Sunday, October 2, 2016 Thomas Bianchi & Patti Varol

Theme: "Beatles Mash-up" - Each theme entry is a mash-up of two Beatles' songs.

27A. Cold War defector's observation? : I'M A LOSER BACK IN THE USSR. I'm a Loser. Back in the USSR.  Defectors tend to have high esteem.

43A. Promise to the IRS? : WE CAN WORK IT OUT, TAXMAN. We Can Work It Out. Taxman.

67A. "Please take the van, dear"? : HONEY, DON'T DRIVE MY CAR. Honey Don't. Drive My Car.  Not familiar with "Honey Don't". But the mashup is fantastic.

90A. Agreement with a Scandinavian furniture maker? : LET IT BE NORWEGIAN WOOD. Let It Be. Norwegian Wood. The latter is also a very popular Japanese novel we all secretly read in high school. So mild by today's standards.

108A. Words from the brokenhearted? : TELL ME WHY YOU WON'T SEE ME. Tell Me Why. You Won't See Me. The latter is unknown to me.

Only 5 theme entries, but they're all very long, occupying a total of 101 theme squares. I mentioned before that somehow grid spanners for a 21*21 are tougher to deal with than spanners for 15*15.  19 & 20 are tricky too. 15 or under are friendlier.

Congratulations on your LAT debut, Thomas Bianchi! Are you this professor? The six characters on the podium says Ocean University of China, which is based in Tsingtao, famous for its beer.

Patti is Rich's assistant and editor for The Crossword Club. She taught me by example what a clean puzzle is. Don't miss this great interview. Patti is also a super fast solver. She probably nails every Sunday puzzle in 8 to 10 minutes, or even faster.

Across:

      

1. Really silly : APISH. Not a word I use.

6. All-__: high-end cookware : CLAD. Holy smokes, D-Otto/Steve/TTP, look at the price.

10. Scribble : JOT

13. Chows down : EATS

17. Looie's underling : NON-COM

19. Mata __ : HARI

20. Condo, say : UNIT

22. Work for a captain : CREW

23. Transfer, in a way : DECANT. Oh, wine.

24. "The Rachel Papers" novelist : AMIS (Martin)

25. Attorney general after William Barr : JANET RENO. We also have HARPER LEE (116. 1961 Pulitzer-winning novelist) and ANAIS NIN (89. "A Spy in the House of Love" novelist). Three full names. Wonderful. All women.

30. Physicist Mach : ERNST

31. Double-crosser : RAT

32. Pommes frites sprinkling : SEL

33. Shelf-filling bks. : OED (Oxford English Dictionary). 20 volumes.

34. Accident initials : EMS

37. Platform for Apple mobile devices : IOS

38. Disinclined : AVERSE. I used to think CenturyLink's 1 Gig package is ridiculous. Man, how time has changed!

41. Antique auto : REO

49. In a crowd of : AMONG

50. Cover up : HIDE

51. Have : OWN

52. "You got that right!" : AMEN

54. Colorful salamander : NEWT. Looks like a plastic toy.

55. Bias : SPIN

57. Dublin-born rocker/activist : BONO

59. "Fantastic!" : BRAVO

60. Facetious way to vote : OFTEN.  Not really "facetious" for All-Star fan voting. You can vote up to 30 times.

62. Volvo competitor : SAAB

64. Holiday evergreen : FIR

66. Entomologist's tool : NET

72. Netizen's guffaw : LOL

73. Agnus __ : DEI

74. Follow : HEED

75. "Gladiator" setting : ARENA

76. Traveler's aid : ATLAS. Today's kids probably will never touch a real atlas.

78. Druid, for one : CELT

80. Formerly, formerly : ERST

81. Pizza Quick sauce brand : RAGU. Staple in our house.

85. Layer of ore : VEIN

86. Beheld : SAW

87. Vehicle for hire : TAXI. And 56. Human-powered 87-Across : PEDICAB

89. Creator of a cocky hare : AESOP

96. In-flight info : ETA

97. Leans (on) : RELIES

98. Nashville awards org. : CMA

99. Storied abduction craft : UFO

100. Barely make, with "out" : EKE

103. Sign of a hit : SRO (Standing Room Only)

105. WWII female : WAC

106. Assume as fact : POSIT

117. Aspiring atty.'s exam : LSAT

118. Protective finish : ENAMEL

119. Many a folk song writer: Abbr. : ANON. Or many a blog commenter.

120. Hospital fluids : SERA

121. Forget about : OMIT

122. Highway postings : LIMITS

123. Van __, Calif. : NUYS. What's it famous for?

124. Gravel alternative : TAR

125. IRS auditor's requests : RCTS (Receipts)

126. Longship language : NORSE. Wiki says "Longships were a type of ship invented and used by the Norsemen for trade, commerce, exploration, and warfare during the Viking Age."

   

Down:

1. "The King __" : AND I

2. Work with a writer of its ilk contained in it : POEM. Can you explain this clue to me?

3. South American native : INCA

4. Deli sight : SCALE

5. In tribute to : HONORING

6. Meeting illustration : CHART

7. Moussaka meat : LAMB. Never had Moussaka. Wiki says it's eggplant-based.

8. The Habanera from "Carmen," e.g. : ARIA

9. Separate : DISCRETE

10. Self-defense method : JUJITSU. Which one do you use: Jujitsu, Jiu-Jitsu or Jujutsu? The Ju part is the same as the Ju in Judo, meaning "gentle". Jitsu means "technique".  Below is how Jujitsu & Judo are written out in Japanese/Chinese. Notice the first character Ju is exactly the same? The Do in Judo is the same as Chinese "tao", meaning "way".

Judo

11. "... roasting __ open fire" : ON AN

12. Salon supply : TINTS

13. Light brown : ECRU

14. Childish comeback : ARE SO

15. Needing a chill pill : TENSE

16. War metaphor : SWORD

18. Aptly named Vt. ski resort : MT. SNOW

21. Braves' All-Star pitcher Julio : TEHERAN. Easily obtainable via crosses. It's also the alternative spelling of Tehran, I think.

26. Fax predecessor : TELEX

28. "Put a tiger in your tank" brand : ESSO

29. Big name in corn syrup : KARO. Some Korean Hot Pepper Paste (Gochujang) have corn syrup. Some have rice syrup. I can't tell the difference. They're just delicious.

34. McGregor of "Trainspotting" : EWAN

35. Internet __: viral item : MEME

36. Garbage barge : SCOW

38. Analogous : AKIN

39. YouTube clip, for short : VID. I recently discovered this song. Lovely.

40. School for some princes : ETON

42. He played Yuri in "Doctor Zhivago" : OMAR

44. Composer Bruckner : ANTON

45. Savanna heavyweight : RHINO

46. Some bargains : TWOFERS

47. Freezer maker : AMANA

48. "When pigs fly!" : NEVER. Followed by NOT (53. Word in most Commandments)

55. Eye problem : STYE

57. Meter writer : BARD

58. Japanese sash : OBI

59. __ Mawr : BRYN

61. Agents of Uncle Sam : FEDs

62. Leave in, to an editor : STET

63. Sports drink suffix : ADE

65. "How __ Your Mother": CBS sitcom : I MET. Not a dupe of METS (114. 2015 National League champs). Patti's team.

67. Most of the RMS Queen Mary, now : HOTEL. Have any of you boarded that ship?

68. Skateboarding leap : OLLIE. We just had this a few months ago.

69. Red Wings' org. : NHL

70. Brazilian airline : VARIG. Total stranger to me.

71. Panama-born MLB Hall of Famer : CAREW (Rod). Used to bowl in Boomer's league.

72. Head, for short : LAV

77. Price of hand delivery? : ANTE. Oh, poker hand.

79. Decorative pitcher : EWER

80. They're no longer together : EXES. I really like Jennifer Aniston. She's so sweet and kind.

82. Not worth __: valueless : A SOU

83. Loaf, with "off" : GOOF

84. Beehive, e.g. : UPDO

86. Rubberneckers : STARERS

87. Like some pasta : TRICOLOR

88. Amaze : AWE

91. Caller ID? : IT'S ME. Fun clue.

92. When a ball may be dropped : NEW YEAR

93. "Challenge What's Possible" skin care brand : OLAY. Been using it since college.

94. Computer image : ICON

95. Dutch brewery : AMSTEL

100. "__ Frome" : ETHAN

101. Sandra's "Speed" co-star : KEANU

102. "The Jetsons" boy : ELROY

104. Young hooter : OWLET

106. Annie of "Ghostbusters" : POTTS. We just had her recently.

107. Día de San Valentín sentiment : TE AMO. It's these three characters in Chinese.

109. ICU caregivers : LPNs

110. Mount Olympus VIP : HERA. VIP made me think the answer might be abbreviated.

111. Letters at Camp Lejeune : USMC

112. "Stop right there!" : WAIT

113. Qatari chieftain : EMIR

115. "If all __ fails ... " : ELSE

C.C.