Monday, November 10, 2008

Monday, November 10, 2008

Title: Season Tickets
Author: Jeremy Horwitz
Theme: Movie titles with seasons in them.
  • 20a: 2000 Liev Schreiber film (SPRING FORWARD).

  • 28a: 1987 Mark Harmon film (SUMMER SCHOOL).

  • 49a: 1978 Ingrid Bergman film (AUTUMN SONATA).

  • 59a: 2004 Zooey Deschanel film (WINTER PASSING).


I don't know any of these films, which prevents me from loving the theme but not from liking it. They're all reasonable titles and eminently gettable, so I have no real complaints. It's just unusual for me to have a four-movie theme for which I know none of the four films.


The rest:
  • 5a: Easy thing to hit the broadside of (BARN). I like this clue, as it makes use of a colorful expression.


  • 9a: Lake by the Ponderosa Ranch (TAHOE).

  • 14a: Burn balm (ALOE).

  • 18a: Name in Al Hirschfeld drawings (NINA). Didn't know this, but NINA is certainly a name, so it fits fine.

  • 33a: "Monty Python's Flying Circus" network (BBC). Name a British network.

  • 40a: Flip one's lid (GO APE). Didn't we just have this last week? I'm sure of it, because I commented on how I've never actually seen apes go ape. They always seem pretty reserved to me.

  • 54a: TV network formerly known as Pax (ION). Never heard of either one.

  • 64a: Synfuel source (SHALE).

  • 66a: One who observes (EYER). Yuck. I've opined before about my distaste for forced -ER words.

  • 70a: Carmela Soprano portrayer Falco (EDIE). A crossword staple.


  • 72a: "Put a tiger in your tank" sloganeer (ESSO).

  • 73a: Basketball team owned in part by Jay-Z (NETS). I learned this from crosswords.

  • 2d: Bond on the run (ELOPE). Cute. I'm pretty convinced that ELOPE has, on average, the coolest clues of any other word.

  • 3d: Simba's sounds (ROARS). Simba of "The Lion King".

  • 5d: Bob's costar in the "Road" pictures (BING). Bob Hope and Bing Crosby.


  • 9d: Basic ingredient? (TOBACCO). Basic is a brand of cigarettes. I didn't get this right away.

  • 26d: Like a bad cat burglar (NOISY). Great clue.

  • 27d: Famous spokescow (ELSIE). I just love the word spokescow.

  • 29d: Ryan of "Sleepless in Seattle" (MEG). I find Meg Ryan attractive in a girl-next-door way. She's just cute all over.

  • 30d: He married him in 1930 (MAO). Very tricky clue for a Monday. He Zizhen was Mao Tse-tung's third wife.

  • 33d: Joy of "The View" (BEHAR). I should know this, but I needed crossings.


  • 35d: Shipwreck survivors (CASTAWAYS). "Just sit right back and you'll hear a tale..."

  • 39d: "Search for Tomorrow" character Bergman (STU). I can name exactly three soap opera characters by first name: Erica, Luke, and Laura. That's it. If it's not one of those, then I'm guessing.

  • 57d: Language whose name means "people" (INUIT). I had I_UIT before I even saw the clue, so it wasn't much of a challenge.


A fine, uneventful Monday. Not much else to add.

Thanks for listening.

- Pete M.

2 comments:

Joon said...

not only is that two more soap characters than i can name, but i had no idea that "search for tomorrow" was a soap. luckily, i never saw that clue at all.

Anonymous said...

Hey, speaking of Luke and Laura, I just recently met Tony (aka Anthony Geary), who plays Luke, at a mutual friend's wedding! He seems like a very nice guy, and I enjoyed chatting with him. Do I get bonus points for that? :)