Sunday November 5, 2017 Mike Peluso

Theme: "Gridiron Glossary" - Football terms are re-phrased.

23A. Goose's medical concern? : LOSS OF DOWN. Geese seem to be here year-round now.

25A. F? : FALSE START. Creative clue.


45A. Ginger cookie factory statistic? : SNAP COUNT

69A What results from failure to stop at a deer crossing? : DELAY OF GAME. We saw two deer last time when we walked at Springbrook. They also have wild turkeys.

91A. So-so haul in the fishing industry? : FAIR CATCH

110A Home security system at no cost? : FREE SAFETY. Quite a few ADT signs in our neighborhood.


114A. "Hamlet" in progress? : PLAY ACTION
 
32D. Prohibited courtroom procedure? : ILLEGAL MOTION

35D. Unpleasant singles bar come-on? : OFFENSIVE LINE

Re-phrasing is one of my favorite theme types. You don't need to be a fan to solve the puzzle, though your enjoyment will be enhanced if you're into football or golf or other sports. Mike Peluso is a Seahawks fan, by the way.


Mike also arranged his theme entries nicely, placing 7 in Across and the two 13s in Down slots. Great design for a 9-themer.

Across:    

1. Museum curators' degs. : MFAs

5. Considers : DEEMS

10. "Ain't happening" : NOPE. Also 28. Ain't right? : AREN'T. So is IS NOT.


14. Hobbyist's knife : X-ACTO. Owned by Elmer's.

19. 1814-'15 exile site : ELBA

20. China's Zhou __ : ENLAI. I mentioned last time that he protected many from being persecuted during Culture Revolution. Read here to see how he helped the last wife of the last Chinese emperor.

21. Pats on the table : OLEO. Not on our table.

22. Tiger Woods has won a record 21 of them : ESPYs. Of course I was thinking of tournaments. Not that I can think of any. 
 
27. Basketball Hall of Fame coach Jerry : SLOAN. Wiki says "Sloan had a career regular-season win–loss record of 1,221–803, placing him third all-time in NBA wins at the time he retired. Sloan was only the fifth coach in NBA history to reach 1,000 victories and is one of two coaches in NBA history to record 1,000 wins with one club (the Utah Jazz)...."

30. Hastings head : LOO. Hastings is also a county here in MN.

31. Two-element tubes : DIODES

33. Energetic mount : STEED

34. One of Jupiter's Galilean moons : EUROPA. The only other Jupiter moon I know is LEDA.

38. Woody's son : ARLO

39. Ones with will power? : HEIRS. Nice clue.

41. Discontinued allergy brand : ACTIFED. Never heard of this brand.

42. Sundae topping item : WALNUT. Brain food.
 
49. Brut alternative : AFTA

50. What "L" may mean: Abbr. : LGE

51. Fared reasonably well : DID OK

53. Melodious : ARIOSE. Or ARIOSO.

55. Short albums, for short : EPs

56. Crystalline rocks : GEODES

58. __ to go: eager : RARIN'

60. Troubling spots : ACNE. Saw ACNES in a puzzle once and had to ask Argyle and D-Otto.

62. Longtime Priceline pitchman : SHATNER

64. Cries over : LAMENTS

66. Perp stopper : TASER

68. Beer ingredient : MALT

72. "__ le roi!" : VIVE

73. Equally irate : AS MAD

75. Male escorts : GIGOLOS. Learned this word from "American Gigolo".

76. Kenny Rogers quartet : EX-WIVES. Crossing 71. Joe Namath, notably : EX-JET. Tiny dupe. Also 14. Crosses off : X'ES OUT.

78. Socks : HOSE

79. Subject for Archimedes : LEVER

80. Convince using flattery : CAJOLE. Nice fill.

81. Window sill item : POT. Love my pot of rosemary. So good with roasted potatoes.

82. Yellow Teletubby : LAA LAA

85. Kitchen gadget : CORER

86. Hasty departure : LAM

89. Enthused : AVID
 
94. Raising a ball, with "up" : TEEING

96. "Il Trovatore" heroine : LEONORA. Also 101. Verdi title bandit : ERNANI. Both learning moments for me.

98. Stop before surgery : PRE-OP

100. Pesky biter : GNAT

102. Invigorate Dry Spray maker : ARRID

104. Soprano Fleming et al. : RENEEs. Also 57. James and Jones of jazz : ETTAs

107. Private eye : TEC

108. Manila envelope feature : CLASP

109. Infamous fictional motel : BATES. That's a scary movie.
 
119. Martini partner : ROSSI
 
120. Logical beginning? : IDEO. Ideological.

121. Long-legged fisher : EGRET

122. Sein, across the Rhine : ETRE. I did not know the the meaning of Sein, "to be" in German.

123. Lessen : ABATE

124. Swiss capital : BERN

125. DEA activity : RAIDS

126. Connecticut senator Chris : DODD. Former.
  

Down:
 
1. 2-Down's boss : MEL. And 2. 1-Down's sitcom employee : FLO

3. Crunch targets : ABs

4. Hairstyling legend : SASSOON. Here is one of their ads in China.

5. Friday creator : DEFOE (Daniel)

6. Hyphen relative : EN DASH

7. North Carolina university : ELON

8. Cavernous opening : MAW

9. Rat Pack leader : SINATRA

10. Like some bank services : NO FEE

11. Chan portrayer : OLAND (Warner). Charlie Chan.

12. Bombard : PELT

13. Daybreak deity : EOS
 
15. Oregon port : ASTORIA

16. Auditing pro : CPA

17. Norse war god : TYR. MARS in Roman.

18. Opposite of west, in Dortmund : OST

24. Stale : OLD

26. Puts into office : ELECTS

29. Court defendant: Abbr. : RESP (Respondent)

31. Bore : DRAG
 
33. Go down : SINK

36. Tardy people, to some : PET PEEVE. You won't ever find Boomer late. He's always a few minutes earlier, rain or snow.

37. Courtroom figs. : ADAs

38. Leatherwork tool : AWL

40. Those, in Oaxaca : ESOS
 
41. "Is that __?" : A NO

43. Hokkaido noodle : UDON. I love seafood udon. 

44. Helped through a tough time, with "over" : TIDED

46. Tend to : CARE FOR

 47. Letter-shaped gaskets : O-RINGS

48. Utah range : UINTA. Looks like a great hiking spot. I recall Dave linked this clip once. I reached all the peaks.

52. Loosening of govt. standards : DEREG

54. Take in : EAT
 
58. Duracell competitor : RAYOVAC

59. Whac-__ : A-MOLE

61. Nitpick : CAVIL

62. Wee, in Dundee : SMA

63. Discuss in detail : HASH OVER
 
64. California-based shoe company : LA GEAR

65. Feature of a no-holds-barred campaign : SMEAR. Politics can be so ugly.

67. Legal thing : RES
 
70. Actress Palmer : LILLI
 
74. Costa __ Sol : DEL

77. Eroded : WORE

80. Pacific salmon : COHO. Huge.

81. Ashen : PALE

83. Toto hit that mentions Kilimanjaro : AFRICA. Helpful hint.

84. Routing org. : AAA

85. Included in the email loop, briefly : CC'ED
 
87. Santa __: dry winds : ANAs

88. Corp. big shots : MGT

90. Proof of paternity, perhaps : DNA TEST

92. Loan figs. : APRS. Annual Percentage Rate.

 93. The Beatles' "Day __" : TRIPPER

95. Spewed : EGESTED

97. Baby's first garment : ONESIE

99. Implored : PRAYED

102. Not leave as is : ALTER

103. Belted tire synthetic : RAYON
 
105. La Floride et La Virginie : ETATS. Interesting, states are all feminine. I think Mike speaks fluent French.


106. Japanese chip maker : NEC

108. Turn over : CEDE

109. Adriatic port : BARI

110. Monastery title : FRA
 
111. Carl's director son : ROB. Mel Brooks mentioned in a interview that he and Carl Reiner meet every day. They love watching movies together and chatting. 

112. Conductor __-Pekka Salonen : ESA

113. It's not a bad lie : FIB. I was picturing a golf ball in an uphill lie. Definitely not a bad lie. Easy to hit.


115. JFK alternative : LGA

116. Simpson trial judge : ITO
 
117. Command from a maj. : ORD. OK, order.

118. Actor Beatty : NED

Sunday Oct 29, 2017 Bruce Haight

Theme:  "Urbanagrams"- Each theme entry is a major US city and its anagram.

23A. A few bars in the West? : SAN DIEGO SONG IDEA

37A. Ticketholder's entitlement in the Southwest? : SANTA FE FAN SEAT

51A. Stage handles in the West? : SACRAMENTO ACTOR NAMES

72A. Complex papers for a pad in the West? : LOS ANGELES LONG LEASES

86A. Do stuff in the Southeast? : RALEIGH HAIR GEL

102A. Heavyweights in the Midwest? : COLUMBUS SUMO CLUB

Puzzle titles don't always reveal the gimmick easily, but this one does, though it won't help your solving much.

You can probably anagram lots of other cities, but your entries have to have enough surface sense and humor value. Otherwise, you won't tickle Rich. You cities have to be big, not EDINA.

Though only 6 entries, they're all very long and occupy a total 100 theme squares. The grid is very Bruce. Very clean & lively. And you'll always see a few entries in his puzzles.

Across:
      
1. Choir voice : ALTO

5. Van Gogh setting : ARLES

10. They might be hatched : PLOTS. Three consecutive gimmes in a row.

15. Jazz trumpeter Jones : THAD. This got me last time.

19. Collectible fossil : SHARK TOOTH. We don't often see long non-themer in Across. How many teeth do you think a shark has?

21. Sound : AUDIO

22. Hamburger man : HERR

25. First name in household humor : ERMA

26. "Don't __" : ASK

27. Twinkle __: Skechers brand : TOES. Guessable. Cute.

28. The palm and olive of Palmolive : OILS

29. Reason to use litmus paper : PH TEST

31. Rubber? : MASSEUR. Nice clue.

33. iPad model : MINI. And 50. Apple since 1998 : iMAC. Also 66. Jobs in the tech industry : STEVE

34. Lumber mill fixtures : RIPSAWS. One of the flea market guys here is specialized in tools. His saws go quite quickly. He always yells at his customers.

36. Gallery works : ART

40. Helps plan a job, maybe : ABETS

43. Cry of exasperation : AARGH

44. Crushed, as a test : ACED

45. Priestly garment : ALB. Learned from doing crosswords.

46. Hot : SEXY

47. Puma competitor : AVIA

48. Place to get off: Abbr. : STA

49. Horse fathers : SIRES. Not "Horse feathers".

57. Wearer of a "Y" sweatshirt : ELI. Yale Bulldogs.

58. Feathered indoor flier : DART. I was picturing fruit flies.

59. Less contaminated : PURER

60. Nabokov novel : ADA

61. Pot cover : TEA COZY. Not on my tea pot.


63. Saturn's largest moon : TITAN

64. Media holder : DVD CASE. Four consonants in a row.

68. "I'm close to winning!" game cry : UNO

69. "__ what?": "What next?" : SO NOW

70. Capsizing deterrent : KEEL

71. Frat house "H" : ETA. We also have 15. Sorority letters : THETAs

77. First of 12 popes : PIUS I

78. Ref. updated quarterly : OED. I brought a Chinese-English dictionary when I came to the US. Have not needed it for ages. Google Translate solves all my problems.

79. Dress like, for the costume party : GO AS

80. "High-__!" : FIVE

81. Mtn. stat : ALT

82. Wee : ITTY

83. Matches a bet : CALLS

85. Social conventions : MORES. Not NORMS.

90. Old Prizm maker : GEO

91. Yoga move named for a pet : CAT POSE

92. Trading post wares : FURS

93. Colonist : SETTLER
 
97. Summer line : IT'S HOT. We just had our first snow.

98. Extended rental? : LIMO. Another great clue.

99. Fancy cracker spread : PATE. Try the spread on Aldi's crackers.

100. Flurry : ADO

101. Actress Moreno : RITA

107. Eclipse, maybe : OMEN

108. Aardwolf relative : HYENA. Hey, are you guys relatives?

Aardwolf

Hyena

109. Daytona 500, e.g. : NASCAR RACE. Another debut.


110. Give up : CEDE

111. Test for purity : ASSAY
 
112. Lavished attention (on) : DOTED

113. Wasn't square with : OWED
  
Down:
  
1. Indian state bordering Bangladesh : ASSAM

2. Two-mile-high capital : LHASA. In China, we spell it La Sa. You can see the Chinese characters here. Both Shanghai and Lhasa are two-word names in Chinese.

3. Loses on purpose : TANKS

4. Chicago airport code : ORD

5. Dined at a restaurant, say : ATE OUT. In Las Vegas, many places have soy sauce on the table. Makes me so happy. My favorite.

6. "Copy that" : ROGER

7. Heads of Parliament? : LOOS

8. Sci-fi staples : ETs

9. Driving away : SHOOING

10. "Without a Trace" actor Anthony La__ : PAGLIA. His face is familiar, not the name.

11. Wilder's "The Bridge of San __ Rey" : LUIS

12. Unmatched : ODD

13. Make, as a knot : TIE

14. S.O.S, for one : SOAP PAD. I love those S.O.S. pads. They work miracles.

16. "This is our stop" : HERE WE ARE

17. Weaponry transfers : ARMS SALES. Sparkly pairs of 9's. 

18. "Darn it!" : DRAT

20. Writers of bad checks : KITERS

24. Inning often not finished : NINTH. Bottom of the ninth.

30. QVC competitor : HSN
 
32. Mythical forest flutist : SATYR

33. Corday victim : MARAT. This was covered in our world history book also.

34. Parish head : RECTOR

35. Lead-in to bad news : I FEAR

37. Epitome of virtue : SAINT

38. Buckle or button : FASTEN. Also 56. Fleshy "buttons" : NAVELS

39. NCAA Final Four broadcaster : TBS

40. Selling point : ASSET

41. Bluesy Memphis street : BEALE

42. No longer working for The Company : EX-CIA. Notice the capitalized "The".

43. Animator Tex : AVERY
 
47. Online retail giant : AMAZON. I've never shopped at Walmart website. You? Their model is quite similar to Amazon's.

49. Seat at the racetrack : SADDLE

52. God, in Hebrew : ADONAI

53. Sound off : OPINE

54. Rush hour glut : AUTOS. Followed by 55. Rush hour pace : CRAWL
 
62. Talk a blue streak? : CUSS

63. "Ha! I was right!" : TOLD YA

64. Painter of ballerinas : DEGAS
 
65. Norse pantheon : AESIR. They live in Asgard.



67. Soothes : EASES

69. Boil : SEETHE

70. Round mound : KNOLL. The only one I know is that Grassy Knoll.

72. 1928 Gary Cooper romance in which a bouquet plays a vital role : LILAC TIME. Unfamiliar to me.

73. Went longer than : OUTLASTED

74. Invaders of ancient Rome : GOTHS

75. More than checks out : OGLES

76. In progress : AFOOT. And 84. Beached : AGROUND. Both solid A-words.

77. What one never is on a golf course : PAR. I was thinking you can have 1 on a par 3 or par 4 hole, if you're really lucky/good. But 1 is never a par.

82. Prankster's cry : I GOTCHA

83. Only speck of food the Grinch left in each Who's house : CRUMB

85. Shower component : METEOR. Meteor shower.


87. Flammable gas : ETHANE

88. NYSE news : IPO

89. "Let me just interject ... " : IF I MAY

90. Blow a gasket : GET MAD

93. Hooch : SAUCE

94. Old NBC legal drama : LA LAW. Also 96. Covered in court : ROBED

95. Draw forth : EDUCE

97. __-Z: classic Camaro : IROC

98. Moon goddess : LUNA. Chinese Moon goddess is Chang'e, who lives in the moon. That's why we eat mooncakes during Mid-Autumn Festival.

99. Vocal nudge : PSST

103. Yiddish laments : OYs
 
104. French article : LES

105. __ Paulo : SAO

106. HUN neighbor, to the IOC : CRO (Croatia)

C.C.

Crosswords LA 2017 puzzle pack is now on sale. Click here. Only $5. The proceeds go to Reading to Kids. Alex Boisvert is the puzzle wrangler/editor this year. See here for the first-ever all-women constructor team.

Wednesday, October 25, 2017, Gail Grabowski and Bruce Venzke

TITLE: "SOUP'S ON!"

Gail and Bruce have produced another Wednesday winner with this entertaining puzzle employing a food theme shown in the reveal which is in the Down clues whereas the theme answers are in the Across batch:

Reveal:

43. "Dinner!" ... and a hint to the first word of 21-, 27-, 44- and 53-Across : LET'S EAT - Shown here in an amusing version of grace

First of all let's see the hands of those who wish this had been a Thursday puzzle so our resident gourmand Steve could have waxed gastronomically! One, two, three... Let's see counting me that's everybody! 

C'est la vie, you will have to make do with the "meat and taters" guy from the great plains - Husker Gary, who also did C.C.'s EAT UP titled puzzle from Sunday, October 15. 

Here are Gail and Bruce's themers where each has a first word denoting what you might find on your plate and an entire phrase starting with that word:

21. Finishing a sentence? : SERVING TIME - A single portion at a meal or OJ being dismissed from a Nevada prison at midnight to avoid publicity after nine years of SERVING TIME for trying to recover some memorabilia at gun point but not for...

27. Diagram on a golf score card : COURSE LAYOUT - One of the parts of a meal or the perhaps the most beautiful COURSE LAYOUT anywhere with hole #7 shown at the top of the poster and  jutting out into the ocean in the bottom middle of the map

44. Bad news for subway riders : FARE INCREASE - What might be available on a menu or what some of us remember when the Kingston Trio exhorted us to "fight the FARE INCREASE, Vote for George O'Brien, Get poor Charlie off the MTA!"

53. Grammatically, "have" in "I have spoken," e.g. : HELPING VERB - How much you are served or a non-intimidating example of the sample sentence

Let's get some HELPINGS of the FARE Gail and Bruce have for us in the COURSE of this puzzle that is SERVING our gaming appetites and HELPING getting our midweek off to a great start: 


Across

1. Bunches of bucks : WADS - She is WADDING up her caught cash in an interesting place

5. Strip of latticework : LATH

9. Expels : OUSTS

14. For each one : A POP - A dollar A POP for a serving of corn is a "bucaneer"

15. Jackson 5 hair style : AFRO

16. IV part : INTRA - What my INTRAVENOUS remicade routine looks like every eight weeks

17. Stacy Lewis' org. : LPGA - My mental WNBA/LPGA coin flip was wrong first 

18. Severely harm : MAIM

19. Use, as for a snooze : LIE ON - This is how I remember

20. "Well, __-di-dah!" : LAH - Close enough and extremely funny

23. In the air : ALOFT - Airplanes ALOFT in early morning of 9/11/2001. The skies were empty in a matter of hours.

25. Ancient Peruvian : INCA

26. "Fresh Air" airer : NPR

31. Attachment to a movable sprinkler : HOSE - How about getting water from a HOSE and becoming a moving human sprinkler

32. Divinity school subj. : REL

33. John Irving title writer : GARP - The character GARP becomes a writer in Iriving's Oscar Award Winning Screenplay The World According To GARP

36. Romantically involved with : SEEING

38. Oscar Mayer product : WIENER - I wish I were...

40. "And she shall bring forth __": Matthew : A SON - That season is getting close in all the stores since we are nearing Halloween.

41. Bordeaux brushoff : NON - A note in a French middle school - Pensez-vous comme moi ? Oui/NON (Do you like me? Yes/No)

42. Co. known for music compilations : KTEL - They "hooked" me. Ya gotta love Beethoven to a disco beat!

48. VW preceders? : STU - Cool clue! ...m n o p q r S T U V W x y z and

57. Letters between mus and xis : NUS - There is Nu between Mu and Xi

51. Fabric mishap : TEAR

52. Grecian urn glorifier, e.g. : ODIST - Yeah, I'm the only one who had to erase KEATS!

58. Ball co-star : ARNAZ - And cheating husband

59. Revered Tibetan : LAMA

60. Paltry : MERE

61. Author Kafka or composer Liszt : FRANZ

62. City west of Tulsa : ENID - The Enid Storm Shelter company sells these

63. Neck of the woods : AREA - In this AREA, Husker fans who were used to quality football are getting 64. Short-tempered : TESTY

65. College Board exams, for short : SATS

66. Wordless summons : PSST - PSST, wanna buy a Rolex...

Down

1. Character actor Eli who often co-starred with his wife Anne Jackson : WALLACH

2. Horse with a spotted coat : APPALOOSA - This beautiful one was, uh, spotted in New Zealand

3. Backyard pet shelters : DOGHOUSES - They make a husband version

4. Massage venue : SPA

5. Unconvincing, as excuses go : LAME

6. A long way off : AFAR

7. Barely worth mentioning : TRIVIAL - The eighth most sold board game of all time. It rans  between Othello and Pictionary. BTW, Chess was number one.

8. Grits, essentially : HOMINY

9. Dashboard indicator : OIL GAUGE

10. Textbook division : UNIT

11. Oktoberfest keepsake : STEIN

12. Beat the pants off : TROMP - _____ U. was TROMPED by ____ U. Nebraska used to be the object of the preposition and not the subject of that sentence.

13. More reasonable : SANER

21. GPS lines : STS - Here are some STreetS of 49. __ Haute : TERRE -  TERRE Haute, Indiana on the banks of the Wabash

22. Cpl., for one : NCO - As in Cpl. Maxwell Q. Klinger

24. No longer encumbered by : FREE OF 

28. South end? : ERN - The southERN most major street in this 60. 27-Across, essentially : MAP is Washington Street 

29. Journey segment : LEG

30. Did terribly : TANKED

34. Orthodontic devices : RETAINERS - I have had many very expensive RETAINERS lost by students on my many trips to Florida

35. Lays a guilt trip on, say : PRESSURES - Part and parcel of some family events 

37. Nervously distracted : IN A TIZZY - Where guilt trips can put you 

38. Took the title : WON

39. Business abbr. : INC

41. State of bliss : NIRVANA

45. Stimpy's sidekick : REN - Am I missing anything by not having seen this 'toon pair?

46. NFC East team : EAGLES - The EAGLES at the only school where I sub these days

47. Take the wrong way? : ROB

48. Unfair treatment, with "the" : SHAFT - She got the elevator and I got the SHAFT

50. Forearm bones : ULNAS - TESTY eliminated ULNAE

54. Breathe hard : PANT

55. Give off : EMIT

56. X-ray units : RADS - Originally defined in terms of our crossword buddy ERGS

The Grid:

Now, how 'bout a healthy portion of your wit and wisdom:

Sunday Oct 22, 2017 Garry Morse

Theme: "Mending Things"- M-ending. M sound is added to each theme entry, changing spelling as needed.

23A. Result of failing to catch a wascally wabbit? : ELMER'S GLOOM. Elmer's Glue.

25A. Viral video about Dre's headphones? : BEATS MEME. Beats me. Beats by Dr.
 
56A. "I'm the best on the runway," e.g.? : MODELING CLAIM. Modeling clay.

78A. Herb served only on trains? : RAILROAD THYME. Railroad tie.

113A. Floral stench? : BLOOM FUNK. Blue funk.

115A. Poor prompt to a friend who's been asked what the capital of Alaska is? : JUST SAY NOME. Just Say No.

38D. British cop's heartthrob? : BOBBY FLAME. Bobby Flay.

43D. Some "Ghostbusters" jokes? : SLIME HUMOR. Sly humor.

What a nice title. It captures the sound change gimmick perfectly.

Two changes in first words, six changes in last word. Very consistent. Jeffrey did a similar M-ending puzzle last year. His gimmick involved the second word only. Fun to compare both puzzles. 

Across:
     
1. "Take __!" : THAT. Not CARE.

5. Follower of Zeno : STOIC

10. Revelatory moments : AHAs

14. Concert site : HALL

18. Gives a shine to : WAXES

20. Conveyor connected to a pump : AORTA. Heart pump.

21. Norse trickster : LOKI. Pronounced like "low-key".

22. Mayberry redhead : OPIE

27. Ultimate : EVENTUAL

28. Barak of Israel : EHUD. Prime Minister of Israel from 1999 to 2001.

30. Victim of Casca : CAESAR. Casca attacked Caesar first.

31. Litany from a lying perp : DENIALS

32. Pasta wheat : DURUM. Latin for "hard".

34. Ad hoc gp. : COMM. Committee.

35. ISP alternative : DSL

36. "C'mon, bro!" : AW MAN!

37. Landlocked African land : ZIMBABWE. Sadza (white cornmeal) is a staple there.

41. "Are not!" evoker : AM SO

44. Holiday seasons : YULES

46. Underwater stabilizer : KEEL

48. Embellish : ADORN. Are those sprinkles on the plate dried herbs?

49. Tops off : FILLS

51. Zip : NIL

52. Seriously hurt : MAIM

54. StubHub parent company : EBAY

55. Young Darth's nickname : ANI

62. Hang-thread link : BY A

63. Inviting words : COME ON IN

65. Risk it : DARE. And 118. A risk might be taken on one : LARK. Not DARE.

66. Like some R-rated films : RACY

68. Took an arduous trip : TREKKED

69. "Sexy" Beatles woman : SADIE

70. Pathetic : PITIFUL

73. Walk obediently : HEEL

74. Biceps exercise : CHIN

75. "You're not done talking, are you?" : WHAT ELSE

76. Soccer phenom Freddy : ADU. Once touted as The Next Pelé.

82. Wore (away) : ATE

83. NASA vehicles : LEMs

85. Court entry : PLEA

86. Barrel contents : OIL

87. Any of three Ottoman sultans : AHMED. New to me. It means "highly praised" in Arabic.

89. Beef recall cause : E. COLI

91. Poetic foot : IAMB

93. Mideast capital at 7,380 feet : SANA'A

95. Hefty refs. : OEDs. Oxford English Dictionary.

96. Toyota compacts : COROLLAs

98. Somewhat high : TIPSY

100. Not cloudy: Abbr. : CLR. OK. Clear. We just had a beautiful week here in MN. Amazing to walk on fallen leaves in summer-like weather. 

102. Tidy the garden, in a way : WEED

103. Charge : RUN AT

104. It precedes some hockey games : O CANADA

108. Creativity result : OUTPUT

111. Hall of Fame catcher Carlton : FISK. So who is your favorite all-time catcher?

112. Sweater type : CARDIGAN

119. Rickey flavoring : LIME

120. __ nous : ENTRE

121. Half a '60s-'70s pop duo : SONNY

122. Poker game starter : ANTE. And 124. Poker game betrayals : TELLS

123. 2000, for one : YEAR

125. Where Nike has no "i," briefly : NYSE. Nike stock ticker is NKE.

Down:

1. Suit material : TWEED

2. Cut in two : HALVE

3. Corporate heavies : AX MEN. Is this a common saying?

4. Young star : TEEN IDOL

5. They go on for generations : SAGAS

6. Turnpike fee : TOLL

7. Medalla de victor : ORO

8. Skater Midori : ITO

9. Smartphone feature : CAMERA

10. "Dark Sky Island," e.g. : ALBUM. Clue echo at 40. "Dark Sky Island" musician : ENYA.

11. Did some gardening : HOED

12. Alias preceder : AKA

13. Without ads, it's usually about 21 or 22 minutes : SITCOM

14. Like much jam : HOMEMADE. Pickling was quite popular when I grew up. Probably because sugar was rationed, no one made jam. I have fond memories of a mulberry tree.

15. Copies : APES

16. __ bean : LIMA

17. Inappropriate look : LEER

19. Sp. lasses : SRTAs

24. 2016 film subtitled "Miracle on the Hudson" : SULLY

26. Latin dance : SAMBA

29. Eye-opener at the gym : HUNK. Such an unexpected answer.

32. Live : DWELL

33. Uncertain sounds : UMs

34. Eyelashes : CILIA. Learned form doing crosswords.

36. Not from around here : ALIEN

37. Enthusiasm : ZEAL

39. "King Kong" (1933) actress : WRAY (Fay)

41. "It's __!": "True!" : A FACT

42. Bouncer's concern : MINOR

45. Reversed : UNDID

47. Host : EMCEE

50. Barbecue equipment using wood : SMOKER

53. Sister of Moses : MIRIAM. This stumped me before.

57. Swimmer's unit : ONE LAP

58. Panhandle state : IDAHO

59. Gymnast Comaneci : NADIA

60. Tedious work : GRIND

61. Kathy of country : MATTEA

64. Barely get, with "out" : EKE

67. Co. in Cannes : CIE

69. "Get lost!" : SCRAM

70. Kingdom subdivisions : PHYLA. Plural of phylum.

71. "¿Cómo está __?" : USTED

72. __ United: English soccer team : LEEDS. Anyone remember Steve's team?


75. Sniveling : WHINY

76. Smart guy? : ALEC

77. Art __ : DECO

79. Homeric epic : ILIAD

80. Beethoven strolled in them for inspiration : LEAS.  I thought the answer would be German for "parks".

81. Done for : TOAST. Yay, Astros! Good to see you back, TTP!


84. Highway hazard : SLOWPOKE

88. Interfere with : HORN IN ON

90. Intestinal section : ILEUM. Plural ILEA.

92. A/C measure : BTUs

93. Day or nail follower : SPA

94. West African capital : ACCRA

97. Uncork, so to speak : LET FLY

99. Laser alternative : INKJET

101. __ man : LADY'S. Not an easy fill-in-the-blank. So many choices.

103. "Star Trek: TNG" first officer : RIKER (Will). Another learning moment.

104. Refreshment spots : OASES

105. Extreme pain : AGONY

106. Condemns : DAMNS

107. In the blink of __ : AN EYE

108. Beatles nonsense syllables : OB-LA

109. __ Bator : ULAN. Beautiful name in Chinese.

110. Battery, e.g. : TORT

111. Low-cost home loan org. : FNMA

112. Bottom row PC key : CTRL

114. Turn often prohibited, slangily : UIE

116. French article : UNE

117. Home of the NHL's Blues : STL