Sun, Jul 22, 2018 Roger & Kathy Wienberg

Theme: "Antics" - ANT is added to each theme entry.

23A. Polite but unyielding statement?: MADAM, I'M ADAMANT. Madam I'm Adam.
  

33A. Caulking crew?: SEALANT TEAM. SEAL team.

37A. Building where things are taken back?: RECANT CENTER. Rec center.

52A. Sign on an available boutique?: SHOP VACANT. Shop-Vac.

67A. Serf surrounded by whales?: PEASANT IN A POD. Peas in a pod.

87A. Fort Bragg lodger?: BASE TENANT. Base ten.
  

99A. Director Oliver to the rescue?: GALLANT STONE. Gallstone. The only one-word base phrase.

101A. Never-used part of the house?: DORMANT ROOM. Dorm room.

118A. Godzilla and friends solemnly recite?: MONSTERS INCANT. Monsters, Inc.

Lovely grid from Roger & Kathy Wienberg. Judging by the byline order, you can see Roger came up with the theme idea (constructor who dreams up the theme often enjoys the first byline). Then they brainstormed together for the theme entries. Then they shared the filling and cluing responsibilities.
 
I think they're the only husband and wife constructor teams for our LA Times Daily Crosswords. Emily Cox and Henry Rathvon write a puzzle for the Boston Globe every two weeks.

Total 9 theme answers and 104 theme squares in a 140-word grid. And the fill is so clean. Amazing.

Across:

1. Crunch beneficiaries: ABS.

4. Agnus __: DEI. "Lamb of God".

7. Rustic dwelling: A-FRAME.

13. Using a passport, say: ABROAD.

19. Newman song that mentions Santa Ana winds: I LOVE LA. Heard often at Dodger Stadium.

21. Decisive point: CLIMAX.

22. Persuasive sort: COAXER.

25. Stimulate: EXCITE.

26. Petroleum source: SHALE.

27. Legendary rock guitarist: BECK. Jeff Beck.

28. 2018 Pyeongchang org.: IOC.

30. Author Ferber: EDNA.

31. Bolt of lightning?: USAIN. Great clue. Usain Bolt.

42. Within reach: NEAR.

43. How some dares are made: ON A BET.

44. Major arteries: AORTAS.

46. Impressive groupings: ARRAYS.

49. Seed cover: ARIL. Pomegranate seeds are called arils.

50. Flier's choice: AISLE.

55. Braun competitor: NORELCO. Philips.

57. Director DuVernay: AVA.

59. Comply: OBEY.

60. Joint for jumping: KNEE.

61. __-Cat: SNO.

62. "Yikes!": OH NO.

64. Empathetic comment: I CARE.

66. More than wondered: ASKED. Picard asked about "Moo shu pork" and "Moo shi pork" differences last time. See here. Personally I've only seen "Moo shu".

71. Leaves painfully: JILTS.

75. Wonder's "My Cherie __": AMOUR.

76. __ game: HOME. So glad you settled nicely in your new home, Dave!

77. Chemicals giant: DOW.

80. Colorful fish: OPAH.

81. Levee: DIKE.

83. Org. that often strikes: PBA. PBA50 is the highlight of Boomer's summer.

85. Holiday candle holder: MENORAH.

90. Crèche figure: ANGEL.

92. Swelter: BAKE.

93. Bit of information: DETAIL.

94. Avis rival: DOLLAR. Bad experience with them two years ago. We like Payless.

96. Former Disney CEO: EISNER (Michael).

98. One of a cube's 12: EDGE.

106. It's stunning: TASER.

107. Denny's competitor: IHOP. Fooled me with their name change gimmick.

108. "__ who?": SEZ.

109. Bowls over: AWES.

111. Capital of France: EUROS. Not PARIS.

115. Recovered from a knockout: CAME TO.

122. Did away with: ERASED.

123. Taft-Hartley Act subject: UNIONS.

124. Prurient material: EROTICA. Also 126. One who's really hot: SEXPOT.

125. Dinged: DENTED.

127. Inexperienced: RAW.

128. Iditarod segment: LEG.

Down:

1. Zeroes in: AIMS.

2. Uninspired: BLAH.

3. Common mixer: SODA. Pop in our house. And only Pepsi.

4. Land adjoining a manor house: DEMESNE. This is a new word to me.

5. Wearer of a "Y" sweatshirt: ELI.

6. Like most sonnets: IAMBIC.

7. "High Voltage" band: AC/DC.

8. Criticism: FLAK. Love Steve's Thursday disclaimer. 

9. Canyon part: RIM.

10. Doc bloc: AMA.

11. Wrestle suffix: MANIA. Never watched WrestleMania or any wrestling event.

12. Laud: EXTOL.

13. Untouched serve: ACE.

14. A penalty may be served in one: BOX. Hockey.

15. Triple Crown venues: RACETRACKS.

16. Rust, for example: OXIDE.

17. Insurance giant: AETNA.

18. Fantasy: DREAM.

20. Highly prized: VALUABLE. A mint condition 1952 Mantle card was sold for $2.88 million in April. Boomer sold his (also mint condition) for $200 in the 1980s.

24. Defender of Troy: AENEAS.

29. Cocktail hour nibble: CANAPE. I can link taro cakes every week. Taros look ugly, but so tasty.

32. Embassy employee: ATTACHE.

33. Arrange dinnerware on: SET. Oh, Boomer had a full set of 1952 Topps cards. RUE.

34. Time spans: ERAS.

35. Brazen: NERVY.

36. Fictional Civil War novel setting: TARA.

37. Colorful horses: ROANS.

38. Ill-fated Houston company: ENRON. Bankrupted Gary's uncle.

39. Capital on the Nile: CAIRO.

40. Mardi Gras acronym: NOLA.

41. Two-time British Open champ: TREVINO. Lee Trevino, Jack Nicklaus and Gary Player are regular guests at the 3M Championship. 3M must pay a ton to get them.

45. Fleeced: SHORN.

47. Civil War soldier: YANK.

48. Dagger of yore: SNEE.

51. New Rochelle campus: IONA.

53. Caribbean sorcery: OBEAH. Wiki says it's "a system of spiritual and healing practices developed among enslaved West Africans in the West Indies..."

54. Fictional newsman Baxter: TED.

56. Cuts short: LOPS.

58. Cause trouble: ACT UP.

63. Japanese seaport: OSAKA. Here is how it's written in Japanese. Three characters. The first character means "Big", the second means "Slope or Hillside", the last one "City".

65. Shot that misses everything: AIR BALL.

66. Gulf between Yemen and Somalia: ADEN.

68. Tweak, perhaps: AMEND.

69. Apple or pear: POME.

70. Dishes from a "station": OMELETS.

71. Assignment: JOB.

72. Tech debut of 2010: IPAD. Agnes uses her iPad for everything. No external keyboard either.

73. Operate using a beam: LASE.

74. Shakespeare play featuring Ariel: THE TEMPEST. Great fill.

77. Clog clearer: DRANO.

78. Like some buckets: OAKEN.

79. "__ Everybody Knows Your Name": "Cheers" theme song: WHERE.

81. Stoop: DEIGN.

82. Bays, e.g.: INLETS.

84. Compulsively neat, say: ANAL. I think this is the first time this word appears in LAT. Rich did not allow ANAL in the past.

86. Hamper: OBSTRUCT.

88. Cry with a flourish: TA DA. As I mentioned last Monday, I finally decided to just make two holes to remove the stains permanently. Weird spots, but better than yellow stains.

89. Neighbor of Ghana: TOGO.

91. Kitchen gadget: GRATER. Oh, does anyone other than Steve own a Microplane? I don't use zest, but this will make mincing ginger easier.

95. Fast flight: LAM.

97. Understanding words: I SEE NOW.

100. Egypt's second president: NASSER.

101. Cut into cubes: DICED.

102. Chicago hub: O'HARE.

103. Type of numeral: ROMAN. Followed by104. Victim of Romulus: REMUS.

105. Atmospheric layer: OZONE.

109. 5 for B or 6 for C: AT NO. Atomic Number.

110. Jerry in the NBA logo: WEST.

112. Complain: RAIL.

113. Previously: ONCE. TTP mentioned a neat shortcut for searching any stuff in our blog. For example, if you want to know UKASE and its comments on our blog, just type in this in your Google search bar:  site:crosswordcorner.blogspot.com ukase

114. Unaccompanied: STAG.

116. Kickoff aid: TEE.

117. Abnormal: ODD.

119. Squelch: NIX.

120. Sponge (up): SOP.

121. Novelist Levin: IRA.

Maripro and some of you still have Rich Norris and Joyce Nichols Lewis as editors in your Sunday paper. I'll just copy and paste Rich's reply I put on the blog in 2010:

"Joyce was LA Times puzzle editor long before I arrived. I began working with her 10 years ago, at which time we shared editing responsibilities. She's now retired, though we do talk regularly about the puzzles. I do all the editing, and she's among the professionals who check my work. Her name remains on the byline in recognition of her years of service to the LAT Crossword."

C.C.