Sunday July 5, 2009 Richard Silvestri

Theme: Heard Down Under

23A: Cookie made with Chianti instead of figs? WINE NEWTON (Wayne Newton)

25A: Wood for sashes?: WINDOW PINE (Windowpane)

34A: Blue Danube relative: PURPLE RHINE (Purple Rain)

50A: Discovery of the mother lode?: MINE EVENT (Main Event)

76A: Put an "X" where you want to cut the cord?: MARK TWINE (Mark Twain)

90A: Female chiropractor?: LADY OF SPINE (Lady of Spain)

105A: Squall at sea?: BRINE STORM (Brainstorm)

107A: "I never forget a face," e. g.: MEMORY LINE (Memory Lane)

Hmm, the Aussie/Kiwi (Down Under) long A pronunciation does sound long I, doesn't it?

LADY OF SPINE is my favorite theme entry. I thought of Nobel Peace Laureate Aung San Su Ki. She is a real LADY OF SPINE.

Lots of interesting clues in today's puzzle. I had several V-8 moments. Normally I am not fond of ALER (American Leaguer) or NLER (National Leaguer), but today's clue (48A: Ray or Jay) is outstanding. Tampa Bay Rays & Toronto Blue Jays. Nice rhyme.

I was also happy to see MINN (11D: Gopher's home?) again. Golden Gophers is the sports team for the University of Minnesota. I collect those adorable Goldy bobbleheads.

Across:

1A: Titanic obstacle: BERG. The last known Titanic survivor just died last month. She's 2-month old when she boarded Titanic.

9A: Opening frames: JAMBS. I need a "door" hint in the clue.

14A: Try: STAB. Have a try/STAB.

18A: 19th century tale of South Seas travel: OMOO. One more letter, the answer would be TYPEE/MARDI.

19A: Reach via radio: RAISE. Dictionary defines RAISE as "Make contact with by radio", then it gives an example: couldn't RAISE control tower after midnight. New meaning to me.

21A: Girl George?: ELIOT. George ELIOT, who's a "girl". Playing on Boy George. I suppose you can clue SAND as "Girl George" too.

22A: Lobby for: URGE

27A: Like some pens: ERASABLE. Have never used one.

28A: Collect little by little: GLEAN

30A: Snack maker's gizmo: POPPER. Popcorn POPPER.

32A: Samples from a doctor: PILLS

33A: Atheistic: GODLESS. I hope there is a God.

40A: Symbol of penance: ASHES. Oh, that's how we have Ash Wednesday.

41A: Dismayed cry: OY VEY

42A: Carpenter who sang: KAREN. I like her "We've Only Just Begun".

46A: Vientiane native: LAO. It's literally "old" in Chinese. LAO Tzu is literally "old master".

47A: Highest in order: UPMOST. Only knew uppermost.

49A: Scout outing: HIKE

53A: Malt drier: OAST

55A: Yankees' captain: JETER (Derek). I have his rookie card.

56A: Small biological cavities: AREOLES. Why "cavities"? They are just nipple rings.

57A: "I'll say": AND HOW

60D: Had right to: CLAIMED

63A: Unit of work: MAN-HOUR. Normally the answer is ERG.

65A: "My cousin Vinny" Oscar winner: TOMEI (Marisa).

68A: To boot: NO LESS. Why? They are not synonymous to me.

70A: Abates: EASES UP

74A: Hot spots: OVENS. Nice clue. I was thinking of North Korea/Iran.

75A: Money maker: MINT

78A: Buck, for one: MALE. "Tom, for one" too.

81A: Eats into: ERODES

83A: UV index monitor: EPA

84A: Letters on a lunch menu: BLT. Also PBJ. This bento lunch box looks so inviting.

85A: Woolly, perhaps: OVINE. Stumped. Hope ewe got it.

86A: Brilliance: ECLAT

87A: Jellied garnish: ASPIC. Why "garnish"? My grandma always made us ASPIC during Chinese Spring Festival.

89A: Incline: SLANT

92A: Thanksgiving activity: BASTING

95A: Inn group: MAIDS. Great clue.

97A: Troop troupe sponsor, briefly: USO

98A: Frequently traded, in the stock market: ACTIVE. Like the stupid GE stock.

99A: Ballet with a hoedown: RODEO. No idea. It refers to Copland's ballet RODEO I suppose.

100A: Create financial trouble for: STRAITEN. New word to me.

109A: Tartan wraparound: KILT

112A: Work in the cutting room: EDIT

114A: German seaport: EMDEN. See upperleft? North Sea port. I've never heard of it.

116A: Carmine's family?: REDS. Had to check dictionary for "carmine".

Down:

1D: He beat Holyfield twice: BOWE (Riddick). No idea. Have never heard of this boxer. I only remembered Tyson bit Holyfield's ear.

2D: Islamic title: EMIR

3D: Columnist Barnett: RONA. Or Author Jaffe.

4D: Completely loses it: GOES APE

5D: High range: TREBLE. Guessed.

6D: Ketch kin: YAWL. Both two-masted sailboats.

7D: Toy with a tail: KITE

8D: Paul Anka's "__ Beso (That Kiss): ESO. Literally "that".

9D: Lapidary's product: JEWEL. Did not know the meaning of "lapidary".

10D: Item on a forged document, perhaps: ALIAS

12D: Physique: BOD. Needs "slangily", right?

13D: Brief visit: STOPOVER

14D: Price factor: SUPPLY. Plenty of corn & soy in the market this year.

16D: Hooey: TRIPE. To some, it's a delicacy.

16D: David Copperfield's second wife: AGNES. No idea. Have never read "David Copperfield". Thought of Claudia Schiffer, ex-girlfriend of David Copperfield.

17D: Round at the bar: BEERS

20D: Fire trucks: ENGINES

24D: They're at your fingertip: NAILS. My favorite clue.

26D: God for whom Wednesday was named: WODEN. Always thought Wednesday is named after Odin. Dictionary says WODEN is "Anglo-Saxon god identified with Odin."

29D: 2001 U.S. Open champ Hewitt: LLEYTON. I could picture his face. His name escaped me.

32D: Turn on one foot: PIVOT

33D: "Earth in the Balance": GORE. Wikipedia says his "An Inconvenient Truth" is based on this book.

34D: Balearic Islands capital: PALMA. Sigh, both the clue and the answer mean nothing to me. Ibiza is wild.

35D: Carrier that merged with Piedmont in 1989: USAIR. Not familiar with the Piedmont Airlines.

36D: River through the Lake of Geneva: RHONE

37D: Entices: ROPES IN

38D Choir offering: HYMN

39D: '80 Bond portrayer: DALTON (Timothy). Love the current 007 Daniel Craig.

42D: Buckwheat dish: KASHA. I tried buckwheat porridge once. Terrible taste. Cold buckwheat soba noodle is delicious.

43D: Sharp quality: BITE

44D: Strings of islands?: UKES. Nice clue too.

47D: Optic layer: UVEA. Latin for "grape".

49D: Talmud tongue: HEBREW. Talmud is literally "instruction".

51D: Tertiary Period epoch: EOCENE. I forgot. EO is prefix for "early". EOCENE is characterized by the advent of the modern mammalian orders, says the dictionary. And it occurred from 55 to 40 million years ago.

52D: "American Psycho" author: ELLIS. No idea. The book sounds horrifying.

54D: USN VIPS: ADMS (Admirals)

55D: Knight game: JOUST

57D: Arabian Sea's Gulf of __: ADEN

58D: Hack's question: WHERE TO. Hack is taxi driver.

61D: Point in time: MOMENT

62D: Slur over: ELIDE

64D: Symbols of might: OAKS

65D: Crypt: TOMB

66D: Kind of round: OVAL. Indeed.

67D: Get all gooey: MELT. Reminds me of Dali's "The Persistence of Memory".

69D: Metal playing marble: STEELIE

71D: Basso Cesare: SIEPI. No, no, nope. Total stranger to me.

73D: Word spoken with a two-fingered sign: PEACE

76D: Gets into shape: MOLDS

77D: Forever partner?: A DAY. Forever and A DAY.

79D: Fade away: EVANESCE. Another new word to me.

80D: Double checker?: KING. Checkers. Here is Embien's explanation: You make a "king" in checkers by putting another piece on top, thus a "double checker" (the checker piece).

82D: Colts' home before Lucas Oil Stadium: RCA DOME (1984-2007). I guessed. Wikipedia says it's similar in design and appearance to Twins' Metrodome.

85D: Oil source: OLIVE. I was in the crude oil direction.

87D: Ore analysis: ASSAY

88D: Third-party candidate, perhaps: SPOILER

89D: Is frugal: STINTS

91D: Like many mammals: FURRED

92D: Spongy cake: BABKA. The cake with raisins and rum. Diminutive of baba, Polish for "grandmother".

93D: Bitter: ACRID

94D: Underground gate: STILE. Subway turnstile.

95D: "What has God wrought?" sender: MORSE

96D: Commercial developers: AD MEN. Excellent clue.

99D: Route for Bob and Bing: ROAD. ROAD to....

101D: It's a drag: TOKE. OK, TOKE is "a puff of a marijuana cigarette".

102D: Phenomenon measured by a marigraph: TIDE. Had to check the meaning of marigraph: a device that automatically registers the rise and fall of the TIDE.

103D: Oklahoma city: ENID

104D: Trawling gear: NETS

108D: Costar of Teri, Felicity, et al.: EVA (Longoria). From "Desperate Housewives"

Answer grid.

Happy Birthday, Linda, wherever you are!

C.C.

Friday November 28, 2008 Allan E. Parrish

Theme: Same Rhymes

18A: Comden/Green musical: AUNTIE MAME

24A: Rainout remedy: MAKEUP GAME

37A: University of South Bend: NOTRE DAME

54A: Cooperstown attraction: HALL OF FAME

61A: Delano or Alva, e.g.: MIDDLE NAME

I wish I could say "I CAME, I saw, I conquered". With all those ?AME endings, you would think I should have finished this puzzle without googling or wite-out.

I love the appearance of SURI (33A: Daughter of Tom Cruise). I also like the clueing of ALASKAN (3D: Palin, to name one). I could picture this constructor having fun working out his puzzle rather than sitting in the libary and laboring over some archaic fills.

I only wish LONGA (7D: Ars__, vita brevis) were clued differently. You know, with MAME, GAME, DAME, FAME and NAME, don't you think LONG A would be a better fill? How about the clue "LAME part?"

Across:

5A: Moolah: GELT. I've never heard of this slang before.

9A: Canada's __ National Park: BANFF. I bet no other English word ends with *NFF. What a strange name! I like how BANFF intersects NIAGARA (11D: Famous falls).

14A: Stitch's sidekick: LILO. I can never remember this Disney film. Always confuse LILO with REN ("Stimpy's pal").

15A: Melville novel: OMOO. The "Typee" sequel.

16A: Historian Durant: ARIEL. I would not have got this name without the down fills. I am more familiar with "Disney's Little Mermaid" clue. ARIEL Durant and her husband spent over 40 years writing "The Story of Civilization", and they died within 2 weeks of each other. How moving! I like this Will Durant quote: "A great civilization is not conquered from without until it has destroyed itself from within".

17A: Comet rival: AJAX

20A: Legendary Cardinal: MUSIAL (Stan). A rare gimme for me. He is in HOF.

22A: Stan of sax jazz: GETZ

27A: "Bambi" character: ENA. Also the "Spanish queen".

52A: Toshiba rival: NEC

53A: Channel island: SARK. See this map. It's new to me.

59A: Golf warning: FORE. I think the most dangerous shot in golf is shank. Are you a hooker or a slicer?

64A: Australian lake: EYRE. It's in South Australia. Saw this clue somewhere before. I am sure Jane EYRE is happy to stay away from this unwanted Xword limelight.

66A: Reebok rival: AVIA. The other 4-letter rival is FILA.

67A: Weizman of Israel: EZER. I googled. EZER Weisman was Israel's 7th President (1993-2000).

69A: Ex-Georgia Senator Miller: ZELL. I watched and loved this interview, but I forgot the senator's name. I wanted Zoey.

Down:

1D: Big house: SLAMMER. Slang for prison. "Big House" is new to me. I was thinking of mansion.

2D: San Diego's sister city: TIJUANA. The answer revealed itself after I filled in the surrounds. I did not know this before.

4D: Roker of "The Jeffersons": ROXIE. Which one is Roker? I've never heard of this actress or "The Jeffersons". I am surprised that ROXIE is not clued as "Velma's rival in "Chicago", since this constructor seems to be in a rival mood today.

5D: Gridiron upright: GOAL POST

6D: Big bird Down Under: EMU. Look at this EMU egg. Is it edible?

8D: Kind of pole: TOTEM

9D: Joan of folk: BAEZ. Here is Joan BAEZ and Bob Dylan's "Blowing in the Wind". I think I like Peter, Paul and Mary's version.

13D: Language of Flanders: FLEMISH. Most Belgians seem to be fluent in French, FLEMISH and English.

25D: Natural vessel: GOURD. This reminds of my grandma's GOURD scooper. What's the difference between GOURD and squash?

26D: Normand of silent movies: MABEL. She appeared in many movies with Chaplin. I've never heard of her name before.

42D: Fulminations: TIRADES. "Fulmination" is a new word to me. The spelling is so similar to fumigation.

45D: Break down: ANALYZE. Do you like "ANALYZE This"?

46D: Imation rival: MEMOREX. I had no familarity with MEMOREX.

47D: Ham actor's nosh: SCENERY. See Chew the SCENERY origin.

56D: Tear out: LEAVE. Is this a slang? I've never heard of it.

57D: Tears out: FLEES. I used to be very bothered by the same clue for different answers. Not any more. It's not a crossword construction sin.

59D: "___ Joy" (1972 Supremes hit): FLOY. New song to me.

63D: Inch fraction: MIL. Brewers fans probably want another clue for MIL.

C.C.

Thursday, August 6, 2015 Loren Muse & Mary Lou Guizzo

Theme: "Spread it Around"

36-Across. Home theater feature, and a hint to this puzzle's 10 border answers : SURROUND SOUND. The reveal says it all. Words that can follow SOUND march around the perimeter of the puzzle.

So, here they are, as they appear (clockwise) in the grid:

1-Across. Group working together : CREW. Sound crew. This could include a "python wrangler." Can you guess what position that might be, without looking it up? (If you give up, you can go here for the answer.)

5-Across. Evaluation : TEST. Sound test. To see if your speakers are working.

9-Across. Surf : WAVES. Sound waves.

13-Down. Vegas strategy : SYSTEM. Sound system. All the speakers, mics, wires and amps needed to get the music heard in the last row.

53-Down. Performance place : STAGE. Sound stage. Usually a SOUND-proof building on a studio lot, used for movie productions.

66-Across. Small meal : BITE. Sound bite. "Mr. Gorbachev, tear...down...this...wall!"

65-Across. Aperture : HOLE. I was wondering what a SOUND HOLE was, and then remembered
this from my misspent youth.

64-Across. Album segment : TRACK. Sound track. How about this one from the "SOUND of Music"?

42-Down. Outcome : EFFECT. Sound effect. Like this, at Halloween.

1-Down. Verify : CHECK. Sound check.  "Check...1...2...3..." To check the microphone's level. So, I guess I have your attention now? Let's proceed with the rest!

Across

14. Actress Lamarr : HEDY. Not just a pretty face, she invented groundbreaking technology to get around Germans jamming the SOUND WAVEs. The principles of her technology are the basis of WiFi and Bluetooth communication.

15. Sharp product : HDTV. These are often hooked up to SURROUND SOUND.

16. Opera's birthplace : ITALY. Now often performed on a SOUND STAGE for TV production.

17. Christian denom. : EPIS.copal. Could involve a SOUND CHECK to make sure the sermon is heard in the back row.

18. EKTORP sofa seller : IKEA. EKTORP is a line of sofas and chairs. They also sell cabinets for your SOUND SYSTEM.

19. Ninnies : DOLTS. Umm, SOUNDS like "colts"??

20. Simply marvelous, with "the" : CATS MEOW. In the alley, at midnight, they create a cacophonous SOUND.

22. Besides : TO BOOT. OK, "Uncle." I can't think of any way to relate this to SOUND...

23. Kipling title orphan : KIM.

24. Pro Bowl team, briefly : AFC. American Football Conference.

25. General-turned-author Wallace : LEW. He wrote "Ben-Hur:A Tale of the Christ."

26. Cult following? : -URE. Culture. It was my first thought.  I think I have been doing waaaaay too many crossword puzzles!

27. Soft drink that sounds like a bit of footwear : NEHI. Haha. "Knee-high," get it?

29. Get wind of : HEAR.

31. Sent by : FROM.

32. Some bolt holders : T NUTS.

34. "The Fisher King" Oscar winner Mercedes : RUEHL. I remember her face from "Frasier." She played the station manager in some episodes.  Darned if I could remember her name though: all perps.

40. Shades of blue : TEALS. Here are some TEALS from Benjamin Moore.

41. Southern Russia's __ Republic : ALTAI.

42. Pair of giraffes? : EFFS. Again, my first thought.

45. Actress Hudson : KATE. She is Goldie Hawn's daughter.

47. Seas, to Sartre : MERS. French.

48. Common reason for absence : FLU.

49. Card game cry : GIN!

50. Never, in Nuremberg : NIE. German.

52. No. after a period : CTS. Cents.

54. Discovered by accident : FELL ON.

56. Is humbled : EATS DIRT.

58. Formerly employed by The Company : EX-CIA.

59. Charity : ALMS.

60. Nepal locale : ASIA.

61. Preserves, in a way : CORNS. Learning moment for me.  CORN originally meant any grain. You use "grains" of salt to make CORNed beef.

62. Skelton's Kadiddlehopper : CLEM.

63. It operates under the Dept. of Homeland Security : USCG. I put in US** and waited for perps.


Down

2. Changes the color of, maybe : REPAINTS. Hoo-boy, I've been doing a lot of that lately.

3. Where to find paste? : EDIT MENU. Because "Mrs. Roberts' first grade classroom" wouldn't fit.

4. "The Swiss Family Robinson" author : WYSS. First published in 1812, and made into a hit 1960 Disney movie. Unfortunately, the screenwriters junked about 90% of the book's content, and made up their own adventures for the family.

5. Pickup artist? : THIEF. Fun clue!

6. Three-term New York City mayor : ED KOCH.

7. Pot-au-feu, e.g. : STEW.

8. New Deal dam org. : TVA. Tennessee Valley Authority.

9. Black or golf follower : WIDOW.

10. Small step : A TO B.

11. Bravery, in the RAF : VALOUR. British spelling.

12. Banderillero's target : EL TORO. I went to a bullfight in Mexico once. Never again.

21. French teacher : MAÎTRE. More French

22. Mother __ : TERESA.

25. Sing the praises of : LAUD.

28. Wounds : HURTS.

30. Dadaist Max : ERNST. Our German friend returns.

The painting "Celebes" was pivotal to his career.

31. Magical item in a 1791 opera : FLUTE. Die Zauberflöte by Mozart.


33. Permeate : SOAK IN.

35. Elementary fellow? : HOLMES. Sherlock, I presume?

37. __ Bator : ULAN.

38. Jonquils and daffodils : NARCISSI.

39. D.C. part : DISTRICT. of Columbia.

43. Bending muscle : FLEXOR.

44. Pivot points : FULCRA.

46. Nail covering : ENAMEL. I was on the galvanized variety of nail at first.

49. "Find out" : GO ASK. In our house, those words were always followed by "...your father."

51. Reply from outside a door : IT'S ME.

55. Friend of Pete and Julie on "The Mod Squad" : LINC.

56. Cockney greeting : 'ELLO.

57. Smear : DAUB.

59. Berlin beef? : ACH.

My only beef? All my fun is over!
Marti

Sunday May 11, 2008 Annabel Michaels

Theme: HEADY DOINGS

28A: Passing gossip: CHIN WAGGING

66A: M-m-m-good: MOUTH WATERING

103A: Awesome: JAW DROPPING

3D: Psychiatrist's treatment?: HEAD SHRINKING

15D: Nuzzie greeting: NOSE RUBBING

40D: Eerie: HAIR RAISING

56D: Verbal chastisement: TONGUE LASHING

66D: Maximally boring: MIND NUMBING

Here are more:

EAR SPLITTING, EYE OPENING, TEETH CLENCHING, BRAINWASHING or BRAINTEASING, LIP SYNCING, BROW LIFTING, What else?

I am of two minds on today's puzzles. I do like the "HEADY DOINGS" theme idea, but I get dizzy just looking at this inordinate amount of ING's (8, including 29D: GOING OUT). What's your opinion?

It's a bit disappointing, thought hardly surprising given this editor's poor track record in timing his puzzles, that a "Mothers' Day" theme or even a "Related to the mother's side" (ENATE) clue is no where to be seen today. You would think he could work out a TV MOMS themed puzzle to balance his TV DADS puzzle (Tuesday May 6, 2008).

And 48D: Wake of a scythe (SWATHE), no VAR mark with the clue? Did you expect me to know that SWATHE could be spelled as SWATH when it means "the scythe path"? Obviously you MISOVERESTIMATED me, the way this country MISUNDERESTIMATED President Bush's resolve to get things done.

I laughed when I first saw 73A: I came: Lat. VENI. Then I filled in ALLUDE for 79A: Refer indirectly and LAY for 93A: Non-clerical. Then I found myself writing CAME for 94A: Showed up. I was stunned. CAME twice in less than 2 minute? You are amazing! Very ÉTÉ (98A: Nice hot time?) indeed.

But nothing is funny about 90A: Win a chase (OUT RUN). 93D: Ran out (LAPSED). You've gonna be kidding me. Just when I thought he could not sink any lower, along come this ghastly cluing! This editor definitely has no intention to improve the quality of his puzzles. His stubbornness is only paled by his arrogance.

Quite a few obscure city names in today's puzzle: NIAMEY, NEVERS, ALEPPO. The only place I know is 70D: Strasbourg's region (ALSACE). QUAGGAS, TOCSIN, MIOSIS, BOCCI were completely unknown to me. I've never heard of Nicolas ROEG either. But thanks to this editor's painful "Medical pref:" clue in April, I was able to get 54A: Healer: pref (IATRO) without any problem, otherwise, I would have big trouble with RICTUS (50D: Fixed, gaping grin). And without the generous help from those ING's, I think I would have completely tanked this puzzle.

ACROSS:

4A: Bring upon oneself: BUCK FOR. I am only familiar with BUCK UP, not BUCK FOR.

11A: Michael of Monty Python: PALIN. Nailed him today.

16A: Letters in math proofs: QED (Quod Erat Démōnstrandum). Latin. I am so proud I got this one.

20A: Shakespearean tragedy: OTHELLO

21A: Dispatch boat: AVISO. I completely forgot this word. But was able to string it together by the down clues. Always want a verb for the fill.

24A: Widespread slaughter: CARNAGE

30A: Fraction of a joule: ERG. 1 joule = 10⁷ erg.

35A: Mount Hood's state: OREGON. Hi there!

39A: NATO word: ATL (Atlantic). Do you know that NATO also stands for "North African Theater of Operations"? IKE served both NATO's.

41A: "Teenage __ Ninja Turtles:": MUTANT. Not familiar with this comic book at all.

42A: Singer Carter: DEANA. "Everything's Gonna Be Alright". Here is my favorite "Everything's Gonna Be Alright" (Bob Marley).

48A: Squelch: STIFLE

53A: Ascended: WENT UP

55A: Like plays and movies: SCRIPTED

65A: PA nuclear accident site: TMI (Three Miles Island). To me, TMI is simply "Too Much Information".

70A: Painter Matisse: HENRI. This Luxe, Calme, et Volupté is the only Matisse I've seen in person, and I don't think I like it.

72A: Raw fish dish: SUSHI. Technically, it's SASHIMI. SUSHI toppings are always cooked. I like how SUSHI parallels MOUTHWATERING. M-m-m good!

74A: Greek contest: AGON. I simply forgot. It's "a contest in which prizes were awarded in any of a number of events, as athletics, drama, music, poetry, and painting" in ancient Greece.

75A: Tense state: EDGINESS

82A: "M*A*S*H" co-star: STIERS (David Ogen). No idea. I've never watched "M*A*S*H".

83A: Strolls easily: MOSEYS

89A: Silver or Gold: METAL. I put MEDAL first, then my fill for 80D: Husband of Salt? became LOD, which confused me for a long time.

92A: Big bell sound: BONG

97A: Most favorable conditions: OPTIMA. Singular form is OPTIMUM.

99A: Pig's sire: BOAR

101A: Norse pantheon: AESIR. Ugh, I forgot. This word is hard to remember.

106A: 90 deg. from vert. HOR (Horizontal)

107A: Scatter: DISSIPATE

110A: Type of general: ONE STAR

111A: O.T. book: ISA (Isaiah)

114A: Make a widow: BEREAVE. It bothers me a bit to see BEREAVE crossing 89D: Connubial: MARITAL.

117A: Pituitary or pineal: GLAND. I did not know the meaning of "Pituitary" and I have never heard of "pineal gland" before. Had to consult my dictionary.

118A: Washington Post honcho: BRADLEE (Ben). I did not realize that he is still with the Washington Post (vice president). Thought he left long time ago. I like his "A Good Life".

DOWN:

4D: Italian lawn bowling: BOCCI. Completely unknown to me. It's "an Italian variety of lawn bowling played on a dirt court that is shorter and narrower than the rink of a bowling green."

6D: Legendary Giant Mathewson: CHRISTY. Gimme for me. One of the first crop of Baseball HOFers 1936. The other 4 are Babe Ruth, Ty Cobb, Honus Wagner and Walter Johnson.

7D: Condominium for canines: KENNEL

8D: Blemishes: FLAWS

10D: "Performance" director Nicolas: ROEG. No, I've never heard of him.

11D: Neighbor of Iran: PAKISTAN

13D: Lisa of "The View": LING. She is not with "The View" any more.

16D: Extinct kin of zebra: QUAGGAS. No idea. Gettable though. Here is a picture.

18D: John's last name?: DOE. I like the "?" in the clue.

29D: Becoming extinguished: GOING OUT. Two OUT in the fills today, see 90A: OUT RUN.

32D: Crevices: CLEFTS

35D: Syndicated astrologer Sydney: OMARR. Unknown to me.

39D: Syrian city: ALEPPO. No, no, have never heard of it.

46D: Alarm bell: TOCSIN. No idea. Dictionary says this word derives from French "tocasenh", "tocar" means to strike, "senh" comes from the Latin signal, so it's bell.

48D: Wake of a scythe: SWATHE. A "VAR" mark is essential for this clue in my opinion.

49D: Designated: TERMED. Why? Can you explain it to me?

50D: Fixed, gaping grin: RICTUS. Completely unknown to me. It's from the past participle of Latin word ringī (to gape).

57D: Incarnate: EMBODY

58D: Keaton and Ladd: DIANES. Know Keaton, not Ladd.

61D: Down Under one?: AUSSIE. Good one.

63D: City on the Loire: NEVERS. Capital city of Nièvre (central France), on the Loire River. I've never heard of it.

67D: Bleached: WHITENED

68D: Capital of Niger: NIAMEY. I did not know. Got it from across clues. Interesting, they grow millet there. Have you had millet couscous before? The capital of Nigeria is Abuja, pretty cool name, isn't it?

74D: Strasbourg's region: ALSACE. In eastern France. The food there is mostly German style, lots of rye bread.

80D: Husband of salt?: LOT. Great clue. What is exactly the name of LOT's wife anyway? A Pillar of Salt? She shouldn't have looked back obviously, the same with Orpheus. He would have brought his wife out of Hades if he did not glance back. But it's just so hard to resist the temptation in life.

82D: Make a strong metal connection: SPOT WELD. No idea.

84D: Moo __ gai pan: GOO. "Moo GOO" means "mushroom" in Chinese. Gai is chicken. Pan means slice. Americanized Chinese dish. You won't find it in a real Chinese dining table.

89D: Connubial: MARITAL. It bothers me to see MARITAL crossing BEREAVE.

92D: Defeated: BEATEN

95D: Contraction of the pupil: MIOSIS. No, nope, total stranger to me. It's "excessive constriction of the pupil of the eye, as a result of drugs, disease, or the like". I do like how this author structured MIOSIS and 2D: Membrane of the eye: CORNEA in the same grid in such a balanced fashion. Very nice. And one more, 51A: Eyes, in poems (ORBS)

96D: Listing of text mistakes: ERRATA

99D: Goofy error: BONER

104D: Pitcher Nen: ROBB. Wow, I've never heard of his name before. Not a Giants fan.

108D: Tape-counter abbr.: IPS (Inches Per Second)

C.C.

Thursday July 23, 2009 Dan Naddor

Theme: Take Actions

18A: Take on: GO UP AGAINST

23A: Takeoff: AIR DEPARTURE

32A: Take up: BEGIN LEARNING

41A: Takedown: WRESTLING MOVE

48A: Take in: PUT ONE OVER ON

57A: Takeout: HOT FOOD TO GO

Dictionary defines "Takedown" as "a move or series of maneuvers that succeeds in bringing a standing opponent down onto the mat." New word to me. I also did not know the idiom PUT ONE OVER ON.

I am often taken aback by Dan Naddor's productivity. I wonder how much time he commits to constructing puzzles every day. He is so thorough and ambitious in theme answer researches/designs. Six-theme entries seem to be very common for his 15*15 grids. On/off, up/down & in/out are all paired up nicely.

I really felt dumb this morning. Could not even parse A.F. OF L (62A: Union founded by Samuel Gompers, for short). I am more used to the AFL abbreviation. A.F. OF L is American Federation OF Labor.

Across:

1A: Spill catcher: BIB. Spilled some cherry juice on my white tank top the other day. So surprised that the stains came off rather easily.

4A: Cornered: AT BAY

9A: A pump lacks one: STRAP. Cameron Diaz' "In Her Shoes" is pretty funny.

14A: Sun Devils' sch.: ASU (Arizona State University)

16A: Hogwash: TRIPE

17A: Strauss's "__ Rosenkavalier": DER. German "the". DER Rosenkavalier = The Knight of the Rose. Have never heard of this opera.

20A: __artery, which supplies the kidneys: RENAL. Guessed, since RENAL is often clued as "Kidney-related".

22A: Tee-hee: SNICKER

27A: Expectoration sound: PTUI. The spitting sound. Expectoration/Expectorate (verb) is a new word to me.

28A: River inlet: RIA. Last time Dan Naddor clued it as "Esturary". I always want BAY.

29A: Bando of the 1960s-70s: SAL. Got his name from the Down fills.

38A: Like some auto engine: REBUILT. Did not come to me immediately.

40A: Daughter of King Minos: ARIADNE. She helped Theseus escaped the Labyrinth, but he deserted her. She later married Dionysus, God of fertility/wine.

43A: Place for a stud: EAR. Stud earrings. I like how it crosses the anagrammed baseball ERA (39D: Diamond stat).

44A: DUI's excess: ALC

45A: "Make __ Away": Sheryl Crow song: IT GO. What does IT refer to? Love?

53A: Big name in art glass: STEUBEN. I could only think of Tiffany.

61A: Windy City transportation grp.: CTA (Chicago Transit Authority).

63A: Y, sometimes: VOWEL. My favorite clue. Sometimes Y is a consonant, as in "Yes".

64A: Kenan's TV pal: KEL. Nickelodeon's "Kenan & KEL". I simply forgot.

65A: Kirsten of "Spider-Man": DUNST. I liked her in "Marie Antoniette". So innocent.

66A: Land formation named for its usual shape: DELTA

67A: Cannes condiment: SEL. French for salt. Last time "Poivre's partner" stumped many. Poivre is French for pepper.

Down:

1D: Unfair judgment, slangily: BAD RAP. Silly that some people eschew potatoes because of the carbs. Carbs are not fattening. Excess calories are.

2D: "Thar she blows!": I SEE IT

3D: Peel out: BURN RUBBER. "Peel out" is a new slang to me.

4D: Perspective: ANGLE

6D: HVAC measure: BTU

7D: Band aid?: AMP. Nice play on Band-Aid.

9D: Flight segment: STAIR

10D: Very short time: TRICE. I used to confuse TRICE with THRICE.

11D: Lemieux's milieu: RINK. Mario Lemieux. The only person to win the Stanley Cup as both a player and an owner (Penguins).

12D: It adjoins the altar: APSE. APSE & NAVE often confuse me.

13D: Rock: Pref.: PETR. As in petrify.

19D: Bearded grazer: GNU. Ah, OK, this wildebeest (GNU) does have beard.

21D: Parting words: ADIEUS

24D: Dry residue from molten liquid: PRILL. Like this? I've never heard of this word before.

25D: "__ a stinker?": Bugs Bunny line: AIN'T I

26D: N.C.'s capital: RAL. Raleigh.

29D: Gets off the point: SIDETRACKS

30D: First name in advice: ANN. ANN Landers.

33D: "Skedaddle!": GIT. Variant of get.

34D: Birdie beater: EAGLE. Golf term. Birdie is 1 under par. Eagle is 2 under par. I don't like "beater". Hate the image it conjures up.

35D: AK Steel Holding Corp. formerly: ARMCO. No idea. ARMCO stands for American Rolling Mills Corporation.

36D: __ Grande: RIO. Just saw "Blame It on RIO" the other day. Demi Moore seems to get more beautiful as she ages. She only eats raw food.

37D: Marine combatants: NAVIES. The warships? I was picturing those tough Marines fighting in Iraq/Afghanistan.

38D: "Nature" author's monogram: RWE. Ralph Waldo Emerson. I was stumped. Did not know Emerson's full name.

42D: Indian bread: NAN. Chinese Muslims call the bread NAN too.

46D: Colonel Sanders trademark: GOATEE

47D: Prepared to be summoned: ON CALL

48D: Light, filled pastries: PUFFS. Croissants are PUFFS pastries, right? They are heavy though.

49D: Letter-shaped fastener: U-BOLT

50D: Fabi of racing: TEO. Total stranger to me. Wikipedia says he participated in 71 Formula One Grands Prix.

51D: Available from Netflix, say: ON DVD

52D: String quartet member: VIOLA

53D: River herring: SHAD. Had no idea that SHAD is a kind of "River herring". Pickled herrings are delicious.

54D: Vegan staple: TOFU. TO is literally 'bean". FU means "ferment".

55D: Orwell's alma mater: ETON. "James Bond's alma mater" too.

58D: Water tester: TOE. Nice clue.

59D: Barn bird: OWL. Thought of HEN first.

Answer grid.

C.C.

Sunday Dec 2, 2012 Kathleen Fay O'Brien

Theme: "Heard Down Under" -Long A sound is replaced by Long I sound, the Aussie way.

 23A. Arranged pickling solutions on the shelf? : RACKED ONE'S BRINES. Racked one's brains. I use singular "brain".

 40A. Funhouse admission fee? : FRIGHT CHARGE. Freight charge.

 73A. "Your shingle work stinks!" e.g.? : ROOFING SLIGHT. Roofing slate. I can picture PK shouted at those roof workers: "Your shingle work stinks!"

 105A. "Don't take candy from strangers," say? : GUILE WARNING. Gale warning.

 123A. Empty church basket? : COLLECTION PLIGHT. Collection plate.

 16D. Landing with just a toothbrush? : LIGHT ARRIVAL. Late arrival.

 67D. Indian chef's series of adventures? : SPICE ODYSSEY. Space Odyssey. I think Indians even use spices in their breakfast.

Three sound changes occur in the back, the rest front. You don't want an odd man out.

Hope Kazie finds time solve this puzzle today, right up her alley. Dave moved back to the States when he was 6 years old (?), he might not have an Aussie accent.

Another grid with only 68 black squares and no cheater squares. Lovely.

 Across:

1. Not as risky : SAFER

6. Influential collegian, briefly : BMOC (Big Man On Campus)

10. Mus. direction in a dramatic passage : CRESC

15. Dalmatian, e.g. : SLAV. People of Dalmatia, rather than the dog.

19. Where surfers shop : E-MALL. Nice clue.

20. Sphere opening : IONO. Ionosphere.

21. Romney foe : OBAMA. Waiting for gift, Mr. President.

22. __ colada : PINA

26. Breakfast fare : EGGS

27. Name on sweet pieces : REESE

28. Deceptive handle : ALIAS. Deceptive clue.

29. Memorable Shakespearean trio : WITCHES

31. Solstice mo. : DEC

32. "Ghostbusters" goo : SLIME

34. Like blue cheese : RICH

37. Cosa __ : NOSTRA

38. Virginie, e.g. : ETAT

43. Syst. with gestures : ASL. This is in sign language. The title is "Start All Over Again". My go-to song when I'm feeling blue.

44. Furrowed : STRIATE. Gimme, Spitzboov? I'm more familiar with STRIA.

46. Patriotic chant : USA USA

47. Island S. of 10-Down : SAR (Sardinia) 10. Napoleon I's birthplace : CORSICA

49. Program writer : CODER

50. Pre-coll. exams : SATs

53. Place setting items : MATS

55. __ flakes : BRAN

58. ACLU concerns : RTs

60. Like leaves : LOBED

63. Drug in Shatner novels : TEK

64. Roller coaster, e.g. : RIDE

65. Tough call : TOSS UP

68. Firenze's land : ITALIA. Florence.

70. Verb in the classic "Mission: Impossible" opening scene : DISAVOW. No idea. Did you all get this easily?

72. One in a military march? : HUP.  "___, two, three, four..."

76. Litigator's org. : ABA

77. Outfit for an outfit : UNIFORM

79. Official commands : EDICTS

80. Biceps band : ARMLET

82. 13th-century date : MCCI. 1201.

83. President pro __ : TEM

85. Uppity sort : SNOOT

86. Beach shirt : TEE

87. "Fawlty Towers" producer, with "the" : BEEB. BBC.

88. Old dagger : SNEE

90. Cognac grade, initially : VSOP (Very Special Old Pale). I dated a guy who drank Cognac & tonic water every night. 

92. Reuben need : SWISS

96. Spanish she-bear : OSA

98. Not really, with "only" : IN NAME

101. Quiet : EASEFUL. This is a word? OK, then.

103. Goal for a H.S. dropout : GED

109. Urgent : DIRE

110. Beefeater product : DRY GIN. Beefeater is a gin brand. New to me.

112. Algerian port : ORAN

113. Oct. 24, 1947 declaration : UN DAY

115. __ school : MED

116. Abby and Martha's poison of choice, in a 1939 play : ARSENIC. "Arsenic and Old Lace".

118. Types : KINDs

120. Asian wraps : SARIS

122. Democratic donkey designer : NAST (Thomas)

128. Wineglass feature : STEM

129. Water from France : EVIAN

130. City west of Caen : ST LO

131. Reverberations in une grotte : ÉCHOS. French plural.

132. Mitty portrayer : KAYE (Danny). Walter Mitty.

133. Data update mechanisms : FEEDS

134. Partings : BYES

135. Venezia casino winner : SETTE (Seven). Venezia, Venice.

Down:

1. Sun. speech : SER (Sermon)

2. Disaronno Originale product : AMARETTO. Italian for "a little bitter". Argyle might know the brand.

3. King or queen : FACE CARD

4. Sommer of film : ELKE

5. Like May through August, in a way : R-LESS

6. Book flap feature : BIO

7. My friend abroad : MON AMI. Literally "My friend".

8. Long John Silver feature : ONE LEG

9. "__ fan tutte": Mozart opera : COSI

11. Sac fly result : RBI

12. Suffix with Jacob : EAN. Jacobean.

13. Diving duck : SMEW

14. Sausage skin : CASING. I like Cantonese sausage. They are sweet. 

15. Short details? : SPECS

17. Infuriates : ANGERS

18. Feudal servant : VASSAL

24. Dutch pottery city : DELFT. Vermeer's hometown.

25. St. __: Caribbean island : BARTS. Never heard of it.

30. Little piggies : TOES

31. Invoice column hdg. : DESC. Description, I suppose.

33. Infuriates : IRES

35. Pal : CHUM

36. Goes after : HAS AT

39. Theater sections : TIERS

41. Conserves : HUSBANDS. Boomer does not know the "Conserve" meaning of HUSBAND. I learned from doing Xword.

42. Like "Mary Poppins" : RATED G

45. Maestro Toscanini : ARTURO

48. Magician's opening : ABRA

51. Arabic alphabet opener : ALIF

52. Funny Fields : TOTIE. No memory of this lady.

54. Topper seen on a mogul : SKI HAT. Marti style clue. Alas, I was picturing Donald Trump's "real hair" toupee.

56. Hacienda brick : ADOBE

57. A beginner in : NEW AT

59. Man cave topic : SPORTS

61. Onetime Rolex rival : ELGIN. I wanted OMEGA.

62. Find : DISCOVER

65. Opposable digit : THUMB

66. Prevention measure? : OUNCE.  "An ounce of prevention..."

69. Choir section : ALTOS

71. Put in bold type, say : STRESS

74. Subtitle of the sequel "Damien" : OMEN II. Looks disturbing.

75. Analogy words : IS TO

78. Trivial lies : FIBS

81. Spoke Siamese? : MEWED

84. __ Park: Edison lab site : MENLO

89. Nuke-testing dept. : ENER

91. Remain undecided : PEND

93. "Allow me ..." : IF I MIGHT. I say "If I may".

94. Deadeye : SURE SHOT

95. Arctic carrier : SLED

97. Rube's "anti" : AGIN'

99. Opens one's eyes : AWAKENS

100. Crazed : MANIC

102. Audibly awed : AGASP

103. Southern Baltic Sea port : GDANSK. Wiki said it's the birth place of Lech Walesa's Solidarity movement.

104. List of typos and such : ERRATA

106. Worldwide relief org. : UNICEF

107. It's common in some camps : NUDITY. Never been to one. You?

108. Boot part : INSOLE

111. "Capisce?" : GET ME?

114. Many pin tumbler locks : YALES

117. Shelter from a storm, perhaps : COVE

119. Airline investigative org. : NTSB (National Transportation Safety Board)

121. Fried __ : RICE. Have some!

124. Golfer's concern : LIE. Downhill lie is hard to work with.

125. Chap : LAD

126. Stats, e.g. : NO.s

127. "Cats" poet's monogram : T.S.E.

C.C.

Friday June 26, 2009 Dan Naddor

Theme: Have Ewe Herd These Puns? (L added before D)

18A: Rhinovirus kept under wraps?: SECRET COLD (Secret Code)

24A: Saved up for the slots?: HELD QUARTERS (Headquarters)

34A: One great baseball play after another?: FIELDING FRENZY (Feeding Frenzy)

50A: Flared pants for steelworkers?: WELDING BELLS (Wedding Bells)

56A: Dessert that's been out for too long?: PIE A LA MOLD (Pie a la Mode)

A special 16*15 grid to accommodate the 14-letter theme answer FIELDING FRENZY. Normally the central theme answer has an odd number of letters.

I thought of Fool's Gold. But I don't think Fool's Goad fits the pattern.

This is the most interesting Dan Naddor puzzle I've solved. Loads of fun. Dan mentioned that he tries to shoot for at least 20 entries of 6 letters or more in his puzzle. I counted 18 6-letter entries in Down alone.

Across:

10A: GE and GM: MFRS (Manufacturers). I just could not keep Dow out of my mind, though I was aware that GM was kicked out of Dow 30 (replaced by Cisco).

14A: One who never gets out: LIFER. Nice clue.

15A: "__ Rappaport": 1986 Tony winner for Best Play: I'M NOT. I guessed. Have never heard of this play/movie.

17A: Old-time actress Massey: ILONA. Got her name from Down fills. Wiki says she was billed as "The New Dietrich", but she did not live up to the hype.

20A: Pink lady liquor: GIN. What's your favorite cocktail? Mine is Long Island Iced Tea.

21A: Historic Italian city near Naples: NOLA. The answer emerged itself. Wiki says Augustus Caesar, the first emperor of Rome, died in NOLA.

23A: Quaking?: SEISMIC. Saw similar clue before. Still like it.

27A: Bond rating: AAA. The highest bond rating.

28A: Audition: TRYOUTS

29A: __ Hashanah: ROSH. I love apples dipped in honey.

30A: "My Boys" airer: TBS. No idea. Have never heard of "My Boys".

32A: Bungler: OAF. The mostly klutzy words in crossword world.

33A: Security concern: MOLE. I wrote down LEAK.

40A: Blowup source, briefly: NEG

42A: Reading and others: Abbr.: RRS

43A: A, in communications: ALFA. Not ALPHA?

45A: Buttercup family member: ANEMONE. Also called windflower. Rooted in Greek anemos, meaning "wind". Dictionary says it's so named because the petals are easily lost in wind.

49A: D-H filler: EFG. Monday clue. "DH filler" is better.

52A: Public face: PERSONA

55A: Passbook abbr.: DEP (Deposit)

58A: Island where Bill and Melinda Gates were wed: LANAI. On Jan 1, 1994. I was not aware of this trivia.

60A: Type type: Abbr.: ITAL

61A: Black tea: PEKOE. Chinese origin. Literally "white down/hair".

62A: Car dealer's offering: LEASE

63A: Where el sol rises: ESTE. East is "EST" in French/Italian.

64A: Imperial Oil brand: ESSO. Imperial Oil is Canada's largest petroleum company.

65A: Certain NCOs: SSGTS

Down:

1D: Affront: SLIGHT. I like this noun/verb ambiguity.

2D: More cunning: WILIER

4D: Boggy locale: FEN

5D: Serene: TRANQUIL. Quality fill.

6D: Not spread carefully: SMEAR. I am often confused by "not". Can never tell whether the answer should be a present tense verb or past participle style adjective. SMEARED would be a correct answer too, if there were two more blanks, correct?

7D: SASE, e.g.: ENC

8D: In direr straits: WORSE OFF. Good clue.

9D: Keeps the car on the road: STEERS

10D: Apple products: MACS. Come on, shock me, let the answer be CIDER someday.

11D: Completely: FROM A TO Z. Oh my goodness. I struggled with this multiple word again.

12D: In a way you can count on: RELIABLY

13D: Tsk evoker: SAD CASE. To me, a SAD CASE brings out more sympathy than "tsk".

15D: __ Canarias: ISLAS. Canary Islands.

19D: Mrs. Addams, to Gomez: TISH. Somehow I confused her with MRS C, which was clued as "Richie's mom, to Fonzie" before. Can't tell you how frustrated I am by those old TV fills.

22D: Exposed publicly: OUTED

25D: Peace advocates: DOVES. As opposed to the hawks.

26D: "Perry Mason" lieutenant: TRAGG. Again, got the answer with Across fills.

32D: Early first century date: ONE A.D. Ah, no Roman numeral.

33D: Muse of memory: MNEME. Unknown to me. That's how we get mnemonic I suppose. Dictionary says she is one of the three original muses, together with Aoede (muse of song) and Melete (muse of meditation).

34D: Gives up: FORFEITS

35D: Words before "to be alive" or "to be back": IT'S GREAT

36D: Kindles, as passions: INFLAMES

37D: Slender and long-limbed: RANGY

38D: Looks over closely: EYEBALLS. Or "Measure/estimate visually".

39D: Private school teen: PREPPIE. Or preppy.

43D: MP's quarry: AWOL

44D: Delaware tribe: LENAPE. Literally "original people."

46D: Racing has-been: OLD NAG. I wonder how the steroid-user Big Brown is doing.

47D: Place for Marlins, briefly: NL EAST. Also inclued the Mets, Phillies, Braves and the Nationals. This answer often gives me trouble.

48D: Glimpses: ESPIES

51D: Block house: IGLOO

53D: Rep's success: SALE

59D: JFK's UN ambassador: AES. Adlai Stevenson served as JFK's UN ambassador from 1961 to 1965. He was actually hoping to get the Secretary of the State post, which surprisingly went to Dean Rusk.

Answer grid.

C.C.

Sunday July 1, 2012 John Lieb

Theme: When Worlds Collide - The "World" in each theme entry is replaced by another word. (Correction: World can precede and follow the below green-highlighted word in each theme entry.)

24A. View from much of the Oregon coast? : WATER WITHOUT END. Water world. World Without End, the Ken Follett novel JD/Lemonade loves. I think Haltool is a fan too.

36A. What Ceylon, Siam and Upper Volta are nowadays? : DEAD TO THE ATLAS. Dead to the World. World Atlas.Irish Miss/Lucina might know this book.

51A. List of The Duke's films? : WAYNE'S HISTORY. Wayne's World. World history.

68A. Double eagle in a PGA event? : SHOT HEARD 'ROUND THE TOUR. Shot heard 'round the world. Bobby Thomson's home run. "The Giants win the pennant! The Giants win the pennant!". World tour.

89A. Battleship game setting? : SEA OF WARCRAFT. SeaWorld. World of Warcraft.

101A. Hank Aaron's 715th home run, at the time? : BRAVE NEW RECORD. Brave New World. Aaron was with the Braves at the time (1974). Plus, it's indeed a brave record, as he received lots of hate mail and even death threats. I like this clue a lot. World record.

119A. Pneumatic tube in a drive-thru? : WONDER OF THE BANK. Wonder of the World. World bank.

I think this is John Lieb's LA Times debut. And a Sunday. Congratulations! What a wonderful achievement.

Love the fill today. Lively and clean. The clues are entertaining too, esp these few:

106A. Character in "Scooby-Doo"? : HYPHEN. Got me.

11D. Lemon aids? : TOWS. Not something eye-related to aid our Lemonade.

44D. Runner down under? : STYX. River of Hades.

Across:

1. Spruce (up) : SPIFF. And 101D. Strengthened, with "up" : BEEFED

6. Employees with many perks? : BARISTAS. I sure was not thinking of coffee when I read "perks".

14. 45 holder : SLEEVE

20. Mother-of-pearl : NACRE. This and ETUI are two crossword words I learned very early on.

21. Intimate : ONE TO ONE

22. Really well-off : LOADED. So shocked Katie Holmes is divorcing Tom Cruise. They were such a happy couple.

23. "You __ big trouble, mister!" : ARE IN

26. Kid-friendly, in a way : RATED G

28. Country singer who was an 8-year-old "Star Search" contestant : RIMES (LeAnn). Did not know this trivia.

29. Yank : TUG

30. Delight at the comedy club : SLAY. Who doesn't like Louis C.K.?

31. Site of the first cover-up? : EDEN. Nice clue. Fig leaf cover-up.

32. Rise: Abbr. : INCR

34. He appointed Sandra to the Supreme Court : RONALD (Reagan)

41. Racetrack sounds : NEIGHS

45. Comic Amsterdam : MOREY. Of "The Dick Van Dyke Show".

46. Board-certified talk show host : DR. OZ. Google shows he's certified by the American Board of Surgery and the American Board of Thoracic Surgery.

47. Attribute : TRAIT

48. Pop-up ads, e.g. : COME-ONS

55. Do impressions of : APE

56. Wrong : NOT SO

58. 2002 Streisand album : DUETS. See the cover. Another unknown to me.

59. Latin law : LEX

60. "Bohemian Rhapsody" addressee : MAMA. Not my favorite Queen's song.

62. Browning and more : POETS

66. Carp cousins : DACES. Carp is a popular food fish in China.

76. Tall, dark and handsome : MANLY.What? I always associate MANLY with just masculine. Macho guy, not necessary "Tall, dark and handsome".

77. Actress Zellweger : RENEE

78. Sheet of stamps : PANE

79. Subside : EBB

82. Petal picker's word : LOVES

84. "It follows that ..." : AND SO

88. With it : HIP

94. Spicy stews : RAGOUTS

96. "Fun, Fun, Fun" car : T-BIRD. The Beach Boys.

97. Savvy about : ONTO

98. Possessive in many church names : PAUL'S. St. Paul's, right?

99. Triangular soil deposits : DELTAS

108. __ Domini : ANNO

109. Samoa's largest city : APIA. And capital.

110. "The Cosby Show" son : THEO

113. U.K. award : OBE. Order of the British Empire.

114. Oro y __: Montana's motto : PLATA

117. Alaska's __ Sound : NORTON. Never heard of it before, Spitzboov!

123. Intertwines yarn : KNITS

124. "Later, dude" : I'M GONE

125. High standing : EMINENCE

126. "Star-cross'd" lover : ROMEO. Why Star-cross'd rather than "Star-crossed"?

127. Battle of Thermopylae victor, 480 B.C. : XERXES. I bet Jayce nailed this one. The Persian king in "300". He creeps me out.

128. Utter failure : DISASTER

129. Trim : ADORN

Down:

1. Trapped : SNARED

2. Float site : PARADE

3. Lipton product : ICE TEA. Now I'm used to its D-less form.

4. Facebook request : FRIEND ME. Man, you can waste lots of time there.

5. Repel, with "off" : FEND

6. Katniss's weapon in "The Hunger Games" : BOW. Has any of you read or watched "The Hunger Games"?

7. Lawless state : ANARCHY

8. Hang up the spikes : RETIRE

9. Paparazzi's target : ITEM

10. Ticked off : SORE

12. Singer DiFranco : ANI

13. Scrapes : SET-TOS

14. The 1973 Mets' "Ya Gotta Believe!," e.g. : SLOGAN. Coined by Tug McGraw, father of Tim
McGraw.

15. Hoover's wife : LOU. I don't know. But isn't LOU a man's name?

16. Humbly apologizes : EATS DIRT

17. Pulitzer-winning biographer Leon : EDEL. This entry appeared a lot a lot in the old Wayne R. Williams puzzle. Always clued as "Henry James biographer".

18. __ cava : VENA

19. Vortex : EDDY. Hi there hockey nut Vortex!

25. Barbarian : HUN

27. "Buon __": Italian greeting : GIORNO. Italians are so passionate. Asians are rather reserved.

33. Explosive trial : N-TEST

34. Flattened : RAZED

35. "Decisions, decisions ..." : LET'S SEE

37. Homer, for one : TOON

38. Oral health org. : ADA

39. "__ and stop me!" : TRY

40. Horror star Chaney : LON

42. London lockup : GAOL. I often wonder if Splynter's English has a slight British accent.

43. Bring aboard : HIRE

48. "Overhead" engine parts : CAMS

49. Moonfish : OPAH

50. It might be cc'd : MEMO. I don't like G-mail. It doesn't show clearly whether an email is CC'ed to others.

51. Cord under a tarp : WOOD. I don't get this clue. (Added later: firewood. Thanks for the answer, everyone.)

52. Abrupt : SUDDEN

53. Word with gas or oil : HEAT

54. Dry skin tip-off : ITCH

57. More agile : SPRYER. Sprier feels more right to me.

61. Dough-dispensing convenience, briefly : ATM

63. Overcharge, say : ERR. I wonder what makes a Tom Ford lipstick so expensive. It doesn't feel special to me, except the package.

64. Turf __: common football injury : TOE

65. Important star : SUN

67. Gas additive brand : STP

69. Like some kindergarten programs : HALF-DAY

70. Plenty, in verse : ENOW

71. Menlo Park middle name : ALVA. Thomas Alva Edison.

72. Clutter-free : NEAT

73. Iolani Palace site : OAHU. JD visited the Palace before.

74. Condo, e.g. : UNIT

75. Set components : REPS

79. Cornerstone abbr. : ESTD

80. Nixon confidant Rebozo : BEBE

81. Judge's setting : BAIL

83. Disdain : SCORN

85. Haggard : DRAWN

86. The lord in "The Lord of the Rings" : SAURON. For Jazzbumpa.

87. Stare at rudely : OGLE

90. Like many faithful adherents : ORTHODOX

91. Genetic material : RNA

92. Off-rd. ride : ATV

93. One who isn't with us : FOE

95. Movie props? : OSCAR NOD. Great answer.

98. Hail Marys, often : PENANCE

100. Future ferns : SPORES

102. Floating : NATANT. New word to me. Natant

103. Cigar brand that comes in grape and peach flavors : OPTIMO. Did not know this. But I was shocked to find an cigarette ad in our Sunday's Parade magazine a few weeks ago.

104. Violent protester : RIOTER

105. Ted of "CSI" : DANSON

107. "Game of Thrones" airer : HBO

110. Chocolate caramel bar : TWIX

111. Parcheesi destination : HOME. Never played Parcheesi.

112. Rocket scientist, e.g.: Abbr. : ENGR

114. Frat letters : PHIS

115. Jazzy Horne : LENA

116. Fivers : ABES

118. Cajun staple : OKRA. I saw Okra chips in our local grocery store the other day. Looks tasty.

120. Topeka-to-Peoria dir. : ENE

121. "Ew, I didn't need that mental picture!" : TMI

122. Plunk preceder : KER

Answer grid.

Thanks for the nice birthday wishes yesterday! I won't be here next weekend due to a big family reunion out of the town. Steve will guide you through next Sunday's puzzle.

C.C.