Wednesday, October 25, 2017, Gail Grabowski and Bruce Venzke

TITLE: "SOUP'S ON!"

Gail and Bruce have produced another Wednesday winner with this entertaining puzzle employing a food theme shown in the reveal which is in the Down clues whereas the theme answers are in the Across batch:

Reveal:

43. "Dinner!" ... and a hint to the first word of 21-, 27-, 44- and 53-Across : LET'S EAT - Shown here in an amusing version of grace

First of all let's see the hands of those who wish this had been a Thursday puzzle so our resident gourmand Steve could have waxed gastronomically! One, two, three... Let's see counting me that's everybody! 

C'est la vie, you will have to make do with the "meat and taters" guy from the great plains - Husker Gary, who also did C.C.'s EAT UP titled puzzle from Sunday, October 15. 

Here are Gail and Bruce's themers where each has a first word denoting what you might find on your plate and an entire phrase starting with that word:

21. Finishing a sentence? : SERVING TIME - A single portion at a meal or OJ being dismissed from a Nevada prison at midnight to avoid publicity after nine years of SERVING TIME for trying to recover some memorabilia at gun point but not for...

27. Diagram on a golf score card : COURSE LAYOUT - One of the parts of a meal or the perhaps the most beautiful COURSE LAYOUT anywhere with hole #7 shown at the top of the poster and  jutting out into the ocean in the bottom middle of the map

44. Bad news for subway riders : FARE INCREASE - What might be available on a menu or what some of us remember when the Kingston Trio exhorted us to "fight the FARE INCREASE, Vote for George O'Brien, Get poor Charlie off the MTA!"

53. Grammatically, "have" in "I have spoken," e.g. : HELPING VERB - How much you are served or a non-intimidating example of the sample sentence

Let's get some HELPINGS of the FARE Gail and Bruce have for us in the COURSE of this puzzle that is SERVING our gaming appetites and HELPING getting our midweek off to a great start: 


Across

1. Bunches of bucks : WADS - She is WADDING up her caught cash in an interesting place

5. Strip of latticework : LATH

9. Expels : OUSTS

14. For each one : A POP - A dollar A POP for a serving of corn is a "bucaneer"

15. Jackson 5 hair style : AFRO

16. IV part : INTRA - What my INTRAVENOUS remicade routine looks like every eight weeks

17. Stacy Lewis' org. : LPGA - My mental WNBA/LPGA coin flip was wrong first 

18. Severely harm : MAIM

19. Use, as for a snooze : LIE ON - This is how I remember

20. "Well, __-di-dah!" : LAH - Close enough and extremely funny

23. In the air : ALOFT - Airplanes ALOFT in early morning of 9/11/2001. The skies were empty in a matter of hours.

25. Ancient Peruvian : INCA

26. "Fresh Air" airer : NPR

31. Attachment to a movable sprinkler : HOSE - How about getting water from a HOSE and becoming a moving human sprinkler

32. Divinity school subj. : REL

33. John Irving title writer : GARP - The character GARP becomes a writer in Iriving's Oscar Award Winning Screenplay The World According To GARP

36. Romantically involved with : SEEING

38. Oscar Mayer product : WIENER - I wish I were...

40. "And she shall bring forth __": Matthew : A SON - That season is getting close in all the stores since we are nearing Halloween.

41. Bordeaux brushoff : NON - A note in a French middle school - Pensez-vous comme moi ? Oui/NON (Do you like me? Yes/No)

42. Co. known for music compilations : KTEL - They "hooked" me. Ya gotta love Beethoven to a disco beat!

48. VW preceders? : STU - Cool clue! ...m n o p q r S T U V W x y z and

57. Letters between mus and xis : NUS - There is Nu between Mu and Xi

51. Fabric mishap : TEAR

52. Grecian urn glorifier, e.g. : ODIST - Yeah, I'm the only one who had to erase KEATS!

58. Ball co-star : ARNAZ - And cheating husband

59. Revered Tibetan : LAMA

60. Paltry : MERE

61. Author Kafka or composer Liszt : FRANZ

62. City west of Tulsa : ENID - The Enid Storm Shelter company sells these

63. Neck of the woods : AREA - In this AREA, Husker fans who were used to quality football are getting 64. Short-tempered : TESTY

65. College Board exams, for short : SATS

66. Wordless summons : PSST - PSST, wanna buy a Rolex...

Down

1. Character actor Eli who often co-starred with his wife Anne Jackson : WALLACH

2. Horse with a spotted coat : APPALOOSA - This beautiful one was, uh, spotted in New Zealand

3. Backyard pet shelters : DOGHOUSES - They make a husband version

4. Massage venue : SPA

5. Unconvincing, as excuses go : LAME

6. A long way off : AFAR

7. Barely worth mentioning : TRIVIAL - The eighth most sold board game of all time. It rans  between Othello and Pictionary. BTW, Chess was number one.

8. Grits, essentially : HOMINY

9. Dashboard indicator : OIL GAUGE

10. Textbook division : UNIT

11. Oktoberfest keepsake : STEIN

12. Beat the pants off : TROMP - _____ U. was TROMPED by ____ U. Nebraska used to be the object of the preposition and not the subject of that sentence.

13. More reasonable : SANER

21. GPS lines : STS - Here are some STreetS of 49. __ Haute : TERRE -  TERRE Haute, Indiana on the banks of the Wabash

22. Cpl., for one : NCO - As in Cpl. Maxwell Q. Klinger

24. No longer encumbered by : FREE OF 

28. South end? : ERN - The southERN most major street in this 60. 27-Across, essentially : MAP is Washington Street 

29. Journey segment : LEG

30. Did terribly : TANKED

34. Orthodontic devices : RETAINERS - I have had many very expensive RETAINERS lost by students on my many trips to Florida

35. Lays a guilt trip on, say : PRESSURES - Part and parcel of some family events 

37. Nervously distracted : IN A TIZZY - Where guilt trips can put you 

38. Took the title : WON

39. Business abbr. : INC

41. State of bliss : NIRVANA

45. Stimpy's sidekick : REN - Am I missing anything by not having seen this 'toon pair?

46. NFC East team : EAGLES - The EAGLES at the only school where I sub these days

47. Take the wrong way? : ROB

48. Unfair treatment, with "the" : SHAFT - She got the elevator and I got the SHAFT

50. Forearm bones : ULNAS - TESTY eliminated ULNAE

54. Breathe hard : PANT

55. Give off : EMIT

56. X-ray units : RADS - Originally defined in terms of our crossword buddy ERGS

The Grid:

Now, how 'bout a healthy portion of your wit and wisdom:

Tuesday, October 24 2017, C.C. Burnikel

Theme: SEEING RED

59. Showing embarrassment ... or what the circles in three puzzle answers are literally doing : TURNING RED

18. Big commotion : HURLY BURLY. RUBY

28. It has only two possible answers : YES OR NO QUESTION. ROSE

46. Start of a teaching moment from grandpa : WHEN I WAS YOUR AGE. WINE

Melissa here. The "TURNING" made me expect an anagram - but after the first two circled answers were filled that was clearly not it. Turns out (see what I did there?), the circled letters, read backwards (turned), spell different shades of RED. So SLY, our C.C.

Across         

1. eBay sale condition : AS IS. Not USED.

5. Nasal spray, e.g. : MIST

9. Guiding values of a group : ETHOS. Not ETHIC.

14. Funnyman Jay : LENO

15. Actress Falco of "Law & Order True Crime: The Menendez Murders" : EDIE

16. Bench-clearing fight : BRAWL

17. Indonesian resort island : BALI

20. Assists with a felony : ABETS

22. River near the Egyptian pyramids : NILE

23. Podcast interruptions : ADS

24. Taxable profit : NET GAIN

26. Julep ingredient : MINT. Traditionally served in a silver cup. History.

33. Enjoy a pizza, say : EAT

34. Summer shades : TANS

35. Hosp. diagnostic chamber : MRI

36. Performs like Drake : RAPS

39. Have a bug : AIL

40. Pedal pushers : FEET. Tripped me up, was thinking clothing.

41. Lifeboat mover : OAR

42. Like cellars, typically : DAMP

44. "The Blacklist" government agcy. : FBI. HUAC didn't fit.

52. Australian isl. state : TASM. Tasmania.

53. Chose from a menu : ORDERED

54. Refuse to share : HOG. Amusing clue.

55. Imitated : APED

58. Hindu sage : SWAMI

62. Not much : A BIT

63. Thorny plant : BRIAR

64. Like eyesores : UGLY.

65. Snippet of poetry : LINE

66. Platform for a play : STAGE

67. Get ready for a selfie : POSE

68. __-back: relaxed : LAID

Down

1. Hudson River capital : ALBANY

2. Naval construction worker : SEABEE

3. Shoreline recesses : INLETS

4. "C'est la vie" : SO IT GOES. Makes me think of Linda Ellerbee, her famous sign-off line - and subsequent best-selling memoir. But also Kurt Vonnegut, and Billy Joel.

5. "I'm not impressed" : MEH

6. "Beats me" : I DUNNO

7. iPad voice-activated app : SIRI

8. Reveal : TELL

9. Fade away : EBB

10. One playing hooky : TRUANT

11. Difficulty, with "a" : HARD TIME. Not HARDSHIP.

12. Birds that can rotate their heads about 270 degrees : OWLS

 
13. Sneaky : SLY

19. Red Sea republic : YEMEN

21. Lee of desserts : SARA

25. QB's flub : INT. Not SAC.

27. Magazine unit: Abbr. : ISS

29. Ear cleaners : Q-TIPS

30. Carrier whose largest hub is O'Hare: Abbr. : UAL. The United Airlines stock exchange symbol is UAL, aka United Continental Holdings.

31. Mine extraction : ORE

32. Petty peeve : NIT

36. Information on a Broadway ticket : ROW

37. Satisfied sigh : AAH

38. University of South Africa city : PRETORIA

39. Org. for docs : AMA. Ohhh, doctors, not documents.

40. Computer network security system : FIREWALL

42. Bad-mouth : DIS

43. "Oh, drat!" : AW MAN

44. Word on a gift tag : FOR

45. Future blossoms : BUDS

47. "Get off my back!" : NAG NAG

48. Alpine songs : YODELS

49. "Lawrence of __" : ARABIA

50. The Twins of the Zodiac : GEMINI

51. Worked on text : EDITED

54. Injured : HURT

56. PC key used for scrolling : PGUP

57. "Logically, ... " : ERGO

59. Channel formerly called "Superstation" : TBS

60. Fury : IRE

61. Just For Men product : DYE

Note from C.C.:

Here is a new picture of  Melissa's beautiful granddaughter Jaelyn.  Those eyes!

Monday, October 23, 2017 ~ Jeff Stillman

Theme: Reveal Monday - B-B-B, three word and only three word phrases with all words starting with 'B'.

20. *A little bit at a time, to a mason: BRICK BY BRICK. Video(2:51)

32. *Next step up after a crib, for some toddlers: BIG BOY BED. A tad forced? Clip(0:52)

40. *Hit by *NSYNC about the end of a relationship: "BYE, BYE, BYE". Video(6:42)

50. *Iconic refrain from the Trammps' 1976 hit "Disco Inferno": BURN BABY BURN! Video(3:43)

59. Consumer protection org., and a hint to the answers to starred clues: BBB. (Better Business Bureau)

Argyle here. So no Bed, Bath, and Beyond; no Best Buy bargain. Mostly solid entries but still some fill that might raise questions. We'll see.

Across:

1. Eydie who sang with Steve Lawrence: GORMÉ 4-Down. Did a Cuban dance: MAMBOED

6. Began a typical triathlon: SWAM, then bike and finally, run.

10. Went lickety-split: SPED

14. Construction girder: I-BEAM

15. Prefix with legal: PARA

16. Epitaph starter: HERE

Here lies

Johnny Yeast.

Pardon me

For not rising.

17. Six-inch putt, say, in golf lingo: GIMME

18. Distinctive flair: ELAN

19. Eye part: IRIS

23. Heavy favorites: SHOO-INS

26. Those women, in Spain: ELLAs

27. Shabby homes: HOVELS

28. Huge: LARGE

31. Surprise police action: RAID. "Cheese it! The cops."

36. Grecian vessel of verse: URN

37. What "is yet to come," in a Sinatra classic: THE BEST

39. Shogun stronghold: EDO. The former name of Tokyo.

42. When repeated, a Samoan city: PAGO

43. Sleep clinic study: APNEA

44. Got via hard work: EARNED

46. Chicago airport: O'HARE

49. Diplomatic office: EMBASSY

54. Playground retort: "AM SO"

55. Shapeless mass: BLOB

56. Biting: ACERB

60. Space Race destination: MOON

61. Theater level: LOGE. Best seats.

62. Cygnus' brightest star: DENEB. Deneb lies at one vertex of a widely spaced asterism called the Summer Triangle. Wiki

63. "Rule, Britannia" composer: ARNE. Thomas Arne (1710 – 1778)

64. "Goodness gracious!": "EGAD!"

65. Founded: Abbr.: ESTAB. (established)

Down:

1. Jazzman's job: GIG

2. Japanese sash: OBI

3. Sleep stage: REM. (rapid eye movement)

5. TV chef Lagasse: EMERIL

6. Contractor's details: SPECS. specifications.

7. Base on balls: WALK

8. Spirited horse: ARAB

9. Scads of: MANY

10. Child star Temple: SHIRLEY. Heidi.

11. Danger: PERIL

12. "All My Children" vixen: ERICA. The anti-Heidi.

13. Newsroom fixtures: DESKS

21. Helpful connections: INs

22. Fathered, biblically: BEGOT

23. Landscaper's planting: SHRUB

24. White with age: HOARY

25. Sheeplike: OVINE

28. Tripoli's country: LIBYA Update: This Tripoli is the second largest city in Lebanon.

Here is the Libyan Tripoli.

29. 1958 Pulitzer-winning author James: AGEE. "A Death in the Family"

30. Football carriers: Abbr.: RBs. (running back)

32. "Cheers" actress Neuwirth: BEBE. She portrayed Lilith Frasier.

33. Spilled the __: told all: BEANS

34. Barely beats: EDGES

35. Puppet Howdy __: DOODY. If you were around when this was new ....

37. Easygoing sort: TYPE B

38. Egg layer: HEN

41. Without exception: BAR NONE

42. Struts like a horse: PRANCES

44. Australian runner: EMU

45. Use sandpaper on: ABRADE

46. Trump predecessor: OBAMA

47. Funny stuff: HUMOR

48. Felonious flames: ARSON. Alliteration.

49. Subsided: EBBED

51. Ready, willing and __: ABLE

52. Modern diary: BLOG. I read, "Modern dairy". Oops.

53. Discipline with mats: YOGA

57. Tolkien tree creature: ENT

58. Stephen of "The Crying Game": REA

Argyle

Sunday Oct 22, 2017 Garry Morse

Theme: "Mending Things"- M-ending. M sound is added to each theme entry, changing spelling as needed.

23A. Result of failing to catch a wascally wabbit? : ELMER'S GLOOM. Elmer's Glue.

25A. Viral video about Dre's headphones? : BEATS MEME. Beats me. Beats by Dr.
 
56A. "I'm the best on the runway," e.g.? : MODELING CLAIM. Modeling clay.

78A. Herb served only on trains? : RAILROAD THYME. Railroad tie.

113A. Floral stench? : BLOOM FUNK. Blue funk.

115A. Poor prompt to a friend who's been asked what the capital of Alaska is? : JUST SAY NOME. Just Say No.

38D. British cop's heartthrob? : BOBBY FLAME. Bobby Flay.

43D. Some "Ghostbusters" jokes? : SLIME HUMOR. Sly humor.

What a nice title. It captures the sound change gimmick perfectly.

Two changes in first words, six changes in last word. Very consistent. Jeffrey did a similar M-ending puzzle last year. His gimmick involved the second word only. Fun to compare both puzzles. 

Across:
     
1. "Take __!" : THAT. Not CARE.

5. Follower of Zeno : STOIC

10. Revelatory moments : AHAs

14. Concert site : HALL

18. Gives a shine to : WAXES

20. Conveyor connected to a pump : AORTA. Heart pump.

21. Norse trickster : LOKI. Pronounced like "low-key".

22. Mayberry redhead : OPIE

27. Ultimate : EVENTUAL

28. Barak of Israel : EHUD. Prime Minister of Israel from 1999 to 2001.

30. Victim of Casca : CAESAR. Casca attacked Caesar first.

31. Litany from a lying perp : DENIALS

32. Pasta wheat : DURUM. Latin for "hard".

34. Ad hoc gp. : COMM. Committee.

35. ISP alternative : DSL

36. "C'mon, bro!" : AW MAN!

37. Landlocked African land : ZIMBABWE. Sadza (white cornmeal) is a staple there.

41. "Are not!" evoker : AM SO

44. Holiday seasons : YULES

46. Underwater stabilizer : KEEL

48. Embellish : ADORN. Are those sprinkles on the plate dried herbs?

49. Tops off : FILLS

51. Zip : NIL

52. Seriously hurt : MAIM

54. StubHub parent company : EBAY

55. Young Darth's nickname : ANI

62. Hang-thread link : BY A

63. Inviting words : COME ON IN

65. Risk it : DARE. And 118. A risk might be taken on one : LARK. Not DARE.

66. Like some R-rated films : RACY

68. Took an arduous trip : TREKKED

69. "Sexy" Beatles woman : SADIE

70. Pathetic : PITIFUL

73. Walk obediently : HEEL

74. Biceps exercise : CHIN

75. "You're not done talking, are you?" : WHAT ELSE

76. Soccer phenom Freddy : ADU. Once touted as The Next Pelé.

82. Wore (away) : ATE

83. NASA vehicles : LEMs

85. Court entry : PLEA

86. Barrel contents : OIL

87. Any of three Ottoman sultans : AHMED. New to me. It means "highly praised" in Arabic.

89. Beef recall cause : E. COLI

91. Poetic foot : IAMB

93. Mideast capital at 7,380 feet : SANA'A

95. Hefty refs. : OEDs. Oxford English Dictionary.

96. Toyota compacts : COROLLAs

98. Somewhat high : TIPSY

100. Not cloudy: Abbr. : CLR. OK. Clear. We just had a beautiful week here in MN. Amazing to walk on fallen leaves in summer-like weather. 

102. Tidy the garden, in a way : WEED

103. Charge : RUN AT

104. It precedes some hockey games : O CANADA

108. Creativity result : OUTPUT

111. Hall of Fame catcher Carlton : FISK. So who is your favorite all-time catcher?

112. Sweater type : CARDIGAN

119. Rickey flavoring : LIME

120. __ nous : ENTRE

121. Half a '60s-'70s pop duo : SONNY

122. Poker game starter : ANTE. And 124. Poker game betrayals : TELLS

123. 2000, for one : YEAR

125. Where Nike has no "i," briefly : NYSE. Nike stock ticker is NKE.

Down:

1. Suit material : TWEED

2. Cut in two : HALVE

3. Corporate heavies : AX MEN. Is this a common saying?

4. Young star : TEEN IDOL

5. They go on for generations : SAGAS

6. Turnpike fee : TOLL

7. Medalla de victor : ORO

8. Skater Midori : ITO

9. Smartphone feature : CAMERA

10. "Dark Sky Island," e.g. : ALBUM. Clue echo at 40. "Dark Sky Island" musician : ENYA.

11. Did some gardening : HOED

12. Alias preceder : AKA

13. Without ads, it's usually about 21 or 22 minutes : SITCOM

14. Like much jam : HOMEMADE. Pickling was quite popular when I grew up. Probably because sugar was rationed, no one made jam. I have fond memories of a mulberry tree.

15. Copies : APES

16. __ bean : LIMA

17. Inappropriate look : LEER

19. Sp. lasses : SRTAs

24. 2016 film subtitled "Miracle on the Hudson" : SULLY

26. Latin dance : SAMBA

29. Eye-opener at the gym : HUNK. Such an unexpected answer.

32. Live : DWELL

33. Uncertain sounds : UMs

34. Eyelashes : CILIA. Learned form doing crosswords.

36. Not from around here : ALIEN

37. Enthusiasm : ZEAL

39. "King Kong" (1933) actress : WRAY (Fay)

41. "It's __!": "True!" : A FACT

42. Bouncer's concern : MINOR

45. Reversed : UNDID

47. Host : EMCEE

50. Barbecue equipment using wood : SMOKER

53. Sister of Moses : MIRIAM. This stumped me before.

57. Swimmer's unit : ONE LAP

58. Panhandle state : IDAHO

59. Gymnast Comaneci : NADIA

60. Tedious work : GRIND

61. Kathy of country : MATTEA

64. Barely get, with "out" : EKE

67. Co. in Cannes : CIE

69. "Get lost!" : SCRAM

70. Kingdom subdivisions : PHYLA. Plural of phylum.

71. "¿Cómo está __?" : USTED

72. __ United: English soccer team : LEEDS. Anyone remember Steve's team?


75. Sniveling : WHINY

76. Smart guy? : ALEC

77. Art __ : DECO

79. Homeric epic : ILIAD

80. Beethoven strolled in them for inspiration : LEAS.  I thought the answer would be German for "parks".

81. Done for : TOAST. Yay, Astros! Good to see you back, TTP!


84. Highway hazard : SLOWPOKE

88. Interfere with : HORN IN ON

90. Intestinal section : ILEUM. Plural ILEA.

92. A/C measure : BTUs

93. Day or nail follower : SPA

94. West African capital : ACCRA

97. Uncork, so to speak : LET FLY

99. Laser alternative : INKJET

101. __ man : LADY'S. Not an easy fill-in-the-blank. So many choices.

103. "Star Trek: TNG" first officer : RIKER (Will). Another learning moment.

104. Refreshment spots : OASES

105. Extreme pain : AGONY

106. Condemns : DAMNS

107. In the blink of __ : AN EYE

108. Beatles nonsense syllables : OB-LA

109. __ Bator : ULAN. Beautiful name in Chinese.

110. Battery, e.g. : TORT

111. Low-cost home loan org. : FNMA

112. Bottom row PC key : CTRL

114. Turn often prohibited, slangily : UIE

116. French article : UNE

117. Home of the NHL's Blues : STL

Saturday Oct 21, 2017 Ed Sessa

Theme: None

Words: 72 (missing F,Q,X)

Blocks: 29

Wow - I find it hard to believe that we have not had a Saturday Ed Sessa puzzle in over a year - I went looking for his last Saturday construction in 2017, and didn't find one.  Huh.  Anyway, today's contribution was an easy one, for me, with only one small area that had triple crossing proper names which slowed me down - WAG to the rescue~!  A triple axis symmetrical grid, with 7x7 corners and nothing longer than 7 letters;

17. Dryer component : AIR VENT - TUMBLER fit, too.  As a Home Inspector, I strongly suggest cleaning out your dryer hose and vent....

Which can lead to this 

12. Rodents on wheels, perhaps : PET MICE - it was hamsters for me when I was a "ute".  Pet mice became the feed for the ball python snake that we had later on....I have already been called a "ghoul" for sharing this info in previous blogs

38. Brought down a Giant, say : TACKLED - the capital "G" made me think this was a SF baseball "strike out" reference, but no~! -  it's football, and right in my neighborhood - the NY Giants

how it feels to know the Jets have a better record

66. Hooks or lures : TEASERS - ah, this kind of lure....

what lies....

beyONdWARD~!

ACROSS:

1. Get lovey-dovey : SNUGGLE - makes me think of the George Thorogood song and his land lady

@1:05 & 2:45

8. Ramble : TRAIPSE - I like using the word traipse

15. Fertilizes, in a way : MANURES - as a verb~?  Meh. Just go with fertilizeRs....

16. Spousal consent : YES, DEAR

18. Creamy rice dish : RISOTTO

19. Tiruchirappalli title : SRI

20. California region named for a literary hero : TARZANA - part of the three-crossing proper name section that had me stumped at the very end; great WAG going with a "Z" on my part

22. It can lead into day or night : MID - mid-day, midnight

23. Shade-loving plant : HOSTA - my first thought, but I waited

25. Big chunk of time : EON

26. State probably named for a French province : MAINE - could only be this, IDAHO or TEXAS - and I am pretty sure that last one is not Frawnche

28. Mobile app? : UBER - part of last week's Sat blog, too

29. Relay settings : MEETS

31. Object of veneration : ICON - dah~! Not iDoL

32. Edible conifer seed : PINE NUT - got it

34. Part : SEGMENT - pondered SECTION

36. Many an IKEA buy : KIT - isn't all their furniture "ready to assemble"~?  I have not been there in a decade

37. Slangy refusal : NAH

42. Arrivals : COMINGS

46. Kyrgyzstan range : ALAI - oops, not aRaL

47. Interior design : DECOR - one of my responsibilities at the new job is maintaining the owner's house, which is this spread right down the road from the warehouse nestled among the vines - but the original owner's decor choices are, um, shocking; I'll see about getting a pic

49. Glitzy affair : GALA

50. Informed, with "in" : CLUED

52. Sound heard going up a mountain, maybe : POP - think inner ear

53. Film in which the title character says, "I don't permit the suffering. You do" : OH, GOD! - this movie; IMDb

54. Yoga class syllables : OMs

55. "Please, please ... " : "I BEG YOU..."

58. Half-hearted : WAN - that's half-Ben, too - OBI Kenobi, that is

59. Asphalt : BITUMEN - nope, not MACADAM

61. Prevailing conditions : CLIMATE - oooh~!  Good guess for me

63. Absinthe flavoring : ANISEED - I thought it was ANISE, but the "SEED" part didn't come to mind right off

64. Solemnly commands : ADJURES

65. Gets new players for : RECASTS - I was thinking DRAFTS, but this is stage, not sport

DOWN:

1. Road wreck : SMASH UP

2. Capital south of Addis Ababa : NAIROBI - I had the ---BI part, so this is what I figured it had to be

3. Not yet up : UNRISEN - I still get up at "UPS time", but now I use that 2-3 hours for my own enjoyment

4. Bloke's address : GUV - British slang, which I was familiar with from watching BBC shows growing up

5. Actress Scacchi : GRETA - I knew the actress' name, but couldn't recall anything that she starred in - until I looked at her film credits; the one movie I saw that was a real thriller was "Shattered"

6. Siberian river to the Arctic Ocean : LENA - one of the three proper name crossings; the "LEN-" part filled via perps, but the last letter was going to have to be a WAG

7. Where the Boss' band once rehearsed : E STREET

8. Hard heads : TYRANTS

9. Buttermilk holder? : REIN - I had no idea what this was getting at, until I had the "REI-" filled in, and then I figured Buttermilk must have been a popular horse - can you tell how young I am~?  I had to look up who made Buttermilk 'famous'....the Wiki

10. Indian tea region : ASSAM - I just had to fill in the "A"s

11. Bachelor's last words? : "I DO."

13. Attended informally : SAT IN ON

14. Like the wind : ERODENT - a force which erodes, not an online PET MOUSE (e-rodent~? C'mon, that's funny)

21. Muppet friend of Elmo : ZOE - third proper name crossing, no clue.

24. Any one of the male "Big Bang Theory" main characters : TREKKIE - I cannot stand the show - not even the commercials featuring the characters - but I did tune into "The Orville" on demand, and I like it - total Star Trek TNG rip-off, but with that Seth McFarlane twist.

27. Shoot for the moon : AIM HIGH

29. Softened : MUTED - like colors

30. Man of La Mancha : SEÑOR

33. Nada : NIL

35. Whale group : GAM - I had the "A", and thought the answer was "POD", but no - here's a list of animal group names. When I punched in "whale gam", I got "game" instead - and this was interesting to read....

38. Buffet featuring tortillas and fixings : TACO BAR

39. Hog's call? : "ALL MINE~!" - at the taco bar~?

40. Biting : CAUSTIC

41. Conditioned response? : "DEPENDS."

42. Repro man? : COPYCAT - har-har

43. Source of some annoying online messages : NAGWARE - I tried MaLware

44. Crowing type : GLOATER

45. The blues : SADNESS

48. Gear tooth : COG - I thought this was synonymous with "gear", but it is actually the tooth OF a gear

51. Mercury money : DIMES - I did not understand the clue, so I went to Google after the fact and found out that we had a different coin prior to 1945 - which makes sense, now; the Wiki

53. Medium board : OUIJA - ah.  The carpenter in me wondered what size lumber is a "medium" board....duh.  Oh, that medium

56. Source of folic acid : BEET

57. Quaint retail adjective : OLDE - Ye Olde Croffwerde Blogge

60. Letters on some tee tags : USA

62. Ancient Greek statuary site: Abbr. : MUSeum

Splynter

Friday, October 20, 2017, Jeffrey Wechsler

Title: Okay, please vote:  [   ] Six degrees of HAM; or  [   ] a HAM handed puzzle.

JW features one of his favorite and difficult "add a three or four letter word" themes. He makes it especially Friday hard by including two very hard fill to parse. Then he generously gives us a reveal if we get lost. You need a wide variety of knowledge to get through this one. The First 2 themers add HAM to the first word in a phrase. Easy peasy lemon squeezy. The next 2? Well despite commentary to the contrary - that is what makes it a puzzle.

As always Jeffrey gives us some fun fill - IN TEARS, ONE PUTT, OVERUSE, RAT-A-TAT, STOOLIE, STRAP ON and TRUSSES, but mostly it is the theme that drives this wagon.

So with further ado....

16A. Early sustenance for Bruce Wayne? : GOTHAM MILK (10). GOT MILK is modified by the fictional name of Batman's New York City.

22A. Handing a St. Louis team an embarrassing loss? : SHAMING THE BLUES (15). SING THE BLUES (not the Cards) works as well.

33A. Tribal VIP's family? : SHAMAN KIN (10). SAN KIN? Huh? Of course, SANK IN.

49A. Easy out in rodent baseball? : POPUP TO A HAMSTER (15). And my favorite - POPUP TOASTER.

57A. Went all out on stage ... or a hint to the four other longest puzzle answers : HAMMED IT UP (10). That is it.

Across:

1. Kind of rain or rock: ACID.

5. Affect profoundly: AWE. Aww.

8. Often-converted residence: LOFT.

12. Like the "funny bone" nerve: ULNAR. Ulna and Radius.

14. Poet Silverstein: SHEL. I met Shel's work reading Playboy in the 60s. LINK. Hef outlived him by 18 years.

15. Declare firmly: AVER.

18. Country where Quechua is spoken: PERU. It is now an official language in three countries.  In 1975 Peru became the first country to recognize Quechua as one of its official languages. Ecuador conferred official status on the language in its 2006 constitution, and in 2009, Bolivia adopted a new constitution that recognized Quechua and several other indigenous languages as official languages of the country. Wiki.

19. Great Plains native: UTE.

20. Pluto quintet: MOONS.                   LINK

21. Gets on the wrong train, say: ERRS.

26. Mother with a Nobel prize: TERESA. She shares her date of birth with Lyndon Johnson and Hannibal Hamlin, among others.

27. Fight in the backwoods: RASSLE.

28. Vacation fill-in: Abbr. : ASST. Temp? WTH?

29. Message often included in its response: EMAIL. Have any of you turned off the automatic inclusion?

32. Central Dallas? : ELS.

37. Elastic wood: ASH. I am sure you want to know more about this WOOD.

40. Sister magazine of Jet: EBONY.

41. God with a quiver: EROS. And a bow made out of ash?

45. Where the groom may walk down the aisle: STABLE. Really inventive and cute clue/fill. JW at his best.

47. Soi-__: self-styled: DISANT. JW, really? This is a very obscure term. DEFINE.

53. Components of 56-Across : HOPS. Not necessarily, ...strictly speaking ale can be made from simply malt, water and yeast. It is extremely unusual not to use hops. Home-brew handbook. 56A. Malt creations : ALES.

54. Quartet member : VIOLA. The four instruments in a string quartet are almost always 2 violins, 1 viola and 1 cello. Various.

55. Org. with Jungians : APA. American Psychological Association. Many of them are old.

59. Ticket booth sight : LINE.

60. Protected, in a way : ALEE.

61. Sister of Thalia : ERATO. The Nine Muses in Greek mythology have been an inspiration to artists since antiquity. They are (in alphabetical order): Calliope, Clio, Erato, Euterpe, Melpomene, Polyhymnia, Terpsichore, Thalia, and Urania. (Owlcation- do not go to this website, you may never escape).

62. Hardy heroine : TESS. I just had her in a puzzle recently.

63. Perception-changing drug : LSD. I just had some in a puzzle.

64. Letter heading abbr. : ATTN.

DOWN:

1. Masters course : AUGUSTA. Bobby Jones and the dream course. Take a TOUR

2. Fabled emperor's lack: CLOTHES.  Did you know the STORY was written by Hans Christian Andersen? Andersen's fairy tales (of which there are no less than 3381 works !) have been translated into more than 125 languages... his most famous fairy tales include "The Emperor's New Clothes", "The Little Mermaid", "The Nightingale", "The Snow Queen", "The Ugly Duckling", "Thumbelina", and many others. Various.

3. Emotionally overwhelmed : IN TEARS.

4. Morse "T": DAH.

5. "Can't you take __?" : A HINT.

6. Like Roald Dahl, by birth: WELSH. The wonderful author - LINK.

7. Yellowstone grazer: ELK.

8. Settings for small American flags: LAPELS.

9. Do to death: OVERUSE.

10. Voice of President Business in "The Lego Movie": FERRELL. SNL grad Will.

11. Bridge supports: TRUSSES.

13. "Ghostbusters" actor : RAMIS. He died this year.

14. Air quality issue: SMOG. I believe this was my first known portmanteau (Smoke-Fog)

17. Lisa's title: MONA.  Mona in Italian is a polite form of address originating as "ma donna" – similar to "Ma’am", "Madam." Wiki and others.

23. Team whose mascot's head is a baseball: METS. He got fired for giving the one finger
salute to a brewers fan. With only three to work with, which one is the bad one?


24. Viking history VIP: ERIK. No Minnesota players named Erik?

25. Island near Java: BALI.

29. Confessional music genre: EMO.

30. Anthropologist's subject: MAN.

31. Whichever: ANY.

34. Give a hand : HELP.

35. Assist badly? : ABET. Why not, "Give a hand, badly?"

36. Storied loch: NESS.

37. It might be on the road for years: ASPHALT.

38. Cop's info source: STOOLIE. Derived from stool pigeons - carvings used to trap hawks.

39. Stumbles (upon): HAPPENS.

42. Snare drum sound: RAT-A-TAT.

43. Feature of many a birdie: ONE PUTT. Bubba Watson had 11(18) ONE PUTT greens when he won his second masters title.

44. Secure, as a knapsack: STRAP ON. This is the second clue fill of the puzzle I have had to muzzle myself while writing.

46. Smooches: BUSSES.

47. Glen relative: DALE. Who is Dale Campbell?  Oh, is that Chip's real name?

48. "__ these wars for Egypt": Antony: I MADE. A fun Friday Will Shakespeare quote.
"I made these wars for Egypt, and the Queen,
Whose heart I thought I had, for she had mine—
Which whilst it was mine had annexed unto ’t
A million more, now lost—she, Eros, has
Packed cards with Caesar and false-played my glory
Unto an enemy’s triumph."

50. Shapes formed by angled spotlights: OVALS.

51. Zeroed in: AIMED.

52. Telecommuter's workplace: HOME. Yeah me and the once mighty Barry G. You are missed.

57. Clarke computer: HAL.

58. Nest egg acronym: IRA. Individual Retirement Account.

Wowzer, here we are in middle of fall with shorter days and longer nights and so many birthdays - those cold January nights - but nothing slows JW (or C.C. and her minions) down. I had fun, enjoy the weekend. Lemonade out.

Thursday October 19 2017 Bruce Haight

Theme: Aural Plurals - repeat the last letter of each theme answer and listen to the result:

17A. Southern dish, so we hear : BLACK-EYED PP (Peas). Food! I'm happy already.

25A. World's navigable waters, so we hear : SEVEN CC (Seas) I wanted to link the OMD song from the 80's for this, but I went back to listen to it on YouTube, and, actually, it really wasn't very good. I thought that I remembered that the drum riff intro was awesome, but, in hindsight, it was - pants What happened to the bass?I must have imagined it. See  what you think? Maybe I had "drink taken", as my Irish family would say. I was young. Moving on.

36A. Welcome relief, so we hear : A SIGHT FOR SORE II (Eyes)

48A. Suggestive dance, so we hear : STRIP TT (Tease)

and

57A. Warning hint, so we hear : WORD TO THE YY (Wise)

Another cracking puzzle from Bruce. I tumbled to the theme right off the bat, but that didn't spoil my amusement one bit. The fill is great, the theme entries all very much fun, and those 6's, 8's and 10's in the downs just speak to the quality of the construction.

There are a couple or more candidate theme phrases out there that spring to mind such as THE BIRDS AND THE BB, Yellow Submarine's A LIFE OF EE, TORONTO BLUE JJ, POOL QQ but probably not enough to expand this to a Sunday-size. Shame, because I'm sure Bruce could to a sterling job with a 21x21.

Anyway, great stuff, Bruce! Let's see what else jumps out - BOO! - it is Hallowe'en season after all.

Across:

1. Wing it : AD LIB

6. Doing battle : AT WAR

11. Quarterback Brady : TOM. Just this week, the New York Giant's GM at the time, Ernie Accorsi, revealed that he ignored pleas from one of his staff to draft Brady in the 6th round and regretted it ever since. Brady fell to the Patriots and look how that turned out, but Ernie shouldn't be so tough on himself. No-one else saw that coming.

14. "Fun With Dick and Jane" (2005) actress : LEONI

15. Hourglass, e.g. : SHAPE. TIMER sprung to mind first.

16. Political commentator Navarro : ANA

19. Tap site : KEG. Tried BAR first. Then I got to 33A and out it came.

20. Justice Dept. branch : A.T.F.  Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms. Sounds like a "Bring Your Own" party invitation somewhere out in West Texas.

21. Fair : EVEN

22. What "A" is for, in Sue Grafton's mystery series : ALIBI

24. Hot rod? : SPIT. Food! reference. Think rotisserie.

27. __ Friday : CASUAL. I had CA**AL and was wondering why I'd never heard of CARNAL FRIDAY nor been invited to an event.

30. Savory Chinese snack : TEA EGG Food! A boiled egg is cracked, then boiled again in tea and five-spice powder before being shelled.

31. Manufacturing facility : PLANT

32. Manhattan developer? : BAR. Manhattan as in the cocktail, not the island borough, more of which we see below.

33. #1 texting pal : BFF

41. Sevilla sun : SOL

42. Nice way to say no? : NON. Nice, en France. Sur la mer Méditerranée. I have an unpaid parking ticket from a summer trip to Nice about mumble years ago. Did they seriously expect me to pay? Je dit NON!

So,if you're now driving a 1992 red UK-registered Acura Integra, license plate F488 OLC, and reading this, contemplating a trip to Nice, be warned. You're on the hook for about 500 Francs, converted to Euros now, plus penalties, let's say about twelve billion with accrued interest. Be careful.

43. __ signs : VITAL

44. "I bet!" : OH SURE!

47. Composes, as music for a poem : SETS TO. I've been looking this one up and down for a little while. I'm OK with it, I think.

50. Put on : WORE

51. Hindu class : CASTE. We are heading into Diwali, the great Hindu "festival of light" which runs for five days, this year starting today on the 19th. I was lucky enough to be in Mumbai for Diwali one year, it was quite beautiful.

52. Works on walls : OILS. Not MURALS then? Nope, can't force six letters into four squares.

53. Nursery complaint : WAH!

56. __ Dhabi : ABU

61. "Little ol' me?" : MOI?

62. "Middlemarch" novelist : ELIOT. George Eliot, a pen-name for Mary Ann Evans. She used the nom de plume as she thought she'd have a better chance of publishers accepting her work if they thought she was a guy. Looks like it worked out for her.

63. Flowed back : EBBED

64. Soup cooker : POT

65. Criticize sharply : DECRY. I think sharply and loudly. I'm not sure you can quietly decry.

66. Butch and Sundance chasers : POSSE

Down:

1. Goya's "Duchess of __" : ALBA. He painted her a bunch of times, including the famous reclining studies of her dressed and undressed. This one is a little less risqué:

2. Muscle used to raise your hand in school, for short : DELToid. Fun clue.

3. Lollygag : LOAF

4. "Monsters, __" : INC

5. Spokesperson's route? : BIKE PATH. Very nice.

6. Till now : AS YET

7. In those days : THEN

8. Gum ball : WAD

9. Galaxy download : APP. The Galaxy smartphone.

10. Maintain, as roads : RE-PAVE

11. Bookie's work : TAKING BETS

12. Last non-AD yr. : ONE B.C. Apparently we should use BCE/CE now to avoid upsetting sensitive folk.

13. Tricks : MAGIC

18. Wicked : EVIL

23. Cut of lamb : LEG! More Food! I love leg of lamb. I either roast it bone-in for a British-style Sunday lunch, or bone it, butterfly it and grill it for a more Mediterranean-style treatment.

24. Belted out : SUNG, lustily.

25. Burn slightly : SEAR

26. They may ring or have rings : EARS

27. Calculating pros : CPA'S

28. Plus : ALSO

29. Outfit with bell-bottom trousers : SAILOR SUIT. Here's a great clip from the Broadway musical "On The Town" filmed on the streets of the city.

30. Steak named for its shape : T-BONE. Food! Flatiron (another New York landmark!) didn't fit. Tri-tip would work too, it's triangular, hence the name. Someone tried to tell me once that the New York Strip is so-called because it's the same shape as Manhattan. Not buying that one.

34. Bravo automaker : FIAT

35. Dough used in baklava : FILO

37. Letter-shaped fastener : T-NUT. I thought these were the same as wing nuts, but no.

38. One might be made of sheets and pillows : FORT

39. Exceed, as a boundary : OVERSTEP

40. Bris, e.g. : RITE. Crosses filled this in for me, I didn't see it until I came to the write up.

45. Flop's opposite : HIT

46. Gushed : SPEWED

47. Go it alone : SOLO

48. Rapscallion : SCAMP

49. Just not done : TABOO

50. Quick with comebacks : WITTY

52. Funk : ODOR

53. Halloween decor : WEBS

54. All in favor : AYES

55. Literary alter ego : HYDE. Dr. Jekyll's alter, and more unpleasant, ego.

58. Stadium cry : OLÉ!

59. Wrestler Flair nicknamed "The Nature Boy" : RIC. Thank you, crosses. Ric Ocasek from "The Cars" is the only Ric on my radar.

60. "Entourage" channel : HBO "Home Box Office", originally. No longer abbreviated! They make some great original programming. So great that I cancelled my subscription last year. Still trying to figure out the rationale behind that one.

Grid? Here it is! Hasta luego!

Actually, this has nothing whatever to do with the puzzle today, but I came across a recording of "La Bamba" this week (while I was doing my Spanish language homework) that I want to share. Click this link, put your screen into full size, crank up your volume and enjoy three minutes of really joyful music.The producers put together a virtual band from all around the world and recorded the result. Baby-Black-Dombe is only slightly cheating by not singing in Spanish, but the whole thing is fantastic!

Yo no soy marinero, soy capitan, soy capitan!

Steve