Theme: How to Finish This Puzzle -Every "Don't give up" phrase is interpreted as if it's related to the profession in the clue.
24A. Persevere, like a teamster? : KEEP ON TRUCKIN'
39A. Persevere, like a stand-up comic? : NEVER SAY DIE. I don't quite get this one. Is it because comics slay (amuse) their audience?
68A. Persevere, like a frequent flier? : CARRY ON
95A. Persevere, like a very loud organist? : DON'T STOP NOW. Those organ knobs are called "stops". That's all I know.
113A. Persevere, like a golfer? : STAY THE COURSE. Golf course.
3D. Persevere, like a boxing promoter? : PUT UP A GOOD FIGHT
6D. Persevere, like a judge? : TRY, TRY AGAIN. Ha ha!
47D. Persevere, like a lightning rod installer? : STAND YOUR GROUND
70D. Persevere, like a museum curator? : HANG IN THERE
Fun theme. Don G and I had a similar gimmick a while ago, except we clued each answer as related to the animal. Our HANG IN THERE clue is "Advice to a monkey"? Didn't interest Rich enough.
John is an artist. He pays attention the visual aspect of his grid. The arraignment of the theme entries in this grid shows his taste, skills & perseverance. How he consistently avoids cheater squares for Sunday grids is beyond me. This one has a low back square count also. Only 64. Our norm is 74.
Across:
1. Bestows on, with "to" : IMPARTS
8. Forgoes scissors : TEARS. And 11D. Forgo scissors : RIP. Clecho (clue echo). All in green highlight in my write-up.
13. Captivates : ENAMORS
20. Fashionista's field : COUTURE. As in "Haute couture". "60 Minutes" had a good segment on Anna Wintour a while ago.
21. Bring to the mix : ADD IN
22. "Sorry, Charlie" : NO SIREE
23. Start to finish, e.g.? : ANTONYM. Start & Finish are antonyms. Great clue.
26. It may be abstract or concrete : NOUN. I like this clue too.
27. Stopwatch users : TIMERS
29. Intent : AIM
30. "Gladiator" composer Zimmer : HANS. No idea. But John is a musician. As I said before, clues often reflect constructors' interests.
31. Examines closely : PEERS AT. And 49. Examination : TEST.
33. Raise a glass to : TOAST. 103. Where glasses may be raised? : OPERA. Opera glasses.
36. Clerical residence : MANSE
37. Really boring : DEADLY
42. Lang. of Jamaica : ENG. "One Love"!
43. Dora the Explorer, for one : LATINA. Dora Marquez, "the first animated Latina character in a leading role".
45. Cartoonist Keane : BIL. Died last Nov.
46. Ready : ALL SET
50. Place for a plunger in Plymouth : LOO. Plymouth, England.
51. It's wet in Oaxaca : AGUA
52. Infatuated, old-style : SMIT
54. Display irritation : BRISTLE
55. Sea debris : FLOTSAM. And Jetsam.
57. Warmup for college hopefuls, briefly : PSAT. And 40D. Poughkeepsie college : VASSAR. Another clecho with the previous "Aussi college" for UNI (89-A).
58. Diamond strategy : BUNT. Bunts are boring to watch, unless the bunter is Ichiro, right, LaLaLinda?
59. Morning hrs. : AMs
60. "Voilà!" : TA DA
61. Hand-on-chest words : I SWEAR
63. Careerbuilder.com listing : JOB
64. Contingency phrase : IF NOT
66. Writer Lebowitz : FRAN. She's in "Law & Order".
70. Challenging : HARD
71. Impose fraudulently : FOIST. On or upon.
73. Rams' city: Abbr. : STL. St. Louis Rams.
74. Musician awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2011 : YO-YO MA. Yo means "friendly". Chinese nickname usually is a repeat of the last word of the given name. Hence the panda name Ling Ling. My sister-in-law calls me Chin Chin (a repeat of my Cantonese name Chow Chin).
76. Julio's yesterday : AYER. Spanish.
79. Neighbor of Uru. : ARG
80. Isaac's eldest : ESAU
82. Aussie runners : EMUS. And 89. Aussie college : UNI. That's convenient. Hi there Kazie!
83. Nonnegotiable, as a plan : IN STONE
85. Queequeg crewmate : ISHMAEL. "Moby Dick".
87. Suds : BREW
88. Utah state flower : SEGO. Ours is Lady's slipper.
90. Do routine tire maintenance : ROTATE
91. Inspired mixture : AIR
92. Strands at a chalet, maybe : ICES IN
94. Carpet : RUG
98. Bean or noodle : NOGGIN
100. Leipzig legwear : HOSEN. German for "hose"? I know lederhosen.
104. Strove to attain : WENT FOR
106. Dip __ in: test the water : A TOE
107. Manage moguls : SKI. Marti knows how to manage them.
108. Full of school spirit : RAH RAH
110. Wealthy "Wind in the Willows" character : TOAD. Mr. Toad.
117. Longtime CBS golf analyst Ken : VENTURI. I like Johnny Miller. He can be brutally honest.
119. Nintendo game with Pikachu : POKEMON
120. Nasty smile : SNEER
121. Hall of talk : ARSENIO. I thought Clinton was really cool when he appeared in this guy's show.
122. Scaredy-cats : SISSIES
123. Surfer wannabe : HODAD
124. Hero's hero : LEANDER. Such a moving love story.
Down:
1. "If __ make it there ...": "New York, New York" lyric : I CAN
2. Like old records : MONO
4. Set things right : ATONED
5. Make tracks : RUN
7. Weigh station visitors : SEMIs
8. Grab a coffee, say : TAKE TEN
9. Central German river : EDER
10. "__ Fideles" : ADESTE
12. Cat lead-in : SNO. I'm already wearing short shorts. Hot here.
13. Sum of all parts : ENTITY. Drew a blank.
14. Cliff's pal on "Cheers" : NORM
15. Sun Devils' sch. : ASU
16. "Where Creativity Happens" retail chain : MICHAELS. I like their flowery notebooks. Very pretty.
17. Mork, by birth : ORKAN
18. Harness straps : REINS
19. Get the feeling : SENSE
25. Nosy? : NASAL. Fun clue.
28. Craze : MANIA
32. Fitzgerald et al. : ELLAS
34. Planetary path : ORBIT. Quite a few alliteration in the clues today.
35. "__ turns out ..." : AS IT
36. Revolutionary army : MILITIA
37. Dutch city in many Vermeer paintings : DELFT. Did you watch "Girl with a Pearl Earring"?
38. First name in bombers : ENOLA
41. "Nerts!" : DARN
44. Antacid choice : TUMS
48. Pal of Grover : ELMO
53. Proposal with a nice ring? : MARRY ME. Sweet! It does have a nice ring to it. And 57. Ring out : PEAL
54. Buster : BUB. Did not know this meaning of "Buster".
56. Works on the road : TARS
58. One-named rocker : BONO
62. Carrie Nation's org. : WCTU. No idea. Woman's Christian Temperance Union. Wikipedia says it still exists.
63. High points : JOYS
65. Kegger locale : FRAT
67. Pigged out : ATE A TON
69. "Oh, I give up!" : YOU WIN
71. Susceptible to sunburn, probably : FAIR
72. Roughly : OR SO
73. "Exodus" actor Mineo : SAL
75. Architect __ van der Rohe : MIES
77. The blahs : ENNUI. Is anyone wearing Eclat?
78. Rule : REIGN
81. Beheld : SEEN
82. Computer message : ERROR
84. Arabic : ibn :: English : __ : SON OF
86. Flirted with, with "at" : MADE EYES. Made me think of Jeannie.
87. Calamine target : BITE
88. Thread puller : SEWER
91. Gelatin garnish : ASPIC. What? Garnish only? Aspic is the gelatin to me.
93. Branding iron wielder : COWHERD. I always want to watch "Brokeback Mountain", but Boomer says "No".
96. Mementos : TOKENS
97. Nearly birdied : PARRED. True when you had a tap-in par.
99. Understood : GOTTEN
100. Hinged fasteners : HASPS
101. 10th-century Roman emperor : OTTO I. How should we clue our own D-Otto? 21st-century Crossword Corner emperor?
102. Drenches : SOAKS
105. Involving warships : NAVAL
107. Dealer's dispenser : SHOE. Gambling.
109. No longer in port : ASEA
111. Soul singer India.__ : ARIE. A gimme for most constructors, same with yesterday's SCREAM QUEEN, a term forever associated with Fay Wray. Not many ways to clue FAY.
112. Poison and Pure Poison creator : DIOR. Miss Dior last time.
114. "OMG! Spare me!" : TMI
115. Kyrgyzstan city : OSH
116. Card game shout : UNO
118. DOD division : NSA. DOD= Department of Defense.
Answer grid.
1) Happy Birthday to dear Warren! Hope Ruth makes this day very special to you.
2) From John Lampkin:
24A. Persevere, like a teamster? : KEEP ON TRUCKIN'
39A. Persevere, like a stand-up comic? : NEVER SAY DIE. I don't quite get this one. Is it because comics slay (amuse) their audience?
68A. Persevere, like a frequent flier? : CARRY ON
95A. Persevere, like a very loud organist? : DON'T STOP NOW. Those organ knobs are called "stops". That's all I know.
113A. Persevere, like a golfer? : STAY THE COURSE. Golf course.
3D. Persevere, like a boxing promoter? : PUT UP A GOOD FIGHT
6D. Persevere, like a judge? : TRY, TRY AGAIN. Ha ha!
47D. Persevere, like a lightning rod installer? : STAND YOUR GROUND
70D. Persevere, like a museum curator? : HANG IN THERE
Fun theme. Don G and I had a similar gimmick a while ago, except we clued each answer as related to the animal. Our HANG IN THERE clue is "Advice to a monkey"? Didn't interest Rich enough.
John is an artist. He pays attention the visual aspect of his grid. The arraignment of the theme entries in this grid shows his taste, skills & perseverance. How he consistently avoids cheater squares for Sunday grids is beyond me. This one has a low back square count also. Only 64. Our norm is 74.
Across:
1. Bestows on, with "to" : IMPARTS
8. Forgoes scissors : TEARS. And 11D. Forgo scissors : RIP. Clecho (clue echo). All in green highlight in my write-up.
13. Captivates : ENAMORS
20. Fashionista's field : COUTURE. As in "Haute couture". "60 Minutes" had a good segment on Anna Wintour a while ago.
21. Bring to the mix : ADD IN
22. "Sorry, Charlie" : NO SIREE
23. Start to finish, e.g.? : ANTONYM. Start & Finish are antonyms. Great clue.
26. It may be abstract or concrete : NOUN. I like this clue too.
27. Stopwatch users : TIMERS
29. Intent : AIM
30. "Gladiator" composer Zimmer : HANS. No idea. But John is a musician. As I said before, clues often reflect constructors' interests.
31. Examines closely : PEERS AT. And 49. Examination : TEST.
33. Raise a glass to : TOAST. 103. Where glasses may be raised? : OPERA. Opera glasses.
36. Clerical residence : MANSE
37. Really boring : DEADLY
42. Lang. of Jamaica : ENG. "One Love"!
43. Dora the Explorer, for one : LATINA. Dora Marquez, "the first animated Latina character in a leading role".
45. Cartoonist Keane : BIL. Died last Nov.
46. Ready : ALL SET
50. Place for a plunger in Plymouth : LOO. Plymouth, England.
51. It's wet in Oaxaca : AGUA
52. Infatuated, old-style : SMIT
54. Display irritation : BRISTLE
55. Sea debris : FLOTSAM. And Jetsam.
57. Warmup for college hopefuls, briefly : PSAT. And 40D. Poughkeepsie college : VASSAR. Another clecho with the previous "Aussi college" for UNI (89-A).
58. Diamond strategy : BUNT. Bunts are boring to watch, unless the bunter is Ichiro, right, LaLaLinda?
59. Morning hrs. : AMs
60. "Voilà!" : TA DA
61. Hand-on-chest words : I SWEAR
63. Careerbuilder.com listing : JOB
64. Contingency phrase : IF NOT
66. Writer Lebowitz : FRAN. She's in "Law & Order".
70. Challenging : HARD
71. Impose fraudulently : FOIST. On or upon.
73. Rams' city: Abbr. : STL. St. Louis Rams.
74. Musician awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2011 : YO-YO MA. Yo means "friendly". Chinese nickname usually is a repeat of the last word of the given name. Hence the panda name Ling Ling. My sister-in-law calls me Chin Chin (a repeat of my Cantonese name Chow Chin).
76. Julio's yesterday : AYER. Spanish.
79. Neighbor of Uru. : ARG
80. Isaac's eldest : ESAU
82. Aussie runners : EMUS. And 89. Aussie college : UNI. That's convenient. Hi there Kazie!
83. Nonnegotiable, as a plan : IN STONE
85. Queequeg crewmate : ISHMAEL. "Moby Dick".
87. Suds : BREW
88. Utah state flower : SEGO. Ours is Lady's slipper.
90. Do routine tire maintenance : ROTATE
91. Inspired mixture : AIR
92. Strands at a chalet, maybe : ICES IN
94. Carpet : RUG
98. Bean or noodle : NOGGIN
100. Leipzig legwear : HOSEN. German for "hose"? I know lederhosen.
104. Strove to attain : WENT FOR
106. Dip __ in: test the water : A TOE
107. Manage moguls : SKI. Marti knows how to manage them.
108. Full of school spirit : RAH RAH
110. Wealthy "Wind in the Willows" character : TOAD. Mr. Toad.
117. Longtime CBS golf analyst Ken : VENTURI. I like Johnny Miller. He can be brutally honest.
119. Nintendo game with Pikachu : POKEMON
120. Nasty smile : SNEER
121. Hall of talk : ARSENIO. I thought Clinton was really cool when he appeared in this guy's show.
122. Scaredy-cats : SISSIES
123. Surfer wannabe : HODAD
124. Hero's hero : LEANDER. Such a moving love story.
Down:
1. "If __ make it there ...": "New York, New York" lyric : I CAN
2. Like old records : MONO
4. Set things right : ATONED
5. Make tracks : RUN
7. Weigh station visitors : SEMIs
8. Grab a coffee, say : TAKE TEN
9. Central German river : EDER
10. "__ Fideles" : ADESTE
12. Cat lead-in : SNO. I'm already wearing short shorts. Hot here.
13. Sum of all parts : ENTITY. Drew a blank.
14. Cliff's pal on "Cheers" : NORM
15. Sun Devils' sch. : ASU
16. "Where Creativity Happens" retail chain : MICHAELS. I like their flowery notebooks. Very pretty.
17. Mork, by birth : ORKAN
18. Harness straps : REINS
19. Get the feeling : SENSE
25. Nosy? : NASAL. Fun clue.
28. Craze : MANIA
32. Fitzgerald et al. : ELLAS
34. Planetary path : ORBIT. Quite a few alliteration in the clues today.
35. "__ turns out ..." : AS IT
36. Revolutionary army : MILITIA
37. Dutch city in many Vermeer paintings : DELFT. Did you watch "Girl with a Pearl Earring"?
38. First name in bombers : ENOLA
41. "Nerts!" : DARN
44. Antacid choice : TUMS
48. Pal of Grover : ELMO
53. Proposal with a nice ring? : MARRY ME. Sweet! It does have a nice ring to it. And 57. Ring out : PEAL
54. Buster : BUB. Did not know this meaning of "Buster".
56. Works on the road : TARS
58. One-named rocker : BONO
62. Carrie Nation's org. : WCTU. No idea. Woman's Christian Temperance Union. Wikipedia says it still exists.
63. High points : JOYS
65. Kegger locale : FRAT
67. Pigged out : ATE A TON
69. "Oh, I give up!" : YOU WIN
71. Susceptible to sunburn, probably : FAIR
72. Roughly : OR SO
73. "Exodus" actor Mineo : SAL
75. Architect __ van der Rohe : MIES
77. The blahs : ENNUI. Is anyone wearing Eclat?
78. Rule : REIGN
81. Beheld : SEEN
82. Computer message : ERROR
84. Arabic : ibn :: English : __ : SON OF
86. Flirted with, with "at" : MADE EYES. Made me think of Jeannie.
87. Calamine target : BITE
88. Thread puller : SEWER
91. Gelatin garnish : ASPIC. What? Garnish only? Aspic is the gelatin to me.
93. Branding iron wielder : COWHERD. I always want to watch "Brokeback Mountain", but Boomer says "No".
96. Mementos : TOKENS
97. Nearly birdied : PARRED. True when you had a tap-in par.
99. Understood : GOTTEN
100. Hinged fasteners : HASPS
101. 10th-century Roman emperor : OTTO I. How should we clue our own D-Otto? 21st-century Crossword Corner emperor?
102. Drenches : SOAKS
105. Involving warships : NAVAL
107. Dealer's dispenser : SHOE. Gambling.
109. No longer in port : ASEA
111. Soul singer India.__ : ARIE. A gimme for most constructors, same with yesterday's SCREAM QUEEN, a term forever associated with Fay Wray. Not many ways to clue FAY.
112. Poison and Pure Poison creator : DIOR. Miss Dior last time.
114. "OMG! Spare me!" : TMI
115. Kyrgyzstan city : OSH
116. Card game shout : UNO
118. DOD division : NSA. DOD= Department of Defense.
Answer grid.
1) Happy Birthday to dear Warren! Hope Ruth makes this day very special to you.
2) From John Lampkin:
Greetings from Florida, where I’m doing a week-long series of presentations to Nature groups based on my book of macro-photographs of insects, “Bugged Beyond Belief.” Blog regulars Lemonade and Annette and I are meeting Wednesday night, March 21 for dinner in Hollywood, FL. Please email me at JohnLampkin@JohnLampkin.com for details. You are all welcome to join us if you promise to behave. Or not.
