23. "When it rains, it pours" brand : MORTON SALT. Arbor Day founder Nebraskan J. Sterling Morton's son Joy founded this company.
29. 1954 Kurosawa classic : SEVEN SAMURAI. An American derivative
43. Only player to appear in both the Super Bowl and World Series : DEION SANDERS
52. Game with many imitators : SIMON SAYS
65. Cecilia, to musicians : PATRON SAINT
84. Baseball closer's nightmare : BLOWN SAVE. Too many of these and it's bye, bye New York, hello Scranton.
91. Investment firm founded in 1869 : GOLDMAN SACHS
103. Classic sci-fi gesture : VULCAN SALUTE
113. Leafy course : GREEN SALAD. Grow one in a single planter
Theme reveal:
123. Intel collector hidden in nine puzzle answers : NSA. Go ahead, read my email
ACROSS
1. "Holy Smokes!" : WOW.
4. Like bodyguards : ARMED
9, Stinger : WASP. In what play is Muriel Tate's drink of choice a vodka stinger?
13. Dip : SWIM
17. Japanese band : OBI
18. Dashboard array : GAUGES. Dash in first car I ever owned
20. Stars at the Forum? : ASTRA. Ptolemy's stars?
22. "Oh Dear" : AH ME
25. More distant : ICIER. Our yard was icier after a mid-spring frost last week
26. Raised in a way : TEED. I've TEED up and then been TEED off!
27. Cold Draft : BEER
28. Eye protector : LID.
32. Apples on a desk : IMACS.
34. Blows off steam : VENTS. Once you VENT, it's hard to take it back!
35. Battleground : ARENA
36. "Enough already" : OH STOP.
39. Wide awake : ALERT. Sadly, we were NOT on 12/7/41 and 9/11/01
41. Changes course : TURNS.
46. Old 45 player : HI-FI. Talk about your artifact!
47. Org. for heavyweights : WBA. Can you name the heavyweight champ. Nah, I can't either.
50. Muscat Daily reader : OMANI. An English-speaking daily in Oman with a circulation of 33,000
51. Bird feeder cakes : SUETS. The Starlings go nuts for this goop and so I pitched it
54. Golden Fleece source : RAM
55. Égoïste maker : CHANEL. Not Mennen?
57. Silver hair? : MANE. Hi Yo! Fun!
58. Issues for fashionable readers : ELLES
59. Vice squad operation : RAID. Be careful the mayor isn't in there.
60. With no break : ON END
62. Camp David Accords signer : SADAT. Jimmy's proudest moment
63. Emmy-winning sportscaster Buck : JOE. Jack Buck's son shows that there might be something to this DNA stuff
70. Lisbon's land, to the IOC : POR
71. Aquatic birds : TERNS.
73. Pink flowers in a Van Gogh still life : ROSES.
74. Base figures : UMPS. Now UMPS have instant replay. That's all baseball needs - something to slow down the game.
76. Totally lost : AT SEA
77. "Forget it" : NOPE. Ain't happenin'!
78. Sexy one : HOTTIE. Aw, go link yourself! ;-)
81. Athenian cross : TAU
86. __ gun : RADAR. Ever talked your way out of a ticket?
87. French twist need : TRESS
89. Envy, e.g. : SIN. If that's my worst SIN...
90. "I'm Not There" actor : GERE
93. Like toads : WARTY. These are too
95. Post grad hurdles : ORALS
96. Choice word : EITHER.
97. "SNL" alumna Cheri : OTERI
99. "Hasta la vista" : ADIOS
101. Washington, for one : STATE
106. Way to stand : PAT
107. Lox stocker : DELI. I like this clue
111. On Vine St., say : IN LA. Hey, Wilbert Harrison sang that in KC you could "be standin' on the corner, 12th Street and VINE"
112. Improves : HONES.
116. Grant factor : NEED ...or a friend in DC
117. Cabbage? : LUCRE
118. Pet on a wheel : GERBIL
119. 39, for Derek Jeter : AGE. The captain has lost a step but is still the standard for "classy athlete"
120. Celtic tongue : ERSE
121. "I took the one __ traveled by": Frost : LESS
122. Like cigar bars : SMOKY.
DOWN
1. Baby carrier? : WOMB
2. High wind : OBOE. This High Wind provides a haunting introduction in Judy Collins' Send In The Clowns
3. Current carrier : WIRE
4. Back in the day : AGO
5. Went around in circles? : RAN LAPS. Jazz, Did you ever see a trombone player run laps for messing up at practice like a football player? ;-)
6. __ video : MUSIC. MTV used to play these.
7. "Great Scott!" : EGADS
8. U.S. State with three counties : DEL. See:
9. Release relatives : WAIVERS
10. Way up : ASCENT
11. Tour of duty : STINT
12. When printing starts : PRESS TIME
13. Ring site : SATURN. Same goes for Jupiter, Uranus, Neptune and my bachelor bathtub
14. 1987 kid's best-seller : WHERE'S WALDO.
15. "That is ..." : I MEAN. Old punch line, "No, young lady, what I MEAN to say is 'I want two tickets to Pittsburgh'"
16. Mass __ : MEDIA
19. Some GPS lines : STS
21. 1966 Sporting News College Coach of the Year Parseghian : ARA. All I remember is he went for the tie in 1966 against MSU
24. Largest moon of Neptune : TRITON
30. Tinker to __ to Chance: classic double-play combo : EVERS
31. "The Few. The Proud" group : MARINES. We all honor Dennis' STINT here. Semper Fi!
33. "Friends" friend : MONICA. Another MONICA has re-emerged
36. Scent : ODOR
37. Blood: Pref. : HEMA
38. "The King and I" kingdom : SIAM
39. Chick chaser? : ADEE. Chickadee. Ah yes, W.C. and Mae
40. Free : LET LOOSE
42. Tabloid subj. : UFO
44. Carne __: Mexican beef dish : ASADA
45. One with a habit : NUN
46. Language that gives us "shampoo" : HINDI
48. One way to play : BY EAR. It's hard enough using a pick in my fingers
49. Mgr.'s helper : ASST
52. Yemen's capital : SANA
53. Waves-against-rocks sounds : SLAPS
56. Not square : HIP
57. Private eatery : MESS HALL. Yes, I'll have the S.O.S. almondine please
59. Get more Money : RENEW. Money magazine.
61. Atlanta-to-Charleston dir. : NNE
63. "Once Upon a Time in China" star : JET LI. All right Jet, you can have the last pizza roll!
64. 1938 "The War of the Worlds" narrator : ORSON WELLES
66. Treasure cache : TROVE
67. Ring barrier : ROPE as in Ali's rope-a-dope
68. ___Sweet: sugar substitute : NUTRA
69. "No details, pls!" : TMI. Hey, I believe you have a rash down there.
71. Bar pickups : TABS
72. Spanish wine punch : SANGRIA
75. Feed a friend's feline, say : PET SIT
77. Nobody : NARY A SOUL
79. Sports figures : ODDS. The ODDS on Florida State repeating as National Champs are 5:1. The Huskers? 75:1
80. Dundee topper : TAM
81. Virginia __ : TECH
82. "Off the Court" author : ASHE
83. Cold War initials : USSR
85. Good to go : SET
86. Event with mocking : ROAST. The good-natured fun of Dean Martin's ROASTS have been supplanted by the filth on Comedy Central's version
88. Top-notch : RATED-A
91. Puts up a fuss : GROUSES
92. One who's quick to pick up? : NEATNIK. I live with one but that gene must skip a generation
94. Where many quarters are used : ARCADE
95. Rexall Place team : OILERS
97. Like merinos : OVINE
98. Upright worker : TUNER
100. Gym event : DANCE
101. __ whale : SPERM
102. Martial arts-based regimen : TAEBO
104. 95-Down's org. : NHL
105. Person, slangily : EGG
108. Dashing style : ELAN
109. Gets behind : LAGS
110. What's on your mind : IDEA
114. Hi-__ monitor : RES
115. Underhand : SLY
What a Herculean effort by our lovely blogmaster. The time and effort it took to ferret out these nine fills and then all the clever cluing is amazing!
Husker Gary
