Wednesday September 22, 2010 James Sajdak

Theme: SLAPSTICK COMEDY (36A. Where it's laughable to see the answers to starred clues). Beautiful grid spanning unifier, right in the middle.

17A. *Coconut dessert : CUSTARD PIE

23A. *Facetious name for a fund-raising circuit entrée : RUBBER CHICKEN

46. *Mixer holder : SELTZER BOTTLE ♪♬ ♫ A little song, a little dance, a little seltzer in your pants ♬♫♪

57. *Yellow slipper? : BANANA PEEL Mythbusters.

Melissa here.

What a fun puzzle, very visually evocative. A pangram, too. This is James Sajdak's sixth appearance this year in the LA Times, his themes are always entertaining.

Across:

1. Cabo locale : BAJA. See Cabo at the very bottom.

5. Fall, as home prices : SLUMP. Don't remind me.

10. Havana howdy : HOLA

14. Distant start? : EQUI. Equidistant.

15. Insured patient's med cost : CO-PAY

16. Mideast nation : IRAN

19. State bordering eight others: Abbr. : TENN. Tennessee. Borders Kentucky, Virginia, North Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, Arkansas, Missouri

20. Krazy of comics : KAT.

21. Backsliding event? : LUGE. Fun clue.

22. Tourist attraction : MECCA

27. Some campus sisters : THETAS

29. Big repair bill reaction : OUCH. Very slapstick-y. And 25D. Bops : CONKS, which crosses two theme answers.

30. "Hee Haw" prop : BALE. Pretty. They make beautiful homes, too.

31. Kuwaiti currency : DINAR

33. Fairy tale legume : PEA. The princess and the pea.

40. Old curse word : POX. "A pox damn you, you muddy rascal, is that all the comfort you bring me?" Henry IV Part II.

41. Overhangs : EAVES

42. Canal that Sal worked on, in song : ERIE. The Boss's cover.

43. Stud farm stud : SIRE

44. Groundbreakers : FIRSTS

51. Mindful : AWARE

52. Rankles : IRKS

53. TV channels 2 to 13 : VHF

56. Lisa's title : MONA. From Wikipedia: "In Italian, ma donna means my lady. This became madonna, and its contraction mona. Mona is thus a polite form of address, similar to Ma’am, Madam, or my lady in English." Slapstick Mona Lisa.

60. "Agreed!" : OKAY

61. Put an __: stop : END TO

62. Janis's comics mate : ARLO. A new clue for Arlo. Well, sort of. The lead characters of this strip are named after 1960s music icons Arlo Gurthrie and Janis Joplin. Wiki says "Many of the most notable jokes are based on sexual attraction, especially Arlo's desire for Janis." Like this.

63. Sale caution : AS IS

64. County northeast of London : ESSEX

65. Oceanic flora : KELP

Down:

1. Eponymous German brewer Heinrich : BECK

2. Caribbean color : AQUA.

3. "Don't worry about it!" : JUST RELAX. Be happy.

4. River isle : AIT. An ait (or eyot) is a small island. It is especially used to refer to islands found on the River Thames and it's tributaries in England.

5. Surgical coverage? : SCRUBS. Didn't get this right away, even though I have some in every color.

6. Raccoon ___, "The Honeymooners" fraternal group : LODGE. Did not remember this.

7 Like some echelons : UPPER

8. Printemps month : MAI. Printemps is French for Spring.

9. Joe-__ weed: herbal remedy : PYE. Pretty.

10. Like smart phones, e.g. : HI TECH

11. Vacuum shown lifting a bowling ball in TV ads : ORECK. Bowling balls seem to be the standard for suction.

12. Tilting pole : LANCE. Couldn't have said it better myself.

13. 1997-2006 UN leader : ANNAN. Kofi.

18. Goya's "Duchess of __" : ALBA. Painting.

22. Prefix with scope : MICRO

24. Sch. near the Rio Grande : UTEP. University of Texas at El Paso.

26. '50s Red Scare gp. : HUAC. House Un-American Activities Committee. Some great movies about it - Guilty by Suspicion, Citizen Cohn, The Front.

27. Kitchen meas. : TBSP.

28. Saintly circle : HALO

31. One going down : DIVER. Umm ...

32. Assure victory in, slangily : ICE

33. Gut it out : PERSEVERE

34. Cut out, say : EDIT

35. Bridge assents : AYES. Sailor speak.

37. Take by force : SEIZE

38. Container allowance : TARE. The weight of an empty container.

39. Keyboardist Saunders who collaborated with Jerry Garcia : MERL. Had no idea.

43. Range rovers? : STRAYS. Sneaky clue.

44. Loc. with billions in bullion : FT KNOX

45. "__ girl!" : IT'S A

46. Island where Robert Louis Stevenson died : SAMOA. Was unaware of this trivia.

47. Furry Endor inhabitants : EWOKS. Star Wars creatures.

48. Hawaii's Pineapple Island : LANAI

49. Pickles : BINDS

50. Speak formally : ORATE. Little oral fixation today. Maybe it's just me.

54. War, to Sherman : HELL. William Tecumseh Sherman, Union general during the Civil War. "You don’t know the horrible aspects of war. I’ve been through two wars and I know. I’ve seen cities and homes in ashes. I’ve seen thousands of men lying on the ground, their dead faces looking up at the skies. I tell you, war is Hell!"

55. Hardly a big ticket-seller : FLOP

57. Sewing circle : BEE

58. T or F, on tests : ANS. True or False.

59. Karachi's country: Abbr. : PAK. Karachi is the largest city, main seaport, and financial center of Pakistan.

Answer grid.

Melissa

Tuesday, September 21, 2010 Robert A. Doll

Theme: Life's a Beach - As the unifier indicates, put BEACH in front of the first word of these four common phrases and you have a connection.

17A. Top banana: HEAD HONCHO. Beachhead - the area that is the first objective of a military force landing on an enemy shore.

23A. Unstable situation, metaphorically: HOUSE OF CARDS. Beach house.

37A. Huge mess: BALL OF CONFUSION. Beach ball.

45A. Gregarious fun lovers: PARTY ANIMALS. Beach party.

58A. Valuable shore property, and a hint to what the first words of 17-, 23-, 37- and 45-Across have in common: BEACH FRONT

Argyle again.

The unifier explains the connection but doesn't really help the solving of the clues. The first three change their meaning when combined with beach but PARTY stays the same. In fact, you can find PARTY ANIMALS at a BEACH PARTY. Toga! Toga!

Across:

1. Briquettes : COALS. A sort of progression: Briquettes - COALS - embers - ash.

6. Zip : ZERO

10. Country music pioneer Ernest : TUBB. When I listen to his I'm Walking the Floor Over You, I can't help but think of Poe's, The Tell-Tale Heart. Dost thou think I am mad?

14. "As a result ..." : AND SO

15. Country on the tip of the Arabian Peninsula : OMAN. Map.

16. Spot in the ocean : ISLE

19. Depilatory brand : NAIR. Or Neet/Veet.

20. '60s-'70s war site, briefly : NAM

21. "Now it makes sense!" : I SEE

22. Cake finish : ICING

26. Workplace inspection org. : OSHA

29. Comportment : MIEN

30. Louise's gal pal : THELMA. From the 1991 movie, "Thelma & Louise".

33. Buzzing swarmers : BEES

34. Performed : DID

40. "Danny and the Dinosaur" author Hoff : SYD. An "I Can Read" book.

41. Court postponement : STAY

42. Ancient Greek military power : SPARTA. They hit the big time with their movie.

43. Blood fluids : SERA

44. Veggies studied by Mendel : PEAS

52. Assumed name : ALIAS

53. Defensive spray : MACE

54. Marx's "__ Kapital" : DAS

57. Thin curl of smoke : WISP

61. Third man : ABEL and 3D. Father of 61-Across : ADAM

62. High-strung : EDGY

63. Sacher treat : TORTE. The Sachertorte was created by pastry chef Franz Sacher (1816-1907) in 1832 for Prince von Metternich, the Austrian State Chancellor. The prince enjoyed trying new dishes and ordered the chef to create a new cake. Orders were sent to the kitchens where it was instant pandemonium. The head chef was sick and the team of cooks in the kitchen had no idea what to prepare. Franz Sacher, a 16-year old apprentice cook, rolled up his sleeves and created this famous chocolate cake with the ingredients that were available. It consisted of chocolate sponge cake cut into three layers, between which apricot jam are thickly spread between the layers and on the top and sides of the cake. The whole cake is then iced with a velvet-like chocolate and served with a side dish of whipped cream. The Sacher Torte and other recipes made him prosperous, and he operated several cafes and restaurants.

64. Goodyear product : TIRE

65. Member's obligation : DUES

66. What matzo lacks : YEAST

Down:

1. "High Hopes" lyricist Sammy : CAHN. "High Hopes" is a popular song, introduced in the 1959 film A Hole In The Head, winning the Academy Award for Best Original Song in 1959. The music was written by Jimmy Van Heusen, the lyrics by Sammy Cahn. A Sinatra standard.

2. Top draft status : ONE A

4. '60s "trip" drug : LSD

5. Early gas company based in Cleveland : SOHIO. Standard Oil of Ohio or Sohio was one of the successor companies to Standard Oil after the antitrust breakup in 1911. It merged with British Petroleum, now called BP(Hiss, boo), in 1968.

6. Districts : ZONES

7. Roast host : EMCEE

8. Bleachers cry : RAH

9. John __ Lennon : ONO. Lennon and Yoko Ono were married in Gibraltar on 20 March 1969, and he changed his name by deed poll on 22 April 1969, adding "Ono" as a middle name. Although he used the name John Ono Lennon thereafter, official documents referred to him as John Winston Ono Lennon, since he was not permitted to revoke a name given at birth.

10. Kid's make-believe phone : TIN CAN. Not make believe. This site can tell you how to make one.

11. Carrier that added "ways" to its name in 1997 : USAIR. USAir in 1979, US Airways in 1997. Of local interest, Mohawk Airlines was an early part of what was to become USAir.

12. Duck hunter's cover : BLIND. Not only for ducks, the meaning "anything that obstructs sight" is from 1530s. In this case, the obstruction of the prey's sight of the hunter.

13. Cold-water hazards : BERGS

18. Its flagship sch. is in Stillwater, west of Tulsa : OSU. Oklahoma State University.

22. Freezes over : ICES UP

23. Oates's musical partner : HALL. Daryl Hall and John Oates, Private Eyes.

24. Divine sign : OMEN

25. Feudal domains : FIEFs

26. Gambling parlors, briefly : OTBs. Off-track betting (OTB)

27. One-horse carriage : SHAY. Two wheeled is correct version but four wheeled carriages are often called shays, also.

28. Had in one's hands : HELD

31. Strolls (along) : MOSEYS

32. Performers' union: Abbr. : AFTRA. The American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (AFTRA). AFTA. The After Shave Skin Conditioner.

33. Tarzan's son : BOY

34. Awful : DIRE

35. Letter after theta : IOTA

36. Genetic info carriers : DNAs

38. "Misery" actor James : CAAN. Movie poster

39. Easy targets : SAPS

43. Swingline fastener : STAPLE. Swingline is a brand name for staples and staplers.

45. Touch, cat-style : PAW AT

46. Accused's excuse : ALIBI

47. Choir platform : RISER

48. Likeness : IMAGE

49. "Miracle on 34th Street" setting : MACY'S. One of my favorite movies.

50. Rhine whine? : ACH. Great rhyme.

51. Sandy Koufax or CC Sabathia : LEFTY. Left-handed baseball pitchers(and a mini shout-out to our leader).

54. The first Mrs. Copperfield : DORA. Not the magician. "David Copperfield or The Personal History, Adventures, Experience and Observation of David Copperfield the Younger of Blunderstone Rookery (which he never meant to publish on any account)" is a novel by Charles Dickens, first published as a novel in 1850. Like most of his works, it originally appeared in serial form a year earlier. David, as an adult, first married naïve Dora Spenlow, but she dies. He eventually marries and finds true happiness with the sensible Agnes, who had secretly always loved him.

55. Insects on farms : ANTS

56. Editor's "leave it in" : STET

58. B&B part : BED. Bed and Breakfast inns, usually a private home. Many couples have bought old homes, thinking becoming a B&B will pay the mortgage; it doesn't, for most of them.

59. College URL ending : EDU. Its name is derived from education, indicating its intended use as a name space for educational institutions.

60. Future fish : ROE. Finally, some alliteration.

Answer grid.

Argyle