Monday August 26, 2019 Kevin Christian

Theme: Titleholders in Music

19. Nickname for Elvis Presley: KING OF ROCK 'N ROLL.

 

37. Nickname for Ella Fitzgerald: FIRST LADY OF SONG.

49. Nickname for James Brown: GODFATHER OF SOUL.

Boomer here. Greetings all. Those of us that follow Major League Baseball probably noticed that this was "Oreo" weekend.  All home team players wore very very white uniforms, while the visiting teams dressed in black.  Players were allowed to have their nicknames on the backs of their uniforms.  

It started to rain Saturday on the golf tournament so I switched TV to the Cubs - Nationals game.  There were no Cubs uniforms with "TTP" on the back.  I did not see a "Boomer" name on any uniform either.  I suppose none of the players were born in 1947. 

There were a couple of Black Hawk hockey players in the announcers booth and they led the 7th inning "Take Me Out to the Ballgame". I hope they play hockey better than they sing. I'm sure Harry Caray was spinning in his grave. 

Hey Elvis lovers try this:  "As the snow flies, on a cold and gray Chicago morn, another little baby Cub is born in a Wrigley." 

Across:

1. Meat shaped for a burger: PATTY.

6. Consider: DEEM.

10. Place to unwind: SPA.

13. Sound before "Bless you": ACHOO.

14. Food brand for Fido: ALPO.  I'll bet that dogs with other names eat it also,

15. Visa competitor, briefly: AMEX.  I don't think they have the cash back and travel miles deals to compete.

16. Like a wet day: RAINY.  The aforesaid golf tournament in Atlanta.

17. "Deal me a hand": I'M IN.  This is a new slogan for the Minnesota State lottery.  C.C. and I don't play because of the long odds, so "I'm Out."

18. __ slaw: COLE.  I am pretty sure that Nat King Cole belongs on the header list.

22. One rotation of Earth on its axis: DAY. Doris recorded "Sentimental Journey".  Not sure if she could be called a "Queen of  Soul".

23. Up until now: YET.

24. "I'll pay any price!": NAME IT.

28. Nod off: DOZE.  Previous Twins hero Brian Dozier was playing for the Nationals Saturday.  I  think his nickname is Doze, but I did not see it.

31. Not hers: HIS.

34. "We're having __!": retail come-on: A SALE.  Chris SALE is having a so so year for the Red Sox.

35. Jupiter's wife: JUNO.

36. Marriott rival: OMNI.  Dodge had an "OMNI Hatchback" on the market in the 70s.  They were small and ugly and have now been replaced by big and beautiful SUVs.

40. Scarlett's plantation: TARA. Also 60. Scarlett's last name: O'HARA.

41. Acme: APEX.

42. "Nevermore!" bird: RAVEN.  Edgar Allen Poe wrote this poem over 150 years ago, and it lives on.  I wrote "Zoilo, Tony and the Brew" about 35 years ago, and nobody cares. "The Mudcat, the Kitty and Old Blue, They knew them from Duluth to Waterloo.  Especially Zoilo, Tony and the Brew."

43. Boy in "Star Wars" prequel films: ANI. Darth Vader.

44. Currier and __: printmakers: IVES.  "These wonderful things are the things we remember all through our lives."

45. Seth of "SNL": MEYERS.

46. Ring or stud site: EAR.  No way anyone is EVER going to put a hole in my ear.

48. He wrote "The 42-Across": POE.  SEE!  Boomer not even mentioned.

58. Funny Bombeck: ERMA.  She left us in 1996.  The Minneapolis paper used to carry her column.

59. A4 automaker: AUDI.  A4 Is just the model name.  Maybe they misspelled "4A"

61. Close by: NEAR.

62. Marvel Comics mutants: X-MEN.

63. Post-op therapy: REHAB.

64. 2,000 pounds: TON. Load 16 of them, and what do you get.  Another day older and deeper in debt.

65. Ain't right?: ISN'T.  "So Ain't that too damn bad?"

66. Brutalizes: MAULS.

Down:

1. Place to spread a picnic blanket: PARK.  Not Fenway.

2. Smoothie berry: ACAI. These are healthy but very expensive.  Not as $$$ as health insurance though.

3. Slender: THIN.  Speaking of expensive food, I used to love Thin Mints.  Not anymore.  Now I just snack on Metformin.

4. Half a barbecuer's pair: TONG.  We have a pair in the kitchen.  Sometimes I use them to pick up something I dropped on the floor.  What can I say.  Sometimes older people need a little help.

5. Up-and-down weight loss effort: YO-YO DIET.  Not to be confused with Yo-Yo Ma, an accomplished cellist.

6. Grocery section with milk: DAIRY.

7. Red Muppet: ELMO.  He is tickled to be in this puzzle.

8. "Lawrence of Arabia," e.g.: EPIC.  This movie lasted nearly four hours!!  I preferred the 90 minute flicks at the Drive In.

9. 2000s OCD-afflicted TV sleuth: MONK.

10. Often sarcastic "Nice one!": SMOOTH MOVE.  Generally you should call "Nice one" on the golf course, whether it's a good shot or not.

11. __-mell: disorderly: PELL.  We used to call Pall Mall Cigs - Pell Mell.

12. Ice skater's jump: AXEL.

15. Property measure: ACRE.  Also can describe a bad tooth.

20. White part of beef: FAT.  Don't forget the Tuesday before Ash Wednesday.  Celebrated heavily in New Orleans and Las Vegas.

21. "Science Guy" Bill: NYE.  Speaking of Las Vegas there is a "Nye" county just west northwest of the "Silver City". We stay at the "Orleans", but not during the Mardi Gras festivities.

C.C. & Boomer, Feb, 2019

24. 1990s commerce pact acronym: NAFTA.  "North Atlantic Free Trade."  Trade does not seem to be free any longer.

25. Thai or Laotian: ASIAN.  Occasionally I like Chow Mein for a meal.  But C.C. says it is not real Chinese food.

26. He's not single: MARRIED MAN.

27. Film lioness: ELSA.

28. Fellas: DUDES.  I am not a Dude.  I dress sloppy and have never been to one of their ranches.

29. Banded gemstone: ONYX.

30. Place to observe animals: ZOO.  We have two zoos in Minnesota, but they don't seem to compete.  Neither has a Panda or a purple cow.

32. __ circle: group of close advisers: INNER.

33. Omens: SIGNS.

35. Joke: JAPE.

36. "__, can you see ... ": O SAY.  This is our national anthem.  I really object to some of the performances allowed at special events.  Can you say Roseanne Barr ??

38. Loo: LAV.

39. Having an irregular design: FREE FORM.

44. "Roth" investment: IRA. The "Roth" seems very complicated, however tax-efficient I suppose.

45. Bovine sound: MOO.  This was a sorority in "Animal House".

47. Not at all close by: AFAR. "We three kings of Orient are; bearing gifts we traverse AFAR"

48. Make a hard copy of: PRINT.

49. Fellow: GENT.  Earlier in the puzzle he was a "Dude".

50. Black-and-white treat: OREO.  MLB games last weekend.

51. Uber alternative: TAXI.

52. Runs smoothly: HUMS.

53. Blissful Genesis place: EDEN.  I have mentioned this before.  We have a Minneapolis suburb of Eden Prairie.  It's about 40 miles south of us, and a very nice suburb.  I think Bud Grant lives there.

54. New York stadium dismantled in 2009: SHEA.  It is amazing that the Mets and formerly the Giants have gone through three ballparks.  So have the Twins and others.  While the Cubs and Red Sox live on in Wrigley and Fenway.

55. Honolulu's island: OAHU.

56. Eurasia's __ Mountains: URAL.

57. Chocolate dogs: LABS.  I have not seen a "Chocolate dog".  I have eaten chocolate bunny rabbits around Easter, but not any more. 

Boomer

Notes from C.C.:

Happy birthday to Montana,  a retired math & science teacher who lives in Montana. Here is a nice picture from her Oregon Trail trek back in 2012. 

Tuesday, August 20, 2019, Kevin Christian & Kristian House

You Can Bet Your Life.  Each word in the starred theme answer can come After the word Life to give a new phrase or concept.

17-Across. *  Pedigree ancestry: BLOOD LINE.  As in Lifeblood and Life Line.

 Lifeblood.

Life Line

25-Across. *  Suit tailor's concern: JACKET SIZE.  As in Life Jacket and Life Size.

Moses hands out Life Jackets before crossing the Red Sea.

Life Size.

35-Across. *  Nightly ritual for young children: STORY TIME.  As in Life Story and Life Time.

 Life Story.

Life Time.

49-Across. *  Teacher's outline: LESSON PLAN.  As in Life Lesson and Life Plan.

Life Lessons

Life Plan.

And the unifier:
58. "Field of Dreams" subject, and where both parts of the answers to starred clues can go: AFTERLIFE.  (Admit it, your first thought was Baseball, even though it was a letter short.)

Across:

1. New England fish: COD.  More than you ever wanted to know about the Atlantic COD.

4. Seriously injures: MAIMS.

9. Frosh, next year: SOPH.  This year's Freshman is next year's SOPHomore.

13. "Should I take that as __?": A NO.

14. Are: EXIST.

15. Boy Scout unit: TROOP.

19. Luxury Honda: ACURA.

20. "Eight Miles High" band, with "The": BYRDS.

21. Farm building: BARN.

23. Up to, in ads: TIL.

24. The Beatles' "__ Love Her": AND I.

28. Prospective elevator passenger's query: GOING UP?

30. Villain played by Josh Brolin in most "Avengers" films: THANOS.

31. Flock female: EWE.

32. Biblical paradise: EDEN.

34. Olympics segment: EVENT.

38. On the ocean: AT SEA.

41. Red Sox manager Alex: CORA.  José Alexander Cora (b. Oct. 18, 1975) has been the Red Sox manager since 2017.  He played for a number of MLB teams, including, but not limited to, the Red Sox, the Los Angeles Dodgers, and the Texas Rangers.

42. Topeka's st.: KAN.  Topeka is the capital of Kansas.

45. "I want to see": SHOW ME!  Missouri is known as the Show Me State.

47. "The Lord of the Rings" wizard: GANDALF.

52. "__ all work out": IT'LL.

53. Barcelona gold: ORO.  Today's Spanish lesson.

54. Field mouse: VOLE.

55. Diviner's deck: TAROT.

56. Opposite of sur: NORTE.  More of today's Spanish lesson.  North is the opposite of South.  Did anyone see the 1983 movie El Norte?  it was about a group of people from Guatemala fleeing from ethnic and political persecution during the Guatemalan Civil War.  They trek north to the United States hoping for a better life.

61. Movie legend Greta: GARBO.  Greta Garbo (née Greta Lovisa Gustafsson; Sept. 8, 1905 ~ Apr. 15, 1990) was a Swedish actress.

62. Appliance with burners: STOVE.

63. Actress Vardalos: NIA.  Nia Vardalos (née Antonia Eugenia Vardalos / Νία Βαρντάλος; b. Sept. 24, 1962) is a Canadian-Green actress, best known for her 2002 movie, My Big Fat Greek Wedding.

64. Cannon of "Heaven Can Wait" (1978): DYAN.  Dyan Cannon (née Samille Diane Friesen; b. Jan. 4, 1937) was one of Cary Grant's 5 wives.  They were married for about 3 years in the 1960s.  There was a 33 year age gap between the two.

65. Sinatra classic with Anka lyrics: MY WAY.  My Way is without the video.

66. PIN requester: ATM.  Cute clue for the Automatic Teller Machine.

Down:

1. Sauerkraut, mainly: CABBAGE.  You, too, can make your own Sauerkraut.

2. "Just this second": ONLY NOW.

3. Desperate: DO OR DIE.

4. Drugs from docs: MEDS.  As in Medications.

5. Rose of Guns N' Roses: AXL.  Axl Rose (né William Bruce Rose, Jr.; b. Feb. 6, 1962) is the lead singer of the band referenced in the clue.

Axl is the one without the had.

6. Three on a sundial: III.

7. "Hardball" cable channel: MSNBC.

8. Rib eye, for one: STEAK.

9. Baseball great Musial's nickname: STAN THE MAN.  Stan Musial (né Stanley Frank Musial; Nov. 21, 1920 ~ Jan. 19, 2013) played for the St. Louis Cardinals for 22 years.

10. Beast fought by 47-Across: ORC.

11. Canadian french fries dish: POUTINE.  I had heard of this dish, which is basically french fries and cheese curds topped with gravy.  It is most closely associated with the cuisine of Quebec.  I had an opportunity to try it for the first time this past spring when I was up near the Quebec border.  It was interesting, but I probably wouldn't go out of my way to order it again.

12. Where land and sky seem to meet: HORIZON.

16. Most colorless: PALEST.

18. Chief Norse god: ODIN.  In Norse mythology, Odin is the god of wisdom, poetry, death and magic.

22. Like some mil. officers: RET.  As in Retired.  Fortunately, you don't have to be in the military to retire.

25. Weaponless self-defense: JUDO.

26. Mimic: APER.

27. Goalie's goal: SAVE.

29. "Hurry!": GET A MOVE ON.  My grandmother used that expression a lot.

33. It has both Kings and Queens counties, briefly: NYC.  As in New York City.  I was in Manhattan during the July heat wave.  I had to go through Queens from the airport.

35. Uses needle and thread: SEWS.

36. Roman robe: TOGA.

37. Persian Gulf republic: IRAN.

38. Comparable in duration: AS LONG.

39. "Not Taken" place in a Frost poem title: THE ROAD.

40. "My apologies": SO SORRY!

42. Catastrophic New Orleans hurricane: KATRINA.  Louisiana is still feeling the impact of this storm, which hit the state almost exactly 14 years ago.

43. The whole shebang: ALL OF IT.

44. Cardinals or Falcons: NFL TEAM.

46. Frequent co-producer of U2 albums: ENO.  Brian Eno (b. May 15, 1948) makes frequent appearances in the puzzles.

48. Dashboard feature: DIAL.

50. Suffix with proto- or cyto-: PLASM.  As in Protoplasm and Cytoplasm.

51. Southpaw: LEFTY.  Did you ever wonder where the term Southpaw originated?

55. Low card: TREY.

57. Sched. question mark: TBA.  As in To Be Announced.

59. Disabled car need: TOW.

60. "2 Fast 2 Furious" actress Mendes: EVA.  Eva Mandes (née Eva de la Caridad Méndez (b. Mar. 5, 1974) and Ryan Gosling (né Ryan Thomas Gosling b. Nov. 12, 1980) are a family unit.

Here's the Grid:

I'll leave you with a QOD:  If I didn’t do what I do, I wouldn’t be as young as I am.  ~ Robert Plant (né Robert Anthony Plant; b. August 20, 1948), British musician

Tuesday, October 16, 2018 Kevin Christian & Abbie Higashi

"BOB"   - The first letter of each of the theme answers.

17. Relative of "The pen is mightier than the sword": BRAINS OVER BRAWN.

25. Rear-window alert about an infant: BABY ON BOARD.

43. Dog show award: BEST OF BREED.

54. Arizona stadium renamed Chase Field as a result of a financial merger: BANK ONE BALLPARK.

56. Short haircut, and a hint to 17-, 25-, 43- and 54-Across: BOB.

Bonus:  The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog.  We have a crossword pangram today; every letter of the alphabet is used !

Please welcome Abbie Higashi on her LA Times Crossword debut, as she teams with Kevin Christian to give us this fun puzzle.   This is Kevin's 28th appearance on the LA Times Crossword stage.  

Across:

1. Whopper inventors: LIARS.   On April 1st, 1998, Burger King took out a full page ad in USA Today, and announced it would start serving the left-handed Whopper.   The burger contained the very same ingredients but it was rotated a full 180° to better suit and offer a better grip on the bun to the left-handed consumer. In addition, all the condiments were also rotated.  Can you guess what happened ?  

6. Toss of a coin: FLIP.   Supposedly truly random as to whether it will land heads or tails, but a caught coin has a 1 % greater chance of showing heads if it started out heads up, and a 1 % greater chance of showing tails if it started out tails up.  This according to a UCSB article on a Stanford paper, DYNAMICAL BIAS IN THE COIN TOSS.  

10. Trick: FLAM.  A lie or hoax, a deception.

14. Bosc relative: ANJOU.   Pear Varieties From Anjou to Williams

15. "Doctor Zhivago" heroine: LARA.


16. Himalayas locale: ASIA.

20. Census datum: SEX.  Jinx, the answer is Male or Female, not Yes.

21. Tear: RIP.  The clue/answer made me think of Rip Torn.

22. Levy that led to a 1773 "party": TEA TAX.   In fact, the tea tax had been around for six years.  It was the 1773 Tea Act that gave the the British East India Company a monopoly on tea sales in the colonies that was the final straw.   

23. Morass: BOG.

24. 2000 election dangler: CHAD.

30. "__ Sera, Sera": QUE.  The song and scenes from The Man Who Knew Too Much:


33. "See ya later!": I'M OFF.

34. Altar neighbor: APSE.

35. Ahi, for one: TUNA.  Yellowfin. 

36. __ avis: RARA.   Latin.  Through time, from rare bird to strange bird to peculiar person, to a unique person or thing.   Dennis Rodman ?

37. Wooden storage container: CRATE.

38. Mental acuity: WITS.

39. Former Russian ruler: CZAR.  Czar rule lasted over 400 years in Russia.  Here's the Top 10 list

40. Frau's mister: HERR.  Damen and Herren are on some doors in Germany.  Good thing for the images to teach foreigners that Da Men use the one marked Herren.

41. Nest for an eaglet: AERIE.

42. In a lather, with "up": HET.

45. Small salamander: NEWT.

46. Show curiosity: ASK.

47. Melodious piece: ARIOSO.   Let's have some more J.S. Bach...


50. God in the Vatican: DIO.

51. Dust jacket blurb: BIO.

58. Play opener: ACT I.   After DIO and BIO,  wanted an answer of maybe RIO or TIO.   

59. Nano or Shuffle: IPOD.

60. Bravery: VALOR.

61. Lugosi of "Dracula" fame: BELA.     Halloween is right around the corner.

62. Keep __ on: observe: TABS.

63. Justice Kagan: ELENA.

Down:

1. Chocolate dogs: LABS.


2. Pertaining to, on memos: INRE.

3. Early competitor of Mr. Clean: AJAX.   Mr. Clean - 1958.   Ajax - 1947.

4. Versailles royal: ROI.

5. Movable sports car top: SUNROOF.   Not sure why sports car is specified.  Anyway, sunroofs slide open and moonroofs tilt open a little bit.  40 % of all new cars sold in 2017 had either a sunroof or moonroof. 

6. Intentional fall, in basketball: FLOP. In basketball, a flop is an intentional fall by a player after little or no physical contact by an opposing player in order to draw a personal foul call by an official against the opponent. - Wikipedia.


7. British washroom: LAV.

8. Choler: IRE.

9. 100-yard golf hole, say: PAR THREE. No Par 4s or 5s on this local 9 hole course:

10. Capacitance unit: FARAD.  So named in honor of Michael Faraday.

11. Future JD's exam: LSAT.  Doctor of Jurisprudence / Law School Admission Test.

12. Old Sony brand: AIWA.

13. Tailless cat: MANX.  The cat from the Isle of Man.


18. Omen: SIGN.

19. Rosary feature: BEAD.

23. How landslide victories are won: BY FAR.

24. Fidel or Raúl: CASTRO.

25. Tree whose sap is used in a soft drink: BIRCH.  Never had one, but I read that Birch soda is commonly found in New England and Newfoundland.

26. Dazzle: AMAZE.

27. Baron Cohen's Kazakh journalist: BORAT.

28. Least furnished, as a room: BAREST.

29. Eye-bending paintings: OPART.

30. 24 sheets of paper: QUIRE.

31. Free from bonds: UNTIE.

32. Slacked (off): EASED.

35. Dance provocatively: TWERK.

37. What a dog will do with a bone: CHEW ON IT.

41. Exculpate: ABSOLVE.

43. Kiss from Carlos: BESO.

44. Epic __: disaster: FAIL.

45. Finnish electronics giant: NOKIA.

47. Basic rhyme scheme: ABAB.

48. Speed competition: RACE.

49. Part of IBM: Abbr.: INTL. International Business Machines.

50. Barq's rival: DADS.   Root Beers.  A&W, Hires, Mug, IBC etc. 

51. Block of hay: BALE.

52. Press: IRON.

53. Gumbo vegetable: OKRA.

55. Radon-regulating org.: EPA.

57. Bro: PAL.   

Notes from C.C.:

Happy Birthday to dear CrossEyedDave, who has entertained us for so many years with his fun links.

Happy Birthday to our foodie Blue Hen also! Here is his "Cheater Risotto".