google.com, pub-2774194725043577, DIRECT, f08c47fec0942fa0 L.A.Times Crossword Corner: Monday October 5, 2020 Tyler Burnett

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Oct 5, 2020

Monday October 5, 2020 Tyler Burnett

Theme: Rivalry

17A. Big Ten school with eight national football titles: OHIO STATE. 46. Rival of 17-Across: MICHIGAN.
 
28A. AP's Co-driver of the Century Mario: ANDRETTI. 52. Rival of 28-Across: FOYT.

60A. Rival of 12-Down: LETTERMAN. 12D. Car-collecting comic Jay: LENO.

Boomer here. Congrats to Tyler Burnett on his LAT debut!

Of course my thoughts went to Big Ten rivals Minnesota and Iowa.  I never was much of an auto racing fan but I chuckled when I saw car-collecting comic LENO. I thought it might be a card-collecting comic Boomer.

SKOL! Holy Helmet Horns, my Vikings finally won a game. Although it was against winless Houston.  But I am taking back 25% of the bad things I said about the Vikes. 

Across:

1. Grocery store sack: BAG.  Paper or plastic?  We still receive bags for our groceries at no charge.  There are stores in Minneapolis that are charging 5 cents or more.

4. Outdoor dining spot: PATIO.  We have a nice outdoor deck, but we don't eat on it.  Sometimes squirrels do though.

9. Sauce fruit: APPLE. 13. Garden with a taboo 9-Across: EDEN.  APPLE is a high tech computer company.  Maybe do not mention Eve.

14. Secluded plight on a desert island, say: ISOLATION.  Sorry, reminds me of a secluded spot on a hill in Hardheim Germany.  With a missal buried in a silo that I never saw.
 


16. Stacked: PILED.

18. Stretched out like a sharpshooter: PRONE.  Or like a Vikings running back.

19. Good thing for a film's audio and video to be in: SYNC.

20. Presidential period, say: ERA.

21. Dueler's choice: WEAPON.

22. Tolstoy's Karenina: ANNA.

24. Enjoy dinner: EAT.  "EAT, EAT, EAT said the privates, happy men are we.  There's none so fair as can compare with the fighting infantry. "

25. Contacted on a cellphone: CALLED.  "I just CALLED to say I love you." Stevie Wonder.

33. Burn-soothing creams: ALOES.  Summer in Minnesota does not produce sunburns.

34. Socket insert: PLUG.  A PLUG is a PLUG, but a socket is a receptacle.  You need to screw a light bulb into a socket.

35. Small amount: DRIB.

36. Fix, as a fight: RIG.  I think a semi-truck is better known as a RIG.

37. Mickey, to Rocky: TRAINER.  "Gonna Fly Now!"

40. Pair in London?: ENS.

41. Somber news item: OBITAbejo obit.

43. Mining finds: ORES.  Many mines in northern Minnesota are producing taconite.

44. Water bill basis: USAGE.  We pay about $40.00 per month.  How about you?

48. Defeated: BEATEN.  Apollo Creed?

49. Before, in poetry: ERE.  "And I heard him exclaim ERE he drove out of sight"

50. Santa's naughty-and-nice record, e.g.: LIST.  "You better watch out, you better not cry !"

51. Illicit romance: AFFAIR.

54. "Psych!": NOT.

55. Protein-rich egg part: YOLK.  What Stan said to Ollie when he brought him hard boiled eggs in the hospital,  "That's a YOLK on you".

59. Ransacks: LOOTS.

62. French school: LYCEE.

63. Far-reaching: EXTENSIVE.  I think my drives need to be a little more EXTENSIVE on the golf course.

64. Displeases James Bond, at the bar?: STIRS.  What's the difference between SHAKE and STIR?  McDonald's sells shakes. 

65. When "the mouse ran down": ATONE.

66. Fancy marble: TAW.  I had Shooters, Steelies, Agates, Cat's eyes, and Peeries.  I never SAW a TAW.

Down:

1. Playbill listings: BIOS.  I yak so much about Minnesota and myself, I suppose any of you could BIO me.

2. Like an unswept fireplace: ASHY.  Our fireplace is clean.  We do not use it anymore because it gets too ASHY.

3. Enter: GO IN.  "Not by the hair on my chinny chin chin"

4. Partners for mas: PAS.

5. Show up at: ATTEND. Church still tells me not to ATTEND.  Too old and too much Covid going around.

6. Headpiece at the Miss America website: TIARA.  What ever happened to Bert Parks.

7. Greek "i": IOTA.

8. Free throw value: ONE.  But the guy shooting it is probably a millionaire

9. Show up: APPEAR. I will APPEAR on the golf course today. Might be the last time.  Minnesota golf weather is spotty in October..

10. Robbed at sea: PIRATED.  From the Caribbean? Or from Disneyland?

11. Alka-Seltzer sound: PLOP.  Fizz, Fizz, Oh what a relief it is.

15. Site: LOCALE.

21. Lettuce serving: WEDGE.  C.C. found a coop store in Minneapolis called WEDGE.  They had some neat stuff that no one else has, like South River Sweet White Miso. But the traffic to get there was ..... never mind. 

23. Egg-laying spot: NEST.

25. Billiards bounce: CAROM.  Many bowling centers have billiards tables.  I spent all my money on bowling however. 

26. Suspect's story: ALIBI.  Really!  I was at the bowling center.

27. Science that involves reasoning: LOGIC.

28. Out of this world: ALIEN.

29. "Finale Ultimo" chorus in "The Sound of Music": NUNS.  Doe, a deer, a female deer, Re, a drop of golden sun. ME a name, I call myself, FA a long, long way to run.

30. Word that excites a dog: TREAT.  Especially if there is a little meat on the bone.

31. Trace of color: TINGE.

32. "Peer Gynt" playwright Henrik: IBSEN.

34. Prefix with trooper or legal: PARA.  Graph, Chute.

38. Federer of tennis: ROGER.  "Over and out".

39. Regrets: RUES.  I often thought RUE McClanahan of the Golden Girls was an odd name.

42. Broadway destination: THEATER.  I have never been to New York but I'll bet every city has a BROADWAY.

45. Lecherous man-goats: SATYRS.

47. Flowers in a van Gogh masterpiece: IRISES.  He painted them blue.  I prefer "Sunflowers"  and of course "Starry Night".  "This world was never meant for one as beautiful as you."  Don MClean.

48. Like a mosquito victim: BITTEN.  Minnesota mosquitoes have not been too bad this year.

50. Powerball, e.g.: LOTTO.  We have played this only once or twice.  The prizes are huge but of course the odds of winning are about the same as the Twins in a playoff game.  

51. "__ well that ends well": ALL'S.

53. Central points: FOCI.

54. Ariana Grande album "thank u, __": NEXT.  What you do not want to hear while waiting in the dentist's waiting room.
56. Fail to put in: OMIT.

57. Volcanic output: LAVA.  A great bar of soap - it has grits.

58. Had down pat: KNEW.  "I KNEW it, we are almost done.

60. Pasture: LEA.

61. Opposite of WSW: ENE.
 
Boomer



73 comments:

TTP said...



Good morning. Thank you, Tyler Burnett, and thank you, Boomer.

No hesitation at 17A OHIO STATE. In fact, all the answers flowed rather easily today. Just right for a Monday.

Boomer, can you believe that there are 5 B1G teams in the AP Top 25 and they have yet to play a game ? #6 OHIO STATE will be hosting Nebraska, and # 25 Minnesota will be hosting #20 MICHIGAN when the season finally kicks off on Oct 24th. The other two ranked B1G teams are #9 Penn State and # 16 Wisconsin.

No monthly water bill here. Well and septic system.

Look at it this way - The Twins set a record that leads all major sports for all time.

Enjoy your round of golf today.

Hungry Mother said...

FIR with a wag: NOT. Didn’t have any idea. I liked the rivals theme.

KS said...

The 54 square was a WAG, between T and N. Made a lucky guess and FIR.

desper-otto said...

Good morning!

Boomer, you're welcome. I wasn't aware the season had started, but I'm not surprised the Texans have racked up four in a row. d-o did notice the rival pairings, so I guess he got the theme. Took an alphabet run, but that N in NOT/NEXT was my final fill (Hi, Hungry Mother and KS!) Finished in good time, but then, it's Monday. Enjoyed your debut, Tyler. Nice expo, Boomer. (I'm still picturing the missal at the bottom of that silo...)

Water bill: Ours normally runs $70-$80 dollars. A good chunk of that goes to the San Jacinto River Authority. Our little city has a well, and doesn't use water from the San Jacinto River, but we have to pay SJRA for depleting the aquifer.

Anonymous said...

I spent 4:31 on this one. Lycee was unknown.

For the person posting comments about the posting of solving times, I do it to share information and to start a conversation (so to speak) about speed. Like you, when I first encountered this site, I was skeptical of some of the times that were shared, but I used that as motivation to (1) start paying attention to the times (something many choose not to do, which is their prerogative); and (2) shorten my times. If the times annoy you, please just choose to skip over them, and try to not let them ruin your day.

Yellowrocks said...

RIVALRY theme. thanks for the interesting post, Boomer, and the fine puzzle, Tyler.
No rivalry about solving times here. I pay no attention to that. Many times I solve in between doing other things and so solve in shifts. My only aim is enjoyment and the challenge of successful completion. I purposely slow down early in the week to prolong the fun.
My mom used to talk about her brothers playing marbles, mibs, she called it and mentioned the names of the marbles. I never actually saw anyone shooting marbles in a ring, except in movies. We used marbles for Chinese Checkers.
TAW to me is a female square dance partner, or in the case of two ladies, the one on the right. Dancing both lead and follow allowed me to find a partner almost every tip.
I also thought of Tweety Bird and Sylvester. " I taut I taw a puddy cat."
A realty photographer will spend all this afternoon making a video my house. What a rush to stage it. I must make myself scarce, so will go leaf peeping along the Delaware Water Gap. I hear the foliage colors progressed more rapidly than usual this year. When the market opens I will go buy a big pot pf mums for curb appeal.

Spitzboov said...

Good morning everyone.

A bit clunky for a Monday but that adds to the charm. Saw the rivalry but it didn't register as a 'theme'. Sigh. Only wite-out was I had 'fizz' before PLOP. Well done Tyler and Boomer.
USAGE - about $40/mo. It's high quality, though, from the Adirondacks - pure as the driven snow.
LAVA (soap)- Needed it after greasing the hay bailer each time out. The knotters had lots of zerk fittings, each needing just a part squeeze from the grease gun.
EAT - German has 2 verbs, essen and fressen. Essen is for humans eating; fressen is what animals do. As kids, we were sometimes admonished: "Essen, nicht fressen." (Don't eat (like pigs.))

Hahtoolah said...

Good morning, Boomer and friends. Thank you for linking Abejo’s obituary. His friendly voice is missed.

Irish Miss said...

Good Morning:

I’ll join the trio of Hungry Mother, KS, and DO struggling with that “knotty” Next/Not crossing. Pop culture’s lingo and music are way off my radar screen. I had Ecole for Lycee; I’ll have to check the difference as I remember them both being school related. We had a few daily duos with ENs/ENE, Ere/Era, all crosswordese, and Bitten/Beaten.

Thanks, Tyler, and congrats on your LAT debut and thanks, Boomer, for lots of chuckles and your trademark Memory Lane nuggets. Good luck of the links.

Have a great day.

Irish Miss said...

On not Of. 💤

Tinbeni said...

Boomer: Nice write-up.

I do not know any "Real Floridians" who don't have an ALOE plant (for potential sunburns).

What to do? My Tampa Bay Rays are playing my favorite team the New York Yankees in a "Best-of-five" playoff series.

I will be happy either way it goes. LOL

Cheers!

Anonymous said...

Can someone explain how “Psych!” answer is NOT. Thanks.

desper-otto said...

Anon@9:37, I think its a type of "gotcha!" You tell a fat lie, then admit that it's false by saying "Not!" or "Psych!" (as in I psyched you out). But I definitely could be wrong about that.

Anonymous said...

If someone offered you their hand to shake, and as you stretched out your hand to shake theirs, they then pulled their hand away -- they might say "psych!". Similar to "not," in an expression. "I'll let you take my car - not!"

Husker Gary said...

Musings
-NBC and LENO made Conan O’Brien very wealthy
-Movie fans will know what Brando movie saw Terry Malloy lose in a RIGGED fight. No contender he.
-Seeing Santa in stores before October doesn’t upset me, it’s “just the way it is”
-My former principal had an AFFAIR that ruined his life and the other woman’s
-My teeth have had EXTENSIVE work but are still all in my mouth in some form
-We did ATTEND church yesterday and got a pointless 10-minute homily.
-BTW, we both tested negative again last week
-Bert heard about being fired from The Miss America Pageant on the radio
-Nobody on the golf course wants to hear your ALIBI for a bad shot
-The finale ultimo from The Sound of Music can still give me goose bumps
-NOT! It comes from Wayne’s World where something outrageous is said and then NOT comes a few heartbeats later to indicate what was said was false. Psych!

desper-otto said...

Anybody else having trouble logging onto the Bank of America site this morning?

oc4beach said...


I got the theme and was able to fill in the various Rivals without any problems. Nice debut by Tyler. Boomer added a lot to the enjoyment of today's puzzle.

I know what the rivalries are in the B1G because I'm a Penn State grad and live less than a mile from the main campus. I don't think the original Ten schools really wanted to have the extra four teams added to compete with them. Especially Penn State and Nebraska, but it's all about the money. I think Ohio State is Penn State's biggest rival out of all the other schools. Pitt used to be our big rival, but we don't compete with them much anymore.

Most everything filled in nicely, but I needed perp help with LYCEE and TAW. Shooting marbles was not a big thing where I grew up.

Boomer, thank you for the link to Abejo's obituary. He will be missed.

Good Monday start and I hope everyone's day goes well. Be safe and please wear your masks.

inanehiker said...

This was a fun day Monday as usual between the amusing theme answers of rivals from several avenues and Boomer's write-up!

Boomer, when you mentioned RUE McClanahan - it made me curious as to her given name as I figured RUE was a nickname or a shortened name....well all I can say is if I had her name I would shorten it too! Wikipedia: She was born Eddie-RUE. She was the daughter of Dreda Rheua-Nell (n̩e Medaris; 1912 Р1973), a beautician, and William Edwin "Bill" McClanahan (1908 Р1999), a building contractor in Oklahoma - so her given name was a combination of her parents middle names!

Thanks Boomer and congrats to Tyler!

CanadianEh! said...

Marvelous Monday. Thanks for the fun, Tyler (congrats on your debut) and Boomer.
I FIRed in good Monday time with no inkblots; rivals theme was noted.
Of course, this Canadian did not know the Big Ten schools, but perps were friendly.
OH I O STATE that I just found our that I actually FIWed. My billiards bounce was a Carob (but that's a chocolate/cocoa substitute) giving me the new STATE of Bichigan. LOL. More proofreading needed!

Hand up for wanting Ecole; LYCEE perped. I believe LYCEE refers to high school.

Perhaps, PLUG could have been clued as "Receptacle insert" although interconnect-wiring.com says "plugs have prolonged connecting pins which fit into a mating socket called a receptacle".

We visited the APP store today with APPLE crossing APPEAR.

Covid ISOLATION rules may lead to Thanksgiving on the PATIO. At least our Canadian Thanksgiving is in October with hope of nice weather.

You all KNEW that my nose wrinkled as I filled in THEATER. (Another Covid casualty)
PIRATED as a verb felt a little strange also.

CSO to Lucina with NUNS. Hand up for loving that music.
TxMs should be happier with today's clue for PARA.

Thank you for the link to the OBIT for Abejo. I have already posted a message on the Tribute Wall.

Wishing you all a good day.

Spitzboov said...

D-O @ 0947 - I just tried it. Logged in OK.

___________________________________________


Alas, my WSJ had a delivery issue today so I'll have to try CC's puzzle later in the week.

Edward Duarte said...

Counterclockwise

Ray - O - Sunshine said...

Bad omen to start the week with a FIR: had texted crossed with locate instead of CALLED/LOCALE (you can use a cell phone to make telephone calls??) Should have used LOGIC to answer not xogic.

You "throw" a fight, RIG an election. Inkovered école/LYCÉE. Since my lack of sports info is EXTENSIVE needed perps for the college rivalry but I knew Super Mario.

Van Gogh, (Why don't we pronounce the hard final G?)...almost put fizz before PLOP (Boomer: �� oh what a relief that was ��) In a tribute to Canada Eh I waited on the ending of THEATER....TAW?, huh? Wha? Don't understand Bond and STIRS.

Adding insult to injury....

DD...STACKED..... (wait ..lemme explain...if you turn the 2 Ds vertical they are STACKED...not what you were thinking ��).

Lite....LOCALE

To win the sweepstakes you gotta buy a _____ tickets...LOTTO.

Chilling with cubes of frozen water....ISOLATION.

Satisfiers......SATYRS.

A squabble in a Irish pub may lead to a _____ FOYT.

Renaissance guitars.....LOOTS

Spanish Uncle on my Dad's side.....PATIO

Off to buy furniture with DW (shoot me now)

Ray - O - Sunshine said...

Oddly my blog info dsappeared...seems to happen sporadically. Have to play around to get it back. Only partly succeeded.

Boomer you probably meant "missile" in the German silo. A missal (book that follows the mass) might have been a welcome site.

Anon said...

Thanks for your comments. 4:31 is so fast it is almost unbelievable. Can you share how you do it so quickly? Do you solve on line and are a quick typist or do you write your answers?

NaomiZ said...

Enjoyable Monday puzzle, Tyler, and nice write up, Boomer! No problems solving, in spite of sports entries. Hand up for "ecole" before LYCEE. Ultimately I KNEW the answers and was NOT BEATEN! When does my TIARA APPEAR?

Lucina said...

Hola!

Thank you and congratulations, Tyler Burnett, on your debut! And many thanks, Boomer, for your witty words. Good luck on the green today.

Have MICHIGAN and OHIOSTATE ever BEATEN each other? I wouldn't know.

Oh, oh. I see that I left the N in NOT/NEXT blank because it didn't make sense to me. I'm unfamiliar with psych used in that way and know nothing about Ariana Grande's music.

It tickles me, however, to see IBSEN in the puzzle and think about "Peer Gynt" which is set to beautiful music especially Ase's dance and "Morning."

I waited for LYCEE because ecole was my first thought. Perps determined it.

I'm extremely allergic to mosquito bites and every time I have been BITTEN the results have been high temperatures and in one case, a mild form of emcephalitis which sent me to the hospital for a week and one month away from work. I take mosquitoes seriously!

C eh! I thought of you at THEATER and how you would react!

Thank you, Boomer, for posting Abejo's OBIT. It really sinks in that he is gone.

What interesting information about RUE McClanahan's name, inanehiker, thank you.

TREAT yourselves to a great day, everyone!

Lucina said...

Many years ago our staff was invited to tour the SILO located near Tucson. It was a fascinating experience to go underground and be treated to see it and learn that our country had that kind of readiness so near our home! I was teaching there at the time.

Anonymous said...

Anon at 10:51 am: Over many years, I've become better at crosswords in general, but noticed the most improvement in Monday/Tuesday level puzzles. I previously did them in the newspaper (didn't we all?), but switched to on-line about three years ago. The on-line version keeps track of time for you, whether you want it or not. I consider myself a decent typist, not that I have any reference point for typing speeds (or what my typing speed/score would be).

To expand on what I said earlier, when I first discovered this site and when I watched "Wordplay" (crossword documentary), I honestly was impressed ("awed" in crossword-speak) by some of the times. I started posting my times in hopes that maybe somebody else might be inspired to challenge themselves, and that others may want to share a time or two of theirs. To me, the timing adds to the enjoyment, but I understand and appreciate how others do not feel that way.

A couple weeks ago when I managed to finish a Monday puzzle in under 4 minutes, I remembered that I previously thought I'd never finish a puzzle in under 10 minutes. I find the milestones/standards/goals useful.

-Anon at 6:47 today.

Misty said...

Fun Monday puzzle--many thanks, and congratulations, Tyler. And Boomer, your write-up, with all those memories of songs and rhymes, is always a pleasure,

I was delighted to see the pairings of OHIO STATE/MICHIGAN, LENO/LETTERMAN and ANDRETTI/FOYT (even though I never heard of them and know nothing about car racing). But the theme of RIVALRY didn't occur to me until Boomer's explanation.

Loved seeing APPLE and EDEN together.

But the NOT/NEXT puzzled me, and I've never heard of TAW. And could someone explain what a mouse has to do with ATONE? I thought the mouse ran down the clock.

Have a good week coming up, everybody.

Anonymous said...

The mouse ran down at one. "At one".

Vidwan827 said...

Misty, with respect, The mouse ran up the clock !
That was a venial sin. Therefore it had to ATONE for it.
Although the answer could also be AT ONE.
The clock struck One, the mouse ran down. ;-)

( I couldnt help that. Again, respectfully said.)

Anonymous said...

Some of the cluing seemed a bit off to me. Otherwise a little crunchy for a Monday. Not a fan of sports puzzles but this one was filled easily by perps.Never heard of "psych!" as clued. That’s a real word?? If it is I've never heard it in real life. It was the only clue I had a nit about.

TTP said...




Anon @ 10:51,

The 4:31 time posted by Anon at 6:47 AM is pretty speedy. But, it's hardly close to the times recorded by the faster solvers. Cut it by 50 % or more.

C.C. has a link on this website to Dan Feyer's Not A Crossword Blog (dandoesnotblog.blogspot.com). At Dan's blogspot, the top link on the right is where solvers can log their times.

Joon Pahk is a constructor and is considered a faster solver, but not the fastest. He solves most of his crosswords on paper. Joon records his times at Dan's site. I was waiting to see what times he posted for today to give you a comparison, but he hasn't recorded them yet. You can check Dan's site later today or tomorrow to see how Joon did and a few others (that record their times there) did.

But just as an example, last Monday, Sept 28th, our anon that posts solving times almost daily wrote that the crossword took "a little over 4 minutes". Joon recorded 2:25 for the LAT, 2:17 for the NYT, 1:51 for the Newsday... etc for the 7 or 8 puzzles he solves daily.

This last Friday, Sept 2nd, our anon took 12:21. Joon did it in 3:52 and Glen ? did in in 3:10, also a paper solver.

Yep. There are some really fast solvers out there !

Malodorous Manatee said...

Ray, perhaps they were praying in the silo. Couldn't hurt, I suppose.

One of my favorite Burt Parks moments (I couldn't find a linkable clip of him singing either "Maggie's Farm" or "Tequila":

There He Is, Your Komodo Dragon

Husker Gary said...

Hickory dickory dock
The mouse ran up the clock
The clock struck one
But he escaped with minor injuries

TTP said...


Oh, and today's LAT was solved in 1:45 by Stella, as recorded over at the Diary of a Crossword Fiend site. Probably Stella Zawistowski, the "Brawny Brain" constructor and power lifter.

CanadianEh! said...

Ray'o and Lucina - I am honoured that you thought of me with THEATER!

Ray'o- re STIRS and Bond. per Wiki- "Shaken, not stirred" is a catchphrase of Ian Fleming's fictional British Secret Service agent James Bond and describes his preference for the preparation of his martini cocktail.

Boomer said...

I know the blog rules are no religion, but it appears my 12 years in Catholic schools taught that there may be more than one way to spell MISSILE. Thank you all !!

Vidwan827 said...

Thank you Mr. Tyler Burnet for an easy and doable Monday puzzle, and Boomer for your charming and funny review. Your comments are more interesting than the clue answers....

I, too, caught the misspelt homophone missal instead of missile, but Ray-O beat me, to it, in his comment. Seriously, I am surprised that people actually knew where these missiles were housed .... I thought that was supposed to be top secret information. ( Burn after reading etc., type ...)

Lucina, ... though I don't ever watch football games, collegiate or otherwise, or scores, I happen to know that (our ) Ohio State, once, won every single game during their football season !!*** I forget which year though, and I am not going to google it, to find out. I think the overall wins score, with Michigan, is 58-51 with Michigan leading. I was told the head coach at OSU, makes 4 times as much money as the Governor of the state.... probably more like 10 times as much.

*** In 2012, But they, OSU, cheated the previous season according to the NCAA rules, so they were disqualified from the Bowl games in 2012 ... ;-(
I do know they have great graduate schools, and very affordable tuition, and their med school is te best in the state of Ohio.

Finally, to the Anon who has been miffed about the low times for some xword solvers, as reported.... You probably dont know the CC Blog algorithm.
You take your actual time, for solving the crossword, ... subtract ten minutes for the 'Gimme'... and divide the resulting number by a factor of 4. Then that is your actual BLOG SCORE, which you report.... You dont get any points or money, but you can feel good about it, all day long.
Works for me, everytime.

Ron in LA said...

James Bond when ordering a drink would request it 'shaken, not stirred'.

Ray - O - Sunshine said...

I think if I had a completed puzzle in front of me and was simply copying it into a blank puzzle I couldn't do it in a munute and 45 seconds....Thats truly impressive completion time

Ron in LA said...

What does LIU stand for ?

Wilbur Charles said...

FLN: I posted my comments really late if anyone is interested. There's a trivia question made to order for the musically inclined. TTP would know .

So the golfer comes home late and the wife says "Where were you" ? "I cannot tell a lie, I went to a whorehouse". "Liar", she says, "You were playing golf!".

Ditto on N in NOT/NEXT

"On the Waterfront". "I coulda been a contender!".

If there's nae ALIBIS there's nae golf.

"... The mice ran up the clock
The clock struck One, the rest escaped with minor injuries

A little crunchier than the usual Monday. Tuesday has been easier.

WC

TTP said...



Ron in LA, look it up.

Wilbur, I didn't get to Evan's crossword yet, so I will save reading your post until later in case there's a spoiler.


To all that had problems with Ariana Grande's song, "thank you, next" was her first number one. She was singing about her previous love interests, one of which was SNL alum Pete Davidson. I had to look up the list:

"The song was inspired by the exes that she's grateful for, including rapper Big Sean, former backup dancer Ricky Alvarez, late rapper Mac Miller, and her ex-fiance Pete Davidson."

ATLGranny said...

FIR this morning to start the week. Thanks, Tyler, for a good start to your constructing career. I enjoyed it. And thanks to Boomer for his review, which pointed out the rivalry theme. I had gotten all the theme answers but hadn't realized the theme was rivalry, as some others here also reported missing.

The answers filled in smoothly, with a short pause to remember how to spell LYCEE with a Y. My only writeover was caused by a brain blip when I started writing in TracE, not thinking that was the word used in the clue! Oh, should be TINGE which gives us DRIB, a word we've seen before. Otherwise a neat grid today.

Thanks for Abejo's obit, Boomer. We miss his contributions here and send our thoughts to his family now. Have a good afternoon you all.

AnonymousPVX said...


LIU....I don’t know, Look It Up.

Lucina said...

TTP:
Thank you for the information about Ariana Grande's song and her exes. Frankly, in the famous words of Rhett Butler, "I don't give....." but I appreciate your efforts. On second thought, some of those might appear in a future puzzle so I should pay attention.

LEO III said...

Happy Monday! Thanks and congratulations Tyler! Great write up, Boomer!

Pretty easy Monday, of course, but I did miss DRIB/IBSEN. PROOFREAD! I had no problem with the theme or the rivalries.

Yes, ECOLE before LYCEE.

I THINK Bond wants his martinis shaken, because I THINK shaking would make them a little colder when they are poured into the martini glass. I don't drink martinis, so I don't know for sure. Then again, maybe it was just Ian Fleming being cute.

My Ohio State discussion will follow shortly.

I got to meet both Mario and Michael Andretti back in the good old days, when Texaco was a racing sponsor. I’m not big on autographs, but I DO still have a Texaco Havoline Racing cap autographed by Mario.

Wendybird said...

Thank you Tyler, for an enjoyable Monday-level puzzle. After my struggles yesterday and Saturday, I needed the respite.
Thank you, Boomer, as always for the entertainment.

I appreciate the posting of Abejo’s obituary. As a fairly recent visitor to this blog, I didn’t “know” him well like many of you did, but it is heartwarming to know how kind and compassionate you all are to one of your own.

I’ll take a CSO for MICHIGAN since I was born and raised in Ann Arbor, and the men in my family, for 3 generations are U of M grads. Several were lettered athletes and avid Michigan football fans. With regard to the rivalry with OHIO STATE, I grew up thinking “ G—D—Woody Hayes“ was one word. Lately, the wolverines aren’t doing too well against the buckeyes.

Husker, I laughed out loud at your parody of Hickory Dickory Dock.

We plan to vote early and are plowing our way through the plethora of propositions first. Exhausting!

It is so nice to be part of this blog where occasional differences of opinion or misunderstandings are resolved amicably and with empathy.

Wilbur Charles said...

TTP, that was the 9/27 EB Xword.

I think the LYCEE is a fancy ecole. I'll look it up(LIU) later.

WC

Wilbur Charles said...

And, next time my fellow Nero Wolfe aficionado, Lemonade, shows up I have a classic Neroism for him from "Might as well be Dead"

Ok, Who did Nero Wolfe refer to as a "hoyden"?. I need to keep my cellphone near by to LIU Stout's references

Jayce said...

I enjoyed the puzzle. Hand up for taking a WAG at that N in NOT and NEXT.

Jayce said...

Wendybird, yeah, we've been plowing through the propositions too. It definitely is work and takes time. That's why it's worth taking the time now, before receiving the actual ballot, so the ballot can be filled in relatively quickly and submitted nice and early.

Wilbur Charles said...

Re. LIU, Ok, from hinative.com...

"Lycée" is the term we used just when we would say "high School". But "école" is used to say the all of school (infants school, middle school, high school, etc...)

Is Brigitte Bardot in the house?

Spitzboov said...

Broke down early and downloaded CC's puzzle from the WSJ site. Real easy. Coincidence: She had PSYCH as fill for a clue similar to our NOT today. Does make one wonder about SYNC.

____________________________________________________

Yesterday at our bird feeder we were graced with a visit by a Red-Bellied Woodpecker. Had to go to 2 references to verify; a field guide and Sibley's. We have not seen them before although we are in their normal range.

Vidwan827 said...

Re: The Ohio State Football team ... the biggest attraction is the

Ohio State University Marching Band, Entry and with scripted Ohio Logo (9.04 mins.)

So, we see how our hard earned tax dollars are so carefully and judiciously spent.
So, they have even a music school, with the added attraction of keeping fit with the high stepping dancing, and Kung Fu, and what else. No more fat, 'spare tired', trumpet players ... no siree, they not only play 'Swan Lake', they even dance to it !

Not only do they keep scores, they remember their own music Score, and induce the footballers to score...

Bill G said...

Wilbur, count me in as a fellow Nero Wolfe aficionado. I'm rereading some of the old ones. Next will be "The Doorbell Rang." I'm also a fan of the original Spenser series.

LEO III said...

Well, Vidwan827 beat me to the punch posting the video, so I’ll just post some comments:

I am a huge Ohio State fan, but not necessarily because of their football team (which I DO like). A couple hundred years ago in the days of black and white TV, I first saw the Ohio State Marching Band do “Script Ohio” --- you know, back when there was actually a halftime show at halftime on the football telecasts. (Don’t get me started about the halftime shows never being televised anymore. Money TALKS!)

Being a former high school marching bandsman, I simply thought it was the coolest thing ever. Also, at my last high school (I only went to three), “Across the Field” was the fight song.

A few facts (from Wiki):

*The band is probably the largest all brass and percussion band. NO PIANISSIMO HERE!

*The band marches onto the field at 180 beats per minute.

*The music played is “Le Regiment de Sambre et Meuse” by Robert Planquette and Paul Cezano. Cezano penned the lyrics following the French defeat in the Franco-Prussian War, with Planquette setting them to music shortly thereafter.

*The first bandsman to “Dot the ‘I’” was a trumpet player. Now it is usually done by a fourth- or fifth-year sousaphone player.

*Notable non-bandsmen who have dotted the “I” include Bob Hope, Woody Hayes, Jack Nicklaus, and John and Anne Glenn.

*There is also a ground level video, with the camera attached to the sousaphone player who is going to “Dot the ’I’”. It’s pretty cool too.

*Sometimes the band does a double Script Ohio; sometimes it does a quadruple.

*In 2015, the band performed at Wembley Stadium prior to an NFL game.

I actually sometimes spend long periods of time on the OSU website watching various videos. No, I don’t have a life!

One of the things on my bucket list is to see it in person, hopefully when OSU hosts MY alma mater, Turtle U (Maryland), which for some stupid reason decided it was tired of getting its rear end kicked MOST of the time by the ACC schools, so it moved to the B1G where it can get its rear end kicked ALL of the time.)

(Don’t get me started on all of the conference jumping either! MONEY REALLY TALKS!)

(Also, don’t get me started about the conductors on the sidelines! WE didn’t do it that way!)

unclefred said...

Fun CW, even though it took me far longer than most Mondays. I’m always amazed when someone does a CW in 5 minutes. If I had a fully filled grid right next to an empty one I doubt I could even COPY it in five minutes!! This took me an embarrassing 18 minutes. A few nits: the protein part of an egg is the egg white; the yolk is the fat filled part. Even after reading all the explanations, “NOT” as a fill for “Psych!” does not compute in my pea-brain. LYCEE was all perps. Never heard of it. Are the Wisconsin Badgers playing this year? When I go to the website, they still have all the games marked “Canceled”. Anyone know?

TTP said...



unclefred, Wisconsin has a cake walk schedule this shortened season, starting with hosting Illinois on Oct 24th.

LEO III, THE Ohio State Matching Band is the best in the country as far as I am concerned. A neighbor's son that is older than me played in it, taught in the music department, and became one of the directors. I don't recall what brass instrument he played as I never really knew him. Just that he became recognized locally because of his long term leadership with the OSU band.

Susie said...

I think all Big 10 games begin on October 20 with all teams playing.

Susie said...

Sorry - Saturday the 24th

Lucina said...

I'm not a sports fan but I love watching the Ohio marching band!

Anonymous said...

unclefred, you shouldn't feel embarrassed about a time of 18 minutes. Believe me, plenty of other people took longer. That's why I don't like it when people give times in the 4 - 5 minute range here. It makes other people feel bad.

Anonymous T said...

FIW - L_CEE xing FO_T; I went with "I"; should have expanded my vowel pool.

Hi All!

Thanks, Tyler, for the puzzle and congrats on the LAT debut.

Mighty-fine expo Boomer (learned it as "Beer, beer, bear said the private). Thanks for Abejo's obit; may he R.I.P.

WO: N/A
ESPs: ANNA, L_CEE | FO_T
Fav: ANDRETTI [at BlackHat]
Misty - I did like APPLE | EDEN crossing.

USAGE: ~$150. I had to look up what Surface Water (click it) meant.

If I could do xwords in under 10 minutes (in ink), I don't think it would be fun anymore. Certainly couldn't sit & savor.

Lucina - Pete Davidson is currently the youngest cast-member of SNL. [list of 10 youngest].

Spitz - thanks for the heads-up on C.C.'s WSJ. I'll play it after I call Pop.

Cheers, -T

JJM said...

I'm really sad to hear of Abejo's passsing. I didn't know the man, but he was without a doubt the most polite poster on this website. He was always thanking people for every little thing. What a nice man he was. I'll miss him.
R.I.P.

Misty said...

Thank you Vidwan and Anonymous for explaining the mouse running AT ONE, and not atoning.

WikWak said...

To the poster who had a nit with PSYCH: you have apparently not taught in a middle school in the last few decades! I got so sick of hearing it that I banished it from my classroom, under threat of making those who said it listen to some of my jokes!

And with that I am outta here. Lots more I could say but it’s a good night for playing radio and also I have to get up at >shudder< 08:00 tomorrow. Why does anybody do this on purpose? ;)

Stay well.

Lucina said...

Well. That explains it then; I taught 4th grade not middle school so PSYCH! meant nothing to me. I guess I should quiz my grandchildren about it.

Anon-T:
Thank you for posting Pete Davidson's photo and information. I haven't watched SNL in such a long time though I did catch Chris Rock's monologue this weekend. It was a hoot! But then it was sleepy time.

TxMs said...

C-Eh @10:22am, lol, yes, finally PARA is clued correctly and was pleased to see it, which reminded me - sorry again for my previous rant.

Lucina @11:02am, yes, re Abejo’s OBIT (thank you, Boomer) brought me back to reality with all the crazy things going on now; and JJM @7:45pm, I agree that Abejo was the kindest man, always on the go wherever doing whatever he could do to help others.

Boomer, ecstatic today at 4:05pm when I saw the headline that the McNair family finally fired Bill O’Brien (Texans’ coach and GM) – Houston fans are also ecstatic (and some Chronicle sportswriters as well… well, in so many words).

Anonymous T said...

Lucina:

Pete's dad, a first responder fire-man, died in 9/11.
The King of Staten Island is a near auto-BIO.

Pete's a mess'd-up individual [hope he can finally find peace!] but he put humor into his pain.
And he's really F'in' funny.

Cheers, -T

Wilbur Charles said...

BillG, "Doorbell" is one of Stout's most famous Nero Wolfe stories. Stout was an active anti-Nazi guy during WWII and as you'll see, still political circa 1970.

"Too Many Cooks" is an interesting one from his most fertile period.

WC

Oh, answer? Wolfe's suspects had attended a Play about Joan of Arc to whom Wolfe referred as "That HOYDEN"

unclefred said...

Thanx, TTP! I’ll look at the website again and see if they’ve updated it.