I have no triskaidekaphobia so my thirteenth blogging of a themeless Saturday puzzle for Dr. Dolan did not fill me with any dread. Seeing "Works" as a verb (7. Works for literati: HIGH ART)instead of a noun really hung me up in the NE. Each section of this fun puzzle took one key word/phrase to unlock.
Across:
1. Stock option in a seafood business?: BISQUE - Traditionally, lobster bisque is made with a stock that 5. Exploits: USES whole lobster shells. Recipe for lobster stock.
7. Works for literati: HIGH ART - Works of art, not art workers
14. Rather dense: OBTUSE - This remark to the warden in Shawshank Redemption got Andy Dufresne thrown into solitary confinement
15. Waterway dividing two sides of a college football rivalry: RED RIVER - Longhorns vs. Sooners
16. Knesset country: ISRAEL - The Israeli lawmaking body and 51. Ancient Roman province now part of modern 16-Across: JUDAEA - An alternate spelling of Judea
17. Digits in parentheses: AREA CODE.
18. Isn't quite neutral: LEANS - All of us can think of a news outlet that LEANS in one political direction or the other
19. Signer of the first of the Oslo Accords: ABBAS - Mahmoud ABBAS was the Palestinian negotiator and is standing on the far right in this signing ceremony.
22. One of many on Massachusetts Avenue in D.C.: EMBASSY - A clickable map
24. __ machine: GUMBALL - The GUMBALL machine took a penny and the pinball machine took a nickel in my misspent youth.
26. Dappled horses: ROANS.
30. Chat: SCHMOOZE.
32. Washington's Grand __ Dam: COULEE - On the mighty Columbia River in Washington state.
33. Webinar's first slide, often: OUTLINE - 1) Tell them what you are going to say, 2) Tell them, 3) Tell them what you just told them.
34. Treat traditionally paired with RC Cola in the South: MOON-PIE.
35. Like Robert Johnson's music: BLUESY - The Gateway To The Blues Museum in Tunica, MS. has this display of Robert Johnson memorabilia. I wonder if you can get an RC and Moon-Pie there.
36. Styling combs: RATTAILS.
37. Fifth-century bishop in Ire.: ST. PATrick
38. Tempts: LURES IN.
39. Grammar police, e.g.: PURISTS.
41. Took off: LEFT.
44. Help for a broken-hearted BFF: TLC.
47. Some IRAs: ROTHS - Retirement withdrawals are tax-free
48. Bass kin: CELLO - Not a fish, shoe or singing voice
49. "OK, sure": YEAH I BET - "If elected, I will..."
52. Diet option in black cans: COKE ZERO.
53. Motorized rides: E-BIKES.
54. Zen harmony: ONENESS.
55. Can't stand: DETEST.
Down:
1. Sanitizes, perhaps: BOILS.
2. Playwright called "The Father of Realism": IBSEN - "He turned the European stage away from what it had become – a plaything and distraction for the bored – and introduced a new order of moral analysis." You're welcome.
3. Truthfully: STRAIGHT UP - "Don't sugar coat it, tell me STRAIGHT UP!"
4. Dramatic advance: QUANTUM LEAP - Technology made a QUANTUM LEAP with the discovery of transistors
6. London's __ Pie Island: EEL - Probably named for the EEL pies that used to be served there at an inn in the 1800's
7. Ancient physician's reference book: HERBAL - A page from one
8. Bean sprouts?: IDEAS - Bean is a euphemism for head, so...
9. Bottom-up, in a way: GRASS ROOTS.
10. "__ sunt dracones": line on an ancient globe: HIC - That area is unknown, so "Here be dragons"
11. Profess: AVOW.
12. Take from the top: REDO - Director/Star Charlie Chaplin did 62 takes of this scene of him eating a shoe (it was actually made of licorice)
13. Long haul: TREK - The start of the Appalachian Trail that ends 2190 miles north at Mt. Katahdin, Maine. That is quite a TREK.
15. Raucous crowd: RABBLE.
19. Floor: AMAZE.
22. Magazine whose archive was purchased by a consortium that includes the Smithsonian: EBONY.
23. "Bingo": YOU NAILED IT.
25. Keep from cracking, perhaps: MOISTURIZE.
27. Yellowstone, for one: ALPINE LAKE - An ALPINE LAKE occurs at high elevations and Yellowstone Lake is almost 8,000' above sea level.
28. Good name for a knight?: NEIL - NEIL Armstrong did meet Queen Elizabeth but did not kneel before the queen to become a knight
29. Dates: SEES.
30. Breaks down: SOBS.
31. Unorthodox sect: CULT.
32. Pigeon holes: COTES - The pigeons in Terry Malloy's (Marlin Brando) rooftop COTE in On The Waterfront were symbols of innocence in his rough world
34. Trading places: MARTS - Where you trade cash for merchandise
36. Try and reach quickly: RUSH TO.
38. Shampoo buys: LITERS - My Head and Shoulders comes in a 700 ml or .7 LITER size
40. Spa wear: ROBES.
42. Hurries toward safety: FLEES.
43. Brown bread: TOAST - A toaster can brown bread after which you have brown bread
Title: Friday fun day with your host Lemonade who has been annointed by your host C Moe to do this write-up. I chose the two "nn" irregular spelling for reasons which should become apparent. Or not.
Hello and welcome back, and if you read the blog you know that today would be his week, but you also know JW and I have established a bond shown by the publication of this tribute PUZZLEin 2016, the only collaboration in his hundreds of puzzle publications. Doesn't matter, it just is.
Today we have a thoughtful theme, which makes it easy to know where to begin because there is no reveal, Instead, I will reveal what you are looking for.
17A. Piano trio?: SYLLABLES (9). The fill is not the theme, the clue is; there are three syllables in pi-an-o. pretty cool and if you parsed this without more you have my admiration, I did not. My first thought was, gee there are lots of Ls.
30A. String quintet?: CONSONANTS (10). We need to count again, s+t+r+n+g equals five consonants, which is a quintet. There is a clear trend here but the three Ns again distracted me.
36A. Duet for bassoon and bass fiddle?: DOUBLE LETTERS (13). Duet we know is two, so the fill features two instruments which each have 2 double letters! How fun, bass is pronounced totally differently which is completely irrelevant! Wow, but now I know what this puzzle is really about.
43A. Duet for oboe and vibraphone?: LONG VOWELS (10). We all know oboe, but the vibraphone is a percussion instrument in the metallophone family. It consists of tuned metal bars and is typically played by using mallets to strike the bars. Two again, though this time they are long vowels as highlighted. To complete the puzzle symmetry we must have one more themer, and we get...
62A. Flügelhorn solo?: DIACRITIC (9). The umlaut is a diacritic and it is the only one in Flügelhorn, therefore there is no s at the end, but we have 9-10-13-10-9 symmetry and a disguised theme hidden in the clues. Wiki tells us this instrument also spelled fluegelhorn, flugel horn, or flüegelhorn which is a brass instrument that resembles the trumpet and cornet but has a wider, more conical bore. I will let Ron and other explain more in detail. Nifty, but wait, there is more, much more.
Each clue is built around a musical instrument or instruments with no repeats. The clue is something unique to that instrument(s). Balance that with each fill a term or terms from English grammar with no repeats. Can you imagine a tighter, more restrictive theme-fill combination? Can you imagine having this thought pop in your head?
Well, too late; Jeffrey already had it. (Not an accurate likeness).
He also throws in some longer fill AIRLINER, DROPS OUT, OENOLOGY and REGATTAS and many 6 letter fun fill but it is time to move on from the wonderful theme to the rest of the puzzle.
Across:
1. Political commentator Navarro: ANA. There are so many named ANA now, but Ms. NAVARRO is well known in South Florida both from her education here and her work. Very political.
4. Dump: SCRAP. To abandon an idea, a thing. The Cambridge dictionary sees it as to get rid of something unwanted, especially by leaving it in a place where it is not allowed to be:
The tax was so unpopular that the government decided to dump it. Several old cars had been dumped near the beach.
9. Whom Cordelia calls "As mad as the vex'd sea": LEAR. How cool, JW gets his Will Shakespeare quotation in, this time from Act IV, Scene 4:
Alack, ’tis he. Why, he was met even now
As mad as the vexed sea, singing aloud,
Crowned with rank fumiter and furrow-weeds (modern English Thick Weeds). Not a happy daughter.
13. Marvel Comics artist Buscema: SAL. If you have doughnuts, I have dollars that say this is not JW's clue. I collected, bought and sold comics drawn by this wonderful artist, but I would guess either Mineo or Jack Kerouac.
14. People who call New Zealand "Aotearoa": MAORI. The only people I know from New Zealand that are 5 spaces made this easy but I did not know and still cannot say Aotearoa.
15. Far from ordinary: ALIEN. I know I am a bit different, but this seems harsh after all I am a...
19. Earth sign: VIRGO. And proud of it with the...
20. Ordinary: USUAL. Smiling, puzzled...
21. Confront: FACE.
23. Mideast carrier: EL AL. The Israeli airline.
24. "The Body in the Library" sleuth: MARPLE. I have read every published mystery written by Dame Agatha. There have been two mini-series versions done of this short story. One with JOAN HIXON and one with GERALDINE McEWANas part of the PBS Masterpiece Mysteries. I have my favorite, do you?
26. Big grazer: ELK. Did you know, according to Simple English Wikipedia a grazer is an animal, usually a herbivorous mammal, which eats grass. It is contrasted with browsers, which eat trees & shrubs. Since Elk are situationally herbivores this is confusing but with three letters...
28. "Who am __ argue?": I TO. You are a fully paid up member of the Corner and argue away.
29. Watched warily: EYED. We do watch you warily and wearily.
34. Start to bat?: ACRO. Strike one. A new way to clue a tortured prefix?
35. Planning session contribution: IDEAS. Pretty much the whole point of the sessions.
41. "Grazie" reply: PREGO. Italian thank you and you are welcome.
42. Bigelow products: TEAS. This company was founded in Fairfield Connecticut by Ruth Campbell Bigelow to promote and distribute their proprietary product under the label Constant Comment. The recipe is still a closely guarded secret.
46. Dost possess: HAST. Old English.
50. Mil. mail site: APO. APO stands for "Army Post Office". It is normally followed by a number which serves as a code for a particular military unit or installation. APOs were often mobile, and moved with the units to which they were attached. Government brochure.
51. Feta source: EWE. Feta cheese is made from sheep milk, not cow milk. This causes the unique taste.
52. One to hold on to: KEEPER. Long time slang for a potential partner who is worth hanging on to for life.
54. Tenerife, por ejemplo: ISLA. Tenerife, in Spanish or in English is always an Island.
56. "Why don't we?": LET'S. Let's not and say we did.
59. Dishwasher handle: AMANA. Handle is also an old expression for name first recorded 1870, originally U.S., from earlier expressions about adding a handle to (one's) name (1833) like saying...King Jason. etymonline.com
60. Really bad turnout: NO ONE. When you draw a crowd of zero it is time to rethink your plan.
64. Cotton candy, mostly: SUGAR.
65. Like Santa's helpers: ELFIN. Why are they elves?
66. Groundbreaking tool: HOE. So tempting...
67. Donor card datum: TYPE. Blood type I assume rather than arrogant, for example.
68. Monopoly cards: DEEDS. As a property based games these are vital. From the original English version.
69. Time pieces: Abbr.: YRS. Not watches but increments in time. I like this whether it is JW's or not.
Down:
1. Trust without verifying: ASSUME. A bastardization of biblical as well as political rhetoric to underline the idea that to ASS U ME makes an ass of u and me.
2. Speak against: NAYSAY. You don't say? Oh, you just did.
3. Magazine with annual Best of Beauty awards: ALLURE. This historically black magazine has contests in many categories and publishes them each year.
4. Minor: SMALL. I guess this is from show business as I know many under 18 who are much larger than I am.
5. Red choice: CAB. We have them here as well as yellow cabs.
6. Massage deeply: ROLF. A technique developed by Dr. Ida Rolf. Maybe.
7. Sod buyer's calculation: AREA. It is a good idea to measure no matter what you are buying.
8. Water sign: PISCES. The fish; there are two so be careful.
9. WC: LAV. I hope by now everyone knows the Jack Parr joke that got him fired from the Tonight show. the JOKE
10. Nobelist Wiesel: ELIE. We love those vowels.
11. Plane: AIRLINER. And simple.
12. Meets near the shore?: REGATTAS. Meets, not as gathering but competing. The Henley Regatta was very important to many classmate in high school 60 years ago.
16. "Good riddance": NO LOSS. Rather cruel, even if true.
18. "The Rookie" org.: LAPD. The latest TV show for the now bloated star,
22. Jeff Lynne's band: ELO. Electric Light Orchestra.
25. "A time to every purpose" Bible bk.: ECCLiastes.
27. Gentle washer setting: KNITS.
31. Minecraft resource: ORE.
32. "Cape Fear" co-star: NOLTE.
33. Drink suffix: ADE. A CSO to the Friday blogger before you. JW covers all of his bases.
34. Superior to: ABOVE.
36. Finishes one's studies, in a way: DROPS OUT. Quitting is one way to finish.
37. Viniculture science: OENOLOGY. A CSO to the Friday blogger scheduled for today.
38. Comfy shoe brand: UGG. Never tried them but many female friends swear by them, not at them.
39. Unadon fish: EEL. A CSO to C.C.'s favorite.
40. Chore: TASK. I do not consider this a chore or a task. I see it as an opportunity to control your minds.
41. Great __: Midwest region: PLAINS. Home to so many who visit here daily. We even have our own blog bird. FAMILY PHOTO.
44. Bird in the Duolingo logo: OWL. Not JW's I bet.
45. Took care of garden pests: WEEDED. Are weeds the pests or are the pests the pests?
46. Powerful engine: HEMI. A man's toy or perhaps a subliminal message.
47. Indifference: APATHY. None allowed here.
48. On the job longer: SENIOR. Only C.C. and mb blogged puzzles here before me.
49. Vestiges: TRACES. There are still some things that have not changed in the 14.5 years, I hope.
53. Brings in: EARNS. Brings home too, rather than spending it all on pinball.
55. "I think somebody needs __!": A NAP. Napping is now my field of expertise.
57. Shower wall unit: TILE. These days they have one piece shower walls.
58. Protected: SAFE. The Ring doorbell camera and others are trying to make us feel safe, but as far as I can tell all we do get is a nice picture of the people robbing us. It is like going car shopping.
61. Before, in an old ode: ERE. Is there a specific ode (poem of praise) that Jeffrey had in mind? Nah, he likes his music and his painting.
63. El __: CID. Rodrigo Díaz de Vivar was a Castilian knight and warlord in medieval Spain. Fighting on the side of both Christian and Muslim armies during his lifetime, he earned the Arabic honorific al-sīd, which would evolve into El Cid, and the Spanish moniker El Campeador, a person who has defeated all others in a competition. (Lucy and others forgive me if my Spanish sucks). His fame came to American and the world on the broad shoulders of
CHARLTON HESTON in a 1961 MOVIE.
And we have completed another round of roller derby in the mind of our maestro and a living legend, Jeffrey Wechsler. Great to have him here, thank you Chris for letting me blog this and for blogging next week's as I await some test results that have me on edge. Thank you all for stopping by and I will endeavor to comment on your comments competently. Lemonade out and...
Today's constructors are Laura Dershewitz and her partner in crime Katherine Baicker. This is Laura's first visit to the LAT, and Katherine first appeared here on May 19, 2022,
reviewed by my partner in crime Malodorous Manatee. Laura's and Katherine's theme is all about HACKS. But what
exactly is a HACK? It turns out to be quite a
mercurial term with a least a dozen different meanings, many with
no apparent connections to the others. Today we tend to associate
"hacking" with computers, but the term apparently
predates modern computers by many years. In their reveal for the themers our constructors seem to be
exploring two usages of the word HACK, separated below by the
conjunction AND ...
58A. Tricks to improve productivity, and the tricks used
to form the answers to the starred clues?: LIFE HACKS. (my
italics). The first usage, "Tricks to improve productivity", can be
illustrated by this popular O'Reilly Book on Microsoft Word:
The second usage is, "the tricks used to form the answers to the
starred clues": LIFE HACKS. This commonly implies "tricks to
improve the productivity of one's life" but then riffs on that phrase with the
"black hacker" meaning of
surreptitiously altering a program or program data. Our constructors effect a hidden insertion of the word
LIFE in the middle of each two word
themer to transform it from a funny clue into a commonly used phrase. Here
are the themers with the [LIFE HACKS]:
17A. *Paperwork for a UFO pilot?:ALIEN [LIFE] FORM. The subject of much debate this days. It seems to be commonly
believed that they're "out there", but highly unlikely that they could be
"down here". 23A. *Fast fashion?:ACTIVE [LIFE]
STYLE. I've never been much of a fashion plate, but this is one
STYLE I need to wear more of. 36A. *House of worship
known for raucous parties?:WILD [LIFE]
SANCTUARY. These seem to be shrinking world wide, especially in
the Amazon rain forest (scroll down or hover over the menu on the left to navigate; also the sound track takes a few seconds to load). 47A. *Office scale?:WORK [LIFE] BALANCE. Something that even us retirees can use more of.
Here's
the grid, with the themers before the [LIFE HACKS]
Across:
1. Catch a glimpse of: SPOT. Or a SPOT of TEA, a popular drink on the Corner. Just last week, in
a visit to one of our old neighborhoods, Teri and I discovered a new tea room called Emma's Tea Spot. Amid the British themed decor,
I encountered the slogans below popularized by Queen Elizabeth II during WWII. At this writing she is still "Carrying On" at age 96!
5. "__ Great Heights": single by The Postal Service: SUCH.
The Postal Service
was an American indie pop supergroup from Seattle, Washington, consisting of
singer Ben Gibbard, producer Jimmy Tamborello, and
Jenny Lewis on background vocals. They were active on and off
from 2001 to 2014. Here's "Such Great Heights" from their album Give Up (lyrics)
9. Shelter org.: ASPCA. This dog Bennie has been following me
around YouTube for months and I thought it was time that we got acquainted (a CSO
to PAT):
20. Mobile game?: PHONE TAG. I recently spent 4 days playing
telephone tag with a technician to schedule the installation of a new CPAP machine. I can
breath much easier now.
21. Sauce thickener: ROUX. A ROUXis
flour and fat cooked together and used to thicken sauces. A roux is
typically made from equal parts of flour and fat by weight. The flour
is added to the melted fat or oil on the stove top, blended until
smooth. Here's Teri's recipe for Velouté Sauce from the Fanny Farmer Cookbook. This cookbook makes a great wedding gift. Plus it has hard to spell recipes like Vichyssoise and Bouillabaisse!
22. Suffix with ether: EAL. Ethereal is an a word with a
least three meanings. Here are the first two, courtesy of the
Oxford Languages Dictionary:
ETHEREAL was also the original name of a free software product (now called Wireshark) generically known as a "packet sniffer", a device that enables techs to decode network traffic to
troubleshoot problems or to monitor and detect intrusions by
HACKERS
(was this a themer I missed?). The name probably derives from the root
ETHERNET, a low level network service that most software "sniffers" can decode.
35. Mug: FACE. The association of the words MUG and
FACE,
probably derives from the Scandinavian word MUGG, a "drinking vessel".
In the 18th and 19th centuries, mugs produced in
Staffordshire, England were often decorated with
caricatures on the face of ceramic jugs. This may have led to the term
MUG as a synonym for an ugly face and where we get our term
MUG SHOT.
Here is a typical 19th Century MUG, alias a
TOBY JUG. Looks SUSPICIOUS doesn't he?
42. Wonkette founding editor __ Marie Cox: ANA.Ana Marie Cox
(born September 23, 1972) is an American author, blogger, political columnist,
and critic. The founding editor of the political blog
Wonkette, she was also the Senior Political Correspondent for MTV News, and conducted
the "Talk" interviews featured in The New York Times Magazine from 2015
to 2017.
Ana Marie Cox
43. "__ welcome": YOU'RE. An archaic phrase meaning "NO PROBLEM".
52. Pester: NAG. A terrible instance of
Equine appropriation!
53. Booker Prize-winning author Murdoch: IRIS.
Dame Jean Iris MurdochDBE
(15 July 1919 – 8 February 1999) was an Irish and British novelist and
philosopher. Murdoch is best known for her novels about good and evil, sexual
relationships, morality, and the power of the unconscious.
Dame Iris Murdoch, DBE
54. Really cheap: FOR A SONG. Among many other works,
composer
Franz Schubert (1797-1828)
wrote over 600 SONGS in his all too short life of
31 years. Despite the fact that they are considered masterpieces
of German art song, it's doubtful that he was ever paid more than a pittance
for any of them. Here's his hauntingly beautiful Gretchen am Spinnrade, written when Schubert was only 17 and set to a poem
from Goethe's play Faust. Gretchen is sitting at
her spinning wheel pouring her heart out for her lover Faust, who has
abandoned her. Notice how the piano accompaniment evokes the sound of the spinning
wheel's treadle:
56. Inelastic: RIGID.
59. "Yay me!": I RULE.
60. "Can't argue with that": TRUE.
61. The Met __: annual NYC fundraising event: GALA. Sorry, but
all the hits on this topic wanted me to pay them money to see their
advertising. As Bloggers don't have an expense account, I swiped
left.
62. Some spa treatments: PEELS. I think we were treated to one of
these recently. It doesn't sound very APPEELING to me.
63. Tear to bits: REND.
64. Actor Mapa of "Ugly Betty" and "Doom Patrol":
Alejandro "Alec" Mapa
(born July 10, 1965) is an American actor, comedian and writer.
Alec Mapa
Down:
1. Board book subject: SHAPES. Despite having dozens of
these around the house for the grandbabies, I didn't know they had a formal
name. I guess being made of boards, the pages are hard to
REND. Here's Harper Collins Publishers re
The Best Baby Board Books of 2022.
2. New York suburb near New Rochelle: PELHAM.
3. Camden Yards [sic] player: ORIOLE. As of this
writing the O's are at the bottom of the AL East ladder.
However my cardiologist, who is one of the team's cardiologists, and who is an
expert in these matters, informs me that they will be really AFIRE in 2 or 3
years. To think that I'm just 2 degrees of separation from all of the
Orioles! Unfortunately I don't know any of their names this season. A hand up
from anyone who does? Oriole Park at Camden Yards (the correct name)
is celebrating its 30th Anniversary this year
(but I doubt seriously that that picture was taken in 2022)
Oriole Park at Camden Yards
4. __ Choice Awards: TEEN.
5. Icy center?: SOFT C. Not ICKY.
6. WWII sub: U BOAT. "Unterseeboot", auf Englisch "under-sea-boat", today's
German lesson. The occasional capture of U-BOATS by Allied
warships was extremely helpful in the breaking of the ENIGMA machines
used by the Germans to encrypt their communications.
This article tells part of that story.
7. Short-legged dog: CORGI. One of my sisters has a CORGI,
a rescue dog named Deidre. She was probably abused by a previous
owner and she doesn't like men. So I don't get to pet her.
11. Armed conflict waged on behalf of superpowers: PROXY WAR. If
they're so "super" why can't they fight their own wars?
12. Fish sticks fish: COD. Much better baked in EVOO with
tomatoes, peppers, onions, and fresh Italian herbs, served over rice.
13. Core muscles: ABS.
18. Closed in on: NEARED.
21. Off the beaten path: REMOTE. Is REMOTED the
opposite of 18D?
24. Forage plant: VETCH. VETCH is a well known legume also
known as "common vetch" or "tares". Its scrambling, smothering growth habit and
frost tolerance make it a very useful winter cover crop or green manure.
It is one of many types of forage crops.
25. Like some lingerie: LACY. Some of the CAMIS we've seen
for the past two weeks were LACY.
35. Burkina __: FASO. We saw this in Pam Klawitter's puzzle just this past Sunday.
Burkina Faso is a landlocked country in West Africa with an area of
274,200 km2 (105,900 sq mi), bordered by Mali to the northwest, Niger to the northeast, Benin to the
southeast, Togo and Ghana to the south, and the Ivory Coast to the southwest.
Note that MALI and NIGER are also landlocked (and sure to be
fills in a future puzzle):
37. Fascinate: INTRIGUE. Teri and I are armchair detectives and are
INTRIGUED by British murder mysteries.
38. "Sure, I guess": UM YEAH. "Well you don't sound sure!"
39. "I don't have all day!": NOW. The MD's on the
corner don't say that. They say STAT!
42. Stomachs: ABIDES.
44. West Coast petroleum giant that merged with Chevron in 2005:
UNOCAL.
Union Oil Company of California, known as Unocal
was a major petroleum explorer and marketer in the late 19th century, through
the 20th century, and into the early 21st century.
45. Really get to: RANKLE.
46. Arachnid incubator: EGG SAC. When I'm tilling in the garden
and see a Wolf Spider with an EGG SAC, I do my best to avoid killing
them. All those eggs will hatch and grow up to be natural enemies of the
various pests in the garden.
49. Pumped up: AFIRE. A stoneware kiln is really "pumped up" when it reaches WHITE HEAT, approximately 2380 degrees Fahrenheit.
50. Devoid of joy: NO FUN.
51. 2015 boxing film directed by Ryan Coogler: CREED. Creed is a 2015 American sports drama film directed by Ryan Coogler from a screenplay by Coogler, Aaron Covington, and contributions by Sylvester Stallone. This is a film about people who really BELIEVE
in boxing. I'm not really qualified to say more, as I've not seen any
of the Rocky films. However I have climbed the steps of the Philadelphia Museum of Art several times over the years and have great respect for anyone who can run up and down them. Creed is the 7th film, but not last, in the Rocky franchise (see next clue for details).
55. Multigenerational tale: SAGA. For example, the Rocky franchise.
56. __ tide: RIP.
Here's how to escape from a RIP TIDE ...
57. Hot temper: IRE. Anger.
58. USPS unit: LTR. Letter.
As always, thanks to Teri for proofreading and for constructive criticism (and for the Velouté Sauce recipe).
waseeley
Cheers,
Bill
Laura Dershewitz and Katherine Baicker, you both are invited to post anything you'd like to
share about this puzzle, its evolution, the theme, or whatever, in
the Comments section below. We'd love to hear from you. Oh and Laura, I'm curious as to whether you are one of the authors of this book?
Chairman Moe here, pinch-hitting for Jazzbumpa, and what an appropriate puzzle as it has a baseball theme! This may be Kent Smith's debut puzzle as I could not find a "tag" for him on Google or Crossword Fiend. I hope that he knows about our "hot corner", and takes a seventh-inning stretch to stop by and say hello
Kent uses a trio of baseball positions to add a play-on-words to a job, a movie title, and a couple of plural nouns. All three of the entries are well-known without the added "ER" to the first word. Still confused? Well, allow me my time at bat and I'll try to touch all bases
17-Across. Catching fly balls, turning double plays, etc.?: FIELDER WORK. Baseball has nine "fielding" positions, as diagrammed in my opening image. All nine of these "FIELDERs" can catch a fly ball or turn a double-play. FIELD WORK, on the other hand, is [per Nat Geo] "... the process of observing and collecting data about people, cultures, and natural environments. Field work is conducted in the wild of our everyday surroundings rather than in the semi-controlled environments of a lab or classroom"
And as a side note, the reason I chose the title/theme name "Strength up the Middle", is because in baseball, the teams most likely to succeed have excellent players at the positions marked by the numbers 1, 2, 4, 6, and 8 in the above diagram
26-Across. Like an ace who throws a no-hitter?: PITCHER PERFECT. The PITCHER is arguably the most important position on a baseball team. For reference, Major League Baseball (MLB) teams are allowed to carry 26 players on their roster, of which 13 (or one-half) are PITCHERs. The pitching staff generally includes 4 or 5 starters, 7 or 8 relievers, and 1 closer. PITCH PERFECT is the name of a trio of movies. There is a rumor that PITCH PERFECT 4 may release later this year
44-Across. "Protect the plate," "Don't drop the ball," e.g.?: CATCHER PHRASES. Ahh, the CATCHER. Rumor has it that Chairman Moe began his baseball playing days (at age 8) as a CATCHER. Sorry that I don't have any pictures to share; but I definitely thought it was cool to put on the tools of ignorance!
Examples of CATCH PHRASES: "Look! Up in the sky! It's a bird! It's a plane! It's Superman!" Or: "Live long and prosper"; Or: "Lucy, you got some splaining to do!" Or (and a CSO to our board member, Picard: "Make it so".
My first thought about what a CATCH PHRASE is turned out just to be a Yogism
And the reveal @ 61-Across. Game rosters, one of which is formed by the starts of three long answers in this puzzle?: PLAYER LISTS. Dadgummit, I sooo wanted to be awed and amazed by this Kent Smith work. But the reveal uses a one-word parody (PLAYLISTS) versus the other three entries which use a two-word (FIELD WORK, PITCH PERFECT, CATCH PHRASES).
OK Moe; lighten up. You are still a rookie in this whole crossword construction biz, ya know. Still, continuity should count; so I won't be calling Kent Smith an all-star just yet. I did enjoy his debut, though, and look forward to his next "start"
Let's toss the grid into this part of the lineup, and then see how Mr. Smith managed his game ...
Across:
1. Construction rod: REBAR. I bet that Ray-O-Sunshine has a clever "daffynition" for this ;^)
6. 1960s Israeli deputy prime minister: EBAN.
10. Shed tears: CRY. Something that big girls don't do
13. "Five Feet of Fury" pro wrestler Bliss: ALEXA. I have no knowledge of the pro wrestler Bliss, but I DO know who speaks on the "Dot". Moe-ku:
Siri? ALEXA? Only way to tell? Is there An Echo in here??
14. Alfa __: sports car: ROMEO. CSO to Anonymous T (or -T, if you will). His LIcrisisFE purchase??
16. Jack Reacher creator __ Child: LEE. I guess that Peggy LEE is too retro for this audience
19. Have lunch: EAT. One of the three square meals per day ...
20. Epic featuring the Trojan Horse: AENEID. "The AENEID is a Latin epic poem, written by Virgil between 29 and 19 BC, that tells the legendary story of Aeneas, a Trojan who fled the fall of Troy and travelled to Italy, where he became the ancestor of the Romans. It comprises 9,896 lines in dactylic hexameter" [Wikipedia]
21. Yann Martel novel adapted into an Oscar-winning film: LIFE OF PI. This book
23. "Chandelier" singer: SIA. Not the music I listen to, but YMMV
25. Tonsillectomy MD: ENT. I hear that Ear Nose and Throat doctors are among the highest paid in the medical field ... or maybe, I just made that up
34. Job safety org.: OSHA.
35. River craft: CANOE. So many to choose from, but CANOE rowed MY boat
36. Trendy: HIP. Huey Lewis and the News sang it best:
38. Take in: EARN. It literally means your NET salary, but I always discussed it as your GROSS salary! ;^)
50. Enters nonchalantly: AMBLES IN. I almost NEVER think about being nonchalant, but am often nonplussed. Speaking of which, can you be "chalant" or "plussed"? As in the opposite of?? Go ahead and Google it. I dare you!!
55. Rhine wine region: ALSACE. As your resident wine geek/sommelier, I was quite pleased when I saw the outcome of this clue. I could write a separate blog about ALSACE, but this webite [Wine Folly] is wonderful for explaining it all. Fun fact: Chairman Moe spent over a week in ALSACE in 2015 when he was in the wine business
60. Grassy expanse: LEA. Sophomoric Moe-ku:
"What's the source, you asked, Of Cow Pies?" I'll tell ya: They Come from Sara LEA
63. Links goal: PAR. As in playing golf; and a CSO to the many foursomes of golfers here on the blog. Fun Fact: Many of my friends who solve the WORDLE each day refer to getting 4/6, as a PAR
64. Big cat: TIGER. And since this clue follows a PAR, how about THIS big cat? Note the head cover, TOO. It's name is "Frank"
65. Extreme: ULTRA. And while we are on a mini golf tour, why not provide an image of this "ULTRA"? Husker Gary, do you recall these clubs? They were basically Wilson Staff irons with Walter Hagen's endorsement. Guessing that increased the price by a few bucks ...
66. Laudatory verse: ODE, which is also a part of 26-Down: (66-Across, for one:) POEM. CSO to Owen KL
67. Reusable bag: TOTE.
68. Forms puddles: POOLS.
Down:
1. Nickname for tennis's Nadal: RAFA. Check out his most recent major victory romp at the French Open
3. "__ waiting long?": BEEN. Sometimes it feels like it ...
4. Bridge toll unit: AXLE. Clever clue for this. Most toll roads and/or bridges charge "by the vehicle's AXLE"
5. Salad slice: RADISH. Fun Fact: Their green leaves are edible, TOO. BTW, this is Chairman Moe's most favorite salad slice. I can usually purchase them for around $0.50 a bunch at a local farmer's market
6. Make a mistake: ERR. This was recently clued (last Wednesday) as: "Throw wide of the cutoff man, say". I think that it would've made more sense to have it in today's puzzle (regardless of its accuracy) as it keeps with the baseball theme ...
7. Many a New Year's Day football game: BOWL. Why do they call a NYD football game a "BOWL", you ask? Here is the answer
8. French possessive: AMOI. An old CATCH PHRASE (well, maybe a quip) attributed to the Three Stooges, perhaps: "When I was in college, I had a French minor. But her visa expired, and I had to send her home!" Nyuk, nyuk
9. Soft toy brand: NERF. I wonder if they ever made a soft toy in the shape of an anagram for NERF?
A seamstress once said, "You should pre-sell your wares or You'll REAP what you sew
12. Mysterious Himalayan: YETI. This exact clue for YETI was last used back on October 3, 2019
15. "The Great Santini" Oscar nominee Michael: O'KEEFE. "The Great Santini" movie was based on a book written by Pat Conroy; also the author of The Prince of Tides. Here is a trailer for the movie. Quite a different role for O'KEEFE compared to that of Danny Noonan in Caddyshack
24. Esoteric: ARCANE. Somehow, these two words almost begged to become synonyms! ;^)
27. "Moon Knight" star Oscar __: ISAAC. Moon Knight is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics; quite the biography
28. Worn through, as carpeting: THREADBARE. Moe-ku:
The actress Bara Was shown wearing worn-out clothes. Theda was THREADBARE
29. Put up preserves: CAN. And here I thought they used a JAR for preserves ...
30. Indiana cager: PACER. Thanks for the sports clue, but when I think of PACER, this image comes to mind
31. Spellbound: ENRAPT. Try as I could, I found no evidence that these two adjectives are synomnyms
32. "Christopher Robin" joey: ROO. From Winnie the Pooh
33. Squiggly diacritic: TILDE. What do you call a Señora who likes to dance, likes her kids, and is fond of diacritics? WALTZING MA TILDE
37. Grabs the check: PAYS. I guess that "grabbing" the check is a bit less generous than if someone were to say, "I'll take the check, please", and TREAT the table
39. Speed letters: MPH. Phew! For a brief second, I wondered if there was a three-letter abbreviation for D-amphetamine
40. "Mamma __! Here We Go Again": MIA. ABBA hit tune
42. Go along with: ACCEPT. Something I am doing as it relates to the new style of puzzle themes, entries, and clues at the LA Times Crossword
45. __ Aviv: TEL. Is there any other three-letter word that can proceed "Aviv"?
46. Icy coating: HOAR.
47. Opposite of unfurl: ROLLUP. FOLDUP could fit, if it were referring to a flag
50. Kibble brand: ALPO. What you call a garden tool in Switzerland? ALPO
51. Honeyed brew: MEAD.
52. Narrow cut: SLIT.
53. Shakespearean villain: IAGO. William Shakespeare's play, Othello, features a particularly evil character who ruins the lives of everyone around him. IAGO is the antagonist, or enemy to the other heroic figures, who convinces Othello that his wife, Desdemona, is having an affair with Cassio
54. Russian denial: NYET. What you call an alien visitor to the Big Apple? NYET
I have no triskaidekaphobia so my thirteenth blogging of a themeless Saturday puzzle for Dr. Dolan did not fill me with any dread. Seeing "Works" as a verb (7. Works for literati: HIGH ART) instead of a noun really hung me up in the NE. Each section of this fun puzzle took one key word/phrase to unlock.
