Theme: "Between the Covers" - Seven magazines are inserted into familiar phrases. The first two words in each theme entry form a familiar phrase as well.
23A. Some pool English? : SIDE SPIN EFFECTS. Side spin. Side effects. Spin is now a web magazine.
27A. Ballet phenom? : BREAK OUT DANCER. Break out. Break dancer. Out is focused on LGBT.
40A. Regular stockings, as opposed to fishnets? : GARDEN VARIETY HOSE. Garden variety. Garden hose. Variety.
63A. 8 or 9, e.g.? : PRIME TIME NUMBER. Prime time. Prime number. Time.
70A. Snowfall during the Olympics? : WINTER GAMES COAT. Winter Games. Winter coat. Both Will Shortz and Mike Shenk worked for Games magazine at one time.
94A. Doghouses and scratching posts? : PET PEOPLE PROJECTS. People is inserted into "Pet projects". What are "Pet people?" though. Pet owners?
112A. Goal for a teacher's pet? : GOLD STAR RECORD. Gold star. Gold record. I leafed through Star from time to time. In Touch and US Weekly have better paper quality.
119A. Subscription deal promos ... and a hint to this puzzle's seven other longest answers :
MAGAZINE INSERTS
Despite eight long theme entries, this puzzle only has 138 entries. The top and bottom pair have a 8-letter overlap and the fill do not suffer. Amazing.
Despite eight long theme entries, this puzzle only has 138 entries. The top and bottom pair have a 8-letter overlap and the fill do not suffer. Amazing.
Our blog label suggests that this is Derek Bowman's first Sunday LAT. He did have a NYT Sunday in 2010.
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| XWord Info photo |
Across:
1. Mouth Healthy org. : ADA
4. Lineal beginner : MATRI. Got via crosses.
9. Gibbons, e.g. : APES
13. __ palm : BETEL. Not ITCHY.
18. Long and drawn-out, say : TORTUROUS. Describes my tooth trouble aptly.
20. Meredith Grey's half sister on "Grey's Anatomy" : LEXIE. Also got via crosses. She looks sweet.
22. 14th-century Russian ruler : IVAN I
25. "Save Me the Waltz" writer Fitzgerald : ZELDA
26. Vote in : ELECT
29. "The Fountainhead" author Rand : AYN
30. More agile : SPRYER. Spelling check prefers SPRIER.
33. Two by two : IN PAIRS
34. Shoebox letters : EEE
35. Chess pieces : MEN. Do any of you play chess? My Dad loved Chinese chess.
37. Holds (up) : PROPS'
49. Old DJs' assortment : LPs
51. Same, for starters : EQUI
52. Military wear, for short : CAMO
53. Courted : WOOED
54. Logan of "60 Minutes" : LARA. Brave girl.
55. One in a rib cage : LUNG
56. Sends out : EMITS
58. Shone : GLISTENED
61. "Fuller House" actor : SAGET (Bob) I wonder why the Olsen twins declined the opportunities.
66. Word for a lady : SHE, Nice new clue.
68. PC file extension : EXE
69. "Wish Tree" artist : ONO
79. "It's the Hard-Knock Life" soloist : ANNIE
83. Vulcans, for one : ALIEN RACE. Solid fill.
84. Biker's invite : HOP ON
86. Skip it : PASS. Not OMIT.
87. Gentle : KIND. So many kind souls in our blog.
88. Territories of a sort : TURFS
91. Writer __ Neale Hurston : ZORA
92. Samarra's land : IRAQ
93. Use (up) : EAT
98. White choice, familiarly : CHARD. Chardonnay. Not a wine drinker, This & CAB always stump me.
100. Deli option : RYE
101. Texting qualifier : IMO
102. Nickname in satirical music : WEIRD AL. Grid-friendly name.
106. Transferred to computer memory : READ IN
109. __ tai : MAI
116. DVD player option : EJECT
118. Paragon : IDEAL. Here is a picture of JD and Bob taken during their vacation a few weeks ago. So sweet.
122. Punk, e.g. : GENRE
123. Bologna bride : SPOSA. Learning moment for me.
124. Cry from Poirot : SACRE BLEU! We often see SACRE or BLEU. Nice to see the full exclamation.
125. Jane Austen specialty : IRONY
126. Cabinet dept. with an atom on its seal : ENER. And 127. Cabinet dept. first led by Hamilton : TREAS
128. Op-__ : EDS. Not ART.
Down:
1. Hopelessly lost : AT SEA
2. Tatted covering : DOILY. Nothing TATTOO-related.
3. Eve who played the principal in "Grease" films : ARDEN
4. Exuberant review term : MUST-SEE
5. Dadaist Jean : ARP
6. Paris pronoun : TOI
7. Show for quick feedback : RUN BY. When in doubt about certain themes/fill, I ask Argyle, D-Otto & Boomer.
8. Val d'__: French ski resort : ISERE. I recognize one name: ALPS.
9. Two before Charlie : ALFA. NATO alphabet.
10. Sneak a look at : PEEK INTO
11. Former pen pal? : EX-CON. Never tired seeing this type of clue.
12. Exercise done from a supine position : SIT-UP
13. Unusually strange : BIZARRE. Another sparkly fill.
14. Yet : EVEN SO
15. Powder source : TALC
16. Köln closing : ENDE. Just German for "End".
17. Defense attorney's challenge : LIAR
19. Gumshoe : TEC (Detective)
21. "¿Cómo __?" : ESTA
24. Eponymous physicist : FERMI (Enrico). Wiki says he is called "architect of the nuclear age",
28. Potluck fare : DIPs
31. What "p" may stand for : PENCE, OK, British Pound parts.
32. Completely make over : REVAMP
36. "TMI!" : EEW
38. Hatched backup : PLAN B. I
lost a piece of extremely hard-to-remove old caulk strip to the wall on
Thursday. It slipped inside and I could not get it out. I had no
PLAN B. Just ignored it and re-caulked the whole bathtub with TTP's
detailed
instructions. Also chose the Vinegar option from this article. The
bathtub looks great right now. There are still a few stubborn spots
between the wall tiles that refuse to come clean. I'll try the Baking
Soda option next Tuesday. Maybe it can remove the rust spot on our kitchen sink
faucet as well.
39. Jag : SPREE
40. Comes together : GELS
41. Cyan relative : AQUA
42. Tolled : RUNG
43. Took in : DIGESTED
44. "The Kite Runner" boy : AMIR. Thank God for this boy. Otherwise, we'll need a "Var." mark.
45. Unleavened Indian flatbread : ROTI. I bet Steve makes his own at times.
46. Hindu mystic : YOGI
47. Place of control : HELM
48. Jon Arbuckle's dog : ODIE
50. __ City: Baghdad suburb : SADR
54. Tangy treat : LEMON PIE
57. Pirate shipmate of Starkey : SMEE
59. __-Cat : SNO
60. Sushi offering : TUNA. Thought of ROLL.
62. At that point : THEN
64. "All My __ Live in Texas": George Strait hit : EX'S
65. Support pro : TECH
67. Blunder : ERR
70. Waterskiing hurdle : WAKE
71. Hipbone-related : ILIAC
72. Closers often open it : NINTH. Inning.
73. Post-WWII commerce agreement : GATT. Replaced by WTO in 1995.
74. "... __ o' kindness ... ": Burns : A CUP
75. Only : MERE
76. Exude : OOZE
77. Each : A POP
78. Like some love affairs : TORRID. Normally don't end well.
80. DEA agent : NARC
81. Attends : IS AT. I prefer partial for this fill.
82. Law office abbreviations : ESQs
85. Supermodel Campbell : NAOMI
89. Empty storefront sign : FOR LEASE. Fresh fill.
90. Secret agent : SPY
94. "Are You Lonesome Tonight?" singer : PRESLEY
95. Blue-pencil : EDIT
96. "Vive __!" : LE ROI
97. Generic trendsetters : JONESES. Keeping up with the Joneses.
99. "Oh, shucks" : AW DARN. Another fresh fill.
103. Super Bowl XXXIV champions : RAMS. 1999. I was still in China.
104. Hang : DRAPE
105. Incandescent bulb gas : ARGON
107. Young partner : ERNST. Oh, Ernst & Young.
108. "Be __ ... " : A DEAR
109. Haggard of country : MERLE
110. Didn't procrastinate : ACTED
111. Chorused "Who's there?" response : IT''S US
112. 1958 winner of nine Oscars : GIGI. This many? I watched the film a while ago. So so.
113. Polish-German border river : ODER
114. Fallon's predecessor : LENO
115. Kingpin : CZAR
117. Bush in Florida : JEB
120. Curling surface : ICE
121. Second Amendment org. : NRA
C.C.
