L.A. Times Crossword Puzzle Blogging

Wednesday, March 1,9 2014 Jim Horne and Jeff Chen

Theme: THE I's HAVE IT, or I-YI-YI, or OH MY, MY I.  If you noticed the somewhat unusual grid, you probably also spotted the big letter I in the middle.  With my keen powers of observation, that was the LAST thing I noticed. But It's just the beginning. Every vowel in every fill word is the letter I.  There are also a few vowel-less entries.  I might nit-pick - instead I'll  identify them as illustrious enhancements.  Also, there's a unifier, though it's not identified as such in the cluing.  I'll get to it in due time.

Jim and Jeff continue their assault on the alphabet.  Just five weeks ago, I blogged their puzzle in which every entry contained the letter H.  And just 11 days ago we had the no E puzzle by Bruce Haight.  Is this a pattern?

Hi, Gang.  There's no I in JazzBumpa, nor in team, but that doesn't mean that you and I can't team up to work our way through this I-mazing puzzle together.  Let's have at it.

Across
 
1. Conflict in FDR's presidency : WWII.  Here, the I's become the Roman numeral 2.  WW I was supposed to have been the war to end all wars.  You can see how well that worked out.

5. Readies, as presses : INKS.  Perfect job for a squid.

9. Pod prefix : TRI.  Of course, I wanted cephalo-, not the three-legged camera holder.

12. Rise : HILL.   Topography.

13. Carding at a door : I.D.-ING.  Identifying those over/under age.  I'll take the over.  I got carded at a Lion's game a few years ago, thinning grey hair not withstanding.

14. Indian honorifics : SRIS.  The don't spell SIRS properly.

15. Stops for Carnival custs. : ISLS.  Carnival Cruise line customers and islands.  Brief stops, come to think of it.

16. Finger, e.g. : DIGIT.  Toe, too.

17. Elton's "Don't Go Breaking My Heart" duet partner : KIKI.  I remember the song, but KiKi Dee is a long faded memory.

18. T'ai __ : CHI   An exercise regimen consisting of graceful and slow movements that relax and strengthen both body and mind.  It dates from the 11th century.

19. Billy clubs : NIGHT STICKS.  Head breakers.

21. Indian language : HINDI.  My massage therapist is married to an Indian guy from Goa, where they speak Portuguese.

23. User-edited site : WIKI.  Even I could be an editor.

24. Model in a bottle : SHIP.  Not necessarily.

27. Outer coating : SKIN.  Should be bottle. See above.

29. Capital of Georgia : TBILISI. Not Atlanta, though it fits and has all wrong vowels.  Say it three times real fast. 

32. Works without a script : WINGS IT.  Or a result of being unprepared.

36. "This tape will self-destruct in five seconds" fictional spy org. : I .M. F.  Not the International Monetary Fund.

37. Architect Maya __ : LIN.  She did the Viet Nam Veterans Memorial.

38. Bug : IRK.  Irritate.

39. 24-hr. info source : CNN.  There is no I in news.

40. Longing to see : MISSING.  I am keenly aware of your absence.

42. Yellowish embellishment : GILDING.  Thou shalt not embellish lilies yellowishly.

44. "Sent" folder contents: Abbr. : MSGS.  Short, i-less messages.

45. Small cut : SNIP. 

46. Tizzy : SNIT.  Hissy fit.

48. Singer Minaj : NICKI.  Seek a link if you are so inclined

52. Maintaining shoe gloss, in a way : SPIT SHINING.   Instructions.

58. Popular show : HIT.

59. Friends and neighbors : KITH.  Middle English, from Old English cȳthth; akin to cūth, meaning "known," recognizable today as it's antonym, uncouth.

60. "Lemon Tree" singer Lopez : TRINI.

61. S&P 500 bank : CITI.

62. NFL stats : INTS.  Football Interceptions.

63. Easy two-pointer : TIP IN.  Basketball.  Just in time for March Madness.

64. Diner orders, briefly : BLTS.  Bacon-lettuce-tomato [no I so far] sandwiches - [Darn!]

65. Letter before omega : PSI. It's all Greek to me.

66. Start of a library conversation : PSST.  Could I have your attention, without batting an I?

67. Señor's assent : SI SI.  I agree.  Does C. C.?

Down

 1. Question of choice : WHICH.  'Round the cauldron - which witch?

2. Words often heard before may and might : WISH I. There is an I in WISH.

3. "You Be __": 1986 Run-D.M.C. hit : ILLIN'.  Per 23A, The slang term illing means to "be uncool and unrelaxed", "be acting crazy", "be 'tripping' or 'bugging' ", or "be acting 'wack' "

4. They, in Tours : ILS.  French.  Is ILS Illin'?

5. "Got it, man" : I DIG.  Retro 60's slang.

6. At hand : NIGH.

7. Make socks, e.g. : KNIT.

8. Pepper and Bilko: Abbr. : SGTS.  There is no I in Sergeant.

9. Prank : TRICK.

10. __-Tikki-Tavi: Kipling mongoose : RIKKI.  Cobra fighter from the Jungle Book.

11. Egyptian fertility goddess : ISIS.

13. Despot Amin : IDI.  Very illin' dude.

14. Street sport : SKIING.  Now, this is tricky.  Olympic medalist Picabo Street.

19. Ones who reject established institutions : NIHILISTS.  A bit understated.  It's a belief that current conditions are so bad that existing society should be destroyed.

20. Instant : TWINKLING.  I assume this is condensed from the phrase, "In a twinkling of an I."

22. One way to get online, briefly : DSL.  Digital Subscriber Line.  I's everywhere.

25. "Of Thee __" : I SING.  Sweet land of liberty.

26. Sonar pulses : PINGS.

27. Way more than sips : SWIGS.  Two ways to go at your Guinness.  Before I caught on, I wanted GULPS.

28. Beer from Japan : KIRIN.  It's also good for a sip or a SWIG.

29. "A Christmas Carol" boy : TIM.

30. Ratio involving ht. and wt. : B.M.I.  Body mass index, briefly. 

31. Suppositions : IFS.  They occasionally travel with ANDS or BUTS.

33. __-fi : SCI.  Science Fiction.

34. Accommodating place : INN.  A place with accomodations.  Nice, fresh clue

35. Series with Capt. Picard, to fans : TNG. There's no I in Star Treck: The Next Generat -- oops!

41. Horseshoe makers : SMITHS.

43. Printer spec. : DPI.  Dots Per Inch.

46. Quick rides : SPINS.

47. Ness foe : NITTI.  Gritty guy.  Per 23A: Francesco Raffaele Nitti (January 27, 1886 – March 19, 1943), also known as Frank "The Enforcer" Nitti, was an Italian American gangster. One of Al Capone's top henchmen, Nitti was in charge of all strong-arm and 'muscle' operations.  Eliot Paul Ness joined the U.S. Treasury Department in 1927, working with the Bureau of Prohibition, in Chicago.  Fun times.

49. Spicy pepper : CHILI.

50. Saint __ and Nevis: Caribbean country : KITTS.  More formally, St. Christopher.  These neighboring West Indies Islands form a single country.

51. Formal "Who's there?" reply : IT IS I.  Finally, it is the unifier

52. Miss on purpose : SKIP.

53. Web address letters : HTTP.  HyperText Transfer Protocol.

54. "Elegy for __": memoir about writer Murdoch : IRIS.  Per the font of all knowledge, she was an Irish-born British author and philosopher, best known for her novels about good and evil, sexual relationships, morality, and the power of the unconscious.

55. Pinches : NIPS.  A word with many meanings, here I take it to be arrests, as by a police officer.  You may ponder other meanings at your leisure.

56. Part of FDR: Abbr. : INIT. Franklin Delano Roosevelt's Initials.

57. Diarist Anaïs : NIN.  Angela Anaïs Juana Antolina Rosa Edelmira Nin y Culmell (February 21, 1903 – January 14, 1977) was an author born to Spanish-Cuban parents in France.

61. "Mike & Molly" network : CBS.  Columbia Broadcasting System, which unfortunately contains an I.

That wraps it up.  A pleasant journey, and quite an I full, with some musical interludes and interesting authors. Hope you injoyed it.  I'll be off-line today, and will try to check in this evening.

Cool Regards!
JzB

L.A. Times Cross word puzzle Bloging

Wednesday, March 5, 2014, John R. O'Brien

Theme: I MUST BE DREAMING.  The first word of each two-word theme answer phonetically gives us part of James Bond's Identity number: 007, usually rendered as Double-O-7, phonetically DOUBLE OH SEVEN.  In the cold imaginary universe of this series of spy novels and movies, the Double-O ID is only given to operatives who have killed in cold blood in the course of completing an assignment, and are licensed to do so again in the future, as necessary.  Per Wikipedia, in the back story preceding Casino Royal, the first Bond Novel, Bond is awarded his 007 for having twice done so.  Not until the third novel Moonraker, does the 00- designation indicate a license to kill.  We have to permit our novelists these kinds of little inconsistencies over the course of a long series.

16 A. Outing for four : DOUBLE DATE.  Two couples on one adventure.  Opportunities limited only by your imagination.

24 A. "Don't tell me!" : OH BROTHER! A colloquial expression of wonderment or disbelief.  I don't recall hearing it much in recent decades.

49A. World waters : SEVEN SEAS.   Which seas are counted depends on where and when you ask. Here's a brief run down from the National Ocean Service.

And for a unifier, we have the creator of the 007 series:  63 A. Author suggested by the starts of 16-, 24- and 49-Across : IAN FLEMING.  Wikipedia tells us: While working for Britain's Naval Intelligence Division during the Second World War, Fleming was involved in planning Operation Goldeneye and in the planning and oversight of two intelligence units, 30 Assault Unit and T-Force. His wartime service and his career as a journalist provided much of the background, detail and depth of the James Bond novels.  Just the right kind of experience to give us these stories.

BTW, If you're wondering about the title, it's contained in this snippet of dialog from the movie GOLDFINGER.

Pussy Galore: “My name is Pussy Galore.”  

Bond: “I must be dreaming.”                           

And, as a bonus, if you had circles in the corner squares, they would help you notice that by proceeding clockwise starting in the NW, they contain the letters spelling BOND.  All very tidy.

Hi gang, Agent JzB on duty, licensed to guide you through today's intrigue.  With a little luck, nobody will get hurt.

But first, today's theme song.

Across

1. Humanities degs. : BAS. Bachelors of Artses.

4. Bullpen stats : ERAS.

8. Not exceeding : UP TO.  As my father used to ask me, "What are you not exceeding, now?"  Usually it was my potential.

12. "__ way!" : ATTA.  ATTA boy or girl - OK.  ATTA way - ???

14. Soft tissue : FLESH. Mandatory Monty Python link.

15. Consequences of most missed birdie putts : PARS.  I could do worse.

18. __-Z: classic Camaro : IROC.

 1989 Model

19. Make beloved : ENDEAR.

20. Pixar film in which Richard Petty had a voice role : CARS.

22. FDR power project : TVA. Tennessee Valley Authority, a dam good idea.  Note Ints. in cl & ans.

23. Some Iberian kings : REYES.  Spanish kings.  The Portuguese ones are REIS.

26. Soak (up) : SOP.

28. Days gone by : YORE.

29. Took out for a while : BORROWED.   Like if your DOUBLE date is to the library

34. Dvorak's last symphony : NINTH.

37. Three-part snack : OREO.  Stacked snack, suitable for dunking.

38. Delight : ELATE.

41. Work with an artist, perhaps : POSE.

42. Make sense : ADD UP.

44. "Hawaii" novelist : MICHENER.

46. Decorative sewing case : ETUI.   Meh!

48. Star quality : EGO. More a characteristic than a quality, IMHO.

53. Meet competitor : RACER.

58. Hero in the air : ACE.

59. Patio furniture protector : TARP.

60. Concert hall cry : ENCORE.

61. "Copacabana" temptress : LOLA.  As I understand it, Barry Manilow is a wonderful person.  But, alas, his music makes me gag, so no link.

65. __ vera lotion : ALOE.  It's vera soothing.

66. Mr. T's TV outfit : A-TEAM.   Mr. T. Played the part of Sgt. Bosco 'B.A.' Baracus in all 97 episodes of this TV series from 1983 to '87.  He's in the bottom left of this cast picture, which also includes Melinda Culea, who played newspaper reporter Amy Amanda Allen.  Though her Triple A initials were impeccable, this character only lasted through 25 episodes.  She wanted more action, and George Peppard, evidently scarred for life by his appearance in Breakfast At Tiffany's, wanted no female lead.  Looks as if he was licensed to kill her part.

67. "A Streetcar Named Desire" director Kazan : ELIA.

68. Quick swims : DIPS.

69. Frosty coating : HOAR.  An ancient adjective, dating from before the 12 century, meaning grey with age, here transformed into a noun.  The frost coating makes the grass look like old grey hair.  I am taking this personally.

70. Cong. bigwig : SEN.  Senator.

Down

1. Justice Ruth __ Ginsburg : BADER.  Appointed by Clinton.

2. Advice to a sinner : ATONE.  Repent and be saved.  If you have already repented, please disregard this notice.

3. Quiet room : STUDY. 

4. Former times, formerly : ELD.

5. Get through to : REACH.

6. Take __ at: try : A STAB.  As in trying to get past the Black Night.

7. Amontillado, for one : SHERRY.  A Poe choice.

8. News gp. : UPI. United Press International

9. Acropolis temple : PARTHENON.

Source

10. Hidden treasure : TROVE.

11. Boxer De La Hoya : OSCAR.  Could have been clued differently this week.

Source

13. Busy as __ : A BEE.  Watts up, little buzzer!

14. Not agin : FER.  Ah'm agin this kinda fill.

17. Rodeo ring : LASSO.   Of rope, not fire.

21. Shortly : SOON.

24. Autobahn auto : OPEL.

25. Baloney : TRIPE.  Words not worth the air used to express them.

27. Haven't paid off yet : OWE.

29. Something to wrap around one's neck ... or maybe not : BOA.  A scarf or a choking snake.  Choose wisely.

30. Traffic reg. : ORD.  Regulation and ordinance.

31. Improve, as a downtown area : REDEVELOP.  Gentrification, perhaps.

32. Travel plan : ROUTE.  Did you ever go this way?

33. Water holder? : DAM.  Cf 22A.

35. "The Waste Land" poet's monogram : TSE.  Thomas Stearns Eliot.  tl;dr.

36. "... and sat down beside __ ..." : HER.  Miss Muffet and the arachnid antagonist; could have been clued differently this week.

39. Gifts for grads or dads : TIES.  Neckties.  Who needs them?

40. Heart chart, for short : ECG.  ElectroCardio Gram.

43. Pre-euro Irish coin : PUNT.  For in those days, football had not yet been invented.

45. Lena of "The Wiz" : HORNE.

47. "Swords into plowshares" prophet : ISAIAH.  Chapter 2, Verse 4:  He shall judge between the nations, and shall decide disputes for many peoples; and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore.

49. Dieter's lunch : SALAD.  Yum!

50. Bacteria in rare meat, maybe : E COLI.   Yucch!

51. Muse for Shelley : ERATO.  The muse of poetry, especially love or erotic poetry. 

52. Sleep lab subject : APNEA. 

54. Cartoon supplier of anvils and explosive tennis balls : ACME.  Alas, poor coyote.

55. Hoses are often stored in them : COILS. Roll 'em up.

56. Adopted son on "My Three Sons" : ERNIE.

57. Sister of Goneril : REGAN.  Cordelia, too.  Kng Lear's Daughters.

60. Scary movie street : ELM.  Did you avoid these nightmares?

62. DDE rival : AES.  Dwight David Eisenhower and Adlai Ewing Stevenson II.

64. "__ out!" : FAR.  An expression from the 60's, the era of Sean Connery - the only REAL James Bond.

So we come to the end of this adventure.  Hope you all enjoyed the BONDing experience.

Cool regards!
JzB