Theme: Western Williams - Threre Bills from the old West.
20A. Bovine skin once used as a painting surface by Native Americans: BUFFALO HIDE. Buffalo Bill Cody
33A. Untamed equines: WILD HORSES. Wild Bill Hickok.
40A. Rio Grande feeder: PECOS RIVER. Pecos Bill of Texas. (I apologize for the non-PC lyrics that are offensive by today's standards.)
52A. Stack for the bookkeeper to pay ... or, literally, what 20-, 33- and 40-Across' first words constitute: PILE OF BILLS
Argyle here. We haven't had a Jerome for almost year now and with all the CSO's to me, I'm not saying one bad word about it.
Across:
1. Words before "Tricked you!": "HA-HA!"
5. Whirled: SPUN
9. Exxon merger partner: MOBIL
14. Musk of Tesla Motors: ELON
15. Syllables from Santa: "HO, HO"
16. Get away from, as pursuers: EVADE
17. Tooth anchor: ROOT
18. Border on: ABUT
19. Female 33-Across: MARES. 33A. Untamed equines: WILD HORSES
23. Nocturnal flier: BAT
24. Partner: ALLY
25. Peruvian peaks: ANDES
27. Music room system: STEREO
30. Zsa Zsa, to Eva: SISTER. Magda, Zsa Zsa, and Eva. Zsa Zsa is in frail health as she nears 100 but is still with us at this point.
32. Toasty: WARM
37. Baba who outwitted thieves: ALI. And there was forty of them!
38. Actor Mineo: SAL. He lives on in crosswords.
39. Med. care option: HMO. (Health Maintenance Organization)
45. Italia's capital: ROMA
46. Halloween goodies: TREATS. I think I'll hand out Sky Bars if I can find them.
47. Equal to, with "with": ON A PAR
49. Like sheep sans wool: SHORN
50. Pained cry: MOAN
51. Guerrilla Guevara: CHE
58. Western writer Bret: HARTE. He created a character called Yuba Bill.
60. Many: A LOT
61. Tidy: NEAT
62. "Know what __?": I MEAN
63. Rural storage cylinder: SILO. Some are repurposed.
64. Scarlett O'Hara's home: TARA
65. IRS examination: AUDIT
66. Go berserk: SNAP
67. "Not great, not bad": "OKAY"
Down:
1. Basil or rosemary: HERB
2. Baseball family name: ALOU
3. Pig's foot part: HOOF
4. Insect nest with tunnels: ANT FARM. Tried hill first.
5. Perfect for wading: SHALLOW
6. N'awlins sandwich: PO'BOY. New Orleans, yum.
7. "Nope": "UH-UH"
8. "The Little Red Hen" denial: "NOT I". "Nope, UH-UH"
9. Souvenir: MEMENTO
10. Eggs in a lab: OVA
11. Clip joint?: BARBERSHOP. Are they holding their own against salons?
12. Imagination output: IDEAs
13. For fear that: LEST
21. Stein filler: ALE
22. Pinch from a chef: DASH
26. German article: DER. "der", "die" and "das".
27. Trade: SWAP
28. "Cautionary" account: TALE
29. Leif's father: ERIC, THE RED. Norwegian Viking explorers.
30. Poles and Serbs: SLAVs
31. Not doing much of anything: IDLE
34. "What time __?": IS IT
35. Poet Lazarus: EMMA. She penned, “Give me your tired, your poor, / Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free.”
36. Fly high: SOAR
41. Guatemala gold: ORO
42. Eden tempter: SERPENT
43. Rajah's mate: RANI
44. Santa's landing spot: ROOF TOP
45. Met by chance: RAN INTO
48. Catch, as a crook: NAB
49. SeaWorld orca: SHAMU
50. Dough in a wallet: MOOLA
51. "Pet" with Smiley and Winky versions: CHIA
53. Young lady: LASS
54. Model Nordegren once married to Tiger Woods: ELIN
55. Radiator problem: LEAK
56. Tomb Raider's __ Croft: LARA. Video game.
57. Stick around: STAY
59. Mai __: TAI
Argyle
The puzzle was easy, the theme, well... The first two long acrosses had LOHID and ILDHO embedded in them. I HOLD? HID LO? HI OLD?
ReplyDelete{B-, B, B-, B+.}
Said the BUFFALO to the MARE, "How skinny you are!
I would bet that I outweigh you by far!"
Said the HORSE in reply,
"You shaggy old guy,
Good for BUFFALO burgers is all that you are!"
When a sheep's wool is sheared, then he is SHORN,
And a sheep is barbed when he's poked by a thorn.
But a LASS, I opine,
Is far from ovine,
In a BARB-ER SHOP she'd opt how her wool should be worn!
I laugh at danger, HA HA and HO HO!
MOAN in fear? NOT I, oh no no!
But I still say UH UH
To an implanted OVA --
Pregnancy's not covered by this guy's H.M.O.!
PECOS BILL wanted to try out his new plow,
So he hitched up a BUFFALO, tied to the prow.
But a herd of WILD HORSES
With the bison joined forces --
That single deep furrow's the RIO PECOS now!
Greetings!
ReplyDeleteGroovy work, Jerome and Santa! Create more, Jerome!
No problems at all!
More rain last night. Unbelievable. (Last water bill was over $1200 for two months.)
However, the pool needs a little water.
Have a great day!
Loved your CW, JG, thanx for the great work! Only write-overs were MONEY:MOOLA and MISS:LASS. Nice write-up, too, Argyle, thanx! I didn't know there was a video of Buffalo Bill. Disgusting man, really, tried to starve the indians by wiping out the buffalo. Owen, A, C-, C, C. Your limericks were a bit strained today. Hope everyone has a good week!
ReplyDeleteIn 1867, Cody began hunting buffalo for the Kansas Pacific Railroad and soon earned the nickname "Buffalo Bill." In less than eighteen months, he killed nearly five thousand buffalo, which were consumed by the twelve hundred men employed in track-laying.
ReplyDeleteGood morning!
ReplyDeleteHAHA, HOHO, UHUH -- thought we were headed for an H-fest. After seeing unclefred write in MISS, I naturally had to trie it, too. Otherwise it was a smooth slide to the bottom. Thanx, Jerome. (What, not a single anagram?)
Alas, the ubiquitous IPOD has all but killed off the high quality STEREO system. MP3 files are compressed, and just don't sound as good. Apparently nobody cares.
We don't expect any Trick'r'Treaters in our neighborhood. The houses are just too far apart for efficient begging. The kids'll be heading up to Tavola where the houses are packed like sardines.
Trie? Really, d-o?
ReplyDeleteHow great to have Jerome to begin our week. He clearly deserves top billing for this effort.
ReplyDeleteAnd the blogger supreme Argyle to bring it all home, perfect.
ALI ALLY ALE ALOT nice glue.
DO I did not know you were so savvy TRIE
Safe Hallowen all
Just finished the Peter Collins NYT and the immortal words of Homer Pyle, "surprise, surprise!"
ReplyDeleteI will not spoil the solving but there is a common fill that is not common.
Funny how that happens.
I hate autocorrect and thought it did not change proper names Gomer Pyle
ReplyDeleteGood morning, folks. Thank you, Jerome Gunderson, for a fine puzzle. Thank you, Argyle, for a fine review.
ReplyDeleteWatched the Cubs win last night at about the 5th Inning. I was out before that and was tracking the game on my phone. Back to Cleveland. Cleveland was my team while growing up in Erie. However, I have switched since I live in Chicago. Go Cubs!
Theme was neat. Needed PILE OF BILLS to figure it out.
I have read Bret HARTE books. Good.
Have not been in a BARBER SHOP for years. I used to go to one in Genoa, IL, where I worked for eight years. He gave me a buzz for $3.00. Now my beautician daughter cuts my hair. I always give her a tip. Much more than $3.00.
SLAVS reminds me of my favorite foods. I love eastern European cooking.
Jinx: Send me a note. Where did you work for GTE in California. We may have crossed paths.
See you tomorrow.
Abejo
( )
No help or errors today, and the only use of the eraser was when my mind thought ROMA and my hand wrote ROMo. Stayed up last night to watch the Cowboys beat the Eagles in OT, and it is apparent that the injured franchise quarterback has been upstaged by his fabulous rookie understudy.
ReplyDeleteI didn't know EMMA Lazarus, Bret HARTE or Pecos Bill but the perps were easy. Least favorite clue was Nope for UHUH. Actually, it was the answer I didn't like. Don't care for grunting fills. Favorite was rural storage cylinder for silo, mainly for the memories it evoked. I once dated a semi-professional musician who invited some of her musician friends over to the farm where she lived. Someone suggested climbing inside and making music. They did, and it sounded fabulous.
My thanks go out to Jerome for a good Monday puzzle, and to Santa for another interesting expo.
I'm having a colonoscopy tomorrow, so I have to get up at 3:30 am to drink a half-gallon of gunk. If I don't trust myself to go back to sleep I may be first to post. Otherwise I'll be back Wednesday.
Good day to all!
ReplyDeleteEasy, smooth sailing today. Thought after the first two theme answers that the theme had something to do with animals. A few minutes later, that theory was debunked, and I had to wait for the reveal to see what was really going on. Thanks, Jerome for today's entertainment, and thanks Argyle for a fine review. Great links!
Enjoy the day!
As a Bill, I enjoyed being in the spotlight this morning. Forty Thieves on constructors' minds lately?
ReplyDeleteBOO !!!
ReplyDeleteArgyle: Wonderful write-up ... liked you CSO's.
Jerome: Thank you for a FUN Monday puzzle with a great theme.
Expecting about 10 to 15 Trick-or-Treater's tonight.
Bought 3 bags of mini candy bars ... and each kid will get probably 3 to 5 of them ...
Last year I had 11 or so ... and enough left-over candy to last until New Years.
A "Toast-to-ALL" at Sunset.
Cheers!
ReplyDeleteVery easy Monday puzzle from Jerome. I sailed through the across clues without many blanks so by the time I got to the down clues, the puzzle was almost done. I didn't actually read most of the down clues until I read Argyle's great write-up. I also didn't get the theme until I read the expo.
I did have MATE before ALLY and I thought HARTE was spelled HARTT. Other than these hiccups, it was a speed run today.
I know what an IRS AUDIT is and I don't envy Jinx and his impending Colonoscopy. I think they are pretty similar. Good Luck tomorrow Jinx.
Argyle: Every year I order a box (36 count) of SKYBARs from a local candy store and share them with my sister. SKYBARs were our favorite candy when we were kids. It was the first filled candy bar with four distinct flavors. They are hard to find in stores, but occasionally I do find them at Wegman's supermarket in their bulk candy section, but not very often. I have found them online. I hoard these, so the kids tonight will get Hershey and Mars candy. We usually get about 75 kids, so we have lots of candy.
Happy Halloween everybody.
Musings
ReplyDelete-A lovely Monday offering by our own Jerome!
-Voc Ag sub today. The technology here is amazing including drones to look at crops and critters
-I wonder if BUFFALO BILL ever shot a buffalo and not a bison
-No tricks at our house tonight. We’re going to be out of town and have hired a neighbor girl to hand out our 200 bags of candy and she’ll be done in 90 minutes
-Gabors – Every generation must have their Kardashians
-STEREO sound test (:36)
-CHE – One man’s guerilla is another man’s freedom fighter
-I MEAN is now this over-used, repetitive phrase
-AUDIT – hiring an arsonist to burn down your building is NOT tax deductible
-Hormel, here in my town, probably even makes money on the pig’s HOOF
-A barber cuts my hair, no stylist
-Will Eriksson Day ever replace Columbus Day since he was here centuries earlier?
-Granddaughter spilled the Santa beans to her older brother last week. I remember where I found out, how ‘bout you?
-Shamu is like the modern buffalo (yeah, I know it’s a bison)
Husker
ReplyDeleteI'm wondering if we will ever celebrate Native American Day ???
Seems to me they were here about 100 or so centuries (probably more) before Leif Eriksson.
ReplyDeleteGood morning all. Thank you Jerome and Argyle.
Sped through Jerome's offering like an Ardolis Chapman fastball. One I got going, WILD HORSES couldn't drag me away.
I too kept looking for an anagram, and Halloween oriented fill or clues. Turns out it was old west Bills. Neat. Rich threw us a change up today, or perhaps a Corey Kluber curve ball.
Check out George Barany's timely puzzle published at USA Today.
Hello Puzzlers -
ReplyDeleteHappy Halloween, all. Since we started outlining our long driveway with orange rope lights, we've upped the count of little goblins to perhaps twenty a year. Seems like progress to us, sentimental as we are about Trick-or-Treating. While Sky Bars are tasty, we usually choose Reese's and KitKats - after all, the packages have a Halloween color sensibility to them, and the leftovers are so good.
Nice Monday puzzle for today. Paused at Emma Lazarus, because I thought it was Emmet. Oops! Another mis-learning.
Husker - as a kid I never believed in Santa Claus. For one thing, my folks never even tried to keep the legend going. For another, we didn't have a fireplace by which to hang stockings with care. Once the tree was up, gifts just gradually accumulated underneath.
Good morning everyone.
ReplyDeleteNice to see a puzzle from Jerome. Liked the theme, and noted that all the Bills are Western. Other names too: ERIC, SHAMU, HERB CHE, BARB, EMMA, AUDI, ABU, LARA, LEO, LES and EVA. I might'a missed someone. I went to school with a kid named IVER.
Clean solve, today. No searches needed.
Have a great day.
Very nice Monday puzzle, nice clues and construction. Also a fine way to start the week.
ReplyDeleteArgyle, Skybars are supposedly available at Cracker Barrel. Also Amazon, but too late for tonight.
Well done, Jerome! Thank you.
ReplyDeleteAll was nice, clean fill and the BILLS were duly noted. Mini theme: SANTA ARGYLE
I'M sorry, Gary, but if there is a comparison of the Gabor sisters to the Kardashians, it's only cosmetic. They at least attempted to be actresses.
We made 45 dozen tamales yesterday and I finished the Sunday puzzle, too. Ghouly work by Joe Shewe. I'll have to go back and read C.C.s commentary and your posts.
Have an eerily spooky day, everyone! Happy Halloween.
Good Morning:
ReplyDeleteThis was a nice, smooth start to the week. Needed the reveal to catch the theme. Had the same w/o's as unclefred but perps came to the rescue. Those CSO's to Santa serve as a reminder of how quickly the time passes. Halloween today, Thansgiving in a few weeks, and, before you know it, Jolly Old Saint Nick will be Ho Ho Hoing! 🎄
Thanks, Jerome, for a fun romp and thanks, Argyle, for the witty write-up.
Re "The Durrells in Corfu," I'm beginning to think there might be some hope for those "children" after all. I felt less inclined to "throttle" them last night, particularly Margo. So far, Gerry is the only one I'd care to be around for any length of time. Nonetheless, I'm enjoying the series.
I don't get any trick or treaters as my development is off the beaten path and there are no children living here. One of my sisters gets over 100 kids who all get Hershey products as her son works for Hershey! 👻💀🕸🎃
HG, one of my pet peeves with over-used phrases is "That's just what I'm talking about," and another annoying "tic" is the constant use of "So" to begin an answer to any and all questions. (This is heard mainly from politicians and "talking heads.")
Have a great day.
Happy Halloween! We have been loving our on and off rain showers the past few days, and hope they stay north until after Trick or Treating. Looking forward to walking the neighborhood with my 4 little ones.
ReplyDeleteEnjoyed your smooth puzzle, Jerome, and of course Argyle's write up. I kept thinking there MUST be an anagram somewhere. Only one write over: so so>okay. Knew all of the people today, but always takes me a few secs to make them come alive in my head.
I agree with you Gary, about the Kardashians. Even if we are not interested in them, the media focuses on them. Like the Gabors their relationships dominate their fame....and their sex appeal.
Lucina, 45 DOZEN!! That is amazing, but I know you all had fun making them.
Fun puzzle today. Liked the theme, though I had to visit Argyle's expo to see it. Typical of me, I couldn't suss the theme even after solving the reveal. Well done, Jerome and Argyle.
ReplyDeleteWas that really Roy Rogers singing "The Ballad of Pecos Bill"? It didn't sound like him. Leonard Slye, maybe.
Lucina, 45 dozen tamales? Wow. I am in awe.
Anniversary tonight. Dinner at our favorite Northern Italian restaurant. Got a bunch of candy for the ACLAH to hand out. Since we don't usually get many trick-or-treaters, dessert will probably be KitKat bars when we get home. That and a snifter of cognac DW got me as a present today.
Cya!
Smooth, fun Monday puzzle--many thanks, Jerome! I was especially happy about the Halloween TREATS! I didn't know that EMMA Lazarus produced those famous lines, Argyle. Also,interesting news about Zsa Zsa Gabor approaching the end of a century. I just loved Eva Gabor in "Green Acres." She was glamorous but also funny and down-to-earth and kind, a delightful character in that rural setting. Wish they'd bring her back in re-runs.
ReplyDeleteI'm with you on "The Durrells of Corfu," Irish Miss.
I'm ready for the few neighborhood kids we'll be seeing tonight, but expect to have lots of Snickers bars left over. Guess I'll have to treat myself to one or two of them.
Have a great Halloween, everybody!
Yes, 45 dozen tamales, but remember it takes a small village, i.e., our family in the assembly line and relieving each other as needed. I played the age card and took a short power nap about 2 P.M. Feeling refreshed I resumed my place and we finished, including cleaning up by 8:00.
ReplyDeleteRegarding the Durrells in Corfu, I believe the introduction of Leslie Caron will inject some needed interesting distraction. So far I'm enjoying it. That's the one whose director is Steve Barron.
I looked up Emma Lazarus and found the entire poem Argyle referred to. Here it is:
ReplyDelete"The New Colossus"
Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame,
With conquering limbs astride from land to land;
Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand
A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame
Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name
Mother of Exiles. From her beacon-hand
Glows world-wide welcome; her mild eyes command
The air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame.
"Keep, ancient lands, your storied pomp!" cries she
With silent lips. "Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"
Emma Lazarus, 1883
Thanks for the Pecos Bill video,
ReplyDeleteI had never seen it.
I only remember part 3, Sweet Sue...
(Hmm, I wonder what part two was?)
Happy Halloween! We should get around 60 kids since the weather is nice. Our street goes up a hill and our driveway goes up a hill so not too many families want to tackle it. When it's warm out we'll take chairs and small tables down to the street and give out candy there. We have appetizers and adult beverages which we share with the trick-or-treaters and parents. This year we're going to stay inside because it's a bit cooler than we like for sitting outside for 2 hours.
ReplyDeleteI had a few fumbles today, ANThill/ANTFARM, ouch/MOAN, soso/OKAY. Otherwise it was a quick puzzle. Thank you, Jerome, for the entertainment. Thank you, Argyle, for the enjoyable expo.
Lucina, how many people does 45 dozen tamales feed? I've never had one; do you usually have more than one at a meal?
I have a cousin who works as Santa during the season and he keeps us aware of how close the holiday is on Facebook. Time is passing quickly.
Enjoy the evening!
Pat
Pat:
ReplyDeleteIt's hard to say how many people 45 dz would feed, several hundred surely. We don't serve them all at once. Each family takes 3-4 dz for their parties, dinners, etc. Most people eat only one but some will eat two or three. At our white elephant party we usually cook 6 dozen and that's likely enough for that crowd which might number 40-50 mostly family and a few friends. Any leftovers are taken home by someone.
Like unclefred, Pat, and others, I found this pzl open to several equally suitable but wrong answers, like ANTHILL for ANTFARM, MONEY for MOOLA, etc. Hard to say whether this is Mr. Gunderson's cleverness or happenstance, but it led to more write-overs than I usually see.
ReplyDeleteHappy Halloween, everyone! We don't get any Trick-or-Treaters in our 'hood, and I can't say whether I like it or not. I miss the "lil' darlins," but not the over-the-hill teens we used to get just a few blocks away. We're in a university community, so when we did get visitors, they varied widely in age. Now we have a front gate, which tends to discourage kids, and since we don't get them, we just go with it all the way and keep the front lights off.
So now we're in trouble if anyone dares to use the gate buzzer. I guess we'll just hush ourselves (Shhhh...) and lie low....
Thanks, Lucina. Your experience is totally beyond anything I've done. Sounds like a good family bonding time!
ReplyDeleteSlow night so far this year. 21 kids and counting. Should have had maybe 2X or 3X that by now. Some very darling and cute costumes. Don't think we've had any kids over ten or eleven years of age.
ReplyDeleteA little FBI boy of six or seven years just came by with his parents. He had no candy in his basket, so I put a few more pieces in while saying to him, "Wow, your basket is empty, so I put a few more in." "This is my third basket!" came the excited reply.
They've all been excited. Bright eyes all lit up. Fun time.
It's so unpredictable. Never know quite how many bags of candy to buy. Last year I ended up with five or six unopened bags to take back to the store. Didn't make that mistake this year. I opened all of the bags !!!
Fun romp, Jerome! Thanks! And I loved the guided tour, Argyle. No problems. Liked the POBOY fill. Of course. The misdirections like Money /MOOLA just made it more fun.
ReplyDeleteHappy Halloween....what there is left of it! 🎃
Life pro tip. Put those left over Reese's cups in the freezer. Snickers go in the fridge. Kit Kats work both ways. You're welcome :)
ReplyDeleteMars, leftover candy is like leftover wine at my house....nonexistent! I had no Trick or Treaters, and it's a good thing because I ate all the candy. Heheheheeee
ReplyDeleteOwen, did I forget to mention that today's offering was wonderful, as always. I don't always comment. I just read 'em and chuckle!
ReplyDeleteI admire those of you who grade Owens poems. I just think they are wonderful if they make me smile....and they usually do!! Thanks for the day brighteners, Owen.
Well that was a bust. Even with my festive driveway lights, we got exactly one carload of kids, about five in all. Halloween just isn't the same as in my youth. I've already started eating the Reese's.
ReplyDeleteMeanwhile, back at the ranch, forty-five dozen tamales!! Wow, Lucina, that's epic! Sounds delicious...
Hi All!
ReplyDeleteHA HA on me - I thought we were getting BUFFALO WILD wings for dinner - instead I end up w/ a PILE OF BILLS at the end of the month. Thanks for the fun Monday Jerome - NEAT puzzle. Argyle - the music was a TREAT; thanks.
WOs: Handup Pat, ANTh... B/f realizing BUFh wasn't gonna happen @20a. ORa (Hi MIL!) b/f ORO.
ESP: EMMA as clued.
Sparkle: ERIC THE RED, RAN IN TO, and MEMENTO.
Fav: What time IS IT? made me think of the Spin Doctors. They had one great STEREO record (Pocket Full of Kryptonite) and then meh.
Runner up: NOT I as clued. When no one wants to help in the kitchen, I just say, "That's fine Little Red Hen" and they SNAP to it.
{B-, A-, A, B}
IM - We techies are also guilty of replying "So, ..." or, more so, "OKAY, so, it's like [insert everyday analogy]. What I MEAN..." when responding to a technical question (esp. about a data LEAK :-))
I have no idea how much candy we gave away - Eldest kept down the fort while I went to a neighbor/co-worker's party and youngest went Trick-or-TREATing for the last time. We only have 1lb left (and there's wrappers everywhere) but we started w/ 10lb and no one here is particularly ill.
TTP - Funny (peculiar, not HA HA), Eldest wore her FBI hoodie and my FBI lanyard [I won it at an event hosted by FBI (LEST anyone think that's what I do)] while passing out candy.
Lucina - Sneaking off for a nap? - I like your style :-)
Happy Halloween! -T
I ditto Swampcat. Smooth offering Jerome, don't be a stranger. Enjoyed the write-up.
ReplyDeleteThanks Misty for the Emma Lazarus poem.
I ended up clicking in Casey at the Bat, a 1946 Disney. Did anybody ever do a Casey take off? I may have mentioned it before, but mine was
(Steve) Grogan at the Helm.
This December will mark the 30th anniversary of the Pat's defeat of the Fish at the old orange bowl to win the East and knock Cincinnati out.
Bob Kraft, if you read this, you need to commemorate that game.
WC and it's still Monday