Theme: Hocus Pocus
20A. Toy that might answer "It is decidedly so": MAGIC EIGHT BALL.
35A. Sly inquiry: TRICK QUESTION.
51A. Cesar Millan dog-training apparatus: ILLUSION COLLAR. Unknown to me. He is The Dog Whisperer. His wife's name is Ilusion Wilson Millan, so is the collar an allusion to her?
If it is Monday, then I must be Argyle.
Alright! A Barry Silk for a Monday. Sixties music and muscle cars. And just short a 'V' from a pangram. Three Z's. Plenty of lively multiple words too, esp Down entries. Neat to have END (64A. Finish) complete the grid.
For those of you that may never have had a Magic 8 Ball, it has little sayings that float up to the viewing window after you turn the ball over a few times. Like all seers, it is often cryptic. The Wikipedi article has the list of the 20 standard answers. Plus, there are several specialty 8 Balls out there.
Across.
1. Sends a duplicate to, for short: CCS. Carbon Copy, used as a verb. (or as a shout-out to our leader.)
4. Half-baked, as ideas: CRAZY.
9. Tended: SAW TO.
14. Fink: RAT. Both verb and noun.
15. 3:1 or 7:2, e.g.: RATIO.
17. Thurman who played June in "Henry & June": UMA. The 1990 film was loosely based on the book Henry and June by our old friend, French diarist Anaïs Nin.
18. Maine college town: ORONO. Hi Mainiac!
19. Improvise lines: AD LIB.
23. Pub orders: BREWS
24. W. Hemisphere defense gp.: OAS. Organization of American States
25. "Cats" poet's monogram: TSE. T S Eliot.
27. Average: SO-SO.
28. Ancient moralist: AESOP.
31. Despair's opposite: HOPE.
32. Knight fight: JOUST. A la Don Quixote, though he tilts at the windmills.
34. Imus's medium: RADIO. Don Imus, shock jock.
40. Charlatan: FAKER. A good entry for today.
41. Helen of Troy's mother: LEDA. Helen's father is Zeus.
42. OneZip bag maker: HEFTY. Rival of Glad.
48. Cell "messenger," briefly: RNA. RiboNucleic Acid, a single chain, while DeoxyriboNucleic Acid is a double chain, the famous double helix. (Was in yesterday's puzzle.)
49. Critic Reed: REX. Film critic.
50. Barbecue equipment brand: WEBER.
58. Cavity fillers' org.: ADA. American Dental Association.
59. Crooner Mel: TORME. "The Velvet Fog". Silky!
60. November birthstone: TOPAZ. Pure topaz is colorless and transparent but is usually tinted by impurities; aren't we all?
61. Meditative sect: ZEN. Derived from Chinese Chán, literally, "quietude".
63. Covered with marsh vegetation: SEDGY.
Down.
1. Bread bits: CRUMBS.
2. Chevy muscle car: CAMARO.
3. Puts on, as a show: STAGES.
6. Yours, in Paris: A TOI.
7. Criticize in a witty way: ZING.
8. Classic chocolate drink brand: YOO-HOO. Yogi likes it; I didn't.
9. Picket line crossers: SCABS.
11. Affluent: WELL-TO-DO.
12. Sudden and precipitous downturn: TAILSPIN.
21. Pacific island on which a memorable WWII photo was taken: IWO JIMA. !
22. Audible dance style: TAP.
26. Job listing initials: EEO. Equal Employment Opportunity
28. Northern diving bird: AUK. The Great Auk is extinct.
29. Attorney's abbr.: ESQ. Esquire. Also, Esqr.
30. Fill, as with padding: STUFF.
31. Styling goo: HAIR GEL. For some, only Dapper Dan will do.
33. Military training acad.: OCS. Officer Candidate Schools.
34. Hwy.: RTE. Highway - Route
35. Miley Cyrus, for one: TEEN IDOL. Her ticket sales are not that hot any more.
36. Ready-for-the-worst status: RED ALERT.
38. Wild blue yonder: SKY. Nice clue.
39. Camera type, for short: SLR. Single-Lens Reflex.
42. "__ So Fine": 1963 #1 hit: HE'S. By The Chiffons.
43. Is: EXISTS.
45. On fire: ABLAZE. I originally had AFLAME but for a Barry Silk puzzle, I needed ABLAZE.
46. Hard to move: LEADEN.
47. Quick trip that's "run": ERRAND.
49. Foot-long stick, often: RULER.
50. Reeling from a blow: WOOZY.
52. Tibetan priest: LAMA. One 'L'. Literally "guru". Dalai means "ocean". Dallai Lama, "Ocean Teacher", means a teacher who is spiritually as great as the ocean.
53. Native Nebraskan: OTOE. The clue may not be accurate; they moved around a lot but they always show up in crosswords.
54. "Law & Order" gp.: NYPD. New York(city) Police Department
55. Jagged rock: CRAG. Like this picture. Those mountain goats do not seem to have tails, do they?
56. "Let's call __ day!": IT A.
Answer grid.
Argyle
20A. Toy that might answer "It is decidedly so": MAGIC EIGHT BALL.
35A. Sly inquiry: TRICK QUESTION.
51A. Cesar Millan dog-training apparatus: ILLUSION COLLAR. Unknown to me. He is The Dog Whisperer. His wife's name is Ilusion Wilson Millan, so is the collar an allusion to her?
If it is Monday, then I must be Argyle.
Alright! A Barry Silk for a Monday. Sixties music and muscle cars. And just short a 'V' from a pangram. Three Z's. Plenty of lively multiple words too, esp Down entries. Neat to have END (64A. Finish) complete the grid.
For those of you that may never have had a Magic 8 Ball, it has little sayings that float up to the viewing window after you turn the ball over a few times. Like all seers, it is often cryptic. The Wikipedi article has the list of the 20 standard answers. Plus, there are several specialty 8 Balls out there.
Across.
1. Sends a duplicate to, for short: CCS. Carbon Copy, used as a verb. (or as a shout-out to our leader.)
4. Half-baked, as ideas: CRAZY.
9. Tended: SAW TO.
14. Fink: RAT. Both verb and noun.
15. 3:1 or 7:2, e.g.: RATIO.
17. Thurman who played June in "Henry & June": UMA. The 1990 film was loosely based on the book Henry and June by our old friend, French diarist Anaïs Nin.
18. Maine college town: ORONO. Hi Mainiac!
19. Improvise lines: AD LIB.
23. Pub orders: BREWS
24. W. Hemisphere defense gp.: OAS. Organization of American States
25. "Cats" poet's monogram: TSE. T S Eliot.
27. Average: SO-SO.
28. Ancient moralist: AESOP.
31. Despair's opposite: HOPE.
32. Knight fight: JOUST. A la Don Quixote, though he tilts at the windmills.
34. Imus's medium: RADIO. Don Imus, shock jock.
40. Charlatan: FAKER. A good entry for today.
41. Helen of Troy's mother: LEDA. Helen's father is Zeus.
42. OneZip bag maker: HEFTY. Rival of Glad.
48. Cell "messenger," briefly: RNA. RiboNucleic Acid, a single chain, while DeoxyriboNucleic Acid is a double chain, the famous double helix. (Was in yesterday's puzzle.)
49. Critic Reed: REX. Film critic.
50. Barbecue equipment brand: WEBER.
58. Cavity fillers' org.: ADA. American Dental Association.
59. Crooner Mel: TORME. "The Velvet Fog". Silky!
60. November birthstone: TOPAZ. Pure topaz is colorless and transparent but is usually tinted by impurities; aren't we all?
61. Meditative sect: ZEN. Derived from Chinese Chán, literally, "quietude".
63. Covered with marsh vegetation: SEDGY.
Down.
1. Bread bits: CRUMBS.
2. Chevy muscle car: CAMARO.
3. Puts on, as a show: STAGES.
6. Yours, in Paris: A TOI.
7. Criticize in a witty way: ZING.
8. Classic chocolate drink brand: YOO-HOO. Yogi likes it; I didn't.
9. Picket line crossers: SCABS.
11. Affluent: WELL-TO-DO.
12. Sudden and precipitous downturn: TAILSPIN.
21. Pacific island on which a memorable WWII photo was taken: IWO JIMA. !
22. Audible dance style: TAP.
26. Job listing initials: EEO. Equal Employment Opportunity
28. Northern diving bird: AUK. The Great Auk is extinct.
29. Attorney's abbr.: ESQ. Esquire. Also, Esqr.
30. Fill, as with padding: STUFF.
31. Styling goo: HAIR GEL. For some, only Dapper Dan will do.
33. Military training acad.: OCS. Officer Candidate Schools.
34. Hwy.: RTE. Highway - Route
35. Miley Cyrus, for one: TEEN IDOL. Her ticket sales are not that hot any more.
36. Ready-for-the-worst status: RED ALERT.
38. Wild blue yonder: SKY. Nice clue.
39. Camera type, for short: SLR. Single-Lens Reflex.
42. "__ So Fine": 1963 #1 hit: HE'S. By The Chiffons.
43. Is: EXISTS.
45. On fire: ABLAZE. I originally had AFLAME but for a Barry Silk puzzle, I needed ABLAZE.
46. Hard to move: LEADEN.
47. Quick trip that's "run": ERRAND.
49. Foot-long stick, often: RULER.
50. Reeling from a blow: WOOZY.
52. Tibetan priest: LAMA. One 'L'. Literally "guru". Dalai means "ocean". Dallai Lama, "Ocean Teacher", means a teacher who is spiritually as great as the ocean.
53. Native Nebraskan: OTOE. The clue may not be accurate; they moved around a lot but they always show up in crosswords.
54. "Law & Order" gp.: NYPD. New York(city) Police Department
55. Jagged rock: CRAG. Like this picture. Those mountain goats do not seem to have tails, do they?
56. "Let's call __ day!": IT A.
Answer grid.
Argyle
