Wednesday, February 19, 2020, Roland Huget

Theme:  GEAR SHIFTS. G-E-A-R is rearranged and spread across two words. I'm not sure why 18A does not have circles, but I included it in the theme answers below.

18. Region where broadcast reception may be poor: FRINGE AREA.

23. Progress at a faster rate: FORGE AHEAD.

37. Army rank last conferred in 1950: FIVE STAR GENERAL. Where have all the 5-star generals gone?

52. Riot control weapon: TEAR GAS GUN.

59. Automatic functions in most cars, and what can be found in this puzzle's circles: GEARSHIFTS.

Across:

1. Low poker pair: TWOS.

5. Mus. key with three sharps: A MAJ. From Wikipedia: A major (or the key of A) is a major scale based on A, with the pitches A, B, C♯, D, E, F♯, and G♯. Its key signature has three sharps.

9. Nigerian seaport: LAGOS.

14. Greet with fanfare: HAIL.

15. Pizza Quick sauce brand: RAGU.

16. "You've got a friend": I CARE.

17. First name in scat: ELLA. Fitzgerald.

20. Mix: BLEND.

22. Former Soviet leader Brezhnev: LEONID. From Wikipedia: served as General Secretary of the Central Committee of the governing Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1964 until his death in 1982. His 18-year term as general secretary was second only to Joseph Stalin's in duration.

26. Prefix with tourism: ECO. A form of sustainable travel that supports the local environment instead of putting more pressure on it and exploiting its resources. See here.

29. Navigation technology, briefly: GPS. Global Positioning System. I'd be lost without it.

30. Brooding genre: EMO.

31. "Spartacus" Oscar winner: USTINOV. Ustinov won for his portrayal of Roman businessman Lentulus Batiatus. Learned from Wiki: In the climactic scene, recaptured slaves are asked to identify Spartacus in exchange for leniency; instead, each slave proclaims himself to be Spartacus, thus sharing his fate. The documentary Trumbo suggests that this scene was meant to dramatize the solidarity of those accused of being Communist sympathizers during the McCarthy Era who refused to implicate others, and thus were blacklisted.

34. Bowler's pickup: SPARE. Boomer!

36. Amtrak express: ACELA. Amtrak's flagship service along the Northeast Corridor in the Northeastern United States between Washington, D.C. and Boston via 14 intermediate stops, including Baltimore, Philadelphia, and New York City.

42. Breakout game developer: ATARI.

43. Pool triangles: RACKS. Standard 8-ball rack:

44. Sent a message, old-style: TELEXED. Telex was a major method of sending written messages electronically between businesses in the post-World War II period.

47. Rock's Ocasek: RIC. Lead singer for The Cars, who died just 5 months ago at the age of 75 from natural causes.

48. Grow older: AGE.

51. Thorn __, former Virgin Records owner: EMI. Major British company involved in consumer electronics, music, defense and retail.

55. Arizona MLBers: DBACKS. Baseball - short for Diamondbacks.

58. Dig find: RELIC.

63. "Ciao!": TATA.

64. Take in eagerly: EAT UP.

65. Yule tune: NOEL.

66. Saroyan's "My Name Is __": ARAM. First published in 1940 - assigned reading in some schools - about a boy of Armenian descent growing up in Fresno, California, and the various members of his large family.

67. Collaborative 1993 Sinatra album: DUETS. Followed up in 1994 with the sequel Duets II, which was Sinatra's final studio album. Speaking of 17A Ella, her 1956 Ella and Louis [Armstrong] was another successful collaborative effort (how could it not be?).

68. Looking like rain: GRAY. I'm in Oregon. It's been mostly gray for months, although we do see some intermittent sun. I'm one of the freaks who likes long rainy stretches.

69. U. of Maryland athlete: TERP. Short for Terrapins. The terrapin is
a species of turtle native to the brackish coastal tidal marshes of the eastern and southern United States and Bermuda.

Down:

1. Roald Dahl novel adapted as a 2016 Disney film: THE BFG. The Big Friendly Giant.

2. Big hit: WALLOP. Ow.

3. Gretzky's first NHL team: OILERS.

4. Word on the street?: SLANG. Nice clue.

5. Canine greeting: ARF.

6. Tarnish: MAR.

7. Like gymnasts: AGILE.

8. Capital near Glacier Bay National Park: JUNEAU.

9. Property claim: LIEN.

10. Dark purple berry: ACAI. I unexpectedly spent (no joke) six hours at the Verizon store today. The agent who was helping me did not sound thrilled with his girlfriend's text update that they would be having acai bowls for dinner. After six hours I felt like we bonded.

11. Plant custodian: GARDENER.

12. Vein contents: ORE.

13. Briny expanse: SEA.

19. Neil Gaiman's "American __": GODS. I like Gaiman, but have never read this one. Fantasy is not my genre - anyone read it?

21. Get rid of: DEEP SIX.

24. Latin 101 verb: AMAT.

25. Circle dance: HORA. Known as the King of Israeli folk dances, it means round dance. Also called the chair dance, because the guests hoist up the bride and groom in chairs.

27. Cuba libre mixer: COLA. Drink also known as rum and coke.

28. Racecourse shape: OVAL.

32. Chemicals carrier: TANK CAR.

33. Treats, as a sprain: ICES.

34. Drought-plagued: SERE. Adjective meaning dry or withered.

35. Get an "Oh no" from Alex Trebek, say: ERR.

37. Inevitable end: FATE.

38. Tabloid couple: ITEM.

39. Stamp, as a passport: VALIDATE.

40. Teri of "Tootsie": GARR. Such a funny actress, who has dealt with health issues for many years. She bravely appeared on Late Night with David Letterman in 2008, to speak publicly about her battle with MS.

41. Vaping device, familiarly: E-CIG.

45. Mark on metal: ETCH.

46. Puck-handling skill: DEKING.

48. Shining brightly: AGLARE.

49. Instrument for The Romeros, a classical quartet: GUITAR.

50. Pitch tents: ENCAMP.

53. Regarding: AS FOR.

54. Tuned to: SET AT. My phone alarm is always SET AT my local NPR station.

56. Very dry, as Champagne: BRUT.

57. Nile vipers: ASPS.

59. H.S. dropout's test: GED.

60. __ de cologne: EAU.

61. Scone go-with: TEA.

62. Surreptitious: SLY.

Tuesday January 14, 2020 Roland Huget

It's What's Inside that Counts.  The circled letters spell out things that can make up the inner core.

17-Across. City near the Great Salt Lake: OGDEN UTAH.  Nut.

25-Across. "Be yourself," nowadays: KEEP IT REAL.  Pit.

36-Across. Casino advantage: HOUSE EDGE.  Seed.

51-Across. "Be right with you": JUST ONE SEC.  Stone.

And the Unifier:
61-Across. Earth's most central geologic layer ... or what can be found in each set of puzzle circles: INNER CORE.

Across:

1. Watering hole: BAR.  Some are quite literally watering holes.

4. African language group: BANTU.  Swahili is a Bantu language.

9. Suddenly took interest: SAT UP.

14. Québec street: RUE.  Today's French lesson.

15. Future oak: ACORN.

16. Way to go it: ALONE.  Time for a musical interlude.

19. Has to have: NEEDS.

20. Biceps exercises: CURLS.

Charles Atlas (Oct. 30, 1892 ~ Dec. 24, 1972)

21. Hosting a show, briefly: MC-ING.  As in being an Emcee, short for Master of Ceremonies.

23. Tennis do-over: LET.

24. Breyers __ Cookies & Cream: OREO.  A fresh new clue for our old crossword staple.

27. Arnaz-Ball production company: DESILU.  The production company is a combination of Desi and Lu(cy).

29. Muss, as hair: TOUSLE.

30. Magazine VIPs: EDs.  As in Editors.

31. Adjust to one's environment: ADAPT.

35. Old fast fliers: SSTs.  As in SuperSonic Transport, a crossword staple.  Why the Concorde was retired.

39. Fleshy fruit: POME.  According to Webster's, a Pome is a generic term for any fleshy fruit "consisting of an outers fleshy layer and a central core with usually five seeds in a capsule."  The best known example of a Pome is an Apple.  In fact, in French, the word for Apple is Pomme.  Other examples of Pomes, include: pears, quince, loquats, and pomegranates.

42. Barbecue spot: PATIO.

43. Can opener: TAB.

46. Feathered friends: AVIANS.  The obvious Birds was too few letters.

49. Beethoven's "Tempest," e.g.: SONATA.  Time for a musical interlude.  This piece is also known as Sonata No. 17 and was composed by Beethoven around 1801/1802. 

55. Chimps and gorillas: APES.

56. Furry sitcom extraterrestrial: ALF.  Alf (Alien Life Form) was a sit-com ran from the mid-1980s to 1990.  I never watched it, but am familiar with it because Alf makes frequent guest appearances in the puzzles.

57. Chutzpah: MOXIE.  Chutzpah is that quality in the man who kills his mother and father, then throws himself at the mercy of the court because he is an orphan.

58. Stick with a pin: PRICK.

59. Early American crop: MAIZE.  Scientists believe that maize was first domesticated in the Americas, probably in Mexico.  A large cache of ancient maize was discovered in a cave in New Mexico over a hundred years ago.

63. Geographer's volume: ATLAS.

64. Tokyo-based watchmaker: SEIKO.  I had a Seiko watch like this one.

65. No-frills bed: COT.

66. Filters (through): SEEPS.

67. Jacket material: TWEED.  I initially tried Denim.

68. "Very cute!" sounds: AWs!

Down:

1. Tacit rules of male friendship: BRO CODE.  If it is tacit, why is there a book about the Code?

2. Was a sign of: AUGURED.

3. Set right: REDRESS.

4. Passes a law against: BANS.

5. Pressure prefix: ACU-.  As in AcuWeather, which allows you to learn of weather conditions where you live.

6. "I'm innocent!": NOT ME!

7. Barely detectable amount: TRACE.

8. Far from cool: UNHIP.

"I recommend hip replacement surgery for men who aren't as hip as they used to be."

9. Serenaded: SANG TO.

10. Stein filler: ALE.  Time for another musical interlude.

11. Like many summer shoes: TOELESS.  I prefer sandals.

12. Still being shuffled: UNDEALT.

13. Tablet crushers: PESTLES.  Tricky clue.  I was thinking along the lines of an iPad, which I certainly wouldn't want to crush.

18. "The Time Machine" race: ELOI.  A crossword staple.  I have never read The Time Machine, but apparently there are two-post humans existing in the future and the Eloi are one.

22. Little point to pick: NIT.  No names in today's puzzle for nit-picking.

25. Spiral-horned antelope: KUDU.  These animals are native to Africa.

26. Tricky plan: RUSE.

28. Vientiane people: LAO.

32. Poisonous African snake: ASP.  It was the death of Cleopatra.

33. Stew morsel: PEA.  If you're a princess, it will keep you awake at night.

34. Vietnamese New Year: TET.  A crossword staple.

36. Cookbook verb: HEAT.  Stir probably used more often in the cookbooks.

37. Spinal segment: DISC.

38. Bit of baby talk: GOO.

39. Often-abbreviated attire: PAJAMAS.  As in PJs, or as we say in my house: Jammie-Jams.

40. Produce eggs: OVULATE.

41. Put in the wrong folder: MISFILE.

43. Pudding choice: TAPIOCA.  I think of Tapioca pudding as a comfort food.

44. Was humiliated: ATE CROW.

45. Laundry holders: BASKETS.   Do you use a laundry basket or a clothes hamper?

47. "Easy to clean" ad claim: NO MESS.  I initially tried, No Muss.

48. __-Cat: winter vehicle: SNO.

50. DEA agent: NARC.

52. Live: EXIST.

53. Muscular power: SINEW.

54. Start of a counting rhyme: EENIE.  A final musical interlude.

58. Cattle poker: PROD.

60. Microwave: ZAP.

62. Squeeze (out): EKE.

Here's the Grid:

LSU: #1 in Football and Beer Consumption

QOD:  In conversation, remember you’re more interested in what you’re saying than anyone else is.  ~  Andy Rooney (né Andrew Aitken Rooney; Jan. 14, 1919 ~ Nov. 4, 2011), American television personality

Note from C.C.:

Happy Birthday to dear JD, who used to be very active on our blog. Now she's busy with four grandkids and other volunteer work. We miss your daily presence, JD!

JD & Bob