Introduction
Many thanks to Henry for supplying the solution (see Comments section below).
I invite you to leave a comment to let us know how you fared with the puzzle.
Signing off for this week — Falcon
Toughie 3383
15 hours ago
Saturday, December 21, 2019
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Just in time for Christmas - a timeless tale. Not too difficult today, but with some interesting parsings.
ReplyDeleteA reprise of my favourite word from last week, so don't monkey around!
And the weather is certainly grey in the GTA, although I haven't seen any mutant roaches lately.
Well - Merry Christmas to all! God bless us, everyone!
Henry
Good morning,
ReplyDelete7d is a new word for me. And I'm stuck on 16d. Other than those, I found this to be a fairly straightforward and predictable puzzle today. Merry Christmas everyone!
Peter
Hi Peter! Merry Christmas to you too!
Deletere 7d - aka info highway, probably used in Europe more than here
16d
Ah - a good one! Think of the movie star that is C Rains. and you'll see that he's been clawed (just like dogs and cats).
Ah yes. The actor was English -- not French. Despite this, I always want to give his name a French pronunciation (which is not at all helpful here).
DeleteHad a Dickens of a time with 16d. Finally popped in for the answer and it is brilliant.
ReplyDeleteThe merriest of Christmases for everyone! Here is the solution to this week’s puzzle:
ReplyDeleteI call this one “The Ghost of Christmas Past” from the obvious clues and 14a. I was thinking of calling it ‘A Tale of Two Cities´ after 25a and, well, London.
Across
1a BOB C(R)AT|C|HIT R=revels at first (first letter of the word revels), contained in (in) BOBCAT=feline, with C=companion’s initial (first letter of the word companion), and HIT=success
9a {T(IN|Y )TIM}< IN+ Y=a gym, contained in (wearing) TTIM=mitt (glove) reversal (the wrong way)
10a CHAI|NED CHAI=spiced tea, NED=Ned Sparks (born Edward Arthur Sparkman, November 19, 1883 – April 3, 1957) was a Canadian-born character actor of the American stage and screen.
11a {EBENEZER SCROOGE}* Anagram (playing) on ‘boo screen geezer’
12a NIGHTS˜ Homonym (for the audience) of knights=dubs
14a R(EVEN)ANT EVEN=placid one, contained in (about) RANT=talk crazily. A revenant is someone that returns after a lengthy absence or death.
16a C(HARCO*)AL HARCO=Anagram (mutant) of ‘roach’, contained in (found in) CAL=shortform for California
18a E(PONY)M PONY=horse contained in (framed by) EM=Dorothy’s aunt from ‘The Wizard of OZ’. A silhouette (for example) is the dark shape and outline of someone or something visible against a lighter background, especially in dim light. The word silhouette is derived from the name of Étienne de Silhouette, a French finance minister who’s name was connected with anything cheap or austere.
22a {A CHRISTMAS CAROL}* Acronym (ruined) on ’actor claims rash’
24a D(ICK)ENS ICK=that’s gross, contained in (entering) DENS=places of vice
25a CHIC|AGO CHIC=stylish, AGO=earlier than this
26a A(LAST|AIR S)IM LAST AIRS=final broadcasts, contained in (about) AIM=point (verb)
Down
1d BITTER|N BITTER=terribly cold, N=Northern
2d BINGE* Acronym (wild) on ‘begin’
3d R(ETRE)AT ETRE=the verb ‘to be’ in French (in Paris), contained in (taken in by) RAT=habitué
4d TAM(P)ER P=musical notation for soft or quiet (piano) contained in (taken up by) TAMER=circus performer
5d _HUCKS|TER_ Hidden in (passing through) woodcHUCK’S TERritory
6d (TEA TRE)|E TEATRE=THEATRE (drama) without the H (lacking H(igh)) with E(nergy)
7d INFOBAHN* Anagram (broadcast) of ‘fan in HBO’
8d AD|VENT AD=notice, VENT=outlet
13d G|RAP|HICS G(eneral), RAP=conversation, with (followed by) HICS=sounds from a drunk
15d FANTASI*|A Anagram (convertible) of ‘in a fast’ with A=one
16d CLAUDE˜ Homonym (by the sound of it) of ‘clawed’ (like cats and dogs) Claude Rains (10 November 1889 – 30 May 1967) was an English film and stage actor whose career spanned several decades. He was a Tony Award winning actor and was a four-time nominee for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor.
17d CHIMER|A CHIMER=doorbell, perhaps, before (preceding) A+
19d {P(U)CCINI}* U=mid-January (middle letter of the word January), contained in (around) PCCINI=Anagram (arranged) of ‘picnic’
20d M|{AL(CO)LM} CO(mpany) contained in (kept by) M=1,000 Roman numeral, ALL M(ale) Malcolm was one of several Scottish kings, e.g. Malcolm III (c. 26 March 1031 – 13 November 1093) was King of Scots from 1058 to 1093.
21d MAS|COT MAS=mom’s, COT=bed
23d REAPS* Anagram (bananas) of ‘spare’
A good bit of fun.
ReplyDeleteCheers to all.
Well, nothing would have helped me with 7d and 16d even after seeing the answers. Other than that, I had a good time with this puzzle. At first I thought 10a was Charles because there were several full names in the puzzle, and so Charles Dickens would have fit the bill. But then I remembered that I drink chai tea, so that got me looking for something else.
ReplyDeleteJust read the comments and saw Claude Rains. Laughed.
ReplyDeleteMerry Christmas Falcon. Hope you are on the mend and maybe even home from the hospital for Christmas.
ReplyDeleteI will get to go home on Christmas Day -- but only for a few hours.
DeleteMy family disputes the answer to 18a. Any connection between eponym and silhouette is very tenuous as best. The definition for eponym that comes closest to possibly being related is:
ReplyDeletea person, real or imaginary, from whom something, as a tribe, nation, or place, takes or is said to take its name.
I seriously dispute 18a. The definition of eponyn does not mean silhouette according to several dictionaries I looked in.
ReplyDeleteThe word "silhouette" is an example of an eponym -- named (although the reason remains uncertain) after Étienne de Silhouette (1709–1767), French author and politician.
Delete