24A. Film VIP's influence?: DIRECTOR'S CLOUT. Director's cut.
35A. Derision of a parade entry?: FLOAT SHAMING. Fat shaming.
57A. Calligrapher specializing in punctuation?: COLON ARTIST. Con artist.
77A. Hardwood seller's markup?: FLOOR PROFIT. For profit.
92A. Period when Lindsay ruled?: LOHAN DYNASTY. Han Dynasty, together with Zhou, Qin and Tang, all had Xi'an as their capital city.
112A. "Two Women" actress teaming up with a cartoon cat?: LOREN AND STIMPY. Ren and Stimpy.
43D. Prosthetic eagle claw?: FAKE TALON. Fake tan.
52D. Imitation semolina?: FAUX FLOUR. Faux fur. Neat to see both fake and faux in Downs.
Nice follow-up to this "Lo and Behold" we had a few years ago. Notice there's no dupe answers.
Great to see Mike back. We've covered 5 puzzles on our blog, 4 are Sundays.
Across:
1. They cross in sights: HAIRS.
6. "Hmm ... ": LET'S SEE.
13. Aetna competitor: HUMANA. Based in Louisville, Kentucky.
19. Store, as fodder: ENSILE.
21. Giving it one's all, theatrically: EMOTING.
22. In-groups: ELITES.
23. Battery terminal-related: ANODAL. Or ANODIC at times.
26. Passport extension, say: RENEWAL.
28. Lacking face value: NO-PAR.
29. Eroded: ATE INTO. This is how much the richest lost last week.
30. Granola tidbit: OAT.
31. Bookmarked item: PAGE.
33. Official motorcade protection: ESCORT.
41. "Dancing With the Stars" judge Goodman: LEN.
42. "__ one, think ... ": I FOR.
46. Transvaal settlers: BOERS.
47. More in order: NEATER.
49. "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening" rhyme scheme: AABA.
50. Tax return?: REFUND. Filed. But unprocessed.
53. Orbital point: APOGEE.
54. Performed in the street for tips, in London: BUSKED. Learning moment for me.
56. Give an address: ORATE.
60. Frozen Wasser: EIS. Ice.
61. Unilever men's brand: BRUT.
62. Check writers: PAYERS.
63. Surgical inserts: STENTS.
65. Biological groups: TAXA. Singular is TAXON.
66. Not rented: UNLET.
67. "__ español?": HABLA.
70. Thin batteries: AAAS.
72. Pats or Jags: NFL-ERS.
74. Roof window: DORMER.
75. It parallels the radius: ULNA.
76. Blood test letters: HDL. Good cholesterol.
81. Supply: STOCK.
82. WWII threats: U BOATS.
84. Starts the pool game: BREAKS.
85. Cactus features: SPINES.
86. One may be common: NOUN.
87. Rhythm instrument usually played in pairs: MARACA.
88. Israelite patriarch: ISAAC. And 100. Daughter-in-law of 88-Across: LEAH.
90. Banks on a runway: TYRA.
91. Nocturnal acronym: REM.
97. Clothing giant that's lost an article over the years: THE GAP. And 116. Lincoln Center landmark, familiarly: THE MET.
101. Fair-hiring letters: EOE.
102. Two-handled Greek vase: AMPHORA.
105. Davis of "Dr. Dolittle": OSSIE.
109. Former tykes' clothing chain: KIDS R US.
115. Tot's foot: TOOTSY.
117. Elemental variant: ISOTOPE.
118. Reduced: ON SALE. Did you see the face mask prices on Amazon? Crazy. Singapore gives each household a pack of four masks. It prevents profiteering.
119. Gamer's venue: ARCADE.
120. Ski report highlight: NEW SNOW.
121. Softens: EASES.
Down:
1. Learn about: HEAR OF. There have been no new Coronavirus cases in either Xi'an or Guangzhou the past week.
2. Temper: ANNEAL.
3. Knows about: IS ONTO.
4. Disney World attraction: RIDE.
5. Side for a dog: SLAW.
6. Commanded: LED.
7. "Lose Yourself" rapper: EMINEM.
8. Barcelona bull: TORO.
9. Part of a process: STEP.
10. Italian Neorealism film pioneer Vittorio De __: SICA. He directed "Two Women" .
11. Between, to Berlioz: ENTRE.
12. It may be inflated: EGO.
13. Ben-Hur portrayer: HESTON (Charlton)
14. Stomach woe: ULCER.
15. Armed forces units: MILITIAS.
16. Heaps: A TON.
17. Like Switz. in WWII: NEUT. Neutral.
18. Concerning: AS TO.
20. Went by: ELAPSED.
25. Indy competitor: RACER.
27. Cowardly Lion portrayer: LAHR. I wonder why there's never been "The Wizard of Oz" remake.
32. Road trip need: GAS.
34. Wintry pellets: SLEET.
36. Boundary: ABUTTAL.
37. Musical pitch: TONE.
38. Tied up at the harbor: IN PORT.
39. Bright signs: NEONS.
40. Lady of song: GAGA.
44. Bow or curtsy: OBEISANCE. New Year's bow in Korea! I did the same when I was a kid.
45. X-ray doses: RADS.
48. Thrice, in Rx's: TER.
50. Part of RFK, briefly: ROBT. Robert.
51. Gofer guy: ERRAND BOY.
53. Sheltered, at sea: ALEE.
54. Bright, blue-white heavenly body: B STAR. What does B stand for?
55. Multi-purpose vehicle, briefly: UTE.
57. Playground retort: CAN SO.
58. Toondom's Olive: OYL.
59. Key: ISLET.
62. Knitting loops: PURLS.
64. Izod competitor: NAUTICA. There cologne seems to be everywhere.
67. What the Wonderland caterpillar smokes: HOOKAH.
68. Sounds from pounds: ARFS.
69. Dietitian's calc.: BMI. Body Mass Index.
71. Fifth Avenue retailer: SAKS.
73. Pond dweller: EFT.
74. Harsh Athenian lawmaker: DRACO. From him the word "draconian".
76. Pursuit: HUNT.
78. President who appointed Justice Kagan: OBAMA.
79. Educ. basics: R R R.
80. Toll: PEAL.
81. Hand measurement: SPAN.
83. Cursed thing: ANATHEMA.
85. Greet informally: SAY HI TO.
87. Fox of "Transformers": MEGAN.
88. Like Vivaldi's "Spring": IN E.
89. The Missouri R. runs through it: S DAK.
91. Upgrade, as on Yelp: RE-RATE.
93. City of NW Syria: ALEPPO. Always think of Tim Hetherington when I see Aleppo.
94. Perfect Sleepers, e.g.: SERTAS.
95. Rumple: TOUSLE.
96. "Absolutely!": YES YES.
98. Refined: HONED.
99. Entourage: POSSE.
102. Utah ski resort: ALTA.
103. "Jerry Maguire" actor Jay: MOHR.
104. Occurring before: Abbr.: PREC. Preceding.
106. Put in a hold: STOW.
107. Watches tykes: SITS.
108. "It's showtime!": I'M ON.
110. Cooked: DONE.
111. Slugger Sammy: SOSA.
113. Hubbub: DIN.
114. Red-berried tree: YEW.
C.C.
25 comments:
FIWrong. TAXi + ABUTTiL.
A DIRECTOR was heard to be gloating
"I've got that actor EMOTING
So much psychic gore
For the cutting room FLOOR,
In a part that no one will be noting!"
There was an eagle, his name was Ted
Sang either bass or soprano instead.
He could BUSK a guitar,
Or act like a star,
Because he was multi-TALON-ted!
{B, B+.}
Good morning!
Got the theme early and got 'er done in really good time. Slowed down a little in the SW, but not for long. Thanx, Mike and C.C.
"Lo and Behold" -- My father called it a Biblical dress.
DRACO -- Malfoy of the Harry Potter stories.
BSTAR -- C.C. here's what Enchanted Learning says about it:
"Stars are classified by their spectra (the elements that they absorb) and their temperature. There are seven main types of stars. In order of decreasing temperature, O, B, A, F, G, K, and M.
O and B stars are uncommon but very bright; M stars are common but dim..
An easy mnemonic for remembering these is: 'Oh be a fine guy/girl, kiss me.'"
The sun is a G Star.
Another Sunday loaded with a variety of challenges and no reliance on proper names. I grew up living in a room that was an addition to an attic and the window was part of the dormer. I believe it is called a SHED DORMER .
Bow or curtsy: OBEISANCE ; Two-handled Greek vase: AMPHORA ; and Performed in the street for tips, in London: BUSKED were all fun. I have known many BUSKERS. I am sure it is real but Store, as fodder: ENSILE is a clanger for me.
Saving the best for the last, the theme of adding LO was not special until you read the ones he chose. Awesome.
Thank you, Mike and C.C.
FIW. Missed my WAG at fUSKED x fSTAR, FAke FLOUR x BRkT & TAeA, and AlPHORA x lOHR. No V8 cans - I only suspected BRUT but was out of P&P and didn't explore fixes.
Still a fun puzzle following a couple of days that were easy for late-week challenges. I don't mind being stumped as long as it isn't by show biz or otherwise obscure Naticks. I might actually learn something.
Thanks to Mike and CC for all the fun.
Fun and fast today. Only fill new to me were Megan and Mohr, easy to guess with perps and wags. I used a few perps to help me dredge up words I already knew. I found nothing obscure or Naticky here. The fill had to make sense with and without the LO, so that helped a great deal.
Buskers were featured in a novel I read.
AMPHORA were recovered in shipwreck diving on TV specials and are found in shipwreck novels, as well as novels about ancient Rome.
Interesting puzzle, Mark. Informative review, CC.
PURL, CSO to Madame D.
DO, interesting post about B STAR. But how did the star letters get chosen?
I was on altar guild duty this week to set out the Communion vessels and paraments. Today after the service I will clean and put away the paten, chalice, etc.
Speaking of Syria...
Ever HEAR OF the new Coldplay song Orphans? It has speaks to the tragedy of the war in ALEPPO and to Everyday Life with our friends.
Here someone more artistic than I delves deeper into the meaning of the song: Just what does this catchy tune really mean?
Good Morning:
I enjoyed solving this Sunday offering more than I usually do with the larger grid, for several reasons: There were no unknown proper places or people, to me anyway; there were a minimal amount of three letter words; the theme and execution were clever and smooth. I liked the dupe of The Gap and the Met entries but was a tad put off with the many O's: As to, Ate into, Is on to, Say hi to, Can so, I'm on, and On sale. Maybe if I look at it as multiple CSOs to Oo, I'll say O kay! Purls (Pearls) to Madame Defarge. (Best wishes, too!)
Thank you, Mike, for a pleasant solve and thanks, CC, for a great review.
Have a great day. Let's hope that we get through March with no heavy snow storms, although it's famous for some doozies of blizzards!
Musings
-FAUX not FAKE (Duh, it was elsewhere) FUR cost me three bad cells
-I impressed myself by knowing BUSKER, ANNEAL, OBIESANCE and AMPHORA. Go me!
-Farmers cut silage to ENSILE it in a silo
-Not seeing the dash made In-groups tougher
-I have 27 PAGES bookmarked under a Cwd tab
-We do not fear coronavirus enough to STOCK up yet
-High temps and no NEW SNOW have reduced flood threats here
-Ben Hur and ENTR from today’s puzzle
-This week NFL scouts are dithering over whether Joe Burrows scant 9” hand SPAN is big enough to make him a #1 pick
-The Missouri River ran through rather than past a lot of Iowa towns and fields last spring
A bit of a slow start for me, but filled in once I got the theme. Entertaining Sunday puzzle!
Was going to ski today, but my buddy backed out. Guess I’ll go tomorrow instead with the smaller crowds.
No reliance on proper names? What about Len (Goodman), Isaac, Leah, Tyra (Banks), Ossie (Davis), (Lindsay) Lohan, (Sophia) Loren, (Barack) Obama, (Vittorio de) Sica, Draco, (Lady) Gaga, (Burt) Lahr, (Charleton) Heston, Robt. (Kennedy), (Olive) Oyl, Megan (Fox), (Jay) Mohr, (Sammy) Sosa, Eminem, and (Andrew) Saks?
As IM said,"There were no unknown proper places or people, to me anyway." The names were mostly very common. I had two unknowns, Megan and Mohr, but easily perped. SAKS was a store, the very famous SAKS FIFTH Avenue.
I prefer words to names, but was glad the names were mostly not obscure.
A surprisingly smooth Sunday solve completed in 38 mins, which might be a Sunday record for me. My experience was very much like DO's and YR's in that most answers were in my wheelhouse, and those that gave me pause in the SW were eminently perpable. Go the theme early on which also helped. Good job, Mike and CC.
Did anyone catch the Mutts comic strip today? It's an old joke, but still tickled my funnybone.
Not much happening today. Guess I'll start on oldest son's taxes.
Roasted chicken breasts tonight, with mashed potatoes and gravy, corn, and green beans. Simple fare. Cooking doesn't appeal so much to me anymore since I have no one to show off for.
Cya!
Well, I got a big chunk of the middle top and east going on down quite a ways. And was happy to get the long DIRECTORS CLOUT and COLON ARTIST, though without getting the theme --thanks for explaining that, C.C. And thank you for a fun puzzle, Mike.
It was helpful to know so many names, TYRA, LAHR, LEN (been watching him make grumpy comments on 'Dancing with the Stars' for years) ROBT., OSSIE, and others. Happy that I remembered the rhyme scheme of the Frost poem. My unknowns included BUSKED and TAXA. And the one that cracked me up was getting SLAW for dog--oh, hot dog! Anyway, fun Sunday puzzle, thanks again, Mike and C.C.
Enjoyed your poems, Owen.
Have a great Sunday, everybody.
Yellowrocks, I think the post by Anonymous was referring to Lemonade's comment "no reliance on proper names", but could be wrong. Isn't Saks Fifth Avenue named after the rounder Andrew Saks? And doesn't the term proper names not only cover the name of people, but the names of places (such as Aleppo in this puzzle), organizations (Humana in this puzzle), or other things referred to with a capital letter?
Good morning. Working down the left side I caught the LO insertion at FLOAT SHAMING. I just read that 40% of Americans are classified as "FloAT". But according to EOE rules it shouldn't disqualify anybody for a job. My boss wouldn't hire anybody who was overweight-nobody. He made all the office workers do some warehouse work every day to make sure they stayed fit.
Catching the LO made the puzzle a lot easier for me to finish. I'd heard the word OBEISANCE before but had no Idea how to spell it. It was perped, along with B-STAR,Jay MOHR, LEN Goodman, DRACO, SICO, & MEGAN Fox. I really don't get what COLON has to do with calligraphy. Could have been clued differently.
AABA- didn't know but knew it couldn't start with B
ARCADE- me thinks most gamers play at home with souped up PCs and a fast internet connection.
Agnes- speaking of 'too many O's', on 3D for 'Knows about' I went from IS UP ON to IS INTO and finally IN ONTO.
YR- agree with you on the names. Most were very common.
BRUT- what's next? Hai Karate, English Leather, Canoe,British Sterling, Aqua Velva?
BUSKED- go the the Vieux Carre and street performers are all over Bourbon & Royal streets.
Hola!
For me this was a tad easier than most Sunday puzzles and I finished it before going to church. That's unusual.
My daughter works for the HUMANA competitor.
I also appreciated that the names cited are familiar to me and not at all obscure except De SICA but that one perped.
A COLON is a punctuation mark so COLON ARTIST fits the clue but I doubt a calligrapher would specialize in punctuation.
An error jumped out at me just now: I had AUSKED/A STAR not realizing that BUSKED was needed.
Thank you, Mike and C.C. for today's fun!
I hope you are all enjoying a peaceful Sunday!
I liked this puzzle and got a kick out of how cleverly the LO's were inserted. Loved the clues for HAIRS and ANNEAL. Had to change ANODIC to ANODAL, TIDIER to NEATER, ABO to HDL, and BONGOS to MARACA. I never know whether it's going to be EOE or EEO, A LOT or A TON. I had to get a perp before I knew whether it was GEENA or OSSIE Davis.
I noticed ANODAL, RENEWAL, ABUTTAL, and the clues Orbital, Surgical, Biological, Nocturnal, Elemental, and Musical. Multiple CSO's to you, Spitzboov!
I like that word OBEISANCE. A couple of my nieces had to bow to their grandmother as shown in that picture. Jeez, they're all grown up now and have children of their own!
AH yes, I remember being taught "the three R's". Looking back now, I'm glad I got that education. We had civics classes too.
I didn't know ANATHEMA meant a cursed thing; I thought it applied to something that would seem to be from another time. Oh wait, sorry, that's an ANACHRONISM. Now I recall the gesture of making a cross with your pointer fingers to ward off those anathematic vampires.
Owen, I love love love your use of "multi-TALON-ted"! You have a terrific way with words.
Good wishes to you all.
I guess the names filled so quickly I did not realize how many there were. Speaking of BRUT my last year in law school I had a rare 8:00 AM class. Every day I would be sneezing and coughing after class. I finally realized my friend who I was sitting next to wore the scent and I am allergic. Forced to stop going o class and just get the notes from him. Sad.
I should have realized(like Gary) that two FAKEs was a solid xword no-no. I guess FAUX(FUR) is haute Societe but faux flower? XWs use to have a var. in the clue.
Those two boxes FIW'ed me. I originally had GPS for road trip. I was thinking of Mayor Lindsay until I realized Alice's dope smoker's pipe was a hookaH. Ante /PREC and oops I called that Greek thangy an ALPHORA. LOHR sounded better than MOHR. Speaking of…..
Lemonade's point was the non-obscurity of proper names and lack of Naticks. Quite a list Anon@1052 for only a WAG or two. And you forgot REN and STIMPY*.
And I forgot to mention INPUT for key. And RDA for BMI. ntso** ADO / DIN. And I just couldn't fit GENUFLECT -hi Lucina(OBEISANCE) in there.
"Did anyone catch the Mutts comic strip today?". No, but I miss my old Mutt and Jeff. Anybody remember Mutt's first name?
And the Jews would rend their tunics to display ANATHEMA.
Yes, both W's today Owen. As mentioned FLN, he has a poetic salute to yesterday's CARL Sagan at the J(was that link considered political????)
B-E, the big boss expected everyone to use the stairs not the elevator. My coworker was 300+lbs.
WC
*ntso-Not to speak of
Ps. Ads are cutting out ID of posters. So my WC is useful after all
Super Sunday. Thanks for the fun, Mike and C.C.
This CW filled quickly with a few delays in the SW corner. I saw the added LOs early, which hastened the solve also.
I wanted Lots before A TON.
PREC was my nose-wrinkle today. ENSILE we have had before and I am inured!
ABCs wouldn't fit, but RRR (reading, 'riting', 'rithmetic) worked.
Because I saw it so many times before retirement, I always want TID (Rx instructions for three times daily from TER in Die), but TER is correct for three times or Thrice. Many of the previously used Latin Rx abbreviations are not recommended now due to safety issues when they are misread.
BUSKED was no problem for this Canadian. I didn't realize it was British origin/usage. What word do you Americans use?
Son has neighbours who fled from ALEPPO and are happy to be living in Canada. PTSD remains.
(Thanks Baba@8:29 for the Coldplay.)
Wishing you all a great day.
Thanks to Mike for a fine puzzle and CC for a fantastic summary. I worked the puzzle pretty much north to south and never noticed the LO theme. A little dense on my part, but since I'm new here I'm still finding out stuff you guys all know and look for...like themes. I never paid much attention to them before, so thanks to you all for deepening my xword xperience. :-)
I notice a few comments on the punctuation calligrapher. When I was a teen I was fortunate enough to spend two summers at a Benedictine monastery in Oregon learning calligraphy from a monk. I never excelled at it but the experience is a deep part of who I am, and people can generally read my handwriting. I smiled when I got the clue because of course no actual calligrapher specializes in punctuation, but if "colon artist" was ever mentioned in conversation, I don't think it could be done without a question mark, so the clue, "Calligrapher specializing in punctuation?" is spot on. Colon artist? Lol :-)
Have a wonderful week!
9mileSkid - Sunday CWs even give you a clue with the theme title. (That's the only day of the week with a title)
Thanks for the comment from your experience with calligraphy. Those two summers at a Benedictine monastery must have been interesting. (Referring back to my TID/TER comment, I would have appreciated a few more doctors who had learned calligraphy! I was very thankful when computer-generated Rxs arrived on the medical scene) (inanehiker, I'm sure your handwriting is beautiful!)
Sunday Lurk say...
{B+, A+}
Bluehen - I must have missed something; cooking for one? Your menus are still stellar [show-off here!]
C, Eh! - I only know of BUSKER as a word for street-performer (um, OK, two phrases). Some may use panhandler, but panhandlers as for $ w/o entertainment of a sort. I love getting out early in NOLA's Jackson Sq and watch the BUSKERs setup for the day.
9mile - 1) Pop's calligraphy is very impressive [to me anyway]
2) Keep coming back to The Corner. I've learned so much about solving (and lots of other stuff!) from this wonderful and kind group.
COLON ARTIST? First thought at reading that: 'proctologist'?
Cheers, -T
T, LOL, proctologist,my thought this morning, too.
Good Monday morning, folks. Thank you, Mike Torch, for a fine puzzle. Thank you, C.C., for a fine review.
Did the puzzle yesterday, but had not time to log in. So, here I am.
Puzzle was fine. Theme appeared and made sense with the added LO.
Tried ABRAM before ISAAC worked better.
ABUTTAL was a good word.
BUSKED was a new word, but I am not from England. I am sure Steve knew it.
Yes, we remember Sammy SOSA here in Chicago.
Tried CAL before BMI worked better.
Well, I have to get ready to guard the crossing. See you later today with Monday's puzzle.
Abejo
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