Saturday, December 29, 2018, Ed Sessa

Lip Service Puzzle by Ed Sessa

As 2018 is nearly gone, the day of December 29 is designated as National Tick Tock Day. Think of all the things you intended to get done in this calendar year but have not yet completed. It is my intention to get my basement workbench cleaned up and organized before I plop down for my College Bowl Game (plus the Rose Parade) extravaganza coming up.

Well yesterday Lemon got a themeless Friday puzzle and today on themeless Saturday, Dr. Sessa, by way of Rich, has given us one that does have a theme. 

C.C. wrote me and asked if I saw a theme because of the cluing and somewhat closely related fills I made what I think is at least a somewhat tenuous connection to the fills. When C.C. wrote Ed, he replied that he was trying to even make the grid look like a smile. Do you see it? 😀

Now here is my take on the themers as I see them and the reveal:

17. Line erasers - PLASTIC SURGEONS can permanently fix the line of downturned lips into a SMILE

32. Necklines?: CAROTID ARTERIES - This droopy SMILE line can indicate a blocked CAROTID ARTERY

36. Title line after "Gray skies are gonna clear up": PUT ON A HAPPY FACE - Dick Van Dyke and Janet Leigh from Bye Bye Birdie on obtaining a SMILE

56. Echoic phrase from a WWI marching song: SMILE SMILE SMILE - All three fills are summed up by "Pack up your troubles in your old kit bag and SMILE, SMILE, SMILE". 

I hope you agree on my Saturday SMILE themeage, but now let's quit procrastinating on National Tick Tock Day and see what Dr. Sessa has prescribed for us. If your ailment requires devilish cluing, Ed has the correct R_X for you today!

Across:

1. Actor Omar with three NAACP Image Awards: EPPS - he won by playing a doctor in 45. Sites with masked workers, briefly: OR(S) with other masked people

5. 007's watch, in the later films: OMEGA - Here you can see the famous 007 trademark

10. Sent to, too: CCED - Carbon CopiED - usually an anachronism today

14. Independent African country since 1960: MALI - Recently, we have also had Niger, Burkina Faso and Gabon Find them?

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15. Santa-tracking acronym: NORAD - Even in Asia 

27. Stores with a blue-and-yellow logo: IKEAS - See comment above

16. Jennifer of "Pride and Prejudice" (1995): EHLE - Here she is

44. Actress Aimée: ANOUK - Here she is

20. It carries a charge: ION.

21. Stable attendant: HOSTLER - Chapter 15 of Black Beauty is entitled The Old HOSTLER

22. Half an ouchie?: BOO - "Mommy, I got a BOO BOO!"

23. Despicable: ROTTEN.

25. Genre with ad images: POP ART 

28. NYC subway line: IRT - Interborough Rapid Transit 

31. "The Divine Comedy" division: CANTO - It has 100 CANTI (pl.) or sections 

35. Tablet since 2013: IPAD AIR - Another entry in the Apple stable

46. Timeworn: BANAL - We have many timeworn fills here but they are vital for constructors 

47. Delivered a screed: RANTED - Pro rasslers RANT to build up a gate

49. "Man is condemned to be free" philosopher: SARTRE - Jean Paul

50. Thou follower, often: ART.

51. Butler's classic line: YOU RANG - C'mon, no one is listening, do your best Lurch imitation 

55. Its first letter often means "more than one": HOV.

59. Smallville name: KENT - Even when he was a baby, Ma and Pa KENT knew their son was Super

60. Gay opening?: ENOLA - A new clue for Col. Paul Tibbets' Omaha-built B-29

61. Chrysler Building architect William Van __: ALEN - This iconic NYC building was the world's tallest for 11 months in 1930

62. Pointed at, perhaps: IDED - I witnessed a hit and run two weeks ago but I know I could never ID the guy who did it

63. "That's unfortunate": SO SAD.

64. Ford contemporary: OLDS - Charles King (l.) was a mentor to Ransom OLDS (c.) and Henry Ford (r.)

Down:

1. Based on observation: EMPIRIC - EMPIRIC evidence shows we landed a man on the Moon despite the loonies who say we didn't 

2. Two-bit boxer: PALOOKA - Even comic book characters pitched in during WWII

3. One with a rooting interest: PLANTER - Now this is a serious PLANTER

4. Short sibling?: SIS - My SIS is very short

5. Kitchen bulb: ONION.

6. Soft shoes: MOCS - MOCassins 

7. "... which __ was irksome to me": Shakespeare: ERST - Thy company, which ERST was irksome to me, (I used to hate you) Act V Scene III As You Like It

8. Three-part region, per Caesar: GAUL - "All Gaul is divided into three parts, one of which the Belgae inhabit, the Aquitani another, those who in their own language are called Celts, in ours GAULS, the third." Caeser, The Gallic Wars

9. Media industry worker: AD REP - TV's most famous AD REPS

10. Left of center?: CEE - Yes, CEE is on the left of the word Center

11. Greek-style yogurt brand: CHOBANI and 28. Site of an 11-Down yogurt plant, the world's largest: IDAHO - A $100,000,000 plant in Twin Falls, IDAHO

12. America, in Acapulco: EL NORTE  - Also Norteamérica and América del norte,

13. Autos advertised on "You Bet Your Life": DESOTOS - Grouch (:08)

18. It's a dirty look: THE STINK EYE - Kramer on the "looks" (:33)

19. Holders of staples: GROCERY BAGS - Gotta love this one

24. Confucian path: TAO.

26. Expected: PAR - Yup, this is a 1,000 yard PAR 7 in Seoul, South Korea

29. "M*A*S*H" role: RADAR.

30. Doesn't allow out: TRAPS - Like The Roach Motel

33. Draft choice: IPA - India Pale Ale


34. Pointer or point: TIP 

Giving a TIP                           The TIP of the sword

36. Hybrid jumping sport with a landing target: PARA SKI.

37. Lacking heat?: UNARMED - If you're "packing heat" you're carrying a gun. If you aren't then you're UNARMED

38. Survivor-take-all investment scheme: TONTINE - A lovely four minute scene about a slightly different TONTINE which is mentioned at 1:42

40. With 39-Down, unconventional: FAR and  39. See 40-Down: OUT 

41. End of a line in the sand, maybe: ANTHILL - I suspect this ANT TRAIL in Alaska will eventually end at an ANT HILL

42. Sang for an audience of one, sometimes: CAROLED - Even the lovely CAROLS of the season can become tiresome

43. Gridiron numbers: ELEVENS - Eleven on each side of the ball

48. Dispensed amounts: DOSES.

49. Winner of 82 PGA Tour tournaments: SNEAD.

52. "Don't think so": UM...NO.

53. Spanish waterways: RIOS - The RIO Paraná empties into the RIO de la Plata

54. Italian recipe word: ALLA - In the style of

57. Ford's Crown Vic, originally: LTD - Something Crown Vics are noted for

58. Foe of Chiang: MAO.

Now, get off the couch, chair, chaise or whatever and get that last 2018 project done on Tick Tock Day, starting with commenting on Dr. Sessa's puzzle: