Theme: A Five-Card Trick - CARD is scrambled five ways and concealed in five theme entries as indicated by the circles.
17A. Blanket containers : CEDAR CHESTS. Are they all cedar?
29A. Burrowing beach denizens : SAND CRABS. Not much bigger than your thumb according to the Monterey Aquarium website. Not really Food! material then .. darn.
43A. Lollipops, e.g. : HARD CANDY. Here's the spokesman for the Hard Candy Association if there is such a thing:
57A. Where much classical music is heard : PUBLIC RADIO. Here's a little something from the Berlin Philharmonic.
4D. Rolex 24 at Daytona, e.g. : ROAD RACE. Cousin of the more well-known (to me at least) Le Mans 24 in France, or "24 Heures du Mans" as it is officially known.
and the reveal:
39D. One of two baseball playoff teams determined next week by a "play-in" game in each major league, and a hint to this puzzle's circles : WILD CARD. Wikipedia can do the job of 'splaining the machinations of these MLB games.
Gooooood Morning Crossword Corner! Steve here with a very poor Adrian Cronauer impersonation. The circle puzzles seem to be popping up a lot on Wednesdays, I've blogged a few recently. The constructor shouldn't be tough to guess - it's a baseball-inspired theme, so it's not a stretch to posit that it might be C.C!
Neat theme - I thought at first that the 4D entry was something of an odd man out until I realized that it's balanced by the reveal at 39D. Cool stuff.
Across:
1. Wild hogs : BOARS
6. Wild animal : BEAST
11. Bird in a cage, often : PET. A menagerie trifecta to kick things off.
14. Pinhead : IDIOT. How many angels can dance on the head of an idiot? Discuss.
15. Off-the-cuff : AD LIB
16. Hot feeling : IRE
19. Sign word often seen before "next exit" : GAS
20. Matzo meal : SEDER. Great clue. Matzo ball soup is a traditional menu item for Passover.
21. Some RSVPs : NOS. I think you should reply "Oui, Merci" or "Non, Merci".
22. Punch source : FIST
23. "Born to Die" singer Lana Del __ : REY. Crosses. I'm more familiar with her Los Angeles-based sister, Marina Del Rey.
24. Caspian Sea land : IRAN
26. Diamond figure : CARAT
34. Smart guys? : ALECS
35. Spanish tourist city : AVILA
36. Knock on Yelp : PAN. I used Yelp a lot when I'm traveling in unfamiliar territory to find restaurants. You need to take the one-star rants and the five-star gushes with a pinch of salt. The truth usually lies somewhere in the middle.
37. Mall bag : TOTE
38. Given (to) : PRONE
39. Responded to reveille : WOKE. I was a little slow to respond to my reveille this morning - I was at a six-course wine dinner last night. Three hiking miles later and a mug of coffee and I was better.
40. Former Energy secretary Steven : CHU. Thank you, crosses.
41. No-frills : PLAIN
42. Hog lover : BIKER. Fun clue. Here's a couple of famous examples:
45. On the ball : ALERT
46. Like reporters, by trade : NOSY. Are reporters nosy? It has a slightly different connotation in my mind than professional investigation.
47. Brief letters? : BVD. Does Warren Buffett wear tighty-whities of this brand? Berkshire Hathaway owns the company.
48. Artist's pad : LOFT
50. Arranged locks : DO'S. I get a haircut when it reaches the point I can arrange my locks, I don't even own a comb.
53. Strips on a sandwich : BACON. Food! A pub close to where I live has a veggieburger on the menu, and proceeds to state "Bacon can be added for $1.00" which seems to rather miss the point.
56. Frazier foe : ALI
60. Spoil : MAR
61. "Too rich for me" : I'M OUT. A poker player's exit line when the stakes get too high.
62. Castle in the 1914 musical "Watch Your Step" : IRENE. I learned this from a crossword I blogged a while ago - she must have been one heck of dancer to still be clued more than 100 years later!
63. "Ciao!" : BYE
64. 1975 Pulitzer winner for criticism : EBERT. The great movie critic Roger Ebert who sadly passed in 2013. He spent his entire career with the Chicago Sun-Times.
65. Put two and two together : ADDED
Down:
1. Media Clic Ice maker : BIC. These things - never heard of 'em!
2. Often emotional works : ODES
3. Help on the Hill : AIDE
5. Parade venues : STREETS
6. "That's hogwash!" : BAH
7. Big name in organic foods : EDEN. Caused a bit of a stir in 2013 with a controversial stance on certain healthcare provisions for their employees.
8. Furthermore : ALSO
9. Isn't active, as equipment : SITS IDLE
10. "King of the Nerds" airer : TBS
11. Sight-unseen buy : PIG IN A POKE. Great expression. Researching this, it transpires that the poke is a bag, and the piglet you think that you're buying turns out to be a dog or a cat when you open the sack. French "poque" gives us "poquette", a little bag, or our "pocket". Here endeth the lesson.
12. Stretches of history : ERAS
13. Lab work : TEST
18. React to a kitchen bulb, maybe : CRY. Not because the lights went out, but onion-peeling woes.
22. Word after go or so : FAR
25. Miley Cyrus label : RCA. Wouldn't have had a clue without crosses. Just missing a "D" for another wild card.
26. Hidden problem : CATCH
27. Hawaiian Airlines greeting : ALOHA
28. Shoot back : RETURN FIRE
29. Leftovers preserver : SARAN. Not if you forget to put 'em in the fridge, which I frequently do.
30. Dodge : AVOID
31. Doofus : NINNY. Pinheads, idiots, doofuses and ninnies today. A quartet of oafs.
32. One creating enticing aromas : BAKER
33. Hägar's dog : SNERT. Food! Oh wait, not the split pea soup. Darn.
38. Feign ignorance : PLAY DUMB
41. Lenovo products : PC'S. My new laptop is a Lenovo. It weights about half as much as the old Dell, which makes my travel a little easier!
42. Munich's state : BAVARIA. Here's a question for you - the soccer team is F.C. Bayern München, but is anglicized as Bayern Munich. Why not Bavarians Munich? We English-speakers do weird things to proper names.
44. Small point : DOT
47. English channel, briefly : BBC. The public broadcaster came in for a lot of criticism during the last British elections for being overtly biased, to the point that there is a weight of opinion that the corporation should lose its charter.
48. Moussaka meat : LAMB. Layered ground lamb, sliced eggplant, zucchini and bechamel sauce. Greek loveliness.
49. Facial cosmetics brand : OLAY
51. Clarinet cousin : OBOE
52. Disparaging comment : SLUR
54. Pigged out (on), briefly : O.D.'ED. I probably made a mess of the punctuation there.
55. Ted Williams' number : NINE. This Hall-of-Famer played only for the Red Sox during his 19-year outfielding career.
57. Chart shape : PIE
58. Addams family cousin : ITT
59. Heavy ref. : O.E.D. 20 volumes in total. You need a strong shelf for all those!
That's it from me - here's the grid.
Steve
17A. Blanket containers : CEDAR CHESTS. Are they all cedar?
29A. Burrowing beach denizens : SAND CRABS. Not much bigger than your thumb according to the Monterey Aquarium website. Not really Food! material then .. darn.
43A. Lollipops, e.g. : HARD CANDY. Here's the spokesman for the Hard Candy Association if there is such a thing:
57A. Where much classical music is heard : PUBLIC RADIO. Here's a little something from the Berlin Philharmonic.
4D. Rolex 24 at Daytona, e.g. : ROAD RACE. Cousin of the more well-known (to me at least) Le Mans 24 in France, or "24 Heures du Mans" as it is officially known.
and the reveal:
39D. One of two baseball playoff teams determined next week by a "play-in" game in each major league, and a hint to this puzzle's circles : WILD CARD. Wikipedia can do the job of 'splaining the machinations of these MLB games.
Gooooood Morning Crossword Corner! Steve here with a very poor Adrian Cronauer impersonation. The circle puzzles seem to be popping up a lot on Wednesdays, I've blogged a few recently. The constructor shouldn't be tough to guess - it's a baseball-inspired theme, so it's not a stretch to posit that it might be C.C!
Neat theme - I thought at first that the 4D entry was something of an odd man out until I realized that it's balanced by the reveal at 39D. Cool stuff.
Across:
1. Wild hogs : BOARS
6. Wild animal : BEAST
11. Bird in a cage, often : PET. A menagerie trifecta to kick things off.
14. Pinhead : IDIOT. How many angels can dance on the head of an idiot? Discuss.
15. Off-the-cuff : AD LIB
16. Hot feeling : IRE
19. Sign word often seen before "next exit" : GAS
20. Matzo meal : SEDER. Great clue. Matzo ball soup is a traditional menu item for Passover.
21. Some RSVPs : NOS. I think you should reply "Oui, Merci" or "Non, Merci".
22. Punch source : FIST
23. "Born to Die" singer Lana Del __ : REY. Crosses. I'm more familiar with her Los Angeles-based sister, Marina Del Rey.
 |
| Photo Credit: Mark Kitching |
26. Diamond figure : CARAT
34. Smart guys? : ALECS
35. Spanish tourist city : AVILA
36. Knock on Yelp : PAN. I used Yelp a lot when I'm traveling in unfamiliar territory to find restaurants. You need to take the one-star rants and the five-star gushes with a pinch of salt. The truth usually lies somewhere in the middle.
37. Mall bag : TOTE
38. Given (to) : PRONE
39. Responded to reveille : WOKE. I was a little slow to respond to my reveille this morning - I was at a six-course wine dinner last night. Three hiking miles later and a mug of coffee and I was better.
40. Former Energy secretary Steven : CHU. Thank you, crosses.
41. No-frills : PLAIN
42. Hog lover : BIKER. Fun clue. Here's a couple of famous examples:
45. On the ball : ALERT
46. Like reporters, by trade : NOSY. Are reporters nosy? It has a slightly different connotation in my mind than professional investigation.
47. Brief letters? : BVD. Does Warren Buffett wear tighty-whities of this brand? Berkshire Hathaway owns the company.
48. Artist's pad : LOFT
50. Arranged locks : DO'S. I get a haircut when it reaches the point I can arrange my locks, I don't even own a comb.
53. Strips on a sandwich : BACON. Food! A pub close to where I live has a veggieburger on the menu, and proceeds to state "Bacon can be added for $1.00" which seems to rather miss the point.
56. Frazier foe : ALI
60. Spoil : MAR
61. "Too rich for me" : I'M OUT. A poker player's exit line when the stakes get too high.
62. Castle in the 1914 musical "Watch Your Step" : IRENE. I learned this from a crossword I blogged a while ago - she must have been one heck of dancer to still be clued more than 100 years later!
63. "Ciao!" : BYE
64. 1975 Pulitzer winner for criticism : EBERT. The great movie critic Roger Ebert who sadly passed in 2013. He spent his entire career with the Chicago Sun-Times.
65. Put two and two together : ADDED
Down:
1. Media Clic Ice maker : BIC. These things - never heard of 'em!
2. Often emotional works : ODES
3. Help on the Hill : AIDE
5. Parade venues : STREETS
6. "That's hogwash!" : BAH
7. Big name in organic foods : EDEN. Caused a bit of a stir in 2013 with a controversial stance on certain healthcare provisions for their employees.
8. Furthermore : ALSO
9. Isn't active, as equipment : SITS IDLE
10. "King of the Nerds" airer : TBS
11. Sight-unseen buy : PIG IN A POKE. Great expression. Researching this, it transpires that the poke is a bag, and the piglet you think that you're buying turns out to be a dog or a cat when you open the sack. French "poque" gives us "poquette", a little bag, or our "pocket". Here endeth the lesson.
12. Stretches of history : ERAS
13. Lab work : TEST
18. React to a kitchen bulb, maybe : CRY. Not because the lights went out, but onion-peeling woes.
22. Word after go or so : FAR
25. Miley Cyrus label : RCA. Wouldn't have had a clue without crosses. Just missing a "D" for another wild card.
26. Hidden problem : CATCH
27. Hawaiian Airlines greeting : ALOHA
28. Shoot back : RETURN FIRE
29. Leftovers preserver : SARAN. Not if you forget to put 'em in the fridge, which I frequently do.
30. Dodge : AVOID
31. Doofus : NINNY. Pinheads, idiots, doofuses and ninnies today. A quartet of oafs.
32. One creating enticing aromas : BAKER
33. Hägar's dog : SNERT. Food! Oh wait, not the split pea soup. Darn.
38. Feign ignorance : PLAY DUMB
41. Lenovo products : PC'S. My new laptop is a Lenovo. It weights about half as much as the old Dell, which makes my travel a little easier!
42. Munich's state : BAVARIA. Here's a question for you - the soccer team is F.C. Bayern München, but is anglicized as Bayern Munich. Why not Bavarians Munich? We English-speakers do weird things to proper names.
44. Small point : DOT
47. English channel, briefly : BBC. The public broadcaster came in for a lot of criticism during the last British elections for being overtly biased, to the point that there is a weight of opinion that the corporation should lose its charter.
48. Moussaka meat : LAMB. Layered ground lamb, sliced eggplant, zucchini and bechamel sauce. Greek loveliness.
49. Facial cosmetics brand : OLAY
51. Clarinet cousin : OBOE
52. Disparaging comment : SLUR
54. Pigged out (on), briefly : O.D.'ED. I probably made a mess of the punctuation there.
55. Ted Williams' number : NINE. This Hall-of-Famer played only for the Red Sox during his 19-year outfielding career.
57. Chart shape : PIE
58. Addams family cousin : ITT
59. Heavy ref. : O.E.D. 20 volumes in total. You need a strong shelf for all those!
That's it from me - here's the grid.
Steve
Note from C.C.:
Happy Birthday to Pje (Pat) and her husband! I don't know any couple in real life who were born in the same day and same year. Pat was born in the morning, her husband in the afternoon. Hope it's a day full of surprises, Pat.
