Theme: Actor's Ego (Will Rogers Quip)
27A: Start of Will Rogers quip: The movies enable an
54A: Part 2 of the quip: Actor not only
69A: Part 3 of the quip: To act but also to sit down
87A: Part 4 of the quip: In the theater
115A: End of quip: And clap for himself
Can anyone please tell me what's the difference between a "quote" and a "quip"? If a "quip" is supposed to be funny and witty, then this one is not, at least, not to me. It's just an ordinary "quote". Or am I the only one who does not get it?
I did not enjoy Mr. Olschwang's last puzzle either. "It's better to have loved and lost than never to have lost at all". It did not make sense to me.
So I started today's puzzle with a very bad attitude. Could not summon up enough enthusiasm for a quip puzzle. But I was able to fill in these foreign words quickly: PERE (father), ETE (summer), ILS (they), MERCI and GRACIAS (Thank you), Coup d'ETAT, AMAH (Indian housemaid), NATALE (Christmas in Roma), LESE-majesty, TSAR (Russian Ruler). FRIA (cold in Chile) was the only one that escaped me.
Although Mr. Olschwang did not bring out more 2-toed, or 3-toed sloths (AIS and UNAU) today, he still managed to frustrate me with a few legitimate fills. I never heard of the Sportscaster Rashad (AHMAD), never heard of Conductor Antal (DORATI), never heard of Greek island (CORFU). And the word TUAREG for (77A: Member of a Saharan nomadic tribe) just looked plain wrong to me. I really like the clue for 110D: Friendly or Savage (FRED). Very cleverly misleading.
Here are the across entries:
1A: Plantation machine: BALER
6A: Makes lace: TATS
10A: Creative Coward: NOEL. English actor. He is in the original The Italian Job. I like the 2003 version with Mark Wahlberg and Donald Sutherland. Charlize Theron is in it too.
14A: Puccini opera: TOSCA. Learned from doing crossword.
19A: Organic compound: AMINE
20A: Taj Mahal site: AGRA. I tend to confuse this one with the Turkish title AGA.
21A: Actor Gross: ARYE. I actually saw Gone in Sixty Second, but I did not remember him.
22A: Ferber and O'Brien: EDNAS
23A: Soho so longs: TATAS
26A: Closes in: NEARS
30A: "__ Gotta Be Me": I'VE. OK, I am not going to make another mistake today. It's Sammy Davis Jr. Song. Buddy Holly's song is "I've got to be me". ' N Sync song: "It's Gonna Be Me."
31A: Demonstrates connections: RELATES
32A: Et __ (and others): ALII. This is the masculine plural, the feminine plural is et aliae, the neuter plural is et alia.
33A: Gin cocktail: GIMLET
35A: Securely closed: SEALED
37A: Tightly packed: DENSE
39A: Hangman's knot: NOOSE. The Golfweek Noose Debacle!
41A: NL Braves: ATL (Atlanta Braves)
42A: Yule mo.: DEC
45A: Moon vehicle, briefly: LEM (Lunar Excursion Module).
46A: Verbalize an ache: MOAN
50A: Hand part: PALM
52A: Scot Roy: ROB. Scottish folk hero.
58A: Eyelid woes: STYES
60A: Mil. unit: REGT (Regiment)
62A: "Twelfth Night" duke: ORSINO. Unknown to me.
63A: Building wing: ELL
64A: Double-breasted jacket: REEFER. It looks like this.
66A: Hot time in Paris: ETE. French winter is d'hiver.
67A: Playground rejoinder to "am not": ARE TOO
75A: Stir to action: INCITE
76A: Upper limit: CAP
77A: Member of a Saharan nomadic tribe: TUAREG. Please google it yourself and see how you like their image.
78A: O. T. Book: MIC (Micah)
79A: Sensual: EROTIC
82A: One of the Simpsons: BART. Homer, Marge, Bart and Lisa.
83A: Religious denominations: SECTS
90A: Sleuth Spade: SAM
92A: Get to one's feet: RISE
93A: Lucy's love: DESI. I Love Lucy.
94A: They: Fr.: ILS
95A: Totality: SUM
97A: Long of "The Broken Hearts Club": NIA. Our editor loves Nia.
99A: Elongated fish: GAR. Another frequent offender.
100A: California/Nevada lake: TAHOE
103A: Group of eight: OCTAD
105A: "Broken Arrow" co-star: ANSARA (Michael). He is another stranger to me.
107A: Give one's consent: ACCEDE
110A: Casa component: SALA (large living room)
112A: Having richer soil: LOAMIER. I think we need loamy soil for our cucumber this year. Ours never tasted as good as the ones sold at the Farmer's Market.
114A: Maglie of baseball: SAL. Nicknamed "Sal the Barber." He is not in HOF, in case you wonder.
120A: Street talk: SLANG
122A: Netherlands city: ROTTERDAM, the second largest city in the Netherlands, after Amsterdam.
123A: Essential perfume: ATTAR
124A: I wasn't there at the time, e. g.: ALIBI
125A: Moonfish: OPAH. It looks pretty.
126A: Tiny amount: IOTA
127A: Volunteer's words: LET ME
128A: Explorer Polo: MARCO
129A: French father: PERE.
130A: Very dry: ARID
131A: Proud mount: STEED. I think this word has appeared at least 3 times since I started my blog.
Down entries:
1D: Fabric stuffing: BATT. Did not know this word.
2D: Indian housemaid: AMAH
3D: Strictly speaking: LITERALLY
4D: Tooth covering: ENAMEL
5D: Mended shoes: RESOLED
6D: Unspoken: TACIT
7D: Came to terms: AGREED
8D: Supporting pieces: TRUSSES. Did not know this constructional term.
9D: Notorious marquis: SADE. Marquis de Sade. He was sick. Why not clue Sade as Singer of "Smooth Operator"? I could not tell you how much I love Sade's " Somebody Already Broken My Heart".
10D: Christmas in Roma: NATALE. Buon Natale.
11D: Pygmy antelope: ORIBI. I did not know any kind of antelope, not to mention pygmy antelope.
12D: Some makeup products: EYE LINERS. Finally a gimme.
13D: __ - majesty: LESE. This is the highest crime you can commit against your country, isn't it?
14D: Ashe Stadium sport: TENNIS
16D: Exemplar of slowness: SNAIL
18D: Advantage: ASSET
19D: Momentarily: In A SEC. I like answer. Very colloquial.
34D: Interoffice communique: MEMO
35D: Digs a trench: SAPS. Did not know that sap can mean "dig trench in the ground."
36D: Coup d'__: ETAT
38D: Clean and tidy: NEAT
40D: Former Atlanta arena: OMNI. I am so proud that I got this one.
43D: Greek island: CORFU. I put Crete first.
45D: Young or Swit: LORETTA. Knew Loretta young, never heard of Loretta Swit. She was in M*A*S*H.
47D: A customer lead-in: ONE TO. I don't understand this one, what is "one to a customer?"
48D: Give permission: ALLOW
49D: Hose material: NYLON
51D: Thanks, Pierre: MERCI
53D: Sugar source: BEET
55D: Dog in Oz: TOTO
56D: Radio studio sign: ON AIR
57D: Rich desserts: TORTES. Speak of desserts, Krispy Kreme just closed their last store here in MN.
59D: Medium-sized sofa: SETTEE
61D: Thanks, Pedro: GRACIAS
65D: Chicago-based film critic: EBERT (Roger)
66D: 6th sense: ESP (Extrasensory Perception)
68D: Lawn tool: EDGER
69D: Shy: TIMID
70D: Cat - ___-tails: O' NINE. See here. It's a whipping device.
71D: Banking holdings: abbr: ACCTS (Accounts)
72D: Milk: pref: LACT
74D: Evil personified: SATAN
80D: Buckeye State: OHIO
81D: Astronomer's instrument: TELESCOPE
82D: Very dry, as champagne: BRUT
84D: Tobacco product: CIGARETTE
85D: Russian ruler: TSAR
86D: Medicinal fluids: SERA (Serum is the single form)
88D: "Women and Love" author: HITE. Her name was in Friday's puzzle, the clue is Sex researcher Hite (SHERE).
89D: Break free: ESCAPE
91D: Home of the Heat: MIAMI. Miami Heat, the NBA team.
96D: Stench: MALODOR
98D: Beasts: ANIMALS
101D: Slowly, in music: ADAGIO. What's the difference between "lento" and "adagio?"
103D: Kansas city: OLATHE. Did not know this city. It's ranked 13th in the CNN 2006 "100 best cities to live in the US."
104D: Conductor Antal: DORATI. I am very weak in conductor/composer names.
105D: Sonnet part: SESTET
107D: Isolated Indian State: ASSAM. Famous for its tea.
108D: Type of lilly: CALLA
109D: Verlaine poem: "__ de lune:": CLAIR. Knew it from doing crossword.
111D: Bridal path end: ALTAR
113D: Sportscaster Rashad: AHMAD. He actually played for the Vikings. Wikipedia did not tell me why he changed his original name Robert to Ah-Mad.
116D: Hit the dirt: DROP
117D: Cold, in Chile: FRIA. It it correct here? I could not find this word in any dictionary. Frio is a word meaning cold.
118D: Kind of duck: LAME
119D: Friendly or Savage: FRED. Never heard of them before. Fred Friendly was the former president of CBS News. He and Ed Murrow created the "See it Now." I like Fred Savage's brother Ben, who was playing Cory in "Boys Meets World."
121D: Peacock network: NBC
OK, here are something unrelated to crosswords: my prediction for Oscar tonight:
Best Actor: Viggo Mortensen (Eastern Promises)
Best Actress: Julie Christie (Away from Her)
Supporting Actor: Casey Affleck (The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford)
Supporting Actress: Cate Blanchett (I Am Not There)
Best director: the Cohen brothers (No Country for Old Men)
Best picture: No Country for Old Men
I will also pick up Sicko for best documentary, Juno for best original screenplay, and Ratatouille as the best animated film.
C. C.
