Saturday, September 5, 2015

Saturday, Sep 5th, 2015, Alex Vratsanos and Jeff Chen

Theme: None

Words: 70 (missing F,W)

Blocks: 32

  We have had both constructors on Saturdays in the past, but I do believe this is their first duo, at least for the LA Times.  Mr. Vratsanos started our summer off with a Memorial Day weekend puzzle, and so it seems fitting that he close out the season on Labor Day weekend (as far as I am concerned; the Hamptons will be clearing out as of Tuesday, and UPS will be cooling off as well).  Alas, this puzzle was almost as brutal as that one in May; I did get three corners and the center solved, but the SW was never going to budge - so I Googled one answer, and the rest fell into place.  Oh well.  Triple 10-letter corners in a neat pinwheel grid.  Some of the longer answers;

17a. Elementary sextet : NOBLE GASES - Nailed it. 


14d. Its capital was Xianyang : QIN DYNASTY - hmmm, I know someone who knows a little history about Zhou, and Qin

65. High wind : SOPRANO SAX
 
- an a semi-clecho with;

28. Baroque wind : OBOE D'AMORE - according to Wiki, it's a third lower than a standard oboe


nadowr~?

ACROSS:

1. Eggy dessert : ZABAGLIONE - never heard of this, but working in an Italian-style restaurant, I ran with the perps and filled in what sounded good

11. La Salle of "ER" : ERIQ

15. Occurring at a constant temperature : ISOTHERMAL

16. Computer start-up? : MINI - early meh.  Mini-computer.  I get it, but....

18. Browning product : OVEN - I did not know the gun manufacturer made ovens as well

19. Older Pevensie sister in "The Chronicles of Narnia" series : SUSAN - again, perps

20. Turned brown, maybe : SAUTÉED - could you use a "browning" oven for this~?

22. Curling piece : STONE - I can actually watch this Olympic event; I like it - but I'm a big fan of shuffleboard like the one you'd find in bars


26. Square : NERDY

27. "Do wrong to __": Shak. : NONE - nixed my NONE at 57a.

30. Attended to bald spots on : SODDED - because ROGAINED didn't fit

33. Stop : BAN - not END

34. University of Miami mascot Sebastian the __ : IBIS - half perps/half wag

35. Climate Reality Project founder : AL GORE

36. __ moment : A-HA

37. Flimflam : CON

38. Slap target, informally : SKEETER - that is, mosquito, and it's better to flick than to slap, especially if it's a little more dangerous, like a stinging insect

39. Airline with the EuroBonus frequent flier program : SAS

40. Alpine parrot : KEA - oh, alpine meaning mountains - I was thinking "Alps", and didn't think you'd find any parrots there

41. Misses : LASSES - oops, not LADIES

42. Salon service : TINT

43. Names : IDs

44. Slap cause, maybe : INSULT - hysterics are about the only time I'd slap anyone

45. Dr. Jones, to Dr. Marcus Brody : INDY - characters from Raiders of the Lost Ark ( and the Last Crusade )

"an army that carries the Ark before it is invincible"

46. Mesoamerican crop : MAIZE

48. Column that won't support anything : PLUME - a column from a newspaper would have been a good answer, too

50. Involve deeply : IMMERSE

53. DeMille specialties : EPICS

57. It precedes one : NOON - ah, the clock.  ZERO was not working

58. Dept. of State employee : US DIPLOMAT

62. Secretary of Education Duncan : ARNE - ALAN~? nope. ANNE~? nope.

63. Like pen pals' relationships : EPISTOLARY

64. Hoot : JEER

DOWN:

1. Some reds, for short : ZINfandelS

2. Not worth __ : A SOU

3. Roaring Twenties hairdos : BOBS

4. Ones for the road? : ATLASES

5. 1814 treaty site : GHENT

6. It may be shaken or pulled : LEG - or admired


7. He outlived George by 46 years : IRA - the Gershwins

8. Sacred syllables : OMs - meditations, too

9. Dumbarton denials : NAES

10. Snow Queen in "Frozen" : ELSA - did not see it; I do long to have kids some day

11. Wax theatrical : EMOTE

12. Drainage area : RIVER BASIN

13. "Help" : "I NEED A HAND"

21. Bad way to go : UNDER

23. Certain Honshu native : OSAKAN - from the Japanese city of Osaka

24. Words of emphasis : NO LESS

25. Moves stealthily : EDGES UP

27. "Pink Friday" rapper : NICKI MINAJ - I have heard OF her, but nothing from her; my Googled answer

29. Singer who had a 1959 hit with "I Loves You, Porgy" : NINA SIMONE - the double 10-letter proper names sandwiching a vague musical instrument in this corner killed me; I'm sure there are plenty of people at the corner who are familiar with Nina's work

31. "Dish it up!" : "DO TELL~!"

32. 1974 hit sung entirely in Spanish : ERES TU - popular enough in crosswords that I threw this in having just the first "E" and last "U"

38. Foxier : SLIER

42. "The Banquet of Cleopatra" painter : TIEPOLO

the artist

47. __ cards, used in ESP experiments : ZENER - I did not know these had a name; derived from the psychologist's name - anyone else think of the opening of Ghostbusters~?


49. Dieter's breakfast : MELON - ah, not TOAST

51. Petitions : SUES

52. Beantown NHL nickname : ESPO - Phil Esposito - now here's a proper name I am familiar with

54. "Look at me, __ helpless ...": "Misty" lyric : I'M AS

55. Word spoken con affetto : CARA - not AMOR

56. Final crossing? : STYX - Two weeks in a row~?  I'm getting nervous

59. Party bowlful : DIP

60. Nation since 1948: Abbr. : ISRael

61. Ed. group : PTA

Splynter

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