Theme: The Buck Starts Here: Slang terms for the mighty dollar bill head up five down entries, as the reveal explains:
35D. Highest price, and what five Down answers have: TOP DOLLAR. The dollar term is on the top of the answer, hence the need to have the themers running vertically, not horizontally.
3D. Uncovered, in a way: BUCK NAKED. Those Duluth Trading commercials have certainly had an impact, like them or not. That was the first thing I thought of when I filled this in.
6D. Grade-school formation: SINGLE FILE.
9D. Personal, as a talk: ONE-TO-ONE. I had one-ON-one first, that didn't work out so well.
31D. Political commentator who wrote "Men at Work: The Craft of Baseball": GEORGE WILL.
39D. Beach cookout: CLAMBAKE. Food! Now you're talking. Here's a New England version:
From New England to Old England, where I'm currently enjoying some typical Britishrain weather. Fun puzzle from Frank, the theme worked nicely and an absence of any "clunk" in the fill made for a smooth solve.
Let's see what else we've got to talk about:
Across:
1. Goes out: EBBS.
5. Car ad fig.: MSRP. Manufacturer's Suggested Retail Price. I'm not quite sure how realistic the MSRP on cars actually is, no dealer ever sticks to their MSRP guns. Maybe Tesla?
9. Poppy extract: OPIUM.
14. Stretched to the max: TAUT.
15. Cambodian cash: RIEL. The British conveniently forget that trading giant Jardine Matheson was founded on the opium trade.
16. Italian grandma: NONNA.
17. West Coast gas acronym: ARCO. Atlantic Richfield Company. Known for cheap gas. I don't put it in my car, the engine doesn't like it.
18. Violation of trust: INFIDELITY.
20. Kipling's Rikki-__-Tavi: TIKKI. The mongoose in Rudyard Kipling's Jungle Book:
22. __ Dane: GREAT. What happened to the little dane? The great dane is certainly aptly-named.
23. Familia member: TIA.
24. Really get to: NETTLE. Tried NEEDLE, changed it.
26. Beeps and peeps: NOISES.
28. Fluffy neckwear: BOA.
30. Acts charitably: DOES GOOD.
32. Ararat lander: ARK.
33. "__ be married, / My grave is like to be my wedding bed": Juliet: IF HE.
34. Potentially offensive, briefly: NOT PC.
38. Bumbling one: BEE.
39. MDX ÷ X: CLI. Your Roman math. Ten into 1510 gets you 151.
40. Unlock, in verse: OPE.
42. Bit of soccer support: OLÉ.
43. Feature of some Gene Autry songs: YODEL.
45. Pasternak heroine: LARA. From "Doctor Zhivago". Inspired by the real-life Olga Ivinskaya, Pasternak's great love and literary support (or manipulative self-server, depending on who you believe).
47. "An everyday spud is a commentator," e.g.: PUN. Pretty awful, this one. "Common 'Tater".
48. Super Soaker, e.g.: WATER GUN.
51. It starts in Mar.: DST. Daylight Saving Time. Californians voted to keep daylight savings time year round this November. Sensible folk, no more springing and falling.
52. Distressed damsel's cry: SAVE ME! I went for HELP ME! first and made a virtual ink-blot fixing it.
55. Do business with: SELL TO.
57. Takeout menu general: TSO.
58. Moisten: BEDEW. Very poetic.
60. Tops off: FILLS.
63. Too high for people to catch?: ULTRASONIC. Not sure what I was thinking with "HYPERSONIC", but it seemed OK at the time.
66. Meh: BLAH.
67. Jacobi of "Murder on the Orient Express" (2017): DEREK.
68. UNC Chapel __: HILL. University of North Carolina.
69. Shakespearean schemer: IAGO. From Othello. Here's Laurence Fishburne and Kenneth Branagh from the 1995 movie version:
70. Nobel, for one: SWEDE.
71. Rights org.: ACLU.
72. 1990s-2010s slugging nickname: A-ROD.
Down:
1. Californie or Floride: ÉTAT. State, in yer French, of course.
2. Italian port: BARI.
4. Stir up: STOKE.
5. Hosp. test: MRI.
7. Browser button with a curved arrow icon: REFRESH. Ah, I've got one of those. I didn't see the HOME button last week, but my refresh button is right there.
8. Move in a tutu: PLIÉ.
10. Party pro: POL.
11. Monogram ltrs.: INITS.
12. Loosen, as laces: UNTIE.
13. Uxmal inhabitants: MAYAS. Important Mayan site on the Yucatan peninsula:
19. Five-O nickname: DANO. "Book 'em, Dano!"
21. "__ be an honor!": IT'D.
25. Work up a sweat: TOIL.
27. Altar words: I DO.
28. Treat with supreme care: BABY.
29. McFlurry flavor: OREO. I've never had a McFlurry. Do they do other flavors? Speaking of Oreos, I travelled to the UK with a roll-on sized bag full of Oreos and M&M's. My family are addicted to the more unusual flavors which they can't get this side of the pond.
36. +: PLUS.
37. Lowest price: CENT.
41. Songwriter with John: PAUL. Very few of the Lennon/McCartney songs were true collaborations.
44. Girl in a pasture: EWE.
46. Poison in some whodunits: ARSENIC.
49. Tight ends?: TEES.
50. Viet Cong org.: NLF. National Liberation Front.
52. Small earrings: STUDS.
53. Heaps: A SLEW.
54. "À __ santé!" : VOTRE. Cheers! To your good health!
56. Calf neighbor: TIBIA. One of your lower leg bones. A very close neighbor to your calf.
59. Persian Gulf capital: DOHA.
61. Mar-a-__: Florida estate: LAGO. Lago and Iago today.
62. Flip-flopped?: SHOD. Who was it who blew out a flip-flop? Ah yes ... Jimmy
64. Rosy: RED.
65. Gulager of "The Virginian": CLU. William Martin "Clu" Gulager to give him his full moniker. His nickname was given to him by his father, after the clu-clu birds, or martins, nesting at the family home.
That about does it for me. Time to find out if the rain has stopped! Here's the grid, and a picture of the old mill at dusk in Lower Slaughter, the charmingly-named village I'm staying in tonight (there's an Upper Slaughter as well!)
And finally the grid:
Steve
Notes from C.C.:
1) Hi Steve, hello from the other side!
2) Here are two pictures of Melissa's sweet granddaughter Jaelyn, who's going to be a big sister next year.
35D. Highest price, and what five Down answers have: TOP DOLLAR. The dollar term is on the top of the answer, hence the need to have the themers running vertically, not horizontally.
3D. Uncovered, in a way: BUCK NAKED. Those Duluth Trading commercials have certainly had an impact, like them or not. That was the first thing I thought of when I filled this in.
6D. Grade-school formation: SINGLE FILE.
9D. Personal, as a talk: ONE-TO-ONE. I had one-ON-one first, that didn't work out so well.
31D. Political commentator who wrote "Men at Work: The Craft of Baseball": GEORGE WILL.
"Baseball, it is said, is only a game. True. And the Grand Canyon is only a hole in Arizona."
From New England to Old England, where I'm currently enjoying some typical British
Let's see what else we've got to talk about:
Across:
1. Goes out: EBBS.
5. Car ad fig.: MSRP. Manufacturer's Suggested Retail Price. I'm not quite sure how realistic the MSRP on cars actually is, no dealer ever sticks to their MSRP guns. Maybe Tesla?
9. Poppy extract: OPIUM.
14. Stretched to the max: TAUT.
15. Cambodian cash: RIEL. The British conveniently forget that trading giant Jardine Matheson was founded on the opium trade.
16. Italian grandma: NONNA.
17. West Coast gas acronym: ARCO. Atlantic Richfield Company. Known for cheap gas. I don't put it in my car, the engine doesn't like it.
18. Violation of trust: INFIDELITY.
20. Kipling's Rikki-__-Tavi: TIKKI. The mongoose in Rudyard Kipling's Jungle Book:
22. __ Dane: GREAT. What happened to the little dane? The great dane is certainly aptly-named.
23. Familia member: TIA.
24. Really get to: NETTLE. Tried NEEDLE, changed it.
26. Beeps and peeps: NOISES.
28. Fluffy neckwear: BOA.
30. Acts charitably: DOES GOOD.
32. Ararat lander: ARK.
33. "__ be married, / My grave is like to be my wedding bed": Juliet: IF HE.
34. Potentially offensive, briefly: NOT PC.
38. Bumbling one: BEE.
39. MDX ÷ X: CLI. Your Roman math. Ten into 1510 gets you 151.
40. Unlock, in verse: OPE.
42. Bit of soccer support: OLÉ.
43. Feature of some Gene Autry songs: YODEL.
45. Pasternak heroine: LARA. From "Doctor Zhivago". Inspired by the real-life Olga Ivinskaya, Pasternak's great love and literary support (or manipulative self-server, depending on who you believe).
47. "An everyday spud is a commentator," e.g.: PUN. Pretty awful, this one. "Common 'Tater".
48. Super Soaker, e.g.: WATER GUN.
51. It starts in Mar.: DST. Daylight Saving Time. Californians voted to keep daylight savings time year round this November. Sensible folk, no more springing and falling.
52. Distressed damsel's cry: SAVE ME! I went for HELP ME! first and made a virtual ink-blot fixing it.
55. Do business with: SELL TO.
57. Takeout menu general: TSO.
58. Moisten: BEDEW. Very poetic.
60. Tops off: FILLS.
63. Too high for people to catch?: ULTRASONIC. Not sure what I was thinking with "HYPERSONIC", but it seemed OK at the time.
66. Meh: BLAH.
67. Jacobi of "Murder on the Orient Express" (2017): DEREK.
68. UNC Chapel __: HILL. University of North Carolina.
69. Shakespearean schemer: IAGO. From Othello. Here's Laurence Fishburne and Kenneth Branagh from the 1995 movie version:
70. Nobel, for one: SWEDE.
71. Rights org.: ACLU.
72. 1990s-2010s slugging nickname: A-ROD.
Down:
1. Californie or Floride: ÉTAT. State, in yer French, of course.
2. Italian port: BARI.
4. Stir up: STOKE.
5. Hosp. test: MRI.
7. Browser button with a curved arrow icon: REFRESH. Ah, I've got one of those. I didn't see the HOME button last week, but my refresh button is right there.
8. Move in a tutu: PLIÉ.
10. Party pro: POL.
11. Monogram ltrs.: INITS.
12. Loosen, as laces: UNTIE.
13. Uxmal inhabitants: MAYAS. Important Mayan site on the Yucatan peninsula:
19. Five-O nickname: DANO. "Book 'em, Dano!"
21. "__ be an honor!": IT'D.
25. Work up a sweat: TOIL.
27. Altar words: I DO.
28. Treat with supreme care: BABY.
29. McFlurry flavor: OREO. I've never had a McFlurry. Do they do other flavors? Speaking of Oreos, I travelled to the UK with a roll-on sized bag full of Oreos and M&M's. My family are addicted to the more unusual flavors which they can't get this side of the pond.
36. +: PLUS.
37. Lowest price: CENT.
41. Songwriter with John: PAUL. Very few of the Lennon/McCartney songs were true collaborations.
44. Girl in a pasture: EWE.
46. Poison in some whodunits: ARSENIC.
49. Tight ends?: TEES.
50. Viet Cong org.: NLF. National Liberation Front.
52. Small earrings: STUDS.
53. Heaps: A SLEW.
54. "À __ santé!" : VOTRE. Cheers! To your good health!
56. Calf neighbor: TIBIA. One of your lower leg bones. A very close neighbor to your calf.
59. Persian Gulf capital: DOHA.
61. Mar-a-__: Florida estate: LAGO. Lago and Iago today.
62. Flip-flopped?: SHOD. Who was it who blew out a flip-flop? Ah yes ... Jimmy
64. Rosy: RED.
65. Gulager of "The Virginian": CLU. William Martin "Clu" Gulager to give him his full moniker. His nickname was given to him by his father, after the clu-clu birds, or martins, nesting at the family home.
That about does it for me. Time to find out if the rain has stopped! Here's the grid, and a picture of the old mill at dusk in Lower Slaughter, the charmingly-named village I'm staying in tonight (there's an Upper Slaughter as well!)
And finally the grid:
Steve
1) Hi Steve, hello from the other side!
2) Here are two pictures of Melissa's sweet granddaughter Jaelyn, who's going to be a big sister next year.
Jaelyn was a pink
flamingo for Halloween. you can see her black eye - she was accidentally
kicked in the face by an exuberant cousin just before
trick-or-treating.
 |
| Jaelyn is going to be a big sister in may! |
