We all know of C.C.'s love of baseball but today she leaves the ball park for the hockey rink to give us a lovely Wednesday puzzle. Each theme answer ends with an item that is associated with this game on ice now played at the NHL level from Edmonton, Alberta to Miami, Florida. A big departure from the original six teams which I'm sure some here could name.
Her reveal is
37. Where to find the ends of 17-, 23-, 50- and 62-Across : ICE RINK - Perhaps the most famous ICE RINK to Americans is the one at Lake Placid in the 1980 Olympics semi-final game where the USA beat the Russians in the Miracle On Ice.
23. Public education leadership groups : SCHOOL BOARDS - Sometimes the BOARDS around the rink can't keep the players on the ice
50. Spago restaurateur : WOLFGANG PUCK - Here you can see that elusive PUCK being blocked first by the goalie's stick and then his glove and falling just short of the red goal line.
62. Breaded seafood option on kids' menus : FISH STICKS - If you want the oldest known hockey stick, it's yours for $4,000,000.
Husker Gary on the job as C.C. has given us her usual array of fun fill on this humpday edition. She again demonstrates her mastery of the form in that she can satisfy criteria for any day of the week and produce a very satisfying product. So, in the word's of M*A*S*H's Dr. Sydney Friedman,
Across
1. Opposite of bold : TIMID
6. Add a line to the wall chart : GROW
10. Rack holder : OVEN
14. Modify : AMEND
15. Mysterious letter : RUNE - A monument in Sweden written in ancient RUNES
16. Inedible pineapple part : CORE
19. Razor handle? : ATRA
20. Dueling sport : EPEE
21. When Caesar is warned to "Beware the Ides of March" : ACT I
22. Derisive look : SNEER
26. "The Merchant of Venice" heroine : PORTIA - The Bard appears only two clues later with Portia's musing
29. Bavaria-based automaker : AUDI
30. White figure in Snapchat's logo : GHOST - Kids showed me some hilarious Snapchat gimmicks yesterday.
31. Deafening sound : ROAR - Heard by Matthew victims no doubt
34. Include : ADD
36. Santa __ winds : ANA
40. Took control of : LED
42. Like almost all prime numbers : ODD - All but the number 2
44. [see other side] : OVER - Gee, I wonder what it says on the other side?
45. Hal who produced Laurel and Hardy films : ROACH - He briefly formed a company in the 30's with Vittorio Mussolini (RAM for Roach And Mussolini). Yup, it was Il Duce's son seen on the right below with Hal (posing in his father's famous speech making posture).
47. Transition point : CUSP
49. Leave base illegally : GO AWOL
55. Up in the air : ALOFT
56. Remove from power : OUST
57. Swatch options : HUES
61. Shop class tool : VISE
64. Even once : EVER
65. This, to Picasso : ESTA - Él llamó a ESTA pintura Guernica (He called this painting Guernica)
66. Poet Ginsberg : ALLEN
67. Bold lipstick choices : REDS
68. ''Ouch!'' : YEOW
69. Water holder : GLASS
Down
1. Shock into submission : TASE
2. "My turn!" : I'M UP - Be prepared for drama as a sub if every kindergartner doesn't get a turn
3. ''A __ formality'' : MERE
4. Takes over, like bedbugs : INFESTS - Travel with a blacklight (UV lamp) and here's what you might see on your bed at the hotel
5. Banned bug killer : DDT
6. __-Roman wrestling : GRECO - You are forbidden to attack the legs
7. Total, as a bill : RUN TO - It now 13. Closes in on : NEARS $20T. Is what our National Debt RUNS TO even important any more?
9. Very recently painted : WET
10. Song before some face-offs : O CANADA - What a beautiful anthem!
11. Legislation affecting polling places : VOTER ID LAW
12. Flubbed a play : ERRED
18. "How funny!" : HA HA - Sarcasm?
22. Paltry amount : SOU
24. __ Field: home of Mr. Met : CITI
25. Stock holder : BARN
26. Vardon Trophy org. : PGA
27. "This is horrible!" : OH NO - A famous purveyor of that mantra!
28. Sign that may cause U-turns : ROAD CLOSED - No matter the circumstances some idiot will ignore this sign, try to drive through it and have to be rescued
31. Amp (up) : REV
32. Lead source : ORE
33. Hang on a line : AIR
35. Artistic style of Chicago's Merchandise Mart : DECO
38. Lola's nightclub : COPA - "Her name was Lola, she was a showgirl..."
39. McDonald’s founder Ray : KROC - The original McDonalds built in San Bernardino, CA by Dick and Mac McDonald from whom Ray bought the business
41. FedEx rival : DHL
43. Golfers rarely making pars : DUFFERS
46. New York golf course that is a frequent host of major tournaments : OAK HILL
48. Army NCO : SGT
49. Courage : GUTS
50. Be on the fence : WAVER
51. Cooking oil source : OLIVE - Fresh from the tree, OLIVES are VERY bitter. A grower told me that kids hired to pick them soon learn that fact after eating one.
52. Cacophony : NOISE
53. Great energy : GUSTO
54. "Hogwash!" : PSHAW
58. Sch. with the mascot Joe Bruin : UCLA - Huskers beat 'em last year in Levi stadium that hosted Super Bowl 50 a month later (Did you notice my screen name?)
59. __ by: barely manages : EKES
60. Figs. with two hyphens : SSNS
62. Tina who is the youngest Mark Twain Prize winner : FEY - Some critics invoked Twain's sentiments below about her selection
63. Price indicator : TAG - Not so much these days with UPC's
Now that you have iced this puzzle, we look forward to your input:
The Grid
39 comments:
{B, B+, A-, B+.}
An artist who excelled at DECO
Decided to try something GRECO!
Black figures on urns
Were top Grecian turns --
Or paw-prints of a black-footed gecko!
The night of All-Hallows NEARS
When each GHOST with GUSTO appears!
When mysterious RUNES
TAG macabre tombs,
And wereWOLF GANGS fuel our fears!
A ROAR of NOISE to their rear
To ALLEN's face brought a SNEER!
"There's no need to worry
At some harmless scurry!"
But that six-foot ROACH wasn't MERE!
(*Burp*)
Spirits ALOFT on the AIR!
A man-eating bug OVER there!
The TIMID may favor
To shelter and WAVER,
The foolish will RUN TO its lair!
Greetings!
Many thanks to CC and Gary!
Swell offerings!
OAK HILL filled itself in.
(How do you do it, Owen?)
Have a great day!
Took quite a bit longer than my usual Wednesday but got 'er done. Several write-overs: SURFTHEWE:...NET; OAKLAWN:OAKHILL; OHCANAD (uh-oh!): OCANADA. Fun CW, thanx, C.C.! Great write up, thanx, HG! Owen, good work, your grades are right on! Thanx for the grins!
Good morning!
C.C. led me astray a couple of times this morning with WEB and UPS, but it still came together pretty fast. The reveal clue was impossible to miss, so even I got the theme today. Yay, me!
Husker, are you sure that's a hockey stick and not a boomerang? Or a coat hanger?
First thought was GALENA for "Lead source," but it was way too long.
When I was a kid the nearest McDonalds was 50 miles away in Green Bay. Hamburgers were 15¢. I could afford to eat two.
One of my goals as a golfer was to get good enough to be considered a DUFFER. Never made it that far.
Good morning to all!
Working North to South gave me the central reveal early, which helped the last two theme answers practically fill themselves in. Fun puzzle. "Stock holder" for BARN gave me a smile. Thanks, C.C.
Thanks for the expo, Husker Gary. You always have such great links.
Enjoy the day!
Fun puzzle, CC. I used to be a Devils fan but I don't follow hockey much these days. HG, thanks for your usual witty, informative blog.
We used to say ladies and gentlemen take my advice, etc..in the early 1940's, long before MASH.I have not thought of it since then.
I have to drive Alan to work soon. We switched his hours to later in the day which works better. He is doing fine right now. We conquered about 5 major issues this year. Yay! We received good results on scans and tests this time and he has stopped crying and obsessing about his health. Yesterday he cooked Kraft macaroni dinner by himself for the first time with me watching. Energy and initiative are returning. Now maybe I will catch up on my neglected paperwork. The mighty MO works for me once I get up a head of steam, and I can tear along at a fine pace.
Good Morning:
Another gem from CC. Even though the reveal came early, there was enough of a crunch to make me think. Held onto Surf The Web way too long but perps forced me to finally give it up. Mysterious Letter stymied me for awhile, as well. Stock holder=Barn was my fav c/a. Tin should not have any hesitation filling in this use of his nemesis!
Thanks, CC, for the enjoyable mid-week treat and thanks, HG, for your delightful, descriptive, and visually-pleasing write-up!
YR, that is encouraging news about Alan. Let's hope you both can stay off that physical and psychological roller coaster.
Charles Wilbur, I may be dense or maybe I just missed something, but what does GUR mean in your posts?
Owen, all A's today, IMPCO (In my poetry-challenged opinion.)
Have a great day.
I got everything correct today, but wasn't sure until I checked Gary's fine expo. PORTIA was only dimly familiar, and even though I follow the PGA I hadn't heard of the Vardon Trophy. I also hadn't a clue of the Mark Twain prize, but I love Tina Fey's work and was pleased to WAG her into that spot.
Had to erase dry for AIR and ALLaN for ALLEN Ginsberg. Didn't know RUNE, anything about Snapchat, or Hal ROACH (although I am a Stan and Ollie fan).
Favorite clue today: "Up in the air" for aloft. I wanted something along the lines of "pending." Least favorite was "Amp (up)" for REV. I know people say they need to "rev up the audience" (or crowd, rabble, etc.), but it doesn't mean I have to like it.
Thanks C.C. for a fun Wednesday puzzle.
Husker: Outstanding, informative write-up with numerous links. Good Job!!!
C.C. Thank you for a FUN Wednesday puzzle. Timely theme with the NHL "opening" tonight.
Had SURF-THE-wEb before SURF-THE-NET appeared ... glad that my RUNE WAG was correct.
Go CUBS!!!
Cheers!
CC and Gary respectively deserve a big pat on the back for the puzzle and it's expo. Now we need to have a Football themed puzzle, a Soccer themed puzzle and a Basketball themed puzzle. Possibly other sports themes, maybe Curling even.
I got the theme at the end today, but I had already filled in most of the puzzle, so it didn't help. But I did like the theme. I love hockey and I used to live near the Capitol Center in Landover, MD so I used to follow the Washington Capitols. Now that I live in PA, I've become a Penguins fan, but not a rabid one.
I had a few hitches in the solution today. Like WEB vs NET, NODE vs CUSP, MUDD vs ONEIL, and I knew that PUCK owned the restaurant SPAGO, but I couldn't remember his first name. My friendly Perps filled in the holes and corrected my mistakes.
Today is National Free Thought day which basically celebrates the end of the Salem Witch trials.
A beautiful fall day in PA. I hope it is where everyone else is.
Good Morning, all.
Thanks C.C. for a really enjoyable puzzle. I had a lot of fun with this one. My favorite: stockholder--BARN!
Gary, you have provided us with another amazing tour. Great links. Thank you.
From last night:TTP, You are welcome. I do love grammar. :-) Anon-T, love how you used the comparative correctly. The reason we do that is pretty simple. As I used to tell my students, "Michael Jordan can never be taller than me!" Ha! they said. The reason is simple: Michael Jordan can never be taller than I (am).
Have a nice day!
Thanks to C.C. for a lovely puzzle and to Gary for an excellent expo! What a great start to my day.
CSO to all teachers and former teachers at SCHOOLBOARDS! They can make our lives pleasant or miserable with their decisions.
Monday I was cleaning the shelf where cooking oils are kept and dropped the OLIVE oil one which shattered into pieces. All the others are contained in plastic bottles but of course that's the one that fell.
RUNE came immediately to mind as did PORTIA. DUFFERS was a pure guess. Loved the clue for BARN. ESTE or ESTA; always have to wait for the perp to decide.
Gary, good Spanish today though I would omit the "a" as that indicates "called to" instead of called.
YR, good news about Alan. I hope it continues.
Have a marvelous day, everyone!
HG & CC today. Breezed through the puzzle today with a couple on unknowns filled by perps-FEY, GHOST (too old for Snapchat BS), PORTIA ( read it back in 1965 and want my 'pound of flesh' but get the blood out first). I always wondered if the British monetary unit was the 'pound' when Shakespeare wrote the Merchant of Venice. If so,was Shylock referring to a physical amount or monetary amount?
Golf today- DUFFERS- about 90% of the golfers. OAK HILL- I wrote OAKMONT, even though I know it's in PA, before the crosses corrected it.
oc4beach- soccer based theme?? It would take all perps for me to complete. I know PELE, and that's it.
"No politics, no religion and no personal attacks." He (she in this case) who makes the rules can break the rules. VOTER ID LAW- What's the big deal? We've had it in LA for as long as I can remember. Suddenly the Justice Dept. is against it.
Tin - 40a could have been LEN, making 41d NHL.
eddyB would have loved this puzzle. RIP, buddy.
Fun puzzle, today! Thanks, C.C., and I'm sure Splynter loved it!
Very nice write-up, HG, and thanks for all the work you do!
Morning all!
Yay for a CC puzzle! No baseball but hockey is my second favorite sport! Super fun and very enjoyable. Lovely write-up HG, certainly appreciate the time and effort.
Like most hockey fans, I know the words of O CANADA from hockey games. Grew up going to games with my mom's best friend. My first season was Luc Robitaille's rookie year with Wayne Gretzy and the Kings - a great era! There were still some players that didn't wear a helmet because they had been playing so long they were exempted from the rule. Crazy to me, even today, that they went so many years without protecting their heads.
@YR - I'm very happy to read about Alan doing better. It's been a rough year for you guys and if he wants to make Mac 'n Cheese - he must be on the mend! It's the little things right?
How about those CUBS? A magical ninth inning last night! And no more Giants! And how about them Dodgers? An amazing night of baseball!
I got all my plants in the ground yesterday and as I was cleaning up, my MIL brought me another truck load of donated plants. It's raining today so it'll wait until tomorrow. This vacation thing is fantastic!!
Enjoy your day all -
t.
Good morning, folks. Thank you, C.C., for a fine puzzle. Thank you, Husker Gary, for a fine review.
Solid Wednesday puzzle. Got through, but had to think a bit.
Liked the theme. Have watched many hockey games since the Blackhawks have been doing great.
Watched the Cubs last night pull that game out in the 9th Inning. Great job!
I tried SURF THE WEB first, then NET became obvious. My only inkblot.
Knew RUNE easily. Read a great book once where the RUNE was central to the topic. "The Hooked X"
Airborne owned DHL for a while. Then Airborne went out of business. DHL survived.
Never heard of a Mark Twain Award, but I am sure it is involved in humor.
I have to go the Election Judge School today in Wheaton, the County Seat.
See you tomorrow.
Abejo
( )
Thanks CC and Gary. Lots of fun as expected.
Yes Tawnya! Go Dodgers!
Years ago, someone gave us good seats to an LA Kings hockey game. Early on, a puck flipped up over the boards and landed right under Barbara seat. She didn't automatically go after it. I leaned over to get it but the bozo next to me threw his arm across my neck, basically pinning me to the back of my seat while he fished out the puck. I was SO angry but what are you gonna do...? He had the puck while I had a sore neck and a fuming disposition.
I must be off...
Hello Puzzlers -
A thoroughly enjoyable romp today. Paused a bit at the Rev/Amp relationship, but filled it in and moved on.
Mis-read the clue for Duffers as "those who rarely miss par" and was subsequently surprised at the answer. Figured it out eventually.
Thanks for the entertainment, C.C. and Husker.
From yesterday I think it was: the big UMass campus in Amherst got a mention in the puzzle. For those who take an interest in such things, the local rules of pronunciation do not allow the town to be called "Am-Hurst". No siree. Say that and you're marked for an out-of-towner. It has to be "Ammerst" and that's that. Same for the college of that name.
Bill G @ 11:27 - You may have lost a puck but you kept your dignity. 🏆
Dudley @ 11:35 - I always say Ammerst as my best friend lived there for years and I picked it up it from her. My sister's granddaughter just began her freshman year there. As they are Mass. residents, the in-state tuition is considerably more manageable than that of some of the other schools she considered, not to mention being so much closer to home.
Musings
- I picked up the paper to do the puzzle as I do daily before it dawned on me. Duh, I’m the blogger today! Idiocy is not a full time job, it’s more of a hobby.
-I am subbing today and writing this as a roomful of 8th graders are taking an “assessment”.
-We went to FB game last week where the local law enforcement officers were firing T-shirts into the crowd with a pneumatic gun. One was coming down to Joann and suddenly the guy behind her fell on top of her. He was a transfer to Eastern Nebraska from Long Island, NY and not only gave my lovely bride the shirt he also apologized for the entire second half saying he had been pushed from behind.
-Hockey is a big deal in Omaha and I find it is much more interesting in person than on TV although a glowing PUCK does help
-Out go the 8th graders and in come the Honor’s History Juniors!
I totally agree with Husker Gary, that this was a lovely Wednesday C.C. puzzle. Many thanks, C.C. Part of the delight was the combination of the sports theme with so many literary and culture references: Shakespeare's PORTIA, the "Ides of March," ALLEN Ginseberg, reference to Picasso, Art DECO, and I loved the pic of "M.A.S.H.", Husker Gary.
Glad I live in California--helped me get WOLFGANG PUCK and Santa ANA, of course.
Neat shout out to CanadianEh with her anthem. And glad Alan is feeling better, Yellowrocks.
Have a great day everybody, and thanks again, C.C. and Husker Gary.
Smooth solving today...
Music by Vince Gauraldi:Skating
WEES re: the puzzle and reveal. Well done,CC and HG. Fairly smooth fill with a few false starts/write overs as others have mentioned. 10a was all perps because when I started the puzzle on the across clues looking for low-hanging fruit, I couldn't think of a 4 letter word for brassiere.
Re. the reference to Roanoke Rapids, NC recently: DW and I stayed at the Hampton Inn just off I95 there twice recently, both going to and returning from our Hilton Head Island vacation. Our stay was so pleasant (very helpful staff, nice rooms, reasonably priced) that we decided to stay again on the way back. I had no idea that town was the Rockfish Capital, and I think I could suggest some competition. I do love to catch striped bass, or rockfish if you will.
Cya!
Cool puzzle! Man oh man, C.C. sure can come up with amazing themes, clues, and fill. Loved Stock holder. Several especially nice long down words/phrases.
Gary thank you once again for your interesting points of view and multitudinous links.
Bill, G, I second what Irish Miss said about your dignity.
Owen KL, thanks for your verses every day.
Hey tawnya, this retirement thing is fantastic, too!
Best wishes to you all.
Cheers in both directions - for C.C. and HuskerG!
My only quibbles are for 31-D and 59-D. REV has already been questioned by Jinx and Dudley. My own ear was more troubled by EKES, as the clue wants the word for "barely manages" that precedes the preposition "by." How many agree with me that EKES is usually followed by "out"? "Scrapes" is more often the word we hear before "by."
Portia (Porsche) right across from
Audi? Nobody noticed?
I have just finished Mitch Albom's latest novel, "The Magic Strings of Frankie Presto." Frankie is portrayed as the greatest guitarist ever to walk this earth. Excellent. Many well known real musicians agreed to let themselves be included in the novel interacting with the fictional protagonist.
Other Albom novels I have read are "Tuesdays with Morrie," The Five People You Meet in Heaven" which is my favorite, and "The Time Keeper."
Is anyone else here a Mitch Albom fan?
Thanks for the shout outs and well wishes.
Good afternoon everyone.
Just got home from subbing at bridge.
Got the solve w/o serious impediments. Only white-outs were I had yard before BARN. Also had SURF THE web before NET. Liked the hockey speak theme.
Got O CANADA easily enough and is probably hard-wired into hockey. My favorite anthem melody-wise is Luxembourg's Ons Hemecht.
First guess for 29a would have been BMW for Bavarian Motor Works, but AUDI had the right length.
Busy day today. CC, I loved your puzzle. Excellent write-up as always HG.
Rasp before VISE. Short lived entry.
After turning the paper over (44 A), don't you just hate it when the other sides says, "This page intentionally left blank."
Razor handle. I liked the clue.
Merchandise Mart... Once owned by the Kennedys. You have to stand in front of it to see how massive it is. Even from a boat on the river, it is awe-inspiring. Over 1000 tenants.
DUFFERS... It's good sportsmanship to not pick up lost balls while they are still rolling - Mark Twain
Thanks for mentioning Ons Hemecht,, Spitzboov. It is a fine anthem. My favorite remains Kimigayo, the Japanese national hymn.
Hi All!
I DUFF'd the theme at 1st, with WEB (hand-up) and BOARD in place, I was sure the theme was InterNe{t}. Ooops. Yes, I did (try to) ink that in.
Thanks C.C. - it was fun. Thanks HG - enjoyed all the links.
WOs: mentioned above.
ESPs: ROACH, ONEIL, SOU. ALLEN was almost ESP but w/ AL--N, something "clicked."
Cornerite CSOs!: 10d for C, Eh!, Like C6D6Pat said, how can you not think of Splynter at the theme. And 50a (esp. xing 51d) - Food Steve!. I nailed the former (Mr. Puck) w/o theme in mind (still wanted internet even though it no fit - I share you're hobby HG :-) ) nor perp - A feeling of GUSTO there.
Larry - you beat me to my fav: "Why'd they name her after a car?" [sorry, tried to find a better clip but I ain't got all nite] and AUDI right after.
But, Larry, did you notice GOAL w/o the WO? :-) [49a]
Hated CITI - Oh, I got it, but why do they make the billing-date land on a weekend? Discover (DW's card) is the worst about this.
{B+, B+, A--, A-} - I was a bit disappointed you didn't use 6' ROACH for a SOU* of weed :-)
YR - good to hear about Alan.
IM - GUR, I think, is the Great UnRead. Wilbur posts late and thinks no one reads FLN.
Madame D. - DW taught me that "taller than I (am tall)" trick. I'm sure it grated on her me saying it wrong; her having a PhD in Engl.
Y'all must have dealt w/ this... The anxiety of your Eldest driving Youngest about town [they went to the book store, Nana's, & eats]. I'm on pins & needles waiting for the next "we're here" text. I want a beer but afraid to drink in case there's "the call."
Aaah - just as I was finding FISH called Wanda clip, they pulled in the drive...
And Cheers!, -T
*did I use that right?
Ooooh, I forgot to thank C.C. for this really impressive puzzle. I don't know how you do it. C.C. constructing and Gary, blogging: that's a winning combination.
My favorite anthem is Finlandia.
Very late to the game after working today but I had to comment on this wonderful CW. Thanks C.C. and Husker Gary.
I smiled at CSO with 10D especially when I had commented the other day that O for anthem start could have been for O Canada as well as American anthem.
Loved the hockey theme. Huge night in Toronto (although they lost in OT) with record setting debut for Auston Matthews. - 4 goals in his first NHL season game!
AnonT - LOL at GOAL w/o the WO comment.
YR- - glad to hear about Alan's improvement.
delightful...both the puzzle and the write up....last to fill, O Canada. I just couldn't see it, and it is a beautiful anthem!
Lucina - I like Finlandia, too. The melody is also used in a popular Church hymn.
A six foot ROACH would be rad!
But it'd cost more than a SOU to be had!
For that we would need
A surfeit of weed,
But oh, the grand smog it would ADD!
{A++}. LOL.
Nite, -T
Yes, Ol' Man Keith; we SCRAPE by or GET by. We EKE OUT.
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