Theme: "Product Expansion" - Additional letters are added to the end of each product name.
22A. Automaker's expansion into music? : HONDA ACCORDIONS. Honda Accord.
45A. Candy company's expansion into exercise equipment? : HERSHEY BARBELLS. Hershey bar.
72A. Drink container company's expansion into bakery products? : DIXIE CUPCAKES. Dixie cup.
95A. Jewelry company's expansion into fishing for delicacies? : TIFFANY LAMPREYS. Tiffany lamp.
122A. Cleaning products company's expansion into arena seating? : CLOROX BLEACHERS. Clorox bleach.
14D Writing implement company's expansion into jewelry? : BIC PENDANTS. Bic pen.
71D. Kitchen supplies company's expansion into security? : SOS PADLOCKS. SOS pad.
The
answers are all in plural form. Very consistent. Most work perfectly as
the newly formed words do not share the same root as the old words.
We have 82 black squares today. A bit on the high side.
You can read here
about Jim's background. Hmm, he loves golf and bowling. Sounds like
someone I'm very close to. So what's your bowling average, Jim?
Across:
1. Icy coating : RIME. Or HOAR.
5. Heroine in the "Divergent" films : TRIS. Tris Prior. I learned from another puzzle.
9. Route shower : MAP. I saw the show-er trick immediately. But not the answer.
12. Castro, for one : CUBAN
17. Unlike spring chickens? : AGED
18. __-car : RENT-A. Did not see the partial coming.
20. One-of-a-kind : LONE
21. Bud in Baja : AMIGO
25. Tijuana restaurant staples : TACOS
26. Work out : STAY FIT. Great fill.
27. "SNL" parody Baba __ : WAWA
28. Behavioral oddity : TIC
30. Fore relative? : PRE. Ah, now I see why.
31. "Are you __ out?" : IN OR
33. Dizzy's jazz : BEBOP
36. Story line : THREAD
38. __ port : USB
41. Antitoxin : SERUM
43. Lamb by another name : ELIA. Charles Lamb. This clue can't fool our regulars.
44. Observed : SEEN
49. Studio amendment : RE-DUB
52. Run : FLEE
53. Supermodel Sastre : INES. The Trésor model.
54. Self-satisfied : SMUG. I felt quite self-satisfied fixing our dryer pipe leak with 3M duct tape. Turns out you have to use the real shiny stuff like below. D-otto said "Duct tape is good for lots of things...but not for ducts. It can't take the heat."
56. "Family" actress Thompson : SADA
57. Like some twins : FRATERNAL
61. Final financials : YEAR-ENDS. It's a noun? I always thought year-end is an adjective.
63. __-de-France : ILE
64. It may quash dreams of a musical career : TIN EAR. I'm tone-deaf. We were only taught those patriotic communist songs.
68. Ed's title : MISTER. This is why MR ED is frowned upon by editors. Same as DR WHO.
69. Air-escape sound : SSS
75. Montevideo Mrs. : SRA
76. "Tough!" : TOO BAD
78. Rouse to action : BESTIR. Not a word I use.
79. Co. that merged into Verizon : GTE
80. Like car carburetors, for the most part : OBSOLETE
82. Victimized by bad spelling? : POSSESSED. Great clue.
87. They often have quotas : REPS. Oh, sales reps have sales quotas.
88. Stella __ cookies : D'ORO. Never had it.
90. Singer Horne : LENA
91. Emphatic type: Abbr. : ITAL
93. Shelley's Muse : ERATO. Muse of poetry
100. Figure (out) : DOPE
102. Latin trio part : AMAT. Amo, amas, amat.
103. Older Obama daughter : MALIA
104. Turf : SOD
105. "Route 66" co-star : MILNER (Martin). Unknown to me.
107. Saint Kitts' island partner : NEVIS. The Caribbean islands. Wiki says English is their official language.
109. Agree to, in a way : SIGN
110. Mil. address : APO. Army Post Office. We also have 121. U.S. Army rank qualifier : RET
111. Classical start : NEO. Neoclassical.
113. Draft category : ONE A
115. Med. diagnostic procedure : MRI SCAN. PET/CAT too.
120. Shell lining : NACRE. Learned from doing crosswords.
126. Comic book artist : INKER
127. Bits : TADS
128. Jeer : TAUNT
129. Cosmo competitor : ELLE. Elle China always has noisy covers.
130. Sends a fly flying : CASTS. Fishing.
131. Be in a red state? : OWE
132. Place : SITE
133. Political group : BLOC
Down:
1. Fan sounds : RAHs
2. "__ You Babe": 1965 #1 hit : I GOT
3. Actress Suvari : MENA. The girl in "American Beauty".
4. What goes around : EDDY. Nice clue.
5. Work newbie : TRAINEE
6. Clergy abode : RECTORY. Got via crosses.
7. Forbes competitor : INC
8. Pack away : STOW
9. Farm sound : MOO
10. Gothic novel pioneer Radcliffe : ANN
11. Unrelenting annoyance : PEST
12. One usually crouching : CATCHER. Who am I?
13. Thurman of film : UMA
15. Selling spot in Sparta : AGORA. Those Spartans would be stunned to see our Mall of America.
16. Went snooping : NOSED
19. Many an Omani : ARAB
20. Held to account : LIABLE
23. "__ Called Wanda" : A FISH
24. Stereotypical pocket protector wearers : DWEEBS
29. Part of TGIF : IT'S
32. Repeat annoyingly : RUB IN
34. Louvre displays : OILS . Also 47. Museum pieces : RELICs
35. Ancient Syrian trade center : PALMYRA. Learning moment for me. Must be their Mall of America.
37. Piece maker : REESE'S
38. Broadcast format: Abbr. : UHF. Ultra High Frequency.
39. __-employed : SELF
40. __ Rabbit : BRER
42. Sea cow : MANATEE
46. Blue map area : SEA
48. Respond to defamation, say : SUE
50. Milk container : UDDER
51. Iraq's main port : BASRA
55. One of two zygote producers : GAMETE. Dictionary shows this root: "New Latin gameta < Greek gamet- (stem of gametḗ wife, gamétēs husband), derivative of gameîn to marry". Funny how a Greek word becomes male once you attach S to the end.
58. Word before wave or pool : TIDAL
59. Slurred in pronunciation : ELIDED
60. T. __ : REX
62. High grounds : RISES
65. Kook : NUT
66. Anaphylaxis treatment : EPIPEN. D-Otto has one in his fridge.
67. NATO, for one : ACRONYM
69. Target, for one : STORE
70. Grave : SOBER
73. __ Peninsula : IBERIAN
74. Metric wts. : KGs
77. Second-easternmost U.S. state capital : BOSTON. After Augusta, Maine.
81. Wee one : TOT
83. Rooms in a casa : SALAS
84. Beatle Paul's title : SIR
85. Nice summers : ETES. Nice the city.
86. Ballpark rallying cry based on a 1950s hit : DAY-O . "The Banana Boat Song".
89. "How silly __!" : OF ME
90. Bodega patron : LATINO. Our Golden Lion here has a big Asian and Hispanic food section.
92. Trip provider : LSD
94. Corkscrews, essentially : OPENERS
96. Party gifts : FAVORS. Does this refer to political party?
97. Food : ALIMENT
98. Move periodically : MIGRATE
99. __ button : PANIC Also 105. Frenzied : MANIC
101. Byron's "before" : ERE
106. Bucky Beaver's toothpaste : IPANA
108. Racy message : SEXT
112. Prefix with -pus : OCTO
114. Down with, in Dunkirk : ABAS. "Abas le roi!"
116. "The Purple People Eater" singer Wooley : SHEB. Don't know the song or the singer. I associate "The Purple People Eaters" with the Vikings.
117. Holding area : CELL. Prison cell.
118. Woody's boy : ARLO
119. Brief time pd. : NSEC
123. Prosecutor's field : LAW
124. Tribute in verse : ODE
125. Him, to Henri : LUI
