google.com, pub-2774194725043577, DIRECT, f08c47fec0942fa0 L.A.Times Crossword Corner: Monday, May 29, 2017 Gail Grabowski & Bruce Venzke

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May 29, 2017

Monday, May 29, 2017 Gail Grabowski & Bruce Venzke

Theme: Parse the Reveal - Parse it correctly and you'll have the theme.

17A. Corporate world meal: POWER LUNCH

31A. Instruction on a Steinway: PIANO LESSON

48A. Political head: PARTY LEADER

65A. "The Maltese Falcon" actor: PETER LORRE

73A. CFO's monetary report, and a hint to this puzzle's four longest answers: P AND L. A profit and loss statement.

Argyle here and a couple of our regular Monday constructors.

Across:

1. Corrosive compounds: ACIDS

6. Dog in "The Thin Man" mysteries: ASTA. 1935 -1947 The movie series. 1957–1959 Two seasons on television.

10. Pork serving: CHOP

14. Heath-covered wastelands: MOORS.


15. Fish tempter: BAIT

16. What the little hand shows: HOUR. Digital kid, "What are hands?"

19. Otherwise: ELSE

20. Guys-only gathering: STAG

21. Lawyer: Abbr.: ATT. (attorney)

22. Artificial: ERSATZ. German Ersatz: a substitute.

24. Took a load off: SAT

26. Helps with the holdup: ABETS

28. Manning of the NFL's Giants: ELI. He was drafted as the first overall pick in the 2004 NFL Draft by the San Diego Chargers and immediately traded to the Giants. - Wiki.

36. Four times a day, in an Rx: QID. Latin, quater in die.

37. Early Peruvians: INCAS

38. Continental cash: EURO

39. Turn loose: UNLEASH

41. Fry cook's woe: SPATTER

44. Light bulb, in comics: IDEA

45. Motionless: INERT

47. CD-__: ROM. A Compact Disc used as a Read-Only optical Memory.

51. Obstinate beast: ASS

52. Back of the boat: STERN

53. Sky safety org.: FAA. (Federal Aviation Administration)

55. Historic Spanish fleet: ARMADA


58. Eden dweller: EVE

60. Rope source: HEMP

64. Aretha's genre: SOUL



68. Voice below soprano: ALTO

69. Defib specialists: EMTS. Defibrillation/Emergency Medical Technician

70. Disney mermaid: ARIEL

71. Burns or Byron: POET

72. Pair of performers: DUET

Down:

1. Bandstand boosters: AMPS

2. Small water bird: COOT


3. Nebraska neighbor: IOWA

4. Bottom-of-the-barrel stuff: DREGS

5. Ukr. or Lith., once: SSR. (Soviet Socialist Republic)

6. Touch the edge of: ABUT

7. "Oye Como Va" group: SANTANA



8. "__-Tac-Dough": TV game show: TIC

9. Walking obediently, as a dog: AT HEEL

10. 32 pieces and a game board: CHESS SET

11. Havana "Hi!": "¡HOLA!"

12. Force out: OUST

13. Chief exec: PREZ. Shortened forms.

18. Ancient Romans: LATINs

23. FedEx assignment: Abbr.: RTE. (route)

25. Capital of Samoa: APIA


27. Ordered (around): BOSSED

28. Provide with gear: EQUIP

29. Singer Ronstadt: LINDA

30. Thumb twiddler: IDLER

32. More in need of a rubdown: ACHIER

33. Kama __: Hindu love guide: SUTRA

34. Tiered cookies: OREOs

35. Societal expectations: NORMS

40. Reacts to being ravenous: EATS A LOT

42. Like better: PREFER

43. Big name in razors: ATRA

46. "No, No" Broadway gal: NANETTE


49. Since Jan. 1, on pay stubs: YTD. (Year To Date)

50. Jumped: LEAPED

54. Now, in Nogales: AHORA. Mexican state of Sonora or US state of Arizona, they abut.

55. Rush job letters: ASAP. (as soon as possible)

56. Caramel candy brand: ROLO


57. Volume-off button: MUTE

59. Flak jacket, e.g.: VEST

61. Whistle-blowing Brockovich: ERIN. Subject of 2000 film bearing her name.

62. Talking TV palomino: MR. ED. Yes, it is "Mister Ed" but TV is television.

63. __-mell: disorderly: PELL

66. Outback avian: EMU

67. Once around the track: LAP. Or what is formed from 24-Across.


Argyle

40 comments:

fermatprime@gmail.com said...

Hi everyone!

Thanks to Gail, Bruce and Santa!

Easy theme. No problems. Delightful Monday puzzle!

Nice to have 4 days off w/o schlepping to k-laser doctor!

Have a great day!

OwenKL said...

{C+.}

The PREZ wanted the portrait to be finished ASAP,
The artist said soon, by next time you've SAT.
As inert he posed,
He was OUSTED by foes
Who used his ego as BAIT, with a painter, ERSATZ!

Jinx in Norfolk said...

Got it all without erasures, but needed perps for old CW friends QID, APIA, Ariel, ROLO and PETER LORRE. As an old COOT, I remember LINDA Ronstadt and SANTANA. I really wanted West Marine for "rope source". I spent thousands on rope there in my sailboat racing days.

Thanks Santa, Gail and Bruce for a fun, easy Monday.

billocohoes said...

ARMADA is a day late; the Spanish Armada set sail on May 28, 1588. Armada Espanola is still the name of the Spanish navy.

M.E. said...

I love how "Parse the Reveal" begins with a P and ends with an L! And when will I learn to parse answers like "PANDL" properly, instead of saying about a dozen times, "but, what's a pandl? pandl.. pandl... pandl..." And then I come running here for an explanation. Always a nice place to be after working the day's puzzle.

Thanks, all, for the puzzle and the discussion here!

Husker Gary said...

Musings
-I needed the theme reveal even though P_ L_ stood out like a brick in a punch bowl
-Remembering Bogart, Greenstreet and LORRE is simple but it seems the young female costars are soon forgotten as their careers are much shorter (BTW, it was Mary Astor in The Maltese Falcon)
-Of these three options, I chose the left face, not the one I grew up with
-Aretha has many songs that only she should sing
-Our school mounted these in our school and gave us 10 min. of instructions but I doubt I’d know how to run one
-Can you name the eight states that Missouri ABUTS?
-A “PREFER” bit they often used (:08)
-We’re off to ceremonies honoring our veterans

Spitzboov said...

Good morning everyone.

Nice treat to have a Gail/Bruce puzzle today. They always do a good job. Easy, and no searches needed.
MOORS - Grew up hearing about moor and Moorland, when my Mom and Dad would reminisce, in their native patois, in recalling the agricultural attributes of the district they hailed from in Schleswig-Holstein.
ARMADA sailing. The main body of the Armada moved on the tide down the Tagus in Mid-May of 1588. Persistent North winds inhibited northerly movement around Iberia until about June 9. All such dates should be verified against the correct calendar base since the Brits didn't convert to the Gregorian until 1752. The Spanish shifted in 1582.

oc4beach said...


Everyone must be sleeping in today.

Nice easy Monday from Gail and Bruce. Argyle's expo PulLed it all together.

In addition to the theme clues, I only needed Perps for a few fills today: QID and PETERLORRE (Bogart didn't fit)

Hope you all have a great Holiday.

Irish Miss said...

Good Morning:

Seeing Bruce and Gail's byline is the puzzle world's equivalent of comfort food, say Mac and Cheese. Easy to dig right into, chew away, and sigh with pleasure! An easy, peasy Monday and, while the P ~ L theme was obvious, the P and L reveal still brought a smile. No nits but learning moment was Coot=Bird. Coot, to me, is a curmudgeon. Ersatz is a word encountered years and years ago, mainly from novels of WWII when so many food items were substitutes, particularly coffee.

Thank you Bruce and Gail, for brightening an otherwise gloomy day and thanks, Argyle, for guiding us along.

If it doesn't' stop raining, we're going to float away. Rain is forecast every day this week until Friday or Saturday. Maybe the month of June will make up for April and May.

Did anyone watch the Washington Memorial Day tribute on PBS last night? I was pleasantly surprised to see "Chunk" from the TV show "Bull" perfrom the opening and closing songs. I think his name is Christoper Jackson and, according to Wiki, he appeared in "Hamilton" and other Broadway successes. Another learning moment.

Have a great (and dry) day.

WikWak said...

Eight states abutting Missouri? Illinois and seven others. Easy peasy. :P

I was so sure the fish tempter was LURE that it slowed me up until I saw the light.

Getting ready to go to the parade and following ceremonies; everyone have a good day.

Spitzboov said...

HG - How about Neb, Tenn, Iowa, Ill.,Ky, Ark, Oklahoma, and Kan.?

NY is bordered by 6 states and 2 provinces.

MJ said...

Good day to all!

Collaborative puzzles from Gail and Bruce are always a pleasure. As others have said, the P_L theme was quite apparent. However I missed the reveal until coming to The Corner as I filled the SE using only down clues. Thanks for the expo, Argyle. Lovely duet from Aretha and Smokey.

Enjoy this fine Memorial Day!

Lemonade714 said...

Good job Spitz. I had Indiana instead of Iowa, but hey I am still getting my strength back. Wik Wak, you get an "A."

It is a holiday, so enjoy the rest and remember all those who have given their lives and for whom this holiday was created. We are here because they were willing to protect our country.

AnonymousPVX said...

Nice easy start to the week. Not much else to say about it.

CanadianEh! said...

Lovely Monday offering. Thanks for the fun Gail and Bruce, and Argyle.
I got the P AND L theme but relied on Argyle for the explanation as I did not come from the corporate world.
But I will take a CSO to my profession at 36A although I am retired now.

I noted ABUT and ABETS, and thought Kama SUTRA was racy for Rich!
Some of the Downs were already filled in and I did not notice them until I got here. I did require perps for AHORA.

The Conservative Party of Canada (The Official Opposition) has a new PARTY LEADER, Andrew Scheer, chosen on Saturday. Might be a good CW clue but probably too obscure.
PartyLeader

Spitzboov, I know the 2 provinces, Ontario and Quebec. LOL! (Without checking a map, I think the 6 states would be New Hampshire, Vermont, Maine, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania and Rhode Island??) How's that for a Canadian? (OK I cheated and see that the 6th should be Connecticut.)

Enjoy the day and the Memorial Day holiday for my American friends.

Spitzboov said...

Canadian Eh - Not bad for a Canadian. Strike New Hampshire and add Connecticut.

How about: Which States/ Provinces abut 4 Gt. Lakes?

PK said...

Hi Y'all! Enjoyed the puzzle, Gail & Bruce. Thanks once again, Argyle!

Caught on to the theme with the second entry. As a bookkeeper for most of my life, I definitely know what is a P & L. The "P" is what you pay taxes on and the "L" keeps you up worrying nights. Fortunately, my husband had enough talent and hustle that we had mostly "P's". That ain't easy when you farm.

A priest of the same surname as my grandfather told him that their first ancestor of that name swam ashore in Ireland from the wrecked Spanish ARMADA. I haven't gone far enough in my genealogy to verify that, but I love the story. My great grandfather looked like a Spanish Don so he could have inherited those genes from some strong swimmer.

Ret-USAF son works as a contractor for the FAA doing safety studies.

Mother used to have that "No No NANETTE" sheet music.

Lots of memory triggers in this puzzle for me today. Growing up for my family this wasn't a day to remember our military dead, but a day to decorate graves and remember our ancestors. I got my start in genealogy in several cemeteries.

CrossEyedDave said...

P and L?
Nope! Nothing funny there, especially on a holiday weekend...

If I may inject a diversion...

And the site I got it from if you are interested...

CrossEyedDave said...

Hmm,I am not sure if this will work,

but?

And I quote:

"Take Mentos and freeze them into ice cubes.
Put the ice cubes in your (sic) friends diet Coke.
After 5 minutes their drink will randomly explode..."

Excuse me, I will be in my Laboratory all day, trying to freeze Mentos...

SwampCat said...

Lemonade, thanks for reminding us of the sacrifices this day represents. Enjoy the holiday, but Never Forget.

Thanks Gail and Bruce and Argyle for all the pleasure you bring. I loved ASTA and ATRA in the same puzzle. And ABETS and ABUTS. For "back of the boat" I always want Poop Deck, but it didn't fit.

Argyle, I needed you to parse P AND L. When will I ever learn?

Owen, you made me smile! Much better than a C+.

tawnya said...

HOLA mi amigos!

I have returned from my "senior trip" (read: celebratory escape) and am ready to conquer the world! My BFF and I took her high school graduate on a road trip to Ohio. We visited Cedar Point and went on all the big coasters multiple times (my fav) (my other fav), traipsed around her old neighborhoods, spent many hours in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (amazing!!!), hung out with the sharks and sting rays at the Cleveland Aquarium (not my video), took a private tour of Progressive Field, then watched the Indians play the Royals (Cleveland lost, sadly). Overall, a great and memorable trip! I missed my puzzles and the corner - I'll try to catch up and see what I've missed.

Great puzzle today, perfect for a Monday. I actually understood the P and L reveal after staring at it for awhile. Thanks for 'splainin' it all :)

LINDA Ronstadt is in the Hall of Fame! My favorite song is Different Drum. What's yours?

Missouri ABUTs eight states - Arkansas is 45 minutes away, Tulsa and OKC are 2 hours, Memphis is 5 hours, Kansas City is 3 hours, East St. Louis in Illinois is 3 hours, Iowa is 8 hours...it's all close but not always the easiest drive - there are not direct routes through and they tend to be small winding roads.

Hoping all is well for you guys. Glad to be back!

t.

Spitzboov said...

PK - The ancestor who swam ashore was a very lucky man. A good number of the survivors of Armada ships shipwrecked against the Irish coast who came ashore were killed on the spot by Locals. No PC in those days.

Argyle said...

We better add New Jersey to the states that abut New York before YR sees it. And leave out Maine. A tenuous Rhode Island; no land connection. Pennsylvania, Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Vermont make up the other four.

Spitzboov said...

Misread Can Eh . Too hasty. Thanks Argyle.

CanadianEh! said...

Thanks for the update, Argyle and Spitzboov. I'll have another look at the map. Apologies to YR! I need to visit that area.

Spitzboov "How about: Which States/ Provinces abut 4 Gt. Lakes?"
Well, Ontario is the one huge province which abuts them all, but there are 5 Great Lakes and 8 states abutting them.
Circle route around Lake Superior is beautiful!

Anonymous T said...

To my fellow Brothers*-in-Arms: Salute!

Hi All: A quick bit of fun from Gail and Bruce to start a lazy day even though they tried to make us think about work (Power Lunch, P&L, Bossed, YTD on pay-stubs) I'm not taking the BAIT but treating today like a SAT.

Thanks Constructors GANDB and thanks Argyle for the Expo... You nearly had a CSO @7d but I'll take the music any day.

WO: PREs
ESP: QID

Fav: ASS c/a before STERN's c/a; c'm'on... Many words for A BUT(t).
Runner up: EATS A LOT - I promised the girls homemade pie. I'll be the Pizza PARTY LEADER this EVE.

{B+}

Tawnya - You're No Good. I mean the song, not you, is my fav LINDA Ronstadt.

Those who felt burnt by Jeff Chen on Sat, check out NYT today and win!

CED - While waiting for your HIJKLMNO / Mentos concoction to freeze: enjoy! . For more, see EepyBird.com.

Cheers, -T
*and Sisters [2m - linking so CED gets to watch again :-)]

JD said...

Happy Memorial Day to all, however you choose to observe it.I wish we had seen more flags displayed on our morning walk.
Always a pleasure to wake up on a a Monday to Gail, Bruce and Argyle.Had to WAG the a in pandl.

Misty said...

Always great to see a Gail and Bruce puzzle on a Monday morning, and this one was a delightful speed run! Many thanks to you both! And Santa, thanks for explaining ROM--the first time I've learned that. I got the theme, but didn't know what P AND L stood for until your write-up--so thanks for that too.

A thought occurred to me this morning. My Mondays and Tuesdays are always pretty relaxed days, while Fridays and Saturdays are always pretty stressful. Could that have to do with the increasing difficulty of the crossword puzzles over the course of the week--or is it just the product of a life style where social and other obligations sort of begin to pile up as the weekend approaches? Hmmm? Probably the latter, but I did wonder for a minute as I relaxed with the Gail and Bruce this morning.

Have a memorable and good holiday today, everybody!

CrossEyedDave said...

Tawnya, thank you for the ups and downs...
Perfect for a Holiday Weekend!
I might be able to do the downs, and maybe a few ups,
but this old back cannot take that kind of sideways torque I saw
in that 1st video!

The 2nd video,
climbing that 1st hill, all I could say was"Oh Crap!"
When it crested the 1st drop,all I could say was "holy S***!"
(Hmm, gotta go watch them again...)
Sheesh, I haven't been on one of those since the Cyclone in Coney Island.

Anonymous T

You know me too well,
Yes I had to watch it again,
& I still get a belly laugh out of it every time...

(Curiously, I wanted to link Your No Good for tawyna...hmm,)
(Anonymous, are we related in some way?)

Oh well,

Back from the Laboratory, unfortunately Science disproves the best prank ever...

Bummer...

Anonymous said...

This was a delightful speed run. Thanks, GG, BV, and Argyle!

Only w/o's were loin/CHOP and MesaS/MOORS. I saw the theme at the third answer and have enough accounting background to know P AND L.

At the shelter we have 4 fenced areas where we can UNLEASH the dogs. Do they walk AT HEEL? Never!

Thank You to those who have served our country. Happy Memorial Day!

CrossEyedDave said...

Hmm, so how can we delay the interaction of Mentos with Coke
without smoothing the surface of the Mento?

Another puzzle! Woohoo!

Oh, & for others with too much time on their hands...

Spitzboov said...

Canadian Eh @ 1:18. I was trying to say which single state, by itself, abuts 4 Gt Lakes. Similarly, which single Province, by itself. abuts 4 of the HOMES?

I think that's 5 posts, and I'm out.

CanadianEh! said...

Spitzboov: Aha! I see that Michigan abuts 4 Great Lakes and Ontario abuts 4 also (but not the same 4). Good geography lesson today.

Anonymous T said...

CED - I've got eggs, hydrocloric ACID [note to DHS: It's for the pool!; turn ATTn elsewhere], balloons, beakers & stoppers. But, Zinc? Gee, I just ran out [22s]

RIP NPR's Frank Deford. I enjoy baseball and (some) football, but Frank had a way of making me care about golf and soccer. He'd paint a bigger & beautiful picture in near verse on the radio.

CED - Are we related? Mitochondrial EVE suggests yes. Though, we are distance cousins...
On the Internet no one knows if ONE's an Ape

Spitz - You're a Vet. So, today, go to Eleven if you want. Salute!

Cheers, -T

Lucina said...

I almost missed the party today, but thanks to Gail and Bruce for their always refreshing and easy Monday puzzles.

My niece and I joined a large group at the cemetery for early Mass and then walked around placing flowers on the graves of family members. Though only 10, they are scattered throughout the cemetery and even with a map we had trouble finding the older ones. My brother and SIL arrived to help. R.I.P. to all of them and especially the members of the Armed Forces.

And to all here who served, you have my deepest gratitude.

I enjoyed the puzzle and sashayed through it with no problems. Luckily, QID emerged as did PANDL and I have to thank Argyle for 'splainin that one.

Though PETERLORRE et al are memorable, I also recall Mary Astor. She is superb in that role.

I hope you are enjoying a relaxing and peaceful holiday!

Hungry Mother said...

Solid start to the week. For some reason, I started with "checkers" before CHESSSET, but the perps quickly put me on track. Nice to see COOT today.

PK said...

Spitzboov: No doubt you are right about locals killing the survivors of the Armada. So it got me thinking about the scenarios whereby a survivor might continue to live and be assimilated into the population. Thereby hangs a good novel, methinks. I'm to tired to write it, but my daughter might.

Thank you to all our veterans for serving. The mother of a friend of mine died recently. I knew she was an avid VFW member.
Her obit mentioned that she was a Gold Star Mother. I hadn't realized that she lost a son in Vietnam. So while thanking those that served we can also be thankful that their mothers didn't get any Gold Stars. I'm certainly glad I didn't and that my son didn't lose any crucial parts flying missions over very hazardous-looking terrain in foreign wars.

Abejo said...

Good afternoon, folks. Thank you, Gail and Bruce, for a fine puzzle. Thank you, Argyle, for a fine review.

Spent half the day at a parade in Wauconda. Annual event. We had a full float/trailer for the Brass Band. Played lots of great Sousa Marches. weather was fine, but a bit windy.

Puzzle was a fine one. Liked the theme. This constructing pair are very popular, IMHO.

SSR again. Very popular clue since the Iron Curtain fell.

Had PRES instead of PREZ.

ARMADA and the dates involved was a learning moment. Interesting.

Our old friend MR ED. We have not had him in a while. Used to be a regular.

Now to finish the Sunday puzzle while I eat supper. Hope to see you soon tonight.

Abejo

( )

CrossEyedDave said...

Hmm,Coot...

I wonderwhich direction I should take with this clue/answer.

TX Ms said...

Where's D-O .. our early bird?