Theme: It's Scintilla-ting
20A: Musical featuring "Maniac": FLASHDANCE
62A: Navigation beacon: LIGHTHOUSE
10D: Igniter: SPARKPLUG
33D: Luminous larvae: GLOWWORMS
I wonder why GLOWWORMS glow. Aren't they afraid of being eaten by bats or those night owls?
I rather like the theme answers today, very consistent. Those gleaming words brought to mind William Manchester's "One Brief Shining Moment" about JFK and his Camelot years. Truly beautiful things, like cherry blossoms, only last a very short time.
I don't think the clue for WHIT (34A: Smallest amount) is accurate. "Small amount", yes.
I don't understand why "Failing on purpose" for TANKING (24A). The stock market has been TANKING since last September, is it "Failing on purpose"? Who manipulated this scandal then? "The Talented Mr. Madoff"?
Also, why "Alternative beau" for RIVAL (55D)? RIVAL to whom?
Across:
1A: Thief's haul: SWAG. New slang to me. I could only think of LOOT.
5A: Stowaway, e.g.: HIDER. And NEWER (18A: More recent). And SCOWLER (52A: Sour looker). Special deal for ER today, buy one, get two free.
15A: Dig deeply?: ADORE. Good clue.
16A: Carson's predecessor: PAAR. I often confuse Jack PAAR with Catherine PARR, Henry VIII's wife.
40A: Eye: pref.: OCULO. I am more familiar with ocular. Easily gettable though. Oculus is Latin for "eye".
42A: "__ You Experienced?": ARE. Have never heard of this Jimi Hendrix song.
43A: Pianist Blake: EUBIE. Obtained his name with down fill help. Wikipedia says he smoked all his life and he died five days after his 100th birthday.
44A: Domingo, eg.: TENOR. The Three Tenors. Domingo is in the left.
45A: Cartoonist Drucker: MORT. Googled his name, cartoonist for the "Mad Magazine". Egads, I did not know that "Mad Magazine" is still in circulation.
64A: Drunkard: WINO. Thought of LUSH immediately, after our "A lush lushed lush in a lush lush" discussion last week.
65A: Asseverate: AVER. Did not know the meaning of "Asseverate". I parsed the word as "Make less severe", but EASE did not fit.
67A: Ready and willing partner: ABLE. I am ready, willing and ABLE to let Vikings go. Los Angeles Vikings does have a nice ring on it.
68A: Writer O'Flaherty: LIAM. Irish writer. Unknown to me. Is LIAM an unique Irish name? LIAM Neeson (Oskar in "Schindler's List") is from Ireland. He is going to play ABE (37D: Presidential nickname) in a Steven Spielberg biopic.
69A: Moon lander: EAGLE. Was not aware of this Apollo 11’s module name. Spider (Apollo 9) sounds quite apt.
71A: Bracket shapes: ELLS. Holy moley. I was really uneducated on this term.
Down:
2D: Writer Cather: WILLA. Her "O Pineers" appeared in our puzzle before. Unfortunately I don't remember her name.
3D: Mr. T's outfit: A-TEAM. I was thinking of the enormous amount of bling blings he is wearing, not the TV series. "The" is missing from the clue.
4D: Painter's base: GESSO. Eat a worm if you missed this one.
8D: Standing: ERECT. Made me think of the "Like member of congress clue" again. I bet John Boehner/Eric Cantor would go nuts if this clue appeared in a newspaper.
11D: Hawaiian island: KAUAI. What's so special about this island? I've never been to Hawaii. Must be very difficult to live with only 12 letters. I can understand 5 vowels, but only 7 consonants (h, k, l, m, n, p and w)?
25D: French Riviera resort: NICE."To Catch a Thief" is set in French Riviera. Nice movie. There is a picnic scene when Grace Kelly offered Cary Grant some chicken, and she asked "Do you want a leg or a breast?" Don't google, give me your guess on Grant's response.
27D: Put-up job: SHAM. Like FEMA's fake "News Conference".
28D: Russian city on the Vyatka: KIROV. See this map. Vyatka is a river. It has appeared in our puzzle several times. But I would not have got it without the Across fills. Chris mentioned the KIROV Ballet last time.
31D: Service winner: ACE. Tennis.
46D: Dreaded flies: TSETSES. I am surprised that our editor did not bring back "Nagana carriers" this time. He seems to be in an incurable repeating mood right now.
52D: Low tract: SWALE. This has become a gimme. Swamp anyone?
58D: Minsk money: RUBLE. Only knew RUBLE is Putin's bread. Was unaware that it's used in Belarus as well.
59D: Country singer K.T.: OSLIN. See, whatever Jimbo wants, Jimbo gets.
63D: Caron role: GIGI. Colette's most famous novel. Once again, her great quote: "I love my past, I love my present. I am not ashamed of what I have had, and I am not sad because I no longer have it".
64D: 1965 Beatles movie: HELP. This promo looks great. Here is the list of movies the Beatles made.
C.C.
20A: Musical featuring "Maniac": FLASHDANCE
62A: Navigation beacon: LIGHTHOUSE
10D: Igniter: SPARKPLUG
33D: Luminous larvae: GLOWWORMS
I wonder why GLOWWORMS glow. Aren't they afraid of being eaten by bats or those night owls?
I rather like the theme answers today, very consistent. Those gleaming words brought to mind William Manchester's "One Brief Shining Moment" about JFK and his Camelot years. Truly beautiful things, like cherry blossoms, only last a very short time.
I don't think the clue for WHIT (34A: Smallest amount) is accurate. "Small amount", yes.
I don't understand why "Failing on purpose" for TANKING (24A). The stock market has been TANKING since last September, is it "Failing on purpose"? Who manipulated this scandal then? "The Talented Mr. Madoff"?
Also, why "Alternative beau" for RIVAL (55D)? RIVAL to whom?
Across:
1A: Thief's haul: SWAG. New slang to me. I could only think of LOOT.
5A: Stowaway, e.g.: HIDER. And NEWER (18A: More recent). And SCOWLER (52A: Sour looker). Special deal for ER today, buy one, get two free.
15A: Dig deeply?: ADORE. Good clue.
16A: Carson's predecessor: PAAR. I often confuse Jack PAAR with Catherine PARR, Henry VIII's wife.
40A: Eye: pref.: OCULO. I am more familiar with ocular. Easily gettable though. Oculus is Latin for "eye".
42A: "__ You Experienced?": ARE. Have never heard of this Jimi Hendrix song.
43A: Pianist Blake: EUBIE. Obtained his name with down fill help. Wikipedia says he smoked all his life and he died five days after his 100th birthday.
44A: Domingo, eg.: TENOR. The Three Tenors. Domingo is in the left.
45A: Cartoonist Drucker: MORT. Googled his name, cartoonist for the "Mad Magazine". Egads, I did not know that "Mad Magazine" is still in circulation.
64A: Drunkard: WINO. Thought of LUSH immediately, after our "A lush lushed lush in a lush lush" discussion last week.
65A: Asseverate: AVER. Did not know the meaning of "Asseverate". I parsed the word as "Make less severe", but EASE did not fit.
67A: Ready and willing partner: ABLE. I am ready, willing and ABLE to let Vikings go. Los Angeles Vikings does have a nice ring on it.
68A: Writer O'Flaherty: LIAM. Irish writer. Unknown to me. Is LIAM an unique Irish name? LIAM Neeson (Oskar in "Schindler's List") is from Ireland. He is going to play ABE (37D: Presidential nickname) in a Steven Spielberg biopic.
69A: Moon lander: EAGLE. Was not aware of this Apollo 11’s module name. Spider (Apollo 9) sounds quite apt.
71A: Bracket shapes: ELLS. Holy moley. I was really uneducated on this term.
Down:
2D: Writer Cather: WILLA. Her "O Pineers" appeared in our puzzle before. Unfortunately I don't remember her name.
3D: Mr. T's outfit: A-TEAM. I was thinking of the enormous amount of bling blings he is wearing, not the TV series. "The" is missing from the clue.
4D: Painter's base: GESSO. Eat a worm if you missed this one.
8D: Standing: ERECT. Made me think of the "Like member of congress clue" again. I bet John Boehner/Eric Cantor would go nuts if this clue appeared in a newspaper.
11D: Hawaiian island: KAUAI. What's so special about this island? I've never been to Hawaii. Must be very difficult to live with only 12 letters. I can understand 5 vowels, but only 7 consonants (h, k, l, m, n, p and w)?
25D: French Riviera resort: NICE."To Catch a Thief" is set in French Riviera. Nice movie. There is a picnic scene when Grace Kelly offered Cary Grant some chicken, and she asked "Do you want a leg or a breast?" Don't google, give me your guess on Grant's response.
27D: Put-up job: SHAM. Like FEMA's fake "News Conference".
28D: Russian city on the Vyatka: KIROV. See this map. Vyatka is a river. It has appeared in our puzzle several times. But I would not have got it without the Across fills. Chris mentioned the KIROV Ballet last time.
31D: Service winner: ACE. Tennis.
46D: Dreaded flies: TSETSES. I am surprised that our editor did not bring back "Nagana carriers" this time. He seems to be in an incurable repeating mood right now.
52D: Low tract: SWALE. This has become a gimme. Swamp anyone?
58D: Minsk money: RUBLE. Only knew RUBLE is Putin's bread. Was unaware that it's used in Belarus as well.
59D: Country singer K.T.: OSLIN. See, whatever Jimbo wants, Jimbo gets.
63D: Caron role: GIGI. Colette's most famous novel. Once again, her great quote: "I love my past, I love my present. I am not ashamed of what I have had, and I am not sad because I no longer have it".
64D: 1965 Beatles movie: HELP. This promo looks great. Here is the list of movies the Beatles made.
C.C.
