google.com, pub-2774194725043577, DIRECT, f08c47fec0942fa0 L.A.Times Crossword Corner: Kevin Salat

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Showing posts with label Kevin Salat. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Kevin Salat. Show all posts

Dec 3, 2020

Thursday, December 3, 2020, Kevin Salat

 


Good morning to you, cruciverbalists, from your local manifestly malodorous marine mammal.  It is now December and it has been a full week since this year's Thanksgiving holiday observances.  Whatever the form yours may have taken let us hope that everyone has stayed well.

The August 1, 2020 Crossword Corner post has some comments by, and biographical information about, today's constructor, Kevin Salat.  You may find it worth the time to peruse it.  Here is a link:



THEME:  It Is A Far, Far Better Rest

For today's puzzle, Kevin has created a theme that is good.  No, it is better than that.  In fact, it is quite literally:


At three locations in the puzzle Kevin has placed a synonym for CUT directly above the word REST.  All are found among the Across clues/answers and the answer at 63 Across does  double duty.  It not only serves as part of the theme but it is also the reveal.

16 Across.  Outshine: ECLIPSE.

18 Across.  The Home of the highest terrestrial biodiversity: RAIN FOREST CANOPY.
_____

37 Across.  ICU hookups: I V DRIPS.  In the Intensive Care Unit they might hook you up to one or more IntraVenous DRIPS.

41 Across.  Airbag, e.g.: PASSIVE RESTRAINT
_____

61 Across.  Extra: SPARE.

63  Across.  Superior ... or what this puzzle's circled letters represent?: A CUT ABOVE THE REST

A look at the Answer Grid shows the placements.  It would have been just a touch more elegant if Kevin, somehow, had found a way to work in a four letter synonym for CUT at 37 Across.  Then all of the pairs would have stacked four letters over four letters.  That, however, is a mere nit to pick.


Across:

1. It's not clear: BLUR.   On the other hand, this graphic is clearly BLURry.



5. Strategic corporate name change: RE-BRAND.  An almost, but not quite, made-up word (aren't they all) using RE.  Not all RE-BRANDing represents an improvement.



12. Expert: PRO.  This could have been clued as Con con.

Can Can


15. Arm bone: ULNA.  Alternative clue:  Bone commonly found in crossword puzzles.

17. Cornish game __: HEN.  A straightforward fill-in-the--blank clue.

A Cornish Game Hen (Precooked)

21. Partner of mirrors: SMOKE.  The expression "SMOKE and Mirrors" is used to describe the obscuring or embellishing of the truth with misleading or irrelevant information.

22. What duct tape has a lot of: USES.  You only need two items in your tool box.  If it does not move and it should - USE the WD40.  If it moves and it should not - USE the duct tape.  There is a brand of Duct Taped called Duck Tape.

23. Computer operating system with a penguin mascot: LINUX.



24. Color like khaki: TAN.  This could also have been clued as Bask in the sun, or Wallop, or, as we recently saw, Something done to leather.

25. Little helper?: ASST.   In this instance, when combined with the question mark, "Little" tells us that the answer will be an abbreviated version of a synonym for helper - ASSistanT.

27. Identify: PEG.  A legitimate answer, as in "I've got you PEGged" and just enough of a stretch to be quite clever.

28. Texter's segue: BTW.  Shorthand for BThe Way.

29. Building up: AMASSING.

34. 3-Down concern: SCAB.   3-Down's answer is UNION.  A SCAB is a strikebreakers who works at a place where, and when, the unionized workers are on strike.



40. 19th Greek letter: TAU.

44. Craft measured in cubits: ARK.  Recently, we asked the question "What's a cubit?"  A cubit is an ancient measure of length approximately equal to a person's forearm.  Noah was instructed to build an ARK that was 300 cubits long, 50 cubits wide and 30 cubits high.

A Full-Scale Version of Noah's Ark


45. What chefs do often: RETASTE.  Another almost-made-up word formed by sticking RE at the beginning.   Is Linquish a word?

46. Single-file travelers, at times: ANTS.




47. "King Arthur's Song" musical: SPAMALOT.  No it isn't.  Yes it is.

King Arthur's Song


49. Red or Ross: SEA.  The Red SEA borders Asia and Africa.  The Ross Sea abuts Antarctica.

51. Were, now: ARE.  A riff on verb tenses.

52. Baja's opposite: ALTA.  In English, lower and upper.  We often see Spanish words in the puzzles.  French, also.  Rarely, Slovene.

54. __ Mahal: TAJ.  Probably a reference to the tomb of Itimad-ud-Daulah in Agra but it could also be a reference to this gentleman:

Taj Mahal - "Fishin' Bues"


57. Chew out: SCOLD.



59. Fast-food option: TO GO.  In some jurisdictions, today, the only option is to order your meal TO GO.  Also, the name of a dog hero in a 2019 Walt Disney movie.  It was rated PG - for those here who might be curious.



66. Relations: KIN.  Relations as in family relatives and not, for example, algebraic - reflexive, symmetric, transitive or anti symmetric.  Can you think of other types of relations?  I knew that you could.



67.  Part of the CMYK color model:  MAGENTA.  Cyan, Yellow and Black (aka "Key") are the other colors.  One reason that black is referred to as "Key" in this model is because in the German version there is already a color that starts with the letter B (blau).




68. Bassoon cousin: OBOE.  OBOEs often appear in crossword puzzles.  One of the most famous OBOE passages is from Peter and the Wolf by Sergei Prokofiev.  The OBOE plays the part of the Duck.

The Duck


69. It can cover a lot of ground: SOD.  Installing rolls of SOD can provide a very nice form of instant gratification.


70. Specter: PHANTOM.

The Phantom of the Opera


71. Puts on: DONS.  Doff and DON both date to the 14th century with Doff coming from a phrase meaning "to do off" and DON coming from one meaning "to do on".


Down:

1. Rupture: BURST.



2. Cub : bear :: cria : ___: LLAMA.  While he is not familiar with the word "cria", this debonair dugong is  familiar with the sophisticated art of poetry. 

        The one-L Lama, he's a priest
        The two-L Llama, he's a beast
        And I will bet a silk pajama
        There isn't any three-L Lllama
                                        --- Ogden Nash

3. Group with a rep: UNION.



4. Arrange in order: RANK.

Some USMC Ranks, In Order
 

5. Rock's __ Speedwagon: REO.  The original REO Speedwagon was a truck designed in 1915 by Ransom EOlds.  The eponymous rock  band was formed more than fifty years later, in  1967.

An REO Speedwagon Truck 


6. Beige relatives: ECRUS.  We abide the recurring appearance of ECRU because it is a very constructor-friendly combination of letters.  But the plural somehow seems far less acceptable.  Greens or Blues or Reds seem okay.  Maybe that's because those words all have alternative meanings.

7. Hallowed: BLEST.  An archaic form of Blessed.  BLEST is (s)he who expects no gratitude for (s)he shall not be disappointed.

8. What yeast makes dough do: RISE.  The current pandemic has resulted in a significant RISE in the number of people making bread at home.  

9. Bldg. units: APTS.  APartmenTS

10. Situation Room gp.: NSC.  The gp abbreviation tells us that the answer, the National Security Council, will also be abbreviated.

11. "You're on!": DEAL.  As in "It's a DEAL."

12. Do the minimum: PHONE IT IN.  A colloquialism for dong something in a perfunctory or unenthusiastic manner.



13. Vile: REPUGNANT.

What, No Mitt?

14. Black stone: ONYX.  Have you ever searched online for a color photograph of ONYX?

19. Bowling a 300, e.g.: FEAT.  The odds of a professional blower bowling a perfect game are said to be approximately 460 to 1.  The odds for the average bowler are about 11,500 to 1.



20. Pinches: NIPS.  NIPS has many definitions of which pinches is one.

26. Turn while seated: SWIVEL.




28. MLB scorecard entries: BBS.  Base on BallS more commonly called Walks.  Barry Bonds holds the Major League Baseball record with 2, 558.

29. Wonder Woman adversary: ARES.  Long before Wonder Woman was just a glint in her mother's eyes, ARES was the Greek God of War.  He often appears in crossword puzzles clued as a belligerent being or as the son of Zeus and/or Hera.

ARES


30. Drops above the ground: MIST.  I got lost in the MIST today and didn't have the foggiest idea where I was.


 
31. H.S. exam for college credit: AP TESTAdvanced Placement Test  It would be a safe bet that more than a few Cornerites have taken AP TESTS.

32. Georgia, once  ABBR.:  SSR  The former Union of Soviet Socialist Republics eventually encompassed fifteen nominally independent republics.  The clue was a bit of misdirection intended to have us think, I think,  of the U.S. State of Georgia or, perhaps, of a Ray Charles song.



33. Courage: GUTS.  Do you know what really takes GUTS?  Digestion.

34. Apt rhyme for "aahs": SPAS.



35. Italian dish of thinly sliced raw meat or fish: CARPACCIO.  By most accounts, the dish was named for the painter Vittore CARPACCIO who was known for the characteristic red and white tones of his work.




36. Do some informal polling: ASK AROUND.




38. Quash: VETO.  Franklin Delano Roosevelt holds the record for a U.S. President.  He issued 635 VETOs.  Grover Cleveland and Harry Truman RANK second and third with 584 and 250, respectively.

39. "Fiddlesticks!": DRAT.  Both are expressions of mild annoyance or irritation.  In the 17th century, Fiddlesticks (originally Fydylstyks) was appropriated from it's original usage as musical instrument bows and began to be used to indicate absurdity.

42. George's musical brother: IRA.  It is nice to see IRA with a Gershwin clue instead of a type of savings account.

43. Energizer size: AAA.  To get this one it helped to know that Energizer is a brand of batteries.




48. Liquefy: MELT.




50. State of comfort: EASE.  Also, the final word of Tom Lehrer's "It Makes A Fellow Proud To Be A Soldier" (1959).

"At Ease"


52. Secret __: AGENT.  Oxymoronically, there are many well-known Secret Agents - both in real life and from the world of entertainment.  Mel Brooks and Buck Henry created this one:
 

 
 
 

Maxwell Smart




53. Numbers game: LOTTO.  The CFO of my children's school once described the California State LOTTO as "A tax on the stupid."

54. Fitness portmanteau: TAE BO.  This portmanteau is a "mash up" of TAEkwondo and BOxing.

55. Burning issue?: ARSON.  We have seen this play on words before.  A clue meant to be taken quite literally.

56. Ballet leaps: JETES.


57. Upscale retailer: SAKS.  In September 15, 1924 SAKS Fifth Avenue opened their most recognizable store located between Forty-ninth Street and Fiftieth Street. 

SAKS Fifth Avenue


58. Slightly soggy: DAMP.  It's a myth that people's joints hurt because it's cold and DAMP.   'Turns out that it's a mist ache.

59. Frat party costume: TOGA.


60. One may be self-cleaning: OVEN.  There are several good reasons to never use your oven's the self-cleaning feature.

62. Spur: PROD.  I never knew how a grown man could cry at his own wedding until my father-in-law PRODded me with his shotgun. 

64. Cry of disgust: BAH.



65. Western omelet morsel: HAM.  A Western Omelet has eggs, salt, butter, bell pepper, scallions,  white cheese and, of course, HAM.  If you did not know the recipe the perps very likely bailed you out.

__________________________________________________


________________________________
 
MM Out
__________________________





Aug 1, 2020

Saturday, August 1, 2020, Kevin Salat

Saturday Themeless by Kevin Salat


Today Kevin Salat enters the world of themeless Saturday puzzles at the LA Times. As you can see by the picture, he joins our list of constructors who are
Jeopardy alums. 

Here is his gracious note to us:

Hey everybody! Thanks to Gary for the invitation to introduce myself in this wonderful community. 

I'm originally from Winfield, IL where I started solving these puzzles in the Chicago Tribune with my grandma Natalie. Now I reside in Seattle, WA working in product marketing and spending leisure time on long bike rides or at the movies (when they're open). Some favorite first-time watches I've had during quarantine have been In a Lonely Place (1950), The Apartment (1960), Paper Moon (1973), Something Wild (1986), and in terms of new 2020 releases, First Cow (2020). All are highly recommended!

Delighted to have my first Saturday in the LAT, which along with my first Friday on 7/10 completes my "cycle" of having a puzzle run each day of the week! This is one of the first themeless puzzles I had ever created, and while I think my game has improved since this one I'm relatively pleased with how it turned out. I like entries with 3+ words, so I started with stair-stacking 34A and 37A and the puzzle came together from there. And while I didn't have "in England" in my clue for 38A I think it makes it more accurate. 

Not much else to say about the rest of the puzzle, but I just want to say thanks to Rich/Patti & the editorial team and also reinforce how wonderful this community is. It's such a joy knowing that so many are not only enjoying something you've created, but also using it as a springboard to connect with others and provide laughter and support in such trying times. And I've heard Alex Trebek say that he solves the LAT every day, so it's also nice to know icons like him are potentially enjoying my work too (FYI, he smells great). 

Have a good Saturday -- see you next time!

Kevin

I navigated around Kevin's fun puzzle but hit a single roadblock at the bottom where this physics teacher had no idea on YLEM or on matador art called TAUROMACHY (Kevin explains below). See my "angry" red square in the grid 😤! Okay, Kevin seems to be a great guy, I had fun and am not really angry but still...




Across:

1. Cajun staple: OKRA.


5. Rhyme $yndicate Records founder: ICE-T Here 'ya go


9. Pooch living in 2062: ASTRO - George Jetson's pooch


14. Fast-food option: DRIVE THRU - Very popular these days


16. Fine fiddle: STRAD - As opposed to "fine fettle"


17. Asian cooking ingredient: SESAME OIL.


18. Sad: TEARY.


19. Red state verb: OWE and 26. Blue side: Abbr.: DEMS - The former represents being in debt and the latter refers to DEMOCRATS being referred to the blue side of politics



20. Boston song whose title lyric precedes "We're cookin' tonight": SMOKIN - The 1976 "B-side" of More Than A Feelin'. Here ya go


22. Preceding periods: EVES.

23. Goose that may nest on volcanic ash: NENE - Our fine-feathered Hawaiian crossword friend 


25. Donkey Kong or King Kong: APE.


27. Sound that gets an exam proctor's attention: PSST 


31. Jan. honoree: MLK.


33. Pop singer Brenda: LEE - She went on my turntable right after Roy Orbison and The Everly Brothers! Here she shows that 59. Moody genre: EMO music is nothing new


34. "Nevertheless ... ": BE THAT AS IT MAY 

37. Dealer's question: ARE YOU IN OR OUT



38. Teaching where to go in England?: Puppy HOUSE TRAINING is preferred in England whereas HOUSE BREAKING is used more often on this side of the Atlantic. Fun clue, Kevin!


39. Wine label abbr.: ALC - The ALC(ohol) content of champagne is around 12.2% for example. SEC hung on a long time 


40. Airport near OAK: SFO - A half-hour drive 



41. "This comes __ surprise": AS NO.


42. De Matteo of "The Sopranos": DREA - Here, as Andrea La Cevera, she is being "taken for a ride" on The Sopranos 44. "!!!": OMG - They're going to kill me!



46. Judicial order: WRIT.


50. Bubble Up sister brand: DADS.



51. Wyndham-owned chain: RAMADA.


55. Kerfuffle: ADO.


56. "Don't get any __": IDEAS.



58. Spam-revealing aid?: CAN OPENER - Here you can see the key that served as the can opener for the metal strip around the can of Spam for K-Rations in WWII



60. Hitchcock menace: BIRDS - One reviewer said it shows that nature can dominate man despite all his technology. Sound familiar?



61. Erratic: HIT OR MISS.


62. Toothed whale's technique: SONAR - Echolocation also used by dolphins


63. Proto-matter of the universe: YLEM - New to me. Definition, pronunciation and etymology


64. Wary of: ONTO.



Down:


1. Indulges in to an extreme degree: OD'S ON - OverDoseS ON


2. Mardi Gras parade-organizing group: KREWE - The invitation to form the first KREWE - The Mystick KREWE of Comus in New Orleans 163 yrs ago



3. Up and at 'em: RISEN.


4. "Selma" director DuVernay: AVA - Has the crossword torch been passed from AVA Gardner?



5. Thing: ITEM.


6. End of an allergic reaction: CHOO - AH, I get it!


7. Alexander of "Living Single": ERIKA - ERIKA maintained that Living Single supplied the template for Friends which first aired a year later



8. 17th-century craze involving bulbs: TULIP MANIA - Often called the first investment "bubble". Prices for Dutch bulbs soared and then collapsed in 1637



9. Puerto Rico hrs.: AST - Atlantic Standard Time. They welcome in the new year two hours before I do


10. Medieval Times ride: STEED.


11. Commuter's convenience: TRAVEL MUG.


12. What's just not done, to some diners?: RARE MEAT - RARE MEAT would mean "not done" to me. You? Loved the clue, uh, eventually.



13. Quite a journey: ODYSSEY.


15. Mushroom ends?: EMS MushrooM. Last week Joe Deeney gave us 53. Neon tips?: ENS NeoN


21. '50s-'60s TV family: NELSON'S - My daughter's former mother-in-law calls us Ozzie and Harriet because her family was/is so dysfunctional 



24. Pentathlon equipment: EPEES - I leave it to you to ascertain the five events where athletes have 29. Strove to achieve: SHOT FOR the gold medal



28. Lid problems: STYES.


30. Matador's art: TAUROMACHY - Kevin told me, "Hah, it happened to be in my word list because it was once used back in 1996. Definitely a unique word but glad that it's somewhat inferable with the Greek roots."



32. Beer order at a sushi bar: KIRIN Here ya go!


34. "Nebraska" Best Actor nominee: BRUCE DERN - A bittersweet movie where I saw a lot of characters I recognized.



35. Padre's hermana: TIA - Dad's sister: Aunt in Spanish (correction)


36. Thus far: TO NOW.


37. Music service pioneer that merged with Slacker in 2017: AOL RADIO Here 'ya go


38. Staked a claim (on): HAD DIBS - These words left my lips often in my yute!



43. Adjective on taco truck menus: ASADA - Carne ASADA (meat grilled)



45. Outlook alternative: GMAIL - Write to me at gschlapfer@gmail.com if you want to add to/subtract from our map


47. Arrested: RAN IN 48. Latin clarifier: ID EST - i.e. got put in jail


49. Where the heart is: TORSO.


52. Penultimate prefix: ANTE - The ANTEchamber before you enter Tut's tomb



53. Dire prophecy: DOOM - If you disturb Tut's tomb...


54. National Poetry Mo.: APR.


57. Ukr. or Est., once: SSR.

Kevin emailed me this great link to the Chicago Tribune review of Alex Trebek's new book The Answer Is... 

I found the article to be a fascinating story about a man whose show is mentioned often here. The book includes info on his health issues and repeats the fact that he attempts the LA Times Crossword everyday.



I'll take Comments For Kevin for $800 Alex!