Patti is here with her first 2017 puzzle, which structurally is like her last Friday effort. LINK. Using the inspiration of Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes who wrote all of his legal works standing, I am here typing at my makeshift standing desk. This may end up being brief, but then brevity is the soul of wit I am told. The theme are all one word clues, which are brought together on the tennis court.
17A. POINT : TAPERING END ( 11). The fill are literal responses to the clue.
23A. GAME : SAFARI ANIMALS (13). There does not appear to be any relation in the fill.
50A. SET : FILMING LOCALE (13). A little more difficult for me.
59A. MATCH : FIRE STARTER (11). Then the unmarked reveal...
34A. With 36-Across, question for the court : TENNIS (6) and 36A. See 34-Across : ANYONE (6).
For anyone who has played or watched Tennis (the amazing Williams sister are playing for the Australian Open title as I type) point, game, set and match track how a tennis match progresses, and they are skillfully in order here. An appropriate puzzle for the first grand slam event of the year.
Not much else in the longer fill, SEE PAST, IN A RUSH, HAIRCUT, EGG DROP, IMPOSE ON and ORIENTAL but some tricky proper names to be addressed.
Across:
1. Like much of the Southwest : ARID. Deserts are dry; desserts sweet.
5. Summer music? : DISCO. Wonderful old deception but I was a big Donna Summer fan.
10. Org. funded by FICA : SSA. Social Security Administration.
13. Under-the-sink brand : COMET.
15. "Paper Moon" Oscar winner : O'NEAL. Tatum O'Neal won the 1973 Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress.
16. Like ibuprofen, briefly : OTC. Over The Counter.
19. Jiff : SEC.
20. "Nothing planned that day" : I'M OPEN. To suggestion, maybe, or I'm free.
21. Engineering sch. on the Hudson : RPI. Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, a cso to some of our own. Putting it nest to...
22. Sport with masks : EPEE. Might trick some to think of a hockey goalie.
26. Move a finger or two, maybe : PEEK. a-boo.
28. Physics units : RADS. You cacc call Sheldon to explain THESE.
29. Signs over : CEDES.
30. 1945 Pacific battle site, familiarly : IWO. Jima.
31. Superfan : NUT.
32. Superhero played by Chris Hemsworth : THOR.. So many named Chris.
40. Exercise woe : ACHE.
42. Alex Dunphy, to Luke, on "Modern Family" : SIS. She has grown up.
43. Mojito ingredient : RUM.
44. "Not a problem" : IT'S OK.
47. Stuff in a backpack : GEAR. Not any more.
49. Little stretches : FIBS. Just like the clue/fill.
53. Captain Picard's counselor : TROI. Star Trek:TNG
54. Unexpectedly by itself, as in the dryer : ODD.
55. Kenya neighbor : UGANDA. EAST AFRICA.
58. Storybook baddie : HAG. The ugly witches.
61. Programming pioneer Lovelace : ADA. A gimme for our math and Computer people, but I only knew of Linda. LINK.
62. Stopped lying : AROSE. To tell you the truth, this was trocky.
63. Sphere : REALM.
64. Common scale extreme : TEN. From one to....
65. Org. chart headings : DEPTS. Org. tells you the answer is an abbr.
66. Crack up : SLAY. Comedy.
Down:
1. When Lear disinherits Cordelia : ACT I. More friday Shakespeare.
2. "Home on the Range" verb : ROAM.
Oh give me a home where the buffalo roam,
Where the deer and the antelope play,
Where seldom is heard a discouraging word,
And the skies are not cloudy all day.
3. Take unfair advantage of : IMPOSE ON.
4. "Quantum Healing" author Chopra : DEEPAK. So stale, you might day 9D. Dated : OLD.
5. Throw on : DON. And his gay apparel.
6. Ilsa portrayer : INGRID.
7. Overlook, as a fault : SEE PAST.
8. "A Doubter's Almanac" novelist Ethan : CANIN. I guess I no longer read the NYT Book section on Sunday. This MAN.
10. Under-the-sink brand : SOS PAD. Or did your family use Brillo?
11. "Remington __" : STEELE.
12. Hacker's goal : ACCESS.
14. Nonkosher : TREF. An americanized word pronounced TRAYF.
18. Pressed for time : IN A RUSH.
22. Manicurist's tool : EMERY. Only when they are bored?
24. Expose, with "on" : RAT.
25. Desktop assortment : ICONS.
26. Cherry center : PIT.
27. Lamb parent : EWE. Not me.
31. "Pink Friday" singer Minaj : NICKI. Lots of names.
33. Coiffure : HAIRCUT. $150.00 /$10.00
35. "The End of America" author Wolf : NAOMI. Too POLITICAL for here.
37. Avenue after Reading Railroad : ORIENTAL. Monopoly.
38. Worn end : NUB. Pencil
39. Scrabble three-pointers : EMS.
41. Wonton alternative : EGGDROP. Soup choices.
42. Brazilian map word : SAO. Paulo.
44. "Maybe less" : IF THAT.
45. Intemperate speech : TIRADE. That was almost a trap.
46. Apple's "Think different," e.g. : SLOGAN.
48. Like Meg March, in "Little Women" : ELDEST.
49. Emergency signals : FLARES.
51. Bete __ : NOIRE. I had this recently.
52. Food thickener : AGAR.
56. Poet Walter __ Mare : DELA. Missed him when studying Poetry. LINK.
57. Large number : ARMY.
59. Pokémon Go, e.g. : FAD.
60. French possessive : SES.
Well the month is almost done; this was slow going as some of the proper names were hidden from my brain. Hey it is Friday. My six week wait for an epidural is almost done so maybe I will have more to say next week. Lemonade out. Thanks Patti.
40 comments:
Greetings!
Thanks to Patti and Lemon! Easy for a Friday.
Perped were CANIN, DE LA (two words) and NAOMI. Had trouble spelling DEEPAK.
Oh well, turned out OK.
Thanks for good wishes yesterday.
Have a great day!
{A, A, A, B+, A-.}
There once was a gander from UGANDA
Who wooed a Welsh EWE he was fond a'.
But the sheep said, "Begone ya,
We're from different genera!
Besides, I'm already engaged to a panda!
In the depths of the REALM lived a HAG named NAOMI
She made wicked beer, but the King, he said, "Show me!"
He was her BETE NOIRE,
Still she gave him a jar --
Afterwards said, "It's the poison made that batch so foamy!"
THOR stood alone, facing an ARMY
Of the fiercest ANIMALS you'd see on SAFARI.
But they soon were to flee!
Soothing, music can be;
But he hammered out DISCO, which drove them all barmy!
DEEPAK Chopra stood alone, facing an ARMY
Of rednecks who all agreed he was barmy!
His effort to slow 'em
Was to throw out a SLOGAN;
But they tore up his books, and said it was Karm-i!
The COMET FLARED by IN A RUSH of light,
TAPERING off towards the END of the night.
Some feared it a shade,
Heaven's fiery TIRADE --
But innocents called it a pretty delight!
Good morning!
Got it, but barely. I'M FREE slowed me down up top and NICKI NAOMI slowed me down in the south. Still, it came together in better-than-normal Friday time, so all is good. I agree that there seemed to be lots of names in this one -- either you know 'em, or you don't. I got lucky. Thanx, Patti and Lemon.
Good morning all. Thanks Patti. Thanks Lemonade.
What fermatprime said. Easy Friday for me too.
One run across, and one run down, and it was more done than not. Had to change a few across answers on that first down run. eg, I'M free to I'M OPEN, and got up to AROSE. DEEPAK was a gimme, and EGGDROP made me change the latter.
Unknown NAOMI was an easy wag.
Liked "little stretches" for FIBS. Cute.
Hi Peg !
I remember that point in my career when my viewpoint changed from org charts being an obsession of empire builders to being a much referenced tool in the rapidly changing landscape.
Jinx, they still haven't found that Panda ?
DNF. Ran out of time and patience. 22A EPEE? I thought that was the sword. I thought the sport was called FENCING. Hmm.
Good Morning, Lemonade and friends. This was an easier Friday puzzle that often times. I liked the theme.
We saw Donna Summer recently, so I wasn't fooled by the DISCO.
Although "I'm Free" crossed my mind, I already had filled in the "p", so immediately filled in I'M OPEN.
I really wanted an Egg Roll, but the perps finally convinced me we were going for the EGG DROP Soup.
I, too, think of EPEE as being the sword as opposed to the Sport.
Happy Friday!
It was obvious from the beginning with the capitalized POINT, GAME, SET,& MATCH that TENNIS would be in the puzzle somewhere.
As A matter of fact, Nadal and Dimitrov are in the fifth SET at 7:15 am, CST, tied at two games all- on ESPN. Winner will play Roger Federer for the Championship.
I had lots of trouble finishing the South, with TROI, ADA, DELA, NAOMI, & ELDEST all solve from perps.
I liked the DON-'Donna Summer-DISCO link up north.
D-N-F ... Thanks Lemon for explaining my Ink Blot ...
IT'S OK ,,, I'm getting ready for the Gasparilla Pirate invasion tomorrow.
RUM will be consumed ...
Cheers!
So much for being brief. No wonder you were short on wit.
However, I would have appreciated a link to Linda.
Game, Set, Match
Nadal beats Dimitrov 6-4 in the fifth set after FIVE HOURS of of singles play.
I had a hard time today. Dele'd AROSE because I was sure that EGGroll was right, then did a stet. Hand up for I'M free. Erased riO for SAO. At one time my hot-shot DW had offices in Dallas, Miami and Sao Paulo. Had to replace app with FAD for pokemon.
I had ONEiL for Tatum, and fixed it when I double-checked CiNIN on Google. Also looked up NICKI and NAOMI. I wonder if the Trump administration will blame Obama for everything that goes wrong in the next eight years. Seems to be a trend, and NAOMI could have been a pioneer.
TTP - The Panda hunters say we need to bear with them.
Thanks to Patti for a fun puzzle. Maybe one day I will be equal to your challenges. And thanks to Lemony. Hope your back is as good as new soon.
Started SE with aLARmS for FLARES. Didn't know CANIN and DELArose, misspelled NIkKI
Kind of object to SOSPAD as a "brand". "S.O.S" is the brand name. The box describes the product as "S.O.S Reusable SOAP-FILLED STEEL WOOL PADS"
The S.O.S brand is also used for scrubbers and sponges.
Fun puzzle, faster than usual Friday. I'm free to I'm open. Egg roll to egg drop, we are talking soup. Only CANIN and ADA were unknowns and totally perped. I have heard TENNIS ANYONE in movies, never in real life. It seems to me that most people arrive on court with someone to play.
Erma Bombeck, "If Life Is a Bowl of Cherries, What Am I Doing in the Pits?" I love her sense of humor.
EPEE is an Olympic sport.
Thanks, Lemon for your fine effort in spite of all your pain.
I like Walter De La Mere's poetry.
Silver by Walter De La Mare
Slowly, silently, now the moon walks the night in her silver shoon;
This way, and that, she peers, and sees silver fruit upon silver trees;
One by one the casements catch her beams beneath the silvery thatch;
Couched in his kennel, like a log, with paws of silver sleeps the dog;
From their shadowy cote the white breasts peep of doves in silver feathered sleep
A harvest mouse goes scampering by, with silver claws, and silver eye;
And moveless fish in the water gleam, by silver reeds in a silver stream.
Good morning all!
Not too bad for a Friday; I finished under my usual time. However, I couldn't see the theme in the one word clues ( doh!- should have known with them being all in Caps) so thanks Lemonade for a fine write up. I find myself standing more often than not- helps with the back but not so much with the bum knee. Good luck to you with the epidural :)
Thanks to Patti for a good work out.
Hand up for I'm Free / IMOPEN. I also had ONEAL as ONEIL- that one gets me every time on the correct spelling. Tried Awoke / AROSE. Tried Mes for SES.
A lot of perps: RPI, RADS, ADA, CANIN, TREF, NAOMI and DELA
Favorite clever clues were for PEEK and FIBS.
Getting a HAIRCUT today. My hairdresser is a dear- he always has a supply of candy, gossip mags (the only time I read them is there) and gives me trial sizes of expensive hair products. I always leave feeling spoiled and a new coiffure always makes a gal feel better :)
Happy Friday- hope it's a great day for everyone!
🐇
Good day to all!
So many unknowns today--Ethan CANIN, NICKI Minaj, Walter DE LA Mare, NAOMI Wolf, and ADA Lovelace, all of whom arrived via perps. Also didn't know Chris Hemsworth, and don't follow superhero stories. Thought "Little Stretches" for FIBS was cute. Even with all the unknowns, I agree that this was an easier than usual Friday puzzle. Thanks for the puzzle, Patti, and thanks for being our faithful Friday tour guide, Lemonade.
Enjoy the day!
With an army of proper names that I did not know, I was unable to complete this. Also, TREF, SES, and TROI were unknowns, and a couple others just didn't click.
Agree that it was on the easy side for a Friday, but very enjoyable.
Good Morning:
I like Patti's theme a lot. (It reminded me of another one of her offerings that used Plate, Bowl, Dish, etc. with non-food/china connotations.). The tricky clues were easier for me to fill, while the straightforward ones gave me pause until the perps came to the rescue. With a few letters in place, I recognized Canin as I read one of his novels, "America, America" many years ago. Never heard of the poet but have heard of Naomi Wolfe, Nicki Minaj, Tatum O'Neal and Deepak Chopra. Ada was Ava at first and Got up before Arose. CSO to Spitz at RPI. (Agar seems to be showing up a lot lately.). Little stretches=Fibs was my fav.
Nicely done, Patti, many thanks and thanks to you, too, Lemony, for being such a tireless trouper and tour guide. I hope you get some relief soon.
YR, Erma Bombach was a treasure. I remember reading her column years ago and enjoying her wit and humor.
RIP Mike Connors. "Mannix" was on my must-see TV show list back in the day.
Have a great day.
This was a fun Friday. Thanks Patti and Lemonade (especially for working through the discomfort). I enjoyed this timely TENNIS theme. Canadians are still sad that Milos Raonic bowed out to Nadal in the quarter-finals.
I also enjoyed seeing ORIENTAL parallel to EGGDROP, and the Monopoly and Scrabble games.
Lovely reminder of a SAFARI in Kenya. Lemon, your map shows Sudan abutting UGANDA and should be South Sudan (new country since 2011 currently still embroiled in civil war). Argyle kindly reposted updated map of Africa after my discussion on Dec 26, 2016.
I had to think about grammar rules with LYING. (Thanks again to Husker G Wednesday for another grammar discussion.)
Hand up for Oneil before ONEAL. I had Alot before ARMY, Out before NUB (I was thinking a word ending not a literal ending!). Unknowns TREF, SSA, TROI (I had Sulu LOL!), CANIN filled in with perps.
I did question the clue for EPEE like unclefred and Hahtoolah. But after YR's post I guess I could be persuaded that EPEE is an Olympic sport as a category of Fencing named after the weapon.
Like billocohoes, I had a small nit with SOS PADS.
Two favourite clues today were for FIBS and ODD (oh those missing socks!).
Also smiled at Little Women clue (Mother named us from that book!). Is anyone here an ELDEST SISTER? With what I call ELDEST SISTER syndrome (they rule the world)? Obviously, I am a youngest LOL.
Enjoy the day.
Musings
-Just enough challenge at the end for a fun day
-Katherine Hepburn on the FILMING LOCALE (several in UGANDA) for The African Queen - dysentery, malaria, contaminated drinking water and several close brushes with wild animals and poisonous snakes.
-ONE_L? I bet on the wrong vowel
-The REALM of Downton Abbey’s influence started shrinking after WWI
-My Monday HAIRCUT (Coif) will cost $20 with tip
-In April of 1912, the Californian never saw these FLARES
Hello everyone.
Nifty theme from Patti, today, and well executed.
Got it all without assistance except needed spelling help with O'NEAL. (Natick with CANIN.) Lots of nifty sometimes deceptive cluing.
MATCH - Dutch word is Lucifer. Plural: add s rather than the usual en.
Have a great day.
Friday is usually a DNF day but I did finish about 85%.
Film locale?
Very Punny...
Hi Gang -
Wasn't easy for me. Not knowing all the names was a hindrance. Even knowing the sounds doesn't always help with the spellings - right DEEPAK? Pop culture has left me behind, and I'm quite OK with that.
Just had an interesting discussion with the LW about a couple of non-fiction books that were popular back in the 70's.
Nice progression theme, and the central TENNIS ANYONE is an elegant touch.
Some misdirecting clues - good for a Friday.
OLDEST for ELDEST gave me GOAR, which i could not suss. So - FIW in that small way.
We had lunch the other day with a friend at a Chinese restaurant. He had the EGG DROP; Gloria went for the won ton, and I chose the hot and sour.
Rehearsal tonight, performance Sunday.
Cool regards!
JzB
Hello Puzzlers -
Pecked away at this one, mostly because of the unknown names. Got there eventually and smiled right out loud when finally I sussed the theme.
Thanks for clarification, Lemon!
Now a question unrelated to crosswords: do we have any ice skaters among us? I've recently dusted off that skill. I'm not as flexible as I was in 1975.
Well, I also found this more difficult than many Fridays because of all the unknown names. Had to cheat and look up TROI, NAOMI, NICKI, and DEEPAK. At least I knew Walter DE LA Mare--many thanks for posting "Silver," Yellowrocks! And although I got both PEEK and AROSE, I couldn't figure out what they had to do with fingers and not telling the truth 'lying.' But I didn't have that much trouble with the theme answers, so, thank you, Patti. And you too, Lemonade, for the helpful write-up. Good luck getting help with the pain.
Have a great day, everybody!
Dudley, DW suggested about 10 years ago that we go ice skating. So we headed off to the Galleria, rented some skates, and hit the ice. It'd been at least 40 years, but it all came back to me, like riding a bicycle. DW, not so much. I was zooming while she was putzing. I didn't try any leaps; afraid I'd fall on my Axel (or look like a Lutz). After about 30 minutes DW called it quits. We haven't gone skating again. But we do still ride bicycles -- geezer cruiser bikes with one-speed and a coaster brake.
A slow slog for me, ending with a minor key Ta-DA!
I took a break after my first few rounds with Ms. Varol's Friday beast. I credit her with mental toughness and as the source for a few chuckles along the way with such quasi mis-directions as "Little stretches" and "Stopped lying."
The only gimmes for me were ACT I, O'NEAL, DE LA Mere, and ADA, the last being the daughter of Lord Byron, who was a research subject at a time in my past.
Didn't find much help in the theme. I got TENNIS from perps, and of course the natural follow-up had to be ANYONE, which I recalled from being in Shaw's comedy, Misalliance in which an idle rich character famously calls on his mates to join him in a leisurely game. But the Xwd fun was over then, as the thematic parts only tied together in the capitalized clues, not in the answers.
This Canadian can still ice skate but my balance is not what it used to be. DH holds me up.
Nice Friday puzzle, on the easy side, not a complaint.
MANNIX was a great show, Mike Connors took a beating every week, and was always getting his brake line cut. I bought the entire series off AMAZON and believe it or not, it holds up.
Cool puzzle, but yes there were so many names I didn't know. Hey, I can "one up" Patti's theme: Elevennis anytwo? (All credit due to Victor Borge.)
I learned from xword puzzling the EPEE is the sport as well as the weapon. When we got HAIRCUTs my dad always called it getting our ears lowered.
Best wishes to you all.
Jayce, my mom said the same thing.
YR, thx for the de la Mare poem.
I found this a real slog. My son met me at lunch and I immediately hit him with the Pokemon? He immediately pointed out TENNIS. Which got me restarted.
I'd thrown a quick S where GEAR fit and that got the pesky SW finished. CANDO had to be replaced by ITSOK.
Another no sports gimmes XW. Patti Varol Always produces a quality product.
Thx Lemonade too.
Owen, no groaners just your typical wild imagination.
I literally took wonton as that pork filled thingy in the SOUP.
WC
Good evening, folks. Thank you, Patti Varol, for a fine puzzle. Thank you, Lemonade, for a fine review.
This one took a while. That is why I am checking in this late. Started about 10:30 PM last night while on the train from Chicago to Erie.
Got started easily in the NW, but that ended quickly. Poked around ang got a word here and there.
First theme answer was TAPERING END. The rest did not come easily, but I got them.
Lots of unknowns: DEEPAK, CANIN, NAOMI, NICKI, DELA, TROI.
Perseverance won the day. lad I kept with it.
Tomorrow is our gun raffle in PA. Should be fun.
See you tomorrow or Sunday.
Abejo
( )
I think there were a few "little stretches" epee for fencing??
Agar - food thickener, always makes me think of John Agar, Shirley Temples first husband.
It's so late already. I went to a funeral today, my bro's BIL, a fine man who left too soon. And during the events my sister had a neural event of some sort and didn't recognize where she was or what had happened all morning. We finally persuaded her to be taken to the hospital for testing. Results so far are inconclusive.
Thank you, Patti Varol for a nicely challenging puzzle which I managed to finish just tonight. TEN/SLOGAN eluded me as I had IFTHAN. All else was quite perpable by solving up/down simultaneously.
Thank you, Lemonade, and I'm sorry to learn you are still in pain. I know it's torturous.
I hope you all enjoyed your day!
"Limardo's gold, in individual epee, was Venezuela's first for 44 years." -ReutersAug 9, 2012 No stretch. Epee is an Olympic sport.
Lucina, I am so sorry to hear of your sister's medical "event" today. Sending healing thoughts to both of you.
Thank you, YR, it appears to be a kind of temporary amnesia caused by stress. In her case, that would be understandable!
"Puzzling thoughts"
It is rare for me on a Friday puzzle, to solve the entire grid without having to Google.
I did have a couple of inkblots; as I initially put in I'm free in 20 across, and ton in 64
across.
But those were the only mistakes; the rest of my grid is pristine.
I am obviously here late, as I only had a few minutes to try the puzzle Friday morning, then had a very busy day and evening, and just finished the puzzle a few minutes ago before I head to bed.
No time for a limerick; maybe if the mood hits me tomorrow, or should I say later today, I'll throw one out there.
Regarding 41 down, egg drop, that was one of my three choices for soup tonight when I had Chinese food. I chose sweet-and-sour instead!
Well, it looks like South Florida is going to feel the effects of the winter storm up north. We are only expecting a high temperature of 65 tomorrow, and maybe 60 on Sunday with rain showers. Lows will be in the 40s and/or 50's. Brrrr!! 😜
Thanks Patti for a clever puzzle, and thanks too, to Lemonade for his expert recap.
My wife and I have such fun working these puzzles. This one in particular was quite pleasant to solve. Gear, Sao and Depts were last to solve.
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