Tuesday, May 28, 2013 Steve Blais

Theme: "How Much Farther?" - The ends are different measures of distance.

18A. Eschew punishment, in an old saw : SPARE THE ROD. 16.5 feet

29A. Really puzzling : HARD TO FATHOM. 6 feet (used for depth)

37A. "Toy Story" space ranger : BUZZ LIGHTYEAR. 6 trillion miles, about

46A. Athletics group for kids : PEE WEE LEAGUE. 3 miles.

60A. From afar, and how 18-, 29-, 37- and 46-Across literally end : AT A DISTANCE

Argyle right here. Give the kids the answer in these units and make them figure out how far it is for themselves. Right, Bill G.? The use of these words in the answers do not relate directly to distances; that's cool. Two a-words for Tuesday. Three tomorrow? All together, a decent puzzle that will end when we get there. But we're not there yet.

Across:

1. Clumsy type : OAF

4. Like a male lion : MANED. The males have a ruff of hair.

9. Sits for a portrait : POSES

14. Popeye's Olive : OYL

15. Clamorous : AROAR

16. Posthaste : APACE

17. Longtime Elton John label : MCA. (Music Corporation of America, formed in 1924)

20. With, in France : AVEC. Straightforward.

22. Movie-rating org. : MPAA. (Motion Picture Association of America)

23. Santa __ winds : ANA

24. Positive particle : PROTON

26. Carson's sidekick : McMAHON. Johnny's, yes, but who was Kit Carson's sidekick?

32. Currency-stabilizing org. : IMF. (International Monetary Fund)

33. Geography suffix : ERN. Add them to the points on a compass.

34. Part of Columbus's fleet : NINA

42. What there oughta be : A LAW

43. Luau souvenir : LEI

44. "I hate it!" : "UGH!"

51. Not as tidy : MESSIER

54. Shaving aid : LATHER. Shaving can be messy or so I hear.

55. Refugees' subj. : ESL. (English as a second language)

56. Key __ pie : LIME. 3D. Likely to evoke yums : FLAVORFUL

59. Tornado-riding dog : TOTO. Hm, how to measure the distance from Kansas to Oz.

64. "__ Got a Secret" : I'VE

66. "Rosemary's Baby" author Ira : LEVIN. Perps supplied the answer.

67. Perfumer's compound : ESTER

68. Yet, poetically : E'EN

69. Amens : YESes

70. Unfeeling : STONY

71. Monopoly quartet: Abbr. : RRs. (Reading, Pennsylvania, B&O, and Short Line)

NO, we're not there yet!

Down:

1. Half a tuba sound : OOM. 9D. The other half of a tuba sound : PAH

2. Bart Simpson's "Holy cow!" : "¡AY,CARAMBA!"

4. The Phillie Phanatic, e.g. : MASCOT. On the left.

5. Alsatian dadaist : ARP. Jean Arp was born in the Alsace-Lorraine region.

6. Linguist Chomsky : NOAM. His web site.

7. O.K. Corral gunfighter : EARP. (Wyatt)

8. Imagined : DREAMT

10. Uncover, poetically : OPE

11. "Adia" singer McLachlan : SARAH

12. Prefix appealing to frugality : ECONO

13. Car buyer's choice : SEDAN

19. Dial on a dash : TACH. Shortened words in both the clue and answer.

21. Takeoff approx. : ETD

24. 21st Greek letter : PHI

25. "Joy to the World," e.g. : NOEL. (the Christmas carol)

27. When repeated, a 1987 #1 hit for Billy Idol : MONY. Originally by Tommy James and the Shondells.

28. Lille lady friend : AMIE. Lille is north of Paris, on the Belgium border.

30. "F" that most school kids look forward to: Abbr. : FRIday. Clever.

31. It's measured in degrees : ANGLE

35. Less deserving of a Christmas present? : NAUGHTIER

36. Have a debate about : ARGUE OVER

38. Microwaves : ZAPS

39. Düsseldorf duo : ZWEI. In western Germany.

40. Giggle in an IM : HEE. Is this less than LOL?

41. Cash drawer : TILL

45. Seagoing pronoun : HER. Ships are female.

47. Skinny swimmers : EELS

48. Puts pen to paper : WRITES

49. Place to grab a bite : EATERY

50. From __ Z : A TO

51. __-mouthed: indirect : MEALY. In the sense of not saying what one means?

52. Lauder of lipstick : ESTÈE

53. Some Balkan natives : SLAVS

57. Sail support : MAST

58. Opposite of ecto- : ENTO

61. Backgammon cube : DIE

62. "I know people" people : INs

63. 100 yrs. : CEN. (century) Oh, it hasn't been that long.

65. USNA grad : ENS. (ensign)

Ok, we're here.

Argyle

Tuesday, November 20, 2012 Steve Blais

Theme: Are you ready to play? - All answers are related to the TV game show where to family groups try to match their answers to what a one hundred people said. For those unfamiliar with it, here is Part 1 of the 1976 ABC premiere of Family Feud. Clip(8:29) You can skip the intro's and start at 4:15.

18. Show hosted by 23-Across : "FAMILY FEUD"

23. Popular TV personality (11/20/1932-6/2/2012) : RICHARD DAWSON

39. 18-Across list topper : NUMBER ONE ANSWER

49. With "the," 23-Across's nickname on 18-Across : KISSING BANDIT

60. 23-Across's catchphrase on 18-Across : "SURVEY SAID!"

Argyle here. How's this for a theme? A piece of cake for fans and a bear if you've never seen it. The current host is Steve Harvey.

The puzzle is anchored in the middle by a grid spanner. The corners are substantial. The fill seems decent although a couple seem oddly clued. This is his fourth puzzle this year. He said he would be back soon in the comments on October 17.

Across:

1. Winter coaster : SLED

5. "Go __, Tigers!": 1968 Detroit baseball theme song : GET 'EM. Clip.(1:29)

10. Verb for thou : DOST

14. Vehicle at a stand : TAXI

15. Martini garnish : OLIVE

16. Empty room phenomenon : ECHO

17. Unattributed, as a quote: Abbr. : ANON

20. Uncommon, to Caesar : RARA

21. Taking care of the job : ON IT

22. Muse for poets : ERATO

26. Syr. neighbor : ISR. (Syria/Israel) 45A. Syr. neighbor : LEB. (Syria/Lebanon)

27. Royal Navy letters : HMS (Her or His Majesty's Ship)

28. Brightness nos. : IQ's

30. Put a match to : IGNITE

35. Vocal quality : TONE

42. Proboscis : NOSE

Ha cha cha!

43. Did, at some point : USED TO

44. Fish-fowl connector : NOR. "Neither fish nor fowl" - Cliché, not any recognizable thing.

47. Go toe-to-toe : VIE. Meh.

56. Healing plants : ALOEs

58. Lugosi of horror films : BELA

59. Flag Day month : JUNE

62. Area behind a high altar : APSE

63. "Aha!" : "I SEE!"

64. Blue Cross competitor : AETNA. Health insurance giants.

65. Part of an agenda : ITEM

66. Migratory herring : SHAD. The shad spends most of its life at sea, but swims up fresh rivers to spawn. Wiki

67. California berry farm founder : KNOTT

68. Used car sites : LOTS

Down:

1. Percussionist from Liverpool : STARR. (Ringo)

2. Hawaiian porch : LANAI. How is our Hawaiian contingent doing?

3. Ritualistic evictions : EXORCISMS

4. Singers Washington and Shore : DINAHs. Washington(2:09) and Shore(2:50)

5. Cost : GO FOR

6. Spiral-horned antelope : ELAND

7. Faint of heart : TIMID

8. Madonna title role : "EVITA"

9. B or C of the Spice Girls : MEL. Melanie B rown("Scary Spice") or Melanie C hisholm("Sporty Spice").

10. Sits on the kitchen counter until dinner, say : DEFROSTS. Not recommended.

11. Indian __ : OCEAN

12. Not even ajar : SHUT

13. Chore list heading : TO DO

19. Quaint country consent : "YES'M"

24. Grammy winner India.__ : ARIE. Clip(3:46)

25. Bread choice : WHEAT

28. Place to overnight : INN

29. Quid pro __ : QUO. ("this for that" in Latin)

31. Future beetles : GRUBS

32. Rejection on top of rejection : NOs

33. Opal finish? : INE

34. Brother of Jack and Bobby : TED. Kennedys

36. Admitted : OWNED UP TO

37. Opposite of paleo- : NEO. (old/new)

38. Act inappropriately : ERR

40. Accepted : BELIEVED

41. Bright star : NOVA

46. Latin 101 word : ESSE

48. Behind bars : IN JAIL

49. Where to get Seoul food : KOREA

50. "A Doll's House" playwright : IBSEN

51. "That's so cool!" : "NEATO!"

52. Quick flash : GLINT

53. Needing practice in : BAD AT

54. Smaller map, often : INSET

55. Rains cats and dogs : TEEMS. (meh)

56. Auction condition : AS IS

57. One who rarely has low spirits? : LUSH

61. Hog the phone : YAK

Argyle

Note from C.C.:

Here is a happy photo of the always cheerful Bill G and his adorable 8-year-old grandson Jordan. The photo was taken on Nov 18 in their backyard. So green.

Wednesday, October 17, 2012 Steve Blais

Theme: Gee! RR! (Or what a Texan says when he unexpectedly comes across a railroad). The five two-word theme answers have first word starting with the first two letters of the reveal, the second word commencing with the third (and final) letter of the reveal.

17A. *One to four inches per day, for bamboo : GROWTH RATE. That's fast - how much do Giant Pandas eat to keep it under control?

28A. *Noted scythe bearer : GRIM REAPER. "I'm bored. I think I'll put on a Grim Reaper costume, stand across the street from the nursing home and wave at the old folks" Anon

35A. *1973 Thomas Pynchon novel : GRAVITY'S RAINBOW. Great example of good crosses helping out here. I maybe might have heard of this novel, but it certainly wasn't a title I knew I knew. I got there letter by letter.

43A. *Wrestling style that forbids holds below the waist : GRECO-ROMAN. A learning moment.

59A. *Pearl Jam genre : GRUNGE ROCK. I thought "SEATTLE GRUNGE" at first and then realized that I was being too specific (and it didn't fit either!)

61A. Canine warning that the answers to starred clues have in common, initially : GRR

  

Happy Wednesday everyone! Steve here with a nice smooth offering from Steve Blais. Some good fun stuff in the theme entries and I had fun with the fill. Let's look at the rest of the puzzle. 

Across

1. Hip-hop fan : B-BOY. I knew this, I just couldn't drag the answer out into the light of day. There were quite a few in this Pacific North-West section that were slow coming and the last area to fill.

5. Les __-Unis : ETATS. The French like to say things like "United States" backwards. They are sometimes accused of doing other things backwards, such as advancing on the enemy.

10. Olympian's goal : GOLD.

14. Smidgen : IOTA

15. Chevy Blazer, now : TAHOE

16. Orchestral wind : OBOE

19. Endorse, in a way : SIGN. I think anyone who wants to endorse a candidate in an electoral race should sign their name on them with a Sharpie.

20. Rice-__ : A-RONI. I'm going to try this stuff one day - it crops up in crosswords so often it must be delicious, right?

21. Toga party costume : BED SHEET. It took me a while to get past wanting "TOGA" here. What else could you wear to a toga party? (TLS (Too Literal Steve) again.

23. Take part in a 1920s fad : POLE-SIT. Odd fad. Some people were dancing the jitterbug, ignoring prohibition and generally whooping it up and other folks were sitting on a pole.

26. Like a prof. emeritus : RET'D.  A learning moment - I didn't know the professor needed to be retired.

27. Big pitcher : EWER. Initial response: Randy Johnson. I guess Randy is Pitcher Emeritus?

33. Lowly laborer : PEON

34. Goody two shoes : PRUDE

41. Concerning the ears : AURAL. I always enjoyed the fact that aural and oral were homophones. I thought it was great that "aural" had a sound-alike.

42. Japanese noodle : UDON

46. First responders, briefly : EMT'S. I was treated by an Emergency Medical Technician when I tripped going down the stairs of a bar after a Christmas party and knocked myself out on the way down. It's embarrassing to wake up in a pub strapped to an EKG machine with someone asking you who the President is.

50. Cyclotron input : ATOM. Atoms in, Particles out. A bit like a coffee grinder on a smaller scale.

51. Meeting : SESSION. You can have a meeting which is in session, but can you have a session which is in meeting?

53. Eleanor Rigby, for one : SPINSTER. Ear worm alert here!

57. Snorer's problem, perhaps : APNEA. A serious problem for both the sufferer (of Apnea) and the sufferer (of the sufferer of Apnea)

58. Hops drier : OAST, Oast houses were quite common in the area of England where I lived for a while - many are now converted to residences, but I've often wondered where you get the curved furniture to fit inside them.

62. Attend to, as a job opening : FILL

63. Come out with : UTTER. You have to be careful if you come out with "utter rubbish" as you might be accused of repeating yourself.

64. Wrath, in a hymn title : IRAE. Wrath of God, Days of Wrath, plenty of wrathful hymns to get you all fired up. Seems odd.

65. "South Park" co-creator Parker : TREY. Where would my avatar be without Trey and Matt Stone?

66. Nonlethal weapon : TASER. It might be non-lethal, but it's certainly not non-painful judging by the many YouTube examples.

67. Recipe amts. : TSP'S. Teaspoons. There are 16 teaspoons in 1/3 of a cup. I'm sure you'll be glad you learned that today.

Down

1. Oaf : BIG APE

2. Take for a time : BORROW

3. "Becket" star : O'TOOLE. Very dapper, was Peter.

4. No page-turner : YAWNER. Hopefully not this blog!

5. Ordinal suffix : ETH. "TH" which we spell "ETH"

6. Roofer's goo : TAR

7. Obsessed fictional captain : AHAB. The skipper of the whaling ship Pequod in Herman Melville's novel Moby-Dick. Ahab was obsessed with the eponymous whale, his First Mate Starbuck was obsessed with cappuccino.

8. For the full nine months : TO TERM. Many expectant mothers would prefer they do not have to go the full term.

9. Garden apparatus : SEEDER

10. Dad-blasted : GOSH DARN. Loved this. My dad had two blasters - the first when my mom was in earshot (dagnabbit) and the other for when she wasn't (@#$*&$##@#$#@!!!!!!!)

11. Drama award : OBIE. I didn't know what one looked like, but now I do:

12. Theater section : LOGE

13. It might be pounded out : DENT. TUNE was my first thought here

18. "True dat," quaintly : 'TIS. A contraction of "It Is"

22. Do more than listen : STEP IN. I wasn't a big fan of this one - I can see it, but ....

24. "__ Around": Beach Boys hit : I GET

25. "Iliad" setting : TROY. Home of Helen, her face "launched a thousand ships". We use a bottle of champagne nowadays. Did Helen wear a helmet with a facemask?

29. "Recapping ..." : IN SUM

30. Pint seller : PUB. A couple of these might be the reason for my visit from the EMT in 46A

31. Old Japanese capital : EDO

32. Remote button : REW. This might actually be "old remote button" - don't they all just have "<<" on them now?

33. Test showings : PILOTS. Took me a couple of beats to see that this relates to TV shows, not airplanes.

35. Silence : GAG. A bad gag is received in silence too, and many a stand-up can attest.

36. Robot play : R.U. R. This is one of those words that I just cannot remember. When it comes up I'm always oh - it's ..... um .... GOSH DARN

37. "Now We __ Six": Milne : ARE. A great excuse to post one of E. H. Shepard's wonderful illustrations before Disney made a mess of the whole thing:

38. Thoughtless way to stare : VACANTLY. Took me a while to get off the RUDELY or OGLE track. Nice!

39. Nutritional figs. : RDA'S. One's recommended daily allowances. What's the RDA for PINTS?

40. First-class : A-ONE

44. Lousy liquor : ROT GUT. RDA - zero.

 

45. Mobster's code of silence : OMERTA. I can't tell you how I know this - I'm sworn to secrecy.

46. Lively wit : ESPRIT

47. They may have fake IDs : MINORS.

48. Work boot feature : TOECAP. I wish I was wearing these when I dropped a blender on my foot.

49. Treacherous types : SNAKES. Some creatures get a bad rap - just because Adam couldn't keep his hands of the apples in the Garden of Eden shouldn't reflect on the entire serpent population.

52. Freelancer's encl. : SAE. What happened to the stamp on the Self Addressed Stamped Envelope? Actually, in the UK this is a Stamped, Addressed Envelope. It's assumed that you put your own address on it rather than someone else's.

53. Like fuzzy slippers : SOFT

54. Poker holding : PAIR. Not a particularly good holding, but sometimes it pays off.

55. Cruise destination : ISLE. Now, believe it or not, the Church of Scientology (you see how I got started here) actually has a cruise ship named Freewinds.

56. Wearying routines : RUTS

60. Once known as : NEE

And that's it from me!

Steve

Notes from C.C.:

Meet Avg Joe, who has one of the funniest avatars on the blog. Like Windhover/Spitzboov/PK/Argyle, Joe knows a lot about farming and lives in his own farm (I think). Joe took this picture 2 days ago. Look, he also likes "The Princess Bride".

Wednesday, March 14 2012, Steve Blais

theme: let's play dress up - SUITs are split into three parts in three common phrases.

20A. Standard of comparison : MEASURING STICK

31A. Like some kitchen cabinets : CUSTOM BUILT

40A. Govt. workers concerned with returns : IRS AUDITORS

53A. It includes a vest ... and what can be found in each set of circles in the long answers : THREE PIECE SUIT

circles! uncommon and fun puzzle device. it must have been difficult to come up with three phrases containing the letters S U I T in that order. steve blais gave us the this little piggy themed puzzle in january.

melissa here, going to be a bit brief due to ongoing internet issues out here in the boonies.

across

1. Diamond-studded tooth caps, e.g. : BLING

also known as grillz. okay .. uh ... sorry .. but i don't really ... get ... ech.

6. "High Voltage" band : AC/DC

10. Valence lead-in : AMBI. that was a little tricky. ambivalence.

14. Smash over the infield, say : LINER. for all you baseball fans.

15. "The Big Sleep" genre : NOIR. iMdb best film noir titles.

16. Normandy city : CAEN. two hours northwest of paris - largely destroyed in WWII.

17. Arctic digs : IGLOO

18. Refuse to grant, as access : DENY

19. Big hike : TREK

23. Be a buttinsky : PRY

24. Corner opening? : CEE. i love this shout out, hope it was intentional.

25. Saved to watch later : TIVO'ED. so many people love their tivo - if i ever start watching tv again i may get it.

27. Oldies refrain syllable : SHA. sha na na ...

28. Do one's homework, so to speak : PLAN

30. Casserole morsel : PEA

35. Go (for) : OPT

36. __ close to schedule : ON OR. on or about march 14th.

37. 'Enry's 'ouse : 'OME. eliza doolittle accent.

38. Escape : FLEE

39. Bad check letters : NSF. non-sufficient funds.

44. Asian festival : TET

45. Hi-fi spinners: Abbr. : RECS. records, as in vinyl.

46. Convenient connections : INS

47. Fighting words : IT’S WAR

49. WWII USN carrier : LST

50. Common college degs. : BS'S. or how one gets by if he/she doesn't have one.

57. Nile queen, familiarly : CLEO.

58. PTA part: Abbr. : ASSN. parent teacher association.

59. Like a five-star hotel : RITZY

60. Hide from a trapper : PELT. like this clue.

61. Spanish surrealist : DALI. interesting character.

62. Big chip maker : INTEL

63. Not busy : IDLE

64. WWII British gun : STEN

65. "With Reagan" memoirist : MEESE. attorney general during the time of secret arms sales to iran.

down

1. Goodyear flier : BLIMP

2. Crossbred big cat : LIGER. offspring of a male lion and female tiger.

3. Parquetry design : INLAY. beautiful.

4. Modernists, informally : NEO'S. neo-conservative, neo-liberal, neo-modern, etc.

5. "I have had a perfectly wonderful evening, but this wasn't it" speaker : GROUCHO.

6. Actress MacDowell : ANDIE. model turned actress.

7. Either "True Grit" (2010) director : COEN. one of the coen brothers' films.

8. "Correct answer!" sound : DING!

9. Formal glassware : CRYSTAL

10. When Juliet drinks the potion : ACT IV. romeo and juliet.

11. 13th-century globetrotter : MARCO POLO

12. One whose workplace is all abuzz : BEEKEEPER. cute.

13. Printer's purchase : INK

21. Printer's purchase : REAM

22. Add a little color to : TINT

26. Calendar entries : DATES

27. Cello sect. : STR

28. PowerCat soccer cleats, e.g. : PUMAS

29. In __ of: replacing : LIEU

31. "Reuben, Reuben" actor Tom : CONTI. 1983 academy award nominee.

32. Yet to be paid : UNSETTLED. great read, this ...

33. Crab variety : SOFT SHELL

34. Pear choice : BOSC

38. Mil. installations : FTS

40. Wrath, in a classic hymn : IRAE. dies irae, latin for 'day of wrath.'

41. Checks carefully, as a contract : RE-READS

42. Backup medium : DISC

43. Provisional : INTERIM

48. Put pen to paper : WROTE. mostly done now by putting fingers to keyboard.

49. Early Soviet leader : LENIN. vladimir lenin, russian marxist revolutionary and leader of the bolsheviks.

50. Former Montana copper-mining city : BUTTE

51. Clothing rack array : SIZES

52. Vogue : STYLE

54. Hurdle for a jr. : PSAT. preliminary SAT test.

55. Cruise stopover : ISLE

56. Trig ratio : SINE

57. Cost-of-living stat : CPI. consumer price index.

Answer grid.

melissa

Monday, January 2, 2012 Steve Blais

Theme: Tootsies - I wonder if there is any society that doesn't have a version of this nursery rhyme. Clip.(0:24)

39A. Tot's chant suggested by the starts of 17-, 24-, 49- and 60-Across : THIS LITTLE PIGGY

17A. Percentage of industry sales : MARKET SHARE

24A. Commodore 64, e.g. : HOME COMPUTER

49A. Offering at Arby's : ROAST BEEF SUB

60A. Hardly certain : NONE TOO SURE

63A. When tripled, cry near the end of 39-Across : WEE, WEE, WEE! All the way home.

Argyle here. It appears to be a debut for this constructor. Cute theme, a nice spanner in the middle, perhaps a few too many abbreviations and a touch harder than a normal Monday but I liked it.

Across:

1. Drink made with steamed milk : LATTE

6. Prefix meaning "ten" : DECA

10. 1970 hit that asks about its title, "What is it good for?" : WAR. Edwin Starr clip.(3:26)

13. Under way : AFOOT

14. Fred's "I Love Lucy" wife : ETHEL

16. Dublin's land: Abbr. : IREland

19. Shaq's former org. : NBA. Shaquille O'Neal / Basketball.

20. Get on one's knees, perhaps : PRAY

21. Roosters' mates : HENS

22. Plantation house : MANOR

27. "__ the ramparts ..." : O'ER

28. Many an Iraqi : ARAB

29. Internet commerce : E-TAIL

33. Simile words : AS AN

36. Narcotics squad action : RAID

42. Circle dance with a chair, often : HORA

43. Oscar winner Patricia : NEAL. She won the Academy Award for Best Actress for the middle-aged housekeeper Alma Brown in Hud. (1963)

44. Me.-to-Fla. highway : US ONE

45. Wrestling successes : PINS

47. Put a stop to : BAN

54. Brittany or Normandy, once : DUCHY. It is a territory, fief, or domain ruled by a duke or duchess.

55. __'acte: intermission : ENTR

56. Get ready, as for surgery : PREP

59. Seek information : ASK

64. __ de menthe : CREME

65. Robber James : JESSE. Died 1882. He and his brother, Frank, had an outlaw gang.

66. Prime meridian std. : GST. Greenwich Sidereal Time, a variant of Greenwich Mean Time used in astronomy.

67. Astronomical dist. : LT-YR. Light-Year.

 

 

68. None of the above : OTHER

Down:

1. Desk light : LAMP

2. Some distance away : AFAR

3. Sacred Judaic scroll : TORAH

4. Japanese metropolis : TOKYO

5. Québec summer : ÉTÉ

6. Defile, as something sacred : DESECRATE

7. Prefix with -centric : ETHNO

8. Deep gorge : CHASM

9. __ Lingus : AER. Aer Lingus Group Plc(an anglicisation of the Irish Aer Loingeas meaning roughly "air fleet") is the flag carrier of Ireland.

10. Motor home brand : WINNEBAGO. The company history.

11. Shady recess : ARBOR

12. Hitchcock's "__ Window" : REAR. (1954) The film received four Academy Award nominations.

15. Madagascar primate : LEMUR

18. What you used to be? : THEE

23. Classic video games : ATARIs

25. Gangster's gal : MOLL

26. Window section : PANE

29. Country N. of Kenya : ETHiopia.

30. However, briefly : THO. (although)

31. Cause of a sudden drop in altitude : AIR POCKET

32. Hebrew prophet : ISAIAH

34. RR stop : STAtion.

35. Completely healed : ALL BETTER

37. Engine starter: Abbr. : IGNition.

38. Source of much blonde hair : DYE

40. The "I" in MIT: Abbr. : INSTitute.

41. Some George Carlin jokes : PUNS

46. "Bye Bye Bye" pop group : *NSYNC

48. Bushy hairdo : AFRO

49. Deceptions : RUSES

50. Poet Stephen Vincent __ : BENÉT. Not to be confused with Edna St. Vincent Millay.

51. Foe : ENEMY

52. Surprise victory : UPSET

53. Dense overgrowth : BRUSH

54. "Deputy __": TV toon : DAWG. Interesting. We had this clue/answer on Jan. 1, 2010.

57. Gaelic tongue : ERSE

58. House of Lords member : PEER

61. Florida 19-Across team, on scoreboards : ORLando Magic.

62. Spanish eye : OJO

Answer grid.

Argyle

Note from C.C.:

I'd like to update papers that carry LA Times Daily crossword. Please click here and leave a comment if your local paper is missing from the list or the paper listed no longer has LA Times puzzle. Thanks.