Theme: Hippie Slogan, er, I mean, Counterculture Phrase — Starts of the theme answers are a familiar phrase from the 1960s.
Theme answers:
- 20A: Provide some room illumination (TURN ON THE LIGHT).
- 37A: TV promo exhortation (TUNE IN TONIGHT).
- 53A: Disappear from the radar, so to speak (DROP OUT OF SIGHT).
- 66A: Timothy who preached the message found in this puzzle's theme (LEARY)
"Turn on" meant go within to activate your neural and genetic equipment. Become sensitive to the many and various levels of consciousness and the specific triggers that engage them. Drugs were one way to accomplish this end. "Tune in" meant interact harmoniously with the world around you - externalize, materialize, express your new internal perspectives. "Drop out" suggested an elective, selective, graceful process of detachment from involuntary or unconscious commitments. "Drop Out"meant self-reliance, a discovery of one's singularity, a commitment to mobility, choice, and change. Unhappily my explanations of this sequence of personal development were often misinterpreted to mean "Get stoned and abandon all constructive activity."
When it comes to recognizing this phrase, I assume there will be two camps: those on the bus and those off the bus. Me, I'm on the bus. Recognized the phrase right away and actually kind of like the idea. Not so thrilled with the execution though. "TUNE IN TONIGHT"? I guess I've heard that, but "Tune in next week," sounds more familiar. There also seems to be an awful lot of crosswordese in the grid. Highlights of the puzzle for me were NOT SURE (33A: On the fence), which I like for some reason I can't really put my finger on, and SANTAS (1D: December temps). I couldn't stop thinking weather and when the answer finally fell it was a major head-slap moment.Misc.:
- 6A: Unwanted e-mail (SPAM). What? People don't want email that offers "Today you get 85% Cash-Back visible was It ago Iron"?*
- 16A: Dom Perignon producer, familiarly (MOËT). I can't believe I'm going to admit this, but I always get MOËT confused with MOAB.
- 17A: Grammy winner Jones (NORAH). How many other Grammy winning Joneses are there? Extra points for any whose first name is five letters. I'll start things off with Quincy.
- 41A: Bright spot on a lunar halo (MOON DOG). I've never heard of this. I've never even heard of any of the bands of that name or the Jamie Kittle, "a local celebrity in Northern Kentucky, famous for the catch phrase 'everybody thinks I'm a darn freshman,'" whose stage name is Moondog. (Seriously? "A local celebrity in Northern Kentucky" gets a Wikipedia mention? I guess it's possible to slip anything in there.)
- 58A: Kennedy half, e.g. (COIN). Is it common for a Kennedy half dollar to be referred to as a "Kennedy half"? Is it common for a Kennedy half dollar to be referred to at all?
- 62A: Jeweler Lalique (RENÉ). Now we have to know jewelers? Yeesh!
- 63A: More under the weather (ILLER). The only acceptable context for this word is rap music. Even if you don't think rap is really music, you must agree with me on this one.
- 3D: More than just fear (TERROR). For some reason, PuzzleSon has it in his head that he wants to see "Nightmare on Elm Street." I believe he is familiar with the concept of fear but not TERROR.
- 5D: Manhattan area above Houston Street (NOHO). NOrth of HOuston.
- 10D: Chihuahua gal pal (AMIGA). Chihuahua in this case is the Mexican state, not the dog.
- 21D: Quiet period at day care (NAP TIME). Unfortunately, at the PuzzleHouse, NAP TIME is rarely quiet enough for my taste. ::sigh::
*Actual subject line of an email in my spam folder right now.
Everything Else — 1A: Resolute about (SET ON); 10A: Church recess (APSE); 14A: Wind: Prefix (ANEMO-); 15A: Doily material (LACE); 18A: Gillette razor (ATRA); 19A: College in New Rochelle, N.Y. (IONA); 23A: In the past (AGO); 24A: Monogram of a '50s White House aspirant (AES); 25A: Speedy (RAPID); 27A: "Popcorn" shellfish (SHRIMP); 30A: Conditions (IFS); 32A: Anthem contraction (O'ER); 36A: Really long time (EONS); 40A: Decorative vases (URNS); 42A: Brit's rainwear (MAC); 43A: Hymnals may be found in one (PEW); 44A: Marked down (ON SALE); 48A: Emergency tire (SPARE); 50A: Lab greeting (ARF); 52A: Teachers' org. (NEA); 59A: Resting on (ATOP); 60A: Dote on (ADORE); 61A: Thoreau's Walden __ (POND); 65A: Went lickety-split (SPED); 2D: "Stop!" ("ENOUGH!"); 4D: Arabian Sea nation (OMAN); 6D: Pool table layer (SLATE); 7D: They may be beaten (PATHS); 8D: Farm unit (ACRE); 9D: Cafeteria offering (MEAL); 11D: Express disdain for (POOH POOH); 12D: Conscious (SENTIENT); 13D: Greek vowel (ETA); 22D: 1040-issuing org. (IRS); 26D: AMA members (DRS.); 28D: Holiday buildings? (INNS); 29D: Bartender on "The Simpsons" (MOE); 30D: Red meat nutrient (IRON); 31D: Keep away (FEND OFF); 34D: Winter blanket (SNOW); 35D: __-Aztecan languages (UTO); 36D: Bacon go-with (EGGS); 37D: Hidden way out, maybe (TRAP DOOR); 38D: Hardly sympathetic (UNCARING); 39D: Electrical particle (ION); 40D: Speaker's hesitations (UMS); 43D: Get-up-and-go (PEP); 45D: Zambia neighbor (ANGOLA); 46D: "PBS NewsHour" anchor Jim (LEHRER); 47D: Hash house, e.g. (EATERY); 49D: Sonata movement (RONDO); 50D: Make things right (ATONE); 51D: Blocked (off), as a crime scene (ROPED); 54D: Dory propellers (OARS); 55D: Sun Bowl Stadium coll. team (UTEP); 56D: Go to sea (SAIL); 57D: Goofing off (IDLE); 58D: 22-Down employee (CPA).
21 comments:
After my mug-of-java, now that I'm SENTIENT, this was a FUN Tuesday though nothing new or learned. POOH POOH on that.
Biggest problem was remembering how to spell Jim LEHRER's last name.
SANTA'S was clever, nice clue.
"ENOUGH!" brought back memories of Mom. Being the youngest of four, I was the out-going scamp.
UTO-Aztecan, was recently reading something that made this a gimmie.
AMIGA, Mexican gal-pal was my fave.
I guess after you TURN ON, TUNE IN and DROP OUT you fall through that TRAPDOOR.
Aah, the 60's, I'm almost ready to leave them.
ILLER, only seen in crosswords. I prefer the "more ill" connotation.
Well, off to scrape the face with that ATRA.
Smooth and easy.
@Puzzle Girl - Never heard of your Iller, but for me, Moondog was a blind guy dressed like a Viking who stood on the corner of the Avenue of the Americas and 54th (Manhattan) in the late 60s. Saw him many times.
Years later, a friend of mine had a record of his symphonies, which were nice but derivative.
Apparently, a moondog is an atmospheric condition in which the moon appears to have a couple ears; real name, paraselenae, after the goddess, Selena. Never saw it.
Things I didn't know but appeared: UTO-Aztecan, IONA College, UTEP (sports), which I still don't know.
Anon647 - Sfingi - It took off before I put my name on it!
Pretty nice Tuesday entry for me. Never heard of MOONDOG. Don't like ILLER at all. The Leary theme is clever. He influenced my generation, but I'd have to say I am off the bus on him. He was too smart a guy to ruin all the brain cells he did tripping on LSD.
@Sfingi, a coupla me too's. I'm a News Hour fan, yet I keyed in L E H [uh,er,uh,crap]_ _ R, then waited for the crosses. And same thing with "December temps", which I didn't fill till late in the rather short game, as I had read it as "December temp's" and 'TEENS was too short. Duh.
I've read that moondogs have often been spotted from airplanes and reported as UFOs, as they appear to be following along with the plane.
Grace Jones I think. One thumb up.
The only way RONDO should be clued is Boston point guard who ripped Cleveland to shreds.
Pleasant, RAPID puzzle. Nothing to really POOH POOH. Thought the LEARY theme was fun. Church mini theme going on with PEW, APSE and URNS. NOT SURE about MOONDOG, but MOONDOGGIE was Gidget's surfer boyfriend. Got SANTAS pretty quick, but did toy with the temps clue. Only unknown was ANEMO 14A Wind: prefix. I ADORE Moët & Chandon - never ENOUGH. Hand up for forgetting how to spell LEHRER. Hey MAC you made the puzzle today.
@PG liked the picture of the Merry Pranksters.
I guessed LEARY from the 66A theme hint clue because it had 'Timothy', so then I knew it would be his catch phrase TURN ON, TUNE IN, DROP OUT, though I wasn't sure if 'turn on' or 'tune in' came first. I think it would have been a little more "aha-worthy" if the name Timothy had been left out of the clue. But maybe the constructor wanted to get his name in the puzzle?
@Sfingi and @lit.doc: Thanks for the info on MOONDOG.
LOL at December temps (SANTAS).
@Celtic Pride: I agree, we need to get Rajon RONDO into a puzzle. He's been amazing. (@Sfingi: sports, he's a pro basketball player)
Enjoyed this puzzle and write-up.
@CCL
Yesterday you appearn in the grid.
Today it's MAC!
Also, the IDLE cats favorite thing, NAPTIME !!!
I have a good feeling that Avatar will show up soon.
I love that movie!!! I hope you're right about AVATAR, though I think it's likely we'll see NAVI more frequently.
@Gray
Please don't misunderstand, Avatar is my way of saying Scotch.
Puzzles have numerous references to various foods and libations.
Alas, in the last eight or nine months we have had every form of the hard-stuff in the grid but my favorite.
I'll even accept Pinch.
We once had Dimple, it describes the bottle, and is its name in Europe.
Rickie Lee Jones secured five nominations at the Grammy Awards for Record of the Year, Best Pop Vocal Performance, Female, Best Rock Vocal Performance, Female, Song of the Year ("Chuck E.'s in Love"), and Best New Artist, which she won at the January 1980 ceremony.
@Tinbeni - I believe we had SCOTS the other day or maybe that was NYT. Getting closer. You're right about cats. Very, very IDLE.
@Chuck E. Fan - good catch.
Smooth, quick puzzle, but pretty heavy on the crosswordese and similar words: iona, ion eons, oer. In fact, is there an unusual number of o's in this puzzle?
Nice to find out moon dag actually means something, and thanks for the shout-out!
24. 24 other Joneses have won Grammies either on their own or as part of a group. Notables include Quincy, Tom, George, and James Earl.
The most recent 5-letter winner is Craig, from Slipknot. The others are Uriel, Daron, Jamie, Della, Bobby, and Jonah. Not Grace, though.
An album called Me And Mrs. Jones won once, and John Addison's score for the movie _Tom Jones_ won as well. No grammies for Scotch, Pinch, Dimple, or Avatar.
I hope neither SMITH nor JACKSON is in tomorrow's puzzle...
Never heard of mac (brits rainwear) or moondog. That reminded me of the OLD Beach Blanket Bingo movies where Moondoggie was a character. Before my time but I do love old movies, even cheesy ones!
Iller just doesn't sound right either.
@Anon 4:52
mack·in·tosh also mac·in·tosh (mkn-tsh)
n. Chiefly British
1. A raincoat.
2. A lightweight, waterproof fabric that was originally of rubberized cotton.
[After Charles Macintosh (1766-1843), Scottish inventor.]
Brit would infer that it's a nickname thus MAC
MOONDOG.
:(
PuzzleGirl, did you notice all the clues rhymed? Someone had to point it out to me because I missed it.
@Argyle - I was surprised that no one else mentioned that all the themes *started* with Leary's phrase fragments, and *ended* with an -IGHT word. In fact, before I noticed the Leary phrase, I thought the theme had to do w/ the -IGHT words. Whoops!
Pretty good puzzle ... not too much Angst filling it out, but not too easy either (meaning, I did need crosses, I didn't complete it w/ A clues only, lol).
I always feel smart when I get an ARGO reference, but I'm a little tired of ATRA. Seriously.
Today (it's Wednesday now) I'm going to try to get the puzzle done early so that I can actually comment during the day when eveyone else is commenting, lol. I'm now on maternity and somehow that screws w/ my time management skills!
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