Wednesday, August 7th, 2013 Michael Dewey

Theme: A Helping of Homophones - the theme entries have similar-sounding final words (with different F sound spellings) and the reveal has both words playing the sound-alike game.

17A Hearty har-har: BELLY LAUGH

26A National Geographic’s first natural one appeared in 1914: COLOR PHOTOGRAPH. "Natural" in this context means the photograph was taken on color film and printed "as is", not hand-tinted. This was the picture - a flower garden in Ghent, Belgium.

47A Group on “The West Wing”: WHITE HOUSE STAFF

62A Container that holds two generous glasses of wine (as well as a double dose of this puzzle’s theme?): HALF  CARAFE

Steve here with Michael's midweek masterpiece (I never let a good alliteration opportunity go begging). The final theme answer only works for me if I drop my British pronunciation and turn all-American - I would say it as "HARF CARAFF" and that rather ruins things!

I enjoyed the theme and cottoned on to it after the first two entries, so it made for mostly plain sailing. I always like to make it hard for myself with one goof, and today filling in JAWS as 10D rather than 10A was the culprit.

Let's see what we've got with the rest of the puzzle.

Across:

1 Shaving product “by Mennen”: AFTA

5 Deep voices: BASSI

10 “You’re gonna need a bigger boat” film: JAWS. Best line in the movie, in my ever-so-humble opinion. Second best: "I'm not going to waste my time arguing with a man who's lining up to be a hot lunch."

14 Talk too much: BLAB. That's probably me on this blog.

15 Class clown’s bit: ANTIC

16 Give __: care: A RAP. I never heard this expression before. I love how you can be (mumble) years old and still learn new words and phrases.

19 Low-lying area: VALE

20 Surpasses: EXCEEDS

21 Qualified for the position: HIRABLE

23 Profs’ protégés, briefly: T.A.'S. Teacher's Pets - I mean Assistants.

24 Prefix with trooper: PARA

25 Its 2014 games will be held in Sochi, Rus.: I.O.C. The International Olympic Committee, who in their wisdom awarded these winter games to a resort with a subtropical climate where temperatures in February have been recorded as high as 70F.

31 The Cavaliers of the ACC: UVA. The University of Virginia, members of the Atlantic Coast Conference.

32 Average amount: NORM. Does Norm from "Cheers" drink an average amount?

33 Cape near Cod: ANN. It also gives its name to a style of house:

34 Savor the sun: BASK

36 Halfhearted: TEPID

39 Legend with rackets: ASHE. Tennis star Arthur.

42 “Silent” president Coolidge: CAL. I was going to grumble about the abbreviation of Calvin, but then realized his nickname was "Silent Cal"

44 Other, in Oaxaca: OTRO

46 Slippery one: EEL

52 Carpooling letters: HOV. I chuckle sometimes when I think about a the fact that a "high-occupancy vehicle" here in LA consists of two people. Angelenos really do not like carpooling.

53 Loses luster: DIMS

54 Hawaiian tuna: AHI. Food! Hawaiian ahi poke is one of my go-to favorites when I'm on the islands.

55 Do impressions of: IMITATE

57 “All kidding aside”: I MEAN IT. Usually not a good thing to hear from a parent.

61 Fifth-century pope: LEO I

64 Month following Av: ELUL. Crosses all the way.

65 Pension law acronym: ERISA. I had to look up the Employee Retirement Income Security Act which attempts to safeguard pension contributions from employer jiggery-pokery (I think that's an official term in the wording of the law)

66 Soon: ANON. Webster's declares this to be "archaic" but I use it - "See you anon" and I'm only (mumble) years old. Cheek.

67 Method: Abbr.: SYST. System.

68 Device used before applying 1-Across: RAZOR. I wonder if Occam used Afta?

69 Ilk: SORT. One of the world's most tremendous names is Peregrine Moncreiffe of that Ilk, the clan chief of the Moncreiffes.

Down:

1 French cleric: ABBÉ

2 Move a muscle: FLEX.

3 Powder mineral: TALC

4 Can, after “is”: ABLE TO

5 Where there’s no hair apparent: BALD SPOT. Great clue!

6 Literary collections: ANAS

7 VW preceders?: STU. Alphabet.

8 Show exasperation toward: SIGH AT

9 Suzuki with 10 MLB Gold Gloves: ICHIRO. First of two baseball references today - Ichiro is an immensely-talented outfielder now with the New York Yankees.

10 Bean-based beverage: JAVA

11 Indian Ocean arm: ARABIAN SEA

12 Long homer, say: WALLOP. As well as 10 Gold Glove awards, the aforementioned Ichiro also won three Silver Sluggers, so we can safely say he's hit a few wallops in his career.

13 Valedictorian’s big moment: SPEECH

18 Hanker (for): YEARN

22 Sitar music: RAGA. Here's a nice example of the genre.

24 Like some 13-Downs: POMPOUS

26 Babe in the woods: CUB

27 Egg cells: OVA

28 Lewd: LASCIVIOUS. Word of the day for me. I hope I'm never described as this!

29 Otto I’s realm: Abbr.: H.R.E. Second "Abbr." cluing today. The Holy Roman Empire.

30 Genetic material: RNA. Is it an R? Is it a D? I'll wait and see.

35 Kit __ Klub: “Cabaret” setting: KAT

37 “__ now or never”: IT'S

38 Ideal wheels: DREAM CAR. As far as current production cars are concerned, here's mine - the Aston-Martin DB9

40 Playboy nickname: HEF. Mr. Hugh Hefner of dressing-gown fame.

41 Rivendell dweller: ELF. The Lord of the Rings has been very handy for crossword puzzle constructors with all kinds of three-letter denizens of Middle Earth (Orc and Ent are but two more). It also gives me an excuse to post a picture of the lovely Liv Tyler in her role as Arwen.

43 Mother of Helen of Troy: LEDA

45 Milo of the movies: O'SHEA

47 Makes pass, as time, with “away”: WHILES

48 Hardly handsome: HOMELY

49 __ and yon: HITHER. I honestly thought this was the other way around! In England we also have "hither and thither" - try saying that three times quickly.

50 1998 PGA Player of the Year Mark: O'MEARA. He was something of a late bloomer - he played 15 years on the tour before he won his first major (the Masters) and then won the Open Championship the same year, hence his Player of the Year award. Oddly, after that 1998 blaze of glory he never won on the tour again.

51 Pageant toppers: TIARAS

56 Lean: TILT. The L was the last letter for me today. I was thinking "low fat" lean and I didn't know ELUL so I had to play the alphabet game. It was only the second time through that I saw the "other" lean meaning.

57 “Should that be true ...”: IF SO

58 iPod mini successor: NANO

59 “__ one, think that ...”: I FOR

60 Camper’s shelter: TENT

63 Fashion’s Claiborne: LIZ

That's all from me today. Enjoy your collective Wednesdays!

Steve

Monday, June 3, 2013 Michael Dewey

Theme: And The Beat Goes On - The theme entries conclude with parts of the circulatory system.

20. Siblings, sons, daughters, etc. : FLESH AND BLOOD

29. "Along related lines ..." : "IN THE SAME VEIN ..."

47. Main thoroughfare : CENTRAL ARTERY

56. Have the song memorized : KNOW IT BY HEART

Argyle here. We also have two incidentals, SKIN and FLESH. Is it a Monday or Tuesday puzzle, YES/NO? In any case, Michael(Boston College,'91) has his usual strong fill AND no 'A' word.

Across:

1. Ran a towel over : WIPED. I held off of putting in DRIED.

6. Free stuff at a party, in slang : SWAG. "I thought it was free," said the swagman.

10. Throws in : ADDS. ...and he stowed that jumbuck in his tucker-bag.

14. Have because of : OWE TO

15. Supergirl's Krypton name : KARA. (Kara Zor-El)

16. Munich Mrs. : FRAU

17. "Great taste. Less filling" beers : LITEs

18. Srs.' nest eggs : IRA's

19. Keister : RUMP

23. 35mm camera type : SLR. (single-lens reflex)

24. Anxious med. condition for TV's Monk : OCD. (Obsessive Compulsive Disorder)

25. Actor McKellen : IAN. Has been known to talk to ents.

26. Onetime telecom giant : GTE. (General Telephone and Electronics Corp. 1959-1982)

33. Cosmetician Lauder : ESTÉE

34. Like sorted clean socks, hopefully : PAIRED

35. More than half : MOST

38. Push-up muscle, briefly : PEC. (pectoralis)

40. Greek sandwich : GYRO

41. Desk compartment : DRAWER

44. Simple question type : YES/NO

50. They're two sizes above M's : XL's

51. Out __ limb : ON A

52. "The Raven" monogram : EAP. (Edgar Allan Poe)

53. AQI monitor : EPA. Air Quality Index / Environmental Protection Agency

60. Goose egg : ZERO

62. "Are you __ not?": "Joining us?" : IN OR

63. "Kim" actor Flynn : ERROL. Kim is a 1950 adventure film based on the classic novel by Rudyard Kipling.

 64. Gung-ho : AVID

65. Old Italian coin : LIRA

66. Half a Washington city : WALLA

67. __ de foie gras : PÂTÉ

68. Negotiator's goal : DEAL

69. Eyelid woes : STYEs

Down:

1. Gulps (down) greedily : WOLFs

2. "Count on me" : "I WILL"

3. "Great" Russian czar : PETER I

4. Summers in Paris : ÉTÉS

5. Toss back jiggers of liquor : DO SHOTS. (1.5 US fluid ounces)

6. Superficial, as beauty : SKIN DEEP

7. Fend (off) : WARD

8. Saudi __ : ARABIA

9. Streetlight of old : GAS LAMP. A musical interlude. The Old Lamplighter(2:21)

10. Jackson 5 hairdo : AFRO

11. Grunt work : DRUDGERY

12. Flood control structure : DAM

13. Eat dinner : SUP

21. German's eight : ACHT

22. Most-draftable status : ONE A

27. Wedding cake section : TIER

28. Prefix with plasm : ENDO. A central, less viscous portion of the cytoplasm.

30. Food packaging fig. : NET WT.. The weight of the actual food.

31. "Later, gator" : "SEE YA'"

32. Energy : VIGOR

35. 17th-century year when Henry Hudson entered his bay : MDCX. 1610 (History)

36. Baseball's Hershiser : OREL

37. Literary language of India : SANSKRIT

39. __ cortex: outermost brain tissue : CEREBRAL. Pleasantly taxed today.

42. Suffix with sock or switch : EROO

43. Went on a rampage : RAN WILD. It seems once a week it happens somewhere.

45. "Freeze, Fido!" : "STAY!". Cute alliteration.

46. Sibling's sons : NEPHEWs

48. Actress Kazan : LAINIE. "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" 2002

49. Once every 12 months : YEARLY

54. Worker, briefly : PROLE. A member of the proletariat.

55. Book of maps : ATLAS

57. Lymph __ : NODE

58. __ Bora: Afghan region : TORA

59. Part of Q.E.D. : ERAT

60. Reheat quickly : ZAP

61. Perón of Argentina : EVA

Argyle

Tuesday, May 14, 2013 Michael Dewey

Theme: The Gap - Five ways to create a gap appear at the end of the five longest entries. No reveal or unifier needed.

17A. 14th/15th-century period of papal uncertainty : GREAT SCHISM

38A. Fruity ice cream dessert : BANANA SPLIT

59A. When collegians descend on Cancún : SPRING BREAK

11D. Osteoporosis concern : HIP FRACTURE

25D. Tennis server's setback : DOUBLE FAULT

Argyle here. Definitely some traps were laid for you on this Tuesday trip. Michael's fourth LAT puzzle, this collection of things with a common link. I wonder if the idea came to him while enjoying a banana split? Nice long stacks in two corners. A number of three-letter entries but that allowed some sparkly fill and nothing onerous. Good deal, Michael.

Across:

1. Yoda trained several of them : JEDIs. Advice for all. (From C.C.: Isn't the plural form of JEDI still JEDI?)

6. Titled ladies : DAMES

11. "To each __ own" : HIS

14. "Gladiator" locale : ARENA. I wasted time trying to think of a country. Your traps may vary.

15. It can follow land and precede goat : SCAPE

16. Bankbook abbr. : INT. (interest) Do they still have those little bankbooks?

19. Nittany Lions' sch. : PSU. The Pennsylvania State University (commonly referred to as Penn State or PSU) is still in the news.

20. Ills in tales : WOE. A little trap; it's hard to read.

21. Tokyo, in days of yore : EDO. Classic.

22. Aqua Velva rival : AFTA. Again, classic.

23. Elaborate solo passage : CADENZA. Not the credenza, lol.

27. Largest penguin : EMPEROR

29. She married a musician in Gibraltar in 1969 : ONO. And then they went to bed.

30. Hound over a debt : DUN

32. Make into law : ENACT

33. Tourist shop offering : SOUVENIR. To place in the cadenza, I mean credenza.

37. Divers' destinations : WRECKS. Often nearby to reefs.

40. Big name in polling : GALLUP

42. Defeated incumbent : LAME DUCK. Not necessarily defeated but not running again.

45. Muslim prince : EMEER

46. Bilingual subj. : ESL. (English as a second language)

47. Long for another chance at : RUE

48. Melts, say : SOFTENS

50. Scamp's doings : KNAVERY. And scallywags.

54. Socials with cucumber sandwiches : TEAs. Sandwiches with no crusts for the upper crusts. Ironic.

55. Widespread PD alert : APB. The police department's All Points Bulletin.

57. Prez on a fiver : ABE

58. __ Dhabi : ABU

64. Buddy : PAL

65. Fictional Swiss miss : HEIDI

66. Plumed heron : EGRET

67. East, in Essen : OST. in Germany.

68. Politician Kefauver : ESTES. From many trips around the sun ago.

69. Trips around the sun : YEARS

Down:

1. Beemer cousin : JAG. Luxury Cars.

2. Throw wildly, say : ERR

3. Report card bummer : DEE

4. Slack-jawed : IN AWE

5. Quashed : SAT ON

6. Mil. bravery medal : DSC. (Distinguished Service Cross)

7. Jogging aftermath : ACHE. Doesn't seem right.

8. Lass : MAIDEN

9. English town worth its salt? : EPSOM. Cute clue. Epsom is also famous for the Epsom Downs Racecourse, of course.

10. Half a school yr. : SEM. (semester)

12. Available for purchase : IN STOCK

13. Scottish royal family : STUARTS. Look up Mary Stuart(Mary, Queen of Scots) if you want some intrigue.

18. "So I __ to myself ..." : SEZ. Yeah, I had "SAY" first.

22. Epic featuring the Trojan Horse : AENEID. Written by Virgil between 29 and 19 BC.

23. Funny Bill's nickname : COS. Bill Cosby. He takes the cake.

24. It begins with enero : ANO. In Spanish speaking countries(January starts the year).

26. Tennis server's edge : AD/IN. A classic we haven't seen in awhile.

28. Socialite Mesta : PERLE. Yesterday's "Call Me Madam " was based on her. I would have mentioned it, if I had known it would be in today's puzzle. Sorry.

31. 1,550-mile continental range : URALS. The line marking the boundary between Europe and Asia.

34. Lot attendants : VALETS

35. Toughen by exposure : ENURE

36. Catch a few z's : NAP. Soon as I get this done. I have to be on the road early this morning.

37. Typist's efficiency no. : WPM. (words per minute)

39. Vaccine pioneer : SALK

40. Feared "Hogan's Heroes" group : GESTAPO

41. Tiny lab subjects : AMOEBAS

43. Scoundrel : CUR. Tried CAD first.

44. Teacher's answer sheet : KEY

46. Energetic wit : ESPRIT. Esprit de l'escalier, lit. "spirit of the staircase," defined in OED as, "a retort or remark that occurs to a person after the opportunity to make it has passed." Less than energetic wit; we've all had it.

49. Buns are seen above them : NAPES. A hair bun above the back of the neck.

51. Pester : NAG

52. Monastic headquarters : ABBEY

53. Cusp : VERGE

56. __ one's time: wait : BIDE

59. That woman : SHE. I thought, "HER".

60. Grafton's "__ for Noose" : N IS. Classic.

61. Clinton __ : ERA

62. Fizzy prefix : AER. To add air to but after they aerate the golf greens, they aren't 'fizzy".

63. Gold fineness meas. : KT's. (karat)

Argyle

Wednesday, Oct 3 2012, Michael Dewey

Theme: knight in shining armor

17A. Endures an onslaught of criticism : RUNS THE GAUNTLET. a gauntlet is a glove worn with medieval armor to protect the hand. or, a double file of men facing each other and armed with clubs or other weapons with which to strike at an individual who is made to run between them - thus, to 'run the gauntlet'

26A. Kind of contact banned by the NFL : HELMET TO HELMET. so dangerous.

46A. Use a sun visor, say : SHIELD ONE'S EYES

60A. Vulnerable spot : CHINK IN THE ARMOR

and to tie it all together ...

37A. Cyclist Armstrong, or what completes the ensemble found in the four long across answers : LANCE

melissa here. a little cloak and dagger for your wednesday morning - with a few enchanting references.

Across

1. Hunger hint : PANG. right about now.

5. Shorn shes : EWES. cute.

9. Indonesian island : JAVA. home of the buddhist monument borobudur.

13. Pinza of "South Pacific" : EZIO. italian opera singer, turned broadway star. died in 1957.

14. Pulsate : THROB

16. Yaks, e.g. : OXEN. noun, not verb.

20. Prognosticator : PROPHET

21. RR terminus : STA. railroad station.

22. Center opening? : EPI. epicenter.

23. Aus. setting : EUR. austria is in europe.

24. Puts the kibosh on : STOPS

32. Golden Bears' school, familiarly : CAL. berkeley.

33. "Joanie Loves Chachi" co-star : BAIO. scott.

34. Like James Bond : SUAVE

35. Carpeting computation : AREA

40. It may be impish : GRIN

41. 24-hr. news source : MSNBC

43. "If __ a nickel ..." : I HAD

45. Category : ILK

50. Currently occupied with : DOING

51. She, in Lisbon : ELA. portuguese.

at 2:47 ...

52. Justice Dept. bureau : ATF. alcohol, tobacco and firearms.

55. Greeting card figure, maybe : AGE. oh, figure. i get it.

56. Pacific Surfliner and Acela : AMTRAKS

63. Muslim pilgrim : HAJI. remember him?

64. Passover month : NISAN

65. Melville South Seas novel : OMOO

66. Candy bar with a cookie center : TWIX

67. More than just hard to find : LOST

68. Stir-fry cookware : WOKS

Down

1. Cop's quarry : PERP. ha!

2. Côte d'__: French resort area : AZUR

3. Padre's boy : NIÑO. spanish.

4. Mass reading : GOSPEL. nice clue.

5. Unworldly : ETHEREAL. i could sit and stare at a tank of jellies for hours.

6. Spark, as an appetite : WHET

7. Unit of energy : ERG

8. Such that one may : SO AS TO. alright.

9. Put (down) on paper : JOT

10. Car bar : AXLE

11. Prez's backup : VEEP

12. Opponent : ANTI

15. "__! that deep romantic chasm ...": Coleridge : BUT OH. from samuel taylor coleridge's poem kubla kahn, or a vision in a dream.

18. Hitchhiker's aid : THUMB

19. Neck parts : NAPES

24. Lining with decorative rock : STONING. tricky.

25. Slimy garden pest : SLUG. ew.

26. Severe : HARSH

27. Nicholas Gage memoir : ELENI

28. Mexican aunt : TIA

29. Antarctica's __ Byrd Land : MARIE. had no idea. 

30. Pandora's boxful : EVILS. greek mythology.

31. Six-mile-plus run, briefly : TEN K

32. Rotating machine parts : CAMS

36. In the sack : ABED. 

38. Activist Guevara : CHE

39. Nonowner's property right : EASEMENT

42. Commonly long garment : CLOAK. makes me think of jane eyre, speaking of ethereal.

44. __ blues: Mississippi genre : DELTA

47. "Eat up!" : DIG IN

48. Frequent final soccer score : ONE-NIL

49. Peter who co-wrote "Puff, the Magic Dragon" : YARROW. how can i not ....

52. Berliner's eight : ACHT. german.

53. Leave out of the freezer : THAW

54. Pacific archipelago : FIJI. wow.

56. Triumphant cries : AHA'S

57. Magazine filler : AMMO

58. Eccentric sort : KOOK

59. B'way hit signs : SRO'S. standing room only.

61. Veto : NIX

62. General linked with chicken : TSO

Answer grid.

melissa

Saturday, Aug18th, 2012, Michael Dewey

Theme: None

Words: 70

Blocks: 32

WOW~! Fun puzzle for me today; Argyle handled Michael's LAT debut in April of this year, and he has been published in the NYT as well. Mr. Dewey seems to have a musical flair, with strong art and sports knowledge as well. Just short of the "Q" for a pangram, and we have one spanner, one climber in today's pinwheel;

32A. Football backfield formation named for its shape : WISHBONE OFFENSE - I am not a huge fan of any particular football team, but I do enjoy watching any chance I get - and for us New Yorkers, we have a pre-season Giants/Jets game today, which ought to be good

8D. Fruity desserts : RAZZLEBERRY PIES - the real deal

- lots of proper names, too, most of which I was familiar with - and that can go a L-O-N-G way in getting good with grueling grids~! Persevere my proud puzzling pals~!!!

On-Ward~!.!.!.

ACROSS:

1. "SNL" predator voiced by Chevy Chase : LANDSHARK - one of my favorite SNL skits

10. "Aladdin" villain : JAFAR - knew it, but haven't seen the movie

15. 363-mile project known as Clinton's Folly : ERIE CANAL - I remember this from watching "America, the Story of Us"

16. Genre of "Akira" : ANIME - sounded Japanese, so....

17. Tease : TANTALIZE

18. Worked on, as a surfboard : WAXED

19. Blacken : SMEAR - like someone's good name

20. Alcopop brand : ZIMA

22. Horace's art : ARS - perhaps a little too easy clue/ans for Saturday; we're already 2/3 of the way there....

23. Support beam : GIRT - I-bar?, GIRD? nope, GIRT

24. Gunstock wood : WALNUT - knew it from watching "How It's Made"; beautiful grain

26. Mannerism : TIC

27. WWII org. : OSS - Office of Strategic Services; precursor to the CIA

28. Cowboy directive? : RIDE 'EM - Loved this answer

29. Type unit : PICA

30. Seat usually in first class : ONE-B - I had "ONE_", so I just waited on the perps

31. Cacophonous : AROAR - crossing "A FEE", so a bit "Meh", but what can you do~? The rest of the grid is pretty tight

38. Los __: Bay Area city : ALTOS - map; one of the red SQUARES, not red SCARES (see 14D)

39. Former South Korean leader : RHEE - the Wiki for those who care to know more

40. Deli staple : SLAW

41. Sequence of notes : PHRASE - a musician would know this, especially one who plays the guitar; a "phrase" is usually a riff-like pattern of repetition found in a guitar solo; see the "outro" part here from Hotel California (@1:37)

43. Tyler of "Inventing the Abbotts" : LIV - Three letters and Tyler? Go with LIV~!

46. Sign of smooth operation : HUM - Purr didn't fit; my brother had to have his beloved cat 'Maddie' put down yesterday, but he had her cremated so he has something to remember her by; my fondest memory is seeing just her tail sticking straight up and cruising through the house; this is her likeness:

47. Boxer Patterson et al. : FLOYDs

48. Gospel singer Winans : CECE - Her website

49. Clairvoyance : ESP - Extra-sensory Perception

50. Air show highlight : LOOP - not "RACE"

51. Shadow : TRAIL - like a Private Eye

52. Mother of Aphrodite : DIONE

54. Tough to budge : PIGHEADED

57. Throat thing : UVULA - the thingy hanging at the back

58. Tangy strips : LEMON ZEST - we get our "Lemon" zest on Fridays

59. Brown ale brand : PETE'S - I no longer partake, but I do appreciate the "Tinbeni toast" at sunset, for many reasons

60. Class leaders : "A" STUDENTS

DOWN:

1. Frees : LETS GO

2. Literary character in an old candy bar logo : ARAMIS - Three Musketeers; I did not know this; even this version of the candy is before my time - and now it makes sense

3. Five-time Super Bowl champs : NINERS - Another Bay Area reference; the SF 49ers

4. Coup __ : D' ÉTAT - French, literally "strike against the state", or an illegal overthrow of the government - but who's going to 'convict' you???

5. Reminder of a sort : SCAR - could have been SCAb, too, but I was right the first time

6. Fictional supercomputer : HAL - 2001: A Space Odyssey

7. Game show buy : AN I - Wheel of Fortune - comes on after Jeopardy! here in NY, NY; good crossword-like concept; usually fill in "AN_" and wait....or guess; 1-in-5 chance....

9. Little word in a Mozart title? : KLEINE - Eine Kleine Nachtmusik, "a little serenade" - you'll recognize this

10. Chide : JAW AT

11. Bibliographical suffix : ANA

12. Hang-up : FIXATION

13. __ Cup : AMERICA'S - the award for a sailboat race, been going on since 1851 - here's the Wiki

14. McCarthy era paranoia : RED SCARE - Those pesky Russians....

21. Clammed up : MUM

24. Glutton of the grape : WINO - I was a glutton of the barley, you could say

25. Arabian Peninsula city in the crater of an extinct volcano : ADEN - Four-letter Arab location? Not OMAN? Try the 'other' one....although I did learn about the crater today

28. Sticks up : ROBS

29. Start to meditate? : PRE-meditate, like murder

31. Charge __ : A FEE

32. Done for : WASHED UP - nailed it

33. Misleading : ILLUSIVE - Looks 'misleading'; "E"lusive yes, but "ILL"usive...? Yep, same as Illusory, which does look right

34. Extinguish : STAMP OUT

35. Know-__ : HOW

36. "__ I Jubal's Lyre": Handel : O! HAD

37. Not conceal, with "up" : FESS - have to admit, I was stumped because originally, my 32A was "DEfense", which left me with E_SS - huh?

41. Abbas's gp. : PLO - not the "other" ABBA group

42. Ticker-tape parade, e.g. : HOOPLA

43. Tough to budge : LEADEN

44. Least hospitable : ICIEST

45. African grasslands : VELDTS - nailed it, and spelled it right, too~!

47. Canine problems : FLEAS - because CAVITIES wouldn't fit?

48. Flavor of the month, so to speak : CRAZE

51. Lean : TEND

53. Braves' div. : NLE - National League East; also the NY Mets division; not really a fan of these fills, like "ALer" and such, but it's part of our culture, so....but then again, I am a hockey guy - God help the NHL if they can't come to a contract agreement this year, right eddyB~???

55. Chronometric initials : GMT - I read this as "Chromosome", so I had DNA to start; this is chronometric, from chronometer, an "exceptional time piece" - Greenwich Mean Time

56. Astros, on scoreboards : HOUston

Answer grid.

The new church ramp is underway....Thanks for stopping in ~!!!

Splynter