Theme: You've Been Pied - Several 2-word common phrases & one compound word, unrelated to food, with first part being a type of pie, are humorously interpreted and ? clued with "Pie" and an associated description for the remainder.
18A. Pie flop?: CHERRY BOMB. Illegal fireworks, a type of "salute", which is a pyrotechnic device designed to make a loud report. A show that bombs is a flop. Cherry pie.
23A. Pie taste-test site?: CHOCOLATE LAB. A dark Labrador Retriever. Tests are performed in a laboratory. Chocolate pie.
39A. Pie to-do?: MUDFLAP. A splash guard for vehicles. A flap was originally Brit slang for a noisy tumult or to-do. Mud pie.
50A. Pie charts?: APPLE RECORDS. Music recording label founded by the Beatles. Charts and records as in a doctor's office. Apple pie.
60A. Pie patter?: MINCE WORDS. To try to politely tell someone something unpleasant in a manner such as to not hurt their feelings. Patter orig. from Latin "pater" to mumble prayers rapidly (pater from Paternoster, the Lord's Prayer). Mince pie.
Al here.
An OK puzzle today, sped through fairly quickly except the SW gave me some trouble getting a start, but I got it all without assistance, the perps filling in enough of the names and abbrevs for guessing, which is how it should be. I never saw a few of the clues, so this was more like a Wednesday level puzzle to me.
ACROSS:
1. A party to: IN ON.
5. Quite the fashion plate: CHIC. I find it interesting that it might come from two different sources: old German words for neat/orderly shikken/schicken, or from a French word for trickery (chicanery). Make your own fashion conclusions...
9. Spring bloomer: LILAC.
14. His epitaph reads "And the beat goes on": BONO. Sonny Bono (Sonny & Cher) was the only member of congress to have a #1 single on the Billboard top 100 chart.
15. Faulkner femme fatale Varner: EULA. A William Faulkner story, The Hamlet, was made into The Long Hot Summer in 1958, with Lee Remick as Eula. Also made into a 26 part TV series in 1965. Never heard of any of it before today...
16. BP merger partner: AMOCO. American Oil Co., British Petroleum.
17. TV role for Bamboo Harvester: MR. ED. The "real" name of the palomino horse in the TV show of the same name.
20. Italian deli sandwich: PANINI. Similar to a small Italian sub.
22. Travelers' burdens: VALISES. Suitcase, soldiers kit bag.
26. X, at times: TEN. Roman numeral. Also times at times. Cute.
27. www bookmark: URL. Uniform Resource Locator.
28. Film director's headaches: EGOS.
32. Luther's lang.: GER. Martin Luther, medieval priest. Basically stated that you can't buy your way into heaven, which got him in all sorts of trouble with the church.
34. First Amendment lobbying gp.: ACLU. American Civil Liberties Union.
36. Numbers game: SUDOKU.
38. Buckeyes' home: Abbr.: OSU. Ohio State Univ.
41. Post- opposite: PRE.
42. One in distress?: DAMSEL. Melodrama.
44. Slug or song ending: FEST. Shortening of festival.
45. Loft material: HAY.
46. Apartment manager, familiarly: SUPE.
47. Quaff for Andy Capp: ALE. British syndicated comic strip.
48. Curling setting: ICE. Probably the only Olympic sport you can participate in while preggers.
56. Like the auditory and optic nerves, e.g.: CRANIAL. They're all in your head.
59. Aspen topper: SKI HAT.
63. Prohibited thing: NO-NO.
64. Days of Hanukkah, e.g.: OCTET.
65. Flag: TIRE. To go limp or droop, as with a flag with no wind.
66. First name in Olympics gymnastics: OLGA. Korbut. The media whirl which surrounded her 1972 Olympic debut caused a surge of young girls to join their local gymnastic clubs, and a sport which had seldom been noticed previously made headlines.
67. Like beer halls, usually: NOISY.
68. Eyewear, in ads: SPEX. X-ray ones, no doubt.
69. Raid target: PEST. Not just for bugs.
DOWN:
1. High-tech debut of 1981: IBM PC.
2. Grammy winner Jones: NORAH. Best Album. Don't know why.
3. Bridge opening: ONE NO TRUMP.
4. "Fuggedaboutit!": NO DICE. Nothin' doin'. Gambling with dice was illegal in many states and so gamblers went to some pains to hide the dice when challenged by the police. Courts would sometimes throw out cases if the dice weren't offered in evidence. There are several court records where gamblers were alleged to have swallowed dice to avoid arrest. No dice, no conviction.
5. 1980s-'90s slugger Fielder: CECIL
6. "Whazzat?": HUH.
7. Seine sight: ILE. French river, island.
8. Longtime ice cream cake brand: CARVEL. Another unknown to me. Connecticut based.
9. Clapton title woman: LAYLA. Unplugged.
10. Wet one's whistle: IMBIBED. From Latin imbibere "absorb, drink in, inhale.
11. Johns, to Elton: LOOS. Probably from Fr. lieux d'aisances, "lavatory," lit. "place of ease," picked up by British servicemen in France during World War I. Or possibly a pun on Waterloo, based on water closet.
12. Top: ACME. Or apex. Need at least one other perp letter besides the A.
13. Male swans: COBS. Females are called PENS.
19. "Too-Ra-Loo-Ra-Loo-__": Irish lullaby: RAL.
21. Hardly distinguished: NO NAME.
24. Nostalgic song title word: AULD. LANG SYNE
25. Godiva product: TRUFFLE.
29. Tunnel entrance of sorts: GOPHER HOLE.
30. Gumbo ingredient: OKRA.
31. Chop __: SUEY. From Chinese (Cantonese dialect) tsap sui "odds and ends."
32. Mars and Venus: GODS.
33. Name meaning "hairy" in Hebrew: ESAU. Perhaps a tad obscure...
35. __-de-sac: CUL.
36. Airline to Oslo: SAS. Scandinavian Airlines.
37. Slight market improvement: UPTICK. Stock market trend change.
40. Disconcerting glance: LEER. Or OGLE.
43. Hand-holding events: SEANCES. From French séance "a sitting,"
47. Parcels out: ALLOTS. To divide into lots. Related to the sense of "drawing lots" where in new settlements, sometimes the best properties were determined by lot. Also related, lottery.
49. Requiring change, briefly: COIN-OP. Like the government in both senses, needing to change, and being run by money...
51. Reverence: PIETY.
52. A pad helps protect it: PAW.
53. Elizabeth I's beloved: ESSEX. Robert Devereux, the second Earl of Essex. Eventually executed for treason after falling out of favor and trying to mount a coup.
54. Mild expletives: DANGS.
55. Brown ermine: STOAT.
56. "Get real!": C'MON.
57. Guy who "wore a diamond," in the song "Copacabana": RICO.
58. ABM component?: ANTI. Ballistic Missile.
61. Scary current: RIP.
62. Grammy-winning Dr.: DRE.
Answer Grid.
Bon voyage, Clear Ayes! You'll be missed.
Al
18A. Pie flop?: CHERRY BOMB. Illegal fireworks, a type of "salute", which is a pyrotechnic device designed to make a loud report. A show that bombs is a flop. Cherry pie.
23A. Pie taste-test site?: CHOCOLATE LAB. A dark Labrador Retriever. Tests are performed in a laboratory. Chocolate pie.
39A. Pie to-do?: MUDFLAP. A splash guard for vehicles. A flap was originally Brit slang for a noisy tumult or to-do. Mud pie.
50A. Pie charts?: APPLE RECORDS. Music recording label founded by the Beatles. Charts and records as in a doctor's office. Apple pie.
60A. Pie patter?: MINCE WORDS. To try to politely tell someone something unpleasant in a manner such as to not hurt their feelings. Patter orig. from Latin "pater" to mumble prayers rapidly (pater from Paternoster, the Lord's Prayer). Mince pie.
Al here.
An OK puzzle today, sped through fairly quickly except the SW gave me some trouble getting a start, but I got it all without assistance, the perps filling in enough of the names and abbrevs for guessing, which is how it should be. I never saw a few of the clues, so this was more like a Wednesday level puzzle to me.
ACROSS:
1. A party to: IN ON.
5. Quite the fashion plate: CHIC. I find it interesting that it might come from two different sources: old German words for neat/orderly shikken/schicken, or from a French word for trickery (chicanery). Make your own fashion conclusions...
9. Spring bloomer: LILAC.
14. His epitaph reads "And the beat goes on": BONO. Sonny Bono (Sonny & Cher) was the only member of congress to have a #1 single on the Billboard top 100 chart.
15. Faulkner femme fatale Varner: EULA. A William Faulkner story, The Hamlet, was made into The Long Hot Summer in 1958, with Lee Remick as Eula. Also made into a 26 part TV series in 1965. Never heard of any of it before today...
16. BP merger partner: AMOCO. American Oil Co., British Petroleum.
17. TV role for Bamboo Harvester: MR. ED. The "real" name of the palomino horse in the TV show of the same name.
20. Italian deli sandwich: PANINI. Similar to a small Italian sub.
22. Travelers' burdens: VALISES. Suitcase, soldiers kit bag.
26. X, at times: TEN. Roman numeral. Also times at times. Cute.
27. www bookmark: URL. Uniform Resource Locator.
28. Film director's headaches: EGOS.
32. Luther's lang.: GER. Martin Luther, medieval priest. Basically stated that you can't buy your way into heaven, which got him in all sorts of trouble with the church.
34. First Amendment lobbying gp.: ACLU. American Civil Liberties Union.
36. Numbers game: SUDOKU.
38. Buckeyes' home: Abbr.: OSU. Ohio State Univ.
41. Post- opposite: PRE.
42. One in distress?: DAMSEL. Melodrama.
44. Slug or song ending: FEST. Shortening of festival.
45. Loft material: HAY.
46. Apartment manager, familiarly: SUPE.
47. Quaff for Andy Capp: ALE. British syndicated comic strip.
48. Curling setting: ICE. Probably the only Olympic sport you can participate in while preggers.
56. Like the auditory and optic nerves, e.g.: CRANIAL. They're all in your head.
59. Aspen topper: SKI HAT.
63. Prohibited thing: NO-NO.
64. Days of Hanukkah, e.g.: OCTET.
65. Flag: TIRE. To go limp or droop, as with a flag with no wind.
66. First name in Olympics gymnastics: OLGA. Korbut. The media whirl which surrounded her 1972 Olympic debut caused a surge of young girls to join their local gymnastic clubs, and a sport which had seldom been noticed previously made headlines.
67. Like beer halls, usually: NOISY.
68. Eyewear, in ads: SPEX. X-ray ones, no doubt.
69. Raid target: PEST. Not just for bugs.
DOWN:
1. High-tech debut of 1981: IBM PC.
2. Grammy winner Jones: NORAH. Best Album. Don't know why.
3. Bridge opening: ONE NO TRUMP.
4. "Fuggedaboutit!": NO DICE. Nothin' doin'. Gambling with dice was illegal in many states and so gamblers went to some pains to hide the dice when challenged by the police. Courts would sometimes throw out cases if the dice weren't offered in evidence. There are several court records where gamblers were alleged to have swallowed dice to avoid arrest. No dice, no conviction.
5. 1980s-'90s slugger Fielder: CECIL
6. "Whazzat?": HUH.
7. Seine sight: ILE. French river, island.
8. Longtime ice cream cake brand: CARVEL. Another unknown to me. Connecticut based.
9. Clapton title woman: LAYLA. Unplugged.
10. Wet one's whistle: IMBIBED. From Latin imbibere "absorb, drink in, inhale.
11. Johns, to Elton: LOOS. Probably from Fr. lieux d'aisances, "lavatory," lit. "place of ease," picked up by British servicemen in France during World War I. Or possibly a pun on Waterloo, based on water closet.
12. Top: ACME. Or apex. Need at least one other perp letter besides the A.
13. Male swans: COBS. Females are called PENS.
19. "Too-Ra-Loo-Ra-Loo-__": Irish lullaby: RAL.
21. Hardly distinguished: NO NAME.
24. Nostalgic song title word: AULD. LANG SYNE
25. Godiva product: TRUFFLE.
29. Tunnel entrance of sorts: GOPHER HOLE.
30. Gumbo ingredient: OKRA.
31. Chop __: SUEY. From Chinese (Cantonese dialect) tsap sui "odds and ends."
32. Mars and Venus: GODS.
33. Name meaning "hairy" in Hebrew: ESAU. Perhaps a tad obscure...
35. __-de-sac: CUL.
36. Airline to Oslo: SAS. Scandinavian Airlines.
37. Slight market improvement: UPTICK. Stock market trend change.
40. Disconcerting glance: LEER. Or OGLE.
43. Hand-holding events: SEANCES. From French séance "a sitting,"
47. Parcels out: ALLOTS. To divide into lots. Related to the sense of "drawing lots" where in new settlements, sometimes the best properties were determined by lot. Also related, lottery.
49. Requiring change, briefly: COIN-OP. Like the government in both senses, needing to change, and being run by money...
51. Reverence: PIETY.
52. A pad helps protect it: PAW.
53. Elizabeth I's beloved: ESSEX. Robert Devereux, the second Earl of Essex. Eventually executed for treason after falling out of favor and trying to mount a coup.
54. Mild expletives: DANGS.
55. Brown ermine: STOAT.
56. "Get real!": C'MON.
57. Guy who "wore a diamond," in the song "Copacabana": RICO.
58. ABM component?: ANTI. Ballistic Missile.
61. Scary current: RIP.
62. Grammy-winning Dr.: DRE.
Answer Grid.
Bon voyage, Clear Ayes! You'll be missed.
Al
62 comments:
Good morning, Al, C.C. and gang - this was a fun puzzle, except that it really made me hungry.
I got through fairly quickly, but with perp help in a couple places. The key for me was getting the first three acrosses in the NW (only knew Mr. Ed was really Bamboo Harvester from doing crosswords), and that opened things up, including the theme answer 'Chocolate lab'. Perps got me 'Eula' Varner, 'Esau' and 'Essex'. Favorite answer was 'coin op'; least favorite was 'ACLU' because, well, just because.
'Cherry bomb' brings back fun memories, from the time we dropped one in a toilet in high school and created a minor flood, to the moment we realized that with two people, you could launch a cherry bomb with a slingshot. We also revolutionized snowball fights with a little surprise in them, much to the shock of opponents. Ah, the innocence of youth...
Al, nice job with the blog, especially the link to one of my favorite old comic strips, Andy Capp.
Today is Babbling Day and Count Your Buttons Day (which seem somehow related), and National Pumpkin Cheesecake Day.
Did You Know?:
- Reuters' news service began by delivering information with carrier pigeons.
- The human tongue can detect up to five hundred different tastes.
- When humans are at rest, 15% of their blood is in their brains. No figures available on blood allocation when they're excited.
This was a pretty easy puzzle for a Thursday, but I stumbled a bit in the SW corner, maybe because we always referred to MINCE Meat Pies, instead of just MINCE PIES. Actually, the ones my mother made had no meat at all, but we still called them Mince Meat pies. Makes me wish I had a slice now!
Favorite clues were: Curling Setting = ICE
Requiring Change = COIN OP
If you get near a computer, Clear Ayes, do pop in! Have a great trip.
QOD: The worst sorrows in life are not its losses and misfortunes, but its fears. ~ Arthur Christopher Benson.
Al, Very informative write-up.
Good job and Thank you.
Man-O-Man did I like this puzzle.
Especially the theme CHERRY BOMB. Set off "more than a few" as a kid.
Then there was IMBIBED and that NOISY beer hall. Yup, I'm familiar with both of those.
OLGA as that first name in Olympics gymnastics seemed mis-clued. I thought of NADIA first, Olga would be second.
ONE-NO-TRUMP is my fave openning in Bridge, ergo a gimmie.
CARVEL after yesterdays "one-ton of Ice Cream" fact got a grin.
Dilbert:
My Yankee's, aka "Evil Empire" shut THAT "Fat Lady" up. No singing until (hopefully) Saturday Night.
Dennis:
Good Luck to your Phillies tonight. Watching my Yanks avoid elimination last night should give you hope.
(At least it put a smile back on Gal-Pal, Kris's face).
Good Morning Al, CC and All,
Great write up Al!
Typical Thursday IMHO. My first run through wasn't good at all so I set it down. Second try the coffee kicked in because things started to click. Cherry Bomb was the first theme and boy did we do some stupid stuff with those things. Pie to-do was my favorite. Nice puzzle.
Pies are one of the few desserts I eat. Mom makes me a Creme de Menthe pie for my birthday which she loads with the liquor. One year I told her the kids ate most of it. She was horrified and in recent years it doesn't quite taste the same.
I just finished eating my lunch. Great!
Have a good one.
Good morning Al and all. As usual Al you have done a fine job of blogging. I struggled with this one for a long time before I really got going. The NW corner was a mess for awhile as I was thinking along the lines of ballistic missiles and wanted to force ICBMS for 1D which caused all sorts of problems. I was sure ICBMS was correct as it fit with 1A “INON”. Once I got that corner straightened out the remainder of the puzzle started to come together and then the theme emerged.
CA, hope you have a great trip to Oz. That is a place I would like to visit, but I do not look forward to the long flight, probably about 20 hours or so from here.
Favorite clue/answer today was Aspen topper/ski hat.
Hope you all have a great Thursday.
Mississippi Mud Pie is a variety of a chocolate pie. It is not just a reference to those dirt patties kids make when playing outside.
Dan Naddor ALERT !!!
If you get a chance, pick up the NEW YORK TiMES today.
The crossword is an excellent puzzle by our late friend DAN NADDOR.
Maybe that's why I liked the answer ACLU, 1st Amendment lobbying group. I frequently read the NYT along with my St. Pete Times (and I do watch CNBC, too).
Dennis, I can understand your angst.
A group thats sole purpose is to defend the Bill of Rights is up to something. (Hmmm, maybe I'll just go and clean my legal guns).
Al: I've got a crush on you. You are so smart.
Al, et al, What a nice write-up of a very pleasant puzzle. This puzzle, coffee in my NASA mug and PB&J on English muffins while watching the sunrise! Ain't life grand?
I particularly enjoyed the musical interludes! I have never listened to Norah Jones but your clip sent me to iTunes and she will be populating my iPod today. What a lovely voice that does not need any studio effects and remixing! The Raid commercial was also a blast from the past. We had some mice in the garage and I used the unpleasant trap method. Got 'em but yuck!
My cherry bomb experience involved throwing one out of a car and having it land on the hood of a state patrolman parked in the shadows. Not a pleasant evening!
I can never remember where the U and O go in Sudoku. A brilliant Chinese student of mine taught me how to play in the Atlanta airport. If you any of you fellow solvers have any sites or books where I can learn advanced solving techniques, I would love to get them.
I had MINCEDOATH but DRDRE got me out of that. I had never heard of MRED's actual name and loved COINOP and ICE. Curling reminded me of how our first order of business all over Europe was to get my wife's iron plugged in at the hotel.
Our good weather runs out next week and so Hi Ho, Hi Ho, it's off to golf I go.
@Husker Gary, this sudoku solver page has the most techniques I've seen, although for most of the newspaper published puzzles, you don't really ever need the trickier ones. Plus, you can step through the way it does the solution so that you can see the decision process. And, even though it shows the numbers in the boxes, and I used to have to do that myself, it's because of this site that I no longer have to make notes even when solving the ones labeled "difficult".
Hello Puzzlers - No traction in the NW, had to look around clockwise to get started, finding good ground in the E.
I miss cherry bombs...
Oh, did I get CA's destination wrong? I thought I recalled it to be NZ, not Oz. Ooops. Either way I wish I could go.
Later, Dude(s)!
This puzzle came together for me a lot easier then I was anticipating for a Thursday. And
i learned what MR. ED's real name is (was). Frankly, he should have kept his stage name.
Dennis... I too have some fond memories of raising havoc with Cherry Bombs.
I enjoyed the "pie clues", the only unknown being Apple Records.
I have two issues though; 1) I've always called the apartment mgr Super, not Supe and 2) eyewear as specs instead of Spex. Is Spex a brand name?
Todays Google has a special 'Google doodle' in honor of Dizzie Gillespie - would have been 93. Also clicking on the doodle will lead to some of his more memorable tunes.
Todays puzzzle was not too easy - I thought a little difficult for a Thursday ( because I could not finish it - ) ... well, you cant win them all - quite a lot of fresh and clever clues.
Al, your blog was just great, Thank you.
Al, thanks for the URL. I made a BBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBB (yesterday's theme) to it and am going to really use it after I chase the little white ball around today!
Good morning all. Good write-up, Al.
Once I fully woke up, the puzzle was quite doable. Didn't know a couple names like EULA and CECIL, but the perps were helpful. Understood the theme early, but some of the 'pies' still took a little time to suss out. ONE NO TRUMP and HAY were gimmes. A good challenge but fun to do. Good job, Ed.
Favorite pies: PEACH or MINCE.
Enjoy the day.
For today's entertainment we have:
Field Stripping your Jeep (in Halifax, NS).
Good Morning All, This puzzle was done last night and as soon as I got CHERRYBOMB, the rest of the pie-hinted theme answers fell into place pretty quickly. Pie is my favorite dessert and CHERRY is one of the top two. Pecan is the other one.
I'm not a bridge player, so 3D came slowly with the perps. Are 8D CARVEL and 68A SPEX "eastern" words? I haven't seen them here in California.
I remembered (15A) EULA Varner, but the most interesting thing about the movie, "The Long Hot Summer", was that co-stars Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward started their romance on the set early in 1958. Not that great a movie, but if you pay attention, you can see the sparks fly in their scenes together. Newman and Woodward were married later in the same year.
RE: (57D) RICO...aw.. C'MON, we all can use a little Barry Manilow at the Copacabana.
I expect to be doing a lot of babbling today, so the celebration is well under way.
I haven't seen SPEX for spectacles but I did see SPOX yesterday.
SPOX - Shortened version of spokesperson/woman/man. When I googled it, I found it was quite common so be prepared.
So is NZ starting their Long Hot Summer?
The most famous Gopher/Gopher Hole.....http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZFGpgt4EC3I&feature=related
Hi everyone
DANG - this sure was a Thursday puzzle! I couldn't get on Ed Sessa's wave length.
I have never played bridge so 3D was unknown, never heard of PANINI, NORAH, CECIL or CARVEL. This was a struggle from there. Sigh.
Soooo now that I have crashed with the puzzle, I am babbling and feel like I have lost most of my buttons!
Al, thanks for that Sudoku link - I'm hooked on them, and that site will definitely help.
Tinbeni, a healthy and significant difference of opinion.
Argyle, great new pic - your fan club is about to grow significantly, I'll bet.
Husker Gary, the 'beeline' was outstanding.
Carol, all that's left then is the Pumpkin Cheesecake, right?
Thank you Spitzboov for the 'Jeep Stripping' - it was fantastic - better than the 'real' thing !!!
Thank you Clear Ayes - for the Copa - I remember Manilow, like it was yesterday ... has it been that long ?!!
This blog and the comments are El-Magnifico - I wonder why I am soo addicted !!
Argyle - LOVE your new avatar - 'A picture always looks so much nicer with a beautiful human being in it' ... who said that ? (um, ...me).
Hint to Clear Ayes - your NZ or Oz or 'down there' pics will look much better with YOU in them. See you soon, Red Cocoon.
Yes, it is NZ, rather than Oz. I wish we could do both, but there is only so much time and money available. Australia is such a huge country (hey, it's a continent for gosh sakes!) and less than three weeks just wouldn't do it justice. We'll save Oz for another time.
I've been checking the 10 day forecast for New Zealand in general. Sunny and a few clouds. Most of the temperatures are in the mid-60's (F.)...lovely Spring weather. If we get rained on, or it gets chillier, we'll just put on our jackets and do a little slogging.
One last poem for now. This one is by New Zealand's most well know poet of the late 19th century, Thomas Bracken . He wrote the lyrics to New Zealand's national anthem "God Defend New Zealand", as well as many others. "God's Own Country" is much longer than I've posted, but you get the idea.
God's Own Country
GIVE me, give me God's own country! there to live and there to die, God's own country! fairest region resting 'neath the southern sky, God's own country! framed by Nature in her grandest,noblest mold;
Land of peace and land of plenty, land of wool and corn and gold!
Where the forests are the greenest and the rugged mountains rear
Noble turrets, towers, and spires, piercing through the ambient air;
Rising to the gates supernal, pointing Godwards through the blue,
When the summer's sunny splendours tip them with a nameless hue,
And the gusts of winter gather snow and sleet and mist and cloud,
Weaving many a curious mantle, many a quaint fantastic shroud.
Oh! the mountains of New Zealand! wild and rugged though they be, They are types of highest manhood, landmarks of a nation free.
À bientôt and Haere Ra. Be back soon.
All these new "words" ie "spox" "spex" etc come from texting...which uses "funetik" spelling...alas.
Dagwood knows what day it is!
Comic Strip.
...but I had to use speckled bananas and make bread...would much prefer the pumpkin cheesecake..
I'm going to assume that C.C. is cool with me mentioning this-
The crossword blog of the New York Times, Wordplay, has a guest writer today. Rich Norris. Today is Dan's last puzzle in the NYT and Rich was invited to speak about it. Obviously the blog host knew that no one worked closer with Dan than Rich. Some very stirring words.
In honor of Count Your Buttons Day, here's Neil Gaiman on Koumpounophobia. (Not for the easily frightened.)
BT's CADDY SHACK LINK .
Classic
Good Day C.C.,Al and all,
Al, thank you for your write-up; I'll treat myself to your links tonight, after I've done my chores.
Running behind today- getting ready for a long weekend trip to Columbus. Puzzle didn't fall as fast as I had hoped. Liked it, even though I have never heard of 'carvel'and 'cecil'- Cecil who?-
also thought 'Eula' was 'Eulie', but perps got me through.
The theme was fun and the fill with two long 10 letter blocks and some sixes and sevens was very challenging, as well as original.
Argyle- you have the nicest,kindest face-'happy eyes'. In fact, you look the opposite of what I think a 'cynic' would look like. Having said that, your writing fits your demeanor. I love you![sorry,DH]
Dot@10/20 9:35 PM- That has happened to me and I found that though my password was correct, my address was missing the 'dot' in 'dot com', or a missing letter.
So, if that happens again, double check the address, also.
CA- you're on your way, but loved your poetry entry. Thanks.
Have a nice day everyone.
This guy took a lot of liberties with this puzzle, the only sensible clue/answer is 17A. The clue for 10D is present tense but the answer is past tense. that's a 'no-no'. Other bad clues/answers are: 20A, 23A, 46A, 60A, 65A, 64A, 33D, 53D.
Why bother.
Mr ED said: The clue for 10D is present tense but the answer is past tense. that's a 'no-no'..
The past tense of 'to wet' is 'wet' or 'wetted'
Hi gang -
I love pie, so this was fun - mostly.
Al - well done, and very informative.
Rather tough, I thought. MINCE WORDS was slow to come (probably 'cuz I tend not to) and the SW corner was a stumper until I g-spotted RICO (RICO?!? C'MON!) and once I had CRANIAL in my head the rest fell.
Sure LILAC blooms in the Spring. Doesn't everything?
Barry Manilow is a fine musician, and a wonderful human being, but I absolutely loath his songs. There is not one of them that I can even tolerate.
CECIL Fielder played in Detroit for 6 1/2 years and was a fan favorite. He hit quite a few HRs and had lots of RBIs. He was a big, slow guy who had 2 only stolen bases in his entire 13 year career.
Too bad PAW couldn't cross LAB, or IMBIBE cross ALE, or CHERRY BOMB cross NOISY.
On the other hand, an anonymous beauty could be a NO NAME DAMSEL TEN.
I had RUMP filled in before the rest of 3D, which struck me funny since, in casual games, I always opened ONE NOT RUMP whenever I had the right cards for it.
Cheers!
JzB
Mr. Ed, "Other bad clues/answers are: 20A, 23A, 46A, 60A, 65A, 64A, 33D, 53D." If you didn't have the answers at your fingertips, or couldn't suss the theme puns, doesn't mean they were "bad". It is Thursday and is supposed to be a notch more difficult. Please reread Al's excellent explanations and you might change your mind.
@JZB, not even one Barry song? At least give this one a try. Even if you don't like his voice, then the subject matter of the song should make you happy :-)
Good Afternoon Al, C.C. et al.
Late again...no computer problems, just a ton of work this AM.
I enjoyed this puzzle, and found it easier than typical Thursday. Loved the clue "Johns, to Elton" for LOOS.
I too thought 10D was present tense, and started writing "IMBIBE"...but what's this? An extra block left over? Oh, duh..."Wet" can be either present or past-tense.
Other than that, it was a pretty smooth solve. But it's past lunchtime, and I was really getting hungry thinking of all those pies (and some PANINI, CARVEL ice cream, Godiva TRUFFLEs, OKRA and chop SUEY, to boot).
Husker Gary, LOL at your "B-line" !
I think I have "babbled" enough for today... now I have to go count my buttons...
Al
Thanks for the SUDOKU link.
These are a natural puz for me since I have this "Numbers" talent.
Our paper prints two each day.
Usually one with 28 #'s filled in to start. The other with 26.
I get additional ones off the internet.
Don't know if they are considered difficult but they begin with only 18 filled in to start.
Spitzboov
10D "Wet one's whistle" ...
Well after I've IMBIBED, I pour another snifter.
(See Avatar).
Therefore I consider the answer to be in the 'future' tense. No later than the next days sunset.
Cheers!!!
Greetings puzzlers.
Al, you are so informative as usual; I always learn something from you. Never knew what URL meant.
Ed Sessa surely knows it's Thursday, yowza! I started out fine with INON, CHIC, BONO but then sidled down since I know nothing about bridge and didn't know Bamboo Harvester, a big learning moment for me.
Spelled SUDOKU right for once; I think JD gave me a clue to sound it out slowly.
I loved the theme since I love pie, peach is my favorite, but any of them will do. My grandmother made a wicked mince meat pie sans meat, too, Hahtool.
I thought the clues were extremely general, such as spring bloomer, but as JZB cited, it's Thursday, for goodness sake. It just made me scratch the gray cells and cry AHA when it emerged.
I really liked:
John's, to Elton, LOOS
Loft material, HAY (thought of you, WH)
Hand holding events, SEANCES
Earl of ESSEX was easy as I have read Elizabeth I's biography twice, a fascinating woman.
I'll miss your poetry, CA. Stay safe.
Have a delightful Thursday, all.
no, no, no, I won't go....in the hall of fame for crossword solving with this one.
I had difficulty all over and had to come on line to protect my sanity.
Spex? cmon! As usual I like all of the food references.
What are mince pies made of anyway? I still prefer pumpkin. What are your favorites??
Wow, seems the holidays are just around the corner. I saw Christmas decor up at Home Depot already! Too much, too soon for heaven sake.
Have a fabo day!
Dear dear Argyle, I really, really have a crush on you. I look at you and really feel like hugging you. Why haven't you replied to my emails , huh ?
Hey, Ms. Anonicrap - whatcha trying to do ? start a stampede ? Us Argyle groupies been waiting here, for what, forever. Get to the back of the queue girl, and wait your chance.
Unless, - you want to go at him first - then see, you get your mapquest and mosey down to dis lil village of Argyle new york and you drive down to de City Hall - the one room affaire with the lean-to outhouse - on Main street. What Main street - dat de one yore on ,baby - aint no more streets out there.
Den you aks annyone of dem three gals supposedly working there - Where de Hunk do live ?
If you dont unnerstand der akcents, he be living four miles down, past de apple orchard, next to de Old Jones farm - and bingo, you got him in de person. Take a bottle of 15 yr old single malt along - it bring de glow to his eyes - even if you dont.
An, watch out for de 'guard' chikens - take a fly swatter along - dem birds be pretty nasty if de be riled up. And wash your face and behind the ears and brush yur teeth - Aggie likes his dames classy.
I'm very late getting here because of a long meeting this morning, so just want to say that I did finally get the puzzle out without help except for one area--OCTET/RICO/ANTI (I had ONSET/RINO/ANSI) all of which were total unknowns, and apparently my WAGS didn't work as well as elsewhere with all the other complete unknowns.
Because I had to hurry out, I couldn't give it much time before returning, or I might have been tempted to google. I really thought this was major step up from yesterday's, maybe because of all the names.
Al,
Thanks so much for the link for RIP. Most of it was shot on my home beach--Bondi, and then when the ex Canadian guy was speaking at Tamarama, that's the next beach south of Bondi, and I've spent a lot of time there too. Because it's so tiny, there were often rips there and we were always warned about it. If the beach is unsafe for swimming, they often cross the flags, indicating no place is safe that day.
Now I'll read the rest of the comments.
I hope by now Clear Ayes is safely on her way, but if not, one more Bon Voyage, Gute Reise! to her.
Dick,
Oz = Australia, not NZ = New Zealand!
Hi all.
Yummy puzzle. Love cherry pie.
Be careful of what you say. It may come back and bite you in the
apple. So, no more of that.
Rangers in six,seven or eight.
Another example, Deanna says pictures were meant for her but got intercepted.
Take care.
CC, Argyle and folk,
catching up on yesterday...
@Barry, I don't quite understand how the angiogram dye ruins the liver. Why would we use a dangerous chemical in our bodies? Especially when that body is already comprised? OK, I'll pose this trite, old expression, "if we can put pan on the moon...???"
@Jeannie, I like to try a variety of cuisines (sp.?) My dining mates aren't always willing. One time I chose Ethiopean food, I thouroughly enjoyed it. Unfortunately, I can't say the same for all. After all, they wondered, who eats with their hands, anyway??? I did! I make a wonderful lunch for my husband every day. It's like a creation of art to me. Peter says he spends his whole morning looking forward to noon. Peter can eat all the time so I put many things in...up to 7-8 items.
1. sandwich
2. jalapeno peppers and the such
3 saltine crackers
4 graham crackers
5 fresh fruit + a banana for when he gets to work
6 carrots
7 protein bar
8 yogurt
Now, I know I must be leaving something out! I continually look for lunch containers that suit this quantity. I have a good one right now; I should have purchased a few extra ones. A plastic box to keep the sandwich safe. Ad infinitum.
Oh, I'll be back, I have to bring my car for it's annual checkup at 12:30.
Howdy,
Nice puzzle; allmost finished it. Good for a Thursday. Had a mistake with SPEC (I didn't double check with down answer). I don't like SPEX for an answer, but it is probably due to not watching enough ads. Other error was ?ONO and FRED for 14A & 17A. I didn't know 1D - tried APPLE first, and eliminated IBM because not enough letters. Duh.
I had a few misleads that held me up. Began 59A with SKI RUN, replaced it with SKI HUT, and finally got it right when I got 54D. Had SALAMI for 20A for a while. EIGHT sat in 64A, but not for long. Misspelled CUL as COL, but 39A corrected.
CMON, JZB, no Barry Manilow appeals? You must be able to tolerate one of these, if just for the nostalgic value? Jingles aside, I do mostly agree with you. When a Barry Manilow song gets stuck in my CRANIAL cavity (esp. Mandy & I Can't Smile Without You), I want to RIP it out, but rarely can.
Barry Manilow was my first 'real' concert, although I saw it while working, not as a patron. My memories are hazy (I was twelve), but I do recall a revolving stage and the two songs mentioned above. Mostly, I remember walking up and down the aisles hollering "Ice cold Pepsi; get an ice cold Pepsi" and "Popcorn; Hot, fresh Popcorn" for which I earned a nickel a sale. When leaving, Mr. Manilow managed to spare a wave to those of us "back stage" before leaping into his limo.
Time to make HAY while the sun shines and get some fall yard work done. Bye.
Otis
Hi all,
I haven't done today's puzzle yet but wanted to comment about yesterday. I acctually figured out the E's,F's and G's and most of the rest went well.
I knew Rene fron Benson. The Langston Hughes clue sent me to a biography on Yahoo and there was a lot of info on him, very interesting. I haven't a clue on how to put it on the blog. In fact, I have now messed up all the names on my E-mail. The names are there I just have to get them back to where they belong.
Toas was easy as I lived about 30 miles north of there when I lived in N.M. I only saw the ski area once though,and never did any sking.
We didn't see inside St. Paul Cathedral where Charles and Diana were married but in Sept. of 1997 we stood in Westminster Abby one week after Diana's funeral. There were still many flowers out side the cathedral.
Bill G-I wish for you to have the strength to do the Rehab. Will be thinking of you.
Marge
Today is a milestone in southern AZ weather! I am now wearing jeans instead of shorts. Ole! Ole! The rain cooled the temps and it's terrific. Do you agree Robin and Frenchie?
Hey gang, all this food talk, my stomach has growled all day with no dessert in sight. I am going to stop at the store and get a pie and eat the whole thing.
One of my favorites is Starbuck’s MUD PIE which is ice cream, but the blend of coffee and chocolate is quite yummy. Also, just for you Robin, my sister-in-law makes a great MINCE MEAT pie, the secret I think is the brandy.
Argyle, I am really enjoying the cat fight brewing over alienating your affections, with a pitch in there for AL today as well. With our Lo-li-ta and Melissa Bee fan clubs, the drooling over C.C. pics, and the pleasantries from Frenchie, WH and the rest, and we are quite a little Peyton Place.
Jerome, I am sure you know C.C. does not worry about other puzzles or other bloggers and has linked all, but I am glad Tinbeni and you brought our attention to the NYT and the blog; thank you
EEEWWW! Thanks for not sharing the SPOX with us, Argyle!
The Dan Naddor NY Times puzzle was AWESOME! So creative; had he lived puzzling would have evolved beyond the rebus. The words from our editor were also well done; go if you can and see it all.
Hi.
A 15.75 ERA starter? Come on!
Went out and found a copy of the NYT. Debating about the $40/yr.
33.33... (days) is an irrational number.
Take care.
Hola Everyone, I didn't quite finish the puzzle today. I goofed up in the SW corner by putting eight instead of octet for Days of Hanukkah and Supt. for Supe led to STan for the beginnin of what should have been seanaces.
I've never heard of Carvel brand, nor did I know Mr. Ed's real name. I learn something everyday on the Blog. That's a good thing.
I've never played bridge, but there is a bridge writeup in the paper everyday right above our CW. Today I read the writeup and One no trump was (1NT) so I filled in that top corner to get a toehold there. I already had trump filled in so it was a big help.
I liked the verb meaning for flag today. It was clever and had me going for a while.
Argyle, you beat me to Dagwood's pumpkin cheesecake comic strip today.
Husker Gary, I had to laugh at your cherry bomb story.
I spent my morning getting ready for rain that is supposed to come tonight and off and on through the weekend. I hadn't taken in the chair cushions or folding chairs on the deck or covered the benches and umbrellas. That's all done now for the season. I miss having the deck for an extra living space, but it will be too cold for that pretty soon anyway.
Last night my meeting was ended with the raffling of ten pecan pies. My friend from Georgia baked them all from her grandmother's recipe. The money went to our scholarship fund. Unfortunately, I didn't win one, and they happen to be my favorite. A small piece will do you for sure.
Finally got a chance to do Dan Naddor's final NYT puzzle, and it's a beauty. As others have said, if you can get to it, you owe it to yourself to try this one.
And Rich Norris' tribute was indeed touching. I still think about Dan a lot, and will always treasure our brief online conversations.
Argyle, great new picture (you have quite a following here) - This is for you:
Argyle is jolly and cute
Women say he's a beaut,
but Lois has dibs
on her arms 'round his ribs
when he comes down her 'ol chimney
shute !
I'm late posting today. It has been a busy day. I spent 21 minutes this morning before work, then another 35 minutes after work trying to complete this puzzle. Although it took me almost an hour to get it done, everything worked, and I didn't miss anything. A pretty good Thursday workout.
Like others, I had trouble in the SW. I finally had to google the Copacabana lyrics to find some traction and finish. I've never seen SPEX before. We have CARVEL here in Florida - if we had them in Western PA, I don't remember them.
Tinbeni, thank you for the Dan Naddor alert. I found a copy at the 2nd book store I checked, and I'm sure it'll have been worth the trip! And, Jerome, thanks for letting us know about the Wordplay guest.
Al, thank you for the Sudoku link. I liked the song too.
Spitzboov, I enjoyed the Jeep link!
Time to go do Dan's puzzle! :-)
With all the references to 'pie' I was wondering how come there is no reference to: "simple simon,". Remember him? He met the pie-man on the way to the fair, etc., anyone remember?
C.C., ever hear of 'Baidu'? It's in China?
Did any of you "boys" not drop cherry bombs someplace during your growing up years? Some of the stories were too funny.
Carol, A great Limirick for Argyle. You hit it on the head.
With so many Mince Pie lovers out there have any of you had it with rum hard sauce? Our aunt made a killer hard sauce and I think my dad ate the pie just to have her sauce.
OK, I was persuaded to fork out $6.95 for a 1 month subscription, so I could take a trip to the "other side" and check out Naddor's NYT puzzle. It was very elegant, and I will try to avoid any spoilers in case someone else wants a go.
The theme emerged quickly with 7D - something I suffer from all the time. I had a moment's hesitation though, since my first thought for 38A was "SENIOR MOMENT" (something else I suffer from). It helped that we had recently seen several clues lately back home in the LAT (1A, 14A, 45A, 46D, inter alia).
Bottom line: Elegant, but I did not find it more difficult than today's LAT crossword. So we Westerphiles should feel no sense of inferiority.
God bless 'im.
NC
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