Thursday, June 17, 2021, August Miller

 

Good Morning, Cruciverbalists!  Malodorous Manatee, here, this time with a leonine friend, to wish each and every one of you a rip-roaring start to this fine Thursday.  Today's constructor is August Miller.  On 20 November 2020, Lemonade recapped August Miller's debut outing in the L.A. Times and, more recently, on 05 May 2021, Melissa Bee also recapped one of his puzzles.

This morning, Leo is crowing with pride because he is featured prominently in today's offering.  So, if you have not yet looked at the puzzle, it is time to stop lion in bed and either grab today's newspaper or go on lion and get to work on solving the puzzle.

"I'll Go There For Dorothy.  Wicked Witch or No Wicked Witch."  - Lion

Let's start with the reveal at 63 Across:

Courageous . . . like 17-, 24-, 40- and 50-Across?: LION HEARTED.  At four places within the grid, our puzzle setter has worked LEO into the two-word answers (that's the LION) and those lions jump across the gaps in between the words (that's the HEARTED-ness of the matter, I suppose).  So, it would seem that August (birth sign Leo?) was not lion to us and that those four big cats were not just lion around.

Here are the four theme-related answers . . .

17 Across.  Best Actress Oscar nominee for "The Dark Angel" (1935): MERLE OBERON.

24 Across: Unpretentious ancestry: HUMBLE ORIGINS.

40 Across:  Felony, e.g.: JAILABLE OFFENSE.

50 Across:  Former First Lady behind the "Let's Move!" initiative: MICHELLE OBAMA.

. . .  and how they appear in the grid:

Across:

1. Jokingly: IN FUN.  Said in jest, perhaps.  You know.  Lion.

6. Cashed, as a bad check: KITED.  The term Check Kiting originated in the 1920's.  It stemmed from a 19th Century practice of issuing IOUs and bonds with zero collateral.  That practice became known as "flaying a kite" because there was nothing to support the loan but thin air.

11. "The __": Uris novel: HAJ.  Decades ago, I binge-read at least a half-dozen book written by Leon Uris.  His name derives from Yerushalmi, meaning man of Jerusalem.

14. Far from cramped: ROOMY.

15. Bakery offering that's always free?: AROMA.  A scent frequently wafting through crossword puzzles.

16. Orangutan, e.g.: APE.  One day, the zookeeper noticed that the orangutan was reading two books.  One was The Bible and the other was On The Origin of Species.   When asked about what he was reading the APE replied, "I am just trying to find out whether I am my brother's keeper or I am my keeper's brother."

19. Rage: IRE.  An emotion often raised in crossword puzzles.

20. Wasatch Mountains ski resort: ALTA.  I was lucky enough to ski at ALTA quite often in the 1970's and 1980's.  A great hill.  My yellow lab, Rustler, was named after a ski run there called Alf's High Rustler which was, itself, named in honor of Alf Engen (1909 - 1997).

Hi, Rustler!

21. Recreation with skis or sneakers: RUNS.  The trails that one follows down a ski hill are called Ski RUNS.  Two skiing-related entries in a row.  That's cool, or perhaps, cold.

22. Swamp thing: GATOR.  If an alliGATOR lives in a river and thinks that she's a crocodile there's a good chance that she's in da-Nile.

27. Religious devotion: PIETY.  "Piety is not a goal but a means to attain through the purest peace of mind the highest culture." - Johann Wolfgang von Goethe.

29. GPS approx.: ETA.  Estimated Time of Arrival.

30. 8 Series automaker: BMW.  Bayerische MotorenWerke

2021 BMW 8 Series Coupe

31. Drawing contest?: RAFFLE.  Not an art competition but a random selection for a door prize.

36. Contended: VIED.

43. "Auld Lang __": SYNE.  Meaning times long past.  Slainte!

44. Reduced-rate hotel offering: DAY USE.  Hmm, a few possibilities for riffing on this one.  

45. Big gp. of towers?: AAA.  Despite the "gp" abbreviation, did anyone first think of towers as in the World Trade Center or the Petronas Towers in Kuala Lumpur?  Instead, it's the American Automobile Association and they provide tows to stranded motorists.

Petronas Towers - Photo by MM

46. Fort Collins sch.: CSU.  As with the clue just above, the "sch" tells us that the answer will be an abbreviation:  Colorado State University at Fort Collins, CO.

48. Tycoon: MOGUL.  This could have been a third skiing-related clue.  It also could have been clued as a type of locomotive or an Indian Muslim (Mughal).

57. "Modern Family" actress Winter: ARIEL.  Despite its Christopher Lloyd pedigree, I have never watched this show and did not know the actress.  Thank you, perps.

58. In the old days: ONCE.

59. "And so . . . ": ERGO.  A horse walks into a bar and orders a triple whiskey.  The bar tender asks him, "Are you an alcoholic?"  The horse replies, "I don't think I am" and promptly vanishes into thin air.

I Don't Think, Therefore I Am Not ?

62. Cab alternative: ZIN.  Cabernet or ZINfandel.  Not Uber of Lyft as we often see.  A wine reference.  There are many very good producers of ZINfandel wines which is made in various styles from light to quite robust.

66. Key that will get you out of a window: ESC.  The first of today's computer-related riffs.

67. One Time?: ISSUE.  The fact that Time (the eponymous magazine) is capitalized makes it easier to see where the constructor, or editor, was going with this bit of humor.

68. Shadowfax, to Gandalf: STEED.  Horse would also have fit in the allotted squares.  A Lord Of The Rings reference.

69. Library reminder: SHH.

70. "A League of __ Own": THEIR.  A 1992 motion picture loosely based on the All American Girls Professional Baseball League.  A straightforward fill-in-the-blank clue and an interesting placement as Tom Hanks (see 71 Across) was in this movie, also.

71. Tom who voices Woody in "Toy Story" films: HANKS.  Tom HANKS.  A couple of weeks ago we had a Tim Allen/Buzz Lightyear reference.  There has been much speculation about the use of both Buzz and Woody as names in these films.  Years earlier, the playful folks at Termite Terrace used to pull such shenanigans.

Down:

1. Destructive 2017 hurricane: IRMA.  The first Category 5 Hurricane of the 2017 season, Irma was responsible for approximately $50 Billion in damage on the mainland U.S.

2. Yuletide tune: NOEL.  From the Latin nasci meaning to be born.

3. Golf announcer's call before a potential victory putt: FOR THE WIN.  (Note:  A lion would not play golf.  But a Tiger Wood)

4. Mötley Crüe piece: UMLAUT.  While we have seen this type of misdirection before, it was still easy to get sidetracked thinking that the answer would be a song by the band.  Instead, it was a diacritical mark.

5. Lab-coated TV educator: NYE.  Bill NYE the Science Guy also visited us two weeks ago.  Rustler would have liked this clue.

6. Afghanistan's capital: KABUL.

7. Adler of Sherlock Holmes fame: IRENE.  IRENE Adler, Sherlock Homes' respected nemesis, visits us regularly despite having appeared in only one of (and being mentioned in tree other) Arthur Conan Doyle's original stories.

8. Artist's trunk?: TORSO.  The question mark tips us off that the answer will not be something in which an artist might store her supplies.

9. Paramore genre: EMO.  Paramore is, apparently, the name of a band.  I am not familiar with their music but am very familiar with EMO popping up in crossword puzzles.

10. "Rats!": DANG IT.  Both Darn It and Damn It were, briefly, under consideration.  This one reminded me of the old Roger Miller tune.

  

Roger Miller With Dick Clark - 1964 - Dang Me

11. Hispaniola nation: HAITI.  Two nations occupy the island of Hispaniola -  the Dominican Republic and HAITI.  In 1657, France and Spain split control of the island between themselves.

12. Kitchen wear: APRON.

13. Catcalls: JEERS.

18. Pluto, but not Goofy: ORB.  In this case, Pluto refers to the dwarf planet.  A slightly different take on the old question:  "If Pluto is a dog what is Goofy?"

23. Tequila plant: AGAVE.  AGAVE is used to make Mezcal of which Tequila is, basically, a subset.  Mezcal may be produced from up to fifty species of AGAVE whereas Tequila is made only from Tequilana Weber aka Weber Blue Agave.

25. British pianist Hess: MYRA.  Dame Julia MYRA Hess (1890 - 1965).

26. Coral phenomena: REEFS.  Phenomenon, singular.  Phenomena, plural.

27. Lunches with Jif: PBJS.  Jif, of course, is a brand of peanut butter.  PBJ is shorthand for Peanut Butter and Jelly.

Because They Like Hydrogenated Oil and Sugar

28. "Perhaps": I MAY. . .  and then, again . . .

32. "Rush Rush" singer: ABDUL.  Although I am aware of her, I am not a fan and did not know the referenced song.  Thanks, once again, perps.

33. Hardly an orange-free st.: FLA.  An amusing play on words.  The Orange Free State was an independent Boer sovereign republic during the second half of the 19th century.  That, however, has nothing to do with the answer.  Florida (U.S. Postal abbreviation FLA) is the top orange producing state.

34. "30 Rock" creator: FEY.  Tina FEY is a frequent visitor.

35. Singer Reed: LOU.  LOU Reed was the singer, guitarist and principal songwriter for the Band the Velvet Underground perhaps best known for the song (take a) Walk On The Wild Side.

37. TV's "Barefoot Contessa": INA GARTEN.  Born in Brooklyn and raised in Stamford Connecticut, INA GARTEN, nee Rosenberg, hosts popular cooking shows and has authored many books.

38. Genesis twin: ESAU.  According to the bible, ESAU was the elder twin brother of Jacob.

My Brother Esau - Oakland Colosseum 1987 - The Grateful Dead

39. "So here's the __": DEAL.  Another fill-in-the blank clue and a phrase used often by a current national leader.

41. Monterrey milk: LECHE.  Today's Spanish lesson.  Monterrey is a city in the state of Nuevo Leon, Mexico.

42. 1-Down relief org.: FEMA.

47.  Be convincing: SELL IT.

49. Code of silence: OMERTA.  I knew this one thanks to Mario Puzo.  Originally, OMERTA was a way of opposing Spanish rule in Sicily in the 16th Century and it meant not cooperating with state authorities to settle personal grievances.

50. Confounding layouts: MAZES.

51. Like some coffee and ales: IRISH.  Whiskey, too.

52. Snap: CINCH.  Not a closure for a garment (e.g. a zipper, button or snap) but the idiom as in "That exam was very easy.  Passing it was a cinch."  Not a piece of Western horse tack.

53. Baggy: LOOSE.

54. World-weariness: ENNUI.

55. Yellowish brown: OCHER.  A color often seen in our puzzles.

56. 6th of December?: BEE.  This one was a bit puzzling.  Eventually, it dawned on me that B was the sixth letter in the word December.  Cute.  Really cute . . . and why, oh why, does this type of clue continue to fool me so consistently (at least initially)?

60. Participant in a Mac-vs-PC argument, maybe: GEEK.  . . . and the debates continue.  Our second computer GEEK reference of the day.

61. Payout determinant: ODDS.  Once, on a business trip to Las Vegas I took ill and sought out the hotel's physician.  I located her office on the door of which was posted a sign that read "Dr. Murphy 9 to 5".  I turned on my heel and walked away.  I wanted better ODDs than that.

64. Kinda-sorta: ISH.  Punt.

65. BBQ residue: ASH.

        Knock, knock.

        Who's there?

        Ash.

        Ash who?

        Gesundheit.

 

, , , and on that note . . .

                                                                                                               

Wednesday, May 5, 2021, August Miller

Theme:  See the reveal 38A, can't come up with anything better.

 17. *Broadcast medium for major U.S. sporting events: NATIONAL TV.

25. *Request at a mom-and-pop store, maybe: CASH PAYMENT.

47. *NASA event: SPACE FLIGHT.

60. *Field trip transport: CHARTER BUS.

 38. Early ... or where the answers to the starred clues' ending words can be found: AHEAD OF SCHEDULE.

Similar to last Wednesday's theme. SCHEDULE can be added after the second word of each theme answer:  TV SCHEDULE, PAYMENT SCHEDULE, FLIGHT SCHEDULE, AND BUS SCHEDULE.

Melissa here. BUS was also part of last Wednesday's theme. Coinkydink.

Across: 

1. Wife of Jupiter: JUNO. Mythology. Juno was a jealous wife. And Jupiter, when he got bored, liked to get into mischief. To hide his mischief from Juno, Jupiter covered the world in clouds, thinking she couldn’t find out what he was really up to. But Juno was very smart, and became suspicious about what might be going on under all those clouds. When she found out about her husband’s misdeeds, Jupiter was in trouble. 

 

5. Element #5: BORON. Essential for healthy bones.

10. Opening on Broadway: ACT I.

14. "I'm thinkin' no": UH UH.

15. First in a line of Russian princes: IVAN I.

16. Pastoral plaints: BAAS. Did ewe get it?

19. PC shortcut key: CTRL.

20. Teacher with a class of one: TUTOR.

21. Adrienne Rich work, e.g.: POEM.

23. Issa of "The Lovebirds": RAE. 2020 film.

24. Gymnast Raisman: ALY. Retired American gymnast, and two-time Olympian.

29. "The Sweetest Taboo" singer: SADE. Also the name of the band. Her full name is Helen Folasade Adu

30. Right direction?: EAST.

31. Developer's unit: ACRE. Too many letters for LOT.

34. Investment option: Abbr.: IRA. Individual Retirement Account.

36. Align, as two signals: SYNC UP.

41. Brazilian port city: SANTOS. In São Paulo, and home of the  largest beach garden in the world.

 

42. 21st Greek letter: PHI.

43. Butcher's stock: MEAT. I was thinking stock, as in soup.

44. School gps.: PTAS. Parent Teacher Association.

45. Takes advantage of: USES.

51. Seller of Souls: KIA. The capital S was a good clue. Subcompact SUV.

54. Cartoon frame: CEL. Short for celluloid. The last film Disney produced using 100% traditional cel animation was Oliver and Company back in 1988. The plastic and paint degrades over time. Disney has a dedicated facility to keep their original cels at the optimal temperature and humidity while trying to halt their degradation. You can read an in-depth article on Disney’s process of cel storage here.

55. Chanel rival: DIOR. Fashion designers.

56. Laughs loudly: ROARS.

58. Utah ski resort: ALTA.

63. Bigfoot in photos, e.g.: BLUR.

64. Shade thrower: HATER.

65. Novelist Émile: ZOLA. French. 1840 - 1902. The Strange Death of Émile Zola.

66. Racy message: SEXT. Specifically, racy message delivered by text.

67. Adversary: ENEMY.

68. Fall in line: OBEY.

Down: 

1. Leadership after some coups: JUNTA.

2. DIY moving option: UHAUL.

3. Like some candy bar flavors: NUTTY. Why not just some candy bars?

4. Indiana neighbor: OHIO.

5. TSA checkpoint container: BIN.

6. Fertility lab cells: OVA.

7. Lauren of fashion: RALPH.

8. Victorious: ON TOP.

9. Skin care brand: NIVEA.

10. "The Rookie" network: ABC.

11. Organization that keeps "purr"-ps off the street?: CAT RESCUE. Haha.

12. Arachnophobe's nightmare: TARANTULA.

13. Comic strip landmass with a single palm tree: ISLET.

18. Penguin-hunting swimmer: ORCA.

22. "What baloney!": MY EYE.

26. "Until next time": ADIOS. Spanish for bye.

27. Feudal laborer: SERF.

28. Button-shaped candies: M AND M'S.

29. Airport near Puget Sound, for short: SEATAC. For Seattle-Tacoma.

31. Two-yr. degrees: AA'S. Associate of Arts.

32. Dave honored with a Mark Twain Prize in 2019: CHAPPELLE.

33. Common prom expenditure: RENTAL TUX.

35. African snake: ASP.

36. With 51-Down, skewered Middle Eastern dish: SHISH.

37. Puppy or kitten: PET.

39. Medicated: DOSED.

40. Down in one go: CHUG. Ohhh - I was thinking knocked down.

46. Raison d'__: ETRE.

47. Wound covers: SCABS.

48. Microfilm unit: FICHE.

49. "Mean Girls" star Lindsay: LOHAN.

50. Very hot: IRATE. More misdirection.

51. See 36-Down: KABOB. Tricky, since it's also spelled kebob and kebab.

52. "Yay me!": I RULE.

53. Test for purity: ASSAY. The testing of a metal or ore to determine its ingredients and quality. 

57. Pastina relative: ORZO.

59. Valuable oil, say: ART. As an oil painting.

61. Sleep letters: REM. Rapid Eye Movement. The dream state of sleep.

62. Have a go at: TRY.

Friday, November 20, 2020, August Miller

  Title: Take a left and go north

I get to introduce another first time LAT constructor. I could not find any other publications for this August August, so welcome to the wild and wooly world of words. The theme has a visual curveball, so let us get right to it. Did the circles help?

I would have been stumped but for my problem with milk. When 20A took me to the doorstep of Lactose Intolerant but had no room for the "ant," I had two thoughts. 1. There was going to be a picnic theme with"ants" missing from all of the themers. 2. It was visual and the "ant" was going to crawl up the puzzle. Neither was correct, but I did grok that the end of the fill just went up. The circles made that choice obvious. A fun idea that created much room for sparkly fill. Ta-Da!

MINOR IN, SUMMONS, GOES BOOM, OPERA HAT,  ABECEDARY, IN THE AREA, IRS AGENTS  and SKATE PUNK

20A. Deficient in a certain enzyme: LACTOSE INTOLERA. 

12D. It's south of Vesuvius: ETNA. Volcanoes. Etna, Stromboli, and Vesuvius.  I have never eaten an Etna nor a Vesuvius.

24A. Brit's "Don't get upset, now": KEEP YOUR HAI.
8D. Study on the side: MINOR IN. One of our new entries today; mine was English. I do not know the phrase keep your hair on, where is Steve now that I need him.

45A. Hand-to-hand battle: UNARMED COMB.
36D. Whack: STAB. Karate? Judo?

52A. Lone survivor ... and a hint to the puzzle's circles?: LAST MAN STANDING. A real grid spanner and a puzzling puzzle.

Across:

1. Key __: remote-start devices: FOBS. The word was appropriated from the watch fob, which grew from the German -the word Fuppe, meaning "pocket,"

5. Not straight, in a way: GAY. How nice that this word does not cause much reaction any longer. 

8. Haggard of country: MERLE. One of the greats.

13. "Yeah, yeah, I get it": OK OK.

14. People: ONES.

16. Lock up the victory: ICE IT. A bit of hockey jargon. 

17. They have taxing jobs: IRS AGENTS. Bad pun #1040. 

19. "Interstellar" co-writer/director Christopher: NOLAN. 

22. Recede: EBB. and flow.

23. Court orders: WRITS. These days they are mostly just Orders, but it is a fine old word.

30. Org. fighting for refugees: ACLU.  American Civil Liberties Union.

31. Columbus' home: OHIO. Not the sailor but the city.

32. Some traffic monitors: NARCS. Drug traffickers. 

37. Word after greater or lesser: THAN.

38. Very many, informally: MUCHO. Unless you speak Spanish...

40. Situation, metaphorically: BOAT. You would not want to be in my boat...from the ancient Greeks. 

41. Passes (out): ZONKS. This word has been around since the 50s.

43. Take another tour: REUP. Reenlist.

44. "Enchanted" girl in a 2004 film: ELLA. Anne Hathaway is back.

48. Streaks: ZOOMS.

51. Dwell on, maybe: RUE.

59. State with a panhandle: IDAHO. There are a few

60. Nearby: IN THE AREA. Stop by if you ever are.

61. Compare: LIKEN.

62. Georgetown cager: HOYA.

63. __ Malek, Best Actor winner for "Bohemian Rhapsody": RAMI.
ALL ABOUT RAMI

64. Neptune's are about 165 times longer than ours: YEARS.

65. Sandwich with a bit of crunch: BLT.

66. 2010 Ringo Starr album: YNOT.

Down:

1. The creature, to Dr. Frankenstein: FOIL. In literature, a foil is a character that shows qualities that are in contrast with the qualities of another character. I think there are better examples.

2. Cajun food staple: OKRA.

3. Pear variety: BOSC.

4. Rock subgenre whose music is featured in "Tony Hawk's" games: SKATE PUNK. An inferable but unknown term for me. Apparently, Lucy, it is very popular in your area. LINK.

5. Blows up: GOES BOOM. Baby talk?

6. Actress Hathaway: ANNE. But wait, didn't we already see her today? A bizarre clecho? A blecho?

7. Himalayan with a thick coat: YETI. I have never petted one.

9. Food recall reason: ECOLI. Escherichia coli (abbreviated as E. coli) are bacteria found in the environment, foods, and intestines of people and animals.

10. Subleased: RELET.

11. Yarn weavers: LIARS. Very nice deception because Loom loomed big in my brain. 

15. Fig. on a return: SSN. More taxing cling- hey it isn't April.

18. Pass: GO BY. Not to be confused with a desert.

21. Defunct airline: TWA.

24. Apt surname for a vet: KATZ. a purrfect name?

25. __ chamber: ECHO.

26. Panache: ELAN.

27. "Star Trek" linguistics expert: UHURA. Almost exactly 52 years since the airing of the KISS.

28. Kitchen gadget: RICER.

29. Just meh: HO HUM.

33. School primer: ABECEDARY. More unknown but inferable stuff. Not a great movie.

34. Candy with a gooey center: ROLO. 

35. Still, as a day: CALM.

39. Collapsible headwear: OPERA HAT.

42. It's usually bad to be served with one: SUMMONS.

46. Hush-hush org.: NSA.

47. Sci-fi classic set on an arid world: DUNE.

48. "White Teeth" novelist Smith: ZADIE. The third new word added to the lexicon. Here SHE is.

49. Japan's second-largest city: OSAKA.

50. Catch-all survey option: OTHER.

52. __ of the valley: LILY.

53. Medical research agcy.: NIH.

54. Stuck-up sort: SNOB.

55. Texter's sign-off: TTYL. Almost time, but hang in. 

56. Caspian Sea land: IRAN.

57. Film fish to find: NEMO. I wasn't looking but I think my wife caught and ate him.

58. Way of walking: GAIT. I have no idea but this stems from GATE which to me is the antithesis of walking, but it is a great segue for me to say TTFN, great to see you all here back at my Friday post. Happy birthday tomorrow to my firstborn son, and be safe all.