57. Island nation in Oceania: KIRIBATI - The horizontal part of my Natick
58. "Mic Drop" band: BTS - The vertical part of my Natick. Is this one of your favorite Korean groups?
Now let's move on to what I did get:
Across:
1. Mint: BRAND NEW - Name the 1966 hit with this lyric (answer at bottom of write-up): I just found me a BRAND NEW box of matches, and what he knows you ain't had time to learn!
9. "__ luck!": LOTSA.
14. Long way to go?: LIMO RIDE - Long refers to the length of the car not the length of the trip
15. Porter, for one: BEARER - This porter/BEARER is also called a sherpa and, of course, is the reason most people make it to the top of Everest.
16. Ancient language in which "ir" means "the": OLD WELSH.
17. Shaky: INFIRM.
18. Console with Party and Fit games: WII - A WII Fit with accessories
19. Briefly appeared: GLEAMED.
21. Go where one shouldn't: PRY.
22. Hitch: SNAG - Life is what happens after you make other plans
29. River valley known for Riesling: RHINE - Riesling grapes on the banks of the Rhine
30. " ... to so __": Churchill: FEW - Winston's tribute the RAF for their efforts during The Battle Of Britain.
32. Part of an outmoded garage set: TIRE IRON - There are some still around
34. Exploit a position of trust: FEATHER ONE'S NEST.
38. Arranges for deferred payment: RUNS A TAB.
39. Symbolic 100%: PIE - If you can't get it all...
40. Waiting expectation: ORDER - 😀
41. Higher ed. hurdle: GRE - Graduate Record Exam
43. Smartwater rival: NAYA - bottled natural spring water, drawn from a spring in the Laurentian Mountains, in southern Quebec, Canada.
46. Mad magazine caricaturist Drucker: MORT - A literary mainstay of my yute
47. Stabilizing components: KEELS - This surfboard has what is called twin KEEL fins for stability
49. Stable gear: TACK - The TACK room for the Budweiser Clydesdales connotes a different sense of stable
51. Go __: APE.
52. Small sailing ship: CARAVEL - A model of Columbus's flagship CARAVEL the Santa Maria
54. First name of two Spice Girls: MEL = Here ya go.
55. Bit of needlework: TATTOO 😀
59. Very hot celestial orbs: O-STARS.
60. Generic confrontation: US VS THEM - This finally hit me
61. Lesser number?: B-SIDE - I Want To Hold Your Hand was a breakthrough hit for the lads but the B-SIDE, I Saw Her Standing There, became a bigger seller.
62. Ring-necked bird: PHEASANT - My friend has a business where hunters come to his farm to hunt ring-necks.
Down:
1. Squanders: BLOWS - Atlanta blew this lead in Super Bowl LI
2. Getting agitated: RILING.
3. Radio control: AM-DIAL - News radio saved this AM-Radio
4. "Spring the trap!": NOW.
5. Vestige: DREG.
6. Nabisco name since 1967: NILLA - Wafers, of course
7. Unpopular debuts of 1957: EDSELS - EDSELS were the wrong car at the wrong time but this 1958 EDSEL in Lake Havasu, AZ is now for sale for $60,000.
8. "This just isn't working": WE HAVE TO BREAK UP.
9. Advance: LEND.
10. Clod: OAF.
11. Security element that may be detected by Silly String: TRIP WIRE.
12. Peppers between jalapeño and tabasco on the Scoville scale: SERRANOS.
13. "M*A*S*H" unit: ARMY TENT - This is the actual M*A*S*H unit on which the movie and TV show were based
15. "Très __": BIEN - something nice that could be said of people in Nice 25. when they show mastery of: SHINE AT some skill.
20. Add: MIX IN.
23. Fragrance assortment, e.g.: GIFT SET.
27. "Joy Shtick" writer: BEHAR - Her 23 yr-old book
29. Balm of Gilead, for one: RESIN.
31. __ bar: WET - A place that has a sink and faucet to prepare and serve alcoholic drinks
33. Missouri's Cori Bush, e.g.: Abbr.: REP.
34. First of many steps: FROM A TO B.
35. Continental rider's purchase, once: EUROPASS.
36. Big name in racing: ANDRETTI.
37. Wild party: RAGER.
42. Quenya or Sindarin, in fiction: ELVISH - Languages of The Middle Earth constructed by J.R.R. Tolkien. This came slowly.
44. Company whose logo is interlocking tuning forks: YAMAHA.
45. Blackjack combo: ACE TEN - Winner, winner, chicken dinner!
53. "Snow Flower and the Secret Fan" novelist See: LISA.
56. Bit: TAD.
Here's the earworm song with "BRAND NEW box of matches" in the lyrics:
Notes from C.C.:
1) Guess what? Today is also Rich's birthday. Thanks for the great puzzle, Rich! For those who are not aware, Rich was the previous editor for the L.A. Times crosswords. He's also one of the best themeless constructor in this country.
Rich and his wife Kim
2) Happy birthday also to Lemonade's beautiful wife Oo. This is a picture from their 2017 trip to Thailand.
Theme (and revealer): 63-Across. Scam victim's lament, and an apt title for this puzzle: I'VE BEEN HAD.
Puzzling thoughts:
Today's puzzle is one constructed by the new LA Times Crossword Puzzle editor, Patti Varol. I'm not certain, but this may be her first here AS the new editor. I suppose that being the editor, she not only accepted the puzzle but also didn't have to change any of the clues! ;^)
This puzzle added the word "I'VE" (or perhaps just the letters, I, V, and E) to a common phrase to add some word play. Let's explore:
16. Part of a player piano?: PASSIVE KEY. The term/phrase "PASS KEY" is extended with IVE to form the answer; PASSIVE KEY. But I'm at a loss for how PASSIVE KEY relates to a player piano? When I googled "PASSIVE KEY" I got lots of images of KEY fobs, so this one didn't "tickle my ivories"
23. Letter from Zurich?: SWISS MISSIVE. SWISS MISS (see image) is a popular cocoa beverage brand; a MISSIVE is another word for letter or memo. Better
39. Excited cry from a chicory farmer waiting for harvest?: THE ENDIVE IS NEAR. Probably the best pun of the four entries, as ENDIVE is a bitter leafy vegetable that is in the chicory family. As many of our Louisiana bloggers know, chicory is an additive to coffee - and in some cases, a coffee replacement - for a uniquely flavored breakfast beverage. "THE END IS NEAR" might be a phrase used by the noun in 57-across (worrywort)
50. Dust, silverfish, or dampness?: ARCHIVE ENEMY. My second favorite of the entries, as the combination (or singular) of dust, silverfish, and dampness can definitely be the "ENEMY" of anything "ARCHIVED". "ARCH ENEMY" could be this villian of Marvel comics fame:
Which spawned the lone Moe-ku du jour:
Thor had foot problems. He found Loki in his boot. His ARCH ENEMY??
The grid:
Across:
1. Cherry-pick: CULL. If the Thesaurussaurus says so, then it IS so
5. "On the Basis of Sex" monogram: RBG. Ruth Bader Ginsburg, and the first of several abbreviations used in today's puzzle
8. Calm and Headspace, for two: APPS. Both are used for meditation; kinda like a bedtime story for adults
12. China setting: ASIA. DINING ROOM TABLE wouldn't fit
13. One bit: AT ALL. The clue reminded me of an old football cheer: "One bit [sic], four bits, six bits, a dollar; all for ______, stand up and holler" ...
But a clue that REVEALED a football cheer is: 55-across. "Go team!": RAH.
15. Sudden transition: LEAP.
18. "I w-wish I'd brought a sw-sweater!": BRRR. The weather here in the Valley of the Sun has turned rather chilly lately; but I must be pretty hot-blooded, as I haven't needed a sweater. Light jacket, maybe
19. Art that may later be regretted: TATTOO. No TATTOOs for Chairman Moe. Would any of our regular posters care to share a TATTOO moment they had in their past (or present)? Maybe @Picard has some in one of his photo albums?
20. Sandwich title: EARL. HERO also fits, but as this link describes, "in 1762, John Montagu, the 4th Earl of Sandwich®, invented the meal that changed dining forever. As the story goes, he was playing cards and did not want to leave the gaming table to eat. He asked for a serving of roast beef to be placed between two slices of bread so he could eat with his hands" ... has anyone had an "EARL of Sandwich, sandwich?
22. Fr. holy woman: STE. Abbreviation #4 in today's puzzle
26. Royal Navy letters: HMS. #5
29. Oral health org.: ADA. #6
30. Pets in a Lilian Jackson Braun mystery series: CATS. Perps solved this; the clue was definitely Friday-worthy
31. Continuity problems: GAPS. If you look at my iPhone screen, there are very few GAPS between my APPS
33. Pretty pitcher: EWER. LORI fit, too, if you considered the pitcher Kit Keller from the Rockford Peaches in the movie, "A League of Their Own"
36. Aquarium fish: TETRA. Fun Fact: [Wikipedia] says: "(TETRA) is short for Tetragonopterus, a genus name formerly applied to many of these fish, which is Greek for "square-finned" (literally, four-sided-wing). Because of the popularity of tetras in the fishkeeping hobby, many unrelated fish are commonly known as tetras, including species from different families"
42. Large country estate: VILLA. I'd bet that this one on Cape Cod comes with a rather large price tag
43. Period: TERM.
44. Way back when: ONCE.
45. The Dalai __: LAMA.
47. PO alternative: UPS. #7
49. Assam export: TEA. Fun Fact #2: [dpiit.gov.in] "What is exported from Assam? TEA is the major item of export from Assam. Apart from Tea, Petroleum products, Cosmetics, Pharmaceutical products, Textiles, Food products and Agro and Horticulture produces, ornamental fishes, Agar oil, etc also exported from the state
56. Great time: BALL. "Actress Lucille" would've been too simple a clue
57. Worrywart's words: DEAR ME. "OH DEAR" also fit
61. Some Neruda poems: ODES. Poet Pablo
65. "Fargo" co-star: MACY. If you were thinking the TV series, then maybe ROCK could fit; but this clue referenced the 1996 crime/drama movie (Fargo) which starred Frances McDormand as pregnant Sherrif Marge Gunderson. William H. MACY played Jerry Lundegaard. Here's a trailer ... ah, jeez ...
66. Like some raincoats: LINED. London Fog was a popular brand for LINED raincoats
67. Russell of "The Americans": KERI. You'd have to know about "The Americans" to know this was KERI Russell and not KURT
68. Torah chests: ARKS. As in what was being sought in "Raiders of the Lost Ark"
69. Droop: SAG. I might get some flak for this image ...
70. "Oh, for heaven's __!": SAKE. This one kinda sorta goes with 57-across.
2. Insurance option for military families: Abbr.: USAA. #9, and the insurance carrier for Margaret and me
3. Planning aid: LIST. We keep one on the fridge for groceries; one on the kitchen table for projects; one on an end table for appointments ... we can organize both vertically AND horizontally
4. Goes the distance: LASTS. Kind of like finishing this recap ...
5. Road with a no.: RTE. #10 - "AVE" also fit
6. Suffers in the sun: BAKES. BURNS was my first entry
7. Sparkle: GLEAM. What might happen if you brushed your teeth with this, back in the day ...
8. Clerical robe: ALB. I'd prefer this word to have been yet another abbreviation, "International airport code in NY"; then we could've had a CSO to Irish Miss AND ray-o-sunshine
9. Nagging: PERSISTENT. And its "clecho" of sorts: 64-down. Whine for table scraps, say: BEG.
10. "The Empire Strikes Back," chronologically: PART V. I was thinking "FIFTH". I usually think chronological describes on of these words: "FIRST", "SECOND", "THIRD", et al ... but maybe those are called ordinals ... hoping that one of our resident grammarians will comment on this and set the record straight ...
11. Jag: SPREE. Once again, the Thesaurussaurus confirms:
13. Steered clear of: AVOIDED. IVE AVOIDED any comments about this past Tuesday's midTERM elections
14. Like some poetry: LYRIC. Fun Fact #4: [poets dot org] "LYRIC poetry refers to a short poem, often with songlike qualities, that expresses the speaker’s personal emotions and feelings. Historically intended to be sung and accompany musical instrumentation, lyric now describes a broad category of non-narrative poetry, including elegies, odes, and sonnets
17. "Field of Dreams" state: IOWA. Lots of movie references today ... Fun Fact #5: The Chairman has been to Dyersville, IOWA and visited the Field of Dreams back in 1994. Played catch with my kids on the diamond. They have changed the field considerably since, and now play a regular season MLB game there. Here is the trailer:
21. Exams for future attys.: LSATS. #11 - and the second pluralized abbr
24. "Don't need to watch that again": SAW IT. BEEN THERE, DONE THAT
25. Gregg pro: STENO. #12; short for STENOgrapher. "Gregg" is a form of shorthand invented by John Robert Gregg back in the late 1880's
26. "Property Brothers" channel: HGTV. #13; short for Home & Garden Television. HGTV is an American pay television channel owned by Warner Bros/Discovery. The network primarily broadcasts reality programming related to home improvement and real estate
27. Fish tacos fish, informally: MAHI. Strange clue to my ears, but I guess that MAHI is the informal way of saying MAHI MAHI
Fun Fact #6: [tastes better from scratch dot com] "What type of fish to use for fish tacos: Lean and flakey white fish fillets are traditionally used in fish tacos because they are mild in flavor, cook quickly and are relatively inexpensive. Popular kinds of white fish for fish tacos include halibut, tilapia, mahi mahi, snapper, cod, bass and cat fish. In Florida I preferred grouper ...
28. Word processor feature: SPELLCHECK. I'd call it the word processor "evil"
32. Hebrew word in the Book of Psalms: SELAH. Fun Fact #7: [the bump dot com]: "SELAH is a gender-neutral name of Hebrew origin and is a variation of the Hebrew word Sela, meaning “rock” or “boulder.” However, this particular spelling of Selah is used in the Hebrew Bible 74 times and its meaning isn't exactly known"
34. Woman on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel: EVE. Easy WAG for a Friday puzzle
35. Sitcom in syndication, e.g.: RERUN. Margaret has shown a mild interest in seeing the RERUNs of "The Big Bang Theory". She never watched them but has enjoyed watching "Young Sheldon" ...
37. Hustle: RACE. RUSH, FUSS, and PUSH also fit
38. General vicinity: AREA.
40. Coastal desert of southern Africa: NAMIB. I was all catawampus on this; was apparently thinking northern Africa/Israel when I inserted NEGEV into these cells ... NAMIB is not an everyday word you'd use, but I'm sure this one got by our editor with no issues ...
41. Slowed down: IMPEDED. I wasn't too IMPEDED by today's puzzle as I finished it in my average solving time for a Friday; maybe faster
46. To no __: in vain: AVAIL. Another way you could describe failing to solve this puzzle, perhaps?
48. Barrie buccaneer: SMEE. "Mr. SMEE is a fictional character who serves as Captain Hook's boatswain in J. M. Barrie's 1904 play Peter Pan, or the Boy Who Wouldn't Grow Up and 1911 novel Peter and Wendy" [wikipedia]
50. Patisserie lure: AROMA. "Patisserie" is Frawnch for pastry shop
51. Plane tracker: RADAR. He could also track helicopters, and knew when Colonel Potter had to use the latrine
52. 2022 music biopic directed by Baz Luhrmann: ELVIS. This film is an HBO exclusIVE. We don't get HBO through our Roku account, so this one solved via perps. Here is yet another trailer for you to watch!!
53. Two-time WNBA MVP __ Delle Donne: ELENA. Her:
54. BoSox rivals: YANKS. In the context of the clue, this probably was the fourteenth abbreviation; however, YANKS by itself (without a clued reference) would not be considered an abbreviation ... just in case you were wondering ...
58. Ostrichlike bird: RHEA. Never seen one? How about a trio of them, instead??
59. School grade: MARK. I was pretty much a "B", "B-Plus" student
60. Singer Brickell: EDIE. Brickell has replaced ADAMS as the 21st Century crossword puzzle singer's surname for EDIE
62. __ admin: SYS. #14 of the abbreviations in today's puzzle. That may be a record for a 15x15 puzzle. My "goal" today was to have as many movie trailers and "Fun Facts" in my blog as there were abbreviations. I think I came up a couple short ... anyway, that's all today for this blogger
The next two Friday puzzles will be recapped by my "brother from another mother", Malodorous Manatee. I'll see you in December. Please remember to recognize a veteran today, and thank them for their service to our country
Please enter any comments about the puzzle or recap below, and don't forget to tip your bloggers ... !! ;^)
In the brief trailer to their 1935 film Tit for Tat, Stan and Ollie open their new electrical store next door to Charlie
Hall's grocers - unfortunately they'd previously fallen out with him on a
trip to the mountains (in Them Thar Hills) and Hall was not ready to forgive and forget. They spend the rest of the
film trading hostilities, TIT for TAT until a local cop puts a
stop to their shenanigans. If you want to bring back some chuckles
from a bygone era,
here's the complete 19 min. video.
Today's team of constructors David Taber and
Laura Mollinvite us to their own game of Tit for Tat, with a theme about
people in different jobs trading their services. Dave
and Laura have had three previous puzzles published in the LA Times, the most recent
on
June 22, 2022 blogged by MalMan. David also posts puzzles on the
Alloquest site.
I found the first Across clue to be particularly
troublesome (see below), and I have to confess that afterwards I actually
had to TITT and look at the answer list before finishing. I'm
looking forward to hearing other solvers' success stories on this, for me at
least, Friday/Saturdayish puzzle.
[Not mentioning any names, but]
some people will be happy to hear that there were no asterisks, circles, or
reveals in the clues, with all of the themers identifiable by being questions starting with
the words "Trade between" and then filled with common idioms
containing the words FOR or FOR A. Here they are:
17A. Trade between a football coach and a candymaker?:
PLAYS FOR A SUCKER. PLAYS being the coach's game plans for
getting the ball over the line, and SUCKER being hard sugar candy on a
stick. For reasons described below this was one of the last clues I
got.
22A. Trade between a hairstylist and a computer retailer?:
BOBS FOR APPLES. It was here that the light bulb began to glow a
bit. There are a lot of variations on BOBS. Here's a
medium:
Medium Bob
Here's the APPLE from
last Thursday's puzzle. If she held out for one of those, I think the stylist got the better
deal.
37A. Trade between a lingerie shop owner and a utility
manager?: JOCKEYS FOR POWER. Sorry, no pictures or Blogger might bust us, however it's not
smart enough to go down this
link. But with today's energy crisis it will take a lot of undies to
generate all the
HEAT
we're going to need to keep warm this winter.
45A. Trade between an opinion writer and a bus driver?:
TAKES FOR A RIDE. The subtlest of the themers IMO. An op ed writer gives us
her/his TAKES on various topics. But any bus driver who
trades his services for most of today's opinions is the one being
TAKEN FOR A RIDE. 56. Trade between a plastic surgeon
and a game store owner?:
A NOSE FOR TROUBLE. In the movie
Roxanne
based on the French play Cyrano de Bergerac, fire chief Charlie Bale, played by
Steve Martin, definitely has what you might called a
TROUBLED NOSE:
Oh and here's a last minute clip, suggested by CrossEyedDave:
If Charlie could get a NOSE JOB for a game of
Trouble, I think he'd definitely come out ahead:
NOSE crossing with 46D AROMA was cute.
Here's the
grid:
Now let's swap some Acrosses and Downs: Across:
1. "The Absinthe Drinker" painter: MANET. A dangerous drink and my undoing (the clue, not the booze). I figured the painter must be
MANET, as 1D MAPS have legends, but couldn't make everything around it work. Then I
made the mistake of Googling "The Absinthe Drinker". With my dumb luck it
turns that there aretwo 5 letter artists who created paintings with
this title:
So I took everything apart and substituted DEGAS, but then after much wailing and gnashing of teeth, I
finally put everything back together with MANET. If this was
intentional misdirection on the part of the constructors, then they are absolutely brilliant!
6. Parodied: APED.
10. Highway division: LANE. And as we all know, also the proper name
for the long flat surface upon which the game of bowling is played ...
Bowling Lane
14. 2012 winner of six Grammys: ADELE. Here she performs one of
those award winners, created for the James Bond thriller
Skyfall.
28. Turn on an axis: PIVOT. PIVOT is also a metaphor
for major life changes and for skating maneuvers. Here's a book by Olympic
speed skater Apolo Ohno called
Hard Pivot. We'll meet Apolo again in 6D.
33. Tranquil: CALM. "If you remain cool, CALM, and
collected, while everyone else around you is losing their heads, then maybe you
don't understand the situation."- Anonymous
Prior to to WWII the British did understand the situation they were in
and did their best to prepare for it. Keep Calm and Carry Onwas a motivational poster intended to raise the morale of the British public
who were threatened with widely predicted mass air attacks on major cities.
Although 2.45 million copies were printed, the poster was only rarely
publicly displayed and was actually little known until a copy was rediscovered
in 2000 at Barter Books, a bookshop in Alnwick. It has since been
re-issued by a number of private companies, and has been used as the decorative
theme for a range of products. We saw one recently in a tea room in
the Hamilton neighborhood of Baltimore:
40. Certain: SURE.
41. "Smack That" rapper: AKON.
Aliaune Damala Badara Akon Thiam (born April 16, 1973), known
mononymously as Akon, is a Senegalese-American singer, record producer,
and entrepreneur. He rose to prominence in 2004 following the release of "Locked
Up" (featuring Styles P), the first single from his debut album
Trouble (2004), followed by the second single "Lonely". "Smack That", written in collaboration with rapper Eminem, was released on Akon's 2006 album Konvicted.
42. Twist-top snacks: OREOS. The daily cookie clue.
43. Bout ender, briefly: TKO. Technical Knock Out. The
refs decide to call the bout so they won't have to call an ambulance.
44. Moderate running pace: JOG.
52. Showed again: RERAN. A
rerun or repeat
is a rebroadcast of an episode of a radio or television program. There are two
types of reruns – those that occur during a hiatus, and those that occur when a
program is syndicated.
53. Pranks: GAGS. Something to watch just for laughs, a Canadian "Candid Camera", and a CSO to CanadianEh!
54. Sprite: ELF.
An elf is a type of humanoid supernatural being in Germanic mythology
and folklore. In medieval Germanic-speaking cultures, elves generally seem to have been
thought of as beings with magical powers and supernatural beauty, ambivalent
towards everyday people and capable of either helping or hindering them.
Elves also play major roles in Tolkien's Lord of the Rings saga.
Here is Galadriel, Queen of the Elves, played by
Cate Blanchett:
Galadriel
60. On occasion: SOMETIMES.
61. Set free: UNTIE. A CSO to Jinx.
62. Birmingham baby buggy: PRAM. British shorthand for
PERAMBULATOR. American composer
John Alden Carpenter wrote a short 6 movement tone poem about a PRAM called
Adventures in a Perambulator recalling childhood dreams.
Here's the third movement, titled Hurdy-Gurdy (2:30 min):
63. Canadian gas brand: ESSO. Two vowels and 2 S's; high octane crossword glue. Hi again CanadianEh!
64. Sheds: LOSES.
Down:
1. Places for legends?: MAPS. Typical symbols on MAP legends:
2. "Stick to the script!" elicitor: AD LIB. The clue is a
quote of a director to an actor. And when the actor ignores the
director,
sometimes her/his lines are better than the script. And one of those lines was ad-libbed by 49D.
3. "How cool!": NEATO. Hand up if you know anyone who says this?
5. Proving ground: TEST SITE.
Aberdeen Proving Ground, in Edgewood, MD is the U.S. Army's oldest active proving ground, established
on 20 October 1917 (the year my Father was born), six months after the US
entered World War I. Its location allowed design and testing of the larger
ordnance materiel required in that war and it was near contemporary industrial
and shipping centers. As years went by the nearby town grew to a 17 sq
mile suburban area and the wastes generated by APG weapons testing have become
potential sources of water and soil contamination.
6. Skating gold medalist Ohno: APOLO. This is considered one
of the greatest moments in Team USA history, even though
OHNO didn't win the Gold Medal for the race:
7. Kitchen accessory: PARER. A very useful tool. I'm
the official PARING sous chef in the house.
8. Sked info: ETA.
9. Court figs.: DAS. District Attorneys.
10. Tourist helper: LOCAL. Who better to ask? And they all speak English, right?
11. Bracelet place: ANKLE.
12. Physics Nobelist Bohr: NIELS. Dane Niels Bohr was one of the most important physicists of the 20th
Century, another being his colleague and close friend German
Werner Heisenberg. In the 1920s the two laid the foundations for the
revolutionary science of Quantum Mechanics, which forever changed the way
that physicists look at the world. The motto of
Bohr's family crest
is Contraria Sunt Complementa (Latin for
Opposites are Complementary). The motto summarizes Bohr's "Copenhagen Interpretation" of Quantum Physics and also his sometimes difficult relationship with
Heisenberg.
That relationship was the subject of the 1998 2-act
play
Copenhagen
by Michael Frayn, which concerns a meeting in that city that the two
physicists had in 1941 after the beginning of WWII, when
Denmark was a nation now occupied by Germany. The play, which has only three characters, became the
basis for this film made in 2002, starring Daniel Craig as Heisenberg,
Stephen Rea as Bohr, and Francesca Annis as Bohr's wife
Magrethe. Here's the trailer ...
30. Blockbuster player?: VCR. The Last Blockbuster (2020),
now streaming on YouTube:
31. Want from: ASK OF.
32. Airborne mystery: UFO. The majority of UFO's are
NOT mysteries, once they've been identified. But a
relatively small percentage of sightings that have been made by trained
observers have not been explained, and they still remain mysteries. Due
primarily to national security concerns
NASA has recently assembled
a team of experts to investigate what it now calls
Unidentified Aerial Phenomena (UAPs). The use of this new
descriptor is an effort to remove some of the stigma associated with
the previous term in the past and to encourage responsible reporters, primarily aircraft
pilots, to step forward with their observations. I've been reading the
literature on UAPs for over 50 years and the most credible study of them
that I've found is by investigative reporter Leslie Kean in her 2011
bookUFOs: Generals, Pilots, and Government Officials Go on the Record. It's definitely worth a read.
33. Welsh dog: CORGI. Queen Elizabeth II had more than 30
Welsh Corgis
in her lifetime and her recent death put a spotlight on these adorable dogs.
34. Transfix: AWE. IMHO a much abused term.
35. Summer sign: LEO.
36. "__ Dalloway": MRS.
Mrs Dalloway
is a novel by Virginia Woolf, published on 14 May 1925, that details a day in
the life of Clarissa Dalloway, a fictional upper-class woman in post-First World
War England. It is one of Woolf's best-known novels.
38. Jabbers: YAKS.
39. Sympathetic case: POOR SOUL. A hint of condescension?
43. Words to live by: TENET.
44. JaromÃr who scored the second-most points in NHL history: JAGR.
JaromÃr Jágr (born 15 February 1972) is a Czech professional ice hockey right-winger
(a bit about
hockey politics) for, and the owner of, team RytÃÅ™i Kladno of the Czech league
Extraliga. He previously played in the National Hockey League (NHL) for
the Pittsburgh Penguins, Washington Capitals,
New York Rangers, Philadelphia Flyers, Dallas Stars,
Boston Bruins, New Jersey Devils, Florida Panthers and
Calgary Flames, serving as captain of the Penguins and the Rangers,
between 1990 and 2018.
Here are his stats.
JaromÃr Jágr
45. Barbershop part: TENOR. Not a hair part, but a voice
range in a Barbershop quartet. Here's a new rendition of an old song by
a different quartet:
47. Casey who voiced Shaggy on "Scooby-Doo": KASEM.
Kemal Amin "Casey" Kasem
(April 27, 1932 – June 15, 2014) was an American disc jockey, actor, and
radio personality, who created and hosted several radio countdown programs,
notably American Top 40. He was the first actor to voice Norville
"Shaggy" Rogers in the Scooby-Doo franchise (1969 to 1997 and 2002 to
2009) and as Dick Grayson/Robin in Super Friends (1973–1985).
Casey Kasem
48. Folklore beasts: OGRES.
49. "Midnight Cowboy" hustler: RATSO.
Midnight Cowboy
is a 1969 American drama film, based on the 1965 novel of the same name by James
Leo Herlihy. The film was written by Waldo Salt, directed by John Schlesinger,
and stars Dustin Hoffman and Jon Voight. Set in New York City,
Midnight Cowboy depicts the unlikely friendship between two hustlers:
naïve sex worker Joe Buck (Voight), and ailing con man Enrico "Ratso" Rizzo
(Hoffman). I've not seen it and it sounds kind of noir to me, but
apparently it did very well with the critics and the box office.
50. Financial obligations: DEBTS. E.g. 29D. .
51. Kemper of "The Office": ELLIE. Another occasional ad-libber,
Elizabeth Claire Kemper
(born May 2, 1980) is an American actress and comedian. She has been
nominated for a Critics' Choice Movie Award, two Critics' Choice Television
Awards, two Primetime Emmy Awards, three Satellite Awards, and seven Screen
Actors Guild Awards. Here she is on the
Late Show with Stephen Colbert describing an early dramatic role she played:
52. Talk hoarsely: RASP.
55. They may be flat: FEES. Had FEET, but they didn't perp.
57. "Phooey!" of yore: FIE. Here's
Fie on Goodness
from the days of yore in the Court of King Arthur (lyrics):
58. Mantra syllables: OMS. A sound track to a
31A?
59. Card game with a Moo! version for preschoolers:
UNO.
Cheers, Bill
As always, thanks to Teri
for proof reading and for her constructive criticism.
waseeley
David Taber and Laura Moll, you 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.
Notes from C.C.:
Happy 76th birthday to Husker Gary's loving wife Joann (right with a vest) and her twin sister
Joyce. Here they're with their mom Martha.
div>Theme: Get It In Gear! The first word of each theme fill entry is a choice from the gear selector in an automobile. In the industry, we call it the PRNDL. Kudos to the construction crew for getting them in this order.
17 A. Actor who plays Cho Sang-woo on "Squid Game": PARKHAE-SOO. [Park Pyeong-ho b. 1978] is a South Korean actor who has appeared in many movies and TV shows in his homeland. But - have any of you ever heard of him? PARK is the gear selection when you don't want the vehicle to move.
24 A. Travel that largely avoids rush-hour traffic: REVERSECOMMUTE. This is typically a round trip from a home in the city to a job in the suburbs, the opposite of the more common route. REVERSE is used to go backwards. Look out behind!
35. Cult-favorite indie band formed by Jeff Mangum: NEUTRALMILK HOTEL. An American band formed in Ruston, Louisiana, by musician Jeff Mangum. They were active from 1989 to 1998, and again from 2013 to 2015. The band's music featured a deliberately low-quality sound, influenced by indie rock and psychedelic folk. Mangum wrote surreal and opaque lyrics that covered a wide range of topics, including love, spirituality, nostalgia, sex, and loneliness. I am usually quite circumspect in my critiques on this blog. But having two theme entries that I have to characterize as gratuitous obscurity is, in my humble opinion, beyond the pale. NEUTRAL is used when the vehicle is idling.
51. Infuriate: DRIVEUP THE WALL. Make someone irritated, angry or crazy. I haven't heard this expression in recent decades. DRIVE is the gear selection for making forward progress.
59. "Plug me in soon!" warning: LOWBATTERY. Notification from your electronic device. LOW gear is used for slow progress - to avoid sliding or digging the tires into mud or sand
Hi Gang - JazzBupma here in the driver's seat today. Let's see where today's journey takes us. Looks like this is Will's first entry in the L.A. Times, so congrats!
Across:
1. "You crack me up": HA-HA. Funny.
5. Print sources?: PAWS. From your pet doggo.
9. Cookie quantity: BATCH. Often some number of dozens.
14. Bake-off appliance: OVEN. Sometimes full of cookies.
15. Unseen Beckett character: GODOT. From the play "Waiting For Godot," who never arrives.
16. Bugler's blast: BLARE. Sadly, I couldn't find an actual BLARE, so here is some pretty good bugle playing.
19. Ingredient in piccata dishes: CAPER. Capparis spinosa, the caper bush, also called Flinders rose, is a perennial plant that bears rounded, fleshy leaves and large white to pinkish-white flowers.
The plant is best known for the edible flower buds (capers), used as a seasoning or garnish, and the fruit (caper berries), both of which are usually consumed salted or, alternatively, pickled.
20. "Exile in Guyville" singer Phair: LIZ. Elizabeth Clark Phair (b. 1967) is an American singer-songwriter. Born in New Haven, Connecticut, Phair was raised primarily in the Chicago area. Phair's 1993 debut studio album, Exile in Guyville, was released to acclaim; it has been ranked by Rolling Stone as one of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.
21. Clamor: DIN. A loud, unpleasant, and prolonged noise.
23. Way to go: ROAD. A place to get your vehicle in gear.
28. Alcorn __: HBCU in Mississippi: STATE. Alcorn State University is a public historically black land-grant university adjacent to Lorman, Mississippi. It was founded in 1871 and was the first black land grant college established in the United States.
30. Personal: OWN. I guess you have to consider a phrase like, "This is my OWN thing."
31. Court clown: JESTER. AKA: fool.
32. Arcade giant: SEGA. A Japanese multinational video game and entertainment company headquartered in Shinagawa, Tokyo.
33. Culture essayist Tolentino: JIA. Jia Angeli Carla Tolentino (b. 1988) is an American writer and editor. A staff writer for The New Yorker, she previously worked as deputy editor of Jezebel and a contributing editor at The Hairpin. Her writing has also appeared in The New York Times Magazine and Pitchfork. In 2019, her collected essays were published as Trick Mirror: Reflections on Self-Delusion.
34. Letters of urgency: SOS. Derives from Morse code dot dot dot dash dash dash dot dot dot. More here.
42. Window boxes?: ACS. Air Conditioners. Clever clue.
43. __ kwon do: TAE. a Korean form of martial arts characterized by punching and kicking techniques, with emphasis on head-height kicks, spinning jump kicks, and fast kicking techniques. The literal translation for tae kwon do is "kicking", "punching", and "the art or way of".
44. Sad Keanu or Grumpy Cat: MEME. A humorous image, video, piece of text, etc., that is copied (often with slight variations) and spread rapidly by internet users.
45. Toiling away: AT WORK.
49. Thanksgiving mo. in Canada: OCTober.
50. Needle: TEASE. Drive up the wall?
54. Copenhagen resident: DANE. Citizen of Denmark.
55. Kung __ chicken: PAO. A spicy, stir-fried Chinese dish made with cubes of chicken, peanuts, vegetables, and chili peppers. The classic dish in Sichuan cuisine originated in the Sichuan province of south-western China and includes Sichuan peppercorns.
56. Orange or peach: HUE. Colors.
57. Antique mall?: AGORA. In ancient Greece, a public open space used for assemblies and markets. Clever clue.
65. Countryman and Clubman: MINIS. Mini (stylised as MINI) is a British automotive marque founded in 1969, owned by German automotive company BMW since 2000, and used by them for a range of small cars assembled in the United Kingdom, Austria and the Netherlands. The word Mini has been used in car model names since 1959, and in 1969 it became a marque in its own right when the name "Mini" replaced the separate "Austin Mini" and "Morris Mini" car model names
66. "Silas Marner" novelist: ELIOT. Silas Marner: The Weaver of Raveloe is the third novel by George Eliot. It was published in 1861. An outwardly simple tale of a linen weaver, the novel is notable for its strong realism and its sophisticated treatment of a variety of issues ranging from religion to industrialisation to community. Mary Ann Evans (1819 – 1880 known by her pen name George Eliot, was an English novelist, poet, journalist, translator, and one of the leading writers of the Victorian era.
67. Loyal: TRUE. Giving or showing firm and constant support or allegiance to a person or institution.
68. Does some onstage improv: SCATS. To improvise nonsense syllables usually to an instrumental accompaniment : sing scat.
69. Reject: DENY.
70. 38-Down ingredients: EGGS. Primary component of an omelet.
Down:
1. Bounce: HOP.
2. "When They See Us" creator DuVernay: AVA. Ava Marie DuVernay [b. 1972] is an American filmmaker, television producer and former film publicist. She is a recipient of a Primetime Emmy Award, a NAACP Image Award, a BAFTA Film Award and a BAFTA TV Award, as well as a nominee of an Academy Award and Golden Globe.
3. Feminine pronoun: HER. In objective case.
4. Art that may be covered by a boot: ANKLE TAT. Skin art.
5. "The Purloined Letter" writer Edgar Allan __: POE. Edgar Allan Poe’s stature as a major figure in world literature is primarily based on his ingenious and profound short stories, poems, and critical theories, which established a highly influential rationale for the short form in both poetry and fiction. More here.
6. Promos: ADS. Advertisements.
7. Like heavy clogs: WOODEN. Made of wood.
8. Showing little emotion: STOIC. not affected by or showing passion or feeling. Having a wooden heart.
9. "EastEnders" network: BBC. British Broadcasting Corporation, the national broadcaster of the United Kingdom, based at Broadcasting House in London, England.
10. Startles: ALARMS.
11. Submit, in an MMA match: TAP OUT. Submit to an opponent by tapping one's hand repeatedly either on the arena or the opponent's body.
12. Generate: CREATE. Produce
13. Sheepdog, e.g.: HERDER. A type of pastoral dog that either has been trained in herding or belongs to breeds developed for herding. Their ability to be trained to act on the sound of a whistle or word of command is renowned throughout the world.
15. Steady look: GAZE. Look steadily and intently, especially in admiration, surprise, or thought.
18. Bee complex: HIVE. A structure where bees live, either built by people or made by the bees themselves :
22. "Seriously!": NO JOKE. For realz.
24. Barilla rival: RAGU. Makers of Italian style sauces.
25. Churns: ROILS. Disturbs. physically or literally.
26. Paddled, say: SWAM.
27. Get along well: MESH. Like gears.
28. W-2 fig.: SSN. Social Security Number
29. Merch table buy: TEE. I suppose this is a shirt. Or possibly a golf accessory, depending on the type of merch.
33. Raise dramatically, as prices: JACK UP.
34. Bluish gray: SLATE. Slate is a dark shade of grey that has been mixed with a hint of azure for a cool tone, modern shade.
36. Steak order: RARE. Cooked so that the inside is still red
37. Nagging desire: ITCH. A strong desire to do something
38. Brunch choice: OMELETTE. A dish made by mixing eggs together and frying them, often with small pieces of other food such as cheese or vegetables; here spelt pretentiously.
39. Aqua kin: TEAL. Blue-green colors.
40. Two-fifths of Miami?: EMS. Letters in the word. Meh!
41. Gymnast Suni: LEE. Sunisa "Suni" Lee [b. 2003] is a Hmong American artistic gymnast. She is the 2020 Olympic all-around champion and uneven bars bronze medalist. She was a member of the teams that won gold at the 2019 World Championships and silver at the 2020 Summer Olympics.
46. Woeful: TRAGIC. Characterized by, expressive of, or causing sorrow or misery.
47. Actress Ryder: WINONA. Winona Laura Horowitz [b. 1971] professionally known as Winona Ryder, is an American actress. Originally playing quirky roles, in the 1990s, she rose to prominence for her more varying roles in productions of diverse genres. Numerous views.
48. Ready to move on: OVER IT.
49. Annette of "Virgin River": O'TOOLE. Annette O'Toole [b. 1952} is an American actress. She is known for portraying Lisa Bridges in the television series Nash Bridges, Beverly Marsh in the 1990 television mini-series adaptation of Stephen King's epic horror novel It, Lana Lang in Superman III, Kathy in the romantic-comedy film Cross My Heart and Martha Kent (the mother of Clark Kent) on the television series Smallville.
50. Pulled tight: TAUT. Stretched or pulled tight; not slack.
52. Lost color: PALED. Looked more wan.
53. "Come again?": WHAT? Please repeat.
58. Burro: ASS. Beast of burden.
60. Come in first: WIN. Be victorious.
61. Lad: BOY. Young boy.
62. Rowing machine, familiarly: ERG. Is it the Ergatta or the Concept Two RowErg? Beats me.
63. Hallway runner: RUG. A long, narrow rug meant to be used in a hallway, galley kitchen, or other area of the home where space is narrow, but long.
64. "You got it": YES. Correct.
So we arrive at our Wednesday destination. I was able to say something good about the puzzle and something bad about the puzzle. Overall, the journey was OK. Hope you made it to the end with no accidents.
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