I'm so Dizzy with all this Spinning!
17-Across. Line on a Yankee uniform: PINSTRIPE.
27-Across. Youngest "American Idol" winner: JORDIN SPARKS. I have never watched American Idol, so am not familiar with any winners. The perps had to help supply most of the letters. Apparently Jordin Brianna Sparks (b. Dec. 22, 1989) was just 17 years old when she became the American Idol winner.
44-Across. Several characters on TV's "The Americans": RUSSIAN SPIES.
And the Unifier:
60-Across. Washing machine feature shown graphically in this puzzle's circles: SPIN CYCLE. The word "spin" cycles its letters around in the theme answers.
Across:
1. Madeline of "History of the World, Part I": KAHN. Madeline Kahn (née Madeline Gail Wolfson; Sept. 29, 1942 ~ Dec. 3, 1999) played the role of Empress Nympho in the 1981 movie, History of the World, Part I. Sadly, she died of ovarian cancer at age 57.
5. Respectful address to a woman: MA'AM.
9. Declare void: ANNUL.
14. Sailing or whaling: ASEA.
15. Jackson 5 hairdo: AFRO.
16. Golden-egg layer: GOOSE.
19. Lather, __, repeat: RINSE.
20. Have a share (of): PARTAKE.
21. Arachnophobe's worry: SPIDERS.
23. "__ questions?": ANY.
24. Lean (on): RELY.
26. "Gorillas in the Mist" primate: APE. Gorillas in the Mist is the name of Dian Fosse's autobiography and scientific study of mountain gorillas in the forests of Rwanda. Sadly, Fosse was murdered in December 1985 at age 53.
32. Skirt fold: PLEAT.
35. Facts and figures: DATA.
36. Square root of IX: III. Roman math. The Square Root of 9 is 3.
37. Open and breezy: AIRY.
38. Like babies' knees: PUDGY. This was my last fill. Pudgy never even occurred to me. Do Babies Have Knee Caps?
40. Laugh really hard: HOWL.
41. Rule, briefly: REG. Short for Regulation.
42. Pueblo-dwelling people: HOPI. The Hopi Tribe is a sovereign nation primarily in Arizona.
43. Numerical relationship: RATIO.
48. List-ending abbr.: ETC.
49. Throw hard: HURL.
50. Morse code word: DAH. This is another word for Dash
53. Portable charcoal grill: HIBACHI. The chefs at Habachi grills in some Japanese restaurants can put on quite a show.
57. How some chew gum: NOISILY.
59. Novelist Wharton: EDITH. Edith Wharton (née Edith Newbold Jones; Jan. 24, 1862 ~ Aug. 11, 1937) is an American novelist. She was the first woman author to be awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Literature. Some of her more well known works include House of Mirth, The Age of Innocence and Ethan Frome. She died of a heart attack at age 75.
62. Free-for-all: MELEE.
63. "The African Queen" screenwriter James: AGEE. James Rufus Agee (Nov. 27, 1909 ~ May 16, 1955) makes frequent guest appearances in the crossword puzzles. In 1958, he was awarded posthumously a Pulitizer Prize. Sadly, he died of a heart attack at age 45.
64. Gas in a sign: NEON.
65. Burpee buy: SEEDS.
66. Hospital section: WARD.
67. "¿Cómo __ usted?": ESTA. Today's Spanish lesson.
Down:
1. Phi Beta __: KAPPA. Phi Beta Kappa is the oldest academic honor society in the United States. It was founded in December 1776. The name comes from its motto, which translarted from the Greek means "Love of learning is the guide of life". The phrase in Greek is a 3 word term: Φιλοσοφία Βίου Κυβερνήτης.
2. Lai or Thai: ASIAN.
3. Name of eight English kings: HENRY. // And 32-Down: Henry VIII's last wife Catherine: PARR. He is probably best known for his six wives: (1) Catherine of Aragon (1485 ~ 1536) ~ no son, wife no more; (2) Anne Boelyn (1501 ~ 1536), vague criminal allegations, so cut off her head; (3) Jane Seymour (1508 ~ 1537), births son, then dies; (4) Anne of Cleves (1515 ~ 1557), not a beauty, so off you go; (5) Catherine Howard (1523 ~ 1542), young and beautiful, but fools around, so off with your head; (6) Catherine Parr (1512 ~ 1548), educated and clever, she outlived her king.
4. Condé __: NAST. Condé Montrose Nast (Mar. 26, 1873 ~ Sept. 19, 1942) was an American business magnate who founded a mass media company. Many well known and established magazines, such as The New Yorker, Vogue, and Vanity Fair fall under the Condé Nast umbrella. Nast the man built up a fortune with his media company, but was nearly destroyed during the Depression.
5. Sharpie, for one: MARKER.
6. Off the beaten path: AFIELD.
7. Dadaist Jean: ARP. Jean Arp (Sept. 16, 1886 ~ June 7, 1966) makes frequent guest appearances in the crossword puzzles. He was a French-German sculptor and artist, who sometimes known as Hans Arp. His mother was French and his father was German. He was instrumental in the Dada art movement.
Shirt Front and Fork, by Jean Arp
8. "The Simpsons" bar: MOE'S.
9. Marcus __, victorious commander at Actium: AGRIPPA.
10. "I'm drawing a blank": NO IDEA!
11. Zilch: NONE.
12. 44-Across' land: Abbr.: USSR. As in the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics.
13. Levi's alternatives: LEE'S. Here's the difference between Levi's versus Lee jeans. Translation required.
18. Mystic's deck: TAROT.
22. Sickly pale: PASTY.
25. Language that gave us "kvetch": YIDDISH.
27. Gatsby of "The Great Gatsby": JAY. The Great Gatsby is a 1925 novel by F. Scott Fitzgerald. It has also been made in to several movies versions.
28. Remind nonstop: NAG. This clue made no sense to me until the perps finally filled in all the letters.
29. Run amok: RIOT.
30. Fuzzy fruit: KIWI. Yummers!
31. Fodder holder: SILO.
33. In __ of: substituted for: LIEU.
38. Cook just below a boil: POACH.
39. Network absorbed by The CW: UPN. The CW Network is a joint venture between the CBS Entertainment Group and WarnerBrothers, hence it's name. UPN (United Paramount Network) apparently was absorbed by The CW at some point in time.
40. Possesses: HAS.
42. Bums a ride: HITCHES.
43. Piece from the past: RELIC.
45. On chairs: SEATED.
46. Smaller and weaker: PUNIER.
47. Smoothed out the wrinkles: IRONED.
50. Cuts into cubes: DICES.
51. Portion out: ALLOT.
52. "Laughing" scavenger: HYENA.
53. Garment edges: HEMS.
54. Bordeaux notion: IDEE. Today's French lesson.
55. Gallbladder fluid: BILE.
56. Part of Caesar's boast: I SAW.
58. Holiday song ender: SYNE. Just a month or so off for this song.
61. Ryder Cup co-administrating org.: PGA.
Here's the Grid:
QOD: If you wish to avoid seeing a fool, first break your mirror. ~ François Rabelais (1483 ~ Apr. 9, 1553), French Renaissance writer
51 comments:
I used to watch “The Americans” until it became too real. The theme was a help in filling in the grid. For 27A I heard the song, “Who Are You?”
An emu tried to assault a KIWI,
But the littler bird made it a MELEE.
A RIOT was turned loose
When she added a goose,
And three French hens got the IDEE!
On a HIBACHI I tried to POACH
III eggs on a slice of toast.
The onion DICES
Went in the whiteses
And the puns went into the yokes!
{B-, B.}
I've been reading Viva la Repartee by Mardy Grothe per Tony's recommendation yesterday, and came across an anecdode about AGRIPPA's wife, who had her own oddly endearing concept of marital fidelity.
This is the easiest puzzle in memory. Easier than most Mondays IMO. I harp on this a lot, but what is the value of circles, other than making the theme so obvious? And having HENRY as a clue and answer is sloppy, especially when it’s referencing the same person. But at least the newbies will be happy, which seems to be the only redeeming factor for this one.
If I recall, the last time we had a Robin Stears puzzle, I racked up a DNF. Well, I did it again. Instead of the J in JORDIN/JAY, I put in an R. Bzzzzzt! Also tried UGLI before KIWI became obvious. I can never remember which sport goes with which cup; it's a puzzlement. Thanx for the abasement, Robin, and for the excellent tour, Hahtoolah.
Madeline KAHN was a Mel Brooks regular, beginning as Lili Von Shtupp (from the YIDDISH) in Blazing Saddles
Neither the circles, nor the theme itself (another jumbled word) added to the puzzle.
Agrippa? Agrippa on a Tuesday?
What happened to the leaderboard? I enjoyed seeing how I did against all the smartees!
This was a quick run for me - fun to hear "Dizzy" on the blog, Susan - one of the first 45s I owned as a pre-teen - I cannot tell you how many times that song was played at home and at the roller skating rink!
JORDIN SPARKS was a gimme since (though she was from Arizona) she went to the same summer camp in the Ozarks that my kids did and so we were all rooting for her. Only season I watched all the way through!
I didn't realize that Madeline KAHN had died of ovarian cancer - Gene Wilder was a co-star with her in many of the Mel Brooks's films - must have been very hard to have his wife Gilda Radner and Madeline both succumb to the same cancer.
Thanks Susan and Robin!
Nice easy puzzle thanks .
I agree with Lucina FLN that Monday and Tuesday crosswords are relatively safe to do in ink without getting the page too messy.
Jinx - While on vacation in Mejico some years ago DW and I went shopping for souvenirs- well I should say DW shopped and I sat in a guest chair awhile. We entered a shop owned by an Ex Pat writer , author and his wife. One of his popular sellers was a RUSH LIMBAUGH pill box.
Anyhow - Hail to the chief s for their win on Sunday. A bit of a nailbiter for fans. Now on to Hockey.
Cheers
I wasn't full awake. Couldn't figure out why I didn't get the "Congratulations!"
My portable charcoal grill was a HITACHI.
Terrific Tuesday. Thanks for the fun, Robin and Hahtoolah.
This CW filled in good time and with only a couple of inkblots. . . plus I saw the SPIN theme (after I rejected Pins!). Did anyone else (IM?) notice the Easter Egg at 19A with RINSE! (comes before the SPIN CYCLE).
But I arrived here to discover I FIWed; I entered Cahn instead of KAHN and then did not notice the incorrect Cappa.
I had PART own before PARTAKE perped, and Rest before RELY.
I was thinking of DATA with the "Fodder holder" clue and had File before SILO.
I thought of Ashen before PASTY, and Chubby before PUDGY.
Here's a cute PUDGY baby link (and no it is not really political!). Mother is Canadian apparently.
Baby'sFirstPoliticalPhotoOps
Yes, I noticed the HENRY in answer and clue. I thought of Sunday's CW with Roman numerals at 36A III and Henry VIII. But we had I SAW and not the Latin VIDI.
FLN - good to hear from Dave & Carol.
Wishing you all a great day.
I guessed from the first set of circles that SPIN would be spun around. Nice concept. I needed the reveal to see CYCLE. IMO, just fine for an early week puzzle. It seems many solvers have cut their teeth on early week puzzles and worked their way up to weekend puzzles. I think this is a good way to attract and encourage more solvers.
Years ago we had a similar but more drastic problem with square dancing. Some wouldn't attend if it was too easy and some wouldn't attend if it was too hard. Now we are very patient and tolerant with each other. We have a mixture, something for everybody. We have achieved a family atmosphere.
Only JORDIN SPARKS and KAHN were new to me.
PUDGY and YIDDISH were my keys to the central section.
The Ledger's ($&#* font made 67A indecipherable. Easy answer when you can see the clue. Perps helped.
I am very far from a fan of Rush, but "Don't be cruel."
I knew AGRIPPA from Bible history. We each have our own sets of info.
Blah weather, but warm. I am tempted to just veg out (or more likely read a novel) all day.
Good morning everyone.
No problems with the solve. SPIN CYCLE pointed clearly to the circle content. Wanted to spell PARR as Paar, but REG fixed that.
Some interesting fill - - fun to work on.
Sailors who had dependents or who otherwise legally owed money to business or other entities would have an ALLOTment taken out of their bi-monthly pay. Since I was single and only used cash, that did not apply to me. BTW, in 1959, ENS pay was $222 per month.
Thanks Hahtoolah for another fine intro.
Jinx@4:57
This Canadian cannot let your final statement go unchallenged.
I have no skin in American politics, but to actively gloat (or seem to gloat) in a terminal medical diagnosis seems to be a step too far, IMHO.
If we replaced the name Rush Limbaugh with Alex Trebek, your statement would be quickly denounced by horrified readers. Why should anyone else (no matter what your personal opinion of the man) be met by such an unsympathetic response?
This old RELIC said HOPI get AGRIPPA this puzzle. Alas FIR but ALLOT of corrections.
Started off spelling Madeline's last name Kaan, later correctly. An outrageously funny lady gone too soon who's famous for playing Dr. Frauwnkenstein's fianceé.
Catherine PAAR outlived HENRY thus maintaining her head. His other marriages ended in executions or were ANNULed (ANNUL : the marriage never legally existed, not "divorce" as is often historically cited). Particularly the on again off again ANNULments to Catherine of Aragon. Again I strongly recommend the Netflix series "The Tudors" which, except for minor historical inaccuracies tells the fascination tale of Henry's life.
When I would PARTAKE to excess with my college frat brothers I would eventually HURL.
Any one else have to replace roar with HOWL?
Unfortunately J. Caesar couldn't say ISAW Brutus and co. approaching.
Those were the only HITCHES.
Have a great Tuesday
PARR my mistake...Boleyn mistake in narrative
Hola!
Another Tuesday thrill completed in ink! KAHN was an immediate fill as I recalled her in Young Frankenstein. What a gorgeous voice and what a tragedy to be lost so young.
It takes years and $$$ to ANNUL a Catholic marriage.
My great-grandson has those PUDGY knees and as yet his bones are soft cartilage if memory serves me right.
American Lit class included EDITH Wharton's writings as well as James AGEE's.
Is DICES really the plural of dice? I thought it was DIES. For me, DICES evokes the smell of onions, green peppers and other vegetables as I DICE them.
The HOPI people built pueblos that are today copied by many architects for modern dwellings. They mostly reside in northern Arizona.
NOISILY/HYENA seemed an appropriate crossing.
Dave and Carol, it was very good to hear from you both.
Thank you Robin Stears and Hahtoolah! You both made this an enjoyable experience.
Have a lovely day, everyone! We are starting a cold spell as winter returns here.
Happy puzzling! This puzzle was inspired when I was waiting for the washer to finish so I could put the clothes into the dryer.
Inspiration strikes everywhere! LOL
I first thought of "spinning" CYCLE, but ugh, that turned out to be a no-go. SCARCELY, DELICACY, CONCISELY, CLEMENCY, and CHALCEDONY don't exactly help make sparkling theme entries, and I couldn't get the letters to "spin" properly.
Then, I thought of "cycling" through WASH, RINSE and SPIN, but I couldn't think of a clever revealer. "Laundry Cycles" -- meh. Bleh. At that point, I felt the whole theme was too far-fetched.
But then I realized I could "cycle" *and* "spin" SPIN!
And best of all, SPIN CYCLE sounded like an actual thing. RINSE CYCLE was a maybe from me.
:D
Good Morning:
I saw the SPIN sequence immediately so the reveal, while cute, wasn't a true Aha moment. Not to worry, there were plenty of other fun entries, to wit: Idea ~ Idee, Melee ~ Riot, and, best of all,, the mini-critter contingent: Goose, Spiders, Ape, Kiwi, Hyena, Jay, Nag, Howl, and Poach. Yes, CEh, I had the Rinse Easter Egg in my comment notes. I share jfromvt's dislike of circles but only in late week puzzles when they water down the solving difficulty. Early week offerings are geared toward new and less experienced solvers and usually include circles, as well as more simple clues and fill.
Thanks, Robin, for a breezy Tuesday solve and thanks, Hatoolah, for a visual picnic and informative commentary.
Jinx, I totally agree with CanadianEh's rebuke of your comment. I hope you feel some regret for voicing it.
FLN
Carol, what great news about your much-improved health! Glad you're doing so well physically as well as giving Dave a run for his money on the crossword front!
Have a great day.
Interesting clecho between the golden GOOSE and Owen's Midas touch over at the J.
Great Spider scene in LOTR, Two Towers. I too thought "fantasy" below me. I picked up LOTR and read cover to cover "and repeat". The third reading soon after. I could recite a couple of JRR's poems upon request.*
Ok, instead of a long poem recital here's a HITCHing story:(re. the "Smaht pahk" SB ad)
I thumbed a ride from a nice New York family. They dropped me off and asked directions. "Go that way and when you come to the fork in the road, go left". They reacted in shock and chagrin, quickly peeled off with frowns and disgust. Get it: I had to think about it for awhile.
Ad in tbtimes today: Come learn golf, bring 7 IRON.
Yes, agree. Great expo and QOD- can't go wrong with Rabelais.
You want "Too real"? Try "The Joker".
Double dubbya Owen. Mucho chuckles. I love your B's
The more well-known AGRIPPA is the Herodian King. **
C-eh, I didn't know that about Rush. I remember he did MNF until canned for being too, say, Frank.
Yes, easier than Monday. Ink helps with the challenge but my Saturdays often look like Rohrshach ink blot tests.
WC
* Thru Rohan over fen and field…
** Namesake of Marcus, grew up in Rome, both assassinated
Not sure if anyone else has pointed this out, but the Los Angeles Times puzzle site has a new host. Much more user friendly than the old one. The old one would assault you with ads and would often crash. The change happened just two days ago.
Here is the new Los Angeles Times web site.
Has anyone else tried this out and/or noticed the great improvement?
Robin,I thought the second words alluded to SPIN. eg (S)tripe, spark and spy(ies).
IM, how about HOWL and HYENA. We have the American version: coyotes howling about our new place in Dunellon
WC
I think dices was about veggies like onions and peppers. The clue, cuts into small cubes, signals a verb.
CE, thanks for rebuking the Rush slam more plainly than I did.
Good morning all. It’s a chilly, windy winter day in northeast IL and I will happily stay home.
Are we sure this isn’t Monday? It felt like a Monday puzzle. Reading through Hatoola’s morning missive (and a very good one it was today) I realized that I had seen almost none of the down clues; left to right, top to bottom, swish swoosh and I was done.
Robin, thanks for stopping by. It’s always interesting to hear the kinds of things that go through constructors’ heads as they plan one out. I could never do it, that’s for sure!
Dit or DAH? Always have to wait for the perps.
I like SPIDERS well enough. It’s just that their legs get stuck between my teeth.
Roman numeral math again!? At least they were small numbers.
That’s enough; it’s nap time. Bye.
Although facts no longer count for much these days the issue with Limbaugh (and I wish him well as anyone with a cancer dx) are his statements that smoking is safe.
After asking who smokers were harming, Limbaugh denied second-hand smoke caused any deaths.
He stated:
“That is a myth. That has been disproven at the World Health Organization and the report was suppressed,” Limbaugh claimed. “There is no fatality whatsoever. There’s no even major sickness component associated with secondhand smoke. It may irritate you, and you may not like it, but it will not make you sick, and it will not kill you.”
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, approximately 2,500,000 nonsmokers have died from health problems caused by exposure to secondhand smoke since 1964.
Enjoyed the SPIN theme. An easy, quick solve. Hand up with Jinx and desper-otto that JAY/JORDIN SPARKS was a Natick crossing. I did WAG it to FIR. Hand up for NADA before NONE.
Tarantulas are fairly common in our area. So, if you are an ARACHNOPHOBE you may want to avoid these SPIDERs. I have quite a few photos of them out and about.
Here is one Tarantula SPIDER photo set I did awhile back with my photography student friend Tianna.
I have picked them up on occasion and never been bitten. Supposedly if they do bite it is quite painful, but not very poisonous. I just let them walk onto my hand and they don't feel threatened by that.
From yesterday:
CanadianEh glad you enjoyed my PIN WHEEL unicycling outfit. We used to have a magic shop here. The owner used to paint my face each year for Solstice. He took one look at my PIN WHEEL rig and knew exactly what to paint on my face.
The first photo was from our newspaper. The photographer followed me for the entire parade. He must have taken several rolls of film just of me. I was very honored!
Wilbur Charles sorry that you endured The Joker. Yes, it looks very dystopian. Not something I would ever voluntarily watch.
Here is a brief article explaining the question of whether WORF is Jewish.
It was never explicitly spelled out. Gene Roddenberry was a devout atheist. But he also had a great sense of humor. It reminded me of the scene in Blazing Saddles where the Native Americans were speaking YIDDISH. Roddenberry also must have had a special affinity for Jewish people. Both stars of the original series (Kirk and Spock) were played by Jews.
Good morning, folks. Thank you, Robin Stears, for a fine puzzle. Thank you, Hahtoolah, for a fine review.
This puzzle went through quickly. Needed a few perps, but that's OK.
Robin Stears: Thanks for stopping in. Interesting how you came up with this puzzle. Amazing!
Theme appeared easily. Made sense.
I had UGLI for 30D and CRIB for 31D. Then I looked at 36A. That was obviously III. So, I fixed 30D and 31D to KIWI and SILO.
I plugged in a V and an I for 56D, first and last letters. I figured it would be one of VENI, VIDI, or VICI. Then I did WARD for 66A. I quickly entered I SAW. That's how puzzles work. One thing leads to another.
JORDIN SPARKS was unknown. Enough perps helped a lot.
I guessed at AGRIPPA and got is right. Hooray.
I saw the news about Rush Limbaugh and I hoped that they would figure out his treatment. I am a fan of his. My two cents. Even if I was not I would still hope for a cure. I do not like anyone being ill. Having been there myself recently.
Cold and windy today. See you tomorrow.
Abejo
( )
I found this puzzle a bit easier than most...
However, I did try to fit in "simmer" before "poach."
However, I usually simmer for quite a while before I get mad.
Maybe I should take a lesson in this parsing and
realize getting mad just means I have been poached...
Robin, I loved this Tuesday puzzle, and thank you for checking in with us. Just sailed through with only the northeast turning out to be a little tough and require some work. But I got the whole thing, and loved the circles with all those cycled SPINs--a great way to start the day. Nice to see EDITH Wharton in the puzzle, and I was relieved to get JORDAN SPARKS since I've never watched "American Idol." Thanks for pointing out all the critter references, Irish Miss--I'm an animal lover too, so they were fun. And I still don't see what the problem is with HENRY--made me happy to get that one instantly, and I also got PARR. Anyway, great fun, thank you again, Robin. And, Hahtoolah, as I scrolled down all those terrific pictures I knew it had to be your commentary today--they were a delight.
Have a great day, everybody.
Wilber @ 11:31 ~ Hyena and Howl were both mentioned. 😉
Picard.... MENSA was my preferred place online to do the puzzle. But, when they stopped publishing it a few mos. ago, I switched to the Wash. Post version. Very, very similar to LA Times new version, if not the exact same. I like both. Thanks for the update.
Robin, thank you for stopping by the corner and sharing your inspiration. As it were, I happened to be doing laundry yesterday, but was only inspired to get that particular chore over with.
Picard, the new LA Times platform (PuzzleMe) is the same as the Washington Post, so many of us have been using that platform for months. Maybe a year or longer. I don't recall.
But this is good news for those that want to solve at the La Times URL.
Hahtoolah: Nice write-up. BTW there are "NO mirrors at Villa Incognito.
Needed E.S.P. (Every-Single-Perp) to get JORDIN SPARKS and AGRIPPA, otherwise a speed run.
Fave today was the theme PINSTRIPE ... then again I am a NY YANKEES fan.
Cheers!
Hi All!
Thank you Robin for the puzzle to pass the time awaiting Jury Duty. Too bad it wasn't Friday - I was done way too soon :-) //Fortunately, I had Mo Rocca's mobituaries to keep me company. [And it mentioned Cornelius AGRIPPA* (1486-1535) on p.85!]
It's the little things that spark creativity. Love the theme's backstory.
As always, a fun expo Hahtoolah! I like how you and HG chime-in daily but get to spread you wings and really opine & shine on expo days.
WO: gORDIN b/f I SAW gAY Gatsby couldn't be right... Alphabet run continued...
ESP & WAG: JORDIN (oh, she's a she) SPARKS
Fav: Madeline KAHN. Damn she was great in all Mel's masterpieces.
{B, A - I didn't see the pun coming}
FNL - Great to hear from Carol & you D4. Stay on your toes bro!
Jinx - I agree with you against Rush's rants but I can never take pleasure in someone else's agony. I hope the best for him and his family. And, who knows, maybe he will turn over a new leaf in his final days. Also, remember, he's an "entertainer" who gives his audience what they want. My Pop's a fan.
Picard - You can't mention YIDDISH Sioux w/o a link!
Cheers, -T
*He was a Scrying-er to poet Henry Howard, Earl of Surrey.
Robin, thank you for stopping by the Corner. My first thought was that Rich has a week planned with PINS and SPIN. Wednesday will be about NIPS and dogs and sots. Maybe he will have some INSPiration from the comments here.
JJM, true for me too. Mensa was HTML 4 and therefore required plugins for the media. The plugin for most HTML4 puzzle sites was Adobe Flash /flashplayer. Flashplayer was particularly hackable. Dash-T will attest.
From a simplistic point of view, HTML4 was originally developed with desktops, laptops and the like in mind. Mobile devices, not so much. Mobile was fitted in along the way with the explosion of smart phones. HTML4 documents didn't and still don't always display on mobile devices the way they do desktops/laptops.
That's why we often have questions from readers asking questions about things like "How do I create a link ?" and "What does the abbreviation xxxx mean ?" when CC has a slew of information about those and other info on the main page at https://crosswordcorner.blogspot.com/.
Mobile users have to scroll to the very bottom of the page and select the "Load Web Version" to see the items on right side of the main page.
HTML5 is the new standard for web page coding and is much more flexible and capable for presenting web content to both desktop/laptop users and mobile users.
Hi everybody.
Thanks for the puzzle and the writeup. I enjoyed both.
Yes, you couldn't pay me to go see JOKER. Well, maybe if you paid me more than $1000 and I could keep my eyes and ears closed...
Picard, thanks for the new LA Times crossword website. It looks like the Washington Post version, maybe even a little better.
I don't like Rush and his ilk at all but I wish him well.
I was one who used to dislike circles, only because they didn't show up on the old Mensa site. Now that they appear on the Washington Post and the new LA times site, I like 'em just fine.
Bill, they are the same platform, but the WaPo site is actually more fully featured than the LA Times site.
The Washington Post has a little Alfred Hitchcock profile looking icon on the navbar to the right of the clock timer. That's the "Play Together" icon. You can get a link and supposedly play the puzzle with a friend. I haven't tried it.
Now that you mention it, I remember having to load the puzzle from some other site besides Mensa if I wanted to see the circles.
Lucina: the picture that went with the clue: cuts into cubes was a joke. The word Dice is, indeed, the plural of Die.
Followed "The Tudors" on Showtime but mentioned NETFLIX instead because so many more subscribers use that service.
If mature themes offend avoid this and many other excellent series by changing settings.
Someone mentioned "Mobituaries"...I'm stil waiting...12th in the library "holding line" Maybe a trip to Barnes & Nobles in the offing.
This Tuesday puzzle was appropriate for the day.
Write-overs....PAAR/PARR, JORDINSPARKS/JORDANSPARKS.
I’m not touching the Limbaugh news. I wish no one that diagnosis. But payback is always a b*tch.
Wilbur Charles......I didn’t get it.
See you tomorrow.
Great bust of Marcus AGRIPPA. Ready to come to life!
Neat pzl, well clued.
I'm with Misty and other colleagues who see no problem with the double HENRYs. If anything, it makes things a tad easier for solving...
~ OMK
____________
DR: A 3-way of diagonals on the opposite end.
The central diag. mentions nasty, rusty tap water conduits, occasional sources for dirty H2O: ...
"SAD STANDPIPES"!
Hahtoolah and Lemonade:
Thank you. I apologize. Sometimes my sense of humor is out to lunch. That's obvious today. Now thinking about it, it's funny. I do so enjoy your commentary, Susan.
Cancer is a terrible disease and anyone who has it is to be pitied. I am not a fan of Rush either, but I wish him well.
I enjoyed this puzzle.
OK y'all missed my point entirely. My point was that Rush makes a lot of people set their hair on fire. Had there never been a Rush, there would never have been an Air America. The point was that it is likely that about a third of the US population that are into politics are likely to have Rush voodoo dolls, and have likely been sticking pins into them for 30 years.
Not me - although Rush hasn't ever been "appointment radio" for me, I do enjoy his show when I'm driving around. I certainly don't wish him ill will, I was just pointing out that there a lot of people who do and I was poking fun of them. Sorry it wasn't as obvious as I thought it would be, especially given my previous alignment with Big Easy's world view.
PVX, I erased the following: They thought I said "Take the F@#k'n road." All they heard was that four letter word as we Bostonians pronounce "Fork" "Foughk". Maybe throw in a W.
It's seemingly impossible for a non-, Bostonian to initiate. The City is imitated as "Boorston". It took me awhile to figure out what got them so upset. Of course, the "Smaht Cahr" ad reminded me of it.
WC
We are getting too close to crossing the line.
Let's keep the comments about non-political stuff.
In fact, let's just not write anything about the current state of politics, political commentators, elections, or government in general.
Jinx @ 5:03 ~ Thank you for clarifying your earlier comment.
Jinx - yes, thanks for clarifying.
Jinx - with all the vitriol I waded through on Twitter last night, I read you through that lens. I should have known better coming from you. My apologies.
OMK - Sandpipes? Aren't they used for fire suppression? Or are they just old guys singing? :-)
Ray-O: I meant to comment re: your first line in @9:04 post. Funny!
//Buy the book. It's a slow read and, if you're 12th in line, you'll see it in December :-)
Picard - your tarantula pic took me back to Basic Training in El Paso / White Sands, NM (for bivouac)... I was doing push-ups at 0dark-thirty and watched one just inches away playing with brush branches. It was uber-cool and somehow very serene.
'Course that was nuthin' compared to one (big 6'3" muscular) guy who woke w/ one on him. He ran into the Drill's tent holding the tarantula by it's forelegs (at arm's-length) and screaming "Drill Sgt! Drill Sgt! This was on my face!"
Then Drill Sgt yelled back "I don't want that! What the hell's wrong with you! Get that G'Damn thing out of here!"
Good times :-)
Cheers, -T
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