Theme: A-yee, I owe you! A vowel progression runs through the five variants of the first word of the theme entries.
17A. King of the Hill winner : LAST MAN STANDING. I've been watching coverage of the Tour de France cycling race and couldn't figure out how to shoehorn a reference to the spotted jersey winner in here.
20A. Repeated phrase in Kipling's "Recessional" : LEST WE FORGET
31A. It's rarely paid to a car dealer : LIST PRICE
48A. Recovery site? : LOST AND FOUND. Fun clue.
52A. Scholar's motivation : LUST FOR LEARNING. I had lust for other things when I was a scholar at an all-boys school. That might explain a lot.
I think this is an LAT debut for Scott Ober. We've seen Peter before, so a new collaboration A very clean vowel progression with these five, two grid-spanners, and the double-stacking of the 15's with 12's is very neatly done. When you see stacked themers like that, you expect some less than stellar fill, but Scott and Peter managed to stack another seven-letter on the theme pair, and for a final flourish managed to interlock the three with triple seven-letter downs. Bravo!
Let's see what else we've got:
Across:
1. Alloy component : METAL
6. Twosomes : DYADS. I always pause between NYADS and DYADS. One is a water nymph, the other is what the clue is asking for.
11. Time for preparations : EVE. A little late for the majority of preparations. The eve is for last-minute refinements, or panic.
14. "It was you," in a Verdi aria : ERI TU. "It was you ... who stained the soul". From "A Masked Ball".
15. Word on mail from Spain : AEREO. Air mail.
16. Unit of RAM : MEG. A little dated now, I count my laptop RAM in gigs - 16 as we speak.
21. Certain balloter : ABSENTEE
24. "Milk's favorite cookie" : OREO
25. Phil Collins' old group : GENESIS. Here's Phil singing on the first post-Peter Gabriel Genesis album. I owned the gate-fold vinyl edition, and I think it's now safe to reveal that I used to roll cigarettes of a herbal nature on it back in 1976.
26. Grilling aids : SKEWERS
29. Bigheadedness : EGO
30. Adjust for the new tax year : RE-ASSESS
35. Large merchant ships : ARGOSIES. Loved this. I struggled a little as I'd filled in RPM at 30D. We'll come back to that one.
38. Chihuahua cheer : OLÉ
41. Spread all over : PERVADE
42. Persian Gulf island nation : BAHRAIN. I didn't know it was an island. Now I do.
46. Instrument to which an orchestra tunes : OBOE
47. Turned down for easy reference : DOG-EARED. My local library used to try to fine you if a book was returned in this condition. Tough to prove it was you though.
56. Single : ONE
57. Make dim : BLEAR. SMEAR went in as a first try. Didn't feel right. Wasn't.
58. Mello __ : YELLO
59. '60s radical gp. : S.D.S. Those pesky Students for a Democratic Society.
60. Buttonholes, e.g. : SLITS
61. Teed off : IRKED
Down:
1. "Alice" diner owner : MEL.
2. Factor in MLB's Cy Young Award : E.R.A. Baseball's annual pitching award. A low Earned Run Average factors into the voting. Right, C.C?
3. Quaint contraction : 'TIS. We read John Ford's 'Tis Pity She's a Whore at school. Cue schoolboy sniggering.
4. Prime minister after and before Churchill : ATTLEE
5. Light bulb units : LUMENS
6. Edmond __: the Count of Monte Cristo : DANTES. Thank you, crosses. Never read it.
7. "__ Can": 2008 slogan : YES WE. Did we?
8. Prado hangings : ARTE. Here's "La Maja Vestida" by Goya in the Prado collection. There's another version with a lot fewer "vestidas". I'll leave you to find that for yourselves.
9. Like many Gallaudet College students : DEAF. The first learning institute for the deaf in the USA.
10. Prefix with gram : SONO-
11. Female political refugee : EMIGRÉE. I didn't know that the term referred to a political refugee. I wouldn't bother with the second "E" nowadays.
12. Thin layers : VENEERS
13. Picnic game that can get messy : EGG TOSS
18. Piedmont city : ASTI
19. Be half-asleep : DROWSE
21. Candle count, perhaps : AGE. Candles on the cake. Didn't see that at first.
22. Ask to be excused, with "off" : BEG
23. __-Cat : SNO. Tried KIT. Was Wrong.
26. Inspiring msg. : SER. Sermon. On the Mount, or on Sunday, or when you did something which didn't please your mother. The latter was not particular inspiring.
27. Ryssdal of NPR's "Marketplace" : KAI. Thank you, crosses.
28. Corner key : ESC. Top-left on your keyboard.
30. Turning meas. : RPS. Revolutions Per Second. The penny finally dropped, but I was convinced that RPM was solid.
31. "Cowboy Man" singer : LOVETT. Lyle.
32. Rose-rose link : IS A. A rose is a rose is a rose. Seems like a "stating the obvious" phrase from Gertrude Stein.
33. Caesar known for being funny : SID
34. Fore site? : TEE
35. Many moon missions : APOLLOS. 17, to be exact.Six landed on the moon.
36. Make a comeback : REBOUND
37. Makes before deductions : GROSSES. The disparity between gross and net can be rather startling, to put it politely.
38. Galley tool : OAR. Row, you scum!
39. Twist facts : LIE
40. Pull the plug on : END
42. Jeer leaders : BOOERS. Least favorite today, but with the rest of the fill, I'll give.
43. Lago contents : AGUA
44. English king who was a son of William the Conqueror : HENRY I
45. Original "SNL" cast member : RADNER
47. Key above C : D FLAT.
49. HQs for B-2s : AFB'S. Air Force Bases. Andrews is the nearest one to me.
50. Longtime Steelers coach Chuck : NOLL
51. Half of sechs : DREI. In Salzbürg, for example.
53. Kind : ILK
54. N.Y. Mets' div. : NLE. National League East. I guessed American League, but LEARNIAG didn't quite look right.
55. Word on U.S. coins : GOD. We Trust.
That about does it for me. I'm on Day Five of remembering how to drive a stick-shift on the wrong side of the road. So far so good! Back on Friday. Here's a quick taste of the Lake District, we just visited Wordsworth's cottage where he wrote a lot of his "greatest hits".
Steve.
17A. King of the Hill winner : LAST MAN STANDING. I've been watching coverage of the Tour de France cycling race and couldn't figure out how to shoehorn a reference to the spotted jersey winner in here.
20A. Repeated phrase in Kipling's "Recessional" : LEST WE FORGET
"The tumult and the shouting dies;
The Captains and the Kings depart:
Still stands Thine ancient sacrifice,
An humble and a contrite heart.
Lord God of Hosts, be with us yet,
Lest we forget—lest we forget!"
31A. It's rarely paid to a car dealer : LIST PRICE
48A. Recovery site? : LOST AND FOUND. Fun clue.
52A. Scholar's motivation : LUST FOR LEARNING. I had lust for other things when I was a scholar at an all-boys school. That might explain a lot.
I think this is an LAT debut for Scott Ober. We've seen Peter before, so a new collaboration A very clean vowel progression with these five, two grid-spanners, and the double-stacking of the 15's with 12's is very neatly done. When you see stacked themers like that, you expect some less than stellar fill, but Scott and Peter managed to stack another seven-letter on the theme pair, and for a final flourish managed to interlock the three with triple seven-letter downs. Bravo!
Let's see what else we've got:
Across:
1. Alloy component : METAL
6. Twosomes : DYADS. I always pause between NYADS and DYADS. One is a water nymph, the other is what the clue is asking for.
11. Time for preparations : EVE. A little late for the majority of preparations. The eve is for last-minute refinements, or panic.
14. "It was you," in a Verdi aria : ERI TU. "It was you ... who stained the soul". From "A Masked Ball".
15. Word on mail from Spain : AEREO. Air mail.
16. Unit of RAM : MEG. A little dated now, I count my laptop RAM in gigs - 16 as we speak.
21. Certain balloter : ABSENTEE
24. "Milk's favorite cookie" : OREO
25. Phil Collins' old group : GENESIS. Here's Phil singing on the first post-Peter Gabriel Genesis album. I owned the gate-fold vinyl edition, and I think it's now safe to reveal that I used to roll cigarettes of a herbal nature on it back in 1976.
26. Grilling aids : SKEWERS
29. Bigheadedness : EGO
30. Adjust for the new tax year : RE-ASSESS
35. Large merchant ships : ARGOSIES. Loved this. I struggled a little as I'd filled in RPM at 30D. We'll come back to that one.
38. Chihuahua cheer : OLÉ
41. Spread all over : PERVADE
42. Persian Gulf island nation : BAHRAIN. I didn't know it was an island. Now I do.
46. Instrument to which an orchestra tunes : OBOE
47. Turned down for easy reference : DOG-EARED. My local library used to try to fine you if a book was returned in this condition. Tough to prove it was you though.
56. Single : ONE
57. Make dim : BLEAR. SMEAR went in as a first try. Didn't feel right. Wasn't.
58. Mello __ : YELLO
59. '60s radical gp. : S.D.S. Those pesky Students for a Democratic Society.
60. Buttonholes, e.g. : SLITS
61. Teed off : IRKED
Down:
1. "Alice" diner owner : MEL.
2. Factor in MLB's Cy Young Award : E.R.A. Baseball's annual pitching award. A low Earned Run Average factors into the voting. Right, C.C?
3. Quaint contraction : 'TIS. We read John Ford's 'Tis Pity She's a Whore at school. Cue schoolboy sniggering.
4. Prime minister after and before Churchill : ATTLEE
5. Light bulb units : LUMENS
6. Edmond __: the Count of Monte Cristo : DANTES. Thank you, crosses. Never read it.
7. "__ Can": 2008 slogan : YES WE. Did we?
8. Prado hangings : ARTE. Here's "La Maja Vestida" by Goya in the Prado collection. There's another version with a lot fewer "vestidas". I'll leave you to find that for yourselves.
9. Like many Gallaudet College students : DEAF. The first learning institute for the deaf in the USA.
10. Prefix with gram : SONO-
11. Female political refugee : EMIGRÉE. I didn't know that the term referred to a political refugee. I wouldn't bother with the second "E" nowadays.
12. Thin layers : VENEERS
13. Picnic game that can get messy : EGG TOSS
18. Piedmont city : ASTI
19. Be half-asleep : DROWSE
21. Candle count, perhaps : AGE. Candles on the cake. Didn't see that at first.
22. Ask to be excused, with "off" : BEG
23. __-Cat : SNO. Tried KIT. Was Wrong.
26. Inspiring msg. : SER. Sermon. On the Mount, or on Sunday, or when you did something which didn't please your mother. The latter was not particular inspiring.
27. Ryssdal of NPR's "Marketplace" : KAI. Thank you, crosses.
28. Corner key : ESC. Top-left on your keyboard.
30. Turning meas. : RPS. Revolutions Per Second. The penny finally dropped, but I was convinced that RPM was solid.
31. "Cowboy Man" singer : LOVETT. Lyle.
32. Rose-rose link : IS A. A rose is a rose is a rose. Seems like a "stating the obvious" phrase from Gertrude Stein.
33. Caesar known for being funny : SID
34. Fore site? : TEE
35. Many moon missions : APOLLOS. 17, to be exact.Six landed on the moon.
36. Make a comeback : REBOUND
37. Makes before deductions : GROSSES. The disparity between gross and net can be rather startling, to put it politely.
38. Galley tool : OAR. Row, you scum!
39. Twist facts : LIE
40. Pull the plug on : END
42. Jeer leaders : BOOERS. Least favorite today, but with the rest of the fill, I'll give.
43. Lago contents : AGUA
44. English king who was a son of William the Conqueror : HENRY I
45. Original "SNL" cast member : RADNER
47. Key above C : D FLAT.
49. HQs for B-2s : AFB'S. Air Force Bases. Andrews is the nearest one to me.
50. Longtime Steelers coach Chuck : NOLL
51. Half of sechs : DREI. In Salzbürg, for example.
53. Kind : ILK
54. N.Y. Mets' div. : NLE. National League East. I guessed American League, but LEARNIAG didn't quite look right.
55. Word on U.S. coins : GOD. We Trust.
That about does it for me. I'm on Day Five of remembering how to drive a stick-shift on the wrong side of the road. So far so good! Back on Friday. Here's a quick taste of the Lake District, we just visited Wordsworth's cottage where he wrote a lot of his "greatest hits".
Steve.
Greetings!
ReplyDeleteThanks to Scott, Peter and Steve!
Very tired due to a few disasters today. Didn't think I would get anywhere with this, but it gradually filled in.
No cheats.
KAI and NOLL well perped. After a few letters, several others were WAGs.
Does anyone watch Tyrant? Comments on a later day.
Very hot here. Going to get above 100 degrees again.
Anyone ever had Lifeline Wellness Screening? (Might have screwed up the name at this late hour.)
Cheers!
FIRight! Thumper knows how I feel about about vowel progression themes.
ReplyDeleteI pause between DRYADS (tree nymphs) and DYADS
{C+, C, B-, C.}
At performance events, some men are BOOERS;
Boors are the ILK who shout out their SKEWERS!
'TIS mostly okay
To give an OLÉ,
But rude disapproval marks the more immaturers!
Adulting in boring, tot'ling nets and GROSSES,
Life is a grind when we REASSESS our losses:
How much better the day
In youth far away
When eating boogers 'FORE girls were our GROSSES!
LEST WE FORGET, LEST WE fergit,
We must remember to make a LIST!
What we need at the store
'FORE we go out the door --
Tho half-way thru shopping we FOUND that we LOST it!
Large merchant ships called ARGOSIES
First sailed from Dalmatian Ragusea!
When spotted, they were feared;
Their sailors were DOG-EARED!
Sailors longing for home are long ABSENTEES!
Morning, all!
ReplyDeleteFun romp today with not too many speed bumps along the way. Didn't know DANTE and tried DUMONT for no good reason until the perps showed my folly. Barely remembered seeing NOLL and ARGOSIES from past puzzles, but they eventually came to me with a little [OK, a lot of] perp help.
Never heard the phrase LUST FOR LEARNING before. Much more familiar with LUST FOR LIFE, although to this day I still can't figure out what "I've had it in my ear before" is referring to...
I did my 'Tour d' neighborhood' yesterday for an easy 10 miles but those red dots are for the best 'climbers' or whatever they call them. There are no hills where I live- all flat terrain.
ReplyDeleteIt filled fast this morning in spite of a few unknowns filled by perps & Wags. DANTES, KAI, HENRY-I. And before anybody SKEWERS me I think I have only heard of being DROWS-Y and BLEAR-Y eyed but never run across DROWSE or BLEAR. Initially filling BIT for MEG ( my first IBM-1130 had 8-Kilobytes, not megs or gigs) and RPM for RPS slowed me a while. And I agree with Steve about the EMIGRE-E, but also didn't know there were different spellings for male and female migrants, immigrants, emigrants.
YES WE can- isn't that a 'Bob The Builder' slogan on a children's tv show?
SLITS- Splynter should have had that fill for one of his photos on Saturday.
Good Morning, Steve and friends. I realized early on that this was a vowel progression, and the phrases were common enough for me to get quickly.
ReplyDeleteI learned, however, that the Time for Preparations is not Now, but rather the EVE of an event.
I also tried both Pairs and Duets before finally arriving at DYADS.
My favorite clue was Candle Count = AGE.
I knew KAI Ryssdal because Marketplace is often on the radio when I am driving home from work.
QOD: The best way to find out if you can trust somebody is to trust them. ~ Ernest Hemingway (July 21, 1899 ~ July 2, 1961)
Good morning all.
ReplyDeleteI pulled a real Desper-Otto and didn't catch the theme as I sped my way to the finish on this easily filled and wagged Thursday. I guess it was easy because each of the phrases was readily known, and the wags were correct.
Thanks Steve. Thank you too, Ober and Koetters. Do you guys have a law firm ? I think I've heard the slogan, "Call Ober and Koetters now for all of your personal injury lawsuits"
Bit of a struggle for a while, was afraid of a DNF, but eventually got ''er done. Tired. Gonna go back to sleep for a bit. Maybe this CW wore out my brain?
ReplyDeleteI hope your journey home has been fun Steve; Martha Grimes sets many of her mysteries in the Lake District.
ReplyDeleteI thought this was a quick solve for a Thursday; for me BLEAR was the hardest fill to accept but the perps were solid.
I loved the 2002 MOVIE with Guy Pearce so wonderfully despicable, Luis Guzman as the faithful Jacopo and a young future SUPERMAN . That memory made DANTES fall in place.
A nice way to start the day, thanks all
Lifeline Wellness Screening. Fermat, I have had their work up twice. It is a low cost way to gather health data.
ReplyDeletePretty fast run since the theme of L_ST with various vowels came out pretty early. At first I thought they were all going to be quotes - but it was just the first two. WEES about DUETS before DYADS and RPM before RPS, and since ARGOSIES was the learning moment of the day, the S was the last to fall.
ReplyDeleteI also had FULL PRICE before LIST PRICE, but perps took care of that. I loved the book "Count of Monte Cristo" - one of the classics I didn't read when I was young and read a few years ago. I try to do that at least once a year. This year was "Cry, the Beloved Country" by Alan Paton.
@Barry G - since "had it in my ear" means getting screwed or getting the raw end of a deal - I wonder if it's origin was from "Guys and Dolls"
http://www.imdb.com/character/ch0024558/quotes
Thanks Steve and congrats to Steve & Peter for your dyad LAT debut!
This took me quite a while today, and I never did get the BLEAR, AFB, NOLL crossings completely since bear didn't occur to me and Noel was completely unknown.
ReplyDeleteSteve,
At least you're in a car with right-hand drive...I did quite a bit in our old DKG bought in Germany back in 1971! No way that was going to work if one was alone with no co-pilot. We did a tour of England this year in May, but took the easier bus alternative. I agree the Lakes District is beautiful, and Wordsworth and his "yellow daffodils" figure grandly in that area.
Auto correct again...blear and Noll of course.
ReplyDelete3/4 of this was Mon/Tue easy. The SW was just a tad slower. Fun write up, Steve.
ReplyDeleteI knew AGOSIES. The S battled with RPM. The M lost, the s being my last fill.
I've read the Count of Monte Cristo and seen the movie countless times, my ex's favorite. We always watched his choices. I have read Cry the Beloved Country at least twice. Both are great books.
Bob the Builder, YES WE CAN. Today is my last PT. I am doing well. I recovered quickly from my bicep tendon tear with just PT. Then the next week I moved furniture at the square dance hall and inflamed it again needing a second round of therapy. I can do most ordinary tasks, but my "Yes, I can" has become "I'm fragile antique." It makes me feel old for the first time.
Alan has me look up the Mets' NLE standing every morning.
I thought ARF would be a good CHIHUAHUA cheer, but resisted.
Owen KL,I liked your first poem best, A.
Steve: Good Job on the write-up & informative links.
ReplyDeleteScott & Peter: Thank You for a FUN Thursday level puzzle.
Needed ESP to get the unknowns, DANTES & KAI. Plus a lot of perp help along the way.
LAST-MAN-STANDING went in so fast I thought I was going to have a speed-run, but it was a slog solve.
If you are the First HENRY ... why would you be called HENRY I ... wouldn't HENRY suffice?
Oh well, another beautiful, sunny day in the Tampa Bay Area.
Hoping for some rain, later in the day, to cool things off.
A "Toast-to-ALL" at Sunset.
Cheers!
RPS?/RPM, SID/SYD and no idea on ARGOSIES makes for two bad cells and an unsatisfying finish.
ReplyDeleteMusings
-The gimmick and the fill were just fine as was Steve’s assessment
-Speaking of not paying LIST PRICE
-My golf course changed its LOST AND FOUND box label to Gary’s Stuff!
-Barry McGuire’s EVE song contains issues that still PERVADE the world 51 yrs later
-This SINGLE man is a hero of mine
-Does anyone prefer a fly with BUTTONS instead of a zipper?
-My wife’s maiden name was CHRISTO and her first cousin was named this
-Do you remember the insensitive phrase DEAF and Dumb?
-You took your life in your hands when you contested a REBOUND against Dennis Rodman
-GROSSES - On her first paycheck, my sister asked me, “What is this FICA stuff?”
-Our school “Pulled the plug” on schools without walls very quickly back in the 70’s
Good morning!
ReplyDeleteGot delayed listening to the BOOERS in Cleveland. No real problem except for that "Female political refugee" -- what do you call a male political refugee? TTP, I didn't see the theme, either. Big surprise.
Read The Count of Monte Cristo a couple of times in my ute. So, of course, I remembered DANTES. Not!
Could only see "Buttonholes" as a verb. Thinking Cleveland, again.
The "Inspiring msg." usually inspired my father to ever-louder snoring. Mom was embarrassed. Dad wasn't.
I learned on This Old House that a single brick layer is a VENEER -- it's gotta be more than 4" thick to be considered structural.
Steve, Andrews AFB is located in Washington, D.C. That's the closest to you?
Good morning everyone.
ReplyDeleteThanks Steve for shining a spotlight (torch?) on some of the questionable areas.
Except for the DANTES / GENESIS cross, the rest of the fill went without mishap. Had Pisa before ASTI, though.
I liked the vowel progression gimmick; in fact, I used it to get LIST PRICE and LUST FOR LEARNING.
LEST WE FORGET is a regular near-the-back-page feature of Naval Institute Proceedings.
I thought parts of the fill were a little clunky; AFBS, LIE, RPS. RPM seems much more common. Twisting facts is 'spin', changing or fictionalizing facts would be to LIE.
B-2's headquarters could be on a base, but could just as likely be in an office building in E. Johunga, depending on the tasking. (I believe Andrews now has the appellation Joint Base Andrews - after the last BRAC go-round.) Sic transit gloria.
Good outing, Scott and Peter - thank you.
Oh, Husker, I was looking for a trivia question concerning a certain fabulous movie in which a certain novel from today's puzzle was discussed. It was deemed that the author was not dumbass and should be possibly filed in the educational section. Oughten it?
ReplyDeleteGood Morning:
ReplyDeleteCaught the theme early on which helped with the solve. For some reason, I tried filling in Lust for knowledge but that wouldn't fit. Hand up for RPM, duets, and full price all of which were corrected by solid perps.
Nice job, Scott and Peter, and jolly good expo, Steve. Safe trip home!
The 3 H's are slowly returning over the next several days. We need rain desperately; the entire state is under a drought emergency.
Have a great day.
Red's trivia question's ANSWER.
ReplyDeleteGood morning to all!
ReplyDeleteI thought this would be a DNF, but was finally able to finish without help after a looong time. Kept waiting for the reveal since I didn't grok the theme until I was finished. A V-8 moment for sure.
Thank you Scott and Peter for today's puzzle entertainment, and Steve for the fine expo.
Enjoy the day!
Hello Puzzlers -
ReplyDeleteHand up for the RPM thing, but otherwise easy going. Splendid symmetry, with those two stacked themers, plus the vowel progression in order - nice work!
Just returned from an interesting trip yesterday via a small jet to Minot, ND. Somehow I had never visited either Dakota in the past so it was interesting to get a good view. On the way home at 41,000 feet, I saw that most of Minnesota was under a dense cloud layer - it would have been fun to wave at C.C. but that wasn't possible.
Howdy Steve, smiled out loud at your herbal cigarettes of the 70's. I didn't partake much, myself, but then I wasn't a complete angel either...
Irish Miss, PK, and pje thank you for your concern about Alan. PK, yesterday I tested his glucose as you advised and it was normal. He has 4 to 6 blood tests annually and the A1C part is always okay. I can't begin to tell you how many different types of tests and scans he has had this year. Our most important doctor has resigned for family matters, only to be temporally replaced by a different person every month.
ReplyDeletePK, girlfriend, I love your posts and your wit. I would never attack you personally. My LUST FOR LEARNING, my love of words and concepts leads me to look at words and concepts from many different angles. As I do that, it is purely conceptual, not at all personal. I don’t even picture who said what as I write. And I especially love it when posters, like Spitzbov and Argyle, come back with a well-reasoned alternate point of view which I can research and learn from.
Nowadays we often use émigré for both male and female. Emigree is legit, but Spellcheck flags it.
ReplyDeleteDROWSE and especially BLEAR are common in writing as opposed to speech.
The village drowses in the darkness: Like a vast black cube The temple looms above it, There is no light on its facade. John Gould Fletcher
Now ancient Sleep, with Silence for his queen, Reigns o'er those palaces of stately fir That drowse in curtained moonlight's misty sheen. James Henry Cousins.
Long hours of study bleared her eyes.
HENRY I - I read that kings and popes are named the first, retroactively, when a second personage with the same name arises.
"Rose is a rose is a rose is a rose" is how it was originally written. There was no "A" in front of the first rose. However, most people when citing the poem will automatically use it. The author, Gertrude Stein, never objected to this.
ReplyDeleteThis is a good week so far. Had to suss out Attley/Attley/Attlee and then played with Argosies. RPM to RPS there of course.
ReplyDeleteStill a good week compared to last, we will see if that continues.
Well, I did have to cheat just a little today--ARGOSIES and LOVETT being unknowns. But I got everything else, and really enjoyed the puzzle--many thanks, Scott and Peter! And Steve, how kind of you to still do our expo when on your lovely journey in your homeland.
ReplyDeleteYellowrocks, I loved your ARF Chihuahua cheer!
Have a great Thursday, everybody!
Hi, it's Peter, a co-constructor of today's puzzle. Thought I would check in and say hi. Thanks for the kind words. Here is a little background on the GENESIS of this puzzle. Scot came up with this theme that I thought was great. He originally intended it for earlier in the week, even Monday. He had a hard time though with the word "LIST," in terms of coming up with an in-the-language 15-letter phrase that would work. He sought advice on the Cruciverb listserv, and that's where I came in. My ideas for this fell flat, but he agreed to let me collaborate anyway and fill the puzzle. In the end we used a suggestion by Rich Norris to make it a central 9-letter phrase "LISTPRICE." For those who do not regularly construct it might not be obvious, but a central 9-letter entry is a grid killer. I was lucky to find a way to present it reasonably well with this cruel constraint, Scot wrote the clues, Rich worked his magic on them for a late week printing, and here you have it. My first collaboration, and it was a rewarding experience!
ReplyDeleteHi All!
ReplyDeleteI got 1a, 1d, 2d, 3D, 17a, 5d and thought "this is easy." Bzzzzt. It took 3 WAG-letters at the end to get it finished. 2/3rd right. FIW. What's a DrAF? Is that like a draft-horse? College for Clydesdales...
Oh well, it was fun Scott & Peter. Thanks. At least I did better than step-mom :-)
Thanks Steve for the vacation-edition write-up. Lovely view.
WOs: Hand up for RPm b/f RPS. SLoTS b/f SLITS. I knew KAI but he never spells his name on Marketplace, so I thought it was like Ty Cobb. Wait, 3 letters? And an "E" for at the end - as Big Easy pointed out, seem'd like the mini-theme thing to do :-)
ESPs: Too many to count.
Favs: Today, it's a toss up: RADNER (6:41) or SID? [<- two links]. You judge.
{B, C-, B, C}
YR - Glad to hear about your last PT; sorry to hear about Alan.
Thanks for the inside-baseball Peter.
Musical interlude: Mello(w) YELLO(w).
Cheers, -T
DNF, Dyad?
ReplyDeleteLast man standing?
Today I finally found the reason for this pic...
List price?
Found?
Hmm, is there a plural for lust?
Peter thank you so much for stopping by; it really helps those of us who write about puzzles to have insight into the process. Also as someone who has been lucky enough to collaborate with three real constructors, it is interesting to see how your first collaboration went down.
ReplyDeleteThank you
Musings 2
ReplyDelete-Red and Anon – what a fun question, answer and clip! I went for the familial Monte Christo reference and yours is way cooler.
-Peter, it was great to hear about the GENESIS of your puzzle.
-YR, you’re an amazing advocate! I married one.
I know it has been posted before, but...
ReplyDeleteGilda Radner, The Audition.
Gilda Radner, Let's talk dirty to the animals...
I'm with Lemonade and kazie over BLEAR.
ReplyDeleteI waited the longest time before capitulating to what struck me as a very special definition of BLEAR. (DROWSE wasn't easy either, but I could accept it as a verb akin to "browse," "espouse," etc.) BLEAR (back-formed from "bleary"?) seems to me to convey a poetic combination of visual inhibition and mood suppression--to maybe make something veiled or smeary (credit to Steve) while fatiguing or depressing the experience. But online dictionaries actually use "dim" in their definitions; most are on the side of Messrs. Ober & Koetters, so -- Shut my mouth!
Hi Y'all! Fun & easy except for a few words like the DYADS/DANTES (not DuPre) cross & ERITU, NOLL, KAI. However, the good substantial perps made them no problem. Thanks, Scott & Peter! Thanks, Steve!
ReplyDeleteI never read the "Count of Monte CHRISTO" book. Someone gave us a literary comic book of the story when I was a kid. Not the same somehow.
BAHRAIN: learned this with map study when my son was stationed at the AFB(S) in UAE. Glad he's retired.
I'd forgotten ATTLEE. Thought ATcheson but PERPS soon straightened me out.
LEST WE FORGET: Obama's chant at the nominating convention was "YES WE CAN".
YR: My A1C has always been okay on blood tests in the doctor's office except once it was slightly high.But when I used to test it at home when feeling bad, it was on the low side of normal. Nothing for the doctor to get excited about. A no-sugar high protein diet helps though.
I got a letter this week saying that the cranky & rude doctor I saw in March is taking maternity leave and will not return to our nearby clinic. Yay, I wasn't going back to her anyway. This is the third female doctor I've gone to that then left town. Hmmm...do I see a pattern? The letter suggested that a couple of doctors in an affiliated clinic across town are taking new patients. When I'm needing a doctor, I'm too sick to drive across town.
Irish Miss
ReplyDeleteWe just had a "One-Hour-Rain-Storm" from 4:45 pm until 5:45 pm ... probably around 4.5 inches of rain.
(Ya gotta love they way it rains here in Florida in July & August).
The temperature went from around 92 degrees to a very nice 77 degrees.
Looking forward to a beautiful Sunset at 8:27 pm.
Cheers!
Finished quickly but, I thought it was Syd Caesar. I gave in when I figured RPS not RPM. (Now, time to check if it is Sid or Syd.)
ReplyDeleteTin @ 5:25 - I well remember those summer Florida downpours. I wish you could send some up to New York. 🌧🌧🌧🌧
ReplyDeleteFor those who didn't know, Chuck NOLLwas the head coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers, and happened to win FOUR Super Bowls with Bradshaw as the QB.
ReplyDeleteLyle LOVETT- Julia Robert's first husband
I just checked, it has been two year since Peter had a puzzle in the LAT. I blogged his first back in 2011.
ReplyDeleteRPS = meh
ReplyDeleteMichigan = meh !
ReplyDeleteAnon @11:01 = :-D
ReplyDeleteI'm so far behind. RPS got me along with SyD. Sigh. "The Tumult and the Shouting" was a book by Grantland Rice. He recounts among other tales how Ty Cobb was writing about a sensational rookie in the Sally league. One TC.
ReplyDeleteDetroit bought it and hence, immortality.
Off to Fridays blog. What a slog that was.
Learning moment that BLEAR means dim. I thought it was just a variant of "blur".
ReplyDeleteNever heard of ARGOSIES. I guess I am too new to crossword puzzles. Hand up for stuck on RPm.
No problem with SID Caesar, but not so when I was a child. My parents with their New York accents said it so I thought his name was "Sit Caesar". A funny guy from their generation.