Theme: "Director's Cut"* - Six famous directors are separated one black square. See Answer Grid.
21. *Marvel hero with a red-white-and-blue costume: CAPTAIN AMERICA. 23. *Soviet newspaper: PRAVDA. Frank Capra.
34. *Hunk: STUD MUFFIN. 36. *Take only the best: CHERRY-PICK. David Fincher.
49. *Instrument played with mallets: GLOCKENSPIEL. 53. *Citrus used to flavor tea: BERGAMOT.Steven Spielberg.
71. *Turkey's area: NEAR EAST. 72. *Symbol of worthlessness: WOODEN NICKEL. Clint Eastwood.
86. *Camper's knot: CLOVE HITCH.
89. *Ridiculous, as an excuse: COCKAMAMIE. Alfred Hitchcock.
103. *"Walk This Way" rap trio: RUN DMC.
104. *Oscar-winning role for Judi Dench: QUEENE LIZABETH. Steve McQueen.
Love the theme and execution. I did a "Director's Cut" for the Universal a while ago. But Joe's approach is far more impressive, with long director names and full six grid-spanning entries.
Only 138 words (our
standard is 144). Lots of nice non-fill, some chewy. Not surprising
since we see more themeless grids from Joe.
Across:
8. Iraq port city: BASRA.
13. Knighted English composer: ELGAR (Edward)
18. Bust of Pope Paul V sculptor: BERNINI. Gian Lorenzo Bernini. Here's the bust.
19. Language family including Finnish and Hungarian: URALIC.
Wiki says "The name "Uralic" derives from the family's original homeland
(Urheimat) commonly hypothesized to be in the vicinity of the Ural
Mountains."
20. "I Hope You Dance" singer Womack: LEE ANN.
24. Like a racehorse's hooves: SHOD.
25. Apple pie order: A LA MODE.
26. Last-second online auction bids: SNIPES.
27. OXO tool: PEELER. This is the peeler I use. It's made in Thailand. Works great with mangoes.
29. Comet, to some: OMEN.
30. Summer hrs. along the Mississippi: CDT.
32. Humdingers: LULUS.
38. Android alternative: IOS.
39. Halloween decoration: BAT.
40. "Family Guy" kid with a football-shaped head: STEWIE. Never watched the show.
41. __ Beta Kappa: PHI.
42. Diva's numbers: SOLI. Plural of solo.
44. Base-level rideshare option: UberX. OK, this site has
detailed information on UberX, UberXL, etc. "UberX seats 4 passengers.
UberX cars are typically sedans such as Toyota Prius, Honda Accord".
Gary used Uber during his DC trip a few years ago.
46. Host before Carson: PAAR (Jack)
57. Cattle catchers: ROPES.
58. Cantina fare: TAPAS.
59. '60s-'70s epithet based on a 21st-century Emmy-winning drama: MAD MEN ERA. OK, Wiki comes to the rescue again: "According to the pilot episode, the phrase "Mad men"
was a slang term coined in the 1950s by advertisers working on Madison
Avenue to refer to themselves, "Mad" being short for "Madison".
60. Appliance found in Provence?: OVEN. Provence.
61. Survivalist Stroud: LES.
62. Okra or orca unit: POD.
63. "Dracula" author Stoker: BRAM.
64. Phisher's crime: WIRE FRAUD.
68. Throat problems: FROGS.
70. Grand Canyon sights: CACTI.
74. Cravings: YENS.
75. Slightly lit: TIPSY.
76. Kindle technology: E-INK. Always made me think of Jeff Chen, who debuted this entry long ago.
77. Back on a ship: AFT.
80. Gem weight units: CARATS.
82. Water source: TAP.
83. Little terror: IMP.
93. Worked on a Royal: TYPED. Royal Typewriter.
94. Fragrant neckwear: LEI. JimmyB sent me this fresh lei from Hawaii on the day our Hawaii puzzle was run in the LA Times. So fragrant.
95. Giants manager Kapler: GABE.
96. Cruel boss: TYRANT.
97. SoFi Stadium team: LA RAMS.
99. Family planning topic, familiarly: THE PILL.
102. Big apes: LUGS.
107. Made a case: ARGUED.
108. Seventh of eight: URANUS.
109. Part of town to avoid: BAD AREA. Here's the Asian grocery store I visit often. Still boarded up. Wells Fargo at our street corner just took down the boards yesterday.
110. They may be skinny: JEANS. Out of style now, according to TikTokkers.
111. Finish by: END AT.
112. Rock's Lynyrd __: SKYNYRD.
Down:
2. Take on, as tenants: LEASE TO.
3. Mythological lyrist: ORPHEUS. Husband of Eurydice.
4. Boundless: UNTOLD.
5. Jeweled headgear: DIADEM.
6. Oxford, to Oxonians: UNI. University.
7. Fruta en una colada: PINA. Spanish for pineapple.
8. City in NW Germany: BREMEN. Home of Beck's Brewery.
9. "Breaking Bad" actor __ Paul: AARON.
10. Arrived headfirst, perhaps: SLID.
11. General Mills cereal: RICE CHEX. Boomer likes Wheat Chex more.
12. Landmark health legislation, briefly: ACA. Also 20. Health care provider: Abbr.: LPN.
13. À la King?: EERILY. Stephen King.
14. Jump to one's feet: LEAP UP.
15. Talked back to: GAVE LIP.
16. List-shortening words: AND SUCH.
17. Transfer __: RNA.
19. Fish sauce taste: UMAMI.
22. Floating above, say: ALOFT.
26. Like Waldo's shirt, in kids' books: STRIPED.
27. Inflation meas.: PSI. Pounds per Square Inch.
28. Russian cabbage?: RUBLE. Can't fool our regulars.
31. MTN __: DEW.
33. Mountain footwear, maybe: SKI.
35. Pass out: FAINT.
36. __-Alt-Del: CTRL.
37. Heat up again?: RE-ARM.
40. Matches, as a bet: SEES.
42. Stage backdrop: SCENERY.
43. Gives a thumbs-up: OKS.
44. Raised: UPPED.
45. Leaning: BIAS.
47. Spend time in a cellar, perhaps: AGE. If you're a bottle of wine.
48. Returned, as a football kick: RAN BACK.
49. Cultivated: GROWN.
50. Houston Texans coach Smith: LOVIE. He was Bears' coach before.
51. "Carmen," e.g.: OPERA.
52. Henri's "Hi": SALUT.
53. Symbol of authority: BADGE.
54. Pfizer rival: MERCK. Hope I don't develop the itch again after my second Pfizer shot in early May.
55. More than just talk: ORATE.
56. Language of southern India: TAMIL.
59. Temperamental: MOODY.
62. (The) big leagues: PROS.
65. Bank charge: FEE.
66. French alternative: RANCH. What's your favorite dressing?
67. Has at: ASSAILS.
68. Dandy fellows: FOPS.
69. Move surreptitiously: SNEAK.
70. Bengals, on scoreboards: CIN. Cincinnati.
72. Accompanying: WITH.
73. Bite like a puppy: NIP AT.
75. Tight-lipped: TACITURN.
77. Do something: ACT.
78. Bit of fishing tackle: FLY LURE.
79. Santa Monica Mountains' __ Canyon: TOPANGA. Unfamiliar to me.
81. U.S. __ 1, East Coast hwy.: RTE.
82. Immune system component: T CELL.
83. Picturesque language: IMAGERY.
84. English church honorific: MINSTER.
85. Furry friend: PET.
87. WWI battle city: VERDUN. Also unknown to me. Wiki says the Battle of Verdun was the longest of the First World War and took place on the hills north of Verdun-sur-Meuse.
88. One of a quartet of '50s singing siblings: ED AMES.
89. Domed top for a threaded fastener: CAP NUT.
90. Relatives of Tonys: OBIES.
91. Polite two-word English term of address: MY LADY.
92. Oranjestad native: ARUBAN.
95. Actress Davis: GEENA.
98. Fast-food NYSE ticker symbol: MCD. McDonald's.
100. Beer foam: HEAD.
101. Mad __: word game: LIBS.
103. Rule that Gandhi opposed: RAJ.
104. "¿__ pasa?": QUE.
105. __ Starkey, longtime drummer for The Who: ZAK.
106. Once possessed: HAD.
Happy Birthday to Kazie (Kay),
who has shared with us many of her traveling pictures over the years. Hopefully she can visit her family in Germany soon.
 |
| Kay and her husband Barry on Tamborine Mountain, overlooking Brisbane |
C.C.
