I saw your question about what a bluebird is an omen for. Just a guess, but I think it's happiness. I remember hearing the saying "bluebird of happiness" somewhere. Thanks for help with the crossword- it just couldn't figure out 56A.

Take care,

Julie

thehondohurricane said...

Once I got the BR theme, boxes started to become filled. I was hung up on CPA's until the end. AGTS is legible, but barely. Being a baseball fan, I really liked "Making out ........" a lot. My initial thought was it's a problem I never had in my youth!

Spitzboov said...

Gunghy: I thought 38D was clumsy, too. Agree with your volcano comments.

C. C. Further to volcanic eruption forms, see The Deccan Traps of India, laid down 60 million years ago.

PuzzlePal said...

Here's a Brrrr for you.
How about Stream communicating with the deaf?...BROOK SIGNING.

john28man said...

I couldn't bring up the LA Times Crossword site either. I'm on Qwest DSL.

Jeannie said...

I’m with Kazie on this puzzle experience today. I only got two of the theme answers: Braille bond and brute camp. Not being a baseball fan in the least I had no recollection of Lou Brock so Brock’s seat meant nothing to me. Didn’t know Doha, Oeno, or Crabbe. All in all this was a total slog for me today. New word: algid. I thought there were some clever clues though. I especially liked “small hair piece”-lash and “alley prowler”- tom. I was one of the few it seems that didn’t type in cat there. Anyway, it’s Friday and I usually don’t do too well on Friday’s.

Gunghy, I am heading to Duluth, MN to see the Tall ships. Unfortunately all of the sailings are booked so I have to settle for a tour. It should be interesting though.

Counselor, you handsome devil. Nice picture!

Jayce said...

I believe hammerklavier is simply the German word for what we call the piano. I don't know, but I would guess that the word klavier is related to the French word clavier, which simply means keyboard instrument. Bach wrote a collection of solo keyboard music called "The Well-Tempered Clavier." Beethoven's piano sonata was entitled "Große Sonate für das Hammerklavier" or "Great Sonata for the Piano(Forte)."

Again, I don't know but I think "hammerklavier" refers to the more modern instrument that strikes the strings with hammers, as opposed to earlier claviers whose mechanisms plucked the strings, such as clavichords. The Italians named this new hammer operated instrument the "pianoforte."

Anyway ...

Best wishes to you all.

Jerome said...

Muscle beach, to Robert Burns-
BRAWNY DOON.

I hate to sound like a drip, but I sure liked the crossing of NOSTRIL and GOTTA RUN.

John Lampkin said...

Reminds me of an old girlfriend who had complications from her belly-button piercing and stud inserting.

Yes Jerome, she suffered from Post Navel Drip.

Mainiac said...

Afternoon CC and All,

Good thing I had some time to put into this one. I was at least 20 minutes into getting the BRs to drop in then the complete theme answers fell some time later. I think I had everyone's mistakes combined, which made me chuck the pencil because the eraser was worn out. Crabbe and Entebbe were new to me. I kept trying to fit phrases like "too much tongue" and "go for the lungs" for 38D. Yes, my mind is still in the same place!!

I had to wait for my orthopedic to get out of surgery for my last set of injections in my knees. He's using some new stuff which even after the second round has seemed to smooth things out. Only bad side is it feels like molasses in there for about 12 hours.

Nothing a shot of Tequila and a PBR won't take care of.

TGIF

jeff scheidel said...

The reason I can always remember Lou Brock was that on the day Rickey Henderson broke Lou's record, he pulled the base out of the ground, then they interrupted the game and he said something to the effect of, "Lou Brock was a great base stealer, but now I am the greatest of all time." And I still remember how classless I thought that was. I actually figured this out as my very first clue today.

Jazzbumpa said...

Ha Gang -

Tough, challenging, and supremely clever puzzle. My hat is off to the Byrons.

I had a hard time giving up GELID for ALGID, which I have never before encountered, and spell check doesn't like. Having the 4D and 5D perps in place was a hindrance, not a help. Couldn't come up with the obvious-in-retrospect CONIC, either.

Misread 55A in Heart's post as 53A. Otherwise I wouldn't have noticed the EEL - ELLIE echo; ELLER - ELATE - ALGID - AUEL . . . Or am I running AMOK?

In honor of cheesecake day, here is an item of really good news! For you EONOphiles, this is right up there with the health benefits of red wine!

FWIW, I remember both BROCK and ENTEBBE.

Rebekka has been attending theater camp for the past two weeks. We get to see their performance this evening. Should be great fun.

ORA and MEA could have been clued differently. MEA culpa? ORA pro nobis.

I'd BETA LAM

Cheers!
JzB IT IS I the trombonist

Dennis said...

thehondohurricane, Julie, Ellen, harrietv and anyone else I may have missed, welcome, and thanks for contributing. It's wonderful that C.C.'s marvelous creation is attracting more and more new people. Be sure to read her 'To Solvers' link on the first page for more info.

Mainiac, good luck with the knees; doesn't sound like a good time. Also, did you see my question yesterday about your biking?

Jerome, John, c'mon now guys, you've gotta share your meds with us. Must be some killer stuff...

jeff scheidel, you're right -- Rickey Henderson was an egotistical jerk. Helluva base stealer, but a jerk nonetheless.

Jeannie, you'll love the tall ships. Saw them when they were in Philly, and they're truly magnificent.

daffy dill, good point about 'It is I'. If I ever responded like that at someone's house, I'd still be standing at the door.

Frenchie said...

Happy Friday C.C., Argyle and folk,

Wonderful photos on display! C.C., you are so tiny!, CA, so serene! Lemonade, what is that look? BTW, that is an incredible shirt! Color and styling! Great tie, too!

Well, the theme was complicated, but enjoyably so. I was given quite a mental workout!

My two favorites are:

24A. Government security for the blind? : BRAILLE BOND. (One of my secret sins, I like Dog The Bounty Hunter!)

38D. Making out too much lately:
IN A SLUMP...I never get into a slump from that! Not that I'm bragging...


7. 'Tree pod also called the locust bean : CAROB. I peeked at the answer sheet.'

Two things,

1. It didn't click. When I was younger, I used carob as a chocolate alternative, research pointed to the fact that chocolate is carcinogenic. Does anybody have any info. on this?

2. C.C., is there really an answer sheet or are you just being modest? LOL


20A. BLUES LEGEND: BESSIE SMITH for a split second, I wanted COUNT BASIE! Both her blues and his jazz are incredible!
Bessie Smith
Count Basie

17A. COLD/ALGID??? My new word for the day!

15A. K FOLLOWER/MART??? Tricky! I often find the clues for proper nouns misleading. KMART, COMET...FOLLOWER of K, for instance, I was initially thinking this may be a biblical reference.

26. Rahm Emanuel's talent agent brother : ARI. The "Entourage" agent Ari Gold is based on him.
I have seen every episode of ENTOURAGE(HBO)! Ari is the scoundrel I love to hate! Any fellow fans? (ENTOURAGE, another of my secret indulgences!)

65a. JIMMIES/PRIES...Oh! like with a crowbar to a door or lock. I didn't pick up on it. I visualized candy sprinkles on a Dairy Queen ice cream cone or when someone is jittery or jumpy, 'has the jimmey's.

I'm out.

Jazzbumpa said...

OHO!

ELLER - OILERS!

A football echo.

GOTTA RUN,
JzB un trombonista OTROS

Jerome said...

... and a sanctimonious sailor is a Naval Post Drip.

Anonymous said...

I'll have to disagree with the other anonymous regarding 55A "Ellies" since it was named after the Alexander Calder stabile “Elephant."
http://tinyurl.com/288gqex

For info on Alexander Calder go to http://tinyurl.com/alex-calder

Lemonade714 said...

Oh Goody a pun off between Jerome and John L.; though I do not get the real phrase for BRAWNY DOON'

IMHO neither BAKE BRAKE nor BOOK BROOK work, because they only add the R, but I will happily defer to the Byrons if they choose to answer our various suggestions. Constructors always welcome at the Corner. Thank you Lolita.

I am not an expert, merely a fan of the Raid on Entebbe.

Chickie said...

Hello All--I had a pretty good start in the top half of the puzzle,but then got to the Mid-East section and Lou Brock for Brocks seats was unknown, and also the stations part of Brace Stations.

I had too many lookups for my satisfaction. I didn't know Crabbe, Ellies, Doho, Bessie, Oros, and Omens for Bluebirds for a few.

I did get about 80% of the puzzle,(with the lookups) but had to come here for explanations and some answers. Thank you C.C. It made me feel good to know that a couple of the same items were also your unknowns.

I did like Ballpark fig/Est and Stand up guys/No shows. However I had Baseball in mind for the first and comics for the second. Some clues just lead you way off the track!

Lemonade714 said...

Frenchie,

Thanks for noticing the tie; it matches my monogram on the shirt; it was a gift from a speical friend.

I can never decide if I like or hate Entourage but I do like DANIA RAMIREZ who has a beautiful smile, and deserved better than Heroes .

Jazzbumpa said...

Frenchie -

BESSIE - BASIE; a blues echo!

Now, IMBO - really!

#3
JzB

Chickie said...

Jayce, Our San Jose Public/University Library has a Beethoven room--with a lock of his hair no less, and a room with antique "pianos" . I put that in quotes as they are Hammerklaviers, Harpsicords, and other magnificent instruments.

You can tour the library anytime, (great unusual art work throughout), but the Beethoven section needs a pre planned reservation with the library.

There is a concert using the instruments about once a year and well worth attending.

Jayce said...

Chickie, yes it is a fascinating place! Some day I'm going to have to actually attend a concert there :)

As for the puzzle, I never in a million years would have known ALGID and only got it from the crosses. NOSTRIL is one of my favorite words, and my son and I often make silly jokes to each other than involve the word nostril in one way or another.

Fun word play with the BL stuff, made me chuckle and smile.

Some of the gimmes for me include AUEL, ARI, BETA, CRABBE, TRITON, SONATA, and TAOS. Interesting that ELLIES crosses with ELLER.

Best wishes.

Jerome said...

Lemonade, you handsome devil, Bonnie Doon was a pretty place in a Burns poem.

Jerome said...

Jayce- Are you and your son familiar with the seer, Nostrildamus? He had a nose for news.

Jayce said...

Jerome, he is our very favorite prognostrilcator!

Anonymous said...

Bonnie Doon.

Jeannie said...

Crockett, I forgot to answer you on the amount of ricotta. I use about 1 1/2 cups.

Kazie, regarding the basil-when it comes time I will probably dry most of it and perhaps try your "freezing" method. My basil is in such an abundance this year. Sorry to hear that yours isn't.

Enjoy your weekend all.

Crockett1947 said...

Jeannie, thanks!

Nostril boys - snot funny!

Anonymous said...

@HeartRx- BREAD POST??? Pls explain.

John Lampkin said...

Jerome, the period after childbirth can be very trying for the new parents, if you catch my POST NATAL DRIFT.

Al said...

@Ellen (anonymous at 12:37), on her main blog page, C.C. has links to lots of puzzle resources on the right column. Right near the top, she has a link to the LA Times site, and just below that, an alternate link to the Fredricksburg Times site, which carries the same puzzle in the same format.

GDS Husker said...

Pumpernickel nocturnal accident?

Breadwetting

Dennis said...

Thorn warning: Briar beware.

Hey, I haven't had a drink yet.

Jerome said...

John- Rafael says it's a Post Nadal Drift.

Crockett, Jayce- LOL

PuzzlePal said...

A bird who likes to imbibe? BRANDY COOT.

Seldom Seen said...

clue: one who grooms his backside

answer: Breechcomber

Spitzboov said...

Lagomorph's pub proclivity:

Brer habit

Seldom Seen said...

i thought of a better clue as i know C.C. likes alliteration:

Gluteal Groomer.

speaking of bathroom humor, i just saw on the new that Caddyshack was released 30 years ago today.

they gave a couple of unknown(to me at least) bits of trivia about the movie.

the most unusual one: Harold Ramis wanted the soundtrack to be comprised entirely of Pink Floyd songs...what?

now, i love both Pink Floyd and Caddyshack, but together?

that's like beer and ice cream!

HeartRx said...

@ Anonymous at 3:49,
"BREAD POST" from "BED POST"
"Bread" is a leavened bakery item, while a "post" would be something you send by email (or "post" on email).
The original "BED POST" would be one of the wooden projections from any of the four corners of a bed, like THIS

Jayce said...

Wow, you guys are on a roll!

Anonymous said...

To Anon @ 3.49 - question for HealthRx.

Bread post ? Pl explain ...

I'm not her, but could she have meant - Bed post ?

A cereal mailer ... or a green ( money ), or dough delivery ?

Jerome said...

I know, I know, this is my 6th post. But hey, they were all, mostly, very, very short. I beg your indulgence, Mr. Site Administrator.

Ron and Nancy did a great job with this theme. Cool idea. I really liked how they used all the vowels after the initial BR. It gives the puzzle a little added elegance. More than likely created some extra work as well.

windhover said...

Seen:
And what is wrong with and ice cream?
Guinness and Cherry Cordial, can't beat it.
Now if you're talking about Hudepohl and Vanilla, I get it.

Seldom Seen said...

windhover:

that DOES sound tasty.
what do you call it? Cherry O'Garcia??

Vidwan said...

my 2 cents worth ...

Brawny and Clyde ....the Amazon and the gunman.


Breed Necklace ... Kennel (neck ) ornament.

Brief Eater ... (our) Lemonade on a diet ?

kazie said...

Jayce,
Actually, your logic on Klavier is correct, it is the word used for piano in German. However, I couldn't find Hammerklavier anywhere in my dictionaries. I thought it may imply something you had to bang on extra hard to get any sound out of it. I finally got a translation site where it is given as "pianoforte". So you were doubly right! This is a good site for German to English, and there's another site from English to German too.

Jayce said...

Thanks, kazie!

Vidwan said...

Dear C.C.:

I should have written this on my very first post. Your blog today was really insightful and very thought provoking.

I have read your first few paragraphs about four times ... and I cannot imagine how you came up with such a clever and precise parsing (?) of the phonetic theme. We all realize that the English language is not at all phonetic, ... and we take it for granted, as a given, and then we move on, in a macro sense, to the heart of the matter. I, for one, would never have looked back at a completed puzzle, with a piercing eye, to tease away at its idiosyncrasies.

It takes a unique thought process to reassess our original assumptions ... and that is what you did. Bravo !

Anonymous said...

I am surprised that nobody discussed the clue for K-Tel. K-Tel is the record company that buys limited rights to the golden oldies, at a bulk discount price, and repackages them , as ... the best of the 60's, the best of 1972, the best sellers of 1985 etc.,... and sells them at ( where else ) K-Mart for $ 8.99 and up, for cassette tapes and CD's..

TIME-LIFE does the same thing now, but they are more expensive ( and more classier...).

I think the words for such an operation would be bulk consolidator.

Dennis said...

vidwan/anon, you need to get a handle on the duplicate posts.

MR ED said...

Buster Crabbe played 'Canino' in 'The Maltese Falcon'.

Dennis said...

MR ED, are you sure? I saw The Maltese Falcon within the past month, and I don't remember seeing Buster Crabbe or a character called Canino.

CMax said...

Good evening,
I am new here and new to cross words. I began attempting the LA Times CrossWord about six months ago and found this site about four months ago. I am amazed at what I'm learning, especially the
assumptions and ruts of the mind.
The LA crossword gets me through the work day.
I often find much synchronicity in the solving of a puzzle.
For instance, today, the 97 year old woman, that I am a companion to three days a week, showed me a Play Bill from "Oklahoma!" (Aunt Eller)and I once lived in Taos, NM. Entebbe was, gratefully, a given for me.
(This current position is a survival job)

I grant myself as long as it takes to solve
a puzzle within an eight hour day. Sometimes I can complete an entire puzzle, without help, in two (on and off) hours and then there are days when 1/3 is the best I can do.
I thank you all for being here. I enjoy the humor and the knowledge and learning about the twists and turns of the minds and lives that are joined in this puzzling and clever affair of words. It's a Brand new world to me. Sort of.

MR ED said...

Maybe it was 'The Big Sleep', I get them mixed up.

kazie said...

Welcome, CMax,
Stay with it, you'll get faster and more knowledgeable the longer you stick with it. We all had to start sometime.

MR ED said...

Dennis, it was Bob Steel and not Buster Crabbe, in the Big Sleep. sorry for the confusion.

Annette said...

CMax, welcome to the blog! I'm glad you're enjoying the puzzles and the blog. Stay with those puzzles and keep coming here to see about those that you don't finish. We all learn so much from each other, and everyone has a new perspective to contribute. Join in on the fun!

I know I saw a few other newcomers on the blog earlier too, but I had plans with an old friend tonight and didn't have time to comment. Welcome to all of you! The more, the merrier!

Anonymous said...

A factoid is a questionable or spurious—unverified, incorrect, or fabricated—statement presented as a fact, but with no veracity

Nancy B. said...

Thanks, all, for your comments! John, I wish there was some magic to share re: how the theme was developed, but it really just came down to thinking about every BR word that exists and taking it from there. I like BREAD POST - good one HeartRx!

I originally wanted to use BREAST IN SHOW (Superbowl wardrobe malfunction?), but thought it might not pass the acceptability standards. It's secretly my favorite, though.

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

Nancy,
Thanks for stopping by. I just copied and pasted your comment to today's (Saturday's) blog Comments section. Normally solvers don't come back for a past post.