Theme: Undercover Copse - Different tree spans each theme entry.
26A. *Supercorporation's revenues : GLOBAL SALES. Balsa.
32A. *Lithium or sodium, e.g. : ALKALI METAL. Lime.
45A. *House arrestee's device : ANKLE MONITOR. Lemon.
55A. *One blowing off steam : TEA KETTLE. Teak. Great clue. Vivid image.
69A. Different ones are hidden in 12 starred answers : TREES. Dead center in the middle of the grid.
79A. *Having one Corkonian parent, maybe : HALF-IRISH. Fir. Any Irish blood in your vein, Steve?
90A. *Liable to spontaneously combust : SELF IGNITING. Fig. Trader Joe's Fig Butter is so good.
101A. *"Gypsy" star : ETHEL MERMAN. Elm.
108A. *Freud essay based on a mythical monster : MEDUSA'S HEAD. Ash.
3D. *Cereal pitched by a trio : COCOA KRISPIES. Oak.
16D. *Popular music magazine VIP : SPIN EDITOR. Pine. The Spin magazine. This answer, or Vogue/Elle/People editor for that matter, does not feel solid to me. Tough to come up with a PINE span though.
60D. *Place to go to launch in Florida : CAPE CANAVERAL. Pecan.
74D. *"Dallas" character who died in Pam's season-long dream : BOBBY EWING. Yew.
Love the title. Love the variety of trees. Much more interesting than the old style all ELM-hidden puzzle.
Of the 12 trees, quite a few are short 3-letter trees, some can actually be tougher to span than the longer trees.
Across:
1. Voice of Mr. Magoo : BACKUS (Jim). I drew a blank.
7. Eponymous German aeronaut : ZEPPELIN
15. "Baloney!" : PSHAW
20. Immediately : AT ONCE
21. __ Fagan, Billie Holiday's birth name : ELEANORA. Used this in one of our published puzzles.
22. Left on board : APORT
23. San __: holiday VIP, in Italy : NICOLA. Italian for St Nickolas.
24. Pudding starches : TAPIOCAS. Spell Check does not like the pluralized form.
25. Stuns at the altar : JILTS
28. Ladd and Freed : ALANs
30. Shot : STAB
31. Hi-__ monitor : RES
38. Singer Minogue : KYLIE. She dated the "Unfaithful" Olivier Martinez for a few years. Now, look at her legs, don't google, can you guess how tall she is?
40. Clever comeback : BON MOT
42. Villain's demise, usually : BAD END
43. Water filter brand : PUR
48. Pupil's place : IRIS. Not the classroom.
49. Final words : EPILOG
51. 1997 U.S. Open champ : ELS (Ernie)
52. Latin clarifier : ID EST. ie.
54. Music symbols : RESTS
59. Half of a rhyming incantation : HOCUS. Hocus-pocus.
63. Stadium souvenirs : CAPS. LaLaLinda, do you also stand in line for hours just get a stadium giveaway bobblehead?
64. Taipan's frypan : WOK. Taipan = "Big Boss" in Cantonese. Tai = Big. Pan = Boss. In Mandarin, it's Da Ban. Quite different.
65. ''Star Wars'' royalty : LEIA
66. "The Story of Civilization" co-author Ariel or Will : DURANT
67. Verdi's "__ tu" : ERI
68. Boomer's kid, probably : XER
71. Cacophony : DIN
72. Prefix with perfect : PLU. Pluperfect.
73. Military school freshmen : PLEBES
75. Hammer end : PEEN
76. Chicken __ : POX
77. Near-eternity : AEON. I finally got my Lady Gaga pink lipstick.
78. Chicken supplier to much of the fast-food industry : TYSON
82. Record holder? : EX-CON. Oh, criminal record.
83. Eddie of men's clothing : BAUER
85. Battleship letters : USS
86. Butterflies : UNEASE
87. Ruiner of a perfect report card : ONE B
95. Springfield's Flanders : NED. "The Simpsons".
96. Draft again : RE-TYPE
98. Some navels : OUTIES
99. Narrow groove : STRIA. So, what's its plural? Strias? Striae?
103. NBA position : CTR
104. "South Park" rating : TV-MA
107. Every seven days : A WEEK
112. Frenzy : MANIA
114. Alcohol, vis-à-vis driving ability : IMPAIRER. Not a welcome ER word.
118. Unpolished : COARSE
119. Clubs for pros : IRONS. Golf pros.
120. Little biters : NIBBLERS
121. Protect in glass, say : ENCASE
122. Hogwash : BILGE
123. It may be regular : GASOLINE
124. Vegas job : DEALER.
Down:
1. Beatles hair style : BANGS. I've been wearing blunt bangs forever.
2. Not straight up : ATILT
4. Like some knees : KNOBBY
5. Bruins' sch. : UCLA
6. Signet-bearing jewelry : SEAL RING
7. Zorba's snore? : ZETAS. "Zzzzz ..." in Greek. I don't think Zorba himself could get this answer.
8. Skyward, in Hebrew : EL AL
9. Toon Le Pew : PEPE
10. Buddy : PAISANO. Close to "peasant" in French.
11. Ambient music pioneer : ENO (Brian)
12. Opp. of express : LOC
13. "Deathtrap" dramatist Levin : IRA
14. Twangy : NASAL
15. __ bottoms : PAJAMA. Do you all wear pajamas to sleep? I can't stand them.
17. Piece keeper : HOLSTER. Nice clue.
18. "All __ is but imitation of nature": Seneca : ART
19. Mg. and kg. : WTs
27. Go after : SEEK
29. Free, in France : LIBRE
33. K-O connection : LMN
34. Japanese carp : KOI. Here is a quiet koi pond. Do you like Zen-feel, Creature?
35. Fifth-century scourge : ATTILA. The Hun.
36. Songwriter DiFranco : ANI
37. Mormons, initially : LDS
39. Landlocked Asian country : LAOS
40. Composer Bartók : BELA
41. Siberian city : OMSK. Over a million people there.
43. Mental impression : PERCEPT. More familiar with perception.
44. Catching the worm? : UP EARLY. I'm an early riser. Dennis also. Marti too. I think. Argyle is a saint. He does not sleep.
46. Onion relative : LEEK
47. Lyrical tribute : ODE
50. Sgt.'s superiors : LTs
53. Duck : SHUN
55. Craggy crest : TOR. Here is all you need to know about TOR. Click Archive, you'll find all the little words in alphabetical order. Don't forget the Clever Clue of the Month. Lots of gems in Paul's website.
56. 1985 Kate Nelligan title role : ELENI. The Nicholas Gage memoir. I don't know the actress.
57. Athletic supporter? : TEE. Why question mark?
58. It's in an old way : 'TIS
61. Set free : UNLOOSE
62. In awe : STUNNED
64. Guitar great Montgomery : WES. Splynter can tell you more about him.
66. Twice cinq : DIX. Ten in French.
68. TV princess : XENA
69. Business card no. : TEL
70. Foul caller : REF
71. "Stupid me!" : DOH
75. Bingo setting : PARLOR
76. Soft attention-getter : PSST
77. Can : AXE
79. Bit of a giggle : HEE
80. Mysterious character : RUNE. I was picturing a person.
81. Fertility goddess : ISIS
82. M.I.T. grad, often : ENGR
84. "I'm here to help" : USE ME
86. Like calls whose source isn't determined : UNTRACED
87. Rush find : ORE. Gold rush.
88. Pay in your pocket : NET
89. Still product : ETHANOL. Tricky "Still".
91. Giant sound : FUM. "Fee, fi, fo, fum".
92. Call-day link : IT A
93. Cheap saloon : GIN MILL
94. Adherents' suffix : ISTs
97. "The magic word" : PLEASE
100. Cornell University city : ITHACA. Bill G's alma mater. Argyle went there too.
102. Squeezing (out) : EKING
103. Hex : CURSE
105. Tricky billiards shot : MASSE. Also CAROM.
106. Run like __ : A DEER
109. "... kissed thee __ killed thee": Othello : ERE I
110. "Jurassic Park" co-star : DERN (Laura)
111. Acoustical unit : SONE. Learned from doing Xword.
112. Marble not used as a shooter : MIB. Shooting marble clues/answers always drive me bananas. TAW is another one.
113. Jackie's "O" : ARI
115. "Mamma __!" : MIA
116. "Nova" network : PBS
117. Blood system letters : ABO
Answer grid.
Sad news about our LAT constructor Gary Steinmehl, who passed away last Tuesday after a long battle with cancer. Gary had over 200 crosswords puzzles published by LA Times, NY Times, NY Sun, USA Today, etc. Read my interview with him here. Thanks for the puzzles and inspiration, Gary!
C.C.
26A. *Supercorporation's revenues : GLOBAL SALES. Balsa.
32A. *Lithium or sodium, e.g. : ALKALI METAL. Lime.
45A. *House arrestee's device : ANKLE MONITOR. Lemon.
55A. *One blowing off steam : TEA KETTLE. Teak. Great clue. Vivid image.
69A. Different ones are hidden in 12 starred answers : TREES. Dead center in the middle of the grid.
79A. *Having one Corkonian parent, maybe : HALF-IRISH. Fir. Any Irish blood in your vein, Steve?
90A. *Liable to spontaneously combust : SELF IGNITING. Fig. Trader Joe's Fig Butter is so good.
101A. *"Gypsy" star : ETHEL MERMAN. Elm.
108A. *Freud essay based on a mythical monster : MEDUSA'S HEAD. Ash.
3D. *Cereal pitched by a trio : COCOA KRISPIES. Oak.
16D. *Popular music magazine VIP : SPIN EDITOR. Pine. The Spin magazine. This answer, or Vogue/Elle/People editor for that matter, does not feel solid to me. Tough to come up with a PINE span though.
60D. *Place to go to launch in Florida : CAPE CANAVERAL. Pecan.
74D. *"Dallas" character who died in Pam's season-long dream : BOBBY EWING. Yew.
Love the title. Love the variety of trees. Much more interesting than the old style all ELM-hidden puzzle.
Of the 12 trees, quite a few are short 3-letter trees, some can actually be tougher to span than the longer trees.
Across:
1. Voice of Mr. Magoo : BACKUS (Jim). I drew a blank.
7. Eponymous German aeronaut : ZEPPELIN
15. "Baloney!" : PSHAW
20. Immediately : AT ONCE
21. __ Fagan, Billie Holiday's birth name : ELEANORA. Used this in one of our published puzzles.
22. Left on board : APORT
23. San __: holiday VIP, in Italy : NICOLA. Italian for St Nickolas.
24. Pudding starches : TAPIOCAS. Spell Check does not like the pluralized form.
25. Stuns at the altar : JILTS
28. Ladd and Freed : ALANs
30. Shot : STAB
31. Hi-__ monitor : RES
38. Singer Minogue : KYLIE. She dated the "Unfaithful" Olivier Martinez for a few years. Now, look at her legs, don't google, can you guess how tall she is?
40. Clever comeback : BON MOT
42. Villain's demise, usually : BAD END
43. Water filter brand : PUR
48. Pupil's place : IRIS. Not the classroom.
49. Final words : EPILOG
51. 1997 U.S. Open champ : ELS (Ernie)
52. Latin clarifier : ID EST. ie.
54. Music symbols : RESTS
59. Half of a rhyming incantation : HOCUS. Hocus-pocus.
63. Stadium souvenirs : CAPS. LaLaLinda, do you also stand in line for hours just get a stadium giveaway bobblehead?
64. Taipan's frypan : WOK. Taipan = "Big Boss" in Cantonese. Tai = Big. Pan = Boss. In Mandarin, it's Da Ban. Quite different.
65. ''Star Wars'' royalty : LEIA
66. "The Story of Civilization" co-author Ariel or Will : DURANT
67. Verdi's "__ tu" : ERI
68. Boomer's kid, probably : XER
71. Cacophony : DIN
72. Prefix with perfect : PLU. Pluperfect.
73. Military school freshmen : PLEBES
75. Hammer end : PEEN
76. Chicken __ : POX
77. Near-eternity : AEON. I finally got my Lady Gaga pink lipstick.
78. Chicken supplier to much of the fast-food industry : TYSON
82. Record holder? : EX-CON. Oh, criminal record.
83. Eddie of men's clothing : BAUER
85. Battleship letters : USS
86. Butterflies : UNEASE
87. Ruiner of a perfect report card : ONE B
95. Springfield's Flanders : NED. "The Simpsons".
96. Draft again : RE-TYPE
98. Some navels : OUTIES
99. Narrow groove : STRIA. So, what's its plural? Strias? Striae?
103. NBA position : CTR
104. "South Park" rating : TV-MA
107. Every seven days : A WEEK
112. Frenzy : MANIA
114. Alcohol, vis-à-vis driving ability : IMPAIRER. Not a welcome ER word.
118. Unpolished : COARSE
119. Clubs for pros : IRONS. Golf pros.
120. Little biters : NIBBLERS
121. Protect in glass, say : ENCASE
122. Hogwash : BILGE
123. It may be regular : GASOLINE
124. Vegas job : DEALER.
Down:
1. Beatles hair style : BANGS. I've been wearing blunt bangs forever.
2. Not straight up : ATILT
4. Like some knees : KNOBBY
5. Bruins' sch. : UCLA
6. Signet-bearing jewelry : SEAL RING
7. Zorba's snore? : ZETAS. "Zzzzz ..." in Greek. I don't think Zorba himself could get this answer.
8. Skyward, in Hebrew : EL AL
9. Toon Le Pew : PEPE
10. Buddy : PAISANO. Close to "peasant" in French.
11. Ambient music pioneer : ENO (Brian)
12. Opp. of express : LOC
13. "Deathtrap" dramatist Levin : IRA
14. Twangy : NASAL
15. __ bottoms : PAJAMA. Do you all wear pajamas to sleep? I can't stand them.
17. Piece keeper : HOLSTER. Nice clue.
18. "All __ is but imitation of nature": Seneca : ART
19. Mg. and kg. : WTs
27. Go after : SEEK
29. Free, in France : LIBRE
33. K-O connection : LMN
34. Japanese carp : KOI. Here is a quiet koi pond. Do you like Zen-feel, Creature?
35. Fifth-century scourge : ATTILA. The Hun.
36. Songwriter DiFranco : ANI
37. Mormons, initially : LDS
39. Landlocked Asian country : LAOS
40. Composer Bartók : BELA
41. Siberian city : OMSK. Over a million people there.
43. Mental impression : PERCEPT. More familiar with perception.
44. Catching the worm? : UP EARLY. I'm an early riser. Dennis also. Marti too. I think. Argyle is a saint. He does not sleep.
46. Onion relative : LEEK
47. Lyrical tribute : ODE
50. Sgt.'s superiors : LTs
53. Duck : SHUN
55. Craggy crest : TOR. Here is all you need to know about TOR. Click Archive, you'll find all the little words in alphabetical order. Don't forget the Clever Clue of the Month. Lots of gems in Paul's website.
56. 1985 Kate Nelligan title role : ELENI. The Nicholas Gage memoir. I don't know the actress.
57. Athletic supporter? : TEE. Why question mark?
58. It's in an old way : 'TIS
61. Set free : UNLOOSE
62. In awe : STUNNED
64. Guitar great Montgomery : WES. Splynter can tell you more about him.
66. Twice cinq : DIX. Ten in French.
68. TV princess : XENA
69. Business card no. : TEL
70. Foul caller : REF
71. "Stupid me!" : DOH
75. Bingo setting : PARLOR
76. Soft attention-getter : PSST
77. Can : AXE
79. Bit of a giggle : HEE
80. Mysterious character : RUNE. I was picturing a person.
81. Fertility goddess : ISIS
82. M.I.T. grad, often : ENGR
84. "I'm here to help" : USE ME
86. Like calls whose source isn't determined : UNTRACED
87. Rush find : ORE. Gold rush.
88. Pay in your pocket : NET
89. Still product : ETHANOL. Tricky "Still".
91. Giant sound : FUM. "Fee, fi, fo, fum".
92. Call-day link : IT A
93. Cheap saloon : GIN MILL
94. Adherents' suffix : ISTs
97. "The magic word" : PLEASE
100. Cornell University city : ITHACA. Bill G's alma mater. Argyle went there too.
102. Squeezing (out) : EKING
103. Hex : CURSE
105. Tricky billiards shot : MASSE. Also CAROM.
106. Run like __ : A DEER
109. "... kissed thee __ killed thee": Othello : ERE I
110. "Jurassic Park" co-star : DERN (Laura)
111. Acoustical unit : SONE. Learned from doing Xword.
112. Marble not used as a shooter : MIB. Shooting marble clues/answers always drive me bananas. TAW is another one.
113. Jackie's "O" : ARI
115. "Mamma __!" : MIA
116. "Nova" network : PBS
117. Blood system letters : ABO
Answer grid.
Sad news about our LAT constructor Gary Steinmehl, who passed away last Tuesday after a long battle with cancer. Gary had over 200 crosswords puzzles published by LA Times, NY Times, NY Sun, USA Today, etc. Read my interview with him here. Thanks for the puzzles and inspiration, Gary!
C.C.
Good morning, fellow cruciverbalists!
ReplyDeleteGreat puzzle, Mark B.! Fine exposition of same, C. C.!
Most amusing answers: EXCON, TIS, APORT and HOLSTER.
Worked for quite awhile, went away, put in some more, watched a new PBS show (William and Mary with Martin Clunes) and then finally finished it off. Whew! This is how I managed to do it without cheating. Had to correct 3 or 4 mistypes before final huzzah!
Reading Margaret Maron's latest mystery, Three-Day Town. (Finally gave up on Elizabeth George's latest Lynley Mystery Believing the Lie. Incredibly long and boring.)
Friend Chris down with intestinal fllu for NTH day. (Exited the pool suddenly last Tuesday and strewed her lunch all over the patio. Hasn't been able to eat since. Am really worried about her. No good exercise for me since then.)
Have a wonderful Sunday!
PS: mg and kg are measurements of mass, not weight.
ReplyDeleteI think ATILT is my least favorite bit of crosswordese (Sp.? Not in dictionary.)
Morning, all!
ReplyDeleteGearing up for the big game tonight. My son and I have matching shirts and we'll share a bowl of chips with onion dip in front of the widescreen T.V. while my wife watches with her fingers covering her face (she gets very nervous watching these things).
Didn't enjoy this puzzle all that much, I'm sad to say. The theme was OK, but not memorable. Wasn't happy with most of the icky stuff pointed out by C.C. (SPIN EDITOR, MIB, IMPAIRER, PERCEPT) as well as ONE B. Didn't know ELEANORA, COCOA KRISPIES (only know RICE KRISPIES), WES or the fact that Kate Nelligan played ELENI.
Had TAC (for "tacit") instead of LOC as the opposite of express.
I really don't think of BANGS as being a hair style -- they are part of a hair style, aren't it?
Oh, and before I forget... This has probably been discussed before, but who is JOYCE the co-editor?
Sorry, make that "aren't they" and not "aren't it". Dang lack of sleep...
ReplyDeleteHi There ~!
ReplyDeleteVery clever puzzle, IMHO; I feel the same as C.C.; three-letter spans are harder to do than some longer words. I am also partial to trees - at least the ones with wood you can use to build with....
I was totally stumped by poX - had to red-letter that one - foreign crossings....
I got "One B" on my first drafting school report card, and boy was I pissed....
I would think JazzB knows more about Wes Montgomery than me; I am a fan of Eric Johnson, who honors Wes in this piece.
My boys in blue are playing today~!
GO Rangers and GIANTS ~!!!
Splynter
Good Morning, C.C. and friends. What a fun puzzle. The YEW tree was my first hidden find. I saw the YEW in BOBBY EWING before I figured out the TREE unifier. Once I caught realized that the YEW was not found in all the theme answers, I had fun looking for, and answering those starred clues.
ReplyDeleteMy favorite clue was Zorba's Snore = ZETAS.
I thought PAJAMA Bottoms was a strange clue/answer.
I have the entire 11 volume set of The Story of Civilization by Will and Ariel DURANT. I have only read two of the book, though.
QOD: If man asks for many laws it is only because he is sure that his neighbor needs them; privately he is an unphilosophical anarchist, and thinks laws in his own case superfluous. ~ Will Durant
Good morning C.C. et al.
ReplyDeleteSundays, I am not an early riser, C.C.!
It took me the longest time to remember Jim Backus’ name at 1A, so I left that corner for last. At 2D, I wanted “on ice”. And 3D was screaming “rice” KRISPIES until COCOA finally emerged. And I totally missed “Athletic supporter” for TEE, and still don’t get the clue…
My only other sticky spot was the “b” in the crossing of MIB and BILGE. Like Hahtool, the theme really helped me with the fill. When I went back to that NW and looked at - - - - ALSALES, I was finally able to fill in GLOBAL. That was the key that finally unlocked the entire section, for me.
R.I.P Gary Steinmehl. It seems to make sense that he was a musician and artist, as many constructors share those talents. His puzzles always challenged me, and it is sad to lose such a productive and brilliant cruciverbalist.
@HeartRx: A golf TEE "supports" the golf ball.
ReplyDeleteGood morning Sunday solvers!
ReplyDeleteI found this to be a fairly straight-forward solve. Here and there I needed a perp, but in general just kept slogging on to the bottom. I'd never heard of Minogue, so I did WAG the "K" at the KYLIE/KRISPIES crossing. Thought it might have been a "C", but the "K" seemed to work better for someone's name. Whew! Could have earned another DNF.
CC, HeartRx: An athletic supporter could be a fan, a jock strap, or a tee which supports the ball in golf, maybe football as well.
Did yesterday a per usual. Liked it a lot, less work than last Sunday. ATILT -ugh, not a fan of A-word, this was a stinker. Only complaint, I don't even remember the first A-word I tried as I had the cross.
ReplyDeleteR.I.P. super puzzle with all those trees! Can forgive ATILT.
? On athletic supporter - golf tangent, I think.
good sunday puzzle. Liked the theme it was fun finding the trees in the theme clues.
ReplyDeleteI don't know how tall she is, but I read somewhere that Kylie's bum has been deemed a national treasure.
ReplyDeleteGood morning C.C. and all. No hard copy this morning since the county roads haven't been plowed and the paper guy cant get through. So I printed the puzzle off this site and worked in pencil. That left me without the theme (which is a very clever title), but I doubt it would have helped that much. It all came together slowly and I didn't even look for the trees until I had 95% of the grid filled. DNF for me cuz I couldn't come up with pox or dix. I knew 71D had to be Doh or Duh, but for "Chicken___" I couldn't get past some type of eastern dish, such as Kung Pao Chicken.
ReplyDeleteStill, a challenging fun puzzle for me and a good way to start the day.
Barry G. and desper-otto @ 8:26...
ReplyDelete71 DOWN !!!
Thanks C.C. and Mark for a nice Sunday workout; the effort to plant that many trees in the puzzle is impressive.
ReplyDeleteKylie must be short or you would not ask, and her waist to knee looks small, but I do know she has been regarded as having the best legs in show business. She also has an impressive SISTER DANII .
My prayers for the Steinmehl family; I remember his puzzles and your interview, especially since he referred to Dan Naddor and his puzzling to deal with cancer. Another good one gone.
Kylie Minogue has the best celebrity legs.
ReplyDeleteKylie Minogue is my height. We could be twins - NOT!
ReplyDeleteHello Puzzlers -
ReplyDeleteLucked out on this big beast, managed a no-peeky speed run. Knew KYLIE Minogue from her guest appearance on Vicar of Dibley. She was memorably attractive.
Caught on to the theme about halfway through, which helped with MEDUSAS HEAD. Really struggled with UNLOOSE, it sounds just as slangily wrong as unthaw. Also stumbled at TVMA, just don't know these newfangled ratings. STRIA came slowly even though it was a word used in optics; we mostly used it as a plural, Striae.
Hand up for trouble with Athletic Supporter. I resisted putting in TEE because it just didn't line up with the clue.
Just yesterday a local carpenter and sawmill operator claimed that BALSA is actually a fungus, not a real tree, but there is no mention in Wikipedia. Sounds fishy.
I understand there is some sort of football game today. Can't be bothered with that. We'll be watching Downton Abbey as soon as it comes on!
There's also a good golf tourney on today! :-)
ReplyDeleteC.C. - I'd guess that Kylie Minogue is 5' 10".
ReplyDeleteI've looked at a number of Kylie photos and videos just now, looking for something that really showcases her stern. Those images I saw do suggest it is a top bottom.
Greetings weekend warriors. Thank you, Mark Bickham for a good brain teaser and C.C. for your insights.
ReplyDeleteWhew! Just the three letter fill was taxing but fun. TEE, however, did me in and we have seen that one before as athletic supporter.
Loved the crossing of ZEPPELIN and ZETAS; there's something about Zs I like.
Also, since I know nothing about billiards nor obviously about TV ratings, MASSE was PASSE in my grid.
Started wearing PAJAMAS after my DH died.
Had to look up KYLIE Mingue as had not heard of her. I would guess she might be 5'2". Her feet are far from the edge of the lounger.
I heard something about a football game and a golf tournament today but the movies are calling me as well as sick friend whom I'll visit.
Have fun watching the game everyone who does so!
fermatprine:
ReplyDeleteI love William and Mary! Since I teach on Thursday nights I record it for later viewing.
Barry G:
I believe there is an interview with either Rich or Joyce about her role as co-editor. Check the front of the blog.
Lucina, HeartRx: Since you both had trouble with TEE today, I'll forgive you for thinking yesterday was easy.
ReplyDeleteHi C.C. and Sunday Solvers. This puzzle 'wood' have been a little easier if I had looked at the title, but it was above the fold in our paper and I never saw it. By the time I got down to TREES, I had already filled GLOBAL SALES, ANKLE MONITOR and TEAKETTLE and was able to spot the theme without too much effort.
ReplyDeleteI felt really good when BACKUS came to mind immediately, and thought I was really on a roll with RED BARON for that eponymous aeronaut. When I started checking downs, though, that entry flew like a lead ZEPPELIN.
The theme got me out of one jam. I had ELENa crossing HALF aRISH. I thought Corkonian might be some sort of ET races from one of those SciFi series, but when I started looking for the tree I realized my thinking was a FIR bit off the mark.
That X was my last entry. I started with DuH, couldn't come up with chicken pu_ anything, switched to DOH, and almost stopped at chicken POt, but suddenly realized it was an X.
Lots of fun, today.
She is 5' tall, or so the world wide web says.
ReplyDeleteMy father bought me a pair of pajamas when I turned 18, and said they were for my wedding night. They were black with red polka dots. 16 years later I wore them for the first time, for a while that night. No pajamas since.
Lemonade: Like I said, she's my height.
ReplyDeleteIsn't a Tee also used at the beginning of a football game?
Lemon - 5 feet, you say? Astonishing!
ReplyDeleteOf course, when she was on Vicar of Dibley she was next to Dawn French, who isn't exactly a flagpole herself.
CC, I keep forgetting to ask. Why don't we ever hear from Hard-G Don? Or does he show up here under a different alias?
ReplyDeleteHi Y'all,
ReplyDeleteEnjoyed this puzzle, Mark, and the write-up, C.C. Saw the title and got the theme before I filled in anything--for once. Helped some.
Couldn't get Nicola, Global or Stab because I wanted Knockt knees. But I did get DIX/POX cross. (Partly because my neighbor had shingles and her daughter had chicken pox a few years ago. While they were sick, my sewer backed up with very noxious fumes in my house and two weeks later, I had shingles. Cause & effect? I didn't know they were sick until after I had shingles. No direct contact.)
Living alone, I wear pajamas for warmth and in case I have to run out if the house catches fire.
Didn't get Masse or the rating either. But I got so much more than the last two days, if was fun for me. Started off knowing Backus and Zeppelin which was encouraging.
Football kicking tee, used for just about all kick-offs unless its too windy.
ReplyDeleteI didn't know who Kylie was, and don't know how tall Kylie is, but I don't really care much. However tall she might be works for me. I'm looking forward to a lot more research.
ReplyDeleteToday's puzzle otherwise was pretty straightforward, hindered slightly by the our Incredible Shrinking Newspaper's neglect to include the clue for 1A.
I started today in the middle, as I often do, and it was a while before I got to the NW corner. Had _A_KUS pretty quickly, and figured it was either HAIKUS or BACKUS, quickly resolved because the I seemed unlikely.
Favorite clue, after some thought, was Zorba's snore (ZETA). I'd seen Athleric Supporter (TEE) before, and forgotten that grams were units of mass, technically, so wasn't slowed down there at all.
Today is going to be a watching-golf day. I just got a copy of The Rules of Golf (originally around 350 words in 1744, now said to be 40,000), so I'm ready to really kibitz. Golf is probably my second-favorite TV sport. (Beach Volleyball. Why do you ask?)
Good morning C.C. and all
ReplyDeleteNice puzzle. Saw the 'trees' right away, but the starred theme fill was easy enough. Trees were a good check, though. No look-ups needed. Loved the clueing for EXCON and HOLSTER. STRIAe are often seen on exposed surface rock formations in the northern US showing the direction of movement left by the glaciers. While APORT denotes the left side, helm orders are given using 'left' or 'right' as in "Left standard rudder, come to course 270". USS is used for all named Navy ships including battleships.
Have a great day.
Spitzboov, quick question.
ReplyDeleteWould left or right rudder apply to a sailing ship?
Pajamas: never. At least not since childhood. They get all twisted.
ReplyDeleteDuring the big power outage, we coped with the unusually cold room by wearing snug fitting thermal undies because they don't twist.
You Hugh Laurie fans: just got Season One of Jeeves & Wooster from Netflix. He really did own the role of the air headed Bertie Wooster! It's hard to believe he's not American, when heard speaking on House.
Of course Stephen Fry rocks the Jeeves role. He's definitely over 5 feet.
Argyle - quick question: what is done when it is too windy to use a football tee?
ReplyDeleteCall off the game and head to the pub, maybe?
If it is too windy for the ball to stay on the tee, one player holds it, like they do for field goals.
ReplyDeleteOh. Thanks!
ReplyDeleteLiked my idea better...
:-)
In my limited experience, the term "rudder" is seldom used in sailing craft unless you're talking about the rudder itself (that thingy behind the boat that moves from left to right). It's "helm", "tiller", or "wheel". Things are further confused by the fact that pushing the tiller to the right causes the boat to turn to the left, but orders traditionally referred to the tiller direction. So, "port your helm" would mean "turn right". If you watch the movie Titanic, you'll see the ship turn left in response to the "Hard a' starboard" order. Orders also often relate to the point of sail -- "put down your helm" means move the tiller downwind, with no reference to the boat's direction of turn. Wheels these days are usually rigged such that turning the wheel to the right moves the tiller to the left, turning the ship to the right -- just like the steering wheel works on a car -- so "come left" or "come right" would be normal orders, although I don't ever remember "rudder" being used as it is in larger powered ships.
ReplyDeleteHey. Classic rematch. Rangers vs
ReplyDeleteFlyers.
eddy
Still waiting for Anon to contact me.
Argyle @ 12:01. My comment applied only to modern era engine powered ships where the helmsman usually steers by compass. I am not a sailboat sailor. I would think on a large sailing vessel, that steering orders would have to be closely coordinated with the setting of sail changes on any significant course change. Mike @ 12:25 commented on some of this.
ReplyDeleteMorning all,
ReplyDeleteIf LOOSE means free , how can UNLOOSE
Means set free ? I'm confused , maybe one
too many last night, maybe cos I woke up late
but I keep looking at it and still can't get it. help
No pajamas .. Yet , still young
Spencer smoked the course the last 3 days...
and a pack.!
Y'all have a SUPER Sunday .
The "a" words y'all so object to are poetic words: atilt,aroar, awhirl. I love 'em.
ReplyDeleteOh, Little Bird by Edwin Leibfried
Oh little bird with head atilt,
In safety drinking as thou wilt
From out the wayside fount;
Unmindful of the noisy crowd profane,
What fears thy wings surmount!
Oh blithesome, eager little bird,
With reverent head turned heavenward,
I feel thy silent thanks!
The charm within the voice of men,
The potency of gift of pen,
Thy gratitude outranks.
So would I find some wayside pool,
Some sheltered spot with water cool
From which no more to shrink.
Oh little bird with head atilt,
Would I had wings to soar 'bove guilt
And share thy tranquil drink!
I had DUH for 71 down which made 76 across chicken PUX, which I suppose could be what they use to play hockey in the henhouse.
ReplyDeleteMy online dictionary has DUH but not DOH. My paper dictionary only has DAH which is a whole other thing.
So I said to myself how would Homer Simpson spell it. As it turns he not only knew how to spell it, D'OH, but he coined the phase.
Wikipedia D'oh!
"What a PUX I am" I had no trouble with IPSO FATSO yesterday, but duh, I mean d'oh. I guess you know now that I'm not one of those XERs.
So Mark you get high marks for staying current.
Marti ,
ReplyDeleteThe list is ready, don't know if I'll have time
to send it to you today... I'll try
This excerpt is from The Ballad of the Calliope, a poem about a ship surviving a hurricane by A.B. Banjo Peterson.
ReplyDeleteThrough that long, long night of dread,
While the storm raged overhead,
They were waiting by their engines, with the furnace fires aroar;
So they waited, staunch and true,
Though they knew, and well they knew,
They must drown like rats imprisoned if the vessel touched the shore.
Wow, now I feel really weird after reading the comments. Am I the only one who misread the theme as "Hidden Corpses?"
ReplyDeleteI was very happy to see that it was trees that were hidden!
Dudley:
ReplyDeleteGreat comment: "it is a top bottom!"
desper-otto:
Though I consider myself a very good puzzle solver sports clues will nearly always beat me; I try to keep them in mind but since there is no interest, they don't adhere to my brain.
Hello everybody. Fun puzzle today. When I got CAPE CANAVERAL and SPIN EDITOR I thought the theme had something to do with PECAN and PINE, namely nuts. But NUTS didn't have enough letters, so my brain was in a small tizzy for a while.
ReplyDeleteThe first time I ever saw Kylie Minogue I was STUNNED by her good looks, so I remembered her right away. Jim BACKUS was another gimme. As Lemonade said, I dare say you wouldn't have asked if we could guess how tall she is unless she was either taller or shorter than anyone would expect. I guessed 5'1, based on that photograph, because, as Lucina said, her feet are far from the end of the lounger.
Like C.C., I like the imagery of a steaming tea kettle.
What Dudley at 9:42 AM said.
I used to wear pajamas but seldom do any more. Good idea to wear *something* though, as PK pointed out.
Best wishes to you all.
Lucina, I'm also sports-challenged. I'm always surprised when I correctly answer a sports clue. I haven't been cw puzzling as long as you, though I've been at it daily for over 30 years. I still manage to rack up a handful of DNF's every year, and I hate when it happens.
ReplyDeleteJoho, yes, I think you're the only one seeking ghoulish things today.
YR, great "a" links.
I am in awe of people who can construct a puzzle that fills 441 boxes but I missed having a theme that was fun and useful. Oh well, there was much more to enjoy than Grinch about. No pshaw!
ReplyDeleteMusings
-I wanted MOP TOPS on John, Paul…
-Fun to see Cape Canaveral where I have visited over 40 times. Thousands of jobs are going bye-bye down there.
-It is illegal in NE to have those highly reactive alkali metals in school because… (:25)
-I’ve had kids for whom ONE B was a highlight
-My re-gripped IRONS are doing much better
-ZETAS and EL AL took awhile but then DUH!
-I hope a REF doesn’t decide the game today
-Some pool halls do not allow massé shots because of danger of tearing the velvet
-Plowing the streets here requires running the snow blower twice. Once to get the walks etc and once to scoop out their mound. Heavy, wet snow yesterday moved begrudgingly and I had to help neighbor who will not buy a big boy snowblower.
Yellowrocks, thanks for the poems.
ReplyDeleteHusker Gary, thanks for your musings.
Hahtool, thanks for your QODs.
HeartRx, thanks for your hugs.
I forgot to mention I enjoyed the extremely clever clues today. Thanks to the constructor and editors. I found the cluing to be more witty and fun-loving than just plain evil, which is the way I like 'em.
ReplyDeleteI'm not an early riser; never was. These days I usually sleep until 8 or even 9 o'clock. My wife, on the other hand is up and at 'em at 6:00, 7 at the latest.
Good morning everyone:
ReplyDeleteNice write-up, CC. Fun puzzle and theme. Finished without help which always make me happy.
Does anyone have any news about Mainiac's dog? It's been a while since her last post.
I'm going to attempt a link to the video I mentioned yesterday. This is my first try so I hope it works.
P.S. I previewed and the link works! I hope you all check it out as it is quite funny.
Funny
Happy Sunday. Go Big Blue!
Good afternoon, folks. Thank you, Mark, Rich, and Joyce for a good Sunday puzzle. Thank you, C.C., for the review.
ReplyDeleteWell, I missed Saturday's puzzle due to being totally occupied all day, from 4:00 AM, to 9:00 PM. I may try it later, during the game.
I enjoyed Sunday's puzzle. Parts were easy and parts were tough. I had most of the theme answers before I got TREES. I believe we had TREES as a theme in another puzzle some time ago. That is OK, just a comment.
I missed on POX and DIX. I did not know DIX, had DIE. No way I would know the french #10. Had POE for Chicken. Thought it was some oriental entree.
Enjoyed ZETAS. Very clever.
Had HATS first for 63A. Fixed it to CAPS.
Had AHEM for 76D before PSST became obvious.
Had OUTEES first, then GIN MILL fixed that to OUTIES.
Had no problem with ATILT. After reading the comments I checked my Webster, it is in there. Copyright 1969.
I am off to Alexandria, VA on Tuesday. We'll see how my IPAD works with the puzzle. Dudley helped me get that going.
See you tomorrow.
Abejo
Very enjoyable puzzle and writeup. Some of the clues were clever including 'Piece keeper' I thought. I had the same misgiving about Mg and Kg being measures of mass instead of weight.
ReplyDeleteYes, I went to Cornell in Ithaca. That's got to be one of the prettiest places in the US in the fall. However, I was working so hard to keep my head above water in engineering that it was hard for me to appreciate all the area had to offer.
No PJs for me either. Things get all twisted around. Kylie looks short to me.
Irish Miss, funny prank! I love jokes like that where everybody enjoys it, rather than the practical jokes where the subject gets upset or is embarrassed.
All along I have found it interesting that the common every day usage of words is much less exacting than the way professionals in that field use those words.
ReplyDeleteA case in point is that common usage regards robbery, stealing, burglary, and thievery as interchangable. Attorneys and others in the law profession certainly differ in that. Who is wrong? IMHO, neither.
Common usage also defines less rigorously certain words scientists use quite exactly. I taught the difference between WEIGHT and MASS. MASS is the amount of matter in an object and does not change. WEIGHT is the pull of gravity on an object,. A object weighs less on the moon where there is less gravitational pull, and more on Saturn where the graviational pull is greater. In common usage the words are used as synopnyms. IMHO that is okay.
Hi All ~~
ReplyDeleteAs I was solving I thought this was a fairly easy Sunday puzzle ... and then had to look up ZEPPELIN and BELA ... ugh. I caught the theme when I saw LEMON and LIME. I didn't think of fruit because of the puzzle title. And joho ~ I too saw 'corpse' at first glance!
At 1A I could see the face but couldn't think of his name. I thought if I had even one letter I could get it. The U in UCLA gave me what I needed.
An enjoyable puzzle ... lots of clever cluing. I really liked 'Piece keeper'/HOLSTER and 'Record holder'/EXCON.
I got ZETAS but didn't "get" it. Thanks, C.C. As for baseball souvenirs ~ I have lots of Red Sox stuff, but nothing I'd wait in line for! Don't all bobbleheads look like they could be ANYBODY? :-)
I am FAR from an early riser, but then I usually read until 1:00-1:30 AM. I think I liked it better when I HAD to get up early.
Here in CT I'm right between Giants and Patriots country. Not sure which way I'm leaning ... Giants, I think ... maybe...
Johanna:
ReplyDeleteAre you now inspired to create a Sunday with hidden corpses as the theme? Having watched so many episodes of CSI and NCIS, I think I could imagine enough bodies to make a grid.
H., you look taller in your pictures also.
La La, are you near Durham which is supposed to be 82.4 miles from Boston and New York? Actually Foxboro and the Meadowlands.
We just back from lunch at our favorite local Cubano restaurant. Usually, I like to try different things but their speciality is so good that I get it every time. (I just discovered that the above is the British spelling. It should be specialty here. I don't know why I didn't know that.) Anyway, we had roast pork with grilled onions, rice, black beans, fried plantains, Arnold Palmers and we split a flan for dessert. All for $33 plus tip.
ReplyDeleteOnelook has Merriam-Webster's as one source for ATILT as a word. They also list 24 other sources.
ReplyDeleteLemonade ~ I'm just a bit north of Durham so pretty much at the half-way point. I like that I don't really have a favorite here ... I have enough stress during baseball season!
ReplyDeleteBill G. ~ Nice lunch! I also didn't know that about 'speciality.' (Just noticed that my spell-check doesn't like it.) I knew it was pronounced differently but didn't realize there was a difference in spelling, too.
Irish Miss ~ Funny video! Nice job with the link ... I'm still practicing. ;-)
LaLaLinda: I didn't even know there was a Durham, CT. I lived in Durham, NH when I was in graduate school.
ReplyDeleterushing b/4 the game:
ReplyDeletei had 73A=cadets &61D=release
Husker Gary beat me to "moptops"
(its a good thing i don't have any Cesium)
Lemonade@11:19 YOU PEEKED!
Pajamas: (no,,, i am not going there)
I never saw 71/stupid me, or its answer, Doh,,, (i am concerned what this might mean)
Splynter@6:48 i bookmarked Eric Johnson 4 L8r,,,gotta watch the game
AvgJoe, is your Avatar having a party?
Irish Miss, that prank would have given me a heart attack!
YellowRocks, tx, i never could figure the Diff: Wgt vs mass.
Anybody,,, what is a crossword dictionary? the stuff online looks like a crossword cheat!
And Finally: (Nuts, i cant find the Eve Arden clip from "grease"& the game starts in 3 minutes.) but over the school intercom, she said:
"IF YOU CAN'T BE AN ATHLETE,,,BE AN ATHLETIC SUPPORTER"
@LaLaLinda, thank you, I feel better now.
ReplyDelete@Lemonade714 ... very funny!
Also, I forgot to mention, I enjoyed the puzzle. Thank you, Mark Bickham!
Zcarguy: alas, poor Spenser Levin! The golf gods deserted him in the end. Why do they put cholla on a golf course? That is just cruel!
ReplyDeleteBut what a great comeback for Kyle Stanley! You gotta cheer for that guy!
Mike: my second favorite TV sport is also golf. My first however, is NBA. Watch parts of several games nightly. Have favorite players rather than fav teams.
I used to think I had insomnia. Now I realize I'm a nocturnal animal. I sleep when the urge hits anytime, usually after 2 a.m.
My pj's are also long thermal underwear.
BillG: Is Arnold Palmers a drink or did you split a dessert with the famous golfer?
ReplyDeleteLaLaLinda-Thanks for the compliment. It looks more complicated than it really is. Glad you liked the video-ditto to Bill G.
ReplyDeleteCeDave: I agree about the heart attack but I have watched this video numerous times and I still laugh my head off.
Did anyone do the NYT puzzle today? I thought it was a bear-grizzly, not Teddy!
I'm taping the Super Bowl and am about a half hour behind. Jordan and I went for a macchiato and I bought him a new comic book. (I also showed him the video from Irish Miss.) I was impressed with the renditions of American the Beautiful and the National Anthem. Also, working the sidelines today is an ex-student of mine, Michele Tafoya.
ReplyDeleteAn Arnold Palmer is half iced tea and half lemonade.
Not a particularly exciting puzzle today, but the POX/DIX squares got me at the end. Got everything else with no lookups and some SWAGs. Did the puzzle while some game was going on between all the not-so-great commercials. I knew Jim BACKUS right off, but I really wanted riceKRISPIES, which of course didnt fit. Never heard of COCOAKRISPIES. Never heard of PLUperfect either. Is it me, or is this blog extremely addictive??
ReplyDeleteHas anyone else seen Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close? Good film! Warning: take tissues.
ReplyDeleteIrish Miss:
That is a funny video. Still laughing.
Yellowrocks:
Loved the poem.
Bill G:
Your lunches always make me want to go eat. They sound yummy.
Almost time for Downton Abbey.
Lucina: Glad you liked the video. As I said earlier, no matter how many times I watch it, I still can't stop laughing.
ReplyDeleteAh well, laughing is good medicine, no?
OK. I'll hang my head in shame over ATILT!
ReplyDeleteGlad someone else likes Downton Abbey. (Really worried about poor Matthew.)
Hilarious, Irish Miss! But the poor woman's head must have really hurt!
Yellowrocks: Thanks for the poetry!
I for one thought the tree theme was cute! Liked the many theme answers!
Am glad there are other night owls here now!
Whew, things are ATILT at Downton Abbey!
ReplyDelete@CEDave: A crossword dictionary is more like a thesaurus in that it doesnt contain definitions, but has synonyms for commonly used crossword clues. Best one I have seen is the Million Word Crossword Dictionary, by Stanley Newmann and Daniel Stark. I got mine about 4 years ago, haven't looked since for a new one.
ReplyDeleteDudley:
ReplyDeleteAtilt is putting it mildly! But isn't Lady Granthem (Maggie Smith) a cunning one?
The weather has been pretty here for the past week or two but a high-pressure area results in low humidity. That always makes me feel uncomfortable and chilled. I think it must be because the low humidity means the moisture on one's skin evaporates quickly. But rain is due Tuesday. I'm looking forward to it.
ReplyDeleteThat was a good Super Bowl game but overhyped as usual. Did you get excited about any of the new ads? Me either.
If you like football this was one the best games ever, down to the last second. You all have been a very entertaining group today, thanks.
ReplyDeleteI have only one thing to say: Congratulations Eli and the rest of Big Blue. You showed what you were made of!
ReplyDeleteCC and folk,
ReplyDeleteThere was so much information in this puzzle and you really nailed it, CC!
98a. I've come late to the party, but still want to contribute! It just seems selfish to keep it to myself.! It's a real must see!
SOME NAVELS
Have a fab week!
I'm out!