Friday, August 23, 2013, Matt Skoczen

Theme: En-word and upward! An homage to Splynter?

Geez, I hope you understand 'EN' sounds like ON; we don't need anybody being Paula Deaned. So after a one week hiatus, Matt S. is back with a variation on the single definition theme, using French phrases, beginning with EN, with second part a five letter word,  all in common usage in the US. A classic 12, 14, 14, 12 four theme answer grid. Some hard work in places, but it all went pretty smoothly. Now we will see how many Matts drop by today. Let us start deciphering...

17A. En masse : ALL TOGETHER. (12). Each fill is literal.

27A. En vogue : STYLISH IN PARIS. (14). We get our French reference, not a reveal but certainly a hint.

47A. "En garde" : GET READY TO DUEL. (14). Not sure why the quotation marks unless it is because it is said out loud, more a fencing than a shoot out term.

62A. En route : NOT YET THERE. (12). Are we there yet? Yes we are ready for the rest of the story.

Across:

1. Like some cooked hot dogs : PLUMP. Of course, YUMMY.(0:33).

6. Monopoly property after Illinois : B AND O. A nice change from old Athletics's Third Baseman Sal.

11. It may be pale : ALE. and an immediate clecho, and a double beer reference.

14. It may be pale : LAGER.  You could do a whole puzzle with this one clue with fill like New Englander's face, and sea shells and Lindsay Lohan.

15. Old Detroit-to-Seattle hwy. : US TEN. Tricky, my first thought was 'Usten, we have a problem.'

16. Approval of a sort : NOD.

19. Rundown ender : TAG. Baseball clue, where a runner is trapped in between bases.

20. Mr. Ma : YO-YO.

21. Words with hunch : ON A.

22. Calm : PACIFY.

24. Mount where Moses saw the promised land : NEBO. It is in JORDAN.

26. Jogging technique? : MEMO. Interesting, this is the beginning of memory, which is what is being jogged here.

33. Thunders : BOOMS.

34. Quirky : ODD.

35. Sleeping bag site : TENT. Which usually ends up leaving you...

36. Cold and damp : RAW. Not the ideal vacation for an...

37. Like many a social climber : ELITIST.

41. Keep-secret link : IT A. If they went they would keep it a secret.

42. Sports shoe brand : AVIA. I think it is now the official sneaker of Walmart.

44. Walk-___ : ONS. Non scholarship athletes trying out for the team.

45. Honest Abe's dad, in comics : ABNER. We are having a renaissance in interest in AL CAPP and his comic strip.

51. Brief briefs? : BVDS. Like Kleenex, this brand name became synonymous with the tighty whitey we alll wore, The name according to the wiki world comes from Bradley, Voorhees & Day, the three founders. The companyas bought by Fruit of the Loom was gobbled up by Mr. Buffet and Berkshire Hathaway.

52. Aging issue : RUST. Not so much for me, but I worry about Tinman.

53. Took in : HOUSED.

56. Shuttle, perhaps : BUS.

57. David's longtime partner : CHET. Huntley Brinkley Report, what I grew up watching.

61. Keats subject : URN. How bad is your social life that you write a poem to an Urn?

65. ___ loss : NET.

66. Hits with force : SWATS.

67. Subs : HEROS. You might think this refers to the sandwich also called Hoagie and Grinder, but in our world it refers to HG and others who work as substitute teachers and become heroes to their classes.

68. Also : TOO.

69. Commencement : ONSET.

70. Apparel : DRESS. So when we don our gay apparel, it is a dress.

Down:

1. Coach's call : PLAY.

2. Composer Schifrin : LALO. He did Dirty Harry, Bullitt and so many more.

3. Like some moods : UGLY.

4. Broadway, for the theater industry : METONYM. I bet all of our teachers knew this CONCEPT. If you did not the cross with NEBO was tough.

5. 11-Down opposite : PRO. and 11D. 5-Down opposite : ANTI.

6. ___ Aires : BUENOS.

7. Movie clue sniffer : ASTA. The Thin Man cast is also big time crossword  fodder.

8. Last in a theoretical series : NTH.

9. Places for diving boards : DEEP ENDS.

10. Feature of many highways : ON RAMP. Well, I think 'many' might just be an understatement, since if you do not have an ON (not EN) ramp how would you ever get ON (not EN)?

12. Just sit around : LOAF. Nice contrasting fill back to back.

13. Not at all calm : EDGY.

18. Mongolian expanse : GOBI.

23. Layer : COAT. Like of paint.

25. Choice word : ELSE. Give me the money, or...

26. Skirt length : MIDI. Not my favorite, but...

27. Dry Italian wine : SOAVE.

28. Specifically : TO WIT. Here we actually have more wit than that

29. ___-totsy : HOTSY. Like this, 601 San Pablo Ave  Albany, CA 94706,  for our left coasters.  LINK.

30. French royal : REINE. With an "E" it is the Queen, without the "E" it is a kidney.

31. Mil. gathering? : INTEL.ligence.

32. One in the lead : STAR.

33. Talk big : BRAG.

38. Encumber : LOAD DOWN. Low down on the down load?

39. Unaffiliated voters: Abbr. : INDS. Independents.

40. Small boys : TADS. A cruel tricky synonym for LADS. Not to be confused with 63D.

43. Wall St. figures : ARBS. Arbitragers.

46. Bungle badly : BUTCHER. Man the last thing I want is my butcher to be a bungler with all those big knives.

48. All things considered : EVEN SO.

49. Most sincere : TRUEST.

50. Boot : OUST.

53. Pursuit : HUNT.

54. Three-part snack : OREO. Top middle and bottom, or Twist, lick and chew?

55. Golden rule word : UNTO. Others...

56. Information unit : BYTE.

58. "___, kitty kitty!" : HERE.

59. Mythological archer : EROS. I have graduated from the dawn to love.

60. 1994 Shirley MacLaine title role : TESS. A finishing run of "T" words. LINK. (2:22).

63. Some univ. staff : TA'S. Teaching Assistants. My youngest was one but they hardly made him feel like staff.

64. Divinity sch. degree : TH D. Doctor of Theology.

Well another Friday in the record books, I  pray you enjoyed the show. Time to go see my Charlotte. Lemonade out.

Note from C.C.:

Happy Birthday to the Scotch-loving Tinbeni!

Friday, August 16, 2013 Jean O'Conor

Theme: Bee all that you can Bee, one clue will do.

Well it is Friday and we are presented with our second consecutive Friday single clue, five theme answer puzzle. This is our 4th puzzle from Ms. O'Conor (Don't you want to get her a second N?) since her first published LAT in January. It is impressive watching new constructors get going once they the first one is in print. Structurally, this is a classic Friday, low blocks and word count, and longer words, as well many new or infrequently used clues. Some of the nice fill that jumped out for me included ONE CARAT,  RED SAUCE, GETS USED TO,  TURKEY TROT; these multiple word answers made the solving a challenge in places, but let us compare our answers.

17A Buzz: BEEHIVE HUM.(10). When I first saw this answer, I thought maybe it was going to have "HO" removed from every clue. Our onomatopoetic fill.

24A Buzz: LATEST RUMOR.(11). Many local news channels call their gossip segment the BUZZ.

33A Buzz: ASTRONAUT ALDRIN.(15). The second man to walk on the moon and the feistiest of all out astronauts. LINK. He is now promoting the colonization of Mars.

46A Buzz: ARMY HAIRCUT. (11). This is my meh  theme clue, as really aren't they really called buzz cuts?

54A Buzz: COFFEE RUSH. (10). I imagine more of us will think of alcohol as the cause of a BUZZ.

Across:

1 Preppy clothing brand: IZOD. Alligators and ex-partner of Lacoste.

5 1996 A.L. Rookie of the Year: JETER. He is trying to come back,  but 17 years have passed very quickly.

10 __ club: GLEE. Who would ever believe this would become a hit TV show. Also, a reminder of the price of fame, with the suicide of this young man and the contestant from the Bachelor.

14 It’s frowned upon: NO NO.

15 Slangy event suffix: ORAMA. Saleorama, cyclorama; not one I use or hear anymore, not to be confused with OBAMA.

16 Forever and a day: EONS.

19 Just as it should be: TO A T. One which can be hard to parse, what is a toat, does it rhyme with goat?

20 Patterned cotton cloth: CALICO. With this audience a Tabby would have been more popular.

21 Words said with an eagerly raised hand: ASK ME. I recall more, Me, Me, Me.

22 Three-time Boston Marathon winner Pippig: UTA. A change from  Ms. Hagen. I wonder how many of our New England contingent recall her, and her giving new meaning to the winner trotting HOME.

27 Monopoly player?: CARTEL. This was a struggle because, as intended, all I thought about was the game.

29 __ Palace: CAESARS. My favorite casino. 35 black.

30 Kona cookout: LUAU.

31 Dome cover: TOUPEE. You see so many terrible toppers, are there no mirrors?

39 Some discount stores: K-MARTS. They are closing their stores slowly in Florida.

40 Squeal: TELL. My father was very strict in punishing any one of us who squealed on our brothers.

41 Fixes the weatherproofing on, say: RESEALS.

44 Vicky in the Nixon White House: POODLE. I only recall Checkers, the Cocker Spaniel.

49 Pre-1991 atlas initials: SSR

50 She played Ninotchka: GRETA. Garbo. The movie was pitched because the haughty, aloof actress laughed often in the movie.

51 Moon of Jupiter: EUROPA. One of four big moons, but the astronomers now have counted 67 MOONS

53 Coal-rich valley: SAAR. This is information I learned doing the LAT.

58 Quito questionnaire catchall: OTRO. Other in Spanish. Capital of Ecuador.

59 Treads the boards?: SURFS. This was really tricky, as the phrase is so attached to actors in the theater in my mind.

60 Bounce back: ECHO. How appropriate for an all CLECHO themed puzzle.

61 Thomas who drew Santa: NAST. An extremely influential political cartoonist who did redesign Santa. LESSON.

62 Hush-hush hookup: TRYST. I just love this word, as it makes clandestine romance sound so fun.

63 They hold the answers: KEYS.

Down:

1 Schubert’s unfinished “Symphony No. 8 __ Minor”: IN B.

2 Saldana of recent “Star Trek” films: ZOE. They are making an Avatar 2. She was Uhura in the ST remake.

3 Like some diamonds: ONE CARAT. How big were your engagement rings ladies?

4 Qatar’s capital: DOHA. How cool, a shout out to our Doc.

5 Good-humored: JOVIAL. More Santa?

6 Put up: ERECT. Nope, not going there.

7 Chevy K5 Blazer, since 1995: TAHOE. Do you ever wonder who picks the car names?

8 Swift-running bird: EMU. For all the golfers out there, Tom Morris and his CADDIE.

9 Push firmly: RAM.

10 Learns to cope with: GET'S USED TO. Such an odd string of letters until you break them up.

11 “No hands!” lead-in: LOOK MA. The bicycle ritual.

12 Enthrall: ENAMOR. I am not in love with using an "EN" clue and an "EN" fill.

13 Beer-flavoring compounds: ESTERS. I need one of my brewing boys to write this, but I will let you read this LINK if you are interested.

18 __-et-Vilaine: French department: ILLE. and 37D Misfortunes: ILLS.

21 Tottering: AREEL: An A word!

22 Pac-12 school: UCLA.

23 Cross-shaped letters: TAUS. The Greek T.

25 Rabbits’ tails: SCUTS. A Gareth Bain type of clue; all stubby tails like rabbits and deer are called SCUTS. Also the Santa Clara college Rugby team are known as the SCUTS.

26 Taberna snack: TAPA. Spanish, we have our Taberna here in Hialeah, the word is like our Tavern and if you do not know, TAPAS are like snacks or appetizers.

28 Ragtime round dance: TURKEY TROT. I hope you are up on your dances from the 20's.(2:56).

31 Tibia neighbors: TARSI. The seven bones in the ankle which connect the leg (Tibia) to the foot.

32 Dead to the world: OUT.

34 Home of ConAgra Foods: OMAHA. Another Corner shout out, this time to the golfing legend HG.

35 Simba’s love: NALA. Can you feel the Love TONIGHT? (3:32).

36 Marinara, e.g.: RED SAUCE.

38 Nat or Phil: NLER.

41 Teases relentlessly: RAGS ON. Another tricky multiple word fill.

42 List of slips: ERRATA. Coincidental Steve?

43 Window washer’s concern: SMEARS. I would worry only about the scaffolding and falling.

44 Least spoiled: PUREST. Who among us?

45 Chiwere speaker: OTOE. A new clue for a staple, all perps.

47 Toss back into the hot oil: REFRY. Beans!

48 Perp’s bracelets: CUFFS. The other perp and his handcuffs, if he gets caught.

52 Nursery sch.: PRE-K.

54. Manitoba hrs. CST. Manitoba is just west of Ontario and is in the Central time zone.

55 “__ House”: CSNY hit: OUR. Took me a while to translate Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young.

56 Reserved: SHY. Yup, me too.

57 5-Down laughs: HOS. Second week in a row for this fill in a Friday puzzle, but I was feeling psychic after my BEEHIVE (HO) HUM thought.

Well we managed another one, and really diverse cluing, not too many proper names, not too many obscurities, but lots of different areas, which should give you all something to talk about and CED plenty of topics for linking. This has been a fun mostly easy week, and I hope you enjoyed this one. Thank you Jean and all of you old and new posters.

Lemonade out.

Note from C.C.:

Happy Birthday to Doha Doc, originally Vegas Doc who is now in Doha (no easy beer)  for a business assignment. 

Friday, August 9, 2013, Matt Skoczen

Theme: Clecho Echo

The second Friday in recent memory where we have a single clue for five theme answers; this is a very ambitious offering with three grid spanners and 2 14s. This is my first time blogging one of Matt's works, though he is a regular contributor, with a number of Sunday puzzles, and a few collaborations, such as the recent one with Patti Varol which marti presented. Whenever you have such long fill and only the single, simple clue, you need the perps to get going. I found the theme well thought out, and the rest pretty straightforward, this is one time everyone knows the theme, so let's get to it.

17A. Crash : COMPUTER FAILURE.(15). Nothing more discouraging while writing the blog.

23A. Crash : MARKET COLLAPSE.(14). I was not around for the October 1929 crash, but I was in 1987.

38A. Crash : SHATTERING NOISE.(15). NOISE came easily, the rest did not.

46A. Crash : ENTER UNINVITED.(14). If you want an INSTRUCTIONAL VIDEO. (1:25).

57A. Crash : BUNK FOR THE NIGHT.(15). Has to work hard for the BUNK, had the B and Bed at first.

On the the rest of the pieces....

Across:

1. Beachgoer's download : E-BOOK. It is Déjà vu all over again; can you believe we start with two (2) pf marti's LFBAW fill?

6. "Saving Private Ryan" setting : D-DAY.

10. Oz. sextet : TSPS. I was tempted to parse this as T-sps, to keep the game alive.

14. Does a Photoshop task : CROPS.

15. Became frayed : WORE.

16. Heaps : A LOT. An acceptable A word?

20. Cut off : LOP. What you have to do when alot becomes too much.

21. "The Book of ___": Denzel Washington film : ELI.

22. Cook's aid : TIMER. So many choices.

28. Garden tools : HOES. Do we still need Don Imus jokes here?

29. Modern joke response : LOL. Lots of Ls with LOP and

30. Eagerly accept, as praise : LAP UP. Good fill for this feline following.

32. ___ flakes : BRAN. Corn vs. bran.

34. Angle iron : L-BAR. Here we go again, LFBAW.

41. Some code tones : DAHS. Everyone knows this, duh!

42. A line may be drawn in it : SAND.

43. Gift ___ : OF GAB. Nice simple but fun fill.

44. Handle clumsily : PAW.

45. Bibliog. term : ET AL.

53. Reagan's second attorney general : MEESE. Not related to Bullwinkle. LINK.

54. ___ gratia : DEI.

55. Road service org. : AAA.

62. Acronymic French artist : ERTE.

63. Caboose : REAR.

64. One never seen in "Peanuts" : ADULT.

65. French ___ : DOOR. Kiss?

66. Its Old World Style label has a gondola on it : RAGU.

67. Art of verse : POESY. Not really a word I know, kept looking for the "T."

Noun

Poetry: "they were enamored of poesy and the fine arts".

The art or composition of poetry.

Down:

1. "To every thing there is a season" Bible bk. : ECCLesiastes 3:1. I like this VERSION..(3:56).

2. Cleaning tool : BROOM. Brush also fit.

3. Rhythmic song from "Oliver!" : OOM PAH PAH. What FUN. (2:17).

4. Something for nothing?: Abbr. : OPP. Something is the OPPosite of Nothing. (thank you).

5. Sch. near Topeka : KSU. Kansas State University.

6. Resided : DWELT.

7. Greek column style : DORIC. I could write a column on how often we have this fill.

8. Sound from a shelter : ARF. Animal shelter; I have many friends involved in rescue missions.

9. Pro vote : YEA.

10. She was Adrian in "Rocky" : TALIA. First name - first name. Yo!

11. Batter's rough patch : SLUMP. Sadly the Marlins manage to share theirs.

12. Skin features : PORES.

13. Cordwood measure : STERE. This was once a very common fill.

18. Casual shirts : TEES.

19. "___ take a miracle!" : IT'LL.

24. Big wins : ROUTS.

25. Continued, with "up" : KEPT.

26. Chan portrayer : OLAND. All of the Charlie Chan movies are available on You Tube. This oddly cast Swedish gentleman made a bunch of THEM.

27. Like most Michener novels : LONG. Funny way to clue a simple word; but if you read Hawaii or some of the others....

30. '60s hallucinogen : LSD. Speaking of Joe Cocker and Woodstock....

31. "Caught ya!" : AHA.

32. Strength : BRAWN. Loved it crossing BRAN.

33. ___ Tin Tin : RIN. My childhood was more Rin than Lassie.

34. Lite : LO-FAT. No-fat seemed so nice.

35. Foremost : BIG LEAGUE.

36. Mad-hatter connection : AS A.

37. Hardly a Yankee fan? : REBel. Johnny was his name.

39. Old Testament twin : ESAU.

40. "You've got the wrong person" : NOT I. I am grammatically correct and would never have split that infinitive.

44. Bk. intro : PREFace.

45. Songwriter Sands : EVIE. I cannot imagine how I missed this entertainer; I know some of the music. LINK.

46. Add to a website, as a video clip : EMBED. Or to a blog.

47. Prefix with ophthalmology : NEURO. So many choices, again.

48. A bit before the hour : TEN TO. This popped out as TEN OF until I saw our old friend RT.

49. Glacial ridge : ESKER. Every time we see this one, we all say, oh yeah, Last used by John Lampkin on a Sunday. LINK.

50. Conference attendee's wear : ID TAG. I wanted badge.

51. Indian independence leader : NEHRU. And he made cute jackets.

52. Writer Roald and others : DAHLS. If I were a nit picker, I would say gratuitous plural could have been avoided by saying Roald and Arlene.

56. Court fig. : ATTY.

58. "Catch-22" pilot : ORR.

59. Belfast-born actor Stephen : REA. First saw him in the Crying Game.

60. Day break? : NAP. Long fill also means short fill, and this one I find elegant.

61. Words often said in front of a priest : I DO. Or I did,  and I am sorry.

Well we are deep into summer and schools are getting ready in Florida; where does it all go. Hope you enjoyed the journey, look forward to your take.

Lemonade out.

Notes from C.C.:

1) Will Shortz is visiting Minnesota next month. Click here for details. I hope to see some of you there.

2) Regular posters know that CrossEyedDave has been making pizzas in the woods for over 40 years and he's in constant search for a perfect pizza crust. Click here to read his recipe and musings. Please chime in in the Comments section if you have any secret trick to make the crust chewy & fluffy (Papa John's style).

Friday, August 2, 2013, Jack McInturff

Theme: O, U r such a punny guy.

What an elegant offering from one of our steady senior scribes, Jack Mac; as seen below the letter "O" is renimoved from the last word of a phrase and replaced with a "U" creating a new and whimsical phrase. All of this in a package of 2 13s, 2 15s, a 9 and a 5 letter hint. 69 letters and yet the rest of the fill includes some originality and sparkle, such as OFF MIKE, VALID ID, GET SORE and the almost related UNHUNG.

Back in the Friday saddle, thanks Boomer for the assist; let's get to it.

20A. Gap that's easy to bridge? : MINIATURE GULF. (13). Gulf= Golf. HG, are you a miniature golf whiz with all the big boy golf you play?

28A. Prize for neatest coloring? : KINDERGARTEN CUP. (15). Cup=Cop. ARNOLD.(2:16)

36A. Kiss while hiking? : TRAIL BUSS.(9). Buss=Boss. How many of us oldster thought of Ward Bond in Wagon Train, or Erik Fleming in Rawhide?

49A. Alien adopted by Herman and Lily? : THE GREEN MUNSTER.(15). Munster=Monster. I have had the pleasure of sitting at Fenway and watching balls hit over the famous left field fence. I love the visual of ET moving in with Fred Gwynne.

57A. "If you don't go to bed, Santa won't come," e.g.? : CHRISTMAS RUSE.(13). Ruse=Rose. This PLANT is in a family not related to Roses, and a threat to animals as our friend Gareth Bain could explain better; and the hint

64A. Words to a kidder, and a hint to how this puzzle's five longest answers were created : OH YOU.(5).

Across:

1. Track : OVAL. Did anyone watch the NASCAR race at Indy last weekend?

5. Put up : BUILD. A parking lot? What song?

10. Agile : SPRY. To irritate me, my children suggest I am quite spry. but not a 27D. Wire wearer : SPY.

14. Song in the musical "Kismet" : FATE. Do not know the play or tune, but how easy was this?

15. 1973 Stones ballad : ANGIE. 40 years ago, a hair band!

16. Small music group : TRIO. Music intensive today, who is your favorite, Kingston?

17. Custard concoction : FLAN.

18. Sticking point : THORN.

19. Big refs. : OEDS. OED: Oxford English Dictionary.

23. Chemical ending : IDE. Need a bromide yet?

24. Animal enclosure : PEN. Noun and verb.

25. They're found in mines and minis : SEAMS. Another interesting visual. CED I gave up after ten minutes looking for a girl in a mini in a gold mine.

33. Icelandic literary collection : EDDA. and the unrelated, 35A. Ice cream entrepreneur Joseph : EDY

34. Look down on the clouds, perhaps : SOAR.

41. Diving bird : AUK.

44. ___ vodka: ristorante phrase : ALLA. Tinman, do we mix any Vodka in our marinara?

45. Ally of Roderigo : IAGO. Interesting use of the word ALLY, as Iago was his own player.

54. Big name in beauty : ESTEE. Do your criticize her of Lauder?

55. That, in Madrid : ESO.

56. Inc. abroad : LTD.

62. Lion portrayer : LAHR. Some Oz, other than Amos.

65. "___ off?" : ON OR. Written by a parent with a child who keeps turning lights on and off.

66. It's not a big case : ETUI. Nice pun, and gist for every lawyer.

67. ___ lazuli : LAPIS. Semi-precious stone.

68. Sandy shade : ECRU.

69. Family fare letters : TV-PG.

70. Plato's market : AGORA. The Ancient Greek marketplace.

71. Soccer broadcaster Messing : SHEP. The goalkeeper for the NY Cosmos Soccer team, now talking about 'football. LINK.(4:32).

Down:

1. Not meant to be public : OFF MIKE. Fresh fill.

2. Airport security req. : VALID ID. don't you love IDID?

3. Over : AT AN END. Lots of multiple word entries today.

4. Filmmaker Riefenstahl : LENI. Hitler's filmmaker.

5. Cupcakes-to-be : BATTER. Cute clue.

6. Like curtains to be installed : UNHUNG. Be careful Lois.

7. Role for Marty Feldman : IGOR. That is pronounced EEEEgore.

8. Currency until 2002 : LIRE. In Italy.

9. Leader after Mao : DENG.  I leave any practical commentary to C.C. about this MAN. (From C.C.: Deng opened China to the outside world through his "Open Door Policy". He is famous for saying "It doesn't matter whether a cat is white or black, as long as it catches mice." Wiki explains it quite accurately: "In other words, he did not worry too much about whether a policy was capitalist or socialist as long as it improved the economy.")

10. Pinched : STOLEN. I hope the pinch was not.

11. Where some thank-yous are written : PREFACE. All perps, but now it makes sense.

12. Divested (of) : RID..

13. Howdies : YOS. Images of both Arnold and Sly in one puzzle, and juxtaposed two.

21. Clod : APE. Hmmmm.

22. False friends : USERS.

26. Sludge : MUD. Well that should be clear.

29. Latin case: Abbr. : DATive.

30. Guardian of Narnia : ASLAN.

31. Co-star of Carroll, Jean and Sally : ROB. Reiner, All in the Family.

32. Cross-shaped letter : TAU.

37. Not as prevalent : RARER.

38. Draft pick : ALE. Not by a sports team but customer at Hops & Pie.

39. Mer land : ILE. Mer=Sea in French.

40. One of the fam : SIS. She is a sib too.

41. Bolted down : ATE. Part of why Americans become obese, eating too fast. Fast Food, an oxymoron?

42. Hesitating sounds : UHS. Um, er....

43. Whopper topper : KETCHUP. Speaking of fast foods, and the antonym to 6D.

46. Unavailable, in a way : AT LUNCH. At Burger King it seems.

47. Become irritated : GET SORE. Aw, Wally don't get sore.

48. Cook's "Food's ready!" : ORDER UP. Ding!

50. Baseball's "Iron Horse" : GEHRIG. Wally Pipp's favorite backup.

51. Obama's "Dreams From My Father," e.g. : MEMOIR.

52. Olympics chant : USA USA.

53. Terrible twos cries : NOS.

58. City in Kansas : IOLA. Well this one is obscure but has great letters. LINK.

59. Go after, as flies : SHAG. baseball again, not Austin Powers.

60. Slip in the pool? : TYPO. Typing pool, very nice.

61. Some reddish deer : ROES. Learning moment. WATCH. and listen, (2:12)

62. Rent : LET.

63. Beach transp. : ATV. All Terrain Vehicle.

Well I made it, Thanks Jack for the laughs and thank all of you who read these words whether you comment or not. Happy August all, my youngest is coming to visit. Lemonade all squeezed out.

Friday, July 19, 2013, Alan DerKazarian

Theme: Where have you BEAN hiding?

Examples of this confusing PLANT, are hidden within six sets of consecutive answers using 14 of the 15 squares available in rows, starting in row 1 and ending with row 15, with the a central reveal telling you what are hidden are types of beans, and they are "jumping" across the black square. It is not common to have a reveal on Friday, but without it, this might have been too hard. A variation on the overlapping fill revealing a hidden word, as here the overlap is between to different answers. A total of 95 squares in the theme, yet in a format that looks like a Saturday themeless, with triple stacks of 9's in the corners. I think the challenge to put this together was amazing, and while I am really confused by 22A and 44D, I think this what appears to be the debut puzzle by, I am guessing, a Dentist from New England who coincidentally went to Tufts, and went to the ACPT this year,  captured your attention and was a bumpy but satisfying ride.

1A. *Seat often against a wall : DIVAN. with  6A. *Antsy : ILL AT EASE. and VANILLA (bean) us revealed. There are many multiple word answers like ILL AT EASE which made the solving harder.

15A. *Microscopic menace : E. COLI. with 16A. *The economy, in many debates : MAIN ISSUE.= :LIMA (bean).

29A. *100 centavos : ONE PESO. with 31A. *River spanned by the Three Gorges Dam : YANGTZE= SOY.  (Or SOYA). Both clues required some knowledge.

43A. *Forage plant also called lucerne : ALFALFA. with 47A. *Garlic avoider, traditionally:  VAMPIRE.= FAVA. I did not know Alfafa (not from little rascals) had another name.

63A. *Cultural artifacts : AMERICANA. with 64A. *Struggling : VYING.= NAVY. Again like Saturday, no gimmes.

65A. *Game piece that can stand on either end : CANDLE PIN, with 66A. *Sycophant : TOADY= PINTO. Another hint to the New England tie, as this form of bowling is popular in few places, though it was a TV regular when I was a child. ARTICLE.

and the reveal

36A. Seed containing moth larva, and what is aptly hidden in each puzzle row whose clues contain asterisks : JUMPING BEAN. Is it un-pc to say Mexican Jumping Bean?

Across:

17. Music genre : METAL. One of my favorites. LISTEN.(3:26).

18. It's not always met : POTENTIAL. Ah, wasted.

19. Cow-horned goddess : ISIS. I like the Brazilian version LINK.

20. Emma of "Dynasty" : SAMMS. One of my favorites.

21. Co-star of Ingrid in "Autumn Sonata" : LIV. ULLMANA.  A 1978 Swedish drama film written and directed by Ingmar Bergman. The film stars Ingrid Bergman, Liv Ullmann and Lena Nyman. It tells the story of a celebrated classical pianist who is confronted by her neglected daughter. It was Ingrid Bergman's last performance in a major theatrical feature film, and the film won a Golden Globe for Best Foreign Language Film at the 1979 Golden Globe Awards. (per wiki).

22. Bean cover? : HAT. Man, this clue confuse the hell out of me; eventually I thought it was accepted as not conflicting with the theme because it did not relate to vegetable life but an expression for the human head.

25. Long in films : NIA. Very actress intensive. Another LINK.

26. U-boat, e.g. : SUBmarine.

33. Rod Stewart's first wife : ALANA. Another female; Alan where was your mind. Also married to George Hamilton.

35. Subvert : RUIN. She did not ruin his career.

40. Ship's spine : KEEL. Let's keep ours even.

42. Ziggurat features : TIERS. Pyramid like structures built in ancient Mesopotamia and coming to the FUTURE.(1:25)

51. Overtime cause : TIE.

52. Portugese pronoun : ELA. Similar to Spanish and French.

53. Common ___ : ERA.

54. Considerable amount : TON.

55. Work with, as clay : KNEAD. If you need to relax it is good to knead.

57. Cole Porter's alma mater : YALE. An obscure New England fact 41D. 57-Across grad : ELI.

58. UMass athlete : MINUTEMAN. Another one.

62. With 38-Down, Arctic denizen : POLAR. and  38D. See 62-Across : BEAR.

Down:

1. Venus ___ : DE MILO. Poor girl lost her arms. The back STORY. Venus is the Roman Aphrodite.

2. Strands in winter, perhaps : ICES IN. My meh of the day in an otherwise awesome creation.

3. Offered for a special intention, as a Mass : VOTIVE. You buy the candles.

4. Pained cry : ALAS. Another near ALAN word (like Alana).

5. Zippo : NIL. Zilch, nada, bubkis.

6. Rambunctious sort : IMP.

7. Vientiane's land : LAOS. A remnant of the French influence in Indochina, LINK.

8. Long account : LITANY. She had a litany of complaints.

9. Lack of vigor : ANEMIA. Well the cause of a lack of vigor.

10. Heartless guy? : TINMAN. A shout out to our prodigal son, who is loaded with heart.

11. Neighborhood figures?: Abbr. : ESTS. It cost me something in the neighborhood of $200.00.

12. Faulkner's "___ Lay Dying" : AS I. many think this was his best novel.

13. Latin possessive : SUA. In the law, when a judge does something on his own accord, it is called SUA SPONTE.

14. New Zealand longfin, e.g. : EEL.

22. Bridge position : HELM. Sulu on Star Trek.

23. "Stat!" relative : ASAP.

24. Singer Basil or Braxton : TONI. More women.

26. Sci-fi setting : STUN. "Set phasers to stun, Sulu, Spock."

27. Israeli arm : UZI.

28. Son of, to an Israeli : BEN. An odd sort of clecho.

30. Golfer Creamer : PAULA. Is this a sub-theme for the men or what!?!?

32. Apprehend : GRASP. I grasped where he was headed.

34. Picnic pest : ANT.

36. Barcelona boss : JEFE. Also, in the Mexican and Colombian cartels, the chief.

37. Buckle : GIVE. When Shaq sat down the chair....

39. Aretha's singing sister : ERMA. Rough to be Aretha's  SISTER. They say she did this song first.

40. Kit ___ : KAT.  Candy bar of choice in one of the offices where I work.

44. Soup bean : LENTIL. Really?????

45. Take for a ride : FLEECE.

46. TripTik, notably : AAA MAP.

48. Roma's home : ITALIA.

49. WWI French aviator Garros : ROLAND. They named the tennis stadium where they play the French Open after this man.

50. Einstein's "E" : ENERGY=   mc²  

55. Southeastern Turkey native : KURD.  They know whey?

56. "___ California": Red Hot Chili Peppers hit : DANI.

57. It has its ups and downs : YO YO. Fun clues.

58. Bub : MAC.

59. The Beatles' "___ Loser" : I'M A. Someone else can link.

60. Three-time All-Star reliever Robb : NEN. He was one of the many All-Stars the Marlins gave away. His father Dick Nen was a major league first baseman.

61. Bread served with chicken tikka masala : NAN. Love the placement, nen nan.

62. Cpl.'s inferior : PVT. Well I wonder what Alan's private thoughts were when he built this entertaining Friday foray. Mine are: it is time for me to head to the hills, until the next time. I leave you with these two classic BEANS.(0:56) and BEAN.(2:29).

Lemonade peace out. Thanks all.

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 ....!"