Friday December 5, 2008 Allan E. Parrish

Theme: Roy Orbison Hits

20A: Hit by singer who died 12/6/88: ONLY THE LONELY

35A: See 20A: RUNNING SCARED

54A: See 20A: OH, PRETTY WOMAN

Too bad today is not Dec 6. It would have been a perfectly timed tribute.

Argyle probably enjoyed this puzzle. Roy Orbison is one of his favorite singers. I was only familiar with "OH, PRETTY WOMAN". I struggled getting into this constructor's wavelength. So many unfamiliar names.

I loved the clue for OCTOPUS (27A: Entree that serves eight?). I also liked how POEM (61A: Wordsworth work) intersects RHYME (51D: Poetic match). But why "Poetic" clue when POEM is the answer? I really hate our editor's lack of attention to details.

Across:

1A: IBM offerings: PCS. I don't understand what's so cool about Macs.

4A: Evil org. in Bond novels: SMERSH. I forgot. All I could think of is QUANTUM.

10A: GameCube competitor: XBOX. Or "Playstation" competitor.

15A: Kiribati capital: TARAWA. See this map. Unknown to me. I did not know where Kiribati is.

16A: Top choice, slangily: FAVE

18A: Movie category: ACTION. Or "Director's cry".

19A: Footnote wd.: IBID. "In the same place" in footnotes. I wonder if there is any way to clue IBID as I BID.

24A: Jordan/Bunny film: SPACE JAM. New film to me.

32A: Peter and a Wolfe: NEROS. Here is Peter NERO practicing Chopin Etude. I've never heard of his name before.

34A: Nabokov novel: PNIN. I memorized this novel from doing Xword. Without the P, I would have filled in SESAME for 34D: Magic word (PRESTO).

41A: Ballteam skipper Joe: TORRE. I misread the clue as "Ballteam clipper Joe", so I was thinking of Joe DiMaggio. Why "Ballteam"?

42A: Hobbit ally: ELF. I guessed. Have never read Tolkien's work. Would be a gimme if the clue were "Santa's ally".

46A: Twisted wool: WORSTED. Such a strange looking noun.

50A: Enzo's automobiles: FERRARIS. Another guess. I forgot who Enzo was. I actually read his bio last week and could not understand what "mule-shoer" is.

53A: Hokkaido port: OTARU. See this map. Foreign port to me.

57A: Osbourne of rock: OZZY

59A: Arctic attire: ANORAK. New name to me also. Inuit people are of Asian race, right?

62A: Notably the '72 Dolphin defense: NO-NAME. I was not aware of this. Only knew they had a perfect season.

64A: Cornmeal bread: PONE. And TAMALE (47D: Hacienda hot meal). Do you like Thai style fish wrapped in banana leaf?

65A: Stylish: DRESSY

66A: Byrnes or Hall: EDD. I kind of like "Hall of fame" for EDD.

Down:

1D: Mount __, PA: POCONO. Is it the same as POCONO Mountains?

2D: Carson character: CARNAC. I did not know this role.

4D: Big house: STATE PEN

5D: Austrian physicist Ernest: MACH. I googled. Can never remember this guy's name.

8D: Dives like an eagle: SWOOPS

9D: "__ and Her Sisters": HANNAH. One of the few Woody Allen movies that I liked.

10D: Case for Scully and Mulder: X-FILE

11D: Bette's title character of '62: BABY JANE. No idea. I have zero familiarity with this movie.

13D: Signed, kind of: XED

21D: Ms. de Carlo: YVONNE. She played Lily Munster.

22D: Author Umberto: ECO. He escaped my memory this morning. I used to remember him.

26D: Game pieces: MEN

28D: Swiss canton: URI. Or "Spoon-bender Geller".

33D: E. Bilko's rank: SGT. Another unknown film to me.

36D: Thawed out: UNFROZEN

38D: __-Magnon: CRO. Why not "Magnon opening?". It sounds more interesting, doesn't it?

39D: Cursor relocator: ARROW KEY

50D: Playboy's founder, fondly: HEF. This guy seems to wear pajamas all year long.

44D: Thing to do: ERRAND

45D: Certain claim holder: LIENOR

49D: Immersed: DUNKED. I SOAKED first.

52D: Boulder: STONE. I wanted ROCK.

C.C.

Thursday December 4, 2008 Alan P. Olschwang

Theme: Awakening

17A: Part 1 of a quip: IT'S NEVER TOO

27A: Part 2 of quip: LATE TO GET UP IN

40A: Part 3 of quip: THE

48A: Part 4 of quip: MORNING - UNLESS

64A: End of quip: IT'S PAST NOON

I like getting up earlier and watching the sun rise, with a cup of hot tea in my hands. It's the most beautiful moment of the day.

Some minor flaws with this puzzle:

59A: Haste result: WASTE. There should be a "?" mark for the clue.

37A: Covergirl Cheryl: TIEGS. Should be "Cover girl". CoverGirl is a cosmetic brand. I love their Lash Blast.

49D: Latin being: IN ESSE. The clue is asking for ESSE. IN ESSE is "Actually existing" in Latin.

Otherwise, just a typical Olschwang Thursday puzzle. Nothing exciting. I am really tired of this endless Evan Esar quip.

Across:

1A: Kind of crazy?: STIR. Yawner clue.

19A: Kingston trio: MTA. Another yawner.

22A: Email attack?: SPAM. Do you think Cyberspace will explode some day? So many traffics and junks.

25A: Fridge raiders: NOSHERS

43A: Singer Emmylou: HARRIS. Such a sad "For No One".

45A: Old Turkish title: AGA. Does "Old" here refer to "Not any more" or "Has been existing for a long time"? I am always confused about the exact definition of "Old".

52A: Strands, in a way: SNOWS IN

56A: Power input point: FEED. I don't understand this clue.

70A: Betel nut sources: ARECAS. See this picture. I always thought betel nuts grow on betel plants. Chewing tobacco is very addictive and so bad for your teeth.

Down:

1DL Finished a steal: SLID. I like this clue.

3D: Part of VMI: INST. George Marshall graduated from Virginia Military Institute. If our editor is not strict with partial fills, I bet many constuctors will go for a "Meet Me IN ST. Louis" clue.

4D: Play an improper card: RENEGE

5D: Off-roader, for short: ATV

8D: Packing a punch: POTENT

11D: Pay: COMPENSATE. It's symmetrical partner is THERMOSTAT (29D: A/C controller).

31D: Hawke or Coen: ETHAN. Have not seen "__ Frome" for a long time

36D: Brit. decorations: DSOS (Distinguished Service Orders). What is the equivalent for US military decoration?

38D: Matures: GROWS. I wrote down RIPES first.

44D: Brandy balloon: SNIFTER. New word to me. I also did not know that balloon can be "a large, globular wineglass".

50D: Politico Gingrich: NEWT. Or "Small salamander".

58D: Point of California: DANA. Not familiar with this city. What is it famous for?

61D: Enameled metalware: TOLE

C.C.