Theme: "Not I!" — Familiar phrases have a U sound added to them, creating new wacky phrases clued "?"-style.
[Note: This is the syndicated L.A. Times puzzle. It does not appear in the actual newspaper, but is available for free at cruciverb.com.]
Theme answers:
- 23A: Organize guards? (UNITE WATCHMEN).
- 31A: How the Knicks of 1985-2000 may have rested their hopes? (ON A EWING AND A PRAYER).
- 43A: Where the Oregon swim team practices? (EUGENE POOLS).
- 59A: Backlash from a Canadian territory? (THE WRATH OF YUKON).
- 68A: Reverse course against one's better judgment? (TAKE A U-TURN FOR THE WORSE).
- 78A: Answer to "Man, where can I find good music videos online?" ("TEST YOUTUBE, BABY").
- 95A: Grateful words for a delivery company? (UPS I LOVE YOU).
- 103A: Headline about declining sales of Nesquik? (YOOHOO'S LAUGHING NOW).
- 121A: Card in the game Car Flop Monopoly? (DO NOT PASS YUGO).
Crosswordese 101 Round-up:- 41A: Caspian feeder (URAL).
- 63A: Agt. under Ness (T-MAN).
- 111A: Summer quaffs (ADES).
- 126A: Papal garment (ORALE).
- 39D: Lab assistant in a 1939 film (YGOR).
- 56D: Anatomical passage (ITER).
- 84D: "The Council of Elrond" singer (ENYA).
- 104D: Cinema name (ODEON).
- 119D: 1921 Capek play (RUR).
Everything Else — 1A: To blame (AT FAULT); 8A: Porch tune, maybe (CAROL); 13A: Spa treatment (MASSAGE); 20A: Washington's coin (QUARTER); 21A: Yoga posture (ASANA); 22A: Fancy furs (ERMINES); 25A: Friday show? (DRAGNET); 26A: Prefix with plane (AERO-); 27A: Lavish affection (DOTE); 28A: Roman's 103 (CIII); 30A: Oenophile's concern (NOSE); 37A: Take a shot (TRY); 40A: Post-OR area (ICU); 42A: Major ISP (AOL); 48A: Auto designer Ferrari (ENZO); 50A: Chat room "Incidentally ..." (BTW); 53A: Was too sweet (CLOYED); 54A: Meter opening (ODO-); 55A: Lab animals (MICE); 57A: Not stuffy (AIRY); 58A: Roll call response (HERE); 66A: Retailer with blue-and-yellow megastores (IKEA); 67A: Lure sneakily (ROPE IN); 75A: Set straight (ORIENT); 76A: Execute perfectly (NAIL); 77A: Hun king of myth (ATLI); 83A: Ernest's unseen friend, in films (VERN); 87A: Chop finely (HASH); 88A: Mineo and a mule (SALS); 89A: Resistance unit (OHM); 90A: Andy's deputy (BARNEY); 92A: Mock ending? (-ERY); 93A: McGregor of "Star Wars" films (EWAN); 97A: Maker of Good Grips kitchen tools (OXO); 98A: College srs.' tests (GRE'S); 101A: A, in Avignon (UNE); 102A: Set, as a price (ASK); 112A: Navigate (WEND); 113A: Jumble wordplay: Abbr. (ANAG.); 114A: In __: stuck (A JAM); 118A: Rise again (RESURGE); 125A: Bridge call (NO TRUMP); 127A: Fail (GO UNDER); 128A: Show contempt for (SNEER AT); 129A: Normand of silents (MABEL); 130A: Reagan A.G. (ED MEESE); 1D: Turquoise hue (AQUA); 2D: Use a fork, in a way (TUNE); 3D: Off the foul pole, e.g. (FAIR); 4D: Threepio's pal (ARTOO); 5D: Salt Lake City athlete (UTE); 6D: "Ben-Hur" author Wallace (LEW); 7D: Switch to a better model (TRADE UP); 8D: Saguaros (CACTI); 9D: Visibly terrified (ASHEN); 10D: Try to sink, maybe (RAM); 11D: Like a family sharing a vehicle (ONE-CAR); 12D: Pacific weather phenomenon (LA NIÑA); 13D: TV and radio (MEDIA); 14D: Sheet music abbr. (ARR.); 15D: "'S a __ request": Burns (SMA'); 16D: Cell user's need (SIGNAL); 17D: Tee off (ANNOY); 18D: Canada __ (GEESE); 19D: Perfumer's compound (ESTER); 24D: Drag (TOW); 29D: "Nice weather we're having" and the like (IDLE CHAT); 32D: Number of Dvorák symphonies (NINE); 33D: Breezed through (ACED); 34D: Astronaut Grissom (GUS); 35D: Guerra's opposite (PAZ); 36D: Milne tyke (ROO); 37D: PC troubleshooter (TECH); 38D: Have power over (RULE); 44D: Some canines (EYE TEETH); 45D: "Impressive!" ("OOH!"); 46D: Work of Sappho (ODE); 47D: In a funk (LOW); 49D: "The Matrix" hero (NEO); 50D: Helmet wearer (BIKER); 51D: Mousquetaires count (TROIS); 52D: Crossword inventor Arthur (WYNNE); 55D: Hammerhead cousin (MAKO); 57D: Way to make steak (AU POIVRE); 59D: Demolition supply (TNT); 60D: Biathlete's gear (RIFLE); 61D: Agonize (FRET); 62D: Cry of distress (YOWL); 64D: Umpteen (MANY); 65D: Self starter? (AUTO-); 68D: "__ moon, Alice!": Gleason catchphrase (TO THE); 69D: Toward the back (AREAR); 70D: Inviting, as lips (KISSY); 71D: Straighten out (UNTANGLE); 72D: Brother of Fidel (RAUL); 73D: Birds' bills (NIBS); 74D: Stable staple (HAY); 79D: Dream Team's team (USA); 80D: Gillespie's genre (BOP); 81D: Doctors hear a lot of them (AHS); 82D: ASCAP competitor (BMI); 85D: Flying Clouds, e.g. (REO'S); 86D: Syllable from Curly (NYUK); 90D: Beethoven's birthplace (BONN); 91D: Chevy subcompact (AVEO); 93D: Prefix with skeleton (EXO-); 94D: Court (WOO); 95D: Pres. before RBH (USG); 96D: Carousel sight (LUGGAGE); 97D: "Yeah, right!" ("OH, SURE!"); 99D: Like coin flips (RANDOM); 100D: Author Welty (EUDORA); 103D: Fish stories (YARNS); 105D: Compass dirección (OESTE); 106D: Took four of four, say (SWEPT); 107D: Oahu outsider (HAOLE); 108D: Drone's gathering, briefly (INTEL); 109D: Be off one's guard (NAP); 110D: __ Manor: "Batman" mansion (WAYNE); 115D: Hardy's "obscure" stonemason (JUDE); 116D: Seemingly forever (AGES); 117D: Greedy cry (MORE); 120D: ABC talk show, for short (GMA); 122D: Put the cuffs on (NAB); 123D: Grass in strips (SOD); 124D: Bottom line (SUM).
15 comments:
Not a particularly fun puzzle, but I slogged through it. Messy theme!
Enough inconsistency to ANNOY me. Also, no new words for me. Well maybe EUDORA Welty.
A bit disappointed that Puzzlegirl didn't expound on the glory of Arthur WYNNE.
Sorry I forgot the ACPT's Brief History of Crossword Puzzles.
The Spanish translation of the book "War and Peace" is "GUERRA y PAZ"
The theme was hard to figure out, even after I figured out, if you see what I mean.
HAOLE/ORALE were both new to me, so had to resort to guessing the cross. I wrote in INTEL without any idea why, and only figured it out much later (drones are spy planes, and they gather intel...?) The only drones I could think of were insects or members of the Drones Club in PG Wodehouse...
Sorry guys, there is no such thing as Canada 'Geese'. It is and always will be - CANADA GOOSE
@Anon 10:44
There are no such birds as Canadian GEESE, but that's not what the constructor used for a clue... he used "Canada ___".
So what's the issue?
Ho hum.
an annoying puzzle, bleh.
confusing theme. glad know invented the first crossword. Did PG solve it?
Personally I enjoyed this puzzle. Like most Sundays, it takes a while to get thru and should be done in two or more sessions. Else it takes on the impression of a "slog".
We had NYUK just last week and EDMEESE is appaently crosswordese now considering all the times we'e seen him in the last few months. Laughed to see SMA after having it a few days ago, (here or the NYT?), and this time in (Scottish) context.
New words were ORALE, JUDE, and Arthur WYNNE. Googled Orale and it's apparently also Spanish slang for "right on"!
I agree, bleh.
This is absolutely the WORST Sunday LAT crossword ever!
Can anyone out there tell me where I can find crossword puzzles where knowledge of the English language counts. Misspellings to fit words into some "theme" really anger me - they're not clever, they're only the constructors lame attempts to make something "fit" the puzzle structure. Is this not a blatant example of laziness? And what's with this celebrity/media drivel that crowds out real English words?? Who cares about these names? Just another example of laziness on the part of the constructors and editors. Did they all fail Senior English in high school?
Bad puzzle. Agree with Anonymous...puzzle writers getting lazy. Foreign words and derivatives??? Really????
RJ
A really bad puzzle . . . unfunny and dumb (and I solved it)
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