Wednesday, July 1, 2020 Bill Zagozewski

Theme: I can't do any better than the unifier, so let's drive on over there and stop safely.

65. Intersection with flashing lights and bells, for short, and a hint to this puzzle's circles: RRXING.



We have two sets of crossing theme entries, with one across and one down in each, of course. These two-word entries all have the initial R for both words, and the entries cross at the 2nd R.  If you got the two circles in your puzzle, these are the locations.

30 A. Extreme reaction to traffic: ROAD RAGE.  "Any unsafe driving maneuver performed deliberately and with ill intention or disregard for safety."
~Crossing~
10 D. Volunteer with Teddy Roosevelt: ROUGH RIDER.  A member of the 1st United States Volunteer Cavalry, which, ironically, would up fighting on foot.

45 A. "Standing" entrée: RIB ROAST.  A prime rib cut of beef, generally roasted "standing" on the rib bones, such that the meat does not touch the pan.
~Crossing~
29 D. "And away go troubles down the drain" company: ROTO ROOTER.  An American company founded in 1935, using a patented auger machine to clean tree roots and other debris from sewer lines. It also provides plumbing repair, sewer and drain services, and water damage cleanup services to residential and commercial customers.

Hi Gang, JazzBumpa here.  Rabbit, rabbit.  Now, note that the circled crossings are located symmetrically in the grid, with a 180 degree rotation.  Nice elegant touch.  Having safely encountered the RR CROSSINGS, let us now continue our journey.

Across:

1. Lion controllers: TAMERS.  Those who train lions or other big cats for use in protection or entertainment, according to Wikipedia.

7. From the U.S.: AMERican.

11. Pained cries: OWS.   I use more colorful language.

14. Spotted wildcat: OCELOT.  A medium sized cat weighing from 8 to 15 kg, native to the American southwest, Mexico, Central America and South America.  It is characterized by solid black spots and streaks on its coat, round ears, and white neck and undersides.

15. Brussels-based gp.: NATO. North Atlantic Treaty Organization.

16. Chapel bench: PEW. A long bench with a back to provide seating for the congregation.

17. Sorbetto alternative: GELATO.  Italian frozen deserts that are similar but not identical to sherbet and ice cream.

18. Hall of Fame guest of honor: INDUCTEE.   A person newly added.

20. House speaker after Ryan: PELOSI.  Nancy [b 1940] née D'Alesandro, was speaker from 2007 to 2011, and again currently, starting in January, 2019.  She represents California's 12th congressional district.

22. Coffee machine setting: GRIND.  Reduces the beans to a useful size for brewing.

23. "I'm at my __ end!": WIT'S.  Out of patience, with no more cares to give.

26. Like many flights to LAX: INTL.  International - i.e from foreign countries into Los Angeles. Travel through LAX was off by 95% in mid April.  Can't quickly find how it is doing now.

27. Skating legend Sonja: HENIE. [1912 - 1969] She was a multiple award winner in the Olympics, and European and World Championships, and movie star in the late '30's.  She died of leukemia.

28. More aloof: ICIER.  Cold.  Very, very cold.

32. '50s prez: IKE.  Dwight David Eisenhower.  [1890-1969]

33. Place to use a mitt: OVEN.  For heat protection.

35. Grafton's "__ for Evidence": E IS. From her Alphabet mystery series.

36. Went around in circles: GYRATED. Quickly spun or moved in a spiral.

38. Confound: BEDEVIL.  Confusticate and bebother, as Bilbo would have it.

42. Decompose: ROT. Come undone.

43. Suffix with gazillion: -AIRE.  One who has all that money and stuff.

44. Brian of rock: ENO. [b 1948] A self-described non-musician with several solo albums and collaborations with many others who are known as musicians.  He has also produced albums for several of them.

48. Strict precision: RIGOR.   The quality of being extremely thorough, exhaustive, or accurate, derived from the Latin word for stiffness.

50. Simply not done: TABOO.  Forbidden.

51. All-purpose vehicles, for short: UTES.  Sport utilities.

53. Sugar source: CANE.  In Michigan it's beets.

54. In __: unborn: UTERO.  In the uterus.

55. Dress down: BERATE. Angrily scold and criticize.

57. New in theaters: FIRST RUN.

59. Jalopy: BEATER.  Beaten up old vehicle

63. Vous, less formally: TOI. You, in French; and you, in French.

64. Pair on a Disney World hat: EARS.

Costumes available here

66. Federal retirement org.: SSA.  Social Security Administration.

67. Actress Russo: RENE. [b 1954] American actress, producer and model.  She was in many movies through the 90's, and more recently appeared as Thor's mother in a series of superhero movies..

68. Corrects, as text: EMENDS.

Down:

1. Dress (up): TOG.  I've heard of TOGS as fancy clothing, but not of its use as a verb.

2. Opening day pitcher, typically: ACE.  The best starting pitcher on the staff.  Opening day seems to be something we might not experience this year.

3. "Coca Cola Cowboy" singer Tillis: MEL.



4. Slip by, as time: ELAPSE.

5. Repetitive learning: ROTE.  Memorization.

6. Vodka with Razberi and Ohranj flavors: STOLI.  Short for Stolichnaya.

7. Jennifer of "The Good Girl": ANISTON. [b 1969] She is am American actress, producer and business woman who reached fame and success playing Rachel in the TV series FRIENDS.  She then went on to make a series of romantic comedy movies that I never saw.

8. Capital on Luzon: MANILA.  In the Philippines.

9. Boarding pass info: ETD.  Estimated Time of Departure.

11. Going (for): OPTING.  Making a choice among options

12. Frank on the grill: WEENIE.   AKA the hot dog.

13. Stockholm native: SWEDE.

19. Pressed-pants feature: CREASE.

21. When rights are sometimes permitted: ON RED.  A right turn at an intersection, in this regard treating the red light as a stop sign.

23. "The Martian" actress Kristen: WIIG. [b1973] She is an American actress, comedian, writer and producer who has appeared in several movies over the past decade..

24. Eww-inspiring: ICKY.  Nasty and disgusting.

25. Concert level: TIER.  Rows of seating at some elevation.

31. Antelope playmates: DEER.  On the range, where the buffalo roam.

34. Reject, presidentially: VETO.  The president's or governor's right to reject a proposed law passed by the legislature.

37. Shady alcoves: ARBORS.  A shady sitting place or pergola usually in a park or garden, surrounded by climbing shrubs, vines or other vegetation. A grove of trees.

38. Dog to avoid: BITER.  Seems like good advice

39. 1970s Chevy subcompact: VEGA.  I wanted NOVA.

40. A party to: IN ON.  Knowledgable about.

41. Passed-down history: LORE.  Knowledge and traditions passed down through the generations.

43. Equally strained: AS TENSE.

45. Proportions: RATIOS.  The quantitative relationship between two amounts.

46. Spain and Portugal comprise most of it: IBERIA. A peninsula in south-western Europe.

47. The Tigers of the SEC: AUBURN.  Teams associated with the University.

49. Climber's tool: ICE AXE.

50. Clumps of hair: TUFTS.

52. Buffalo NHLer: SABRE.  Player on the profess


ional hockey team

56. Time in office: TERM.  With specified beginning and end dates.

58. "Norma __": RAE.  A movie about southern textile mill workers.

60. Bronze component: TIN. Mostly copper with about 12% tin and sometimes smaller amounts of other metals.  Brass, more dear to me, is copper and zinc.

61. Terminate: END.  Finish

62. Some NFL blockers: RGS.  Right guards.  Those in the first position to the right of the center in the offensive line of an American football team.

That's all folks.  Hope all you well trained solvers were able to stay on track.

Cool regards!
JzB

Wednesday, June 27, 2018 Bill Zagozewski

Theme:  Failure of imagination on my part, maybe, but I can't come up with anything better than the reveal:

60. "Careful now" ... and a hint to what's hidden in 17-, 27- and 46-Across: EASY DOES IT.

Unless I'm missing something else [always a possibility] this indicates that in the two-or-three-word theme entries, the penultimate word ends in E, and the last word starts with Z; the spoken letters E-Z being phonetically equivalent to EASY.  See - it's not hard.

17. Marmalade ingredient: ORANGE ZEST.  So, it's ZEST, not PEEL, as I originally entered, and the jar in my fridge lists as an ingredient.   I'm a big fan of this jam-like preserve, but my lovely wife doesn't like it at all.  

27. Sign near school playgrounds: DRUG FREE ZONE.  Keeping our kids clean and sober.

Do you believe in signs?

46. Theoretical lowest temperature: ABSOLUTE ZERO.  Take some cold comfort in knowing there is a limit to how cold it can get.  This is ZERO on the Kelvin scale, -273.15 Celsius, or -459.67 Fahrenheit. Anyone for some ice cream?

Hi gang, JazzBumpa on duty.  Let's proceed and see how E-Z  today's puzzle is.

Across:

1. Far direction?: EAST.   There's a near EAST and a far EAST, which can be reached by traveling west.  That is circular reasoning.

5. Frankfurt's river: ODER.  Es gibt twei Frankurt.  Frankfurt am Main und Fankfurt an der Oder.  The Oder river rises in the Czech Republic and flows north-ish through Poland and defines 187 Km of the Germany-Poland border.  At 525 Km, the Main is the longest river completely contained in Germany.  It meanders in every direction imaginable, but ultimately westward, where it joins the Danube at the city of Mainz.  Strangely, the two names are not related.

9. Word repeated in a historic FDR quote: FEAR.  Nothing to FEAR here, move right along.

13. Formal "no" from 14-Across: VETO.  A bill passed by both houses of congress can be signed into law by 14. A or vetoed.  To over-ride a veto requires a two-thirds majority vote in both houses.

14. White House VIP: POTUS. President Of The United States.

16. Tomb Raider's __ Croft: LARA.

Of movie and video game fame

19. Takes the stage: IS ON.  After waiting in the wings, perhaps.

20. Hunter constellation: ORION.

A winter constellation

21. Violent windstorm: TEMPEST.  Traces utimately back to Latin Tempus, meaning time, via Tempastas, meaning season.

23. Ceaselessly: NO END.  Going on and on and  .  .  .

26. City in Florida or Italy: NAPLES.  NAPLES [Napoli] Italy is a city in southern Italy, not far from Mt. Vesuvius.   It dates to the 2nd millennium, B. C. and has many centuries of important art and architecture.  NAPLES, FLA is an up-scale city in souther FLA on the Gulf of Mexico, surrounded by miles of white sand beaches.

31. Geological period: EON.  In geology and astronomy, one billion years; casually, an indefinite but very long time period.

32. __ trap: SET A.  Literally, make a trap ready to catch an animal; figuratively, invent a plan to catch someone doing something wrong.

33. Bear in two constellations: URSA.  Major and Minor, AKA Big and Little Dippers.

Nope - I don't see no bears up there.

36. Symbol of rank: BADGE.

39. Former U.N. leader Hammarskjöld: DAG.  Swedish economist and diplomat who served as the 2nd Secretary General of the U. N.

40. Biblical song: PSALM.   A sacred hymn, specifically in the O.T Book of Psalms.    Here is a setting of Psalm 74 in the Russian chant style by Russian composer Pavel Chesnikov, arranged by Holland, that we performed last year.  One of the most beautiful compositions I've ever played.

42. Division on a Clue board: ROOM.  Have you played the Harry Potter version?  It murders the players.

43. Sardine holders: TINS.  Metal containers.  Cans also fits.

45. Philosopher __-tzu: LAO.  Ancient Chinese philosopher and writer, and founder of Taosim.  Quote: "Do the difficult things while they are easy and do the great things while they are small. A journey of a thousand miles must begin with a single step."

50. Brownish horse: SORREL.  A horse of various reddish-brown hues, with same color or lighter mane and tail.  Sometimes also called chestnut; there is confusion and controversy about the two names.

53. Yarn: STORY.  Generally one that challenges the willing suspension of disbelief.

54. Mathematical proposition: THEOREM.  A proposition that is not self-evident, but can be proven by a chain of reasoning.

56. City near the Great Salt Lake: OGDEN. In the Bee Hive State.

59. Prego competitor: RAGU.  Pasta Sauces.

64. Turkmenistan neighbor: IRAN.  Turkmenistan is South of Uzbekistan, North of Afghanistan, North-east of Iran.

65. Green __: THUMB.  High level of gardening ability.

66. Actress Blanchett: CATE.  Among her many other roles, she portrayed the Elf Queen Galadriel.

From Lord of the Rings

67. Remain undecided: PEND.  Decisions  .  .  .

68. "Haven't decided yet": I MAY.  Still thinking  .  .  .

69. Topple from power: OUST.  Via the voting booth, or revolution.

Down:

1. Bolivian leader Morales: EVO.  President since 2006, and the first to come from the indigenous population.

2. Prefix with dynamic: AERO-.  Relating to the motion physics of air or other fluids around moving bodies.

3. Headliner: STAR.  An actor or other performer, not a celestial body.

4. Weight-training activity: TONING. Body definition from moderate muscle building and loss of fat.

5. Bar gadgets: OPENERS.  For various kinds of bottles.

6. Egg qty.: DOZ.  They usually come in cartons of 12.  Note abrv. in cl. & ans.

7. Bastille Day saison: ETE.  French Summer.

8. Fall color: RUST.  This year sure is going by quickly.  Autumn leaves are various shades of red.

9. Diving gear: FLIPPERS.  Quasi-fish feet.

10. Prop for Picasso: EASEL.  Art supporter.

11. Came up: AROSE.  Emerged, became apparant.

12. Flies off the handle: RANTS.  Loses it.

15. Shorthand expert, for short: STENOgrapher.

18. Cause for an "Oops!": GOOF.  Error, mistake, faux pas.

22. "Don't be such a baby!": MAN UP.  Be brave or tough enough to deal with it.

24. Must: NEED TO.  Meet or satisfy a requirement.

25. Nuts and bolts, so to speak: DETAILS.  God is there - or the devil, depending on your point of view.

27. Cotillion girl: DEButant.  Young ladies introduced to polite society at a formal ball.

28. Katy Perry hit with the lyric "Louder, louder than a lion": ROAR.

29. PC command after an "Oops!": UNDO.  I can realate.

30. Hershey bar in a red-and-yellow wrapper: ZAGNUT.  Peanut brittle and cocoanut with a small amount of cocoa - no chocolate to melt and make a mess.

34. Mall event: SALE.  Price reduction promotion.

35. Bygone apple spray: ALAR.  Daminozide, a plant growth regulator used to keep unripe apples from falling off the tree from 1963 to 1989, when it was voluntarily withdrawn doe to cancer fears.

37. Skirt: GO AROUND.  Evade, avoid.

38. Fireplace bit: EMBER. Glowing ash.

41. Sound from the pasture: MOO.  The song of cows.

44. Stuck with, as a friend: STOOD BY.  A friend, indeed.

47. Wintry mix component: SLEET.  Frozen rain.

48. Therefore: ERGO.  Hence, for that reason, consequently.

49. Bayou music style: ZYDECO.

50. __ mining: STRIP.   A form of extraction, most commonly used for coal, in which the surface soil and rocks are removed to reveal the mineral, which is then extracted with heavy machinery.

51. Midwestern hub: O'HARE.  Chicago airport.

52. Lear daughter: REGAN. The  middle child. Her sisters are Cordelia and the eldest, unfortunately named Goneril.

55. Half a fish: MAHI.  No better than half a fly.  MEH!

57. Jacob's twin: ESAU. Biblical antagonists.

58. Quibbles: NITS.  Half a fish, for example.

61. Bottom line: SUM.  Of an added-up column of numbers.

62. Singer Sumac: YMA. [1923-2008] Peruvian coluratura soprano with a vocal range of over 4 1/2 octaves.

63. Saigon holiday: TET.  Vietnamese lunar new year.

That's it.  Not to hard, not too E-Z, and not bad, though I had my half-nit, or so. Thus endeth another Wednesday.

Cool regards!
JzB

Note from C.C.:

Here is a picture of JD's grandson Truman at his 5th grade graduation. Click here to see all the Truman pictures I've archived. JD joined our blog shortly after Truman was born, so he grew up with our blog.

Tuesday, March 6, 2018 ~ Bill Zagozewski

Theme: Timely - SPRING is placed ahead of the last word in the theme answers.

20A. Have things finally go one's way: CATCH A BREAK. Spring Break.

36A. Mosquito-borne disease: YELLOW FEVER. Spring Fever.

42A. Engage in hard-nosed negotiations: PLAY CHICKEN. Spring Chicken.

56A. Make an annual clock adjustment ... and what the end of 20-, 36- and 42-Across may literally have: SPRING AHEAD

Argyle here. Bill is averaging a puzzle a year.

Across:

1. Easy thing to do: SNAP

5. Lobster serving: CLAW

9. Great time: BLAST

14. Skin opening: PORE

15. Tra-__: refrain syllables: LA-LA

16. Main artery: AORTA

17. Snapchat co-founder Spiegel: EVAN. Only 27 years old.

18. Cyberzine: eMAG

19. Parakeets' quarters: CAGEs

23. Photo __: media events: OPS

24. Charged particles: IONs

25. Intl. news broadcaster: VOA. (Voice of America)

27. Singer's quavers: TRILLS

30. Recently: AS OF LATE

35. Harry's pal Weasley: RON. Harry Potter books.

38. Penne __ vodka: ALLA. Penne alla vodka is a pasta dish made with vodka and penne pasta, usually made with heavy cream, crushed tomatoes, onions, and sometimes sausage, pancetta or peas. Wikipedia

40. Singer Damone: VIC

41. Trig ratio: SINE

47. "Just a __!": SEC

48. Dress-for-success accessory: POWER TIE

49. New York Giants legend with 511 career home runs: MEL OTT. Cool! Whole name.

51. Used a bench: SAT

52. Location: SITE

53. Sponsors' spots: ADs

62. Georgia state fruit: PEACH. But do you dare eat a peach?

64. Smell: ODOR

65. Gold rush animal: MULE

66. "Orange" tea grade: PEKOE

67. Kind of pittance?: MERE

68. The "A" of NEA: ARTS. (National Endowment for the Arts)

69. Drive too fast: SPEED

70. New England NFLers: PATS

71. Barnes & Noble reader: NOOK

Down:

1. Job detail, for short: SPEC. Specification.

2. Old Chevy: NOVA. Production‎: ‎1961–1979; 1985–1988. The 1985-88 Chevrolet Nova was a joint venture between General Motors and Toyota.

3. "I smell __!": A RAT

4. Crossword solver's choice: PENCIL

5. Remove dirt from: CLEANSE

6. Petting zoo youngsters: LAMBS

7. Bygone apple spray: ALAR

8. Regular pay: WAGE

9. "Not so close!": "BACK OFF!"

10. Extended pd. away from work: LOA. (Leave Of Absence)

11. Golden Fleece ship: ARGO

12. How-to instruction: STEP

13. Soviet news agency: TASS. Founded in 1902, Tass is the fourth largest major news agency.

21. Sanctified: HOLY

22. Declare emphatically: AVOW

26. Drinks in schooners: ALES

27. Maria von __, family singers' matriarch: TRAPP

Trapp Family Lodge, Stowe, Vermont

28. Rich boy in "Nancy" comics: ROLLO

29. Groom's new relative: IN-LAW

30. Author Hoffman: ALICE. Bio.

31. Foot cover: SOCK

32. French dispatch boat: AVISO. An oldie but goodie.

33. Guiding principle: TENET

34. Standing tall: ERECT

37. Heinz varieties count, to Caesar?: LVII. (57)

39. Those in favor: AYEs

43. Failed suddenly, as a laptop: CRASHED

44. URL letters: HTTP. URL yesterday, HyperText Transfer Protocol today.

45. Political fugitives: ÉMIGRÉS

46. __ profit: make money: NET A

50. __ Brothers: defunct financial firm: LEHMAN

52. Equine outburst: SNORT. Play this good and loud; see who comes to find out what is happening.

53. iPhone downloads: APPs

54. __-sea diver: DEEP

55. Drink with sushi: SAKE

57. Frolic in a lively way: ROMP. Too much sake?

58. Thinking output: IDEA

59. Currency named for a continent: EURO

60. Choir voice: ALTO

61. Student's workplace: DESK

63. Runner Sebastian: COE. He ran a sub-4-minute mile. Roger Bannister was the first person to run a mile under 4 minutes. He died Saturday.

Argyle

Wednesday, April 26, 2017, Bill Zagozweski

Title: COMPLETE THE PHRASE

Husker Gary here to fill in the blanks on Bill's very clever puzzle. If you knew going in that every themer had the word BLANK in it and that the actual single clue word had to be mentally placed in/over that BLANK, it would have made for a faster solve. It worked that way for me after I got the gimmick. What a hoot!

As you can see in the grid at the right, I have put the Clue word over (rather than in) the BLANK and that generates a familiar phrase.

I thought INCUS and BALATA were mighty meaty words for a Wednesday and I had to research PET and SHIN used in unfamiliar contexts, but learning is an great adjunct to these daily exercises. Opposed to popular opinion, I am trainable.

Now before I BLANK out, lets examine what the theme fills, one layer at a time.

20. NOTHING : BLANK BUT NET - NOTHING fills in for BLANK and we get NOTHING BUT NET which is a baseball phrase shown here in a fun way

56. NAUGHT : ALL FOR BLANK - NAUGHT fills in for BLANK to give us ALL FOR NAUGHT. Like when Andy Hawkins threw a no-hitter for the Yankees but got beat because of errors

11. SPACE : OPEN BLANK -Drop SPACE in the BLANK and you get OPEN SPACE. Tom Lehman took the OPEN SPACE of Nebraska's Sand Hills and built the 35th best public golf course in America.

31. EMPTY : BLANK NEST - EMPTY fills in the BLANK to give us EMPTY NEST. We at least waited two days before we moved the computer desk into her room and to make it an office.

38. Provide missing info ... and what four clues do to their answers : FILL IN THE BLANKS - A round of Mad Libs:

FILL IN THE BLANKS: This was a(n) ADJECTIVE puzzle that gave me ADJECTIVE NOUN. I thought it was ADVERB ADJECTIVE for a Wednesday because the fill was ADVERB ADJECTIVE than usual. 

My answers - Wonderful, Great Joy, Particularly Difficult, More Challenging


Now you get to read my ADJECTIVE review/exposition 

Across

1. Reduce drastically : SLASH

6. Skyscraper girder : I-BEAM - They just pulled up an I-BEAM for lunch 

11. Bobby on the ice : ORR

14. Willowy : LITHE

15. Impudent : NERVY

16. Baltimore Ravens mascot named for an author : POE - Baltimore? Ravens? Makes perfect sense!

17. Attendant who invites Hamlet to duel Laertes : OSRIC - Peter Cushing playing OSRIC to Olivier's Hamlet

18. Blubbers : CRIES

19. Potato part : EYE

22. "Stillmatic" rapper : NAS - His lyrics ain't exactly Gershwin

23. Equinox mo. : SEP - On or about the 21st




24. Secure at the pier : LASH - Bill Murray had to be LASHED to the mast to overcome his fear of sailing in this hilarious film

25. Small bite : NIBBLE

27. Sulky state : PET - There it was, it had to be, but wha...? My research showed it as a shortened form of in a PETulant mood. Sample: Bill is really in a PET today.

28. L.A.'s region : SOCAL - SOuthern CALifornia 

29. Jessica of "Fantastic Four" films : ALBA - Let me get this straight. You give her this special power? Really? 

32. Waimea Bay island : OAHU

35. First sound of the day, for many : ALARM - Mine is a hungry kitty

41. Author Asimov : ISAAC

42. Ratio phrase : IS TO

43. Boxing stats : TKO'S

44. Explosive experiment : N-TEST - Here's one on Bikini Atoll with some VIP observers miles away

46. Vote for : YEA - An important prop in the play 1776

48. "I wanna go too!" : TAKE ME

50. "Psst!" kin : AHEM

52. These, in Nantes : CES - CES croissants sont délicieux 

55. Roadside respite spot : INN

59. Word with Iron or Bronze : AGE

60. Enter on a laptop : KEY IN

61. Tropical porch : LANAI - Where I first heard the word

62. Hi-__ image : RES

63. Año Nuevo month : ENERO - El desfile de las rosas es el 1 de ENERO. (Desfile = Parade)

64. Ham it up : EMOTE

65. Cockpit abbr. : ALT

66. Building leveler, to a Brit : RASER - Wait a minute, we're going to RASE that barn that grandpa helped RAISE?

67. Like horses : MANED - Farrah's coiffure was described as a feathered MANE in this picture

Down

1. Neatniks' opposites : SLOBS

2. Stocking thread : LISLE - How many times did I have to see this before I wrote it in right away today?

3. "It's __!": "They tricked us!" : A TRAP - Admiral Ackbar's warning

4. Climb, in a way : SHIN - This ranks right up there with the obscure (to me) usage of PET above. From dictionary.com 

5. Badger from the bleachers : HECKLE - I saw an umpire take off all his equipment and throw it down in front of a HECKLER in the bleachers and say, "You do it!" He declined and shut up.

6. Anvil-shaped ear bone : INCUS - Thar she blows in the canal!

7. Ocean bed? : BERTH - It costs extra if you have a porthole or a balcony

8. Burnett of CNN : ERIN

9. ACTIVE NATURALS skin care brand : AVEENO

10. Otherworldly : MYSTICAL

12. Fit for a queen : ROYAL

13. Piece maker? : REESE - Mars Candy rued the day they turned down the tie-in with M&M's because they thought, "Who'd want to see a movie about an alien adopted by a lonely kid." Turns out, millions did. Hershey gladly cashed in with this blockbuster movie.

21. It may be passed : BATON

26. Golf ball material : BALATA - The sap harvested as you see here from these Central/South American trees was formerly widely used for a golf ball covers. Pros could control these balls better but amateurs just kept cutting them.

27. Sense of taste : PALATE

28. Bird feeder food : SUET - Part of our bird buffet

29. John Williams won its 2016 Life Achievement Award: Abbr. : AFI - American Film Institute

30. Fleur-de-__ : LIS

33. Busy, busy, busy : AT IT - After giving an assignment, I usually said, "Now, get AT IT!"

34. Dept. that oversees the FDA : HHS

36. "Citizen Kane" studio : RKO - William Randolph Hearst was so incensed at this movie that used him as a model, he leaned on Hollywood to make sure this "greatest American movie ever made" lost the Oscar to How Green Was My Valley in 1942

37. Ed.'s backlog : MSS - An Acquisition Editor with a backlog of unsolicited ManuScriptS

39. Fridge feature that needs water : ICE MAKER - Didn't you just hate wrestling with ice trays?

40. Bergman's "Gaslight" co-star : BOYER

45. Title Tejano singer in a 1997 biopic : SELENA

47. Starbucks' mermaid, e.g. : EMBLEM

48. Sparkly crown : TIARA

49. Broadway backer : ANGEL - The premise for making money in The Producers was Max Bialystock bilking money out of his stable of elderly ANGELS

50. Blazing : AFIRE

51. Roll out the red carpet for : HONOR

52. Pachelbel work : CANON - His CANON (a repeating melody) has graced many a wedding - I paid for two of them 

53. Related on mom's side : ENATE

54. Hit the slopes : SKIED - I would hit the slopes hard if I SKIED! 

57. Caustic cleaners : LYES

58. Tibetan spiritual adviser : LAMA - Carl (Bill Murray) was a looper (caddy) for the LAMA and admired his golf game in Caddyshack

Now it's time for your ADVERB  ADJECTIVE comments: 

Thursday, December 22nd 2016, Bill Zagozewski

Theme:  Ringmasters ... The circles in the corners of the "boxing ring" grid contain the names of four professional world champions.

We've got:

Max BAER - American heavyweight champion in the 1930's. Famous for defeating Max Schmeling, who was Hitler's favorite fighter and promoted as an example of the superiority of the Aryan race. He lost his title to James Braddock in one of the biggest upsets in boxing history.

Muhammad ALI - no introduction required for a second American heavyweight world champion. He defeated the next corner occupant for the title in 1964, and retained the title in their 1965 rematch. This photograph, by Neil Leifer for TIME magazine stands as one of the most famous sports images of all time. I've got a monochrome reproduction on my wall.

Sonny LISTON - a third American heavyweight world champion in the 1960's, beating Floyd Patterson for the title in 1962 before Ali took his place.

And finally, a fourth American heavyweight - no wait, we've got Roberto DURÁN, a Panamanian fighter who held world titles in four weight divisions in his career, from lightweight to middleweight, He was famous (or notorious) for quitting during his 1982 title defense against "Sugar" Ray Leonard in the 8th round, saying to the referee "No más". That was his 74th fight. He retired after 119 fights, so seemingly there was "poquito más" left in him.

There are four companion entries to the corners

25A. Prize for today's puzzle's circles : CHAMPIONSHIP

52A. Introductory words for each set of puzzle circles : IN THIS CORNER

5A. With 71-Across, event for today's puzzle's circles : TITLE and

71A. See 5-Across : FIGHT

This looks like an LAT debut for Bill, so congratulations for that achievement.

Now I'm going to rain on the parade - I didn't like this much - I can't see any connection between the boxers other than they won a world championship. Only LISTON "fills" his corner - it just seems so inconsistent. Throw in a slew of  three-letter abbreviations and partials and prefix/suffix stuff and the whole thing seems forced.

There is some nice stuff in the downs, so let's go look at what we've got.

Across:

1. Beginning of space? : AERO

10. Sea that's a shrinking lake : ARAL

14. Jazz Age toon : BOOP. Betty. Boop-boop-be-doo.

15. Comes (from) : HAILS.

16. Roast, in Rouen : RÔTI. Rouen has a magnificent cathedral, and a belfry full of very loud bells, as I discovered when I stayed at a little hotel in the shadow of the spires and was woken up on Sunday morning.

17. __ about : ON OR

18. "Miss __ Playhouse": jazz CD for kids : ELLA'S. Learning moment. Miss Fitzgerald.

19. Fishing, perhaps : ASEA

20. Outlaw Belle : STARR. Convicted of horse theft in 1883. New to me.

22. PBS funder : NEA

24. Tally : SUM

29. Org. with a snake in its logo : A.M.A.

31. Detestable sort : TOAD

32. Late 19th-century presidential monogram : CAA. Chester A. Arthur. President from 1881 to 1885.

33. Family babysitter : NANA

35. Cut : SLICED INTO

40. Dignify : EXALT

42. Fireworks reaction : OOH!

43. Starters : A-TEAM

44. Curaçao's capital : WILLEMSTAD. Another learning moment. The former capital of the Netherlands Antilles, betraying the Dutch origin of the name.

47. Conclusion preceder : IF SO ..

48. Andean tuber : OCA

49. Turkmenistan neighbor : IRAN

51. Want-ad letters : E.E.O. Equal Employment Opportunity.

56. Titled rapper : DRE. Dr. Dre.

57. Radical '70s org. : S.L.A.

58. Teen superhero's family : KENTS. Superman.

60. Pupil's place : UVEA

62. "You __ one!" : OWE ME

65. Nantes nothing : RIEN.

67. Disencumbers : RIDS

68. Sacks : FIRES

69. Conductor Klemperer or an emperor : OTTO

70. Reformed demon on "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" : ANYA. Thank you, crosses. I'm not up on my "Buffy" characters.

72. Place to find bullets : LIST

Down:

1. Blood system letters : ABO. This fill probably wouldn't fly in Australia.

2. Ages : EONS

3. Ordeal at the dentist's office : ROOT CANAL

4. Oxygen network co-founder : OPRAH

5. Soup container : THERMOS

6. Proverb ending? : IAL

7. Up to, commercially : TIL

8. Southwestern plain : LLANO

9. Perfume : ESSENCE

10. Altar in the sky : ARA

11. Mantegna's "Criminal Minds" role : ROSSI. Thank you, crosses. I only saw one episode because one of my friends was guest-starring.

12. Really enjoyed : ATE UP

13. Singer Payne of One Direction : LIAM. Boy Band fave. He's apparently planning to go solo, according to the Brit tabloids. Stop the presses!

21. Proverbial deserter : RAT. I'm not sure that you can blame the rats when the ship is sinking.

23. Grilled, in Mexican fare : ASADA. Food! Usually skirt steak presented as carne asada.

26. California's __ Verdes Peninsula : PALOS. Pete Sampras learned his tennis at a club here.

27. Beyond silly : IDIOTIC

28. Golfe de la Gonâve country : HAITI. WAG with "H" in place, but I couldn't come up with many other french-speaking countries beginning that way.

29. From the top : ANEW

30. Modest skirt : MAXI

34. Mete out : ALLOT

36. "Cuchi-cuchi" celebrity : CHARO.  María del Rosario Mercedes Pilar Martínez Molina Baeza to her friends.

37. Akhenaten's queen : NEFERTITI. I can't think of any alternative Egyptian queens, to be honest. Oh wait, Cleopatra!

38. Subdue, perhaps : TASE

39. Melville novel : OMOO.

41. Staffers of Apple's Genius Bar : TECHS.

45. Send : MAIL OFF

46. Least lit : DARKEST

50. Butte-to-Helena dir. : N.N.E.

52. NFL Network analyst Michael __ : IRVIN. Legendary Dallas Cowboys receiver who won three Superbowl rings in the 90's.

53. Unable to make ends meet : NEEDY

54. Slasher film sequel of 2005 : SAW II

55. Become a member, in Manchester : ENROL. One "L" in the British spelling. There's a very (very!) short street in Manchester named for my paternal grandfather, apparently.

56. Commercial prefix meaning "long-lasting" : DURA-

59. Places : SETS

61. Hard-rock link : AS A

63. Unit of work : ERG

64. Verbal shrug : MEH. Keeping quiet on this one.

66. "Tricked you!" : NOT!

That about does it for me. In the United Airlines in-flight magazine they've started publishing a New York Times Sunday puzzle - the one I found a couple of days ago on the way to Honolulu was missing about 25 of the "Down" clues. Made finishing it something of a challenge!

Aloha, and Mele Kalikimaka!

Steve