There are 612 people in the US named Darin McDaniel: our Darin McDaniel had One (1) NYT published puzzle in 2010, a Sunday no less! That PUZZLE (spoiler alert- this has the answers) was a delight. He then had One (1) LAT five years ago that was also a DELIGHT. Today, Darin who went to the same high school as the late great Merl Reagle, found six known entertainers who had last names that both began and ended with the letter "S." He then removed the first S to reveal a new word and paired that with a word that used the removed "S" as a possessive. He then clued the new phrase with wit. I love word play and deception and this was fun, simple once you got the gimmick, and it is a smooth pangram! With 70 spaces used up in the 6 themers, there was not room for much else but we did get ASPIRED, BAPTIZE, ALL WISE, BLUEBIRD and OLD SALTS. If you hate proper names go home now, otherwise hop on for the ride.
17A. "What's My Line?" comedian's craft brewery? : SOUPY'S ALES (10). This old COMIC.
23A. Pop diva's fruit stand? : BRITNEY'S PEARS (13). This DIVA.
30A. American Idol winner's amusement chain? : JORDIN'S PARKS (12). This WOMAN.
39A. Rapper's shopping center properties? : BIGGIE'S MALLS (12). This MAN.
49A. Guitarist's cash register company? : STEPHEN'S TILLS (13). This ROCKER.
59A. "Whose Line Is It Anyway?" comedian's flooring store? : RYAN'S TILES (10). This not old COMIC.
Across:
1. Arafat's successor : ABBAS. lat name clue, last name answer. LINK. More...45D. Syrian ruling family : ASSADS. Some HISTORY.
6. City near Yorba Linda : BREA.
10. Brief responses to common concerns : FAQS. Frequently Asked Questions.
14. Composer of a seven-movement work that excludes Earth : HOLST. I could recall the PLANETS but not his name.
15. Tach count : REVS. Revolutions measured on your tachometer.
16. "... even now / __ myself to thy direction": "Macbeth" : I PUT.
From overcredulous haste. But G-d above
Deal between thee and me, for even now
I put myself to thy direction and
Unspeak mine own detraction, here abjure
The taints and blames I laid upon myself...
19. Sail support : SPAR.
20. R.E.M.'s "The __ Love" : ONE I. A love song?
21. Heifetz's teacher : AUER.
22. Present : HERE.
27. City of northern Spain : OVIEDO. Northern Spain
29. David and Bird : LARRYS. Seinfeld and the Celtics, quite a pair,
34. In a blue state : SAD.
35. Nile reptile : ASP.
36. Corvallis sch. : OSU. In this case, Oregon State University. The Beavers.
45. Equally speedy : AS FAST.
48. Forest bovine : WILD OX. Very popular in the Torah. More Bible, 61A. Número de Mandamientos : DIEZ. The ten Commandments.
53. Collate : SORT. Having copiers that collate was great.
54. Film on water : SCUM. Pond scum anyone?
55. Toddler's drink : WAWA. Bobwa? Not last week's musical clue.
58. Farm opening? : AGRIculture.
62. Frank of 1950s Broadway : ANNE. The PLAY starred Lee Strasberg's daughter Susan.
63. Basketwork fiber : ISTLE. We have had this little used word a few times but not since 2013; it was very popular in the NYT for years. I wonder if AGAVE is used to make a 66A. Jai alai basket : CESTA.
64. Bone-dry : SERE.
65. Hwy. crossings : JCTS. Junctions.
Down:
1. "Understood" : AH SO. For me this is almost a pejorative.
2. Windfall : BOON.
3. Symbol of happiness : BLUEBIRD. My go to...
4. Had ambitions : ASPIRED.
5. Mess : STY.
6. Big name in coffee makers : BRAUN. More famous for their RAZORS, I think.
7. Civil War signature : R. E. LEE.
8. __ other: alternating : EVERY. Maybe we could blog that way.
9. Sancho's "steed" : ASS. Sancho Panza faithful squire to Don Quixote...
10. Pole users : FISHERS. I guess the name comes from people who fish, but don't we really say fishermen (fisherwomen, fisherperson)?
11. Materialize : APPEAR.
12. Slate source : QUARRY. noun: a place, typically a large, deep pit, from which stone or other materials are or have been extracted.
13. Burnout cause : STRESS.
18. Squelched : SAT ON. Ideas or rumors, not people, hopefully
24. Forest's 2006 Oscar-winning role : IDI. He came a long way from A Crying Game and Species
26. Where the Indus flows: Abbr. : PAKistan.
27. IHOP orders : OJS. Orange Juices.
28. U.S. news source since 1942 : VOA. Voice of America.
31. Slump : SAG.
32. Tire pressure meas. : PSI. Pounds per Square Inch.
33. Parody : APE.
36. Veterans of the briny : OLD SALTS. With 57D. Where to find 36-Down : ASEA.
37. __-pitch : SLO. I think they only use this term in CANADA, so hey EH.
38. Steel giant, as it was known from 1986-2001 : USX. Before that they were known as X.
39. Cleanse spiritually : BAPTIZE. No religion but an ancient rite.
40. Book ending : ISH.
41. Co. merged into Verizon : GTE.
42. Moves in a school : SWIMS. I love this clue, nice and tricky.
43. .001 of an inch : MIL.
44. Omniscient : ALL WISE
46. Cheap smoke : STOGIE.
47. "Cyrano de Bergerac" Best Actor (1950) : FERRER.
50. "Bye Bye Bye" band : NSYNC. They were Justin Timberlake, JC Chasez, Chris Kirkpatrick, Joey Fatone, and Lance Bass.
52. iPod contents : TUNES.
56. Shoemaker's strip : WELT. Shoes 101.
59. British rule in India : RAJ.
60. Hold 'em tell, maybe : TIC. We are talking Poker. The WSOP final table starts on this Sunday, 8 Million to the winner.
Well that was over quickly with lots of music; welcome to Fridays Darin. Thank you all for coming to my party. Lemonade out.
