Monday December 19, 2022 Spencer Leach

 Hello Cornerites!

sumdaze here, taking a look at Spencer Leach's puzzle. My first thought when seeing the empty grid is that it reminded me of the Message Monster forever stamp from 2021.

 

Do you see it?

I think the monster might be waving hello. Let's make today's theme:

Monstrous Waves 

We'll begin with the 3 themers:

17. Across*  Medical scan with a wand: ULTRASOUND.  First used for medical purposes in Glasgow in 1956, ULTRASOUND is an imaging method that uses sound waves to produce images of structures within a patient's body.

Since an ULTRASOUND uses sound waves, this answer feels a bit too close to the theme. Perhaps something like "Puget Sound" would have done more to separate this themer from the reveal.

27. Across*  "Channel Orange" Grammy winner: FRANK OCEAN.  Every Single Perp for me.

In 2012, Frank Ocean won 2 Grammys -- one for Best Urban Contemporary Album for Channel Orange and another for Best Rap/Sung Collaboration for No Church In The Wild with The-Dream, Jay Z and Kanye West.

44. Across*  Comment after a joke that doesn't land: TOUGH CROWD.

Rodney Dangerfield

Then the reveal:

60. Causes a ruckus, and what the end of each answer to the starred clues does: MAKES WAVES.  The 3 types of WAVES the themers make are:

SOUND WAVES

OCEAN WAVES

and CROWD WAVES

Next we'll check out the swell fill clues.

Across:

1. "Whatever floats your __": BOAT.  Whatever makes you happy.

5. Cuts of pork: CHOPS.

Miss Piggy demonstrating pork CHOPS

10. New York MLB team: METS.  Sometimes we are expected to remember that they play at Citi Field.

14. Really get to: RILE.

15. Patient contribution: CO-PAY.

16. Aid and __: ABET.

19. British conservative: TORY.  Whigs and Tories in under 500 words

20. Valentine symbol: HEART.

21. Three-pronged Greek letter: PSI. My memory trick for this letter is Poseidon carried a trident.

22. Mint family herb: THYME.  I do not usually think of THYME as being related to mint but I figured Burpee (seed company) would know.

23. Multiuse tool with lots of attachments: DREMEL.

DH has one. His eyes light up when he thinks of a project that requires it.

25. Phone up: CALL.  You know, "dial".

31. "How sad for you": BUMMER.

Hummer Bummer

35. "A mouse!!": EEK.  Yesterday's puzzle's theme.

36. Sporty car roof: T-TOP.  

Barbie has a pink one.

38. Being kept cold: ON ICE.

39. Box set component: DVD. At first I thought this was one of those video game console questions.

40. "Same here!": ME, TOO.

41. Pottery oven: KILN.  kiln FAQs

42. Actor's prompt: CUE.

43. Pungent sushi condiment: WASABI.  Real WASABI vs. Fake WASABI

47. Farm animal with horns: GOAT.  Like cattle, both male & female goats can have horns.

48. Badger at the comedy club: HECKLE.  What members of a TOUGH CROWD do.

52. "That's the answer!": BINGO.

Inglourious Bastards (2009) 2 min. clip

55. Freight weight: TON.  Axle Weight Limits by State...and Canada, too!

57. Message-spelling board: OUIJA.  Do you say wee-juh or wee-jee? Both are correct. The first pronunciation matches the spelling but the second is more common.

59. Slim woodwind: OBOE.  Mozart's Oboe Concerto in C major, K. 314 was originally composed in Spring or Summer 1777 for oboist Giuseppe Ferlendis from Bergamo (1755-1802).

62. Bird's __ soup: NEST. I have heard of this soup but I had assumed it was made with noodles. I am surprised to learn that it is made with actual birds' nests.  link to a 5-star recipe and very interesting info

bird's nest soup

63. "Queen Sugar" co-producer Winfrey: OPRAH.  They had me at "Winfrey".  about the show

64. Peace Nobelist Walesa: LECH.  We meet again! Clued yesterday as "48D. Polish Solidarity hero Lech", Polish born LECH Walesa was in the news almost daily in the early '80s. This bio on NobelPrize.org tells his story much better than I can. 

65. Post-breakup pair: EXES.

George Strait singing All My Ex's Live in Texas

66. Like bogs: PEATY.

67. Superficially highbrow: ARTY.  Peaty's best friend since 2nd grade.

Down:
1. "Dude!": BRUH.  Recipient of today's Giant Leap award for spelling. Apparently "Bro" is very GenX and the Millennials have made the leap to BRUH. 

2. Used lubricant on: OILED.

3 min. video on Turkish Oil Wrestling

3. Place to say "I do": ALTAR.

4. __ Haute, Indiana: TERRE.  With 58,525 people, Terre Haute is the 15th most populated city in the State of Indiana.

5. IV units: CCS.  Cubic CentimeterS.  There are 2,000 CCs in a 2 liter bottle of soda.

6. Ruckus: HOOPLA.

7. "Mr. Holland's __": Dreyfuss film: OPUS.

Official Trailer (1996) 2:50 min.

8. Froze, perhaps: PANICKED. Good clue.

9. Pink Floyd guitarist Barrett: SYD. Y do I always misspell his name?

10. Students with a lot of problems?: MATHLETES.  super awesome kids!

11. Goth-like aesthetic of some TikTok guys: E-BOY.  Husker Gary gave us this link in his 10/22/22 blog.

12. Time in office: TERM.

13. Eye affliction: STYE.

18. Withdrawal charge: ATM FEE.

22. Gentle handling, for short: TLC.  Tender Loving Care

24. "To __ is human ... ": ERR.

... To forgive, divine.  (Alexander Pope)

... But it feels divine.  (Mae West)

... To admit it, superhuman.  (Doug Larson)

... To purr, feline.  (Robert Byrne)

26. Perfectly fine: A-OK.

28. At no point: NEVER.

29. "__ baby!": "Way to go!": ATTA.

30. Clueless gamer: NOOB. We've seen some spelling variations for this. In many fields, NOOB is short for "newbie" which is slang for someone new to something.

31. __ choy: BOK.  a staple at my house. Here's why:

32. Foot or furlong: UNIT.  MATHLETES have to remember to label their answers with the correct UNIT.

33. Ventimiglia of "This Is Us": MILO. Also the #4 male dog name in Nov.22 according to Rover.com

Milo Ventimiglia

What do you think? Keep or ditch the beard?

34. Happy Meal chicken option: MCNUGGETS.

37. Luau bowlful: POI.

39. All-purpose roll: DUCT TAPE.  Is it "duck" tape or "duct" tape? Actually, it's both!

The first name alludes to the tape's development: an elastic glue appended to a cotton duck fabric backing. Troopers in WWII utilized it to seal ammo cases, repair shoes and do the million different things a duct tape can do. The tape was particularly helpful for its capacity to oppose water, which kept running off the elastic. The "duct" name change really happened post-war, when HVAC experts thought that it was valuable for fixing AC pipes. Source:  10 Really Cool Products Invented by the U.S. Military

40. Bovine disease, familiarly: MAD COW.  AKA Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE). According to the CDC, there have been 6 cases in the U.S. 

42. "__-ching!": CHA.  Also a financial literacy program for kids grades K-6.

43. "SummerSlam" org.: WWE.  World Wrestling Entertainment

45. Slime: GOO.  If you've got a lot of Goo, you can get Goo Gone.

46. "How cool!": OH NEAT.

49. __ Lumpur, Malaysia: KUALA.

50. Gallbladder neighbor: LIVER.

51. Kick out: EJECT.

52. Dog biscuit shape: BONE.

53. Wild mountain 47-Across: IBEX.

male Alpine Ibex

54. Win by a __: NOSE. Rudolf, when playing reindeer games.

56. Gumbo pod: OKRA.

58. Like a newly reborn phoenix, probably: ASHY.  I see what they did there.

60. Floor-washing tool: MOP.

61. Relatively timid: SHY.

Here's the completed grid:

That's all for today. I encourage you to not waive your rights to comment!

Sunday, December 18, 2022, Brad Wiegmann

 "It's a Mouse!"

CC's had a bit of a busy week, so she asked me if I would step up and take this chore off her to-do list. TTP ​had the tougher task -- trying to put my mess into publishable shape.   Super job, TTP, you pulled the wool over their eyes, making me look like I knew what I was doing.

Brad Wiegmann is no stranger to crosswords, though he shows up more frequently at "that other newspaper" than in the L.A.T.   From what I can tell, he last showed up here on September 5th, 2021.

It's a mouse! (Eek!) The theme entries end in different spellings, but each has a distinctive "EEK" sound. Your task is to strip the K sound away to discover the in-the-language seed phrases.

22. One who's a really big fan of promos and trailers?: COMMERCIAL FREAK. Commercial-free

39. Go along with harsh criticism of an ancient Athenian?: AGREE TO DIS A GREEK. Agree to Disgree -- my favorite themer.

46. Annual stint at a Buckingham Palace timeshare?: THE ROYAL WEEK. The Royal We

66. Story about a Disney girl who climbs Mount Everest?: THE PRINCESS AND THE PEAK. The Princess and the Pea

86. Expensive block for a woodworking apprentice?: PRACTICE TEAK.

 

93. Poultry dish served in a Punjabi restaurant?: CHICKEN OF THE SIKH. Chicken of the Sea. Second favorite themer. 

117. Shop selling gold earrings and bandanas?: PIRATE'S BOUTIQUE. Pirate's Booty

The long themers didn't leave a lot of room for lengthy non-theme answers. Still, there's some nice stuff here.  

Across:

1. Unwelcome omens: BAD SIGNS.

9. Sussed (out): DOPED.

14. WWII sea threat: U-BOAT.

19. Pollution legislation goal: CLEAN AIR.

20. NutraSweet developer: SEARLE. 

              There was quite a controversy about Searle's Aspartame (NutraSweet) product

21. Bankrolls: FUNDS.

22. [Theme answer]

24. Store employee: CLERK.  My first gainful employment was CLERKing at the only drug store in our small town.

25. Walk heavily: STOMP.  Reminds me of this old New Christy Minstrels song.  STOMP appears at the one-minute mark.

26. Untruth: LIE.

27. "Your guide to a better future" site: CNET.

29. Best of the best, initially: GOAT. Greatest of all time.

30. Balance sheet abbr.: YTD. Year-to-Date

32. Styling aid: POMADE. Did you also think of George Clooney in O Brother, Where Art Thou? Warning: Strong language.

34. Weighs on: HAUNTS.

36. Main squeeze: BAE. I was surprised to find that this entry has made it into Merriam-Webster. "US Slang: Sweetheart, baby."

39. [Theme answer]

43. Like granita and 42-Down: ICY. Or Icee

44. Plum kin: SLOE.

  Because the berries are added prior to distilling, Sloe Gin can be a perfectly clear liquid.

45. Completely overhauled: REDONE.

46. [Theme answer]

51. Attributed: CREDITED.

56. Leaf under a petal: SEPAL. If you say so. D-o only attended one day of H.S. Biology class.

57. Fat used in baking: LARD.

58. Lyft alternative: CAB.

59. Lyft offer: RIDE.

60. Apple device that might have a Smart Cover: IPAD.

62. Mauna __: LOA. Still erupting. It's the largest active volcano on earth.

63. Minecraft resources: ORES.

65. Sea eagles: ERNS. Hello again, old cw friend.

66. [Theme answer]

72. Brazos River city: WACO. Made famous by David Koresh as well as Chip and Joanna Gaines.

73. Fellows: GUYS.

74. Trail mix morsel: NUT. Was thinking OAT.

75. Harbor, perhaps: ABET. Verb, not noun.

76. Hardly __: rarely: EVER.

77. Lily of France garment: BRA. Was not familiar with this brand, but Wal-Mart sells 'em.

78. Periods often named for leaders: ERAS.

80. Seal sounds: BARKS. Not root beer.

83. "1984" superstate: EAST ASIA.

86. [Theme answer]

89. Gershwin classic: SWANEE. Seems like a good excuse to link another Gershwin classic: Rhapsody in Blue performed by Leonard Bernstein and the New York Philharmonic.

91. "Sunday Night Baseball" analyst, familiarly: A-ROD. Alex Rodriguez, so I'm told.

92. Oscar winner Mahershala: ALI.    According to Britannica.com, "American actor who rose to prominence in the 2010s and won an Academy Award for his moving and nuanced performance as the fatherly drug dealer Juan in the film Moonlight (2016)." 

93. [Theme answer]

100. Study: DEN.

101. State of rest: REPOSE. Immediately evoked this track from the Chad Mitchell Trio.  REPOSE appears at about the 40 second mark.

102. Didn't work out: FAILED.

103. "Not buying it": NAH.

106. Aloha Tower island: OAHU. With 4 letters, it's gotta be either MAUI or OAHU.

107. Dog who visits Oz: TOTO.
 

110. NFL scores: TDs.

111. Springs: LEAPS. Verb, not noun.

115. Embellish: ADORN. When the truth is embellished, it becomes a 26a.

117. [Theme answer]

122. Mozart's "Così fan __": TUTTE. Opera. According to classicfm.com, "Two soldiers, Ferrando and Guglielmo, bet that their girlfriends will always be faithful; philosopher Don Alfonso persuades them he can prove otherwise. So, in ridiculous disguises, the military men seek to trick Fiordiligi and Dorabella..."

123. Buck horn: ANTLER. Yes, deer.

124. Words said with an eyeroll: I'M SO SURE. Got it, but don't understand it.

125. Informal "What if ... ": S'POSE. D-o's speech tends to be informal. You've probably never noticed.

126. Surgical beam: LASER.

127. Jazz headliners?: NBA STARS. Utah Jazz.

Down:

1. Confidentially informs: BCCS. Blind carbon copy -- archaic, but still used for email.

2. Often: A LOT.

3. Trial version: DEMO. Could'a been BETA.

4. Hagar of Van Halen: SAMMY.
 

5. Bumbling: INEPT.

6. Needlefish: GAR. Old-timey cw c/a.

7. Actor Cage, informally: NIC.  

            It's spelled Nicolas. He's the nephew of movie director Francis Ford Coppola.

8. __ Lanka: SRI. Formerly Ceylon.

9. Take down: DEFEAT. Not to write.

10. Lock insert: OAR.  Had to Wite-Out my KEY.

11. Pave the way for: PRECEDE.

12. Panache: ELAN. Another cw oldie goldie.

13. Feint on the ice: DEKE.

14. Mixed martial arts org.: UFC.  Ultimate Fighting Championship.

15. Tabbouleh wheat: BULGUR.  I would've bet it was spelled with an A.  D'oh.

16. Low tie: ONE-ONE.  About as low as you can get.

17. Cost for an online pop-up, e.g.: AD RATE.

18. "Shame on you!": TSK, TSK.

20. Goo made at home with glue, food coloring, and saline solution: SLIME.
 

23. Lotion additive: ALOE.

28. Scottish feudal lord: THANE.  That was the middle name of one of my college roomies.   His last name was Scottish, too.

31. "The Voice" host Carson: DALY. I've never imbibed.

32. Green shampoo: PRELL.
 

33. Nerdy sort: DORK.  Raj of TBBT comes to mind. Howard, too.   Also, Leonard. And Sheldon.  Not Penny.

35. Like much brandy: AGED. Have you ever heard of un-aged brandy?

36. Routine parts: BITS.

37. Tylenol target: ACHE.

38. See-through devices?: EYEPIECES.

40. Smallest state in India: GOA.
 

                                                 And there's 8d at the bottom of the map.

41. Security checkpoint request: ID CARD.

42. Granita kin: SORBET. When is it SORBET and when is it SHERBET?

44. Pool-heating option: SOLAR.

47. Bond that promotes easy communication: RAPPORT.  Not James.

48. Polish Solidarity hero Lech: WALESA.   Anyone else try to spell it with a V?

49. Mythical matchmaker: EROS.

50. Lou Grant player: ED ASNER.  Do you remember him as the morally conflicted ship captain in Roots?  He won an Emmy for the role

52. "To reiterate ... ": I REPEAT.  As I said...

53. Goodyear surface: TIRE TREAD.

54. Novelist O'Brien: EDNA.

55. Workstation: DESK.

58. Claritin rival: CONTAC  Didn't realize it was still around.

61. Archaeological site: DIG.

64. __ cha beef: stir-fry dish: SHA.  The only SHA d-o knows is Sha Na Na.

66. Oh-so-precious: TWEE. British.

67. "__ Nagila": HAVA. Hava Nagila. Have two nagilas, they're very small.

68. Africa's __ Desert: eastern region of the Sahara: NUBIAN.

69. 2021 title role for Peter Dinklage: CYRANO.  
 

                                                     
                                                       He played it without the nose.

70. Vibe: AURA.

71. Died down: EBBED.

79. Unflappable: STAID.   I wanted STOIC here.

81. Leaves in smoothies: KALE.  You're free to enjoy my share.

82. Hide: SKIN.  Noun, not verb.

84. Makes a request: ASKS.

85. Like dessert wines: SWEET.

86. Fur-protesting gp.: PETA.  People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals.  Who could be opposed to that?

87. Irritate: IRK.

88. Sportscaster Linda: COHN.
  

90. Sincere attempts: EFFORTS.

93. Dalmatians, e.g.: CROATS.  Dalmatia is on the Adriatic coast of Croatia.

94. Be in charge of: HEAD UP.

95. Old Apple app for pics:  iPHOTO.

96. Woos: COURTS.

97. Player who doesn't mind making bloopers?: HITTER.  Baseball talk, methinks.

98. Church leader: ELDER.

99. Brief meeting?: SESS. Session.

104. Singers below mezzo-sopranos: ALTOS.

105. "Money __": Spanish TV drama: HEIST. 

108. Fall birthstone: OPAL.

109. Fey of "Mean Girls": TINA. 

112. Bluish hue: AQUA.

113. Copy cats?: PURR.  You need to think about this one.

114. Spots: SEES.

116. Once named: NEE.

118. Blonde __: ALE.

119. Recycling __: BIN.

120. Govt. fiscal monitor: OMB.  Office of Management and Budget

121. Mex. neighbor: USA.  Duh.

Here's the grid:

We're all missing Boomer. C.C. is undoubtedly exhausted after this week. Here's hoping she can get in some relax time this coming week and will be ready to emcee next week's Sunday puzzle.

Desper-otto out.