Theme: Add a little Einsteinium (Atomic Symbol ES)
Back to back weeks of Jeffrey is a new twist on Friday, but the theme of adding ES to the end of the second word of an in the language phrase to completely change the phrase is a classic. (Concise!) The awesome part is that each phrase also completely changes the sound of the second word as well as its meaning. The new phrases are clued with humor. The central grid spanner gives the puzzle a nice appearance. We have all the letters but Q and Z so there are many fun words in the fill plus JW's usual two word fill. CAJOLED, FEEL BAD, GENESES, NEW MATH, GAME FACE, IN UNISON, MILANESE, OLIVE PIT are the features.
31A. Duffer's nineteenth-hole litany? : GOLF GRIPES (10). The grip becomes the complaint for the golfer.
37A. Where some climbers take smoking breaks? : CIGARETTE BUTTES (15). My favorite where the remnant of a cigarette becomes a thing of BEAUTY.
44A. Highlights of the hippo ballet in "Fantasia"? : JUMBO JETES (10). Ah the 747 becomes this CLASSIC.
62A. Milliseconds? : TINY TIMES (9). Do you think of the Christmas Carol or Herbert Khaury?
Well enough of the silliness let's get to solving.
Across:
1. Big name in arcades : SEGA. They lost out to the others like Xbox and Wii in the home gaming but dominate the arcade MARKET.
5. Show pride : BEAM. When you look at a parent watching a child you can see the beam.
9. Speck : ATOM.
13. A or B, in preparations : PLAN.
14. Hard to watch : UGLY. Perhaps this might explain the CLUE.
15. Baseball commissioner emeritus Bud : SELIG.
19. Entry mechanism : STILE. For all you subway riders, this was a gimme.
20. Less prosaic : ODDER.
21. Canceled (out) : XED.
23. __-Picone: women's fashion label : EVAN. Last week it was Anne Klein.
27. High court delivery : LOB. Tennis court in honor of the US Open going on now.
30. Job application ID : SSN.
34. Eponymous physicist James : JOULE. I found him fascinating, his career was not as a scientist but as a BREWER.
36. Star __: Asian spice : ANISE. And a controversial Herbal TEA.
42. "What's in __?" : A NAME? JW loves him Shakespeare.
43. Town in a 1945 Pulitzer-winning novel : ADANO. John Hersey novel.
47. WWII female : WAC.
50. "You're the __ That I Want": "Grease" song : ONE.
52. 1960s educational experiment : NEW MATH.
55. Spirit : LIFE.
57. 22-Down sound : YIP.
59. Vital vessel : AORTA.
60. Amazon transaction, e.g. : E-SALE.
65. Port array : DOCKS.
66. "Amarantine" musician : ENYA.
68. With 6-Down, savings : NEST. Gratuitous referential.
69. It contains diamonds : DECK. Good clue.
70. Deco designer : ERTE. Romain de Tirtoff (23 November 1892 – 21 April 1990) was a Russian-born French artist and designer known by the pseudonym Erté, from the French pronunciation of his initials, per wiki.
Down:
1. "SNL" staples : SPOOFS.
2. Loses, in a way : ELUDES.
3. Plant manager's domain? : GARDEN. Really fun misdirection.
4. Clarence Odbody, in a Capra classic : ANGEL. A wonderful character..
6. See 68-Across : EGG.
7. Author Haley : ALEX.
8. Whitman's "Song of __" : MYSELF. Last week he sent Poetry in motion, this week a POEM which I dedicate to the memory of Clear Ayes.
9. Braying beast : ASS.
10. Cabeza, across the Pyrenees : TETE. French equivalent of the Spanish for head.
11. Tapenade discard : OLIVE PIT. A discovery of southern France next to Italy and the land where they speak...
12. Lombardy dialect : MILANESE.
16. Points of origin : GENESES. The Latin plural of Genesis. A different use of ES.
18. NYSE trader : ARBitrage.
22. It may be a toy : DOG. Tricky for such a short fill.
25. Fluish symptoms : AGUE.
26. Doofus : DOLT.
28. Procter & Gamble brand : BRAUN. The razor PEOPLE.
32. Sic on : LET AT.
33. Fascinated by : INTO.
34. Entrance support : JAMB. Door jamb.
35. "Watch how wonder unfolds" snacks : OREOS.
37. Said "Pretty please" to, say : CAJOLED. Straight out of the French Cajoler.
38. Harmoniously : IN UNISON.
39. Determined countenance : GAME FACE. What a great fill; I have seen many game faces in so many different settings outside of sports.
40. Fall setting : EDEN. Oh this is devilishly clever, the fall of man.
41. Foundation : BASE.
45. Exultation : JOY.
46. Found the right words for, maybe : EDITED. I really like this clue.
47. More affable : WARMER. A tricky clue for simple fill.
48. Swear : ATTEST.
49. Unsullied : CHASTE. Not the word I would think of for these UNSULLIED.
53. Angkor __: Cambodian temple : WAT. This is only a recent gimme: A wat (Thai: วัด wat Lao: ວັດ vad, Khmer: វត្ត wōat) is a monastery-temple in Thailand, Cambodia or Laos. The term is borrowed from Sanskrit vāṭa "enclosure" per wiki.
54. Wavy pattern : MOIRE. From the French moi·ré meaning rippled.
56. Organization name selected over "Buffalos" in a close 1868 vote : ELKS. The BPOE voted 8 to 7. They have counted many Presidents of the US in their membership.
58. Yearn : PINE. This is an interesting word because along with desire, it can signal withering away. From the Latin poena, penalty, from Greek poinē;
61. 63-Down hrs. : EST.
63. Tumblr HQ site : NYC.
64. Jaw : YAK. I guess it is time for me to stop yakking and wish you all a happy long weekend and Labor Day. Thanks Jeffrey and all the Corner. Lemonade out.
