Theme:
62A. Clothing accessory, perhaps ... or what you can see in each of four groups of circles?: BELT BUCKLE
No getting around this one - you need the circles to see the theme. We have four belts - conveyor belt, Orion's belt, money belt and asteroid belt, all of which are "buckled" down, across and then back up in the grid.
I take my hat off to constructors who pull off this kind of puzzle - it's not just a question of fitting your theme entries into the grid and then filling around them, it's a whole step up in the craft. Roger & Kathy nailed it today.
Orion's Belt:
After Orion, and this week's blood super wolf moon, let's go hunt down to what else we've got:
Across:
1. It can cause a bad trip: LSD
4. Renders speechless: AWES
8. Late-night host with an orange-blimp running gag: CONAN. In the "industry" news this week for announcing a 30-minute slot of his show, rather than the full hour.
13. Show of hands: VOTE
14. Some Pequod crewmen: HARPOONERS. What a great word to find early on the journey today.
16. Tapped pic: ICON. Only if you've got a touchscreen of some kind.
17. Many Bach compositions: ORGAN MUSIC. Quick! Think of a J.S.Bach fugue! I betcha a dollar to a donut it was this one here
18. Sources of "Family Feud" answers: SURVEYS. "And the survey said ......"
20. Soccer officials: REFS. Much-maligned around the world. Not as maligned as the NFL official who didn't throw the flag for pass in the Rams - Saints game on Sunday. I don't think he should plan a trip to New Orleans for a while.
21. Till this moment: AS YET
22. Utah lily: SEGO
23. Hush-hush org.: NSA. There's a few "orgs" today. Shout 'em out as you see 'em.
26. Rebuffed, with "off": BRUSHED
29. Mob scenes: RIOTS
31. In bygone days: AGO
33. Retailer with blue-and-yellow megastores: IKEA
34. Does penance (for): ATONES
35. Clothing line: SEAM
37. Go-aheads: YESES. Could be YESSES, but two esses won out here over three.
39. Eye layer: UVEA
40. Say: FOR ONE. Might be hard to see this - when you're explaining something - "Take that crossword, say - it's a good theme" - "Take that crossword, for one, it's a good theme". I found it harder to explain than to solve. I probably made a complete mess of it.
42. Hops hot spot: OAST
44. "Things Are Fine in Mount __": Charley Weaver book: IDY. My last fill. Thank you, stab-in-the-dark gods.
45. Augment: ADD TO
46. Unborn: IN UTERO
48. Scale members: RE'S. Yuck, sorry. Do's, Re's, Me's, Sol's .... Nope. Not having it.
49. Preserves, in a way: CANS
51. Baton-passing event: RELAY, Baton-dropping, most embarassingly.
54. Switch partner: BAIT. and Switch.
55. Makes moist: DAMPENS
57. Electrical generator: ALTERNATOR
61. "The Matrix" actress Carrie-__ Moss: ANNE. Anyone called Carrie Anne cannot match up to my criush - Carrie Anne Inaba
63. Cupcake decorator: ICER
64. Andean shrubs: COCAS
65. Little piggies: TOES
66. Nero Wolfe creator Stout: REX. Who? What?
Down:
1. Center of power: LOCUS
2. Panels illustrating film scripts: STORY BOARDS. I loved the long downs. This was a cracker to start.
3. High capital: DENVER. A mile, plus or minus, high. I stayed in a hotel there (shame on me, the name escapes me) who had the one-mile marker next to the elevators on the ground floor.
4. "Hey, sailor!": AHOY
5. General concerns?: WARS
6. Unit of work: ERG
7. Let off: SPARED
8. Solace: COMFORT
9. Responsibility: ONUS
10. Wii forerunner, briefly: NES
11. Onassis nickname: ARI. stotle.
12. Foreign policy advisory gp.: NSC
13. Plastic choice: VISA. Mastercard,, Discover and Amex could have fit, but only AMEX might have snuck in there.
15. 100 sawbucks: ONE G. One Grand = 100 tens.
19. Place for pins and needles: ETUI
22. Salts, say: SEASONS
23. King's philosophy: NON-VIOLENCE
24. Jousting mount: STEED. Poor buggers. They already weigh two tons and then there's armor plate and a knight who matches them for mass on top. A long day for a horse at the jousting. Footnote - the terms of my 99-year leasehold flat in London explicitly forbade me from organizing jousting tournaments. I also was not allowed to keep coal in the bath. I was on the second floor. What the coal restriction was about, I have no idea. The Duchess of Camden was the freehold owner, bless her.
25. Test for purity: ASSAY
27. Scottish isle: SKYE.
28. Half a giggle: HEE
30. Letters for short people?: IOU
31. Equidistant: AS FAR. I was back and forth on this one. Quite aptly, I suppose - I was back one way, forth the other way, as far from the middle each trip
32. Sparkly stone: GEODE. I remember this thinking of a battery shorting out in a shower of sparks - Anode, Cathode .... yay Geode!!!!
34. Boss' backup: Abbr.: ASST.
36. Witty remark: MOT. Can it be witty just being a mot? I think bon mot.
38. __ de toilette: EAU
41. Strict diet restriction: NO CARBS
43. __ paper: TERM
46. Whole: INTACT
47. Get to work again: REPAIR
50. Japanese aborigine: AINU. Or Did I say I got my DNA results last week? 77% Irish, 19% English/Welsh and 2% each French and Norwegian. My friend was 100% 蝦夷.
52. Subsidiary structure: ANNEX. Attached to the ell? We should be told.
53. Belgian river: YSER
54. Phi __ Kappa: BETA
55. Dish (out): DOLE
56. Son of Zeus and Hera: ARES
57. TV network with much Shondaland programming: ABC. Shondaland is the production company that co-produces shows such as Grey's Anatomy and Private Practice.
58. Summer sign: LEO. I'm either a Virgo or a Libra, depending on which version of my birth certificate you believe.
59. Solace for a sad BFF: TLC. This was weird. TLC was a lot earlier than BFF-speak. 60's - two-thousand-teens mash-up. I liked it.
60. Ref's ruling: TKO. Technically, a Technical Knock-Out.
Power to the People!
Steve
62A. Clothing accessory, perhaps ... or what you can see in each of four groups of circles?: BELT BUCKLE
No getting around this one - you need the circles to see the theme. We have four belts - conveyor belt, Orion's belt, money belt and asteroid belt, all of which are "buckled" down, across and then back up in the grid.
I take my hat off to constructors who pull off this kind of puzzle - it's not just a question of fitting your theme entries into the grid and then filling around them, it's a whole step up in the craft. Roger & Kathy nailed it today.
Orion's Belt:
After Orion, and this week's blood super wolf moon, let's go hunt down to what else we've got:
Across:
1. It can cause a bad trip: LSD
4. Renders speechless: AWES
8. Late-night host with an orange-blimp running gag: CONAN. In the "industry" news this week for announcing a 30-minute slot of his show, rather than the full hour.
13. Show of hands: VOTE
14. Some Pequod crewmen: HARPOONERS. What a great word to find early on the journey today.
16. Tapped pic: ICON. Only if you've got a touchscreen of some kind.
17. Many Bach compositions: ORGAN MUSIC. Quick! Think of a J.S.Bach fugue! I betcha a dollar to a donut it was this one here
18. Sources of "Family Feud" answers: SURVEYS. "And the survey said ......"
20. Soccer officials: REFS. Much-maligned around the world. Not as maligned as the NFL official who didn't throw the flag for pass in the Rams - Saints game on Sunday. I don't think he should plan a trip to New Orleans for a while.
21. Till this moment: AS YET
22. Utah lily: SEGO
23. Hush-hush org.: NSA. There's a few "orgs" today. Shout 'em out as you see 'em.
26. Rebuffed, with "off": BRUSHED
29. Mob scenes: RIOTS
31. In bygone days: AGO
33. Retailer with blue-and-yellow megastores: IKEA
34. Does penance (for): ATONES
35. Clothing line: SEAM
37. Go-aheads: YESES. Could be YESSES, but two esses won out here over three.
39. Eye layer: UVEA
40. Say: FOR ONE. Might be hard to see this - when you're explaining something - "Take that crossword, say - it's a good theme" - "Take that crossword, for one, it's a good theme". I found it harder to explain than to solve. I probably made a complete mess of it.
42. Hops hot spot: OAST
44. "Things Are Fine in Mount __": Charley Weaver book: IDY. My last fill. Thank you, stab-in-the-dark gods.
45. Augment: ADD TO
46. Unborn: IN UTERO
48. Scale members: RE'S. Yuck, sorry. Do's, Re's, Me's, Sol's .... Nope. Not having it.
49. Preserves, in a way: CANS
51. Baton-passing event: RELAY, Baton-dropping, most embarassingly.
54. Switch partner: BAIT. and Switch.
55. Makes moist: DAMPENS
57. Electrical generator: ALTERNATOR
61. "The Matrix" actress Carrie-__ Moss: ANNE. Anyone called Carrie Anne cannot match up to my criush - Carrie Anne Inaba
63. Cupcake decorator: ICER
64. Andean shrubs: COCAS
65. Little piggies: TOES
66. Nero Wolfe creator Stout: REX. Who? What?
Down:
1. Center of power: LOCUS
2. Panels illustrating film scripts: STORY BOARDS. I loved the long downs. This was a cracker to start.
3. High capital: DENVER. A mile, plus or minus, high. I stayed in a hotel there (shame on me, the name escapes me) who had the one-mile marker next to the elevators on the ground floor.
4. "Hey, sailor!": AHOY
5. General concerns?: WARS
6. Unit of work: ERG
7. Let off: SPARED
8. Solace: COMFORT
9. Responsibility: ONUS
10. Wii forerunner, briefly: NES
11. Onassis nickname: ARI. stotle.
12. Foreign policy advisory gp.: NSC
13. Plastic choice: VISA. Mastercard,, Discover and Amex could have fit, but only AMEX might have snuck in there.
15. 100 sawbucks: ONE G. One Grand = 100 tens.
19. Place for pins and needles: ETUI
22. Salts, say: SEASONS
23. King's philosophy: NON-VIOLENCE
24. Jousting mount: STEED. Poor buggers. They already weigh two tons and then there's armor plate and a knight who matches them for mass on top. A long day for a horse at the jousting. Footnote - the terms of my 99-year leasehold flat in London explicitly forbade me from organizing jousting tournaments. I also was not allowed to keep coal in the bath. I was on the second floor. What the coal restriction was about, I have no idea. The Duchess of Camden was the freehold owner, bless her.
25. Test for purity: ASSAY
27. Scottish isle: SKYE.
Sail, bonnie boat, like a bird on the wing,
"Onward" the sailors cry.
Carry the man who's born to be king,
over the sea to Skye"
28. Half a giggle: HEE
30. Letters for short people?: IOU
31. Equidistant: AS FAR. I was back and forth on this one. Quite aptly, I suppose - I was back one way, forth the other way, as far from the middle each trip
32. Sparkly stone: GEODE. I remember this thinking of a battery shorting out in a shower of sparks - Anode, Cathode .... yay Geode!!!!
34. Boss' backup: Abbr.: ASST.
36. Witty remark: MOT. Can it be witty just being a mot? I think bon mot.
38. __ de toilette: EAU
41. Strict diet restriction: NO CARBS
43. __ paper: TERM
46. Whole: INTACT
47. Get to work again: REPAIR
50. Japanese aborigine: AINU. Or Did I say I got my DNA results last week? 77% Irish, 19% English/Welsh and 2% each French and Norwegian. My friend was 100% 蝦夷.
52. Subsidiary structure: ANNEX. Attached to the ell? We should be told.
53. Belgian river: YSER
54. Phi __ Kappa: BETA
55. Dish (out): DOLE
56. Son of Zeus and Hera: ARES
57. TV network with much Shondaland programming: ABC. Shondaland is the production company that co-produces shows such as Grey's Anatomy and Private Practice.
58. Summer sign: LEO. I'm either a Virgo or a Libra, depending on which version of my birth certificate you believe.
59. Solace for a sad BFF: TLC. This was weird. TLC was a lot earlier than BFF-speak. 60's - two-thousand-teens mash-up. I liked it.
60. Ref's ruling: TKO. Technically, a Technical Knock-Out.
Power to the People!
Steve
