Friday, June 4, 2021, Don Gagliardo and C.C. Burnikel

  Title: Where is the theme hiding?

For all the "new" people to the blog you are in for a real treat. Don "HARD G" Gagliardo was the magical mentor who opened Zhouqin's eyes to her skill as a wordsmith even though she is still not comfortable speaking English in public. But she creates wonderful, exquisite puzzles using many forms of knowledge from personal to arcane. Today's theme is...? After 11+ years I seldom hesitate in my recognition of a theme, but today I needed to use my "phone a friend" options to pinpoint and confirm what was going on. It was like having a thought on the tip of your tongue...

16A. Big house, hot water: BIG, HOUSE CATS,  AND HOT, WATER DOGS (11). I liked big, house cats, and hot dogs but water dogs rang hollow; but then.

32A. Abstract concept, space needle: ABSTRACT, CONCEPT ARTS,  AND SPACE, NEEDLE CRAFTS (13). This sounded better even if I do not know concept art.

37A. Wee one, parlor game: WEE, ONE BITS , AND PARLOR, GAME PIECES (13).  one bits seems bad and parlor pieces...

59A. Pepper jack, gold dust: PEPPER, JACK POTS.  AND  GOLD, DUST PANS (11). This group also seeemed inconsistent but I am ready to get to the rest. Thank you for all you help

I am now off tothe races

Across:

1. Boxing legend Pacquiao: MANNY. He has held 8 world boxing titles and is still fighting at 42.

6. RxList selection: DRUG. So Don "HARD G" and C.C. are easing us into the solve.

10. Dad __: BOD. I knew it was going to be all right when I plunked this in immediately.

13. Roman playwright who advised Nero: SENECA. I told you guys all those years of Latin helped.  When Nero became emperor in 54, Seneca became his advisor and, together with the praetorian prefect Sextus Afranius Burrus, provided competent government for the first five years of Nero's reign. Seneca's influence over Nero declined with time, and in 65 Seneca was forced to take his own life for alleged complicity in the Pisonian conspiracy to assassinate Nero, in which he was likely to have been innocent. Per wiki.

14. Traveler's need, perhaps: VISA. The passport kind not the credit card.

15. Dr. Cornelius, in a sci-fi film series: APE. One of my favorites.

18. "I like that!": YUM. Is it Onomotopoeia or from the Sanskrit YUM? The word has been in dictionaries since the late 1800s.

19. Recording session rarity: ONE TAKE. That depends on the budget and the Producer.

20. "__ 13": APOLLO. The ill fated flight and the MOVIE. 

22. Swimming aids: FINS. I never found them easy to use.

23. TV forensics letters: CSI. Crime Scene Investigations. There is a revival coming for the fall 2021 SEASON.

26. Wintry mix: SLEET. A popular fill. 

27. Mushy ground: FEN.  FENway Park, which was named by then Red Sox owner John I. Taylor who claimed the name Fenway Park came from its location in the Fenway neighborhood of Boston, which was partially created late in the nineteenth century by filling in marshland or "fens."

28. Los Angeles birthplace of astronaut Sally Ride: ENCINO. No way I knew this trivia but perps to the rescue.

31. Scandinavian demonym: DANE. One from Denmark, as it is the name used for the people who live in a particular country, state, or other locality. For example, demonyms for the residents of Michigan are Michigander and Michiganian but not Michiggenuh.

35. Even one: ANY. Literal.

36. Game for an "it" girl?: TAG. Very cute, not relating to the showbiz it girls, just the kids game.

44. "This looks like trouble": UH OH. There is no known origin story.

45. Shire equivalent: COUNTY. Shire in England and Hobbitland.

46. Letters before an alias: AKA. Also known as.

49. Acidic, in Germany: SAUER. Kraut became a popular insult to Germans in WWI.

51. "Snowpiercer" channel: TNT. I knew nothing of the book, movie or SERIES but three letter channels are limited.

52. Just: EVEN. Meh, I think it needs even-handed.

53. Many a news team: TV CREW.

55. Clothing: RAIMENT. c. 1400, "clothes, an article of clothing, vesture" (archaic), shortening of arayment "clothing" (late 14c.), from Anglo-French araiement, from Old French areement, from areer "to array" (see array (v.)).

58. Grassy stretch: LEA. Popular in GB.

62. Augsburg article: EIN. Another German reference.

63. Lake fed by the Detroit River: ERIE. Oh goody, another was to clue the Lake.

64. London-based tea giant: TETLEY. A fascinating history of tea and the COMPANY.

65. City grid nos.: STS.

66. Mardi Gras follower: LENT. This year it began on February 17(Ash Wednesday) and ended on April 3, the day before Easter.

67. "Siegfried __": Wagner symphonic poem: IDYLL. A romantic STORY.

Down:

1. Nasty sort: MEANIE. Not George. 

2. Radio interface: ANTENNA. Interface? 

3. Cardinals' homes: NESTS. I thought they came from St. Louis.

4. Sports org. that evolved from one created under Teddy Roosevelt: NCAA. The Intercollegiate Athletic Association of the United States (IAAUS), now known as the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), was formally established on March 31, 1906 to reform the rules and regulations of college sports. Early football games often resulted in injury and even death, prompting some colleges and universities to close their football programs. The reforms were encouraged by President Roosevelt in 1905, after his son was injured while playing football for Harvard.

5. Pull hard: YANK. Don't go there.

6. Data storage device: DVD. Digital Video Discs are obsolete I am told.

7. Kia subcompact: RIO. 

8. Golf rules org.: USGA. More organizations.

9. Expresses shock: GASPS. I wasn't so I did not.

10. Herb from the laurel tree: BAYLEAF. Be careful which Laurel Tree. LINK.  We always had Mountain Laurels in our yard- no no! The use of the leaves as a spice goes back to Roman Days where it was treasured and part of an...

11. Lavish: OPULENT. Lifestyle.

12. Downgrades: DEMOTES. Start with your basic PROMOTE and add "DE" take away "PRO." 

13. Sneeze (at): SCOFF. mid-14c., "jest, make light of something;" mid-15c., "make fun of, mock," from the noun meaning "contemptuous ridicule" (c. 1300), from a Scandinavian source such as Old Norse skaup, skop "mockery, ridicule."

17. U.S. record label since 1934: DECCA. Quite a history. LINK.

21. Gerontology focus: OLD AGE. Gerontology is multidisciplinary and is concerned with physical, mental, and social aspects and implications of aging. Geriatrics is a medical specialty focused on care and treatment of older persons.

24. Original __: SIN. Did anyone else watch this                      year's  LUCIFER episodes?

25. Unaffiliated: Abbr.: INDependent.

28. Mediterranean tourist site: ETNA. Why go to an active volcano?

29. "It's Gonna Be Me" band: NSYNC.

30. Mendelssohn's Opus 20, e.g.: OCTET.

33. Bacon portion: RASHER.

34. Suggestive: RACY. 

37. Is astir with activity: BUSTLES. "be active in a noisy and agitated way," 1570s (bustling "noisy or excited activity" is from early 15c.), of uncertain origin, or "padding in the upper back part of a skirt," 1788. 

38. "Aha!": I HAVE IT.

39. Large-billed birds: TOUCANS. They carry around Benjamins?

40. URL component: DOT. How cute, the little period.

41. Carlin's "Atheism is a non-prophet institution," e.g.: PUN.

42. Prefix with dermal: INTRA.

43. Backup command: SAVE ALL.

47. Vacation rental?: KENNEL. Board the pets while you go frolic.

48. Pumped: ANTSY. In the pantsy.

50. Ward off: REPEL. So if you want the guy across the bar to pay attention you would PEL him?

52. Recycled item: EMPTY. You are supposed to empty them, but do you wash them?

54. Sported: WORE. Kim Kardashian sported the 7 carat ring.

56. Pro fighter: ANTI. Not a boxer just and ideologic opponent.

57. Pointed at, say: ID ED. Yeah, he did it!

60. Mint container: TIN. Altoid anyone.

61. Math group: SET. Like my algebra teacher has a nice set?

Golly, all over already and I did get to say what I wanted. Great puzzle and fun wriing

See ya Lemon out

I wish I had OKL's chart when I was solving but I did have the help from my unnamed friends. Happy Friday

Sunday, September 3, 2017, Don Gagliardo and C.C. Burnikel

TITLE: FIRST THINGS FIRST

Don's and C.C.'s wonderful Sunday collaboration was a treat for me to do.  I'd like to think I would have gotten the theme without the title but my mental density is quite high! This great crossword team has used seven phrases/names where the first word is, well, the first word in a familiar sequence. Way cool! Let's explore what Don "Hard G" and C.C. have given us today.

First of all the theme fills.

21. Willie Mays won 12 in 12 consecutive years : GOLD GLOVE AWARDS - Annual award to best fielder at their position in MLB and the Olympic medal awarded to athlete who is FIRST in their event

39. "Mad Men" actress : JANUARY JONES - Mrs. Don Draper and the FIRST month of the year

68. Certain group leader : ALPHA MALE - My idea of an ALPHA MALE and the capital letters of the Greek Alphabet with ALPHA being the FIRST and 13. Fraternity O's : OMICRON(S) being the 15th

94. Early '60s group that included John Glenn : MERCURY SEVEN - The first group of NASA astronauts and the planet that is FIRST in order from the Sun

116. 1990 movie with a muscular teacher : KINDERGARTEN COP - A "meh" Ahnold movie and the FIRST class most kids have in school.

14. "Rip Van Winkle" author : WASHINGTON IRVING - The early 19th century (corrected from earlier mistyped 18th) American author and the man who was the FIRST U.S. president

36. Component of hair bleach : HYDROGEN PEROXIDE - I am familiar with the phrase "Peroxide Blonde" and Hydrogen is the FIRST element in the periodic table

Now let's examine the balance of Don's and C.C.'s fill from the FIRST to the LAST

Across

1. Pocket for falafel : PITA

5. Crossing sign? : PLUS or multiply

9. Some old notebooks : IBMS - Their first notebooks took a pretty substantial lap

13. Came up short : OWED

17. USNA part: Abbr. : ACAD

18. Snuck : CREPT - Wow, September certainly CREPT up on me

19. Eponymous store founder : MACY - We don't shop there but here is the image it engenders to us

20. Gulf State native : OMANI

24. Brake components : DISCS - They are clearly visible on my wheels

25. "More!" : ENCORE

26. Left hanging : IN LIMBO - In the movies and TV they call them Cliff Hangers

27. John Wayne types : MACHOS

28. In the offing : NEAR - Seeing Halloween decorations for sale means the time to see Christmas items on the shelves is NEAR

30. "99 Luftballons" singer : NENA - A song about the insanity of war 

31. Org. created in a 1949 sports merger : NBA - The Basketball Association of America merged with the National Basketball League. The Chicago Studebakers of the NBL broke the pro sports color line with six black players six years before Jackie Robinson broke in in 1949

33. Lyft offer : RIDE - We are huge Uber fans and will never rent a car in a big city again.

34. German exclamation : ACH - ACH Du Lieber! ACH is a German exclamation, Du is "my" and Lieber is "my beloved" Gott (God) is sometimes added as well.

37. Pitt of "The Big Short" : BRAD

42. Glasgow's river : CLYDE - This beautiful bridge is one of twenty-one that cross the River Clyde near Glasgow.

44. Vineyard grape : PINOT

46. Decorative metalwork : PLATING

47. "And there you have it!" : TADA - A satisfying refrain for us crossword solvers

48. "No worries" : IT'S OK

49. Kept out of sight : HID

50. Brewery named for a Dutch river : AMSTEL

53. Stonehenge worshiper : DRUID - What they will be doing eighteen days from now

55. Brahms' "Variations on a __ of Paganini" : THEME - Not on my playlist

57. Putin's former org. : KGB - Komitet gosudarstvennoy bezopasnosti 

58. Wish Tree artist : ONO - Gee, I wonder why she's famous

59. Canada's most populous province : ONTARIO

61. Pot growth from overwatering : ALGAE - Our yard has mushrooms growing in it during this wet summer

64. Sonata finale, perhaps : RONDO - A more familiar use of RONDO to this cultural philistine 

66. "I __ differ" : BEG TO

70. Hunter with a belt : ORION - The best constellation in the winter sky!

71. Von Trapp girl who sings "Sixteen Going on Seventeen" with Rolf : LIESL - Later in the movie, Rolf has to choose between LIESL and the Fuhrer and we all know how that came out.

72. Eye twinkle : GLEAM

73. Enable : EMPOWER

75. Subject for Keats : URN

76. "__ Kapital" : DAS - Karl Marx's seminal work

78. Capri or Elba, locally : ISOLA - L'ISOLA di Capri è incredibilmente bella (The island of Capri is incredibly beautiful)

80. Jack in the deck : KNAVE

82. Settles, as a debt : REPAYS

84. GI bill? : DOL - A DOLlar is a bill that is Issued by the U.S. Gov't. Hmmm...

86. Stout quantities : PINTS

88. Enter the pool, in a way : DIVE

90. Exotic vacation, maybe : ECOTOUR -Probably no skyscrapers or theme parks on this tour

92. Praline nut : PECAN - Pronunciation? 

93. Ed with Emmys : ASNER - Look up the word "Irascible", it has wonderful Ed's picture

97. Cherry-pick : CULL - Another use - I've seen many teachers who deserved to be CULLED from the profession. Tenure is a two-way street

99. Sound near a "Beware of Dog" sign : GRR

100. Dog attractor : ODOR

101. East, to Goethe : OST - Berlin ist 177 Meilen östlich von Hannover (Berlin is 177 miles EAST of Hanover)

102. Shelter chorus : ARFS - Sights and sounds at these places tug at my heartstrings

104. Kite trailer : TAIL

106. Philly cagers : SIXERS - They are 109 - 301 in the last 5 years.

108. Hotel convenience : BAR SOAP  

111. Heir and heiress : SCIONS

115. Way to step : ASIDE - Tennessee Ernie warned 'em!

118. Like acid in some disinfectants : IODIC - Dictionary.com - "Containing iodine"

119. Fascinated by : INTO

120. Citrus hybrids : UGLIS

121. James of jazz : ETTA

122. Tech gadget review site : CNET - Popular with geeks and non-geeks alike

123. Trade org. : ASSN - A better abbr. than DOL 😁

124. Island in a computer game : MYST

125. Roulette bet : NOIR - Je vais mettre 100 euros sur onze NOIR (I will put 100 euros on eleven black)


Down

1. Printer output : PAGE - I renewed my Substitute Teacher's Certificate online last week and was able to print it out the PAGE home two days later. Oh yeah, they wanted $55 too.

2. Tapped image : ICON

3. It's 1 on the Mohs scale : TALC - It's been in the news quite a bit lately

4. Accessory : ADD ON - Does your car really need $5,000 rims?

5. Expert : PRO

6. Big name in denim : LEVI - A Reno, NV tailor Jacob Davis invented canvas pants reenforced with copper rivets but LEVI Strauss got the patent and made millions

7. Home to the first collegiate business sch. : U PENN - Also the home of the Quakers in Ivy League Athletics

8. Groan elicitor : STALE JOKE

9. 1967 Spencer Davis Group hit : I'M A MAN

10. Stinging rebuke : BARB


11. Pioneering fast food name : MCDONALD - Dick and Mac MCDONALD went to a tennis court in San Bernardino, CA and drew an outline to develop their "speedy service" model. Ray Kroc then came in and took it world-wide whether the brothers liked it or not

12. Part of TBS: Abbr. : SYS

15. Protect from hackers, hopefully : ENCODE

16. Insults : DISSES 

18. Golf-friendly forecast : CLEAR - Our eclipse forecast left in some wispy clouds but the event still qualified for that most overused of adjectives - AWESOME!

20. __ Mae: Whoopi's "Ghost" role : ODA

22. Diving bird : GREBE

23. Succeed in : WIN AT

27. Whirlpool brand : MAYTAG - These MAYTAG, Whirlpool and Kenmore washers are all made in the same factory in Clyde, Ohio

29. Totally absorbed : RAPT

32. Push-up top : BRA

34. Take the stage : ACT

35. Garbed : CLAD

38. Purify, as whiskey : DISTILL - This famous DISTILLERY is in "dry" Moore county and so you can tour the facility but you can't buy any of their whiskey there.

40. Reuters rival : UPI

41. Fullback on the NFL's 1960s 
All-Decade Team : JIM BROWN - He was like a man among boys

43. Unnerves : DAUNTS

45. Pessimist's words : NO HOPE - Only Faith and Charity showed up and so there was...

48. Wyo. neighbor : IDA - I am not repeating that joke about why no girl wants to be Miss IDAHO

49. Captain's post : HELM

51. Inner: Pref. : ENDO

52. Minnesota's state bird : LOON - Fabulous Katharine Hepburn as Ethel Thayer conversing with the LOONS in On Golden Pond

54. "See?!" : I TOLD YOU - "We should never have tried to drive through that water over the road!"

56. Polite addresses : MAAMS - It took my daughter a while to adjust to being called this when she started teaching

57. Stay fresh : KEEP

60. Cleaning cloths : RAGS

62. Language that gave us "galore" : GAELIC

63. Annual fact book : ALMANAC 

65. Daphnis and Echo, e.g. : OREADS - Ancient Greek nymphs who seemed to have everything in the wash

66. Fuzzy image : BLUR

67. Its legislature is the Oireachtas : EIRE - Irish legislature

69. Hard rain? : HAIL

74. Signs off on : OK'S

77. Colt .45s, since 1965 : ASTROS

79. Venue for free discussion : OPEN FORUM - Many of these venues today seem to be confrontational 

81. Constantly : EVER

83. Sanction, as a college : ACCREDIT

84. London trash cans : DUSTBINS

85. Prospector's target : ORE

87. Letter-shaped bolt holder : T-NUT

89. __ on the side of caution : ERR

91. Cries of dismay : OYS

92. As such : PER SE - In and of itself. Many people in Texas are not first responders PER SE, but they are acting like ones when necessary.

93. Tea party attendee : ALICE

94. Inlaid design : MOSAIC

95. Rival of Tesla : EDISON - Tesla once worked for EDISON but quit when he felt he was cheated

96. __ Trophy: annual PGA honor for lowest scoring average : VARDON - In this lovely movie, 20-year-old Francis Ouimet defeated golf legend Harry Vardon in the 1900 U.S. Open. For some reasons the actors' names are over the wrong character.

98. Doesn't fade : LASTS

103. Yielding to gravity : SAGGY

105. Tablecloth material : LINEN

107. DVR button : REC

109. Farm swarm : ANTS - Our classroom had an ANT FARM when I was in sixth grade

110. Besties : PALS

112. Numerical prefix : OCTO - I am nine years away from becoming an OCTOgenarian

113. "Moi?" : NOT  I - But everyone wanted to eat the bread

114. Go toe-to-toe : SPAR 

116. Korean carmaker : KIA












117. Slowing, to an orch. : RIT - Look carefully and you will find it here:

The grid:

 LAST things LAST - Time for comments:

Wednesday March 22, 2017 Don Gagliardo and C. C. Burnikel

Theme: VOWEL TRIFECTA.  In the 2nd, 4th and 6th letter position of the first word of each two-word theme entry is a repeated vowel.  These entries appear in the grid in alphabetical order, viz. A-E-I-O-U. Let's have a look.

16 A. Monkey cage discard : BANANA PEEL.  Stereotypically, monkeys love BANANAS, but who wants to eat the outer part, despite its having appeal?  You don't want to encounter one at the top of a slippery slope

22 A. Reason for totaling, as an insured car : SEVERE DAMAGE.  "Totaling," in this sense indicates declaring the vehicle to be a total wreck, destined for the junk yard.  Sadly, I totaled my most favorite car in a multi-vehicle pile up on the Southfield Freeway, back in 1991.

29 A. Cause of some tan lines : BIKINI TOP.  A BIKINI is a two piece swim suit consisting of a bra top and a separate bottom part.  Coverage is widely variable, depending on the specific design parameters.  Of course, the covered parts will not be suntanned, resulting in tan lines.  Per Wikipedia: "The name was coined in 1946 by French engineer and clothing designer Louis Réard, after the recent nuclear tests at Bikini atoll —often better known than its namesake—and with the slogan 'an anatomic bomb.'''

Life's a beach

37 A. Ornate 18th-century genre : ROCOCO ART.  This is a late baroque style that originated in Paris that employed a jocular and florid approach.  The style was ornate, colorful, curvy, and asymmetric, frequently based on witty or playful themes.

Tan lines?

44 A. Fluffy sun blocker : CUMULUS CLOUD.   Well described by the clue, these clouds are generally of low altitude, and often have a flat base along with a puffy, cotton-like top.

Clouding the Issue

55 A. Baseball rarity, and a hint to the vowels in the first words of 16-, 22-, 29-, 37- and 44-Across : TRIPLE PLAY.  Of course, the mandatory baseball reference!  Here, the triple play refers to the repeated vowel in each theme entry.  In baseball, it's an event in which 3 outs are made on a single batted ball.  As rare as this occurrence is, this example is of what must be an even more rare variety.



Hi gang, JzB reporting for duty, with a fine puzzle by our famous dynamic duo.  Clever gimmick and elegant execution.  Very rich themeage, with five entries, plus a unifier.  Nicely done.

Across

1. "That's enough out of you" : CAN IT.  Put a lid on it; give it a rest.

6. Addams family nickname : TISH. Morticia Addams.

Carolyn Jones, from the TV series

10. Festoons with Charmin, for short : TPS. The childish prank of Toilet Papering a tree.

13. Chicago airport : O'HARE.

14. Barak of Israel : EHUD.  Prime Minister from 1999 to 2001, also a highly decorated soldier who held several other political and government positions.

15. __ butter : SHEA.  A fatty substance from the nut of the SHEA tree.

18. Phone using a tower : CELL. 

19. Govt. agency that supports startups : Small Business Administration.

20. Kettle output : STEAM.

21. Ride in the desert : CAMEL.  The ship of the desert.

24. Social ranking : STATUS.  

27. Many mobile downloads : APPS.  APPlications.

28. Coral component : POLYP.  This is an individual animal that, when combined into large clusters can form a coral reef.

34. "All Things Considered" co-host Shapiro : ARI.

35. Day of song : DORIS.  Not a day of the week.

36. Fleece source : EWE.  Lamb's mom.

40. Thyme piece : SPRIG.  A small stem, including it's minor branches.

42. Pre-hurricane emergency op : EVACuation.

43. Runs after : CHASES.   Can also involve vehicles.

49. "No one can beat me" : I RULE.  Arrogant.

50. Poker game concern : CHEAT.  Well - any game, really.

51. Unit of resistance : OHM.  Electricity.

54. Poker at the table? : TINE.  Part of a fork.

57. Where buds may go : EARS.  For listening to music, podcasts, etc.

58. Right hand : AIDE.  Top assistant.

59. Meditation teachers : YOGIS.  

60. "The Affair" network, briefly : SHOtime.

61. Flow with force : SPEW.

62. Place on a pedestal : EXALT.

Down

1. Corny leftovers : COBS.

2. Starbuck's boss : AHAB.  Characters from Moby Dick.

3. Child tender : NANA.  Grandmother.

4. Tax-deferred plan, briefly : Individual Retirement Account.

5. Stiffen in fear : TENSE UP.

6. Prairie home : TEPEE. A portable conical tent made from skins, cloth or canvas on a frame of poles.

7. The Supremes' "__ a Symphony" : I HEAR.

8. "See if I care!" : SUE ME.

9. Cholesterol letters : High Density Lipoprotein. 

10. Annual Augusta National event : THE MASTERS.  Golf tournament.

11. "Pequod" co-owner : PELEG.  The pequod is the Nantucket-based whaling ship from the novel Mobey Dick.

12. Room in a maison : SALLE.  French for house and room, respectively.

15. Shrimp dish : SCAMPI.  This is the Italian word for prawn, which is a crustacean similar, but not quite identical to a shrimp.  You have to count their legs to tell.  The dish is typically made by broiling with garlic butter.

17. Off-roaders, for short : ATVS. All Terrain Vehicles.

21. 2-Down's title, informally : CAP'N.

22. Dirty digs : STY.  A pig's place.

23. Place of honor : DAIS.  A low platform for a lectern, seat of honor, or throne.

24. Prep for a bout : SPAR.  Boxing practice.

25. Big name in riding mowers : TORO.

26. Canadian short story writer awarded a Nobel Prize in 2013 : ALICE MUNRO. [b. 1931]  Her stories explore human complexities in an uncomplicated prose style.

29. Lavish wrap : BOA.

30. Discount rack abbr. : IRRegular.

31. First-aid gear : KIT.

32. Boo-boo : OWIE.  Kid-speak for a minor injury.

33. Cribbage markers : PEGS.

35. Prefix with drama : DOCU-.

38. Small eggs : OVULES.

39. NASCAR's Yarborough : CALE. [b. 1939] One of only two NASCAR drivers to win three consecutive championships, with 83 total wins on the all-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series winner's list.

40. Z's : SHUT EYE.  Sleepy time.

41. Elbow protector : PAD.  Cushioning gear to protect against injury.

43. Mine extraction : COAL. A combustable black or brown rock composed of fossilized organic material.

44. Names as a reference : CITES.  Typically in a foot note.

45. Hater of David, in Dickens : URIAH.  Mr. Heap, the obsequious weasel from the Charles Dickens novel, David Copperfield.

46. Rx : SCRIP.  A doctor's prescription for a certain medication.

47. Reprimand : CHIDE.

48. Aggressive cat lover of cartoons : LEPEW.  Pepe.

51. Gymnast Korbut : OLGA.   She won 4 gold and 2 silver medals for the Soviet team in the 1972 and 1976 Summer Olympics.

52. Flag down : HAIL.

53. Classic PC adventure game : MYST.  A graphic puzzle-adventure game having a variety of endings, depending on the player's choices.

55. Some univ. proctors : TAS. Teaching Assistants.

56. Curse : POX.

Lots of good stuff here, including a whale of a sub-theme.  No less than we would expect from this all star team.

Cool regards!
JzB

Note from C.C.:


Happy Birthday to dear PK, who turns 76 years old today. She can read our blog write-ups and comments, but she can't comment. Her iMac is so un-Apple!