Tuesday, March 1, 2016 Jeffrey Wechsler

Theme: Porcine Palace - I pity the fool that has to tell Miss Piggy she didn't make the cut.

17. *Whom Charlotte saved, in an E.B. White classic : WILBUR

 

18. *"Animal Farm" tyrant : NAPOLEON

 

23. *GEICO spokscritter who squeals, "Wee wee wee!" : MAXWELL

 

39. *"Toy Story" toy bank : HAMM

 

40. *Stutterer in Looney Tunes sign-offs : PORKY

 

43. *Unlikely title shepherd in a 1995 film : BABE

 

53. *40-Across' gal : PETUNIA

 

65. With 67-Across, annual March 1 event celebrated in the answers to starred clues : NATIONAL

67. See 65-Across : PIG DAY

Rabbit Rabbit or should I say, "Oink, Oink"? Argyle here. This site here has a pretty good explanation of today's celebration. Jeffery is often a Friday constructor so a few crunchy nuggets in the mix can be expected. Plus the theme entries may not be all that familiar but should be found doable. Quite satisfying. I best get busy; a lot of linking to do.

Across:

1. Human rights advocate Jagger : BIANCA. Mick's wife from 1971 to 1979.

7. Leaves in a big hurry : RACES OFF

15. Seductive quality : ALLURE

16. Having the capacity for learning : EDUCABLE. [ej-oo-kuh-buh l] or, educatable

19. Reason-based faith : DEISM. As opposed to THEISM.

20. Self-regard : EGO

21. One-__ jack : EYED. Spades and Hearts.

22. QB's gains : YDs

27. Variety : TYPE

28. More pert : SAUCIER

33. Mets' former stadium : SHEA

36. Singer Yoko : ONO

38. "Ninotchka" star Greta : GARBO

 

44. Reputed UFO pilot : ALIEN

46. "Golly!" : "GEE!"

47. "Great Taste...__ Filling": Miller Lite slogan : LESS

48. Carter's vice president : MONDALE. Walter.

51. Suffix with novel : ETTE

55. __ Grande : RIO. Photo of the Rio Grande del Norte National Monument.

 

58. Burn slightly : SEAR

62. Latin art : ARS. M-G-M motto, "Ars Gratia Artis", "Art for art's sake"

63. Doggie : POOCH

68. Biological order including eight-armed creatures : OCTOPODA. lol, ISOPODS yesterday.

69. Waiting one's turn : IN LINE

70. Catching-up query : WHAT'S NEW

71. FBI operatives : AGENTS

Down:

1. Ribald : BAWDY

2. Perjurer's confession : "I LIED"

3. "Silent Night" words before calm and bright : ALL IS

4. Used-up pencils : NUBS

5. Really bad : CRUMMY

6. __ Lingus : AER

 

7. Take more Time? : RENEW

8. Maxims : ADAGEs

9. Domelike building top : CUPOLA

10. Earth-friendly prefix : ECO. Umberto Eco died last month.

11. Mall event : SALE

12. Do as told : OBEY

13. Arctic chunk : FLOE

14. Provide (for oneself) : FEND

24. Per unit : A POP

25. Strange: Pref. : XENO

26. Tote : LUG

27. Domesticated : TAMED

29. Pay television : CABLE

30. "Dies __": Latin hymn : IRAE

31. Flows back : EBBS

32. Some reddish deer : ROEs

33. Bedding accessory : SHAM

34. Saintly glow : HALO

35. Key with one sharp: Abbr. : E MINor

37. Nonprofit URL ending : .ORG

41. Really eager : KEEN. Yesterday we had [Really into : KEEN ON].

42. Bigfoot kin : YETI

45. Rest of the afternoon : NAP

49. Use as support : LEAN ON

50. Online investment service : E*TRADE

52. Music studio activity : TAPING

54. Amer. attorney's study : U.S. LAW

55. "The Thinker" sculptor : RODIN

56. Words of refusal : "I CAN'T"

57. "I remember now!" : "OH, YES!". So maybe you can now.

58. Skiing surface : SNOW

59. Per unit : EACH

60. "__ girl!" : ATTA

61. Real hoot : RIOT

64. Gawk at : OGLE

66. Photo __: media events : OPS

67. Actress Zadora : PIA

 

Argyle

Sunday, Feb 28, 2016 Jeffrey Wechsler

Theme: "Putting in Overtime" - OT is added to each theme answer.

21A. Cold weather moisturizer? : THE LOTION IN WINTER. "The Lion in Winter". I discovered this two winters ago. Very moisturizing.

36A. Moor's money pool? : OTHELLO KITTY. Hello Kitty.

57A. Best Western fishing amenities? : MOTEL BROOKS. Mel Brooks.

66A. Business where lines are discouraged? : BOTOX OFFICE. Box office.

88A. Child-friendly? : SUITED TO A TOT. Suited to a T.

106A. Queen's body double? : OTHER ROYAL MAJESTY. Her Royal Majesty.

 

14D. Spoils at your neighbor's house? : THE BOOTY NEXT DOOR. The Boy Next Door.

35D. Did away with voting? : DROPPED THE BALLOT. Dropped the ball.

I think this is Jeffrey's first Sunday puzzle. Congrats, Jeffrey! 

Despite heavy themage, Jeffrey packed a bunch of long fill in this 138-word grid. Two 10's, two 9's and ten 8's, four of which are placed side by side, which is very hard to pull off cleanly.

I also liked lots of today's clues, esp 91. Periods in sentences : TERMS

Across:

     

1. __ Picchu : MACHU

6. Library fixture : LAMP. Not BOOK or DESK.

10. Early name in late TV : PAAR (Jack)

14. Bit : TAD

17. They help define a lot : ACRES

18. "Eraserhead" star Jack : NANCE. Unknown figure to me.

19. __ à manger: dining room : SALLE. "Room" in French.

20. Pink, for example : HUE

24. "More of the same" letters : ETC

25. Boards : STEPS ONTO

26. Trig function : SINE

27. Real Madrid's game : FUTBOL. Called Zu Qiu in Chinese. Literally "foot's ball".

29. Bar offerings : SHOTS

30. Campus challenges : FINALS

32. Judd of country music : NAOMI. We had her last Sunday.

33. Freed (of) : RID

39. Zen paradox : KOAN. Any of you familiar with the Japanese anime Ikkyu san? Very popular in my teens. Ikkyu is a little monk.

40. Features of some traffic signals : ARROWS

42. Charged atoms : IONS

43. Hi-__ image : RES

44. Mini- analog : ETTE

45. Sheltered spots : NOOKS

46. Lionel Hampton's instrument : VIBES. Vibraphones. Google shows that he was called "King of Vibes".

48. Fulfill the requirements : QUALIFY. Easy crossing QUO (48. Status __ ). Otherwise, I might not have got it.

50. Econ. statistics : GNPs. Of course I had GDPs first.

51. Target of icing : CAKE. 52. Target of icing : PUCK. Nice clue echo.

53. Linguistic source of "pajamas" : HINDI. Also "guru", "shampoo", "pundit" and a few more. We also have 110. Dish name from the Tamil for "sauce" : CURRY

56. Ability scorned by many : ESP

 

60. Unhidden : OVERT

61. Affixed, in a way : TIED ON

63. Voyage segment : LEG

64. Top spots : APEXES

65. Not as expected : ODDER. The answer is indeed "Not as expected".

72. Defunct carrier : TWA

73. Seller of chew toys : PETCO

74. From scratch : ANEW

75. Secretary of Education Duncan : ARNE. Not any more. Needs "former".

76. Shaft access : ADIT. Also 99. Needle holder : ETUI. Our old friends are back.

77. Flattering : HONEYED

79. Meir's successor : RABIN

81. Go on and on, with "on" : DRONE

82. Maker of Veriton computers : ACER. My monitor is an Acer. Great quality.

84. "How could I not see that?!" : DOH!

85. Assistant to millions : SIRI. Did you get this immediately, Gary?

86. Some factory workers : ROBOTS

87. Noodle variety : SOBA. Made of buckwheat flour. Often served cold.

92. Poppycock : ROT

93. Steaming : IRATE

95. European travel guide author Rick __ : STEVES. He's on NPR a few times. So glad we don't need to clue it as a plural given name any more.

96. Geek Squad pros : TECHS

98. First named Atlantic storm in 10 different years to date : ARLENE. I don't understand the clue.

100. Johann : "Sehr gut" :: Jacques : "__ bien" : TRES. Very good.

101. Compel to accept, as ideas : FORCE UPON

105. Up to, on invites : TIL

109. Words with a certain ring : I DO. Sweet clue also.

111. Stymies : FOILS

112. Danny __, Shel Silverstein's "dancin' bear" : O'DARE. Unknown to me.

113. Crookshanks, in Harry Potter fiction : CAT. Learning moment as well.

114. Moves it : HIES

115. Animal rights issue : FURS

116. Utterly enchant : BESOT

  

Down:

1. Pilates class array : MATS

2. Zwei quadrupled : ACHT. Luckiest number in Chinese/Japanese culture.

3. First Nations tribe : CREE

4. Makes it easier : HELPS

5. Hope venues for 50 yrs. : USO SHOWS. Bob Hope.

6. Ancient Chinese sage : LAO-TSE. Quite a few different spellings. Lao-tzu seems to be more common in the west. It's just Lao-zi in China.

7. Latin dating word : ANNO

8. It merged with WorldCom in 1998 : MCI. Drew a blank also.

9. Retirement plans : PENSIONS

10. Classic delivery vehicle : PANEL TRUCK

11. Space bar neighbor : ALT

12. Beth preceder : ALEF. First Hebrew letter

13. TV Land fare : RERUN

15. Defunct self-serve eatery : AUTOMAT

16. Just say no : DECLINE

18. Like Pluto, once : NINTH. Simple in respect.

19. Exodus high point : SINAI

22. Attention-getters on the road : TOOTS. And 23. Attention-getters at a bar : WINKS

28. Relax : TAKE FIVE

30. Antarctic sight : FLOE

31. Outback fare : STEAKS

33. Kitchen remodeling selection : RANGETOP

34. '60s-'70s TV detective : IRONSIDE. Never saw it.

37. Fact-checking can help avoid it : LIBEL. Got via crosses.

38. Haute couture initials : YSL. I really like Mulberry.

41. Gives a thumbs-up : OKs

46. Brewery container : VAT

47. Harry's successor : IKE

49. Wishful words : I HOPE

51. Flimflam : CON

52. Possum pal of Porky Pine : POGO

54. Gradually made a member of : DREW INTO

55. "Just checking the alarm, folks" : IT'S A TEST. Nice pair of 8's.

57. Nincompoop : MORON

58. Squander : BLOW

59. "Toy Story" dinosaur : REX. Gimme for me.

62. Work on a tree, maybe : DECORATE. Christmas tree.

64. Blackjack need : ACE

66. Gulf Coast environs : BAYOUS

67. Nearly flawless diamond highlights : ONE-HITTERS. Loved the clue & answer.

68. Red Sox legend Williams : TED. Frozen. He might come back to life someday. Who knows.

69. One-named Milanese model : FABIO

70. Calendar abbr. : FRI

71. Holiday __ : INN

76. Wall St. hedger : ARB

78. Script fixers, for short : EDs (Editors)

79. Gets out of Dodge : RIDES OFF

80. Applied __ : ARTS. Not familiar wit the term. You?

81. Get it finished : DO THE JOB. Great entry.

82. Like some lions : ASIATIC

83. Contest with picadors : CORRIDA

85. Cut : SEVER

86. "CBS Sunday Morning" correspondent Mo : ROCCA. He appears on "Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me!" regularly. Who's your favorite "Wait Wait ..." panelist? Paula Poundstone is hilarious.

89. Absorbent cloth : TERRY

90. Micronesia components : ATOLLS

94. Father of Methuselah : ENOCH

97. Blue shoe material of song : SUEDE

101. Pretty, maidenwise : FAIR. OK, I get it. Fair maiden.

102. Antismoking TV spots, e.g. : PSAs

103. Alberto's alternative, with "el" : OTRO. The other.

104. Omsk objection : NYET

107. Charlemagne's realm: Abbr. : HRE

108. "As __ Like It" : YOU

C.C. 

Friday, February 12th, 2016 Jeffrey Wechsler

Theme: Eye-YO of the Tiger?

17A . Generic City Hall dog? : MAYORS ROVER. Mars Rover. Does anyone actually call their dog Rover? Or Rex, or Fido? We should be told.

29A. Why some seek a certain cactus? : FOR PEYOTE'S SAKE. For Pete's sake. I remember reading a couple of Carlos Castaneda's books back in the day in which he wrote of some wonderful out-of-body experiences after taking peyote. In hindsight, he was just stoned out of his gourd.

35A. Essay on meditation? : YOGI TRACT. GI Tract. If you want an amazing journey through the human gastrointestinal tract, read Mary Roach's book "Gulp". Tell her Steve sent you.

45A. Eschew medical attention? : STAY OFF DOCTORS. Staff Doctors. Also known as Attending Physicians.

58A. Fighter whose stock greeting affects 17-, 29-, 35- and 45-Across : ROCKY BALBOA. Hero of the "Rocky" movie series of which I have seen - none of them.

Yo Corner!  Nice enough theme - before I got down to the reveal I'd already started to uncover the theme answers and was trying to find a common punning pronunciation-change when I saw the actual connection. The purist in me isn't terribly fond of YOGI TRACT - the YO at the beginning is the odd man out of the four and I'm not sure that "GI Tract" is particularly "in the language". I didn't have a problem filling it in, so as they say, no harm, no foul.

The puzzle is quite heavy on the themeage which sometimes makes for scrappy fill, but this one was pretty smooth. Let's see what pops out:

Across:

1. Item in a '60s drug bust : LSD TAB. Doesn't anyone get busted for LSD any more, or is that so last century?

7. Marshal Tito, for one : SLAV. His middle name was "Broz", which is rather nice considering the next entry ....

11. Friendly address : BRO

14. Make effervescent : AERATE. Nice word.

15. Queen's place : HIVE

16. Move on water : OAR

19. Caustic chemical : LYE

20. __ Toy Barn: "Toy Story 2" setting : AL'S. I cried in Toy Story 2. There, I admitted it.

21. Japanese volcano Mount __ : ASO. Japan's tallest active volcano erupted last year.

22. Guzzle : SWILL. I wanted SWIG until I had a square left over.

24. Half a prison? : SING. Sing. Maximum security correctional facility in New York State.

26. Suffix for professionals : -IST. I'd have said "some professionals". Attornist? Accountist? Not really.

28. Toon who often wore a Metallica T-shirt : BEAVIS. Definitely not to everyone's sense of humor. Most printable: "Did you know when you eat rump roast you’re eating a cow’s butt?"

32. Bacchanal vessel : EWER

33. Rested : SAT

34. Choler : IRE. I always try to convince myself that "choler" is a type of bread.

39. Arboreal critter : APE

41. "__ believer!" : I'M A. Here's Neil Diamond's song played by the very young-looking Monkees.

42. Icon with a curved arrow : UNDO

49. Certify : ATTEST

50. LAX stat : ARR

51. "Let her not say __ that keep you here": "Antony and Cleopatra" : 'TIS I. Guessed. Guessed right! Yay!

53. Language from which "julep" is derived : FARSI. Persian gul-āb, rose-water. I'm not sure Kentucky Derby-goers would recognize it.

54. Centrifuge site : LAB

56. Rosamund's "Gone Girl" co-star : BEN

57. Green beginning? : ECO-, as in eco-friendly.

63. However, to texters : THO. I never abbreviate when I text, it's just anathema to me. I tease my friend's mom (who is in her 70's) that she sounds like a teenager when she texts - it's all "OMG, Ur so LOL 2 funny". It's almost pathetic :)

64. __ dixit : IPSE. Came close to a personal natick'ed with the "S". I didn't know the abbreviation for the Confederate army, and my Latin deserted me for a while. After a quick alphabet run I decided IPSE was more likely than any of the others, although IPRE was tempting for a while.

65. Shape, as dough for cloverleaf rolls : BALL UP. Food!

66. Strong desire : YEN

67. Lacking a date : STAG

68. Adam, of the "Bonanza" brothers : ELDEST

Down:

1. Holy men who turn prayer wheels : LAMAS

2. Cousteau's concern : SEA LIFE. I tried to make SEALING (as in seal-hunting) work for a while.

3. Oxymoronic skiing condition : DRY SNOW. I've called it dry powder, or powder snow. Today, for the first time, I'm calling it dry snow.

4. All-encompassing concept : TAO

5. Gillette brand : ATRA

6. "Empress of the Blues" Smith : BESSIE

7. "The Tudors" sta. : SHO

8. Actress Tyler : LIV. Talented actress. She's a lot better looking than her dad, that's for sure.

9. GPS datum : AVE

10. Frost output : VERSES

11. Eponymous South American leader : BOLIVAR

12. Beamish? : RAY-LIKE. Wonderful to see a Lewis Carroll nonsense word in a truly ingenious setting. Best clue/answer of the week for me.

“And hast thou slain the Jabberwock?

      Come to my arms, my beamish boy!

O frabjous day! Callooh! Callay!”

      He chortled in his joy.

’Twas brillig, and the slithy toves

      Did gyre and gimble in the wabe:

All mimsy were the borogoves,

      And the mome raths outgrabe.

13. Warning words : OR ELSE

18. Upbeat : ROSY

23. "Obviously, right?" : WAS IT NOT?

25. Their colour is affected by melanin : GREY EYES. Note the "colour" to clue "grey". "Color" would clue "gray". Awesomeness! I didn't know that melanin affected the eye color, but there's plenty of fascinating reading out there on the Interwebs.

27. Fare on a flat tortilla : TOSTADA. Food! Tostada= Toasted. Here's a Mexico City breakfast. Yum!

28. __ test : BETA. Usually for software before it ships commercially. Be prepared for loads of "undocumented features" (a.k.a. bugs).

30. Master : PRO

31. Roofing sealer : TAR

36. One of a biblical trio : GIFT. Another nice clue/answer. KING didn't work with what I already had filled in, so I was looking along the MAGI lines for some translation of king/wise man, then - aha! There were three gifts, gold, frankincense and myrrh.

37. Global financial org. : I.M.F.

38. Tournament elimination point : CUT

39. Diplomatic case : ATTACHÉ

40. Dutch landowner in colonial America : PATROON. Solid crosses got this one for me.

43. Court action : DRIBBLE. Like a no-look pass - great misdirection here!

44. Bony : OSSEOUS

45. __ pin : SAFETY

46. Pluto's Egyptian counterpart : OSIRIS. This came in dribs and drabs via the crosses. I'll file this one away for future reference.

47. Alternative to de Gaulle : ORLY. I was at CDG a couple of weeks ago. ORY used to be the main Paris airport until CDG opened and now handles mainly domestic traffic.

48. Buster who portrayed Flash Gordon : CRABBE

52. Uncalled for : INAPT

55. Canaanite deity : BAAL

59. Decide : OPT

60. Lee side: Abbr. : CSA. The Confederate States of America. I didn't know that until today.

61. Cooper's creation : KEG

62. Honorary legal deg. : LL.D. The "LL" is an interesting hangover from the degree awarded by the University of Cambridge in the UK - it denoted the holder was qualified to practice both branches of law - Canon (church) Law and Civil Law, so "Doctor of Laws".

That's it from me - the grid's below:

Steve.

Note from C.C.:

Happy Birthday to our sweet LaLaLinda! Linda used to post daily and shared with us many fun facts of her life, her cats and her Red Sox. She still reads our blog, but her health issue & the flareups have prevented her from participating actively. If anyone has tips on how to lessen the arthritic pain, please share with us on the blog. I've heard great stories about the apple cider vinegar and honey combo. Our local Target actually carries the Bragg brand.

Friday, January 29, 2016, Jeffrey Wechsler

Theme: January 29, St. Agnes Eve, Demonstrably!

Our Friday fellow, Jeffrey Wechsler brings us a puzzle with a TOUCH OF EVIL. EVIL is inserted into the theme phrases to create new and evocative phrases. Since we have Satan injected into the grid, I must wonder if Jeffrey knows that today is a Satanic Holiday known by the name of my theme. It appears somehow this Catholic SAINT , the protector of virgins,  has been incorporated into certain Pagan liturgy. I would guess the puzzle grew from realizing that DISH NETWORK plus EVIL would be a grid spanner. Finding (or rather creating) REVILED SNAPPERS was impressive. Of course it may all be just JW continuing his admiration for Orson Welles, for whom he did an NYT tribute puzzle last year containing the same movie.  I could not find much on the subject of Satanic stuff, which is just as well since we do not talk religion  here. We have tons of interesting long fill like CIRCLET, GENERAL,  SILENT G,  SLANTED, JAPANESE,  MEANTIME, AUTOMOBILE, EXONERATES,  SNAKE RIVER,  VA VA VA VOOM.  Maybe JW will tell us his inspiration, in the meantime let us solve.

17A. Threat to the queen's cotton? : ROYAL WEEVIL(11).  We were amused by a clue with this INSECT. Isn't amazing how soon after the blog discussed the "royal we"  it shows up as part of theme.

27A. Satan's broadcaster? : DEVILISH NETWORK (15). DISH network

43A. Really unpopular fish? : REVILED SNAPPERS (15). Red snapper is very popular in SoFla.

57A. 1958 Orson Welles film noir ... and a hint to 17-, 27- and 43-Across : TOUCH OF EVIL (11).

Having a revealer is what made this puzzle doable. Time to work our way through the mine field of tough clues/fill.

Across:

1. "If I may interject ... " : AHEM. As she cleared her throat dramatically...then she

5. Stops to smell the roses : PAUSES. Sorry but your cigar is almost gone and the...

11. Briquette's fate : ASH. is falling on my carpet. I want you...

14. Passed : GONE.

15. Potassium hydroxide, e.g. : ALKALI. Ok, back to the puzzle, this took the perps to let me know where the clue was going.

16. Siete menos seis : UNO. Subtraction in Spanish.

19. Water source : TAP. How simple.

20. Hersey's "A Bell for __" : ADANO.

21. Wind dir. : SSE. Again....is this familiar Friday fodder?

22. Call forth : EVOKE.

24. Help for a sad BFF : TLC. Tender Loving Care.

26. Subject of the first picture in Mussorgsky's "Pictures at an Exhibition" : GNOME. Not familiar with this composer or the artist (Viktor Hartmann), and he did not design the Travelocity Gnome.

34. Physical, e.g. : EXAM. Not easy until filled.

35. On the move : ROVING. I had trouble with this clue/fill as the word is in my memory banks associated with 'roving eye' which is not the same as clued here.

36. Plane compartment : BIN. Overhead.

37. Told, as an elaborate tale : WOVE. Rhymes with....

38. Repeating rhythmic pattern used in Cuban music : CLAVE. What?  It does not rhyme with save. Time to LEARN. (3:13)

39. Balderdash : JIVE. According to the online etymology dictionary: 1928, "to deceive playfully," also "empty, misleading talk" (n.) and "a style of fast, lively jazz and dance music," American English, from African-American vernacular, probably of African origin (compare Wolof jev, jeu "talk about someone absent, especially in a disparaging manner"). Related: Jived; jiving. Used from 1938 for "New York City African-American slang."

40. 39-Down carrier : ANA. Wow, we are pulling out all our Friday stuff. This AIRLINE.

41. Deli equipment : SLICER.

42. Protected at sea : ALEE.

46. Rushed : RAN AT. Again simple only after filled by perps.

47. Mauna __ : LOA. Along with KEA, Hawaii volcanic mountains.

48. Expert : MAVEN.

49. "__ Kapital" : DAS. The Karl Marx TOME about economics and society. Read and discuss somewhere but not here.

52. Make whole : UNITE.

56. First woman to land a triple axel in competition : ITO. An amazing skater and a reminder of our dear friend Clear Ayes.

60. Revival prefix : NEO.

61. Overshoot : EXCEED. Expectations.

62. Bear's cry : SELL. Appropriate reference to the stock market now.

63. Philosophy : ISM. Hence Marxism.

64. Trinket : DOODAD. Last week doodah...

65. Town near Padua : ESTE. More fill completely unknown. But I guess I can LEARN.

Down:

1. Indian district with three World Heritage Sites : AGRA. Only ONE of which is the Taj Mahal. A young lawyer and his wife toured there but I did not remember the details.

2. Rain protection : HOOD.

3. Irish musician with four Grammys : ENYA. Four letter singer, I did not go with Bono.

4. Transitional period : MEANTIME.

5. Hand analog : PAW. Give me your paw.

6. Pub array : ALES.

7. Oahu entertainers : UKES.

8. Keep : SAVE.

9. Manning taking a hike : ELI. Love the humor here, though despite two Super Bowls many do not love Eli any more. Peyton will try for his 2nd again.

10. 26-Across feature : SILENT-G. Cross reference, hmm there are more.

11. Lot occupant : AUTOMOBILE. I nailed it. It really got me going in solving.

12. Part of Oregon's border : SNAKE RIVER. In this map it is in yellow, Columbia purple. Can you find where CED's camera trip was yesterday? Hell's Canyon would fit the theme today.

 

13. Last thing in Pandora's box : HOPE. What a fun STORY. He name is from the Greek, the pan meaning "all" like in a pangram and the dora meaning gift.

18. Relax : LOLL.

23. "Cross my heart," e.g. : VOW.

25. Round ornament : CIRCLET. Not really up on this jewelry; seems like a tiara to me.

26. Vague : GENERAL.

27. John of Scotch fame : DEWAR. Do they make any good scotch? Tin?

28. Clears : EXONERATES. What a great word.

29. Ed Norton catchphrase on "The Honeymooners" : VAVAVAVOOM.

30. Firm : SOLID.

31. Climate control systs. : HVACS. Heating, Ventilating, and Air Conditioning

32. Jewel thief portrayer in "The Pink Panther" : NIVEN.

33. They're often bent : KNEES.

39. About 125 million people : JAPANESE.  What a random clue.

41. Not objective : SLANTED.  So many political comments come to mind....

44. Halogen suffix : INE. Can you name the five? Is there a 6th waiting to be discovered?

45. High hair style : POUF.

48. Revealing apparel : MINI.

49. Household glue brand : DUCO.

50. Served very well : ACED. Tennis, anyone.

51. __ butter : SHEA. Also a stadium at one time.

53. "Variations on 'America'" composer : IVES. A wonderful composer (or so I am told) though I only know James Merritt Ives.  LISTEN.

54. List : TILT. If your ship is listing, I hope you swim.

55. How she looks in Paris? : ELLE. Cute clue.

58. Good Grips kitchenware brand : OXO. We get this brand often.

59. "They say there is divinity in __ numbers": Falstaff : ODD. We end with our Friday Shakespeare, this time from the third and final appearance of Falstaff. It is said the play was written at the behest of Queen Elizabeth I.

One last St. Agnes fact; it is a very famous poem by Keats, a poet whose work JW had in his 1/15/16 effort. Coincidence? Okay I talk to myself too much, but now I can talk to you all. Enjoy. Thanks Jeffrey and all who read. Lemonade out.

Friday, January 15, 2016 Jeffrey Wechsler

Theme: Where do babies come from? The Stork Exchange!

Our Friday phenom Jeffrey Wechsler stops by with his first 2016 effort which is a simple letter substitution that leads to new fill clued whimsically, made special by having the letter C which is removed from the first word of a phrase ending in CK and is replaced with the letter R. The elegance comes in with the changed words being a vowel progression AEIOU. Lots of interesting and hard to pin down fill such as ASTORIA, CODEINE, GRAYISH, HOBNOBS, ILL READ, IRON ORE, SERPICO, VERDURE.  Okay then...

17A. Response from a dog on a horse? : BARK IN THE SADDLE (15). Back in the saddle gets a doggie boost. I grew up with this SONG. (3:03)

20A. Barista's schedule? : PERKING ORDER (12). The pecking order brewed us some coffee.

35A. Pet peeve? : IRK FACTOR (9). ICK Factor perhaps made famous by Friends has 289,000 google hits, while there are 367,000 hits on google and a BLOG for Irk Factor. Unusual for the pun to be more famous.

54A. Jerk in a cove? : DORK OF THE BAY (12). We have to have this SONG. (2:54)

57A. Satisfying sight to an Istanbul clothing designer? : TURK IN YOUR SHIRT (15). Ah, you are wearing one of my designs, but please tuck it in.

Across:

1. Kid : JEST. Not a youth. Some Friday style cluing already as these words are related but I do not see them as synonyms.

5. Sufficient : DUE. Dire due parole about this clue as well.

8. Girl who calls Peppermint Patty "sir" : MARCIE. Finally, one I got immediately.

14. __ map : AREA. Okay this is fair,

15. "High Hopes" critter : ANT. They look about my age.

16. Longstanding : AGE OLD. Hey! we are not that old!

21. A-one : PRIMO. So many choices, cuz. Right Lucina?

23. Diving birds : LOONS. The Minnesota state bird.

24. Iraq War weapon: Abbr. : IED.  Improvised Explosive Device.

26. Emphasize : ACCENT. Ah, a grave clue.

28. Little biter : GNAT.

29. Way of the East : TAO. The word means 'the way' in Chinese , right C.C.? (From C.C.: Just "way". Chinese and many Asian languages do not have definite article.)

30. Oklahoma native : OSAGE. Another visit with an easier clue.

34. Takes to heart : HEEDS.

37. Skirt : EVADE. An issue, not one for Splynter.

40. Words on a jacket : BLURB. Dust Jacket on a book. I never buy any autobiographies, I just read the 'about the author' on the jacket.

41. Esteemed one : GEM. A peach.

44. Chilean currency : PESO. I did not know this. I have been in many places in South America but not Chile.

45. Native : INBRED. Inbred has such negative connotations.

47. Etchings, for example : ART. Come up to my room....

48. "The West Wing" actor : SMITS. Loved him in LA LAW and DEXTER

53. Degree requirements for some : ORALS.

60. Colorful songbird : ORIOLE. Beautiful.

61. Ramallah-based org. : PLO. Palestine Liberation Organization.

62. Very short time: Abbr. : MSEC. Nsec n'sync Backstreet Boy arrested!

63. Inconsequential : MEASLY. My salary is what?

64. Carrier offering Carlsberg beer : SAS. Originally Scandinavian Airline System.

65. Ersatz : SHAM. I like the word ersatz which is a German word we have taken as our own.

Down:

1. Hook alternative : JAB. Boxing, not  a slice HG and Big Easy.

2. Jazz __ : ERA.

3. Peter Maas biography subtitled "The Cop Who Defied the System" : SERPICO. Pacino at his best.

4. "I want to go!" : TAKE ME. Go with?

5. Like many caves : DANK.

6. "... I thought, / __ my head was dizzy": "Endymion" : UNTIL. Not the most famous line of this POEM which begins, "A thing of beauty is a joy forever"

7. Graphic introduction? : ETHNO. Anthropology?

8. Trowel wielder : MASON. My uncle was a master mason who taught at a trade school.

9. Microbiologist's gels : AGARS.

10. Demond's co-star in a '70s sitcom : REDD. Most people did not know his real name was Jon Elroy Sanford.

11. Cough syrup ingredient : CODEINE. Very common when we were young but the narcotic is not used in cough medicine much anymore.

12. Like one who goes by the books? : ILL READ. OOOOO.

13. Ending with stamp : EDE. Meh. 50D. Suffix with beaut : IFY.

18. Smelter input : IRON ORE. Out comes steel.

19. It may require delicate handling : EGO.

21. Touch lightly : PAT.

22. Miley Cyrus label : RCA. Really? DKDC.

25. Sot's woe : DTS. Delirium Tremens.

27. Sound of disdain : TSK.

28. An official lang. of Luxembourg : GERman.

31. Edwards, e.g.: Abbr. : AFB. Air Force Base.

32. __ pal : GAL. Not pc.

33. Old French coin : ECU.

34. Works the room : HOBNOBS. This word in its schmoozing meaning was popular in my 'ute.

35. Common court response : I DO. Do you solemnly swear to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth?

36. Prefix with centennial : TRI. Are there any other three letter ones?

37. Org. monitoring brownfields : EPA. Live and LEARN.

38. Greenery : VERDURE.  If you know Latin or French or Spanish, this is easy.

39. Oregon port named for a 19th-century multi-millionaire : ASTORIA.  JOHN JAKOB.

41. Somewhat ashen : GRAYISH.

42. Long swimmer : EEL.

43. EKG readers : MDS.

46. Composer who championed Dvorák : BRAHMS. Great STORY?

48. Proficiency : SKILL.

49. What chips may represent : MONEY. How many of you play poker? There are pokers rooms everywhere here.

51. 'Vette roof options : T-TOPS.

52. Only NFL coach with a perfect season : SHULA. Once again the '72 Dolphins watched the ranks of the undefeated disappear.Don and Dan

55. Golden age theaters : RKOS.

56. God with a quiver : EROS.

57. Alley prowler : TOM. Okay CED, this is all you.

58. Actor Stephen : REA. Still most famous for the Crying Game.

59. Channel that shows Bogart films : TCM. Turner Classic Movies. Oo loves this and AMC.

So we had a rocky start but here we are halfway through January and three entertaining Fridays in the books. Be well all, stay warm and dry. Thanks JW, loved your NYT yesterday. Lemonade out.

Thursday, December 31st 2015 Jeffrey Wechsler

Theme: Weight Room Workout. Pretty much a top-to-bottom progression with, in order, LATS, DELTS, PECS, ABS and GLUTES.

18A. Red-eyes, e.g. : LATE FLIGHTS. I pretty much unilaterally declared a few years ago that I won't take red-eyes anymore. I fly the day before and get a good night's sleep.

24A. Wouldn't accept excuses : DEMANDED RESULTS

31A. Hospital department : PEDIATRICS

41A. Black suit component : ACE OF CLUBS. I wanted "Ace of Spades" to mark the passing of Motörhead's Ian Fraser "Lemmy" Kilmister on Tuesday. I saw the band in LA about 15 years ago and I'm not sure my eardrums have recovered. RIP. Not to everyone's taste, so no link.

51A. Retirement party speeches, typically : GLOWING TRIBUTES

58A. Like some weightlifters, and a hint to this puzzle's circles : MUSCLE-BOUND. Lovely reveal - the muscles start and finish - so bind - the theme entries.

Well done, Jeffrey. I'm not sure if the head-to-tail order of the theme entries was intentional, but I hope it was. I loved this puzzle. It took me almost as long as the Sunday LAT and I enjoyed every minute of figuring out where I was going wrong. After my first pass, I had so much white space and a few "maybe" entries that I thought I'd post the grid I had at that point to show you the mess I was in:

Oh dear! Bottom-up and right-to-left corrections fixed everything eventually, but it certainly was a fun journey.

Across:

1. Dernier __ : CRI. The latest fashion. I'm not familiar with the term, but it's a crossword staple.

4. They may have EIKs : APTS. Eat-In Kitchens. I'm not familiar with the term. Do you sense a pattern here?

8. Savory Asian pastry : SAMOSA. Food! I'm familiar with the term. Yay! (Crafty cook tip - if you want to make quick and easy samosas, slice a flour tortilla across the equator and fold & fill from there).

14. Kareem, once : LEW. Alcindor/Abdul Jabbar. A UCLA basketball legend in my home town.

15. Berth place : SLIP. The yacht I've chartered lives in a slip in Marina Del Rey.

16. Took to the stump : ORATED

17. Reminiscent of : A LA

20. Fail to meet : MISS

22. Pinky-side arm bone : ULNA

23. Points for a free throw : ONE. Kareem made a few of these on his way to 38,387 career points.

29. 14th-century Russian prince : IVAN II

30. "Grandma" co-star : TOMLIN

35. "Nothing special" : SO-SO

36. One on the shelf, in Christmas decor : ELF

37. Epic creator : POET

48. Number in a Verne title : EIGHTY. Not TWENTY as I confidently entered at first. "Around the World in Eighty Days". I've done the round-the-world route twice (once in each direction) on business. Burbank - Denver - Frankfurt - Mumbai - Hong Kong - San Francisco - Burbank was the most fun. LAX - Hong Kong - London - LAX seemed more of a chore.

50. "60 Minutes" humorist : ROONEY

55. Suffix with part : IAL. Boo. A suffix isn't "three letters at the end of a random word".

56. Bide __: stay briefly, to Scots : A WEE

57. "Phooey!" : DRAT

62. Choler : IRE

63. Willow flower cluster : CATKIN

64. Erase : UNDO

65. Shade source : ELM

66. To a smaller degree : LESS SO

67. Annoyance : PEST. That "Part-ial" is a pest.

68. Bad start? : DYS. Whoa! Here's a pattern.

Down:

1. Cocktail party bowlful : CLAM DIP. OK, Chex Mix - you're toast

2. Substitute for : RELIEVE

3. "That really got my goat!" : I WAS MAD

4. Silent comm. method : ASL. American Sign Language. My friend has a Masters degree in deaf studies and has taught me some rudimentary signs, enough to make a polite exit from otherwise awkward social situations.

5. Enthusiastic praise : PLAUDIT

6. King or queen : TITLE

7. Drop at a shop : SPEND. Fun clue

8. Fifth in a familiar series : SOL

9. Melodic passage : ARIOSO. I think I remembered this. Took a couple of tries after the ARI--- though.

10. Wine buys : MAGNUMS. Two bottles, or 1.5 liters. Here's a couple I pulled out of the fridge in anticipation of the holidays. They don't fit in the rack. The one on the left is signed by the winemaker.

11. "... And when I love thee not / Chaos is come again" speaker : OTHELLO

12. Three of a kind, in poker lingo : SET

13. Much spam : ADS

19. Word with fetched or flung : FAR

21. __-Wipe: cleaning brand : SANI

25. Actress Peeples : NIA

26. "Star Trek" staples : ETS. Extra-Terrestrials. Pretty much all you're going to meet on a mission to explore unknown galaxies.

27. Quaint contraction : 'TIS. I mark my annual "oh really, is that all you've got" calendar by the first of the ADS I hear using this. This year was "Sleep Number" beds, who proclaimed in mid-November that "'Tis the season to save money on a mattress". Shame on you.

28. Nestlé's __-Caps : SNO

32. __ hall : REC

33. Martinique, par exemple : ILE. Isle, for example. What differentiates an isle and an island in English? I don't believe any other language makes the same distinction. Discuss.

34. Bus. bigwig : CFO

37. Dowel : PEG

38. Venezuela export : OIL

39. Ones who are me-deep in conversation? : EGOISTS

40. Sharp blows : THWACKS

41. Writer Rand : AYN. Gimme, thank you very much. I was struggling in the middle (and top, and bottom and left, and right).

42. '90s-'00s hit sitcom for 10 seasons : FRIENDS Cue the music. I challenge you not to clap. Pa Pa Pa PAH!

43. Ear piece? : COB. What? Oh! Sweetcorn (sound of coin dropping slowly).

44. Ear-piercing : LOUD

45. Not yet tested : UNTRIED

46. Arrive ahead of time : BE EARLY

47. __ analyst : SYSTEMS. I was one of these once. I'm not sure I really knew what I was doing. Thankfully I was working for a bank, not Boeing.

49. "Coca-Cola Cowboy" singer : TILLIS? Who?

52. Chew the fat : GAB

53. Leading 5-3, e.g. : TWO UP

54. See one's old college chums, say : REUNE. Here's my most recent "reune" in London last month with my chums. I'm the only one wearing glasses, but everyone else needed me to read the menu. What does that tell you?

58. Commonly injured knee ligament, briefly : MCL. The medial collateral ligament, not the anterior cruciate, which was my first attempt. A rugby-playing friend of mine once tore his ACL, but he insisted on describing is as his "crucial ligament" which drove me to distraction. It's on a par with someone saying "pacifically" or "supposably". You're off my Christmas Card list with any of those.

59. Federation in OPEC : UAE. The United Arab Emirates, a member of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries. It all sounds rather quaint. Are Venezuela in on the OPEC act?

60. "Small Craft on a Milk Sea" musician : ENO. Not ONO. Wake up, Steve.

61. Semicolon? : DOT. Lovely. Half a semi-colon is a single dot. Wonderful.

And with that, here's the grid, circles and all, for those of you who didn't have them in your publication. It's been a fun year, and on this New Year's Eve, please all of you be safe, love your friends and family (and tell them that you do), remember with joy all who have passed and lit up your life and be ready for a new adventure tomorrow.

Steve

Friday, December 25, 2015, Jeffrey Wechsler

Theme: I before E and then wait and C. Your Christmas present is a structured anagram wrapped inside a pun without any Christmas carols.

I am back for my final blog of 2015, and fittingly it is to write up a Jeffrey Wechsler creation. By my impromptu count, this will be the 15th one I have done in '15. This is a wide open grid with 63 theme letters and 93 white squares not near a black one (open). The center is a grid spanning fill with triple sevens in the NW and SW and triple sixes in the NE and SE. Each theme fill has has a very consistent four letter ending anagram with an I in the middle and a silent E at the end.

When I saw lite and mite I was thinking maybe a word ladder was coming our way, and tire seemed confirm that until rite popped into my head and then I 'saw' the earlier anagrams. I wish I could come up with a FIRE/ RIFE fill to make it a ladder as well, but I am sure JW already saw that path was closed. Lots of common crossword fill (e.g. AREA, ETNA, ETE. IRA, AMI unusual for Jeffrey) and a few of his trademark multi-word fill. Let's unwrap this baby.

19A. Word game for beginners? : SCRABBLE LITE (12). I like the clue and fill , but I did not see the gimmick here. TILE becomes LITE.

27A. Ordinary little insect? : STANDARD MITE (12). TIME becomes MITE. Very nice clue, I do hate those dust mite pics.

37A. Radial destroyed during testing? : SACRIFICIAL TIRE (15). Sacrificial RITE is what made me understand where JW was going. Funny fill.

45A. Fate of one constantly reliving the past? : CIRCULAR LIFE (12). The ever needed circular FILE  for all of those great interoffice memos that appear in a big firm.

55A. Memoirs of an African river explorer? : I WALK THE NILE (12). We will let Mr. Cash sing us into the rest of the puzzle.

Across:

1. Sport enjoyed by Henry VIII : TENNIS. This FACT I learned watching the TUDORS on Showtime.

7. Goes for broke : RISKS ALL.

15. Sitcom friend of Jerry : ELAINE.

16. "It eludes me ... " : I DON'T SEE. And generally I do not care.

17. Olympian drink : NECTAR. Depends on who you ASK.

18. Great Sand Dunes National Park location : COLORADO. You want to see? LINK.

21. It starts in juin : ETE. Juin is June in French, not too hard to guess.

22. Big Ben trio : III. On the clock...

23. Fund-raising target : ALUM. Friday so you get no hint that it is an abbreviation.

32. Chancel neighbor : APSE.

35. Edge : INCH. You can edge toward someone or inch like INCH BY INCH.

36. Metaphoric vilification : MUD.No politics, so no mudslinging.

42. Waterfront org. : ILA. Those fun longshoremen.

43. Penicillin, often : CURE. We will not ask what we are using it to cure.

44. Province of Catania attraction : ETNA. We just had this.

50. "A Day Without Rain" artist : ENYA. She is like a dandelion in the spring. LINK. (2:45)

51. Indefinite pronoun : ONE. Not male or female.

52. U.S. Army award since 1918 : DSM. Distinguished Service Medal.

61. Liqueur made with Jamaican rum : TIA MARIA.. Some HISTORY. I never knew this brand was owned by the people who also owned Kahlua.

64. Ancient looker : ADONIS. Slightly censored I guess, here with Venus.

65. Inborn : IMMANENT. One of a confusing TRIO.

66. Hotel supply : LINENS.

67. Security booth site : MAINGATE. Disney?

68. Green Party concern : ENERGY.

Down:

1. Frazzled : TENSE. Relax the rest are easy....

2. Choose : ELECT.

3. Mother-of-pearl : NACRE. The inside of the shell or the outside of the pearl.

4. Female rock guitarist Strauss : NITA. Hmm, I WATCH and am reminded of a recent female bassist.

5. "Soon" : IN A BIT.

6. Landlocked European nation : SERBIA. There are 16 landlocked countries in Europe: Andorra, Armenia, Austria, Belarus, Czech Republic, Hungary, Kazakhstan, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Macedonia, Moldova, San Marino, Serbia, Slovakia, Switzerland and Vatican City, only one has six letters.

7. Dirty __ : RICE. Interestingly, Barry Silk had the fill DIRTY RICE and 20D. Vietnam Veterans Memorial designer : LIN both in his November 14 offering.

8. One with loyal followers : IDOL. and 14D. Confident and loyal sort, so it's said : LEO.

9. Most piano sonatas : SOLI. One player.

10. Square or slip follower : KNOT.

11. Continuous flow : STREAM. Like videos these days.

12. Botanist Gray : ASA. I was ready for this thanks to Mark Bickham and the slew of obscure ASA clues.

13. Wasn't behind anyone : LED.

24. Boundary : LIMIT.

25. Rush hour improbability : U-TURN. Two days in a row. Much nicer than UIE or UEY.

26. Euripides tragedy : MEDEA. An oddly unsuccessful PLAY about the tragedy of Jason.

27. Sun. address : SERmon.

28. Kitchen gadget : DICER. The earlier rice made this easier.

29. Singer DiFranco : ANI.

30. Alabama label : RCA. Does anybody really care about record companies any more?

31. UPS competitor : DHL.

32. Cold __ : AS ICE. All I heard was THIS. (3:15).

33. "The Python Years" diarist Michael : PALIN. Everyone get the spelling correct now?

34. Like nightmares : SCARY.

38. Hosp. section : ICU. Intensive Care Unit.

39. Spoon extension? : FUL. You want one MORE? (2:32).

40. Investment initials : IRA. Individual Retirement Account.

41. Apparel with a message, perhaps : TEE. A xmas present for CED?  LINK.

46. South American crocodilian : CAIMAN. I hope you all remembered these little guys.

47. Developer's offering : LOT. Real estate developer.

48. Checkup request : INHALE. Did you play doctor when you were little?

49. Supply with, as carrots to a food processor : FEED IN. Did we have this recently?

52. 24-hour eatery, often : DINER.

53. Medical support : SLING.

54. Complicated : MESSY. Speaking of which...

56. Big name in early computers : WANG. Does history REPEAT?

57. Expanse : AREA.

58. Home filter target : LINT.

59. The Duchess of Cambridge, familiarly : KATE.

60. "... for __ of woman born / Shall harm Macbeth" : NONE. Jeffrey's dose of Will.

Be bloody, bold, and resolute. Laugh to scorn
The power of man, for none of woman born
Shall harm Macbeth.

61. Robbins of "The Shawshank Redemption" : TIM. One of my top ten favorite movies, from a Stephen King story. TRAILER. (2:11)

62. "__ Man": Spencer Davis Group hit : I'M A this SONG (2:52) followed immediately by its palindromic pal....

63. Côte d'Azur companion : AMI. We end with French, so I will say à bientôt, and hope you all are having a great Christmas.  Thanks for sharing your lives here at the Corner. And JW, thank you for a really great year. Lemonade out.

Notes from C.C.:

1) Happy Birthday to Kathy (Yellowrocks), who's now in New York celebrating this special day with her son and his family. She continues to inspire me with her positive attitude facing various difficulties in life. I'm so happy that she can now dance like she did before her knee surgeries. 

Kathy & Buddha, Japan, 2008

2) Happy Birthday also to Lorraine (Fermatprime), who's been with the blog for a long time. Lorraine is an accomplished math professor and swims daily in her own heated pool. She also does more puzzles every day than most of us.

Thanksgiving, 2015