google.com, pub-2774194725043577, DIRECT, f08c47fec0942fa0 L.A.Times Crossword Corner: Friday, March 6, 2019, Ed Sessa

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Mar 6, 2020

Friday, March 6, 2019, Ed Sessa


Title: It's all in where you cut it.

Dr. Ed returns to Friday for the first time since his mini-theme puzzle on November 1, 2019. One of many prolific constructors who publish often in the LAT; he started in 2007 with this PUZZLE in the NYT. He takes some in the language phrases and by adding an apostrophe, repurposes and redefines the clue. The concept is simple and it was easy for a Friday. Not any extra-interesting fill other than the themers.

17A. What Dr. Frankenstein kept at his bar?: MONSTER'S ALE. I do not recall Boris Karloff drinking ALE, but it does repurpose MONSTER SALE. P.S., I think Peter Boyle did.

24A. Sass from a therapist?: FREUDIAN'S LIP. Sigmund talking back to his old lady patients redoes FREUDIAN SLIP.

38A. Uncle Buck, perhaps?: DOE'S KIN. A central rework for DOE SKIN which is great for gloves. And not a great John Candy MOVIE.

52A. Dracula's haul in the poker game?: VAMPIRE'S TAKE. We get both Boris Karloff and Bela Lugosi and the iconic VAMPIRE STAKE.

62A. Big cat's belly?: LEOPARD'S POT. I doubt there are many fat Leopards but they all have a LEOPARD SPOT.

On to the rest:

Across:

1. Mid-size Nissan: ALTIMA. They made the MAXIMA first, and I guess they liked the pseudo-Latin sound.

7. Ammo sold in rolls: CAPS. Almost tricky unless you played for hours every day with your cap gun when you were little.

11. By way of: VIA. Just a Latin word that was taken over by English.

14. Like many arcade games: COIN-OP.

15. Helter-skelter: AMOK.

16. Mantra syllables: OMS.

19. Fiddle player of rhyme: CAT.
Hey, diddle, diddle
The cat and the fiddle
The cow jumped over the moon
The little dog laughed to see such fun
And the dish ran away with the spoon.

20. North-of-the-border gas: ESSO. CSO to our Canadian Corner.

21. Zany trio member: MOE. Our Chairman Moe has moved to Arizona and seems to be living well.

22. "See if __": I CARE.

28. "SNL" castmate of Gilda and Jane: LARAINE. The SCREEN TEST for Ms. Newman.

31. It "hath charms to soothe a savage breast": MUSIC. The phrase sounds Shakespearian but in fact comes to us from The Mourning Bride, a poem by William Congreve, 1697. And yes, it is breast, not a savage beast.

32. Oak fruit: ACORN. Did you ever think of this as a fruit?

33. Marine mammal group: POD. We had the list published here recently.

34. Bed foundation?: SOIL. Garden bed.

42. Broadcasting pioneer: RCA. I went to grammar school with one of the descendants of the Sarnoff family.

43. Religious offshoot: SECT.

45. Meddle: PRY.

46. City near the Golden Spike: OGDEN. Where the transcontinental railroad met. More of the STORY.

48. Veronica of "Hill Street Blues": HAMEL. I wonder if she is related to last week's constructor Debra or Ray.

50. Spurred on: AROUSED. Well- gee. That is a titillating turn.

55. Orchestras tune to them: OBOES. I will let JzB explain again.

56. One of Venus de Milo's two that are conspicuous for their absence: ARM. She is back so soon.

57. Drink brand with a lizard logo: SOBE. SoBe is the abbreviation for South Beach, the southernmost part of the manmade island.
LINK.

61. Leave in ruins: GUT. In all of SoFla. we are always tearing down to build up. Did you see the story on the news of the 95-year-old home that was moved to keep it from demolition? LINK.

66. Take advantage of: USE.

67. Parrot: ECHO.

68. Tater Tots maker: ORE-IDA. Sadly this region has some virus issues.

69. Sniggler's quarry: EEL. They catch them by hand; 1645–55; snig eel (late Middle English snygge + le).

70. It may be cracked open: DOOR. My second place clue/fill favorite.

71. Sweat inducer: DURESS. Stress.

Down:

1. Highest point: ACME.

2. Restrooms for blokes: LOOS. British.

3. Metal containers: TINS. British.

4. To such an extent: INSOFAR.

5. Bon __: MOT. French

6. So-called missing links: APEMEN. My limited movie career. 48 or 49 seconds in. This was the Rathskeller at the U. of Florida.

7. Checked out before a heist: CASED.

8. GP's gp.: AMA.

9. D.C. figure: POLitician.

10. Knitter's supply: SKEINS. KNITTING 101.

11. They help one speak one's mind: VOCAL CORDS. My favorite clue/fill.

12. Japanese porcelain: IMARI.

13. __ in the right direction: A STEP.

18. Scoundrel: ROUÉ. The French word derives from the Latin rota (“wheel”), broken on the wheel.

23. Forensic TV episodes: CSIS. Meh. 37D. Specimen for 23-Down: DNA.

25. Melon feature: RIND.

26. Reassurance after a fall: I'M OK. Paint.

27. A4 automaker: AUDI.

28. Youths: LADS. Next to...

29. Teen malady: ACNE.

30. Black Flag product: ROACH MOTEL.

33. Humanities subj.: PSYchology. My undergraduate and graduate major.

35. Cold drink brand: ICEE.

36. Come down: LAND.

39. Letters near zero: OPERater. On your telephone.

40. Creator of Perry and Della: ERLE. Stanley Gardner.

41. Kindle rival: NOOK. I believe Hahtoolah uses one.

44. Scotch roll: TAPE. Maybe, MAYBE NOT.

47. Hangman player, e.g.: GUESSER. The Wheel of Fortune.

49. Took for a ride: MISLED.

50. First razor with a pivoting head: ATRA.

51. Force (through): RAMROD. verb (used with object), ram·rod·ded, ram·rod·ding. ... to accomplish or put into action by force, intimidation, etc.: to ramrod a bill through Congress

52. Popularity: VOGUE. This was difficult for me.

53. Treat badly: ABUSE.

54. Flavor: SAPOR. Sapor is what creates the flavor of something.
An example of sapor is chocolate ice cream tasting sweet.

58. Andy's catfishing partner: OPIE. Andy Griffith in Mayberry.
59. Beefcake features: BODS. You want a pic ladies?

60. Flight deck data, briefly: ETAS.

63. Prefix with conscious: ECO.

64. "I see it now!": OHO. AHA!

65. R and B group __ Hill: DRU. Not sure, but here is a LINK.

That went quickly; enjoy Tom F. next week. I will be back. Thanks, Dr. Ed and all of you who read whether you comment or not, though I learn something every time. Lemonade out.



45 comments:

  1. FIWrong. tARAINE + tADS.

    As a werewolf I ran AMOK,
    Trampled IMARI in the muck.
    When comes the day
    Then I'M O.K.,
    Except my mani-pedi's shuck!

    MUSIC may sooth the savage breast
    Which is fine when it's time to rest.
    But when AROUSED
    By the well-endowed
    I much rather would want to wrest!

    {A-, A.}

    ReplyDelete
  2. FIR, but erased case for DOOR and taste for SAPOR. DNK HAMEL, SOBE, IMARI, SAPOR or DRU.

    MOE, because Larry, Daryl and Daryl all had too many letters.

    In my ute I was highly AROUSED by LARAINE Newman. Thanks for the video, Lemony.

    Where can one find OPERs? Right next to the buggy whips and flash cubes.

    I liked ECO/ECHO and AMOK/IMOK.

    Thanks for another clever Friday puzzle, Ed. And thanks to Lemony for the fun tour.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Good morning!

    As usual with Dr. Ed's creations, I was derailed here and there, but not so much that I couldn't get things back on the tracks. stRESS/DURESS, folDS/CORDS, so far as/IN SO FAR were the culprits. Enjoyed the outing, and even got the theme, so thanx, Dr. Ed and Lemonade.

    CAPS: Came to me immediately. Yup, spent my early ute with a holster hanging from my waist and a ten-gallon hat on my head.

    LARAINE: Thanx for the clip, Lemonade. Anybody else try spelling her name with an O?

    ReplyDelete
  4. Clever theme - which I didn't fully get until LEOPARD'S POT- as expected from quiz master Ed Sessa!

    Off to an early morning meeting - so
    thanks Lemonade and Ed !

    ReplyDelete
  5. Good start to the morning, Dr. Ed and Jason. Being a good GUESSER, sussing the theme at FREUDIAN SLIP helped a lot. DNK LARAINE, HAMEL and DRU, but they were easily perped.
    CAPS was my first thought. I think that maybe one of my brother's had a cap gun, but the six of us sibs pounded caps on the sidewalk with a pointy rock.
    I wanted an ALTIMA but settled for three Sentras over 20 some years. Our condos have no basement or attic, so I lined my garage with shelves. I can just about fit my small Sentra in there with just a little room to "skinny" out the door. All my neighbors use the entire garage for storage.
    We saw a lot of IMARIware in Japan. IMARI is the English name for the pottery because it originally was shipped from IMARI to Nagasaki where it was then shipped overseas. The Japanese name is Arita-yaki.
    Have a good weekend everyone.
    SKEINS, CSO to Madame D. I hope she is okay. I miss her.
    Some Japanese brands of soft drinks have odd sounding names to English speakers' ears. SWEAT, a sports drink, actually does refer to body sweat. Then there is CALPIS. We would pronounce the first syllable as COW, resulting in titters. Even more unappetizing.

    ReplyDelete
  6. A fun fairly fast Friday. Thanks, Dr. Ed and Lemony. Filled in MONSTERSALE but still didn't "get" it. Filled in SLIP and the penny dropped. Of course, FREUDIAN'S LIP! After that I filled in the puns and sussed the remainder of the clues. I love puns, so I loved this puzzle. Did you know that cows have hooves because they lactose? Bad puns. That's how eye roll.

    DO, why would you want to spell Ms. Newman's first name Laroine? How would you pronounce that? Looks vaguely French.

    On my way to stock up on corned beef while it's on sale. Each year just before St Pat's day corned beef goes on sale and I buy several briskets to put up for the year. One for the so called Boiled Irish Dinner, others for sandwiches (we all love Reubens), and at least one to smoke to become pastrami. Yum!

    Veal Parmesan subs tonight, along with some of OREIDA's best.

    Cya!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Hi Y'all! The puzzle was challenging, thanks, Dr. Ed! The expo was fun, Lemony. Thanks!

    I didn't realize there should be an apostrophe in the theme phrases which mostly filled with perps & wags. I was surprised that Rich allowed Uncle Buck, a male, to equal Doe, a female, skin. Okay, now I get it: DOE'S KIN. Groan! Duh!

    Wondering if all our processed food will transmit virus, such as my frozen dinners that I microwave and snarf down. Hope any workers that are sick stay home instead of spooning stuff in the little plastic trays. Will 5 minutes in the microwave zap those bugs?

    My brother & his wife have cancelled a planned trip to Thailand & Italy because of virus. Their daughter & SIL live in Thailand now and are worried about traveling home to the USA in a few months.

    ReplyDelete
  8. 56-A correction: One of Venus de Milo's two that IS conspicuous for ITS absence.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Good Morning:

    This was a simple play on words but kicked up a notch, IMO, by the very funny transformations. My favorite was Big cat's belly=Leopard's Pot. The imagery makes me chuckle. My only unknown was Laraine as I was never an SNL fan. I liked the crossing duos of Psy and Pry and, like Jinx, Eco and Echo. At first thought, Andy's catfishing partner was Amos, but perps brought forth the correct and more sensible Opie. CSOs to Madame Defarge (Skeins), CanadianEh (ESSO), and Misty and Moi (RCA). Misty's Dad worked for RCA and I worked for an RCA distributor.

    Thanks, Dr. Ed, for an enjoyable solve and thanks, Lemony, for a delightful summary and the numerous fun links.

    FLN

    Lucina, I live about 150+ miles north of New Rochelle.

    Picard, thanks for sharing those spectacular photos.

    Bluehen, none of your menus sound anything other than yummy to me! Thanks for the comments on the Instant Pot. I plan on doing some research to see if one would be practical for me. (Cooking for one lacks satisfaction, not to mention incentive.) Good luck with the sale on Corned Beef Briskets. The last time I checked, they were $9.00/lb. I hope they're on sale somewhere locally as my sister cooks 10-12 briskets on St. Paddy's Day.

    Have a great day.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Good morning. The theme was obvious after MONSTER'S ALE made its appearance on the grid. I knew LARAINE Newman but always thought it was spelled LORAINE.

    HAMEL, DRU, IMARI, GUESSER- unknowns filled by perps. I've never played hangman but I doubt it's very politically correct these days.

    Speaking of 'MONSTER SALE', for the not faint of heart there's a fire sale on stocks due to the Corona virus and fear of the unknown. My neighbor flies for American Airlines, usually from Miami to London, but lately he's been going to Paris and even Brazil. The planes are half empty.

    Stay safe, wash your hands, and use hand sanitizer (if you can find any).

    ReplyDelete



  11. Not too hard for a Friday after some perp walks. FIR

    Had vocabulary before VOCAL CORDS.

    After so many OPIE answers lately I foolishly put "Amos"

    Changed "Abase" to ABUSE when I realized one perp was GUT. ( gut a fish by removing innards to prepare it for eating, gut a building to empty it. In neither case are they destroyed or "left in ruins"

    It's the cat "and" the fiddle. Feline upper extremities anatomically incapable of playing a violin. The rest of the rhyme makes complete sense!

    (BTW how can you tell Humpty Dumpty was an egg from just the rhyme?)

    Only recall VOGUE used as a freestanding word like the magazine or Madonna's dance. Something popular is "in vogue"

    Most important exports from Scotland.... Whiskey and tape.

    Teens should not wait till ACNE reaches an ACME before using Proactiv.

    CAPS provided noise for my "Fanner Fifty" toy pistol not actual ammo. The fake plastic bullets (ammo) were on the belt (thought they were lipsticks...lol).

    One of the few themes I got right away.

    On to dreaded Saturday

    ReplyDelete
  12. Good morning everyone.

    Needed help with IMARI and SAPOR but got everything else. Kind of got the theme. Some great cluing. Seemed like a mini-rolling theme with CAPS, TAPES and (stretching), SKEIN. Another fine puzzle from Ed and breezy intro from Lemonade. Thank you both.

    CanadianEh! - Back in the 70's when we were still in WNY, my wife got into weaving. She found a source of supply of SKEINS in Queenston; just below the Escarpment along the Lower Niagara River. Do you know if it is still there?

    ReplyDelete
  13. Hola!

    I love puns! Thank you, Ed Sessa.

    I see many Nissan ALTIMAs on the road and I loved my Maxima which lasted me 12 years.

    Luckily LARAINE perped or I would not have known how to spell her name. My aunt LORRAINE died just a few years ago and that is the spelling I'm used to. I wonder if it was meant to be LA REINE (the queen)?

    Actually, Scotch TAPE comes from the 3M Company in Minnesota not from Scotland.

    CSO to Mme. Defarge at SKEINS.

    This was a fun, fast Friday puzzle. Thanks to Lemonade for the excellent expo.

    Have a beautiful day, everyone!

    ReplyDelete
  14. Musings
    -MONSTER’S ALE finally hit me (DOH!) on another fine Ed Sessa puzzle and a Lemon-fresh write-up
    -Does your GPS device want you to go VIA routes you know are wrong?
    -My poverty CAP gun was a hammer. Still loved ‘em!
    -Johnny sang he “was gonna snowball Jackson,” June sang, “See if I CARE”
    -Omaha has a big U.P. presence and had the Golden Spike Drive-In Theater
    -Giving in to stress is something I struggle with
    -Why do people insist on saying TIN foil?
    -I CASED Elkhorn Ridge Middle School before deciding to “unretire” there for 6 yrs.
    -My VOCAL CORDS don’t like coffee before I sing
    -I wonder if the freshmen I am looking at right now could even use a dial phone

    ReplyDelete
  15. HG You had a hammer, we had a stone for the same reason.

    If I don't take the route my GPS advises, it tries to send me back that way countless times, although from the present position a different route would be closer. The GPS finally gives in and plots the best route from there.

    teens dialing Tee hee. They keep replacing the receiver.

    teens using a can opener

    ReplyDelete
  16. Adding a bit of whiskey to their churns Scotland has a third important export

    Butterskotch

    ReplyDelete
  17. Ooh, an Ed Sessa Friday toughie. Knew I was going to have to work hard on this one, but got started with AMA which gave me AMOK and filled in that little corner. Then on to ACORN and ACNE which helped with that one. Then down to OBOES and ABUSE which helped get the southwest corner, then across to ECHO and OHO, and so on. I think it's cool that you give us enough simple items everywhere so that those of us daunted by the long ones can get a good start, Ed. Many thanks for that. And your write-up is always a pleasure, Lemonade.

    Irish Miss, I can't believe that you remembered that my Dad worked at RCA for so many years! What an incredible memory you have.

    Can't believe I got MOE without any hesitation. Got OPER and then glanced at my landline phone and sure enough, one of the blocks had OPER followed by a huge O.
    Felt like an idiot that I put MENS for the male bathroom when I should have recognized that 'blokes' would require the more British LOOS. Had a slightly different memory of 'Hey diddle diddle, the CAT and the fiddle'--remembered "TO SEE SUCH SPORT" for some reason. Loved your LACTOSE/LACK TOES pun, Bluehen.

    Nice way to end the week, thanks again, everybody.

    ReplyDelete
  18. Lemon: Nice write-up.

    Ed: Thank you for a FUN Friday puzzle.

    Fave today, of course, was 17-A, MONSTER ALE ... best clue and answer this year!

    A "Toast-to-ALL" at Sunset ... with "2-fingers" of Scotch.

    Cheers!

    ReplyDelete
  19. Husker, took me some time to suss what presence Omaha may have had in the Upper Peninsula.

    Misty, my phone also has "OPER" over the 0. Pressing it doesn't ring to an operator, though.

    ReplyDelete
  20. Fabulous Friday. Thanks for the fun, Ed and Lemonade.
    I bounced around all over this CW picking the low-hanging fruit (ACORNs?). I FIRed and finally parsed the theme.

    A few misdirections included the mammal group (not looking for a Latin genus name), Bed foundation - OHO in the garden, Letters near zero (on the phone not the thermometer).
    It was a DOOR that was cracked open, not an Egg or a Code.

    OPIE had a new clue. ESSO again (but I'll take the CSO). SKEINS for Mme. D, and is inanehiker a GP and member of AMA? Also CSO to TIN.

    Unknowns filled by perps included DRU, HAMEL, IMARI.
    VOGUE=popularity was a little strange, but since the expression "in vogue" means "in fashion" or "popular, I guess VOGUE can be the noun form (dictionaries seem to agree).

    I noted ABUSE crossing USE, and wasn't sure whether it was OK or a meh! because of similar word origin.
    Does a sniggler only catch one EEL?
    Anon@8:29 - I think that 56A phrase "that are conspicuous for their absence" refers back to "two" and thus the plural is required. But the answer only asks for one ARM.

    Misty: I remember Sport in that nursery rhyme too.
    Spitzboov: I am not a knitter and do not know the wool shops, but I LIUed and found this article.
    SouthLandingCraftCentre

    Wishing you all a great day.

    ReplyDelete
  21. I didn't know C-Moe moved to 'zona. Wish he'd drop in here or the J.

    Wowza Laraine, you made my "Day". Speaking of...whatever happened to "the First Lady of Baseball"

    In my "Game of the States" OGDEN was my fav. I still needed four perps.

    OPER Completely fooled me. I googled and can't find a picture with OPER on the zero but I remember it. In fact I remember having to go through the operator to make a call.

    GPS value is often for traffic . I was stuck in the middle of the Clearwater Causeway because I ignored frantic pleas from Ms Google. Fatality on the other end.

    FLN, re. "Purple Death", perhaps the old Mason Dixon line could be renamed the Brisket line.

    I thought the xword got tough as I proceeded south but EEL, OBOES and LEOPARD'S POT lead me to FIR.

    WC

    ReplyDelete
  22. Sorry. The link was mangled. Try this.
    SouthLangingCraftCentre

    Spitzboov: I found more info. You can bring your wife and stay overnight!
    SouthLandingInn

    ReplyDelete
  23. ACH! that first link will just not post. Try copy and paste
    vitacollections.ca/notlheritage/2483912/data?d%22%3ESouthLandingCraftCentre

    ReplyDelete
  24. C-Eh! @1302

    Your link was kaput, but I Googled the South Landing Inn. It looks like the place we went to. Thanks for your reply.

    Referring to an old post card, the site said in part:

    This craft shop, situated on the bank of the Niagara River, was a major supplier to knitters as well as weavers and spinners for many years from 1953 until early 1980's.

    This frame building on Kent Street was built before 1827 by Thomas Dickson, one of the cousins of Robert Hamilton. Thomas Dickson was himself a prominent merchant, politician, and soldier. He fought with distinction in the War of 1812 as lieutenant-colonel in the 2nd Lincoln Militia.
    By 1883, the Wadsworth family owned and operated the building as an inn "Frontier House." In 1910, the building was sold to Margaret Dressell and renamed Riverview Inn. The name was changed in 1947 to South Landing by a later owner. In 1953 Mrs. Rie Bannister, a weaver who had previously operated a weaving shop in Toronto, bought the building and changed the name to South Landing Craft Centre.
    Today it is one of a few remaining old inns providing accommodation to many travellers.


    I believe the building is at the Canadian end of what was an earlier bridge from Lewiston, NY to Queenston, Ont. Before that bridge there was probably a ferry service.

    ReplyDelete
  25. Hello, all. I've been reading this blog for a few weeks now and finally decided to create an account. I've enjoyed the thorough explanations as well as the insightful comments.

    DOESKIN, OPER, and HAMEL prevented me from FIR. I had to refer to the write-up to figure out what OPER meant.

    I personally was not a huge fan of this theme; I mention that just in case there are readers out there who felt the same way and thought they were the only ones. I got MONSTERSALE and VAMPIRESTAKE first and incorrectly figured that the theme would involve Halloween or mythical baddies. I would've preferred a tighter theme, but judging by the other comments, it sounds like I'm in the minority. In fact, one of my favorite things about this blog is seeing how a theme is received.

    Have a great weekend!

    ReplyDelete
  26. Good afternoon, folks. Thank you, Ed Sessa, for a fine puzzle. Thank you, Lemonade, for a fine review.

    Puzzle went pretty easily for a Friday. It was not a snap, though.

    Theme was good.

    Liked OREIDA. Tater Tots are a favorite item of mine.

    I worked in OGDEN, Utah.

    No idea of LARAINE. I never really watched SNL.

    IMARI was unknown. Perps.

    One of our favorites, ACNE.

    OPER. Good one. Tough to figure out. I cannot tel you how many times I have dialed the old telephone making test calls.

    ERLE is good. Perry Mason is one of my old shows I love to watch. I get it on CBS streaming now.

    Have to go be an Election Judge now for early Voting. See you tomorrow.

    Abejo

    ( )

    ReplyDelete
  27. Had CaRDS because I thought they were “chords” and wouldn’t fit.

    ReplyDelete
  28. I like Ed Sessa's puzzles and this one is no exception. I laughed out loud at the image LEOPARDS POT engendered in my mind. I had a tiny sense of incongruence about the theme entries, namely: while MONSTER SALE, FREUDIAN SLIP, and DOE SKIN are "in the language" phrases, I feel VAMPIRE STAKE and LEOPARD SPOT are not. Just my GUT reaction. Still a fun puzzle, though.

    No, I have never thought of an ACORN as a fruit; I've always considered it to be a nut. But heck, for years I did not think of the tomato as a fruit, either, and it was years before I learned that a peanut is not a nut but is a legume. I'm gonna look up what defines a thing as being a fruit. I guess the experts also differentiate between a seed and a grain. I'm not picky; I'll eat 'em all, except brussels sprouts and kale.

    Wishing you all a good day.

    ReplyDelete

  29. Another Sessa gem today, always a treat.

    But not easy.

    Write-overs...MENS/LOOS (me too), SUB/ECO, AMOS/OPIE (me too 2).

    I thought Uncle Buck was funny. But John Candy always had my number.

    Nissan is the one brand I will never shop again. I had a 93 Maxima SE that blew a bearing in the manual tranny at 80k miles...I had never had a manual tranny fail until the Maxima. And it turned out that one of Nissan’s suppliers supplied some faulty bearings that Nissan knew about. They also knew the car would be out of warranty when it failed.
    I had a Nissan Stanza (Altima precursor) that blew a head gasket at 30k miles, a rather unusual event. So no more Nissans for me or anyone I can talk out of that decision.

    OTOH, I traded the Maxima for a 99 VW Passat....that I drove for 16 years.

    And on to Saturday.

    ReplyDelete
  30. A good enough pzl today, somewhat easy for a Friday, but tricky in its way. Misty's account of her solving experience is very close to mine. There were enough simple fills scattered across (and down) the grid that the tough ones were rendered less elusive.

    I didn't catch on to the need for apostrophes in the theme answers until LEOPARD'S POT.
    ~ OMK
    ____________
    DR:
    One diagonal, on the far side.
    We get a choice of anagrams.
    (1) The feeling that comes over the security staff when a crowd's size is uncertain--as in the attendance at a presidential inauguration--and the actual figure could determine whether a terrorist bomber is motivated to attack. This could be a...
    "MISCOUNT SCARE"!
    - or -
    (2) The antidote a seasoned speech coach might offer future debaters in the wake of a possible Biden-Trump face-off, a...
    "SEMANTICS CURE"!

    ReplyDelete
  31. I totally never parsed the Theme "S",
    (This is why I need the Blog...)

    HG,
    Re: tin foil,
    seems it was the precursor...

    Here are some Aluminium foil hacks,
    some are interesting. (many, do not show the kids...)
    But, the last one is the infamous tin foil hat!
    (which kinda makes you look like an Acorn...)
    I wonder if that's where Acorns started being called "Fruits..."

    ReplyDelete


  32. Saturday's edition (3/7/20) of the Wall Street Journal features a crossword puzzle (Copperheads) constructed by C.C. Burnikel. It's available now (for free) to print or to solve online.


    C.C.'s Puzzle

    ReplyDelete
  33. P.S.,
    Thanks to a post by Anon-T last month,
    I now wrap my car key-FOB in aluminium foil
    when at home...

    & no... I am not being an Acorn...

    ReplyDelete
  34. Hi All!

    Thanks Dr. Ed for the fun Friday puzzle that was easy enough for me to FIR in good time.
    I nearly shot myself in the foot for filling DADS KIN b/f I grok'd the theme. That fill left HAMEL w/o the EL until a step away and reading 39d's 'zero letters' again.
    OPER? Um, yeah, [post theme AHO!] DAD SKIN is a bit dark [speaking as one].

    Thanks for the expo Lem. Loved LARAINE's audition.

    WOs: ROACH hOTEL, ABaSE (hi, Ray-O!), GUESSEe
    ESPs: ROUE, IMARI, ERLE, HAMEL, DRU
    Fav: SOIL xing LAND

    VOCAL CORDS - Eldest is majoring VOCAL (and PSY - dual-maj.). She'll be home from OU next Friday! //and the garden will go in!

    {B+, A}
    Re: DR. OMK, a seasoned speech coach would know his/her limitations :-)

    Wheels42 - Welcome to The Corner! It was only a couple of years ago I joined this wonderful welcoming folks.

    Bluehen - Ewe sheerin' me. Lactose, Eye roll; LOL

    I had an ALTIMA I drove into the ground; >180,000mi and that was that. I've been sticking w/ Hondas (me & Youngest) & Toyotas (Eldest's) lately. My last Honda cracked the block at >250,000mi.
    'Course, DW's Alfa is an exception.

    I haven't linked Croce's OPERator in a spell. Enjoy!

    Curious - did anyone play w/ the Covid19 link I posted FLN? I expect numbers in US to go up now that we have better/more widespread testing. We may get many positives from folks that have no symptoms (yet?).
    What, me worry? :-)

    Cheers, -T

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  35. Dow Jones:
    Thank you for linking C.C.'s puzzle.

    ReplyDelete
  36. AnonymousPVX:
    I loved my Nissan Maxima which I drove for 12 years! One day I just decided a new car would be nice and traded it. I'm sure it had more miles left in it, though.

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  37. Wheels42 - Welcome aboard.

    CanadianEh! - - Sorry, I had missed your 1330 post. Your 2nd link there was one I had found. But then I went down several rabbit holes to make sure we were talking about the same structure. That surely had quite a history associated with it.
    It's in a beautiful scenic area (Brock Monument and all) and I do miss visiting there.


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  38. Sometimes when you are writing up a puzzle you come across a perfect link. Today that was the Laraine Newman audition. Perked me, even though I am struggling with bad allergies, I am so pleased about the positive comments. I have not felt up to adding much to the comments, but the fever broke so here I am.

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  39. Enjoyed the theme. The crossed Naticks, not so much. How could anyone get HAMEL/ERLE unless you knew these odd names? I did WAG it correctly to FIR. But it could have been HAMET/ERTE or HAMES/ERSE or HAMEN/ERNE.

    Irish Miss, Lucina, CanadianEh, AnonT thank you for the very kind words about my Sensorio Paso Robles LUMINOUS art videos and photos. It has been extended until June if you are visiting the Central Coast of California before then.

    Here I was up at dawn on the north shore of Bali to experience a memorable MARINE MAMMAL GROUP: A POD of dolphins.

    From Wednesday:
    Sorry to be dense. Can someone please explain that START FROM SCRATCH theme so that a slow learner can understand?

    I would be deeply grateful!





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  40. Lemonade 714: thanks for the shout out! Yes, I’m alive and well, and living in Arizona. WC, I moved here in December to rekindle a relationship with a lady friend I first met when we both were involved with 3M! I worked for Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing for 25 years, so Scotch TAPE was a given. Another shout out of sorts ...

    My companion and I are now retired, and loving our new relationship. We are quite busy, but I’ll try and stop by every now and again to check up on you guys and gals. I subscribe to the Arizona Republic newspaper which carries the LATCW puzzle, as well as the Jumble. Hope you all are doing well ...

    Kind regards,
    Chairman MOE

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  41. Spitzboov- glad you found the info about South Landing. Yes, the Queenston, NOTL area is beautiful.
    Lemonade- thanks for trying to post that link, but it just does not want to cooperate . . . but Spitzboov found it.

    Welcome Wheels42 and welcome back Chairman MOE (and you got a CSO today!).

    Picard - ERLE was common CW fare for a while, but not lately perhaps. You should add him to your CW trivia list.
    And most of us did not really get the theme from the START FROM SCRATCH puzzle, so you don't need to feel like a slow learner.
    Those Dolphin photos are great.

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  42. Picard - All the themers had all the letters FROM the word SCRATCH at their beginning. Hence, START(s) FROM SCRATCH. Jerome gave me the V8. //Beautiful pix!

    C. MOE! So great to hear from you again. FL to AZ? Do you get nosebleeds from going wet to dry? [When I moved from Louisiana to OK, I had 'em for a week and then on-and-off for a year]
    Anyway, it's great to read that you are doing well and having a good time. Visit more oft, especially when we get ASTI :-)

    CED - BRB, gotta get a new roll of foil...

    Cheers, -T

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  43. Jayce, I learned that a fruit is formed when a plant's flower is fertilized and the base of the flower starts to grow into a fruit. Orange blossoms produce a small green orb that grows into an orange. I grew tomatoes and they develop the same way. The blossom gets fertilized. It falls off and is replaced by a little green sphere that grows into a red tomato. Cucumbers, squash and other plants produce fruit the same way.

    ReplyDelete

For custom-made birthday, anniversary or special occasion puzzles from C.C., please email crosswordc@gmail.com

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