Theme: PIANISSIMO (115A: Musical direction, and a hint to the quiet meetings taking place in the answers to starred clues) - PP represents PIANISSIMO.
23A: *Recycled stuff: SCRAP PAPER
25A: *Most dreaming occurs in the last one: SLEEP PHASE
46A: *West Coast Marine Crops training base: CAMP PENDLETON
68A: *It's loaded with rolls: CAP PISTOL
90A: *"Science" employed in many a self-help book: POP PSYCHOLOGY
113A: *Game you have to dress for: STRIP POKER
35D: *Liability suit targets: DEEP POCKETS
42D: *Thing to do first: TOP PRIORITY
Today's constructor Kathleen Fay O'Brien is the lady who gave us our first LA Sunday puzzle, the LA Clippers.
I was stumped when PPP (Pianississimo) was clued as "Very softly, in music" in our old TMS Daily once. Could not understand why PPP when there's only one p in the word pianississimo. Then Barry G explained that it's because piano (soft) is represented by P and pianissimo (very soft) is represented by PP. Dictionary says pianissimo is the superlative of piano. And fortississimo is the superlative of forte. Fortissimo is the comparative. Sounds so complicated.
Nice quiet puzzle. Very doable. I like the theme title too: Quiet Meetings. Several alliterative clues in today's grid:
40A: Kennel call: ARF
63A: Rods with roasts: SPITS
72A: Cell centers: NUCLEI
64D: Seine sun: SOLEIL
82D: Tete thought: IDEE
101D: Spanish snacks: TAPAS
107D: Salty septet: SEAS
I love the last one the most. Sometimes I get bored by certain alliterations. Clues can get very constrained and less inventive if you focus too much on them. But I appreciate the effort the constructors/editor put into them.
By the way, Scott Atkinson mentioned a mini-theme in Michael Wiesenberg themeless yesterday: WHITE WATER & PURPLE RAIN, which cross each other (32A & 5D) in the grid.
Across:
1A: Nitty-gritty: PITH
5A: Company whose name is often quacked in ads: AFLAC. Those Yogi Berra AFLAC commercials are fun.
10A: Skier's wear: PARKA. The Eskimo PARKA is called anorak. What the heck are these?
20A: Capital at 12,000 feet: LHASA. Capital of Tibet. And OSCAR (103A: 13 1/2-inch-high award). I like clues with interesting trivia.
21A: Medicinal creams: ALOES
27A: Birch of "American Beauty": THORA. Can't remember her name, even though I've seen the movie.
30A: "Washington Merry-Go-Round" columnist: PEARSON (Drew). Nope. Don't know this guy. Great cover picture.
31A: Insinuating: SNIDE. Always thought SNIDE means contemptuous.
35A: North Dakota State's home: FARGO. Easy guess. Here is their bison mascot.
36A: When people retire: BED TIME. I was thinking of a different retirement.
41A: Cons: ANTIS
45A: It can't be returned: ACE. Tennis. I like the clue.
53A: Silly type: GOOSE. Nice clue too.
55A: Sunscreen nos.: SPFS
56A: Easy stride: LOPE. Rachel Alexander sure raced like a girl yesterday. I was surprised by the outstanding performance of Mine that Bird, who now I think might have won had Calvin Borel rode it.
57A: Professor "iggins: 'ENRY. From "My Fair Lady". Letter H is dropped in Cockney accent. 'OMES (homes) was once clued as "Cockney abodes" in our puzzle before.
59A: Chef's repertoire: RECIPES. Here is the "Julie & Julia" trailer.
61A: Take care of a boxer: PET SIT
65A: College offering: DEGREE
66A: Destroy over time: ERODE
71A: Debt evidence: CHITS
74A: Reel: LURCH
77A: Starts liking: TAKES TO
79A: 1950s-'60s "Man on the Street" comic: NYE (Louis). No idea. He does not look like a comic.
80A: Copy of an orig.: REPR (Reprint)
81A: Composer Satie: ERIK. I wonder why he changed his name from Eric to ERIK.
84A: People: ONES. This answer often gives me trouble, so does ONE, which stumped me last time when it's clued as "Fused".
87A: Two-time Tony winner Rivera: CHITA. Clear Ayes has probably seen all of those musicals.
88A: Actress Conn: DIDI. Unknown to me. She looks so happy.
93A: X, at times: TEN
96A: Work the aisles, slangily: USH. The letter S enabled me to fill in APSE rather than NAVE for the intersecting 86D: Church area.
97A: It borders It.: AUS (Austria). I did not pay attention to the abbreviated & capitalized "It."
98A: Lit: PIE- EYED. Both means drunk. I struggled with this answer.
100A: Bizarre: OUTRE
102D: PC hookup: CRT
104A: It can be hard to refold: ROADMAP. I like this clue too.
107A: Captain Marvel's magic word: SHAZAM. New to me. What does SHAZAM mean? Is it just a made-up word?
119A: Very, in score: ASSAI. What's the difference between ASSAI & MOLTO?
120A: Formed just for this project: AD HOC. Literally "for this".
121A: __'acte: ENTR
122A: WWII journalist Ernie: PYLE. What does letter C (his left arm) stand for?
124A: Serious: HEAVY. Why? Can you give me an example?
125A: Blotter site: DESK
Down:
2D: Yen: ITCH. Some ITCH just can't be scratched.
3D: Green party?: TYRO. I knew it's a play on "Green Party", but I could not think of an answer immediately. Very clever clue.
4D: Pulitzer rival: HEARST
6D: D.C. mortgage insurer: FHA (Federal Housing Administration).
11D: Shakespeare title starter: ALL'S. “ALL'S Well That Ends Well”.
13D: Continually remind: KEEP AFTER. New phrase to me.
14D: According to: AS PER. Reminds me of PER SE. Tricky to parse.
15D: "Silkwood" co-screenwriter Nora: EPHRON. Have never seen "Silkwood". Loved her "Sleepless in Seattle". Nora blogs at Huffington Post.
24D: Chicken Little's emotion: PANIC. Did not come to me immediately.
26D: Certain polytheist: PAGAN. Isn't strange that ancient Romans/Greeks/Egyptians are all polytheists?
29D: Opposite of ja: NEIN. German yes (ja) and no (NEIN).
32D: Publicists' concerns: IMAGES
33D: Possessed: DEMONIC. Obtained the answer with Across help.
35D: Guitar ridge: FRET. I forgot. FRET as a "Guitar ridge" appeared in our puzzle before.
37D: Cave phenomenon: ECHO
40D: "Little Men" author: ALCOTT. Only knew her "Little Women".
43D: How distances to ballpark fences are measured: IN FEET
44D: Gets cheeky with: SASSES. Typical grid edge word, so is SEUSS (123A: "If I ran the Zoo" author). Lots of S's.
47D: Fancy entrance: PORTAL
48D: Coffee go-with: DANISH. Yummy!
49D: Pigged out (on): ODED. Was this a gimmie to you? Somehow ODs or ODed always give me trouble.
52D: Ribs: NEEDLES. Both mean "teases".
55D: Seen from the crow's nest: SIGHTED. "Crow's nest" is a new term to me.
58D: Part of little girls' make-up: SPICE. And sugar. And all things nice.
60D: Singer Winans: CECE. BeBe & CeCe. Learned from doing Xword.
62D: Tiger's bagful: TEES. Meet Steve Williams, the world's most recognizable caddie.
63D: How acrobats perform: SPRYLY
67D: Former African territory ___Urundi (now two countries): RUANDA. Became Rwanda and Burundi in 1962. New to me.
69D: Fine, for instance: PUNISH
70D: Airport security concerns LAPTOPS
76D: Like "Macbeth": TRAGIC
80D: Pi followers: RHOS. I really liked last time's "Letters from Plato" for ETAS.
87D: Impudence: CHUTZPAH. Great answer.
90D: Portly: PLUMP
91D: Term of affection, in Asti: CARA. "Honey" in Italian?
92D: A long time: YEARS
95D: Nutrient in kelp: IODINE. I don't like kelp, so grainy and hard to wash. Love nori seaweed though.
99D: Cleared the board: ERASED. The clue brought to me immediately Target's messy "Board of Directors" fight. I don't really feel sorry for William Ackman. Does he look handsome to you?
102D: '90s "SNL" regular Farley: CHRIS. Nope. Don't know this guy.
104D: Brief answer?: RSVP. Nice clue.
105D: Our Gang assent: OTAY. No idea. Wanted OKAY.
106D: Seed cover: ARIL. This has become a gimme. Argyle linked this nice mace and nutmeg picture last time.
108D: Subordinate: AIDE
110D: Brief reading?: ZINE. Short for Fanzine, hence the "brief" hint in the clue.
114D: Manhattan sch: KSU (Kansas State University). I don't know there is a Manhattan in Kansas. But NYU won't fit.
Answer grid.
C.C.
23A: *Recycled stuff: SCRAP PAPER
25A: *Most dreaming occurs in the last one: SLEEP PHASE
46A: *West Coast Marine Crops training base: CAMP PENDLETON
68A: *It's loaded with rolls: CAP PISTOL
90A: *"Science" employed in many a self-help book: POP PSYCHOLOGY
113A: *Game you have to dress for: STRIP POKER
35D: *Liability suit targets: DEEP POCKETS
42D: *Thing to do first: TOP PRIORITY
Today's constructor Kathleen Fay O'Brien is the lady who gave us our first LA Sunday puzzle, the LA Clippers.
I was stumped when PPP (Pianississimo) was clued as "Very softly, in music" in our old TMS Daily once. Could not understand why PPP when there's only one p in the word pianississimo. Then Barry G explained that it's because piano (soft) is represented by P and pianissimo (very soft) is represented by PP. Dictionary says pianissimo is the superlative of piano. And fortississimo is the superlative of forte. Fortissimo is the comparative. Sounds so complicated.
Nice quiet puzzle. Very doable. I like the theme title too: Quiet Meetings. Several alliterative clues in today's grid:
40A: Kennel call: ARF
63A: Rods with roasts: SPITS
72A: Cell centers: NUCLEI
64D: Seine sun: SOLEIL
82D: Tete thought: IDEE
101D: Spanish snacks: TAPAS
107D: Salty septet: SEAS
I love the last one the most. Sometimes I get bored by certain alliterations. Clues can get very constrained and less inventive if you focus too much on them. But I appreciate the effort the constructors/editor put into them.
By the way, Scott Atkinson mentioned a mini-theme in Michael Wiesenberg themeless yesterday: WHITE WATER & PURPLE RAIN, which cross each other (32A & 5D) in the grid.
Across:
1A: Nitty-gritty: PITH
5A: Company whose name is often quacked in ads: AFLAC. Those Yogi Berra AFLAC commercials are fun.
10A: Skier's wear: PARKA. The Eskimo PARKA is called anorak. What the heck are these?
20A: Capital at 12,000 feet: LHASA. Capital of Tibet. And OSCAR (103A: 13 1/2-inch-high award). I like clues with interesting trivia.
21A: Medicinal creams: ALOES
27A: Birch of "American Beauty": THORA. Can't remember her name, even though I've seen the movie.
30A: "Washington Merry-Go-Round" columnist: PEARSON (Drew). Nope. Don't know this guy. Great cover picture.
31A: Insinuating: SNIDE. Always thought SNIDE means contemptuous.
35A: North Dakota State's home: FARGO. Easy guess. Here is their bison mascot.
36A: When people retire: BED TIME. I was thinking of a different retirement.
41A: Cons: ANTIS
45A: It can't be returned: ACE. Tennis. I like the clue.
53A: Silly type: GOOSE. Nice clue too.
55A: Sunscreen nos.: SPFS
56A: Easy stride: LOPE. Rachel Alexander sure raced like a girl yesterday. I was surprised by the outstanding performance of Mine that Bird, who now I think might have won had Calvin Borel rode it.
57A: Professor "iggins: 'ENRY. From "My Fair Lady". Letter H is dropped in Cockney accent. 'OMES (homes) was once clued as "Cockney abodes" in our puzzle before.
59A: Chef's repertoire: RECIPES. Here is the "Julie & Julia" trailer.
61A: Take care of a boxer: PET SIT
65A: College offering: DEGREE
66A: Destroy over time: ERODE
71A: Debt evidence: CHITS
74A: Reel: LURCH
77A: Starts liking: TAKES TO
79A: 1950s-'60s "Man on the Street" comic: NYE (Louis). No idea. He does not look like a comic.
80A: Copy of an orig.: REPR (Reprint)
81A: Composer Satie: ERIK. I wonder why he changed his name from Eric to ERIK.
84A: People: ONES. This answer often gives me trouble, so does ONE, which stumped me last time when it's clued as "Fused".
87A: Two-time Tony winner Rivera: CHITA. Clear Ayes has probably seen all of those musicals.
88A: Actress Conn: DIDI. Unknown to me. She looks so happy.
93A: X, at times: TEN
96A: Work the aisles, slangily: USH. The letter S enabled me to fill in APSE rather than NAVE for the intersecting 86D: Church area.
97A: It borders It.: AUS (Austria). I did not pay attention to the abbreviated & capitalized "It."
98A: Lit: PIE- EYED. Both means drunk. I struggled with this answer.
100A: Bizarre: OUTRE
102D: PC hookup: CRT
104A: It can be hard to refold: ROADMAP. I like this clue too.
107A: Captain Marvel's magic word: SHAZAM. New to me. What does SHAZAM mean? Is it just a made-up word?
119A: Very, in score: ASSAI. What's the difference between ASSAI & MOLTO?
120A: Formed just for this project: AD HOC. Literally "for this".
121A: __'acte: ENTR
122A: WWII journalist Ernie: PYLE. What does letter C (his left arm) stand for?
124A: Serious: HEAVY. Why? Can you give me an example?
125A: Blotter site: DESK
Down:
2D: Yen: ITCH. Some ITCH just can't be scratched.
3D: Green party?: TYRO. I knew it's a play on "Green Party", but I could not think of an answer immediately. Very clever clue.
4D: Pulitzer rival: HEARST
6D: D.C. mortgage insurer: FHA (Federal Housing Administration).
11D: Shakespeare title starter: ALL'S. “ALL'S Well That Ends Well”.
13D: Continually remind: KEEP AFTER. New phrase to me.
14D: According to: AS PER. Reminds me of PER SE. Tricky to parse.
15D: "Silkwood" co-screenwriter Nora: EPHRON. Have never seen "Silkwood". Loved her "Sleepless in Seattle". Nora blogs at Huffington Post.
24D: Chicken Little's emotion: PANIC. Did not come to me immediately.
26D: Certain polytheist: PAGAN. Isn't strange that ancient Romans/Greeks/Egyptians are all polytheists?
29D: Opposite of ja: NEIN. German yes (ja) and no (NEIN).
32D: Publicists' concerns: IMAGES
33D: Possessed: DEMONIC. Obtained the answer with Across help.
35D: Guitar ridge: FRET. I forgot. FRET as a "Guitar ridge" appeared in our puzzle before.
37D: Cave phenomenon: ECHO
40D: "Little Men" author: ALCOTT. Only knew her "Little Women".
43D: How distances to ballpark fences are measured: IN FEET
44D: Gets cheeky with: SASSES. Typical grid edge word, so is SEUSS (123A: "If I ran the Zoo" author). Lots of S's.
47D: Fancy entrance: PORTAL
48D: Coffee go-with: DANISH. Yummy!
49D: Pigged out (on): ODED. Was this a gimmie to you? Somehow ODs or ODed always give me trouble.
52D: Ribs: NEEDLES. Both mean "teases".
55D: Seen from the crow's nest: SIGHTED. "Crow's nest" is a new term to me.
58D: Part of little girls' make-up: SPICE. And sugar. And all things nice.
60D: Singer Winans: CECE. BeBe & CeCe. Learned from doing Xword.
62D: Tiger's bagful: TEES. Meet Steve Williams, the world's most recognizable caddie.
63D: How acrobats perform: SPRYLY
67D: Former African territory ___Urundi (now two countries): RUANDA. Became Rwanda and Burundi in 1962. New to me.
69D: Fine, for instance: PUNISH
70D: Airport security concerns LAPTOPS
76D: Like "Macbeth": TRAGIC
80D: Pi followers: RHOS. I really liked last time's "Letters from Plato" for ETAS.
87D: Impudence: CHUTZPAH. Great answer.
90D: Portly: PLUMP
91D: Term of affection, in Asti: CARA. "Honey" in Italian?
92D: A long time: YEARS
95D: Nutrient in kelp: IODINE. I don't like kelp, so grainy and hard to wash. Love nori seaweed though.
99D: Cleared the board: ERASED. The clue brought to me immediately Target's messy "Board of Directors" fight. I don't really feel sorry for William Ackman. Does he look handsome to you?
102D: '90s "SNL" regular Farley: CHRIS. Nope. Don't know this guy.
104D: Brief answer?: RSVP. Nice clue.
105D: Our Gang assent: OTAY. No idea. Wanted OKAY.
106D: Seed cover: ARIL. This has become a gimme. Argyle linked this nice mace and nutmeg picture last time.
108D: Subordinate: AIDE
110D: Brief reading?: ZINE. Short for Fanzine, hence the "brief" hint in the clue.
114D: Manhattan sch: KSU (Kansas State University). I don't know there is a Manhattan in Kansas. But NYU won't fit.
Answer grid.
C.C.
