Theme: TOGA, or another type of "butter" churn!
16A. Rolls off the alley: GUTTER BALLS. Bowling's not my thing, I just don't have the coordination for it.
23A. Swing era dance: JITTERBUG. Ditto me and dancing, that coordination problem again. This picture is captioned "Scandalous Teen Crazes". The scandal!
32A. Smoking hazard: CIGARETTE BURN. I was half-expecting "BUTT" instead of BURN, but of course that wouldn't work with the theme. Mr. Purist says that you shouldn't have any of the same letters of your scramble adjacent to the ones you have scrambled - in this case the "RE" in "CIGARE-" breaks the rule. However, I'm feeling charitable today, so no grumble.
44A. Anticipatory counterargument: PREBUTTAL. A relatively new portmanteau - "pre-emptive rebuttal" usually in politics where you 'fess up to your shortcomings before the opposition point them out. I use the same tactics in a competitive sales situation - I know the FUD that the competition are going to dish, so I get my counters in first (FUD = fear, uncertainty, doubt).
and the reveal:
52A. Dairy implement, and a hint to what's hidden in 16-, 23-, 32-, and 44-Across: BUTTER CHURN
A nice clean theme from Joe, and I counted the grid size twice to make sure we're back to a regulation 15x15 after the last four Thursdays produced an additional square across or down.
Let's see what we've got in the fill - two clunkers and a lot of pleasant stuff!
Across:
1. Minimally: A TAD
5. Oversight: LAPSE
10. "Man With a Plan" network: CBS. In the news this week for reasons they didn't wish for.
13. One and only: SOLE
14. Fads: MANIAS
15. No longer active: Abbr.: RET. As in a retired asset. Most retired people I know are more active than the rest of us who are nose-to-the-grindstone keeping-the-wheels-of-industry-turning. My retired sister probably puts up more air miles than me, and spends her time exploring Mayan ruins in Honduras, hitchhiking through Cuba, yomping up mountains in Montana and generally playing "Where's Waldo?".
18. "__ we there yet?": ARE
19. College Board exam, briefly: AP TEST. Strictly "advanced placement", but one of those "no longer an abbreviation" examples. So is "exam" in the clue. Coincidence?
20. French assent: OUI
21. It's calculated using ht. and wt.: B.M.I. Body Mass Index.
22. Make a face, say: REACT
26. Loan application section: DEBT
27. Badgers: NAGS
28. Staff helper: AIDE
29. "Be My __ Ono": Barenaked Ladies song: YOKO. A nice departure clue for a crossword staple. I didn't fill it in right away because it could have been a lot of different words if you don't know the song.
30. West Coast athletic footwear company: LA GEAR
36. Got close to empty: RAN LOW
37. Area to lay anchor: COVE
38. High style: UPDO
39. Cry related to "hey": AHOY! Often heard in a cove?
40. Opt out: PASS
47. Goldfinger's first name: AURIC
48. Three-time NBA Finals MVP Duncan: TIM. One of the most unassuming people ever to suit up for a professional sports team.
49. __ Butterworth: MRS. Her first name was revealed, to great fanfare in 2009. Joy! No, not the emotion, that's her name. Apparently. What is Aunt Jemima's last name? We should be told.
50. Post-workout lament: I'M SORE
51. Open event gold medalist in the 2016 Chess Olympiad: USA. Apparently there are two categories, "Open" and "Women's". Don't ask me why. Ask FIDE, the World Chess Federation. Also, don't ask me why one is a translation of the other either. Odd bods, those chess folk.
55. Do a 5K, e.g.: RUN. Followed by 50A, probably.
56. Meets up with the old gang: REUNES. Ach. Clang! I know we've seen this before, but it doesn't make it any more pleasant.
57. "Makes sense": I SEE
58. Conclusion: END
59. Increase: ADD TO
60. Typically round-neck shirts: TEES
Down:
1. Norse gods' home: ASGARD. I got stuck on "Valhalla" and couldn't let go for a time. Valhalla is in Asgard. I also got distracted by "Isengard" from The Lord of the Rings. I wonder about what goes on with my synapses sometimes.
2. Head cover: TOUPEE
3. Window-switching keyboard shortcut: ALT-TAB
4. Catch a scent of: DETECT
5. Yellow __: LAB
6. "Fifty Shades of Grey" heroine: ANA. Thank you, crosses, The whole "Grey" genre passed me by.
7. Trial episodes: PILOTS
8. French toast: SALUT!
9. Nail polish brand: ESSIE. I'll take Joe's word for it. Not on my regular shopping list.
10. More like Oscar the Grouch: CRABBIER
11. Hamilton local: BERMUDAN. I read "locale" and was trying to figure out how to cram BROADWAY into a place it patently did not belong.
12. "In the Heat of the Night" Oscar winner Rod: STEIGER. He won the Oscar for Best Actor. Co-star Rod Steiger won the Golden Globe and the BAFTA award for the same thing. I don't know any movie where that's ever happened before or since.
14. B.A. Baracus player: MR. T. The "A" Team.
17. Superlative suffix: EST
-
23. Copacetic: JAKE. I'd not seen this synomym before. From the "Roaring Twenties" according to that font of all knowledge, the Oracle at Delphi. I mean Wikipedia.
24. "Makes sense": I GOTCHA. See "I SEE" above.
25. Old World Style sauce: RAGU. This one:
27. Swed. neighbor: NORW. Not my favorite. SWE and NOR in my book. You don't see DENM or FINL.
29. Retired NBAer Ming: YAO. I think he stands six feet nineteen and can leap the Great Wall in a single bound, even in retirement.
30. Tax: LEVY
31. Japanese prime minister since 2012: ABE. Is he honest? We should be told.
32. Big name in juice pouches: CAPRI SUN
33. Hot: IN DEMAND
34. Amorphous mass: GLOB. Is a globule a little glob, or something else entirely? Discuss.
35. Home Depot purchase: TOOL
36. Burst: RUPTURE
39. Ready to sire: AT STUD
40. Test limits: PUSH IT
41. Excite: AROUSE
42. Yes or no follower: SIRREE!
43. Drama segments: SCENES
45. Sunspot center: UMBRA. Suntan? Burnt Umbra :)
46. Leveled, with "up": TRUED
47. Theater chain initials: AMC. Pioneers of the multiplex and megaplex theaters, both in the USA and around the world.
50. Form W-9 org.: IRS.
53. Explosive stuff: TNT. Boom!
54. Fair-hiring letters: EEO. I always want it to be "Equal Opportunity Employer" which puts me off my stroke somewhat.
I love the window seat on the plane, I can't understand why anyone would want to pull the shade down, it's a beautiful world out there. I'm heading south back to LA from Seattle, and this is the sunset outside. Not the best picture, but I thought it was one to share.
Thanks to all for the birthday wishes yesterday. I was treated to a quite amazing dinner at José Andrés' restaurant here in LA last night. We ate at the kitchen bar with just eight other people and were presented with a twenty (!) course tasting menu served by the chefs who prepared the dishes. Most times I think I could take a stab at reproducing something I've eaten in a restaurant, but this one? Not a chance.
Grid? Gridded!
Steve
16A. Rolls off the alley: GUTTER BALLS. Bowling's not my thing, I just don't have the coordination for it.
23A. Swing era dance: JITTERBUG. Ditto me and dancing, that coordination problem again. This picture is captioned "Scandalous Teen Crazes". The scandal!
32A. Smoking hazard: CIGARETTE BURN. I was half-expecting "BUTT" instead of BURN, but of course that wouldn't work with the theme. Mr. Purist says that you shouldn't have any of the same letters of your scramble adjacent to the ones you have scrambled - in this case the "RE" in "CIGARE-" breaks the rule. However, I'm feeling charitable today, so no grumble.
44A. Anticipatory counterargument: PREBUTTAL. A relatively new portmanteau - "pre-emptive rebuttal" usually in politics where you 'fess up to your shortcomings before the opposition point them out. I use the same tactics in a competitive sales situation - I know the FUD that the competition are going to dish, so I get my counters in first (FUD = fear, uncertainty, doubt).
and the reveal:
52A. Dairy implement, and a hint to what's hidden in 16-, 23-, 32-, and 44-Across: BUTTER CHURN
A nice clean theme from Joe, and I counted the grid size twice to make sure we're back to a regulation 15x15 after the last four Thursdays produced an additional square across or down.
Let's see what we've got in the fill - two clunkers and a lot of pleasant stuff!
1. Minimally: A TAD
5. Oversight: LAPSE
10. "Man With a Plan" network: CBS. In the news this week for reasons they didn't wish for.
13. One and only: SOLE
14. Fads: MANIAS
15. No longer active: Abbr.: RET. As in a retired asset. Most retired people I know are more active than the rest of us who are nose-to-the-grindstone keeping-the-wheels-of-industry-turning. My retired sister probably puts up more air miles than me, and spends her time exploring Mayan ruins in Honduras, hitchhiking through Cuba, yomping up mountains in Montana and generally playing "Where's Waldo?".
18. "__ we there yet?": ARE
19. College Board exam, briefly: AP TEST. Strictly "advanced placement", but one of those "no longer an abbreviation" examples. So is "exam" in the clue. Coincidence?
20. French assent: OUI
21. It's calculated using ht. and wt.: B.M.I. Body Mass Index.
22. Make a face, say: REACT
26. Loan application section: DEBT
27. Badgers: NAGS
28. Staff helper: AIDE
29. "Be My __ Ono": Barenaked Ladies song: YOKO. A nice departure clue for a crossword staple. I didn't fill it in right away because it could have been a lot of different words if you don't know the song.
30. West Coast athletic footwear company: LA GEAR
36. Got close to empty: RAN LOW
37. Area to lay anchor: COVE
38. High style: UPDO
39. Cry related to "hey": AHOY! Often heard in a cove?
40. Opt out: PASS
47. Goldfinger's first name: AURIC
48. Three-time NBA Finals MVP Duncan: TIM. One of the most unassuming people ever to suit up for a professional sports team.
49. __ Butterworth: MRS. Her first name was revealed, to great fanfare in 2009. Joy! No, not the emotion, that's her name. Apparently. What is Aunt Jemima's last name? We should be told.
50. Post-workout lament: I'M SORE
51. Open event gold medalist in the 2016 Chess Olympiad: USA. Apparently there are two categories, "Open" and "Women's". Don't ask me why. Ask FIDE, the World Chess Federation. Also, don't ask me why one is a translation of the other either. Odd bods, those chess folk.
55. Do a 5K, e.g.: RUN. Followed by 50A, probably.
56. Meets up with the old gang: REUNES. Ach. Clang! I know we've seen this before, but it doesn't make it any more pleasant.
57. "Makes sense": I SEE
58. Conclusion: END
59. Increase: ADD TO
60. Typically round-neck shirts: TEES
Down:
1. Norse gods' home: ASGARD. I got stuck on "Valhalla" and couldn't let go for a time. Valhalla is in Asgard. I also got distracted by "Isengard" from The Lord of the Rings. I wonder about what goes on with my synapses sometimes.
2. Head cover: TOUPEE
3. Window-switching keyboard shortcut: ALT-TAB
4. Catch a scent of: DETECT
5. Yellow __: LAB
6. "Fifty Shades of Grey" heroine: ANA. Thank you, crosses, The whole "Grey" genre passed me by.
7. Trial episodes: PILOTS
8. French toast: SALUT!
9. Nail polish brand: ESSIE. I'll take Joe's word for it. Not on my regular shopping list.
10. More like Oscar the Grouch: CRABBIER
11. Hamilton local: BERMUDAN. I read "locale" and was trying to figure out how to cram BROADWAY into a place it patently did not belong.
12. "In the Heat of the Night" Oscar winner Rod: STEIGER. He won the Oscar for Best Actor. Co-star Rod Steiger won the Golden Globe and the BAFTA award for the same thing. I don't know any movie where that's ever happened before or since.
14. B.A. Baracus player: MR. T. The "A" Team.
17. Superlative suffix: EST
-
23. Copacetic: JAKE. I'd not seen this synomym before. From the "Roaring Twenties" according to that font of all knowledge, the Oracle at Delphi. I mean Wikipedia.
24. "Makes sense": I GOTCHA. See "I SEE" above.
25. Old World Style sauce: RAGU. This one:
27. Swed. neighbor: NORW. Not my favorite. SWE and NOR in my book. You don't see DENM or FINL.
29. Retired NBAer Ming: YAO. I think he stands six feet nineteen and can leap the Great Wall in a single bound, even in retirement.
30. Tax: LEVY
31. Japanese prime minister since 2012: ABE. Is he honest? We should be told.
32. Big name in juice pouches: CAPRI SUN
33. Hot: IN DEMAND
34. Amorphous mass: GLOB. Is a globule a little glob, or something else entirely? Discuss.
35. Home Depot purchase: TOOL
36. Burst: RUPTURE
39. Ready to sire: AT STUD
40. Test limits: PUSH IT
41. Excite: AROUSE
42. Yes or no follower: SIRREE!
43. Drama segments: SCENES
45. Sunspot center: UMBRA. Suntan? Burnt Umbra :)
46. Leveled, with "up": TRUED
47. Theater chain initials: AMC. Pioneers of the multiplex and megaplex theaters, both in the USA and around the world.
50. Form W-9 org.: IRS.
53. Explosive stuff: TNT. Boom!
54. Fair-hiring letters: EEO. I always want it to be "Equal Opportunity Employer" which puts me off my stroke somewhat.
I love the window seat on the plane, I can't understand why anyone would want to pull the shade down, it's a beautiful world out there. I'm heading south back to LA from Seattle, and this is the sunset outside. Not the best picture, but I thought it was one to share.
Thanks to all for the birthday wishes yesterday. I was treated to a quite amazing dinner at José Andrés' restaurant here in LA last night. We ate at the kitchen bar with just eight other people and were presented with a twenty (!) course tasting menu served by the chefs who prepared the dishes. Most times I think I could take a stab at reproducing something I've eaten in a restaurant, but this one? Not a chance.
Grid? Gridded!
Steve
