Theme Happy Days - if you remember the date. Unhappy days if you forget!
17A. First anniversary gift for a zookeeper?: PAPER TIGER.
38A. 10th anniversary gift for a musician?: TIN HORN. There's a bar near me called the Tinhorn Flats in Burbank, used often for location shoots for commercials. It's got those great saloon doors that swing back when you push through them.
57A. 50th anniversary gift for a fast-food worker?: GOLD NUGGET
11D. 15th anniversary gift for a golfer?: CRYSTAL BALL
25D. 25th anniversary gift for a chef?: SILVER SPOON
Cool theme from Michael today. Plus, if you thought that you'd never seen GOLD NUGGET in a crossword before, you very likely haven't. None of the major puzzles have used it before. Yay! Something new!
Let's go roaming through the gloaming and see what we turn up:
Across:
1. Soft end of the Mohs scale: TALC. Diamond is at the other end.
5. Old Toyota models: ECHOS
10. Order to go: SCAT. Get outta here! Fun clue.
14. Squiggly lines in the funnies, maybe: ODOR
15. Hot day refuge: SHADE
16. "Him __?": love triangle ultimatum: OR ME
19. Like eyes "you can't hide," in an Eagles song: LYIN'
20. Ring loudly: PEAL. I've been in a bell-tower while the bells were being rung, and they're quite muffled. It's outside that you get full volume. I'm sure that you know a true cockney has to be born within the sound of Bow Bells - the bells of St. Mary-le-Bow on Cheapside in the City of London. A full peal of eight bells must have at least 5,000 changes, that's a lot of bell-ringing.
21. It can spice things up: TABASCO. Avery Island, where the sauce is produced, it very pretty. I was making a dish at the weekend which called for Louisiana Hot Sauce. I've got about 20 types of hot sauce, but did I have Louisiana? Then the penny dropped - Doh! Tabasco!
23. Prescription specs: DOSES. Another fun clue - "specs" as in specifications.
26. 2000 Gere title role: DR. T.
28. Gere, for one: ACTOR. Shifting into second "Gere".
29. Super Mario Galaxy consoles: WIIS. I did a little digging on this one, and a lot of the "gaming community" say the the plural is Wii, just like fish or sheep.
30. Japanese ice cream flavor: GREEN TEA. Tea grown in the shade has the best flavor, such as matcha or gyokuro.
32. "It's __ good": ALL
33. Livid: IRED
34. Lots and lots: OODLES
37. Race in place: REV
40. Wire-concealing garment, perhaps: BRA. Professional male soccer players in the major leagues now wear what looks like a sports bra - it "conceals" a tracking device so that sports scientists can analyze the movement, speed and distance traveled on the pitch during a game.
41. Least encumbered: FREEST
43. Musical work: OPUS
44. "A lie that makes us realize truth," per Picasso: ART. Pablo had a bit of a mean streak. This is another of his: "I'm a joker who understands his epoch and has extracted all he possibly could from the stupidity, greed and vanity of his contemporaries". Ouch!
45. Adds insult to injury: RUBS IT IN
47. Hair gel squirt: GLOB
48. Bow ties, e.g.: PASTA
50. The Spartans of the NCAA: M.S.U. Michigan State.Their mascot, a Spartan, is creatively named "Sparty". They really went out on a limb with that one.
51. "Well, I'll be!": GOLLY
52. Totally jazzed: AMPED UP
54. Like many 45 records: MONO.
56. Jordanian queen dowager: NOOR
62. Stop discussing: DROP
63. Hail: GREET
64. Passion: LOVE
65. __ pool: GENE
66. __ pool: STENO. Fun cluing today. A close-proximity clecho.
67. Biblical spot: EDEN
Down:
1. Cover: TOP
2. Nicole's "Cold Mountain" role: ADA. Thank you, crosses
3. Hack: LOP
4. Brunch choice: CRÊPES. Food! Strictly speaking, crêpes are sweet and galettes are savory (unless you come from a certain part of Brittany, but let's not get into that, it causes a lot of argument!).
5. "¿Cómo __?": ESTA
6. Kids: CHILDREN
7. "Macbeth" role: HAG
8. "Swan Lake" princess: ODETTE
9. Blood fluids: SERA
10. Comforted: SOLACED
12. Palermo pal: AMICO
13. Barbershop part: TENOR
18. In medias __: RES. A narrative device where you open a story in the middle of it, then go back and fill in the bits as you go. Shakespeare was fond of its usage, such as in Hamlet.
22. Relay sticks: BATONS
23. Middle-earth figure: DWARF. Might be small, but definitely not to be messed with.
24. Gulf ship: OILER
27. Fiery candies: RED HOTS
30. South side?: GRITS. Another cracking clue.
31. Like a shutout: NO-RUN
33. "I'm not gonna sugarcoat this": IT'S BAD
35. Screen legend Flynn: ERROL
36. Failed to act: SAT BY
39. Long-outlawed smoking establishment: OPIUM DEN
42. Greek Muse of music: EUTERPE. I didn't know this, but the crosses were solid.
46. Oil, for many: IMPORT. Via your 24D
47. Look-up aid: GOOGLE
48. Herbal Essences maker, for short: P. AND G. Proctor and Gamble. "I supervised the exam and then hit the casino. I proctored and gambled" Pa-da-ching! I'll be here all week.
49. 64-Across, at La Scala: AMORE
51. Serengeti herbivore: GNU
53. Fleece-lined footwear brand: UGGS. These things were all the rage not too long ago. They even convinced Tom Brady to wear a pair.
55. Not duped by: ONTO
58. Two-time Emmy-winning actress __ Grant: LEE
59. OMG part: GOD
60. 67-Across outcast: EVE. Quite a bit of cross-reference and clue play today.
61. Number of Canadian provinces: TEN. I tried to recall them, I missed British Columbia and Alberta, but invented Victoria, so I was roughly on the right track, and thought Newfoundland and Labrador were seperate. So I had ten, just not the right ten.
With that little geography challenge out of the way, here's the grid!
Steve
17A. First anniversary gift for a zookeeper?: PAPER TIGER.
38A. 10th anniversary gift for a musician?: TIN HORN. There's a bar near me called the Tinhorn Flats in Burbank, used often for location shoots for commercials. It's got those great saloon doors that swing back when you push through them.
57A. 50th anniversary gift for a fast-food worker?: GOLD NUGGET
11D. 15th anniversary gift for a golfer?: CRYSTAL BALL
25D. 25th anniversary gift for a chef?: SILVER SPOON
Cool theme from Michael today. Plus, if you thought that you'd never seen GOLD NUGGET in a crossword before, you very likely haven't. None of the major puzzles have used it before. Yay! Something new!
Let's go roaming through the gloaming and see what we turn up:
Across:
1. Soft end of the Mohs scale: TALC. Diamond is at the other end.
5. Old Toyota models: ECHOS
10. Order to go: SCAT. Get outta here! Fun clue.
14. Squiggly lines in the funnies, maybe: ODOR
15. Hot day refuge: SHADE
16. "Him __?": love triangle ultimatum: OR ME
19. Like eyes "you can't hide," in an Eagles song: LYIN'
20. Ring loudly: PEAL. I've been in a bell-tower while the bells were being rung, and they're quite muffled. It's outside that you get full volume. I'm sure that you know a true cockney has to be born within the sound of Bow Bells - the bells of St. Mary-le-Bow on Cheapside in the City of London. A full peal of eight bells must have at least 5,000 changes, that's a lot of bell-ringing.
21. It can spice things up: TABASCO. Avery Island, where the sauce is produced, it very pretty. I was making a dish at the weekend which called for Louisiana Hot Sauce. I've got about 20 types of hot sauce, but did I have Louisiana? Then the penny dropped - Doh! Tabasco!
23. Prescription specs: DOSES. Another fun clue - "specs" as in specifications.
26. 2000 Gere title role: DR. T.
28. Gere, for one: ACTOR. Shifting into second "Gere".
29. Super Mario Galaxy consoles: WIIS. I did a little digging on this one, and a lot of the "gaming community" say the the plural is Wii, just like fish or sheep.
30. Japanese ice cream flavor: GREEN TEA. Tea grown in the shade has the best flavor, such as matcha or gyokuro.
32. "It's __ good": ALL
33. Livid: IRED
34. Lots and lots: OODLES
37. Race in place: REV
40. Wire-concealing garment, perhaps: BRA. Professional male soccer players in the major leagues now wear what looks like a sports bra - it "conceals" a tracking device so that sports scientists can analyze the movement, speed and distance traveled on the pitch during a game.
41. Least encumbered: FREEST
43. Musical work: OPUS
44. "A lie that makes us realize truth," per Picasso: ART. Pablo had a bit of a mean streak. This is another of his: "I'm a joker who understands his epoch and has extracted all he possibly could from the stupidity, greed and vanity of his contemporaries". Ouch!
45. Adds insult to injury: RUBS IT IN
47. Hair gel squirt: GLOB
48. Bow ties, e.g.: PASTA
50. The Spartans of the NCAA: M.S.U. Michigan State.Their mascot, a Spartan, is creatively named "Sparty". They really went out on a limb with that one.
51. "Well, I'll be!": GOLLY
52. Totally jazzed: AMPED UP
54. Like many 45 records: MONO.
56. Jordanian queen dowager: NOOR
62. Stop discussing: DROP
63. Hail: GREET
64. Passion: LOVE
65. __ pool: GENE
66. __ pool: STENO. Fun cluing today. A close-proximity clecho.
67. Biblical spot: EDEN
Down:
1. Cover: TOP
2. Nicole's "Cold Mountain" role: ADA. Thank you, crosses
3. Hack: LOP
4. Brunch choice: CRÊPES. Food! Strictly speaking, crêpes are sweet and galettes are savory (unless you come from a certain part of Brittany, but let's not get into that, it causes a lot of argument!).
5. "¿Cómo __?": ESTA
6. Kids: CHILDREN
7. "Macbeth" role: HAG
8. "Swan Lake" princess: ODETTE
9. Blood fluids: SERA
10. Comforted: SOLACED
12. Palermo pal: AMICO
13. Barbershop part: TENOR
18. In medias __: RES. A narrative device where you open a story in the middle of it, then go back and fill in the bits as you go. Shakespeare was fond of its usage, such as in Hamlet.
22. Relay sticks: BATONS
23. Middle-earth figure: DWARF. Might be small, but definitely not to be messed with.
24. Gulf ship: OILER
27. Fiery candies: RED HOTS
30. South side?: GRITS. Another cracking clue.
31. Like a shutout: NO-RUN
33. "I'm not gonna sugarcoat this": IT'S BAD
35. Screen legend Flynn: ERROL
36. Failed to act: SAT BY
39. Long-outlawed smoking establishment: OPIUM DEN
42. Greek Muse of music: EUTERPE. I didn't know this, but the crosses were solid.
46. Oil, for many: IMPORT. Via your 24D
47. Look-up aid: GOOGLE
48. Herbal Essences maker, for short: P. AND G. Proctor and Gamble. "I supervised the exam and then hit the casino. I proctored and gambled" Pa-da-ching! I'll be here all week.
49. 64-Across, at La Scala: AMORE
51. Serengeti herbivore: GNU
53. Fleece-lined footwear brand: UGGS. These things were all the rage not too long ago. They even convinced Tom Brady to wear a pair.
55. Not duped by: ONTO
58. Two-time Emmy-winning actress __ Grant: LEE
59. OMG part: GOD
60. 67-Across outcast: EVE. Quite a bit of cross-reference and clue play today.
61. Number of Canadian provinces: TEN. I tried to recall them, I missed British Columbia and Alberta, but invented Victoria, so I was roughly on the right track, and thought Newfoundland and Labrador were seperate. So I had ten, just not the right ten.
With that little geography challenge out of the way, here's the grid!
Steve
