Sunday April 30, 2019 Pam Amick Klawitter

Theme: "Haiku" - LINE can follow each word of the three-part phrase.

23A. *What it often is on a summer day : HOT OUTSIDE. Hotline. outline. Sideline.

36A. *One-to-one conversation : PRIVATE PHONE CHAT. Private line. Phone line. Chat line.

59A. *Scuba divers' bash : UNDERWATER PARTY. Underline. Waterline. Party line.

83A. *Highly sought-after charter captain : TOP FISHING GUIDE. Top line. Fishing line. Guideline.

99A. *Iconic suburban symbol : WHITE PICKET FENCE. White line. Picket line. Fence line.

15D. *Awkward TV silence : DEAD AIR TIME. Deadline. Airline. Timeline.

68D. *Sale indicator : RED PRICE TAG. Red line. Priceline. Tagline.

Reveal:

119A. Feature of haiku, and of the answers to starred clues : THREE LINES

I think this is the first time we see such a three-part theme in LAT. Some of theme entries are not quite solid in-the-language. Just nature of the game.

We've seen a few both words that can precede/follow gimmick, which is already very hard to make. Three part is just incredible.

Across:     

1. Word heard in Bedrock : YABBA. "Yabba Dabba Doo!". From "The Flintstones". I drew a blank.

6. West Point letters : USMA. We also have 10. Military setting : BASE

10. Dark horses : BAYS

14. Sam seen in bars : ADAMS. This Sam.

19. Scott who wrote "Island of the Blue Dolphins" : O'DELL. Any of you read the book?

20. A golf green may be shaped like one : PEAR. Like this. I thought of OVAL.

21. Face cream additive : ALOE

22. Paganini's birthplace : GENOA

25. Rodeo goad : SPUR

26. Bother a lot : EAT AT. Not NAG AT

27. WWII spy gp. : OSS. Office of Strategic Services

28. Big mouths : MAWS. Not YAPS.

29. Tampico trio : TRES. We also have 7. José's half-dozen : SEIS

31. Mask wearers : BANDITS. Wanted GOALIES.

33. Salem-to-Portland dir. : NNE

34. Chihuahua or Maltese, in dog shows : TOY

35. Slangy sib : SISTA

43. Texter's "Just a thought ... " : IMHO

47. Candy aisle choice : ROLO. Not SKOR.

48. Kid in a '60s sitcom : OPIE. And 37. 48-Across player : RONNY

49. K-12, in brief : ELHI. El(ementary) + Hi(gh school). Often draws objections from our retired teacher crowd.

50. Its flag features a six-pointed star : ISRAEL

52. Scale starting words : ONE TO

54. 911 responder : EMT

56. Barbecue supply : BUNS. Not RUBS.

58. Functional : UTILE

63. "Wayward __": Shyamalan TV series : PINES. New to me.

64. Salon supply : DYE. Not GEL today.

65. Ancient region of Asia Minor : GALATIA. This clue often calls for IONIA.

66. Longship crew : NORSEMEN

68. Half a track? : RAIL. Two rails on a track.

69. London's "Ye Olde Mitre," e.g. : PUB. Steve might have been here many times.

71. "The Way __": 2007 Timbaland hit : I ARE. I thought it might be I WAS.

72. Loud speakers : STENTORS. Ha ha, I actually know this word. 

76. Travelocity enticement : LOW FARE

79. Pooh, to Roo : PAL

82. Broadway restaurant founder : SARDI. Sardi's.

86. Office holders? : CLIPS. Great clue.

87. Gilbert who created TV's "The Talk" : SARA

88. The Silver St. : NEV

89. Graphic start : ORTHO. No "Garden products brand" today. By the way, Anon-T, we planted both seeds and flowers. The flowers survived the cold weather, thankfully.

90. Warns : ALERTS

92. Frees : RIDS

94. They catch a lot of shrimp : NETS

97. Continue : GO ON

98. Sitcom pioneer, familiarly : DESI

103. Word with link or letter : CHAIN. Lovely clue as well.

105. French article : UNE

106. Damage : MAR

107. Haunted house sounds : SCREAMS

110. Lacking : SANS

112. Eye opener? : OPTI. I thought the clue was asking for DEAD/EVIL/SHUT.

113. Improve, in some cases : AGE. This qualifier makes me smile.

116. Cutie : TOOTS

117. Chop __ : SUEY

 122. Charged : RAN AT

123. Sport with double touches : EPEE. New clue angle.

124. Slices of history : ERAs

125. Minnesota's "10,000" : LAKES. Wisconsin says it has  more lakes than Minnesota. They count big puddles.

126. Play area : STAGE

127. Cold War initials : SSRS

128. Hide from an animal : PELT. Another nice clue.

129. Treacherous type : SNAKE. Girls who were born in Year of the Pig should not date guys who were born in Year of the Snake.

Down:

1. Pirate's syllables : YO HO. Partial.

2. They're often about nothing : ADOs

3. Adds to the pool : BETS

4. Rain-__ bubble gum : BLO

5. Smith grad : ALUMNA

6. High hairdo : UPSWEEP

8. Satiric magazine founded in 1952 : MAD

9. Kid-to-kid retort : ARE TOO

 

11. Hurdle for Hannibal : ALPS

12. Mirror image? : YOU. Not MOI.

13. Homeland of tennis star Novak Djokovic : SERBIA

14. "The X-Files" extra : AGENT. Normally a clue for ETS.

16. Protester : ANTI

17. Defensive ditch : MOAT

18. H.S. hurdles : SATs

24. Ma non __: not too much, in music : TANTO. No idea. I can't read sheet music.

30. Cub great Sandberg : RYNE

32. Bubbly source : ASTI

34. Lincoln Center attraction, familiarly : THE MET

35. Eastern faith : SHINTO. Shin - God. To has the same meaning as Chinese TAO (way).

36. Word in a Marines slogan : PROUD

 38. __-France : ILE DE. Very limited way to clue this partial.

39. Register a preference : VOTE

40. St. Peter's Basilica sight : PIETA

41. Exile isle : ELBA

42. Make, as butter : CHURN

44. Katahdin is its highest peak : MAINE. Never hard of Mount Katahdin.

45. Beatrix Potter's real first name : HELEN. Also a new trivia to me.

46. Cries after fútbol goals : OLEs

51. Freudian conscience : SUPEREGO

53. Player in a loft : ORGANIST

55. Vacation choice : TRIP

57. Aleppo native : SYRIAN

60. Reservations can help avoid one : WAIT. You have to have a reservation at our neighborhood Fantastic Sams. Otherwise, 30 minutes wait, at least.

61. Apportions : ALLOTS

62. Eighth-century pope : PAUL I. Not PIUS I.

67. Puppeteer Tony : SARG

 70. Cap'n's aide : BOSN

72. Room at the Louvre : SALLE

73. Doesn't give up : TRIES

74. Enter noisily : ROAR IN. Not a phrase I use.

75. Nautical pole : SPRIT. Forgot. We had this before. Spell checker flashes it.

77. Word of origin : WHENCE

78. Marathon practice run : FIVE-K

79. Spike for Hillary : PITON. Edmund Hillary.

80. Like some focus groups : AD HOC. We often have "committee" in the clue for a fat gimme.

81. Freetown currency : LEONE

82. Slew : SCAD. Normally plural, right?

84. Grow pale : FADE

85. Push : URGE

91. Did a few laps : SWAM

93. Made on a wheel : SPUN

95. Play set on an island, with "The" : TEMPEST. Got via crosses as well.

96. Cabinet department : STATE

100. Greets the villain : HISSES

101. Conforming : IN STEP (with)

102. Elegant trimmings : FRILLS

104. Speed : HASTE

107. Orch. section : STRS. Strings. Gluey fill constructors dread to use.

108. Primer layer : COAT

109. Novelist Jaffe : RONA

110. Psychic : SEER

111. Motion carriers : AYES. I like this clue also. Lots of S's in this little section.

112. Tough test : ORAL

113. Self-titled 1974 pop album : ANKA

114. Many a techie : GEEK

115. Latin being : ESSE

118. FedEx rival : UPS

120. Otto I's realm: Abbr. : HRE

121. Knighted McKellen : IAN. He was on Fresh Air a while ago. Funny guy.

Thanks for letting me know the puzzles in your local paper. I fear I'm the lone voice here asking our local Star Tribune to change the puzzles. So sad. Why their syndicate does not publish LAT crosswords is beyond me. I start to doubt if the Trib Variety Editor even solves crosswords.

C.C.

Wednesday, September 7, 2016, Pam Amick Klawitter

Title: RETURN WITH US NOW TO THOSE THRILLING DAYS OF YESTERYEAR!

Pam has a fun Wednesday puzzle for us where her three two-word theme answers end in synonyms for THROW that are appended to the BACK of the first word. Thus we have the reveal:

55. Reversions ... or what 17-, 26- and 43-Across all have? : THROWBACKS. We sports fans see this word and immediately think of the old uniforms athletes don occasionally to celebrate teams of yesteryear! Once a year the Steelers dress out in these THROWBACK "bumble bee" outfits of the 1930's:

17. Cold weather groundswell that can cause pavement damage : FROST HEAVE - Water's quirky property of expanding when it freezes can move mountains and sidewalks

26. Ancient siege weapon : ROMAN CATAPULT - Take that you Visigoths!

43. Manufacturer's coming-out event : PRODUCT LAUNCH - Some genius thought Life Saver Soda would be a good idea. Consumers could not get the past the revulsion of drinking liquid candy.

Now let's peruse the rest of fun Pam has tossed, flung and pitched at us:

Across

1. Bucks in the woods : STAGS

6. Ratted out the bad guys : SANG

10. Dept. store stock : MDSE

14. Condor's condo? : AERIE - The view on the way home to the AERIE

15. Prefix with logical : IDEO

16. Dry as a desert : ARID

19. Go for the worm : BITE

20. Wind down or wind up : END - I imagine some barflies wonder as the night winds down where they will wind up

21. Name in Cold War news : TASS - Telegrafnoye Agentstvo Sovyetskogo Soyuza (Telegraphic Agency of the Soviet Union)

22. Wright who wondered, "What's another word for 'thesaurus'?" : STEVEN

24. Ball catcher : MITT - Evolution

25. Needing wheels : CARLESS

30. "Knock it off!" : ENOUGH

31. Architectural curve : OGEE 

32. L.A. NFLer : RAM - Back in L.A. where they should be

35. Tax-free govt. bond : MUNI

36. Good feller? : AXE - This company in Tauranga, New Zealand have them

37. "One day only!" event : SALE

38. Boomer that no longer booms, briefly : SST

39. __ Valley: Reagan Library locale : SIMI - A beautiful place to visit

41. Warring factions : ARMIES

46. Woofer's partner : TWEETER

48. Landed : ALIT

49. Film boxer Rocky : BALBOA

50. Black, to a bard : EBON

51. Syst. for the deaf : ASL

54. Islamic branch : SHIA

58. Bard : POET

59. Capital of Belgium : EURO

60. Good-sized wedding band : OCTET

61. Kind of spot or loser : SORE

62. Cong. meeting : SESS

63. Lawn spoilers : WEEDS


Down

1. Heist target : SAFE

2. Beach bird : TERN

3. Five-time A.L. home run champ, familiarly : AROD - Now an expensive liability

4. APO mail addressees : GI'S

5. Gem mount : SETTING

6. Midday snooze : SIESTA - Una SIESTA me refresca (A nap refreshes me)

7. Some govt. lawyers : ADA'S - I'm betting most of you know these

8. Calif. neighbor : NEV

9. Loses one's cool : GOES APE

10. Pre-1985 communications nickname : MA BELL

11. Car's engine-to-wheels connector : DRIVE TRAIN

12. Surfers visit them : SITES

13. Paradises : EDENS

18. Sub access : HATCH - A tight fit

23. __-blue : TRUE

24. View from Molokai's south shore : MAUI

25. Lab rat's home : CAGE

26. Radiation units : REMS - Dental X-rays expose you to about 3 milliREMS (.003 REM) but you get about 360 milliREMS/year from everyday sources

27. Taxing task : ONUS

28. New England capital : MONTPELIER - the least populous American capital (7,880)

29. Needing a skull-and-crossbones label : TOXIC

33. Actor Baldwin : ALEC

34. Screen door material : MESH - Our MESH is kitty-proof

36. Russia-China border river : AMUR

37. X-rated stuff : SMUT

39. Explorer Hernando de __ : SOTO

40. Conceptualizes : IDEATES - Do you run in a crowd that uses this word?

41. Permit : ALLOW

42. Post-shower display : RAINBOW

44. Mail-in incentive : REBATE

45. They're off-limits : TABOOS

46. Recipe amts. : TBSPS

47. "Yippee!" : WAHOO

50. Gets an "I'm sorry" from Alex Trebek, say : ERRS - He didn't need Final Jeopardy to win, so Buzzy Cohen didn't ERR but  jabbed Alex a little.

51. Entr'__ : ACTE

52. Short agenda? : SKED

53. Iwo Jima troop carriers: Abbr. : LSTS

56. Tint : HUE

57. Blackjack component : ACE

Now we THROW control BACK to you, our faithful solvers! Comment away! 

The Grid

Sunday, May 8, 2016 Pam Amick Klawitter

Theme:  "Communication Update" - Before & After type. First part is a common phrase. Last part is an online communication related term.

23A. Tiny pair of media hosts? : TWO PEAS IN A PODCAST. Two peas in a pod. "WTF with Marc Maron" is my favorite podcast these days.

31A. Security for sailors? : SAINT ELMO'S FIREWALL. Saint Elmo's Fire. You might have heard of the Great Firewall of China. Lots of websites are blocked there, including Facebook.

49A. Online photo exchange for redheads? : GINGER SNAPCHAT. Ginger snap. I just don't get the appeal of Snapchat.

65A. Having returned to the world of public performances? : BACK IN A FLASH MOB. Back in a flash. I don't feel flash mob is communication-related, thought it's organized and spread on line.

85A. Emeril's gateway? : FOOD WEB BROWSER. Food web. Firefox for me. What do you use?

100A. "Got a film to share?"? : ANYTHING FOR YOUTUBE? Anything for you.

113A. End of a "Great Reuben!" tweet? : #CORNED BEEF HASHTAG. Corned beef hash.

I tend to jump around in my Sunday solving. After getting Snapchat and YouTube, I thought the last words are all social media sites. Facebook might be doable, but Instagram, Twitter and Tumblr are not viable options.

Heavy themage due to the nature of "before and after" theme type. Total 113 squares. Rich's minimum is 84. I stay around 94/95.

Across:

1. Kind of crazy? : STIR. Gimme start for our regulars. 

5. Supermarket lines : CARTS. We often see UPCS clued this way. Or BAR CODES.

10. Gossiper's word : HEARD. Not I HEAR.

15. Yahoo! rival : MSN

18. It divides banks in Bern : AARE. Riverbanks.

19. Goes around : ORBITS

21. Bartlett cousin : ANJOU. Have you tried Asian pears (Hosui) before? Super juicy.

22. Big foot letters : EEE

26. Short order from mom : NOW

27. Go along with : ESCORT

28. Extra : SPARE

29. Sneezer's need : TISSUE

36. Yacht staffs : MASTS. Not CREWS.

39. Van Gogh inspiration : ARLES

40. Clean the slate : ERASE

41. Latin lover's word : AMO

42. Naval NCO : CPO. And 43. Some NCOs : CPLS. And  57. G.I. Joe's outfit : US ARMY. Also 123. Air Force E-5's : SSGTS.

45. Scale starters : DO RE

55. Like some income : PRE-TAX

58. Former fillies : MARES

59. Crêpe cousin : BLINTZE. Looks amazing.

60. Garden adornment : SHRUB

61. Old Testament's Queen of __ : SHEBA

63. Tees for Aristotle : TAUS

64. Pound parts: Abbr. : OZs

70. Newfoundland comment? : ARF. Gimme for regulars.

73. Often saved comics heroine : LOIS (Lane),

74. Voicemail cues : TONES. Not BEEPS.

75. Cessation of hostilities : TRUCE

79. Opinion pieces : COLUMNS. Who's your favorite columnist? I like David Brooks.

81. Ontario natives : CREES

83. Intervene : STEP IN

84. Go by : ELAPSE

88. Dispatch : SEND

89. Brass __ : BAND

90. Place to go in Gloucester : LOO. Lots of gimme little words today.

91. "Xanadu" gp. : ELO

92. Home of the John Denver Sanctuary : ASPEN. Learning moment for me.

95. Illusionist Criss __ : ANGEL. He has a show in Vegas. 

98. "Cutthroat Kitchen" host Brown : ALTON

106. Nothing new : REPEAT

107. Dutch wheels : EDAMs

108. High-quality : RATED A

112. Sharp-toothed swimmer : GAR

 118. Cult following : URE. Just culture.

119. Get ready for an engagement? : KNEEL. Nailed it as well.

120. Waxy compound : STEROL. I see this as an ingredient in some makeup products.

121. Writer Rice : ANNE

122. Road curve : ESS

124. Revue routines : SKITS

125. Trails the pack : LAGS

 

Down:

1. Fill up : SATE

2. Shooting marbles : TAWS

3. __-Z: Camaro model : IROC

4. Share on Facebook, e.g. : RE-POST

5. Raccoon relative : COATI. He has a long tongue.

6. Start of MGM's motto : ARS

7. Bryce Harper stat : RBI. Right fielder for the Nationals. We also have And 96. Queens team, briefly : NY METS

8. Holiday sparklers : TINSEL

9. Office binder : STAPLE

10. Underworld : HADES

11. Multi-vol. reference : ENC. OK, encyclopedia.

12. 1977 Steely Dan album : AJA

13. Political platforms : ROSTRA. Plural of rostrum.

14. To-do list items : DUTIES

15. Smart bunch : MENSA.  Thank you, Mensa, for carrying LA Times crossword online.

16. K-pop city : SEOUL. Korean Pop. J-pop is Japanese Pop. Chinese pop is Mandopop (Mandarin). Cantopop is in Cantonese, of course.

17. Staircase component : NEWEL

20. Bombards with junk email : SPAMS

24. Memorable times : ERAS

25. Cortez's gold : ORO

30. Author Stieg Larsson's homeland : SWEDEN. Author of  The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo.

32. Short rests : NAPS

33. 1982 Disney sci-fi film : TRON

34. Pool surface : FELT. Clued such because we also have 103. Senses : FEELS

35. Org. whose roots date to the Civil War : IRS. Learning moment to me.

36. Sorcerer : MAGUS. Singular of Magi, I guess.

37. Simple-living sect : AMISH. There was an Amish family selling home-made jams and jellies at the flea market. But they were not there last year.

38. Whale tracker : SONAR

42. Shout : CRY

43. Revolutionary first name : CHE. Simple in retrospect.

44. Kettle et al. : PAs. Not MAs.

46. "The Simpsons" bus driver : OTTO

47. Jeer : RAZZ. We used to have a blog regular called Razzberry.

48. Divorce consequences : EXES

50. Vittles : GRUB

51. Preserves, in a way : EMBALMS

52. "You said it!" : AMEN

53. Early sunscreen ingredient : PABA

54. Made skillfully : CRAFTED

55. Horner's surprise : PLUM

56. Trattoria order : RISOTTO. I tried this the other day. Pretty good. I'm thinking of splurging on a bag of dried porcini and making my own mushroom risotto.

59. Scroogean cries : BAHs

61. Enjoys a run, maybe : SKIS

62. "To each __ own" : HIS

63. Half a fly : TSE. It's back.

66. "Get Smart" security device : CONE

67. MGM co-founder : LOEW (Marcus)

68. "As I Lay Dying" father : ANSE. I forgot. We had this sometime ago.

69. Coven concoction : BREW

70. Experts : ACES

71. Part of a film : ROLE

72. Custardlike dessert : FLAN

76. Election surprise : UPSET

77. Sky over Seville : CIELO. Hard for me. I only know a few limited Spanish words.

78. __ Field, a former name of Minute Maid Park : ENRON

80. Modernize : UPDATE

81. One side of the fence : CON. Or PRO.

82. Casting aid : ROD

83. Sign of success : SRO (Standing-Room Only)

85. Venom dispenser : FANG

87. Aptly named track star : BOLT (Usain)

89. "Big" London attraction : BEN

93. Crude homes : SHACKS

94. Mountaineering equipment : PITONS

95. Many Qatar natives : ARABS

97. Half a kids' game : GO SEEK. 6-letter Partial.

98. "Down with," in Paris : ABAS. "Abas le roi!" Also  86. Cheese couleur : BLEU. Color. Blue.

99. Deadly : LETHAL

100. Plead in court : ARGUE

101. Reduces one's distance from : NEARS

102. WWI battle site : YPRES. No idea. Wiki says that "During the war, because the British troops had trouble pronouncing its name, they nicknamed the city "Wipers"."

  

104. Not even : ODD

105. Border range : URALS. Europe/Asia border range. Vague clue.

109. Sicilian attraction : ETNA

110. "Shucks!" : DANG

111. Sits in a cellar, say : AGES

114. Short rule? : REG (Regulation). Short = Abbr.

115. Tuna catcher : NET

116. "Black" shopping time: Abbr. : FRI

117. __ water : HOT

C.C.

Friday, January 1, 2016, Pam Amick Klawitter

Theme: Happy New Year! Oops. No. New year resolutions! Nope. OK, I get it....

Let's put away the holiday decorations; but where? How fun!

We have five common phrases with the last word a place you can store things, with each clued humorously to create new images. I had a hard time parsing the JUST IN to reflect newest until I said it out loud, removing Justin from my brain. This is my second PAK puzzle, the other from December, 2010. Most of her puzzles are Sunday efforts but this is clearly a Friday with some deceptive cluing and some hard to remember fill. There was not much in long fill outside the theme, BB SHOT, a bit of crosswordese, EDEN, À LA. Off we go into 2016.

17A. Where to keep the newest merchandise? : JUST IN CASE (10). This gave me such a hard time. Of course the phrase has nothing to do with that kind of case, which is where the humor is.

26A. Where to keep papal headgear? : MITER BOX (8).  Really cute, and I will defer to Splynter for discussion of the original meaning.

38A. Where to keep bustiers and halters? : TOP DRAWER (9). Again a phrase that has nothing to do with the storage space morphs into where women keep their tops.

53A. Where to keep tunes? : DITTY BAG (8) The last two do not have same dramatic change as ditty bag holds ditties both way. A tough fill unless you are familiar with either the musical definition LINK,  or the new ONE.

64A. Where to keep clock components? : HAND BASKET (10). Well this puzzle went to hell quickly, though a basket filled with the hands from clocks is a cute image.

Across:

1. Prynne punishment : RED A. Scarlett letter actually for Hester.

5. Family that wrote a lot of notes : BACHS. An amazingly prolific FAMILY.

10. Chief of Staff after Haldeman : HAIG. Alexander quite famous for I'M IN CHARGE.

14. Summer quenchers : ADES. Cool we begin the year with a CSO to me.

15. Let go : ALLOW.

16. It's all around you : AURA. It certainly seemed so in the 60's and 70's.

19. Tabloid perennial : IDOL. Simon Cowell is coming to AGOT!

20. Circus couple? : CEES.

21. Strength : SINEW.  Really?

23. Andalusian article : UNA.

24. Fictional destroyer of Chamberlain, Maine : CARRIE. Maine and you know it is Stephen King.

28. Powerful Giant : OTT. Mel and all his home runs.

29. Green eggs advocate : SAM. But they need Ham...

31. Food Channel adjective : SAVORY.

32. High flat : MESA.

34. "American Pastoral" Pulitzer-winning author : ROTH. Philip has written so many books but this ONE earned him the Pulitzer Prize.

37. Actress Russo : RENE. She is 61

41. Long, long time : AEON.

43. No hassle : EASE.

44. Cheek : SASS.

48. Sponge : ABSORB.

50. Super __ : PAC.

52. Sign of summer : LEO. and the Clecho 61A. Sign-changing area : CUSP.

56. Church counter? : ROSARY. Beads me what this means.

58. Styled after : À LA.

59. Big name in beauty : ESTEE. Let's praise her in Latin. I love inter-lingual puns.

62. Sees : GETS. Mira!

67. DOE division?: Abbr. : ENERgy.

68. End of a host's query : OR TEA? Coffee or?

69. Hair piece : HANK. Not a toupee.

70. Hill meeting: Abbr. : SESSion. Capitol Hill.

71. Quaint retort : 'TIS'NT. Again so soon after yesterday's 'Tis.

72. Enjoying a lot : IN TO.


Down:

1. Koothrappali on "The Big Bang Theory" : RAJ.

2. Teach : EDUCATE. Happy New year especially to all here who TEACH. The world depends on you.

3. Leaves without leave : DESERTS. The military.

4. Daisy lookalike : ASTER. Aster to the left

Daisy.... 




5. Proscription : BAN.

6. MLB best-of-seven series : ALCS. American League Championship Series.

7. Assertion : CLAIM.

8. Egypt's Mubarak : HOSNI. No way to COMMENT.

9. Candy : SWEETS. I still miss HIM.

10. Osaka okay : HAI. Yes in Japanese.

11. "The Birds of America" author : AUDUBON.

12. You can dig it : IRON ORE. Very vague but it is Friday.

13. Place to see stars : GALAXY. Riding in an old Ford?

18. Goddess with cow's horns : ISIS.

22. "__ Family": 1979 R &B hit : WE ARE.

24. Dot follower? : COM.

25. Tombstone VIP : EARP. Wyatt. I liked Hugh O' Brian better. He is still alive and married for the first time at age 81.

27. Camping enthusiasts, for short : RV'ERS.

30. How it's done : MODE.

33. Reveling, after "on" : A TOOT.

35. Vocal syllable : TRA. LA LA Linda.

36. Door fastener : HASP.

39. Deli request : ON RYE.

40. Common sign of age : WEAR. And tear.

41. Kansas site of the Eisenhower Presidential Library : ABILENE. The town also had Wild Bill Hickok as Marshall for a while and 186 miles from Dodge City.

42. They're left behind : ESTATES. Real property, probate and estate planning...my current life.

45. Yakutat native : ALASKAN. Just a simple guess.

46. Garden snake? : SERPENT. Which helps with 60D. Utopia : EDEN.

47. __ sauce : SOY. Do you use it with your 57D. Bite-sized Asian dish : SUSHI.

48. Words from the wise : ADAGES.

49. Red Ryder ammo : B B SHOT. Did you watch the marathon A CHRISTMAS STORY? (2:12).

51. 1952 "Your Show of Shows" Emmy winner : COCA.

54. Arcade pioneer : ATARI.

55. Fellows : GENTS.

63. Gp. receiving diplomas : SRS.

65. Cavern critter : BAT.

66. Ring ruling : TKO. Technical Knock Out.

Technical or otherwise I am out of here; I thank PAK for starting us in the New Year; thank you C.C. for still being here after almost 8 years and all of those who read and write and those who just read: may 2016 be a banner year for all. Lemonade out.