Friday October 27, 2023 ~ Doug Peterson

In the Key of B

Hi all and Happy Friday! Today I get to blog another Peterson Puzzle. Doug offers us an "add a sound" gimmick for fun, whimsy, and profit! Let's dig in...

20. Phrase on a card in Desert Monopoly?: DO NOT PASS GOBI. DO NOT PASS GO is both a Community Chest and a Chance card.
 

33. Doll with many advanced degrees?: GENIUS BARBIE. GENIUS BAR is Apple Stores' counters.

41. Part of the year that's filled with possibility?: MONTH OF MAYBE. MONTH OF MAY.

56. Sport whose players wear furry hides?: BEARSKIN RUGBY. BEARSKIN RUG.

Cute, eh? Let's see what else Doug has in store for us...

Across:
1. Prayer wheel spinner: LAMA.

One "L" Lama

5. "You know you want to!": C'MON.

9. Half a pop quartet: MAMAS and the Papas.
 

California Dreamin'

14. Like some defenses: ORAL. Masters' & and PhD defenses.

15. Outsized promotion: HYPE.

16. San Antonio mission: ALAMO.
 

I've been there; no basement.

17. Fixes beforehand: RIGS. Fixes as a game or fight.  You lost b/f you play'd.

18. Border on: ABUT.

19. Jurassic giants, for short: DINOS. T-Rexs was right out.

20. [See: Theme]

23. Pelican State sch.: LSU.  I went to Louisiana Tech for my Undergrad but root'd for LSU.
 

Louisiana State University

24. Passé: OLD.

25. "The Red Tent" novelist Diamant: ANITA. Anita is known for her bestselling novels including "The Red Tent", "The Boston Girl" and "Period. End of Sentence."
 

Anita Diamant

27. Sanaa citizen: YEMENI.

29. Stable environment?: BARN.

31. Clearasil shelfmate: OXY.

33. [See: Theme]

36. Nevada city on I-80: ELKO. And 69a - Nevada city on I-80: RENO.

39. Calendar col.: FRIday.

40. Hinged fastener: HASP.

41. [See: Theme]

46. Pirouette point: TOE.

47. Actress Taylor-Joy: ANYA. The Queen's Gambit is the only movie I know her from.
 

Anya Taylor-Joy

48. Dismays: ALARMS.

52. Bamboo fencing?: KENDO. Cute - fencing: like with an epee but with bamboo.
 

54. Capote nickname: TRU.

55. Time capsule time: ERA.

56. [See: Theme]

60. Bundle of wheat: SHEAF.
 

Sheaf of wheat

62. Apple variety: GALA.
 

Gala is an apple cultivar with a sweet, mild flavor, a crisp but not hard texture,
and a striped or mottled orange or reddish appearance.

63. Sweeties: BAES.

64. Soeur de la mère: TANTE. Nique! :-)  French? Google Translate: Mother's Sister: Aunt. Oui.

65. "No time to wade through this" initialism: TL;DR. Have we all learned this by now? Too Long; Didn't Read.  Basically and executive summary of blather before / to follow.

66. Sparkle: ELAN.

67. Provide backing for: ENDOW.

68. Word with box or car: SEAT.

69. [See 36a]

Down:
1. Haughty: LORDLY.

2. Having a melody: ARIOSE. In classical music, arioso is a category of solo vocal piece, usually occurring in an opera or oratorio, falling somewhere between recitative and aria in style. Literally, arioso means airy. [WikiP]

3. With 7-Down, masterpiece: MAGNUM. 7d - See 3-Down: OPUS.

4. "And don't forget ... ": ALSO.

5. Star of the 1925 film "The Gold Rush": CHAPLIN. Charlie. His exile was the topic of Tuesday's Fresh Air [NPR]

6. "That's on me": MY BAD. Me messed up.

7. [See: 3d]

8. Team that shares an arena with the Liberty: NETS. New York Liberty is a WNBA team that shares Barclays Center with the NBA's Brooklyn NETS.

9. Pietà figure: MADONNA. Not the singer.

10. Defense mechanism?: ALIBI. Cute.

11. Nunavut neighbor: MANITOBA.
 

Canada, Eh?

12. Chilean's "I love": AMO. Spanish.

13. Brillo alternative: S.O.S.
 

I bet you thought I was going with The Police* [5:03] again ;-)

21. Mood: TONE.

22. Threads: GARB.

26. x or y, on graphs: AXIS.

28. John Legend accomplishment, briefly: EGOT. Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, Tony.

29. Myanmar, once: BURMA.

30. Java setting: ASIA. Not a coffee house.

32. "No prob": YEP.

34. Highly questionable: IFFY.

35. Seehorn of "Better Call Saul": RHEA.
 

Rhea Seehorn

36. Life-saving pro: EMT. Emergency Medical Technician.

37. Glance: LOOK.

38. Element of a warrior pose: KNEE BEND.
 

All I need to know.

42. Got tipsy: HAD A FEW.

43. __ close to schedule: ON OR.

44. Craftivist's creation, at times: YARN ART.
 

45. Fuzzy memory: BLUR.

49. Entertain sumptuously: REGALE.

50. Childlike Rowan Atkinson character: MR BEAN. Rowan Atkinson's creation.
 

Mr. Bean

51. Sends regrets: SAYS NO.

53. Cool kin: NEATO.

54. Oscar winner Swinton: TILDA.
 

Her IMDB

57. Some military figs.: SGTS.

58. Collard greens kin: KALE.

59. Superlative prefix: UBER.

60. Fr. holy title: STE. 

61. Frenemy of Lando: HAN.  Star Wars reference.

Well, folks, another Friday in the bag.

The Grid:
 

The Grid

The TL;DR:
WOs: ALIas-> ALIBI, RENO->ELKO
ESPs: ARIOSE, ANITA, ANYA, TILDA, TANTE
Fav: Mr. Bean

Cheers, -T
*DW & I saw Sting two Sundays ago. Message in a Bottle was in the set-list and it rocked The Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion. Also, DW was enamored with Sting's physique (arms!) - I need to work out if I'm going to look that good at 72yrs!
///or MAYBE just play bass? :-)

Friday October 13th, 2023 ~ Doug Peterson

Got Style?

Fashion Don'ts

Doug Peterson is a veteran constructor who, when not in the LAT, I oft spot in Southwest Airline's Spirit magazine. No matter where I find him, his puzzles are always a treat. Today, he teases me with something I've never been accused of... Let's see what I mean:

17. *Refrain from walking on the lawn?: SKIRT GRASS. "It takes six feet of dirt to grow that grass and two feet to kill it. And those two feet are yours, private!" -Drill Sgt.

Grass Skirt

22. *Doesn't pay enough in island taxes?: SHORTS BERMUDA. Isn't that where you headquarter to short Uncle Sam on taxes?

Extra pockets added later ;-)

46. *Gives the third degree to the decorator?: PUMPS DESIGNER. 
 

Not A Torture Device(?)

52. *Put a limit on wash time?: CAP BATHING. Oy, the girls in my house will empty the water heater and timer soaking it up.

Retro!

34. With 37-Across, up on the latest trends, and a fitting description of the answers to the starred clues?: FASHION.

37. See 34-Across: FORWARD.

FASHION FORWARD -- conforming to, attuned to, or characterized by the latest trends in fashion or, in this puzzle, putting the clothes before the style.

Much to DW's chagrin, I put function & comfort over form. I did read Cargo Shorts are back - so, I'm hep again ;-)

Across:
1. __ Griffin Way: street in Beverly Hills: MERV.  Named for MERV Griffin - the creator of Wheel of Fortune & Jeopardy.

5. "Superfudge" writer: BLUME. Judy Blume wrote Y-A (Young-Adult) literature before there really was such a category. Are You There God? It's Me Margret is Blume's book I most remember.

10. Completely level: RAZE. //Story:
I was 9yrs old on the roof of the 5 story Trifty Drug Building at 5th & Monroe with Pop and Gramps (who were sippin' beers) to watch the Hotel Abrahham Lincoln get RAZEd (hope that Facebook link works). The State-Journal Register carried the story (and I carried their paper).

14. Lip balm additive: ALOE.

15. AL and NL divisions: EASTS. American League and National League both have an East, Central, and West divisions. #Baseball.

16. In history: EVER. Well, I nEVER!

17. [See: Theme]

19. Recital highlight: SOLO. Only if it's your kid singing.

20. Unassuming: MEEK.  They will inherit the Earth.

21. Some invisible inks: ACIDS. I'm assuming etching and not secret messages that burn through the paper. //though, um, lemon juice makes good invisible ink and it is an acid.

22. [See: Theme]

27. Traffic jams: TIE UPS. Loop 610 between I-69 and I-10 is among the worst in Texas and is part of my daily commute.
 

Entry ramp to 610S & I-69 (nee US59).

28. Hacienda material: ADOBE.
 

Adobe Abode

29. Single section: UNIT. The Hacienda above looks like a single UNIT.

30. Nimble: AGILE.

31. Alternative to OAK: SFO. Oakland, CA and San Francisco, CA are nearby airports with respective FAA codes.

34. [See: Theme]

37. [See: Theme]

39. __ for tat: TIT. You know the limerick...

40. Dapper: NATTY. An Easter Egg bonus. NATTY: current in style in both dress and manners.
Dapper - See: Poirot.

David Suchet played it best, Oui?

42. Creme-filled snack: OREO.

43. Less risky: SAFER.

44. Business news: MERGER.

46. [See: Theme].

49. "Start the music!": HIT IT.

50. Bunches: ALOT.

51. __ interview: EXIT.

52. [See: Theme]

58. Many an Olympic event: RACE.

59. One-fourth of a 45-Down: AWARD.

60. Result of cogitating: IDEA.

61. ThirdLove garments: BRAS. ThirdLove is a lingerie company that somehow I knew about.

62. Circuit device: RELAY. Also, a song by The Who.
 

The Who - Relay [5m]

63. Shows drowsiness: NODS. Hopefully not you, dear reader, at this point.

Down:
1. More, in Mexico: MAS. Is that Spain-Spanish too? I ask for Youngest who will spend next semester in Madrid but learned Spanish in Texas, er, Tejas.

2. Caribou kin: ELK.

3. Financial performance measure, for short: ROI. Return On Investment.

4. Martini ingredient: VERMOUTH. I like wet-martinis (2:1 gin:vermouth); MIL likes 'em dry - "Just pass the cork over the glass," she says.

5. Fathers: BEGETS. Present tense of begat. Pop says most every DIY project turns into the "begat system." Go to fix a pipe and find the valve doesn't work begets replacing the valve which begets going to hardware store to buy a curb-key to cutoff water to the house.  True story.
 

Curb-Key

6. Merry escapades: LARKS. Sprees didn't fit.

7. NATO member: USA. United States of America is a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.

8. Pts. of a range: MTS. Mountain ranges.

9. Cornering challenge: ESS.
 

Stock Photo

10. Get out of a jam: RESCUE.

11. Keep clear of: AVOID.

12. Writer Fitzgerald: ZELDA.

13. Consort of Psyche: EROS.

18. UMD athlete: TERP. University of Maryland.

21. Honey-colored: AMBER.

22. Red Sea peninsula: SINAI.

23. "Money __": Spanish Netflix crime series: HEIST.

24. Skittles package: BAG.

25. Spiritually enlighten: EDIFY.

26. Chocolate-and-caramel candy: ROLO.
 

Delicious

27. Clump on a lawn: TUFT.

30. Got in on the deal: ANTED.

31. Noncom nickname: SARGE. Non-Commissioned Officer; E-5 and above. 
 

That Tracks

32. Less restricted: FREER.  Meh - it's a word but I don't have to like it.

33. Baking soda target: ODOR.

35. Poorly chosen: INAPT.

36. Clods: OAFS.

38. Grown less appealing: WORN THIN.

41. Uno e due: TRE. Italian math: I + II = III.

43. Strikes down: SMITES. Old Testament God seemed to smite aplenty.

44. Word said with a curtsy: MILADY.

45. Impressive entertainment acronym: EGOT. Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, Tony but not HDTV ;-). All, save my first thought, are performance AWARDS as per 59a.

46. "Soul" studio: PIXAR.
 

Soul Trailer

47. City near Rome: UTICA.

48. Hummus brand: SABRA.

If you don't have time to make your own - not bad.

49. Kitchen garden plant: HERB. My herbs are out in the garden and I use all my garden plants in the kitchen. //Oh, except the flower-garden plants -- now I get it.

52. Electric __: CAR.

53. Bowl over: AWE.

54. Playmate: PAL.

55. Phrase preceding "By the power vested in me ...": I DO. One more I DO and then kissing before begetting ;-)

56. Evangelical character on "The Simpsons": NED.
 

Hi Diddly Ho!

57. Island purchase: GAS. Kitchen-island gas range or petrol-station pump islands? We should be told.

The Grid:

 

The Grid

The TL;DR:
WOs: escapE -> RESCUE which begat coda->SOLO. BEGaT-> BEGET, Siani -> SINAI #untie!
ESP: ZELDA
Fav: Learning what NATTY means.

There you have it. Doug HIT IT out of the park again. That's it from me.  Y'all have a great weekend!
Cheers, -T

Tuesday, September 26, 2023 Doug Peterson

 UP, UP, and Away.

14-Across. *  Like birdies and eagles: UNDER PAR.

23-Across. *  Expert in community development: URBAN PLANNER.

40-Across. *  Publisher of scholarly journals: UNIVERSITY PRESS.  Everything you wanted to know about a University Press but didn't know to ask.  Books published through a University Press are generally peer reviewed.  Here's a list of books published by various University Presses around the country.

53-Across. *  India's most populous state: UTTAR PRADESH.  A few interesting facts about Uttar Pradesh.  It borders Nepal and is also the home of the Taj Mahal.

70-Across. Presumptuous newcomers, and what the answers to the starred clues literally have: UP STARTS.  Each theme answer is a two word phrase where the first word Starts with the letter U and the second word Starts with the letter P.

Across:

1. Loving murmur: COO.

4. Generic dog name: FIDO.  Which United States President had a dog named Fido?  *

8. Short __: pancake orders: STACKS.

16. "Très chic!": OO LA LA.

17. Pride and joy: EMOTIONS.

18. Snapped: LOST IT.

19. Perfect Sleeper company: SERTA.  [Name # 1.]

20. Short race, for short: ONE-K.  As in a race that is One Kilometer.  One Kilometer is 0.621371 miles.

22. Even one: ANY.

27. Nonkosher sandwich, briefly: BLT.  As in a Bacon Lettuce and Tomato sandwich.  It's the Bacon that makes it Treyf (unkosher).

30. Distress call: SOS.  The letters SOS in the distress call don't actually stand for anything.

We got to listen to the song in yesterday's puzzle.

31. Baseball Hall of Famer Sandberg: RYNE.  Ryne Sandberg (né Ryne Dee Sandberg; b. Sept. 18, 1959) played baseball for 16 years.  He was a second baseman for the Philadelphia Phillies and the Chicago Cubs.  He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2005.  [Name # 2.]

32. Folk wisdom: LORE.

34. Feel poorly: AIL.

36. Paul of "Breaking Bad": AARON.  Paul Aaron (né Aaron Paul Sturtevant; b. Aug. 27, 1979) won several awards for his portrayal of Jesse Pinkman on Breaking Bad.    [Name # 3.]

44. Make a dance club version, say: REMIX.

45. Animal park: ZOO.

46. "Note to __ ... ": SELF.

47. Swarm (with): TEEM.

50. Montero Lamar Hill, __ Lil Nas X: AKA.  Montero Lamar Hill (b. Apr. 9, 1999) is a rapper who became know with his country rap song Old Town Road.  [Name # 4.]

52. Almost empty: LOW.

58. "No seats" sign: SRO.  Standing Room Only.

59. "Moonstruck" Oscar winner: CHER.  Before she got into acting, Cher (née Cherilyn Sarkisian; b. May 20, 1946) teamed up with Sonny Bono (né Salvatore Phillip Bono; Feb. 16, 1935 ~ Jan. 5, 1998) and were a popular 1960s duo.  [Name # 5.]

60. Madeline Miller novel about an "Odyssey" witch: CIRCE.  I have read neither the original Odyssey nor the more recent Circe.  Madeline Miller (b. July 24, 1978) has an advanced degree in the Classics, and has written several novels based on ancient Greek mythology.  She is probably best known for her 2011 novel The Song of Achilles.  [Name # 6.]

64. Bluster: HOT AIR.  Hot Air helps balloons go UP.

66. Monopoly space with a police officer: GO TO JAIL.

69. "Despite that ... ": EVEN SO.

71. Begin to blush: REDDEN.

72. Greek vowels: ETAs.  Uppercase/Lowercase: Η η

73. Private __: EYE.

Down:

1. Sticks for pool sharks: CUES.

2. "I'll pay for dinner": ON ME.

3. Off-putting smell: ODOR.

4. Franciscan brothers: FRIARS.

5. Nasdaq debut: IPO.  As in Initial Public Offering on the National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations.  Nasdaq vs. Dow.

6. "SNL" alum Aykroyd: DAN.  Dan Aykroyd (né Daniel Edward Aykroyd; b. July 1, 1952) portrayed many characters on Saturday Night Live, including one of the Coneheads, and Elwood Blue of the Blues Brothers.  He also starred as one of the original Ghostbuster.  [Name # 7.]

7. Director Welles: ORSON.  Orson Welles (né George Orson Welles; May 6, 1915 ~ October 10, 1985) caused quite a stir in 1938, when his radio adaption of H. G. Wells's novel The War of the Worlds, which caused some listeners to believe that a Martian invasion was in fact occurring.  [Name # 8.]

8. Only: SOLELY.

9. Recharged, in a way: TOOK A NAP.

10. Racers Unser Jr. and Unser Sr.: ALs.  Father (Alfred Unser, Sr.; May 20, 1939 ~ Dec. 9, 2021) and Son (Alfred Unser, Jr.; b. Apr. 19, 1962) from the famous Unser racing family, which began with Louis Unser, Jr. (Mar. 16, 1896 ~ Oct. 18, 1979), the patriarch of the racing family.  [Names # 9 and 10.]

11. Board game with the tagline "Trade Build Settle": CATAN.  I wasn't familiar with this game, so I am glad that Sumdaze explained it to me yesterday.  The board is an interesting shape.

12. Kevin of "Dave": KLINE.  Dave was a 1993 comedy movie about a small business owner named Dave who unwittingly became President.  Dave was portrayed by Kevin Kline (né Kevin Delaney Kline; b. Oct. 24, 1947).  [Name # 11.]

13. Goat-legged deity: SATYR.

15. Legendary rebuke: ET TU.  Today's Latin lesson.  Did you remember this from last Tuesday?

21. Broadcaster with pledge drives: NPR.  National Public Radio appears with some frequency in the puzzles.

24. Tusked beast: BOAR.

25. Flaws and all: AS IS.

26. Zeros in on: NEARS.

27. Become hazy: BLUR.  Like being at the optometrist ... is it clear on the right or on the left?

28. Unaccompanied: LONE.

29. Add lace to, e.g.: TRIM.  RBG wore lace collars.

33. Musical set in Buenos Aires: EVITA.  The musical was loosely based on the life of Eva Perón (May 7, 1919 ~ July 26, 1952).  [Name # 12.]

35. Claiborne of fashion: LIZ.  Anne Elizabeth Jane Claiborne (Mar. 31, 1929 ~ June 26, 2007) was an American fashion designer who was born in Belgium to American parents.  She has ties to Louisiana: her ancestor, William C.C. Claiborne (1770s ~ Nov. 23, 1817) was the first governor of Louisiana after the state gained statehood. [Name # 13.]

37. React to a shock: REEL.

38. Home of the Norwegian Military Academy: OSLO.  Norway traces its military forces back to the Vikings.

Cold Response Training by the Military

39. Warning that might prevent a click: NSFW.  Textspeak for Not Suitable For Work.

41. Work out: EXERCISE.

42. Bumpy-skinned amphibian: TOAD.

43. Joining device: YOKE.

48. "You've Got Mail" writer/director Nora: EPHRON.  Nora Ephron (May 19, 1941 ~ June 26, 2012) was a journalist, writer and filmmaker.  She also wrote and directed When Sleepless in Seattle.  In addition to rom-coms, she also wrote Silkwood, a dramatic film based on the life and death of Karen Silkwood.  [Name # 14.]

49. GI's field ration: MRE.  Meals Ready to Eat.

51. Fancy neckwear: ASCOTS.  A brief history of the necktie.

53. Theater guide: USHER.

54. Treasure stash: TROVE.

55. Schlepped: TOTED.  Schlep can mean either to carry or to take a tedious journey.

Only the penguins can schlep to Antarctica.  The Polar Bears schlep north.

56. Squabble: ARGUE.

57. Daughter, in Spanish: HIJA.  Today's Spanish lesson.

61. Hardly ubiquitous: RARE.

62. Selma or Salem: CITY.  One is in Alabama and the other is in Massachusetts (or Oregon if you are west-coast oriented.)

63. Instead: ELSE.

65. "Is there more?": AND ...  Tell me more!

67. Make a call: OPT.

68. Agcy. that X-rays shoes: TSA.  With Global Entry, the Transportation Security Administration no longer requires one to remove shoes.

Here's the Grid:

*  Abraham Lincoln.

חתולה