Wednesday, July 31, 2013 Susan Gelfand

Theme: Cross beams!

20A: Chocolate-and-crisped-rice candy: NESTLE CRUNCH

 

42A: “It floats” sloganeer: IVORY SOAP

37A: Solid investment?: GOLD INGOT

and the unifier:

57A Gymnast’s event, or what 20-, 37- and 42-Across literally are in this grid: PARALLEL BARS

Hi everyone - Steve here with the Wednesday offering to wrap up July. Susan Gelfand's name doesn't pop up in the blog labels as being seen before, but the last time I congratulated a debutant it turned out that he'd had a slew of puzzles published in the past, so I'll defer to C.C. and the rest of the crew before offering figurative back-slaps. (From C.C.: Susan has 9 puzzle published by the NY Times, but I believe this is her LAT debut.)

It did take me a little while to figure out the theme when I'd finished the puzzle, it was the "literally" in the unifier that finally got the penny to drop - the three theme entries are all kinds of bars, and they all literally run parallel to each other in the grid.

There was some nice fill too and it all added up to a pretty smooth Wednesday. I had a couple of missteps along the way, but nothing too serious. I needed quite a few crosses to help with a number of unknowns, and I had a borderline personal Natick with AD REM/AMOS OZ, but that's what good cluing is all about.

Across:

1 Rooters with beers, maybe: FANS. Nice opening.

5 Pampering places: SPAS

9 Spunk: MOXIE

14 Stargazer’s focus?: IDOL. Another nice little misdirection. I definitely had the night sky in my mental sights for a while here.

15 Basil or Ginger, e.g.: NAME. I thought this clue was very elegant in that it disqualifies the potential "HERB" answer by cluing a spice and a herb. It would have been easy (and possibly mean) to misdirect with "Basil or Rosemary, e,g."

16 Attention-getters: AHEMS

17 “__ put it another way ...”: OR TO

18 Switch ender: EROO. Switcheroo.

19 Pinkish wines: ROSÉS. The French and Spanish rosés are wonderfully dry, unlike the Californian white zins which give pink wines a bad name.

23 “Jews and Words” co-author: AMOS OZ. The M was my last letter to fill. I'm calling it a semi-WAG.

24 Heavenly lion: LEO

25 Ballpark fig.: EST. I thought at first this was some kind of baseball stat that I'd never heard of, but then ohhhh! An estimate!

28 Official symbol: SEAL. This is one very nice example:

31 Puzzling problem: ENIGMA. Winston Churchill memorably described Russia as "a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma"

33 Like a Chihuahua’s ears: ERECT

39 Many an auctioned auto: REPO

40 P-like Greek letter: RHO

41 Sprinted: TORE

45 Lost cause: GONER

46 Bird in a clock: CUCKOO. I don't know how people can put up with one of these things in the house, unless they get so used to them they can filter out the racket, which rather defeats the purpose.

47 Pianist Peter: NERO. Needed crosses here. I'm not really up on my pianists.

49 Chuckle sound: HEH

50 Looker’s leg: GAM. This seems such an inelegant word for what is meant to be a very attractive leg. It does, however, give me a great excuse to post a picture of the incomparable gams of Cyd Charisse!

52 Beehive, e.g.: HAIRDO

60 Crosswise, nautically: ABEAM. Quibble. I think "athwart" answers the definition here. ABEAM describes the position of an object 90 degrees off the side of a vessel. Thoughts?

63 Refusals: NOES

64 Scoreboard figure, at times: STAT

65 Coup group: JUNTA. You always hear news reports of a "military junta". Can you have a non-military junta?

66 Vegan staple: TOFU

67 German article: EINE

68 Inner turmoil: ANGST. I was on the digestive tract (mis)track for a while with this one.

69 Six-legged marchers: ANTS

70 American-born Jordanian queen: NOOR

Down:

1 Pop singer Apple: FIONA. Great live version of her hit "Shadowboxer" here

2 Relevant, in law: AD REM. From the Latin "to matter".

3 Untrue: NOT SO

4 Casino lineup: SLOTS

5 React to sunlight, maybe: SNEEZE. Gesundheit!

6 Paris’s Bois de Vincennes, par exemple: PARC. Clue in French, answer in French.

7 Son of Venus: AMOR

8 1988 Summer Olympics city: SEOUL. These Olympics produced the most stunning men's 100 meters sprint final when Ben Johnson shattered the world record with a time of 9.79 seconds. The next day he tested positive for steroids and was stripped of the gold medal. Oops!

9 Pioneer in wireless telegraphy: MARCONI

10 “Oopsie!”: OH-OH

11 Survey marks: XES

12 “__ Mine”: Beatles song: I ME

13 Double curve: ESS

21 2000s TV drama that ended in a church: LOST. I think I'm one of the few people in the country that never watched a minute of single episode of this show.

22 Have to have: NEED

25 Encourage: EGG ON. I think of this in the "encourage to do something totally dumb" context, almost certainly involving a skateboard or a bicycle, a set of steps with a handrail and the inevitable result of much pain and suffering.

26 Camper’s dessert: S'MORE

27 Spud: TATER

29 Prefix with business: AGRO. I had "AGRI" first which had me wondering what SIAP was.

30 Lindsay of “Mean Girls”: LOHAN. That's putting it nicely. I can think of many more unflattering ways to clue this one!

32 Gung-ho about: INTO

33 Psychoanalyst Fromm: ERICH. Crosses. I'm as up on my psychoanalysts as I am my pianists.

34 Variety show: REVUE

35 Noteworthy period: EPOCH

36 Eco-friendly tile material: CORK. The Cork Forest Conservation Alliance has answers to any question you could ever think to pose about this abundant natural resource, including scotching the screw-top wine bottle myth that there is a cork shortage. Who knew?

38 Run easily: LOPE

43 Place for meditation, for some: YOGA MAT. Not me. When I'm on my yoga mat I'm being bullied into doing outrageous Pilates maneuvers that my body was not designed for. I'm crying, rather than meditating.

44 Fly high: SOAR

45 Hockey score: GOAL

48 Animal for which a blood factor is named: RHESUS. Rhesus macaques have assisted in a number of scientific projects and have been into orbit on many occasions.

51 Tropical ray: MANTA

53 Hedda Gabler’s creator: IBSEN.

54 Proportion: RATIO

55 Backup-beating brand: DRANO. I enjoyed this - I was on the computer-file backup track for a while.

56 Maker of the MyBlend blender: OSTER. I can't see this brand name now without wincing - last year I was pulling my Oster blender out of the cupboard above my oven and I dropped the (heavy!) glass mixing bowl. Instinctively I wanted to save it from shattering on my tiles so I intelligently stuck my bare foot between it and the floor. I broke two bones in my foot and the darn thing still shattered.

58 Bird on Canada’s dollar coin: LOON

59 Hit the road: LEFT

60 1977 Steely Dan album: AJA. Their best-selling album.

61 Burger holder: BUN

62 Tower of London loc. ENG. I wonder if there's a tower in London, Ontario as well as London, England?

And there we have it. That's it from me today - have a great Wednesday and see you next time.

Tuesday, July 30, 2013 Steve Blais

Theme: I resemble this theme - Three terms for a, shall we say, abundant stomach.

17A. What baguettes may be served in : BREAD BASKET

29A. Fifth wheel : SPARE TIRE

45A. Cozy place to read a book : BAY WINDOW

60A. Emotional response (which might be induced by 17-, 29- and 45-Across?) : GUT REACTION

Argyle here. I like that the three terms are not necessarily a bad thing; who doesn't like a bay window or a basket of bread? Yum! I understand some cars do not carry a spare tire any more. Not a good idea, here in the hinterlands. Oh, and I liked the puzzle, too.

Across:

1. Understand : GET

4. In a chair : SEATED

10. It may be crushed at a bar : ICE. Not to be found in any form at Villa Incognito.

13. Dinghy gear : OARS. A dinghy (or dingey) is a type of small boat.

15. Water-carved gulch : ARROYO. Most of the time dry except after heavy rains.

16. Traitor : RAT

19. Toronto's prov. : ONT. (Ontario)

20. Cover, in a way, as a car : INSURE

21. Baltic Sea republic : ESTONIA

23. "Hannah Montana" star Miley : CYRUS. Not what she looks like now. PIC.

26. Minor argument : TIFF

27. Mimic : APER

33. Bird: Prefix : AVI

34. Mobster's code of honor : OMERTÀ. Haven't seen this entry in a while.

36. Dashing style : ELAN

37. Old sheriff's badge : TIN STAR

39. Self-respect : DIGNITY

41. __-Seltzer : ALKA. Good entry for today's theme.

42. Jeans giant of the '80s : GITANO

44. Grant-giving gp. : NEA. (National Endowment for the Arts)

47. Identifies in a Facebook photo : TAGS

49. Penultimate-round game : SEMI. Before the final.

50. Egyptian life symbols : ANKHs

52. Numbers to crunch : RAW DATA

55. Title Gilbert and Sullivan emperor : MIKADO

59. Pub offering : ALE

63. Mud bath site : SPA

64. Manuscript fixer : EDITOR

65. Just : ONLY

66. __ ejemplo: Spaniard's "for example" : POR

67. Hate : DETEST

68. Cowboy singer Ritter : TEX

Down:

1. Mongolian desert : GOBI

2. Be worthy of : EARN

3. Very, in Vichy : TRÈS

4. Pirate's weapon : SABER

5. Time to remember : ERA

6. Latin art : ARS. The Latin word for art.

7. Casino gratuity : TOKE

8. Cause of blurry vision, perhaps : EYE STRAIN

9. Nashville's West : DOTTIE

10. Speck in a magnetic field experiment : IRON FILING

11. Kid's plea : "CAN I?"

12. Jazzy James : ETTA

14. Alfredo, for one : SAUCE

18. Timber trouble : DRY ROT

22. Frequently : OFTEN

24. Logon requirement : USER ID

25. Mar.-to-Jun. season : SPR. (spring)

27. Walled city of Spain : ÁVILA

28. Kids' digital deal-sealer : PINKY SWEAR. Shaking hands - except with only pinkie fingers.

30. When the cock crows : AT DAWN

31. Rent-a-car charges, e.g. : RATES

32. One-named Irish singer : ENYA. 'Fraid she doesn't fit with my singers today.

33. Run __: drink on credit : A TAB

35. Star brightness measure : MAGNITUDE

38. Cut, as logs : SAWED

40. "Wuthering Heights" genre : GOTHIC

43. One __ customer : TO A

46. Painted a picture of, say : IMAGED

48. Invite as one's date for : ASK TO

51. Target competitor : KMART

52. Coarse talk : RASP. Bit tricky.

53. Brand for a pooch : ALPO

54. Toiling away : AT IT

56. "__ She Sweet" : AIN'T

57. Mete (out) : DOLE

58. Jet-black gem : ONYX

61. GPS suggestion : RTE.

62. Camera named for a goddess : EOS

Argyle

Monday, July 29, 2013 Patti Varol

Theme: Game On! - The three starred answers begin with a type of team sport ball.

20. *Page-bottom reference indicated by an asterisk : FOOTNOTE

34. *Skydiver using low-altitude starting points : BASEJUMPER

41. *Nervous wreck : BASKET CASE

54. Angels or Dodgers, and, in a way, what the first words of the answers to starred clues comprise : BALL CLUB

Argyle here on a very Monday. Patti (interview) shows us how to construct a simple Monday puzzle. A nice touch are the the two columns, each spanning two answers.

Across:

1. Mustard-colored kernels : CORN

5. Campaign ad target : VOTER

10. Best buds : PALS

14. Toward shelter, at sea : ALEE

15. Boxing venue : ARENA

16. Dr. Frankenstein's helper : IGOR

17. Musical Horne : LENA

18. Lost some color : PALED

19. Refuse to continue : QUIT

22. Exotic lizard : IGUANA

24. St. Elmo's __ : FIRE

25. Yawn inducer : BORE

26. Vowel sound in "bug" : SHORT U

29. Designer Gucci : ALDO

30. That ship : SHE

33. Junction point : NODE

37. Dickens's Heep : URIAH

39. Mom, to Auntie : SIS

40. __ bear : POLAR

44. Ecstatic review : RAVE

45. Concorde, e.g., for short : SST. (supersonic transport)

46. Crazy as a __ : LOON

47. Like a three-piece suit : VESTED

49. Supply that exceeds demand : GLUT

50. Like the Magi : WISE

51. "On the wall" beauty judge in a film classic : MIRROR. "Snow White".

58. Garfield's pal : ODIE

59. Hot under the collar : IRATE

61. Norway's capital : OSLO

62. Alternative word : ELSE

63. Like anchovies : SALTY

64. Funnyman Carvey : DANA. SNL Audition(2:22)

65. Plant's beginning : SEED

66. "__ are the times that ...": Paine : THESE. “These are the times that try men's souls. The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of their country; but he that stands it now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman. Tyranny, like hell, is not easily conquered; yet we have this consolation with us, that the harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph. What we obtain too cheap, we esteem too lightly: it is dearness only that gives everything its value.” Complete text LINK.

67. State, in France : ÉTAT

Down:

1. Young cow : CALF

2. Topping in a tub : OLEO

3. Nevada gambling city : RENO

4. Compulsive tidy-upper : NEAT FREAK

5. Vicks mentholated ointment : VAPORUB®

6. Address the crowd : ORATE

7. Prefix with vision : TELE

8. WSW's opposite : ENE

9. One supplying drive-time music, briefly : RADIO DJ

10. Stimulate, as curiosity : PIQUE

11. Juanita's water : AGUA

12. Choice cut : LOIN

13. Mlle., in Mexico : SRTA.. French in Spanish.

21. Point trivially picked : NIT

23. Word after support or study : GROUP

25. Sanctify : BLESS

26. Deliberately doesn't invite : SNUBS

27. Jewish wedding dances : HORAs

28. Dedicative poet : ODIST

29. Made in Taiwan, say : ASIAN

30. Wet impact sound : SPLAT. Bug-hits-windshield sound.

31. Let out, as a sigh : HEAVE

32. Messed up : ERRED

35. Knotted neckwear : ASCOT

36. System with dots and dashes : MORSE CODE

38. "You had me at __": "Jerry Maguire" line : HELLO. (movie)

42. Camera-toting traveler, often : TOURIST

43. Curse-inducing stare : EVIL EYE

48. Immigrant's subj. : ESL. Another from Sunday's.

49. Avarice : GREED

50. Light bulb units : WATTS

51. "The Simpsons" tavern : MOE'S

52. Gathering dust : IDLE

53. Increase : RISE

54. Hayloft bundle : BALE

55. Atty.-to-be's exam : LSAT. ( Law School Admission Test)

56. Forearm bone : ULNA

57. Tub toy : BOAT

60. Stadium cheer : [RAH!]

Argyle

Sunday July 28, 2013 Ed Sessa

Theme: "Networking" - Theme entries all have TV channels as initials.

 27A. *"Perhaps" : THERE'S NO TELLING. TNT. Endless "Law & Order".

 41A. *Snacks not needing an oven : NO-BAKE COOKIES. NBC.

 53A. *"When I say so," militarily speaking : AT MY COMMAND. AMC.

 78A. *Signature song for Sammy Davis Jr. : THE CANDY MAN. TCM. Online version has no asterisk. But it should.

 88A. *Practically guaranteed : ALL BUT CERTAIN. ABC.

 107A. *Ambushed : TAKEN BY SURPRISE. TBS.

 16D. *Fair forecast : CLEAR BLUE SKIES. CBS.

 48D. *Settling request : PLEASE BE SEATED. PBS.

 91D. Weekly magazine where the initials of the answers to starred clues can be found : TV GUIDE

Often I have a basic idea of where the theme is going after scanning at the title. Not today. Clueless until I hit the reveal entry, which intersects 2 more theme entries.

The gridding would be a bit trickier if Ed tried to place TV GUIDE in the very lower right corner or central row. Intersection can ease up the filling considerably. Look at how nice today's long 9's (total 8) are.

Across:

 

1. Mature : ADULT

6. One of a typical schooner's pair : MAST

10. Water holders : DAMS

14. Sees eye to eye? : FACES. I don't get this clue.

19. Patty Hearst's SLA alias : TANIA

20. Alice's immortalizer : ARLO. This type of "Immortalizer" or "immortal" clue always cracks me up.

21. Inclusive ending : ET AL

22. Kate's TV mate : ALLIE

23. Bug-hits-windshield sound : SPLAT. Vivid clue.

24. Lab gel medium : AGAR

25. Stage highlight : ARIA

26. "CSI" part? : SCENE. Crime Scene Investigation.

30. Wedding proposal? : TOAST. Nice clue.

31. You-__: rural addresses : UNS. I only know y'all.

32. Fight unit: Abbr. : RND. Oh, round. Boxing.

33. Connection facilitators, briefly : ISPs

34. Fireplace place : HEARTH

35. Computer in a cubicle : DESK TOP

37. Wild talk : RANT

39. Roll on the ball field : SOD

40. "__ Mir Bist Du Schoen" (Andrews Sisters hit) : BEI. Literally "north" in Chinese, as in Beijing.

45. Tiger's ex : ELIN

46. Chem lab tube : PIPET. New word to me also.

49. Well-coiffed Byrnes : EDD

50. Cupid's wings : ALAE. The adjective is ALAR. We used to see these two a lot in the old Tribune puzzle.

51. __ bean: sprouts source : MUNG. Boomer like bean sprouts in his chow mein, served over rice. Very strange.

52. Cast member's part : ROLE

57. Military meal : MESS

58. Private insignia : ONE STRIPE

60. Carrie's org. on "Homeland" : CIA

61. Poor grades : DEEs

63. Smokey Bear broadcast, briefly : PSA

64. Like __ out of hell : A BAT

65. Critic Reed : REX

66. Rachael Ray sautéing initialism : EVOO (Extra Virgin Olive Oil)

 
68. Royal Botanic Gardens locale : KEW

71. Big hauler : SEMI

73. Wet expanse : SEA. And 55D. Wet expanse : OCEAN

74. Auto trip problem : BLOWN TIRE

76. Court answer : PLEA

82. Psychic's verb : READ

83. Soldiers under Lee : REBs

84. Flor del amor : ROSA. My yellow tea rose must hate our garden, Marti.

85. Great Basin native : UTE. Gary & D-Otto use UTE a lot.

86. Oktober endings : FESTS. Oktoberfests.

87. Fancy molding : OGEE

93. __-relief : BAS

94. School support gp. : PTA

95. A fourth of doce : TRES.  doce = 12.

96. Carrion consumer : VULTURE

100. Fútbol cheer : OLE OLE

102. Computer info : DATA. 74. 102-Across units : BYTES.

104. "Wow" : GEE

105. Homer's neighbor : NED (Flanders). The Simpsons.

106. Close call : SCARE

112. Trig function : COTAN. I could only think of COSEC, Bill G.

113. No longer happening : OVER

114. Places : LOCI

115. Beetles, perhaps : AUTOS

116. Driver's lic., e.g. : IDENT (Identification).

117. Herb used with potatoes : DILL. I only like chives with potatoes.

118. Benediction opener : O GOD

119. Oodles : SLEWS

120. Like marshes : SEDGY. OK.

121. Operation Overlord time : D-DAY

122. Hinged entrance : GATE

123. "The Gondoliers" girl : TESSA. I forgot. We had this before.

Down:

1. Like some retired racehorses : AT STUD

2. Apollo's nymph : DAPHNE. She didn't like him & became a laurel tree to escape his advances. She should have just come to America.

3. Conditional word : UNLESS. You want OR ELSE too?

4. One may be exposed during cross-examination : LIAR

5. Ore-Ida morsel : TATER TOT

6. Kettles from Cape Flattery : MA AND PA

7. Jason's vessel : ARGO. Hello Lemonade!

8. Shutter part : SLAT

9. Sped : TORE

10. Gives a hand : DEALS TO

11. Anchor position : ATRIP. Spitzboov & D-Otto won't mind this A* word.

12. Sewer lines : MAINS

13. Metallic by-product : SLAG

14. Followed a Lenten routine : FASTED

15. Big name in siding : ALCOA. I need the more obvious "foil" or "wrap" to make this a gimme.

17. Hardly dim bulbs : EINSTEINS

18. Hallucinate : SEE THINGS. Tricky to parse.

28. Hoity-toity sort : SNOB

29. Type starter : LINO. Linotype.

34. Cleaned, as a deck : HOSED DOWN

36. Low benders : KNEES

37. Try a new shade on : RE-DYE

38. "High Voltage" rockers : AC/DC

39. Bean who played Boromir in "The Lord of the Rings" films : SEAN. Never saw the series. Is he bad or good?

42. Neat : KEMPT. Only know unkempt.

43. __ Sutra : KAMA

44. Waterfront gp. : ILA (International Longshoremen's Association)

45. Supermodel born Melissa Miller : EMME. Wow, her name is quite close to the real supermodel Marisa Miller.

Emme

Marisa Miller

46. Stage aid : PROP

47. Charged atoms : IONS

53. Settle things, in a way : ARBITRATE

54. Familia member : TIA

56. Potpourri : MIX

59. Skye cap : TAM

62. Geological stretch : EON

65. "The Crying Game" actor : REA (Stephen). I saw the movie in Cantonese. So shocked.

66. Wabbit hunter : ELMER

67. U.S. govt. broadcaster : VOA

69. Latin 101 word : ERAT

70. Forms a union : WEDS

72. Relax : EASE

73. Wound covering : SCAB

75. Nottingham's river : TRENT

76. Schnoz like Durante's : PROBOSCIS. Another new word to me.

77. System of laws : LEGAL CODE

79. Havana hi : HOLA 

 

80. Course for would-be U.S. citizens : ESL
 

81. Il __: Mussolini : DUCE
 

86. Walk by singly : FILE PAST
 

89. To the nth degree : UTTERLY. I'd like to try Anonymous T's pizza crust some day. Sounds delicious!
 

90. Air__: low-cost carrier : TRAN

92. Heifetz's teacher : AUER (Leopold). Hungarian violinist.
 

94. More than enough : PLENTY
 

97. Gets together : UNITES

98. Seeds again : RE-SOWS

99. Historic Mesopotamian city : EDESSA. Today known as Urfa in southeast Turkey.

101. Long-armed ape : ORANG

102. Judean king : DAVID

103. Cub Scout leader : AKELA. Learned from Xwords.

107. Sweeney with scissors : TODD. So straightforward.

108. Opine online : BLOG. I blog.

109. Meditative practice : YOGA. Star Tribune just mentioned an outdoor weekly yoga somewhere near our neighborhood.

110. Many a bagpiper : SCOT

111. Reign : RULE

C.C.

Saturday, Jul 27th, 2013, Brad Wilber

Theme: None

Words: 68 (missing J,Q,X,Z)

Blocks: 31

   Today's offering actually seemed better than the DNF I had yesterday (NE corner remained blank).  I have to say, I did use red-letter help in the Mid-West to solve Mr. Wilber's solo effort, but only because of a foreign word, a nick-name and an acronym I was not familiar with.  Something new in the grid - stair-stacked triple 10's off-center, to go with two 10-letter climbers and the usual triples in the corners.  Some fill from today:

20A. Herodotus and Thucydides, for two : HISTORIANS - I was thinking they might be Titans or Greek Islands, but it's really these Greek guys

45A. Homemade defense against a mind-control ray : TIN FOIL HAT - nailed it - such a great visual

12. Stephen Colbert bestseller subtitled "(And So Can You!)" : I AM AMERICA - I read it; typical TV fame-to-books money maker

25. Pessimistic J. Geils Band hit with the line "It's gonna make you cry" : LOVE STINKS - Music Link

O  w  r  ~!
  n  a   d

ACROSS:

1. Many a knockout punch : UPPERCUT - always a good feeling to start out with the correct 8-letter answer~!

9. There's a charge for it : OPTION - I have observed that a LOT of new cars do NOT come with turn signal indicators as standard; must be an expensive option - they were standard on my 2000 Dodge Stratus, and I use them all the time~!

15. Navigator's creator : NETSCAPE - ISP; I was trying to stretch Lincoln to fit - Navigator is their SUV

16. Mind the sitter : BEHAVE - The children, that is

17. Signs at a rally : PLACARDS - Eh, OK - I think of placards as the metal HAZ-MAT plates on trucks

18. Showed signs of being : SEEMED

19. These, in Tours : CES

22. Disk-shaped safety device : SMOKE ALARM - the Town inspector came out to look the apartment over Wednesday; must have been psychic, he left his car running in the driveway....He did point out that the building code requires the smoke alarm in the apartment to be hard-wired to the one in the house, so we could know if there was a fire over there - makes good sense to me

24. Baby shower gift : SLEEPER SET - sounds like Sleeper Cell, but I never saw this show

26. Recordholder's suffix : EST - "World's BiggEST ____" - you fill in the blank....

29. Ridge studied in forensics : WHORL - Fingerprints

30. One with "Esq." on the door : ATTorney

31. Liveliness : BRIO

32. Citrus-marinated South American fish dish : CEVICHE - Total unknown, so it got me; popular with 46D~?  More here

35. High-level disagreement? : YELLING - high decibels, that is

37. Not kosher : TREF - Learned doing crosswords

38. Styled after : À LA

40. Deep purples : PUCES - sounds so unappealing

41. Faltering sounds : UMs - OK, who started with ERs?

42. "The Winds of War" actress : ALI MacGRAW - 1983; her IMDb

47. Hotly contested area : SWING STATE

49. Riddle of the Sphinx answer : MAN - What goes on four feet in the morning, two in the afternoon, and three at night? - More here

52. Scratch : CANCEL - Makes me think of dictation - "Dear Sir or Madam...scratch that..."To Whom It May Concern..."

53. Fortifications : BASTIONS - I tried RAMPARTS, but had to take it out because it couldn't cross the "MOAT" at 49D

56. Acid neutralizer : ALKALI

57. Like Buckley's columns, say : LITERATE

58. Close again, in a way : RE-SNAP

59. In orbit : ECSTATIC - I was on this wavelength, but ELATED was too short

DOWN:

1. Insensitive, in a way : UN-PC - Not Politically Correct

2. Mononymous kicker : PELÉ - actually, his, er, "triptonym" is Edson Arantes do Nascimento, so I thought you'd like to know more

3. K-12 fund-raisers : PTAs

4. Backup key : ESC - Escape, top left on the keyboard - In AutoCAD, it is THE go-to key for ending any command; drawing a line, making a selection set, typing text.  What irks me is when I switch to Photoshop, it does NOTHING at all....

5. Dave Matthews Band label : RCA

6. Meals-on-wheels worker? : CAR-HOP - Har-Har~!

7. "Rabbit Is Rich" Pulitzer winner : UPDIKE - John, and this novel, one of four

8. Mosaic piece : TESSERA - I had heard this before, but I needed perps first; a small tile of glass, stone, etc.; through Latin, from Greek, meaning 'four'

9. Horse-and-buggy : OBSOLETE - I find drivers on cell phones to be really annoying; I wonder if 100 years ago horse-and-buggy types felt the same way about the 'new' automobile....and neither one is going away

10. Examine closely : PEER AT

11. "... __ finest hour": Churchill : THEIR

13. Roast spot : OVEN

14. Beatty and Rorem : NEDS

21. Scrumptious : TASTY

22. Font flourish : SERIF

23. Sporty Spice, familiarly : MEL C - Melanie Chisolm, from the "Spice Girls"

24. Col. Potter on "M*A*S*H," to pals : SHERMan T. Potter

27. Tough tissue : SINEW - animal tissue, that is

28. Garb : TOGS - a WAG that stayed

29. Pro-prohibition org. : WCTU - Women's Christian Temperance Union - never heard of it, but then again, I was anti-prohibition for 15yrs (LOL)

31. Spill, with "out" : BLURT

33. Petticoat alternative : HALF-SLIP

34. "Four Quartets" poet : ELIOT

36. Annika Sorenstam's gp. : LPGA - Ladies Professional Golf Association

39. Good-natured : AMIABLE

42. German chancellor Merkel : ANGELA

43. Language family including Turkish : ALTAIC - Turkic, Mongolian, and Tungusic, sez the dictionary

44. Drawer holders : CHESTS - The furniture, not this chest, ladies

46. Old Peruvian : INCAN

47. Trauma consequence : SCAR

48. Corduroy rib : WALE

49. Zoo trench : MOAT - Dinosaur Parks, too~!

50. Debate side : ANTI

51. One of 60 billion in a min. : NSEC - Nanosecond

54. Three-day festival : TET

55. SS supplement : IRA - Social Security, and Individual Retirement Account - changing it up from Monday level cluing

Splynter

Note from C.C.:

Melissa & her friends had their annual Girls Weekend Getaway a few weeks ago. Here are all the fun pictures. She said "there was a friend who was unable to join us this year, that's why we made those pics of her so that we could bring her along with us. it was almost like she was really with us - so funny."