google.com, pub-2774194725043577, DIRECT, f08c47fec0942fa0 L.A.Times Crossword Corner: Malodorous Manatee

Advertisements

Showing posts with label Malodorous Manatee. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Malodorous Manatee. Show all posts

Mar 8, 2024

Friday, March 8, 2024, Joe DiPietro

 


Greetings, Cruciverbalists.  Malodorous Manatee here with a recap of today's puzzle by veteran constructor Joe DiPietro.  Let's jump right in with the reveal at:

57 Across: "That's a lost opportunity," and what can be said to the writer of four clues in this puzzle: YOU'RE MISSING OUT.

Alternatively, you might say to the writer "That's not what Timothy Leary meant!"  At four places in the puzzle, Joe has literally dropped OUT from the clue.  In other words, we are, indeed, MISSING OUT.  As solvers, we must mentally append OUT to the sole remaining letter and thereby create a perfectly acceptable, albeit brief, crossword puzzle clue.  Here are the four places where the gimmick is employed and what can we say except, "Far out, man!":

17 Across:  R.  When we add OUT to R we get ROUT.  LOPSIDED VICTORY.

24 Across:  B.  Tack OUT onto B and the result is BOUT.  PRIZEFIGHT.

38 Across:  P.  P plus OUT equals POUT.   SULKY EXPRESSION

46 Across:  T.  A CSO !  Appending OUT to T results in  TOUT.  CREATE HYPE.

The perps were certainly helpful in sussing out the above answers but, after the gimmick was recognized, none were overly difficult or obscure.  Of course, prior to grasping the gimmick, this solver was seriously considering WTF as a possible title for this blog.

The completed grid appears near the end of this recap.  For now, here are the ins and outs of the rest of the clues and answers:

Across:

1. Sanitizer targets: GERMS.  Bacteria was too long.  HANDS was, briefly, considered.

6. "Mad Money" cable network: CNBC.  The first of about a dozen (depending on one's criteria) abbreviated answers in today's puzzle.  TBH SMH IYKWIM

10. Actress Mazar: DEBI.  Per Rotten Tomatoes:  A character actress known for feisty and heavily accented New York roles.

14. Lab vessel: FLASK.  Not Lab as in Labrador Retriever.  Lab as in chemistry lab.


15. Does some horticultural work: HOES.  We had several horticultural/botanical references in today's puzzle.  This was one of them.

Otis Lee - Hard Row To Hoe - Circa 1968


16. Group with reserves: OPEC.



20. Widespread alert, for short: APB.  All Points Bulletin

21. "The Tilled Field" painter Joan: MIRO.  A surreal botanical reference.  I wonder what MIRO was dropping (ingesting).  



22. Speed: RACE.  Used as a verb.  Otherwise, PACE?

23. Leaves in hot water?: TEA.  Not leaves as in departs.  Another botanical reference.

27. Trifle (with): TOY.

29. __ pen: VAPE.    Doctor to patient:  Do you smoke?
                                        Patient:  Yes.
                                        Doctor:  Cigarettes, VAPE, cigars, marijuana?
                                        Patient:  Brisket and pork shoulder, mostly.

30. Whit: IOTA.  A crossword staple although clued many different ways.

32. What coastlines and hairlines may do: RECEDE.  This solver would have preferred a slightly different clue.

35. Reel Big Fish genre: SKA.  SKA Punk, actually.

Take On Me


41. "Three Little Kittens" treat: PIE.  Lose your mittens.  Then find them and get rewarded with PIE.


42. Quick bursts: 
SPURTS.

43. Go: EXIT.  Used as a verb.

Snagglepuss


44. Like racehorses: SHOD.  Hand up for FAST.
 
45. Skin pic: TAT.  TATtoos are frequently visible in our puzzles.

51. "Go me!": YAY.  See also 63 Across

54. Harvest: REAP.  Possibly another botanical reference.  Anyone first think of this?:



55. "__ Flux": 1990s MTV series: AEON.

56. HHS agency: FDA.



61. Spoonful, perhaps: DOSE.  Hmmm, should we go with Julie Andrews here?  Nah.

Royal Albert Hall - 2005


62. __ learning: ROTE.  Memorization, basically.

63. "Go me!": I RULE.  See also 51 Across

64. Brief timetable: SKED.  Right up there with SESH on the "Come on, enough of this type of thing already" scale.

65. Takes to court: SUES.

George Harrison


66. Organizes: SORTS.


Down:

1. Major key for some piano works by Chopin and Schubert: G-FLAT.  We knew that this answer had to begin with either A B C D E F or G

2. Travel to an away match?: ELOPE.  Cute clue.  Match as in wedded pair.

3. Climactic scene in the Eminem film "8 Mile": RAP BATTLE.

4. Bks.-to-be: MSS.  A punt that we have seen before.  Books-to-be are ManuScriptS in this instance.

5. Revealing, in a way: SKIMPY.  Today's "I had better pass on the GIF" moment.

6. French endearment: CHERI.

Pepe LePew



7. Help for the overnight shift, maybe: NODOZ.  UPPER would have fit but is not "crossword friendly".

8. Writer/activist Harris in the documentary "Hacking Democracy": BEV.  The documentary explored the level of integrity of electronic voting machines.

9. Procedural franchise since 2000: CSI.  A TV show reference often viewed in puzzles.

10. Mental decline: DOTAGE.

11. Unit in geochronology: EPOCH.  Has geochronology previously appeared in our puzzles?  Geochronology is the scientific study of the age and history of Earth's rocks and rock assemblages.

12. Top of the art world?: BERET.  Cute clue, although TOP more often refers to a shirt or blouse than it does to a hat.  Artists are stereo-typically depicted wearing BERETs.



13. Distant: ICY.  Not as in far away.  A behavioral reference.

18. Hollywood VIP: DIR.  DIRector, I suppose.  Probably not the constructor's favorite answer in this grid.

19. "Jinkies!": CRIPES.  Not previously a part of this solver's vocabulary.

25. Chris who won four straight US Opens in the 1970s: EVERT.  A women's tennis reference.

26. Tapered haircuts: FADES.  FADES, to this observer, seem to combine the worst elements of two older hairstyles.



28. Wine cask wood: OAK.  Another botanical reference.



30. Web access co.: ISP Internet Service Provider

31. "Certainement!": OUI.  Clue en français / Answer en 
français

32. Tend to an overgrown plant: REPOT.  Smoke another doobie?

33. Give off: EXUDE.

34. EMT skill: CPR.  A common crossword pairing.

35. Number of squares on a chess board: SIXTY FOUR.  Eight by eight.

36. Fish that can transform into a dragon, per Japanese legend: KOI.


37. Little pest: ANT.  Anyone try IMP first?

39. Tuning fork feature: Y SHAPE.  I have an A-440 tuning fork lying around somewhere.  These days, one uses an electronic gadget.





40. Neptune's realm: SEA.  A reference to the god and not to the eponymous planet.

44. Pan-__ scallops: SEARED.

45. Game of love: TENNIS.  Cute.  In a tennis match love means zero.

Wayne Fontana And The Mindbenders


46. Thief: CROOK.  Or not.  Or not not.




47. Get more mileage out of: REUSE.  I tried to change the color of my monk's cowl costume so that I could REUSE it but old habits dye hard.

48. Celerity: HASTE.  Anyone first misread this as Celebrity?  Celery?

49. Some 20 Questions answers: YESES.

50. Luau fare: POI.  Often served in our puzzles.

52. Not for minors: ADULT.  When my children were little they sometimes said "When I grow up I want to be a dult."

53. "Revolutionary Road" author Richard: YATES.

57. NFL stat: YDS.  YarDS  A football reference.

58. "__ Doubtfire": MRS.  You are missed, Robin Williams.



59. Letters of credit?: IOU.  Not letters of credit as your bank might issue. I OWE YOU.

60. Syllable in some lawn product names: GRO.  Today's final botanical reference.



As promised, here is the completed grid:




And now, in keeping with today's theme . . .

_______________________________________________




“I'm paranoid about everything in my life. Even at home. On my stationary bike, I have a rear-view mirror, which I'm not thrilled about.”   - - - Richard Lewis  1947 - 2024

Feb 23, 2024

Friday, February 23, 2024, Blake Slonecker

  


Good Morning, Cruciverbalists.  Malodorous Manatee here with today's recap of a puzzle constructed by veteran puzzle-setter Blake Slonecker.  Today's theme is straightforward so let's jump right in with the unifier which has been conveniently placed in the middle of the grid:

39 Across:  Camera setting, and what shortened 18-, 24-, 47-, and 58-Across?: F - STOP.  At the four referenced places, Blake has dropped the F (not dropped the F bomb, just the letter F) in order to answer the clues, and provide us with a few chuckles here, here, here and here:

Enough, F, Stop!

18 Across:  Pollinator who can't fly?: GROUND BEE.  Where's the BEEF?

24 Across:  Parents in the Hundred Acre Wood?: RAISES THE ROO.  Parents is used as a verb in the clue.  Kanga is a single mom.  When ROO misbehaves Kanaga idiomatically RAISES THE ROOF.

Roo and Kanga


47 Across:  Product of Shenandoah Valley shepherds?: 
VIRGINIA WOOL.  Who's afraid?

58 Across:  Experimental soft cheese?: TRIAL BRIE.  A TRIAL BRIEF is a legal document presented to the court.  It is intended to provide the court with the presentation of facts, evidence and legal arguments.  A TRIAL BRIE might provide an introduction for someone who has yet to develop a taste for soft cheeses.

Here is how this all looks in the grid:



...and here are the rest of the clues and answers:


Across:

1. Tries out: DEMOS.  Hand up for initially trying out TESTS.

6. Nosegay: POSY.  As in "Ring Around The Rosie".  

10. Pod whose cross sections are pentagonal: OKRA.



14. Skip a syllable or two: ELIDE.


15. Until: UP TO.

16. "Stay" singer Lisa: LOEB.  I searched for a Leopold and (Lisa) LOEB mash up but could not find one.  

17. __ Cup: PGA Tour prize: FEDEX.  A golfing reference.  Both Professional Golfers' Association  and FEDeral EXpress have been abbreviated.  Although, those abbreviations are now used far more often than are the full names.

20. Middle of dinner?: ENS.  We have seen this type of clue before.  There are two N's in the middle of dinner.  If Blake had needed DEES, here, would he have gone with "Middle of middle"?

21. Perfect: IDEAL.

23. "Island of the Blue Dolphins" novelist Scott: O'DELL.


27. Joie de vivre: ZEST.  A French phrase (in English, Joy of Living) fully co-opted by English speakers.

28. Emo: ANGSTY.  Slangy clue/answer combo.

32. Storage furniture: CHEST.

34. Prize money: PURSE.  Commonly used this way in the world of professional boxing and in professional golf.

37. Sphere in old referee whistles: PEA.  Before they developed synthetic orbs they used real PEAs.

38. A pop: EACH.

40. Otter kin: MINK.  A relationship that is a bit of a crossword standard.

41. Durango day: DIA.  Today's Spanish lesson.

42. Apt rhyme for "freeze": SEIZE.  As in SEIZE-up.

43. Well-mannered blokes: GENTS.  It is relatively easy to convince ladies not to eat Tide pods but it is more difficult to deter GENTS.

44. Goofs in proofs: ERRATA.  What do you call a list of corrections read out in a suggestive fashion?  ERRATA - CA.

46. Tromp: PLOD.

53. Bird in a bevy: QUAIL.  A group of QUAIL is called a bevy.

56. Hot spots: OVENS.  Not a WiFi reference.

57. Signal: CUE.  Both can be employed as either verbs or nouns.

60. Glossy material: SATIN.  Like most chairs?

62. 55-Down, properly: ISN'T.  See also 55 Down.  Duh, MM.

63. Like most whiskey: AGED.  This 36-year-old whisky can be yours for about five or six thousand dollars.  Let me know and I will send you a link if I can still (pun intended, See 42 Down) find it in my trash file).



64. Heart Eyes or OK Hand: EMOJI.



65. Fancy spread: PATE.  To make chicken PATE one has to first de-liver the chicken.

66. Fool (with): MESS.


67. Wrap sheet: SARAN.  The following, from the mid-60's, might be deemed NSFW:




Down:

1. Schedule for later: DEFER.

2. Two-time WNBA MVP __ Delle Donne: ELENA.




3. Many a sedan: MID-SIZE CAR.

4. Amit Majmudar's "__ to a Drone": ODE.  I was not familiar with this work.  I have now searched for it online, found it, read it a couple of times and .... well, make your own judgement:

5. People's superlative: SEXIEST.  A reference to People Magazine.  The honorific of SEXIEST Man Alive is awarded annually to a male but the magazine awards Most Beautiful Woman Alive in lieu of SEXIEST.

6. Sound of the Northwest: PUGET.



7. O icon: OPRAH.  OPRAH Winfrey of, among many other things, O Magazine.

8. Took second, say: STOLE.  A baseball reference.

9. Second person: YOU.  Not an Adam and Eve reference.  A grammar reference.

10. One whose trick-learning years are behind them: OLD DOG.



11. "The Mamba Mentality: How I Play" writer Bryant: KOBE.

12. Rod and __: REEL.  A fishing reference.

13. Cain's brother: ABEL.  A reference to The Book of Genesis.

19. Nary a soul: NO ONE.

Sir Paul McCartney

22. "Spring forward" letters: DST.  Daylight Savings Time.

25. Quick meeting?: SESH.  "Quick" as in a shortened version of SESSION.

26. Tough talk?: RASP.  

29. Damage control pro: SPIN DOCTOR.


30. High-stakes shelter: TENT.  I don't know about the High bit, but many TENTs certainly do employ stakes.

31. Shaggy beasts: YAKS.  See also 33-Down.

32. Relinquish: CEDE.

33. 31-Down abundance: HAIR.



34. Pump letters: PSI.  Pounds per Square Inch

35. Lays aisle-mate: UTZ.  A snack food (pretzels, potato chips, etc.) reference.


36. Bass output: ROE.  Not a bass guitar.  Not Bass Ale.  Not the Mayor of Los Angeles.  Fish ROE.

39. "__ the Turtle": University of Maryland catchphrase: FEAR.



40. "I would like some more catnip, please": MEOW.

42. Bootlegger's vessel: STILL.



43. Visual aids: GLASSES.  Not, e.g., pie charts, flashcards, flip charts, or the like.  Aids to help us see.

45. Really take off: AVIATE.  Really.  No, really take off.



46. Blame (on): PIN.  As in "Y0u won't PIN that murder on me!"

Eydie Gorme (and friends)


48. Canyon: GORGE.

49. Campus climbers: IVIES.

Tom Lehrer - "Bright College Days"


50. Focus of Maslow's hierarchy: NEEDS.


51. Message board?: 
OUIJA.  Messages from the great beyond.  Supposedly.  OUIJA Board.



52. Red Square honoree: LENIN.

All Hail Marx and Lennon !


53. Sample collector, maybe: Q-TIP.  For the DNA lab.

54. __ Major: URSA.



55. 62-Across, improperly: 
AIN'T.  See also 62 Across.  Duh, MM.

59. "Bang!": BAM.  Onomatopoeia

61. Org. for OBs: AMA.

________________________________________


Notes from C.C.:
 
Voting is now open until March 1 for the 12th ORCA Awards – the annual celebration of creativity in crosswords! Winners will be announced on March 6 during a livestream filled with games and prizes. Five long-time solvers will receive special awards. For each day of their streak, solvers can receive a chance to win crossword memorabilia inscribed to them and signed by Will Shortz. Need not be present to win. Details and voting info can be found at Diary of a Crossword Fiend.

Feb 9, 2024

Friday, February 9, 2024, Caroline Hand and Katie Hale

 


Good morning, Cruciverbalists.  Malodorous Manatee here with a recap of  today's puzzle which, fittingly, was constructed by not one but two puzzle setters.  If you woke up feeling poorly this morning then this puzzle may not have been for you.  However, if you woke up fooling peerly then you may have found that the solving went smeethly and agrooably.  Let's start with the reveal:

66  Across:  Tennis match with teams of men and women, or what 18- and 25-Across and 42- and 55-Across literally have: MIXED DOUBLES.

At two places (for a total of four clues/answers) Caroline and Katie intentionally mix up the double vowels (OO and EE) found in two common "word combinations" and, thereby, create amusing responses to the carefully worded clues.  The first pair is at:

18 Across:  Plays a trick on Miami's basketball team?: FOOLS THE HEAT     and
25 Across:  Spring occasion when people get really emotional?: APRIL FEELS DAY

FEELS THE HEAT and APRIL FOOLS DAY have traded double vowels

The second pair is at:

42 Across:  Orange rinds of epic proportions?: OLYMPIC SIZE PEELS and

55 Across:  Wagers about how many ingredients are in a bottle of shampoo?: CHEMICAL POOLS

OLYMPIC SIZE POOLS and CHEMICAL PEELS have engaged in a bit of vowel swapping.


Here is how this all looks in the grid:



.... and, now that we've participated in the vowels' key party, let's have a look at the rest of the clues and answers:


Across:

1. Baldelli who was AL Manager of the Year in 2019: ROCCO.  Things start off with a reference to the Minnesota Twins baseball team.



6. Leave the dishes for tomorrow, say: SOAK.   Here in the SOAKing Southland this seems, somehow, appropriate:

Box Of Rain (1972)


10. Fistful of dollars: WAD.

Clint Probably Got This Answer Quickly


13. Nook purchases: E-BOOKS.  NOOK is Barnes and Noble's electronic reading platform/device.

15. Subject: TOPIC.  Current events are a fish's favorite TOPIC of discussion.

17. Spa brand: OPI.  Usually clued with a reference to nail polish.

20. Molecular messenger: RNA.  A crossword staple.

21. Dump, as stock: SELL.

22. Breakdown helpers: AAA.



23. Monarch: RULER.



30. Cuban dance: MAMBO.  O, possibilmente, italiano



33. Comforts: SOLACES.  


34. Rita on Avicii's "Lonely Together": 
ORA.

35. UFC fighting style: MMA.  Mixed Martial Arts

38. Prefix with gender: CIS.

"Mongo CIS" Just Does Not Seem Right

39. Some UPenn degs.: MBAS.  Many schools offer MBA degrees.  The UPenn bit was not very helpful.

46. Hands together time: NOON.  Analog, not digital.  Not applause.



47. Not awesome: MEH.

48. Big fuss: ADO.

49. Writer Joe Hill, to Stephen King: SON.   A man gave his three boys a cattle ranch.  He named the ranch Focus because that is where the sun's rays meet.

50. Amends last year's tax return, say: RE-FILES.

53. The Chi-__: R&B quartet: LITES.  A pun-ish name.



59. Titan, once: OILER.  The Tennessee Titans football team started out in 1960 as the Houston Oilers before relocating to Nashville in 1997.

60. Prefix in some genre names: ALT.

61. __ Rios, Jamaica: OCHO.



65. School opening?: PRE.  Some solvers might feel that the southwest, with its PRE, SEC and EST stack, was a bit 47 Across.

71. Wall St. regulator: SEC.


72. Cutting: SNIDE.  A fairly ambiguous clue.


73. Writes to: EMAILS.  Can we read EMAILS on our EBOOKS?

74. D.C. hrs.: EST.  Anybody remember Werner Erhard?

75. African antelopes: GNUS.


76. Teaser: PROMO.  As in teaser ad.


Down:

1. Bowl game officials: REFS.  A football reference.

2. Cor anglais kin: OBOE.  Clued many ways but not as many ways as OREO



3. Awesome: 
COOL.  Slang.

4. Work together briefly?: COLLAB.  A punt (or slang depending on your perspective).  COLLABoration "in brief".

5. Allows: OKS.

6. Gets home, in a way: STEALS.  Another baseball reference.



7. __ and aah: OOH.  What goes OOH OOH?  A cow with no lips.

8. Imitate: APE.  Used as a verb.  See also 36 Down.

9. Telluride maker: KIA.  An automotive reference.

10. Advertising exaggeration, perhaps: WORLD'S BEST.

11. CPAP target: APNEA. Continuous Positive Airway Pressure used to treat breathing problems.  Philips Respironics recently recalled some of their CPAP machines.

12. Log with a lock: DIARY.


14. Guest __: STAR.

16. Copy shortcut: CTRL C.  A computer user's technique.

19. Japanese "yes": HAI.

24. "I can help!": USE ME.  We have seen this several times in our puzzles.  Has anyone actually heard a person say "USE ME" ?

26. Pageantry: POMP.

27. Areas of interest: FOCI.  Plural of FOCUS.

28. "Hamilton" role for Phillipa Soo: ELIZA.

29. Made less harsh: EASED.

30. Eclipse participant: MOON.



31. "Hope" singer Parks: ARLO.

32. City executive-to-be: MAYOR ELECT.

36. Imitate: MIMIC.  See also 8 Down.

37. Amtrak choice: ACELA.  A train ride often taken in our puzzles.

40. Healing plant: ALOE.  A constructor's friend.

41. Bank acct. application digits: SSNS.  Another crossword staple.

43. Greek muse of memory: MNEME.  Inspiration for:



44. "Where the Sidewalk Ends" poet Silverstein: SHEL.

45. Straw __: POLL.  An unofficial vote.

51. Gels: FIRMS.  Used, here, as a verb.

52. Some kings and queens: SPADES.  A playing card reference.

54. Weather map line: ISOBAR.  Where do meteorologists relax after work?

55. Grove: COPSE.
A small COPSE set among a field of dandelions.


56. Brings on: HIRES.  They could have gone with the root beer.

57. Far from current: OLD.

58. Chiwere speakers: OTOE.  OTOE visit us often.  All About These Indigenous Friends of Crossword Constructors

62. Advertiser's honor: CLIO.  The CLIO awards are named for the Greek goddess CLIO, the mythological muse known as "the proclaimer, glorifier and celebrator of history, great deeds and accomplishments.

63. Big wheel at sea: HELM.  Not the idiomatic "big wheel" which might have led to trying to fit ADMIRAL or CAPTAIN into the allotted space.  A big steering wheel.  


64. __ buco: OSSO.  A food reference.

67. Dutch bank: ING.



68. Mark, as a box: X IN.  Punt

69. Part of a prof's address: EDU.  The ending for a university's email address.  dot EDU

70. Plate official: UMP.  Yet another baseball reference.

Y'er Out!


Okay.  If you say so.

Everyone have a wonderful Superb Owl weekend.

___________________________________________________________

Notes from C.C.:

Happy Birthday to dear Splynter, who turns 53 years old today. I'm so happy and grateful that you're back to blog for us again. 

Baby Splynter and His Parents