Sunday July 9th, 2017 John Lampkin

Theme: "Cereal Boxes"- Different grains bookend each theme entry.

25A *Lids for a fancy box? : OPERA HATS. Oats. English is strange. Oats are always plural, but not other grains.

27A. *Easy order for a mixologist : WHISKEY NEAT. Wheat.

39A. *Ceremonious choreography : RITUAL DANCE. Rice. Have any of you cumin rice?

42A. *Lothario's organ : ROVING EYE. Rye.

65. *Ring leaders : BARNUM AND BAILEY. Barley.

88A. *Joe may come from one : COFFEE URN. Corn.

91A. *Moved like a crowd : MILLED ABOUT. Millet. I just mentioned to TTP yesterday that no matter how I try, my millet porridge is never as good as my grandma's.

106A. *Significant other : MAIN SQUEEZE. Maize. Isn't it the same as corn?

Reveal:

110. Deep-rooted ... and what the uncircled letters of the answers to starred clues are? : INGRAINED

John's set is close to complete. Sorghum is unworkable, hence its absence. It's actually gluten-free, like oats, millet, corn & rice. I never had it, but many of the pricey liquors in China are made of Sorghum.

John broke with the convention and started his themers in Row 4 rather than Row 3. I'm guessing he tried Row 3 but did not like the result.

Lots of playful clues/fill, PYROMANIAC (73D. One who remembers old flames with fondness) is my favorite. It sums up John's style perfectly.

Across:     

1. Hunk : GLOB. Thought of STUD.

5. Tortilla-wrapped serving : FAJITA. You won't like this if you don't like cumin.

11. Hardly a haymaker : JAB. Boxing punch.

14. Pulled up a chair : SAT

17. Whom Samwise accompanied to Rivendell : FRODO

18. Backspace key, often : ERASER

19. One who might err on the safe side? : UMP. Nailed it.

20. __ dixit: assertion without proof : IPSE

21. Add zing to : LIVEN. 29. Zing : PEP

22. Berate : RANT AT

23. "Heavens!" : GOODNESS!

30. Donizetti aria "Regnava __ silenzio" : NEL. This is clued as [First word in Dante's "Inferno"] last Sunday.

31. Bee bunch : SWARM

33. Watergate figure with a radio talk show : LIDDY. G. Gordon Liddy.

34. Exude : OOZE. It's great to see your previous avatar, Yellowrocks!

36. Learn : HEAR OF

37. Giant __, world's largest antelope : ELAND. Learning moment for me. Hello!

46. Bearded blossom : IRIS

47. G, in the key of C : SOL. Got via crosses.

48. Adjust, as a chronometer : RESET

49. Tat misreadable as WOW : MOM. Tattoo.

50. Honey : TOOTS. Chinese are quite reserved, not many "sweet" words. "Respect" trumps all. 

52. Tweaks : MODIFIES

56. "Is this some kind of __?" : A JOKE

58. New England cape : ANN

59. __ chi : TAI

61. Biting : ACID

62. "Good-bye, cruel world!," in Westerns : I'M A GONER

68. Worldwide anticrime gp. : INTERPOL. Currently headed by a Chinese.
 

71. Rod's partner : REEL

72. Author Deighton : LEN

73. Bench press muscle : PEC

76. Ethel on "I Love Lucy" : MERTZ. So many "I Love Lucy" collectibles at the flea market.

77. Produce a steady stream of : CHURN OUT

80. Words with remember or forget : TRY TO.  We also have 48. Word with debt or guilt : RIDDEN. 56. Bond or bonding follower : AGENT. Playfulness & originality!

82. Bon __: Comet rival : AMI

83. "__ the loneliest number" : ONE IS

85. "Argo" org. : CIA

87. Fine __ : ARTS

 95. Crease-resistant fabric : ORLON

96. Estefan with Grammys : GLORIA

98. Consider to be : DEEM

99. Steel, e.g. : ALLOY. Not METAL.We also have 40. Metal that's pumped : IRON

101. Form opener : LINE A

102. Key preposition : O'ER. Francis Scott Key

103. Boxer with feats of Clay? : ALI. Cute.

113. Rank people? : AMATEURS. Another great clue.

114. Swab's assent : AYE SIR. Normally with two Ayes, right?

116. Blink of an eye : TRICE

117. D.C. pros : NATS

118. Cleo's undoing : ASP

119. Fix, as a pump : RE-SOLE

120. Former Midwest territorial capital : OMAHA. Another learning moment for me, Gary!

121. Is for you : ARE

122. Steely __ : DAN

123. Airborne camera holders : DRONES. Used by quite a few YouTubers.

124. Many a competition : RACE

Down:

1. Bone to pick : GRIPE

2. Fictional turn-on : LOVE POTION. Hey, this is even organic.

3. Smelly-sounding German river? : ODER. Odor.

4. Windfall : BONANZA. Great word.

5. Wild : FERAL

6. Smell __ : A RAT

7. Fugitive portrayer before Ford : JANSSEN (David). I've only seen Harrison Ford's movie.

8. Believer's suffix : IST

9. Pots, cups, etc. : TEAWARE

10. Prefix with -pod : ARTHRO. Prefix for "Joint".

11. Handled containers : JUGS

12. Every which way : AMOK

13. Fraternal initials : BPOE

14. Leadfoot : SPEED DEMON. So what's the plural for "Leadfoot"? Leadfoots or Leadfeet?

15. Syrian president : ASSAD

16. Touchy : TESTY

17. Bomb : FLOP

20. Baseball unit with distinct halves : INNING

24. Musician with a Nobel Prize : DYLAN. Pride of Minnesota. I had a lovely walk around Lake Harriet with Andrea Carla Michaels last week. Another Pride of Minnesota. Then another long walk with Boomer in our favorite trail on June 30, D-Otto, followed by buying a rice bowl like this in our local Asian store. I think I want one more. Really like the dragon at the bottom.

26. Bread butts : HEELS

28. The Who classic : I'M FREE. Got via crosses.

32. Female in WWII : WAC. Women's Army Corps. Do you still remember Southern Belle? She was a WAC during the Korean War. She used to comment regularly.

35. Boot from power : OUST

36. Heavenly topper : HALO

37. Original sinner : EVE

38. Fired up : LIT

39. Dexter's wife in "Dexter" : RITA. Easily obtainable,

 41. __ effect : DOMINO. Not RIPPLE.

43. Alternate version, in scores : OSSIA. Unknown to me. You'd think it's related to bone.

44. Farm connection : YOKE. Farm animal.

45. ER part: Abbr. : EMER

51. HBO rival : STARZ

53. Beaver's work : DAM

54. Victim of hot wings? : ICARUS. Another great clue/fill.

55. More classy : FINER

57. Delight : JOY. I linked Amy at Costco clip a years ago when "Call Me Maybe" was hot. Which song do you like the best?

60. Dada daddy? : ARP (Jean). Dada co-founder.

63. "Uncle" of old TV : MILTIE

64. Flagon filler : ALE. I did not know this is called "Flagon".

65. Risk : BET

66. Peptic problem : ULCER

67. Rain-__ gum : BLO

68. Apple computer : iMAC

69. Nautilus captain : NEMO

70. Like poison ivy : TRIFOLIATE. Having three leaves. Also a new word to me.

74. Shocked accusation : ET TU

75. Outlay : COST

78. Actor Pat of Batman films : HINGLE. Never heard of him.

79. NCAA's Bruins : UCLA

81. Broccoli __ : RABE

83. LBJ's antipoverty agcy. : OEO. Office of Economic Opportunity

84. "The Sound of Music" extra : NUN

86. Calculating snake? : ADDER. Amazing clue.

89. Leads, as a band : FRONTS

90. "Family Ties" mom : ELYSE

91. Ancient Roman currency minter : MONEYER. Guessable.

92. Anger : IRE

93. Go-between : LIAISON

94. Bubbler : AERATOR

97. Gecko, for one : LIZARD. John sent me this fun picture. He said "Costa Rica's Jesus Christ Lizard is supposed to be able to walk on water. This one failed miserably and can’t even open a can of soda without spilling it."

 

99. Dryer brand : AMANA

100. Texas university in Beaumont : LAMAR

102. Fairy tale baddies : OGRES

104. Café con __ : LECHE. Not fond of putting milk in coffee or tea.

105. Thought : IDEA
 
107. Campus area : QUAD

108. Heavenly bear : URSA

109. "Monday Night Football" channel : ESPN

111. Shade of green : NILE

112. Hogwarts librarian __ Pince : IRMA. Gimme for Santa.

115. That thing in Tijuana : ESO

Happy Birthday to dear Tony (AnonT), who's always been so kind and caring to everyone on our blog. He's also a foodie. This picture cracks me up.

 

At Wit's End near Carmel on Father's Day 2017

Friday, May 12, 2017, John Lampkin

Title: What hotel are you staying at? The one where you get two rooms for the price of one!

Wow, John has made my first attempt to blog a puzzle since I have been ill a challenge. On the one hand it seems simple with a nice progression from ECONOMY-STANDARD-PREMIUM-LUXURY but there is no  reveal. And then we have the four words inserted by JL. They give us Economy/Rat Pack; Standard/Hot Time; Premium/Swamp Gas and Luxury/Eye Liner.  Two themes for the price of one. I do not recall ever seeing a puzzle with this duality. All with John's wonderful wit mixed in both the theme and the cluing/fill.

19A. Doppelgänger cast for a low-budget remake of "Ocean's 11"? : ECONOMY RAT PACK (14). The original from 1960 was a vehicle for the Sinatra PACK. The real remakes have not been economy. Which of the movies did you like best?

23A. Usual night in the old town? : STANDARD HOT TIME. (15). The first of two grid-spanners.

42A. Quality marsh output? : PREMIUM SWAMP GAS (15). The silliest of the theme fill.

48A. Gold dust lid cover? : LUXURY EYE LINER (14). Made me think of Elizabeth Talyor as Cleopatra.

In addition to the 58 letters dedicated to the theme, JL includes SODA POP,  BUOYANT,  TEEN IDOL,  LEMMINGS,  ROADSIDES and  ART DEALER as sparkly fill. I had a great time.

Across:

1. "L'Arlésienne" composer : BIZET. Wow, not a gimme start but lots of challenging letters. LINK.

6. Nutrients in nuts : FATS.

10. Silent signal : NOD.

13. Surface : ARISE. An unexpected definition.

14. Facetious agreement : AH SO.

15. Litter pickup spot? : NAPE. Not only humans do this.

16. Parson's home : MANSE. I learned this word reading British mysteries and watching them on PBS like THIS.

17. Some shoulders : ROADSIDES. Lovely misdirection.

21. Speck in la mer : ILE. French,

22. Sweet climber : PEA. Very important in science RESEARCH. Next to....

32. Entomological case study? : COCOON. JL loves his moths and their stages of life.He was kind enough to provide this picture from his personal stash.

33. Repeated number of curls, say : REPititions. Bicep curls.

34. Bust gp. : DEA.  Drug Enforcement Administration. President Nixon consolidated the anti-drug efforts. This is not the group in charge of inspecting bras.

35. Whatever : AT ALL. Used to be one of my favorite catch phrases. Now it is DK/DC.

36. Fanny pack spot : HIP. I see them more in front or back, never on me. Cute positioning with
28D. In like an old cat? : HEP. Just ask Maynard G. Krebs.

37. Backing strips : LATHS. Not to confused with LATHE. Lath 1. a thin flat strip of wood, especially one of a series forming a foundation for the plaster of a wall or the tiles of a roof, or made into a trellis or fence.

39. Liszt's "__ Préludes" : LES. Pretty easy French to fill. This COMPOSER was very popular.

40. Fish house freebie : BIB. Usually with a drawing of a lobster.

41. Sympathize : RELATE.

46. Mayo is in it : ANO. Spanish trick Mayo = May- ANO = Year

47. Fan noise : HUM.

56. Theo van Gogh, notably : ART DEALER. A fun STORY.

57. Orange variety : NAVEL. Seedless and very haughty.

59. Couth he is not : OGRE.

60. Khartoum's waters : NILE.

61. Birds do it between thermals : GLIDE. JL also watches and films birds.


62. Place to take a dip : SEA. And the clecho, 64A. Place to take a dip? : SALSA.

63. Hits up (for) : TAPS. In beer halls you tap your friend next to the taps.



Down:

1. "Whap!" : BAM. Comic book talk.

2. "Dies __" : IRAE.

3. #30 on a table : ZINC. I keep forgetting to not put my glass on the periodic table.

4. Canadian pump name : ESSO. Esso - Exxon.

5. "People" person, perhaps : TEEN IDOL.

6. Cain was one : FARMER. Sad, as he must have been driven mad by the methane gases.

7. Cry to a mate : AHOY.

8. Ruler that doesn't work anymore : TSAR. They all retired?

9. Gender-specific beverage? : SODA POP. Cute, you can have soda pop or white wine mom.

10. Zilch : NADA.

11. Group with many barrels : OPEC.

12. Office staple : DESK. I found this tricky, looking for an office implement..

15. Bite playfully : NIP AT. Puppies! Friends?

18. Editorial override : STET.

20. Buck heroine : O-LAN. A well decorated book about the mysterious East. O-Lan is a fictional character in Pearl S. Buck's 1931 novel The Good Earth. She is a slave of the House of Hwang who gains her freedom when she marries the novel's protagonist, Wang Lung. They start a family in their small country town, and endure grueling times, including droughts, floods, and war. Wiki, Sorry about the broken link.

23. It may be under a rug : SCALP. Rug here being a toupee- nice.

24. Bag carrier : TOTER. Yes it is!  29D. Travel bag attachment : ID TAG. More travel.

25. "__ in point" : A CASE.

26. Cambodia's Lon __ : NOL. LON NOL, a handy palindrome.

27. Bits : DRIBS. Or drabs?

30. Maestro Zubin : MEHTA. John is a most prolific pianist, explaining all the music this week. You can learn more about John going to his blog,  LINK.

31. Lightens up : EASES.

36. Gender-specific pronoun : HIM. All perps.

37. Non-suicidal migrants, contrary to myth : LEMMINGS. The MYTH?

38. Heidi got high on one : ALP. My friend Heidi lived near the Devil's Millhopper  no mountains..

40. Cheerful : BUOYANT. Maybe if you are a sponge....

41. Julia of film : RAUL. He died much too young. LINK.

43. "All in the Family" spin-off : MAUDE. Bea Arthur as a feminist.

44. About : IN RE.

45. Waldo forerunner? : WHERE'S? I think he is lost forever. Just words that come before Waldo.

48. Cambodia neighbor : LAOS. Both near Thailand.

49. Itch : URGE.

50. Bonus, in ads : XTRA.

51. Lamb's alias : ELIA. And a JL clecho 58D. Lamb's place : LEA. Not the writer but the baby that Mary had.

52. Sharp bark : YELP. Doggies.

53. Simba's love : NALA.

54. Far from harmless : EVIL.

55. Cabs, say : REDS. Not yellow taxis, but Cabernet wines.

Well it was fun to blog but still not 100%. 7 hospitals and 10 doctors so far this year. Glad to be back and to have a JL special was great. Lemonade out. Thank you John.

Sunday April 2, 2017 John Lampkin

Theme: "All in Favor" - PRO is added to each theme entry.

23A. Website search response with an attitude? : PAGE NOT PROFOUND. Page Not Found error.  Normally the author has removed or moved that page.

37A. Competition at the geometry fair? : PROTRACTOR PULL. Tractor pull.

54A. "A penny saved is hardly worth the effort"? : IRREGULAR PROVERB. Irregular verb.
  
81A. "I'll give you five bucks for your Egyptian water lily"? : LOTUS PROPOSITION. Lotus position.

98A. Positively charged vehicle? : ONE- PROTON TRUCK. One- ton truck.

117A. Miscreant handling letters? : MAIL IN REPROBATE. Mail- in rebate. The only entry where PRO is inserted inside a word.

16D. Quality control job at a maraschino factory? : PROBING CHERRIES. Bing cherries.

42D. Feature of Charlie Brown's head? : CIRCULAR PROFILE. Circular file.

We have total 120 theme squares in a 138-word grid. The average themage for LAT is about 94-100. Average word count is between 142 and 144. Doesn't look like a lot to non-pros, but it's very hard to reduce word count on Sundays. 

I mentioned before that this addition/deletion type works best when the new word is not related to the old word etymologically. John did just like that.

He also intersected two long themers. And of course, John's trademark cluing style: clue echoes, wordplay, fun & vivid clue images.

Across:
        
1. Worker on the floor : TILER

6. Second-rarest blood type, briefly : B NEG. Any B- or AB- on our blog?

10. Really big : VAST

14. Worked at home : UMPED. Great clue.

19. "Lordy me!" : I DO DECLARE. Never used "Lordy me!"

21. "Hamilton" accolade : OBIE. You wanted TONY?

22. "Ici on __ français" : PARLE. Speaks. Also 37D. Famille member : PERE

25. Spirits strength : PROOF.  Drinks.


26. Seven Wonders lighthouse : PHAROS. Got via crosses. Could only think of Alexandria.

27. They often have runners : SLEDS. Another great clue.

28. Mite : WEE BIT

29. "Round __ virgin ... " : YON. "Silent Night".

30. "My turn" : I'M UP

33. "Guys and Dolls" composer : LOESSER (Frank)

36. Archipelago part: Abbr. : ISL (Island)

40. Marshal at Waterloo : NEY (Michel). Learned this guy from doing crosswords. Had Bob Ney not been involved in the Jack Abramoff scandal, he would be a power player today and we would have had a great clue for NEY.

 41. Pre-A.D. : BCE

43. "So long" : SEE YA

44. Vexing : IRKING

46. Ballerina Shearer : MOIRA

48. Like some out-of-favor suffixes : FEMININE. Like ETTE. Got me.

52. Lats relatives : PECS


58. You, at one time : THEE

60. "In a __" : SEC

61. Burkini wearer, perhaps : ARAB

62. Saltimbocca herb : SAGE. Never had Saltimbocca,

63. Acquiesce : ASSENT

65. Moo __ pork : SHU. Never heard of this dish until I came to the US.


66. "'Scuse Me While __ This Guy: and Other Misheard Lyrics": Gavin Edwards book : I KISS

68. Fella : SPORT. New meaning of "sport" to me.

71. Booster's cry : RAH

72. 89-Across' Illinois headquarters : MOLINE. And 89. Farm equipment giant : DEERE

74. Primary part : LEAD

78. Germ's future? : IDEA. This clue so John.

79. 66, e.g.: Abbr. : RTE

80. Carrier known for tight security : EL AL

86. Spanish 101 word : ERES. You are.We also have 75. Spanish pronoun : ESA.

88. Gorilla, for example : GREAT APE
 
90. Actress __ Sue Martin : PAMELA

92. Do fair work : GET A C

95. Mule's father : ASS

96. Cabinet dept. : AGR

103. Also : TOO

104. "Probably ... " : ODDS ARE

105. River past Logroño : EBRO. Not familiar with Logroño. Northern Spain. We also have 4. River of Germany : EDER

106. Sun or moon : ORB

109. Obliterate : EFFACE. I've only used "self-effacing".

111. Outfit again : RE-RIG

114. Hall of Fame second baseman Roberto : ALOMAR. When I first came here (2001), he was with the Indians. So was CC Sabathia.

116. "If I Were __ Man" : A RICH

121. Fracas : MELEE

122. Chow : EATS

123. Overhear : LISTEN IN ON. Have you used a bug detector, Anon- TTP?

124. Ranked tournament players : SEEDS

125. "Let's Get It On" singer : GAYE

126. Many 99-cent purchases : APPS. Might stump those who are not into tablets/smartphones.

127. Stretch : STINT
  

Down:
 
1. Unstable : TIPPY

2. Snake state : IDAHO

3. New England touchdown site : LOGAN. Not Gillette Stadium.

5. "The Bathers" artist : RENOIR. Saw it at Musée d'Orsay.

6. Short lunch order? : BLT

7. Midday refresher : NAP. Not TEA.

8. Writes ths clue, say : ERRS. Self-referential.

9. Rock sci. : GEOL. Field of Misty's husband.

10. __ doll : VOODOO

11. One overstepping bounds : ABUSER. And 12. Seriously overstepped bounds : SIN

13. Brother of Jack and Bobby : TED. The Kennedys.

14. What may be stiff when trouble arises? : UPPER LIP. Fun clue.

15. Farm girl : MARE. This clue makes me smile also.
 
17. Plaza Hotel imp : ELOISE

18. With skill : DEFTLY

20. Sagan series : COSMOS

24. Touched : FELT

28. Bandleader Lawrence : WELK

31. Sport-__ : UTE

32. Modular homes : PREFABS

34. Holder of disks : SPINE

35. More steady : SURER

38. British philosopher A.J. : AYER. No idea. Wiki says he's known for "logical positivism".

39. Sides sharing views : CAMPS. Oh as in Sanders Camp/Clinton Camp.

41. Mining passage : BOREHOLE. Also a learning moment for me. I sure don't want to go in.

45. Migratory bird banding equipment : NETS. What is "banding", D-Otto?

46. Homecoming query : MISS ME?

47. "Encore!" : AGAIN

49. Lyricist Gershwin : IRA

50. Eggy quaff : NOG

51. Composer Charles : IVES

53. Hill hundred : SENATORS

55. Classic TV nerd : URKEL. "Family Matters".

 56. Chou En-__ : LAI. Probably the best loved politician in China. He protected many good people from being prosecuted during Cultural Revolution.

57. Denudes : BARES

59. Fruit-ripening gas : ETHENE. I tried to put bananas & apples in a brown bag to hasten the ripening. Never seemed to help much. Unlike Bill G, I prefer bananas with plenty of brown spots

64. Prim and proper : STAID

67. Revolve on an axis : SLUE

69. Lab dispenser : PIPETTE.. Another learning moment for me.

70. Prefix with meter : ODO

73. Intestinal divisions : ILEA

76. Suitable : APT

77. "Rocky IV" boxer Ivan __ : DRAGO. This stumped me last time.

82. Watched at the beach, maybe : OGLED

83. Hems in : TRAPS

84. Transparent : OPEN

85. Deck wood : TEAK

87. Osculates : SMOOCHES. Do you osculate in real life? It's a new word to me. I actually read it as "oscillate".

91. German finale : ENDE

93. Wall St. hedger : ARB (Arbitrager)

94. Arrow poison : CURARE.Another learning moment.

96. You won't find subs on them : A TEAMs

97. Get out : GO FREE

99. Hole-in-one, for one : RARITY. And 110. Got a hole-in-one on : ACED

100. Otherwise : OR ELSE

101. Actress Hatcher : TERI

102. Time periods? : COLONS .Had to ask dear Santa, who gave me this: Today, 8 : 29 AM

106. Muscat native : OMANI

107. Give up to the cops : RAT ON

108. Retired sportscaster Musburger : BRENT

112. At a Dodger game, for short : IN LA

113. Handle : GRIP

115. Parting words? : OBIT

117. Bit of RAM : MEG. OK, short for megabyte.

118. Drivers' org. : AAA. Not PGA.

119. What Zener cards purportedly tested for : ESP

120. NBA nos. : PTs

Thursday, June 23rd 2016 John Lampkin

Theme: Laundry detergents? No, as the reveal explains:

53A. Subject for a news team ... and a description of 19-, 36- or 42-Across? : CURRENT EVENT (I still think "Breeze" and "Surge" would make great names for laundry detergents!)


19A. Subject for a meteorologist : SUMMER BREEZE. I was going to link the Seals & Crofts song, but I just listened to it and it really hasn't aged well.

36A. Subject for an oceanographer : SPRING TIDE. Nothing to do with the season, it's when the difference between the high and low tide is the greatest; typically twice a month after the full and new moons.

42A. Subject for an electrician : POWER SURGE. Did those slab-like surge protectors ever do any good? I never recall having to reset one.

Three different kinds of currents in three different media - wind, sea and electricity.

Neat theme and a nice grid with a lot of across-wise fill. Those triple-stacked 7's and the 6-7-7 atop/beneath the 12-letter themers are very slick. Nicely done, Mr. Lampkin.

Across:

1. Provoke : INCITE

7. Clichéd currency : RED CENT. The smallest amount possible.

14. Cone site : VOLCANO. You can't get much more classically-conical in the stratovolcano world than Mt. Fuji.

16. Crop duster, e.g. : AVIATOR

17. Unhelpful helper : ENABLER

18. Like garden gnomes : KITSCHY. Took me a moment to remember how to spell this correctly.

21. Respiration point : NOSE

22. It's often twisted : YARN. Apparently not all yarns are twisted, but some are filaments (such as silk).

26. Slangy 21-Across : SNOOT. I thought you could cock a snoot, but when I went to find an example I discovered that you cock a snook. Good to know.

30. Holy recess : APSE

34. Holy jurisdiction : SEE. "The ecclesiastical jurisdiction of the Catholic Church in Rome". Now you know.

35. Rude dude : LOUT

39. Summed up : IN TOTAL

41. Nullified : NEGATED

44. French sky : CIEL. French 101 - "Le ciel est bleu". (Ou gris, en Angleterre).

45. Cycle starter? : UNI

46. Cry of enlightenment : AH SO

47. Homecoming cry : IT'S ME

48. Kitchenware : POTS

50. Formerly floppy medium : DISC. Funny how these ubiquitous things suddenly disappeared.

61. "Hogwash!" : BALONEY

64. Personal __ : TRAINER

65. Somewhat : A LITTLE

66. Femur or fibula : LEG BONE

67. Butterflies on ankles, say : TATTOOS. People tell me it hurts like hell to get a tattoo on your ankle. I'll take their word for it.

68. Teammate of Duke and Jackie : PEEWEE. Dodgers greats Snider, Robinson and Reese, here with Roy Campanella.

Down:

1. "Concord Sonata" composer : IVES. Charles Ives. Not really a tune you can whistle.

2. Lower-class, to Brits : NON-U. Non-Upper Class. The use of a single word can place you firmly in a particular class. If you say "Pardon?" when you didn't hear something clearly, you're middle class. (The Queen would say "What?", as would working-class Dick Van Dyke in "Mary Poppins".).

3. Chowder bit : CLAM

4. China's DF-31, e.g. : ICBM. Now I'll know what I'm looking at next time I see one whizzing past. Cruise missiles are powered in flight, ballistic ones drop on your head by force of gravity. Both will ruin your day.

5. Gift of the gifted : TALENT

6. Opener for Don Quixote? : ENERO. "January" in Spanish.

7. It has big teeth : RAKE. What about the little ones that come with those desktop Zen gardens?

8. "Gramma" in the comic strip "Stone Soup" : EVIE

9. Chowderhead : DITZ

10. He was on deck when Blake was up : CASEY

But Flynn preceded Casey, as did also Jimmy Blake, 

And the former was a hoodoo, while the latter was a cake; 

So upon that stricken multitude grim melancholy sat, 

For there seemed but little chance of Casey getting to the bat.

From "Casey at the Bat" by Ernest Lawrence Thayer

11. "And more" letters : ETC.

12. Masked drama : NOH

13. Crack : TRY

15. Space balls : ORBS

20. Raise : REAR

23. The way things stand : AS IT IS

24. Atone for : REDEEM

25. Tease : NEEDLE

26. Wrong move : SLIP-UP

27. "Wrong, wrong, wrong!" : NO! NO! NO!

28. Get the better of : OUTWIT

29. Oklahoma tribe : OTOE. These guys.

31. Sonar pulse : PING

32. "The Mikado" weapon, briefly : SNEE. "Snickersnee", a fighting knife featured in the song "The Criminal Cried as he Dropped him Down".

33. Tube traveler : EGG

36. Ceremonial accessory : SASH

37. And : PLUS

38. Diplomacy : TACT

40. Gay syllable : TRA-

43. Teased : RODE

47. Long cold spell : ICE AGE

49. 2013 Masters champ Adam __ : SCOTT. He subsequently had to change his putting style when the Rules of Golf were thankfully amended to ban the "anchoring" of a long putter.

51. Airport abbr. : INTL.

52. Bad bug : STREP. I had strep throat once, my tonsils were swollen white lumps. It was all I could do to swallow warm water. Awful.

54. Biblical connector : UNTO. Connector?

55. Move, in real estate lingo : RELO

56. Saloon and deli offerings : RYES. Whisky and a sandwich. Lunch of champions!

57. Weird feeling, perhaps : VIBE

58. Plenty of poetry? : ENOW

A Book of Verses underneath the Bough, 
A Jug of Wine, a Loaf of Bread and Thou 
 Beside me singing in the Wilderness
Oh, Wilderness were Paradise enow!

From "The Rubáiyát of Omar Khayyam" translated by Edward Fitzgerald

59. Island goose : NENE

60. Word with farm or house : TREE

61. Stick for 10-Down : BAT

62. In the style of : À LA. "À la mode" means "fashionable" in French. Why is it fashionable to put a scoop of ice cream on your pie?

63. Bombed : LIT. The result of too many ryes in the saloon.

I think I've got all the clues/answers this week, sorry for the missing ones last Thursday; I think the blog gremlins ate them.

Here's the grid!

Steve

Saturday, May 14th, 2016, John Lampkin

Theme: JL

Words: 68 (missing J,Q,Z)

Blocks: 31

  So pleased to get a John Lampkin puzzle, and this, if I am not mistaken, is his first Saturday publishing, at least for the LA Times.  I have enjoyed his Sunday constructions, and I find his cluing to be fresh and humorous - and today was no exception.  To find out more about John, his interview is here.  Of course, no grid would be complete if he didn't include some animal references - and I was determined to get 1 across, no matter how long it took.  As it turned out, the whole thing took about 30 seconds longer than my personal allotted time, and I have to admit to one red-letter; see 60 down.  Triple 10-letter across corners, triple 9s in the downs;

17a. Hammers home : REITERATES - my first read was "hammer's home", as in TOOL BOX, which wasn't going to work; this is the verb, not the noun

12d. At ten, say : ON THE HOUR - simple, and yet difficult to see in the 'down'

62a. Leftovers dish, perhaps : COTTAGE PIE - never heard of it; had --PIE, and the rest was perps and a WAG

31d. Short putt : TWO-FOOTER

ACROSS:

1. What separates the gulls from the buoys? : WEBBED FEET - it took most of the time to get the NW corner to fill, because I was stuck at 1a. thinking "something ---NET"; this is just plain clever

11. Red number : LOSS - I tried DEBT

15. Come fashionably? : ARRIVE LATE

16. 20 fins : ONE C - I did the math; 20 x 5 = 100, but couldn't fit "C-NOTE"

18. Nail target : ITCH - I had the "B" first, so I tried STUD; can you tell I'm stuck in carpentry mode~?

19. Chemical formerly used in carbonless copy paper manufacture : PCB - Polychlorinated Biphenyl; more from Wiki

20. Challenges : RIGORS

21. "Go away!" : "SHOO~!" - had it in, took it out....

22. Mayan pyramid feature : STEP

24. Threw on : DONNED

26. Self-described "non-musician" : ENO - oops, I had EMO first

27. Portent : OMEN

29. It can be before you : ARE

30. Checkup result letters : HDL - cholesterol number

31. Nut features : THREADS

This would make a good "john" sign, too

34. Experimental habit? : LAB COAT - I totally nailed this; and yet I did not get "oodles" at 55a.

36. They can be frustrating : WAITS - I lack patience, most definitely

37. Enterprise officer : UHURA - I always misspell this with a third "U" at the end

38. Eponymous Seminole leader : OSCEOLA - all perps, and a WAG at the "L"

41. Kiwi genus : APTERYX - once I had the "P", I knew that birds were "pter", and flightless ones were "A-pter"; the "YX" seemed good taxonomic Latin

43. Disgusted word from Lady Macbeth : "FIE~!"

44. Rest : NAP - I take one every day, roughly between 12-2pm

45. Rest poorly : TOSS

46. Kind of trading, briefly : OTC

47. Pabst brand : STROH'S - a little history lesson

49. Big Ten player since 2014 : TERP - Maryland Terrapins - another animal reference

53. Epps of "House" : OMAR

55. Gobs : OODLES

57. Good name for a London washroom attendant : LOU - lou/loo

58. Net : TAKE

59. Zip : SPEED ALONG - I considered "NOT A THING" kind of zip, but it didn't fit

61. Apple site : EDEN - not the computer ( e.g. DESK ), and not TREE

63. Leftovers : REST - a clecho from 62a., another JL cluing stlye

64. Valuation : ASSESSMENT

DOWN:       

1. Twists : WARPS - common in wood boards, especially 1x lumber

2. Straight up : ERECT - ah.  Not LEGIT

3. Crooked bread? : BRIBE - ah. ah.  Not LUCRE, but I was on the right wavelength

4. Boring piece : BIT - and more carpentry

5. Lasting start : EVER - everlasting

6. Knocked : DERIDED

7. Spouted containers : FLAGONS

8. Big name in stationery : EATON - perps

9. Lasting : ETERNAL

10. Mosaic piece : TESSERA - learned from doing crosswords

11. __ Chiles, portrayer of Dr. Holly Goodhead in "Moonraker" : LOIS

13. Lesser : SECONDARY

14. Homeowner's burden : SCHOOL TAX - my "U" from Uhura was leading me to "something TUB"; again, I'm in the middle of building a bathroom, so....

23. Baudelaire, par exemple : POETE - Les Frawnche

25. Times to come out : DEBUTS

28. Plinth course layers : MASONS - ah, the worker, not the stratum

32. Is set : HAS IT MADE

33. Generally gluten-free snacks : RICE CAKES

35. Tea __ : CHEST

39. Play that inspired Puccini : La TOSCA - filled via perps; the Wiki

40. Fitting : APROPOS

41. Fit figure, usually : ATHLETE

42. Impersonated : POSED AS - my kind of pose

48. "Sweet Smell of Success" co-screenwriter : ODETS - perps and WAGs

50. Slip to tie a knot? : ELOPE

51. Masterless samurai : RONIN - learned from an episode of "The X-Files"

52. Sound named by George Vancouver : PUGET - funny, I've been reading the making of Star Wars and Empire Strikes Back, so I was thinking of the noise sound, not the body of water sound.  I took a vacation to Seattle, and saw the sound - or is that an oxymoron~?

54. Torn : RENT

56. Weakens : SAGS

60. Rover's kin? : LEM - dah~!!  I went with LAM - as in 'going on the lam', which I think is similar to someone 'roving'....and John ends his clues with "kin", I might add....

Splynter