Saturday, May 26, 2007

Sunday, May 27 - Patrick Berry

I don't know about the rest of you, but I think the hardest thing about a Sunday puzzle is that the letters and numbers are so much smaller. At least it only happens once a week.

Eight punny answers to the Dinner Theater theme:

23A: Play about tenderizing meat with one's toes? (Barefoot in the Pork)

31A: Musical drama about a butcher who sells deer meat? (The Merchant of Venison)

40A: Musical play set at McDonald's? (The Burger's Opera)

59A: Musical drama that tells the tale of a sausage casing? (Wurst Side Story)

64A: Musical drama about a man eating soup? (Porgy and Bisque)

85A: Play about a guy ordering beef from Dublin? (Abie's Irish Roast)

91A: Play about swine intestines that are semidivine? (Chitlins of a Lesser God)

106A: Play about meat that's good to eat anytime? (A Ham For All Seasons)

The first one to fall was also my favorite--Chitlins of a Lesser God. I had CHIT, plus a few letters here and there. Venison was easy enough to infer from the clue, as was Irish Roast.

66D: Compared with (relative to) fell into place immediately, which really opened things up in the southwest. 101A: Miner's major problem (cave in) was a first guess that worked, which quickly led to 65D: Dwarf (overshadow).

61A: Hat trick component (goal). I was thinking hare, or the ridiculous girl. When I finally got the answer in place, Don explained the hockey connection.

Some of my favorite clues and answers, or just words I like.

19A: Pfizer product used before brushing the teeth (Plax). Like that it had an X, which crossed with 4D: Common daisy (oxeye).

16A: Back on board (aft). Sometimes I reeeaaallly have to think about these clues. This was one of those times.

54A: In love (smitten). I love the sound of the word, and it brings back a fond memory.

114A: Character in many a joke (St. Peter). Blonde wouldn't fit. Neither would lawyer.

79A: What you may call it (noun). My first answer was a day, then good, both good wrong answers. Didn't get the right answer until I had NO-N.

52A: Actress Barbara Bel __ (Geddes). She didn't just play Miss Ellie on Dallas, she was Miss Ellie.

84A: Place in the pecking order (rank). If you do that with crossword bloggers, I think Orange is ranked first, followed by Rex -- or maybe it's the other way around. No matter...they're both heroes in the CrossWorld.

I would be remiss if I didn't point out the reference to my Sun puzzle friend and blogger. That is, a reference to the answer only, not to the clue...52D: Sickly-looking (greenish).

The old one-two is back, but in two separate answers. 62D: Missing broadcast channel (one), and 116A: Retired number of Dodger Tommy Lasorda (two).

98D: Get fuel (gas up) wasn't particularly funny today. I was just a few cents shy of $50 to fill up a Toyota, and that's the lowest grade fuel.

So many more good words in this one, but I'll wrap it up for now. Be sure to check the links in the side bar--they're sure to mention things I've forgotten.

Linda G

7 comments:

barrywep said...

I thought you put it very well about Miss Bel Geddes. I can't believe Rex only thought of the semi-hot Vertigo character. Donna Reed couldn't capture her aura.

Linda G said...

Barry, are you admitting that you watched the show? That year with Donna Reed was pathetic. She's a wonderful actress, but she wasn't Miss Ellie.

barrywep said...

My wife was an addict and I was mostly along for the ride.

Norrin2 said...

I had the same problem with letter and number sizes on Sunday puzzles. If you're printing them out from the website, check "print using two pages". That'll take care of that.

Norrin2 said...

Oh -- and I kinda like the ring of "greenish genius"

Anonymous said...

Actually "print using two pages" is a nice way to do it every day, if you want to avoid eye strain.

I so agree that B B-G inhabited Miss Ellie. I often wondered how my life would have been different if my mother had been like her instead of the way she was (leaving out gory details).

How's your shoulder, Linda?

Linda G said...

I can't wait until next Sunday to try it out! Thanks for the tip.

Wendy, I'll see the orthopedic surgeon (that word gives me the willies) on Friday. At that time, we'll go over the MRI results and my options. You can be sure I'll keep you posted : )