google.com, pub-2774194725043577, DIRECT, f08c47fec0942fa0 L.A.Times Crossword Corner: Sunday July 5th, 2020 Ed Sessa

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Jul 5, 2020

Sunday July 5th, 2020 Ed Sessa

Theme: "The Magnificent Seven" - The first word in each theme entry can follow "grand".
 
23A. *Pro in a ring: PRIZE FIGHTER. Grand prize.

36A. *Challenge for a hopeful collegian: ENTRANCE EXAM. Grand entrance.

55A *Multi-faceted stage performance: SLAM POETRY. Grand slam.

77A. *Military stint: TOUR OF DUTY. Grand tour.

94A. *Act of genius: MASTER STROKE. Grandmaster.

16D. *1977 Eagles hit: HOTEL CALIFORNIA. Grand Hotel.

44D. *Liszt list, e.g.: PIANO REPERTOIRE. Grand piano.

Reveal:

111. Ribbon-cutting event, or what the starts of the answers to starred clues can have: GRAND OPENING.

We have not seen "words that can precede/follow" Sunday theme type for a while. Rich normally saves the type for weekdays.

Such a clever title.
   
Across:

1. Graf with 22 Grand Slam singles titles: STEFFI.

7. Epcot's Spaceship Earth, e.g.: GLOBE.

12. Sacha Baron Cohen alter ego: ALI G.


16. Part of HMS: HER.

19. Soup dish: TUREEN. This looks quite delicate.


20. Like many feedbag cereals: OATEN.

21. NFL analyst Tony: ROMO.

22. Big name in kitchen gadgets: OXO. D-Otto's brand.

25. Helped throw a party: CO-HOSTED.

27. Boxers' org.?: AKC. Great clue. We also have 29. Boxer's wound: GASH.

28. Birth day ordeal: LABOR.

31. Clock watchers: IDLERS.

32. Bygone Russian ruler: TSARINA.

34. Sonic the Hedgehog creator: SEGA.

35. Math class for coll. credit: AP CALC.

40. Footnote abbr.: OP CIT.

42. Removes fasteners from: UNPEGS.

45. Hand-rubbing chuckle: HEH.

46. Trawler's catch: SHRIMP. Most of the shrimp we eat are probably from some farms.


48. Firewood option: ASH.

49. Title for Marian: MAID. Maid Marian. Robin Hood.

50. Reacts with obvious pleasure: BEAMS.

52. Comply with: OBEY.

53. Pet peeve?: FLEA. And 54. Cap-and-crown org.?: ADA. 105. Winter coat?: SNOW.

58. Believer: THEIST.

60. Least amt.: MIN.

61. Reasons against: CONS.

62. Lands' End department: MEN'S.

63. Barrier __: REEF.

64. Historic toolmaking period: IRON AGE.

66. Practices, as a trade: PLIES.

68. Eyes and ears: SENSORS.

71. Chocolate-caramel candy brand: ROLO.

72. Industrial arts class, informally: SHOP.

73. Actor Cumming of "The Good Wife": ALAN.

74. River inlet: RIA.

75. International economic coalition: G SEVEN.

80. One of the Bobbsey twins: NAN.

81. Valley with cellars and sellers: NAPA. Extra homophone touch.

82. On the fence: TORN.

84. Loathing: ODIUM.

85. "__ Misbehavin'": Fats Waller song: AIN'T.

86. Suffix with glob: ULE.

87. Ingratiates oneself (to), with "up": COZIES.

89. The NBA's Magic: ORL.

90. Leave the larval stage: PUPATE. Not a word I use.

92. __-Croatian language: SERBO.

97. Plant-based sugar substitute: STEVIA. Boomer uses it occasionally.


99. Charged atoms: IONS.

100. Earliest work in a musical chronology: OPUS ONE.

104. One making amends: ATONER.

106. Afghan capital: KABUL.

108. Initialism for some time away from work: LOA. OK, Leave of Absence. Give [Hawaii's Mauna ___] a rest.

109. Met a monthly obligation: PAID RENT.

114. Canon initials: SLR.

115. Singer from County Donegal: ENYA.

116. Like many roofs: EAVED.

117. Parking garage designation: A LEVEL.

118. Just make, with "out": EKE.

119. Insect repellent: DEET.

120. Gushes: SPEWS.

121. Forensic competition: DEBATE. I'm not familiar with this meaning of "forensics".

Down:

1. Mar. 17 figure: ST PAT.

2. Ankara natives: TURKS. 4. Topper for 2-Down: FEZ.

3. "Fear of Flying" author Jong: ERICA.

5. Premonition: FEELING.

6. Hospital deliveries: INFANTS.

7. Disco era word: GO GO.

8. Lion player Bert: LAHR. Never saw "The Wizard of Oz" until I came to the US. We had our first TV in late 1980s. By then, Hong Kong movies were all the rage.


9. 5'9" Giant Mel: OTT.

10. Disco band brother: BEE GEE.

11. Makes hopping mad: ENRAGES.

12. Foot part: ARCH.

13. Bath bathroom: LOO.

14. "Gotcha, man": I'M HIP.

15. Perp's pretend friend, in interrogation: GOOD COP. Looks like our state might change our flag also.


17. Works out: EXERCISES.

18. Reel holders: RODS.

24. Letter-shaped girder: I BAR.

26. Hand-to-hand sound: SLAP.

30. Brass band members: SAXHORNS.

33. Marsh plant: REED.

34. Bonehead: SCHMO.

35. Yves' squeeze: AMIE.

37. Interruption lead-ins: AHEMS.

38. Tide type: NEAP.

39. "We Have the Meats" sandwich chain: ARBY'S.

41. This, when over there: THAT.

42. Fish sauce taste: UMAMI. Important ingredient in kimchi sauce.


43. Low point: NADIR.

47. "I'm buying": MY TREAT.

50. Downfall: BANE.

51. Part-time player: SEMI-PRO.

53. Bank add-ons: FEES.

55. What weight watchers watch: SCALE.

56. Access, as a site: LOG ONTO. And 66. Calls work from home: PHONES IN.

57. Drive origination point: TEE.

59. __ Penny: folk tale name: HENNY.

65. Smoked salmon: NOVA.

67. Grant on old TV: LOU.

68. Blighted area: SLUM.

69. Mirthful: RIANT. Not a word I use.

70. "À votre __!": SANTE.

72. Stretch mark, say: STRIA.

73. Grownup: ADULT.

75. Safari sights: GNUS.

76. Pitch from a rep: SALES TALK.

78. Lysol targets: ODORS.

79. Stands in the forest, perhaps: FIRS.

83. Baum princess: OZMA.

85. A group of them may be called a shrewdness: APES. Such a long word for "group".

87. Dealt with: COVERED.

88. Memorable pie throwers: STOOGES.

90. Window one would rather keep closed: POP-UP AD.

91. Tiny Tim's strings: UKULELE.

93. Oregon golfing mecca: BEND.

95. Swathe: ENWRAP.

96. Automaton prefix: ROBO.

98. Sherlock's foe Adler: IRENE.

101. Three-time A.L. batting champ Tony: OLIVA. Still waiting for him to get into the Hall of Fame.

C.C. & Tony Oliva, 9/15/2011

102. Nine-piece combo: NONET.

103. Sharp-eyed bird: EAGLE.

104. Cathedral recess: APSE.

105. ER directive: STAT.

106. Had already learned: KNEW.

107. Supplements, with "to": ADDS.

110. Emmy-winning scientist: NYE.

112. Melrose in L.A., say: AVE.

113. Lincoln's st.: NEB. Here there, Gary, Avg. Joe and Brad!

C.C.



66 comments:

desper-otto said...

Good morning!

Wow, that was fast. I was right on Dr. Ed's wavelength this morning. Even RIANT, SCHMO, and NADIR flowed trippingly off my pen. It was a totally Wite-Out-Free solve. D-o failed to read the complete reveal clue, as expected. As a result, d-o also failed to get the theme...also as expected. But it was a fun solve. Thanx, Ed and C.C.

Lemonade714 said...

It is a shame that a player who is injured and has his career cut short has a very hard time getting into the Baseball Hall of Fame. TONY OLIVA .

I did not know SAXHORN nor GRAND TOUR but the rest was very Sunday level. Thank you C.C. and Dr. Ed

Montana said...

Nice workout while listening to late, local fireworks.
Thanks!

Lemonade714 said...

Montana, how nice to see you. For those looking to celebrate another milestone in life, today is the 74th anniversary of the introduction of the BIKINI .

BobB said...

SE corner last to fall. Need to learn how to spell ukelele (ukulele)

Irish Miss said...

Good Morning:

I love Ed Sessa’s puzzles and I was sailing through this one easily, albeit clueless as to the theme. Then, I hit a brick wall and created a major mess in the Cozies/Master Stroke/Stria/Apes area, so DNF, sorry to say. Until filling in Grand Opening, the title offered no help at all, which is unusual for a Sunday grid. I liked Labor crossing Infants and the duos of Rolo/Robo and Loo/Lou. Never heard of Hotel California and had Clap before Slap, Mutate before Pupate, and Olga before the totally unknown Ozma. Sax Horns seemed redundant, but I’m not a musician, so maybe it’s legit. CSOs to HG at Neb. and Boomer and CC at Oliva.

Thanks, Ed, for a challenge I failed at but enjoyed, nonetheless, and thanks, CC, for the commentary and explication. That’s a lovely photo of you and Tony O.

One of my sister Peggy’s grandson’s wedding is scheduled for the first Sunday in September and the bride-to-be was just notified that the reception venue can accommodate only 50 people, based on the Governor’s social distancing guidelines. I’m not sure how large the bride’s family is, but half of 50 wouldn’t even cover Peggy’s children and grandchildren. I’m not sure how it’ll work out, but it’s a major dilemma. The bride received this call just after returning from a post office trip to mail the invitations. She rushed right back and, fortunately, was able to retrieve them. I thought right at the beginning of this pandemic that they should have postponed the wedding.

Have a great day.

Anonymous said...

The 111-A clue was misleading: It seemed to indicate that the whole answer could modify the first word of the "Magnificent Seven," not merely the first word of the answer.

TTP said...

Good morning. Thank you, Ed, and thank you, C.C. !

Same as Irish Miss.

There are 142 words in this puzzle, and I got through all but a few in just a few minutes more than yesterday's puzzle with 70 words. Everything was working out well until I got to "Baum's princess" which drew a total blank.

The only name I could come up with was Glinda, and I knew she was the good witch, not a princess. I got it down to O-MA and still didn't know. So I moved on, completed everything else, and went back.

Cross that clue with "Ingratiates oneself (to), with "up", where I had CO_IES and I though there was something wrong in that area. After double checking all the surrounding fill, I ran the alphabet, got to S and entered it. OSMA and COSIES. As D-O says, "Bzzt"

Didn't get the Congratulations! message. I hit the "check grid" button and it lit up. Then I realized Z, but still didn't get the Congratulations message.

Yep, there was another red letter. Typo. My "Ankara" natives were FURKS and poor STEFFI became SFEFFI.

I enjoyed the puzzle and got the theme, but there goes my winning streak.

TTP said...



Anonymous @ 8:33,

GRAND is the OPENING word to each of the 7 theme answers.

At least that's how I took it. YMMV.

TTP said...



Aha !

Had to check. According to The Grammarist and many other online sources:

In American English, cozy is the standard spelling of the word meaning, mainly, (1) comfortable and warm, and (2) to make oneself comfortable and warm.

Outside North America the word is spelled cosy. Both spellings are used in Canada, though cozy is more common in published writing from this century.

These spelling preferences extend to all derivative words, including cosier—cozier, cosying—cozying, and cosies—cozies.



But the perp still wasn't OsMA.

Hungry Mother said...

FIR with write-overs: STEFFI 4 STEFFy, HEH 4 HEe, FIRS 4 FIRe, ROBO 4 autO. The grid played long for me rather than hard. Sunday puzzles are definitely marathons as opposed to sprints.

desper-otto said...

TTP, I always thought it was a "beer cozy", but I LIU and "walla" [sic] it's really a Beer Koozie. Who Gnu?

Bob Lee said...

I've never heard of RIANT nor LOA (for out of the office) and SCHMO, but I finished everything eventually.

Watching Looney Tunes as a kid, I used to get most of their spoofs of real actors (from seeing old movies my parents watched). and I thought all of them.

So re: Grand Hotel. I saw the play on Broadway in the 1980s, and decided to rent the movie from BlockBusters. Sitting and watching it, Greta Garbo does her line, "I want to be alone." "Oh, oh!" I said. "That's who it was in all those cartoons! Greta Garbo!"

OMaxiN said...

I, like Irish Miss, made a similar mess in the Cozy/Ozma section. DNF. Schmo, Riant and others somehow fell into place. Eagles recorded some of my favorite tunes.
Enjoyed the attempt Dr. Ed.
As always, thank you C.C.
MO

TTP said...



The Grand Hotel on Mackinac Island in Michigan's U.P. is a sight to behold, but pretty expensive. They have a dress code for men and women, among which is no denim, and jacket and tie required for the men. We opted for a less restrictive and more relaxed atmosphere at a B&B on the island.

Desper-otto, I have plenty of extra Koozies if you want them. :>)

Spitzboov said...

Good morning everyone.

I always like a well-crafted Ed Sessa puzzle. Range of some easy answers to some obscure ones. Had 'Active' for the longest time before conceding that that area didn't work, so, after help with ODIUM, changed the former to TOUR OF…… and the surrounding fill fell in smartly. BH helped with STEVIA. Still FIW 'cause I had 'inch' instead of ARCH. SIGH.
RIANT - There's a French processed cheese called La Vâche qui Rit. (The laughing cow)
FEES - I have never been charged a FEE, including ATM, by my bank.

desper-otto said...

Spitz, I quit my former bank over a FEE for depositing a check that bounced. The check was a house payment to me from my former neighbor. The check was good; the NSF was false. My neighbor's bank refunded the NSF fee they'd charged him. My bank refused to refund the fee they'd charged me. I won't mention the name of the bank, but you could probably chase it down.

My current bank, Ally, will pay the ATM fee if I use some other bank's ATM. There is a limit to how often they'll do that. I've only used it once, once the Ally-related ATM was out of cash.

Yellowrocks said...

Fun puzzle, seven grand items. Magnificant. I needed the theme to get PIANO to go with repertoire.
I have heard of sax horn, but really didn't know anything about it. Saxhorn is a family of brass valved instruments including the euphonium, alto horn, and baritone horn, which my ex played. Saxhorn was named after Sax a Belgian inventor. In addition to having valves the saxhorn has a cup shaped mouth piece. The saxophone, also invented by Sax, has a single reed and finger keys, instead of valves.
Perps gave me the second u in ukulele and the I STEVIA, I needed four perps of OLIVA.
I liked Liszt list and cap and crown org for ADA.
I am not a fan of ALI G.
I read all of the Bobbsey Twins books as a kid.
I never have heard of a beer koozie, just beer cozy or sleeve.
Over many years my bank merged many times. The last iteration had too many fees, so I found another bank.

Misty said...

Delightful Sunday puzzle--many thanks, Ed. And I always look forward to your interesting comments, C.C.

Sports are not my thing, but I was so lucky to know STEFFI and so was able to get off to a great start in the northwest. Enjoyed seeing academic clues, like the ones that gave us ENTRANCE EXAM and the math class AP CALCulus credit. Would have liked more literature--SLAM POETRY doesn't count. And I never heard of OZMA. But at least I got ERICA Jong. But my favorite was the crossing of INFANT and LABOR right at the beginning (get it, the beginning).

Would not have gotten the theme without TTP's helpful GRAND explanation--many thanks for that. All around, lots of fun for getting a sunny Sunday morning started, so thanks again, everybody!

Malodorous Manatee said...

Good Sunday puzzle if a little heavy on the proper nouns for my taste. I thought that the area that had SCHMO crossing HEH was one of the weaker sections. Finished without groking the theme (that happens sometimes) even though the theme answers came pretty easily. High school French class helped a bit with RIANT and AMIE. SAXHORNS was just, plain awful.

I hadn't thought about La Vache Qui Rit in years. Thanks for bringing that up, Spitzboov. Somewhere along the line it must have gotten replaced in my memory banks by Monte Python's Fetchez La Vache

The NAPA cluing was clever and appropriate after yesterday's imbibing although, in truth, that was more Central Coast (Jaffurs and Tensley) than Napa (Igneous).

Spitzboov said...

D-O - - I .chased it down. My bank will pay fees on up to 6 ATM usages per month. I try to stay in network with both my main bank and credit union so fees don/t become an issue. Closest bank ATM is one mile from us, at the drugstore we use all the time. Post office 3 miles away takes care of the credit union option.

JJM said...

While doing the NY Times puzzle this AM, I saw this note from Rex Parker:

"Hey, there's a massive new collection of crosswords out now, made by an all-star roster of constructors, all to benefit COVID *and* Black Lives Matter / racial justice charities (it started out focused on the former and then, understandably, expanded to include the latter). It's called "Grids For Good" All you gotta do is provide proof you gave just $10 (you can do better than that) to the org of your choice and you get the puzzles. There's also a metapuzzle contest going on through July 18, so you can get in on that too. I haven't done the puzzles yet but (scans list of names) yeah, I know these people. You know them too (Agard, Berry, Burnikel, Weintraub, etc.). They do good work. So go give (or regime) some money away, and then get your puzzles!

Something you may all be interested in

desper-otto said...

Spitz, nothing's that close around here. We're basically 5 miles from anything. The Ally-related ATM is a little over 5 miles away in a Walgreens, right nextdoor to that bank which shall not be named. It's 7 miles to the Post Office. The only business within walking distance is a DollarTree half a mile away. I've never been inside.

Malodorous Manatee said...

...and that s/b Monty. I don't proof read as well on screen as I do with hard copy.

NaomiZ said...

Woohoo! FIR in one sitting. I sometimes double check with DH -- is there an NFL analyst named Tony ROMO? -- and after he says yes, he rattles on with a bunch of sports related words that I don't hear. If I have to Google, that's a DNF. I *used* to do that occasionally, but that's how I found the Corner, and now I'd much rather learn from y'all than surf the web. Thanks, Ed and C.C.!

Anonymous said...

Fine puzzle. One quibble. Bill Nye is mostly definitely not a scientist despite his long running show. He’s a mechanical engineer by education. Made it a tough fill until one of the letters showed up.

Lucina said...

Hola!

Thank you, Ed Sessa and C.C.! That is a good Sunday morning combination!

This was slow and easy with no problems, just clever and GRAND fill all the way.

RIANT is usually found in writing rather than spoken.

OXO makes really good kitchen tools.

My daughter, who loves to dance, loved the GOGO disco era.

I was surprised that in Ankara most women wore western style clothes, business suits and high heels. Once we got to the countryside, we saw them wearing long, drape-like coverings from head to toe.

OZMA surprised me and I don't recall ever seeing it before.

I love the BEEGEE's music!

I hope you all survived the 4th and are resting today.

Have a delightful Sunday, everyone!

Shankers said...

Pretty smooth solve for a Sunday. Didn't know Alig or Ozma, but both were sussed easily enough. Didn't know Mel Ott was only 5'9" tall. I have an inch on him, but shrinking every day. On another sports note, in my opinion it would be shameful not to vote Tony Oliva into baseball's HOF. Irish Miss, pardon me but I can't believe you didn't know the Eagles classic Hotel California. I thought you were a veritable font of knowledge. Lastly, I like the word riant but probably wouldn't use it in normal conversation. And on to Monday.

Big Easy said...

Well I hope everybody had a nice and safe 4th of July. Running late today after totally cleaning the BBQ pit; utterly disgusting inside. I never caught the GRAND OPENING until the fill. But the theme fills were easy to guess after just a few perps. NOVA, SANTE, OZMA, and STRIA were unknowns today filled by perps.

OPUS ONE and A-LEVEL were neat fills.
Lincoln's state- could be IL, KY, or NEB.

Melrose in L.A.- why I live on Melrose DRIve in LA, not L.A. Whenever I tell people my address I make sure and tell them it's not Melrose PLACE.

STEFFI- the 'goat', IMHO.
PAID RENT- many deadbeats have not done that since the lock downs even though they got all that extra money from the government.
SAXHORNS- never heard that term used for a saxophone.


Picard said...

Fun theme. Didn't help the solve, but I got it right away. That mess with OZMA and STRIA a WAG. RIANT a learning moment. Cross of unknowns LOA/OLIVA a total WAG to FIR.

Does anyone else agree that GO GO was NOT a DISCO era term?

This Wikipedia article confirms my understanding that GO GO was a term from the 1960s, long before DISCO ruined music.

We are up to our eyeballs in trying to sort through 31 years of stuff. We still have nowhere to go.

This John Oliver short piece at least gave us an assurance that we are not alone in facing eviction during the COVID crisis.

He rightly pointed out that there had been a serious housing crisis long before this, so returning to "normal" is not acceptable, either.

Malodorous Manatee said...

Big Easy, do you know that there is a device similar to a Roomba that cleans the grill portion of your pit? I read about it on CNet or PCMag. It won't be of much help for the rest of the pit, unfortunately. I am definitely a Pellethead.

Picard, good point GoGo dancing definitely preceded (Death Before) Disco.

CanadianEh! said...

Sweet Sunday. Thanks for the fun, Ed and C.C.
Straight-forward solve today with perps filling in the unknowns, and a GRAND theme (plus another magnificent seven, G SEVEN.

Clap changed to SLAP; I'm not sure that a SLAP is always hand-to-hand! (Small nit there.)
My Lysol killed Germs, then Virus, before ODORS. (Covid-19 on the brain perhaps!)
I had to correct my Steiva to STEVIA.

If one makes a hand-rubbing chuckle, HEH, and BEAMS with pleasure, is one RIANT?

The list of group names for animals, birds etc. is extensive. The other night on Jeopardy, there was a Tower of Giraffes to go with our Shrewdness of APES. A group of (SEGA Sonic) hedgehogs is called an array!

Interesting to see LAHR and OZMA in the CW.
And like Irish Miss, I smiled at LABOR crossing INFANTS. Yes, TTP, the cross of COZIES and OZMA was almost a Natick. This Canadian leaned toward the Z (even if I did want a U in LABOR and ODORS today!).

Wishing you all a great day.

Anonymous T said...

Sunday Lurk (Jerk?) say...

IM - My Cousin has a September wedding planned too. After the service she and her fiancé were at Pop's house -- they're both in the medical field and you'd think they'd know better.

@1:34 - I'd argue Engineers are applied-scientists. I are one.

D-O: Looks more like a Lime Soda Koozie to me :-)
Mine are from Splunk. They say Get to the bottom of IT. (it's a nerd joke - get it? IT = Information Technology? It = your beer? nevermind... :-/)
//I have another few from BeyondTrust that say: "I DRINK because your password is 'password'"

Fetchez La Vache. //MManatee is really starting to win me over... :-)

JJM - thank yous for that. And thanks all the constructors that donated their time.

Have a wonderful afternoon!

Take it Easy*, -T
*My favorite Eagles tune.

desper-otto said...

Anon-T, a koozie (cozy) is a koozie (cozy) -- the kind of container you put in it is up to you. No soft drinks chez d-o, but there's usually a beer (or eight) in the fridge.

Lemonade714 said...

JJM, C.C. posted this Thursday directly after Steve's write-up:

Note from C.C.:

Evan Birnholz, a constructor for the Washington Post, just released below information:

"I am very proud to announce the release of "Grids for Good"! This is a collection of 42 crosswords and variety puzzles by 44 different constructors to raise money for coronavirus relief and as well as organizations fighting against institutional racism."

I'm one of the constructors. Go to "Grids for Good" for those great puzzles and support charitable causes. The puzzles are available in PDF and puz formats.

Malodorous Manatee said...

Anonymous T, we apparently have had some similar "training" prior to our arrivals here. I was raised on Alan Sherman, Bob Newhart, Shelly Berman, Stan Frieberg and Tom Leherer. Later I added Weird Al, Monty Python, Dr. Demento (and his entire catalogue of musical entertainers) the mix, among others. As a result, the world makes both perfect sense, and no sense at all, to me. I passed this "knowledge" on to my children and am pleased to see my children now passing on the "training" to my grandchildren.

Lemonade714 said...

I bought and received it and have begun solving, I started with C.C.'s and it was awesome. The cause is good also.

JJM, good to see you

Sandyanon said...

In case anyone is interested in more about Oz, including Ozma.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Oz_books

Anonymous T said...

MManatee - there's two names on your list I don't know... It's going to be a long night.
And, yes - yes, we all need to Teach our Children Well.. Good on you & yours.

D-O: Look at my Koozie & see it's a Goose Isle IPA w/ Eldest's name spelt right! (that's the only reason I paid $$ for a 4 pack).
I made the Lime soda comment inre your link... All the cans said Lime Soda.

I have a few(+) beers in the Garage fridge; come on over :-)

Cheers, -T

Jayce said...

I didn't quite get the feeling of satisfaction that I usually do after solving a puzzle, especially one of Ed Sessa's. I can't put my finger on it or explain why.

I learned CLAP was wrong and that STEFFI was correct. I totally messed up the OZMA COZIES COVERED STEVIA area and had to look that Baum princess up. Hand up for not knowing the word RIANT. Had no idea what LOA stood for until C.C.'s comment.

I did like the "Liszt list" clue.

LW and I like to watch British shows on TV. It's fun to see so many different kinds of tea COZIES.

I took a SHOP class in high school. Bored me almost to death, because it was mostly woodworking (measure, saw, measure, saw, nail it together) at which I am and have always been bad and in which I have never been interested. Nothing about "real" shop stuff like nuts, bolts, screws, washers, etc. nor about tools such as screwdrivers, wrenches, sockets, etc.

That Adolphe Sax guy was pretty inventive.

We had a lovely Facetime chat with our son and his wife yesterday.

Good wishes to you all.

Spitzboov said...

Strongly agree with Anon -T on engineers. Anybody can call themself a scientist. No state I know of grants a license to a 'scientist'.
The professions; engineers, doctors and medical people, pharmacists, and others need a license to practice. If things go south, they can be held accountable. If scientists put out wrongheaded information or theories, they still get their speaking fees or other honoraria.
(This is not meant to be political and I don't think it is. Just stating a fact. But if it doesn't pass muster, please take it down.)

Ray - O - Sunshine said...

It's me (I know, I) on a Sunday. Hope everyone enjoyed the holiday. We had perfect weather in upstate NY. Never saw such professional fireworks over the lake in the hands of ordinary folks.

I usually slave over our newspaper's 2 week old Sunday NYT puzzle with a less than 50% FIR usually because I eventually give up to do other Sunday stuff. (DW's honeydew list included.)

Up in at camp in the SE ADK foothills for the long weekend and the local town was put of newspapers so I decided to try the LAT puzzle instead using my phone

What a breeze!... inkovers Roma/ROMO, clap/SLAP. The perps easily filled the unknowns. Maybe the mountain air supercharged my brain. Was kind of akin to a king- sized LAT Monday challenge.

It was fun but prefer to do the puzzle the old fashioned pen and paper way.

Plus everyone needs a break from my nonsense at least one day out of seven.

See you tomorrow


Irish Miss said...

Shankers @ 1:59 ~ My knowledge of pop music and musicians would fit in a thimble, which I have often mentioned. I went to YouTube and listened to part of Hotel California and can honestly say I never heard it before. Ditto for Anon T’s Take It Easy. I checked the Eagles’ discography and the only title I recognized was Desperado. I’ve heard that before but wouldn’t have been able to name the performer. I just never listened to pop music beyond my late teens.

PK said...

Hi Y'all! Sure and it was a GRAND puzzle, Ed, with a GRAND expo by C.C.! Thanks!

Got a big laugh when "HOTEL CALIFORNIA" was the first fill for me after STEFFI. The song had appeared on my playlist and I had just listened to it before I went to the puzzle. I heard all the Eagles' songs when my daughters were teenagers, but didn't know the band name until a few years ago. "HOTEL C" has some haunting lyrics and mean guitar riffs.

Never can remember that Baum wrote the "Wizard of OZ" & didn't know there was a princess in there. Not sure I ever watched the movie straight thru -- just bits and pieces at times.

SAXHORN was a new term for me. Doubted it was right when it perped in. Thanks, YR, for the explanation.

I think COZIES keep things warm & KOOZIES keep things cold.

Jayce said...

//begin curmudgeonly rant//

I have said it before and I'll say it again now. It irritates the heck out of me that when somebody says they don't know something somebody else says something like "I can't believe you don't know that" or "Surely you must be familiar with such-and-such". C'mon, Irish Miss said she had "Never heard of Hotel California". For Shankers to say "Irish Miss, pardon me but I can't believe you didn't know the Eagles classic Hotel California" just strikes me as arrogantly dismissive. So you "can't believe" it; are you calling Irish Miss a liar? Are you calling her confused? Are you saying she should know it? Are you implying she is somehow deficient or defective because she doesn't know it?

Many of us have remarked on what a diverse group we are, each with areas of knowledge that others may not have. The consensus here is that that is a good thing. Please don't disparage or call into question someone who doesn't know what you think "should" be obvious simply because you happen to know it.

//end of rant//

Husker Gary said...

Musings
-Just back from Lincoln, NEB and shooting guns with family
-Not even RIANT and STEVIA could stop me
-Granddaughter participated in SLAM POETRY. We went. Period.
-Mom enjoyed OPUS ONE by Tommy Dorsey
-Speaking of TURKS - I heard this unusual song on the way home on Sirius Radio
-What a beautiful picture of C.C.!
-Yes, it seemed like a weekday gimmick for Dr. Ed but still fun

TTP said...

Dash T, I looked at your koozie image. Didn't see anything that could be construed as your eldest daughter's name. Is her name Goose or Island ? :>)

Ray-O, we like your nonsense.

Picard, you got me hunting because we've had that similar Go Go Disco relationship as a clue before. First, a full disclosure. I liked and still like a number of disco songs (Donna Summer, The Bee Gees, Gloria Gaynor, Carl Hughes - I like many different kinds of music). I also liked the dance clubs in Germany (discotheques) and my first few years in Houston.

Perhaps what we've been overlooking is that "Disco era" may not be unique to the types of artists and dance music listed above, to the exclusion of all others. However, one of these references specifically states that go go dancers were hired in some discos.

Here are some references that would seem to indicate the clue and answer are valid:

https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/go-go
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Go-go_dancing#In_the_1960s
https://dance.lovetoknow.com/Go_Go_Dancers
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nightclub#1960s
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peppermint_Lounge#cite_note-1

https://books.google.com/books?id=7SgEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA71#v=onepage&q&f=false

The last link (Billboard Magazine from Jan 1966) is particularly eye opening (to me anyway) if you read the articles starting on page 71 and ending on pages 74 and 75.

(It was really fun skimming through the pages of that old Billboard Magazine).

After reading for awhile, I guess I'm even more comfortable with the Disco / Go Go relationship that have passed the editor's scrutiny.

TTP said...



The Peppermint lounge link should be:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peppermint_Lounge

LEO III said...

Another nice Ed Sessa puzzle, but I didn’t quite make it through unscathed. Actually, I have solved some of his puzzles, but not this one. I was unfamiliar with a bunch of answers, and I simply had a brain freeze on others, but I eventually finished it with lookup help.

Thank you Yellowrocks for saving me from further embarrassment. I had never heard of a SAXHORN before today (and I was only in band from fourth grade through high school), so your explanation saved me from objecting vociferously about the cluing of 30D. I was also too lazy (smug?) to look up that one. Live and learn. That’s why I’m here!

I have or had quite a large collection of beer koozies. Seemed to collect them over the years. Not sure whether I tossed them out or not. They might be resting comfortably in the storage unit, with the rest of my junk --- er, I mean treasures.

I agree about Tony Oliva!

Later….

Bill G said...

Hi everybody.

(This and that...)

Excellent rant Jayce!

I didn't participate in the disco era but I will admit to really enjoying some of the music. The BeeGees album from Saturday Night Fever was full to the brim of music I liked.

AnonT wrote: "I'd argue Engineers are applied-scientists. I are one." I are one too, degrees in Engineering Physics and EE. Then I got a teaching credential and switched to teaching. I was a much better math and science teacher than engineer.

Lunch report today. A pork concoction on rice with a side of greens. Also, cream of broccoli soup and a carnitas taco. Muy excelente.

I've been dosing on old movies. Recently was "Finding Forrester." Than "The Princess Bride."

WikWak said...

So if the ruler of Russia was the Tsar and his wife was the Tsarina, what were their children—Tsardines?

Sorry. (No I’m not.)

Yeah it’s me. I do the crossword every day and I frequently read this blog but every time I get ready to post, life gets in the way.

I think of the Corner crowd often.

Stay well.

TTP said...

Should have been Carl Douglas ! Everybody was kung fu fighting...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DX2XPRpUyCI

I was mixing him up with The Hues Corporation "Don't Rock the Boat"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FfBwsG8ubFw


WikWak, TSARDINES, good one. I take it you have successfully completed your move and would guess that you are still in the process of getting everything back to normal. Got your antennas up and your radio working already ?

Abejo said...

Good evening, folks. Thank you, Ed Sessa, for a fine puzzle. Thank you, C.C., for a fine review.

Puzzle was fairly easy with a few tough spots. Normal. Liked the theme. Caught it easily after GRAND OPENING at 111A.

Started this morning and finished late afternoon. Worked off and on throughout the day.

Nice shot of Tony Oliva and C.C.

Never heard of STEVIA.

Liked TSARINA. Never had that before.

Anyhow, have to run. My big day is tomorrow. Wish me luck.

Abejo

( )

Anonymous said...

IRISH MISS what kind of music do you listen to?

TTP said...




ABEJO, best wishes tomorrow !

Bill G said...

Abejo,

GOOD LUCK!

Jayce said...

Abejo, good luck!

Anonymous T said...

TSARDINES - really WikWak?
ROTFLOL!
Nice to see you back.

+1 on Tony O.

BillG - Youngest built a spinach omelette for me this morning. Tonight I got caramelized carrots to go with rigatoni. I can get used to this quarantine thing.

One of my fav of the Disco Era - Wild Cherry has some funk behind them.

Abejo - The Corner is behind you. God Speed friend.

Cheers, -T

SwampCat said...

Interesting puzzle! Lots of fun fill . I loved “ This when over there”. Easy answer, really, but clever clue. I also liked Cap and Crown org? for that dentist group. Thanks Ed.

C.C. I was surprised by your comment on SHRIMP as being mostly farmed. I have never had shrimp that wasn’t wild caught from our local waters — lakes, gulf or rivers. Regional differences I guess. The best shrimp I had were bought off the trawlers in the gulf when we were sailing. Once we asked the captain if he had any ice to spare and he filled out cockpit with ice! After we filled ice chests, coolers , and the ice box below in the galley the largess was manageable. Extra ice is a relative matter !



Anonymous T said...

Swamp - yeah, we in the Gulf-area get our shrimp fresh. And what kind of Captain wouldn't have ice on board (if only for the beer?) ;-)

HG - I just noticed your link. To Jayce's point -- not many people know of the The Four Lads [not what you're thinking - different Fab Four, folks] but I do 'cuz They Might Be Giants covered it.

Cheers, -T

Lucina said...

Abejo:
Good luck tomorrow! I shall pray that all goes well.

Husker Gary said...

Anon T - What a hoot!

PK said...

Another CW coincidence tonight. Scrolling thru the cable show listings and happened to see "The Eagles at the Forum 2018". So I actually watched three hours of Eagle and managed to stay awake to hear "HOTEL CALIFORNIA" & "Desperado" (thot of you D-O). Really hit the spot and cheered me up.

Abejo: Best of luck, tomorrow! Will be winging healing thoughts your way.

AnonT: hope you really did have COVID-19 earlier and have built up antibodies so you don't get it again! Is your wife doing better?

TX Ms said...

Anon-T @ 8:00 pm - Hilarious and great video clip, complete with guys twirling trumpets! Had no idea until tonight it was Wild Cherry (who?). Loved that song back in the day. Turned up the volume and "danced" my best Elaine moves while sitting in my computer chair. Thanks, Tony-brought a lot of grins!

D-O: Ally Bank? Isn't that a misnomer? Anyhow, glad you gave up the chase in the end.

Haven't checked into the Corner lately due to my approaching deadlines, one being income tax returns due on the 15th (yikes), and I haven't a clue. Always relied on my AARP Tax Aide pros (hello, Tom). I've almost completed my return on AARP'S TaxSlayer link (version of TurboTax) so no problem I hope.

Positive waves, tomorrow, Abejo! Just from reading your comments over the years, YOU ARE stronger than you think!

Wilbur Charles said...

I wonder how many had mUtATE/PUPATE. I finally got that corner only to find that I had BASH thinking the clue was gala celebration?* Bad light and weak readers. Here's the thing.

I'm up in central FLA and went out for the TB-Times. I assumed Publix would have it. Instead they had the Ocala paper with a xword edited by Will Shortz. I bought it. Solved it - one bad box just like Ed's.

This XW started easy then got testy. Let's see what the gang had to say.

I see some had trouble in the South. Baum wrote a bunch of OZ stories. They were allegorical.

I have Hotel California as a drug song . I'm surprised there's pushback on that.

I'm with IM on music. One problem: popular nusic channels don't have DJs so we never get to hear who the singers are. People "into" music already know that.

WC

ps. Bon chance, Abejo

*I'll bet that was the NYT Clue

Wilbur Charles said...

Oh yeah. I found the Sunday TB Times at Winn Dixie. But way late.