Saturday, January 26, 2019, Andy Kravis and Erik Agard

Themeless Saturday Puzzle by Andy Kravis and Erik Agard

Today's holiday takes me back to a candy treat we always had during Christmas at Grandma's house. She had a bowl of assorted nuts (plus a houseful of the same) and a plate of peanut brittle. 

It was much darker and thicker than this shown here but I remember it very fondly. Now that my teeth are much older and not likely to be replaced as they were when I was 10, I don't indulge any more but I fondly remember the taste!

Today's constructors have made a mark on TV gaming as well. Andy became a millionaire on Million Second Quiz with Ryan Seacrest. As you can see below, Erik was threatened with a pie by Alex Trebek because Alex, a dedicated crossword solver, was frustrated by this puzzle Erik created with Tracy Bennett and I blogged here. Did you do better than Mr. Trebek on that August 18th exercise? In our gmail exchange, Erik told me that he and Tracy started with the middle stack on that puzzle and worked out from there. Erik also told me he won on Jeopardy that day!

Andy Kravis                             Erik Agard 

Across:

1. Selection process including the Sky and the Sun: WNBA DRAFT  - I didn't look up who the Connecticut Sun drafted in the Women's National Basketball Association 2018 draft but here's who the Chicago Sky took

10. Anna of "The Emoji Movie": FARIS - She was the voice of Jailbreak

15. Lip-syncing accompaniment?: AIR GUITAR - Is Hugo Chavez also Lip-synching at the U.N.?

16. "Me too": AS AM I.

17. Bingo center square: FREE SPACE.

18. Hasbro game that requires twisting and pulling: BOP IT - If you're interested

19. Spacewalk initials: EVA - NASA's first Extra Vehicular Activity was a space walk in 1965 by Ed White. NASA's most famous EVA occurred on July 20, 1969

20. Ready for fumigation: TENTED - Tenting by Termite Terry

22. Metaphorical low area, with "the": PITS - Also very active place during the Indy 500 😏

23. Gathering tools: RAKES.

25. Film dialect that uses subject-object inversion: YODA SPEAK.

27. 1990s gaming release, initially: SNES - Super Nintendo Entertainment System


28. "LOTR" initials: JRR - Here 'ya go:

29. Visitor center: SHORT I - The center of the word Visitor is a SHORT I

30. Course with fruit, perhaps: ART CLASS - Heads we do fruit, tails we do nudes

33. Sure-footed critters: ASSES - 'Nuff said

34. Licorice, e.g.: ROOT - Here's a bunch of licorice herb roots

35. Increase: HIKE - A tax HIKE in gov't speak is a "revenue enhancement"

37. Commented on EweTube?: BAAED.

40. Ironically, designation for the fourth film release in a classic sequence: EPISODE I - George Lucas made the first Star Wars movie in 1977. He later labelled it IV so he could make assorted prequels and sequels.

44. Remove the zest from: UNPEEL - "Hey, don't throw that lemon peel away, I need zest for my martini!"

46. Record no.: RPM - David Seville recorded the Chipmunks at half the RPM's and then played them back at normal RPM's

47. Tablets brand ... or, cutely, what they treat: TUMS - Tums for your tummy

49. Saves for the future: SALTS AWAY

51. Hardly taciturn: VOCAL - "Where's my dinner?"

52. Whack: STAB - Every Saturday I take a whack/STAB at blogging 

53. Andalusian city on the Costa del Sol: MALAGA- MALAGA is a city in the province of MALAGA on Spain's Costa del Sol. 

55. One in a conflict, maybe: EGO - Conflicts involving EGO's can result in a 56. Utter: TOTAL disaster

58. 2017 hit comedy about a women's weekend getaway: GIRL'S TRIP -  Rated R (for crude and sexual content throughout, pervasive language, brief graphic nudity and drug material). Rotten Tomatoes assessment

60. QB's protection, in football lingo: O-LINE - Offensive LINE

61. Type of gland: ENDOCRINE All you want to know

62. Hangs: PENDS - Any decision in this house PENDS until there is a mutual decision 

63. Where I-35 and I-80 intersect: DES MOINES - The last time I was here, I turned left and met Boomer and C.C.

Down:

1. Symbols of thinness: WAFERS - WAFER THIN = Twiggy to me

2. End point of the Noble Eightfold Path: NIRVANA Here 'ya go

3. CBer's opening word: BREAKER - BREAKER 19 is a request to use channel 19 on a CB radio. The CB craze during the 55mph oil embargo days had many people talking like they were all "good ole boys". Play as much of this song that starts with BREAKER 19 and you will hear as much of the lingo anyone should want

4. Golden __: AGE - Many modern TV sitcoms seem to be rehashing I Love Lucy plots that were from what some say was TV's Golden AGE

5. Decisively outraces: DUSTS - Usain Bolt has DUSTED about everyone

6. Begging to be picked: RIPE 7. Nonetheless: AT ANY RATE - this is one person's opinion

8. Two and one, for two: FACTORS - Yes, 2 and 1 are the FACTORS of 2 because 2 x 1 = 2

9. Trapped, in a way: TREED.

10. Old-style dope?: FAB - Dope is current slang for "cool" 11. In contrast with: AS OPPOSED TO FAB which is so yesterday!

12. Narrow-bladed swords: RAPIERS - A guide to foils, epees swords and RAPIERS

13. Do in a bit: IMITATE - Will Jordan had a famous "comedy bit" where he "did" Ed Sullivan

14. Winter Paralympians' equipment: SIT SKIS that can negotiate the 48. Inclines: SLOPES.

21. Legal pros: DAS - District AttorneyS

24. Jersey Shore rockers since the '70s: E STREET BAND - Bruce Springsteen's backup band

26. Visored military cap: SHAKO - A French-made Shako for those who 50. Engaged in: WAGED war in the American Civil War

28. Companion of A-Rod: J-LO - A portmanteau of Jennifer Lopez

31. Works on programs: CODES - I don't think I could sit all day and produce CODES

32. Where some subs are fixed: SHIP YARDS - Hitler fixed his subs in his nearly impregnable submarine pens. I tried to get my subs fixed in a Deli here at first

36. Belief: ISM.

37. No-parking area: BUS STOP.

38. Literary France: ANATOLE - ANATOLE - A Nobel-winning Frenchman of letters

39. Lang. test for top students: AP LATIN - Advanced Placement LATIN. Good Luck with this sample question: 

41. Cajun confection: PRALINE - Billboards used to tell you to get one here

42. Skincare brand from the Greek for "beautiful wax": EUCERIN.

43. Envision: IMAGINE 

45. Fast flight: LAM - In this TV series of my ute, David Janssen as Dr. Richard Kimble was on the LAM every week

51. Explorer da Gama: VASCO - VASCO's voyage can be compared to America's moonshot. The spice trade he started made Portugal a very wealthy nation. Who knew 54. Latch (onto): GLOMming onto black pepper, etc. could be so profitable?

57. Arles article: LES - LES blogueurs ici sont très intelligents! (The bloggers here are very smart)

59. Piece of TNT?: TRI - TRI Nitro Toluene - BOOM!

A very nice and hardly brittle puzzle by our TV stars today. Comment away:

Saturday, June 16, 2018, Neville Fogarty & Andy Kravis

Themeless Saturday Puzzle by Neville Fogarty and Andy Kravis

Today celebrates National Ladies Day At Baseball Games. In 1883 the St. Louis Browns (who later became the Baltimore Orioles) decided to try to attract more fans to their baseball games and so on June 16 of that year they decided to let women in free IF they were accompanied by man and it was a huge success. This picture of much later vintage shows a large female crowd who managed to get in by themselves. Yes, C.C., there was a time when women couldn't go to ball games alone!

I first thought this day might be a celebration of women playing baseball themselves as shown in the movie A League Of Their Own. However that was not the case. This day was for attracting ladies to the park not to, EGADS, play! That would be as unthinkable as letting them vote in 1883! 😮

     Neville Fogarty                Andy Kravis

On this All-American Day, we have a Neville Fogarty and Andy Kravis puzzle that I managed to knock out in 22 minutes while having a good time. Talk about being on sympathetic wavelengths.

The section in yellow fell as fast as I could write as the fills going down were right up my alley, er, grid. The two long down fills at 11 and 12 took some time for this non drinker who really should have known the Doris Day song subtitled What Will Be Will Be (a good attitude on the golf course). 

The other two long fills were very gettable as well. ECHO CHAMBER reflects my general disdain for public figures who only talk in environs where there beliefs are echoed back to them with very little disagreement.

The rest was a nice breezy Saturday stroll with foreign words and geometry thrown in for a little spice 

Now for the rest of the puzzle - PLAY BALL! Ladies welcome, escorted or otherwise!






Across:

1. Weight-training equipment: SQUAT RACKS - Here a young lady has taken a reasonable amount of weight off the RACK behind her and is doing SQUATS with the barbell

11. Cotton cleaner: Q-TIP - My ENT says "Keep these out of your ears!"

15. Traditional November race: TURKEY TROT - That's the spirit! 

16. Social containers: URNS - Does that URN contain coffee or grandma?

17. Something a customer is happy to send back: REBATE FORM - A very common document in our house

18. One in Berlin: EINS - In Germany, Lawrence Welk would go, "Und eine Eins, und eine Zwei, und eine Drei..." (or something like that)

19. G8 member: USA - Much in the news last week concerning letting Russia back in to go from G7 back to G8

20. What an enemy exploits: WEAK SPOT - The worst pass defender on a football team is going to be busy all day 

22. Needle holder: TONE ARM - Ah the "high fidelity" instrument of  of my yute with TONE ARM poised to play more Four Seasons and Roy Orbison




27. Sharon of Israel: ARIEL.

28. Rewards for a big promotion?: CLIOS - A CLIO Award for this hilarious promotion of milk

30. Laker teammate of Magic: KAREEM - His "Sky Hook" has been called absolutely unblockable 

33. "Aha!": SO THAT'S IT - Says Brad Loahus above,"You can't block it!"

37. Flip: SASSY - History's most famous "flip" comment - Qu’ils mangent de la brioche

35. Interpret: TRANSLATE - How I got the translation for 37 Across above

38. Zaragoza's river: EBRO - Earlier in the week the clue might have been, "38. Large Spanish river"

39. Fabulous fellow?: AESOP - Earlier in the week the clue might have been "39. Man of many fables"

41. Map's blue areas: SEAS - 2/3 of the Earth's surface

42. Motel arrival?: ROACH  - At the Black Flag Roach Motel™, roaches check in but they never check out

44. Like some diamonds: SQUARE CUT - V-shaped prongs are recommended to protect the sharp corners of the stone

46. Role for Heston or Huston: BEN HUR - I saw the incredible Charlton Heston version when I was 13 as my friend's religious mother thought he and I could stand the realism

48. Weasel relative: OTTER - _ T _ _ _ was not a STOAT. All three are in the family Mustelidae 

49. "Fuller House" actor: SAGET.

51. Chords are part of them: SECANTS - A circular path with a CHORD shortcut that becomes a SECANT when extended both ways beyond the circumference of the circle (almost a straight line)

55. Cannes Film Festival award: PALME D'OR - Very little was expected of this wonderful movie until it won some PALME D'OR honors and then it made good money and got 6 Oscar nominations

58. Leave slack-jawed: AWE.

59. Many a Syrian: ARAB.

60. Booted, in old football: DROP KICKED - Drew Brees executing one in an All Star Game. He simply dropped the ball on its point and then kicked it through the uprights for 3 points

65. Give credit to: CITE - I could have CITED Bobby Bare above for singing, Drop Kick Me Jesus Through The Goal Posts Of Life

66. "Count me in!": I AM SO THERE.

67. Visionary: SEER.

68. 1999 Pacino/Crowe film about a whistleblower: THE INSIDER - ok


Down:

1. Runway gait: STRUT - Not a great gait here

2. Nacho cheese: QUESO.

3. Name of eight popes: URBAN - URBAN II called for the 1st Crusade against the Muslims

4. Handle letters: AKA.

5. Vietnamese holiday: TET - America's pyrrhic victory in this huge battle cost a great deal in men and materiel, fueled the anti-war movement in the USA and helped LBJ decide to not run for reelection three months later in March of '68

6. Deli selection: RYE.

7. DOJ division: ATF - It started in 1886 in the Treasury Dept. to collect income taxes and since then has become an agency for Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms

8. Bird that's hard to eat?: CROW - The Chicago Daily Tribune had a generous helping of CROW in 1948

9. Peninsula partly defined by the Yalu River: KOREA which is where 21. Souls, e.g.: KIAS  are manufactured

10. Gospel writer: ST MARK - The debate goes on as to whether ST MARK's or Alexander The Great's remains are buried under the altar at ST MARK's Basilica in Venice

11. Subtitle of #48 in AFI's "100 Years...100 Songs": QUE SERA SERA - The neighborhood:

12. Cosmopolitan essential: TRIPLE SEC - Meaning "Triple Distilled", it is a strong , sweet and colorless orange flavored liqueur

13. __ way, shape or form: IN NO.

14. Covert call: PSST - This is cat speak for, "PSST, get up and feed me!" I get it at 4:30 am everyday 

23. Place where it all comes back to you?: ECHO CHAMBER - Where politicians like to give speeches

24. __ king: ALA - I complained about Chicken ALA King in high school like everyone else but secretly loved it

25. British vocalist __ Ora: RITA, 29. "Thong Song" singer: SISQO and 56. Grammy winner India.__: ARIE. Google them if they interest you

26. Law recipient: MOSES - Take two tablets and call me in the morning

31. Genesis brother: ESAU which I'm sure can be found in the 50. Jewish authority: TORAH.

32. Classic PC adventure game: MYST.

33. President Aleksandar Vucic, for one: SERB - The president of Serbia for a year now

34. It has a brief solo in the first movement of Beethoven's Fifth: OBOE - A lovely contrast to the stirring theme 

36. Talks up: TOUTS - Fugue For Tinhorns - best song by/about TOUTS

40. Crown: PATE - aka Head 43. Very significant: HUGE - Human Growth Hormone made Barry Bonds' PATE get HUGE

45. Remote button: REC  - I can't seem to find that button on this remote

47. Social news website: REDDIT - not a consumer

52. Blunt, as truth: NAKED.

53. Quaint contraction: TWERE - My Love Is Like A Red Red Rose - And fare thee weel, my only love? And fare thee well awhile, And will come again, my dear, Tho' 'TWERE ten thousand mile 

54. Jewish meal: SEDER.

55. Campaign donation orgs.: PACS - Super PACS are the mother's milk of political contributions 

57. "Quo Vadis" setting: ROME - The church below, just outside of ROME, was built on the site where the story goes that Peter encountered a visage of Christ and asked him, "Quo Vadis, Domine?" meaning Where are you going Lord?

The Domine QUO VADIS church on the Apian Way

61. Letter with a silent letter: PSI.

62. "__-Tiki": KON. - This was a raft built in 1947 by Thor Hyerdall to cross the Pacific Ocean using only materials available to Pre-Columbian natives of South America to show they could have settled the Polynesian Islands. The KON -Tiki took 101 days to make the crossing.

The Kon Tiki in the Norwegian Maritime Museum
in our favorite crossword city of Oslo

63. Cousin of hers: ITS 

64. City with two MLB teams: CHI - NYC could have worked despite the fact that the Yankees play in the Bronx and the Mets play in Queens.

So get out of the dugout and celebrate this day by posting some pithy comments: