17A. Sandwich option : WHOLE WHEAT BREAD. A bar's worth of note or rest. When I was taught music back in the UK this was known as a semibreve.
32A. 13-mile race : HALF MARATHON. Minim in Manchester
41A. Equine sprinter : QUARTER HORSE. Crotchet in Croydon
59A. It prohibits cruel and unusual punishment : EIGHTH AMENDMENT. Quaver to the Queen
and
1A. See the 67-Across clue : REST You can have whole, half, quarter or eighth rests ...
67A. It can follow the starts of 17-, 32-, 41- and 59-Across : NOTE And whole, half, quarter or eighth notes.
You'd better be up on your music and your rather obscure miscellany today. In the former category we have the themers, plus ASSAI, DAL SEGNO and TACET. For the latter we have RAILLERY, ARENDT, ITZA, RAWER, BASTA, CUERS and MULETEER. I find it interesting that the first five words in that list have all been used previously in puzzles constructed by Rich himself. As far as I can see, MULETEER has never appeared in the LAT before (nor the NYT either).
What is a sixty-fourth note called in England? I'm glad you asked - it's a hemidemisemiquaver.
1A gets the cross-referenced-clue-dislikers off on the wrong foot today and I'm not sure it actually adds much as opposed to just going with a straight clecho. The one theme entry I don't particularly care for is 59A. The other three are fractional units, or the unit itself, but that last one is number eight in a list.
I don't usually pay a lot of attention to solving times, but this one was close to 15 minutes, and for me that's a long time for a Wednesday.
Let's see what else we've got.
Across:
5. Suitor's purchase : ROSES
10. Geological age : AEON. Handy vowel progression for a constructor.
14. Major follower? : -ETTE. Are you allowed to have these any more? They're probably called Majorpersons now.
15. Like the accent on "passé" : ACUTE
16. Proofer's catch : TYPO
20. Good-humored banter : RAILLERY. Charlotte Bronte used this word in Jane Eyre in 1847. I'm not sure it's been used since.
21. Superstore division : AISLE
22. Mandela's org. : A.N.C. The African National Congress.
23. Wrath : IRE
24. Very, in music : ASSAI. I'll take your word for it. Maybe one of our resident musical experts can tell us the difference between, let's say, allegretto assai, molto allegretto and allegro?
26. Rats, gnats and brats : PESTS
28. Loads : A LOT
29. E. Berlin's land : G.D.R. I stopped myself after filling G-E- and then paid attention to the significance of the "E" modifier in the clue. East Berlin was the capital of the German Democratic Republic during the Cold War.
36. Prefix with European : INDO
39. Words on Alice's cake : EAT ME. She was far too polite to reply "Bite me".
40. Chichén __: pyramid site : ITZA. Located in Mexico on the Yucatan peninsula.
44. Home of the NFL's Rams : STL. St. Louis. I looked sideways at this with one eyebrow raised. I'd be OK with the "on scoreboards" kind of modifier, I'm not sure I like it as a straight abbreviation.
45. High spot : ACME
46. Indian region known for its tea : ASSAM
50. Goldman's son-in-law and partner : SACHS
52. Share of the profits : CUT
54. Poke one's nose (into) : PRY
55. What we have here : THESE
57. Borax-transporting driver : MULETEER. As I mentioned at the top, I think this is the first time the word has appeared in the LAT crossword. I don't really get the "Borax" part of the clue though - mule teams move more than just borax, and borax is not moved solely by mule teams.
62. Coastal bird of prey : ERNE
63. Met event : OPERA. Nice logo.
65. Sign that stands out : NEON
66. Old West trackers : POSSE
Down:
1. Bundle up again : RE-WRAP
2. Natural gas component : ETHANE
3. Unemotional types : STOICS
4. Spill the beans : TELL
5. Less experienced, as a recruit : RAWER. Another rarity. Personally, I'd say "more raw", this comparative form seems clumsy somehow.
6. Natural earth shade : OCHRE
7. Chop __ : SUEY. Food! Finally something to sink my teeth into. A made-in-America "Chinese" dish.
8. DFW posting : E.T.A. Fill in ET and wait for the perp. Dallas/Fort Worth airport covers an area larger than Manhattan, second in size only to Denver. I've missed connections in both places.
9. Arrange dishes and utensils on : SET
10. Skylit lobbies : ATRIA
11. Ophthalmologist's concern : EYESIGHT
12. Australian gem : OPAL. The national gemstone down under.
13. Botanical junction : NODE
18. Woman in a "Paint Your Wagon" song : ELISA. Sung by Clint Eastwood in the 1969 movie version. I'll spare you the link.
19. Enzo's "Enough!" : BASTA! This doesn't fall into the "common Italian" bucket for me. Perhaps Marti uses this quite frequently towards the end of dinner?
24. San Antonio mission : ALAMO
25. More achy : SORER.
27. Hammer-toting god : THOR
28. The Beatles' "I __ Walrus" : AM THE. From the "Magical Mystery Tour" album. Get your dose of 60's psychedelia here.
30. Donut box qty. : DOZ.
31. Genetic letters : R.N.A. Fill in "NA" and wait for the perp. There were three of these for me today.
33. One who won't let go : LEECH
34. Produces produce : FARMS
35. Associations : TIES
36. Educ. testing data : I.Q.S
37. Bolt partner : NUT
38. Repeat symbol, in scores : DAL SEGNO. This thing. I never knew it had a name.
43. Filled to the limit : SATED
47. Maker of brief briefs : SPEEDO. Thankfully, most of the guys at my swim club now wear bicycle-short-style jammers rather than briefs.
48. Political philosopher Hannah : ARENDT. Crosses all the way. I had to look her up - I'm not up on my German-born political theorists.
49. South Carolina's __ Beach : MYRTLE
51. Sickly looking : ASHEN
52. Offstage aides : CUERS. I'm not buying this. Folks backstage that give an actor a line are called prompters, and that line is a prompt, not a cue. A cue comes from an action or an event, usually on stage. The cue for Antigonus to "Exit, pursued by a bear" in "A Winter's Tale" is the appearance of the bear. I'd be off that stage in a cloud of dust.
53. Forearm bones : ULNAE. My final "wait for the perp" fill after ULNA.
55. Babysitter, often : TEEN
56. Charter, as a bus : HIRE
57. Fr. wives : MMES. Madames in France.
58. Eliot Ness, e.g. : T-MAN
60. Bounce : HOP
61. GI's address : A.P.O. Army Post Office.
And ... here's the grid. I'm heading east to Washington D.C. today for a meeting tomorrow. It better have warmed up, I don't do winter!
Steve
50 comments:
I agree Steve, this seemed like an awfully difficult Wednesday and it seemed a bit sad that JzB our Wednesday co-host and musical maven did not get to blog this one.
It took me a very long time with DAL SEGNO a real challenge.
A bumpy hump day.
Morning, all!
Well, I got off on the wrong foot with this one seeing a cross-reference clue right at 1A that I had no way of getting at first, but that ended up just being something I could ignore until the very end. I enjoyed the theme and all the music clues, which fortunately I knew (even DAL SEGNO).
Sadly, I did not enjoy all the obscurities. MULETEER and RAILLERY just looked completely made up and I honestly thought I had made a mistake somewhere when I got them via the perps. I also didn't know ARENDT, but didn't mind it nearly as much since it was a name and I don't expect names to be familiar or even look plausible half the time. Seriously, lose MULETEER and RAILLERY and this really would have been a complete joy to do instead of a mostly good, partially cringe-inducing effort.
On the bright side, we're supposed to have temps in the 50s today...
Yes, MULETEER is new to me and pretty much what Steve said about ARENDT, et al.
Still, I would be proud with a 15-minute solve time. This took me 22 because I bogged down at the above crossing. And I had THECONSTITUTION instead of EIGHTHAMENDMENT. Yes, DALSEGNO didn't come easily and neither did RAILLERY.
So, a bit of learning this morn, and this was a good one for morning-challenged me.
It's odd to me that others report this as harder than usual (for the day); my time seemed quicker than normal, despite being musically challenged.
For MULETEER, I recalled "20-mule-team Borax soap" from "Death Valley Days" which is apparently what the setter hoped to evoke. I didn't remember the word itself, but at least I was on the right track.
And is RAILLERY really that obscure? Not often (ever?) heard in conversation, but I don't think of it as rare in the written word.
Barry G. -- are you in MA too? I just checked today's forecast, and it calls for a high of 53. Spring is in the air, at last!
Good Morning, Steve and friends. Interesting Music Lesson. In addition to the NOTES, there were several other musical references, including the dreaded DAL SEGNO. Who knew?
Sign that Stands Out = NEON was my favorite clue of the puzzle.
Hand up for GER before GDR. Hey, two of the letters were correct! I couldn't come up with an E word or abbreviation to denote 12 for the DOZ donuts, though.
QOD: The knack of flying is learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss. ~ Douglas Adams (Mar. 11, 1952 ~ May 11, 2001)
HowardW -- Yep, I'm just north of Boston. I can finally see out my basement windows again!
Good morning!
This puzzle had a good share of arcana (not to be confused with Texarkana). I realized that the MULETEER clue was a reference to the old Death Valley Days TV show. Ronald Reagan was one of several "hosts" as the old ranger.
I don't recall ever seeing the symbol DAL SEGNO on any sheet music. It was always written out as "D.S. al Coda" -- go back and find the thingee and play to the Coda. I guess maybe DAL SEGNO was the thingee.
My last fill was the C in CUERS, and I had to start an alphabet run to get it. I agree with Steve; they are prompters.
Busy day. Gotta run...
Usual Wed. time or slightly less. Fun puzzle.
DAL SEGNO was the only unknown. As DO said,"It was always written out as 'D.S. al Coda' -- go back and find the thingee and play to the Coda."
I needed a few perps for ARENDT. I got BASTA from just the B, and RAILLERY,which is used in many novels I have read, from the RAI.
Like some others, Borax tipped me off to MULETEER, 20 Mule Team Borax from "Death Valley Days" on TV.
I am a huge fan of historical novels about the settling of the west, Plenty of MULETEERS there.
Alan and I are being sprung today. I am walking well with little pain, but the immobilizing brace means no driving, so for the first time we are taking the town sponsored handicapped van to the Shop Rite and Burger King. What fun to get out on such a nice day.
Happy belated birthday, Avg Joe. I am glad it was a happy day. Maybe someday, if you have time, you could publish your pea soup recipe on Blog Recipes. I would love to try it.
I'm up on the music but not ultra-obscure words, foreign and domestic. I managed to fill all except the cross of MULETEER and ARENDT. MULETEER-EAR,EIR,EUR, EOR, EER, EUR EYR- none looked right and ARENDT was an unknown.
RAILLERY, DAL SEGNO, ACUTE and BASTA- 100% perps. The spelling of ITZA always gets me and why is the accent ACUTE? Is it an acute angle?
The long fills were easy and the theme hit on HALF MARATHON, but completely unknowns words did not make for a nice puzzle for mere mortals to complete.
Hahtoolah- E. Ger called itself the German Democratic Republic and W. Ger. was the Deutschen Democratic Republic. GDR & DDR.
Good day,
Big time reliance on perps today and without them ARENDT & DAL SEGNO would remain blank. 57A was a gimme-sort of. I thought it was MULEster. 58D, TMAN corrected my thinking as well as SPEEDO looking better them SPtEDO.
Instead of GDR, I started with GDD. I've seen DNA & RNA clued as Genetic letters and I never know which is the "flavor" of the day. Changed after deciding on R for Republic versus D with "no idea what it stands for".
Wanted only one L for RAILLERY and was concerned when I needed the second L. Surprised when it turned out OK.
Spring has sprung in Ct. Snow melt approximately 9 " so far. Still a long way to go. Got my vehicle washed yesterday and by the time I got home it needed another washing. Still does!
The robin is no longer the sign of spring, it's those Orange signs all over the highways telling you your drive is going to take longer then you planned.
WEES. Quite a lot to not like today. Several Ugh moments and a forced reliance on perps and a wag. Got it, but didn't really care for it.
Steve: Your write-up explained my errs. Yup! A D N F on a Wednesday.
Wasn't going to let go of MULE TEAM ... and when I'm in Jamaica I don't even wear a SPEEDO.
Geez, I even spelled my POSSY with a "Y" not an "E" ...
Throw in "nothing to drink" and my solving experience was doomed.
Cheers!
Big Easy:
East Germany was the English common name for the German Democratic Republic or GDR (German: Deutsche Demokratische Republik or DDR).
West Germany was the common English name for the Federal Republic of Germany or FRG (German: Bundesrepublik Deutschland or BRD).
Without perps and WAGs today I'd never have made it. I know very little of music terminology, but managed, using more time than usual. mostly WBS.
Big Easy and Hahtoolah,
West Germany was the Bundesrepublik Deutschland (BRD) into which the former Deutsche Demokratische Republik (DDR) was folded after the Wende (turn, change) when the wall fell. Now they just call it all Deutschland. I looked for a linguistic clue before deciding on GDR instead of DDR, since I hear that more often these days when in Saxony (...in der DDR Zeit...)--in the GDR time.
Good morning everyone.
Thanks for the music lesson, Steve. Learned several things. Other than the Ge - GDR segue Steve also experienced, it was an easy romp with perp help for fill like DAL SEGNO, ASSAI, and ARENDT. BORAX from the '50's ads was an important ingredient in sussing out MULETEER.
Have a good day.
"Puzzling thoughts":
My daughter is a musician - actually teaches it at a major university - and while I've come to know several musical terms from her, today's did not come easily DAL SEGNO was a new term - TACET not, but I put an I before correcting with an E
Interesting use of two solves: Los ALAMOs is a popular QUARTER HORSE track outside of Los Angeles. They also run thoroughbred horses there; last year's KY DERBY winner California Chrome stables at that track
MULETEER and ARENDT were WAGS, as was RAILLERY; ELISA was not the first name I pencilled in for 18D; I seem to remember a song from that movie called: They Call the Wind MARIA - and now I can't get the tune out of my head
If in music you're cutting in half
All the notes ( as they're shown on the staff )
Tap the beat with your foot
So that you will not put
Too much strain on your lower right calf!
Sorry, been away from limericks too long!!
38D: Segno means sign and it's simply referred to as the sign. The repeat designation is usually D.S. which stands for Dal Segno and means go to the sign. That symbol is usually placed at a prior measure which is the spot to which you are to go back.
Good Morning:
I finished w/o help but only because of some solid perps. Never heard of raillery, dal sego, muleteer, etc. The theme was okay but, overall, not an enjoyable solve, IMO.
Appreciated the informative write-up, Steve. Stay out of trouble in DC, if that's even possible! 😉
Have a great day.
Sorry, dal segno. I wish auto correct would mind its own business.
WEES: Not up on the musical terms even though I took music lessons in Junior High. Also had problems with MULETEER because Eliot Ness could have been a G or a T-MAN. I finished it but wasn't sure I did it right until I read Steve's expo.
Steve & DO: Many on-air comedians, especially on late night TV, have people off camera who hold up CUE CARDS with their lines/jokes written out. I guess they could be called CUERS. Newscasters and politicians typically use electronic Teleprompters vs. Cue Cards. Just goes to show you how original these "performers" are.
Starting to see the brown of the grass under the receding snow. Hope it isn't too long before the dinginess disappears and the grass turns green.
Have a great day everyone.
Not too difficult for a Wednesday. Thank goodness for the perps to get DAL SEGNO, MULETEER. Guessed it had to be RAILLERY. Thanks for the musical theme, Thomas.
Nice write-up Steve. Sorry there weren't more food stuff for you.
I never had a chance. I got, but had never heard of DAL SEGNO or RAILLERY. GMAN/TMAN, MULETEER and ARNANDT only cost me two bad cells. BASTA/ASLAI? Really? Can I invoke the 8th AMENDMENT?
Musings
-Those ROSES fly off the shelf on a Feb. 14th afternoon
-Niles Crane: “I can buy French fries in one AISLE and French doors in the next!”
-Before I changed to GDR…
-STLis in for a fight for their NFL franchise to not leave for LA
-“What we have here…”is the start of a fabulous movie quote
-OPERA can move even the most unsuspecting heart. (2:28)
-If you are travelling with 120 kids, you won’t miss your connection. They’ll hold the plane. Trust me.
-C’mon, you all thought of MARIAH first, but that’s just the wind!
-Even MYRTLE Beach got it this winter
-After passing 65, I’ve found you can HIRE a lot of things done
Hello, puzzlers. Thank you for the musical lesson, Steve.
I'm surprised so many found this difficult. I thought it was just right for a Wednesday and though I doubted some fill, DALSEGNO especially, it all worked out.
MULETEER evoked "Death Valley Days" for me, too with its 20-mule team ads.
Having been to Chichen-ITZA, it's embedded in memory with some colorful stories, too.
Thank you, Thomas Takaro, for a very nice grid game.
Have a happy Wednesday, everyone!
UGH! This puzzle was above and beyond my area of expertise. Felt like a Saturday preview.
I know absolutely nothing about music, so forget about that. The long fills were easy, so no problem there. In fact, I thought there was a numerical theme of some sort, until 67A was revealed. But I was still confused about what REST had to do with NOTE. Like I said, my head's not into this.
RAILLERY...unknown. Put GER at 29A, then wondered what EOZ would mean at 30D. Realized it should be DOZ, but what is GDZ? Had no clue until the blog.
As others did, I remembered 20 Muleteam Borax for 57A, but never heard of MULETEER.
Puzzles like this make me realize how limited my knowledge is on many subjects. However, others have trouble with, let's say, entertainment or cooking, of which I am confident of. So, to each his/her own.
Sorry, did not enjoy this in the least. A REALLY BIG DNF. Better luck tomorrow.
Forgot. BASTA is the same in Spanish, enough.
Ya basta. That's enough.
In the future, I'm just going to discard all puzzles that start with a cross-reference. Sheesh.
Magilla GR,
That makes sense to me, because I guessed that DAL meant from, so together it would mean "from the sign" or start at the sign again.
Bit of a Wednesday toughie for me too, but still, many thanks, Thomas, and Steve. Got too little sleep last night, I think.
Have a great Wednesday, everybody.
Good morning everybody. This seemed like an odd little puzzle with words like DEL SEGNO, MULETEER, ARENDT, BASTA, TACET and others. WEES. I liked it OK even with those words I had to guess at.
Breakfast: A half-grapefruit, two soft-boiled eggs with a half English muffin (toasted with butter), V-8 and coffee. Excellent! I could go around again.
if Thumper was from Boston, "YA BASTA!"
I enjoyed your informative write up, Steve. This is the first I have heard of hemidemisemiquaver since college. My fiance was a music major. I used to hang with his crowd who were always joking about hemidemisemiquaver. For some reason it trips off the tongue.
Lucina, I am glad you mentioned that BASTA is Spanish which was my impression. I have heard it used by our large Latino population. And, like Lucina, I thought this offering was just right for a Wednesday.
DNF
WEES
Is this a Wednesday level puzzle?
Learning moment= Desperotto@7:22, So that's what D.S.al Coda means!
A note I would like to give Mr. Takaro...
HG @ 11:23 - if you read my thoughts, I too had MARIA(H) entered as the answer.
As for those who recall, here is the soundtrack to I still see ELISA
And for the worst rendition of a song from the same musical, here is Lee Marvin singing I was born under a wandering star. Singing begins @ 1:18. Good thing he could act!
Regarding the solve for "enough": BASTA
My DW - who is part Italian - mentioned that most Italians abbreviate their words. The word "abBASTAnza" translates as "enough". Perhaps the abbreviated phrase from this word is BASTA??
I thought this was a tough puzzle for a Wednesday. Muleteer and raillery were words I'd never seen before. My hat's off to anyone who breezed through this one. Thanks Steve, for a very nice write up.
Tinbeni said,
...and when I'm in Jamaica, I don't even wear a SPEEDO.
I just joined the rest of the people who threw up in their mouths.
Hi gang -
Haven't read comments yet - pretty busy for an old retired guy - so forgive me if I'm repeating anyone.
I'm going to defend EIGHTH. The constructor was constrained by what the notes are actually called on this side of the pond, so EIGHTH it is and EIGHTH it had to be.
I'm less than delighted with RAILLERY and MULETEER. Not only are they ridiculously obscure, they look like mistakes.
Twenty Mule Team Borax is a laundry soap booster. It sponsored the very popular TV Death Valley Days back in my 'ute. B-grade actor Ronnie Reagan was the host in 1964-5. So the clue is a bit retro. I got the reference right away, but your folks might not.
Still, the MULETEER-ARENDT cross was a quasi-natick, solved with a swag.
DAL SEGNO (to the sign) usually is just D.S. on music. You jump back to a measure indicated with a sign that looks a bit like "$" seen in a fun house mirror.
Words like ASSAI show up in classical music. I don't pay much attention to these Italian directions
because the conductor leads us through those things.
Cool Regards!
JzB
Regarding Borax, I meant to say "young folks might not"
Somehow blew right past the excellent SIGNO image in Steve's excellent write up.
Lemnade - I did get the one with the TROMBONE theme a few years back
Cheers!
JzB
JzB, I enjoy your write ups and Steve's, I was just commenting that recently there was a foodie Wednesday where it was your turn and one with many British references for you and now for a music heavy puzzle, it was his.
We need to get Rich Norris your schedules....
Hi all!
WEES. I got the theme at 32a and 41a, and filled the other theme answers removing much of the white sea. Then it was time to slog out the muic clues, etc. Whew! - ended with one bad square at 19d xing 24a. Oh well. Thanks Steve for the writeup and Mr. Takaro, um, next time :-)
On that NOTE, I'll give it a REST.
Cheers, -T
Hannah Arendt was a brilliant thinker, though much of what she believed attracted a large amount of controversy. Perhaps the phrase, "The banality of evil" rings a bell. That's a term she used to describe evil not as a radical thought process, but simply the tendency for ordinary people to obey the will of others without thinking, or caring, about the consequence. She mainly used it in reference to the actions of Nazi war criminals. Highly debatable in my view, but thought provoking.
Greetings!
Nice puzzle, TT and swell expo, Steve.
Puzzling answers were DAL SEGNO, ARENDT and MULETEER. (Knew MULETEam.)
A bit longer than usual.
From last night, I repeat, Adobe Flash works on all standard Macs!!!
Cheers!
May I suggest anyone in interested amazing information and history pertinent to 57-A in the puzzle for 03/11/15 check out a You Tube video "20 mule team from Bishop, CA".
I'm a long time lurker, but since I do the puzzle in the evening I figure there is little point in commenting. I got through the puzzle, but several of the comments have me stumped. If you please, what is WEES?
what everyone else said
Actually, YR, Average Joe's birthday was right on time. It wasn't late.
Pasadena Jim- I just drove from Pasadena two hours on surface streets and slow freeways to get home in what should be 55 minutes.
Two Sig-alerts on the usual freeways.
WEES means What Everybody Else Said
WBS is What Barry Said as he usually posts the earliest.
Sick of Traffic - Thanks for the explanation. My Pasadena is actually in Maryland, but as a traffic engineer I'm sorry for your troubles.
Wasn't expecting this level of difficulty on a Wednesday. Knew nothing of the musical clues, and never heard of a muleteer. Sure, there's 20-Mule Team Borax, but really? On a Wednesday? Didn't have Raillery, Itza. Got StL but didn't agree with the abbreviation for a crossword puzzle. Germany thing got me as well. Daylight Savings Time is throwing my whole lifestyle (such as it is) into chaos.
Pasadena Jim: Some of us are night owls and like to play late - it can be lonely, so come play! Also, on the page there's Olio that fills in some of the abrevs used here.
Also, most folks read the late night comments before posting in the morning.
Am I the only one who had neWER for 5d? nOSES? @5a.
Cheers, -T
Good Thursday morning, folks. Thank you, Thomas Takaro, for a fine puzzle. Thank you, Steve, for a fine review.
I did this on Wednesday, but never got home until very late. So, Here I am on Thursday.
I saw all the musical clues and then saw the unifier at 67A NOTE and then went back and looked at the theme answers. OK, made sense. Good work, Thomas.
My hangup for a while was the SE corner. I could not get MULETEER for the longest time. I was hung up on MULE TEAM. Finally pieced it together. MYRTLE helped a lot. Could not think of that answer for a while either. Our company that I worked for did a lot of business in Myrtle Beach. I never went there but I should have remembered that town.
Liked POSSE for 66A.
RAILLERY took me some time and a lot of perps.
See you later today, I hope.
Abejo
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