Theme: Strong Current. Adding "Flow" to the last word in each of the theme entries creates a new word or phrase.
17A. Online data movement : INTERNET TRAFFIC. Traffic flow. This blog generates plenty of that.
22A. "Man in Black" singer : JOHNNY CASH. Cash flow. As I write this, "Folsom Prison Blues" is playing on my iPod, now that's weird.
36A. Symphony or sonata : MUSICAL WORK. Work flow. Does anyone write sonatas anymore?
46A. Pending : UP IN THE AIR. Just like all my deadlines. Air flow.
And the unifier:
56A. Conforms, or what each last word of 17-, 22-, 36- and 46-Across literally does : GOES WITH THE FLOW
Steve here.
Sweet puzzle from Don & C.C. The theme took quite some time to come kicking and screaming into the light, I had all kinds of hare-brained ideas before it all became clear with the unifier.
Across:
1. Seller's caveat : AS IS
5. Whistle blower : REF
8. Fight : OPPOSE
14. Congeniality : BONHOMIE. What a great word! I resolve to use it at least once a week.
16. Edit : REDACT
19. Extinguish : DOUSE
20. Clinch a deal, in slang : ICE IT
21. Thing to do on the cautious side? : ERR. Great fresh clue for this old stalwart.
27. Tempt with, as a carrot : DANGLE
30. "Typee" sequel : OMOO. Herman Melville made very little money from any of his novels, especially this one.
31. Highfalutin : LA-DI-DA
35. Steak order : T-BONE
38. High-tech party notice : EVITE
40. Jungle queen : SHEENA
41. Enjoy a 10-course Chinese meal : DINE. I'm going to Hong Kong shortly - Cantonese Food!
42. Categorize : ASSORT. This usage was new to me, I'd only known "assorted", which I take to mean "uncategorized". Nice learning moment.
52. VCR button : REW. I always have to wait for the cross to decide on REC or REW
53. Big name in transmission repair : AAMCO
54. Cardio-boxing workout regimen : TAE-BO
61. Intensely devoted : ARDENT
62. Shanghai setting : EAST ASIA. Mini-theme emerging here?
63. Woody's wife : SOON-YI Previn, married to Mr. Allen.
64. Mar.-to-Nov. setting : D.S.T. You never really save any daylight, you just move it around.
65. Count (on) : RELY
Down:
1. Put up with : ABIDED
2. Arizona neighbor : SONORA. South of the border, down Mexico way.
3. How board game players play : IN TURN. In my house my Mom always asked us to play nicely. Then she told us. Then we were sent to our rooms.
4. Ladies : SHES
5. First pres. to visit China while in office : R.M.N. Richard Milhous Nixon, World Traveler.
6. Farm song refrain : E-I-E-I-O
7. Sell for : FETCH
8. Hatch on the Hill : ORRIN. He's a 59D. He plays sonatas too!
9. Boglike : PEATY
10. Adobe file format : PDF. Portable Document Format if you want to get your geek on.
11. Bungler : OAF
12. Lab subj. : SCI.
13. And so forth: Abbr. : ETC.
15. Valuable rock : ORE. I confidently filled in GEM first.
18. Top rating : TEN.
22. Yoda, notably : JEDI
23. Venomous snakes : COBRAS
24. Wild way to run : AMOK
25. Numbered Chan relative : SON. From the Charlie Chan films. Movie buffs will know how many sons there were, I just count "lots".
26. Groundbreaking tool : HOE
28. Protein in wheat products : GLUTEN
29. Zap : LASE
32. Suffix with tact : ICS. Hmmm. A suffix? Need to be convinced about this one.
33. Code word : DAH. We had SOS yesterday, three DITs, three DAHs, three DITs in Morse Code.
34. Draft choice : ALE
35. A whole bunch : TONS
36. Former iPod model : MINI
37. Sport : WEAR. You can sport sportswear!
38. Academic Web letters : EDU
39. Bigwig : VIP. Very Important Person (such as Orrin Hatch?)
43. End of a threat : OR ELSE
44. Heat again, as water for tea : REBOIL
45. Like most streets : TWO-WAY
47. Lion-colored : TAWNY. Some of our regulars would prefer "Port-colored" here.
48. French-speaking republic : HAITI
49. CPR expert : EMT
50. Was sore : ACHED
51. Smidgens : IOTAS
54. First day of spring, to Vietnamese : TET
55. Miles away : AFAR
56. Total blast : GAS.
57. Au, on a Spanish periodic table : ORO. With luck your 15D has gold in it.
58. Tokyo, once : EDO
59. Bigwig on the Hill: Abbr. : SEN.
60. Post-WWII pres. : H.S.T. Harry S. Truman. No use looking up his middle name, the "S" doesn't stand for anything.
That's all from me!
Steve
1) Constructors' note:
"Go with the flow" is the motto for many of my generation, who grew up during the chaotic Cultural Revolution and were confused by (and then benefited from) China's "Open Door" policy. Don and I initially had FIRST BLOOD as a partner for JOHNNY CASH. Rich felt the blood meaning is too literal. So we re-worked our theme entries.
2) Happy 98th Birthday to LA Times' oldest constructor Bernice Gordon. Thanks Argyle for getting the exact date.
1) Constructors' note:
"Go with the flow" is the motto for many of my generation, who grew up during the chaotic Cultural Revolution and were confused by (and then benefited from) China's "Open Door" policy. Don and I initially had FIRST BLOOD as a partner for JOHNNY CASH. Rich felt the blood meaning is too literal. So we re-worked our theme entries.
2) Happy 98th Birthday to LA Times' oldest constructor Bernice Gordon. Thanks Argyle for getting the exact date.
