Tuesday, April 26, 2016 Gail Grabowski and Bruce Venzke

Theme: Multiple Use - Various meanings for the same word.

20A. Keep in suspense : LEAVE HANGING. Hanging File.

35A. Department store fixture : DISPLAY CASE. Case File. Often found in a hanging file.

42A. Shingle securer : ROOFING NAIL. Nail File. (relevant at 2:50)

59A. It may be affixed to an email ... and, literally, what the last word of 20-, 35- and 42-Across can have : ATTACHED FILE

Argyle here with Gail and Bruce. Pretty straight forward Tuesday puzzle.

Across:

1. Doorbell sound : DONG. Mrs. Wiggins is the DING.

5. Radio switch : AM/FM

9. Pop out of the CD player : EJECT

14. "Young Frankenstein" helper : IGOR

15. "Deck the Halls" syllables : FA LA la la la, la la la la.

16. Use crayons : COLOR

17. "The West Wing" actor Alan : ALDA

18. Fed. agent : G-MAN

19. Best way to sing : ON KEY

23. Maker of Fiesta Flats taco shells : ORTEGA

24. Gorilla who learned sign language : KOKO

25. "__ you for real?" : ARE

28. Half a Mork-to-Orson farewell : NANU. There is an interesting connection between Robin Williams and Koko.

30. Symbol : EMBLEM

32. Suffers from : HAS

38. Tunnel effect : ECHO

40. Actor's prompt : CUE

41. "We gotta move!" : "C'MON!"

47. Roulette bet : ODD

48. Like a spoiled child : BRATTY

49. Didn't need to guess : KNEW

51. Weekly NBC offering since 1975, briefly : SNL

52. Takes notice of : SEEs

55. Like some country songs : TWANGY

61. Drummer Ringo : STARR

64. Sheepish smile : GRIN

65. First name in bike stunts : EVEL Knievel.

66. Japanese verse : HAIKU

67. Tupperware tops : LIDS

68. Harvest : REAP. Wild oats?

69. Kentucky Derby racer : HORSE

70. Sporting weapon : ÉPÉE

71. Lacking, in Lorraine : SANS. Sans Souci (French for "no worries" or "carefree")

Down:

1. Old way to place a collect call : DIAL O. While Mother's Day has the highest number of phone calls, the most collect calls are made on Father's Day.[

2. Creepy admirer : OGLER

3. Signal silently to : NOD AT

4. Sculptured, as an image : GRAVEN

5. Kabul native : AFGHANI

6. Wee one's word : MAMA

7. __ steak : FLANK

8. Tropical fruit : MANGO

9. Political debate topic : ECONOMY

10. "Fear of Flying" author Erica : JONG. She's 74 and living in Manhattan.

11. Antlered animal : ELK

12. Two-time 1500-meter gold medalist Sebastian : COE

13. Give it a whirl : TRY

21. "My stars!" : "EGAD!"

22. Maker of NORDLI furniture : IKEA

25. Texas tourist spot : ALAMO

26. Fix a green : RESOD

27. Revise : EMEND

29. Shoreline protection gp. : USCG. (United States Coast Guard)

31. Discreetly send a dupe email to : BCC. (Blind Carbon Copy)

32. Chef's flavorings : HERBS

33. Oak-to-be : ACORN. Mighty oaks from little acorns grow.

34. Sandbar : SHOAL

36. Lewis Carroll specialty : PUN. Favorites?

37. Security issue : LEAK

39. Time and again, to a bard : OFT

43. "Honest!" : "IT'S TRUE!"

44. Kremlin rejection : NYET

45. Passionate : INTENSE

46. R-rated, perhaps : LEWD

50. Thin cookies : WAFERS

53. Sharp-eyed flier : EAGLE

54. Rx, for short : SCRIP

56. Skin lotion brand : NIVEA

57. Collect incrementally : GLEAN

58. Sounds from a kennel : YELPS

59. Sacred chests : ARKS

60. Hole up : HIDE

61. Librarian's warning : [SHH!]

62. Confucian "path" : TAO

63. Go public with : AIR

Argyle

Saturday, Mar 12th, 2016, Bruce Venzke

Theme: Two Triple Stacks

Words: 68 (missing F,J,Q,Y)

Blocks: 38

I am always fascinated when I see spanners grouped in threes (and fours) with crossings (perpendiculars) that are not such a stretch that the puzzle seems forced; and then I get that feeling that it's going to be a tough grid to solve.  Today, however, I seemed to breeze through with very little trouble - but I had some incredible WAGs that were solid from the get go.  Our regulars here at the blog will be quick to point out that big groups of 15-letters usually leads to shorter Downs.  Not so much today, though we did have a high block count - and a good-looking grid, at that.   The spanners;

1. Where to see pop-ups : ELECTRIC TOASTER

16. Holding capacity : SATURATION POINT

17. Doesn't do anything : SITS ON ONE'S HANDS

57. Security employees : STORE DETECTIVES

60. Doesn't care for : TAKES A DISLIKE TO - slightly 'meh'

61. Prepare for a ball : DRESS TO THE NINES - the origin~?

O                 N                 W                 A                 R                D             ~            !

ACROSS:

18. Caning material : RATTAN - oops, not WICKER

19. Shows frugality : STINTS

20. N.S. setting : AST - Nova Scotia, and Atlantic Standard Time; I happen to know they are 1 hour ahead of my time zone, EST

21. Word on some dipsticks : ADD - just looked at the one in my van yesterday - and it was at the "ADD" mark

22. Thickening agent : AGAR

25. '70s congresswoman known for wearing wide-brimmed hats : ABZUG - 3 perps and 2 WAGs

29. 15th-century golfer, probably : SCOT - ah, a 'generic' answer

33. Likely to skid : BALD - tires

34. Train puller : BRIDE - bang~! Nailed it

35. Iolani Palace locale : OAHU - seen before in crosswords

36. Search result : URL - dah~!  Not HIT

37. Org. with a WaterSense program : EPA - sensible WAG

38. Mad man of film : MAX - I have yet to see the 2015 remake of the 1979 film

39. Letter-shaped beam : Z-BAR - went with I-bar first; a genuine 75% correct

41. Early 17th-century pope : PAUL V - I tried 'PIUS -' with early crossings

43. "If wishes __ horses ... " : WERE

44. Sector : ZONE - not AREA

45. Liberal : AMPLE

46. They're frequently tapped : ALES - not KEGS

47. Incidentally, briefly : BTW - texting shorthand for "By The Way"

49. __ Karate: old aftershave : HAI

51. Cricket official : SCORER - I tried UMPIRE; then I had to look to see if this was an actual 'official'

54. Certain summons : TICKET

DOWN:

1. First of September? : ESS - September

2. Cave, say : LAIR

3. Kett of old comics : ETTA

4. Crème brûlée preparation : CUSTARD

5. Hambletonian events : TROTS

6. Deferred payment : RAN A TAB

7. Get __ the record : IT ON -

8. Rose team, on scoreboards : CINcinnati; Pete Rose of the Reds - C.C. must be thrilled we are at Spring Training - just means we are close to the Stanley Cup playoffs for me....

9. Word in a readiness metaphor : TOES - "be on one's toes"....eh

10. Performing : ON STAGE - sometimes on your toes here, too

11. Orchard pest : APHID

12. Dirty rat : SO-AND-SO

13. Glare reducer : TINT

14. Circle's lack : ENDS - I was close with EDGE

15. NFL linemen : RTs

22. Talking excitedly : ABUZZ

23. "The Kiss" was her last silent film : GARBO

24. Historian Nevins : ALLAN - I guessed the two "L"s

26. Another name for bluegill : BREAM

27. Close, as a parka : ZIP-UP - how about 'close, as heels' for Saturday cluing~?

28. 1960s Interior secretary Stewart __ : UDALL

30. Alpaca relative : CAMEL - I like camels

I found so many other funny ones (add 9d.), but....

31. Orchard Field, today : O'HARE - I knew this from crosswords

32. Spiffy attire : TUXES - sort of a mini-theme going on

40. Engine rebuilding jobs : REBORES

41. Checked out, feline-style : PAWED AT

42. Jam component : VEHICLE - nice misdirection, if you tried some sort of fruit

43. Surfing mecca : WAIKIKI - great fill

48. Bun element : TRESS

50. Join the cast of : ACT IN - second semi-theme going on, with 10d. and the next clue;

51. Beverly Hills sighting : STAR

52. Old beehive oven product : COKE - new to me; the Wiki

53. Change in appearance : RE-DO

54. Sellecca's "Intelligence for Your Life TV" co-host : TESH - didn't see this filled in until I came to write the blog

55. Still : EVEN

56. Toque spot : TÊTE - I knew a toque was chef headware, and that it was Frawnche

57. Benchmark: Abbr. : STD - standard

58. "__-Willow": "The Mikado" song : TIT

obdurate definition

59. Cleaning product with two periods in its name : S.O.S

remember "Wacky Packages~?"

Splynter

Monday, January 11, 2016 Gail Grabowski and Bruce Venzke

Theme: No Standing - Sit anywhere.

20A. *Mattress support : BOX SPRING. Box Seats.

39A. *Light, friendly punch : LOVE TAP. Love Seats.

56A. Spots for airline magazines ... and, literally, what the first words of the answers to starred clues can all have : SEATBACKS

11D. *Wishful lifetime agenda : BUCKET LIST. Bucket Seats.

27D. *Slapstick slipping cause : BANANA PEEL. Banana Seats.

Argyle here. One problem I anticipate is certain anons will have a nit field day.

Across:

1. Potato bag : SACK

5. Rod in a grill : SPIT

9. Macaroni shape : ELBOW

14. Vintage soda : NEHI

15. Chisholm Trail city : WACO

16. Red, in roulette : ROUGE

17. Mine extracts : OREs

18. Club used for chipping : IRON

19. Capital of Ghana : ACCRA

22. Spoken for : TAKEN

23. Skinny fish : EELs

24. Quick message : NOTE

25. Blue Ribbon beer : PABST

28. Palm Pilot, e.g., briefly : PDA. (personal data assistant)

30. Carve in stone : ETCH

33. Attributive menu words : À LA

34. Parisian partings : ADIEUs

37. Leave rolling in the aisles : SLAY

38. Sermon topic : SIN

41. Sitter's handful : IMP or 63A. Sitter's handful : BRAT

42. What some missiles seek : HEAT

44. Stevenson title doctor : JEKYLL

45. "I warned you!" : "SEE!"

46. Gothic fiction author Rice : ANNE. The Vampire Chronicles.

47. WWII espionage gp. : OSS. (Office of Strategic Services)

48. Bugs and Jags : AUTOS. Volkswagen and Jaguar Land Rover.

50. "Fire" bugs : ANTS. Fire ants.

52. Bourgogne and Chablis : VINs. French spelling of regional wines.

54. Longstocking of kiddie lit : PIPPI. Another red-headed girl but not like Anne of Green Gables.

61. NBA great Shaquille : O'NEAL

62. Footnote "p" : PAGE

64. Modern mil. treaty violation : N-TEST

65. Egg cell : OVUM

66. Humdinger : LULU

67. Knuckleheads : DOLTS

68. Short- or long-sleeved tops : TEEs

69. Marked, as a ballot : EXed

Down:

1. Stereotypical "Dahling!" speaker : SNOB

2. Flight-related prefix : AERO

3. General Mills brand : CHEX

4. Affectionate greetings : KISSES. Air kisses, Dahling.

5. Marble cake pattern : SWIRL

6. Capital on the Seine : PARIS

7. Pic to click : ICON

8. Grab from the grill, as a hot dog : TONG

9. Poetry Muse : ERATO

10. Tracks down : LOCATES

12. Storybook brute : OGRE

13. Withdraw gradually : WEAN

21. "He loves me" piece : PETAL

24. Sounding like one has a cold : NASAL

25. Old Turkish title : PASHA

26. Otherworldly : ALIEN

28. Sneaks a look : PEEKS

29. Obligation : DUTY

31. Typical Hitchcock role : CAMEO

32. Publicizes aggressively : HYPEs

35. Martial arts schools : DOJOs

36. Currier's colleague : IVES. Millard Fillmore's?

40. Backup strategy : PLAN B

43. When the big hand is on two : TEN PAST

49. In working order : USABLE

51. Leans slightly : TILTS

52. Beating around the bush : VAGUE

53. Agenda bullets : ITEMS

54. Common koi habitat : POND

55. Look __: investigate : INTO

56. Washday woe : SPOT

57. Nesting site, perhaps : EAVE

58. Essence : CRUX

59. Leafy veggie baked for chips : KALE. Baby Blues/Rick Kirkman and Jerry Scott/Jan. 10, 2016

60. Gym specimen : STUD. How to find a stud.

 

 

Argyle

Tuesday, November 24, 2015 Gail Grabowski and Bruce Venzke

Theme: Edit - ED is added to the first part of each plural compound noun and formed three synonyms for "tired". Each new entry is then clued humorously.

20. Tired bowling groups? : BUSHED LEAGUES. Bush Leagues

38. Tired janitors? : DRAINED CLEANERS. Drain Cleaners

56. Tired groupies? : EXHAUSTED FANS. Exhaust Fans

Argyle here. A few trouble spots but an amusing theme. Seven X's on the way to a pangram.

Across:

1. Alter, as a pet : SPAY

5. Coif adjusted with a pick : AFRO

9. Less uncertain : SURER. More certain.

14. Bring under control : TAME

15. Bar sign light : NEON

16. Goodnight girl of song : IRENE. Recorded under one of those bar lights.

17. Poolside hue : AQUA

18. Big reference vols. : OEDs

19. Utah city near the Golden Spike : OGDEN

23. Unconvincing excuse, probably : LIE

24. Ballot markings : Xes

25. Not strict at all : LAX

26. __ Mahal : TAJ

29. Go on until : END AT

31. Buzzers around blossoms : BEEs

33. Cornfield construction : MAZE. They are very creative.

34. Antianxiety drug : XANAX. First released by Upjohn and now a part of Pfizer.

36. Relationship __: Facebook feature : STATUS

42. Automatons : ROBOTS

43. Refuge in a desert : OASIS

44. Physics particle : ATOM

45. It's pitched at camp : TENT

47. Security concerns : LEAKS

51. Beer, to a Brit : BEV. Short for Beverage.

52. Driver's license datum : SEX

53. Cooler in a cooler : ICE

55. Lucy of "Elementary" : LIU. On CBS.

60. Plastic alternative : PAPER

62. Give kudos to : LAUD

63. Common conjunctions : ANDs

64. Construction site sight : CRANE

65. Shoreline-altering phenomenon : TIDE

66. Item on an actor's résumé : ROLE

67. Scarecrow stuffing : STRAW

68. Vehicle in many a Jack London story : SLED

69. Black gem : ONYX

Down:

1. Place for ponies : STABLE

2. Anna of "True Blood" : PAQUIN. Canadian-born New Zealand actress. "True Blood" is on HBO.

3. Brought a smile to : AMUSED

4. Slangy assent : "YEAH"

5. Battery pole : ANODE

6. Experiences regret : FEELS BAD

7. Biked : RODE

8. Marked down : ON SALE

9. Sitting Bull's tribe : SIOUX

10. Hard-to-resist impulse : URGE

11. Republican-voting area, on an election map : RED STATE

12. Peoria-to-Detroit dir. : ENE

13. Neurotic toon dog : REN and Stimpy.

21. Not destroyed or lost, as an old document : EXTANT

22. Fuels (up) : GASSES

27. France's Cote d'__ : AZUR

28. Zooey's "New Girl" role : JESS. Zooey Deschanel / Jessica Day

30. Geometric truth : AXIOM

32. Prior prisoner, for short : EX-CON. (convict)

33. Pastor's abode : MANSE. Echo of Sunday.

35. Lipton rival : NESTEA

37. Kept tabs on from behind : TAILED

38. Hardly eye-catching : DRAB

39. Repetitive learning technique : ROTE

40. Better than expected : ABOVE PAR

41. North-south coordinate : LATITUDE. Partnered with longitude.

46. Rejoices : EXULTS. Exalt is to hold in high esteem.

48. Post-rehab support group : AL-ANON

49. "Thank you __, ma'am" : KINDLY

50. English Channel county : SUSSEX

52. "The Taming of the __" : SHREW

54. Formally gave up : CEDED

57. Powerful TV princess : XENA

58. Breeze (along) : SAIL

59. Casino game : FARO. An old card game but casinos probably have figured a way to increase the house cut.

60. HP products : PCs

61. Word after clip or pop : ART

Argyle

Saturday, Nov 21st, 2015, Bruce Venzke

Theme: None

Words: 70 (missing F,Q,X,Z)

Blocks: 36

 Second time in 6 weeks for a Bruce Venzke puzzle - and another relatively quick solve for me - lots of "gimme" clues and answers for a Saturday.  Unlike that last puzzle, however, this one had several proper names, and those fills were the only ones that left me stumped; and since they crossed in two places, I had to cave in to red-letters for ONE lousy cell.  Oh well.  Two triple spanner stacks and a very cool looking grid;

1. Amuse to the hilt : LEAVE IN STITCHES

16. Goth is a subgenre of it : ALTERNATIVE ROCK - I prefer the "goth" at 8d.

17. Tax inequity : MARRIAGE PENALTY - seems like a redundant phrase - but I am biased from my short-lived 2yr marriage

58. Slide rules, for example : ANALOG COMPUTERS - the abacus is another

64. Borrower's protection : INTEREST RATE CAP

65. Some emcees : TOAST MISTRESSES - new to me, but it seemed logical

ONW

A   R
D ~ !

ACROSS:

18. Blotter name : ALIAS - oops, not aliBI - but I was 100% 60% correct

19. These, overseas : ESTOS - threw in estAs, and that was close enough; and on this I'm 100% 80% correct

20. Film lioness : NALA

23. Financial shellacking : BATH

25. T-__ : BIRD - not BONE, and not BILL; I had an '86 4spd 4cyl turbo coupe - nice

in this color, no less

28. Where surfers look for bargains : eMALL - internet surfing

30. With 34-Across, China's locale : EAST

34. See 30-Across : ASIA

35. Logician friend of Einstein : GÖDEL - did not know this one, but I was vaguely familiar with the crossing ADLER; more on Kurt here

36. Give (out) : DOLE

37. Chinese dish eponym : TSO - one of my favorite dishes, General Tso's Chicken

38. Swansea-born : WELSH - bottom left, not far from Cardiff

39. Got used up, with "out" : RAN

40. Scary St. Bernard of fiction : CUJO - one of the first books I ever read

42. Beyond chunky : OBESE

43. Dough dispensers : ATMs

44. Try : HEAR - as in court

45. Not seen as frequently : RARER

46. Amphora, e.g. : VASE - I like the sound of "amphora"

47. Requires : ASKS

49. Dino, __ & Billy: '60s band that included sons of two musical celebs : DESI - a healthy WAG after I had the D--I; more here

51. Sentry's stint : WATCH

54. Is charismatic : HAS IT - I am lacking in the "charisma" department, but I "has it" in other areas; I had to wire a series of cabinet lights at my friend's new house, but I cannot run extension cords in the wall - so I came up with this clever solution

DOWN:

1. Monastery figure : LAMA

2. It has blue-striped jets : EL AL

3. Abruzzi bell town : ATRI - poetic; more here

4. Tara feature : VERANDA - Gone With the Wind

5. 1974 pension plan legislation : ERISA - seen this B4 in crosswords, but it filled via perps today

6. Words with stew and pickle : IN A

7. Bug : NAG

8. __-Chapelle: historic Paris church : STE - spectacular; I love Gothic Cathedral architecture; if you have the time, here's a link to a great show about the building achievements of the time - I like the demonstration at 24:30

9. Track advantage : TIP

10. "__ Got a Secret" : I'VE

11. Belief : TENET

12. Surprised at the party : CRASHED

13. "Dateline NBC" anchor Lester : HOLT

14. Prefix with -plasm : ECTO

15. "The __ the limit!" : SKY'S

21. Investigator's data gathering : LEGWORK - this kind of investigator

22. Low life : AMOEBAS

23. Consecrated : BLESSED

24. Attendant to a man : ALL HERE

25. Baker's quantity : BATCH

26. Send forth : ISSUE

27. Spanish wine region : RIOJA - filled via perps

29. Freud contemporary : ADLER - as I have said here before, there's a book on personality types that I frequently use to understand why people behave as they do

31. Inner tube? : AORTA - har-har

32. Verbal attacks : SLAMS

33. It may be perfect : TENSE

41. Forecasters : ORACLES

43. Flies : AVIATES

48. Insufficient : SHORT

50. "On the Beach" novelist : SHUTE - the "S" was a WAG

51. What early arrivals often have to do : WAIT

52. Cornerstone word : ANNO

53. "So long!" : "TA-TA~!"

55. Moments : SECS

56. "Dies __" : IRAE

57. Recipe abbr. : TSPS

59. Special someone : GEM - here's my "gem" for the week

60. Show with many spin-offs : CSI

61. USAF commissioning prog. : OTS - Officer Training School

62. He played Clubber Lang in "Rocky III" : Mr. T - I pity the fool....

63. Links figure : PAR

Splynter

Monday, November 9, 2015 Gail Grabowski and Bruce Venzke

Theme: Emergency Belts - Four ways to hold your pants up.

21A. Close to defeat : ON THE ROPES

32A. "Cool duds!" : "NICE THREADS!"

41A. Use one's influence : PULL STRINGS

53A. Membranes that vibrate : VOCAL CORDS

Argyle here. I'll post today's song at the bottom; don't miss it. No unifier needed.

Across:

1. Not at all flexible : STIFF. RIGID fits the bill, too.

6. Long and lean : LANK

10. Declare openly : AVOW

14. Easily tipped boat : CANOE

15. "__ further reflection ..." : UPON

16. Building toy with theme parks : LEGO

17. Western crooner Gene : AUTRY

18. Sanctuary recess : APSE

19. Overly compliant : MEEK

20. Compressed video file format : MPEG. (Moving Picture Experts Group)

23. The brown one is Louisiana's state bird : PELICAN

25. Mae West's "I used to be Snow White, but I drifted" is one : PUN

26. Sonoma Valley vessel : VAT. Wine.

27. Start of an envelope address : MR. AND MRS.

36. Covert org. in "Argo" : CIA. (covert rescue operation)

37. Dashing style : ELAN

38. Granola grain : OAT

39. Citrus drink used by NASA : TANG. In powder form till you mix it.

40. Obstinate critter : ASS

45. Where soldiers go? : LATRINES. So true.

47. Swat : HIT. Don't swat the little things ... well, maybe in the latrine.

48. Manning of the Giants : ELI

49. "Storage Wars" sales event : AUCTION. on A&E.

58. Napoleon's exile isle : ELBA

59. Biz bigwig : EXEC

60. Mishmash : OLIO

61. French-__ potatoes : FRIED

62. No-frills shelter : TENT. unless you're a wizard.

63. Speak abrasively : RASP

64. Apartment rental agreement : LEASE

65. Former trans-Atl. fliers : SSTs. (trans-Atlantic)

66. Kremlin rejection : "NYET!"

67. Milk dispenser : UDDER. It doesn't get any fresher.

Down:

1. Mischief-maker : SCAMP

2. Brownish gray : TAUPE. Natural mole fur hue. Last month we decided they must be French moles.

3. Info from a spy drone : INTEL

4. Pardoned : FORGIVEN

5. "Saturday Night Live" alumna Tina : FEY

6. Blonde comic strip teenager : LUANN

7. Date bk. entry : APPT. (Appointment)

8. Quick bite : NOSH

9. Skateboarder's protective gear : KNEE PAD

10. Energy bar nut : ALMOND

11. Show for which Julia Louis-Dreyfus has won four consecutive acting Emmys : VEEP. I don't have HBO.

12. S-shaped molding : OGEE

13. Bowl-shaped pans : WOKS

21. Sworn statement : OATH

22. Makes tracks : RUNS

24. Jazz aficionado : CAT. Can you dig it?

27. Breakfast and dinner : MEALS

28. "Darn it!" : "RATS!"

29. Shoe brand Thom __ : McAN

30. Line around a tub : RING

31. Droops : SAGS

32. "Hud" Oscar winner Patricia : NEAL 33. "Casablanca" heroine : ILSA A couple of classy dames.

34. Play list : CAST

35. Play part : ROLE

39. Giggled nervously : TITTERED. 1610-20; perhaps Scandinavian; compare Old Norse tittra to quiver, Swedish (dial.) tittra to giggle (Huh, nothing to do about where milk comes from.)

41. Medicinal dose : PILL

42. Mythical horse with a horn : UNICORN

43. In the manner indicated : THUS

44. Rocker Ocasek : RIC. The lead singer of The Cars.

46. Punches back, say : REACTS

49. Bring home from the shelter : ADOPT

50. Homeric epic : ILIAD

51. Like Santa Claus : OBESE. Say WHAT?!

52. "Unsafe at Any Speed" author Ralph : NADER

53. November parade participants : VETS. Honor them on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month.

54. Clumsy oafs : OXes

55. Lincoln's coin : CENT. I like his bill better.

56. Big name in skin care : OLAY

57. Get to one's feet : RISE

61. Winter illness : FLU

 

Argyle

Monday October 26, 2015 Gail Grabowski and Bruce Venzke

Theme: So Bright I have To Wear Shades

20A. Carbonated beverage : SPARKLING WATER

25A. Bright, photogenic grin : DAZZLING SMILE

41A. Excellent year-end review, say : GLOWING REPORT

47A. Epitome : SHINING EXAMPLE

Argyle here. A very pleasant start to the week.

Across:

1. Singapore's continent : ASIA

5. Arches National Park state : UTAH

9. Spread out, as one's fingers : SPLAY

14. Amorphous mass : BLOB

15. By way of, briefly : THRU

16. Leave no doubt about : PROVE

17. Name as a source : CITE

18. Club often used for chipping : IRON

19. Procedures to learn, informally, with "the" : ROPES

23. Track section : RAIL

24. Assent to a captain : AYE

31. Boat not to rock : CANOE

32. Miler Sebastian : COE. It's Lord Coe now, British politician.

33. Grazing area : LEA

34. Charged toward : RAN TO

35. Fairy tale home builder : PIG. One of three.

36. Note equivalent to E : F FLAT

38. Catering dispenser : URN

39. Galoot : APE

40. Online finance company : E-LOAN

45. Tiny farm denizen : ANT

46. Ripped up : TORE

54. Italian violin maker : AMATI. Not just violins.

55. Cross inscription : INRI. Iesus Nazarenus Rex Iudaeorum (Jesus of Nazareth King of the Jews)

56. Bar from a dairy case : OLEO

57. Slow-witted one : MORON

58. Walking stick : CANE

59. Actor Penn of "Mystic River" : SEAN. In 2015, Penn starred in The Gunman, a French-American action thriller.

60. Getting on in years : AGING

61. Fleecy farm females : EWEs Now that's some alliteration.

62. Repertoire requirement for a military bugler : TAPS

Down:

1. Preschool lessons : ABC's

2. Lose traction : SLIP

3. Greek "i" : IOTA

4. Deviating from the norm : ABERRANT. 50¢

5. Employ : UTILIZE

6. Roller coaster excitement : THRILL

7. Elvis __ Presley : ARON

8. Suspended on the wall : HUNG

9. Wets with a hose : SPRAYS

10. President __: Senate bigwig : PRO TEM

11. More than trot : LOPE

12. State firmly : AVER

13. "You bet!" : "YES!"

21. Hummed-into instrument : KAZOO

22. "Living" compensation : WAGE

25. "Hawaii Five-O" nickname : DANNO

26. More standoffish : ICIER

27. Spiked yuletide beverage : NOG

28. __ ease: anxious : ILL AT

29. Tilt to one side : LEAN

30. Have a bite : EAT

31. Astronomer Sagan : CARL

34. Persian on the living room floor : RUG

35. NBA scoring stat : PPG. (Points Per Game)

36. Horticulturist's study : FLORA

37. First and __: most important : FOREMOST

39. Objector : ANTI

40. Model kit glues : EPOXIES

42. Serve, as diner patrons : WAIT ON

43. Baseball game ninth : INNING. But it may only be half an inning.

44. Without end, in poetry : ETERNE

47. Skyline haze : SMOG

48. Big name in spydom : HARI. Mata Hari.

49. "__ going!": "Good job!" : NICE

50. Work on a bone : GNAW

51. Intense request : PLEA

52. Jump : LEAP

53. Very long time : EONS

54. Org. with many specialists : AMA. (American Medical Association)

Argyle

Saturday, Oct 10th, 2015, Bruce Venzke

Theme: None

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

Blocks: 30

 My experience with Mr. Venzke's puzzles has been tough, but do-able.  Today, however, I smoked through his construction in half my personal allotted time. Lots of "definitions" which helps avoid the names of people and places.  Triple 9-letter corners, two 10-letter climbers, and one spanner;

38a. House adjustment : REAPPORTIONMENT - The US House of Representatives; more here

16a. Calculated : TOTALED UP - straight up

36d. Pleasant : ENJOYABLE

55a. Nebraska tribe : WINNEBAGO

  

3d. Eroded : ATE AWAY AT

On(e)wa Rd ~!

ACROSS:

1. Ray in the water : SKATE - oops, not MANTA

6. Lasting consideration : SHELF LIFE - I find it peculiar that my bottled water has a shelf life....

15. Times in ads : NITES - this had to be right, so it made me take out MANTA

17. On one's toes : ALERT

18. Periodic synchronizations : LEAP YEARS

19. Key ingredient in a Bloody Caesar : CLAMATO - I vaguely remembered this, but where it comes from is new to me - the Wiki
 

21. High-fashion shoemaker Jimmy : CHOO - HeartRx is all too familiar with this brand

22. Royal Botanic Gardens locale : KEW

23. Chef's introduction? : SOUS - working in the restaurants, this was easy for me

25. Do a farm vet's job : DEHORN

27. Frank's cousin : BRAT - oh, that frank(furter)

29. Cried from a shelter : YIPPED

31. 1989 James Cameron film, with "The" : ABYSS - I did see it, but didn't recall it right off the bat

33. Discontinues : SURCEASES - my Latin helped me here

40. Initiates detailed plans : SETS A DATE - think wedding

41. 1932 Lake Placid gold medalist : SONJA - one of the few proper nouns in today's puzzle, this one was mostly perps

42. Least exciting : TAMEST - did not get my ta-DA~! because I had Lamest first

44. Rapper __ Moe Dee : KOOL - I went with Cool first, and knew it was wrong

45. Malting material : BARLEY - think beer

49. Itinerary elements: Abbr. : RTEs

51. Sometime substitute for 45-Across : RYE

52. Spread on the table : OLEO

53. Native whose land has an Atlantic and Caribbean coastline : HAITIAN

60. Don't disturb : LET BE

61. Sign, as an agreement : ENTER INTO

62. Challenge for a future doctor : ORALS - I threw in MSATS

63. Hit from behind : REAR-ENDED - happened to me in 1989; took 4 years to recover the money from the other insurance company

64. Items in a slush pile: Abbr. : SASEs - the envelopes included with the manuscripts

DOWN:

1. Bite sites : SNACK BARS

2. First recurring "SNL" character : KILLER BEE

4. Insurance policy datum : TERM

5. Spanish pronoun : ESTAS

6. Edward Jones Dome athlete : St. LOUIS RAM - mostly perps; glad to see we had a hockey-themed puzzle for the opening of the season this week.  Not so much the football season

7. Masonry tool : HOE

8. Seventh of 24 : ETA - Greek letters

9. Once around : LAP

10. 1986 Jeff Goldblum film, with "The" : FLY - the more graphic version - IMDb

11. It's hard to get rid of one : LEECH

12. Wyoming neighbor : IDAHO

13. Hubbub : FUROR

14. Big name in printers : EPSON - since I had the "O", XEROX seemed likely

20. Bichon Frise, e.g. : TOY - dogs, learned from doing crosswords

24. Sound flustered : SPUTTER - oooh, so close, I had sTutter

25. Chrysler Building style : DECO - Art Deco, and my favorite building of the NYC skyline - and here combined with one of my other favorites

26. Heavens : EDENS

28. Rx amts. : TSPS

30. Group of fathers : PRIESTHOOD

32. Sudden rush : SPATE - yeah, um spaLe was, uh, wrong....

34. Frenzily : AMOK

35. Misses at many bullfights : SENORITAS - the ladies, not the "close calls"; need to call in the Farm Vet from 25a.

37. Lack of originality : STALENESS

39. Jazz singer Anita : O'DAY - dredged from the nether regions of the mind

43. Word with caddy or ball : TEA - tea caddy I get, but a tea ball is new to me

45. Shaded recess : BOWER - reminds me of this Led Zeppelin song

Gallows Pole - lyric @ 2:18

46. Flared dress shape : A LINE

47. __-Wreck : RENT-A

48. Hardly an extrovert : LONER

50. Storage areas : SILOS - semi-clecho at 57d.

54. Prefix with hertz : TERA - went with MEGA - that's 50%, 100% correct

56. Poetic preposition : ERE

57. Storage place : BIN

58. Word between two ages : AND - ummm....

59. Onetime Bell Atlantic rival : GTE

Splynter