Name that Dog!
21-Across. * Tennis racket's optimal impact point: SWEET SPOT.
58-Across. * Explorer on the red planet: MARS ROVER.
3-Down. * Sophocles tragedy: OEDIPUS REX.
29-Down. * Athletic shoe introduced in 1987: NIKE AIR MAX.
And the unifier:
39-Across. Military IDs on chains, and what can be found at the ends of the answers to the starred clues?: DOG TAGS. The last word of each theme answer is a stereotypical name, or Tag, for a Dog.
Across:
1. Unemotional: STOIC.
6. "Buzz off!": SCAT.
10. Football penalty indicator: FLAG.
14. Concert setting: ARENA.
15. Animal's den: LAIR.
16. Daughter of Darth Vader: LEIA. A Star Wars reference.
17. In the __ of: MIDST.
18. Foam darts, for a Nerf Blaster: AMMO.
19. Quaint quarters: INNS.
20. Angler's supply: BAIT.
23. Llama's cousin: ALPACA. Alpacas and llamas are both domesticated camelids from the Andes Mountains of South America. They have several differences in size and face shape.
25. Stop holding on: LET GO.
26. Mom's brother: UNCLE.
28. Apple Music predecessor: iTUNES.
32. Sense of style: TASTE.
34. "__ Yankees": DAMN. The only thing I know about this 1958 movie is this silly song.
37. Clock display: TIME.
38. Mo. with the signs Aries and Taurus: APR. Aries is in March and the beginning of April and Taurus is in the end of April and beginning of May.
42. Cereal with Honey and Berry Berry varieties: KIX.
43. Applications: USES.
45. Turn off course: VEER.
46. "__ Rose Has Its Thorn": Poison hit: EVERY.
48. "You have my cell number": TEXT ME.
50. Salami type: GENOA. Did you know the word Salami is derived from Latin meaning Salt? Genoa salami is a dry-cured salami made from pork and seasoned with garlic, salt, and pepper. The name refers to the preparation style, and is commonly attributed to the Italian port city of Genoa.
52. Dos + tres: CINCO. Today's Spanish and Math lesson.
55. Forms a line?: AD LIBS.
61. Canadian First Nations people: CREE.
62. Literary detective Wolfe: NERO. Nero Wolfe, the brilliant, obese and eccentric fictional armchair detective, first appeared in 1934 in the novel Fer-de-Lance, by Rex Stout.
63. Scored 100% on: ACED.
64. World-renowned: FAMED.
65. Sleeveless top, for short: CAMI. Short for Camisole. They even come in camouflage.
66. Feature of a landline: CORD.
67. Ludicrous: INANE.
68. Black gem: ONYX. Everything you wanted to know about Onyx but didn't know to ask.
69. "Swish Swish" singer Perry: KATY. Katy Perry (née Katheryn Elizabeth Hudson; b. Oct. 25, 1984) Perry started singing in church as a child.
70. Athlete in a weight class: BOXER.
Down:
1. Brazilian dance: SAMBA. You, too, can learn the Samba in just 5 minutes!
2. "Law & Order" proceeding: TRIAL.
4. __ coffee: INSTANT.
5. Friskies muncher: CAT.
6. Shredded side dish: SLAW.
7. Caravan animal: CAMEL.
8. "Lucifer" actress Garcia: AIMEE. I am not familiar with Aimee Garcia (née Aimee Sandimés Garcia López de Ordóñez; b. Nov. 28, 1978), nor am I familiar with Lucifer.
9. Moving briskly: TROTTING.
10. Fly off the handle: FLIP OUT.
11. Television Hall of Famer Jay: LENO. Jay Leno (né James Douglas Muir Leno; b. Apr. 28, 1950) is known for his observational and deadpan comedy.
12. Informal contraction: AIN'T. When I was a kid, we used to say "Ain't ain't in the dictionary." Kids can't say that now because Ain't is in the dictionary.
13. Furnace fuel: GAS.
21. ESPN football reporter Paolantonio: SAL. Since I don't generally watch ESPN, I was not familiar with Sal Paolantonio (né Salvatore Anthony Nicholas Paolantonio; b. June 13, 1956).
22. USMC rank: SGT. As in Sergeant. // And 62-Down. 22-Down, e.g.: Abbr.: NCO. As in Non-Commissioned Officer.
24. Looped in via email: CC'ED.
27. Outer rim: EDGE.
30. Dubai dignitary: EMIR. Dubai is a city in the United Arab Emirates. The word Emir (أمير) comes from an Arabic word for "commander."
31. Alluring: SEXY.
32. Pulled tight: TAUT.
33. Chapel recess: APSE.
35. Devoured: ATE.
36. Actress Helgenberger: MARG. Marg Helgenberger (née Mary Margaret Helgenberger; b. Nov. 16, 1958) portrayed Catherine Willows on CSI: Crime Scene Investigation.
40. Cookie sheet holder: OVEN RACK.
41. Place in the outgoing mail: SEND.
44. Largest of the U.S. Virgin Islands: ST. CROIX.
47. Mount St. Helens, for one: VOLCANO. Mount St. Helens last had a major eruption in May 1980.
49. Scale notes after res: MIs.
51. Organ with a drum: EAR.
53. Tiramisu topper: COCOA. Yummers! The name of this delicious Italian dessert from the Italian phrase tirami su, which literally means: pick me up/cheer me up.
54. Plain to see: OVERT.
56. Geoffrey of fashion: BEENE. Geoffrey Beene (né Samuel Albert Bozeman Jr.; Aug. 30, 1924 ~ Sept. 28, 2004) was born in Louisiana and studied medicine at Tulane University, but dropped out to study fashion design.
57. Ceremonial Passover meal: SEDER. Passover is an 8-day holiday the commemorates the exodus from Egypt. This year, Passover begins at sunset on Saturday April 12 and runs through Sunday April 20.
 |
| Seder Plate |
58. Lean and __: MEAN.
59. Group of troops: ARMY.
60. Swirling current: EDDY.
64. Minor untruth: FIB.
Here's the Grid:
חתולה
43 comments:
I wasn’t familiar with the
shoe, and haven’t heard of “Max” as a dog’s name, but the perps were fair. Otherwise, I didn’t have too much trouble with this puzzle. FIR, so I’m happy.
Good morning!
Faster than yesterday, and very smooth. Nice. I remember Marg from her role in China Beach. Thanx, Doug and Hahtoolah. (Loved the "No No Bad Dog" id tag. My first cat, back in my college days, thought her name was Dammit.)
Me neither, but turns out MAX was the 2nd most popular male dog name (after Milo) last year. I gotta get out to the dog park more often!
FIR with no erasure.
Golf clubs also have SWEET SPOTs. On the rare occasion that I manage to hit it, it feels very neutral, almost as if I didn't hit the ball at all.
I've never been accused of having a sense of style. Nor TASTE, for that matter.
Hand up for not knowing MAX as a stereotypical dog name, but there was a famous BOXER named MAX Baer. (MAX Baer was also the father of Jed Clampett's dimwitted nephew Jethro.)
I knew there was a cereal named Trix, but not KIX. Trix's advertising hook was "silly rabbit, Trix are for kids." I remember a silly punchline to a joke from my ute: "silly rabbi, KIX are for Trids." (Now that I've spoiled the joke, here it is in full.)
For some reason I remember lyrics from the musical The Apple Tree's soundtrack:
"The newspapers call you
The goddess of sex
If you are a goddess
I'm OEDIPUS REX."
The words "INSTANT" and "coffee" should never be seen together.
The late Jimmy Buffett sang a whimsical song about the VOLCANO.
Thanks to Doug for the fun, easy Tuesday puzzle. And thanks to Ha2la for the fun review. I especially liked "Instant human - just add coffee." Reminds me of a bumper sticker I saw a while back - "Instant jerk - just add alcohol," except the sticker read not "jerk," but some kind of hole that we shouldn't say here on the Corner.
Good Morning, crossword friends. Not being a dog person, Max seemed like a perfectly apt name for Doug to name his Dog.
QOD: Nothing travels faster than the speed of light ~ with the possible exception of bad news, which obeys its own special laws. ~ Douglas Adams (né Douglas Noel Adams, Mar. 11, 1952 ~ May 11, 2001), English author
FIR. Took a while to enter adlibs as I got a bit baffled by the clue and I never heard of Geoffrey Beene. The rest of today's puzzle was fair as the perps were well placed.
Overall an enjoyable Tuesday puzzle.
I'm guessing that you read today's Dennis the Menace.
Took 4:11 today for me to get unleashed.
A crossword puzzle about dog names, but without Asta or Toto - blasphemy!
I didn't know today's actresses (Aimee or Marg), but I did solve today's Spanish math lesson (cinco).
Terrific Tuesday. Thanks for the fun, Doug and Hahtoolah.
I FIRed in good time, and found the DOG TAGS early in the game. (And I have heard MAX as a dog name )
One inkblot in the south to change my OVEN mitt (mandatory for holding a cookie sheet) to RACK.
We had so many Xes, I looked for a pangram, but we were a J, H, Q, Z short.
Perps were necessary to confirm the spelling of the Spanish 5. I know the French “cinque”.
I agree with KS about the clue for AD LIB. I wanted Queues but saw the ? and knew it wasn’t that line. Actor’s line was a bit of a stretch IMO.
I have never seen as many Canadian FLAGs as are appearing now. Our ads, supermarket products are all using the Maple Leaf to encourage shoppers to buy Canadian - and we are! Trips south are being cancelled also.
Doug left me a zinger with 34A, but of course my friends here are exempt.
Wishing you all a great day.
Good Morning:
What’s not to like about a crossword centered on canines? Not a thing, as Doug proved with this enjoyable and fun solve. He even slipped in an Easter Egg with Boxer at 70A. Aimee and Sal were unknown but perps solved those hiccups.
Thanks, Doug, for a smooth, easy Tuesday and thanks, Hahtoolah, for another fact and fun-filled review. All of the comics were delightful, especially the themer-related ones, which brought several chuckles.
FLN
Naomi, best wishes to DH after his procedure.
Have a great day.
A wonderful, easy puzzle Doug, free of obscure names and abbreviations, a throughback to puzzles of old! And thanks toPatti for selecting it. So many funny cartoons H2lah -the cat in the restaurant — -so funny and so true.
Staid/STOIC, dog/CAT., opal/ONYX.
DO — My sister had a lovely schnauzer named MAX for many years, but Milo is number 1? I never heard that as a dog name.
Geoffrey BEENE designed beautiful, elegant clothing with STYLE.
My CAT Freddy is such a comfort. my husband (not a carpenter!) built a DOG house in our basement that was too large to get through the door so he had to rebuild it. We had a housewarming for our basset hound Miles and he got many presents —DOG biscuits and food, a sweater, toys, etc. we had a good time but he did not like so many stranger in the house so he hid under a bed.
Happy day, all!
I thoroughly enjoyed Doug's work today, as it was so well-designed and -constructed. He even had the courage to handicap himself by throwing in four X's!
The theme was cute, and the entire puzzle was Natick-free. There were several clever misdirections, including one I really related to as an actor, "Forms a line?" (ADLIBS). When you do live theater, it helps if you are adept at forming (inventing) a line on the spot.
I did frown at "Concert setting" (ARENA), because I think of concerts being held at places like the Kennedy Center or Carnegie Hall, which are not arenas. To me an arena is a place for rodeos and sporting events--and I guess I will begrudgingly admit, rock concerts.
Hey, Jinx--Kix has been around since before you were born. My brothers and I, back in the Forties, always had for breakfast either Kix or CheeriOats (Cheerios). It is tragic to hear that you endured such a deprived childhood, going Kix-less.
Thanks again, Doug, for providing us with a pleasant Tuesday diversion. And of course, to Hahtoolah, for your usual capable and amusing recap.
Great catch on the Easter Egg!
Musings
-What a great puzzle! OEDIPUS, REX, NIKE and MARS sent me on a wild goose chase looking for the theme
-STOIC not STAID
-I had a great time golfing yesterday in the MIDST of our “false spring”. The American Meteorological Society now says the phrase of my childhood, Indian Summer, is disrespectful of Native Americans.
-A former student raises ALPACAS in Colorado. She named her favorite "Green Bay".
-The Houston Cougars famously ran the VEER offense
-Screen writers and authors usually cringe when they hear AD LIBS instead of their dialogue
-I have several versions of that CAMI in my wardrobe but call them tank tops
-My SAMBA could never look that good!
-FLIP OUT: Ask any umpire of the 70’s – 90’s about Billy Martin
-I remember anticipating St. Helens’ eruption with my students daily
-A fun dog joke with Inspector Clouseau.
-How about this KIX promo.
-I really enjoyed your Tuesday info and levity, Susan.
A nice Tuesday offering from Doug, I didn’t have to dig my canines in too deep to FIR in 9:20. I guess there are no words ending in FIDO, and somewhere there is probably a Black Lab named ONYX. SAL, AIMEE, and MARG were perped. I was working downtown Portland OR when the VOLCANO 🌋 blew 5/18/80, it had vented for weeks before the major eruption. A friend and I had taken a ride up there a couple weeks prior, they had a “red zone” which we didn’t enter, and I don’t think anyone had a clue as to the coming devastation. Thanks Hahtoolah for another delightful expo, I now know how to SAMBA, but most likely never will 😂.
HG ~ how did the round go yesterday? Sometimes the first time out goes well cuz you forget about all the bad habits you picked up last year.
NaomiZ ~ hope your DH is doing well after yesterday’s procedure.
C Eh ~ I buy 🇨🇦 also, mostly in the form of Moosehead and Labatt 😊. As you know, my DW’s family has a summer home in Tobermory ON, I’m just wondering how we’ll be treated at the border when we go there this summer 🤷♂️.
Style b/4 midst
Call me b/4 text me. (sorry, I thought it was Tuesday...)
Curiously, it seems YouTube does not want "bots" to learn the Samba, but they are ok with them learning the intro to law and order?
I always had trouble thinking of names for my pets, I.E.: first cat=tiger, and beloved PK, was just my abbreviation of daughters "Pretty Kitty." Of course, that was before the internet.
speaking of internet...
honorable mention...
I loved Doug's puzzle, and Hahtoolah was the perfect person to explain and illustrate it. Thanks for the derivation of salami! I like knowing the roots of words, even for foods that aren't on my menu.
Yesterday afternoon I was able to catch a tiny dog that was running up and down our street. Poor thing! My daughter's dog, who spends weekdays with us, barked wildly when I brought the tiny dog home, and DH, stressing out between medical procedures, started barking, too. I found a neighbor to take the dog for a few hours, until another neighbor came home. This second neighbor has a chip scanner! The dog was microchipped, and his family was found. Thank goodness! Such a sweet doggie, and he would have been a coyote's dinner.
We are back at the medical center this morning, hoping for an all-clear. Good to have you all for company. Thanks for your well wishes.
Yooper
Thanks for asking. I am a slightly better than a bogey golfer and that is how I played. I lost a couple golf balls before I found my swing and had a good time. Some of the practice I did in the yard during tolerable winter days paid off with my woods. Now I need to work on getting my hands in front of the ball on my irons and quit trying to sweep with them.
Two really fun and enjoyable puzzles in a row! What a nice start to the week. In my yute, furnace fuel on our block was either coal or fuel oil. You could easily tell the coal users in winter, as they used the cinders in their driveways for traction. At some point, my folks converted to oil, with a pump and burner under the grate in the old coal monster, and a tank in the old coal bin. Made life a lot simpler, no clinkers, cinders, or banking fires.
My roommate in college rescued a black lab puppy on his way back to our apartment - the dog was running loose along the side of a highway. We named him Onyx.
1-2-3 done. Oven mitt before rack. Just two perps suggested ad lib, my favorite entry.
MAX seems a common enough dog name. I don't now any dogs named MILO, but I see it is extremely popular. Some fill that is rare to me is very common to others and vice versa.
Instant Coffee? I never drink it, I would rather have a glass of water or a cup of tea. Instant human. LOL. I need cup of real coffee within the first 20 minutes after arising.
AD LIB was my favorite. I needed just 2 perps to see it.
Many arenas, including Madison Square Garden, Barclays Center, and Staples Center, host concerts in addition to sporting events and other large-scale events.
Best wishes for good results for your DH’s medical procedures. I am so impressed that you concerned yourself with the little lost dog, arranging alternate care until the owner was found, when you had family responsibilities.
CEh! - vacating in Canada with my family from the time I was a child was always the highlight of our year. Long live the country Canada!
And ... DH is in fine shape! Good thing, too, as his job is to keep me company for the next thirty years. :-)
And as I pointed out, there was a famous heavyweight BOXER named MAX!
So funny!
Delightful Tuesday puzzle, many thanks, Doug. And Hahtoolah, your commentary was a delight. I especially loved hearing Julie Andrews sing her Do-Re-Mi song in "The Sound of Music" again. Thanks for posting that.
Well, I have a silly comment to make about today's theme about dog names.
I had two sweet dachshunds once who were both, at different times, taken out of our yard by coyotes. A terrible, sad loss. The boy dog was named "Dusty" and the girl dog was named "Misty." And so when I needed a pleasant name for myself for puzzles and other activities, I decided to take that name. I've enjoyed having it, and thought I'd mention what made me think of it after reading today's commentary on the puzzle's theme.
So, hope it's okay to have Misty wish you all a good day!
My only excuse for not knowing KIX is that they must not have been giving away the swag that interested me, like super-secret coder/decoder rings. Or if they did, they didn't advertise on my NBC affiliate, Channel 3. That was our one and only station, brought to us in beautiful living monochrome.
Speed solve today - only a few seconds behind SS! Nice having the horizontal and vertical themers
My 93+ mom likes Folger's INSTANT Coffee Crystals - she's been drinking it forever it seems like - the kids will bring other coffee for a gift and she usually gives it away or has guests use it when they are here. She likes to make it a cup at a time in her microwave
Tiramisu is one of my favorite desserts but I've never made it - didn't know it was cocoa dusting the top
Didn't think H2lah's pic of shirt was a CAMI - I don't think I've seen any guys wear CAMIs - just tank tops as HG mentioned. I think of CAMIs having thin or spaghetti straps
Thanks Susan for a fun blog and Doug for the puzzle
There's actually a genre of rock-n-roll called Arena Rock.
Absolutely the best thing written today! So happy for you both.
I once had a Scottish Terrier we called MAc, short for MacGregor.
Misty at 1:32 PM, I'm so sorry for the loss of your dachsunds. I am still tossing around at night, thinking about my Daphne's awful last day at the veterinary hospital. I can only imagine your thoughts. Sincere condolences.
ParSan at 12:25 PM, thanks so much for your kind words. DH is now in the clear, and has no excuse for his occasional overreactions!
Jinx in Norfolk at 2:37 PM, you are a sweetheart masquerading as a bad boy -- or is it vice versa? I appreciate your sentiments very much.
Hi All!
When I saw Doug's byline, I knew I wasn't going to be disappointed. Thanks for the fine puzzle, Doug.
What an LOL expo, Hahtoolah! And you topped it with a Douglas Adams quote ;-)
WO: SENt
ESPs: AIMEE, MARG, BEENE
Fav: AD LIBS
IIRC, there was a movie named MAX about a military trained dog who couldn't serve after watching his human die in Afghanistan.
//Yep, there is but it sounds too sad to link.
Pop named our dogs after literary characters: Macduff was a mutt and Sinbad was a black lab.
C, Eh! - what an unintended consequence, eh? Canadian pride and patriotic boycott of south of the border goods.
Funny stuff, CED. Thx!
Wonderful news!, NaomiZ @1:13p.
Cheers, -T
Thank you for your kind response, NaomiZ. And I'm so sorry that your Daphne had a difficult ending too. Our love of pets is a wonderful gift, but like all life, it also has its sad moments.
Great fun, and super quick: FIR in 8, probably a record for me for Tuesday. Only W/O: STAID/STOIC. Only 12 names (HOORAY!!) and only 4 DNK. Thanx DP for the fun, and for minimizing the number of names. Hahtoolah, great write-up, thanx for all the time and effort.
I want to mention an ad I keep seeing: Walmart Car Insurance, $19/month. I just paid my car insurance to State Farm: $874/6 months. I have not had a ticket or accident in at least 30 years. Outrageous. So I bit on the ad. BE AWARE: It has nothing to do with Walmart. You are given pages to fill out, name, address, email, telephone number, type of car and miles driven (I have a 2017 Jeep Renegade with 29,000 miles, so not that many miles) and other info. As soon as I hit "Send", within one minute, I got a call from an insurance broker, who asked me all the questions again, then told me to stay on the line to speak with another insurance broker who would discuss rates with different companies. The best he could offer was $50/six months less...IF I put a device in my car to monitor my driving. For $50, it's not worth switching. The Walmart ad is bait-and-switch, it has NOTHING to do with Walmart. Now I get nonstop emails, phone calls and texts from all kinds of companies re car insurance. I'm so sorry I bit on that ad. Be warned.
Thanks Parsan.
YooperPhil- we will welcome you . . . and your dollar will go farther!
Glad your DH is ok, and that the lost dog was rescued. Kudos.
I saw that movie MAX. It was very interesting..
Thanks to Doug for his fun puzzle and to Hahtoolah for adding more fun! FAV was Forms a line. Today's write-up and comments were excellent but I'm too tired to respond as I'd like. These "spring forwards" are tough!
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