Sunday October 13, 2013 Peter A. Collins

Theme: "Cross Country" - Two countries which share two letters are merged in each theme answer.

 23A. Border sharers of Europe? : SANMARINORWAY (San Marino & Norway)

 41A. Border sharers of Europe and Asia? : SPAINDONESIA (Spain & Indonesia)

 52A. Border sharers of South America and Asia? : CHILEBANON (Chile & Lebanon)

 

 69A. Border sharers of Europe and Asia? : UNITEDKINGDOMAN (United Kingdom & Oman)

 94A. Border sharers of Asia and Africa? : NEPALGERIA (Nepal & Algeria)

 101A. Border sharers of Asia? : MYANMARMENIA (Myanmar & Armenia)

 124A. Border sharers of North America and Asia? : JAMAICAMBODIA (Jamaica & Cambodia)

How observant of Peter to find this different approach to a country theme. He's one of the most innovative constructors in the country. You never know what to expect in a Peter A. Collins grid.

This is his Xword Info photo. Looks like some kind of music fest to me.

Across:

1. Family nickname : MOMMA

6. Waltz king : STRAUSS

13. Artificial surface football injury : TURF TOE. Commonly associated with players who play on artificial turf. Pain in big toe joint.

20. Places : AREAS

21. Kitchen worker's wear : HAIRNET

22. In the zone : ON A ROLL

25. Slows : RETARDS

26. Ignore : SNUB

27. Dyeing occasion : EASTER

28. Named person : DESIGNEE. You would think it's designatee.

29. Harry Potter's Hedwig, e.g. : OWL. I'm glad the clue is not asking for Harry Potter's owl. 

31. Building near a track, maybe : STABLE

34. End of many addresses : COM

35. Energize, with "up" : AMP

38. Frosty coat : HOAR

46. Ranee's wrap : SAREE

48. Relax, with "out" : VEG

50. Burn covering : SALVE

51. Birth of __ : AN ERA

55. Acronymous WWII gun : STEN

56. Three-star off. : LT GEN. No google. Guess who's the first ever LT GEN in the US?

57. Give a charge to : IONIZE

58. "Go placidly __ the noise ...": Ehrmann : AMID

60. With 17-Down, "Cross Creek" Oscar nominee : RIP. And TORN (17. See 60-Across). It's clued as a name because  TORE (13D. Hurried) is also in the grid. Ideally one of them should have been removed. 

62. Shore thing : SAND. Sure thing.

63. We're-together link : IN THIS. A rare 6-letter partial.

64. Start of something big? : MACRO. Prefix for "big". Microsoft = Microcomputer & Software

66. Dirt road feature : RUT

68. Jeans giant : LEE

74. Poetic body : ORB

77. E. Berlin's Cold War home : GDR (German Democratic Republic)

78. Chapel topper : SPIRE

79. Some Great Lakes natives : MIAMIS. Is this related to Miami?

83. Bit of salon artistry : COIF

85. "Gross!" : EEW. I use EWW.

87. Dirty : SOIL

88. Sun Bowl city : EL PASO

89. It merged with Molson in 2005 : COORS. Now Molson-Coors.

91. With 97-Across, like many catalogues : MAIL. 97. See 91-Across : ORDER. Do you use "catalog" or "catalogue"?

96. Recess retort : AM TOO

99. Sigma preceder : RHO

100. Music rights gp. : ASCAP

104. "__ it get to me" : I LET

106. Surprised cries : OHs

107. Thrice, in Rx's : TER. Learned from doing xwords.

108. Makes impure : TAINTS

110. Madonna, according to the stars : LEO. Not the stars I had in mind.

112. Boorlike : CLODDISH

116. Actress Headly : GLENNE. Unknown to me.

119. Dazzling duo in Dover? : ZEDS. Two Z's in Dazzling.

123. Pub-crawl : CAROUSE

127. Enigma machine user : ENCODER

128. Rapidly : IN A SNAP

129. Heavenly helper : ANGEL. Argyle is my Angel.

130. Most prized : DEAREST. And Dearest.

131. Enjoys a few ribs? : BANTERS. Jazzbumpa would love this clue.

132. Gaggle members : GEESE

Down:

 

1. Serious service : MASS

2. Setting for Camus' "The Plague" : ORAN. Gimme for veteran solvers.

3. It's taken after an order is given : MENU. Big "D'oh"!

4. Fast ballroom dance : MAMBO

5. Simile center : AS A

6. Branch of Islam : SHIA

7. Salon services : TANS

8. Civil disturbances : RIOTS

9. Stops at the Sorbonne? : ARRETS. French for "stops".

10. Opens, in a way : UNWRAPS

11. "__ of Love": 1989 film : SEA

12. Porker's place : STY

14. Paris-based cultural org. : UNESCO

15. Reasoned : RATIONAL

16. Archaeologist's finds : FRAGMENTS

18. Renaissance faire word : OLDE

19. "Anything __?" : ELSE

24. Change places, briefly? : RELO

28. Regis University city : DENVER. What are they famous for?

30. Aftereffect of an overlong run, maybe : WHEEZING

32. Cote sounds : BAAS

33. Light tune : LILT

35. Computer code acronym : ASCII

36. Minorca's capital : MAHON.  Oh, look, it's also called Mao (Below Shangri-La). Never heard of it.

37. Lithograph, e.g. : PRINT

39. Co-star of Richard in "The Night of the Iguana" : AVA (Gardner). Richard Burton.

40. Distinguish from the original, as a corrected file : RE-NAME

42. "Casino" star : DE NIRO

43. "Love Story" author : SEGAL (Erich)

44. 2011 East Coast hurricane : IRENE

45. History Channel owner : A AND E. Tricky to parse.

47. Philanthropist Yale : ELIHU

49. Flip out : GO MAD

53. Other than : BESIDE

54. Minor furniture damage : NICKS

59. Dullards : DRIPS

61. Pound : PUMMEL

65. Often sautéed veggie : ONION. I made Apple & Sage pork the other day, Jayce. Recipe here. I used one Honeycrisp. We have lots of foodies on the blog: Steve, D-Otto, Marti, TTP, Lucina, Anon-T, Pizza Dave, Irish Miss & Dudley. Barry G seems to cook a bit. Never heard of Lemonade talks about cooking. Argyle does not cook at all.

67. Pregame party site : TAILGATE

70. Quake follower : TREMOR

71. Rosey of the Rams' Fearsome Foursome : GRIER. From Wiki: "After Grier's professional sports career he worked as a bodyguard for Robert Kennedy during the 1968 presidential campaign and was guarding the senator's wife, Ethel Kennedy, during the Robert F. Kennedy assassination. Although unable to prevent that killing, Grier took control of the gun and subdued the shooter, Sirhan Sirhan."

72. Oracle site : DELPHI

73. Mullets hide them : NAPES

74. William of __, logician known for his "razor" : OCCAM

75. Not at all tight : ROOMY

76. Organisms of a region : BIOTA

80. First name in medieval traveling : MARCO (Polo)

81. Basketball Hall of Famer Thomas : ISIAH. He always stumps some on our blog.

82. They're sold in bars : SOAPS. What's your favorite soap brand?

84. Knocking spot : FRONT DOOR

86. Friendliness : WARMTH. Made me think of Creature & LaLaLinda. They don't post often but they read us every day.

90. "This guy ..." : SOME DUDE. Cool!

92. Notion : IDEA

93. Director Riefenstahl : LENI. Also learned from doing xwords. She did some propaganda films for the Nazi.

95. Common letters in an email address : AOL

98. Auctioneer's helper : RING MAN. New term to me also.

102. Wakes up : ARISES

103. "About time!" : AT LAST

105. Grades K-5: Abbr. : ELEM

109. La Rive Gauche locale : SEINE. The Left Bank.

111. Imperiled layer : OZONE

112. Sent an email dupe to : CCed

113. Penny or passing follower : LANE

114. Aquatic predator : ORCA

115. Barcelona-born architect : SERT. José María Sert. Known for his murals at 30 Rock.

117. Tar Heel St. : N. CAR

118. Siestas : NAPS

120. Lawn border : EDGE

121. Peters out : DIES

122. Rep's goal : SALE

124. Three-sided sail : JIB

125. California's Santa __ : ANA

126. Major interest, slangily : BAG. Oh, hockey is not in my bag then, Splynter.

Speaking of Splynter, here is a new photo of the Stud with his UPS truck.

C.C.

Sunday October 6, 2013 Paul Hunsberger

Theme:  "Epicenters" - All 10 theme entries have odd-numbered letters so EPI falls exactly in the very center of each theme answer, hence perfect symmetry for the 10 EPI's.

34A. Bearded impressionist : CAMILLE PISSARRO

49A. Near East product : RICE PILAF. This looks like fried rice. What do you call that spoon?

65A. It may be a sign of chilling : GOOSE PIMPLE. I call them "Goose bumps".

82A. Swatch, e.g. : TIMEPIECE

98A. "Call me" : LET'S KEEP IN TOUCH

9D. Peter Sellers film that began production after his death : TRAIL OF THE PINK PANTHER

11D. Figure skate feature : TOE PICK. New term to me.

24D. "Capisce?" : GET THE PICTURE?

48D. TV prototypes : PILOT EPISODES
 

86D. Rock bottom : THE PITS

This  puzzle  reminded me of the "Middle Child" puzzle I did a while ago, where TOT falls exactly in the middle. It made me appreciate Paul's puzzle that much more.

Plus, his 10-themer grid design is beyond brilliant. Every theme answer intersects at least one more theme answer. And the middle Down intersects 3 Across theme entries. Notice how two EPI are located in the exact middle of the grid? And all the 10 EPI's are in perfect symmetry.

Across:

1. Band booster : AMP

4. Fig. that rarely exceeds 4 : GPA

7. "Drive for show, __ for dough": golf adage : PUTT. So true. A long drive is good for men's ego.

11. Steam whistle sound : TOOT

15. Fútbol cheer : OLE

18. Rapper Big __ : BOI. Of OutKast.

19. Sinuous swimmer : EEL

20. Cross letters : INRI

21. They may be even or long : ODDS

22. 106-Across rival, for short : UAL. 106. Atlanta-based airline : DELTA

23. Italian dressing herb : OREGANO

25. ESPN datum : STAT

26. James Joyce accessory : EYE PATCH.  Our Misty wrote a couple books about James Joyce.

28. Nearly 40 inches : METER. I'm 5'4'' or 1.63 meters.

29. Masseur's bottleful : HOT OIL. Has anyone had hot oil massage?

31. End-of-missive extras, for short : PSS

32. Scope opening? : PERI. Periscope.

33. Fly, in fly-fishing : BAIT

37. "The Art of War" author : SUN TZU. Just spelled Sun Zi in Mandarin.

39. Montreal-based shoe retailer : ALDO

40. Mountaineer's tool : ICE AX

41. Mogul-dodging path : ESS. Everyone who reads this blog on Thursdays should nail it.

43. Brutal : HARSH

45. Evil-smelling : FUNKY

47. "Not interested" : I PASS

53. Poetic monogram : TSE. T. S. Eliot.

54. Evening affair : SOIREE

55. Sound-activated infomercial gadget : CLAPPER

56. It's a real knockout : ETHER. We've seen similar clues before.

58. Webmaster's code : HTML

59. __ circus : MEDIA

60. "__ Shoes": 2005 Cameron Diaz film : IN HER. Liked the movie.

61. Abstains from : LAYS OFF

64. Monet subject : PARC. Tricky crossing with RCMP (49D. Law gp. in red serge tunics). 

68. O'Hara home : TARA

70. Construction site sights : DETOURS

72. Moon-related phenomena : TIDES

73. Postgame postmortem : RECAP. Tiny dupe with the clue in SUM (83D. "To recap ..." )

74. Gorbachev's land: Abbr. : USSR

75. Perfume, as at High Mass : CENSE

76. Parts of some baby splits : TWO PINS.  3-10 (or 2- 7 for lefties).

78. Laundry supply : STARCH

81. 2012 Stanley Cup champs, initially : LA K. LA Kings. Do they use LAK in scoreboards, Splyner?

84. Port of Crete : CANEA. Total stranger to me.

85. It can be used in dating : STAMP. Great clue.

87. Baseball teams : NINES. Boomer at our backyard yesterday. The Morneau shirt is sold by his fan club. I'm not sure it's legit for them to produce these shirts, TTP.

88. Ducked down, say : HID

89. Some IRAs : ROTHs

91. Some hieroglyphic squiggles : ASPS

94. Top parts : CROWNS

102. "It's All Coming Back to Me Now" singer : DION (Céline)

103. Grimm menace : OGRE

104. Maple yield : SAP

105. Plays guitar chords, in a way : STRUMS. For Bill G. Don't miss this cute clip he linked a few days ago.

107. Sandwich order : PASTRAMI

109. Flimsy : THIN

110. Biweekly stub, perhaps : PAYSLIP

112. Somme summer : ETE

113. "Sometimes you feel like __ …" : A NUT

114. Let use for now : LEND

115. Fruity quencher : ADE. Hello Charlotte!

116. Post-op stop : ICU

117. Retreat : DEN

118. Welcome center offerings : MAPS

119. Work measures : ERGs

120. Go-ahead : NOD

121. Talk Like a Pirate Day mo. : SEP

Down:

1. Los Alamos test subjects, informally : A-BOMBS

2. Wells' island doctor : MOREAU. Dr. Moreau.

3. Baker's container : PIE TIN

4. Transmission selection : GEAR

5. Pocket protector insert : PEN

6. Tropical hi : ALOHA

7. Flower part : PISTIL

8. Not yet shared : UNTOLD

10. Spine line : TITLE

12. Epic with a trip home to Ithaca : ODYSSEY

13. Texas oil city : ODESSA

14. Kitchen meas. : TSP

15. Where to catch the sound of music? : OUTER EAR. Got me.

16. Game with meshed sticks : LACROSSE

17. Pre-coll. : EL-HI. Yeah, yeah, I know it's not a good fill. Compromises are made in every  puzzle.

27. Busy time for a CPA : APR

30. __ Steaks : OMAHA

34. Nobelist of 1903 and 1911 : CURIE

35. Missing person? : PINER. I like this clue also.

36. Universally accepted principles : AXIOMS

38. "Valley Girl" co-songwriter Frank or Moon : ZAPPA

42. Toronto-to-D.C. dir. : SSE

44. 35mm shooter : SLR

46. They're often email addresses : USER IDS

50. "The Life __": "Mary Poppins" tune : I LEAD

51. Leadership nucleus : CADRE

52. Swamps : FENS

54. Cause of eyelid redness : STYE

57. What one may be taken for? : THE TEAM. Take one for the team.

58. "I'm sorry, Dave" speaker of sci-fi : HAL

60. Moths with colorful eyespots on their hind wings : IOS. I wonder if those Apple guys are aware of these moths.

61. CD precursors : LPs

62. Prima __ case : FACIE. I got it. But I don't know what it means, Hahtoola/Lemonade.

63. Euro forerunner : FRANC

65. Spout : GUSH

66. Boston Garden legend : ORR (Bobby)

67. Convene : MEET

69. Cathedral part : APSE

71. Nominees for them are announced in January : OSCARs

73. Rodeo performer : ROPER. I wanted RIDER.

75. Brooch fastener : CLASP

76. Texter's "Don't go there!" : TMI (Too Much Information)

77. Barmaid, to the Bard : WENCH

78. Learning ctr. : SCH

79. Pickup feature : TAILGATE

80. Guam Air Force base : ANDERSEN. Named after General Andersen who died in a aircraft accident in 1945, says Wiki.

85. Anger : STEAM UP

90. 1994 Olympic gold medalist skater Baiul : OKSANA. Got via crossings. Sounds Japanese.

92. Piano part : STRING

93. Hits with force : POUNDS

95. Award-winning sci-fi writer Connie : WILLIS. Wiki said "She has won eleven Hugo Awards and seven Nebula Awards for particular works —more "major awards" than any other writer". I feel bad not knowing her.

96. Perceive : NOTICE

97. Buy quickly : SNAP UP

99. Vietnamese holiday : TET

100. Basketry fiber : ISTLE. Classic crosswordese.

101. Place to follow politics : C-SPAN

103. Page with sentiments : OP-ED

106. Applied henna, e.g. : DYED

108. Colorado State athlete : RAM

111. Bustle : ADO

C.C.

PS: Check out Splynter (Left) in this YouTube clip.

Sunday September 29, 2013 Julian Lim

Theme: "Particle Mechanics" - ION is transferred from one theme entry to its exact symmetrical partner in the grid. Here are the four pairs:

23A. Arsonist's pursuit? : BURNING QUEST(ION).  I'm copying Lemonade's strike-through.

122A. 17th-century anti-witch application? : SALEM'S LOT(ION). So the ION from 23A is moved to 122A.

30A. Amer. armed forces traitor? : US MILITARY RAT(ION). OK, you thought of Chelsea Manning, didn't you? Rat or whistleblower?

107A. Fighting unit in the barnyard wars? : CHICKEN LEG(ION). ION from above is moved here.

57A. Commuters per hour, e. g.? : RAILWAY STAT(ION)

 

81A. Tryout for a CPA? : IRS AUDIT(ION) - Audit and Audition have the same root, no?

16D. Failure in treaty talks? : PEACEKEEPING MISS(ION)

39D. Behind-the-scenes romance? : BACKSTAGE PASS(ION)

Reveal entry right in the middle of the grid:

69A. Chemical reaction phenomenon, and what occurs in four symmetrical pairs of long answers in this puzzle : ION TRANSFER

Fantastic theme & execution. Heavy themage, of course, it's Julian Lim. Total 115 theme squares. The minimum for LAT Sunday is 84.

The two black squares (to the right of  square 15 & left of square 129) might be added later. I think Julian was going for stacked 8's in the upper right and lower left. That's his signature. 

Was surprised to see SEN (105A. Cong. member) & SENATE (131A. Filibuster site) in one grid. Rich is normally very strict with word dupe, and rightly so. I know some of you will propose an easy SET change, but it dupes TEA SET in 75A.

Across:

1. Like some windows : ARCHED. Good start for me.

7. All-nighter cause : FINAL

12. Thousandth of a meg : ONE-K. Easy guess. 1024 KiloBytes = 1 MegaByte. TTP's domain.

16. Holy Communion receptacle : PYX. New word to me and it crosses the tough X at XLI (18D. First year of Claudius' reign).

19. In person : BODILY

20. When the plot thickens, often : ACT II. Did not come to me easily.

21. Ate : HAD A MEAL

25. TV spin-off set in Florida : CSI: MIAMI

26. "Whatever you say, honey" : YES DEAR. Husker Gary's wise philosophy. Congrats on your hole-in-one!

27. Legendary Dolphins coach : SHULA (Don). This is sweet.

29. Math subj. with integrals : CALC

34. For fear that : LEST

37. Caps Lock neighbor : TAB. You peeked!

40. Public pair : ITEM

41. High seas quaff : GROG

42. Actor, usually : FAKER. One letter too long for the LIAR I had in mind.

43. Company with a stork in its logo : VLASIC. Love this word.

46. AWOL hunters : MPs

48. Activist Bonner who married Sakharov : YELENA. Total stranger. Her husband too.

50. AQI monitor : EPA. Air Quality Index. 

51. Like he-men : MACHO

52. Church closings : AMENs

54. "The Office" network : NBC

55. Truncation abbr. : ETC. I felt stupid not nailing this one.

56. Invite across the threshold : ASK IN

61. Moshing site : PIT

62. Word on the street, maybe : SLANG. Great clue.

64. Ample, in verse : ENOW

65. Early Alaskan : ESKIMO

67. Part of IOC: Abbr. : INTL

74. Cabinet dept. formed under Carter : ENER. Boomer mentioned huge inflation under Carter, or maybe Ford. 

75. Dollhouse accessory : TEA SET

77. Jazzy improvisation : SCAT

78. Whitman's "__ the Body Electric" : I SING

80. Soak, in British dialect : SOG. Guilty of using this word myself.

86. Mell Lazarus comic strip : MOMMA. Stumped me last time.

89. Big heart : ACE

90. Hägar creator Browne : DIK

91. Shoreline changers : TIDES

92. "__ Irish Rose" : ABIE'S

93. Shear (off) : LOP

94. Green wheels : ECO-CAR

98. Cancels (out) : X'ES

99. Isn't fictional : EXISTS. Look, still hot from Paris Fashion Week. Trash bag style purse. PK  & Creature will be shaking their head. More here.

100. "... bombs bursting __" : IN AIR

102. Yemen's capital : SANA

103. __ opportune moment : AT AN

106. Gas brand born in 1926 : ESSO. Nice trivia.

112. Big draw : STAR

114. Words students fear : SEE ME

115. Some arm candy : ESCORTS. The plural form of "Arm candy" is still "Arm candy"?

119. Plant animals? : CHIA PETS. & 125. "The Tempest" sorcerer : PROSPERO. I floundered in this area.

126. White house? : IGLOO. Nailed it.

127. Expatriate : EMIGRE

128. "You eediot!" speaker of cartoons : REN

129. Body suit? : SKIN. Ha ha.

130. '90s-'00s heartthrob band : 'N SYNC. Loved "It's Gonna Be Me".

Down:

1. "Dear __" : ABBY. No JOHN or SIRS dilemma today. 26A too easy.

2. Man without morals : ROUE

3. Writable storage media, for short : CD-Rs. Compact Disc-Recordable.

4. Veda devotee : HINDU

5. Nobelist Wiesel et al. : ELIEs

6. Peppy : DYNAMIC

7. Web help source : FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions)

8. Hosp. area : ICU

9. Desert trial : N TEST

10. Tyler of "The Talk" : AISHA. I remember a girl named Aisha with the Food Network or some other food channel.

11. Arrangement of church services : LITURGY

12. Neil Sedaka hit : OH CAROL. For Carole King. Here is a song for LaLaLinda & our other Linda. You'll hear Linda at 1 minute mark. That singer is Jacky Cheung, an extremely popular singer in Hong Kong.

13. "If I Ruled the World" rapper : NAS

14. King's order : EDICT

15. __ Sutra : KAMA

17. Holiday veggie : YAM

22. Jovovich of "Resident Evil" films : MILLA. She was born in Russia, I think. The kind Splynter loves. How can their skin be so flawless?

24. Sand in food, say : GRIT

28. Deceptive-sounding instrument? : LYRE. Liar.

31. Logic proposition : LEMMA. Another new word to me.

32. JFK Library architect : I.M. PEI. Gimme!

33. Sales rep : AGENT

35. Seventh fencing position : SEPTIME. Another new word. Looks like "Ninth fencing position" to me.

36. Field vehicle : TRACTOR

37. "True Blood" rating : TV MA

38. "Sorry to say ..." : ALAS

42. Judge's concerns : FACTS

44. Con game decoys : SHILLS

45. Inner Hebrides isle : IONA

47. NBC comedy staple : SNL

49. Celts, e.g. : NBAers

52. Cornstarch brand : ARGO

53. Fail to chill : SWEAT IT. Thanks for the crossings.

58. "Run" author Patchett : ANN. We've seen her before.

59. Rocky greetings : YOs

60. Personal ad abbr. : SWF (Single White Female). Did you see the movie also?

63. Kind of acid used in fertilizers : NITRIC

66. "Star Wars" mentor Obi-Wan __ : KENOBI

67. "No way that's true!" : IT'S A LIE

68. Recent rightists : NEO-CONS

70. Fed. hush-hush group : NSA

71. Ft. Worth school : TCU

72. "Sweet!" : RAD

73. One, in Oldenburg : EINS

76. Down source : EIDER

79. Big name in theaters? : IMAX

82. Tiny bit : SKOSH. Rooted in Japanese word "sukoshi", meaning "a tiny bit".

83. B.O. purchases : TIX

84. Paragon : IDEAL

85. Left on Spanish maps? : OESTE. West.

87. Pass (out) : METE

88. Professional gp. : ASSN

95. "Rolling along" item in an Army song : CAISSON. "... As the caissons go rolling along..". I faintly recall Spitzboov explained this to me before. He should be back to us as soon as his wife Betty leaves the hospital, next Tuesday the earliest.

96. Clear conclusion? : ANCE. Clearance.

97. Collects lots of : RAKES IN

99. Exiles, perhaps : ENISLES. Only in crosswords.

101. Tiny bits : IOTAs

104. Quite a while : AGES

107. Small stream : CREEK

108. Browser's reading, briefly : EMAGs. Does the "Browser" here refer to Firefox/ Internet Explore the browser or me? I browse, hence I'm a browser too.

109. Poet Sachs : NELLY.  Poet from her today, Yellowrocks?

110. Carol opening : O COME

111. Running an errand, say : NOT IN

113. iPhone programs : APPS. Android too. The genius D-Otto solved a big problem for us last week.

116. Baltic capital : RIGA

117. Lawsuit basis : TORT

118. Old-time knife : SNEE

119. Response to an arrest, initially : CPR. Of course I was thinking of cop arrests.

120. Charles V's domain: Abbr. : HRE

121. Prefix with -pod : TRI

123. Millions of lifetimes : EON

124. Casual shoe : MOC

C.C.

Sunday September 22, 2013 Julian Lim

Theme: "Hurry!" -RACE can follow the last word of each them entry.

 23A. *Similarly troubled : IN THE SAME BOAT. Boat race.

 38. *Mythological trick : TROJAN HORSE. Horse race.

 63A. *Design on a shield : COAT OF ARMS. Arms race.

 78A. *Most people can't stand to work in one : CRAWLSPACE. Space race.

 100A. *Fire : GIVE THE SACK. Sack race.

 17D. *"Bor-r-r-ring!" : WHAT A DRAG. Drag race.

 82D. *Bad thing to get off on : WRONG FOOT. Footrace.

 119. Embarking on something exciting, and a hint regarding what this puzzle's starred answers' endings have in common : OFF TO THE RACES

Notice each key word has a non-RACE meaning in the theme entry? Nice!

Notice the 48 6+ letter non-theme entries in this grid?  26 of them are 7-letter answers. Julian Lim constantly amazes me with his stacked corners. He's just amazing.

Julian Lim, XWordinfo

Across:

1. Clerics in un monastère : ABBES. French, just for Abejo.

6. Scanner reading : BAR CODE

13. Directory of notables : WHO'S WHO. Do you guys follow this Bo Xilai episode at all?

20. Jeweler's aid : LOUPE

21. "Umbrella" singer : RIHANNA

22. Collaborative instructional website : WIKIHOW. My favorite non-theme entry today.

25. Muslim domain : IMAMATE. I only know IMAM.

26. Like an emcee who's overdoing it : SMARMY

27. Home to millions : SEA. Millions of fish, right?

28. High-tech film effects, for short : CGI (Computer-generated imagery)

30. Worst : PITS

31. Till the cows come home : TO NO END

33. Part of TNT : NITRO

36. Colorado River feeder : GILA

37. Acronymous 13-Down gun : STEN. From Wiki: STEN is an acronym, from the names of the weapon's chief designers, Major Reginald V. Shepherd and Harold Turpin, and EN for Enfield.  And 13D. Global conflict, briefly : WWII

42. Rapids phenomenon : EDDY

45. "That's so sweet!" : OH YOU

46. Where Rome is : NEW YORK. Gimme for Irish Miss & Argyle.

48. "In Dreams" actor : REA (Stephen). Know him, but not the movie.

49. Coral element : POLYP

53. Donne's "Death Be Not Proud," e.g. : SONNET

55. 1996 Summer Olympics star : MIA HAMM. Bill G met her a few times.

57. Good way to find a relic : IN SITU

59. It might involve a bouncing ball : KARAOKE

62. "Crowd Goes Wild" host, familiarly : REGIS. The new Fox Sports 1 program.

66. Secret observer's opening : SPYHOLE. Same as Peephole?

68. 1998 insect-world animated film : ANTZ

69. Draft status : ONE A

70. Psyche's beloved : EROS

71. Some OR workers : LPNs. What Splynter wanted yesterday.

75. Snaps : HAS A FIT

80. Ames native : IOWAN

83. Coal-rich region of central Europe : SILESIA. Learning moment for me. I bet dear Spitzboov knows. Hopefully he'll be back to the blog soon. His wife Betty had an operation last Thursday.

Spitzboov & Betty

85. How stock may be bought : ON A TIP

86. __ Faso : BURKINA. Meaning "Land of Honest People". Formerly Republic of Upper Volta.

88. Loire Valley city : NANTES. Birthplace of Jules Verne.

91. Latin clarifier : ID EST

92. Nitrogen-based dye : AZO. And 76D. Indigo dye : ANIL

93. Skinks and geckos : LIZARDS

96. Straight up : ERECT

98. Novelist Jaffe : RONA

102. Sponsor of PSAs on DUI : MADD (Mothers Against Drunk Driving)

106. Flow forcefully : GUSH

108. Response to "Clean your room," perhaps : GROAN

109. One adding things up : TOTALER. No one uses this word.

111. Old Spice rival : AFTA

112. Seeking, in ads : ISO. No idea. In Search Of.

113. Some ER cases : ODs

116. "Keep dreaming!" : NO DICE

117. Bread with salad? : CROUTON. Nice clue.

123. Mist-ify? : ATOMIZE

124. Psyched : FIRED UP

125. Church responses : AMENs

126. Post-soak condition : WETNESS

127. "Friends" had 10 of them : SEASONS. I watched the first few in Cantonese.

128. Impetuous : HASTY

Down:

1. Glitterati groups : A-LISTS

2. Bit of wit : BON MOT

3. Lighter liquid : BUTANE

4. "Heartburn" screenwriter : EPHRON (Nora)

5. Words below a bad grade, perhaps : SEE ME

6. Cup holder? : BRA. Ha ha.

7. Strives : AIMS

8. South Korean president, 1948-1960 : RHEE.  Syngman Rhee. Rhee = Lee = Li. Same character.

9. Pool room : CABANA

10. John __ Lennon : ONO

11. Some court evidence : DNA

12. Face up to an embarrassing mistake : EAT CROW

14. "Forget __": 1964 hit : HIM

15. Striped rainforest critter : OKAPI. Hello!

16. Quiet as a mouse, e.g. : SIMILE

18. Have the __ for : HOTS

19. Have a mortgage : OWE

24. Elec. instrument : SYNTH

29. Like the "Saw" films : GORY

32. Prohibition proponents : DRYS

34. __ peace : INNER

35. Angle symbols : THETAS. No idea. I don't even remmeber what's the Chinese for this term.

36. Singer Halliwell : GERI. "Ginger Spice".

39. Love letter symbols : OOO. Marti's hugs.


40. Letters for occupants? : JUNK MAIL. I don't get this clue.


41. By hook or by crook : SOMEHOW

43. Co-star of Tom in "A Few Good Men" : DEMI. Loved the movie. Loved the Kevin Bacon character in it also.

44. Holiday tubers : YAMS

45. Vision: Pref. : OPTO

47. Marx not seen in films : KARL. Funny clue.

49. Type type : PICA

50. "__, you noblest English": "Henry V" : ON ON

51. Future D.A.'s exam : LSAT

52. First name of two Israeli prime ministers : YITZHAK (Rabin). I just don't know how to spell it.

54. __ in November : N AS

56. Shoe insert : HEEL PAD

58. Some sky lights, to some : UFOs

60. Runs : OPERATES

61. Sedgwick of "The Closer" : KYRA. Her Bacon number is 1.

64. Ancient Indians of the Four Corners region : ANASAZI. New word to me also.

65. Int.-lowering option : RE-FI

67. 1952 Winter Olympics site : OSLO

72. Baguette spread : PATE. Must be ages since LaLaLinda tasted baguette. Gluten-free bread just does not taste great.

73. "JAG" spin-off : NCIS

74. 9, perhaps: Abbr. : SEPT

77. Watch over : TEND TO

78. Reds, on scoreboards : CIN. Where is our Seen? He was quite active on the blog for sometime. The eddyB days.

79. Pique : SNIT

80. Support beam : I-BAR

81. Greek spirits : OUZO

84. Ice skater Cohen : SASHA

87. Close at hand : NIGH

89. Notable age : ERA

90. Religious offshoot : SECT

94. MLB nos. : AVGs

95. Puts a new top on : RE-ROOFS. Thought of PK's trouble with her roofers.

97. Designer cologne : CK ONE

99. Fall : AUTUMN

101. Cybermemos : E-NOTES

102. Puccini's "__ Butterfly" : MADAMA

103. Eatery where "you can get anything you want" : ALICE'S . Arlo Guthrie's " Alice's Restaurant".

104. Respectable : DECENT

105. Not casual : DRESSY

107. "Socrate" composer : SATIE. Erik! My favorite! Cool and hard-working.

110. Rabbi's study : TORAH

111. Galleria display : ARTE

112. Model Sastre : INES. Do you like Trésor? She was their spokesmodel.

114. Dimwit : DODO. Here is our Dodo, in red. Anon-T, look at the second picture clearly, you'll see Garlic Gal's spiky hair. Very cool.

L-R back row: Chickie, Clear Ayes, Garlic Gal
   Front: JD, Lucina, Dodo
June 23, 2011

L to R: JD, Garlic Gal, Chickie & Jill

115. Knock for a loop : STUN

117. Harsh bird call : CAW

118. Cologne meas. : OZs

120. Old-style "Tsk!" : FIE

121. Monk's address : FRA

122. Officejet Pro printers : HPs

C.C.

Sunday September 15, 2013 Amy Johnson

Theme: "No-win Situations" - All possible combinations of letters XXO (except XXX & OOO) are hidden in each theme entry.

 

23A. Wonka's starting hockey team? : SIX OOMPA LOOMPAS. Oompa-Loompas work for Willy Wonka's chocolate factory. Six player on ice during a hockey game.

37A. Much "Sanford and Son" banter? : REDD FOXX ONE- LINERS

66A. Rockport knockoffs? : FAUX OXFORDS. Maybe Famous Footwear has Rockport. Never paid attention to that brand before.

96A. Rusty, the Iron Man? : SUPERHERO OXYMORON. Funny clue.

16D. Artistic place for tiny letters? : MAILBOX ORIGAMI

50D. Non-conforming Marvel mutants? : UNORTHODOX X-MEN

Reveal entry:

116A. Three-letter combinations hidden in this puzzle's six other longest answers : TIC TAC TOE LOSERS

Amy covers all the possible 6 arrangements, correct? X'es are tricky to deal with in filling, she had 10 of them!

Across:

1. Casserole holders : MITTS

6. Flood barrier : DIKE

10. Santa __, aka "devil winds" : ANAs

14. Tut's home, now : TOMB

18. Online payment : E-CASH

19. OS X basis : UNIX. Mac OS X.

20. Guns : REVs

21. At full throttle : AMAIN

26. Say "I do" : UNITE

27. 2006 Verizon acquisition : MCI

28. Dutch pottery city : DELFT

29. Nonstick cookware brand : T-FAL.  Great quality.

30. Clown's props : STILTS

31. Early philosophical hot spot : ELEA. I know this place only as  Zeno of Elea. He's a philosopher, so it could be a hot spot. MN is a hot spot for crosswords. George Barany told me that  "...Will said that besides New York and California, there is no other state with such a concentration of constructing talent (maybe he forgot about Maryland?)".

33. Island gift : LEI

34. Home of the Green Wave : TULANE

36. Civil War nickname : ABE

42. Eugene's st. : ORE

44. Cousin of a bald eagle : ERN

45. Bygone TV knob : HOR

46. High points : CLIMAXES

48. Grammy winner Cole : PAULA. "Where Have All the Cowboys Gone?"

51. Alley cries : MEOWs

53. Org. with Pirates and Sharks : AHL. No idea. American Hockey League.

54. Black hues, to Chaucer : EBONs

55. Traditional fourth-anniversary gift : LINEN. See here. Boomer and I will celebrate our 13th year next May.

56. Fed. workplace monitor : OSHA

57. Hot state : IRE

58. Bob or bowl : HAIRDO

59. Game with Skip cards : UNO

60. Hawaii's coffee capital : KONA

62. Half the taijitu symbol : YANG

64. "__ Went Mad": Riley poem : ERE I

65. Cellists' sect. : STR (String)

70. Styling stuff : GEL

73. Us opponents : THEM

76. Certain slip-on : MULE. Shoes.

77. Catch some rays : BASK

79. Crest letters : ADA

80. Like sailors on leave : ASHORE. I wanted something drunk related. Sorry, Spitzboov/D-Otto!

82. Lucrative : FAT. OK, a fat year.

83. Epitome of thinness : RAIL

85. High points : ACMES

87. Polynesian language : MAORI. I think Steve used this image last time. Stick your tongue out. How low can you go?

88. ABO designation : POS (Positive)

89. High : TIPSY

90. Venerated one : SAINT

91. Skating on thin ice : IN DANGER

93. Holiday chuckles : HOs. Santa!

94. 21st, e.g.: Abbr. : CEN

95. Tokugawa shogunate seat of power : EDO

104. Scripts that may be hard to read : RXS

106. Part of ASAP : AS SOON. One 6-letter partial is OK.

107. Old-fashioned show of affection: Abbr. : LTR. My sister-in-law Barbara always writes us letters.

108. Project Mercury org. : NASA

109. Actress Meredith __-Birney : BAXTER

111. Coll. major involving an observatory : ASTR (Astronomy)

112. Calligrapher's line : SERIF

114. Rotation meas. : RPS (Revolutions per Second)

115. Skilled pitchers : ADMEN. Not baseball.

119. Hardly certain : LEERY

120. Natural soother : ALOE

121. Bengay, e.g. : BALM. This might work if you have mild arthritis pain or muscle pain. You local Asian store should have them. The stuff stinks though.

122. "Have a look!" : GO SEE

123. Lombardy Castle city : ENNA. In Sicily. Splynter might know Lombardy Castle. Not me.

124. Surfer, perhaps : USER. Internet surfer.

125. Old dagger : SNEE

126. Mythical lover of wine and women : SATYR

Down:

1. "Animal magnetism" coiner : MESMER. He gave us "Mesmerize".

2. Frozen drip : ICICLE

3. Rolled on a runway : TAXIED

4. Menu general : TSO. Chicken.

5. Sporting heels : SHOD

6. Two-floor apartment : DUPLEX

7. Up the creek : IN A FIX

8. Highland wear : KILT

9. Skeletal prefix : EXO. "Outer".

10. Carrying limit : ARMFUL

11. Himalayan native : NEPALI. Sherpa's life is actually very hard.

12. Ski area concern : AVALANCHE. Sherpas encounter this often.

13. Snake's "Back off!" : SSS

14. Ready to snap : TAUT

15. __ vincit amor : OMNIA. Do you believe in "Love conquers all"?

17. What some fight to, with "the" : BITTER END

22. Video game console : NES

24. Cantaloupe, e.g. : MELON

25. Aquatic rompers : OTTERS

30. Pak of the LPGA : SE RI. She opened the door for all those Korean LPGA players. 

32. Mr. Rochester's ward : ADELE. Jane Eyre.

35. "Gimme a Break!" star Carter : NELL. And 49. "__ Misbehavin'" : AIN'T

38. Ballpark buy : FRANK

39. "This could be a problem" : OH OH

40. Trouble for the hopelessly trapped : NO WAY OUT

41. Nasty race tactic : SMEAR

43. Manitoba pump sign : ESSO

47. Irish Rose's guy : ABIE. Learned from doing Xwords.

48. Grade refinement : PLUS

51. "__ Lisa" : MONA

52. Biblical barterer : ESAU

53. Ship protected by Hera : ARGO. Otherwise, no woman on that ship.

57. Lower-ranking : INFERIOR

58. Company with toy trucks : HESS

61. "All __": 1984 film : OF ME

63. Rocker Rose : AXL

67. Adman's yuletide : XMAS

68. Aaron's MLB record 2,297 : RBIs

69. Longtime "What's My Line?" host : DALY (John). I should borrow Splynter's BMT (Before My Time).

71. Original sin site : EDEN

72. __ resort : LAST

74. Israeli folk dance : HORA

75. Actress Moran et al. : ERINs

78. "Casey's Top 40" host : KASEM

80. French girlfriend : AMIE

81. 1959 Gidget player : SANDRA DEE. Hey, a full name.

82. Jibs, e.g. : FORESAILS

84. Lhasa __ : APSO

86. Church law : CANON

88. Spices (up) : PEPS

89. Powerful D.C. lobby : THE NRA

92. __ gum: thickening agent : GUAR

94. Ritchard who played Hook on Broadway : CYRIL. Stranger to me. Captain Hook. Wiki said he was born in Australia. Not Russia as I thought.

97. Gun, in old slang : ROSCOE. I forgot. But we had this clue before.

98. More spicy : HOTTER

99. Soccer stadium shout : OLE OLE

100. Limit-pushing, in adspeak : XTREME. The bowling center in Treasure Island is called Island Xtreme Bowl.

101. Most limited : RAREST

102. Fish-eating hawk : OSPREY

103. 1952 Egyptian Revolution leader : NASSER. The guy who's in control now is General Sisi. No government can survive in Egypt without the military backing. Morsi is a good example.

105. Tough : STERN

109. Statement no. : BAL (Balance)

110. Mononymous New Ager : ENYA

112. Asian country suffix : STAN. Meaning "Land".

113. London forecasts : FOGS

116. Sigma follower : TAU

117. Letters next to an eye : CBS. Great clue.

118. "__ man walks into ..." : SO A

I mentioned last week that George Barany (The genius behind the Alan Turing tribute puzzle)  & Friends made the fun puzzle inside the program for "An Evening with the Puzzle Master". Everyone was busy solving the grid while waiting for Will to start the presentation.

George kindly provided me with the puz file. I thought you might enjoy it. You don't have to be an Minnesotan to solve the grid. 

Click here for the PDF file. Click here for the puz file. 

 

Spoiler alert:

Click here to read how the puzzle was created & George's thoughts on several entries. I bet TTP & PA Don enjoyed reading his remark on 51-Down. There is also a great picture of the MN constructors with Will Shortz at the bottom. 

C.C.