Saturday, May 26, 2018, Kyle Dolan

A Themeless Saturday Puzzle on Sally Ride Day 


Today we celebrate the birthday of America's first woman in space, Dr. Sally Ride. Her mission came 20 years after the Russians put Valentina Tereshkova into orbit in 1963. She is remembered as a true American hero and pioneer who died too young and this NASA educator is very pleased to acknowledge her contributions to the space program


30. They often display two years: GRAVE STONES

Dr. Dolan's challenging Saturday puzzle required that I get footholds in each quadrant. I strongly suspected I was going to have to go back and do some fudging and corrections in the southwest corner but ISLAY, ASYLA,  HEY YA and HER gave way to give me an enjoyable, solo "got 'er done."

As you can see by Kyle's Tweet at the right, he was excited about getting this puzzle published in the LA Times today.

Here are the rest of Kyle's entries. I may have given short shrift to some proper names but am confident in your search capabilities if you decide you are even remotely interested.


Across:

1. Tipping point: LAST STRAW.

10. "The Screwtape Letters" author: LEWIS - Calvin's Miss Wormwood is named for the apprentice devil in C.S. Lewis's The Screwtape Letters

15. Nixon, in John Adams' "Nixon in China": OPERA ROLE - I wonder if Nixon's big aria is I Am Not A Crook!

16. Public perception: IMAGE - We all know what happened to the IMAGE of the guy above

17. Smoking choices: CLAY PIPES - These were found along the banks of the Thames and some date back to the 1580's

18. Confuse: MIX UP.

19. Org. with a tepee-shaped logo: KOA - We stayed in this KOA campground that had a lovely view of the Grand Tetons

20. Cowboy handle: TEX.

21. Keep things as they are: SIT PAT - I'm more familiar with STAND PAT when you have a good poker hand and don't want to take more cards

22. Seekers of a better life, perhaps: EMIGRES and what some of them seek 56. Safe places: ASYLA.

25. 18th Dynasty Egyptian ruler, familiarly: TUT - Lord Carnarvon , the 5th Earl of Carnarvon (right),  financed the Howard Carter (left) dig that found TUT. The Lord occupied Highclere Castle that was used in Downton Abbey and later died under mysterious circumstances. Some think it was the curse of TUT.

26. Japanese flier that sponsors an LPGA major tournament: ANA - All Nippon Airways

27. Scottish landscape feature: BRAE - Hillsides

28. Director Wiseman: LEN - I didn't recognize any of his work in the IMBd but I do recognize his wife Kate Beckinsale. 

29. Colorful gem: OPAL.

34. "Broad City" co-star: ILANA GLAZER - Talk about not knowing her - I had every letter of her name except the first L and then GAG LAW furnished that.

35. Concert pieces: GRAND PIANOS

36. Cry for attention, maybe: MEOW - My de reguier kitty picture! Awww...

37. Horsefeathers: ROT 

38. Source of tweets: NEST - I wonder if our robins are sending messages from their NEST outside my window

41. Wayfarer's rest: INN - Confidently putting in NADIRS for Low Points gave me A _ _ which held off INN for awhile 

42. 2013 Spike Jonze film: HER - Okay

43. It often involves getting a card nowadays: CHECK-IN - Disney now offers a wrist band that unlocks your resort door instead of a Key Card.

46. Family tree entry: NEPHEW - I sub for mine a lot

48. Kaitlin's "It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia" role: DEE - Okay

49. Chicago-to-Lansing dir.: ENE - It appears to be a 3.5 hr drive with the first part around the lake

50. Southernmost of the Inner Hebrides: ISLAY - It is just off the coast of Scotland, known as The Queen Of The Hebrides and known for a good single malt, uh, scotch

13. Lesser Antilles lizards: IGUANAS - Where they are and what they are. 

Geography lesson for today - Upper Midwest, the Inner Hebrides and The Lesser Antilles.

51. Ringer's workplace: BELL TOWER - Quasimodo played for Notre Dame at this workplace

54. Easily crumbled: MEALY  - "MEALY-mouthed" more familiar to you?

55. Leading by a lot: WELL AHEAD - Jockey Ron Turcotte on Secretariat looks back to see where the other horses are in the finish of the 1973 Belmont 

57. "What a terrible shame": I'M SO SORRY - I'M SORRY, SO SORRY. The little girl with the big voice and some puppies!

Down:

1. Age of Enlightenment thinker: LOCKE- He had much to say on being tolerant of other religions, people retaining rights over government and the rearing of children

2. Composure: APLOMB.

3. What's inspired by the ocean?: SEA AIR - inspired/expired for inhaled/exhaled

4. Whirl: TRY - "Aw come on, give it a whirl!"

5. Drain: SAP - Don't let her cut your hair Samson!

6. Lacking originality: TRITE - Nothing here from Dr. Dolan

7. Things to learn, with "the": ROPES - You learn the ROPES of teaching by teaching

8. "A Clockwork Orange" antihero: ALEX.

9. Jazzman Montgomery: WES.

10. Contain: LIMIT - The job of relief pitchers is to come in and LIMIT the damage already done

11. Release: EMIT.

12. Roll in a pantry: WAX PAPER - A really great use for WAX PAPER. You can see it on the ground at the end of the clip.

14. Of a dividing membrane: SEPTAL - My ENT tells me the SEPTUM in my nose is crooked but to leave it alone for now

21. It might end at the sleeves: SUNTAN - Marines after 7 months in the desert

23. Expression suppression: GAG LAW - These never seem to work with our members of Congress. GAG ORDER seems more common

24. Put on again: RERAN - Seinfeld and I Love Lucy lead the pack

25. Model 3 automaker: TESLA - Here's one rolling out of a charging station in Rocklin, California. Will these soon be ubiquitous? 

28. For real: LEGITimate

29. "Be right there!": ONE SEC - ONE SEC, we just had that yesterday!

31. First name of two U.S. presidents: ANDREW - Jackson and Johnson

32. Mist: VAPOR.

33. Pungent gas: OZONE.

34. Part of a golfer's skill set: IRON PLAY - A harder skill to manage because you don't use a tee in the fairway as Michelle Wie shows here

35. Commencements: GENESES - Plural of genesis 

36. Low points: MINIMA - Ah yes, College Algebra

39. One that might hold tips: SKEWER - Beef tips and much more on SKEWERS

40. Failure to make good notes?: TIN EAR - There are others with this same opinion 

42. 2003-'04 OutKast chart-topper: HEY YA - If you like obscenity-laced, mysoginistic "music", he's your guy! 

43. Barred rooms: CELLS

44. Adele hit that won three Grammys: HELLO - Every kid I asked in a H.S. math class knew instantly!

45. Like oversized glasses, to some: NERDY - Name this non-NERDY actor in oversized glasses and the movie where this was one of the last scenes. Answer below the grid.

47. Dining area: HALL - MESS seemed right at first

48. Think: DEEM - If you DEEM it necessary, please comment

51. Airport near D.C.: BWI - Baltimore Washington International

52. Grad student jobs: TA'S.

53. "What have we here?!": OHO - To quote this lovely lady in Minneapolis we know,  "Gluey fill"


Feel free to comment (see 48 Down) on this paradoxical day - Dr. Ride and Dr. Dolan are the pair 'o docs

The big glasses wearer is Robert Di Nero and the movie was Casino where he was a mob guy who ran a casino and no one dared call him a NERD.

Saturday, Aug 27, 2011 Kyle T. Dolan

Theme: None

Words: 70

Blocks: 34

Well I just love a Saturday that moves along this smoothly - I hope you all felt the same way ~! Constructor Kyle had one other offering back in Dec. '09; this time, we have triple stacks of eight, one grid spanner, one grid climber:

34A. Calls at home : BALLS AND STRIKES - I am sure this one was a real pleaser for C.C. - I knew it was "home" in the sense of baseball, but was thinking "safe!" and "out!" until I had '_ALLS_ _ '.

7D. Could choose : HAD ONE'S DRUTHERS - not a phrase I am familiar with, and the section surrounding the "TH" ate up all my time on this puzzle. Druthers is a colloquialism, an age-old contraction of (I)'d rather....

and two other 10-letter entries:

4D. Led Zeppelin's "Stairway to Heaven," e.g. : ROCK BALLAD - ah, my youth, spent emulating the "hair bands" of the '80's, and every single one of them was REQUIRED to write the next "Stairway" - personally, it got overplayed; my favorite is Mötley Crüe's "Home Sweet Home" - what about you?

27D. Highfalutin : HOITY-TOITY - putting on 'airs', snobby - based on the defunct word "hoit"

Onward~!

ACROSS:

1. Gum with a jingle that began, "So kiss a little longer" : BIG RED - Cinnamon flavored, but the Trident version is much hotter - love a Saturday with a 'gimme' 1A

7. Seconds in the air, to punters : HANG-TIME - and followed with a 'gimme' second across; literally, the time a football is airborne, so that the kicking team has a chance to get on the receiving team - I love the "chess match" tactics of the game, but not into the fantasy aspect or players as much

15. Wicked : UNHOLY

16. Penance component : AVE MARIA - Hail Marys (another football term, too)

17. Poker chips are often seen in them : STACKS - was thinking antes, and pots

18. Chocolaty treats : DOVE BARS - ice cream

19. Some charity races : TEN-Ks - ugh, this got me today; I am usually wise to this

20. Second crop of a growing season : ROWEN - new word for me - exactly what it means

21. Reason for a prep course : S.A.T. - Standard Aptitude Test

22. Healthy piece : SLAB - but not really healthy, if you think in terms of cake

23. Picky person? : MINER - a slight misdirection, I had to wait on perps

24. Brought down : ABASED

26. Bangladesh capital : DHAKA - map

31. Guiding light : POLARIS - a bit vague, but I know my astronomy; the North Star, in the Little Dipper, is presently aligned with the Earth's pole, and therefore stays "fixed", allowing for sailing at night. In about 11,700 years, Vega will be the new North Pole

33. Longhorn rival : SOONER - a WAG. College football - I am guessing Kyle (and others) can't wait for football season

36. Etta James classic : AT LAST - ah, the memories - this was the song my wife picked out for our wedding - I had no choice in the matter, but I didn't care - she was happy - too bad it LASTed only 2 years....

37. New Jersey river : RARITAN - I was born in New Jersey (hey now), but don't recall this name - map - sort of in the middle

38. Exhilarating : HEADY

39. Folly : LUNACY

40. Threadbare : RATTY

41. Words spoken after Polonius says, "I hear him coming: let's withdraw, my lord" : TO BE - a WAG, I just tried TO BE, as it was "words", and only 4 letters

45. Tie up loose ends? : SEW

48. Air Force pilot who became a pop star : DON HO - I did not know this

49. Right to play first, in golf : HONOR

50. Grace : ELEGANCE

52. One of Penelope's 108 in the "Odyssey" : SUITOR - those horndogs - she must have been a subject of ogling, too ( 49D )

53. Disdainful : CAVALIER

54. Chant : INTONE

55. Diving concern : THE BENDS - Nitrogen, boiling in the blood after coming to the surface from great depths too soon.

56. Phoned on a computer, in technospeak : SKYPED - not really technospeak, since Googled is now a word, too.

DOWN:

1. Marble works : BUSTS

2. Espionage aid, for short : INTEL- INTELligence, knowledge of what the "other side" is doing

3. Country that eliminated the United States at the last two World Cups : GHANA

5. FDR and Truman, fraternally : ELKS - the benevolent order of elks

6. Bad opening? : DYS - as in DYSfunctional

8. Swore : AVOWED

9. Word heard before and after "say" : NEVER - James Bond again; this movie

10. Fed personnel : G-MEN

11. Someone has to pick it up : TAB

12. Savings choices, briefly : IRAs

13. Sorvino of "Mighty Aphrodite" : MIRA - Image

14. Rose point : EAST - Compass Rose





20. "__ to the Top": Keni Burke song : RISIN' - I'll leave the links to you

23. French Revolution figure : MARAT - I had this guy before, not too long ago

25. Having strong low tones, as headphones : BASSY

26. Column style : DORIC

28. Co-composer of "Johnny's Theme" : ANKA - Paul Anka, prolific songwriter.

29. Not dull : KEEN

30. Married couple? : ARS - the "R's" in maRRied, like I used to be

31. Spread with drinks : PATÉ

32. Cantina cooker : OLLA - Ceramic pot

33. Pickup for a pound : STRAY - Dog pound

34. "Nuts!" : BAH - Humbug....

35. Pedro o Pablo : SANTO - ah - I had SENOR first

39. Pierced surgically : LANCED

40. 1998 De Niro thriller : RONIN - another movie link

42. Leading : ON TOP - yeah, in football standings, too

43. Cumberland Gap explorer : BOONE - Daniel

44. Stumbled : ERRED

45. Branch : SECT

46. Valley where David fought Goliath : ELAH - total WAG

47. Bob Seger's "__ Got Tonight" : WE'VE

48. Low area : DALE

49. Object of ogling : HUNK - Ogle, ladies, ogle - I had the guys covered last week with Bond Girls - and I had a UPS package go to Carey Lowell yesterday - one of my top three

51. Speak idly : GAB

52. Cheer syllable : SIS - um, this one I am not sure; SIS BOOM BAH ~!?!?!?

Answer grid.

Well, for those in the path of Irene, like me, stay safe, above water, and below deadly winds....

Splynter

Note from C.C.:

Happy Birthday to our Friday Sherpa Lemonade. Thanks for the consistently informative and entertaining write-up every week.