Friday May 20

Title: Welcome to the New Age

I am here for my second Friday for the Varol/Iverson regime today welcoming back MaryEllen Uthlaut who recently appeared here on March 6 with a Sunday (her specialty) discussed by C.C. ME burst on the constructor scene with a puzzle in the NYT followed by many LATs. My last count has this as her 35th over time. Her theme is one frequently used on Friday with a trigram (3 letters) removed from a phrase, re-clued for maximum hilarity. We do not have circles but we do have the asterisk which should have sped up the solve, if D-O noticed them. Nah. 

But first, there are some sparkly fill which include words longer than some of the themers. We have AGELESS, DISCORD, SPRAYER, CHARADES, ERUPTIVE, ELEMENTARY, and SKY MARSHAL all of which are worthy of some discussion. But not now, as it is time talk about the theme which is a classic Friday remove letters from known phrases to make new phrases which are then clued to promote hilarity. ME removed three letters (AGE) also known as a trigram, from the end of one word of four two word phrases. Generously we have a central reveal which is quite cute but makes this a somewhat easy solve. 

17A. *Appendage capable of kicking a 60-yard field goal?: RARE FOOTAGE.(8). The before and after of this fill mirror each other. We have the unique toeless foot of Tom Dempsey who kicked the first 60 yard field goal in 1970. We also have the rare video (FOOTAGE) of the accomplishment. 

It was not until 14 years later that there was another 60 yarder, but now the record is 66 yards in a LIST of 26 such feats. Haha!

23A. *Result of a computer virus?: INTERNET MESSAGE (12). Viruses in people and machines wreak havoc, and they computer variety are often malicious bugs planted by hackers. This LIST is maintained by those trying to protect computers.

54A. *Purpose of a phone booth, to Clark Kent?: GARBAGE DISPOSAL .(12). This both the funniest and an outlier as the AGE is added to the first of the two words. Making a kitchen device morph into where Superman changes was extra special.

65A. *LEGO minifigure of Emmet Brickowski, e.g.?: MICRO MANAGE (8).You have to RESPECT this Master Builder despite his lack of stature. I did not know his name despite watching the movies with the grands.

Then we have the Friday reveal which was witty, but seemed too much and too soon as it appeared at:

39A. Like someone who appears untouched by time, and like the answers to the starred clues?: AGELESS. If you did not notice the missing letters, this should tip the scales to SOLVED!

Now to dissect ME's clue/fill.

Across:

1. Routine: ACT. Mort Sahl did political satire, that was his routine, his act.

4. Agitate: RILE. Like Lenny Bruce it did upset some people as neither had any...

8. Snob __: APPEAL. Do you think the word come from the Latin  "Sine NOBilitate" which means without nobility? 

14. Guessing game: CHARADES. I do not know  either, just guessing.

16. Metal framework: GRILLE. Do you like this?

18. Successfully lure: ROPE IN.

19. List-ending abbr.: ET AL. Al is really busy.

20. "Act Like You Don't" country singer Brooke: EDEN.

22. Like a March hare: MAD. A little Lewis Carroll. 

28. Communications platform that began as a chat service for gamers: DISCORD. The ironic concept and its HISTORY.

31. Deck out: ADORN.

32. Calligraphy supply: INK. Do you have ink in your pen?

33. Latvian seaport: RIGA. This is very close to the Ukraine action so please read their NEWS.

35. Uneducated guess: STAB. 

38. Farm house: STY.

43. Blonde __: ALE.

44. Browser button: HOME.

46. China setting: ASIA. Where we can get some...

47. Maki topping: ROE. maki is the entire Sushi offering including the Nori, the rice and the filling.

48. Subside: ABATE.

52. Hose attachment: SPRAYER. Very important when washing the car or watering plants.

57. Uncertain sounds: UMS. Ah, ok. 

58. Quash: VETO. 

59. Be without: LACK.

63. Sweater wool: MOHAIR. Merino?

69. Slow-cook, in a way: BRAISE. This is to fry (food) lightly and then stew it slowly in a closed container.

70. Volatile: ERUPTIVE. A new clue/fill for the LAT. 

71. Cried out: YELLED.

72. "I __ to recall ... ": SEEM. Usually by some bigwig forced to testify after being recorded. 

73. Wet blanket: DEW. A nice but common clue/fill.

Down:

1. Animal Crossing unit: ACRE. Is there more here than I see?

2. Zoom option: CHAT.

3. Strong who voices Miss Minutes on "Loki": TARA.

4. U.K. fliers: RAF. Royal Air Force.

5. Binding words: I DO. And you had better

6. Zodiac sign: LEO. Part August part September.

7. Aromatic compound: ESTER. Perfume

8. "It's settled, then!": AGREED.

9. Right away: PRONTO.

10. Apple seed: PIP.

11. Miller/Liu TV drama: ELEMENTARY. The show was okay and Lucy Liu was a fun twist for Dr. Watson, but Johnny Lee Miller was even less Sherlockian than Robert Downey Jr.

12. Assumed name: ALIAS.

13. Takes interest, maybe: LENDS. A great clue/fill.

15. Museum item: RELIC.

21. Genetic letters: DNA.

24. Bollywood dancer/actress Fatehi: NORA. This Canadian (yes another one) born actress was endowed with much including Indian heritage and a career in Bollywood.

25. Pre-calc course: TRIG. For all of out math people.

26. Periphery: EDGE.

27. Dash of flavor?: MRS. Do you splash a dash of Mrs. Dash in your dish?

28. Chef's creation: DISH.

29. Passionate about: IN TO.

30. In-flight officer: SKY MARSHAL.

34. __    provençale:  À LA.  Some fonts just do not cooperate. This mean a dish prepared prepared in the style of Provence typically with garlic and olive oil                                                                                                                     

36. The Body Shop balm: ALOE. For sunburn this is the bomb.

37. Ingredient in some batter: BEER.  A RECIPE for WASEELY and others who want what they but also want to be healthy.

40. Canadian gas brand: ESSO. Complicated? Esso is ExxonMobil's primary gasoline brand worldwide except in Australia, Guam, Mexico, Nigeria, and New Zealand, where the Mobil brand is used exclusively. In Canada (since 2017), Colombia, Egypt, and formerly Malaysia (until 2013, when Petron acquired ExxonMobil's Malaysian operations)[29] and Japan (until 2019), both the Esso and Mobil brands are used. In Hong Kong and Singapore, Mobil brand is applied on Esso fuel tank after Mobil service stations began to merge with Esso since 2006.

Mobil is ExxonMobil's primary retail gasoline brand in California, Florida, New York, New England, the Great Lakes and the Midwest. Exxon is the primary brand in the rest of the United States, with the highest concentration of retail outlets located in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Texas and in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern states

41. Nurses: SIPS. A drink or ?

42. Indie pop duo Tegan and __: SARA. Their website tells us Tegan and Sara are a Canadian indie pop duo formed in 1998 in Calgary, Alberta, composed of identical twin sisters Tegan Rain Quin and Sara Keirsten Quin. Canadian Eh, on your playlist?

45. Flow back: EBB. EBB keeps coming back here as well.

49. Counsel: ADVISE. My first solo business card read, "Counselor and Adviser of Law."

50. In layers: TIERED. When I get tired I feel like a cake.

51. Superlative suffix: EST.

53. Dole out: ALLOT. 

54. Claymation character with a horse: GUMBY.  They are now support toys for kids.

55. Love, in arias: AMORE. Because the sing in Italian

56. Apples, pears, etc.: POMES. Not de terre

60. Surrounded by: AMID.

61. Finally give: CAVE.

62. Had down cold: KNEW.

64. Feel sick: AIL.

66. Fury: IRE.

67. Shuffleboard stick: CUE. We have a relatively new court (de rigeur for 55+ communities in SoFla) and I do play some. I never called the stick anything but a stick.

68. Record no.: RPM. We spin out of here on a nice deception, not a record number but the number of revolutions per minute for record being played.

Non-puzzling puzzle

I realize that I already have my own blog, but have never used it as such. Tonight is the night. While I have not finished creating a complete blog where my friends and family can gather and wonder about me. I will get there. Baby steps for me. In the meantime, we will start with Chapter One.

Topics run around in my head at all times similar to my hero Hedley Lamarr who said : "My mind is a raging torrent, flooded with rivulets of thought cascading into a waterfall of creative alternatives."

I do not have a picture of the Manchester home yet, but above is the home where I grew up, though the picture was taken in 2011.

My grandfather, Hyman Chapnick (a transliterated name often shown as Herman) was born in an area of Poland that was disputed by the surrounding countries, but that did not matter to him as none of those places considered Jews citizens. The only highlight of his childhood which I heard about, when he contracted polio as a boy. They dug a hole in the yard (front, back??) And each morning they would carry him to the hole, place the afflicted leg in it and then bury it so he could not move his leg. I have no detail about bathroom activities eating etc., but each night they would carry him into the house and put him in bed, with each following day the same. He walked with a distinct limp by the time I met him, but by then he mostly sat in a chair and brooded.

His family produced a number of tailors, and at about age 10 or 11 he was apprenticed to an established tailor. As one of eight children, seven boys one whom had a fraternal twin sister, having חיים leaving home with someone else feeding him was not a bad thing. But this is not about grandpa, it is about my immediate family.

My father  was raised in an Orthodox Jewish home (sort of, more about that later) and was raised in Springfield Massachusetts, Manhattan, Chicago, Brooklyn while his father sought work. There were also apparently rough patches between Hyman and "Leona" her American name. She was only 16 and he was 28, which led to some of that travel. Grandpa finally made good in New York working in a shop on Park Avenue with one of his brothers or cousins and accumulated enough money to move the family to a house in Connecticut.

They  moved with Morton (Unc to us), dad's only sibling (maybe?)  to Manchester Connecticut, near where my grandmother's family lived and thrived and not far from New Haven where many related family lived. I have some lovely photos of the tailor shop and the young boys growing up in a nice town where they were picked on by Protestants and Catholics equally accepting, but those stories must come after we arrive in the smaller  small town, Putnam, Connecticut, where they all ended up after my grandfather's tailor shop went under as part of the bank crash of 1933. 

My father had this house built on a lot next to the Johnson sisters, who taught piano, violin and singing. This is almost ironic since everyone in the small town in Blazing Saddles was named Johnson, though none were black. This is where my father, Ralph "Roy" Chapnick brought us up and taught us

about life...his version. He could look serious, but except when he lost his temper, he made us laugh. He loved sports and all the Chicago teams, which was a challenge since we lived in an area where the fan base were rabid Red Sox or Yankee fans.  He married a beautiful smart shikseh (non-Jewish girl) just as WWII was ending and together they banged out three boys in three years. Here is an awful picture taken on their 25th anniversary. I have more and better I promise.

To prove the existence of children here we are outside the house in 1961, with Dad hanging on to David, Barry scowling and I am the handsome one. Kennedy was president and Jackie the first lady, and here my mother is channeling that look. We were all Democrats. 

Time to research Chapter 2 and find more pictures. Thanks for listening.

Chapter 2:

So I left off with unanswered questions about the move to Putnam, and my ancestors' time in Manchester Connecticut. I was told by my father that my grandfather and grandmother moved there to get the boys away from the violence of the city.

I was told by my brother David that in his conversations with Jean Shiner the family had been moving back and forth across the country but when brought the family back to New York he had some success in Manhattan in Tailor shop on Park Avenue. One of Hyman's brothers was also a tailor who worked in the shop on Park Avenue and his daughter, Jean, was David's source of information. Her father was the brother with the fraternal twin who's name was Michael in New York but his Yiddish name was Abbash. 

To supplement what little I have learned from family I have been supplementing my knowledge using 23 and me and Ancestry.com. Since it seems Grandpa arrived in 1896, I have read the census information for 1900, 1910 and found no Chapnick, nor similar name. The 1920 census told a different story as it located Herman and Niona (Leona) Chapnick living at 26 Birch St. Manchester, Connecticut ! Yay.

Since my uncle was born in 1903 and Dad was born in 1906 they would be teenagers then, and so they were.

Naturally when they got to Manchester, my grandfather opened his tailor business. My uncle is the tall one with a sort of blank scowl but since he was 16, he had on long pants. My father was the smiling cutie pie wearing knickers. Grandpa did not look thrilled to be  in the picture either. As you can see they were surrounded by fabric and clothing in various stages. You can make the picture bigger when you download it. Then you can decide if you see David, Barry or I in their faces or if you see your self.

1920 Census

Click here and you will be redirected to the page from Ancestry which confirms what I have said, and again you can make the various information bigger once you download. 

Notable aspects are that they were renting and had moved their recently. Moving on, the generic part of Hyman (Herman's) history reads:Hyman Chapnick was born on September 17, 1875, in Poland. He had two sons with Leona Greenberg Chapnick between 1903 and 1906. He died on April 11, 1958, at the age of 82, and was buried in Manchester, Jamaica.

Hyman’s family

Children

Morton H. Chapnick

+ 1 child

Selected person

Hyman Chapnick

Spouse

Leona Greenberg Chapnick

Parents

Unknown father

Unknown mother

Hyman’s map

Show mapBirth: 17 Sep 1875 • Poland; Burial: Manchester; Obituary for Hyman Chapnick (Aged 83): 13 Apr 1958 • Hartford, Connecticut; Obituary for Hyman Chapnick (Aged 83): 13 Apr 1958 • Hartford, Connecticut; Residence: 1930 • Manchester, Hartford, Connecticut, USA; Residence: 1906 • Springfield, Hampden, Massachusetts, USA

Life Events

17 SEP

1875

Edit

Birth

Hyman Chapnick was born on September 17, 1875, in Poland.

17 Sep 1875 • Poland 

1896

AGE 21

Edit

Arrival

1890

29 NOV

1903

AGE 28

Birth of son

His son Morton H. was born on November 29, 1903, in New Haven, Connecticut.

Morton H. Chapnick

1903–1976

29 November 1903 • New Haven, Connecticut, USA

22 AUG

1906

AGE 30

Birth of son

His son Ralph H was born on August 22, 1906.

Ralph H Chapnick

1906–1973

22 Aug 1906

1906

AGE 31

Edit

Residence

Hyman Chapnick lived in Springfield, Massachusetts, in 1906.

1906 • Springfield, Hampden, Massachusetts, USA

1930

AGE 55

Edit

Residence

Hyman Chapnick lived in Manchester, Connecticut, in 1930.

Marital Status: Married; Relation to Head: Head

1930 • Manchester, Hartford, Connecticut, USA

11 APR

1958

AGE 82

Edit

Death

Hyman Chapnick died on April 11, 1958, when he was 82 years old.

So this brings us to the 1930 census:

1930 Census 

Same deal as before but some major changes:

1.    Owns the home.

2.    Value of the home $14,000.00 which becomes more than $250,000.00 in current dollars.

3.    His bankbook, which I must get out my files showed he had $33,000.00 in the bank in 1930 - $855,000.00.

That is how he sent one son to medical school, and one to law school. 

But that is Chapter two, Before I forget.

Christina Iverson

Title: Two themes for the price of one? 

We had the pleasure of C.C. blogging the first Patti V. puzzle since she became editor; now we have the first post-change puzzle from her new assistant. Christina has been a very active since she DISCOVERED crossword puzzles for fun and profit four years ago.  If you click on the link above it is an interesting and helpful introduction if you want to follow in her footsteps, or word steps. I became aware of her with the reading of the CROSSWORD PUZZLE COLLABORATION DIRECTORY   a Facebook group. Perhaps Moe will share his experience with them. Anyway, on with the puzzle.

This Friday effort jibes with the new style, with an emphasis on fun cluing.  The themers are a 9, two 11s and a 9. The longish CONDUCT, DISTANT,  I NEED IT, and VACUOUS are just 7 spaces, though we do have LIFE IS GOOD and MISSED CALL  in the down fill. But wait, there is more! There are also two ten letter fill clued as if they were part of the theme, but are they?

First, 

16A. NVS: GREEN EYED (9). If you have imagination you can see NVS = ENVIOUS, especially if you add IOU to the letters. Jealously is the green-eyed monster. 

23A. TDS: MIND NUMBING (11). TEDIOUS, exhibits an additional insertion of IOU and thus a punnish fill.  A ninety minute organic chemistry lecture was enough brain drain for me.

52A. DVS: UNDERHANDED (11). Ah, good; DEVIOUS = UNDERHANDED. The theme has emerged and is consistent.

65A. ODS: JUST AWFUL (9). ODIOUS is another IOU and completes the symmetry of the main theme.

Meanwhile, you see...

39A. IC: DISTANT. A curve ball as this is another sounds like clue (if you are icy to someone, you will appear distant) but there is no IOU? Then, 

41. MT: VACUOUS. The next clue/fill are exactly the same pattern; if you told someone that their friend was empty headed, they would be vacuous. Hmm.

I hope Christina comes by and unravels this mini-mystery.

Across:

1. Flows back: EBBS. A classic crosswordese clued differently. And 4D. Flow slowly: SEEP.

5. Sci. major: BIO. Many choices here, must wait for perps.

8. Fisher of "Wedding Crashers": ISLA. Goody, a fill that I am sure is correct. Isla Lang Fisher was born on February 3, 1976 in Muscat, Oman, to Scottish parents Elspeth Reid and Brian Fisher, who worked as a banker for the U.N. She spent her early childhood in Bathgate, Scotland, before moving to Perth, Australia with her family in the early 1980. imdb. 

                                                                                   Photo by Richard Cartwright - © 2005 - New Line Cinema

. Eight or nine on the Beaufort scale: GALE. I will try not to give a   long winded answer. LINK12

13. Twinge: PANG. Which sounds exactly like the Thai word for expensive.

14. Hijab and niqab, e.g.: VEILS.

18. Like Keebler's animated bakers: ELFIN. I hit a minor speed bump with ELVIN, the first name of a City Commissioner I know.

19. Daze: STUPOR. No, I was not in a Stupor, not then at least. 

 

20. Serpentine fish: EEL. CSO to C.C.

22. Toy company with theme parks: LEGO. This also is is in Mnnesota.

26. Bound: JUMP. Definition of bound (Entry 4 of 7) 1 : leap, jump cleared the hedge at a xinglebound.

30. Island chain: LEI. This is witty; we used to make all kinds of chains in schools. Then paired with the non-clecho...

31. Parts of an island chain: CAYS. This is pronounced and is another spelling of KEYS, which anyone in Florida is familiar with. 

32. Bagel flavor: ONION. I cannot think of any other five letter bagels.

34. Part of a flight: STAIR. Another nice deception, not running away or going in the air, just stairs.

36. Steve Carell voice role: GRU. I am not sure I knew he was the felonious Gru in the DESPICABLE ME movies.

43. "__ been a while!": IT'S. Did you miss me?

44. Place to have a ball?: DISCO. A cute clue/fill pair; literal but evocative.

46. Smog element: OZONE. Another layered clue/fill.

47. Sweeping: EPIC. The old CBS record company? 

49. Olive extract: OIL. Poor girl, she has had a hard life and they cannot even spell her name correctly. 

51. Some Neruda poems: ODES. A reminder of dear Clear Ayes, our initial poet in residence. The critics list these as his BEST. This is my favorite of his ODES.

56. Costa __: RICA. Female, Puerto Rico, male.

57. Pull the plug on: END. My mind jumped to the horrible choice made in hospice. 

58. Top 10 U2 song from "Rattle and Hum": DESIRE.

63. High-five sounds: SLAPS. A bit musical

67. Totally fine: ALL OK. Or if you want obscure and you are a techie nerd ALLOK

68. Cuatro y cuatro: OCHO. Spanish multiplication/

69. Resale warning: AS IS.

70. "Betsy's Wedding" writer/director: ALDA. Star...
                            

71. Sporty truck, briefly: UTE. Still the movie comes to mind

72. Zero: NONE. Nada.

Down:

1. What some layers cover: EGGS. See, I knew this was intended as a layered puzzle.

2. Toon boy known for chalkboard gags: BART. Young Mr. Simpson.

3. Flag couleur: BLEU. French begets French.

5. __ leaf: BAY. Now we are cooking...

6. "This isn't optional!": I NEED IT. You deserve it!

7. Nash who rhymed "Bronx" and "thonx": OGDEN. The Bronx? No thonx! This - one of the shortest poems ever - is the product of Ogden Nash (1902-1971). It was called a "Geographical Reflection" in his book Hard-Lines (1931). 

8. First-person contraction: I'VE.

9. Date stamp: SELL BY. Are they meaningful? Use By" Dates: "This date is put on by the food manufacturer as the last date recommended for the use of the product while at peak quality. "Expiration" Dates: "The "expiration" date is aimed at consumers and is the last date the product can be considered fresh. "Sell By" Dates: "This date tells the store how long to display the food product.

10. Apparel company with a smiling stick-figure icon: LIFE IS GOOD.