google.com, pub-2774194725043577, DIRECT, f08c47fec0942fa0 L.A.Times Crossword Corner: Monday, December 15, 2014 Gary Schlapfer and C.C. Burnikel

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Dec 15, 2014

Monday, December 15, 2014 Gary Schlapfer and C.C. Burnikel

Theme: Those aren't mole hills - Three peaks in the NW and the range they're part of.

17A. Beer named for an American patriot : SAMUEL ADAMS. Mount Adams 12,277'

24A. Girl who found a wolf in her grandmother's clothing : RED RIDING HOOD. Mount Hood 11,240'

47A. Monaco ruler married to Grace Kelly : PRINCE RAINIER. Mount Rainier 14,410'

56A. Pacific Northwest range, three of whose peaks end 17-, 24 - and 47-Across : THE CASCADES

Argyle here with the latest Corner Combo. They have given us a nice tight theme and an easy Monday. Good job.

Across:

1. Royals and Giants, e.g. : TEAMS

6. Tehran native : IRANI

11. More, in Mexico : MAS

14. Top-drawer celeb group : A-LIST

15. "Say no __": peace slogan : TO WAR

16. Do something : ACT

19. Attempt : TRY

20. Summer in Paris : ÉTÉ

21. Pass along : RELAY

22. Kismet : FATE

27. Movie lioness : ELSA. "Born Free"

28. Temper tantrum during a flight : AIR RAGE

31. Toy soldier : GI JOE

34. Clock radio letters : AM/PM

35. PC memory unit, briefly : MEG. (megabyte)

36. Responsibility : ONUS

37. Barely beats : EDGES

39. Hawaiian coffee region : KONA

40. Bus depot: Abbr. : STA. (station)

41. Narrow cut : SLIT

42. Worked in a shaft : MINED

43. Big shots : HONCHOs

45. Birth announcement subject, about half the time : GIRL. ("It's a GIRL!")

52. Fabled Himalayan creature : YETI

53. Makes the first bet : OPENS

54. Abbr. for a person with only one given name : NMI. (no middle initial)

55. In favor of : FOR

59. Big flap : ADO

60. Continental coins : EUROs

61. Skirt named for a letter : A LINE

62. Darken at the beach : TAN

63. Iowa or Ohio, e.g. : STATE

64. Calls for : NEEDS

Down:

1. Shocking weapon : TASER. Shocking toy : joy buzzer

2. Bring great joy : ELATE

3. Zeroed in : AIMED

4. The Spartans of the Big Ten: Abbr. : MSU. (Michigan State University)

5. Like operating rooms : STERILE

6. Roma's country : ITALIA

7. Flying movie monster : RODAN



8. Sports contest, to the visitors : AWAY GAME

9. '60s-'70s war zone, for short : NAM

10. 1040, for one : IRS FORM

11. Will Hunting portrayer : MATT DAMON

12. Farm measure : ACRE

13. Pig's pad : STY

18. Watch readouts, briefly : LEDs

23. "__ b?": "Choose one" : A OR

25. Vintage autos : REOs. Founded by Ransom E. Olds.

26. Swiveled joints : HIPS

29. Trait transmitter : GENE

30. "Golly!" : "EGAD!"

31. "Gee!" : "GOSH!"

32. Gung-ho about : IN TO

33. "Evita" role : JUAN PERON

34. FBI employee : AGT. (agent)

37. SpaceX founder __ Musk : ELON

38. Period of strobe lights and the hustle : DISCO ERA

39. Brickmaker's oven : KILN

41. Certain Muslims : SHIITEs

42. Med. diagnostic test : MRI SCAN

44. Old PC monitor : CRT. (cathode ray tube)

45. Rock 'n' roll musical : GREASE

46. Writers McEwan and Fleming : IANs

48. Spaceship Earth site : EPCOT. How did that get in here?

49. Low-budget film, often : INDIE. (independent)

50. Improve, as text : EMEND

51. Goes up : RISES

52. "Star Wars" sage : YODA

55. Chew the __: gab : FAT

57. Crude home : HUT. These three entries bring to mind Jabba the Hutt.

58. Bass in a glass : ALE


Argyle

Notes from C.C.:

1) Today's Gary is our Husker Gary, who came up with the great idea. I cannot tell you enough how hard-working, modest & creative he is.

Rich changed the middle right part of our submitted grid. We had MONEY for 42A, GONE for 29D, EBAY for 30D  & KOLN for 39D. I haven't figured out why. Maybe Rich was concerned about the K crossing of KONA and KOLN?


2) Congratulations also to Dennis on his NYT debutHe's my first blog collaborator. Working with him on that puzzle was particularly fun, whimsy and pressure-free.

66 comments:

Barry G. said...

Morning, all!

Nice, smooth Monday puzzle. I've only heard of two of the three peaks (Mt. ADAMS is new to me), but I didn't need to know them all to solve the puzzle.

I have seen a watch with an LED display for a loooong time...

thehondohurricane said...

Good day folks,

HG, congrats on your debut. You certainly had an excellent teacher. The puzzle was a nice start to the week with a little bite to it, but just right for s Monday.

However, I start off with as nit. 1A should have, IMHO, been clued Giant & Royals. May I remind you who won the Series?

Seems to be a lot of AIR RAGE lately. Flying has become such an inconvenience.

ELON Musk?? That is a persons name? Never heard of him or her or it...whatever it is.

Learning experience...Never knew so many peaks in THE CASCADES carried their own names.

Not my favorite day......annual physical exam with all the included indignities .

Again, good job HG & thanks CC...he deserved. the opportunity.,

Lucina said...

Good day, friends! Argyle, thank you for the nice photos of the subject peaks. I'd heard of two, not Mt. Adams.

Insomnia strikes again.

Congratulations, Gary and C.C. for being a generous mentor. Very nice puzzle though I could have done without starting on a sports reference.

All was easy, however, and worked itself out. All the names were familiar to me including ELON Musk who is often in the news. Such an unusual name is memorable, too.

Back to bed. Have a joyful Monday, everyone!


desper-otto said...

Good morning!

Congrats, Husker. And congrats, C.C., for a twofer today. Now I'm going to have a "Rhythm Of The Rain" earworm all day.

Swiveling HIFS???? Oh, it's clock letters not radio letters!

IRS FORM is meaningful to me. I just finished my certification exams, so I can volunteer to prepare taxes again next year. Most of our clients are seniors under Medicare, so they'll have MEC--minimum essential coverage. I hope I don't get any uninsured folks who'll get slapped with a penalty. East Texas rednecks won't take kindly to that.

Hondo, ELON Musk is the CEO of Tesla Motors. His name is so crossword-friendly that you're bound to run into him again.

Tinbeni said...

Argyle: Wonderful write-up and especially the mountain picture links.

WOW !!! A new favorite Monday puzzle of the year!
Then, when you throw in the NYT and get another Corner Daily Double constructors ... well it certainly is the Holiday Season.
Great Job !!! To both Husker Gary and Dennis on your construction debuts!

My fave today, of course, was ALE since I judge all puzzles on Alcohol content. lol

A toast to ALL at Sunset.
The first one will be to Gary and Dennis!
Cheers!!!

desper-otto said...

Just finished the NYT. Forgot in my earlier post, so congrats, Dennis on your NYT debut. As per usual, I didn't get the theme, and had to go to another blog to see the explanation.

Interesting that all three of the mountains in today's LAT are stratovolcanoes -- those traditional cone-shaped volcanoes. None is extinct. Portland or Seattle may get a surprise one day.

inanehiker said...

Thanks Gary and CC! My husband is from the Northwest and it is always a delight if we're flying into Portland airport on a clear day and can see all those peaks out the plane windows at the same time.
Elon Musk might have taken a little longer to come up with for me, but he was one of the people featured on the Barbara Walters' special last night of interesting people of 2014. He started and sold several companies like Paypal and now is pursuing his dreams with his companies Tesla (all electric cars) and SpaceX (developing returnable space rockets for space exploration).
Thanks, Argyle for the write-up!

Occasional Lurker said...

Congratulations Husker Gary and mentor, C.C. for an interesting and easily doable puzzle. Learnt a little geography at the same time.


Sharing your talents and encouraging other people to spread their wings and giving them their 15 minutes of fame, is one of the ultimate forms of altruism.

Avg Joe said...

Congratulations on your debut, Gary. And for your NYT debut as well, Dennis.

A Monday level puzzle with some pizazz. The only erasure was that F to P that D Otto mentioned. Couldn't figure out the theme with the first two answers in place since I was unfamiliar with Mt Adams, and had stopped looking until the reveal came up. But no major slow downs. Thanks HG & CC, and you as well Argyle.

HeartRx said...

Good morning!

What a wonderful start to the week. We get a two-fer from the corner!! Congrats to HG and Dennis. C.C. is a wonderful mentor to have, and it certainly shows in all the creative thinking that goes on here.

I especially loved this puzzle with a theme that totally eluded me to the very end. I love surprises like that!

8-D AWAY GAME immediately brought up the image of all those Miami fans who came up to Boston yesterday, just to watch the Patriots practice. ;-)

Have a great day everyone - off to do some shopping and get cars serviced.

Spitzboov said...

Good morning everyone.

WAS - What Argyle said. Good job by C.C. and Gary.

Except for MAS, proceeded like a hot knife through butter. No lookups; no erasures. Fun theme.
NMI - I have no middle name. In the Navy, the Yeoman would type (nmn) [no middle name] on personnel records in the middle name slot. Think about it: 5 keystrokes to substitute for a 'blank'. (N) was also used, for 'none'. Sigh.

Congrats to Dennis and C.C. on the NYT debut.

Have a great day.

Anonymous said...

Good morning all,

Way to go, Gary! And CC, you are the best! Early on you talked highly about those who helped others get started, and now, look at you!! I so enjoyed this . Epcot was pure Gary.
Sadly, I did have 2 write overs: edits > evens! and raise > rises.

I loved the theme. I have many photos of those snowy peaks taken from the air. Thanks for the links and write up,
Looking forward to seeing a little bit of Dennis in the NYT. What a great start to the week!

JD

JD said...

I have the iPad blues. it tells me "Whoops! that's an error." Says I have to clear browser of cache and cookies. Will seek some help.
JD

Anonymous said...

Sorry Argyle...your name got cut off. Thank you for EVERY Monday and Tuesday!

JD

Irish Miss said...

Good Morning:

It's always fun to see CC as the constructor and, adding to this delight, is seeing one of the Corner denizens as a collaborator. Congrats to Gary and CC for a great start to the week.

Liked the Yoda/Yeti connection as well as Samuel Adams/ale. Didn't know Mt. Adams but perps solved that. Overall, an easy, breezy Monday.

Congrats to Dennis for his NYT debut; it's been a long wait, eh, Dennis? Thanks, Argyle, for your words of wisdom, as always.

Have a great day.

carol said...

Hi all,

Fun puzzle and since I am a resident of Portland, Oregon our mountains were a 'gimmie'. Mt Hood "overlooks" our city and on a clear day (yes, we do have them) we can see good old Mt St.Helens (our resident volcano)

I didn't have too much trouble but certainly did not know 37D or 35A.

Congrats to Dennis (and of course, to C.C.) on acceptance by the NYT for your crossword puzzle.
I miss seeing you here. We all had such fun back a few years ago.

TTP said...

Good morning all !

Thank you Gary, CC and Argyle.
Congratulations Gary !

Very good Monday level puzzle this AM. And educational. Never heard of Mt Adams. And a few of the others in the CASCADE range.

CC, I suspect that cluing KOLN might be the issue for a Monday level puzzle.

Or, maybe like Argyle's YODA, FAT, HUT bringing to mind Jabba, perhaps Rich has some personal aversion to seeing EBAY MONEY and GONE together like that... :)

Congrats to you too Dennis. I don't have access to the NYT.

carol said...

Gary, so sorry! I meant to say congrats to you too. Great Monday puzzle!!!

CanadianEh! said...

Congrats to Gary and C.C. for an enjoyable Monday puzzle. Thanks to Argyle for photos. The closest I've been to the Cascades is Victoria on Vancouver Island.

I've never seen NMI and needed the explanation here. I always have to wait for perps for STA or STN.

I liked seeing ACT over TRY (16A and 19A). Sometimes you have to ACT and TRY to improve a situation.

Ergo said...


Wow! Lots of congrats to go around today!

Well done E'body!

Lemonade714 said...

Today is a wonderful reminder of the generous and gracious host we have here at the Corner, as C.C. shepherded both Gary and Dennis to new publishing heights in the world of puzzling. A great day for them and all of us here.

Thank you all

Anonymous T said...

Hi all!

What a great day to puzzle!

A write over at 1a? What was I thinking? Royals are junior league not NLers... (more KONA coffee please). Only other ink-blot at 9d qAM? Doh!

HG - Wonderful Monday! I loved the SciFi / paranormal (YETI) with the panoramic views (provided by Argyle). Please pipe in, take a bow and TRY to ACT modest* :-).

Dennis - I went to the corner store to get the NYT just for today. Great job! Your 20a was a favorite activity for DW & me until she read about <$150 drones PEEPing on us.

And of course many thanks to HONCHO C.C. for bringing up the next-gen creators.

Cheers, -T
*no modesty necessary for HG or Dennis.

Argyle said...

Here is where those pictures came from and many more.

LINK

Husker Gary said...

EGAD, not long ago I was in such awe of the constructors and now, thanks to C.C.’s generosity and tutoring, I am a minor leg on the three-legged puzzle stool of her, Rich and me! It’s Kismet I tell ‘ya!

Musings
-Just back from presenting a program to 50 2nd graders
-Congrats to Dennis as well. I may loosen up with some retirement money and subscribe!
-There are points along the Pacific Coast Highway where you can see one, two or three of those magnificent peaks at a time. I couldn’t get HELENS (what’s left of it) to work!
-He says he didn’t say No MAS
-One source of AIR RAGE
-No boy I ever knew had a GI JOE, uh, doll
-Last week I set an alarm for 11:45 in the morning and it went off at 11:45 at night. Hmmm… what did I forget?
-You will encounter a YETI inside Disney’s Expedition Everest (More Disney!)
-My grandchildren seem to have gotten the Crossword GENE
-Yup, I’ve rendezvoused with many kids under Spaceship Earth at 1 p.m. to catch the monorail up to Magic Kingdom
-10 things you didn’t know about GREASE
-Thanks for the kind comments

Misty said...

I looked forward to this Monday Gary and C.C. puzzle all weekend and it was a treat. Didn't get the theme until the reveal, and then loved seeing the map and photos of the mountain peaks. Great way to start the week, many thanks.

Hope you got a good sleep, Lucina.

Have a great week, everybody!

BG said...

This theme reminded me of the Easter egg found in the older Windows 9x operating systems.

If you selected 3D text as your screensaver and then entered "volcano" as the text, instead of the word "volcano" bouncing around the screen, you would have the volcanoes of the Pacific Northwest alternately appearing.

Also worked with the words "beer" and "rock", which flashed different beers and rock bands, respectively.

Anonymous said...

BG, you mean like this?

Bill G. said...

I really enjoyed that nine-inning outing by Gary and CC. I love those snow-covered mountains. We drove up to the top of Mt. Hood and enjoyed the clean whiteness. I've driven along a road that let you look down into the cone of Mount St. Helens. Congratulations Gary on a very enjoyable debut.

Gary, I subscribed to the NYT puzzles about six months ago. I appreciated the opportunity to play around with Dennis's fine debut puzzle today. However, for my tastes, I prefer the LAT puzzles to the NYT in general. Dunno why exactly. The NYT cluing seems a little more twisted, the late-week puzzles are often a little too hard for me without red-letter help and they have two themeless puzzles a week (not my favorites).

We've trusted Elon Musk with some of our cash in that we invested in his company, Tesla. He is a really smart guy and his cool electric car was given a superb rating by Consumer's Reports. Here's hoping that his company will be as profitable as Apple.

I swear, if my memory were any worse, I could plan my own surprise party!

desper-otto said...

Never saw Grease but, Husker, I've just gotta ask about #10. If OLJ turned 29 during the filming, how in heck could this be? "The iconic trousers were actually hers and were 25 years old when she wore them!" So she bought 'em when she was 4?

Dennis said...

Good afternoon, gang - I thought this was a fine Monday-level puzzle (congratulations to Gary - looking forward to your next one).

I had no idea as to the theme until the third theme answer; I didn't know Mt. Adams. All the answers fell pretty quickly; clever crossing of NAM and WAR. I liked seeing DISCO ERA -- I still like the music from back then. Just a very happy time. When I got to 'Bass in a glass', just for a second my mind flashed on a Johnny Carson skit where he but several fish in a blender. Not a pretty sight.

Overall a very nice puzzle; great job!

Thanks for the comments about the NYT puzzle; I've not yet read the comments on Parker's site, but I'm sure they'll be 'interesting'. Hey, constructive criticism is always a good thing.

Hope it's a great day for everyone; temps are finally getting back up where they belong here.

BV Ahlers said...

Congrats to CC and Husker Gary!! Right now I'm looking out my rear window at 14,411 foot Mt Rainier, 30 miles away, as the crow flies - and there are plenty of those around. From there one can see Mt Adams and Mt Hood, to the south.

I thought that the digital read-outs on clocks and watches, were LCDs (liquid crystal display) since LEDs (light-emitting diodes) were lights, not digits.

desper-otto said...

BV, early watches and clocks used LED's. Because the LED's required so much power, you had to press a button to see the time on your watch

K-Dub said...

Dennis - I'm pretty sure the skit you referred to was The Bass-O-Matic on SNL with Dan Aykroyd in 1976. A classic!

aka thelma said...

C.C. and Husker Gary,
Thanx for the easy and fun puzzle..... filled with a bazillion memories for me... none of which I will bore anyone with.... :)

I hope everyone has a great day....

PK please let us know that you are ok...

thelma :)

Dennis said...

KayUUJay, you're right, that's exactly who it was. Thanks for the correction. For some reason, I was thinking it was part of a Tea Time Movie bit. Which reminds me of Carol Wayne. Wow.

aka thelma said...

Well.... if this posts 3 times I really will quit.... I can't even seem to delete correctly with this %#$#&&^(* thing they call a computer..... :)

Have a great day.... and please someone delete all the excess........

thelma :)

Jazzbumpa said...

Hi gang -

Excellent, CC and Gary - congrats.

A bit crunchy for a Monday, I thought, or maybe it's just hardening of the brain.

SAM ADAMS is good stuff!

Great theme and some fresh fill - AWAY GAME!

Here's today's Christmas song.

Jazz Band Christmas concert tonight - woohoo!

Cool regards!
JzB

Rainman said...

Nice easy one today and I especially feel close to the Cascades, starting just N of me at Lassen, and extending into British Columbia, because I flew in my Skyhawk to and fro when I owned property in Nelson BC and Spokane Valley WA. Flying over Mt. Adams, I came to think it's one of the least accessible tall peaks in the range, and one of the prettiest shaped. Shasta is my personal favorite, I've climbed Lassen, an easy 1,500 ft rise from the parking lot.

There's a marker and lookout on Hwy. 97 in OR (near the little tourist stop of Shaniko, which is near the 45th parallel) where on a clear day you can eye Rainier, St. Helens, Adams, Hood, Jefferson, Three Sisters, and others, all from one place. Nice spot to stop in good conditions.

Elon Musk is a successful name we should all note and remember...

Well, back to studying español on Duolingo. Fun! Stay warm, and be cool.

Husker Gary said...

Musings
-You’re right Otto, what’s up with those 25 yr old pants? She’s skinny but…
-My friend bought a bunch of those LED watches that required you to push a button for the time and tried to foist one on me: He said, “It gives you the time on demand”. I heard, “I gotta push a dang button just to get the time!”
-BV, Rainier is beautiful but I hope it doesn’t get angry in the near future. Seeing what remained of St. Helens from that day in 1980 after nearly a cubic mile of its top blew off is very sobering.
-While packing up Dad’s house after he moved to the nursing home I took down a picture of a beautiful mountain off the wall that had hung there since 1955. Turns out it was the pre-eruptive St. Helens.
-Rainman, I’d love to visit that city on the east slope of the Cascades. I was ecstatic when I saw three of those peaks from the Pacific Coast Highway. I don’t know what is less likely, my getting to the east range to all of those you mentioned or their being a clear day in Oregon ;-) Adios!

Jayce said...

Wow, a Gary and C.C. puzzle. Nice! I think it is well-constructed and clued. Bass in a glass made me laugh. Well done!

Jerome said...

Nice debut, Gary! I'm guessing many solvers would think Monday puzzles should be the easiest to make... but they're not. Editors will tell you that if there is one day of the week they have a hard time filling it's that Monday slot.

As for that old warrior in the NY Times today, he's one sneaky, sly fox. But this Norwegian graybeard caught him with his hand in the fill. Yes, the fill. Look closely at 49-, 50- and 51- down in Gary and C.C.'s puzzle.

How'd you pull that off?

OwenKL said...

Back when I was also still Mormon, my first marriage broke up c.1976. My ex took the kids and moved back to her home town. Didn't like change, and got homesick moving so far across country. Back with her Mormon parents. Singing Mormon hymns from their pioneer days in Utah and the Rockies, like "Firm As The Mountains Around Us" and "For The Strength Of The Hills We Thank Thee". Nothing ever changed in her home town, Kelso, Washington, near the base of Mt. Saint Helens.

Jayce said...

Just perused your puzzle, Dennis. Nice job. Thanks.

Lemonade714 said...

Jerome, can you please translate?

How many of you recall the iconic moment in Live and Let Die when James Bond clcked on his Pulsar and the red digits appeared?

Enzo said...

Hey Dennis, I know like all things fast and reading this story today I thought you could motor on over to Amelia Island and snag that car. But then I read, "The car features a five-speed manual transmission, well-worn leather seats and an 8-track tape player with a copy of “Disco Rocks” still in it." I thought, 'that's how Dennis rationalizes it to the wifey!'. Just tell her its kismet.

Abejo said...

Good afternoon, folks. Thank you, Husker Gary (and C.C.), for a fine puzzle. Thank you, Argyle, for a fine review.

Well, what a surprise today. Our own Gary in the headlines. Great job!

Theme was fine. Especially liked the SAMUEL ADAMS at 17A. That is one of my favorite beers (black lager).

I have seen the Cascades from the air, flying to Seatac.

Never heard of AIR RAGE before, but it makes sense.

Wanted OAST for 39D, but KILN worked better.

Also, congratulations to you, Dennis, for the NYT puzzle. I do not get that puzzle and I really only have time for one a day, but I am sure it was excellent.

See you tomorrow.

Abejo

(656)

carol said...

Husker Gary, I assure you there are clear days in Oregon (we just don't want the rest of the country to know it)...also they are mostly on the eastern side of the state. Where we live (in Portland) it's cloudy A LOT.

Regarding Mt. St. Helens before it blew its lid; everyone remarked that it looked like a vanilla ice cream cone. It was so pretty, not it's not too bad, just a little flat on top.
We are just close to 60 miles from it and have seen several eruptions, even the big one but from a very safe distance.

lois said...

Good Evening Santa Baby, CC, What a fun puzzle! Thank you CC and HG!Am so excited for you two and then to have Dennis in the NYT just makes for a specatcular day! So proud and happy for all of you. Plus both puzzles were very fun. CC, your influence in our lives just keeps hitting new highs. Who would have guessed this day would happen so many years ago. What a red letter day!

39A is a favorite coffee of my #2 SIL. #3 SIL told me as we worked the puzzle together, so now I know what to get #2 for Cmas. Men are so hard to buy for. AIR RAGE was new to me but my slant on it is aimed at the Ins for Delta airlines. Scam artists.

Fun all the way around, CC and HG,here, and Dennis in NYT. Loved 'em all. Congratulations!

Santa Darlin', your talents are never ending. Great write up and presentation. Very enjoyable, as usual. Time is getting short for the big day. The chimney sweep was here just today so all is fresh and ready for your coming...that is depending on which list you have me on. The suspense is killing me. Cookies and milk? beer and pretzels? coffee, tea....? I've been oh so good.

Enjoy your evening.

Argyle said...

Ah, Lois, you are on that third list; there is naughty list, nice list and nice'n'naughty. That's the one I'll take care of personally...and the one you're on. *<(;o)>> Ho Ho Ho

fermatprime said...

Greetings!

Swell puzzles in LAT and NYT! Thanks, Husker, Dennis and CC! Thanks also to Santa!

Also never heard of Mt. Adams.

Cheers!

Jerome said...

Lemonade- In the mentioned down entries DENNIS is hiding out.

Anonymous said...

Congratulations to HG and Dennis on your debut puzzles in the LA and NY Times papers! Congrats, C.C., for nurturing two more constructors to publication!

WEES about the puzzle. Cincinnati has a Mt. Adams so that was an easy answer.

Good Monday evening.

Pat

Dennis said...

Enzo, I like your thinking.

I've liquidated a whole bunch of assets and will head over there in March. With any luck, I'll return with a classic 8-track player and an old copy of 'Disco Rocks'. Wonder if they're selling the car too?

Lois, great to see you - hope you're back for good now. And what's with Delta?

Jerome, unbelievable. How the hell do you see stuff like that? You should be working for the NSA.

Qli said...

Good collaboration, HG and C.C.

You got me on a Monday with EMEND and NMI, neither of which I knew.

ELON MUSK was just on Sunday Morning yesterday; my favorite show.

Lucina said...

Jerome:
Leave it to your anagramatical eye to find Dennis hidden in the corner!

Manac said...

What a surprise to see Gary's name this AM.
Congrats to both of you on the puzzle.
Enjoyed the solve. Just right for a Monday.

windhover said...

I may have mentioned this before, in reference to nmi; back in the day I had a coworker whose name was R. C.
No names, just 2 initials. The state of Kentucky rendered that (on his driver's license) as R(only) C(only). You can guess what we called him.

Blue Iris said...

Congrats Gary, C.C. and Dennis on a banner day! The corner will be taking over puzzledom with C.C.'s help.

The only mountain I am close to is Mt. Sunflower :) Google this Kansas treasure LOL

Jerome said...

Dennis- I do work for the NSA. That's how I know about all the places you're lurking.

By the way... the debut today is a marvelous accomplishment.

OwenKL said...

My Muse http://www.newyorker.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/141222_a18755-600.jpg

Dennis said...

Jerome -- oh good. Well listen, I only go there for the massages.

Again, thanks to everybody for the great comments; it was a once-in-a-lifetime event for me to make it to the NYT (albeit as a minor player), and I'll not try that again. I kinda like the thought of 'one submission, one acceptance'.

Anonymous T said...

Dennis - Yep, go out like Jeff Banister batting1.000.

More on HG's LAT - I love all the related (in my head anyway) answers:
ALIST/MATTDAMON
SAMUELADAMS / ALE (c/a pair 58d LOL). GIJOE/TOWAR
TRY/ACT
FATE/ONUS (what will/what must)
GOSH/EGAD
GIRL over her PRINCE

and to put both puzzles together...
ITALIA / ALPHA ROMEO

Thats-a spicy meat-a-ball!

Cheers, -T

CrossEyedDave said...

Congrats HG!

Love your posts and links, & now puzzles too (woohoo!)

I did the puzzle around midday while I was stuck in the car for an hour. (The puzzle took nowhere near that long, but was a welcome reprieve from this hectic day...)

So, sorry I am late to the party, but probably just as well, as I would not want to post anything inappropriate to mar your ascent to constructor...

CrossEyedDave said...

P.S. I do not get The Times, is there a place I can get the puzzle online?

OwenKL said...

CED: Sorry, no way to get the current NYT, but the Seattle Times runs the puzzle with a 6-week delay, so you can get a daily fix (time-shifted) of the NYT there. If I'm back up to working it by then, I'll try to remember to mention it, and we can all celebrate Dennis' accomplishment again!

OwenKL said...

*without buying a paid subscription, that is