Sunday May 18, 2014 John Lampkin

Theme:  "Addressing the Crowd" - Each theme answer ends with a street address, all clued appropriate for the profession mentioned in each clue.

23A. Apt address for hit men? : VICIOUS CIRCLE

28A. Apt address for prizefighters? : BELT LOOP

41A. Apt address for petrologists? : ROCKY ROAD. Misty's husband is a petrologist, I think.

50A. Apt address for surgeons? : INSIDE LANE

68A. Apt address for an Orlando team? : MAGIC SQUARE

 

86A. Apt address for photographers? : FLASH DRIVE. We all know John is a nature photographer.

94A. Apt address for gossip columnists? : DIRT TRAIL. Miss the old MSNBC Entertainment coverage.

109A. Apt address for dairymen? : MILKY WAY

118A. Apt address for Australian zookeepers? : KANGAROO COURT

What a great title!

Not a pangram as John's typical Sunday puzzles. 9 theme entries are not easy to deal with, esp if the first one starts with a 13, as you're forced with deep stacks of 7's on the upper right immediately. John could put another black square in square 22, but then he would have exceeded the word limit. 

Same with square 19. This is a potentially 3-letter heavy puzzle (I could easily see 20 in the top and bottom three rows alone), but John is a grid master.

Across:

 

1. Braying beast : ASS. Alliteration.

4. PC display : LCD

7. Places for prayer leaders : APSES

12. Bourbon barrel wood : OAK

15. "Silly me!" : D'OH!. And 18. Silly talk : TWADDLE. I like this word.

20. Collar attachment : LEASH. And 26. Helmet attachments : STRAPS

21. Certify : SWEAR TO

25. "Get busy!" : HOP TO IT!

   

27. Porcine cry : OINK

29. Overjoys : ELATES

31. "C'est magnifique!" : OO LA LA. Hi there Linda!

34. "Besides that ..." : ALSO

35. i follower : POD. iPod.

37. Capable, kiddingly : EPT

38. Chiapas chaperon : DUENA. New word to me. Also not familiar with the Mexican state Chiapas. Another Mexican state in the clue of AMIGA (122. Jalisco gal pal).

39. Mollycoddle : COSSET. No idea. Never been cosseted. 

45. Basic dance : TWO-STEP

47. It's a gas : OZONE

48. Native Canadian : CREE

55. Put under a spell : BEWITCH

57. Liberal group? : ARTS. Good old clue.

59. Scientific map subjects : GENOMES

60. "Three Days of the Condor" org. : CIA. I liked the movie. I like Robert Redford.

61. Scena segment : ARIA

62. Miler Sebastian : COE

64. Bug user : SNOOP. Wiretap bug.

65. Jerk : DORK.  Nope. Dorks are not jerks.

72. Football Hall of Famer Marchetti : GINO. Look, he even attached HOF in his signature.

73. Projecting window : ORIEL

75. Finder's reward : FEE

76. It may be artificial : TURF

77. Grate stuff : ASH

79. Pull back, as talons : RETRACT. Vivid clue.

81. Two in seventy-five? : VEES. Two letter V's.

82. Aaron Burr was once tried for it : TREASON. He was? This guy was so problematic.

89. Africa's Mobutu __ Seko : SESE

91. Kiddie lit redhead : PIPPI

92. Car deal component : TRADE-IN

96. Synagogue leaders : RABBIS

100. Two-time US Open winner : SELES (Monica). 

102. Burn at the beach : FRY. Shout-out to a blog regular, who loves his Pirates.

103. Bee follower : CEE

104. Jai __ : ALAI

105. Ankle-related : TARSAL

106. What burglars may walk on : TIPTOE

112. Hummable bit : TUNE. So simple, so beautiful. Make me think of the young Spitzboov, Argyle & PK.

114. Fairy tale brother : HANSEL. And Gretel.

117. Searches for anew : RE-SEEKS

121. For kicks : ON A LARK

123. Missing more marbles : LOONIER. Fun clue.

124. Mil. award : DSM (Distinguished Service Medal)

125. Turning meas. : RPS

126. River to the Bering Sea : YUKON

 

127. USCG officer : ENS (Ensigns)

128. Carol contraction : 'TIS

Down:

1. Some three-wheelers, briefly : ATVs

2. "M*A*S*H" actress : SWIT. "Hot Lips".

3. Untouchable : SACRED COW. Lovely entry.

4. Parkinson's treatment : L-DOPA

5. Tight gathering : CLUSTER

6. __ Plaines, Illinois : DES

7. Et __ : ALII

8. Anise-flavored liqueur : PERNOD. Gimme for Argyle, not me.

9. Grab some z's : SACK OUT

10. Subj. for aliens : ESL

11. Boater's pronoun : SHE. Not "Boater" hat.

12. Irish actor Milo : O'SHEA

13. Like a GI who missed the boat? : AWOL. On purpose then.

14. Didn't trash : KEPT

15. Responds to kitchen aromas : DROOLS. Do you miss your grandma's kitchen? I do.

16. Futile : OTIOSE. This word looks fat to me.

17. British stew : HOT POT. Chinese too.

19. Where to see hands on a wrist : DIAL. Another fun clue.

22. Traveler's aid : ATLAS

24. Credit sharer : CO-STAR

28. Coty Award winner Bill : BLASS. See here. He won in 1983. The Award was discontinued in 1985.

30. Big period : EPOCH

32. 2013 Women's British Open winner Stacy : LEWIS. Old course at St. Andrews. JD was there once.

33. Auth. unknown : ANON

35. SAT item : PROB. And 70. SAT item : QUES. Problem and Questions.

36. Exude : OOZE

39. Hand over : CEDE

40. Pops the top off : OPENS

42. Old-style golf wear : KNICKERS

43. Sasquatch kin : YETI

44. Honey substitute? : DEARIE. Sweet!

46. Member of the Panthera genus : TIGER

49. Spy novelist Ambler : ERIC

51. Classical music lover, facetiously : LONG HAIR. Both John & Rich are long hair(s) then!

52. Mine, in Monaco : A MOI

53. Vegas light : NEON

54. Beantown hockey hero : ESPO. Phil Esposito.

56. Nanny follower : CAM. Nanny cam.

58. Aesthetic attitude : TASTE

61. Negotiate a figurative hill? : AGE. I don't get this clue.

62. Put under a spell : CURSED

63. Klutz : OAF

65. German village : DORF. Learning moment for me.

66. Sportscaster Hershiser : OREL

67. Poet Dove : RITA

69. Performers' union acronym : AFTRA (American Federation of Television and Radio Artists)

71. Wing for Dumbo : EAR

74. "Chicago Hope" Emmy winner : LAHTI (Christine)

78. Equinox mo. : SEPT

80. Burned media, for short : CD-Rs. CD-R = Compact Disc-Recordable.

81. Salome septet : VEILS

82. Country singer Clark : TERRI

83. Apollo protection : SPACE SUIT. I was thinking of Greek god Apollo, Gary!

84. Mayberry moppet : OPIE

85. River to the Mediterranean : NILE

87. "In my opinion ..." : I'D SAY

88. Deviate : VEER

90. Bakery tool : SIFTER

93. One who's bound to order? : NEATNIK. Loved the clue and answer.

95. Tropical blow : TYPHOON

96. Muzzleloading aid : RAMROD

97. Far-out bunch? : ALIENS

98. Holiday tree : BALSAM

99. Theodore of "The Defiant Ones" : BIKEL. He looks familiar. I must have googled him before.

101. Nancy's buddy : SLUGGO

105. Things to do : TASKS

107. Mexican restaurant staples : TACOS

108. "__, you noblest English": "Henry V" : ON, ON

110. Coin datum : YEAR

111. Sitcom radio station : WKRP

113. Tandoori bread : NAAN

115. "... __ saw Elba" : ERE I

116. P.O. deliveries : LTRS

118. Kick starter? : KAY. Letter K. Or our Kazie's real name.

119. __ Darya River : AMU

120. Corrida kudos : OLE

C.C.

Sunday January 19, 2014 John Lampkin

Theme: - "Oh, No!" - O is removed from a common phrase with an OU bigram.

23A. "$%*#& computer!"? : CRASH CURSE. Crash course.

25A. Spillane's inspiration? : MICKEY MUSE. Micky mouse. Mickey Spillane.

54A. Like PETA members? : DOWN ON ALL FURS. Down on all fours.

83A. Sugar daddy? : FUNDING FATHER. Founding father.

112A. Keyboard technique suggested by the instruction "attacca"? : PIANO LUNGE. Piano lounge. John is a pianist.

116A. Well-mannered sisters? : PROPER NUNS. Proper nouns.

37D. "Thanks, Pierre, nice mug!"? : MERCI, BEAU CUP. Merci beaucoup.  A rare word split, but John's OU to O candidates are very limited. You'll know when you try this approach.

42D. Short anchor? : CURT REPORTER. Court reporter. 

Of the 8 entries, 2 have O's removed from the first word. Quite consistent.

Naturally it's a pangram grid (every letter is used at least once) & cheater free & full of fun clues, John's hallmarks.

This puzzle also has lots of sparkly long fill. Just look at the left quadrant alone: OKAY BY ME, SQUEEZE IN, BARE SKIN, STEAMY & SABBATH. All done without any cheater. Incredible craftsmanship.

Across:

1. Fix things : ATONE

6. Egret kin seen in hieroglyphs : IBIS. He is a picture John took. He said it's "American White Ibis, hunting for aquatic prey".

10. "Paw" on "The Beverly Hillbillies" : JED

13. Courage : METTLE

19. Give room for growth, as seedlings : RE-POT

20. Slacker's word : CAN'T. And 22. Slacker's lack : ENERGY

21. Program file extension : EXE

27. Networking, maybe : ON-LINE. The first time I went on line is 1999. How about you?

28. Predictions affected by storms, briefly : ETAs

30. Dance step : TOE TAP

31. Fancy wheels : ROLLS

33. Apt name for a truck driver? : MAC. Oh, Mack truck.

35. Wagner's "__ Rheingold" : DAS

36. ER part: Abbr. : EMER

40. Armor-breaking weapon : MACE

43. "Sure" : OKAY BY ME. Lovely entry.

46. Sherlock's adversary Adler : IRENE. River Doc just mentioned her yesterday.

47. Add to a busy schedule : SQUEEZE IN. Another great entry.

50. Prior to A.D. : BCE

51. Some OPEC ministers : QATARIS

53. It's about 10% larger than Australia : EUR

57. Fresno campus inits. : CSU (California State University)

58. Birch flower clusters : CATKINS

60. Pigged out : ATE A TON. I can eat a ton of rice noodle rolls.

61. __ of fare : BILL

62. Mechanical learning : ROTE

63. Way up : HIGH

65. "No way!" : NOT ON A BET

67. Takedown expert? : STENO. Great clue.

69. Sculls : OARS

70. Father : SIRE

71. Mr. Rogers and others : FREDS

72. Flash mob? : PAPARAZZI. Look at the crossings. So clean.

74. Tear : REND. Verb "tear".

75. Goya's "The Duchess of __" : ALBA

76. Bygone theaters : RKOS

77. Antlered Eurasians : ROE DEER

79. The 2006 novel "Hannibal Rising," for one : PREQUEL. Never saw it. Must be the prequel to "The Silence of the Lambs".

82. "__ durn tootin'!" : YER

86. 1880s pres. monogram : CAA. Chester Alan Arthur.

87. Interweave : ENTWINE

89. Actress Hagen : UTA

90. More than dull : DRY AS DUST

92. Mug at a bar : STEIN. I like this clue also.

93. Detect intuitively : SMELL OUT

95. Fencing tool : EPEE

96. On the fence : TORN

97. __ room : REC

99. Old touring car : REO

100. Sniggler : EELER

103. Kitschy garden figures : GNOMES

106. Scary contest : DUEL

108. Where to find baked blackbirds : IN A PIE. I once had IN A RUG in a grid. Rich said it's a partial.

118. Drawing power : ALLURE

119. When Le Havre gets hot : ETE

120. Rain-deflecting aid : EAVE

121. Grimm baddies : OGRES

 

122. Cleaver : MEAT AX

123. Leb. neighbor : ISR

124. One in a flight : STEP

125. 2013 Daytime Emmy winner Gibbons : LEEZA

Down:

1. Violist's direction : ARCO. "With the bow". Learned it from doing xwords.

2. "One good __ deserves another": birder's quip : TERN. Fun clue.

3. Aussie gem : OPAL

4. "Fat chance!" : NO SIREE

5. Centric opening : ETHNO

6. "ER" setting : ICU

7. Nudist's covering? : BARE SKIN. Nice clue/answer. Have you ever been to a nude beach?

8. Technical sch. : INST

9. Hot and heavy : STEAMY

10. Atticus Finch's son : JEM

11. Way out : EXIT

12. Figure out : DECODE

13. Boy-girl link : MEETS. Boy meets Girl.

14. Grammy-winning Celtic musician : ENYA

15. Andrew Wyeth medium : TEMPERA. This word is so close to Tempura.

16. "__ Calling": 2000s Eliza Dushku TV series : TRU. Never heard of it.

17. Optimus F3 cellphones : LGs

18. Batting organ : EYE.  Here is another photo from John. He said: "The compound eye of a Crane Fly, which is approximately 1 mm in diameter".

24. Frame of Bugs, e.g. : CEL. 55. Bugs : NAGS.

26. Mauna __ : KEA

29. Holy day : SABBATH

32. Chain with popcorn : LOEWS

34. Bike : CYCLE

38. Like Crusoe : ENISLED. Only in xwords.

39. Outcomes : RESULTS

40. 1/60,000 of a min. : MSEC

41. Cyan shade : AQUA

44. "Wheel" purchase : AN "O"

45. Biological pigment : MELANIN

46. Commonly mistyped word : IT'S. I mistyped THE more often.

48. Piece polisher : EDITOR

49. Region : ZONE

51. Repeat exactly : QUOTE

52. New Yorker cartoonist Peter : ARNO

56. Former Calif. base : FT. ORD

59. Hawaiian storms : KONAS. I only know Kona the coffee.

61. Backyard Jul. 4 event : BAR-B-Q

63. Obscured : HAZED

64. Metal named for a blue line in its spectrum : IRIDIUM. Does this word have the same root as Blue Iris? (Added later: The Across Lite clue is: Metal named for the Greek goddess of the rainbow.)

66. Jags or Vikes : NFLers. Star Tribune has lots of coverage on the new head coach for the Vikings.

67. Most nimble : SPRYEST

68. Fallen for : TAKEN TO

69. Protective layer : OZONE

70. One whose efforts were feudal : SERF. What a great clue! Futile.

73. Have __ of good luck : A RUN

74. Entertained : REGALED

75. Field : AREA

78. Key with an arrow : ENTER. Does your SHIFT have an arrow also?

79. Neo- or bryo- ender : PHYTE

80. Comfort : EASE

81. Overdue : LATE

83. Dart part : FIN. Don't play darts. No idea on FIN.

84. Flap : ADO

85. Soul mate : TRUE LOVE. Hope Splynter finds his soon.

88. Hand-tightened fastener : WING NUT. We had this entry a few years ago, and the constructor is ???. Guess!

91. Make bananas? : DERANGE. So many nice clues today.

93. Curtain-raising time : SCENE I

94. Watchmakers' aids : LOUPES

97. Pricey watch : ROLEX

98. Avian Aussie : EMU

101. Concern in the rough : LIE. Golf.

102. Join, in London : ENROL. We use Enroll.

104. __ Barnacle, wife of James Joyce : NORA. Gimme for Misty, our expert on James Joyce.

105. Snorkel et al.: Abbr. : SGTS

107. Q.E.D. part : ERAT

109. Utter : PURE

110. R&B singer Foxx : INEZ. Not a familiar name to me.

111. She, in Salerno : ESSA

112. Spray in the pantry : PAM

113. Seine sight : ILE

114. Bit of culinary jargon : A LA

115. Bard's adverb : E'ER

117. Spirit : PEP

C.C.

Friday November 1, 2013 John Lampkin

 Theme: SUB (66D. Prefix for the answers to starred clues, and word needed for those clues to make sense) - The clues for all the starred entries make sense only if you add SUB in front of them.

17A. *Dive, surface, dive, surface, etc.? : ROUTINE. Sub routine. I did not know the original word "subroutine". Google shows it's a computer term. Tell me more, TTP/D-Otto.

18A. *Lab growth below sea level? : CULTURE. Sub culture.

30A. *Underwater speaker? : WOOFER. Sub woofer. See here.

40A. *Story line for "The Hunt for Red October"? : PLOT. Sub plot.

41A. *Hatch? : ENTRY. Sub entry. Not famliar with the nautical term "Hatch". Dictionary shows it's also called "Hatchway": an opeing, usually rectangler, in the deck through which passngers can pass, cargo can be loaded and unloaded. I bet Spitzboov nailed this.

42A. *Underwater lateral surface? : SIDE. Sub side.

46A. *Position on naval warfare? : STANCE. Sub stance.

62A. *Sonar reading? : HEADING. Sub heading.

65A. *Message from beneath the surface? : MISSIVE. Sub missive.

4D. *Scenery for "Operation Petticoat"? : SET. Sub set.

C.C. here, pinch-hitting for Lemonade, who can't get the new puzzle because Cruciverb is still down. He'll be back next Friday.

What a tour de force from John Lampkin! This grid reminds me of the CHINESE puzzle I made for the NY Times in September. See here.  

Look how similar the grids are. Both 78 words. Both have a single 9-letter entry in the central Down. None of our theme entries is more than 7-letter long. However, I only have 9 theme entries. John has 11 today. I have total 38 black squares, with two cheaters (the black square above 39D AGE and below 34D SWE), John has 34, no cheaters. 

He's just a master!

Across:

1. Turn over : CAPSIZE

8. Copes : MAKES DO

15. Banned : ILLEGAL. Great stacked of 7's here.

16. "To reiterate ..." : AS I SAID.  Some use "Like I said". I use former.  And 5D. "Uncle!" : I GIVE UP. Nice colloquial phrases.

19. Item in a tent : COT

20. French spa town : VICHY. EVIAN a spa town also, right?

22. Some amber orders : ALES

23. Zenith : APOGEE

25. Syria's Bashar al-__ : ASSAD. Now, his phone should be tapped.

28. Lorelei, notably : LURER. I think Kazie saw this sign in person. On the bank of the Rhine. Different spelling there. 

34. Invite to one's tree house : ASK UP

37. Wilde's "An __ Husband" : IDEAL. Never read it.

39. At least one : ANY

43. Ages : EON

44. Bob Barker's longtime sidekick Johnny : OLSON

45. Clearance events : SALES
48. Lose it : GO MAD

50. Bivouac : ETAPE.  Dictionary says it's rooted in Middle French "estaple", which is further rooted in Middle Dutch "Stapel", meaning "warehouse".

52. Starting lineups : A-TEAMS

56. Toll rd. : TPKE (Turnpike)

59. Nintendo ancestor : ATARI

61. Caviar, e.g. : ROE

67. In real trouble : UP A TREE. John shot this picture in Costa Rica. He said: "The Three-toed Sloth spends most of his life in the tree tops, coming down only once a week to defecate. And Grampa thinks HE has problems!"

(Please click on the above picture to read John's caption.)

68. Flavored, like some vodka : INFUSED. Why do you infuse vodka?

69. Comebacks: RETORTS

70. Convertible couches : DAYBEDS

Down:

1. Word for a rough date : CIRCA. Oh, antique dating.

2. Throw for __ : A LOOP

3. Demotion in 2006 news : PLUTO. From Ninth planet to a dwarf.

6. More wacky : ZANIER

7. Util. bill item : ELEC

8. Annual parade sponsor : MACY'S

9. Sch. with a Mesa campus : ASU

10. 3,280.8 ft. : KIL (Kilometer)

11. Sonora, por ejemplo : ESTADO. Spanish for "State".

12. King David's predecessor : SAUL. John/Rich must not like Saul Goodman of "Breaking Bad". Better call Saul.

13. Dreadful : DIRE

14. Stanzas of tribute : ODES

21. How some singles play : HARD TO GET. Another gem.

24. Flood : GLUT

26. Vacillate : SWAY

27. IM provider : AOL

29. Fifth of fünf : EINS. fünf is "five" then.

31. Fall flat : FAIL

32. German finale : ENDE

33. Grains used by brewers and bakers : RYES. Bother me so much that you can't pluralize "corn" when other grains can be so. We have red corn, yellow corn, white corn after all. Always "Foot woes".

34. Copycats : APES

35. One in a Vegas row : SLOT

36. Hawaiian coffee-growing district : KONA

38. Cube maker Rubik : ERNO

41. Where Zeno taught : ELEA. Zeno of Elea, the Greek philosopher.

42. Nigerian-born Grammy winner : SADE. Her sister used to sing at a Spanish pub owned by a friend's parents.

44. Mo. for many Libras : OCT

45. Fulfill : SATISFY

47. Must : NEED TO

49. Berth place : MARINA. Loved the clue.

51. Leaves : PAGES. I don't get this clue. "Leafs/pages" through makes sense.

53. Leave one's seat : ARISE

54. Left town, maybe : MOVED

55. Feeder filler : SEEDS

56. Schedule abbr. : THUR. Our Marti Day.

57. Skunk Le Pew : PEPE

58. '50s-'80s pitcher Jim "Kitty" __ : KAAT. He was with the Twins for a long time.

60. Hemmed in by : AMID

63. Discount tag abbr. : IRR. I like Marshalls. You?

64. Entomologist's tool : NET.  Entomologists studies insects.

David Liben-Nowell, a NYT crossword constructor, kindly invited Twin Cities constructors to a presentation by Matt Ginsberg yesterday at Carleton College. Matt is the genius behind Dr. Fill, the crossword equivalent of IBM's Watson. His talk was quite geeky and I only understood a tiny portion of what he said, but it was so nice to meet with him and thanked him in person for the free clue database I've been using for a few years. Also eye-opening to see Dr Fill accurately solve this Wednesday's NYT in 2 minutes. Matt will present Carleton's weekly convocation address today. It'll be streamed on line. Click here.

Left to Right: George Barany, David Liben-Nowell, Matt Ginsberg, C.C. & Tom Pepper
Oct 31, 2013, Carleton College

Friday, July 12, 2013, John Lampkin

Theme: Author, Author. Write me a pun.

Another intricate web spun by a true renaissance man John Lampkin, who flexes his intimate knowledge of music, amusement and creepy crawlies to create a really challenging Friday fracas. (Bill G., look what you and your kerfuffling has done!). The four theme answers are set in pairs, two across and two down with a fifth entry in the middle; they each take in the language phrases/words and with a new clue create new phrases where the second word in each is a form of writing creating the first level of puns. The melange of clechos, and twisted definitions made this quite the kaleidoscope. While there may be one or two groaners, the overall fill is wonderful, with some nice intermediates like AS IT WERE, COLD FEET, HOMESPUN, KNEE DEEP each of which interesects another of the 8 letter fill with the awesome knee deep/cold feet and new ways to clue some others. Let's get to it.

17A. Article about a bottle of whiskey?: FIFTH COLUMN.(11). I read all about the threat of the fifth column in Great Britain, France and the US in the 30's and 40's. LINK. John gives us the more benign discussion of why is booze sold in 1/5 of a gallon container rather than the more common 1/4 gallon, also known as a quart.

62A. Essay for grammar class? : PERIOD PIECE.(11). A write up about proper usage of a period might not be too interesting, but I am sure one about commas will always start debate.

41A. Autobiography?: I BOOK. I-BOOK becomes a book about the author. Multiple layer pun.

11D. Report on the site of the Humpty-Dumpty tragedy?: WALL PAPER.(9). My favorite and the one which revealed the theme. Like the other down clue, JL takes a word and splits in two to reveal the new and silly answer.

34D. Drama about Trigger? : HORSE PLAY.(9). By making both of the down theme answers derived from a single word, JL added another layer of symmetry to his work. While I love Roy Rogers, it is creepy to picture Trigger stuffed and on display (not that play?). Did I mention I liked the horse which portrayed Silver in the new Lone Ranger movie?

Across:

1. '90s-'00s first baseman Martinez : TINO. Man, I thought I was going to breeze through this puzzle as I just watched on Wednesday night, a local Miami Marlin telecast where the new Marlin hitting coach and former Yankee star was interviewed. Then to make sure I was right, I did 1 down, and it was a college my Uncle went to.....

5. Batter like the wind : BUFFET

11. Best in a game : WIN. Best the verb, not the noun. Notice how John has Tino, batter and Win all across the top.

14. Whole thing, or its part : UNIT. The team was an effective unit, or each unit was part of the team?

15. Maroon : ENISLE. I fought this one for a while, but where do people get marooned? Gilligan's mountain?

16. Old ring leader? : ALI. More splitting words and not hairs; a ring leader, not a ringleader. He was the Greatest.

 

19. Bar in the shower : LUX. As soon as I had the L, I had it because what other soap is three letters with an L? It also begins the clechomania. 29A. Bar in the kitchen : OLEO. Give him a pat on the back for working this pair in.

20. Blowup cause : TNT. Another dynamite deception.

21. Prefix with bound : EAST. This was another one I did not have much faith in until the Tada. I kept remembering this very obscene SCENE.(1:23). No nudity, but the language is very coarse, please do not view if offended by bad language and imagery.

22. Loud salute : SALVO. Twenty-one guns make a lot of noise.

24. Bird's-eye view provider : SKYCAM. You see them hanging there is all the sporting events. VIEW.

26. Folksy : HOMESPUN. Like Will Rogers or the Prairie Home Companion.

31. Composer/conductor Boulanger : NADIA. No Comăneci for JL, but the creator of THIS, (19:37), as well  as "teacher" of Aaron Copland, Quincy Jones, Piazzolla, Michel Legrand, Leonard Bernstein, Philip Glass, Ginette Neveu and so many more...(various sources).

32. Macy's competitor : KOHL'S. I love this store, where you can buy dress shirts, towels, coffee makers and more all at great prices. The store began as a grocery chain in Wisconsin, but in the last 10 years it has expanded into 49 states. The family bought the basketball team I think.

35. Black, to Jacques : NOIR. Just love the rhyme in the clue.

37. Hardly a back rd. : TPKE. Abbreviated clues mean abbreviated ans.

40. Walked : TROD. This took a while even though it is a simple word.

42. Unwanted growth : WEED. I wanted WART, well actually I never wanted a wart but I was thinking of on the body like...oh never mind.

43. One born unfree : SERF. Unfree; great clue.

44. Beaver's expletive? : DAMN. Dam, he is probably right.

45. Antarctic phenomena : BERGS, this and its partner, 53A. Antarctic phenomenon : ICE CAP were extremely difficult for me and I spent way too much time in the southwest corner as I was trying to put in the more esoteric. mirages, parhelia, halos, arcs, midnight sun

46. They can make good impressions : SEALS. Like the old days where wax seals were on everything, and lawyers used silver to seal all deeds.

48. Start to get going : STIR. Not a creature was stirring. How are you Creature? And, 57A. Get going : HOP TO.

50. Seriously involved : KNEE DEEP. We will not speculate as to what substance JL had in mind...

58. Downwind : ALEE. Not Ann from the Shakers, not Robert, just another crossword staple.

60. Put in service : USE. Notice how this juxtaposes the next clue

61. Service-related: Abbr. : MILitary.

66. That niña : ESA. Spanish.

67. Faddish : TRENDY.

68. King with a notable nape : LION. JL is my main man here.

69. King of Spain : REY. More Spanish.

70. Den piece : SETTEE. Put your buttee on my..close to the Lion answer to add to the fun...

71. They evolved from wasp-like ancestors : ANTS. You can see the resemblance in this wonderful picture form the photographic artistry of our John Lampkin. Notice the ant grooming the ambush bug reveling in its kill.

Down:

1. New England school with a campus in the French Alps : TUFTS. This research University should be familiar to our New England group as it sits in Medford/Somerville, Massachusetts. My Uncle did a study on bird anatomy while there.

2. Indelibly : IN INK. The way certain arrogant solvers do their puzzles.

3. Peachy-keen : NIFTY. This whole puzzle.....

4. Cooperstown's Mel : OTT. I was playing in my head the Gary Cooper scene, as Lou Gehrig, where he says he is the luckiest man in the world, when Mel reappeared..

5. Evolved into : BECAME. I did not want to put this in, with 10D. Became anxious : TENSED, which I had filled first...it really did make me all tense.

6. Juan's "some" : UNOS. Yes, un poco mas. I do not speak Spanish.

7. Laundry challenge : FILTH. So many five letter laundry problems, stain, grime...In GB they call the police the filth.

8. Seminoles' sch. : FSU. In keeping with my luck in solving, Florida State University in Tallahassee (known as the girls college to U. of Florida grads) is the alma mater of son one and his bride and we do know Seminole. My favorite casino.

9. Certain leaf beetle's target : ELM. More insect trivia, though this pic is not John's.

12. Candy heart message : I LUV U. It is safe to tell someone you luv them because by spelling it wrong you are released from all promises.

13. "___ in China": John Adams opera : NIXON. Another composer from John who also composes. Watch.(6;33) I wonder what they thought in China. C.C.? (From C.C.: Nixon is very well respected in China due to his groundbreaking visit.)

18. Makes sound : HEALS. Extra tricky right next to a musical "sound' clue.

23. So to speak : AS IT WERE. Fun phrase.

25. Cause of a sudden withdrawal : COLD FEET. I knew 'her husband's key in the door' would not fit.

27. Shallot relatives : ONIONS. I enjoy the discussion of the various members of the onion family set out by Rex Stout in his Nero Wolfe books.

28. Dog-ear, e.g. : MARK. I would never mark my place by dog earring a book; it must hurt the page. You could tell if Wolfe liked a book by how he marked his place.

30. Hoping to score : ON BASE. Where is Dennis now that we need his comments; a nice little baseball clue slipped in. Those were impressive eyes.

32. Valuable rock nos. : KTS. karats, followed by 33D. Rock with promise : ORE. and 59D. Rock band? : LODE.

36. Tuba player's mantra? : OOM. Oh, pah, he takes the standard OM and makes it fit music.

38. Suds holder : KEG. After seeding our mind with thoughts of soap, he flashes this beer reference to make a three letter fill a bit of a challenge.

39. Mag wheels? : EDS. Magazine and editors. Another use of word play.

41. Like a bump on a log : IDLE. Did your parents say to you, "Well don't just sit there like a bump on a log."

45. ___ curls : BICEP. 2 days a week for me, using dumbbells.

47. Accepts, as a resolution : ADOPTS. If you do minutes for corporations, you see every resolution that passes is adopted.

49. Eye-popping shirt : TIE DYE. I think he meant it this way.

50. ___ Rouge : KHMER. With this letter progression I am surprised we do not see more of this horrible BUNCH which got its name from all the red blood it shed in Cambodia.

51. Tumult : NOISE. There you go Bill G.

52. Manet's medium : PAINT. Sometimes, I really hate doing puzzles. I spent way too long trying to adjust OILS or impressionism into the fill when the answer emerged, I wanted to...

54. Bring up to speed : CUE IN. This for me was the eh, but maybe I just do not know it.

55. Race site for 300+ years : ASCOT. I am sure John knew they are RACING this week end. It was founded 302 years ago by Queen Anne.

56. Rounded hand-tool parts : PEENS. I think I can HAMMER this concept home.

63. Previous to : ERE. The only fill needing no comment. Oops, too late.

64. IRA part: Abbr. : RETirement.

65. Dockworker's gp. : ILA. And our parting shot, International Longshoremen's Association.

Well along with composing, traveling to take pictures, lecturing, playing music,  studying all kinds of flying things, it is a pleasure to have Mr. Lampkin back to leave us a summer present. Thanks JL and thank you all for watching this weeks episode. (JL, no J?)

Lemonade out.

Note from C.C.:

Happy 83nd Birthday to dear Sallie, who is bravely fighting cancer. Click here if you missed the Naples Corner gathering pictures.

Every time someone on the blog says "Happy Belated Birthday to ....", I'll think of Sallie, who taught us the correct form is "Belatedly Happy Birthday to ....!"

Sunday Feb 10, 2013 John Lampkin

Theme: Floridation - FL is added to each familiar phrase.

24A. Jaw-dropping reaction to butterflies? : FLUTTER AMAZEMENT. Utter amazement. FL is added to the vowel-starting words in all the theme entries.

Who am I?

43A. Salutation to an out-of-shape friend? : DEAR FLABBY. Dear Abby. Our Star Tribune has "Dear Amy".

52A. Outrageous ice cream concoctions? : WILD FLOATS. Wild oats.

65A. Masters of the felt-tipped pen? : FLAIR ACES. Air aces. Flair pen.

82A. Bulletproof linen fiber? : BATTLE FLAX. Battle ax.

112A. Cuban tortilla king? : FLOUR MAN IN HAVANA. Our Man in Havana.

89A. Cowering caterpillar? : FLINCH WORM. Inch worm. I always thought Flinch is just a verb.

3D. Botany major's hurdles? : FLORAL EXAMS. Oral Exams.

68D. Turkeys no one knows about? : COVERT FLOPS. Covert ops.

C.C. here. John wrote me a note the other day. It sums up this puzzle perfectly:

"And ooh, look at that, a pair of cheaters. I think that's only the second time I've used them in a 21. And no pangram. The fact that it's nine theme entries and a 140 means that something had to give in order to get decent fill. 

I wonder how many solvers will notice that "Floridation" has nothing to do with adding flouride to water. The chemical symbol for flourine is F. FL = Florida of course, and "Floridation" is a made up word."

Not that there's anything wrong with cheater squares. But John has his own high standards and he likes to make every black square count. We have 70 black squares today. Often it's 78.

Also, notice the theme intersection in this grid? It takes luck and skills to make it work, esp if your theme entries are limited and you don't have much wiggle room.

Across:

1. Drift, as smoke : WAFT

5. Macbeth's hallucination : DAGGER. "Is this a DAGGER which I see before me.". And 115. Macbeth's burial isle : IONA

11. Pearly entrance? : GATES. Pearly gates.

16. Pedicure place : SPA. Husker Gary, don't bite Dudley's bait!

19. That girl, in Quebec : ELLE

20. Plaza Hotel girl : ELOISE

21. Performer with a whip : LION TAMER. I was picturing those kinky bondage/whipping.

23. Poker, e.g. : TOOL. Great clue.

26. Bellyacher : SORE HEAD

28. Auth. unknown : ANON. I'm very annoyed at some anonymous posts on the blog. Those who steal others' avatar identity disgust me. Not cool! Not funny!

29. Within reach : DOABLE

30. Birthday tiara, e.g. : PAPER HAT. This picture is from Truman's 5th birthday. Lovely.

32. Mike who married Liz Taylor : TODD

34. Gets out of shape? : MELTS. Another great clue.

36. Legal deg. : LLB. So is LLD. More 95. "The Good Wife" fig. : ATT. And 38D. 95-Across's org. : ABA. I talked with Lemonade twice on the phone. His voice is very young. I also talked with John Lampkin once. He's a real gentleman.

37. Backwash creators : OARS. I like "Creators" in the clue. Trick others think of people. "Legend creator" for ACURA is  another good example.

39. Bi- halved : UNI

42. Uncommon : RARE

47. Animals : FAUNA

49. Beat it : RAN

50. Like some beans : WAXY. No idea why Spitzboov hates wax beans. They're tasty.

51. Tripoli's country : LIBYA

54. Mobile phone site?: Abbr. : ALA. Oh, Mobile Alabama.

55. Neuter, as a horse : GELD

56. __ Na Na : SHA

57. Research foundation, often : GRANTEE

58. Barrel cleaner : RAMROD

60. Like pitfalls : UNSEEN

63. George who plays Stokes on "CSI" : EADS. Stranger! Call me maybe?

64. Dough hoarder : MISER
 

67. Hunter's trick : DECOY

71. Israel's Netanyahu, familiarly : BIBI. He often appears dismissive & derisive.

73. It helps dough rise : GLUTEN. No gluten in rice/corn.

74. Climbers' spikes : PIT-ONS

75. Officer's ornament : EPAULET
 

78. Future father's sch.? : SEM. Fun clue.

79. Flower bed wetter : RAIN

81. Ex halved : VEE. Alright, Roman numerals. V is half X.
  

84. Scrub the mission : ABORT

86. What's needed for the job : GEAR
 

87. Scrap for Rover : ORT

88. Going on, to Holmes : AFOOT

91. Unspecified degrees : NTHS

93. Boffo abbr. : SRO (Standing Room Only)

94. Happiness : GLEE
  

96. Some crash programs : DIETS. Oh, I have a question regarding tuna steak. Do you cook yours rare in the middle? I'm worried that I'll get sick if I do not cook it thorough. Our grocery store tuna is not Sushi grade.

98. 1957 war movie title river : KWAI.  "The Bridge on the River Kwai".

100. Hoi polloi : RIFFRAFF. Ellen's show has a Riff Raff Room.

105. "I Have __": 1963 speech : A DREAM. 6-letter partials are allowed in LAT.

108. Costly : HIGH

110. Aquamarine : NILE BLUE
  

116. Nuclear family? : ATOM BOMBS. I'm in constant in awe of John's creative brain.

117. Faddish : TRENDY

118. Some state-spanning rds. : TPKS (Turnpikes)

119. Postal motto word : NOR

120. Big name in vacuums : ORECK

121. Accent : STRESS

122. In __: actually : ESSE

Down:

1. Prepares for shampooing : WETS. I've been loving Pantene Overnight Miracle. It smells great. But I haven't noticed any result yet. I wish I could pull off Marti's hairstyle.

2. Throw for __ : A LOOP

4. Work for the small screen : TELEPLAY
 

5. Table : DEFER. Verb "Table".

6. God of Islam : ALLAH

7. Big wheel in delis : GOUDA

8. "Beat it, ya varmint!" : GIT

9. This, to Juanita : ESTA

10. Pre-splashdown stage : RE-ENTRY. Solid Re-word.

11. Pancreas, for one : GLAND

12. End : AIM

13. Horned __ : TOAD

14. Carmaker Ferrari : ENZO. I finally remembered him.

15. Power plant output : STEAM

16. Harbor suspicion : SMELL A RAT. Our mouse is gone. Not caught. He just disappeared.

17. Get behind, as enemy lines : PENETRATE. OK, "as enemy lines"...

18. Met acquisition : ART. The Met.

22. Insect preserver : AMBER

25. Aussie hoppers : ROOS

27. Lang. of Israel : HEBR. Hahtoola speaks Hebrew.

31. Belch in "Twelfth Night" : TOBY. Sir Toby Belch.

33. __ citizenship : DUAL

35. Common quality? : SENSE.
  

40. Pokes : NUDGES

41. Structural opening? : INFRA. Infrastructual.

43. __ Lama : DALAI

44. Beat it : FLED

45. Like Abner—but not really : LIL

46. Season 1 judge on "The X Factor" : ABDUL (Paula). Simon Cowell let her go after only one season.

47. Betrothed : FIANCE

48. Folk tale rubber? : ALADDIN
 

50. Affectionate : WARM. Chinese, and other East Asians, as a whole, are not very affectionate. Friendly, yes, but reserved.

52. Thresher grain : WHEAT

53. Dawn : ONSET

55. Animal named from a Greek word meaning "tribe of hairy women" : GORILLA. New trivia to me.

56. Shot contents : SERUM. Not the shot I had in mind.

59. Prove otherwise : REBUT

61. Pesters persistently : NAGS AT

62. Big name in coffeemakers : SILEX

65. Made to suit : FIT FOR

66. Bankrupt energy giant : ENRON

69. Late retirement time : ONE AM. Not for Argyle. He's still wide awake then.

70. River of Flanders : YSER

72. Bellyaches : BEEFS

74. Central part : PITH

75. WWII Treasury offering : E BOND

76. Especially fond of : PARTIAL TO. Does anyone have good wild rice soup recipe for Avg Joe?

77. Where you might experience hard knocks? : AT THE DOOR

80. Arrow's path : ARC

83. Take a gander : LOOK

84. Canterbury quaff : ALE. And  85. Cologne quaff : BIER. Beer.

86. Raided the fridge : GOT A BITE. Lots of goodies in our fridge right now.

89. Parts of darts : FLIGHTS

90. Hard or soft ending : WARE. Learned a lot about my PC from TTP last week.

92. Doodle on the guitar : STRUM

94. Advance : GAIN

97. __-Croatian : SERBO

99. Beat in the kitchen : WHISK

101. Birdbrained : INANE

102. Comes across : FINDS

103. Criticizes harshly : FLAYS

104. Depressions : FUNKS. Funk looks like a word that can't be pluralized.

106. Love, to Luis : AMOR
 

107. "We Need a Little Christmas" musical : MAME

109. Partner of Rodgers : HART (Lorenz). Rodgers and Hart.

111. Mollify : EASE
 

112. Source of support : FAN

113. "Football Night in America" network : NBC

114. Part of KJV: Abbr. : VER (Version). I had to google  KJV. King James Version.

Happy Year of the Snake! I bet Barry G (Maybe Jacye too) is having freshly made Chinese dumplings for lunch/dinner, traditional Chinese New Year food.

When I was a child, meat/sugar/oil were all rationed. I so looked forward to every New Year when I could help my grandma prepare dumplings. Pork was so delicious!

Our living standard improved a lot in the 1980s & 1990s, esp after I graduated from college in 1994 and found a well-paid job in Guangzhou. But I could not stomach pork any more. Whenever I visited Xi'An, my dad would make Tofu & Chinese chives filled dumplings for me. Cheap, simple & tasty. I tried to duplicate my Dad's recipe, the dumplings were never good. I think it's the memory of him that I miss, rather than the dumplings themselves.

C.C.