Sunday February 20, 2011 Peter Wentz

Theme: Find Out - Parse it as "F in/D out" - D is replaced by F in each of the 8 common phrases.

23A. Flight attendant's reminder when serving alcohol? : THIS IS NOT A FRILL. This is not a drill.

32A. Equine exhibition with poor visibility? : FOG AND PONY SHOW. Dog and pony show.

45A. Stick around for sautéing? : HANG OUT TO FRY. Hang out to dry.

64A. Energizing bluegrass instruments? : FUELING BANJOS. Dueling banjos. From "Deliverance". What a scary movie!

75A. Craze for some moms? : STAY-AT-HOME FAD. Stay-at-home Dad.

95A. Pixie dust? : FAIRY PRODUCT. Dairy product.

104A. Written warning about gangster Gotti? : FEAR JOHN LETTER. Dear John Letter. John Gotti. The Teflon Don.

119A. Imposing monetary penalties with a nice Chianti? : WINING AND FINING. Wining and dining.

Clever title, isn't it? I wonder what came to Peter Wentz first, theme or theme title? I suspect the latter. Sometimes a phrase can  inspire a theme. Sunday puzzle is a different animal. Very often constructors have a set of theme answers ready, then work on a fitting title, which has to be pertinent to the theme but can't be too revealing lest it spoil the solve.

Interesting for me to see THE WAY clued as "100D. Tao, literally". Tao actually just means "way", sans "the", since Chinese language has no articles. I often omit "the" when it should be present.

Across:

1. Come again? : REVISIT. Can't fool me.

8. Sampled, with "of" : HAD A BIT. Don't feel "of" is necessary. You?

15. Bright bunch : MENSA. Dennis is one, and he knows how much trouble I have with "the".

20. Anthem with the line "The True North strong and free!" : O CANADA

21. Muscle ache cause : OVERUSE

22. Prestigious octet : IVIES. Ivy League had 8 schools.

25. Mideast peninsula : SINAI

26. Fixed, as a pump : SOLED. Thinking of gas pump, not shoe.

27. Org. with a Double Down sandwich : KFC. No bread. Not real sandwich.

28. Hip-hopper's adjective : LIL. You'd think they want something big, so ego-driven.

29. Crashed, so to speak : SLEPT

30. Up to, in invites : TIL

37. "Conan" airer : TBS

40. __ Equis: Mexican beer : DOS. Two Xs.

42. Dice, e.g. : CUBES

43. Prefix with natal : NEO. Neonatal.

44. Be beholden : OWE

48. Well-mannered manor man : BUTLER. Liked the M alliteration.

50. Fridge problem : ODOR

51. It probably won't keep you up : DECAF. Clever clue.

52. Collectible frame : CEL. Disney cartoon cel.

55. "All yours!" : HERE

56. Sobriety checkpoint target, for short : DWI

57. "Tasty!" : MMM

58. '70s-'80s NHLer known as "Lucky Pierre" : LAROUCHE. First encounter with this guy.

62. Didn't deviate from : KEPT TO

69. U.K. medal : OBE. Officer of the Order of the British Empire.

70. Conservatory subj. : MUS. OK, Music.

72. Decrease : ABATE

73. Subj. for refugees : ESL (English as a Second Language)

74. "Annabel Lee" monogram : EAP (Edgar Allan Poe)

78. Fig. in many churches : ST MARY

80. Bronchitis sufferers' aids : INHALERS

81. Spinning toy : TOP

83. Orthogonal joint : ELL

84. Spill preceder : TRIP. Ah, spill here refers to "fall" then.

87. Conclusion letters : QED

88. "Yippee!" : WAHOO

90. Heads of England? : LOOS. Toilets. JOHN if the clue is singular.

92. Baseball's Matsui : HIDEKI. With the Yankees for a long time. Fun guy, unlike the somewhat aloof Ichiro.

98. Dutch city : EDE. Learned from doing Xword.

99. Iowa hrs. : CST

101. Gathers opinions from : POLLS

102. BART stop : STN

103. Chicken Little's concern : SKY. The sky is falling.

108. Auburn's conf. : SEC (Southeastern Conference)

110. Many a 19th-cen. map : LITHO

111. Fair-hiring abbr. : EOE

112. TV's "Science Guy" : NYE (Bill)

114. Shot with extreme spin : MASSE. Billiards shot.

118. Negative particle : ANION. We see ION so often.

124. Old tablet material : STONE

125. "No surprise" : AS USUAL

126. Holiday burner : YULE LOG. Sweet entry for Argyle.

127. Makes better : HONES

128. Mocha residents : YEMENIS. Mocha the port in Yemen.

129. Tiptoe past : SNEAK BY

Down:

1. Spoils : ROTS

2. Comeback : ECHO

3. Resort WSW of Boulder : VAIL. The Colorado ski resort.

4. Blown-up detail : INSET

5. Took the plunge : SAID "I DO". MARRIED has the same amount of letters.

6. Makes, as a perp : IDs

7. Word with car or top : TANK

8. Ski lodge drink : HOT COCOA

9. Charlton's "Earthquake" co-star : AVA (Gardner)

10. Excellent, in slang : DEF (Definitely)

11. SFO posting : ARR

12. Physiques : BUILDS

13. Long Island town : ISLIP. Not familiar with the town. What's it famous for, Splynter?

14. Rat out : TELL ON

15. Love letter sentiment : MISS YOU. Aww.

16. Pandora's boxful : EVILS. Thought of BANES.

17. Like a quick links round : NINE HOLE. Golf links.

18. 16th-century Spain, for one : SEA POWER

19. So to speak : AS IT WERE. In a way.

24. Wrong : OFF. He's off.

31. Indiscreet type : LOUDMOUTH. Nice answer.

33. Nonsense : GUFF

34. Like some bks. for kids : ABR (Abridged)

35. Napoleon cohort : NEY (Michel). Napoleon called him "bravest of the brave".

36. Big 12 rival of Kan. : NEB. Will become a Big 10 this July. For more info, ask Husker Gary.

37. E'en if : THO

38. Creditor's loss : BAD DEBT

39. Chinese food veggie : SNOW PEA. I like sugar peas more.

41. Flower feature : STEM

46. Sandpaper coarseness measure : GRIT

47. Airer of many old MGM films : TCM

49. After that : THEN

52. Shouted : CRIED

53. Years and years : EON

54. Winter Olympics event : LUGE

58. Thumbs (through) : LEAFS

59. Mont. neighbor : ALTA. Here it's again. Alberta.

60. Masters TV venue since 1956 : CBS SPORTS. Golf again. Masters & US Open are my favorite majors.

61. Word before "Who goes there?" : HALT

62. Fighter's stat : KOs (Knockouts). Boxing.

63. Fed after Capone : T MAN

64. Well-known : FAMED

65. Slangy prefix meaning "super" : UBER

66. Green-eyed : JEALOUS

67. Rowboat device : OARLOCK

68. Mole, perhaps : SPY

71. Oldest active NBAer : SHAQ. Oh, nice to know this trivia. Shaq is now 38 Years old.

76. "Goodness me!" : YIPE

77. Bulls' fans' chant? : OLE. Bullfighting. I was thinking of Chicago Bulls.

79. Pinochle declaration : MELD

81. Quaker possessive : THY

82. "Clumsy me!" : OOPS

84. Speedy superhero : THE FLASH. Was ignorant of this superhero.

85. Arrive at, cowboy-style : RIDE INTO

86. Thought process : IDEATION. We've seen IDEATE before. Weird word.

88. Sag : WILT

89. Clip joints? : ARSENALS. Cartridge clip.

91. Messy room, to mom : STY

93. Former Celtics guard and coach : K C JONES. Hall-of-Famer.

94. Metric lead-in : ISO. Isometric.

95. Hatfield, to a McCoy : FOE

96. PC space bar neighbor : ALT. Keyboard.

97. Four laps, often : ONE MILE. Four laps = 800 meters to me. We had 200 meter track.

101. Full legislative assembly : PLENUM

105. Lake Geneva feeder : RHONE

106. White __ : NOISE

107. Rembrandt van __ : RYN

109. Former capital of Crete : CANEA. No idea. Checked Wiki, then found out its current capital is Heraklion. Let's go back to Canea then.

113. "Grand" brand of ice cream : EDY'S

115. Epitome of smoothness : SILK

116. Stuffed shirt : SNOB

117. Like challah bread : EGGY

120. Sussex verb suffix : ISE. Ours is IZE.

121. Sister : NUN

122. Moo goo __ pan : GAI. Literally "chicken".

123. Good times : FUN

Answer grid.

Happy Birthday to Argyle, our witty and sharp Santa. I'd like to share with you a story. Sometime last year I mentioned to Argyle that it's bothering me that I still had not figured out the theme of a few earliest TMS Daily puzzles I blogged. I was not even sure I got the theme answers correct, as in those days I only wrote a few sparse clue/answer comments and attached no answer grid. Argyle went to his local library and found the exact puzzles for me. Like Dennis, he's done lots of small things for me, on and off the blog. Thanks, Santa, may your birthday be filled with sunshine, love and smiles.

C.C.

Sunday February 28, 2010 Peter Wentz

Theme: Gross Income - ICK is inserted into common phrases/words.

22A. Martial artist's autobiography?: THE KICKING AND I. "The King and I".

37A. Protest against fiery roadsters?: RED CAR PICKET. Red Carpet.

57A. Really cool security device?: WICKED LOCK. Wedlock.

78A. Price tag in the meat department?: HAM STICKER. Hamster.

93A. Communication from perverts?: SICKOS' SIGNAL. SOS Signal.

113A. Competition for greased-up pooches?: SLICKED DOG RACE. Sled Dog Race.

16D. Preserved a liquor bottle?: PICKLED THE FIFTH. Pled the Fifth. I did not know that a bottle of liquor is also called "fifth", meaning one fifth of a gallon.

44D. Aggressive policy to increase box office sales?: TICKET OFFENSIVE. Tet Offensive. Vietnam War.

I loved the theme title "Gross Income". Very nice wordplay on the accounting term. The gross "ICK" literally comes into every theme phrase.

Last time both Hahtool and I were expecting this kind of ICK insertion in Gail Grabowski's "Gross Word" (Letter C in common phrases is changed into letter G) Sunday puzzle.

Letter K always spices up the whole grid. I counted total 16 Ks in this puzzle. The record is 30, held by Don Gagliardo (Feb 21, 2008, Thursday LAT).

Across:

1. Kept afloat: BUOYED

7. Big sizes: JUMBOS

13. Things drawn across windows: DRAPES. Not enough letters for my CURTAINS.

19. Like books for long-distance road trips: ON TAPE

20. Bob Hope Airport city: BURBANK. Near LA. I had no idea that there's a Bob Hope Airport.

21. Savor: RELISH

24. Combo wager: EXACTA. Pick the first two finishers in order.

25. "Attention!": HARK

26. 1973 Stones ballad: ANGIE. Here is the clip.

27. Columnist Bombeck: ERMA. The "Joy of Cooking" author is IRMA (Rombauer).

29. Short timetable?: SKED. Schedule.

30. Theater level: TIER

32. Foofaraw: ADO. Foofaraw is a new word to me.

33. Formal orders: DICTUMS. Or DICTA.

36. "College GameDay" football analyst Corso: LEE. For ESPN. I've never heard of this guy.

40. Neruda works: POEMS. Neruda got Nobel Literature in 1971.

42. ATF employee: AGT (Agent). ATF = Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms.

45. Like dried soil: CAKY. Only know this word in make-up sense.

46. Emotional work: ODE. I like this new clue.

47. Try to keep, as a title: DEFEND.

49. Madden coached them in the '70s: RAIDERS. Was unaware that John Madden coached the Oakland Raiders.

51. Pirate riches: BOOTY

53. When Hamlet feigns insanity: ACT TWO. This ACT One/Two/IV combo often gets me.

56. Not marked up: AT COST. And PROFIT (80A. Entrepreneur's goal).

60. Mortar trough: HOD. Brick hod.

61. "Classic" drinks: COKES

62. "The queen of sciences": Gauss: MATH. Maybe our Fermatprime knows this quote.

63. Thought-revealing drama techniques: ASIDES

64. Genre of the band Fall Out Boy: EMO. First encounter with the rock band Fall Out Boy.

65. Charlemagne's reign: Abbr.: HRE (Holy Roman Empire)

66. Come out with: SAY. Dictionary gives an example: Always comes out with (SAYS) the truth.

67. Check for authenticity: VET

68. Sibs, uncs, etc.: FAM. OK, Family.

69. Boxing writer Fleischer: NAT. Was he very well-known?

70. Piercing cry: SHRIEK

73. Storage facility: SHED

75. Curing solution: BRINE

77. Vow after reading vows: I DO. Nailed it.

81. LL Cool J label: DEF JAM. No idea. Does DEF stands for Definite?

83. Actor Feldman or Haim: COREY. Obtained the answer from crosses.

84. Jewish pancake: BLINTZE. Always thought it's spelled without the last E.

85. Alarm setting for one with a paper route, maybe: FIVE AM. Too late, don't you think?

89. Globule: BEAD

90. That ship: HER

91. __ brûlée: custard dessert: CRÉME. Dennis' favorite dessert.

97. Over there, back when: YON

98. Gear on the slopes: SKI MASK

100. Google had one in Aug. 2004: IPO (Initial Public Offering). I remember the hype.

101. W. Coast enforcer: LAPD

104. Letter sign-off: BEST

106. Organic compound: ENOL. Instinctive fill.

107. "__ the Boys": Katy Perry album: ONE OF. See this cover. Unknown to me.

109. Didn't hold, as dyes: BLED

111. It'll put you under: OPIATE. Great clue.

117. Energizes: REVS UP

118. Sky lights: AURORAS. Aurora is the Roman goddess of dawn.

119. "Knocked Up" director Judd: APATOW. Also the director for "The 40-Year-Old Virgin". Recognized him when I googled.

120. Does an usher's job: GREETS

121. Football bettor's concern: SPREAD. Same as "The Line"?

122. Buds at sea: MATEYS

Down:

1. Inclusive choice: BOTH

2. Doff a bowler: UNHAT. Bowler hat.

3. Castmate of Gasteyer, Ferrell et al.: OTERI (Cheri). All "SNL" cast.

4. Gas bag: YAKKER

5. Dermal opening: EPI. Epidermal.

6. Prefix with -gon: DECA. Decagon. Polygon with ten angles and ten sides.

7. Son: JUNIOR

9. W.'s degree: MBA. Bush got his MBA from Harvard.

10. Blackball: BAN

11. Batting next: ON DECK. So happy that Twins got Jim Thome.

12. Got around: SKIRTED

13. Night vision?: DREAM. Sweet clue.

14. Latin king: REX. Regal is rooted in REX.

15. "Unfortunately ...": ALAS

17. High regard: ESTEEM

18. Hipster's accessory: SHADES. Sunglasses.

20. It may be circled on a calendar: BIG DAY

23. Special gifts: KNACKS. Was thinking of real gifts.

28. Remote control?: MUTE. Have seen this clue before. Still like it.

31. Break: RECESS

33. Got a B-minus, say: DID OK

34. Summer refresher: ICE TEA. Iced Tea, please!

35. Traces: SPECKS

38. Tavern flier: DART

39. Hound: POOCH

41. Niagara Falls prov.: ONT (Ontario)

42. Spider, e.g.: ARACHNID

43. Drink named for a football team: GATORADE. Named after the University of Florida Gators.

48. Phase: FACET

51. Series of jokes: BIT. Was ignorant of this BIT meaning.

52. Football stat.: YDS

54. Emulate Don Juan: WOMANIZE

55. Gas mileage calculating aid: ODOMETER

57. Can't tell which __ up: WAY IS. I wrote down ONE IS first.

58. Onions partner: LIVER. Because you always cooks liver with onion?

59. Had too much: OD-ED. Overdosed.

62. Old school add-on?: MARM. "Add-on" to the old-time schoolteacher Schoolmarm.

66. Humiliate: SHAME

70. They may be close: SHAVES

71. And so forth: Abbr.: ETC

72. Convention booths: KIOSKS. Two Ks in this word.

73. Misrepresents: SKEWS

74. "I'm talking to you!": HEY

75. Like some gowns: BRIDAL. Bridal gowns.

79. Swindler: CROOK

80. Seating __: PLAN. I wanted DUCK.

82. Bowie at the Alamo: JIM

84. Parent's reminder: BE GOOD

87. Brunch drinks: MIMOSAS. Champagne & orange juice.

89. Humans and ostriches, e.g.: BIPEDS

91. Many a sci-fi villain: CYBORG. Cyb(ernetic) Org(anism). Mechanically enhanced human.

92. Former "At the Movies" co-host: ROEPER (Richard). The other co-host is Roger Ebert.

94. Bring to the majors: CALL UP. Major League Baseball.

95. "Nothing Compares 2 U" singer O'Connor. SINEAD. I love this song.

96. Experimental runner: LAB RAT

99. Stays fresh: KEEPS

102. Fundraising dinner unit: PLATE

103. Plastic duck, e.g.: DECOY

105. Subdue by shocking: TASE. Don't Tase Me, Bro!

107. Fried Cajun veggie: OKRA

108. Flat beer's lack: FOAM

112. King whose tomb was found in 1922: TUT. Poor lad!

114. Bargain bin abbr.: IRR (Irregular)

115. "Take This Job and Shove It" songwriter David Allan __: COE. Sorry, dude, don't know you.

116. College résumé fig.: GPA (Grade Point Average)

Answer grid.

C.C.

Sunday November 29, 2009 Peter Wentz

Theme: Right on Cue - QU is added to the starts of the first words of familiar phrases.

23A. Charmin' way of actin' up?: (QU)AINT MISBEHAVIN'. Was not familiar with the base phrase Ain't Misbehavin'

32A. Annul the middle of the week?: (QU)ASH WEDNESDAY. This tipped me off the theme.

49A. Calculation for an express delivery?: (QU)ICK FACTOR. Ick Factor is a measurement of the repulsiveness of something gross.

66A. Ends it, to one's subsequent regret?: (QU)ITS A GOOD THING. It's a Good Thing.

85A. Sick feeling on campus?: (QU)AD NAUSEAM. Ad Nauseam.

99A. Wasn't quite ready to accuse?: (QU)ASI SUSPECTED. As I Suspected. I have difficulty understanding the new phrase. Confused by the grammar structure.

112A. Muslim household's holy book?: (QU)RAN IN THE FAMILY. Feels like the base phrase should be "run in the family', no?

The only non-theme QU today is QUE (28A. Juan's "what"). Total 8 Q's in the puzzle. Plus 3 Z's, 3 J's, 3 X'es and 7 K's . Quite a scrabbly pangram (all 26 letters are used at least once). In fact, it's a triple pangram.

In his last themeless Saturday, this constructor Peter Wentz used four J's & eight K's, quite unusual for a 15*15. Maybe scrabbliness is his style.

Again, I grokked the theme very early on and it sure helped my solving. Many times understanding the theme early has no impact on my solving, esp pun themes. Today I was able to fill in every QU in the Across theme answers and then cracked the intersecting Down entries, which are mostly solid words/phrases and easily obtainable.

Across:

1. Scale notes: FAS

4. Copy room malfunction: JAM-UP. Printer malfunction too.

9. Parchment?: THIRST. Too cute a clue for me.

15. Island band The __ Men: BAHA. Here is their annoying "Who Let the Dogs Out".

19. Like single-digit temps: ABOVE ZERO. Nice multi-word entry.

21. California's motto: EUREKA. Know this because of our CA gang.

22. "Son of Frankenstein" role: YGOR. Or IGOR.

25. Daring exploit: GEST

26. Stats for Tyson: TKOS (Technical Knockouts)

27. Juan or Gabriel lead-in: SAN. San Juan & San Gabriel.

29. Bridget with a diary: JONES. From movie "Bridget Jones's Diary".

30. Arles article: LES. As in "Les Misérables".

35. Sailor's destination in a Yeats poem: BYZANTIUM. Yeats's "Sailing to Byzantium". I wrote down BYZANTINE.

40. Workplace stds. enforcer: OSHA

41. Fluffy accessory: BOA

42. Prefix with directional: UNI. Unidirectional. Penned in ERN, it's actually "Directional suffix".

43. Takes away: DETRACTS

46. Z4 automaker: BMW. Car make/model is definitely my weak point.

54. Winning game line: OOO. Tick-tack-toe.

55. Narrow furrow: STRIA. The answer emerged itself.

56. "__ All That": 1999 comedy: SHE'S

57. Big name in water filters: BRITA. No idea. No filter in our kitchen.

59. Sport with mallets: POLO

62. Provide power to: ENABLE

64. Hidden: CLOAKED

69. To an extreme degree: AWFULLY. Did you know immediately that the clue is asking for an adverb?

72. Within arm's length of: NEXT TO

73. Twosomes: DYADS. Dy(0) is a prefix for "two".

76. Gustave who illustrated classics: DORE. Stranger to me. Gustave Doré (French) illustrated Cervantes's "Don Quixote". Poe's "The Raven", Milton's "Paradise Lost", etc.

77. Works up a sweater: KNITS

79. Multi-vol. references: OEDS (Oxford English Dictionaries)

81. Early aft. hour: ONE PM

83. Java: JOE. Coffee.

84. Slightly: A TAD

87. Charleston, WV-to-Charlotte dir.: SSE

88. Edited version seen in theaters: FINAL CUT

91. Year in Nero's reign: LIX. Roman numeral 59. Very frustrating clue. Nero ruled from 54 to 68 A.D.

92. Corned beef holder: RYE. Reuben sandwich.

93. Military band wind: FIFE

95. "That's it!": AHA

96. Old bath water quality: TEPIDNESS. Odd use of "old".

104. Mazatlán Mrs.: SRA (Señora). Then we also have MMES (82D. Fr. titles). Madames.

105. Chill out, slangily: UNLAX. New slang to me. RELAX wouldn't fit.

106. Roman sun god: SOL

107. Ones bound by blood: KIN. I often forget that the plural form of KIN is still KIN.

108. Chant at a Lakers game: KOBE. Kobe Bryant. Stumper for me.

111. Without a specific goal: IDLY

118. Mess up: RUIN

119. Celtic language spoken in France: BRETON

120. 2008 Harlan Coben thriller: HOLD TIGHT. No idea. See the book cover.

121. Lotto-like game: KENO

122. Leapt: SPRANG. A bunch of consonants.

123. Premium movie channel that dropped its "!" in 2005: STARZ. Unknown to me also. I don't think we have this channel.

124. Took care of: DID

Down:

1. Helpful URL link: FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions). Nailed it.

3. Overcharge, in slang: SOAK. Learned this slang a few months ago.

4. Long-time CBS news anchor Jim: JENSEN. He died before I came to the US, so no, I don't know him.

5. HIV-treating drug: AZT. The first drug approved for the treatment of AIDS. Have never heard of it.

6. Part of RAM: Abbr.: MEM (Memory). RAM = Random Access Memory. Desperate clue/answer.

7. Sch. whose mascot is Rhody the Ram: URI (University of Rhode Island). I failed again.

8. Play __: feign sleep: POSSUM

9. Even more itsy-bitsy: TEENSIER

10. "How's that again?": HUH

11. Controversial conflict since 2003: IRAQ WAR. Great fill.

12. Variety show: REVUE

13. Hit the slopes: SKIED. Hit is past tense here.

15. Words of emphasis: BY GOSH

16. Planning aid: AGENDA BOOK. I just call it personal organizer.

17. Old Testament prophet: HOSEA. Minor prophets.

18. Highfalutin: ARTSY

20. Instrument featured in Berlioz's "Harold in Italy": VIOLA. Easy guess.

29. Civil rights activist Jackson: JESSE. Reverend Jesse Jackson. I bet he wishes he could grab the spotlight and offer Tiger Woods some help.

31. Double __ Oreo: STUF. First time I saw this entry in a Xword.

32. Baked brunch dishes: QUICHES. Yummy.

33. 116-Down's last VP: HST. And FDR (116D. See 33-Down).

34. Like an expired license: NOT VALID

35. Backyard parties, briefly: BBQS

36. Kids: YOUTH

37. Old name of Congo: ZAIRE (1971-97)

38. Sworn __: given the oath of office for: IN AS. Doubt I'd get the AS part without the crossing help.

43. Amounts to take: DOSAGES

44. Actress Meyers: ARI. So happy I finally remember her name.

45. One may be backhand: CATCH

47. Whacked arcade critter: MOLE. Was ignorant of the Whac-A-Mole game at all.

48. Fuel for the fire: WOOD

50. __ du Soleil: CIRQUE

52. One with an option to buy, perhaps: TENANT. Nice clue too.

57. Eclipse, as the sun: BLOT OUT

58. Herbal quaff: RED TEA. Chinese call black tea as RED TEA.

59. Some polytheists: PAGANS

61. Formal neckwear, perhaps: SILK TIES

63. Fight in a ring: BOX. Verb.

67. "The Seduction of Joe __": Alda film" : TYNAN. Have faintly heard of this film. Someone must have mentioned it at the Comments section before.

68. Barely walked: TODDLED

69. Fast and furious, e.g.: Abbr.: ADJS. Excellent clue. Both fast and furious are adjectives.

70. Makes a play for: WOOS. "Make a play for" is a new idiom to me.

71. 1989 Tom Petty hit: FREE FALLIN'. Here is a clip. It's not stored in my memory.

74. Big name in snowblowers: DEERE. Toro too.

75. Neuters: SPAYS. Ouch.

78. Rhoda's mom: IDA. Again, got her name from crosses.

80. Sassy one: SNIP. Unaware of this definition of snip.

84. Attach: AFFIX. Wrote down ADD TO first.

85. Duck chorus: QUACKING. Lovely.

86. What the Earth turns on: AXIS

89. City near Buenos Aires: LA PLATA. No idea. See the map. Literally "The Silver".

90. Backer of Fidel: CHE (Guevara). They were comrades.

94. Answer to one's own rhetorical question, perhaps: I SAY NO. Nice answer.

96. Dimes, to dollars: TENTHS. Did not come to me easily.

97. '90s TV toon therapist: DR KATZ. Looks like a fun cartoon. I've never heard of it though. No idea. Katze is German for "cat". Don't know what Katz means.

98. Vocalist Judd: NAOMI. So is Wynonna.

99. Peculiarity: QUIRK

100. Excessive: UNDUE. As undue/excessive force.

101. Take by force: USURP

103. Its symbol is Sn: TIN. Oh, good to learn.

109. Mavs' city: BIG D. Dallas Mavericks the NBA team.

110. Like the pre-coll. supplies market: ELHI. EL(ementary) + HI(gh School).

112. The NFL's Mannings, e.g.: QBS. Eli Manning & Peyton Manning are both quarterbacks.

113. Parisian turndown: NON

114. Spicy: HOT

115. Portuguese "she": ELA. It's always clued as "Guido's high note" in our old puzzle.

117. P. & L. column heading: YTD (Year to Date). P. &L. = Profit & Loss. I was at sea.

Answer grid.

C.C.

Saturday August 22, 2009 Peter Wentz

Theme: None

Total blocks: 33

Total words: 72

Definitely an eased-up Saturday. I filled in so many blanks on the first pass. Loved the political flavor in this puzzle:

14A: Role in the film "W.": JEB BUSH. Very minor role. I don't like "W.", such a negative portrayal of Condi Rice.

45A: Leader with bouffant hairdo: KIM JONG-IL. Nailed it like it were OREO. He is grooming his son Kim Jong-un to be his successor.

59A: War on Poverty monogram: LBJ. I thought War on Poverty was one of FDR's New Deal programs.

2D: Front-page grabber: HEADLINE

34D: 1960 debate monogram: RMN. Did not know Nixon's middle initial: Richard Milhous Nixon.

45D: Post-Taliban president: KARZAI (Hamid). Wow, I always thought it's KARZIA.

58D: "Contract With America" first name: NEWT (Gingrich). A potential GOP 2012 presidential candidate.

I suppose you can add ABDULLAH (3D: Name meaning "servant of God") into the group too. The current king of Saudi Arabia is called ABDULLAH. I only knew ABDUL (as in Paula ABDUL) means "servant of".

Quite a scrabbly puzzle, with four J's, 1 Z & eight K's.

Across:

1A: "Bingo!": THAT'S IT. Nailed it with just letter H from the intersecting HEADLINE.

8A: Corn piece: COB

11A:. Links standard: PAR. Links & golf course are often used interchangeably, though links refers to a specific type.

15A: Griddle fare: HOECAKE. I've never had HOECAKE. Kind of like corn bread, isn't it?

17A: Went ape, like Bart Simpson: HAD A COW. No idea. "Don't have a cow, man!" showed up as a Bart Simpson quote when I googled.

18A: Not pointless: ON TOPIC

19A: Norfolk, Virginia, sch.: ODU (Old Dominion University). Unknown to me. Wikipedia says it derives its name from Virginia's official state nickname, "The Old Dominion", given to the state by King Charles II of England for remaining loyal to the crown during the English Civil War (1641-1651).

20A: Flair: KNACK. Jerome has a Flair/KNACK for anagram.

22A: Haunted castle sound: CLANK. CLANK from the chains of a prisoner once kept in the castle?

23A: It's a crock: OLLA. So true! But I was thinking of nonsense crock. Great clue.

25A: Contemporary of Agatha: ERLE

26A: Bookstore section: HOW-TO

27A: Firing places: KILNS

29A: "Cheers" actor: TED DANSON. Had trouble stringing his name together, though I've seen this picture at least 3 times.

31A: Perform on stage: ENACT

32A: Kicks: FUN

33A: Tries again, in court: REHEARS. Feels like the extra "in court" is just for me, since I could not understand the RETRY & "Hear again" connection last time.

36A: Make good on: PAY BACK

42A: Scrip spec: MED. Did not know scrip is short for prescription. I actually read the clue as "Script spec.".

44A: Act of insurance fraud, perhaps: ARSON. No "fire" play today.

51A: Legal search subject: TITLE

52A: Words after cut or close: A DEAL

53A: Vacationer's accumulation, perhaps: MAIL

57A: Title host of a talk show featuring dance routine: ELLEN. OK, here is Obama on ELLEN.

60A: Uses a MapQuest feature: ZOOMS IN

62A: Big name at the Peppermint Lounge: JOEY DEE. Big stumper. Have never heard of the Peppermint Lounge disco club, the home base of JOEY DEE and the Starliters, who recorded their #1 hit "Peppermint Twist" at the venue in the early 1960, according to Wikipedia.

64A: Down deep: AT HEART

65A: Impressive way to walk?: ON WATER. I actually knew the Biblical "walking ON WATER" story, but I was too dense to think outside of SWAGGER.

66A: Suffix with Marx.: ISM. Marxism, Leninism & Chairman Mao Thought, the stuff I grew up with.

67A: "The Royal Tenenbaums" director Anderson: WES. Gimme, though I've yet to see the movie.

68A: Do some strategic schmoozing: NETWORK. Great clue.

Down:

1D: '80s William Shatner cop series: T.J. HOOKER. Another stumper for me. Someone might have mentioned this TV series on the blog before.

4D: Sched. question mark: TBA

5D: What toadies do, with "up": SUCK

6D: "That __ for the record books": IS ONE

7D: Block: THWART. My first reaction is STYMIE.

8D: Emotionally overcome: CHOKED UP

9D: Suffix with ball: OON. Balloon.

10D: "You __!": "Certainly": BETCHA. Ah, Minnesota!

11D: Fruit also called "prairie bananas": PAPAWS. Same as papaya? I don't know. Papaya tastes so different from banana.

12D: Very much like: AKIN TO

13D: S'pose: RECKON. The clue seems to indicate an abbreviated answer.

16D: Time punctuation: COLON. So simple in retrospect. 5:30, the middle two dots.

21D: Score symbol: CLEF

24D: Suffix with govern: ANCE. Governance. MENT won't fit.

28D: London's Victoria, e.g.: Abbr.: STA. No idea. Victoria Station is the second busiest railway terminus after Waterloo.

30D: ___ sequencing: DNA

35D: Parts: SEGMENTS

37D: China's Sun __-sen: YAT. He dethroned the last emperor of China. Brother-in-law of Chiang Kai-shek.

38D: Boater feature: BRIM. The boater hat, not the one who boats.

39D: Words on some autobiographies: AS TOLD TO. Mine was A MEMOIR(E). Wrong spelling to boot.

40D: Stadium vendor's cry: COLD BEER. Great answer.

41D: Unthinking: KNEE-JERK. I penned in HEEDLESS. Obviously I was unthinking.

43D: Regulating gadget: DIAL. For radio I suppose.

46D: Fools: IDIOTS

47D: Large unit of resistance: MEGOHM. Guessed. OHM is often clued as "unit of resistance".

48D: "The Bionic Woman" __ Sommers: JAIME. Have never heard of "The Bionic Woman". J'AIME ce nom, lovely.

49D: Familiar adage: OLD SAW

50D: "Crunk Juice" rapper: LIL JON. Nope. Looks so noisy.

54D: West African currency: LEONE. Currency for Sierra LEONE. Got me.

61D: Face reddener: IRE

63D: Deviate: YAW. As a ship/aircraft. Pitch, roll & YAW. I can never remember which line is for which.

Answer grid.

Picture of the Day: Here is another great photo of our fellow solvers visiting the Spruce Goose. From left to right: Dick's wife Irene, Dick, Carol and Carol's husband Joe.

C.C.