Saturday August 7, 2010 Joon Pahk

Theme: None

Total words: 70 / Total blocks: 31

Average Word length: 5.54

Interesting grid design, isn't it? The two cross-shaped 8-black-square blocks, the two 3-black-square blocks along the left and right edges (called "fingers" in Cruciverb talk, as they look like fingers poking into the grid. Coined by veteran constructor Mel Rosen, who also gave us the term "cruciverbalist".), as well as those single 9 stair ladder style black squares in the middle break the grid into very open yet tightly connected sections.

Triple stacks of horizontal 10s & vertical 8s in each quadrant. Each Across 10 is also intersected by several long Downs, including a triple stacked 6s in the corresponding corner. Here are the long 10s:

1A. Ripped muscles? : SIX PACK ABS. Awesomely scrabbly start. I suspect this is the seed entry. Hope it's a gimme for you after our lively discussion of Ryan Reynolds' six pack abs a while ago.

15A. While away : IN ABSENTIA. Fell into the "while away" verb phrase thinking.

17A. Like some suits : PINSTRIPED. Perfect fit for Hillary Clinton.

60A. Contemporary folklore : URBAN MYTHS. Well, maybe this is the seed entry. Nice one.

63A. Draws : STALEMATES. Was thinking of sketching "draws". Not sports tying "draws".

65A. One may be set on a stage : HORSE OPERA. I figure it had to be some kind of *OPERA.

Only 8 three-letter fill. Multiwords aplenty, some are very refreshing.

I had my normal Saturday struggle & frustration. So many things to learn. So many ways to be misled.

Across:

11. "House Hunters" network : HGTV. I am aware of the show. Have never watched it though.

16. Flying start? : AERO. Start in words related to "flying", as in aerodynamic.

18. Right-leaning: Abbr. : ITAL. Loved the clue. Right leaning indeed.

19. Christian denom. that observes the Sabbath on Saturday : SDA. No idea. It stands for Seventh-Day Adventist.

20. Fix, as a wicker chair : RECANE

21. WCs : LAVS

22. Renaissance Faire word : OLDE

24. Hide : SKIN. Was thinking of the "conceal" meaning of hide.

25. Biodegrade : ROT

26. Prefix with biology : NEURO. Neurobiology.

28. Cut : SNIP

30. Painting on utensils or furniture : TOLE. Like this tray. French for "sheet of iron", says Dictionary.

31. Former Monterey Bay fort : ORD. Fort Ord. Closed in 1994. Named after Civil War Major General Edward Ord.

33. Ringling Museum of the American Circus city : SARASOTA. Ha ha, I know this trivia.

35. Language subfamily that includes Maltese : SEMITIC. Oh, I only know Arabic and Hebrew belong to Semitic.

39. Feverishly : LIKE MAD. Nice answer.

40. Defense against intruders : WATCHDOG. To me, a watchdog is a person or an organization, not the defense itself.

42. "Vamoose!" : GIT. "Vamoose" is used several times in that silly crossword movie "All About Steve".

43. Angelo's instrument : ARPA. Italian for "harp". Angelo is "angel". I was stumped.

44. Playing a fifth qtr., say : IN OT (Overtime). Not enough block for my OTING.

46. "This I Promise You" band : 'N SYNC. I only know their "It's Gonna Be Me".

50. Any U.S. Army E-4 thru E-9 : NCO. Oh, good to know.

51. "Iron Chef America" chef Cat __ : CORA. She stymied many last time. I like the Japanese flavor in "Iron Chef America".

53. Robbie's dad : EVEL (Knievel). Know he has a daredevil son. Not the name though.

54. Fire : SACK. Not the hot fire I have in mind.

56. City SSW of Cleveland : MEDINA. No idea. We have a Medina in Minnesota too.

58. A storm may affect it, briefly : ETA (Estimated Time of Arrival). Refreshing clue.

59. "__, you noblest English!": "Henry V" : ON, ON. Shakespeare always gives me headache!

62. Shuffle alternative : NANO. Both iPod types.

64. Phosphoresce : GLOW. Phosphoresce is a new word to me. Verb. Looks like a noun, doesn't it?

Down:

1. Nurses : SIPS ON. Nurse a drink.

2. When an engine might stall : IN IDLE

3. City visited by Marco Polo : XANADU. The ending DU literally means "capital". We call it Shangdu in Chinese. Shang = Upper.

4. "Viewers Like You" help support it: Abbr. : PBS

5. Tycho Brahe's sci. : ASTR (Astronomy). I recognized Brahe when I googled his image. He had a fake nose.

6. Roman goddess of agriculture : CERES. That's how we got the word "cereal".

7. Two-time 1970s NBA champs : KNICKS. Don't know. Don't follow NBA.

8. Going to great lengths : AT PAINS

9. Like national elections : BIENNIAL

10. "Justine" author : SADE. Marquis de Sade. Hmm, An Erotic Classic.

11. Salute : HAIL

12. "Not in public, you two!" : GET A ROOM. Nice entry.

13. "Get Shorty" co-star : TRAVOLTA (John). Another gorgeous one.

14. __ Act: 1919 Prohibition legislation : VOLSTEAD. Wikipedia said it was named after Andrew Volstead, Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, which oversaw its passage.

23. The Boston Symphony played its second movement to commemorate FDR's death : EROICA. Beethoven's Symphony No. 3. Latin for "Heroic". Originally dedicated to Napoleon. Was unaware of this trivia.

27. Surg. specialty : ORTH. Orthopedic I suppose.

29. Moralizer : PRIG

30. Trypanosome transmitter : TSETSE. The scary African fly. I don't know the meaning of trypanosome.

32. Gogo's pal, in "Waiting for Godot" : DIDI. No idea, Sir!

34. Comparable : AKIN

35. Bittersweet farewell : SWAN SONG. Here is the origin of the phrase.

36. Drum site : EAR CANAL. Man, I was thinking of musical drum, not eardrum.

37. Resort town W. of the Delaware Water Gap : MT. POCONO. In Pennsylvania. The clue means nothing to me.

38. "Emperor __" : CONCERTO. Another Beethoven reference. OK, Jayce, tell us something about this concerto.

41. Theresa Dunn's ideal Mr., in a 1975 novel title : GOODBAR. Have never heard of the novel "Looking for Mr. Goodbar"

45. Experiments : TRIALS

47. Actress Mimieux : YVETTE. Famous for her role in "The Time Machine".

48. Like hell? : NETHER. Hot clue!

49. Midwest League's baseball level : CLASS A. Well, who pays attention to Class A league? Not I!

52. Douze mois : ANNEE. French for "year". Douze = 12. Mois = Months.

55. Not just suppose : KNOW

56. Cloying sentimentality : MUSH

57. A few rounds, perhaps : AMMO. Thought of drink rather than firearm "rounds".

61. Kisser : YAP. Both slang for "mouth".

Answer grid.

Here is a sweet photo of our Lucina and Dodo from their recent Coven gathering. This is their group photo. What were you gals cackling about?

C.C.

Friday August 6, 2010 Charles Barasch

Theme: Oh, K! - K is added to the end of C (in one-syllable word), which is preceded by five different vowels (O, U, A, E & I), with pronunciation unchanged.

17A. Pre-1991 Russian veto? : SOVIET BLOCK. Soviet Bloc. Soviet Union dissolved in 1991.

29A. West Florida currency? : TAMPA BAY BUCK. Tampa Bay Buc. Tampa Bay is on the west coast of Florida.

35A. Assault by killer trucks? : BIG MACK ATTACK. Big Mac Attack. Mack Trucks. Here, the middle Mac rather than the end Attack (2-syllables) is in play for the K-addition. Inconsistent with other theme entries. Maybe the constructor can't find a one syllable *AC containing common phrase to play around. Can you?

43A. Construct a microscopic house? : BUILD ON SPECK. Build on Spec.

57A. Jumpy bug? : NERVOUS TICK. Nervous Tic.

Though I am not fond of the odd entry 35A, I did like how the constructor placed it in the middle row (actually, K is in the very center of the grid) and combined the resulting end black squares with those of theme entries 29A and 43A to divide the left and right edges into two rather than our normal weekday three parts, bringing us long paralleled entries in the upper right and lower left corners.

Al mentioned that nearly half of Dan's puzzle yesterday comprises of three- or four-letter entries. This one has 42, out of a total of 74 answers. I am thinking that half of every puzzle is made up these small building units, just like half of every puzzle is consisted of vowels.

Maybe Santa or anyone who is fascinated by grid structure can count the total number of three & four entries and give us a ratio report for a week or two. Then we'll see the pattern.

Across:

1. Like some teeth : GAPPED

7. Recover : HEAL. Comforting word for our sharp-witted shenanigan-maker Lois.

11. WWII Normandy lander : LST (Landing Ship Tank)

14. '60s-'70s San Francisco mayor : ALIOTO (Joseph). Stranger to me. What was he famous for, besides the mayor-ship?

15. Business opening? : AGRI. Agribusiness.

16. National Poetry Mo. : APR.

19. Madre's brother : TIO. Mother's brother = Uncle. In Spanish.

20. Certain cardholder's cry : UNO. Had no idea that the card name is called out during the play.

21. Bit of tryst talk : COO

22. Boot : EJECT

24. Site of some adoptions : PET SHOP

27. Genes responsible for hereditary variations : ALLELES. Also RNA (55. Uracil is one of its basic components ). Both alleles and uracil are new words to me.

31. On __ with : A PAR

33. Reactor safety overseer: Abbr. : NRC (Nuclear Regulatory Commission). Established in 1974. Succeeded AEC (Atomic Energy Commission)

34. Opposing vote : NAY

40. Equi- ending : NOX. Equinox. Latin for "night".

41. Actress Scala : GIA. First encounter with this actress. Looks pretty.

42. He beat Okker to win the 1968 U.S. Open : ASHE. Not familiar with the Dutch Tennis player Tom Okker.

48. Out there : AT LARGE

49. Occupy : INHABIT

53. Developmental step : STAGE

54. E lead-in : BCD. Alphabetically. BCDE.

56. Chickadee relative : TIT. Oh, the bird.

62. __ Zion Church : AME. I forgot. AME = African Methodist Episcopal.

63. Gunk : CRUD

64. Easter Island attraction : STATUE. Wikipedia says Easter Island (an Polynesian island) is widely famous for its 887 extant monumental statues. Has anyone been there?

65. Not the color of money? : RED. Green is the color.

66. Directors' banes : HAMS. Well, all actors ham, don't they? Just that some are good, some are bad.

67. Respected ones : ELDERS

Down:

1. Get ready to travel : GAS UP

2. All by oneself : ALONE

3. Scissors feature : PIVOT. Always associate pivot with a living being.

4. Islands staple : POI

5. Time to tan in Cannes : ETE. Summer.

6. Web outfit : DOT COM. "Outfit" here means "company", correct?

7. Symbol of virtue : HALO. Raja has the same "halo" connotation, correct, Vidwan?

8. Kind of trip taken by oneself? : EGO. Nice clue.

9. Circle part : ARC

10. Plausible : LIKELY

11. Fashionable repast : LATE LUNCH. Needs a question mark, don't you think? Otherwise, why "fashionable"?

12. Tangy dessert : SPICE CAKE. Have never had this dessert. What makes it tangy?

13. One of the original Politburo members : TROTSKY (Leon). Assassinated in 1940 in Mexico.

18. Comet Hale-__ : BOPP. I am sure it's a gimme for Spitzboov.

23. Bush seen in Florida : JEB. He still lives in Florida?

25. Dateless : STAG

26. Hurt : HARM

27. Incantation beginning : ABRA. The beginning of the word Abracadabra.

28. Milk: Pref. : LACT. Literally ''milk''.

30. Singer Paul and family : ANKAS. OK.

31. "Finally!" : ABOUT TIME. Nice clue/answer.

32. Slightly eccentric : PIXILATED. Another new word. It's made of pix(ie) and (tit)illated.

36. Worked up : AGOG

37. Art film theater : CINE

38. Driver's gadget, for short : TACH. Thought of golfer "driver" first.

39. "May I __ favor?" : ASK A. Total 6Ks in the grid.

40. Magic, at one time : NBA STAR. Oh, Magic Johnson.

44. Hang back : LAG

45. Soak : DRENCH

46. Trillionth: Pref. : PICO. I forgot also. Al gave us a list last time.

47. Ultimate purpose : END USE

50. Shiny, in product names : BRITE. Bright.

51. Bring upon oneself : INCUR

52. Directors' units : TAKES. I like this noun clue.

54. Some underwear : BVDS

58. Notable period : ERA

59. Mai tai ingredient : RUM

60. Cardinal's letters : STL. St Louis Cardinals.

61. Pinch : TAD. A pinch/tad of. Not Tinbeni's sunset toast Pinch!

Answer grid.

Here is a recent photo of our irreplaceable and inimitable MOREL guy Dennis, who has been unfailingly supporting & helping me since the start of this blog and has been brightening our mornings with his consistently informative and entertaining comments. Thanks, Dummy!

C.C.