Saturday 29 November 2014

No.11253, Saturday 29 Nov 14, Gridman


Typical satisfying fare from Gridman who seems to be on an extended run? Liked BAD EGG, NOTE, ALLURE, INBORN, NEST, CAESURAE, SALMON and ON IT. Despite my reservations, HAPPY HOURS tells a nice story too. Thanks to the setter for the daily fix.


ACROSS
1 Anna, bail out a foreign national (8) ALBANIAN [ANNA BAIL]*
5 Imposed one's will on fourth assault group? (6) FORCED [assault group=FORCE + fourth=D]
9 The fellow-publicist passes over second executioner (8) HEADSMAN [fellow=HE + publicist=AD MAN outside Second]
10 Scoundrel beckoned girl after girl (3,3) BAD EGG [beckoned=BADE + Girl + Girl]
12 Pay heed to // piece of music (4) NOTE [DD]
13 Shh — pay up or look for bar discount times (5,5) HAPPY HOURS [SHH PAY UP OR]* Not sure how 'look'  or 'look for' serves as anagram indicator
15 Charm everybody at university by reading English (6) ALLURE [everybody=ALL + University + Reading + English]
17 Delete article in Scottish language (5) ERASE [article=A inside Scottish language=ERSE]
20 A pawnshop’s offering declared without assistance (5) ALONE [A + pawnshop offering=~LOAN]
21 Father fesses up to grimaces (6) FROWNS [FatheR + fesses up to=OWNS]
24 Fancies one small bend in bags (10) VISUALISES [one=1 + Small + bend=U inside bags=VALISES]
27 Angry one leaving charge (4) RATE [angry=iRATE]
29 Hardwired hotel admits cheat back (6) INBORN [hotel=INN outside cheat=ROB<-]
30 USA mints destroyed in large waves (8) TSUNAMIS [USA MINTS]*
31 Country fellow's collection of reminiscences (6) GUYANA [fellow=GUY + collection=ANA]
32 Impulse of this month to have can checked first (8) INSTINCT [this month=INST outside can=TIN + Checked]

DOWN
1 Present in the vicinity (2,4) AT HAND [E]
2 Food preservative kit assembled in devotion in India (6) BHAKTI [food preservative=BHA + KIT*]
3 From where flying starts happen (4) NEST [CD]
4 Rope-making fibre used by Colaba cattlemen (5) ABACA [T]

6 Nothing char disposed of is vegetable (5) ORACH [nothing=0 + CHAR*]
7 Use care — a review is needed of poetic pauses (8) CAESURAE [USE CARE A]*
8 Taken in, went out to catch heroic deed (8) DIGESTED [went out=DIED outside heroic deed=GEST]
11 Ill-gotten dope's about eastern auto instrument (6) SPEEDO [DOPE'S* outside Eastern]
14 Down-in-the-dumps // shade (4) BLUE [DD]
16 Discriminatory in world show (6) UNFAIR [world=UN+ show=FAIR] world or world organisation?
17 Bird has no luck almost in Swiss city (4) ERNE [Swiss city=lucERNE]
18 Discerning about Indian magazine in Gujarat's capital (8) SAVVYING [Indian magazine=SAVVY + IN + Gujarat]
19 Give accommodation to lad — one among estate staff (8) HOUSEBOY [give accommodation to=HOUSE + lad=BOY]
22 Male entering barbershop is a swimmer (6) SALMON [Male inside barbershop=SALON]
23 If you need some larger beds, it won’t do! (6) BEDSIT [CD & T?]
25 Automobile Association's run on high priest (5) AARON [Automobile Association + Run + ON]
26 Seen wandering round southern city (5) ESSEN [SEEN* outside Southern]
28 Have zero complaint when pursuing an assignment (2,2) ON IT [0 + complaint=NIT]

61 comments:

  1. Paddy, wrt your 705pm yesterday ...
    I just happened to remember it because I had some exchange of mails with CV over that clue ... Otherwise, I would have forgotten too. My momory is as good or bad as yours. After all we are all mommals with mommory glands which especially fail their purpose in the moles of the species ...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Read comments under my 907 yesterday including the graphic
      --O-O--

      Reading between the lines one can see that GM has disclosed something about a cover up ...

      Delete
  2. Another hint: If you buy one, do you get the other free?

    ReplyDelete
  3. What is all this hints about? Am I missing something again? Or is it a continuation of yesterday?
    I agree with you on one thing Kishore- we (or at least I) need a trigger to remember something.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Today, Gridman is talking of a hundred years of women's upliftment ... Read the letters running across the grid in the rows which don't have across solutions and you will stumble upon his message

      Delete
    2. Paddy, my first comment was just about pulli your leg for tyo in your comment yesterday, but when I was typing it, I realised that I could link it to today's topic, and did so

      Delete
    3. I just realised my typo yesterday gave a sort of hint about things to come. I did not realise it even after reading your opening comment. Hats off to you for getting into the tiniest of openings.

      Delete
    4. Kishore @ 9:49 reg : " I " after the W's 'upliftment'' is a bit confusing!

      Delete
    5. Persist and all will be revealed when you get to the bottom of it ...

      Delete
  4. I am beginning to get the hang of it.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. With proper support, there can be reason to get the 'hang' ...

      Delete
  5. Replies
    1. Then it is time for you to BRAzenly BRAss up

      Delete
  6. Replies
    1. So now you know C(zarina) V(ictoria)'s Secret !

      Delete
  7. Replies
    1. Great, Paddy. Now I can stop braying

      Delete
    2. I meant I was BRAzenly BRAying and displaying BRAvado

      Delete
    3. You seem to have one too many!

      Delete
    4. Reminds me of the painting of the 'fallen madonna with three ...... ' in the telecomedy 'Allo 'Allo

      Delete
  8. MB, I was watching Tumse Achcha Kaun Hai and Mehmood's lingo reminded me of you potta and pottis from Hyd

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. One potti (not Potti Sriramulu) regularly drops in. Absent today.

      Delete
    2. Raghu, the paradropping mother in law, you mean ...

      Delete
    3. No I meant the early bird with the annos.

      Delete
    4. Pottan/potti is completely different in malayalam ..foolan/foolie ;-)

      Delete
    5. Raghu, you have just given another description for the same person!

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    6. Because I couldn't get whet you meant.

      Delete
    7. Could not have been plainer. She is a mother in law and has done para dropping

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    8. I did not know abt para dropping.

      Delete
    9. But then, there's no one else from Hyd. So it should have been obvious.

      Delete

    10. Will have to wait for the fallschirmjäger herself to confirm. My memory says parachuting as I remember having pulled her leg over the similarity of that with her surname

      Delete
  9. She is busy posting clues in ccs and 1AC

    ReplyDelete
  10. Today. Gridman has ''uncovered '' his psychological pre-occupation about his obsession--- This is the common veil or is it the weal of his cluing ability that I had hinted about a few months ago for ye-all to guess !!

    ReplyDelete
  11. I could not get hold of today's THC; hope I may be allowed to make some comments about yesterday's one.
    1A- No doubt every CW needs getting used to and I am new to THC.So far, I have been used to equate ' about' to ' re' and I learnt that' ca' also stands for it, for the first time today.Guess it is short for ' circa'.Since I had already got the first letter 'c', it would have been easier to think of some ( Roman) emperor with a name starting with ' c' and the notorious Caligula's name would have occurred sooner rather than later and the unravelling of the annotation could have followed. Sometimes I find this method quite useful.( Intuition rather than analysis)
    14D- Relating' culture' to ' agriculture' seems rather too earthy an interpretation and almost like making fun of culture.But in purely Archaeological or Anthropological terms it a valid one.

    ReplyDelete
  12. A request to all setters. - When You answer the bloggers, on clarifying few clues, it will helpful, if the answers are in one go. Thank You.

    ReplyDelete
  13. Seems like a very esoteric theme, so I failed to spot it until it was mentioned here.

    Thanks to Colonel/Kishore/CV for uploading the highlighted grid.

    ReplyDelete
  14. Just a few days ago a friend of mine alerted to me the fact that the bra was patented first in the US in November, 1914.
    See
    https://www.englishclub.com/this-week-in-history/Archive/First_Bra_Is_Patented/
    This crossword was immediately and quickly put together so as to appear this month.
    In some ways this is a bespoke crossword.
    But I am yet to get any reaction from my friend.

    ReplyDelete
  15. Bhavan is right in saying that the hidden message is truly hidden.
    Now my question is: should a crossword with a Nina necessarily have some lights (answers) in the grid to give a hint to the hidden message?
    If so, this CWD lacks that, unfortunately.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Depends whether the Nina is accidental, in which case, it came about unbeknown to the setter himself, which is miraculous ;if it is intentional, hints can be shrouded into the clue building. then the solvers can go hunting for lady Nina in the gridstack !

      Delete
  16. Did not notice the bra bit. Rina Marlowe in The Carpetbaggers was supposed to be the first one to wear one as per Harold Robbins

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I don't believe this.
      The Carpetbaggers is a 1964 film.
      Surely, earlier than that year, films must have had women wearing bras/bikinis.
      Does anyone else have any view on this?

      Delete
    2. I am not talking of the movie. Rina Marlowe is a character in the novel. I do not remember the period during which the book is set. But she was an actress and the director gets her to try a bra, which was apparently a first time creation.

      Delete
    3. Many a bra in wash :-( Gridman is too much:-D

      Delete
  17. But I am yet to get any reaction from my friend. - CV 3:27 pm

    Now you have.

    And to all friends who expressed concern about my being away, I am simply hale and hearty but have been preoccupied with some assignments. All well here. Same for those who had emailed me about it. Thanks a lot.

    With friends like you, what better could I have asked for? :-)

    ReplyDelete
  18. Does anyone else have any view on this? CV 5:17 pm

    You are referring to in-sight...

    ReplyDelete
  19. Nice to hear from Richard after a long long time. Welcome back.

    ReplyDelete
  20. OMG! All the boys having a riot of revelry discussing a very important article of alluring interest!!!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Long overdue ... At last the icing on the cake ...

      Delete

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