Theme: "Give It a Go" - GO is added to each theme entry.
27A. Fruit found in the back of the fridge? : DIRTY OLD MANGO. Dirty old man. I don't put mangoes in the fridge. I treat them like bananas.
45A. Class on an African river? : CONGO COURSE. Concourse.
58A. Newspaper issue for arrogant readers? : EGO EDITION. e-Edition. I don't think we'll give up our Star Tribune unless they give up. I need a real newspaper on hand.
67A. Google an African nation? : LOOK UP TOGO. Look up to.
83A. Cruise for drummers? : BONGO VOYAGE. Von voyage. Poor Jayce. My high school chemistry teacher was equally discouraging.
95A. Pasta sauce checkout line? : PREGO REGISTER. Pre-register.
35D. Old MacDonald's signature dance? : FARMER'S TANGO. Farmer's tan.
40D. Inexpensive game with cards? : BARGAIN BINGO. Bargain bin.
Very tight theme set, every GO is attached to the end of the first /last word.
A
bit of unusual grid set-up, as the first theme answers starts on Row 4
rather than Row 3. The fill reminds me a bit of Gail's Sunday grids,
super clean & smooth. No obscure or junky fill. No shock and awe
entries either.
Melanie Miller is one of the constructors for the Crossword LA tournament. You can click here
to get the puzzle set for only $5. All proceeds go to Reading to Kids.
Other constructors include Patti Varol, Byron Walden, Trip Payne, Merl
Reagle and David Quartfoot. You'll also get two warm-up puzzles from Andrea Carla Michaels and Susan Gelfand. Amy Reynaldo was the Puzzle Wrangler and she got the very best constructors (all from California or with California ties) for the tournament.
Across:
1. Like many horses : SHOD
5. Wood used in guitar-making : ALDER. Ash too.
10. Bob up and down, say : FLOAT
15. Five tenths : HALF
19. Hefty volume : TOME
20. Fill, as old water bottles : RE-USE
21. Fiennes who played Lord Voldemort : RALPH. I like him in The English Patient.
22. Sandbox boo-boo : OWIE
23. Forearm bone : ULNA
24. Irritate : GRATE
25. Sharp mountain ridge : ARETE. I always think of Spitzboov when I see this word. He knows a lot of geographic term and iceberg related stuff.
26. Distribute, with "out" : METE
30. Lyrical homage : ODE
32. Month named for a general : JULY. Named for Caesar.
33. Russian-born Deco designer : ERTE
34. Given the lowdown : BRIEFED
38. Fish recipe instruction : DEBONE.
Did you know that most of frozen salmon we have here in the US are sent
to China to debone? So, the fish we eat are twice frozen, at least.
41. Claude's "Thanks" : MERCI
43. Salon service : HAIR CARE. Put some coconut oil in your conditioner.
44. Henry Doorly Zoo & Aquarium city : OMAHA. Gimme for Gary/Joe/Ergo.
47. Zodiac symbol : RAM
48. Get, as a degree : EARN
49. 1905 Peter Pan player Adams : MAUDE. No idea. The Bond girl is MAUD Adams.
50. Moderate pace : TROT
51. Kid's comeback : AM SO
52. Horse and buggy : RIG. This is a new meaning of RIG to me.
53. Slip : LAPSE
54. Suppressed : SAT ON
56. Belief system : CREED
57. '70s extremist gp. : SLA (Symbionese Liberation Army). They kidnapped Patty Hearst, who was granted a full pardon by Clinton.
60. Lacking manners : COARSE
61. Muslim leaders : IMAMS
63. Place for worms? : CAN. And 64. Places for outlets : WALLS.
65. Chilean lady : SENORA
71. Shop __ you drop : TIL. I can shop for hours without buying anything.
74. Striped cat : TABBY
75. Grammy winner Lena : HORNE
76. Radio station, say : AIRER
77. Excitement : ADO
78. Mayberry sot Campbell : OTIS. I think Gary or Tinbeni mentioned this guy before.
79. Hr. portions : MINs
80. Super-small : EENSY
81. Holier-than-thou sort : SNOB
82. Web portal letters : MSN
86. Bird with a hooked beak : EAGLE
87. Events with tiaras : PAGEANTS. Have any of you watched Here Comes Honey Boo Boo? So glad it's canceled.
89. Ryan of "The Beverly Hillbillies" : IRENE
90. Adorn in relief : EMBOSS
91. Newspaper fillers : STORIES
92. Spanish liqueur : ANIS
93. High male voice : ALTO
94. Historic Nevada city : ELY. Historic because?
100. 1998 Apple debut : iMAC
103. Pitchfork feature : PRONG
105. Pay : REMIT
106. More than some : A LOT
108. Remove forcibly : OUST
109. Bangladesh neighbor : INDIA
110. IRS requirement for many : E-FILE
111. Big-time blow : GALE
112. Plate cleaners, at times : UMPS. Great clue. The Royals have to win tonight!
113. Stun gun : TASER
114. Farm fathers : SIRES
115. "__ Enchanted": 2004 film : ELLA. Anne Hathaway movie. She's a good singer.
Down:
1. RV connection? : STU. Alphabet.
2. Own : HOLD
3. Bus lead-in : OMNI
4. Last letter? : DEAR JOHN. Kids nowadays break up via text.
5. Diamond pattern : ARGYLE. Hi there, Santa.
6. First name of boy detective Encyclopedia Brown : LEROY. Is he the inspiration for Bad, Bad Leroy Brown?
7. Like some college majors : DUAL
8. Formed, on a bus. sign : ESTD. I read it as "Bus sign".
9. Surface again : RE-EMERGE
10. Wrought-up : FRANTIC
11. __-screen TV : LARGE
12. Baking ingredient : OLEO. Never had it before. Does your wife eat butter, Jayce/Barry G?
13. Likely : APT
14. Creative thinker : THEORIST. I guess those guys are creative.
15. Household skills class : HOME EC
16. More than impress : AWE
17. On, in a way : LIT
18. Entry price : FEE
28. Sandwich fish : TUNA
29. Western U.S. service station chain : ARCO
31. Ominous : DIRE
34. Business tycoon : BARON. I was stunned by Mark Zuckerberg's fluent Chinese last week. He conducted a 30-minutes Q & A in Chinese. Both Facebook and Twitter are blocked in China, by the way.
36. Clears : ERASES
37. Out of fashion, in France : DEMODE. Démodé.
38. Bundles of energy : DOERS
39. Terminal communication : EMAIL. Terminal made me think of airport.
41. "Eek!" evoker : MOUSE
42. Put a halt to : ENDED
43. Georgian Bay's lake : HURON
45. Tough heads : CAPOS. Mafia bosses.
46. Maestro Klemperer : OTTO. I've been to Appleton, D-Otto. I remember they have a Cracker Barrel there.
49. Volcanic fluid : MAGMA
51. Shrunken inland sea : ARAL
53. "Rescue Me" star Denis : LEARY
54. Commercial interest : STAKE
55. Native of Hokkaido : AINU. Here it is again.
56. Rose or violet : COLOR
59. Picture of an envelope, e.g. : ICON. Wow, so easy in retrospect. Mail me.
60. Cleverly guarded : CAGEY
62. Riot squad concerns : MOBS.
China executed 8 Muslim extremists earlier this year for their
terrorist act in Oct 2013. In America, the procedure would take forever.
64. No __ for the wear : WORSE
65. Treads heavily : STOMPS
66. Greatly bothers : EATS AT
67. Hungers : LONGS
68. Roughly speaking : OR SO
69. Many a church song : PAEAN
70. Bit : TINGE
72. Fan favorites : IDOLS
73. Hoops may hang from them : LOBES. Earrings.
75. Subtle suggestions : HINTS
79. Financial drain : MONEY PIT. Great fill.
80. Dilapidated buildings, say : EYESORES. Another great one.
81. Deliberate destruction : SABOTAGE. Three in a row.
83. Leave in a hurry, slangily : BAIL
84. Oil partner : VINEGAR.
My grandma used to make persimmon vinegar with the persimmons from our
front yard trees. Xi'An has a big Muslim Quarters where the persimmon cakes
are must-eats. No unrest there. We've been living peacefully together
for centuries.
85. Copier insert: Abbr. : ORIG
86. Rescue team, briefly : EMTs
88. Builds : ERECTS
90. Upper crust groups : ELITES
92. Golfer with an "army" : ARNIE. He was at the TPC here a few months ago for the Champions Tour.
93. Nimble : AGILE
95. Sci-fi carriers : PODS
96. Interest-lowering option, briefly : RE-FI
97. Kuwaiti ruler : EMIR
98. Israeli carrier : EL AL
99. It's called in class : ROLL
100. Note in lieu of cash : IOU. Thought of the poor Madame Bovary.
101. Not exactly talkative : MUM. Are you still reading us, LaLaLinda?
102. Dangerous reptile : ASP
104. Genetic messenger : RNA
107. Drink from a bag : TEA. Good for tired eyes also.
C.C.
