google.com, pub-2774194725043577, DIRECT, f08c47fec0942fa0 L.A.Times Crossword Corner

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Nov 4, 2011

Friday, November 4, 2011, Scott Atkinson

Theme: 90 degree LIE, I think I have the right angle on this puzzle. See this diagram (Notice the four LIEs are symmetrically placed.) In the never ending evolution of the 15 x 15 crossword, today we are treated to a new dimension, turning corners. Two of the 4 theme answers are 17 letter fill, and all 4 are run ons.The first two beginning with LIE and the last two ending with LIE. The beginning of the fill is clued correctly, with the remainder just showing a dash. Since Rich does not permit any rebus puzzles, this is another step in seeking originality. I recently did a NY Times, where the fill ran around, so I was ready. It also is the 4th or 5th Scott Atkinson puzzle I have blogged, and he always makes us work, but then he is an iron man triathlete, so let's get on our bikes and go. I am not sure what order to present the theme answers. Because all the LIE part of the words are in the Down grid, we have as our reveal:

12D. Rest a spell, or a fitting title for this puzzle: LIE DOWN.

1D. Henry Blake's rank in "M*A*S*H*": LIE, with17A. -: EUTENANT COLONEL, yields Lieutenant Colonel, which was the unit's first commanding officer's rank, played by McLean Stevenson on TV.

22D. Landlocked Alpine principality: LIE, with 33A. -: ECHTENSTEIN, yields the tiny nation of Liechtenstein. You want MORE?

44A. Lara Croft portrayer: ANGELINA JOL with 47D. - : LIE, yields Angelina Jolie, who inspired this CLIP. (4:08) BONUS: Jolie is the French word for pretty.

64A. Historic Cold War crossing point: CHECK POINT CHARL with 67D. -: LIE. yields Check Point Charlie, as the extended answer to the clue, the cross over at the Berlin Wall..

Well you asked for no puns, and no add ons, and you got what you wished for. Of course to make the two long words work, we have lots of three letter fill (24 total). What did you think? On to the rest.

Across:

1. Some are chocolate: LABS. I had some chocolate lab puppies as my avatar this summer for a while; they were fun.

5. Trim: SHAVE. More like a budget than a face.

10. 1968 self-titled folk album: ARLO. My least favorite Guthrie.

14. "My body's achin' and my time __ hand": James Taylor lyric: IS AT. One of his finest SONGS. (4:07).

15. "Climb aboard!": HOP IN. Sounds more like a train to me.

16. Israel's Iron Lady: MEIR. Former Prime minister Golda. For the boys:



20. Former Calif. base: FT ORD. Fort Ord is a tricky one to parse.

21. "CHiPs" star Erik: ESTRADA. Ladies, hunk or PUNK?

22. China's Chou En-__: LAI. Another part of his name this time.

24. See 25-Down: MEAL, for which you need 25D. Statement before a 24-Across: LET'S EAT.

26. "Dogma" star: DAMON. Matt played our crossword friend LOKI, the impish Norse god (2:02).

27. "Assuming I'm right . . .": IF SO. Part of a logic discussion.

29. Places to treat v-fib: ERS. Ventricular fibrillation (irregular heart beat) Emergency Rooms.

32. Not family-friendly: LEWD. I guess this really depends on the family.

38. Prefix for Caps or Cat: SNO.

39. Confuses: CROSSES UP. Like when your partner trumps your Ace in bridge.

41. Modem owner's need: Abbr.: ISP. Internet Service Provider.

48. Not very much: A TAD.

50. Hr. related to airspeed: ETA. Estimated Time of Arrival.

51. Garr of "Mr. Mom": TERI. One of my favorites, even in this MOVIE (1:21).

52. Patient contribution: CO-PAY.

54. Spanish hors d'oeuvre: TAPA. Yummy.

58. Driver's gadget: TEE. Golf.

59. Like many bazaars: OPEN AIR. Aren't they all?

62. Synopsis: RECAP.

68. Offer as proof: CITE. My token law word, an accepted abbreviation of Citation.

69. Navel variety: OUTIE. Show of hands for the rare protruding belly button.

70. Dramatic opener: ACT I. All plays begin at the beginning even if it is a flashback.

71. Part of AMEX: Abbr.: AMER. American Stock Exchange.

72. Turn aside: DETER.

73. Midway game word: SKEE. The sort of bowling game which spits out tickets.

Down:

2. Tempe sch.: ASU. Arizona State University. my cousin Beverly obtained her masters there.

3. Odd-shaped reef denizen: BATFISH. This is not the child of Bruce Wayne and a mermaid.

4. Keep one's word?: STET. This editors word for leaving a passage the way it was originally, is classic old time crosswordese.

5. Post on Facebook, e.g : SHARE. How many of us do Facebook or Twitter?

6. Passport issuer?: HONDA. One the car companies many SUV's not your ID for travel.

7. Fitting: APT.

8. __ squad: VICE. Reminds me of the classic POLICE SQUAD.(3:03)

9. Slaughter in the outfield: ENOS. How fitting, as he was a great St. Louis Cardinal.

10. Ethically unconcerned: AMORAL. See 32 Across.

11. Handles differently?: RENAMES. Not a pot handle, but a CB users name.

13. Seat of Florida's Orange County: ORLANDO. Where my youngest sleeps nightly, I hope.

18. Émile, par exemple: NOM. Our french lesson; NOM= NAME. Jeannnnie?

19. Abbr. on some cheques: LTD. The que tells you it from a place where they use LTD instead of INC for their corporations.

23. Pro Bowl div.: AFC. American Football Conference, the old AFL after it was absorbed by the NFL, and the home of many more Super Bowls than the NFC.

28. Needing no Rx: OTC. Over The Counter.

30. React in shock: REEL. Winning the $245 million Powerball jackpot sent Dudley reeling.

31. "I agree, señor!": SI SI. Oui,oui aussi.

34. Stat for Cliff Lee: ERA. Man, is it really luck or is it me; Earned Run Average; Cliff being one of the Phillies' pitchers who let St. Louis sneak in to the World Series. Sorry Dennis.

35. Share for the fourth little piggy: NONE. In case you forgot, LISTEN.

36. USMC NCO: SSGT. Staff sergeant, Non-commissioned Officer.

37. Parochial school figure: NUN. We had a Catholic girl's high school built in our neighborhood when I was a teenager. Saw lots of NUNS trying to make sure I got none, just like the fourth little piggy.

40. Light touch: PAT. There there, it will be all right little girl.

41. Big name in Chrysler history: IACOCCA. The Ford man who rescued Chrysler and became FAMOUS.

42. Shout after a purse-snatching: STOP HIM. How sexist! What if the thief is a woman?

43. Capital of French Polynesia: PAPEETE. Beautiful place, you think?





45. Personal transport, in science fiction: JET PACK. Rex Ryan's posse? I wonder why they are not more in use by now?

46. Refinery input: ORE. OR crude.

49. Comet colleague: DANCER. On Comet, and Dancer and Prancer; a little early Santa Claus for you all.

53. Tibetan milk source: YAK. Yes, they talk so much in Tibet, the milk just pours from their mouths as they just go on and on.

55. Links nickname: ARNIE. Arnold Palmer, who really will always be Mr. Golf, maybe not the best, but the one who made everyone want to play and watch.

56. '80s baseball commissioner Ueberroth: PETER. He was also head of the Olympic Committee when the US hosted the Summer games.

57. Eastern NCAA hoops gp.: ACC. Atlantic Coast Conference, home of perennial b-ball contenders Duke and NC and many more.

60. Modern music source: IPOD. UPOD, we all pod.

61. Don Juan sort: ROUÉ. A man who dedicates himself to sensual pleasure; hmm. Obviously not encouraged, as the word is from the French rouer which means to break on the wheel, a fun medieval torture.

63. Cries from successful puzzle solvers: AHAS. More fun than the V-8 can in the head.

65. Hairy TV cousin : ITT. The Addams Family, not to be confused with Thing. Itt wore a hat.

66. AAA info: RTE. Route, which is here to remind me to move on down the road.

Answer grid.

It has been fun to read all the comments from our newly recruited members as well as our core. Good to see Carol, Lois and Warren, but I intend to keep pestering all of you who read silently or now and then to come by and say hi on Wednesday November 23, 2011 as we as a nation get ready to give thanks for all we have even, in bad times. We have the Corner, and I hope you enjoyed this brief journey. Thanks Scott A. for another new experience for this long time solver.

Lemonade

Note from C.C.:

Re: Missing Numbers & Theme Clues:

Your local paper format (PDF) is exactly what the constructor & Rich wanted. Across Lite does not allow unnumbered & unclued entries, hence dashes in today's on-line theme clues.

Nov 3, 2011

Thursday, November 3, 2011 Julian Lim

Theme: Double Takes. Common phrases with the word “double” are transformed cleverly by doubling the key word, instead, like this:

17A. Much-feared economic situation. DIP DIP RECESSION. “Double” dip recession, or a recession, short-lived recovery, followed by another recession.

24A. Sightseer’s option. DECKER DECKER BUS. “Double” decker bus. Often, a London sightseer’s option.


42A. It both aids and hinders. EDGED EDGED SWORD. “Double” edged sword. If one edge is pointing at the enemy, the other edge is pointing directly back at yourself…

56A. Optimal design for clinical trials. BLIND BLIND STUDY. So, here is where I got the AHA moment. I had ****D BLIND STUDY. And I knew it was “double blind study”, or one where neither the participants nor the administrators of the study know the parameters. DUH! Pass the V8 can, please. How many double blind studies have I overseen in my research years? And to think that the most satisfactory one was in an LA Times crossword puzzle!!

Marti signing in today, and totally loving this puzzle! So let me share some of my thoughts…

Across:

1. Like gates, at times. AJAR. When is a gate not a gate?

5. Wide-brimmed hat wearers. AMISH. Did anyone want Tom Mix? (You are dating yourself!)

10. 5-Across, e.g. SECT. This actually let me go back and fill in AMISH for 5A.

14. Pasture gait. LOPE. Not pace, trot, step, clip or walk…

15. Archaeologist’s prefix. PALEO

16. Chat room “Just a thought…” IMHO. In my humble opinion…

20. AOL feature. ONLINE AD. Ubiquitous, IMHO.

21. Like grapefruit. CITRUS

22. Cross shape. TAU. The Greek cross.

23. It often has two slashes. DATE. 11/03/11. Yep, they’re right…two slashes!

32. Despises. ABHORS

33. Angst. WOE. “Angst is me!”

34. Egyptian threat. ASP

35. Bell, book and candle. NOUNS. We’ve had “Tom, Dick and Harry, e.g.” for NAMES before.
Why no “e.g.” here?

36. Reunion attendees. KIN.

37. Humeri attachments. ULNAE. Filled in rapidly, without thinking about it. But to analyze, “humeri” is the Latin plural of “humerus”, or the long bone of the arm from elbow to shoulder, and ULNAE is the Latin plural of ulna, which is the long bone from the elbow to the wrist.

39. Former station for 26-down. CNN. And 26D. Povich co-anchor. CHUNG. Maury and Connie Chung. “Weekends with Maury and Connie” debuted in January 2006, but was cancelled for lack of interest in June. Connie did a parody of herself in this “Thanks for the Memories” clip when it was cancelled.

40. Go astray. SIN. Who wanted “err”?

41. Advil alternative. ANACIN. Tylenol alternative yesterday, for “Bayer”. Today, ANACIN and Advil are both solid brand names, right? Either way, I’m getting a headache…

46. Mil. Field rations. MRES. Meal Ready to Eat…s. So, how would YOU do the plural? I would probably say “meals ready to eat”…or to abbreviate: MRE.

47. Fruity suffix. ADE. Lemon-, lime-, orange-, block- (…whatever!)

48. Noted. ESPIED. “I espied, with my little eye…” Link.

51. Cold ones. BREWSKIS. Ahhh..now here’s one we can all relate to, right?

58. Tops. A-ONE. My favorite steak sauce!

59. Wading bird. EGRET.

60. Yeats’s homeland. ERIN. Note, the apostrophe in Yeats’s name!

61. Huck Finn-like assent. YES’M. Note, the apostrophe in the contraction…

62. Golden, south of the border. DE ORO. Literally, “of gold” in Spanish.

63. Something on the house?: Abbr. MTGE. Most people have a mortgage on their house.

Down:

1. Tough guy actor __ Ray : ALDO. No clue. This guy.

2. Make one : JOIN

3. Laundry room item: Abbr. : APPL. Appliance

4. __-Tea: White Rose product : REDI. The world's first instant iced tea (or is it "ice-tea"?)

5. Manifests itself : APPEARS

6. Emulate a conqueror : MARAUD

7. "__ Three Lives": old TV drama : I LED

8. Champagne designation : SEC . Meaning "dry" in French. Not to be confused with "sekt", which is the German term for "sparkling" wine.

9. Dixie breakfast fare : HOECAKE. Mmmm..DH loves him some HOE CAKE, made with cornmeal and milk, for breakfast!



10. Convent address : SISTER

11. Mideast chieftain : EMIR

12. Mid-20th-century Chinese premier : CHOU. En-lai, or Zhou Enlai. First Premier of the PRC. C.C. taught me that Cantonese has no "zh" word. Hence Zhou En-Lai becomes Chou En-Lai.

13. Scads : TONS.

18. Lays in a grave : INTERS. Spooky clue - should have had this one on Monday!

19. Where it's at : SITE. Loved this clue! Here's my first thought...

23. Brand in a ratty apartment? : D-CON. Ewww...

24. Ball : DANCE

25. WWII investment choice : E-BOND

27. Heyerdahl's "__-Tiki" : KON

28. Basketball Hall of Fame center since 2008 : EWING

29. Baccarat cry : BANCO. John Lennon mistakenly yelled "Bingo!" in "A Hard Day's Night".

30. Carrier renamed in 1997 : US AIR. Now US Airways.

31. Shell out : SPEND

36. "The __ Are All Right": 2010 Oscar nominee : KIDS

37. Prepares to redo, as a quilt section : UNSEWS. Comments?

38. Court standard : LAW

40. Ready-to-plant plot : SEED BED

41. Augmented : ADDED TO

43. "Crack a Bottle" rapper : EMINEM. Sorry, you're going to have to provide your own links here. I'm going to go crack a bottle of wine...(Hey, it is almost 11 PM when I am doing this, not 5:30 AM!!) (Jeesh!!)

44. Scott in an 1857 case : DRED. Review: Dred Scott unsuccessfully sued for his freedom, and that of his wife and children, because he had lived with his master in states where slavery was illegal. All this was made moot by Abraham Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation.

45. Dough maker? : EARNER

48. Modern option for sellers : EBAY

49. English jelly fruit : SLOE. I like mine with gin!



50. Establishes, with "down" : PINS

51. Ballpoint pen brand : BIRO

52. __ cell research : STEM. Gail Martin at UCSF is a pioneer in this area, and one of my "heroines".

53. "Timequake" author Vonnegut : KURT

54. Hipster's "Gotcha!" : I DIG

55. Word sung on New Year's Day : SYNE. Auld...lang...

57. Bigger than med. : LGE. (You want fries with that??)
That's it for now. See you next week, same time, same blog spot!

Marti