Theme: "Made From Scratch" - Each common phrase is rephrased as if it's money-related.
24A. Celebrity wealth?: STARBUCKS.
49A. Bocce tournament winnings?: BOWLING GREEN.
65A. Written request for financial aid?: CAPITAL LETTER.
88A. Means for Bambi's friend Flower?: SKUNK CABBAGE.
111A. Family fortune?: BLOOD BANK.
4D. Petty cash at a national newsmagazine?: TIME CHANGE.
16D. Rent money?: FLATBREAD.
74D. Gillette company revenue?: RAZOR CLAMS.
77D. Gala fundraiser?: DOUGH BALL.
I learned that "scratch" is a slang for money from Boomer. Otherwise, I would not have appreciated the cleverness of the puzzle title.
We often see two theme entries in Down slots. Not four. Loved how four of the theme entries intersect one another.
Across:
5. __ mater: ALMA.
9. Tablet that uses AirPlay: IPAD.
13. Mine corridors: SHAFTS.
19. Hybrid tangelo: UGLI. Very juicy. Always reminds me of the ugly pears in Lai Yang, Shandong. So juicy.
20. Page: BEEP.
21. Part of TLC: CARE.
22. Jean of "Bombshell": HARLOW.
23. "Ozma of Oz" novelist L. Frank __: BAUM.
26. Lavish home: ESTATE.
27. Add to an email, as a screenshot: EMBED.
29. Sour fruit: SLOE.
30. Winter gear with lots of buckles: SKI BOOT. Looks heavy.
32. Save: RESCUE. 56. Day saver: HERO.
34. Joints with caps: KNEES.
37. Minuscule machine: NANOBOT.
40. Presidential candidate Kamala: HARRIS.
42. Ang Lee's birthplace: TAIWAN. Mandatory military service there.
45. Nutritional amt.: RDA.
46. Going according to plan: ON TARGET.
52. Ramshackle shelters: LEAN-TOS.
53. "Tell the truth now!": DON'T LIE.
54. Tehran currency: RIALS.
55. Barracks boss: SARGE.
58. Home of the NCAA's Buckeyes: OSU.
59. Nada: DIDDLY. Always with "squat".
60. Kin of -ule: ETTE.
61. Fruit in a tropical smoothie: PAPAYA. Papaya milk is very popular in Taiwan and Guangzhou.
63. College town north of Des Moines: AMES. And 93. Baptist university in Waco, Texas: BAYLOR.
64. "__ too shabby!": NOT. Got some nice figs and made wild rice & fig salad yesterday. So good.
69. Supervillain Luthor: LEX.
72. __-dieu: PRIE. The prayer bench.
73. Made curly: PERMED.
74. Behind: REAR.
75. Like corduroy: RIDGED.
78. Mumbai honorific: SRI.
81. __-Cola: COCA.
82. Comics read from right to left: MANGA. Same with old Chinese comics, or newspapers.
83. Battery terminal: ANODE.
84. Shouts of triumph: HOORAHS.
86. In a fog: WOOZILY.
90. Slick tricks: FAST ONES.
91. Brain scan letters: EEG.
92. Carol opening: ADESTE. "Adeste Fideles"
94. Hugh Laurie TV role: DR HOUSE.
97. "The Mystery of __ Drood": Dickens novel: EDWIN.
99. Hothouse flower: ORCHID.
103. Breaks apart: BUSTS UP.
106. Reps: AGTS.
108. Schussing spot: SLOPE.
109. Scorch: SCATHE. I only know "scathing".
116. More unctuous: OILIER.
117. Pull down: EARN.
118. Morales of "La Bamba": ESAI. And
122. "Blue Bloods" org.: NYPD. I liked him in "NYPD Blue".
119. Common gum flavor: MINT.
120. Recycling bundlers: BALERS.
121. Loaves that may be seeded: RYES.
123. Salty bodies of water: SEAS.
Down:
2. Best effort: A GAME.
3. Caddie's bagful: CLUBS.
5. Core muscles: ABS.
6. "Sure, why not": LET'S.
7. Hello Fresh offering: MEAL KIT. Healthy choice.
8. Home Depot work apparel: APRONS.
9. Post-OR area: ICU. Please keep my sister-in-law Connie in your thoughts and prayers. Her neck just refuses to heal. Now she's going to have the surgery on Tuesday.
10. __-Man: PAC.
11. Sacred synagogue cabinets: ARKS.
12. Pigeonhole's place: DESK.
13. The whole __: SHEBANG.
14. Sports: HAS ON.
15. "Star Wars" droid nickname: ARTOO.
17. Small fry: TOT.
18. Scand. land: SWE.
25. Wax producer: BEE.
28. Argentine icon María Eva __ de Perón: DUARTE. Only know her as Eva Peron.
31. Idiotic: INANE.
33. "By that logic ... ": ERGO.
35. Town across the Thames from Windsor: ETON. And 93. Thames landmark: BIG BEN.
36. Handled: SAW TO.
38. "The Black Pearl" novelist Scott: O'DELL. Unknown to me. I thought the book might be about Pele. Nope. Real pearl dealer.
39. Flowering plant also known as bitter buttons: TANSY. Those buttons must be bitter then.
41. Mold into a new form: RESHAPE.
43. Woes: ILLS.
44. Super Smash Bros. console: WII U.
46. "WandaVision" star Elizabeth: OLSEN.
47. "Cool beans": NEATO. Spitzboov used to say "Cool beans!"
48. "The Goldfinch" writer Donna: TARTT.
49. "Heck yeah!": BOO YA.
50. Rosey of football's "Fearsome Foursome": GRIER. Hmm, quite a few "Fearsome Foursome". No Vikings, but these guys were also fearsome.
51. Purges (of): RIDS.
53. "Rats": DRAT.
57. Prefix with dermal: EPI.
59. Contacted privately, briefly: DM'ED.
61. Shelled out: PAID.
62. Yodeler's peak: ALP.
63. Eroded: ATE AWAY.
65. Annie Dillard's "Pilgrim at Tinker __": CREEK.
66. Café con __: LECHE.
67. God with wings: EROS.
68. Premium film network: TMC.
69. First Soviet leader: LENIN.
70. Birdie topper: EAGLE.
71. Pictures of health?: X-RAYS. Great clue.
72. PC scrolling key: PG DN.
75. Leveled, in London: RASED.
76. Graphic novel role: INKER.
78. Fruit-flavored juice brand: SOBE.
79. Steals from: ROBS.
80. Choleric: IRATE. Never used "choleric".
82. Takes a drive: MOTORS.
84. God of the underworld: HADES.
85. Got older: AGED. When I left Guangzhou, Xiao Pan, step-daughter of Carmen, was just a little girl. Now she has own her little girl.
 |
| Carmen, 10/2/2024 |
87. Norway's most populous city: OSLO.
89. Chair wheels: CASTERS.
90. Genre associated with science fiction: FANTASY.
95. Many a navel: OUTIE.
96. Theater employee: USHER.
98. Blob of gum: WAD.
100. Dawg: HOMIE.
101. Bucky Beaver's toothpaste: IPANA. Have not seen this entry for a while.
102. Shoulder muscles, briefly: DELTS.
104. Lyft rival: UBER.
105. Latitude: PLAY. I don't get this clue.
107. Lose one's cool: SNAP.
109. Blubber: SOB.
110. Spy-fi org.: CIA.
112. Rocks that need refinement: ORE.
113. Add-__: extras: ONS.
114. Rib: KID.
C.C.
25 comments:
One of my favorite clues/answers? “In a fog” - “Woozily.”
I didn’t have too much trouble with this puzzle, in spite of a few obscure names. All the themed answers were standard in-the-language phrases and I thought that the puzzle was fair, for the most part. FIR, so I’m happy.
Good morning!
Gary must be "of a certain age" to remember Brusha-Brusha-Brusha and Harlow. Forgot to read the puzzle title, but sussed the theme without it. This one came together in under 20, so it must've been pretty easy. I liked it. Thanx, Gary and C.C.
"Latitude" figuratively give room to maneuver. A car's steering wheel has "play" in it - you can move it a little before it takes effect and starts turning the car's tires. Give someone some latitude - his action or answer may not be the precise one you're looking for.
Good Morning:
It seems as though Gary is a natural when it comes to Sunday grids, whether solo or with a partner. I’ve enjoyed his offerings including today’s. I didn’t understand the title until after completion, so that made the solve more challenging. I loved the theme and execution and the clever themer cluing.
Even though there were a few unknowns, Duarte, Manga, Taiwan, etc., perps were fair, so no complaints. A scant Sunday grid count of 22 TLWs added to a clean and junk-free offering.
Thanks, Gary, for a pleasant Sunday solve and thanks, CC, for the always interesting and informative “bird’s eye view” of the constructor’s talents and achievements. Best wishes to Connie with the surgery.
Have a great day.
Took 18:06 to finish this one.
I found this to be one of the better Sunday puzzles as almost all of the themers seemed "in-the-language," as SubG said.
I didn't know: prie, leche, Odell, Harlow, Tartt, Edwin, Ipana, ule/ette, razor clams, and I thought Hades was the place, not the guy.
As for today's actresses, I didn't know Harlow (see above), and I always hesitate on how to spell Olsen/Olson (today, it's Olsen).
Loved seeing "Bowling Green".
Go Falcons!
Congrats to my Yankees who are World Series bound! Subway Series? Or are the Dodgers too powerful for the Mets to overcome? ⚾️
No horses in that race so will talk about the puzzle instead. I found it a little stickier than recent Sundays, which is a good thing. Had Ribbed instead of Ridged and couldn't shake it. Didn't know Plie so that area sunk me. Vertical themers are always harder to parse, or I would have easily seen that Doughball couldn't begin with a B. Still a fun outing.
A fun puzzle. Mrs. Hululi and I make the Sunday crossword a team effort. Showing my age, I immediately knew what Bucky Beaver's toothpaste was.
FIR. Despite a lot of unknowns for me, there were enough perps to see me through.
I got the theme early and that helped a lot. Only answer that had me a bit stumped, and the last to fall, was skunk cabbage.
Overall a fairly enjoyable puzzle.
FIR, but erased rills for RIDGED, wears for HAS ON, flat broke for FLAT BREAD, green for GRIER, and imed for DMED.
BOWLING GREEN (Kentucky) is where Corvettes are assembled. There is also a BOWLING GREEN, Ohio, but I think it's primarily a college town.
When with "cathode" get its dues beside Ektorp ANODE?
When will AMAL be clued "Chick who bagged Clooney?"
I remember "the whole SHEBANG," but I've been saying "the whole enchilada" for so long I nearly forgot it.
The only DUARTE I knew was a little town in LA County. But don't cry for me, Argentina.
FLN - Copy Editor, don't let the cowardly anons get you down. I like your writing, and I'm sure most of our fellow Cornerites do also.
Thanks to Gary for the Sunday challenge. Not my favorite from you, but it'll do and a whole hell of a lot better than anything my dumb mass could create. And thanks to CC for the tour.
Lots of synonyms for money these days. The way things are going Monopoly money might trade with the USD in few years.
I wanted RIBBED for the Corduroy before RIDGED took over.
It took perps to put WOOZILY on the grid.
MANGA- new word for me.
Others filled by perps. DR HOUSE, TUBER, MEAL KIT, DUARTE, O'DELL, TANSY, OLSEN, CREEK. But those were easy unknowns.
ESTATE- when you 'leave' it's what is left over. and it usually isn't a 'Lavish home'.
Rosie GRIER was one of RFK's bodyguards when Sirhan Sirhan shot him.
One of the other 'Fearsome Foursome' was not Elizabeth, but Merlin OLSEN
The SKI BOOTs pictured are the old style, The newer ones are more comfortable.
Gary might be hiding after the Cornhuskers loss to Indiana yesterday.
Upon seeing the title I was expecting something different for the theme but figured it out after getting the first few themers. FIR in 46:15 after correcting the P to a D, Piddly and DIDDLY mean the same thing, and PMED worked also. The clue for HARRIS was anything but obscure. We’ve had EDWIN twice in the past week, not a whole lot of famous people by that name. DNK TANSY, DUARTE, ODELL, TARTT or CREEK and TUBER as clued. CSO to Boomer with BOWLING. Buc-ee Beaver is now known as the mascot for the over the top gas station chain, if you’ve never been, you gotta go. Thanks Gary for the Sunday fun, nice cluing, and to C.C. for explaining it all!
Gary Larson challenged us about a week ago, and I welcome his return engagement today.
As usual, he came up with an instructive and delightful puzzle. There were quite a few theme answers, several of which were vertical. And many of them crossed horizontal themers.
It was great to see Jean Harlow in the puzzle. She was the Hollywood sexpot of the 1930's who died way too young (26).
I nearly got stymied by naticks in two different western sections.The first one had the writer of The Goldfinch crossing with a kin of -ule, with Evita's middle name menacing nearby. The other natick was just under the first one: "Pilgrim at Tinker _____, PC scrolling key, Hugh Laurie TV role, and Graphic novel role.
With some limited perp help in these two areas--as well as several wags--I got through those two areas.
Thaks, Gary, for another enjoyable and clever puzzle.
Thanks, Jinx
Hats off to Gary. Very nice theme and puzzle. A couple if sticky areas, the couduroy and the fog. Almost misspelled Rosie's name, eE instead of IE.
Elsewhere all straightforward.
Pumpkin spice is taking over the world.
Wherewithal.
Musings
-A puzzle that was very POPULAR with this SCIENCE guy
-Fill in the blanks: Here I come to save the day, that means that ___ ___ is on the way. Answer below. He was a contemporary of Bucky Beaver.
-The racist, misogynistic and crude language of DR HOUSE shows that as long as a TV show is making money, it's full speed ahead
-A podcaster I really like calls a pitcher who is constantly hurt a hothouse ORCHID
-Joann says she does not care what I HAVE ON, but as soon as she sees what I have picked out…
-TANSY/PANSY correction was my last fill
-Years ago, Omaha had several 70mm movie theaters with reserved seating and USHERS.
-I loved the personal pix, C.C.!
-BTW, Mighty Mouse was that day-saving HERO
-Big Easy: Nah, I’m still here. Yesterday’s disaster shows we are a long way away from respectability.
My energy was a little low for this end of week challenge! Never heard of SKUNK CABBAGE, which grows only in northeastern North America. Mrs. Peron's maiden name was unknown to me. DNK ODELL, TANSY, or IPANA. Have heard of WII, but not WII U. FIW with EkG instead of EEG, and failure to figure out the crossing INKER. Close, but no cigar.
Thanks, Gary Larson, for another clever puzzle, and thanks, C.C., for explaining it and for bringing in references and photos from your roots in China. I wish Connie all the best. She is lucky to have you on her side.
I have struggled to think of a word using -ule as a suffix. A CAPSULE is not a small 'caps' and a FERRULE is not a small 'ferr'.
Hey, loan me some "scratch". All the cute theme answers were pretty easy to figure. This was a fun puzzle. No complaints. Sorry to hear about Connie. A messed up neck is no fun. Almost impossible to get comfortable.
Thanks to Gary for today's puzzle! Not 'easy money' for me. I FIW with a few errant cells. I was impressed to see 9 themers! FLAT BREAD was my favorite of those. I also liked SHEBANG.
Thanks to C.C. for taking us through this one pro bono! Your fig salad sounds delicious! They grow delicious mission figs here. If you see Jerusalem artichokes in a store you should buy them. They are also called sunchokes. When I can find them, I roast them with olive oil and rosemary. They have a mild, comforting taste ... maybe like roasted potatoes crossed with boiled artichoke hearts.
I'm sorry to hear this about Connie. Sending her my best.
This was, imho, one of Mssr. Larson’s most enjoyable ones in recent memory — loved the hook (FLATBREAD was a hoot!). Like @desper-Otto, I forgot to check out the puzzle title before starting, but it didn’t make life today any harder toward the FIR.
I only have one clue I’m thinkin’ was a bit shaky: “mine corridors” for SHAFTS. In mine tech, that’s a vertical dig, whereas a tunnel, drift, or adit is a horizontal dig; a corridor is like a hallway. They don’t call it an elevator corridor, right? 😆 AGTS was a bit iffy too.
Hand up for wanting RIbbED in 78A, until DOUGHBALL showed up. Everything else pretty much fell into place, with the Midwest being the stickiest for me, what with that tough TARRT and ETTE crossing 😜
I guess I qualify as an olde farte, knowing who Bucky Beaver was; is IPANA even sold anymore? And I haven’t seen SOBE in the market for donkeys years, either…
Thanks for another great review, C.C. — 🤞🏽best to your sis-in-law Connie 🤞🏽
====> Darren / L.A.
I liked this puzzle a lot. Gary Larson is so talented. I especially like SKUNK CABBAGE, DIDDLY, WOOZILY, SHEBANG, CASTERS, OILIER ("oozing around the floor" like Zoltan Karpathy in My Fair Lady), and WAD. Fun words.
I couldn't squeeze MANSION into that ESTATE space, nor would ATTACH fit where EMBED went. I so much wanted PANSY, not being familiar with the TANSY, but NANOBOP didn't cut it, even though I like the sound of it (like teeny bop).
So, is INANEhiker an "Idiotic" hiker?
Good wishes to Connie.
Enjoyable Sunday puzzle, many thanks, Gary. And your commentary, and pictures, are always a delight, C.C.--many thanks for those too. My best wishes that your sister-in-law will have a good recovery.
Given that the puzzle started with ALMA mater, I was glad to see that we could expect some TACT and CARE in the way things would be handled, including RESCUE for anyone who would need it. We were than invited to visit an ESTATE which unfortunately included a whole set of LEAN-TO shelters, but it did have a pleasant diner where we were able to order some PAPAYA, along with some RYE bread and some COCA cola. Much better than that SKUNK CABBAGE we were served at that crazy diner last week. All in all, I'd call this an A-GAME for our chance to enjoy this day.
Have a healthy and happy week coming up, everybody.
long day ,first at church and then friends from Texas who decided to fly in on their airplane after a family reunion on their way back home to Texas!
Fun puzzle that took awhile with size but slowly chipped away with an amusing theme - I also enjoy when the themers are both horizontal AND vertical
I have mostly seen -ule with anatomic terms like venULE - it is the smallest blood vessels that connects the capillary to a vein. On the artery side it is an arteriole that connects the artery to the capillary
I took a moment with 22A HARLOW because I was thinking of the 2019 movie "Bombshell" which had an all star cast including Charlize Theron, Margot Robbie, Nicole Kidman, and John Lithgow rather than the quotation marks for a nickname You can still see it on Amazon Prime IIRC
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bombshell_(2019_film)
I remember Rosey GRIER from his football career -but somewhere in the brain remembered that he liked to do needlepoint or knit as a stress reducer
Thanks CC for the blog and Gary for the puzzle
While we're nostalgically Ipana-ing, let's not forget Lavoris, a once-plentiful mouthwash, now drowned out on store shelves by the ubiquitous Listerine!
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