Tuesday April 5, 2022 Jerry Edelstein

Theme: BANDLEADER (61. Musical conductor ... and what the end of 18-, 23-, 40- or 51-Across can be?) - Band can follow the last word of each theme answer.

18. Do a guard's job: STAND WATCH. Watch band.

23. Prevail in the race (just barely): WIN BY A HAIR. Hairband

40. "Brace yourself": HOLD ON TO YOUR HAT. Hat band.

51. Peel out: BURN RUBBER. Rubber band.

Boomer here again. Hahtoolah needs some extra time. She'll be back soon. 

I saw a peanut stand, I've heard a rubber BAND and seen a needle wink it's eye.  But I be done seen about everything, when I see an elephant fly.

Across:

1. Danish director von Trier: LARS.

5. One of a yardstick's 36: INCH.  I do not see many yardsticks anymore.  Companies used to give them away at the State Fair.

9. "High waving heather __ stormy blasts bending": E. Brontë: NEATH.

14. Actor Baldwin: ALEC.  I think he shot a camera lady on a movie set a year or two ago.

15. Home of the NFL's Saints, informally: NOLA.  New Orleans.

16. Bert's Muppet buddy: ERNIE.

17. Old Italian money: LIRA.  I guess most money is old.  Mine is.

20. Addis __: ABABA.

22. Zagreb natives: CROATS.

25. Pitching stats: ERAS.  Earned Run Average.  Twins pitchers built theirs up during spring training.

29. "Furthermore ... ": AND.

30. Musical effect involving two quickly played repeated notes: TRILL.

31. Lasting emotional injury: SCAR.

34. Llama relative: ALPACA.

39. Jack Ryan org.: CIA.

43. QB's concern: INT.  Then throw it on target meathead.

44. Food on the farm: FODDER.

45. Gas sign in green letters: HESS.  A big number, then a dot and two more big numbers.  Why is the final number usually a nine?

46. Laugh at a joke, say: REACT.

48. Big Aussie bird: EMU.  I really cannot stand the commercials.

50. Banks of "America's Next Top Model": TYRA.

58. Seaman's "Help!": MAYDAY.

60. Surname of vintners Ernest and Julio: GALLO.  I never developed a taste for wine.

65. Hoarse voice: RASP.  Chemo has turned me into a soprano.

66. Disney's Little Mermaid: ARIEL.

67. Miller __: beer: LITE.  Have no taste for beer either.  Even when I served in Germany.

68. Soft French cheese: BRIE.

69. First AFL-CIO leader George __: MEANY.  And he was a Meanie.

70. Unable to find the way: LOST.

71. Tourney ranking: SEED.  I am wondering if we should buy small flower seedlings for our garden, (if it ever warms up here) or maybe we should just plant seeds?

Down:

1. Calif. legal drama: LA LAW.  Are the laws different there?

2. Suspect's out: ALIBI.  I didn't do it .

3. Showed over: RERAN.  I have been watching a ton of "Law and Order" reruns.

4. Sword sheath: SCABBARD.

5. __ and outs: workings: INS. 

6. Mountain gap: NOTCH.

7. Santa __, Calif.: CLARA.  Near San Jose, just south of San Francisco.

8. Vietnam's capital: HANOI.

9. Small salamander: NEWT.  Mr. Gingrich.

10. Solution for a pencil error: ERASER.

11. Tiny six-legged crawler: ANT.  We have them.  I never counted their legs.

12. It can precede or follow tac: TIC. OK, tactic.

13. Clever chuckle: HEH.

19. __ es Salaam: DAR.

21. Author Rand: AYN.  Russian-born writer.

24. Hersey's "A Bell for __": ADANO.

26. Rolling in francs: RICHE.  A franc is worth a little more than a dollar.

27. "a.k.a." name: ALIAS.  Smith and Jones.

28. Blind strips: SLATS.  We have then on our front window.  Keeps the sun out, if we ever get some.

30. Cross-shaped letter: TAU.

31. Metaphor in a big gambling loss: SHIRT.  Usual sponsor advertisement in bowling.

32. __ Island, home of the original Nathan's: CONEY.  "Good bye my Coney Island Baby".

33. "I do" site: ALTAR.  They used to be marble.  Now it seems like a big table.

35. Part of LLC: Abbr.: LTD.  Limited

36. Group of whales: POD.  Generally they hang out at high stakes tables in Vegas.

37. Vote of approval: AYE.

38. Apple pie maker's device: CORER.  Some apple pie makers just open a can.

41. Poet's "many times": OFT.

42. Tart-tasting preserve veggies: RHUBARBS.  When I was young, a neighbor grew that stuff in a garden.  It tastes terrible, but with a lot of sugar, I have heard of rhubarb pie.

47. Oriole Park at __ Yards: CAMDEN.  Cal Ripken was the best.

49. Coffee cup: MUG.  I have coffee in a tall insulated cup.

51. "So long": BYE.  "See ya!"

52. Arizona politics family name: UDALL. Mo Udall.

 

53. Car music source: RADIO. 55. Play loudly, as a 53-Down: BLARE.  Some people think its cool to BLARE the entire neighborhood.

54. Nos in Novgorod: NYETS.

56. Commercial cow: ELSIE.  A Borden Cow.  We have an Elsie's bowling center on the north side of Minneapolis.

57. Lured (in): ROPED.

59. Friend: ALLY.

61. "Pow!" relative: BAM.  Flintstone pet, BAM BAM

62. "What __ the odds?": ARE.  Six to five on the 6 and 8 in craps.

63. Vardalos or Long: NIA.

64. IRA part: Abbr.: RET.  Individual Retirement Account.

Boomer

Notes from C.C.:

Happy 81st birthday to dear Irish Miss, our sweet, observant and loving Agnes! When a regular is absent on the blog for a while, Agnes will always email me and ask. 

 

I'll never forget the happy voice of Argyle when he told me he just got another card from Agnes. I'll never forget the kindness you've shown Boomer and me, Agnes! Your caring cards, your comforting emails, you generous gifts, your quick feedback on my crazy ideas. So grateful to have you in my life.

 

L-R: Anne, Agnes, Eileen, Mary, and Peggy.

St Patrick's Day, 2019