18-Across. "Good lad!" : THERE'S MY BOY. The phrase sounds strange to my ear. I would more likely say "That's my boy!" And only in reference to a dog.
23-Across. "I'm positive" : NO MISTAKE.
30-Across. Atlas index listing : PLACE NAME.
47-Across. "Whatever floats your boat" : LIKE I CARE. I had "As if I CARE" at first. (As if you care, right?)
54-Across. Base among boxes : HOME PLATE.
61-Across. Character who, in an 8/15/1939 Hollywood premiere, speaks the first words of this puzzle's five other longest answers : DOROTHY GALE. "The Wizard of Oz" gal.
58 theme letters is pretty dense, and you might expect some compromise in the fill. But this seemed pretty straight-forward, almost Monday-like.
Across
1. Clothing line : HEM. I have seen the same clue for "seam."
4. "Egad!" : YIPE. or YIPEs. Both are correct.
8. Sprint Cup org. : NASCAR. The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing. The title seems a bit redundant, with both Car and Auto. But it would be too difficult to pronounce NASCR, I guess. And 46-Down. Earnhardt of 8-Across : DALE.
14. Toothpaste letters : ADA. American Dental Association.
15. Arabian ruler : EMIR.
16. Pump figure : OCTANE. It's about $3.49 / gallon around here.
17. Netflix rental, for short : VID. In 1956, a video recorder was about $50,000, and a single 1 hour videotape cost $300. I don't think Netflix would get much business at those prices!
20. Latin catchall : ET ALII. And others.
22. Looks like a wolf : LEERS.
26. LAX postings : ETAS. I took a chance and entered the A before checking perps.
29. One "who intimately lives with rain," in a poem : TREE. And then we have 41-Down. Slam offering : POEM. The first poetry slam was held in Chicago in 1984. It is a competition where poets read their compositions and are judged by selected audience members. Do you think Kilmer would have won with this?
| I think that I shall never see | |
| A poem lovely as a tree. | |
| A tree whose hungry mouth is prest | |
| Against the sweet earth's flowing breast; | |
| A tree that looks at God all day, | 5 |
| And lifts her leafy arms to pray; | |
| A tree that may in summer wear | |
| A nest of robins in her hair; | |
| Upon whose bosom snow has lain; | |
| Who intimately lives with rain. | 10 |
| Poems are made by fools like me, | |
| But only God can make a tree. Joyce Kilmer |
33. Muscular problem : SPASM. "Cramp" would also fit...just sayin'.
36. Start of a series : OPENER.
37. Salon item : GEL. It was a toss-up between GEL and "dye."
40. Ab __: from the beginning : OVO.
41. Historic beginning? : PRE. Prehistoric.
42. Strands in a cell? : DNA.
43. Good to grow : ARABLE.
45. Like cutlets : BONED. I had B*kED at first because of a goof at 31-Down. Huh? Baked cutlets? (I always sauté them.) (And PaEM made absolutely no sense for 41-Down.)
49. Memo demand : ASAP.
53. More than passed : ACED.
57. Sonneteer's Muse : ERATO.
60. Nativity tableau : CRÈCHE.
65. Gun in the driveway, maybe : REV. Haha. Were you picturing a chalk outline and key evidence?
66. Keys with Grammys : ALICIA.
67. First word of "Greensleeves" : ALAS. Here's a lovely version by Celtic Women. 3:19
68. Billings-to-Bismarck dir. : ENE.
69. Less bold : MEEKER.
70. Risks : BETS.
71. Pop : DAD.
Down
1. "__ the foggiest!" : HAVEN'T. I started filling in "I haven"...and ran out of room.
2. Text __ : EDITOR.
3. European title : MADAME. I was looking for something more noble.
4. Hard-to-photograph Himalayans? : YETIS.
5. Paintball cry : I'M HIT.
6. Trivial Pursuit symbol : PIE.
7. Make a left instead of a right, say : ERR.
8. It smells : NOSE. Haha.
9. It can't be topped : ACME.
10. Compound used in plastic manufacturing : STYRENE.
11. Where business is picking up? : CAB STAND.
12. Enero to enero : ANO.
13. "Summertime Sadness" singer Lana Del __ : REY. All perps.
19. Zeno's home : ELEA.
21. Is situated : LIES.
24. Lhasa __ : APSO.
25. Air France-__: European flier : KLM. The two airlines merged in 2004.
27. Revival cry : AMEN.
28. They're measured in shots : SERA. Because "booze" wouldn't fit!
31. It may be popped : CORN. Naturally, I had "cork" at first...which led to no end of problems with the perps.
32. Foil kin : EPEE.
34. __ sci : POLI.
35. Preposition for Poirot : AVEC. French "with."
37. Blowout, so to speak : GALA.
38. "South Park" boy Cartman : ERIC.
39. Site of a critical 1813 battle : LAKE ERIE. The Battle of Put-in-Bay. I bet Abejo knows all about it.
44. Firm foundation : BEDROCK. It's where the Slate Rock & Gravel Company was founded...
;-)48. Hailing cry : AHOY.
50. Like some cows : SACRED.
51. Greek goddess of wisdom : ATHENA.
52. In a snit : PEEVED.
55. Showy display : ÉCLAT.
56. Button word : PRESS. So simple.
58. End in __ : A TIE.
59. Yonder, on the Pequod : THAR.
61. Block up : DAM.
62. Bit of World Cup encouragement : OLÉ.
63. Go on and on : GAB.
64. Draft order : ALE. I'll leave this for others to toast at sunset.
Cheers!
Marti
Note from C.C.:
The beautiful Andrea Carla Michaels (who co-authored our Monday LAT puzzle) visited Minnesota again this week. Below is a picture of the local constructor gathering last night. I did not feel well enough to make the trip. I snacked the whole jar of homemade pickles on Tuesday and my lower right abdominal pain just won't go away.
Also missed the PBA50 finals yesterday. Boomer went alone and watched Walter Ray Williams won the tournament. I did chat with Walter Ray again last Sunday, TTP. Also met Norm Duke for the first time.
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| L to R: Victor Barocas, George Barany, Andrea Carla Michaels, David Hanson & Tom Pepper |
