Theme: WAIT (49D: Bide one's time, and a word that may precede the answers to starred clues)
17A: *"We aren't finished here": IT ISN'T OVER
53A: *"Give me another sec": I'M NOT READY
11D: *"It's on the tip of my tongue": DON'T TELL ME
28D: *"I haven't told you everything yet": THERE'S MORE
All of the theme answers contain 10 letters. I wonder if the puzzle is inspired by NPR's "Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me!".
Americans are rather impatient. We want things HERE and NOW. I suppose impatience can be a virtue. It drives and speeds up innovation/progress at various fields. Had we waited and waited for the perfect moment, I doubt men would have landed on the moon.
It felt like I was climbing up the stairs in the middle. The grid just looked pretty to me. I also like how IDLE (50D: Just sitting around) parallels WAIT. Nice to see BUSY (24A: In use, as a phone line) in the puzzle too. Just WAIT!
Across:
1A: Potato holders: SACKS. Potatoes are nightshade veggies, so are tomatoes, eggplants and bell peppers.
10A: Kids' party occasion, briefly: B'DAY
14A: Andean beast: LLAMA. Alpaca & LLAMA are both domesticated guanacos.
15A: Actress Gershon: GINA. Does GINA Gershon strike you as sexy? I've only seen her in "Showgirls".
19A: Tolstoy's Karenina: ANNA. Impossible love story often ends tragically.
22A: Encourage: FOSTER
25A: Cinco de Mayo celebrations: FIESTAS
26A: Acela Express operator: AMTRAK. Acela is pronounced ah-CEL-la. Wikipedia says Acela is meant to be evocative of acceleration and excellence.
29A: Mottled T-shirt: TIE-DYE. Such a bright burst of colors.
30A: Broadway's George M.: COHAN. I always want to spell his name as COHEN.
32A: Wall St. takeover: LBO (Leveraged Buyout).
35A: __ & Chandon champagne: MOET. Part of Louis Vuitton.
40A: Bugs' pursuer: ELMER. ELMER Fudd.
41A: Noble's home: ESTATE. Misread the clue as "Nobel's home". That would be SWEDEN.
44A: Deteriorate, slangily: GO SOUTH
46A: Chopped liver spread: PATE. PATE de foie gras, yum!
47A: Group together: LUMP IN
48A: Dover fish dish: SOLE. I love walleye.
49A: The LPGA's Michelle: WIE. Michelle WIE likes wearing dangling earrings.
56A: Filly's father: SIRE
57A: Menthol cigarette: KOOL. Lots of interesting cigarette ads in those old Life magazines.
58A: Author Zola: EMILE. The French plantation owner in "South Pacific" is also called EMILE.
Down:
1D: __ to none: poor odds: SLIM. Like my chance of finishing a LAT Friday/Saturday/Sunday puzzle without cheating.
3D: Eve's oldest: CAIN. Then Abel, then Seth.
4D: Canada hwy. distances: KMS
5D: Puerto Rico's capital: SAN JUAN. I just realized that SAN JUAN is "Saint John (the Baptist)" in English.
8D: Washington's bill: ONE. Nice president clue to pair up with GARFIELD (9D: President after Hayes).
10D: Sounding like marching bands: BRASSY. I suppose Jazzbumpa's trombone sounds BRASSY too.
12D: Nighttime breathing disorder: APNEA
23D: Multivolume Brit. references: OEDS (Oxford English Dictionaries).
25D: "The X-__: FILES.
26D: Very top: ACME. And ATOP (52A: At the apex of).
27D: Drop anchor: MOOR
29D: Silky-voiced Mel: TORME. Nicknamed "The Velvet Fog".
33D: Woodstock singer Joan: BAEZ. There might not be iPod today had Joan BAEZ actually married Steve Jobs.
36D Bongo-playing '50s-'60s sterotypes: BEATNIKS
37D: Get out of Dodge: FLEE. "Get out of Dodge" is a new slang to me. I've vaguely heard of Dodge City.
39D: Spitter's sound: PTUI. Whoa, no more PTUI, otherwise, Elissa might just give up LAT.
42D: __up (absorbed, as gravy): SOPPED. SOP also means "bribe".
44D: Cinderella's slipper material: GLASS
45D: Protruding navel: OUTIE. Opposite INNIE.
46D: They often have deep ends: POOLS
54D: Bovine bellow: MOO. Alliteration.
55D: Comedian Philips: EMO. Interesting, baby name origin says EMO is German for "serious", I always thought EMO is just short for emotional.
Answer grid.
C.C.
17A: *"We aren't finished here": IT ISN'T OVER
53A: *"Give me another sec": I'M NOT READY
11D: *"It's on the tip of my tongue": DON'T TELL ME
28D: *"I haven't told you everything yet": THERE'S MORE
All of the theme answers contain 10 letters. I wonder if the puzzle is inspired by NPR's "Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me!".
Americans are rather impatient. We want things HERE and NOW. I suppose impatience can be a virtue. It drives and speeds up innovation/progress at various fields. Had we waited and waited for the perfect moment, I doubt men would have landed on the moon.
It felt like I was climbing up the stairs in the middle. The grid just looked pretty to me. I also like how IDLE (50D: Just sitting around) parallels WAIT. Nice to see BUSY (24A: In use, as a phone line) in the puzzle too. Just WAIT!
Across:
1A: Potato holders: SACKS. Potatoes are nightshade veggies, so are tomatoes, eggplants and bell peppers.
10A: Kids' party occasion, briefly: B'DAY
14A: Andean beast: LLAMA. Alpaca & LLAMA are both domesticated guanacos.
15A: Actress Gershon: GINA. Does GINA Gershon strike you as sexy? I've only seen her in "Showgirls".
19A: Tolstoy's Karenina: ANNA. Impossible love story often ends tragically.
22A: Encourage: FOSTER
25A: Cinco de Mayo celebrations: FIESTAS
26A: Acela Express operator: AMTRAK. Acela is pronounced ah-CEL-la. Wikipedia says Acela is meant to be evocative of acceleration and excellence.
29A: Mottled T-shirt: TIE-DYE. Such a bright burst of colors.
30A: Broadway's George M.: COHAN. I always want to spell his name as COHEN.
32A: Wall St. takeover: LBO (Leveraged Buyout).
35A: __ & Chandon champagne: MOET. Part of Louis Vuitton.
40A: Bugs' pursuer: ELMER. ELMER Fudd.
41A: Noble's home: ESTATE. Misread the clue as "Nobel's home". That would be SWEDEN.
44A: Deteriorate, slangily: GO SOUTH
46A: Chopped liver spread: PATE. PATE de foie gras, yum!
47A: Group together: LUMP IN
48A: Dover fish dish: SOLE. I love walleye.
49A: The LPGA's Michelle: WIE. Michelle WIE likes wearing dangling earrings.
56A: Filly's father: SIRE
57A: Menthol cigarette: KOOL. Lots of interesting cigarette ads in those old Life magazines.
58A: Author Zola: EMILE. The French plantation owner in "South Pacific" is also called EMILE.
Down:
1D: __ to none: poor odds: SLIM. Like my chance of finishing a LAT Friday/Saturday/Sunday puzzle without cheating.
3D: Eve's oldest: CAIN. Then Abel, then Seth.
4D: Canada hwy. distances: KMS
5D: Puerto Rico's capital: SAN JUAN. I just realized that SAN JUAN is "Saint John (the Baptist)" in English.
8D: Washington's bill: ONE. Nice president clue to pair up with GARFIELD (9D: President after Hayes).
10D: Sounding like marching bands: BRASSY. I suppose Jazzbumpa's trombone sounds BRASSY too.
12D: Nighttime breathing disorder: APNEA
23D: Multivolume Brit. references: OEDS (Oxford English Dictionaries).
25D: "The X-__: FILES.
26D: Very top: ACME. And ATOP (52A: At the apex of).
27D: Drop anchor: MOOR
29D: Silky-voiced Mel: TORME. Nicknamed "The Velvet Fog".
33D: Woodstock singer Joan: BAEZ. There might not be iPod today had Joan BAEZ actually married Steve Jobs.
36D Bongo-playing '50s-'60s sterotypes: BEATNIKS
37D: Get out of Dodge: FLEE. "Get out of Dodge" is a new slang to me. I've vaguely heard of Dodge City.
39D: Spitter's sound: PTUI. Whoa, no more PTUI, otherwise, Elissa might just give up LAT.
42D: __up (absorbed, as gravy): SOPPED. SOP also means "bribe".
44D: Cinderella's slipper material: GLASS
45D: Protruding navel: OUTIE. Opposite INNIE.
46D: They often have deep ends: POOLS
54D: Bovine bellow: MOO. Alliteration.
55D: Comedian Philips: EMO. Interesting, baby name origin says EMO is German for "serious", I always thought EMO is just short for emotional.
Answer grid.
C.C.
