Theme: TOP DOG - Different dog starts each theme entry.
2D. Fruit of ancient Persia :POMEGRANATE. Foodies call those pomegranate seeds arils.
8D. Numbskull : CHOWDERHEAD
11D. Daedalus' creation : LABYRINTH
12D. Combativeness : PUGNACITY
Reveal entry:
60A. With 62-Across, a hint to the starts of this puzzle's four longest Down answers : TOP 62A. See 60-Across : DOG.
And FUR (4A. 62-Across coat) & PETS (38A. Strokes a 62-Across). Also TREAT (37A. Biscuit, maybe). For dogs too.
And FUR (4A. 62-Across coat) & PETS (38A. Strokes a 62-Across). Also TREAT (37A. Biscuit, maybe). For dogs too.
We also have a grid-spanning LEADER OF THE PACK (50. Big enchilada). Top dog!!
C.C. here, pinch-hitting for Marti, who needs to fix the house next door as the tenants will move in on March 1.
Jill Danny is Jeff Chen's wife, and we all know Jeff, the genius behind so many creative puzzles.
Today's theme approach is a bit different:
1) Theme entries are arranged vertically for visual effect;
2) Left to right symmetry;
3) Only 72 word (themeless word count) & 50 black squares.
Do you see anything out of those black squares arrangement? Argyle told me "Squint at it or like most of us, remove your glasses. If you can only see it as black and white, it looks like a puppy face."
Across:
1. Easter season: Abbr. : SPR
7. Interest fig. : PCT
10. Long, on Molokai : LOA. As in Mauna Loa ("Long Mountain").
11. Experience with enthusiasm : LAP UP
13. Pi follower : RHO
14. "Out" crier : UMP
15. Chic "Bye" : ADIEU. Chic?
16. Charged particle : ION
17. Detox place : REHAB
19. Bridal emanations : GLOWS. Sweet clue.
21. Reminiscent of venison : GAMY. Never had venison. You?
22. Dweeb : NERD
23. Red state? : ARREARS. Oh, now I see why it's red. Debts.
26. Easy gaits : CANTERS
29. Given a hand : DEALT IN
30. Annabella of "The Sopranos" : SCIORRA. Drew a blank. Anon-T might know her. So how do you pronounce her name?
31. Chased (after) : RAN
32. Whirling : IN A SPIN
34. Farm feed : HAY. Hi there Spitzboov!
35. Computer that once came in "flavors" : iMAC. Other than my iPod, I own iNothing.
39. Greek cheese : FETA
40. First name in one-liners : HENNY (Youngman). "Take my wife, please!".
41. Actress Charlotte et al. : RAES
42. Fountain near the Spanish Steps : TREVI
44. Buddy : KIDDO
45. __'acte : ENTR
48. Flute part : STEM
57. Babysitter's handful : IMP
58. New evidence may lead to one : RE-TRIAL
59. Fawn spawner : DOE
61. Slogan sites : T-SHIRTS
Down:
1. Bit of mudslinging : SLUR
3. Vatican Palace painter : RAPHAEL
4. Pet rocks, e.g. : FAD
5. News agcy. since 1958 : UPI
6. Regret bitterly : RUE
7. Preceding : PRIOR TO
9. Bunches : TONS
18. Cremona artisan : AMATI. I'm so glad they caught the Strad suspects yesterday. Art thieves!
20. Red Square honoree : LENIN. My childhood hero.
23. Lacking purpose : ADRIFT
24. Juice extractor : REAMER. I just call mine Juicer.
25. Grab, as a line drive : SNARE
26. D.C. network : C-SPAN. And 33. Fig. on 26-Down : SEN
27. Like most bawdy films : R-RATED. Or RATED R.
28. Lays down the law : SAYS SO
36. Gave in : CAVED
38. Groom with care : PRIMP
43. Unmoving : INERT
44. Hull stabilizers : KEELS
46. "__ bien!" : TRES
47. Big name in IRAs : ROTH
48. Rustle : STIR
49. "Take __!" : THAT
50. Aflame : LIT
51. Angst-filled genre : EMO
52. Killer Birds, e.g. : APP. Is it related to Angry Birds?
53. Calendar abbr. : FRI
54. Recipe instruction : ADD
55. Soft murmur : COO
56. Barrel at a bash : KEG
I
have a question for all of you: Which is your go-to site for news?
NBCNews went live on Tuesday night (Feb 4, 2014) and I really dislike
the new format, which is more suited for mobile devices. I tried CNN and
Google News yesterday but liked either.
C.C.
89 comments:
I loved this puzzle with the doggie face on it. I was on Jill and Jeff’s wavelength and completed it in a very short time using across and down together.. I started with FAD and wagged FUR from the F. I filled it in solidly without a pause, going down the right hand half. SCIORRA was all perps. Next I filled the bottom straight across. I liked that LEADER OF THE PACK could also be TOP DOG. Then I headed NW and went down from there. I had forgotten about LABYRINTH, but LABY gave me that which opened up the miiddle of the west.
Gootta run. Mom's taxi service calls..
What the German Shepherd Sang
A LAB and a CHOW were one day
Discussing what caused them dismay.
"If we're man's closest friends
Yet he snips off our 'ends',
Does he treat lesser friends the same way?"
A toy POM and toy PUG overheard.
Said the PUG to the POM, "Oh, my word!
If the big dogs are unhappy,
Then we, small and yappy,
Should be glad we're by women preferred!"
"We get carried around in a purse,
Chauffeured like we're FUR PETS of worth.
As TOP DOG we're prized
So what, we're excised?
I'd rather not to a St.Bernard give birth!"
The dogs all continued to yak
Till a witty Russell terrier, Jack
Heard them all going strong,
Turned their words into song.
It's now known as the LIEDER OF THE PACK!
Cute puzzle by Jeff and Jill. Had SAYS NO instead of SAYS SO though.
I like the Flipboard app on the iPad for news cc.
Morning, all!
A very friendly looking puzzle today! Had a bit of trouble getting started in the NW, but once I got going things proceeded smoothly enough. Hesitated a bit on HENNY and SAYS SO, but that was about it. I did wonder whether the editor got confused about Angry Birds and called it Killer Birds by mistake. If there is such an app as Killer Birds, it is obscure enough to not show up on Google.
Good morning!
I WAGged the wrong dog in square one, and never could fix it. My Easter was in APR and I had no idea what was long on Molokai. I WAGged MOA. DNF! I'm hanging my head in shame.
Otherwise, I was Preening when I should have been PRIMPing, and I ceded before I CAVED, Otherwise, it was a quick un-solve.
Turns out that "Killer Birds" is an Android app. I'd never heard of it, but I could find it in the app store.
Well, somebody had to link it. Here's the Leader of the Pack.
Today's another taxing day.... Later.
It was weird seeing a black square in the upper-left corner (and I never noticed the dog's face; clever). Things went pretty smoothly. I may be getting better at multi-short-word answers (e.g. LAPUP, INASPIN).
I can't hear Leader of the Pack without thinking of the 60s cult film Scorpio Rising.
I get my news first on the radio (NPR and BBC World Service), then online (NY Times), then in the local (weekly) paper. No TV.
[8:32]
Way off topic, but I solved yesterday's puzzle @ 4 AM after helping deliver twin lambs. It was a fun puzzle but I totally screwed the theme and the reveal by reading it as "No Two". I thought, that can't be right, there's a 2 in the middle. The light went on when I read the expo. Puzzling may not be for the sleep deprived.
I'm looking forward to making some hay, if for no other reason than to escape this damned snow and ice. 53 days till April 1.
See you tomorrow for today's puzzle. :-)
Could parse 11-Across as LA PUP. Thanks, Al.
I am so out of it as far as "apps" that I read "killer birds" and thought that was "angry birds", so no hesitation to fill it in....
Fun grid, saw it before I filled the puzzle in, but thought it looked like a clown face so thought we would have a few circus clues. Quickly redirected.
I use Google news, but haven't compared them, defaulted to to the easiest one to access.
Good morning, all.
Fun puzzle, though I was initially taken aback by the arrangement. CC, thank you for the picture of Jeff Chen with his puzzle. It made me look again at this one after I'd finished and see the "dog face". Our paper doesn't publish the title or author, so I have to check that out, here.
It finished fairly quickly, though I was PREEN-ing with Desper-Otto and thinking of ???Y WINGS which delayed LABYRINTH.
I liked the theme-related fill of LAP-UP and TREAT (dog -biscuit) and PETS. My only minor nit is that SNARE doesn't really seem like grabbing. I wanted snatch, but...
Oooh, sunshine! Just in time to finish clearing the driveway for more snice (that's snow deeply infused with ice), though we're lucky. Power hasn't failed.
News: mostly on the radio via NPR, Editors' picks on Google, Sunday NYT. Sometimes NBC or ABC TV. Will have to check out what you mean by "Live". On the web or on television? Wasn't it live before?
Cheers,
Pat, my condolences on your mother's passing. I can relate because it happened with my mom, too. There is a relief at the end of her suffering, but there is still an empty hole where mom used to be. I hope your memories of the good times with her will sustain you.
SNARE does appear in baseball news. "Mauer reaches around net to snare fly ball" AP headline
Good morning everybody. Brrrr again from Chicago.
Good puzzle today with some great clues, including:
23A: Red state? ARREARS
59A: Fawn spawner: DOE
I thought a biscuit was a little odd as a TREAT.
Never heard of HENNY or SCIORRA.
Have a wonderful day and try to stay warm.
Hi Y'all! Snakes yesterday and we're going to the DOGS today! DOGgone that was fun! I kept looking at the puzzle after I was done and discovering new theme things to chuckle about. Since this is zoology week, what do we get tomorrow? Monkeys?
GAMY also describes DOG odor. And I noticed LA PUP. But it took C.C. & Argyle to show me the face. Thanks for everything.
I had trouble getting started in the NW too. Just kept going across & down the right side and back up until everything was filled thanks to red-letter redirection.
At 14A I had "hag" before UMP. For some reason I was thinking "out, damned spot" from MacBeth and the witches scene. But then I realized the witch didn't say that. Ah, confusion!
Windy, bet those lambs are wondering why they left such a nice warm womb to drop into the cold cruel winter world.
Today was -4* when I got up. Supposed to heat up to 13*. The good news is despite 12" of snow
we have heat and electricity. My yardmen came and cleared my porch and driveway yesterday just before dark. They'd been shoveling people out since morning. The boss said he could no longer feel his feet. I'm staying in wearing my stocking cap because my short hair doesn't keep my head warm enough.
C.C. Great job "Pinch-hitting" (one of my favorite things, lol) for Marti.
Jill & Jeff: I really enjoyed your Puppy Puzzle. Especially its design.
Only needed 7 perps to get SCIORRA.
Hand-up for preen before PRIMP at 38-D.
Fave today (of course!) was KEG.
Cheers!!!
I've reached the point where I'm not sure I even want to know the news as presented nationally. I was trying to watch Good Morning America and Today this morning alternately while commercials were on. Too many commercials, too much repetition and very little content, most of which was too violent or too frivilous. Finally, turned it off and came here.
Hi Everyone ~~
A nice team effort today ~ thanks for an enjoyable puzzle, Jeff & Jill. Being a creature of habit, I was a bit thrown when my NW corner wasn't where I expected. It didn't matter - I had to put that section off for a bit anyway since I wasn't sure of anything there.
After getting FUR and PETS, of course I was hoping for some cats =^..^= - nope ~ but I still enjoyed the DOG theme.
Like desper-otto, I had cede before CAVE and preen before PRIMP. One another write-over caused LABYRINTH to take a while. I had 'Eat up' before LAP UP.
My favorite was 29A - Given a hand / DEALT IN. My first thoughts involved assistance and then applause.
Always good to hear from you, C.C. ~ both in constructing and in blogging. You've been busy!
I fouled up in several places today: APR/PCT, SCI-RRA--never heard of her, START/SNARE--what is a line drive? golf? And of course I'd never heard of killer birds, having no smart phone nor the desire to ever have one. I'm online enough as it is without being tied to it 24/7.
But I did enjoy the challenge and the doggy theme and face! So thanks Jeff and Jill!
It's been so cold here for so long, that the city utilities company has ordered all residents to keep a pencil thick stream of water running somewhere in the house 24/7 until further notice, which could be weeks off apparently. I can't help worrying about all that wasted water in the face of droughts elsewhere. They also said they would not be charging for the extra usage, so at least there's that positive note.
Musings
-This took a DOGged effort that was worth it including the clever positioning of the theme and the ancillary entries. Yeah, I sorta get a puppy face, CC.
-Easter has to be in the SPRing because it occurs on the equinox or within a lunar cycle thereafter
-UMPS will get some help this season
-Phillip Seymour Hoffman’s REHAB was futile. Such a waste
-I had GAMY duck once and bit down on buckshot for the effort
-My Greek wife will choke down FETA if it comes on the salad but would prefer not to
-It takes a skillful teacher to neutralize an IMP in a class of 25
-This recent RETRIAL seems to indicate Italy does not believe in double jeopardy
-Pet Rocks? Mencken - “Nobody ever went broke underestimating the intelligence of the American public.”
-Most famous SNARE of a line drive? (:33). If Richardson misses it, the Giants win but… Sorry Hondo!
-The CSPAN airings seem futile in that after all the orations, everybody votes the party line
-I can shower, dress and be out the door in 6 minutes. No PRIMPing in that.
-We go to DRUDGE because it gigs both sides and has links to all liberal and conservative columnists
-What classic song says I’m “IN A SPIN, lovin’ the spin I’m in”
Hello everyone,
After looking over the North, I figured today's puzzle was a lost cause. As I proceeded into the Central & Southern sections, a few fills appeared and suddenly things were looking up. I wasn't crazy about all the abbreviations, but they did not hold me up either.
Couldn't remember if it was HENNY or Hennie. SCIORRA was an unknown. Anyone know what her role was on the Soprano's? I'm too busy today to google it.
I wanted Preen too, but knew Keddo would be wrong, so PRIMP it was.
Fav clue was 23A Red State/ARREARS.
My TV viewing is becoming less. I rely on the keeping up with the news from the radio or this "one eyed" monster I'm looking at as I type. I'm fed up with the preponderance of commercials on TV.
Lottsa fun. Saw the doggy face in the grid. Jeff is redefining the idea of standard grid to mean mirror, which allows for cool stuff. (See Quick Brown Fox as example.) Allows for 50a orphan theme 15. Mirror is the new norm.
Piece of brilliant construction: using SCIORRA and making the cross get-able. Wow!
A fab puz!
Meanwhile, back at the ranch: Record(3:43)
Fun puzzle today. I got the dog theme early on which helped with LAPUP, FUR, and TREAT. When I was growing up Dog "Biscuits" were the treats for the dogs.
If I"m not mistaken, I think that Annabella Sciorra's name is pronounced "See-Cora". It seems that the "i" is in the wrong place.
C.C.: I usually go to our local newspaper's web site for local news, the state capital's newspaper site for state news and the Washington Post for more national and world news. Occasionally I'll go to BBC News for a different slant on the world news front. It's interesting to see how others view the world differently than Americans do.
Annabella Sciorra interview: Link(3:49) Sounds like schor-a to me.
EZ… PZ today.
Annabella Sciorra was a Mercedes car salesperson and one of Tony's love interests in the Sopranos.
My top dog is an Akita. We had ours for 12 years. What a great dog he was!
Noticed the odd grid as soon as I turned to the page and figured something was up. Stuck with the NW corner until rehab broke it open, followed by slur, Spr and Loa. So it went clockwise around the grid. Nothing came easily, but no major missteps resulted in a plodding, but accurate completion. Favorite clue: Red state? Favorite answer: Chowderhead. The theme itself left me a little flat, but the rest of the fill was so good that it gets a very high rating.
C.C., I have an innate distrust of all electronic media. The only info I get from internet sites is purely by accident, and TV isn't a lot better. I do watch local TV news, so that usually sandwiches the CBS Evening News, but I only watch it with one eye. But for "just the facts, Maam." I rely heavily on our local paper, the Journal-Star. The day that print media dies will be a sad day in my life.
Hmph? :-) Captcha = EnlZone. Sounds like an all you can eat buffet.
The biscuit might be a doggie treat. AD: "Give Your Pet an Iams® Biscuit For Teething and Tartar."
My first thought was biscuit could mean cookie. The British call cookies biscuits.
Hi gang -
LAP UP also relates to the theme.
Owen's poems today are DOGgerel.
The odd appearance of the grid was a clue that something was up. Impressive execution.
LAP DOG before TOP DOG.
This one looked harder than it turned out to be. Was ADRIFT for a while, but some perp help and a few guesses [frex LOA] brought it all together.
My fav breakfast is a veggie omelet with FETA.
ADIEU, KIDDOS
JzB [the DOGgone trombonist]
Wait - it's not SAYS NO. WEll DOG my cats!.
Also wanted a subway system for D.C. network, and had METRO for a while.
Gary -
From what I've read about the retrial, in Italy it's all considered a single process, so double jeopardy isn't relevant in their legal system. At least not in this case. Also, the prosecutor is infamous for his corruption, the police made a dog's dinner of the evidence, and they already have the real murderer in jail.
Amanda Knox already served 4 years. Sending her back to Italy would be a crime in itself.
Cool regards!
JzB
I couldn't figure out the grid design as easily as the puzzle, however the R crossing entr/roth was a total WAG. many of the longer answers filled themselves in with just a look at a couple of letters.
I.E.: Leader of the pack.
Here's another cute puppy face for you.
Somehow, you can always tell who's top dog...
Lovin' that SPIN
That old Black Magic.
Cheers!
JzB
Well, I was disconcerted by that odd grid this morning, at first. But it slowly filled in and when I got the TOP DOG reveal, I was delighted! Many thanks, Jill and Jeff. And then came the bonus of C.C.s expo and Argyle's brilliant notice of the grid's PUPPY FACE! Adorable! Looks like Scoobie-Doo to me! What a fun morning--our doxies are also smiling and wagging their tails.
Loved your poems this morning, Owen.
Desper-otto, had the same APR/SPR confusion for a while this morning.
I love seeing HENNY Youngman and RAPHAEL in the same puzzle. What a varied culture we live in!
C.C., we begin the morning by reading the LA TIMES. During the day, the NY TIMES gives us headlines, updates, and breaking news on the computer. In the evening we tape both CBS and ABC news on television and watch one or the other, or both. So we pretty much stay up on everything. And in case we miss any junk, we subscribe to PEOPLE magazine. Keeps us in touch with our world in our old age.
Have a great Thursday, everybody!
NBC has been making web changes for months, and getting negative feedback the entire way. And they've been ignoring it.
http://www.newscaststudio.com/2014/02/05/users-not-keen-on-new-nbcnews-com/
good puzzle was distracted while doing it so did not keep track of time. House is out of power and it is really cold where I am located. praying that the pipes both potable and non-potable do not freeze.
CC I use my msn home page and NPR for my news have not looked into the network sites unless I need to get info on a show.
Hello Puzzlers -
I managed to bollix up the area around Annabella Sciorro, whose name was unknown to me (though that photo of her suggests a bunch of milliHelens). Had to turn on red letters to see that Priorly wasn't what the teacher wanted. TDNF.
So glad Argyle spotted the puppy face, I missed it entirely. Thanks for subbing today, C.C., I had no idea Marti had such a demanding deadline. I do have an idea how much work is involved - Marti, I feel your pain! Quite literally, in fact, as weeks of sanding and painting have left me with a sore shoulder & elbow.
I think Sciorra is pronounced "Shorra." Like prosciutto is pronounced "proshooto."
Other than the weather, I do not use the internet for news, unless you count Facebook & YouTube.
It's the morning paper for me, then the 6pm WABCNY Channel 7 TV news simply because the people are familiar.
Then if I really want to get depressed, I might watch the Channel 7 World News at 6:30.
This conversation thread made me remember the Jan. 30th Zits comic that made me smile...
The unique grid layout was the first thing I noticed about the puzzle today, and, like Avg Joe, I figured figured something was up. At first I thought it was a clown face, so, like inanehiker, I thought we would have a few circus clues. Dogs works for me! (Sometimes my wife refers to me as Alpha Dog. I'm not going to think too hard about whether she is complementing me or mocking me :)
I have been growing more and more disappointed with many sources of news, and have almost no respect at all for television news. My browser's home page is set to Yahoo, but much of their "news" is degenerating into gossip or non-news such as "Ten biggest mistakes people make in fill in the blank." Our local newspaper is our go-to place for news and reading it is almost always the first activity of my day, followed by the LAT crossword puzzle and the Jumble (those cartoons are so cute!)
It took me quite awhile to see the dog face. I think the grid gave me a bit of trouble as I was rather slow today.
CC, I read the local paper (and do the crossword there) but my main source of news (other than financial which is CNBC) is either the NBC or CBS Evening Broadcast. Right now it is CBS because of the local weather presenter.
My interest in local news is not too great probably because my job had me all over the place. My better half was the local politico.
What a fun puzzle today! Kudos to Jeff and Jill for making a dog-faced grid.
Glad you think the way you do, Owen. Your poem today was hilarious. Lieder of the pack indeed!
Windhover, I feel sorry for the lambs in this weather. My friends' cows have started calving. Those poor people have to be on their toes and make sure no calves are frozen in the morning! are sheep fussier about where they drop their lambs?
I don't know how accurate it is, but here is a website with name pronunciations Link Pronunciation of Sciorra
PS : I like NPR, but always watch our local news to stay current on what hair-raising stuff is happening out here on the edge of the oil patch!
Hi Everyone:
Late to the dance due to appointments and errands.
Loved the theme and enjoyed the solve, which was tricky in spots. Fav clue was red state. Thanks, Jill and Jeff, for a fun Thursday and thanks, CC, for pinch-hitting.
For my news, I read our local (Albany) newspaper, watch the local and national news at dinner time on NBC affiliate, and, online, I read the New York Times and The Washington Post.
My doctor was pleased with the healing progress of my knee. It is still sore and swollen (and as ugly as sin!) but it's coming along.
Looking forward to watching certain Olympic events. I just hope all goes smoothly and that there is no violence.
Have a great day.
All these different news sources cited and no one has yet mentioned The Onion. :-)
Greetings!
Great puzzle, Jeff and Jill! Fine expo, CC!
Really liked the theme, but failed to notice the symmetry. Had to do a lot of deleting and re-entering, but eventually got the TA-DA. Didn't spell SCIORRA correctly the first time. Remember her from What Dreams May Come, which I really disliked. Put in HENNY right away, took him out, and put him in again.
Millie is an LA PUP.
I get the Washington Post news on line every day. Beats squinting at a newspaper and is less messy. But I miss the comics!
Kate: there are no titles except on Sunday. Our reviewers make them up!
Cheers!
I had venison only once--at the Saddleback Inn. It was roasted, well done, in a tangy sauce. I remember it as a bit tough but not unpleasant. Alpaca, on the other hand, was tender, like chicken, when I had it served on a skewer in Peru. That may be because alpacas are raised as domestic stock, treated to a better diet and softer life (than wild deer).
I liked today's puzzle. I am a dog fan and appreciated the doggy face in the layout. The degree of difficulty seemed a bit mild for Thursday, yet evenly tough throughout. I learned that the POMEGRANATE is Persian. I enjoyed seeing one of my favorite words, PUGNACITY (just sound it out!), and appreciated the misdirection that ended in ARREARS.
Just back from an appointment with my cardiologist. My EKG checked out, and my doc pronounced me "boring"--a very good thing to hear from one's heart doctor!
Good afternoon everyone.
Good workout today but fun to do. Agree with Argyle about the puppy face. Once I got the TOP DOG sussed, Thge rest of the theme fill came more easily including LABYRINTH. Favorite fill was T SHIRTS.
HAY is a good teutonic word.
German - Heu
Low German - Hau
Dutch - Hooi.
Takes a little work to keep all the vowels and diphthongs straight.
Todays sing-along: Die Fahrt ins Heu (A ride in the hay.) When I was a small kid, my parents would occasionally sing a version of this.
Deepest sympathy to Pat @ pje on the sad loss of your mother. Think of all the good times you had together in the days to come.
Two silk worms had a race. They ended up in a tie.
Have a good rest-of-the-day.
Happy Thursday everybody!
Really straightforward puzzle today - solved it in Wednesday time. In other words, crispy, not crunchy (food!)....
Real TREAT having a PET theme...!
Didn't notice the dog face until coming to the Corner - thanks C.C. and Argyle...!
Isn't a dogface a WWII G.I....?
I don’t care how you pronounce her name, Ms. Sciorra is a hottie…!
Finally, for all those dog lovers out there, here’s a link to a NYT article you may enjoy….
- Doc Gone
Keith, I would never call you boring....
Is a ride in the hay better than a roll in the hay...?
Local TV news in the AM, used as background noise while getting dressed. MSN.com during the day, but it's just as bad as Yahoo, imho....
LEADER OF THE PACK reminded me of a delightful time in Pittsburgh many years ago. I was playing in the Pittsburgh Public Theater's production of the Scottish play, and we were having a cast party. For entertainment, our Lady MacB, played by that fine actress Jean Smart, had worked with our three witches as her backup singers to present her own version of "The Leader known as Mac."
I can't remember the lyrics now, but her song extolled the virtues of Macb**h as a Scots warlord--and at the end the girls all presented our lead actor (Tom Atkins) with a "Big Mac" T-SHIRT.
Hand up for The Drudge Report(I give their mobile app a 8 out of 10). Some call it conservative propaganda but like Husker stated it has links to EVERY major columnist and newspaper no matter how liberal. Over the years I've learned to hover the mouse over each link and preview the source before clicking. NYPost and UKDailyMail usually gets ignored but WSJ, NYT, LAT and Politico gets a looksie.
Most major opinion articles usually don't appear in my local fish wrap until 2 to 7 days later. My wife sometimes mentions to me an article that she knows would interest me that is printed in the daily paper and I usually respond, "yeah, I read that a couple days ago"(for free btw). Hence, the welcomed death of the local paper.
C.C., try not to gather all your news and opinions from one source, lest you become narrow minded, walking lockstep with the uninformed masses. The internet has been essential for me to learn there is more than one slant to EVERY story.
I also have Yahoo! as my home page and have bookmarked my local paper and favorite local tv station.
I really liked this puzzle. The grid was clever and unusual, the fill was tricky and fun. Thanks Jill, Jeff and CC.
CC, re. my online news source, as you probably know, it has been NBCNEWS.com. I liked everything about it. That's where I find Animal Tracks and lots of other features, it seems as if they just made a major change in their format, why... I don't know. Either I'm not used to the new style yet or maybe I just don't like it as much. So I may be looking for a new homepage too.
I consider myself a bourgeois liberal, with tendencies to waver a bit left or right at times, depending on the issue.
My main daily sources for news are the LA Times and ABC nightly news. But I will go for long stints watching Fox "News" because it gets my blood boiling. I'll watch O'Reilly too and Hannity for entertainment (altho Sean was much funnier when he called himself Lou Costello).
Fox and its commentators are so often egregiously biased that I wonder how some folk take that crap seriously --altho apparently some do.
As for ABC News, I find I yell at the screen almost as often as I do at Fox. I became a fan of ABC back in the days of Peter Jennings, but Diane Sawyer and her gang can't keep up with Peter's standards. Too often I find they fail to ask obvious questions of pols' and pundits' pronouncements, and they love to raise teaser questions about non-news events--and then fail to answer them.
Oh, and I watch Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert pretty regularly. Their "fake news" is often the antidote to Fox and "Lame-stream" news.
Jill and Jeff, I loved your puzzle, starting with the cute grid! I had a slow start, but was impressed by the great vocabulary. Chowderhead is not a word I've heard very often and made me laugh.
C.C., always great to read your puzzle reviews.
Like MaryLou, I also had says no, and didn't catch it.
The last of our family dogs passed this week. He was "top dog" for 13 1/2 years, the sweetest yellow lab, a big marmaduke.
Oh, and I read the Sunday NY Times.
Of course I do.
Keith, heh heh, the name MacBeth just screams out for lampooning, doesn't it.
I'm gonna check out the Drudge Report.
Spitzboov, groan.
Fermat, If it's the comics you miss, you can find nearly all of them on line. I keep a folder of about 10 comics that I like but don't get in the local paper just to catch up each day.
For example: B.C.
This site, Go Comics, has most of the syndicated strips from around the country and you can see all that they offer by clicking on the "Comics A-Z Navigation" link near the top of the right side. From there, just set up a folder of your favorites. There are a few that are hard to find, such as Funky Winkerbean. And I've never been able to find Bizzarro. But most are out there if you just look for them. I'd hate to see someone go without their daily dose of comics. That just ain't right. Have fun.
Forgot to answer C.C.'s question. about News go to site.
I go to Drudge which is more of a news portal with lots of links . I would judge it somewhat on the conservative side, but the broader points of view are there. It is somewhat larded or skewed with entertainment news that I don't care for, but overall it serves my interests.
When there is regional Stürm u. Drang which I feel is not being reported by our press, I'll go to the region, like say, the Jerusalem Post to get a better bead on what is happening there.
I also have the Albany Times Union on my bookmarks bar to keep tabs on E. New York happenings.
Do you want to know how to pronounce Sciorra correctly?
Well, by her picture alone, I believe the correct Irish pronunciation of Annabella's last name would be, "schwang!"
River Doc @ 2:28 - Thanks for that link. What a fascinating endeavor.
Hola Everyone, Another DNF for me today. Treat, Henny and In a Spin eluded me. All those below the nose of the dog. I had partial answers, but my mind just wasn't with it this morning.
I did see the face in the grid, but thought maybe robot, at first. Then the dog clues made their appearance, so changed my mind pretty quickly.
I'm into a big baking project and the oven keeps beeping at me, so I leave the puzzle, prep, and then come back to the puzzle. This isn't the best of conditions for a Jill and Jeff puzzle, believe me.
We are a dog family. I'm afraid my husband is allergic to cats, so dogs it is. We are Lab and Golden fans.
JD, So sorry about your lab's passing. Losing a pet is like losing a member of the family.
Good luck with lambing season, Windhover. It is an exciting time, but exhausting, I know.
Have a great evening, everyone.
Thanks, Jill and Jeff for the challenging, dog-themed puzzle. It took me to the seventh clue to finally get an answer. I thought this was going to be an unbroken expanse of white. Thanks, C.C., for pinch-hitting and for the explanations.
My favorite answer is the "Leader of the Pack". It could refer to the new Budweiser commercial of the pup and the horses.
I have a stupid phone so I have no experience with apps. That was a guess.
Thanks for the kind sentiments. The reality of my mother's passing isn't going to be real until I go home next week for her funeral and she isn't there.
Pat
I didn't watch Sopranos and so never heard of Annabella SCIORRA. But I was intrigued by the question of how to pronounce her name.
If I an interpreting her Wiki article correctly, her last name would be pronounced SHOW-RUH, which is pretty much what Argyle had at 9:54 and Jayce had at 1:13.
Wiki shows: SHOH-rÉ™
It seems to me the website that oc4beach referenced at 1:34 has an extra syllable (ee) in it.
Sciorra Wiki
DOGgonit! Here I am picking nits...
Keith, so glad you’re not being political. Fox News has one feature that MSNBC does not – opposing views. The leftists on that very low rated NBC offshoot network have had to apologize many times for their flippant comments that revealed their true beliefs, never dreaming it would offend reasonable people not in their sphere of influence. They are outraged by the Republican Christie but have no curiosity about Benghazi.
Keep your politics off this stage!
A future Leader of the Pack
We had 2 dogs until the mid '90s; a Samoyed and a French Briard, a super guard dog. The Samoyed was friendly with everyone and we always joked that if we were ever burgled, she would show the burglar where to find everything. If the Sammy wandered off the property, the Briard would herd her back; Miss Goody Two-shoes.
R.I.P. baseball Hall Of Famer Ralph Kiner. He had a short playing career (10 years) due to a health problem, and a long broadcasting career (50 years).
Anonymous@5:23: If I was defending Fox News I think I'd want to remain anonymous too.
Can't quite put my finger on why, but I really enjoyed this puzzle:)
Finished it in less time than yesterday's.
Two days of cleaning up after this storm. Broke two shear pins off the snowthrower. My last ones.
I enjoyed this puzzle even if I had to go around the grid several times before things started to fall into place. Thursday level!
I got FUR and saw the coat clue and my mind jumped to Fur coats (now we must wear Faux Fur!) and that slowed up the thought processes. I didn't see the Doggy face until I got here.
I got POMEGRANATE immediately as I have been enjoying one for the last 2 days. I discovered instructions for getting the arils out easily by pounding with a wooden spoon and it worked!
Didn't know HENNY or SCIORRA but perps filled them in. Hand up for SAYS SO before SAYS NO and wanting Daedalus to have WINGS. I also had OAT before HAY.
Favourite clues were FAWN SPAWNER=DOE and RED STATE?=ARREARS.
Manac, I have been worried about those shear pins ever since I read the manual.
What did you hit to shear the pins?
Pat, I'm so sorry about the loss of your mother. But I'm glad you'll be able to attend the funeral because that will hopefully give you closure. My mother died while my husband was still in the hospital after his stroke and I just couldn't leave him to fly across the country and back. So I missed the wake and the funeral, and that's made her loss the hardest to deal with. But grieving with family will help.
Apropos of nothing:
A recent study has proven that women with large behinds live longer than men who mention them.
WEES re the puzzle. I spotted the picture, though wasn't sure what it was until I got the theme (I anticipated BIG CAT). But I missed noticing several of the lesser theme entries (TREAT, LAP UP, PRIMP).
oc4beach @1:34 : Thank you so much for that pronunciation site! I'd never imagined such a place existed! It's not perfect, but much better than nothing. I've tried Wynn, my own birthname, Laurion (it didn't have it, so asked me how I pronounce it) and the English spelling I switched to because it was mispronounced so much (which got me the French pronunciation).
News is eclectic, but my personalized news.google.com page is most frequent, and my LW is a newspaper & TV news junkie, so I get a lot from her (top 3 ways of transmitting news: telephone, television, tell-a-woman). Stewart/Colbert doesn't synch the captioning with the audio, so I can't watch that.
Anon @7:57 : *L*O*L*!
Pat, so sorry to hear about the passing of your mom. Hopefully you will be able to celebrate her life with other family members.
C.C., I have found it very hard since news went 24/7 and CNN really changed, to find news that tells it without their personal opinion. Many continually use scare tactics to address ANYTHING.I like some reporters better than others, but they also give the opinion of their station...newspapers too.
Got 'er done with my usual hunt and peck method. I considered giving up about 1/3 through, but kept getting one here and there till it was done. Middle East was the toughest because with no TV I've never seen The Sopranos.
Qli:
The ewes, like cows, prefer to separate themselves to give birth. But this time of year we bring them into the barn to lamb and check them every couple hours around the clock. We live in one section of that barn (European farm style) so we often are awakened by the sound of a ewe in labor. The difference between calves and lambs is that a newborn calf weighs 60-80 lbs. and has enough body mass and heat to sustain him until he's nursed and dry. A lamb weighs 6-8 pounds and chills out and dies quickly in very cold temps. The fact that they're wet with amniotic fluids doesn't help. So we typically bring them in, dry them and warm them up by the wood stove, and often feed them colostrum (milking a 200# ewe who's never been milked at 2AM is so much fun) through a stomach tube. Then they go back to Mom, who will hopefully recognize them as hers.
I'm with Joe on print media, but that's over for me. Several years ago the Lexington Herald-Liar, which I've read since 1960, decided there are so few subscribers in my area they could no longer deliver here. So I read that paper online, plus NBC (I don't like the new format either) , along with Washington Post, Huffington, and the BBC. I also subscribe to 20+ mags, from weekly to quarterly.
When my blood pressure is a bit low I'll occasionally listen to the Bloviator or his whiny sidekick Sean. What they do isn't news, it's entertainment. As Victoria is reputed to have said, "We are not amused".
As a favorite writer said, "Everything is propaganda, including what you're reading right now."
Fox has raised that to an art form. Is there an outlet that doesn't have a slant? Of course not. Pick your poison.
Windy, When you resort to juvenile name calling, all legitimacy is lost.
It's interesting on how most can express their contributions to answer C.C.'s inquiry without being obnoxious except for Windhover. Why is that? Anger issues?
CC - I used to read online msnbc, they changed format, so switched to nbc who now also has changed, so back to my old stand-by of CNN. Yahoo just got too crazy a while back. Check local news online and watch NBC evening news and sometimes BBC.
Great puzzle, mostly due to it not being a typical grid. Enjoyed it very much.
HG- can't remember if anyone answered...I think it was Black Magic.
@ 9:46 and 10:27 am
Argyle - apologies. Started reading about 2 hours ago and interrupted by 2 phone calls and watching some of the Olympics. I'll pay more attention next time. Still a great song!
Dave @ 7:37
Those shear pins are designed to break to protect the gearbox.
Both times were larger rocks at the ends of my driveway from the plow truck.
The real danger is when the pins don't break and your machine stops suddenly. Use a tool to dislodge the obstruction NOT your hand or your new nickname could become STUMPY! Those augers could be under a lot of tension.
kjinkc, it was recorded by Nancy LaMott as torch song. I found it on MySpace.
TP - You win. If legitimacy = hiding behind a fake name late at night, then I suppose I'm illegitimate.
Anon - see above
Both of you:
I guess you failed to notice that I said every source of information has its own slant, as do I.
But it nice that you cared enough to stay up late and chastise me. And just to show I also care, I hope it's nice and warm there in your Mom's basement.
So sorry windy. My discomfort sometimes affects my discontent. They say it is a controlling symptoms disease. But you are obviously of a certain dispatch. Why do insist on driving that home?
If watching Fox increases your blood pressure, perhaps you should re-evaluate your priorities. You are doing a service to the planet by raising and slaughtering lambs. Thank you.
Lamb slaughter drama
So sorry, my bad.
Link text
I'm watching "Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans". It is on Sundance Channel eastern time zone. Great flick. Check it out.
"While he investigates the murder of six illegal immigrants, a corrupt New Orleans cop becomes a force unto himself in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina."
Its got Nic Cage and Eva Medes and my lunch of avacoda with tomato on 9 grain bread is enjoyable.
Good evening, folks. Thank you, Jill and Jeff, for a swell puzzle. Thank you, C.C., for a fine review.
I am late getting in here. Was busy all day with lodge business and went to lodge tonight. Now I am home.
Theme came after a while. Good one.
The grid was different. Not sure I like the ability to just vary from the norm. But, so be it.
Liked ARREARS. Good one.
SCIORRA means nothing to me. I watched The Sopranos one time. The language over the airwaves turned me off. Do not care for that.
POMEGRANATE for 2D was a good one. I can attest that the fruit of modern Persia is also a Pomegranate. I lived there and I ate them a lot. Delicious. A little messy. Called ANAR.
I have ABC News on my phone. I like CBS News on TV. I really like reading the Chicago Tribune newspaper.
I am hitting the hay. Been a long day.
See you tomorrow.
Abejo
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