google.com, pub-2774194725043577, DIRECT, f08c47fec0942fa0 L.A.Times Crossword Corner: Victor Barocas

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Showing posts with label Victor Barocas. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Victor Barocas. Show all posts

Jul 8, 2018

Sunday July 8th, 2018 Victor Barocas

Theme: "Straight A's" - What AAA is, to each of the four cross-referenced entries.
 
23A. One who has blown a gasket, perhaps: STRANDED MOTORIST.

39A. AAA, to a 23-Across: EMERGENCY SERVICE.

56A. Old recording accessory: VCR REMOTE.

58A. AAA, to a 56-Across, usually: BATTERY SIZE. Nice that the first two sets of theme entries are placed consecutively.

77A. North Carolina baseball team: DURHAM BULLS.

93A. AAA, for the 77-Across: MINOR LEAGUE LEVEL.

79A. Office builder?: MICROSOFT.

113A. AAA, for 79-Across: BOND CREDIT RATING.

We've seen many Definition type puzzles. None with this cross-referencing twist. Neat twist. 

Total 104 theme squares. Rich's minimum is 84. So, quite a lot to deal with. 

Most of you know Victor Barocas from our Minnesota Crossword Tournament, which was canceled this year. 
C.C., Tom Pepper, George Barany, Victor Barocas, Michael David & David Liben-Nowell



Across:

1. Derby town: EPSOM.

6. One of 256 in a gal.: TBSP.

10. Davis of "Dr. Dolittle": OSSIE. Ruby Dee's husband.

15. Pale tone: ECRU.

19. Bread in a Hillel sandwich: MATZO. Never had it.


20. Learn: HEAR.

21. __ William Scott of "American Pie" films: SEANN. Unfamiliar to me. Wiki says he was born in Cottage Grove, Minnesota.



22. Second person in Paris?: VOUS. Cute clue.
26. Top-notch: A-ONE.

27. Livestock identifier: EAR TAG.

28. Greek vowel: ETA.

29. Jay or A: ALER. American Leaguer. Gluey. Oh, but TTP, I was so impressed that you remember my old avatar. It's not Joe Mauer though. It's Justin Morneau. They were the hugely poplular M & M Boys when I started this blog.

30. Dr.'s hours, e.g.: SKED.

31. Soviet Union : Salyut :: USA : __: SKYLAB. I only know Mir.

33. Inventor Whitney: ELI.

35. Classic fruity drinks: NEHIS.

37. Living area in "The Martian," with "the": HAB. No idea, but happy for the new clue.

45. Chilly: ALOOF.

48. Cleveland's lake: ERIE.

49. One-time Jets home: SHEA.

50. Indiana Jones' real first name: HENRY. Learning moment.

51. "House" star Hugh: LAURIE. He also wrote this book. Great reviews on Amazon.


53. Friend to Tarzan: APE.

54. "Three and out" football play: PUNT.

55. Shell propeller: OAR.

62. Pre-op test: EKG.

63. Wrath: IRE.

64. Friend of Che: FIDEL.

65. Brontë sister: EMILY.

66. "The cookies are done!" sound: DING. Anyone tried these Danish cookies?


68. Religious acts: RITES.

69. Like some ukes: OVAL.

70. Baggy: LOOSE. I need to tell you about this crazy trend: upside down jeans. Look at the price tag.



72. First name in sci-fi: JULES.

73. School opening?: PRE. Preschool.

74. Faux __: PAS.

82. Convoy member: RIG.

83. Pop singer Brickell: EDIE.

84. Debtor's letters: IOU.

85. Adverb in the "Star Trek" intro: BOLDLY. "... to boldly go where no one has gone before..."


86. Rock with bands: AGATE. Drew a blank.


89. Put on a mission: SEND.

90. Wanton want: LUST

92. Like the center of attention: FOCAL.

97. Frehley of Kiss: ACE.


98. Dismal, poetically: DREAR.

99. Sgt.'s underling: PVT.

100. Stills, say: IMAGES.

103. Transit map dot: STOP.

105. 1003, to Tiberius: MIII.

108. Verdi's "__ tu": ERI. Meaning "It was you".

110. Copy illegally: PIRATE.

112. "Daily Planet" byline name: LANE.

117. MLBer with 696 home runs: A-ROD.

118. Fist fight fists: DUKES.

119. Soothing agent: ALOE. My aloe developed root rot problem. This plant is surprisingly fragile.

120. Prisoner's place, in an 1894 adventure novel: ZENDA.  "The Prisoner of Zenda"


121. Snowblower brand: TORO. Based here in MN.

122. Thus far: AS YET.

123. Are inclined: TEND.

124. Rye blight: ERGOT.

Down:

1. Common core?: EMS. Just the letters in Common.

2. Liver spread: PATE.

3. European Parliament meeting city: STRASBOURG. Madame Tussaud was born here. Wiki further states that "Strasbourg is one of the de facto capitals of the European Union (alongside Brussels and Luxembourg), as it is the seat of several European institutions, such as the Council of Europe".

4. Missouri's __ Mountains: OZARK.

5. "Spamalot" name: MONTY.

6. What's "afoot," to Holmes: THE GAME.

7. Home for a tulip: BED.

8. Likewise, with "the": SAME.

9. Doolittle, to Higgins: PROTEGEE.

10. Bear, in Barcelona: OSO.

11. Blood fluids: SERA.

12. Move easily: SAIL.

13. Lacking feeling: INSENSATE. Not a word I use.

14. Major course: ENTREE. Look at this dish Carmen emailed me.




15. Like many a politician's answers: EVASIVE.

16. Deep-fries: COOKS IN OIL. I mostly stir-fry.

17. Mystical character: RUNE.

18. Like many eBay products: USED.

24. Glen relative: DALE.

25. Cooper work: TALE. Does the clue refer to this Cooper?

32. Read the riot act to: BERATE.

34. Big-time: IN SPADES.

36. Title for Kate Middleton, briefly: HRH. Meghan Markle too.

37. Split in two: HALVE.

38. Shakespearean cry of woe: ALACK. Also 47. Shakespearean cry of disgust: FIE.

40. Ready to pick: RIPE.

41. Inclined channels: CHUTES.

42. Streisand title role: YENTL.


43. Nonsensical: CRAZY.

44. Charlotte's Jane: EYRE.

46. Bobby enshrined in a Toronto hall: ORR. Hockey Hall of Fame.

52. "The Monster" rapper: EMINEM.

57. Website suffix: ORG.

58. Small servings: BITES.

59. Surf music feature: REVERB.

60. Sumac of Peru: YMA.

61. RSVP part: SIL.

64. Topped off: FILLED UP.

66. Cry from Homer: D'OH.

67. "Love __ Battlefield": Pat Benatar hit: IS A.

68. Court decision: RULING.

69. Member of Sauron's army, in Tolkien: ORC.

70. Video game brother: LUIGI. Mario's brother.

71. Certain transplant need: ORGAN DONOR.

72. Where Herod reigned: JUDEA.

73. Pope during the French Revolution: PIUS VI. All crossing.

74. Offering downloadable content: PODCASTING. My iPoad went through 3 factory resets in the past few months.

75. Company with a duck in its logo: AFLAC.

76. Flair: STYLE.

77. Nip at a bar: DRAM.

78. "Stop fooling around!": BE SERIOUS. Nice fill.

79. Pouty face: MOUE.

80. Wind-knocked-out sound: OOF.

81. Cal Poly campus site, initially: SLO. OK, San Luis Obispo.

84. Behave cruelly towards: ILL- TREAT.

87. Sea battle weapon: TORPEDO.

88. "I kissed thee __ I killed thee": "Othello": ERE.

91. Trying to resist the rich dessert, say: TEMPTED.

94. Wavelength symbol: LAMBDA. See this explanation. That amplitude is half of what I thought it is. What then do you call the value between the very high to the very low?


95. Even once: EVER.

96. Retreat: LAIR.

101. Barely hit: GRAZE.

102. Food processor?: EATER. Not my BELLY.

103. Venetian blind part: SLAT.

104. Root for a luau: TARO. I made these iconic Singapore Yam Cake last week. I don't know why they call it Yam Cake:

1) It's made of taro root. Not yam.

2) It's steamed. Not baked

3) It's savory. Not sweet.

106. Black: INKY.

107. Output from Rodin's thinker?: IDEE. Just French for "idea".

109. Not in operation: IDLE.

111. Prefix with skeleton: ENDO.

114. Minn. winter hours: CST. Local shout-out.

115. Bromide particle: ION.

116. Gangster's piece: GAT.

C.C.

May 1, 2018

Tuesday, May 1, 2018, Victor Barocas


 The Multifunctional Tool.

18. *Tuna eater's tool, maybe: CAN OPENER.

24. *Eyebrow-plucking tool: TWEEZERS.

36. *Shape of rotini pasta: CORKSCREW.

41. *Cocktail frank stabber: TOOTHPICK.

48. *Loser to rock, beater of paper: SCISSORS.

58. With 60-Across, contraption that usually includes the answers to the starred clues: SWISS ARMY. 60. See 58-Across: KNIFE.

Let's see what other fun Victor brings today.

Across:

1. Goldman's partner: SACHS. Marcus Goldman and Samuel Sachs.  The large multinational investment bank. 

6. Socially awkward sort: DORK.  Clark Kent ?

10. Potter's material: CLAY.

14. Voyager 1, e.g.: PROBE.

15. Like James Bond antagonists: EVIL.

16. With 11-Down, 2016 almost-Oscar-winning movie: LA LA.  11D. See 16-Across: LAND.  At the 2017 OSCAR awards ceremony,  La La Land won six OSCARS, and was erroneously awarded a seventh for Best Picture.  Moonlight was the real 2016 Best Picture award winner.  

17. Screen legend Flynn: ERROL. Swashbuckling swordsman.

20. Neither's partner: NOR.  If a verb is already in the negative, then partners either and or  are used.

21. Boxing ref's decision: TKO.

23. Worked, as dough: KNEADED.

27. Family room: DEN.

28. Captain's group: CREW.  Ship, Captain and Crew is a game played with five dice.  Players ante in to the pot.  Only after getting the Ship (a six), Captain (a five) and Crew (a four) can you get the Cargo.  The player with the largest Cargo total (point value of the other two dice) wins the pot.  

29. Spring shape: COIL.

31. Lottery ticket purchase, essentially: BET.

34. Michaelmas daisy: ASTER.  Daisy ?  Five letters.  See if ASTER fits.  It should.  It does.  Look up Michaelmas daisy later.   Oh, a daisy that blooms around Michaelmas (Sept 29th).   The largest group of Michaelmas daisies, with over 1,000 named cultivars is symphyotrichum novi-belgii.  That means "hair growing together - from New York".   They are also known as New York asters.  The weird stuff you learn on the internet...

38. Trendy: CHIC.

39. Sixth __: intuition: SENSE.  I have an intuition that blog-follower Fact Checker (and others) are looking up New York asters right about now.

40. Émile who wrote "J'Accuse...!": ZOLA.

43. "Miracle on 34th Street" store: MACYS.

44. Thor, to Odin: SON.

45. Its football team has played Harvard 134 times: YALE.

46. Grand Marquis, for short: MERC.


47. 2100, to Augustus: MMC. When the Roman statesman and military leader added one thousand, plus one thousand, plus one hundred, his total was MMC.

52. Adjusted (to): ATTUNED.

56. Dorm mgrs.: RAs.  Dormitory managers: Resident Assistants. 

57. "Ben-Hur" author Wallace: LEW.  I read Ben-Hur Wallach, assumed actor, saw the answer needed three letters and entered Eli.  How do you say bzzzt ?  You can read about Indiana-born, Civil War General and author Lew Wallace at  Britannica Biography: Lewis-Wallace.

62. Pub size: PINT.

63. "The World According to __": GARP.  Never read it, but have heard of it.  Almost entered the synonym for trail mix.

64. Concave navel: INNIE.

65. Not leave: STAY.  Love it when Rosemary Butler joins in, then get a chuckle out of the falsetto a few seconds later.


66. Leave: EXIT.  But they just asked me to stay, just a little bit longer.    What a twist !

67. Surprising plot development: TWIST.  O. Henry.   'nuff said ?

Down:

1. Used up: SPENT.

2. Cursor shape: ARROW.  The standard mouse pointer on a computer is an arrow, but you can select from a variety of others.  

3. Proofer's change: CORRECTION. After the blue-pencil.  Editing vs Proofreading  

4. "Game of Thrones" network: HBO.

5. Soda water: SELTZER.  Carbonated water.

6. Interior designer's concern: DECOR. Are all of these  Fixer Upper decors going out of style ?

7. Eggs, to a biologist: OVA.

8. Hockey venue: RINK.  The Pittsburgh Penguins play at PPG Paints Arena.

9. Yukon gold rush region: KLONDIKE.

We had an Isaly's  restaurant in our small town in N.E. Ohio.  Isaly's invented the Klondike Bar.  I knew of it long before I knew of the Yukon gold rush region.  Isaly's was also regionally famous for its "Skyscraper" ice cream cones and chip-chop ham.  There are now 14 flavors of the Klondike bar.

10. Wash the dirt off: CLEAN.

12. Protected at sea: ALEE.

13. Three feet: YARD.  Is it possible to get a complete food storage center... less than a yard wide ?

19. Banana leftovers: PEELS.

22. Royal Botanic Gardens locale: KEW.   Kew is WSW of London proper.  About 30 minutes on the Tube from Westminster.   Zoom in and the take the satellite view.  Zoom out to get your bearings.


25. Build: ERECT.

26. Wall-mounted light fixtures: SCONCES.

30. Ural River city: ORSK. Today's second pictorial geography lesson:
A 23 hour drive from Orsk to Omsk

31. Hybrid green veggie with small florets: BROCCOLINI.  Just saw this recipe for pan roasted broccolini  on an episode of Growing A Greener World. 

32. Slippery: EELY.

33. "__ the night before ... ": TWAS.

34. Play divisions: ACTS.

35. "Go away!": SHOO.

36. Finish the top of, as a room: CEIL.  To provide with a roof.   In French, ceil is eye, and ciel is sky.

37. Business magnates: CZARS.

39. Era that began with Sputnik: SPACE AGE.  Jump on that bandwagon.  Don't get left behind !


42. Church songs: HYMNS.

43. Soldier's cooking supplies: MESS KIT.  Field utensils.

46. Actress Farrow: MIA.

47. In need of air freshener: MUSTY.  Not that olives smell musty, but I had to get this vid in somewhere after Sunday's discussion of olive trees.  Gary mentioned seeing them in Tuscany.  We just saw this episode Saturday.  


49. Burial chamber: CRYPT.

50. Int.-reducing mortgages: RE-FIs.  Hi Lemonade !

51. Like sugar: SWEET.  How long before fresh sweet corn ?

52. Egyptian snakes: ASPs

53. Foolish one: TWIT.

54. Funny Fey: TINA.

55. "The Destroyer" of Marvel Comics: DRAX.  No idea.  Wagged the A.

59. Med. scan: MRIMagnetic Resonance Imaging.

61. Opposite of SSE: NNW.

Here's the grid.  See all y'all later n'at !



Apr 22, 2018

Sunday April 22, 2018 Victor Barocas

Theme: "Number One Fan"- EGO  is hidden in the very middle each theme entry.

23. Neighbor of Montenegro: HERZEGOVINA.

34. Knew unfavorable things about: HAD THE GOODS ON.

43. Put the blame on: SCAPEGOATED.

56. In the "Other" column: UNCATEGORIZED.

67. Solving a problem boldly: CUTTING THE GORDIAN KNOT.

77. Tony Gwynn, notably: SAN DIEGO PADRE.

94. Ill-advised: MISBEGOTTEN

102. Complaint about monotony: HERE WE GO AGAIN.

117. Narcissistic trait exhibited perfectly by this puzzle's eight other longest answers: EGOCENTRISM.

In this type of hidden theme, often the hidden word span across two or more words. In today's case, we have a few one-word entries due to extra "centrism" layer.

Nice to see Victor Barocas' byline again. He's incredibly talented and self-effacing.

Left to right:

C.C., Tom Pepper, George Barany, Victor Barocas, Michael David & David Liben-Nowell. Missing David Hanson (Rosebud).

Across:

1. Jennifer Saunders Britcom: AB FAB. Absolutely Fabulous.

 
6. Supporting structure: TRUSS.

11. When tripled, "and so on": YADA. "Seinfeld".

15. Scandinavian language: SAMI.

19. PowerPoint unit: SLIDE.

20. Greek goddesses of the seasons: HORAE.


21. K.C. Royal, e.g.: ALER. American Leaguer. Gluey.

22. Snapchat co-founder Spiegel: EVAN. Husband of Miranda Kerr.


25. Gaiety: MERRIMENT.

27. Fleeced female: EWE.

28. Put up: ERECT.

29. Goalkeeper's success: SAVE.

30. Mournful melody: DIRGE.

31. Fleece-seeking vessel: ARGO.

37. Cabinetmaker's cylinder: DOWEL ROD. We also have 4. Carpentry tool: ADZ.


41. Obama : Bo :: FDR : __: FALA.

42. Pre-riot state: UNREST.

45. Bamm-Bamm's mom: BETTY. The Flintstones.

47. Like Chichén Itzá pyramids: MAYAN.

48. Harp constellation: LYRA.

49. Brought in: HIRED.

51. "Don't Bring Me Down" rock gp.: ELO.

54. Comparison phrase: IS TO.

60. Knuckler's lack: SPIN. R. A. Dickey was a Twin, ages ago.


63. T or F, maybe: ANS. The initial of our TTP.

65. Astronomer Hale: ALAN.

66. Japanese comics: ANIME.

73. Favorite's surprise: UPSET. Dupe with 126. Beginning: ONSET.

74. Learning method: ROTE.

75. Knee-injury initials: ACL.

76. Uncle __: BEN'S. Not BUCK.

82. Sailor's saint: ELMO.

84. U.N. worker protection gp.: ILO. International Labour Organization.

85. Normand of silents: MABEL.

86. Part of Q.E.D.: ERAT.

88. Port near Sapporo: OTARU.


92. Holy, to Henriette: SACRE. I have fond memory of this place.


96. "A Fish Called Wanda" actor: CLEESE.

99. Important pipe: MAIN.

101. German state named for a river, with "the": SAARLAND. The Saar River.

106. Audible alert: BEEP.

107. Greek marketplace: AGORA.

108. Plot measure: ACRE.

109. "Swell!": NEATO.

112. Caraway-flavored bread: RYE.

115. Exam for intellectual property lawyers: PATENT BAR. Debut entry.

120. Medical suffix: ITIS.

121. Actress Fanning: ELLE.

122. Eatery freebies: MINTS.

123. Command to attack: SIC 'EM.

124. Japanese PCs: NECS.

125. Useless, battery-wise: DEAD. Yay, my 11-year-old iPod came alive again.

127. Imitation: APERY.  Not a word I use.

Down:

1. 1975 Wimbledon champ: ASHE.

2. Botched: BLEW.

3. "Ask me anything": FIRE AWAY.

5. Wax maker: BEE.

6. "__: Ragnarok": 2017 superhero film: THOR. Chris Hemsworth.


7. Meander: ROVE.

8. Robert of "Vega$": URICH.

9. Resident of America's highest capital: SANTA FEAN. Hi there Owen!

10. Coral __: SEA.

11. Piano brand: YAMAHA.

12. Advil alternative: ALEVE. Boomer's hands sometimes have these spotty purplish spots. They often go away in a few days. His bowling buddy Don said it's due to various pain killers. Boomer had another bad fall a few weeks ago due to the stupid snow. Hurt his shoulder/elbow pretty bad. He had to take those pain killers.


13. Reduction of legal constraints, briefly: DEREG.

14. Part of ETA: Abbr.: ARR.

15. With a touch of sweetness: SEMI-DRY.

16. Opposed: AVERSE.

17. Tropical fruits: MANGOS. I once bought two mangoes that refused to ripen. Very weird.

18. What manslaughter lacks: INTENT. That would be murder.

24. Composer Telemann: GEORG.

26. Words of denial: I DON'T.

29. Mo.'s largest airport: STL.

32. Did some home maintenance: REPAINTED.

33. Narrow valleys: GLENS.

35. Pops: DAD.

36. Surpass: OUTDO.

37. Mil. award: DSM.

38. Plant also called a New Zealand yam: OCA. Still have not found these tubers in our local grocery stores.


39. Wuyi Mountains tea: OOLONG. Gimme for me.

40. It breaks in the morning: DAY.

44. Play about Capote: TRU.

45. Actress Vaccaro: BRENDA. Stranger to me.


46. Mind reader?: EEG.

49. Anaheim baseball cap feature: HALO.

50. Name dropped by TASS in 2014: ITAR.

51. Paperless periodical: E-ZINE.

52. Subpar car: LEMON.

53. "Waiting for Lefty" playwright: ODETS.

55. Earth tone: TAN.

57. Not free-range: CAGED.

58. Fled on foot: RAN.

59. Item gifted with a fountain pen: INK BOTTLE. I used to dread our calligraphy class.

60. "Pardon me, Giulia": SCUSI.

61. Post-larval: PUPAL.

62. "__ problem": IT'S NO. Tiny dupe: 68. "Lord, is __?": Matthew: IT I.

64. Dance floor flasher: STROBE.

69. What optimists don't give up: HOPE.

70. List-ending abbr.: ET AL.

71. Summer brew: ICE TEA. Or ICED TEA. Spring is finally here. Reaching 60s today. Our first 60s in five months.

72. Every one of: ALL.

78. Roast host: EMCEE.

79. Needlefish: GAR.

80. Controlling: REINING IN.

81. RN workplaces: ERS.

83. "S.W.A.T." star Shemar: MOORE. Unfamiliar to me.


87. Crunch targets: ABS.

89. Not for free: AT A PRICE.

90. Toon canine: REN.

91. Grand Forks sch.: UND. University of North Dakota.

92. One looking ahead: SEERESS. Great clue.

93. City near Lake Nasser: ASWAN.

94. Hamm of soccer: MIA.

95. Neighbor of Cameroon: GABON.


96. "Cat's in the Cradle" singer Harry: CHAPIN.

97. Papal representative: LEGATE.

98. Designed to light a fire?: EROTIC. Oh!

99. Damaged: MARRED.

100. Iron __: AGE.

103. Triangular building feature: GABLE.

104. City including the former site of a Seminole War fort: OCALA. Vowel-rich.

105. Glowing signs: NEONS.

110. Entr'__: ACTE.

111. Evaluate: TEST.

113. Flemish river: YSER.

114. One of 11 for Julia Louis-Dreyfus: EMMY.

116. Texas senator Cruz: TED.

117. Moody rock genre: EMO.

118. PreCheck org.: TSA.

119. Swindle, in slang: RIP.


I don't have any update on Argyle. I got overly optimistic last Sunday when he replied quite a few emails. Since then I have not been able to reach him. His friend Jennifer said he's doing OK and he's been using his computer. So let's hope he'll stop by the blog when he feels like it.

Thanks again for the well wishes and cards (weekly from Agnes!) you've sent to him.  And your tablet gift, D-Otto. And your ready-to-Amazon external keyboard, Anon-T.

Thank you so much for the kindness and generosity.

C.C.

May 25, 2017

Thursday May 25th 2017 Victor Barocas

Theme: Occupational Apt-itude Three materials are paired with one of three artisans:

18A. Virginia politician for whom a university is named : GEORGE MASON. Their men's basketball team made it to the Final Four in the NCAA tournament in 2006 having never won a game in March Madness before. Quite the story.

24A. Magical literary orphan : HARRY POTTER. I've vaguely heard of him; he's a wizard or something.

33A. "Close to You" singer : KAREN CARPENTER. Lovely voice. Passed away sadly young.

42A. "Westworld" actress (who complements 33-Across?) : EVAN RACHEL WOOD. I always hesitate with her first name.

47A. 1960 Olympic boxing gold medalist (who complements 24-Across?) : CASSIUS CLAY. He fought as a light-heavyweight in 1960.


60A. "Basic Instinct" star (who complements 18-Across?) : SHARON STONE. I won't mention the infamous (or famous) leg-crossing scene. Ooops - I just did.

Clever puzzle from Victor. I thought I'd spotted the theme after the first two entries and when I filled in the third I wondered why no-one had done this theme before. Then came the fourth and the clever symmetry. Slick stuff. A whopping 72 letters of theme-age doesn't leave a lot of room for much in the way of long fill, but there's some nice 7's and 5's to keep thing ticking along. Let's take a look.

Across:

1. Reggae relative : SKA. It's Madness, I tell you.

4. Amount before deductions : GROSS. Nicely matched with 62D.

9. Unpleasant : HARSH

14. "U R funny!" : LOL!

15. Vital supply line : AORTA. Vital? I'd say.

16. Throat dangler : UVULA. Lovely word this, but - what on earth is it for?

17. Bran source : OAT

20. Ride on runners : SLED

22. __ Testamento : NUEVO. That's a new one on me.

23. Custard base : EGG. Food! The French call it "Crème anglaise". My mom used to make it from powder out of a tin. I don't think the French would have been impressed.

27. Meeting vote : YEA

28. Falls phenomena : MISTS. Here's one from Iceland at Skogafoss. Pretty.


39. Old World Style sauce : RAGU. Food! The stuff in the bottle is labelled "Old World Style". The made-from-scratch recipes such as ragù alla bolognese don't bear a whole lot of resemblance. There are many claims for the "original" recipe Bolognese, but the official version resides in the Bologna Chamber of Commerce placed there by the Accademia Italiana della Cucina, so that one seems pretty legit.

40. Formal orders : DICTA

41. Pet peeve? : FLEA

45. Analyze, in a way : PARSE

46. __ Lingus : AER

55. Like the name "Will," for an estate lawyer : APT. Or "Bill" for any kind of lawyer.

58. Get behind : TRAIL

59. If-then-__: programmer's flow : ELSE.

IF
    DAY="THURSDAY"
THEN
    BLOGGER:="STEVE"
ELSE
    BLOGGER:=!"STEVE"
ENDIF

64. Letters between names : AKA

65. Where "Ratatouille" was cooked up : PIXAR. The studio. Food! I really wanted PARIS for this as that's where the movie was set but was dissuaded by the R which I had in place.

66. Refuge : HAVEN

67. Came together : MET

68. Not at all trustworthy : SLIMY

69. Glacial ridge : ARÊTE. Here's the North-East arête back in 1921.  A lot less traffic on the mountain back then.


70. Agency creations : ADS

Down:

1. Walk through puddles : SLOSH. Wellington boots are handy for a good puddle-sloshing.



2. It isn't really a bear : KOALA. Still cute.

3. Make different : ALTER

4. __ order : GAG

5. Sushi topper : ROE

6. Home of Stephen King's alma mater : ORONO. I only learned this from crosswords.

7. Structural support : STRUT. Should really be a strutural [sic] support in my book.

8. "Full House" star Bob : SAGET

9. "Think of it as an indulgence" : HUMOR ME

10. Oscar-nominated director DuVernay : AVA. Thank you, crosses.She won Best Director at Sundance in 2012, the first African-American woman to win the award. She comes from down the road in Long Beach and graduated UCLA.


11. Subterfuge : RUSE. Great word, subterfuge. Latin subterfugere ‘escape secretly,’ from subter- ‘beneath’ + fugere ‘flee.’

12. Uphill climb : SLOG

13. Pal around (with) : HANG

19. Big night : EVE

21. Dress rehearsals : DRY RUNS

25. "__-haw!" : YEE

26. It is really a bear : PANDA. Also cute.

29. Effective, as a rule : IN FORCE

30. D-Day city : ST LÔ. The city was practically destroyed in prolonged fighting during the 1944 liberation of France.

31. Set up for a drive : TEED

32. Mrs., in Madrid : SRA

33. Polynesian intoxicant : KAVA. This almost foxed me due to the EVAN name uncertainty.

34. Seaweed product : AGAR

35. Pres. title : C.I.C.
.
36. Günther's gripe : ACH!

37. Hwy., e.g. : RTE.

38. Micronesian republic : PALAU

39. Weightlifter's unit : REP

43. Parish house : RECTORY. Home to a rector. A parson lives in a parsonage, a vicar in a vicarage, a dean lives in a deanery and a priest lives in a priestary - wait no, in a presbytery, just to spoil things.

44. Director Anderson : WES

48. Prince Valiant's son : ARN. Thank you, crosses. Never saw the TV series.

49. Beyoncé's "I Am... __ Fierce" : SASHA

50. Lute kin : SITAR

51. "How do __ thee?" : I LOVE. From Elizabeth Barrett Browning's 43rd sonnet:


Let me count the ways. 
I love thee to the depth and breadth and height My soul can reach, 
when feeling out of sight For the ends of being and ideal grace. 
I love thee to the level of every day's Most quiet need, by sun and candle-light. 

I love thee freely, as men strive for right.

52. Camel relative : LLAMA

53. Sought answers : ASKED

54. "I Am of Ireland" poet : YEATS

55. Nile hazards : ASPS

56. Knight who co-founded Nike : PHIL. He's worth a couple of bucks now. I bought a pair of Nike running shoes back in 1982. The sole of one came unglued within a week and the store refused to exchange them. I never shopped there again and I've never bought a pair of Nikes since.

57. One in an airport line : TAXI

61. Bash : RAM

62. Amount after deductions : NET

63. Chemical suffix : -ENE

Here's the grid, and that's it from me!

Steve


May 9, 2017

Tuesday May 9, 2017, Victor Barocas

Theme: On the Fence. Each theme answer hides a word (in circles) for a type of fencing sword.

17. Gadget used on carrots : VEGETABLE PEELER

28. Deepwater Horizon catastrophe : GULF OIL SPILL

44. Inhales : TAKES A BREATH

58. Activity one might see at a circus ... or in the Across answers containing circles? : SWORD SWALLOWING

Melissa here. Clever theme - must have taken a lot of effort to come up with phrases that contained these hidden words. Reminds me of the Cross Swords puzzle in the Wordplay documentary.

Across     
   
1. TV drama whose title appeared on a California license plate : LA LAW
 
6. Beatrix Potter's "The __ of Peter Rabbit" : TALE
 
10. "Right away!" letters : ASAP
 
14. Yellow-and-white daisy : OXEYE

 15. Goat with recurved horns : IBEX
 
16. Circle dance : HORA (spelling variation HORAH)


20. Inventor Whitney : ELI
 
21. No-win situation : TIE. Favorite clue.
 
22. Expression of woe : LAMENT
 
23. Seasonal sack toter : SANTA
 
26. Whisperer's target : EAR
 
27. Utter : SAY

32. Slanted type : ITALIC
 
33. Bronze component : TIN. Damien Hirst's Verity sculpture.



34. "Baseball Tonight" network : ESPN
 
38. Swamp reptile : GATOR
 
39. Lobbying gp. : PAC
 
40. __ New Guinea : PAPUA
 
41. Mets' home through 2008 : SHEA
 
42. Roguish : SLY
 
43. Arcade machine inserts : TOKENS

47. Key near Caps Lock : TAB
 
50. Spy org. : CIA
 
51. Time to chill, briefly : R AND R. Rest and relaxation.
 
52. Dozing : ASLEEP
 
54. CDX x V : MML
 
55. Extinct New Zealand bird : MOA

62. Sharp flavor : TANG
 
63. Rummikub piece : TILE
 
64. React to pain : WINCE
 
65. Wraps up : ENDS
 
66. Attacking the problem : ON IT
 
67. Soft drink size : LITER

Down

1. Adore : LOVE
 
2. Skater's leap : AXEL
 
3. Make laws : LEGISLATE
 
4. Shipboard affirmative : AYE
 
5. Like an unfun blanket? : WET
 
6. Related to the shinbone : TIBIAL
 
7. Up to the task : ABLE
 
8. Calm side : LEE
 
9. Clarify : EXPLAIN
 
10. "If I may interject ... " : AHEM
 
11. Shoe undersides : SOLES
 
12. Sports venue : ARENA
 
13. New Year's Eve staple : PARTY
 
18. High point of a home tour? : ATTIC
 
19. British nobleman : EARL
 
24. Bobbing on the waves : AFLOAT
 
25. Gritty film genre : NOIR. Literally 'black film or cinema,' developed during and after World War II, taking advantage of the post-war ambience of anxiety, pessimism, and suspicion. It was a style of black and white American films that first evolved in the 1940s, became prominent in the post-war era, and lasted in a classic "Golden Age" period until about 1960. Classic Film Noir title screens.
 
26. "Iliad" or "Aeneid" : EPIC
 
28. Jobs for a band : GIGS
 
29. The Beehive State : UTAH
 
30. Corset stiffeners : STAYS. Corset vs. Stay.
 
31. Released without authorization : LEAKED
 
35. Gum flavor : SPEARMINT
 
36. Many a fourth-down play : PUNT
 
37. Singer with Crosby and Stills : NASH
 
39. Courtroom entry : PLEA
 
40. Lewd literature : PORN 

42. Reaches without reading the intervening pages : SKIPS TO
 
43. Pre-Little League game : T-BALL
 
45. Scored 100 on : ACED
 
46. Sleeve band : ARMLET


47. Sense of style : TASTE
 
48. Egypt's __ High Dam : ASWAN. New to me.


49. Fair-haired : BLOND
 
53. Work units : ERGS
 
54. The Niger River flows through it : MALI


56. "__ upon a midnight dreary ... " : ONCE
 
57. Stress, so they say : AGER 

59. Come out on top : WIN
 
60. Nocturnal hunter : OWL
 
61. Nintendo console : WII