Whine and Dine
Wednesday, April 9, 2008
Puzzle by Daniel Kantor and Jay Kaskel, edited by Will Shortz
WHINEANDDINE (54A. Title of this puzzle); MYSOUPISCOLD (20A. “I asked for tomato bisque, not gazpacho!” [complaint #1]); AREWEINVISIBLE (28A. “Has our waiter even made eye contact?” [complaint #2]); and WHERESOURORDER (47A “What, are they growing the food?” [complaint #3]) are the inter-related entries in this cross crossword puzzle.
Settling for no less are a few other gastronomical entries -- ATE (61D. Had a bit); CREOLE (4D. Spicy cuisine); RAW (44A. Au naturel); Al DENTE (a bit firm) (68A); Won TON (62A.); Shad ROE (34A.); SAL (51A. Sevilla seasoning); PATIO (60A. Place for a barbecue); EDAM (1D. Mild yellow cheese); along with the customer’s YAP (13A. Pie hole), which the waiter wishes would be closed!
Diners in the personage of puzzle people include SHUE (5A. Elisabeth of “Cocktail”); ANNE (17A. Windsor princess); HERR (15A. Mann of the Haus); OAKLEY (35A. Sharpshooting Annie); REA (53A. Actor Stephen); YODA (67A. Sci-fi sage); ERICIV (8D. 13th-century king of Denmark); ARETHA (28D. Queen of Soul, familiarly); ROMMEL (29D. German commander at the invasion of Normandy); IKE (32D. “South Park” boy); ESAI (43D. Morales of “La Bamba”); DADDYO (50D. Pops); ALDA (56D. Robert who won a Tony for “Guys and Dolls”), a NUDE (58D. Like Michelangelo’s David); and a Shortzesque couple, BUB (11D. Pal) and BRO (12D. Pal)!
Today is Cheeta‘s 76th birthday, and from the looks of it, he‘s a cool customer!
Cheeta, the male chimpanzee most famous for his roles in Tarzan movies of the 1930s and 1940s, also became the longest-lived nonhuman primate on record in 1996 when he turned 64. As of 2008, he is still alive (at age 76 on April 9th), living at a desert sanctuary named after him: C.H.E.E.T.A. (which stands for Creative Habitats and Enrichment for Endangered & Threatened Apes). He is reputedly an enthusiastic painter, and his paintings are sold to benefit the sanctuary.
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For today’s cartoons, go to The Crossword Puzzle Illustrated.
