Friday August 1, 2025 Kyle Beakley & David Levinson Wilk

Here's the ghost of Chairman present - as envisioned by RustyBrain. Two Friday's down; one to Moe!

Kyle Beakley is a TV writer who has teamed up with 30-year veteran constructor David Levinson Wilk, who also writes for TV. I may not be the sharpest spoon in the drawer, but I'll bet they met working on a TV show. 

The theme of this one is easy in retrospect, but hard to describe. Each answer is an unclued famous battle. Hidden inside circles(!) is the actual answer. The list of battles made for a rather somber puzzle. With Purple Heart Day coming up on August 7th, let's remember the brave men and women who have been wounded or killed in action while serving in the U.S. military.

31. With 42-Across, encouraging words to someone making a good effort, and an apt description of this puzzle's circled letters: THAT'S HALF THE BATTLE. The revealer is stretched across two lines, and informs us that some sort of battle is involved. Cleverly, exactly HALF the letters of each themer are circled to form the clued word. HATS off for finding four battles that hide words that fit this constraint.

17. Zooplankton eaten by whales: BUNKER HILL. → KRILL. The Battle of BUNKER HILL, Mass. is from the American Revolutionary War - June 17, 1775.

25. Berets, bonnets, etc.: HASTINGS. → HATS. The Battle of HASTINGS was between Norman-French and English Anglo-Saxons - October 14, 1066.

52. More than a few: NORMANDY. → MANY. The Battle of NORMANDY was an Allied invasion of German-occupied France during World War II, beginning on June 6, 1944 (D-Day).

59. Art museum named for an oil magnate: GETTYSBURG. → GETTY. The Battle of GETTYSBURG, PA was a turning point in the American Civil War - July1-3, 1863.

While I appreciate the symmetry of the revealer in the center, I prefer the "aha" moment to be at the end, assuming I haven't figured it out already. In this case, I was at sea with 17A, wanting Beluga kill or something. Then, with the start of 25A in place, I wanted Hat ___ or Haberdash, and moved on. Nothing fit until the revealer, when it became obvious. Unfortunately, once I knew the trick, I filled in all the circles (the clues were very straightforward) and that immediately led to their matching battle. If the reveler had been at the end, it would have made for a tougher Friday. 

Battling on:

Across:

1. Pyramid city with the Great Sphinx: GIZA. Pyramid game with the Great Strahan: Hollywood.

5. Carry (off): CART. This is a grocery CART, unless you're from the South, then it's a buggy.

9. Border: EDGE.

13. Full house components, perhaps: ACES. The infamous "Dead Man's Hand" would be a full house if jacks were wild. 

14. See-through dish: ASPIC. I don't find the see-through aspect of aspic appealing.

16. Shelved item: BOOK.

17. [theme]

19. Hidden mic: WIRE. This one bugged me.

20. Waste time: DALLY.

21. Make a beeline for: DASH TO. These are a little different. When I dash to the store, I don't necessarily travel in a straight line. But close enough for crosswords.

23. Sidewalk artist's supply: CHALK. I'm always amazed by the talents of these street artists and their willingness to create such temporary showpieces.

25. [theme]

27. Belafonte song starter: DAY-O. "Daylight come and me wanna go home."

28. Educational ad: PSA. Public Service Announcement.

30. Didn't play: SAT OUT. I had a radio that SAT OUT in the rain. It didn't play after that.

31. [theme]

34. Banister post: NEWEL. If you're lucky enough to have two of these, the second one is called a re-NEWEL post.

35. Email pioneer: AOL. My oldest brother still uses his American On Line account. If it ain't broke...

36. Snack brand based in Hanover, Pennsylvania: UTZ. Ruining appetites before dinner for over 100 years (according to moms everywhere).

38. "Forrest Gump" role, for short: LT. DAN. Although various CGI effects were used to erase Lieutenant DAN's legs, some scenes used a modified wheelchair with a slanted seat so actor Gary Sinise could fold his legs underneath.

42. [theme]

48. Some silver cups: AWARDS. Get some plates, too, so you can have tea and scones.

50. St. with 14 HBCUs: ALA. ALAbama is home to the most Historically Black Colleges and Universities. There are 101 HBCUs in total, mostly in the South.

51. Shoe support: HEEL. 

52. [theme]

54. Full-bosomed: BUXOM. I'd better leave this one up to your imagination.

55. Sunflower shade: YELLOW. Flowers are safe though. Yes, I can show you flowers.

56. Gush: SPURT.

58. Mexican coin: PESO.

59. [theme]

63. Info in a bank: DATA. Here's DATA in a snow bank.

64. City served by Incheon International Airport: SEOUL. Located in the capital of South Korea, Incheon is one of the busiest airports in the world. In addition to outstanding architecture, it features indoor gardens, a golf course, spa, ice skating rink, casino, a video game center and a museum. That would take some of the sting out of a cancelled flight!

65. Rock & Roll Hall of Fame's lake: ERIE. The R&R HOF is in Cleveland, Ohio. "Ain't never been there, they tell me it's nice." - Joe Walsh (inducted in 1988 with the Eagles).

66. Three-time AL MVP in the 2000s: AROD. Heeee's back...great players with short nicknames will be with us forever!

67. Fossil, perhaps: BONE.

68. Comedian Foxx: REDD. The popular actor and stand-up comedian was know for his raunchy nightclub act. Amazingly, he put out over 50 records. (Hey! I managed to squeeze in an unlikely album!)

Down:

1. Yak: GAB. I guess, I never spoke with one. 

2. Hosp. area: ICU. Intensive Care Unit in a hospital. 

3. "Dune" actress: ZENDAYA. She's one of a handful of celebs that go by a single name.

4. Make demands (of): ASK A LOT.

5. Planetary scientist Sagan: CARL. "That's home. That's us. On it everyone you love, everyone you know, everyone you ever heard of, every human being who ever was, lived out their lives - on a mote of dust suspended in a sunbeam."

6. Wan: ASHY.

7. Tech sch. in upstate New York: RPI. My dad's alma mater, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. A wonderful father and engineer, his pencil holder still sits on my desk. (I wonder if Irish Miss has seen one of these?)

8. Oscar winner Swinton: TILDA. She signs her name: ~ Swinton (probably).

9. Writer who studied under William Strunk Jr. at Cornell: E.B. WHITE. Elwyn Brooks WHITE was the author of highly popular books for children, including Stuart Little, and his masterpiece, Charlotte's Web.

10. "Why are you waiting!?": DO IT NOW. "And if you're the first caller, we'll throw in another piece of garbage at no extra cost!"

11. Ignore orders: GO ROGUE.

12. Squeeze (out): EKE. Always used with earning a living and never with earning the last bit of toothpaste in the tube.

15. "__ dismissed!": CLASS. Wanted "case(s) dismissed" at first.

18. Great Plains grazer: ELK. Great Plains geezer: also an ELK (sometimes).

22. Poem part: STANZA.

23. Summer hrs. in 26-Down: CDT. Central Daylight Time in St. Louis, Mo.

24. Derisive laugh: HAH. We're not laughing at you, we're laughing with you. Yeah, right.

25. Actor Holbrook: HAL.

26. Mo. town: STL. St. Louis, Missouri, the "Gateway to the West." Mo. town is a fun misdirect to Detroit, the Motor City.

28. Vietnamese soup: PHO. Pronounced "fuh", PHO has taken our area by storm, with new restaurants opening everywhere. It comes in many varieties and is delish! Where has it been my whole life?

29. Pretzel topping: SALT. And a little mustard doesn't hurt.

32. Birkenstock product: SANDAL. Wear them with socks! [see DWEEB]

33. Stoke: FUEL.

37. Scheduling abbr.: TBA. To Be Announced, similar to "TBD" - To Be Determined.

38. PC hookup: LAN. Local Area Network. Not to be confused with a Politically Correct hookup which is between two consenting adults.

39. 24-month: TWO YEAR. 

40. Bravely decides one can: DARES TO. 

41. Carrying capacity: ARMLOAD. I hope I got her enough. Don't want to appear cheap.

43. __ fever: HAY. 

44. 9-Down's "Is Sex Necessary?" collaborator James: THURBER. Who'da thunk? White and Thurber wrote alternate chapters, combining them into a spoof of popular books about Freudian sexual theories. Being fledgling authors, they held little hope of publication but Harper's, which had published White's first book of poetry, came out with a small printing of 2,500 copies in November 1929. The humorous book became a bestseller and launched both their careers.

45. Feel: TEXTURE.

46. Papal name chosen by Robert Prevost: LEO. Not a summer Zodiac sign this time!

47. Shade tree: ELM.

49. Southampton smooches: SNOGS.

53. Nerdy type: DWEEB. Of course, I live in Florida where we never wears socks, so this couldn't happen to me.

54. City vehicle: BUS.

56. Amaze: STUN.

57. Gomer of 1960s TV: PYLE. Played to perfection by actor Jim Nabors, his stint in the Marines was a spin off of the Andy Griffin Show. Shazam!

58. Smooching at the movies, say: PDA. Public Display of Affection, although I remember being in the back of a darkened theater and thinking we were virtually in private. What I can't remember is what movie was playing...

60. Overly: TOO.

61. Purge (of): RID.

62. HS equivalency test: GED. General Educational Development test. I thought it was Graduate Equivalency Diploma, or something like that. I would have failed the test!

Notes from C.C.:

Today we celebrate the 81st birthday of Tehachapi Ken. Wishing you a wonderful day, Ken!

Friday, June 7, 2024, David Levinson Wilk

 Theme: "Well, we're waiting!"

 

Puzzling thoughts:

Today's puzzle takes three familiar phrases that include a day of the week in them, but the actual "day" is chopped off of the end to support the reveal ... I guess 

Here's how:

18-across. "Whew! I was so worried the Kahlo was counterfeit!": THANK GOD ITS FRIDA.  The familiar "Thank God It's Friday" (oft-times abbr. to TGIF for xword puzzle fill) loses a "Y" in exchange for a weirdly clued quote about a Frida Kahlo painting being real or fake ... meh

30-across. NFL document intended to protect the secrets of the Big Game?: SUPER BOWL NDA.  Super Bowl Sunday is one of the biggest sporting events of the year.  In this entry, the event loses an "S", a "U", and a "Y" to leave an NDA (also known as "Non-Disclosure Agreement) which is a document usually signed by an employee or independent contractor to protect any intellectual property owned by their employer ... meh

45-across. Retro-chic style that originated with the family of a movie charioteer?: THROWBACK HUR.  Throwback Thursday is familiar to Instagram/Facebook/X users as a means to honor some nostalgic events/persons; and specifically on Thursday.  Pictures of these events/people are captured with a #TBT.  The 1959 movie Ben-Hur starred Charlton Heston as "Judah Ben-Hur".  The chariot race is one of the iconic moments in the film.  In this entry, the letters "T", "S", "D", "A", and "Y" were omitted ... another, meh

Charlton Heston in Ben-Hur

The reveal:

59-across. Impatient person's comment, or an apt title for this puzzle?: I HAVEN'T GOT ALL DAY.  Implying (I guess) that because the entire day of the week name (FRIDAy) (SuNDAy) (THURsday) is not in the entry, it aligns with the reveal.  I see it, but I wonder whether it warranted an extra 15 squares to fill (16x15 grid pattern)

The grid:

Note my two errors @ the crossing of DOULA and VAX

The rest of the fill:

Across:

1. Brewer's ingredient: HOPS.  Used in the brewing of beer and ale

5. Paragons: IDEALS.  Paragon is defined as "a person or thing regarded as a perfect example of a particular quality".  I suppose that you can use the word "IDEAL" as a noun to support this clue, but personally I wouldn't have then made it plural

11. Tea, in Hindi: CHAI.  As in a CHAI latte

15. "Or so __ say": THEY.  But who are THEY??

16. Like some cottage cheese: NON-FAT.  Anyone else try LOW FAT here first?  I did

17. Captain's post: HELM. Its origin (HELM) is from the Old English helma; probably related to helve

21. Re-tiring workers?: PIT CREWS.  The group of six - eight workers who attend to the race cars (NASCAR or Indy Cars) during the event are known as the PIT CREW.  One of their duties is to change the tires.  So "re-tire" might be a stretch, but hey, it's Frida ... also, the plural already is CREW not CREWS

22. Swift composition: LYRIC.  Taylor Swift is a singer-songwriter known for her LYRIC description of life-happenings

23. Chinese: Pref.: SINO.  SINO

24. Stupefies: DAZES.  

27. "That's it!": AHA.

35. Competition with pros?: DEBATE.  The competition also has "cons".

37. Bygone toy company: TYCO. 

38. "The Bear" Emmy winner __ Moss-Bachrach: EBON.  Never watched this show, so the name was totally unfamiliar

39. Not boyish: MANLY.  We had a Health and Phys Ed teacher at my HS named "Mr. Manley"

40. Greek X's: CHIS.  Another word that is rarely seen as a plural

41. Electric shaver brand: BRAUN.  I use a Norelco shaver; Braun toothbrush

42. Object: ITEM.  

43. Slender: THIN.

44. Mortar's partner: PESTLE.

48. Oxford Word of the Year for 2021: VAX.  I had the V and the X but guessed wrong with an E.  I should've known that VAX was a much newer word.  Also, it can now be used in the board game Scrabble.  If I recall the tile values, V+A+X = a total of 14 points.  A nice little filler ...

49. Extinct birds: DODOS.

50. "Riiiiiight": I BET.

52. Cast member: ACTOR.

55. "And so on": YADA YADA.  I usually think of this phrase with 3 "YADAs": YADA, YADA, YADA.  But as the clip below confirms, you can either "YADA YADA" or "YADA YADA YADA"

As I saw this, I kept wondering if the constructor ever considered this as one of the entries or reveal?  If you look closely, you can see the word "DAY" both forwards and backwards inside this phrase ... 

(note:  I pasted this snip many days before HG used it on Wednesday June 5; watch again in case you missed his ...)

63. Facts and figures: DATA.  

64. Reprimand sharply: BARK AT.  Is this a case of the tail wagging the dog?  

65. Green land?: EIRE. Not Greenland, a colony of Denmark ... Ireland, aka EIRE

66. Yelp rating unit: STAR.  Mostly used by individual consumers for rating restaurants.  If I had to rate this puzzle (on the Yelp scale of ⭐ to ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐) I would give this a ⭐⭐

67. Étouffée cuisine: CREOLE.

68. "Dang it!": RATS.  Speaking of rating, RATS spelled backwards is star

Down:

1. Start of some addresses: HTTP. The secure ones are plural:  HTTPS

2. "You just get here?": OH, HI.  

3. __ moss: PEAT.  Had the word "moss" been capitalized I might have chosen:  KATE

She is much more attractive than peat moss

4. Aligns: SYNCS.

5. Naive stock character: INGENUE.  [an on-line dictionary cites the origin as] "French, feminine of ingénu ‘ingenuous’, from Latin ingenuus (see ingenuous)

6. "Why Do Fools Fall in Love" genre: DOO WOP.  Probably one of the most covered songs in history.  Here's the one I chose:

1964 Beach Boys - 2:00 version

7. Finales: ENDS.

8. "100 Years... 100 Movies" org.: AFI.  All perps - This is them

9. Back muscle, for short: LAT.  Many of us use the abbr. LAT for the name of the newspaper that publishes these puzzles

10. Ave. crossers: STS.

11. LeBarons, e.g.: CHRYSLERS.  I actually got this without any perps.  The erstwhile sport luxury car that also became synonymous with the family truckster used in the movie Family Vacation

 

1941 Chrysler LeBaron Newport

12. Successor: HEIR.

13. No-frills grocery chain: ALDI.  I wish we had one closer to us

14. Apple desktop once marketed with the Rolling Stones song "She's a Rainbow": iMAC.

19. Actress Swanson: KRISTY.  I am not a Buffy the Vampire slayer fan, so this needed perps

20. Whizzed (by): FLEW.

24. Need for some copiers: DRY INK.  Do they mean toner??

25. Basics: ABCS.  

26. Petting __: ZOO. 

27. Allow in: ADMIT. 

28. Moor: HEATH. Check this out:

29. "Li'l" fellow: ABNER.  "Li'l Abner was a satirical comic strip that featured a fictional clan of hillbillies located in Dogpatch, USA.  Al Capp wrote and illustrated this strip which ran for 43 years (1934-1977)

Li'l Abner and Daisy Mae

31. Branch of philosophy: ETHICS.

32. Channel for hoops fans: NBA TV.

33. Birthing coach: DOULA.  This came to me in perps

34. New wing: ANNEX.

36. "Talk to Her" Oscar winner Pedro: ALMODOVAR.  No clue as to who he is

40. Rosalind of "3 Body Problem": CHAO.  She doesn't appear to be one of the headliners in this series 

41. "Get serious": BE REAL.  My under-my-breath comments as some of these clues and words were being figured out 

43. Sked placeholder: TBD.  "Sked" is a new-age abbreviation for "schedule".  The letters stand for: To Be Determined

44. Occasion for a launch party, informally: PUB DATE.  I kept thinking this meant the "launch" of a dart and we were at a pub, on a date.  Nope; it's the "publication" date

46. Sported: WORE.  Got this one, but by the time I did I was wore [sic] out 

47. Having a gap: HIATAL.  As much as I dislike having (or writing) clues that are "fill-in-the-blank" I probably would've solved this sooner if the clue read: ____ hernia

51. Polk predecessor: TYLER.  Guessed this one correctly

52. Supports: AIDS. 

53. Chinwag: CHAT.  I never use the term "chinwag".  You?

54. "__ for now": TATA.  See you later ... 

55. Ono from Tokyo: YOKO.  One of the "gimmies" today

56. College basketball coach Barnes: ADIA.  Another of the obscure proper names today

57. Feathered missile: DART.  The item I was going to launch on our PUB DATE

58. Those in favor: AYES.  

60. Peacock network: NBC.

61. Roofing goo: TAR.

62. Test for prospective M.A. students: GRE. 

Note:  I will be back next week (for the June 14th puzzle) and then Mal Man will blog the 21st and 28th June puzzles 

Monday, March 21, 2011 David Levinson Wilk

Theme: NMI - Just the first and last, No Middle Initial, is used to link our theme men; each is an R. O. Man.

17A. *"Barry Lyndon" star : RYAN O'NEAL

59A. *Lead singer of The Cars : RIC OCASEK

10. *"Oh, Pretty Woman" singer : ROY ORBISON

30. *Henry Ford contemporary : RANSOM OLDS

40. Caesar, e.g. (or each of the answers to the starred clues?) : ROMAN

Argyle here. Mundane Monday. Many partials. If all four men were in the same field or all were in different fields, it would have been better. Also, entirely too many names.

Across:

1. King, queen or jack : CARD

5. URL starter : HTTP. I've posted before what words the letters stand for, but still have know idea what they really mean.

9. Van Gogh setting : ARLES. The visitor's center in Arles provides a walking tour map of ten reproductions on easels depicting actual places throughout Arles.

14. Alan of "M*A*S*H" : ALDA

15. Davenport's state : IOWA

16. Dracula's title : COUNT

19. Singer Lauper : CYNDI

20. Against : ANTI

21. Used to reach a high shelf : STOOD ON. Clue/answer doesn't feel right.

23. Sodom escapee : LOT. He didn't look back.

26. Armored vehicle : TANK

28. Being off target : ERRING

29. Genesis mountain : ARARAT. Another Biblical reference.

31. Brandy's music genre, briefly : R AND B. Perhaps all the girl singers are to offset the four man theme.

33. Under-the-chin helmet securer : STRAP

34. Saintly circle : HALO

35. Types : ILKS

39. Suffix with tele- : THON

41. It may be reserved : SEAT

42. Heavy drinkers : SOTS

43. Functions : USES

44. Second longest African river : CONGO

45. Deed holder : OWNER

47. Sea between Greece and Italy : IONIAN

48. Start of Juliet's balcony plea : "O ROMEO". Romeo! Wherefore art thou Romeo?

51. Male heirs : SONS

53. Opposite of SSW : NNE

54. Virgin Mary : MADONNA

56. Poet Silverstein : SHEL

58. Like the Leaning Tower : ATILT

64. Mazda rival : HONDA

65. Apple computer since 1998 : iMAC

66. Fairy tale beginning : ONCE

67. Dread : ANGST

68. Turkey meat choice : DARK

69. Fake coin : SLUG

Down

1. Elevator compartment : CAR

2. One of the Khans : ALY. A socialite, racehorse owner and jockey, he was the third husband of actress Rita Hayworth. He was passed over for succession as Aga Khan but served as Pakistan's representative to the United Nations.

3. Nutritional no. : RDA. Recommended Dietary Allowance.

4. "The X-Files" agent Scully : DANA. Partnered with fellow Special Agent Fox Mulder.

5. Suggest : HINT AT

6. Wheel alignment service : TOE IN

7. First coml. airline to show in-flight movies : TWA

8. Friends : PALS

9. Harmony : ACCORD

11. Day before mardi : LUNDI. (Monday) Lundi Gras is a relatively recently popularized name for a series of Shrove Monday events taking place during the New Orleans Mardi Gras.

12. __ a happy note : END ON

13. Attack, bee-style : STING

18. Ready to serve, as beer : ON TAP

22. Mortise insert : TENON. Image.

23. Doesn't fade : LASTS

24. Big name in garden care : ORTHO

25. Medium's card : TAROT

27. Adversaries in a Hoffman/Streep film : KRAMERS. Kramer vs. Kramer (1979).

32. "Woe is me!" : "ALAS"

34. Siphoning aid : HOSE

36. Russian Revolution leader : LENIN

37. Elena of the Supreme Court : KAGAN

38. Weapon for David : STONE

40. Sentence that should be two sentences : RUN-ON

44. Trig function : COSEC

46. Charged angrily : WENT AT

47. Like pawned items : IN HOCK

48. Nebraska city : OMAHA

49. Boca __ : RATON

50. Taking too much : ODing

52. Sesame Street grouch : OSCAR

55. Parched : ARID

57. Thailand neighbor : LAOS

60. Britney Spears's "__ Slave 4 U" : I'M A

61. NBC weekend revue : SNL

62. Old French coin : ECU

63. Oktoberfest need : KEG

Answer grid.

Congratulations to Dan Feyer, who won ACPT again this year.

Argyle

Sunday July 12, 2009 David Levinson Wilk

Theme: Take a Letter - Theme answers are literal descriptions of the clue letter positions.

23A: S: HEAD OF STATE - Letter S is the first letter (head) of the word STATE.

29A: A: END OF AN ERA - A is at the end of ERA.

34A: C: MALCOLM IN THE MIDDLE - C is in the middle of MALCOLM.

56A: P: LEADER OF THE PACK - P leads PACK.

66A: V: CENTER OF GRAVITY - V is at the center of GRAVITY.

85A: E: FOREGONE CONCLUSION - E concludes FOREGONE.

94A: F: FALSE START. F starts FALSE

104A: D: GRAND FINALE. D ends GRAND.

I figured out what those clue letters stand for after I got FALSE START. Such an innovative theme.

MALCOLM IN THE MIDDLE is an odd choice, all the other theme answers are familiar phrases.

I had trouble all over the place, despite my perfect start with BRATZ (1A: Popular fashion doll series). Very seldom is 1A a gimme to me. All those BRATZ dolls have Angelina Jolie style lips.

My favorite clue today is SEN (81D: Boxer, e.g.: Abbr.). The "Abbr." clue did not prevent me from thinking of dog. Senator Barbara Boxer (CA) can sure bark and bite. Very acid tongue sometimes. Her daughter was married to Hillary Clinton's brother.

Across:

6A: Helps (out): BAIL. Paul Krugman wants more stimulus package.

11A: Immunity agent: T CELL

16A: Use a wet napkin on, perhaps: DAB

20A: "Aunt __ Cope Book": ERMA'S. Here is the book cover. Unknown to me. It's written by Erma Bombeck.

21A: Braga of "Moon Over Parador": SONIA. She looks familiar. I must have googled her before.

22A: Have a balance: OWE

25A: Opposite of full: UNFED. Wrote down EMPTY.

26A: Turn abruptly: ZAG

28A: "I'll do whatever you need": USE ME. Not a familiar utterance to me.

31A: Eponymous 1902 physics Nobelist Pieter: ZEEMAN. Stranger to me. I've never heard of ZEEMAN Effect either.

32A: Heavy hammer: MAUL. Wow, I really have no idea that MAUL is a heavy hammer. It's used to drive stakes or wedges.

33A: Third-day creation: EDEN. Got D quickly, then I decided it's ADAM.

41A: Lures, Pied Piper style: TWEEDLES

42A: Not out of running: IN IT. I am used to INIT clue, you know, initial.

43A: Large sea ducks: EIDERS

47A: More farinaceous: MEALIER. Knew farina, not farinaceous. Insane amount of vowels.

48A: Time, metaphorically: SANDS. The SANDS of time.

50A: Delta follower: EPSILON. Before zeta.

52A: Empire State, e.g.: Abbr.: BLDG

53A: Like LAX: INTL (International). Lots of abbreviations in this grid.

54A: "Characters welcome" network: USA. Have never heard of this tagline. Don't watch USA.

55A: Crazed: MANIC

62A: "The Information" author Martin: AMIS. Son of Kingsley AMIS.

63A: New Hampshire Pumpkin Festival city: KEENE. Our fellow LAT solver Hatoolah mentioned this trivia last time when we had KEENE (clued as New Hampshire city). But I forgot.

65A: Nebraska City's county: OTOE. Did not know OTOE is a county name as well.

69A: Belief system: CREED. Mine was TENET.

70A: Terrific service: ACE. Tennis.

73A: Work on antimacassar, perhaps: TAT. I did not know the meaning of antimacassar.

74A: Last line of some riddles: WHAT AM I

78A: Organ parts with cones: RETINAS. Cones are cone-shaped cells in the retina of the eye, sensitive to color and intensity of light, according to dictionary. New to me also.

82A: Israeli, e.g.: SEMITE. "Arab, e.g." as well.

83A: Gross income source?: PORN. Intersects PG RATED (83D: Like many family film). Huge stumper for me. CORN yes. PORN, too much for me. Is PORN really gross?

84A: Dash indicator: OIL GAUGE

92A: They may be graphic: ARTS. Nice clue.

93A: Orioles' gp.: AL EAST (American League East)

97A: Golden, in Guanajuato: DE ORO. I only know ORO means gold.

98A: Turkey toucher: IRAQ. D'oh, IRAQ touches (borders) Turkey.

102A: The Wildcats of the Big 12 Conf.: KSU (Kansas State University). I got the answer from Down fills.

103A: Try: TASTE. Do any of you have persimmon tree in your yard?

106A: Uncle to Jeanna and Barbara: JEB. JEB Bush.

107A: Energetic risk-taking type, so it's said: ARIES. Oh, I was unaware of this fact.

108A: Altercation: SET-TO

109A: Conductor whose name is spelled with two musical syllables: SOLTI (Georg). Interesting observation. He was a long time music director for the Chicago Symphony Orchestra (1969-1991).

111A: Godiva rival: LINDT. The Swiss chocolate maker.

113A: Zhou__: EN LAI. Our first premier.

Down:

1D: __ Men: "Who let the Dogs Out" band: BAHA. Here is the clip. They are from Bahamas.

2D: Sorry type: RUER

3D: Economist Smith: ADAM. The laissez-faire economics guy.

6D: Man of steel?: BESSEMER. Wanted Superman. I've never heard of Henry BESSEMER.

7D: Apollo's sister: ARTEMIS. Apollo's twin sister. Goddess of moon.

8D: "Today __": bar mitzvah boy's announcement: I'M A MAN. I thought he would say "Today I'am thirteen".

9D: Hidden: LATENT

10D: Milwaukee-to-Gary di.: SSE

11D: Scary waves: TSUNAMIS. Japanese origin. TSU = Harbor. NAMI = "wave".

12D: Passage: CONDUIT

13D: Hug: ENFOLD. I could only think of embrace.

14D: Willingly: LIEF. Learned from doing Xword.

15D: Russian auto: LADA. Absolutely no idea. LADA sounds like a lady's name.

16D: Dropped off: DOZED

18D: Got the ball rolling: BEGAN

17D: Hip: AWARE. I was thinking of the "cool" hip.

24D: Gassed up the Jaguar, say: FUELLED

29D: Make change to, as copy: EMEND

30D: "___ go on?": NEED I

31D: Collection of signs: ZODIAC. I was picturing these signs. I can never tell whether they are original or remake.

34D: "Lou Grant" production co.: MTM. Oh, I did not know MTM stands for Mary Tyler Moore.

36D: Broadway actress Salonga: LEA. Unknown to me. LEA Salonga is from the Philippines, best known for originating the role of Kim in Miss Saigon, according to Wikipedia.

37D: Orchestra member whose instrument rests on the floor: CELLIST. Yo-Yo Ma. He was born in Paris.

38D: Depend (on): HINGE

39D: Low points: DEPTHS. They are not synonymous to me. I wanted NADIRS.

40D: Hosiery thread: LISLE. Named after LISLE (now Lille), France.

44D: Solution created by dissolving: ELUATE. The verb is elute. Both new to me.

45D: "Black Like Me" actor __ Lee Browne: ROSCOE. Nope. He looks like a church minister. Dictionary says ROSCOE is an old slang a revolver or pistol.

46D: Twisted and turned: SNAKED

48D: Bonk or conk, e.g.: SLANG. I like the rhyming clue.

48D: Dangerous snake: ADDER. Wrote down COBRA.

50D: Diary bit: ENTRY

52D: Gripes: BEEFS

55D: Showy parrots: MACAWS

56D: Don of "Cocoon": AMECHE. Not familiar with the movie "Cocoon". It's directed by Ron Howard.

57D: When many a "Closed" sign is flipped: NINE AM

58D: Actress Téa: LEONI. David Duchovyn's wife. I wonder why her parents named her Téa,

59D: Cut loose: REVEL. New definition of "cut loose" to me.

61D: "The quality of mercy" is not strain'ed" speaker: PORTIAS. From Shakespeare's "The Merchant of Venice".

63D: "Seinfeld" klutz: KRAMER. Not fun to watch him after the racist rants.

67D: Versifier's Muse: ERATO. The Muse of Poetry.

69D: It can make a racket: CATGUT. Strange name considering the racket is not really made of cat's intestines.

73D: Describes: TELLS OF

75D: Spats: TIFFS

76D: Where sleeping dog lie?: FOOTREST. Dogs is slang for feet. I was misled again. Fool me twice, shame on you me.

77D: Young's accounting partner: ERNST

78D: Mertz neighbors of '50 TV: RICARDOS. "I Love Lucy".

79D: Rapa __: NUI. The Easter Island. Literally "Big Rapa".

80D: Word after long: AGO. Long AGO.

84D: SUNY college town: ONEONTA. How can I remember this name? Strange spelling.

86D: Has leftovers, say: EATS IN

87D: Military training groups: CADRES

88D: Soap ester: OLEATE. Last time it's clued as "Olive oil component".

89D: '60 White House resident, familiarly: JFK JR. John-John. Nice scrabbly fill.

91D: Errors: FLUBS

95D: "too many to list" abbr.: ET AL

96D: It's a wrap: SARI. It's a good clue. I don't mind seeing the repetition again.

96D: A party to: IN ON

99D: Political cartoonist Ted: RALL. Alien to me also. Our Star Tribune has its own editorial cartoonist.

100D: Utah ski resort: ALTA

101D: Cunard flagship for 35 yrs.: QEII (Queen Elizabeth II). Strange to see QE 2 as QEII.

104D: Atlanta sch.: GSU (Georgia State University)

105D: British verb ending: ISE. I like our ize.

Answer grid.

C.C.