Saturday, August 31, 2019, Neville Fogarty and Paolo Pasco

Themeless Saturday Puzzle by Neville Fogarty and Paolo Pasco

I celebrate two special days today - International Bacon Day and the first game of the FB season for the Nebraska Cornhuskers.

As the saying goes, there are two types of people: 1) Those who love bacon and 2) those that are wrong. From midsummer BLT's are a staple in our household. The wonderful bacon can be had year round but garden fresh tomatoes are the perfect complement in this. Okay, it really is important in a club sandwich as well but let's not belabor the point!

Today's constructors are Neville Fogarty and Paolo Pasco

Across:

1. Literary reminder: BOOKMARK.

9. Mideast presidential name since 1971: ASSAD - He has presided over a lot of misery

14. Dutch treat?: APPLE PIE - Is it really Dutch or Deutsch? Oh well, it's delicious even without bacon 😙

15. More green: LUSHER.

17. Regular order: THE USUAL - At the DQ, mine was a raspberry malt

18. Hoped-for airport monitor update: ON TIME - Two weeks ago my granddaughter's Newark to Omaha flight was two hours late. Bad weather over WVA force her plane's route north to fly 27. Routing preposition: VIA the Great Lakes instead. 

19. Word preceding an opinion: CENTS - "My two CENTS worth..."

20. Chided: TSKED - Hmmm... 

22. Base used often: TEN - Your computer would see 22 in base 10 as 10110 in base two

23. "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" playwright: ALBEE and 34. "Gone Girl" girl: AMY - Two movies that are unnerving portrayals of marriage

24. Longtime ISP: AOL - Not MSN it turns out

25. Common picture postcard color: AZURE - An AZURE sky on a postcard from the Cote d'Azur (the French Riveria)

28. Ones bringing charges, briefly: DA'S

30. "Gotcha": I SEE NOW - "Gotcha" as in "I understand" not "I fooled you"

32. Canal speaker: EARBUD - My bluetooth enabled hearing aids preclude the use of ear buds which I was always losing anyway

35. Buds: PALS - Non-auricular buds

36. Limit-enforcing tactic: SPEED TRAP - One site rates Sarasota, FL as the worst in the country


39. Consort of Shiva: KALI - Continuing our mini theme of unhappy couples, KALI is shown standing on Shiva's chest

42. Vientiane people: LAO - Vientiane is the capital of Laos

43. Story collection including "Robbie": I ROBOT - Isaac Asimov's nine short stories including one entitled Robbie

47. Trying to lose: ON A DIET - I am down 21 lbs but have hit a plateau 

49. Comics fight sound: BAM.

50. Blackjack component: ACE - You can have 21 without an ACE but it's not a blackjack

51. Asian noodle dish: RAMEN - 48 pkgs for $9.89

52. UFC sport: MMA - Mixed Martial Arts. About anything goes

54. Philosophical principle that rules out unlikely explanations: RAZOR.

56. 48-Down victim: EGO - A fragile EGO can be hurt by a careless 48. 56-Across damager: INSULT.

57. Diamond ploy: STEAL - A polite end to a failure to STEAL. Definitely not a 62. "Whew!" evoker: CLOSE ONE.

59. Preppy collars: ETONS.

60. Garfield's successor: ARTHUR - Chester helped make merit rather than patronage a basis for government jobs

64. Vacanza a dicembre: NATALE - Italian - NATALE è una vacanza a dicembre (Christmas is a holiday in December) 

65. Quick, provocative reactions, as to current news: HOT TAKES - Often wrong with no apologies later

66. Finish choice: MATTE.

67. Hoodwink: OUTSMART.


Down:

1. Robin's milieu: BAT CAVE.

2. Laertes' sister: OPHELIA 

3. Place for free rounds: OPEN BAR.

4. 1971 title detective: KLUTE.

5. Wack: MESSED UP - Judge Judy would say this but would omit the "H"

6. Toon storekeeper: APU - A Simpson's character

7. Vaqueros' props: RIATAS - Lasso to a cowboy

8. Kutcher's "That '70s Show" role: KELSO - Typical dialogue

9. Moisturizer ingredient: ALOE 

10. Sweet treat: SUNDAE - Religious blue laws were circumvented by changing the Y to E

11. Mach 1 flier: SST - The "Mach Meter" at the front of the cabin told passengers how fast the SST was traveling relative to the speed of sound (Mach 1). This meter shows the plane is going 2.02 times the speed of sound (about 1,300 mph)

12. Yellowfin: AHI TUNA - Know your tuna

13. Analgesic brand: DEMEROL - Another pain reliever in the opioid family

16. Starts over: RENEWS.

21. Artist who influenced Schiele: KLIMT - I learned of KLIMT in this movie

26. Marx Brothers straight man: ZEPPO.

29. Youngest to win six Grammys in one night: ADELE.

31. Its flag has two green stars: SYRIA - The left flag represents Assad's current gov't and the right one is the one that preceded Assad and is flown by those who want to overthrow him

33. 45 half: B-SIDE - I read that clue until it made sense. Oh, 45 rpm records.

34. Excitement: ADO.

37. Fictional invitation written in currants: EAT ME.

38. Seat sides: ARM RESTS - Solution for arm rest issues?

39. Hangul alphabet user: KOREAN - Gary comes out something like 게리

40. "Lolita" character Vivian Darkbloom, to Vladimir Nabokov: ANAGRAM - I wonder when Vladimir discovered that

41. Rival of boxer Robinson: LAMOTTA - Jake (The Raging Bull) LAMOTTA fought Sugar Ray Robinson six times and only won once

Jake Lamotta            Sugar Ray Robinson

44. Arm on a shoulder: BAZOOKA - A BAZOOKA is certainly classified as an ARMament and it is indeed placed on a shoulder to fire. (All right, Neville, Paolo or Rich, who came up with this clue?)

45. "Woe Is I" author Patricia: O'CONNER - $12 at Random House and grammatically correct 

46. Least gassy: TERSEST - Long-winded people can be called gassy

49. "Cat __": Jane Fonda film: BALLOU - Lee Marvin was the stole this movie and won an academy award in the process! 

53. Like action heroes: MACHO.

55. Prioritized players: A-TEAM.

58. Evolutionary diagram: TREE - A modified family tree for Henry Fonda that begins in Nebraska

61. Overhead expense?: HAT - The "overhead" expense for this HAT was $24.99 at the Pentagon Mall. It was $8.00 at the kiosk across the street from Ford's Theater.

63. Slugger Mel: OTT.

Have yourself a BLT while fresh T's are still around and don't scrimp on the B. Then leave us some pertinent or impertinent comments:

Saturday, July 20, 2019, Paolo Pasco, Erik Agard

Themeless Saturday Puzzle by Paolo Pasco and Erik Agard

Karma or not, this NASA educator is proud to be able to blog on this auspicious golden anniversary of Neil Armstrong's "small step/giant leap". Fifty years ago today I baled hay in  for my father-in-law and then watched one of the most historic events in world history that evening along with billions of other earthlings.

          Buzz Aldrin                                      My 7/21/69 Omaha World Herald

The irony of the picture above is that it is of Buzz Aldrin as are all other posed pictures of either of the two first two humans on the Moon. Neil Armstrong took the picture and you can see his reflection and the Eagle Lunar Module in Buzz's 24K gold face mask. 18. Lead-in for time or point: AT NO time did the geniuses at NASA think to tell Neil to give the camera to Buzz so they could get a picture of him. 

Speaking of geniuses (genii?), today's wonderful exercise was created by these two. 

Paolo Pasco                                                 Erik Agard

An article in the Harvard Magazine about Paolo.

A C.C. interview with Erik (before he was on Jeopardy)

I got through in good time as most of the long fills, except for 1 Across, were very gettable.

Now let's take one small step  for learning and one giant leap for entertainment with Paolo and Erik (and me in my NASA presentation outfit)

Across:

1. Title toon toy-fixer with a magic stethoscope: DOC MCSTUFFINS - No idea

14. Short-distance fliers: PAPER AIRPLANES.

15. Philosophical consoling words: WIN SOME LOSE SOME and some get rained out

16. __ hall: REC(reation)

17. Tony-winning 2017 play about international diplomacy: OSLO  A preview/trailer

19. Diamonds, in slang: ICE.

20. Texas art patron __ Hogg: IMA - She signed her first name as illegibly as possible but made big marks in the arts and in the area of mental health

21. C or P, on a diamond: POS - The Pitcher POSITION is 1 in a baseball scorebook and the Catcher is 2

23. Lab workers: TECHS.

25. It means nothing in Paris: RIEN - Il ne coûte RIEN d'être civil ici (It costs nothing to be civil here)


27. Jolie 2010 title role: SALT - Meh...

39. "Little Miss Sunshine" Oscar winner: ARKIN - On the other hand... 

31. Pakistani prime minister __ Khan: IMRAN - Here ya go

32. Lock expert?: WRESTLER - Usually a headlock

34. "Cool beans!": NEATO.

35. Prefix with grace: DIS.

36. Valletta's island: MALTA - About a hour-and-a-half flight from Rome

37. Journals: GAZETTES - Founded in 1845, this is said to be America's first pop-culture publication

40. Runner on runners: SLED.

41. Jewish youth org.: YMHA - Young Men's Hebrew Association 

43. Monopoly figures: RENTS.

44. __ hug: BRO.

45. Letters associated with a lion: MGM.

47. German grandpa: OPA - Ich bin ein OPA von fünf tollen Leuten ( I am a grandpa to five great people)

48. Lose focus, with "out": ZONE.

51. Rested: LAIN - Take this online quiz on lie and lay (click on Take)

53. Female in WWII: WAC.

54. Track star?: RECORDING ARTIST - My 1962 Roy Orbison album had six tracks on the front and six tracks on the back 59. Audio feedback?: I LOVE THIS SONG - Track number 1, Crying, was my favorite where Roy unleashes his operatic voice


58. Action movie cry: BATTLE STATIONS.


Down:

1. Moves in for a short time?: DANCE CRAZE - Okay, Paolo and Erik, who came up with this fabulous clue? The Macarena "Moves" were "in for a short time"

2. Special __: OPS.

3. One on top of an org chart: CEO.

4. 1983 comedy about a stay-at-home dad: MR. MOM - 57% or not, I liked it

5. Salad choice: CAESAR.

6. Flower pot holder: SILL.

7. State enforcement group: TROOPERS - State TROOPERS seldom get passed on the interstate

8. Prosperous times: UPS - Every life has its UPS and Downs

9. Lab annoyances: FLEAS - This Lab is a dog not a room

10. Securely: FAST.

11. Advised of: IN ON.

12. Friend of Dory: NEMO - Dory's advice (:28) that meant 29. "That's not worth getting riled up over": LET IT PASS.

13. Abbr. aptly found in "compasses": SSE - A heading of 157.5 degrees on a ship's compass

14. Done in fragments: PIECEMEAL as opposed to 22. Not in fragments: ONE - Marijuana laws

15. Penned works: WRITINGS.

20. "Wrong!": IS NOT - How white-haired Buzz Aldrin reacted when confronted by an idiot man who said the Moon landing was a hoax

24. Not at all popular: HATED.

26. "In a perfect world ... ": I WISH.

27. Long look: STARE - STARE at the black dot in the middle of this flag for 30 seconds without blinking and then look at the blank space at the right (blink to enhance the image)

28. Omniscient: ALL KNOWING.

30. Carry on, as business: TRANSACT.

33. Unction: SMARM - From dictionary.com 

1    UNCTION

a manner of expression arising or apparently arising from deep emotion, especially as intended to flatter.

"he spoke the last two words with exaggerated unction"

SMARM

ingratiating behavior.

-->

"it takes a combination of smarm and confidence to persuade them"

35. Reduce to bits: DEMOLISH.

38. Norse war god: TYR - All you'd ever want to know

42. Granada gal pals: AMIGAS.

44. Uncle Miltie of early TV: BERLE - Vaudeville on the small screen

46. Annoyances in clouds: GNATS - Yikes!

48. Ardor: ZEAL.

49. Quadri- doubled: OCTO.

50. Grounding rule, perhaps: NO TV - or cell phone, computer, game boy, etc

52. Inclined to fight: ANTI.

54. Homer stat: RBI - Some now say, "She has 47 RBI" instead of "RBI's" because the R stands for Runs

55. Many a "Brooklyn Nine-Nine" character: Abbr.: DET - I wonder if fans of that show know of Holmes, Hammer, Marple or Poirot

56. River in Mexico: RIO.

57. Long or short unit: TON  - A long TON is 20 hundredweight (cwt), each of which is 8 stone (1 stone = 14 pounds). Thus a long ton is 20 × 8 × 14 lb = 2,240 lb. A short TON is of course just 2,000 lb.

After you comment, please raise a glass to Neil, Buzz and Michael.

Friday, January 30, 2015 Paolo Pasco

Theme: "Back in the Game"

Phrases containing the word "back" are treated literally, with the target word "backed up."

16. Deep-sea creature, literally : PMUH WHALE. Humpback whale.

20. Alternative strategies, literally : LLAF PLANS. Fallback plans.

40. Infomercial offers, literally : YENOM GUARANTEES. Money-back guarantees.

55. Toddler's transport, literally : YGGIP RIDE. Piggyback ride

65. Preflight purchase, literally : REPAP BOOK. Paperback book.

Marti here on an unusual Friday. I do not think we have seen Paulo in the LA Times before, so congratulations on your debut.  Paolo did collaborate on one devilishly clever puzzle with Frank Longo in the Fireball crosswords earlier this month, and I understand that he is a high school freshman? Move over, David Steinberg!

I figured out the theme immediately with the first one, which helped me to zip through the rest of them. But I did get slowed down in several spots. Let's see what they were.

Across

1. Ones calling the shots? : REFS. Waited for perps - could also have been "umps."

5. Rock blasters : AMPS. Waited for perps - could also have been "TNTs."

9. Californie, for one : ETAT. Solid.

13. Apple variety : iMAC. Yep, I'm typing on one right now.

14. Goal for a runner : SEAT.

15. Renaissance painter Veronese : PAOLO. Shoutout to himself? I have linked "The Wedding at Cana" before.

18. Mozart's "King of Instruments" : ORGAN. Gimme!

19. Seat of Dallas County, Alabama : SELMA. The small city that had a huge impact on the Civil Rights movement.

22. Churchill, for one : TORY.

24. "Who, me?" : MOI? and a clecho at 53-Across. "Who, me?" : NOT I !

25. 1,000 G's : MIL.lion. G's are short for "grand," or one thousand dollars.

27. Goes out for a bit? : NAPS.

30. Fusion, for one : ECOCAR. Ford Fusion.

35. Receptionist on "The Office" : ERIN. No clue - all perps.

37. It's frowned upon : NO NO.

39. Yellowish tone : OCHRE.

43. Time to say "¡Feliz año nuevo!" : ENERO.  "Happy New Year!" is said in January.

44. Pioneers' journey, say : TREK. Like the Mormon migration from Illinois to the Rocky mountains.

45. Unpopular spots : ACNE.

46. Buck : RESIST.

48. 1980s surgeon general : KOOP.

50. Dennings of "Thor" : KAT.

51. __ lane : HOV.

61. Alley wanderers : MUTTS.

64. Certain Middle Easterner : IRANI.

67. Pirouette, essentially : PIVOT.

68. Settled down : ALIT.

69. "Truth in Engineering" automaker : AUDI.

70. First place? : EDEN.

71. Bothersome parasites : LICE.

72. Block (up) : STOP.


Down

1. Steals, with "off" : RIPS.

2. Former "Fashion Emergency" host : EMME. She broke the mold of the model world.

3. Surface fractures : FAULT LINES. Hey, it wasn't my fault!

4. Blockhead : SCHMO. Love that word.

5. Fire proof : ASH.

6. Courses taken consecutively? : MEAL.

7. Depressing atmosphere : PALL.

8. Energy : STEAM.

9. "Downton Abbey" title : EARL. Had to wait on perps before deciding between "lord," "lady" or EARL.

10. Draped garment : TOGA.

11. The first "A" in A.A. Milne : ALAN. Sheesh...misspelled again!  (^0^)

12. Piles : TONS.

15. Michael Jackson, e.g. : POP ICON. Had to wait on perps before deciding whether it would be ICON or Idol.

17. Tip off : WARN.

21. One on the other side : FOE.

23. Half a philosophical duality : YANG. The other half is, of course, "yin."

25. "The Seven-Per-Cent Solution" author Nicholas : MEYER. Crap. I wanted Doyle. It's Dr. Watson's "lost manuscript" about Sherlock Holmes. Followed immediately by:

26. Adler of Sherlock Holmes lore : IRENE. Remember "Scandal in Bohemia"? She is the only character who ever outwitted Sherlock.

28. Look down : POUT.

29. Snideness : SNARK. Ohhhh-kaaaaay...

31. Numerical prefix : OCTA.

32. "Look at this!" : CHECK IT OUT.

33. Battleground : ARENA. The big one is on Sunday in Glendale, AZ.  Our local supermarket is called "Big Bunny," and they outfitted the huge mascot on the roof with Gronk's # 87. Cute!

34. Start over, in a way : RESET.

36. Sushi seaweed : NORI.

38. Layered snack : OREO.

41. Venue involving a lot of body contact : MOSH PIT.

42. "Right Now (Na Na Na)" artist : AKON. All perps.

47. Rogers Centre team, on scoreboards : TOR.onto.

49. Majestic display : POMP.

52. Like some popular videos : VIRAL.

54. Big brass : TUBAS.

55. "Heavens to Betsy!" : YIPE.

56. Crossword component : GRID.

57. Collapsed : GAVE.

58. Aware of : IN ON.

59. Where many subs are assembled : DELI. Cute misdirection.

60. Really, really cool : EPIC. Really?

62. Stir : TO DO.

63. Pass over : SKIP.

66. Downed : ATE.

That's it for this week. Thanks for letting me walk in your shoes today, Lemony!

Marti

Note from C.C.:

Bernice Gordon, the oldest LA Times constructor, passed away yesterday. You can click here for the obit. Here is her most recent puzzle for us.