Theme: No Reveal Monday - As easy as one, two, three ... um, four.
17A. Mega-mall convenience: ONE-STOP SHOPPING
25A. Small-time bad guy: TWO-BIT GANGSTER
42A. Office attire with a vest: THREE-PIECE SUIT
56A. Barbershop quartet blend: FOUR-PART HARMONY
Argyle here. Great symmetry, tight consistency, and outstanding length; two fifteens and two fourteens. The theme has undoubtedly been done before but has it been done as well? Our constructor hasn't been very productive with his puzzles but has been published in various venues, including the LAT and the NYT.
Across:
1. Word with ball or driver: SCREW
6. Great Salt Lake state: UTAH
10. Sharp knocks: RAPS
14. 1971 Clapton classic: "LAYLA"
15. Pre-Columbian prefix with America: MESO. Mesoamerica, Wikipedia.
16. Director Kazan: ELIA. "On the Waterfront", "A Streetcar Named Desire", "East of Eden".
20. Horror director Craven: WES. "A Nightmare on Elm Street", "Scream", "The Last House on the Left".
21. Foot or inch, e.g.: UNIT
22. Founder of Taoism: LAO-TSE
23. Has office hours: IS IN
24. Bro and sis: SIBS
31. Pueblo-dwelling people: HOPI
32. "Whatever floats your __": BOAT
33. Igor's workplace: LAB. "... it's pronounced "eye-gore."
35. Drops the ball: ERRs
36. Shrimp relative: PRAWN
38. Adriatic resort: LIDO. If you prefer something closer to home.
39. Federal hush-hush org.: NSA. (No Such Agency)
40. Common-interest voting group: BLOC
41. State after North Dakota, alphabetically: OHIO
47. Online auction site: E-BAY
48. Part of many old German duchy names: SAXE
49. Belief systems: CREDOs
52. Razor brand: ATRA
53. Photo taker: CAM. Both photo and CAM are shortened words.
59. Other, in Oaxaca: OTRA
60. Moniker: NAME
61. Fountain drinks: MALTS
62. Broadway offering: SHOW
63. God with a hammer: THOR
64. Baker's dough raiser: YEAST
Down:
1. Like snail-mail, compared to email: SLOW
2. Mr. Peanut prop: CANE
3. Deli breads: RYEs
4. LLL: ELs. I've never seen this before.
5. '60s dance: WATUSI. "Wah-a, wah, wah-a Watusi
Oh, baby, it's the dance made-a for romance".
6. Calling balls and strikes, say: UMPING
7. Exam: TEST
8. Fireplace remains: ASH
9. Ruffian: HOOLIGAN
10. Share, as an internet meme: REPOST
11. Dismounted: ALIT
12. Kegler's targets: PINS
13. "Parsley, __, Rosemary and Thyme": SAGE
18. Getting the job done: ON IT
19. Blue Ribbon brewer: PABST
23. Sacred bird of ancient Egypt: IBIS
24. Winter bank makeup: SNOW
25. Partner of now: THEN
26. Bottom-of-the-barrel: WORST
27. Daytime TV celeb who founded Harpo Productions: OPRAH
28. Beaded calculators: ABACI. Hello, old friend.
29. Root or Yale: ELIHU. Elihu Root was Secretary of War under Theodore Roosevelt. Elihu Yale was the benefactor of Yale University.
30. Wheel spokes, essentially: RADII
34. Cowboy's footwear: BOOT
36. Agreeable: PLEASANT
37. Stringy: ROPY
38. Diet successfully: LOSE
40. Jazz genre: BEBOP
43. Make a new sketch of: REDRAW
44. Bible book named for a woman: ESTHER
45. Adored one, in Asti: CARA. "Cara Mia mine." Province of Asti.
46. Formerly in the military: EX-ARMY
49. Corp. fiscal execs: CFOs. (chief financial officer)
50. __ IRA: ROTH
51. Continental coin: EURO
52. Prefix with sphere: ATMO
53. Coca-__: COLA
54. "Carpenter" crawlers: ANTS
55. Computer adventure game: MYST
57. Cheerleader's word: RAH
58. Wisecracking West: MAE. "One and one is two; two and two is four; and "five will get you ten" if you work it right!"
Argyle
Note from C.C.:
Our TTP went morel hunting yesterday morning. He said below. He normally sautes the fresh morels in butter. D-Otto likes them deep-fried in beer batter. There are wooded area in our neighborhood, but no morels.
"Not a lot this morning, but enough. Found 10 but only 7 were
worth bringing back home. The other 3 were already dried out and
decomposing.
We had an overnight frost advisory, so I think most of them crawled back under the leaves.
4 of them were good sized at over 3" long and 1.5" thick. The largest was over 4 and 2 inches thick."
