Friday, August 28, 2015, Jeffrey Wechsler

Theme: A Jeffrey Jumble tribute to Owen and Moe and perhaps suggest s that you TRY POE!

Adhering to the strict interpretation, we have a word jumble (not an anagram) puzzle that features 63 theme squares including the reveal and a grid spanner in the middle. To make this all work, there is the unusual use of six cheater squares, three in the NW and three in the SE. There are many 3 and 4 letter fill and an overall difficulty that did not seem like a Friday. As usual with JW there were lots of sparkly fill CREDOS, FRERES, KIMMEL, PLINTH, BASE TEN, EACH ONE, GEOLOGY, MCENROE, REELS IN, ARISTOCRACY, YOU ARE WRONG and a reveal which is very revealing and amusing. As I have said before, the joy in this type of puzzle comes from the phrasing of the reveal and I really enjoyed the image of the letters from Poetry moving about. Anyway, it is time we move about the puzzle.

16A. Formal dissent : MINORITY REPORT (14). Also a movie with TOM CRUISE. Now a TV pilot that ran this SUMMER.

22A. Lead role in many a Western : STEREOTYPE (10). White hat, ruggedly handsome.

37A. Independence Day VIPs : PYROTECHNICIANS (15). They make our fireworks work.

50A. Vegan diet component : SOY PROTEIN (10). They get their protein where they can.

58A. Metaphor for ballet ... or what this puzzle's circles literally contain : POETRY IN MOTION (14).

Across

1. "It came without ribbons. It came without __": The Grinch : TAGS. We start with Dr. Seuss. Who has appeared in many of JW's recent Fridays.

5. Glutton : PIG. Hog also fits.

8. Be at loggerheads : CLASH. Hmmm. A HUM .

13. Layered snack : OREO. How many clues are there for this American classic cookie?

14. Sch. with residence halls named Acadian and Beauregard : LSU. A CSO to our Louisiana solvers.

15. Crystal __ : RADIO. We have had this clue/fill before and it brought back memories for some of you. Bill G.?

19. Decimal system foundation : BASE TEN. I will defer to our math mavens.

20. Educator LeShan : EDA.

21. Fig. in TV's "Suits" : ATT. This abbreviation for attorney....as foolish as the premise of the show.

28. Cheap sauce : HOOCH. Interesting HISTORY .

31. Transports : HAULS.

32. Appreciative cry : OLE.

33. Rocky prominence : CRAG.

35. Org. of former Soviet republics : CIS. Is this still operational? LINK . Commonwealth of Independent States.

36. Paired : DUAL. Carburetors?

41. It's found in bars : SOAP. I guess Jeffrey was cleaning up his CLUING to be g-rated.

42. "I see what's going on!" : O HO. Not safe to yell on street corners?

43. In the area : NEAR.

44. Obedience trials org. : AKC. American Kennel Club.

45. __ steak : FLANK.

47. Dropped off : SLEPT.

53. "Quadrophenia" group, with "The" : WHO.

54. Med. recording : EEG. ElectroEncephaloGram.

55. Four-time US Open winner : MCENROE. The other US Open. John has established a healthy career making fun of his own antics in commercials. The HBO documentary about him and Borg was great.

63. Word on a menu : CARTE. A la.

64. One rarely without a comb? : BEE. Honeycomb humor.

65. Klein of fashion : ANNE.

66. Stopovers : STAYS.

67. Ware lead-in : MAL. All you windows users know this term.

68. Long-term appeal : LEGS. Splynter are you out there?

Down

1. Burger go-with : TOMATO. Not my first thought.

2. Reign of Terror victims : ARISTOCRACY. The French revolution was so bloody. LINK.

3. Biological determinant : GENE.

4. Laundry woe at the Claus home? : SOOT. All those damn chimneys!

5. Public monument support : PLINTH. A really cool word.

6. Real ending? : IST. Ity, ism?

7. Dude : GUY. My wife says, man-guy.

8. Words to live by : CREDOS. From the Latin to believe.

9. Gently massage, wave-style : LAP AT. The waves lap at the shore?

10. Big deal : ADO.

11. Title for Edward Elgar : SIR. The prolific composer of pomp and circumstance music.

12. Popular : HOT.

17. __ judicata: decided case : RES. Literally the thing adjudicated.

18. Catches : REELS IN.

19. "What nonsense!" : BAH.

23. All : EACH ONE. Do not get this one. Each and every?

24. Archaeological site : RUIN. Not necessarily.

25. "What nonsense!" : YOU ARE WRONG. Nice.

26. Work out the details : PLAN.

27. Unadon fillets : EELS. For C.C.?

29. Corn, for example : CROP. So vague needed perps.

30. One may be passed : HAT. So vague needed perps. Once unearthed I enjoyed it.

34. Rocky field? : GEOLOGY.  I have a nephew who has his degree in geology and works in Everglades.

36. Ivory alternative : DIAL. Soap not Jade.

37. Spots for Smokey: Abbr. : PSAS. Public Service Announcements.

38. Mother of Sean : YOKO. Not sure why this came immediately, there are many Seans.

39. Shoot the breeze : CHAT. Cat in French.

40. These, to Thérèse : CES. French.

45. Monastère members : FRERES. Our French lesson continues.

46. Late-night host since 2003 : KIMMEL. Wow, time flies, I still remember him from Ben Stein' s show.

48. Obsolescent public conveniences : PHONES. I know people who invested heavily in pay phones in the 70s.

49. Word with dance or shoe : TOE. Another stumper.

51. Small-minded : PETTY. Not Tom.

52. Sgt., e.g. : NCO. Non Commissioned Officer

56. List substitute : ETAL.

57. Diamond complement : NINE. Baseball team.

58. See 61-Down : PCS. Personal Computers.

59. Bit in a horse's mouth? : OAT. Tricky, nice misdirection.

60. Baseball stat : ERA. Earned Run Average.

61. Longtime maker of 58-Down : IBM. International Business Machine. Sold the business to Lenovo in 2005.

62. Org. supporting exhibitions : NEA. National Education Association.

No naticks, and a great reveal; hope you all unraveled this one. See you in September. To each of you who sent birthday wishes, thank you very much, it is great to celebrate with my extended family here. Lemonade out.

Friday, August 21, 2015, Mark McClain

Theme: Is this the Gamblers Anonymous meeting? I bet it isn't! How much  you want to put on it?

GA, which is better known as the two letter abbreviation for Georgia is added into three thirteen letter phrases to create a new and whimsically clued phrase for which another 15 letter reveal is presented. With four grid spanning answers, Mark needed lots of short fill to make the grid work, primarily using four letter words, but not THE four letter words. This is the third of Mark's LAT publications that I have had the pleasure of blogging and so far the easiest. Mark has come by the Corner to comment on puzzles as well. The sparkly 6 letter fill came easily and while the gimmick hid for a while, once you see the added letters the long ones were done. This made the rest of the solve go quickly. I enjoyed seeing AMORAL,  BORING,  DADDY-O,  EPONYM,  MITTEN,  RICOHS in the grid. There were some Friday clues/fill and some use of cheater squares to make it all fit. My unknown was COTE, which comes from the same strain as COTTAGE and I struggled with the vaguely recalled CAEN and LALO. Well let's look it over.

17A. Missed the bird's nest under the eaves? : FLEW INTO A GARAGE (14). I try not to rage.

26A. Red army unit? : BLUSHING BRIGADE (15). Do brides blush anymore?

44A. Druid baker's recipe? : PAGAN CAKE BATTER (15). Since I knew Druids were pagans, and pancake batter popped out, this is where I got the theme. Also my favorite.

57A. Carmichael/Gorrell classic, and a hint to this puzzle's theme : GEORGIA ON MY MIND (15). my favorite version. LINK.

Across:

1. Goof : SLIP. Betwixt the cup and the lip.

5. Barnyard cries : MAAS. I think of this defunct retailer.

9. Cook, in a way : BOIL.

13. Scheduled 2022 FIFA World Cup host : QATAR. More scandal there.

15. "As Time Goes By" requester : ILSA. She will live on.

16. Procter & Gamble cosmetics brand : OLAY. Katie Holmes did ads for them.

20. Toon cat : TOM. TomKat divorced.

21. Farm shelter : COTE. A new word for me, apparently home to pigeons among others. I would have done better with this one. LINK.

22. Records, nowadays : TIVOS. I think they are mostly generic DVRs.

23. Study intently, with "over" : PORE.

24. City SW of Le Havre : CAEN. This CITY was the base for William the Conqueror and the site of many war deaths.

33. Thirsts : LUSTS.  Oh my! 41A. Drive : URGE. Oh my!

34. Bit attachment : REIN. Horses.

35. Luau dish : POI. Yummy!

36. Here, in 24-Across : ICI. Just the French word.

37. Barber's "Vanessa," for one : OPERA. An easy guess. I appreciate the skill but do not get a thrill.

39. Throw in : ADD.

40. Time meas. : MINute..

42. Musical lament : DIRGE. Pray for the dead and the dead will pray for you. LINK.

48. Future execs, perhaps : MBAS. Not to be confused with MAAS.

49. They're full of beans : PODS. Fun clue.

50. It was removed from the Dow 30 the same year Nike was added : ALCOA. It happened in 2013.

53. Protective cover : HOOD.

54. Court : WOO, A nice old fashioned word.

61. Nike competitor : AVIA. Not sure  about competitor anymore,  but it has an interesting HISTORY.

62. Art medium : CLAY. I am better with play doh.

63. Shred : OUNCE. Your Honor there is not one shred of evidence...

64. Tiny stream : RILL.

65. Damage : HARM.

66. Hits the road : GOES.  Was it George Carlin who pointed out how ridiculous this expression is? He did COMMENT on much life.

Down:

1. Real estate ad no. : SQFT.  SQuare FeeT. Any Q without a U is tricky.

2. "Symphonie espagnole" composer : LALO. Compose yourself then read. LINK.

3. Couple in the news : ITEM. Another celebrity and a nanny?

4. Dog's dog : PAW. Do young people remember feet are called  dogs, and the old 'my dogs are barking complaint? Is it true they name Hush Puppies because of that?

5. Winter warmer : MITTEN.
When I was first smitten
With a perfect white mitten
It wasn't my true love
With her leather glove
But a purrfect little kitten.

6. Natural soother : ALOE.

7. "__ rule ..." : AS A.  Was it Groucho who said, " As a rule I do not smoke, but as a habit I do."

8. Subside : SAG. Not what brings sag to my mind.

9. Likely to elicit a nod? : BORING.

10. Norwegian saint : OLAV. Not OLAY!

11. "It is the green-eyed monster ..." speaker : IAGO.

12. Strong cleaners : LYES.

14. Some copiers : RICOHS.

18. "Me neither" : NOR I.

19. Canceled a reservation, maybe : ATE IN.

23. Ore. setting : PST. Pacific Standard Time.

24. Speaker of words like alpha and bravo : CBER. Semi clecho: 29D. Like alpha, but not bravo : GREEK.

25. It's frequently in Italian : ARIA.

26. Aerial view provider : BLIMP.

27. Saint __: Caribbean island nation : LUCIA.

28. Via : USING. I go to work by I-95.

30. Split : APART. Ben-Jen. TomKat, where will it all end?

31. Sidestep : DODGE. Impossible to not get into politics with this fill.

32. Where to get down : EIDER. My favorite clue, as the misdirection really works. My mind went to this SONG (3:03)with the rare female lead guitar.

37. Ocean predator : ORCA. Whale of a good answer.

38. Two of Rory McIlroy's major wins, familiarly : PGAS. A record breaking  performance last week by Jason Day and Jordan Speith knocked Rory out of world number 1.

41. Put away, as groceries : UNBAG. Really?

42. Beat address : DADDY-O. I think of Maynard G. Krebs but see

43. "__ a trick!" : IT'S.

45. Unscrupulous : AMORAL.

46. Sousaphone, for one : EPONYM. The instrument is names after the inventor.

47. Loud noise : BOOM.

50. Food thickener : AGAR, Cool to this so soon on its own again.

51. Son of Jacob : LEVI. One of 12 sons, Reuben · Simeon · Levi · Judah · Dan · Naphtali · Gad · Asher · Issachar · Zebulun · Joseph · Benjamin.

52. Stamp purchase : COIL. The hardest clue for an easy fill.

53. Icy coating : HOAR. This and rime must be known.

54. Lush : WINO.

55. "The Sea of Faith / Was __, too, at the full ... ": "Dover Beach" : ONCE. All perps.

56. Laudatory verses : ODES.

58. Berlin pronoun : ICH. Wer ist da? — Ich bins! Who's there? — It's me!

59. In the fashion of : À LA.  A little more French.

60. Actor's exaggeration : MUG. For the camera dear...

Well another Friday in the books and a nice workout from Mark, who I hope will stop by and tell us his inspiration for this puzzle. I had fun and hope you all did, Lemonade out.

Friday, August 14, 2015, Jeffrey Wechsler

Theme: Annie where are you hiding? DADDY?

Well we have Jeffrey back on Friday with a very visual puzzle that mandates you have the circles to make sense out of his creation. There are no conventional theme answers except the reveal 34A. Classic comics catchphrase ... and a hint to four sets of puzzle circles : LEAPIN' LIZARDS.(13).

The circles reveal 4 familiar lizards GECKO, SKINK, MONITOR and CHAMELEON with the letters in the circles producing a picture of the motion of jumping. I love the visual. The icing on the cake for me is having CHAMELEON which is famous for changing color to elude predators hidden in the puzzle. The rest is a daunting combination of very difficult fill and tricky cluing. ATACAMA SAMISEN NEBULAE MINI-LOTS INERTIAL and many others make this a Friday challenge. Having no theme to fill in easily took out a normal crutch I use to solve, but for me the payoff was worth the effort. Let's see how I got  there.

Across:

1. Game piece : TILE. Especially if you play Scrabble.

5. Place for oysters : BED. Cute misdirection. So much I did not KNOW.

8. Perch, at times : LIMB.  A friend has taken two sparrows into his home.

12. Beef __: dish sometimes made with Guinness : IN ALE. Steve, help? Sounds YUMMY.

15. Social __ : MEDIA. Often quite anti-social.

16. Narrow landforms : NECKS. Isthmus is from the Greek word for neck.

17. Record number, briefly : RPM. Revolutions Per Minute.

18. Hides : SKINS. Sounds like the skink, I think.

19. Higher ed challenge : GRE.Graduate Record Examination.

20. Aromatic : ODOROUS. Not a common word.

23. Hägar creator Browne : DIK.

24. Emperor before Vitellius : OTHO. Lucky for me my son studied Roman Archaeology so I knew of this short lived emperor one of FOUR who served in 69 AD,

26. Yards, e.g. : UNITS.

27. Rude look : OGLE. Politically incorrect look.

28. "Runaround Sue" singer : DION.

29. Path lead-in : OSTEO. Nice misdirection, not in the woods but at the doctors.

30. Pace maker? : FOOT. More tough cluing for easy fill.

31. Setting for a Tony-winning Miller play : SALEM. No politics, but this is a powerful PLAY.

33. Cheers : ROOTS. I have an ear worm LISTEN.(1:07).

40. Patronizes, as a hotel : STAYS AT.

41. Hold on a diner order : OMIT.

45. Common sense : SMELL.Great pun.

46. What Barry White often sings? : BASS, LISTEN. (4:30).

50. Cosmic clouds : NEBULAE. Great word; the building blocks of the universe.

52. Slithery : EEL LIKE.

54. Fireplace wood : BEECH. I know little about FIREWOOD.

55. Relief provider : OASIS. Not Tums or Rolaids.

56. South American desert : ATACAMA. I knew nothing of this DRIEST place.

59. Like some landscape paintings : MOONLIT.

61. Plucked Japanese instrument : SAMISEN. Don't fret if you never heard about THIS.

62. Bleepworthy : OBSCENE.

63. Sci-fi staples : ETS.

64. Calculate, in a way : ADD. One of the many on modern calculators.

65. See 35-Down : TIE. I need an explanation for making this simple fill a cross-reference.

66. U.S. Army E-5 : SGT.

Down:

1. Self-important authoritarians : TIN GODS. Really fun fill.

2. __ navigation: aerospace guidance system : INERTIAL. My learning MOMENT.

3. Wingtip feature : LACE HOLE. What is needed for tie shoes.

4. Rockies grazer : ELK. Not to be confused with 8D. Albanian coin : LEK, though I believe you can buy ELK meat with LEK.

5. Some nobility : BARONS. Counts?

6. Lively wit : ESPRIT.According to MW  "vivacious cleverness or wit."

7. Punish for a military rules violation, perhaps : DEMOTE.

9. "Yay, me!" : I DID GOOD. Nice phrase.

10. Small currency-market trading quantities : MINI-LOTS. A way to take some of the risk out of trading currencies. READ.

11. Navajo craftwork products : BASKETS.

13. That, in Madrid : ESO. Back again.

15. Rejects, usually: Abbr. : MSS. Abbreviation for manuscripts.

21. Laurel and Hardy, e.g. : DUO.

22. 1941 FDR creation : USO. So many acronyms during the FDR years; I am still watching the Roosevelts while I ride the exercise bike.

25. Selective Service status : ONE-A.

27. "__ a Thousand Tongues to Sing": Christian hymn : O FOR. Not in my wheelhouse.

32. USMC enforcers : MPS. Military Police.

33. Singer? : RAT. Someone who tells on another, especially popular with the mob.

35. With 65-Across, soccer game cry : IT'S A. See above.

36. Word before or after brand : NAME. We have had this odd one before.

37. Corrosive material : LYE.

38. Key : ISLE. And, 47D. Theatrical features : AISLES. English is a wonder.

39. Big name in jewelry : ZALE. Every kiss begins with ... oops.

41. Distracting the pitcher, maybe : ON BASE. Well this is stretch but I do recall some who were good when they got on.

42. Use for a rendezvous : MEET AT.

43. Steel girders : I-BEAMS.

44. Stanley who plays Flickerman in "The Hunger Games" : TUCCI. Despicable.

46. Sommelière's suggestion : BLANC. Ou rouge.

48. It may be freestyle : SKIING. marti?

49. Sonnet part : SESTET.Six.

51. Tibet University city : LHASA. Many students go there to get HIGH.

53. Free : LOOSE. I had a date like that once.

57. Rx spec : MED.

58. Furthermore : AND.

59. Nice word : MOT. The old French city "Nice" trick

60. Geisha's band : OBI. Another touch of Japan as our exit line; makes me wonder if there are any  Geisha musical groups playing the Samisen. One last LISTEN.

Another innovative look from Jeffrey and lots of work for me. I hope you all enjoy it.

Lemonade out.

Notes from C.C.: 

1) Belated Happy Birthday to dear Chickie! I'm so sorry that I spaced out yesterday morning. Hope you had a wonderful celebration with Bill and the kids and grandkids. Are you planning a big gathering this weekend?

Left to Right: Chickie, JD, Garlic Gal and Lucina.

June 3, 2015

2) Also belated Happy Birthday to Spitzboov's wife Betty as well! Betty makes a mean Baklava, if I remember correctly. I've yet to find the filo dough in our grocery store, Spitzboov.

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

Friday, August 7, 2015, Bruce Haight

Theme: The Key is on the Board

Three theme answers are common phrases with the first word replaced with the abbreviation for a word whose abbreviation appears on a standard computer keyboard. Does Apple had the same keys? Nope Option key.... Apple in 3 days. If only Bruce had worked in CAPS LOCK he would have managed all the abbreviations on the standard keyboard (ignoring stuff like NUM LOCK, PG DN on the little part). I did Bruce's first LAT, which had no E's as well as a Latin Pun, so this one seemed easy in comparison. My only stumbling block was the mental meltdown that left me grasping for AFTA, which was my last fill, coming from 'FRAID SO. Speaking of which, it was the seven letter fill, much of which was fun, that opened up the grid for me. ALABAMA,  ESTRADA, LA LAKER,  OIL HEAT,  OTHELLO,  PIG IRON, PRY OPEN,  SLED DOG,  TEAPOTS,  WHAT THE,  WIN BACK gave me footholds in each region.

17A. DVD extras, perhaps : ALTernate ENDINGS (10). Don't you wonder about a movie that has different endings filmed; make up your mind!

29A. Ones getting away often : ESCape ARTISTS (10). Is there artistry in escaping?

45A. Hardly team players : ConTRoL FREAKS (10). A term that emerged in the 60's.

58A. Place to see part of 17-, 29- and 45-Across : Personal Computer KEYBOARD (10). So all you had do was look down and you had the theme at your fingertips- literally!


Across:

1. Lamentations : WOES. Sounds religious. 50D. Sound of lament : SOB.  Safer than using the initialism.

5. Handle indelicately : PAW AT. I am sure the cats and dogs of the world would disagree; CED link away (manac where are you?).

10. Mennen skin product : AFTA. I do not use shaving products anymore.

14. That ol' boy's : HIS'N. With my wife's family from Alabama, Kentucky and Tennessee, this was a gimme.

15. PABA part : AMINO. para-aminobenzoic acid, a natural ingredient in sunscreen no longer in favor.

16. Ready : PREP.

19. Allen contemporary : PAAR. Jack Paar replace Steve Allen on the Tonight Show when I was quite young and we had no television.

20. Court long shots : THREES. Three point shots in basketball; the most famous in Miami history...

21. Order : BOSS. I expect "around" to be around.

23. SEC concern : IPO. Initial Public Offering.

24. Wrenches : TEARS. I expect "from" to be around.

25. Wave catcher? : EAR. Sound waves; very tricky.

26. Aftermarket item : ADD ON.

28. "I've been __!" : HAD. A mini-theme? 33A. "Don't __" : ASK. And...48A. "What a kidder!" : OH YOU. 1D. "Huh?" : WHAT THE....or wtf in textspeak. 11D. "Hate to be the one to tell ya" : 'FRAID SO.

31. Letters from Greece : ETAS.

34. Jam ingredients? : AUTOS. Very tricky; traffic jam.

35. "Women and Love" author Shere : HITE.

37. Nurses at a bar : SIPS. Not your pick up target....

38. Hold forth : OPINE.

40. Shaver : LAD. Are you familiar with the 'little shaver?' 47A. Rap name adjective : LIL. Wayne?

41. Blathers : YAPS.

49. Some tees : XLS. Extra Large.

50. Old West transport : STAGE Coach. We took a ride in one at Old Sturbidge Village while up north in June? Any of our other New Englanders made that ride?

52. Modernist's prefix : NEO. Seems redundant.

53. Bracketology org. : NCAA. The process of rating the college basketball teams for March Madness.

55. More than gloomy : MORBID.

56. Yodeler's range? : ALPS. Not his/her vocal range but the mountain range. Do you yodel while skiing the Alps miss m.?

60. Parts of Polynésie française : ILES. The islands in Polynesia.

61. Alamogordo event : A-TEST. Not sure why I get so many references to bomb testing.

62. 19th-century novel with the chapter "How They Dress in Tahiti" : OMOO. Memo to self: Avoid Moby Dick comments!!

63. Novelist Jaffe : RONA. Many of her BOOKS became movies.

64. Fergie's given name : SARAH. This took a very long time because I thought of HER not HER.

65. Twinge : PANG. Jealousy?

Down:

2. Alternative to gas : OIL HEAT. We had an oil burning furnace in our home when I was growing up. We were shocked  to learn one winter in Fort Lauderdale that our office building had NO heating system at all.

3. "CHiPs" actor : ESTRADA. Poor Larry Wilcox gets no love.

4. Unpleasant look : SNEER. Nobody did that better than Snidely.

5. Inflates improperly : PADS. More deception; the expense account, not Tom Brady's footballs.

6. Cherbourg chum : AMI. Just French.

7. Recover : WIN BACK. Often the goal at a casino.

8. Wool variety : ANGORA. Do not get your rabbits and goats confused. READ.

9. Evict : TOSS.

10. Kindle download : APP. This was so easy I had trouble with it.

12. Brewing vessels : TEA POTS. Too much beer in my life, another easy one gone wrong.

13. They have strings attached : APRONS. Cute.

18. Super __: game console : NES. I loved playing Mario with my sons.

22. Suddenly became interested : SAT UP. And took notice.

25. Latin being : ESSE. From when we get essence.

27. Like a flibbertigibbet : DITSY. My favorite ONE. (4:00)

29. Peter, pumpkinwise : EATER. Talk about your weird poetry; luckily we have Owen and Moe.
Peter, Peter, pumpkin-eater
Had a wife, and couldn't keep her.
He put her in a pumpkin shell,
And there he kept her very well.

30. Invades : RAIDS.

32. Imaginary playmate in a Neil Diamond title : SHILO.

36. For kicks : IN FUN.

37. Upscale retail chain : SAKS. Fifth Avenue.

38. "Then must you speak / Of one that loved not wisely but too well" speaker : OTHELLO. Love Shakespeare, feel bad for foolish Othello.

39. Jimmy : PRY OPEN.

40. Shaq, for eight seasons : LA LAKER. Now he and George Foreman are competing for the most commercials.

42. First state, in a way : ALABAMA. Alphabetically.

43. Smelting intermediary : PIG IRON. Did you know this HISTORY?

44. Iditarod sight : SLED DOG.

45. 1997 Nicolas Cage thriller : CON AIR.

46. Handicapper's option : EXACTA. Along with the Trifecta and the Pick 6, favorites of the gamblers. You pick the horse that finish 1/2, in order.

51. Company : TROOP. Still my favorite.

54. Frequent e-Filers : CPAS. Court papers are no almost all e-filed.

55. Bit of lore : MYTH.

57. Org. issuing nine-digit numbers :  SSA. Social Security Administration.

59. That, in Spain : ESA. how perfect a place to finish. I enjoyed this immensely. Thanks Bruce and for the rest of you Lemonade out.

Friday, July 31, 2015, Kurt Krauss

Theme: NESW? I am lost where do I go? It does not matter any direction will do, they all lead to home.

There are four pairs of theme answers along with the grid spanning 'hint'  40A. Like the answers to eight starred clues ... and a hint as to how to fill them in : OMNIDIRECTIONAL (15). The gimmick is you must read the fill in the direction of the of the words themselves. 93 theme letters is a big challenge so you can expect many short fill but we do get ANOMALY,  CITADEL,  COOLERS, LABORED, UNRESERVED  and the complete ET TU BRUTE. Of course as is often the case on Friday, many will not like the backwards words. The last KK I blogged in 2014 brought out many negative or Thumper comments. But which way do you prefer to make Fridays challenging? Obscurities? Originality? I thought this was relatively easy and I had fun. I like how the pairs also fit together, the first a clecho the others synaptic; let's peek at the answer sheet.

12A. *Ring punch : RIGHT HOOK (9). This was perps but it made sense when paired with 68A. *Ring punch : SSORC TFEL (9) Left Cross, another common boxing term. The fill must be read from right to left.  We read right to left in Hebrew.

19A. *Manhattan neighborhood : EAST HARLEM (10). This neighborhood known also as Spanish Harlem is not a place many go to visit. It is paired with 57A. *Liberia locale : ACIRFA TSEW (10) West Africa, which you have to read from West to East (right to left). This where I caught on as I know where Liberia is.

4D. *Animated TV series set in the Rockies : SOUTH PARK (9). This paired with 38D. *Challenge to Eiger climbers : ECAF HTRON (9) (North Face) which requires you to head North to understand the fill.

9D. *Promising : GNIMOC DNA PU (11). Up and Coming, which is paired with 23D. *Level-headed : DOWN TO EARTH (11) like all the themers they must be read in the direction of the words. If you had not understood the theme the letter progression GNI should have tipped the scales. I loved this pair.

Across:

1. Blesses : OKS. In retrospect this was easy, but I was thinking sneezing or religion.

4. Star Wars, initially : SDI. Strategic Defense Initiative. Not the movie.

7. Go fishing : ANGLE. I floundered about looking for an answer but the bass I cod come up with is that it describes the angle of the pole and the line. Or maybe the angle of the hook? I hate to worm my way out of this, so help....

16. IQ test pioneer : BINET. Alfred did so much MORE.

17. Start of the line before "Liberty! Freedom! Tyranny is dead!" : ET TU BRUTE? This is Shakespeare's version where Cinna tries to justify killing Julius Caesar because Caesar was too popular. You can tell it is from a English writing because it mixes the Latin phrase with an English response.

18. Bluebloods : ELITE. New England and New York were filled with these types, Cabots, Lodges, Bushes, Roosevelts...

21. 1965 Sophia Loren comedy : LADY L.  What a cast. LINK (0:54).

24. Gas sign in green letters : HESS. Are there any left or are they all Speedway? I did not know Speedway was owned by Marathon until today.

25. Line of work: Abbr. : OCCupation. I find this an awesomely bad clue, but it is used regularly. There are many nice clues for the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency. HERE.

28. Year in Mexico : ANO. Spanish.

29. Talladega unit : LAP. An Alabama track on the NASCAR circuit.

31. Result of a 1955 merger : AFL-CIO.

34. Postseason game : BOWL. College football.

36. Pull in : MAKE. Money you make.

39. Treating poorly : BAD TO.

43. Role for Dustin : RATSO. Midnight Cowboy. His breakout role?

44. "The Bridge on the River __" : KWAI. Another wonderful movie.

45. Marquis de __ : SADE. How much do you really know about this man?

46. Chooses the window instead of the aisle? : ELOPES. Really cute airplane misdirection but it did not fool me.

48. Fraud watchdog org. : FTC.  Federal Trade Commission.

50. For each : PER.

51. Shade provider : DYE. Fun clue/fill misdirection.

52. Ness, for one : LOCH. Lake.

55. Castro and others : RAULS. Meh.

61. Don Diego de la Vega, familiarly : ZORRO. He will always be Guy WILLIAMS (not Madison, who played Wild Bill Hickock with Andy Devine) I am getting old! for me.

63. Frankness : UNRESERVE.

67. The Bradford kids of '70s-'80s TV, e.g. : OCTET. Who didn't love this FAMILY (1:02)

69. Milo of "Barbarella" : O'SHEA. He was in so many great roles. THIS (3:51) was not one of them. Jane was adorable.

70. Long time : EON.

71. Major : KEY.

Down:

1. Natural resource : ORE. Or not?

2. Young beaver : KIT. Be careful here....

3. Pepper, for one: Abbr. : SGT. All perps, cute clue.

5. Words before dances : DO THE. This was filled before I saw the clue but I am completely unaware of this phrase. Help.

6. Some furniture stores : IKEAS. Meh, the extra s....

7. Biblical brother : ABEL.

8. Juba's "White" river : NILE. This was my learning moment, I just do not know much about the Southern Sudan.

10. Betray, with "down" : LET. To me the act of betrayal is much more than letting down.

11. Juillet's season : ETE. French for July and Summer. 30D. Brest friend : AMI. More French.

13. One of three cartoon nephews : HUEY.

14. Little League precursor : T-BALL. and the semi-clecho 15D. Little League belts: Abbr. : HRS. Home runs.

20. Soweto's home: Abbr. : RSA. Republic of South Africa.

21. Toiled : LABORED.

22. Rule exception : ANOMALY. A wonderful word.

26. Stronghold : CITADEL. Also a college.

27. Beach party staples : COOLERS.

32. Govt. group that began in 1908 : FBI.

33. Where kip are spent : LAOS. No idea, but I do know Thailand uses Baht.

35. Sylvester's problem : LISP.

37. London's __ Gardens : KEW.

41. Fawn's mom : DOE. Yes, her name is Jane.

42. Tiny songbird : TIT. Always good for a link. I like it when the two MATCH.

47. Canon offering, briefly : SLR. SingleLens Reflex.

49. Dimin.'s opposite : CRESCendo.

53. Handy : OF USE.

54. Playground retort : CAN SO.

56. Mad as __ hen : A WET.  I could not find anything definitive as to the origin of this phrase.

58. Algonquian language : CREE.

59. Bit : IOTA.

60. Sun. message : SERmon.

61. Animal house : ZOO. Funny.

62. It turns out lts. : OCS. Lieutenants. Officer Candidate School.

64. Nats' former stadium : RFK. Baseball team that shared the park with the unnamed football team.

65. Symbol of peace : VEE. This always reminds me of Churchill, which reminds me that I am watching the Roosevelt mini-series while I ride the exercise bike. Such an interesting family.

66. Eastern Nevada city : ELY. An old stagecoach TOWN which I know only from puzzles.

Another Friday in the books and another month about to go away. We did get 5 Fridays this month so I must be tired. Thanks Kurt. Enjoy all. Lemonade out.

Friday, July 17, 2015, Jeffrey Wechsler

These: Where did you hide all of the Holes?

Keeping to our bi-weekly schedule, we have Jeffrey back this time with a missing word puzzle. In row 1, 8 and 15 (the beginning middle and end) we have a three word string, each 4,5,4; the clue is for a word ending in "HOLE" but the hole is missing. It is an interesting scientific conundrum, can a hole which is nothing be missing? There is much consistency to the grid though a few of the ___HOLE fill are two words rather than a single word. What makes the puzzle a delight is JW's fun reveal which points out that there are nine words that are not, but should be followed by HOLE. Other than that, it is another Friday with high word count and less than 5 letter average fill. The longer fill is varied including ABORTS, LESTER, NO SHOW, SECURE, SPLEEN, SUCCOR, TOO BIG, WADDLE, AM I BEAT, CAPSULE, GADGETS, LOCKS ON, REVERTS, SEVENTY, SLEDGES, BASE CAMP, PUNK ROCK, ORIGINALS, REMINDS OF, with many of them Jeffrey's customary two word fill.  Heck out the symmetry. The asterisks immediately warn the solver that the game is afoot, otherwise 1A would be discouraging. WORMHOLE opened my eyes. Lots of nice musical references; let's see how we all did.

1A. *It offers an ocean view : PORTHOLE(4). Well both ports and portholes do, so this was a hard start. PORTHOLE is written both as one and two words.

5A. *Hardware insertion point : SCREW HOLE (5). While completely avoiding all DF comments, this is one of the theme fill that takes two words, always I think.

10A. *Sci-fi shortcut : WORM HOLE (4). Like many, I learned of this method of travel through STAR TREK. Sorry for the ad, but I like the LINK (4:46).

38A. *Means of evasion : LOOPHOLE (4).  Did you know THIS?

40A. *Stephen Hawking subject : BLACK HOLE (5). Back to space, this time real science. LINK.

41A. *Orca feature : BLOWHOLE (4). This time the science is mammal anatomy. LINK.

67A. *Geologic danger : SINKHOLE (4). I learned about these when I moved to Gainesville and this limestone sinkhole attributed to the DEVIL.

68A. *Serengeti gathering place : WATERHOLE (5). I think in terms of watering holes, but MW says, " a small pool, pond, or lake used by animals for drinking" so what do I know?

69A. *Home security device : PEEPHOLE (4). I do not find these very helpful and they installed the one at work for much taller peep-le, but I do remember this SCENE (1:05).

And the reveal, which i am sure appealed at least to me and Moe and HG and the other golfers----especially this week of the Open Championship (or the British Open to some).
46A. Quick round ... and, collectively, what the answers to starred clues lack : NINE HOLES (9).

I liked it!

Across:

14. Chevy subcompact : AVEO. Discontinued in 2011, so...

15. Salad bar morsel : OLIVE. This was hard because I think of morsel as part of rather than a whole.

16. Domingo forte : ARIA. You do not have to like opera to like Placido. LISTEN (3:01).

17. Spectator sport since the Edo period : SUMO. Not something I knew but easily inferable.

18. Alpine air : YODEL. A stretch for me.

19. Checker, e.g. : DISC. It took me more than one pass to relate to the checker on a checkerboard being a disc.

20. "What an exhausting day!" : AM I BEAT! JW likes multiple word fill.

22. Pounding tools : SLEDGES. I did not need to be hit on the head with a hammer to get this one.

24. Veto : NIX.

25. Clay, nowadays : ALI. Easy unless you are a sculptor or into pottery.

26. Handy assortment : GADGETS.

30. "Terribly strange" age in Simon & Garfunkel's "Old Friends" : SEVENTY. They are both over seventy now.

34. ICU connections : IVS.

35. Medical unit : CAPSULE. I imagine those who did not like the earlier in the week capsule used as a clue for ROCKET, there will be debate about this clue/fill.

37. "__ you finished?" : ARE.

42. Terrible : AWFUL.

44. F1 neighbor : ESC. If you had to look at your keyboard was that cheating?

45. Makers of wood pulp nests : WASPS. John Lampkin showed us this PICTURE back in December.

49. Gets in one's sights, with "to" : LOCKS ON. As with a telescopic sight on your rifle.

52. Backslides : REVERTS to his/her old habits.

56. Cancels the launch : ABORTS.

57. Fasten : SECURE.

58. "Whip It" rockers : DEVO. Where are they NOW (0:16)?

59. Order outfit : HABIT. Nun too soon.

63. __ on the back : A PAT.

64. Monthly pmt. : ELECtricity bill.

65. Midway alternative : O'HARE. The two major Chicago airports.

66. Choice array : MENU. And the clecho, 43A. Choice array : LIST. 

Down:

1. "¿Qué __?" : PASA. The upside down question mark tells you it is Spanish.

2. Reproductive cell : OVUM. Eggs-actly.

3. Takes back to : REMINDS OF. Like my trip to my 50th high school reunion took me back to my childhood.

4. Goldilocks complaint : TOO BIG. Too hot?

5. Protein-rich bean : SOYA. Soy?

6. Blood __ : CLOT. Lots of Blood____fill- TYPE, TEST, LUST, BANK, LINE, MOON, but this is the first appearance of Clot.

7. Unburden : RID.

8. Anticipatory times : EVES. Twas the night before Christmas....

9. More than adequately : WELL. Oh my, you do that so well!

10. Swaying walk : WADDLE.  Don't make fun it is MEDICAL (1:36).

11. Art museum works, usually : ORIGINALS. There are some numbered prints, perhaps.

12. Increase : RISE.

13. Pro and mini : MACS. Apple computers, here I come. Did I answer why?

21. Business VIP : EXECutive.

23. Architectural projection : EAVE.

26. Colorado tributary : GILA. They meet on the other side of Arizona LINK.

27. State as accurate : AVOW.

28. Bar __ : TAB. Bar none I am sure this is Tin's favorite.

29. Petulance : SPLEEN. I guess someone venting his spleen can be petulant, but this was all perps.

30. Help : SUCCOR. A nice old fashioned word.

31. Yosemite grazer : ELK. I did not know this.

32. Stadium in St. Pete, with "The" : TROPicana. You know who has juice in Florida.

33. Landscaping shrubs : YEWS. I understand they like shade.

36. Obi, e.g. : SASH. So often OBI is the fill.

39. "Pure, stripped down" genre, per Tommy Ramone : PUNK ROCK. One of the originals.

41. Climber's refuge : BASE CAMP.

45. "__ Got Tonight": 1983 hit duet : WE'VE. He redid it with Dolly Parton.

47. Absentee : NO SHOW.

48. Sci-fi author/editor del Rey : LESTER. I used to read a lot of Science Fiction and Lester was one of many who came out of the 30's and pulp magazines. He was also a very successful editor and was the inspiration for one of the members of Isaac Asimov's Black Widowers.

49. Fills with cargo : LADES.

50. Division symbols : OBELI. These are just ÷.

51. Neo-pagan gathering : COVEN. A Cool CSO to our California group.

53. Nepal currency : RUPEE.

54. Big name in air conditioning : TRANE. I prefer this TRAIN.(4:52).

55. Everything but the liquor : SET UP. The juice, ice and sodas that Tin never uses.

60. Word associated with a light bulb : AHA.

61. Echolocation user : BAT. Using the sound bouncing off things instead of seeing. I know the feeling.

62. Steaming state : IRE. We leave as we came with a bit of misdirection which I hope did not leave anyone hot under the collar....

Well I am certainly getting accustomed to JW and his puzzles, so I had fun with this. I hope you did and enjoy the rest of the Golf while the rest of the sporting world rests. Lemonade out.

Friday, July 10, 2015, Mark Bickham

Theme: Order in the Court! Courtroom DRAMA?

A quick revisit from Mark Bickham who provided Sunday's 21x21. Mark is one of my favorites and this puzzle was happily easy for me based on the subject matter, but it is an odd one. Each of 4 common legal phrases is re-clued in witty fashion and then tied together with an equally deceptive but amusing reveal. I cannot tell if the terminology is tricky for those who do not have a legal background, so I am not sure if the puzzle will be hard for anyone, but it was a quicker than normal solve for me.  The 5 theme related answers use 67 letters, so like last week, we have lots of short fill to balance. Overall this one has a very un-Friday like average word length under 5 letters with lots of black squares. The few non-themers over 5- ALYSSA,  GROSSE,  LIED TO,  NATION,  SPEARS,  SUMMON, INSECTS, INTERNS, BEQUEATHS and  PRE-ASSIGN are okay, and none seem too obscure. Let's look at what happened.

17A. Rating for a recap? : SUMMARY JUDGMENT (15). A recap is a summary; a rating is a judgment; a summary judgment is a legal term referring to the disposition of a case without a trial.

29A. Advice on paper size? : LEGAL COUNSEL (12). I do not use apple computers (at least not until the end of the month) but on all of my print functions, one of the decisions one must make is paper size, letter or legal. If you ask someone to suggest one...legal counsel is one phrase for the attorney.

44A. Dibs on kitchen space? : COUNTERCLAIM (12). Dibs is a great invention, like calling shotgun; while kitchens all have counters. A counterclaim is where a Defendant files an action against the original Plaintiff in a law suit.

58A. Displeased wave of the hand? : MOTION TO DISMISS (15). I can picture many famous hand wave dismissals, while a Motion to Dismiss is a pleading to end a case based sole on deficiencies in the language of the original complaint.

and the reveal:

36A. Fooled by one's imagination ... or, another way, what the four other longest puzzle answers are? : HEARING THINGS (13). All relate to matters which will go to a hearing before a judge.

Okay let's plunge in the rest....

Across:

1. Hybrid carriers : MULES. Great misdirection to begin Friday, if you did not think about cars you are smarter than I.

6. Hardly next door : AFAR.

10. Shelter gp. : SPCA. Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals has a long HISTORY worldwide.

14. Functional : UTILE. One of those words that sounds like more trouble than it is worth.

15. Winter Olympics event : LUGE.

16. __ Mountains: European border range : URAL.

20. Start to state? : TRIstate. I just did the New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania part after Massachusetts, Connecticut and Rhode Island part.

21. Land east of the Suez Canal : ASIA.

22. June portrayer in "Henry & June" : UMA. Do we like her or not? LINK. (1:28).

23. Trainees : INTERNS. We have a summer intern at the office this year. Her name is Stephanie, we now call her Charlie.

26. __ Pointe: Detroit suburb : GROSSE. An old COMMUNITY.

32. Rock and Roll Hall of Famers since 2010 : ABBA. This would have been hard except that the only bands I could only think of with four letters were ABBA and TOTO which was mentioned yesterday, and TOTO never made it to the hall.

34. Word with sick or cold : OUT. Out sick, or out cold.

35. Press : INK. A term I learned from reading where comments were made about how much ink did a story get.

41. __ au vin : COQ. Who makes this at home?  RECIPE.

42. Ornamental fish : KOI. let's not carp about what they are.

43. Stapes, for one : BONE. Earie?

49. Artist with the 2011 album "Femme Fatale" : SPEARS. A little glimpse of dear BRITNEY. (3:33).

50. Antennae holders : INSECTS. A very fun clue, hey John Lampkin.

54. Took in : ATE. Reminds me of this LIST.

55. Cooperate with in a caper : ABET.

57. Eggs : OVA.

63. Point-of-view intro : IMHO. In My Humble Opinion.

64. It may need cobbling : BOOT. I really like this one.

65. Shafts on the road : AXLES. Don't get cranky if you think they are actually above the road.

66. AAA part: Abbr. : ASSN.

67. Magazine filler : AMMO. Nice classic clue.

68. Erroll Garner classic : MISTY. Worth a LISTEN. (2:48)

Down:

1. "Can't you get someone else?" : MUST I?

2. Political surprise : U-TURN. I had trouble parsing this one. Flip flopping?

3. Cap : LIMIT.

4. Shade provider : ELM.

5. Source of shells : SEA. So simple, I was afraid it was wrong.

6. "Mistresses" co-star Milano : ALYSSA. She and ex co-star Shannen Doherty supposedly cannot be in the same room.

7. Big name in film : FUJI.

8. Río contents : AGUA. A River holds water (Sp.).

9. __ cell : RED. A clue out of the 50's and 60's when people saw communists everywhere.

10. Call : SUMMON. Sounds like a word to use with demons.

11. Designate in advance : PRE-ASSIGN.

12. Has the power : CAN.

13. Either of two space bar flankers : ALT. For the online solvers a gimme, but did you have to look?

18. Checked out of the store, with "up" : RANG.

19. Wise teacher : GURU.

24. Island off Tuscany : ELBA. I was able to get this.

25. Bottom : REAR. PC, PC!

26. Black-clad subculturist : GOTH. My youngest hung out with the goths in early high school, but i believe it was the girl goths who got him.

27. Sight, say : SENSE.

28. Image on Idaho's state flag : ELK.  If you want to see, LOOK.

30. Detective's skill : LOGIC. Elementary my dear Watson.

31. Song on a record : CUT. This used to be literally true.

32. Renoir's "Girl With __" : A HOOP. This was before they realized you could do the Hula with it.

33. Wills : BEQUEATHS. A bonus legal term.

37. A Clanton and a president : IKES. Quite the logical pair. IKE 1. IKE 2.

38. Fish-fowl link : NOR.

39. Sacred wader of ancient Egypt : IBIS. The Miami Hurricanes like this bird, which I did not know comes in red.

40. Seward Peninsula city : NOME. How many of the Corner have been to this Alaskan CITY?

41. Engine units: Abbr. : CCS. Cubic centimeters.

45. Turkey, for one : NATION. Fooled me at first.

46. Old Smartphone : TREO. I had a friend who loved hers, until Blackberry came along.

47. Betrayed, in a way : LIED TO.

48. Unwilling to stand up for : ANTI. Iffn you aint fer me, yer agin me.

51. Some are tightly wound : COILS.

52. Den focal point : TV SET. More from the 50s and 60's.

53. Impudent : SASSY.

55. Smashing target : ATOM. My favorite clue.

56. Mike holder : BOOM. Hand held.

58. Girl's name that's a verb spelled backwards : MIA. This is a really obscure clue; are there other possibilities?

59. Serene sounds : OMS. For those who meditate.

60. Org. with Kings and Wizards : NBA. National Basketball Association. And the free agent parade continues.

61. "I can't remember it, Miss Ilsa" speaker : SAM. Great movie.

62. 11th-century year : MXI. 1011, a kind of pun?

Thank you Mark B. and thank you all for tuning in. Hard to believe we are already in the second half of the year. Lemonade out.

Notes from C.C.:

1) Belated Happy 45th Birthday to our Anon-T (Tony), the computer geek, foodie and an incredibly caring friend, on and off the blog. He also solves LA Times puzzle with his mother-in-law at times. So sweet!

 

Anon T, Giza, Feb 2014

2) Happy Birthday to my mentor and close friend Don G, who turns 61 years old today! We've collaborated on over 100 puzzles for various venues the past few years. The time and attention he's given me are truly unparallelled.

Don & his wife Barbie

Friday, July 3, 2015, Jeffrey Wechsler

Theme: Take ST and then by magic you have

SC

Well I am back, two weeks have passed and Jeffrey Wechsler is back as well. This is a traditional letter substitution puzzle where the letter "T" following an "S" is removed from a common phrase and replaced with a "C" to create an amusing image, clued with humor. The first three have the change in the first word, the last two the last word. I love much of the fill, with only 69 words and an average length in excess of 5 letters, this is more of challenge. He puts many letters into the theme, also 69 (hmmm) which gives the puzzle an interesting look leaving little room for long down answers. He does have some so so fill but there are ALBINO,  DOES SO,  LOUVER,  MOLSON,  MOSEYS,  OPEN BY,  SPEARS,  TRYSTS,  TUGS AT,  WOOLLY,  ANTLERS,  DESIGNS, DRUM SOLO,  MRS. SMITH,  NOBLESSE, TRAINEES all worth the effort to uncover.  The theme generated some chuckles for me, you?

16A. Imperfect produce? : SCUFFED CABBAGE (14). Stuffed cabbage was a regular meal growing up, and the image of a damaged head of cabbage is cute.

23A. Nocturnal picket-line crosser? : SCAB IN THE DARK (13). Stab in the dark sounds ominous. For me this was the most tortured themer, but it works.

34A. Reconnaissance team? : SCOUTHEARTED MEN (15). Stouthearted men for some reason makes me think of Mel Brooks' Men in Tights.

48A. Result of a London tea cart mishap? : ROLLING SCONES (13). The picture of Mick Jagger, Keith Richards etc. watching their scones roll away is precious.

57A. Feature of a taped hardcore punk performance? : VIDEO SCREAMING (14). Video streaming is hot, but I think of other bands as the screamers.

Okay let's unwrap this baby:

Across:

1. 17th-century privateer : KIDD. All you wanted to know about WILLIAM who is not to be confused with the 15th Century pirate William Kyd.

5. Rock worth unearthing : ORE.

8. Military groups : UNITS. This took longer than it should.

13. About : IN RE. A gimme for those who studied Latin or the law.

14. Downtime for Mars? : PAX. Latin for peace, certainly a rest time for a war god.

15. Absorb : SOP UP. What the bread is for at the end of a really good meal.

19. Rob's "West Wing" role : SAM. Sam SEABORN. (2:24).

20. Domestic tearjerker : ONION. Tricky, but just cut them under water and you can stem the tears.

21. "__ Wedding": "The Simpsons" episode involving a fortune-teller : LISA'S. Easy to guess but the clue was not helpful.

26. Wild partner : WOOLLY. According to phrase finder. "This expression is of American origin and came into being to describe the 'wild' west of the country sometime after the Californian Gold Rush era of the 1850s."

28. __ Alamos : LOS. We had this test site recently.

29. Screening gp. : TSA. Transportation Security Administration.

30. Woodstock performer before Joan : ARLO. he was booed off the stage for refusing to sing Alice's Restaurant,  Ms. Baez was wonderful, and then the rains came.

31. Kid's comeback : DOES SO. Does not!!!

40. Romance novel features : TRYSTS. A lovely old fashioned word that makes cheating sound okay.

41. 1963 role for Shirley : IRMA. La DOUCE (2:15).

42. In the same way as : A LA. Some French for Splynter.

45. Defensive question : AM I? Your ami?

46. It merged with Coors in 2005 : MOLSON. They are all in trouble in the wake of the craft beer revolution.

52. __ Blades, Latin jazz star : RUBEN. No idea; what do you think?

53. Oater omen : NOOSE. Hang 'em High.

54. Uma's "Pulp Fiction" role : MIA. This movie always generates lots of differing opinions, I hated it, then I loved it.

60. Stage direction : ENTER.

61. Vital : KEY.

62. Relative of -ule : ETTE. french diminutive suffixes; tough clue, reversed I would not have gotten it.

63. Ruled quarters? : ROOST.

64. '60s campus org. : SDS. Students for a Democratic Society.

65. Their Christmas feast included roast beast : WHOS. Jeffrey must love this family, as I had Cindy Lou Who two weeks ago.

Down:

1. Petruchio's request of Kate : KISS.

2. Empire whose last stronghold was conquered in 1572 : INCA. I missed the anniversary.

3. Ginger Baker specialty : DRUM SOLO. For Bruce, the late Teddy Mueller and all the others who have provided a beat to my life. WATCH (3:38)and listen.

4. Dict. entry : DEFinition. I slipped up on this for a while.

5. Ready for business no later than : OPEN BY.

6. Pizza cuts, essentially : RADII. Literally.

7. Halfway house resident : EX-CON.

8. Flash drive letters : USB. Universal Serial Bus.

9. Roi et reine, par exemple : NOBLESSE oblige. The Nobility.

10. "The drinks were on me" : I PAID. Not I-Pad.

11. Affects, as one's heartstrings : TUGS AT. Perry Como?

12. Divers' weapons : SPEARS.

17. Future yearling : FOAL. Newborn horsey.

18. Hunting lodge decoration : ANTLERS. From a dead deer.

22. Jamaican genre : SKA. Music.

24. Influence : CLOUT.

25. One taking coats, perhaps : HOST. So easy, in retrospect.

26. Used to be : WAS.

27. Tolkien terror : ORC.

31. Chanel creations : DESIGNS. From a time when hot Coco meant something.

32. Grain generally pluralized : OAT. Nobody can eat just one?

33. Ballet's Black Swan : ODILE.

35. Green workers : TRAINEES. Oh, than meaning of GREEN.

36. "Amazing Grace," e.g. : HYMN. We had a memorial service at my reunion with ended with this old stand-by.

37. Big name in pies : MRS. SMITH. What is your favorite?

38. Comic Philips : EMO.

39. Indian flatbread : NAN. 1 A or 2?

42. LAX stat : ARRival.

43. Adjustable door feature : LOUVER. We have lots of these and windows in SoFla.

44. Spooner of Spoonerism fame, for one : ALBINO. I did not know this, I went to school with two albinos, one in grammar school and one in college.

46. Walks unhurriedly : MOSEYS. Exactly my pace for solving puzzles.

47. Most fit to serve : ONE-A. The opposite of 4-F.

49. Engendered : LED TO.

50. Subjects of washday mysteries : SOCKS. What dryers live on.

51. Hollowed out : CORED.

55. Delighted by : IN TO. I am really in to JW's puzzles, I wonder if he will be back in two weeks again?

56. Quite a long time : AGES.

58. Scrap : ORT. A single oat? Not to be confused with Orc.

59. Copy cats : MEW. This is all CED needs for an hour's worth of cute kittens; enjoy all;  have great holiday, be careful with  the fireworks and remember to honor those who both made us free and keep us free.

It was great to be gone, see old friends and relatives, show my wife my childhood home, meet marti in person etc. but it is good to be back. Lemonade out.