Tuesday June 29, 2010 Bruce Venzke

Theme: P_T with Vowel Progression - Not much of a theme but, oh!, what a grid.

17. Dad's legal protection: PATERNITY RIGHTS.

23. Arizona tourist mecca: PETRIFIED FOREST.

39. Batting practice aid: PITCHING MACHINE.

49. One-room schoolhouse heater: POTBELLIED STOVE.

61. Using a euphemism: PUTTING IT MILDLY.

Argyle here.

Tough Tuesday. Five grid-spanning theme entries. Four nine-letter fills cutting down through three theme entries each and the center theme crossed by all four. Impressive. So what if the theme is weak, I say.

If you gave anybody yesterday's puzzle, you might want to steer them away from this one.

Across:

1. Pirate's booty: LOOT.

5. Lash marking: WELT.

9. One of the deadly sins: SLOTH. Sin of "laziness".

14. Sacramento's __ Arena: ARCO. Home to the NBA's Sacramento Kings. Image

15. Aglio e __: pasta dish: OLIO. A traditional Italian pasta dish. Image

16. __ Puffs: COCOA. Cereal.

20. Unborn, after "in": UTERO.

21. Manitoba native: CREE. About the only Canadian Indians I know.

22. Gazetteer statistic: AREA. A gazetteer is a geographical dictionary or directory, used in conjunction with a map or a full atlas, with important references about toponomy.

26. On fire: LIT.

27. Reagan's "Star Wars" prog.: SDI. Strategic Defense Initiative.

28. Whale of a tale: SAGA. Whale Tail (The Devil made me do it.)

32. Iwo __: JIMA. Home to Mount Suribachi.

35. "Fine by me": "IT'S OK".

42. Love: ADORE. I had AMORE first.

43. Auto financing org.: GMAC. General Motors Acceptance Corporation. On May 10, 2010, GMAC Inc announced that it re-branded itself as Ally Financial Inc.

44. Cat call: MEOW.

45. Lode material: ORE.

47. Stephen of "Michael Collins": REA. Northern Irish actor who was nominated for an Academy Award for his lead performance as Fergus in the 1992 film The Crying Game. "Michael Collins" is a 1996 biopic about General Michael Collins, the Irish patriot and revolutionary who died in the Irish Civil War.

58. Keds competitor: AVIA. They call them trainers now but they are still sneakers to me.

59. Boot out: OUST.

60. Like some basins: TIDAL.

64. __-Chalmers: onetime big name in farm machinery: ALLIS. Now they are Fiat-Allis part of New Holland Ag.

65. Physics subject: ATOM.

66. GPA spoilers: DEEs. Grade Point Average takes a hit from a "D" grade.

67. Bloodsucker: LEECH.

68. Upsurge: RISE.

69. 1920s Folies-Bergère designer: ERTÉ. Russian-born French artist and designer known by the pseudonym Erté, the French pronunciation of his initials, R.T.

Down:

1. Drink like a cat: LAP UP.

2. Go on the stump: ORATE. On a stump or a soap box, to give a speech.

3. Large chamber group: OCTET. Chamber music is a form of classical music , written for a small group, in this case, eight.

4. "__ is human ...": TO ERR.

5. Took the cup: WON.

6. Drawing out: ELICITING.

7. Unit of petrol: LITRE. British form in the clue and answer.

8. Trifled (with): TOYED.

9. Biol., e.g.: SCI.. Biology, science.

10. Slide rule number: LOGARITHM. Coined by Scottish mathematician John Napier, literally "ratio-number,"

11. Yellow shade: OCHRE.

12. Handy bags: TOTES.

13. Laces into: HAS AT. Not a common term.

18. Stir up: ROIL.

19. Flag throwers, at times: REFS.

24. South Pacific archipelago and nation: FIJI. On the lower right of this map.

25. Like Pindar's works: ODIC. Pindar was an Ancient Greek lyric poet.

28. Mud bath locale: SPA.

29. Assist: AID.

30. Potent '60s-'70s Pontiac: GTO. Image of an early GTO

31. Like trapeze artists: ACROBATIC.

33. Leo's studio: MGM. Leo is the MGM lion. Roar!

34. Almond liqueurs: AMARETTOS. Pour it on some good vanilla ice cream, yum!

36. Potsdam pronoun: SIE. Alliteration, German.

37. "Double Fantasy" artist Yoko: ONO. Back to just her last name.

38. London's __ Gardens: KEW. Actual name is Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew, The name Kew is a combination of two words: the Old French kai (landing place; 'quay' derives from this) and Old English hoh (spur of land). The land spur is the bend in the Thames. The name was recorded in 1327 as Cayho.

40. "What have we __?": HERE.

41. Passed and then some: ACED.

46. North Carolina college town: ELON.

48. Sparkling-wine center: ASTI.

49. Like decrees from Benedict XVI, e.g.: PAPAL. He was a Pope.

50. Seed-to-be: OVULE.

51. Champ's prize: TITLE.

52. Dick __, Hoosier senator since 1977: LUGAR. This man.

53. Question about Biblical betrayal: "IS IT I?". During the Last Supper.

54. Señor's feature?: TILDE. The diacritic (~) placed over the n.

55. More off-the-wall: ODDER.

56. Parking helper: VALET.

57. "Family Ties" mom: ELYSE. This woman.

62. "Sorta" suffix: -ISH. Sorta-ish a bad word.

63. Bovary's title: Abbr.: MME.. Madame. Flaubert's "Madame Bovary".

Answer grid.

Argyle

Monday June 28, 2010 Scott Atkinson

Theme: Wild Kingdom - Animals described by two separate animal names and before someone says a spider or a shark isn't an animal, I see everything as animal, vegetable, or mineral and they aren't one of the last two.

17A. Hammerhead relative with stripes: TIGER SHARK. Image.

27A. Huge walrus relative: ELEPHANT SEAL. Image.

48A. Primate with spindly limbs: SPIDER MONKEY. Image.

63A. One of two in "The Twelve Days of Christmas": TURTLE DOVE. Image.

Argyle here.

What a straightforward puzzle. Hardly a tricky clue in the batch. Entries from across the board. This is the one you might give to people to get them started on crosswords.

Across:

1. Apple computers: MACS

5. Subsurface woodwork decoration: INLAY

10. Coffeehouse convenience for Web surfers: WI-FI

14. Give off, as light: EMIT

15. '80s Pontiac roadster: FIERO. Image.

16. Ruckuses: ADOs

19. Pulls, as a camper: TOWS

20. Visibly stunned: AGAPE

21. 1930s-'40s New York mayor La Guardia: FIORELLO. Mayor for three terms from 1934 to 1945. La Guardia ordered construction of the airport that bears his name after his TWA flight arrived at Newark, NJ, even though his ticket said New York.

23. Submarine weapon: TORPEDO

26. Orange Free State settler: BOER. The Republic of the Orange Free State (Dutch) was an independent Boer republic in southern Africa. Boer is the Dutch word for farmer.

32. Covert __: spy activities: OPS. OPS is short for operations.

35. Be untruthful: LIE

36. Sharpshooter Annie: OAKLEY

37. Supreme Court intern: CLERK

40. Antlered critter: ELK and 42. Plains grazer: BISON. Two bonus animals.

43. Cooking class, for short: HOME EC

45. "__ Miz": LES. A colloquialism for the 1980 musical production, Les Misérables

47. Curry of "Today": ANN. Image.

52. One-named Irish singer: ENYA

53. Pago Pago natives: SAMOANS. From the South Seas.

57. Talky gatherings: GABFESTS

61. Large wall picture: MURAL. What our WM is known to paint.

62. Eins, zwei, __: DREI. German 1, 2, 3.

66. Alda of "M*A*S*H": ALAN

67. Clarinetist Shaw: ARTIE

68. Words of understanding: "I SEE"

69. Oxen's harness: YOKE

70. Have a new __ on life: LEASE

71. Hanukkah moolah: GELT. The word gelt means money in Yiddish.

Down:

1. Convened in: MET AT

2. Compadre: AMIGO

3. "Close, but no __": CIGAR

4. Treeless Siberian tract: STEPPE

5. "No __, ands or buts": IFS

6. Fed. research org.: NIH. National Institutes of Health.

7. Fall faller: LEAF. An alliterate clue.

8. Speedy Gonzales exclamation: "¡ARRIBA!". Used as an exclamation of pleasure, approval, or elation. Speedy Gonzales is a Mexican cartoon mouse. Clip.

9. John Lennon's love: YOKO ONO. Her full name, for a change.

10. Ride behind a speedboat: WATER SKI

11. TV's "American __": IDOL

12. Chicks, ducks, etc.: FOWL

13. "That __ yesterday!": IS SO. Do they still call this Valley Speak?

18. Fishing line holder: REEL

22. Adjust a paragraph setting: RETAB

24. Biden's state: Abbr.: DEL.. Delaware.

25. Mayberry boy: OPIE

28. Phone call response: "HELLO?"

29. "Born Free" lioness: ELSA

30. Long, long time: AEON

31. Nashville's Loretta: LYNN. She was a Coal Miner's Daughter.

32. Folk legend Phil: OCHS. Philip Ochs(1940 – 1976) was an American protest singer (or, as he preferred, a topical singer) and songwriter who was known for his sharp wit, sardonic humor, earnest humanism, political activism, insightful and alliterative lyrics, and haunting voice. He wrote "Draft Dodger Rag".

33. Sit (down) undaintily: PLOP

34. 18-wheeler: SEMI

38. Give new meaning to: REDEFINE

39. New Hampshire city: KEENE

41. Barbies' counterparts: KENS

44. Waterford product: CRYSTAL. A trademark brand of crystal glassware.

46. Caribbean music: SKA

49. Grown-up: MATURE

50. Plus-size supermodel: EMME. Image.

51. Cool cat's "Get it?": "YOU DIG?"

54. Cropped up: ARISE. (Correction: It's AROSE. Thanks, Tinbeni.)

55. Bellybutton: NAVEL

56. Winter hazard: SLEET

57. Melbourne greeting: "G'DAY". Kazie, are you there?

58. "The Motorcycle Song" singer Guthrie: ARLO. "I don't want a pickle, just wanna ride on my motorcycle"

59. Toucan's pride: BEAK. Here is a picture of a toucan's pride.

60. Mex. miss: SRTA

64. "__ the season ...": 'TIS

65. Jeans brand: LEE

Okay, I admit there may be an East Coast bias to this puzzle.

Answer grid.

Argyle