google.com, pub-2774194725043577, DIRECT, f08c47fec0942fa0 L.A.Times Crossword Corner: Friday, April 5, 2019, Robert & Marlea Ellis

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Apr 5, 2019

Friday, April 5, 2019, Robert & Marlea Ellis

Title: I EE? OH!

Well, here I am back in the Friday saddle rested and ready to take you on a new ride into the wonderful world of words. This is our third creation by this couple, with the first two Thursday efforts. I was in Thailand when they had their debut and Steve was off watching LA LA LAND. Today we have a punny sort of letter substitution theme, requiring some imagination. The start was the end and the end snuck up on me. I had many missteps but I got'er done so now it is your turn. First I must say there were many 3/4 fill which helped move this along, though there were also many 7 letter fill as well  - ARMOIRE, DEMERIT, FATHEAD, FUSSPOT, GET THIS,  MELISSA, RETIREE, SILICON and THIEVES put some real sparkle in the mix.

The theme was a challenge to grasp, so let us look at each one. Notice the consistency of the letter exchange being:  last word, first word, last word, first word.

18A. Make some cote residents angry?: STEAM SHEEP (10). First,  you have to know that the definition of a cote is a shelter, coop, or small shed for sheep, pigs, pigeons, etc. I know the term from pigeons, so this was slow starting, but when STEAM SH__. filled I go the idea that this was a pun for Steam SHIP.

26A. Calf roper's target?: FEET TO BE TIED (12). FIT to be tied. This is where the penny dropped on the I to EE change.

48A. Birdwatcher's journal entry?: CARDINAL SEEN (12).  In FLIGHT. Cardinal SIN. Also known as Deadly,  there are seven of them, but I do not believe it is mandatory for one to violate all of them to become a Cardinal.

63A. Borden, in the 1870s?: TEEN LIZZIE (10). TIN Lizzie. Speaking of deadly, Lizzie Borden took an ax And gave her mother forty whacks, When she saw what she had done, She gave her father forty-one. Tricky, as she was a teen in the 1870s, but the murder was in 1892. A wonderful article on the NAME of this car.

Across:

1. Triumphant exclamation: TADA. Reverse psychology beginning with the joy of the solve.

5. Illusion: FACADE. Not a direct synonym, but a typical Friday level clue/fill.

11. "The good is __ interred with their bones": "Julius Caesar": OFT. The speech posited by Shakespeare to be said by Marc Anthony is one of the most moving of Shakespeare's use of words. LINK.

14. Ostrich relatives: EMUS.

15. Payday lender, perhaps: USURER. So odd to see this after solving Peter Gordon's WSJ earlier this week. In Florida, there are special laws for these folks which allow them to collect what would otherwise be usurious interest. The latest litigation which I  am working on is a reply to a collection effort by someone who committed criminal usury (under Florida Law 687.071  ). Fun stuff.

16. Extract with effort: PRY.

17. Suffers: AILS. See 5A.

20. Singer Etheridge: MELISSA. CSO to our own.

22. One no longer working: RETIREE. Not me, I still work, just don't make big money anymore. 47A. Savings plan IRAIndividual Retirement Account.

23. Enjoy at a leisurely pace: SIP.

24. Pikelike fish: GAR. Gars are members of the Lepisosteiformes, an ancient holosteian order of ray-finned fish (easy for them to say). LINK.

25. Nihilistic art movement: DADA. If you want to know more, you can read this INFORMATION.

31. Put away: EAT.

32. Young one: TOT.

33. Storm components?: TWEETS. It takes constructor cojones to put this fill next to 37. Ranking suit: TRUMP.

40. Giant Mel: OTT. It sounds cute, but he is part of true crosswordese history. 45A. 40-Acr. is in it: HOFHall oFame.

42. Fund: ENDOW.

43. 2019 Grammy Awards host Keys: ALICIA. And an off and on judge on the VOICE.

52. "Frozen" sister: ELSA.

55. "Live __": Taco Bell slogan: MAS. At the core of Taco Bell's DNA is a slogan introduced in 2012, Live Mas (“Live More”), which animates its brand and encapsulates the company's philosophy of enriching the lives of its customers and employees in everything it does. Forbes. I bet Roberto Duran is glad they chose this.

56. Prop for Palmer: TEE. Arnold who now plays in heaven.

57. Valley element?: SILICON. A nice clue/fill combo based on the REGION which has become the basis of a popular TV SERIES.

59. Embezzlers, e.g.: THIEVES.

65. Cloud of gloom: PALL. A pall was originally a coffin's cloak. Now pall usually means that an event or situation is — literally or figuratively — covered in gloom, like disappointing news that casts a pall on your day. The noun pall comes from the Latin word, pallium, “covering or cloak.”

66. Golden __: AGE. There have been so many, so far.

67. Singer Grande: ARIANA. Some modern wholesome music. LINK.

68. Biblical twin: ESAU.

69. Risk: BET.

70. Identified: PEGGED. A sideways CSO to my ex.

71. Editor's notation: DELE.

Down:

1. Group of playmates: TEAM. So sweet.

2. Parisian love: AMIE.

3. Hardly inspiring: DULL.

4. Good Samaritan's offer: ASSIST.

5. Persnickety one: FUSSPOT. Here is some RESEARCH.

6. "The Thin Man" canine: ASTA.

7. Help in the theater: CUE.

8. Biblical mount: ARARAT.

9. Unfavorable mark: DEMERIT. Not a word I see used these days.

10. In the past, in the past: ERST.

11. Adams' "Nixon in China," e.g.: OPERA. The HISTORY of the music.

12. Let go: FREED.

13. Far from laid-back: TYPE-A.

19. Out of sight: HIDDEN.

21. Work for parents: SIT. They all get mad when you actually sit on your them.

24. Juicy tidbit lead-in: GET THIS. A generally conspiratorial phrase.

26. Greek salad topper: FETA. The cheese, a brined curd white cheese made in Greece from sheep's milk or from a mixture of sheep and goat's milk. It is a crumbly aged cheese is protected by EU legislation and only those cheeses manufactured in Macedonia, Thrace, Thessaly, Central Mainland Greece, the Peloponnese, and Lesvos can be called ‘feta’.

27. Bowling great __ Anthony: EARL. I think Boomer met this left-handed marvel who entertained me on the TV for many years.

28. Sewing case: ETUI.

29. "I can't get no satisfaction!": BOO. I guess booing is what you do when you can't get what you want, maybe?

30. Farm mom: EWE. A little rhyme time?

34. First name in the cast of "The Sopranos": EDIE. Referring to any first name of a cast member. This one plopped in immediately although there were other choices; AIDA Turturro; DREA de Matteo; and, TONY Sirico. Name the characters?

35. Sped: TORE.

36. Christmas song swimmer: SWAN. Did you know the Christmas Carol had religious  MEANING?

38. 2008 presidential candidate: MCCAIN. May he rest in peace.

39. Actress Zadora: PIA. One of the earliest media darlings with no talent but a rich husband. She has not been around in a while.

41. Heavy weight: TON. More trickery, as the difference between heavyweight and heavy weight is subtle.

44. Bedroom piece: ARMOIRE.

46. Dimwit: FATHEAD.

49. Polish seaport, in Germany: DANZIG. Another tricky clue, as the historic port city of  GDAŃSK.

50. Welcoming gift: LEI. Too many easy DF comments.

51. Leaked slowly: SEEPED. This is a creepy sounding word for me.

52. Founded: Abbr.: ESTAB. This actually slowed me down the most as I had ESTBD.

53. Feudal subject: LIEGE. This is very difficult, as the LIEGE is the Lord to whom the subjects are subordinate.

54. Reason for closed schools, perhaps: SLEET. Neither rain nor snow nor sleet.

58. Show appreciation: CLAP. Did you ever wonder where it started? LINK. I love Mozart's comment.

59. Stabber: TINE. This is a stretch, as befits Friday. We all know a tine is a prong or a sharp point, such as that on a fork or antler, but thinking of stabbing in relation to a French Fry...

60. Still-life standard: VASE. You all know this Van Gogh? Sold for $38,600,000.00 in 1987.

61. Airline known for tight security: EL AL.

62. Turn on an axis: SLUE.

64. Half a slalom segment: ZAG. A zig, a zag. The ZIG-ZAG of my youth.

I guess I remembered what to do; hope you enjoyed this ride. Thank you, M/M Marlea and all who read.


Notes from C.C.:

1)  Here are a few sweet pictures from Chez Lemonade. Owen is now a big boy. You can click here for more.
 





 


2) Happy 78th birthday to Irish Miss, the life of our little corner. Agnes cares deeply about all our blog regulars. Whenever someone is missing, she'll notice and ask on the blog. She sent a card to Argyle every week during his last few months. And her last card arrived to us when Boomer was struggling with his Zometa infusion. It brought tears and comfort to Boomer. Thanks for being an angel, dear Agnes! Please keep her sister Anne in your thoughts and prayers.


L-R: Anne, Agnes, Eileen, Mary, and Peggy.
St Patrick's Day, 2019


3) Happy Birthday also to Abejo (Bradley), who's always volunteering somewhere. He's also a certified master gardener, I think. Abejo is Persian for "beer". Bradley worked in Iran for a few years.

Left to Right: Abejo, WikWak, Madame DeFarge and TTP, 7/19/2018

65 comments:

OwenKL said...

EARL raised, on ERST while duty,
EMUS which earned him much booty.
ELSA, his wife
Made them look nice --
She sewed emu muumuus with her ETUI.

What SEEPED between the lips was a SIP,
A storm of SLEET won't fit thru a slit,
But a TWEET storm may come from a twit!
This puzzle also has RETIREE,
FREED, and a golfer's TEE,
But I couldn't fit them to a comic bit.

{B, B+(just for lines 2 & 3).}

Lemonade714 said...

Happy birthday Agnes and Bradley and many more.

D4E4H said...

Great morning Cornerites and Cornerettes.

Thank you Robert & Marlea Ellis for this enjoyable Friday CW. You can see below that I found the groaningly punny theme at 18 A.
I did FIR.

Thank you Lemonade for your excellent review.

8 D - I was sure there was an ass in there somewhere.

11 D - Why could it not be a novel?

18 A - First groan.
26 A - The theme helped me at the Rodeo, Yee Haa!
48 A - I went bird watching once. I heard a bird call and asked what bird, robin.
63 A - I won't comment on this on for "fear" of getting the axe.

Ðave

D4E4H said...

Someone introduced me to Universal CWs. I found one on Mar 27 that should interest Ol' Man Keith.

When the site opens, it shows today's CW. To find the 27th, click on the second icon from the right. This opens a list of CWs. You're looking for X-Ray Eyes,
03/27/19.


LINK

Ðave

thehondohurricane said...


Happy Birthday Agnes. Maybe a nice birthday dinner at my favorite Albany restaurant.....the Barnsider?

desper-otto said...

Good morning!

In reference to AvgJoe's joke of a few days back, this one could've been titled "Who's Tocking." Went off the rails with TOTS where TEAM needed to go, but that was my only Wite-Out moment. Cute theme. (Any theme that d-o manages to grasp is automatically cute.) Thanx, Robert, Marlea and Lemonade.

I noticed that CSO to MB, RETIREE could be a CSO to almost all of us.

MAS: Evokes memories of Demolition Man. In that future, all restaurants are Taco Bells. Inside, the patrons are entertained with commercial jingles like the "Jolly, Ho-Ho-Ho, Green Giant."

FUSSPOT: Anybody else think of Lucy van Pelt from the Peanuts strip?

Happy Birthday, Irish Miss and Abejo (I still hear it in my mind as a-bay-ho, though I know that's not correct.)

Hahtoolah said...

Good Morning, Lemonade and friends. Very tricky and challenging puzzle. It didn't help that I was stuck on Doves with the COTE, and didn't think of SHEEP. CARDINAL SEEN, however, was my Rosetta Stone.

I have seen Nixon in China. I found it to be rather DULL. I don't think it will stand the test of time, as some background history is required to fully understand the show.

All I know about ARIANA Grande is that she was caught in tape licking donuts.

I found it rather amusing that the clue for TWEETS was immediately followed by the clue for TRUMP.

I learned that to Turn on an Axis is not Spin, but SLUE.

I learned the word ETUI from doing the crossword puzzles.

Wishing Irish Miss and Abejo a very Happy Birthday.

QOD: There are just two things you can do to win a Nobel Prize ~ have a good idea and pursue it effectively. ~ Ivar Giaever (b. Apr. 5. 1929), recipient of the 1973 Nobel Prize in Physics

Anonymous said...

Wonderful puzzle! Funny, punny, and clever.

Not so clever-

The entire crop from a really lousy garden?

Just a little beet

Jerome said...

Have no idea why many of my posts are named "anonymous"

Jinx in Norfolk said...

FIR, but erased mirage for FACADE, ush for CUE, spin for SLUE (hi Hah2lah) and fixed ESAi.

Like DO said, CSO to most of us at RETIREE.

Seer -T asked about TWEETS last night. My late greyhound Zephyr used to TWEET a bit. Zoe uses that account on the rare case when she decides to opine.

We camp at a KOA in Richmond Hill, GA when we go to and from Florida. They have a lake with swans, which beg for food in the mornings.

The Golden Globes became irrelevant when PIA's husband bought her one. Her best work was posing nekkid for Playboy. Nice globes.

Palmer still TEEs it up on the PGA Tour. Ryan Palmer that is. He is ranked 71st in the world. I could be ranked as the 74th worst player in the world.

FLN: Loved PK's story about being paid what she's worth. No longer true, or she would be in the top tax bracket for her contributions to the Corner alone.

HBDTY Irish Miss. Many more.

Aside to Abejo - HBDTY too. In case you are getting forgetful as you age, it's blue-orange-green-brown-slate.

Thanks to the Ellises for the Friday-difficult, clever puzzle. And thanks to Lemony for another fun tour.

Yellowrocks said...

Great puzzle. Interesting notes, Lemony. I was looking for the Friday letter substitution gimmick and found it at TEEN LIZZIE. Then I went back and added SEEN and SHEEP. My cote contained doves, at first.
A very happy birthday to Abejo and Irish Miss. Enjoy your day. Agnes, your sister is in my thoughts and prayers for a good and speedy recovery.
In this age of truthiness in many places, especially on social media, the facade is more real than the truth. The truth is whatever "I" say it is. So sad. No wonder we are so divided these days.
I am used to hearing FUSS BUDGET, but have heard FUSS POT, too, which I prefer.
The Episcopal Church uses a PALL to cover the casket at funerals. It is usually white to symbolize the Resurrection. We also use a pall, a stiff square of cardboard covered in white linen, to cover the chalice at the Eucharist.
My mom called the Model-T a flivver and occasionally a Tin Lizzie.

CartBoy said...

[me] Alexa, what day is it?

[Alexa) Friday, April 5th

(me) Why is the LAT xword puzzle "Tuesday-hard"?

[Alexa] I don't understand that question

Spitzboov said...

Good morning everyone.

Happy Birthday to Irish Miss and to Abejo. Both are stalwarts of the Corner and I always look forward to their storiies and musings.

TADA. Fairly easy for a Friday. It helped that I got the pun theme i → ee early. I did scratch my head a bit over STEAM SHEEP, tho.
No searches. One white-out; I had 'fired' before FREED.
SLUE - To me the slueing context would be about a vertical axis such as to slue a telescope or gun mount.
Ostrich relatives -- EMUS - They are both ratites and flightless. Since they are ratites, they have no 'keel'. So even if they had wings capable of flying, they have no proper bone structure to which the wing muscles could attach.

Enjoy the day.
Taxonomists classify them in different orders so they are not real close; any more that a cat and a cow are.

CanadianEh! said...

Fabulous Friday. Thanks for the fun, Robert and Marlea, and Lemonade.
I persevered and finished with several inkblots, but arrived here to discover I FIW. I had Steal Sheep and did not notice that Delerit made no sense. Ah well. I did get the EE to I theme. (But even with the correct STEAM SHEEP, I still think that themer is the weakest. OK I guess STEAM=make angry, sortta . . .)
I also see some other EEs that could be changed to I (SEEPED to SIPped, SLEET to Slit, Tweet to Twit -see below).

I changed Amor to AMIE, Anon to ERST, Fired to FREED, and Estbd to ESTAB. I waited for perps to decide between Anna and ELSA. EARL was unknown (CSO to Boomer?) but filled with perps. I noticed that LIEGE was right below EARL.

Can somebody explain how TWEETS are Storm components?? Or is this another themer and TWEETS changes to Twits?? (I see that Owen had the same idea!) (Some would say that would still apply to 37A but this Canadian will not wade into that political opinion.)

Busy weekend ahead. Wishing you all a great day.
Happy Birthday, IM and Abejo.

Irish Miss said...

Good Morning:

I found this on the easy side for a Friday, but I still needed perps in several spots. No real unknowns and no w/os at all. I caught the theme at Feet to be Tied but missed the I to E element. I liked Teen Lizzie the best and the TADA ~ DADA duo. CSO to Melissa and, as DO mentioned, most of us at Retiree.

Thank you, Robert and Marla, for a tricky and fun solve and thanks, Lemony, for the expansive expo and links. I can't believe how your three grands are sprouting so quickly. Owen is a handsome boy and Charlotte and Harper are precious.

Happy Birthday to my fellow celebrant, Abejo, hope your day is special. 🎂🎁🍾🎈🎉

CC, thank you for your kind and thoughtful words of tribute.

Thank you all for the prayers and best wishes for my sister Anne. Unfortunately, when we arrived at the hospital yesterday, we were informed that she had had a second stroke that morning. Her speech hasn't been affected but her vision is more impaired than originally thought and it appears there is some paralysis on her left side. She is communicative but confused and has no memory of the events preceding her hospitalization. (She was found on her bedroom floor after several unanswered phone calls from her daughter in Florida prompted a check by a son. We have no idea how long she was incapacitated; her life alert had been removed and was in another room. Based on her condition yesterday, I believe she will be unable to live alone, so some tough decisions are going to be necessary. Please continue to keep her in your prayers.

I had a frightening experience this morning. I was awakened at 1:30 by the doorbell chime, followed by loud voices, followed by the wail of my alarm system. I jumped out of bed, scared stiff, opened my bedroom door and was blinded by flashlights. Two police officers were responding to a silent alarm signal and found my front door slightly ajar and pushed the door completely open which set the house alarm off. After asking several questions and searching the house and basement, they left. Apparently, when I closed and locked the door yesterday morning, the door wasn't fully shut and the wind blew it open enough to trigger that silent alarm. I'm still pretty shaken up by the whole episode.

FLN

Thanks for stopping by, Kevin. Will look forward to your next appearance.

Have a great day.

Lemonade714 said...

Jerome,
We have so many anon posters because they do not want to engage. They prefer the protection of anonymity which is counterintuitive. Why comment in a public forum if you do not want a dialogue? You do not have to reveal yourself; just pick a name so people can interact and you each know to whom you speak.

CEh - when someone (anyone, not necessarily POTUS) sends out many many tweets in a short period of time on a subject, it is referred to as a "TWEET STORM."

Cart Boy - funny, but what if she had answered?

Agnes, you and your sister both get our prayers; we call it Mi Sheberach. Making sure a door is shut is one of the things we can take for granted; I have come home and gone to put the key in the lock only to watch the locked door push open. Glad nothing bad happened. At a 55 and over condo with many late 80 and 90+ residents, a few of whom live alone, we are always on the alert. We had a fall this week.

Husker Gary said...

Musings
-I really enjoyed the theme and unique cluing
-RETIREE?? I am in my third day of four-in-row subbing
-The good Nixon did was indeed interred with his bones
-Try complaining when a “wise guy” loans you money at a USURIOUS rate
-I ATE a mediocre sandwich last night served by a less than mediocre waiter and left a way less than mediocre tip and a comment on the charge slip
-A silly Ames Brothers’ song about ESAU
-I knew MELISSA, ARIANA and ALICIA but couldn’t pick ‘em out of a lineup
-FREED? Alan who coined “rock and roll”
-LIEGE? Me too, Lemon! Erasures? Me too, Canadian!
-Reason for closed schools in Nebraska this spring? FLOOD
-Loved the pix! HBD to all the celebrants!
-Irish, YIKES!
-Back to baby-SITting welders.

TTP said...


Good morning.

Happy Birthday to Irish Miss and Abejo !

Irish Miss, that must have been an alarming experience. Sorry about your sister.

Thank you Robert, Marlea and Lemonade.

Yellowrocks said...

TTP, you beat me to it. I was going to exclaim on IM's alarming experience.
IM, I am with you as you face the hard work of supporting and caring for your sister. I am sorry to hear of her situation. It is hard to see our loved ones suffer. A sad and difficult time for you.
STEAM SHEEP is okay by me, when used in this context:
The policies of the Republicans steam the Democrats and the policies of the Democrats steam the Republicans. The unending chases of mischievous children steam the sheep in the cote.
Yes, LIEGE is the feudal superior. On the other hand, IMO subject can mean the matter at hand, the subject under discussion. Then LIEGE would refer to a discussion concerned with or relating to the relationship between a feudal superior and a vassal.
ASTA, Nick and Nora. I liked the old Thin Man movies on TV with William Powell and Myrna Loy.
I, too, was a retiree who worked. I tutored for years and enjoyed it, but finally I chose to hang it up.

oc4beach said...


True Friday puzzle from Robert and Marlea. Almost got it done, but had to turn red letters on to get the North Central. I did get the theme early on, with FEET TO BE TIED and CARDINAL SEEN so it helped fill in the STEAM SHEEP and TEEN LIZZIE.

As far as cardinals go, we have a pair that visit our bird feeder all winter. They are a nasty pair that chase the smaller birds away, but they are pretty and their plumage against a snowy background is enjoyable to see.

As a RETIREE I may not be working (ie. have a job) but I am busy with volunteering and other activities. As many have said, how did we get everything done when we were working, because we're so busy now.

I had trouble with HOF (Hall Of Fame) because I read 40-Acr. as 40 Acres, not 40 Across. A head slap was in order when I read Lemon's explanation. Perps filled it in and I scratched my head trying to figure out what the heck HOF was.

Happy birthday Abejo and Irish Miss. I hope you have a great day. Remember, on your birthday you get to pig out on cake or on anything else you want.

I knew the proper names, but like HG I probably couldn't pick them out of a line-up either. I guess I'm not in the right generation.

To me and other space cadets, SLEW is preferred over SLUE. In Stabilization and Control terminology we would SLEW a spacecraft about an axis to point it in another direction.

Today is many things including National Deep Dish Pizza Day, National Caramel Day, National Read A Road Map Day and National Nebraska Day. So, HG and others can celebrate the day of their choice. I think pizza is on my list.

Have a great day everyone.

Misty said...

A Friday toughie for me, although I got three of the corners early on. But I still enjoyed it--many thanks, Robert and Marlea. Nice to see RETIREE in the puzzle, since I'm happy to now be one. Never watched "The Sopranos," but loved EDIE Falco on "Nurse Jackie" a few years ago. Thanks for asking about TWEETS, CanadianEh--I too didn't understand that storm clue, and thanks for explaining, Lemonade. Helpful commentary, too.

Happy birthday, Abejo.

And sorry to hear about your difficulties today, Irish Miss. I was so glad your sister's stroke was minor, but so sorry to hear about further problems. And you certainly didn't need the door and house scare on your birthday. But we all wish you a great day.

Have a good day, everybody else, too.

Anonymous said...

Did you all also notice that TRUMP was crossed with MCCAIN? Surprising after all the horrible TWEETS that have been sent insulting the late senator.

CrossEyedDave said...

Have not read the comments yet, in the middle of a busy Friday.
I promise I will go back & read them when I can squeeze a few minutes
out of my hectic day.. (gotta go to Best Buy & get Memory Cards on sale
for Daughter#2-otherwise she can't video Daughter #3's recital,
and Daughter #1's SHow. & God help me if the House isn't clean
before 5 Oclock...)

Oh, & I am looking for a missing music book for the recital...

& missing memory cards, necessitating the Best Buy excursion...

Puzzle? When Feudal established an age bet really screwed me up in the SW... (Nuts!)

But it was Lemon's link to Fusspots that led me astray linkage wise...
But I was mistaken, The reference was Tosspots...

also, 59 Stabber=Tine
I do a lot of research on my links,
and the recent Pea soup discussions led to a detailed search
of which nothing seemed worthy of posting.
But perhaps I can salvage two days of searching and post this for Tine.

Ack!
I almost forgot!
I gotta go find TWO virtual cakes!

Big Easy said...

GET THIS. A puzzle with no unknowns filled by perps. Those are far and few between for this guy. I had to think before remembering that GDANSK was DANZIG. The I to EE substitution showed up early at STEAM SHEEP.

Mel OTT- he's not history. He was a local guy. I play pickleball twice weekly at the MEL OTT gym in Gretna, LA. MelOtt-CrawCookoff-May 18th 1-6pm $15

USERER- loan sharks will always be swimming in the pool of people who can't control their spending.

EARL Anthony, Don Carter, Dick Weber- I remember them and watching "Make That Spare"

PIA Zadora- Took her cue from ZSA ZSA Gabor and was a predecessor of Paris Hilton, the Kardashians, & BETO. Famous for being famous. Money helps.

ARMOIRE- I have TWO that DW insisted that we have so that our TVs don't look naked. Nothing like spending $4,000 to put a couple of $400 televisions in, and that was BEFORE flat screens. I removed the doors so that larger TVs would fit.

Hahtoolah- I only know of ARIANA because some cook shot some people before one of her concerts. DW said she had a TV show.

Agnes- my house has "Frawnch" doors in the back and one time I got a call from the alarm company while in a restaurant. The win had blown them open. The deadbolt was not engaged. French doors are only good for one thing- moving something big in or out of your house.

Yellowrocks- you're spot on with your description of STEAM SHEEP.

Spitzboov said...

YR - Thanks for Explaining the sheep steam. I forgot about that meaning.

Lucina said...

Thank you to the Ellises and Lemonade! Good puzzle, fine review.

I didn't get a TADA because I didn't understand 45A and though I thought of FATHEAD hesitated to add the F.

Hand up for MIRAGE before FACADE. FEET TO BE TIED gave me the trick of changing i to ee.

Lemonade said, I wonder if they have to commit all of them to become CARDINALS. I am beginning to think so. There have been so many scandals among them that one wonders if any honor or a scintilla of holiness exists within that body, the once revered College of CARDINALS.

Happy birthday Irish Miss and Abejo!!

Irish Miss, I'm sorry that your sister suffered even more than she already had.

TRUMP crossing MCCAIN, now that's a mirror of true life.

Have a fabulous day, everyone! Our swimming pool continues to be well used. My condo is in front of the pool so I have a full view of it.

waseeley said...

FUSSPOT: I do now!

Yellowrocks said...

Loan sharks also prey on people who have jobs with low wages and unsteady weekly work hours.They cannot get low interest credit and cannot control their desire for basic subsistance necessities.

waseeley said...

[me] That's because Alexa is a fathead.

inanhiker said...

Lots of smiles as I filled in the puns and redirects in the theme.

Happy birthday to Agnes and Abejo!

Sorry to hear about your sister's further decline, Agnes. My mom got a med alert bracelet but not until after she had laid on the floor for 17 hours. Her cousin checked with me after that as to which one I had ordered for Mom - but she never took the next step of getting it ordered, and when she fell in her home it was over a 2 day period before she could finally scoot over to her doggy door and yell out to the neighbor! The new ones look just like a fit bit- so easy to wear....if you are older and live alone- get one!! and then wear it- because med alerts are like condoms - they do no good sitting on the shelf! End of PSA!

Thanks Lemonade and Robert &Marlea!

waseeley said...

Speaking of taxonomists, this is just a friendly reminder that it's only 10 days until the Ides of April.

waseeley said...

Most tweet storms are generated by bots. But there are a few humans who do seem to have a talent for it. That, plus my guess is they don't have day jobs.

AnonymousPVX said...


Best wished to the Birthday Duo.

A really tough Friday puzzle, IMO.

Markovers....AMO_/AMIE, SPIN/SLUE.

Okay....AMIE is French for FRIEND. AIME is French for LOVE.

Not that anyone will notice.

Tinbeni said...

Lemon: Nice write-up & pictures.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY Irish Miss & Abejo. My "First Toast" tonight is to you two!

Robert & Marlea: Thank you for a FUN Friday puzzle. I liked the theme.

Cheers!

CanadianEh! said...

Thanks Lemonade for the explanation of Storm components=TWEETS. You can tell that I am not a Twitter user or follower. (You're welcome, Misty)

IM, sorry that the report on your sister's condition is not more positive. And to have that scary experience in the night on top of everything. May your birthday be more relaxing!

YR, your examples of STEAM usage don't create any more recognition with me. Maybe my lack of familiarity with STEAM=make angry is a Canadian/regional thing. The active voice, Steam meaning to be angry, or adjective steaming mad is familiar, but not the passive voice where somebody Steams you (except in ironing LOL!)

inanehiker - LOL re med alerts being like condoms. We got my mother the one that is worn as a necklace and registers automatically if you fall. She has strict instructions never to remove it, even (especially!) in the bath. I believe all the watch/wrist models require you to push the button, which you may not be able to do if you have had a stroke. A little more money for an extra level of protection. (The only false alarm we have had was when she fell outside and did not realize she had activated the alarm inside the house - and of course, did not hear the monitor checking on her. Fortunately she was not injured and the ambulance visit was not charged to her. We would have been willing to pay just for proving how well the system works.)

AnonPVX - you are correct that Aime is love in French (the verb) and I was thinking of the noun Amour. I knew it was Amore in Italian but misspelled to the Portuguese Amor, before the light finally dawned and perps forced AMIE. Interesting that it is an anagram of Aime. The many languages we learn with CWs.

Lemonade714 said...

I know I am losing it when I do not notice TRUMP crossing MCCAIN. I was so amused by the tweet storm connection...drat!

Michael said...

Ah, getting old is so much fun ... NOT!

(Someday, I plan on writing a book, "50 Things They Never Taught Us In High School," and right up near the top will be the chapter on how we wear out -- like it or not -- and how this complexifies what used to be so simple in life.)

Lemonade714 said...

Hahtoolah, I always enjoy your quotes of the day, tied to a figure who was born on the day of the puzzle. Google today is honoring Hedwig Kohn (5 April 1887 – 26 November 1964) who was a German-American physicist, one of only three women to obtain habilitation (the qualification for university teaching) in physics in Germany before World War II. She was forced to leave Germany during the Nazi regime because she was Jewish. She was there with
EINSTEIN She heard the lectures of SCHRODINGER and BOHR.

CrossEyedDave said...

Happy Birthday Irish Miss!
Note the Leprechaun can knock a few years off...

(Oh Boy! I hope I got that right, cause Irish Miss looks younger than 60 to me....)

Abejo!
I Googled Persian Beer Cake,
and for some reason,
This is what came up?
Happy Birthday!

Jayce said...

I laughed insanely when I solved STEAM SHEEP because for some reason it evinced mental images of steamed buns and steamed dumplings.

This puzzle was fun to solve. Of course I had writeovers, but that's part of what makes it fun. For example, USH became CUE, SPIN became SLUE, SPADE became TRUMP, and MIRAGE became FACADE. I originally was nonplussed at LIEGE being a "subject" but then interpreted "subject" to be "topic" and it made sense; a magnificent clue indeed. I also loved the clue for SILICON.

As an electronics engineer in Silicon Valley who has designed with so called "op amps" for years, I am very familiar with the term SLEW (less so with SLUE). "Slew rate" is the measure of how fast a voltage or current can change.

Although I am not totally a RETIREE, I often describe myself as one because it is easier than explaining I am 99.9% retired but still "on call" if my employer (yes, they are my employer because I am officially still on their payroll and have an employee number) needs me.

I wonder if CARDINAL SEEN knows of Bishop Sheen. Nah...

Happy birthday wishes to IrishMiss and to Abejo.

Wilbur Charles said...

ZIG-ZAG reminds me of Sat's TICK-TOCK and that Fab joke

D4, I can think of three biblical ASSes: Balaam's**, Mary's and Jesus's. Anymore?



Methinks I'll rarely see
A crossword without
EMU, ESAU, OTT and ETUI
I inked in EGG<AGE. I had the G from LIEGE but I am in denial about I<E except< G*

Mozart wasn't the first to tell a little white lie eg. "prayed a rosary as I had pledged "


e. Loansharks. In the old days if you ran out of cash at the bar on Wednesday night you cashed a check for $10.; On Thurs you cashed $20. at a bar near the bank and deposited$10. On Friday you got paid and dashed to the to keep the kites flying. Now the checks are like debit and the winner? AMSCOT
Btw
Happy birthday to Agnes
* eg HEIGHT,WEIGHT...
** My fav. When asses talk it's worth listening

Wilbur Charles said...

Another Palmer who tees it up is
Sam
Btw, before there was EARL there was Don


Yellowrocks said...

Am I mistaken? I believed my examples were active voice, transitive. Lucina? I am willing to learn. I have heard steams used this way many times. "My collegeaue's claiming my best ideas as his own really steams me.
Waseeley, currently the most well known tweet storms come from a man, not from bots.

Wilbur Charles said...

Remember this Girl

WC

Wilbur Charles said...

I'm sorry that my posts look unedited. My mistake was using "<" and ">" in the same post as links. HTML doesn't like that.

Not Tuesday but perhaps Wednesday difficult with a few Friday clues like the N-Center
I got a little mixed up with Valley in the clue above TEEN and naturally thought be of
This kind of teen

WC

PS. Re. OTT . (Alex) " Who was the nice guy in last place"

Wilbur Charles said...

Extra credit: Who was the speaker?

Wilbur Charles said...

I see Big Easy remembered Don Carter from that program that I too watched

Lucina said...

YR:
Yes, I see the active voice transitive. You used an object in each sentence which is what determines that it is transitive.

fermatprime@gmail.com said...

Greetings!

Thanks to Robert, Marlea and Lemonade! Cute theme. Unknowns were EARL, BOO,
TWEETS and DANZIG.

Happy birthday to IM and Abejo! Good thoughts to IM's sister.

Still suffering at rehab place. Four hour sleep last night. Fish with bad taste for lunch.

Hope to see you tomorrow!

Anonymous T said...

Hi All!

Thank goodness I've heard of TiN LIZZIE or I'd have DNF'd the south.

Thank yous Robert & Marlea for the fun puzzle. Theme helped me get the Z's in there and stop me ESSing around the Slalom.

Welcome back Lem [I'm hearing Kaplan's theme in my head...]; you didn't miss a beat.

WOs: EFT b/f TOT, USUREy, the aforementioned ESS
ESPs: N/A but many perps were needed to suss many c/as
Fav: MCCAIN crossing TRUMP - it's even more fun IRL.
//dang - @11:45 and Lucina said it too (but backwards :-))

{B+, B}

CartBoy - funny. I felt this was light for a Friday too probably 'cuz I knew all the names [for once!]

Oc4 - you weren't the only one reading Acres (3x)

Lem - not quite... What you described is a Twitter burst. A TWITTER STORM is the flurry of activity on Twitter (TWEETS) around an event. A #Hashtagged Tweet about something "big" causes re-tweets, causing more RTs, causing....; news moves super-fast during a TS but details are sketchy. Think GreenRevolution.
Does that clear that up Misty & C, Eh!?

BigE - we have the same ARMOIRE situation w/ the TVs (must be a Louisiana DW thing). It was hard to find a flat-screen small enough to fit.
I only know ARIANA because TXRep Crenshaw "got" Pete Davis w/ his ring-tone ringing one of her songs. Apparently Pete & ARIANA were an item and she dump'd him. Here if you care

Lucina - Well stated re: CARDINALS

Happy Birthday IM! You gotta know you're a treasure at The Corner. And what a wake-up call!
Thoughts to you and your sister...

Happy Birthday Abejo who's always on the go; don't know how you do all you do (clean living(?))

Cheers, -T

Anonymous T said...

Oh, Jinx - email me @Zoe's twitter... I'll follow [for a while... If you're over-chatty you get the hook; I've real work to do :-)]

Big Easy said...

Anon-T

My solution to getting a larger flat-screen television into an ARMOIRE.

TAKE THE DOORS OFF. Measure the width. Then go shopping for a TV that will fit. And measure those TVs because a 48" TV is 48" measured diagonally, not by width.

Abejo said...

Good afternoon, folks. thank you, Robert & Marlea Ellis, for a fine puzzle. thank you, Lemonade, for a fine review.

First, thank you all for the Birthday Wishes. Also, my additional wishes to Irish Miss, my Birthday partner. Maybe we are twins? You are not from Erie are you? By the way, good story on your alarm. Hope it does not happen again to you.

Good one, TRUMP crossing MCCAIN.

Liked the theme. Took me a while to figure it out. FEET TO BE TIED was the Rosetta Stone for me.

Some tough words today. MELISSA, ALICIA, HOF, ARIANA, OPERA, ARMOIRE, PIA, etc. Thank you, perps.

C.E.D. Persian Beer Cake. That was interesting. Corona is not my type of beer, but I have had it.

My first Birthday Greeting of the day was from my ex-wife in Ohio. She texted me. Then my wife extended greetings and one of my daughters has. My other daughter I am sure will before the day is over. It is good to spread things out a bit.

Well, my wife and I are going out to dinner for my Birthday. Going to the Shrine Temple. They have a great restaurant.

See you tomorrow, sometime. I am going to Joliet, IL, for the day. A Knight Templar event.

Abejo

( )

CrossEyedDave said...

Yeah, sorry, I don't know why Corona came up so much
under a search for "Persian Beer Birthday Cake."

But it was fun searching!

CrossEyedDave said...

& Irish Miss,
Sorry for the typo re:
Leprechaun can knock a few years off,
I meant, add a few years...

Oh Crap!
I posted a cake for a Lady with an age on it!?!?

(I'm Doomed...)

Irish Miss said...

Thank you all for the birthday wishes and for your caring thoughts and concerns for my sister. No new developments reported.

Hondo, no, no birthday dinner at The Barnsider but that's one of my favorite restaurants, also.

Thank you, Lemony, for the special prayers.

Thank you CED for my cake. I think maybe you picked up a bit of Blarney from that Leprechaun, though! ☘

BTW, WikWak and billocohoes haven't posted lately, unless I missed something.

I had a dead battery yesterday (Hi, PK!) and a missing Discover card this morning, which gave me a scare. Fortunately, it turned up in a part of my wallet where it didn't belong. To say that this has been a memorable birthday would be an understatement.

Thanks, again, everyone.

Ol' Man Keith said...

Lotsa comments today - Or maybe it's that I've come so late to the party that all the chatter is done?

Anyway, yes, I'm late because I had a dermatology appt roday. One facial biopsy, several nitrogen squirts over face and scalp (all sunshine inflicted), and 5 painful steroid shots to the scars on my right shoulder (motorcycle accident).
Ow.

HBD, Irish Miss! You're catching up to me!
Speaking of "Irish" items, I am currently savoring Say Nothing, by Patrick Radden Keefe, an arresting account of the last revival of the "Troubles" in N. Ireland. I recommend it.
~ OMK
____________
DR:
A 3-way on the left side.
A short anagram, limited, by the overabundance of vowels, to a polite invitation to ....
"TEATIME"!

Big Easy said...

OMK- my derm appt was WED. But on top of one facial biopsy and multiple squirts of N on scalp, ears, & neck, the biopsied place was cauterized and I also had N squirts on hands, forearms, wrists, calves. Kerotosis? I get about 20 treated every 3 months. Redheads (when they had hair) have fair skin.

Was instructed to call back in a week for biopsy results but the MD said he destroyed the growth.

Wilbur Charles said...

Abejo, if you and your Knight's Templar get together with the Illuminati let us know the next conspiracy

WC

South of the Border said...

Canadian: maybe you don’t understand the term Steamed because you are too far north. It’s the same as Frosted, such as listening to politicians augue really frosts my butt.

Ol' Man Keith said...

D4E4H ~
Sorry! I tried your link, but when I click on the 2nd icon from the right, I get some paragraphs on "Contractions."
Nothing about X-Ray eyes.
Am I doing it right?
~ OMK

Ol' Man Keith said...

Big Easy ~
You have my sympathies.
I am not as "fair" as you, but I'm willing to bet I get as many skin cancers and pre-cancers. Multiple Mohs surgeries. Today's appointment was between my regular scheduled appts. I have to keep returning on- and off-schedule.
In my case, it's my price for many, many years of SoCal beach living. I never surfed but was swimming in the water and running on the beach every day of the week, then reading and sleeping on the sand.

I loved the sun, but I guess she didn't love me back.
~ OMK
____________
PS.
My doc phones me with the results. i'm such a good customer.

Yellowrocks said...

Lucina, thanks for confirming I was not mistaken.
Tomorrow I will set out my yellow stuffed duckie. I am thinking of making her my mascot LOL. I will place my congregation of various colored plush bunnies on the bench in the foyer. I love my many Easter decorations. Ah, spring.

Vidwan827 said...

Thank you Lemonade for a wonderful commentary and with some very interesting links !!! If I may say, I am very glad that you are happy and contended.. ..god bless...


I also enjoyed reading many of the comments and some very funny asides.
Happy Birthday IM Agnes and Abejo, and many more.
My small prayer contributions to your sister, IM. Hope everything works out.
When we get old that part of the riskiness of life cannot be avoided. We all go out in our own way ... but each of us will go uniquely....

It was a real pleasure reading the blog post by Hatoolah !!! Life passes us by so fast ....

Have s nice day all.

Lemonade714 said...

The Lady Huskies lost it in the last 10 minutes against Notre Dame; it was hard to watch.

Earlier we went watch to the touring company of DEAR EVAN HANSEN at the Broward Center; the lead had a most impressive voice.