Theme: "Chlorination" - CL (Chlorine symbol) is added to each theme answer.
23A. "Whatever circus act floats your boat"? : TO EACH HIS CLOWN. To each his own.
36A. Assure satisfaction? : CLAIM TO PLEASE. Aim to please.
58A. Pen in Patna? : INDIA CLINK. India ink. Patna is on the south bank of the Ganges.
82A. Loot from a shamrock heist? : CLOVER HAUL. Overhaul. 36D is one word also.
101A. Moviehouse that always cuts to the chase? : CLIMAX THEATER. Sounds very DF. IMAX theater.
120A. How some defensive boxing matches proceed? : CLINCH BY CLINCH. Inch by inch. Double action.
36D. Devious golf course feature? : CLEVER GREEN. Evergreen. Most greens are clever with breaks.
42D. Mouse user's consideration? : CLICK FACTOR. Ick factor.
I
think this is Meryl Jackson's first published puzzle. It's an
incredible achievement to have your LA Times debut on a Sunday. Sunday
puzzles are just challenging to make due to the sheer size. Small dupes
happen all the time. I was tripped twice by ATE/EAT in a finished grid.
Skillful theme answer placement also. Meryl intersected two set of answers. I love when this happens.
Across:
1. Clambake trash : COBS. Never had clambakes before. Looks delicious.
5. Santa __ : ANA
8. Blue stone, briefly : LAPIS
13. Gastric maladies : ULCERS
19. Award that's a pronunciation of its initials : OBIE. Off-Broadway.
20. Curse : HEX
21. Solder, for one : ALLOY
22. Approached : NEARED
26. Yacht spot : MARINA
27. 1983 title character who sings "Where Is It Written?" : YENTL
28. "... ain't quite as dumb as __": "How Long" lyric : I SEEM. I thought the answer would start with A, but NEHI (6D. Vintage pop) told me no.
29. Now : AS WE SPEAK. Nice 9-letter entry.
31. Pro __ : TEM
33. Island east of Manila : GUAM. BALI came to me first. It's east of Java.
35. First century Roman emperor : OTHO. I can never remember this guy's name. Thought of the D-less OTTO.
41. Bolts : LOCKS
45. Dazzle : SPLENDOR
47. __-Croatian : SERBO
48. Warehouse item : PALLET
49. Sheikh Zayed was its first pres. : UAE. Wiki said Sheikh Zayed was the president of UAE for 34 years. Gosh, never heard of the guy.
50. Brain matter : IDEA. Not CELL.
52. Jostle : ELBOW
54. Like Chopin's Étude Op. 10, No. 3 : IN E
55. Hand truck user : MOVER
62. Rodent control brand : D-CON
63. Olds models : ALEROs
65. "Beats me" : DUNNO
66. "The Path to Love" author Chopra : DEEPAK. I'm not the spiritual type.
68. Taint : CORRUPT
70. Actress Samantha : EGGAR. Stranger to me.
72. Mythical eagle-lion hybrid : GRIFFIN
75. Supporting words : GO TEAM
77. Rimsky-Korsakov's "__ d'Or" : LE COQ. No idea. PALME would not work. Literally The Golden Cockerel.
79. Chelsea's __ Square, fashionable shopping area : SLOANE. Gimme for Steve. Learning moment for me.
80. Gideon Fell's creator : CARR. John Dickson Carr. Gideon Fell is an amateur sleuth.
85. Madre's milk : LECHE
86. Storm dir. : NNE
87. Onslaught : SIEGE
88. Adams of "Octopussy" : MAUD. And 97. "Octopussy," e.g. : SPY STORY
90. Knight in a sitcom : TED. Ted Knight. The Mary Tyler Moore Show.
91. "Toodles" : BYE BYE
93. Reunion attendee : UNCLE
100. Body of rules : CANON
103. Remove : X OUT
105. Iams competitor : ALPO
106. Once named : NEE
107. High-rent game property : PARK PLACE
112. Ancient fabulist : AESOP
115. Bugged a lot : ATE AT
119. Hard one to argue with : EGOIST. Don't engage them.
123. Two-__ : SEATER
124. Monotonous piece : CHANT
125. History book time : ERA
126. Pretender of a sort : MIME. Oh I like this clue.
127. Revered Mother : TERESA
128. Straw sources : PINES
129. Bow raw material : YEW
130. Sistine Chapel ceiling depiction : EDEN
Down:
1. Fragrance giant that went public in 2013 : COTY. What fragrance are you wearing now?
2. Wind with a flared bell : OBOE
3. "Très __!" : BIEN. My ex is dating an Indonesian girl. Je ne care pas. Je ne care pas lots of things.
4. Puget Sound city : SEATTLE
5. Relaxed response : AHH
7. Turning point : AXIS
8. High-tops, e.g. : LACE-UPS
9. Like some choirs : ALL-MALE
10. Ramallah-based gp. : PLO
11. Only state with a two-vowel postal code : IOWA. And 18. 11-Down neighbor: Abbr. : S DAK
12. Dict. entries : SYNS (Synonyms)
13. Not realized : UNMET
14. Lab regulation? : LEASH LAW. Another great clue. Think of dog when you see "Lab".
15. Kind of lane : CARPOOL
16. Iroquoian people : ERIE
17. Soap actress Sofer : RENA. Of General Hospital.
24. Lacking heat, to a cop : CLEAN
25. Showy lily : SEGO
30. Trouble : WOE
32. Dress length : MIDI
34. Côte d'Azur view : MER
37. __ operandi : MODI
38. Forecaster's concern : TREND. Fashion, right?
39. Explorer Tasman : ABEL
40. Reliable : SOLID
43. Game with 80 balls : KENO. I saw it at various casinos. Never played it.
44. WWII weapon : STEN
45. Rash cause, perhaps : SUMAC
46. Author of epistolas : PAOLO. OK, Italian for Paul.
48. Fire inspirers : POKERS
51. Score notation for two singers : A DUE
53. Uncommon blood type, for short : B NEG
56. Goof : ERROR
57. It's not close : ROUT
59. Brit's fireplace : INGLE. I remember this word.
60. Hot state : ANGER
61. Team leader : COACH
62. Green Goblin portrayer : DAFOE. I sure need "Willem" in the clue.
64. Coins : SPECIE
67. Dosage unit : PILL
69. Account : TALE
71. Go nowhere special : ROAM
73. "I'd hate to be __ shoes" : IN HER. I like the movie "In Her Shoes".
74. High-maintenance : NEEDY
76. Slopes challenge : MOGUL. We often see "Mogul" for various ski clues.
78. Put down : QUASH
80. "Street Signs" network : CNBC
81. Novelist Seton : ANYA
83. Word in a boast : VENI. "Veni, vidi, vici".
84. Rapper __ Fiasco : LUPE
87. Parts of writers' queries : SYNOPSES
89. "Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice" Oscar nominee Cannon : DYAN. I just told Argyle the other day about a new clue for AVA (DuVernay) & the amazing David Oyelowo. Too bad they're snubbed.
92. Right-angled flier : BOX KITE
94. Nashville awards org. : CMA
95. "Live Young Forever" author Jack : LALANNE. I love my Jack LaLanne juicer.
96. Counts on : EXPECTS
98. Lift : STEAL
99. When to start driving? : TEE TIME. Argyle plays golf in the evening.
101. Transp. group in the Loop : CTA
102. Peter of reggae : TOSH
104. Radical : ULTRA
107. Under-one's-skin type : PEST
108. '40s film critic James : AGEE
109. Big laugh : ROAR
110. Soyuz letters : CCCP
111. K thru 12 : EL-HI. Glue fill.
113. Opposite of buck : OBEY. Verb. Not DOES.
114. Ceremonial pile : PYRE
116. Oklahoma's "Wheat Capital" : ENID. Gimme for most constructors. Not many ways to clue ENID.
117. Crest : ACME
118. "Well __ ..." : THEN
121. Creator of Q and M : IAN (Fleming)
122. Crow cry : CAW
Happy Birthday to Blue Iris (Susan), a school nurse for many years. I enjoy her Bird Seed Salad every week. It's a simple recipe with endless variations. I hope your physical therapy is doing well, Susan!
C.C.
