Monday, February 23, 2015 Kurt Krauss

Theme: National Groceries - Foodstuffs and the states that are famous for them.

20A. They're juiced in Jacksonville : FLORIDA ORANGES

33A. They're baked in Boise : IDAHO POTATOES

42A. They're boiled in Bangor : MAINE LOBSTERS

57A. They're shelled in Savannah : GEORGIA PEANUTS

Argyle here. A near pangram. No reveal necessary. Cute alliteration with the cities and preparation methods. A tad tough for any visiting tyros. Fine fun for a Monday.

Across:

1. Thom __: shoe brand : McAN

5. Greek Zs : ZETAs

10. This, in Spain : ESTO. (este (masculine), esta (feminine), esto (neuter))

14. Poi source : TARO

15. Motionless : INERT

16. Like spider webs : SPUN

17. __ the Impaler: model for "Dracula" : VLAD

18. One of a 1492 trio : PINTA

19. Ritual flammable stack : PYRE

23. Anteater's sound in the comic "B.C." : [ZOT!]

24. Mobster's gal : MOLL

25. Hawaiian wreath : LEI

26. Flood-control project : DAM

29. Garbage barge puller : TUG

31. Odorless gas : ETHANE

37. Disaster relief org. : FEMA. (Federal Emergency Management Agency)O(for when the dam fails)

38. Put the kibosh on : NIX

39. Exec's "By yesterday!" : ASAP. (As Soon As Possible)

47. Sets aside for future use : LAYS BY. Are you familiar with this phrase?

49. __ and improved : NEW

50. Barnyard home : STY

51. Suffix with transit : ORY. Transitory - not permanent.

52. "Green __ and Ham" : EGGS

55. Knock sharply : RAP

62. One-liner, e.g. : JOKE

63. Make __: get rich : A MINT

64. Dining table expansion piece : LEAF

66. Degree recipient : ALUM

67. Guts : NERVE

68. Year-end clearance event : SALE

69. Office note : MEMO

70. Deuce toppers : TREYS

71. One-named Art Deco artist : ERTÉ. Two initials. The French pronunciation of the initials of Romain de Tirtoff.

Down:

1. Network that once employed VJs : MTV

2. Muscle prone to cramps : CALF

3. Devastated Asian sea : ARAL

4. Caffeinated pill : NO-DOZ

5. "Be quiet!" : "ZIP IT UP!". [snicker}

6. Oklahoma city : ENID

7. Early brunch hr. : TEN AM

8. "Star Wars" droid, familiarly : AR-TOO

9. Hollywood hopeful : STARLET

10. "College Football Playoff" network : ESPN

11. Crow's-nest telescopes : SPYGLASSES

12. Deep serving bowl : TUREEN

13. Infant's bodysuit : ONESIE

1. __-Rooter : ROTO

22. Voice above tenor : ALTO

26. "What's the __?": "So what?" : DIF

27. Fruity cooler : ADE

28. "Li'l Abner" matriarch : MAMMY YOKUM. You didn't mess with Mammy!

30. Departed : GONE

32. Furnace output : HEAT. Working overtime this winter.

34. Lukas of "Witness" : HAAS. He was the Amish boy. Google pics

35. "Shop __ you drop" : TIL

36. Neural impulse conductor : AXON

40. Museum collection : ART

41. Would-be social worker's maj. : PSY. (Psychology)

43. "__ your pardon" : I BEG

44. NFLer who plays at the Meadowlands--in NJ, ironically : N.Y. GIANT

45. Scolds but good : BERATES

46. Ugly duckling, as it turned out : SWAN

47. Lumber mill blockage : LOGJAM. Out in the river.

                                    A big one.

48. Bump from which cactus spines grow : AREOLE. Oh?

53. Xbox enthusiast : GAMER

54. Cathedral topper : SPIRE

56. Throb : PULSE

58. San __, Italy : REMO

59. Jealous feeling : ENVY

60. Rip : TEAR

61. Word after sea or before Lake : SALT

65. Doctor's charge : FEE

Argyle

Note from C.C.:

Happy 76th Birthday to Keith Fowler!  I'll just copy & paste & make slight changes to what he said last year: 

"My branch of the family is not known for longevity, so it will be an enormous leap for me to reach 76 this coming Sunday--Feb 23 at 7:19 pm PST!  At that day/time I will be three years older than any recorded Fowler (of the Shryvenham to London to NY to CT to TN to CA tribe of Fowlers) ever got to be.

My mom (actually a Hocking) reached 73, and my dad's grandfather hit that number too.  while a great many folk live much longer, it just feels mighty strange to me, like teetering on a very high pole, or maybe soloing for the first time, and very slowly."

 

Keith Fowler!

Wednesday, August 13, 2014 Kurt Krauss

Theme: Critic's Nightmare - The last word of each theme entry indicates a less-than-stellar assessment of a production.

17A. High-jump style named for 1968 Olympic gold medalist Dick : FOSBURY FLOP. Revolutionary (!) technique introduced by this OSU student:

23A. Morning-after shot : HAIR OF THE DOG. I swear I've never felt like I've needed one, honestly. No, really. Oh well, maybe once.

36A. Last Martin/Lewis film : HOLLYWOOD OR BUST. Dean and Jerry road caper also starring Anita Ekberg. She gets the picture honors.

49A. Subject of 1950s testing : HYDROGEN BOMB.

58A. Lays it on the line : TALKS TURKEY. A curious expression, with no truly believable explanation as to it's origins (apostrophe uncertainty precedes).

Hi everyone - Steve here with Kurt's latest midweeker. I enjoyed the theme and, as convention allows, there's no reveal required as the link between the entries is reasonably obvious. Some nice long downs too. Although there were quite a few 3's, the grid was thankfully light on abbreviations. Nice job!

Let's see what else jumps out.

Across:

1. AARP concern : AGEISM

7. Other, in Oaxaca : OTRA

11. AOL chats : IM'S. Instant messages, IMHO.

14. Quick look : GLANCE

15. Need to retake in summer school, say : FAIL

16. Sylvester, to Tweety : TAT. More usually "Puddy Tat".

19. Andean vegetable : OCA. They call it a yam in New Zealand, for absolutely no good reason that I can see. Popeye in New Zealand says "I oca what I oca". No, I made that up. Food!

20. Adams of "American Hustle" : AMY. Thank you, crosses. 2013 comedy drama which never even blipped on my radar, I had to go look it up.

21. Sitter's handful : BRAT

22. Signal to stop, with "down" : FLAG

27. Spoke out against : OPPOSED

30. Zany : LOONY. Tweety's "Tunes" brand name is spelled with an additional "E".

31. Lobster part : CLAW. Not if you're a spiny lobster. Food!

32. "Wish you __ here!" : WERE

33. Expose, in verse : OPE. Romeo, on the subject of Juliet:

"She will not stay the siege of loving terms,

Nor bide th' encounter of assailing eyes,

Nor ope her lap to saint-seducing gold."

She sounds like one tough cookie!

41. Cold War missile prog. : S.D.I. Strategic Defense Initiative, or derisively "Star Wars".

42. Sound from a pen : OINK

43. Former VOA overseer : USIA. Unknown to me - thank you, crosses! I now know that the United States Information Agency was the overseer of the Voice of America broadcasts.

44. "Bye Bye Bye" boy band : 'N SYNC. No music links yet - I'll spare you this one.

46. Stumped : AT A LOSS

52. Big-grin borders : EARS. Fun clue. Grinning from ear to ear.

53. Flying prefix : AERO

54. Unlike a spring chicken : OLD

57. "Alice" waitress : FLO. 70's-80's CBS sitcom.

62. San Antonio NBA star Duncan : TIM. A very pleasant, self-effacing man if you've ever seen him interviewed.

63. Skin soother : ALOE

64. Daily special, e.g. : ENTRÉE. When I moved to the US I was confused by this being the main course - in England and France it means a course between the appetizer and the main. Marti would not bat an eyelid at three courses, but wonder why we don't all have aperitivo, antipasto, primo, secondo e contorno, insalata, formaggi et fruti, dolce, caffè and digestivo every Wednesday. And that doesn't even include the wine! Fooood! I'm moving to Italy.

65. "Comprende?" : SEE? The more I think about this, the more it seems odd - wouldn't we expect a Spanish answer here (except that the only one I can think of is "Entiende?" and that doesn't fit!)?

66. Remain up in the air : PEND

67. Swordfish servings : STEAKS. Food-fest today.

Down:

1. Former Belgian camera brand : AGFA. Knew the name, but didn't know it was a Belgian company.

2. Steal, slangily : GLOM. Crosses helped here - I thought GLOM meant "cling to, annoyingly".

3. Simple : EASY

4. Having five sharps, musically : IN 'B'

5. Dives with a tank : SCUBAS

6. Like olde England : MERRIE. Quite a lot of times not so much; plenty of wars, famine, pestilence and London catching fire to keep you on your toes.

7. __ a good start : OFF TO

8. 1960s chess champ Mikhail : TAL. Crosses again. This might be a little obscure, what do you think?

9. Ebro, por ejemplo : RIO. 578 miles long, it drains into the Mediterranean Sea. Pretty!

10. Swiss skyline sight : ALP

11. "Shoulda listened to me!" : I TOLD YOU SO

12. Region on the South China Sea : MACAO. A short ferry ride from Hong Kong and popular with gamblers.

13. Immortal college coach Amos Alonzo __ : STAGG

18. Farm attachment? : YARD

22. Bog : FEN. This seems to have cropped up a few times recently.

23. Lupine cry : HOWL

24. Took it on the lam : FLED

25. Deere competitor : TORO

26. Field worker : HOER. Hmmmm. I'll leave it at that.

27. Adolph of publishing : OCHS. Former "New York Times" owner. I never made the connection before, but when Ochs built a new headquarters in 1904 for the Times on what was then Longacre Square in Manhattan, the city renamed it "Times Square".

28. Walk with effort : PLOD

29. Mom or dad, e.g. : PALINDROME. Nice word, fun clue.

32. Bowl-shaped pan : WOK

34. Greek consonants : PSIS

35. Greek vowels : ETAS

37. Ma with a cello : YO-YO. Great stuff.

38. Annex : WING

39. "If I told you __ ..." : ONCE

40. Tulip-to-be : BULB

45. Soon-to-be alumni: Abbr. : SRS

46. Fivers : ABES. "Lady Godivas" in UK rhyming slang (she's not on the note, alas!)

47. Flourless cakes : TORTES. Food!

48. Invoice figure : AMOUNT

49. Lifts with effort : HEFTS

50. Connecticut collegian : YALIE. We had the plural on Monday.

51. In one's birthday suit : NAKED. Just like Lady Godiva.

54. Pickled or deep-fried veggie : OKRA. Food!

55. Onion relative : LEEK. Food!

56. Colorist's supplies : DYES

58. Bug on a wire : TAP

59. Microbrew choice : ALE. Comes out of a 58D!

60. Horror star Chaney : LON

61. Driver's decision: Abbr. : RTE. I let Google Maps make those decisions for me now, it does a much better job than I ever did.

And, in the words of Sylvester and Tweety: That's all, Folks!

Steve

Notes from C.C.:

1) Happy Birthday to our Jam Master Chickie! Chickie has a loving & tight-knit family. Her kids and grandkids will probably celebrate her birthday this weekend.

L to R: Chickie, Lucina, Garlic Gal, JD, and Dodo

2) Happy Birthday to Spitzboov's wife Betty as well! Don't miss this "It Matters Where You Put the Tag" & this Christ the Redeemer construction work links Spitzboov got for us the past couple of days. This vacuum one made me laugh out loud also.

Spitzboov & Betty at the reunion dinner held at the US Coast Guard Academy, New London, CT, 2012

Friday, April 4, 2014, Kurt Krauss

Theme: REBUS, let your mind see the picture.

By now everyone should be used to the concept that Friday will give you something challenging, and often something new to deal with as you solve. We have had conversation (YR, I believe?) as to rebus puzzles being pictures like this classic FRAME GAME from USA Weekend magazine.  This will be my third of Kurt's Kreations to blog, and by far the most complex. All of the theme answers require two fill, which intersect, and the intersection is what reveals the single final fill. In effect the second word is inserted "in to" the first word to create a phrase that then stands alone. Tricky, but once you see the idea the rest really fell into place quickly. The symmetry of the top two sets have the intersecting word come from the top down, and the bottom two going down to the bottom from the intersection, along with some very nice 8 letter fill, like ACADEMIA, ONTARIAN, REFRAINS, SERPENTS, SNEAKERS and  VAN BUREN makes this a very fun looking puzzle.

20A. See 4-Down : SADKDLE. 4D. With 20-Across, working again, aptly : BACK.  (11). The common K tells you the fill is "Back in the saddle." Picture the perpendicular message here.

22A. See 8-Down : FAMSILY. 8D. With 22-Across, what red hair often does, aptly : RUNS. (11), The common S  reveals, "Runs in the family."

35A. See 30-Down : BANNK. 30D. With 35-Across, a financially sure thing, aptly : MONEY. (10). this central combination gives us, "Money in the bank."

50A. See 51-Down : MIRLROR. 51D. With 50-Across, do some self-examination, aptly : LOOK. (11). The intersection yields, "Look in the Mirror."

52A. See 53-Down : BUCDKET.  53D. With 52-Across, trivial amount, aptly : DROP(11). And we finish with my favorite, "Drop in the Bucket."

Across:

1. Biblical kingdom near the Dead Sea : MOAB. I knew I was going to have a good day when I confidently put this in and then confirmed with the perps.

5. Blue : LOW. Feeling kinda punk, down.

8. Chew (out) : REAM. He reamed him a new a******

12. Old empire builder : INCA. Love this near 16A. Donald's address, in comics : UNCA. By his sweet NEPHEWS. (7:33), I called my father's brother "Unc."

13. Construction materials : I-BARS.

17. Like a dotted note, in mus. : STAC. I knew this had to be STACCATO. See LINK. Any more commentary will have to come from those not musically deficient.

18. Bob preceder : SIREE. leaving out the "YES" to confuse you. (Yessiree bob!).

19. Tiny fraction of a min. : NSEC. We get this nanosecond frequently.

24. Dander : IRE.

25. Some tech sch. grads : EES. Electrical Engineers. Again.

26. Soweto's home: Abbr. : RSA. Republic of South Africa. Home to our now veteran veterinarian constructor, Gareth Bain, who has used NSEC in his works.

27. Great time, in slang : GAS. From nitrous oxide?

28. Rain cloud : NIMBUS. Our friend the cumulonimbus.

30. Fair ones : MAIDENS.

32. Julius Caesar's first name : GAIUS. A very common name, but this was an UNCOMMON man. 46D. Gallic girlfriends : AMIES. Gallic being French, amies are French girlfriends; in homage to Gaius Julius Caesar we can recall "Omnia Gallia in tres partes divisa est...." The beginning of his history of the invasion of Gaul. More on our Latin/Roman mini-theme, 21D. Roman god : DEUS. Just the Latin word, but because it looks like the name of the Greek god, ZEUS, this could be hard. Also, 44D. Dawn goddess : AURORA. The city outside of Denver.

33. Said : VOICED. Often times opinions....

34. Tandoori bread : NAN. Or NAAN.

36. Grilling sound : SSS. The steak or shrimp on the Barbie. Welcome back Kazie.

39. Macduff and Macbeth : THANES. This is/was a Scottish term the equivalent of Counts.

41. Charity, e.g. : DONEE. One who receives from a donor is a donee. A bit of a stretch.

43. Slipped past : EASED BY.

45. Sunday best : FINERY.

46. Soccer star Freddy : ADU. The son of Ghanian woman who won a green card lottery, Adu was considered an up-and-comer for United States football; much speculation surrounded his potential for future success, and he was even referred to as "the next Pele." With our mini-theme, 31D. Pelé's first name : EDSON. More specifically, Edson Arantes do Nascimento.

47. __ Simbel, site of Ramses II temples : ABU. You can read about it HERE. Do you agree the next fill should our old friend the Simpson's shopkeeper, APU?

48. Michaels et al. : ALS. So many Michaels in the world, we get the 'Miracle on Ice' announcer.

49. Galoot : APE.

54. "Was __ loud?" : I TOO.

55. Having no room for hedging : YES/NO. In cross-examining a witness you can often restrict the answer to Yes or No.

57. '20s tennis great Lacoste : RENE. Nice shirts? Chemise?

58. Designer Saarinen : EERO. Old time crosswordese. An architectural family, not like Ted Mosby.

59. Cynical response : SNEER.

60. Leftover bits : ORTS.

61. 40th st. : S DAK. Guess what state was 39th?

62. Whiz : PRO.

63. "Over here!" : PSST.

Down:

1. Not where it's expected to be : MISSING. So simple, yet I can see it hiding for a while.

2. Windsor resident : ONTARIAN. Eh, another Canadian reference.

3. Scholarly milieu : ACADEMIA. Where I become Dr. Lemonade.

5. Fine cotton threads : LISLES. Made from long staple cotton. Yeah, I really know what that means.

6. Awards named for a location : OBIES. Off Broadway.

7. Kids' card game : WAR. This is now a real money game in the casinos here.

9. Banner : ENSIGN. Apparently when you use your national flag at sea it becomes an Ensign. If you have watched Sheldon, I am sure you would know all about vexillology, or on the Game of Thrones, the bannerman. Sunday night!!!

10. Amtrak speedsters : ACELAS.  The high speed trains incorporated into our rail system. The name comes from Acceleration and Excellence, they say.

11. Store with a star : MACY'S.

14. Choruses : REFRAINS.

15. Queasy near the quay : SEASICK. This made me queasy.

23. Earned : MADE. Oh that life were fair and people actually made what they earned and earned what they made.

29. Squeeze plays involve them : BUNTS. Aren't you glad we had the discussion of this last week.

33. Jackson follower : VAN BUREN. Martin, president number 8 following Andrew Jackson, #7. Martin was from Buffalo and the first president born after the US was born.

35. 1995 Will Smith/Martin Lawrence film : BAD BOYS. Twenty years ago they made this MOVIE. (2:46).

37. Running pair : SNEAKERS.

38. Malicious types : SERPENTS. If the answer were snakes it would have come easier.

40. Try, as a case : HEAR. The Judge and/or jury "hear" the case.

41. Record : DISC. Hard to get away from the verb.

42. Seer's challenge : EYE TEST. The one examination I have never been able to do well on.

43. Corrected, in a way : EDITED.

45. Prefix with carbon : FLUORO. The  ENEMYof our world? 

48. Running back Haynes, first AFL player of the year : ABNER. On Friday, you do not get Lil, you get this. He is perhaps most famous for winning the toss and choosing to kick off in overtime in the championship game against Houston. LINK.

56. Equinox mo. : SEPtember. The autumnal season of equal day and night.

Wow, we are through already.  I hope you all had a good time and found the visual theme easily. Until then It is Lemonade off into the night.

Wednesday, January 22, Kurt Krauss

Theme: THEM'S THE BREAKS or LEMEE OUTA HERE or BREAKING FREE.  In each theme answer, the letters of the word FREE are broken, and make bookends for the rest of the letters in the answer.

17A. *Genealogist's tool : FAMILY TREE.  A graphic representation of parental relationships.  Here's ours.  I misread this as Geologist's tool, and was BAFFLED for a while.

24A. *"Top Hat" leading man : FRED ASTAIRE.  Stage name for Frederick Austerlitz, actor, singer, dancer and choreographer, most famous for his dancing in 31 musical films.  Here he is with Ginger Rogers. (3:28)

34A. *Stewed chicken dish : FRICASSEE.  In which the meat is cut up, sauteed or braised, and traditionally served with a white sauce.  Almost, but not quite paprikas.

50A. *Most serious or least serious : FIRST DEGREE.  Most serious for crimes, least for burns.

Note that the second and third theme entries are each broken differently, while the first and fourth are broken in the same way, making another kind of book end.

And the unifier:  58. Escapes, and, literally, what each of the answers to starred clues does :

BREAKS FREE.

Hi gang, JazzBumpa here. I don't recall blogging one of Kurt's before. Let's see if we can BREAK FREE some of this fill.

Across:

1. Big cat of Narnia : ASLAN. From the C. S. Lewis classic, The Witch, The Lion and The Wardrobe.

6. Salad alternative : SOUP.  Olive Garden choice. We always get the salad.

10. No more than : MERE.  Also a C.S. Lewis title word.

14. Pope after John X : LEO VI.  His short term lasted only from June 928 to his death in February 929.

15. Facility : EASE. 

16. Iowa State's city : AMES.  College town.

19. Political syst. : GOV'T.  Government.  Note abbrv in cl & ans.

20. Priestly robes : ALBS. Long white tunics, coming down to the ankles, usually girdled with a cincture.

21. Suffix with Capri : OTE.  A Capriote is a person from Goat Island.

22. Door sign : ENTER.  Sometimes [ironically] with the lead in "DO NOT."

23. __ Fáil: Irish coronation stone : LIA. The "Stone of Destiny," where all the Irish high kings were crowned until the 5th century A.D.

27. Abandon : FORSAKE.  Not to be done at High Noon.

29. British throne? : LOO.  AKA toilet or W.C. Word game of thrones?

30. Churchillian sign : VEE.  VEE for Victory in WW II; Winston Churchill, 20th century British statesman and toper.

Source

31. Compound conjunction : AND/OR. Presented for your edification AND/OR enjoyment.

32. Uppercut target : JAW.  An upward thrust in boxing.  The jaw is the logical target.  Mind your tongue.

33. Take a break : REST.

 38. First Greek consonant : BETA. Follows Alpha. Together, they give us the word alphabet.

41. Go a few rounds : BOX.  Watch out for uppercuts.

42. Petting zoo critter : LLAMA.  South American camel analog, beast of burden, food source, and comedian.

  Source

46. Pulitzer poet Lowell : AMY (1874 - 1924)

Vernal Equinox

The scent of hyacinths, like a pale mist, lies
 between me and my book;
And the South Wind, washing through the room,
Makes the candles quiver.
My nerves sting at a spatter of rain on the shutter,
And I am uneasy with the thrusting of green shoots
Outside, in the night.

Why are you not here to overpower me with your

 tense and urgent love?

The scent of hyacinths, like a pale mist, lies
   between me and my book; And the South Wind, washing through the room, Makes the candles quiver. My nerves sting at a spatter of rain on the shutter, And I am uneasy with the thrusting of green shoots Outside, in the night. Why are you not here to overpower me with your
   tense and urgent love? - See more at: http://www.poets.org/viewmedia.php/prmMID/22831#sthash.KxdLSHw9.dpuf

More here.

47. Gloss target : LIP.

 Source

48. Concession speech deliverer : ALSO RAN.  He came. He saw. He lost.

53. Former telecom co. : MCI.  Now part of Verizon.  You can see its checkered history here.

54. Toga party hosts : FRATS.  Fraternities, like Delta House.

55. HDTV brand : RCA makes High Definition TV's.

56. Amazed sounds : OOHS.  Often found with aahs.

57. "Lois & Clark" reporter : LANE.  Clark Kent, Lois Lane.

61. Blues singer James : ETTA.  Nee Jamesetta Hawkins; January 25, 1938 – January 20, 2012.

62. Carded at a club : ID'ed.  Abrv. for "Identification," transformed into a verb.

63. Catorce ÷ dos : SIETE.  Fourteen by two leaves seven, in either Spanish or English.

64. Work station : DESK.

65. Billy of "Titanic" : ZANE.  Did he always play someone warped AND/OR crazy?

66. Extra : ADDED.  Here, an adjective, not a bit part player.

Down:

 1. "Our Gang" kid with a cowlick : ALFALFA.

Source

2. Circus barker : SEA LION.  Literal, not figurative.

3. Gable's third wife : LOMBARD.  Carole, third of five, and, as the story goes, the great love of his life.  She died in a plane crash on January 16, 1942, returning from a trip selling war bonds.

 Source

4. Thrifty alternative : AVIS.  Rental cars.

5. Zilch : NIL.  Usually NADA, but here only three letters were available.

6. Parlor piece : SETTEE.  An upholstered seat for more than one, smaller than a SOFA, usually with a back and arms.

7. Propelled, as a galley : OARED. Another poor innocent noun, kidnapped and verberized.  Rowed seems more in the language.  But let's all sing:  OAR, OAR, OAR your boat  .  .  .   Or maybe not.

8. Capitalize on : USE.  A bit of a stretch, but OK.

9. Peruvian capital? : PEE.  Ugh!

10. __ cum laude : MAGNA.  Graduation honors.  SUMMA also fits.

11. Eliciting feeling : EMOTIVE.

12. Really looks up to : REVERES.  I really look up to Paul, for his midnight ride.

13. Springsteen's __ Band : E STREET.  Jersey boys.

18. N.Y.C. part : YORK.  New YORK City.  The Big Apple.  

22. DDE's WWII arena : ETO.  European Theater of Operations.

24. Klinger portrayer on "M*A*S*H" : FARR. Jamie. Though he's famous and from Toledo, I could not remember his name, and had to rely on perps.  Ah, me.

25. "Ah, me!" : ALAS.  Word spoken by a jilted lad?

26. Porcine moms : SOWS.  Piggies.

28. Cushioned seat : SOFA.  Bigger than a SETTEE

32. Fla. NFL team, on scoreboards : JAX.  The rather hapless Jacksonville Jaguars.

33. Move for the job, briefly : RELOcate.

35. Abbr. referring to a previous citation : IBID.  Short for IBIDEM. Latin for "in the same place."

36. Make do : COPE.  Sort of like "eke out."

37. "What __ can I say?" : ELSE.   Don't ask this question unless you're willing to deal with the answer.

38. Bewildered : BAFFLED.  Bollixed, confused, at a loss.

39. Kuwait or Qatar : EMIRATE.  Last time I had EMIR, a high ranking sheik.  This word can refer variously to his rank, lands, or reign.

40. Ruthless rulers : TYRANTS. Frex, Joffrey, the First of his Name, from Game of Thrones.

43. Like a Brink's truck : ARMORED.  Brinks hauls money, hence the extra protection. 

44. Jungle explorer's tool : MACHETE.  A big knife for slashing through the vegetation.

45. Ouzo flavoring : ANISEED.  Pimpinella anisum, also called ANISE, is a flowering plant in the family Apiaceae native to the eastern Mediterranean region and Southwest Asia.  It's flavor is similar to licorice.

47. Capt.'s underlings : LTS.  Even when shortened, captains are still over lieutenants.

48. Game venue : ARCADE.  A room full of game machines.

49. Pipe problem : LEAK. During the coldest part of January, there always water main breaks in the Detroit Metro Area. 

51. Porterhouse, e.g. : STEAK.  An oversize T-bone containing more of the tenderloin than the loin.  Hope you're hungry.

52. Putting spot : GREEN.  For all you golfers out there.

56. "The Wizard __" : OF ID.  Comic strip.  And a reminder why we don't discuss politics.   Gandolf he ain't.

58. Line of work, for short : BIZ. Corrupted abrv. of Business.

59. Nutritionist's abbr. : RDA.  Recommended Daily Allowance.

60. Fed. retirement org. : SSA.  Social Security Administration.  Thank you FDR.

Pretty good for a Wednesday.  Hope you were able to crack this one.

In other news, the polar vortex is back.  We're not able to BREAK FREE from winter's grip.

Cool [maybe even freezing] regards!

JzB

Notes from C.C.:

1) Happy 68th Birthday to dear John Lampkin, who helped me greatly in my earlier days of blogging and constructing. We talked on the phone once. I was very nervous as I always have problem make myself understood. He was incredibly kind and patient. Love this picture!

Lemonade & John Lampkin, March 21, 2012

2) Happy 82nd Birthday to dear Marge! Hope you've long recovered from the fall last year and are doing well.

Tuesday, September 24, 2013 Kurt Krauss

Theme: Watch the Birdie - and say "CHEESE". The theme is four kinds of cheese.

17A. *1972 hit with the line "The day the music died" : AMERICAN PIE. American cheese.

26A. *County fair prize : BLUE RIBBON. blue cheese.

40A. *Home-based business : COTTAGE INDUSTRY. cottage cheese.

49A. *Beef-braised-with-tomatoes dish : SWISS STEAK. Swiss cheese.

62A. Green Bay Packer fans ... and a hint to the answers to starred clues : CHEESEHEADS

Argyle here and I've found Monday's puzzle. Anchored by a grid spanner in the middle and a subject dear to my stomach, food! This is a satisfying entertainment.

Across:

1. Babbling waterway : BROOK

6. Pillow covers : SHAMS. A decorative cover over the actual pillow case.

11. Healthful facility : SPA

14. Nocturnal primate with a ringed tail : LEMUR. The little guy with the big eyes.

15. Squiggle in "piñata" : TILDE

16. Make a mistake : ERR

19. Feel sick : AIL

20. Sharp turn : ZIG

21. Auction cry : "SOLD!"

22. "I'm innocent!" : "NOT ME!"

24. Pennsylvanie, par exemple : ÉTAT. French.

29. Receding tide : EBB

31. On edge : TENSE

32. Sambuca flavoring : ANISE

35. Place for a polar bear : FLOE

37. Street shaders : ELMS

43. __ II razor : TRAC

44. Tells in a bad way : RATS. Back in the day, "drop a dime".

45. Biblical beasts : ASSES

46. Blue gem, for short : LAPIS. Lapis lazuli, pretty as a burning shot of Sambuca.

48. "I __ you one" : OWE

53. Jones with a locker : DAVY

57. Cagney's TV partner : LACEY. Buddy cop show, ran from 1982-1988.

58. Spring bloomer : IRIS. Hey, Blue.

60. Go head-to-head : VIE

61. Prefix for the birds : AVI

66. Pince-__ glasses : NEZ

67. Prefix meaning "sun" : HELIO

68. Krupp Works city : ESSEN. On the River Ruhr in Germany.

69. Afternoon ora : TRE. Mid-afternoon time in Italia. (3:00 PM)

70. Bagel flavoring : ONION

71. "Star Wars" surname? : DETOO. (R2-D2)

Down:

1. Burn brightly : BLAZE. See 32-Across.

2. Send a money order, say : REMIT

3. Alpha's opposite : OMEGA. Start and end of the Greek alphabet.

4. "__ Man in Havana": Graham Greene novel : OUR. Made into a movie the year after it was published.

5. Barbra's "A Star Is Born" co-star : KRIS. Barbra Streisand / Kris Kristofferson (1976), Janet Gaynor / Fredric March (1937), Judy Garland and James Mason (1954).

6. Delay on purpose : STALL. But not on purpose, if it's a car.

7. Many an Indian, religiously : HINDU

8. The Eiger, e.g. : ALP

9. Start of the 16th century : MDI. (1501) Historical Events for Year 1501, LINK. (Slow year)

10. Greeted and seated : SEEN IN

11. Vehicle safety devices : SEAT BELTS

12. First-class : PRIMO. (slang)

13. Former senator Specter : ARLEN. Senator from PA, noted for switching parties.

18. __ salad : COBB. Food!

23. Excessively preoccupied : OBSESSED. Not me!

25. Precedent setter : TEST CASE

27. Boarding school jackets : ETONS

28. Bassoon vibrator : REED

30. "But I don't wanna __ pirate!": "Seinfeld" : BE A. The puffy shirt episode.

32. Do some film work : ACT

33. Partner of neither : NOR

34. Highlight in print, in a way : ITALICIZE

35. Banquet : FEAST

36. Put a match to : LIT. See 32-Across.

38. G.I. grub : MRE. (Meal, Ready-to-Eat)

39. Part of TBS: Abbr. : SYS. (Turner Broadcasting System)

41. Pinot __ : GRIS, Won't burn.

42. Detroit labor org. : UAW. (United Automobile Workers)

47. Film with a classic shower scene : "PSYCHO"

48. Sooner State migrant : OKIE

49. Bias : SLANT

50. Have second thoughts : WAVER

51. Five-letter song refrain : EIEIO. Did you know Farmer McDonald was a really bad speller?

52. Felonious fire : ARSON

54. Salt's "Halt!" : "AVAST!". Hey, talk like a pirate was last week.

55. Audio counterpart : VIDEO

56. Like "Will you marry me?" questionwise : YES/NO

59. Storage building : SHED

63. Clucker : HEN. "Hen, H,E,N,E,I,E,I,O" [buzz]

64. Yale alum : ELI

65. Suffix with Brooklyn : ESE

Argyle

Friday, January 25, 2013, Kurt Krauss

Theme: What the Yell?

Each of the theme answers concludes with a word which is synonymous with YELL, and is used to replace a sound alike second word of an in the language phrase in a punny fashion, creating a new and visually humorous phrase, all clued with the clecho CRY.  This is a more traditional four theme answer grid, though still using 46 spaces. This is Kurt's fifth effort at the corner, and the last two have been Friday features.I really enjoyed the combining of the pun and the synonym to create the theme. The rest of the fill was fine with some solid  6, 7, and 8 letter words like CLASS ACT, SOURPUSS, RAMPARTS, COCKER, and even one J, jest one.  I found it to be a reasonable Friday, so let's do this.

17A. Cry from a duped investor? : PONZI SCREAM.(SCHEME) (11). Sadly So.Fla. know all too much about the schemers, and the many who were ruined did scream.

24A. Cry just before dozing off? : SLEEPY HOLLER.(HOLLOW) (12). A LEGENDARY (0:32) clue.

46A. Cry from a superfan? : BOOSTER SHOUT, (SHOT) ((12) Appropriate for this flu season.

56A. Cry from a Jeddah native? : SAUDI SHRIEK.(SHEIKH) (11). The shriek was SILENT.(3:24).

Across:

1. Fair share, maybe : HALF. Split it down the middle, extremely fair.

5. Polite denial : NO MA'AM. You do not look fat in that dress.

11. Pro-___ : AMS. One of my thrills was playing with Champion Tour professional golfers and being on the practice tee with Palmer, Nicklaus and so many other greats.

14. Arch type : OGEE. Oh Gee not again.

15. Commensurate (with) : ON A PAR. More golf invading our lives.

16. Soaked : WET. Dennis, your thoughts? Maybe we need 50A. Hose : RINSE.

19. Brother : FRA.

20. "I" strain? : EGO. Freud's mental triumvirate with the super-ego.

21. Where to find Ducks and Penguins: Abbr. : NHL. National Hockey League. A moment of silence for Eddy B.

22. Eyes : OCULI. An eye reference on a Friday.

28. Eschewed the backup group : SOLOED. Many have failed when they left the nest.

31. Mrs. Gorbachev : RAISA. I will call your Michelle Obama and ...well you get the idea.

32. Influence : CLOUT.

33. Took in : ARRESTED. It is good to be back even with the anons who exposed themselves in their anxiety to irritate me; the last time I was blogging the Corner disappeared. Makes me nervous.

37. Lab medium : AGAR. This always reminds me of this CORPORAL.(2:53).

38. Thinking out loud, in a way : ASIDE. From Shakespearean theater days when the characters address the audience.

40. Farm father : SIRE. Not the Earl of Grantham, but the horse he rides on.

41. Anthem fortifications : RAMPARTS red glare, the bombs bursting in air....

43. Cupid's boss : SANTA. Deliciously tricky clue, not a horse, but the reindeer Cupid!!!

44. Free : UNTIE.

45. Dog named for the bird it hunted, familiarly : COCKER.  The were named for their hunting of the WOODCOCK, which makes the thought of splinters scary!

51. Dig in : EAT. How appetizing.

52. John, Paul and George, but not Ringo: Abbr. : STS. Saints, not Beatles you heretic!

55. Electees : INS. As opposed to the OUTS, not belly buttons but politicians.

61. Iron ___ : AGE. Which Iron(ically) was a time of

62. Troubled state : UNREST.

63. Vronsky's lover, in Tolstoy : ANNA. Karenina. CLIP. (1:28).

64. "Balderdash!" : ROT. We have had so many nice contributions from the Brits, like Steve.

65. Some aces : PILOTS. My cousin was a pilot; he worked in a warehouse unloading trucks. He would  pile it here and pile it there.

66. Kid : JEST. Can u text JJ? LMAO!

Down:

1. Clinton's birthplace : HOPE. I hope you all recalled this one.

2. Bug-eyed : AGOG.

3. Jay related to a peacock? : LENO. The NBC Peacock. We are clearly not going off half-cocked with this puzzle.

4. Casbah headgear : FEZ.

5. Had a little something : NOSHED. One of many Yiddish words which have become part of the language.

6. Frère de la mère : ONCLE. My mother's brother, en francais.

7. Dent, say : MAR.

8. Big lug : APE.

9. Travel org. since 1902 : AAA. American Automobile Association.

10. "Captain Kangaroo" character who told knock-knock jokes : MR. MOOSE. Never watched this Clara-belle the clown refugee.

11. Really bad : AWFUL.

12. Haggard of country music : MERLE. A little TUNE?

13. Flight part : STAIR. Not up in the air, but up the down staircase.

18. Ocean-bay connector : INLET. Rhymes with 48D. Start : ONSET.

23. Someone to admire : CLASS ACT. Perfectly matched with

24. Grouch : SOURPUSS. For our crowd.

25. Sung approval? : PRAISES. For some reason, PSALMS came to mind but it did not fit.

26. Prison area : YARD.

27. Bring on board : HIRE.

28. Injury reminder : SCAR. To B or to R? That is today's question.

29. '70s Olympics name : OLGA. All you need to know. LINK.

30. Good earth : LOAM. We have no dirt here in So.Fla. which is why our tomatoes have so little taste. Yes, it is our dirty little secret.

34. Pixie dust leaver, to Peter : TINKerbell. to the young master Pan.

35. Deco designer : ERTE. R.T. and close by 38D. Uffizi hangings : ARTE. Uffizi is the art gallery in Florence (Firenza).

36. Beloved : DEAR. Really, I need to be more careful of my use of dear. Otherwise I might

39. Hubbub : STIR. up trouble.

42. Pays to play : ANTES UP.

43. Into a state of decline : SOUTH. This is not a condemnation of all below the Mason-Dixon line, but a common phrase.

45. Ocean borders : COASTS.

46. Patch plant : BRIAR. Uncle Remus, ou Oncle Remus.

47. Rock's ___ Boingo : OINGO. This CLASSIC. (3:33).

49. One may follow a casing : HEIST.  We all know from TV that criminals case the place they plan to rob.

52. Trig function : SINE.

53. XXX, at times : TENS. XXX is on whiskey and in porn.

54. Three-handed game : SKAT. I will let Kazie speak of this national card game of Germany.

57. Singer DiFranco : ANI. She say she is not a PRETTY GIRL (3:42).

58. Bookmarked item nowadays : URL. Uniform Resource Locator.

59. "Gloria in Excelsis ___" : DEO.

60. British rule in colonial India : RAJ. The HISTORY

Well we have made it through the entire write up without the site disappearing; great to see all the lurkers commenting here and with HG. Lemonade signing off wishing you all a great day and week end.

Notes from C.C.:

1) Please email me (crosswordc@gmail.com) if you encounter "Dangerous site" warning when accessing this blog.

2) Please bookmark my Ginger Roots blog. In case the Corner blog has trouble again, we'll discuss puzzles there.