Theme: ??? - I had to stop to think about the theme title but it never came to me. I guess I forgot to start up again.
17A. Start of a quote: DID YOU EVER
23A. Quote, part 2: STOP TO THINK,
38A. Author of the quote: A.A. MILNE
51A. Quote, part 3: AND FOR GET TO
60A. End of the quote: START AGAIN
Boomer here.
I was not thrilled with this quote theme, even though the constructor worked "Author of the quote" into the center of grid, a significant improvement over the old formulaic Alan Olschwang style Thursday quip under Wayne R. William regime: Start of quip/Part 2 of the quip/part 3 of the quip/end of the quip.
I did like the baseball references:
5A. Grass surfaces: TURFS - Interesting that the Twins are opening Target Field in a couple of months. They are calling their new surface grass. They've been playing on artificial TURF in the Metrodome for years.
52D. 'Stros, for example: NLERS - Tired of seeing the non-existing ALERS and NLERS in crosswords? Houston Astros belong to the National League.
62D. Baseball's Cobb and Cline: TYS - HOFer Ty Cobb is one of only two players to amass over 4000 hits in his major league career. Ty Cline kicked around the majors for 12 years and amassed only 437 hits. Neither was Buster Brown's dog.
Across:
1. Clip contents: AMMO
10. Whirlpool: EDDY. I think a whirlpool is called an Eddy because of Eddie Fisher, Debbie Reynolds' first husband and Liz Taylor's fifteenth or so. Because when you fish for sunfish and hook one, they tend to swim in a tight circle and create an eddy.
14. Wagered: LAID. Bet didn't fit. Normally when you LAY a bet you are giving odds.
15. Slanted: ATILT. Something to avoid when playing pinball.
16. Like undecorated walls: BARE. Goldilocks encountered three of them.
19. Slammer at sea: BRIG. Hoosegow didn't fit. "Slammer" slang for "prison". BRIG is sailor's prison.
20. VIP roster: A LIST. Is there a "B" list? I'm probably on it, but not on the first page.
21. With no margin for error: EXACTING
26. Grifter's easy mark: LIVE ONE. Bernie Madoff and Tom Petters found a few.
29. Prohibition action: RAID. I'm picturing Elliot Ness with a spray can of insect repellent.
30. It's gnus to the lions: PREY. Since there is no NFL team called the gnus, I'm afraid Detroit will need to look for different prey. Nice gnus/news wordplay.
33. Pilgrim's destination: MECCA. Plymouth Rock didn't fit.
42. Photographer Adams: ANSEL. His photos are all black and white. Kind of like Minnesota streets in the winter.
44. Curly poker?: MOE. And STOOGES (45D. Curly group?) - Larry, Moe, and Jack were the original Stooges. Curly came along later Wup, Wup, Wup, Wup.
45. Geisha's cupful: SAKE. Japanese rice wine.
46. Ragtime piece that became Vincent Lopez's theme: NOLA. Also a city in Louisiana - good luck in the Super Bowl!
49. Hit, as flies: SWATTED. The sultan of swat was Babe Ruth. He hit some BIG FLIES!
54. Quivering: AFLUTTER. Peanut sitting on a railroad track. Heart was all aflutter. Train came rolling down the track, Choo Choo peanut butter.
55. Salad bar pair: TONGS
59. Cuernavaca crowd?: TRES. Spanish for "three". Idiom: Three is a crowd. Cuernavaca is in Central Mexico.
63. Raced: TORE
64. "Whoopee!": OH BOY. One of Buddy Holly's early hits. One day after the anniversary of the day the music died. Feb 3, 1959.
65. Logician's word: ERGO. "Cogito, ergo sum". I took four years of Latin in HS and I still don't understand it.
66. Empire until 1991: Abbr.: USSR. I thought an empire needed an emperor. Russia had a Premier, but I guess he thought he was an emperor.
67. Doesn't put anything away for a while?: FASTS. Put away: eat.
68. Harbor hauler: SCOW
Down:
3. Skirt length: MIDI. I don't see these much any more. Passing fad?
4. Homeric inspiration for Joyce's "Ulysses": ODYSSEY. Also the name of a putter. I think the PGA still allows them, as long as there are no square grooves.
5. Ancient cross shape: TAU. Greek T is cross-shaped.
6. Beehive State native: UTE. I don't know why Utah is the Beehive state, it just is.
7. Bit of bridge-building hardware: RIVET. Many are still wishing they had used stronger ones on the I-35W bridge over the Mississippi.
8. Biceps, e.g.: FLEXOR. MUSCLE fit nicely into the little boxes. I had to use Wite-Out later.
9. Sedimentary rock layers: STRATA. Also a Top Flite golf ball brand
10. Good time for a beachcomber: EBB TIDE. Looking for Sharks' teeth.
11. "Splish Splash" singer: DARIN (Bobby). More famous for "Mac the Knife". "Oh the shark has, pretty teeth dear, and he shows them pearly whites......"
12. Manhattan, for one: DRINK. The best is a VO Manhattan on the rocks with a little bit of cherry juice. One's the limit if you're driving.
13. Safecracker: YEGG. This is a real word?
18. Name of four Holy Roman emperors: OTTO. Also the name of SGT. Snorkel's dog.
22. Doorbell sound: CHIME. Our doorbell goes "ding dong".
24. Four-F's opposite, in the draft: ONE A. I was ONE A once. Then I became PVT.
25. Wave maker: PERM. I wanted to put a part of a boat here. I don't have enough hair to think about a permanent wave.
26. Women's links gp.: LPGA. Great players. Now that Annika has retired, the door is open for the next wave of stars. No squared grooves though - that's cheating.
27. Pressing need?: IRON. Missed the boat. This is an LPGA tool of the trade.
28. Examiners of boxers: VETS. So when Mike Tyson bit Evander Holyfield's ear, did he go to the Vet?
35. Greek salad slice, briefly: CUKE. Not sure why it has to be a Greek salad. I put cuke slices on lots of things.
36. Like good bourbon: AGED. Many things get better with age.
38. High, as a kite: ALOFT. Avoid Charlie Brown's Kite-Eating Tree though.
39. Get rid of: LOSE
40. Ex-Speaker Gingrich: NEWT. Are his eyes used in witches brew?
43. Retail computer buyer, e.g.: END USER. When I buy a computer I use the whole thing, not just one end.
47. Much: LOTS OF
48. First name in soul: ARETHA (Franklin)
53. Up for __: GRABS
54. Alaskan island closer to Russia than to Alaska: ATTU. Maybe that's where Sarah Palin goes to see Russia.
56. DEA raider: NARC
57. Cautionary data entry acronym: GIGO (Garbage In, Garbage Out). OK, if you say so.
58. Winter blanket: SNOW. I'm familiar with that. I've shoveled the blanket a few times this year.
61. Twaddle: RAT. No idea. When we ratted on someone, it was called tattle. (Corrected later: The answer is ROT, not RAT).
Welcome back, Papajim! Your blue profile is still there.
Answer grid.
Boomer
17A. Start of a quote: DID YOU EVER
23A. Quote, part 2: STOP TO THINK,
38A. Author of the quote: A.A. MILNE
51A. Quote, part 3: AND FOR GET TO
60A. End of the quote: START AGAIN
Boomer here.
I was not thrilled with this quote theme, even though the constructor worked "Author of the quote" into the center of grid, a significant improvement over the old formulaic Alan Olschwang style Thursday quip under Wayne R. William regime: Start of quip/Part 2 of the quip/part 3 of the quip/end of the quip.
I did like the baseball references:
5A. Grass surfaces: TURFS - Interesting that the Twins are opening Target Field in a couple of months. They are calling their new surface grass. They've been playing on artificial TURF in the Metrodome for years.
52D. 'Stros, for example: NLERS - Tired of seeing the non-existing ALERS and NLERS in crosswords? Houston Astros belong to the National League.
62D. Baseball's Cobb and Cline: TYS - HOFer Ty Cobb is one of only two players to amass over 4000 hits in his major league career. Ty Cline kicked around the majors for 12 years and amassed only 437 hits. Neither was Buster Brown's dog.
Across:
1. Clip contents: AMMO
10. Whirlpool: EDDY. I think a whirlpool is called an Eddy because of Eddie Fisher, Debbie Reynolds' first husband and Liz Taylor's fifteenth or so. Because when you fish for sunfish and hook one, they tend to swim in a tight circle and create an eddy.
14. Wagered: LAID. Bet didn't fit. Normally when you LAY a bet you are giving odds.
15. Slanted: ATILT. Something to avoid when playing pinball.
16. Like undecorated walls: BARE. Goldilocks encountered three of them.
19. Slammer at sea: BRIG. Hoosegow didn't fit. "Slammer" slang for "prison". BRIG is sailor's prison.
20. VIP roster: A LIST. Is there a "B" list? I'm probably on it, but not on the first page.
21. With no margin for error: EXACTING
26. Grifter's easy mark: LIVE ONE. Bernie Madoff and Tom Petters found a few.
29. Prohibition action: RAID. I'm picturing Elliot Ness with a spray can of insect repellent.
30. It's gnus to the lions: PREY. Since there is no NFL team called the gnus, I'm afraid Detroit will need to look for different prey. Nice gnus/news wordplay.
33. Pilgrim's destination: MECCA. Plymouth Rock didn't fit.
42. Photographer Adams: ANSEL. His photos are all black and white. Kind of like Minnesota streets in the winter.
44. Curly poker?: MOE. And STOOGES (45D. Curly group?) - Larry, Moe, and Jack were the original Stooges. Curly came along later Wup, Wup, Wup, Wup.
45. Geisha's cupful: SAKE. Japanese rice wine.
46. Ragtime piece that became Vincent Lopez's theme: NOLA. Also a city in Louisiana - good luck in the Super Bowl!
49. Hit, as flies: SWATTED. The sultan of swat was Babe Ruth. He hit some BIG FLIES!
54. Quivering: AFLUTTER. Peanut sitting on a railroad track. Heart was all aflutter. Train came rolling down the track, Choo Choo peanut butter.
55. Salad bar pair: TONGS
59. Cuernavaca crowd?: TRES. Spanish for "three". Idiom: Three is a crowd. Cuernavaca is in Central Mexico.
63. Raced: TORE
64. "Whoopee!": OH BOY. One of Buddy Holly's early hits. One day after the anniversary of the day the music died. Feb 3, 1959.
65. Logician's word: ERGO. "Cogito, ergo sum". I took four years of Latin in HS and I still don't understand it.
66. Empire until 1991: Abbr.: USSR. I thought an empire needed an emperor. Russia had a Premier, but I guess he thought he was an emperor.
67. Doesn't put anything away for a while?: FASTS. Put away: eat.
68. Harbor hauler: SCOW
Down:
3. Skirt length: MIDI. I don't see these much any more. Passing fad?
4. Homeric inspiration for Joyce's "Ulysses": ODYSSEY. Also the name of a putter. I think the PGA still allows them, as long as there are no square grooves.
5. Ancient cross shape: TAU. Greek T is cross-shaped.
6. Beehive State native: UTE. I don't know why Utah is the Beehive state, it just is.
7. Bit of bridge-building hardware: RIVET. Many are still wishing they had used stronger ones on the I-35W bridge over the Mississippi.
8. Biceps, e.g.: FLEXOR. MUSCLE fit nicely into the little boxes. I had to use Wite-Out later.
9. Sedimentary rock layers: STRATA. Also a Top Flite golf ball brand
10. Good time for a beachcomber: EBB TIDE. Looking for Sharks' teeth.
11. "Splish Splash" singer: DARIN (Bobby). More famous for "Mac the Knife". "Oh the shark has, pretty teeth dear, and he shows them pearly whites......"
12. Manhattan, for one: DRINK. The best is a VO Manhattan on the rocks with a little bit of cherry juice. One's the limit if you're driving.
13. Safecracker: YEGG. This is a real word?
18. Name of four Holy Roman emperors: OTTO. Also the name of SGT. Snorkel's dog.
22. Doorbell sound: CHIME. Our doorbell goes "ding dong".
24. Four-F's opposite, in the draft: ONE A. I was ONE A once. Then I became PVT.
25. Wave maker: PERM. I wanted to put a part of a boat here. I don't have enough hair to think about a permanent wave.
26. Women's links gp.: LPGA. Great players. Now that Annika has retired, the door is open for the next wave of stars. No squared grooves though - that's cheating.
27. Pressing need?: IRON. Missed the boat. This is an LPGA tool of the trade.
28. Examiners of boxers: VETS. So when Mike Tyson bit Evander Holyfield's ear, did he go to the Vet?
35. Greek salad slice, briefly: CUKE. Not sure why it has to be a Greek salad. I put cuke slices on lots of things.
36. Like good bourbon: AGED. Many things get better with age.
38. High, as a kite: ALOFT. Avoid Charlie Brown's Kite-Eating Tree though.
39. Get rid of: LOSE
40. Ex-Speaker Gingrich: NEWT. Are his eyes used in witches brew?
43. Retail computer buyer, e.g.: END USER. When I buy a computer I use the whole thing, not just one end.
47. Much: LOTS OF
48. First name in soul: ARETHA (Franklin)
53. Up for __: GRABS
54. Alaskan island closer to Russia than to Alaska: ATTU. Maybe that's where Sarah Palin goes to see Russia.
56. DEA raider: NARC
57. Cautionary data entry acronym: GIGO (Garbage In, Garbage Out). OK, if you say so.
58. Winter blanket: SNOW. I'm familiar with that. I've shoveled the blanket a few times this year.
61. Twaddle: RAT. No idea. When we ratted on someone, it was called tattle. (Corrected later: The answer is ROT, not RAT).
Welcome back, Papajim! Your blue profile is still there.
Answer grid.
Boomer
