Themeless Saturday by Kyle Dolan
This is my 17th Saturday puzzle by Dr. Dolan and it took just the right amount of effort for me to earn a satisfying "got 'er done!" Kyle did write to me to add a comment on his FRERE JACQUES ENTRY. It tells of how great constructors can get an idea and hang on to it until they can use it.
1. With 46-Across, noncarbonated drink with bubbles: BOBA and 46. See 1-Across: TEA - I learned of this by doing cwds but almost every student in the school where I sub knew of it.
5. K-pop group that visited the White House in 2022: BTS.
8. Tunnel (into): BORE - If you BORE under the English Channel you hope you meet up with the country coming from the other direction and have a Chunnel. They did meet 30+ years ago.
12. Has to pay: OWES.
13. Hilarious types: RIOTS.
15. Market investment opportunities, for short: IPO'S.
16. Was totally satisfying: HIT THE SPOT.
18. Tart shavings: ZEST.
19. One- or two-star flag officer: REAR ADMIRAL - Admiral info
21. Fresh start?: NEO.
22. Dirt found in cubes?: OFFICE GOSSIP - Teacher's lounges are not immune to this phenomenon
24. Poke tuna: AHI.
27. Up to, casually: TIL - I immediately thought of the Mills Brothers. The Mills brother on the right gives a hint of Doo Wop music to come with the bass line.
28. Fruit infused in spirits: SLOES.
29. Place for a seasonal recital?: SANTA'S LAP 😀
33. "Filthy" stuff: LUCRE 😀
35. __ Romeo: ALFA - This 1988 ALFA Romeo Spider Veloce recently went on the auction block with a starting bid of $10,000.
36. Lost all patience: HAD IT.
38. Farm gait: TROT.
39. Places with customs: PORTS.
41. Marriage bureau?: HOPE CHEST 😀 My grandmother used to call a CHEST of drawers in her house a bureau.
43. "If __ Street Could Talk": BEALE - I thought this might be about the famous street in Memphis, TN but it is set in NYC
45. Show whose first host was George Carlin, familiarly: SNL.
47. Children's tune interpreted in Mahler's Symphony No. 1: FRERE JACQUES - I remember singing "Are you sleeping, Brother John?" in grade school. Here is a note from Kyle that he asked me to include about this clue:
Some time ago, I put FRERE JACQUES on a list of themeless seeds I’d developed. I specificallywanted to clue it through its association with Mahler’s First Symphony, where it appears, rather whimsically, as a funeral march in the slow third movement. After about a year of grid development, working through multiple layouts (a few of which were submitted unsuccessfully to various venues), this version finally hit the mark with Patti Varol. Happily, she kept my Mahler reference in the clue! For curious solvers, here is the movement featuring the Frere Jacques tune:
51. Galoot: OAF.
52. Sign of diversion: DETOUR AHEAD.
56. "I don't believe you!": LIAR - In 1965, the Castaways were one-hit-wonders with this title. Here are some TV castaways dancing to that song.
52. Sign of diversion: DETOUR AHEAD.
56. "I don't believe you!": LIAR - In 1965, the Castaways were one-hit-wonders with this title. Here are some TV castaways dancing to that song.
58. Event for seniors: CAREER EXPO.
59. South Asian rice cake: IDLI - ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
60. Sole clue for a detective?: TREAD.
61. Bag that may be stolen: BASE 😀
62. Capital city with a Viking Ship Museum: OSLO - That figures
63. Bug: IRK.
64. Home of the Big 12's Cyclones: AMES.
Down:
1. Einstein contemporary: BOHR - Niels Bohr worked on The Manhattan Project but Albert did not because of uncertainty about his political views.
2. Boo-boo: OWIE.
3. Alpha follower: BETA - A different alpha than the car name
4. Jetson family member: ASTRO.
5. Arabic invocation heard in Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody": BISMILLAH - Chief songwriter Freddie Mercury was not Muslim but lived in Zanzibar as a child which is 90% Muslim. BISMILLAH translates to "In the name of Allah".
But I'm just a poor boy, nobody loves me
He's just a poor boy from a poor family
Spare him his life from this monstrosity
Easy come, easy go, will you let me go?
Bismillah, no, we will not let you go
(Let him go) BISMILLAH, we will not let you go
(Let him go) BISMILLAH, we will not let you go
(Let me go) Will not let you go
(Let me go) Will not let you go
(Never, never, never, never let me go)
6. Issue: TOPIC.
7. Supply: STORE - Every school has a STORE room for teacher supplies.
He's just a poor boy from a poor family
Spare him his life from this monstrosity
Easy come, easy go, will you let me go?
Bismillah, no, we will not let you go
(Let him go) BISMILLAH, we will not let you go
(Let him go) BISMILLAH, we will not let you go
(Let me go) Will not let you go
(Let me go) Will not let you go
(Never, never, never, never let me go)
6. Issue: TOPIC.
7. Supply: STORE - Every school has a STORE room for teacher supplies.
8. Industry, briefly: BIZ.
9. Unspoken shared knowledge: OPEN SECRET - Hollywood is famous for having OPEN SECRETS
10. Comic strip about the Gumbo family whose title was inspired by Gertrude Stein: ROSE IS ROSE.
14. Some deer: STAGS.
17. Must, slangily: HAFTA.
20. Hang: LOLL.
23. __ Beach: SOUTH.
24. Short message written in a hurry?: ASAP - or spoken
25. Wraparound hairstyle: HALO BRAIDS - I never saw my grandmother or my aunt Betty with any other hairdo.
26. Plummeting: IN FREE FALL.
30. Language spoken along the Volga: TATAR - If you look closely you can see TATARSTAN with the Volga flowing through it.
31. Hoopla: ADO.
32. Squirt: PIPSQUEAK.
34. First name in jazz: ETTA.
37. Hard to dismiss, in a way: TENURED - After three years of teaching in Nebraska, TENURE makes getting fired very difficult.
40. Arctic transport: SLED.
42. Obvious: CLEAR.
44. Disappearing mode of releasing an album?: EJECT - Release the album from your CD player
47. Large book: FOLIO - This one will cost you around $10M
49. Piemaker's tool: CORER - This CORER/slicer is frequently found in my lunchbox.
50. Biblical queendom: SHEBA - Modern scholars think SHEBA was located in the red circle below
34 comments:
I’m amazed for a Saturday to feel so much like “a piece of cake.” Even total unknowns such as “Idli” were easily perped. Am I still dreaming, or am I wide awake? It is pretty early, after all. For whatever reason, FIR, so I’m happy. Yes, today, very happy.
A day late - yesterday, 11/29 was the 52nd anniversary of Atari's release of Pong
Good morning!
This was a Tale of Two Puzzles -- the top half was Mondayish; the bottom half not so much. Kyle added plenty of 10's, 11's, and even 12's. I'm amazed he managed to pull it all together. Well done! Nice expo, Husker. So Sheba was sited in today's Yemen? I always thought it was African. Learning moment.
I was successful at 24:08, thanks mostly to very friendly perps, which gave me the unknown HALOBRAIDS, TATAR and ETTA (not ELLA). I’ve heard “Bohemian Rhapsody” countless times but BISMILLAH baffled me, I must not listen closely to the words 🤷♂️. The I in the IDLI/RIO cross was a WAG. I’ve been to BEALE Street in Memphis on a warm summer night, that place rocks! Saw a J,Q,X and Z, thought it must be a pangram, but couldn’t find a V. All in all, some fine Saturday fare, thanks Kyle, nice construction and cluing. Thanks HG for your insights, always entertaining and informative!
FIR! Me! Saturday! Must have been super-easy by Saturday standards. Still, nag->IRK, tenuous->TENURED, and PIPSQUEeK. UNTIE!
I used to read ROSE IS ROSE, but it got so cloying and predictable that I gave it up.
Guessed right at RIO x IDLI. It was unlikely that del R_O would be anything else. Not crazy about rice, but I do enjoy a good drag queen show. Fantasy Fest in Key West brings out the best (and worst) drag queens.
FLN - Picard, yes, that's the light I was mentioning. We could go into the keeper's quarters, but not up onto the light itself. There are (or at least were) trails all over Point Loma. I seem to remember plaques ala roadside historical markers describing what I was seeing.
Thanks to Kyle for the fun Saturday puzzle that even my dumb mass could solve. And thanks to Gary for the tour. Have we stopped including the filled grid in the reviews?
I was on the right track until I went down the wrong Street - had DELLA instead of BEALE, channeling my inner Perry Mason. Eventually corrected to BELLA, then BELLE but never found the A for TARAR, although I probably HADTA.
A surprising easily Saturday, with my unknowns already pointed out. Kyle is a themeless pro but was obviously determined to get the Mahler/Frere Jacques in a puzzle. My mother would sing the original to us at bedtime, no Mahler. The refurbished Alfa looks great and $10,000.00 sounds cheap but that was only the opening bid, I wonder what is sold for. A cousin and her husband collect cars like that. Thanks Kyle; HG I thought Nebraska was going to beat Iowa, but maybe next year.
Took 9:19 today. Probably half that time was spent in the lower-left.
Had no idea about hairdo, the foreign language (Tatar), and the South Asian rice cake , which were especially problematic at the intersection with the drag queen. "Bismillah" and "Rose Is Rose" were all perps.
I feel ambivalent about this puzzle, but if our lead-off man SubG is happy, then we all should be.
FIR. For a while I thought we had a Thursday puzzle on a Saturday. I'm not saying it was overly easy, but I was throwing down answers with ease.
My only WAG was the crossing of idli (huh ?), and the drag queen which is way out of my wheelhouse. (really ?)
But aside from the SW area being a bit ridiculous, overall I enjoyed this puzzle.
1988 Alfa Romeo Spider Veloce $21,500 on May 12, 2022. The comments at the bottom of the article list the bids.
I feel clever again!
(But honestly, I did have to work on it...)
One perp led to another, my favorite kind of puzzle!
Good Morning:
Kyle’s imaginative cluing and the fresh, sparkling fill made this a very enjoyable and satisfying solve. It was challenging enough, yet avoided the typical Saturday “gotcha” syndrome by offering many helpful perps and toeholds. Pipsqueak was my favorite entry, a fun and evocative word. I think my only w/o was Miami/South (the right Church but the wrong pew!) and the unknowns of Rose Is Rose, Bismillah, and Idli were a piece of cake, thanks to the fair and plentiful perps.
Thanks, Kyle, for a stellar Saturday offering and thanks, HG, for the commentary and visuals, always a highlight of your reviews. That kitty looks pretty content! I, too, thought the Beale Street was in Memphis and, like your grandmother, my mother also referred to a dresser as a bureau.
I made my winter’s batch of French Onion Soup yesterday and enjoyed a crock of it at dinnertime. It turned up very well with a deeper than normal color, so I guess I caramelized the onions more than usual. There is something to be said for patience, after all! 😉
Have a great day.
Turned out, not up!
As with others, I found this to be a smooth solve, and the few unknowns were easily perped. I had the S and H but nothing in between for a moment or two. Could not think of a S - - - H Beach. Lemonade probably filled that one in without pause, but I needed the perps.
Thank you, Kyle Dolan and Husker Gary.
I was switching back and forth between the Nebraska v Wisconsin and the Georgia v Georgia Tech games. I turned off the TV and went to bed with both Nebraska and Georgia Tech looking to be on their way to victories. Surprised that Wisc came back to win, and shocked to watch the Sportscenter recap of the 8 OT Georgia victory.
Lemonade, BTW, Wisconsin had a 22 year streak of winning seasons. I think you said 27 seasons a day or two ago, but it was 22.
THE GAME starts in less than an hour on Fox. Go Bucks!
NCAA football teams by wins
Duh. I meant Iowa, not Wisconsin. Surprised that Iowa came back to win. They weren't moving the ball, and Nebraska looked to be in control.
Addendum
-There was a technical error that prevented me from getting to my usual site from which I get the completed grid and other puzzle information. I went on and completed the write-up and neglected to use Plan B to at least get some version of the grid and post it but have done so now. C.C. and I are working on remediation. Thanks for the gentle reminder, Jinx.
-Iowa has a history waiting for the other team to make a mistake and then utilizing that to win since their offense is so horrible. Two Husker fumbles accommodated Iowa to get the points they needed to win despite getting outplayed. I have seen that movie way too many times!
Too bad our beloved editor didn’t take the long weekend off as her “trademark” was present here…”why have a perfectly good clue when we can have a Natick?”
Right there at 59A and 57D…because there aren't any better clues for “RIO”.
Geez.
Good fair puzzle. Anything unknown perped out. No complaints here. Well done. Which of course means the recap too!
I felt pretty satisfied with my solving efforts today until I came here and discovered two things: first, that I FIW (sOBA instead of BOBA -- arrrrgh!), and second, that the rest of you thought it was easy! Like YooperPhil at 7:05 AM, "the I in the IDLI/RIO cross was a WAG" for me.
HG, I loved the Mills Brothers video -- totally new to me -- and Mahler's symphony. Thanks so much for the education and entertainment. Thanks also to Kyle for the [easy?] Saturday stumper.
Hola! It is Saturday, isn't it? Rarely do I finish a Saturday this quickly and once in a great while, not at all. Thank you, Kyle Dolan! PIPSQUEAK caused me some trouble as I can't recall ever having to write it. A lightbulb moment flashed for me at BIZ/ZEST and that's when the whole of the NE opened up.
Hand up for ELLA before ETTA. HOPE CHEST alerted me that a change was imminent. "Poke tuna" confused me for a while but AHI emerged to help me.
It was a satisfying solve! I hope you are all enjoying a relaxed Satuday of ease.
Just got the crib sheet from the LAT web site. Cost me a whole 30 seconds extra.
Like "former leader of Jaguars and Raiders Jack del ___?"
Yooper@7:05 AM I think our near-pangram is also short a Y.
Thanks for looking further into the alphabet, I stopped at V. Yesterday you mentioned that your former in-laws were from Manistique, I know it well, one of the more mispronounced town names in the UP. Very pretty though on Lake Michigan.
Not only a smooth puzzle, but a very enjoyable one at that. It takes guts to keep trying to include án entry like FRERE JACQUES into a CW. And then to find a PIP SQUEAK to boot.
Many clever clues that were detectable with a little thought, not the kind that try to trick the solver and end up being impossible to get.
BISMILLAH is very familiar to me, but I can’t think from what or where.
We have the homonyms BOHR and BORE.
Thank you HG for that review. Too bad I couldn’t get the Mahler music. I was told I had to sign in, but not how to.
EDAM instead of EXAM and HALF-BRAID instead of HALO-BRAID slowed me down more than a tad but I got there in the end.
I thought I had posted my comment but now I don't see it. Perhaps it failed to publish. Anyway, I said I liked the puzzle and listed the many things in it that I liked (too many to list again).
Good reading you all.
Gary- DW was looking for something on TV last night and I saw Nebraska playing Iowa. The announcer on the field was bundled up and I wondered how cold it was. Google said it was 19 degrees F in Ames.
Kyle always has tough puzzles that I never seem to be able to complete.
I got most of it but the SW was not finished. BEALE, IDLI, and BRAIDS (I had HALO) were not finished. BISMILLAH and SANTA SLAP- got both by perps but had never heard of either. Oh, it's SANTA'S LAP. Duh.
EJECT- I've never had a car with a CD player. The old Mercury had a cassette player (which I never used) and my newer Highlander doesn't have one either. AM, FM, Sirius SM, and Bluetooth.
I had to change PRINT to TREAD to make that section work.
My nextdoor neighbor was a retired REAR ADMIRAL There was a vacant lot between our houses. Thirty years ago we bought it and had it split 50/50 at the assessor's office.
My son-in-law and my youngest granddaughter came to clean house for me and I am so grateful! It's something I could do so easily in the past but, fortunately I have family that can help.
Thanks to Kyle! I loved nailing 1A on a Saturday but ended up with a massive fail in the SE. I was sure the biblical queen was Ester....
FAVs: EJECT clue and FRERE JACQUES even though I could not spell it. My grandmother taught her grandchildren to sing it in French so we played it at her funeral -- a happy moment on a sad day.
Thanks to H-Gary for his explanations plus plus! Of course my favorite was the HIT THE SPOT gif.
Lucina @ 7:40. What a thoughtful gift!
Now this is how a Saturday puzzle should be, if you ask me — not easy by any stretch of imagination, but not one of the gonad-busters designed to sink the solver. Thank you, Kyle, for a toughie but goodie. And Gary, no worries for missing the grid, as your run-through covered all the answers just fine. “Please, Sir, I’ll have another!” 😎 Creative clues, stellar fills…what more could one want to play with on a Saturday? Filthy LUCRE, I love it!
====> Darren / L.A.
I made relevant comments in the blog the next day (December 1)
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