google.com, pub-2774194725043577, DIRECT, f08c47fec0942fa0 L.A.Times Crossword Corner: Wednesday November 18, 2020 Kurt Krauss

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Nov 18, 2020

Wednesday November 18, 2020 Kurt Krauss

>Theme: Let's go to the unifier

57 A. Rock genre ... and a hint to the starts of the answers to starred clues: HEAVY METAL.  A blues influenced type of music developed in England ca. 1980, characterized by a dominant, repeating bass line, distortion, and extended guitar solos.  Heavy Metals are metallic elements that have high weight or density A few show up in the theme fill.  Some others are cadmium, mercury and gold.

17. *Mind reader's obstacle, some believe: TIN FOIL HAT.  The idea being that the metal will insulate the brain from electromagnetic radiation.  Also indicates belief in unscientific or conspiracy theory ideas.  As a foil wrapping material, TIN has long since been replaced by aluminum.

24 A. *20th-century political symbol: IRON CURTAIN.  A political and physical barrier that separated Counties with ties to the USSR from those that were independent or tied to NATO.  Iron is a common element and vital nutrient.

33 A. *Metaphor for a failure: LEAD BALLOON.  A heavy BALLON is doomed to sink.  LEAD is the basis for solder.

48 A. *Symbol of inherited wealth: SILVER SPOON.  To be born with it in ones mouth.  Silver isn't just heavy, it's a precious metal.

Hi gang.  JzB here.  Had some technical difficulty so this will be sketchy.  Lo siento.

Across:

1. 1978 Peace co-Nobelist: SADAT.  Muhammad Anwar el-Sadat was an Egyptian politician who served as the third President of Egypt, from 15 October 1970 until his assassination by fundamentalist army officers on 6 October 1981.

6. Officiates: REFS.  Acts as an arbiter in sporting events.

10. Painter of limp watches: DALI.  Salvador [1904-1989] 




14. Spanish Olympian's goal: EL ORO.  The Gold.

15. Other, in Oaxaca: OTRO.  Literal, in Spanish

16. Turkey neighbor: IRAN.  I was thinking mashed potatoes.  But this is geography, and that is next week

19. Expansive: VAST.

20. Caddie's bagful: TEES.  Wooden pegs that support the ball for the first stroke on a golf hole.

21. Cruel: MEAN. Nasty

22. Trigger, for one: HORSE.  With famous cowboy Roy Rogers.

23. St. whose name is part of its capital's name: IND.  Indianapolis, Indiana, USA.

26. Tattoo tool: NEEDLE.  For body art

28. Took a time out: RESTED.  Had a nap

29. They're shifted often in cities: GEARS.  Due to stop and go traffic.

30. Vicinity: AREA. Region.

38. Ages and ages: EONS.  Forever, more or less.

39. Italian fashion house: PRADA.  Founded in 1913.

42. Port ENE of Cleveland, OH: ERIE, PA.  

47. Closed in on: NEARED.  Approached

52. Coke alternatives: RCSRoyal Crowns.

53. Jazz drummer Cozy and a king: COLES.  And another King


 

 54. Reasons: WHYS.

55. FDR's dog: FALA.

56. Business envelope abbr.: ATTN.   Attention - somebody. Routing direction

59. Full of pizzazz: PERT.

60. Alleviate: EASE.

61. Dino's love: AMORE.  Of course.


 

 62. Slow Churned ice cream brand: EDY'S.  Founded in 1928.

63. Seals, to sharks: PREY.  Things they eat.

64. Elements in playground banter: DARES.  Double Dares and double dog dares.

Down:

1. Backdrop: SETTING.

2. Property recipient, in law: ALIENEE.  Strange legalese.

3. Fait accompli: DONE DEAL.  Finished.  The End!

4. Kennel sounds: ARFS.  Dog utterances.
 
5. Also: TOO.  In addition.

6. Loggers' contest: ROLEO.  Log rolling contest.

7. Actor Hawke: ETHAN. [b 1970] American actor, writer, and director. He has been nominated for four Academy Awards and a Tony Award. 

8. Swiss capital: FRANC.  Money.

9. Lush: SOT.  Drunkard.

10. "Replace all __": golf course reminder: DIVOTS.  Little chunks of planet earth lifted with gold clubs.  They must be replaced before you chase your ball.

11. Mount in Genesis: ARARAT.  Where Noah landed.

12. Heroic TV dog: LASSIE.  From 1954 to 1973

13. Have in mind: INTEND.  Mean to.

18. '50s Hungarian premier Nagy: IMRE.  A Hungarian communist politician who served as Prime Minister and Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Hungarian People's Republic from 1953 to 1955. In 1956 Nagy became leader of the Hungarian Revolution of 1956 against the Soviet-backed government, for which he was executed two years later.

22. Longtime Eur. realm: HREHoly Roman Empire

24. To whom Rick said, "We'll always have Paris": ILSA.  From the classic 1942 movie Casablanca.

25. Caspian Sea feeder: URAL.  River to sea.

27. Hip-hop Dr.: DRE.  Andre Romelle Young, known professionally as Dr. Dre, is an American rapper, record producer, audio engineer, record executive, entrepreneur, and actor.

30. Blood-typing letters: ABO.  Types are A, B, AB, and O, based on the presence or absence of two genes.  It is important to match donor and recipient types for blood transfusions and organ transplants.

31. Hightailed it: RAN. Escaped, perhaps.

32. Over-the-street transports: ELS.  Above street level rapid transit systems.

34. Cherished: DEAR.  Beloved

35. Inviting store window sign: OPEN.  Come in and pend your money

36. U.K. singer Rita: ORA.  Rita Sahatçiu Ora (b.1990] is a British singer and actress. 

37. Ishmael, in "Moby Dick": NARRATOR.

40. Announce: DECLARE.

41. Much of Google's income: AD SALES.

42. Break out: ESCAPE.  High tailed it and ran.

43. Ran amok: RIOTED.  One person can act in an out of control and disruptive manner.  It takes a crowd to riot.

44. "Do your best" response: I'LL TRY.  Or not.

 


 45. Decathlon's 10: EVENTS.  This is a competition held over two days.  The events are: First day - 100m, long jump, shot put, high jump and 400m; Second day -  110m hurdles, discus, pole vault, javelin and 1500m.

46. Latin foot: PES.  Literal.

47. Like an eavesdropper, say: NOSY. Too interested in other people's business.

49. Talk a blue streak?: SWEAR.  A string of "blue" language.  Clever.

50. New moon, e.g.: PHASE.  The moon's phases change over 28 days.

51. Yiddish "Yikes!": OY VEY.  Expression of dismay, surprise or alarm.

55. Disaster relief org.: FEMA. Federal Emergency Management Agency.

57. Cool, once: HEP.  Is "cool" even cool thee days?

58. Bonkers: MAD.  Insane.

That wraps us another Wednesday [but not in TIN foil.]  Stay healthy and have a safe Thanksgiving.

Cool Regards!
JzB

 






46 comments:

Wilbur Charles said...

FLN: -T, you mean he was actually singing intelligible words? I'd have to have the lyric sheet.

We'll, back to FIR-dom. Slow going with ALIENEE and the Spanish in the NW. I knew IMRE Nagy; Perhaps it was This book by Michener.

WC

Hungry Mother said...

Nice theme, which helped the solve. IMRE was a waste of space and DRE at least is an easy answer in my unknown world of rap. Good to see SADAT, a good man in a world of not so good men.

desper-otto said...

Good morning!

IMRE had come and gone before I was aware of goings on in Europe. In those days I was more worried about the "Reds" whom I was sure would be arriving in our town on the nightly 9PM freight. We had CSO's to former cornerites Splynter (HEAVY METAL) and Abejo (ERIE PA). Cozy COLE made it onto the top-forty playlists back in '58 with Topsy Part II -- don't ask me why. I must have learned ALIENEE on a former cw -- it flowed trippingly off my pen. Thanx, Kurt and JzB. (Just who were you thinking of with those "gold clubs?")

Anonymous said...

Took 5:30ish today. Seemed easy for a Wednesday, despite Imre and alienee.

BobB said...

23A Had VER for VerMONT and MONTpelier. Slowed down the NW corner.

inanehiker said...

Pretty quick solve for a Wednesday - but a slow start as both SADAT and BEGIN have 5 letters and shared the Nobel, so I waited for perps.

TIN FOIL HAT - makes me think of Joaquin Phoenix in the movie "Signs" sitting on the couch with his kids.
https://www.reddit.com/r/BravoRealHousewives/comments/gc0ba8/aaron_and_the_kids_waiting_for_denise_to_get_home/

Thanks for the blog JzB - always enjoy the musical links- fave today was the Natalie and Nat King COLE duet - I used to have that on CD!
and thanks Kurt for the fun puzzle!

OMaxiN said...

In just a few weeks there will again be 24 hours of Schwartz's breach of ediquitte triple dog DARE..
Fairly easy for Wednesday.
TEES.. because clubs wouldn't fit.
Had to wait for OTR a or O
Changed food to PREY.
Latin I corrected PEd to PES.
JzB: nice gold tint to EL ORO. No lo sientas. Te agradecemos.

Yellowrocks said...

Easy again today. The weekend will likely be a bear. Got most with just one perp.
The A gave me alienee. My closing date to transfer my property to my alienee is Dec. 1. There is only a 50/50 chance of that happening on time. In my own experience and that of friends and acquaintances, the fly in the ointment is always the mortgage, even when the ducks are all in a row in a timely fashion. The banks seem not to have a care for the borrower. When I bought this condo I returned every request for documentation within 24 hours. The banks still blamed me for the delay and then had the nerve to call me several times for a reference. No way!
Being a news junkie I knew IMRE and the movement for the independence of Hungary in the 50's. As a youngster I used to listen to the WW II news and the Truman/Dewey (1948) election with my parents. In 1950 when I was 12, the Korean War started. I followed it avidly because I had a sense of participating in history.
I didn't now COZY, but king and the C gave me COLE.
I never heard of ORA, all easy perps.
The Devil Wears Prada is one of my favorite movies. Meryl Streep was great as the evil one.
I am basically cooling my jets waiting for the buyer's mortgage to come through. Almost everything is boxed up.
BTW, last night I cooked a cheeseburger with gorgonzola. Yummy. I zapped the cheese for several seconds in the microwave to make it almost spreadable.

TTP said...



Thank you, Kurt and JzB.

Mission accomplished ! Or, as the say in France, FAIT ACCOMPLI. That was the motto on the unit crest of the 79th Engineering Battalion. Served on the same Kaserne with them in Germany.

Of those four METALs, I'd opt for SILVER. I couldn't possibly list all of my favorite HEAVY METAL bands.

Tried to make the puzzle a little bit tougher by typing in AD Sense instead of SALES, but that didn't last TOO long.

LASSIE and HORSE (Trigger) crossed in the NW. Wikipedia tells me that Trigger died in 1965. LASSIE was among the casualties of broadcast TV's "Rural Purge" of the '70s. Some other "rural" programs that were cancelled were Mayberry, RFD, Gunsmoke, Petticoat Junction, Green Acres, Bonanza, The Beverly Hillbillies, Hee Haw...

D-O, we've had ALIENEE twice this year. Feb 16th and Feb 29th. The latter with the same clue. Just a few other times before that.

Irish Miss said...

Good Morning:

This was a just-right Wednesday with no unknowns and no w/os. I liked seeing Lassie, Fala, and Arfs! I thought the fill was unusually heavy with plurals. This was one of those themes that doesn’t really need a reveal, but it was certainly spot on.

Thanks, Kurt, for a mid-week treat and thanks, JazB, for the expo and soothing sounds of silken-voiced Nat.

FLN

Misty, I had a very positive wellness visit. Vision, hearing, memory, cognitive, EKG, etc., all normal. My doctor spent a lot of time with me going over all the reasons for the various tests and how important they are in determining the patient’s well being and mental and physical capabilities, especially for those of us who live alone. He mentioned a pamphlet on preventing falls and I told him that I could write a book about preventing falls! Chapter 1 would focus on the perils of wrestling with watermelons! 🍉

After my doctor’s appointment, I dropped my car off for mandatory inspection and winterization. I also stopped at the Hallmark store and picked up my 2021 Calendar. Not surprisingly, it features Puppies in costumes relating to each month.

Have a great day.

Malodorous Manatee said...

Solid Wednesday puzzle and enjoyable recap. Thanks to both authors.

The metal theme was helpful once recognized. I knew IMRE from several previous CWs. ERIEPA looks odd upon re-scanning the puzzle but it's really not bad at all.

24 hours of one of the greatest stories ever told seems about right. Maybe Bob Clark will send me my royalty check this year. Neither he not Mel ever have done so.

Boo LuQuette AKA Boudreaux in Eunice, La. said...

Hello everyone, it's been a lil while since I have commented ..... Today was more easier than yesterday for some reason ....Franc was a gimme since I also collect foreign coins, and alienee fell early on since I had Sadat and Tin foil hat and a couple others in the NW .....

Good to see ya'll again and as always Plus Tard from Cajun Country ......

Ray - O - Sunshine said...

Holy Roman Empire! Batman I managed to FIR and parse the circle-less theme no fuss, no muss. (What's muss?)

TINFOIL HAT to stop mindreaders? Nonsense! (I use a HEAVY METAL hat to successfully thwart them.) As Jazz says "Tin foil " usually means aluminum or ( jump in again Canada eh) aluminium foil. (the Tin Man would not have needed an oilcan. Tin doesnt rust). How would you even inflate a lead balloon? Lungs of Steel? There shoulda been at least one Heavy Metal answer like Led Zeppelin.

ROLEO...seriously? Is it RO' - lee - oh or ro - LAY' - o (for the Spanish speaking lumberjacks)

Speaking of which; Spansh noun or adjective answers always seem to be feminine so waited on SOT to yeild OTRO this time at least

Hands up, how many thought it was one word, ERIEPA at first? Just me? Ok.....(Did someone recently not want to bother going to Erie Pa?)

Wray and Dunaway _____ PHASE
What the Lone(ly) Ranger did before he met Tonto...SILVER SPOON
Musical comedy about an ecentric artist....."Hello _____ !" ...DALI
Affectionate eel ...AMORE
To full-rig a ship you need to ______ ADSALES
Ejected candy mints....PES

Thanks to yesterday's Winter's Coming theme we had a mini blizzard in the Mohawk Valley yesterday. Looks like mid January today

Madame Defarge said...

Good Morning.

Big day for me! I found the theme early, or at least after IRON CURTAIN and LEAD BALLOON. I seldom find the theme. I have also been working the puzzle in corners since my son chastized me for working acrosses then downs. Besides my Italian homework, reading and now The Crown, I have all the time in the world to try a new apporach.

Thanks, Kurt, that was fun. JazzB, I thank you as always, for a very fine write up and a little music. IMHO, I think Dean Martin was an underrated singer. His voice was magnifico. I think maybe the comedic stuff diluted respect for his true gift.

I did not know NAGY, although I remember the news of the revolt. The only Nagy, I'm familiar with is Matt--the Bears latest attempt at a coach. A letter to the editor in The Trib this morning suggested that Soldier Field is the safest place in Chicago because nobody catches anything there. Too true! Monday night's game was painful.

It's sunny again. And November when we seldom see the sun. Thankful for the little things. Be well. Stay safe.

Tinbeni said...

Jazz: Nice write-up & links.

Fave today, of course, was my CSO at TIN FOIL HAT.

All-in-all, an easy Wednesday level solve.

Irish Miss, thank you for reminding me to get a 2021 calendar.
(I'm thinking 2021 will be better than 2020 has been, LOL)

Also picking up "new" Christmas Cards ... yeah, I still mail out about 6 each year.
Gotta stop by the Post Office and get "Santa" stamps.

A "Toast-to-ALL" at Sunset ... it is a beautiful, sunny 66 degrees here.

Cheers!

Shankers said...

Easy theme to suss, smooth sailing the whole way. Nothing tricky. Unforgettable by Nat and Natalie Cole is one of my favorite songs. I could listen to it over and over. What a romantic I am!

CanadianEh! said...

Wonderful Wednesday. Thanks for the fun, Kurt and JazzB.
This CW filled quickly (Madame D, I worked down & across as they perped today!) and I arrived here to confirm that I FIRed. With an "almost Natick" at the crosses of ROLEO, MEAN and IMRE, I wasn't sure if I had WAGged correctly. Yes!

I got the theme early in the solve. EL ORO was an Easter egg HEAVY METAL (Gold in Spanish). I noted ORA and EL ORO, plus OTRO (masc. today for Ray'o). We had DIVOTS and TEES for our golfers.
ALIENEES sounds like people from Sci-Fi movies.

Some Canadian disadvantage today with IND (I don't know my state capitals), FEMA (dredged it up from my memory bank), FALA (I learned this years ago doing CWs and haven't seen it for a while). ERIE PA was a novel clue for an old CW friend.

I changed Hip to HEP, started to enter Berne and changed to FRANC, hand up for Ped to PES.

ROLEO was all perps. I had Rollo which held up MEAN (see 1st paragraph). Nearly every Canadian has known from childhood the iconic animated short in the National Film Board's collection with the original loggers. (I have linked previously I believe)
\LogDriversWaltz

A Christmas Story is another iconic movie. Great Canadian connection and in St. Catharines, Niagara too! (I may have linked this before too)
AChristmasStoryCanadianRoots

Yes, Ray'o, TIN TOIL is our Canadian name for aluminum foil. Thanks for the smiles today!
Good to hear from you today, Boo.
IM- glad your wellness check went "well". I LOLed over your book chapter 1.
YR- hope your closing goes without delay. Yes, Streep was great in The Devil Wears PRADA.

Wishing you all a great day.

Husker Gary said...

Musings
-Most people incorrectly say TIN FOIL these days. Is it because aluminum has four syllables?
-This man coined the phrase “IRON CURTAIN” 30 years before Churchill
-Last Saturday we learned about the liquor made in Oaxaca: “Mescal es la OTRA grafía de Mezcal” (Mescal is the other spelling of mezcal)
-This HGTV show features a mother and daughter who remodel old homes in Indianapolis. Their company is “Two Chicks And A Hammer”
-_ _ _ E _ _ TOLEDO has six letters but is west of Cleveland it turns out
-I am tipping my hat to you from Eastern Nebraska if you knew IMRE
-Our Arby’s has a “We Are OPEN” sign on their marquee but when you pull in, you see it is for drive-thru only
-ESCAPE movies I could watch over and over – Shawshank Redemption, ESCAPE From Alcatraz and The Great ESCAPE
-The current Moon PHASE is waxing crescent and is spectacular with these planets the next few evenings

Lucina said...

Hola!

Gracias, JazzB y Kurt Krauss. Que gracioso y facil el rompecabezas de hoy. I might as well join the intermittent Spanish remarks today.

Yes, Ray-O, OTRO is masculine today because of SOT and no other reason.

COLE Porter could be clued as being from IND which I happen to know because of my friend, Mark, who hails from Peru, Ind. and informed me that COLE'S house is still there. however, I love Nat King COLE and find his music not only enjoyable but soothing.

I have seen some of the ROLEO on 60 Minutes.

HEAVY METAL bands will never be heard in my home, only classic rock and long hair. KBAQ is my station for music.

Does anyone know where PK is and why she is AWOL?

Have a great day, everyone!

Big Easy said...

Nice easy puzzle to start after a week out of town. After TIN FOIL HAT (usually an upside down funnel) and IRON CURTAIN the METAL theme was obvious. But only LEAD would be considered a HEAVY METAL. FE-55.87, AG-107, SN-117- atomic weights for PB-207 for iron, silver, tin & lead. El ORO- now that's a Heavy metal, along with platinum and mercury.

IND as clued had me stumped for a few minutes because I was thinking of Saint and Street, not state when I saw St.

Rita as a singer is usually ORA. YR- I'vee never heard of her either except in Xwords.
OYVEY- I halfway knew it but waited for the perps. Same way for IMRE.
PES- didn't know, thought PED or POD. Thank you Nat for the COLES because Cozy was an unknown.

DIVOTS- replacing them usually doesn't help because the roots are already cut. Every place I've ever played has sand to fill and smooth the divots.

RCS- does anybody ever drink Crown Royal in Royal Crowns as a mixed drinks? DW puts it in Diet Coke.

Edward Duarte said...

Too or And. Too won, finished it easy

NaomiZ said...

This was fun! Thanks, Kurt, Rich, and JzB! I started on the wrong foot with 1 Across SADAT and 1 Down "scenery," but the latter was quickly corrected and I FIR.

Thanks to Tinbeni and Irish Miss, I've made a note to replace my pocket calendar. I usually have a new one earlier than this, but there are so few appointments these days.

Ray - O - Sunshine certainly brightens my morning. "Hands up, how many thought it was one word, ERIEPA at first?" I did!

Also, Mr. Sunshine, this is too funny: "What the Lone(ly) Ranger did before he met Tonto...SILVER SPOON."

The grey L.A. morning is giving way to blue skies and fluffy clouds. Have a great one.

Anonymous T said...

Hi All!

Thanks for the puzzle Kurt - I've had Sammy Hagar [4:12 - it may be too early for this :-)] blaring in my head all morning.

Don't know what you were talking about apologizing - perfectly serviceable (and entertaining) expo JzB. Thanks.

Solve started in the NE and worked clockwise. L in ALIENEE was last letter to fall.

WOs: ROdEO, AdSense (Hi TTP. for those going???: AdSense is Google's ad service.), Ped -> PES (Hi OMaxiN!)
ESPs: EL ORO, ALIENEE, IMRE
Fav: OY VEY - I can hear Mel Brooks now.

FLN - Shankers: Thank you for pointing out Ray-O's Squishimals comment; I took Ray-O literally when I read it and missed the LOL.

Hey, Boo LuQuette! Welcome back.

IM - Glad to hear a clean bill of health.

Back at it. Play later.

Cheers, -T

Malodorous Manatee said...

Naomi, L.A. came up in one of your posts last week, also, but my comments were likely not seen by you. So, just in case you check in back here today - Hamilton High '68. Now in the Valley.

CrossEyedDave said...

Well,
I had a horrible time with this puzzle!
(Thumper be damned!)

I mean, this has got to be the worst Natick in history!
It may even replace "Natick" in the Xword Lexicon!

Why the Hell, on a Wednesday, would you include the impossible
42. Port ENE of Cleveland, OH
Crossing
46. Latin foot

The Answer: Eriepa/Pes?

Ok, I may not know Latin,
but who the heck ever heard of a town called Eriepa?
(must be 12 miles on the Boston Marathon...)

I mean, what the frack is Rich thinking allowing this C@#*....
on a Wednesday...

What?

It's not Eriepa?

Erie, Pa?

Hmm, Never mind...

(Got a dang &#@* Latin foot in my mouth...)

Anywho,
in order to make the Blog a more informative, & fun place to visit,
Here is how to make a tin foil hat...

The important part is to get the antenna right...

Hey, wait a sec!
aren't antenna receivers?
These tin foil hats aren't blocking crap,
they are receiving crap!

Holy Crap!, Another conspiracy Theory uncovered!

Misty said...

Neat Wednesday puzzle, many thanks, Kurt. And always enjoy your commentary, JazzB.

Nice to be reminded of DALI's limp watches (nice way to describe them). But my stupid, stupid crisis came with the Swiss capital. It had to be BERN! I spent a year in Switzerland once, in BERN, and knew it was the capital. I figured maybe for some reason it was spelled with an E here as BERNE, but that made no sense of REBS or the other surrounding items. When I finally looked up the puzzle answer it turned out to be money, not city, FRANC! Aaarggghhh. You'd think I'd consider different possibilities for puzzle answers after all these years.

But still lots of fun items like ERIE,PA, and PRADA, and the COLES. And I enjoyed seeing all those HEAVY METALs fall into place. So, thanks again, Kurt.

So glad to hear you had such a good medical visit, Irish Miss. Yay!

Have a good Wednesday, everybody.

SwampCat said...

Easy and clever. I even got the theme at LEAD BALLOON. Thanks, Kurt. And thanks for ISHMAEL the NARRATOR. I love Moby Dick. I did wonder why we didn’t get a bit of Led Zeppelin. Maybe Jimmy Page?

Jazz B, the tour was fun too. Thanks for the COLES, dad and daughter. One of my favorites, also.

Boo, welcome back, Cher. I’ve missed you!



waseeley said...

I've never seen Mars so angry!

TTP said...





Madame Defarge, I'd recommend that you get two copies of a puzzle, solve it in one, and then fill in the answers on every third row and column on the other, and then leave it where your son will see it. Funny quip about the sufferring Bears.

Lucina, I'm still a little confused about your statement, "HEAVY METAL bands will never be heard in my home, only classic rock and long hair." Most heavy metal band members had long hair and their hits are now considered classic rock.

Not confused by Swamp Cat. She Loves Moby Dick and wanted Led Zeppelin. How about both, albeit with mostly John Bonham and just a little bit of Jimmy Page to intro the song: Led Zeppelin - Moby Dick - 1970 - Live From Royal Albert Hall Enjoy !

ATLGranny said...

FIR but struggled before I saw it was ERIE PA, holding up RIOTED. PEd was stuck in my mind, holding up COLES, too. My other WO was aRAL/URAL only having the mountains in mind. Perps fixed that and maybe next time I will know. I waited before filling in MEAN for cruel, not knowing IMRE or ROLEO. The themers were quickly found and confirmed by the reveal. Posting later in the day I see who else had similar puzzlements. (Hi, C Eh, Ray O, CED and OM)

Tha sun is shining and I'm feeling PERT. Going to shift my GEARS to get ready for tomorrow's challenge. Thanks for today's, Kurt, and thanks, JazzB, for an excellent explanation of the WHYS. Enjoy the rest of your day, everyone!

SwampCat said...

Thanks TTP!!!! Made my day!!

Spitzboov said...

Hello everyone.

Very easy solve today. Proceeded from the NW to the SE in a frontal fashion. When they're harder I tend to flitz about; looking for soft spots to develop.
Like Inane H, I waited with Begin or SADAT. TOO made the decision.
Puzzle had a fresh feel to it.
Liked the theme. There are heavier metals but probably are not part of any common well-known phrase.

AnonymousPVX said...


My hand is up, PED to PES.

Husker G...You missed another really good ESCAPE film....ESCAPE FROM NEW YORK...Snake Plissken is a classic anti-hero. Ernest Borgnine and Adrienne Barbeaux are also featured.

Chairman Moe said...

Puzzling thoughts:

First, a very interesting puzzle from KK, and an informative recap from our jazz trombonist

A few write-overs for me today; I couldn’t let go of OKL @ 23-across which meant the NW corner was last to fall. My other glitch was as others said with 42-across. I was actually thinking LORAIN but realized quickly that it is WNW of CLE, not ENE. OTRA/OTRO, and I had to LU IMRE. I was alive in the ‘50’s but not aware of the Hungarian PM

Big Easy @ 10:48 —> re DIVOTS. Typically in the southern US where Bermuda grass grows (shallower roots and different soil), DIVOTS are not replaced but sanded in, as you correctly noted. Up north where bluegrass and bent grass prevail, most DIVOTS can re-grow so long as they’re replaced immediately and then covered by sand. But the overall affect to golfers is to make sure that subsequent players who might hit their shot in the exact spot won’t have to hit out of a hole ...

TTP @ 12:36 —> thanks for the Led Zeppelin link.

Ol' Man Keith said...

Who was YOUR cowboy hero?
It's a generational thing, isn't it?
My guy was Roy Rogers--the movie version, NOT his TV iteration (with Dale).
So, naturally, Trigger was my HORSE. That beautiful palomino...

Misty ~ I had the same idea for the 8D fill, even though I have never been to BERN. Maybe it is good that I haven't, as I didn't wrestle with it quite as long aa you did.
(Another proof of the advantages of ignorance?)
~ OMK
____________
DR:
One diagonal on each side, ergo 2.
The far side diagonal has too many vowels to yield a decent anagram.
On the near side, we have an anagram of the weakest form of backtalk anyone has ever heard. I mean the very...
"FRAILEST SASS"!

Jayce said...

I liked this puzzle. Hand up for PED --> PES and for thinking of Saint or Street but not State. I misspelled ROLEO as ROLLO and couldn't remember Mr. Nagy's first name, so MEAN was a long time in coming. SWEAR was clued cleverly (so who gets the credit?)

I noticed "Dr." in the clue to DRE but after some HEAVY consideration I realized it is okay.

Wishing you all a good day.

Big Easy said...

Chairman- I haven't hit a ball in over a year but the groups I played with went by:

If you ball ends up in and UN-sanded divot-move it and fill in both divots after your stroke.
If it lands in a FOOTPRINT is a sand trap because some previous player was too lazy to rake the bunker after his stroke, pick up your ball, rake the spot where your ball was, put your ball back down, and hit it. It's not the US Open and we don't play for money.

PVX- my biggest memory of the Escape From NY movie was the Cadillac with the chandelier on the hood. But the movie just might be a precursor of the future NYC. I read a comment this morning saying: "in the future, other than the museums funded by the robber barons there's really no reason to visit NYC". Who knows when Broadway will reopen, hotels and restaurants are grossly overpriced, the people who can work remotely have no incentive to return to the office, and all the really rich people are living in their 2nd or 3rd homes.

If those 2nd & 3rd homes are in a state with ZERO income tax they will change their legal residence;8.82% state income tax and 3.876% NYC income tax might keep them out permanently. For a millionaire that's over $120,000 for each million and that's in addition to theie federal taxes.

Crowded subways, streets, 4 people to an elevator? Who wants or needs that? Nobody if there is an alternative.

SwampCat said...

OMK, my cowboy was Gene Autry. I thought Roy was too “pretty” to be a cowboy. Hehehehe

LEO III said...

Thanks Kurt and JazzB!

FIW today. Guess I missed ALIENEE back in February. Gonna have to go back and look at those two puzzles. It also explains why I couldn’t get ASIGNEE to work with TEES. (Never mind that I had it spelled incorrectly.) ESORO looked OK to me.

SADAT worked out when I got the “T” in too. ERIEPA was a gimme. FALA, EDYS, and ROLEO all took perps.

I got the theme and the reveal fairly quickly.

Yes, the IRONCURTAIN was a “political symbol” but it was also a 4,300 mile-long physical barrier. People died within it and trying to escape it.

OMK: Mine were Hopalong Cassidy and The Lone Ranger. For a good time, some of the old Westerns are on MeTV and other cable channels. It’s a real hoot watching them.

Chairman Moe said...

Big Easy @ 3:46 --> I, too have not played golf in over a year. And in my "prime" I was as low as a 4 handicap golfer; even played on my HS team way back when ... do I miss it? Yes. And hoping that when next spring rolls around I will take it up again.

As for your "rules", I am fine with that. I've played enough competitive golf to realize now that it is for fun, not money. I am a bit of a purist in that I "play the ball down", and I take the "rub of the green" (play it as it lies) as part of the game. But even Jack Nicklaus has been quoted as saying that perhaps the most unfair "rule" in golf is having to play out of an un-replaced DIVOT.

And back in the day, when rakes were not a common item to have near a sand trap, golfers would take their club, after hitting their shot out of a bunker, and "smooth" the "divot" and any footprints for subsequent players. As you well know, the word "golf" has its origin from SWEARing, as all of the other four-letter words were already taken! ;^)

Lucina said...

Oh, yes. I loved Hopalong Cassidy especially after I saw him in a parade on the opening day of the Rodeo. He was gorgeous! We used to have the day off from school to attend said parade.

TTP:
I see that I didn't explain myself well in that convoluted statement. I meant that I do not like HEAVY METAL bands. I listen to classic rock, from the 60s and classical music mostly such as Mozart, Beethoven, Tchaikovsky, Brahms, etc.

I also love Barbra Streisand's voice.

Malodorous Manatee said...

"My" TV cowboys were Paladin with the Lone Ranger a reasonably close second. When I got a bit older (and, arguably, wiser) "my" cowgirl was Belle Starr.

Anonymous said...

Boy O Boy, I'm so glad I don't play golf.

I would gladly pay for overpriced therapy sessions from a demented psychiatrist instead.

Malodorous Manatee said...

Seen on a T-shirt:

I hate golf
I hate golf
I hate golf
I hate golf
I hate golf
Nice shot
I love golf

Wilbur Charles said...

As a takeoff from the old Scots saying*

If there's nae gambling, there's nae golf

Or...If there's nae 'scuses there's nae golf

Or...If there's nae swearing there's nae golf

WC

* Originally Wind

LEO III said...

I've "retired" from golf twice. The second time was about 20 years ago, when I was having a horrible day at the end of a string of horrible days. Walked off the course at the seventh tee. (It was closest to the beer and the parking lot.) Haven't picked up a club in anger since, and I really don't miss it.

I did live next to the 16th green at the Sharpstown Golf Course. It is a Par 3, with a huge spotlight pointed out toward the green. We'd get out there at night and do a little pitching and putting. Adolph (Coors) was my caddie!