Theme: Nice Things - Common English nouns rooted in French. All playfully clued as if they were things from the French Riviera resort city Nice.
17A. Nice retinue?: ENTOURAGE. Like those bodyguards/nannies following the Jolie/Pitt clan.
21A. Nice nonpro?: AMATEUR. Bobby Jones is probably the most famous amateur athlete.
26A. Nice keepsake?: SOUVENIR. Lots of Twins 1987 World Series souvenirs in our house.
39A. Nice stand?: ETAGERE. The knickknack holder.
48A. Nice behind?: DERRIERE. And THONG (40D. It doesn't cover much of a 48-Across). Wish I had a "Nice behind".
55A. Nice rubdown?: MASSAGE
62A. Nice walk?: PROMENADE
24D. Nice squad?: BRIGADE. This word does not sound French, does it?
Bonus fill (The "l'amour" seeking skunk):
34D. With 53-Down, French toon who would be right at home in this puzzle?: PEPE
53D. See 34-Down: LE PEW
Nice puzzle, oui? Kazie should enjoy this one, given her passion for word origins and her mastery of French.
As Salinger did with silence, Don "Hard G" Gagliardo made an art of this often employed "Nice something" gimmick. Eight of the theme entries in perfect symmetry. Bravo Zulu! I think my favorite all time French wordplay is SEINE, clued as "Flower in Paris" or "Parisian Flower". Flow-er, thing that flows.
I also loved some of the long Down entries today, US TREASURY (28D. Govt. note issuer) in particular. I don't believe I've seen it in any grid before. Freshness (known known, not unknown unknown fresh words) is a big factor in my enjoyment of a puzzle.
As usual, Don has kindly provided us with a note of how he came up with the theme. I've attached it at the end of my write-up.
Across:
1. Struggle (through), as a tedious book: WADE. Or "... as a LAT Friday/Saturday puzzle".
5. Leatherworking tools: AWLS
9. Sheriff's star: BADGE
14. Incur additional cell phone charges, perhaps: ROAM
16. Gonzalez in 2000 headlines: ELIAN. I was still living in China. But the INS raid photo was everywhere.
19. Mel, "The Velvet Fog": TORME
20. Slob's opposite: NEATNIK. And TITANIC (45. Ill-fated vessel). Don't see K sound ending words in grid often.
23. Filmdom's Lupino: IDA
24. 'Hood bud: BRO
25. Prefix with mom, coined after historic 2009 births: OCTO. Prefix for "eight". The annoying Octomom.
30. Dying-out sound: PFFT. Gone!
32. Riddle: POSER. Puzzling stuff.
35. "Dropped" drug: LSD. The Timothy Leary drug.
38. Space bar neighbor on a PC: ALT. Had to look at my keyboard.
41. Wall St. news: IPO (Initial Public Offering). Or Hawaiian for "sweetheart". Hey, Ipo!
42. Spoil: MAR
43. "Thanks __!": A HEAP. Not an expression that I use.
44. Old beaker heaters: ETNAS. Named after the Sicily volcano.
46. Within: Pref.: ENTO. Opposite of EXO.
50. Actor Morales: ESAI
52. Phillies' div.: NLE (National League East). Shout-out to the big Phillies fans: Dennis & Barry Silk.
54. Tiny amount: BIT
57. Played some jazz numbers, say: DID A SET. Put ED at the end immediately. Dummy!
61. "__ be seeing things": I MUST
64. Ship-finding acronym: LORAN. Long-RAnge Navigation.
65. Overhang: EAVE. Not fond of singular form.
67. Refuse: SAY NO
68. "__ in Rome ...": WHEN. Do as the Romans do.
69. Site of a Lincoln profile: CENT
Down:
1. Small songbird: WREN. Look at how erect this wren's tail is. Has to be a "he", right, Lois?
2. Primo: A-ONE
3. Entered material: DATA
4. Eliciting feeling: EMOTIVE. Only know emotion.
5. Vikings running back Peterson who holds the NFL record for yards rushed in a single game: ADRIAN. Gimme for me/Jeannie/KQ. Lots of Adrian Peterson jersey wearers here in Minnesota.
6. Unsound, as an argument: WEAK
7. Relay race part: LEG
8. Asparagus unit: SPEAR. How do you like your asparagus prepared, Mainaic?
9. __ blocker: BETA
10. Umpteen: A LOT OF
11. Privileged connection: DIRECT LINE. The "Cold War connection" is HOT LINE.
12. Whole range: GAMUT. No A TO Z today.
13. It began on viernes in 2010: ENERO. Spanish for "January". Easy guess. I did not know viernes means "Friday".
18. Take in too little: UNDEREAT
22. One with a long face: MOPER
26. Cybertrash: SPAM. Irritating!
27. "Return of the Jedi" green-skinned dancer: OOLA. No idea. Why is she green-skinned? One O short of OOOLA, Alley Oop's girlfriend.
29. "Dies __": IRAE. Literally "wrath". "Dies Irae" = Day of Wrath. The Requiem Mass hymn.
31. Full scholarship, e.g.: FREE RIDE. Chinese government paid all my university education.
36. Have heated words: SPAR
37. Two tablets, say: DOSE
47. Maxima maker: NISSAN. Literally "Made in Japan". The Japanese Kanji character for SAN means "produce/make".
49. Cleanup hitters, briefly: RBI MEN. Like Justin Moreau, Twin's RBI man.
50. Actor Jannings and pianist Gilels: EMILS. Only know Emil Jannings, the first ever Oscar winner (1928).
51. South Pacific island nation: SAMOA. Capital is Apia.
56. Periodic table fig.: AT. NO. (Atomic Number)
57. Peace symbol: DOVE
59. "East of __": EDEN. The John Steinbeck novel. James Dean starred in the movie. Pretty good.
60. Means of determining proficiency: TEST
63. Cheer syllable: RAH
Constructor's note:
"The inspiration for this puzzle comes from Rich himself. Rich is adept at making a clue sound like it is going to be one thing, and it takes a clever turn. For example, in his puzzle from the Crosswords Club in January, a clue was “Plan for a chair”. Our minds are so attuned to thinking of “plan” as a verb in that situation that we read the clue and go “Huh?” The answer is AGENDA.
One tactic that has been employed by the LA Times puzzles that got me so many times was to start a phrase with the word “nice”, and then go on to describe some object that turns out to be French. “Nice hat” is CHAPEAU. “Nice house” is MAISON. I don’t know if those words actually appeared, but one can understand the effect. So after falling for this gag umpteen times, I decided to take it a step further. What if the word in French was actually a word that we use in English? So that is simply the basis of this puzzle. It still hasn’t cured me of seeing “Nice” and thinking in English, because we really do think reactively and quickly. By the way, the French place “Nice” is not pronounced like our English “nice” (it sounds like niece).
Answer grid.
C.C.
17A. Nice retinue?: ENTOURAGE. Like those bodyguards/nannies following the Jolie/Pitt clan.
21A. Nice nonpro?: AMATEUR. Bobby Jones is probably the most famous amateur athlete.
26A. Nice keepsake?: SOUVENIR. Lots of Twins 1987 World Series souvenirs in our house.
39A. Nice stand?: ETAGERE. The knickknack holder.
48A. Nice behind?: DERRIERE. And THONG (40D. It doesn't cover much of a 48-Across). Wish I had a "Nice behind".
55A. Nice rubdown?: MASSAGE
62A. Nice walk?: PROMENADE
24D. Nice squad?: BRIGADE. This word does not sound French, does it?
Bonus fill (The "l'amour" seeking skunk):
34D. With 53-Down, French toon who would be right at home in this puzzle?: PEPE
53D. See 34-Down: LE PEW
Nice puzzle, oui? Kazie should enjoy this one, given her passion for word origins and her mastery of French.
As Salinger did with silence, Don "Hard G" Gagliardo made an art of this often employed "Nice something" gimmick. Eight of the theme entries in perfect symmetry. Bravo Zulu! I think my favorite all time French wordplay is SEINE, clued as "Flower in Paris" or "Parisian Flower". Flow-er, thing that flows.
I also loved some of the long Down entries today, US TREASURY (28D. Govt. note issuer) in particular. I don't believe I've seen it in any grid before. Freshness (known known, not unknown unknown fresh words) is a big factor in my enjoyment of a puzzle.
As usual, Don has kindly provided us with a note of how he came up with the theme. I've attached it at the end of my write-up.
Across:
1. Struggle (through), as a tedious book: WADE. Or "... as a LAT Friday/Saturday puzzle".
5. Leatherworking tools: AWLS
9. Sheriff's star: BADGE
14. Incur additional cell phone charges, perhaps: ROAM
16. Gonzalez in 2000 headlines: ELIAN. I was still living in China. But the INS raid photo was everywhere.
19. Mel, "The Velvet Fog": TORME
20. Slob's opposite: NEATNIK. And TITANIC (45. Ill-fated vessel). Don't see K sound ending words in grid often.
23. Filmdom's Lupino: IDA
24. 'Hood bud: BRO
25. Prefix with mom, coined after historic 2009 births: OCTO. Prefix for "eight". The annoying Octomom.
30. Dying-out sound: PFFT. Gone!
32. Riddle: POSER. Puzzling stuff.
35. "Dropped" drug: LSD. The Timothy Leary drug.
38. Space bar neighbor on a PC: ALT. Had to look at my keyboard.
41. Wall St. news: IPO (Initial Public Offering). Or Hawaiian for "sweetheart". Hey, Ipo!
42. Spoil: MAR
43. "Thanks __!": A HEAP. Not an expression that I use.
44. Old beaker heaters: ETNAS. Named after the Sicily volcano.
46. Within: Pref.: ENTO. Opposite of EXO.
50. Actor Morales: ESAI
52. Phillies' div.: NLE (National League East). Shout-out to the big Phillies fans: Dennis & Barry Silk.
54. Tiny amount: BIT
57. Played some jazz numbers, say: DID A SET. Put ED at the end immediately. Dummy!
61. "__ be seeing things": I MUST
64. Ship-finding acronym: LORAN. Long-RAnge Navigation.
65. Overhang: EAVE. Not fond of singular form.
67. Refuse: SAY NO
68. "__ in Rome ...": WHEN. Do as the Romans do.
69. Site of a Lincoln profile: CENT
Down:
1. Small songbird: WREN. Look at how erect this wren's tail is. Has to be a "he", right, Lois?
2. Primo: A-ONE
3. Entered material: DATA
4. Eliciting feeling: EMOTIVE. Only know emotion.
5. Vikings running back Peterson who holds the NFL record for yards rushed in a single game: ADRIAN. Gimme for me/Jeannie/KQ. Lots of Adrian Peterson jersey wearers here in Minnesota.
6. Unsound, as an argument: WEAK
7. Relay race part: LEG
8. Asparagus unit: SPEAR. How do you like your asparagus prepared, Mainaic?
9. __ blocker: BETA
10. Umpteen: A LOT OF
11. Privileged connection: DIRECT LINE. The "Cold War connection" is HOT LINE.
12. Whole range: GAMUT. No A TO Z today.
13. It began on viernes in 2010: ENERO. Spanish for "January". Easy guess. I did not know viernes means "Friday".
18. Take in too little: UNDEREAT
22. One with a long face: MOPER
26. Cybertrash: SPAM. Irritating!
27. "Return of the Jedi" green-skinned dancer: OOLA. No idea. Why is she green-skinned? One O short of OOOLA, Alley Oop's girlfriend.
29. "Dies __": IRAE. Literally "wrath". "Dies Irae" = Day of Wrath. The Requiem Mass hymn.
31. Full scholarship, e.g.: FREE RIDE. Chinese government paid all my university education.
36. Have heated words: SPAR
37. Two tablets, say: DOSE
47. Maxima maker: NISSAN. Literally "Made in Japan". The Japanese Kanji character for SAN means "produce/make".
49. Cleanup hitters, briefly: RBI MEN. Like Justin Moreau, Twin's RBI man.
50. Actor Jannings and pianist Gilels: EMILS. Only know Emil Jannings, the first ever Oscar winner (1928).
51. South Pacific island nation: SAMOA. Capital is Apia.
56. Periodic table fig.: AT. NO. (Atomic Number)
57. Peace symbol: DOVE
59. "East of __": EDEN. The John Steinbeck novel. James Dean starred in the movie. Pretty good.
60. Means of determining proficiency: TEST
63. Cheer syllable: RAH
Constructor's note:
"The inspiration for this puzzle comes from Rich himself. Rich is adept at making a clue sound like it is going to be one thing, and it takes a clever turn. For example, in his puzzle from the Crosswords Club in January, a clue was “Plan for a chair”. Our minds are so attuned to thinking of “plan” as a verb in that situation that we read the clue and go “Huh?” The answer is AGENDA.
One tactic that has been employed by the LA Times puzzles that got me so many times was to start a phrase with the word “nice”, and then go on to describe some object that turns out to be French. “Nice hat” is CHAPEAU. “Nice house” is MAISON. I don’t know if those words actually appeared, but one can understand the effect. So after falling for this gag umpteen times, I decided to take it a step further. What if the word in French was actually a word that we use in English? So that is simply the basis of this puzzle. It still hasn’t cured me of seeing “Nice” and thinking in English, because we really do think reactively and quickly. By the way, the French place “Nice” is not pronounced like our English “nice” (it sounds like niece).
Answer grid.
C.C.
