Theme: I Before E's - I (short I) is replaced by EE in each familiar phrase.
23A. Meek Jolly Roger crewmen? : PIRATE SHEEP. Pirate ship.
42A. Polish protector? : SHEEN GUARD. Shin guard.
51A. Red-costumed actor in "Veggie Tales"? : BEET PLAYER. Bit player.
59. Take really short catnaps during a Henny Youngman routine? : SLEEP BETWEEN THE CRACKS. Slip between the cracks. I remember Youngman's "Take my wife, please".
76A. Tiny nestling's cry? : MICRO CHEEP. Microchip.
88A. Ownership dispute? : DEED BATTLE. Did battle.
109A. Meryl as a coquette? : STREEP TEASE. Striptease.
16D. Drug money? : EVIL GREEN. Evil grin.
74D. Fund for hammer parts? : PEEN MONEY. Pin money.
The straying I's in 23A, 76A & 16D are not short I, so their appearances shouldn't be bothersome.
I like the title, you? Caught onto the theme gimmick rather quickly, but still struggled in various spots. Names always give me trouble, and obviously Jack and I don't know the same people.
Neat stacks of 9s in NE & SW corners. We've seen a few Dan Naddor puzzles with similar design, where non-theme entries have the same number of letters as the themed ones. Quite a challenge to pull if off.
Across:
1. Like good jokes : RETOLD
7. Night music : TAPS. In military bases.
11. Focus at a boxer's school? : OBEDIENCE
20. Brought out : EVOKED
21. Got off : ALIT. Shouldn't it be "Got down"?
22. Source of a vital supply : RESERVOIR
25. Rear-ends, say : SLAMS INTO
26. Theater aisles, usually : RAMPS
27. NASA's "Go" : A-OK
28. Some reality show winners : IDOLS
30. Flowery welcomes : LEIs
31. R.E.M. hit, with "The" : ONE I LOVE
33. "Games People Play" author Eric : BERNE. No idea. Was he or his book very well-known?
34. Hang behind : LAG
36. One-million link : IN A
37. Old strings : LYRES
38. Sporty Italian wheels : FERRARI
45. Spent the cold season (in) : WINTERED
46. Pro foe : ANTI
48. How some soccer games end : IN A TIE
49. N.J. neighbor : DEL
50. Selection word : EENIE. Eenie, meenie, miney, mo.
53. Moses sent him into Canaan to spy : CALEB. Learned from doing Xword.
55. Misses some of the lecture, perhaps : NODs
56. Swedish city connected by a bridge to Copenhagen : MALMO. Not in my knowledge zone. See this map.
57. Root vegetable : PARSNIP
69. Failed flier : EASTERN. Eastern Air Lines, 1926-1991, a la Wiki.
70. Culture: Pref. : ETHNO
71. Collar victim : PERP
75. Spin-off starring Valerie Harper : RHODA
81. Sets straight : TRUES
83. Mil. spud duties : KPs. KP = Kitchen Police
84. Paddled boats : CANOES. This clue works for OARED also.
85. Raw rocks : ORES
86. Mineral involved in much litigation : ASBESTOS
90. "Casey at the Bat" autobiographer : STENGEL (Casey). Fun guy. As quotable as Yogi Berra.
91. Barrage : SALVO
92. "To Kill a Mockingbird" Pulitzer winner : LEE (Harper)
93. Boston transit syst. : MTA
94. Londonderry's river : FOYLE. In Ireland. I've never heard of the river.
95. R rating cause : VIOLENCE
100. Mideastern pastry dough : FILO. Flaky..
103. Kurdish relative : FARSI. Oh, language Kurdish.
104. Confectionery collectible : PEZ
105. Hair cover : SNOOD. Another classic crosswordese.
106. Cry of anticipation : I CAN'T WAIT. Nice one.
112. Check before cutting : REMEASURE
113. Stadium stratum : TIER
114. Oriole Park at __ Yards : CAMDEN
115. Words before an important announcement : STAY TUNED. Good one too.
116. 1974 CIA spoof : SPYS
117. Hotel meetings, perhaps : TRYSTS
Down:
1. It's not an original : REPRO
2. Water source : EVIAN
3. Crooner Mel : TORME. "The Velvet Fog".
4. Giraffe relative : OKAPI
5. Leaves alone : LETS LIE. Fun when you parse the answer as "Let's lie".
6. Pres. during Brown v. Board of Education : DDE. Was unaware of the this trivia.
7. Chevy SUV : TAHOE
8. Supermodel Wek : ALEK. Here she is.
9. Dessert choice : PIE
10. French isl. south of Newfoundland : ST PIERRE. Guessable.
11. Bean and Welles : ORSONs
12. Ball girl : BELLE
13. Those, in Tenerife : ESAs
14. Obama, e.g.: Abbr. : DEM. First thought: CIC?
15. Form letters? : IRS. Tricky clue.
17. Zip : NONE
18. Credit card name under a red arc : CITI
19. Cupid's counterpart : EROS
24. Tropical grassland : SAVANNA
29. Stowe novel subtitled "A Tale of the Great Dismal Swamp" : DRED
32. NBC newsman Roger : O'NEIL. Stumped me last time.
33. One way to get to Paris : BY AIR
34. Novelist Deighton : LEN
35. Prado pictures : ARTE. Art in Spanish.
37. Old strings : LUTE
38. Boston department store founder : FILENE. Well, I bet Barry G knows. I've got no clue.
39. River of Tuscany : ARNO
40. Nevada senator : REID (Harry)
41. Time to beware : IDES. Ides of March.
42. Stone marker : STELE. Haven't seen this word for a long time.
43. Request to a dealer : HIT ME
44. Coming-out party? : GAY. Party here refers to the person.
45. Like Tom Jones, by birth : WELSH. Ah, remember this clip Melissa brought to us?
46. SDI weapons : ABMs
47. Oscar winner Patricia : NEAL
49. Missile with a feathery flight : DART
52. Benedict XVI, e.g. : POPE
53. Half a dance : CAN. CHA too.
54. Pen name : BIC. Saw this clue before.
57. Proverbial sword beater : PEN. The pen is mightier than the sword, probably the only way to get PENIS in a puzzle. Duplication with clue for 54A.
58. Occurring before: Abbr. : PREC. Preceding I presume.
60. Block : BAR
61. '60s Israeli prime minister : ESHKOL (Levi). Total stranger.
62. Some 'Vette coverings : T-TOPs
63. Unites : WEDS
64. Jazz __ : ERA
65. Dramatist Fugard : ATHOL. An South African. Sometimes we see ALOES clued as his "A Lesson from Aloes".
66. Dear, in Dijon : CHERE. Feminine form.
67. You can get down on one : KNEE. Nailed it.
68. Illegal payments : SOPs. This little word often poses trouble for some. Not to me.
71. Class-conscious gps.? : PTAs. Class in school.
72. Formerly, formerly : ERST
73. Bumpkin : RUBE
76. "Circle of Friends" author Binchy : MAEVE. No idea. Irish author.
77. __-European languages : INDO
78. Corn holder : COB
79. Accomplish : REALIZE
80. Bone: Pref. : OSTEO
82. Certain NCO : SSGT
84. Orchestra members : CELLISTS
87. It may be taken in a parlor : TEA
88. Popular shift : DAYS
89. Early communications satellite : TELSTAR. Launched in 1962.
91. Put into groups : SORTED
94. Elizabethan expo : FAIRE. I don't get this clue. Isn't FAIRE a French word?
95. Turns : VEERS
96. Ones against us : ENEMY
97. Wikipedia policy : NO ADs. They just ask for donations once a year.
98. Math subgroup : COSET
99. Blissful settings : EDENS
100. Douglas and others : FIRS
101. Gangsta rap pioneer : ICE-T
102. Tibetan priest : LAMA
103. Satyr's kin : FAUN
104. Hunted : PREY
107. Make lace : TAT. Not tattoo today.
108. Northwestern sch. where Cougar Gold cheese is made : WSU (Washington State University). Their sports teams are called Gougars. Not familiar with the cheese.
110. Inside info : TIP
111. Pie chart fig. : PCT
C.C.
