google.com, pub-2774194725043577, DIRECT, f08c47fec0942fa0 L.A.Times Crossword Corner: Amy Johnson

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Showing posts with label Amy Johnson. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Amy Johnson. Show all posts

Nov 18, 2024

Monday November 18, 2024 Amy Johnson and Katie Hale

  

Happy Monday, everyone! sumdaze here with a theme that seems to have arisen out of nowhere.
Theme:      Ta-da!

18 Across. Long garment with no waistline: TENT DRESS.
POP-UP TENT is a tent that is ready to use as soon as it is unfolded, without requiring a frame to be assembled first.  
a TENT DRESS and a POP-UP TENT

24 Across. "These aren't the droids we're looking for" speaker: STORM TROOPER.
Our constructors threw us a curve ball with this one. If you read the clue too quickly you might have wanted to answer Ben Obi-Wan Kenobi. However, Ben said "you're" and the STORM TROOPER responded "we're". Here is the scene from the 1977 Star Wars movie. (The STORM TROOPERs are wearing white body armor.) (1:29 min.)  
Read about a POP-UP STORM here.

38 Across. Activity for a green-thumbed apartment dweller: WINDOW GARDENING
POP-UP WINDOW is a small advertisement or banner that appears in the foreground of one's screen while browsing a website.  
a WINDOW GARDEN and a POP-UP WINDOW I often see on Blogger

49 Across. Aftereffects of a great read: BOOK HANGOVER. I do not recall hearing this term before today but I have definitely experienced one. Here is how one blogger describes it:
A “book hangover” is the slangy shortcut for the feeling when a reader finishes a book—usually fiction—and they can’t stop thinking about the fictional world that has run out of pages. The story is over, but the reader misses the characters or the atmosphere of the novel. 
I bought this elaborate POP-UP BOOK for my grandmother when she developed dementia.
It turned out to be a good gift because her visitors enjoyed looking through it with her.

Now for the reveal:

60 Across. Right-click result, often, and where the starts of 18-, 24-, 38-, and 49-Across can be found?: POP-UP MENU.
If you right-click on your PC*, a MENU of options POPs-UP. Here is an example:  

The reveal clue also says that the starts of the themed clues can be found on a POP-UP MENU. I take that to mean that if you were looking at a menu (list) of things that POP-UP, you might see these four items:  TENTSTORMWINDOW, and BOOK.

Before we POP on over to the rest of the clues, here's a CSO to all the POPS on the Corner.  

Across:

1. Financial liability of concern to creditors: DEBT.     and     
6 Down. Have a 1-Across with: OWE TO.  

5. "Gilmore Girls" daughter: RORY.  Do we get a lot of Gilmore Girls cast member clues or is it always RORY? I never saw the show so these questions are always ESPs for me.  

9. Lightning streak: BOLT.

13. Dickens villain Heep: URIAH.  Uriah Heep is such a great name! He was the creep in David Copperfield. I chose this book 
for my senior literature project when I was in high school.

15. Tot's scrape: OWIE.

16. Grammy winner India.__: ARIE.  My trick for remembering this XWD staple fill is she sings an aria, but with an "e" at the end.

17. "So anyway," e.g.: SEGUE.  Def: (noun) a transition made without pause or interruption.
Regardless, this was a fun word to find in the grid.

20. TV channel with a large film library: TCM.  Turner Classic Movies

21. Sidesplitters: RIOTS.  Def:  (noun) an exceedingly funny story or joke.

23. German sub dangerous to Allied ships: U-BOAT.

27. Goat pen noises: MAAS.  

28. Anchorage locale: ALASKA.  Anchorage is ALASKA's most populous city with 286,075 people. ALASKA's capital, Juneau has 31,555 people.  
North to Alaska  ~  Johnny Horton  ~  1960

32. Calvin of fashion: KLEIN.  As it turns out, Calvin Richard Klein celebrates his 82nd birthday tomorrow. He was born in The Bronx, NY. He graduated from the Fashion Institute of Technology in 1962.

34. Anti-inflammatory antioxidant berry: ACAI.  Will the accolades to this berry never cease?

37. Backdrop of many novels set in the 1940s: WAR.  This one took me a bit, but after I got it I thought, "Fair enough."

42. Recipe no.: AMT.     and     
55 Down. Report card nos.: GPAS
"Number(s)" is abbreviated in these clues, so is "AMounT" and "Grade Point Averages".

43. Top-tier: A-ONE.  Also top-tier is the XWD staple, A-Team.

44. Date opening: MONTH.  In the U.S., dates are usually (but not always) written as MONTH/day/year. Since MONTH comes first, it is the opening.

45. Apple download: IOS APP.  iOS is the iPhone Operating System. iOS APPs are designed to take advantage of an iPhone's built-in features, like its camera, microphone, GPS, etc.

48. Duck, duck, goose shape: RING.  Duck, Duck, Goose is a children's game in which the players sit in a circle.

55. Figure on a wedding cake, maybe: GROOM.  

58. Steel support for concrete: REBAR.  

59. Ida. neighbor: ORE.  There is a movement for some eastern OREgon counties to join IDAho.  GreaterIdaho.org website 

62. "Hakuna Matata" composer John: ELTON.     and     
11 Down. WNBA great Leslie: LISA.
We have two double firsties in today's puzzle. Those always throw me off.

64. Hymn finale: AMEN.

65. Give off: EMIT.

66. Shoe material that shouldn't get wet: SUEDE.  You shouldn't step on SUEDE either. Elvis sang a song about that.  

67. "__ my regards": SEND.  not "give"  

68. Loose tops: TEES.

69. Went up a size: GREW.  
The Grinch's heart GREW. (45 sec.)

Down:

1. Does some light housekeeping: DUSTS.  
Treadmills are also good for hanging laundry.

2. Not hunched over: ERECT.

3. Life-changing events: BIG MOMENTS.

4. "T," on sorority row: TAU.  
Greek alphabet

5. Helicopter part: ROTOR.

7. Classic Unilever laundry soap: RINSO.  Unilever is the company that owns the brand name RINSO...among other well-known brands.


8. "So close, __ so far": YET.  

9. Streisand of "Yentl": BARBRA.  The story is that she was born "Barbara" then changed the spelling of her name when she was 18 because she wanted to be unique but did not want to change her name.

10. Cookie with a Coca-Cola variety: OREO.

12. Rorschach __: TEST.  
The test consists of a series of 10 symmetrical blots where the subject states what they see. These slides are shown in the same order to align modern observations with historical performance. You can see the 10 cards here.
This is a 22 sec. clip from Batman Forever (1995) with Val Kilmer and Nichole Kidman.

14. Boy of la familia: HERMANO.  Spanish for "brother"

19. "Hamilton" climax: DUEL.  I liked this clue!  The song from that scene is called The World Was Wide Enough. It is a great message for today's quarrels as well! 

22. "__ showtime!": IT'S.

25. Midnight snack expedition: RAID.

26. Reimbursed: PAID.

29. Person who is a big factor in a two-party election: SWING VOTER.

30. Philosopher Immanuel: KANT.  (1724-1804) He was born in Germany and is one of the Enlightenment thinkers. Basically, he believed in humanity's ability to be rational about morality and wrote about categorical imperatives. The internet says Kant was 5'2" (157.5 cm.).

31. "Grr": ARGH.

32. River in an epic film title: KWAI.  The Bridge on the River Kwai was the highest-grossing film of 1957. It won seven Oscars, including Best Picture.

33. Bachelorette party hire, perhaps: LIMO.

34. Before now: AGO.

35. Food drive item: CAN.  a good November reminder to help out

36. "__ you sure?": ARE.  No, I'm sumdaze.

39. D.C. paper: WAPO.  WAshington POst

40. Some asylum seekers: EMIGRES.

41. Improper action: NO-NO.  
46. Teem: ABOUND.

47. Showy splendor: POMP.  I thought of the graduation march POMP and Circumstance by Edward Elgar, a name I've seen in a few puzzles.

48. Biochem molecule: RNA.

50. Krispy __: KREME.  

51. Figure skater Sonja: HENIE.  (1912-1969) Henie won more Olympic and World titles than any other female figure skater. She was born in XWD's favorite capital, Oslo.

52. Shares an edge: ABUTS.

53. Eat away at: ERODE.  During the Ice Age, glaciers ate away at the granite in the Sierra Nevada mountain range, creating Yosemite's Half Dome.  

54. Affirm again, as vows: RENEW.  

56. Italy's capital: ROME.

57. Willing to listen: OPEN.

61. Encountered: MET.

63. Carry with effort: LUG.  

Here's the grid, with a POP of color:

Have a great day! I'll POP by later to read the comments.

*Note to Mac users:  According to the Apple Support website, a right-click on a Mac is called a 'secondary click' or 'Control-click'. To open shortcut menus, Control-click an item using your keyboard and mouse or trackpad.

Mar 25, 2024

Monday March 25, 2024 Amy Johnson

  

Happy Monday, everyone! sumdaze here. My calendar is telling me today is a XWD favorite holiday -- Holi. Best wishes to all who celebrate!

Veteran constructor Amy Johnson recently collaborated with Katie Hale on this Sunday puzzle. Today she is back with a solo contribution I am calling: 

Wishful Thinking

All is explained at the reveal:

56 Across. Words said over a lit birthday cake, and upon the start of 17-, 26-, or 42-Across: MAKE A WISH.  
Isn't she fun to watch?!

17 Across. Box office attraction: STAR POWER.  Jiminy Cricket sang about this in Pinocchio (1940).  
(Watch at 1:19 min. there are side-by-side pictures of crooner Cliff Edwards 
next to his animated alter ego.)

26 Across. Ancient vintner's quaff: DANDELION WINE.  
Why People Wish on Dandelions

42 Across. Makeup bag contraption: EYELASH CURLER.  If you see an eyelash on your friend's face, you can put it on the tip of your finger and tell your friend to make a wish then blow it away.
If you didn't know, this is an EYELASH CURLER.
No wonder eyelashes want to flee after being caught in one of these contraptions!  

The three themers give us three things upon which we can make a wish:  STARDANDELIONEYELASH. Amy did a fine job of crafting her idea into a 9-13-13-9 pattern grid. Let's see what else she included:

Across:
1. "The __ of the Furious": film sequel also known as "F8": FATE.  Hand up for filling this with FAST then later looking at 1-Down and thinking, "Huh?"
How did I miss the F+8=FATE ? I obviously went too fast

5. Orange juice bits: PULP.

9. Former Speaker of the House Pelosi: NANCY.  Nancy Patricia Pelosi (b. March 26, 1940) served as the 52nd Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives from 2007-2011 and 2019-2023.

14. Atmospheric glow: AURA.

15. Teri's "Young Frankenstein" role: INGA.  Here is Teri Garr reminiscing about making the 1974 film with director Mel Brooks and co-stars Gene Wilder, Marty Feldman, and Madeline Kahn.

16. Honolulu hello: ALOHA.  

19. Like an area with many farms: RURAL.

20. Tee or cami: TOP.

21. Suffix with oct-: -ANE.  so much more info.

22. Letters sent by plane: AIRMAIL.  

24. Scott Turow work: ONE L.  
25. Timely blessing: BOON.

31. __ and pestle: MORTAR.  Mine gets a lot of use grinding flax seeds to add to the bread I bake. My tip is to add whatever salt a recipe calls for to the MORTAR at the same time.  

32. Dr. Jekyll creator's monogram: RLS.  Robert Louis Stevenson was born in Edinburgh on November 13, 1850 and died 9,460 miles away in Samoa on December 3, 1894.  

33. Celestial sphere: ORB.

35. Belgium money: EUROS.

36. Heaven knows where, for short: MIA.  Missing IAction  

37. Subway in Washington, D.C.: METRO.  
I rode the Orange line to the Farragut West station for three years.

39. Flight safety org.: TSA.  

40. Casual hellos: HIs.

41. Lox fish: SALMON.  Lox is a fillet (or strip) of brined SALMON. Brining means to cure food with salt.  lox-a more about lox

46. Part of speech: NOUN.

47. Classic TV role for Ron Howard: OPIE.  Ron talks in depth about this period of his life in his book The Boys: A Memoir of Hollywood and Family (2021).

48. Millennium Falcon pilot: HAN SOLO.  Anyone with an iota of Star Wars background knew this one.
Harrison Ford, back in the day
BTW, Harrison Ford and Ron Howard acted together in American Graffiti,
a 1973 George Lucas film about cruising in Modesto, CA.

51. Surgery ctrs.: ORS.  Operating Rooms

52. Gain a lap: SIT.  This was my FAV clue today!  Not a lap on the track!

55. Renowned baseball family: ALOUS.  Here is the story of how three brothers from the Dominican Republic made MLB history by forming the first all-brother outfield back in 1963.  

59. Word after dime or dollar: STORE.

60. Early school yrs.: ELEM.  "Years" is abbrevieated, so is "ELEMentary".

61. __ and hearty: HALE.

62. Game piece: TOKEN.  

63. County fair attraction: RIDE.

64. Sign of the future: OMEN.

Down:

1. "The __ and the Furious": action film franchise: FAST.

2. Car: AUTO.  
AUTOs in The Fast and Furious  (2001)

3. U-shaped part of a drainpipe: TRAP.  
4. Spot for an AirPod: EAR.

5. Trailblazer: PIONEER.

6. Not feeling up to par: UNWELL.

7. Size up from med.: LGE.

8. Curve in algebra class: PARABOLA.  
This diagram shows why we say a PARABOLA is a conic section 
(the curve you get when a plane intersects a cone's surface).

9. Not wide: NARROW.

10. School reunion attendees: ALUMNI.

11. "Julie & Julia" writer/director Ephron: NORA.  

12. Spiced tea brewed in milk: CHAI.

13. Southern collective pronoun: Y'ALL.  I hope Y'ALL got this one correct today.

18. Bamboo-eating bears: PANDAS.  

23. Atomic particles that carry charges: IONS.

24. Hardly fooled by: ONTO.  ONTO is a preposition that can mean on top of or fully aware of.  

26. Drench: DOUSE.  This is that disgusting MAYO video we were talking about last week.  WVU coach gets DOUSEd in MAYO after bowl win

27. Wide variety: ARRAY.

28. From Donegal: IRISH.  CSO to our lovely IM☘

29. "Get anyone else": NOT ME.

30. Infielder's blunder: ERROR.

31. "Have we __?": MET.  

34. "__ voyage!": BON.

36. Inappropriate handle: MISNOMER.  The slang definition of "handle" is a person's name or nickname. We all use one on The Corner.

37. Oscar winner Tomei: MARISA.  She won for My Cousin Vinny in 1993.  
Love this styling!!
38. French feminine pronoun: ELLE.

40. Heist booty: HAUL.

41. Highest in rank: SUPREME.  
Stop! In the Name of Love
The Supremes (1965)

43. Big name in nutritional shakes: ENSURE.  

44. Undo a bit, as a tie: LOOSEN.

45. Not raw: COOKED.

48. Biblical verb: HAST.  archaic second person singular present of "have"

49. Voice range for some boys: ALTO.

50. Cozy reading spot: NOOK.  31 Dreamy Reading Nook Ideas to Curl up with a Book in 2024

52. Thailand, once: SIAM.  CSO to Lily, Husker Gary's SIAMese cat.  

53. Cruise ship stop: ISLE.

54. Back in the day: THEN.

57. "Sting like a bee" boxer: ALI.

58. "Doctor __": BBC series starring Ncuti Gatwa: WHO.  Ncuti was born on October 15, 1992 in Rwanda. He is the 15th incarnation of the Doctor. Here he is with the latest sonic screwdriver.  

Here's today's completed grid:

Thanks in advance for your comments! I'll be off-line this week but I'll see you next Monday. I wish you a good day!

Mar 3, 2024

Sunday March 3, 2024 Amy Johnson & Katie Hale

Theme: "Academic Clubs" - Each group-ending common phrase is punnily rephrased as if it's a club for some majors.

23A. Club for music majors?: INSTRUMENT PANEL.

36A. Club for geology majors?: HEAVY METAL BAND.

56A. Club for astronomy majors?: HEAVENLY BODY.

80A. Club for paleontology majors?: SKELETON CREW.

99A. Club for philosophy majors?: REFLECTING POOL.

116A. Club for botany majors?: FLOWER GATHERING.

15D. Club for genealogy majors?: BIRTHDAY PARTY.

55D. Club for urban planning majors?: TRAFFIC CIRCLE.

Good to see Amy's byline again. She was a frequent Sunday constructor a few years ago. For those who are new, Katie Hale is the assistant to Patti Varol. She has been generously helping many constructors with their themes and grids. Here's Katie (picture from Gary's blog)

Patti allows Sunday theme queries. Some of Amy's original theme entries probably did not work for Patti. Then she suggested some new ones. Then Amy & Katie brainstormed more and got the current set. Katie probably also added the extra clue layer to further tighten up the set also.

Across:

1. Sorrowful sigh: ALAS.

5. Crude cartel since 1960: OPEC.

9. Blue, in Barcelona: AZUL. Alliteration.

13. Shady plot: ARBOR.

18. Actress Sorvino: MIRA. She speaks Chinese.



19. City in Victor Hugo novels: PARIS.

21. "Catch ya later!": CIAO.

22. Jazz singer Cleo: LAINE.

26. Agent concerned with spots: AD REP.

27. Heredity units: GENES.

28. Causing shudders, maybe: EERIE.

29. Key holder, often: JANITOR. Nice clue.

31. Was successful in: WON AT.

32. YouTube alternative: VIMEO.

34. Stage name intro: AKA.

35. "How tragic": OH NO. And 33. "How tragic": IT'S SAD.

40. Still in the sack: ABED.

42. Monogram on some high-end handbags: YSL.

43. Many corny jokes: PUNS.

44. Go on the lam: BOLT.

46. Biblical name of ancient Syria: ARAM. Root of Aramaic spoken in "The Passion of the Christ".

48. "__ Christ Superstar": JESUS.

49. Makes a connection: TIES IN.

51. Howled loudly: BAYED.

53. Wasatch Mountains ski town: ALTA.

59. Standard: PAR. And 60. Standards: NORMS.

62. __ jockey: DISC.

63. Rough guess: STAB.

64. Vague quantity: ANY.

65. Like extreme measures: DRASTIC.

68. Reebok rival: ASICS. Dr. Nina's favorite brand.



71. New citizen, perhaps: EMIGREE.

73. NFL flag thrower: REF.

74. Dull pain: ACHE. 76. Treat 74-Acrosses, maybe: SOAK.

78. Wee: BITSY.

79. Christmas helper: ELF.

85. Storage unit: BYTE. Computer storage.

86. __ station: WEIGH.

88. Music industry drama series starring Taraji P. Henson: EMPIRE.

89. NAACP __ Awards: IMAGE.

91. Cold, slushy treat: ICEE.

92. Nemo's home: REEF.

93. Mystery writer Paretsky: SARA. From Ames, Iowa.



94. Victoria's Secret purchase: BRA.

97. Haggler's concern: COST.

104. Middle Eastern title: EMIR.

106. Short greetings: HIS.

108. How tempura is fried: IN OIL. I  love shrimp tempura the most.


109. Scrooge visitor: GHOST.

110. Come really close to: VERGE ON.

112. African language family: BANTU.

114. Square: PLAZA.

115. Spanish folk hero: EL CID.

121. Pass along: RELAY.

122. British aristocrat: EARL.

123. Changed direction, nautically: YAWED.

124. Uber Eats display: MENU.

125. Many first-time voters: TEENS.

126. Some bourbons: RYES.

127. Cincinnati ballclub: REDS. Pete Rose continues to bet in Las Vegas. Signing autographs at Mandalay Bay. His full-time job there.


128. Chariot-riding god: ARES.

Down:

1. "Who __ to judge?": AM I.

2. Legalese and computerese: LINGOES.

3. Longtime Tottenham football rival: ARSENAL.

4. GPS tech: SATNAV. Satellite Navigation.

5. Bloom County penguin: OPUS.

6. "I Said a Prayer" singer Tillis: PAM.

7. Browning's before: ERE. I love love stories.


8. Show place: CINEMA.

9. Smoothie berry: ACAI.

10. Online pub: ZINE.

11. Abu Dhabi's fed.: UAE.

12. Texter's "I didn't mean that :)": LOL JK.  Just Kidding.

13. Rickman of "Die Hard": ALAN.

14. Time of Roosevelt's fireside chats: RADIO ERA.

16. Walk result, maybe: ONE ON.

17. Brief copy: REPRO.

20. Kind of drum or guitar: STEEL.

24. Enter again: RE-TYPE.

25. "Not my __": PROB.

30. Moody's top bond rating: AAA.

31. Question of motive: WHY.

32. Wedding planner's concern: VENUE.

34. Freestyle raps: ADLIBS.

37. "Go faster, huskies!": MUSH. A few sled dog races in Minnesota were canceled due to our warm weather. Odd winter.

38. Genesis figure: ABEL.

39. Like some neighbors: NOSY.

41. Highchair wear: BABY BIB.

45. Safe IRA option: T NOTE.

47. Most lowdown: MEANEST.

48. Some spreads: JAMS.

49. Hardy title character: TESS. "Tess of the d'Urbervilles".



50. Sharp front tooth: INCISOR.

52. Systane target: DRY EYE.

53. "Bizarre Foods" host Zimmern: ANDREW. He's based in Minnesota.



54. Singing nymph of the Rhine: LORELEI.

57. Passing through: VIA.

58. Three Gorges structure: DAM. Called San Xia in Chinese. San means "three".



61. Stockpiles: STASHES.

66. "I'm not eating that!": ICK.

67. Merriment: CHEER.

69. Baskin-Robbins treat: CONE. And 111. "Grand" ice cream: EDYS.

70. Word with ink or egg: SAC.

72. Barb: GIBE.

75. Sticky brand: ELMERS.

77. Governor Noem of South Dakota: KRISTI. She looks like a TV news host.

81. Olympic sword: EPEE.

82. Petty squabble: TIFF.

83. Inbox buildup: EMAIL.

84. Alert: WARN.

87. Architectural style between 1714 and 1830: GEORGIAN.

90. Bunch of honkers: GAGGLE.

94. Stronger, as mixed drinks: BOOZIER.

95. Cash of country: ROSANNE.



96. Ctrl-__-Del: ALT.

98. Albeit, briefly: THO.

100. Dash or slash: LINE. Love this clue also.

101. Diary passage: ENTRY.

102. Mountain lion: COUGAR.

103. Big __: drug industry, colloquially: PHARMA.

104. Tennis great Chris: EVERT.

105. Fracas: MELEE.

107. Conclude: INFER.

112. Cause of some nodding: BORE.

113. Shoemaker's tools: AWLS.

114. Many profs: PHDS.

117. Install, as brick: LAY.

118. Bedazzle: AWE.

119. Sam player on "Cheers": TED.

120. "Breaking Bad" villain Fring: GUS.