Theme: Have an AX to Grind
17A: Kenny G, e.g.: SAX PLAYER
24A: Modern message-sender: FAX MACHINE
37A: Like most charitable contributions: TAX DEDUCTIBLE
50A: Corporal of the 4077th: MAX KLINGER
61A: Rhapsodize: WAX POETIC
Hammer fell for me! So many unfamiliar proper names.
Got the theme rather quickly and filled in all the AX'es. But ZLOTYS (45D: Polish cash) intersects ELEAZAR? Impossible for me. Also, the clue for 50A meant nothing to me. I've never watched M*A*S*H.
Why abbreviated "Fr." for A DEUX (7D: Of two: Fr.) clue?
Across:
1A: Garfield for one: CAT. Garfield's pal is ODIE.
4A: Dazzling display: ECLAT. Very close to ECLAIR in spelling.
9A: Egg-shaped: OVATE. And OVA (35A: Eggs).
14A: Mary of "Where Eagles Dare": URE. Another "My Pet Goat" freezing moment for me. I can never remember the name of this actress.
16A: Brett of the gridiron: FAVRE. A rare gimme for me. Lots of Green Bay Packers flags & signs in our neighborhood. Weird to see him in Jets jersey.
19A: Thematic musical piece: FUGUE. This kid probably knows more about Bach's Prelude and FUGUE than I ever could.
23A: Crisp or Chanel: COCO. I think this is the first time that COCO Crisp appears in any nationally syndicated puzzle. He was just traded to the Royals.
29A: Small hill: KNOLL. It reminded me of the Grassy KNOLL & Dealey Plaza. Personally, I think Caroline Kennedy is trying to fulfill her brother's dream when she announced her interest in Hillary's seat. JFK Jr. was seriously contemplating running for the Senate before he died.
31A: Overturned: UPENDED
32A: Begin, for example: ISRAELI. Good clue. Menachem BEGIN. He won Nobel Peace in 1979, together with Anwar Sadat.
41A: Eclipse or Stride: GUM
42A: Tenon holder: MORTISE. Here is the diagram again.
43A: Dartmouth founder Wheelock: ELEAZAR. I googled his name.
46A: T. Garr movie: MR. MOM. I had zero familiarity with this movie.
56A: Fifth of CCCV: LXI. Roman 61. That will be the Super Bowl of 2027.
57A: QB stats: INTS. Interceptions I suppose. All I know about football is TDS.
66A: Salad bar item: BAC~OS. New to me. Is it tasty?
67A: Medicinal plant: SENNA. The "Tuscany city" is SIENA. And the "Earth pigment" is SIENNA. And of course, there is also the actress SIENNA Miller. Also HENNA, "Reddish Dye".
Down:
1D: "Serendipity" star John: CUSACK. I saw the movie. Very silly.
2D: Region of Spain: ARAGON. It's the region where Catherine of ARAGON came from I presume.
3D: Chevron's 2001 merger partner: TEXACO
4D: Emigrant's subject: ESL (English as a Second Language)
5D: Grain husks: CHAFF
6D: Clapton classic: LAYLA. Here is the clip. What does "Unplugged" mean?
8D: Tuesday god: TYR. Norse god of strife. Wikipedia says he is often portrayed as a "one-handed man". New to me.
10D: Slugger Mo: VAUGHN. Gimme for me. His baseball card is not worth anything.
12D: Play about Capote: TRU
18D: Long-winded: PROLIX. New word to me.
22D: American elk: WAPITI
25D: Penalize by fining: MULCT. This word just looks so wrong.
26D: Billy of Rock: IDOL. Wow, I am glad I've never heard of him before.
27D: Actress Campbell: NEVE. I liked her in "Party of Five".
28D: Writer LeShan: EDA. Would not have got her name without the across fills.
30D: Hippie drug: LSD. Did anyone actually try this drug in the 1960's?
37D: City south of Moscow: TULA. Foreign to me. See this map.
38D: NYSE rival: AMEX. Can you believe that Barnard Madoff was once the NASDAQ Chairman?
40D: Wodehouse's Wooster: BERTIE. No idea. See here for more information.
44D: Quite alike: AKIN TO
47D: Lola or Maria: MONTEZ. Lola MONTEZ was a dancer, and Maria MONTEZ was an actress. I knew neither of them.
52D: Gas giant: EXXON. It's merged with Mobil in 1999
53D: Wisconsin college: RIPON. Another new name to me. RIP ON, why would they pick up this name?
58D: Dubya's Florida brother: JEB. Molly Ivins coined "Dubya". Boy, she sure had a biting tongue.
60D: Vert. bars on goods: UPC
61D: London loos: WCS. Needs "briefly" in the clue.
62D: Volga tributary: OKA. I got this river from the across fills. Too many vowel-laden rivers in Europe.
C.C.
17A: Kenny G, e.g.: SAX PLAYER
24A: Modern message-sender: FAX MACHINE
37A: Like most charitable contributions: TAX DEDUCTIBLE
50A: Corporal of the 4077th: MAX KLINGER
61A: Rhapsodize: WAX POETIC
Hammer fell for me! So many unfamiliar proper names.
Got the theme rather quickly and filled in all the AX'es. But ZLOTYS (45D: Polish cash) intersects ELEAZAR? Impossible for me. Also, the clue for 50A meant nothing to me. I've never watched M*A*S*H.
Why abbreviated "Fr." for A DEUX (7D: Of two: Fr.) clue?
Across:
1A: Garfield for one: CAT. Garfield's pal is ODIE.
4A: Dazzling display: ECLAT. Very close to ECLAIR in spelling.
9A: Egg-shaped: OVATE. And OVA (35A: Eggs).
14A: Mary of "Where Eagles Dare": URE. Another "My Pet Goat" freezing moment for me. I can never remember the name of this actress.
16A: Brett of the gridiron: FAVRE. A rare gimme for me. Lots of Green Bay Packers flags & signs in our neighborhood. Weird to see him in Jets jersey.
19A: Thematic musical piece: FUGUE. This kid probably knows more about Bach's Prelude and FUGUE than I ever could.
23A: Crisp or Chanel: COCO. I think this is the first time that COCO Crisp appears in any nationally syndicated puzzle. He was just traded to the Royals.
29A: Small hill: KNOLL. It reminded me of the Grassy KNOLL & Dealey Plaza. Personally, I think Caroline Kennedy is trying to fulfill her brother's dream when she announced her interest in Hillary's seat. JFK Jr. was seriously contemplating running for the Senate before he died.
31A: Overturned: UPENDED
32A: Begin, for example: ISRAELI. Good clue. Menachem BEGIN. He won Nobel Peace in 1979, together with Anwar Sadat.
41A: Eclipse or Stride: GUM
42A: Tenon holder: MORTISE. Here is the diagram again.
43A: Dartmouth founder Wheelock: ELEAZAR. I googled his name.
46A: T. Garr movie: MR. MOM. I had zero familiarity with this movie.
56A: Fifth of CCCV: LXI. Roman 61. That will be the Super Bowl of 2027.
57A: QB stats: INTS. Interceptions I suppose. All I know about football is TDS.
66A: Salad bar item: BAC~OS. New to me. Is it tasty?
67A: Medicinal plant: SENNA. The "Tuscany city" is SIENA. And the "Earth pigment" is SIENNA. And of course, there is also the actress SIENNA Miller. Also HENNA, "Reddish Dye".
Down:
1D: "Serendipity" star John: CUSACK. I saw the movie. Very silly.
2D: Region of Spain: ARAGON. It's the region where Catherine of ARAGON came from I presume.
3D: Chevron's 2001 merger partner: TEXACO
4D: Emigrant's subject: ESL (English as a Second Language)
5D: Grain husks: CHAFF
6D: Clapton classic: LAYLA. Here is the clip. What does "Unplugged" mean?
8D: Tuesday god: TYR. Norse god of strife. Wikipedia says he is often portrayed as a "one-handed man". New to me.
10D: Slugger Mo: VAUGHN. Gimme for me. His baseball card is not worth anything.
12D: Play about Capote: TRU
18D: Long-winded: PROLIX. New word to me.
22D: American elk: WAPITI
25D: Penalize by fining: MULCT. This word just looks so wrong.
26D: Billy of Rock: IDOL. Wow, I am glad I've never heard of him before.
27D: Actress Campbell: NEVE. I liked her in "Party of Five".
28D: Writer LeShan: EDA. Would not have got her name without the across fills.
30D: Hippie drug: LSD. Did anyone actually try this drug in the 1960's?
37D: City south of Moscow: TULA. Foreign to me. See this map.
38D: NYSE rival: AMEX. Can you believe that Barnard Madoff was once the NASDAQ Chairman?
40D: Wodehouse's Wooster: BERTIE. No idea. See here for more information.
44D: Quite alike: AKIN TO
47D: Lola or Maria: MONTEZ. Lola MONTEZ was a dancer, and Maria MONTEZ was an actress. I knew neither of them.
52D: Gas giant: EXXON. It's merged with Mobil in 1999
53D: Wisconsin college: RIPON. Another new name to me. RIP ON, why would they pick up this name?
58D: Dubya's Florida brother: JEB. Molly Ivins coined "Dubya". Boy, she sure had a biting tongue.
60D: Vert. bars on goods: UPC
61D: London loos: WCS. Needs "briefly" in the clue.
62D: Volga tributary: OKA. I got this river from the across fills. Too many vowel-laden rivers in Europe.
C.C.
