Thursday, June 30, 2011, Ed Sessa

Theme: Hey, MICKEY, you're so fine. 52D.When spelled out, word that follows the beginnings of the starred answers in a memorable kids' show theme song: MOUSE.

20A. *13th in a literary series of 26: M IS FOR MALICE. Along with 42A. Author Grafton who wrote 20-Across: SUE.

29A. *Me.-to-Fla. route: I NINETY-FIVE. Interstate highway from Maine to Florida.

35A. *Benjamin: C-NOTE. It's all about the Benjamins. My daughter is getting sick of hearing me say "follow the money" whenever she asks me why someone did something.

39A. *Blue Light Specials store: K-MART. Now owned by Sears.

43A. *The Boss's backup: E STREET BAND. Bruce Springsteen.

53A. *All men have them: Y CHROMOSOMES.

Hi all, Al here. Did anyone else get anything more complex for the theme? Seemed a bit simple for a Thursday. (Note from C.C.: Looks simple, but it's tough to find familiar phrases where the first word is an English letter, not to mention in equal length for symmetry.)

ACROSS:

1. Nile reptile: CROC. In it's natural habitat.

5. Dance in Rio: SAMBA. Brazilian dance of African origin, Zemba, from Portugese samba, shortened form of zambacueca, a type of dance, probably altered (by influence of zamacueco "stupid") from zambapalo, the name of a grotesque dance, itself an alteration of zampapalo "stupid man," from zamparse "to bump, crash."

10. Net info sources: FAQS. Frequently Asked Questions.

14. Make over: REDO.

15. Dwindling Alaskan tribe: ALEUT.

16. It runs in Juarez: AGUA. Spanish water.

17. Copycat: APER.

18. Horn without keys: BUGLE.

19. Place to brood: COOP. Old English brod "brood, fetus, hatchling "that which is hatched by heat." The verbal figurative meaning ("to incubate in the mind") is from the notion of "nursing" one's anger, resentment, etc.

23. Glucose regulator: INSULIN. From Latin insula "island," so called because the hormone is secreted by the islets of Langerhans in the pancreas.

24. Winter phenomenon, commercially: SNO.

25. Diary of a sort: LOG.

28. Cultural org. since 1965: NEA. National Endowment for the Arts. PBS sponsor.

32. Actress Gardner: AVA. Husbands and lovers include Mickey Rooney, Howard Hughes, Artie Shaw and Frank Sinatra.

33. Party invite inits.: BYO. Bring Your Own beverage.

34. "So be it!": AMEN. From Hebrew for "truth".

38. "__ to him who believes in nothing": Hugo: WOE. From Les Misérables.

40. Bats: LOCO. Daft, nuts.

41. "Platoon" setting, briefly: NAM.

46. Basic resting spot: COT. Basic training.

49. "So that's it!": OHO.

50. Where kronor are spent: Abbr.: SWEeden.

51. Cooks quantity?: TOO MANY. Cooks spoil the broth. Many hands make the work light. Make up your mind...

55. Bunker smoother: RAKE. Golf sandtrap.

58. Give __: inspire: A LIFT.

59. Capable of: UP TO.

60. Cell impulse transmitter: AXON. Nerve ending.

61. Blakley of "Nashville": RONEE. Unknown to me.

62. Put in stitches: SEWN. Expecting something funny here.

63. "I Love Lucy" producer/writer Oppenheimer: JESS. If you say so.

64. Tipped at the casino: TOKED. Never been to Vegas, but makes sense, I guess.

65. Winged archer: EROS. Greek God of love, Roman counterpart: Cupid.

DOWN:

1. Fill snugly with: CRAM IN.

2. Complain: REPINE. Old English pine (pain, torture) with intensifier "re-", to cause pain.

3. Potemkin mutiny city: ODESSA. The Battleship Potemkin, a propaganda film. The Tsar's Cossacks in their white summer tunics march down the Odessa steps in a rhythmic, machine-like fashion firing volleys into a crowd.

4. Argonauts' island refuge: CORFU.

5. Kate's "Charlie's Angels" role: SABRINA. Charlie's Angels.

6. Some booster club members: ALUMNI. Latin alumnus "a pupil," literally "foster son", from a word meaning "to nourish".

7. Byte beginning: MEGA. Prefix meaning one million.

8. Dartboard area: BULLS-EYE.

9. Diminished slowly: ATE INTO.

10. Watch part: FACE. Band, dial, hand, stem, gear, lots of choices.

11. Back in time: AGO.

12. Status __: QUO. "The state in which", so existing state of affairs.

13. Deplete: SAP. "weaken or destroy insidiously," originally "dig a trench toward the enemy's position", from M.Fr. saper, from sappe "spade," from Latin sappa "spade". The sense of "weaken" on the notion of "draining the vital sap from."

21. Martini garnish: OLIVE.

22. Demure: COY. from Old French coi, earlier quei "quiet, still, placid, gentle," ultimately from Latin quietus "resting, at rest".

25. Andean bean: LIMA. Simmonds' "Dictionary of Trade" (1858) describes it as "esteemed," but it has the consistency of a diseased dog kidney.

26. Done: OVER.

27. Mannerly fellow: GENT.

30. Nuclear radiation weapon, for short: N-BOMB. The neutron bomb was supposed to kill people but leave buildings intact.

31. Popularity: FAME.

32. Comment end?: ATOR. Commentator

35. Mark's love: CLEOpatra.

36. Chips and dip, say: NOSH. From Yiddish nashn "nibble,"

37. Twice quadri-: OCTO.

38. Decisive downfall: WATERLOO.

39. Praise: KUDOS. Greek.

41. 1980s sitcom set in rural Vermont: NEWHART. Hi, I'm Larry. This is my brother Darryl and this is my other brother Darryl.

42. Acted snobbishly toward: SNOOTED.

44. PC key: ESC. I use it all the time with my favored Unix text editor. Really messes me up when I have to switch back to using Windows though.

45. Payment for cash?: ATM FEE. I remember when these were first being pushed to be accepted to lower your account fees because banks would save money not having to pay a teller for mundane tasks. They seem to have lost sight of that...

46. Boy scout, at times: CAMPER.

47. Fight combo: ONE TWO. Boxing. Give 'im the ol' one-two, along with 57D. Haymaker consequences: KOS. Knock-outs.

48. Boxer Mike et al.: TYSONS. Hmmm, I think one of those is enough...

53. Desires: YENS. Earlier yin "intense craving for opium", from Chinese (Cantonese) yan "craving," or from a Beijing dialect word for "smoke." Reinforced in English by influence of yearn.

54. Pen call: OINK.

55. British rule in India: RAJ. From Hindi raj "rule, kingdom" c.f. Rajah.

56. Bush whacker?: AXE. The spelling ax is better on every ground, of etymology, phonology, and analogy, than axe, which became prevalent during the 19th century; but it is now disused in Britain. [OED] (but then it wouldn't fit in a LAT crossword puzzle).

Answer grid.

Al

Notes from C.C.:

1) I'd like to share with you a baseball themed puzzle Don G made for my birthday. Click here for Across Lite file and here for PDF version. The clues are original & tough. When you're done, click here to see the layered gimmicks. I only got half of the tricks.

2) Here are a few cool pictures from Marti & Dudley's lunch meeting yesterday. Marti has more detailed captions on her photos. Unfortunately they don't show well in the pictures.

Wednesday, June 29, 2011 Jack McInturff

Theme: G-Rated (do they even make those kind of movies anymore??)  The first words of the theme entries could follow the letter "G", thusly:

17A. *Fit perfectly : SUIT TO A TEE. A "G-suit" (or more correctly, an anti-G suit) helps pilots who fly at high speeds to prevent blackouts by inflating air bladders around the legs, thus stopping blood from draining from the brain. Aren't you glad you don't need to know this?

23A. *Sexy beachwear : STRING BIKINI. And very closely related to "G-string", no? Now this is more in line with our DF group. But, my eyes are still hurting from some of the photos that came up when I looked for a link!!  (Just use your imagination here, guys!)

50A. *Behavior made automatic from frequent repetition : FORCE OF HABIT. "G-Force" is what a "G-Suit" is designed to overcome...

62A. *Superhero nickname : MAN OF STEEL.  A "G-Man" is slang for a government man, or FBI agent.

and the unifier:

39. "Gosh!" (or, based on the starts of starred answers, one who is expert at solving this puzzle's theme?) : GEE WHIZ. Hah! I must be a G-reat solver to figure this one out. 

Marti here to help you over the hump day...

ACROSS:

1. Sea of __: Black Sea arm : AZOV. GEE WHIZ, don't you hate it when the first word of the puzzle is one you don't know?

5. Parisian pals : AMIS. Ah yes, we are back to yesterday's French lesson.

9. Light bite : NOSH. Yiddish nashn, from Middle High German naschen "to eat on the sly".

13. In-box note, perhaps : MEMO

14. Like candy near the register, maybe : MINTY. Wanted "impulse buy", but wouldn't fit.

16. Hostile to : ANTI

19. Veggie that may be black : BEAN

20. Bone: Pref. : OSTEO

21. Golda of Israel : MEIR.  She was known as the "Iron Lady" years before Margaret Thatcher was labeled with that nickname.

22. "The Wizard __": comic strip : OF ID. Irreverent, often insightful humor by Parker and Hart.

26. White Sox star who played in five decades (1949-1980) : MINOSO. Oh no, not baseball! And more than thirty years ago?

29. Shortly : ANON. Also, what some bloggers are called.

30. Graceland middle name : ARON. Ah yes, interesting story about ARON - Aaron. But we all know that already, don't we?

31. "A horse is a horse" horse : MR ED. From 60's TV comedy.

35. Partner of each : EVERY

38. Seaman's "Help!" : SOS

41. __ volente: God willing : DEO

42. Prepare to be knighted : KNEEL.  Great visual from "Le Morte D'Arthur".

44. Composer Bartók : BELA. Along with Liszt, considered Hungary's greatest composer, and well-known for his "Night music" style, wherein he imitated the sounds of nature at night in his compositions.  Like this.

45. German coal region : SAAR. Mosel-Saar-Ruhr is also one of the leading wine regions of Germany.  Really, coal??

46. Once again : ANEW

48. Literary alter ego : MR HYDE. "Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde", by Robert Louis Stevenson.

55. Buck suffix : AROO. I guess "kang" wouldn't be a great clue, huh?

56. Way to go : ROAD

57. Rosary units : BEADS

61. Unfocused photo, e.g. : BLUR. Or, crossword clues when blogging at midnight...

64. Single : LONE. Hands up for "stag"?

65. Hill on Vail : SLOPE. Vail, Colorado. And they are usually slippery!

66. Gal who gets what she wants : LOLA.  Barry Manilow, anyone?

67. Loose things to tie up : ENDS. Or strings on a bikini...

68. Location : SITE

69. Barbershop sound : SNIP. Huh. "Harmony" doesn't fit.

DOWN:

1. Schoolyard retort : AM SO. Can we quit this schoolyard argument, already??

2. Olympian bigwig : ZEUS

3. Cut out : OMIT

4. Decides via ballot : VOTES ON

5. Latin lover's word : AMO. Love my Latin! (Or, is it "my Latin lover"...)

6. Home of the Heat : MIAMI. Basketball. Will they settle before their potential lockout on Thursday?

7. One __: unlikely chance : IN TEN. If it were the lotto, more like one in one in 593,775, according to my calculations.

8. "Shrek!" author William : STEIG. Unknown.

9. "Lolita" author : NABOKOV. Known.

10. Clooney/Pfeiffer comedy : ONE FINE DAY. Got meh reviews.

11. Washday challenge : STAIN. No, my washday challenge is just getting all the stuff from the bedroom down to the basement laundry room.

12. Delhi language : HINDI

15. __ Buena, town that became San Francisco : YERBA. Total WAG.

18. Little tykes : TOTS

24. "City of Seven Hills" : ROME. Nailed it. Been there, seen them.

25. Don Juan's mother : INEZ. In Lord Byron's poem, Don Juan is not a womanizer, but one who is easily seduced by women.

26. Halloween cover-up : MASK

27. Press : IRON. Who thought of gym, and "pump"?

28. Act like a snoop : NOSE AROUND. Fun clue, great fill!

32. Confederate : REB

33. Lady in the flock : EWE. Hah, didn't fool me. I knewe it wasn't you!

34. UPS rival : DHL

36. Enjoy the library : READ. Well, I think most of us here enjoy reading. But, between the Nook, Kindle, iBooks etc., are we in danger of losing this sacrosanct institution of our youth? 

37. Time past : YORE. As in, "yore late"?

39. Elated feeling : GLEE. Or, a wildly popular (with "Gleeks", anyway) TV show.

40. Foot in a poem : IAMB. I amb what I amb...or, the "beat" to a poem. Like ka-BOOM,  where the accent is stressed on the second syllable. Thus, iambic dimeter (two iambic "feet", or measures) would sound like:

the WAY / a CROW

shook DOWN / on ME...

-Frost
I'll leave the rest to CA.

43. Extras for a cheering crowd : ENCORES. Loved this clue/answer!

45. Former Jewish settlements : SHTETLS. Hated this clue/answer!

47. Squirmy bait : WORMS. eeewwwww....

49. Barbecue fare : RIBS. OK, now you're talkin' DH's language!

50. Aesop work : FABLE

51. Sweater synthetic : ORLON. I never know if it's going to be nylon, rayon, or orlon! So, let's move...ON

52. Stable newborns : FOALS

53. Vietnam's capital : HANOI. Map, for anyone who wasn't around in the 50's-60's-70's.

54. Take as one's own : ADOPT

58. Long, long time : AEON. Ages, anyone?

59. Bagels and lox seller : DELI. Mmmm...I could go for some right now.  Maybe I'll ask the guys in the SHTETL if they want some, too...

60. Blow with a palm : SLAP. V8 can on this one when it finally emerged. Or, a slap upside my head.

63. ATM charge : FEE. No charge for this blog. But you can contribute to my amusement fund by using PayPal at www.skigolfkayakhikecampreadgardenwino.com

Answer grid.

Thanks for letting me share this one with all y'all!

Marti

Notes from C.C.

1) Here are two lovely pictures of MJ's grandson Drake. She said "These photos of Drake are very telling about why I am not posting daily on the blog, although I still read the blog most mornings, and  very much appreciate all those who parse the daily LAT puzzles for your site." Here is her family picture we showed last August when Drake was 5-month old.

As some of you are aware, our local paper doesn't carry LAT crossword,  so MJ mailed me the precious first one Don and I collaborated, the whole LA Times Calendar section carefully padded between stiff boards. And  a few more later. Thanks, MJ.

2) Happy Birthday to Barry G!

Tuesday, June 28, 2011 Victor Fleming and Nancy Salomon

Theme: Dyslexic Endings - Four French phrases and a GB QB that end in VRE but are commonly pronounced RVE.

17A. Delight in living : JOIE DE VIVRE. Joy of Living

24A. Paris site of objets d'art : MUSÉE DU LOUVRE. Palace of the Louvre

48A. Peppercorn-coated beef entrée : STEAK AU POIVRE. Steak with Pepper 

56A. Shrimp cocktail, e.g. : HORS D'OEUVRE. Apart from the Main Work

22A. With 50-Across, quarterback who started a record 297 consecutive games : BRETT and 50A. See 22-Across : FAVRE. Quarterback for Green Bay Packers (1992–2007)

Argyle here. That's my take on the theme; if you have a better idea, let's hear it. My French isn't all that good anyway. Couple of clunkers in the fill but overall, pretty good Tuesday.

Across:

1. Sounds of laughter : HAHAs

6. Show off, as one's stuff : STRUT

11. Leaky tire sound : SSS

14. Change with the times : ADAPT

15. West Indian sorcery : OBEAH. A search reveals we have had this word four times before, never on a Tuesday though.

16. Back muscle, for short : LAT. Latissimus Dorsi, usually referred to as LATS.

19. Stretch to remember : ERA

20. Aruba et al.: Abbr. : ISLs.. Clunk!

21. Wine-and-cassis apéritif : KIR. A French drink, how apropos.

28. Not for : AGAINST

30. Fading star : HAS-BEEN

31. __-Novo: Benin's capital : PORTO. I wish I could find this kind of map every time. The official language of Benin is French.

32. Peter Rabbit sibling : MOPSY. His sisters are Flopsy, Mopsy, and Cotton-tail in the children's story by Beatrix Potter.

33. Play (with) : TOY

34. Slate-backing strips : LATHS. Clunk. Lath and plaster, yes.

36. Word with cozy or bag : TEA

39. Apple models : iMACs

41. They may be blown in games : LEADS

43. Hoops shot that misses everything : AIR BALL

46. Hatch, as a scheme : THINK UP

51. The whole shebang : ALL

52. Pre-splat cry : "OOPS!"

55. Saloon order : ALE. Never saw a western where they ordered an ale.

60. Knight's title : SIR

61. Justice Samuel : ALITO. N.Y.Times Magazine article. I'll have to read it later myself.

62. Speedy base runner's strategy : STEAL

63. Thing to run at a bar : TAB

64. Red Sea republic : YEMEN

65. Prefix with frost : PERMA. Frost that never leaves the ground, although the top thaws out for summer. We are probably losing perma-frost to global warming, too.

Down:

1. Pilgrim to Mecca : HAJI. Add another J if you want.

2. Bustles : ADOs

3. Desperation gridiron pass : HAIL MARY. Favre threw a few.

4. Jungle film costume : APE SUIT

5. CST part: Abbr. : STD. Central Standard Time.

6. Like old Russian states : SOVIET

7. Ford in a Beach Boys hit : T-BIRD. Sure, some more Fun, Fun, Fun.(2:21)

8. Give gas to : REV. Rev up that T-Bird.

9. Former Egypt-Syr. alliance : UAR. United Arab Republic.

10. Springsteen, to fans : THE BOSS

11. Place for an ace? : SLEEVE

12. "No Exit" dramatist : SARTRE. "No Exit" is a 1944 existentialist French play by Jean-Paul Sartre.

13. __ Island Ferry : STATEN. New York.

18. __ out: barely gets : EKEs

23. Red gemstone : RUBY

25. __-Cat: winter vehicle : SNO

26. "This could be a problem" : "UH-OH"

27. Swimmer's reps : LAPS

28. On target : APT

29. Bit of baby babble : GOO

32. The Rockies, e.g.: Abbr. : MTs.. I'm surprised they didn't use the Alps.

34. In __ land: loopy : LA LA. La is also a French article, mais oui.

35. First Amdt. defender : ACLU. Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

36. Corporate acquisition : TAKEOVER

37. School URL ending : .EDU

38. Fanged serpent : ASP

39. Building beam : I-BAR

40. What some do while the sun shines? : MAKE HAY. Keeping busy, windhover?

41. Ullmann of "Autumn Sonata" : LIV. Image.

42. On the way : EN ROUTE

43. Equally speedy : AS FAST

44. Roma's land : ITALIA. Next to France.

45. Echoic effect : REVERB

46. Snitched about : TOLD ON

47. Port of Hawaii : HILO. Map.

49. Second of a word-processing pair : PASTE. I live by "cut and paste".

53. English carriage : PRAM

54. Ward of "CSI: NY" : SELA

57. Cheer for a toreador : ¡OLÉ!

58. Perimeter : RIM

59. Clairvoyance, briefly : ESP

Answer grid.

Argyle

Monday, June 27, 2011 Gail Grabowski and Bruce Venzke

Theme: Organized Sound - Three phrases ending in synonyms for music, the end of the unifier.

20A. Stops broadcasting : GOES OFF THE AIR. You don't hear AIR used that much anymore as a synonym for a song or melody.

31A. Very cheaply : FOR A SONG

40A. Make minor changes to : FINE TUNE

53A. 1969 Beach Boys hit, and a hint to the ends of 20-, 31- and 40-Across : "I CAN HEAR MUSIC". Clip(2:29) An interesting write-up goes along with it.

Argyle here. A simple Monday but a bit unusual, having two fill longer than two of the theme entries. Lots of alliteration today.

Across:

1. Earlier : PRIOR

6. King of the Empire State Building? : KONG. Klassic klip(2:02) from King Kong 1933.

10. Felix and Sylvester : CATS

14. Beautiful, in Bologna : BELLA. In northern Italy Map.

15. Sheltered, on a ship : ALEE

16. Very much : A LOT

17. Took off : SPLIT

18. "You couldn't hit the broad side of a __!" : BARN. And if they are really bad, you add, "from the inside!"

19. Shore phenomenon : TIDE

23. Calif.'s second-busiest airport : SFO. San Francisco International Airport. LAX is #1 in CA but only #3 in US. Atlanta is #1, world-wide. Statistics.

25. Applies gently : DABS

26. 1956 perfect game pitcher Don : LARSEN. This clip is from the only perfect game in World Series history.

27. Soldiers' knapsacks : KIT BAGS

29. Lamb cut : LEG. 57. Roast cut : RUMP

30. Greek "i" : IOTA

36. Worries : FRETS

38. Payment promise letters : IOU

39. Stage platform : RISER

42. Houston player, informally : STRO. Baseball's Houston Astros.

43. Exhibit curiosity : ASK

44. Souvenirs with slogans : T-SHIRTS

47. Surprise attack : AMBUSH

51. Message from the boss : MEMO

52. Mule's parent : ASS. The offspring of a male donkey and a female horse. The offspring of a male horse and a female donkey is a hinny.

56. Fishtail : SKID

58. Use TurboTax, say : E-FILE

61. Lie around idly : LAZE

62. "Am __ late?" : I TOO

63. Used a wrecking ball on : RAZED

64. Once-over giver : EYER

65. Marseilles monikers : NOMS. The south of France, port on the Mediterranean Sea.

66. Angioplasty implant : STENT

Down:

1. NEA grant recipient : PBS. National Endowment for the Arts / Public Broadcasting Service.

2. Crunch unit : REPetition

3. Acquired dishonestly : ILL-GOTTEN. Probably from evil-gotten

4. Hodgepodge : OLIO

5. Like some bonds : RATED A

6. Cookout offerings on sticks : KABOBs

7. Five Norse kings : OLAFs

8. Spongy ball brand : NERF

9. More sensitive about breaking bad news : GENTLER

10. Supply party food for : CATER

11. Misleading name : ALIAS

12. "It's __ for!": "Fabulous!" : TO DIE

13. Tiller's locale : STERN. On a boat. (or skiff)

21. Drop in the middle : SAG

22. Comics Viking : HAGAR

23. Watercraft for one : SKIFF. But it can hold more than one.

24. Flowers, in Florence : FIORI. South of Bologna.

28. Diminish : BATE

29. Baseball great Gehrig : LOU. Another Yankee, before Larsen.

31. Grant, to Lee : FOE

32. Señor's "Positively!" : "SI, SI!"

33. Blackball : OSTRACIZE

34. "Dagnabbit!" : "NERTS!". When was the last time you heard this used, if ever.

35. A dozen dozen : GROSS

37. Secret supply : STASH

38. Fountain pen filler : INK

41. Herald, as a new era : USHER IN

44. Beats for this puzzle's theme : TEMPOs

45. Dallas campus: Abbr. : SMU. Southern Methodist University.

46. Con artists : HOSERs

47. Theater divider : AISLE

48. Olympics sportscaster Jim : McKAY

49. Feltlike fabric : BAIZE. Think pool table cover.

50. In a trance : UNDER

51. 1983 Michael Keaton role-reversal movie : "MR. MOM"

54. Caddy or Jag : AUTO

55. "__ first you don't succeed ..." : IF AT

59. Author Deighton : LEN

60. Boston summer hrs. : EDT

Answer grid.

Argyle

Note from C.C.:

Here is a sweet photo of Dear Santa Argyle with the bride of a wedding he attended last Saturday June 25. 2011. Love the T-shirt. Scott is Argyle's real name.

Sunday June 26, 2011 Mike Torch

Theme: High Comedy - GH is omitted in each familiar phrase.

23A. Unforgettable louse? : A NIGHT TO REMEMBER. "A Night to Remember". Fun clue & answer.

33A. Waterway for sinners? : STRAIGHT TO HELL. Straight to hell. Nice one too.

44A. Uncovers a serious flaw in municipal building plans? : CAN'T FIGHT CITY HALL. Can't fight city hall.

62A. Barely visible English pubs? : BRIGHT SPOTS ON THE HORIZON. Bright spots on the horizon.

74A. Ohio sweaters? : KNIGHTS OF COLUMBUS. Knights of Columbus.

92A. Low cost pay-per-view match? : BOUGHT FOR A SONG. Bought for a song.

103A. Where to get a copy of "The Communist Manifesto"? : RED-LIGHT DISTRICT. Red light district.

Slow in grokking the theme today. First thought long I in IGH was replaced by short I, but STRAIT TO HELL quickly said no. Then BOUT FOR A SONG further proved I was wrong. Odd entry. I'd love the theme better if GH is dropped from all the *IGHT phrases. You?

The grid design is rather ambitious, with week-day like three finger blocks. Hence a rather low 132 word count.

Across:

1. Bit of schoolyard disagreement : AM SO. And 14. States as fact : SAYS SO.

5. Stuff in a box on the street : SNAIL MAIL. Was thinking of those free newspaper.

20. 1978 medical thriller : COMA

21. Like some items in downloads : NON-SECURE. Often feel helpless against computer errors.

22. __ Island, N.Y. : STATEN

25. "Broadway Joe" : NAMATH

26. Indian lentil stew : DAL. Bill G, what's for lunch today?

27. Loses everything : BUSTS

28. Juan's ones : UNOs

30. Milk: Pref. : LACTO. Lactose.

31. Promote at work : ELEVATE

36. Tightwads : MISERs

37. Turn down in an ugly way : SPURN. Like love.

39. Tested : ASSAYED

40. Has the stage : IS ON

41. Expensive outing, probably : SPREE. Shopping spree?

42. Goes on strike, in slang : WALKS. I like this clue.

48. Seemingly forever : AGES

52. Top of the morning? : ONE AM

53. Clerical vestments : ALBs. Classic crosswordese.

54. Rodeo ride : BRONC

55. Like the larger-eared elephant : AFRICAN. I thought it's just "large-eared".

59. Sham : FALSE

61. Look for help from : TURN TO

66. Volcanic rock : BASALT

67. Incursions : RAIDs

68. "Rad!" : AWESOME

69. Talus joint : ANKLE

70. Brew : SUDs

71. Words with bike or wave : RIDE A

73. Grey Goose competitor : SKYY. Vodka.

81. Volleyball coup : SPIKE. And 102D. It precedes 81-Across : SET

83. Tennyson's Enoch : ARDEN. "Enoch Arden". Not familiar with the poem.

84. Westchester, N.Y., college : IONA

85. "Most likely ..." : ODDS ARE. Nice entry.

89. Reuben essential : SWISS

90. Aviation force : THRUST

95. Ristorante red : CHIANTI

96. Befuddled : AT SEA

97. Comic who wrote jokes for JFK : SAHL (Mort)

98. Shoe parts : SOLES

100. Covert fed. group : CIA

101. Maid concerns : METERS. Meter maid.

107. Antarctic penguin : ADELIE. Happy couple. Happy feet.

108. Pennsylvania's state dog : GREAT DANE. State dog? Unknown to me.

109. Sommer of cinema : ELKE

110. Most convinced : SUREST

111. Controls : HARNESSES

112. "The Swiss Family Robinson" writer : WYSS (Johann). Was ignorant of the book and the author.

Down:

1. Hypothetical : ACADEMIC

2. Immortal wife of Francesco del Giocondo : MONA LISA. Thanks to da Vinci.

3. Is favorable to : SMILES ON

4. Muffin choice : OAT

5. Tapir features : SNOUTS

6. Longship crewmen : NORSE. Longships were used by the Vikings.

7. Works without __ : A NET

8. Philosophies : ISMs

9. Poe's "Annabel __" : LEE

10. Turn-of-the-century year : MCM. 1900.

11. 2010 Heisman Trophy winner Cam Newton's alma mater : AUBURN. Gimme for Husker Gary, I bet. He seems to know a lot about college football.

12. "The Faerie Queene" woman : IRENA. Guessed.

13. "Vive __!" : LE ROI

14. IRS info : SSN

15. Baffled : AT A LOSS

16. Steinway competitor : YAMAHA

17. Actress Dash of "Clueless" : STACEY. First encounter with this actress. She's pretty.

18. Come to terms : SETTLE

19. Waiting for tech support, often : ON HOLD. Those overseas tech support can drive you nuts.

24. Way to the top : T-BAR

29. Delays : STALLs

32. Let off steam : VENT

33. Mutton fat : SUET. Lard is pork fat.

34. Small spade : TREY. Poker.

35. "For shame!" : TSK

37. Humane Soc. ally : SPCA

38. Victorian : PRIM

41. Worker with a pad : STENO

42. Former 49ers coach Bill : WALSH. Surprised I know him.

43. "Seascape" Pulitzer-winning playwright : ALBEE

45. Bo's'n's quarters : FO'C'SLE. Can never remember how to spell it, Spitzboov/eddyB!

46. Unfitting : INAPT

47. Desists : HALTS

48. "Mrs. __ Goes to Paris": 1992 TV film : ARRIS. Stumped me again.

49. Bananas : GONZO. Nuts!

50. Branch of zool. : ENTOM. OK, entomology.

51. Tea biscuit : SCONE

54. Chest : BUREAU. Furniture was not in my mind.

55. Arafat's successor : ABBAS

56. Direct : FRANK. Adjective "direct".

57. Full of pitfalls : RISKY

58. 2006 World Cup winner : ITALY. Soccer is huge in China.

59. Pass off (on) : FOIST

60. Plus : AND

61. Item on a rack : TOWEL

63. Place for a donut : TRUNK. Tire! Tricky clue.

64. "Sexy" Beatles woman : SADIE

65. Sported : HAD ON

70. Sun Valley visitors : SKIERS

71. Country mail rtes. : RFDs. RFD = Rural delivery service

72. Summer coolers : ICEs

75. Cut : SAWN. Spell check doesn't like it.

76. Not a dup. : ORIG

77. Oscar winner Sorvino : MIRA. She speaks Chinese.

78. In an animated way : BOUNCILY. I've only used adjective form bouncy.

79. Opens with effort, as a window : UNSTICKS

80. Stuffs : SATIATES

81. Wild vacations? : SAFARIs. Oh, wild animal, not the real wild vacation in Ibiza. JD has had a few wild ones.

82. For : PRO

85. "Dreams From My Father" family : OBAMAS

86. College address ending : DOT EDU. Felt stupid not to nail it.

87. Long riding coat : DUSTER

88. Addison's publishing partner : STEELE (Richard). Joseph Addison. Both strangers to me.

89. Plumber's alloy : SOLDER

90. Doctors' works : THESES

91. H.S. subject : HIST (History)

93. Cry of exasperation : AARGH

94. He-Man's twin sister : SHE-RA

95. "Crazy" singer : CLINE (Patsy). Thought of Jerome's mom.

98. Regs. : STDs (Standards)

99. Harem rooms : ODAs. Splynter wants one.

104. PC linkup : LAN

105. Mineral suffix : ITE

106. Remote button : REW

Answer grid.

C.C.

Saturday, June 25, 2011 Julian Lim

THEME: None

WORDS: 70

BLOCKS: 26

Wow, just a brutal second themeless offering from Mr. Lim, with some clues that were very vague, and others that I downright had to just wince at. Just the one grid spanner today,

36. "The sea was angry that day," e.g. : PATHETIC FALLACY

an "expanded" metaphor, so to speak, with what I thought was the original answer - PERSONIFICATION....and that was just the first of many mistakes :-((

ACROSS:

1. Bounce : DRIBBLE - Ugh, Basketball - I was on the Echo/Toss Out wavelength...

8. Site of the largest WWII Allied Pacific amphibious assault : OKINAWA - IWO JIMA fit, too

15. Pigment used in some primer paints : RED LEAD - Did not know this

16. Worldly : SECULAR - I was on the "global" wavelength

17. Glowing, perhaps : PLEASED - started with RADIANT

18. "You're in charge!" : SEE TO IT

19. Courage : HEART

20. Fightin' with : AGIN' - Against, in "drawl-speak"

22. Exobiologist's org. : SETI - Search for Extra-Terrestrial Intelligence - shoulda got this from the "Exo-" part, but I was thinking bugs...

23. Covering an outfield position : IN LEFT - good baseball answer, I had center at first

25. Byzantine emperor known as "the Armenian" : LEO V - here's his Wiki

27. Some hosps. : VAs - Veteran's Affairs Hospitals

28. Mil. officers : LTs - Lieutenants

29. Demolish, in Durham : RASE - the Anglo version of RAZE

31. Most recently introduced : NEWEST

33. Summons : TICKET - Argh~! I started with this, and took it out

35. One putting on shows : AIRER - Meh, but yeah

40. Hatch of Utah : ORRIN - knew it wasn't Estes, but I couldn't think of him at first

41. Neil Diamond title words after "I am the tune" : PLAY ME - I'll leave the links to you

42. One may be packed with Oreos, briefly : PB AND J - a Peanut Butter and Jelly sa'mich - really~!?  Are there any of us out there that put Oreos in there too~?  Yecht - I'll keep mine for dessert....

44. Uma's role in "The Producers" : ULLA - Uma, Ulla, Uma, Ulla

45. Label for Nilsson : RCA - WAGed EMI, MCI, but ultimately, did not know this guy

48. Yom __: holiday, in Hebrew : TOV

49. Kosovo resident : SERB

51. Hawks' contacts, perhaps : ARMERS - Ugh, as in those who supply arms to militant types, also known as "hawks"

53. Uncultivated, probably : ARID - well, not necessarily, but what can I say....

55. Banter : JEST - I don't see the synonym here - Banter is light talk, Jest is to joke, for me.

57. Does a word-processing task : SAVES - EDITS, DELES, STETS, TYPES, nope - what every application file needs - to be saved; not limited to word-processing....

58. Reacts in fear, in a way : REARS UP

60. Like some soap : ON A ROPE - Cute GAG GIFT ( last week ), and a necessity in prison, I would think....

62. "Eugene Onegin" heroine __ Larina : TATIANA

63. NBAer orig. from Minnesota : L.A. LAKER - great, more basketball - getting to be like French around here - when is MY puzzle going to show up with all the hockey in it?

64. Made red-faced? : SLAPPED - this was a good one - had ANGERED to start, knew I was not quite right with the "?"

65. Evidence provider : DNA TEST

DOWN:

1. "Family First" author, familiarly : DR. PHIL - a phony, if you ask me

2. Give in : RELENT

3. Epitomes : IDEALS

4. Play up to the max? : BLARE - is this true, JzB~?

5. Some buds : BEST FRIENDS - got stuck on a "plant-like" wavelength with 'buds'

6. Papua New Guinea port : LAE - Map, in the middle

7. Snorri Sturluson's "Prose __" : EDDA - the Wiki

8. Walter's "I'm Not Rappaport" co-star : OSSIE - not familiar with this

9. Really into : KEEN ON

10. Plans may be put on it : ICE

11. More than just touched : NUTS

12. Herbal medicine plant : ALOE VERA - the whole name

13. "Not so fast!" : WAIT A SECond

14. Craft : ARTISTRY - Nice clue/answer for a Saturday

21. Competitors in a Fox comedy-drama : GLEE CLUBS - the EE gave it to me

24. Bumpkin's lack : TACT

26. Trattoria offering : VEAL MARSALA - had VEAL_, couldn't recall the second half - I have had Chicken Marsala, which I believe is wine & mushroom sauce - I am not the chef here, but I do "use pot"....

30. Problem with an old record : SKIP - "...like a rhinestone...like a rhinestone...like a rhinestone..." my 45 had a SKIP right there

32. Bit of cunning : WILE

33. Like a poor argument : THIN - WEAK, TAME, nope

34. Maker of nonstick cookware : T-FAL

36. Toaster brand : POP-TARTS - ugh - tried too hard to make Oster fit, etc.

37. Like kinkajous : ARBOREAL - Here's a pic

38. "Fallen woman," in an opera title : - La TRAVIATA, by "Joe Green" (Victor Borge)

39. "The Clan of the Cave Bear" protagonist : AYLA

43. Not exciting : JEJUNE - that's French~!

45. Take away : REVOKE

46. Brunch fare : CREPES - had MIMOSA and OMELET to start - fare is one of those single/plural words, like fish

47. Maintain : ASSERT

50. Fix, as brakes : RE-PAD - I have had many a chance to fix brakes, but never said "RE-PAD"

52. Corday victim : MARAT - French revolution, she slayed him in the bath

54. Cone eater's concern : DRIP

56. Let in on : TOLD - TELL and TALK did not work

59. Enervate : SAP

61. Turkic flatbread : NAN

Answer grid.

Splynter, going back to bed to heal the brain damage....