Jeffrey is back again with a pre-tribute to a new MOVIE that comes out in August. Okay, probably not, but this is a really impressive creation as we have a 15 x 16 grid (to leave room for 59 across) with only one cheater square in the grid! We have the word "DUCK" implied but not written in eight (8) answers, and they are set up in lines (rows) 1, 6 and 9 with a two-part reveal in 12 and 14. Again pushing the no rebus envelope at the LAT we are presented with a pretty easy Friday that glows with its originality. I think this may be a combination that appeals to many, but YMMV. I loved the visual appeal of the grid, which reminds me of the old Atari game SPACE INVADERS. As always, we have a goodly mix of sparkly fill, this time BEATLES, DIGNIFY, LONG RUN, NO RULES, OREGANO, SONNETS, CANARY CAGE and FAT-BUSTING.
1A. *Sparkling wine: COLD
11A. *Defeated incumbent: LAME
27A. *Toon with a speech problem: DAFFY DUCK (5) Daffy first appeared in Porky's Duck Hunt, released on April 17, 1937. The cartoon was directed by Tex Avery and animated by Bob Clampett. Porky's Duck Hunt is a standard hunter/prey pairing for which Leon Schlesinger's studio was famous, but Daffy (barely more than an unnamed bit player in this short) was something new to moviegoers: an assertive, completely unrestrained, combative protagonist.
30A. *Goner: DEAD
34A. *Charmed one: LUCKY
46A. *Bath toy: RUBBER
48A. *Fictional uncle of triplets: DONALD
59A. With 69-Across, organizational process implied by eight answers in this puzzle: GETTING ONE'S DUCKS (16) 69A. See 59-Across: IN A ROW(6).
62 theme squares!
Across:
15. Trendy berry: ACAI. I think the bloom is off this berry.
16. Critter: ANIMAL. Daffy and Donald are both anthropomorphic critters.
17. Natural resources: ORES.
18. Fillmore's party: WHIG. Lucky 13, Millard Fillmore was the last Whig President. When my son and d-i-l were in graduate school in Buffalo we went to the cemetery where he is buried. Interestingly, both of his wives are buried there. I include a nice SUMMARY of the WHIG Party.
19. Hyundai sedan: SONATA. Hmm. Etymology:
past participle of sonare "to sound," from Latin sonare "to sound," 21A. Browning works: SONNETS. 
Etymology: directly from Italian sonetto, literally "little song," from Old Provençal sonet "song," diminutive of son "song, sound," from Latin sonus "sound"20. Tide table term: NEAP. This is a tide just after the first or third quarters of the moon when there is the least difference between high and low water.
23. Pizzeria jarful: OREGANO. And parmagianno.
25. Martinique, e.g.: ILE. Our regular French for Island. If you have not been, it is a wonderful place to visit. The food is great and you can get Paris fashions for reasonable prices. But it is not designed for a long vacation.
26. Always, in 21-Across: E'ER.
38. Former Half.com owner: eBAY. Half.com was a subsidiary of eBay. eBay shut down the service on September 1, 2017. It was a website where sellers offered items for sale at fixed prices. The items available on half.com were limited to books, textbooks, music, movies, video games, and video game consoles.
39. "Not guilty," e.g.: DENIAL.
41. Second start?: NANO.
42. Home security giant: ADT. The company started as American District Telegraph and has a very diverse HISTORY.
43. Take into account: REMEMBER.
45. Just issued, in Innsbruck: NEU. Kazie, Spitzboov-what are the differences between Austrian/German?
50. Swung about: SLUED. slew verb: past tense: slued; past participle: slued turn or slide violently or uncontrollably in a particular direction. "the Chevy slued from side to side in the snow"
51. Places for notes: PADS. Not music.
55. Iberian Peninsula city: PORTO. A new tourist destination in PORTUGAL.
56. Blue: SAD.
57. Fit to __: A TEE.
58. Mock conclusion?: ERY.
65. Either of two Monopoly sqs.: UTIL.
66. Like boxers: CANINE. Doggies.
67. Parrilla of "Once Upon a Time": LANA. Never heard of this actress, but then again I do not watch the show. She actually has been very BUSY.
68. Debussy subject: LUNE. I love good PIANO.
70. Self-images: EGOS.
71. Overdoes it, with "out": PIGS.
72. Lawgivers: SOLONS. A fun Friday fill. Solon, (born c. 630 BCE—died c. 560 BCE), Athenian statesman, known as one of the Seven Wise Men of Greece (the others were Chilon of Sparta, Thales of Miletus, Bias of Priene, Cleobulus of Lindos, Pittacus of Mytilene, and Periander of Corinth).
73. Son of Eve: SETH. The third son, but The Works of Josephus states: "The number of Adam's children, as says the old tradition, was 33 sons and 23 daughters." TITUS FLAVIUS JOSEPHUS was a prolific scholar. Historic reading, no religion.
Down:
1. Cornfield calls: CAWS. Cute continued alliteration.
2. Tres y cinco: OCHO. Spanish math.
3. Placed: LAIN.
4. Give due respect: DIGNIFY.
5. Scrapbooker's supply: PASTE.
6. Son of 73-Across: ENOS. Or Enosh is a link in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, but that would be religion.
7. Holiday guests, often: KIN.
8. Bread's "Baby __ Want You": I'M A. A forgotten band from the early 70's? The song lives on.
9. Org. led by Jens Stoltenberg: NATO. North Atlantic Treaty Organization. Now led by this MAN.
10. Driving hazard: GLARE.
11. Broadway producer's desire: LONG RUN.
12. Region: AREA.
13. Nasty: MEAN.
14. Hockey's Phil, to fans: ESPO. Phil and Tony Esposito were both very successful.
22. Historic Nevada city: ELY. Rhymes with eely.
24. Sushi roll fish: EEL. A C.C. favorite.
27. Darlings: DEARS.
28. Former "Idol" judge: ABDUL. A successful dancer who has fought bulimia.
29. Adjective in some diet ads: FAT-BUSTING. These ads probably cause the onset of bulimia.
30. JFK or LBJ: DEMocrat.
31. Chemical suffix: ENE.
32. Intention: AIM.
33. Apply carefully: DAB.
35. Pet bird's home: CANARY CAGE.
36. Lowered oneself?: KNELT. “No man stands so tall as when he stoops to help a child.”
--Danny Thomas founder of St. Jude's children's hospital.
37. "Really?": YOU DO?
39. German article: DER.
40. Was first: LED.
43. __-wip: REDDI.
44. Cordoned (off): ROPED.
47. '60s pop group: BEATLES.
49. Free-for-all situation: NO RULES.
51. 2010s Colts head coach Chuck: PAGANO. The first use of this clue/fill combo.
52. Without a key: ATONAL.
53. Hathaway's "The Intern" co-star: DE NIRO.
54. "As __ TV": SEEN ON. So many stores have their sections devoted to the variety of products sold 'only' on TV.
59. [Yikes!]: GULP.
60. Notions case: ETUI. This was a common fill because of the vowels.
61. CBS maritime drama: NCIS. Oo and I watched the first few seasons on Netflix. They were really good.
62. Finishes (up): SEWS.
63. Celtic __: KNOT. This is not as simple as it sounds. LINK.
64. Merit badge site: SASH.
Well, I am back in the saddle again, riding to the finish of another Friday frolic. Jeffrey's wide variety of puzzles continue to please and I leave it to you all to let me know if you agree. Lemonade out.
75 comments:
Not too difficult, and the theme was easy to recognize early! Strange that both DAFFY and DONALD have speech defects -- one has a lisp, and everything the other says is fake! (I know, no politics, but that set-up was just too tempting to resist even for a Republican!)
Baby, I'MA want you, that's my AIM!
Baby, you're the reason that I came!
As the seasons go by,
I'm impelled to DIGNIFY
That I love you like Paris in the month of Mai !
I'd play you a SONATA, but 'twould be ATONAL,
I'd sing you a SONNET, but no nuance is so noble,
The GLARE of your beauty doth E'ER
O'ershadow all art, my DEAR!
I'd DAB you a painting, but 'twould be monochromal!
A crow promised his oddest of elixirs was perfect
To cure any critter, PIG, CANINE, or oryx!
But a DUCK wise as SOLON
Said the quack's claims were swollen!
ANIMALS, in the LONG RUN, should forgo CAWS and effect!
{B+, B, B+.}
Greetings!
Thanks to Jeffrey and Lemonade!
Caught the theme rather quickly. Several unknowns: eBAY, PORTO, LANA, SOLONS, I'M A, NATO, PAGANO, DE NIRO and KNOT. All perped nicely Hooray!.
Hope to see you tomorrow!
SOLON is a proper name; it doesn't seem like it can be used in the plural this way, unless I'm missing something
Anon 5:36- many proper names become words. A LIST
Solon
[soh-luh n]
1. c638–c558 b.c., Athenian statesman.
2. (often lowercase) a wise lawgiver.
3. a town in N Ohio.
Probably the easiest Wechsler puzzle (Fri or Sat) I've ever done. I spotted the missing DUCK After COLD and PEKING were in place by perps. I'd never heard of LANA Parilla and didn't know what a Celtic KNOT was but 'N' was the only logical letter to complete it. Other Italian unknowns were PAGANO and DENIRO. EBAY was a logical WAG. PORTO- never heard of before-perped.
Since all the DUCKS were crosses, it was obvious that the ducks were in rows.
Good morning. Thank you Jeffrey and Lemonade.
Fast fun Friday. Pretty easy for a Friday.
Almost turfed it in the SW with wIGS out and yeow for [Yikes!]. Also had FAT BUrnING before BUSTING. Momentarily was thinking of business organizational processes rather than simply the process of organizing things. Guess I was trying to make the puzzle hard.
All's well that ends well.
Gotta make breakfast and get on with the day.
See all y'all later n'at !
Good morning!
Hand up for BURNING the morning fat. I also proudly inked in SONOMA for that Hyundai sedan. Then I proudly applied Wite-Out. This was a fun, easy romp from our almost-resident Friday puzzler. Thanx, JW and Lemonade.
Finished this one in 13:01. Not sure if I have ever, ever done a Friday that fast. So, not too difficult. Clever theme and layout. I enjoyed this more than the average Friday. My first guess for Iberian Peninsula City was PORTO, and it was at that exact moment I knew I might set a record. ERY and SLUED were the same... first stab. A couple others. So a good start to my weekend. Thanks, Lemony.
!Felíz fin de semana!
Re, the IMA answer, David Gates was Bread. Met him once on a golf course in the far north of California. Loved his music. And he apparently loved to golf.
Got the theme early, so pretty easy for a Thursday puzzle. Clueing the BEATLES as simply a “60s pop group” is just a bit of an understatement.
Oops...today is Friday....great to be retired!
Thanks JW and Lemonade.
Very fun doable Friday workout .
Did not know SOLONS so rather than LIU I wagged it wrong.
Did not know NCIS or PAGANO either so that was my downfall this morning .
Another hot day commin up . Love that summer sun.
Good morning Cornies.
Thank you Mr. Jeffrey Wechsler for this enjoyable CWP. You were the first thing I saw when I hatched so I imprinted on you, and followed "Duck, Duck, Goose to a happy conclusion. Grocking the theme really helped on this CWP. I FIR in 36:26.
Thank you Le Mon for your excellent review.
Ðave
WEES! Fast, fun Friday frolic! All those apply. It's my fastest JW, too. Only two erasures where I started with CAGE but soon realized it was CANARY CAGE. The other was SALON before SOLON with which I am familiar. Otherwise, I sashayed all the way through the grid.
I knew what the theme reveal would be before I got to it. How unusual is that! (for me)
Lemonade, I like your comment about ACAI. Too true. In Portugal I believe it's OPORTO; I recall visiting there and touring one of those PORT wineries.
Thank you, JW and Lemonade. I appreciate your extended explanations.
Have yourselves a sunny day, everyone!
Thinking hopeful thoughts about the drenched folks in south Texas, including our Corner friends from there. It is a good day for DUCKS here, but nothing as severe as those good folks got.
Saw the Friday JeffWesh and thought "I'll have fun AND get my butt kicked". I was right on both. Missed my WAG at the Natick of PAGANi x SiLONS. Anyone else think the center of the puzzle resembles a Space Invaders character?
The Oregon football offensive line coach needs to be following Jeffrey's advice.
I was very disappointed that DE NIRO stooped to his filthy rant against the president. I would have been just as disappointed had he said the same about Obama or Bernie. All this time I thought he was a man, but I was wrong. He's just an adolescent in an old man's body.
Thanks, Jeffrey, for a fine puzzle. My favorite was "like boxers". Could have been athletes or men's lingerie, but it went in the best possible direction - DOGS! And thanks to lemonade for another fine tour.
Good Morning, Lemonade and friends. I loved this Friday puzzle. It was definitely the easiest Friday we have had in ages. Like BE, I got the theme after the first three clues.
My favorite clue was Like Boxers = CANINE.
Lowered Oneself = KNELT was also a good and fresh clue.
Had some emergency dental work done yesterday, and am still in some pain. Who knew that root canals do not always take? I had a root canal about 15 years ago, that is now flaring up.
QOD: We pay more attention when we have different leadership. ~ Octavia Butler (June 22, 1947 ~ Feb. 24, 2006)
___________
J
Tesla worked today's J, but Edison patented it.
___________
Ðave
Disney logic:
You ever wonder why Donald Duck doesn't wear pants but when he gets out of the shower, he wraps a towel around his waist? Hmmmm.
Jerry is stealing my jokes again.
I found the missing duck almost from the start, which was very helpful. It also helped to get the reveal phrase. Fun puzzle, Jeffrey. Great explanations, Lemonade. I especially like your list of proper names that became words.
I was acquainted with solon as a wise lawyer, before I knew it as a proper noun.
Morning and late afternoon glare causes many accidents. There is a spot near my home where, if you hit it at a certain time, it is impossible to see anything.
I didn't know LANA and K-OT seemed improbable. An ABC run gave me the N and I realized I had heard of Celtic knot and the N filled in LANA.
Wikipedia:Porto (Portuguese pronunciation: [ˈpoɾtu]; also known as Oporto in English is the second-largest city in Portugal after Lisbon and one of the major urban areas of the Iberian Peninsula.
Hahtoolah, ouch! I hope you heal quickly.
Jerry, LOL. As a kid, I often thought it was silly that Donald wore shirt and no pants,
Good morning everyone.
Enjoyed doing the puzzle and got the essential theme. Couldn't suss DENIRO, so had to invoke red letters. But I was pleased with what I did get. As usual, I liked Jeff's style a lot.
NEU - Lemon: I don't think there is any difference in the grammar, and very little in written usage. (I think the Austrians use ß as the Germans do, but the Swiss only use ss.) There is some variation in vocabulary, just like between us and the Brits. But the accents are quite different and much dialect is used, as in other German speaking regions.. Hitler, an Austrian native, was hard to understand for this north German ear.
I await Kazie's take.
CAWS is also an example of onomatopoeia
NCIS is Naval, and maybe two or three episodes per season have action shipboard, but I'd be hard-pressed to call it "maritime" drama.
Got the theme in the first row, pretty easy except a temporary snag while GETTING your DUCKS...
billcohoes - I agree with you about NCIS. And when they do visit a ship (usually Norfolk), it's just a quick run down the road.
Musings
-No need to gild the lily on Lemon’s summation
-Neil Diamond wanted me to put ROSE for Sparkling Wine
-Someone at this site once called ADT the largest maker of lawn signs
-ABDUL’s sympathy for Idol contestants was counterpoint to Simon’s Cowell’s MEANness but Simon was the reason people tuned in
-We all know the movie that is the source of this line
-NCIS – Crime is committed, obvious perp is accused, minor character is interviewed during investigation, a key piece of evidence supplies a twist in the plot, it is revealed that minor character is guilty, fist/gun fight ensues and justice triumphs.
Jinx, I appreciate your kind words, but I did mention in my write up "I loved the visual appeal of the grid, which reminds me of the old Atari game SPACE INVADERS which had a link to the game.
Hi gang -
Clever theme, impressive construction, and I'm a big fan of DUCKS, but there's never been a puzzle from Jeffrey that I've enjoyed less.
It left me COLD; but that and LAME gave me the theme, so the rest of the them entries were easy. Had FAT BURNING for BUSTING, so that was a set back.
Didn't know NCIS nor SOLONS, but in the end everythign filled in.
A few too many proper names; chemical suffix is too vague - could be ane, ene, ate, ite; don't like the cutsey affix clues.
Well, the week end is upon us. We're going for a late lunch at a nice Hungarian restaurant with my sis and some cousins.
Tigers travel to Cleveland for a weekend series. They'll be lucky DUCKS if they get 1 win.
Cool regards,
JzB
"Puzzling Thoughts":
This might've been the first Friday Wechsler I solved with zero errors, look-ups, or write-overs. Certainly, a few perps came into place, but I solved with those, rather than with WAGs.
As usual, Lemonade gave us an informed recap
I was able to get 1d, for my first foothold to the puzzle, and of course I immediately started thinking of a pun for the word "CAWS". And, just like our other Corner Muse, "CAWS-and-effect" came to mind. While his poem detailed it more, mine was pretty straightforward:
When I placed Scarecrow
In cornfield, my crop was saved.
(My) "CAWS-and-effect" plan
{Meh}
Then, I came up with a "spoonerism" for the theme, but couldn't quite come up with a sensical (or non-sensical) poem with the phrase: "GETTING ONES RUCKS IN A DOW (Doe; Dough).
{Meh}
Some days, I guess solving the puzzle correctly, trumps any whimsical creations.
Happy Weekend, all ...
When 1-a is a fave, COLD (DUCK), you know I am going to like the puzzle.
Lemon: Good job on the write-up & links.
Jeff: Thank you for a FUN Friday puzzle. YES! I liked the theme.
Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend ...
when you are retired, everyday is the weekend.
A "Toast-to-ALL" at SUNSET
Cheers!
Good Morning:
Usually, JW's Friday puzzles are a bear to solve, but this one was more like a lamb. I had a few miscues with Asti/Cold, Gasp/Gulp, and PDAs/Pads, but perps were more than friendly. Never heard of Lana; Pagano rang a bell; but the head of NATO was a mystery man. Again, perps to the rescue. I liked the An ima l/Ima visual. Favorite pairing was Lowered oneself=Knelt. The theme was obvious early on which made for a quicker and easier solve.
Thanks, Jeffrey W, for a fun Friday and thanks, Lemony, for the expansive and enlightening review.
Hatoolah @ 8:01 ~ Feel better soon!
HG @ 9:29 ~ I never saw "Grease" so that line meant nothing to me. But, your plot analysis of "NCIS" could apply to many other TV series. This treatment has become so formulaic there is usually no doubt who the villains are.
Have a great day.
I took enough time out of getting all the power tools etc out of the basement to do this one. I think it’s my favorite JW puzzle. The missing ducks made themselves known very early on, and from there it was a speed run.
Well, the water's nearly up to the house so it’s back to the basement. The storm sewers are so overfull that the water is pushing the cast iron manhole covers at least 4" above the street and keeping them that way. Talk about nice weather for ducks!
I may buy a kayak. Be good, all.
It's Nice Weather for Ducks
WikWak, sorry to hear that. When I relocated here in late 87, the realtor I was working with kept taking me to homes that had flooded along Salt Creek in 86 and 87, but told me that the Deep Tunnel and Reservoir project was going to get that fixed. Yea right. We're still hearing about it. Best wishes you stay high and dry.
JzB, on the positive side, the Tigers are in second place in the AL Central, and with a sweep can pull to within two games.
Well, I love Jeffrey Wechsler puzzles, but unlike most others, I still had to cheat a bit to get this one--maybe I still have a bit of jet lag at the end of the week. DONALD was my first answer, and then I got DAFFY, so I actually had a hint about the DUCK theme, even though COLD, LAME, DEAD, and LUCKY didn't trigger DUCKS for a while. But once it shaped up I found it an delightful and funny puzzle--many thanks, Jeffrey. And Lemonade, thanks for the interesting SONATA/SONNET analysis.
Husker Gary, I thought your NCIS commentary was neat.
I too would think the main difference between Austrian and German is a matter of pronunciation. When I spoke to some colleagues from Zurich at the Joyce conference, they didn't believe me when I told them I grew up in Austria and first spoke German. So I switched to German, and they were delighted to hear my Austrian accent.
Hatoolah, I hope your toothache gets better soon.
WikWak, so sorry to hear about the water and flooding danger.
Have a good day, everybody.
Good luck, WikWak. I hope your flood prep turns out to be unnecessary.
Lemonade, sorry about missing your Space Invaders comment. I usually don't get to the links until afternoons, but I do always read the blogger's comments before going to the peanut gallery to read and chime in. My only excuse is that I was watching folks reminisce about Charles Krauthammer while I was reading. The world lost more with his death than it could afford to lose.
Total fun run - faster than my usual experience with a JW puzzle. But what a construction!
BEATLES made me think of the James Corden's Carpool Karaoke with Paul McCartney which came out yesterday. He usually is just in the car - but this one Paul tours James around Liverpool and they go visit his childhood home, barber shop, pub- worth watching the whole ten minutes. So much fun if you're at all a BEATLES fan.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QjvzCTqkBDQ
Thanks Lemonade and JW!
jfromvt......retirement IS nice.....I bought a clock off eBay that just tells the day of the week.
NCIS....I agree, just about the only “NAVY” thing about it is the title. The synopsis posted about it could pretty much be applied to any procedural.
And this was a rather speedy Friday run.
In re comments about the grid looking like Space Invader alien, I beg to differ.
Busy Friday, ran out of time and had to throw in the towel (TITT?)
Hmm, new acronym. TITT! Threw in the Towel...
I agree, friendliest Jeffrey Wechsler ever!
But I still got stonkered at Pagano and Deniro crossing Canine and Solons...
I have two questions:
One for Jeffrey...
and one for FermatPrime...
Also,
Here is InaneHikers link.
Beatles Karaoki (& it's 24 minutes...)
Hi Y'all! Great puzzle, Jeffrey, fast and really DUCKy (a/k/a amusing)! Great expo, Lemonade!
COLD duck was in my mind as soon as I saw the wine began with "C". When I worked at one paper, the sports girl was talking about her "love affair" with COLD duck. I'd never heard of it. The publisher heard me say so and at the end of the work week brought in COLD bottles of the stuff. I liked it well enough that I had to drive the 8 miles to home at 20 mph rather than the usual 70 mph -- badly impaired. I was a LUCKY DUCK because traffic was almost nil & I made it home before going to sleep too soundly on the couch just inside the front door to be able to fix a meal expected by my husband & son. Never had COLD duck since. Aptly named if it knocks you out COLD.
Knew and used in print the word SOLON as a legislator, but didn't realize it had been a man's name. I wrote a lot of political stuff & SOLONs was a welcome substitute for the longer word.
Unknown names WEES. I'd never heard of half.com. Don't do ebay either. Had to red-letter some probably vowel areas to determine the route to take.
Hahtoolah: I'm not sure what a root canal entails, but I've never heard anything good about them. Hope the worst is behind you. Not much worse than a toothache.
Hand up this was a pleasant surprise to have a relatively easy Wechsler/Friday puzzle! It looked very hard to me at first with so many proper names. But I got the DUCK theme immediately and I was off and running!
Lemonade: Thanks for the etymology of SONNET vs SONATA. Learning moment!
For years I managed an apartment building that would have DUCK visitors each year during their migration!
CC and I share a taste for EEL.
Here are Sea Grass EELs in reality and in art!
Here is my final article on our Solstice Workshop as everyone SEWS UP their projects, some quite literally!
The parade is tomorrow and I am in it!
From yesterday:
D4E4H: Glad you are moving to a place with good care. And good for you for having long term care insurance. Most people don't!
AnonT: Glad you also know about the Society for Creative Anachronism (SCA)! How did you know of it?
Picard:
As always I'm impressed with all the activities promoted in your town. It must have the highest per capita population of artists in the country! And I wonder what motivates them all to create such fantastic (literally) objects which consume so much time and I assume, money. It's a wonderful thing!
Today I found the J a bit challenging but finished it without losing my mind!
Hahtoolah:
I hope your toothache soon abates; toothaches are so bad and take strong painkillers to lessen!
Is an "easy Wechsler" an oxymoron, a contradiction in terms?
Picard, Owen, Big Easy, TTP and plenty of others seem to agree that our arch challenger was going easy on us today.
Is it the arrival of summer that has melted his heart?
Whatever the cause, we had fun today. The clever cluing and delightful theme made the solving worthwhile. Like PK, I sussed the theme early on - with COLD right away suggesting DUCK. By the time I reached 59A I was pleased to see my guess paying off!
Hahtoolah, very sorry you're in pain. As for root canals, I've had a few in my time. In my experience, they used to hurt more than they do nowadays. Or maybe it's the difference in the amount of damage I needed to have repaired. Or different dentists.
Dental health: it's all a mystery, isn't it?
~ OMK
____________
Diagonal Report: No diagonals today. Asymmetry defeats them.
WooHoo!
Fellow Jumblers!
I just finished it.
I got the four lead-in words right away. Piece o' cake. But then I had to put it aside because I could not get the final answer after ten minutes of staring (gnashing & muttering) at the unyielding letters.
I came on line and filed my cruciverbal report (above). Then I chatted with my wife, mentioning nothing to do with Xwds or Jumbles.
And then I just glanced at the unfinished J. There it was, sitting on my desk and mocking me.
And then - Bam! The final answer popped into the Ol' Walnut. Ta- DA!
What was all the fuss about?
I almost completed a JW Friday puzzle! Thank you, sir! Great write-up, Lemon!
I got the theme--unusual for me-- after looking at 1a and 5a and thinking there should be a duck in the answer. Duh! That made the other answers much easier.
A few years ago I had a root canal and thought it was easier than a filling. PK, I hope you feel better soon.
J- I got the 4 words and came back to the answer many times before it finally jumped out at me.
Happy Friday. I had 2 repair services scheduled for this afternoon and they both showed up at the same time. At least they were doing different things and weren't in each others way. Now my time is my own again.
I liked this puzzle. The first thing I noticed was the look of the grid and wondered if the theme was going to be something to do with "sad girl" or "frustrated girl." The second thing I noticed was that the constructor was Jeffrey Wechsler. So I started it with trepidation in my heart. I didn't get the duck theme until after I had entered ELMER (Fudd) for the toon with the speech problem and had to change it to that other toon, DAFFY, because of the perps. Then, after getting DONALD, it hit me and I went back to fill in all the other ducks. Having FAT BURNING at first slowed me down in that area for a while, but eventually the light dawned. The last to fill was a guess at the letter crossing K-OT and LA-A, which I guessed right. Lots of fun for a half an hour. Thanks, Jeffrey.
OKL, it might WALK like a duck and SOUND like a duck, but it danged sure doesn't LOOK like a duck!
I've not commented before, but I couldn't avoid complaining about the incorrect clue to 3 Down. "Placed" is "laid," not "lain". To place something is to lay it (down). To be in repose in a horizontal position is to lie (down, e.g.). I lie down today, I lay down yesterday, and I have lain down for naps in the past. I lay down my paper when I finish the puzzle, I laid it down yesterday, and I have laid it down every day this week.
Most people misuse these very different verbs, but crossword writers should know better. Otherwise, I loved the puzzle.
Alan @ 1540 : That bothered me too. Thanks for pointing that out.
Also, to lay is transitive; to lie is intransitive.
Good luck wik wak and others with flooding concerns, and Susan I hope your mouth heals quickly.
A 90 year old client sent me the following story:
Yesterday I was at Costco buying a large bag of Purina dog chow for my loyal pet, Necco, the Wonder Dog, who weighs 91 lbs. I was in the check-out line when a woman behind me asked if I had a dog.
What did she think I had an elephant?
So because I'm retired and have little to do, on impulse I told her that no, I didn't have a dog, I was starting the Purina Diet again. I added that I probably shouldn't, because I ended up in the hospital last time, but that I'd lost 50 pounds before I awakened in an intensive care ward with tubes coming out of most of my orifices and IVs in both arms.
I told her that it was essentially a Perfect Diet and that the way that it works is, to load your jacket pockets with Purina Nuggets and simply eat one or two every time you feel hungry. The food is nutritionally complete so it works well and I was going to try it again.
( I have to mention here that practically everyone in line was now enthralled with my story. )
Horrified, she asked if I ended up in intensive care, because the dog food poisoned me.
I told her no, I stopped to pee on a fire hydrant and a car hit me.
I, too, have been accused of being intransigent. It's all just verbiage to me. I fail to see the object of it.
Lemonade, I love that story. It's too bad that it's over 14 words long, so I'll never be able to re-tell it.
Hi All!
Hand up w/ OAS & Jinx... SiLONS for the FIW. And, so close to winning a JW #sigh
I am pleased though - no lookups and in ink.
Thanks Jeff for this ducky challenge [y'all found it easy fast?!?]. I caught the theme at LAME but many fill-clues evoked a huh?
Lawgivers weren't Mosi (that's the plural of Moses, no? :-))
Thanks Lem for the expo. I never heard of COLD duck, learning moment (COLD was ESP)
WOs: ESE b/f ENE, tried to stuff Cotton in for briefs. @58a I had aRY
ESPs: It's Friday, I can't count that high.
Fav: The Grid. If you've not clicked OKL's 1:25p link...
{A,A,A} {meh, meh}. //I'm kidding Moe; but it rhymes :-)
WikWak - NO! Not again. Good luck and, like D-O said, hope the effort was for KNOT. {groan}
PVX - I love that clock! Not that I'm retired - it's just I never know which days I'm working that I don't have to get dressed up. Actually, the puzzle is my "which day is it?" clock. Apparently it was too easy apuzzle and confused jfromvt.
CED - extra shout out for n-ducks... LOL
Picard re: SCA - 'cuz I'm white and nerdy :-)
Really, though, it was something we toyed with in HS and thought it was fun. A buddy's dad actually built armor as a hobby.
Welcome Alan. Not to wade too deep into @3d ('cuz I always confused lay, lie, lied through his teeth) but, if it was ago placed, wouldn't it had been lain?
Now to go watch inanehiker's link before a nap.
Cheers, -T
Didn't refresh before posting...
Lem, even if that's not a real "it happened at the store..." LOL! -T
Lemon @ 4:52 LOL!
Desper-otto @ 5:00
I'm just going to copy and paste!
Public Service Announcement...
Public Service Announcement Explained...
Pls disregard the above PSA's
(I misinterpreted the Theme...)
Definition of row
: a noisy disturbance or quarrel
Fabulous Friday. Thanks for the fun, Jeffery and Lemonade.
I actually had difficulty with this CW. I had a sea of white starting Across and I decided to switch to the Downs.
Of course, I didn't get the theme that way, and that held me up.
Hand up for Rose before COLD. I didn't recognize Cold Duck and LIUed. Andres wines (founded by German-Canadian Andrew Peller) created Cold Duck but could not patent the name in Canada. Another lower alcohol content, sweet "pop" wine was created and called Baby Duck. That one I remember! Anybody else remember it? Northern Boy?
Enjoy the evening.
Dave- Having been here at the Corner only sporadically in the last week, I had to look back to see that you are moving. Hope the move goes well and that you will be happy and well cared-for in your new location.
OwenKL
- - Each l'ick is A rated. Good work.
Hahtoolah
- - I have had several root canal procedures, and am a bit confused. During the process, the nerve of the tooth is removed ergo nothing to report pain.
Once the procedure was complete I always had complete relief. Could there be an infection in the bone?
SO to Canadien eh!
- - Jeopardy was dominated by the Maple leaf today. Ali Hasan, a secondary School teacher from British Columbia turned over his winner's position to Jordan Nussbaum, a lawyer from Ontario. Amanda was not able to wave the red, white, and blue.
- - Not one poster has mentioned the Title: Duck, Duck GOOSE? That would be Canada Goose.
- - My move may begin early next week. I am looking forward to life on one level, no more stairs.
Ðave
I had stuff to do earlier, slipped in xword and then read the blog. So I comment in text and eventually paste in. But I fell asleep , got up and went to the pool and I'm finally posting.
JzB, how is ex-Ray, Mikey Mahtouk doing in Detroit.? He had a great, late call up in '15 and has been snakebit since.
I knew a WAG who used to say
"Wanna buy a Duck?
Give ya a free GOOSE!
Misty, Lucina, OMK etal. Owen's l'icks had another_J hint. Without giving anything away I tried to convince myself that IN FUNDS MOOD was the solution. After solving xword, clarity returned.
Btw, Space Invaders was from the arcade era, n'est-ce pas? NH, as you go into the Lakes area used to have a place full of the old arcade games.
PK, I've been using "Just DUCKy" lately too.
Re _J. OMK pre-posted me. I had the same experience. Waiting to hear from Misty.
Re. Jeff-Wesch and the xw. I ran through fast too. I can't recall when I realized the Constructor. I quickly realized that the write-up must be Lemonade though. I penned in SOLONS very confidently. Risky when using pen but I had my author pegged. So, who are the Seven Wise "Men" of the corner.? Dumb question.
-T, since you're a P&I guy, do what I do, re. The day. Look at the top of the newspaper or if TBT, the answers of the previous xword. I'm not being a wise guy, I actually do that.
WC
Btw. I've finished LEN Deighton's "Winter" and I just picked up "Spy Line" #5 in the nine part triple trilogy. Anyway, Sampson, the protagonist, is a self educated MI6 guy. And here is the line and the guy that may know what he's talking about may be OMK:
"..my usual room (in Berlin). It was a tiny Garret at the top of the house, the sort of place which inspired Puccini to orchestrate Mimi's demise."
Ok I know Puccini was an opera and that's all I know.
WC
Btw. I'm looking for the embedded secrets to the JFK assassination in these works. The last six. Plus Winter.
Wilbur Charles:
I believe it's from La Boheme. Mimi is the main character in that opera.
I commented on the J earlier.
Lemonade:
LOL at your story!
Dave@8:20pm - yes I saw the Jeopardy program with all the Canadians (including Alex Trebek). I was cheering them on!
Darn, the J's don't have a date on them (if you clip them from the paper), so I can't remember which was the one from this morning. Any more hints, please? I'm guessing it wasn't the Edison one? I seem to remember it was trickier than that.
Lucina: Thank you for the kind words about our community. Community builds community. The more people do things together, the more we want to do more things together. Most of us are volunteers. In fact, most of us have to pay to participate in these events. It is all for the joy of creation.
Burning Man is about the same idea. It is called a "giving economy". Our modern Western society has created an odd idea that we are all in competition. But most natural systems are in cooperation. Your kidneys are not trying to beat your liver or your toes. The same with the trillion or so micro-organisms that live in your body.
Thank you for your observation!
AnonT: Thanks for the White and Nerdy reminder! Hand up for me, too! Way cool that your friend's father made armor! I had a classmate in college who got so into the SCA thing he dropped out and disappeared into the SCA world!
Alan Tatum: Welcome to posting! Thanks for the LAID/LAIN lesson! I had LAID and figured maybe I was mistaken. Apparently, I was mistaken! One of my pet peeves is people saying LAY instead of LIE. As in "I was tired so I went to LIE down" which is correct.
Kind of like when they say "Bill gave it to Joe and I" instead of "Bill gave it to Joe and ME". These people must think the wrong way sounds more high class?
Picard @ 2247- I think people are afraid they'll sound dumb if they say me, since as children they were admonished for saying "me and John are going to the store." I hear a lot of misused myselfs to avoid saying me when me is correct. i.e. "My father used to take my brother and myself to the baseball games."
Loved your article & pics of prep for the Solstice Parade. And I'm w/Lucina - I envy you your wonderful community. So what's your costume? I'm sure you'll have a blast.
I foolishly tried to post directly and the profile button got me again. This is a Jumble post for Misty if the sandman is in hiding.
1. Owen used a Jumble word as I related earlier*.
2. Here's some poetic hints including what Owen borrowed.
Great ideas arise not forged by steel
But from the heart; by the sense of feel
What one hears is perhaps strange
But with prodding ideas are found
Some of them quirky, some of them - - -
It is for you the letters to rearrange
My earlier guess had the letters but none of the words
One last hint to the riddle. Second word=>man on left
3rd man on right
WC
TBTimes was Edison.
WC
See my post in rhyme
Thanks, Wilbur and others--got it. From now on I'm going to date the J every morning, just to keep track of them.
Lemonade: the dog food diet got an extended belly laugh at my house. By the way, I had to look up anthromorphic for my learning experience today. I was way off on the meaning.
WikWak: hope we get a good flood update from you soon.
LAIN bothered me momentarily but I didn't linger long enough for it to become a nit.
Picard: Thanks, enjoyed your artful shindig pics. Expect to see the finished product soon. As for ducks, my bro & SIL like to camp out at a lake where ducks are plentiful. They came home to the middle of KCKS lately to find a pair of mallards enjoying their swimming pool. I told them maybe the ducks hooked a ride or followed them.
Pat: it was Hahtoolah with the toothache rather than me.
Wilbur C,
Yes, Lucina is right. The garret in question is in La Boheme; it's the atelier where Rudolfo lives and where Mimi chokes out her final aria in the last act.
The moment of her death is one of the great Brechtian jolts of the modern stage. For just a moment all the lush music ceases - and the silence is filled with quick half-whispered spoken lines as Rodolfo quizzes his friends about why they look so strange.
As the shock of her death hits him, the music comes crashing back in.
~ OMK
I love the music from La Boheme and likely another reason why I like the movie Moonstruck, too, besides the great acting and story line. The music is played throughout the movie; Nicholas Cage's character loves opera and he convinces Cher to accompany him to that performance.
Speaking of good movies, I just saw Mighty Aphrodite again. Not only is Mira Sorvino good in it, but Helena Bonhan Carter, too. Woody can really cast them.
Another movie that is accompanied by Puccini's music is The Mirror Has Two Faces with Barbra Streisand and Jeff Bridges. I like that one, too. Lauren Bacall stars as well.
Misty:
I'm glad you discovered the right J. May I ask why you cut it out?
OMK - You'd get a kick out of the Crazy People Show (Coast To Coast AM). They have one of those Shakespeare deniers (i.e. he didn't write it) on the air now. I want to call in and refer them to Bill Bryson's book [wiki]
inanehiker - Before my nap, I only watched the fist few min of the video and realizing it was 30m. So down I lain :-)
I just watched the rest of the BEATLES link. WOW! Just WOW and fun. Thanks so much for sharing. #BeatlesForever, -T
Did you notice that in the heading above, this puzzle is dated July 22? Please let’s not rush the summer. 😎
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