google.com, pub-2774194725043577, DIRECT, f08c47fec0942fa0 L.A.Times Crossword Corner: Friday, December 4, 2020, Yoni Glatt

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Dec 4, 2020

Friday, December 4, 2020, Yoni Glatt

 Title: Hey let's go to the double feature at the bijou!

Yoni is back for his first solo effort here at the LAT, after two collaborative Sundays working with Yaakov Bendavid over this past summer. Yoni has two solos published at the Universal site as well as 98 puzzles in the Jewish Press dating back at least to 2013. Today is a variation on a somewhat common theme where the front and back of the theme fill each is part of the hidden joy. Simply put, the clue ends up revealing two movie titles. The sparkle comes from both of those movies being in the horror genre, as is revealed in 36A. 2001 Wayans Brothers sequel, and a hint to the four other longest puzzle answers: SCARY MOVIE TWO which was pretty funny with an interesting cast. The icing on this creation is having two of the theme fill be grid-spanners. Well done.

We also have some long fill outside the theme ABSOLVE, ELAPSED, OPTED IN, HERBIVORE and SHREDDERS with the word highlighted in red making its major puzzle debut.

On to the theme:

17A. Checked out '70s AMC cars? (2004, 1984): SAW GREMLINS. The Gremlin automobile was introduced on  April 1, 1970, which led many to believe it was intended as a joke. The year of the release of the films is added in parentheses to guide the solver once the theme is recognized. SAW and all of its sequels are truly horrifying. GREMLINS was much sillier, but does show us a baby Yoda? 

23A. Genetic indicators? (2018, 2002): HEREDITARY SIGNS. I never SAW HEREDITARY, and am content with seeing only the trailer even though I enjoy the work of TONI COLLETTE. On the other hand, I have watched and enjoyed SIGNS.

51A. Getting no goodies from trick-or-treating? (1978, 1990): HALLOWEEN MISERY. This Jamie Lee Curtis vehicle TRAILER spawned so many sequels. Kathy Bates was so perfect in this MOVIE based on a Steven King novel.

58A. Possible sequel to "Despicable Me"? (2010, 2019): INSIDIOUS US. This cluing is an outlier as it uses a film to lead to the fill. It also used two films I never have heard about. The INSIDIOUS franchise was a second appearance of director JAMES WAN on our list of movies. Jordan Peele brought us US a movie with hidden meanings and dramatic twists, or so I am told.

If you followed every link you may be too tired to go on, but on we must go.

Across:

1. Brosnan and Craig, most recently: BONDS. An added hint to the movie basis of the puzzle. 

6. "You __ at hello": HAD ME.


11. Bench subject: LAW. The bench and the bar.

14. Mosque-goer's deity: ALLAH. If you want to LEARN more.

15. Certain lesson: MORAL. This usage was coined by Cicero ("De Fato," II.i) to translate Greek ethikos (see ethics) from Latin mos (genitive moris) "one's disposition."

16. "Do Ya" rock gp.: ELO. Electric Light Orchestra.

19. Uruguay uncle: TIO. A Spanish speaking country.

20. Coagulate: GEL. Also, bonus fill reference to all the blood that is coagulating in the theme movies.

21. Went by: ELAPSED. Time, rather than a name. 

28. "We need to chat": A WORD. Generally not a good thing to hear.

29. Hand-off recipients: Abbr.: RBS. American                         Football running backs.

30. Interested to a fault: NOSY.

31. Gamble: BET.

32. Flight sked info: ETAS.

34. "Dexter" airer, briefly: SHO. More bonus fill, with this very popular serial killer's story. 

41. Ltr. addenda: PSS.

42. King played by Glenda Jackson: LEAR. This remarkable PRODUCTION included PEDRO PASCAL who plays the MANDALORIAN

43. Actress Gardner: AVA. She never played hockey in Colorado but she was a beautiful woman.

45. Sneaky stratagem: TRAP.

48. TV watcher's device: DVR.

49. Long-time Delaware senator: BIDEN. I have heard of the man.

55. Chose to take part: OPTED IN.

56. Colorado NHL club, to fans: AVS. Avalanche. 

57. 66, e.g.: Abbr.: RTE.

64. 1994 Olympics host: Abbr.: NOR. Olympiske vinterleker 1994 in Lillehammer, Norway.

65. Movie segment: SCENE. More movies, but too many great ones to pick a single one.

66. Curbs, with "in": REINS.

67. Graduating gp.: SRS.

68. Concise: TERSE.

69. Vedder of Pearl Jam: EDDIE. The 2020 Pandemic Tour.

Down:

1. English lit degrees: BAS.

2. Pay add-on?: OLA.

3. Dodgers' div.: NLW.

4. Prop for a Macbeth soliloquy: DAGGER. We get a touch of our Friday Will Shakespeare.

5. Machines that may cover tracks?: SHREDDERS. Really fun clue.

6. "Interesting": HMM

7. Web pioneer: AOL.

8. Moisture-absorbing substances: DRIERS. Hmm. Are they driers?

9. Virile: MANLY. Thank you, Yoni for the CSO.

10. __ ice palace: Disney movie setting: ELSAS. Was FROZEN a horror movie? 

11. Releases: LETS GO.

12. Sci-fi film staples: ALIENS. Another bonus horror film reference.

13. Pine-scented, say: WOODSY.

18. Manning with two Super Bowl victories: ELI. They both have two now.

22. Wine option: PINOT. Their are varieties in that grape family; Pinot blanc (Pinot bianco, Weißburgunder); Pinot gris (Pinot grigio, Grauburgunder); Pinot Meunier (Schwarzriesling); Pinot noir (Spätburgunder, Pinot nero); and, Pinot Noir Précoce (Frühburgunder). Anything else, ask Moe.

23. Montreal NHLer, to fans: HAB. The nickname "Habs" is short for Les Habitants, which refers to the French settlers and inhabitants of the land along the St. Lawrence Gulf and River in Quebec beginning in the 17th century. The "H" in the jersey logo stands for hockey, not Habitants, a popular misconception.

24. Wool sources: EWES. But not mine.

25. Campus mil. group: ROTC. Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) is a college program offered at more than 1,700 colleges and universities across the United States that prepares young adults to become officers in the U.S. Military.

26. Airport transport: TRAM.

27. Clear: ABSOLVE.

33. TV's Burrell and Pennington: TYS. Two that bind.

34. "Titanium" vocalist: SIA. I did not know the song or the singer.

35. Stegosaurus, for one: HERBIVORE. There were lots of plants and the other dinosaurs looked hard to kill.

37. Jobs creation, in part: APPLE. Leaving out the apostrophe is a bit of a cheat, but still a fun clue.

38. Offscreen friend in "Ernest" films: VERN. The cool part is that we the audience were Vern.

39. Get one's feet wet: WADE.

40. Finished: OVER. I'm over this fill.

44. Whichever: ANY.

45. Hiking hazards: THORNS

46. "Jurassic Park" enemy: RAPTOR. Another scary movie reference. Are there many more frightening scenes in film?

47. Edits, say: ALTERS.

48. More concentrated: DENSER. Or Ernest?

50. Gave out: ISSUED.

52. Keats, for one: ODIST.

53. Show a bit of pain: WINCE. This means"to recoil suddenly," as from pain, from Anglo-French wenchir, Old North French wenchier which is related to winken.

54. Month in printemps: MAI. French for spring and May.

59. They can get you a job: INS.

60. Crummy grade: DEE. Very.

61. Funny Caesar: SID.

62. Aussie college: UNI. A nice CSO to Kazie

63. Chicago-to-Jacksonville dir.: SSE. This is the time of year for the trip, less than 16 hours driving if you take  I-65 S, I-24 E, I-75 S, and I-10 E to your destination in Jacksonville. Or if you take I-10 to I-95 South to exit 36 and go east about 2 miles until you see a Wendy's and a Dandee Donut shop (freshly baked on the premises) where you turn right on 19th avenue to go past three stop signs and you will see our condo complex on the left. Come on by. 

I hope you have the energy left to congratulate Yoni on his puzzle and share your thoughts. I am off to take a nap. Lemonade out.



68 comments:

D4E4H said...

Good morning Cornerites.

Thank you Yoni Glatt for your difficult Friday CW. 

I FIR in 48:05 min.

Thank you Lemonade for your excellent review.

Ðave 

desper-otto said...

Good morning!

Not a chance. DNF. If there was a spot to go wrong, d-o found it. Thought Manning was ELY, and "clear" was RESOLVE. The only Burrell I'm familiar with is ANNE (but I spelled it ANN). Pondered over what they would call a literature degree in England. D'oh! And those team nicknames: HAB (???) and AVS (I'm more of an AV-not). I did admire HERBIVORES and SHREDDERS -- very nice. Thanx, Yoni for sending this one whooshing over my head. And thanx, Lemonade for explaining my many mistakes.

"Do Ya?" -- This is the only version I remember -- totally different song from ELO's version.

Off to sulk in my abasement.

Anonymous said...

This took 7:03 to complete, which is fast for me for a Friday.
I'm not a horror movie fan, though I've seen some of the films used in today's puzzle.
I thought the 3-letter fill in the top and the bottom detracted from the puzzle today, but "shredders" was a good clue/answer.

Wilbur Charles said...

Aaarrggghhh! FIW. I told Mr S that's TeS didn't look right. He said "They're probably initials like TA Edison". I let the alpha run stop too early. And of course it's SCAR"Y" MOVIE which I've actually heard of.

It seems like the only FIR it get is Saturday. Btw, tomorrow's not too bad.

If D-O found it difficult I'll concur. Partly it's senior, failing recall fe. RAPTOR(those pesky reptilian birds) and not being a scary movie fan. I remember way back THEM and walking home with crickets making a din. At 8, a little SCARY.

CSO to OMK with Macbeth and LEAR.

AVS was another one I should have known but needed perps(the V in VORE). And to complete that I needed the H and B. All the long fills came slowly.

WC

Wilbur Charles said...

Part of my problem with TYs is my phobia of pop-cul refs. Luke some have with Math

Mark said...

My hometown of Kenosha, WI was known (at least before 2020) for the Nash then Rambler then AMC then Chrysler auto plants. So I "saw gremlins" right away. The Hornet and Pacer were some pretty scary sights, too.

Lemonade714 said...

Mark, that is very funny. I find it interesting that the world rejected small cars like the NASH METROPOLITAN and now they buy the MINI COOPER

Anonymous said...

In reference to 35 across. Did you hear about the girl who wouldn't eat meat? You probably heard of herbivore.

D4E4H said...

On December 1, 2020 at 10:53 AM CanadianEh! said...

"Dave4- thanks for the Hauser" 
I found this for you.  You will want to watch it on full screen.

"Listen" Hauser and Benedetta Caretta

Ðave

TTP said...




Good morning. Thank you, Yoni, and thank you, Lemonade.

Jumped around, filling in the low hanging fruit. Quickly got the reveal SCARY MOVIE TWO, and that made getting the theme entries much easier. Although I never heard of either HEREDITARY or SIGNS as movies, perps made the answers apparent. Seemed like I was moving through the puzzle pretty fast, but was surprised when looking at the clock and it was 19:40. Seemed quicker, but was a bit crunchy here and there.

My month in printemps was MAe. Silly spelling error that should have been caught at INSIDIOUS. The sole error. I took Spanish. One sister took French. Another took Latin. Don't know what language the third took, if any.

The one answer that was a complete unknown was SIA.

My answer for 27D Clear: obvious. Oh, another type of clear. ABSOLVE took a moment to become transparent. I mean obvious.

I didn't see Despicable Me or DM2, but did see Minions with my great grand nephew. I think it was the biggest hit of the series.

Pearl Jam guitarist and lead singer EDDIE Vedder was a gimme. He perhaps had the perfect angry vocals that epitomized Grunge.

Lemonade, at 48D. More concentrated: DENSER. Or Ernest? What do you mean, Vern ? :>)

Madame Defarge said...

Good Morning.

Thanks, Yoni, for some good old-fashioned gnashing. I played the tortoise today--slow and steady. I, too, SAW the GREMLINS, but not as the two film titles. That came with HALLOWEEN and MISERY. I've never been a fan of SCARY MOVIEs, so I hadn't seen most of them. The references are out there frequently, and I was saved by listening to others.

I really chuckled at SHREDDERS. Nice clueing.

Thank you, Lemondade, for another very fine explication. I did watch the Kitchen clip. Egads!

Have a sunny day and be well.

jfromvt said...

Nice puzzle. Lot of meat to this one. Not a big horror movie person, heard of most of them, but only saw a few, it any.

stombs said...

I winced at 41A: Ltr. addenda. The correct abbreviation is 'PPS' (post-postscript). 'PSS' (postscript-script) is simply wrong.

OMaxiN said...

Like agent 86 I needed to Get Smart. MAy instead of MAI. "Missed it by that much"
MO

Spitzboov said...

Good morning everyone.

No errors, but I did get a helpful nudge with ABSOLVE. Got everything else, though, after thinking I wouldn't come close. Two squares of help on a Friday I'll take anytime. Agree with Lemon about the long fill outside the theme. I'll take a CSO at ROTC.
Some great cluing enhanced the fun of working this puzzle. Favorite was the clue for SHREDDERS.

desper-otto said...

Unknown@9:03, "Ltr" indicates an abbreviation, and "addenda" indicates a plural. So you get PSs -- postscripts

stombs said...

desper-otto - Right you are; I missed the -da vs -dum. I wince again, but harder.

Husker Gary said...

Musings
-I knew five of the titles (never SAW them), grokked the others and appreciated Yoni’s skill!
-My favorite BOND died on HALLOWEEN this year
-Shouldn’t that have been “Uruguayan uncle?” :-)
-TRAP – “What, you’re a cop?” Plead entrapment.
-A movie SCENE that absolutely took my breath away featured this HERBIVORE
-Dick Clark barely survived the PAYOLA scandal
-My favorite ALIENS were benign in the wonderful Close Encounters Of The Third Kind
-DENSER - My kids made some wonderful towers like this one from that idea
-Me too TTP, I blew right by INSIDEOUS

kazie said...

I have a lot of trouble with sports references especially when abbreviated, since then even knowing the full name wouldn't help through a letter count. Same goes for acronyms of any sort. That said, I got this all out with a lot of WAGS and way too much time taken, despite also being weak on horror movies, which I avoid.

I went to uni at the University of Sydney, aka Sydney uni, majoring in French and German, although nobody referred to "majors" there then. Not sure if that's changed since the '60s. I topped it off with a Dip. Ed. (Diploma in Education) from Sydney Teachers' College. We aussies love to shorten everything. When I began working here, I was hired at the local school district with an equivalency to an MA from here, although I doubt it's a true equivalent, but at the time, how was I to know? Continuing Ed credits through the years made up for it, I'm sure.

Ray - O - Sunshine said...

Not too difficult for a Friday once the movie titles fell ino place creating lots of perp fodder...Have seen more than half so that helped. (Yoni Glatt you're back 😊)

Keats was an ODIST, in other words "odious"?🤔 Job from the OT? Work? Ooh...Steve's APPLE!! For me the DVR is not just a device but a TV commercial speed-thru addiction.

The only three-letter French spring month is MAI, pas avril ou juin. SHREDDERS cover tracks? (Somebody 'splain it to this dummy?🤪)... RBS kind of an obscure sports clue/answer, for me anyway.

Inkover: macho/MANLY .... John Belushi as MANLY man Captain Ned of "The Raging Queen!!" from the Dickensian"The Adventures of Miles Cowpwerthwaite"

"Who's that lady?" "Never met ______ " HERBIVORE (Anon you beat me to it!!😂)
"Heads" you lose, "Tails" he ______ " WINCE
"Is this the parlor, my good man?" " No the ______" DENSER.
Sarah Palin _____ Russia from her house...WOODSY

On to Saturn's Day

Lucina said...

Hola!

Again the Arizona Republic cites a different constructor: Jeff Eddings. I just don't know what is going on with them. I guess I'll have to write to the editor.

I am not a fan of horror movies and had a hard time with this theme. I did, however, see MISERY because of the great cast, James Caan and Kathy Bates.

My daughter would love this puzzle. She loves horror movies and HALLOWEEN is her favorite holiday. Sometimes I wonder where she came from though I know full well. Recessive genes is my guess.

I liked seeing AVA Gardner and BIDEN in the puzzle. Have no idea who EDDIE Vedder is nor anything about Pearl Jam. I'm sure Anon-T will know.

SIA? Again, no idea.

Though I finished this it left me with a strange feeling but not in a good way.

Thank you, Lemonade and whoever is the constructor.

Enjoy the day, everyone!

Lucina said...

I also would like an explanation of SHREDDERS. I think I get it but am not sure.

Kazie, I did think of you at UNI since you had cited it in the long ago past.

TTP said...



Paper trails. Paper tracks. "Write it, regret it. Say it, forget it." Paper shredders are sometimes used to destroy incriminating evidence.

Lucina, I provided a possible explanation after you commented last evening. Eddie Vedder is well known in Rock and Roll circles. I believe you have told us befoe that you don't care for it.

Big Easy said...

I FIR but of all the movies in the fills I'd only heard of GRIMLINS and HALLOWEEN. And the BOND movies that weren't included.

My hockey knowledge? NIL. HAB & AVS were perps.
TYS, VERN, EDDIE, SHO, & SIA were unknowns.
ALL the movies except the two I mentioned were unknowns. I'm glad they weren't clued as a movie. It would have taken 100% perps to fill them.

CanadianEh! said...

Frustrating Friday. Thanks Yoni and Lemonade.
Perhaps I am just crabby today, but I did not enjoy this solve. I did not know those movies as horror movies keep me awake at night!
And I counted 26 three letter fills (IM may correct me as I’m sure she noticed them too).
FIWed with Hum instead of HMM and A?L did not bring AOL to mind for that clue.

This Canadian had no problem with HAB (and AVS). RAPTOR could have been clued as a Toronto NBAer (is it a HERBIVORE.).
Granddaughters love ELSA’S movie and all associated toys and dolls.
SIA is usually incognito.
Are dryers the machines and DRIERS the materials. Meh!

I debated between Cee and DEE. It was really crummy!
I also waited for perps to decide between Macho or MANLY.

Canadian snowbirds must be creative this year. They can fly to Florida (or other southern states) but cannot cross the border by vehicle. Some companies have sprung up to ship their cars just across the border and fly the owners across. Then the snowbirds can drive from the airport south. Woe betide them if they have any medical issues as most insurance policies will not cover them for COVID😮

Dave4- thanks for the Hauser link. Such chemistry and beautiful music.
AnonT- yes, I did mention the Trebek autobiography here. Glad you enjoyed it. Quite understated (like a typical Canadian LOL)
FLN - YR, I pronounce Keynesian with accent on the second syllable. I didn’t know there was any other way😁. Must be the British influence. Kazie??

Wishing you all a great day.

Ray - O - Sunshine said...

Machines that cover paper tracts or trails... but paper tracks? (Now I don't feel so bad.)

Vidwan827 said...

Thank you Lemonade for a glittering review, and mercifully sparing us the details.
The puzzle was very clever, and challenging.
If the constructor, the esteemed Yoni, should chime in, could we ask him if Herbivore meat is Glatt kosher ? Lol, just kidding.

Question:: Why are Thorns so particular, during Hiking sessions. Or, is it just fill.

Driers, Dryers and dessicants.
Google says, Dryers are machines or apparatus that make things less wet.
Drier is a comparative adjective that means more dry.
I read seven articles, mostly technical, on dessicants .... to dry various materials, or keep them dry. No 'driers' were mentioned.

BTW, I had OOH before HMM , for 'interesting'.

Thank you for the EncyBrit ref to Allah. Interesting to note, that the word is entymologically derived from Semitic sources. Where else. No more discussion on this subject.

Have a great weekend all.
The winter is upon us, and hopefully the vaccine is not far behind.

Anonymous said...

I sailed through until the end of 56a: I knew it wouldn't be INSIDIOUSme because "ME" was part of the clue. Didn't know of any Aussie college and didn't think of US, So FIW with INSIDIOUSWE, but for a Friday, I didn't do too bad. BTW, I don't think an apostrophe was needed for 37d: Apple was created "in part" by Jobs, but also in part by Wozniak.

kazie said...

CanadianEh, Like you, I stress the second syllable in Keynesian, although I don't remember ever hearing it any other way.

Lucina, I'm flattered that you remembered any detail from my long absent presence here (with excuses for that oxymoronic phrase).

Lemony, thanks for the shoutout today. I always marvel at the skillful deciphering of the end of week xwords, since I frequently have trouble with them for the reasons outlined earlier today. I'm grateful for your efforts on our behalf.

desper-otto said...

Canadian Eh!, Kazie: The term refers to John Maynard Keynes (pronounced canes), so I've always pronounced it Canes-ian.

waseeley said...

Don't fret WC. Just follow the CWd perps for "Your guide to popular culture" as Ian Shoales used to say. But do fear the dreaded Natick! Gotta go.

waseeley said...

Anonymous, may I be the first to groan you on that.

TTP said...

Vidwan, as for desiccants (2C's BTW, rather than 2 S's), I take the little packages and containers out of medicine and supplement bottles and throw them in my machinist's chest and in tool cases in the basement tool room to suck up the moisture and keep the tools drier.

I really don't know if it's doing any good or not, but it is a habit I got into years ago. I will say that the Stanley brand of hand tools seem to start developing surface rust within a few months of opening the packaging. The same tools from Crescent and most other name brands have no rust.

unclefred said...

Got ‘ER done with a few cheats. Fun CW, terrific write-up. Not sure to thank Yoni Glatt or Jeff Eddings, who is listed as the constructor on my South Florida SunSentinel CW. In fact all week my CWS have had other people listed as constructors. Yesterday was listed as Robert E. lee Morris, for instance. What’s up with that? Anyone know? Thanx for your usual outstanding write-up Lemonade!

waseeley said...

TTP, I studied, French, German, and Italian in HS and college (to listen to opera in the vernacular - Doh!), and looked down on Spanish. I could really kick myself for that today. The only thing my languages are good for these days are solving CXD puzzles.

waseeley said...

Could PSS be the plural of PS?

Irish Miss said...

CanadianEh @ 9:58 ~ I share your crabbiness and lack of enjoyment with this solve. I counted 30 three letter words, half of which are abbreviations or initializations. I now invoke Thumper’s directive.

Thanks, Lemony, for ‘splainin’ it all.

Have a great day everyone!

waseeley said...

Vidwan827, THORNS are usually not a problem if you stick to the trail, but if you go "bush wacking" (off trail) you might be pained by them.

Misty said...

I usually dread Friday puzzles, but I did surprisingly well on this one, even though I too don't know horror movies. Then came to the blog and am now a little confused about our constructor. The LA Times lists Jeff Eddings--but I gather it is Yoni Glatt who gave us this puzzle? Many thanks, Yoni, and you too, Lemonade, for your always helpful commentary. I'm still not sure I understand the dates given next to so many items (17, 23, 51, and 58 across)? But no problem.

Nice to see my BA degree as the first item, followed by two Shakespeare references, Macbeth and Lear, as we go along, Lots of three letter items helped with the northeast and southwest corner. HALLOWEEN MISERY was a fun answer.

Ray, I laughed at your Sarah Palin's view pun.

Have a good weekend coming up, everybody.



Yellowrocks said...

I am not really up on horror movies. After a while I understood what was needed but was having a hard time. I did chores and took a shower. Coming back with renewed vigor, I got it all but 63D. ESE instead of SSE, not paying enough attention to the perp.

The economist's name is pronounced kanes, like in candy canes. I have listened to several YouTube lectures on Keynesian theory. They all say KANE zee 'n.
Link text
I used to call it kƏ NEEZ ee 'n. Check out the pronunciations on Google and YouTube.
Catch you all later.

AnonymousPVX said...


This was a crunchy Friday for sure. Had to keep moving around the grid to get fill wherever.

Always happy to get the solve.

waseeley said...

Thank you Yoni and thank you Lemonade.

I found this puzzle about right for a Friday and thus had to circle round it for a while until I finished it. I have not seen any of the films included, but had heard of most and eventually recognized them via perps from the words I knew, swagged, or ESPed. I thought I had FIR, until I came to the SSW corner. There I violated one of the cardinal rules of Xwds, by including a part of the clue in the answer, filling 58A with INSIDIOUSME (driven by perps to assume MNI was some obscure Institute in North Melbourne and ignoring countless hours of streaming Aussie mysteries, in which hapless UNI coeds meet their fates. I also reckoned that Jacksonville is much further East of Chicago than it really is, filling 63D with ESE. I'll now bear that in mind Lemonade, if we're ever able to take up your offer to stop by if we're in the area. Which is a roundabout way of saying I FIW!

Bill

ATLGranny said...

A Friday FIR, mainly thanks to helpful perps. Didn't know SIA VERN, and HAB but got lucky. Also wasn't sure about all the horror movies, but guessed both theme answer halves were, after HALLOWEEN and MISERY. My grid looks pretty neat since, for a change, I didn't rush to write down the first thing that came to mind. Only LEeR and kOR were WOs. The 1996 Olympics host (ATL) is firmly in my mind, of course. And one day soon I hope King Lear will stick. Thanks Toni for the debut puzzle and Lemonade for clearing up my questions. Well done!

The only place we have had problems with THORNS while hiking was in the area around Phoenix where "jumping cholla" cacti would attach to our legs. Still a vivid memory, more than 50 years later. Enjoy the upcoming weekend, y'all.

Chairman Moe said...

Puzzling thoughts:

Echoing Misty, Lucina and unclefred, Jeff Eddings was today’s constructor, according to the Arizona Republic. Yoni? I hope, if he did indeed do this puzzle, that Rich and Patti paid him and not Jeff! 🤡 I think Gannett is the publisher of all the newspapers in question that had a different constructor listed ...

Lemony - again, glad that this was YOUR Friday puzzle; I had no clue about the theme until I read your recap. Thanks for ‘splaining!

Only two miscues: DEIST/ODIST @ 52-down; ESE/SSE @ 63-down.

Needed a few perps to fill in a couple holes in the center; Margaret gave me ELSAS; and I had to look up SIA, although perps eventually filled it

Moe-ku’s
Are passé now.
Stay tuned for my new puns:
Twenty-two syllable, five-line
Moe-Qains

YR —> does the above fit the parameters?!

Chairman Moe said...

ATLGranny - the jumping cholla are still a nuisance. We carry a pair of surgical tweezers (resembles a roach clip!) on our hikes to extract one of these THORNS in case we encounter them on our trail ...

CrossEyedDave said...

Forgive me, but...

My review of the puzzle:
(it was hard...)

I am afraid I must take a Thumper
on both the puzzle, & the write up,
because I did not understand either...

Also, I only skimmed thru the comments,
having lost all patience with anything...

Something to do with Horror?

I dunno,
I have lost touch with the Blog,
& I am in sorely need of a nap.
Except DW is angry that the house is not clean enough,
& I am trying to untangle Christmas Tree Lights...

(you want to talk about Horror?)

Ray - O - Sunshine said...

In our household, arguing, the louder the better, is a sign of good health. DW & DD are obviously on the mend. DW complaining I'm doing the laundry wrong. She and DD: much ado about putting clothes away.

Plus...

Being in isolation is like reverse HALLOWEEN

The doorbell rings and a masked acquaintance leaves a trick-or-treat bag of edible goodies then hurries off.

I could do this all year 😋. (Not the laundry)

Yellowrocks said...

Moe, I see that there all kinds of versions of cinquains. I am not well versed in this form, and so have not developed strong views about it. It will be fun to explore cinquains. I found this article fascinating. I love new ideas and words. I have thought from seeing it yesterday that, to the non-classic mind, all five liners might qualify.
Link text
FLN, Waseeley @10:35PM "unforgivable misteaks, no matter how rare" LOL
CE Dave, I am sorry you are having a bad day. I hope after a good rest you will be back to your sunny self. Red Skelton said, “All men make mistakes, but married men find out about them sooner."
I never experienced cholla thorns while hiking, just small briar patches and dense nettles. Gloves and long pants help to mitigate it some.

Hungry Mother said...

FIR with the usual Friday ink blot. Luckily, I knew most of the films, so that helped me with the plethora of iINSIDIOUS names. C’mon constructors, use your words.

Yellowrocks said...

Insidious me, insidious us. I had insidiousue. Insidious Sue. I didn't see that I was missing an S. AVS, HAB, TYS, SIA were all perps. I think VEDDER means uncle.
Yesterday I had calamari stew over linguini. Yummy. Today its chicken parm. So nice not to have to cook under these circumstances. A very relaxing week, with all the uncertainty resolved.

LEO III said...

Thanks Yoni and Lemonade!

It took a while (due to the difficulty and my working today), but I FIR. I didn’t realize there were two movies in each long answer, not that it mattered. (I do not do the modern version of horror movies; I want to be entertained, and horror movies DO NOT entertain me!)

Anyway, I surprised myself by being able to figure out all of the neat clues. I got the long fills rather easily. My only unknowns were TYS, ELSAS and SIA. Perps got them for me. Thought the clues for OLA and APPLE were fun. Being an erstwhile hockey fan, I knew both HAB and AVS.

Jayce said...

This puzzle was too hard for me. Needed all three help tools: red letters, alphabet runs, and plain old looking it up on the internet. Even so, I still didn't understand some of the answers. Definitely DNF. Felt no satisfaction. Hello Thumper, my old friend.

Does anybody here own a DVR? If so, what brand and model? Does it require a coax splitter?

Good wishes to you all.

TTP said...



The Tribune Content Agency syndicates (for profit) the LA Times Crossword Puzzle to other newspaper and media companies. Tribune Content Agency is owned by Tribune Publishing.

Papers that were mentioned as having the wrong constructor names:

The Arizona Republic is owned by the Gannet newspaper chain.
The Sun Sentinel is owned by Tribune Publishing.
The LA Times is owned by Nant Capital.
The Houston Chronicle is owned by Hearst Communications.

So no Moe, it wasn't just Gannet newspapers.

How about any that aren't owned either by Tribune Publishing or Gannet or Hearst ? In the US, that would predominately leave McClatchy, and if any of their newspapers have the LA Times Crossword, they too would have received it in syndication from the Tribune Content Agency.

My guess would be that the original file for syndication (sent for the week) had the wrong names. The error was caught and a new corrected file was sent out. Some papers processed the new file and others didn't. That's my guess. Or maybe all print papers for the week have wrong names because the error was never corrected.

Anonymous T said...

Hi All!

Thank Yani for the puzzle. Congrats on the Solo.
I caught the theme early (or so I thought) @17a but it really came to light and helped with 51a. Like others, I don't watch scary movies - I can't un-see.

Thanks for the expo Lem; enjoyed the links.

WOs: WAREN b/f BIDEN (both states are way up and to the right :-)), TOR b/f NOR, wrong LEeR (hi ATLGranny!), iP--E (Jobs made iThings....)
ESPs: SIA (A or O), MAI, HAB,
Fav: Hand-up - SHREADDERS was cute

Another move? Sideways - PINOT
//wonders what C. Moe thought of that movie...

Lucina - same misattribution in the H.Chron (Thanks TTP!). Yes, I listened to a lot of Perl Jam, Sound Garden, Nirvana, et.al. in the '90s. Well, actually, I still do :-)

C, Eh! - Jim Carrey's book, so far, is not Canadian subdued - and, maybe I was just tired, a little psychedelic (psychotic?)

LOL Ray-O. Loud == good. When do you get to come out?

Musical Interlude: ELO's Do Ya from '77 [5m]

CED - DW & I finally finished decorating the outside tonight. I do not climbing extension ladders, I don't. But, she got her three second-story window wreaths.
Good luck!

TTP - The Despicable Me series is funny for adults too. Here's Gru at the Bank of Evil (formerly Lehman Brothers) asking for a loan. //My Army bro does the perfect impression of Gru after he hears Vector stole a pyramid.

Cheers, -T

Lemonade714 said...

-T, Elizabeth Warren needs two "R"s to be happy. Pretty funny Lehman Brothers reference.

Lemonade714 said...

ROS- I love your reverse Halloween analogy. Keep them coming

Ol' Man Keith said...

Lotsa unknowns in today's pzl, but I managed to get 'em all through perps.

Except
for the lower east side, which turned into a Natick corner pour moi..
I just wasn't sure how to spell HERBIVORE. The Pearl Jam perp was not a favor to me. I started with HERBIVOUR, using the suffix of "devour."
Next I dropped the "U" and thought to interpret the clue as searching for an adjective, even an adverb.
HERBIVORY? HERBIVORN?

Anyway, that's my sad tale for a DNF.

Hard to focus on a Xwd with all the craziness going on around us. Each side thinks the other is delusional.
Me, I'm sure they are.
~ OMK

Ray - O - Sunshine said...

Anon T..have 8 more days of quarantine and relative isolation from my recovering dear ones. Must check in by text or phone with my parole officer..sorry I mean the county health department agent each AM with an update on any symptoms (none). 🤞

Yellowrocks said...

I am finding more and more mistakes in novels. Tonight I read about a stabbed man in his death throws. I could chalk this up to the spell checker, but where are the proof readers?
Ray O, I feel for you. If you are all quarantined who is left to handle things? After I move in I, too, will be quarantined, but I will have support staff.

CrossEyedDave said...

Aahh,
back from my nap,

Scary movie (X) two!

O my gosh, I feel so stupid not seeing it...

but, I don't care, feeling much better anyway (Tx Yellowrocks),
so much so, that even tough puzzles don't bother me.
Thorns? Pshaw!
I use them camping for fish hooks!
Why, I have even heard that in the old days
when nails were scarce, people would use thorns for nails!
(I believe black locust works best...)

Note: a little knowledge is a dangerous thing!
Learn as much as you can about anything before trying it,
and be prepared to learn more through mistakes...

(Tip:
watch a youtube video on how to fix something,
then look up a youtube video on mistakes fixing that same something...)

Turns out black locust is toxic if eaten.

Anonymous T said:
DW & I finally finished decorating the outside tonight. I do not climbing extension ladders, I don't. But, she got her three second-story window wreaths.
(I read this as I don't climb ladders)
(but maybe there is a word missing...)
So,
did you put up the wreaths,
or did you make DW do it?

Lastly,
I found this in passing,
& must make trivial use of it.
Did you know Clint Eastwood could have been
the next Elvis?

Granjan said...

Lucina, SunSentinel listed Jeff Eddings as constructor as well! Cute theme and fun solve. Pretty easy for a Friday.

Anonymous T said...

Ray-O: Do you have an escape route to outside? When I got back from IL for a funeral I was isolated in the master-bedroom for 14 days. Fortunately, there's a door to the back patio and I could access the beer-fridge in the garage.

CED - Glad you're in better spirits after a nap.
"I do not like climbing extension ladders, I don't." Wreaths are up... results.

//I texted my family that picture - my phone blew-up:
Bro1: "Uh, Clark, your house is on fire."
Bro2: "Is Rusty still in the Navy? This house is bigger than your old one."
Sis1: "I'm not sleeping with my brother! Do you even know how demented that is?"
Sis2: "Helen.. Are you smoking again?!?
Stepmom: Don't make me regret this thread children
Sis2: "Grace?.. She died 50 years ago."

Context

Cheers, -T

CrossEyedDave said...

Anon-T
Tx for the house picture,
Well Done!

And Tx for the context link,
Um, Er,
They fried the Cat?...

waseeley said...

Welcome home YR.

Chairman Moe said...

Dash T —> I’ve watched Sideways multiple times. It certainly did more for the rebirth of Pinot Noir, and for the “death” of Merlot. Oddly, the lead character (Miles) loved Merlot. The reason he shied away from it was that it was his ex-wife’s favorite wine. If you recall the scene where Miles drinks a bottle of a French Bordeaux (‘61 Cheval Blanc) out of a styrofoam cup? At a fast food restaurant? Cheval Blanc is primarily Merlot! Over 50% of the blend is Merlot

Personally I like PINOT Noir but I like the white and grey versions of it (PINOT Blanc and PINOT Gris) better. Syrah is probably my most favorite red ...

Lucina said...

Jayce:
I don't rightly know if my device is a DVR. It is the box I received from DirecTV and which I use to record programs. I should try to find out.

Lucina said...

Anon-T:
Your house looks gorgeous! That is a lot of work but certainly worth it!

Anonymous T said...

So, C. Moe - Is Pinot Noir red-ish or white-ish? I always thought Pinot was white (remember, I'm a beer guy) but I ordered Pinot Noir (see: movie) and it was a) red(ish) b) very good flavor-wise.
No, I don't know my wines -- but, like art, I know what I like :-)

Thanks Lucina. Honestly, DW & Youngest did most the lighting work. If I did it, it'd look like a kindergartner's finger-paint. I just had to do the heavy lifting & SCARY high-wire bits - I wouldn't subject them to such peril. :-)

Anyone notice the porch swing on the left? That's our "HOA won't complain during Covid" fun. Sometimes, DW will take her meetings out there.

Cheers, -T