And just when you thought it was safe to go back in the
water…ba-dum…ba-dum…it’s RustyBrain!
Sumdaze is taking some well-deserved time off,
so you’re stuck with me for a month of Mondays. It’ll be difficult, but
I’ll try to be as charming as she is.
Freddie Cheng has
been constructing professionally for fifteen years. In this, his 8th
puzzle in the LAT, he has the confidence to dare us to rank his puzzle.
39. Demographic statistical standard: NATIONAL AVERAGE.
46. "No problems yet": SO FAR, SO GOOD.
63. Classic family sitcom starring Robert Young: FATHER KNOWS BEST.
Freddie squeezes in five themers, three of which go wall to wall. I zoomed right through to the end as one would expect on a Monday. No revealer, so once I finished I had to backtrack to discover the secret. I found he's incorporated a basic rating system which could apply to almost anything such as star reviews, with 1 star being the worst and 5 stars being the best. The answers are also in proper order, so I give it *****.
Across:
1. "Darn!": RATS. I guess you could darn these?
5. Bubble tea "bubbles": BOBA. BOBA balls are made from tapioca starch and are designed to clog your straw.
9. Subside, as rain: LET UP.
14. Otherwise: ELSE.
15. Many a Dubai resident: ARAB.
16. Clean thoroughly: ERASE. As a reward (?) for being a good student in elementary school (I was an angel *blush*) I was chosen for the privilege of clapping the chalkboard erasers, sometimes creating works of art on the brick walls outside. Sadly, my path to being a pre-Banksy was blocked by teachers unimpressed with my genius.
17.[theme]
20. Clean thoroughly: SCRUB. I'm calling a clue like this (duplicating 16A) a reclusive (re-clue-sive).
21. "In all probability ... ": ODDS ARE. "I don't think you have a royal flush, so..."
22. Ran into: MET.
24. __ Lanka: SRI.
25. "That's the fellow!": HIM. Sounds British, like "He's the chap!" A lot of clues today seem to evoke the UK.
28. [theme]
35. Japanese noodle: UDON.
37. Cookbook writer Garten: INA. She grows her herbs in a garden.
38. Mario Kart brother: LUIGI.
39. [theme]
43. Yours, once: THINE.
44. Promos: ADS.
45. Small opening: SLIT.
46. [theme]
50. "Certainly!": YES. (and the obligatory album cover)
51. "__ the season ... ": TIS. Certainly looks like it already in the big box stores.
52. Pinterest pin: PIC.
54. Spiraling: IN A SPIN.
59. Dads: PAPAS.
63. [theme]
67. "The X Factor" judge Cowell: SIMON. British TV personality and record producer.
68. Architectural overhang: EAVE.
69. "By Jove!": I SAY. Something SIMON says.
70. Elizabeth of "WandaVision": OLSEN. "WandaVision" is a surrealistic miniseries by Marvel Comics where each episode is a decade newer than the last, starting with the 50s in black & white and on up through full-color present day. OLSEN plays Wanda, a woman with telepathic powers.
71. Audition (for): READ.
72. Casual denial: NOPE.
Down:
1. Game officials: REFS. Now you can play at home! For the sanity of your family, a whistle is not included.
2. Oscar winner Guinness: ALEC.
3. Ruler of Imperial Russia: TSAR. Rule of xwords: Russian rulers are TSARs while government policy wonks are czars. Ideally.
4. Clear component of blood: SERUM.
5. Exile: BAN. Expel underarm odor!
6. URL ending for nonprofits: ORG. Short for ORGanists, I think. Ask Splynter.
7. Cricket club: BAT. I couldn't find a cricket bat, so I settled for one with a grasshopper.
8. Detests: ABHORS.
9. Off-color or blue: LEWD.
10. God with a bow and arrow: EROS. The Greek god made people fall in love by striking them with EROS.
11. Actress Reid: TARA.
12. Sputnik power, briefly: USSR. Sputnik was actually powered by three zinc-silver batteries designed to last two weeks, but they made it 22 days and kicked off the space race. Amazing something so small had such a huge impact.
13. Cubs slugger __ Crow-Armstrong: PETE.
18. Skeptical reply: I BET. "I don't believe you have a royal flush, so I BET it all."
19. Amend: EDIT.
23. Slender: THIN. "I'd like a half pound of salami cut slender, please."
24. German prison camps: STALAGS. The popular 60s TV sitcom, Hogan's Heros, was set at fictional STALAG 13. It took until 1992 for reruns of the anti-Nazi satire to air in Germany. It failed to connect with audiences until scripts were rewritten to make the Nazi characters seem even more foolish.
25. Chases game: HUNTS. Unless the hunter simply sits in a blind and waits for the game to come to him.
26. Boise's state: IDAHO.
27. Recurring theme: MOTIF.
29. "SNL" alum Gasteyer: ANA. She's' more popular in xwords than she was on Saturday Night Live.
30. Flamenco cry: OLE. Flamingo cry: HONK! (They are very noisy birds.)
31. Yours and mine: OURS. Different from "yours, mine and ours."
32. Bagel alternative: BIALY.
33. A&M student, familiarly: AGGIE. Texas A&M is the AGGIEs, but Florida A&M is the Rattlers (rattlesnakes). There are several other A&Ms, including ones in Alabama and Louisiana, so this clue doesn't hold up.
34. Intake guidelines: DIETS.
36. Totenberg of NPR: NINA.
40. "__ the ramparts we watched ... ": OER. According to my national park guide, Francis Scott Key used the term spangled in his poem "Defense of Fort McHenry" to mean the stars were tilted or askew on the garrison flag. His work was later set to music and re-titled "The Star-Spangled Banner."
42. Abbr. on a brandy label: VSOP. Very Superior Old Pale indicates that it has been aged for a minimum of four years in oak barrels for a smoother, more complex flavor.
47. Use a swizzle stick: STIR. British spy 007 would probably kill you with one of those little swords if you did this to his martini. He's very particular.
48. Pig, cutely: OINKER. Meh. This one's a stinker.
49. Quick swims: DIPS.
53. Airplane seating area: CABIN. This one is preparing for takeoff.
54. "Assuming that's true ... ": IF SO.
55. Emery board target: NAIL.
56. Casino cash dispensers: ATMS. Automated Teller Machines were an early (1960s) volley in the battle to replace human jobs. And the war continues...
57. Casino card dispenser: SHOE. Almost another reclusive!
58. Teller's partner in magic: PENN. Now celebrating 50 years together, I saw them with my family in Las Vegas around the turn of the century. Great show, but most impressive was afterwards when they both did a meet and greet in the hallway. They hung around chatting (yes, even Teller) and taking selfies until everyone in the audience had a chance to meet them. Class act.
60. Money in the Philippines: PESO.
61. "Now!" letters: ASAP. As Soon As Possible doesn't necessarily mean right now...unless it's my wife saying it.
62. Eye affliction: STYE. My STYE in my little eye...I'm fun on road trips, too!
64. Scottish refusal: NAE. Something James Bond would say if asked, "Should I use a swizzle stick?"
65. Lab eggs: OVA.
66. Tie the knot: WED. "Tying the knot" harkens back to the ancient ritual of handfasting, where a couple's hands were tied together with ribbons or cords.
So, was this the best of times, or the worst of times? (Ain't I a Dickens?)
28 comments:
As far as I could tell,
this was a typical Monday “walk in the park.” We’ll see if you agree. Anyway, FIR, so I’m happy.
Good morning!
Six minutes...zip, zip, done, Wite-Out-free. Not BAD at all, Freddie. Enjoyed your take on things, Rusty Brain. (Enjoyed your Boba explanation.)
OLSEN: There's a woman named Wanda that we often see on our morning marches through the 'hood. We call her Wanda woman.
USSR: I remember being a 12-year-old, shivering in the cold, gazing up at the sky for a glimpse of Sputnik. Yup, we saw it.
FIR, but tofu->BOBA. I also dele, then stet, BAT.
I knew that BIALY couldn't possibly be right, but the perps were solid so I let it stand.
If you are going to quote a ANTIONAL AVERAGE, you should really use "mean," "median," or "mode" instead of AVERAGE to be more precise. But that would blow today's clever theme, so never mind. (In my MBA statistics class we had a book titled How to Lie With Statistics. The object was to learn how to tell if a person or an ORG was lying to you, not the other way around.)
Anyone can get an ORG url. I had one, and I was not (at least intentionally) a nonprofit.
I also thought of STALAG 13. Bob Crane (Hogan) was a very funny fellow but had a kinky side that may have caused his death. He liked to videotape himself making the sign of the beast with two backs, featuring unsuspecting women he picked up using his celebrity status. My guess is that an irate husband/father/brother found out about the taping and beat him to death.
Thanks to Freddie for the fun start to the week, and to Rusty Brain for the entertaining review. We need to have eight weekly puzzles so that you don't have to pinch hit.
FIR. This puzzle makes a walk in the park seem too hard. Talk about easy! I went through this one so fast I didn't even see the theme till I got here and read the blog.
There wasn't a single difficult spot except for the crossing of two proper names, Ara and Ira. That's a no-no but fortunately I knew one of them.
Overall an enjoyable puzzle.
Took 4:02 today to get through the rank and file.
I knew the Actress of the Day (Olsen), and the other woman (Ana, Ina, Nina), but I agree with KS that the intersection of Ana and Ina was unpleasant. I found "baily" and "vsop" to be non-Monday words. Otherwise, it is a SubG-certified WITP.
In 2002, Greg Kinnear starred in “Auto Focus” about the life and murder of actor Bob Crane.
The puzzle was pretty good, but I enjoyed the recap even more - - nice job, RustyBrain! Definite learning moments on VSOP and BIALY, which is another plus for a Monday.
From yesterday late: to Anonymous
Re: Oxford head = Loo
Think Oxford=British and loo/head=toilet
Thank you Rusty for the elucidations.
You couldn't find a cricket bat image? Did you try cricket at bat?
Re: theme
I like that it ended on an up note...
Hi there~! - I have to be honest, RB, the pipe organ company was merely a "dot com" ;7)) As for the duplicate clues "name", they were once called "clechos" ( by Dennis or Santa, I think ), but I like your "re-clue-sive" better.
I felt like the A&M clue was fair, Florida and Alabama A&Ms have a combined enrollment something like 1/10 of TAMU's, and nobody in the world refers to LSU as "Lousiana A&M" despite it technically being a part of the uni's name.
Smooth going, Monday-style. I liked the progression ending on the BEST note.
Perps were useful for a few unknowns like OLSEN, TARA, PETE and this real unknown BIALY. I don’t remember ever seeing that word or that roll.
BEST review Rusty Brain. Worthy replacement for NaomiZ.
PS. I had not been able to rid my letter a of its arbitrary pesky accent for months. Then this weekend I decided to ask ChatGPT for help and in less than 30 minutes, the problem was solved. 🎉
Good Morning:
This was definitely a WITP, with the exception of the unknown (to me) Cubs slugger Pete, but Ina Garten and Ana Gasteyer are crossword staples by now and shouldn’t trip anyone up. The theme was executed well, with three grid-spanners, no less.
Thanks, Freddie, and thanks, RB, for not only pinch-hitting for sumdaze , but for doing it with such wit and interesting commentary. sumdaze left us in good hands!
I was very pleased that Noah Wylie and The Pitt won their respective Emmy’s last night as both were well-deserved. Also deserving were the winning actors and others involved in Adolescence, a difficult to watch story but a powerful indictment of the deleterious effects that social media has on young minds.
Have a great day.
Hope the glitch is fixed
No reveal clue but obvious theme answers: Degrees of quality from WORST to BEST
Robert Young: FATHER, then Dr. Marcus Welby, KNew BEST.
“Otherwise”/ELSE , A vital, in flight warning, “Make sure you” static, static, static “ELSE you’ll die”
Inkovers: soba/BOBA ( I oughta know that one by now!)
SHOE as a card dispenser, a new one for me. Always thought the lyric was “Who’s brought stripes and bright stars”. (they’re not actually that “broad”). So sing it correctly OER again!
“Now!” is STAT, ASAP “as soon as possible” (in our department that means once the STAT issues are addressed)
A vampire DIETS drink … SERUM
Scared of German sausage … FEARING THE WORST
“ I saw an OINKER with an awful ___ ” …. STYE.
Happy week 😊
Marvellous Monday. Thanks for the fun, Freddie and RustyBrain.
YES, a very fast WITP today.
I saw the rating progression at BAD, which helped the solve. I was looking for
GOOD, better, BEST but the given themers were balanced around the AVERAGE
One inkblot to change Slot to SHOE (I don’t frequent casinos since ODDS ARE that you will lose).
I recalled BIALY after a few perps, as I have seen it in past CWs.
I noted NAE and NOPE, and their opposite YES.
I assumed you were joking with your ORG comment, RustyBrainBrain, but I see that Splynter answered seriously. ORG stands for ORGanization.
Wishing you all a great day.
KS, I totally agree: crossing two names is a no-no in my book, too. Isn't it INA and ANA though, instead of ARA and IRA? I didn't know either name, but thought "N" was the most likely letter where they cross, so a fortunate WAG.
For a Monday level puzzle, I guess this hits the "national average." About Aggies, Don't leave out New Mexico State.
Bialy, Pic. and Pete, we're unknowns today feel. I have no "interest" finding out what Pinterest does.
If you're always"fearing the worst", you can take solace in the fact that it doesn't happen most of the time. But you need to plan for it.
An 8th day each week, great idea! We'll place it between Sunday and Monday and call it Sumdaze in her honor.
16 names, 6 DNKs among them, including the crossing of ANA and INA. WAG the "N", fortunately. Clever theme, nicely integrated into worst to best order. Well done, FC, thanx for the fun. (Except crossing two names). Outstanding, fun write-up Rustybrain, thanx.
Thanks for playing along with my .ORG thing! I didn't know about "clechos" and couldn't find it on a search until I landed on an old Corner post titled "Comment Section Abbreviations." Now I see how it derived from "clue echos."
Great drawing - I guess I need to dig deeper! LOL
Well, what was the solution?
Musings
-A very good rating from these quarters
-VSO_/_IC was nearly a natick for this teetotaler who does not use Pinterest like my wife loves to do.
-Freddie threw this senior citizen a bone with Father Knows Best
-Over the decades I have seen blackboards that needed to be ERASED progress to electronic projectors with all manner of means to produce numbers and concepts.
-It’s HE is grammatical but sounds pretentious
-A variation on "certainly".
-Simon Cowell has ridden his prickly personality to becoming nearly a billionaire. Who knew honesty without tact was profitable?
-Rules for REFS are black and white but the game situations are often gray.
-The USSR was far ahead of the USA in the space race until Eisenhower created NASA to put all of America’s rocket scientists into one organization like the Soviets had always done.
-A famous and very intense STALAG movie
-Penn and Teller’s Fool Us show is well-staged and fun to watch
-I did not know BIALY but this musical theater fan did know Max BIALYSTOCK
-Nice job, RB!
Hola! Ooh! So late to the party! But I enjoyed this super-fast solve. Thank you, Freddie Cheng. I'm now used to seeing BOBA tea and recently saw ANA Gasteyer on the Drew Barrymore show. INA Garten has also been on her show in the past year. I know Mario and LUIGI both from x-words and my grandchildren.
"Hogan's Heroes" on STALAG 13 re-runs are still available every weeknight. And I'm reminded of the show whenever I pass the hotel where Bob Crane's murder took place. It is on the way to my doctor's office.
BIALYS were unknown to me until I saw The Producers.
Have a lovely day, everyone!
Pleasant Monday puzzle, many thanks, Freddie. And your commentary is always a pleasure, Rusty Brain, thanks for that too.
Well, that negative FEARING THE WORST near the top of this Monday puzzle did indeed start me off fearing the worst. What if that TSAR did BAN any LEWD comments in this puzzle, or anywhere, for that matter. Could we EDIT things so they'd no longer say THAT'S TOO BAD that it doesn't fit the NATIONAL AVERAGE, and instead have them say SO FAR SO GOOD to any corrections we've made. I'm 80 years old so I no longer have a FATHER KNOWS BEST to help me with my puzzle, but if he were still here I think he'd be proud of me for working my way through this one so well. Well, I SAY I'd better stop on this positive note and get going on the rest of my day.
Have a pleasant one, everybody.
Text Replacement for some reason had that pesky letter there. Once I removed it, it stopped appearing.
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