Theme: On the Fly
21A: Genesis no-no: FORBIDDEN FRUIT (Fruit Fly)
43A: Flower named for a legendary best: SNAP DRAGON (Dragonfly)
51A: Fruity spread: APPLE BUTTER (Butterfly)
69A: Unstable, metaphorically: BUILT ON SAND (Sandfly)
79A: Stylish but simple dress color: BASIC BLACK (Black Fly)
101A: 1964 Burt Lancaster thriller: SEVEN DAYS IN MAY (Mayfly)
30D: Take some heat: COME UNDER FIRE (Firefly)
34D: Put away platefuls: ATE LIKE A HORSE (Horsefly)
Ah, I believe I can fly. This puzzle is so doable. Must be an eased-up one.
All of them are insects, aren't they? Sandfly, black fly and mayfly are all new to me. I wonder why Noah Webster did not change fruit fly and black fly into one word during his spelling reform.
I like the golf referrences on this Masters Sunday:
20A: Golfing countryman of Seve: SERGIO. Dubbed as "The Best Golfer Never to Win a Major". This should be gimme to those who read my blog regularly. I like SERGIO Garcia a lot. He plays with passion. Close friend of Rafael Nadal (Tiger's buddy is of course Roger Federer). Seve Ballesteros is fighting brain tumor now. What a genius around the green!
43A: Putting concession: GIMME. You should never concede to those who yip.
59D: __ game: golf competition: SKINS. For some reason, Fred Couples dominates the SKINS Game. Only 4 players are invited to this match-play style competition. Each hole has a different value.
I got IGN (14D: Starter: Abbr.) because Argyle blogged it last time. Wayne Williams once clued it as "Elec. switch". Most of the other clues are quite straightforward. Several clue/Answer repetitions in today's grid. A WHILE is the answer for 85D: "For a little bit". Then it's part of clue for TOMES (110A: They took a while to read). I've never read a TOME, unless you count my dictionary as one.
"Madama Butterfly" accessory would be a great clue for OBI (27A) on any other day, but as BUTTER (fly) is part of the theme answer for 51A, I think a simple "Kimono closer" works better. The button-like fixture on man's kimono is called netsuke. Remember these highly collectible erotic netsukes I linked last time? The small case attached to kimono is called INRO.
Across:
5A: "For Whom the Bell Tolls" actor Tamiroff: AKIM. Stranger to me. Wikipedia says he is the first Golden Globe Award-winning actor for Best Supporting Actor (1944). Emil Jannings is the first Oscar winner for Best Actor (1927).
9A: Early bird?: EGG. Of course! I should eat a worm, as I did not get it until the very end.
12A: Ben Franklin's belief: DEISM. How is it different from theism? And why single out Ben Franklin? Somehow I thought he advocated self-discipline.
17A: "A Chapter on Ears" essayist: ELIA. Easy guess. I've never heard of this essay. Since TIN EAR (66A: Musical liability) is an answer in the grid, I wish the clue were just a simple "Charles Lamb's pen name".
19A: Lot, often: ACRE
24A: Stat: PRONTO. Stat here is doctor's "Immediately". From Latin statim. I was thinking of baseball stat.
25A: "My Fair Lady" girl: ELIZA. ELIZA Doolittle. And Professor "Enry Higgins.
26A: Bars bought dry: SOAPS. Not the bars I was picturing. Good clue.
31A: Former French coin: ECU. I put SOU first.
32A: Exercise done on a bench?: ETUDE. Why? Do pianists call their chair "bench"?
33A: Luggage checker: SKYCAP. A portmanteau of Sky and Redcap.
38A: Maine campus town: ORONO. We have a city named ORONO here in MN too.
40A: From __: slight progress: A TO B. Is it a slang? I am not familiar with this phrase.
45A: Bridge expert Culbertson: ELY. No idea. According to Wikipedia, this guy was the most significant American Contract Bridge personality and was widely regarded as "the man who made contract bridge". What is contract bridge?
49A: Skirt feature: SLIT. Too much?
50A: Dallas school: SMU. The new Bush Libary will be here. It's Laura Bush's alma mater.
55A: A-list: ELITE
56A: Two-time Golden Lion winner: ANG LEE. He won for "Brokeback Mountain" (2005) & "Lust, Caution" (2007). Golden Lion is Venice Film Festival's best film award, just like Palme d'Or in Cannes. I would not have got the answer without down fills. ANG/AN means "Peace" in Chinese. My favorite ANG LEE movie is "Eat Drink Man Woman".
58A: Scrub the launch: ABORT
59A: Quenches: SLAKES
60A: Hinder: DETER
61A: Old Greek assembly area: AGORA. I am used to the marketplace clue, you know, Socrate's shopping mall. Had no idea it can refer to a political assembly area.
62A: Perform using blades: SKATE
65A: Trial answers: PLEAS. Consist of "Guilty", "Not guilty" and "No contest", correct?
72A: Carpooler's __ Lane: HOV (High-Occupancy Vehicle)
74A: Flabby: SOFT. Made me think of Greenspan and his "We've hit a soft patch".
75A: Mediation agcy: NLRB (National Labor Relations Board). New agency to me.
77A: Studio stance: POSE. Say "Qiezi" (eggplant)! Chinese way to elicit a smile. Like our "Cheese".
78A: ABC dramedy "__ Stone": ELI. Have never heard of this TV series. Dramedy (Drama & Comedy) is a new word to me.
83A: Long eared bounders: HARES. What's the difference between HARES and Rabbits? Latin for hare is lepus.
84A: Old Italian bread: LIRA. Or LIRE. Bread here is slang for money.
86A: Enzyme suffix: ASE. Our old editor liked to clue ASE as "Peer Gynt's mother".
88A: Assembles: SETS UP
89A: Last to come out: NEWEST
91A: Flip call: HEADS
92A: "... the grace of God __": GO I. No idea. Is it a very famous Bible quote?
93A: Superfund enforcer: Abbr.: EPA. I did not know that superfund is the US environmental policy. But since SUPER is the answer for 43D: "Very, in slang", I am not fond of this clue. So many ways to clue EPA. The old "Air quality org." works just fine.
94A: Word heard before hiking?: HUT. Big stumper for me. I don't understand football at all. I might have heard of the "hut, hut, hut" noise though.
95A: "__ porridge hot ...": PEASE. Nursery rhymes stumps me often too. Peas/PEASE porridge does not sound appealing to me.
96A: Steinbeck family: JOADS. From "The Grapes of Wrath''. I learned it from doing Xword. I finally watched "East of Eden" the other day. Now I will remember James Dean's Cal (Caleb).
98A: Horror dubbed "Mistress of the Dark": ELVIRA. No idea. She looks very calculating. Wikipedia says ELVIRA is Arabic for "white".
106A: Gob: SAILOR. Did not know "gob" is a slang for SAILOR. Salt and tar, yes.
107A: Seine sights: ILES
111A: Old map letters: SSR. On pre-1991 maps.
112A: Old Sinclair rival: ESSO
Down:
1D: Exec often seen in his PJs: HEF. Hugh Hefner, publisher of Playboy magazine. Thought of Chris in LA's Playboy GROTTO visit.
2D: Band with the 1977 album "Out of the Blue": ELO. Here is the album cover. I guessed.
4D: Broccoli __: RABE. Very popular veggie in southern China. Also called rapini. It needs to be blanched because of the bitter taste. Cantonese like to stir-fry Broccoli RABE with a little garlic (no red pepper flake), then serve it as a side dish to seafood. See also STALK (62D: Broccoli part), though I call it as stem. STALK is for celery.
5D: Nut: ADDICT
6D: Invasive Asian vine: KUDZU. Japanese origin.
7D: It can be half-baked: IDEA. I like this clue.
9D: Home of the volcano Chimborazo: ECUADOR. Chimborazo (inactive) is ECUADOR's highest summit, according to Wikipedia. Cotopaxi (active) is the second highest summit.
11D: Laughs at: GETS. One of the reasons I don't watch TV series is because it's difficult for me to get the jokes.
12D: Rounded felt hat: DERBY. Also known as bowler hat.
13D: Symphony that includes a funeral march: EROICA. Beethoven's Symphony No. 3. Originally dedicated to Napoleon. EROICA is Italian for "heroic".
15D: Watch the kids: SIT
20D: Pacific Northwest metropolis: SPOKANE. Mine was SEATTLE. Wikipedia says SPOKANE means "Children of the Sun" in Salish, whatever it is. And Gonzaga University is located here.
22D: Graff of "Mr. Belvedere": ILENE. No idea. It's 80's TV show. She is wearing purple, Mr. Belvedre is the one with the moustache.
23D: SLR setting: F-STOP
33D: Smith, at times: SHOER. SHOER is a person who shoes horses or other animals.
37D: Places to see smileys, briefly: IMS (Instant Messages)
38D: Scott Turow memoir: ONE L. It's about his first year in Harvard. Very intense reading.
39D: Lace end: AGLET
41D: Memory units: BYTES
44D: Media workers' org: AFTRA (American Federation of Television and Radio Artists). Union representing professional actors, dancers, singers, and broadcasters. Another new org. for me.
47D: Celerity: SPEED. I kept reading the clue as "Celebrity".
49D: Roofing material: SLATE. Also the name of the online Ezine SLATE.com.
52D: Bread that's boiled before it's baked: BAGEL. BAGEL & lox, sandwich in heaven.
53D: Lusitania sinker: U- BOAT
54D: Trunk: TORSO
55D: Savanna grazer: ELAND. The spiral-horned antelope.
57D: "The Maids" playwright": GENET (Jean). Have never heard of "The Maids". It's about two housemaids who construct elaborate sadomasochistic rituals when their mistress is away., according to Wikipedia. Sounds awful. Not familiar with the author either. Looks like a hard man.
61D: Defendant's need: ALIBI. Hmm, perp's need. Our jargon "perp" simply means perpendicular.
63D: Lemon of the '50s: EDSEL. Collectible item now, correct?
64D Concertmaster's instrument: VIOLIN
65D: Race prize: PURSE. I wanted medal.
67D: Rebelled: ROSE UP. The answer feels like a clue, the clue feels like an answer.
69D: Big blowout: BLAST
70D: Creeps up on: NEARS
73D: "Roman Holiday" scooter: VESPA. Loved the movie. Can't remember the name of the scooter. It's manufactured by the Piaggio, which has operations in 50 countries, including China.
75D: LeBron James, e.g.: NBA STAR
80D: Chop chopper: CLEAVER
81D: Reasons for recusal: BIASES
83D: Fictional Swiss miss: HEIDI. Shirley Temple is so lovely as HEIDI. This real German Heidi (Klum) is lovely too.
88D: In order that one might: SO AS TO
90D: Cypriot currency since 2008: EUROS. Easy guess. I was unaware that Cyprus adopted EURO on Jan 1, 2008. It joined EU in 2004. Now Turkey wants to join EU too.
91D: Cads: HEELS
92D: "The Nude Maja" and "The Clothed Maja": GOYAS. Gimme to you, correct? I've linked both "The Nude Maja" and "The Clothed Maja" several times before. Both are housed in Museo del Prado.
95D: Omega preceders: PSIS
96D: Penny holders: JARS. Also holders for pickles.
98D: Ballpark fig.: EST (Estimate). ERA, RBI are Ballpark fig. too.
99D: Mekong River native: LAO. See this map. Their language is called LAO as well. See the China part? We call it Lancang River.
100D: Pep: VIM. Reminded me of JFK's special way of pronouncing "vigor".
102D: Capital of Denmark?: DEE. First letter of Denmark, which is capitalized. Good clue.
103D: "Cool" amount: MIL. Who says this? Those millionair rappers?
105D: Archery wood: YEW. I wonder how they get rid of the poisonous element when making archery bows.
Answer Grid.
C.C.
21A: Genesis no-no: FORBIDDEN FRUIT (Fruit Fly)
43A: Flower named for a legendary best: SNAP DRAGON (Dragonfly)
51A: Fruity spread: APPLE BUTTER (Butterfly)
69A: Unstable, metaphorically: BUILT ON SAND (Sandfly)
79A: Stylish but simple dress color: BASIC BLACK (Black Fly)
101A: 1964 Burt Lancaster thriller: SEVEN DAYS IN MAY (Mayfly)
30D: Take some heat: COME UNDER FIRE (Firefly)
34D: Put away platefuls: ATE LIKE A HORSE (Horsefly)
Ah, I believe I can fly. This puzzle is so doable. Must be an eased-up one.
All of them are insects, aren't they? Sandfly, black fly and mayfly are all new to me. I wonder why Noah Webster did not change fruit fly and black fly into one word during his spelling reform.
I like the golf referrences on this Masters Sunday:
20A: Golfing countryman of Seve: SERGIO. Dubbed as "The Best Golfer Never to Win a Major". This should be gimme to those who read my blog regularly. I like SERGIO Garcia a lot. He plays with passion. Close friend of Rafael Nadal (Tiger's buddy is of course Roger Federer). Seve Ballesteros is fighting brain tumor now. What a genius around the green!
43A: Putting concession: GIMME. You should never concede to those who yip.
59D: __ game: golf competition: SKINS. For some reason, Fred Couples dominates the SKINS Game. Only 4 players are invited to this match-play style competition. Each hole has a different value.
I got IGN (14D: Starter: Abbr.) because Argyle blogged it last time. Wayne Williams once clued it as "Elec. switch". Most of the other clues are quite straightforward. Several clue/Answer repetitions in today's grid. A WHILE is the answer for 85D: "For a little bit". Then it's part of clue for TOMES (110A: They took a while to read). I've never read a TOME, unless you count my dictionary as one.
"Madama Butterfly" accessory would be a great clue for OBI (27A) on any other day, but as BUTTER (fly) is part of the theme answer for 51A, I think a simple "Kimono closer" works better. The button-like fixture on man's kimono is called netsuke. Remember these highly collectible erotic netsukes I linked last time? The small case attached to kimono is called INRO.
Across:
5A: "For Whom the Bell Tolls" actor Tamiroff: AKIM. Stranger to me. Wikipedia says he is the first Golden Globe Award-winning actor for Best Supporting Actor (1944). Emil Jannings is the first Oscar winner for Best Actor (1927).
9A: Early bird?: EGG. Of course! I should eat a worm, as I did not get it until the very end.
12A: Ben Franklin's belief: DEISM. How is it different from theism? And why single out Ben Franklin? Somehow I thought he advocated self-discipline.
17A: "A Chapter on Ears" essayist: ELIA. Easy guess. I've never heard of this essay. Since TIN EAR (66A: Musical liability) is an answer in the grid, I wish the clue were just a simple "Charles Lamb's pen name".
19A: Lot, often: ACRE
24A: Stat: PRONTO. Stat here is doctor's "Immediately". From Latin statim. I was thinking of baseball stat.
25A: "My Fair Lady" girl: ELIZA. ELIZA Doolittle. And Professor "Enry Higgins.
26A: Bars bought dry: SOAPS. Not the bars I was picturing. Good clue.
31A: Former French coin: ECU. I put SOU first.
32A: Exercise done on a bench?: ETUDE. Why? Do pianists call their chair "bench"?
33A: Luggage checker: SKYCAP. A portmanteau of Sky and Redcap.
38A: Maine campus town: ORONO. We have a city named ORONO here in MN too.
40A: From __: slight progress: A TO B. Is it a slang? I am not familiar with this phrase.
45A: Bridge expert Culbertson: ELY. No idea. According to Wikipedia, this guy was the most significant American Contract Bridge personality and was widely regarded as "the man who made contract bridge". What is contract bridge?
49A: Skirt feature: SLIT. Too much?
50A: Dallas school: SMU. The new Bush Libary will be here. It's Laura Bush's alma mater.
55A: A-list: ELITE
56A: Two-time Golden Lion winner: ANG LEE. He won for "Brokeback Mountain" (2005) & "Lust, Caution" (2007). Golden Lion is Venice Film Festival's best film award, just like Palme d'Or in Cannes. I would not have got the answer without down fills. ANG/AN means "Peace" in Chinese. My favorite ANG LEE movie is "Eat Drink Man Woman".
58A: Scrub the launch: ABORT
59A: Quenches: SLAKES
60A: Hinder: DETER
61A: Old Greek assembly area: AGORA. I am used to the marketplace clue, you know, Socrate's shopping mall. Had no idea it can refer to a political assembly area.
62A: Perform using blades: SKATE
65A: Trial answers: PLEAS. Consist of "Guilty", "Not guilty" and "No contest", correct?
72A: Carpooler's __ Lane: HOV (High-Occupancy Vehicle)
74A: Flabby: SOFT. Made me think of Greenspan and his "We've hit a soft patch".
75A: Mediation agcy: NLRB (National Labor Relations Board). New agency to me.
77A: Studio stance: POSE. Say "Qiezi" (eggplant)! Chinese way to elicit a smile. Like our "Cheese".
78A: ABC dramedy "__ Stone": ELI. Have never heard of this TV series. Dramedy (Drama & Comedy) is a new word to me.
83A: Long eared bounders: HARES. What's the difference between HARES and Rabbits? Latin for hare is lepus.
84A: Old Italian bread: LIRA. Or LIRE. Bread here is slang for money.
86A: Enzyme suffix: ASE. Our old editor liked to clue ASE as "Peer Gynt's mother".
88A: Assembles: SETS UP
89A: Last to come out: NEWEST
91A: Flip call: HEADS
92A: "... the grace of God __": GO I. No idea. Is it a very famous Bible quote?
93A: Superfund enforcer: Abbr.: EPA. I did not know that superfund is the US environmental policy. But since SUPER is the answer for 43D: "Very, in slang", I am not fond of this clue. So many ways to clue EPA. The old "Air quality org." works just fine.
94A: Word heard before hiking?: HUT. Big stumper for me. I don't understand football at all. I might have heard of the "hut, hut, hut" noise though.
95A: "__ porridge hot ...": PEASE. Nursery rhymes stumps me often too. Peas/PEASE porridge does not sound appealing to me.
96A: Steinbeck family: JOADS. From "The Grapes of Wrath''. I learned it from doing Xword. I finally watched "East of Eden" the other day. Now I will remember James Dean's Cal (Caleb).
98A: Horror dubbed "Mistress of the Dark": ELVIRA. No idea. She looks very calculating. Wikipedia says ELVIRA is Arabic for "white".
106A: Gob: SAILOR. Did not know "gob" is a slang for SAILOR. Salt and tar, yes.
107A: Seine sights: ILES
111A: Old map letters: SSR. On pre-1991 maps.
112A: Old Sinclair rival: ESSO
Down:
1D: Exec often seen in his PJs: HEF. Hugh Hefner, publisher of Playboy magazine. Thought of Chris in LA's Playboy GROTTO visit.
2D: Band with the 1977 album "Out of the Blue": ELO. Here is the album cover. I guessed.
4D: Broccoli __: RABE. Very popular veggie in southern China. Also called rapini. It needs to be blanched because of the bitter taste. Cantonese like to stir-fry Broccoli RABE with a little garlic (no red pepper flake), then serve it as a side dish to seafood. See also STALK (62D: Broccoli part), though I call it as stem. STALK is for celery.
5D: Nut: ADDICT
6D: Invasive Asian vine: KUDZU. Japanese origin.
7D: It can be half-baked: IDEA. I like this clue.
9D: Home of the volcano Chimborazo: ECUADOR. Chimborazo (inactive) is ECUADOR's highest summit, according to Wikipedia. Cotopaxi (active) is the second highest summit.
11D: Laughs at: GETS. One of the reasons I don't watch TV series is because it's difficult for me to get the jokes.
12D: Rounded felt hat: DERBY. Also known as bowler hat.
13D: Symphony that includes a funeral march: EROICA. Beethoven's Symphony No. 3. Originally dedicated to Napoleon. EROICA is Italian for "heroic".
15D: Watch the kids: SIT
20D: Pacific Northwest metropolis: SPOKANE. Mine was SEATTLE. Wikipedia says SPOKANE means "Children of the Sun" in Salish, whatever it is. And Gonzaga University is located here.
22D: Graff of "Mr. Belvedere": ILENE. No idea. It's 80's TV show. She is wearing purple, Mr. Belvedre is the one with the moustache.
23D: SLR setting: F-STOP
33D: Smith, at times: SHOER. SHOER is a person who shoes horses or other animals.
37D: Places to see smileys, briefly: IMS (Instant Messages)
38D: Scott Turow memoir: ONE L. It's about his first year in Harvard. Very intense reading.
39D: Lace end: AGLET
41D: Memory units: BYTES
44D: Media workers' org: AFTRA (American Federation of Television and Radio Artists). Union representing professional actors, dancers, singers, and broadcasters. Another new org. for me.
47D: Celerity: SPEED. I kept reading the clue as "Celebrity".
49D: Roofing material: SLATE. Also the name of the online Ezine SLATE.com.
52D: Bread that's boiled before it's baked: BAGEL. BAGEL & lox, sandwich in heaven.
53D: Lusitania sinker: U- BOAT
54D: Trunk: TORSO
55D: Savanna grazer: ELAND. The spiral-horned antelope.
57D: "The Maids" playwright": GENET (Jean). Have never heard of "The Maids". It's about two housemaids who construct elaborate sadomasochistic rituals when their mistress is away., according to Wikipedia. Sounds awful. Not familiar with the author either. Looks like a hard man.
61D: Defendant's need: ALIBI. Hmm, perp's need. Our jargon "perp" simply means perpendicular.
63D: Lemon of the '50s: EDSEL. Collectible item now, correct?
64D Concertmaster's instrument: VIOLIN
65D: Race prize: PURSE. I wanted medal.
67D: Rebelled: ROSE UP. The answer feels like a clue, the clue feels like an answer.
69D: Big blowout: BLAST
70D: Creeps up on: NEARS
73D: "Roman Holiday" scooter: VESPA. Loved the movie. Can't remember the name of the scooter. It's manufactured by the Piaggio, which has operations in 50 countries, including China.
75D: LeBron James, e.g.: NBA STAR
80D: Chop chopper: CLEAVER
81D: Reasons for recusal: BIASES
83D: Fictional Swiss miss: HEIDI. Shirley Temple is so lovely as HEIDI. This real German Heidi (Klum) is lovely too.
88D: In order that one might: SO AS TO
90D: Cypriot currency since 2008: EUROS. Easy guess. I was unaware that Cyprus adopted EURO on Jan 1, 2008. It joined EU in 2004. Now Turkey wants to join EU too.
91D: Cads: HEELS
92D: "The Nude Maja" and "The Clothed Maja": GOYAS. Gimme to you, correct? I've linked both "The Nude Maja" and "The Clothed Maja" several times before. Both are housed in Museo del Prado.
95D: Omega preceders: PSIS
96D: Penny holders: JARS. Also holders for pickles.
98D: Ballpark fig.: EST (Estimate). ERA, RBI are Ballpark fig. too.
99D: Mekong River native: LAO. See this map. Their language is called LAO as well. See the China part? We call it Lancang River.
100D: Pep: VIM. Reminded me of JFK's special way of pronouncing "vigor".
102D: Capital of Denmark?: DEE. First letter of Denmark, which is capitalized. Good clue.
103D: "Cool" amount: MIL. Who says this? Those millionair rappers?
105D: Archery wood: YEW. I wonder how they get rid of the poisonous element when making archery bows.
Answer Grid.
C.C.
