Saturday, August 17, 2019, Michael Ashley

Themeless Saturday Puzzle by Michael Ashley

August 17th has been designated  to celebrate one of my favorite things in the world: The #2 Pencil! Like all of you, I have done the puzzle online occasionally and have also been forced to use a, gasp, ink pen but the old Ticonderoga #2 is my fav. All right, I am partial to the Paper Mate Sharpwriter too because it has a good eraser!

Someday this math/physics teacher will understand why students always seem to have a plethora of ink pens, markers and even crayons but hardly ever a #2 wooden pencil. I bought many boxes of them over the years and handed them out daily - usually to the same kids!

Today's constructor is Michael Ashley and this is a reposting from my blog of his puzzle on 10/27/18: I lived nearly 20 years in Manhattan, New York, and have now lived with my wife and two children in Scottsdale, Arizona, since 1993. Besides being a maniacal online chess buff, in my spare time I dabble at another sport which, on my better days, strongly resembles golf. 

Irrespective of what implement or technology you employed to solve Michael's offering, let's review its content. For me it was a quite fast but pleasant experience with, as usual, the long fills opening the floodgates.

Across:

1. Cute but nerdy: ADORKABLE - Congrats if you knew this, uh, cute portmanteau (ADORABLE/DORK)

10. Praises highly: LAUDS.

15. Area adjoining a bridge: RADAR ROOM - This bridge is one from which the ship is commanded and the RADAR ROOM supplies data for its safe passage

16. Hall of fame: ANNIE - A Woody Allen/Diane Keaton film

17. "Search me": I'VE NO IDEA

18. Service period: STINT - The hash marks on Command Master Chief Marilyn E. Kennard's sleeve indicate she has served many STINTS in the Navy

19. "Red Rocks" city: SEDONA, AZ from the air

20. Epic: BIG.

22. Vermont tourist destinations: INNS - Bob Newhart's TV Stratford INN in Vermont was really the Wayward Inn in Middlebury, VT

23. Animated queen: NALA - Disney's new live-action remake of The Lion King features Beyonce voicing NALA

25. Inc. relative: LLC - Limited Liability Corporation 

27. Match at the poker table: SEE.

28. Make a pick: OPT.

31. "My Way" singer, 1998: USHER - Definitely not Sinatra nor my cuppa tea

33. Jimmy: PRY - Forgot your key? Derivation of the term

34. Half a comedy duo: MEARA - My first encounter with them

Ed Sullivan, Ann Meara, Jerry Stiller

37. Apart from the rest: TO ONE SIDE.

39. Title voice actor in "Puss in Boots" (2011): ANTONIO BANDERAS - Ok

41. "Feels like" weather calculation: HEAT INDEX - We had a week of HEAT INDICES near 115F and now it has turned very nice

42. Be a debtor of: OWE TO 

43. DOJ branch: ATF.

Moire Pattern

44. Wavelike pattern: MOIRE - Wazzat?

45. Man cave, for some: DEN.

46. Bud: BRO.

47. Wrap up: END 

48. Very: SUCH.

52. Work to acquire: EARN.

54. Retract, as words: EAT -  Try to make your words very sweet, for you may have to EAT them!

56. '60s-'70s crime drama: THE FBI - Efrem Zimbalist Jr. was the star

60. Dogpatch name: ABNER - It's a Li'l name

62. Common epidemic factor: CONTAGION.

64. Veil: CLOAK- A dagger can be an accessory

65. Fronded rainforest plants: TREE FERNS.

66. Conform with: HEW TO - Many politicians HEW TO the dictates of their party or else...

67. United Federation of Planets service: STAR FLEET - "To boldly go..."

Down:

1. Onassis and others: ARIS - Another might be Fleishner 

2. 1993 Kevin Kline title role: DAVE.

3. Had too much: ODED - My Netflix bingeing might qualify

4. Was loquacious: RAN ON - I have a SIL who does that. She never fails to talk for ten minutes when ten seconds would suffice. TMI!

5. Icelandic monetary unit: KRONA - A KRONA = $.0081

6. Easy-to-read font: ARIAL.

7. Hunk's pride: BOD - Redux from last week

8. "Firecracker" singer Lisa: LOEB - Here ya go!

9. Online forgeries: EMAIL HOAXES - I'd be suspicious of EMAIL from that Nigerian Prince

10. Avila article: LAS - In Avila, Spain the plural of cockroaches would be LAS cucarachas

11. Not a source of support for: ANTI.

12. Trite: UNINSPIRED - I suspect most editors say this of unsolicited manuscripts 

13. Start of many a romance: DINNER DATE 

14. Catches sight of: SETS EYES ON - A memorable moment for millions

21. Close in films: GLENN - Her IMDB listings

24. Self-taught people: AUTODIDACTS - An interesting take here:

26. System of belief: CREDO.

28. D-Day hot spot: OMAHA BEACH - So many brave men died there 75 years ago

29. Porous: PENETRABLE - Bad football defenses can are often called porous 

30. Casual parting words: TATA FOR NOW - Way too cheesy for me

32. Not at all high: SOBER.

35. Go to seed: ROT - Dandelions breaking down and going to seed

36. "The Red Turtle" genre: ANIME.

38. Mend, in a way: SEW.

40. Words after all or hole: IN ONE - My first thought for all-in-one

49. Speak: UTTER.

50. Threshing remains: CHAFF - Wheat CHAFF dispensed out the back of this John Deere combine

51. German idealism pioneer: HEGEL - Here 'ya go

53. Spruce: NEAT - I use it with "up" as in Spruce Up something 

55. Libel or slander: TORT.

This site says - 1 is a crime, 2 is a tort and 3 could be either one

57. Gift from Prometheus: FIRE.

58. Joint component: BONE - 82% of NFL career-ending injuries occur with an injury at this confluence of BONE joints

59. Research ctr.: INST - Like the Massachusetts INSTitute of Technology 

61. One of the Big Five in Hollywood's Golden Age: RKO.

63. Org. awarded a Special Tony in 2016: NEA - The National Endowment For The Arts 

Perhaps in your comment, you can tell us what instrument you used to complete the puzzle.