Theme: Full Stop - Three synonyms for the punctuation known as full stop, appropriately placed at the end of the theme entries.
20A. Do-or-die moment : CRITICAL POINT
38A. When the Brontës wrote : VICTORIAN PERIOD
59A. Precisely : RIGHT ON THE DOT
Argyle here(stop) Dynamic duo(stop) Stop with the stops! No stopping the grid spanner while the other entries stop at thirteen. Eases us into the week while we have other things on our minds.
Across:
1. Golf pros regularly break it : PAR. While some of us struggle to break 100.
4. Gemologist's weight : CARAT
9. Force back : REPEL
14. "__ had it up to here!" : I'VE, said the woman in the milk bath. (pasteurized)
15. Single-celled critter : AMEBA
16. Bo's'n's "Hold it!" : "AVAST!"
17. Blink of an eye : SEC
18. Rocky, for one : BOXER. More of a brawler, some might say.
19. Midterms and finals : TESTS
23. "Para __, oprima numero dos": customer service option : ESPANOL. "For Spanish, press number two"
24. Woos : COURTS
27. Crystal ball consulter : SEER
28. Bringing up the rear : LAST
31. Cut back : PARE
32. Offbeat : ODD
35. Cowboy's footwear : BOOT
37. Pieces on a board : MEN
43. Cannes crony : AMI. Cannes is a city located in the French Riviera.
44. Arrow-shooting god : EROS
45. Prez before Jack : IKE. (JFK/DDE)
46. Prefix with second : NANO
48. Computer operator : USER
50. Bottom-line concern : LOSS
54. Hole for a shoelace : EYELET. Bonus point: name the end of the shoelace.
56. Heart, soul, or heart and soul : ESSENCE
62. Cheer for a diva : BRAVA
64. Fragrant compound : ESTER
65. Game based on crazy eights : UNO. There are no bonus points in crosswords, sorry.
66. Seethed : FUMED
67. Underground Railroad traveler : SLAVE
68. Fort Worth sch. : TCU. (Texas Christian University)
69. Stockpile : AMASS
70. Repaired, as a shoe : SOLED
71. "But then again ..." : YET
Down:
1. The Fishes of the zodiac : PISCES
2. Opposed (to) : AVERSE
3. Bon Appétit offering : RECIPE. "Bon Appétit" is a magazine and website.
4. Mountain retreat : CABIN
5. BP merger partner : AMOCO
6. Drugstore name derived from the prescription symbol : REXALL
7. Genesis sibling : ABEL
8. Infield protection : TARP
9. Betting odds, e.g. : RATIO
10. Bring into balance : EVEN UP. (50/50 odds)
11. Deli meat : PASTRAMI
12. Body shop quote: Abbr. : EST. (estimate)
13. Many USMA grads : LT's. (Lieutenant/United States Military Academy)
21. Card worth a fortune? : TAROT
22. Squid relatives : OCTOPI
25. Palm smartphone : TREO. Replaced in June 2009.
26. Mail out : SEND
29. Belittle : ABASE
30. Trinity member : SON. With the Father and the Holy Spirit.
33. Deer mom : DOE
34. "Sex for Dummies" author, familiarly : DR. RUTH. Listen up!
36. "__War": Shatner novel : TEK
38. Rooftop rotator : VANE
39. Uncertain response : "I MAY"
40. Wide-screen technique introduced in the '50s : CINERAMA
41. Island in the Aegean : IOS. Map.
42. CSA general : R.E. LEE
47. Antipasto tidbits : OLIVES
49. Beach house, maybe : RENTAL
51. At one's post : ON DUTY. Yes, I am.
52. Wall-mounted candleholder : SCONCE. Some may be using them by day's end.
53. Embark : SET OUT
55. "Holy moly!" : "EGADS!"
57. "Date Night" actor Carell : STEVE. (from "The Office") IMBd.
58. Destroy, as documents : SHRED
60. Miss Trueheart of "Dick Tracy" : TESS
61. Nobel Peace Prize city : OSLO
62. Painter's deg. : BFA. (Bachelor of Fine Arts)
63. Caribbean liquor : RUM. Cheers!
Argyle
Notes from C.C.:
1) The theme came to me while my pen ran out of ink. Click here to see the original grid Don and I submitted. Rich wisely pointed out that those long Across (18A & 51A) might "obscure the theme" since we don't have a reveal entry.
2) Happy 87th Birthday to dear Dodo, who's been having problem with her computer. Hopefully she'll return to us soon. Thanks again for checking on Dodo, Chickie.
2) Happy 87th Birthday to dear Dodo, who's been having problem with her computer. Hopefully she'll return to us soon. Thanks again for checking on Dodo, Chickie.
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| (L-R back row: Chickie, Clear Ayes, Garlic Gal; Front: JD, Lucina, Dodo. |
Picture taken on June 23, 2011
