Theme: Bug Bonanza - four bacteria are lurking in the theme entries
17A. *Temper-tempering strategy : ANGER MANAGEMENT. According to the American Psychological Association "Anger is a completely normal, usually healthy, human emotion" so just remember that when I'm yelling at you, buster. It's you, not me.
23A. *Toon rodent superhero with a hamster assistant named Penfold : DANGER MOUSE. UK animated series from 1981-1992, scheduled to make a comeback in September.
30D. *Insect with patterned wings : TIGER MOTH. Also a training biplane used by the RAF in the 1930's. I remember standing next to one, awestruck, at an airshow when I was about five - the name has stuck in my mind ever since.
32D. *CBS weekend anchor during the Cronkite era : ROGER MUDD. No idea - thank you, crosses. When he was passed over in favor of Dan Rather to succeed Cronkite as the nightly news anchor he left for NBC.
69A. Popular disinfectant brand that fights what's hidden in the answers to starred clues : LYSOL. I use Clorox. Apparently I prefer benzalkonium chloride to sodium hypochlorite. Who knew?
Hail fellows, well met. Steve here forming a very minor part of a "Corner" trifecta - C.C. and Husker Gary put their heads together to come up with this one. The theme entries run both across and down, and the grid has vertical rather than the usual rotational symmetry which makes for an interesting grid design. All the GERMs are split in the same place, which is nicely consistent.
Let's see what else jumps out:
Across:
1. Tight-fitting : SNUG. Time to get back to the gym when my pants feel this way.
5. Office subs : TEMPS
10. Jogger's challenge : HILL. TEN-K went in. And came out.
14. Snapper rival : TORO. Battle of the lawnmowers and my last fill. I don't have a lawn, therefore no mower and no idea.
15. Walled Spanish city : AVILA. Pretty much slap-dab in the middle of the Iberian Peninsula too.
16. Cookie that has its own day every March 6 : OREO. Today is "National Middle Child" day. I'd better call my brother and congratulate him.
20. Holiday song sextet : GEESE. A-laying.
21. Hairstyles : DOS
22. Big tops, e.g. : TENTS
26. Lawn problem : WEED. So is a TORO with an oil leak.
27. Q5 automaker : AUDI. I thought it was an acronym for Auto Union Dortmund Industrie, but I can't find any corroboration of that. It's a good story though, so I'll stick to it. What does Google know anyway?
28. Detroit record label : MOTOWN
31. For only a select few : SECRET. Where does "Top Secret" come from? You'd have thought there would be a "Middle Secret" and "Bottom Secret" also, but apparently not.
35. Really bad : EVIL
36. Blink, say : REACT
40. Big Island coffee region : KONA
41. Baseball word with out or up : TAG. It's wouldn't be a C.C. puzzle without at least one baseball reference. Here's her homeboy Kennys Vargas tagging up from second. Sounds like I almost know what I'm talking about.
42. Floral industry hybrid : TEA ROSE
44. Jungle __ : GYM
45. Snowy 10-Across sights : SLEDS
47. Something worth waiting for? : TIP. We had "NO TIP" a couple of weeks ago - here's the balancing entry.
48. For a song : CHEAP
50. TV host Kelly : RIPA
52. Secure in a harbor : MOOR
53. Polished rocks : GEMS
55. Pipe cleaner : DRANO. More kitchen cleaning product.
59. Magazine contents : AMMO
62. Graceland middle name : ARON. Elvis "thank you thank you very much" Presley.
63. __ parking : VALET. Very common here in LA. If you want to steal a really nice car, put on a pair of black pants, a white shirt and red vest and stand outside a posh restaurant. Within two minutes someone will pull up in a $100,000 ride and toss you the keys.
64. U.S. territory since the Spanish-American War : GUAM
65. Delayed : LATE
66. "You’ve got a friend" : I CARE
67. Out of work : IDLE
68. Pasty-faced : ASHY. Ashy? I'd use "ashen" I think.
70. Paradise : EDEN
Down:
1. Dateless : STAG. In the UK, this is used more in the "men only" context rather than "solo".
2. What the fourth little piggy had : NONE. Either because the third piggy ate all the roast beef, or Number Four was vegetarian.
3. Prodded : URGED
4. Risks being caught off base : GOES AWOL. The military, not the baseball sense this time.
5. Tartan topper : TAM. The hat named for the Robert Burns character:
6. Sidestepped : EVADED
7. One with a fake ID, maybe : MINOR. You have to memorize how old you're pretending to be, and the star sign of your alleged birth date. Apparently.
8. Flat panel TV type : PLASMA
9. Give under pressure : SAG
10. Like a camp kid missing mom and dad : HOMESICK. "Hello Muddah, Hello Faddah ..."
11. Dancer Castle : IRENE. Who? Thank you, crosses. I'm not really a ballroom dancing aficionado. Here she is in 1912.
12. Period of sacrifice : LENT
13. Quite a bit : LOTS
18. Keep from expiring : RENEW
19. Piano showpiece : ETUDE
24. Britcom, e.g. : GENRE. Nice portmanteau word to boot.
25. Kicks out : OUSTS
28. Citi Field squad : METS. New York baseball.
29. Almond-shaped : OVAL. In the pointy-oval, almond-shaped kind of way.
33. One-named Irish singer : ENYA. She was born Eithne Ní Bhraonáin. Cue some new age music.
34. Pack (down) : TAMP. The (clue) relationship with 37D is cute.
37. Gobble (up) : EAT
38. Former press secretary Fleischer : ARI
39. Arresting figure? : COP
42. Recipe meas. : TSP. My measures usually are along the lines of "a pinch", "some", "a whole lot" and occasionally "a boatload".
43. Green prefix : ECO
46. "Steamboat Willie" studio : DISNEY
49. Sub in Philly : HOAGIE. Food! I didn't know the origin of the word was from Philadelphia. No-one seems to be able to agree on the exact etymology though.
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51. Ibuprofen brand : ADVIL. I use generics. Cheaper, and the same stuff, I think. Marti?
52. "Psycho" setting : MOTEL
53. Fete : GALA
54. Important times : ERAS
56. Provocative : RACY
57. "Regrettably ..." : ALAS
58. Detective Wolfe : NERO. Crosses filled this in for me, which is just as well, as I'd no idea who he was. Proper names from US politics or pop culture often defeat me.
60. Guy : MALE
61. Broken mirror, to some : OMEN. Ladders, black cats, umbrellas, all kinds of dangerous stuff out there. Be careful, folks.
That's it from me - here's the grid:
Steve
17A. *Temper-tempering strategy : ANGER MANAGEMENT. According to the American Psychological Association "Anger is a completely normal, usually healthy, human emotion" so just remember that when I'm yelling at you, buster. It's you, not me.
23A. *Toon rodent superhero with a hamster assistant named Penfold : DANGER MOUSE. UK animated series from 1981-1992, scheduled to make a comeback in September.
30D. *Insect with patterned wings : TIGER MOTH. Also a training biplane used by the RAF in the 1930's. I remember standing next to one, awestruck, at an airshow when I was about five - the name has stuck in my mind ever since.
32D. *CBS weekend anchor during the Cronkite era : ROGER MUDD. No idea - thank you, crosses. When he was passed over in favor of Dan Rather to succeed Cronkite as the nightly news anchor he left for NBC.
69A. Popular disinfectant brand that fights what's hidden in the answers to starred clues : LYSOL. I use Clorox. Apparently I prefer benzalkonium chloride to sodium hypochlorite. Who knew?
Hail fellows, well met. Steve here forming a very minor part of a "Corner" trifecta - C.C. and Husker Gary put their heads together to come up with this one. The theme entries run both across and down, and the grid has vertical rather than the usual rotational symmetry which makes for an interesting grid design. All the GERMs are split in the same place, which is nicely consistent.
Let's see what else jumps out:
Across:
1. Tight-fitting : SNUG. Time to get back to the gym when my pants feel this way.
5. Office subs : TEMPS
10. Jogger's challenge : HILL. TEN-K went in. And came out.
14. Snapper rival : TORO. Battle of the lawnmowers and my last fill. I don't have a lawn, therefore no mower and no idea.
15. Walled Spanish city : AVILA. Pretty much slap-dab in the middle of the Iberian Peninsula too.
16. Cookie that has its own day every March 6 : OREO. Today is "National Middle Child" day. I'd better call my brother and congratulate him.
20. Holiday song sextet : GEESE. A-laying.
21. Hairstyles : DOS
22. Big tops, e.g. : TENTS
26. Lawn problem : WEED. So is a TORO with an oil leak.
27. Q5 automaker : AUDI. I thought it was an acronym for Auto Union Dortmund Industrie, but I can't find any corroboration of that. It's a good story though, so I'll stick to it. What does Google know anyway?
28. Detroit record label : MOTOWN
31. For only a select few : SECRET. Where does "Top Secret" come from? You'd have thought there would be a "Middle Secret" and "Bottom Secret" also, but apparently not.
35. Really bad : EVIL
36. Blink, say : REACT
40. Big Island coffee region : KONA
41. Baseball word with out or up : TAG. It's wouldn't be a C.C. puzzle without at least one baseball reference. Here's her homeboy Kennys Vargas tagging up from second. Sounds like I almost know what I'm talking about.
42. Floral industry hybrid : TEA ROSE
44. Jungle __ : GYM
45. Snowy 10-Across sights : SLEDS
47. Something worth waiting for? : TIP. We had "NO TIP" a couple of weeks ago - here's the balancing entry.
48. For a song : CHEAP
50. TV host Kelly : RIPA
52. Secure in a harbor : MOOR
53. Polished rocks : GEMS
55. Pipe cleaner : DRANO. More kitchen cleaning product.
59. Magazine contents : AMMO
62. Graceland middle name : ARON. Elvis "thank you thank you very much" Presley.
63. __ parking : VALET. Very common here in LA. If you want to steal a really nice car, put on a pair of black pants, a white shirt and red vest and stand outside a posh restaurant. Within two minutes someone will pull up in a $100,000 ride and toss you the keys.
64. U.S. territory since the Spanish-American War : GUAM
65. Delayed : LATE
66. "You’ve got a friend" : I CARE
67. Out of work : IDLE
68. Pasty-faced : ASHY. Ashy? I'd use "ashen" I think.
70. Paradise : EDEN
Down:
1. Dateless : STAG. In the UK, this is used more in the "men only" context rather than "solo".
2. What the fourth little piggy had : NONE. Either because the third piggy ate all the roast beef, or Number Four was vegetarian.
3. Prodded : URGED
4. Risks being caught off base : GOES AWOL. The military, not the baseball sense this time.
5. Tartan topper : TAM. The hat named for the Robert Burns character:
"... This truth fand honest Tam o' Shanter,
As he frae Ayr ae night did canter:
(Auld Ayr, wham ne'er a town surpasses,
For honest men and bonie lasses.) ..."
6. Sidestepped : EVADED
7. One with a fake ID, maybe : MINOR. You have to memorize how old you're pretending to be, and the star sign of your alleged birth date. Apparently.
8. Flat panel TV type : PLASMA
9. Give under pressure : SAG
10. Like a camp kid missing mom and dad : HOMESICK. "Hello Muddah, Hello Faddah ..."
11. Dancer Castle : IRENE. Who? Thank you, crosses. I'm not really a ballroom dancing aficionado. Here she is in 1912.
12. Period of sacrifice : LENT
13. Quite a bit : LOTS
18. Keep from expiring : RENEW
19. Piano showpiece : ETUDE
24. Britcom, e.g. : GENRE. Nice portmanteau word to boot.
25. Kicks out : OUSTS
28. Citi Field squad : METS. New York baseball.
29. Almond-shaped : OVAL. In the pointy-oval, almond-shaped kind of way.
33. One-named Irish singer : ENYA. She was born Eithne Ní Bhraonáin. Cue some new age music.
34. Pack (down) : TAMP. The (clue) relationship with 37D is cute.
37. Gobble (up) : EAT
38. Former press secretary Fleischer : ARI
39. Arresting figure? : COP
42. Recipe meas. : TSP. My measures usually are along the lines of "a pinch", "some", "a whole lot" and occasionally "a boatload".
43. Green prefix : ECO
46. "Steamboat Willie" studio : DISNEY
49. Sub in Philly : HOAGIE. Food! I didn't know the origin of the word was from Philadelphia. No-one seems to be able to agree on the exact etymology though.
51. Ibuprofen brand : ADVIL. I use generics. Cheaper, and the same stuff, I think. Marti?
52. "Psycho" setting : MOTEL
53. Fete : GALA
54. Important times : ERAS
56. Provocative : RACY
57. "Regrettably ..." : ALAS
58. Detective Wolfe : NERO. Crosses filled this in for me, which is just as well, as I'd no idea who he was. Proper names from US politics or pop culture often defeat me.
60. Guy : MALE
61. Broken mirror, to some : OMEN. Ladders, black cats, umbrellas, all kinds of dangerous stuff out there. Be careful, folks.
That's it from me - here's the grid:
Steve
