MANOR, CHATEAU, PALACE, [ CASTLE ]*
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Gilette Castle, right here in my home state of Connecticut
This was a great crossword puzzle theme - a clever use of ordinal numbers and homonyms ( I also found the term "polysemy" - bank & run, e.g. ), words that sound and spell the same, but have two totally different definitions. My research into constructor Alex Rohrer led me to some other pages of crosswords ( click the green "read" button ) but I cannot be sure who "they" are - if they be man or woman - and I am not going to assume, as I made that 'foe pah' last year with "Dana" Edwards - sorry, man. Anyway, this was Friday-level difficulty in a standard grid, no circles, just twelve 3LWs, but a tad too many names & abbrs ( at least in the clues; I'm looking at you 58D. ). The themers;
17. [Math], science, gym, English: FIRST CLASS - the [ brackets ] are a hint as to the "position" required to finish the fill; here, "math" is the opening, or first, instance of four school "classes" listed - not the combination of the two words being 'posh section of an airplane'. The "M" is capitalized just because it's the opening letter of the clue - which threw me at first.
30. Allegory, [fable], anecdote, parable: SECOND STORY - the word in brackets is now found in the 'second' place, one of four synonyms for "story" - not the 'level of a house'
46. Walkout, slowdown, [picketing], sit-in: THIRD STRIKE - the third word, in brackets, is a synonym for strike, in the 'union' sense, not the "yer out~!" of baseball, or say, convictions; ya know what they call manners in prison~? Con etiquette, get it~?
62. Safari lodge, island property, destination spa, [all-inclusive beach hotel]: LAST RESORT - finally, we have four examples, or definitions, of places, as opposed to the ultimate act of extreme decisiveness, like nulcear war
* FOURTH ESTATE - known collectively as 'the press' - I did not know about the first three estates
Let's keep this theme going~!
sodium, carbon, lead, tin, [ iron ] - Fifth Element
Great movie, 1997 - about "love", not atomic structures on the periodic chart
But
Wait
There's
More
ACROSS:
1. Lemon piece: WEDGE - I do the Downs first, had SOAR at 1D., so I filled in SLICE; Bzzzt~!
6. Shoe with a "Sport Mode": CROC - don't own, don't care
'dad mode', 'marriage material', uh, OK, kinda funny
10. Sunscreen ingredient: ZINC - I had - IN -, thought TINT at first 😜
14. Far from familiar: ALIEN - I knew this was the answer, but my NW corner was a jumbled mess
15. Off-white hue: ECRU - Ah. The Monday dupe. On Tuesday.
16. "Pick me!": "OH, OH~!"
19. Simplicity: EASE
20. Start of a long drive, perhaps: TEE SHOT - the "H" my last letter to fill, highlighted red in the grid below; I was trying to parse this as TEES OFF, which the crossings denied
21. Available sans Rx: OTC - Over-The-Counter, Frawnche "without" prescription, but only avec argent
23. Craps cube: DIE
24. Journalist Katie: COURIC - name #1, knew this one
26. Formal expulsion: OUSTER
28. Well-suited: APT
32. Tasks: CHORES
34. Doja Cat's signature song: SAY SO - not my thing, but I listened and liked it - has a 70's disco vibe, and the video does, too; * warning *- the rap in the middle contains foul language, of course - name(ish)
35. Zipped, or ripped: TORE
36. "Love & Hip Hop: Atlanta" airer: Mtv - the channel ran its last actual music video in 2025, sorta
37. Kardashian matriarch: KRIS - name #2, no clue, tried "I-ris"
41. Sailor Moon headpiece: TIARA - Anime / Manga; it's her weapon - name(ish)
44. Benoit Blanc, e.g.: SLEUTH - name(ish)- more here; I have the DVD, haven't watched it yet . . .
50. Pigpen: STY
51. Tried to improve one's score on, perhaps: RETOOK - think 'test'
52. Rat: SNITCH - I had PARIAH, as the "H" was in place
54. "__ longa, vita brevis": ARS - this helped me get a foothold in the SW; thanks to four years of Latin in high school~!
55. Cat seat: LAP - Here's my buddy from LI, now living in CT as well, at home New Year's Day
Matt "The Hat" and cat
57. Some bagels: SESAMES - I like mine Everything Egg - which a friend suggested were the bagels that got dropped on the floor in the kitchen . . .
60. Masjid prayer leader: IMAM
64. "Bob's Burgers" girl: TINA - Watched the show for a while; I like Louise more - name #3
65. Redhead of classic TV: OPIE - I had LUCY, of course, but how can you tell hair color in Black & White~? Name #4
66. Features of some lobbies: ATRIA - I would fly into Singapore just to see this one
More here
67. "Quit it!": "STOP~!"
68. Rain delay sight: TARP - a C.C. baseball clue - what, two months to Spring Training~?
69. Small: TEENY
1. Travel by air: WAFT - Dah~! Not SOAR; think of aromas
2. Lebanese fashion designer Saab: ELIE - Friday-cluing for name #5 - not the usual culprit, Mr. Weisel
3. Chloé Zhao, for one: DIRECTOR - name #6 - her IMDb, as I do not know any of her movies
4. Bas-relief medium: GESSO - Argh~! My first thought, hesitated; learned about gesso from Bob Ross
I love Bob - I bought his paints and did this
5. Gush: ENTHUSE - Ah; think emotionally
6. Boston player: CELTIC - All I could think of were Red Sox and Bruins - I am no basketball fan
7. TV producer: RCA - a company that produced the actual appliances; who else remembers the TV repair guy using a mirror to see the screen while he adjusted the settings~?
I do remember the hardboard back panel with the holes in it, too~!
8. Ish: OR SO
9. Guardianship: CUSTODY - I was on the wavelength with "parentage"
10. Elmo's orange friend: ZOE - name #7 - Never heard of her
11. "Couldn't resist!": "I HAD TO." - due to inflation and the rising cost of crossword fill, there will be an upcharge for "Thwurds"; we also have - 43D. Have high expectations: ASK A LOT - AND - 48D. "I'll have to pass": "IT'S A NO."
12. More likely to pry: NOSIER
13. Chipper: CHEERY - alliteration
18. Targets of some workouts: CORES - my "core" has gone south on me; I slacked off during the holidays. But I did some fasting, and gotta get to trying those new dishes~!
22. Swear: CUSS - Ah. CURSE didn't fit, but I was "correct"
25. People who get half the credit: CO-STARS
27. Stir up: STOKE
28. Do one's part: ACT
29. Soup with rice noodles: PHO - I pondered NAM, like we had last Friday
31. Pt. of USNA: NAV - meh. U. S. Naval Academy
33. In vogue again: RETRO - I'm "retro" simply because I'm old, and never changed . . .
36. B.A. Baracus player: Mr. T - from "The A-Team", 80s TV; name #8
38. Mount with southeast-facing faces: RUSHMORE - name(ish), but a gimme
What's the price of admission to this park, CandianEh!~?
39. Addams cousin: ITT - name #9
40. Reserved: SHY
42. Object of admiration: IDOL
44. One with two poles: SKIER - and here I thought I was clever filling in "EARTH"
45. Cry of hunger?: "LET'S EAT~!"
46. Qualities: TRAITS
47. __ crab: HERMIT
49. Foot part: INSTEP
Foot parts ON steps
53. Isabel Wilkerson's "__: The Origins of Our Discontents": CASTE - more here, name(ish)
56. Dada: PAPA - a bit meh for Friday, IMHO
58. Former "DWTS" co-host Andrews: ERIN - I had no idea what DWTS is - Dancing With The Stars. She & partner came in third, then she was one of the 25D. until 2020; name #10
59. Hotel visit: STAY
61. World view?: MAP
63. "Aaron Burr, __": "Hamilton" song: SIR - name(ish), and not needed for this 3LW
Grid Flow 32.2
After I completed the
ReplyDeletewhole puzzle, I looked back and could see what the constructor was doing. Not so much while I was working on it, though.
Anyway, FIR, so I’m happy.
Clever. I liked how the bracketed words in the clues denoted [placement], and that the second word in each theme answer was a homonym of the words in the clue. But just as importantly, that each theme answer was a solid, in-the-language phrase.
ReplyDeleteI didn't sense all of that at first. I don't usually start with 1A. I normally start in the middle of a puzzle, and to quote what Husker Gary once said, "On the toughies I just bloom where I get planted and work out from there." For me that was a wag at MTV leading to NAV, and then over to KRIS and RUSHMORE to really get going. Or growing, as in HG's allusion.
I built quickly around RUSHMORE, and soon saw (something)RESORT. But I had INSole before INSTEP, until OPIE and TARP led to that change. PAPA and SIR made LAST RESORT obvious.
THIRD STRIKE fell next, and was pretty sure I knew the game. SECOND STORY AND FIRST CLASS fell relatively quickly. The only stumble was I didn't know Chloé Zhao, but I had D--ECTOR. So she was a defector before she was a DIRECTOR. D'oh! The answer had to be FIRST so not defector.
I also confidently keyed in aloe. But the perps quickly led me to ZINC. That was the extent of my errors. I didn't know of ELIE or TINA, but they perped in. I did know KRIS, ERIN and COURIC. There were a couple of names in the clues that I paused on, but the perps made the answers SLEUTH and CASTE easy guesses. Oh, add in Sailor Moon.
I didn't find this puzzle all that tough. I solved it easily with in my Wednesday or Thursday time, but I did find this puzzle extremely clever and well crafted.
Thank you, Alex. A very clever puzzle.
Thanks, Splynter. Great job. Funny that you linked Bob Ross. He did a majority of his paintings in his studio in (yesterday's) MUNCIE, Indiana. Nice job on your painting, too. Looks like a scene one might see in the Pacific Northwest or Canadian Rockies. I'll leave you with some thoughts about polysemy that popped into my head when I read the WikiP article. Name the song based on the lyrics:
There's a sign on the wall, but she wants to be sure
'Cause you know sometimes words have two meanings
In a tree by the brook, there's a songbird who sings
Sometimes all of our thoughts are misgiven
Ooh, it makes me wonder
Ooh, makes me wonder
See all y'all later n'at! I'm going back to bed. Well, after I send D-O another TMI email.
I know that one too! My favorite version was by my musician girlfriend, her professional musician sister, and some of their musician friends performing in an empty silo on the farm where the sisters lived. Heaven.
Delete“Stairway to Heaven” Led Zeppelin
Delete-SubG
oh~! oh~! - I know that one~!
ReplyDeleteGood morning!
ReplyDeleteLate to the party (after reading TTP's email). This one took normal Friday solving time. Hand up for aloe/ZINC. earth/SKIER, and lucy/OPIE. Everything worked out. Failed to notice the bracketed position indicator -- natch. Thanx, Alex and Splynter.
Did you notice the "n'at!" in TTP's post? Shades of crosswords past.
FIR, but curric->COURIC, bet->MTV, rodent->SNITCH, lucy->OPIE, and aid->ACT.
ReplyDeleteI knew GESSO because my late wife was an artist, and tried just about every medium available.
Another CSO to my dear, elderly greyhound Zoё.
I remember that B. A. stood for "Bad Attitude" in the show. I pity the fool who didn't know this one. (For those who didn't, please don't take it personally. "I pity the fool..." was a B. A.'s trademark saying.)
I find that most puzzles have some clues/fills that add to my enjoyment, some that detract from my enjoyment, and most neither add nor detract. Today there were far more that detract, an even dozen to be exact.
Thanks to Alex for the challenge. "Mount with southeast-facing faces" for RUSHMORE added to my enjoyment. And thanks to Splynter for another fine review and leg shot. My favorite, of course, was the view of RUSHMORE from the Canadian side.
OH OH! I almost forgot - Pitchers and catchers report February 10th. Even though MLB and I were divorced years ago, I still kind of keep up. No, it's not stalking.
ReplyDeletedo you remember the tv with the magnifier on the front?
ReplyDeleteHearing, sight, touch, smell, taste, {ESP}. SIXTH SENSE
ReplyDeleteI thought it was {umami}
DeleteThanks so much for the review! Glad you liked the theme. I agree about the NW corner and the excess of names. The NW corner had to be redone a bit in editing unfortunately. And one of the names I had to sneak in there cause this is my first LAT and it's my daughter :). I love you guys suggestions at continuing the theme. Oh (oh), and I can confirm Alex is indeed a man! Source: me
ReplyDeleteThanks again!
-Alex R
This comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteAlex, my main 'man'. I've got a good friend named ALEXIS, male. Great puzzle Everybody calls him LEX.
DeleteFIR. This was a really fun puzzle for a Friday. It was typically hard as a Friday puzzle should be, but quite doable.
ReplyDeleteI got the theme mid way through the solve. My only misstep was throwing down third string before third strike. That slowed me a bit but I soon saw the error of my ways.
Overall a very enjoyable puzzle.
I found this CW quite easy for a Friday. Great theme. Even though there were quite a few names I didn’t know, somehow they filled easily with perps and WAGS.
ReplyDeleteI had Lucy before OPIE and aloe before ZINC.
Very enjoyable puzzle.
Thank you Splynter for your nice thorough review.
Good Morning:
ReplyDeleteThis was a Friday theme with Friday difficulty, IMO. Several clues were tricky or vague enough to require some thought and even the theme took a while to understand. I, for one appreciated the difficulty level because it reminded me of how much I enjoyed being challenged by the Fridays of long ago. Strong and fair perps contributed to a successful solve, just as they always did. Like others, I was fooled by Lucy/Opie and Aloe/Zinc and those helpful perps were needed for Tiara, Ars, Tina, Director, Mr. T, and Caste.
Thanks, Alex, for a very clever and enjoyable offering and thanks, Splynter, for explaining and expanding on the unusual theme. I enjoy your commentary, especially the personal asides.
Have a great day.
Just enough difficulty to make this Friday puzzle fun, not frustrating. Thanks for the entertaining write-up, Splynter. I enjoyed watching Bob Ross, but never tried painting. Your attempt is definitely worth displaying.
ReplyDeleteAnd thanks, Alex Rohrer, for a fun puzzle and for commenting here.
Well, (is it Friday? It doesn't look like Friday...)
ReplyDeleteI don't think I would have finished this at all, if it wasn't for the Friday Gimmick. Just too many learning moments... Gesso? (I guess so...) and the clueing could have been a little more annoying if it was "red head of black and white TV..."
I dunno, I feel battered and bruised after this puzzle...
Anywho, on the lighter side:
L0L (on the inside) at the Canadian view!
You painted that! (Amazing!)
And, I went looking for a video of Sailor Moon throwing her Tiara Weapon, (for all those that would have no clue.) and decided against it. I had three daughters, so of course I have seen all the Sailor Moon/Power Puff girls/You name it stuff. Of course, why would you, if you don't have to...
One note, if you are into satire, (PSA Warning, not for everybody) you must check out "ten times robot chicken went to far..." (blood/guts/sex with claymation puppets...). The Sailor Moon satire is hilarious...
P.S.
ReplyDeletethanks for the Castle Park Link! Looks amazing! Next time I am in the area I will definitely check it out...
It even says they have ATV Wheelcairs! im hoping it's this!
and not this...
Anywho, I thought New Jersey was the "you can't get there from here" state. That was before I tried to drive to Rhode Island thru Connecticut.
be sure to bring your futuristic traffic management systems with you!
Tough but enjoyable Friday outing. A few too many names for my taste, but the perps were fair. Didn't realize Opie was a redhead. I went with Lucy, of course. Oops. Enjoyed the write-up, Splynter. I remember our TV repairman, Eddie, stopping out front in his panel truck. Sometimes seemed like he was part of the family! Always kept my fingers crossed that we wouldn't hear the dreaded "looks like it'll have to go into the shop".
ReplyDeleteWonderful puzzle, Alex! Thanks for visiting the Corner this morning. A very fine review, Splynter -- thanks for that! The names were daunting at FIRST, but perps helped me FIR. I'm glad Splynter and TTP mentioned homonyms. For some reason, it took a while for that to click with me, although they were of course part of the answer phrases. I need to re-learn how to sleep at night!
ReplyDeleteIf the theme hadn’t been so helpful, I doubt I could have FIR. At the outset, the sea of unknown names had me thinking my comments today would consist solely of “DNF. Thumper!”
ReplyDeleteHowever, I did come up with 1A (WEDGE) and 1D (WAFT) quickly, and Mount RUSHMORE and SESAMES helped me fill in the SE.
Then it was a matter of creating enough perps to help me come up with the many unknowns, starting with CROC (not Nike), MTV (as clued: I had OWN, as in Oprah Winfrey Network first), the Doja Cat song, Sailor Moon, which Kardashian is the matriarch, ARS, Benoit Blanc as a clue for SLEUTH, the relatively obscure TINA, the Lebanese designer, the Sesame Street version of ZOE, the MR. T entry, and the CASTE clue. I also didn’t know that sports sidelines reporter ERIN Andrews has the DWTS connection.
But honestly, the two entries that frosted me were Dada/PAPA and (ESPECIALLY!) OH, OH. The latter is sort of close to Arnold Horshack’s eager catchphrase on Welcome Back, Kotter, but not close enough. It’s bad enough that Patti precedes too many paraphrases with “oh,” but this one was rather tin-eared. You won't catch many middle-school boys saying "Oh! Oh!" when they're eager to speak up.
Lots of blanks in the North. Actually worked my way up. Lots of names. But It was the LAST RESORT that gave away the cleverly positioned theme. I went back and filled in the rest. It woulda been a CHORE but interesting to place all the ordinal numbers in their correct position in the answers like in the clues.
ReplyDeleteInkovers: icier/ALIEN, aloe/ZINC, Went from WAFT to wing back to WAFT
SAYSO was unnecessarily cryptic (at least I sayso.)
All bets are off if another face is added on Mt. Rushmore. When Bob Ross passed they found some unfinished paintings in his hair.
“Doja Cat’s cat’s signature song”
Isn’t the TV “Meow Meow” tune. Quickly realized Benoit Blanc was not a French Wine from the “Knives Out” series. “Red head” OPIE beat out Lucy we also watched both shows only in black and white plus “OPIE” is bald now .
Thought “chipper” meant feeling well not CHEERY (happy)
Found under drinks: COSTARS
Girls with poms poms: CHEERY
”The pekoe is scalding!”: TEESHOT
Thanks for stopping by Alex. 😊
Hmm, thank you for the before and after "opie" shots, but it makes me wonder if the Saturday Stumper is going to re-clue this as "now partially red faced" classic TV star...
DeleteTook 7:08 today for things to add up.
ReplyDeleteSeemed too easy for a Friday, although I didn't know "gesso," "Say so," "Zoe," and "Kris." Also didn't know that a "croc" (or any other shoe) had a "sports mode".
Trying to keep it going:
Eden, paradise, the promised land, Zion, Valhalla, Avalon, [nirvana] ... Seventh Heaven.
Who is EIGHTH in succession to the British throne? It could go on forever.
DeleteI had a hard time finishing today but I finally managed. I don't wear CROCs, have zero knowledge of Doja Cat, any Kardashians other than OJ's lawyer, Benoit Blanc, any MTV show, Sailor Moon, any Lebanese fashion designer (maybe a Hezbollah bomb designer?), B.A. Barcus, Isabel Wilkerson, Elmo's friend or Choe Zhao. I've never seen "Bob's Burgers", DWTS, or the "Hamilton" play. But somehow, I FIR.
ReplyDeleteI hadn't paid attention to the [bracketed] positions in the clues until I had filled LAST RESORT and that opened the puzzle up and I went back and filled 1st, 2ng, & 3rd. The NE was the last to fall with a V8 moment. I use ZINC (Cera Ve) sunscreens but kept thinking PABA. ZOE was perped. My redhead was original LUCY until PAPA made it OPIE.
RCA- I remember some convenience stores that had some type of tester where you could replace burnt out tubes. You could bring in the your suspected bad tube, check it, and buy a replacement. Quasar Television solid-state 'works in a drawer' for easy repair.
I didn't know a lot of the names or "mediums" but somehow I prevailed. The NW corner was the last to fall. I tried to work Lucy or Ball in but the perps refused me. Thanks for stopping in Alex. Its always a treat to get an input from a constructor. This was well done and enjoyable as was the recap Splynter.
ReplyDeleteHola! I thought this was fairly easy for a Friday. WEDGE and CLOG could have been connected as both are shoe styles. I liked seeing FIRST, SECOND, THIRD, and LAST in order. OPIE perped with PAPA in place. I've never seen Bob's Burgers but TINA emerged after all the downs fell. Also, I've never seen DWTS but ERIN also emerged.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Alex Rohrer, this was a nice Friday puzzle.
I hope all is well with everyone.