Saturday July 10, 2010 Doug Peterson

Theme: None

Total words: 70

Total blocks: 29

This puzzle is anchored by two 14s:

33A. Twisted party decorations : BALLOON ANIMALS. Quite a few refreshing & unique fill today.

39A. Purported source of Revere's historic signal : OLD NORTH CHURCH. Gimme for BarryG, I am sure. I needed crossing help. Total 10 letter Cs in the grid.

The above 14s are intersected by six 10-letter Down entries. A couple of 9s and fourteen 7-letter answers form the basic framework of the grid.

And as the norm with our Saturday puzzles, some clues are ambiguous and puzzling to me, some answers are just outside my knowledge zone.

Across:

1. Vamp attachments : T-STRAPS. I need a lesson on the anatomy of the shoe. Was picturing a seductive "vamp" girl.

8. They may follow shots : CHASERS. Drink "shots".

15. Hard up : IN A HOLE. In debt.

16. Crash : ZONK OUT. Was in the collide "Crash" direction.

17. Crown : CORONET. And TIARA (47D. Bridal accessory).

18. Things in the back : ADDENDA. Plural of addendum. Back of a book.

19. Certain Sopwith Scout : TWO-SEATER. Sopwith Scout is nicknamed Sopwith Pup. Some fighter aircraft. Total stranger to me. Educate me, Dudley!

21. Aid for a large-group photo : RISER

22. Invoice abbr. : AMT

23. Rolls in a nursery : SOD. Garden nursery.

24. "Naked Pictures of Famous People" author Stewart : JON. I guessed.

25. After-school request : COCOA. Thought of SNACK.

28. Tar Heel State campus : ELON

30. Eliot's Old Deuteronomy, e.g. : CAT. The musical "Cats" is adapted from T. S. Eliot's Cats poem.

37. Volunteer, often : FIREMAN

38. "If you can find a better car, buy it" speaker : IACOCCA (Lee). Three Cs in his name alone.

41. Check alternatives : X'ES

42. Gulf of Finland feeder : NEVA. See the map. Stumped me again.

43. Popped up, in baseball lingo : SKIED

45. Leftover : ODD

46. Union Sq., e.g. : STA. Union Square Station.

49. Soul on the Seine : ÂME. French for "soul".

50. Listed, to sailors : LEANT. Sailors say "leaned" as "leant", Spitzboov? Listed here meant "tilted".

53. Not finished yet : STILL AT IT

56. Dip (in) : IMMERSE

58. Fatty : ADIPOSE. Learned from doing Xword.

59. "The Time Machine" actress (1960) : MIMIEUX (Yvette). Should make Jazzbumpa happy. He & Lemonade have linked this picture a few times.

60. Finally turns (to) : RESORTS

61. Influential second-century astronomer : PTOLEMY

62. Three-syllable foot : ANAPEST. Poetic foot. The last syllable is stressed.

Down:

1. "Get a bang out of life" mint : TIC TAC

2. Treaded transport : SNOWMOBILE

3. Justice and Temperance, e.g. : TAROT CARDS. I peeked at the answer sheet.

4. Frat letters : RHOS

5. Excellent : A ONE

6. They may be affected by bargaining : PLEAS

7. Small scrap : SET-TO

8. Energy boss : CZAR. Energy Czar.

9. Mortar trough : HOD

10. Shakespeare title name : ANDRONICUS. "Titus Andronicus", Shakespeare tragedy. Headache for me.

11. Yarn unit : SKEIN

12. Seemingly forever : EONS

13. Like some awakenings : RUDE. Rude awakening.

14. Have the lead : STAR

20. Third-day creation : EDEN. God knows.

24. Fish story notable : JONAH. Bible story. He was swallowed by by a whale.

26. Author Robert __ Butler : OLEN. I've never heard of this author.

27. Source of some sundae toppings : ALMOND TREE. What? Because almonds are from almond trees?

29. Of the flock : LAIC. As opposed to "of the cloth".

30. Prepared with tomatoes, mushrooms and herbs : CACCIATORE. No idea. Wikipedia says it means "hunter" in Italian.

31. Philosophers' stone seekers : ALCHEMISTS

32. Airport screening org. : TSA (Transportation Security Administration)

34. Did galley work : OARED

35. Being broadcast : ON TV

36. Alien who reported to Orson : MORK. Mork & Mindy.

37. Site for aspiring idols : FOX. Home to "American Idol".

40. Dost own : HAST. What JD wanted yesterday.

44. Not fancy in the least : DETEST. Fancy is a verb here.

45. Negro Leagues legend Buck : O'NEIL. So humble. He should be in the Hall of Fame.

48. Mayflower Compact signer : ALDEN (John). The first person from The Mayflower to set foot on Plymouth in 1620, a la Wikipedia.

50. Worn out : LIMP. Oh.

51. Shoot out : EMIT

52. Battle rounds : AMMO

53. Steamy, in a way : SEXY

54. Co-star with Courteney and Jennifer : LISA (Kudrow). In "Friends".

55. For one : A POP

57. Dim __ : SUM. I miss Guangzhou. The food & the nightlife.

Answer grid.

Here are Part II of Kazie's Oz pictures. The colors are just so vibrant. I love that lonely lizard.

C.C.

Friday July 9, 2010 Jascha Smilack

Theme: Give 'em H, Harry - Letter H is inserted after letter S, in an orderly A, E, I, O, U pattern. Total 28 Hs in the puzzle, a record!

17A. "The herring ate my homework," e.g.? : SHAD EXCUSE. Sad Excuse. I had no idea that shad belongs to the herring family.

24A. Number on a bag of walnuts? : SHELL-BY DATE. Sell-By Date.

35A. Stumbling block for a beauty pageant contestant? : DEADLY SHINS. Deadly Sins.

48A. Really needing to do laundry? : OUT OF SHORTS. Out of Sorts.

58A. Reason to eat lunch alone? : MIDDAY SHUN. Midday Sun.

H is inserted into the first word in the first two theme entries, and the second word in the last three. Today's theme title came from Argyle. I've never heard of the slogan: Give 'em Hell, Harry!

No single black square in this puzzle. Quite unusual. Also, same as the Dan Naddor puzzle yesterday, the constructor divided his left and right edges into 2 rather than our normal 3 sections, resulting in several paralleled long entries, which always please Dennis/Clear Ayes, and a total low themeless-like 72 word count .

Several math references today:

21A. Cubic meter : STERE

52A. Highest degree : NTH

32D. H.S. math course : ALG

44D. Greek mathematician : EUCLID

Across:

1. Command, to Shakespeare : HEST. Only know "behest". Wanted BIDE.

5. Drei doubled : SECHS. German for 6. Drei = 3. I am sure it's a gimme for Kazie/Spitzboov. I was lost.

10. __ money : HUSH

14. Lit. collection : ANTH (Anthology)

15. Comment before a swim, maybe : I'M HOT. I don't swim. Afraid of water.

16. Yours: Fr. : A TOI. Jerome, the surprising cook on our blog, was just asking for the validity of this fill some time ago.

19. Restraining order : HALT

20. Role for Harrison : HAN (Solo)

22. "Say what?" : HUH

23. Like Brahms's Symphony No. 3 : IN F. Came with crossers.

28. Cases (out) : SCOPES

30. "My Fair Lady" lyricist : LERNER. Alan Jay Lerner.

31. Frequently embroidered pronoun : HERS

32. Pilot : AVIATE. Verb "Pilot".

39. Linguistic habits : USAGES

40. Hunk of tobacco : CHAW. PLUG too.

43. Like some collisions : HEAD-ON

46. Much of Libya : SAHARA

53. Pres. during the 1929 market crash : HCH (Herbert Clark Hoover). Did not know his middle name.

54. A, in Israel : ALEPH. Followed by Beth.

55. Letters seen next to a 4 : GHI. On a phone.

56. Maker of Regenerist skin products : OLAY. I am using Regenerist. Anti-aging.

60. Rear : HIND

61. Inuit relative : ALEUT

62. Hopping game? : HARE. Game here refers to "hunter's game". Nice clue.

63. Handicapper's concern : ODDS

64. Hyssop and catnip, e.g. : HERBS

65. Sign of a leak : HISS

Down:

1. Hemp extract : HASHISH. New word to me. Drug?

2. Heighten : ENHANCE

3. Silicon Valley school : STANFORD. JimmyB just mentioned Stanford yesterday.

4. Ecclesiastical deg. : TH. D. Doctor of Theology.

5. Some pizza slices : SIXTHS

6. Host : EMCEE

7. Rude dude : CHURL. Rhyme.

8. Golf club socket : HOSEL. See this diagram. Jazzbumpa is going to sink some putts today. Hope they are for birdies.

9. __-Thérèse, Quebec : STE

10. Taunting laugh : HAH

11. Hatch in the Senate, e.g. : UTAHAN. Orrin Hatch.

12. The sugar in your latte, say : SOLUTE. Also a new word. Same root as "solution" I suppose.

13. "Hie thee __, / That I may pour my spirits in thine ear": "Macbeth" : HITHER. I just hate Shakespeare quote clues. Never know what the dude wanted to say.

18. Being, to Ovid : ESSE. Latin.

25. Humdrum : BLAH

26. Hairy Asian giant : YETI. The Abominable Snowman.

27. Bathe, as in sunlight : DRENCH. Hot here.

29. False start? : PSEUDO. As in pseudoscience.

33. "The Return of the Native" vamp Eustacia __ : VYE. Means nothing to me. "The Return of the Native", novel by Thomas Hardy.

34. Edition: Abbr. : ISS (Issue)

36. Starting from : AS OF

37. Rather and others : DANS. Dan Rather.

38. Kidnap, in a way : SHANGHAI

41. 1880s first family : ARTHURS. Chester Alan Arthur (1881-1885). Another mysterious middle name!

42. Some surfers : WAHINES.

43. Words after "jolly," in an old jingle : HO HO HO. The Jolly Green Giant jingle. I saw the Green Giant statue when we traveled by. Ho Ho Ho!'

45. Nearby : AT HAND

46. Parade occasion, for short : ST PATS

47. Hardly healthy-looking : ASHY

49. Selassie of Ethiopia : HAILE

50. Having gone around the block more : OLDER. Thought it means "more experienced", not necessarily older.

51. Provide a new soundtrack for : REDUB

57. NFL stat : YDS

58. __-jongg : MAH. So noisy.

59. "Zip it!" : SHH. This last entry made me have an extra look at the plethora of letter Hs.

Answer grid.

Pictures of the Day: Here are a few great pictures Kazie took during her trip to Alice Springs, Northern Territory. Click each one. The photo will enlarge. Thanks for the captions, Kazie!

If you want to be included in our Crossword Corner map, please email Crockett. His address is crockett1947@comcast.net

C.C.