Wednesday May 24, 2017 C.C. Burnikel

Theme: CONNECTS THE DOTS ( 37. Makes sense of a situation ... and, literally, what the quartet of answers to starred clues does) - DOT spans across each theme entry.

18A. *Submarine weapon launcher : TORPEDO TUBE

20A. *Catchall phrase : AND OTHERS

53A. *Martial arts maneuver : JUDO THROW.  For a ground finish.

57A. *Guacamole source : AVOCADO TREE

Hello everyone and welcome.  Boomer here, live from Minnesota.  No 300's to report, no hole in one to brag about. 

Across:       

1. "No great shakes" : MEH - Questionable word

4. Croque madame meat : HAM- Almost a backward 1-Across.

7. Red Cross supply : PLASMA

13. Often hoppy brew : ALE

14. "The Reader" actress Lena : OLIN

16. Yell : HOLLER - Give a holler for the Minnesota Twins.  First place in the AL Central.  But it's a long season.

17. Vote of support : YEA - Just a fancy word for "Yes".  I think Congress invented it, or made it up. 

22. Pyeongchang's peninsula : KOREA - I cannot figure out how so many men and women from South Korea make a fortune in the U.S. playing golf, while North Korea spends its time and money on weapons.

23. Parts of hearts : ATRIA

24. Satisfied sighs : AAHS

26. Find a place for : USE

27. Country that shares a 3,300-mile border with Argentina : CHILE - I have a golf buddy named Jorge who is from Chile.  Great guy and a good bowler as well.

29. Quiet time at day care : NAP

32. iPhone talker : SIRI

34. Small battery size : AAA - overused in crosswords, but sometimes you need three vowels back to back to back.

35. Works on one's plumage : PREENS

40. "Anchors __" : AWEIGH - I learned something, I always thought it was Anchors Away.  Now I wonder what aweigh means ??

41. Leaves for socials? : TEA - Another frequent crossword filler

42. Sweater, usually : KNIT - Is a knitting needle a Knit Pick ?

43. Legal profession : BAR - the legal exam is a bar.

44. Mocha's land : YEMEN- When I see coffee, I think of Brazil - but yes, Yemen produces mocha coffee.

46. Bespectacled friend of Snow White : DOC - Did you know that Dwarfs and Dwarves are both accepted plurals of Dwarf.  Doc is the only one of seven who is not named with an adjective.  If you did not know this important fact of life, you may be Dopey.

47. Bun or beehive : UPDO - I cannot believe this is a word.

48. Praline piece : PECAN - Remember Jimmy Carter?  He and Miss Lillian raised pecans in Plains, Georgia. Not sure if he made as much money as when he was President, but he never called anyone a nut. 

50. "I __ thought of that" : HADN'T

59. Cleanup hitter's stat : RBI. Here I am in uniform for the Hopkins Babe Ruth League age 13 or 14. In my 15-year-old year, Honeywell no longer sponsored and my team became Hopkins Merchants. I think I was #10 Center Drug.

60. Illuminated like some domed structures : TOP-LIT

61. Crumb carriers : ANTS- spend their lives under hills. 

62. Told too often, as a joke : OLD - Reminds me of Milton Berle who told the same jokes for years.

63. Snarky expressions : SNEERS

64. East, in Munich : OST - I was in Munich once.  Oktoberfest 1969. Never liked the taste of beer, but still had a good time.  

65. Short shirt : TEE - No Way - Tee Shirts are not short. 

Down:

1. Early Yucatán dweller : MAYA- I would have clued "Miss Moore of the Minnesota Lynx".

2. Justice Kagan : ELENA - Supreme woman of the high court!

3. Eye candy : HEAD-TURNER - Atlanta Braves owner

4. Eye candy : HOTTIE

5. Wahine welcome : ALOHA - A bit generic.  Wahine is a woman, normally a girlfriend or a wife

6. Swampy ground : MIRE

7. Prof.'s degree : PHD - A PHD is a doctor of Philosophy.  Why is it not DPH ?

8. "Listen to me!" : LOOK HERE - When I was in Tennessee, many of the good old boys would say "Lookie here".

9. Choir voices : ALTOS - Sopranos never fits.  I was a Bass. Not a fish. 

10. Disparaging remark : SLUR

11. "Don't Let __ Lonely Tonight": James Taylor : ME BE

12. General vicinity : AREA - Ground that Byron Buxton covers in center field.  "Put me in coach, I'm ready to play--Today". John Fogarty

15. "TED Radio Hour" broadcaster : NPR 

19. Morales of "NYPD Blue" : ESAI - Constructors love those four letter names with three vowels.

21. Family name of three popes : ORSINI - I'll take your word for this

25. Greek leader? : ALPHA - Second letter is BETA.  I have also found it interesting that  ALPHABET is our word for the whole bunch

27. Laser pointer chaser : CAT

28. Quickness : HASTE

29. Crayola shade similar to Atomic Tangerine : NEON CARROT - Amazing!  When I was a kid we had red blue green yellow orange purple, etc.

30. Opposing : ANTI

31. Wordless whisper : PSST

32. Wound covering : SCAB - Never liked this word.  BandAid did not fit.

33. Skunk River state : IOWA - Somewhere south of me.  Land of pork and corn - yum.

34. Needed a massage : ACHED

36. Subject of the musical "Mayor" : ED KOCH - presided at Simon and Garfunkel's Concert in the (Central) Park.

38. Carrier to Cairo : EGYPTAIR - I wonder if they overbook and drag people off their planes.

39. Much-used base : TEN - I would clue "Number of pins in a rack".

45. Magic spell : MOJO

46. Not fancy at all : DETEST - For those of you who might detest this puzzle, Take up Golf and see how you like that.

47. "I give!" : UNCLE - I wonder if pro wrestlers hollered this when caught in a four figure leg lock.

48. Keats and Yeats : POETS -  He's a poet but he don't know it, but his feet show it--- they're long fellows.

49. Highborn : NOBLE - We have a "Noble Avenue" a half mile from our house.  I think you have to be a Duke or Earl to live there.

50. They're sometimes felt : HATS

51. Mary Kay rival : AVON

52. Lowdown : DOPE - Finally, and adjective for me preparing this blog.

54. Actress Hagen : UTA

55. Beijing-born Bond villain : DR NO - Roger Moore, RIP

56. Off-target : WIDE - An adjective for my golf shots.

58. Rehab hurdle : DTS

Boomer

Notes from C.C.: 

 

1) The Sixth Minnesota Crossword Tournament will be held at the beautiful Landmark Center in Saint Paul on Sunday, June 11, 2017. 

Constructors include Christopher Adams, George Barany, Victor Barocas (also our editor), David Hanson, Andy Kravis, Mark McClain, Andrea Carla Michaels, David Liben-Nowell, Tom Pepper, Andrew J. Ries and our own Jeffrey Wechsler, who's flying to MN again this year to help the tournament. Hope to see some of you there.

2) Indie 500 Crossword Tournament will take place on June 3, 2017. Angela Olson Halsted is PuzzleGirl who used to run the LA Confidential blog.

2) To foodies on our blog, hope you check out "The Gefilte Manifesto: New Recipes for Old World Jewish Foods", co-authored by Liz Alpern, daughter of the great Mike Alpern, who organizes the annual Cru Dinner. Liz appeared on the cover of last month's Hadassah Magazine. What fish is that?