dannmann's NYT crossword puzzle ramblings

SUNDAY, november 04, 2007
bob klahn / will shortz
common ends
ny times online premium crossword puzzle














difficulty factor: this was bloody murder for a sunday puzzle! not in a bad way, i suppose, but vague clues and strange answers pile up to be every bit a real workout.

theme: common ends: each of eight theme answers both begin and end with the same three letter combination

• 23A ON THE WATERFRONT
• 33A OVER AND ABOVE
• 16D LESSER ANTILLES
• 59A DELUXE MODEL
• 80A TONI BRAXTON
• 50D ARTICHOKE HEART
• 106A OBIWAN KENOBI
• 116A HOWARD STERN SHOW

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in the "not necessarily explained just by the answer" category ==============================

• 1A ring regulator: abbr. WBA (womens boxing association) sorry "ref"


• 14A "the perfect fool" composer HOLST (gustav holst was a prolific english composer - late 1800's early 1900's - most famous for unconventional use of meter and haunting melodies.)


• 26A four-time indy winner UNSER (when in doubt, try al 'unser'!?)


• 28A half-betazoid on "star trek: t.n.g." TROI (the uss enterprise's ship's counselor deanna troi (played by marina sirtis) was a half-betazoid, half-human starfleet officer)


• 29A olympic troublemaker ERIS (typo alert and update... [thanks cornbread! see: comments] 'olympic' referring to mt. olympus and therefore greek mythology... eris was the goddess of contention and was often represented specifically as the spirit of the strife of war, who haunted battlefields and delighted in human carnage and misery. her roman name was discordia)


• 47A doll in "a doll's house" NORA (nora torvald is the protagonist of henrik johan ibsen's "a doll's house")


• 51A "hollywood squares" line OOO (three o's for a tic-tac-toe win)


• 55A it's spotted on a ranch PINTO (a type of horse)


• 64A l.a. summer setting PDT (pacific daylight time)


• 66A ring lardner title character ALIBI IKE (ring lardner (born ringgold wilmer lardner) was an american writer best known for his satirical takes on the sports world, marriage, and the theatre. the short story "alibi ike" was introduced to the world in july 1915) [read it here: http://www.ibiblio.org/eldritch/rl/alibi.htm]


• 68A "sweet _____" (1937 oscar song) LEILANI (sung by harry lillis "bing" crosby)


• 73A "anne of green gables" setting AVON LEA


• 78A first name in chillers LON (as in "the man of a thousand faces" lon chaney)


• 83A row between houses? FEUD (the chiefly british 'row' - rhyming with how or now - meaning fight or squabble)


• 84A lovers' plight TROTH (in this usage, a pledge of marital fidelity)


• 89A it should be even KEEL (from the mariners expression "...on an even keel..." a keel is a large beam that runs the length of a ship - from bow to stern - and serves as the structural spine around which the hull is built)


• 91A snap FOTO (as in a colloquial name for a photograph, hence the answer's less familiar spelling)


• 111A transcontinental bridge, e.g.: abbr. ISTH (isthmus: a narrow strip of land that is bordered on two sides by water and connecting two larger land masses)


• 116A broadcast with baba booey, with "the" HOWARD STERN SHOW (gary patrick "baba booey" dell'abate is the producer, and the most mocked cast member of the show)


• 121A champagne department MARNE (the best champagne comes from vineyards along the marne river including certain parishes in the départements of marne, aisne, seine-et-marne, aube, and haute-marne)


• 122A french "white house" ELYSEE (the élysée palace [palais de l'élysée] is the official residence of the president of the french republic)


• 124A bath suds ALE (ah, the olde bath, england - west of london... nice mis-direct)


• 128A key of cartooning TED (ted key [born theodore keyser] is an american cartoonist who created the cartoon ‘hazel’ in 1943)


• 2D british hood BONNET (yep, that's what they call the hood of their cars and lorries... er... i mean trucks!)


• 6D sometimes called AKA (also known as: alias)


• 11D what "syne" means AGO ('auld lang syne' literally translates from old Scottish dialect as 'old long ago')


• 12D with altair and vega, it forms the summer triangle DENEB (the summer triangle is a right triangle best seen in the southern august night sky. vega - the brightest of the three - is its western point. deneb - the dimmest - is to the east of vega. altair shines below the other two)


• 13D colt .45s, today ASTROS (the houston colt .45's [1962-1964] became the nucleus for the present day houston astros)


• 16D where to find the windward and leeward islands LESSER ANTILLES (a string of islands located between puerto rico and south america... windward islands include: dominica, martinique, saint lucia, saint vincent, the grenadines, and grenada. the leeward islands include: the virgin islands, anguilla, st. martin/maarten, saba, sint eustatius, saint barthélemy, antigua, barbuda, saint kitts, nevis, redonda, montserrat, and guadeloupe. and... dependin' on who's tellin', martinique can show up on either list!)

• 17D "a sentimental journey" author STERNE (irish-born english novelist and clergyman laurence sterne who is best known for his novel about 'a sentimental journey' through france and italy)


• 18D disraeli and churchill TORIES (an english political party)


• 30D one of the brothers karamazov IVAN (the flying karamazov brothers are a world famous juggling and comedy troupe who hail from southern california - not east europe or russia as their name suggests... nor are they brothers! they are: 'pavel' [roderick kimball], 'dmitri' [paul magid], 'alexei' [mark ettinger], 'ivan' [howard jay patterson])


• 35D voltaire's religious view DEISM (the man whose pen name was 'voltaire' was born françois-marie arouet. he was a brilliant french writer and philosopher, and a vocal proponent of deism, a religious philosophy that derives the existence and nature of God from reason and personal experience, in contrast to theism which relies on sacred scriptures and/or the testimony of others)


• 39D iron pumper's target PEC (pectoral muscle)


• 42D in film, gradual appearance of an image through an expanding circle IRIS IN (a motion picture camera focusing technique)


• 59D oscar winner as mr. chips DONAT (robert donat [born friedrich robert donath] was a distinguished english film and stage actor)


• 65D salt TAR (another mariner's reference... salt : tar : seaman)


• 72D subject of article 1, section 8 of the constitution TAXES (article 1 specifically speaks to the legislative branch of the u.s. government. in section 8, the powers of congress are outlined... including uniform taxation to pay for debts and defense)


• 75D ample, to li'l abner ENUF ('enough' colloquially)


• 88D brit, to an aussie POM (not considered very offensive... however attach a descriptive adjective and then you can be quite as derogatory as the situation demands... a "whinging POM" is a tern used by australians to describe "english people who are constantly complaining" about everything in australia)


• 94D neighbor of greece: abbr. ALB (albania)


• 96D summer topper PANAMA (as in the stylish straw hat)


• 97D block buster? ICE MAN (eek! from the tun of the last century, eh?!)


• 102D doughboy's topper TIN HAT (this 'doughboy' is an english slang term for a ww I u.s. infantry soldier... with that distinctive brodie helmet)


• 103D oxford pad INSOLE (oxford is a classic shoe style)


• 104D stinko STEWED (inebriated)
  
  

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in the "your mileage may vary" category:
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best clue of the day: 99A master of the double take? perfecto!

best answer of the day: 24D HOLIDAY

worst clue of the day: 34D "civic center"... don't get me started on that one!

worst answer of the day: 57D ONE AND O... it's just inconsistent



keep on keepin' on...

dann
all elements of the puzzle (grid layout, clues, and answers), NYT, NY Times, and The New York Times logo are ©2007 The New York Times
1. ring regulator: abbr. 4. state secrets 8. argosy 14. "the perfect fool" composer 19. cupcake 20. anise-flavored aperitif popular in turkey and the balkans 21. tan shades 22. have because of 23. best picture of 1954 26. four-time indy winner 27. not turned up 28. half-betazoid on "star trek: t.n.g." 29. olympic troublemaker 31. asian honorific 32. skin 33. in addition to 37. boise-to-billings dir. 38. one whose business is taking off? 40. it's done 41. burlesques 43. descry 45. nursery nappy 47. doll in "a doll's house" 48. biblical name meaning "laughter" 51. "hollywood squares" line 53. six-pointer, perhaps 55. it's spotted on a ranch 58. swampy 59. high-end version of a product 63. berenstain of kid-lit's berenstain bears 64. la. summer setting 65. took one's first steps 66. ring lardner title character 68. "sweet _" (1937 oscar song) 70. worry 73. "anne of green gables" setting 74. true 76. looked for 78. first name in chillers 79. casual denials 80. singer with the 1996 #1 hit "you're makin' me high" 83. row between houses? 84. lovers' plight 86. reign 87. lose liquidity 88. topping made with pine nuts 89. it should be even 91. snap 93. zigzag 96. french mime 99. master of the double take? 101. showy climber 105. oh of cologne 106. role for alec guinness and ewan mcgregor 109. receiver of a brush-off? 110. at birth 111. transcontinental bridge, e.g.: abbr. 112. city near carson national forest 113. gut feeling 114. full speed ahead 116. broadcast with baba booey, with "the" 121. champagne department 122. french "white house" 123. jerk 124. bath suds 125. starting pay? 126. one on a quest 127. for the second time 128. key of cartooning 1. cousin of "uh-oh" 2. british hood 3. buck topper 4. steep 5. bar code? 6. sometimes called 7. arctic 8. out of the country 9. tasteful 10. salyut 7's successor 11. what "syne" means 12. with altair and vega, it forms the summer triangle 13. colt .45s, today 14. santa's landing site 15. to have and to hold 16. where to find the windward and leeward islands 17. "a sentimental journey" author 18. disraeli and churchill 24. eve's follower 25. go off 30. one of the brothers karamazov 33. elect 34. civic center? 35. voltaire's religious view 36. heighten 39. iron pumper's target 42. in film, gradual appearance of an image through an expanding circle 44. bride in "my big fat greek wedding" 46. when repeated twice, et cetera 48. fix firmly 49. brandy + orange liqueur + lemon juice 50. fancy salad ingredient 52. symbols of strength 54. tuscan treat 56. sign inside a restaurant 57. common baseball count 59. oscar winner as mr. chips 60. copy righter? 61. annual literary prize since 1946 62. jazz (up) 65. salt 67. physique, slangily 69. brilliance 71. boodle 72. subject of article i, section 8 of the constitution 75. ample, to li'l abner 77. "you're gonna pay!" 81. moviedom's massey 82. back 83. misses, e.g. 85. batgirl and wonder woman 88. brit, to an aussie 90. soft shots 92. symbol of strength 94. neighbor of greece: abbr. 95. kona keepsake 96. summer topper 97. block buster? 98. gives religiously? 100. tumble 102. doughboy's topper 103. oxford pad 104. stinko 107. intact 108. rebuffs 113. bamboozle 115. carol ending? 117. ex follower 118. it's all you have to do sometimes 119. slice of history 120. deli slice