Theme: "And the Oscar goes to ..."
60A. Award to be announced February 28, previously won by the first words of 17-, 23-, 39- and 51-Across : BEST PICTURE
17A. Intensive study program : CRASH COURSE. Somewhat of a controversial winner for this 2004 release. The director, Paul Haggis, was quoted later as saying "Was this the best picture of the year? I don't think so".
23A. It's the opposite of a flying one : ROCKY START. Yo, Sylvester! This 1976 original in the franchise has been cropping up quite frequently in crosswords recently.
39A. Mighty clash : TITANIC STRUGGLE. Kate Winslet recently said of this 1997 tear-jerker "There was plenty of room for Jack".
51A. 2014 WNBA Finals runner-up : CHICAGO SKY. I got myself into a terrific mess down in this area when I decided that the movie title was GHOST. ON TOW seemed more natural than IN TOW, and AGAI berries sounded familiar. ETHOS got shoehorned in too. Never mind that "Ghost" never won Best Picture. The 2002 "Chicago" deservedly did.
Closing in on Oscar weekend with a C.C. movie boxed set. As I mentioned above, I made a huge mess of the SE section, and, rarely for me, had to walk away and come back to it later, at which point things finally fell into place. A nice challenge.
Across:
1. Beach tube letters : SPF
4. Tube in Paris : METRO. Here's the Anvers station entrance in Montmartre which I snapped on my visit in January. I love the art deco signage on some of the older stations.
9. __ butter: cosmetic moisturizer : SHEA
13. Roofing sealant : TAR
14. Gem weight unit : CARAT. Carat is a unit of weight, karat is a unit of purity. Repeat until klear. I mean clear.
15. Home extension? : STEAD
16. __ standstill : AT A
19. Classic laundry soap : RINSO. Do they still make this stuff?
21. They're drunk at socials : TEAS. Not at my socials, they're not. But then again my socials are more commonly referred to as "happy hours".
22. Fish in hamo, a Japanese delicacy : EEL. Food! Hamo is the pike eel. If you want some zen-chill moments, check out the videos from three-star Michelin chef Seiji Yamamoto showing how to prep and serve the fish here.
26. Auto racer Busch : KYLE. If you just have the K you need to wait for the crosses - big brother Kurt is also in the same business.
27. "Uh-huh" : I SEE
28. Miscellany : OLIO. I always smile when I see this - C.C. was kind enough to explain the difference between OLIO and OLEO to me when I was a crossword puzzle rookie and confused on a daily basis.
30. Faux pas : SLIP
33. Certain king's pride : MANE. Nice wordplay on the lion's pride.
36. Nunavut people : INUIT
42. Simple type of question : YES/NO. Or a really difficult one - "The chicken came first. Yes or No?".
43. "Good one!" : HA HA
44. Dumped, perhaps : SOLD
45. Sister brand of the Sensor razor : ATRA. I joined Dollar Shave Club a couple of years ago and stopped spending crazy amounts of money on razor blades.
47. "You've found the right person" : I'M IT
49. D.C. bigwigs : POLS
57. Wood-scratching tool : AWL
58. Pakistani bread : NAAN. Food! It gets its traditional teardrop shape from hanging off the inside of the tandoor while it cooks.
59. Loosen, as laces : UNTIE
64. Cellular messenger : RNA
65. Take the helm : STEER. Aye, aye, Skipper.
66. Trees yielding caffeine-rich nuts : KOLAS
67. Staples of many websites : ADS
68. Giveaway bag : TOTE
69. One-for-one deals : SWAPS. Did people ever swap things at swap meets?
70. Touch gently : PAT. Could have been PET. Wasn't.
Down:
1. British Invasion drummer : STARR. RINGO went in. Then came out. Richard Starkey, MBE. Replaced the Fifth Beatle Pete Best as drummer. Wait, the Fifth Beatle was Stu Sutcliffe? See 9D.
2. Hibachi spot : PATIO. Somewhere to grill your hamo.
3. Mali money : FRANC
4. Real people? : McCOYS. Clue of the day for me. "The real McCoy".
5. Maestro's forte : EAR.
6. Refrain bit : TRA. La. La.
7. Many a reggae musician : RASTA. I'm reading Paul Theroux's book "Dark Star Safari" on my current trip, and discovered yesterday that Haile Selassie's birth name was Ras Tafari, hence the Rastafarians. Learning moment.
8. Additional : OTHER
9. "Fifth Beatle" Sutcliffe : STU. This might be a questionable clue for a Beatles purist. The original drummer, Pete Best, usually gets the "fifth Beatle" moniker. As far as recorded material was concerned, Billy Preston is commonly termed the "fifth Beatle" and played with the band at their final public appearance on the rooftop of Apple in 1969.
10. "Sure, take it!" : HERE YOU GO
11. Picasso supporter : EASEL
12. "Set Fire to the Rain" singer : ADELE
15. Call for help : .S.O.S.
18. "The Censor" of Rome : CATO. The Elder. Apparently a divisive character: "Cato was hated for his pedantic bigotry, but respected as an able politician and good orator." Difficult to reconcile those two.
20. Part of a winter suit : SKI PANTS
24. Penultimate contest, for its winner : SEMI. Ultimate contest for the loser.
25. Work with pupils : TEACH
26. Bob Marley Museum city : KINGSTON, Jamaica.
29. The Blackbirds of the NCAA's Northeast Conf. : LIU. Long Island University, Brooklyn as I'm sure we all knew :) Thank you, crosses.
30. Babe's pen : STY. Movie pig Babe.
31. Falsity : LIE. "I cannot tell one". Oh wait, I think I just did!
32. "Everything's ready to go!" : IT'S ALL SET
34. Surveillance org. : NSA
35. Moral principle : ETHIC. I forced ETHOS in here to work with my GHOST woes.
37. Not close to 100% : ILL
38. Texas senator Cruz : TED. Topical Ted.
40. Neither partner : NOR
41. Avatar of Vishnu : RAMA
46. Faddish berry in smoothies : ACAI. Not AGAI, Steve. Have a word with yourself.
48. Hesitant okay : I GUESS
49. Old Milwaukee maker : PABST
50. Have because of : OWE TO
52. Accesses illegally, in a way : HACKS
53. Hitched behind : IN TOW. I got fixated on the car-breakdown "ON TOW" usage and ignored the possibility of anything else for quite some time.
54. Camera holder : STRAP
55. In a way, slangily : KINDA
56. Old Milwaukee-making ingredient : YEAST. Both the maker and the means today.
58. "Morning Edition" airer : NPR
61. Links supporter : TEE
62. Suffix with form : ULA
63. Criticize : RAP. Tried RIP first, then couldn't make sense of KOLIS. Sanity prevailed. As I said, the SE corner was a whole slew of mess for me until I stepped away for a while (and a couple of glasses of wine, maybe that was the trick!)
Here's the grid, and have a good day!
Steve
60A. Award to be announced February 28, previously won by the first words of 17-, 23-, 39- and 51-Across : BEST PICTURE
17A. Intensive study program : CRASH COURSE. Somewhat of a controversial winner for this 2004 release. The director, Paul Haggis, was quoted later as saying "Was this the best picture of the year? I don't think so".
23A. It's the opposite of a flying one : ROCKY START. Yo, Sylvester! This 1976 original in the franchise has been cropping up quite frequently in crosswords recently.
39A. Mighty clash : TITANIC STRUGGLE. Kate Winslet recently said of this 1997 tear-jerker "There was plenty of room for Jack".
51A. 2014 WNBA Finals runner-up : CHICAGO SKY. I got myself into a terrific mess down in this area when I decided that the movie title was GHOST. ON TOW seemed more natural than IN TOW, and AGAI berries sounded familiar. ETHOS got shoehorned in too. Never mind that "Ghost" never won Best Picture. The 2002 "Chicago" deservedly did.
Closing in on Oscar weekend with a C.C. movie boxed set. As I mentioned above, I made a huge mess of the SE section, and, rarely for me, had to walk away and come back to it later, at which point things finally fell into place. A nice challenge.
Across:
1. Beach tube letters : SPF
4. Tube in Paris : METRO. Here's the Anvers station entrance in Montmartre which I snapped on my visit in January. I love the art deco signage on some of the older stations.
9. __ butter: cosmetic moisturizer : SHEA
13. Roofing sealant : TAR
14. Gem weight unit : CARAT. Carat is a unit of weight, karat is a unit of purity. Repeat until klear. I mean clear.
15. Home extension? : STEAD
16. __ standstill : AT A
19. Classic laundry soap : RINSO. Do they still make this stuff?
21. They're drunk at socials : TEAS. Not at my socials, they're not. But then again my socials are more commonly referred to as "happy hours".
22. Fish in hamo, a Japanese delicacy : EEL. Food! Hamo is the pike eel. If you want some zen-chill moments, check out the videos from three-star Michelin chef Seiji Yamamoto showing how to prep and serve the fish here.
26. Auto racer Busch : KYLE. If you just have the K you need to wait for the crosses - big brother Kurt is also in the same business.
27. "Uh-huh" : I SEE
28. Miscellany : OLIO. I always smile when I see this - C.C. was kind enough to explain the difference between OLIO and OLEO to me when I was a crossword puzzle rookie and confused on a daily basis.
30. Faux pas : SLIP
33. Certain king's pride : MANE. Nice wordplay on the lion's pride.
36. Nunavut people : INUIT
42. Simple type of question : YES/NO. Or a really difficult one - "The chicken came first. Yes or No?".
43. "Good one!" : HA HA
44. Dumped, perhaps : SOLD
45. Sister brand of the Sensor razor : ATRA. I joined Dollar Shave Club a couple of years ago and stopped spending crazy amounts of money on razor blades.
47. "You've found the right person" : I'M IT
49. D.C. bigwigs : POLS
57. Wood-scratching tool : AWL
58. Pakistani bread : NAAN. Food! It gets its traditional teardrop shape from hanging off the inside of the tandoor while it cooks.
59. Loosen, as laces : UNTIE
64. Cellular messenger : RNA
65. Take the helm : STEER. Aye, aye, Skipper.
66. Trees yielding caffeine-rich nuts : KOLAS
67. Staples of many websites : ADS
68. Giveaway bag : TOTE
69. One-for-one deals : SWAPS. Did people ever swap things at swap meets?
70. Touch gently : PAT. Could have been PET. Wasn't.
Down:
1. British Invasion drummer : STARR. RINGO went in. Then came out. Richard Starkey, MBE. Replaced the Fifth Beatle Pete Best as drummer. Wait, the Fifth Beatle was Stu Sutcliffe? See 9D.
2. Hibachi spot : PATIO. Somewhere to grill your hamo.
3. Mali money : FRANC
4. Real people? : McCOYS. Clue of the day for me. "The real McCoy".
5. Maestro's forte : EAR.
6. Refrain bit : TRA. La. La.
7. Many a reggae musician : RASTA. I'm reading Paul Theroux's book "Dark Star Safari" on my current trip, and discovered yesterday that Haile Selassie's birth name was Ras Tafari, hence the Rastafarians. Learning moment.
8. Additional : OTHER
9. "Fifth Beatle" Sutcliffe : STU. This might be a questionable clue for a Beatles purist. The original drummer, Pete Best, usually gets the "fifth Beatle" moniker. As far as recorded material was concerned, Billy Preston is commonly termed the "fifth Beatle" and played with the band at their final public appearance on the rooftop of Apple in 1969.
10. "Sure, take it!" : HERE YOU GO
11. Picasso supporter : EASEL
12. "Set Fire to the Rain" singer : ADELE
15. Call for help : .S.O.S.
18. "The Censor" of Rome : CATO. The Elder. Apparently a divisive character: "Cato was hated for his pedantic bigotry, but respected as an able politician and good orator." Difficult to reconcile those two.
20. Part of a winter suit : SKI PANTS
24. Penultimate contest, for its winner : SEMI. Ultimate contest for the loser.
25. Work with pupils : TEACH
26. Bob Marley Museum city : KINGSTON, Jamaica.
29. The Blackbirds of the NCAA's Northeast Conf. : LIU. Long Island University, Brooklyn as I'm sure we all knew :) Thank you, crosses.
30. Babe's pen : STY. Movie pig Babe.
31. Falsity : LIE. "I cannot tell one". Oh wait, I think I just did!
32. "Everything's ready to go!" : IT'S ALL SET
34. Surveillance org. : NSA
35. Moral principle : ETHIC. I forced ETHOS in here to work with my GHOST woes.
37. Not close to 100% : ILL
38. Texas senator Cruz : TED. Topical Ted.
40. Neither partner : NOR
41. Avatar of Vishnu : RAMA
46. Faddish berry in smoothies : ACAI. Not AGAI, Steve. Have a word with yourself.
48. Hesitant okay : I GUESS
49. Old Milwaukee maker : PABST
50. Have because of : OWE TO
52. Accesses illegally, in a way : HACKS
53. Hitched behind : IN TOW. I got fixated on the car-breakdown "ON TOW" usage and ignored the possibility of anything else for quite some time.
55. In a way, slangily : KINDA
56. Old Milwaukee-making ingredient : YEAST. Both the maker and the means today.
58. "Morning Edition" airer : NPR
61. Links supporter : TEE
62. Suffix with form : ULA
63. Criticize : RAP. Tried RIP first, then couldn't make sense of KOLIS. Sanity prevailed. As I said, the SE corner was a whole slew of mess for me until I stepped away for a while (and a couple of glasses of wine, maybe that was the trick!)
Here's the grid, and have a good day!
Steve
Note from C.C.
JD is now vacationing in Hawaii. Here are two fantastic pictures she sent to me yesterday. I never heard of Mount Haleakalā before.
