A lesser man would say there is something fishy about this puzzle but not I. Wait a minute...
Our friends Ron (Jazzbumpa) and C.C. used nine fish names as clues to which most of the answers were in-the-language phrases far afield from their piscatorial prompts.
Here's the type of SCHOOL referenced by Ron and C.C.'s title being broken up by the neighborhood bully.
Theme Entries: I thought the fill was pretty straight forward and so I opted to show each type of fish prepared for consumption after, uh, school was out
23. SOLE : ONE AND ONLY - Unique OR Dover SOLE with leeks and shrimp
25. SKATE : GLIDE ON ICE - Sonja Heine specialty OR SKATE with chicory and anchovies
41. FLUKE : STROKE OF LUCK - Winning the lottery OR Pan Seared FLUKE with Warm Wild Mushroom & Lentil Salad, Sunchoke Smear & Lardon
45. BASS : LOW VOICE - Requirement to sing Old Man River OR whole roasted BASS with lemon salt and potatoes
68. RAY : BEAM OF LIGHT - Flashlight emanation OR Stir-fried Stingray With Fermented Black Bean And Chinese Celery
92. PIKE : TOLLROAD - A pay-to-drive thoroughfare OR, while not gourmet, PIKE shore lunch by a lake is incredible!
94. CARP : MOAN AND GROAN - Complaining OR how CARP is prepared and served around here in every small town restaurant
115. SHARK : CARD EXPERT - Also card sharp OR Grilled Shark with Pebre sauce
117. SNAPPER : MOWER BRAND - My mower OR a pan-fried Red Snapper filet served with a basil cream sauce
Across
1. Space exploration vehicle : PROBE
6. Power couple : ITEM
10. Bowled over : AWED
14. Key holders : MAPS - Keys for two MAPS
18. Regatta entrant : RACER
19. __ noho: dance performed while seated or kneeling : HULA
20. Holder of 14 Grand Slam titles : NADAL
22. Sheltered at sea : ALEE
27. Majors won five times by Jack Nicklaus, familiarly : PGAS - Also six Masters, four U.S. Opens and three British Opens. It once looked inevitable that Tiger would catch him...
28. Weapon with a three-sided blade : EPEE
29. Map unit : MILE
30. Words after "If mom finds out" : I'M DEAD
31. Menu list : ENTREES - See theme entries
33. Drive to the airport, say : SEE OFF - Remember when you used to walk clear out to the boarding gate to SEE them OFF?
35. Tot tender : NANNY
36. Investment vehicle, briefly : IRA
37. Horace's "__ Poetica" : ARS - Even I figured out that means The Art Of Poetry
38. Blue Devils' conference : ACC
39. "Have a seat!" : PARK IT
49. Employee's hope : RAISE - Teachers all get RAISES based on experience and advanced hours. Not a nickel for excellence.
50. Book with a year on its cover : ALMANAC - You can buy this Back To The Future 2 prop replica on eBay
52. Interrupt : HORN IN
53. Java neighbor : BALI - The 1.5 mile wide BALI Strait separates BALI on the right and Java on the left
54. Bargain : BUY
55. Grandson of Adam : ENOS - Also known as ENOSH and must have had descendants that could swim
57. U-Haul rival : RYDER
58. How many autographs are signed : IN PEN - Hating fame, he became a recluse and his autograph is now worth $7,500
60. Put a stop to : HALT
62. Actor's aid : CUE
64. U.N. workers' agcy. : ILO
65. Amaze : STUN
71. Singer Redbone : LEON
72. Fire : CAN
73. Cheese companion : MAC - Mark's Bistro in Omaha was judged Omaha's best MAC and Cheese. Where is it in your town?
74. Woes : ILLS
75. Watch company logo : OMEGA - Is any watch worth $5,000?
77. "I'm __ here!" : OUTTA
79. Back : HIND
81. Mop partner? : GLO
82. Within : AMID
85. System based on urgency : TRIAGE - Where I first heard this word
87. Annoyed : NEEDLED
90. Five-time presidential candidate : NADER
97. The Brits call it an identity parade : LINEUP -Kramer stylin' in a LINEUP
99. Recipient of Bart's prank calls : MOE
100. Wide shoe size : EEE - The president got one of Shaq's size 23's. Width? Not listed.
101. Org. that promotes hunter safety : NRA
102. In __: trapped : A SPOT
105. Works one's fingers to the bone : SLAVES
107. Spells during a vacation, perhaps : CAT SITS
109. Old Athens enemy : SPARTA
111. Coll. seniors' tests : GRES
112. Oral history : LORE
113. Org. that fills bowls? : NCAA
119. "I'll buy" : ON ME
120. Cap : LIMIT
121. "Rock of __" : AGES
122. "Counting Sheep" company : SERTA
123. Many an Ivan : TSAR
124. Zaire's Mobutu __ Seko : SESE - The archetypical African dictator that amassed billions for himself in an oppressive reign in the Congo
125. Legal wrong : TORT
126. Defame : SMEAR
Down
1. Actor's aid : PROP - Like Yorick's skull
2. Infantry combat school decoration : RANGER TAB
3. Saltwater aquariums : OCEANARIA - Oceanarium seems more common
4. Wild thing : BEAST
5. Marine eagle : ERN
6. Wishful words : I HOPE SO
7. Works for a pianist : TUNES - This pianist's guy TUNES with a wrench and a electronic tuner in the middle of the picture
8. Fashion monthly : ELLE
9. Is allowed to : MAY - C'mon, we all played "Mother MAY I", didn't we?
10. Rolling Stones title woman : ANGIE
11. It might be packed : WALLOP - The late Muhammad Ali certainly packed one
12. She played Carmela Soprano : EDIE FALCO
13. Pop : DAD
14. Imperative : MANDATORY
15. Sci-fi staple : ALIEN - I wonder if Sigourney still has nightmares
16. Pie nut : PECAN
17. Run-down : SEEDY
21. Welcoming symbol : LEI
24. "Nothing runs like" it : DEERE
26. Hardly a picky eater : OMNIVORE
29. Popular place to visit : MECCA
32. Acquire abundantly : RAKE IN - After he RAKED IN his chips, Rick asked him to leave
33. Pond gunk : SCUM - The fate of our golf course ponds once the spring runoff ends
34. Back again : FRO
36. State since 1948: Abbr. : ISR - May, 1948 headline
38. Partner : ALLY
40. Elec. bill unit : KWH - Our rate here is 6.7¢/KWH. So I can run my 1,500 Watt heater for 10 hrs for 67¢
42. Singer K.T. : OSLIN - Not k.d. LANGE
43. Animals : FAUNA
44. Ominous peals : KNELLS
46. Small studio production : INDIE - This biggest grossing INDIE netted $51M in 2015
47. Spanish sky : CIELO - I'll bet you can translate "El cielo es azul en España"
48. Company infamous for shredding : ENRON
51. Arguing against : ANTI
54. Tree with delicate bark : BEECH
56. Hard-to-like person : SCHMO
59. Strikers' org.? : PBA
60. Game that reportedly originated in Texas : HOLD 'EM - 2-7 off suit is considered the worst starting hand in this game
61. Indoor gridiron org. : AFL
63. Colorado native : UTE
65. Great guy? : SCOTT - Clever!
66. Prefix meaning "bull" : TAURO
67. Up to : UNTIL
69. Valuable tunnel : MINE
70. Prime minister before Yitzhak : GOLDA - Kiev-born GOLDA became Israel's Prime Minister in the country's 21st year
71. Texas university in Beaumont : LAMAR
73. Belgian surrealist : MAGRITTE - Rene's depiction of a decision we make everyday
76. Sacred Indian river : GANGES
78. Challenge : TALL ORDER
80. "Let’s do it my way" : INDULGE ME
81. Inheritance factor : GENE
83. "Whatever" : I DON'T CARE
84. Heading for an annual list : DEAR SANTA - Asking for world peace AND a Barbie Doll doesn't fool the big guy!
86. Many millennia : EON
88. Capitol tops : DOMES - We will definitely have some here who will know the only U.S. Capitol without a DOME.
89. Land along the Mekong : LAOS
91. Strand under a microscope : RNA
93. DDE rival : AES - Adlai got the silver medal in '52 and '56
95. Least remote : NEAREST
96. Dissuade : DETER
98. __ Island: South Carolina training base : PARRIS
102. Accessory named for a racetrack : ASCOT - Do you remember when Liza shocked the highbrows at ASCOT by yelling, "C'mon Dover, move your bloomin' arse!"
103. Intervals : SPANS
104. Cleveland suburb named for an Italian city : PARMA
106. Iconic sportster : VETTE
107. Quail : COWER
108. Against a thing, legally : IN REM
110. Rose of Guns N' Roses : AXL - AXLE and AXEL also available in our gift shop
112. Target's target, e.g. : LOGO
114. Month before Nisan : ADAR
116. Circle ratios : PI'S
117. Yoga accessory : MAT
118. Some coll. degrees : BS'S
Well, we didn't find NEMO but the ones we did were wonderful. Now observe the daily limit at our own Lake Comment:
GRID
Notes from C.C.:
1) You seriously rock, Gary! Amazing visuals.
2) The fifth Minnesota Crossword Tournament will be held at the Landmark Center in St. Paul today. You can click here for more details. I just learned that the incredible Eric Maddy is flying in from California to compete. Eric sat in the same table as our own Steve at Crosswords LA a couple of years ago and won the title. He's won many crossword tournaments.
