Thursday July 8, 2010 Dan Naddor

Theme: SHOOT (50D. What you can do to the last words of the answers to starred clues, with "the")

18A. *Second most populous city in Michigan: GRAND RAPIDS. Shoot the rapids. Whitewater rafting, for example.

24A. *1980 biopic about boxer Jake La Motta: RAGING BULL. Shoot the bull. Discussion of experiences in perhaps not an entirely truthful manner, in a testosterone-laden contest of one-upsmanship.

35A. *Beachgoer's relief, perhaps: OCEAN BREEZE. Shoot the breeze. Light airy conversation with no directed purpose.

48A. *Studio co-founded by Spielberg: DREAMWORKS. Shoot the works. Let it ride. Bet everything, holding nothing in reserve.

54A. *Phenomenon near the autumnal equinox: HARVEST MOON. Shoot the moon. A bid in several card games, such as Smear, Euchre, Hearts or others, meaning that you will attempt to take all tricks, points, etc, in some cases without the help of your partner.

Even though this was a Naddor Thursday, it didn't seem as difficult to me as the last couple weeks, or maybe I'm just on his wavelength finally.

Hi all, Al here on a very rainy night. For about an hour, I was actually the owner of riverfront property. Water entirely covered the road curb to curb and beyond, and it had quite a current. The poor guy down at the lowest spot in the neighborhood wound up with a basement full of water; it was almost waist-deep near the storm drain there. Luckily I'm located high enough, but my sump pump is still running almost continuously. Oh well, since I'm not going anywhere for a while, on to the puzzle.

Across:

1. Indian title of respect: SRI. Sanskrit for beauty, and as a honorific prefix for kings, heroes, etc. Related to proto-indo-european "kreie" which gives: Kyrie, for Lord. Kyrie eleison means Lord, have mercy.

4. "My Life on the D-List" comic Griffin: KATHY. Brash comedian, she cleans up well.

9. Bowler's challenge: SPLIT. Any two non-adjacent pins with a gap between, as long as the headpin is not standing.

14. P.I.: TEC. A deTECtive, but not part of a police force. A Private eye (I).

15. Refrain from singing about a farm?: EIEIO. A musical refrain, not to suppress an urge. The noun refrain comes from French words meaning "repeat" and "break off", that is, a repeated interruption before a return to the main melody.

16. Low-budget prefix: ECONO. Economy, bigger, faster, cheaper.

17. Draft pick: ALE. Wasn't fooled. "Draft beer, not boys" is one of the slogans used to oppose war involvement, but it could have been a sports team draft.

20. Not follow a fixed route: ROAM. These kinds of charges are costly on a cellphone.

22. Consider: DEEM.

23. Bro counterpart: SIS.

28. Storm sound: CLAP. Of thunder.

29. Wreck, in a way: DERAIL. That would do it all right. In a big way.

30. Callas, for one: SOPRANO. Maria If you look up "diva" in a dictionary, you will find her picture. Had an affair with Ari Onassis.

32. Prenatal test, for short: AMNIO.centesis. Amniotic fluid is checked for chromosomal abnormalities, infections, and Rh blood type incompatibilities.

34. Stampeded toward: RAN AT.

38. Eyes: OCULI. Latin.

40. Kid's sandwich staple: JELLY. I prefer my sandwiches folded, not stapled.

41. Baseman's misplay, maybe: LATE TAG. Baseball, too slow.

44. Deliberately ignoring: DEAF TO. (hands over ears) I'm not listening, la la la la la la la.

47. Rights: DIBS. Children's word to express a claim on something, originally U.S., apparently a contraction of dibstone "a knucklebone or jack in a children's game", of unknown origin.

51. Laura Bush's alma mater: Abbr.: SMU. Southern Methodist University.

52. Hoodwink: FOOL. Literally to blindfold someone.

53. Ill-considered: RASH. German rasch (quick, fast), Old English ræsc (a bolt of lightning)

59. AFL partner: CIO. American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations.

60. Beginning: ONSET.

61. "Fiddler on the Roof" dairyman: TEVYE.

62. "Where did __ wrong?": I GO. Or the word for the game of GO, IGO in Japan,WeiQi in China, Baduk in Korea.

63. Big name in cosmetics: ESTEE. Lauder.

64. Floss brand: ORAL-B.

65. QB's stat: INT. Interception. One of the many records that Brett Favre holds.

Down:

1. Whitewater figure: STARR. Kenneth.

2. Prepare for more pictures: RELOAD. Camera memory cards and batteries now instead of film.

3. More than just a cold snap: ICE AGE. Scratt. The saber tooth squirrel.

4. Beer holder: KEG. Temporarily fooled into using MUG at first.

5. Broadcast: AIR.

6. Earl Grey, e.g.: TEA. A black tea with bergamot added, a type of orange, closer in taste to a lemon. Bergamot essential oil has been found to reduce excitotoxic damage (aspartame, MSG) to cultured human neuronal cells in vitro and may therefore have neuroprotective properties.

7. Caste member: HINDU.

8. Peak calls?: YODELS. Swiss, Austrian Alps.

9. Line of pants?: SEAM. This type of misdirection used to hoodwink me when I started doing x-words. Not any more.

10. Angel dust, for short: PCP. PhenylCyclohexylPiperidine

11. Frequently imperiled reporter: LOIS LANE. Anyone who hadn't the sense to recognize someone whose only disguise was removing a pair of glasses was bound to wind up in risky spots.

12. Notre Dame's locale: INDIANA. The city of Notre Dame, Indiana actually has three colleges. The University of Notre Dame (Fighting Irish), Saint Mary's College, and Holy Cross College. The Notre Dame Cathedral is in Paris, France.

13. Hooch hound: TOSSPOT. Found in the closing song of Shakespeare's Twelfth Night. Beer/ale used to be served in ceramic "pots". Current use is as a British insult similar to "wanker" or "tosser".

19. Move, in Realtor-speak: RELO. Relocate.

21. The virgin birth and others: MIRACLES.

25. "Your call": NAME IT. Whatever you want, it's yours.

26. Actress Lollobrigida: GINA. A "pneumatic" brunette bombshell.

27. Crêpe-like Russian food: BLIN. Crepes do not use yeast. Blins are allowed to.

28. Gaga over: CRAZY FOR. I wonder how long ago Dan did this puzzle... Crazy and GaGa are certainly synonymous in music today. Actually, if you close you eyes and just listen, her music is kind of catchy...

31. Future attorney's study: PRE-LAW.

33. Vb. target: OBJ. Andy ate oranges. Ate is the verb, oranges, the object.

35. Courtroom interruption: OUTBURST.

36. Mark of Prynne's sin: RED A. The Scarlet Letter, Hester Prynne, Adulteress.

37. Preteens' sch.: ELEM. Elementary, my dear Watson.

38. Part of a comfort simile: OLD SHOE.

39. Alligator relatives: CAIMANS. Scary teeth.

42. Hoo-has: ADOS. Isn't hooha slang for something else entirely?

43. Cave: GROTTO. From Italian grotta, from Latin crypta. Related: grotesque.

45. Gillette razor brand: TRAC II. Is it just me, or does it seem like Dan did a lot of puzzle creation while shaving?

46. Thumbs-up: OK SIGN. The Romans didn't turn their hands upside down, they merely hid or extended their thumb for down or up.

49. Whom Bugs bugs: ELMER. Bunny, Fudd.

52. Gala: FETE. Fest, feast. French en gala, in festive clothing.

55. A quarter of five?: VEE. The letter "V" is one of the four letters of the word "five". A quarter = 1/4.

56. In vitro cells: OVA. Latin eggs, in a lab setting. Literally "in glass".

57. Very thin Olive: OYL.

58. Colo. neighbor: NEB. Nebraska is the only state with a unicameral (one chamber) legislature. Colorado has spent the last century battling Wyoming for the coveted title of "Most Rectangular State".

Answer grid.

Al

Wednesday July 7, 2010 Gareth Bain

Theme: Never Give Up - Six symmetrically placed theme entries all begin with synonyms for the key word, TRY

17A. *Prepare to drink, as a can of beer : CRACK OPEN. Have a CRACK at it.

21A. *Say goodbye, quaintly : BID ADIEU. Place one's BID, I suppose. Or issue a command or invitation. Doesn't seem as tight a fit as the others. Am I missing something?

26A. *Betrayal : STAB IN THE BACK. Take a STAB at it.

49A. *Nixed : SHOT DOWN. Have a SHOT at it.

44A. *Do what others prefer : GO WITH THE FLOW. Have a GO at it.

59A. *It involves a lot of writing : ESSAY TEST. ESSAY the possibilities of it. And

61A. Synonym for the starts of the answers to starred clues : TRY. If at first you don't succeed, have a beer and call it a night. TRY, TRY again.

With six theme answers and a key word entry, this is a very thematically rich and persistently active puzzle.

Hi gang, it's JazzBumpa, your humble trombonist. I BID us to have a STAB at CRACKING this puzzle.

Across:

1. Perching on : ATOP

5. Coated with a precious metal : GILT. From 14th Century Middle English, for the color of gold.

9. Hekzebiah Hawkins's daughter : SADIE. From Al Kapp's Li'l Abner comic. Lovely girl.

14. Cotton field sight : BALE. Bales of cotton. My baleful look is because I wanted BOLL.

15. Melville novel : OMOO. Well known to crossword solvers. Has anyone ever read it?

16. Phillips et al.: Abbr. : ACADS. Phillips Academy, a secondary school in Andover, Mass.

19. Revolutionary Pancho : VILLA. Jose Doroteo Arango Arambula, a real person and Mexican folk hero. Like Robin Hood, he stole from the rich and gave to the poor. (See 12D.)

20. Moppets : TYKES. Sometimes they're cute.

23. Affirmative answer : YES. I agree

25. Priest in I Samuel : ELI. Much later, the lesser of two famous siblings.

33. They lack Y chromosomes : WOMEN. But men are willing to share, up to 50 times a day.

34. Agitated speeches : RANTS. Or blog posts. I have a few.

35. GP's soc. : AMA. American Medical Association.

38. Like "Beowulf," e.g.: Abbr. : ANON. Shouldn't this be, like the AUTHOR of Beowulf?

39. Shire horses' burdens : CARTS. I wanted Hobbits.

40. Israeli statesman Abba : EBAN. South African born Aubrey Solomon Meir Eban spent three decades in the Israeli Knesset.

41. When doubled, a number puzzle : KEN. KEN KEN puzzles are almost as much fun as crosswords.

42. "__ Swear": 1959 Skyliners hit : THIS I. THIS I swear. I swear, I could listen to this 50 time as day,

43. Lucky shot : FLUKE. I once sank a long, downhill, curving putt. (For a triple bogey, alas.) That must have been some sort of FLUKE.

47. Recycle receptacle : BIN. We bin recyclin' fer years.

48. "__-haw!" : YEE. Cry of excitement from down on the farm. Perhaps Windhover can elaborate.

54. Caught a few z's : SLEPT. I did that this afternoon. It was good.

58. Itinerant : NOMAD. People who are on the move, rather than settled in one spot. There are estimated to be 30 to 40 million in the world, of three types: hunter gatherers, pastoral nomads, and paripatetic nomads.

62. Be of use : AVAIL

63. Moore of "G.I. Jane" : DEMI. Not a favorite of mine

64. Intro for John? : DEAR. DEAR John letters - long distance breakup notices. Now, just text: "U R DUN!"

65. Ziti cousin : PENNE. Two kinds of pasta pipes.

66. Scoot along, as clouds : SCUD. A SCUD cloud looks dangerous.

67. Showing no sign of slowing down : SPRY. I'm not very SPRY this week. It's the heat. Yeah - that's the ticket.

Down:

1. Start of a learning song : ABC. Should need no explanation.

2. Sharp-tasting : TART. Sharp tasting from natural acidity, like baking apples. And 10. Like orange juice : ACIDIC.

3. Skin care brand : OLAY. Oil of OLAY. No bull.

4. Eat like a bird : PECK.

5. Two-time U.S. Open winner Retief : GOOSEN. I have no idea.

6. Little devil : IMP. Typical grandson. and 40. Little trickster : ELF. I thought they made cookies!

7. 1924 co-defendant : LOEB. Very strange case. Nathan Leopold and Richard Loeb murdered 14-year-old Bobby Franks, in an attempt to commit the perfect crime.

8. Singer Braxton : TONI. Seriously beautiful, Multiple award winner, not to be confused with Anthony Braxton.

9. Telly on the telly : SAVALAS. Nice echo clue for Kojak, the lollipop kid. Who loves ya, baby?

11. Spanish surrealist : DALI. Salvador. We see him often.

12. Just hanging, so to speak : IDLE. So if we have the IDLE rich . . . never mind.

13. Birthright-for-pottage trader : ESAU. From Genesis. Esau was hungry. Jacob drove a hard bargain. I think it was a bad deal.

18. Enter, as data : KEY IN.

22. Obligations : DEBTS. Pay up! (See 30 D.)

24. The Dardanelles, e.g. : STRAIT. A narrow channel joining two larger bodies of water.

26. Billet-doux letters : SWAK. Sealed With A Kiss. A "billet" is a short note. "Doux" is "sweet." Short, sweet, sealed with a kiss. The very antithesis of a Dear John letter.

27. Work on, as abs : TONE. You might have a GO at it.

28. In the thick of : AMONG. I think AMIDST fits the clue better.

29. 1972 Michael Jackson hit : BEN. I have no recollection of this song, but recognize the melody.

30. Draconian : HARSH. Draco was the first legislator of ancient Greece, who had the laws written on wooden tablets so they could be openly displayed. Any debtor with lower status than his creditor became a slave. Draconian law included the death penalty for even minor offenses.

31. Thing : ENTITY.

32. Capital WNW of Islamabad : KABUL. The capital and largest city in Afghanistan.

36. Powerful shark : MAKO. I guess.

37. Freshly : ANEW

39. Twilled pants material : CHINO

42. Move about absently, as one's thumbs : TWIDDLE

43. Touchy-__ : FEELY. Based on emotion and sentiment, to the detriment of rational analysis.

45. Get hold of : OBTAIN

46. One half of a tiff : HE SAID. From HE SAID, she said - who can figure it out? Draco, I suppose.

49. Clicking fastener : SNAP. I'm sure it's here somewhere.

50. __ to: halted, nautically : HOVE. Past tense of "heave" to. The sailors here can explain how heaving slows a boat.

51. Asian sultanate : OMAN

52. Gets hitched : WEDS

53. Infinitesimal time period: Abbr. : NSEC. Nanosecond. One billionth of a second. Probably the time frame for something done 50 times per day.

55. Data on airport skeds : ETDS. Estimated Times of Departure.

56. Bo follower? : PEEP. She lost her sheep. Windhover - help!

57. Ivan IV, for one : TSAR. The former royal rulers of pre-soviet Russia, Spelt CZAR everywhere but in puzzles.

60. Dallas sch. : SMU. Southern Methodist University.

Answer grid.

There you have it folks, a fine, dross-free Wednesday offering from Gareth, with a nice mix of the familiar with the not-so-common. Hope you enjoyed it as much as I did.

Picture of the Day: Here is a sweet picture of JD's three grandsons. The smiling boy is 3-year-old Truman. In his arms is 2-week-old Cameron. 11-month-old Grady seems to have something else in his mind.

Cheers!

JzB