Every time I see an unfamiliar name on the byline, I wonder if it's an inaugural puzzle. If this is--Joseph Crowley, you done good!
We have a colorful menu in the grid today, with the following theme answers:
14A: Colorful opening course (mixed green salad)
17A: Colorful spread (orange marmalade). My favorite, although it doesn't work too well with peanut butter...better with cream cheese.
37A and 39A: Colorful dessert (rainbow sherbet)
61A: Colorful breakfast food (blueberry muffin)
64A: Colorful entree (red beans and rice)
I love to see the letter K in the grid, and we get it twice in one word! 22D: Mall station (kiosk), sharing its second K with 42A: Oscar-nominated Icelandic singer (Bjork). Struggled a bit because I initially had I want for 33D:(Obstreperous child's cry) instead of I won't. I think I heard an equal number of both cries from our girls when they were younger.
A flash from the past at 6A: Title name after the lyric "What's it all about when you sort it out" (Alfie). Geez...1966 seems like just yesterday!
I liked the intersection of 24D: Taj Mahal's home (Agra) and 32A: Neighbor of Ivory Coast (Ghana). Both have been in the puzzle before, and they'll surely be back. Note to self...
11D: "Snap out of it!" actions (slaps) reminded me of the scene in Moonstruck when Loretta (Cher) says that--and does that--to Ronny (a very young Nicolas Cage). I guess Cher was also 20 years younger then, but she doesn't look all that different...other than the fairly recent platinum hair phase.
50A: Bit of Madison Ave. planning (TV ad) was my other stumbling area. The V was the last letter I entered into the grid, due in large part to the fact that I had no clue what was going on with 43D: Game on an 8 x 8 board. Actually, I still don't. Is it Reversi? Or Reverse 1? Am I close?
53A: Beat at a hot dog contest (outeat) gets the award for best clue and best answer. I entered it right away but thought it would prove to be wrong. Duh! (30D: "Well, obviously!") It wasn't.
By far, the weakest answer in the puzzle is 7D: Not owners (leasers). I know that's probably a word, and probably one that people actually use. In the world of real estate, lawyers and leases, though, they would be called lessees...but that's a pretty small price to pay for such an entertaining puzzle.
Good night.
Linda G
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7 comments:
You are right that in legal-speak a renter of an apartment would be a lessee and a landlord/lady lessor but a leaser would be the renter especially of a car. One would say I lease a car instead of owning one or I'm not a car owner, I'm a leaser.
I too got stuck on reversi or revers1 that's why I checked out your blog. I have a sense that maybe drain is wrong and the game is reverse. I'll stick with what I have though.
Duh! I didn't think about car rentals.
I just checked Crossword Fiend. She mentioned Reversi as an answer, but no explanation.
The blog for today's syndicated puzzle contains your comment about peonies envy. Made me laugh all over again!
Reversi
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Reversi and Othello are names for an abstract strategy board game which involves play by two parties on an eight-by-eight square grid with pieces that have two distinct sides. Pieces typically appear coin-like, but with a light and a dark face, each side representing one player. The object of the game is to make your pieces constitute a majority of the pieces on the board at the end of the game, by turning over as many of your opponent's pieces as possible.
Beat me to it by some hours... used to love playing Othello as a kid(the game, since I'm not a Shakesperean actor). The non-brand name version they sometimes sold was called Reversi, although I'm sure that name came first before it was rebranded as Othello.
Nice colorful entry today, very fitting for a colorful puzzle.
Oh yeah, TVAD messed with my mind a bit, too. Sneaky stuff.
Thanks, Donald and Howard, for clarifying the Reversi issue. I remember playing Othello (the game...I'm not a Shakesperean actor, either!) but never heard of Reversi.
Linda,
Where can I find the blog with peonies envy you mentioned? Glad the story made you laugh.
Linda,
I found it. Thanks.
Pf
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