Theme: A bunch of crazies - Five mad synonyms begin each theme entry:
20A. Toon with the catchphrase "You're despicable!" : DAFFY DUCK. He's evolved a little since 1937:
27A. With "The," Julius Kelp, in a 1963 movie : NUTTY PROFESSOR. Written by, directed by and starring Jerry Lewis. I'm guessing there wasn't a lot of argument on the set.
34A. Alfred E. Neuman trademark : SILLY GRIN. Mad Magazine gap-toothed "cover boy".
46A. Dr. Seuss book about an odd time of the week : WACKY WEDNESDAY
56A. Riding crop relative : BUGGY WHIP. Or what you get when you take dessert cream in a can on a picnic?
Morning! A quintet of themers - all adjectives, all five letters and all synonyms. The final BUGGY was new to me, I'd never heard the term used in that context. I'm more familiar with the creaky computer code meaning.
It did cross my mind that a CRAZY entry might be a little more mainstream, but I'm guessing BUGGY must be more in-the-language than I thought.
The NE corner had me stumped for the longest time. I eventually stared it down, but it took way longer than is normal for me; it's always nice to be challenged. Tricky cluing for TEAM USA, APRICOT and SETTERS; indecision between CREEDS and CREDOS and not seeing any of the cross entries had me sweating.
Let's see what else we've got today:
Across:
1. They don't last long : FADS
5. Little biter : GNAT
9. Take the role of : ACT AS. With ACH already in place, I started with ADOPT, which contributed to my NE corner travails.
14. Introductory French infinitive : ÊTRE. To Be. Hamlet's favorite French verb.
15. Girl in a Manilow song with "a dress cut down to there" : LOLA. From the Copacabana Club in New York City, named for the beach in Rio.
16. Left Bank lunch choice : CRÊPE. More uncertainty here. I was ruminating whether another city had a Left Bank (I'm more familiar with the Parisian "Rive Gauche") and if we were in France why neither "soupe" nor "salade" worked with my "ACH". A geographical oddity, the Left Bank is actually on the south side of the river in central Paris.
17. Gas, for one: Abbr. : UTIL
18. Fossey subjects : APES
19. Crux : HEART.
22. Send out : EMIT.
23. Trainer's command : SIT
24. Wing, perhaps : ELL
25. Offer as proof : ADDUCE. I don't think I knew this. The word looks familiar now I see it, but it was my final fill.
31. Restful place : SPA
32. Struggling sea : ARAL. Struggling in the sense that it's disappearing. The same is happening with a number of lakes here in California. Just yesterday, the British "Guardian" newspaper carried this story about Eagle Lake.
33. Cadillac model : ATS. Not STS then.
39. "Shameless" network, in TV listings : SHO. Showtime. I don't think about this any more, it just goes straight in.
42. Old Venetian judge : DOGE. He had a nice, modest abode, the old judge. No over-indulgence here. Two beds, 1 1/2 baths.
43. Special __ : OPS
51. Is of use to : AVAILS
52. Source of confidence : EGO
53. Copyright data: Abbr. : YRS. As in © 2015, 2016
55. Shore bird : TERN. Oh, so not TEAL.
59. "Granted" : SO I DO. "So you think I blog every Thursday? Granted, but I might need a stand-in every now and again".
61. Algerian coastal city : ORAN. Nice looking place. Second largest city after the capital Algiers.
62. __-Tahoe Airport : RENO. I got delayed here on the way back from a meeting in Reno with the manufacturers of most of the video gaming machines you find in Reno, Las Vegas and other gambling resorts. To kill some time I played a few hands of video poker on one of their machines, and before I knew what was happening I'd lost $100. I didn't get the business either, just to add insult to injury.
63. Wing, perhaps : ANNEX
64. Gp. joined by Croatia in 2009 : N.A.T.O.
65. 2012 Best Picture : ARGO
66. Welling up : TEARY
67. Cassini of fashion : OLEG. He created the "Jackie Look" for the First Lady.
68. Glimpse : PEEK
Down:
1. Extended conflicts : FEUDS
2. Gets : ATTAINS
3. Rise slowly, as smoke : DRIFT UP
4. Lifestyle magazine : SELF. I'd never heard of this publication, but then I don't think I'm exactly the target demographic.
5. "With pleasure!" : GLADLY
6. Tropicana option : NO PULP. I like the pulpy grapefruit juice personally.
7. Guinness on screen : ALEC
8. Job : TASK
9. "__ du lieber!" : ACH. My only entry in the NE for some considerable time.
10. Doctrines : CREEDS
11. Stars and Stripes squad : TEAM USA. Tricky.
12. Nectar source : APRICOT. Tricky.
13. British cruciverbalists : SETTERS. Tricky! Usually called "constructors" here in the US. The marquee London Times cryptic puzzle appears anonymously, others newspapers use pseudonyms for the setters.
21. "__ Brutus says he was ambitious": Antony : YET
25. Way off : AFAR
26. Section with a slicer : DELI. I was thinking along the lines of a kitchen tool before the penny dropped.
28. Positions for Ph.D. students : T.A.S
29. Like daisies : RAYED. Crosses filled this in for me. Here's a bee visiting:
30. Cousin of edu : ORG. URL suffix.
35. Pastoral poem : IDYL
36. Some temperature extremes : LOWS
37. Soft drink ord. : LGE.
38. Subtle assent : NOD
39. Goes after, as a fly : SWATS AT
40. Hors d'oeuvres server's suggestion : HAVE ONE! I put in HAVE TWO! initially, I guess a reflection of what I'd like to hear!
41. Ancient instrument with finger holes : OCARINA. I had no idea that this was a thing:
44. Sign at the register : PAY HERE
45. Shot source : SYRINGE
47. More comforting : KINDER. I can't stop seeing the German "child" with this word. It's like the candelabra/kissing picture - once you see one, it's hard to see the other.
48. Void : NEGATE
49. Seasonal quaff : EGG NOG
50. Vegan staple : SOY
54. Frighten, as a horse : SPOOK
56. U2 frontman : BONO. A little late for a musical link, but here's one of my favorite ballads from "The Joshua Tree" album.
57. Russia's __ Mountains : URAL
58. Food truck offering : WRAP
60. Oil giant, on the NYSE : OXY. Occidental Petroleum Corp.
I think that should do it for me today. It's a 56D.
Steve
Oh - and heeeeeere's the grid!
20A. Toon with the catchphrase "You're despicable!" : DAFFY DUCK. He's evolved a little since 1937:
34A. Alfred E. Neuman trademark : SILLY GRIN. Mad Magazine gap-toothed "cover boy".
46A. Dr. Seuss book about an odd time of the week : WACKY WEDNESDAY
56A. Riding crop relative : BUGGY WHIP. Or what you get when you take dessert cream in a can on a picnic?
Morning! A quintet of themers - all adjectives, all five letters and all synonyms. The final BUGGY was new to me, I'd never heard the term used in that context. I'm more familiar with the creaky computer code meaning.
It did cross my mind that a CRAZY entry might be a little more mainstream, but I'm guessing BUGGY must be more in-the-language than I thought.
The NE corner had me stumped for the longest time. I eventually stared it down, but it took way longer than is normal for me; it's always nice to be challenged. Tricky cluing for TEAM USA, APRICOT and SETTERS; indecision between CREEDS and CREDOS and not seeing any of the cross entries had me sweating.
Let's see what else we've got today:
Across:
1. They don't last long : FADS
5. Little biter : GNAT
9. Take the role of : ACT AS. With ACH already in place, I started with ADOPT, which contributed to my NE corner travails.
14. Introductory French infinitive : ÊTRE. To Be. Hamlet's favorite French verb.
15. Girl in a Manilow song with "a dress cut down to there" : LOLA. From the Copacabana Club in New York City, named for the beach in Rio.
16. Left Bank lunch choice : CRÊPE. More uncertainty here. I was ruminating whether another city had a Left Bank (I'm more familiar with the Parisian "Rive Gauche") and if we were in France why neither "soupe" nor "salade" worked with my "ACH". A geographical oddity, the Left Bank is actually on the south side of the river in central Paris.
17. Gas, for one: Abbr. : UTIL
18. Fossey subjects : APES
19. Crux : HEART.
22. Send out : EMIT.
23. Trainer's command : SIT
24. Wing, perhaps : ELL
25. Offer as proof : ADDUCE. I don't think I knew this. The word looks familiar now I see it, but it was my final fill.
31. Restful place : SPA
32. Struggling sea : ARAL. Struggling in the sense that it's disappearing. The same is happening with a number of lakes here in California. Just yesterday, the British "Guardian" newspaper carried this story about Eagle Lake.
33. Cadillac model : ATS. Not STS then.
39. "Shameless" network, in TV listings : SHO. Showtime. I don't think about this any more, it just goes straight in.
42. Old Venetian judge : DOGE. He had a nice, modest abode, the old judge. No over-indulgence here. Two beds, 1 1/2 baths.
51. Is of use to : AVAILS
52. Source of confidence : EGO
53. Copyright data: Abbr. : YRS. As in © 2015, 2016
55. Shore bird : TERN. Oh, so not TEAL.
59. "Granted" : SO I DO. "So you think I blog every Thursday? Granted, but I might need a stand-in every now and again".
61. Algerian coastal city : ORAN. Nice looking place. Second largest city after the capital Algiers.
62. __-Tahoe Airport : RENO. I got delayed here on the way back from a meeting in Reno with the manufacturers of most of the video gaming machines you find in Reno, Las Vegas and other gambling resorts. To kill some time I played a few hands of video poker on one of their machines, and before I knew what was happening I'd lost $100. I didn't get the business either, just to add insult to injury.
63. Wing, perhaps : ANNEX
64. Gp. joined by Croatia in 2009 : N.A.T.O.
65. 2012 Best Picture : ARGO
66. Welling up : TEARY
67. Cassini of fashion : OLEG. He created the "Jackie Look" for the First Lady.
68. Glimpse : PEEK
Down:
1. Extended conflicts : FEUDS
2. Gets : ATTAINS
3. Rise slowly, as smoke : DRIFT UP
4. Lifestyle magazine : SELF. I'd never heard of this publication, but then I don't think I'm exactly the target demographic.
5. "With pleasure!" : GLADLY
6. Tropicana option : NO PULP. I like the pulpy grapefruit juice personally.
7. Guinness on screen : ALEC
8. Job : TASK
9. "__ du lieber!" : ACH. My only entry in the NE for some considerable time.
10. Doctrines : CREEDS
11. Stars and Stripes squad : TEAM USA. Tricky.
12. Nectar source : APRICOT. Tricky.
13. British cruciverbalists : SETTERS. Tricky! Usually called "constructors" here in the US. The marquee London Times cryptic puzzle appears anonymously, others newspapers use pseudonyms for the setters.
21. "__ Brutus says he was ambitious": Antony : YET
25. Way off : AFAR
26. Section with a slicer : DELI. I was thinking along the lines of a kitchen tool before the penny dropped.
28. Positions for Ph.D. students : T.A.S
29. Like daisies : RAYED. Crosses filled this in for me. Here's a bee visiting:
30. Cousin of edu : ORG. URL suffix.
35. Pastoral poem : IDYL
But when that moan had past for evermore,
The stillness of the dead world's winter dawn
Amazed him, and he groan'd, "The King is gone.''
And therewithal came on him the weird rhyme,
"From the great deep to the great deep he goes."
From "Idyls of the King: The Passing of Arthur" - Alfred, Lord Tennyson
36. Some temperature extremes : LOWS
37. Soft drink ord. : LGE.
38. Subtle assent : NOD
39. Goes after, as a fly : SWATS AT
40. Hors d'oeuvres server's suggestion : HAVE ONE! I put in HAVE TWO! initially, I guess a reflection of what I'd like to hear!
41. Ancient instrument with finger holes : OCARINA. I had no idea that this was a thing:
44. Sign at the register : PAY HERE
45. Shot source : SYRINGE
47. More comforting : KINDER. I can't stop seeing the German "child" with this word. It's like the candelabra/kissing picture - once you see one, it's hard to see the other.
48. Void : NEGATE
49. Seasonal quaff : EGG NOG
50. Vegan staple : SOY
54. Frighten, as a horse : SPOOK
56. U2 frontman : BONO. A little late for a musical link, but here's one of my favorite ballads from "The Joshua Tree" album.
57. Russia's __ Mountains : URAL
58. Food truck offering : WRAP
60. Oil giant, on the NYSE : OXY. Occidental Petroleum Corp.
I think that should do it for me today. It's a 56D.
Steve
Oh - and heeeeeere's the grid!
