Friday January 29, 2010 Don Gagliado

Theme: THE WALLS HAVE EARS (38A. "Be careful what you say," and a hint to a feature shared by this puzzle's perimeter answers) - The string of letters EAR can be found along the outer edges (walls) of the grid. I've circled them for illustration.

1A. Poet Edward and a king: LEARS. King Lear. My first encounter with the British poet Edward Lear.

6A. "Like Mike" actress: MEARA (Anne). Ben Stiller's mother.

11A. Make on the job: EARN

69A. Wine industry reference point: YEAR. Wine vintage.

70A. Tough test metaphor: A BEAR

71A. Promise: SWEAR

1D. Shoe co. founded in Venice Beach: LA GEAR. Stymied me.

14D. Close one: NEAR MISS

38D. Like some football jerseys: TEARAWAY. Some people go nuts bidding on those game worn smelly jerseys.

52D. Show up: APPEAR

Ten EARS on the walls, perfect! A special 16*15 grid to accommodate the 16-letter unifying theme entry THE WALLS HAVE EARS. Neat that you can't find any non-theme entry containing **EAR** in the grid.

This puzzle reminds me of Don "Hard G" Gagliado's "Shoe Store" puzzle, in which each four-square corner has a box of S H O E (arranged in counterclockwise pattern and the rotation is changed one space at a time). He has a creative & exploratory mind.

Like almost every one of his puzzle that I've blogged, today's theme concept is original and fun. Absolutely no predictability when you see his byline. Always an adventure. Don has kindly provided us the inspiration for this puzzle. Scroll down to the end of this post to read.

Across:

15. When Polonius says "brevity is the soul of wit": ACT II. From "Hamlet". Stumper for me.

16. Outdoor seating area: ARBOR

17. Old knife: SNEE. This has become a gimme.

18. Equatorial African country: GABON. I had ??BON sitting there forever.

19. Lindsay's "Bionic Woman" role: JAIME (Sommers). I just remember it as French "I love" J'aime.

20. Thompson in the Theater Hall of Fame: SADA. Sorry, have never heard of you. (Sorry for the wrong person. Here is the correct one. Thanks, Sam.)

22. Scrooge's visitors: GHOSTS

24. "Ta-ta!": LATER

25. "L.A. Law" extras: ATTS (Attorneys). And ABA (30D. Org. for 25-Across)

27. City near Provo: OREM

28. Chaos: MAYHEM

29. Swipe again?: RE-SCAN. Swipe a credit card.

31. Found, as tabloid fodder: DUG UP. Dug up the dirt.

33. Rec. label across the pond: EMI. One of the "big four" record labels.

34. The duck, in "Peter and the Wolf": OBOE. Can never remember which animal represents which instrument.

36. Liver oil source: COD

37. Home of the Big 12's Cyclones: AMES. Iowa State University.

43. Thought patterns, briefly?: EEGS. The brain tests.

44. Guitar cousin: UKE. Surprised to learn that it's pronounced like "ook", not "yook" in Hawaii. Thanks, KeaauRich! We also have HONOLULU (23D. Frequent Pro Bowl site).

45. Shade: TINT

46. Latin I word: AMO. Amo (I love), Amas (You love), Amat (He/She loves).

47. It's not on the level: SLOPE

49. Oceanic phenomenon that affects weather: LA NINA. Penned in EL NINO.

53. Baroque composer Jean-Philippe: RAMEAU. No idea. Is his hair real?

55. Jump in a rink: AXEL. Bet it's a gimme for Clear Ayes/Robin.

57. Unbalanced: A-LOP. Yep, it's a real word. Santa double-checked! Haysacks, all A-LOP.

58. Ever: AT ALL

59. Lens holders: FRAMES

61. Back talk: LIP

62. Erosive force: WIND. Erosive indeed.

63. Like candied fruits: GLACE. SWEET, anyone?

64. Revolutionary Chopin piece?: ETUDE. An intuitive fill. Not familiar with Chopin's "The Revolutionary Étude".

66. Play to __: A TIE

67. Dull: MATTE. Like some photos.

68. Where gobs go: TO SEA. Gob is slang for "sailor". Gimme for our Navy guys Frank and Spitzoov, I hope. if so, splice the main brace!

Down:

2. French card game similar to whist: ECARTE. Got me. Écarté (ey-kahr-TEY) is literally "discarded". Card game for two players.

3. Casey's turns: AT-BATS. And MUDVILLE (28D. Casey's team). Love the poem "Casey at the Bat". "... But there is no joy in Mudville— mighty Casey has struck out."

4. Ipanema's city: RIO. Maybe Argyle can find a good clip of "The Girl From Ipanema".

5. Do a number: SING. Musical "number".

6. College choice: MAJOR

7. Undid: ERASED

8. Adequate, and then some: A BIT MUCH

11. Blue book entry: ESSAY

12. Object of loathing: ANATHEMA. Know the meaning, not the exact spelling.

13. Mahdi, in Islam: REDEEMER. Mahdi (MAH-dee) is the Muslim messiah, like Jesus. New to me.

24. Sitter's offer to a tot: LAP

26. Garbage haulers: SCOWS

32. Bearded butter: GOAT. Butt-er, the one who butts. Goat butts.

35. Nevada city on I-80: ELKO. What's so famous about this city?

37. Health Net rival: AETNA. Named after the Sicilian volcano ETNA.

39. Iron ore: HEMATITE. Literally "bloodstone". Hemat(o) is prefix for "blood".

40. Dorian Gray's flaw: EGOMANIA. Oscar Wilde's "The Picture of Dorian Gray". I cheated on this one.

41. Like exes: SEPARATE. Like the Edwards. Was amazed by the thick hair of John Edwards when I met him.

42. Bambi relative: ENA. Bambi's aunt.

47. __ Paradise, "On the Road" narrator: SAL. Nope. Have never heard of this novel.

48. Parimutuel bet: EXACTA. Picking the top two finishers in order.

50. Mishandling: ILL-USE. Same meaning as "misuse", right?

51. Shrugger's comment: NO IDEA. Well, I don't shrug my shoulders when I say so.

54. Respected one: ELDER. Esp in China/Japan, you don't argue with the elders.

56. Arab potentate: EMEER. See EMIR more often.

59. Tightening target: FLAB.

60. Jazz sessions: SETS

63. "Today" rival, briefly: GMA (Good Morning America)

65. Haul: TOW

Note from today's constructor:

“The Walls have Ears” was inspired by an episode of Rocky and Bullwinkle. I am very fond of many old cartoons, and The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle is so fun because of all of the wordplay. The particular episode that I was watching featured an office of a spy headquarters, and wallpaper that featured images of ears. A wonderful subtle touch was that although it was never said, the image hearkened to the phrase from spy movies, etc., “the walls have ears.” Naturally, I decided right there that I had to do something with that. The phrase is 16 letters long, which adds a constraint to making the puzzle. I tried for putting as many different letters before EAR as I could around the ‘walls’ of the puzzle.

An interesting sidelight is that this puzzle was submitted a long time ago, last spring I think. It had to be shelved until a reasonable time elapsed after a similar theme was published. That theme was INNER EAR, which had EAR straddling words in a phrase. So it was a surprise when Rich e-mailed me in December that I had to change the puzzle. I had an entry, HERE HERE, which is inaccurate. It should be , HEAR HEAR. An ironic fate, being that HEAR HEAR has two ears in it. It was unfortunate, because I had a really good fill going in that corner. I had to do major revisions affecting half of the puzzle. Anyway, I was able to get the present version accepted before the deadline, and I just squeaked it by for January."

Answer grid.

C.C.

Friday July 26, 2013 George Shayler

Theme: TURN IT AROUND (54A. Recover from a setback, and a hint to 20-, 33- and 40-Across) - IT is turned around and changed to TI.

 

20A. Sloppily kept tents? : CAMPING STIES. Camping sites.

33A. Low clouds on an East Asian island? : TAIWAN STRATI. Taiwan Strait.

40A. Conditions of kids' shoes, too often? : UNTIED STATES. United States.

Boomer here, pinch-hitting for Lemonade, who is sick. He'll be back next Friday.

I just wanted to start by mentioning a bowling tournament I was in last Sunday.  The lane conditions were tough, but I was doing okay, averaged 210 for 6 games and had won 4 of 6 matches.  Then I moved to my next pair, lanes 13 & 14 and tossed 3 splits, (not spltis), and a washout and scored 150 for the game.  I suspect this puzzle for you solvers was a Lanes 13 & 14.

Across:

1. "Little House on the Prairie" merchant ___ Oleson : NELS.  I never watched "Little House" but there are many guys named Nels here in Minnesota, don'tcha know.

5. Bit of trickery : TRAP

9. Genoan chiefs of old : DOGES - You could fill a nostril of a flea with my knowledge of Genoan chiefs.

14. Part of many co. names : INIT

15. Poet Teasdale : SARA

16. Far beyond the norm : ULTRA  -  A good brand.  Fleer made Ultra baseball cards, and there's a golf ball brand Ultra, for those who cannot afford Titleists.

17. See 36-Down : ACTE. And 36-Down: With 17-Across, intermission music: ENTR. Entr'acte.

18. Reunion nicknames : UNCS - If this is short for Uncles, then I suppose Aunts would be AUNS ??

19. Award for John le Carré : EDGAR. Mystery.

23. Tropical rainforest critter : IGUANA.  Many folks keep these for house pets.  They are kind of ugly, so they can replace a husband, (until it's time to fix something).

24. Pacific coast desert : ATACAMA - Of course I was trying to fit Mohave in here, Las Vegas, Southern Calif, etc.  I sort of forgot that Chile also has a Pacific Coast.  Apologies to my buddy, Jorge, from Santiago.

28. Top-selling 1980s game console : NES - Nintendo - Final Fantasy was great.

29. Key of Brahm's Piano Sonata No. 1 : C MAJ

32. Pill bug or gribble : ISOPOD - A crustacean that I've never heard of.

35. Genesis wife : LEAH - Seems Jacob had a couple of wives.

38. Prior to, to Prior : ERE

39. Louisiane, e.g. : ETAT - I get it - Louisiane is French for Louisiana, Etat is french for state.  Do you want fries with that??

45. "A Sentimental Journey Through France and Italy" author : STERNE (Laurence)

46. Doctor's specialty? : SPIN - Why pick on doctors?  I prefer politician's specialty as a clue. 

47. "Ta-ta" : BYE

50. Locks without keys : TRESSES - Kind of a hairy answer that I didn't get right away.

52. Cooking surface : TEFLON - A DuPont innovation in the day.  They now have pans with surfaces so hard you can burn a block of cheese and it won't stick.

57. "Why Can't I?" singer Liz : PHAIR - Sorry, not well known to me.

60. "I'll say!" : AMEN - Latin for "So be it".  Often used and mis-clued in Crosswords.

61. Language written right to left : URDU - another virtually unknown reference.

62. Teegarden of "Friday Night Lights" : AIMEE

63. Equal: Pref. : PARI - My first thought was parimutuel betting at the track.  But that never seems to come out equal.

64. Troon turndowns : NAEs

65. Sporty Nissans : Z-CARS - In 1969, Nissan skipped the entire alphabet and produced their first Z-car in Japan.  Not sure why a Japanese company used our English alphabet ... or maybe I am. 

66. Austen heroine : EMMA - Not Ross Geller and Rachel Green's little girl?

67. London flat, perhaps : TYRE. Flat tyre.

Down:

1. Vitamin in liver : NIACIN - I guess this is vitamin B3 - for those who need to know.

2. Coop up in a coop : ENCAGE  - Picky, Picky - I am not sure if encage is a word.  I am pretty sure that a cage is not a coop.  The Metrodome is a cage, Target field is a coop.  (Flying objects can escape).

3. Substance in acid tests : LITMUS - Red is for acid, blue is for Alkaline, (Hall of Famer who played right field for the Tigers, before Detroit went broke.)  Purple is neutral, Vikings training camp opened this week. 

4. Process start : STEP A

5. Earthquake consequence : TSUNAMI - I never heard this term until a few years ago.  We always called them tidal waves when I was a kid.

6. Gave a buzz : RANG - Didn't like the clue.  Gave a buzz is what the barber did to your head a few days before boot camp.  Rang is more of a chapel bell sound.  It used to be a phone call before ring tones and vibrates.

7. Curved pieces : ARCS

8. It may be corkscrew-shaped : PASTA - yeah, Rotini, but it won't open a bottle of wine.

9. 90 degrees : DUE EAST - Only if you're facing North or South. 

10. It takes time to settle them : OLD SCORES

11. Ta-ta, to texters : GTG (Got to Go) - I don't text or tweet. 

12. Cheer competitor : ERA - Soapy Sales

13. Genealogically-based patriotic org. : SAR (Sons of the American Revolution) - TMAITP (Too many acronyms in this puzzle).

21. Andean native : INCA - Believe it or not, the Incas populated an area from Columbia to the ATACAMA Desert.  24 Across anyone?

22. Medical office closing? : ITIS - Arthritis? Hepatitis? Gingivitis? PLEASE, this is a suffix, not a closing.

25. ___ on the back : A PAT

26. Manny who ranks third in MLB lifetime pinch hits : MOTA - A great pinch hitter, mostly for the Dodgers and Pirates.

27. Colliery entry : ADIT

30. Blows away : AWES - Sorry, not really awed by this puzzle.

31. Horseshoes-like game : JARTS  - They changed the name to Lawn Darts, but then I think they had to pull it from the market due to injuries caused by accidents or misuse.  Later there was Posy Pitch, but it just didn't seem to catch on. Jarts was easier if you used a hula hoop instead of those small plastic rings they gave you.

33. Wanting more : THIRSTIER

34. Biweekly tide : NEAP - comes during the first and third quarters of the moon.  I think it could happen three times a month, say once every blue moon or so.

35. Zest : LUST - Zest is soap.  Lust is something for which you may need the soap.

37. Fits to ___ : A TEE - I have heard the expression but I still like golf peg or field goal kickers need.

41. Cinches : ENSURES

42. Ruminants with racks : DEER - Yeah, but only in the male deer.  Unlike humans where the females have the racks. 

43. Oberon's queen : TITANIA - I rest my case.

44. Cabinet dept. : ENER - I have only seen energy abbreviated this way when a pen runs out of ink.

47. Disc storage format : BLU-RAY - I hardly got used to standard DVDs when along comes Blu-Ray.  I suppose teeny discs for Google Glassed are next.

48. Over there : YONDER - "Lookie Yonder" was a standard phrase in the South.  Probably still is.

49. Ultimate purpose : END USE

51. Dumbledore's slayer : SNAPE - I have sent people on Snipe hunts.  I have never heard of Snape but he could be of the snipe family.

53. Source : FOUNT

55. Quran authority : IMAM

56. Period with limits : TERM - Frank Smith's term was over 250 episodes

57. Bolivia's La ___ : PAZ

58. Minute Maid brand : HIC - Took me awhile to see HI C.  I was thinking more the result of too much Scotch.

59. GP's gp. : AMA

I think I am done.  Thank you for reading this far.  Have a pleasant Friday, and for your trivia question of the day - Who was Joe Friday's original partner on Dragnet, before Bill Gannon?  If you have to Google it, you cannot win the prize.

Boomer

PS:  There is no prize.

Wednesday April 28, 2010 Dan Naddor

Theme: Hungry Celebrities (And you will be too, if you click on all these food links) - Common dishes that happen to contain the first name of a well-known person is humorously reinterpreted and clued as if the dish is what the person wants for the meal.

18A. Response to comic Anderson's "What's for dinner?"?: CRAB LOUIE. Louie Anderson.

21A. Response to Spanish tenor Kraus's "What's for dinner?"?: CHICKEN ALFREDO. Alfredo Kraus. The first two theme answers overlap each other.

37A. Response to Revolutionary Arnold's "What's for breakfast?"?: EGGS BENEDICT. Benedict Arnold.

58A. Response to actress Bracco's "What's for brunch?"?: QUICHE LORRAINE. Lorraine Bracco.

64. Response to jazzman Peterson's "What's for dinner?"?: VEAL OSCAR. Oscar Peterson. The last pair of theme entries also overlap each other.

A special 16*15 grid. The extra column is to accommodate the central even-lettered theme entry EGGS BENEDICT.

Hi, all, Al guesting today, and I was gifted with another Dan Naddor puzzle, thanks C.C. I had mixed feelings about this puzzle. Like the rest of Dan's efforts, I thought it was tricky going at first, especially for a Wednesday, with a lot of unknown names and quite a few three letter answers. I usually try to make all the answer explanations interesting, even when it is a bit challenging. There are quite a few answers today where I just couldn't come up with anything. Maybe it's just the pollen and the late hour. I did manage one pun today.

Across:

1. Hist. or sci.: SUBJ. School subjects, consistent abbreviation in both clue and answer.

5. Penn. crosser: TNPK. Early meaning was a piked road barrier used for defense, from turn + pike (shaft.) The meaning changed to "a horizontal cross of timber, turning on a vertical pin", which was used to bar horses from foot roads. This led to the sense of "barrier to stop passage until a toll is paid"

9. "This is for real!": NO JOKE.

15. Composer Schifrin: LALO. Famous for writing many movie and TV scores, such as the Mission Impossible theme.

16. Noah of "ER": WYLE. Dr. John Carter.

17. Singer Morissette: ALANIS.

20. Forceful, as an argument: COGENT. Necessary, urgent. Borrowed from French.

23. 1861-'89 territory: DAKOTA. It means friendly in the native language. Sometimes translated as "allies".

25. MFA, for one: DEG. Master of Fine Arts or Master of Financial Analysis.

26. Oater okay: YEP. In old westerns on lonely cattle drives, this response from a taciturn cattle hand was sometimes considered to be loquacious. They didn't call him Gabby for nothing.

27. Get ready: PREPARE.

29. Bighorn sheep, at times: RAMMERS. This is what it feels like at work sometimes...

33. What's up?: SKY.

34. Like machine-stamped mail: METERED.

42. Most proximate: NEAREST.

43. Cold and wet: RAW.

46. Flute relative: PICCOLO.

49. Leather source: OSTRICH. A "big sparrow." The Greeks also knew the bird as strouthokamelos "camel-sparrow," for its long neck. Among its proverbial peculiarities are indiscriminate voracity (especially a habit of swallowing iron and stone to aid digestion), want of regard for its eggs, and a tendency to hide its head in the sand when pursued. "Like the Austridge, who hiding her little head, supposeth her great body obscured." Ostriches do put their heads in the sand, but ostrich farmers say they do this in search of something to eat.

53. Tokyo, once: EDO.

54. Sitter's handful: IMP.

57. Sly: CRAFTY.

63. Dump: UNLOAD. The Goldman-Sachs 'Fraud'

67. "Eventually ...": ONE DAY.

68. Nastase of tennis: ILIE.

69. Maestro Klemperer: OTTO. German first name, four letters? This usually works.

70. They're sometimes worn under helmets: DO-RAGS. A colorful large handkerchief worn on the head, usually tied with a tail.

71. Building extensions: ELLS.

72. 1966 Jerry Herman musical: MAME. "Life is a banquet and most poor suckers are starving to death."

Down:

1. Beehive St. capital: SLC. Salt Lake City, Utah.

2. Old Mideast org.: UAR. United Arab Republic, formerly Egypt and Syria.

3. Mark of shame: BLACK EYE. But you should'a seen the other guy...

4. Change positions often: JOB HOP. You know you're getting old if you remember this as a bad thing. Corporate attitude now is if you stay in a job more than five years, they think you aren't good enough to get hired elsewhere.

5. Like many garages: TWO CAR.

6. Stooges' laugh: NYUK.

7. Practiced, as a trade: PLIED.

8. New Hampshire college town: KEENE.

9. Table salt, to a chemist: NA CL. Sodium (NA stands for Latin: Natrium) Chloride.

10. Swedish statesman __ Palme: OLOF. First Swedish politician to be assassinated.

11. Five-time NHL scoring leader Jaromir: JAGR.

12. Cyclops feature: ONE EYE. Two "EYE"s as fill (See 3D: BLACK EYE). Tsk-tsk!

13. More considerate: KINDER. Or German for "children".

14. Prevents, legally: ESTOPS.

19. __ fire under: LIT A. You know what really burns my butt? A fire about three feet high.

22. Accept: AGREE TO.

23. Infielders' stats: DPS. Double Plays.

24. Indy's pursuit: ARK. Indiana Jones, The Ark of the Covenant. Said to have held the ten commandments.

28. Involve, as in conflict: EMBROIL.

30. Dull finish?: ARD. Suffix added to make the word: dullard. I wanted to squeeze MATTE in there somehow...

31. "Something tells __ goofed": ME I.

32. CLX x X: MDC. 160 times 10 = 1600

35. Wide shoe spec: EEE.

36. Heavy wts.: TNS. Tons.

38. Health food co.: GNC. General Nutrition Centers

39. Former GM division: GEO. Metro, prizm, storm et.al.

40. Actor Mineo: SAL. More famous for who he played opposite of in movies (James Dean in "Rebel Without a Cause").

41. Potentially lucrative track bet: TRIFECTA. a parimutuel bet in which the bettor must predict which horses will finish first, second, and third in exact order.

44. Do something: ACT.

45. "Give me a reason": WHY.

46. Ahab's whaler: PEQUOD. From Moby Dick.

47. "Don't ask me!": I DUNNO.

48. Menacing snake: COILER.

50. Libra symbol: SCALES. Libra is why pounds are abbreviated "lbs".

51. Small band: TRIO.

52. Kidnapper's demand: RANSOM. Money demand. Or Oldsmobile's first name, as in REO Speedwagon.

55. Dinner companion?: MOVIE. Dinner and a movie.

56. Head & Shoulders competitor: PRELL. Do they really still make this shampoo?

59. Musical finale: CODA. From Latin cauda, a tail.

60. Den __, Netherlands: HAAG. The Hague: the site of the royal residence and the western capital in the Netherlands.

61. Nestlé ice cream brand: EDY'S. Cheesecake.

62. Track fence: RAIL. When your trifecta loses you can be a rail-bird, stand at the rail, and rail at the rails.

65. PIN requester: ATM. Automated teller machine. Sometimes called an ATM Machine, which must mean a machine that dispenses machines?

Answer grid.

Al

Friday, April 18, 2008 Allan E. Parrish

Theme: CONTAINERS

7A: Stunt pilot's maneuver: BARREL ROLL

61A: Jersey add-on: CHEST PATCH

11D: Louella Parsons' rival: HEDDA HOPPER

25D: Roe v. Wade, notably: FEDERAL CASE

26D: Fight with feet: KICKBOX

A few things first:

1) As I replied to the whoo in yesterday's comment, this blog has about 3,000 visitors every day (Record: 5,750 on April 7). So, on average, about 1% of the solvers leaves comment.

Many of you still prefer to send me emails, and I am grateful for you kind words and I am happy that you are willing to share with me your daily solving experience. But please do not feel ignored if you've received no response from me. I simply do not have enough time. I do, however, read every one of your email. And I believe that I've replied to all the emails with a crossword-related question in them.

I really hope you guys will join us at the Comment section, it's only 2 clicks away. And it's so much fun there. Besides, your question will be addressed more quickly and expertly. Dennis, Dick and Drdad all check in regularly during the daytime.

You've also been watching me blundering my way out of this crossword labyrinth every morning, and you've been seeing me asking all kinds of questions. Some might sound silly to others, but honestly they are TERRA INCOGNITA to me, and I am not afraid to ask. I hope you will do the same if you are baffled by certain clues/cluing. Remember, no question, as long as it's crossword related, will ever be deemed silly or dumb here in my blog. And to quote Will Rogers, "Everybody is ignorant, only on different subjects"

2) To those whose local newspapers only carry Monday-Friday TMS puzzle: You can always go to Chicago Tribune's Crossword website for Saturday puzzle. It's always themeless and quite fun to solve sometimes.

Now, back to today's mammoth headache. Oh what a nightmarish puzzle! Stupid CERF/PARI section! CERF appeared on last Sunday's puzzle, and irked me greatly as I had never heard of his name before (there were 7 authors' names in that brutal puzzle). So I googled, whined in my blog, then I promptly forgot.

I also could not remember Parimutuel and XKE, both of them appeared in this constructor's Feb 1, puzzle. Did not know that BARRIO is Spanish for neighborhood. Vaguely heard of Hedda Hopper, but I could not retrieve her surname out of my brain. So, a total quagmire there.

MOHS, HILLEL, EMILO, KEMP, AMECHE are all my Muqtada al-Sadr this morning. So formidble and hard to catch. I simply do not have enough ammo or strategy to fight them. The only thing that made me happy was to see NIC Robertson intersecting KICKBOX. I adore NIC.

Boy, it's been such a sluggish week for me. I guess I was distracted by something Philadephia related. Could be Obama's anemic off-performance, or Hillary's begrudging "Yes, Yes, Yes" comment, or I was simply bothered by Chris Coste, Ryan Howard and their fans. Twins suck!!

Across entries:

1A: Big name in book publishing: KNOPF. Gimme for me. Carl Bernstein's "A Woman in Charge" (Hillary Clinton)'s publisher. It also published Clinton's "My Life". KNOPT is now owned by Random House.

6A: Minerals scale: MOHS. No idea. Mineral hardness measure scale, named after German mineralogist Friedrich Mohs. Now, how I can remember such a forgettable name?

10A: Cut with an ax: CHOP

14A: Actress Garson: GREER. Ha ha, got her this time.

15A: Reebok rival: AVIA. Curious about the history of Adias and Puma? And a bit Nike? Read this book (Three Strips Verus Puma). English version is now available.

19A: Deuce follower, perhaps: AD IN

21A: Puzo book, with "The": LAST DON. Since "Godfather" and "Sicilian" do not fit. He also wrote "Omerta" of course. I've read all of them, in Chinese naturalmente.

23A: IRS payout: REFUND

26A: Dole's 1996 slate-mate: KEMP (Jack). I am not familiar with American politics in the '90s. I've only lived under one president, the current occupant of the White House!

28A: Courtroom declaration: PLEA. Really? I thought you declare "guilty" or "not guilty" in the courtroom. I wanted OYEZ.

29A: Actor Estevez: EMILIO. Forgot. He has to change his name in Sheen for me remember him.

31A: "__ Jude": HEY

32A: Anti -DUI org.: MADD (Mothers Against Drunk Driving)

33A: Roberson of CNN: NIC

38A: Classic Jaguar: XKE

40A: Actress Hedren: TIPPI. Wow, she is Melanie Griffith's mom, did not know that before. She was in "The Bird"? That's one scary movie.

43A: Vitamin-bottle data, briefly: RDAS (Recommended Dietary Allowance). Why do they make the vitamin pills so big? It's so hard for me to swallow.

45A: _ humbug!: BAH. Hmm, Scrooge is thy name Mr. Williams!

47A: Straddle: SPAN. Astraddle is also a word, like yesterday's astride.

50A: Leon lady: SENORA. Did not know where Leon was. But SENORA was easily inferable. Leon is in north Spain by the way. I love the movie LÉON a lot.

52A: Bennett of Random House: CERF. Founder of Random House.

53A: Bad French: MAL. Pas MAL a clue at all. In fact, I like it a lot. Much better than "_ de mer".

54A: Kentucky fort: KNOX

55A: Spanish neighborhood: BARRIO. No idea.

57A: Makes allowances for: EXCUSES

59A: What cons do: TIME. Good clue. Too bad I tanked this one.

60A: Quahog, e. g.: CLAM. Nailed it this time.

66A: Padlock partner: HASP

67A: Prefix for spaces: AERO

68A: Sadat of Egypt: ANWAR. He succeeded Nasser, then Mubarak succeeded him. He and Begin shared the 1978 Nobel Peace prize. He was indeed a visionary who dared.

69A: Merino mamas: EWES

71A: Bacterial infection: STAPH (Staphylococcus). No idea.

Down entries:

2D: Gun Lobby: NRA. Needs an "Org." in the clue to indicate an abbreviation.

4D: Won over: PERSUADED

5D: Refrigerant gas: FREON. All right, "FRE" stands for "refrigerant", and "-on" is suffix for inert gas.

6D: Slugger McGwire: MARK. Too bad, he screwed up his HOF chance. McGwire is also a scratch golfer, very powerful swing.

7D: Lacto - __ vegetarian: OVO. "Lacto" is milk, "ovo" is egg. Basically it's Vegan + Egg + Milk. I have discipline problem, so I can only be a flexitarianist at best!

8D: Ancient Jewish rabbi: HILLEL. No idea. It's "Palestinian rabbi who greatly influenced the interpretation of Judaic law". Literally the word means "he praised" in Hebrew.

9D: Seasoned sausages: SALAMIS

12D: Bobolink's cousin: ORIOLE. Not a bird person, did not know what was a bobolink. Would've got it had it clued as "Baltimore ball player" or "Cal Ripken Jr. is one".

13D: J. C. follower: PENNEY

18D: Heavily burdened: LADEN

22D: Gush forth: SPOUT

23D: Turning figs.: RPMS (Revolutions Per Minute)

24D: Israel's airline: EL AL

26D: Fight with feet: KICKBOX. Let me show you how.

30D: Shuffle: MIX

35D: Wrongdoer: MISCREANT. I suppose this word is too harsh to describe Jeff Immelt. But can I say his mind-boggling behavior is "MISCREANT"? Crazy, if you could not deliver, why would you promise? Would things changed that dramatically in a month? Time to leave!!

37D: To-do list stuff: TASKS

41D: __-mutuel: PARI. What can I say? I have a picky brain. It just refuses to remember certain things.

42D: Skinny, sort of: INFO. If I were the constructor, I would clue it as "Skinny, short".

44D: Five Nations tribe members: SENECAS. Nope. I totally forgot this word 5 seconds after I met him last time. SENECA is "a members of the largest tribe of the Iroquois Confederacy of North American Indians, formerly inhabiting western New York and being conspicuous in the wars south and west of Lake Erie."

46D: Convent attire: HABIT

48D: "Cocoon" star: AMECHE (Don). No, total stranger to me.

49D: Accountant's concern: TAX LAW

51D: Snacks: NOSHES

56D: Oscar org.: AMPAS (Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences). Flirted with ASCAP until PATCH (61A) came along.

63D: Hughes' airline: TWA (Trans World Airlines)

64D: Tooth topper: CAP

65D: Monarch's letters: HRH (His/Her Royal Highness)

C.C.