Saturday Themeless by Kyle Dolan and Dylan Schiff
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| Kyle |
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| Dylan |
Kyle is a science and tech consultant at the British consulate in Chicago and I have
blogged many of his themeless Saturday puzzles. Today he teams up with Dylan Schiff, who is a middle school science teacher like I was for 42 years. This was a big test for this solver and I enjoyed it immensely as I never felt I was out of it (except for two cells!). My issues were the two cells you see highlighted here in the grid. I had never heard of BOSS FIGHT and so I had BOSS HIGHS? where HEAT was a possible Guiness record data and SASHA could have been a character in a TV show. Buzz, we have some lovely parting gifts for you, Gary.
1. Next-level experience?: BOSS FIGHT Boss Fight Entertainment is an American video game development company based in Allen, TX.
10. "The Hobbit" figure: DWARF.
15. Around: IN THE AREA - Middle infielders used to only have to be "IN THE AREA" at second base and not tag the base to have the runner called out. Not so any more after new rules make the fielders safer by making it illegal to "go after" the infielder.
16. Registration info: OWNER - I always intend to fill those out...
17. Strips at a party: STREAMERS ð
18. Emma Roberts, to Julia Roberts: NIECE.
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| Emma, Julia and Lisa who is Emma's mother and Julia's sister |
19. Raises: HOISTS - A double HOIST
20. London institution with a Los Angeles namesake, familiarly: THE TIMES - For a price you can get this London TIMES edition proclaiming a 54-year-old event. Addendum: The British Open simply calls itself The Open Championship and The London Times simply calls itself THE TIMES
22. Drop (out): OPT.
23. Industry titan: CZAR.
24. Chichi: POSH - A POSH stateroom on the Titanic that could have hosted John Jacob Astor and his wife. Astor made a huge fortune in 29. Hides: SKINS but it didn't save him from drowning on that April night in 1912.
25. High wind: PICCOLO - A stirring patriotic John Phillips Sousa song with a famous PICCOLO descant that starts at 2:00.
31. Technical drawing: SCHEMATIC - Beautiful movie star Hedy Lamarr famously drew up a schematic on a cocktail napkin. Her device helped in the WWII effort and was the forerunner for a lot of modern technology. All you'd like to know
35. Doesn't surprise, in a way: LIVES UP TO - LaBron James skipped his last two years of high school playing for the Irish of St. Mary's in Akron, Ohio. He has LIVED UP TO every expectation.
37. Allow: LET.
38. Place where stuff sells left and right: SHOE STORE ð
42. Coastal habitat: MARSH.
44. Carry a torch for: CRUSH ON - to have a feeling of romantic love for someone. She is CRUSHING ON him.
45. Like many of Ruth Bader Ginsburg's jabots: LACY - Jabot (zha bÅ or ja bÅ): a pleated frill of cloth or lace attached down the center front of a woman's blouse or dress, from the French for bird's crop. You're welcome.
46. "Now, about ... ": AS TO - RGB might have written, "This is unconstitutional, now AS TO what we are going to do about it..."
49. Yoga roll: MAT ð
50. Onetime carrier based in Cairo: AIR SINAI - Air Egypt also fit and I found out AIR SINAI was a subsidiary of Air Egypt
52. "The Crown" role, familiarly: LADY DI - Actual images and images from TV series The Crown
55. Short-tailed weasel: STOAT.
56. Taboo gathering?: GAME NIGHT - ð Can you make your partner say the top word on the card?
Saying the word or the other five words is Taboo
58. Flip side?: TAILS - This choice starts every Super Bowl
59. "All good?": ARE WE COOL?
60. Diamond Jubilee number: SIXTY - QEII on her 60th year of rein. It's also used for 75th year.
59. "All good?": ARE WE COOL?
60. Diamond Jubilee number: SIXTY - QEII on her 60th year of rein. It's also used for 75th year.
61. Beach club?: SAND WEDGE ð - If someone lands in a sand trap, others (certainly not me) might say, "It's all good, you're on the beach!"
1. Chess pieces known as elephants in Russia: BISHOPS - Yes, Castles (yeah, I know it's rooks) fit too.
2. Focused: ON TOPIC
3. Elaine who had a recurring role as Jack's mother on "30 Rock": STRITCH.
4. First word of Tom Petty's "Free Fallin'": SHE'S.
She's a good girl, loves her mamaLoves Jesus and America tooShe's a good girl, is crazy 'bout ElvisLoves horses and her boyfriend too
5. Potential Guinness entry, say: FEAT - Cycling backwards on a bike for 60km in 5hrs.
5. Potential Guinness entry, say: FEAT - Cycling backwards on a bike for 60km in 5hrs.
6. Perfect Portions brand: IAMS - I wonder what our Lily would think
Since she believed him to be both candid and trustworthy, she refused to consider the possibility that his statement had been __________.
A irrelevant
B facetious
C mistaken
D critical
E insincere
9. Smith of TV's "Empire": TASHA.
10. "That's a bad idea": DON'T.
11. O'Hare and Bush, for two: WWII PILOTS - O'Hare had the Chicago Airport named for him. George H.W. Bush was also a hero and our 41st president
12. Sea __: ANEMONE - A clownfish with a symbiotic relationship with a Sea ANEMONE
13. Nook: RECESS.
14. Straight from the garden: FRESH.
21. Unsure sounds: ERS.
23. __ du RhÃŽne: COTES - Literally "the hillsides of Rhone" that is the home of great wines
26. Seasoning on a Chicago-style hot dog: CELERY SALT - I usually don't ask my lovely bride for her input but on a whim, I asked Joann if she knew a 10-letter seasoning for a Chicago-style hot dog starting with a "C". After ten seconds she gave me the correct answer! Yay, Joann!
27. Forgets, maybe: OMITS.
28. Heathrow facilities: LAV - LAV or LOO?
30. Japanese cutlet: KATSU - Another name for something I have never heard of.
32. "Roughly": ISH.
33. "The Flight Attendant" star: CUOCO - Of course we know Kayley broke through in The Big Bang Theory
36. What "p" may stand for: PER - I'm probably the only person thought of how p resembles the Greek letter rho ⍴
37. Brand with a Pamplemousse flavor: LACROIX - Pamplemousse is French for grapefruit. La Croix is French for the cross and was founded in La Crosse, Wisconsin.
39. "What?!": OH MY GOD.
40. One who crosses the line?: ROADHOG - Our new car gives a slight tug in the opposite direction if you drift over a line sand gives the warning you see here on the dash if you hit the dividing line.
41. Warrant: ENTITLE.
42. Cocktail flavored with orgeat syrup: MAI TAI - Full recipe
43. "Always and Forever, Lara Jean" novelist Jenny: HAN.
45. Holds up: LASTS.
47. Long-term investment accounts?: SAGAS - I wrote to Kyle about this clue/fill. I told him I thought it was about stories (accounts) told to people who a real interest (investment) in a common history (long-term). Kyle said that I did have it right he was glad I wrote. Both things made me very happy.
48. Pageant prize: TIARA - I'm not sure if this a TIARA or a crown but it is picture of a lovely girl I had in class fifty years ago. She is the same girl that I told you about that now raises Alpacas in the highlands of Colorado and makes hats out of their hair.
51. Minute: ITSY.
52. Blue: LEWD - The girl with the TIARA/crown above said she would look for a picture with a TIARA but felt she do better with this clue! She's a hoot.
53. Again: ANEW.
54. Boggle pieces: DICE.
33 comments:
This was a bit of a slog as you might expect a Saturday puzzle to be. One of the toughest things for me was getting “WW II pilots” as I’m sure folks can understand. Another tough point was getting “crush on” because of the “Japanese cutlet” as the cross . But, anyway, it all came together in the end to leave me FIR, so I’m happy.
By the way, I just found out something very interesting about this site. When I finish my comments, I’m always asked to check a box that says “I’m not a robot.” When I do that, I’m given a “robot test “ of course. Well, yesterday I found out I can ignore that and just hit the orange button that says “print,” and it does! So now I believe that I’ll never take a “ robot test” on this site again ! Hotcha and whoopee! Free at last ! So, if any of you folks are taking “robot tests” at this site, you don’t have to ! FYI !
A girl who played a PICCOLO
Liked how high the notes would go!
"They're FRESH and clear
A ways up there!"
Alas, her husband played the oboe.
I think my l'icks are fairly clean,
I'd never include a very LEWD scene.
That doesn't preclude
That I might allude
To things that happen betwixt and between!
{B-, B+.}
Good morning!
Nope. No way. Not to be. Gary, Bush also has an airport named for him -- Houston's main airport.
Subgenius, only "blue" (not LEWD) people may skip the Captcha.
I came very close to a Saturday FIR, but in the end the NW portion of the grid did me in. Only with the aid of red slash throughs was I able to suss the last few clues. But still, it’s Saturday and the weather is going to be sunny and nice, so life’s good.
Well, in that case, D-O, I’m very glad I’m “blue”!
FIR. Surprised myself. So many unknowns, I guess my guesser was working today!
Good Morning:
This was quite a challenge and I’m happy to say I finished w/o help in 32+ minutes, not too bad for a Saturday. Despite the preponderance of unknowns, Lacroix, Katsu, Air Sinai, Boss Fight, Tasha, IAMS, Mai Tai, and, as clued, She’s, Ale, Game Night, Anemone, and Bishops, enough fair perps and basic deduction resulted in a satisfying solve. I thought most of the cluing was Saturday-devious and clever, sort of Silkie-esque, but a few were unnecessarily obtuse, e.g. the clue for She’s. I believe my only w/o was Pelts/Skins.
Thanks, Kyle and Dylan, for a tough but doable grid and thanks, HG, for the dazzling review, especially the rousing rendition of The Stars and Stripes Forever. We sang that at my high school graduation and I think we must have sounded like a herd of stray cats. I prefer listening to the instruments only. BTW, I think Emma Roberts is Julia’s brother Eric’s daughter. He is an actor, also, but I never knew she had a sister.
Attended BIL’s 97th birthday party last night and enjoyed the food, fun, and family camaraderie. There were 34 including several grandchildren and two great grandchildren. Noisy and hectic, but a happy, meaningful celebration.
FLN
Subgenius, you are very kind. ð
Have a great day.
Gary, I'd never hear of BOSS FIGHT either but it was the only logical fit for 1A after guessing a few perps. KNIGHTS or BISHOPS, BEER or FEAT, ALAMO or HERTZ, T was the only possibility after IGH. But I stumbled to a FIR through persistence and guesses.
Unknowns galore today. TASHA STRITCH, CUOCO, KATSU, LACY, LA CROIX, Boddingtons, Boggle, AIR SINAI, Chicago-style hot dog, orgeat syrup, Jenny HAN. When haven't heard of a show, book, or author you have to depend on guesses and the Saturday puzzle 'perp guesses' make it even harder.
Changes- TINY to ITSY, ALCOVE to RECESS, LOO to LAV, GLUM to LEWD, BIRD to POSH
SAND WEDGE- That was about the only club I was better than the average duffer using. At the TPC a few miles from home with over 100 sand traps you couldn't avoid the beach. Don't worry about getting close to the pin, just get it out and on the green.
Not in my wheel house. Used way to many red letters.
DNF, getting 23 Across fills (22 correctly) and 26 down (23 correct.) Had to think for a minute to get SHES, and now the ear worm is firmly in place. Ultimately, having over instead of ANEW cost me Florida and Georgia, and totally unknown BOSSFIGHT cost me Washington and Idaho. Congrats to the folks who FIRed this one.
Thanks to Kyle and Dylan for the stretch objective, and to Gary for 'splainin' it all. BTW, I think the answer is "E insincere."
FIR but I would have liked a CBD "Smart" gummy. After finally realizing "The Chosen" wasn't about Jesus* et al thus no St Pete, LADYDI perped and finally ___SHON became CRUSH ON.
SAND WEDGE was cool
STRITCH. All perps. Likewise TASHA. Phillip wasn't around to supply the U in KATSU
Duh, not CUOmO. Kaylee is why I like seasons 1,2 on TBBT
Yep good old radar control. Don't wait for it to stop you at a light.
SAGAS. The listwber must make a "longterm investment(of time)"
Satisfying FIR, avoided the dreaded 1BW
WC
* Mixed it up with "The Chosen"
I liked this CW. It was difficult and doable. Yes, lots of unknowns, for me like HAN, KATSU, BOSS FIGHT. Perps were kind however.
Lots of great clues like long term investment accounts, strips at a party, O’Hare and Bush which was a neat misdirection, I immediately wanted airports, and more.
I do not understand GAME NIGHT in spite of HG’s nice explanation.
Yay for JoAnn. I’ve never heard of CELERY SALT on hot dogs.
Thanks, H.G., for explaining the "investment" part of the clue for 47 Down. Now I do not have to ponder that all day long. BOSS FIGHT was new to me and I learned what KATSU meant, today.
P.S. Sub G and D.O. are right! Another keystroke saved!
Hurrah! A Saturday FIR! Lots of crunchy clues, many unknowns, and some really clever misdirection, but a real feeling of satisfaction when it finally came together. A lot of work but worth it, IMHO,
Many AHA! moments. BOSSFIGHT was the last entry to fall, ESP, and was a HUH? rather than an AHA!
Puzzling thoughts:
Too many errors to even count; failed on so many levels, but it was a fair puzzle
Thanks HG for the link to Hedy Lamarr's biography page - fascinating women
But every time I see her name I'm reminded of this. I loved Mel Brooks' line, "this is 1874 ... you'll be able to sue her!"
MOES hardness scale score: 8.4
A lot of clever cluing. Very enjoyable puzzle but (sigh) it was a DNF for me. Thanks Kyle and Dylan for a fun start to my Saturday. ….. kkFlorida
Nope. DNF. Too many DNKs. Reading the write-up, I see LAV at 28D. As Gary pointed out, it should be LOO. No other nits to pick; I just couldn’t complete this CW. Ya beat me, KD&DS. Nice write-up, Gary, thanx.
Wow…some simply ugly clueing here, along with some answers I’m betting have never appeared.
This crossword source is becoming increasingly unsatisfying.
Husker Gary, you wrote. "LaBron James skipped his last two years of high school playing for the Irish of St. Mary's in Akron, Ohio."
Three errors that sentence.
You must have found a bad reference on the internet.
1) LeBron, not LaBron
2) He did not skip any years of high school basketball. His team won 3 state championships in four years of high school basketball.
3) He did not play for St. Mary's. He played for St Vincent-St Mary. SV-SM (or STVM) formed when those two Catholic high schools merged back when I was in high school.
Back in 2000, one of my brothers was telling me how well our high school basketball team was doing. He was really excited because they were easily winning every game they played. They would be headed to the state championship semis with the next win.
That next game was against SV-SM. Both teams undefeated. My brother went to the game. It was LeBron's freshman year. It wasn't even close. SV-SM blew out our high school team. SV-SM then went on to win the state championship. Undefeated.
My brother has the front page picture from the newspaper's sport section that showed LeBron leaping over the head of our player that had set up to take a charge. Far from the rim. He could not talk enough about LeBron and his skills. I think it was the next year or his junior season when they started showing their high school games on TV. He was that good. Even in high school.
I can agree with your last sentence, "He has LIVED UP TO every expectation."
If TITT* was in my vocabulary I'd never FIR a Saturday. I have the advantage of having the xword available so I can start Friday night(c. 10pm)
I then do the J when I have the first long hiatus then at midnight knocked off Wordle. Not only completion or even progress seems like a miracle because I'm often completely stumped. The SW was particularly fiendish for me. The big question do I go to the write-up or continue on to say Wednesday
I had a Sunday NY Times that extended for a week until I solved "How we knew Jersey Shore character was incontinent?"**
WC
*Two T's . One has long been there though I was more of a leg man
** Answer later if no one guesses it
Musings 2
-Just back from MIL’s funeral and it went very well and it was great seeing all the relatives.
-Thanks for the gentle correction TTP. I skimmed Mr. James bio very quickly.
-Wilbur, I thought the answer was “insincere” too but I don’t know what the intended answer was
-Thanks, D-Otto, I did not know Bush had an airport named for him but I’m sure everyone has flown through/to O’Hare.
-Tante, Joann got a nice laugh out of your CELERY SALT comment.
The answer: "Depends on 'The Situation'" I had to cheat to find names of Jersey Shore characters and he's one
WC
Edward in LA CA: after the first read through, it went straight into the trash and I moved on to the comics.
Can't believe I forgot to mention that today is:
- NATIONAL UNDERWEAR DAY (I thought it would be on a short day)
- INTERNATIONAL TRAFFIC LIGHT DAY
- INTERNATIONAL HANGOVER DAY (yesterday was International Beer Day)
Sorry about the caps. Too lazy to retype.
This was challenging for me - it didn't help that the 1A BOSS FIGHT was an unknown even when I filled it out right- and that BISHOPS and KNIGHTS both have the same number of letters but P&P prevailed in the end. I caught a break with pulling Elaine Stritch out of some brain recess and having lived in Chicago I remembered all the funky ingredients of a true Chicago style hot dog It felt like a Silkie Saturday.
Tante - Taboo is a card game that is most fun played with 2 teams with a group of players on each side. So if you invited people over to your house to play Taboo - you would be hosting a GAME NIGHT
HG - thanks for the link on Hedy Lamarr - she must have been brilliant with her scientific discoveries with her only teacher her father and his extensive library as women weren't allowed in university in Vienna back then. Her beauty and acting talent got her out of Nazi-occupied Austria and then she started developing her scientific hypotheses to help her Jewish friends and family who were left behind
Marie Benedict has written a historical fiction of her life which was great for those of you fiction readers like YR, IM . It's called "The Only Woman in the Room"
https://www.authormariebenedict.com/the-only-woman-in-the-room.html
Thanks HG for the fun blog - glad you had a good time connecting with family and to Dylan & Kyle for the puzzle!
Bill - this word ladder on Sporcle made me think of you
https://www.sporcle.com/games/justindi01/word-ladder-maryland-delicacy
Thank you inanehiker @6:53 I didn’t this was a card game.
know is missing from my comment. It’s late.
Hola!
Today was our Book Club meeting so I was away most of the day. Before leaving, hwever, I finished the SW corner and a smattering of other fill. Later I was too tired to deal with the obscurity of most of the clues. I see that most of you had trouble, too.
I'll see what tomorrow brings.
I hope you all enjoyed your day. Gary, I know yours was a somber one.
I had to look up the ages of these setters. It seemed to contain a lot of references to people and things more familiar to gen z and gamers. Finished, with lookups, but DID NOT LIKE!
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