Monday Jan 7, 2019 Bruce Venzke & Gail Grabowski

Theme: WINDBREAKER (50. Lightweight jacket, and a hint to 21-, 26- and 44-Across) - WIND is broken up in 3 different ways.

21. Sommelier: WINE STEWARD.

26. Court spot for giving testimony: WITNESS STAND.

44. One constantly fretting: WORRYING KIND.

Boomer here.

I witnessed the WIND on the PGA tour in Hawaii, but no WIN for my friend Desper-otto's a bit unLUCKy Houston Texans, (who I identified as Oilers by mistake a few weeks ago.)  The same fate the Vikings handed me last week. Congrats to the LA Chargers, who took care of the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday.

Bowling - last Monday 525, Thursday 522. Feeling a little better about my game.  We'll see what happens this week.

Across:

1. "Forever" mail attachment: STAMP. Forever stamps price is going up to .55 on January 27.  Stock up because whatever forever stamps you own will be worth 5 cents more on the 27th.  Probably a better increase than the stocks you might own.

6. Time travel destination: PAST. Add an A if you are hungry.

10. __ and chips: FISH. Fishing is a year-round hobby for many in Minnesota. C.C. and I have drowned a few worms in the past. 

14. Deed holder: OWNER.

15. Drink with a polar bear mascot: ICEE. Drink it fast and your forehead will feel it.

16. "The __ Ranger": LONE. Who was that masked man? I wanted to thank him.  Clayton Moore.  There was a bowling center in St. Paul, West Side Lanes, which had many autographed 8 X 10s in their banquet room.  Clayton Moore was on that wall.

17. Specialized vocab: LINGO.

18. Workers with antennae: ANTS. Don't let them get in your pants!

19. Had bills to pay: OWED.  I owe, I owe, so off to work I go.

20. Psych 101 subject: EGO. Lego my Ego. (spelled it wrong on purpose to see if anyone complains.)

24. Range above tenor: ALTO. Okay but as I have complained before, I always knew Alto as a Female voice, and tenor - Male

25. '60s pop singer __ Lee: BRENDA.  I liked Skeeter Davis' rendition of "The End of the World", but Brenda Lee was okay too.

31. "The Gift of the Magi" author: O HENRY.  William Porter.  I think he invented a candy bar.

32. Years and years: EONS.

33. Litter cry: MEW.

36. Organic smoke detector: NOSE. A nose by any other name, still smells the same.

37. Uppercut target: JAW. Add an "S" and you might need a bigger boat.

38. Bavaria-based automaker: AUDI.

39. Adorns with Angel Soft, briefly: TPS.

40. Sandler of "Hotel Transylvania" films: ADAM. Happy Gilmore! A Hockey player joins the PGA.  (I won't tell you how it ends.)

42. Bit of corn: KERNEL.  There's a whole kernel of wheat, in every Wheaties flake. I drive by General Mills HQ 1-2 times every week.

46. Major road: ARTERY.

49. Strips of developed film, briefly: NEGS.

53. Proofs of age, for short: IDS.  We have an IDS Tower in Minneapolis. Built for Investor's Diversified Services.  (Now known as Ameriprise Financial.)  The tower was built in 1972 and is the height of about 910 feet.  It was behemoth at the time, and although many tall buildings have been added to the city, none are as tall as the IDS, I believe out of respect.

56. Hyped-up: AGOG.

57. Hard-to-resist feeling: URGE.

58. Harriet's TV hubby: OZZIE. Sitcom of the fifties.  Younger son Ricky Nelson, became a famous crooner who turned girls into swooners.  He competed quite well opposing stars like Elvis Presley and Pat Boone from 1957 - 1964.  His career hit a snag called the Beatles in 1964, yeah, yeah, yeah.  Ricky died in a plane crash in Texas in 1985.  RIP.  

60. Like kitten videos: CUTE.

61. Dark movie genre: NOIR.

62. Africa's Sierra __: LEONE. A relatively small country on the West Coast of Africa.

63. Risked a ticket: SPED.  I have had three or four lifetime speeding tickets, most when I was young and stupid and the fine was about $10.00. However, I got one when I was old and stupid and paid about $150.00.

64. Boys, to men: SONS.

65. Gave false hope to: LED ON.

Down:

1. Fish served "amandine": SOLE.  A member of the flounder family.  In our fishing expedition with C.C. in Minnesota, the goal was walleye or northern pike, however the result was usually sunfish.

2. Bit of kindling: TWIG. There once was a British model named after a Twig.

3. Part of A.D.: ANNO. The other half is Domini - Year of our Lord.  Told you I took four years of Latin.

4. "Little Women" woman: MEG.  Three letters, could have been Amy. Jo and Beth would not fit.

5. Cat, or cat burglar: PROWLER.

6. Upright and grand: PIANOS. I wish I would have learned to play the piano. But I was too busy bowling and playing golf.  Sigh.

7. Clearasil target: ACNE.

8. Tennis match segments: SETS. Or a set can be a complete run of Topps Heritage Chrome baseball cards.

9. Nuclear restraint topic: TEST BAN.  We don't hear much about test ban treaties anymore.  Unless you live near North Korea. 

10. Moved like water: FLOWED.

11. Hawkeye State resident: IOWAN. Just south of me, I've been there many times. Elizabeth Warren was there this weekend.  I hope she likes corn.

12. McCarthy's friend Mortimer: SNERD. We don't see ventriloquists on TV anymore. Where is Ed Sullivan when you need him ?

13. Ibsen's "__ Gabler": HEDDA.  Never heard of her, but I have heard of Ms. Hopper.

22. __-bitsy: ITSY. Teenie Weenie yellow polka dot bikini.  That she wore for the first time today.

23. Sea eagles: ERNS.

24. "Worst Cooks in America" judge Burrell: ANNE.

26. "This __ take long": WON'T. I hope you are not talking about a crossword puzzle. It usually takes me an hour to get about one third, then I give up.

27. Breakfast chain: IHOP.  Pumpkin Spice pancakes for Halloween. Now they have green pancakes to honor the Grinch. Ted Geisel was Dr. Seuss who wrote about the Grinch. I don't remember because I was 2 years old but I met Dr. Seuss in a San Diego library. My Mom purchased a copy of "If I Ran the Zoo", and Dr. Seuss autographed it.  I wish I still had it. 

28. Thomas Hardy heroine: TESS.

29. Disreputable: SEAMY.

30. Stranded driver's need: TOW.  Tow, Tow, Tow your car, Gently down the street.

33. City bond, informally: MUNI.  Tax free dividends.  You may wish you had these in a couple of months.

34. Garden locale in a Sistine Chapel mural: EDEN.

35. Like animals in the Serengeti: WILD.  Also a Minnesota NHL Hockey player.

37. Cookie container: JAR.  When is a door not a door?  When it's ajar.

38. Torah holders: ARKS. Noah's used boat lot.

40. Choice of two: A OR B. This choice occurs on "The Chase".  I cannot stand the shouting Brook Burns, and the Beast is no treat either.

41. Practice exercises: DRY RUNS.

42. Replaceable joint: KNEE.  The quarterback might take one or two with a lead at the end of the game.

43. Chinese appetizer: EGG ROLL.  I'll check with C.C.  A lot of American Chinese food is fake.

44. Squeezed (in): WEDGED.  Should have used a nine iron.

45. Comic book artists: INKERS.  I was a flyboy at a newspaper, but we had inkers too. They did not have comic books to read, or print though.

46. Spy plane acronym: AWACS. Airborne Warning and Control System.

47. Construct haphazardly: RIG UP. "Fry up another batch of bullheads, Muriel, I smell another election coming." Words of famous Minnesotan, Hubert Humphrey. Although the elections were NOT rigged up.

48. Govt. security: T NOTE.

51. Suffix with sock: EROO.  I think this started with the Kangaroo, but now we see the suffix every where.

52. Not fer: AGIN.  Someone has been watching too many "Beverly Hillbillies".

53. Longtime seller of Lacoste shirts: IZOD.

54. "The Flintstones" pet: DINO.  Remember the "Sinclair" gas stations ?

55. Observed: SEEN.

59. Middle of Arizona?: ZEE.  Arizona, Take off your rainbow shades, Arizona, hey won'tcha

go my way.

Boomer

Sunday Janaury 6, 2019 Garry Morse

Theme:  "But Is It Art?" - Quip theme.
 
22. Start of a quip: I WENT TO.

36. Quip, part 2: A MUSEUM WHERE THEY HAVE.

55. Quip, part 3: ALL THE HEADS AND.

66. Quip, part 4: ARMS.

79. Quip, part 5: FROM THE STATUES.

94. Quip, part 6: THAT ARE IN ALL THE OTHER.

117. End of the quip: MUSEUMS.

And origin of the quip (symmetrically placed):

8. With 123-Across, speaker of the quip: STEVEN.

123. See 8-Across: WRIGHT.

Rich rarely runs quote or quip puzzle, as it's not a popular theme type with solvers. But it's fun to get such a puzzle once in a while. In the old Star Tribune Media days, we used to get one by Alan P. Olschwang every Thursday.

I also don't recall a Sunday LAT grid with only 135 words. We often get 142 or 144. Sometimes 140.

Across:

1. Ohm reciprocal: SIEMENS. Named after Siemens, who founded Siemens, which has a few big plants in China.

14. Hybrid tableware: SPORK.

19. Black Sea country: ROMANIA.

20. Poke holes in, as a lawn: AERATE.

21. Judge of the Yankees: AARON. Aaron Judge. All Rise. Also 52. NYC line that stops at Yankee Stadium, familiarly: IRT.

23. Beauty goddesses: GRACES.

24. Crunchy snack: FRITO.

25. Big Apple restaurateur: SARDI. Sardi's.

26. Chef's amts.: TBSPS.

28. Dexterity: SLEIGHT.

30. "Wedding Bell Blues" soloist Marilyn: MCCOO. Forgot. We had her before.

32. Org. with an Acid Rain Program: EPA.

35. Three before kappa: ETA.

45. Monotony metaphor: RUT.

46. Heads of the Sorbonne: TETES. Just French for "heads".

47. Sticker: THORN.

48. Evil Luthor: LEX.

49. Bring out: ELICIT.

53. Truce: CEASEFIRE. Great fill.

58. Glee club member: TENOR.

59. Expected results: NORMS.

60. "__ so you!": IT'S.

61. Out of shape: BENT.

62. Boise's st.: IDA.

65. Email afterthoughts: PSS.

68. Short alias?: AKA.

71. European carrier: SAS. Scandinavian Airlines System.

72. Kilauea Point National Wildlife Refuge denizen: NENE.

74. Safari beast: GNU.

75. Maestro Ozawa: SEIJI.

77. Shrek creator William: STEIG. Unknown to me.

85. "My mom's gonna kill me!": I AM SO DEAD. Another great fill.

87. Air traffic mgmt. group: FAA.

88. Arts section regular: CRITIC.

89. __-fi: SCI.

90. Frayed: TATTY.

91. Either of two hearth borders?: AITCH. Just the edge letter: hearth

93. Altar constellation: ARA.

99. Rhyming boxer: ALI.

100. Work with thread: SEW.

101. Calrissian of "Star Wars" films: LANDO.

102. Putting out: ISSUING.

106. Laker or Raptor, briefly: NBAER.

109. Bass-baritone Simon: ESTES. Another learning moment.

113. Trolley sound: CLANG.

114. Lowest points: NADIRS.

119. "War of the Worlds" target: EARTH.

120. Play areas: ARENAS. Nice clue.

121. Entered stealthily, perhaps: EASED IN.

122. __ tie: TWIST.

124. Letters-to-the-editor writers: READERS.

Down:

1. Indian titles: SRIS. Also 104. Indian garment: SARI.

2. State admitted to the Union after Texas: IOWA.OK, let's see: December 29, 1845.

3. Hosp. "room": EMER.

4. 400+ million of them are produced daily: M AND M'S.

5. Draw in: ENTICE.

6. Insignificant point: NIT.

7. Príncipe's island partner: SAO TOME.

8. Droops: SAGS.

9. Former ACC Cavalier rival: TERP. University of Maryland.

10. Old-fashioned editing tool: ERASER.

11. Little sucker?: VAC. Fun clue.

12. Seine summer: ETE.

13. Loch with a legend: NESS.

14. Circus security: SAFETY NET. Have you seen a circus in person?

15. Outcast: PARIAH.

16. One may be left in a copier: Abbr.: ORIG.

17. __ IRA: ROTH.

18. One in a sailor's repertoire: KNOT.

27. Dressy pasta?: BOW TIES. Lovely clue.

29. Creepy looks: LEERS.

31. Fast sailing ships: CUTTERS.

33. Subjects of many online videos: PET CATS. Ask Dave.

34. Balkan capital: ATHENS. Balkan Peninsula.

36. Geographical measure: AREA.

37. Think (over): MULL.

38. Elec., e.g.: UTIL.

39. Mount Olympus VIP: HERA.

40. Town line sign abbr.: EST'D.

41. 1950s tennis great Lew: HOAD. No idea. Wiki says he won three majors in 1956.

42. Dior creations: A-LINES.

43. Shakespearean title city: VERONA.

44. Applies, as pressure: EXERTS.

50. Whse. unit: CTN. Whse = Warehouse, not a familiar abbr. to me.

51. Chain with syrup choices: IHOP.

54. Shortest mo.: FEB.

56. Eng. ship title: HMS.

57. __City: computer game: SIM.

62. Refuse to bargain: INSIST.

63. Separate: DETACH.

64. Lethargy cause: ANEMIA. When I grew up, we only ate meat during Spring Festival. Pork was so tasty then.

66. Pain reliever: ANODYNE.

67. Daiquiri liquor: RUM.

68. DDE opponent: AES. Adlai Ewing Stevenson.

69. Cooking show title word: KITCHEN. TTP's Honduran tamales reminded me of a Thai-style fish I used to like. It's baked in banana leaves. The restaurant is actually called Banana Leaf.

70. Barely open: AJAR.

73. Köln cooler: EIS. Ice.

74. Free: GRATIS.

75. Mariner's home: SEATTLE.

76. "Lord, is __?": Matthew: IT I.

78. Matchless one's question: GOT A LIGHT? Oh, one without a match.

79. Many a political party: FETE. Love this clue.

80. Giant in nonstick pans: T-FAL.

81. Call from the curb: HAIL.

82. Six-sided state: UTAH.

83. Country name that includes its own abbreviation: EIRE. OK, IE.

84. Permanent mark: SCAR.

86. "Splish Splash" singer: DARIN.

92. Con artist, often: CHARMER.

95. Jeers: TAUNTS.

96. Street shader: AWNING.

97. City east of El Paso: ODESSA. "Friday Night Lights".

98. How uncut grass goes: TO SEED.

102. "Law & Order: SVU" actor: ICE-T.

103. Sandwich side: SLAW. Asian style coleslaw. You can also add Ramen noodles.

105. Work on, as a bone: GNAW.

107. Buddy, in slang: BRAH. And 110. Bit of defiance, in slang: TUDE. Attitude.

108. No. 2: ASST.

111. Gulf States prince: EMIR.

112. "Last four" ID verifiers: SSNS.

115. Sea-Tac abbr.: ARR.

116. Agnus __: DEI.

118. Oil-rich fed.: UAE.

Boomer Updates:

Next Wednesday Boomer is having another blood draw, then followed by a VA Pharmay Care call. Hope we don't encounter another pill glitch again. Someone dropped the ball on this Zytiga thing the week before Christmas. I was so relieved when we finally received the pills via priority mail, but it was such a draining experience. Totally got what you went through, Jerome!

C.C.

Saturday, January 5, 2019, Jeffrey Wechsler

A Themeless Saturday Puzzle by Jeffrey Wechsler

Today marks a very tasty holiday - National Whipped Cream Day that honors the 1914 birthdate of the man who invented the process of putting whipped cream in a spray can - Aaron "Bunny" Lapin (Lapin is french for rabbit). He named his product Reddi-wip and became fabulously wealthy by selling it and the valves necessary to make it work.

The most famous record album cover featuring whipped cream is at the bottom of this blog *

Seeing Jeffrey Wechsler and Saturday in the same sentence can put a crimp in your colon! I fared very well on this one as AUTODIDACT was my only real unknown. Others were unknown because Jeffrey really put the clue wrench on a few common fills. C.C.'s interview with Jeffrey

Below, our C.C. is the rose amid all the thorns that include Jeffrey second from the left.

Well, let's see what Jeffery has, uh, whipped up for us today (Hey, you had to see that coming!)

Across:

1. "Everything is ruined!": WHAT A MESS - This 11-second video is a salute to today's celebration and this clue!

10. Felipe's assent: SI SI  and 48. Panamanian pronoun: ESO.- "¡SI, SI, ESO es una gran pista!" (Yes, yes that is a great clue!)

14. Teacher and student in one: AUTODIDACT - From Greek AUTOS (self) and DIDASKEIN (learning). Bill Gates is the self-taught AUTODIDACT that leapt to my mind

16. On __ streak: A HOT  "C'mon ג‬ (Gimel)!"

17. Gray day feature: CLOUD COVER - Horrible this time of year, wonderful in August

18. Buds: PALS.

19. Red-and-white hat wearer: SANTA

20. Units: ONES.

22. Weed-gathering org.: DEA -  Drug Enforcement Agency. Since weed (do I need to say marijuana?) is legal in Colorado but not in Nebraska, there have been issues on the border

23. "Put your wallets away": MY TREAT - We've all had friends who seem incapable of uttering these words.

26. Rich beverage: NOG - Egg NOG is a hate/love beverage for most

27. They need receivers: PASSERS - Unfortunately PASSER Ben Roethlisberger's receiver had a microphone 

30. A parade may require one: DETOUR - A PSA for those of you in Hesperia, CA

32. Well-judged: SANE.

33. Word before stand or hold: WITH.

35. Snow __: WHITE.

36. Mounted, in a way: HUNG - These falling fractal lamps must have been HUNG very well because they do not hit the floor

37. Word from the Arabic for "friend": SAHIB.

39. Unemployed: IDLE.

40. Homophone for a word of permission: ALOUD - Library policy - "Talking ALOUD is not ALLOWED!"

42. Deceive on the ice: DEKE - Now that's a DEKE (decoy/feint)!!!

43. "Being so great, I have no __ to beg": "King Richard II": NEED - If Muhammad Ali had lived in Stratford on Avon...

44. Cattle drive figures: RIDERS - Famous cattle drive RIDERS of song

46. Timon of "The Lion King," e.g.: MEERKAT Timor and the show's meme

49. Back: ENDORSE.

51. USN bigwig: ADM - Husband Kimmel was demoted from Full ADM to Rear ADM and relieved of his Pacific Fleet command after Pearl Harbor. 

52. Bad lot: DOOM - Some people feel DOOMED because that is just their lot in life

53. Unskilled workers: PEONS - I hired 100's of "PEON" corn detasselers for 23 summers 

58. Hippie era activity: BE IN - One attended by 20,000 people

60. Site for old wheels: USED CAR LOT - Or a club for retired CEO's

63. Strike zone, at times: LANE - I'm sure Boomer has seen 3. Very much: A TON of these

64. Where love doesn't conquer anything: TENNIS GAME - Love is tennis scoring for zero and might come from l'œuf which is french for "the egg" which resembles a zero

65. Remove an apostrophe from, say: EDIT - My oak tree loses it's leaves late. Hmmm...

66. It may be the best thing to do when you're stuck: START OVER.

Down:

1. Their 1943 manual said, "Be Ready To Take Over": WACS - and the Woman's Army Corp did where they could 

2. Entertainment with swaying: HULA.

4. Praise extravagantly: TOUT - Do you buy something because some celebrity du jour is TOUTING it?

5. Cartoonist with an Edgar Award: ADDAMS - Some of his cartoon characters were used in TV's The Addams Family

6. Podium fixture: MIC - Testing, 1, 2, 3 testing

7. Tokyo, long ago: EDO - How EDO became Tokyo

8. Drinks it all in: SAVORS THE MOMENT and 9. View: SCENE - You would certainly SAVOR THE MOMENT with this view of the Champs de Mar from the top of the Eiffel Tower

11. "You could've fooled me": I HAD NO IDEA, I was just a 10. Patsy: SAP.

12. Exclusive source: SOLE OUTLET.

13. Words of concord: IT'S AGREED.

15. Step: TREAD  - or under the TREAD

21. Hearty fare: STEW.

24. Ornamental shrubs: YEWS - They frame the front of our house 

25. Common chord: TRIAD - Here are three TRIAD chords

27. '60s music conspiracy theory: PAUL IS DEAD - Of course McCartney is dead. If you play the song Revolution backwards you hear "Turn Me On Dead Man"

28. Dating clarification: ANNO DOMINI - Gregorian calendar today is Jan. 5, 2019 A.D. while the Islamic calendar it is Rabiʻ II 22, 1440

29. Smooth shift: SEGUE 

31. IBM's __ exhibit: THINK - I don't, uh, THINK I can make it

32. Like some big entrées: SHAREABLE - You might want two straws for this 10 lb. Souvlaki 47. Meal: REPAST.!

34. Backpack carrier: HIKER

38. Drones, e.g.: BEES - Drone BEES are males that have no stinger, do no work and only job is to mate with an unfertilized queen. Yeah, I can see several cheap jokes in there!

41. 1856 Stowe novel: DRED - Harriet's follow up on Uncle Tom's Cabin

45. Muzzle: SNOUT - A substantial MUZZLE on a substantial dog's MUZZLE

50. Specifications on vials: DOSES.

54. Cartesian connection: ERGO - Here it makes two connections 

55. Name of five Norwegian monarchs: OLAV.

56. Northwestern U.S. city: NOME - The high in Nome today is forecast to be -7˚F with a low of -1˚F. You might want to bring a sweater.

57. Analog of -ist: STER - Can a MOBSTER also be called a MOBIST?

59. 64-Across need: NET - Sometimes it gets in the way

61. 23andMe test subject: DNA.

62. Frequently complex traffic pattern: Abbr.: CIR - Round and round she goes...

*Here's that famous Whipped Cream LP cover!

Friday, January 4, 2019, Brian Herrick

Title: This debut is his BEST effort.

Happy New year from Friday and we begin 2019 with a new constructor. We are back to themes with the maiden effort from our fourth constructor named Brian. I guess I should welcome him with this Link. Welcome, Brian. Today we have three themers and a two-part reveal. It is another missing word puzzle, as close to a rebus as Rich Norris allows -so far. With 49 theme squares, we are given lots of longer fill. ADD ONTO, AMOROUS, ASSUMES, DRUNKEN, EGOLESS, EMERALD, LEONARD, MAGENTA, PIE SHOP, RIHANNA, SENDERS, SORROWS, and STRIPES which I like better than Sunday's stipes. Nice triple-stacked 7s in each corner, but some very challenging fill. I await your reaction.

17A. Give it the old college try: DO ONE'S LEVEL BEST (11).

27A. Benchmarks on the way to mastery: GOOD BETTER BEST. (10).

41A. "Please don't expect any more from me": I'M TRYING MY BEST. (10).

40D. With 51-Across, Sinatra classic, and a hint to completing three puzzle answers: THE BEST. (7)

51A. See 40-Down: IS YET TO COME (11). Time to let Frank sing us into the solve. 

Across:

1. Logician Turing: ALAN. A very important figure in the birth of computers and computers science who sadly was driven to suicide for the way he was treated as a gay. LINK.

5. 15-Across protagonist: RIPLEY. Sigourney Weaver was this character in  15A. 1986 sci-fi sequel: ALIENS.

11. HMO group: MDS.

14. Try out, briefly: DEMO.

16. Exist: ARE.

19. Spray __: GUN. Not my first or second thought but real. They have changed from when I was spraying the roses in my father's garden to keep the aphids away.

20. It's no exit: ON RAMP.

21. Start of a cheer: SIS. Boom bah- cheerleading chant, originally (1867) an echoic phrase imitating the sound of a skyrocket flight ( sis ), the burst of the fireworks ( boom ), and the reaction of the crowd (bah). Dictionary.com.


22. Await judgment: PEND. Judges wait all the time.

23. Woman in the Book of Ruth: NAOMI. She was the mother-in-law to whom Ruth, the Moabite,  pledged her life after her husband died. "And Ruth said: 'Entreat me not to leave thee and to return from following after thee; for whither thou goest, I will go; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge; thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God." Another puzzle coincidence after early week comments.

24. Sailing pronoun: SHE.

25. "Much appreciated," in Munich: DANKE. Thanks in German.

26. Aligned: TRUE. Carpentry term.

29. Pigs out (on): ODS.

30. One may be rolled out in a stadium: TARP.

31. Plenty: OCEANS. Very vague, if ultimately correct. I was oodles for tow long.

32. Lip-thrusting look: POUT.

33. N.Y.C. part: YORK.

34. Make even smoother: RESAND.

37. N.W.A rapper __-E: EAZY. This PERFORMER died young, after starting out with ICE CUBE and Dr. Dre, from Compton, California.

38. Posed: SAT.

43. Comedian Daniel: TOSH.

44. Start of an old late-night intro: HERE'S.

45. Daybreak deity: EOS. I used to get this fill regularly.

46. "It's __ than I thought": WORSE.

47. Nothing like wetlands: ARID.

48. Screech __: OWL.

49. Garden of Eden protector: CHERUB. The first mention of cherubs is found in Genesis 3:24: "He drove out the man, and at the east of the garden of Eden he placed the cherubim and a flaming sword that turned every way to guard the way to the tree of life." Var.

50. Carpet feature: NAP.

53. Phillies' div.: NLE. What a convenient set of letters.

54. Effective deal maker: CLOSER. No politics.

55. Amazes: AWES.

56. Eight minutes of the average sitcom: ADS. Out of a 30-minute show.

57. Puts up: HOUSES.

58. "Hey, you!": PSST.

Down:

1. Expand, as a residence: ADD ON TO. My father built an addition to our house in the late 50s to have a larger kitchen and a family room with a pool table.

2. Conductor Bernstein: LEONARD. One of the first American born conductors to achieve worldwide fame, 2018 was his centennial year.

                                                                 LINK

3. Lovey-dovey: AMOROUS.

4. Generic: NONAME.

5. Filing aid: RASP. A coarse file, or a hoarse voice, which could mean you are...

6. Down with something: ILL.

7. Mrs. Lovett's business in Broadway's "Sweeney Todd": PIE SHOP. It was the filling that was so filling. The PLOT.

8. Imposed: LEVIED. Like a fine or taxes.

9. NBA center __ Kanter: ENES. I understand liking the letters but a  center for a bad team who is no longer a STARTER?

10. Fashion initials: YSL. Yves is back.

11. Purple shade: MAGENTA. The queen wears this color.

12. Like a bar free-for-all: DRUNKEN. Or noodles.

13. Emailers: SENDERS.

18. Old U.K. record label: EMI.

22. Luxury watch brand __ Philippe: PATEK.

24. Database function: SORT.

25. Rail against: DECRY.

27. Catalonian architect Antoni __: GAUDI. Catalan architect, whose distinctive style is characterized by freedom of form, voluptuous color and texture, and organic unity. Gaudí worked almost entirely in or near Barcelona.  LINK. A total learning moment.

28. See 12-Down: BOOZY.

30. "Hamilton" got 11: TONYS.

32. Trimmed: PARED.

33. Orange tubers: YAMS.

34. "Rude Boy" singer: RIHANNA. Performed at a concert in RIO one of my old law partners is involved in setting up. LINK. Some profanity.

35. May birthstone: EMERALD.

36. 1981 Bill Murray military comedy: STRIPES. One of the many hilarious comedies which Harold Ramis wrote in which Bill Murray appeared. How many can you name?

37. Small-headed?: EGOLESS. An odd clue/fill combination.

38. Sad subjects: SORROWS.

39. Takes over the duties of: ASSUMES. Responsibility.

42. What diets and beauticians may promise, with "a": NEW YOU.

43. It covers the end of the foot: TOE CAP. I guess you can buy a piece of material (such as leather) covering the toe of a shoe and reinforcing or decorating it

46. "__ cares!": WHO. I do.

48. Nobel Peace Prize city: OSLO.

49. Hubs: Abbr.: CTRS. Centers.

51. German I: ICH. An excuse to link the outrageous EDDIE IZZARD. The link is obscene and filled with controversy but damn funny.

52. Fore site?: TEE. A golfing pun to end our journey.


A new year, a new constructor and your same old Friday sherpa. It was a challenging puzzle; the theme was easy but it was still lots of work. I hope you enjoyed the puzzling puzzle. Lemonade out.