Theme: And Another Thing ... - "And Another Thing" is inserted into two-word common phrases, creating theme answers which start with a " __ and __" familiar phrase.
23A. Result of a battle of bighorns?: BLACK AND BLUE SHEEP. "And Blue" is inserted into Black Sheep. Black and Blue. Bighorns are wild sheep. The clue is playing on "Battle of the Little Bighorns".
38A. Fire alarm during kindergarten?: SHOW AND TELL STOPPER. "And Tell" is squeezed into Show Stopper. Show and Tell.
56A. Attracting outdoorsy readers, say?: FIELD AND STREAM GOAL. "And Stream" is popped into Field Goal. "Field and Stream" is an outdoor magazine. Unknown to me.
77A. Crustacean with an electric guitar?: ROCK AND ROLL LOBSTER. "And Roll" is injected into Rock Lobster. Rock and Roll.
94A. Web site security expert?: POINT AND CLICK GUARD. "And Click" is embedded into Point Guard. Point and Click.
115A. Kids' puppet show script?: PUNCH AND JUDY LINES. "And Judy" is set into Punch Lines. I've never heard of the puppet show "Punch and Judy".
Barry (Phillies fan) and Doug (Yankees fan), also sprinkled a few baseball references in the grid:
26A. One of Rose's 4,256: HIT. Pete Rose. A record 4,256 hits.
63A. "Baseball is 90% mental; the other half is physical" speaker: BERRA (Yogi). Yankees' #8. Mantle wore #7.
40D. D.C. ball team: NATS. Washington Nationals. NL East.
66D. Minute Maid Park team: ASTROS. Houston Astros. NL Central.
Lots of proper names in this grid, no? Fortunately most of them have become gimmes to me. But I definitely needed the cheat cheat for a few hard crossings.
Fun puzzle. I was amused by the theme answers and slapped my head hard several times after grokking the tricky clues. Precious "D'oh" moments!
Across:
1. Escher Museum site, with "The": HAGUE. Escher is a Dutch painter.
6. Rolls: WADS. Money rolls.
10. Like Mr. Magoo: MYOPIC
16. Capital of Slovakia?: ESS. The capitalized letter of Slovakia.
19. When many return from lunch: AT ONE. Wanted ONE PM.
20. Vision: IDEA
21. Symphony originally dedicated to Napoleon: EROICA. Beethoven’s Symphony No. 3.
22. Ball support: TEE. Golf ball.
27. Province in northern Finland: LAPLAND. No idea. See this map. It's also a regions stretching across N Norway & N Sweden.
28. It's pitched: TENT. Would be a nice clue for IDEA too.
29. Holds on to: RETAINS
31. Fishing, maybe: ASEA.
34. Apple's G4, e.g.: IMAC
37. "See ya!": I'M OFF
44. Search uncertainly: GROPE. Bet it's a gimme for President Clinton. He's a pretty good crossword solver.
47. Cross shapes: TAUS
48. Talked nonstop: RAN ON
49. Martinique, e.g.: ILE
50. Lever with a blade: OAR. Did not come to me readily.
51. Selling points: ASSETS
54. Madagascar tree climber: LEMUR. Madagascar & LEMUR. Crossword pair.
55. Commanded: BADE
60. Elided greeting: 'ELLO. In Cockney. Letter H is omitted.
61. Car wash option: WAX
67. Hoarse: RASPING. RASPY is a much better answer.
69. Ballroom that made the Lindy Hop famous: SAVOY. Stumper. Sounds quite storied.
71. Brimless caps: BEANIES
73. "The Avengers" guy: STEED (John). Emma Peel is the only character I know of "The Avengers".
75. Many a joke involves one: PUN. Many times I simply don't get others' joke.
83. Budget rival: AVIS. Car rental.
87. Colorado county or its seat: PUEBLO. The answer emerged itself.
88. Psyche component: EGO
89. Top: LID
91. Proceed: WEND. Do you actually use this word in your daily conversation?
92. Surveyor's units: ACRES. Wanted PLOTS.
99. Alleged Soviet spy Hiss: ALGER. Alleged? I thought he's a real spy.
101. Alien's course: Abbr.: ESL (English as a Second Language). I always connect aliens with illegal immigrants though.
102. Lackluster: DRAB
106. Unfinished framework: CARCASS. Not a familiar defintion to me.
112. "The Disrobing of Christ" painter: EL GRECO. Spanish painter. "The Disrobing of Christ" is one of his best known works.
114. Follower's suffix: ITE. Penned in IST.
119. Rejections: NOS
120. Gerald Ford, by birth: OMAHAN. Thought he was born somewhere in Michigan.
121. Players: CAST. Theatrical players.
122. Racing paths: OVALS
123. Places for organ repairs, briefly: ORS (Operation Rooms)
124. Apartment restriction: NO PETS. Allergy is such a big problem for many.
126. Secure, as a nautical rope: BELAY. Can never remember this word.
Down:
1. "Aquí se ____ español": HABLA. "Speak" in Spainish.
2. Travel guide: ATLAS
3. Have a cow, so to speak: GO APE
4. Open, as a large envelope: UNCLASP
5. Reggae star __-Mouse: EEK-A. Named after the race horse he always bet on, according to Wikipedia. It appeared in our puzzle before.
6. Teller's spot: WINDOW
7. Say "Furthermore ...," say: ADD
8. Collector's item?: DEBT. The question mark did not preclude me from thinking of (baseball) card.
9. Discount event: SALE
10. Tryster's request: MEET ME
12. "I'm impressed!": OOH. I always say "Wow!"
14. Slush Puppie maker: ICEE
15. Something that may help you get the picture?: CAPTION. Excellent clue. I bet camera crossed everyone's mind.
16. Kenya neighbor: ETHIOPIA
17. Its 5/14/1998 final episode was seen by 76 million viewers: SEINFELD. "The Soup Nazi" is my favorite episode.
18. Liberates: SETS FREE
24. Monument word: ANNO. Would be ESTD if there were an abbr. hint.
25. Army divisions: UNITS
30. Band piece: AMP. Music band. And HEAD (39D. Spot for a band). Headband.
33. For adults only: RATED X
35. "So soon?": ALREADY
36. Cold and moist: CLAMMY
41. Bookshelf buildup: DUST. Just had MOTE ("Dust unit") yesterday.
43. Company that acquired Lawn-Boy in 1989: TORO. Easy guess.
44. Errand runners: GOFERS
45. Bawl out: RAIL AT
46. Implicit warning: OR ELSE. It's a rather explicit warning to me.
52. Cut: SAWN. Past participle "cut".
53. Glitch: SNAG
54. "Leading With My Chin" author: LENO (Jay).
57. Horses running leisurely: LOPERS
58. Actress Kim of "24": RAVER. Total stranger to me.
59. Org. concerned with suits: ABA. Lawsuits.
65. Weasel out: RENEGE
68. Part of a mating ritual: I DO. And PLEDGE (75D. 68-Down, for one). "Mating ritual" sounds very DF.
69. Basking locale: SUN DECK
70. "What Women Want" actor: ALDA (Alan). Red roses, and the man I love.
71. Cluster of cloves: BULB
72. Organic compound: ENOL
74. Got by: MADE DO
78. Pet with green fur?: CHIA
79. "Ol' Man River" composer: KERN. Hi, Jerome!
80. Gp. that includes Iran and Ecuador: OPEC
81. Muttonhead: LUNK. Not lunkhead?
82. Tusked animal: BOAR
83. "Ocean's Thirteen" actor: AL PACINO. I love "Ocean's Eleven" the most.
84. Lawbreaker, e.g.: VIOLATOR
85. Acknowledgement of a deviation, usually after "but": I DIGRESS. Great fill.
90. Attach, in a way: STRAP ON
93. PC component: CD DRIVE
95. Tokyo-based computer giant: NEC. Three letter Japanese company name, what else could it be?
96. 24 Hours of __: annual auto race: LE MANS. Same as Grand Prix, isn't it?
97. Comfortable with: USED TO
98. Confederate: ALLY
103. Of the kidneys: RENAL
104. Northeast express train: ACELA. Wikipedia says the name "Acela" is meant to be evocative of acceleration and excellence.
105. Everycow: BOSSY. Nickname for a cow. Is "Everycow" a real word?
107. Sport for big grapplers: SUMO
108. Piece of cake: SNAP
110. L x XXXIV: MDCC. 50 x 34 = 1700
111. City near Santa Barbara: OJAI (OH-high). Native Indian for "Valley of the Moon." I peeked at the cheat sheet.
113. Squishy lump: GLOB
116. Argentinian Marxist: CHE. Thought he was Cuban.
117. It may be passed or tipped: HAT. Nice clue.
118. TNT alternative: USA
Answer grid.
C.C.
23A. Result of a battle of bighorns?: BLACK AND BLUE SHEEP. "And Blue" is inserted into Black Sheep. Black and Blue. Bighorns are wild sheep. The clue is playing on "Battle of the Little Bighorns".
38A. Fire alarm during kindergarten?: SHOW AND TELL STOPPER. "And Tell" is squeezed into Show Stopper. Show and Tell.
56A. Attracting outdoorsy readers, say?: FIELD AND STREAM GOAL. "And Stream" is popped into Field Goal. "Field and Stream" is an outdoor magazine. Unknown to me.
77A. Crustacean with an electric guitar?: ROCK AND ROLL LOBSTER. "And Roll" is injected into Rock Lobster. Rock and Roll.
94A. Web site security expert?: POINT AND CLICK GUARD. "And Click" is embedded into Point Guard. Point and Click.
115A. Kids' puppet show script?: PUNCH AND JUDY LINES. "And Judy" is set into Punch Lines. I've never heard of the puppet show "Punch and Judy".
Barry (Phillies fan) and Doug (Yankees fan), also sprinkled a few baseball references in the grid:
26A. One of Rose's 4,256: HIT. Pete Rose. A record 4,256 hits.
63A. "Baseball is 90% mental; the other half is physical" speaker: BERRA (Yogi). Yankees' #8. Mantle wore #7.
40D. D.C. ball team: NATS. Washington Nationals. NL East.
66D. Minute Maid Park team: ASTROS. Houston Astros. NL Central.
Lots of proper names in this grid, no? Fortunately most of them have become gimmes to me. But I definitely needed the cheat cheat for a few hard crossings.
Fun puzzle. I was amused by the theme answers and slapped my head hard several times after grokking the tricky clues. Precious "D'oh" moments!
Across:
1. Escher Museum site, with "The": HAGUE. Escher is a Dutch painter.
6. Rolls: WADS. Money rolls.
10. Like Mr. Magoo: MYOPIC
16. Capital of Slovakia?: ESS. The capitalized letter of Slovakia.
19. When many return from lunch: AT ONE. Wanted ONE PM.
20. Vision: IDEA
21. Symphony originally dedicated to Napoleon: EROICA. Beethoven’s Symphony No. 3.
22. Ball support: TEE. Golf ball.
27. Province in northern Finland: LAPLAND. No idea. See this map. It's also a regions stretching across N Norway & N Sweden.
28. It's pitched: TENT. Would be a nice clue for IDEA too.
29. Holds on to: RETAINS
31. Fishing, maybe: ASEA.
34. Apple's G4, e.g.: IMAC
37. "See ya!": I'M OFF
44. Search uncertainly: GROPE. Bet it's a gimme for President Clinton. He's a pretty good crossword solver.
47. Cross shapes: TAUS
48. Talked nonstop: RAN ON
49. Martinique, e.g.: ILE
50. Lever with a blade: OAR. Did not come to me readily.
51. Selling points: ASSETS
54. Madagascar tree climber: LEMUR. Madagascar & LEMUR. Crossword pair.
55. Commanded: BADE
60. Elided greeting: 'ELLO. In Cockney. Letter H is omitted.
61. Car wash option: WAX
67. Hoarse: RASPING. RASPY is a much better answer.
69. Ballroom that made the Lindy Hop famous: SAVOY. Stumper. Sounds quite storied.
71. Brimless caps: BEANIES
73. "The Avengers" guy: STEED (John). Emma Peel is the only character I know of "The Avengers".
75. Many a joke involves one: PUN. Many times I simply don't get others' joke.
83. Budget rival: AVIS. Car rental.
87. Colorado county or its seat: PUEBLO. The answer emerged itself.
88. Psyche component: EGO
89. Top: LID
91. Proceed: WEND. Do you actually use this word in your daily conversation?
92. Surveyor's units: ACRES. Wanted PLOTS.
99. Alleged Soviet spy Hiss: ALGER. Alleged? I thought he's a real spy.
101. Alien's course: Abbr.: ESL (English as a Second Language). I always connect aliens with illegal immigrants though.
102. Lackluster: DRAB
106. Unfinished framework: CARCASS. Not a familiar defintion to me.
112. "The Disrobing of Christ" painter: EL GRECO. Spanish painter. "The Disrobing of Christ" is one of his best known works.
114. Follower's suffix: ITE. Penned in IST.
119. Rejections: NOS
120. Gerald Ford, by birth: OMAHAN. Thought he was born somewhere in Michigan.
121. Players: CAST. Theatrical players.
122. Racing paths: OVALS
123. Places for organ repairs, briefly: ORS (Operation Rooms)
124. Apartment restriction: NO PETS. Allergy is such a big problem for many.
126. Secure, as a nautical rope: BELAY. Can never remember this word.
Down:
1. "Aquí se ____ español": HABLA. "Speak" in Spainish.
2. Travel guide: ATLAS
3. Have a cow, so to speak: GO APE
4. Open, as a large envelope: UNCLASP
5. Reggae star __-Mouse: EEK-A. Named after the race horse he always bet on, according to Wikipedia. It appeared in our puzzle before.
6. Teller's spot: WINDOW
7. Say "Furthermore ...," say: ADD
8. Collector's item?: DEBT. The question mark did not preclude me from thinking of (baseball) card.
9. Discount event: SALE
10. Tryster's request: MEET ME
12. "I'm impressed!": OOH. I always say "Wow!"
14. Slush Puppie maker: ICEE
15. Something that may help you get the picture?: CAPTION. Excellent clue. I bet camera crossed everyone's mind.
16. Kenya neighbor: ETHIOPIA
17. Its 5/14/1998 final episode was seen by 76 million viewers: SEINFELD. "The Soup Nazi" is my favorite episode.
18. Liberates: SETS FREE
24. Monument word: ANNO. Would be ESTD if there were an abbr. hint.
25. Army divisions: UNITS
30. Band piece: AMP. Music band. And HEAD (39D. Spot for a band). Headband.
33. For adults only: RATED X
35. "So soon?": ALREADY
36. Cold and moist: CLAMMY
41. Bookshelf buildup: DUST. Just had MOTE ("Dust unit") yesterday.
43. Company that acquired Lawn-Boy in 1989: TORO. Easy guess.
44. Errand runners: GOFERS
45. Bawl out: RAIL AT
46. Implicit warning: OR ELSE. It's a rather explicit warning to me.
52. Cut: SAWN. Past participle "cut".
53. Glitch: SNAG
54. "Leading With My Chin" author: LENO (Jay).
57. Horses running leisurely: LOPERS
58. Actress Kim of "24": RAVER. Total stranger to me.
59. Org. concerned with suits: ABA. Lawsuits.
65. Weasel out: RENEGE
68. Part of a mating ritual: I DO. And PLEDGE (75D. 68-Down, for one). "Mating ritual" sounds very DF.
69. Basking locale: SUN DECK
70. "What Women Want" actor: ALDA (Alan). Red roses, and the man I love.
71. Cluster of cloves: BULB
72. Organic compound: ENOL
74. Got by: MADE DO
78. Pet with green fur?: CHIA
79. "Ol' Man River" composer: KERN. Hi, Jerome!
80. Gp. that includes Iran and Ecuador: OPEC
81. Muttonhead: LUNK. Not lunkhead?
82. Tusked animal: BOAR
83. "Ocean's Thirteen" actor: AL PACINO. I love "Ocean's Eleven" the most.
84. Lawbreaker, e.g.: VIOLATOR
85. Acknowledgement of a deviation, usually after "but": I DIGRESS. Great fill.
90. Attach, in a way: STRAP ON
93. PC component: CD DRIVE
95. Tokyo-based computer giant: NEC. Three letter Japanese company name, what else could it be?
96. 24 Hours of __: annual auto race: LE MANS. Same as Grand Prix, isn't it?
97. Comfortable with: USED TO
98. Confederate: ALLY
103. Of the kidneys: RENAL
104. Northeast express train: ACELA. Wikipedia says the name "Acela" is meant to be evocative of acceleration and excellence.
105. Everycow: BOSSY. Nickname for a cow. Is "Everycow" a real word?
107. Sport for big grapplers: SUMO
108. Piece of cake: SNAP
110. L x XXXIV: MDCC. 50 x 34 = 1700
111. City near Santa Barbara: OJAI (OH-high). Native Indian for "Valley of the Moon." I peeked at the cheat sheet.
113. Squishy lump: GLOB
116. Argentinian Marxist: CHE. Thought he was Cuban.
117. It may be passed or tipped: HAT. Nice clue.
118. TNT alternative: USA
Answer grid.
C.C.
