MaryEllen Uthlaut is no stranger to the Corner. Today, she takes us from port to port.
20. Port: AVIATOR'S LEFT. The directions and colors were borrowed from boats.
28. Port: RED DESSERT WINE. Turns out this this is the best way to stain a white tablecloth. Don't ask me how I know.
47. Port: CRUISE STOPOVER. Apologies to cruise fans, but it seems a bit overwhelming when several huge ships descend on a small island.
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| St. Maarten in the Caribbean |
53. Port: COMPUTER SLOT. A port is a place to plug in something external to a COMPUTER, while a SLOT usually means a socket on the motherboard inside that holds various circuit cards.
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| Ports vs SLOTs |
Well, this puzzle started off like a Monday, but ended like a Friday in the south-central area. U-EYS had to change to U-IES, but then I wrote AION instead of PION. There went my Greek poet out the window.
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| Maserati Quattroporte = 4 doors |
No revealer, just four types of ports. The resulting theme answers are all reasonable phrases, which is always appreciated.
Here's the report on the rest:
Across:
1. Cartoon girl whose best friend is Boots the Monkey: DORA.
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| DORA & Boots |
5. Brand of body wash: DIAL.
9. Meant but not said: TACIT.
14. Sigh of woe: ALAS.
15. Slip (past): EDGE.
16. Residence: ABODE.
17. Sharp taste: TANG. Ironically, TANG (the powdered drink) isn't tangy - it's over 90% sugar.
18. Russian blues, e.g.: CATS. A cat breed from northern Russian that is blue because it's so cold there. Or maybe it's just because of their thick silver/blue coat.
19. Foldable bed: FUTON.
20. [theme]
23. Kept on teasing: RODE.
24. Isl. with four provinces: IRE. Ireland is traditionally divided into four provinces - Connacht, Leinster, Munster, and Ulster.
25. Basic nutrient: FAT. FAT is a macronutrient, like proteins, carbohydrates and water. Needed in lesser amounts are the micronutrients vitamins and minerals.
28. [theme]
32. Wetland ecosystem: FEN. A FEN is a type of peat-accumulating wetland fed by mineral-rich ground or surface water. It is one of the four main types of wetlands, alongside marshes, swamps and bogs.
33. __ poker: DRAW. You can also paint poker.
34. Holy people: SAINTS.
35. Adapter letters: AC/DC. It converts Alternating Current to Direct Current.
37. "Okey-dokey": YEP. My cousin, who has the voice of an angel, hosts a singing and DJ service called Okey-Dokey Karaoke.
39. Breathing organ: GILL.
40. Moved with haste: RUSHED.
43. Formerly, quaintly: ERST.
46. Leaves in hot water?: TEA. Fun clue.
47. [theme]
50. Telepathic ability: ESP. ExtraSensory Perception is commonly known as a sixth sense, and is uncommonly known as cryptaesthesia. That just came to me.
51. Part of a pod cast?: PEA. Perhaps the trickiest clue. I had PEE for a while as it's the first letter of pod.
52. Whodunit game: CLUE. In this case, CLUE is the answer! Just ask Professor Plum.
53. [theme]
58. "Until we meet again, mon ami": ADIEU. "FAREWELL, my friend," in French.
61. Unstable subatomic particle: PION. I wrote AION, which made for an unstable answer.
62. "__ might say ... ": SOME.
63. Cough drop brand: HALLS.
64. Group driven to stay together?: HERD. Unless, of course, they're cats.
65. Neck and neck: EVEN.
66. Talus locale: ANKLE.
67. Mount of Greek myth: OSSA. Twin giants Otus and Ephialtes tried to pile Mount Pelion on top of Mount OSSA to scale Olympus! I couldn't find a photo of either giant.
68. Give temporarily: LEND.
Down:
1. Facts and figures: DATA.
2. Royal figure in Norwegian history: OLAV.
3. Royal figure in Indian history: RANI. They're the ones who performed the RANI Dance. Sort of. Indians do dance in the rain to celebrate the return of the monsoons which supply three-quarters of the water the country needs.
4. Home of Odin and Thor: ASGARD. It's the Mount Olympus of Norse mythology. No Viking twins, though.
5. Reader of secret messages: DECODER.
6. "Seems to me ... ": I DARE SAY.
7. Business reps: AGTS. Agents can be business representatives.
8. Nielsen of "Airplane!": LESLIE. There's a fine between movies that are a successful FARCE and ones that are simply inane. LESLIE Nielsen played it straight and made Airplane! a classic.
9. Stiff fabric: TAFFETA. I always thought that TAFFETA was delicate. But then again, most of my knowledge comes from FARCEs. Here's a touching (?) scene from Young Frankenstein.
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| "Taffeta, darling. The dress is taffeta. It wrinkles so easily." |
10. Be against: ABUT.
11. Foldable bed: COT.
12. Promising words: I DO.
13. Oscar count for 1961's "West Side Story": TEN. This feat was only bested by three movies that won 11 awards:
21. "Hello It's Me" singer-songwriter Rundgren: TODD. The Rock and Roll Hall of Famer is considered a pioneer of electronic music, music videos, computer software, and Internet music delivery.
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| Todd playing "The Fool" - a 1964 Gibson SG he got from Eric Clapton |
22. Flubs: ERRS.
25. Having measurable limits: FINITE.
26. Buck topper: ANTLER.
27. Electrical pioneer Nikola: TESLA. Nikola invented the TESLA coil, an electrical transformer that produces artificial lighting. It's mostly used by mad scientists.
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| Another scene from Young Frankenstein |
28. Comes up again: RECURS.
29. Turns out to be: ENDS UP.
30. "Awesome!": SWEET.
31. Barrister's head covering: WIG. Horsehair WIGs are traditionally worn as a symbol of authority, and as way to soften individual identity in the courtroom.
32. Absurd situation: FARCE. See Airplane! and Young Frankenstein.
36. Letter between phi and psi: CHI. The Greek letter CHI looks like an English "X". Because it starts the Greek word for Christ, "X" is commonly used as an abbreviation for Christ, such as in "Xmas." Which reminds me, there are only 64 shopping days until Christmas - so I only have 63 days left to think about it.
38. "Time's up" callers: PROCTORS. PROCTORS are persons who supervise or monitor students and test-takers during an examination to ensure rules are followed and to prevent cheating.
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| Mr. Bean takes an exam in another FARCE. |
41. Embrace, as a cause: ESPOUSE.
42. Judge to be: DEEM.
44. Sugar substitute with sucralose: SPLENDA. There are recipes to make TANG at home using SPLENDA, but the sugar-free variety in stores uses aspartame.
45. Series of gigs: TOUR.
48. Lyric poet of Lesbos: SAPPHO. SAPPHO was an ancient Greek poet from the island of Lesbos. She is known for her lyric poetry, written to be sung while accompanied by music. Once again, it's hard to find a photos of ancient Greeks for some reason. Maybe they need new AGTS.
49. Frigate, for one: VESSEL. In a modern navy, a frigate is a medium-sized war VESSEL primarily used to protect fleets, hunt submarines, and patrol waters.
53. Spreadsheet unit: CELL.
54. Informal reversals: UIES. I had UEYS at first, but made a U-turn and corrected it.
55. Emotion expressed with heart hands, perhaps: LOVE.
56. Gathering clouds, say: OMEN.
57. Lean (toward): TEND.
58. Triumphant cry: AHA. Much better than OHO. Thanks, MaryEllen!
59. Auerbach of the Black Keys: DAN. The Black Keys are an indie rock band from Akron, Ohio. DAN is noted for playing eccentric, budget-priced, and obscure vintage pawnshop guitars.
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| Dan with his |
60. Sort: ILK.
"May the FARCE be with you."
Be good. RB
Actually, this is one
ReplyDeleteof my favorite types of puzzles:
“Synonyms” , i.e. multiple
definitions of the same word.
And this one was no exception.
I enjoyed it.
FIR, so I’m happy.
FIW with RUSHEs x sEEM. Read the clue, Jinx! Also, yes->YEP, and anti->ABUT.
ReplyDeleteFour ports and two foldable beds graced this one. There are many other good words out there to choose from.
“SOME might say” is what a TV talking head says before uttering his/her opinion.
Thanks to MaryEllen for the Thursday challenge. This one was like Ronda Rousey – tough, but doable. And thanks to Rusty Brain for another fine review.
p.s. CC has the USA Today puzzle today in the USA.
Good morning!
ReplyDeleteOther than YEs/YEa/YEP, this was an easy romp. Enjoyable. Thanx for the amusement, MaryEllen, and for the inspired expo, Rusty. (Methinks you don't approve of Dan's guitar choices.)
It was just a fun fact - I approve of all guitar choices!
DeleteFun puzzle! And loved the write-up.. IMHO two of the funniest movies ever made…Young Frankenstein and Airplane!
ReplyDeleteDon’t forget Blazing Saddles! 😁
Delete====> Darren
Good Morning:
ReplyDeleteI like this type of theme because it’s always interesting to see how the author is going to define the theme word several different ways. Also, they provide a nice change of pace from the more common themes. There was just enough chewiness to make the solve interesting and Thursday appropriate, IMO. Any stray unknowns, i.e., Dan, Todd, Pion, etc., were easily perped. Overall, a fun and satisfying solve.
Thanks, Mary Ellen, and thanks, RB, for several learning moments in your detailed review. Tummy rubs to Buster!
Have a great day.
I had to look at the date on the paper to make sure it wasn't Saturday. I DNF today.
ReplyDeleteFIR. Anyone else throw down stud before draw, like I did? Todd Rundgren fixed that misstep for me. For a Thursday I thought this was somewhat easy. All the clues were more than fair.
ReplyDeleteI got the theme early on and that helped a lot.
Overall a very enjoyable puzzle.
YEP, stud first.
DeleteI too really like this kind of theme. In my rush to WAG I started with CRUISE ship__>STOP and composer__> COMPUTER, then common sense took over.
ReplyDeleteAlso, lung before GILL and YEs before YEP. Two unknown names, TODD and DAN and although it perpped, I didn’t know PION. Lots of neat clues like Russian blues?, CATS and the one for HERD, speaking of cats. TANG appears again today.
Thank you RB for a nice review even though we got no recent photos of Ancient Greeks 😎
Took 8:57 today to wildly guess incorrectly at the Lesbos poet intersecting the subatomic particle, the variant spelling of "uyes", and the mythical mount. That bottom-center section was unsightly.
ReplyDeleteOtherwise, I didn't have a problem with this one. And, like SubG, these types of themes are usually good.
Not bad for Thursday, obvious theme. Last to go was the mid north. Stuck too long with ease but I finally was able to EDGE (past) for the win. Thought “Russian blue” was a dye (Prussian blue) but a sad CAT instead.
ReplyDeleteLet’s hope the AVIATOR hasn’t been drinking “port” 🍷.
SPLENDA; two packs in my AM cappuccino cuz I’m SWEET but not saccharine 😄, Au revoir “until we (see) meet again.” ADIEU is a more final permanent goodbye. “To God” (Addio It: “Good bye forever!”) FEN/bog and OLAV/f: only the perps know. And then there’s DAN of “Black Keys.” Unusual clue choice.
Say IDO and you gain ____ ESPOUSE. 😄
Adobe can be used to build an anagram… ABODE
Glute protective armor: ASGARD
Happy Thor’s day
Can an ASGARD also be used on ABUT?
DeleteI will join the chorus who enjoyed this puzzle from Mary Ellen who used to be a more regular contributor. She first appeared, I think, in 2013 and many multiple years including 7 puzzles in 2020. Like Jeffrey Wechsler, she's back! I did not know Ireland had four provinces or their names but it was an easy fill. I know there are some Cornerites who haven't watched Young Frankenstein or AIRPLANE I think it is their loss. I like the clues for GILL and TEA don't know if I don't remember or never new the DAN . Thank you RB and Mary Ellen
ReplyDeletethe following is just silliness, and no reflection of the puzzle or write up...
ReplyDeletehonorable mention.
also, I had some help while doing this puzzle...
Must autocorrect include at least one error in every "correction?" KNEW not NEW
ReplyDeleteHola! Thank you, Mary Ellen, for a nice challenge. Of course, LUNG was my first fill and quick erasure. WIG gave me GILL. ANTLER was tricky and PION/UIES was the last to fill. i remember long, long ago when I first encountered the word FEN in a story and had to look it up. Since then, I've encountered it several times including today.
ReplyDeleteIt's also been a long time since DORA was on my TV and I did not recall her monkey's name, but that was quickly resolved. The really tricky one was ASGARD.
Thank you, RB, for leading the pack today. Have a lovely day, everyone! It rained! We desert people really appreciate that moisture from above.
I love Young Frankenstein and have watched it several times. It never gets old, but for some reason I have never seen Airplane.
ReplyDeleteYoung Frankenstein is a great spoof done by the master, Mel Brooks. Airplane! is more like the Marx Brothers.
DeleteIt took 18 minutes to FIR but with red-letter help. So I guess it's really a FWH? Anyway, a fun CW, about a Friday level, but it is Thursday, so close.15 names, DNK 7, and DORA needed a couple perps. Tried to fill VALHALA for ASGARD, which is one of the DNKs, but it didn't fit.
ReplyDeleteAs others mentioned, LUNG/GILL, OLAF/OLAV, TART/TANG, DATA/CELL. Also as others, the south central was the last to fill. DNK PION or SAPPHO.
Overall a good, though difficult, CW, thanx for the fun MEU.
Thanx too to RB for the terrific write-up. St Maarten is the island I set off from to cross the Atlantic in a 50' sloop, a Beneteau 504. We left from Simpson Bay on the Dutch side, but I did visit the French side while I was there. I believe I've been to every island in the Caribbean, including the ABCs.
Technically, BREATHING is only done with lungs. The correct term for what a GILL does is "respiration". Did anyone else notice this?
ReplyDeleteThat falls under "close enough for crosswords."
DeleteRusty Brain thank you for that explanation. But isn't it a bit unfair in a case of misdirection like this?
DeleteWhen I saw it was a MaryEllen Uthlaut puzzle I figured I would like it. I did.
ReplyDeleteTerrific Thursday. Thanks for the fun, MaryEllen and RB.
ReplyDeleteOfficially a DNF since I had to Google TODD to break open RODE (clue is obscure IMHO) and DECODER.
Olay before DIAL held me up also.
But I did see the PORTS (although AVIATORS was slow to fill.
In the south, COMPUTER SLOb seemed very rude; I changed my lean from a literal bEND to TEND.
I moved from stud poker to DRAW.
Wishing you all a great day.
Having bEND before TEND made COMPUTERSLOT a COMPUTERSLOb. Kinda made sense.
ReplyDeleteI had to work at it, but I enjoyed this puzzle and FIR. LOAN > LEND. Thanks Mary Ellen and RB !
ReplyDelete