Theme: Ringmasters ... The circles in the corners of the "boxing ring" grid contain the names of four professional world champions.
We've got:
Max BAER - American heavyweight champion in the 1930's. Famous for defeating Max Schmeling, who was Hitler's favorite fighter and promoted as an example of the superiority of the Aryan race. He lost his title to James Braddock in one of the biggest upsets in boxing history.
Muhammad ALI - no introduction required for a second American heavyweight world champion. He defeated the next corner occupant for the title in 1964, and retained the title in their 1965 rematch. This photograph, by Neil Leifer for TIME magazine stands as one of the most famous sports images of all time. I've got a monochrome reproduction on my wall.
Sonny LISTON - a third American heavyweight world champion in the 1960's, beating Floyd Patterson for the title in 1962 before Ali took his place.
And finally, a fourth American heavyweight - no wait, we've got Roberto DURÁN, a Panamanian fighter who held world titles in four weight divisions in his career, from lightweight to middleweight, He was famous (or notorious) for quitting during his 1982 title defense against "Sugar" Ray Leonard in the 8th round, saying to the referee "No más". That was his 74th fight. He retired after 119 fights, so seemingly there was "poquito más" left in him.
There are four companion entries to the corners
25A. Prize for today's puzzle's circles : CHAMPIONSHIP
52A. Introductory words for each set of puzzle circles : IN THIS CORNER
5A. With 71-Across, event for today's puzzle's circles : TITLE and
71A. See 5-Across : FIGHT
This looks like an LAT debut for Bill, so congratulations for that achievement.
Now I'm going to rain on the parade - I didn't like this much - I can't see any connection between the boxers other than they won a world championship. Only LISTON "fills" his corner - it just seems so inconsistent. Throw in a slew of three-letter abbreviations and partials and prefix/suffix stuff and the whole thing seems forced.
There is some nice stuff in the downs, so let's go look at what we've got.
Across:
1. Beginning of space? : AERO
10. Sea that's a shrinking lake : ARAL
14. Jazz Age toon : BOOP. Betty. Boop-boop-be-doo.
15. Comes (from) : HAILS.
16. Roast, in Rouen : RÔTI. Rouen has a magnificent cathedral, and a belfry full of very loud bells, as I discovered when I stayed at a little hotel in the shadow of the spires and was woken up on Sunday morning.
17. __ about : ON OR
18. "Miss __ Playhouse": jazz CD for kids : ELLA'S. Learning moment. Miss Fitzgerald.
19. Fishing, perhaps : ASEA
20. Outlaw Belle : STARR. Convicted of horse theft in 1883. New to me.
22. PBS funder : NEA
24. Tally : SUM
29. Org. with a snake in its logo : A.M.A.
31. Detestable sort : TOAD
32. Late 19th-century presidential monogram : CAA. Chester A. Arthur. President from 1881 to 1885.
33. Family babysitter : NANA
35. Cut : SLICED INTO
40. Dignify : EXALT
42. Fireworks reaction : OOH!
43. Starters : A-TEAM
44. Curaçao's capital : WILLEMSTAD. Another learning moment. The former capital of the Netherlands Antilles, betraying the Dutch origin of the name.
47. Conclusion preceder : IF SO ..
48. Andean tuber : OCA
49. Turkmenistan neighbor : IRAN
51. Want-ad letters : E.E.O. Equal Employment Opportunity.
56. Titled rapper : DRE. Dr. Dre.
57. Radical '70s org. : S.L.A.
58. Teen superhero's family : KENTS. Superman.
60. Pupil's place : UVEA
62. "You __ one!" : OWE ME
65. Nantes nothing : RIEN.
67. Disencumbers : RIDS
68. Sacks : FIRES
69. Conductor Klemperer or an emperor : OTTO
70. Reformed demon on "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" : ANYA. Thank you, crosses. I'm not up on my "Buffy" characters.
72. Place to find bullets : LIST
Down:
1. Blood system letters : ABO. This fill probably wouldn't fly in Australia.
2. Ages : EONS
3. Ordeal at the dentist's office : ROOT CANAL
4. Oxygen network co-founder : OPRAH
5. Soup container : THERMOS
6. Proverb ending? : IAL
7. Up to, commercially : TIL
8. Southwestern plain : LLANO
9. Perfume : ESSENCE
10. Altar in the sky : ARA
11. Mantegna's "Criminal Minds" role : ROSSI. Thank you, crosses. I only saw one episode because one of my friends was guest-starring.
12. Really enjoyed : ATE UP
13. Singer Payne of One Direction : LIAM. Boy Band fave. He's apparently planning to go solo, according to the Brit tabloids. Stop the presses!
21. Proverbial deserter : RAT. I'm not sure that you can blame the rats when the ship is sinking.
23. Grilled, in Mexican fare : ASADA. Food! Usually skirt steak presented as carne asada.
26. California's __ Verdes Peninsula : PALOS. Pete Sampras learned his tennis at a club here.
27. Beyond silly : IDIOTIC
28. Golfe de la Gonâve country : HAITI. WAG with "H" in place, but I couldn't come up with many other french-speaking countries beginning that way.
29. From the top : ANEW
30. Modest skirt : MAXI
34. Mete out : ALLOT
36. "Cuchi-cuchi" celebrity : CHARO. María del Rosario Mercedes Pilar Martínez Molina Baeza to her friends.
37. Akhenaten's queen : NEFERTITI. I can't think of any alternative Egyptian queens, to be honest. Oh wait, Cleopatra!
38. Subdue, perhaps : TASE
39. Melville novel : OMOO.
41. Staffers of Apple's Genius Bar : TECHS.
45. Send : MAIL OFF
46. Least lit : DARKEST
50. Butte-to-Helena dir. : N.N.E.
52. NFL Network analyst Michael __ : IRVIN. Legendary Dallas Cowboys receiver who won three Superbowl rings in the 90's.
53. Unable to make ends meet : NEEDY
54. Slasher film sequel of 2005 : SAW II
55. Become a member, in Manchester : ENROL. One "L" in the British spelling. There's a very (very!) short street in Manchester named for my paternal grandfather, apparently.
56. Commercial prefix meaning "long-lasting" : DURA-
59. Places : SETS
61. Hard-rock link : AS A
63. Unit of work : ERG
64. Verbal shrug : MEH. Keeping quiet on this one.
66. "Tricked you!" : NOT!
That about does it for me. In the United Airlines in-flight magazine they've started publishing a New York Times Sunday puzzle - the one I found a couple of days ago on the way to Honolulu was missing about 25 of the "Down" clues. Made finishing it something of a challenge!
Aloha, and Mele Kalikimaka!
Steve
We've got:
Max BAER - American heavyweight champion in the 1930's. Famous for defeating Max Schmeling, who was Hitler's favorite fighter and promoted as an example of the superiority of the Aryan race. He lost his title to James Braddock in one of the biggest upsets in boxing history.
Muhammad ALI - no introduction required for a second American heavyweight world champion. He defeated the next corner occupant for the title in 1964, and retained the title in their 1965 rematch. This photograph, by Neil Leifer for TIME magazine stands as one of the most famous sports images of all time. I've got a monochrome reproduction on my wall.
Sonny LISTON - a third American heavyweight world champion in the 1960's, beating Floyd Patterson for the title in 1962 before Ali took his place.
And finally, a fourth American heavyweight - no wait, we've got Roberto DURÁN, a Panamanian fighter who held world titles in four weight divisions in his career, from lightweight to middleweight, He was famous (or notorious) for quitting during his 1982 title defense against "Sugar" Ray Leonard in the 8th round, saying to the referee "No más". That was his 74th fight. He retired after 119 fights, so seemingly there was "poquito más" left in him.
There are four companion entries to the corners
25A. Prize for today's puzzle's circles : CHAMPIONSHIP
52A. Introductory words for each set of puzzle circles : IN THIS CORNER
5A. With 71-Across, event for today's puzzle's circles : TITLE and
71A. See 5-Across : FIGHT
This looks like an LAT debut for Bill, so congratulations for that achievement.
Now I'm going to rain on the parade - I didn't like this much - I can't see any connection between the boxers other than they won a world championship. Only LISTON "fills" his corner - it just seems so inconsistent. Throw in a slew of three-letter abbreviations and partials and prefix/suffix stuff and the whole thing seems forced.
There is some nice stuff in the downs, so let's go look at what we've got.
Across:
1. Beginning of space? : AERO
10. Sea that's a shrinking lake : ARAL
14. Jazz Age toon : BOOP. Betty. Boop-boop-be-doo.
15. Comes (from) : HAILS.
16. Roast, in Rouen : RÔTI. Rouen has a magnificent cathedral, and a belfry full of very loud bells, as I discovered when I stayed at a little hotel in the shadow of the spires and was woken up on Sunday morning.
17. __ about : ON OR
18. "Miss __ Playhouse": jazz CD for kids : ELLA'S. Learning moment. Miss Fitzgerald.
19. Fishing, perhaps : ASEA
20. Outlaw Belle : STARR. Convicted of horse theft in 1883. New to me.
22. PBS funder : NEA
24. Tally : SUM
29. Org. with a snake in its logo : A.M.A.
31. Detestable sort : TOAD
32. Late 19th-century presidential monogram : CAA. Chester A. Arthur. President from 1881 to 1885.
33. Family babysitter : NANA
35. Cut : SLICED INTO
40. Dignify : EXALT
42. Fireworks reaction : OOH!
43. Starters : A-TEAM
44. Curaçao's capital : WILLEMSTAD. Another learning moment. The former capital of the Netherlands Antilles, betraying the Dutch origin of the name.
47. Conclusion preceder : IF SO ..
48. Andean tuber : OCA
49. Turkmenistan neighbor : IRAN
51. Want-ad letters : E.E.O. Equal Employment Opportunity.
56. Titled rapper : DRE. Dr. Dre.
57. Radical '70s org. : S.L.A.
58. Teen superhero's family : KENTS. Superman.
60. Pupil's place : UVEA
62. "You __ one!" : OWE ME
65. Nantes nothing : RIEN.
67. Disencumbers : RIDS
68. Sacks : FIRES
69. Conductor Klemperer or an emperor : OTTO
70. Reformed demon on "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" : ANYA. Thank you, crosses. I'm not up on my "Buffy" characters.
72. Place to find bullets : LIST
Down:
1. Blood system letters : ABO. This fill probably wouldn't fly in Australia.
2. Ages : EONS
3. Ordeal at the dentist's office : ROOT CANAL
4. Oxygen network co-founder : OPRAH
5. Soup container : THERMOS
6. Proverb ending? : IAL
7. Up to, commercially : TIL
8. Southwestern plain : LLANO
9. Perfume : ESSENCE
10. Altar in the sky : ARA
11. Mantegna's "Criminal Minds" role : ROSSI. Thank you, crosses. I only saw one episode because one of my friends was guest-starring.
12. Really enjoyed : ATE UP
13. Singer Payne of One Direction : LIAM. Boy Band fave. He's apparently planning to go solo, according to the Brit tabloids. Stop the presses!
21. Proverbial deserter : RAT. I'm not sure that you can blame the rats when the ship is sinking.
23. Grilled, in Mexican fare : ASADA. Food! Usually skirt steak presented as carne asada.
26. California's __ Verdes Peninsula : PALOS. Pete Sampras learned his tennis at a club here.
27. Beyond silly : IDIOTIC
28. Golfe de la Gonâve country : HAITI. WAG with "H" in place, but I couldn't come up with many other french-speaking countries beginning that way.
29. From the top : ANEW
30. Modest skirt : MAXI
34. Mete out : ALLOT
36. "Cuchi-cuchi" celebrity : CHARO. María del Rosario Mercedes Pilar Martínez Molina Baeza to her friends.
37. Akhenaten's queen : NEFERTITI. I can't think of any alternative Egyptian queens, to be honest. Oh wait, Cleopatra!
38. Subdue, perhaps : TASE
39. Melville novel : OMOO.
41. Staffers of Apple's Genius Bar : TECHS.
45. Send : MAIL OFF
46. Least lit : DARKEST
50. Butte-to-Helena dir. : N.N.E.
52. NFL Network analyst Michael __ : IRVIN. Legendary Dallas Cowboys receiver who won three Superbowl rings in the 90's.
53. Unable to make ends meet : NEEDY
54. Slasher film sequel of 2005 : SAW II
55. Become a member, in Manchester : ENROL. One "L" in the British spelling. There's a very (very!) short street in Manchester named for my paternal grandfather, apparently.
56. Commercial prefix meaning "long-lasting" : DURA-
59. Places : SETS
61. Hard-rock link : AS A
63. Unit of work : ERG
64. Verbal shrug : MEH. Keeping quiet on this one.
66. "Tricked you!" : NOT!
That about does it for me. In the United Airlines in-flight magazine they've started publishing a New York Times Sunday puzzle - the one I found a couple of days ago on the way to Honolulu was missing about 25 of the "Down" clues. Made finishing it something of a challenge!
Aloha, and Mele Kalikimaka!
Steve
Greetings!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Bill and Steve!
Took awhile. Lots of perps and WAGs, but got her done.
ning
Didn't know ELLA'S, WILLEMSTAD, ANYA, LIAM and N.N.E.
Tons of rain here Wednesday, followed in the late evening by cold wind.
Have a great day!
I got to the SW corner - five letters - in went TYSON - but then out came TYSON. Crazy! He was a heavyweight. The right number of letters if you noticed we had 3, 4, and 6 in the other corners. Seems to me he could have worked him in there some how.
ReplyDeleteGood Morning, Steve and friends.
ReplyDeleteMax BAER was the father of Max BAER, Jr., who played Jethro on The Beverly Hillbillies. But you knew that already.
I wanted SDS before settling on SLA. The Symbionese Liberation Army is probably best know for the 1974 kidnapping of Patty Hearst.
I have gotten used to the partial, such as -IAL, and AERO-. Not my favorite type of clues, but it's all part of the game.
I visited WILLEMSTAD a few years ago. It is a beautiful city. It is also home to the oldest surviving synagogue in the Americas.
QOD: Become so wrapped up in something that you forget to be afraid. ~ Lady Bird Johnson (Dec. 22, 1912 ~ July 11, 2007)
FIR by Ta-da! The SW corner was the last to fill, but the only reformed demons I knew from Buffy were Spike and Angel. Had DURO first, but when no ta-da, tried DURA and got my reward! Maybe not a CHAMPIONSHIP, but I did suss the FIGHT theme early enough for some help. I worked the Mensa site today, so no circles, but after the puzzle was filled, I pored over it until I found the answer! First I found 8 different letter chains spelling ALI before I noticed one was in a corner, and LISTON in another! BAER was easy to pick out, but DURAN took a while to parse.
ReplyDeleteIf Betty BOOP ever met Belle STARR
Would they be fast friends or go to war?
The Boopster would BOOP,
And the STARR would shoot,
But they'd both belly up for a drink at the bar!
[More later(?)]
Good morning!
ReplyDeleteHad the circles, and figured out we were looking for fighter names. Didn't really help with the solve, though. Tried SDS (Hi there, Hahtoolah!), and TAME until IF MO forced me to change it. Almost got stuck in the SW with the obscure IRVIN and ANYA and the oddly-clued NEEDY. Still, it's a win in the record books, so life is good. Congrats on your debut, Bill. Steve, thanks for the expo -- not much food for you to work with, other than TOAD ASADA...yum!
Did You get the correct DURAN? How about ROBERTO? 'No Mas"
ReplyDeleteFound this CW to be a real struggle. Almost gave up twice. Too many foreign words for my taste, for one thing. Way, way, over my time, which is another reason I almost threw in the towel. Thanx, Bill, for busting my brain-box! Did like the cleverness of 3, 4, 5, and 6 letter corner fills though. Thanx, Steve for the nice write-up.
ReplyDeleteA neat theme today but it was a DNF due to sloppy penmanship. I filled SDS for Patty Heart's kidnappers. I never heard of SAWII and SSWII looked just as 'bad' to me, maybe the S.S. WII. That wouldn't permit me get MAIL OFF, even though I filled WILLE_STAD, so I guess I got LAID OFF for blowing the puzzle today. I've never been to WILLEMSTAD (or WILLELSTAD).
ReplyDeleteThe cross of ROSSI & ROTI was a lucky guess for me- both unknowns. And ANYa, ELLA, & LIAM were three names that were filled by perps. And then there's the intersection of French and Egyptian. RIEN (perped) and NEFERTITI- another lucky guess.
ALOHA & MAHALO and hope everybody's Amazon packages show up because I don't think that UPS, FEDEX, & USPS will be able to handle everybody's last minute orders.
ReplyDeleteFinished it off, but a DNF. Had to look up NEFERTITI...never heard of her & the crossing REIN was a ?????????. Also had tame for 38D. TASE has become a regular fill.
Had no circles & figured I was overmatched, but sussing out TITLE & FIGHT helped to get me rolling. Never SAW the former champs name in the corners.
Belle STARR is a character in lots of old westerns. Watch a lot of the Western channel. For me, those oldie westerns sure beat the movies of today.
Started the SW with Joe LOUIS who at least fought Max Baer, thinking the corners were paired. Duran was the only non-heavyweight of the four.
ReplyDeleteTried GEEKS before TECHS, confusing Apple with Best Buy's Squad
Not a fan of slasher movies, but SAW and its sequel are pretty famous
As Edith Piaf sang,"Non je ne regrette RIEN," I regret nothing in this puzzle which was a fast solve for a Friday. I had a few filled in across the top, then I dropped to the SE and soon had LISTON, then FIGHT. The existing perps gave me TITLE. IN THIS CORNER, CHAMPIONSHIP and the boxers' names soon followed giving me plenty of handles.
ReplyDeleteI knew it was not SDS, but SLA took a while to dredge up. It was in the news day after day during Patty's kidnapping.
Egyptian queen aroused images in my mind of the beautiful NEFERTITI. You can Google her images.
I knew BELLE STARR but needed a few perps to dig it out. Same with WILLEMSTAD.
ROTI appears in some recipes. In Switzerland it appeared on some French menus.
ELLA's, ANYA and LIAM were perps and wags. SAW II made sense for a slasher film.
I really liked the theme with the champs in the corners. No MEH here.
Good morning all. Thank you Bill and thank you Steve.
ReplyDeleteGot the theme first, then got the pugilists, but got beat in the ring, and suffered a TKO. In the blue corner, fighting for constructors, Bill won. In the red corner, fighting for solvers, TTP lost. Final score 95-88. The judges took seven points away when the scorecards were revealed.
Maybe if I had taken a PED first, such as caffeine...
I want a rematch.
Why not ABO in Australia Steve ?
Speaking of LIAM, did you see his audition for mall Santa ?
Llano is about an hour drive north of Luckenbach. About the same, heading NW from Austin. It's a Texas thang.
First thought was Strahan. Didn't fit. Second thought was IRVIN. Michael, Troy and Emmitt led those pokes to the summit. This year, Dez, Dak and Ezekiel have their sights set on the same.
Opened the LA Times website in another tab when I saw the clue indicating circles.
Big Easy, true. Roberto.
Yellowrocks, I know you are fast, but you are already a day ahead of the rest of us.
Anonymous T from last might. Yep. Richmond. I see now that it's now on Westheimer. Old stomping grounds for me. Man, that city has grown. I remember when Dairy Ashford was on the outskirts of town.
I agree with YR - this was a quick Friday puzzle, presented on Thursday. i got three corners quickly, but LISTON took a while to fall. I disliked the crosses of 16A & 11D/13D and 17D & 58A/65A. Hand up for Sds and DURo before SLA and DURA. Looked up NEFERTITI. Missed RIEN because I didn't know ENROL. nIEN seemed to be a better guess for nothing.
ReplyDeleteI worked in Palos Verdes where the fairly-rich millionaires lived. The REALLY rich millionaires lived on top of the peninsula in Rolling Hills, where I also worked. Tennis teen phenom Tracy Austin was from there. The Carter administration targeted Rolling Hills for government-assisted economic development because there were nearly no employment opportunities there, to the great amusement of the community.
Charo was famous for being a busty bombshell. She was also a very good guitar player.
Thanks to the hard work in putting together this puzzle, Bill. I'll bet I enjoy your next effort more. And thanks to Steve for his entertaining and candid assessment.
We have a new "least enjoyable puzzle of the year" ...
ReplyDeleteKinda put a "downer" into my FESTIVUS EVE ...
Oh well, gotta get the FESTIVUS POLE decorated.
Cheers!
Good day to all!
ReplyDeleteHand up for SDS before SLA. As for the rest, WEES. Congratulations on your debut, Bill. Thanks for a fine expo, Steve. I very much appreciate all the faithful bloggers here at The Corner.
Enjoy the day!
What a struggle.
ReplyDeleteSlept in again, and only wrote one poem before I conked out last night, though it was an {A}. So here's my expanded daily quota.
ReplyDelete{C+, B-, R, B+.}
The first line of a poem may be its TITLE,
The following lines a PROVERBIAL recital.
And like RATS who flee
From a ship ASEA,
The conclusion should be incontrovertible!
There once was a young girl named ELLA
With her eye on a particular fella!
Vowed that IF SO happens
ON OR near Sadie Hawkins
That I catch him, I'll yell a capella!
A woman who liked being naughty,
HAILED her lovers, including Ben ALI,
And also LIAM
That as her A-TEAM
They should drill to EXALT her finale!
Stumped and searching to find an informer,
There's a place where help couldn't be warmer!
Where words seldom are cross,
And rarely at a loss --
On the Internet right here IN THIS CORNER!
Musings
ReplyDelete-I needed both ends of my pencil to fight my way through with LIAM/ROTI/ROSSI being the biggest challenger
-Steve’s guided expedition always supplies wit and wisdom
-Stubborn me tried to work the puzzle as long as I could without doing any theme fill
-Neither MAX BAER nor Jesse Owens were on Hitler’s A TEAM
-When graphed these TALLY MARKS would approximate a normal distribution
-I remember NANA as the dog for the Darling children
-The NEA budget has been SLICED INTO in the last few budgets
-An inspiring musical work that dignifies and exalts the “Common Man” (2:14)
-Patty Hearst claimed to have been brain washed by the SLA
-Thinking of yourself as a PROVERBIAL loser can be a self-fulfilling prophecy
-The story of two local girls who just returned from HAITI is amazing
-Yesterday was the DARKEST day of the year
-We call Joann’s 94-yr-old mother the DURAcell energizer bunny!
Good morning everyone.
ReplyDeleteFelt stifled at first with the plethora of proper names, But getting the long theme fill and neat corner circled fill compensated. Eventually relying strongly on perps, I was able to finish without searches.
Since the gulf @ 28d was French, there were very few 5 letter French countries to pick from. HAITI worked fine.
Urban dictionary answers Why not ABO in Australia?
ReplyDeleteTTP, thanks for cluing me in that this is Thursday. LOL I have been rushing around trying to fit everything in before Christmas Eve. If it's Thursday, I have a chance. At least that explains why the puzzle was easier than I expected.
ReplyDelete@George Simpson - thanks, I've corrected the name.
ReplyDeleteThis puzzle would be a CSO to my late DH! He loved boxing, having been an amateur one himself and he watched every boxing match to be found on TV in those days before cable. So, BAER, ALI, LISTON and DURAN filed in easily. He would have been proud.
ReplyDeleteCSO to me and all other NANAs on the Corner. ROSSI was easy, too, because for a time I watched Criminal Minds until the plots just became much too violent and depraved. Not so easy: LIAM, ANYA, IRVIN, RIEN. Those were all perped. Someone never heard of NEFERTITI? That seems strange to me.
Much to my horror, my daughter loves horror films so SAWII would be on her LIST.
Carne ASADA, yum! Hand up for seeing __ITI and guessing HAITI. Interesting that the clue for 21D contained the fill for 6D.
If this is a debut, congratulations, Bill Z.! And mahalo, Steve. I don't have to encourage you to enjoy your time in Hawaii. It goes without saying.
I'm due for a haircut so OFF I go!
Have a magnificent day, everyone!
Good Morning:
ReplyDeleteI thought the theme was enhanced by the execution, especially the "In this Corner" aspect, plus the additional theme-related "Championship" and "Title Fight." Hand up for SDS/SLA and Tame/Tase. Needed perps for Anya, Liam, and Ella. I think we've seen Rien recently.
Well done, Bill, and congrats on your debut and thanks, Steve, for the guided tour.
We had a dusting of snow this morning but the warmer temps will melt it away, so no white Christmas, I'm afraid.
Have a great day.
I have been rushing around trying to fit everything in before Christmas Eve. If it's Thursday, I have a chance.
ReplyDelete"Do you know if they've sold the prize turkey that was hanging there?"
I have to agree with Steve in not liking this puzzle very much. The theme was good, but perhaps there was so much (over)emphasis on theme fill that it left little room for other good stuff such as IDIOTIC, NEFERTITI, THERMOS, WILLEMSTAD, and ROOTCANAL. I remembered ROTI from a few days ago, as well as the familiar ARAL, and knew ROSSI from the TV show, so the NE was less difficult for me than for several of you. I almost didn't manage to solve the SW corner, though, because I didn't know the proper names.
ReplyDeleteBy the way, Superman was and still is one of my superheroes, before, during, and after my teens, so to specifically characterize the KENT family as a teen superhero's family rubbed me the wrong way.
Lucina, good catch on that proverbIAL dupe.
So, in sum, a flawed but interesting puzzle, with a nice level of Thursday pepper. Can't dance to it because of the irregular rhythm, though.
Best wishes to you all.
I threw in the towel on this one...
ReplyDelete(hmm, or maybe just a napkin...)
A little Charo music please...
I always thought Abo was just another abbreviation,
Let's see what the Aussies think about it.
Hi everybody. I never feel as if I'm clever enough to generally criticize one of the LAT puzzles edited and shepherded by Rich. If it's good enough for him, I'm OK with it too (except for the occasional nit which I feel qualified to complain about). That doesn't mean that I think others' criticisms were invalid since I think most of the commenters are much cleverer solvers than I am. The only thing that I noticed right off was the slight lack of symmetry with the corner boxing champs' names but I figured that was a necessary result of the need to make everything else fall into place. So thanks Bill, Rich and Steve.
ReplyDeleteJayce, I read your comment about the characterization of the KENT family as a teen superhero's family. I took that to mean the family of a superhero when HE was a teen, not when YOU were a teen. Or maybe I didn't understand it all properly.
We've gotten lots of rain here over the last few days with more to come this weekend. I enjoy the rain since we don't get much of it. Low temperatures are predicted too. That usually results in scenic white tops of the local mountains behind the Los Angeles skyline as seen from my area.
The Palos Verdes peninsula was mentioned in this puzzle. It makes for a very nice scenic drive from our house. The views from Palos Verdes of the Pacific, the shoreline, the greater LA area and the mountains beyond on a clear day are really pretty.
I liked this one better than Steve.
ReplyDeleteIt was just hard enough--enjoyable and do-able. I have tried and am definitely unable to create even the simplest crossword, so I am in awe of anyone who can. And when they can not only cross some words in a readable fashion but also cause them to fit into an overriding theme--such as four boxing champs in their respective corners--well, my jaw falls agape.
Steve is eminently deserving of his judgment, and I certainly understand that some theme achievements are grander than others. I grant that Mr. Zig-zago, er Zing, uh, Zago-whatever--let's say Mr. Z!--did not manage to completely fill each corner, but I am frankly impressed that he did what he did. He didn't say "filling this corner," but IN THIS CORNER, and that is precisely what he did.
I think Irish Miss put it nicely: A "theme... enhanced by the execution"!
Good Morning, all. Ah, no! I am REALLY late today. At this point, WES, including struggling with this one. I did persevere, but it wasn't as much fun for me. Bill, that is not to say you have created a bad puzzle, but I have wrapping paper for brains today! Thanks you for a fine effort and a first entry!
ReplyDeleteSteve, you are a trooper! Aren't you supposed to be basking in the sun?!? Nice tour, thanks so much.
FLN: ( I think that's Anon-T's code for From Last Night)
Ret Fizz, I love the names we have here. You are either a retired PE teacher, Physicist or a guy who has the secret formula to Coca Cola!! Your wife and my kids are all alums of ETHS! Nice for them to share the honor with her.
JMM: Next time HONK. Glad you call Chi-Town home. Me too--born and bred.
I have never been able (English teacher alert) to figure out the Ruth's Chris in the name of the restaurant. Seen it, but have never been there. Thanks, all.
ASADA: I remember when skirt, flank and chuck (pot roast, beef stew), and brisket were "cheap" cuts of beef that had to be cooked slowly forever to be edible! My butcher, who is ever so slightly older than I, teases me when I say chuck was $.49 a pound when I worked in the grocery store in high school. He always says, "Obviously, you are much older than I am!!"
Gotta love this life. Time moves so quickly, we need to enjoy each day. I think TINBENI may have it at Villa Incognito!! Cheers!
In this area, we also had received much needed rain. We might even close the year with our regular quota of about 7 inches per annum. It's been a crisp, wintry day, perfect for baking cookies and spreading their aroma throughout the house. I love the season but it's at the same time sad, missing so many loved ones who are gone.
ReplyDeleteOn one of my mother's last visits to my home she said, "I'm going to teach you to make flan." She did that and today I made it for a dear friend, who BTW, taught me to drive, as it is her favorite dessert and I'll deliver it tomorrow. She's aging, too, but at 89 she is still astute.
Thank you, dear friends, for being here as I sentimentally reach out and I hope you have or will have your loved ones around you and hold them fast.
Hi all!
ReplyDeleteAs Splynter would say - fun sponge. After my 6th lookup to get a foothold I, like CED, through in the towel.
Looking at the grid though, I like the theme (I knew was boxing at ALI) and symmetrical execution ALLOT [sic :-)] and, like OMK said, I didn't need full CORNER fill for the boxers to retire to.
Congrats Bill Z. on your LAT debut and don't let a hack like me bring you down - frankly, I'm just too dumb to know what ARA, WILLEMSTAD, or a NEFERTITI [I know now Lucina - don't worry :-)] is as well as most other names.
Thanks Steve for the expo from the island state. We want pics! The pics will warm our northern Cornerites (or just piss them off :-)). Hat's off to you for finishing a semi-clueless puzzle on the plane!
WOs: None 'cuz I was too stubborn until Steve showed me.
Wrong answers: asinine (not IDIOTIC), SDS, and I had Hence @15a.
CSO: NANA - Hi MIL!
{A; C,B, -, A}
MME Defarge - An Anon posted the why 'Ruth's Chris' last night. You may NEED(Y) to click the down arrow on the 1st QFA. BTW, I don't think FLN was originally mine on the Corner; I may have read it in my lurk days.
Here's all I know about Boxing :-)
Cheers, -T
Madame Defarge- The original steakhouse on N. Broad in New Orleans was called Chris Steakhouse. It was bought by Ruth Fertel, hence it became RUTH'S CHRIS STEAKHOUSE. I remember when there was only ONE. What follows is the Wikipedia version:
ReplyDeleteOver four decades ago, Ruth Fertel, a divorced mother of two, mortgaged her home for $22,000 to buy a small 60-seat restaurant in New Orleans, Louisiana named Chris Steak House. Shortly thereafter, a fire forced her to change the original location and she renamed the restaurant, “Ruth's Chris Steak House.”
MIL, aka NANA, and I just finished planning the Eve and Christmas Day feasts so I turned to the funny pages to wind-down...
ReplyDeleteIf you've not seen BIZARRO take a peek. I LOL'd.
Cheers, -T
Thanks all for explaining the apostrophe in Ruth's Chris.
ReplyDeleteWilbur, ridiculously late. I claim cold and flu. I started this one and slogged to a halt. Then I forgot the newspaper and ended up whizzing through Friday. So, per ??, I reversed the two
ReplyDeleteAnd, as mentioned, Thur was a Fri and vv.
Whilst driving the V8 can hit: MORONIC. Nope, it was IDIOTIC. Idiot and stupid being my father's favorite words
When I found Thurs this morning I knocked it off fairly quickly.
I just meant to check in and here I went
WC
A rare DNF for me. Sometimes I FIW but this was a DNF due to being stuck with SDS and not realizing SLA as a possibility.
ReplyDeleteTo me SDS was a radical group and SLA was just a terrorist group, but I was just a child at that time.
I also became unsure if it was IN THIS CORNER or if maybe it could be IN THAT CORNER.
For some bizarre reason, I had all the circles except the very first one in square 1. But I only knew the names ALI and DURAN anyway. And it was probably a different DURAN that I heard of.
Never heard of SAW anything, so I had very little to work with.
Did anyone else think 25A might be CHAMPION'S CUP? That got me stuck until I figured out HAITI.