Theme: Life is Hard (Evan Esar quip)
17A: Start of a quip: SOME MEN MAKE
28A: Part 2 of quip: DIFFICULTIES
40A: Part 3 of quip: AND
50A: Part 4 of quip: DIFFICULTIES
65A: End of quip: MAKE SOME MEN
"Make difficulties"? I've never heard of this phrase before. Only familiar with "make a difference/distinction". Or "make bed", "make a blunder/boner", "make a choice/a decision", "make a commitment/promise/confession", etc.
"LOVE" makes more sense than "DIFFICULTIES" in this quip, don't you think so?
It's an OK puzzle, not terribly boring. I don't think there should be a question mark for CHRISTMAS (35D: Present time?).
Across:
1A: $ in banks: ACCTS. Or a simple "Stops on my rte" for Xchefwalt. He has to attend to his green bean and potato customers.
6A: FDR's biographer: ALSOP (Joseph). Gimme to me. ALSOP's name is mentioned in almost every JFK book.
11A: Card game for two: WAR. No idea. Is it easy to play?
14A: Hogwash!: HOOEY. Hmm, not "balderdash", "tommyrot" or "poppycock". I could picture Barry's smile. I still want to know more of "nonsense" synonyms. Besides "baloney", "lapdoodle" and "bosh", what other "worthless" words do you use every day?
15A: Mongol invader: TATAR. They were Muslims, right?
22A: Sandal strap: THONG. Wow, she was wearing the wrong THONG.
24A: Mennen shaving product: AFTA
43A: Greeley or Mann: HORACE. Knew Mann, not Greeley.
53A: Dry, red wine: CHIANTI. Do you like Diana Lane's "Under the Tuscan Sun"?
57A: Dentist's direction: RINSE. Katherine probably wants RINSE to be "Shampoo direction".
58A: CI quadrupled: CDIV. Roman 404. We get new visitors every time there is a Roman numberal involved.
70A: Video game name: ATARI. Apple's Steve Jobs used to work for ATARI.
77A: Stupefy with desire: BESOT. What's the difference between "BESOT" and "infatuate"?
Down:
1D: Chan's words: AH SO. I learned this from doing Xwords. Have never seen any Charlie Chan movies.
3D: Follow: COME AFTER
4D: Hit one's drive: TEE OFF. Oh, you are talking about golf.
5D: Pathetic starter: SYM. Or better, "Phony" starter.
8D: Patronize, as an inn: STAY AT
11D: Black __ spider: WIDOW. New to me. "Black" I can understand, why "WIDOW"?
31D: Hawaiian island: LANAI. "The Pineapple Island".
37D: Barcelona Mmes: SRAS. "Barcelona Mlle" would be "SRTAS".
41D: Elmer, to Bugs: DOC. From "What's Opera, Doc?". New to me also.
47D: __ Laredo, Mexico: NUEVO. "New" in Spanish.
51D: Capricious: FICKLE. Virgil said "A woman is always a FICKLE, unstable thing." I think men are the same, if not more so.
52D: Shaped like a cylinder: TERETE. No idea, this Vanda TERETE flower showed up when I googled, so pretty.
60D: Sea turtle grp.: ISTS (International Sea Turtle Society). Unknown to me.
62D: First name in architecture: EERO. His father is Eliel, also crossword-friendly, with 3 vowels.
67D: Fairy queen: MAB. Did MAB originate from Shelley's "Queen MAB"?
C.C.
17A: Start of a quip: SOME MEN MAKE
28A: Part 2 of quip: DIFFICULTIES
40A: Part 3 of quip: AND
50A: Part 4 of quip: DIFFICULTIES
65A: End of quip: MAKE SOME MEN
"Make difficulties"? I've never heard of this phrase before. Only familiar with "make a difference/distinction". Or "make bed", "make a blunder/boner", "make a choice/a decision", "make a commitment/promise/confession", etc.
"LOVE" makes more sense than "DIFFICULTIES" in this quip, don't you think so?
It's an OK puzzle, not terribly boring. I don't think there should be a question mark for CHRISTMAS (35D: Present time?).
Across:
1A: $ in banks: ACCTS. Or a simple "Stops on my rte" for Xchefwalt. He has to attend to his green bean and potato customers.
6A: FDR's biographer: ALSOP (Joseph). Gimme to me. ALSOP's name is mentioned in almost every JFK book.
11A: Card game for two: WAR. No idea. Is it easy to play?
14A: Hogwash!: HOOEY. Hmm, not "balderdash", "tommyrot" or "poppycock". I could picture Barry's smile. I still want to know more of "nonsense" synonyms. Besides "baloney", "lapdoodle" and "bosh", what other "worthless" words do you use every day?
15A: Mongol invader: TATAR. They were Muslims, right?
22A: Sandal strap: THONG. Wow, she was wearing the wrong THONG.
24A: Mennen shaving product: AFTA
43A: Greeley or Mann: HORACE. Knew Mann, not Greeley.
53A: Dry, red wine: CHIANTI. Do you like Diana Lane's "Under the Tuscan Sun"?
57A: Dentist's direction: RINSE. Katherine probably wants RINSE to be "Shampoo direction".
58A: CI quadrupled: CDIV. Roman 404. We get new visitors every time there is a Roman numberal involved.
70A: Video game name: ATARI. Apple's Steve Jobs used to work for ATARI.
77A: Stupefy with desire: BESOT. What's the difference between "BESOT" and "infatuate"?
Down:
1D: Chan's words: AH SO. I learned this from doing Xwords. Have never seen any Charlie Chan movies.
3D: Follow: COME AFTER
4D: Hit one's drive: TEE OFF. Oh, you are talking about golf.
5D: Pathetic starter: SYM. Or better, "Phony" starter.
8D: Patronize, as an inn: STAY AT
11D: Black __ spider: WIDOW. New to me. "Black" I can understand, why "WIDOW"?
31D: Hawaiian island: LANAI. "The Pineapple Island".
37D: Barcelona Mmes: SRAS. "Barcelona Mlle" would be "SRTAS".
41D: Elmer, to Bugs: DOC. From "What's Opera, Doc?". New to me also.
47D: __ Laredo, Mexico: NUEVO. "New" in Spanish.
51D: Capricious: FICKLE. Virgil said "A woman is always a FICKLE, unstable thing." I think men are the same, if not more so.
52D: Shaped like a cylinder: TERETE. No idea, this Vanda TERETE flower showed up when I googled, so pretty.
60D: Sea turtle grp.: ISTS (International Sea Turtle Society). Unknown to me.
62D: First name in architecture: EERO. His father is Eliel, also crossword-friendly, with 3 vowels.
67D: Fairy queen: MAB. Did MAB originate from Shelley's "Queen MAB"?
C.C.
