Theme: uptight- the last word of each theme answer, when preceded by the word 'tight,' forms a common phrase.
16A. *Itching for a fight : TWO FISTED. tight fisted.
23A. *Steady guy or gal : MAIN SQUEEZE. tight squeeze.
36A. *Third base, in baseball lingo : HOT CORNER. tight corner. did not know the baseball lingo.
54A. *Shower convenience : SOAP ON A ROPE. tight rope. made me think of man on wire.
62A. Football linemen, or an apt description of the last words of the answers to starred clues : TIGHT ENDS
what about tight-lipped? Lots of non-theme 7's in this puzzle.
melissa here. had trouble right away, some clues seemed a bit obscure for a wednesday.
across:
1. Skips, as stones : DAPS. if i've heard this word before, i forgot it. definition: to skip or bounce, especially over the surface of water.
5. __ jure: by the law itself : IPSO. latin.
9. Ancient Briton : PICT. i'm in awe of anyone who knew this.
13. Catchall survey opción : OTRO. opción = spanish for option. otro = spanish for other.
14. Like a prof. emeritus: Abbr. : RETD. retired.
15. Raw fish dish : SUSHI. this was my first fill-in.
18. From years past : OLDEN
19. Elephant in stories : BABAR
20. Prints a new edition of : RE-ISSUES. and 38. Start from scratch : RE-DO.
22. Suffix in taxonomy : OTA. taxonomy is the science of classification. Eukaryota (plural of eukaryote). which seems even more obscure than pict.
26. Gathered together : MET
27. Objective : AIM
28. "Cats" poet's monogram : TSE. andrew lloyd webber's musical based on Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats by t.s. eliot.
16A. *Itching for a fight : TWO FISTED. tight fisted.
23A. *Steady guy or gal : MAIN SQUEEZE. tight squeeze.
36A. *Third base, in baseball lingo : HOT CORNER. tight corner. did not know the baseball lingo.
54A. *Shower convenience : SOAP ON A ROPE. tight rope. made me think of man on wire.
62A. Football linemen, or an apt description of the last words of the answers to starred clues : TIGHT ENDS
what about tight-lipped? Lots of non-theme 7's in this puzzle.
melissa here. had trouble right away, some clues seemed a bit obscure for a wednesday.
across:
1. Skips, as stones : DAPS. if i've heard this word before, i forgot it. definition: to skip or bounce, especially over the surface of water.
5. __ jure: by the law itself : IPSO. latin.
9. Ancient Briton : PICT. i'm in awe of anyone who knew this.
13. Catchall survey opción : OTRO. opción = spanish for option. otro = spanish for other.
14. Like a prof. emeritus: Abbr. : RETD. retired.
15. Raw fish dish : SUSHI. this was my first fill-in.
18. From years past : OLDEN
19. Elephant in stories : BABAR
20. Prints a new edition of : RE-ISSUES. and 38. Start from scratch : RE-DO.
22. Suffix in taxonomy : OTA. taxonomy is the science of classification. Eukaryota (plural of eukaryote). which seems even more obscure than pict.
26. Gathered together : MET
27. Objective : AIM
28. "Cats" poet's monogram : TSE. andrew lloyd webber's musical based on Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats by t.s. eliot.
29. Up to, casually : TIL. from dusk til dawn.
30. Author Harte : BRET. déjà vu.. he appeared just last wednesday. part of the the brat pack of literature.
32. "Let's not" : NAH
34. Like law school courts : MOOT. open to discussion or debate.
40. Gumbo thickener : ROUX. equal amounts of fat and flour, heated, blended, and used as a basis for sauces.
42. Quite small : WEE
43. "Oedipus Tex" composer P.D.Q. __ : BACH. see wikipedia.
47. "There's no __ team" : I IN. teIam. problem solved.
48. Cat's pajamas? : FUR. cute.
51. Man of the house : DAD
53. However, briefly : THO. shortened though.
57. Suffix for velvet : EEN. velveteen. from the classic children's book, the velveteen rabbit:
"Real isn't how you are made," said the Skin Horse. "It's a thing that happens to you. When a child loves you for a long, long time, not just to play with, but REALLY loves you, then you become Real."
"Does it hurt?" asked the Rabbit.
"Sometimes," said the Skin Horse, for he was always truthful. "When you are Real you don't mind being hurt."
58. Batman, for Bruce Wayne : ALTER EGO
59. Surprise hit, maybe : B-SIDE. singles where both sides became hits are known as 'double a-sides.' example: queen: we will rock you / we are the champions.
61. Threw verbal tomatoes : BOOED. no tomatoes, but tiger did get a hot dog thrown at him on sunday. i am just glad the tournament is over - it was a zoo. the players got free vouchers for meals and spa treatments, and even so, most of them did not tip.
65. Black hues, in poetry : EBONS
66. Spread in a tub : OLEO. no comment.
67. Pierre's South Dakota? : ETAT. etat is french for state.
68. A whole bunch : LOTS
69. Tiny fraction of a min. : PSEC
70. One of the Gilmore girls : RORY. i've never seen the show. rory gallagher is more my speed.
down:
1. Internet failure, punnily : DOT BOMB
2. '80s Republican strategist Lee : ATWATER
3. Court concerned with wills : PROBATE
4. Crash site? : SOFA. very true for my 'empty' nest.
5. E-file org. : IRS. internal revenue service.
6. Apple of one's eye : PET. a person especially cherished or indulged; favorite: He was the teacher's pet.
7. Not easily amused : STERN
8. Most likely to raise eyebrows : ODDEST. didn't come easily.
9. Vital sign : PULSE
10. Happens because of : IS DUE TO
11. Cracker with a hole in the middle : CHEEZIT. yech. and 45d. 11-Down flavor : CHEDDAR
12. Holiday glitter : TINSEL. people are funny about tinsel - it seems to be a love it or hate it thing.
15. "What are you gonna do about it?!" : SO SUE ME
17. "__ la Douce" : IRMA. billy wilder film based on the french musical of the same name.
21. Mensa stats : IQ'S. intelligence quotients.
24. Grammar class no-no : AIN'T
25. 13-year-old Apple : iMAC. timely nod to steve jobs.
31. TGIF eve? : THU. thursday. (thank god it's friday).
33. Question of method : HOW
35. Ball : ORB
37. Laced dress shoes : OXFORDS
39. Tide table term : NEAP. tide that occurs when the difference between high and low tide is least.
40. 1970 John Wayne western : RIO LOBO. the third film in a trilogy directed by howard hawks: the other two films were Rio Bravo (1959) and El Dorado (1966), both also starring john wayne.
41. Painting the town red : ON A TOOT. new to me.
44. Eroded, as profits : ATE INTO
46. Lincoln forte : HONESTY. honest abe.
47. Writer Allende : ISABEL. chilean author, wrote 'the house of the spirits.'
49. French 101 article : UNE. a, or an.
50. Convertible, in slang : RAGTOP
52. Balance due, e.g. : DEBT
55. Hammer parts : PEENS. this is the peen.
56. Churns up : ROILS
60. Reader of signs : SEER
63. "Go figure" : GEE
64. Ad __ committee : HOC. committee formed for a specific task or objective, and dissolved after the completion of the task or achievement of the objective.
and finally, for INXS fans .... tight.
Answer grid.
melissa
