Jam Session ...
Today's puzzle was brought to us by Bill Bipal and Jeff Chen, a mentor to many fledgling constructors. Bill is making his LA Times debut, and the big news is that Jeff is retiring from his position as a commenter to the indispensable NYT xwordinfo blog. Jim Horne, creator and editor of that site informs us emphatically that he won't miss Jeff Chen!
I know a lot of solvers don't like it when clues cross reference other clues,
especially when they reference themers. But that is also a big
giveaway that they are probably pointing to the reveal. If you perp
down on that fill you can often get yourself out of a sticky situation.
At least in this case ...
17A. See 54-Across: GRAPE JELLY. Personally I prefer marmalade, a traditional English preserve. You can even make your own ...
22A. See 54-Across: RUSH HOUR TRAFFIC. Getting stuck in TRAFFIC can be a real slow drag. To cope with the GRIDLOCK I'd suggest keeping a copy of this classic puzzle by Merl Reagle in your glove compartment.
36A. See 54-Across: SLAM DUNK. A SLAM DUNK, also simply known as DUNK, is a type of basketball shot that is performed when a player jumps in the air, controls the ball above the horizontal plane of the rim, and scores by shoving the ball directly through the basket with one or both hands. Some say that this one by Hamidou Diallo in 2019 is the greatest of all time. He jumps over Shaq, sinks the ball, and then opens his jersey to reveal a Superman shirt! ...
48A. See 54-Across: A DILLY OF A PICKLE. A very, very sticky situation and a piquant pun on a different kind of PICKLE.
And all the themers point to this one ...
54A. "I love this song!," and what might be said about 17-, 22-, 36-, and 48-Across?: THAT'S MY JAM. Personally I think JAM beats BOPS from last Thursday's puzzle.
Here's the grid ...
Here's the rest ...
Across:
1. Purview: REALM.
6. Novelist Leon: URIS. Leon Marcus Uris (August 3, 1924 – June 21, 2003) was a Baltimore born author of historical fiction who wrote many bestselling books including Battle Cry (1953), Exodus (1958), Mila 18 (1961) and Trinity (1976).
10. Disapproving noises: TUTS. Also a long line of Egyptian pharaohs ...
14. "The Bare Necessities" bear: BALOO. From the Jungle Book soundtrack ...
This clue is also the name of a local ladies apparel shop in
Greenspring Station, MD. Or so I've heard.
15. Salade niçoise ingredient: TUNA. We first had this salad at The Café de la Gare in the Musée d'Orsay in Paris. Here's Julia Child's recipe.
16. Still abed: NOT UP.
17. [Theme clue]
19. Weigh in: OPINE. Short for O Christmas Tree? There are only 102 shopping days left!
20. Jag: SPREE. Start shopping now and you won't have to go on a
last minute SPREE!
21. Long-winded: PROLIX. I resemble that remark!
But I won't admit to being pleonastic, whatever that is!
22. [Theme clue].
27. Snares: ENTRAPS.
28. Overhead: ALOFT.
29. Hubbubs: ADOS.
30. Candlelit ceremony, e.g.: VIGIL. The classic candlelight VIGIL ceremony in our Church is called Tenabrae, usually held on the Wednesday before Easter. The service begins at twilight and as various hymns are sung and psalms are read, the candles in the church are extinguished one by one. When the last candle is snuffed out the participants leave in total darkness.
32. "Affirmative": YES.
35. Pay-__-view: PER.
36. [Theme clue]
39. Khan who founded Khan Academy: SAL. Khan Academy is an American non-profit[2] educational organization created in 2006 by Sal Khan. Its goal is creating a set of online tools that help educate students. The organization produces short lessons in the form of videos. Its website also includes supplementary practice exercises and materials for educators.
40. Texter's "My bad": SRY.
41. Actress Shire: TALIA. TALIA Rose Shire (née Coppola; born April 25, 1946) is an American actress who played roles as Connie Corleone in The Godfather trilogy and Adrian Balboa in the Rocky series. For her work in The Godfather Part II and Rocky, Shire was nominated for Academy Awards for Best Supporting Actress and Best Actress, respectively, and for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Drama for her role in Rocky.
42. Tuscany town: PISA. PISA is built on a Tuscan hill,
which makes all the pictures of the prominent tower appear ASLANT.
😁
43. Cyber Monday sector: ETAIL. Hot tip -- the Monday after Black Friday there will be a fire sale on the AI phenom chatGPT!
45. Presidential advisory group: CABINET. There's the CABINET and then there's the KITCHEN CABINET.
48. [Theme clue]
51. Black Sea peninsula: CRIMEA. The Russian occupation of Crimea is an ongoing military occupation within Ukraine by the Russian Federation, which began on 20 February 2014 when the military-political, administrative, economic and social order of Russia was spread to the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and Sevastopol. The occupation of Crimea and Sevastopol was the beginning of the Russo-Ukrainian War.
52. Principle: TENET.
53. Mandolin kin: LUTES. A LUTE is any plucked string instrument with a neck and a deep round back enclosing a hollow cavity, usually with a sound hole or opening in the body. It may be either fretted or unfretted. I think it's only a distant kin of the mandolin, as it's more like a violin-sized guitar.. Here is Maryland lutenist Ronn McFarlane at St. David's Church in Baltimore, playing W. Lee's Reel accompanied by Carolyn Surrick on viola da gamba ...
54. [Theme reveal]
59. "Don't push that button!": ABORT. Or "Push that button to ABORT!"
60. Low-carb diet: KETO.
61. In unison: AS ONE.
62. "Stars on __": reality show hosted by William Shatner: MARS. Hand up if you're a FAN?
63. About: OR SO.
64. Fabric fold: PLEAT.
Down:
1. "Notorious" SCOTUS justice: RBG. Ruth Bader Ginsburg (March 15, 1933 – September 18, 2020) was nicknamed "Notorious" because she was formidable in the courtroom. She spent a lifetime flourishing in the face of adversity before being appointed a Supreme Court justice, where she successfully fought against gender discrimination. The comic opera Scalia/Ginsburg was written about her and Antonin Scalia, her political nemesis on the court, both of whom shared a love of that art form. She was recently given a posthumous honor by the elevation of her Jabots to the status of crosswordese ...
2. Musical gift: EAR.
3. Selma's st.: ALA. Selma is a city in the state of Alabama.
4. Prune: LOP.
5. Sitcom role for Brandy: MOESHA. MOESHA is an American television sitcom that aired on UPN from January 23, 1996, to May 14, 2001. The series stars R&B singer Brandy Norwood as Moesha Denise Mitchell, an African-American teenager living with her upper middle class family in the Leimert Park neighborhood of Los Angeles. Apparently she has step-mother issues ...
6. Embryo's home: UTERUS. Sounds cozy!
7. Yardstick, e.g.: RULER.
8. Small bay: INLET.
9. For instance: SAY.
10. Fill to the brim: TOP OFF.
11. Laundry room convenience: UTILITY SINK.
12. Forum top: TUNIC.
13. X-ray __: gadget advertised in classic comic books: SPEX. X-ray specs or X-ray glasses are an American novelty item, purported to allow users to see through or into solid objects. In reality, the spectacles merely create an optical illusion; no X-rays are involved. The current paper version is sold under the name "X-Ray SPEX"; a similar product is sold under the name "X-Ray Gogs". Standard equipment for those who think they are voyeurs.
16. City with the world's largest naval complex: NORFOLK. A CSO to our friend Jinx and his friend Zoё. Jinx tells me that her racing handle is Jugni (Hindi for "female firefly."), but at the racing kennel they called her "Cookie" ...
18. Genre that's an element of Kawaii metal: J POP.
21. Monty Python alum Michael: PALIN. In 1989 actor Michael PALIN retraced the fictitious steps of Jules Verne's Phileas Fogg to circumnavigate the wold in 80 days, sans airplane. Here's a trailer from the 7-part BBC television series ...
There have been several adaptations of Verne's story. We haven't seen
the Palin documentary, but we would highly recommend the more recent
PBS Masterpiece series starring David Tennant.
22. Realizes: REAPS.
23. Below: UNDER.
24. Production team member who shapes narratives: STORY EDITOR. As of this writing these folks are still on the picket line.
25. Slugger's stat: HRS.
26. Mama's Special Garden Sauce maker: RAGU.
30. ROTC school near D.C.: VMI. The Virginia Military Institute (VMI) is a public senior military college in Lexington, Virginia. It was founded in 1839 as America's first state military college and is the oldest public senior military college in the United States.
31. Civil rights pioneer __ B. Wells: IDA.
IDA Bell Wells-Barnett
(July 16, 1862 – March 25, 1931) was an American investigative journalist,
educator, and early leader in the civil rights movement. She was one of the
founders of the
National Association for the Advancement of Colored People
(NAACP). Wells dedicated her career to combating prejudice and
violence, and advocating for African-American equality—especially that of
women.
33. Art studio stand: EASEL.
34. Online magazine with a "Dear Prudence" advice column: SLATE. "Prudie" responds to your questions about relationships at home, work, and beyond. Dear Prudence is also the name of a song ...
36. Least original: STALEST.
37. Undefeated boxer Ali: LAILA. LAILA Amaria Ali (born December 30, 1977) is an American television personality and retired professional boxer who competed from 1999 to 2007. During her career, from which she retired undefeated, she held the WBC, WIBA, IWBF and IBA female super middleweight titles, and the IWBF light heavyweight title. Ali is widely regarded by many within the sport as one of the greatest female professional boxers of all time. She is the daughter of boxer Muhammad Ali
38. Friend: ALLY.
42. Insta upload: PIC.
44. Stopwatches: TIMERS.
45. "Just watch me!": CAN TOO.
46. Mimics: APES.
47. JPEG alternative: BITMAP. What is the difference between BITMAP (BMP) and JPEG files?
48. Island birthplace of shortstop Xander Bogaerts: ARUBA. Xander Bogaerts is an infielder for the San Diego Padres. Here are his stats ...
49. Catchall check box: OTHER.
50. Achievements: FEATS.
51. Happy as a __: CLAM. Clams are not always happy, only at high tide.
54. Possible UFC match ender: TKO.
Technical Knock Out.
What is the difference between a knockout and a technical knockout? Only
3 of Laila Ali's 24 victories
were won by a TKO.
55. Designer label initials: YSL. Yves Saint Laurent. But then you already knew that.
56. Java: JOE.
57. California's Santa __ Mountains: ANA. The Santa ANA Mountains are a short peninsular mountain range along the coast of Southern California in the United States. They extend for approximately 61 miles (98 km) southeast of the Los Angeles Basin largely along the border between Orange and Riverside counties.
58. Joined: MET. Also
the name of a building in New York
where people have often MET to see operas ...
Cheers,
Bill
And as always, thanks to Teri for proof reading and for her constructive criticism.
waseeley
17A. See 54-Across: GRAPE JELLY. Personally I prefer marmalade, a traditional English preserve. You can even make your own ...
|
|
Homemade Marmalade brought to you by Jacqui |
22A. See 54-Across: RUSH HOUR TRAFFIC. Getting stuck in TRAFFIC can be a real slow drag. To cope with the GRIDLOCK I'd suggest keeping a copy of this classic puzzle by Merl Reagle in your glove compartment.
36A. See 54-Across: SLAM DUNK. A SLAM DUNK, also simply known as DUNK, is a type of basketball shot that is performed when a player jumps in the air, controls the ball above the horizontal plane of the rim, and scores by shoving the ball directly through the basket with one or both hands. Some say that this one by Hamidou Diallo in 2019 is the greatest of all time. He jumps over Shaq, sinks the ball, and then opens his jersey to reveal a Superman shirt! ...
48A. See 54-Across: A DILLY OF A PICKLE. A very, very sticky situation and a piquant pun on a different kind of PICKLE.
And all the themers point to this one ...
54A. "I love this song!," and what might be said about 17-, 22-, 36-, and 48-Across?: THAT'S MY JAM. Personally I think JAM beats BOPS from last Thursday's puzzle.
Here's the grid ...
Here's the rest ...
Across:
1. Purview: REALM.
6. Novelist Leon: URIS. Leon Marcus Uris (August 3, 1924 – June 21, 2003) was a Baltimore born author of historical fiction who wrote many bestselling books including Battle Cry (1953), Exodus (1958), Mila 18 (1961) and Trinity (1976).
|
|
Leo Uris Israel in the 1950s |
10. Disapproving noises: TUTS. Also a long line of Egyptian pharaohs ...
14. "The Bare Necessities" bear: BALOO. From the Jungle Book soundtrack ...
15. Salade niçoise ingredient: TUNA. We first had this salad at The Café de la Gare in the Musée d'Orsay in Paris. Here's Julia Child's recipe.
|
| Salade Niçoise |
17. [Theme clue]
19. Weigh in: OPINE. Short for O Christmas Tree? There are only 102 shopping days left!
21. Long-winded: PROLIX. I resemble that remark!
|
22. [Theme clue].
27. Snares: ENTRAPS.
28. Overhead: ALOFT.
29. Hubbubs: ADOS.
30. Candlelit ceremony, e.g.: VIGIL. The classic candlelight VIGIL ceremony in our Church is called Tenabrae, usually held on the Wednesday before Easter. The service begins at twilight and as various hymns are sung and psalms are read, the candles in the church are extinguished one by one. When the last candle is snuffed out the participants leave in total darkness.
32. "Affirmative": YES.
35. Pay-__-view: PER.
36. [Theme clue]
39. Khan who founded Khan Academy: SAL. Khan Academy is an American non-profit[2] educational organization created in 2006 by Sal Khan. Its goal is creating a set of online tools that help educate students. The organization produces short lessons in the form of videos. Its website also includes supplementary practice exercises and materials for educators.
|
|
Sal Khan TED Conference 20111 |
41. Actress Shire: TALIA. TALIA Rose Shire (née Coppola; born April 25, 1946) is an American actress who played roles as Connie Corleone in The Godfather trilogy and Adrian Balboa in the Rocky series. For her work in The Godfather Part II and Rocky, Shire was nominated for Academy Awards for Best Supporting Actress and Best Actress, respectively, and for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Drama for her role in Rocky.
|
|
Talia Shire |
43. Cyber Monday sector: ETAIL. Hot tip -- the Monday after Black Friday there will be a fire sale on the AI phenom chatGPT!
45. Presidential advisory group: CABINET. There's the CABINET and then there's the KITCHEN CABINET.
48. [Theme clue]
51. Black Sea peninsula: CRIMEA. The Russian occupation of Crimea is an ongoing military occupation within Ukraine by the Russian Federation, which began on 20 February 2014 when the military-political, administrative, economic and social order of Russia was spread to the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and Sevastopol. The occupation of Crimea and Sevastopol was the beginning of the Russo-Ukrainian War.
|
|
Crimean Peninsula |
53. Mandolin kin: LUTES. A LUTE is any plucked string instrument with a neck and a deep round back enclosing a hollow cavity, usually with a sound hole or opening in the body. It may be either fretted or unfretted. I think it's only a distant kin of the mandolin, as it's more like a violin-sized guitar.. Here is Maryland lutenist Ronn McFarlane at St. David's Church in Baltimore, playing W. Lee's Reel accompanied by Carolyn Surrick on viola da gamba ...
54. [Theme reveal]
59. "Don't push that button!": ABORT. Or "Push that button to ABORT!"
60. Low-carb diet: KETO.
61. In unison: AS ONE.
62. "Stars on __": reality show hosted by William Shatner: MARS. Hand up if you're a FAN?
63. About: OR SO.
64. Fabric fold: PLEAT.
Down:
1. "Notorious" SCOTUS justice: RBG. Ruth Bader Ginsburg (March 15, 1933 – September 18, 2020) was nicknamed "Notorious" because she was formidable in the courtroom. She spent a lifetime flourishing in the face of adversity before being appointed a Supreme Court justice, where she successfully fought against gender discrimination. The comic opera Scalia/Ginsburg was written about her and Antonin Scalia, her political nemesis on the court, both of whom shared a love of that art form. She was recently given a posthumous honor by the elevation of her Jabots to the status of crosswordese ...
|
|
|
Ruth Bader Ginsburg Notorious RBG |
|
3. Selma's st.: ALA. Selma is a city in the state of Alabama.
4. Prune: LOP.
5. Sitcom role for Brandy: MOESHA. MOESHA is an American television sitcom that aired on UPN from January 23, 1996, to May 14, 2001. The series stars R&B singer Brandy Norwood as Moesha Denise Mitchell, an African-American teenager living with her upper middle class family in the Leimert Park neighborhood of Los Angeles. Apparently she has step-mother issues ...
6. Embryo's home: UTERUS. Sounds cozy!
7. Yardstick, e.g.: RULER.
8. Small bay: INLET.
9. For instance: SAY.
10. Fill to the brim: TOP OFF.
11. Laundry room convenience: UTILITY SINK.
12. Forum top: TUNIC.
13. X-ray __: gadget advertised in classic comic books: SPEX. X-ray specs or X-ray glasses are an American novelty item, purported to allow users to see through or into solid objects. In reality, the spectacles merely create an optical illusion; no X-rays are involved. The current paper version is sold under the name "X-Ray SPEX"; a similar product is sold under the name "X-Ray Gogs". Standard equipment for those who think they are voyeurs.
16. City with the world's largest naval complex: NORFOLK. A CSO to our friend Jinx and his friend Zoё. Jinx tells me that her racing handle is Jugni (Hindi for "female firefly."), but at the racing kennel they called her "Cookie" ...
|
| Zoё |
21. Monty Python alum Michael: PALIN. In 1989 actor Michael PALIN retraced the fictitious steps of Jules Verne's Phileas Fogg to circumnavigate the wold in 80 days, sans airplane. Here's a trailer from the 7-part BBC television series ...
22. Realizes: REAPS.
23. Below: UNDER.
24. Production team member who shapes narratives: STORY EDITOR. As of this writing these folks are still on the picket line.
25. Slugger's stat: HRS.
26. Mama's Special Garden Sauce maker: RAGU.
30. ROTC school near D.C.: VMI. The Virginia Military Institute (VMI) is a public senior military college in Lexington, Virginia. It was founded in 1839 as America's first state military college and is the oldest public senior military college in the United States.
|
|
Ida B. Wells |
34. Online magazine with a "Dear Prudence" advice column: SLATE. "Prudie" responds to your questions about relationships at home, work, and beyond. Dear Prudence is also the name of a song ...
37. Undefeated boxer Ali: LAILA. LAILA Amaria Ali (born December 30, 1977) is an American television personality and retired professional boxer who competed from 1999 to 2007. During her career, from which she retired undefeated, she held the WBC, WIBA, IWBF and IBA female super middleweight titles, and the IWBF light heavyweight title. Ali is widely regarded by many within the sport as one of the greatest female professional boxers of all time. She is the daughter of boxer Muhammad Ali
|
|
Laila Ali |
42. Insta upload: PIC.
44. Stopwatches: TIMERS.
45. "Just watch me!": CAN TOO.
46. Mimics: APES.
47. JPEG alternative: BITMAP. What is the difference between BITMAP (BMP) and JPEG files?
48. Island birthplace of shortstop Xander Bogaerts: ARUBA. Xander Bogaerts is an infielder for the San Diego Padres. Here are his stats ...
|
|
Xander Bogaerts |
50. Achievements: FEATS.
51. Happy as a __: CLAM. Clams are not always happy, only at high tide.
|
|
Happy Clams |
55. Designer label initials: YSL. Yves Saint Laurent. But then you already knew that.
56. Java: JOE.
57. California's Santa __ Mountains: ANA. The Santa ANA Mountains are a short peninsular mountain range along the coast of Southern California in the United States. They extend for approximately 61 miles (98 km) southeast of the Los Angeles Basin largely along the border between Orange and Riverside counties.
|
|
Santa Ana Mountains Orange County, CA |
.jpg)
|
|
The Metropolitan Opera House |
Cheers,
Bill
And as always, thanks to Teri for proof reading and for her constructive criticism.
waseeley
49 comments:
“Blank clue” puzzles are some of my least favorite to solve. They always take a huge amount of effort to solve, and the payoff often doesn’t seem to be worth the effort, IMHO. This puzzle was a case in point. Add to that the appearance of a number of obscurities, and you have what might be a recipe for disaster. However, through P&P I managed to solve this challenging puzzle, so I’m happy, if a bit disgruntled (for reasons mentioned above.) Subgenius out!
Base going to MARS on politics.
The air's too thin for republics.
But bloviating
And debating
Will leave politicians quite PROLIX!
There is a certain time at Yule
When gifting paint sets is a RULE.
Would-be artists
Could impart us,
For train engines, EASEL fuel!
{B+, A-.}
Good morning!
Solved this one left-to-right, top-to-bottom, and came here smug in my victory. Nope. Waseeley showed me the error of my ways. Wasn't familiar with the term PROLIX, but did know of an Xray glasses in the old comic books, so d-o inked in SPEC. Bzzzzt. Thanx for playing. Enjoyed it, nonetheless. Thanx, Bill, Jeff, Waseeley and Teri. (Thought there was only a single Tut, not a "long line" of 'em.)
Too many obscure names on top of a really lame cw.p.u.
Caught your reference to the lingerie store outside Baltimore on 14A Bare Necessities. FYI the store is now called Necessary Secrets. They had a name trademark dispute with an online retailer of the same name. The two ladies who own the shop are a hoot in their TV ads.
D-O @5:45 AM I'm sure you're right about the line of TUT, but my artistic license is hanging on my office wall. 😁
For all of you who find yourself in All the Wrong Places, here's DAB's bi-weekly puzzle.
D.Z. @6:13 AM I won't tell you how I knew that, but I did. Again I had to use my artistic license to make it fit the clue. 😃
Apropos of some comments we get here everyday, here are DAB's comments to his "All the Wrong Places" puzzle ...
"Do you find, disconsolate solver, that when you address yourself hopefully to a new crossword, expecting a little harmless recreation, perhaps some amusing wordplay, you are faced instead, whether you move down or across, with slang you’ve never used, movies you’ve never seen, brands you’ve never bought, songs you’ve never heard? The problem is that you’ve been looking for crosswords in all the wrong places! Here is where you belong, where the “wrong places” are really just silly, happy, friendly puns that just want the very best for you and yours."
That said, please keep coming to the LAT -- we have better reviewers! 🙄
Took 7:05 today for me to finish the jam session.
I am not a fan of the "See [some other clue]" clues, especially so many, but otherwise seemed like a Wednesday-level puzzle. Until I remembered it was Thursday.
Prolix crossing Palin and Spex wasn't the best, which was exacerbated by my original "tsks" instead of "tuts". Moesha crossing Baloo should've been avoided too, as well as the ascending staircase of proper nouns (Laila, VMI, Ida, Ragu, Palin, Norfolk).
Looking forward to adding/subtracting a letter (or 2 or 3) tomorrow.
Good morning.
Same error as D-O. SPEc instead of SPEX
Plus, I erred by having StATE instead of SLATE
Should have checked the crossing entries, and shouldn't have been so intent on finishing so quickly. SRY.
Hi, Jinx. I did not know that factoid about NORFOLK. I sometimes watch FantomWorks on MotorTrend. That's also in Norfolk. It's supposedly one of the largest auto restoration shops in the country. Their restorations are phenomenal.
Thank you, Bill, Jeff and Bill.
FIW, missing both my Naticks BALOa x MaESHA and bROLIX x bALIN. I had no idea about the first one, but thought about PROLIX. Then I decided that PROLIX was the shots my wife gets to prevent bone deterioration. WRONG - that's PROLIa. Erased tsks for TUTS and alert for ABORT.
Today is:
NATIONAL SCHOOL PICTURE DAY (taken by photographers who aren’t good enough to work at the DMV)
NATIONAL PARENTS DAY OFF (what kids’ pictures? Do we have kids? Not today!)
NATIONAL LIVE CREATIVE DAY (my creativity peaked with a Bourbon Bomb Cocktail, but then came along…)
NATIONAL SOBER DAY (I gave up alcohol fairly easily, but I can’t seem to shake off…)
NATIONAL EAT A HOAGIE DAY (and then I have to chase it with…)
NATIONAL CREAM-FILLED DONUT DAY
What a big shout out from Bill. Many, many thanx. I thought it was Bayou Tony's day, with the Monty Python clue and RUSH fill.
I love Jimmy Buffett's Something So Feminine About A Mandolin. He wrote it with his wife Jane.
I liked this one, mainly because I admired the JAM connections. I didn't completely get it until Bill explained it, and it still took me a hot minute to get the basketball JAM. GRAPE JELLY sent me down the path of toppings similar to JAM. Gotta get my mind out of the fridge.
Thanks to Bill and Jeff for the Thursday-level workout, and to Bill 'n' Teri for another fine review.
TTP, Fantomworks is only about a mile from my home. Didn't know there was a TV show about them, and haven't been there. In addition to being the home of the largest naval base in the world, NORFOLK is also NATO's North American HQ. The area is also home to the USA's only shipyard building aircraft carriers, and one of only two shipyards that build subs. The area also has the only East Coast Master Jet Base, a large USMC base, NASA's Langley Research Center, and Jefferson Labs.
On the down side, I can't help but wonder how many enemy nuclear warheads are pre-aimed at this area.
FIW. Too many crossings that required a WAG to fill in. Baloo and Moesha, Sal and Slate, Prolix and Palin. That last one I guessed wrong and had the letter B instead of P.
I get the theme, but for me it was lame and contrived. This puzzle was no fun to do.
VMI is nearly 200 miles and a 3 hour drive from DC. Not exactly "close". There are a number of schools with ROTC programs that are closer, but I already had the I so I figured this must be it.
I'm not a fan of clues that are basically "see xxx" and require perps and guesses to fill them in. I purposely avoid the unifier clues because they make the puzzles too easy. Never looked at the clue for THAT'S MY JAM. So, GRAP__ELLY was filled and I filled up the jar.
But finishing the puzzle was a SLAM DUNK. Just a few unknowns= MOESHA or Brandy, PROLIX, SLATE, & MARS by Capt. Kirk. BITMAP and ARUBA were WAGS.
SAL Khan- a local kid who did well. Went to Grace King HS in Metairie.
Heard of KPOP and the JELLY took care of JPOP.
Good Morning:
Seeing cross-referenced clues always sets the tone for a frustrating solve for me. I just find this gimmick annoyingly tedious and less pleasurable than an ordinary, straightforward solve. I needed perps for Baloo, Prolix, Moesha, and Palin and the reveal, That’s My Jam, was totally known. The theme was well-hidden due to the cluing-style, although someone more observant might have seen the jam connection. Nice CSO to Jinx at Norfolk. Leon Uris and Herman Wouk were two of my favorite authors back in the day.
Thanks, Bill and Jeff, and congrats to Bill on his debut and, Jeff, your blog is greatly missed. Thanks to our Bill and Teri for another enlightening and enjoyable review, filled with nuggets of facts and fun trivia. Thanks for showcasing the beautiful Zoe, AKA, Cookie.
Have a great day.
Like DO thought I’d secured a FIR but the reveal threw cold water on that. I had SPEc and PROLIc as well.
(Are the themed answers names of musical groups?)
Had the SW all messed up for a spell with lyres for LUTES , alert for ABORT.
0ther Inkovers: tsks/TUTS , Layla/LAILA, Balou/BALOO
Kawaii metal? 🤔 huh. “Stars” on Meth? guess not 🤭 … PROLIX ? SAL Khan?
“Notorious” Supreme Court judge. CT was too short 😉. Michael PALIN quote: “You betcha, I can see England from my house”
A master gardener knows how to “prune” , I, on the other hand tend to LOP 🪓 😳
Use a guillotine…..TOPOFF
It may be just the cot but it’s: ____ Still abed
1953 ”_____ a River”….. CRIMEA
1965 “The Ballad of Cat ____“BALOO
Example of “high-end” trendy digs….ALOFT
Truly hated….ABORT
Getting darker when I leave the office at 6 already, yuck. Each summer seems shorter.
I started with a Natick, and I finished with a Natick...
Trying to figure out the theme was the only thing that kept me interested...
talk about being between a rock and a hard place...
Good Morning! Alas, I FIW…The NE was the last to fill SPEC -> SPEX and two unknowns _ALIN crossing _ROLIc Ugh! This was a trudge today, IMHO. Too many WAGS and too few sure fills on which to build. Not a fun puzzle or theme.
WOs: Tsks -> TUTS. Slugger: first went if a “boxer” & had koS -> baseball & HRS.
CSO to Jinx. NORFOLK was a WAG, but a solid fill. Yikes, your comment!
Thanks, Bill & Teri for your helpful recap.
Musings
-proliX/Palin/speX gave me two bad cells. Some days you get the bear and some days…
-K-POP seemed just fine and GRAPE KELLY seemed to be the start of a letter-replacement gimmick but I did get out of that
-The first rule of improv: Always say YES
-SPEX were big advertisers on my 1950’s comic books
-A teacher actually asked me to teach a lesson last week (the nerve!) and I used Kahn Academy to review shifting functions which I had not seen in decades. Like riding a bike…
-E-TAIL: I prefer brick and mortar stores but I can find the most obscure things I need online. Today I am getting a lawn chair leg repair kit from our cwd friend ETSY
-I hope to shoot 42 OR SO today
-EAR – People without this gift make for interesting auditions on American Idol
-Yardsticks are not used in science classes but are in the real world in the USA
-I forgot to use my Apple Watch TIMER function this week and a sprinkler ran all night.
-I played a lot of Pacman in the 80’s with BITMAP characters
My least favourite puzzle 🧩 this week. C’mon Jeff 😳!! But a great recap. Thanks Bill….. kkFlorida
Well, lots of comments today. I don’t have time to read them all so some of my comments may be WEES. I do not like CWs with cross-referencing clues. I do not like CWs with many obscure names. So I was not a fan of this CW. I did soldier my way through it to FIR in…well, a long time. New word: PROLIX. WOs: TSK:TUT, SAM:SAL. Thanx for the excellent write-up, Bill. Now gotta meet my solar technician to fix a problem.
TUTS, I really got stuck in this JAM. DNF. As lots of commenters already said, too many unknowns for me and a theme I don’t care for.
I did enjoy Waseely’s recap.
I remember reading Leon Uris’ novel not mentioned but his best known: Exodus, when it first came out. A movie was made from it starring Paul Newman and Eva Marie Saint, two actors I loved, and many others.
Balloons is the best in jungle book, not a lingerie store
Baloo, spell check hell
Thank you!
DNF and did not have fun while I could not finish. The first run through gave me GRAPE JELLY and THATS MY JAM (did anyone ever SAY that?) so I was looking for apple, strawberry, plum, etc.
Anon@7:07 - Perhaps this is an amateur remark, but I like proper names because they are exact (tsks/TUTS?) and give me a start to obscure clues (JPEG?). A Natick, to me, is just something I don’t know. I remembered BALOO and knew MOESHA (granddaughters talked about Brandy) and also knew PROLIX/PALIN as well as LAILA, VMI, IDA, TALIA, NORFOLK and URIS. Stumbling blocks were clues for SAL, JPOP, SLATE, and BITMAP and looking for that fruit.
I guess a TUNIC is a kind of toga but a tunic is a top that ends well above the knee. I can’t imagine Julius Caesar in one.
Happy day, all!
FIW on this stinker, in the oft-mentioned NE corner. Also not a fan of this style. Poor clues didn't help. Jelly is NOT jam, one ABORTS something already started, and VMI produces REGULAR officers (along with the Citadel and Norwich), Not reserve officers.
Hola!
Can't read the comments right now as I have to watch my gr-grandson who is a lightning bug and outpaces me. And because I need to watch him I could not fully concentrate on the puzzle. Ergo, I have many errors. Sigh.
KETO should have been obvious to me as I have the JELLY cubes.
GRAPE JELLY is not my favorite. I prefer strawberry.
Later. Maybe. Have a wonderful day, everyone!
Parsan, at 11:01
Me too! I really appreciate proper names, for the certainty they give me when I know them. This is in contrast to other clues with a possibility of more than one answer, e.g. tut and tsk.
And when I don't know a proper name, that's no worse than not knowing any other clue.
Anon @10:34 & 10:35, obviously BALLOONS are great at a lingerie store! That's what puts the "linger" in lingerie.
Rah Virginia Mil again. Love it. I got 54 across then was able to figure the rest. Nice puzzle, very enjoyable, and not just because my alma mater was in it. Well, maybe. GC
Tante Nique @10:23 AM I believe you missed my mention of Exodus, which indeed was Uris' most popular novel. The movie was really excellent too. When I whined a few weeks back about Leonard Bernstein not getting an Emmy for his score for the 1960 film version of West Side Story (it was not actually an original score for he had composed it for the Broadway musical that preceded it), I researched who had actually gotten the award that year and it turned out to be Ernest Gold for the film Exodus: get ready for another ear worm.
Sandyanon @11:37 AM Your logic on proper names makes perfect sense. Thanks for that.
Jinx @11:56 AM. You're a rogue Jinx and I love it! ��
Interesting Thursday puzzle, many thanks, Bill and Jeff. And I always enjoy your commentary and pictures, Bill and Teri, thanks for those too.
Well, I haven't had breakfast yet and am a bit hungry this morning, so was happy to see plenty of food references. We're going to have a low-carb or KETO diet, with some TUNA and some bread with GRAPE JELLY and JAM, and a salad with some of Mama's special garden sauce with the help of RAGU. Sounds like a pretty good lunch, doesn't it. And afterwards we can work on some art on an EASEL while listening to the music played by LUTES. Sounds like a pretty good day.
Have a great one, everybody.
Parsan, I also like it when I know the proper name, but the trouble I have is when I don't. The proper nouns limit one's ability to work it out. I knew both Baloo (my eldest loved "Jungle Book" when he was very little) and Moesha (no idea why), so this isn't sour grape(jam)s, but imagine if you didn't know either one. Intersections like that (and Palin/Prolix) should be avoided, in my humble opinion.
Regarding VMI, I remember reading that in the late 1990s, when the first woman/girl enrolled, that there wasn't even a box on the application for the applicant to indicate gender. It was just assumed that all applicants would be male.
From 7:07am.
Waseely @1:04. Oh, my, that music! It brings back so many memories. Thank you.
Misty @1:05 PM And thanks for that Misty -- you're making me hungry!
Hi Y'all! My teeth automatically clenched (JAMmed?) when I read Jeff Chen's name because I knew I was in for a struggle on the cw. Finished it, but...
Thanks, Bill & Teri Seeley.
I read a lot of Leon URIS back in his heyday! Saw the movie Exodus in a Sunday matinee in Boston in the midst of a lot of women wearing Star of David necklaces. Interesting experience for a girl from Kansas farm country where there were no Jewish people.
DNK: PROLIX, SAL, SRY, MARS, RBG was "notorious", SPEX, JPOP, PALIN, SLATE, BITMAP, ARUBA. Knew LAILA but not spelling.
The Lightning Bug's mother finally came home and relived me. He was supposed to be napping but jumped out of bed when he heard her.
Jeff Chen's puzzles are always a good challenge and I see that he is now mentoring other constructors. That should be interesting when they launch their own puzzles.
According to the news reports yesterday's storm caused a lot of damage: torn off roofs, uprooted trees, and debris thrown around. Luckily our own area was spared much of that destruction.
Now I can resume packing for my upcoming trip.
Anon@1:32 - I do understand your point. SAL/SLATE was an example for me today . Not knowing either, one then tries to pick a letter that makes sense for both words. As an aside, I also think proper names can sometimes identify the general age (knowledge) of the CW solver. Several have not heard of ARLENE DAHL, a recent CW answer, but she was a major star in the 40’s and 50’s and movie goers in that era would most certainly know her. Then bloggers like JINX who seem to know bands and musicians from the 70’s and 80’s, and you have occasionally mentioned something foreign to you, makes me sure I am your senior.
Sandyanon@11:37 explains it better than I.
Hand up for SPEC instead.
Even though I grokked the theme I agree that I enjoyed Bill’s recap more than the actual puzzle…
I get the feeling Mssr. Chen’s best talent is obfuscation? 🤣
====> Darren / L.A.
You're most welcome, Waseeley 3:02PM. Hope you had a delicious lunch.
I lean toward the side of not particularly liking this puzzle much. It does have some stuff I liked but the stuff I didn’t like overwhelmed it.
Hand up for a FIW at ?ROLIc. "X" made sense but I thought it was too close to "X-ray" in the clue so I tried a "C" instead.
I do not know much about basketball. Can someone please explain how SLAM DUNK connected to JAM?
I agree w/ Charlie Echo @ 11:15 that JELLY is not JAM but OK, whatever...not a deal-breaker.
Thanks for your puzzle Bill and Jeff! Congrats on your debut, Jeff!
Also Thanks to waseeley for his work on today's write-up!
sumdaze @9:14 PM I'm not a B BALL guy (way to short), but if you run the video of Hamidou Diallo performing the SLAM DUNK, you could say he JAMS the ball down through the hoop. It is Bill's debut and he's entitled to a little cruciverbal license on that one. OTOH I agree with WEES said about GRAPE JELLY. That's why I used marmalade for my example JAM.
I had atough time with todays puzzle, and what with the special names, and the self referenced clues, ... phew it was a slog. But, I learnt sumthing ( Hi Sumdaze ?!!! ) and that made ot all worthwhile.
Thank you Bill Pipal and Jeff Chen for a very very challenging puzzle. Jeff Chen, I've had before, and he is to be afeared ... Congrats on your debut, Bill Pipal. ... I wonder if 'Pipal' is really 'People', but for a Friday CW puzzle ?
** Actually, Pipal is an indian name for a banyan fig tree, very long lived and supposed to represent longetivity, and the type of tree where the Buddha first meditated, hence a holy tree.
Also the pipal leaves can be treated with water to highlight the spines, and art is painted on them. Very commonly used as a medium for painting.
Thank you Bill Seeley and Teri, for the fantastic commentary and lots of knowledge and wonderful links.
Thx, waseeley @ 10:09. Michael Jordan did a movie called Space JAM but I never saw it.
The link I provided above, does not work, and I dont know how to fix it...
If you ask Google Seach, images .... for Pipal indian Art ... you will get hundreds of images.
I'm sorry, I tried hard but cannot fix this problem.
I have read most of Leon Uris' books, and admire him so much ... that I once thought he was a mythical name !! But, I have also read his biography, and have it on my bookshelf.
REgarding, Mr. Jinx and his Zoe, or Jugni ... I was not familiar with the hindi name of Jugni ... or that certain insects were named by gender ...
However, if you reasearch Jugni under Wikipedia, you will find that it is also a folk music form, in the Punjab ... and in a spiritual sense, ... has a meaning of a much deeper significance. I hope the dog has provided Mr. Jinx great joy and happiness...
I was going to load up several interesting links, but I have failed miserably in all of them ... so I'll give up while I'm ahead.
Good night, and TGIF.
Post a Comment