Theme: An unhealthy obsession: 45D. Feeling of resentment associated with the last words of the starred answers: GRUDGE. Better to forgive and remember.
17A. *Yellowstone Park beast: GRIZZLY BEAR. To bear a grudge, as in carrying it as a burden.
28A. *Fort McHenry defended it in 1814: BALTIMORE HARBOR. Harbor from "herebeorg", a place of protection for an army or horde, (later ships). To shelter within and defend.
43A. *Medical professional: REGISTERED NURSE. To nurse is to nurture and make stronger. It comes from the sense of to suckle an infant to make it grow.
55A. *Feature of many customer service calls: MUSIC ON HOLD. To hold a grudge is to tend it and keep is as property.
Hi all, Al here.
Interesting partnership today. When I read Doug's note (see the end of the write-up for how this happened), for some reason this tribute/collaboration came to mind.
ACROSS:
1. Checkbook no.: ACCT. Number is abbreviated "no." from Latin "numero", a form of numerus.
5. Mason of "The Goodbye Girl": MARSHA. Also a vampire in the "Dark Shadows" soap.
11. Cinephile's cable channel: AMC. American Movie Classics.
14. Par: NORM.
15. Delta competitor: UNITED.
16. "Turn on the heat!": BRR.
19. The Mustangs of the NCAA's Conference USA: SMU. Southern Methodist University. Good thing they didn't add "of Technology" to the title.
20. Work like a dog: MOIL. To labor in the muck and mire.
21. Flooring material: PLYWOOD. Ah, ok, the underlayment, not the finishing material.
23. The Grammys, e.g.: EVENT.
25. Egyptian Christian: COPT.
27. Prado hangings: ARTE. Museo del Prado in Spain.
31. Norwegian noble name: OLAV. Also spelled with an "f" in stead of "v". Wait for perps.
32. "__ Yankee Doodle ...": I'M A. From the musical "Little Johnny Jones" written by George Cohan. Made into a movie "Yankee Doodle Dandy" starring James Cagney. I don't think there were any dirty rats in it.
33. Swelter: FRY. Swelter originally meant to burn slowly, thus overcome with heat or fever.
34. 50-Across's st.: NEB.raska to go along with 50A. Home of Creighton University: OMAHA.
35. A director may ask for more of it: EMOTION.
37. Justice Dept. agency: FBI.
40. Curly smacker: MOE. Two of the three stooges, always slapping each other. My favorite clue today. This reminded me the most of Dan.
41. Lacto-__ vegetarian: OVO. One who will eat dairy and eggs, but not meat. Compare to pescetarian (will eat fish but not red meat), and vegan, no animal products at all.
42. Provoke: GOAD. From Old English "gad", spearhead or arrowhead.
48. Puts on the tube: AIRS.
49. Tampa Bay squad: RAYS. Until 2007, they were the Devil Rays. Then the PC police won again.
51. Seasonal pharmacy offering: FLU SHOT.
53. Red ink: LOSS. OK, maybe this only appeals to my sense of humor, but on the Wiki page for "in the red", then link color for "net loss" appears in red. (Meaning they lost the article it used to point to..)
54. Served dinner: FED. Wanted ATE, even though it seemed ungrammatical.
60. Race segment: LEG. Wanted LAP instead. These two in this area slowed my solving time down a bit.
61. Spoke out: OPINED.
62. Fit to be drafted: ONE-A.
63. GPS heading: ENE.
64. Martial arts instructor: SENSEI. A Japanese address for a person above your status, such as a teacher, lawyer, doctor, editor, etc. In Tae Kwon Do, the term for instructor is Sa Bum Nim.
65. "My word!": EGAD. Euphemism for "Oh, God".
DOWN:
1. "Hulk" director Lee: ANG. I wasn't all that fond of his Hulk, but I suppose it would be too cliche to use Crouching Tiger instead.
2. __ anglais: English horn: COR. A french term, it is neither English, nor a horn, more similar to an oboe and half again as long. It got the name from the German word engellisches horn, which meant angelic horn, as it resembled the depicted instruments in statues of angels, but also was vernacular for English.
3. Forensic test site: CRIME LAB.
4. Celebrity gossip show: TMZ ON TV. A television show that came from a website. TMZ refers to the Thirty Mile Zone, the studio zone of downtown Hollywood.
5. Ponder: MULL. To grind or powderize (thoughts), related to mill, perhaps. Also to sweeten, spice and heat a drink, as mulled wine.
6. Unspecified amount: ANY.
7. Messy barbecue morsel: RIB.
8. Grassy plain: STEPPE.
9. Nutritionist's recommendation: HEALTH FOOD. Here's a clue: if it actually has a label on it claiming to be health food, it probably isn't. Stick with whole unprocessed foods.
10. Hit __ spell: A DRY.
11. Engross: ABSORB. From Latin "absorbere", to swallow up.
12. Sleuth played by Peter Lorre: MR MOTO. You might also see this as Marquand's (John P.) sleuth.
13. Less refined: CRUDER. Latin "crudus", rough, not cooked, raw, bloody.
18. Pasta often baked: ZITI. Like elbow noodles, only straight.
22. On one's guard: WARY.
23. Black, in stanzas: EBON.
24. Low area: VALE.
25. "We get letters" '50s-'60s TV singer/host: COMO. His second RCA LP release, of songs requested via viewer mail on his show, recorded just about the time I was born.
26. Rhetorical skill: ORATORY. Public speaking.
29. Group that goes through the motions?: MIME TROUPE. Apparently there are actually mime troupes, but more in the sense of mimicry, as in satiric presentation of public figures and "official" stories, not pantomime as the clue suggests.
30. "Prince Valiant" character: ARN. A comic strip running since 1937, there were two characters with that name: Prince Arn of Orn, who gave Val the singing sword, and Arn, Val's son, who was named for the former.
35. Dawn goddess: EOS. A greek Titan, sister to Helios, the sun, and Selene, the moon. In Roman mythology they were Aurora, Sol, and Luna.
36. Currier's colleague: IVES. "Publishers of Cheap and Popular Prints", lithographs.
37. Inexpensively: FOR A SONG. More aptly, for the performance of a song.
38. Spirited party: BASH. From striking violently, to a violent drunken spree, to a wild party.
39. "What's the big __?": IDEA.
40. Pageant title: MISS. I didn't want to put that in at first, it seemed too easy.
42. Sam Spade, e.g., slangily: GUMSHOE. Literally from the gum rubber shoes they wore to sneak around.
43. School fund-raiser: RAFFLE.
44. Astronaut Collins: EILEEN. First woman to command the space shuttle.
46. Dirties the dishes: EATS IN.
47. Cinematic showdown hour: NOON. Latin "nona hora" the ninth hour of daylight, or canonical hour of nones was really 3 PM at first. The meaning shift from "3 p.m." to "12 p.m." began during 12c., when the time of Church prayers shifted from ninth hour to sixth hour, or perhaps because the customary time of the midday meal shifted, or both.
52. Wellness gps.: HMOS. Health Maintenance Organization. St. Peter told a director who was present before him: "Well, you may enter the kingdom of Heaven, but you can only stay for three days."
53. City near Sacramento: LODI. CCR.
56. Aetna's bus.: INS. Business, insurance abbrevs.
57. So-so grade: CEE.
58. Rural expanse: LEA.
59. Pops: DAD.
Answer Grid.
A note from Doug:
"The puzzle uses a theme that Dan sent to Rich for approval. Rich liked it, but unfortunately Dan didn't get a chance to make the puzzle. So a few months ago, Rich asked me if I'd like to try to construct a puzzle around this theme. What an honor! I met Dan a couple of times, and he was passionate and opinionated about his puzzles. I hope I got a little of his spirit into this one. I'm especially happy with the long downs, and I think this grid represents a nice mixture of our styles."
Thursday, January 27, 2011
Friday, January 21, 2011
Thursday, January 20, 2011
Thursday, Jan 20, 2011 Mark Bickham
Theme: Add a silent K. Rather than giving you a long explanation, I'll let Marina Orlova explain it.
17A. Tough handicap to overcome in a joust?: KNIGHT BLINDNESS. Nyctalopia may exist from birth, or be caused by injury or malnutrition, for example, a lack of vitamin A. The opposite is hemeralopia.
22A. Hoopster featured in a news magazine?: KNICK OF TIME. Possibly from an old custom of recording time as it passed by making notches on a tally stick.
39A. What "purls of wisdom" is an example of?: KNITWIT. Nit, from nix, a variant of nichts (German for nothing).
51A. Was familiar with Britain?: KNEW ENGLAND. Not in the biblical sense, I hope...
59A. Bow tied by mortal hands?: KNOT OF THIS WORLD. The nautical unit of measure is from the practice of attaching knotted string to the log line. The ship's speed can be measured by the number of knots that play out while the sand glass is running. The distance between knots is 1/120 of a mile.
Hi all, Al here. If it's Thursday, it must be obfuscated clue day, and there sure were plenty that took a second or third thought.
ACROSS:
1. Volkswagen model since 1979: JETTA.
6. Stare: GAWK.
10. Charm: MOJO.
14. Unit of capacitance: FARAD. Named for Michael Faraday. A capacitor that can store one FARAD would have to be somewhere between the size of a tuna can up to a one liter soda bottle. To store the total energy that a single AA battery can deliver, a capacitor would have to be of over 10,000 times larger than that.
15. "Would __?": I LIE.
16. Baseball's Moises: ALOU. Son of Felipe, also associated with baseball. You could see either name for this bit of crosswordese.
20. Words after post or suffer: A LOSS.
21. Beginning: ONSET.
26. Leo, for one: SIGN. All the focus on Astrology lately, but the dates aren't going to be changed.
27. Manhattan neighborhood acronym: NOHO. NOrth of HOuston St.
28. Ready to serve: DONE.
32. Uncertain concurrence: I GUESS.
35. Gave a buzz: RANG. Telephone.
37. Snaps: PIX.
38. Mineo of "Rebel Without a Cause": SAL.
41. HBO competitor: TMC. Home Box Office, The Movie Channel. For once it wasn't SHOwtime, but same difference, really.
42. __ king: ALA. Cooked in a cream sauce with green pepper or pimiento and mushrooms.
43. Hokkaido native: AINU. Indigenous people of Japan, conceptually like Native Americans here, the Maori of New Zealand, or Australian Aboriginal people.
44. Shoot for, with "to": ASPIRE. Associated with the concept of excitement, heavy breathing (inspiration, expiration), not the spire of a tall building.
46. Old Italian bread: LIRA. This bread/money misdirection shouldn't catch you off guard late in the week.
48. Puts on: DONS. Contraction of "do on", the original sense of "do" was "put". Contrast with doff, as with removing your hat in the presence of a lady.
50. Biol. branch: ECOL. Living organisms (biology) being optimized to suit their environment (ecology).
55. Unlikely lint-gatherer: OUTIE. This article about a collector is probably: 61D. "I didn't need to know that!": TMI.
58. Without delay: APACE.
65. Pinup Hayworth: RITA. Margarita Carmen Cansino. Died of Alzheimer's. Her case, and Ronald Regan's years later, were instrumental in bringing this problem to light, not just to hide it away.
66. Pianist Gilels: EMIL. Rachmaninoff. Not a lot of other music references today, an unknown for me. Lots of youtube vids though.
67. Church parts: NAVES. Winchester Cathedral.
68. They have heads and handles: AXES.
69. Mug imperfections: ZITS. Facial acne. Again, probably TMI.
70. Symbol of strength: STEEL. Superman.
DOWN:
1. LaGuardia alternative, familiarly: JFK. Yesterday's Google banner paid tribute to Kennedy's inaugural speech. "Ask not..."
2. Suffix with Caesar: EAN. There are etymology stories that attribute naming of c-sections to his birth, but this is unlikely because his mother lived to see his triumphs, and those would have been fatal in that day and age. More likely the name comes directly from Latin caesus past participle of caedere "to cut."
3. Like jibs: TRIANGULAR. Sails.
4. Movie poster words: TAGLINE. Just when you thought it was safe to go back in the water.
5. For a specific purpose: AD HOC. This clue is as direct of a translation from Latin as they come.
6. Big name in guitars: GIBSON. Also MARTIN, TAYLOR, FENDER, IBANEZ, SUZUKI... There are a lot of six letter guitar manufacturer names is what I'm saying. I only have two of those, neither of which is today's puzzle answer.
7. Pledge of Allegiance ender: ALL. Congress recently read the constitution out loud. If that wasn't just a stunt, they should pay equal attention to the words in the pledge, too. "Indivisible"? Not for lack of trying.
8. November 2006 Nintendo release: WII. The two lower case letter "i"s in Wii symbolize two people standing together playing. Pronounced "we".
9. Barbie's beau: KEN. According to Mattel, they broke up in February of 2004...
10. Took one's place at, as a post: MANNED.
11. Cries following charges: OLES.
12. __ Cuervo tequila: JOSE.
13. Remove from office: OUST.
18. Sound of reproach: TSK.
19. End for free: DOM.
22. Capital of Rwanda: KIGALI. Geography lesson of the day.
23. Cookie information, perhaps: FORTUNE. Oh, the archaic kind of cookie, not something that your web browser saves your ADDRESS in... Speaking of which, if you are concerned about privacy, you might want to visit this site and opt out of letting them show (and sell) your personal information.
24. Relax, as tense relations: THAW.
25. Ancient Aegean region: IONIA.
26. Cordage fiber: SISAL. Rugs, mats, dartboards. Versatile.
29. Retina-brain link: OPTIC NERVE.
30. Jerk: NIMROD. A word that has flipped it's original meaning. Originally "great hunter" (Biblical reference to the son of Cush). Speculation (lets leave it at that) on the reason for the reversal has Bugs Bunny ironically referring to Elmer Fudd as a poor little nimrod. It may be that over the course of history among "manly" hunters, it started to be used in a sarcastically mocking fashion, and the popularity of Bugs gave it an extra boost, but I wouldn't go so far as to claim that to be the true etymology. Makes for a good story, though.
31. Stand out: EXCEL. Or a Microsoft spreadsheet program.
33. Calypso offshoot: SKA. Reggae relation.
34. Like ugly remarks: SNIDE.
36. Fast sports cars: GTS. Gran turismo, Grand tourer.
40. "__ pronounce you ...": I NOW.
45. Naval attire: PEACOAT. Originated from the Dutch or West Frisian word pijjekker, in which pij referred to the type of material used, a coarse kind of twilled blue cloth with a nap on one side.
47. Loyal Japanese dogs: AKITAS.
49. Sluggards: SNAILS. As in "sluggish", I guess.
52. "The Matrix" hero: NEO. Whoa! Keanu Reeves.
53. Modern dash-mounted device: Abbr.: GPS. Global Positioning System.
54. Croquet venues: LAWNS.
55. Creole vegetable: OKRA.
56. Windows alternative: UNIX. Unless you want to play a few certain specific games with certain video cards, that is. With Ubuntu you can do just about everything else.
57. Handy bag: TOTE.
60. Casbah headgear: FEZ. Also, the 11th Doctor (Who) thinks they're cool.
62. Best seller: HIT.
63. General at Antietam: LEE.
64. Step up from dial-up: DSL. Digital Subscriber Line. Cable is faster still.
Answer Grid.
Al
17A. Tough handicap to overcome in a joust?: KNIGHT BLINDNESS. Nyctalopia may exist from birth, or be caused by injury or malnutrition, for example, a lack of vitamin A. The opposite is hemeralopia.
22A. Hoopster featured in a news magazine?: KNICK OF TIME. Possibly from an old custom of recording time as it passed by making notches on a tally stick.
39A. What "purls of wisdom" is an example of?: KNITWIT. Nit, from nix, a variant of nichts (German for nothing).
51A. Was familiar with Britain?: KNEW ENGLAND. Not in the biblical sense, I hope...
59A. Bow tied by mortal hands?: KNOT OF THIS WORLD. The nautical unit of measure is from the practice of attaching knotted string to the log line. The ship's speed can be measured by the number of knots that play out while the sand glass is running. The distance between knots is 1/120 of a mile.
Hi all, Al here. If it's Thursday, it must be obfuscated clue day, and there sure were plenty that took a second or third thought.
ACROSS:
1. Volkswagen model since 1979: JETTA.
6. Stare: GAWK.
10. Charm: MOJO.
14. Unit of capacitance: FARAD. Named for Michael Faraday. A capacitor that can store one FARAD would have to be somewhere between the size of a tuna can up to a one liter soda bottle. To store the total energy that a single AA battery can deliver, a capacitor would have to be of over 10,000 times larger than that.
15. "Would __?": I LIE.
16. Baseball's Moises: ALOU. Son of Felipe, also associated with baseball. You could see either name for this bit of crosswordese.
20. Words after post or suffer: A LOSS.
21. Beginning: ONSET.
26. Leo, for one: SIGN. All the focus on Astrology lately, but the dates aren't going to be changed.
27. Manhattan neighborhood acronym: NOHO. NOrth of HOuston St.
28. Ready to serve: DONE.
32. Uncertain concurrence: I GUESS.
35. Gave a buzz: RANG. Telephone.
37. Snaps: PIX.
38. Mineo of "Rebel Without a Cause": SAL.
41. HBO competitor: TMC. Home Box Office, The Movie Channel. For once it wasn't SHOwtime, but same difference, really.
42. __ king: ALA. Cooked in a cream sauce with green pepper or pimiento and mushrooms.
43. Hokkaido native: AINU. Indigenous people of Japan, conceptually like Native Americans here, the Maori of New Zealand, or Australian Aboriginal people.
44. Shoot for, with "to": ASPIRE. Associated with the concept of excitement, heavy breathing (inspiration, expiration), not the spire of a tall building.
46. Old Italian bread: LIRA. This bread/money misdirection shouldn't catch you off guard late in the week.
48. Puts on: DONS. Contraction of "do on", the original sense of "do" was "put". Contrast with doff, as with removing your hat in the presence of a lady.
50. Biol. branch: ECOL. Living organisms (biology) being optimized to suit their environment (ecology).
55. Unlikely lint-gatherer: OUTIE. This article about a collector is probably: 61D. "I didn't need to know that!": TMI.
58. Without delay: APACE.
65. Pinup Hayworth: RITA. Margarita Carmen Cansino. Died of Alzheimer's. Her case, and Ronald Regan's years later, were instrumental in bringing this problem to light, not just to hide it away.
66. Pianist Gilels: EMIL. Rachmaninoff. Not a lot of other music references today, an unknown for me. Lots of youtube vids though.
67. Church parts: NAVES. Winchester Cathedral.
68. They have heads and handles: AXES.
69. Mug imperfections: ZITS. Facial acne. Again, probably TMI.
70. Symbol of strength: STEEL. Superman.
DOWN:
1. LaGuardia alternative, familiarly: JFK. Yesterday's Google banner paid tribute to Kennedy's inaugural speech. "Ask not..."
2. Suffix with Caesar: EAN. There are etymology stories that attribute naming of c-sections to his birth, but this is unlikely because his mother lived to see his triumphs, and those would have been fatal in that day and age. More likely the name comes directly from Latin caesus past participle of caedere "to cut."
3. Like jibs: TRIANGULAR. Sails.
4. Movie poster words: TAGLINE. Just when you thought it was safe to go back in the water.
5. For a specific purpose: AD HOC. This clue is as direct of a translation from Latin as they come.
6. Big name in guitars: GIBSON. Also MARTIN, TAYLOR, FENDER, IBANEZ, SUZUKI... There are a lot of six letter guitar manufacturer names is what I'm saying. I only have two of those, neither of which is today's puzzle answer.
7. Pledge of Allegiance ender: ALL. Congress recently read the constitution out loud. If that wasn't just a stunt, they should pay equal attention to the words in the pledge, too. "Indivisible"? Not for lack of trying.
8. November 2006 Nintendo release: WII. The two lower case letter "i"s in Wii symbolize two people standing together playing. Pronounced "we".
9. Barbie's beau: KEN. According to Mattel, they broke up in February of 2004...
10. Took one's place at, as a post: MANNED.
11. Cries following charges: OLES.
12. __ Cuervo tequila: JOSE.
13. Remove from office: OUST.
18. Sound of reproach: TSK.
19. End for free: DOM.
22. Capital of Rwanda: KIGALI. Geography lesson of the day.
23. Cookie information, perhaps: FORTUNE. Oh, the archaic kind of cookie, not something that your web browser saves your ADDRESS in... Speaking of which, if you are concerned about privacy, you might want to visit this site and opt out of letting them show (and sell) your personal information.
24. Relax, as tense relations: THAW.
25. Ancient Aegean region: IONIA.
26. Cordage fiber: SISAL. Rugs, mats, dartboards. Versatile.
29. Retina-brain link: OPTIC NERVE.
30. Jerk: NIMROD. A word that has flipped it's original meaning. Originally "great hunter" (Biblical reference to the son of Cush). Speculation (lets leave it at that) on the reason for the reversal has Bugs Bunny ironically referring to Elmer Fudd as a poor little nimrod. It may be that over the course of history among "manly" hunters, it started to be used in a sarcastically mocking fashion, and the popularity of Bugs gave it an extra boost, but I wouldn't go so far as to claim that to be the true etymology. Makes for a good story, though.
31. Stand out: EXCEL. Or a Microsoft spreadsheet program.
33. Calypso offshoot: SKA. Reggae relation.
34. Like ugly remarks: SNIDE.
36. Fast sports cars: GTS. Gran turismo, Grand tourer.
40. "__ pronounce you ...": I NOW.
45. Naval attire: PEACOAT. Originated from the Dutch or West Frisian word pijjekker, in which pij referred to the type of material used, a coarse kind of twilled blue cloth with a nap on one side.
47. Loyal Japanese dogs: AKITAS.
49. Sluggards: SNAILS. As in "sluggish", I guess.
52. "The Matrix" hero: NEO. Whoa! Keanu Reeves.
53. Modern dash-mounted device: Abbr.: GPS. Global Positioning System.
54. Croquet venues: LAWNS.
55. Creole vegetable: OKRA.
56. Windows alternative: UNIX. Unless you want to play a few certain specific games with certain video cards, that is. With Ubuntu you can do just about everything else.
57. Handy bag: TOTE.
60. Casbah headgear: FEZ. Also, the 11th Doctor (Who) thinks they're cool.
62. Best seller: HIT.
63. General at Antietam: LEE.
64. Step up from dial-up: DSL. Digital Subscriber Line. Cable is faster still.
Answer Grid.
Al
Thursday, January 13, 2011
Thursday, Jan 13, 2011 John Lampkin
Theme: Magic Transformations, spelled out in 15A and 17A, illusionist's act, and this puzzle's title. Words associated with a magic presentation are paired with an anagrammed form to make a wacky new phrase.
26A and 28A: "Presenting: Info!": TA-DA DATA.
47A and 49A: "Presenting: Instrument!": VOILA VIOLA.
56A and 57A: "Presenting: Wall hanging!": PRESTO POSTER.
Hi all, Al here.
Tricky today, last to fall for me was the SE corner, mostly due to stubbornness. This puzzle has an odd symmetry from left to right, folded like a book, but not top to bottom or diagonally. John has been really productive lately, conjuring up puzzles for three of the last five Thursdays.
ACROSS:
1. Hand mop?: SWAB. For cleaning a ship's deck
5. Siren, for one: ALARM.
10. Sound rebound: ECHO.
14. Corny state?: IOWA. Heywood Banks.
16. Unit of loudness: PHON. One SONE = 40 PHONs. They are subjective measures of perceived loudness. A decibel is the actual measured sound pressure and can be the same as a phon at times, but at different frequencies, the same pressure can seem to be louder or softer.
20. Playwright's device: ASIDE. Breaking the fourth wall by directly addressing the audience.
21. Sib, either way: SIS. Palindromic sibling.
22. Coincide: AGREE. I agree, when it snows as much as it has been lately we should all coincide and stay warm.
23. Turn in: RETIRE. The sooner, the better...
25. Most dependable: SUREST. Sure from Old French seur from Latin securus (secure).
29. Track figures: ODDS. Likeliest explanation is that odd meant "constituting a unit in excess of an even number", and odds followed with the general meaning of "amount by which one thing exceeds or falls short of another".
32. Start of a confession, maybe: I LIED.
34. Waste time, with "around": MUCK. I had _ _ C K staring at me for the longest time. A few other words came to mind first, but there was no way...
38. Louvre Pyramid architect: PEI. Ieoh Ming (I.M.)
39. Aptly named lab apparatus: BELL JAR.
41. Zip: NIL. Nada, zilch, naught.
42. '80s-'90s entertainment combo: TV-VCR. Convenient for small spaces, but inconvenient if the VCR needed to be fixed, then you were without the TV, too.
44. Gp. with big busts: DEA. Drug busts, Drug Enforcement Administration. This kind of bust comes from the word burst. The partial statue and f. anatomy meaning from Italian busto, upper body, which oddly comes from Latin bustum, a funeral monument or tomb...
45. Aptly named girder: H-BEAM.
51. Holy: SAINTLY. With clecho 46D. Holy: BLESSED.
53. Experience: UNDERGO.
58. Approximately: OR SO.
59. Mountain air: YODEL. Air (from Italian "aria") in the sense of a "song". Putting on airs (aura)
63. Wood site: SHED. I wanted to make GOLF or HOLE work here somehow.
64. Julia in films: RAUL. Best known for playing Gomez in the Addams Family movies.
65. Clinton Cabinet member Shalala: DONNA. Secretary of Health and Human Services.
66. Further: ELSE. I really didn't want to give up ALSO for this one.
67. Kind: TYPE.
68. Not on the level: SHADY.
69. Batik artist: DYER. Linen soaked in wax, then scratched with a sharp tool to allow limited areas to be dyed. Slightly akin to tie-dying.
DOWN:
1. George Harrison played one in "Norwegian Wood": SITAR. Couldn't find actual (real) live footage, so here's the Rock Band game version.
2. In a sorrier state: WORSE.
3. Be ready for: AWAIT.
4. Desperados: BANDITS. Banditos, outlaws, related word: banish.
5. Bowling initials: AMF. American Machine and Foundry. Competition: Brunswick.
6. China neighbor: LAOS. Landlocked between Thailand and Vietnam.
7. Cultural opening?: AGRI. Opening = prefix.
8. Rounded edges, usually: RIMS.
9. Label for many Tom Petty hits: MCA. Music Corporation of America.
10. Dorothy Parker forte: EPIGRAM. Short pithy, usually snide "verbal wallops" like: "Brevity is the soul of lingerie" or "Look at him, a rhinestone in the rough!"
11. Job: CHORE.
12. Perfects: HONES. As in "sharpens ones skills".
13. Advent: ONSET. Start up.
18. Day's "will be": SERA. Que Sera, Sera. Doris Day.
19. Stretched tight: TAUT. (for the ladies)
24. Pop singer Brickell: EDIE. What does she mean?
25. Emmy winner Thompson: SADA.
27. From dawn to dusk: ALL DAY.
28. Illusion of familiarity: DEJA VU.
29. Back (out): OPT.
30. Part of R&D: Abbr.: DEV. Research and Development.
31. Distributes, as the loot: DIVVIES UP.
33. Land in la mer: ILE. French: sea, island
35. Ethereal: UNEARTHLY.
36. Org. with covert ops: CIA.
37. It merged with Air France in 2004: KLM. Royal Dutch Airlines: Koninklijke Luchtvaart Maatschappij
39. Bond girl Ekland: BRITT. Mary Goodnight.
40. Rose: Pref.: RHODO. Directly from Greek rhodon for rose.
43. Give comfort to: CONSOLE.
48. Insurer at One Lime Street, London: LLOYDS.
50. Needing to be fielded, as a baseball: IN PLAY. Partial clecho with 51D. Baseball, for one: SPORT.
52. Striking grouping: ARRAY.
54. Sixth-day Christmas gift: GEESE. a-laying. The price index for all 12 days: currently $96,824
55. It might be tall: ORDER. Tall is a funny word that has evolved through many meanings over time. In Old English, it meant: prompt, active. It changed to mean brave, valiant, seemly, proper, and then to more than average height. From there it was extended to mean something grandly exaggerated, or lofty, and then to a general purpose intensifier as in tall tales or stories, and this clue: a tall order.
60. "Nice!": OOH.
61. "CSI" sample: DNA. DeoxyriboNucleic Acid
62. You've just reached it: END.
Answer Grid
Al
26A and 28A: "Presenting: Info!": TA-DA DATA.
47A and 49A: "Presenting: Instrument!": VOILA VIOLA.
56A and 57A: "Presenting: Wall hanging!": PRESTO POSTER.
Hi all, Al here.
Tricky today, last to fall for me was the SE corner, mostly due to stubbornness. This puzzle has an odd symmetry from left to right, folded like a book, but not top to bottom or diagonally. John has been really productive lately, conjuring up puzzles for three of the last five Thursdays.
ACROSS:
1. Hand mop?: SWAB. For cleaning a ship's deck
5. Siren, for one: ALARM.
10. Sound rebound: ECHO.
14. Corny state?: IOWA. Heywood Banks.
16. Unit of loudness: PHON. One SONE = 40 PHONs. They are subjective measures of perceived loudness. A decibel is the actual measured sound pressure and can be the same as a phon at times, but at different frequencies, the same pressure can seem to be louder or softer.
20. Playwright's device: ASIDE. Breaking the fourth wall by directly addressing the audience.
21. Sib, either way: SIS. Palindromic sibling.
22. Coincide: AGREE. I agree, when it snows as much as it has been lately we should all coincide and stay warm.
23. Turn in: RETIRE. The sooner, the better...
25. Most dependable: SUREST. Sure from Old French seur from Latin securus (secure).
29. Track figures: ODDS. Likeliest explanation is that odd meant "constituting a unit in excess of an even number", and odds followed with the general meaning of "amount by which one thing exceeds or falls short of another".
32. Start of a confession, maybe: I LIED.
34. Waste time, with "around": MUCK. I had _ _ C K staring at me for the longest time. A few other words came to mind first, but there was no way...
38. Louvre Pyramid architect: PEI. Ieoh Ming (I.M.)
39. Aptly named lab apparatus: BELL JAR.
41. Zip: NIL. Nada, zilch, naught.
42. '80s-'90s entertainment combo: TV-VCR. Convenient for small spaces, but inconvenient if the VCR needed to be fixed, then you were without the TV, too.
44. Gp. with big busts: DEA. Drug busts, Drug Enforcement Administration. This kind of bust comes from the word burst. The partial statue and f. anatomy meaning from Italian busto, upper body, which oddly comes from Latin bustum, a funeral monument or tomb...
45. Aptly named girder: H-BEAM.
51. Holy: SAINTLY. With clecho 46D. Holy: BLESSED.
53. Experience: UNDERGO.
58. Approximately: OR SO.
59. Mountain air: YODEL. Air (from Italian "aria") in the sense of a "song". Putting on airs (aura)
63. Wood site: SHED. I wanted to make GOLF or HOLE work here somehow.
64. Julia in films: RAUL. Best known for playing Gomez in the Addams Family movies.
65. Clinton Cabinet member Shalala: DONNA. Secretary of Health and Human Services.
66. Further: ELSE. I really didn't want to give up ALSO for this one.
67. Kind: TYPE.
68. Not on the level: SHADY.
69. Batik artist: DYER. Linen soaked in wax, then scratched with a sharp tool to allow limited areas to be dyed. Slightly akin to tie-dying.
DOWN:
1. George Harrison played one in "Norwegian Wood": SITAR. Couldn't find actual (real) live footage, so here's the Rock Band game version.
2. In a sorrier state: WORSE.
3. Be ready for: AWAIT.
4. Desperados: BANDITS. Banditos, outlaws, related word: banish.
5. Bowling initials: AMF. American Machine and Foundry. Competition: Brunswick.
6. China neighbor: LAOS. Landlocked between Thailand and Vietnam.
7. Cultural opening?: AGRI. Opening = prefix.
8. Rounded edges, usually: RIMS.
9. Label for many Tom Petty hits: MCA. Music Corporation of America.
10. Dorothy Parker forte: EPIGRAM. Short pithy, usually snide "verbal wallops" like: "Brevity is the soul of lingerie" or "Look at him, a rhinestone in the rough!"
11. Job: CHORE.
12. Perfects: HONES. As in "sharpens ones skills".
13. Advent: ONSET. Start up.
18. Day's "will be": SERA. Que Sera, Sera. Doris Day.
19. Stretched tight: TAUT. (for the ladies)
24. Pop singer Brickell: EDIE. What does she mean?
25. Emmy winner Thompson: SADA.
27. From dawn to dusk: ALL DAY.
28. Illusion of familiarity: DEJA VU.
29. Back (out): OPT.
30. Part of R&D: Abbr.: DEV. Research and Development.
31. Distributes, as the loot: DIVVIES UP.
33. Land in la mer: ILE. French: sea, island
35. Ethereal: UNEARTHLY.
36. Org. with covert ops: CIA.
37. It merged with Air France in 2004: KLM. Royal Dutch Airlines: Koninklijke Luchtvaart Maatschappij
39. Bond girl Ekland: BRITT. Mary Goodnight.
40. Rose: Pref.: RHODO. Directly from Greek rhodon for rose.
43. Give comfort to: CONSOLE.
48. Insurer at One Lime Street, London: LLOYDS.
50. Needing to be fielded, as a baseball: IN PLAY. Partial clecho with 51D. Baseball, for one: SPORT.
52. Striking grouping: ARRAY.
54. Sixth-day Christmas gift: GEESE. a-laying. The price index for all 12 days: currently $96,824
55. It might be tall: ORDER. Tall is a funny word that has evolved through many meanings over time. In Old English, it meant: prompt, active. It changed to mean brave, valiant, seemly, proper, and then to more than average height. From there it was extended to mean something grandly exaggerated, or lofty, and then to a general purpose intensifier as in tall tales or stories, and this clue: a tall order.
60. "Nice!": OOH.
61. "CSI" sample: DNA. DeoxyriboNucleic Acid
62. You've just reached it: END.
Answer Grid
Al
Wednesday, January 5, 2011
LA Times, Thu, Jan 6, 2011 Author: Gary J. Whitehead
Theme: You've got a lot of nerve! Revealed in 60A. Part of an axon (and what 17-, 28- and 46-Across each has?): NERVE ENDING. The last word of the three theme answers are all synonyms for Chutzpah.
17A. Marinara, for one: TOMATO SAUCE. Salty or heavily seasoned, saucy. Related: sass.
28A. Pentagon bigwigs: MILITARY BRASS.
46A. Not serious: TONGUE IN CHEEK. If you have cheek, you probably mouth off a bit.
Hi all, Al here.
Good puzzle for a Thursday. Some answers I didn't know, like LODZ, or NERI, but everything eventually fell with the perps for me today, no lookups. I think my favorite word was INEXORABLE; I want to be more like that. Other than a few, I thought all the answers were pretty easy. Some of the clues, though, were not...
ACROSS:
1. Techie talk, e.g.: JARGON. Argot is specifically the jargon of rogues and thieves. Jargon comes from Old French, literally a chattering of birds, unintelligible.
7. They have guards on both sides of them: Abbr.: CTRS. Centers and guards, football players.
11. Roman sun god: SOL.
14. Nine follower?: ONE ONE. The emergency number, spelled out.
15. Menageries: ZOOS. From French ménagerie "housing for domestic animals". Zoo from Greek zoion "animal".
16. Worldwide workers' gp.: ILO. International Labour Organization. A UN agency.
19. Marked, in a way: XED.
20. Winter coat: SNOW. Or blanket. Nice misdirection.
21. Pusher pursuer: NARC.
22. The gamut: A TO Z. Originally the lowest note in the medieval musical scale "gamma ut", it came to mean the whole scale and from there expanded to mean the entire range of anything.
23. __ II, king who founded Borg (now Sarpsborg): OLAF.
25. Moor: HEATH. Swamp.
32. Swindle: CON.
33. Philip __: 16th-century Italian saint: NERI. If you say so...
34. Only just: BARELY.
36. Cheri who played Gail Hailstorm in "Scary Movie": OTERI. SNL alumna, list of characters including Ross Perot...
38. First person in Berlin?: ICH. Es gibt kein Ich im Team. Unless you look closely.
40. Yearned: PINED. Pine from Old English pineon "pain, torture, punishment".
41. Reliant Stadium NFL team: TEXANS. Houston. Unlike the Metrodome, this stadium roof won't collapse under the weight of snow. :-)
43. Latin quarters?: CASA. Spanish is a romance language derived from Latin. The clue may also mean Latin America.
45. French possessive: SES. His or her (things), plural form. Singular would be "son".
49. Artful dodges: RUSES. A clue reference to the artful dodger, who was a pickpocket in the Dickens novel Oliver Twist.
50. Mention with an ulterior motive: DROP.
51. Finish shooting: WRAP. The meaning of ending a filming session only is traced back to 1974...
53. Eldest Younger gang member: COLE. A play on the name Younger. Associated with Jesse James, and the James-Younger gang.
55. Louisville's river: OHIO.
59. Air base?: HUB. Like FedEx, I guess, a central location.
63. Feverish, say: ILL.
64. Natural balm: ALOE.
65. Browbeat: COERCE. Browbeat: to bear down with fierce or arrogant looks.
66. One of a jazz duo?: ZEE. Two letter "Z"s in the word jaZZ
67. It's often seen under a cap: GOWN. Graduation.
68. Swindle: HUSTLE.
DOWN:
1. Scribbles: JOTS.
2. Soon, poetically: ANON.
3. San __: REMO. On the Italian Rivera.
4. Commit a service infraction: GO AWOL. Absent without leave. Attempted misdirection towards a sport that has a central net, like a tennis fault.
5. Toronto's prov.: ONT.ario
6. Nursery arrival: NEONATE. Anyone else put NEWBORN at first?
7. Winter Palace figure: CZAR. The CZ spelling instead of TS for once. It was almost a welcome change.
8. Sensitive: TOUCHY.
9. "One Thousand and One Nights" bird: ROC. Associated with the story of Sinbad the Sailor.
10. GPS heading: SSE. Directional clues have apparently been updated for the digital age.
11. Intuition: SIXTH SENSE.
12. Spread on the table: OLEO.
13. One of Poland's three most populous cities: LODZ.
18. Exotic honeymoon, perhaps: SAFARI. This idea would never have crossed my mind. Heat, bugs, dust, rain, sleeping on cots in tents? Not so romantic to me. I could have the wrong impression, I suppose. Do they have safaris available using air conditioned travel trailers now?
22. Asteroids maker: ATARI. Early arcade video game.
24. Winter coat features: LININGS. Clecho with 20A.
26. Withdraw: EBB.
27. Wyoming tribe: ARAPAHO.
28. Choral piece: MOTET.
29. Unyielding: INEXORABLE. Like the martians in Jeff Wayne's musical War of the Worlds.
30. "Monster" (2003) co-star: RICCI. Christina.
31. Streamlined: SLEEK.
32. No-frills bed: COT.
35. NFL gains: YDS.
37. What the mouse did clockwise?: RAN UP. Hicory Dickory Dock.
39. Radio moniker: HANDLE. CB radio name.
42. Take to court: SUE.
44. Collision preceder: SCREECH. And here I was, trying to think of a prefix. I wonder if this was from the tires or from the passengers?
47. Money set aside: ESCROW. From Old French escroue "scrap, roll of parchment", originally a deed held by a third person until a debt was paid.
48. Lyric poems: EPODES. The third part of an ode, which followed the strophe and the antistrophe, and completed the movement.
51. Crackerjack: WHIZ.
52. Run the show: RULE.
54. Bakery appliance: OVEN.
56. "Cotton Candy" trumpeter: HIRT. A top 10 hit in 1964.
57. Not left out: Abbr.: INCL.uded
58. Curved molding: OGEE.
60. Henpeck: NAG.
61. "Strange Magic" band: ELO. Electric Light Orchestra.
62. __-turn: NO U.
Answer Grid
Al
17A. Marinara, for one: TOMATO SAUCE. Salty or heavily seasoned, saucy. Related: sass.
28A. Pentagon bigwigs: MILITARY BRASS.
46A. Not serious: TONGUE IN CHEEK. If you have cheek, you probably mouth off a bit.
Hi all, Al here.
Good puzzle for a Thursday. Some answers I didn't know, like LODZ, or NERI, but everything eventually fell with the perps for me today, no lookups. I think my favorite word was INEXORABLE; I want to be more like that. Other than a few, I thought all the answers were pretty easy. Some of the clues, though, were not...
ACROSS:
1. Techie talk, e.g.: JARGON. Argot is specifically the jargon of rogues and thieves. Jargon comes from Old French, literally a chattering of birds, unintelligible.
7. They have guards on both sides of them: Abbr.: CTRS. Centers and guards, football players.
11. Roman sun god: SOL.
14. Nine follower?: ONE ONE. The emergency number, spelled out.
15. Menageries: ZOOS. From French ménagerie "housing for domestic animals". Zoo from Greek zoion "animal".
16. Worldwide workers' gp.: ILO. International Labour Organization. A UN agency.
19. Marked, in a way: XED.
20. Winter coat: SNOW. Or blanket. Nice misdirection.
21. Pusher pursuer: NARC.
22. The gamut: A TO Z. Originally the lowest note in the medieval musical scale "gamma ut", it came to mean the whole scale and from there expanded to mean the entire range of anything.
23. __ II, king who founded Borg (now Sarpsborg): OLAF.
25. Moor: HEATH. Swamp.
32. Swindle: CON.
33. Philip __: 16th-century Italian saint: NERI. If you say so...
34. Only just: BARELY.
36. Cheri who played Gail Hailstorm in "Scary Movie": OTERI. SNL alumna, list of characters including Ross Perot...
38. First person in Berlin?: ICH. Es gibt kein Ich im Team. Unless you look closely.
40. Yearned: PINED. Pine from Old English pineon "pain, torture, punishment".
41. Reliant Stadium NFL team: TEXANS. Houston. Unlike the Metrodome, this stadium roof won't collapse under the weight of snow. :-)
43. Latin quarters?: CASA. Spanish is a romance language derived from Latin. The clue may also mean Latin America.
45. French possessive: SES. His or her (things), plural form. Singular would be "son".
49. Artful dodges: RUSES. A clue reference to the artful dodger, who was a pickpocket in the Dickens novel Oliver Twist.
50. Mention with an ulterior motive: DROP.
51. Finish shooting: WRAP. The meaning of ending a filming session only is traced back to 1974...
53. Eldest Younger gang member: COLE. A play on the name Younger. Associated with Jesse James, and the James-Younger gang.
55. Louisville's river: OHIO.
59. Air base?: HUB. Like FedEx, I guess, a central location.
63. Feverish, say: ILL.
64. Natural balm: ALOE.
65. Browbeat: COERCE. Browbeat: to bear down with fierce or arrogant looks.
66. One of a jazz duo?: ZEE. Two letter "Z"s in the word jaZZ
67. It's often seen under a cap: GOWN. Graduation.
68. Swindle: HUSTLE.
DOWN:
1. Scribbles: JOTS.
2. Soon, poetically: ANON.
3. San __: REMO. On the Italian Rivera.
4. Commit a service infraction: GO AWOL. Absent without leave. Attempted misdirection towards a sport that has a central net, like a tennis fault.
5. Toronto's prov.: ONT.ario
6. Nursery arrival: NEONATE. Anyone else put NEWBORN at first?
7. Winter Palace figure: CZAR. The CZ spelling instead of TS for once. It was almost a welcome change.
8. Sensitive: TOUCHY.
9. "One Thousand and One Nights" bird: ROC. Associated with the story of Sinbad the Sailor.
10. GPS heading: SSE. Directional clues have apparently been updated for the digital age.
11. Intuition: SIXTH SENSE.
12. Spread on the table: OLEO.
13. One of Poland's three most populous cities: LODZ.
18. Exotic honeymoon, perhaps: SAFARI. This idea would never have crossed my mind. Heat, bugs, dust, rain, sleeping on cots in tents? Not so romantic to me. I could have the wrong impression, I suppose. Do they have safaris available using air conditioned travel trailers now?
22. Asteroids maker: ATARI. Early arcade video game.
24. Winter coat features: LININGS. Clecho with 20A.
26. Withdraw: EBB.
27. Wyoming tribe: ARAPAHO.
28. Choral piece: MOTET.
29. Unyielding: INEXORABLE. Like the martians in Jeff Wayne's musical War of the Worlds.
30. "Monster" (2003) co-star: RICCI. Christina.
31. Streamlined: SLEEK.
32. No-frills bed: COT.
35. NFL gains: YDS.
37. What the mouse did clockwise?: RAN UP. Hicory Dickory Dock.
39. Radio moniker: HANDLE. CB radio name.
42. Take to court: SUE.
44. Collision preceder: SCREECH. And here I was, trying to think of a prefix. I wonder if this was from the tires or from the passengers?
47. Money set aside: ESCROW. From Old French escroue "scrap, roll of parchment", originally a deed held by a third person until a debt was paid.
48. Lyric poems: EPODES. The third part of an ode, which followed the strophe and the antistrophe, and completed the movement.
51. Crackerjack: WHIZ.
52. Run the show: RULE.
54. Bakery appliance: OVEN.
56. "Cotton Candy" trumpeter: HIRT. A top 10 hit in 1964.
57. Not left out: Abbr.: INCL.uded
58. Curved molding: OGEE.
60. Henpeck: NAG.
61. "Strange Magic" band: ELO. Electric Light Orchestra.
62. __-turn: NO U.
Answer Grid
Al
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)