Saturday, May 27, 2023, Tom Pepper and C.C. Burnikel

 Themeless Saturday by Tom Pepper and C.C. Burnikel

Today brings us a lovely puzzle that frustrated delighted me tremendously. It is a joint effort by our lovely C. C. and her dear friend Tom Pepper who has been a great comfort to her in this past year. Here is what they had to say about their collaboration:

From C.C. - Tom sent me a grid with the IDLE GOSSIP/PIGEON POSE stack in place. I changed some and together we built a new one.

 

From Tom - When we've done themelesses, C.C. and I typically go 50/50 on the fill and 50/50 on the clues. I think this might be the one time C.C. clued the whole puzzle because I was out of commission for a while for some reason. 

I got an entry point in the NE and started working and all of a sudden I had the entire Eastern side done. I shifted to the southwest and finally the NW (gotta love GLEE/GHEE) and its great wordplay succumbed to my patience. 

Across:

1. Up state?: GLEE 😀

5. Had kittens: BRED - This vexed me for a while as too obvious. I never miss a chance at kitty pix!

9. Big hits, for short: HRS - A baseball clue from C.C. is as standard as a Shakespeare clue from Jeffrey Wechsler.

12. Shows emotion: SHEDS A TEAR.

14. Mary Oliver, e.g.: POET.

15. Welcome message to a waiter: NEXT PLEASE - 😀 This clever turn of phrase unlocked the last corner for me after I saw waiter was simply someone who is waiting in line and not a server

16. Goddess whose temple on Palatine Hill glowed at night: LUNA - It was burned in the great Roman fire of 65 A.D. and not rebuilt.

The Temple Of Sol And Luna

17. Wreath that may be stored in a fridge: LEI - LEI, how do I clue thee? Let me count the ways!

18. "Got everything?": READY.

19. Benched way too long: RUSTY - First day on golf course after a long winter 

20. Look that makes waves?: PERM. 😀

21. Places to find temples and bridges: FRAMES. 😀

23. One of Sue Bird's WNBA record 3,234: ASSIST.

26. Hardest to see: TINIEST - Be sure to read the small print 

27. Runs across: SPANS - To this day my wife can't believe I talked her into walking across this SPAN at The Royal Gorge

28. Paris native: TEXAN - What a fun structure in Paris, Texas. I'll bet D-O has been there.

29. Shepherd's greeting: ARF - Would it sound the same from a German Shepard?

31. Shoegaze band Yo La __: TENGO - Yo La TENGO (Spanish for “I’ve got it,” alluding to the call of a baseball outfielder) was assembled in 1984 in Hoboken, NJ, by romantic partners (later spouses) Kaplan and Hubley. Shoegaze comes from the use of pedal boards where musicians tend to look down at their feet a lot. Yeah, I knew all that! 😏

Georgia Hubley and 
Ira Kaplan

32. North Dakota Natives known as the Arikara: REE - Arikara also known as Sahnish, Arikaree, REE or Hindi  are a tribe of Native Americans in North Dakota. It had to fill itself.

33. Cory Booker, once: YALIE.

35. Med. condition exhibited by Hannah on "Girls": OCD - When I saw _ _ D, I was afraid Hannah had a more personal health issue.

36. Puts on the line: BAITS - Did anyone else thinks of RISKS before you thought of fishing

38. Apt rhyme for "quake": SHAKE.

39. Like a golfer who usually shoots around par: SCRATCH - I play golf with Nebraska's former governor Dave Heineman and he is a SCRATCH player on our course.

41. Gave title to: DEEDED.

42. Churlish: COARSE - Every substitute teacher's favorite skit

43. __ Paragon: large shopping mall in Bangkok: SIAM - Like the kitties above. Thailand, of course, used to be known as SIAM.

44. Jazz combo set: DRUMS.

45. En passant pieces: PAWNS - En Passant means "in passing" in French

47. Gives clearance: OKS.

50. Fenty Beauty founder, to fans: RIRI - Rhianna has appeared here before 

51. Coffee break exchange: IDLE GOSSIP.

53. Decides: OPTS.

54. Haphazardly: WILLYNILLY - A fun fill

55. Sue Bird's WNBA career 6,803: Abbr.: PTS - I'll bet this was for two of them

56. Autumn stone: OPAL.

57. Bit of trouble: SPOT.

Down:

1. Fat with a very high smoke point: GHEE.

2. Golfer Thompson: LEXI - Even Tiger Woods wrote to the PGA and said this penalty on LEXI was too severe for unintentionally moving a ball less than an inch

3. Std. that starts every March: EDT.

4. Places for hot shots: ESPRESSO BARS - Here's one for the home

5. Nonstarters: B-TEAM - My fate for a lot of high school

6. Interpretation: READ - What's your READ on this?

7. Basic solutions: EASY FIXES.

8. "Power" role for Rotimi: DRE - Olurotimi Akinosho known professionally as Rotimi, is an Nigerian-American actor and singer. He is known for his role as Darius Morrison on the Starz series Boss and as Andre Coleman or DRE on Power. 

9. Soup du jour alternative: HOUSE SALAD - A minimal one I would say

10. Complex protest?: RENT STRIKE - If the whole apartment complex is upset, then...

11. Temporary reprieve: STAY.

12. NBC show with more than 950 eps: SNL.

13. Vigilant: ALERT.

14. Column of smoke: PLUME.

19. Wet periods: RAINY SEASONS.

20. Notify: PING - I have had to PING my iPhone from my Apple Watch using the upper right hand icon more times than I can count.

22. Molecule studied by Joan A. Steitz: RNA.

23. Concerning: ASTO.

24. Unsolicited screenplay: SPEC SCRIPT - TriStar initially optioned the film (Pulp Fiction) and was even in talks to produce it, but then did a 180 by declaring, “This is the worst thing ever written. It makes no sense. Someone’s dead and then they’re alive. It’s too long, violent, and unfilmable.”

25. Beach volleyball spots: SAND COURTS - I'll have to admit that the court is not the first thing I notice in this competition. 

26. Nail biters: TEETH.

28. Exercise that works the upper body: TRICEP DIP.

30. Network signal: FEED - The most famous network FEED was from The Sea Of Tranquility on 7/20/69

34. Noise before a break-in: AHEM.

37. Tags someone on Twitter, e.g.: ATS - Here ya go

40. "Groundhog Day" director: RAMIS - During the making of Ground Hog Day with his friend Bill Murray the two had such terrible disagreements they did not speak for 21 years.

41. Shabby: DINGY.

43. Balloon: SWELL - After years of coaching, I can say this describes what happens to a sprained ankle 

44. Go down: DROP.

46. Pasta __ Norma: ALLA - The name Pasta alla Norma is said to have originated from the cry of joy and approval that people cannot repress after they eat this Sicilian specialty: “This pasta is a NORMA!” meaning "a masterpiece" in Italian. Yeah, I knew that! 😏

47. Capital with ferry service to Copenhagen: OSLO.

48. Scottish wedding garb: KILT.

49. Plant, for one: SPY - Eight spys or plants who worked for the Soviet Union during the building of the atom bomb

51. __ Jima: IWO.

52. Small intake: SIP.

From C.C.: Tom is now a newly-minted grandpa. His cute granddaughter Mary was born on Friday May 19th.

Tuesday, March 21, 2023 Tom Pepper and C.C. Burnikel

Our Vowels are Politically Correct:  Each theme answer is a two word phrase where the first word begins with P and the second word begins with C.  Note, too, that we have a vowel progression in each of the two words as we work our way through this very PC puzzle.  How cool is that!?!

17-Across. Black-and-white cruisers: PATROL CARS.  Hand up if your first thought was Police Car instead of Patrol Car.  Also known as Panda Cars.

26-Across. Former name of Ball Arena: PEPSI CENTER.  The Ball Arena, formerly known as the Pepsi Center, is in Denver, Colorado.  It's home to the Denver Nuggets (basketball), the Colorado Avalanche (hockey), and the Colorado Mammoth (lacrosse).

39-Across. Public space in London's West End: PICCADILLY CIRCUS.  Although it's a wild and crazy round-about, the Circus in the name is derived from the Latin word meaning circle.

53-Across. Influential duo: POWER COUPLE.  Iconic Power Couples from 1954 to 2020.

64-Across. Snack Pack product: PUDDING CUP.

And the unifier:

63-Down. Some laptops, and a hint to five long answers in this puzzle: PCs.  Is my MacBook a Personal Computer?  What's the difference between a PC (Personal Computer) and an Apple laptop?

Across:

1. Defeated player's concession: I LOST.

6. Phone download: APP.

9. Cobra's warning: HISS.

13. "Yes to Fresh" candy: MENTOS.  I knew of the candy, but not its catch-phrase.

15. Bath bathroom: LOO.  Why do the Brits use the word Loo?  Apparently, it comes from the French phrase guardez l'eau, which means "watch out for the water".  This French phrase was actually used when emptying out the chamber pot from the bedroom window.

16. Snack (on): MUNCH.  Detective Munch, played by the late Richard Belzer (Aug. 4, 1944 ~ Feb. 19, 2023), first appeared in the television series Homicide: Life on the Streets, before moving on to a Law & Order spinoff.  I wonder what snack he Munched on.

19. "Aw, shucks!": OH, GEE!

20. Fit to eat, to Muslims: HALAL.  Halal is an Arabic word that means lawful, or permitted.

21. Bygone Russian royal: TSAR.  Did you know that the word Tsar is derived from the Latin title of Caesar?

23. First digit in a googol: ONE.  The One (1) in a Googol is followed by 100 Zeros.  It's a really, really big number.

24. Little cut: SNIP.

29. Cargo weight: TON.

30. Sunscreen nos.: SPFs.  As in Sun Protection Factor.

31. Indonesian island between Java and Lombok: BALI.  There are lots of things to see and do in Bali.

32. "So that's it!": OH, I SEE.

34. Knee injury initials: ACL.  As in Anterior Cruciate Ligament.  We see this knee injury occasionally in the puzzles.

36. "What a shame!": TSK.

44. Oolong, e.g.: TEA.  Everything you wanted to know about Oolong Tea, but didn't know to ask.

45. Combat sport, briefly: MMA.  Short for Mixed Martial Arts.

46. "We did it!": HOORAY!

47. __ year: LEAP.  People born on February 29 are known as Leaplings.  My great-grandfather was a Leapling.

50. Blueprint detail, for short: SPEC.

52. Overhead trains: ELs.  Short for Elevated train.

57. Tuckered out: BEAT.

58. Spanish "that": ESO.  Today's Spanish lesson.  Hi, Lucina!

59. Short "And yet ... ": OTOH.  Textspeak for On The Other Hand.

60. Hunter in the night sky: ORION.

62. Said yes to an invite, say: RSVP'D.  Today's French lesson.  The letters stand for répondez s'il vous plaît, which translates to Respond if you please.  A response, however, is really expected, whether you please or not.

68. Jigsaw puzzle part: PIECE.

69. Memorable period: ERA.

70. Cruise venues: OCEANS.

71. Beltway VIPs: SENs.  As in Senators. 

72. Add sound to: DUB.

73. Promotes aggressively: HYPES.

Down:

1. Little rascal: IMP.

2. Actress DeLaria: LEA.  Lea DeLaria (b. May 23, 1958) is best known for her portrayal of Carrie Black on Orange is the New Black.  [Name # 1.]

3. In a precarious position: ON THIN ICE.  Here's a fascinating video of someone who intentionally skates on thin ice.

4. Sandal fastener: STRAP.

5. Home Depot purchase: TOOL.

6. Fla. neighbor: ALA.  Alabama is Florida's neighbor.  Ever wonder why Alabama has such a small coastline?

7. Some dessert wines: PORTS.  Everything you wanted to know about Port Wines, but didn't know to ask.

8. "Could be": POSSIBLY.

9. "Come again?": HUH.

10. Gold bar: INGOT.  Everything you wanted to know about Gold Ingots, but didn't know to ask.

11. Play division: SCENE.

12. See-through: SHEER.  Before she was the Princess of Wales, Kate Middleton (b. Jan. 9, 1982) took part in a fashion show while in college.

14. Hit with an open hand: SLAPPED.

16. Gourmet mushroom: MOREL.  These mushrooms used to be a crossword staple.

18. Score symbol: CLEF.

22. Obamacare, initially: ACA.  //  And 49-Down. The second "A" of 22-Down: ACT.  The actual name of Obamacare is the Affordable Care Act.

24. "Knock it off!": STOP.

25. Like nine games of the 2021 baseball season: NO HIT.  Read about all Nine No-Hit games.

27. Biblical song: PSALM.

28. Part of TNT: NITRO.  It's formal name is TriNitroToluene.

30. Dead __ Scrolls: SEA.  The Dead Sea Scrolls can be seen at the Israel Museum: Shrine of the Book in Jerusalem.

33. Weighing device: SCALE.

35. Bracelet fastener: CLASP.

37. Image in many a software tutorial: SCREENCAP.

38. __ Lumpur, Malaysia: KUALA.

40. "That was exhausting!": I'M POOPED.

41. "Toodle-oo!": CHEERIO!

42. Winter Games org.: IOC.  As in the International Olympic Committee.

43. Method: Abbr.: SYST.  As in System.

48. Slowly wear down: ERODE.

51. Trudge: PLOD.

53. Suspects, in police slang: PERPS.

54. Davis of "Do the Right Thing": OSSIE.  I saw Do the Right Thing when I was living in France.  It didn't translate well.  Ossie Davis (né Raiford Chatman Davis; Dec. 18, 1917 ~ Feb. 4, 2005) played a character named Da Mayor.  [Name # 2.]

55. Like wicker baskets: WOVEN.

56. Freedom, in Swahili: UHURU.  It is also the first name of the former president of Kenya, who served in that Office from April 2013 until September 2022.

Uğuru Kenyatta (b. Oct. 26, 1961)

57. One over par, in golf: BOGEY.

61. Ruler division: INCH.

65. Perfume amount: DAB.

66. French article: UNE.  More of today's French lesson.

67. Ltr. add-ons: PSs.  As in PostScripts.

Here's the Grid:

חתולה