I'm assuming you found the other "Rat Pack" members. There are four more associated with Frank's other nickname, his early record label, and one of his songs.
I got this one from NICKNAME and BLUEEYES, in conjunction with SAMMY and DEAN the other members of the Brat Pack with FRANK. Only after reading the comments do I see the grid entries that can precede BOARD.
You sure packed a lot of stuff in there! Got the themes, the Rat Pack, the other nickname and the record label, but I’m stumped on the song. Nice puzzle, Capn!
PETER Lawford also in there, right?
Thought there was some diversion towards Clint Eastwood, with at least KEEPOFF, IWO, CHAIR, OLD, PEEVISH and GRAN. True, Cap'n?
Great clue for rival of Popeye - thought for long time how to make BLUTO fit in three spaces!
Delightful! Cap’n Rick, if you could have also somehow worked in the Frat Pack, I’d be IN AWE!! As it is I’ve found five or maybe six Easter Eggs so far. I’ll look again later. Thanks!
Thanks, Chris. Glad you liked it. Happy hunting for those remaining Easter eggs!
Snood 🤓2:39 · 2023-03-27T16:51:22.276Z
Usual awsomeness! I work on a charity event with lots of young 'ens and they never know what I'm talking about when I ask for a timpani roll to update the tote board! So much cleverness but KFC as Popeye's rival led the way for me.
Bird Lives 7s · 2023-03-27T18:05:20.085Z
When I was a young 'un, the only tote board I knew was the the at the race track. It showed the odds and amounts bet on each horse. It was called the tote board because it was made by the American Totalizator Company or something like that. (I'm not googling it to confirm. That's my derivation, and I'm sticking to it.
Ah, good! Now two people have heard of a tote board. And you're right, Jay. From Wikipedia: "A tote board (or totalisator/totalizator) is a numeric or alphanumeric display used to convey information, typically at a race track (to display the odds or payoffs for each horse) or at a telethon (to display the total amount donated to the charitable organization sponsoring the event)".
Snood 🤓2:39 · 2023-03-28T01:21:22.491Z
Jay's right that I/we encountered tote boards at the track, but I'm sticking with Jerry and Ed (usually with timpani drums) as the "signature" tote board: And here's one with a Rat Packer: https://youtu.be/dUbuQhctYo0.
Um, I don't know, David. Frank may have liked fried chicken, but that's not one of my Easter eggs. Keep looking!
hoover 3s · 2023-03-27T17:35:45.287Z
I found Joey (Bishop), Sammy (Davis, Jr.), Peter (Lawford), Dean (Martin), Nick, Name, Old, Blue, Eyes. Are those the eight Easter eggs, and there's also a metanism? Wait, that's nine. Erika, Anne, Arlo, Isa, and Luc (and Pat) were throwing me off.
OK, I found it. I had posted the metanism in my Reply to MatthewL (aka Michael) below:
There are 5 (symmetrically-placed, of course!) grid entries that can be types of "boards" (e.g. STARBOARD). Above (or "Over") each type of "board" is a word, and these five words provide a hint to the meta answer. This hint dovetails with two of the Easter eggs.
Hi, hoover. Yes, there is also a metanism that I thought I posted here earlier. Crosshare does some funky caching, so I think I'll wait a little while before posting it again (if necessary).
Bird Lives 7s · 2023-03-27T17:30:17.584Z
I didn't bother with Easter Eggs (or rats). I did it my way. (OTOH, I did like CHAIR crossed with MAN OF.)
Usual awesomeness! Thank you for sharing. I work on a charity event with lots of youngsters and they always look at me crookedly when I call for a timpani roll to update the tote board! So much cleverness but KFC as Popeye's rival led the way for me.
MatthewL 🤓5:50 · 2023-03-27T18:01:22.162Z
Actually solved this off the easter eggs. Still not entirely sure what the mechanism is. In any event, nice puzzle!
Thanks, Michael. There are 5 (symmetrically-placed, of course!) grid entries that can be types of "boards" (e.g. STARBOARD). Above (or "Over") each type of "board" is a word, and these five words provide a hint to the meta answer. This hint dovetails with two of the Easter eggs.
MatthewL 🤓5:50 · 2023-03-27T19:01:43.594Z
Ahh, now I get it! So, without realizing it, I did actually use the mechanism in a sense, because it was Nickname Blue Eyes that clinched it for me (did not see Old). That and seeing Peter, Dean, Joey and Sammy in the grid (poor Angie always gets forgotten).
Well you had me running down bunny trails Cap. I saw CHAIRMAN, FOREMAN, OLDMAN and was ready to enter CFO but that is an important person, not a famous one. I then was scrambling for "MANs": ANTMAN, BLUEMAN, PETERMAN (from Seinfeld), C'MON MAN, SEEYA MAN..but obviously nowhere. Then I went to the Muggle site and looked at your entry. NCK NAME had stood out early but then I dropped to the bottom and saw BLUEEYES and remembered OLD in the middle. I added SAMMY, JOEY and DEAN. That is when CHAIRMAN Really became important because we all know he was Chairman of the Board. I saw RCA (one of the labels he was on) and wondered if you had tried Reprise (the label he started) but didn't see that. This will play easier for us in the "older generation". I liked the puzzle and I will definitely keep spreading the news. (Oh, and just now realized that you ended with a Sinatra song)
Hey, DrTom! Welcome to the post-solve party here on Crosshare! It's great having a place where we can discuss all the many rabbit holes, red herrings, and Easter eggs before the reveal, isn't it? So yes, I'm glad you spotted CHAIRMAN, since that's part of Frank's other NICKNAME that dovetails with "OLDBLUEEYES". And, of course, I had to cram the other four "Rats" in there (don't forget PETER!) along with RCA and ISA rounding out the rest of the Easter eggs. You're right that this will play easier for the "older generation", but I'm noticing that a lot of us Muggles are retired. Someone should conduct a poll some day to obtain more info on Muggle demographics.
Great puzzle. I was floundering for a bit and then my husband reminded me to look at the title again. Once I did that, it all came together nicely. I even found the Easter Eggs, which I hardly ever do!
We went overboard and thought of blue board and name board. We did see all the Easter eggs including the nickname Old Blue eyes. Glad we finally just submitted Sinatra. A fun one as always Cap'n! Thanks so much!
Good job, Team! I think everyone took a different route on this one.
JHSeeman 3s · 2023-03-28T17:35:03.673Z
Saw FOREman, Chairman, Old Man sat in that rabbit hole for a bit, then the nagging Chair 15A Man of 7D then I saw the easter eggs, Joey, Sammy Dean, thought the original Ocean's Eleven crew, and saw Outboard, Toteboard, Dashboard, Old Blue Eyes and realized both the meta and part of the easter eggs. Really fun one, thanks
Thanks, John. Yeah, there's a lot to look at in this one. I was originally thinking that the metanism was going to be too easy for everyone (Level 1 or lower), so I added all of those Easter eggs as an added bonus. Glad it was fun for you!
Solved this one over breakfast after being stumped yesterday. Like Dr. Tom, I was putting "man" after everything in sight -- and I was SURE I was on the right track when I found our president's phrase "C'mon, man!" Thanks, Rick!