Theme: Waiting for The Great Pumpkin (12-Across) - A Jack-O-Lantern shaped Halloween puzzle.
12A. This puzzle's honoree: THE GREAT PUMPKIN. Linus sits on the pumpkin patch every Halloween night waiting for the Great Pumpkin to appear. It never does.
27A. Strip where 12-Across first didn't appear in 1959: PEANUTS. Wikipedia says "In the 1959 sequence of strips in which the Great Pumpkin is first mentioned". Unknown fact to me. Peanuts debuted in Oct 1950.
43A. When 25-Down expects 12-Across to appear: HALLOWEEN
56A. Characteristic 18-Down cry regarding 12-Across: OH, GOOD GRIEF! The exclamation "Good grief" is popularized by Charlie Brown.
79A. 12-Across creator: SCHULZ (Charles). He was born and grew up here in Minnesota.
82A. Dog once mistaken for 12-Across: SNOOPY. Mistaken by whom? Linus?
102A. 25-Down maintained them annually: VIGILS. Every Halloween night.
104A. 12-Across tested 25-Down's faith by being one inevitably, every year: NO-SHOW
18D: Friend of 25-Down: CHARLIE BROWN
25D. Faithful crusader for the existence of 12-Across: LINUS VAN PELT. Charlie Brown's best friend.
The symmetrical partner of TOY PIANO (70D. Instrument seen in 27-Across) is not a theme answer, so I'll just classify it a bonus fill.
The puzzle has a left to right (rather than our normal 180 degree rotational) symmetry due to its special carved pumpkin shape. Definitely my favorite LAT Sunday since the switch. I could not imagine days or even months of hard work John Lampkin put into constructing this brilliant grid.
Two small quibbles regarding 2 clue/answer duplications:
50A. Sign made with two digits: VEE. And SIGN (1D. Coach's gesturing).
51A. Droll-sounding grain?: RYE. Sounds like "wry". And GRAIN (60D. Speck of truth).
Across:
1. Blockbusters: SMASH HITS. Very rarely did I nail a long 1A answer immediately.
10. Si and Am in "Lady and the Tramp": SIAMESE CATS. Easy guess.
16. Draw again, as comic book lines: REINK
17. Last Supper question: IS IT I
18. Genesis firstborn: CAIN. Adam was not "born".
19. Masked one at home: UMP (Umpire). Home plate.
22. Amt. due: BAL (Balance)
24. And the list goes on, briefly: ET AL
26. Hobbits' region: SHIRE. Hobbit ("The Lord of Rings") lived in the SHIRE and in Bree in the north west of Middle-earth, according to Wikipedia. Unknown to me.
29. Loaf: DOG IT. Loaf on the job.
31. Chestnut horse: ROAN. Sprinkled with gray or white.
32. LPGA golfer Johnson: TRISH. Not a well-known golfer, esp if you don't follow Solheim Cup or Ladies European Tour.
33. Hydrocarbon suffixes: ANES. See the singular ANE more often.
35. The king: Span.: EL REY. Why abbreviated Span.? And the French king ROI (94D. Palais resident).
37. Tropical roofers: THATCHERS. Oh my, "thatch" can be a verb also?
41. Puppy love: CRUSH
42. Elusive guy in a striped shirt: WALDO. "Where's Waldo?"
44. Italian Renaissance poet: TASSO (Torquato). Best known for his "Jerusalem Delivered".
45. "Exodus" hero: ARI
46. Eensy-__: WEENSY. Meaning "tiny" I suppose. Not a familiar expression to me.
48. Summer Triangle star: ALTAIR. See this diagram. The other two stars are Deneb and Vega.
52. Verb from Mark Antony: LEND. And EARS (63A. Noun from Mark Antony). "Friends, Romans, countrymen, LEND me your EARS", the first line of Mark Antony's speech in "Julius Caesar". Stumped me. John seems to be quite fond of cross-references.
53. Octopus costume features: ARMS. Octopus has eight arms.
55. Party girl?: DEB. Nice clue.
62. Mets' div.: NLE (National League East). Alas, no Phillies reference.
65. Some Protestants: LUTHERANS. Very strange, but every Lutheran friend I have tells me that I'll go to hell if I don't believe in Jesus Christ.
66. Scholastic nos.: GPAS. And LSATS (80D. Hurdles for future attys.)
67. Let fall, poetically: DROPT. Same pronunciation as "dropped", correct?
69. Opposes: NAYSAYS. And CON (78D. Not supporting). Pro and con.
70. Waste allowances: TRETS. The container weight is TARE.
71. Darkly complexioned, to Shakespeare: SWART. No idea. Archaic swarthy. Othello is SWART then.
73. Himalayan sightings: YETIS. The Abominable Snowman.
74. Picturesque fabric: TOILE. Very scenic.
75. Former name of Lake Malawi: NYASA (NYAH-sah). I don't even know where Lake Malawi is. Looks like it's shared by Malawi, Tanzania and Mozambique.
77. D.C. bigwig: SEN. Sometimes it's POL.
78. Vampire's home, perhaps: CRYPT. Perhaps.
87. Show contempt for, as a villain: HISS AT
89. 11-time Olympic swimming medalist Matt: BIONDI. I forgot. This guy won seven medals (5 golds) in 1988 Seoul Olympics.
90. Scannable mdse. bars: UPC ( Universal Product Code)
93. Closer: NEARER. And AT HEEL (23D. Close behind).
95. Reagan or Kennedy: AIRPORT. President does not fit. Great clue.
97. Cupid teammate: DASHER. Santa's reindeer.
101. Ultimate purpose: END USE
103. Does a slow burn: SEETHES
Down:
2. Add a profit margin to: MARK UP
3. __ Zion Church: AME (African Methodist Episcopal). I got the answer from crossings.
6. Cool, like a cat: HEP. Or HIP.
7. Post-ER area: ICU
8. Ethnic group of southern India: TAMILS. They live in Sri Lanka too.
9. Some auto maintenance store products: STPS. The motor oil additives.
10. Paris divider: SEINE. Left Bank/Right Bank.
11. Enjoyed a cross-country jaunt?: SKIED. Great clue too.
12. Showed the ropes: TRAINED
13. Legatee: HEIR. Legatee is a new word to me.
14. "Sock __ me!" : IT TO. Not funny at all. Nixon is very respected in China though. He opened Sino-US relationship.
15. River between two Great Lakes: NIAGARA. Lake Erie & Lake Ontario.
20. Alloy components: METALS
21. To some extent: PARTLY. Does "As it were" also mean "to some extent"?
22. Nonsense, euphemistically: BUSHWA
26. Periods between vernal equinoxes: SOLAR YEARS
28. Wilhelmina's daughter in "Ugly Betty": NICO. Total unknown.
30. Form into a mosaic pattern: TESSELLATE. Also a new word to me.
31. Gave a treat for a trick, say: REWARDED. I liked the clue. Evocative of Halloween.
34. Barefoot: SHOELESS. Like Joe Jackson, who should be in the Hall of Fame.
36. Pained cry: YOWL. I often "ouch".
37. Stanley Cup org.: THE NHL
38. Colt .45, e.g.: HANDGUN. Houston Astros was named Colt. 45s before.
39. Engages, as an attorney: RETAINS
40. Some drum parts: SNARES
41. NFL snappers: CTRS
47. Fair-hiring initials: EEO (Equal Employment Opportunity). EOE is Equal-Opportunity Employer.
49. Worldwide fiscal agcy.: IMF (International Monetary Fund)
57. Our Gang affirmative: OTAY. Silly way of saying "Okay".
58. "You bet!": OH YES
59. Villa __: Italian landmark: D'ESTE. Have you been there?
61. Ocean-bottom fish: RAYS
64. Prevents littering?: SPAYS. My favorite clue today.
66. Whiny: GRIPY
68. Of the windpipe: TRACHEAL. No idea. Not familiar with the noun trachea either.
72. Summer tops: T-SHIRTS. OK, not a T-shirt, but super sexy, no? I am going to link Katrina Kaif's picture again when AREOLA appears next time.
74. Walked-on: TRODDEN
76. Smallest cont. in area: AUS. Man, I thought it's EUR.
81. Congo, once: ZAIRE
82. Yes or no emphasizer: SIREE
83. F and G, but not H: NOTES. Nice clue.
84. Being shown, in a way: ON TV. Another nice clue.
85. Classic grape soda: NEHI. Radar's drink in "M*A*S*H".
86. Puppeteer Tony who mentored Bil Baird: SARG. No idea. Wikipedia says Tony Sarg is described as "America's Puppet Master"/ "father of modern puppetry in North America".
90. "Nope": UH UH
91. Colombian coin: PESO. So many Spanish speaking countries use PESO.
92. Yacht staff: CREW
96. Idaho Panhandle hrs.: PST (Pacific Standard Time)
98. Radical '60s gp.: SDS (Students for a Democratic Society). I often confuse it with "Radical '70s gp" SLA (Symbionese Liberation Army).
Answer grid.
C.C.
12A. This puzzle's honoree: THE GREAT PUMPKIN. Linus sits on the pumpkin patch every Halloween night waiting for the Great Pumpkin to appear. It never does.
27A. Strip where 12-Across first didn't appear in 1959: PEANUTS. Wikipedia says "In the 1959 sequence of strips in which the Great Pumpkin is first mentioned". Unknown fact to me. Peanuts debuted in Oct 1950.
43A. When 25-Down expects 12-Across to appear: HALLOWEEN
56A. Characteristic 18-Down cry regarding 12-Across: OH, GOOD GRIEF! The exclamation "Good grief" is popularized by Charlie Brown.
79A. 12-Across creator: SCHULZ (Charles). He was born and grew up here in Minnesota.
82A. Dog once mistaken for 12-Across: SNOOPY. Mistaken by whom? Linus?
102A. 25-Down maintained them annually: VIGILS. Every Halloween night.
104A. 12-Across tested 25-Down's faith by being one inevitably, every year: NO-SHOW
18D: Friend of 25-Down: CHARLIE BROWN
25D. Faithful crusader for the existence of 12-Across: LINUS VAN PELT. Charlie Brown's best friend.
The symmetrical partner of TOY PIANO (70D. Instrument seen in 27-Across) is not a theme answer, so I'll just classify it a bonus fill.
The puzzle has a left to right (rather than our normal 180 degree rotational) symmetry due to its special carved pumpkin shape. Definitely my favorite LAT Sunday since the switch. I could not imagine days or even months of hard work John Lampkin put into constructing this brilliant grid.
Two small quibbles regarding 2 clue/answer duplications:
50A. Sign made with two digits: VEE. And SIGN (1D. Coach's gesturing).
51A. Droll-sounding grain?: RYE. Sounds like "wry". And GRAIN (60D. Speck of truth).
Across:
1. Blockbusters: SMASH HITS. Very rarely did I nail a long 1A answer immediately.
10. Si and Am in "Lady and the Tramp": SIAMESE CATS. Easy guess.
16. Draw again, as comic book lines: REINK
17. Last Supper question: IS IT I
18. Genesis firstborn: CAIN. Adam was not "born".
19. Masked one at home: UMP (Umpire). Home plate.
22. Amt. due: BAL (Balance)
24. And the list goes on, briefly: ET AL
26. Hobbits' region: SHIRE. Hobbit ("The Lord of Rings") lived in the SHIRE and in Bree in the north west of Middle-earth, according to Wikipedia. Unknown to me.
29. Loaf: DOG IT. Loaf on the job.
31. Chestnut horse: ROAN. Sprinkled with gray or white.
32. LPGA golfer Johnson: TRISH. Not a well-known golfer, esp if you don't follow Solheim Cup or Ladies European Tour.
33. Hydrocarbon suffixes: ANES. See the singular ANE more often.
35. The king: Span.: EL REY. Why abbreviated Span.? And the French king ROI (94D. Palais resident).
37. Tropical roofers: THATCHERS. Oh my, "thatch" can be a verb also?
41. Puppy love: CRUSH
42. Elusive guy in a striped shirt: WALDO. "Where's Waldo?"
44. Italian Renaissance poet: TASSO (Torquato). Best known for his "Jerusalem Delivered".
45. "Exodus" hero: ARI
46. Eensy-__: WEENSY. Meaning "tiny" I suppose. Not a familiar expression to me.
48. Summer Triangle star: ALTAIR. See this diagram. The other two stars are Deneb and Vega.
52. Verb from Mark Antony: LEND. And EARS (63A. Noun from Mark Antony). "Friends, Romans, countrymen, LEND me your EARS", the first line of Mark Antony's speech in "Julius Caesar". Stumped me. John seems to be quite fond of cross-references.
53. Octopus costume features: ARMS. Octopus has eight arms.
55. Party girl?: DEB. Nice clue.
62. Mets' div.: NLE (National League East). Alas, no Phillies reference.
65. Some Protestants: LUTHERANS. Very strange, but every Lutheran friend I have tells me that I'll go to hell if I don't believe in Jesus Christ.
66. Scholastic nos.: GPAS. And LSATS (80D. Hurdles for future attys.)
67. Let fall, poetically: DROPT. Same pronunciation as "dropped", correct?
69. Opposes: NAYSAYS. And CON (78D. Not supporting). Pro and con.
70. Waste allowances: TRETS. The container weight is TARE.
71. Darkly complexioned, to Shakespeare: SWART. No idea. Archaic swarthy. Othello is SWART then.
73. Himalayan sightings: YETIS. The Abominable Snowman.
74. Picturesque fabric: TOILE. Very scenic.
75. Former name of Lake Malawi: NYASA (NYAH-sah). I don't even know where Lake Malawi is. Looks like it's shared by Malawi, Tanzania and Mozambique.
77. D.C. bigwig: SEN. Sometimes it's POL.
78. Vampire's home, perhaps: CRYPT. Perhaps.
87. Show contempt for, as a villain: HISS AT
89. 11-time Olympic swimming medalist Matt: BIONDI. I forgot. This guy won seven medals (5 golds) in 1988 Seoul Olympics.
90. Scannable mdse. bars: UPC ( Universal Product Code)
93. Closer: NEARER. And AT HEEL (23D. Close behind).
95. Reagan or Kennedy: AIRPORT. President does not fit. Great clue.
97. Cupid teammate: DASHER. Santa's reindeer.
101. Ultimate purpose: END USE
103. Does a slow burn: SEETHES
Down:
2. Add a profit margin to: MARK UP
3. __ Zion Church: AME (African Methodist Episcopal). I got the answer from crossings.
6. Cool, like a cat: HEP. Or HIP.
7. Post-ER area: ICU
8. Ethnic group of southern India: TAMILS. They live in Sri Lanka too.
9. Some auto maintenance store products: STPS. The motor oil additives.
10. Paris divider: SEINE. Left Bank/Right Bank.
11. Enjoyed a cross-country jaunt?: SKIED. Great clue too.
12. Showed the ropes: TRAINED
13. Legatee: HEIR. Legatee is a new word to me.
14. "Sock __ me!" : IT TO. Not funny at all. Nixon is very respected in China though. He opened Sino-US relationship.
15. River between two Great Lakes: NIAGARA. Lake Erie & Lake Ontario.
20. Alloy components: METALS
21. To some extent: PARTLY. Does "As it were" also mean "to some extent"?
22. Nonsense, euphemistically: BUSHWA
26. Periods between vernal equinoxes: SOLAR YEARS
28. Wilhelmina's daughter in "Ugly Betty": NICO. Total unknown.
30. Form into a mosaic pattern: TESSELLATE. Also a new word to me.
31. Gave a treat for a trick, say: REWARDED. I liked the clue. Evocative of Halloween.
34. Barefoot: SHOELESS. Like Joe Jackson, who should be in the Hall of Fame.
36. Pained cry: YOWL. I often "ouch".
37. Stanley Cup org.: THE NHL
38. Colt .45, e.g.: HANDGUN. Houston Astros was named Colt. 45s before.
39. Engages, as an attorney: RETAINS
40. Some drum parts: SNARES
41. NFL snappers: CTRS
47. Fair-hiring initials: EEO (Equal Employment Opportunity). EOE is Equal-Opportunity Employer.
49. Worldwide fiscal agcy.: IMF (International Monetary Fund)
57. Our Gang affirmative: OTAY. Silly way of saying "Okay".
58. "You bet!": OH YES
59. Villa __: Italian landmark: D'ESTE. Have you been there?
61. Ocean-bottom fish: RAYS
64. Prevents littering?: SPAYS. My favorite clue today.
66. Whiny: GRIPY
68. Of the windpipe: TRACHEAL. No idea. Not familiar with the noun trachea either.
72. Summer tops: T-SHIRTS. OK, not a T-shirt, but super sexy, no? I am going to link Katrina Kaif's picture again when AREOLA appears next time.
74. Walked-on: TRODDEN
76. Smallest cont. in area: AUS. Man, I thought it's EUR.
81. Congo, once: ZAIRE
82. Yes or no emphasizer: SIREE
83. F and G, but not H: NOTES. Nice clue.
84. Being shown, in a way: ON TV. Another nice clue.
85. Classic grape soda: NEHI. Radar's drink in "M*A*S*H".
86. Puppeteer Tony who mentored Bil Baird: SARG. No idea. Wikipedia says Tony Sarg is described as "America's Puppet Master"/ "father of modern puppetry in North America".
90. "Nope": UH UH
91. Colombian coin: PESO. So many Spanish speaking countries use PESO.
92. Yacht staff: CREW
96. Idaho Panhandle hrs.: PST (Pacific Standard Time)
98. Radical '60s gp.: SDS (Students for a Democratic Society). I often confuse it with "Radical '70s gp" SLA (Symbionese Liberation Army).
Answer grid.
C.C.
