google.com, pub-2774194725043577, DIRECT, f08c47fec0942fa0 L.A.Times Crossword Corner

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Oct 17, 2010

Sunday October 17, 2010 Julian Lim

Theme: I Have a Weird Feeling... Or rather MIXED EMOTIONS (109A. Conflict, and a hint to unraveling the puzzle's circled letters). The spanning circled letters are anagrams of various emotions. In cryptic crossword, "weird" and "mixed" often indicate anagram trick.

22A. "The Age of Turbulence" memoirist : ALAN GREENSPAN. The circled five letters ANGRE is anagram of anger.

29A. Still in Hollywood : FREEZE FRAME. Fear.

32A. Event with a "six metres club" : POLE VAULT. Love.

45A. Treaty of Paris conflict, 1763 : THE SEVEN YEARS' WAR. Envy. We also have a minor duplicated PARIS (58D. Montmartre's city). Montmartre is lovely. Had an incredible experience inside the Sacré-Cœur Basilica.

59A. Defense strategy that's not an option in some states : INSANITY PLEA. Pity.

71A. Scandalmongers, often : TABLOID PRESS. Pride.

83A. Nintendo game that involves rescuing a princess : THE LEGEND OF ZELDA. Glee. Cross-referenced with NES (117A. 83-Across console).

92A. "It's Still Rock and Roll to Me" performer : BILLY JOEL. Joy.

94A. Common cell : MOBILE PHONE. Hope.

I love that all the anagrammatic emotion words consistently span two words in each theme entry rather than hidden inside some long words. More fun.

I am sure our Lemonade (Jason in real life) would enjoy the two references to him:

39D. Euripides tragedy : MEDEA. And JASON ( 93D. 39-Down's spouse), who deserted Medea after she helped him get the Golden Fleece.

86D. Lemon add-on : ADE

I think this is Julian Lim's first Sunday puzzle. If so, congratulations! Very creative theme. Many original and tricky clues too.

Across:

1. Hied : SPED

5. Redbox rental : DVD

8. Fond du __, Wisconsin : LAC. The French settled down there first I suppose.

11. NH3 : AMMONIA. Did not really know the formula.

18. Apple part : CORE

19. Service station offering : AIR. An unexpected answer.

20. "Rubáiyát" rhyme scheme : AABA

21. Trying to catch a break? : X-RAYING. Great "break" clue.

25. Speculator's reply to "Where's all your money?" : I LOST IT. Tough!

26. Bob Marley, e.g. : RASTA. Loved his "No Woman, No Cry".

27. Pupil of Plato : ARISTOTLE. Socrates, Plato, Aristotle. We also have TELOS (71D. Final purpose, to Aristotle). Unknown to me. Aristotle duplication. Tough to avoid so in a giant 21*21.

38. Vet : EX-GI

39. Suvari of "American Pie" : MENA. Can never remember her name.

40. Big name in beauty : ESTEE. Estée Lauder.

41. "The X-Files" extras : FEDS

50. Dr. Alzheimer : ALOIS. I did not know this.

52. Dwells : RESIDES

53. Stretch out using : LIE ON. The clue sounds a bit awkward to me.

54. Many of their pieces are nearly identical : JIGSAWS. Seems so time-consuming.

57. Sushi bar supplier : EELER. Was in the food direction.

58. Homeys : PALS

61. Like pheasant : GAMY

62. Little rat : PUP

65. Slave : TOIL

66. Corrosive fluids : LYES

67. What vacationers are without, by choice : CARE. Without care.

68. Batman co-creator : KANE (Bob). Not a familiar figure to me.

69. It "enables us to find ourselves and lose ourselves at the same time": Merton : ART. Oh, memory does the same, no?

70. Exploded : BLEW

75. "Charlie's Angels" angel Munroe : KRIS. Peeked at the answer sheet.

76. Fracas : MELEE

77. Ball Park Franks maker : SARA LEE

78. Links site : CHAIN. Thought of golf.

80. Bread component? : SILENT A. Letter A in bread is silent. Got me.

82. Key of the overture to Mozart's "The Magic Flute" : E-FLAT. Needed crossing help.

87. "See ya!" : TA TA

88. Buddy List user : AOLER

89. Heading under which cabs are listed : REDS. Wine list. Cab here refers to Cabernet.

90. Yeats's "__ and the Swan" : LEDA

101. Heart stimulant brand : ADRENALIN. Have never heard of the brand. Makes sense.

103. Romantic cocktail garnish : PETAL

104. First frat at U.C. Berkeley : ZETA PSI. Total unknown.

112. Delta follower : EPSILON

113. Sacha Baron Cohen character : ALI G. Borat too. Nuts.

114. __ de Cologne : EAU

115. Tenth: Pref. : DECI

116. She played Sasha Monroe on "Third Watch" : NIA LONG. Nice to see her full name.

118. Banned pesticide : DDT

119. "Understood" : I SEE

Down:

1. Gobble (down) : SCARF

2. Opposite : POLAR

3. Make blank : ERASE

4. Pasta order word : DENTE. Al dente.

5. __ es Salaam : DAR. Largest city in Tanzania. Literally "house of Peace" in Arabic, a la Wiki.

6. Fight (for) : VIE

7. Less upbeat : DREARIER

8. Error : LAPSE

9. Like __ out of 79-Down : A BAT. 79. See 9-Down : HELL. Like a bat out of hell. The clues told me nothing.

10. Spam-revealing aid? : CAN OPENER. Picturing the email spams.

11. Deodorant targets, anatomically : AXILLAE. Singular is axilla.

12. 1957 Bobbettes hit : MR. LEE. Here is the clip. Out of my knowledge zone.

13. Great Leap Forward architect : MAO. Crazy time in China. It preceded Cultural Revolution.

14. Cries of dismay : OYs

15. Niggling detail : NIT

16. Trattoria menu suffix : INI. Pasta suffix. Like Rotini.

17. Thespian's rep. : AGT. Thespian sounds so old.

20. "__ sure you've heard ..." : AS I'M

23. Wondering look : GAZE

24. Org. with many arms : NRA. Weapons.

28. Theater awards : TONYs

30. No. after a phone no. : EXT. Extension. Drew a blank.

31. Alphabet trio : FGH. The constructor has no other better choice here.

33. Indeed : VERILY

34. Boneheads : ASSES

35. Old CIA plane : U-TWO. Weird to see U-2 spelled out.

36. Like times of famine : LEAN

37. Thrice, in Rx's : TER

41. Sizzling Tex-Mex meat : FAJITA

42. "The Ladies' Man" author Lipman : ELINOR. Nope. Alien to me.

43. Watch Fido, say : DOG SIT

44. Hemp fiber : SISAL. Learned from doing Xword.

46. Filters (through) : SEEPS

47. German donkey : ESEL. Made me smile. I got to know John Lampkin because of this word. Looks like this.

48. Odious : VILE

49. Arbored Southwestern walkway : ALAMEDA. Can never remember this word.

51. Japanese honorific : SAN. I would be called C.C. San.

55. Game : WILLING

56. Optical maladies : STYES

60. Longbow wood : YEW

61. Fed. auditor : GAO (General Accounting Office)

62. Valencian rice dish : PAELLA. Tasty!

63. Depose : UNSEAT

64. Old Catalan coin : PESETA. Forgot again.

67. Former Yankee Boyer : CLETE. No idea. I might have his baseball card.

68. Singles promoter? : KRAFT. Cheese.

70. Prickly, plantwise : BRIERY. Adjective of brier I suppose.

72. First Hebrew letter: Var. : ALEF. OK, variant of aleph.

73. Daimler contemporary : BENZ

74. Game opener? : PRE. Pre-game.

75. Survivor of Krypton's destruction : KAL-EL. No idea. Superman's birth name.

76. Broker : MIDDLEMAN

78. K.J. __, first Korean to win on the PGA Tour : CHOI. Gimmie. Love him. Very Asian style. Stoic. Hard-working. Do-er.

80. Villainous look : SNEER

81. 1967 Temptations hit : ALL I NEED. Obtained via crossings.

83. Check : TAB

84. Disintegrating : ERODING

85. Penn. neighbor : DEL

91. PDA entry : APPT

94. Leg hiders : MAXIS. Skirts.

95. Designer Cassini : OLEG. Jackie's designer.

96. Didn't pass, in bridge : BID

97. Alpine protagonist : HEIDI. Lovely.

98. Siouan tribesmen : OTOES

99. '30s V.P. John __ Garner : NANCE. Who knows?!

100. Milk pitcher? : ELSIE. Elsie the Cow. Great clue. I was thinking of the container "pitcher" rather than one who makes the sales pitch on TV.

102. River past Thebes : NILE

104. Buddhist sect : ZEN

105. Start to cure? : EPI. Start to the word epicure.

106. Hijack-prevention org. : TSA (Transportation Security Administration)

107. Feel peaked : AIL. New meaning of "peaked" to me.

108. Oslo Accords gp. : PLO (Palestine Liberation Organization)

110. Furious : MAD

111. Partner of about : OUT. Out and about.

Answer grid.

C.C.