Wednesday, June 14, 2017, Agnes Davidson and C.C. Burnikel

TITLE: UNDER IT ALL

Husker Gary here again on a Wednesday with the distinct pleasure of reviewing yet another puzzle by our favorite new pair of constructors - Agnes and Zhouqin - aka Irish Miss and C.C. 

These two lovely ladies went vertical today as the theme fill and the reveal shown below were all standing up. The themers are all highlighted in red and green and the reveal is in all green because each green part of the theme answers can have SHEET appended to their, uh, BOTTOMS to make another common phrase.

Theme answers with SHEET appended

3*Regarding the subject at hand..." : ON THAT SCORE/SCORE SHEET - Here is what I regard as the most famous SCORE SHEET ever. It shows the twenty-seven Dodgers who came up against Don Larsen and were all retired in order in Larsen's 1956 Perfect World Series Game.

19. *Like leisure suits and Nehru jackets : OUT OF STYLE/ STYLE SHEET - All blogs have "STYLE SHEETS" that can be modified with elements at the top for presentations like what we bloggers use here 

21. *Nike competitor : NEW BALANCE/BALANCE SHEET - America's BALANCE SHEET has been out of whack for quite a while

24. *Major-league : BIG TIME/TIME SHEET - Some have issues with the machine that generates TIME SHEETS

And the reveal for Agnes and C.C.:

25. Bed cover ... or, literally, what the end of each answer to a starred clue is : BOTTOM SHEET - Yeah, constructing puzzles and getting that BOTTOM SHEET on is not always that easy

Now for the DOPE SHEET on the rest of their always fun fill:



Across

1. Wall St. debuts : IPOS

5. Land formerly ruled by a shah : IRAN and  27. 5-Across capital : TEHRAN

9. Political Ron or Rand : PAUL - Rand went into Dad's trade

13. Van starter? : MINI

14. Stuffed shells : TACOS

16. Data, for instance : INFO

17. "Big __" Delaney: "Sons of Anarchy" character : OTTO

18. "Tsk tsk" : SHAME ON YOU

20. Hawaiian priests : KAHUNAS  Or burgers from Pulp Fiction 

22. " ... bug in __" : A RUG - Snug as a...

23. Skating jump : AXEL - Wow!

24. Petrol pumper : BRIT - About  £1.19/liter or $5.74/gallon

25. Went for the lure : BIT

28. Decide : OPT

30. Starbucks amenity : WIFI - Nothing else there is free 

32. As an example : FOR ONE - Yeah, I believe Ken Jennings would think that. :-) 

34. "Street Dreams" rapper : NAS

35. Hosiery hue : BEIGE

37. Get : FETCH

38. Stretchy synthetic : LYCRA - My daughter wants me to buy some LYCRA biking shorts that have padding in very sensitive areas. I don't want to look like a 70-yr-old guy trying to look like he's 25.

40. Inc. relative : LTD

41. Ravi Shankar's instrument : SITAR - Ravi wasn't into the 60's hippie scene despite what was written about him

42. How some tuna is packed : IN OIL

43. Swiss chocolatier since 1845 : LINDT

45. Mama bear, in Tabasco : OSA

46. Standard : NORMAL

48. More than a few : MANY

49. Bishops and knights : MEN - Here a bishop and a knight have the King (who as usual is only in a supporting role) checkmated

50. Animal common in rebus puzzles : EWE

51. Permission slip : NOTE

53. "Too bad" : ALAS - poor Yorick...

55. Pac-12 team : UCLA

56. King of fiction : STEPHEN - Whenever I see a '57 Plymouth Fury...

59. Deep-fried carnival confection : FUNNEL CAKE

63. Dad, to Dumas : PERE - Alexandre Dumas' PERE a été Thomas-Alexandre Dumas

64. Morales of "The Brink" : ESAI

65. Corn Belt towers : SILOS - Omaha artists have made SILOS into works of art along I-80

66. Toy brand with a Ninjago line : LEGO

67. It's outstanding : DEBT

68. Small pie : TART

69. Thames school : ETON - On June 10, ETON lost to Wellington in Threepenny 1 Cricket by 50 runs. Bit of a sticky wicket!


Down

1. "No harm done" : I'M OK - Ah, back to my counseling days and Transactional Analysis

2. Baba ghanouj bread : PITA

4. Iowa's __ City : SIOUX

5. "So not true!" : IT'S A LIE

6. Cheers from tiers : RAHS

7. Obamacare, briefly : ACA - Affordable Care Act

8. Baseball analyst Garciaparra : NOMAR - NOMAH at Fenway

9. "And the Putter Went ... __": golf history book : PING - But Joann, it's on sale!

10. "__ questions?" : ANY


11. Blur in a tabloid pic : UFO - They never seem to land on the lawn at MIT

12. Fox Business anchor Dobbs : LOU

15. Letter flourish : SERIF - Agnes Davidson and C.C. Burnikel - One with SERIF and one sans SERIF

26. As a precaution : IN CASE

28. How much shopping is done : ON LINE

29. Webpage option under an invoice : PAY NOW

31. Top off, say : FILL - Nah, I've still got 60 miles worth in there...

33. Retailer that abstained from Black Friday in 2015 and launched an #OptOutside movement instead : REI - I didn't do either but I like their thinking!

36. Flamboyant Dame : EDNA

39. Cup lip : RIM

44. Crime lab procedure : DNA TEST - "Uh, Number 2, we'd like to you stay"  I used this graphic on a March puzzle, but I thought it bore repeating!

47. Sprawls on the couch : LOLLS

52. Implied : TACIT

54. Cobbler fruit : APPLE

55. Foot or furlong : UNIT - I remember Dan and Jane as Parental UNITS from when SNL was funny

56. Hershey's toffee bar : SKOR - A fav of mine

57. Thus : ERGO


58. Flashy light : NEON - Times Squares now OPTS for LED lights

59. Served dinner to : FED

60. Take advantage of : USE

61. Arrest : NAB

62. Menu catchphrase : ALA - This is the third Puzzle ALA Irish and C.C. I have blogged and they have all been a pleasure! 


Well, I am finished between the sheets. You?

Wednesday, June 7, 2017, Jake Halperin

TITLE: TOMAYTO/TOMAHTO

I was once part of a committee that spent two hours SPLITTING HAIRS (especially about prepositions) on the wording of the our school's mission statement. Two hours spent on a banality which serves no purpose is time I will never get back. I'll bet you've got a story like that too.

Husker Gary here for our midweek odyessy where Jake has taken the word HAIR and SPLIT it in as many unique ways as he could - 1/3, 2/2 and 3/1 as you see below:

Those SPLIT HAIRS provide the beginning and end of theme fills and satisfy the reveal of

59. Make petty distinctions ... and what 17-, 23- and 49-Across literally do? : SPLIT HAIRS - As some think this is

Here is the balance of Jake's theme answers:

17. Handyman's maintenance field : HOME REPAIR - After our recent hailstorm, we have been contacted aggressively by four companies for this HOME REPAIR

23. Ensemble of ringers : HANDBELL CHOIR - Just remember your color

49. Unofficial Caribbean currency equal to 5 gourdes : HAITIAN DOLLAR - 660 gourdes = 152 HATIAN DOLLARS = $10.48 in Port au Prince - Lundi au Jeudi (Monday to Thursday)! 

Now let's see what else Jake has given us with this fun, er enjoyable (Let's not split hairs) puzzle


Across

1. Bygone Apple laptop : IBOOK - Don't like your Apple product? Just wait a minute

6. Verge : CUSP

10. Actress Fey : TINA

14. Italian grandma : NONNA - La NONNA è meraviglioso (Grandma is wonderful)

15. Price for part of a deck? : ANTE - Fun cluing for a veteran of the crossword wars

16. "(I've Got __ in) Kalamazoo" : A GAL - Okay, HANDBELL CHOIR, who wants the F#?

19. Story line : PLOT - To whom did Don and Phil sing, "The movie wasn't so hot, It didn't have much of a PLOT" in 1957?

20. 17th-century English poet John : DRYDEN - Not on my literary radar

21. Flexible : LISSOME - Me 50 years ago

26. Cunning plan : PLOY

28. "The Night Manager" actor Hiddleston : TOM - It would appear that Tom is not managing a Motel 6 in Omaha

29. MAX rival : SHO

30. Persistent noise : DIN - One man's DIN...

31. Polishes, as a skill : HONES

33. Team victory cry : WE WON - Like a gazillion people said last year when the Cubs won

37. Botanist's study : FLORA - As opposed the zoologist who studies FAUNA

39. Stat for Clayton Kershaw : ERA - Earned Run Average. All right, get a bat and you try to stay in against Kershaw's curveball which he has HONED to a fine skill.

40. "Same here" : AS AM I - I couldn't hit that curve either

41. Soda machine freebie : STRAW - How you dispose of the wrapper after the straw is dispensed is optional

42. Smooths, as wood : SANDS

44. Sardine container : TIN - Or aluminum

45. Disconnect between generations : GAP

47. Unclogging agent : LYE

48. Fountain of jazz : PETE

54. Bailiff's bellow : ALL RISE

55. Engineer who reinvented the wheel? : FERRIS - He was inducted into their Hall Of Fame 105 years after his Wheel first operated

58. Boxer Oscar __ Hoya : DELA

62. Lacking precipitation : ARID

63. Stride at a track : GAIT - The odd GAIT of Olympic Walk Racing - One foot must always be on the ground at all times

64. One doing sums : ADDER

65. Strengthen, as muscles : TONE

66. See 50-Down : OLDS

67. Orchestra section : REEDS - They are seated in the middle. Woodwinds, if you want to split hairs. 😁

Down

1. How many TV shows air : IN HD

2. Mannerless sort : BOOR

3. Start of the Boy Scout Oath and the Girl Scout Promise : ON MY HONOR

4. At some point : ONE DAY - Put the word FINE in the middle and you have a great 1963 song

5. Actress Gillan of "Guardians of the Galaxy" : KAREN - Not on my cinematic radar 

6. Cough syrup cover : CAP

7. Italian article : UNA

8. Even now : STILL

9. Possibilities of harm : PERILS

10. Astaire footwear : TAP SHOES

11. Snow structure : IGLOO

12. Watts of "Mulholland Dr." : NAOMI - I saw this on NETFLIX and when I saw there was only a few minutes left, I knew there would be no resolution to all the bizzare parts. I guess that is standard for David Lynch films.

13. Rework : ALTER

18. Put an __: stop : END TO

22. Pair in "America" : SCHWAS - Unstressed vowels - symbol = ə pronounced like the uh's below

24. Skin partner : BONES

25. May birthstone : EMERALD

26. Sharable digital docs : PDFS

27. Bouncy rhythm : LILT

31. Only state which shares a time zone with Alaska : HAWAII - This part of Alaska

32. Panasonic acquisition of 2009 : SANYO

34. Disneyland's Splash Mountain, e.g. : WATER RIDE - Wheeeeee!

35. Filter out : OMIT

36. Back-row bowling pin : NINE - You bowlers know that leaving this for left handers is called a "tap"

38. Clothing industry, casually : RAG TRADE

43. Dutch pottery city : DELFT - It's cluing will probably never be "Hometown of microscope inventor Antonie van Leeuwenhoek" 

46. Complete a Monopoly circuit : PASS GO - Just like teachers, you get money for just completing a circuit/year

48. Veterans Day event : PARADE

49. Threw oneself into : HAD AT

50. Last car made by 66-Across : ALERO

51. Run-D.M.C.'s "You Be __" : ILLIN - Anyone think it's splitting hairs to insist on standard English?

52. Himalayan country : NEPAL - Your trip up Everest starts with a flight from Kathmandu to Lukla, Nepal's unsafe airport. But, hey, if you're climbing Everest...

53. Operettist Franz : LEHAR

56. Boiling with rage : IRED - Yeah, but still cute!

57. Union members until 1991: Abbr. : SSRS

60. Can cover : LID

61. "__ only me!" : IT'S - Okay, grammarian hair splitters, would you say, "It's only I"?

The ability to SPLIT HAIRS is part of the fun in this venue. Let's see what you have to say/opine/state/muse...

Sunday, May 21, 2017, Agnes Davidson and C.C. Burnikel

TITLE: HOLY MOLY


Eleven days ago, it was my privilege to blog a fun Wednesday offering by our blog mistress C.C. and fellow blogger/constructor Agnes Davison - Irish Miss to us regulars (and irregulars for that matter).  (Correction: Davidson.)

Today our own version of Cagney and Lacy present us with nine substitutions where, as you can see in the grid below, an H in one word of a common phrase is changed to an M which results in a silly phrase and accompanied by clever cluing. 

Getting the gimmick early facilitated the solve and a good time was had by all! Let's see what silliness tempered with expertise our friends presented in today's themers, some of which actually exist:

22. Check for doneness? : FEEL THE MEAT (HEAT) - This man does this for a living

24. Drama written in code? :  MORSE (HORSE) PLAY - Here ya go!

36. President's daily delivery? : MAIL (HAIL) TO THE CHIEF - If you send MAIL TO THE CHIEF of the Winnebago tribe in Winnebago, NE, he'll pick it up here

51. North Pole yoga need? : SANTA MAT (HAT)

67. Iditarod trainee? : MUSH (HUSH) PUPPY - How cute is this Siberian Husky?

81. Ace accountant : TAX MAVEN (HAVEN) - A company in Manimajra Chandigarh, India

93. Cat's tail, maybe? : MOUSE (HOUSE) DETECTIVE

110. Spy with a sweet tooth? : DONUT MOLE (HOLE)

112. Burrower servicing borrowers? : MONEY (HONEY) BADGER - A group in an online game called EVE. Nah, I hadn't heard of it either.

Now let's look the rest of C.C.'s and Agnes's High Minded entries

Across

1. Library attention-getter : PSST

5. Secretly kept in the message loop, for short : BCCED - Blind Carbon CopiED- They'll never know you told everyone!

10. Prior president who swore in two subsequent presidents : TAFT - Our 350 lb. president had this bathtub made, became the Chief Justice and swore in Coolidge and Hoover

14. Spicy : RACY

18. Trick : DUPE

19. NutraSweet developer : SEARLE - Aspertame used under the name NutraSweet has been controversial

20. Donor drive target : ALUM

21. Penne __ vodka : ALLA

26. Tylenol result, ideally : RELIEF

27. Juice-and-fish-broth product : CLAMATO  - It sounds like an SNL made- up product

29. Weather Channel concern : STORM

30. Brown on a shelf : DAN - I love Dan's books but in other quarters...

31. USC, for one : SCH

33. Like most cheeseburgers : CALORIC - Dictionary.com -

35. Teeny tiny : WEE

40. Poppycock : ROT

42. IMF division?: Abbr. : INTL - International Monetary Fund

43. Vintage vehicle : REO

44. It helps you focus : LENS - In action -

45. Bronco's bailiwick : CORRAL

48. "The Simpsons" disco devotee : STU

49. Chew the fat : JAW

50. Wish were here : MISS - My lovely bride always misses her kitty when we travel

53. Universe of Energy locale : EPCOT - A good dark, cool place to take a nap after you've seen it as many times as I have

55. Cell dweller : CON - Not all CONS are in cells in Joe Arpaio's AZ jail

56. Having a kick : TANGY

58. Preventative power : VETO

59. Foam finger number : ONE

60. "That hurts!" : OUCH

62. The end of its name is also its natl. airline : UAE and 118. Milan moolah : EURO - The UAE airline is the sponsor of the AC Milan Soccer team and this jersey will cost you €89,95

63. Scout rider : TONTO

64. Yoga position : ASANA

69. Mayflower notable : ALDEN - Below is a picture of John Alden's 8th Great Granddaughter Norma Jean Mortenson Baker who became, well, you know...

70. Waits for an agent, maybe : HOLDS

71. The __ Store : UPS - United Parcel Service

72. Minor tiff : SPAT

73. It's only make-believe : ACT - Are you faking it?

74. "That's clear" : I SEE

75. Plants of immortality, to ancient Egyptians : ALOES

77. God in the Vatican : DIO - An expose' of the Vatican's Bank Of God

78. SeaWorld performer : SHAMU

83. Lab gel : AGAR

85. Grafton's "__ for Burglar" : B IS - Sue's titling gimmick is always an easy fill

86. Usually single-stranded molecule : RNA 

88. Twists, e.g. : DANCES - Morticia and Lurch gettin' down

89. Scheme : PLOT

90. Had the most points : LED

91. Short cut : SNIP

92. Sun. speech : SER and 98. Yawn-inducing : BANAL  - Verbal Sominex at our church 

96. Sharp criticism : JAB

99. Rulers in a line : DYNASTS - I suppose a DYNASTY would have these

101. You can't live without it : AIR - You can go 3 min without AIR, 3 days without water and 3 weeks without food. Give or take.

102. Tolkien monster : ORC

103. Taste enhanced by shrimp paste : UMAMI - A tasty clue we've had quite often as of late

105. Make more than : OUT EARN

107. Joined forces : ALLIED

115. Sea once home to 1,100-plus islands : ARAL

116. Dell operator : USER

117. Chews the scenery : EMOTES

119. Bear's advice : SELL - Warren Buffet - "Buy when everyone else is SELLING"

120. Pharmacy pickups : MEDS

121. Big Pharma dept. : R AND D

122. Aligned, with "in" : SYNC

Down

1. Sharable doc format : PDF

2. Court figure : SUER

3. "C'mon, let's go!" : SPEED IT UP - After 50 yrs., I just sit in the car and wait!

4. Like revealing memoirs : TELL ALL

5. Hearty comfort food : BEEF STEW - Dinty Moore in our house

6. Short filmmaker? : CAM - This breakout hit from the Sundance Film Festival was shot with the CAM on an iPhone 5S and this is one of its 89. Movie promoters : POSTERS

7. Exhibit with a baby : CRECHE - The one with Jesus can't be put on public property

8. Its logo contains Hebrew letters : EL AL - "To the skies" in Hebrew

9. Separates : DETACHES

10. Wrapped Mexican fare : TAMALES

11. Many : A LOT OF 113. Weather-sensitive airport stat : ETD'S - A LOT OF ETD'S were altered by 100 mph winds in Omaha last week

12. Public outcry : FUROR

13. Corp. symbols : TMS - ™

14. Mesmerized : RAPT

15. Give the green light : ALLOW

16. Limerick neighbor : CLARE - Not much of a common dry land border

17. "I did it!" : YAY ME

19. Pronoun for a skiff : SHE

23. Salon treatment : TINT

25. Accompanist? : ESCORT - When you need a good ESCORT in Louisville, KY...

 

28. Common town ctr. : MAIN ST

32. John of "Star Trek" (2009) : CHO - Only the first generation Star Trek peeps are in my memory bank

34. Twist in a tale : IRONY - I'll bet you know the elements of this short story from the master of IRONY - O'Henry

36. Wrong at the start? : MIS

37. Certain entrance fee : ANTE

38. Speak : ORATE

39. Assure : CLINCH

41. John of "Hairspray" (2007) : TRAVOLTA 

45. Shrewd : CAGEY

46. Change, as a will : AMEND

47. Foamy eye-opener : LATTE

49. First name in virology : JONAS - After contracting polio, FDR started the March Of Dimes that provided much funding for Salk's vaccine that came too late for the president

50. Mop tamer : MOUSSE

51. Acknowledge the general : SNAP TO and 76. Acknowledge the general : SALUTE

52. Tom or Jerry : TOON

54. Denounces : CONDEMNS - SILENT N was a fill for "44 A Solemn ending" on Wednesday 

55. "Off" is often printed on one : COUPON 

57. Live-in nanny : AU PAIR - French for "on par" or "equal to"

61. LaserJet printers : HPS

63. Dash gauges : TACHS

64. Words after make or take : A HIT - If you have to take A HIT to make A HIT, you may need new friends  

65. "That's a shame" : SO SAD - "Dear Dad, No mon, no fun, your Son" "Dear Son, Too bad, SO SAD, your Dad"

66. Siri's Amazon counterpart : ALEXA

67. Grand Canyon rentals : MULES

68. Computer download : UPDATE - After missing several new roads, I paid to UPDATE this system in my car

73. Lines for an audience : ASIDE - Frank does this all the time in House Of Cards

75. Big name in labels : AVERY - We use AVERY 5360 labels for Christmas card address labels

79. One who may cease to exist when underappreciated? : MR NICE GUY - Never made my collection

80. USC part: Abbr. : UNIV

82. Nailed the test : ACED IT

84. Filmy fabric : GOSSAMER - Sinatra sang "A trip to the moon on GOSSAMER wings" was just One Of Those Things

85. Backstabbed : BETRAYED and 96. Biblical backstabber : JUDAS

87. Jungle chest-beater : APE who never 93. Treated very roughly : MAULED Fay Ray

90. Floral ring : LEI

91. Progress : STRIDES  

94. Yoplait competitor : DANNON

95. Cuba libre ingredient : COLA - Hmmm... what brand of COLA should I use?

97. Love, Italian-style : AMORE - "When the moon hits your eye like a big pizza pie"

100. Loop in a cattle drive : NOOSE

104. Think (over) : MULL

106. Arco de Constantino locale : ROMA - Isn't that building to the right famous too? 😁

108. Versatile NFL defenders : LBS - An average NFL LB weighs 235 LBS

109. "Nebraska" Oscar nominee : DERN - A wonderful movie about small town life and aging

111. Tight-lipped : MUM

114. Mythical bird : ROC

Hoping you don't need the Heimlich Maneuver after my commentary, let's hear from you, the Huddled Masses: