google.com, pub-2774194725043577, DIRECT, f08c47fec0942fa0 L.A.Times Crossword Corner: Wednesday, October 23, 2013 C. C. Burnikel

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Oct 23, 2013

Wednesday, October 23, 2013 C. C. Burnikel

Theme: VERMILION INTERSECTIONS,  or WHERE REPUBLICANS AND COMMUNISTS MEET AND GREET. [I refuse to call this THE RED WEDDING!]  The starred clues refer to themed answers indicating various shades of red that cross in the grid, [I dare to report with no trace of embarrassment.] 

21A. *Small fruit first cultivated in Oregon : BING  CHERRY.  Wikipedia tells us, "The cultivar was created as a crossbred graft from the Black Republican cherry in 1875 by Oregon horticulturist Seth Lewelling and his Manchurian Chinese foreman Ah Bing, for whom the cultivar is named."

Crossing

12D. *Chain named for a Stones hit : RUBY TUESDAY, song and restaurant.



 58A. *Vin Scully will be its 2014 Grand Marshal : ROSE PARADE. This New Year's Day festival of equestrians, marching bands and flower-covered floats antedates the Rose Bowl football game by 12 years.  The latter was added in 1902 to help fund the former, which is now the province of the Honda motor car company.  

Crossing

24D. *"Clue" suspect : MISS SCARLET


Leslie Ann Warren, shown here close to the other suspects - and tantalizingly close to a wardrobe malfunction - stepped in to play Miss Scarlet in the movie version of CLUE when director Johnathan Lynn's first choice, Carrie Fisher, went onto rehab four days before filming started.  Whether she had the DT's is unreported.

And the centrally located unifier:  41A. Humanitarian symbol, and a hint to what happens where the answers to starred clues intersect : RED CROSS.




Hi Gang, JazzBumpa here.  Our fearless leader has blended a colorful cocktail for us today, with an unusual 15 x 16 grid design, and intersecting horizontal and vertical entries long with a creative theme.  Other possibilities include beets, apples, catchup, Bob the Tomato, Rover, Erik the Viking, Lucille Ball and the Rouge River.  Let's see what else she has in store for us.

Across:

1. "Let's hear it!" : DO TELL.  I'm all ears.

7. Beginning on : AS OF.  Let's get going.

11. "Essence of Man" cologne : BRUT.  Sure.



15. Bar game fodder : TRIVIA.  Little things.

16. Old Roman coin : LIRA.  Not the ancient Roman Denarius, but the pre-1999 modern Italian currency.

17. Light, to a moth : LURE.  Can be a fatal attraction.

18. Cooks, in a way : STEAMS. Or gets angry.

19. Up the creek : IN TROUBLE.  Without a paddle: in BIG trouble.  Creek of your choice.

23. Ruler divs. : CMS.  Centimeters.  2.45 cm = 1 in.

26. '80s-'90s German chancellor : KOHL.  Helmut.

27. Brief brawls : SET TOS.  Often seen in hockey and occasionally in baseball games.

30. Kansas City footballer : CHIEF.  Only maybe.




32. L.A. commuter org. : M.T.AMetropolitan Transit Authority.  Boston, too.




33. 16-Across replacer : EURO.   Told ya!

34. Daniel Barenboim's opera house : LA SCALA.  In Milan.

36. "Agreed!" : ITS A DEAL.  Let's shake on it.

40. Surg. sites : O.R.S.  Operating Rooms.

43. BART stop : STAtion

44. Jumble : MISH-MASH.  Hodge podge.  Olio. 

46. Haiti's elder Duvalier : PAPA DOC.  President for life.

48. Somewhat, in music : POCO.  Spanish and Italian for "a little bit."

49. Oaf : APE.  Ya' big galoot.

51. Facebook option : SHARE.  Just last night I shared this vid of granddaughter Amanda's girl-guy pom routine.




52. Facebook option : STATUS.  And an immediate clecho.

55. Tool with teeth : RAKE. Because I wouldn't call a fork a tool.

57. Part of Mac OSX: Abbr. : SYStem

61. Chevy pickup : SILVERADO.  Better than a chariot.

63. "My goose is cooked!" : I'M DEAD.  Lost in the playoffs.

68. Clothing patch site : KNEE. Often scraped or simply worn through.

69. 72-Across speaker : GAEL. Some Scottish guy, perhaps.

70. Angry outburst : TIRADE.  Rant and rave.

71. "It's for you," on an env. : ATTN.  To the attention of.

72. 69-Across's tongue : ERSE. Though this word means "Irish" it refers variously to the languages of Ireland, The Hebrides and Scottish Highlands. Go figure.

73. Patron of lost causes : ST. JUDE.

Down:

1. Rehab symptoms : DTSDelerium Tremens, Latin for shaking frenzy, a symptom of withdrawal from alcohol or other sedative hypnotics.  Can be fatal if not treated.

2. Crumb : ORT.  A table scrap.

3. Bind : TIE.  Fastening fascination.

4. Actress Longoria : EVA.  Occasionally subject to wardrobe malfunctions.  You can seek them out if you wish.  That's why we have THE GOOGLY. [You can be a Googly Ogler.]

5. Life partner? : LIMB.  Ah, yes.  Life and LIMB. 

6. Vision-correcting surgery : LASIK.  Reshaping the lens with a laser.

7. Come down to earth : ALIGHT

8. "Arrowsmith" Pulitzer decliner Lewis : SINCLAIR. The first U.S. writer to receive the Noble Prize in literature.

9. Sports MD's specialty : ORTHopedics.  For all the beatings the bones and muscles take.

10. Orbitz info : FARES.  Lower the price of traveling.

11. Said suddenly : BLURTED.  And soon regretted.  [Trust me. I know these things.]

13. Google revelation : URLUniversal Resource Locator, aka, web address.

14. Titleist holder : TEE.  Golf ball perch.

20. Valuable rock : ORE.

22. Oasis seekers : NOMADS.

23. Ben-Hur's vehicle : CHARIOT.  Not as good as a SILVERADO.



25. "Gimme a __" : SEC. Well how much SECs do you need? Or maybe that should be "How many?"

28. Stump figures : ORATORS.  Talk is cheap.

29. Comfort : SOLACE.  SOLACE is golden.

30. Treads heavily : CLOMPS. Like a jack-booted thug.

31. Henhouse locale : FARM.

35. Rural expanse : LEA.

37. Brown v. Board of Education city : TOPEKA, Kansas.

38. FICA-funded org. : Social Security Administration

39. Nile snakes : ASPS.  Cleo's bane.

42. Game in which one player doesn't speak : CHARADES.  It's all an act.

45. Pizza-making need : HOT OVEN.

47. Contented sighs : AHS.

50. It can shorten a sentence : PAROLE. As can deleting a run-on subordinate clause.

53. Put to work : USE.

54. Suit material : SERGE.

56. Trims text, perhaps : EDITS.  Like deleting a run-on subordinate clause. I estimated that Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows would have been more than 100 pages shorter if Rowling simply wrote better sentences.  Seriously.

59. Allen's successor on "The Tonight Show" : PAAR.  Or PARR.  Always need perp help.

60. Give off, as rays : EMIT.  Like sunshine.

61. Reggae kin : SKA.

62. Bankbook abbr. : INTerest

64. Sixers' #6 : DR. J. I didn't have his number.

65. Vichy water : EAU.  My French is all wet.

66. Put in : ADD.  As one's 2 cents worth.

67. Start to dig? : DEE.  I will refrain from adding my 2 cents worth, lest I give this fill a bad grade.

Nice puzzle, not too hard for a Wednesday, and lots of fun on the way.  I'm not seeing RED.  How about you?

Cool regards, everyone,
JzB


79 comments:

OwenKL said...

Aunt Bee was always so cheery
When asked, she explained, "Well, Dearie,
At the Vegas Flamingo
I used to call bingo.
A crooner there won my BING CHERRY!"

The guy has a split personality.
He's losing his grip on reality.
On Monday he was Gay,
Flirty RUBY, TUESDAY,
Twenty names on his tax form? A technicality!

I hoped to become a bright starlet.
My career was side-tracked by that varlet.
In revenge, I killed Boddy,
Stabbed him right in the lobby,
With my hatpin, or I'm not MISS SCARLET!

He bet that his team made the grade
In the bowl game, but he was betrayed.
He'd vowed, for his shekels
To dress all in petals
Then to march, a one-man ROSE PARADE!

I brought CHERRY cordials, a box.
A RUBY and other fine rocks.
Something SCARLET in lace,
A fresh ROSE in a vase;
Then she told me that RED makes her CROSS!

The first limerick was inspired by this recipe.

Barry G. said...

Morning, all!

Fine Wednesday offering from our fearless leader, although a bit lighter on the themage than I was expecting.

Started off easily enough, but then I hit a brick wall at the clues for 8D and 21A. Turned out that I knew both SINCLAIR and BING CHERRY, but just not as clued. Once I got a few perps both answers became obvious.

Everything else was pretty smooth, although I did hesitate briefly at 16A, thinking "Old" meant "Ancient" for a few seconds before I figured out the trickiness.

[eicarne]

Dudley said...

Hello Puzzlers -

Smooth sailing today, few unknowns. Didn't need the theme, but found it clever when the light came on. Thanks, C.C.! I didn't notice the grid size, what a surprise to find it was possible to alter that parameter.

Morning, JzB, always good to see your style.

I had LASIK on both eyes a decade ago. I still need glasses, but they are much thinner than before. The process involves changing the shape of the cornea, which is the stronger optical element of the eye; small changes in its shape give big results.

thehondohurricane said...


Hello folks,

Haven't been into puzzles much of late, but coming back o a CC creation, blogged by Jazz....... well it doesn't get much better. Thanks to both of you.

A couple of misdirections caused a slow down along the way. 27A Melees/SETTOS & 63A I'm done/IMDEAD.

Crossing C for 48A & 24D a wag, although I did not have a second option.

I've heard Chevy's SILVERADO is a good truck, but while filling in the squares I thought of the western movie from a few years ago. It was an enjoyable film, albeit predictable.

It's mind boggling that it took the Pasadena "movers & shakers" over 50 years to bestow parade chairman upon Vin Scully. As much as I dislike the Dodgers, Vin has no equals today when it comes to broadcasting a baseball game.

Abejo said...

Good morning, folks. Thank you, C.C., for a fine puzzle. Thank you, Jazzbumpa, for the fine review.

Did not notice the extra wide puzzle today, until the write-up. We see that once in a while.

Nice seeing the MTA again. Interesting that Boston and LA have the same terminology. That is one of my all-time favorite songs.

Watched the Poms video. Took me a while to realize that the guys and gals switched clothing. Clever.

A lot of these answers took me a while, but I bounced around and got a few footholds, and spread from there. With a few perps the long answers became obvious.

ST JUDE was interesting. Never knew his history of being a champion of lost causes. I will have to check that out.

GAEL above ERSE. Coincidence? I doubt it.

I always had F-150's instead of SILVERADOs.

Got EAU right away. Boy, I am getting good!

Great poem, OwenKL.

See you tomorrow.

Abejo

(ismmoc)

desper-otto said...

Good morning.

Enjoyable offering from fearless leader, and Jzb had me chuckling throughout his expo. Learning moments: Some call it catchup. And the cm is getting bigger -- or the inch is getting smaller.

In honor of this "red" Wednesday, The John Birch Society.

On our morning walks DW is always finding a stray penny or quarter on the roadway. Her eyes are sharper than mine. But yesterday I was the lucky one. I found a soggy ten dollar bill. Not so soggy that I didn't pick it up, though. That's the most money I've ever found.

TTP said...

Good morning all !

DO TELL CC, how did you come up with this theme ?

I knew I was IN TROUBLE with two Facebook clues and an intersecting "Clue" clue on one. MISS who ? As it turned out, the Facebook clue wasn't the issue. It was "Somewhat, in music" POCO. Never noticed the extra s in MISSS or SCARLET would have been obvious.

For a short minute had PERIOD where PAROLE belonged. A PERIOD can shorten a sentence compared to a semicolon. Right ? But ReKE didn't sound like a tool with teeth. My rake has been getting a lot of USE lately.

Oh yea, my BART stop was initially at SFO, then remembered that my departure was from SJC, and BART doesn't go there.

Loved the sports clues. DR J was a no brainer here.

JzB, thanks for the entertaining write up. I'm a Ford F Series guy, but I would say that a Silverado is (slightly) better than a chariot :>). I liked the double meaning of cooks and steams. I think we can throw in stews. Maybe boils and burns.

Abejo, There was an NBC news story on the accident, and a couple of interviews. Looked like quite a mess. That car hauler semi didn't have a chance against that train. Cut it in half.

Time to go to work. See all y'all later n'at!

Mari said...

Good Morning Everybody! Nice cherry puzzle today. I had some mishaps in the mid-west section, but otherwise did well.

I liked 147D: Titelist Holder: TEE and 67D: Start to Dig: DEE.

Have a great day everybody, we're halfway through the week. :)

kazie said...

I had no real problems today despite several complete unknowns (MTA, SYS, ST JUDE, CHIEF, TOPEKA) which isn't to say I'd never heard of these places/names, but I definitely needed perps to suss out the resulting guesses. In the end I was home and hosed before I knew it. Fun theme, which I didn't really see, enjoyable solve. Thanks, C.C.!

Husker Gary said...

Some themes are helpful and easy to see and some are not helpful but are a hoot like this one! Even with the reveal in the puzzle I had to figure it out and laughed when I did. The elegance of construction and cluing make CC’s puzzles a delight.

Musings
-DO TELL - If you can’t say something nice, come sit next to me
-This venue is a LURE for us TRIVIA freaks
-Hmmm… KOHL, a German leader who doesn’t want to invade Poland
-New coach, new QB and the CHIEF’s are the only undefeated NFL team
-LA SCALA is the only opera house I know so…
-BART disaster at Universal studios
-¿Hablas español? POCO
-Those routines with boys and girls dancing are always popular at our HS
-“Stepped on a RAKE” is a punch line to an old golf joke
-Yeah right, EVA’s noted for being an actress
-Have you ever BLURTED out the truth when that was not was called for?
-Even famed ORATOR Edward Everett who spoke for two hours before Abe realized he had been outdone at Gettysburg
-Brown v Board of Education was in TOPEKA but don’t we all remember this image in Little Rock

HeartRx said...

Good morning Jazzbumpa, C.C. et al.

Wow, what a fun puzzle! When I filled in RED CROSS, I started looking for the theme. I spotted RUBY intersecting CHERRY, and it hit me like a ton of brick (red)s…

I chuckled at the entry for 73-Across. All through high school, one of the nuns always told me she would pray to ST JUDE for me. I thought that was so sweet of her to think of me, until I realized (in my senior year!) that St. Jude was the patron saint of hopeless cases. Oh, well!!

Abejo, I did a double take when I read your comments. I thought you said you watched the PORNs video. Darned font got me again!

We are getting ready for overnight guests from Vienna today, so I won’t have much time to check in. But I hope you all have a wonderful day!

Avg Joe said...

This was a tougher than typical Wednesday for me, but I did manage to get through it unaided. It helped a lot that I got Papa Doc and St Jude, cuz without those two, it probably would have been a DNF. I guess knowing my Jimmy Buffet and being a recovering Catholic paid off.

Jazzbumpa said...

Hi gang -

Fun puzzle and a delight to write up. I was especially glad to find the CHEFS commercial. Thought that was a hoot.

Now I'm hungry for some red skin potatoes.

otto - Didn't know the JBS song, but I do know that a founding member of that organization was Fred Koch, whose sons are probably more well known now than he was, back in the day.

Cool regards!
JzB

Spitzboov said...

Good morning everyone. Nice intro, JzB.

Guess I was wondering why the deviation to 16 squares across, but the placement of the unifier, RED CROSS in the center needed an even number row, plus enough squares to host 2 three letter fills plus spacers on either side.
The difficulty seemed about right for a Wednesday. Solve in clockwise direction went well, making some use of perps. Knew Helmut KOHL. Lucky with WAGs; SKA, POCO, and LA SCALA, although I had the 'ala'.
Kudos to C.C.

Fermat - I feel badly for you for the loss of your dear pet, Charlie. Deepest sympathy.

Anonymous said...

It seems the Toronto Sun site no longer works at http://www.torontosun.com/coffee-break/latimes-crossword

But you can find the same solver at http://www.merriam-webster.com/game/uclick/latimesdaily.htm

Irish Miss said...

Good Morning:

CC just keeps getting better and better! A very creative theme, fresh fill and cluing, and a fun solve, to boot. What more could we ask for? Thanks, CC, and great expo, Jazz. Interestingly, all of the YouTube links showed up on my iPad. I wonder why they are blank when Argyle and others blog.

I had pardon before parole, listen before do tell, and rasp before rake. But perps solved all miscues.

Owen, thanks for the chuckles!

Avg Joe, I have heard of a lapsed Catholic but never a recovering one. Care to enlighten me? (-:

Have a great Wednesday.

Husker Gary said...

-Joe, we are in Lincoln today with our 11-year-old grandson who has had a low grade fever and slight cough for 5 days. I asked if he missed 5th grade at the school where his mother teaches and he smiled and said, “Papa, I get to lie here on the couch, watch Pawn Stars all day and mom brings my homework home for me!"
-Jazz, lovely write-up as always and here is an adjunct to your red skin comment. PETA has suggested the Washington NFL team keep the name Redskins but change to this logo. I’d rather see them keep the logo and change the name to Warriors.
-Just for the heck of it with Owen’s ill-considered encouragement
Once in a bar game of TRIVIA
I was challenged by an oaf from Algeria
He said Sandy in Grease
Was surely blonde Reese
But I beat him by naming Olivia

Vidwan827 said...

Thank you Cc for a very nice and doable puzzle. Really, really enjoyed it. Thank you JazzB for a very humorous blog and cogent explanations.

I got the theme but did not know how it fit. I now realize you have to transpose the two right angles. Now, I love my geometry, but it was somewhat difficult when camouflaged in a crossword.

JazzB , just a small typo ... It is 2.54 Cms to an inch.

It would have been easier to multiply, for legions of students, if it were the other way around. Some number combinations, you never forget.

Have a nice day, you all.

Avg Joe said...

Irish Miss, as the term implies, there is no cure. You just take it one day at a time for a lifetime.

CrossEyedDave said...

My 1st pass was so blank, I thought a DNF was coming. but a little puzzling later, it all came together. Just the way I like a puzzle to be.

Thanks CC, my slow downs were WTTPS, period b/4 parole but "reke" had no teeth, & I thought "B"erry crossed Ruby, but a berry can be any color so I soldiered on...

Oh, & you made me put little arrows next to the grid so I could figure out where the crosses were...

Red Cross Poster

Red Cross Fail

Did I post this b/4?

Now that's just wrong...

ARBAON said...

Why is it that when one family member falls into disgrace, it blackens the whole family? Please don`t lump all Republicans together. My political leanings are based on three principles: 1. Fiscal responsibility 2. Limited Government intrusion and 3. No more taxes until #1 is met. That would technically make me a conservative Republican...and a wee bit touchy about being lumped with Communism.
Even principle bloggers should not make political statements.

Jazzbumpa said...

otto alluded to and vidwan pointed out my 23A Fingerfehler.

I even got an email from a reader who could not let my error go unchallenged.

Yes, 1 cm = 2.54, not 2.45 in. Those 9ths of an inch do add up if you're not careful.

There's many a slip twixt brain and finger tip.

For the record, I cannot type "ion" correctly first try, "the" is hit or miss at all times, and all vowels seem to be more or less interchangeable to my wayward digits. I rely on spell check and my deficient proof-reading skills to an even greater extent than you would imagine.

And I do try SO hard to be perfect. [sigh]

Cheers!
JzB [still human after all these years]

CanadianEh! said...

Fun solve today with no red letter help. Thanks C.C.

Hand up for PARDON before PAROLE. And I was so proud of my self for figuring out the misdirection!

Had INS before CMS as I assumed the rulers would be American! LOL

Had COMB for RAKE until perps changed things.

Had SEE for START TO DIG? and laughed when I saw the correct DEE.

PK said...

Hi Y'all! I really enjoyed this puzzle, C.C. Thought I was IN TROUBLE when on the first pass I couldn't get the first three acrosses. I did downs and got along fine. Really cute theme which I got early. That helped with MISS SCARLET. Haven't played Clue in 30 years.

Thanks JzB for a jampacked expo. Googly ogler, indeed! LOL! I had no idea how many cms in an inch. Your typo may help me remember this fact. See perfection isn't everything.

RUBY TUESDAY was a favorite restaurant until it folded here. Don't think I ever heard the song and couldn't understand a word they said now.

Even perped in, it took a minute to parse DRJ, basketball fan that I now am. Didn't know Julius Erving was a '76er or his number. He retired in 1987 (before my fandom) after playing 800 games with a 22 points-per-game average. (I googled.)

LOL over the ad video. My son-in-law has been one of the chefs for the CHIEFS summer camp the past two summers. Strict dietary instructions. No desserts.

Anonymous said...

Was there not a little politics going on in your comments, jzb? Coupling Republicans with Communists? Don't need that.

PK said...

I recently wrote to a friend I hadn't had a connection with since the mid-1980's. Elated to have a newsy email from her last night. Her son has been a scientist & his wife a specialist with the Antarctic project for many years. I haven't seen him since he was about 8 yrs. old. Surprising how people's lives turn out. All I remember about the kid from their visit to my house is he was a Dungeons & Dragons fanatic.

Anonymous said...

Don't take it so seriously. I am sure that "WHERE REPUBLICANS AND COMMUNISTS MEET AND GREET," was as innocuous as the crossing of MISS SCARLET and the ROSE PARADE.
It was a funny line because Communists and Republicans are so disparate.

Misty said...

I read on the blog last night that we were going to get a C.C. puzzle this morning, so it was exciting to get up and get going on it. Not a speed run, though, with lots of erasures (e.g. had STOMPS before CLOMPS). But what fun, and I loved the colorful theme! Cool RED CROSS on the grid, Jazz B., so, many thanks to you and above all, to C.C.!

Yesterday I said I didn't know music, but today I got RUBY TUESDAY, and it was the Stones song, not the restaurant. Also, got LA SCALA, which my husband and I visited once in Milan, though only on a tour, not to see an opera. (We were in the city only for an afternoon). And I do believe we still had to use LIRAS rather than EUROS when we were there.

Have a great Wednesday, everybody!

Lucina said...

Hello, Jazzbumpa and all. Thanks for a lighthearted review, Jzb. You do make me laugh.

And thank you, C.C. for the colorful and canny puzzle today. It was a pleasure to solve it and find the RED CROSSings. I didn't notice the expanded grid until it was mentioned.

BillG, did you see the gathering of redheads in Portland? It was on Sunday morning and apparently they are not on the decline.

Learning moment today about SINCLAIR Lewis declining the Pulitzer. Wiki doesn't say why but apparently he was disillusioned about the U.S.

Carrie Fisher's rehab has been commented by her. She was on drugs for a long time. She later discovered she is bi-polar and has since found help for that disorder.

LASIK is one of the best things that happened to me and I'm pleased to no longer wear glasses for distance but use readers for up close.

Have a wonderful Wednesday, everyone!

Husker Gary said...

Not quite religion and politics
-ARBAON, I am on your team and our friend Jazz is perfectly capable of explaining his blogging but after an initial WTF, I took it that Jazz was innocuously referring to Republicans being from RED states and Communists being from what was once called the RED party/army who were opposed by the White movement in the 1917 Russian civil war. Communism is as far from Republicanism as can be.
-A great line from another such Catholic as Joe and I, comedian Dennis Miller upon entering the confessional said, “You first, Father”
-A Denver boot on a Red Cross van? You still got it Dave!
-FORE! If you’re near Holmes Lake Golf Course today, Joe...

Jazzbumpa said...

Oh, anon @11:40, what am I going to do with you?

Anon @ 11:54 and Gary a bit later 'splained it all for you so i don't have to.

Really, though, I do so much appreciate your diligence in keeping The Corner untainted by any whiff of either political intrigue of incorrectness.

Please, sit down and stay a while. But remember to pull the stick out of your butt first. It will be so much more comfortable that way.

Gary - this is no place to continue the potato discussion. My further thoughts can be found here.

Cheers!
JzB

Anonymous said...

To DUDLEY: I was in the optical business for 25 yrs. I NEVER met an opthalmologist who had LASIK on himself/herself. What does that tell you? They had the attitude that you don't mess with an otherwise healthy eye. To ARBAON: I couldn't agree with you more. I was insulted by the Republican slight (I'm an Independent), and I also am a member of that "terrorist" organization The Tea Party (oh, my!).

Jazzbumpa said...

For anyone still in the dark, please don your rose colored glass whilst I enlighten. The hypothetical crossing of "republican" with "communist," based on associating both with the thematic color RED is what is known in the trade as irony.

Or, in my case: I, Ron-y.

Please note that no endorsement or criticism of, nor commentary on, these or other other political persuasions of any stripe or color was either expressed or implied.

Note also, too, that iron [iarn to the Gaels] ore is likewise red.

Sometimes things come together so much better than you could have hoped for.

Cheers!
JzB [the I-Ron-ic trombonist whose symphony horn has a red brass bell]

Anonymous T said...

G'Afternoon All -

C.C. you delivered another delight. JzB - great write up (and I got the RED joke).

While fun, this was a CNF (Could Not Finish) - Natnik @54d and 69 & 72a. Missed it by that much...

Like WEES; first pass resulted in an "Oh darn, and it's only Wed." But a little more plugging at it and I got it (though I was looking for 3 sqaures spelling RED at the crosses).

Fav was BRUT - it brought to mind Eddie Murphy's Christmas... "Brut, by Fabrege." MISHMASH was a close second...

Cheers, -T

Avg Joe said...

PK, I needed to order something from Amazon last week, and to get above $25 for free shipping, I ordered an Iris Dement CD. Got it today, and while reading the liner notes I was surprised to discover that when she wrote "Our Town" she was living in Topeka. Seriously.

And for the anon that commented that Sunday a few weeks back, it was indeed the last song played on Northern Exposure. I wish I'd found that YouTube clip when I posted the tune originally, but it's never too late. Our Town

OwenKL said...

STOMP before CLOMP, I had the first two letters, so RASP before RAKE. I had T_P___, so had to wait for perps to decide between TOPEKA and TUPALO.

HG 9:56: That limerick had me thinking it was a nonsense rhyme until I started looking up, and found female lead Sandy in Grease (1978) was played by Olivia Newton-John(b.1948), who may be resembled by Reese Witherspoon (b.1976), who stared in Legally Blond (2001). Your opponent being from Algeria I wasn't able to verify.

Tinbeni said...

Jazz: Wonderful write-up & links.
C.C. Thank you for a FUN Wednesday puzzle.
Timely color theme with the Red Sox-v-Cardinal World Series starting today.
(Make no mistake: I rooting for the Cardinals!)

Hand-up for LA SCALA being the only Opera House I know ...

Never had the D.T.'S (never stopped drinkin'). Go figure.
Well the Sun is over the yardarm ...
Cheers!!!

Jazzbumpa said...

Cardinals, RED sox, and I missed it completely.

Now - what color is a V-8 can?

Anonymous said...

Ron: Ya know, before I left this morning I scanned the blog and saw your Republican/Communist comment at the top of the page and thought, "why?" I then saw your byline and sighed, "of course..."

Now, you've been more well behaved lately compared to when I first started to read the blog several years ago, but I did imagine you grinning devilishly as you typed that comment. And, I know you are more than aware of the dust-up it would cause. Congratulations.

If Republican was in the grid or the clues, then fine. But it wasn't. I imagine Rich stringently tries to avoid these kerfuffles as should you.

Oh well. Feel free to insult me and make a snide joke at my expense.

Regards.

Anonymous said...

See!?! If your mind didn't go directly to politics, it would have been open enough to see the REDbirds wearing Redsocks!

No v8 can needed!

Tinbeni said...

Jazz: V-8 can color?
That's a great question ... since the only thing I see are "stars" after I bonk my head with the V-8 can (after an answer appears) ...
The "stars" are kinda spark-a-lee, whatever colr that is. lol

Avg.Joe: Thanks for the "Our Town" clip.

CED ... Too funny!!!

[arealpub] I kid you not!

Anonymous said...

Great googly moogly guys, let it go!

Can't believe no one has linked any ARROWSMITH*.

*Another Boston shout out

Lemonade714 said...

The problem is that being funny is tricky and the RED STATES and the RED STATE joke was perhaps too subtle or not appreciated, but it seems inconceivable Rose you or the anons would think JzB or anyone would equate the Republicans and the Communists, diametrically opposite philosophies. Anyway, good to see you Rose. Love the RED SOX vs. RED BIRDS tie in.

Loved the Poms Porns pick up marti, but there are places it would be considered porn.

Vid, good to see you as well; been on vacation of just taking a rest from our bickering? But I know you are an ardent admirer of C.C.'s puzzles.

Bill G. said...

Hi everybody! I KNEW I was going to enjoy today's puzzle. Thanks CC and Argyle.

Lucina, yes I did see the redhead gathering. Fun!

I got stuck in several places near the bottom but finished with no red letters (but I would have used my eraser often if I were solving in pencil). I had Soothe instead of SOLACE, Rasp instead of RAKE, Pardon instead of PAROLE, etc. Those mistakes gave me a lot of trouble. Still, I did finish successfully and enjoyed the process.

Geez, the snarky and dimwitted anons really blossomed this morning. Maybe it's due to global warming...?

Geez again, I used to really love 'Northern Exposure' and its cast of quirky and loveable characters. I miss it a lot...

Bill G. said...

Hondo (6:42), I've got to disagree with you about Vin Scully. First, let me say that I like and admire him. If he were a family member, I would enjoy having him over for eggnog during the holidays. He knows lots of great stories about the good old days, he's not a 'homer' and there is nobody better at describing the occasional exciting play or home run. So what's my beef? The other 98 percent of the time, he's often wrong and he's mostly boring. All the other baseball announcers adapted to the television era. Not Vin. The other guys (the Dodgers' away announcers for example) talk between themselves about tactics, interesting plays, missed calls, etc. Not Vin. He has nobody to talk too. So he's stuck with giving you the count on EVERY pitch, sometimes twice. He tells you where the pitcher is standing on the mound, that he's bent over looking for the sign, etc. even though you can see all that on your TV screen. He apparently doesn't use his monitor to look at pitches but instead continues to look down from his broadcast booth far above the action. As a result, he's often wrong about the pitch. He will sometimes call a 93-mile-per-hour pitch that's straight as a string a breaking ball. A pitch that's thigh high often might be called low at the ankles because it looks like that to him far above the action. So, he's by himself and wrong a lot. But mostly he's just boring with little to talk about but the pitch count and other stuff that you can see on your TV screen. I much prefer watching the Dodgers' away games with their different announcers including Steve Lyons who is knowledgeable (being an ex-player) and witty. I know it's heresy to criticize Vin Scully but I've been listening to him for almost 50 years and I'm bored.

Anonymous said...

Lemon, it wasn't funny, subtle, iRONic or even over my head. It was just an unnecessary POLITICAL reference, which seems verboten to all here on the blog except the main bloggers.

Just look at all the unnecessary, distracting moronic comments that it has generated.*

*Now THAT'S irony!

desper-otto said...

Husker, your limericks are gettin' better!

Avg Joe, loved the Northern Exposure clip. I like Amazon's Prime program. Yeah, it costs. But it also provides free two-day shipping on almost anything you buy from them. No dollar minimum per order.

Husker Gary said...

-This crazy dude was PAROLED out of our state pen and then killed four people in less than a week. He also had at least 5 family members and girl friends help and lie for him. Yes, I said girl friends. Nebraska is now revisiting our “good time” laws.
-Dang it Bill, that Scully must be a Communist Republican. I think the little red baiting and resultant discourse today was at least interesting. You can never trust a trombone player but I’d give Jazz a mile of slack. He’d never do that intentionally ;-)
-Great research by my muse and our resident poet laureate Owen; keeping me honest.
-Thanks Otto, but as Owen suggested I’ll keep my day job. TRIVIA/OLIVIA just jumped out at me.
-Hmmm… CRIMSON crossing CORNHUSKER?
-As we say around here GO BIG RED!

Bill G. said...

Here is this week's Animal Tracks slide show from NBC.com. Animal Tracks

Gary, we used to yell "GO BIG RED!" too but they were Cornell and they seldom did. They never were noted for their football prowess (except for Pete Gogolak, the originator of soccer-style field goal kicking in football). No football scholarships don't ya know.

River Doc said...

Happy Wednesday everybody!

Slightly harder than expected, but totally do-able puzzle for mid-week, so thanks C.C….!

Couple of write-overs, namely PARDON for PAROLE and ASS for APE….

The new house is just across the valley from the site of the ROSE PARADE…. Of course, it’s common knowledge that no matter where you are, every place in the L.A. basin is a mere 20 minutes away….

This DOC has never been a PAPA (ttbomk….)

At the risk of inducing Anon ire by waxing political, the recent BART strike was just ridiculous. As I understand it, the final contractual terms and conditions were essentially the same as before…. Kind of like the fast food workers “strike” – how did they not know they were signing up for a minimum wage job…? Good thing baseball has decided not to invoke instant replay on the calling of strikes, eh…?

Never been a fan of MyFace or SpaceBook or any of the other social media sites….

Do the Stones get royalties (or at least free food) from RUBY TUESDAYs…?

And finally, I’ll be rooting for the Giants tonight. They just resigned Tim Lincecum for two more years….

Jazzbumpa said...

OK.

I'm going to go over this one last time, then I have a rehearsal tonight.

I used two perfectly legitimate, in-the-language words that are associated, for totally unrelated reasons, with the color red.

IIRC, that, along with things intersecting, has something to do with today's theme.

They also represent political philosophies that are, to a reasonable first approximation, divergent at 180 degrees.

Did I criticize either? No.
Did I proselytize for either? No.

Did I say anything at all about their politics? Not a syllable.

So who talked about politics? The very people who were complaining about my alleged, but non-existant talking about politics.

Really, people, I don't know what to think.

I'll just leave you with this parting thought.

Cheers!
JzB the very bemused trombonist

Tinbeni said...

OK.

I'm going to go over this one last time, then I'm gonna open a new bottle of Dimple Pinch.

Tonight @8:07 (OK, probably 8:10) is the first pitch of the World Series.
The teams playing are the Boston Red Sox who open at home against the visiting St. Louis Cardinals.

Both teams led their respective league with a 97-65 record.

For both teams the predominant color is RED ... and today's theme was about how RED colors CROSSed.
SCARLET into ROSE and RUBY into CHERRY ...

I'm a baseball fan, it is my favorite sport to watch. I enjoy a 162(3) game season.

Alas, neither of my favorites, the New York Yankees or the Tampa Bay Rays are in the Series. (tears ...)

But I am going to watch this years World Series anyway. (Geez, shouldn't it be called "The North America Series?")

I will be cheering on the St. Louis Cardinals ... between sips ... NEAT!!!
Cheers!!!

Irish Miss said...

Bill G - As usual, enjoyed Animal Tracks. However, #8 and #16 appear to be the clandestine handiwork of CED!

Lemonade714 said...

Doc, what pray tell will you root the Giants to do tonight s their season is long over?

Where did Pete Gogolak's little brother (Charlie?) go to college?

I believe they were on opposite sides of the highest scoring NFL game in history, maybe. Oops looked it up and IT WAS .

Avg Joe said...

Time for a musical interlude appropriate for the kerfuffle of the day.

CDB

Anonymous said...

BILL G @ 2:01 P.M. I don't believe any of the "anons" said the people who comment on this site were "snarky" or "dimwitted." Sorry we aren't a part of your "clique" but I thought this site was to be devoid of politics. I guess it is not.

Manac said...

C.C.
Enjoyed your creation. surprised myself by getting MishMash and St.Jude.

And seeing as were on the topic of politics...I Own a Silverado and damn proud of it! That truck is a workhorse. I'm also cheering for the SOX.

TTP said...

Hey Tin @4:14

"But I am going to watch this years World Series anyway. (Geez, shouldn't it be called "The North America Series?")"

Did you see the clip with Boston's mayor ? Wish I could find it. The guy cracks me up. Someone is going to have to put together a book of quotes with all of his malaprops and misstatements. This time he said something along the lines of that he's happy about the World Series Cup is returning to Boston.

Manac, it's all in good fun. I'm sure your Silverado has served you well. I do take some flak from friends because my 93 F150 XLT Super Cab with the 8' bed and trailer towing package still looks like it's new. I do drive it. Occasionally. Just went over 67K miles on it 141 miles ago.

Manac said...

TTP
Yes I know.
My statement was tongue in cheek :)
Everyone has their own preferences.
Maintenance is key for them all.

Go SOX!

thehondohurricane said...

Bill G,

Yes, we do disagree. But, i cannot comment on your claim that Mr Scully's comments are largely erroneous. because I do not have the pleasure of his broadcasts. In case you are not aware, Mr Scully was trained by an old Dodger broadcaster, Red Barber when the Dodgers still called Flatbush home. Red was an icon in the business like Mel Allen, Bob Prince, Harry Carey, etc, all of whom had their own form of presentation, bur it was a far cry from today's network shills.

You enjoy the broadcasts that have two/three announcers who never shut up. Well that certainly is your choice. Mine is to watch a ball game with mute o and decide on my own about what's happening in the game.

II could go on all night attempting to support my opinions, but I've always tried to honor the 20 line limit, so buenas noche amigo. Thank you for sharing your feelings with me.

Lucina said...

desper-otto:
How would you compare Prime with Netflix? I am disillusioned with the latter because the streaming program has such limited availability of titles and have been wondering if I would do better with Prime.

thehondohurricane said...

Lemonade,

Just saw your question about the Gogolaks. Charlie was a Tiger, Princeton variety. For the record, Pete was a Cornell chap. Don't think they ever competed vs each other in college but plenty of times in the pros.
i think Charley was really tiny, but had one helluva strong kicking leg.

TTP said...

Hondo @6:35,

The GUNNER ! My radio was tuned to clear channel KDKA. Bob Prince was special. Listening to him call games and plays and tell stories made me a lifelong baseball fan. "Alley to Maz for the double dip!" "Chicken on the Hill with Will!' "A bloop and a blast !"

How about tonight's game ? Haven't barely started and there's already controversy. Of course, Kosma never caught the ball.

River Doc said...

Lem, I will be rooting for the Giants to continue bolstering their roster in their off season, which unfortunately for them started after game 162 this year....

Oh, you mean that World Serious thing-a-ma-bob is starting tonight? Okay, I guess I'll have to root for the RED-birds, since they are from the NL....

Bill G. said...

Several of you guys turned me on to The Big Bang Theory. When it's good, it's very funny. One of the supporting characters has a very apparent speech impediment that is played for laughs. It is funny but in these days of PC run amok, I am surprised. You?

Barry Kripke said...

We're all pathetic and cweepy and can't get girls. That's why we fight wobots. If you're not there, you'll be exposed to widicule.

PK said...

AvgJoe: Hmmm! I knew there was something Dement-ed about Topeka. Good song anyway.

I've been without TV for 29 hrs. 25 mins. Oh, the agony of withdrawal! Spent an hour on the phone with a cable tech today. Nothing we did helped. The tech is a girl. Being so lacking in electronic skill myself, I found that suspicious. The "snow" continues. But guess what, she's going to let me have a service tech in here tomorrow evening, 51 hours of abstinence. DT'S for sure.

Politicle Geni-ass said...

JazzyBee

You had a great blog. Period.

Unfortunately thee are some anonymous jerks who have nothing better to do than concoct / dream up /. Imagine /. Whip up - jerky political messages and subliminal codes - Because they have no other life ... And no other followers ---- So they whip up sentiments, or think they do.

- which interest nobody else. And just ruin the mood of the blog.

- and nobody else even cares whether you are a Republican or a first time publican or even a simple pelican.

Or even if you are a tea party member, or drink tea, with or without coca leaves dipped in marihuana.

So JazzB. Stop moaning and groaning, and apologizing for something you didn't do, didn't intend to do, have never done, didn't even know what you done. You've done wasted too many posts and wasted too much time and space already. Get a THICK SKIN, man.

ME, mine, Moi ????? I believe in increasing the national debt to 40 trillion ... It's already 17, so what worse can happen. Also I believe, being in these United states entities me to unlimited welfare, food stamps, and unlimited disability and all the free goodies. Plus the govt should hire another 25 million people to do busybody work, and solve the unemployment problem, once and for all.

Do I really believe that ? Naw. But the point is just to let the Anon's know where dirty politics can lead you.

Keep this blog funny CED, poetic owenKL, animalistic BillG and alcoholic (you know who you are). If there is anything political ignore it. If you have a political rant - go someplace else.

You are about as relevant as an iota on the speck of the rear end on a gnat in this universe and you don't count for s... ( neither do I).

HUTCH said...

Irish Miss. If I may intrude- a lapsed Catholic is a Catholic who has managed to live to see Francis elected Pope.onslye

Anonymous T said...

Whowwa - Now it's one thing to accuse JzB of drinking tea with coca, but leaving out the gra(e)ys that landed at Roswell and the Luminotti (sp?) running the Fed is ignoring the masons that forged this great country and put treasure somewhere... a travesty. Bigfoot roams, but we can't shoot it - it's a rule. ;-)

OTOH, BoSox look like they will be taking game one.

Ok, back to work.

Cheers, -T

Bill G. said...

I think the Cardinals are better than they demonstrated. They cleaned the Dodgers' clock after all.

PK, I'm sorry about your TV. Withdrawal symptoms for sure. Is it the TV set or the cable input?

Anonymous said...

C.C. Burnikel is the person who made the crossword about "dissing" Republicans. You people are continuing the distribe and insults even though it states LEAVE YOUR COMMENT "No politics, no religion and NO PERSONAL ATTACKS" yet many of your comments are "personal attacks". You are failing at your mission. I'm surprised you didn't call anyone who disagreed with you "bigots" or "racist" as I'm sure many of you do without any proof. I would have thought that people who do crossword puzzles had some modicum of sanity. I guess not.

Anonymous T said...

Bill G:

I agree re: Cards. Wainwright had >40 pitches into the second inning. BTW, the Dodgers did put up a good fight - it was all enjoyable baseball.

No one mentioned Milo Hamilton as a broadcaster. He did the Cards, Cubs and finally Astros games. Yeah, he got many a call wrong, but I'd turn down the TV volume and listen to him call the games (or just listen in the garden). The language was colorful -- lined a rope to left, hung a clothes-line up the middle, hotter than a depot stove, put up a crooked number... fun.

Um, @10:43, I hope you are being facetious re: C.C.'s intent...

Cheers, -T

Anonymous said...

Nice review Jazz. Too bad it was Republican/Communist bullshit instead of the far better Cardinal/Red Sox discussion.

Maybe you learned a lesson. Maybe you didn't.

PK said...

BillG, don't know what is wrong with TV yet. It says "no signal" It has been acting up off and on for about a month. Whenever I'd think I should call tech in the morning, it would be okay. I think the cable is loose at the pole. The tech thinks I need a new inside cable box. She suggested I go to the store and get one. Who moi? It's a joke, right? My TV is 7 yrs old. The cable box was changed in 2009. I think my magnetic personality probably shorts out electronics.

Anonymous said...

Red posture?

Lemonade714 said...

It probably was the THE ILLUMINATI

Lemonade714 said...

Milo was a complicated man who worked with most of the great names. I remember when he did White Sox games in the early 60s.

River Doc said...

Lemon - thanks for the article on the Illuminati. How could I have been so blind all these years? It all makes sense now....