google.com, pub-2774194725043577, DIRECT, f08c47fec0942fa0 L.A.Times Crossword Corner: Tuesday

Advertisements

Showing posts with label Tuesday. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Tuesday. Show all posts

May 29, 2018

Tuesday, May 29, 2018, Ed Sessa


Holding Hands

20. Basic cocktail with Dewar's: SCOTCH AND SODA.

24. Live frugally: PINCH AND SCRAPE.

42. Political entities subject to Constitutional separation: CHURCH AND STATE.

48. Exhortation to come together ... and a hint to 20-, 24- and 42-Across: LET'S JOIN HANDS.

Each phrase holds (contains) the word hands. 

Across:

1. Learn to fit in: ADAPT.

6. "Sí," on the Seine: OUI

9. Nasser of Egypt: GAMAL.

14. Oscar winner Marisa: TOMEI.   1993 Oscars, Best Supporting Actress award,  as Mona Lisa Vito in My Cousin Vinny

15. "What was __ expect?": I TO.

16. Martini garnish: OLIVE.

17. "The Sixth Sense" writer/director M. Night __: SHYAMALAN.  Perps made it easy.  Otherwise, no clue. 

19. "Mack the Knife" singer Bobby: DARIN.

22. Spanish "other": OTRA.

23. Acorn producer: OAK.

31. What truants "play": HOOKY.   I thought of Senior Skip Day.

32. 2010 Apple release: IPAD.

33. Application file suffix: EXE.  File suffix being file type.  Short for executable.

35. Pests in a pantry: ANTS.

36. Like very serious errors: FATAL.   "Error 1603: A fatal error occurred during installation" is a catchall when your application's executable doesn't install correctly. 

38. Octopus octet: ARMS.

39. Muscle spasm: TIC.

40. Chore: TASK.

41. Most of Wile E. Coyote's gadgets, brand-wise: ACMES.

46. Forget-me-__: NOT.  

Your birth flower if you were born in September.

The Alaska state flower.

Symbolism 



47. Ohio border lake: ERIE.


54. Hawaiian hi: ALOHA.

55. Embarrasses deeply: MORTIFIES.

58. Bourbon Street cuisine: CAJUN.

59. Boston skyscraper, with "the": PRU.

60. Nick of "Cape Fear": NOLTE.

61. Shoelace problems: KNOTS.

62. Stockholm airline: SAS.  SAS is an abbreviation of its former full name, Scandinavian Airlines System or legally Scandinavian Airlines System Denmark–Norway–Sweden.   The main hub is in Copenhagen, while the company headquarters is near Stockholm.   Wikipedia

63. Wear away: ERODE.


Down:

1. @ signs: ATs.   I first learned this symbol meant each at.   Internet Hall of Famer and inventor of email,  RPI & MIT grad Ray Tomlinson, used the @ symbol to distinguish host name from user name so that messages could be sent from one host to another on ARPANET, the precursor to the internet. 

2. "I am so stupid!": DOH. Popularized by Homer Simpson.    You're telling me Grumpy and Doc weren't in Sleeping Beauty ?  Oh, Snow White.  DOH !

3. Actress Poehler and singer Grant: AMYS. Actress and comedian Amy Poehler and contemporary Christian singer Amy Grant.

4. Birds with eyelike spots on their tails: PEACOCKS.

5. Youngest-ever Best Supporting Actor Oscar winner Hutton: TIMOTHY. Won for "Ordinary People."   I confused him with his father Jim.


6. Lube shop container: OIL CAN. Red Sox fans like Wilbur would remember "Oil Can" Boyd, a starting pitcher for the Beantown nine.

7. D-Day beach: UTAH.

8. Hebrides isle: IONA.

9. NASA's __ Space Flight Center: GODDARD.

10. Where Nome is: ALASKA.


11. Surrealist painter Joan: MIRO.

12. Gung-ho: AVID.

13. "Girls" creator Dunham: LENA.

18. Gillette blade: ATRA.

21. Diet-friendly: NO-CAL.

24. Cool, in '90s slang: PHAT. Not an acronym, but a deliberate misspelling of fat, in the sense of rich, abundant, or desirable.  A couple of backronyms - phrases constructed after the fact - are Pretty Hot And Tempting and PHysically ATtractive.  Paraphrased from Snopes.com

25. Greek column type: IONIC.

26. V-shaped cut: NOTCH.

27. Football's "Iron Mike": DITKA.


28. Place for a waxing: SPA.

29. Prefix with frost: PERMA.

30. Ron Darling or Tom Seaver: EX MET. Starting pitchers for the NY Mets.

34. To be, to Livy: ESSE.   "Livy, Latin in full Titus Livius, (born 59/64 bc, Patavium, Venetia [now Padua, Italy]—died ad 17, Patavium), with Sallust and Tacitus, one of the three great Roman historians. His history of Rome became a classic in his own lifetime and exercised a profound influence on the style and philosophy of historical writing down to the 18th century."  - Britannica.com

36. De __: actual: FACTO. "In fact or in practice; in actual use or existence, regardless of official or legal status." Wiktionary.

37. Campfire remnant: ASH.

38. Represented: ACTED FOR.

40. Some "Iliad" warriors: TROJANS.

41. Utterly absurd: ASININE.

43. Left open, as a door: UNSHUT.

44. Indian political family: NEHRUS.

45. "Dagnabbit!": DRAT.

48. Absence: LACK.

49. Splashy style: ELAN.

50. Axis dictator who ordered the Pearl Harbor attack: TOJO.

51. Little rascals: IMPS.

52. "Julie & Julia" director Ephron: NORA.

53. Grain tower: SILO.

56. Flight board abbr.: ETD.

57. "Just like I said!": SEE.

May 22, 2018

Tuesday, May 22, 2018 Debbie Ellerin

"Cookies"

Debbie drops these baked goods into our thoughts to sweeten our day.

16. Bed buyer's concern: COMFORT, and 17. Still on the plate: UNEATEN.   FORTUNE cookie.

23. "Oliver Twist" criminal: FAGIN, and 25. "Sommersby" star Richard: GERE.  GINGER cookie.

45. Bump up against: ABUT, and 47. Coastal flock: TERNS.  BUTTER cookie.

53. Massage technique meaning "finger pressure" in Japanese: SHIATSU, and 55. Stocking attachments: GARTERS.  SUGAR cookie.

34. With 36-Across, mass-produced ... and what each of four black squares in this puzzle is?: COOKIE CUTTER.

Across:
1. Far from homogeneous: DIVERSE.

8. Fight back: RESIST.

14. Threatening: OMINOUS.

15. Red hot chili pepper: CAYENNE.  Add a half-teaspoon or more to your next batch of chocolate chip or peanut butter cookies.  Don't knock it until you try it. 

18. Suffix for Gator: ADE.  Gatorade.  Developed by researchers at the University of Florida.

19. Like cactus-friendly climates: ARID.   The Prickly Pear is the official state plant of Texas.

Tender cactus leaves (nopalitos) are nutritious substitutes for green beans, okra, squash, and bell pepper. Its top production occurs in the summer months when other vegetable plants are out of season. Texas Cactus Council

20. "__ making a list ... ": HE'S.

21. Family guy: SON.

26. Deeply absorbed: RAPT.

27. Clickable pic: ICON
Anonymous T borrowed this familiar image to use as the desktop ICON for a Windows program he wrote for use by C.C.'s blogging team.   The program eliminated repetitious pre-blogging work.  Great job Anon T !   Thanks again !


28. Skippy rival: JIF.

29. Roadie's load: AMP.

30. San Antonio Spurs coach Popovich: GREGG.
PK would know he's called "Pop" or "Coach Pop"   He is the longest tenured coach in the NBA and in all major sports leagues in the United States.   He has a record-setting 21 consecutive winning seasons, and has won 5 NBA Championships as the head coach of the Spurs.

31. Worth having: OF USE.

37. "Spun" tales: YARNS.  Madame Defarge knows about yarns that do not include dubious amounts of exaggeration. 

38. Arm bone-related: ULNAR.

41. News letters: UPI

42. Trike rider: TOT.

43. Having no slack: TAUT.

44. Soft French wheel: BRIE. Why Some Cheeses Come in Wheels and Others in Blocks

48. Blues-rocker Chris: REA.

49. Somerhalder of "The Vampire Diaries": IAN.


50. Two in a row?: OARS.

51. Prompt on stage: CUE.

59. Rodeo ropes: LASSOES.

60. Massachusetts site of Phillips Academy: ANDOVER.  Prestigious university prep school that is named in many rankings as the best high school in the country.  About $54K/yr if you can get your child or grandchild accepted.   I scanned the alumni list.  Didn't get past the B's.  The Bush's,  Bill Belichick, Edgar Rice Burroughs and Humphrey Bogart...  although the Casablanca actor was expelled.

61. This one or that one: EITHER.

62. Dangerous wave: TSUNAMI.


Down:
1. Bashful pal: DOC.  They of Snow White & The Seven Dwarfs

2. Texter's "If you ask me": IMO.

3. Vigor's partner: VIM.

4. "Terrible" French kid: ENFANT.  "Enfant terrible, which literally means "terrifying child" in French...could be anyone - young or old - whose behavior shocked others. Now the term is also often applied to young, successful newcomers who shock or scare old-timers with their new approaches, easy successes, or disregard for tradition."   Paraphrased from Merriam Webster.

5. Crucifix: ROOD.

6. Foolproof: SURE FIRE. "What's a sure fire way to fail your driving test ?"


7. Guinness suffix: EST.

8. Carted off to jail: RAN IN.

9. Looked at closely: EYED.

10. "The __ is calm tonight": "Dover Beach" opening: SEASummary and Analysis

11. Coming up: IN THE FUTURE.

12. Show contempt: SNEEREmotional body language - Sneer explained

13. Present perfect, for one: TENSE.

15. Saving one's bacon?: CURING.  Fun clue. 

19. Really excited: AGOG.

21. Polynesian nation: SAMOA.

22. One who strikes while the iron is hot: OPPORTUNIST

24. Top pitcher: ACE. Nat Max Scherzer 7W - 1L,  1.78 ERA,  104 SO, 0.85 WHIP.  Those are ACE stats.

25. Birthday present: GIFT.

26. Risqué: RACY.

28. Soup du __: JOUR.


30. Essence: GIST.

32. Vintage hue on a photo app: SEPIA.

33. Scary-sounding lake: ERIE.

35. Nautical speed unit: KNOT.

36. Cross-sectional X-rays: CATSCANS.

38. Development site: UTERUS.

39. Metallica drummer Ulrich: LARS.

40. Woman with a habit?: NUN.

44. Nantes native: BRETON.

Nantes is a city on the Loire river and is the capital of Brittany, a region of  France. 

Bretons are an ethnic group located in this region.




45. Flier's window alternative: AISLE.

46. Iranian faith: BAHAI.

47. Stun gun brand: TASER.

50. Winnebago relative: OTOE.

52. Pakistan's national language: URDU.

54. Mt. St. Helens output: ASH.

55. Mobster's piece: GAT.

56. "2 Fast 2 Furious" actress Mendes: EVA.   Eva and partner Ryan Gosling


57. Sleep acronym: REM.  "Rapid eye movement sleep (REM sleep, REMS) is a unique phase of sleep in mammals and birds, distinguishable by random/rapid movement of the eyes, accompanied with low muscle tone throughout the body, and the propensity of the sleeper to dream vividly." Wikipedia.

58. Indian title: SRI.  "...a polite form of address, like "mister" in English, or as an epithet for the names of Hindu deities."  Yogapedia

Here's the grid:

May 15, 2018

Tuesday, May 15, 2018, Joe Kidd

"Bad Penny"

17. Purina product for a young tabby: KITTEN CHOW.

22. Nickname for Coolidge: SILENT CAL.  “You can’t know too much, but you can say too much.”

51. Toe-tapping number: DANCE TUNE.

57. Riviera gambling destination: MONTE CARLO.   It is probably not possible to place a bet for one hundredth of a Euro at a Monte Carlo casino.

CENT appears in each of the four answers, but not spelled as such.   Thus, they are incorrect or invalid, or "bad."

35. With "a," someone undesirable ... and what's found in the circled letters?: BAD PENNY.

"Pennies today are viewed as nearly worthless by many people (although not so many as a year ago), but when the term “bad penny” first appeared in the 18th century, pennies were serious money.  This made them ripe targets for counterfeiters, and to reach into your pocket or purse and discover that you had ended up with such a counterfeit coin, a “bad” penny, was a depressing and annoying experience."

"A bad penny always turns up” is a very old proverb that dates back to at least the mid-18th century and is probably much older.  The general sense of the phrase is, as the Oxford English Dictionary puts it, “the predictable, and often unwanted, return of a disreputable or prodigal person after some absence, or (more generally) to the continual recurrence of someone or something.”  A “bad penny” is a person whose presence is unwelcome on any occasion, but whom fate perversely employs to torment you by making said person appear (“turn up”) repeatedly, often at the worst possible times."
Source: The Word Detective. 

Across:
1. Lymph __: NODE.

5. Offended smack: SLAP.


9. Catch some rays?: FISH.

13. Universal blood type, for short: O NEG.

14. Cursed: SWORE.   Not here, please.

15. First bet in a summer World Series: ANTE.  World Series of Poker.

16. Sharp tooth: FANG.

19. Actress Hagen: UTA.

20. Comes down with: GETS

21. Boca __, Florida: RATON.

25. Looks embarrassed: IS RED

27. Popeye's energy source: SPINACH.

28. Syst. for the hearing-impaired: ASL.  American Sign Language

30. Sci-fi writer Bradbury: RAY.  A favorite of mine was Fahrenheit 451.  “You don't have to burn books to destroy a culture. Just get people to stop reading them.”  - Ray Bradbury

31. Extreme degree: NTH.

32. Grand Canyon State sch.: ASUArizona State University.

33. Theater level: LOGE.

34. __ Dhabi: Persian Gulf port: ABU.

36. Fragrant evergreens: PINES.

38. More than pique: IRE.

39. Nutritious berry: ACAI.

40. Fitting: APT.

41. Toy dog, briefly: POM.  Pomeranian.  Sorry, Irish Miss.  We get another Spitz breed of dog.  Last time I had a dog in the cw it was the Shiba Inu. 


43. "__ be an honor": IT'D.  Really, it would.

44. Tokyo's former name: EDO.

45. Most obsequious: OILIEST.

49. Force back: REPEL.

53. Classroom fixtures: DESKS.

55. Mai __: tiki drinks: TAIS.

56. Burgundy on screen: RON.  "Ron Burgundy is San Diego's top-rated newsman in the male-dominated broadcasting of the 1970s, but that's all about to change for Ron and his cronies when an ambitious woman is hired as a new anchor."  IMDb.

59. Group activity at a Jewish wedding: HORA.

60. Mystical old letter: RUNE.

61. Bargaining group: UNION.

62. Still unfilled, as a position: OPEN.

63. Ocular woe: STYE.

64. TV screen meas.: DIAG.

65. Sassy: PERT.


Down:

1. Easy to prepare, in adspeak: NO FUSS.

2. How bettors may act: ON A TIP.

3. Alaska's __ National Park: DENALI.

4. Breakfast staple: EGG.

5. Light activator: SWITCH.

6. Heaps of, informally: LOTSA.

7. Sculpture, paintings, etc.: ART.

8. Look closely (at): PEER.

9. Britannica fodder: FACTS.

10. How people react to slasher films: IN HORROR.

11. Prehistoric period: STONE AGE.

12. Chop with an axe: HEW.

14. Book of drawing paper: SKETCH PAD.

18. Clipper's target: NAIL.

20. Annoying flying insect: GNAT.


23. Boredom: ENNUI.

24. Cut with a surgical beam: LASE.

26. Easter coloring: DYE.

29. "Sneaking" feeling: SUSPICION.


32. Annoying crawling insect: ANT.

33. Word after time or term: LIMIT.

34. Pantomimed: ACTED OUT.   Played a part.

37. Apple with earbuds: IPOD.

39. "Into Thin __": Jon Krakauer book: AIR.  After reading "Into Thin Air: A Personal Account of the Mt. Everest Disaster" you may want to read "The Climb: Tragic Ambitions on Everest" by Anatoli Boukreev. 

42. Corrida cheers: OLES.

44. Actress Sommer: ELKE.

45. Bump's place, idiomatically: ON A LOG.

46. Liechtenstein locale: EUROPE.   Europe : LIECHTENSTEIN


47. Nighttime noisemaker: SNORER.

48. Lodger: TENANT.

50. Makeup maven Lauder: ESTEE.

52. Sunlit lobbies: ATRIA.

54. Gulf War weapon: SCUD.

57. Dash of flavor?: MRS.


58. "Wheel of Fortune" purchase: AN I.

59. Make like a bunny: HOP.

See all y'all later n'at !

Here's the grid:


Oh wait.   One more.   For Irish Miss:

May 8, 2018

Tuesday, May 8, 2018 Bruce Venzke & Gail Grabowski

"Strong Persuasion"

17. "I Was Country When Country Wasn't Cool" singer: BARBARA MANDRELL.



25. David Bowie genre: GLAM ROCK.


32. Bourbon-making process: SOUR MASH.    TinBeni's favorite answer today.

42. Electromagnetic radiation unit: GAMMA RAY.

49. Cost per night, in hotels: ROOM RATE. Got a great room rate and free upgrade at the Hampton Inn in Pauls Valley, OK on our drive down to Texas.   Thirteen hours drive from Chicago.    Enough for one day.

And the reveal:
58. Using coercion, as shown in this puzzle's circles: TWISTING ONE'S ARM.   Arm was "twisted" in each of the five theme answers.


Across:

1. Swampy spots: BOGS.   Fens.

5. Hopeless case: GONER.

10. Zoo structure: CAGE

14. Pinza of "South Pacific":  EZIO.

15. Verdi aria translating to "It was you": ERI TU.

16. Gem from Australia: OPAL.

20. Flying nocturnal predator: OWL.   DW was driving and I was reading clues.  She guessed bat. 

21. Good, in Grenoble: BON.

22. "Makes sense to me": I SEE.

23. Decide not to use: PASS ON.

29. Israeli port: HAIFA.  The other three major seaports are Ashdod, Elat, and Hadera.

31. Sneezer's need: TISSUE.

35. Charlemagne's realm: Abbr.: HRE.  Holy Roman Emperor, 800-814

36. Pampered: DOTED ON.

37. Part of EDT: EASTERN Daylight Time.

41. Juillet's season: ETE.   French for summer or summertime.

44. Online financial site: E-TRADE.

48. Cuba __: rum drink: LIBRE.    TinBeni's favorite clue today. 

51. "The party's been canceled": IT'S OFF.

55. Cocktail party spread: PATEpâ·té

56. Seagoing pronoun: HER.

57. Extinct emu-like bird: MOA.


63. Northern neighbor of Chile: PERU.

64. "This I Promise You" band: NSYNC.
NSYNC received its name after Justin Timberlake's mother commented on how "in sync" the group's singing voices were. The group's name is also a play on the last letter of each of the initial members' names: JustiN, ChriS, JoeY, JasoN, and JC. (Wikipedia)



65. First chip in: ANTE.

66. Escalator part: STEP.

67. Storied granter of wishes: GENIE.

68. Neither winning nor losing: TIED.

Down:

1. Charlie Parker jazz genre: BEBOP.

2. Longtime Boston Symphony conductor: OZAWA.  Seiji

3. Brownies, e.g.: GIRLS.

4. Weep loudly: SOB.

5. Apache chief: GERONIMO.

6. Algerian port: ORAN.  One of nine major seaports in Algeria, but the one we see most often in crossword puzzles.

7. Matchstick-removing game: NIM.   I'd never heard of this game, except for in crosswords.

8. Internet sales, collectively: E-TAIL.

9. Rushes toward: RUNS AT.

10. Apple pie-making gadgets: CORERS.

11. Wild way to go: APE.

12. Four qts.: GAL. Four quarts make a gallon.   Four fifths make 80 %.

13. Building add-on: ELL.

18. On the ferry: ABOARD.

19. Moore of "Ghost": DEMI.

24. Actress Elisabeth: SHUE.

25. Grill fuel: GAS.

26. Irish actor Milo: O'SHEA.

27. Spicy Indian dish: CURRY.

28. Excited about, with "on": KEEN.  Fervent. 

30. Vampire tooth: FANG.

32. __ voce: softly: SOTTO.

33. Southern New Mexico county: OTERO.

34. Prefix with sphere: HEMI

36. Woodland grazer: DEER.

38. Atmosphere, as of a restaurant: AMBIENCE.   Had the best Chicken Genovaise I've ever had at DiBZ in Temple, Texas on Friday evening.  My sister finds the best restaurants.  She says, "I can't cook."   I think she confuses don't and can't. 

39. French existential dramatist: SARTRE.

40. "__ chic!": TRES.

43. Many a micro brew: ALE.

45. Excites: AMPS UP.

46. "Doggone it!": DRAT.

47. Enjoying the bistro, say: EATING.

50. Needing a chill pill: TENSE.

52. Muscat native: OMANI.  Muscat is the capital city of Oman. 

Oman is about the size of Kansas.
"The inhabitants of the area of Oman have long prospered from Indian Ocean trade. In the late 18th century, the nascent sultanate in Muscat signed the first in a series of friendship treaties with Britain. Over time, Oman's dependence on British political and military advisors increased, although the Sultanate never became a British colony. In 1970, QABOOS bin Said Al-Said overthrew his father, and has since ruled as sultan, but he has not designated a successor. His extensive modernization program has opened the country to the outside world, while preserving the longstanding close ties with the UK and US. Oman's moderate, independent foreign policy has sought to maintain good relations with its neighbors and to avoid external entanglements."  Source: CIA World Factbook

53. Strong point: FORTE.  Lake Charles born, Slidell, LA. raised Matt Forte played played running back for the Tulane Green Wave before having a highly productive career in the NFL with the Chicago Bears.   He retired this year.   JJM's daughter studies at Tulane.

54. Widely known: FAMED.

56. Hägar's daughter: HONI.

58. Adorns with Angel Soft, briefly: TPs. Adorns with toilet paper ?  Made me smile.  Fun clue.  Anonymous T, did you get your TPS Report submitted on time ?... with the right cover letter ?

59. Freshly painted: WET.

60. Hothead's emotion: IRE

61. MD for women: GYN.

62. Took it easy: SAT.

Vising in Texas.  That's all from me.  See all y'all later n'at !

Here's the grid:




May 1, 2018

Tuesday, May 1, 2018, Victor Barocas


 The Multifunctional Tool.

18. *Tuna eater's tool, maybe: CAN OPENER.

24. *Eyebrow-plucking tool: TWEEZERS.

36. *Shape of rotini pasta: CORKSCREW.

41. *Cocktail frank stabber: TOOTHPICK.

48. *Loser to rock, beater of paper: SCISSORS.

58. With 60-Across, contraption that usually includes the answers to the starred clues: SWISS ARMY. 60. See 58-Across: KNIFE.

Let's see what other fun Victor brings today.

Across:

1. Goldman's partner: SACHS. Marcus Goldman and Samuel Sachs.  The large multinational investment bank. 

6. Socially awkward sort: DORK.  Clark Kent ?

10. Potter's material: CLAY.

14. Voyager 1, e.g.: PROBE.

15. Like James Bond antagonists: EVIL.

16. With 11-Down, 2016 almost-Oscar-winning movie: LA LA.  11D. See 16-Across: LAND.  At the 2017 OSCAR awards ceremony,  La La Land won six OSCARS, and was erroneously awarded a seventh for Best Picture.  Moonlight was the real 2016 Best Picture award winner.  

17. Screen legend Flynn: ERROL. Swashbuckling swordsman.

20. Neither's partner: NOR.  If a verb is already in the negative, then partners either and or  are used.

21. Boxing ref's decision: TKO.

23. Worked, as dough: KNEADED.

27. Family room: DEN.

28. Captain's group: CREW.  Ship, Captain and Crew is a game played with five dice.  Players ante in to the pot.  Only after getting the Ship (a six), Captain (a five) and Crew (a four) can you get the Cargo.  The player with the largest Cargo total (point value of the other two dice) wins the pot.  

29. Spring shape: COIL.

31. Lottery ticket purchase, essentially: BET.

34. Michaelmas daisy: ASTER.  Daisy ?  Five letters.  See if ASTER fits.  It should.  It does.  Look up Michaelmas daisy later.   Oh, a daisy that blooms around Michaelmas (Sept 29th).   The largest group of Michaelmas daisies, with over 1,000 named cultivars is symphyotrichum novi-belgii.  That means "hair growing together - from New York".   They are also known as New York asters.  The weird stuff you learn on the internet...

38. Trendy: CHIC.

39. Sixth __: intuition: SENSE.  I have an intuition that blog-follower Fact Checker (and others) are looking up New York asters right about now.

40. Émile who wrote "J'Accuse...!": ZOLA.

43. "Miracle on 34th Street" store: MACYS.

44. Thor, to Odin: SON.

45. Its football team has played Harvard 134 times: YALE.

46. Grand Marquis, for short: MERC.


47. 2100, to Augustus: MMC. When the Roman statesman and military leader added one thousand, plus one thousand, plus one hundred, his total was MMC.

52. Adjusted (to): ATTUNED.

56. Dorm mgrs.: RAs.  Dormitory managers: Resident Assistants. 

57. "Ben-Hur" author Wallace: LEW.  I read Ben-Hur Wallach, assumed actor, saw the answer needed three letters and entered Eli.  How do you say bzzzt ?  You can read about Indiana-born, Civil War General and author Lew Wallace at  Britannica Biography: Lewis-Wallace.

62. Pub size: PINT.

63. "The World According to __": GARP.  Never read it, but have heard of it.  Almost entered the synonym for trail mix.

64. Concave navel: INNIE.

65. Not leave: STAY.  Love it when Rosemary Butler joins in, then get a chuckle out of the falsetto a few seconds later.


66. Leave: EXIT.  But they just asked me to stay, just a little bit longer.    What a twist !

67. Surprising plot development: TWIST.  O. Henry.   'nuff said ?

Down:

1. Used up: SPENT.

2. Cursor shape: ARROW.  The standard mouse pointer on a computer is an arrow, but you can select from a variety of others.  

3. Proofer's change: CORRECTION. After the blue-pencil.  Editing vs Proofreading  

4. "Game of Thrones" network: HBO.

5. Soda water: SELTZER.  Carbonated water.

6. Interior designer's concern: DECOR. Are all of these  Fixer Upper decors going out of style ?

7. Eggs, to a biologist: OVA.

8. Hockey venue: RINK.  The Pittsburgh Penguins play at PPG Paints Arena.

9. Yukon gold rush region: KLONDIKE.

We had an Isaly's  restaurant in our small town in N.E. Ohio.  Isaly's invented the Klondike Bar.  I knew of it long before I knew of the Yukon gold rush region.  Isaly's was also regionally famous for its "Skyscraper" ice cream cones and chip-chop ham.  There are now 14 flavors of the Klondike bar.

10. Wash the dirt off: CLEAN.

12. Protected at sea: ALEE.

13. Three feet: YARD.  Is it possible to get a complete food storage center... less than a yard wide ?

19. Banana leftovers: PEELS.

22. Royal Botanic Gardens locale: KEW.   Kew is WSW of London proper.  About 30 minutes on the Tube from Westminster.   Zoom in and the take the satellite view.  Zoom out to get your bearings.


25. Build: ERECT.

26. Wall-mounted light fixtures: SCONCES.

30. Ural River city: ORSK. Today's second pictorial geography lesson:
A 23 hour drive from Orsk to Omsk

31. Hybrid green veggie with small florets: BROCCOLINI.  Just saw this recipe for pan roasted broccolini  on an episode of Growing A Greener World. 

32. Slippery: EELY.

33. "__ the night before ... ": TWAS.

34. Play divisions: ACTS.

35. "Go away!": SHOO.

36. Finish the top of, as a room: CEIL.  To provide with a roof.   In French, ceil is eye, and ciel is sky.

37. Business magnates: CZARS.

39. Era that began with Sputnik: SPACE AGE.  Jump on that bandwagon.  Don't get left behind !


42. Church songs: HYMNS.

43. Soldier's cooking supplies: MESS KIT.  Field utensils.

46. Actress Farrow: MIA.

47. In need of air freshener: MUSTY.  Not that olives smell musty, but I had to get this vid in somewhere after Sunday's discussion of olive trees.  Gary mentioned seeing them in Tuscany.  We just saw this episode Saturday.  


49. Burial chamber: CRYPT.

50. Int.-reducing mortgages: RE-FIs.  Hi Lemonade !

51. Like sugar: SWEET.  How long before fresh sweet corn ?

52. Egyptian snakes: ASPs

53. Foolish one: TWIT.

54. Funny Fey: TINA.

55. "The Destroyer" of Marvel Comics: DRAX.  No idea.  Wagged the A.

59. Med. scan: MRIMagnetic Resonance Imaging.

61. Opposite of SSE: NNW.

Here's the grid.  See all y'all later n'at !



Apr 24, 2018

Tuesday April 24, 2018 Bruce Haight

Theme: Over and Over Again

 I’ve been called up from the minors to pinch-hit for TTP who’s been standing in for Argyle (How ya doin’, Marine?). Bruce gave us a nice early-week challenge with “over” split within the theme answers – twice as O-VER and twice as OVE-R: consistent.

17. Video game preview: DEMO VERSION. No “beta” this morning.

23. Exemplary: ABOVE REPROACH.

38. Romantic jewelry item: LOVE RING. Is this really a thing?

48. Latin phrase about certain effects of alcohol: IN VINO VERITAS. (Words that Tin lives by.)

And the reveal…

59. Social sin ... and what 17-, 23-, 38- and 48-Across are guilty of?: OVER SHARING. 

 Let’s see what else Bruce has hidden in the grid for our amusement.

Across:

1. __ jacket: soldier's protection: FLAK. 

5. Reeded woodwinds: OBOES. Hello again, old friend.

10. Like some humor: WRY. Could’a been DRY – I waited for the perps to decide.

13. NASA prefix: AERO.

14. Grow fond of: WARM TO.

16. Elisabeth who played Finlay on "CSI": SHUE. She was good in the role. You may remember her as Jennifer from Back To The Future II and III. She was a little younger then, but so were we.

 https://ia.media-imdb.com/images/M/MV5BMTg5ODk5OTU3MV5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwNjM1NDUxMg@@._V1_UY317_CR15,0,214,317_AL_.jpg


19. Window section: PANE.

20. Naturally bright: SKYLIT. My thoughts were in the intelligence vein.

21. College sr.'s test: GRE. Anyone else misread the clue and ink in SAT?

22. Elevator name: OTIS. He had his ups and downs.

27. Commercial cow: ELSIE. She’s buried in New Jersey.

30. Before, in verse: ERE.

31. Many Louvre paintings: OILS. Perhaps the most famous is the Mona Lisa. She’s hung in the Louvre for more than 200 years.

32. Columnist Maureen: DOWD. NYT readers know her well.

33. End of most work wks.: FRI. Unless you’re a homemaker...

34. Arresting image?: MUGSHOT. Tried GUMSHOE first. Don’t ask why.

37. Boxing legend: ALI.

40. "A Wrinkle in Time" director DuVernay: AVA. She was the first black woman to direct an Oscar nominated film. Here’s a short two-minute film about that.

41. Sewer entrance: MANHOLE.

43. Past its prime: OLD. CSO to moi, among others who hang out here.

44. "My turn!": I’M UP.

45. Soccer score: GOAL.

46. Mineo of film: SAL. Best known for his role in Rebel Without A Clue with James Dean.

47. Muse of memory: MNEME.

52. Johns, to Elton: LOOS. Similar to “John of London” – Elton.

53. Finish in front: WIN. I was looking for a prefix which meant “finish.” D’oh!

54. Long look: EYEFUL. 

58. Riga resident: LETT. Riga is the capital of Latvia, one of the Baltic states. Latvians are called LETTs, and a third of ‘em live in Riga. I always get those three small countries mixed up: Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia.

62. Significant others, in modern slang: BAES. Was sure this had to be wrong. Nope. Urban Dictionary says it’s a dialectical pronunciation of “Babe.” Others claim it’s an acronym for Best At Everything. I don’t plan to use it anytime soon.

63. __ Creed: NICENE. The Apostle’s Creed is a watered down version.

64. Windy City daily, familiarly: TRIB. The famed Tribune Tower had been home to the newspaper since 1925. The Gothic spires at the top look like they belong on a cathedral. At street level the facade is decorated with 149 stones from around the world – places like the Taj Mahal, the Hagia Sofia, the Parthenon, the Great Pyramid and the Alamo. If there’s a “the” in the place name, there’s probably a stone from it in the tower. The building was recently sold. It’s to be turned into condo units.

65. Take a wrong turn, say: ERR.

66. "Spider-Man" actor Willem: DAFOE. He’s originally from Appleton, not far from where I grew up.

67. Racy Snapchat message: SEXT.

Down:


1. Passing fancies: FADS.

2. Oniony soup ingredient: LEEK. It’s an onion relative. They’re both alliums; garlic is too.

3. Military force: ARMY.

4. Powdered drink mix brand: KOOL-AID. 6. Place for mixed drinks: BAR.

5. Be a debtor of: OWE TO.

7. Surgery ctrs.: ORS.

8. Political refugee: EMIGRE. Our shores are not as welcoming as they once were.

9. Shop: STORE.

10. "Such sad news!": WHAT A SHAME! Bummer was too long.

11. Written in mystical, ancient letters: RUNIC. 

12. "Holy moly!": YEESH. I’ve heard sheesh (hiya, Jayce), but I don’t recognize yeesh.

15. Candy box size: ONE POUND.

16. Thread holders: SPOOLS.

18. Vague sense: VIBE.

24. Liveliness: VERVE. Verve records has the worlds largest jazz catalogue including the likes of Stan Getz, Duke Ellington and Ella Fitzgerald.

25. Of the Great Lakes, only Ontario is smaller than it: ERIE. And it’s back again!

26. Diana of "Game of Thrones": RIGG. I remember her best as the alluring Emma Peel in the ‘60s TV series The Avengers with Patrick Macnee.

27. Mild cheese: EDAM. 

28. Kinks title woman with "a dark brown voice": LOLA. In one episode Patrick plays Basil and Diana plays Lola, “a slutty, gum-smacking, ale-swilling tart.” Those Brits have a way with the language. 

29. Campaign ad target: SWING VOTER. 

33. Naturally evolving: FOLLOW ON. Awkward.

34. Pop's __ Vanilli: MILLI.

35. Fertility clinic egg: OVUM.

36. Sticky strip: TAPE. So easy. Why couldn’t I think of it?

38. Interlibrary __: LOAN. There must be a better way to clue this.

39. Strong sound from the savanna: ROAR.

42. Raises, as a sail: HOISTS. That word always makes me think of “Hoist by one’s own petard.” After reading the explanation, I still don’t know what it means.

44. Newspaper extras: INSERTS.

46. New York lake named for a Five Nations tribe: SENECA. One of the “Finger Lakes” (Hi, Spitz and I.M.)

47. Yucatán native: MAYA. One of five major Mexican civilizations. How many of the others can you name? (Answers below)

48. "Gee!": I'LL BE.

49. Musical shortcoming: NO EAR. I have a good ear, but I can’t carry a tune. I used to play a mean phonograph, though.

50. Brightly colored: VIVID. NEON was too short.

51. Snicker: TEHEE.

55. Send packing: FIRE.

56. Computer operating system: UNIX. Created in the ‘70s by AT&T’s Bell Labs. It’s still around with several spin-off descendants.

57. Pride Month letters: LGBT. Lesbian, Gay, Bi- and Trans.

60. NBA official: REF.

61. __ Balls: Hostess treats: SNO.

The other four civilizations are Olmec, Teotihuacan, Toltec and Aztec.

With C.C.’s help, the grid will now magically appear below. Desper-otto OVER and out.



Apr 17, 2018

Tuesday April 17, 2018, Roland Huget

Americans love pets.   They bring us joy and make us laugh with their silly behaviors and antics.  Today Roland brings us the mixed breed.  They were pretty easy to spot. 

Let's call the theme Mutts and Moggies

17. Welcome wind on a hot day: MILD BREEZE.

42. "Best thing since" invention metaphor: SLICED BREAD.

36. Successful cryptographer: CODE BREAKER.

The reveal:
62. Pet without papers ... or what is literally found in the circled letters: MIXED BREED.

Across:

1. Not at all good: EVIL.  Bad to the bone.

5. Piece-of-cake shape: WEDGE.  I wanted slice.  Both wedge and slice are also golf terms.  If you routinely slice your wedge, it's time to see your local PGA teaching professional.  He or she may correct your grip and swing plane.  That should get you back on track, easy as 1-2-3, piece-of-cake. 

10. Tick off: MIFF.  Peeve.

14. Use a surgical beam: LASE.

15. Toward the back: AREAR.  Aftward on a ship.

16. "What I Am" singer Brickell: EDIE.  Trivia fact: Married to Paul Simon.


19. First-rate: A-ONE. Alternatively written as A1.  We see that as the Audi model or the Kraft Steak Sauce and many Other Uses.

Driving fast on the A1.   There's also the A1 autobahn in Germany.  This driver makes the 90 minute drive from Bremen to Hamburg in 42 minutes.  He's driving a BMW 730d, and after the first 11 minutes or so, he pushes it up to and sustains almost 250 klicks per hour.  That's over 150 MPH ! Watch starting at 11:10 after he gets out of the speed-limit zone.    If you really want to see the scenery fly by, change the video playback options to run at 2X speed.    

20. Grab greedily: SNATCH.

21. Brought back to mind: RECALLED.

23. Migratory flying formations: VEEs.

25. Dance move: STEP.

26. Carrots' partners: PEAS. Some things just go together.  Bacon and eggs.  Hugs and kisses.  Tea and biscuits.  Love and marriage. Spaghetti and meatballs. The moon and the stars.  Turkey and dressing.  Fred and Ginger.  Peanut butter and jelly.  Wine and cheese.  Burger and fries.  Rodgers and Hammerstein.   Your turn. 



29. Dangerous tide: RIP.

31. Airing in the wee hours: ON LATE.  Like that pillow guy. 

35. Dr.'s orders: Rxs.  Prescriptions. 

38. Diner: EATER.

40. Cup handle: EAR.

41. Not reactive, as gases: INERT.

45. Untruth: LIE.

46. Walked with purpose: STRODE.

47. Typical John Grisham subject: LAW.

48. Back talk: SASS.

49. Nervous twitches: TICS.

51. Retail center: MART

53. Cigarette stimulant: NICOTINE.

57. Staggered: REELED.

61. Neutral shade: ECRU.

64. Drop of sorrow: TEAR.

65. Oscar-winning "Skyfall" singer: ADELE.


66. Family babysitter: NANA.

67. Attaches a patch, say: SEWS.

68. Massenet opera about a Spanish legend: LE CID.    Opera lovers like Hahtoolah probably nailed this.

In the early 1600s, French playwright Pierre Corneille wrote the play Le Cid based on the legend of Spanish medieval hero El Cid.  The play was wildly popular, but Corneille took a lot of flak and created quite the stir because he initially wrote the play as both a tragedy and a comedy. That was a big no-no at the time, at least as far as the French cultural authorities were concerned.

In the late 1800s, French composer Jules Massenet turned the play into an opera: Massenet's Le Cid - Synopsis.  Here's audio of Enrico Caruso singing the aria "O souverain, o juge, o père" from Massenet's Le Cid.

Good thing the perps gave me LE, because I would have had EL.

69. Absolut rival: SKYY.   Vodka brands.   Tinbeni gets options ! 
 

Down:

1. O'Neill's "Desire Under the __": ELMS.

2. Fruitless: VAIN.

3. Cuba, por ejemplo: ISLA.  Spanish in the clue, Spanish in the answer.  Or, if you so prefer, the same in Portuguese.

4. Some HD sets: LED TVs.

5. Medal recipient: WAR HERO

6. Poetic preposition before "now" or "long": ERE.

7. Animal on XING signs: DEER.   

8. Long looks: GAZES.

9. __ set: building toy: ERECTOR. Inducted into the Toy Hall of Fame in 1988.  Salem, Oregon born inventor, athlete, magician, toy-maker and businessman Alfred Carlton Gilbert is best known as the inventor of the Erector Set.  He also invented the pole vault box.  As an athlete, he set a world record for consecutive chin ups, and then set a world record in pole vault in 1906 while a student at Yale.  He then won a Gold Medal in pole vault at the 1908 Olympics.   He was dubbed by the press as "The Man Who Saved Christmas" after arguing successfully against a ban on toy production in 1918 during World War I.  Source: Wikipedia and acgilbert.org.

10. College student's dining choice: MEAL PLAN. How Not to Blow Your College Meal Plan

11. Singing competition that returned in 2018, familiarly: IDOL.  American Idol.

12. "Okay by me": FINE.  I can usually gauge the mood of my wife based on tone. 

13. Nourish: FEED.

18. Letters in old dates: BCE.   Wikipedia: "...Before the Common or Current Era (BCE)...   In the later 20th century, the use of CE and BCE was popularized in academic and scientific publications, and more generally by authors and publishers wishing to emphasize secularism or sensitivity to non-Christians, by not explicitly referencing Jesus as "Christ" and Dominus ("Lord") through use of the abbreviation "AD"..."

22. Virgil epic: AENEID. Oh man.  Not my cuppa.  Here goes:  Epic poem of myth and legend written by the ancient Roman poet Virgil.  Lots of supernatural meddling and involvement.  The hero is Aeneas.  Leads other Trojans as they sail to Italy, escaping Troy after the Greeks attacked.  Spartans and Trojans didn't get along at the time.  Perils along the way.  They make it.  Build a city that generations later becomes Rome. Wins battles.  Gets hindered and helped by the gods at many turns.  Sounds like George Lucas and Star Wars to me, but I've never seen that movie either.  How did I do Misty ?  I'll take the D+ and move on.

24. Flip of a 45 record: SIDE B.

26. Defensive basketball tactic: PRESS. Short for pressure.  The team without the ball (the defense) tries to pressure the offense into making a mistake and causing the offense to lose possession of the ball.  The change of (ball) possession is known as a turnover, and is the primary goal of the press. 

27. Praise highly: EXALT.

28. Up and about: ASTIR.

30. Oyster jewel: PEARL.

32. Cub Scout leader: AKELA.  The leader and guide for Cub Scouts on the advancement trail. Borrowed from Rudyard Kipling's Jungle Book as a symbol of wisdom, authority and leadership.  scouting.org, cubscouts.org, wikipedia.

33. Hatcher and Garr: TERIs.












34. Some Deco prints: ERTEs.   Russian-born  Romain de Tirtoff was known by the pseudonym "Erté",  from the French pronunciation of his initials.

36. College transcript unit: CREDIT.

37. Silvery freshwater fish: BREAM.

39. Nature excursions: ECOTOURS. Ecological tourism. 

43. Dot between dollars and cents: DECIMAL.

44. Given, as a medal: AWARDED.

48. Rudder locales: STERNS. Aft-most.  Spitzboov would know all these terms, and more !

50. Snarky: SNIDE.

52. Yank's war foe: REB. Yankees and Rebels in the U.S. Civil War.  Generally, northerners and southerners.  How much southern blood does your speech show ?  Take this test.

53. Earns after taxes: NETS.

54. Slushy drink brand: ICEE.  Apu sells a similar product called Squishee at Kwik-E-Mart.

55. Avian crop: CRAW.  Merriam-Webster definitions:
  • Avian: of, relating to, or derived from birds
  • Crop: a pouched enlargement of the esophagus of many birds that serves as a receptacle for food and for its preliminary maceration; also : an enlargement of the digestive tract of another animal (such as an insect)
  • Craw: The crop of a bird or insect.

56. Boardroom VIP: EXEC.

58. Security breach: LEAK.

59. Counting rhyme word: EENY.

60. June 6, 1944: D-DAY.

63. Collegian who roots for the Bulldogs: ELI.

A Yale University student is often called an Eli or a Yalie. The athletic teams of Yale are the Bulldogs.

Handsome Dan is the name of the actual bulldog that  serves as the mascot.
Iteration Number 18 is now serving.

Good boy.



Here's the grid:

See all y'all later n'at !

Apr 10, 2018

Tuesday, Apr 10, 2018 Gail Grabowski & Bruce Venzke


Firm Beliefs

18. "This Kiss" country singer: FAITH HILL

26. Swindler's swindle: CONFIDENCE GAME

47. Important percentage to a prosecutor: CONVICTION RATE

61. Heir's financial security: TRUST FUND

"Faith, Confidence, Conviction and Trust."   How beautiful is that ?   It just sounds nice as it rolls off the tongue.   Each of those four words is synonymous with having firm belief.  

ACROSS:

1. Stick a toothpick in: SPEAR

6. Former auto financing co.: GMAC.  GMAC became Ally Financial.  The auto financing arm of GM is now GM Financial. 

10. Get smart with: SASS.   As the kid who was stopped for speeding rolled down his window, the police office said 'I've been waiting for you all day.'  The kid replied, 'Yeah, well I got here as fast as I could.'

14. "The Chew" co-host Hall: CARLA.   "With love, Carla Hall"
 


15. Dinghy steering tools: OARS

16. Award coveted on "Mad Men": CLIO.  Advertising award.  "... annual award program that recognizes innovation and creative excellence in advertising, design and communication."

17. In the sky: ALOFT

20. City near Scottsdale: MESA.  Zoom in, zoom out. 

21. Cookbook maven Rombauer: IRMA Joy of Cooking fame.

22. Childish retort: AM TOO. Am not. Am too. Am not. Am too.  Am not. Am too.

23. Freeway division: LANE

25. Go quickly, quaintly: HIE

33. Pain-relieving drug: OPIATE

34. Sailor: TAR  Here's Popeye the Sailor starring in an oater, "Tar With A Star"
 

35. "__ Tide!": Alabama cheer: ROLL ESPN "Roll Tide" Commercial

37. Derby-wearing Addams cousin: ITT.
 38. Soaked in hot water, as a tea bag: STEEPED

41. "Argo" spy gp.: CIA

42. Blaze: FIRE

44. Braying beast: ASS

45. Nautical measure: FATHOM.  As a noun, a unit of measure, equal to 6 feet.  

50. Animation still: CEL

51. First Nations tribe: CREE.   First Nations refers to the indigenous peoples of Canada, south of the Arctic Circle.  Cree Indians are a First Nations tribe.  Today, there are over 135 bands (James Bay Cree, Woodland Cree, Plain Cree Indians, etc.) in Canada alone, and over 200,000 Cree Indians in North America.  Source: Indians.Org and Wikipedia.     

52. Hawke of "Training Day": ETHAN

55. RR station posting: SKED.   Personally noticing this more often as an abbreviation for schedule.

57. Save, with "away": SOCK

63. Scrabble 10-pointer: Z TILE.  The Q tile is another 10-pointer.  QI is the single most played word in Scrabble tournaments according to Merriam-Webster.  We see it as CHI in crossword puzzles.

64. PetSmart purchase: CAGE

65. Environs: AREA

66. Metallic mixture: ALLOY

67. Gps. requiring copays: HMOs. That clue and answer almost ran rife with abbreviations. 

68. Abound (with): TEEM

69. Younger siblings, at times: PESTS

DOWN:

1. Bogus offer: SCAM.   Like a swindler's swindle.

2. Light in color: PALE.  Ashy

3. Arrow shooter of myth: EROS

4. "Our Gang" kid with spiky hair: ALFALFA

5. Chinese zodiac animal: RAT.  The first in the 12-year cycle of the Chinese zodiac.  We are currently in the year of the Dog.

6. Be released: GO FREE

7. Respectful address: MAAM.  Ma'am.  

8. Song often sung in Italian: ARIA

9. Ill. clock setting: CST. We are currently using CDT.

10. Bagel spread: SCHMEAR

11. Touched down: ALIT

12. Where feed can be stored: SILO.  In a different sense,  these can be empirical structures that often hinder organizational growth and business objectives in mid and large-sized corporations.  We called the people that created these de facto silos "Empire builders." 

13. Unaided: SOLO

19. Reagan's first secretary of state: HAIG. Alexander M. Haig.  He was also the Chief of Staff for both Nixon and Ford. 

21. With all the fine points: IN DETAIL

24. River isles: AITs.  

25. British cattle breed: HEREFORD10 native British cattle breeds and how to recognize them

26. Salon do: COIF

27. __ nerve: OPTIC

28. Explosive liquid, briefly: NITRO

29. Modern mil. treaty violation: N-TEST.  Nuclear testing

30. Keep from going higher: CAP.  A golfing buddy sold electrical supplies to commercial and residential contractors.  He worked untiringly for his customers.  Their success meant his success.  It could become annoying on the golf course when he took calls, but his customers and work came first.  He left the distributor after the owners capped his "going-forward" commission rate following a string of very successful sales years.  In short time, so did many on his customers.  The small business learned that when you sell products that are considered commodities, the difference between failure and success often boils down to the people you hire, the relationships and goodwill developed with customers, and the levels of service provided.    

31. Starbucks flavor: MOCHA

32. "Adam Bede" novelist George: ELIOT

36. Like a weak excuse: LAME

39. Changed-my-mind key: ESCape. 

40. Great __: big dog: DANE. Very large lap dogs. Irish Miss, Misty and Pat are fellow dog lovers.


43. Crates up: ENCASES

46. Railroad bridge framework: TRESTLE

48. Opening for air: VENT

49. Winter river blockage: ICE DAM

52. Make a fine impression?: ETCH

53. Monorail transport: TRAM

54. Award for Isaac Asimov: HUGO.  Literary awards "...given annually for the best science fiction or fantasy works and achievements of the previous year."   Way back when, I read Asimov, Pohl, Clarke, Heinlein and others.  A brother and sister were avid readers of Sci-fi, and I got hooked for a few years.  Do you remember the vivid cover art on the paperbacks ?   

55. "By all means!": SURE

56. Replaceable joint: KNEE

58. Masseur's supply: OILS

59. Coagulate: CLOT

60. Door openers: KEYS

62. Liposuction target: FAT

63. Heat in a microwave: ZAP

I have Faith, Confidence, Conviction and Trust that Argyle will return to the Corner as soon as he is able.  

See all y'all later n'at !