Sunday May 31, 2009 Edward Sessa

Theme: Double Plays

23A: Munchkin femmes fatales?: WICKED LITTLE WOMEN (Wicked; Little Women)

36A: Workplace braggart?: COMPANY SHOWBOAT (Company; Showboat)

55A: Inferior pomade?: HAIR GREASE (Hair; Grease)

76A: Like sturdy chairs?: FANNY PROOF (Fanny; Proof)

95A: Standing ovation: TITANIC APPLAUSE (Titanic; Applause)

111A: Queen Henrietta's personal account of Cromwell's treachery?: OLIVER THE KING AND I (Oliver; The King and I)

16D: Jazz lovers on the Mississippi?: BIG RIVER CATS (Big Rivers; Cats)

61D: Detective usin' taps?: DANCIN SLEUTH (Dancin'; Sleuth)

Each theme answer contains two Broadway play names, hence "Double Plays". The below fills are play-related bonus fills:

66A: At the theater, perhaps: ON A DATE

1D: Curtain call response: BOW

25D: Lerner's partner: LOEWE

40D: One -__: uninterrupted play: ACT-ER

115D: Gershwin of Broadway: IRA

Hope Clear Ayes gets her internet connection back today. This puzzle is tailor-made for her. Just saw Gwyneth Paltrow's "Proof" the other night. Not my cup of tea.

When I googled earlier, some of the above theme answers are plays, some are musicals. What are the main differences between the two?

Quite a few tricky & fresh clues in today's puzzles. I was misdirected many times.

Across:

1A: The Tide: BAMA. Thought their nickname is the Crimson Tide.

5A: Fundamental: BASAL. Wrote down BASIS first. So my crossing answer is SET rather than LOT for 9D: Film studio site.

10A: Fly to fear: TSETSE. Better than "Dangerous fly" clue. Reminded me of Eric Jong's "Fear of Flying".

16A: __-Rhin: Strasbourg's department: BAS. Unknown to me. BAS-Rhin is French for "Lower Rhine". Haut-Rhin (Upper Rhine) lies in its south. But I can't find either in this Strasbourg map.

19A: Algerian seaport: ORAN. Thought Camus was born here. Wrong. He was born in Mondovi, Algeria. Yves Saint Laurent was born in ORAN.

20A: "Ooh, send me!": I'LL GO. I had trouble with many of the multiple words today.

21A: Blowhard's output: HOT AIR

22A: Peak overlooking Knossos: IDA. Mount IDA is the Greek "Mountain of Goddess". I had no idea where Knossos is.

27A: Baker Street transports: HANSOMS. Stumped. Knew the Sherlock Holmes connection., but I could not come up with HANSOMS.

29A: Closed the gap on: NEARED

31A: HBO alternative: SHO

33A: Slip into: DON. D'oh, clothes. I was in the wrong direction.

34D: Off! ingredient: DEET

35A: Dish sometimes served with wasabi: SASHIMI. "Sometimes"? All times for me. I've never had SASHIMI without wasabi.

41A: Last Hebrew letter: TAV. The first is aleph.

42A: No longer an item: APART. Good clue too.

43A: Pulitzer poet Marianne: MOORE. Completely stranger to me.

44A: Crosby and Como: CROONERS. Nice C, C & C.

48A: Prong: TINE

49A: Rewards for playing well: ESPYS. The sports awards.

52A: Little bit: DROP

58A: __anglais: English horn: COR. It's neither English nor horn. COR is French for "horn".

59A: Cocktails with triple sec: SIDECARS. No idea. I don't know what a "triple sec" is either.

63A: Frequent morning surprise: ALARM. Not the surprise I have in mind.

64A: Slithering: SNAKY

69A: 20-20 observation: IT'S A TIE. Nice clue. My mind wandered off to 20/20 vision.

71A: Gold digger: MINER. I liked this clue too. Thought of Kanye West's "Gold Digger".

72A: Country singer Haggard: MERLE

74A: Busch partner: ANHEUSER

75A: "Yadda yadda yadda": Abbr.: ETC. "Seinfeld".

80A: Grasshopper's antithesis, in a fable: ANT. Aesop fable.

81A: Reformer Jacob: RIIS. Reformer of what?

83A: Drones, e.g.: MALES. Male bees. I was thinking of airplanes.

84A: Result of an egg-toss miss: SPLAT

86A: Dots on la carte: ILES. Carte is French for "map".

90A: Clementi work: SONATINA. A short sonata. I was stumped. Wikipedia says the Italian musician Muzio Clementi is famous for his piano sonatas and SONATINAS.

92A: "Nature's soft nurse" to Shakespeare: SLEEP. No idea.

93A: Conductor's aid: SCORE

99A: Little Dipper star: POLARIS. The North Star.

102A: Charles II's royal architect: WREN (Christopher). I forgot. Googled him before. Wikipedia says he designed 55 of 87 London churches after the Great fire of London in 1666, including St. Paul's Cathedral in 1710.

103A: Golden age, e.g.: ERA. Why "age" is not capitalized?

104A: H.S. dropout's goals: GED

105A: '40s-'50s Marshall Islands trials: A-TESTS. I thought they were conducted at Bikini Atoll.

107D: Domed hall: ROTUNDA

110A: VW predecessors?: STU. Alphabet STUVW.

116A: Peewee: TOT

117A: Hoity-toity: LA-DI-DA

118A: Milk a scene: EMOTE

119A: Row in a bowl: TIER. Bowl game.

120A: Lenten symbol: ASH

121A: Be a big brother to: ASSIST

122A: Rib shots: POKES. Had trouble understanding the clue.

123A: On the main: ASEA

Down:

2D: D-backs, on scoreboards: ARI. Arizona Diamondbacks. They won World Series the first year I came to the US (2001).

3D: 1978 Village People hit: MACHO MAN. Not a familiar song to me.

4D: "My Way" songwriter: ANKA (Paul)

5D: Competes to buy: BIDS ON. As on Ebay.

6D: Ghostwriters' noms de plume, say: ALLONYMS. New word to me. How is it different from pseudonym?

7D: Like a big loser?: SLIM. Lose weight. Nice clue.

8D: Ticket sellers: Abbr.: AGTS. Had trouble with this answer also.

10D: Home shopping network?: THE WEB

11D: Site of a 1976 anti-apartheid uprising: SOWETO. Have never heard of SOWETO Uprising. Thought it's in Johannesburg.

12D: School since 1440: ETON. This has become a gimme.

13D: Angus' topper: TAM. Angus county in Scotland. I was thinking of the beef.

14A: Tuscan hill town: SIENA. So close to the "Earthy color" SIENNA. One less letter N.

15D: Che, really: ERNESTO. Che Guervara.

17D: Relevant, in law: AD REM. Escaped my mind also.

18D: Tony-winning Manhattan restaurateur: SARDI. I don't get this clue. I know the award name Tony was coined in the Sardi's. Did Vincent SARDI win a Tony Award also?

24D: Finish by: END AT

31D: Satchmo's singing style: SCAT

32D: Southwestern pottery maker: HOPI. Beautiful olla.

34D: Back: Pref.: DORSI. Forgot. It appeared in our puzzle several months ago.

35D: Arrive en masse: STREAM IN

37D: Go ahead of: PRECEDE

38D: Former frosh: SOPHS. Why the clue is singular?

39D: Georgetown player: HOYA

45D: Switch positions: ONS. ON/Off.

46D: Raw recruit: ROOKIE

47D: Lighter on one's foot: SPRYER. I like this clue.

49D: "L'___, c'est moi": Louis XIV: ETAT. Oh boy, where did I get "Le roi, c'est moi" quote?

51D: Pledging site: FRAT

54D: Accessory for an old-time flying ace: SCARF. How come?

57D: City on the Ruhr: ESSEN

59D: Suzanne of "Step by Step": SOMERS. Know Suzanne SOMERS. Have never heard of the TV series "Step by Step".

60D: Ab __: from the beginning: INITIO. Hope I can remember it next time.

62D: Money-saving carpeting choices: REMNANTS. Ha ha, I did not know there is a special term for those carpets.

65D: Big name in beachwear: NAUTICA. Nope. Not a beach person. I like her shirt.

67D: Actress Soleil Moon __: FRYE. New name to me also. Great name, Soleil Moon.

68D: Yodeler's range: ALPS. Mountain range.

70D: At __: nevertheless: THAT. At THAT is a new idiom to me.

73D: Zhou of China: ENLAI. Our first premier.

74D: Wouldn't hurt __: A FLEA. I thought it's "Wouldn't hurt a fly".

77D: Bordeaux buddy: AMI. Alliteration again.

78D: "Hold Me" Grammy winner: OSLIN. Here is the song.

79D: Cartel acronym: OPEC

82D: Casa areas: SALAS

85D: Desire: APPETITE. Oh, desire for food.

87D: Four-time Olympic diving gold medalist: LOUGANIS. No idea. Wikipedia says Greg LOUGANIS won two gold in 1984 and two in 1988.

88D: Gaelic tongue: ERSE

89D: Tourney ranking: SEED

91D: Largest of the British Virgin Islands: TORTOLA. See this map. Completely foreign to me.

92D: Hägar's dog: SNERT. Learned from doing Xword. I don't read the comic strips.

93D: Subject for Eric Partridge: SLANG. I did not know who Eric Partridge is. Wikipedia says he was a noted New Zealand/British lexicographer of the English language, particularly of its SLANG.

96D: Suit fabrics: TWEEDS. SERGE is "Suit fabric" too.

97D: Landfall for Noah: ARARAT

98D: Lops and tops: PRUNES. Nice rhymes.

99D: Elbows, maybe: PASTA. Elbow pasta. I was fooled.

100D: Four Holy Roman emperors: OTTOS

101D: __ Malvinas: the Falklands: ISLAS. Got it from Across fills. I don't know where ISLAS Malvinas is. Oh, I see, different name origins, hence Spanish Malvinas and English Falklands.

106D: Half of MXIV: DVII. Half of 1,014=507.

107D: San __, Italy: REMO

108D: "All right, already!": OK OK

109D: Base material?: DATA. Why?

113D: In the know: HEP. Wrote down HIP first.

114D: Mark to improve: DEE. Was thinking of a verb.

Answer grid.

C.C.

Sunday May 24, 2009 Kevin Donovan

Theme: Keep an Eye Out

24A: Betting a buck on Vegas?: STAKING ONE'S CLA(I)M

47A: Wheat farm operator?: BRA(I)N SURGEON

67A: Very old races?: ANCIENT RU(I)NS

83A: Notes from Charlie?: CHA(I)N LETTERS

106A: Think nostalgically about one's long-haired days?: REMEMBER THE MA(I)NE

3D: Hollywood exodus?: FLIGHT OF STA(I)RS

57D: Kudos after a great meal?: HAIL TO THE CH(I)EF

The theme title reminds me of "It's Not the Same Without You" puzzle Elissa mentioned two days ago. All of the letter U's were removed from the puzzle. There are still 4 I's left in the above theme answers.

I like REMEMBER THE MANE the best, as I often do think nostalgically about my long-haired days. Took me some time to figure out that Charlie in "Notes from Charlie" refers to Charlie Chan. Ah me!

Still a challenging puzzle for me. Got fooled by several tricky clues. But I had fun filling, erasing and filling again. Kevin Donovan is another regular contributor to Stan Newman's Newsday puzzle.

Across:

1A: Winchester, e.g.: RIFLE. Stumped immediately. Have never heard of Winchester RIFLES.

12A: Cultural Revolution leader: MAO. Cultural Revolution lasted 10 years (1966-1976).

18A: One with a big weight on his shoulders: ATLAS. The Titan with heavens on his shoulders.

19A: Angola neighbor: NAMIBIA. Here is the map. Angola is to its north. Strange capital name, Windhoek. Dictionary shows that W is pronounced as V.

21A: Dada Daddy?: ARP (Jean/Hans). Nice clue.

22A: Polished off: ATE

23A: Makes less dense: THINS

27A: Caught off base: TAGGED. Baseball.

29A: Form 1040 calc.: AGI (Adjusted Gross Income). I know nothing about income tax. My husband only asks me to sign those papers.

30A: Libreville is its capital: GABON. Easy guess.

31A: Puppy's protest: YELP. Alliteration.

32A: Its a pain: ACHE. So simple.

33A: Dwell constantly (on): OBSESS

37A: Fortitude: GRIT

43A: Paquin and Pavlova: ANNAS. Alliteration again.

44A: Hole in the wall: OUTLET

50A: Easygoing sorts: SOFTIES

52A: Brewer's need: YEAST. Baker's need too.

54A: Put on the rolls: LISTED

55A: Friend needing feeding: PET. No PET in our house.

56A: In the know: HIP

60A: Change: ALTER

64A: Occurred (to): CAME

66A: Makeup artist?: LIAR. Nailed it immediately.

73A: Hawk's weapon: TALON

74A: Peel's title: MRS. Emma Peel.

75A: Site of Floresta da Tijuca, one of the world's largest urban forests: RIO. Floresta da Tijuca is new to me.

76A: "2001" computer: HAL

77A: Tell: TATTLE

78A: Egyptian port: SUEZ. Near the south end of SUEZ Canal.

79A: Runaway bus film: SPEED. Starring Sandra Bullock & Keanu Reeves.

82A: Lunch and study hall: PERIODS. What is study hall PERIOD?

86A: Tight undergarment: CORSET. She has a perfect body!

87A: Patient record: CHART. And RECORD (72A: "Made to be broken" thing).

88A: Needle: HYPO. We just had NEEDLE clued as "Hypo" several days ago.

90A: Store door nos.: HRS. Thought of Dennis and his hobby stores.

93A: Thing intentionally dropped: HINT

94A: Lode load: ORE. Neat clue.

96A: Nearly boils: SCALDS

98A: Beetle's warning: BEEP. The car.

99A: Ga. Tech grad.: ENGR

100A: Sets limits on, with "in": REINS

103A: John __ Lennon: ONO. I like this new ONO clue.

104A: Cochise was one: APACHE. I forgot who Cochise was. Do know Geronimo though.

110A: Lacking color: ASHEN

113A: More modest: HUMBLER

114A: Traction aid: TREAD

115A: Oscar winner Kingsley: BEN. He won Oscar for "Gandhi". Great movie.

117A: Struggle: TUSSLE

118A: Dagger handles: HAFTS

Down:

1D: Caning material: RATTAN. Thought of Bangkok immediately. So hot there.

2D: Cornell University site: ITHACA

4D: "Cape Fear" actress: LANGE (Jessica). No idea. This poster looks scary.

5D: Latin being: ESSE

6D: Banana pair: ENS. Two N's in Banana.

7D: Information to process: DATA SET. Only knew DATA.

8D: Photographs, e.g.: IMAGES

9D: South Pacific idols: TIKIS. Are TIKIS all made of wood?

10D: Shikoku sash: OBI. Another alliteration.

11D: Criminal group: RING

14D: Covert __: spy doings: OPS. Got it from Across fills. I am used to the "Photo OPS" clue.

15D: Amalfi Coast city: SALERNO. See this map. It's foreign to me.

16D: Like 15-Down: ITALIAN

17D: Entices: TEMPTS

20D: Turkish title: AGA

26D: Trumpeter youngster: CYGNET. Someone mentioned trumpeter swan on the blog months ago.

28D: Dressed to kill, with "up": DOLLED

34D: Tournament exemptions: BYES. Tennis?

35D: 1986 #1 song by Starship: SARA. Stumped, though the tunes sounds very familiar.

41D: Used to be: WAS

45D: Unqualified: UTTER. Can you give me an example of how they are interchangeable?

46D: Theater section: TIER. Penned in LOGE first.

47D: Improved: BETTER. I was trying to think of another verb.

48D: Start of a damsel's distressed demand: UNHAND. UNHAND me? Nice alliteration.

49D: 5/7/1945 German surrender site: REIMS. Here is the map. It's in NE France.

50D: Race with gates: SLALOM. I was thinking of horse racing.

51D: Less sincere: OILIER

52D: Mysterious Asian giant: YETI

55D: Weight training targets, briefly: PECS

58D: "Dover Beach" poet: ARNOLD (Matthew). Unknown to me. I've never heard of the poem either.

59D: Public ones can be embarrassing: SCENES

61D: Real bore: SNOOZE. Why?

62D: St. Paul- to -Sault St. Marie dir.: ENE. Got it from Across fills.

63D: Implants firmly: ETCHES. Wanted EMBEDS.

64D: Temple feature?: CURL. I was trapped. Did not think of Shirley Temple.

67D: The Little Mermaid: ARIEL

68D: Line on a map: ROAD

69D: "Sonatine Bureaucratique" composer: SATIE (Erik). Obtained the answer from Across fills again.

71D: Main force: BRUNT

73D: Sea dogs: TARS. Both are slang for sailors.

77D: Saintly mother: TERESA. Mother TERESA.

78D: Onetime friend of Camus: SARTRE. A rare gimme for me. They were indeed friend once.

79D: Place with many grunts: STY. Pigs. I was thinking of soldiers.

80D: Energy: PEP

82D: Atlantic, to Brits: POND. The POND.

83D: Lantern type: CHINESE. Have you seen Gong Li's "Rise the Red Lantern"? A very influential Chinese movie in the 1990s. Gong Li is my favorite actress.

84D: Word-guessing game: HANGMAN. No idea. Does not sound like a good game title.

85D: "... all snug in __ beds": THEIR. From "The Night Before Christmas".

86D: Potter of "M*A*S*H" for one: COLONEL. Not familiar with this character.

87D: Winged child: CHERUB

89D: Channels you can't surf: CANALS. Excellent clue.

91D: Warm up, in a way: REHEAT

92D: Lays out: SPENDS. New meaning of "lay out" to me.

94D: Go around in circles?: ORBIT. Great clue.

95D: Gets out of the water, with "in": REELS. Fish.

97D: Tangle removers: COMB. Hair tangle.

98D: City of southeastern Iraq: BASRA

101D: Extreme degree: NTH

102D: Put a lid on: SHUT. Reminded me of the "Shh!" puzzle earlier this month.

105D: It may be beaten: PATH. Filled in immediately.

107D: It precedes juin: MAI. French for May.

108D: Outback runner: EMU

Answer grid.

C.C.

Sunday May 17, 2009 Kathleen Fay O'Brien

Theme: PIANISSIMO (115A: Musical direction, and a hint to the quiet meetings taking place in the answers to starred clues) - PP represents PIANISSIMO.

23A: *Recycled stuff: SCRAP PAPER

25A: *Most dreaming occurs in the last one: SLEEP PHASE

46A: *West Coast Marine Crops training base: CAMP PENDLETON

68A: *It's loaded with rolls: CAP PISTOL

90A: *"Science" employed in many a self-help book: POP PSYCHOLOGY

113A: *Game you have to dress for: STRIP POKER

35D: *Liability suit targets: DEEP POCKETS

42D: *Thing to do first: TOP PRIORITY

Today's constructor Kathleen Fay O'Brien is the lady who gave us our first LA Sunday puzzle, the LA Clippers.

I was stumped when PPP (Pianississimo) was clued as "Very softly, in music" in our old TMS Daily once. Could not understand why PPP when there's only one p in the word pianississimo. Then Barry G explained that it's because piano (soft) is represented by P and pianissimo (very soft) is represented by PP. Dictionary says pianissimo is the superlative of piano. And fortississimo is the superlative of forte. Fortissimo is the comparative. Sounds so complicated.

Nice quiet puzzle. Very doable. I like the theme title too: Quiet Meetings. Several alliterative clues in today's grid:

40A: Kennel call: ARF

63A: Rods with roasts: SPITS

72A: Cell centers: NUCLEI

64D: Seine sun: SOLEIL

82D: Tete thought: IDEE

101D: Spanish snacks: TAPAS

107D: Salty septet: SEAS

I love the last one the most. Sometimes I get bored by certain alliterations. Clues can get very constrained and less inventive if you focus too much on them. But I appreciate the effort the constructors/editor put into them.

By the way, Scott Atkinson mentioned a mini-theme in Michael Wiesenberg themeless yesterday: WHITE WATER & PURPLE RAIN, which cross each other (32A & 5D) in the grid.

Across:

1A: Nitty-gritty: PITH

5A: Company whose name is often quacked in ads: AFLAC. Those Yogi Berra AFLAC commercials are fun.

10A: Skier's wear: PARKA. The Eskimo PARKA is called anorak. What the heck are these?

20A: Capital at 12,000 feet: LHASA. Capital of Tibet. And OSCAR (103A: 13 1/2-inch-high award). I like clues with interesting trivia.

21A: Medicinal creams: ALOES

27A: Birch of "American Beauty": THORA. Can't remember her name, even though I've seen the movie.

30A: "Washington Merry-Go-Round" columnist: PEARSON (Drew). Nope. Don't know this guy. Great cover picture.

31A: Insinuating: SNIDE. Always thought SNIDE means contemptuous.

35A: North Dakota State's home: FARGO. Easy guess. Here is their bison mascot.

36A: When people retire: BED TIME. I was thinking of a different retirement.

41A: Cons: ANTIS

45A: It can't be returned: ACE. Tennis. I like the clue.

53A: Silly type: GOOSE. Nice clue too.

55A: Sunscreen nos.: SPFS

56A: Easy stride: LOPE. Rachel Alexander sure raced like a girl yesterday. I was surprised by the outstanding performance of Mine that Bird, who now I think might have won had Calvin Borel rode it.

57A: Professor "iggins: 'ENRY. From "My Fair Lady". Letter H is dropped in Cockney accent. 'OMES (homes) was once clued as "Cockney abodes" in our puzzle before.

59A: Chef's repertoire: RECIPES. Here is the "Julie & Julia" trailer.

61A: Take care of a boxer: PET SIT

65A: College offering: DEGREE

66A: Destroy over time: ERODE

71A: Debt evidence: CHITS

74A: Reel: LURCH

77A: Starts liking: TAKES TO

79A: 1950s-'60s "Man on the Street" comic: NYE (Louis). No idea. He does not look like a comic.

80A: Copy of an orig.: REPR (Reprint)

81A: Composer Satie: ERIK. I wonder why he changed his name from Eric to ERIK.

84A: People: ONES. This answer often gives me trouble, so does ONE, which stumped me last time when it's clued as "Fused".

87A: Two-time Tony winner Rivera: CHITA. Clear Ayes has probably seen all of those musicals.

88A: Actress Conn: DIDI. Unknown to me. She looks so happy.

93A: X, at times: TEN

96A: Work the aisles, slangily: USH. The letter S enabled me to fill in APSE rather than NAVE for the intersecting 86D: Church area.

97A: It borders It.: AUS (Austria). I did not pay attention to the abbreviated & capitalized "It."

98A: Lit: PIE- EYED. Both means drunk. I struggled with this answer.

100A: Bizarre: OUTRE

102D: PC hookup: CRT

104A: It can be hard to refold: ROADMAP. I like this clue too.

107A: Captain Marvel's magic word: SHAZAM. New to me. What does SHAZAM mean? Is it just a made-up word?

119A: Very, in score: ASSAI. What's the difference between ASSAI & MOLTO?

120A: Formed just for this project: AD HOC. Literally "for this".

121A: __'acte: ENTR

122A: WWII journalist Ernie: PYLE. What does letter C (his left arm) stand for?

124A: Serious: HEAVY. Why? Can you give me an example?

125A: Blotter site: DESK

Down:

2D: Yen: ITCH. Some ITCH just can't be scratched.

3D: Green party?: TYRO. I knew it's a play on "Green Party", but I could not think of an answer immediately. Very clever clue.

4D: Pulitzer rival: HEARST

6D: D.C. mortgage insurer: FHA (Federal Housing Administration).

11D: Shakespeare title starter: ALL'S. “ALL'S Well That Ends Well”.

13D: Continually remind: KEEP AFTER. New phrase to me.

14D: According to: AS PER. Reminds me of PER SE. Tricky to parse.

15D: "Silkwood" co-screenwriter Nora: EPHRON. Have never seen "Silkwood". Loved her "Sleepless in Seattle". Nora blogs at Huffington Post.

24D: Chicken Little's emotion: PANIC. Did not come to me immediately.

26D: Certain polytheist: PAGAN. Isn't strange that ancient Romans/Greeks/Egyptians are all polytheists?

29D: Opposite of ja: NEIN. German yes (ja) and no (NEIN).

32D: Publicists' concerns: IMAGES

33D: Possessed: DEMONIC. Obtained the answer with Across help.

35D: Guitar ridge: FRET. I forgot. FRET as a "Guitar ridge" appeared in our puzzle before.

37D: Cave phenomenon: ECHO

40D: "Little Men" author: ALCOTT. Only knew her "Little Women".

43D: How distances to ballpark fences are measured: IN FEET

44D: Gets cheeky with: SASSES. Typical grid edge word, so is SEUSS (123A: "If I ran the Zoo" author). Lots of S's.

47D: Fancy entrance: PORTAL

48D: Coffee go-with: DANISH. Yummy!

49D: Pigged out (on): ODED. Was this a gimmie to you? Somehow ODs or ODed always give me trouble.

52D: Ribs: NEEDLES. Both mean "teases".

55D: Seen from the crow's nest: SIGHTED. "Crow's nest" is a new term to me.

58D: Part of little girls' make-up: SPICE. And sugar. And all things nice.

60D: Singer Winans: CECE. BeBe & CeCe. Learned from doing Xword.

62D: Tiger's bagful: TEES. Meet Steve Williams, the world's most recognizable caddie.

63D: How acrobats perform: SPRYLY

67D: Former African territory ___Urundi (now two countries): RUANDA. Became Rwanda and Burundi in 1962. New to me.

69D: Fine, for instance: PUNISH

70D: Airport security concerns LAPTOPS

76D: Like "Macbeth": TRAGIC

80D: Pi followers: RHOS. I really liked last time's "Letters from Plato" for ETAS.

87D: Impudence: CHUTZPAH. Great answer.

90D: Portly: PLUMP

91D: Term of affection, in Asti: CARA. "Honey" in Italian?

92D: A long time: YEARS

95D: Nutrient in kelp: IODINE. I don't like kelp, so grainy and hard to wash. Love nori seaweed though.

99D: Cleared the board: ERASED. The clue brought to me immediately Target's messy "Board of Directors" fight. I don't really feel sorry for William Ackman. Does he look handsome to you?

102D: '90s "SNL" regular Farley: CHRIS. Nope. Don't know this guy.

104D: Brief answer?: RSVP. Nice clue.

105D: Our Gang assent: OTAY. No idea. Wanted OKAY.

106D: Seed cover: ARIL. This has become a gimme. Argyle linked this nice mace and nutmeg picture last time.

108D: Subordinate: AIDE

110D: Brief reading?: ZINE. Short for Fanzine, hence the "brief" hint in the clue.

114D: Manhattan sch: KSU (Kansas State University). I don't know there is a Manhattan in Kansas. But NYU won't fit.

Answer grid.

C.C.

Sunday May 10, 2009 John Lampkin

Theme: Mothers of Invention

23A: When Harriet Farnam invented her "Non-Swarmer" beehive, she __: GOT A HONEY OF A DEAL

44A: When Mary Walton invented sound dampers for elevated railways, she __: TOOK THE HIGH ROAD

64A: When Amanda Jones invented the automatic safety oil burner, she __: WASN'T JUST BLOWING SMOKE

87A: When Ruth Wakefield invented the chocolate-chip cookie, she __: SWEETENED THE POT

112A: When Ida Hyde invented the intracellular microelectrode, she __: CAUSED A SENSATION

16D: When Hedy Lamarr co-invented a radio-frequency encryption system, she __: MADE WAVES

78D: When Josephine Cochrane invented dishwasher, she __: CLEANED UP

All of above theme entries are in simple past tense except 64A. I guess the constructor needs an odd number verb phrases for the very central row #11. Very clever how he added a "JUST" to the entry. It sounds natural and it adds some scrabbliness to the grid, which is only one letter X away from being a pangram. And 9 K's. Incredible.

I thought the theme is very clever and obviously the constructor did a thorough research. Unfortunately I am scientifically challenged. And constructor's creativity and humor are lost on me. Are those "Mothers of Invention" all American? Hedy Lamarr is the only one I've heard of. And I thought she was only an actress. Had no idea that she ever invented anything.

Quite a few cross-referencing clues in the puzzle. And several clues made me laugh. I like how the below answers are clued, from A to AAA:

12D: A, in Arles: UNE

14D: AA co-founder: BILL W. He can continue to remain anonymous. I've never heard of him and don't feel the need to know him.

86A: AAA Option: RTE

I wonder if John Lampkin considered Bette Nesmith Graham (Michael Nesmith's mother) who invented Liquid Paper. I used tons of Liquid Paper this morning. Lots of OOPS instead of OH NO (6D: Klutz's cry) mistakes are made. And too many musical/musician related entries for my simple mind.

I hope you struggled as well. Everyone seems to be doing so well lately. I really don't want to be the only child left behind.

Across:

1A: "West Side Story" dance: MAMBO. Stumped immediately. Have never seen "West Side Story".

2A: Doling out mil. rations: ON K.P. K.P. is Kitchen Police.

10A: Jacket materials? BLURB. Book jacket. Nice misleading clue.

15A: Pianist Gilels: EMIL. No idea. Wikipedia says this pianist was born in Odessa.

19A: Nirvana #1 album "In __": UTERO. See the album cover.

20A: Consider in court: HEAR

21A: "Amazing" magician: RANDI (James). I forgot all about him. Googled him before.

22A: Chance it: DARE. Thought of RISK.

26A: Wedding pair: I DO'S. Good clue.

27A: Work on ribs: GNAW. I need a "with at" for the answer to come readily.

28A: Small Welsh river boats: CORACLES. Unknown to me. Strange boat. So tiny.

29A: Under the surface: LATENT

33A: '50s Reds slugger, familiarly: KLU. Ted Kluszewski. Nicknamed "Big Klu". I've never heard of him. Of course I was thinking of the guy on the right, Ted Williams.

34A: Kin of kitties and fishies?: BOWWOW

36A: About one in three Bosnians: SERBS. Oh, I did not know that fact. I do not have a clear understanding of the Balkans at all.

39A: Saint called the founder of Scholasticism: ANSELM. Have never heard of this saint (ANSELM of Canterbury). Wikipedia says he is famous as the originator of the ontological argument for the existence of God, whatever that is.

42A: Lyre-playing Muse: ERATO. Muse of love poetry. She does carry a lyre.

49A: TV control: VOL

50A: Leak results: DRIPS

51A: Female gamete: OVUM

52A: A joker might pull yours: LEG

53A: Go to: ATTEND

56A: Go on and on: RANT

57A: Drop: OMIT

58A: Parisian passes: NONS. French "No". Alliteration in the clue again.

59A: Popular cups: REESE'S. Good clue too.

61A: French cleric: ABBE

62A: Latin lover's word: AMO. AMO, amas, amat.

43A: __ Reader: UTNE. Named after its founder Eric UTNE. I leafed through a few pages of a recent UTNE Reader at Barnes & Noble the other day. It does not interest me.

73A: 130-lb. -plus ref.: OED (Oxford English Dictionary). 20-volume.

74A: Verified: TRUE

75A: No. beginning with a "-": NEG

76A: Certs competitor: TIC TAC. Have never tried this brand.

79A: Sartre's "Huh?": QUOI. I like the Sartre reference.

80A: Opera conductor Daniel: OREN. Foreign to me. He is an Israeli opera conductor. He looks angry. Wikipedia says he is a protégé of Leonard Bernstein.

81D: Note: MEMO

82A: Volunteer: ENLIST. Oh, volunteer for the military service.

83A: Certain brewer: URN

84A: Santa nickname: KRIS. I really like "Miracle on 34th Street".

85A: Oil burners: LAMPS

91A: Cycle part: PHASE

94A: Pulitzer-winning writer Welty: EUDORA. Nope, not a familiar name to me. Such a weathered face. EUDORA means "generous" in Greek, according to Dictionary.com.

96A: __ cordiale: friendly understanding: ENTENTE

98A: Tach readout: RPM

100A: "Whatever you want": NAME IT. "I wanna, I wanna..."

105A: Defraud: FLEECE

106A: Foreshadowed: PRESAGED

110A: K-12: ELHI. EL(ementary) + HI (gh-school).

111A: Teased: RODE. I did not know ride can mean "tease".

116A: Elton's "__ Song": YOUR. Beautiful song.

117A: 1999 Academy Honorary Award recipient: KAZAN (Elia). Not aware of this fact.

118A: Bop: CONK. On the head?

119A: Inched: CREPT

121A: Holst's "The Planets," for one: SUITE. Neither the composer Gustav Holst nor his work "The Planets' is familiar to me. Here is a clip.

122A: "Trick" joint: KNEE

123A: They're often bored: HOLES. Drill a hole. Love this clue too.

Down:

1D: Humid: MUGGY

2D: Compensate (for): ATONE

3D: Sodium, for one: METAL. Oh, I was thinking of my salt.

4D: Free-for-all: BRAWL

5D: "Impressive": OOH. And AWE (30D: Elicit a 5-Down)

6D: Klutz's cry: OH NO. Penned in OOPS of course.

7D: When hell freezes over, in verse: NE'ER. Another great clue. Hot!

8D: Inuit boat: KAYAK. Literally, "man's boat". Umiak means "woman's boat".

9D: Declare: PROCLAIM

10D: Hebrides hillside: BRAE. Another alliteration.

11D: Boys: LADS

13D: Inits. in nutrition: RDA

15D: Revisionist?: EDITOR. Can't fool me. Saw similar clue somewhere before.

17D: Heavy china material: IRONSTONE. New material to me. Looks heavy.

24D: Chamber work: OCTET. Sounds like a lot. What is the most popular Chamber Music ensemble? OCTET?

25D: Hurled: FLUNG. Slung too.

32D: Poses: ASKS. Thought of SITS.

34D: Modern journals: BLOGS

35D: Medical suffix: OMA. As in melanoma.

37D: Equilateral quadrilateral: RHOMBUS. I am having difficulty pronouncing the clue. Can't event tell sax from sex, for heaven's sake.

38D: Beauty groups: BEVIES. Bevy of beauties.

40D: Violinist Mintz: SHLOMO. Nope. He is an Israeli violinist. Wikipedia says Isaac Stern was his mentor.

41D: Heretofore: ERENOW

43D: Bygone GM line: OLDS. Gone in 2004.

44D: Refrain syllables: TRA LA

45D: Pen pal chatter?: OINKS. This clue is making all the pigs in the world happy. Hilarious.

46D: Decide: OPT. Not with a for?

47D: Primitive home: HUT

48D: Tranquilizing weapon: DART GUN. I was thinking of Taser.

50D: Attracted: DREW

54D: Linguist's subject: TENSE

55D: Swarm: TEAM

57D: Doesn't go along: OBJECTS. Like the verb here.

58D: Silent star Nita: NALDI. I tend to confuse this lady with the "Cleopatra" girl Theda Bara.

61D: Book with legends: ATLAS. And MAP (81D: 61Down component)

63D: Social rumblings: UNRESTS

65D: "The Little Red Hen" denial: NOT I. Ha ha, this is the first time I heard of "The Little Red Hen" story.

66D: Got the show on the road: TOURED

67D: Suspect: BE ONTO. Had difficulty obtaining this answer.

68D: "Let __!": high roller's cry: IT RIDE

69D: "__ Time": 70s musical: ONE MO'. Nope. Not even sure if this is the correct link.

70D: Tidy: KEMPT. I actually only know unkempt.

71D: Some are inflated: EGOS

76D: Md. athlete: TERP

77D: Trusted: IN THE LOOP. Can you give me an example?

79D: Line at the Old Vic: QUEUE. Perfect, perfect clue! British call their line QUEUE. Old Vic is the famous theatre in London. And its current artistic director is Kevin Spacey.

84D: Camper's aid: KNAPSACK

85D: Darth's daughter: LEIA

88D: Wrong, with "all": WET. All WET.

89D: Stumbled: ERRED

90D: Possession: HANDS. Why? I don't get it.

92D: Navigates: STEERS

93D: Common Market inits.: EEC (European Economic Community). Can never remember this abbreviation.

97D: Kisses and more: NECKS. Sweet clue!

99D: Bricklayer: MASON

101D: Prefix with __plex: METRO. Metroplex is new to me.

102D: Architect Sarrinen: ELIEL. Father of Eero, who appears in crossword often.

103D: Optimist's phrase: I HOPE. "WE CAN" jumped into my mind. It has 5 letters also.

105D: Popular boot brand: FRYE. Wikipedia says the FRYE Company claims to be the oldest continuously operated shoe company in the United States (since 1863).

106D: Exam for pre-srs.: PSAT. Why not just "Exam for jrs."?

108D: Code carrier: GENE. Wanted DNAS.

109D: 1980s speed skating gold medalist Karin: ENKE. No idea. Her Wikipedia entry shows that Karin ENKE is quite accomplished in the 1980s.

113D: Jr. Olympic Games sponsor: AAU (Amateur Athletic Union). Stymied again today.

114D: Commando's weapon: UZI. Often clued as "Israeli gun".

115D: 6-Down: in Essen: ACH

Answer grid.

Happy Mother's Day to all you moms!

C.C.

Sunday May 3, 2009 Gail Brabowski

Theme: Torn Fabric

23A: As it was formerly known, channel with the slogan "play every day": GAME SHOW NETWORK (Mesh)

32A: "Enough": THAT WILL DO (Twill)

43A: Waldo of kids' books, e.g.: HIDDEN IMAGE (Denim)

60A: Couldn't rush at rush hour: SAT IN TRAFFIC (Satin)

82A: "That used to be the cases": NOT ANY LONGER (Nylon)

96A: It can be seen from the Seine: EIFFEL TOWER (Felt)

103A: Safe bronzing product: SPRAY-ON TAN (Rayon)

123A: The Seattle Post-Intelligencer, e.g.: ONLINE NEWSPAPER (Linen)

Another smooth puzzle from Gail Grabowski. Very creative theme and great theme title. Out of those 8 long theme answers, I have never heard of Game Show Network. I only watch a bit of news and ball games every day. I faintly remember that the Seattle Post - Intelligencer went totally online in March. ONLINE NEWSPAPER is my favorite theme entry. It's topical. And I like the unexpected hidden LINEN fabric.

I thought all fabrics are all natural, you know, cotton, linen, satin/silk, mesh, twill, felt, etc. Nylon, rayon are man-made. I guess I am wrong.

I imagine Ms. Grabowski has a very pretty vegetable garden: tomatoes, bell peppers, green beans and various herbs. But I don't believe she grows or likes lima beans. Nobody ever calls lima beans LIMAS alone (64A: Succotash staples).

Someone asked last time what a cheater/helper square is. In today's grid, the single black square on the upper right corner (directly above NERO (22D: Fictional sleuth Wolfe) and lower left corner (directly below SPCA (103D: Gp. advocating adoption) are two examples. They are used to shorten fills (thus eliminate obscure answers) without increasing the word count.

Across:

1A: Dance floor flasher: STROBE. Is anyone a Phish fan?

14A: Big name in hotels: RITZ. Reminds me of PUT ON THE DOG last time. I wanted PUT ON THE RITZ.

16A: Biblical landfall: ARARAT. Noah's Ark landed on Mount ARARAT.

20A: Farm eatery?: LEA. Excellent clue.

21A: 2000s scandal subject: ENRON. My ENRON golf balls are not worth much.

26A: "The Cider House Rules" Oscar winner: CAINE (Michael). Unknown to me. Not familiar with the movie.

27A: Name to a position: APPOINT

28A: Gauguin's retreat: TAHITI. Here is Gauguin's "Two Women on the Beach" once again.

30A: Defeat: LOSS. Thought the clue was asking for a verb.

34A: Marine predator: ORCA. The killer whale.

42A: Cutter's cousin: SLOOP. Both Single-masted.

47A: Took the role of: ACTED AS

52A: Legal hurdle: BAR EXAM. And PRE-LAW (112A: Future litigator's study)

54A: Mil. bigwigs: GENS

55A: Olympics cheer: USA. Wanted OLE.

56A: Flimsy: LAME

57A: Platte River settler: OTO. "Prefix for ear" as well.

58A: Some e-mail receiver: PDAS. Wish I had some Research in Motion (the Blackberry manufacturer) stock.

63A: Candied veggie: YAM

66A: Yukon, e.g.: Abbr.: TERR. I was thinking of Yukon gold potato.

67A: Tiny arachnids: MITES. And GNAT (116D: Itty-bitty biter).

68A: Crew members: OARSMEN. Helsmen too.

70A: Broadway "Music Man" portrayer Robert: PRESTON. No idea. Wikipedia says he was in the film musical as well.

78A: Site of many styles: SALON. D'oh, hairstyle.

86A: Time alert: DING. Not fond of the clue, as ALERT is the answer for 106D: On one's toes.

87A: Short flight: HOP

88A: "Bonanza" brother: ADAM. Easy guess.

89A: Strauss's "__ Heldenleben": EIN. Stumped. It's literally "A Heroic Life".

90A: Lambaste: SLAM

92A: Rub the right way: MASSAGE. I love this clue.

94A: Hard to dispute, as a theory: TENABLE

98A: Select group: A-LIST. Wanted ELITE.

101A: Ben-Gurion Airport is its hub: EL AL. Hebrew for "skyward".

108A: Watch for cops, e.g.: ABET

113D: Intending: AIMING

117A: Seasonal dancing center?: MAYPOLE. No idea. Dictionary says people dance around the MAYPOLE during May Day celebration. Must be in Europe then.

128A: More chilling: EERIER

129A: Corpse sniffer of film: ASTA. "The Thin Man" dog.

131A: Web page stats: HITS

132A: Celtic rivals: LAKERS. Is it because last year's playoff? Why not "Clippers' rival"? Both of them are based in LA after all.

Down:

1D: Major account: SAGA. Love the clue. Last time our editor clued it as "Big account".

2D: Spider web, say: TRAP. "Golf hazard" too. There seems to be a golf term in every LAT puzzle. Rich Norris is a golfer. Today it's STANCE (99D: Golf lessons subject).

3DL Cloverleaf part: RAMP

4D: Cakesters brand: OREO. Holy moley, have never heard OREO Cakesters. Looks tasty.

5D: Herb garden herb: BASIL. The only herb I use is chives.

6D: Prefix with centric: ETHNO. Ethnocentric is a new word to me. I do know ETHNO is a prefix for culture though.

8D: Blogger's indulgence: RANT

9D: It might be harebrained: IDEA. Love this clue too.

11D: Slow-moving critters: SLOTHS. Penned in SNAILS first.

12D: Lofty: AERIAL. New definition of AERIAL to me. Can I say "It's an AERIAL goal"?

13D: Jabber: YAK

14D: Expense report need: RECEIPT

15D: Counting everything: IN ALL

16D: Warble: TRILL

17D: Subdivided: ZONED. Got the answer with Across help.

24D: NFL fifth quarters: OTS. Or "MLB 10th-inning".

25D: "The noblest frailty of the mind": Shadwell: WIT. Again, obtained the answer with Across help. I was not familiar with his line "And WIT's the noblest frailty of the mind".

29D: Like many families: TWO-CAR. Are you OK with the clue?

33D: Pub proposal: TOAST

34D: "I can hardly wait!": OH BOY

35D: Gaucho's lasso: RIATA. The ranch in "Giant" is REATA.

36D: Circ. info holder: CD-ROM

37D: Stock add-on: ADE. Stockade.

41D: Group meeting in the Palais du Luxembourg: SENAT. I did not know French Senate meet in the Palais du Luxembourg. I thought of NATO, whose members actually meet in Brussels.

44D: Clarify: EXPLAIN

45D: Bottom point: NADIR

48D: Small and sprightly: ELFIN. Can't get PIXIE out of my mind.

49D: Bonkers: DAFT

50D: Nice friend: AMIE. Nice is the French city.

55D: Like suspicious e-mail, usually: UNREAD. My first response: JUNKED.

59D: Biblical lion wrestler: SAMSON. Samsonite is named after this Biblical strongman.

68D: "Dreams From My Father" memoirist: OBAMA. See the bookcover.

69D: Track long shots: NAGS. What a shocking performance by Mine That Bird at the Derby yesterday. I picked No Where to Hide, but he turned out to be a No Where to Be Found.

71D: Icky stuff: SLIME

72D: Harmonic and melodic: TONAL. Mandarin Chinese/Cantonese are TONAL too. Cantonese has 9 tones, Mandarin 4.

73D: Gray area?: Abbr.: ANAT. Why?

74D: Valuable vein: LODE

77D: Ruckus: MELEE

79D: It's a wrap: SHAWL. Last time SARI was clued as "It's a wrap".

80D: Subject of Randy Wyatt's play "Synonymy": ROGET. Easy guess. Have never heard of the play. Did not know who Randy Wyatt is.

81D: Mimics: APERS

83D: Cowardly: YELLOW. Did not know YELLOW is slang for "cowardly". I actually thought cowardly is an adverb.

84D: '60s protest: LIE-IN. Like what John Lennon and Yoko ONO did?

85D: Epitome of thinness: RAIL. Really RAIL thin.

91D: Juilliard deg.: MFA. Master of Fine Art I presume. Why single out "Juilliard"?

95D: It includes Napa and Sonoma counties: BAY AREA. Unknown trivia to me. San Francisco is a lovely city.

97D: Southernmost of the 48 sts.: FLA

100D: Watched from behind: TAILED

104D: "The Devil Wears __": PRADA. Fun movie. Anna Wintour herself loves the film.

105D: Bank takebacks: REPOS

107D: Abbr. between a first and last name, maybe: NMI (No Middle Initial)

109D: Upscale auto: BMW. Just found out that BMW now owns Rolls-Royce.

111D: Very competitive: TYPE A. I was thinking of a normal adjective. Tricky clue. Dennis is a TYPE A, don't you think so?

114D: Foot part: INCH

115D: Radar's soda: NEHI. Learned from doing Xword. I've never had NEHI. Wikipedia says it's a a brand of Dr. Pepper Snapple Group now.

118D: Find a space: PARK

119D: Bee's charge?: OPIE. The Mayberry kid. This has become a gimmie to me. Ron Howard is so talented.

120D: Unwelcome eyeful: LEER. No LEER/OGLE wobbling this time.

Answer grid.

C.C.

Sunday, April 26, 2009 Norm Guggenbiller

Theme: Overheard at the Pub (SS → SH)

24A: Nearly matching outfit's problem?: A TOUCH OF CLASH (A Touch of Class)

47A: Wild zebra party?: STRIPED BASH (Striped Bass)

71A: Basket weaving operation?: MESHY BUSINESS (Messy Business)

94A: Ski house that rustles in the wind?: SWISH CHALET (Swiss Chalet)

118A: Washington nonsense?: POLITICAL BOSH (Political Boss)

3D: Frenzy over 1970s-'80s sitcom?: M*A*S*H HYSTERIA (Mass Hysteria)

67D: Assertive simians: BRASH MONKEYS (Brass Monkeys)

I like STRIPED BASH the most. SWISH CHALET is great too. Seeing DEE DEE (125D: Political pundit Myers) below POLITICAL BOSH made me laugh. Some of her views are indeed POLITICAL BOSH.

MESHY BUSINESS is partly transferred. I guess the constructor/editor needs an odd number 13- letter phrase at row #11 (the center theme in a grid has to have an odd number of letters). But they couldn't find a better one. Both MESHY DIVORCE and MESHY BEDROOM are one letter short. Maybe you can think of a better one?

I don't know the meaning of Brash Monkeys & Mass Hysteria. So the humor is lost on me there. My favorite clue today is DOC (12D: Dopey friend?). We had discussions on the 7 Dwarfs' names before. "Happy/Grumpy/Sleepy friend?" would be excellent too.

Tough struggle again. Too many unknowns for me. I felt like I was playing US Open with only 3 clubs in my bag: driver, 7-iron and putter. Some of the clues are tough. For example, OCT (54A: Natl. Pizza month). I would have got it if it were clued as "World Series month". Maybe not. The World Series month this year will extend to November.

Oh, I finally saw Bo Derk's TEN last night. And the RAVEL "Boléro" part kind of disappointed me. It's not as sexy as I had expected. Fun to see both TEN (5D: Perfection symbol) and RAVEL (55A: Tangle) in the grid though, though they are clued differently.

I found this similar themed puzzle in Jim's database. It has STRIPED BASH also.

Across:

1A: De Niro's "Raging Bull" role: LAMOTTA. Stumped immediately. Have never seen "Raging Bull". Not familiar with the boxer Jake LaMotta either. He is still alive. Wikipedia says he is also nicknamed "The Bronx Bull".

8A: Herod's fortress: MASADA. Hebrew for "fortress". Another stumper for me. See this picture. Did King Herod build it?

14A: "I can't be the only one thinking this": IS IT ME. Got it with the down help.

23A: Hustler's target: AMATEUR. I don't get this one. Why?

21A: Emcee's deliveries: INTROS

22A: "Sorry": NO SOAP. Did not come to me quickly. I've heard of this slang though.

23A: 32-Down player: COSTNER. And NESS (32D: Capone harasser). From "The Untouchables". Great movie.

26A: Repeat: ECHO

27A: Assimilate: ABSORB. And ATTUNE (83D: Adjust). Same first letter in one-word clue and one-word answer. I start to like this style now.

29A: Name in a B-29 lore: ENOLA. ENOLA Gay. Named after the pilot's mother.

30A: Play-__: DOH. You won't believe it. But really I've never heard of Play-DOH. I suppose the DOH is playing on "dough"?

31A: Sleep lab subject: INSOMNIAC

34A: Vibrations: TREMORS

40A: Zany Martha: RAYE. Very often COCA is clued as "Zany Imogene". Why "Zany" all the time"?

41A: Popular Apple: IMAC

43A: Inter __: ALIA. Among others. Et ALIA is "and others".

44A: Chooses not to accept: PASSED ON. Thought of OPTED OUT first.

50A: Terrestrial salamanders: EFTS. And newt. I learned both from doing Xword.

51A: Shade of gray: STEEL. Did not know STEEL can be a color.

60A: Muscular: TONED. Madonna is so thin now. Her arms are always very TONED. Notice the red string Cabala bracelet?

63A: Outcast: PARIAH

66A: Tonsillitis-treating MDS: ENTS. Trouble for me. I am used to the "Tolkien trees" clue. ENT is Ear, Nose, and Throat.

67A: Catch: BAG. Thought of NAB first.

70A: Brit. recording giant: EMI

75A: Play with robots: R.U. R. The Capek play where the word "robot" is introduced. I tanked. Might have got it if the clue were "Play about robots".

76A: Actor Stephen: REA. "The Crying Game" had a profound impact on me.

77A: Prefix with _ cardium: PERI. Pericardium is the membranous sac enclosing the heart. PERI is prefix "around", cardium denotes an organ/tissue associated with heart. New word to me.

78A: Currency exchange fee: AGIO. A word I keep remembering and keep forgetting.

79A: Zippo filler: BUTANE

82A: Taken for: SEEN AS

86A: Ice dams may form in them: EAVES. Have never heard of the term "ice dams".

91A: Full: SATED

93A: Cleft site: CHIN. I did not know there is a special term for this hollow area in the CHIN.

98A: Betrays, as a spouse: TWO-TIMES. Is there a THREE-TIME? I mean, it's not unusual for a man to cheat on his girlfriend also. By the way, what's your definition of "lovers"? Do they have to have a sexual relationship?

100A: "Fisherman with __": Bazille painting. A NET. Holy hot wick! Where is the fisherman? Where is the net?

102A: Dominican diamond family name: ALOU. Baseball diamond. Not the African diamond diamond. The last ALOU (Moisés ALOU) just retired from baseball.

105A: Sidekick played by Bruce Lee in '60s TV: KATO. From "The Green Hornet". I learned from doing Xword. His Lee has the same character (李) as the Li in Jet Li, just different spelling.

106A: "Romanoff and Juliet" playwright Peter: USTINOV. Nope. He does not look like a man with such a complicated surname. Have never heard of "Romanoff and Juliet" either.

108A: Bummed: SCROUNGED. I like this word. Lots of consonants.

111A: Stamp on a bad check: NSF

114A: Church law: CANON. I wonder where CANON Camera got its name.

116A: Point of maximum Earth-moon separation: APOGEE. Opposite perigee.

117A: Black & Decker rival: SKIL. I forgot this Bosche brand. It was clued as "Big name in tool" last time.

122A: Unlikely protagonist: NONHERO. My goodness. It's a real word.

126A: Web communications protocol: TELNET. No idea.

127A: Steak orders: RIBEYES. Want some?

128A: "Gunsmoke" star: ARNESS (James). His name escaped me this morning. I definitely googled him before. He was Marshal Dillon.

129A Ukrainian port: ODESSA

130A: Goes by: ELAPSES

Down:

1D: Tied: LACED. And LOOSES (103D: Unties).

2D: BP merger partner: AMOCO. Merged in 1998. BP is big in China, so is SHELL.

4D: "Airplane!" automatic pilot: OTTO. No idea. Not familiar with the movie "Airplane!". I can't find the name OTTO in this Wiki article. PILOT is also the answer for 81A: Light in the kitchen. But it's only 5 letter. Rich Norris says he will change if it's a long word (6-letter or more) dupe.

6D: Calendar abbr.: TUE. Too vague for me. I need a "Mon. follower" to get the answer.

7D: Rich tapestry: ARRAS

8D: Noxious influence: MIASMA. Metaphorical sense?

9D: Shakespeare title lover: ANTONY. "Antony & Cleopatra". Of course, Romeo came to me first.

10D: Levels: STORIES. British for floors, correct?

11D: Caribbean resort island: ARUBA. The Netherlands has had a strange reach in its history. It also ruled Taiwan from 1624 to 1662, hence the name Dutch Formosa.

13D: Tennis legend: ASHE

14D: Like current regulations: IN FORCE. Tough multiple word answer for me.

15D: Architectural column base: SOCLE. New word to me. Same as plinth?

16D: Capital ESE of Kabul: ISLAMABAD

18D: More, to Miguel: MAS. Know No MAS, No MAS.

19D: Bk. after Galatians: EPH. Before Philippians. I need to commit those Bible books and their order into memory.

25D: Ready in the keg: ON TAP

28D: Brunei's island: BORNEO. See this map. It's the world's third-largest island Island, after Green Land and New Guinea.

31D: Martinique, e.g.: ILE. I had no idea that Martinique belongs to France.

33D: Newspaper no. CIRC

36D: High ground: RISE. Not a familiar definition to me.

39D: Very, to Vivaldi: ASSAI. Allegro ASSAI, very quick.

42D: Two-part glove: MITTEN

44D: Sneeze inducer: PEPPERS

45D: Blazing: AFLAME

46D: Polo Grounds star: OTT (Mel). He played his entire career for NY Giant. HOFer of course.

48D: Where to see piggies: TOOTSIES. Had no idea that TOOTSIE is a slang for foot. Dictionary says it's also a slang for sweetheart/darling/prostitute. What a word!

49D: Prepare for the prom: DRESS UP. No prom in China.

52D: Modern bazaar: EBAY. I wanted MALL again.

53D: Rake over the coals: LAMBASTE. "Rake over the coals" is a new idiom to me.

57D: Somewhat wet: DAMPISH. Only know damp.

59D: Measuring device: GAUGE

62D: Fed. accident investigator: NTSB (National Transportation Safety Board). Created in 1975. I have trouble remembering this abbreviation also.
 
64D: Louse: HEEL

68D: Mame, to Patrick: AUNTIE. Blanked again. It's from AUNTIE Mame.

69D: Links targets: GREENS. Was thinking of the flags.

72D: Full house sign: SRO

73D: One with a take-out order: HIT MAN. "Take-out" means to murder. Great clue.

74D: New Rochelle college: IONA. See their logo GAELS. Makes great sense, since IONA is also a Scottish Island.

80D: Implied: TACIT

81D: Dust gun output: PESTICIDE. I did not know what a dust gun is.

86D: Birthright seller: ESAU. Often clued as "Biblical twin". Brother of Jacob.

87D: Botanical bristles: AWNS

88D: __: CONG: VIET. Vietnamese is so different in Chinese. I can't make sense of their language at all.

90D: Big bucks: ELKS. Great clue. ELKS are big. Those antlers make me headache.

95D: Buds: CRONIES. Always thought CRONY has a negative tone.

96D: Serious disorder: HAVOC

97D: Atlantic sport fish: TARPONS. Here is a big one. It's silvery. I wonder if the raw fish tastes good.

104D: "You __ Know": Alanis Morissette hit: OUGHTA. Here is the clip. Is it a very well-known song?

107D: The NBA's Archibald et al: NATES. Then NBA later appears as the answer for 123D: 123D: Wizards' grp.

109D: Coax, for instance: CABLE. Coax is short for coaxial. Coaxial CABLE. Hard for me.

110D: History or mystery: GENRE

112D: "Yes __!" SIREE

113D: Dentist's advice: FLOSS. New concept in China.

115D: Intl. alliance since 1949: NATO. Hmm, THE US is a NATO founding member. What a brutal fill the other day.

117D: George of the Jungle's pet elephant: SHEP. No idea. Have never head of "George of the Jungle". Thought it's a dog.

118D: Hi-tech organizer: PDA (Personal Digital Assistant). I am a low-tech dummy. Probably will never own a blackberry.

121D: Set the pace: LED. I like the tense ambiguity in set.

123D: "Starry Night", for example: OIL. Ah, have to show "Starry Starry Night" again. There is always yellow in Van Gogh's blue.

Answer grid.

C.C.