Friday, March 15, 2013, Jack McInturff

Theme: SPelling test. With all the teachers we have here, I bet SP has been written a million times on papers being GRADED.

A classic add letters Friday, with SP added  to the last word in a phrase to create a new amusing one. Jack Mac is back. Mr. McInturff, one of our senior regular constructors, and one of my favorite Friday fillers. Heavy themeage, with two grid spanners, 3 others  and a reveal. It also has some great clue/fill like BERATES,  DOSAGES,  LIMPS IN, DULCINEA, GARDENIA,  NO BITING,  ONE MONTH.  Time to solve.

17A. Cherub? : RELIGIOUS SPRITE. (15). A rite becomes a little sprite. A timely clue for a week where a new pope has been chosen.

30A. Slogan for certain Lee fans? : I LIKE SPIKE. (10). My earliest memories are of the 1952 election and the Eisenhower bumper stickers; these days Spike Lee watches basketball more than he makes movies, I think.

35A. Sendoff for a Christmas shopper? : HAPPY SPENDING. (13).  Exactly what I used to tell my ex-wife. I had to carefully massage my answer to this to avoid being too DF.

45A. Pepper? : BLACK SPICE. (10). For you Southerners, Black Ice is the kind you cannot see, and often leads to spills and accidents. Pepper is not always black but the most common table form is.

61A. Windy day misfortunes during a spa visit? : HATS IN THE SPRING. (15). Apparently this Spa has a hot spring. Hat in the ring comes from the sport of boxing where it was literal.  
The reveal:

66A. "500" index that hints at this puzzle's theme : S AND P. Standard and Poor's.

Okay onto the rest.

Across:

1. Suggests for the future : BODES. Getting 1A, bodes well for my solving experience. 

6. Mark on a paper : GRADE. Cute clue, but I bet with all of our teachers, I bet this was easy. 

11. Kid's cry : MAA. Kid as in baby animal, I kid you not.

14. Harden : ENURE. I bet Lois has better synonyms than this.

15. It may shimmer in the desert : OASIS. As do mirages.

16. Off-road transp. : ATV. All Terrain Vehicle.

20. Film buff's station : AMC. American Movie Classics. 

21. Luanda is its cap. : ANGola.

22. Share the bill : CO-STAR. Last week I had a co-tsar.

23. Put in long hours : TOIL.

25. Chewy caramel candy : ROLO.

28. Carpet cleaners, briefly : VACS. Vacuums.

29. Sicilian resort city : ENNA. enna of you been there?  LINK.

33. Part of a process : STEP. Step one, print the puzzle.

34. Sorvino of "Mighty Aphrodite" : MIRA. Another Woody Allen film which I enjoyed, and she was quite fetching and unlikely as a foil for Woody, I think she is close to 6' tall. Since her father, Paul,  likes singing opera, Mira may have developed a wonderful set of lungs.

42. Van Gogh subject : IRIS. I will let someone else link the pic.

43. Adult polliwog : TOAD. My brother's nickname for one of his children, who I guess was a squirmer, polliwog to toad.

51. Spanish river to the Mediterranean : EBRO. A crosswordese answer.

52. Firenze fellow : UOMO. Firenze is Florence and Uomo is man,  like Homo Sapiens. 

53. "But all I want is ___ 'iggins' 'ead!":"My Fair Lady" lyric : 'ENRY. 

54. Unburdens : RIDS.

55. Little rascals : SCAMPS. 

58. Fish you can smoke : EEL. Not to be confused with 65A. Divine healer in "Xena" : ELI.. An obscure character played by Timothy Omundson, who is a regular on Psych and was also on Deadwood.

60. Oolong, for one : TEA. A variety of Chinese teas and what they had in mind when they said they would not do it for all the tea in China.

67. Unexpected lamp benefit? : GENIE. Does this clue rub you the wrong way or you are a fan?

68. Aspin of the Clinton Cabinet : LES. The long time opponent of the Vietnam war who was the Secretary of Defense.

69. In a fitting way : APTLY.

70. Aircraft fuel portmanteau : AVGAS. The mushing together of Aviation Gasoline.

Down:

1. Reams out : BERATES.

2. Calendar unit, perhaps : ONE MONTH.

3. Beloved in "Man of La Mancha" : DULCINEA. My junior year at the University of Connecticut my two older brothers and I all took Charlie Brover's word literature class, and it was in discussing Cervantes' Don Quixote where we unleashed our triple threat.

4. Airport near a Gt. Lake : ERI. The airport in Erie, PA is actually am international airport.

5. Dreamcast maker : SEGA. I still have my sons' Dreamcast if anyone is a collector.

6. Number beyond comprehension : GOOGOL. Also known as  ten thousand sexdecillion; just a really big number 1 followed by 100 zeroes.

7. Indian author Santha Rama ___ : RAU. Never heard of HER.

8. Biblical mount : ASS. Not one you climb, but one you climb on.

9. Frisbee, e.g. : DISC.

10. Hockey's Phil, to fans : ESPOsito. He and his brother were both All-Stars.

11. Rum and curaçao cocktail : MAI TAI. The original umbrella drink.

12. "Sic 'em!" : ATTACK.

13. Ill-disposed : AVERSE.

18. Crucifix letters : INRI. Iesus Nazarenus, Rex Iudaeorum. There is no "J" in Latin.

19. "Let us know," initially : RSVP. Respondez s'il vous plait.

24. Reindeer raiser : LAPP. 

26. Enters the poker pot with a minimum bet, slangily : LIMPS IN. Does anyone watch any Poker on TV? 

27. "The Grapes of Wrath" character : OKIE. From the OKlahoma sand storms.

31. Sea eagle : ERN.

32. Living in a blue state? : SAD. Not the red and blue of politics, just not happy.

36. Water ___: dental gadget : PIK. They seemed so revolutionary back in the 70's.

37. Jr. and sr. : YRS.

38. '70s-'80s quarterback Brian : SIPE. played for the Browns.  Very obscure player.

39. Road to the forum : ITER. Just the Latin word for road.

40. Mom's admonishment to a rambunctious tot : NO BITING. My favorite clue. 

41. Fragrant white flower : GARDENIA. They can be overpowering here in SoFla.

44. Amounts that often specify a time frame : DOSAGES. At meal time.

45. Orchardist's market measure : BUSHEL. Is that word?  How about them APPLES?(2:47)

46. Place : LOCALE.

47. Valuable violins : AMATIS. Either  this or STRADS.

48. Dot-___ : COMS. Bubble burst.

49. Spine-tingling : CREEPY. But not Crawly?

50. Buds on spuds : EYES. Like the rhyme.

56. Tower site : PISA. I guess the city dresses left.

57. Clothes closer : SNAP. No crackle pop, here.

59. Org. for women drivers? : LPGA. Ladies Professional Golfers Association. that kind of driver, See Stay Lewis from Yesterday.

62. Detonation cause : TNT.

63. Cholesterol letters : HDL. The good kind; mine is marginally low.

64. Gun : REV.  Let's finish on this NOTE. (3:11).

Another nice visit with Mr. McInturff, and another week done, it will be spring when I see you all next; enjoy

Lemonade out.