Friday, July 1, 2022, Doug Peterson

Title: This is no laughing matter! It is a puzzle, so solve it!

It is interesting that a constructor with at least 400 published puzzles is back at the LAT with 5 or 6 new ones this year, but who is counting. It is worth revisiting his INTERVIEW with C.C. back in 2008, a year when he had 11 published here alone. He was an influence on C.C., I am sure. 

Today we have a "remove letter" theme to create new and whimsical phrases clued for silliness. This makes the puzzle a gem as its title is opposite to the apparent intention of the puzzle. Brilliant. Doug excises HA from the four theme answers with the central reveal. It is a 16 letter phrase, so the puzzle becomes a 16 x 15 grid which adds to the solving fun, more words, more fun. While the puzzle is dominated by the themers and the reveal there are some sparkly fill, BRAGGARTS, ELDORADOS, POTENTATE and SAUCEPANS. It is unusual to have three with plurals. Let's start with the themers.

18A. Nana who deciphers coded messages?: GRAHAM CRACKER (11). I find this one very funny, picturing my dear grandmothers (both) sitting around, talking to each other about their rotten children while every so often getting a transmission to decode. Yes, they are sipping tea and dunking their GRAHAM crackers. 

24A. Skirmish between rival hives?: BATTLE OF HASTINGS (14). Also amusing as I can picture the Queen Bees (one of whom looks like Queen Mary of Scots) sending out the poor soldiers to die. The HISTORY here was real and the dead really died. We enjoyed watching:

52A. Horses now tame enough to ride?: CREATURES OF HABIT (14). This is a real stretch for me. While it is true they are taught ride with a bit controlled by a rider, the phrase does not resonate. A mini CSO to our favorite Nun (Lucy), except maybe Sally Field. How many bad habits did you have Lucy? You know I mean outfits.

63A. Speck of dust atop the Matterhorn?: ALPHA PARTICLE (11). LINK.

And the reveal:

40A. Serious business, and a hint to four answers in this puzzle: NO LAUGHING MATTER (16). I love that a puzzle designed to make me laugh is billed this way. A good set-up for the rest, but don't rest yet.

Across:

1. Symbol in the center of Cameroon's flag: STAR.
                                                           

 

5. Sentence server: INMATE. Once the perps led me here it was easy. Been there done that. 

11. Retro-hip beers, for short: PBRS. Pabst Blue Ribbons. My first beer was a Pabst which convinced me beer was not for me.

15. Quaint sigh: AH ME. 

16. "Mad About You" co-star: REISER. Paul has resurrected his career with his stints in STRANGER THINGS, THE KOMINSKY METHOD and even a 35 year sequel to the original show.

17. Baseball analyst Hershiser: OREL. A very successful player  for the LA Dodgers.

20. Finger food, in Zaragoza: TAPA. Zaragoza is the capital of northeastern Spain's Aragon region, but to me it was just a Spanish sounding name and there are many restaurants in South Florida offering Tapas. Though. I have never tried the fingers. 

21. Colleague of Amy and Elena: SONIA. Out of 115 justices that have served on the court, only five have been women. Three are currently serving: Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan, and Amy Coney Barret, who replaced RBG who had before her death suggested 9 women would make a good court. 

22. Novelist Jaffe: RONA. Ms. Jaffe wrote a book called The Best of Everything describing her four years working at Fawcett Publishing. As show in this Encyclopedia.com ARTICLE it has spawned many successful books, movies and tv series.

23. Showbiz grand slam: EGOT. I think this makes three write ups in a row for this answer in one form or another.

28. Used a rocker: SAT. A specific sounding clue hides a general answer.

29. Black Sea resort: YALTA. The Yalta Conference was a meeting of three World War II allies: U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and Soviet Premier Joseph Stalin. The trio met in February 1945 in the resort city of Yalta, located along the Black Sea coast of the Crimean Peninsula, an area very much back in the news. 

30. Functions: USES. See, some are easy.

34. ESPNU topic: NCAA. Colleges are the focus for both.

37. Boot camp barker: SARGE. A CSO to Tom from Wednesday?

44. "The Masked Dancer" panelist Paula: ABDUL.

45. Serious locks: MANE. More horsing around.

46. Name in a Salinger title: ESME. A short story in a book he published before Catcher in the Rye. Our academics can expound here. 

47. The planets, e.g.: OCTAD. Can you name all eight, or do you hang on to Pluto?

50. Masked caller: UMP. A really fun clue/fill. Not easy but inferable. 

58. Smack: SLAP. A common form of discipline when we were young at home or in school.

59. Evian et Perrier: EAUX. The French word for water, and two waters from France. 

60. Like some Windows errors: FATAL. You do not want to see that message. A fatal error is a type of error that forces a computer program to close or the entire operating system to shut down suddenly. This type of error is commonly associated with the blue screen of death in Windows, but less severe fatal exception errors only cause a single program to close. Lifewire.

62. Best Picture Oscar winner directed by Siân Heder: CODA. Siân, despite the exotic spelling of her name was born in Massachusetts and began writing and putting together movies at an early age. Her IMDB.

66. Big name in skin care: AVON. Are they calling you?

67. Coffee cup insulator: SLEEVE. I think this is backwards, as the sleeve insulates the hand buying the drink.

68. Consequently: THEN. People can buy and drink hot coffee.

69. Snafu: MESS. Ooh, ooh! Bad words implied here.

70. Shadow canvas: EYELID.

71. Org. scheme: SYSTem.

Down:

1. Gives a little: SAGS. I hope we are talking pillows not bodies.

2. Pulsate strongly: THROB. Is it just me or does the Scottish porn star Throb Roy come to mind? See 24A, supra.

3. Maker of the first refrigerator with a dry-erase door: AMANA. Wow, but what do I do with all the free calendars and note pads?

4. Mail payment: REMIT. When did I MIT the payment? Do I need to pay a late charge?

5. Like some vbs.: IRRegular.

6. PBS benefactor: NEA. National Education Association.

7. Smaller than small: MICRO. A clecho. 9D. Smaller than small: TEENSY.

8. Request from: ASK OF. Yes JFK, good question.

10. Collected goofs: ERRATA. 

11. Sovereign: POTENTATE and 12D. Self-promoters: BRAGGARTS which balance...

32. Cadillacs manufactured for 50  years:  ELDORADOS and 33. They often hang around kitchens: SAUCE PANS all nine letter fill...

13. Bank actions, briefly: REPOS.

14. Crate piece: SLAT. 

19. Pets who may squeeze into shoeboxes: CATS. CED, help.

25. Lana of Smallville: LANG. Kristen Kreuk is one of the early exotic actresses who blend the delicacy of Asian women with the strength of European men. 

26. Mark for good: ETCH. Using acid will make it forever.

27. "Casablanca" role: ILSA. Lauren Bacall, shall we play it for her?

                                

30. Telemundo article: UNA. One in Spinach, oops Spanish.

31. Blubber: SOB. He spilt some milk. 

35. Point: AIM. Then fire.

36. Santa __ winds: ANA.

38. Bit of finery: GEM.  The favorite of my comrades says no!

39. Palindrome in stanzas: ERE. Poetic enough for you all, Owen, Misty, Canadian Eh, Moe? 

41. Sephora rival: ULTA. Would you like some COMPARISONS?

42. Veld grazers: GNUS. M-W tells us this is a grassland especially of southern Africa usually with scattered shrubs or trees. Do they look for new velds?

43. __ pad: MEMO.

48. Relaxed: AT EASE. Yes sir!

49. Pickup truck with four rear wheels: DUALLY. A dual rear-wheel truck (DRW) – often referred to as a dually – is a heavy-duty pickup truck with two rear wheels on each side, allowing more road contact and width for greater stability, balance, and traction while driving. A favorite for some of our players.

51. "Hah, right!": PFFT. The interjection PFFT (pronounced "pufft") is used to dismiss something that someone has said or typed. In Thai it is PFFT.

52. Mulled wine spice: CLOVE. Also our new friend Star Anise. RECIPE.

53. Karachi currency: RUPEE. This CURRENCY; not to be confused with the RUFEE  a strong benzodiazepine.

54. Run out: EXPEL. The bad guys out of town, not the cornmeal for the pone.

55. Heckles: BAITS. Baits seems too specific, as you heckle to upset someone, to interfere but usually not wanting a real response. I see it more as badgering. 

56. Like wool, for many: ITCHY. Just wear underwear there.

57. Lore: TALES. Spoken legends.

58. Grifter's game: SCAM. Grifter is an American invention, dating back to the early 20th century, but appears to be based on the slightly older slang term “grafter,” also meaning “swindler,” “con man” or simply “thief.” Some authorities believe that grifter is actually a combination of “grafter” and “drifter." The Word Detective.

61. Temporarily provided: LENT. Wrong time of the year.

64. Prefix for the birds?: AVI. That sounds rather judgmental, it seems like a fine prefix to me.

65. Rare color?: RED. I guess it is time to go eat some meat, seared on the outside and rare on the inside. This makes for an excellent time to bring this write up to a close and thank Doug, C.C., Patti, Cristina, Moe, Heart Rx, all the current bloggers, and all of you outstanding readers, writers, commenters, thinkers, poets, who make this experience what it is. I also appreciate the understanding of my computer skills, and lack thereof. Until next time. Lemonade out.

I thought I would be back from the beach earlier. Happy Canada Day to C Eh and all of the constructors, commenters and just plain Canucks. My mother's family still have many ties to Quebec, PEI and Ottawa.

Oo and I are starting the 4th month of our beach cleaning walks which are part of my health regimen. Today was very successful with two bags full. Nobody was fishing so it was plastic bottles, cups, paper a single 16EEE basketball sneaker and a hypodermic with needle still attached. They were not near each other so don't worry about Shaq.

There also was the interesting return to our car and this truck delivering to the Briny Pub

Thursday, June 30, 2022, Dave Taber and Laura Moll

 

Good Morning, Cruciverbalists.  Malodorous Manatee here with the line on today's puzzle.  Today's constructors are Dave Taber & Laura Moll.  They have had at least two previous puzzles reviewed here on The Corner (24 November 2021 and just last week on 22 June 2022) and there are references to them on the Crossword Fiend site.

There is no reveal as such in today's puzzle.  However, a recurring hint to the theme is included in each of the themed clues.  There are three of these, one of which is in two parts.  Those clues all have "LINE" as part of the clue so I guess that's the party line and I'm sticking to it.

12 Across:  Hotline?:  I'M ON FIRE.  A line about being "hot". The Boss, perhaps, said it best:

19 Across:  Deadline?:  ET TU BRUTE.  From Shakespeare's Julius Caesar.  Spoken as Caesar is being stabbed to death.  A line about "Dead".

39 Across: Clothesline?:  KEEP YOUR PANTS ON.  Colloquialism for "be patient".  Pants are clothes.  A line about "Clothes".

57 Across: With 69-Across, Lifeline?:  HE LIKES IT.

69 Across: See 57-Across:  HEY MIKEY.

A line about "Life" cereal.

Across:

1. Gratuity: TIP.  Fifteen percent?  Eighteen percent?  Twenty percent?  Before or including tax?

4. Bow (out): OPT.

7. Personal records: BESTS.

15. Only state that shares a time zone with Alaska: HAWAII.  On the map below, in the only double-sized rectangle, west of the tip of Baja California and south of Alaska, you will see the Hawaiian Islands .

16. Bag: CUP OF TEA.  Precisely, at the 0:33 and 1:40 marks:

17. Brunch order: OMELET.   A dish often served in crossword puzzles

18. Gush: SPEW.

21. The WNBA's Dream, on sports crawls: ATL.   Women's National Basketball  Association.

24. Unremarkable: SO SO.  Meh.

25. Uno y uno: DOS.  La lección de matemáticas de hoy.

26. Grapefruit choice: RUBY RED.

30. Flunky: PEON.

32. Tony Shalhoub's role on "The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel": ABE.  He also played Monk on the eponymous TV show.

33. Big brutes: OGRES.

35. Dutch guilder successor: EURO.  Also the successor to many other EUROpean currencies.

43. Celtic language: ERSE.

44. Took the wheel: DROVE.

45. Bird in the bush: EMU.  An EMU also visited us yesterday and a photograph taken from one of those inane insurance company commercials was used in the recap.

46. Choke up: CLOG.  Not a crying reference.  See 56 Across.

49. Long rants: TIRADES.

51. Justice Dept. arm: ATF.

54. Boldly state: AVER.  I always forget the difference between AVER and AVOW.   By definition AVER means to acknowledge and AVOW mean to declare.  No wonder I can't keep 'em straight.  See also 68 Across

56. Have an ugly cry: SOB. 

60. Helter-skelter: AMOK.

64. Friend of the mistake-prone: ERASER.  Nice clue.

65. Seafood appetizer: CRAB CAKE.

68. State with confidence: ASSERT.  See also 54 Across.

70. Hockey fake-outs: DEKES.

71. Fine-grained wood: YEW.  Often clued with an archery reference.

72. Paper polishers, in brief: EDS.  EDitorS.  Could have been clued with Ames and Begley.

Down:

1. Personal quirks: TICS.

2. Happy cry from an eager Little Leaguer: I'M UP.  Next at bat in the baseball game.

3. Leader who wears the Ring of the Fisherman: POPE.

4. Having a bad day: OFF.  If you're OFF (from work) it could be a good day.

5. Start to fall?: PIT.   PITfall.  One of those types of clues.

6. With 15-Down, kids' hangout: TREE.

7. Material for some cutting boards: BAMBOO.  Panda's like it, too.

8. Ceremonial pitcher: EWER.  Often seen in crossword puzzles.

9. Cantina toast: SALUD.  Not something to eat.  "To your health.  Cheers!"

10. Couple with: TIE TO.  Today's I-had-better-not-go-there moment.

11. Surfing stops: SITES.  Not an oceanic reference.  A WWW reference.

13. "Get out of town!": NO WAY.

14. Breaks bread: EATS.

15. See 6-Down: HOUSE.

20. First place: TOP SPOT.  EDEN was too short.

22. 2020 Pro Football Hall of Fame inductee Polamalu: TROY.  Perhaps best known for his hair.

23. Minifigure maker: LEGO.

26. Deal with leaves: RAKE.

27. Company that moves people: UBER.

28. Quilting parties: BEES.

29. Hard workers: DRUDGES.

31. __ worth: NET.  My financial advisor asked me, "What's your NET worth"?  I replied, "I don't own a net".

34. Mess up: ERR.

36. Outside the box?: USED.  No longer new and in the box.

37. Capital on the Tiber: ROME.  Tiber River.

38. Burden: ONUS.

40. Delt neighbor: PEC.   A musculature reference.

41. Car rental giant: AVIS.

42. Archie's boss, in detective fiction: NERO.    A literary reference.  NERO Wolfe and Archie Goodwin.

47. Team featured in the HBO sports drama "Winning Time": LAKERS.  This TV series took a lot of (well deserved) flack.  There's another TV show with a different take on the subject on the horizon.

48. For all to see: OVERT.

50. Ancient calculators: ABACI.  Allan Sherman explains plurals:

51. Still to come: AHEAD.

52. Short and probably not sweet: TERSE.

53. Chemist's container: FLASK.  Works for whisky (0r whiskey), too.

55. "Diving Into the Wreck" poet Adrienne: RICH.  A learning moment.

58. "Aha! Say no more": I SEE.

59. Long shot, in hoops lingo: TREY.  A three-point shot in basketball.

61. Produce: MAKE.

62. Gave clearance: OK'ED.  Some people are OKay with marijuana and alcohol but cocaine is where they draw the line.

63. Home openers?: KEYS.  Not a sports reference.  If you hadn't yet switched to digital pad locks you'd use KEYS to unlock the doors to your home.

66. "All in favor, say __": AYE.

67. Automaker whose "M" stands for "Motoren": BMW.

 

Well, that wraps it up for this recap and for my fifth recap in twenty nine days.  I will now take my leave with an even greater appreciation for those, here, who write up the puzzles each and every week.

Dave and Laura, you are invited to post anything you'd like to share about this puzzle, its evolution, the theme, or whatever in the Comments section.  We'd love to hear from you.

_____________________________________________________________

Wednesday June 29, 2022 Tracy Gray

 Theme: "Spa Menu" 

Tracy Gray is no stranger to the crosswording world. Her puzzles have appeared frequently in "that other newspaper." But, as near as I can tell, this is only her second LAT entry. The first was a 2021 collaboration with Jeff Chen. For those of you who've been asking for fewer proper names, fewer pop culture references, and fewer "cute" clue/answers, today is your day. The majority of this puzzle consists of straight-forward clue definitions/synonyms. Enjoy. I finished this puzzle and had no idea what the theme might be. Wednesday themeless? Probably not. It finally dawned on me that perhaps there was a reveal clue that I'd somehow failed to read. Yup. Tucked in at 63d was SPA. -- "Place to enjoy the kinds of pampering found at the starts of the answers to the starred clues." Hmmmm, so there were starred clues as well. Hadn't noticed that. 

18a. *Operating room assistants. SCRUB NURSES. A spa SCRUB could be an exfoliating, exhilarating, moisturizing experience. In any case, it usually involves being rubbed with an abrasive product like coffee, salt, or nutshell husks. Sounds like fun. [Not!]

28a. *Employ flowery language. WAX POETIC, à la Chairman Moe or OwenKL. According to Merriam-Webster, one definition of "WAX" is "to assume a (specified) characteristic, quality, or state : BECOME." At the spa it's more likely to involve a bikini wax -- liquid wax applied, allowed to dry, and then ripped off like a band-aid. Sounds like fun. [Not!]

36. *Indulgent request made by Mae West in "I'm No Angel": PEEL ME A GRAPE. A facial PEEL involves having caustic goop smeared on your face...allowing it to "set a spell"...and then wiping it off. This kills off the top layer of skin which you can rip off in a day or two, like a sunburn. Sounds like fun. [Not!]

52a. #Cast celebration. WRAP PARTY. The WRAP party is held after major movie shooting has been completed. At the spa, a WRAP is often liquid mud which is applied, allowed to dry, and then ripped off like a band-aid. Sounds like fun. [Not!] Have you noticed that the spa is beginning to sound like a rip-off joint?

61a. *Retail event with deep discounts. BLOW OUT SALE. When it comes to the spa...hmmmm...don't think I want to go there.

Across:

1. Boarding area: GATE. At the airport.

5. Sugar substitute: STEVIA.

11. Liberal group?: ARTS. Where I fearlessly sifted and winnowed, that part of the university was the College of Letters and Science.

15. Strait-laced: PRIM. And proper.

16. How stir-fry is often served: ON RICE. Rice is that fine Houston institution where Uncle Ben was converted.

17. Vichyssoise need: LEEK. Learning moment. Did not know that LEEKs were an essential ingredient. On the other hand, I've never had vichyssoise, so how would I know? I tend to avoid foods I can't spell.

20. Hathaway of "Ocean's 8": ANNE.

21. "__ as directed": USE.

22. "Dig in!": EAT. Grace ender.

23. __ Pueblo, New Mexico: TAOS. When we visited, dw was taken with some pottery with a silvery-charcoal appearance. We were told that horse manure was involved. Maybe Waseeley can elaborate.

25. Aardvark snack: ANT.

26. Dog in RCA Victor ads: NIPPER. Here he is atop the old RCA Building in Albany, just for Irish Miss.

30. Native peoples of the Arctic: INUIT. Will it be ALEUT, INUIT, or YUPIK? Only the perps know for certain.

31. React to yeast: RISE.

32. Lightning burst: FLASH.

 33. Number in a 10-day forecast, for short: TEMP. Around here the TEMPs have been scary-high all month, and it's only June. I dread the next electric bill. 

34. Connecticut WNBA team: SUN.

35. "Argo" org.: CIA. In this 2012 movie a CIA operative attempts to rescue six Americans detained in Tehran during the '79 hostage crisis. Received 96% on the Tomatometer at Rotten Tomatoes.

41. Utter: SAY.

42. Route: WAY. As seen on your 1d.

43. Hissy fit: SNIT. 

 

46. Come to pass: OCCUR.

49. For you and me: OURS.

51. Brief tussle: SET-TO. Without the hyphen it just means "to begin."

54. Early '90s pres., familiarly: BUSH SR. When I ventured into the awl patch in the early '80s, I joined a company that he'd started. Never met him; he was no longer affiliated with it.

55. Hasty escape: LAM. Have you everr heard anybody say it...except Mary, of course?

56. Education acronym: STEM. I've also seen it as STEAM -- the A is for Arts.

57. Plot device?: HOE. Har-de-har-har. A little attempt at humor...very little.

58. Grammy category since 1989: RAP. Have never been a fan.

59. Black-__ Susan: EYED. Hahtoolah is a Susan, but she's not black-eyed.

 64. "To Venus and Back" singer Amos: TORI. This was TORI's fifth album, a two-disc affair. It has no title track.

 

 65. Categorize: ASSORT. Assorted chocolates does sound more appetizing than categorized chocolates, but "chocolates" never sounds bad.

66. Walk heavily: PLOD.

67. Hidden obstacle: SNAG.

68. Jackson Hole backdrop: TETONS. Visited there in the mid '60s on a summer college road trip with a buddy. We also stayed one night at the Broadmoor and took in a Smothers Brothers show on that trip.

69. Sax type: ALTO. Invented by Belgian Adolphe Sax back in the mid-1800s. There are at least 14 different types. You can check 'em out HERE.

Down:

1. Garmin device: GPS UNIT. No Garmin for me, mine is a TomTom, naturally.

2. Inverse trig function: ARCSINE. Arcsine(theta) is the angle whose sine is theta. This c/a is a tad arcane for the non-math-oriented. See what I did there?

3. Cyclist's accessory: TIRE PUMP. Won't do you much good, unless you also carry a tube patching kit.

4. Ostrich kin: EMU.

5. Underwater detector: SONAR. Evokes memories of a sonar lesson for Seaman Beaumont in The Hunt For Red October. Lucky for you, I couldn't find a clip.

6. Bolt holder: T-NUT.

7. Throw wide of the cutoff man, say: ERR. Sports clue, I'm guessin'.

8. Panoramic views: VISTAS. Like this one. 

9. Mountaineering tool: ICE AXE. Six letters, four vowels, what's not to like if you're a crossword constructor?

10. Greek fabulist: AESOP. There's some question whether he actually existed.

11. Taking after: À LA. In the fashion of, or somesuch.

12. First name of Italian sopranos Tebaldi and Scotto: RENATA. Some might consider this an obscure proper name.

13. Wimbledon sport: TENNIS.

14. Quick drawing: SKETCH.

19. Vegetable that may stain a cutting board: BEET. You either love 'em or hate 'em.

24. Bulgaria's capital: SOFIA.

27. Joins the conversation: PIPES UP.

28. Viognier or Vouvray: WINE. I've never had either. Have I mentioned that I tend to avoid foods (and drinks) that I can't spell?

29. Ticks by: ELAPSES.

31. Mojito liquor: RUM. Brunchy. GIN or RYE could also fit...but would be wrong.

34. Shifty: SLY.

35. Shed tears: CRY.

37. O.K. Corral brothers: EARPS. Wyatt, Virgil, and Morgan all made an appearance that day. We visited Tombstone and watched the re-enactment.

38. Askew: AWRY.

39. Neon or freon: GAS.

40. Captivate: ENTHRALL. Tried ENTRANCE first. Wite-Out, please.

44. "This is all more than I can handle": IT'S A LOT.

45. Ruin, as plans: TORPEDO. In my ute these frozen summer treats were called "Torpedoes."

46. Nocturnal nestlings: OWLETS. "Nocturnal" gives it away.

47. Medium for most refrigerator art: CRAYON.

48. Shape outlined in Instagram's logo: CAMERA.

49. Vague threat: OR ELSE.

50. Absolute: UTMOST.

51. Haggis ingredient: SUET. Never had it. Have I mentioned that I also tend to avoid some foods that I can spell?

53. Baseball stat: AT BAT.

54. Matches: BOUTS.

57. Rhinoceros feature: HORN. The horn is made of keratin, the same material as fingernails. Some folks mistakenly believe the horn has magical/medicinal properties. Rhinos are endangered, due to poaching and habitat loss. 

 

60. Use a spade: DIG.

62. Court: WOO.

63. Place to enjoy the kinds of pampering found at the starts of the answers to the starred clues: SPA. This is a perfectly good "reveal" clue. If only folks would take the time to read them. D'oh.

Here's the grid courtesy of C.C. Desper-otto out. 

 

Notes from C.C.:

1) Thank you so much for filling in the two Wednesdays in June, D-Otto! Thanks for always coming to my rescue.

2) Happy 56th birthday to Barry G, a regular in our blog in the earlier days. Barry, the other day Janice, a long-time reader who never commented on our blog, mentioned you in her letter to Boomer. It made me smile. You're still remembered and missed by many.