Theme: Pun like a Pirate Day - the five theme answers all have a nautical punning groove going on:
17A. Spot to spread out a ship's map, maybe?: BRIDGE TABLE. The map of the ship itself, not a chart. Those already have a chart table to be spread on.
25A. Sailors dealing with a ship's cargo?: HOLD HANDS
37A. Awesome things near the front of a ship?: BOW WOWS
47A. Backwards glance on a ship?: STERN LOOK
57A. Strength measure of the ship cook's spirits?: GALLEY PROOF. Technically, a galley proof is a proof that's been printed out. Electronic versions are "uncorrected proofs", but no-one's going to argue if you call it a galley. Interesting that "galley" is also a type of ship in keeping with the nautical theme. Here's a Roman one;
I found this a little tougher going than the usual Thursday, it took me a little while to get a foothold in the top half, but then things started falling into place. I liked the puns by and large, I think HOLD HANDS was my favorite.
The grid is nicely done with the stacked 8's in the downs at the NE and SW and the fill is fresh and lively. Nicely done.
However, I do have one major gripe today, but we'll get to that in due course.
Across:
1. Hornet and Matador: AMCS. I didn't know this and needed all the crosses. 1970's vehicles manufactured by AMC.
5. Tech-savvy school gp.: A.V. CLUB. The Audiovisual Club.
11. Higher ed. test: G.R.E.
14. Fail to save one's skin?: MOLT. Nice clue, this one, it made me laugh.
15. Bring back to the firm: REHIRE
16. 35-state Western org.: O.A.S. The Organization of American States. All 35 independent states in the Americas are members of the organization.
19. "The Racer's Edge": STP. Originally, it stood for Scientifically-Treated Petroleum. Who knew?
20. "American Gods" actor McShane: IAN. He also starred in a gentle BBC comedy-drama Lovejoy in the 80's, he played the eponymous roguish antiques dealer.
21. Shell material: NACRE
22. Milk by-product: WHEY
23. Yale's Mr. Yale: ELIHU. Nailed it! Thank you, Crosswords Past.
28. Most warm: NICEST
30. Barbershop staple: RAZOR. I talked myself out of YAZOO, I was thinking along the musical lines at first.
31. Industry mogul: CZAR
32. Seedy abode: RAT HOLE. The first flat I lived in in London was above a sweatshop and had no hot water. A rooster lived next door, and the landlord would drop off a pound of bacon, a loaf of bread and two dozen eggs each week so that he could claim he was running a B-and-B (no rent control). We had breakfast, so we're a B-and-B? I moved, eventually, but after a lot of early-morning awakenings from the rooster. I was broke. I was working two jobs (marine insurance filing clerk by day, bartender in an Irish pub by night) but it still a struggle. We've all been there.
36. Sushi choice: EEL
38. Sweetie, in slang: BAE. Short for "babe" or "baby". I don't think you call someone a "bae", you describe someone as your "bae". I think. Check with your nearest teenager.
41. Snore: SAW LOGS
42. Numerous: MANY
43. Gave one's word: SWORE
45. Often recyclable tech products: EWASTE. Electrical or electronic devices.
51. Adams who shot El Capitan: ANSEL I have an Ansel Adams print in my home office of the memorial at Manzanar. He took some wonderful photographs of the camp and the internees.
52. Tiny parasites: LICE
53. Secluded valleys: GLENS
55. __ Lanka: SRI
56. Imaginepeace.com artist: ONO
60. Ref's call: TKO. I tried OUT first, was wrong.
61. "Her cheeks are rosy, she looks a little nosey" girl in a 1962 #1 hit: SHEILA. I'd never heard of this song by Tommy Roe. I'd never heard of Tommy either. This contributed to my gripe, of which more at the bottom.
62. Like crazy: A LOT
63. Sun, in Ibiza: SOL
64. Use a combine: THRESH
65. Soccer followers?: MOMS
Down:
1. Restaurant review factor: AMBIENCE
2. Get all preachy: MORALIZE
3. Kind of psychology: CLINICAL
4. Criterion: Abbr.: STD
5. Neighborhood: AREA
6. Climbing plant: VETCH. Part of Swansea City's old soccer ground, Vetch Field, was quite fantastically re-purposed to a wild flower haven when the club outgrew the facilities and moved to a new stadium. Usually these spaces are redeveloped for commercial or mixed-use properties. Kudos to Swansea for preserving some of the open space.
7. One-named "Hollywood Squares" panelist: CHARO
8. Defamation in print: LIBEL
9. Web address: URL
10. Spelling event: BEE
11. "Jeepers, I wouldn't think of it!": GOSH, NO!
12. Not for kids: RATED R. Be careful with R-RATED and RATED-R - I went with the former initially.
13. 2018 awards event hosted by Danica Patrick: ESPYS
18. African herd: GNUS. What do you call a herd of wildebeest that arrive two hours before midnight? The Ten O'Clock Gnus. I'll get my coat, thank you, I'm here all week.
22. GPS navigation app: WAZE. Is this a first in the LA Times? I can't find another reference.
24. QE2 designation: HER. I wanted "HMS" first. I was wrong. The QE2 was an ocean, later a cruise liner, owned by Cunard, based in Southampton. Her predecessor, the Queen Mary, is permanently-moored in Long Beach. We stayed on board a couple of years ago. My family went to wave her off from Southampton on her final voyage. I never thought all those years later I'd be staying on the ship in California. You never know what life will bring.
26. Drift off: DROWSE
27. Dutch artist Frans: HALS. When I was a kid, we had a print of "The Laughing Cavalier" in our entry hallway - odd because we had very few, if any, prints hanging on the wall. My mother said she "liked his smile".
29. Gardening tool: TROWEL
33. Punching tool: AWL
34. With 42-Down, like some bobsleds: TWO-man or four-man bobs.
35. Harley Davidson's NYSE symbol: HOG
37. Stable environment?: BARN
38. Jazz improv highlight: BASS SOLO. The drum solo is usually a good time to head to the bar for a refresher.
39. Waiting area: ANTE ROOM
40. Some cosmetic procedures: EYE LIFTS
41. Hot under the collar: SORE
42. See 34-Down: MAN
43. Hammered: STINKO. Drunk, badly (and slangily) - in the UK we were "paralytic" - not that I ever was, obviously.
44. "No hard feelings, dude": WE COOL Used in Pulp Fiction, one of my all-time-best-favorite movies. Not to everyone's taste.
46. Winged stinger: WASP
47. Vegas attraction: SLOTS. Took me a while to talk myself off STRIP.
48. Rubberneck: OGLER. Now this presumes that there is a noun for a rubbernecker - oh, wait, there is! It's "rubbernecker". To rubberneck is the verb. One demerit point for this.
49. Stan's slapstick pal: OLLIE. Abbott and Costello. No, wait - who's on first? Laurel and Hardy.
50. Naval bases?: KEELS. Nice clue, made me think a while.
54. Gloating word usually repeated: NYAH. Not NAH? I'm not a fan of these "spell it how you like" words. See also AHH/AAH.
57. Setting at 0 degrees long.: G.S.T.. So her we arrive at my gripe. I'm assuming that GST is supposed to be an abbreviation for Greenwich Standard Time, but that's the problem. The time at the zero meridian is Greenwich Mean Time, or GMT. The only reference to "Greenwich Standard Time" I can find is a source on the web that says it's the time zone in Iceland and Liberia, but when you search "Iceland Time Zone" it comes up as GMT. Ditto for Liberia, furthermore neither of which are on the zero meridian. So I'm calling this out as wrong. If SHEILA had been a little less obscure, maybe I wouldn't have minded so much, but this left me with a DNF, I just couldn't see past GMT.
58. "This is so relaxing!": AHH! Could equally be spelled AAH!
59. West Coast athlete: RAM. Los Angeles NFL player.
And to the victor, the spoils. Not me today, I was done in by GST, SHEILA and spell-it-how-you-like AHH.
Here's the grid!
Steve
17A. Spot to spread out a ship's map, maybe?: BRIDGE TABLE. The map of the ship itself, not a chart. Those already have a chart table to be spread on.
25A. Sailors dealing with a ship's cargo?: HOLD HANDS
37A. Awesome things near the front of a ship?: BOW WOWS
47A. Backwards glance on a ship?: STERN LOOK
57A. Strength measure of the ship cook's spirits?: GALLEY PROOF. Technically, a galley proof is a proof that's been printed out. Electronic versions are "uncorrected proofs", but no-one's going to argue if you call it a galley. Interesting that "galley" is also a type of ship in keeping with the nautical theme. Here's a Roman one;
I found this a little tougher going than the usual Thursday, it took me a little while to get a foothold in the top half, but then things started falling into place. I liked the puns by and large, I think HOLD HANDS was my favorite.
The grid is nicely done with the stacked 8's in the downs at the NE and SW and the fill is fresh and lively. Nicely done.
However, I do have one major gripe today, but we'll get to that in due course.
Across:
1. Hornet and Matador: AMCS. I didn't know this and needed all the crosses. 1970's vehicles manufactured by AMC.
5. Tech-savvy school gp.: A.V. CLUB. The Audiovisual Club.
11. Higher ed. test: G.R.E.
14. Fail to save one's skin?: MOLT. Nice clue, this one, it made me laugh.
15. Bring back to the firm: REHIRE
16. 35-state Western org.: O.A.S. The Organization of American States. All 35 independent states in the Americas are members of the organization.
19. "The Racer's Edge": STP. Originally, it stood for Scientifically-Treated Petroleum. Who knew?
20. "American Gods" actor McShane: IAN. He also starred in a gentle BBC comedy-drama Lovejoy in the 80's, he played the eponymous roguish antiques dealer.
21. Shell material: NACRE
22. Milk by-product: WHEY
23. Yale's Mr. Yale: ELIHU. Nailed it! Thank you, Crosswords Past.
28. Most warm: NICEST
30. Barbershop staple: RAZOR. I talked myself out of YAZOO, I was thinking along the musical lines at first.
31. Industry mogul: CZAR
32. Seedy abode: RAT HOLE. The first flat I lived in in London was above a sweatshop and had no hot water. A rooster lived next door, and the landlord would drop off a pound of bacon, a loaf of bread and two dozen eggs each week so that he could claim he was running a B-and-B (no rent control). We had breakfast, so we're a B-and-B? I moved, eventually, but after a lot of early-morning awakenings from the rooster. I was broke. I was working two jobs (marine insurance filing clerk by day, bartender in an Irish pub by night) but it still a struggle. We've all been there.
36. Sushi choice: EEL
38. Sweetie, in slang: BAE. Short for "babe" or "baby". I don't think you call someone a "bae", you describe someone as your "bae". I think. Check with your nearest teenager.
41. Snore: SAW LOGS
42. Numerous: MANY
43. Gave one's word: SWORE
45. Often recyclable tech products: EWASTE. Electrical or electronic devices.
51. Adams who shot El Capitan: ANSEL I have an Ansel Adams print in my home office of the memorial at Manzanar. He took some wonderful photographs of the camp and the internees.
52. Tiny parasites: LICE
53. Secluded valleys: GLENS
55. __ Lanka: SRI
56. Imaginepeace.com artist: ONO
60. Ref's call: TKO. I tried OUT first, was wrong.
61. "Her cheeks are rosy, she looks a little nosey" girl in a 1962 #1 hit: SHEILA. I'd never heard of this song by Tommy Roe. I'd never heard of Tommy either. This contributed to my gripe, of which more at the bottom.
62. Like crazy: A LOT
63. Sun, in Ibiza: SOL
64. Use a combine: THRESH
65. Soccer followers?: MOMS
Down:
1. Restaurant review factor: AMBIENCE
2. Get all preachy: MORALIZE
3. Kind of psychology: CLINICAL
4. Criterion: Abbr.: STD
5. Neighborhood: AREA
6. Climbing plant: VETCH. Part of Swansea City's old soccer ground, Vetch Field, was quite fantastically re-purposed to a wild flower haven when the club outgrew the facilities and moved to a new stadium. Usually these spaces are redeveloped for commercial or mixed-use properties. Kudos to Swansea for preserving some of the open space.
7. One-named "Hollywood Squares" panelist: CHARO
8. Defamation in print: LIBEL
9. Web address: URL
10. Spelling event: BEE
11. "Jeepers, I wouldn't think of it!": GOSH, NO!
12. Not for kids: RATED R. Be careful with R-RATED and RATED-R - I went with the former initially.
13. 2018 awards event hosted by Danica Patrick: ESPYS
18. African herd: GNUS. What do you call a herd of wildebeest that arrive two hours before midnight? The Ten O'Clock Gnus. I'll get my coat, thank you, I'm here all week.
22. GPS navigation app: WAZE. Is this a first in the LA Times? I can't find another reference.
24. QE2 designation: HER. I wanted "HMS" first. I was wrong. The QE2 was an ocean, later a cruise liner, owned by Cunard, based in Southampton. Her predecessor, the Queen Mary, is permanently-moored in Long Beach. We stayed on board a couple of years ago. My family went to wave her off from Southampton on her final voyage. I never thought all those years later I'd be staying on the ship in California. You never know what life will bring.
26. Drift off: DROWSE
27. Dutch artist Frans: HALS. When I was a kid, we had a print of "The Laughing Cavalier" in our entry hallway - odd because we had very few, if any, prints hanging on the wall. My mother said she "liked his smile".
29. Gardening tool: TROWEL
33. Punching tool: AWL
34. With 42-Down, like some bobsleds: TWO-man or four-man bobs.
35. Harley Davidson's NYSE symbol: HOG
37. Stable environment?: BARN
38. Jazz improv highlight: BASS SOLO. The drum solo is usually a good time to head to the bar for a refresher.
39. Waiting area: ANTE ROOM
40. Some cosmetic procedures: EYE LIFTS
41. Hot under the collar: SORE
42. See 34-Down: MAN
43. Hammered: STINKO. Drunk, badly (and slangily) - in the UK we were "paralytic" - not that I ever was, obviously.
44. "No hard feelings, dude": WE COOL Used in Pulp Fiction, one of my all-time-best-favorite movies. Not to everyone's taste.
46. Winged stinger: WASP
47. Vegas attraction: SLOTS. Took me a while to talk myself off STRIP.
48. Rubberneck: OGLER. Now this presumes that there is a noun for a rubbernecker - oh, wait, there is! It's "rubbernecker". To rubberneck is the verb. One demerit point for this.
49. Stan's slapstick pal: OLLIE. Abbott and Costello. No, wait - who's on first? Laurel and Hardy.
50. Naval bases?: KEELS. Nice clue, made me think a while.
54. Gloating word usually repeated: NYAH. Not NAH? I'm not a fan of these "spell it how you like" words. See also AHH/AAH.
57. Setting at 0 degrees long.: G.S.T.. So her we arrive at my gripe. I'm assuming that GST is supposed to be an abbreviation for Greenwich Standard Time, but that's the problem. The time at the zero meridian is Greenwich Mean Time, or GMT. The only reference to "Greenwich Standard Time" I can find is a source on the web that says it's the time zone in Iceland and Liberia, but when you search "Iceland Time Zone" it comes up as GMT. Ditto for Liberia, furthermore neither of which are on the zero meridian. So I'm calling this out as wrong. If SHEILA had been a little less obscure, maybe I wouldn't have minded so much, but this left me with a DNF, I just couldn't see past GMT.
58. "This is so relaxing!": AHH! Could equally be spelled AAH!
59. West Coast athlete: RAM. Los Angeles NFL player.
And to the victor, the spoils. Not me today, I was done in by GST, SHEILA and spell-it-how-you-like AHH.
Here's the grid!
Steve
