Wednesday October 6, 2010 Mike Peluso

Theme: The EAGLE has landed. Each theme answer is a different definition of the word eagle. All so colorful.

20A. Eagle : KEEN-EYED BIRD. Indeed. There are about 70,000 bald eagles living in the world today, about half of those in Alaska, and another 20,000 in B.C., Canada - because of the large amount of salmon in those areas.

33A. Eagle : LUNAR LANDER. The lander portion of the Apollo spacecraft. Six such craft successfully landed on the Moon between 1969–1972. Simulation.

41A. Eagle : TWO UNDER PAR. Golf. Timely for me, the Frys.com open is being held where i work next week. The whole resort is already a zoo, in preparation. I'll be glad when it's over.

54. Eagle : HIGHEST SCOUT. Boy Scouts of America. Coincidentally, at least 40 astronauts earned the rank as a youth, including Neil Armstrong, the first person to set foot on the moon.

Melissa here.

Clecho (clecho, clecho, clecho). Perfect timing Mike Peluso and Rich, for our newly adopted word, coined by Dennis.

And a few timely baseball references:

25A. Ball club : BAT. Deceptively simple.

27D. Girardi's predecessor as Yankee manager : TORRE. Joe.

45D. Cleanup hitter's stats : RBI'S. Runs Batted In. From Wikipedia: "…the hitter who bats fourth in the lineup. Cleanup hitters often have the most power on the team and are typically the team's best all-around hitter; their job is to "clean up the bases", hence the name.

Across:

1. Dance fundamental : STEP

5. Spreading trees : ELMS

9. Cosmic payback : KARMA

14. __-up: slow Web connection : DIAL.

15. Bubbly label name : MOET. Champagne.

16. Like some kites : AVIAN. Bird species.

17. Menlo Park middle name : ALVA. Thomas Alva Edison, nicknamed "The Wizard of Menlo Park" (New Jersey, not California).

18. Former credit card giant : MBNA. Purchased by BofA in 2005. No idea.

19. Shakespeare's title Athenian : TIMON. The Life of Timon Athens. New to me.

23. Big pix: Abbr. : ENLS. Short for enlargements, i suppose.

24. Reagan era prog. : SDI. Strategic Defense Initiative.

28. Pancho was his sidekick : CISCO. The Cisco kid. I thought of Lefty first.

30. Running independently : ON AUTO

32. Trite : OLD

37. Leg-shaving alternative : NAIR

39. "Science Guy" Bill : NYE

40. Baking soda target : ODOR. Does anyone still keep an open box in the fridge?

46. Tint : HUE

47. Composer Berlioz : HECTOR. 19th Century French composer. Who knew?

48. WWII blockade vessel : U-BOAT

50. Joseph of ice cream fame : EDY

51. Tic __: mint : TAC

53. Sale condition : AS IS. Seeing this a lot lately.

59. Ambulance attendant : MEDIC

62. Cathedral section : APSE

63. "Dark Angel" actress Jessica : ALBA.

64. Worship : ADORE. And 22D. Adored one : IDOL. Duplication.

65. Bring up : REAR

66. Diver's haunt : REEF

67. Au courant, with "in" : TUNED. French for aware, or conversant - meaning fully familiar, or knowledgeable.

68. Ancient Persian : MEDE

69. Ilk : SORT

Down:

1. Nebr. neighbor : SDAK. South Dakota.

2. Roofer's piece : TILE

3. Whence icicles hang : EAVE. 'Whence' is archaic English, meaning from what place. More Shakespeare.

4. Does a cabinetmaking task : PLANES. Like this.

5. Harris of country : EMMYLOU. Great voice. Stellar collaboration with Mark Knopfler.

6. They may be pierced : LOBES. Earlobes. And 8. Pierces : STABS. Clecho.

7. See 32-Down : MEND. 32. With 7-Down, feeling better : ON THE

9. Destructive 2005 newsmaker : KATRINA

10. Zealous : AVID

11. Part of most eyeglasses : RIM.

12. "Little Red Book" author : MAO. Book of quotations from Chairman Mao, explaining the ideology of the Chinese Communist Party.

13. Ex-Texas governor Richards : ANN. Colorful character. Died in 2006.

21. Check sent with a ltr., e.g. : ENCL. Enclosure.

25. Sanskrit for "awakened one" : BUDDHA. One who has achieved enlightenment. And 44. Like monastic life : AUSTERE

26. Enjoyed Denny's, say : ATE OUT

28. Scratched : CLAWED

29. Stupidity : IDIOCY

31. "That's __": "Uh-uh" : A NO

34. Toledo-to-Detroit dir. : NNE

35. Port on the Firth of Clyde : AYR. Scotland. I do not feel bad that i didn't know this.

36. Sen. counterpart : REP. Senator / Representative.

38. Road to nowhere, metaphorically : RUT. Great clue.

42. Spied : NOTICED

43. Schlep : DRAG

49. Annual Hollywood gala, with "the" : OSCARS

52. Amulet : CHARM

53. Syrian leader : ASSAD

54. Take on : HIRE

55. Fencing sword : EPEE

56. Stick on the table : OLEO. Noun, not verb.

57. Opposite of unter : UBER. German. Unter = beneath or under; uber = above or over.

58. First president to take up golf : TAFT. Easy guess. Only Presidents with four-letter last names: Polk, Taft, Ford, Bush.

59. Pin cushion? : MAT. Wrestling. Very nice.

60. University URL : EDU

61. Put on : DON

Answer grid.

Melissa

Tuesday, October 5, 2010 Jeff Chen

Theme: Portmanteau...not - Even though the unifier is a portmanteau, the four theme entries are two-word phrases in which the first word is Spanish while the second is English. The unifier is two words formed into one.

17A. Site for flashy couples dancing : SALSA CLUB

28A. Annual college football game in Arizona : FIESTA BOWL

38A. Spicy deep-fried stuffed appetizers : JALAPENO POPPERS. Hot!

45A. Nap period, in Latin America : SIESTA TIME. The last three all made their debut today.

62A. 2004 Adam Sandler movie, and a hint to the puzzle theme found in 17-, 28-, 38- and 45-Across : SPANGLISH . Starring Adam Sandler and our crossword stalwart Téa Leoni.

Argyle here.

Very smooth 76-worder. No obscure words or doubtful abbrs. In fact, very few abbrs. A noticeable hallmark of Jeff Chen, who seems to be focusing on earlier week puzzles now.

Quite a few nice multi-word entries. Nice clechoes (clue echoes) too.

Across:

1. Houlihan portrayer in 5-Across : SWIT. Major Margaret J. "Hot Lips" Houlihan portrayed by Loretta Swit on the TV sitcom. In the movie, the character was portrayed by Sally Kellerman.

5. Korean War sitcom : M*A*S*H

9. Reading aids : LAMPS. Part-time reading aids, when it's dark.

14. __ Major: Great Bear : URSA

15. Actress Hayworth : RITA. Always worth an image.

16. Native Alaskan : ALEUT

19. Confiscate : SEIZE

20. Popular swim briefs : SPEEDOs. Always worth an image.

21. Issue an embarrassing retraction : EAT CROW

23. Foul caller : REF

24. Group of street toughs : GANG

25. Competed in a race : RAN

34. Physics bit : ATOM

36. Ending for absorb : ENT. Absorbent.

37. Supreme Court justice Sotomayor : SONIA. The current session of the Supreme Court started Monday.

42. Crop up : ARISE

43. Indian bread : NAN. Or Naan.

44. Takes to court : SUES. Court clecho with 37A.

48. Paid athlete : PRO

49. Sign over a door : EXIT. And LEO (50. Sign before Virgo).

53. "Ain't happening!" : "NO SIREE!"

57. Emulates Jell-O : WIGGLES

61. Bar, in law : ESTOP

64. Bridal registry category : CHINA

65. Impulse : URGE

66. Poet Lazarus : EMMA. Emma Lazarus (1849 – 1887) was an American Jewish poet born in New York City. She is best known for "The New Colossus", a sonnet written in 1883; its lines appear on a bronze plaque in the pedestal of the Statue of Liberty in 1912.(Please refrain from political comments.)

67. Musical Carpenter : KAREN

68. Word with pressure or review : PEER

69. Gush : SPEW

Down:

1. Figure (out), in slang : SUSS

2. Conclude, with "up" : WRAP

3. Castaway's place : ISLE

4. Shocking weapon : TASER

5. Appliance brand that helps you wake up? : MR COFFEE. Do you all drink coffee in the morning?

6. Suffers : AILS

7. "The Simpsons" disco guy : STU. Worth a little image.

8. __ corpus : HABEAS. Uh...no image.

9. Like a desperate effort : LAST GASP

10. Actor Guinness : ALEC

11. Israel's Golda : MEIR

12. "The Godfather" author Mario : PUZO

13. Goulash, e.g. : STEW

18. Summer drink : ADE. Who really drinks it?

22. Tiny army member : ANT

24. "Start that job now!" : "GET ON IT!"

25. Indian nobles : RAJAs

26. Centipede video game creator : ATARI

27. "Cross my heart!" : "NO LIE!"

29. Lodge : INN

30. Hits on the noggin : BOPS

31. Outdo : ONE UP

32. Electrician, at times : WIRER

33. Steer catcher : LASSO

35. The "m" in E = mc² : MASS

39. Broadway flier : PETER PAN

40. Nonstick spray : PAM

41. "I just flew in, and boy are my arms tired!," e.g. : ONE LINER. "Take my wife -- please!" Henny Youngman was the king of the one-liners.

46. Tree feller : AXE. Later in the week, this might be a clue for lumberjack or an ent.

47. Snarls, as traffic : TIES UP

51. Scrambled fare : EGG

52. Makes eyes at : OGLES

53. Giraffe's trademark : NECK

54. Fed. workplace watchdog : OSHA

55. Cookbook verb : STIR

56. Actress Skye : IONE. Will an image help to remember her?

57. "Living" payment : WAGE

58. Hobble : LIMP

59. Salinger heroine : ESMÉ. From "For Esmé – with Love and Squalor".

60. "Pygmalion" playwright : SHAW

63. Season opener? : PRE

Answer grid.

Argyle