Theme: BE QUIET (36A: "Shh!" (and a hint to the feature shared by the answers to starred clues))
20A: *Shari Lewis puppet: LAMB CHOP
52A: *Act all innocent: PLAY DUMB
11D: *Duster's find at a crime scene: THUMB PRINT
28D: *Precariously situated: OUT ON A LIMB
Hmm, no scrabbly JAMB. All B's are silent. Great puzzle. I like how BE QUIET is positioned in the very middle of the grid. Very creative theme title. I also like how letter B starts the puzzle (1A: Narrow-necked pear: BOSC) and ends the puzzle (65A: Swedish auto: SABB). Nice touch!
B is such a strange letter. Sometimes it's also silent when it's in the middle of the words like debt, subtle, doubtful, etc.
I did not know CALEB (21D: Biblical spy). But "spy" should not be part of the clue as SPY is the answer for 46D: "James Bond, e.g.". Come to the Comments section if you have a better clue for CALEB. Dictionary says it means "dog" in Hebrew.
Will be busy in the next few weeks, so my blog Comments will be very limited.
Across:
5A: James who robbed trains: JESSE. Learned this name on my first day with Pinkerton China. We focused on Intellectual Property investigation and surveillance/debugging. Several of my ex-colleagues are EX-COPs (6D: Many a security guard), ex-Marines, British/German military force, etc. Most speak fluent Chinese.
17A: "Pow!" relative: WHAM. Also George Michael's ex-band. His original Greek name is insane, lots of vowels. I like "Careless Whisper".
18: Immune system agent: T- CELL. T stands for thymus. The B in B-CELL stands for bursa. Anyone knows the difference between T-CELL and B-CELL?
19A: Litter's littlest: RUNTS. I like this clue.
24A: Open-bodied truck: FLAT BED. Oh, I did not know this kind of trailer has a special name.
26A: Moon mission name: APOLLO. Reminds me of JD's comment on Pan the FAUN. She said Pan "created panic by showing up unannounced and scaring "people." He fell in love with the moon, but the moon said he was too ugly to marry and smelled like a goat. So he dressed up as a sweet fluffy lamb and lured the moon into the woods.When she recognized his voice, she hid behind the earth's shadow for many days, creating the 1st eclipse."
30A: No-goodnick: LOUSE. Just noticed that the plural for "No-goodnick" LOUSE is louses. But the plural for the insect LOUSE is lice.
31A: Really punch: SLUG. Hence slugger.
32A: Hops. scanners: MRIS
39A: Legal Lance: ITO. Has he written a book about the Simpson trial as well?
42A: Hit, in billiards: CUED. I like the ambiguity in tense.
45A: Jeff Gordon was its 1993 Rookie of the Year: NASCAR. Oh, I don't know this trivia. Do remember his messy divorce though.
47A: Cavern: GROTTO. And the person who explore caves is a spelunker.
50A: Gucci of fashion: ALDO. No idea. He looks like a mafia too. His father, the founder of Gucci, is named Guccio Gucci.
57A: Soft-tipped pen brand: FLAIR. Another unknown. FLAIR is just a baseball card brand to me.
60A: Dole's 1996 running mate: KEMP (Jack). I forgot. His name appeared in our puzzle before. Someone mentioned his football career last time. Wikipedia says he was a quarterback for 13 years. Reminds me of Senator Jim Bunning (KY). He was a former pitcher. Hall-of-Famer.
61A: Give up: WAIVE. Forgo also has 5 letters.
62A: This, in Tegucigalpa: ESTO. Or ESTA. "That" is ESO. Crossword editors seem to be very fond of alliteration. I had no idea that Tegucigapla is the capital of Honduras. What do you associate Honduras with? Me, banana.
64A: Force units: DYNES. Rooted in Greek dunamis (power), the same origin of "dynamic".
Down:
3D: Pillow covering: SHAM. Wonder when Rich Norris will take a shot at the ilks of Bernie Madoff/Allan Standord. I don't think I will buy Topps Ponzi Cards of Shame. Certain card inserts hold no attraction to me.
4D: Drummer's crashers: CYMBALS. Same pronunciation as symbols, correct? I'd love to hear how UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon pronounces bad/bed, sax/sex. I think he might have the same problem as I do.
5D: Rockers __ Tull: JETHRO. No idea. What's their most famous song? Al mentioned the British band ELP yesterday. Look at side two of this album. Isn't it interesting? The Three Fates (Clotho, Lachesis & Atropos).
10D: Layer: STRATUM. Can you think of another clue?
12D: Tennessee-born country singer Ford: ERNIE. His face looks very familiar. I must have googled him before. So many ERNIES to clue: ERNIE Els, ERNIE Banks, who else?
13D: Like a subdued trumpet: MUTED
22D: Paw's mate?: MAW. Comic book? I don't know. I've never heard of MAW & Paw.
25D: Opera box: LOGE. The Italian magistrate is DOGE.
27D: Protruded-lip expression: POUT. Thought of Angelina Jolie and her POUT. Do you think she is beautiful than Chinese actress Gong Li?
31D: Cheerleader unit: SQUAD
37D: Pilate's "Behold!": ECCE Pilate is the guy who said "Ecce homo!" Here is Titian's painting "ECCE Homo". Williams once clued ECCO as "Behod, to Guido". I thought he made up the word.
41D: Trounces: WALLOPS
44D: Annoying people: NOODGES. Variant of nudge. New to me. I only knew the "gentle push" meaning of nudge.
47D: Piercing looks: GLARE. Probably the most piercing and unforgettable eyes in the world.
50D: __ and kicking: ALIVE. I like Celine Dion's "I am ALIVE."
52D: It can be chronic or shooting: PAIN. What is shooting PAIN?
53D: Bear among the stars: URSA. URSA Major & URSA Minor. Latin for "bear". I also found out this morning that Latin for duck is anas.
55D: "We're not serving liquor," briefly: BYOB (Bring Your Own Bottle).
57D: Bk. introduction: FWD
58D: Make, as a wager: LAY. Mine was BET. I am not familiar with the term "LAY a wager".
Answer Grid.
C.C.
20A: *Shari Lewis puppet: LAMB CHOP
52A: *Act all innocent: PLAY DUMB
11D: *Duster's find at a crime scene: THUMB PRINT
28D: *Precariously situated: OUT ON A LIMB
Hmm, no scrabbly JAMB. All B's are silent. Great puzzle. I like how BE QUIET is positioned in the very middle of the grid. Very creative theme title. I also like how letter B starts the puzzle (1A: Narrow-necked pear: BOSC) and ends the puzzle (65A: Swedish auto: SABB). Nice touch!
B is such a strange letter. Sometimes it's also silent when it's in the middle of the words like debt, subtle, doubtful, etc.
I did not know CALEB (21D: Biblical spy). But "spy" should not be part of the clue as SPY is the answer for 46D: "James Bond, e.g.". Come to the Comments section if you have a better clue for CALEB. Dictionary says it means "dog" in Hebrew.
Will be busy in the next few weeks, so my blog Comments will be very limited.
Across:
5A: James who robbed trains: JESSE. Learned this name on my first day with Pinkerton China. We focused on Intellectual Property investigation and surveillance/debugging. Several of my ex-colleagues are EX-COPs (6D: Many a security guard), ex-Marines, British/German military force, etc. Most speak fluent Chinese.
17A: "Pow!" relative: WHAM. Also George Michael's ex-band. His original Greek name is insane, lots of vowels. I like "Careless Whisper".
18: Immune system agent: T- CELL. T stands for thymus. The B in B-CELL stands for bursa. Anyone knows the difference between T-CELL and B-CELL?
19A: Litter's littlest: RUNTS. I like this clue.
24A: Open-bodied truck: FLAT BED. Oh, I did not know this kind of trailer has a special name.
26A: Moon mission name: APOLLO. Reminds me of JD's comment on Pan the FAUN. She said Pan "created panic by showing up unannounced and scaring "people." He fell in love with the moon, but the moon said he was too ugly to marry and smelled like a goat. So he dressed up as a sweet fluffy lamb and lured the moon into the woods.When she recognized his voice, she hid behind the earth's shadow for many days, creating the 1st eclipse."
30A: No-goodnick: LOUSE. Just noticed that the plural for "No-goodnick" LOUSE is louses. But the plural for the insect LOUSE is lice.
31A: Really punch: SLUG. Hence slugger.
32A: Hops. scanners: MRIS
39A: Legal Lance: ITO. Has he written a book about the Simpson trial as well?
42A: Hit, in billiards: CUED. I like the ambiguity in tense.
45A: Jeff Gordon was its 1993 Rookie of the Year: NASCAR. Oh, I don't know this trivia. Do remember his messy divorce though.
47A: Cavern: GROTTO. And the person who explore caves is a spelunker.
50A: Gucci of fashion: ALDO. No idea. He looks like a mafia too. His father, the founder of Gucci, is named Guccio Gucci.
57A: Soft-tipped pen brand: FLAIR. Another unknown. FLAIR is just a baseball card brand to me.
60A: Dole's 1996 running mate: KEMP (Jack). I forgot. His name appeared in our puzzle before. Someone mentioned his football career last time. Wikipedia says he was a quarterback for 13 years. Reminds me of Senator Jim Bunning (KY). He was a former pitcher. Hall-of-Famer.
61A: Give up: WAIVE. Forgo also has 5 letters.
62A: This, in Tegucigalpa: ESTO. Or ESTA. "That" is ESO. Crossword editors seem to be very fond of alliteration. I had no idea that Tegucigapla is the capital of Honduras. What do you associate Honduras with? Me, banana.
64A: Force units: DYNES. Rooted in Greek dunamis (power), the same origin of "dynamic".
Down:
3D: Pillow covering: SHAM. Wonder when Rich Norris will take a shot at the ilks of Bernie Madoff/Allan Standord. I don't think I will buy Topps Ponzi Cards of Shame. Certain card inserts hold no attraction to me.
4D: Drummer's crashers: CYMBALS. Same pronunciation as symbols, correct? I'd love to hear how UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon pronounces bad/bed, sax/sex. I think he might have the same problem as I do.
5D: Rockers __ Tull: JETHRO. No idea. What's their most famous song? Al mentioned the British band ELP yesterday. Look at side two of this album. Isn't it interesting? The Three Fates (Clotho, Lachesis & Atropos).
10D: Layer: STRATUM. Can you think of another clue?
12D: Tennessee-born country singer Ford: ERNIE. His face looks very familiar. I must have googled him before. So many ERNIES to clue: ERNIE Els, ERNIE Banks, who else?
13D: Like a subdued trumpet: MUTED
22D: Paw's mate?: MAW. Comic book? I don't know. I've never heard of MAW & Paw.
25D: Opera box: LOGE. The Italian magistrate is DOGE.
27D: Protruded-lip expression: POUT. Thought of Angelina Jolie and her POUT. Do you think she is beautiful than Chinese actress Gong Li?
31D: Cheerleader unit: SQUAD
37D: Pilate's "Behold!": ECCE Pilate is the guy who said "Ecce homo!" Here is Titian's painting "ECCE Homo". Williams once clued ECCO as "Behod, to Guido". I thought he made up the word.
41D: Trounces: WALLOPS
44D: Annoying people: NOODGES. Variant of nudge. New to me. I only knew the "gentle push" meaning of nudge.
47D: Piercing looks: GLARE. Probably the most piercing and unforgettable eyes in the world.
50D: __ and kicking: ALIVE. I like Celine Dion's "I am ALIVE."
52D: It can be chronic or shooting: PAIN. What is shooting PAIN?
53D: Bear among the stars: URSA. URSA Major & URSA Minor. Latin for "bear". I also found out this morning that Latin for duck is anas.
55D: "We're not serving liquor," briefly: BYOB (Bring Your Own Bottle).
57D: Bk. introduction: FWD
58D: Make, as a wager: LAY. Mine was BET. I am not familiar with the term "LAY a wager".
Answer Grid.
C.C.
