Saturday, September 3, 2022, Brooke Husic and Michael Lieberman

Saturday Themeless by Brooke Husic and Michael Lieberman 

Today we continue our run of brilliant young constructors. It is Brooke's initial appearance here and Michael's third after Monday and Sunday solo appearances. 

Brooke Husic is from Glastonbury, CT and is currently doing post doc work in Berlin computational chemistry and machine learning work on molecular kinetics.

Mike Lieberman is a litigation partner in Washington, D.C., office of Kirkland & Ellis LLP. His practice focuses on Supreme Court and appellate litigation. 

I had my usual Saturday experience as I came upon some fun fill where the bedeviling cluing first gave me fits but then  generated a very satisfying shout of, Voila! The NE corner seemed to be rife with subtle clues. Decoding that Silver was actually Long John Silver led to my conquering of that area.

I will address the clues where I had similar experiences in the write-up as they are numerous. I enjoyed the puzzle but would not want to work something this complex all day as indicated in the graphic below:  

Across:

1. "That ... can't be right": WAIT REALLY - More like, "WAIT, REALLY?"

11. Kitty: POT - Usually the amount in play in a poker game. Did you ever play Monopoly where all fines were put in a "kitty" on the Free Parking square where the next person to land there got the money?

14. Cuisine that may be served on banana leaves: INDIAN FOOD.

15. Shawarma bread: PITA - If you're ever in Omaha...

16. Nickname for fans of Instagram's most-followed musician: SELENATORS - The 1940's might have had a band of SINATRATORS.

17. Orsk river: URAL - The Ural flows through Orsk and then down to the Caspian Sea

18. Shepherd's charge: EWE and 34. 18-Across call: BAA.

19. Revise: AMEND.

20. Responsibility: BLAME and 35. Accepts responsibility for: OWNS.

21. Michelangelo's milieu: SEWER - In my deepest memory I dredged up that this was a Mutant Ninja Turtle and I guess he surfs in the SEWER. Anyone else think of STONE (marble) for that "other" Michelangelo?

23. Nap: SIESTA.

25. __ Ocho: Little Havana's main drag: CALLE - I knew Ocho is eight and CALLE is street, so...

 
27. Snack puff: CHEETO.

29. Needle: ANNOY - How Don Rickles made. his living. He'd be out of work today.

32. Hit a bunch of keys?: ISLAND HOP - Island keys finally occurred to me after struggling with computer, piano and door keys!

35. At a high frequency: OFTEN.

36. Farm critter: ANT - 28. Goes (for): OPTS gave me the last letter of T, so, this was not a cow, pig or hen.

37. Provide real-time commentary on social media: LIVE TWEET - All you need to know

40. "__ Dragon": PETE'S - Original movie was released in 1977

42. Only two-digit number spelled without the letter "T": ELEVEN - This math major learned this today!

43. 49-Down choice: ESSIE - and 30. Digital service provider: NAIL SALON and 49. 30-Down treatment, for short: PEDI. Not in my vocabulary but it filled itself in

45. Most artful: SLIEST.

47. Dull and dirty: DINGY.

49. Divides: PARTS.

50. Swiftly: APACE - Work on the bypass that will take 10 minutes off our drive to Lincoln continues APACE

52. "There you __!": ARE.

55. Fashion designer Saab: ELIE - If you'd like to see some of his $2,000+ items

56. Real or faux expression of gratitude: THANKS A LOT.

58. Opposite of doffs: DONS - We will soon be told to "Deck the halls and DON our gay apparel" 

59. Goofy-sounding person?: VOICE ACTOR - Nobody did it better or more OFTEN

60. Gerund ending: ING.

61. Symbolic centerpiece at Passover: SEDER PLATE.

Down:

1. Well-suited to be a mentor: WISE.

2. From scratch: ANEW - "Come on baby, let's start ANEW, Cause Breaking Up Is Hard To Do"

3. Remains neutral?: IDLES.

4. Deuce, e.g.: TIE - Part of tennis's screwy unique scoring system

5. Took off: RAN AWAY - A recurring issue at Boy's Town

6. Crown topper: ENAMEL - Oh, that crown

7. Realm of the "Divine Comedy": AFTER LIFE - Not exactly for reading at the beach

8. Diving bird: LOON - The TERN also dives but not today

9. Time __: fictional alien race: LORDS.

10. Units for Newton: Abbr.: YDS - Oh, that Newton! Fiendish indeed.

11. Silver adornment?: PIRATE HAT - Oh, Long John Silver. Fiendish too.

12. Electronic synthesizer whose name comes from the Japanese for "tadpole": OTAMATONE - Here's this weird looking, sounding instrument playing a song (1:12). New to me.

13. Account: TALE.

15. Had rhythm: PULSED - My rhythm is around 52 beats/minute

20. Restoration playwright Aphra __: BEHN - The first English woman to make living by being an author. I had no idea of who, what, when, why or where.

22. Friendly introduction?: ECO.

24. Words from the willing: I CAN.

26. Name on many a foundation: ESTEE - Oh, makeup foundation.

29. An end to reason?: ABLE - That seems to be, uh, REASONABLE

31. Center piece?: NAVEL RING.

33. 1983 album with the hits "China Girl" and "Modern Love": LET'S DANCE - Had to be

38. Internet company solicitations?: E-VITES - This completely works for me

39. Basic tops: TEES.

40. Conifer goo: PINE SAP.

41. Sleep lab test: Abbr.: EEG - My test showed I was having 33 apnea events/hr. CPAP has that down to an average of 4/hr.

44. Feeling worse: SICKER.

46. Lake whose name means "the lake" in Washo: TAHOE - The Washo people lived on the border of CA and NV mainly around what is now Lake TAHOE

48. "Big Three" summit site where Chekhov wrote "Three Sisters": YALTA - A 1900 picture of Chekov's dacha in YALTA, the town where FDR, Stalin and Churchill met in 1945.

112 Kirova St., Yalta, Crimea

51. No longer due: PAID.

53. Ginger or ginseng: ROOT.

54. Peut-__: French "perhaps": ETRE - Il était peut-ÈTRE malade (He may have been ill).

56. Sharp products: TV'S.

57. Knee part studied in an MRI: ACL - Tearing an Anterior Cruciate Ligament has ended many an athletic career.

Sunday September 26, 2021 Michael Lieberman

Theme: "Elongation" - EL is added to each common phrase. 

23. Censor of controversial parts of "Messiah"?: HANDEL SANITIZER. Hand sanitizer.

42. Cause of restaurant complaints?: SALAD DELAYS. Salad days.

48. Conventional rubies?: ORTHODOX JEWELS. Orthodox Jews.

69. Sign of a cat burglar?: FELINE PRINT. Fine print.

90. What people and leopards have in common?: VOWEL OF SILENCE. Vow of silence.

98. Stallone hero putting more film in his camera?: ROCKY RELOAD. Rocky Road.

119. Enjoy the track meet?: CATCH A FEW RELAYS. Catch a few rays.

Tried and true theme. I bet every constructor thought of adding EL or removal EL ("Noel") in their construction career. 

Smooth grid for a 140-worder. Low 3-letter count (24), the limit for a weekday 15x15 grid.

Across:

1. Chunk: SLAB.

5. Spill stopper: LID.

8. Beetle in Egyptian hieroglyphs: SCARAB. 

 

14. Old Eurasian rulers: TSARS.

19. Many a restaurant website page: MENU.

20. Addr. line ending: AVE.

21. Brother of Scar: MUFASA. In "The Lion King".

22. Juice box go-with: STRAW.

26. Hold forth: ORATE.

27. "Top Chef" host Lakshmi: PADMA. India-born. Once married to Salman Rushdie.

28. Knish seller: DELI.

29. __ Morris, "Saved by the Bell" protagonist: ZACK. Unknown to me.

31. Award for good plays: OBIE.  Theatrical play.

32. Bagel feature: HOLE.

34. Spots: SEES.

36. Emergency delivery method: AIRLIFT.

38. Family tree woman: GREAT-AUNT. My grandma's younger sister used to visit us once a year.  She could not walk much due to her bound feet. Hideous practice those days. My poor grandma used layers and layers of cloth to wrap her feet.

45. Intraoffice IT system: LAN.

46. Memo start: IN RE.

47. Get around: FINESSE.

53. Choir accompaniment: ORGAN.

57. 20th-century Argentine leader: PERON. Juan and Eva.

58. Room in Clue: STUDY. 64. Family room: DEN.

59. Original "Star Trek" actor: TAKEI (George)

62. Nice way to say yes?: OUI. Nice the city.

63. Stubborn animal: ASS.

65. Group email function: REPLY ALL.

67. A, in Aachen: EINE.

74. Shoppe modifier: OLDE.

75. Brand mentioned in the Beatles' "Come Together": COCA COLA.

77. Golf club part: TOE.

78. "I pity the fool" speaker: MR T.

79. Word that's a homophone of its first letter: OWE.

80. Willing subjects: HEIRS. The estate will.

82. Melodious: TONAL.

85. BILLY bookcase sellers: IKEAS.

88. Big dipper: LADLE.

93. Gallery event: ART SALE.

96. __ top: TANK.

97. Kinshasa's country, briefly: DRC. The Democratic Republic of the Congo. Not a common abbr.

102. Research staples: DATABASES.

104. Sister of Laertes: OPHELIA. "Hamlet".

105. Like yellow bananas: RIPE. Bill G mentioned that he only likes green bananas. Are you still there, Bill?

107. Look for gifts, say: SHOP.

108. Green and white: TEAS.

109. Almost never: ONCE. Try to blog a Thursday LAT once, you'll know the amount of work MM, Bill and all my other team members put on their writeups. So grateful to them, week after week.

112. Greenish-blue: TEAL.

114. Allow to fluctuate, as a currency: UNPEG. Yuan is pegged to the US Dollar.

117. Type of navel: INNIE.

123. Can't live without: NEEDS.

124. Bible book read during Purim: ESTHER. Also 49. Book after Daniel: HOSEA.

125. Hardly walking distance: FAR.

126. Neutral shade: ECRU.

127. Doesn't do much: IDLES.

128. What a broken escalator can serve as, aptly: STAIRS. I wish our townhome were one-level. It would be easier for Boomer to maneuver.

129. "Go for it!": TRY.

130. Loafer, e.g.: SHOE.

Down:

1. "This can't be," in texts: SMH. Shaking My Head.

2. Faithful spring?: LEAP. Leap of faith.

3. Actress Kendrick: ANNA.

4. Founder of an Eastern religion: BUDDHA. My favorite Buddha quote.

5. Euphoria: LA LA LAND. Great fill.

6. Providers of liquid assets?: IVS. I always look away when they jab Boomer.

7. Out of juice: DEAD.

8. Cheese alternative?: SMILE. Say "cheese".

9. Adorable ones: CUTIES.

10. "100 Years... 100 Movies" org.: AFI. American Film Institute.

11. Heckle: RAZZ.

12. On the briny: ASEA.

13. Chain of pubs with beer and video games: BARCADE.

14. General on a menu: TSO.

15. Tot toter: STROLLER.

16. Peninsula between the Red Sea and Persian Gulf: ARABIA.

17. Sanction: RATIFY.

18. Candy store buys: SWEETS.

24. Personified things in Pixar's "Inside Out": EMOTIONS. Mindy Kaling voiced Disgust.

25. Sticky home?: NEST. Home with sticks.

30. Isn't serious: KIDS.

33. Money in Münster: EUROS. Münster, Germany.

35. It may be cracked: SAFE.

37. Prepare for new planting, as a garden: RE-SOIL.

38. Zero-star fare: GLOP.

39. Not seen often: RARE.

40. Spellbound: ENTRANCED.

41. On deck: NEXT.

43. Upbeat melody: LILT.

44. "Master of None" co-creator Aziz __: ANSARI.  Me too always derailed his career.

50. Dame Dench: JUDI.

51. First place: EDEN.

52. Musical Lynn contemporary: WYNETTE (Tammy). Loretta Lynn.

54. Commits a hoops violation: GOALTENDS. Here's Wikipedia's goaltending explanation: "In basketball, goaltending is the violation of interfering with the ball while it is on its way to the basket and it is (a) in a downward flight (b) above the basket ring and within the imaginary cylinder and (c) not touching the rim."

55. "__ Lang Syne": AULD.

56. River to the Mediterranean: NILE.

60. "The Masked Singer" panelist Jeong: KEN. He also hosts "I Can See Your Voice".

61. Able, facetiously: EPT. Apt?

66. Radiohead lead singer/songwriter Thom: YORKE.

67. Subj. including the study of extinctions: ECOL. Ecology.

68. Field of Dreams setting: IOWA. "If you build it, they will come..."

69. Nemesis, e.g.: FOE.

70. Late philanthropist Broad: ELI. Some names are gimmes for me because I do clue research on a regular basis.

71. Like tadpoles: LARVAL.

72. Combine: POOL.

73. A.G. under Clinton: RENO.

76. "Curb Your Enthusiasm" actress Hines: CHERYL.

78. Biscuit whose name describes its shape: MILK-BONE.

81. Part for one: SOLO.

83. Men's grooming brand: AFTA.

84. Exams for future attys.: LSATS.

86. Decent-sized lot: ACRE.

87. Brief periods: SECS.

89. Summer cabin site: LAKESIDE. Before Boomer's cancer, we used to set up at Annadale Flea market. Lots lots of lake homes there.

91. Sport: WEAR.

92. Racing the deadline: IN A HURRY.

94. Chamber music work: TRIO.

95. Spirited events?: SEANCES. Good old clue.

98. Corkscrew pasta: ROTINI.

99. Warmed up the crowd: OPENED.

100. French fashion house: CHANEL. You can buy their bags as long as you have money. For Hermès Birkin bags, you have to be on a waiting list. Huge status symbol for many Asian girls.

101. Agitated state: DITHER.

102. Like Beethoven, late in life: DEAF.

103. Pie fruit: APPLES. And 106. Pie fruit: PEARS.

110. Ones getting a lot of props?: CAST. Stage props.

111. "At Last" singer James: ETTA.

113. Split: LEFT.

115. A pop: EACH.

116. Halal cart offering: GYRO.

118. Supergirl symbol: ESS.

120. Greek X: CHI.

121. Tolstoy title word: WAR.

122. Refuse to settle: SUE.

A few extra notes:

1) Here's a happy picture of Dr. Nina (Inanehiker) and her mom Jorae, who turned 90 years old on Friday (Sept 24th). See the crossword she's solving? Nina and I made it together!

2) Happy birthday to Dennis, who helped me greatly in the earlier years of this blog. Dennis was always the first one to post on the blog, followed by Kathy, who was married shortly after and Crockett1947 (Richard), who still posts here from time to time. Dennis fought a scary heath battle in 2019 and is doing great now. 

Dennis, Jan 2010

3) Please continue to keep Agnes (Irish Miss) in your thoughts and prayers. It hurts me so much to see her suffer. I'm so used to reading her bubbly email with cheerful emojis. 

She'll see an oncologist on Oct 7th and hopefully we'll know more about the next steps. Please email me (crosswordc@gmail.com) if you want to send Agnes an email or a card. We miss your presence on the blog, Agnes, stay strong!

C.C.

Monday March 15th, 2021 Michael Lieberman

Theme: SILENT PARTNER (54. Behind-the-scenes money source ... and a hint to the start of 20-, 35- and 43-Across) - The first word can follow "silent".

20. Youngster, metaphorically: SPRING CHICKEN. Silent Spring.

35. Toddler's monster deterrent: NIGHT LIGHT. Silent Night.

43. Morning awakener: ALARM CLOCK. Silent alarm,

Boomer here. Looks like another LA Times debut. Congrats, Michael!

SHH! I'll be at the bowling center, silently knocking over pins.  However I might loudly proclaim that I received the second shot of Pfizer vaccine 12 days ago and I have no side effects.  Well I have so many things wrong with me I am not sure what a side effect might be.

Across:

1. What a regular often orders, with "the": USUAL.  "It's not UNUSUAL."  Tom Jones.

6. First of a cereal box trio: SNAP.  I thought SNAPS were movie theater candy.  I think Kramer dropped one into a patient while observing surgery.

10. Box score number: STAT.  "Hurry up and do this puzzle STAT!!"

14. See 5-Down: MESSI. 5. With 14-Across, soccer's GOAT, to many: LIONEL.  An electric train that I had as a kid. Back when Eisenhower was President.

15. Dorothy's dog: TOTO.  "I'll get you my pretty, -- and your little dog too."

16. Distinctive vibe: AURA.

17. Sauce with basil: PESTO.  I wonder if you can spray this for mosquitos?

18. Like many cars sold online: USED.  Another crazy innovation of the 21st Century. Vroom? Carfax?

19. "Jurassic Park" predator: TREX.

23. Antlered Yellowstone beast: ELK.  I was once a member of ELKS Lodge 2221 in Minnesota but I think my Antlers fell off somewhere. 

24. Lao Tzu's "way": TAO.

25. __City: computer game: SIM.

28. Stick a stake in, as a vampire: IMPALE.  Change the "E" to an "A" and you have a Chevrolet.

32. Dry-eyes solution: SALINE.

34. Manual filing target?: NAIL.  I just clip mine.

39. Brings on board: HIRES.  Root beer?

41. Luau neckwear: LEI.  Hawaiian greeting.

42. He played Grant on "Lou Grant": ASNER.  Of course I liked him on the Mary Tyler Moore show, but I was not too excited about his role on "Roots"

46. Poi source: TARO.

47. One of four in five: LETTER.  "Gimme a ticket on an airplane, Ain't got time to take a fast train, My baby, just wrote me a LETTER.  The Box Tops.

 48. Theater walkways: AISLES.

50. Before, in poems: ERE.  "And I heard him exclaim ERE he rode out of sight"  You know the rest.

51. "__ Misérables": LES.

53. Hesitant utterances: UMS.  I don't know if you watch "America Says" but it seems like every contestant starts their answer with a few "UMS".

61. Elton or Lennon: JOHN.  Both Stars have a bathroom named after them?

63. Boxer's foursome: PAWS.

64. Garlicky mayo: AIOLI.  Too many vowels.

65. CNN anchor Burnett: ERIN.  Five minutes of yesterday's news, followed by five minutes of commercial ads.

66. Great Lake with the shortest name: ERIE.

67. King of rock 'n' roll: ELVIS.

68. Spinning toys: TOPS.  Add a "P" and you might have a few baseball cards.

69. Apt word found in "accident": DENT. Our Santa Fe is free of DENTS.

70. Tenant's contract: LEASE.

Down:

1. Officials calling strikes: UMPS.  They're always right and never wrong.

2. Trickle: SEEP.  Spring is creeping into Minnesota.  So far no SEEPS into anywhere there is not supposed to be.

3. Cold War initials: USSR.

4. Italian wine region: ASTI.  Solar Tech Stock on the Big Board.

6. Experiencing writer's block, say: STUCK.  Snow is nearly gone.  Nothing to get stuck in.

7. Light snack: NOSH.

8. Bit the dust: ATE IT.  "Another one gone, and Another one gone, Another one bites the dust" "Queen".

9. Online talk show: PODCAST.  I never listen to any of them. I am too busy playing Pac-Man.

10. Fill until full: SATE.

11. Car's blinker: TURN SIGNAL.  I got these figured out pretty early on the Santa Fe, but we had to consult the huge Owner's Manual for the windshield wipers.

12. "Roses __ red ... ": ARE.  "Violets are not really blue!"

13. Collectors' item?: TAX.  I think a Collector's item would be something like a Harmon Killebrew autographed plaque.  TAX is just one of things due in about a month.

21. Secluded valley: GLEN.

22. Eucalyptus eater: KOALA.

26. Response from the next room: INHERE.  "SHUT UP" is six letters but did not fit.

27. Urban transit systems: METROS.

28. Take a breath: INHALE.  First take the cigarette out of your mouth.  My last one was in 2001.

29. "The Naked and the Dead" author Norman: MAILER.

30. Hook's vessel: PIRATE SHIP.  "PIRATE SHIPS would lower their flags when Puff roared out his name." Peter. Paul, and Mary.

31. Wide awake: ALERT.  "Be A LERT!, America needs more LERTS."

33. Grocery shoppers' aids: LISTS.  I usually have a LIST with about 5-6 items.  But then why do I bring home about twenty ?

36. Sick: ILL.

37. Cable TV's Nat __ Wild: GEO.

38. Hyphenated fruit drink brand: HI-C.  Drink enough and you might get HIC CUPS.

40. Incense-sensing sense: SMELL.

44. Scared, with "out": CREEPED.

45. Hindu god of desire: KAMA.  Or add an "LA"  and you have a Vice President.

49. Tel Aviv's land: ISRAEL.

52. Drum type: SNARE.  I do not favor SNARE traps though.

53. Underdog's victory: UPSET.

55. Roadside lodgings: INNS.

56. Mary-Kate, to Ashley: TWIN.  Harmon Killebrew and Kirby Puckett to me.  Not to forget Tony Oliva.

57. Mah-jongg piece: TILE.  I am more acquainted with Scrabble, until C.C. started winning every game with me.

58. PBS science series: NOVA.  Compact Chevrolet.

59. Yale students: ELIS.

60. Heed a bailiff's order: RISE.  We have a heck of a trial going on in Minneapolis for the next few weeks.  They have only picked half a jury so far.  Good news, the demonstrators outside the courthouse have not caused any problems so far.

61. Hot tub feature: JET.  Also a feature of Delta, United, American, and others.

62. Spanish gold: ORO.  Our Records Only ??

Boomer