Theme: Terms of Address for Women
20A: The Nine Days' Queen: LADY JANE GREY
36A: Sherwood Forest damsel: MAID MARIAN
42A: Musical set in Vietnam: MISS SAIGON
56A: Flaubert novel: MADAME BOVARY
Poor Mrs. Robbinson, I don't think Doug Peterson loves her at all. But I am glad IVANA is clued as "Former Mrs. Trump". Robin Williams' "Mrs. Doubtfire" should be a great theme entry too.
This puzzle SINGS (30D: Does a number) for me, full of pop culture and literary figures that I am actually familiar with: HEIGL, GARY SINISE, uncle LEO, JEM, MADAM BOVARY, etc.
Still needed a couple of googles and wite-out to finish this puzzle. But I enjoyed it tremendously. It did not make me feel stupid.
Across:
5A: Alda sitcom: M*A*S*H. I wish ALAN (6D: Novelist Paton) were clued as "5A star" for a tie-in. I've never heard of ALAN Paton. Fascinating, Wikipedia says his first book "Cry, Beloved Country" was picked up by Maxwell Perkins, the editor of genius (F. Scott Fitzgerald, Ernest Hemingway, Thomas Wolfe, etc.).
9A: Capital of Belarus: MINSK. Do you know that Louis B. Mayer was born in MINSK?
18A: Colombian city: CALI. It's Colombia's second largest city. Lots of drug here, I am sure.
19A: Element #54: XENON. I googled this element. Can never remeber this noble gas.
24A: City in central Israel: LOD. Can not find LOD in this map.
31A: San Luis __, CA: OBISPO. Here is the map. It appeared in our puzzle before.
45A: Slaughter of baseball: ENOS. Or "Adam's grandson". "Speaker of baseball" is TRIS.
52A: Tearjerker: WEEPER. Both sound like made-up words to me.
59A: Poppy product: OPIUM. I wonder if there is a way to legalize the OPIUM production in Afganistan. Did you watch "Charlie Wilson's War"? Philip Seymour Hoffman was simply brilliant as CIA operative Gust.
64A: Language of Iran: FARSI. I just learned the other day that "julep" is "rose water" in FARSI.
65A: "The King and I" actress: KERR. Here is a clip. I was thinking of Jodie Foster's "Anna and the King".
Down:
1D: Overflowed: SPILT. As in SPILT milk?
2D: Peninsula near Hongkong: MACAO. We spell it as MACAU in China. It's in south China. A former Portuguese colony until 1999. See it? See my hometown Xi'An?
4D: "CSI: NY" star: GARY SINISE. I like his Lieutenant Dan role in "Forrest Gump". He is also great in "Ransom".
5D: Paving material: MACADAM. Named after "J. L. McAdam, the Scottish engineer who invented it." PAVE was clued as "Macadamize" last time.
8D: Katherine of "27 Dresses": HEIGL. I like its happy ending, so romantic. I also like HEIGL's "Love Comes Softly".
9D: Motley assortment: MIXED BAG
10D: Judith of "Sister, Sister": IVEY. I've never heard of IVEY or "Sister, Sister". Is she very famous?
21D: "To Kill a Mockingbird" boy: JEM. Scout's brother. Great book.
26D: Joe of "NCIS": SPANO. He is very annoying in "NYPD Blue". I've never seen "NCIS".
33D: Nasser of Egypt: GAMAL. Got it from the across fills. I only knew NASSER when the clue is "Anwar's predecessor". His full name is GAMAL Abdel Nasser.
39D: Big wave: TSUNAMIS
54D: Susan Lucci's soap role: ERICA. Susan Lucci's beauty secret is to eat lots of sardines, What's yours?
57D: Champagne name: MOET. I've never had MOET et Chandon, have you? MOET is the M in LVMH. Louis Vuitton has probably spent more money than any other luxury brands to stop counterfeit products in China.
C.C.
20A: The Nine Days' Queen: LADY JANE GREY
36A: Sherwood Forest damsel: MAID MARIAN
42A: Musical set in Vietnam: MISS SAIGON
56A: Flaubert novel: MADAME BOVARY
Poor Mrs. Robbinson, I don't think Doug Peterson loves her at all. But I am glad IVANA is clued as "Former Mrs. Trump". Robin Williams' "Mrs. Doubtfire" should be a great theme entry too.
This puzzle SINGS (30D: Does a number) for me, full of pop culture and literary figures that I am actually familiar with: HEIGL, GARY SINISE, uncle LEO, JEM, MADAM BOVARY, etc.
Still needed a couple of googles and wite-out to finish this puzzle. But I enjoyed it tremendously. It did not make me feel stupid.
Across:
5A: Alda sitcom: M*A*S*H. I wish ALAN (6D: Novelist Paton) were clued as "5A star" for a tie-in. I've never heard of ALAN Paton. Fascinating, Wikipedia says his first book "Cry, Beloved Country" was picked up by Maxwell Perkins, the editor of genius (F. Scott Fitzgerald, Ernest Hemingway, Thomas Wolfe, etc.).
9A: Capital of Belarus: MINSK. Do you know that Louis B. Mayer was born in MINSK?
18A: Colombian city: CALI. It's Colombia's second largest city. Lots of drug here, I am sure.
19A: Element #54: XENON. I googled this element. Can never remeber this noble gas.
24A: City in central Israel: LOD. Can not find LOD in this map.
31A: San Luis __, CA: OBISPO. Here is the map. It appeared in our puzzle before.
45A: Slaughter of baseball: ENOS. Or "Adam's grandson". "Speaker of baseball" is TRIS.
52A: Tearjerker: WEEPER. Both sound like made-up words to me.
59A: Poppy product: OPIUM. I wonder if there is a way to legalize the OPIUM production in Afganistan. Did you watch "Charlie Wilson's War"? Philip Seymour Hoffman was simply brilliant as CIA operative Gust.
64A: Language of Iran: FARSI. I just learned the other day that "julep" is "rose water" in FARSI.
65A: "The King and I" actress: KERR. Here is a clip. I was thinking of Jodie Foster's "Anna and the King".
Down:
1D: Overflowed: SPILT. As in SPILT milk?
2D: Peninsula near Hongkong: MACAO. We spell it as MACAU in China. It's in south China. A former Portuguese colony until 1999. See it? See my hometown Xi'An?
4D: "CSI: NY" star: GARY SINISE. I like his Lieutenant Dan role in "Forrest Gump". He is also great in "Ransom".
5D: Paving material: MACADAM. Named after "J. L. McAdam, the Scottish engineer who invented it." PAVE was clued as "Macadamize" last time.
8D: Katherine of "27 Dresses": HEIGL. I like its happy ending, so romantic. I also like HEIGL's "Love Comes Softly".
9D: Motley assortment: MIXED BAG
10D: Judith of "Sister, Sister": IVEY. I've never heard of IVEY or "Sister, Sister". Is she very famous?
21D: "To Kill a Mockingbird" boy: JEM. Scout's brother. Great book.
26D: Joe of "NCIS": SPANO. He is very annoying in "NYPD Blue". I've never seen "NCIS".
33D: Nasser of Egypt: GAMAL. Got it from the across fills. I only knew NASSER when the clue is "Anwar's predecessor". His full name is GAMAL Abdel Nasser.
39D: Big wave: TSUNAMIS
54D: Susan Lucci's soap role: ERICA. Susan Lucci's beauty secret is to eat lots of sardines, What's yours?
57D: Champagne name: MOET. I've never had MOET et Chandon, have you? MOET is the M in LVMH. Louis Vuitton has probably spent more money than any other luxury brands to stop counterfeit products in China.
C.C.
