Saturday, Jan 11th, 2014, Timothy, L. Meaker

Theme: None

Words: 72 (missing J,K,Q,V,W,Z)

Blocks: 37

   I have not had the opportunity to blog a puzzle from Mr. Meaker, and I did not see an interview from our "11d.", C.C.  I did review his other LAT contributions, and there seems to be a consistency in his cluing and answers.  I have to admit, this one was a pretty smooth solve for a Saturday, with an odd, patchy grid, and few long stacks; there were several unique answers, plus a generous amount of three-letter words.  Some of the longer fill for today;

12A. 1964 Glenn Ford/Geraldine Page romantic comedy : DEAR HEART - I started with DEATHTRAP, which fit, but was a 1982 film with Michael Caine and Christopher Reeve

54A. Ben & Jerry's, e.g. : TRADE NAME - IMHO, the best flavor, and not because I'm in NY

9D. Focus of a 1990 psychology best-seller : INNER CHILD - more here

25D. Idaho/Wyoming landscape : TETON RANGE - run with the buffaloes here~!

ONWARD~!!!!

ACROSS:

1. '70s quartet consisting of two married couples : ABBA - Well, how many 4-letter 70's groups were there with two men, and two women?

5. Wall St. strategy : LBO - Leveraged Buy-Out

8. Addams family nickname : TISH - Gomez's nickname for the 'wifey' Morticia

15. Seek protection from : RUN TO (you)

16. Cub leader : DEN MOTHER - I had DEN MASTER first - close enough to get a start in the NW

17. Laura of "ER" : INNES

18. Wait : STAY PUT - STAND BY fit, too

19. All thumbs : UNADEPT - my 'meh' word

21. See 59-Across : BOP; 59. With 21-Across, Cyndi Lauper hit : SHE - there was some controversy over this song, as it refers to masturbation....

22. Sequence often seen above WXYZ : MNO - I semi-cheated; I knew it was letters on the phone, but I had to look

23. Training systs. : RRs - um, not really sure; I believe this is about the P/RR/S weight training system, but it could also be about RailRoad trains, really....

24. Words with end or angle : AT AN

26. Get real : FACE FACTS

29. They may be tapped : ALES - had KEGS

30. __-Turkish War : ITALO

31. __ polloi : HOI - Greek for "majority", it now carries a pejorative sense of "commoners"

32. Portable storage container : TOTE BOX

35. 1948 Literature Nobelist : T.S. ELIOT

37. "Well, well!" : O-HO~!!

38. Actress Ryan : IRENE

40. Paris pronoun : ELLE

41. Complex : MANY-SIDED

43. They're not gentlemen : CADS

44. Letters concerning available space : SRO - Standing Room Only; I thought it might be S.FT, or SQ.I, as in square feet/inches

45. Eye : ORB - Poetry and crossword standard

46. Sci-fi escape craft : POD - ah, the escape pod - Star Wars, Alien, The Fifth Element...

47. "All greased up and ready to sing" '70s-'80s TV hosts : SHA-NA-NA - Osmonds fit, too, but they weren't 'greased up' - at least, not ON TV....

49. Early NASA probe : MARINER - The Venus missions

53. Delhi tongue : HINDI

56. Advocated : URGED

57. Deadlock breaker : EXTRA TIME

58. Road to the Forum : ITER - Straight Latin for road

60. More than just thought-over : ORAL - I don't really understand this clue/answer, but you should try putting the whole thing into Google - BE WARNED~!!!

DOWN:

1. Puts in : ADDS

2. Red shade : BEET

3. "Hulk" star Eric : BANA

4. Where to see major decisions? : ARMY BASE - major as in the rank and officer

5. Slacken : LET UP

6. 100 satang : BAHT - Thailand

7. No ordinary rock : ORE - No ORE-dinary rock?

8. Much of Siberia : TUNDRA - I didn't know there were that many Toyotas in Russia - oh, wait, never mind....

10. Reach extenders : STEP STOOLS - mini-ladders with no hand-rails, essentially

11. Party person : HOST - Splynter has a new interest in the hostess at the Italian restaurant - don't worry, C.C., I don't think she's Russian.... (From C.C.: Sweet!)

13. Hayride invite : HOP ON - uh, yeah, hayrides....

14. Shortened : TRUNCATED - maybe Owen can come up with a DF poem using a great many of the clue/answers of today's puzzle

15. Narrow inlet : RIA

20. Much December radio fare : NOELS - not for another 11 months

22. Showerside item : MAT

24. Colorful top : ALOHA SHIRT - What I call a Hawaiian shirt, learned from doing crosswords

26. Loan offer : FIXED RATE

27. Opponent : FOE

28. Web extension? : SITE - Website

29. Energy source : ATOM

33. Start of an early Grafton title : B IS - for Burglar

34. Victim of Artemis : ORION - I love the time of year when Orion, the constellation, is visible, roughly Sept to March; the story goes that Orion was bitten and killed by Scorpio, and therefore in the 'other half' of the night sky

36. Provide a segue for : LEAD INTO

39. Great Plains st. : NEBraska - Hmmm, I think there's one or two guys from the blog there

42. Over there : YONDER

43. Jazz contemporary of Hancock and Jarrett : COREA - Chick Corea, Herbie Hancock, and the one I had not heard of, Keith Jarrett - a little piano piece from him

46. 1998 World Series player : PADRE - San Diego - beaten by the damn Yankees

47. Feng __ : SHUI - With the limited space I have, I try and practice this art; however, I do have a mirror and a flat-screen TV (both about the same size and shape) in the bedroom, and both face the bed - this is not good feng shui, tho I did know this, and could possibly hang a curtain in front of the mirror

48. Support : AID

49. Fermat's forte : MATH - another semi-shout-out to a blog regular

50. Hair-removal brand : NAIR

51. 1815 title character who "thought a little too well of herself" : EMMA - I tried EYRE, but that left me with TRADE NAYE and EXTRA TIRE - well, the latter could have been clued as "SPARE"

52. Stagger : REEL

55. Med. orders : RXs - Prescriptions

Splynter

Monday, January 9, 2012 Timothy L. Meaker

Theme: Letter Progression - All the first words of each 2-word phrase have 6 letters, all in the pattern of "B + vowel + TT??". The middle vowel progresses from A through U.

17A. Military strategy : BATTLE PLAN

21A. Wife, to a humble husband : BETTER HALF

38A. Final unpleasant moment : BITTER END

59A. Net profit or loss : BOTTOM LINE

63A. Rectangular server with a dulledged knife : BUTTER DISH

Argyle here. I ignored the second T because B_T (except for the last one) isn't a word. This puzzle may have had you looking at the calendar. No connection between the theme entries other than they are two word phrases starting with B_TT. Seven vertical letter blocks in the corners.
Update: All except BETT can be a stand alone word.

Across:

1. Mar. parade honoree : ST. PAT

6. Switch for frequency choices : AM/FM

10. Cheep source : NEST

14. “... __ / By any other name ...”: Juliet : A ROSE. A shout out.

15. Room in la casa : SALA

16. Ancient Peruvian : INCA

19. Tennis great Steffi : GRAF

20. Bar mitzvah, for one : RITE

23. Old Roman road : ITER

24. Like an illmannered kid : BRATTY

25. “Wow” : "GEE!"

26. Like Leif Ericson : NORSE

28. It happens : EVENT

30. __ gratia artis: MGM motto : ARS. "Art for art's sake"

31. Made a haunted house sound : MOANED

37. Brainchild : IDEA

40. Folk singer Guthrie : ARLO

43. Canned cooking fuel : STERNO

44. Sleep stage letters : REM

47. No-goodnik : LOUSE

49. Icy look, perhaps : STARE

51. Tummy muscles : ABS

52. Playground apparatus for two : SEESAW

58. Phone sound : "RING"

61. Sailing, say : ASEA

62. __-deucy : ACEY. 56D. Tossed in a chip : ANTED. like for Acey-Deucey. You then bet a portion(or all) of the pot that your card will fall between the two cards the dealer has turned up. Your best bet is if the dealer has an ace and a deuce face up.

65. Eve’s opposite : MORN

66. Songstress Adams : EDIE

67. Prefix meaning “hundred” : CENTI

68. Church recess : APSE

69. Tear to bits : REND

70. Specialized idiom : ARGOT. Was it Reader's Digest that used to have a feature about insider's terms?

Down:

1. TV’s teenage witch : SABRINA

2. Mutineer : TRAITOR

3. Earthenware makers : POTTERS

4. Autumn bloomers : ASTERS

5. __ Aviv : TEL

6. In accordance with : AS PER

7. Mediterranean island country : MALTA

8. Scruggs’s bluegrass partner : FLATT. Lester

9. Impressionist Édouard : MANET

10. At hand : NIGH

11. Really angry : ENRAGED

12. Like triangles with unequal sides : SCALENE. Equilateral, Isosceles and Scalene.

13. Crisp fabric : TAFFETA

18. Tidal movement : EBB

22. Ham sandwich choice : RYE

27. Brit. recording giant : EMI

29. Kid-__: tots’ TV programming : VID

32. NFL fifth periods : OTs

33. ABA member : ATTorney

34. Michelle Obama __ Robinson : NÉE

35. Mess up : ERR

36. Place for thieves : DEN. Leftover from Sunday's puzzle?

38. Sox from Mass. : BOS.

39. Refusals : NO'S

40. University in Tuscaloosa : ALABAMA

41. 1987 title lawenforcing cyborg : "ROBOCOP"

42. Buffing results : LUSTERS

44. Bringing up : RAISING

45. Che Guevara’s first name : ERNESTO

46. Box office smash : MEGA-HIT

48. That, in Tijuana : ESO

50. Word with Joe’s or Vic’s : TRADER. The Albany area will have its first Trader Joe's this spring. Yay!

53. Fireplace bit : EMBER

54. Get away from : ELUDE

55. Protest on the floor : SIT-IN

57. Little, like laddies : WEE

60. Daly of “Cagney & Lacey” : TYNE. Currently can be seen on the TV series, "Burn Notice". Oops!  That's Sharon Gless on Burn Notice, regularly, not Tyne Daly.

64. Victrola company : RCA

Answer grid.

Argyle

Saturday November 6, 2010 Timothy L. Meaker

Theme: None

Total words: 72

Total blocks: 34

The themeless design is quite solver-friendly, no grid-spanner or triple/quadruple stacks. The two 10s and six 9s are spread out pretty evenly. All of them lively multi-words:

13A. Positive : ABOVE ZERO. "Positive" temperature-wise.

16A. A great teacher might be one : ROLE MODEL. Most of my teachers were so stern and serious.

52A. In disorder : JUMBLED UP. Quite a scrabbly grid. Only one Q away from a pangram.

55A. Metaphorical victim of an upset : APPLECART. Upset the applecart.

8D. Oscar's covering : GOLD PLATE. The Oscar statuette.

10D. Loses big : TAKES A BATH. Nice fill.

25D. Rolls seen at the beach? : SPARE TIRES. Did not come to me quickly.

31D. Where a small hand might get caught : COOKIE JAR. Sweet clue.

Very few obscure names today. But the overall cluing made this puzzle pretty challenging.

Across:

1. Hawaiian for "strong" : MAHI. I mentioned this on the blog before. Love mahi-mahi. Delicious!

5. In __ : A FOG. I needed a bracketed "befuddled" in the clue.

9. Internet letters : HTTP. "Internet address letters", to be exact.

15. Many are imagined : FEARS. Nailed this one.

17. Libertines : RAKES. Or ROUES.

18. Urban renewal target : EYESORE

19. Proof of ownership? : DNA TEST. Oh, ownership of a baby. Or a crime.

21. Ranch handle : TEX. Cowboy nickname "handle".

22. River through New Mexico : PECOS. No idea. It flows to Rio Grande. What does "Pecos"?

23. Castigates : BASTES. Not familiar with this "baste" meaning, "lambaste", yes.

27. Environmentalist's goal : CLEAN AIR

30. Stock phrase : AT PAR

31. Punched-out pieces : CHADS

32. 'Hood handle : BRO

33. 16-time Gold Glove-winning pitcher Jim : KAAT. Gimme. He's with the Twins for a long time. We also have 36. Commit catcher's interference, e.g. : ERR. Pitcher & Catcher.

34. Layers : COATS. Hens too, lay-ers.

35. Aero-X automaker : SAAB. Drew a blank.

37. Faulkner's "__ for Emily" : A ROSE. What's it about?

38. Old-time soprano Lehmann : LOTTE. Another unknown. She died in 1976. No wonder "Old-time".

39. A lime-flavored version of it came out in 2004 : DIET COKE. Needed crossing help.

41. Acted after a coin toss, maybe : WISHED. Good clue.

42. Stanley of "Julie & Julia" : TUCCI. Loved him in "Big Night".

43. Chocolatier's container : VAT

44. Takeout option : CHINESE. Loved by Jayce. His "Da Fan Tong" (big eater) comment really made me laugh.

46. Style revived in the '60s : ART DECO. Oh, I was not aware of it.

51. 1961 Best Actress : LOREN (Sophia). For "Two Women".

54. Umiak builder : ALEUT. Umiak is literally "women's boat". Kayak = "man's boat".

56. Stinger : WASP

57. Spring (from) : RISE

58. Iowa Straw Poll city : AMES. 4-letter Iowa city is always AMES.

Down:

1. Colt source : MARE. Thought of gun.

2. "About __": Hornby novel : A BOY. Not on my radar. It's made into a movie starring Hugh Grant.

3. Driver's ultimate destination? : HOLE. Question marked "driver" always refers to golf.

4. Noted 19th-century lithographer : IVES. Currier & Ives.

5. São Miguel is the largest of them : AZORES. See this map. Belongs to Portugal.

6. Golf's __ Cup : FEDEX. You wanted RYDER, didn't you?

7. Bauxite, for one : ORE

9. Romano's "Everybody Loves Raymond" co-star : HEATON (Patricia). Here she is. Are those real?

11. Nueve's square root : TRES. Did not know Nueve = 9.

12. Subtle signal : PSST

14. One acting badly? : EMOTER

15. Donnybrook : FRACAS

20. They're not optional : NEEDS. I don't get this clue.

23. Potato choice : BAKED

24. Onetime Coleco competitor : ATARI. Needed crossing help also.

26. One might be dedicated to Mom, briefly : TAT (Tattoo)

27. Go after : CHASE

28. Burning up : IRATE

29. Dressed for court : ROBED. For judges.

34. Holey footwear : CROCS

35. One might be picked up in a storm : SOS. Should have nailed it.

37. Stress : ACCENT

38. Slightly : LITTLE

40. Mechanic's offer : TUNEUP

41. Bird's song : WARBLE

43. Sirens : VAMPS

44. Scratch : CLAW. What's the first word that came to your mind?

45. Chihuahua howdy : HOLA. Chickie's hallmark greeting.

47. Pod opening? : DECA. Prefix for "ten". Decapod (literally "ten footed) has 10 legs. Got me.

48. Dutch export : EDAM

49. Salt, perhaps : CURE. I suppose you can clue it "Smoke, perhaps" also.

50. Gets off the fence : OPTS

53. Gp. co-founded by publisher E.W. Scripps : UPI. Not in my knowledge zone. Makes sense though.

Answer grid.

C.C.

Saturday July 31, 2010 Timothy L. Meaker

Theme: None

Total words: 72 / Total blocks: 35

Average Word length: 5.28

FYI, 72 is the maximum word count allowed for a themeless.

This puzzle is anchored by three triple stacks of 10s in the top right and bottom left corners. A couple of 9s and 8s in Across build up the basic frame work. The Downs are mostly of medium and short length today.

I'd like to guess that the seed word is OPERA HOUSE (16A. Sight from Sydney Harbour). I hope it's a gimme for all of you, since Kazie devoted a whole episode focusing on Sydney Harbour in her Oz trip series.

E is the most used letters in crossword. Today we have 26 Es. S is very common too. 19 in this grid. Definitely not a scrabbly puzzle: no Q, V, X & Z. Still a tough slog for me. The names are killing me!

Across:

1. Not clear-cut : GRAY. Gray area. Most of the Saturday clues are "not clear-cut". Drive me nuts!

5. Census bureau, essentially : DATA CENTER. "Essentially" yes.

15. Artist Bonheur : ROSA. French artist. Died in 1899. Way too obscure for me.

17. Harpsichordist Kipnis : IGOR. Total stranger. Do you know anything about him, Jayce?

18. Aerodynamics research tool : WIND TUNNEL. Gimme for Dudley, I am sure. Warren was a pilot too.

19. Cares for : TENDS

21. Beginnings : SEEDS

22. Servers with wheels : TEA WAGONS. Oh, we call them tea carts.

25. Co. whose largest hub is at O'Hare : UAL. United Airlines.

28. Shooting sound : REPORT. Dictionary explain report as "a loud noise, as from an explosion", as in the report of a distant cannon. Learning moment for me.

29. Items in a nautical table : TIDES. Ah, for Spitzboov.

31. Pub employees : BARMAIDS. I only know bartender. Barmaids sounds outdated.

34. Show-off : HOT-DOG

35. Land in un lac : ILE. French. Island in a lake.

36. Lo-__ graphics : RES

37. Vigor : PEP

38. Suffix with string : ENT. Stringent. Even this stumped me.

39. Took off : DOFFED. I need "hat" in the clue.

41. Hands and feet : MEASURES. A foot = 12". A hand = 4". Both are measures. Stymied me.

43. Wind threat : SHEAR. Another aviation term? What does it mean?

44. "Samson Agonistes" dramatist : MILTON (John). All I know about Milton is "Paradise Lost".

45. Indirect route : ARC

46. White Sands and others : TEST SITES

49. Actress Van Devere : TRISH. First encounter with this actress.

51. Beaumont, Texas, university : LAMAR. Peeked at the answer sheet.

53. Old-time educator : SCHOOLMARM. I liked this entry.

58. Mystical amulet : MOJO

59. Where to find waiters : TRAIN DEPOT. Waiters = Those who wait. Not your restaurant waiters. Tricky clue.

60. Replacement for those left out : ET AL. Latin for "and others".

61. Weathers the struggle : SOLDIERS ON. Great fill too.

62. Rink fake : DEKE. Hockey "fake" move. Learned from doing Xword.

Down:

1. Abrasive bits : GRIT

2. Subject of Joshua Kendall's "The Man Who Made Lists" : ROGET. Roger's Thesaurus.

3. In unison : AS ONE

4. Spar part : YARDARM. Need our sailor Gunghy's explanation.

5. Stock page name : DOW. Dow Jones Index.

6. Bee: Pref. : API. Only know apian.

7. Stretching muscles : TENSORS. Thought the clue was asking for an ING ending word.

8. Hot-blooded : ARDENT

9. "Gremlins" actress : CATES (Phoebe). No idea. Wife of actor Kevin Kline.

10. Former Israeli prime minister Olmert : EHUD.

11. Judgment for insufficient evidence : NONSUIT. Is this the same as "dismissal', Lemonade?

12. Napa vessel : TUN. Wine cask.

13. Capt.'s heading : ESE. Well, it could be anywhere.

14. Family mem. : REL (Relative)

20. Oath taker : SWEARER. Only one er-ending word today, not bad at all. Our old TMS used way too many ER, RE, ED, S, EST affixes.

23. On foot, in France : A PIED. Literally "on foot".

24. Jupiter and Mars : GODS. Both Roman gods. Gunghy just mentioned yesterday that only planets are named after gods. The moons are named after the lesser characters: Titans, Fates, etc.

26. Scary snake : ADDER. Not "one who adds" ER word. Good.

27. Freetown currency : LEONE. Money unit in Sierra Leone. Freetown is the capital city.

29. Nursery purchase : TOPSOIL. Plant "Nursery", Dummy!

30. York and Snorkel: Abbr. : SGTS (Sergeants)

31. Orders : BIDS

32. Welcoming word : ALOHA. Five letters in Chinese too: Ni Hao.

33. Direct : REFER

34. Qualifying races : HEATS

37. Bombard : PELT

40. Elvis sighting, e.g. : FACTOID. I don't get this clue. Sightings are not really 'facts", correct?

41. Accidents : MISHAPS

42. Not tractable : UNTAMED

44. "Animal magnetism" coiner : MESMER (Franz). No idea. Just learned that "mesmerize" is rooted in his name. Interesting!

46. Symbol of equivalence, in math : TILDE. I don't get this clue either. I learned math in Chinese and I sucked.

47. Fake feelings : EMOTE. "Fake" is a verb here. I was in the adjective direction.

48. Man of letters? : SAJAK (Pat). Host of "Wheel of Fortune". Could be a clue for ROGET (2D) too. He is indeed a "man of letters".

50. Noodle __: old product name : RONI

52. Part : ROLE

53. Houston in NYC, et al. : STS. Houston Streets.

54. Zagreb's land, to the IOC : CRO (Croatia). I pictures a happy smile in Tinbeni. Are girls aggressive there?

55. Holbrook of "Evening Shade" : HAL

56. Eeyore pal : ROO. Kanga's kid in "Winnie-the-Pooh".

57. K2, for one: Abbr. : MTN (Mountain). K2 is the second-highest mountain on Earth after Mount Everest. I've never understood what K stands for.

Answer grid.

Here is the final installment of Gunghy's bike trip series. Great to finally "see" him in his armor. He has more pictures to share, but I can't carry on due to my lack of time. I'll link once he uploads them to Picasa or some other website.

C.C.

Tuesday May 18, 2010 Timothy L. Meaker

Theme: Trip - Counterculture phrase formed by the first two words of 20A, 37A, 53A, and coined by 66A in the 1960's.

20A. Provide some room illumination: TURN ON THE LIGHT

37A. TV promo exhortation: TUNE IN TONIGHT

53A. Disappear from the radar, so to speak: DROP OUT OF SIGHT

66A. Timothy who preached the message found in this puzzle's theme: LEARY. Notice the constructor's name Timothy also?

Argyle here.

Today's puzzle is like a mini-quote. Dr. LEARY recommended the use of LSD to achieve his message ("Turn on, tune in, drop out"), resulting in "trips". Unfortunately, some of these trips turned back. I hope no one here has a flashback from doing this puzzle.

Ah, yes, the puzzle. Easy theme (if you can remember the '60's) with decent fill. I'm blogging from my sister's laptop so I'm somewhat discombobulated.

Across:

1A. Resolute about: SET ON.

6A. Unwanted e-mail: SPAM.

10A. Church recess: APSE.

14A. Wind: Prefix: ANEMO. A typical wind anemometer.

15A. Doily material: LACE.

16A. Dom Perignon producer, familiarly: MOËT. Moët et Chandon champagne.

17A. Grammy winner Jones: NORAH. She is the daughter of Indian sitarist Ravi Shankar. (An echo of the '60's.)

18A. Gillette razor: ATRA.

19A. College in New Rochelle, N.Y.: IONA.

23A. In the past: AGO.

24A. Monogram of a '50s White House aspirant: AES. Adlai Ewing Stevenson.

25A. Speedy: RAPID.

27A. "Popcorn" shellfish: SHRIMP.

30A. Conditions: IFS.

32A. Anthem contraction: O'ER.

33A. On the fence: NOT SURE.

36A. Really long time: EONS.

40A. Decorative vases: URNS.

41A. Bright spot on a lunar halo: MOONDOG.

42A. Brit's rainwear: MAC (Mackintosh)

43A. Hymnals may be found in one: PEW.

44A. Marked down: ON SALE.

48A. Emergency tire: SPARE.

50A. Lab greeting: "ARF". Labrador Retriever.

52A. Teachers' org.: NEA. National Education Association

58A. Kennedy half, e.g.: COIN. The half dollar coin.

59A. Resting on: ATOP.

60A. Dote on: ADORE.

61A. Thoreau's Walden __: POND. Published in 1854, the title didn't mention the pond. "Walden; or, Life in the Woods"

62A. Jeweler Lalique: RENÉ. Renowned for his stunning creations of perfume bottles, vases, jewelery, chandeliers, clocks and in the latter part of his life, automobile hood ornaments. I did not know that.

63A. More under the weather: ILLER. The only real clunker in the bunch.

64A. Golden Fleece ship: ARGO.

65A. Went lickety-split: SPED.

Down:

1D. December temps: SANTAs. Can you believe it, this gave me trouble!

2D. "Stop!": "ENOUGH!".

3D. More than just fear: TERROR.

4D. Arabian Sea nation: OMAN.

5D. Manhattan area above Houston Street: NOHO. Stands for North of Houston Street . Soho is South of Houston.

6D. Pool table layer: SLATE.

7D. They may be beaten: PATHS.

8D. Farm unit: ACRE.

9D. Cafeteria offering: MEAL.

10D. Chihuahua gal pal: AMIGA. Spanish for "girlfriend". Chihuahua doesn't refer to the dog but the state in northern Mexico.

11D. Express disdain for: POOH-POOH.

12D. Conscious: SENTIENT.

13D. Greek vowel: ETA.

2D1. Quiet period at day care: NAP TIME.

22D. 1040-issuing org.: IRS.

26D. AMA members: DRs.

28D. Holiday buildings?: INNS. A reference to the movie, "Holiday Inn"?

29D. Bartender on "The Simpsons": MOE.

30D. Red meat nutrient: IRON.

31D. Keep away: FEND OFF.

34D. Winter blanket: SNOW.

35D. __-Aztecan languages: UTO. Got from the perps.

36D. Bacon go-with: EGGS.

37D. Hidden way out, maybe: TRAP DOOR.

38D. Hardly sympathetic: UNCARING.

39D. Electrical particle: ION.

40D. Speaker's hesitations: UMs.

43D. Get-up-and-go: PEP.

45D. Zambia neighbor: ANGOLA.

46D. "PBS NewsHour" anchor Jim: LEHRER.

47D. Hash house, e.g.: EATERY.

49D. Sonata movement: RONDO.

50D. Make things right: ATONE.

51D. Blocked (off), as a crime scene: ROPED.

54D. Dory propellers: OARS.

55D. Sun Bowl Stadium coll. team: UTEP. The University of Texas El Paso.

56D. Go to sea: SAIL.

57D. Goofing off: IDLE.

58D. 22-Down employee: CPA.

Answer grid.

Argyle

Tuesday, December 8, 2009 Timothy L. Meaker

Theme: PHONE (61A: Caller's device, and word that can precede the ends of the answers to starred clues)

17A: *Art class supply: SKETCH BOOK. Phonebook.

35A: *Suitcase attachment: NAME TAG. Phone tag.

53A: *Arcade attraction: PHOTO BOOTH. Phone booth.

11D: *Dreaded end-of-semester handout, perhaps: REPORT CARD. Phone card.

27D: *Hotel offering: WAKE-UP CALL. Phone call.

Argyle here. Quite heavy themage for a Tuesday, with 5 theme answers and a unifying entry, which is nicely placed at the very end of the grid. Total 62 theme squares. I liked the puzzle.

Across:

1A: Caught some z's: SLEPT.

6A: Solheim Cup co-sponsoring org.: LPGA. The Solheim Cup is a biennial golf tournament for pro women golfers contested by teams representing Europe and the United States. It is named for the Norwegian-American golf club manufacturer Karsten Solheim.The Ryder Cup is the equivalent men's event. LPGA, in full, the Ladies Professional Golf Association.

10A: With 10-Down and "and," rigidly formal: PRIM. (10D: See 10-Across: PROPER.) Neato.

16A: McEntire of country: REBA. She has her own TV show, too. Sitcom

19A: Birthstone for a 6-Down, often: OPAL. 6D: Fall sign: LIBRA. Zodiac sign for birthdates: September 22 - October 22

20A: Words of apology: I'M SORRY.

21A: Left, at sea: APORT. Right, at sea: ASTARBOARD. (That's what the dictionary said. Trust me.)

22A: __ Nostra: COSA. Allegedly, the Mafia operating in the United States.

23A: Not as ruddy: PALER.

25A: Egyptian city on the Nile: ASWAN. Site of the Aswan Dam. The High Dam(111 m) was completed in 1970. The earlier Old Aswan Dam or Aswan Low Dam was completed in 1902.

28A: Like some chocolates purchases: ASSORTED.

32A: Actor Delon: ALAIN. Alain Delon (born 1935) is a César Award-winning French actor. By the age of 23, he was compared to James Dean. He was even called the male Brigitte Bardot. He worked with 49D: Schneider of film: ROMY. on the stage in 1961.

33A: Ohio A.L. team, on scoreboards: CLE.

34A: Commercial suffix with Water: PIK.

41A: In the dark: CLUELESS.

43A: Judaic feast: SEDER.

44A: Fourth estate, as it's known: PRESS.

45A: Thai bread?: BAHT. Cutesy clue for currency.

47A: Food that's filled and folded: TACOS.

49A: Brockovich portrayer: ROBERTS. The movie, Erin Brockovich (2000) Starring Julia Roberts.

52A: "__ my lips!": READ. George H. W. Bush's downfall.

56A: Author __ Stanley Gardner: ERLE.

57A: San __, Italy: REMO.

59A: Bought, to a retailer: SOLD.

60A: Jet-black stone: ONYX.

Down:

1D: NYSE units: SHS. Shares

2D: Mythical trickster: LOKI. Norse god who creates discord. If you want more, go to Wikipedia. There was too much to condense.

3D: K-6: ELEM. Elementary school.

4D: X-ray alternative: PET SCAN. Positron Emission Tomography (Help? Someone?)

5D: Business big shot: TYCOON.

7D: Tricky maneuver: PLOY. A little misdirection here.

8D: Shine, in product names: GLO. Like Mop-N-Glo.

13D: Soda shop buy: MALT.

18D: Slugger's stat: Abbr.: HRS. Home runs.

21D: As a companion: ALONG. She took her brother along.

23D: Tests for jrs.: PSATS.

24D: Big land mass: ASIA.

25D: Meat garnish: ASPIC.

26D: Frosting feature: SWIRL.

28D: Baldwin and Guinness: ALECS.

29D: Southfork Miss: ELLIE. From the TV show, DALLAS. Portrayed by Barbara Bel Geddes, Miss Ellie was the matriarch of the ranch, Southfork.

35D: "Frasier" brother: NILES. Actor David Hyde Pierce

36D: Iowa college town: AMES.

40D: Promise to marry: BETROTH.

42D: Worn by wind: ERODED.

43D: 1984 Cyndi Lauper hit: SHE BOP. Video.

45D: Wrinkle remover: BOTOX.

46D: Blood typing letters: A B O.

47D: Very, in Verdun: TRES.

48D: Prefix with sol: AERO.

50D: Oz barker: TOTO. Dorothy's dog in "The Wizard of Oz".

51D: WWII weapon: STEN.

53D: In favor of: PRO.

54D: Egg producer: HEN. So the chicken came first?

55D: Any of four Ottos: Abbr.: HRE ( Holy Roman Emperor).

Answer grid.

Argyle

Wednesday July 22, 2009 Timothy L. Meaker

Theme: SANDWICH (70A: Lunch order that can follow the starts of 1-, 35- and 43-Across)

1A: Bar mixer: CLUB SODA

35A: Jerusalem prayer site: WESTERN WALL

43A: Unrestricted trading areas: OPEN MARKETS

What kind of bread do you use for WESTERN SANDWICH? I've never heard of it before.

I used to love baguette with crudité, jambon et gruyere, you know, those delicious sandwich you find at every boulangerie in Paris. Now my lunch are mainly onigiri (rice balls).

Interesting that SANDWICH is placed symmetrically with CLUB SODA. We don't often see unifying theme answer positioned in such a way.

I enjoyed the puzzle. Food-themed grid is always pleasant to solve.

Across:

2A: Long pace: STRIDE. And TROTS (51A: Easy gaits).

15A: Tangy dessert: LEMON PIE. Have never had this dessert. Sounds tart.

16A: Deceive: LEAD ON

18A: In the prior month: ULTIMO. Next month is PROXIMO. And the current month is INSTANT. All new to me.

19A: Precisely: TO A T. Or TO A TEE.

22A: Beat overwhelmingly: CRUSH. And CLUTCH (1D: Shifting mechanism). Both terrific fills, with only one vowel.

24A: Taxing mo.?: APR. Don't feel question mark is needed.

25A: Title role for 13-Down: FATSO. And DOM (13D: Actor DeLuise). DOM is short for Dominick. I've never seen the film. Not familiar with the actor either.

30A: Riled (up): HET. Dialectal variant of "heated".

31A: Has much too much, briefly: ODS. What's the clue in your paper?

37A: Negri of silents: POLA. I can never remember this girl's name. She's Pol-ish.

41A: Pelota catcher: CESTA. The jai alai basket. Learned from doing Xword.

42A: Buck tail?: AROO. Buckaroo. "Buck tail?" can clue EYE too. Buckeye.

46A: Le Car maker: RENAULT. Citroën has 7 letters too.

47A: "Michael Collins" actor: REA. Liam Neeson played Michael Collins. One of my favorite IRA themed films. Stephen REA's "The Crying Game" is still the best.

48A: Spaniards roll theirs: ARS. I did not know the spelled-out form of letter R is AR.

52A: UFO pilots, in theory: ETS. Why "in theory"?

54A: Discover with effort: DIG UP

56A: Wild West showman: CODY. I did not know Buffalo Bill's real name is CODY.

58A: Edge (out): NOSE

59A: Community west of Montebello, Calif.: EAST LA

63A: Unwavering: RESOLUTE

68A: Like much of Rossini's work: OPERATIC

69A: Groups of eight: OCTADS

Down:


2D: Lost love in "The Raven": LENORE. No idea. All I know about "The Raven" is "nevermore". LENORE is short for Elenore.

3D: Düsseldorf feature?: UMLAUT. The diacritical dots mark above letter ü.

6D: Brief photo sessions?: OPS. Photo OPS.

8D: Man of many morals: AESOP. The adjective of fable is fabulous.

9D: Disparaging remark: SLUR

10D: 1977 Bronson/Remick mind-control thriller: TELEFON. No idea. The poster does not look interesting. TELEFON is German for telephone.

11D: Stoolie: RAT

12D: First name in tyranny: IDI. Uganda's IDI Amin. Shame on me for thinking of MAO first. MAO is a surname. Chinese put family in front of given name. Yao Ming's surname is Yao.

14D: Rock producer Brian: ENO. He created the Windows 95 startup sound, using his Mac. How ironic!

24D: Said positively: ASSERTED

26D: Former Sanyo competitor: AIWA. Sony acquired AIWA in 2002.

28D: WWII French battle site: ST LO

29D: Nobel Peace Prize city: OSLO. All the other prizes are presented in Stockholm.

36D: "Mustn't do that": TSK. Ah, vowelless fill.

37D: Computer connection: PORT

38D: Letters near zero?: OPER. Phone button.

44D: Like Mr. America: MUSCLED. Too much.

48D: Rabbitlike rodent: AGOUTI. Wikipedia says AGOUTIS give birth to litters of two to four young after a gestation period of three months. Some species have two litters a year in May and October while others breed year round. The same with rabbits I suppose.

49D: Backwoodsy: RUSTIC

50D: Soapbox output: SPEECH

53D: Greenhorns: TYROS. I am not a crossword TYRO any more.

55D: Marriage acquisition: IN-LAW. I love being married.

61D: Met: SAT. As a meeting. "The council met in session last night." or "The council SAT in session last night." (From Argyle).

62D: Defunct flier: TWA. Howard Hughes owned TWA from 1939 to 1966.

64D: AQI user: EPA. AQI is Air Quality Index.

65D: One of a D.C. 100: SEN. Yeah, Al Franken was finally swore in several weeks ago. Now we have 100 senators.

66D: Former Monterey Bay fort: ORD. Fort ORD was closed in 1994.

Answer grid.

C.C.

Tuesday June 30, 2009 Timothy L. Meaker

Theme: Spelling Bee

20A: February greeting card request!: BE MY VALENTINE

30A: Utah's nickname: BEEHIVE STATE

39A: "Petticoat junction" star: BEA BENADERET

51A: Sue Grafton's second Kinsey Millhone novel: "B" IS FOR BURGLAR

Nice homophone. "C, SEE, SEA" & "I, AYE, EYE" popped into my mind, but I could not think of a 4th entry.

I have never heard of BEA BENADERET. The only BEA I know is BEA Arthur. Love BE MY VALENTINE. So sweet! Chocolate, roses & Paris. Actually, a hike in Appalachia Trail sounds romantic too. So does a 7-day stay in ARG (47A: Braz. neighbor).

Why "Mamma Mia!" trio? for EMS (25A)? The clue should be quartet, correct? There are four letter M in "Mamma Mia!".

Across:

1A: Tout's topic: ODDS. Alliteration.

5A: Broad tie: ASCOT. Named after the Royal ASCOT race.

10A: Left the launch pad: ROSE. And GOES (56A: Leaves) & STAY (64A: Hang around). Plenty of actions.

14A: Slightest concern: HOOT

15A: Juniper fruit: BERRY. I've never used juniper BERRY in cooking.

16A: Black, to Byron: EBON. Another alliteration.

17A: Cath. prelate: MSGR. Monsignor. Not a familiar abbreviation to me.

18A: Come apart: BREAK

19A: Keycard receiver: SLOT. Crossing ENTER, which is clued as "Key in".

23A: Baker or Bryant: ANITA. Only knew ANITA Baker.

26A: Bernese Alps peak: EIGER. I forgot. Someone mentioned Clint Eastwood's "The EIGER Sanction" last time when EIGER appeared.

27A: "You __!": "Sure thing!": BETCHA. First Minnesotan phrase I learned.

29A: Four-time Wimbledon champ Rod: LAVER

34A: Super Bowl highlights?: ADS. Nice clue.

35A: "Hedda Gablar" dramatist: IBSEN. And GYNT (53D: 35-Across's "Peer __"). Love cross reference.

36A: Bauxite, to aluminum: ORE. Did not know bauxite is the principal ORE of aluminum.

43A: Unrefined: CRASS. Wrote down CRUDE first.

45A: Tell to enter, as a prospective job applicant: SEND IN

46A: Kitchen bigwigs: CHEFS. Bam! Emeril is out of Food Network.

54A: First name in daredevilry: EVEL. EVEL Knievel.

55A: "Yippee!": OH BOY

60A: Strikeout king Ryan: NOLAN. Total Ryan with 5,714 strikeouts. Johan Santana now has 1,676. Nobody is going to catch NOLAN Ryan. Randy Johnson has tried his very best.

62A: Grounded fleets, briefly: SSTS

63A: "Looks __ everything": AREN'T. But very important.

Down:

1D: Resistance unit: OHM. The "Conductance unit" is MHO.

2D: MS-__: DOS. Windows preceder.

3D: Animal control officer's concerns: DOG BITES

4D: Yawn accompanier, often: STRETCH

5D: "Dear" columnist: ABBY. Our paper has dropped her column.

6D: Dish up: SERVE. Not "Dish out"?

7D: Dairy aisle buy: CREAM

8D: Think-on-your-feet tests: ORALS. I got the answer. Don't under the logic.

9D: Wee one: TYKE

10D: Nervous: RESTIVE

11D: Accommodate: OBLIGE

12D: At an earlier time: SOONER

21D: When doubled, a fish: MAHI. Mahi-mahi is very tasty. It means "strong-strong" in Hawaiian.

22D: In apple-pie order: NEAT

23D: Palindromic pop group: ABBA. "Mamma Mia!"

28D: Alternatives to Reeboks: AVIAS. Avia is Latin for "to fly". One more blank, the answer would be ADIDAS.

33D: Common news hour: TEN. TEN PM, to be exact.

36D: Have pizza delivered, say: ORDER OUT

37D: Bridle strap: REIN. Misread the clue as "Bridal strap". GOWN came to my mind.

38D: Frequent Italian erupter: ETNA. Literally "I burn".

39D: Perplexes: BAFFLES

41D: Start a new hand: DEAL

42D: Angers: ENRAGES. And RESENT (44D: React indignantly to) & ABHOR (47D: Despise). Not a happy puzzle.

43D: Leek cousins: CHIVES. Onions too.

46D: Turnpike "breakers": CB'ERS. Argyle mentioned the other day that the professional truck driver is called "Road Scholar", a take-off on Rhodes Scholar.

48D: Kirov cash: RUBLE. Easy guess. I don't know where Kirov is, but it sounds Russian. And I like the alliteration.

49D: Corny joke reaction: GROAN

52D: Novelist Jaffe: RONA. Have you read any of her books? I learned her name from doing Xword. Sometimes RONA is clued as "Gossipy Barrett".

Answer grid.

C.C.