HEDGE HUNTERS
Today's puzzle teams veteran
Freddie Cheng with media writer and producer
Caroline Sommers, who appears to be making her LA Times debut.
Their puzzle invites us to do a little landscape gardening with 3 themers that keep the bushes
from getting out of control:
20A. *Strawberry's field, once:
SHEA STADIUM. A clever reference
to
Darryl Strawberry, the fearsome slugger who played in Shea Stadium for the NY Mets
during his heyday. The clue could also be taken as misdirection to lead
us to
Strawberry Fields in Central Park, a 5 acre section that memorializes John Lennon, who of course co-wrote and did the lead vocals on this song :
38A. *"Listen, I can explain":HEAR ME OUT. A phrase that often pops out of the mouths of perps when they're being grilled under bright lights in detective shows.
48A. *Warning that could come with a "Shush!": EARS ARE FLAPPING.
ears are flapping
Someone is
listening, or trying to
listen, to the
details of a private
conversation: "Let's finish
this conversation in
the meeting
room in case
people's ears
are flapping
nearby ...".
The Free Dictionary suggests that this is British slang and it wouldn't be complete without one my favorite Brit idioms: "... and we can have a chin wag".
The Free Dictionary suggests that this is British slang and it wouldn't be complete without one my favorite Brit idioms: "... and we can have a chin wag".
And the reveal:
57A. Hedge trimmer's tool, which seems to have been used on the starts of the answers to the starred clues?: PRUNING SHEARS. These are standard tools for the gardeners who have to maintain the shrubbery at Ladew Topiary Gardens in Jarretsville, MD. Here they have to keep the hunter (upper left) and the hounds trim, if they're to have any hope of catching the wily fox in the foreground:
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Topiary Fox Hunt Ladew Gardens. |
Across:
1. Auto industry pioneer: OLDS. Ransom Eli Olds (June 3, 1864 – August 26, 1950) was a pioneer of the American automotive industry, after whom the Oldsmobile and REO brands were named. From whence of course we get the eponymous rock band, REO Speedwagon. Here's their Keep on Loving You ...5. Couches: SOFAS.
14. Christopher Robin's friend: POOH. Winnie-the-Pooh, is a fictional teddy bear created by English author A. A. Milne and English illustrator E. H. Shepard. The first collection of stories about the character was the book Winnie-the-Pooh (1926), and this was followed by The House at Pooh Corner (1928), and then many others The stories have been translated in many languages and Winnie Ille Pu has the distinction of being the only book in Latin on the New York Times best seller list. But eventually Christopher Robin grows up and has to go to school, and the two friends must part. Here's Winnie-the-Pooh - Final Scene (trigger warning: it's a bit of tear jerker) ...
15. Novelist Desai: ANITA. Anita Desai, neé Anita Mazumdar (born 24 June 1937) is an English-language Indian novelist, short-story writer and children's author, She was
born in 1937 in Mussoorie, India. She was educated at Delhi University.and is the Emerita John E. Burchard Professor of Humanities at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (a CSO to Picard). Her novels include Fire on the Mountain (1977), which won the Winifred Holtby Memorial Prize, and Clear Light of Day (1980), In Custody (1984) and Fasting, Feasting (1999), each of which was shortlisted for the Booker Prize, the English equivalent of the Pulitzer. In Custody was made into a film by Merchant Ivory productions. Her children's book The Village by the Sea (1982), won the Guardian Children's Fiction Award.
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| Anita Desai |
17. Draped Roman garment: TOGA.
18. "Can't you get someone else?": MUST I.
19. Used Google Wallet, say: PAID.
23. 2020 and 2022 WNBA MVP A'ja: WILSON. A'ja Riyadh Wilson (born August 8, 1996) is an American professional basketball player for the Las Vegas Aces of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). Stats and kudos.
 |
| A'ja Wilson in flight |
28. Resource in Catan and Minecraft: ORE. You might have dug out this 3 letter nugget of crosswordese even if you had never of heard of the games Catan or Minecraft.
29. Rodeo hat: STETSON. A CSO to all the Texas cowboys and cowgirls on the Corner, who probably already know all this stuff. This is for all you greenhorns.
 |
| Stetson Hat |
34. "De __": "Gracias" response: NADA. Today's Spanish lesson: "No problem". Maybe this is why Gen-Xers have no problem with "No Problem": they must all be bilingual!
36. Bank job: HEIST.
37. Pop in the mail: SEND. POP also stands for Post Office Protocol, an Internet standard for handling email SENT from your desktop.
41. Mid-Mar. honoree: ST PAT. St. Patrick (Feast Day March 17) is popular not only with Catholics, but some Protestants, and anyone who likes green beer. His story is chronicled in a notable book by historian Thomas Cahill called How the Irish Saved Civilization (not a spoof!). The 5th century Roman Patricius was kidnapped at age 16, taken to Ireland as a slave, and pressed into service as a shepherd. Six years later he escaped back to Britain, eventually converted to Christianity, was ordained a priest, and returned to Ireland as a missionary. He was instrumental in the conversion of pagan Ireland at a time when the Irish were still practicing human sacrifice. Also during this time the Roman Empire was dissolving and much of it's great classical literature was in danger of being lost. The Irish monks on the Isle of Skellig Michael were instrumental in transcribing and preserving many of these works, and literally "saved civilization".
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| Saint Patrick |
54. Rumpus: ADO.
55. Late-March sign: ARIES. A fire sign:
62. Lose one's cool completely: GO APE.
63. Ingest: EAT.
64. Minor interruptions: BLIPS.
66. Choir section: ALTOS. As 'tis the season to give praise, here's the part for the ALTO choir in the Hallelujah Chorus from Handel's Messiah.
67. Mexican Mrs.: SRA. Short for SENORA. Spanish lesson number 2.
68. Hit just past the infield: BLOOP. This is usually called a BLOOPER, but I guess this was the constructor's (or editor's) call.
69. Isn't straight: LEANS.
70. Tater __: TOT.
71. Like the ocean: SALTY. Or old sailors. A CSO to Jinx.
Down:
1. Withdraw, with "out": OPT.
2. British lav: LOO.
3. Arctic transport: DOG SLED.
4. Bravo's "__ of Sunset": SHAHS. Shahs of Sunset was an American reality television series that aired on Bravo. The series debuted on March 11, 2012. The series follows a group of Persian Americans living in Beverly Hills (and the greater area known as "Tehrangeles"), who are trying to juggle their active social lives and up-and-coming careers while balancing the demands of their families and traditions.
5. Kim's "Sex and the City" role: SAMANTHA. Samantha Jones seemed to have it all — except a happy ending.
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| Kim Cattrall |
7. Rock, in a choosing game: FIST.
8. Flour for roti: ATTA. The new crosswordese you can make at home.
 |
| Roll your own Roti |
10. Shot: KAPUT.
ka·put
/kəˈpo͝ot,käˈpo͝ot/
adjective
informal
adjective: kaput
broken and useless; no longer working or effective."the water pump's broken, kaput, malfunctioning" - etymology.
11. Check carefully: EXAMINE.
12. Country's __ Young Band: ELI. The Eli Young Band is an American country music band composed of members who met while students at the University of North Texas in Denton, Texas: Mike Eli (lead vocals, guitar), James Young (guitar), Jon Jones (bass guitar), and Chris Thompson (drums). Here's their 2011 hit Crazy Girl:
13. Actor Beatty: NED. Ned Thomas Beatty (July 6, 1937 – June 13, 2021) was an American actor and comedian . In a career that spanned five decades, he appeared in more than 160 films. Throughout his career, Beatty gained a reputation for being "the busiest actor in Hollywood". His film appearances included Deliverance (1972), White Lightning (1973), All the President's Men (1976), Network (1976), Superman (1978), Superman II (1980), Back to School (1986), Rudy (1993), Shooter (2007), and Toy Story 3 (2010).
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| Ned Beatty |
 |
| Canon EOS Rebel |
22. Ziering of the "Sharknado" films: IAN. Sharknado is a series of six American made-for-television science fiction action comedy horror disaster films released by Syfy between 2013 and 2018. It has since been expanded into video games and comics, including a spin-off film, Sharknado: Heart of Sharkness, that was released in 2015. The first two films received mixed to positive reviews from critics, while the others received negative reviews.
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| Ian Ziering |
24. 401(k) kin: IRA.
26. Airport shuttle, often: VAN.
27. Tip: END.
30. Alway: EER. The clue is archaic for ALWAYS; the fill is poetic for FOREVER.
31. Director Burton: TIM. Timothy Walter Burton (born August 25, 1958) is an American filmmaker and artist. He is known for his gothic fantasy and horror films such as Beetlejuice (1988), Edward Scissorhands (1990), The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993), etc. etc. etc. I think Edward would have no problem getting a gig at the Ladew Topiary Gardens.
32. Compass pt.: SSE.
35. Cries of discovery: AHAS.
37. "Quit it!": STOP.
39. Uber driver's guess: ETA. The last time we visited New York City, we guessed that it would be faster to take the subway than to wait for an Uber stuck in NYC's 7x24 rush hour.
40. Diamond authority: UMP.
41. Mermaid's realm: SEA.
42. Pond youngster: TADPOLE. But like all critters, they don't stay youngsters forever ...
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| The Lifecycle of the Frog |
45. Scathing criticism: VITRIOL. Nasty stuff.
46. Stuck: IN A SPOT.
47. Shakshouka ingredient: EGG. Here's a recipe.
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|
Shakshouka |
 |
| Aishwarya Rai Bachchan |
51. Mozart's "The Marriage of __": FIGARO. Mozart's Marriage of Figaro is considered to be one of the greatest operas ever written. While usually thought of as a comedy, it has dark undertones, as it was critical of the aristocratic patriarchy of the time, and was even banned in some cities. This darkness is embodied in the role of one of the main characters: Count Almaviva. A key element of the plot is the notion of le droit du seigneur – a Count's "right" to bed any servant girl on her wedding night, in this case Figaro's bride to be Susanna! You may remember Figaro as the happy go lucky Barber of Seville from last Thursday's puzzle. Figaro, Susanna, and the Count's wife (Countess Rosina Almaviva) spend the better part of the opera thwarting the Count's efforts and all is well in the end, with the repentant Count begging his wife's forgiveness. Here is the overture, a masterpiece of orchestral writing, conducted by Claudio Abbado:
52. "Interview With the Vampire" vampire: LESTAT. Interview with the Vampire is a 1994 American gothic horror vampire film directed by Neil Jordan, based on Anne Rice's 1976 novel of the same name, and starring Tom Cruise, Brad Pitt, and Kirsten Dunst.
58. Versed in: UPON.
59. Urquhart Castle's loch: NESS. There's more to this loch then the legendary NESSIE.
60. Flows back: EBBS.
61. Penne __ vodka: ALLA. Here's a recipe.
62. Gadot of "Wonder Woman": GAL. Gal Gadot is an Israeli actress, singer, martial artist, and model. She was born in Rosh Ha'ayin, Israel. Her parents are Irit, a teacher, and Michael, an engineer. She served in the IDF for two years, and won the Miss Israel title in 2004.
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|
Gal Gadot |
Cheers,
Bill
As always, thanks to Teri for proof reading and for her constructive criticism. waseeley
38 comments:
First of all, in spite of the possibility of having to turn in my American male “cis” gender card, I have watched and enjoyed certain episodes of “Sex and the City “ so “Samantha” was known to me. But, otherwise, there seemed to be a lot of obscure proper names in this puzzle, including the ubiquitous WNBA star (a Patti speciality,) Also, I had no idea what held the themed answers together, but the reveal made it (relatively) clear. It appears that each themed answer included some part of the word “shears” but never the whole word. Thus “shears” was “pruned.” (I say this because I’m not sure our esteemed moderator made this clear.) Anyway, FIR, so I’m happy.
Hi Y'all! Thanks, Freddie & Caroline. Thanks, Bill, for informing us with style.
This turned out to be easier than I first thought when 1a was not Ford but OLDS and the rest of the top line went unfilled on first pass. Eventually filled it okay. Got the theme with the reveal, but MEH!
DNK: SAMANTHA, ANITA, ELI, EER, WILSON, LESTAT, ALLA, IAN, RAI. WAGd & perped in okay. And there were some names us old-timers would know. I won't remember any of the new ones, I betcha.
FLN: I was born in the so-called "silent generation", but was never known for keeping my mouth shut. Never heard that term. Thought we were "war babies" or pre-war babies as I was.
Good morning!
Also noticed the spate of unknown names, but the perps were kind. Finished in good time, and even read the reveal clue to the end, noticing the snipped shears in the themers. Nicely done, Freddie and Caroline. Interesting expo, Waseeley.
ST PAT: I seem to get him confused with the Pied Piper.
NED Beatty: Memorably plays a corrupt U.S. senator in Shooter in cahoots with a corrupt Danny Glover.
SG @3:47 AM While the reveal for puzzle this was pretty SHARP, I agree that the examples could have used a little HONING. As a result I'll have to admit that my explanation was a little DULL🙄.
D-O @5:31 AM The Pied Piper drove the RATS out of Hamelin. St. Pat drove the SNAKES out of Ireland (but some doubters say that there weren't any there to begin with!).
D-O @5:31 AM And another thing ... I just mentioned your comment to Teri and she related that her 4th teacher, a "Mrs McCusker", had them do a play about St. Patrick, complete with a student dressed as a snake, slithering out of the room on the floor. Teri also said the Mrs M taught them to say the "Sign of the Cross in Gaelic", which she (Teri) proceeded to recite, but then said she couldn't spell. Gaelic spelling makes English spelling look absolutely crystal clear.
By my count 16 proper names, of which I knew 6. “Novelist Desai”? “…MVP A’ja”? “Hindi star ….”? Come on! This CW should be titled “How Obscure Can We Get?” I (surprisingly) did manage to FIR in 30, but did not have much fun on the way. 1A coulda been FORD or OLDS, but LOO meant it had to be OLDS, so got off to a good start, until I ran into the blizzard of obscure names. Thanx for the nice write-up, Bill.
FIR in about 4:30... which is slightly slower than yesterday, but not quite a Thursday time. All the difficulty came from the ENORMOUS name count, there was no Thursday-esque trickery in the clues. Seriously, not even a "?" clue besides the revealer (and that doesn't really count).
FIR, but erased go off for GO APE. As Fred said, lots of unknowns. However they perped out or were easy to guess (like NESS and EGG). I've heard "tongues are wagging," but not "EARS ARE FLAPPING."
OK, so I know most of the Sex in the City trivia. Where do I send my man card for cancellation?
I got ELI Young confused with Zak Brown. But I don't confuse the Grateful Dead with the Marshal Tucker Band, although both did great songs titled Fire on the Mountain. Wonder if ANITA liked either or both.
"Longtime local" is not a correct clue for NATIVE. A 3 year old born in Texas is a Texas native, but someone who has lived there for 40 of his 50 years isn't. There is a popular bumper sticker that says "I wasn't born in Texas, but I got here as quick as I could". I lived in WV when Jay Rockefeller was running for governor. He used to say on the stump that although he had lived in the state for 35 years, his opponent still called him a carpetbagger. (He won, was a pretty good gov, and went on to be a US Senator.)
Every time I encounter one of Patti's WNBA intrusions it is though I just chomped down on a sheet of aluminum foil. But I liked "Strawberry's field" and KAPUT. Thanks to Freddie and Caroline for the challenge, and to Bill and Teri for the informative review.
FIR. Struggled a little with a lot of proper names I didn't know, but the perps made it happen.
FLN,
(Actually, early this AM)
Thanks Michael, for the tool source info.
Unfortunately, the best special tool for my scooter carb problem would be a wood screw.
here is a short video explaining it.
(NOTE: He uses language I can't type here...)
As I understand it,
In order for China to ship into Californian ports, and have there product pass California EPA requirements, they have to provide a "non serviceable " carburetor, or one that cannot be modified in a way that would exceed California pollution laws.
The cheapest solution?
File the heads off the screws...
However the dremel tool cuts a nice clean little slot that can accept a screwdriver again.
FIW today, not the two natick areas which I guessed right, but at NAN and END where I confidently entered a T. I didn't get what "tip" meant and blew it on the Bobbsey twin's name. My excuse is that it's been a long time since I read the books. Congratulations on your debut, Caroline, and thanks to you and Freddie for the puzzler.
Wow! Waseeley and Teri, you did a great job explaining the puzzle today. We appreciate all the effort it took to expand our learning experience.
Jinx, I enjoy your colorful comments, "just chomped down on a sheet of aluminium foil" for example.
See you all later. Have a good day!
Took 5:42 to get through this sheer delight.
OK, wrong sheer/shear, and definitely not a total delight. Way too many proper names, as already established by my contemporaries. And, as Ms. Irish Miss will likely note soon, there are also too many 3-letter answers.
Hindi star? Eer?
Keeping my streak alive, I didn't know today's female novelist (Anita).
"Loo" crossing "pooh" ... yeah, seems fitting.
PRUNING SHEARS? i bought some new ones this past 'Sommers' and when I saw the price on those Fiskars the cash register went 'Cha-Cheng'. Good morning. True to form I noticed the EA not not the other missing letters. EARS ARE FLAPPING is new to me but was filled completely by perps. I've always heard "the walls have EARS".
ANITA, RAI, WILSON, SHAHS, SAMANTHA, IAN, Shakshouka, -no prior knowledge of those; perps
Easy for a Thursday puzzle
Stay warm and safe
Good Morning:
Eli, Rai, and Ian walk into a bar . . . .
The theme was okay as were the themers, although I never heard the expression Ears Are Flapping, only Little Pitchers Have Ears. The most striking thing about this puzzle was the absolute straightforward cluing, excepting the numerous obscure names, and lack of word play usually found in late week puzzles. And, needless to say but I’ll say it anyway, to add insult to the injury of the plethora of proper names, the choice was made to clue common, every day words with proper noun clueing, to wit, Egg, Paid, Gal, Ore, and Tot. Add the way-too-many three letter words (Hi, SS!), and the solve is far from enjoyable. Pooh and St. Pat brought a smile, though.
Thanks, Caroline and congrats on the debut, and thanks, Bill, for the extensive and enlightening, as always, review. I enjoyed the musical interludes, the Ladew Gardens, (Anytime I see topiary, it reminds me of the movie, The Shining.), and all of the historical tidbits. I kinda, sorta knew what a walk off homer was, but your clear explanation solidified the precise meaning for me. Thanks to Teri for her behind the scenes presence.
SS @ 8:17 ~ Chuckled at your last sentence. 🤭
FLN
Tony, safe travels and have a wonderful Christmas with your family!
Tante Nique, you and I and PK share that infamous year of birth and, I believe someone else on the Blog does as well, maybe Jace? Silent does apply to me either. I can still remember my third grade teacher, Sister Joan Theresa’s note to my mother regarding my report card: Dear Mrs. McGrath, Your little “Miss Chatterbox” has done it again.”
Have a great day.
Sorry, Silent doesn’t apply . . .
ATLGranny @8:09 AM Re JInx: He sent shivers up me timbers!
Ok, finally done, after a late start...
(Forgot my TV's password - chaos ensued)
A couple of Naticks, (it is Thursday, so ok....)
I just had a little trouble getting my head around "pruning shears" in a couple of themers.
(Strawberry's fields was brilliant!)
But, I guess if you think about it like I do,
Having pruning shears in a puzzle with Togas, does make some kind of sense...
Musings
-40F on the Great Plains today. We talked to a couple from Savannah, GA yesterday and they said it was 17F there. You can run but…
-This was the most unsatisfying reveal I have ever encountered. An Indian actor and a fictional vampire crossing a “beyond obscure” but “had to be” British phrase. You didn’t get me Patti, but, WOW!
-At least the Indian author, WNBA player and obscure TV series were BLIPS that mostly took care of themselves despite fairer cluing was available. Same for ELI and IAN.
-My cowboy friend (he’s a farrier) and his wife named their new baby STETSON.
-LEANS – There’s this tower on Italy’s west coast…
-Our lunch lady carefully counted out 8 Tater TOTS on each tray
-SAID NO TO – What we finally did to my brother and his wife. Helping vs. Enabling?
-Bill Mazeroski’s walk-off homerun decided the 1960 World Series
-I still remember Shakshouka/EGG from my first Stella Zawistowski puzzle
FIR on a guess that _ILSON started with a W even though WON as clued didn't seem right, The clue, "Hit a walk off homer say", doesn't indicate that it's the bottom of the ninth inning. .....Getting one more point than the opposing team no matter how would end the game
Yah cain't fool me, held off on "Ford" for the "auto industry pioneer" clue till I checked out OPT and OPTED for OLDS. ....We should all know what ATTA is by now.
The theme is SHEARING: the word SHEAR in each answer is trimmed of a letter, How about a dog breed: SHAR PEI
FIGARO x 3
Inkover: cab/VAN
ORE could have been more cleverly clued as it often is instead of resorting to what are unknowns for most of us (but yes agree was gettable anyway)...
Do ALTOS use Altoids?
ELI, Shakshouka? EOS (not the usual CW goddess of dawn?) IAN Zeiring. Hindu novelist or the "star"? Also didn't know BLOOP.
Am an avid Ann Rice fan, looking forward to season 2 of "Interview with the Vampire" to continue the story of the Vampire LESTAT, but just read not until late 2023 or 2024 (Yikes, I hope I'm still around)
Tool to cut up dried plums...PRUNING SHEARS
Brits say "lav" in ____ of "bathroom"....LOO
Uppermost...HEIST
IM. 🍀.
St. Patricius was a Roman, (Rome is in Italy so that makes him Italian). Legend has it that in addition to driving the snakes out he introduced pizza to Ireland. Forget using the shamrock to demonstrate the trinity. He showed the pagans that you could have three toppings but it was still ONE Pizza. 😇
WMOS concerning obscure proper nouns. FIR with lots of WAGS. I had not heard the word KAPUT in a long time. I like that word.
IM: I too would get reprimanded in school for talking too much, so not so silent. 1941 was without a doubt a bad year all over the world. I was born in occupied France amid misery and defeat. How my parents had the courage to bring me into the world, I don’t know, but I’m glad they did.
Anon-T: safe travels, hope the Arctic blast will not disturb your flying. It sounds like you all will have a blast of your own.
Stay warm everyone.
Good Morning! I enjoyed today's puzzle. Thought it flowed smoothly, much better than most Thursday puzzles. Whew!! Able to fill the DNK's with the perps, so I'm happy.
Thanks, Freddy and Caroline. Clever theme.
My favorite clues/fills were Rock/FIST and KAPUT.
Only one letter WO: Mile to AXLE: WO the M, and cross the I. LOL!!
I've been to Ladew Gardens, but not for many years. Enchanting and creative, with a touch of whimsey. Must return. Thanks for the clip, waseeley! And to Teri for all you both contributed to the review.
ROS: a "walk off," by definition, means that it occurred in the bottom of the ninth, or bottom of an extra innings game. Otherwise, it's just "hit a homer", not a "walk off."
And, using the baseball vernacular, it's "run" not "point."
Hola!
I'll have to read you all later. Right now I am going grocery shopping, etc., etc, etc.
Thank you, Freddie and Caroline for the puzzle. Luckily, since it's a busy day, I finished it in good time and did not GO APE.
ANITA is such a common name and could have been clued much differently. Why Desai?
People are often surprised when I teel them I am an Arizona NATIVE as is my entire family. Most residents come here from other parts of the country.
My TV watching is limited so the SHAHS is unknown to me.
I hope there is a good MOVIE because that is what I intend to do after Christmas.
Have a peaceful day, everyone!
ANON...Thanks for splainin'. Learn lotsa sports and other stuff in the CW itself and comments. Just need to retain for the next time.
HG @9:53 AM It must have slipped my slippery mind. 🙃
Cold and snowy here in the mountains of Colorado and the wind SHEAR makes it even more difficult to be outside. Perfect crossword weather (if one is indoors). As noted above, lots of proper nouns that the perps resolved. Thanks to the puzzle setters and to Waseeley.
In defense of Patti, a blooper is the equivalent of a BLOOP "Hit". And…
The whole pop-cul questions are an experiment to attract post boomers
I wasn't a RPS fan however I did play(eg. lost money) Ship, Captain, Crew in my USMC days. Now Bridge I could play
FIGARO was Geppeto's cat in Pinocchio . Was he in the original book?
The Silent Generation was born prior to WWII. They voted, hence Nixon not McGovern
"blizzard of obscure names" says it perfectly
Strawberry is a recovered addict and does good work around Tampa Latest on Darryl
Better that St PAT was Roman than an Englishman which he was
In Fla we have NATIVEs, transplanted Northerners and in a category all their own:Yankees*
WC
Fln, I had 25 years in IT but after a heart transplant and early retirement I needed low stress as in Limo and Shuttle
I enjoyed talking baseball with Yankee fans but in Boston it's religion
R-O-S @10:04 AM St. Patricius ... ROTFL (Ray - O's TheoloFical Lesson)!
Anonymous @10:30 AM You obviously don't know who you're dealing with. To take anything this man says seriously is INSANE!
FWIW, today's DAB puzzle had only one easily perped 3 letter name (a actress who died in 1996 so many may know her (I'd didn't)). The only thing it lacked was a clue for the mushrooms. And he does all the cluing because he's that rare breed, a constructor/editor (excepting of course when he appears here).
Finished in 15
I couldn’t rise above the plethora of proper names, so a big, round FIW today, and my comment is …. Thumper!
To me, Ned Beatty’s best movie was Hear My Song, a little known one set in Ireland. It grabs your heart - please see it.
yes, Figaro was in the original Pinocchio.
Thank you, Freddie and Caroline for the insurmountable challenge, and thanks Waseely (and Teri) for the tour. Loved the Mozart Overture.
I feel sorry for Denverites and anyone trying to travel by air today -what a nightmare!
Thumper Thursday. Thanks for the workout, Freddie and Caroline, and waseeley and Teri.
I nearly threw in the towel with all the names today. But I finished and enjoyed the clever PRUNING SHEARS (first the R, then the leading S, then the SH) theme when it was revealed. I was looking for something with the EA or EARS.
But my Natick cross of WILSON, SHAHS and WON caused a FIR. I chose a T (Wilton).
I won’t blame the constructors for the clues; they may have been Patti’s.
Yes, I counted something like 23 three-letter words.
Much as I promised to remember ATTA, I needed some perps to jog my memory.
I had a G and wagged EGG. Do I remember rightly that it was Stella who introduced us to Shakshouka in her wicked CW debut?
Those STETSONs reminded me of the Calgary stampede.
I started with SLED - oh we need the DOG (actually we need the plural dogs) in front of it.
1A wasn’t Ford but OLDS. Good thing I waited for perps.
I noted END crossing TEND.
Safe travels and happy times with family Tony.
We have blizzard/wind warnings for tomorrow and Saturday- hope we don’t lose power. I’m going to do some baking tonight in case.
Wishing you all a great day.
Wendybird @ 2:58 ~ I never saw the movie, Hear My Song, but I have a CD of Joe Cuddy’s beautiful rendition of it.
CEh @ 3:10 ~ Your were kind, there were actually 28, unless my eyes deceived me.
Puzzling thoughts:
FIR
23 3-letter words (if I counted correctly), which seems high for a Thursday puzzle
Non symmetric puzzle grid
Our infant plants in our new house won't need PRUNING SHEARS for quite awhile
Thanks to the constructors and Bill S
Thanks, Freddie and Caroline. I FIR but I am not sure how that happened. Nice job with the 2- and 3-word answers. FAV: DOG SLED
Thanks, Waseeley, for the thoroughly researched blog. Well done!
What you all said. Sheesh.
Blindsided by the crossing of WILSON, WON, and SHAHS; tried DILLON at first.
EARS ARE BURNING is familiar terminology to me; absolutely never heard the phrase EARS ARE FLAPPING, probably because, as our astute waseeley pointed out, it is British slang.
Thumper Thursday indeed. Can you say "gratuitous"? It seems to me it doesn't take much imagination or originality to toss out clues comprised of the name of an obscure book, movie, actor, author, athlete, or pop star.
Good wishes to you all.
My post at 4:39 ~ Sorry for the typo, sorry, should have been, You were kind.
CED @ 8:04 -- There used to be screw removers for this type of problem, called "Easy-Outs" (in my memory -- don't remember the correct name*). Looks like a drill bit, but with threads reversed in a cone, so the further in the bit goes in, the more of the fastener is under pressure, and becomes obedient.
* Just looked it up -- they are called "screw extractors," available at hardwares or Amazon.
Still catching up from our travels.
Bill Seeley Thank you for the CSO regarding Anita Desai and MIT. Learning moment.
Way many crossed unknown names. FIR. Still not totally clear about the theme.
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