Sunday, April, 16, 2017, C.C. Burnikel

TITLE: ACTION FIGURES

The prolific ringmaster of our site has hidden some lovely eggs for us on this Easter Sunday that combines her usual blend of a fun theme and clever cluing. XWordinfo gives it a high "Freshness Factor" which I certainly think it deserves. 

C.C. has taken the names of famous people and added a word between their first and last name. The added word satisfies the silly clue when used after the first name and then serves as the first word of a common phrase when paired with the last name. Six of her entries were horizontal and two were vertical. Ya gotta love it!

Theme entries:

23. Doris during a workout? : TRAINING DAY - America's sweetheart Doris Day in the gym or a 2001 American neo-noir crime thriller

29. Director Oliver working on pizza dough? : ROLLING STONE - Gainful employment for Oliver Stone at Pizza Hut or the free wheeling print or digital magazine that focuses on pop culture

59. Comical Samantha busy stitching? : QUILTING BEE - Dextrous work for comedian Samantha Bee or a product that might wind up in the Lincoln, NE International Quilt Study Center & Museum

78. Nicolas taking a swing? : BATTING CAGE - Nicholas Cage's turn at bat or where Billy Crystal and Bruno Kirby might take some swings

106. Singer Al making a strike? : BOWLING GREEN - Al Green in the alleys or an Ohio university where the Falcons play

3. Sally having fun? : PLAYING FIELD - Sally Field with some Legos or where the Bowling Green Falcons play

115. Nathan at quarterback? : PASSING LANE - Fabulous Nathan Lane playing against type as a QB but NOT this:

65. Lucille on a trampoline? : BOUNCING BALL - The Lucy we all love doing back flips or each of these

Now let's see what C.C. has for us in our logophilic Easter Basket


Across

1. Quaker in the wind : ASPEN - Populus Tremuloides. First cousin of the cottonwood, Nebraska's state tree - Populus Deltoides

6. Little bite : TASTE

11. "House" actor Omar : EPPS

15. Full house, e.g. : HAND - Fourth best hand

19. Pond flower : CALLA - Lily

20. Navel type : OUTIE

21. Selectively remove : CULL

22. Butterlike topping : OLEO - Remember, "It's not nice to fool Mother Nature"?

25. Maker of Regenerist skin care products : OLAY

26. 'Vette roof option : T-TOP

27. Claims : SAYS

28. Greenwich Village sch. : NYU

32. Cymbals with a pedal : HI-HAT - Hey you've only got two sticks

34. Tire for emergencies : SPARE

36. Perfect Sleepers, e.g. : SERTAS



37. Yoga class greeting : NAMASTE

39. Place for a bud? : EAR

41. Deepest, as feelings : INMOST - or INNER MOST

44. Tiny bit : FIG - Bing sang, "If you don't care a feather or a FIG, You may grow up to be a pig!"

46. Many a pizza slice : OCTANT - Oliver, don't cut that pizza into 8 pieces, my family can only eat 6.

48. Subj. for Janet Yellen : ECON(omy)-  The Dismal Science

51. Diaper cream additive : ALOE - Also Zinc Oxide and Vitamin E

52. Labor day deliveries : INFANTS - Clientele for 51 Across

54. Quisling's crime : TREASON - Vidkun lectured about "The Jewish Problem In Norway" and sent Hitler a 50th birthday card

57. 1688 coffeehouse founder Edward better known in the insurance world : LLOYD - Lloyd's of London famously insured Betty Grable's legs for $1M. Dolly Parton got a $4M policy there on her, uh, best features as well.

58. Cause of some lines : AGING

61. Look for : SEEK

62. Masterful move : COUP

64. Ski resort sight : GONDOLA

65. Avoid, as an issue : BEG -  After three years of emceeing the all-school reunion, I BEGGED off for another encore

68. Some battered rings : CALAMARI - Calamari seems to be a little chewy for me

70. Mumbai mister : SRI - Ravi gets two SRI's

71. Baker's gluten-free choice : OAT FLOUR 

73. JFK : New York :: __ : Chicago : ORD - ORcharD field in Chicago retained its 3-letter designation even when it was renamed for WWII hero Navy pilot Edward O'Hare

74. Singer Laine : FRANKIE - Jezebel is his most requested song on iTunes. I'd pick Rawhide or High Noon

76. Troubles : ILLS 

77. Lara's love : YURI - Dr. YURI Zhivago 

80. Big 112-Down : FINAL 112. See 80-Across : TEST

81. Painter of dancers : DEGAS

84. Lacking variety : ONE NOTE - Regardless of the party, they can sing that ONE NOTE forever

85. Silkscreen aid : STENCIL - You can get some to help carve your pumpkins too

87. Computer with a Magic Keyboard : IMAC

88. Disc golf obstacle : TREE and 96. One of 18 on a disc golf course : TEE PAD - This looks like a "hole in one" from the TEE PAD to me.

89. Dürer, e.g. : ETCHER

91. They, in Cognac : ILS  and 99. French sponge cake : GATEAU - ILS ont servi de GATEAU éponge (They served sponge cake)

92. One typing a's and z's : PINKIE - Wonderful clue

94. Used a bench, say : SAT

97. Certain triathlete : IRONMAN - Don't look for me in these pix!

102. Linguine sauce : PESTO - Sauce that originated in Genoa, Italy

104. Squalid : DINGY

109. Spanish pronoun : ESO - Hit song ESO Besso (That Kiss) by 53. Ottawa-born songwriter Paul : ANKA - We had the entire title last week

111. Provide a bank floor plan for, say : ABET which will make you run 120. Clashing with, with "of" : AFOUL of the law

113. Eurasian border river : URAL

114. Alpha __ : MALE

118. Inconsequential : MERE

119. Exiled Roman poet : OVID - OVID was banned and Jesus was born during the time of Augustus Caesar 

121. Sheds : MOLTS

122. Florist's creation : POSY

123. State of disarray : MESS

124. "Spider-Man" actress : DUNST - How 'bout a wet kiss, Spidey?

125. Shoelace protector : AGLET - Like zarf, rowel, etc.


HUGH DOWNS

1. Accomplishments : ACTS

2. 2002 skating gold medalist Hughes : SARAH

4. Cuthbert of "24" : ELISHA 

5. Editor Talese with her own Doubleday imprint : NAN - A triple play - three unknown names in a row for me

6. Stylish : TONY

7. Amen Corner golf course, familiarly : AUGUSTA - Of those three holes, the 12th is my favorite and the signature hole of the course

8. Benchmark: Abbr. : STD

9. Pageant sparkler : TIARA

10. Pooh's mopey pal : EEYORE

11. "Silent Spring" subj. : ECOL

12. Canines with corded coats : PULIS - Only the tongue tells me which end is which

13. Flier : PLANE - Many fly into and out of ORD

14. Con man's expression : SLY GRIN

15. Spicy steamed Mexican food : HOT TAMALE

16. "He Was Despised," in Handel's "Messiah" : ALTO SOLO - An Air not a Chorus

17. Strip gas : NEON

18. Suss (out) : DOPE

24. In one piece : INTACT - Otzi is an INTACT, 5,000 year old mummy found in the Otztal Alps in 1991

30. Grassy expanse : LEA

31. Amtrak stop: Abbr. : STN

33. "__ Schoolchildren": Tracy Kidder book : AMONG

35. Unreleased : PENT-UP - Should we all vent occasionally?

38. Google Maps lines: Abbr. : STS - Fords Theater was a brisk 8 minute walk from our Hotel via 10th ST

40. Varnish component : RESIN

42. Tofurky protein source : SOY

43. Newsman Koppel : TED - His show Nightline started as an update on the Iran Hostage crisis in November, 1979

44. Debacle : FIASCO

45. Engaged : IN GEAR

47. Hexa- halved : TRI 

49. Express sympathy (with) : CONDOLE - I'm more familiar offering my CONDOLENCES

50. Needing to be saved? : ON GOAL - In the 1980 Miracle On Ice, the USSR got 39 shots ON GOAL and we only managed 16 but got one more in the net than the Soviets

55. "View of Toledo" painter : EL GRECO

56. Yours, in Cognac : ATOI

57. Romaine bit : LEAF

59. Tonic ingredient : QUININE - U.S. - kwai' nine  U.K - kwi' neen

60. Layered lunches : BLTS

62. Golf course rental : CART - This is the golf cart of my dreams!

63. Soapbox user : ORATOR

66. Pass good in 28 countries : EURAIL

67. Tailgating fixtures : GRILLS

69. Degs. for writers : MFAS - Sigourney Weaver got her MFA from Yale in 1974



70. Something flashed by a catcher : SIGN - Some catchers even wear nail polish so the sign can be easier to see

72. The Eagles' "__ Eyes" : LYIN'

75. Prayer supports : KNEES

76. Following remark? : I GET IT

78. Place for shady transactions : BACK ALLEY

79. Had Subway fare : ATE - Subway has 3,000 more shops than McDonalds

80. Physics Nobelist of 1938 : FERMI - Creator of the first nuclear reactor

81. Tango move : DIP

82. London's Virgin __ Records : EMI

83. Turf disputes : GANG WARS - The bane of many cities

85. "Billions" network, briefly : SHO

86. Muscle-bone connector : TENDON - One good and one ruptured 

88. "16 and Pregnant" spin-off : TEEN MOM - An MTV production

90. King known for his wealth : CROESUS - Do you know the only two letters in his name that are not 1-point scrabble tiles?

93. "Lord, is __?": Matthew : IT I - Read from some pulpits this past week

95. Big primate : APE

98. Like sundials : ANALOG - A very high tech ANALOG sundial

100. __ nectar: sugar substitute : AGAVE - Other than used for tequila it's nectar is known as honey water

101. Wrinkly fruits : UGLIS

103. Major snag : SNAFU

105. Broadway matchmaker : YENTE - "For me, well, I wouldn't holler, If he were as handsome as anything" 

106. Speed deterrent : BUMP

107. Sister brand of Nilla : OREO - Have we had OREO as fill before? 

108. Wine list heading : REDS

110. Bank deposit : SILT

116. Scott Eastwood, to Clint : SON

117. "Today" alternative, for short : GMA

Now it's time for you to William Tell us what you think.

The Grid:

Saturday, Apr 15th, 2017, Roland Huget

Theme: None

Words: 70 (missing V,W,X)

Blocks: 27

Second Saturday from today's constructor this year, and looking over that puzzle, I noted that I had one cheat - well, there was none of that today. I did have a slow start and some vague cluing which was not that vague once I realized my first thought was the right answer.  The NW corner was last to fill in, and I had just enough in my wheelhouse to make this a challenge, but doable.  Quad 9's and triple 7's in the corners of this grid;  I am working from my desktop "tower" computer for the first time this week, and it takes some getting used to with the much wider monitor - 25 whole inches - and the "big buttons" keyboard.  My laptop has Windows XL, which Firefox no longer supports, so the internet was crashing too often.  The technological turnover in devices these days is sometimes too fast....anyway, some of the longer answers;

19. Asylum seeker : IMMIGRANT - we'll open with a musical refernce

The Immigrant Song

14. Candidate for Photoshop : EYESORE - forget the fact that this is also a courthouse, but to me, a real eyesore....

57. Carousel riders : SUITCASES -got it because I was not thinking of little kids on a carousel - it was because Airplane~! was on TV yesterday;

37. Water or gas : UTILITY - makes me think of Monopoly

or this one - warning~!

ACROSS:

1. Nevada's state flower : SAGEBRUSH - guess there's not a lot to choose from in plants out there

10. Yippie Hoffman : ABBIE

15. Silver tongue : ELOQUENCE

16. Like some winds : REEDY - my first thought, but thought it was too seedy

17. Becomes ripe : MATURATES

18. "Joyful, __ nations, rise": carol lyric : ALL YE

20. Walk quartet : BALLS - drew a complete blank, even after I finished, but then I finally got the V-8 can moment and figured out it's a baseball reference; see 11d.

21. Rathskeller turndown : NEIN - I spelled it 'backwards', which didn't help - we have a running gag at the poker table that there's a German playing when a "nine" comes out - get it~?

22. In silence : MUTELY

24. Half of Bennifer : JLo - Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck

25. "Inferiority complex" coiner : ADLER - pondered FREUD

27. "Unfaithful" co-star : GERE

28. Hold 'em holding : PAIR - I tanked in last week's game - and we're not playing tonight

29. Calif. NHL team, on scoreboards : LA Kings - who did not make the playoffs this year, but beat the NY Rangers for the Stanley Cup in 2014.  The Rangers gave it away last night to the Canadiens

30. How many TV shows are aired : IN HD

32. Liftoff sensation : G-FORCE

34. Record flaw : BLOT - ah, a 'criminal' record, not an LP

35. Moonraker, for one : SAIL - got stuck in James Bond mode

36. "You kiss by the book" speaker : JULIET - got it from -U--ET

39. Solar __ : CELL - not WIND

40. Word heard before a pistol fires : SET - ready, set, go~!

43. Heavy traffic may affect them, briefly : ETAs

44. Buddy : CHUM

46. Seriously hurts : MAIMS - had it in, took it out, put it back

48. First date concern : ZIT - first dates these days don't concern zits - compatibility seems to be the big issue at my age

49. Civil War battle site : SHILOH

51. Tahari of fashion : ELIE

52. Young would-be 19-Across in 2000 news : ELIAN

54. River across Quebec, in Quebec : St. LAURENT

56. Overindulgence : BINGE

58. Business that requires browsing : eTAIL

59. Lily's "Laugh-In" operator : ERNESTINE

60. Janitor's supply : LYSOL - oops, I threw in an "S" at the end thinking it would be plural

61. Collector's targets : DEADBEATS - I tried "WHOLE SETS", which fit, but seemed awkward

DOWN:

1. Pioneering : SEMINAL

2. Oakland's county : ALAMEDA - pretty good WAG from some crossings

3. Dairy line? : GOT MILK~?

4. Like some mounts : EQUINE

5. Hamlet : BURG - not TOWN

6. Prepare for a new assault : REARM

7. Innate : UNTAUGHT

8. Like many candles : SCENTED

did you see the candles~?

9. Hawthorne's Prynne : HESTER - forced high school reading - The Scarlet Letter

10. Sheikdom of song : ARABY

11. Coach of Nadia and Mary Lou : BELA - the "A" was my last fill, and I guessed

12. Protective display cover : BELL JAR

13. Charmingly rustic : IDYLLIC

23. By the book : LEGAL

26. Get to : RILE

28. Campaign pro : POLitician

31. V-shaped cut : NOTCH - I have finally gotten around to building my entertainment center after months of planning - the unit divides my space into "living room" and "bedroom"; I mounted the TV and the fake fireplace on a swivel, can see both from either room now

33. Thin coat : FILM

34. Grafton's "__ for Burglar" : B IS

35. Pasta ingredient : SEMOLINA - my first thought, but was not jibing with my crossings

36. Biblical wife of Ahab : JEZEBEL - good WAG from the "J" and the "L"

38. Selena and others : LATINAS

39. Lab dish subject : CULTURE

40. Historical Oder River region : SILESIA - filled via perps

41. Distinguished : EMINENT

42. Flies over Africa? : TSE-TSES

45. Sounded displeased : HISSED

47. Make bubbly : AERATE

49. Fishhook connector : SNELL

50. More than a little unpopular : HATED

53. Currency exchange fee : AGIO - hah~!  I knew this~!

55. Sch. in the same system as Berkeley : UCSB - somehow I managed to try U CAL, but it helped

Splynter

Friday April 14, 2017 Mark McClain

(Note from C.C.: Lemonade just had a surgery for his severe sciatica pain last Friday. He's now at home recuperating. He already got the post started, so I'll just complete rest. Let's send Lemonade all our healing thoughts and wish him a quick recovery. We need the good old Lemonade back talking about puzzles his way!)

Title: NOPE!

Our new friend Mark McClain delivers a fun comparatively easy Friday. The letters "PE" are removed from common phrases to reveal a new entertaining phrase. What makes the puzzle elegant is the first two relate to bad people and the next two are golf-related. I am not sure I have seen a "remove letters" that was so precise. CAD CRUSADER required perps but that opened the rest. There were few 3/4 letter fill and some glitz with 6/7 fill. I liked TUM TUM, MIRREN, TRISTE, ERRATIC, RETINAS and TRUISMS. He does this all in a nice pinwheel. Well let's get to it.

17A. Insensitive zealot? : CAPED CRUSADER (11). Batman (a good guy) is replaced with a CAD (a bad guy). Nice.

56A. Reprobate's regular expense? : SINNER'S REPENT (11). Yes sinners must find a place to live.

10D. Golf course equipment of the future? : FLYING CARPETS (11). Having both seen and done bad driving on the golf course, the thought of crazy golf throwing clubs also in the sky woth a golf cart is frightening.

25D. What many golfers regularly engage in? : THE PAPER CHASE (11). 1973 film. Par chase accurately describes what most golfers seek. Birdies and eagles are icing on the cake

And the reveal:

66A. Casual refusal ... and, another way, a hint to this puzzle's four longest answers : NOPE. Puzzle falls into place with the correct parsing of this word.

On to the rest.

Across:

1. Tablet input : DATA. Your handy i- or Samsung product.

5. Stick (on) : PASTE.

10. Groovy : FAB. Properly cluing this out of use with a passe clue.

13. "The Quiet Man" co-star : O'HARA. Maureen. LINK.

15. Take in, maybe : ALTER. I was thinking duping someone at first.

16. Mauna __ : LOA. 120 feet lower than one of the other volcanoes that are the creation of Hawaii.

19. Wine bottle figs. : YRS. A CSO to our wine peddler Chairman Moe, who can discuss vintages as long as you listen.

(OK, C.C, starts here)

20. Asian capital : HANOI.

21. Where Gauguin painted "Woman With a Flower" : TAHITI.. Here's the painting.

23. Lays to rest : INTERS

26. Eye parts : RETINAS

27. Gung-ho : RAH RAH

28. Concurrent with : DURING

29. Poetic praise : ODE

30. Like Mandarin Chinese, linguistically : TONAL. Mandarin has four tones. So same spelling MA can have four different meanings. In First Tone (Level), MA means "Mother". In Second Tone (Rising), MA means "Hemp" or "Numb". In Third Tone (Falling/Rising), MA means "Horse". In Fourth Tone (Falling), MA means "Scold". This chart has an extra one, but it sounds the same as the First Tone. Dear Jayce knows them all.

32. '80s-'90s slugger Fielder : CECIL. Dad of Prince Fielder.

35. Popular wine region : NAPA

37. Summer Triangle twinkler : DENEB

39. All there : SANE

40. View : SLANT

42. Get rid of : SCRAP

44. Rotation meas. : RPM

45. Downgrade, maybe : RE-RATE.

47. Tot's indigestion area : TUM TUM. We also have 59. Toddler's downtime : NAP.

49. Grows periodically : ACCRUES. As interest.

51. Sad, on the Seine : TRISTE. Je suis triste sans toi.
  
52. Sweater wool : MOHAIR

53. Rodeo critter : STEER.

55. Item under a top : BRA

61. Funny pair? : ENS. Letters in Funny.

62. Like Mexico's Pyramid of the Magician : MAYAN

63. Part of UTEP : TEXAS

64. Whiskey option : RYE

65. Rested : SLEPT. How many hours of sleep do you get daily?

Down:

1. Bashful comrade? : DOC. Seven Dwarfs. Comrade always makes me think of China & Russia. That's how my Dad and his colleagues addressed one another.

2. "I thought so!" : AHA.

3. 1860s White House boy : TAD. Lincoln's son.

4. Tell, memorably : ARCHER. William Tell.

5. Part of UTEP : PASO.

6. Fronton game word : ALAI. Jai alai court is called "Fronton".

7. Kind of deviation: Abbr. : STD

8. Wobble : TEETER

9. Unpredictable : ERRATIC

11. Big artery : AORTA

12. Rationale : BASIS. Rationale is a favorite word of my old boss. 

14. Genesis mount : ARARAT

18. Like wild horses : UNSHOD

22. Duncan of baking fame : HINES. Wow. Never heard of it. I never bake cakes.

23. Shackles : IRONS

24. Clay-court legend : NADAL. "The King of Clay"

26. Yardstick : RULER

28. Reel, for one : DANCE. Hi there Yellowrocks!

31. Fledgling launching spots : NESTS. This clue made me smile.


33. Feedback : INPUT

34. "I wanna try!" : LEMME.

36. End of __ : AN ERA.

38. Frying preparation : BATTER. Hmm, tempura.

41. Self-evident actualities : TRUISMS

43. Least spoiled : PUREST

46. Ham's accessory : AERIAL

48. "The Queen" (2006) star : MIRREN (Helen). Amazing actress.

49. Color in "America the Beautiful" : AMBER. "For amber waves of grain..". I got via crosses.

50. Like many bar jokes : CORNY

53. Blow a fuse : SNAP

54. Canvas shelter : TENT

57. Actress Carrie who was married to Dick Cavett : NYE. Stranger to me.

58. Skeletal opening? : EXO. Exoskeletal.

60. Japanese market letters : TSE. Tokyo Stock Exchange. Nikkei Index.

Lemonade & C.C.

Thursday, April 13 2017 Matt Skoczen

Theme: Blue Clues! Here's my friend who sniffed out the theme:

64A. Hint in a specialty crossword, and, literally, what's found in 17-, 20-, 38- and 59-Across : CRYPTIC CLUE

17A. Infomercial promise : MIRACLE CURE

20A. Powerful 1970s Pittsburgh defensive line, familiarly : STEEL CURTAIN. Tough crowd. Very tough.

38A. "The Card Players" artist : PAUL CEZANNE. These guys.

59A. Sticker on store fruit : PRODUCE LABEL. The process by which Chiquita gets a label on each banana was a closely-guarded secret when it was introduced in 1963.

So, we've got four scrambles of the word CLUE in the theme entries, and the reveal describes this as cryptic. I've got a little problem with this - cryptic crosswords have many devices and traditions, and a scramble is one small and rarely-used convention. Anagrams, yes. Also, the adjacent extra "C" and "E" in MIRACLE CURE and STEEL CURTAIN respectively bothered me a tad. However, easy to be a critic, hard to be the originator.

Across:

1. Jackson with a 1972 Lifetime Achievement Grammy : MAHALIA. "The Queen of Gospel."

8. Rx watchdog : FDA. I just switched my Rx's from one pharmacy chain to another. You'd have thought it would have been a straightforward process. Not so much.

11. Wing : ELL. Wing of a house. Took me a while to see this.

14. Most sober : GRAVEST

15. Curved part : ARC

16. Md. neighbor : DELaware. Maryland neighbor.

19. Md. neighbor : WVA. I had the "W" and was struggling to see how Washington, DC could be abbreviated "in the language," then West Virginia popped into my head.

22. Didst whack : SMOTE. Best clue/answer of the day. Love this one.

25. Spot checker? : VET. My Dog, Spot. When I worked at Warner Bros. one of the theatrical executives was fired for joking in a keynote that the movie was re-titled "My Lunch, Spot" for release in the Philippines.

26. One-named Deco master : ERTE

27. Swiss river : AAR

28. Loot : ROB

31. Storm warning : THUNDER

33. Pair : DYAD. Our educators would describe students working together in pairs as "dyad pedagogy."

35. Algonquin Round Table member, e.g. : WIT

37. Role for Dustin : RATSO. Hoffman in Midnight Cowboy. What a great performance.

42. Amu __: Asian river : DARYA. Thank you, crosses. It's a big bugger at 1,491 miles. I'd have thought I'd have heard about it before now.

44. Verizon subsidiary : AOL

45. Undertaking : TASK

48. Anka song with the phrase "Kiss me mucho" : ESO BESO. Muchos gracias, cruces.

51. Soccer chant : OLÉ. Let's revisit the World Cup in 2014 in Rio.

53. Loving murmur : COO

54. A giraffe has a long one : MANE. Hand up for NECK first. Then TAIL. Finally got there.

55. Org. concerned with briefs : ABA. American Bar Association.

57. "Swing Shift" Oscar nominee : LAHTI. Tried LATTI. was wrong.

63. Fill in (for) : SUB

68. Actor Wallach : ELI

69. Jeans name : LEE

70. Like some lunch orders : ON TOAST. Lunch? I'd more associate this with breakfast. My favorite breakfast in the UK - black pudding (blood sausage) and scrambled eggs on toast.

71. "Amen!" : YES!

72. Inject : ADD

73. "Seems that way to me" : I'D SAY SO

Down:

1. "Mrs. Miniver" studio : MGM. Waited for crosses. Could have been RKO.

2. 2001 W.S. champs : ARIzona Diamondbacks.

3. Guffaw sound : HAR

4. Stop at sea : AVAST. Usually followed by "Me Hearties". Heave-to didn't fit.

5. Hopkins role : LECTER. The gourmand Hannibal. I never asked for any of his recipes.

6. Scotland's Arran, e.g. : ISLE

7. Perfectly, with "to" : A TEE

8. Leak source : FAUCET

9. Diminutive celeb sexologist : DR RUTH

10. Taiwanese PC maker : ACER

11. Pirate on the Queen Anne's Revenge : EDWARD TEACH. Fondly known as Blackbeard. Learning moment, but solid crosses did most of the work. I was almost Natick'ed at LAHTI though.

12. Descendants of a son of Jacob and Leah : LEVITES. This area caused me the most trouble. Tried SEMITES first.

13. Venezuelan cowboy : LLANERO. Learning moment which contributed to my puzzlement in the north-east.

18. MDL ÷ X : CLV

21. Studio occupant : TENANT

22. Glum : SAD

23. Kentucky Derby time : MAY. Coming up soon, the self-proclaimed "most exciting two minutes in sports."

24. Latin "pray for us" : ORA PRO NOBIS. I dragged this one kicking and screaming out of the deep recesses of my brain - as a kid I was hauled by my ear to Mass in Latin every Sunday. Is this a fair entry though?

29. Barn __ : OWL

30. Light source : BIC. Hold up your lighter and rock on! Heineken claimed, tongue in cheek, they were responsible for the phenomenon. You can hold up an iPhone app now instead of a Bic.

32. Banquet dispenser : URN

34. Futon kin : DAY BED

36. Sweet __ : TEA

39. OPEC member : UAE. United Arab Emirates, member of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries.

40. Madhouse : ZOO

41. The lot : ALL

42. Portrayer of "McDreamy" on "Grey's Anatomy" : DEMPSEY. No clue. Thank you, crosses.

43. Typically : AS A RULE

46. Boozer : SOT

47. Colorful carp : KOI

49. Revered : SACRED

50. Was loyal to : OBEYED

52. Picks : ELECTS

56. High point of a European trip? : ALP

58. Foil giant : ALCOA

60. Golden St. campus : UCLA

61. Yours, to Yves : A TOI. Very glad I learned French in High School and I've been to the country enough times to have a very basic but working knowledge.

62. Tie up : BIND

65. Not of the cloth : LAY. The non-clerical hoi-polloi. This one bothered the purist in me a little - "a man of the cloth" might be described as mild slang for the clergy, but a layperson is not at all a slang term.

66. __ Nimitz : USS. I thought this carrier was retired, but it is now the oldest-serving carrier in the US fleet, operating out of Kitsap naval base in Washington State.

67. DDE's command : ETO. Dwight D. Eisenhower in command of the European Theater of Operations in World War Two. Question - since the location was Europe, should it be "Theatre?" Answers on a postcard please.

Wednesday April 12, 2017 Neville Fogarty

Theme:  BLOOD TYPE (62A. Classification suggested by the beginning of 17-, 25-, 37- and 53-Across)

17A. Dean's list honorees : A STUDENTS. C.C. told me Neville Fogarty is a young math professor.

25A. Thiamine and riboflavin : B VITAMINS.

37A. Two-variable marketing experiment : A/B TESTING. Never heard of this experiment.

53A. First novel in Willa Cather's Great Plains trilogy : O PIONEERS!.

Hello everyone, Boomer here. 

A typical puzzle for me. I struggled with a few answers. I did  get 1-Across immediately. Speaking of 1-Across, I heard on the radio yesterday that each World Champion ring awarded to Cubs players and staff will contain 108 diamonds to commemorate 108 years of futility !  I realize that diamonds come in all sizes and you may need a microscope to see all of them but it still seems excessive.  I wonder how many packages of Wrigley gum could be purchased for what one ring cost. 

Across:

  

1. They broke their 108-year World Series drought in 2016 : CUBS

5. Medical picture : X-RAY -I think former Twin Oswaldo Arcia is now an Ex-Ray.

9. Gives out : EMITS - I think Oswaldo had an "E - Mitt" (E-9)

14. Lustrous gem : OPAL - October birthstone

15. "Bloom County" reporter : MILO - Bloom County does not appear in the Minneapolis paper.        Google helps.

16. Very small : MICRO - Could be the size of the Cubs ring diamonds.

19. Pasture sound : BLEAT - If you keep your goats and lambs in the pasture, not in the kitchen.

20. Add to the pot : STIR IN - my first thought was RAISE.

21. Electronic sci-fi antagonist : HAL - If the clue was Barney Miller, I would have got it right away.

23. "¡Dios __!" : MIO

24. Cannes cup : TASSE

28. FBI operative : AGT Of course this is abbrev. for AGENT.  What is Special about them, I don't know.

29. Number before vier : DREI - I was never good at foreign stuff.

31. Spring bloomer : AZALEA - Mindful of the hours we spent watching Augusta National last weekend.

32. Flip (through) : LEAF - Okay, leaf can be a verb.  I rake the nouns plenty though.

34. Son of Zeus and Hera : ARES

36. In tune : ON KEY - Hopefully "America the Beautiful" is sung that way in the 7th inning on Sundays.

40. Diving bird : GREBE - Not familiar with this bird.

43. Way out yonder : AFAR - Does anyone ever use the word "Yonder" anymore ?

44. Inscribe : ETCH - If you have an Etch, Scretch it.

48. After morays, say : EELING - This word threw me.  I am Minnesotan and some folks fish for eelpout.  That might be called eeling, I don't know.

50. Mined matter : ORES - Sorry but I always thought that the plural of ORE is ORE.

52. Mexican gold : ORO

55. Apartment sign : TO LET - This has changed to "Now Leasing" here in the North.

57. Go bad : ROT

58. Under the weather : ILL

59. Javier __, first Spanish actor to win an Oscar : BARDEM. Husband of Penelope Cruz.

60. "Good __!" : GRIEF - Famous words of Charlie Brown.

65. Not always helpful reply to "Who's there?" : IT'S ME

66. Like bad fried food : OILY - Some people like greasy French fries, which makes it good fried food.

67. Shed tools : HOES

68. Early fur trader : ASTOR- The original John (Johan) Jacob Astor abandoned fur trading around 1830 and made a fortune investing in real estate in New York City.  Hmmmm Remind you of anyone?

69. Ties the knot : WEDS

70. Joint possession word : OURS

  

Down:

1. Like beachfront property : COASTAL - Of course, here in the land of 10,000 lakes we have miles and miles of beachfront property, but nothing coastal.  And the only Tide we have is in the grocery store in a red plastic jug. 

2. Steal the spotlight from : UPSTAGE

3. Cuban dictator overthrown by Castro : BATISTA - Wow, there's a name out of the past.  I was nine or ten years old.  No one had ever heard of Fidel.  I wonder when we will be able to by those great cigars again.

4. Nasty remarks : SLURS

5. Marvel Comics mutants : X-MEN - I remember when Comics were 10 cents.

6. __ Tin Tin : RIN - Everyone remembers a TV dog, but tell the truth - how many of you remember Fulgencio Batista ??

7. PC key : ALT - Of course my first thought was ESC.

8. Super Mario World dinosaur : YOSHI - The lovable character from the original Nintendo.  Everybody had one.  Heck I had one and I was 40 years old!

9. Decorate elaborately : EMBLAZON - I always thought "emblazon" meant fire.

10. End of a general's URL : MIL

11. Low-fat frozen dessert : ICE MILK - Let's all go to the Dairy Queen.

12. Many a new hire : TRAINEE - Do you suppose a railroad engineer was ever a trainee ?

13. "If you will" : SO TO SAY - Must be a California clue, I have never said "So to Say".

18. Fizzled out : DIED

22. __ crossroads : AT A

25. First interracial coed college in the South : BEREA - An interesting school South of Lexington, KY.  I think C.C. and I may have passed through Berea on I-75 one time on a trip to Myrtle Beach.  All Berea students are on scholarship.

26. Tries to win : VIES FOR

27. Canine ailment : MANGE - This is bad stuff.  I once had a Cocker Spaniel inflicted with it. 

30. Chinese zodiac animal : RAT -  I am sure C.C. can tell you when the year of the Rat will be. (or was)

33. One-named Italian male model : FABIO - This guy made millions by wearing other peoples clothes.  Nice job !!

35. "The Fault in Our __": 2014 film : STARS

38. Nickname for a 2000s tabloid item : BENNIFER. Ben and Jennifer.

39. Anger : IRE

40. Black Sea republic : GEORGIA

41. Police paperwork : REPORTS

42. High-and-mighty sort : ELITIST - One more "T" and you have an anagram of a golf ball.

45. "Just like I said" : TOLD YOU

46. Climbing plant : CREEPER - Since 1-Across was Cubs, check out the outfield walls at Wrigley for creepers.

47. Disordered yet appealing person : HOT MESS - Sorry I did not get this one, hope you did.

49. Salon application : GEL - Maybe hair Gel for Bryce Harper ??

51. Dutch town : STAD

54. Nudge : ELBOW - I have seen elbow fouls called in the NBA.  Trust me, they were not nudges.

56. Weed B Gon maker : ORTHO - Nice title.  I have tried many types, but the dandelions seem to always win.  No problem though - C.C. thinks they are pretty flowers.

59. School restroom sign : BOYS - Not sure what the signs are in South Carolina, but they claim they are fixing it.  Money talks - the NCAA said "Fix it or we are gone". (Correction: North Carolina.)

 61. Confessional rock genre : EMO - I was not aware however this is also an anagram of a Stooge.

63. Fabrication : LIE

64. Not up-to-date : OLD

Boomer

Tuesday, April 11 2017, Lila Cherry

Theme:  FOUR OF A KIND

17. *Pay for your online purchases, say : CHECK OUT

31. *Skip work because of illness : CALL IN SICK

37. *Cause a ruckus : RAISE CAIN

47. *Go out of business : FOLD UP SHOP

62. "Care to wager?" ... and a question answered, one way or the other, by

the first words of the answers to starred clues : WANNA BET?

Melissa here. Raced right through this one, and though the theme was obvious I had everything filled in before I noticed it. I love that RAISE CAIN is right in the middle.

Across

1. Prefix with deed, feed and read : MIS

4. Fave texting buds : BFFS. Best Friends Forever. Technically I suppose this should be BFsF, like Mothers-In-Law, instead of Mother-In-Laws.

8. One looking for something : SEEKER

14. Gorilla, for one : APE

15. To whom Rick said, "We'll always have Paris" : ILSA. Casablanca.

16. Mode of dress : ATTIRE

19. Admirers, as a group : FANDOM

20. Actress O'Donnell : ROSIE

21. Caspian, e.g. : SEA

23. Nick and Nora's dog : ASTA

24. Ancients, for instance? : ANAGRAM. That was sneaky. Three anagrams of ancients are: Canniest, Insectan, and Instance.

27. Big Band __ : ERA

29. White wine apéritif : KIR

30. Kitten cries : MEWS

34. Double curve : ESS

35. One to say "G'day" to : MATE. Cute.

36. Grandmas : NANAS

40. Once more : AGAIN

43. Deal with it : COPE

44. "How cute!" cries : AWS

50. Coin named for a continent : EURO

51. ER staffers : RNS

52. Frying __ : PAN

53. Movie double : STAND-IN

55. Sport shirt brand : IZOD. Not POLO.

57. Male cat : TOM

59. Santa __ racetrack : ANITA

60. Tenor Enrico : CARUSO

65. Tennis great Andre : AGASSI

66. Gung-ho : AVID

67. __ Fáil: Irish coronation stone : LIA

68. Port on the Loire : NANTES. In France.

69. Dickens' Uriah : HEEP. From David Copperfield.

70. Junior nav. officer : ENS. Lowest level of commissioned naval officer.

Down

1. Knot-tying art : MACRAME. 

2. Siri speaks on them : I-PHONES. She speaks on iMACs too, now.

3. Up-and-down playground boards : SEESAWS

4. Hog rider : BIKER. Hog = Harley Davidson motorcycle. Where did the nickname "HOG" come from?

5. Perky spokeswoman in Progressive ads : FLO. Played by Stephanie Courtney. In this commercial, she plays every member of the family.

6. Seminoles' sch. : FSU. Florida State University.

7. Pre-coll. exams : SATS

8. Jungle adventure : SAFARI

9. Approx. touchdown hour : ETA. Estimated Time of Arrival.

10. Italian volcano : ETNA

11. Glove leather : KIDSKIN

12. Racy literature : EROTICA

13. Comments : REMARKS

18. Smokes, briefly : CIGS

22. Slippery as an __ : EEL

25. Berry rich in antioxidants : ACAI

26. Wrestling surfaces : MATS

28. Broadway orphan : ANNIE

32. Parasite : LEECH

33. __ Andreas Fault : SAN

35. "Don't be a wimp!" : MAN UP

37. Unburdened (of) : RID

38. Lovey-dovey exchange : COOS

39. Date bk. entry : APPT

40. Like some violets : AFRICAN

41. Spokane school with a strong basketball program : GONZAGA. New to me.

42. Beaten candidate : ALSO RAN

44. Loud enough to hear : AUDIBLE

45. Unlisted vote-getter : WRITE-IN

46. Piano works : SONATAS

48. Regional dialect : PATOIS

49. __-Caps: candy : SNO

50. Sicilian resort city : ENNA

54. Food retailer named for two oceans : A AND P

56. Clean with Pledge : DUST

58. [Air kiss] : MWAH

61. Opposite of NNW : SSE

63. Prop. often named for a state in Monopoly : AVE

64. Nietzsche's "never" : NIE