Tuesday, September 28, 2010 Mark Bickham

Theme: Promos - The first word of each two-word common phrase is a synonym of "ads". Each common phrase is then humorously clued as if it's ads related.

20A. Promo after promo after promo?: AD INFINITUM

35A. Thesis on promos?: COMMERCIAL PAPER

52A. One who takes a promo off the air?: SPOT REMOVER

Argyle here.

MEH! Meh, Meh, Meh. Bland theme (The theme clues are fun). Ambitious vertical stacks in the corners, sides broke into just two segments, which results in triple columns of 6s & 8s in each corner ... Total 74 words. 32 black squares. Still, meh. No sparkle fill.

I had hopes when the Z's appeared but the only WIT was 27 Across (Bon mot expert). Of course, your experience may vary.

Across:

1. Jane Austen classic : EMMA

5. Lose it : SNAP

9. Marathoner's pants? : GASPS. A little misdirection.

14. Campus area : QUAD

15. Sport with mallets : POLO

16. Like Andean pyramids : INCAN

17. More than suggest : URGE

18. Loud laugh : ROAR

19. Swordsman of lore : ZORRO. Zorro's Theme Song.

23. Ike's WWII arena : ETO. United States Army European Theater of Operations (ETO). General Eisenhower, Supreme Commander.

24. Gumshoe : TEC. Detective

25. Chowed down : ATE

26. Old Olds creation : REO. Early auto, used the initials of its maker, Ransom Eli Olds.

27. Bon mot expert : WIT

28. Artificial : ERSATZ. German, from ersetzen, to substitute.

30. Put into words : SAY

31. Fourth century start : CCCI

32. Well-endowed, so to speak : CHESTY. Who comes to mind?

34. Oil-yielding rock : SHALE

39. "Doe, __ ...": song lyric : A DEER

40. Metallic mixtures : ALLOYS. Here is one example.

41. __ and turn : TOSS

42. Astern : AFT

43. Black Sea port : ODESSA

47. Printers' widths : EMS

48. Keebler cookiemaker : ELF

49. "__ Beso": Paul Anka hit : ESO. A Spanish/Italian? version.

50. Part of D.A.: Abbr. : ATT. District Attorney

51. Portuguese king : REI

55. Forest bucks : STAGS

57. __ Star State : LONE

58. "By __!" : JOVE

59. Little laugh : TE-HEE

60. Knock off : DOIN

61. Aggressive Greek god : ARES. Olympian god of war.

62. Sci-fi writer __ Scott Card : ORSON. The only author to win both of American science fiction's top prizes in consecutive years. Wikipedia entry, with image.

63. Snow coaster : SLED

64. "Winning __ everything" : ISN'T

Down:

1D. Put "=" between : EQUATE

2D. Scream bloody __ : MURDER

3D. Voodoo and wizardry : MAGICS

4D. Yemeni port : ADEN

5D. Wine-and-soda drink : SPRITZER. OK, this is sparkling(or is it just the soda?).

6D. Nary a soul : NO ONE

7D. Jai __ : ALAI

8D. Actor's job : PORTRAYAL

9D. Thingamajig : GIZMO. Names for things you don't know the name for.

10D. "Wheel of Fortune" purchase : AN O. "Alec, I would like to buy a vowel."

11D. Twist-off top : SCREW CAP

12D. Word with board or physics : PARTICLE. Board made from small pieces of wood pressed and glued together. Physics studies of the elementary subatomic constituents of matter and radiation, and the interactive relationship between them.

13D. More stuck-up : SNOOTIER

21D. Darth, to Luke : FATHER. Bad clue. In Star Wars, Darth is the title of a Sith Lord or Master, the first part of the new name they take on. It was once believed to be a condensed version of 'Dark Lord of the Sith', and thus the reason for the title. Luke's father was- spoiler alert -Darth Vader

22D. One-eighty : UEY. U-turn.

29D. High points : ACMES

30D. Long-legged bird : STILT. Image.

31D. Banking giant : CHASE. Anybody read this as "Baking giant"?

33D. Building repair platforms : SCAFFOLDS

34D. World of espionage : SPYDOM

35D. Waits on hand and foot : CATERS TO

36D. Dashboard gauge : ODOMETER

37D. Saviors : MESSIAHS

38D. Detail to tie up : LOOSE END

42D. Matterhorn or Monte Leone : ALP

44D. Really enjoys : SAVORS

45D. Director Spielberg : STEVEN

46D. Motionless : AT REST

48D. Museum Folkwang city : ESSEN. Germany. The term Folkwang is taken from the Edda; Folkvangar and means "hall of the people". Somebody here surely has visited it and can tell us more about it.

49D. "Sesame Street" regular : ERNIE

53D. Saw or plane : TOOL

54D. City east of Santa Barbara : OJAI. Map.

56D. Political beginning? : GEO

Answer grid.

Argyle

Monday, September 27, 2010 Betty Keller

Theme: Three Diminutive Swine - First word of the first three long entries describe the protagonist of this classic children's tale. Also included are the integral structures associated with the story.

17A. High rollers: BIG SPENDERS

29A. "Do as I say, not as I do" speakers: BAD EXAMPLES

45A. Shrill "compliment" to a pretty woman: WOLF WHISTLE

61A. Catch your breath, or what the subject of this puzzle (found at the start of 17-, 29- and 45-Across) does: HUFF AND PUFF

Also:

39A. Like the house this puzzle's subject couldn't destroy: BRICK. Very center of the grid.

26D. Like a house destroyed by this puzzle's subject: STRAW

33D. See 26-Down clue: STICK. Both fragile houses are symmetrically placed along the edges of the grid. Very nice.

And a bonus entry: PENNED (6D. Confined, as pigs).

Argyle here.

Heavy themeage (57 theme squares) for a Monday with some questionable abbreviations but no real problems. It has been over a year since we have had a puzzle from Betty Keller and again, she isn't big on trickery or obscurity, as is right for a Monday. I think "cute" would be my description of this puzzle.

Across:

1. Sign up : ENROL

6. "My Cousin Vinny" star Joe : PESCI

11. Cooperstown shrine: Abbr. : HOF. The official site of the National Baseball Hall of Fame is in Cooperstown, NY.

14. First lady before Michelle : LAURA. Mrs. Bush.

15. Revolutionary Allen : ETHAN. Vermonter. His brother, Ira, did not get the press that Ethan did.

16. Tic-tac-toe loser : OXO

19. Pin for hanging : PEG

20. Election losers : ALSO-RANS

21. Observing : EYING

23. Musical scale unit : NOTE

24. Morales of "Jericho" : ESAI. We have seen this regular lately. His vowel-laden name use to show up on a seemingly weekly basis.

26. Duped person : SAP

34. Deal in stocks : TRADE

36. Stimpy's partner : REN. Ren is the scrawny "Asthma-Hound" Chihuahua

37. Actor Brad : PITT. Must post picture or else! Image.

38. Thinker Descartes : RENÉ. "Father of Modern Philosophy".

41. K-12 sch. years : ELHI

42. On a cruise : ASEA

43. "The View" network : ABC

44. Dig discovery : RELIC

49. "How revolting!" : ICK

50. One, to Beethoven : EINS. German.

51. Den or parlor : ROOM

53. One in a multiple birth : QUINT

56. Pet lizards' homes : TERRARIA

60. German conjunction : UND. More German.

64. Swearing-in words : I DO

65. Motionless : INERT

66. Nightmare loc. of film : ELM ST.

67. D.C. deal-maker : POL

68. Like a catching-up letter : NEWSY

69. Some towed vehicles, briefly : REPOS

Down:

1. Napoleon's exile isle : ELBA

2. File target : NAIL

3. Carpets : RUGS

4. Director Welles : ORSON

5. Carriage passenger's warmer : LAP ROBE

7. Approx. takeoff hrs. : ETDs. Estimated Time of Departure (ETD)

8. Boater's pronoun : SHE

9. Automobile : CAR

10. Crotch-to-ankle pants measure : INSEAM

11. Native Arizonans : HOPI

12. Plow pullers : OXEN

13. Verne's circumnavigator Phileas : FOGG. World traveller in Jules Verne's 1873 novel, "Around the World in Eighty Days". (Updated later: the original clue Phineas is a typo.)

18. "I could __ horse!" : EAT A

22. "Yahoo!" : YIPPEE

24. Biz VIP : EXEC. Very Important Person in business.

25. Went down like a stone : SANK

27. "Am not!" retort : ARE SO

28. Group of judges : PANEL

30. Idle and Clapton : ERICs. Eric Idle, English comedian, performed as a member of the British comedy group Monty Python. Eric Clapton, English guitarist, performed as a member of rock bands the Yardbirds and Cream.

31. Actress Palmer : LILLI. She was married to Rex Harrison. Image.

32. Code of conduct : ETHIC

35. Overwhelm with noise : DEAFEN

39. German road : BAHN. More German...again.

40. MLB scoring stats : RBIs

44. Stock up again : REORDER

46. Live __ one's means : WITHIN

47. The "T" in NATO : TREATY. North Atlantic Treaty Organization

48. Forsaken : LORN. Forlorn is the more common usage.

52. Source of Canada's symbolic leaf : MAPLE

53. Comical comment : QUIP

54. Cancel : UNDO

55. Fan club favorite : IDOL

56. Swaps between accts. : TFRS.. Is this a common abbreviation?

57. Type of roast : RUMP

58. In that event : IF SO

59. P.M. periods : AFTS. Now this abbreviation is a strain.

62. A, to Berlioz : UNE. Louis-Hector Berlioz was a French composer, regarded as a pioneer of modern orchestration.

63. Not many : FEW

Answer grid.

Argyle

Added 8:45am:

Congratulations to constructor Mangesh Ghogre and his wife Rupali. They just had a new baby boy today. Their first, I think.