53 A. They're "presented" in 20-, 28- and 46-Across: ACTING AWARDS. They'll be identified in the theme entries below - "presented," yes, but in an obscure way.
28 A. "Love to everyone!": GIVE THEM MY BEST. Lots of affection to spread around. The EMMY awards are presented at various times throughout the year for excellence in television by three different organizations - the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences, the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences, and the International Academy of Television Arts and Sciences.
46. Leave the firm to work solo: GO OUT ON YOUR OWN. Do you have that entrepreneurial spirit? The TONY awards recognize excellence in Broadway plays. They are presented at an annual ceremony in New York by the American Theater Wing and the Broadway League.
Hi, Gang - JazzBumpa on center stage today, a bit surprised to not see an Independence Day theme. But we do have a fine entry by Jeffrey. So let's read this script down and see if we can act on it.
But first - come on, it's the 4th of July, so this is mandatory.
Who doesn't love the Muppets?
OK - back to business.Across:
1. Error: SLIP. Starting off with a mistake. Did somebody miss a cue or forget their lines?
5. Place for a panel: DAIS. A low platform for a lectern, seats of honor or a throne. STAGE also fits.
9. Chemistry lab fluids: ACIDS. Solutions of pH less than 7, capable of neutralizing alkaline materials by donating a proton or accepting an electron pair. Sorry for going all geeky on you. Long ago I was a chemist.
14. "Gray's Anatomy," for one: TOME. A large, heavy or scholarly BOOK [which also fits, BTW,] not the like-named TV drama.
15. Austen novel: EMMA. A comedy of manners set in Regency England. The eponym considers herself to be a match-maker, and misadventures ensue.
16. Four-page sheet: FOLIO. This is one of three page-related meanings indicated by this word.
17. Wilson of "Father Figures": OWEN. Actor, producer and screen-writer who received an OSCAR nomination for best screen play for co-writing The Royal Tannenbaums with Wes Anderson
18. Ground corn, e.g.: MEAL. The edible portion of ground grain.
19. "Poems are made by fools like me" poem: TREES. By Joyce Kilmer.
I think that I shall never see
A poem lovely as a tree.
A tree whose hungry mouth is prest
Against the earth’s sweet flowing breast;
A tree that looks at God all day,
And lifts her leafy arms to pray;
A tree that may in Summer wear
A nest of robins in her hair;
Upon whose bosom snow has lain;
Who intimately lives with rain.
Poems are made by fools like me,
But only God can make a tree.
24. Fitting: APROPOS. Apropriate, apt, timely. From French, meaning "on that subject."
32. Summer on the Seine: ETE. A French season that is not tarragon.
33. Sch. term: SEM. Short or long, a school term is a semester.
34. Author Joyce Carol __: OATES. [b. 1938] Author of over 40 novels, and many plays, short stories, novellas and poems.
35. Arctic deer: CARIBOU. Also known as reindeer, they are native to all sorts of arctic and sub arctic terrain in Europe, Siberia and North America.
38. Org. providing creature comfort?: ASPCA. American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. Be kind to your hunting dog. Or caribou.
42. Sue Grafton's "__ for Lawless": L IS. Her alphabet mystery series started with A is for Alibi. I lost interest around D.
43. "Cats" monogram: T S E. Thomas Sterns Elliot. Jellicle Cat comes from his infant niece's attempts to say "calico cat," or perhaps it was "dear little cat." Some things are uncertain.
50. Run: OPERATE. Be in control of.
51. "There is __ in the affairs of men": Brutus: A TIDE. " . . . Which taken at the flood, leads on to fortune." Sounds like an opportunist to me.
57. Sprint, e.g.: TELCO. Telecommunications Company.
60. Bearded critter: GOAT. I wanted a GNU, the the news is - that didn't fit.
61. Picket fence piece: SLAT. Aka -- picket. If you are keenly interested, this vid might be fascinating. Otherwise, it might cure insomnia.
62. First-stringers: A-TEAM. The best ones we have.
63. Quasimodo creator: HUGO. Victor [1802 - 1885] One of the best known French novelists. Q is The Hunchback of Notre Dame. His other famous work is Les Miserables. Two of my grandsons were in a youth production of the musical a few years AGO. Watching them die at the barricade was wrenching.
64. Head, in Le Havre: TETE. French. I have no head for French.
65. Muckety-muck: NABOB. A person of conspicuous wealth or high status. Sometimes used ironically about one who overestimates himself.
66. Lose one's cool: SNAP. Throw a fit.
67. River of central Germany: EDER. A 177 Km long tributary of the Fulda, a 220 KM long tributary of the Weser, a 281 Km long river which flows through Bremen and empties into the North Sea at Bremerhaven. From this port my Hungarian grandmother came to America, lo, these many years past.
Down:
1. Unlikely to become overwrought: STOIC. One who does not show emotion, named for the 3rd century B.C. Greek school of philosophy founded by Zeno of Citium. This was a philosophy of personal ethics based on logic and an unwillingness to give in to the passions of the moment, with a view towards fairness and justice.
2. Like a McJob, typically: LOW WAGE. Also with few prospects, for which the worker is typically over-qualified.
3. "This is serious!": I MEAN IT. Not joking, this time.
4. Thoughtful: PENSIVE. Long ago I saw a movie that had a snippet of dialog that went something like this --
He: You look pensive.
She: No. I was just thinking . . .
Don't remember what movie it was.
5. Sales rep's aid: DEMO. A working model or example, used to demonstrate the product
6. Iowa college city: AMES. Iowa State U. is in AMES, which is about 30 miles north of Des Moines.
7. All-in-one Apple desktop: I-MAC. Computer.
8. Arabic for "peace": SALAAM.
9. Door holder's words: AFTER YOU.
10. Andalusian city: CORDOBA. In southern Spain, this area has been occupied since Neaderthal times. The city originated as a Roman settlement, then was a center of Muslim culture from the 8th century until it was recaptured by Christian forces in 1236. It is the hottest city in Europe with an average high temperature of 37 C [99 F] in July and August.
11. Martinique, par exemple: ILE. An island in the Lesser Antilles.
12. Quit working: DIE. Said of batteries and machinery. I quit working almost a decade ago, and am still alive.
13. Coast Guard pickup: SOS. An international code signal indicating great distress and an urgent need for help, used especially by ships at sea.
21. Chicago-to-Chattanooga dir.: SSE. South-southeast. Maybe even add in another south.
22. LP's 33 1/3: RPM. Spin [or should I say "swirl"] rate of Long Playing phonograph records, in Revolutions Per Minute.
25. Adoptee from the 38-Across, perhaps: PET. An animal taken into a person's home to live.
26. Sugar suffix: -OSE. Glucose, dextrose, fructose, etc. I wasn't able to track down the origin with only minimal effort, so we can all wonder why.
27. GPS lines: STS. Streets.
29. Safety org. with "Travel Tips" blog posts: TSA. Transportation Security Administration.
30. Part of HMS: HER. The other parts are "Majesty's" and "Ship," because the Queen owns the navy.
31. First name in American poetry: EMILY. Dickenson [1830 - 1886]
Ample Make This Bed
Ample make this bed.
Make this bed with awe;
In it wait till judgment break
Excellent and fair.
Be its mattress straight,
Be its pillow round;
Let no sunrise' yellow noise
Interrupt this ground.
- Emily Dickenson
36. Sci. course: BIOlogy.
37. Stillwater sch.: OSU. Oklahoma State University, not THE O. S. U.
38. In the past: AGO. Derived from an obsolete Middle English verb used to indicate the passage of time.
39. Absorb, with "up": SOP. As a sponge, or slice of bread.
40. "The Tell-Tale Heart" author: POE. Edgar Alan [1809-1849.] The story of a murder, committed for no known reason, as told by the murderer, who wants us to think he is sane.
41. Mai tai liqueur: CURACAO. It is flavored with the dried peel of the laraha, a bitter orange native to the Lesser Antilles island for which the drink is named.
43. How food may be salted: TO TASTE. A lot or a little - your choice.
44. Moved like a dust devil: SWIRLED. A dust devil is a well-formed, generally harmless whirl-wind a few meters wide with an upward thrust. It is formed when a pocket of warm surface air rises through cooler air above it.
45. Last chance to catch a live show: END DATE. The date on which something comes to a close.
47. Baseball legend Mel: OTT. [1909 - 1958] Right fielder for the New York Giants from 1926 to 1947; 6-time National League home run leader; All-Star for 11 consecutive seasons; inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1952.
48. Paddock sounds: NEIGHS. Horses, not whispering.
49. Like fish in ceviche: RAW. This dish is popular in the Pacific coastal regions of Latin America. The fresh fish is cured in citrus juices and spiced with peppers, and other seasonings such as onions and cilantro. It must be prepared and eaten fresh, since it is not cooked.
52. Fragrant compound: ESTER. Formed by the reaction of an alcohol with a carboxylic acid. Low molecular weight ESTERS are usually pleasantly fragrant. They commonly occur in the essential oils of plants, and are responsible for the aromas of fruits.
54. Soup or salad: NOUN. Maybe it's just me, but I find this type of reflexive clue to be profoundly annoying.
55. Wildly enthusiastic (over): GAGA. Are you enthusiastic?
They have way too much fun
56. Surmounting: ATOP. On top of.
57. Khaki kin: TAN. Colors, not fabrics.
58. Landing hr. calculation: ETA. Estimated Time of Arrival.
59. Isr. neighbor: LEBanon. To the north.
Well, not surprisingly, I had my nit, but this was still a fine and fun outing from Jeffrey.
I'll close with some musical selections from last Thursday's concert when your humble trombonist performed with the Plymouth Community Band at Kellogg Park. This program is traditional for the last performance before the 4th of July, and draws, by far, the largest audience of the Summer. Videos courtesy of my Lovely Wife.
Cool regards - and have a happy and blessed holiday.
Liberty Fanfare and the National Anthem
America the Beautiful, Olympic Fanfare and Armed Forces Salute
And - to counter-balance that bit of foolishness at the top --
The Best Sousa march EVAH!
