17 A. It may lead to an acquisition : TAKE OVER ATTEMPT. One corporation ATTEMPTS to take over another.
28 A. Coalition : JOINT ENDEAVOR. Working together for a common goal. Rather a different shade of meaning, as compared to ATTEMPT.
48 A. With "the," one's best shot : OLD COLLEGE TRY. This is a wild and desperate ATTEMPT to achieve something, perhaps with a bit of showboating along the way.
62. Sincere intention to be fair : GOOD FAITH EFFORT. This is actually a legal term, relating to "what a reasonable person would determine is a diligent and honest EFFORT under the same set of facts or circumstances." Troutt v. City of Lawrence, 2008 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 61641 (S.D. Ind. Aug. 8, 2008)
As I see it, all except JOINT ENDEAVOR carry some implication of failure, realized after the fact. Does that seem right?
Hi, gang, JazzBumpa here. Nicely constructed theme, with a couple of grid-spanners. The rest of the puzzle lies before us. Shall we do or not do?
Across
1. Coors "malternative" : ZIMA. A kinda-sorta quasi-beer-like fluid from a company that makes other beer-like fluids.
5. NFL ball carriers : RBS. Running Backs. Who will be the first to take this DF?
8. Silently understood : TACIT. That's one sense of it. Another is simply remaining silent. I have several segments of The Nutcracker marked TACIT.
13. National Air and Space Museum movie format : IMAX. Large screen movie presentations.
14. Culturally affected : ARTY.
16. Shrine to remember : ALAMO. As the phrase "Remember the ALAMO" reminds us.
20. Bucket filler : ICE. One of many possibilities.
21. Cooking oil brand : MAZOLA. Corn oil.
22. Sport with masks : EPEE. Fencing.
23. Nag's comment? : NEIGH. Just horsing around - not emulating the Bickersons.
25. Binding words : I DO. Marriage.
27. Stately tree : ELM. Once upon a time.
32. SeaWorld swimmer : ORCA. Shamu the killer whale.
33. Strauss' "__ Rosenkavalier" : DER. The knight of the Roses. DER is the nominative singular masculine definite article in German.
34. Source of ultraviolet rays : SUN. And infra-red, and visible light, and even a small amount of X-Rays. The solar spectrum actually peaks in the visible light region. I'm not delighted with this clue.
35. Evidently is : SEEMS. Appears to be.
37. Enthusiasm : VIM. Usually travels with vigor.
39. The Masters or The Open : MAJOR. Golf tournaments.
43. Aurora's Greek counterpart : EOS. Goddess of the dawn.
45. Beat a hasty retreat : LAM. Here a verb - not it's most common usage.
47. Yawner : BORE. Uninteresting performance or presentation.
51. Dashboard meas. : MPH. Miles Per Hour.
53. __ Jose : SAN. California city. Do you know the way?
54. Race paces : TROTS. Well this interesting and brings out the pedant in me. In harness racing, there are two varieties of races, for TROTTERS and PACERS. They have distinctly different gaits, and breaking stride can lead to disqualification from a race. In other races, where you sit down right on the horse, running is done at a full gallop. So I'm not sure what this clue is getting at.
55. Met showstopper : ARIA. Opera song
57. "We can do it, team!" : LET’S GO. Closely related to the theme, but not in an appropriate location.
59. Belittle : DIS. Disrespect, in street talk.
65. Maneuver around : EVADE. Or avoid. I'm never sure.
66. Jordanian queen dowager : NOOR. Lisa Najib Halaby [b. 1951, Washington D. C.] is an American woman who became the 4th and final wife of King Hussein [d. 1999] of Jordan. She works on behalf of several international organizations.
67. Vacationing, perhaps : AWAY. Perhaps on a business trip, the lam, or playing hooky. Several possibilities.
68. Know without knowing why : SENSE. Oh, what a feeling.
69. Second afterthought: Abbr. : PPS. Post Post Script. For when your thoughts are really untimely or disorganized.
70. Daughter of Elizabeth II : ANNE. Born Aug 15, 1950. She had two marriages and survived a kidnapping attempt. She also has a criminal record, having violated both the speed limit and the Dangerous Dogs Act. She is not to be confused with anther royal Anne who was the eponym for a common weed, a furniture design, and a neckline with a raised back and open front. Oh, yeah - the earlier ANNE was also Queen of Great Britain from 1702 until her death from a stroke in 1714.
Down
1. Pasta choice : ZITI. Medium sized pasta tubes.
2. All-in-one Apple : i-MAC. Desktop computer system.
3. Act in a conciliatory way : MAKE NICE. Whether you want to or not.
4. Log splitter : AXE. Log splitter's tool.
5. Plundered : RAVAGED. Plunder is the violent and dishonest acquisition of property. Ravage is damage severely. Not at all the same thing.
6. Khrushchev's successor : BREZHNEV. Leonid, born 1906, General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1964 until his death in 1982.
7. Texas ALer : STRO. Astros, an American League baseball team, inexplicably named after George Jetson's dog.
8. What Tweety tawt he taw : TAT. Like this.
9. Out of the wind : ALEE. Gimmee shelter.
10. Pitcher in the woods : CAMPER. Tent pitcher.
11. Spur on : IMPEL. Basically the same meaning as propel. The use of "IMPEL" has been steadily declining for 200 years.
12. Tribal symbol : TOTEM. A spirit being, sacred object or symbol that serves as emblm for a clan or tribe.
15. Connecticut Ivy Leaguer : YALIE. Student or graduate of Yale University. These people are also know as Elis.
18. Fail to say : OMIT. Leave out.
19. "Voilà!" cries : TADAS. "There you are," or "I did it."
24. Glossy coating : ENAMEL. Paint or the natural covering layer on your teeth.
26. Egg cell : OVUM. Female reproductive cell in humans and animals.
28. "__ Boys": Alcott sequel : JO'S. A Sequal to "Little Men," occurring 10 years later.
29. Rock to refine : ORE. Pay dirt.
30. Practice exercise : DRILL. A method of training and discipline.
31. How money might be lost : ON A BET. One of many ways.
36. Fixes the fairway, say : SODS. Here, a verb, meaning to install sod.
38. Soda jerk's workplace : MALT SHOP.
40. Makes a note of : JOTS DOWN.
41. Boston Garden hockey immortal : ORR. Bobby. YouTube has several long video compilations of his highlight moments. Here is just one, and perhaps the most famous.
42. Spanish king : REY.
44. Milan's Teatro alla __ : SCALA. Opera house since 1778, one of the world's leading venues for opera and ballet.
46. Business deals : MERGERS. The joining of two companies to make a new, bigger entity. The opposite of what I had the last time I blogged.
48. John Glenn, for one : OHIOAN. Do you know any others?
49. Words often starting a long shot : ONE IN . . . Often followed by . . . a million.
50. Blunder : GOOF. All GOOFs [in this sense] are mistakes. A blunder is a stupid or careless one.
51. Dungeons & Dragons spellcasters : MAGES. D & D has several categories of characters, each with its own unique powers, potentials and vulnerabilities.
52. Demonstrate as true : PROVE. Provide convincing evidence.
56. Tacks on : ADDS. Emends.
58. Sporty car roof : T-TOP. Removable roof panels make a vehicle so equipped into an almost-but-not-quite convertible.
60. Farsi-speaking land : IRAN. Across the gulf from Saudi Arabia, and contiguous with several other countries.
61. Eye sore : STYE. An inflammation of a sebaceous gland in the eyelid, generally caused by a staph infection. I opted not to show any pictures.
63. Membership cost : FEE. AKA Dues.
64. LAX overseer : FAA. Federal Aviation Administration. Are they lax? I haven't flown in years. You can enlighten me in comments.
Did you get the TADA, or did you not do? That is the question.
That's all, folks.
Cool regards!
JzB
That's all, folks.
Cool regards!
JzB
