Birds of a Feather

Today marks my 90th post! Had I not taken two months off, I would have had over 150. Oh, well. . . .

We have another celebrity puzzle today (see my previous post "Bad Hair Day"). This is by David W. Cromer and it's called "Audobon Society." You guessed it; the celebrities all have types of birds in their names:

Raven Symone, age 3

16A: Daughter on The Cosby Show (RAVEN SYMONE). Raven Symone was only 3 or 4 when she made her debut on The Cosby Show as Denise's stepdaughter, Olivia. They needed someone to replace cute little Rudy's place since she was about to hit puberty. Wasn't Raven cute? She also was on "Hangin' with Mr. Cooper and appeared in two of the Dr. Dolittle movies. Also a singer, she eventually had her own show in The Disney Channel called "That's So Raven." OK, she gained a few pounds over the years, but there's nothing wrong with having curves. She showed off a much slimmer look last summer (see before-and-after picture on the left). 

61A: Cheers star (RHEA PERLMAN). Carla Tortelli, the wise-cracking waitress at Cheers, was such a great character. She had disdain for many people, especially her fellow waitress Diane Chambers (played by Shelley Long) and Cliff Claven, the hapless mailman (played by John Ratzenberger). Carla had a reputation for being promiscuous. When the series started, Carla had four children but had eight by the time it ended. Carla knew Sam during his baseball days, and invited Carla to work for him when he opened the bar. Her first husband, Nick Tortelli  (played by Dan Hedaya), re-married a blonde bimbo named Loretta. Nick had an unsuccessful spin-off series of his own. Carla's second husband was the hockey star Eddie LeBec (played by Jay Thomas). Unfortunately, Eddie was released from the Bruins' contract and had to take a job as a mascot for a traveling ice show. He met his demise with a Zamboni machine.

10D: Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous co-host (ROBIN LEACH). Champagne wishes and caviar dreams! This show focused on celebrities and all the material possessions they owned so they could rub it in our faces. The show was often parodied (badly) on other TV series, such as Sesame Street and Saved by the Bell. Leach was a former journalist who hosted this show from the mid-80s to the mid-90s. Pictured on the right is Leach interviewing the divine Miss Piggy. 

28D: Norma Rae director (MARTIN RITT). A successful TV director, Martin Ritt (1914-1990) was blacklisted by the House Un-American Activities committee for directing Communist-party members of a local NYC union in their annual show. He was associated with other theater groups who had Communist leanings. He then returned to the theater until the Red Scare decreased its intensity, and he went on to direct movies. Some of his most successful films included The Long, Hot Summer, Sounder, The Great White Hope, Hud, and Murphy's Romance. Sally Field, of course, won an Oscar for Norma Rae. 

Today's Crytoquote is by Henry David Thoreau:

"There are few men who do not love better to give advice than to give assistance."

This is sort of a continuation of yesterday's quote. 

Till tomorrow. . . . 

Signing off,

The Puzzlechick

Mmm Mmm Good!

It's another rainy afternoon here in NYC.

Today's puzzle, by Sally R. Stein, is called "Pair of Fives." It's a tribute to one of my favorite candies, M&Ms! 

20A: Bigwig in publishing (MEDIA MOGUL). My hubby is waiting for one Mr. Rupert Murdoch to get his comeuppance. Mr. Murdoch has been involved in a major phone-hacking scandal in England, and it keeps getting worse. The scandal put an 168-year-old newspaper (News of the World) out of business, and thousands lost their jobs. Now Rupert and his son James may be going to the big house. 

58A: Nonstop talker (MOTOR MOUTH). We used to call my mom's friends "The Motor Mouth Crew." This was especially true when they got together for their monthly mah-jongg game. That's how I heard all the neighborhood gossip! 

10D: Parking-ticket writers (METER MAIDS). In the entire time I've been living in Forest Hills, I have yet to see one meter maid. We have nasty cops who write tickets to meet their monthly quota. However, they do exist, and the politically-correct name is parking enforcement officer.

29D: Celebrates noisily (MAKES MERRY). My new-found friendships with a group of girls from high school has resulted in several parties! From a hats to Halloween, we always seem to have a good time!

Henry David Thoreau (1817-1862) is the author of today's cryptoquote:

"When a dog runs at you, whistle for him."

This is the dream of every dog owner. However, dogs, like humans, can be sneaky. All it takes is patience and lots of rewards to get your pup to cooperate. Yelling doesn't help.

Thoureau was best known for his essay Civil Disobedience, which is about the right and obligation to follow your conscience, and not what the majority dictates. It criticized social institutions and policies, mainly slavery and the Mexican-American War.

That's all for today. Zumba followed by abs class tonight. It's supposed to be warmer tomorrow. We'll see.

Till tomorrow. . . .

Signing off,
The Puzzlechick