Saturday, Nov 30th, 2013, Julian Lim

Theme: None

Words: 70 (missing J,K,Q,X)

Blocks: 32

   There was a point during this solve that I started thinking there might also a steady increase in the difficulty of these Saturday puzzles as the year progresses, too - I struggled last week, and there was way too much white this week, as well.  But, little by slowly, by digging into the depths of my brain, and with a few crossword educated WAGs, I was able to close this one out - with one goof-up on my end.  Deceptive looking grid, with paired 10's hiding inside the edges, crossing two more:

33A. Setting for the 2001 film "No Man's Land" : BOSNIAN WAR - IMDb - I have not heard of this film

42A. Inexplicable, in a way : PARANORMAL - I learned this word in my "ute" from Ghostbusters, and 'paranormal activity'

11D. Sneaker inserts : ODOR-EATERS - old commercial, I originally went with "---GELS"

12D. Short-term residence, usually : FOSTER HOME - Pretty sure we were looking for a "---HOME", but had to wait for the kind of home

27D. "Song based on a letter," per McCartney : P.S.I LOVE YOU - Also a movie

28D. Bigoted : INTOLERANT - straight up definition, and for me the hardest part of late-week puzzles; the one-word clue/answer

O             N           W        a    R D ~!

ACROSS:

1. Leafhopper relative : CICADA - Well, I was pretty sure a leafhopper was a kind of bug, and once the "C-C" appeared....

7. 2002 Man Booker Prize-winning novel : LIFE OF PI - also a movie; never heard of this prize

15. Oath : AVOWAL

16. Show of confidence : "I CAN DO IT~!" - I think I would have preferred "Shout" over 'Show'

17. Evict : REMOVE

18. Accounting concerns : NET COSTS

19. Ad infinitum? : PR BLITZ - my only goof; for some reason, a P.A. Blitz made sense (see this clip); plus, crossing the totally unknown 2D....

21. Having a dark complexion : SWARTHY

22. Clipper target : NAIL - started with HAIR - 50% right - I think I have my math right this time~!

24. "Permit Me Voyage" poet : AGEE - I like our Corner poet, Owen - and his handicapped points reminds me of "Death Race"

25. Dish prepared hot and served cold : ASPIC - dug up from the dredges

29. Ones, e.g.: Abbr. : NOs - remember when this "#" meant number???

31. Fonda's "My Darling Clementine" role : EARP

36. Like Singha beer : THAI

38. Correction : EDIT

39. Astronomical scales : LIBRA

 40. Tremendous spans : EONS - Time spans

41. Olympic hurdler Jones : LOLO - her website

44. Stop wearing down? : MOLT - Har-Har~!  Down, the under plumage of a bird, that is

46. Fa follower : SOL - Do, re, me, fa, SOL?, la, ti, do - why does this one get three letters? Speaking of two-letters, see below

47. "I don't care if you __ again": The Cars lyric : USE ME - from "You're All I've Got Tonight"

48. Coal container : VEIN - I tried MINE - 75% right, but in the completely wrong squares

50. Showed grief : WEPT

52. Mr. Peabody's boy : SHERMAN - before my time; Rocky & Bullwinkle

55. Conic section : ELLIPSE - I wanted PARABOLA, but it didn't fit

60. Balance sheet items : PAYABLES

62. Make less musty : AIR OUT

63. Like some decals : IRONED ON - Ah, the past tense

64. Easier to see, perhaps : NEARER

65. It's not charged : NEUTRINO - subatomic particle

66. Cakewalk : BREEZE

DOWN:

1. Kvetch : CARP - Started with CRAB - again, 75% right, but only 25% in the right squares

2. 2011 Best New Artist Grammy winner Bon __ : IVER - I think I am getting to that age where the music of today makes me feel like my father did as I was growing up, when I thought Iron Maiden was the best band ever - he preferred Dean Martin, so you can see the discrepancy - I suppose it could be worse - I could have kids that actually listen to this stuff

3. Parting aid : COMB - I liked this, but it took a moment to 'get it'

4. Taps absentee, possibly : AWOL

5. Renaissance standout : DA VINCI

6. Hal Foster's Queen of the Misty Isles : ALETA

7. Author Yutang : LIN

8. Refreshing treats : ICES

9. Islamic ruling : FATWA - another one I dredged up

10. Put behind bars : ENCAGE

13. Substance : PITH

14. Far from substantial : ITSY

20. Hummingbird attractors : ZINNIAS -  went with PISTILS - can you tell I skipped Biology?

23. Like some humor : LOWBROW - according to one source, phrenologists of the late 19th century claimed that the height of one's brow was a clear indicator of intelligence

25. Genesis son : ABEL - and a slight clecho;

26. Genesis city : SODOM

30. Ball Park Franks owner : SARA LEE

32. 2011 ABC show with multiple pilots : PAN AM - subtle misdirection, as a 'pilot' of a show is the first one the producers make

34. The tallest one is nearly 16,000 feet high : ALP - If this were Jeopardy!, the response would be "What is Mont Blanc?"

35. Took off : RAN

37. Emerald __ : ISLE

43. Statistical anomaly : OUTLIER

45. Building material : TIMBER - Ha-HA~!  I had LUMBER, and that's 67% right, and in the proper squares~!!!

49. Nita of early filmdom : NALDI

51. Backup : PLAN B

52. __ doctor : SPIN - I had EXPENSES at 60A, and this answer made me change it

53. Hopping game? : HARE - Game as in hunter's prey

54. __ Carrot: Crayola color : NEON - well, I can see that

56. Requiem title word : IRAE - "Dies Irae", crossword staple

57. Plant's stoma, e.g. : PORE - yeah, see 20D.

58. 1956 crisis site : SUEZ

59. French 101 word : ÊTRE

61. __-Cat : SNO

 This week's discussion on M & Ms (@9:15am) reminded me of a similar game I came up with back in my bar days.  I will give two letters, and I'm looking for two words that start with those letters, but having opposite meanings.  Some easy ones to start;
L - R
H - C
U - D
and some maybe a little more difficult - and there's more than one answer in some cases
S - S
B - E
B - F
 Have fun - let me see what you come up with

Splynter

Friday, November 29, 2013, Mark Feldman

Theme: Sounds like a letter

Mark Feldman pops up quickly after last Sunday's effort, with the opposite of miss marti's favorite letter-word words. Each of the theme answers undoes a familiar letter-word and creates a new and amusing sound alike two word phrase.  The theme answers are short, but there are 8 of them. With stacked 7s in each corner, the third row from the top and from the bottom being part of the theme, this one took some work to get going and must have been a real challenge to build. This was the hardest Friday for me in a very long time. The theme came easily and saved me or I would have never been able to finish.

17A. Call from a collection agency? : OWE RING. (7) (O-ring). Really cute but convoluted image of the phone ringing with a debt collector caller.

18A. Questionable alliance? : WHY AXIS. (7) (Y-axis). Axis being the enemy of the Allies in WWII, the big one.

23A. Social attire? : TEA SHIRT.(8) (T-shirt).

39A. Sheep transport? : EWE BOAT.(7) (U-boat).

41A. Message from the captain? : SEA NOTE. (7) (C-note).

49A. Suggestion from one waiter to another? : QUEUE TIP. (8) (Q-tip).

61A. Hive workers? : BEE TEAM. (7) (B-team).

63A. Lasik ray? : EYE BEAM. (7) (I-beam).

Across:

1. Approaches aggressively : ACCOSTS. A great word, but such a hard way to start.

8. Like some scenic highways : COASTAL. PCH anyone or US1?

15. Avant-garde neighborhood : BOHEMIA. A name taken from the gypsies, I think. LINK.

16. On the line : AT STAKE.

19. Compass pt. : WSW. It is always ENE or WSW, never WNW.

20. Malicious look : LEER.

22. "You __!": Ren, to Stimpy : EEDIOT.

25. Rash symptom : ITCH.

28. Best : TOP. See if you can come up with a better clue.

29. Eastern priest : LAMA. I wonder if anyone ever introduces him with this song playing in the background. LISTEN. (2:29).

33. Playground troublemakers : DARERS. and its counterpart 58D. Bit of derring-do : DEED.

36. Something that's going around : ORBITER. Another nice long fill that really required work to unearth.

42. Internal device on most cellphones : ANTENNA. Ah, anyone still have an old phone somewhere with the outside antenna?

43. German port : BREMEN. In Northern Germany; I will ask our travelers Kazie and marti to discuss.

44. Strong cleaners : LYES.

45. "Keep it down!" : SHH. Really, after all the tryptophan from the turkey, I am sleepy.

48. Stamp of approval letters : USDA. I have no beef with this fill.

53. Agamemnon's father : ATREUS. This KING from ancient GREEK lore is not one of the more famous figures, but his failure to sacrifice a lamb led to much suffering. A Friday clue and the first in our Greek history lessons.

57. Flubs the shot, e.g. : ERRS. We forgive you.

58. Stranded stuff : DNA. Nice play on the fact that DNA is a strand.

65. Humor : INDULGE.

66. Tease mercilessly : TORMENT. What older brothers do.

67. Always-open merchant : ETAILER.

68. New York tribe : ONEIDAS. Not to be confused with the OREIDA potato people.

Down:

1. Take __ : A BOW. If you finished this one unaided in your normal Friday time.

2. Intimidates : COWS. I wonder if this comes kowtow, which may come from the Chinese,  Cantonese 叩頭 / 叩头 where one bows so low they touch the forehead to the ground?

3. Enjoy some Trident : CHEW. Finally one I knew.

4. Anthem preposition : O'ER the ramparts we watched...

5. Facial arc : SMILE. What a fun definition.

6. Skin woe : TINEA. Two of our favorite FUNGI jock itch and athlete's foot. More Friday cluing.

7. Most like a guru : SAGEST.

8. Avian cry : CAW.

9. With "The," 1971 best-seller about an evil twin : OTHER. A Tom Tryon novel, that made for a very creepy MOVIE. (3:09)

10. So far : AS YET.

11. Dutch town : STAD.  A word in many Germanic languages, probably from the Latin root STATUS from which we get our word Stand.

12. Sitcom set in a garage : TAXI. Did you all like Andy Kaufman?

13. Japanese wrestler Sato : AKIO. Now this made the northeast so hard, who knows this female judo champion?

14. "__ we forget" : LEST.

21. Greek consonant : RHO. Looks like a P sounds like an R.

23. Ancient city whose ruins are in modern Luxor : THEBES. The Greek name for the ancient Egyptian city of antiquity. Greek the language of the day.

24. Wall St. debuts : IPOS. Initial Public Offerings.

25. Perfect : IDEAL.

26. Yellowish-brown : TAWNY. Why do I think of this GIRL (0:52) from the Whitesnake video?

27. Land of the Minotaur : CRETE. The STORY. More Greek.

29. Get in position for the parade, as a band : LINE UP.

30. Proton carriers : ATOMS.

31. Rationed (out) : METED.

32. Amphitheater : ARENA.

34. "Arrested Development" narrator Howard : RON. You can watch new episodes on Netflix.

35. __ Miguel: Cozumel city : SAN.

37. Confederate : REB. Should this be an abbreviation?

38. Musical measure : BAR.

40. Zap, in a way : TASE. Famous FILM. (2:24).

46. Tint : HUE.

47. Contract adverb : HERETO. A nice law word.

49. Put down : QUELL. Like a rebellion.

50. Custom : USAGE.

51. Test, in a way : TRY ON.

52. Rhone feeder : ISERE. marti have you rafted this water in Grenoble, France?

53. Rose's Broadway beau : ABIE. Once the longest running Broadway play.

54. Simple shelter : TENT.

55. Prynne's stigma : RED A. An opposite letter word. Poor Hester; I recently reread the book and it was mostly boring.

56. Holder of needles and such : ETUI.

59. Granny : NANA. I am anxious to learn what Charlotte will call me. She pointed at me during Thanksgiving and said Gigah (or so it sounded) but who knows.

60. Qts. and pts. : AMTS. Amounts.

62. Côte d'Azur view : MER. French for Sea.

64. Ratio involving ht. and wt. : BMI. Body Mass Index. A very misused concept that ignores muscle weight and tells too many they are obese.

Well I am fat and sleepy as everyone went all out on the food, with too much, turkey and fish and mashed potatoes, and corn casserole and green beans, and roasted brussel sprouts, sweet potatoes, and ...  all tasty and way too many desserts. I hope you received your just ones, and I wish you all a happy holiday season. Now shop! Thanks Mark. Lemonade out.

Thursday, November 28, 2013 David W. Cromer

Theme:"Yeah, riiiiiight!"

17A. Wright : WILBUR OR ORVILLE.

27A. Rite : CHURCH CEREMONY.

43A. Right : STARBOARD AT SEA.

57A. Write : EMULATE AN AUTHOR.

This is a variation on a definition-type theme, where the theme clues are all homophones of each other. The theme entries were quite straight-forward, but oh my! The rest of the puzzle was chock full of misdirections and fun clues!

Across:

1. Nature photographer's lens : MACRO. Shout out to John Lampkin!

butterfly

6. __ facie : PRIMA.

11. Dells, at times : PCs. When is a Dell not a PC? (When it's a tablet!)

14. Steer clear of : AVOID.

15. Charged : RAN AT. RANAT sounds like a Jewish month, doesn't it?

16. Impressed reaction : OOH. I had "awe" at first.

20. "Far out!" : RAD.(ical)

21. Begins : OPENS.

22. Soothing application : ALOE.

23. Dupes : CONS.

26. One getting a share : AGENT.

33. North Carolina's __ Banks : OUTER.

34. "America" soloist in "West Side Story" : ANITA. (Rita Moreno) Great song.

35. Hardy heroine : "TESS...of the d'Ubervilles: A pure Woman Faithfully Presented."

36. They may be dusted : CROPS. Furniture didn't even enter my mind.

37. Indication of freshness? : SLAP. It used to be that when someone got fresh, they'd get a SLAP in the face. Now, they are more likely to get slapped with a lawsuit.

41. Weasel relative : SABLE.

42. Feudal lord : LIEGE.

47. Theater sweepings : STUBS.

48. Drops from the staff : AXES.

49. Like most pets : TAME.

50. Showy neckwear : ASCOT.

54. Actress Carrere : TIA. She played hottie Cassandra Wong in "Wayne's World."

Tia

61. End of a texter's amusing comment, perhaps : LOL.

62. Paramount output : MOVIE.

63. Mazda two-seater : MIATA. They don't do well in snow. Mine got T-boned two months after I bought it.

64. Cornerstone abbr. : EST.ablished...

65. Comets, long ago : OMENS.

66. With 12-Down, exile site : PENAL. and 12-Down. See 66-Across : COLONY.

Down:

1. Bryn __ College : MAWR.

2. Reebok rival : AVIA.

3. Ham at a party, say : COLD CUTS. Another great misdirection.  I was thinking of the guy with the lampshade hat...

4. Tease : RIB.

5. Norfolk, Va., campus : ODU. I'm sure glad this one was filled before I got to the down clues. Old Dominion University.

6. Phone in a play, e.g. : PROP.

7. Uncommon : RARE.

8. Privy to : IN ON.

9. Rover's turf : MARS. Another great misdirection.  Not the kind of 49-Across, but the Mars ROVER:

Mars rover Curiosity

10. Four-wheeler, briefly : ATV. All Terrain Vehicle.

11. Common allergen : POLLEN.

13. Sleep on it : SHEET. I was getting hit with misdirection from all sides today! (I must be thinking about that turkey...) And then I got hit with a clecho at 27-Down. Sleep on it : COT.

18. __ Hashanah : ROSH.

19. "Othello" villain : IAGO.

24. Metal bearers : ORES.

25. Big name in ATMs : NCR. National Cash Register Company, in business since 1884.

26. Doc bloc : AMA. American Medical Association.

28. Peach or plum : HUE.

29. __-loading : CARBO. Here's how.

30. Name on a historic bomber : ENOLA. Gay.

31. Closer to being harvested : RIPER.

32. Little green men : ETs.

36. "Cash __": TV game show : CAB. I miss Ben Bailey.

37. Set of Web pages : SITE.

38. Under : LESS THAN.

39. Scotch bottle datum : AGE. Hi, Tinbeni!

40. Soup veggie : PEA.

41. Many AARP members: Abbr. : SRs. Seniors. (Who, moi?)

42. Loose : LAX.

43. John of "Necessary Roughness" : STAMOS. I remember him from "Full House."

JohnStamos

44. Turbulence : TUMULT.

45. 52-Down victim : ABEL. And 52-Down. Slayer of 45-Down : CAIN.

46. Computer input : DATA.

47. Stone marker : STELE.

50. Bit that can be split : ATOM.

51. Cantabria-born golfer, familiarly : SEVE. Severiano "Seve" Ballesteros Sota.  An incredibly talented golfer who died young of a brain tumor. So sad.

53. Till fill : ONES.

55. Kappa preceder : IOTA.

56. Shrinking sea : ARAL.

58. Latin trio word : AMO...amas, amat

59. Worker at home : UMP. Home plate, that is.

60. Haberdashery item : TIE.

Today we have an extra treat thanks to George Barany and Friends.  Click here to solve a once-in-a-lifetime puzzle.

Have a wonderful Turkey Day, and a Happy Hanukkah as well!

From the ever-thankful that I found this corner of friends,

Marti

Notes from C.C.:

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone! I have so much to be thankful this year:

To Rich Norris (LA Times Crossword Editor), who works hard behind the scenes and gently guides and helps constructors to make the best puzzle possible. Many of the clever clues we rave about are Rich's.

Rich Norris & his wife Kim, ACPT, 2008

To Rich's patient assistant Patti Varol, who has the hard job of telling constructors why a puzzle is rejected (or accepted). Her emails are always clear & thoughtful. Thanks also to Rich's test solvers and all LA Times constructors for giving us so many great puzzles to enjoy.

My eternal thanks to my dedicated blogging team, who never complain when things go wrong. And things did go wrong a few times last year. They just soldiered through.

Dear Santa Argyle, who has blogged 442 puzzles for us the past few years, is always there for me, on and off the blog.

The beautiful Melissa, who is going through some of life's toughest patches at the moment. She's missed and she'll be back.

The foodie Steve, who's blogged for us from different parts of the world. He was in Rio last week, but it was raining the whole time. Too bad, I was expecting this.

Our economist Jazzbumpa (Ron), who puts lots of time into his each post and never fails to make me smile with his jokes and whimsical comments.

The wickedly talented & adventurous Marti, who coheres us in so many ways. She's always upbeat, no matter what life throws at her.

Marti, Dudley, Hondo & Montana

The caring Lemonade, our perfect guide for Friday puzzles. He wouldn't have missed last Sunday's theme as I did. He's much more knowledgeable about complicated theme gimmicks.

Lemonade & John Lampkins

The coolest UPS guy Splynter, who has never missed a Saturday write-up since May 21, 2011. He's super efficient and hard-working. 

I also want to thank our regular commenters. Thanks for your poems, quotes, funny links, travel experiences, life observations, recipes, nitpicking about crosswords, advice about computer glitches, etc. You've enriched my life.

Thank you!

Wednesday, November 27, 2013 Marti DuGuay-Carpenter

Theme:  Mr. Mostel, or Dash it all, or Nothing, really.

So many pictures, so hard to chose

17A. Line on an envelope : CITY STATE AND ZIP.  Part of an address, but not Mr. Lincoln's at Gettysburg.

 23A. Pago Pago's land : AMERICAN SAMOA.  City on an island; also the Capital.

 40A. Paul Hogan role : CROCODILE DUNDEE.  Australian adventure movie.

 52A. Classic cartoon shout : YABBA-DABBA-DOO.  Fred Flintstone.

And the unifier --  62A. Zero in Morse code, any part of which will finish the title of the Oscar-winning song found at the ends of 17-, 23-, 40- and 52-Across : DAH DAH DAH DAH DAH.  If you think of Morse Code in terms of dots and dashes, DAH is the dash.

Hi gang, JzB here, totally in awe of this seemingly nothing theme, and its execution; from our own dear Heart, Marti.  Until the unifier, I was clueless.

Here is today's theme song, Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah, from the 1946 Disney movie, Song of the South.

Across:

1. One-on-one contest : DUEL.  It's a dual confrontation.

5. Pub orders : ALES. 

9. Creator : MAKER.  Often met by the loser of 1A.

14. Sicilian smoker : ETNA.  The most popular X-word volcano.

15. Shout to a storeful of customers : NEXT.  Many stores are refusing to open tomorrow.  I'm NEXT to applaud them.

16. Elegant headgear : TIARA.  Hat for a princess

20. Noel beginning : O COME.  Christmas is less than a month away, now.

21. Current to avoid : RIP.  Ocean current, lest you earn an R.I.P. and meet A9.

22. Gives the nod : OK'S.  I give the nod to Marti's fine puzzle.

28. Dudley Do-Right's gal : NELL. 

29. Green prefix : ECO-.  Environmentalism.

30. Golfer Woosnam : IAN.  Don't know him

33. Down __: Maine region : EAST.  Regional slang.  In the Detroit area, it's down river.

36. "Gotta run!" : LATER.  Later, later; must push on for now.

44. Side of the 1860s : UNION.  Civil War, of course.

45. __ Lisa Vito: "My Cousin Vinny" role : MONA.  Played brilliantly by Marisa Tomai. Excellent movie.

46. Cold-sounding commercial prefix : SNO-.  SNO-cone, SNO-Caps, SNO-cat.  Sno-others?

47. "I'm not impressed" : MEH.  Homer.

49. '60s White House daughter : LUCI Baines Johnson.  Everyone in the family was LBJ.

58. NYSE overseer : SEC.  Securities Exchange Commision

59. Green roll : SOD.  Lawn order.

60. Tropical trees : PALMS.  Will you be my frond?

67. Stopped lying? : AROSE.  Woke up, got up, and that's the truth!

68. MBA seeker's first hurdle : GMAT.  Graduate Management Admission Test.

69. Napa prefix : OENO.  Wine related.

70. Array for a Boy Scout : KNOTS.  Do you know the difference between a square knot and a granny?

71. Comes to a stop : ENDS.  Some of them are loose.

72. Quick cut : SNIP.

Down:

1. Rectilinear art form : DECO.  There are plenty of curves in art deco, but I won't quibble.

2. City east of Syracuse : UTICA.  Also a city north-east of Detroit.

3. Sci. of insects : ENTOMology

4. Nonprofessionals : LAY MEN.

5. Pantry pest : ANT.  What about a formica counter top?

6. Green expanse : LEA.

7. Cast-of-thousands member : EXTRA.  I read all about it.

8. Pub order : STEIN.  Clecho!

9. High-elev. spot : MTN.  One place to get high, briefly.

10. A leg up : AID.

11. Sung-into instrument : KAZOO,

12. Slezak of "One Life to Live" : ERIKA.  Never watched it.

13. Shoots the breeze : RAPS.  Retro definition.  In the 60's we had RAP sessions.

18. Plagued by drought : SERE.

19. Church recess : APSE.

24. "Where Is the Life That Late __?": Cole Porter song : I LED.

25. Forty-niner's stake : CLAIM.  Last night they CLAIMED a big win over the Washington team.

26. Rights gp. : ACLU.  American Civil Liberties Union.

27. Ghostly sound : MOAN.   Ghost walks into a bar.  Bartender gives him a quizzical look.  "What," the ghost says, "You don't serve spirits here?"

30. Post-ER area : I.C.U.  Intensive Care Unit.  Bet Marti knows all about it.

31. Son of Prince Valiant : ARN.

32. "There's __ in 'team'" : NO I.  George Carlin's response: "Maybe not. But there is an "I" in independence, individuality and integrity.'"

34. __-mo : SLO.  Slow motion camera trick.  Rhymes with SNO-.

35. Potato sack wt., perhaps : TEN LB.  Mash 'em up.

37. B. Favre's career 508 : TDS.  Touch Downs.  American football.

38. Velvet finish? : EEN.  Velveteen. Silly Wabbit.

39. Collectible car : R. E. O.  Speedwagon, by Ransom Eli Olds.

41. Search everywhere in : COMB.

42. Front row seat : ONE B.  First class?

43. Apply amateurishly : DAUB.

48. It may be slung at a diner : HASH.

50. Matador's cloak : CAPA.  Spanish for cape.

51. Oft-baked veggies : IDAHOS.  P'daydahs.  Yes, a tuber is a vegetable.

52. Long (for) : YEARN.  Always reminds me of this, from the Maxims section of the 9th Century Exeter Book; doubly appropriate during Thanksgiving week.

Longað þonne þy læs þe him con leoþa worn,

oþþe mid hondum con hearpan gretan;

hafaþ him his gliwes giefe, þe him god sealde.

He longs less who knows many songs

Or can touch the harp with his hands

He has his gleeful gift that God gave him.

Be thankful for what you have. [sermon]

53. Blessed outburst? : ACHOO.  Gesundheit.

54. Evade : DODGE, as a bullet.

55. Butler's last words : A DAMN.  From a man who wouldn't give. Rhett Butler.

56. Of yore : OLDEN.  Back in the day.

57. Muscat native : OMANI.

58. Where to find Pierre: Abbr. : South DAKota. Unlike Waldo, it's on the map.

61. Class with tools : SHOP. Machine or wood.

63. Mar.-Nov. hours : D.S.T.  Daylight Saving Time. I save time in a bottle.

64. Two-time loser to DDE : AES  Dwight David Eisenhower and Adlai Ewing Stevenson

65. Owned : HAD.  Possession having been 9 points of the law.

66. Boozer's syndrome : DT'S.  Delerium Tremens.  I had this last month in C.C.'s puzzle; Latin for shaking frenzy, a symptom of withdrawal from alcohol or other sedative hypnotics.  Can be fatal if not treated.

But there's nothing fatal about Marti's terrific puzzle.  A few abbrvs, but no zeros.  Hope you enjoyed it all as much as I did.

Cool [but not wintery] regards,

JzB 

Tuesday, November 26, 2013 C.C. Burnikel

Theme: Split and Filled - Three types of shirts that are ripped open and stuffed with other letters to form an unrelated phrase.

20A. Marinade for many Japanese dishes : TERIYAKI SAUCE. TEE shirt.

36A. Bovine Old Testament idol : GOLDEN CALF. GOLF shirt.

44A. UPS alternative : DHL EXPRESS. DRESS shirt.

57A. Pompous sorts ... and what can be seen in this puzzle's circles? : STUFFED SHIRTS

Argyle here. I hope you had the circles and they were in the right spots.

Across:

1. Grimy residue : SCUM

5. Stumble : TRIP

9. Myopic cartoon Mr. : MAGOO. A more PC Magoo without Charlie, the house boy.

                       LINK

14. Lessen, as pain : EASE

15. Excellent : A-ONE

16. Say "bo's'n," say : ELIDE. Slide right over some letters when saying boatswain.

17. Got wiser, hopefully : AGED

18. Take the elevator to the penthouse : GO UP

19. "When pigs fly!" : "NEVER!"

23. Cartoon frame : CEL

24. Nervous mannerism : TIC

25. Sr.'s income source : IRA. (individual retirement account)

28. Blast furnace product : PIG IRON. "The traditional shape of the molds used for these ingots was a branching structure formed in sand, with many individual ingots at right angles to a central channel or runner. Such a configuration is similar in appearance to a litter of piglets suckling on a sow. When the metal had cooled and hardened, the smaller ingots (the pigs) were simply broken from the much thinner runner (the sow), hence the name pig iron. As pig iron is intended for remelting, the uneven size of the ingots and the inclusion of small amounts of sand caused only insignificant problems considering the ease of casting and handling them." Wikipedia

32. Fireplace shelf : MANTEL

35. Oklahoma city : ADA

39. "Little Rascals" girl : DARLA

                              LINK

42. Jr.'s jr. : III. The Third.

43. Lite cigarette claim : NO TAR

47. Numbered rd. : RTE. Like I-10.

48. Hang around : LOITER

49. Doused with a hose : SPRAYED. And if that doesn't work there's always spayed.

52. PC backup key : ESC

53. Punch reaction : [OOF!]

56. Tibetan ox : YAK

64. Father Time feature : BEARD

66. Defect : FLAW

67. Paltry : MERE

68. 7-Down house : IGLOO. 7D. Alaska native : INUIT

69. Exile isle : ELBA

70. Sour trumpet note : [BLAT] Is this an official musical term?

71. Was admitted : GOT IN

72. Rough file : RASP

73. "I screwed up!" : "OOPS!"

Down:

1. Plane reservation : SEAT. By the window for me.

2. Batting practice area : CAGE

3. Amazon visitor : USER

4. Noble Florentine family : MEDICI. Italian family of bankers, merchants, and rulers of Florence.

5. Language of the Philippines : TAGALOG. From Tagalog: taga "native to" + ilog "river."

6. Corner chess piece : ROOK. Also known as castle.

8. Cola choice : PEPSI

9. List of courses : MENU

10. Novelist Waugh : ALEC

11. "Just taste some!" : "GIVE IT A TRY!"

12. Shelley's "__ to the West Wind" : ODE

13. Above, to Shelley : O'ER

21. "__ out!": ump's call : YER

22. Top : ACME

26. Tell : RELATE

27. Dynamite inventor Nobel : ALFRED

28. Ping-Pong need : PADDLE

29. Some spuds : IDAHOs

30. Blended seasoning : GARLIC SALT. Shout out to Garlic Girl

31. Grim film genre : NOIR. I wonder what a grimy film genre would be.

33. Raggedy __ : ANN. Here with her brother, Andy.

34. Sgt., e.g. : NCO. (Non-Commissioned Officer)

37. Commit perjury : LIE

38. Ph.D. hurdle : DISSertation

40. Ping-Pong do-over : LET. Also in tennis but no longer in volleyball, or badminton, it appears.

41. Can : AXE

45. Faculty VIP : PROFessor

46. Covert agent exchange : SPY SWAP. A dramatic highlight in some old movies.

50. Pep rally cry : "RAH!"

51. With hands on hips : AKIMBO

54. Good news at a job fair : OFFER

55. Bub : FELLA

58. Counselor to Captain Picard : TROI. Deanna TROI, everyone's favorite Betazoid.

59. Noodle bar order : UDON

60. Applies gently : DABs

61. Move, in real estate lingo : RELO

62. Lint collector : TRAP

63. Hollywood workplaces : SETS

64. Popular : BIG

65. Self-regard : EGO

Argyle

Note from C.C.:

Here's a great photo of our super talented Owen, whose daily crossword limerick brightens up our little corner. Please click here for more photos of Owen.

Owen & Brenda (Feb 28, 2009)

Monday, November 25, 2013 Matt Skoczen

Theme: Small retail stores - SHOP can be added to the last word of the starred entries.

17. *Fluffy carnival treat : COTTON CANDY. Candy shop.

23. *"West Side Story" film actress : NATALIE WOOD. Her death is still shrouded in controversy. Wood shop.

40. *"You first," facetiously : AGE BEFORE BEAUTY. Source. Beauty shop.

50. *Favorite in the classroom : TEACHER'S PET. Song(2:48). Pet shop.

64. Discussing the job with colleagues, and what the last words of the answers to starred clues seem to be doing : TALKING SHOP

Argyle here. I doubt these stores will be swamped on Black Friday. Four long entries and one grid spanner: good start for the week. Still, there may be some nits.

Across:

1. "Drat!" : "DARN!"

5. On the agenda : SLATED

11. __-at-ease : ILL

14. Melville's "Typee" sequel : "OMOO"

15. Writer de Beauvoir : SIMONE. Ahead of her time and maybe a little early in the week, too.

16. Mop & __: cleaning brand : GLO. (for floors)

19. Restroom, briefly : LAV. Oops, not LOO.

20. "Attack, Rover!" : "SIC 'EM!"

21. Sworn __: given the oath of office for : IN AS

22. First-class : A-ONE

26. Free of charge : GRATIS

30. "Tut!" kin : "TSK!"

31. Puerto __ : RICO. Maria, played by Natalie Wood in West Side Story, was Puerto Rican.

32. Slanted print: Abbr. : ITAL.

36. Mark who created Tom Sawyer : TWAIN

43. '70s-'80s Egyptian president Anwar : SADAT

44. Mideast ruler : EMIR. Also, emeer, amir, ameer.

45. 38-Down and others: Abbr. : RTEs. 38D. Fla.-to-Cal. highway : I TEN

46. "Proud Mary" band, for short : CCR. (Creedence Clearwater Revival)

48. Has had enough : IS DONE

56. Wartime honoree : HERO

57. Spanish painter Francisco : GOYA. Despite La Maja Desnuda and La Maja Vestida, most of his work is dark and somber.

58. First Greek letter : ALPHA

63. Tax-collecting agcy. : IRS

66. __ de Janeiro : RIO. I wonder if they have cotton candy at their carnival?

67. Claim without proof : ALLEGE

68. Floor square : TILE

69. Room for a TV : DEN

70. Ruined, with "up" : MESSED

71. Go in snow : SLED. Time to shine up those runners.

Down:

1. Medical pros : DOCs

2. Mine, to Marcel : À MOI

3. Campus military org. : ROTC. (Reserve Officers' Training Corps)

4. Promissory __ : NOTE. Fancy term for an IOU.

5. Taxpayer ID : SSN

6. On the up and up : LICIT

7. Appliance brand : AMANA

8. Melodious : TONAL

9. Breaks up with a lover : ENDS IT

10. Susan of "The Partridge Family" : DEY

11. Domed Arctic home : IGLOO

12. Southwestern grassy plain : LLANO

13. Thought the world of : LOVED

18. Prefix with present : OMNI

22. Singsongy "This is an uncomfortable moment" : "AWKWARD"

24. "Yeah, right!" : "AS IF"

25. Direction in which el sol rises : ESTE

26. Mardi __ : GRAS

27. Capital of Latvia : RIGA

28. Scored 100 on : ACED

29. Cash crop for the southern American colonies : TOBACCO

33. From head to __ : TOE

34. Elbow's locale : ARM

35. Flower necklace : LEI

37. Car : AUTO

39. Wall St. index : NYSE. (New York Stock Exchange)

41. Engrave on glass, say : ETCH

42. Soft cheese : BRIE

47. Entertain lavishly : REGALE

49. Guys-only party : STAG

50. Word with party or degree : THIRD

51. Willies-inducing : EERIE

52. Pyromaniac's crime : ARSON

53. Diner basketful : ROLLS

54. Comedian Wanda : SYKES. She's not everyone's cup of tea so I won't link her.

55. Baseball Hall of Famer Satchel : PAIGE. He pitched in the Negro leagues and in Major League Baseball. Quite the character.

59. D-Day transports : LSTs. (landing ship, tank)

60. Talk show pioneer Donahue : PHIL. Married to Marlo Thomas as we found out the other day.

61. Golfer's target : HOLE

62. Copied : APED

64. Scottish hat : TAM

65. Beatty of film : NED. "a chubby, cherubic character actor who rarely gets the girl, but almost always has the audience's sympathy, even when he plays bad guys."

Argyle