google.com, pub-2774194725043577, DIRECT, f08c47fec0942fa0 L.A.Times Crossword Corner: Saturday, January, 18, 2020, Ed Sessa

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Jan 18, 2020

Saturday, January, 18, 2020, Ed Sessa

Saturday Themeless by Dr. Ed Sessa

So you think doctors won't make a Saturday house call. Well, Dr. Ed Sessa has arrived here at our crossword stand with his little black bag full of cleverness and learning (e.g. 1 Across) to help ease the winter blues for those of us north of the Mason-Dixon Line. Bringing along his faithful companion is a further boost for us!

Just for fun I found out how far it is from my town here on the frozen steppes of eastern Nebraska to Ed's home on Sanibel Island, Florida. BTW, I see they do have three golf courses on the island.


Let's check out what Dr. Ed has for us on his rounds today:

Across

1. Indian anna, e.g.: COIN - An anna (or ānā) was a currency unit formerly used in India and Pakistan, equal to ​116 of a rupee. I'm sure the word play similarity to Indiana did not escape Ed.
A 1919 mint condition 8 anna
coin worth $400

5. Baked potato topping: CHIVES.

11. Billy the Kid preceder?: AKA - "Also Known As" is "Better Known As" below


14. It's tossed into a pot: ANTE.

15. Play with Freudian implications: OEDIPUS REX - Freud - "It is the fate of all of us, perhaps, to direct our first sexual impulse towards our mother and our first hatred and our first murderous wish against our father18. Freudian component of 15-Across: PRIMAL URGE - You're on your own here

17. Result of spilling the beans: MESS.


19. Catering preparation: PLATTER.

21. Whale fare: KRILL - They can eat millions per day



22. Jam-packed: FILLED - NFL stadiums are not necessarily FILLED anymore 



23. 1989-'90 Broadway one-man show: TRU Robert Morse as TRUman Capote

26. Gift-wrapping occasions: EVES.

27. Arm of the sea: INLET.

28. Serial standout: SOAP STAR - The longest serving American SOAP STAR 



30. Short rules?: REGS.

31. Enjoyed a parlor game: SHOT POOL - When Fast Eddie SHOT POOL with Minnesota Fats, it was in a pool hall not parlor. "Like he's playing a violin"



32. Stumble: ERR.

33. Market research pioneer: NIELSEN - According to the NIELSEN Ratings, The Bob Hope Vietnam Christmas Show was the highest rated TV show this week 50 years ago

34. Suitable for family viewing: TV-G.

37. Actress who voiced Duchess in "The Aristocats": EVA GABOR - Movie also from 50 years ago



39. Cry over spilt milk?: MEWL - It'll be fine kitty!

40. Contemporary of le Carré: DEIGHTON - Spy novelist Len's first name is standard fare here

41. Movie character who might say 3-Down: ZORBA and 3. "No clue": IT'S ALL GREEK TO ME.



42. Facebook nudge: POKE.

43. Texting nicety: THX - YW seems to be the apt reply

44. Finalized, with "up": FIRMED - We finally FIRMED up the sale of MIL's house last month

45. Join the cast of: ACT IN - I'll bet all of you know what TV show these ladies joined to ACT IN after the previous one moved on



47. Propaganda tactics: BIG LIES - It's been done for centuries 

48. It's usually stuffed on planes: STORAGE BIN 



52. Suspicious of: ONTO.

53. Garden support: TOMATO CAGE - It's hard to see the CAGES that are holding up my wife's lush TOMATO and cucumber plants. Daughter, niece and nephew are harvesting from her bounty!

54. Storm preceder, at times: CALM.

55. "I kissed thee __ I killed thee": Othello: ERE - In English and in, uh, English

56. Govt. savings vehicles discontinued in 1980: E BONDS - Initially offered in 1941 to finance WWII. They became known as "War Bonds"



57. "Red Balloon" painter: KLEE - As it hangs in the Guggenheim 




Down:

1. Hand warmer only used outdoors: CAMP FIRE.

2. Little crack: ONE LINER - The King!


4. Settles softly: NESTLES - So many to choose from online ("from which to choose" for the grammar police 😏)



5. Managed to get by: COPED.

6. German title: HERR.

7. Forest's Oscar role: IDI - A Scottish doctor on a medical mission becomes entangled with this brutal dictator who declared himself to be the title of this movie



8. Drive: VIM.

9. Acid Rain Program org.: EPA.

10. Have a pouty face: SULK.

11. Carousel location: ARRIVAL TERMINAL - Michael Richards hurt himself sliding onto this carousel but finished this Seinfeld scene


12. Seeker of turkeys in alleys?: KEGLER - When a KEGLER (bowler)  gets three strikes in a row 



13. Eponymous jumps: AXELS - Named after its Norwegian creator AXEL Paulsen



16. Gonna: SURE TO.

20. Hanoi holiday: TET.

23. Hobbyist's organizer: TOOL BOX - I'd call this a deluxe model



24. Fingers: RATS ON.

25. __ deck: UPPER - In the UPPER deck at Yankee stadium you are 7 stories up and about 180' from home plate

28. Scabbard: SHEATH.

29. Dad bud, often: SON.

31. Tourist attraction: SIGHT - Old Yankee Stadium was on my bucket list as a SIGHT to see that I checked off

33. Badger or hound: NAG - Yeah right, I was the only one who put DOG first

35. "Punch buggy" in a car trip game: VW BEETLE - We called it "slug bug" and it gave you license to punch a sibling after yelling out "slug bug" upon seeing a VW BEETLE. Hey, we didn't have glowing screens to occupy us!

36. Full of joy: GLADSOME - Makes sense. Use over time:



38. "25 Words or Less" host Meredith: VIEIRA A play-at-home game published in 1996 and put on the TV in 2018

39. Wells predator: MORLOCK - Here they attack Sheldon in a dream he has while sitting in the prop used in the H.G. Wells movie The Time Machine



40. Who on TV, with "the": DOCTOR All you wanna know about one of aforementioned Sheldon's favorite TV characters 

41. Turn sharply: ZIG.

42. It holds things together: PASTE - Haute cuisine in Kindergarten 

44. Ticket prices?: FINES.



46. Archibald of the NBA: NATE - NATE is the second from the right standing on this team that split time between the two cities



47. Cowboys' city, familiarly: BIG D - Carol Burnett and Julie Andrews sing this fun song from Most Happy Fella



49. Lump: GOB.

50. Green opening: ECO.

51. Taboo: BAN.



Thanks for the visit, Dr. Ed. Comments?

37 comments:

D4E4H said...

Carol and I FIR in 68:11 min.

Good morning Cornerites.

Thank you Ed Sessa for your impossible Saturday CW.    

Thank you Husker Gary for your excellent review.

This is our first post since 12-25.  We solve each CW, but have been too busy to post. 

Ðave 

Lemonade714 said...

Dave 2, good to see you.

Another Saturday Dr.Ed-HG collaboration. I also thought 1 ACROSS was a distinct challenge. Overall it was fun and a great way to start the day. The grid-spanners ITSALLGREEKTOME and ARRIVALTERMINAL opened up the grid.

FLN, JD I look forward to hearing from those who have passed through and you are among the memorable ones. I wish we would hear from more of them.

Enjoy the holiday weekend and bring joy to the world.

desper-otto said...

Good morning!

My Wite-Out was like Brylcreem -- "a little dab'll do ya" this morning. Needed it to change CHIP to ANTE and MEOW to MEWL. Otherwise my grid was clean -- and filled. Thanx, Dr. Ed and Husker. (Is that Larry David fighting with the overhead bin?)

NESTLES: They're the makers of Nestles Quik which I see is now called NesQuik.

THX: George Lucas' standard for movie sound. I'm sure you'd recognize the "big note" fanfare.

NIELSEN: He graduated from UW Madison and donated a Natatorium (we mere mortals would call it a swimming pool) while I was there. Now it's got additional uses and is known as the Nielsen Recreation and Well-Being Center. It's more than 50 years since I last visted the campus; I'm sure I wouldn't recognize the place.

desper-otto said...

I thought it was the "Big Note," but I see they refer to it as the Deep Note. Click and hold the headphone icon to hear it.

Wilbur Charles said...

Jinx, having breakfast at Darrell's Diner, Ocala hwy 301 just south of hwy 40. This beats breakfast Station. We came over for the flea market. Haven't started on XW yet.

WC

jfromvt said...

Another fun, challenging Saturday by Ed! I chipped away at it, and like Lemonade, getting 3D and 11D opened up the puzzle for me. I knew 38D had to be VIEIRA, wasn’t sure of the spelling, but that got me EVAGABOR, and was able to finish the middle section last.

Big Easy said...

Winter blues? Not down in NOLA- 70 degrees today. It was a slow start and fast finish today. I made a MESS in the NW with the ink pen, incorrectly guessing AMAH for an 'Indian anna' and waffled between INLET & BIGHT. But the long fills- ARRIVAL TERMINAL & IT'S ALL GREEK TO ME- blew the puzzle wide open and let me finish.

EVA GABOR, GLADSOME, KLEE & DEIGHTON- were unknowns but were easy after a few perps.
TOMATO CAGE - new to me; Tomato STAKES & bean poles I'm familiar with them.
TOOL- KIT, SET, or BOX? options.

Gary- I just read that one of LSU's coaches, Mickey Joseph who grew up in my neighborhood, just turned DOWN Nebraska's offer as passing game coordinator.

Jinx in Norfolk said...

Thanks to P&P I FIRed. OK, and to a lucky guess at ViEIRA x DEiGHTON. Erased bowler for KEGLER, TOOL kit, then bag, before BOX, shield for SHEATH, dun for NAG, and sin for BAN.

WC, I know that restaurant. It was Aunt Fannie's last year. We usually go the Marion County flea market. If you see a red brindle greyhound, that's us. We'll probably have lunch on the patio at the Mojo Grill on 441 afterwards.

FLN, -T glad you found it. Sounds like Citrix was a little casual about attacking the root problem.

Thanks to Ed for the fun puzzle. My favorite was "storm preceder, at times" for CALM. And thanks to Husker Gary for the very informative tour.

Spitzboov said...

Good morning everyone.

Needed help with Anna: COIN, and spelling of VIEIRA. Got everything else though; eventually. Couldn't get a toehold anywhere at first but, surprisingly, OEDIPUS REX got me started. Possibly aided by AXELS. Had 'bight' before INLET. The light going on with ITS ALL GREEK TO ME and ZORBA helped fill a lot of spaces. Got MORLOCK from 7 perps. GLADSOME was a learning.
Knew VW BEETLE from our children's friends.
Didn't know it was called a TOMATO CAGE. Wanted to call it some kind of trellis.

Husker Gary said...

I just got this gracious note from Dr. Ed

Gary, it is a long trip south but you and all your fellow writers are always welcome to visit if ever in the area. The door is open!
Ed S.


Let's meet in Atlanta and drive down to Sanibel as a group!

Hungry Mother said...

Lots of names, but somehow I came up with them. I would still like more wordplay, but how can I argue with success?

Ray - O - Sunshine said...

My PRIMALURGE...to finish in an hour with some interruptions for a Saturday.

Down near Sanibel Island as well. Thought my brain had finally thawed out from minus degree temps back home in CNY. Sped through the upper two thirds

Then came to a grinding halt. I never played that car game but knew it had to be some variation of Volkswagon bug.

Thinking cute I had "gale" instead of CALM before a storm. Gale Storm from her eponymous "Oh Susanna" TV show I kinda remember.

Tried to recall the bride's name from "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" ..The Z in ZIG ended that. Wrong movie.

Eventually came together. Saturday puzzles should a challenge but the clue for COIN was too obscure. I got it with the perps but still needed the narrative to understand the derivation.

Contemporary optional clue for BIGLIES..alternative facts.

Propaganda is a father goose per the Three
Stooges.

I knew the overhead compartments were the stuffed part of a plane if that's what STORAGEBINS is referring to. Charging a fee for carry on and not for checked bags would theoretically result in much less confusion and delayed boarding.

And keep those tomato cages locked or the plants might escape and run wild in the garden.

Happy Saturday

CrossEyedDave said...

Anon-T Yest, 6:56

I copied & pasted your query into Google
& what came back was Tomorrow & tomorrow by Charles Sheffield. Wiki does reference some Asimov though...

Hope that helps...

Onto the Saturday Stumper!

inanehiker said...

This was an initially slow solve which eventually came together like dominos dropping. I had OPEN FIRE before the change to CAMP FIRE. The FIRE changed STDS to REGS.

My kids not only had the "slug bug" and "punch buggy" but the PT Cruiser came out when they were in grade school - so they would also shout out "Cruiser Bruiser!" whoever first saw one of those.

When I hear GLADSOME I think of the Christmas Carol "Angels we have heard on high"
" What the gladsome tidings be
Which inspire your heavenly song?"

Our rain/sleet/snow has stopped and it warmed up through the night - but is soon diving back down in temperature - it will make a frigid Chiefs/Titans game tomorrow in KC!

Picard said...

Husker Gary thank you for your illustrated review. Your map showing your location in Nebraska prompted me to post. I just watched the world premiere of an extraordinary film at our Santa Barbara International Film Festival. It is called "The Nature Makers" and it is about heroic volunteer efforts to save three endangered species in the US.

One of those species is the Sandhill Crane and that part all takes place in Nebraska.
Husker Gary have you witnessed this exceptional migration of the Sandhill Cranes in your place?

Here is a link to The Nature Makers film web site.

As for the puzzle, FIR, but it was a lucky WAG at COIN/NESTLES. I was considering that it was COIF (a hairdo) and an unknown word FESTLES. Learning moment.

And a big learning moment that TURKEY is a good thing in bowling. Never heard of that term or KEGLER. One theory is that long ago one would receive a TURKEY as a prize for getting three strikes in a row. Learning moments.

Husker Gary said...

Musings
-Picard, Yes I have made the journey 100 miles west to central Nebraska for the March migration of the Sandhill Cranes. There are hundreds of thousands of Cranes on the wing and the sight of them filling the sky and the deafening sound they make is incredible!

AnonymousPVX said...


This Saturday go went slowly and then just filled in.

Had to jump all around to get anywhere.

A few of write-overs...NEILSEN/NIELSEN, UNC/SON, ZOMBI/ZORBA. I’m really surprised there weren’t more.

One more day until the championship games, cannot wait.

See you Monday...I try to do the Sunday grid online but it’s a rather clumsy and frustrating interface.

Jayce said...

I liked this puzzle a lot. Challenging yet doable. Clever cluing. Terrific fill. A+

I had MARTIAN before MORLOCK, MEOW before MEWL, and WARY before ONTO. Learning how to correctly spell Meredith VIEIRA helped a lot. Of all the actresses named EVA it took me a while to remember GABOR. Like some of you, even after I finally got COIN I didn't understand it until reading Gary's explanation. It also took me a while to think of TRU, as I had this image of Hal Holbrook doing Mark Twain, which I think was also a one-man show.

I am currently re-listening to the soundtrack music of the movie Hatari and it has re-awakened my admiration for the genius of Henry Mancini.

Have a wonderful day, folks.

Tinbeni said...

Husker: Excellent write-up. Good job!

Fave today was 31-a, SHOT POOL ...
Or as I like to say; "How did I pay for college?"

Well I have blue sky, 78 degree weather ... but Monday will "Top-Out" at 59 degrees. Ugh!

Cheers!

Husker Gary said...

D-O, I'm pretty sure that man flailing away at the overhead bin is Larry David. It seems right in character with what he would do.

Anonymous said...

59 degrees.Perfect!

Ol' Man Keith said...

Stumped me. I got the NE corner easily enough, but when I ventured beyond, it was hit and miss.
I was too easily mis-led. 41A should have been CASCA (who actually DID complain about it all being "GREEK TO ME"), instead of ZORBA (who MIGHT have said it).
And on and on it went. [Sigh.]
~ OMK
____________
DR:
No diagonals either. I appreciate Ed Sessa, but I didn't get enough to work with today.

CrossEyedDave said...

Well, a big DNF (thru no fault of my own...)

I was 3/4's done using Safari on my Ipad
when it decided there was a fault and reloaded the webpage.
(without all my work, of course...)

Don't have the stamina, or patience to start again.

But it did give me enough Agita to realize
I would have never gotten anywhere using ink on dead tree...

HG, thank you for splainin' things.
And a special TX for the Carol Burnett/Julie Andrews link
(I really miss those old Variety shows...)
I would like to get my kids to watch them, & I think I have a hook.
All I have to do is remind them of Dance Classes, where they
practiced one act for 6 months to put on a show.
Imagine Carol Burnett (& Others) practicing 10 or more skits every week!
Incredible!

One more for old times sake...

Dr Who.
If you ever get the chance, watch a BBC TV show called
"An Adventure in Space and Time."
It's about Actor William Hartnell, who (whom?) became a national
hero playing Dr Who, and his eventual fading due to age and illness.
Actually heartbreaking at times, (makes you wish you had a time machine...)

Follow the side links for more clips
as the full movie is probably copyrighted...

Anonymous T said...

OMK - Pass me an oar; I'm in your boat. I got the middle and SW OK but had a hard time spreading ink w/o a POKE from HG's grid. I turned on "Saturday Mode" and played the puzzle with HG's grid up for confirmation. Place a fill; noodle; fill some more; get stuck; repeat.

Thanks Dr. Ed for the time passer and some GLADSOME fill [Dr. Who, ITS GREEK TO ME, and TOMATO CAGEs (which hearkens spring!)].

Great expo HG. Atlanta to FL is still a hike; maybe meet up at an airport closer? :-)

Seen Aristocats so many times with the Girls that I knew Duchess was Lisa Douglas' voice.

D4 - Nice to see you and, nicer that you and Carol are having fun together.

PVX - I too had the IE transposition in NIELSoN; Oh, an O too. :-)

CED - not the same short-story - but the synopsis sounds like a read I want.

Jinx - Citrix wasn't the only ones taking it lightly; I told the server team on 1/7 that fecal matter was soon to hit turbine blades AND gave them actionables for mitigation.
People, gotta check your oun work...
Yeah, now I have to babysit them too. What a MESS. #sigh

I hope everyone is having a better Saturday! :-)

Cheers, -T

Anonymous T said...

LOL! And I didn't check my oun [sic] post. ERR, ERR, ERR *slinks away*
-T

Michael said...

Sometimes, rarely, Spellcheck-the-Accursed works in our favor ... for a crossword favorite, how about "Emu-jis"?

Bill G said...

AnonT, how is your battle with cigarettes coming along? My parents smoked for years and tried to quit many times. They finally made it. My father apologized several times for making me have to tolerate the unpleasant fumes. I had several nightmares about their starting back up. Only bad dreams though. I was proud of them for winning the difficult battle.

Bill G said...

A man stands up at a funeral and says to the priest,

'Excuse me, Father... I knew the deceased. Would you mind if I said a quick word?'

The priest nods him on, so the man clears his throat, pauses for a moment, and says, 'Plethora,' and sits back down.

The widow goes back to the man, gives him a hug and says...

Thanks. That means a lot.

==========

~ Mind how you go...

Anonymous T said...

Bill G.
This week, the battle was lost. #CrazyStrees #shitrix + 4(!) Windows 0days.
I lit up 5x :-(

I'm still determined to win the war... I met w/ my Dr. yesterday to refill a low dose of Wellbutrin; Rx is in hand.

Thanks for POKing me to get back on track.
-T

Anonymous T said...

BillG. A Plethora? -T

Jinx in Norfolk said...

WC: Might want to try the Sunday lunch special at Cody's if you are still around. Unlimited salad, choice of pot roast, chicken pot pie or stuffed pork chops, one side, fresh baked sweet yeast rolls With cinnamon butter and a dessert (usually apple cobbler), all for $9.99. Appointment eating for us.

CanadianEh! said...

Super Saturday. Thanks Ed and Husker G.
This CW took P&P (and a couple of Google searches) but I finished . . . Finally!

I LOLed at 3D after I used it the other day when discussing Beta, Zeta et al.
That Indian COIN was one of my G visits. TRU was the other ( that was a Saturday level clue). Oh, and another visit for EVA GABOR.

Thanks inanehiker for jogging my memory about GLADSOME in the carol. I knew it was an old word, not used much today.

I changed Kriel to KRILL, and Haw to ZIG.
KEGLER was unknown.
BAN must be the noun form to match Taboo. That pair grated. (We had Tabu several times lately.)
I was misdirected to Digits by the fingers clue. RATS ON (verb phrase) finally perped.

I use TOMATO CAGES with a hockey stick in the middle for added support.

Good evening all.

CanadianEh! said...

AnonT - I looked at NOTROBIN and 3D was appropriate.

I wanted Lakeside Park for Carousel at 11D. Still only a nickel a ride. Grandchildren love it.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lakeside_Park_Carousel
Mayor wants to name the new pavilion after Neil Peart.

Wilbur Charles said...

I had a long post but even in docs managed to lose it. FIW on MORLOCh/hLEE. Seemed difficult. Slow going, piece by piece. I've been missing one box for over a week.

Jinx I'm back in sun City. Ahead of the Florida frost. HG, pick us up on the way South on I 75. Lemonade can come over Alligator Alley.

WC

Lemonade714 said...

LAKESIDE PARK

Wilbur Charles said...

Jinx, Cody's sounds good. I've been back and forth from Dunellon to Sun City. We also go to that flea market off hwy 27. Looks like the one on 301 south of 200 is closed.

-T, you're a walking encylopedia of Python, Saddles, Amigos trivia.

I did have a note on Len DEIGHTON.As I've noted before, the British did a private investigation of the JFK assassination. LD seems to have gotten a peek. I believe in his 3*3 trilogies featuring Bernard Sampson he embeds these secrets.

Sample: de Mohrenschildt was nicknamed DeDe, similar character is Dodo.

WC

Roy said...

Every time I see the ELOI in a crossword, I ask, "Where are the MORLOCKs?" Finally, they're here!