google.com, pub-2774194725043577, DIRECT, f08c47fec0942fa0 L.A.Times Crossword Corner: David Poole

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Showing posts with label David Poole. Show all posts
Showing posts with label David Poole. Show all posts

Dec 18, 2019

Wednesday December 18, 2019 David Poole

(Note from C.C.: D-Otto write today's post.)


Theme: Crazy, mixed-up Santa

The Barnacle had the circles, so I managed to suss the theme. It would've been a lot harder without 'em. The reveal would also be of help, for those of you who read the entire reveal clue.

17a. Line on an application: LAST NAME.

23a. Masters home: AUGUSTA NATIONAL. LIU and guess what? It's not in Maine. (STANA Katic played Kate Beckett on Castle).

38a. Southern nickname involving a brown bird: THE PELICAN STATE. I'll bet B-E, Hahtoolah, Swampcat and Boo LuQuette got this one immediately.

"A wonderful bird is the pelican.
His bill can hold more than his belican.
He can take in his beak.
Food enough for a week.
But I'm damned if I see how the helican."
Dixon Lanier Merritt

54a. "Double Indemnity" (1944) Oscar nominee: BARBARA STANWYCK. This was my kryptonite. I spelled it WICK -- DNF.



And the reveal...
64a. 2003 Billy Bob Thornton title role ... and a hint to each set of puzzle circles: BAD SANTA.


Across:
1. Transcript figs.: GPAS. Grade point averages. Mine ranged from C to shining C.

5. Letters for the princess?: HRH. Her Royal Highness

8. Frozen, maybe: AFRAID.

14. Alternatively: ELSE.

15. Perrier, par exemple: EAU. French water.


16. Financially responsible: LIABLE. Libel makes you liable.

19. Telescope parts: LENSES.

20. "Star Wars" SFX: CGI. Computer-generated imagery.

21. Dada co-founder: ARP.

22. Firewood measure: CORD. 128 cubic feet.

29. Cooped (up): PENT.

30. Lay an egg: FLOP. The egg is laid in the coop.

31. Soup with tofu and seaweed: MISO. Sounds delicious. Not.

32. Vancouver-to-Calgary dir.: ENE.

34. Walked (on): TROD.

37. 51-Down's state: Abbr.: NSW. New South Wales, Australia.

43. Big to-do: ROW. Similar to a major honey-do?

44. "Then again," on Twitter: OTOH. On the other hand.

45. Country N. of Kenya: ETH. Ethiopia.

46. Creative spark: IDEA.

48. New Age musician John: TESH. He's been a co-host on Entertainment Tonight, a TV sportscaster, even a Klingon on Startrek: TNG.


50. Tag sale caveat: AS IS. Caveat emptor.

58. Mani-pedi spots: SPAS. Not feet.

59. Game with 108 cards: UNO.

60. "Gloria in Excelsis __": DEO. Christmas music. If I linked it, it would break the "no politics, no religion" rule. So I'll link this instead:

61. Brusque: ABRUPT. TERSE was too abrupt.

66. NutraSweet developer: SEARLE. It's now marketed by the NutraSweet Company. NutraSweet used to be Aspartame (200 times sweeter than sugar) until they discovered Neotame (7000-13000 times sweeter than sugar) -- the Carolina Reaper of sweeteners.

67. Modern art?: ARE. How great thy art art.

68. Cocktail garnish: PEEL. Really? Just the peel?

69. Bank, often: LENDER.

70. Since Jan. 1: YTD. Year-to-date.

71. Shaggy Scandinavian rugs: RYAS.

Down:

1. Easy-to-swallow dosage: GELCAP. Have you found them easier to swallow? I take my pills five at a time in one swell foop.

2. One of 10 in Exodus: PLAGUE. How many can you name? Answer far below.

3. Give, as homework: ASSIGN. Teenagers bane, after acne.

4. Background in theater?: SET.

5. Sincere: HEARTFELT.

6. Flutist Jean-Pierre: RAMPAL. He has been personally "credited with returning the flute to popularity as a solo classical instrument it had not held since the 18th century." (WIKI) Do you say "flutist" or "flautist" or maybe "tootler" (from last Saturday)?

7. Paint choice: HUE. Not OIL.

8. Apportion: ALLOT.

9. "Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives" host: FIERI. Host of various Food Network shows. He was born Guy Ferry, but apparently took umbrage at his last name.

10. Like dice rolls: RANDOM. At least you hope so.

11. Bodybuilder's pride: ABS. I've got 12-pack abs.

12. Paris' __ de la Cité: ILE. It's a natural island in the Seine. Notre Dame Cathedral (or what's left of it) is located there.


(Courtesy The New York Times)

13. __ Plaines: DES. Chicago suburb just north of O'Hare airport. I lived nearby at one time.

18. "One Mic" rapper: NAS. The only NAS I'm familiar with is Network Attached Storage, like my music server.

22. "Meet John Doe" director: CAPRA. Frank Capra. Also Pocketfull of Miracles and It's A Wonderful life.

24. U.S. sch. near the Mexico border: UTEP. University of Texas El Paso.

25. Tally symbols: NOTCHES. "...he secretly carved one more notch on the butt of his gold-handled cane..." at the 3:15 point.

26. Ricci of fashion: NINA. I thought her name was Christina.

27. CEO aide: ASST.

28. Actor Rob: LOWE. He's been in lotsa stuff, but I remember him best as Sam Seaborn in The West Wing. I binge-streamed the whole series not long ago.

33. Opposite of paleo-: NEO. Played opposite Morpheus in The Matrix.

35. Like a diving catch in baseball: ONE HANDED.

36. Summer hrs.: DST. Some love it. Some hate it. Some are ambidexterous.

38. Windy City daily, familiarly: TRIB. Chicago Tribune.

39. "Today" co-anchor Kotb: HODA. She just got engaged at 55.

40. Pitcher sans arms: EWER. That clue reminds me of this movie scene.

41. Specks: IOTAS. Could'a been MOTES.

42. Winter warm spell: THAW.

47. Inane: ABSURD. Not STUPID.

49. Comic-book store owner on "The Big Bang Theory": STUART.

51. 2000 Olympics city: SYDNEY. (Guess who spelled it with an I?)

52. Drink served with mint: ICE TEA. Let the arguments begin...

53. Danish toasts: SKOALS. Not to be confused with the smokeless tobacco.

55. Fuji, for one: APPLE. Because MOUNTAIN and VOLCANO were too long.

56. Yelp contributor: RATER. Does anybody here trust/use Yelp?

57. Negatives: NOS.

61. Silent speech syst.: ASL. American Sign Language. In case you'd like to learn...

62. Quilting party: BEE. Are there other "bees" besides quilting and spelling? Discuss.

63. Legged it: RAN.

64. Reddish-brown horse: BAY. News to me. I always assumed it was gray, like San Francisco Bay.

65. Busy mo. for a CPA: APR. I've completed my IRS certification to be a Tax-Aide volunteer again next year. This may be my last year. Between the IRS and AARP, they've thrown up so many roadblocks that the compensation is becoming inadequate to the exertion.

That brings us to the deep end of the Poole. It's been fun subbing. Desper-otto out.

The Grid:




Here's that list of the ten plagues. I managed to remember four of 'em. I'll bet you did better.

Blood
Frogs
Lice or gnats
Flies
Livestock (??? How can this be a plague? Raining cats and dogs?)
Boils
Hail
Locust
Darkness
Death of firstborn

Dec 10, 2019

Tuesday, December 10, 2019 David Poole

Double Play.  I'll start today with the unifier, which is very self-explanatory.  

55-Across. Canoeing challenge whose first word can precede the start and whose second word can precede the end of the answers to starred clues: WHITE WATER.

20-Across. *   Fruity adult beverage: WINE COOLER.  We get White Wine and Water Cooler.  A Wine Cooler can be either a special refrigeration unit for storing wine or a carbonated beverage of wine and fruit juice.
White Wine

Wine Cooler


28-Across. *   Black-spotted orange flower: TIGER LILY.  We get White Tiger and Water Lily.

White Tiger

Claude Monet's Water Lilies

38-Across. *   Toy pistols used on stage: CAP GUNS.  We get White Cap and Water Gun.

White Caps on the Ocean

Water Gun, also known as a Squirt Gun.

46-Across. *   Toy car brand: HOT WHEELS.  We get White Hot and Water Wheels.

White HOT!


Water Wheel



Across:
1. Chinese sauce additive: MSG.  As in MonoSodium Glutamate.

4. Olympic swimming star Ledecky: KATIE.  Katie Ledecky (née Kathleen Genevieve Ledecky; b. Mar. 17, 1997), has won 5 Olympic gold medals and 15 world championship gold metals.


9. L.L.Bean competitor: J.CREW.

14. Listening organ: EAR.


15. Stereotypical Pi Day celebrants: NERDS.

16. "Drab" color: OLIVE.


17. Handel's "Messiah" et al.: ORATORIOS.  An Oratorio is similar to an Opera.  Oratorios became popular in the 1600s and 1700s because the Church forbid theatrical performances.  Thus oratorios were musical compositions with an orchestra, a chorus and generally a soloist, but without the costuming and theater props.  Oratorios also tended to focus on religious  topics.

19. Creepy film motel: BATES.



22. Put in the mail: SENT.

23. Cowboys QB Prescott: DAK.  Dak Prescott (né Rayne Dakota Prescott; b. July 29, 1993), was born in Sulphur, Louisiana.  The Cowboys lost to the Bears last week.


24. Well-worn pencils: NUBS.


26. "Keystone" police: KOPS.




33. Prefix with center: EPI-.  As in the Epicenter of an earthquake.


34. __ Valley: Reagan Library site: SIMI.

35. Strand at a ski lodge, say: ICE IN.

37. Pitcher's stat: ERA.  As in Earned Run Average.

41. Prefix with natal: NEO-.  As in Neonatal, which refers to newborn babies.

42. Asian food breadcrumbs: PANKO.  I use Panko breadcrumbs when I cook fish.


44. Novelist Leon: URIS.  Leon Uris (né Leon Marcus Uris; Aug. 3, 1924 ~ June 21, 2003) is probably best known for his 1958 novel Exodus, which is about the creation of the State of Israel.


45. They, to Thierry: ILS.  Today's French lesson.

49. Artist Warhol: ANDY.  Andy Warhol (né Andrew Warhola; Aug. 6, 1928 ~ Feb. 22, 1987) died at age 58 from complications of gall bladder surgery.  In 1968, an assassination attempt was made on his life in which he was seriously wounded.



50. "The Good Earth" mother: OLAN.  The Good Earth is a 1931 novel by Pearl S. Buck (née Pearl Sydenstricker; June 26, 1892 ~ Mar. 6, 1973) about family life in China in the early 20th Century.  It is well worth reading.

51. Some SAT takers: SRs.  As in Seniors in High School.

52. Olympian bigwig: ZEUS.  Oh, as in the Greek god of the sky and thunder, not the Olympic games.

61. Safe places?: WALLS.

63. Talus: ANKLE BONE.



64. Orange Muppet: ERNIE.


65. Not tight enough: LOOSE.

66. ER VIPs: MDs.  Medical Doctors are the VIPs in the Emergency Room, but don't forget about the ER nurses, who also play an important role.

67. Cockamamie: INANE.

68. Beginning: ONSET.

69. Automated spam creator: BOT.



Down:
1. Cat's cry: MEOW.



2. Indian cover-up: SARI.

3. Concert keyboard: GRAND PIANO.


4. Rap on the door: KNOCK.

5. Sleek, in car talk: AERO.

6. 75% of a quartet: TRIO.

7. Pop star: IDOL.

8. Ancient mystic: ESSENE.  The Essenes were a Jewish sect from about 200 to 1 BCE.  They are considered to be the authors of the Dead Sea Scrolls.

9. Position at work: JOB.

10. Enduring work: CLASSIC.

11. Baptism or bris: RITE.

12. Like Olympic years, numerically: EVEN.

13. "Wild" 1800s region: WEST.

"Wild" Mae West

18. Oolong and pekoe: TEAs.


21. 1921 play that introduced the word "robot": R.U.R.  This play appears with some frequency in the crosswords.  It is a 1920 play by Czech writer Karel Čapek (Jan. 9, 1890 ~ Dec. 25, 1938).  R.U.R stands for Rossumovi Univerzáiní Robots (Rossum’s Universal Robots).  The play takes place in a factory that makes organic, artificial people called as Robots.  These Robots, however, were more like human people rather than the current concept of robots.



25. Euphoria: BLISS.  Also the name of a chain of Yoga studios.


26. Stay fresh in the fridge: KEEP.

27. Celeb with her "OWN" network: OPRAH.

28. Andalusian aunt: TIA.  Today's Spanish lesson.  Andalusia is a region of Spain.


29. Little rascal: IMP.

30. Lively baroque dance: GIGUE.



31. Red Square shrine: LENIN'S TOMB.


32. Give in: YIELD.


34. Grouchy look: SCOWL.


36. Prone to prying: NOSY.

39. Often-bookmarked address, briefly: URL.  As in the Uniform Resource Locator.

40. Grafton's "__ for Noose": N IS.  Sue Grafton (Apr. 24, 1940 ~ Dec. 28, 2017) wrote a series of crime novels, each beginning with a letter of the Alphabet.  The first in the series was A is for Alibi.  She wrote all the way through the letter Y (Y is for Yesterday).  Sadly, she died before she could begin what would have been the final book in the series, Z is for Zero.


43. "80's Ladies" country singer: K.T. OSLIN.  I am not familiar with K. T. Olsin (née Kay Toinette Olsin; b. May 15, 1942).


47. "Yee-__!": HAW.



48. Surround, as with a saintly glow: ENHALO.  Yup.  It's a real word.

49. Graceful steed: ARAB.

51. "Ni-i-ice!": SWEET!

52. Cube root of acht: ZWEI.  German math.

53. Merit: EARN.

54. Forearm bone: ULNA.

56. Part of, plotwise: IN ON.

57. Boxing ref's calls: TKOs.  As in Technical Knock Outs.  A crossword staple

58. "Anything __?": ELSE.

59. Opposite of exo-: ENDO-.

60. "Don't play" music staff symbol: REST.


62. Date regularly: SEE.




Here's the Grid:


Geaux Tigers!
Joe Burreaux, LSU Quarterback

QOD:  One must learn to be silent just as one must learn to talk.  ~  Victoria Wolff (Dec. 10, 1903 ~ Sept. 16, 1992), German-born novelist.

Sep 26, 2019

Thursday, September 26th 2019 David Poole

Theme: Spooked: Two government agencies facing off across the great idealogical crossword divide.

As the reveal, diplomatically placed in the center tells us:

23D. Long-running Mad feature suggested by this puzzle's circled letters: SPY VS. SPY



A great theme from David, the circles reveal CIA, appropriately on the West side of the puzzle, and KGB, aptly, on the East.

There's a lot to like about this theme, simple on the surface, but a little more when you dig down. The theme entries are placed pleasingly symmetrically, the letters for the agencies aren't just the first or last letter in the theme entries, they stand alone in each name or phrase, and the placement of the reveal dead center between the two is very neat. Good job.

Let's see what the fill holds for us:

Across:

1. Indian food option: MILD. I lean towards the more hot/spicy dishes, but there are many Indian dishes which are spiced, but not with chili or cayenne, the spices are there for aroma and flavor. Two classic examples are the korma, which is a mild, creamy curry, and the biryani, which is Indian cuisine's one-pot rice dish, a relative of paella, jambalaya and others. Here's my chicken biryani with coconut and yoghurt green raita.


5. "4x2=8" rapper from Korea: PSY. The "Gangnam Style" dude. I'm not sure any of us would be able to name any other Korean rapper.

8. Blood component: PLASMA

14. Et __: and others: ALII

15. Troy, N.Y., school: R.P.I. I tried to guess this, I got the "Institute" part, I could have guessed "Polytechnic", but there was no guessing "Rensselaer".

16. Trojan War hero: AENEAS

17. Delivery method: C-SECTION

19. Duke's Mike Krzyzewski, familiarly: COACH K

20. Fall: AUTUMN

21. Boats and gravy boats: VESSELS

22. Stockpiled: AMASSED

24. Tigers, on scoreboards: DET.

25. "Miracle on Ice" winners: Abbr.: U.S.A. One of the most famous moments in sports, and that goes for non-US fans - I remember this from the 1980 Winter Olympics long before I moved to the States and before I knew much at all about hockey. "Do you believe in miracles? YES!"

28. Pours carelessly: SLOPS

29. Start of el año: ENERO

31. Quick bite: NOSH

33. Chef's collection: FRY PANS. I've literally worn out a couple of my Cuisinart skillets, I'm thinking about replacing them with cast iron.

35. Siri device: IPHONE

37. Pointed facial features: VAN DYKES. This dude rocks a great Van Dyke.


41. Morris Buttermaker's "bad news" team: THE BEARS

43. Big name in smooth jazz: KENNY G

44. Spray can output: AEROSOL. I thought the aerosol WAS the can. The output is deodorant, paint, olive oil, you name it.

46. Like some U.S. mail: CERT. ified.

47. African antelope: ELAND

50. Binge: SPREE

52. Montgomery of jazz: WES

53. Part of UCLA: LOS

54. Due: PAYABLE

56. Easy marks: PATSIES

59. __ del Fuego: TIERRA. I met a bartender in New Orleans who was from Tierra del Fuego; she said when she was a kid, her mom would point at the moon and tell her that was the closest place to where they lived.

62. Angular abode: A-FRAME

63. Complex containing thiamine and niacin: VITAMIN B. My Doc told me to take B3 supplements, apparently I'm not getting enough sun, that seems difficult to pull off in Southern California. (Edit - he told me to take D3! - Steve]

65. Close tightly: SEAL UP

66. Half of eleven?: ONE. Nice clue. Double-1 makes 11.

67. Spots at the prom?: ACNE. Sad, but true.

68. Discount phrase: OR LESS

69. Farm sci.: AGR.iculture. Seems hard to imagine studying farming without it.

70. Mower holder: SHED. If you're mowing the grass for silage on the farm, your agriculture class probably tells you the size of shed you need for the mower.

Down:

1. Brit's raincoat: MAC. Have you seen the ad currently running for the Microsoft Surface? It features a real Brit called Mackenzie "Mac" Book who points out the differences between the Surface and the Mac Book. It made me laugh, very clever.

2. Rick's love in "Casablanca": ILSA

3. In __ of: LIEU

4. Decrees: DICTA

5. 1996 Richard Gere/Edward Norton thriller: PRIMAL FEAR

6. Spot buyer: SPONSOR

7. Half a cosmic whole: YIN

8. Walked nervously: PACED

9. Some summer babies: LEOS

10. Santa __: dry winds: ANAS. Fierce debate in my neck of the woods as to whether they are called "Santa Anas" or "Santanas". I'm firmly with the latter. "Santa Ana" is a corruption of the original name perpetrated by out-of-state weather forecasters. In Richard Dana's "Two Years Before the Mast" he references "the devil wind Santana", well known to sailors in these parts. Santa Ana is a small city in Riverside County, and the winds neither originate from there or are funneled through there. OK, got that off my chest!

11. Withdraw formally: SECEDE

12. "Resurrection Symphony" composer: MAHLER

13. Invites for: ASKS TO.  Invites for lunch/asks to lunch.

18. Antacid brand: TUMS

21. Italian scooter: VESPA. Here's a young Sting riding a Vespa GS in the Who's "Quadrophenia" movie. Goodness knows what that scooter would be worth now, they're getting very hard to find.


25. Yard, say: UNIT

26. Junior-to-be: SOPH. Shouldn't it be "Jnr." in the clue? Last time I looked, you were properly a sophomore.

27. Tennis immortal: ASHE. Arthur. The stadium in Flushing Meadows, home of the U.S. Open is named for him. The Australian open has the Rod Laver Arena, The French Open has "Stade Roland Garros" and Wimbledon has - Wimbledon. I rather like that. You're pretty much one and done with naming. Imagine the uproar if the French decided to replace Roland with Yannick Noah or Suzanne Lenglen.

29. "The Neverending Story" author: ENDE. A German novel, originally.

30. Acronymically named boy band: 'N SYNC. The last letters of the first names of the band members. Who knew? I think it's just a happy coincidence.

32. White House architect James: HOBAN

34. Rug rat: ANKLE BITER

36. More than want: NEED

38. Had down cold: KNEW

39. Thornfield Hall governess: EYRE

40. Capt.'s subordinates: SGTS.

42. Bouquet for a señorita: ROSAS. Second Spanish class of the day. Roses in January?

45. On the soapbox: ORATING

47. West Texas city: EL PASO. According to TripAdvisor, the best restaurant in El Paso serves Greek and Mediterranean food. Somehow I'm a little unsure about that.

48. Preppy shoe: LOAFER

49. Celestial: ASTRAL

51. Zeno's home: ELEA

54. Coterie members, in slang: PEEPS

55. "Aunt __ Cope Book": ERMA'S

57. Black Friday event: SALE

58. Controversial radio host: IMUS. It's difficult to have any kind of respect for this man, I'll leave it at that.

60. Like chocolate cheesecake: RICH

61. Actress Hathaway: ANNE

63. Intl. news broadcaster: V.O.A. Voice of America. A shadow of its former self. The BBC's World Service is now the largest international broadcaster.

64. Rest area?: BED

That about does it for me. Here's the grid, and it's time for 64D!

Steve



Note from C.C.:

Happy Birthday to Dennis, who helped me greatly in the first few years of this blog. Dennis (the Marine) is now fighting another major battle. He'll probably let you know more later. Please keep him in your thoughts and prayers.