I'll start with the reveal:
55-Across. Basics of business, or a hint to the end of the answers to starred clues : DOLLARS AND CENTS. The theme was pretty obvious to me after seeing SCRATCH and DOUGH. My confidence was a little shaken by JACK, but BREAD nailed it.
17-Across. *Like Grandma's pancakes, say : MADE FROM SCRATCH. This slang is probably based on the fact that you have to scratch out a living to earn money.
24-Across. *It's rolled with a pin and put in a tin : PIE DOUGH. Common slang term in the US, similar to BREAD.
37-Across. *"What a dummy!" : YOU DON'T KNOW JACK. I assume this refers to Jackson on the $20 bill? I don't think I have ever heard this term for money.
46-Across. *Deli supply : RYE BREAD. Based on the analogy of money being a staple of life.
Pretty easy for a Thursday. On a few "huhs" and "duhs" today. So lets spring right in.
Across
1. Spring : JUMP. Epic (and hilarious) JUMP fail. 0:25
5. Goes kaput : DIES.
9. Buckle opener? : SWASH. Can you talk like a pirate?
14. With passion : AMOROUSLY.
16. Chekhov's "__ Sisters" : THREE.
19. Capt.'s heading : SSE. Not sure why "Capt." here. I wanted something like "aft" based on the clue, but the perps wouldn't allow it. (From C.C.: Capt. hints an abbreviated answer.)
20. Wetland : FEN.
21. Director's headache : HAM.
22. Deli supplies : SLAWS. Are they really "supplies" or just "offerings"?
29. DDE opponent : AES. Adlai Ewing Stevenson.
30. They may be rolled over, briefly : IRAS.
31. Gun lobby org. : NRA. If the NRA rolls over their IRA can they take over IRAN?
32. Barely-there underwear : THONG.
36. "__ Holden": Irving Bacheller novel : EBEN. The book was based in the author's home town of Pierrepont, NY.
40. Solitary : LONE.
41. Alternative to de Gaulle : ORLY.
42. Houston hockey team : AEROS. I don't follow hockey or baseball, so I was thinking "Astro" here.
43. Common Mkt. : EEC. European Economic Community.
44. Actress Falco : EDIE.
45. Hobbit enemy : ORC. Nasty little beasts, they are.
48. Extreme : ULTRA.
51. Bush __ : ERA. Really vague clue that had me scrambling for perps. (Anyone else think "rat"?)
52. Simpson judge : ITO. The (in)famous O.J. Simpson trial.
53. Fury : IRE.
61. "She __ among the untrodden ways": Wordsworth : DWELT. This is one of his "Lucy" poems. No one knows exactly who Lucy was:
She dwelt among the untrodden ways
Beside the springs of Dove,
A Maid whom there were none to praise
And very few to love:
A violet by a mossy stone
Half hidden from the eye!
--Fair as a star, when only one
Is shining in the sky.
She lived unknown, and few could know
When Lucy ceased to be;
But she is in her grave, and, oh,
The difference to me!
62. Begins, as a conversation : STRIKES UP. Or a band.
63. "Ciao!" : SEE YA.
64. Must have : NEED.
65. "Ol' Man River" composer : KERN.
Down:
1. Rough spots : JAMS.
2. Amherst sch. : U-MASS. This was a gimme.
3. Poser : MODEL. Literally, someone who is posing.
4. Start to text? : PRE. Pretext. What a poseur might use.
5. Arm-twisting : DURESS.
6. Takes the stage : IS ON.
7. Stately shader : ELM.
8. Part of CBS: Abbr. : SYS.tem.
9. Valuable violins : STRADS. Stradivarius.
10. Frisbee maker : WHAM-O.
11. Works at an exhibit : ART. The works on the wall, not what the docent does.
12. Champagne word : SEC. French for "dry." Actually, these champagnes are much sweeter than "brut" champagnes.
13. "Clever" : HEH.
15. "Let's hit the road!" : OFF WE GO!
18. Shoddy : CHEAPO. Fun word.
23. "Bates Motel" airer : A AND E. First aired in March of 2013, the TV series is based on the lives of Norman Bates and his mother, of "Psycho" fame.
24. Preserved, in a way : PICKLED.
25. Literary twist : IRONY.
26. Open, as a gate latch : UNBAR.
27. El __ : GRECO. Spanish Renaissance artist.
28. Gump player : HANKS. "Forrest Gump."
32. First president who wasn't elected : TYLER. The tenth president, he assumed the office when Harrison (Tippecanoe) died.
33. Bunk : HOOEY. Another fun word.
34. Gold unit : OUNCE.
35. Some hotel lobbies : ATRIA.
36. Escape on the way down : EJECT.
38. Loving rejection : NO DEAR. Yes dear. I don't know dear...
39. Dungeons & Dragons role : WARLOCK. Not very nice critters.
44. Listing in a revision, perhaps : ERRATA.
45. Bested : OUTDID.
47. Spare tire : BELLY.
49. Salon job : RINSE.
50. Keyboard contemporary of Vladimir : ARTUR. Rubinstein. Vladimir Horowitz. Just look at those hands! 6:47 (BTW, although he was called ARTUR in his native Polish, he preferred to be known as "Arthur.")
52. Memo header : IN RE.
54. World Cup broadcaster : ESPN.
55. Driller's deg. : DDS. Doctor of Dental Surgery.
56. Postpone paying : OWE.
57. Civil War figure : LEE.
58. Govt.-issued ID : SSN.
59. Absorbed, as a cost : ATE.
60. "A mouse!" : EEK. It just might be what these cats are saying from 0:05 to 0:12.
That wraps it up for this week!
Marti
