Thursday October 23, 2008 Alan P. Olschwang

Theme: Cold-play

17A: Start of Ed Howe quip: I WISH IT WERE

28A: Part 2 of quip: POSSIBLE TO

40A: Part 3 of quip: PULL A

48A: Part 4 of quip: COLD, LIKE AN

63A: End of quip: ACHING TOOTH

Have you ever paid attention to how crossword constructors number their Across/Down clues? The first 13 Down clues are always in sequential order.

Also, in Quip/Quote puzzle, all the theme answers are supposed to be structured in Across. If there are an odd number of theme entries (Five in today's puzzle), the middle one has to be gridded in the very center of the puzzle and it must have an ODD number of letters (PULL A, 5 letters).

I hate the clue for MISLAID (25D: Lost). LOST TO is an answer for 5A: Was defeated by. Certain rules of cluing are not supposed to be broken. This duplication of clue/answer is a big No-No.

With OTT (6D: Polo Grounds great) in the grid and the World Series going on, you would think our editor has the foresight to clue SERIES (70A: One thing after another) differently.

Across:

1A: Vino region: ASTI. I like this clue better than the partial fill "___ Spumante".

11A: Letters for shock treatment: ECT (ElectroConvulsive Therapy). I would not have got it without the down clues. ECT just appeared in our puzzle last week.

24A: Scottish uncle: EME. No idea. How can the spelling and pronunciation are so drastically different from "uncle"? See this list of Scottish words and phrases. Lots of QU* words for Barry Silk to muse over.

26A: "Fiddler on the Roof" role: TEVYE. This is his "If I Were a Rich Man". I wanted YENTE.

34A: Egg-coloring brand: PAAS. Ha, this is the first time I encountered this brand. Why is it called PAAS instead of PASS?

35A: Emetic medication: IPECAC. I forgot. Identical clue on Sept. 2.

54A: Brahman, e.g.: CASTE. Brahman is "member of the highest, or priestly, class among the Hindus". Big stumper for me. I am used to the "Hindu social stratum/class" clue.

61A: Seal engraved on a ring: SIGNET

67A: Can skip: NEEDN'T. This kind of answer always give me trouble.

71A: Jewish month: ADAR. It's Purim's month.

Down:

4D: Part of foot: INSTEP. I thought of INCHES first.

8D: What's worldwide: THE WEB. I like this clue.

10D: Ballroom dance: ONE-STEP

11D: Undecided: EQUIVOCAL

12D: Like Shirley Temple's hairdo: CURLY. She is so sweet. I cannot undertand the appeal of this CURLY though.

13D: Linen fabric: TOILE. What's the story on this TOILE pillow?

18D: Billy of the Dead End kids: HALOP. I googled his name. He said he hated the name Dead End.

29D: Flavorful: SAPID. SAPID does not sound "flavorful" to me. In fact, it sounds vapid and unpalatable.

30D: Hansen of NPR's "Weekend Edition": LIANE. She is the lady on the left. Her husband is Neal Conan, host of NPR's "Talk of the Nation", which I listen occasionally.

41D: Gospel writer: LUKE. What does "Physician, heal thyself" mean?

46D: Implied: TACIT

50D: Honshu city: NAGOYA. I googled again. I only know the Chinese word for NAGOYA (名古屋) . See this map.

64D: Despot Amin: IDI. Do you still remember the name of the president who preceded and succeeded Amin? I don't. Let me check...Ah, Milton OBOTE. Actually, it's Apollo Milton OBOTE.

C.C.

Wednesday October 22, 2008 Barry Silk

Theme: J & J

18A: Denim item: JEANS JACKET

61A: Party punch: JUNGLE JUICE

3D: Jumpin' hot spot: JUKE JOINT

34D: Portly planes?: JUMBO JET

And more J words to intersect the above theme entries:

1A: M. Houlihan's rank: MAJ. "M*A*S*H".

24A: Horizontal beams: JOISTS

34A: Lively dance: JIG

58A: H-M connection: IJKL

4D: __ Mahal: TAJ

19D: King's comic: JESTER. I don't understand the clue and the answer.

49D: Prized trinket: BIJOU. New word to me.

57D: Member of the "Love Train" soul group: O'JAY. Unknown to me also. Here is "Love Train".

So many famous JJ names: Janis Joplin, Joan Jett and Jesse Jackson. Oh, don't forget Shoeless Joe (Joe Jackson). He deserves to be in HOF. If you build it, he will come.

I hope you enjoyed solving this puzzle as much as I did. It's a great construction. There are quite a few unfamiliar names, but most of them are inferable from crossing fills. I still had to resort to Google though.

The clue for SERER (47A: Senegalese language) made me laugh. How obscure! Barry must be very excited to find this language. Otherwise, he would have to clue it as "more dry", which might irk some solvers.

Across:

4A: Puccini opera: TOSCA. Does anyone know the meaning of "TOSCA la ha" (Emperor Gene Nelson sign-off line)?

15A: Turkish bigwigs: AGHAS. PASHAS are also "Turkish bigwigs".

17A: Shatner novel: "__ War": TEK. Got it this time.

20A: Skater's jump: AXEL. Can you believe the first AXEL jump was performed in 1882?

26A: Lymphoid organ: SPLEEN

28A: Geological period: AZOIC. No idea. Dictionary defines it as "noting or pertaining to the Precambrian Era, esp. that part formerly believed to precede the first appearance of life". Rooted in Greek ázō(os) meaning "lifeless".

33A: Insertion symbol: CARET

52A: San Luis __: OBISPO. Here is the map. I've never heard of it before. Wikipedia says Loren Roberts was born and raised there. He has such an enviable putting stroke, so smooth and unhurried. OBISPO is Spanish for "Bishop".

55A: Japanese sci-fi film: RODAN. See the movie trailer. So horrifying.

69A: Like some questions: YES-NO

Down:

2D: NYSE rival: AMEX. NASDAQ is very scrabbly too.

5D: S-shaped moldings: OGEES. Can anyone explain to me what exactly is OGEE? I cannot see any S-shape in this OGEE clock frame.

7D: Game with four jokers: CANASTA. Did you know that CANASTA originally came from Uruguay?

12D: "Guys and Dolls" song: SUE ME. I got it from the across clue. See the clip.

13D: Mythical giant: TITAN. ATLAS is a TITAN.

21D: Lane in Metropolis: LOIS. I like this clue. Much more interesting than "Superman's girlfriend Lane".

25D: Like navigable northern waterways: ICE-FREE

28D: Actress Baxter: ANNE. I guessed. Wikipedia says she won Oscar for best supporting role in "The Razor's Edge", which stars GENE Tiernery also (see 36D: Tierney of films).

33D: G. P. A. slangily: CUME (Cumulative). New slang to me. I wish I had attended some kind of school here in the US.

39D: "No Exit" playwright: SARTRE. I think his "Being and Nothingness" & "Nausea" are more famous. Speaking of existentialism, do you like Milan Kundera's "The Unbreable Lightness of Being"?

46D: Arizona tribe: HOPI. Does anyone collect HOPI Kachina dolls?

63D: Paul Anka's "__ Beso": His voice sounds so warm.

C.C.