Theme: "Give it Some Gas" - HE (symbol for helium) is pumped into each common phrase.
23A. *Dishonest kegler? : ALLEY CHEAT. Alley cat. Both clue and answer made me laugh.
33A. *Inane Laconian serf? : VACANT HELOT. Vacant lot. Helot = Greek slave.
49A. *Where to see historic tickers? : HEART MUSEUM. Art museum.
67A. *Treat one's stye? : BATHE AN EYELID. Bat an eyelid.
90A. *Fights during breathing exercises? : YOGA CLASHES. Yoga class.
103A. *Broadway tykes? : THEATER TOTS. Tater tots. Inspired theme entry.
119A. *Throw tennis star Sharapova? : HEAVE MARIA. Grunting. Good luck heaving! Ave Maria.
16D. *Where you might hear "Oy vey! I need a drink!"? : HEBREW PUB. Brew pub.
80D. *When mildly amusing sitcoms air? : TEHEE TIME. Tee time.
98D. Light element, and a hint to how the answers to starred clues have been inflated : HELIUM
A nice mixture of HE inflation, some are inserted in the start, some in the end, some in the middle.
Notice the longest non-theme entries have 8 letters only? That's because Gareth's shortest theme entry has 9 letters and it's generally not allowed to have non-theme answers longer than the shortest theme entries. The exception is when he puts all the theme entries Across, then he has freedom for Downs. With 9 theme entries and a unifier, I think he has the best arrangement.
This is Gareth Bain's first Sunday puzzle. And he finally hits for the cycle, having had a puzzle published in every day of the week by the LA Times. Congratulations!
Across:
1. Sassy : PERT. Easy start.
5. Judge's decrees : DICTA. Plural of dictum.
10. Vena __ : CAVA
14. Iranian faith : BAHA'I
19. "In the Valley of __": 2007 film : ELAH. Tommy Lee Jones/Charlize Theron film. I've never seen it.
20. Lots of lots : ACRES. Different "lots" in meaning.
21. Fictional coward : LION. I wanted NOEL, but he's a real Coward.
22. Oboists' section : REEDS
25. Chief Norse god : ODIN
26. Park place : ARBOR. We also have: 63. __ Arbor, Michigan : ANN. Tiny dupe.
27. Move sneakily : TIPTOE
28. Mystic's deck : TAROT
30A. 108-Down on a screen : CURSOR. And 108D. It shows the way : ARROW. I like the 4 pairs of cross-references in today's clues. Hate when clues cross-references but actually no clue is given. Not fair.
32. Style with layers : SHAG. Hair style.
35. Org. with a WasteWise program : EPA. Toured our city water plant yesterday. I think I'll stick to my bottled water.
38. "__ Touch This": MC Hammer hit : U CAN'T. Earworm. Ditto "Can I touch you there?"
40. Job listing initials : EEO
41. They're hard to read : SCRAWLS
43. Rolls gas : PETROL. Rolls Royce.
46. Grooves in boards : DADOs. You want beautiful deck stairs like these? Look no further than your Saturday puzzle sherpa here at the Corner.
48. Key letters : KAPPAS. And 4D. Eighth of 24 : THETA. Greek letters.
52. Pride youngster : CUB
54. Overzealous bather? : PRUNE. Your fingers get wrinkled when you over-bathe.
55. Other, to Ortega : OTRA
56. "__ porridge in the pot ..." : PEASE
57. 2000s drama set in Newport Beach : THE OC. Made Mischa Barton a household name.
59. U.K. decorations : OBEs
60. Foreign correspondent? : PEN PAL. Saw this clue before.
62. Lab specimen : SMEAR. Pab smear, for example.
64. Question of time : WHEN
66. Many Soc. Sec. recipients : SRs
71. Six-time Olympic swimming gold medalist Van Dyken : AMY. 4 from 1996, a la Wiki.
75. ___ mail : SNAIL
76. Terhune's Lad, e.g. : COLLIE. Learned his "Lad: A Dog" from doing Xword.
78. Renaissance family name : ESTE
81. Day break? : NIGHT. Night and day.
84. Slight incision : SNICK. This is a new word to me.
86. Scintilla : IOTA
87. Stinks : REEKS
89. Sound during a drive? : MOO. Cattle drive. "Sound after a drive?" would be "FORE!". Quite dangerous when someone shanks.
92. Bounces back : ECHOES
94. Animal on Wyoming's flag : BISON. True.
96. Range in Utah : UINTAS. Uintas Mountains. New to me also.
97. Non-roaring big cat : CHEETAH. Did not know cheetahs don't roar.
99. Onetime Beatle Sutcliffe : STU
100. Alt. announcers : CAPTs (Captains). Altitude.
102. China's Mao __-tung : TSE. My dad could recite every word of "The Little Red Book". I miss him.
106. Series ender : ET AL
110. Govt. securities : T-BILLS. Or T-Bonds.
112. 30th anniversary gift : PEARL
113. Like some dress patterns : FLORAL Very nice bag.
115. Not from here : ALIEN
117. High-tech tablet : iPAD
121. Asian menu promise : NO MSG. Chinese dumplings taste so much better with MSG. Right, Jayce?
122. Golden State sch. : UCLA
123. "Macbeth" (1948) director Welles : ORSON
124. Auctioneer's word : SOLD!
125. 74-Across numbers : DUETS. 74A. Two twos, say : PAIR
126. Mint leaver, often : MAID. Read it as "Mint leaves".
127. "¿Cómo __?" : ESTAS
128. "__ the night ..." : 'TWAS
Down:
1. Organic fuel : PEAT
2. New York Bay's __ Island : ELLIS
3. __ Waldo Emerson : RALPH
5. Freshwater fish : DACE. Looks like small carp. We eat carp in China.
6. Frau's "I" : ICH
7. Iraklion native : CRETAN. Iraklion is the same as Heraklion? Capital of Crete.
8. It incited a 1773 party : TEA ACT. Tried TEA TAX first.
9. Stars of old Rome : ASTRA
10. Stopped bleeding : CLOTTED
11. Help : AID
12. Express : VOICE
13. Invalidates : ANNULS
14. Part of a support system? : BRA STRAP. Nice clue/answer. And 85D. Bikini sizes : C-CUPs. 36 C, if you're curious.
15. Dynamic opening? : AERO. Aerodynamic.
17. Big stink : ADO
18. Six-Day War victor: Abbr. : ISR
24. Food made from cultures : YOGURT. With good bacteria. Probiotics.
29. Witching hr. follower : ONE AM
31. Gibraltar landmark : ROCK
33. Assessor's decision : VALUE
34. Homemade tipple : HOOCH. Moonshine.
36. Superman look-alike, evidently : PLANE. Evidently!
37. Jacks and jennies : ASSES
39. Kvetch : COMPLAIN. Constructive kvetching is always welcome.
42. Golf green border : APRON. I just call it fringe. You, Husker Gary?
43. Prokofiev's wolf catcher : PETER
44. Pulls down : EARNS
45. Ruse : TRAP
46. 90 degrees : DUE EAST
47. Mystery novelist Grafton : SUE
49. Brewery flavoring : HOPS
50. Accessory often worn diagonally : SASH
51. Salinger heroine : ESME
53. Pitch : baseball :: __ : cricket : BOWL. No baseball for Gareth. Cricket, yes!
57. Quisling's crime : TREASON
58. Lighthearted genre about womanhood : CHICK LIT
61. Litigator's org. : ABA
65. Tokyo, once : EDO
68. In good condition : TRIM
69. Hip-hop's __ Yang Twins : YING
70. "A Dissertation Upon Roast Pig" essayist : ELIA. "A Dissertation Upon Roast Lamb" sounds better.
71. Hello or good-bye : ALOHA
72. Teeny parasites : MITES
73. Votes for : YEAs
74. Sri Lankan export : PEKOE
77. Bullets may be seen on one : LIST
78. Posture-perfect : ERECT
79. Vier + zwei : SECHS (Six). Vier = 4. Zwei= 2. Just for Kazie and Spitzboov.
82. Lump : GOB
83. Lifting apparatus : HOIST
88. Microwave choices : SETTINGS
90. With 107-Down, words to a goner : YOU'RE. And 107. See 90-Down : TOAST. Nice way to save a partial.
91. Canonized Archbishop of Canterbury : ANSELM. No idea.
93. Humorist Mort : SAHL. Consonant/vowel/consonant/consonant combo makes this 4-letter name extremely popular in crossword.
95. Mike Brady, to Carol's girls : STEP DAD
100. Pie-making aids : CORERS
101. "Finally!" : AT LAST
104. Pound-watching org. : ASPCA
105. Reno-__ Intl. Airport : TAHOE
109. With 118-Down, 2000s boxing champ : LAILA. 118D. See 109-Down : ALI.
111. Tops : BEST
113. Low wetlands : FENS
114. Boys : LADS
115. "Wait, there's more ..." : AND
116. Singer Reed : LOU
120. U.S. govt. broadcaster : VOA. They're ending Mandarin & Cantonese language broadcast this month. Budge cut. Sad.
Answer grid.
C.C.
PS: Sorry, Jazzbumpa, another Young outshined yours last night.
23A. *Dishonest kegler? : ALLEY CHEAT. Alley cat. Both clue and answer made me laugh.
33A. *Inane Laconian serf? : VACANT HELOT. Vacant lot. Helot = Greek slave.
49A. *Where to see historic tickers? : HEART MUSEUM. Art museum.
67A. *Treat one's stye? : BATHE AN EYELID. Bat an eyelid.
90A. *Fights during breathing exercises? : YOGA CLASHES. Yoga class.
103A. *Broadway tykes? : THEATER TOTS. Tater tots. Inspired theme entry.
119A. *Throw tennis star Sharapova? : HEAVE MARIA. Grunting. Good luck heaving! Ave Maria.
16D. *Where you might hear "Oy vey! I need a drink!"? : HEBREW PUB. Brew pub.
80D. *When mildly amusing sitcoms air? : TEHEE TIME. Tee time.
98D. Light element, and a hint to how the answers to starred clues have been inflated : HELIUM
A nice mixture of HE inflation, some are inserted in the start, some in the end, some in the middle.
Notice the longest non-theme entries have 8 letters only? That's because Gareth's shortest theme entry has 9 letters and it's generally not allowed to have non-theme answers longer than the shortest theme entries. The exception is when he puts all the theme entries Across, then he has freedom for Downs. With 9 theme entries and a unifier, I think he has the best arrangement.
This is Gareth Bain's first Sunday puzzle. And he finally hits for the cycle, having had a puzzle published in every day of the week by the LA Times. Congratulations!
Across:
1. Sassy : PERT. Easy start.
5. Judge's decrees : DICTA. Plural of dictum.
10. Vena __ : CAVA
14. Iranian faith : BAHA'I
19. "In the Valley of __": 2007 film : ELAH. Tommy Lee Jones/Charlize Theron film. I've never seen it.
20. Lots of lots : ACRES. Different "lots" in meaning.
21. Fictional coward : LION. I wanted NOEL, but he's a real Coward.
22. Oboists' section : REEDS
25. Chief Norse god : ODIN
26. Park place : ARBOR. We also have: 63. __ Arbor, Michigan : ANN. Tiny dupe.
27. Move sneakily : TIPTOE
28. Mystic's deck : TAROT
30A. 108-Down on a screen : CURSOR. And 108D. It shows the way : ARROW. I like the 4 pairs of cross-references in today's clues. Hate when clues cross-references but actually no clue is given. Not fair.
32. Style with layers : SHAG. Hair style.
35. Org. with a WasteWise program : EPA. Toured our city water plant yesterday. I think I'll stick to my bottled water.
38. "__ Touch This": MC Hammer hit : U CAN'T. Earworm. Ditto "Can I touch you there?"
40. Job listing initials : EEO
41. They're hard to read : SCRAWLS
43. Rolls gas : PETROL. Rolls Royce.
46. Grooves in boards : DADOs. You want beautiful deck stairs like these? Look no further than your Saturday puzzle sherpa here at the Corner.
48. Key letters : KAPPAS. And 4D. Eighth of 24 : THETA. Greek letters.
52. Pride youngster : CUB
54. Overzealous bather? : PRUNE. Your fingers get wrinkled when you over-bathe.
55. Other, to Ortega : OTRA
56. "__ porridge in the pot ..." : PEASE
57. 2000s drama set in Newport Beach : THE OC. Made Mischa Barton a household name.
59. U.K. decorations : OBEs
60. Foreign correspondent? : PEN PAL. Saw this clue before.
62. Lab specimen : SMEAR. Pab smear, for example.
64. Question of time : WHEN
66. Many Soc. Sec. recipients : SRs
71. Six-time Olympic swimming gold medalist Van Dyken : AMY. 4 from 1996, a la Wiki.
75. ___ mail : SNAIL
76. Terhune's Lad, e.g. : COLLIE. Learned his "Lad: A Dog" from doing Xword.
78. Renaissance family name : ESTE
81. Day break? : NIGHT. Night and day.
84. Slight incision : SNICK. This is a new word to me.
86. Scintilla : IOTA
87. Stinks : REEKS
89. Sound during a drive? : MOO. Cattle drive. "Sound after a drive?" would be "FORE!". Quite dangerous when someone shanks.
92. Bounces back : ECHOES
94. Animal on Wyoming's flag : BISON. True.
96. Range in Utah : UINTAS. Uintas Mountains. New to me also.
97. Non-roaring big cat : CHEETAH. Did not know cheetahs don't roar.
99. Onetime Beatle Sutcliffe : STU
100. Alt. announcers : CAPTs (Captains). Altitude.
102. China's Mao __-tung : TSE. My dad could recite every word of "The Little Red Book". I miss him.
106. Series ender : ET AL
110. Govt. securities : T-BILLS. Or T-Bonds.
112. 30th anniversary gift : PEARL
113. Like some dress patterns : FLORAL Very nice bag.
115. Not from here : ALIEN
117. High-tech tablet : iPAD
121. Asian menu promise : NO MSG. Chinese dumplings taste so much better with MSG. Right, Jayce?
122. Golden State sch. : UCLA
123. "Macbeth" (1948) director Welles : ORSON
124. Auctioneer's word : SOLD!
125. 74-Across numbers : DUETS. 74A. Two twos, say : PAIR
126. Mint leaver, often : MAID. Read it as "Mint leaves".
127. "¿Cómo __?" : ESTAS
128. "__ the night ..." : 'TWAS
Down:
1. Organic fuel : PEAT
2. New York Bay's __ Island : ELLIS
3. __ Waldo Emerson : RALPH
5. Freshwater fish : DACE. Looks like small carp. We eat carp in China.
6. Frau's "I" : ICH
7. Iraklion native : CRETAN. Iraklion is the same as Heraklion? Capital of Crete.
8. It incited a 1773 party : TEA ACT. Tried TEA TAX first.
9. Stars of old Rome : ASTRA
10. Stopped bleeding : CLOTTED
11. Help : AID
12. Express : VOICE
13. Invalidates : ANNULS
14. Part of a support system? : BRA STRAP. Nice clue/answer. And 85D. Bikini sizes : C-CUPs. 36 C, if you're curious.
15. Dynamic opening? : AERO. Aerodynamic.
17. Big stink : ADO
18. Six-Day War victor: Abbr. : ISR
24. Food made from cultures : YOGURT. With good bacteria. Probiotics.
29. Witching hr. follower : ONE AM
31. Gibraltar landmark : ROCK
33. Assessor's decision : VALUE
34. Homemade tipple : HOOCH. Moonshine.
36. Superman look-alike, evidently : PLANE. Evidently!
37. Jacks and jennies : ASSES
39. Kvetch : COMPLAIN. Constructive kvetching is always welcome.
42. Golf green border : APRON. I just call it fringe. You, Husker Gary?
43. Prokofiev's wolf catcher : PETER
44. Pulls down : EARNS
45. Ruse : TRAP
46. 90 degrees : DUE EAST
47. Mystery novelist Grafton : SUE
49. Brewery flavoring : HOPS
50. Accessory often worn diagonally : SASH
51. Salinger heroine : ESME
53. Pitch : baseball :: __ : cricket : BOWL. No baseball for Gareth. Cricket, yes!
57. Quisling's crime : TREASON
58. Lighthearted genre about womanhood : CHICK LIT
61. Litigator's org. : ABA
65. Tokyo, once : EDO
68. In good condition : TRIM
69. Hip-hop's __ Yang Twins : YING
70. "A Dissertation Upon Roast Pig" essayist : ELIA. "A Dissertation Upon Roast Lamb" sounds better.
71. Hello or good-bye : ALOHA
72. Teeny parasites : MITES
73. Votes for : YEAs
74. Sri Lankan export : PEKOE
77. Bullets may be seen on one : LIST
78. Posture-perfect : ERECT
79. Vier + zwei : SECHS (Six). Vier = 4. Zwei= 2. Just for Kazie and Spitzboov.
82. Lump : GOB
83. Lifting apparatus : HOIST
88. Microwave choices : SETTINGS
90. With 107-Down, words to a goner : YOU'RE. And 107. See 90-Down : TOAST. Nice way to save a partial.
91. Canonized Archbishop of Canterbury : ANSELM. No idea.
93. Humorist Mort : SAHL. Consonant/vowel/consonant/consonant combo makes this 4-letter name extremely popular in crossword.
95. Mike Brady, to Carol's girls : STEP DAD
100. Pie-making aids : CORERS
101. "Finally!" : AT LAST
104. Pound-watching org. : ASPCA
105. Reno-__ Intl. Airport : TAHOE
109. With 118-Down, 2000s boxing champ : LAILA. 118D. See 109-Down : ALI.
111. Tops : BEST
113. Low wetlands : FENS
114. Boys : LADS
115. "Wait, there's more ..." : AND
116. Singer Reed : LOU
120. U.S. govt. broadcaster : VOA. They're ending Mandarin & Cantonese language broadcast this month. Budge cut. Sad.
Answer grid.
C.C.
PS: Sorry, Jazzbumpa, another Young outshined yours last night.
