Sunday November 7, 2010 Verge

Theme: Placing Changes -Changing Places. Familiar two-word phrases with A-ing B structure are changed into B-ing A.

23A. Discussion about which way to go? : HEADING TALK. The base phrase is Talking Head.

33A. Sunbeam, e.g.? : IRONING BRAND. Branding Iron.

39A. Defensive karate move? : BLOCKING CHOP. Chopping Block.

56A. Identical gift container? : MATCHING BOX. Boxing Match.

64A. Bird dog's rest? : POINTING BREAK. Breaking Point.

78A. Cause of a power tool failure? : BUSHING BURN. Burning Bush. The stuff in his hand is BUSHING?

90A. Ornithologists' bird-tagging outing? : BANDING MARCH. Marching Band.

97A. Stage players taking a nap? : COUCHING CAST. Casting Couch.

114A. Music to pitch hay by? : FORKING TUNE. Tuning Fork.

Who is Verge?

Funny, I actually read the puzzle title as "Changing Places". Grokked the theme after MATCHING BOX emerged.

Quite a struggle for me. The overall cluing is a bit challenging for a Sunday. Did nail all the lovely "It" clues though:

22A. It's a sign : OMEN

109A. It's out on a limb : HAND

4D. It may be muted : AUDIO

Also great to see the full name KIM JONG-IL ( 82D. Asian leader with a degree from a university named for his father") in the grid. The "Dear Leader". Kim = "Gold" in Korean. Same character as Chinese "Gold'.

Across:

1. Mercedes line : E-CLASS. Crossing CIERA (2D. Cutlass model). Tough start for me. We also have FURY (108A. Old Plymouth). Stumper.

7. Go 12-Down : SNAP. And 12D. Wild : BALLISTIC.

11. Turns seaward : EBBS

15. Traffic : CARS. The clue does not feel complete to me. Did like the consecutive clue for TIEUPS ( 19. Jams).

20. Wooden team, once : UCLA. Not familiar with John Wooden Center.

21. Skin : PARE. Tricky verb clue.

25. Part of a shutter : SLAT

26. Galway Bay site : EIRE. Galway Bay is on the west coast of Ireland.

27. Senator Hatch : ORRIN

28. City accessible by ferry from Marseilles : ORAN. Algerian port. Not an easy clue.

29. Many virtuoso performances : SOLI. Plural of solo.

30. Prophet : AUGUR

31. Asian parting : SAYONARA. Japanese. We also have 89D. Carp from Kyoto : KOI.

36. Microbrew, maybe : ALE

37. Turkish leader : AGHA

38. __' Pea : SWEE

44. Actress Bankhead : TALLULAH. Nope. Total stranger.

49. Movement in some Bach suites : GIGUE. New word to me. Dictionary says it derives from "jig".

50. Pickled : LIT. Drunk.

51. Family nickname : SIS

52. Supporting __ : ROLE

53. Judge's decision : OVERRULED. Or "Sustained".

60. Hair removal product : NEET. NAIR too.

61. "The World Factbook" publisher : CIA

62. Spewed magma : LAVA. Hot flow-er.

63. Afternoon rest : SIESTA

68. Pre-tied tie : CLIP-ON

72. Some Spanish medals : OROS. Gold medals.

73. Gardner on screen : AVA. And ERLE (83. Gardner of fiction). Nice Gardner clecho.

74. Japanese noodle : SOBA. Often eaten cold in summer time. Delicious!

81. Had between meals : SNACKED ON

84. Pulldown beneficiary, for short : LAT. Muscles.

85. Pull someone's leg : KID

86. "Victory was not mine" : I LOST

87. Rouse again : REAWAKEN. DF clue.

94. Hit on the head : CONK

95. Ebro and Guadalquivir, por ejemplo : RIOS

96. More or less, e.g.: Abbr. : ADJ (Adjective). Nailed it.

102. Most racers, after the race : ALSO-RANS

107. Bug : ANNOY

111. Bug : NAG AT

112. Installed, as brick : LAID

113. "Dies __" : IRAE

116. Dieter's catchword : LITE

117. Authenticated: Abbr. : CERT (Certified)

118. Skyward, in Hebrew : EL AL

119. Split equally : BISECT

120. Mars, to the Greeks : ARES

121. Stevenson villain : HYDE. Jekyll's alter ego.

122. Tony winner Neuwirth : BEBE

123. Flips the "Open" sign : CLOSES

Down:

1. Group cultural values : ETHOS. Always want ETHIC.

3. "Rescue Me" star Denis : LEARY. This guy looks familiar. Don't recall his name though.

5. Sail for a downwind course : SPINNAKER. Can never remember this name.

6. IRS ID : SSN

7. Hindu spiritual manual : SUTRA. Only know "Kama Sutra". Where are you, Vidwan?

8. Frozen Four org. : NCAA. And UCONN (54. The Huskies of the 8-Down's Big East). College sports never interest me.

9. Like most cramming : ALL NIGHT

10. Bangladesh was once part of it: Abbr. : PAK (Pakistan)

11. Printer maker : EPSON

13. Indoctrinate : BRAINWASH

14. Place : SET. Can you give me a sentence where the two are interchangeable?

15. Affaire de __ : COEUR. Literally "heart" in French. Affaire de coeur = Love affair. So common in France.

16. Pablo's gal pal : AMIGA

17. Syndication staple : RERUN

18. Bergen dummy : SNERD

24. "Contract Bridge Complete" author : GOREN (Charles)

29. Afternoon "opera" : SOAP

30. Cain's victim : ABEL. And 58. Son of Sarah : ISAAC. Two Biblical references.

32. "The Louisville Lip" : ALI

34. Pi-sigma link : RHO

35. Toothpaste option : GEL

37. What lawn liming reduces : ACID. And B GON (39. Weed __: lawn-care product). Lawn clecho.

40. Unexploded : LIVE. I don't get this clue.

41. Graceful molding : OGEE

42. Short : CURT

43. Gather little by little : GLEAN

45. Hankering : URGE. Want some pickled herring.

46. High court returns : LOBS. Tennis court.

47. Very much : A LOT

48. Quadri- plus bi- : HEXA. 4 + 2 = 6.

51. Desperation guess : STAB

55. XIII x IV : LII. 13 x 4 = 52.

56. Massenet opera : MANON. Peeked at the answer sheet.

57. Hits-per-AB stats : AVGs

59. Neat ending? : NIK. Neatnik.

62. Commuter line with a Montauk Branch: Abbr. : LIRR (Long Island Rail Road). Montauk Branch means nothing to me.

64. Taro dish : POI

65. Promote in a big way : TOUT

66. "Amazing" magician : RANDI (James)

67. Actress __ Longoria Parker : EVA. Very pretty.

68. Handle holder : CBER

69. Imitation fish food : LURE. Oh, for fish. I was in the line of limitation crab/fish for people.

70. Land surrounded by agua : ISLA

71. "That was close!" : PHEW

74. Ward of "CSI: NY" : SELA

75. Sensible emanation : ODOR

76. Type of pear : BOSC

77. "Oxford Book of Eng. Verse," e.g. : ANTH (Anthology). Not a familiar reference to me.

79. Co-writer of many Eagles hits : GLENN FREY. Nope. This dude looks cool.

80. Financial security of a kind : BANK GUARD. Security guard.

81. Caesar and others : SIDS

85. Board vacancy? : KNOTHOLE. Was thinking of board of directors. Not lumber.

88. Sore : ACHY

90. Act like an ass : BRAY. Funny clue.

91. "__ for Alibi": Grafton novel : A IS

92. Nita of silents : NALDI. Classic crossword name.

93. Mdse. : GDS. Goods.

97. Lily variety : CALLA

98. Broadcasting : ON AIR

99. Confederate : UNITE

100. Programmers' output : CODES

101. Island WSW of Rhodes : CRETE. In the Aegean Sea.

102. Leg-foot link : ANKLE

103. Dustin's '69 Oscar-nominated role : RATSO. Finally saw the movie. Disturbing.
104. Flu-like symptoms : AGUES

105. 1980s-'90s NBA forward Larry : NANCE. Have never heard of this Larry. Maybe Windhover knows.

106. "The dele is off" notations : STETS

110. Many a Saudi : ARAB

113. German "I" : ICH

114. Time period that isn't always the same: Abbr. : FEB. Different days in Feb.

115. Peacock network : NBC

Answer grid.

C.C.

Saturday November 6, 2010 Timothy L. Meaker

Theme: None

Total words: 72

Total blocks: 34

The themeless design is quite solver-friendly, no grid-spanner or triple/quadruple stacks. The two 10s and six 9s are spread out pretty evenly. All of them lively multi-words:

13A. Positive : ABOVE ZERO. "Positive" temperature-wise.

16A. A great teacher might be one : ROLE MODEL. Most of my teachers were so stern and serious.

52A. In disorder : JUMBLED UP. Quite a scrabbly grid. Only one Q away from a pangram.

55A. Metaphorical victim of an upset : APPLECART. Upset the applecart.

8D. Oscar's covering : GOLD PLATE. The Oscar statuette.

10D. Loses big : TAKES A BATH. Nice fill.

25D. Rolls seen at the beach? : SPARE TIRES. Did not come to me quickly.

31D. Where a small hand might get caught : COOKIE JAR. Sweet clue.

Very few obscure names today. But the overall cluing made this puzzle pretty challenging.

Across:

1. Hawaiian for "strong" : MAHI. I mentioned this on the blog before. Love mahi-mahi. Delicious!

5. In __ : A FOG. I needed a bracketed "befuddled" in the clue.

9. Internet letters : HTTP. "Internet address letters", to be exact.

15. Many are imagined : FEARS. Nailed this one.

17. Libertines : RAKES. Or ROUES.

18. Urban renewal target : EYESORE

19. Proof of ownership? : DNA TEST. Oh, ownership of a baby. Or a crime.

21. Ranch handle : TEX. Cowboy nickname "handle".

22. River through New Mexico : PECOS. No idea. It flows to Rio Grande. What does "Pecos"?

23. Castigates : BASTES. Not familiar with this "baste" meaning, "lambaste", yes.

27. Environmentalist's goal : CLEAN AIR

30. Stock phrase : AT PAR

31. Punched-out pieces : CHADS

32. 'Hood handle : BRO

33. 16-time Gold Glove-winning pitcher Jim : KAAT. Gimme. He's with the Twins for a long time. We also have 36. Commit catcher's interference, e.g. : ERR. Pitcher & Catcher.

34. Layers : COATS. Hens too, lay-ers.

35. Aero-X automaker : SAAB. Drew a blank.

37. Faulkner's "__ for Emily" : A ROSE. What's it about?

38. Old-time soprano Lehmann : LOTTE. Another unknown. She died in 1976. No wonder "Old-time".

39. A lime-flavored version of it came out in 2004 : DIET COKE. Needed crossing help.

41. Acted after a coin toss, maybe : WISHED. Good clue.

42. Stanley of "Julie & Julia" : TUCCI. Loved him in "Big Night".

43. Chocolatier's container : VAT

44. Takeout option : CHINESE. Loved by Jayce. His "Da Fan Tong" (big eater) comment really made me laugh.

46. Style revived in the '60s : ART DECO. Oh, I was not aware of it.

51. 1961 Best Actress : LOREN (Sophia). For "Two Women".

54. Umiak builder : ALEUT. Umiak is literally "women's boat". Kayak = "man's boat".

56. Stinger : WASP

57. Spring (from) : RISE

58. Iowa Straw Poll city : AMES. 4-letter Iowa city is always AMES.

Down:

1. Colt source : MARE. Thought of gun.

2. "About __": Hornby novel : A BOY. Not on my radar. It's made into a movie starring Hugh Grant.

3. Driver's ultimate destination? : HOLE. Question marked "driver" always refers to golf.

4. Noted 19th-century lithographer : IVES. Currier & Ives.

5. São Miguel is the largest of them : AZORES. See this map. Belongs to Portugal.

6. Golf's __ Cup : FEDEX. You wanted RYDER, didn't you?

7. Bauxite, for one : ORE

9. Romano's "Everybody Loves Raymond" co-star : HEATON (Patricia). Here she is. Are those real?

11. Nueve's square root : TRES. Did not know Nueve = 9.

12. Subtle signal : PSST

14. One acting badly? : EMOTER

15. Donnybrook : FRACAS

20. They're not optional : NEEDS. I don't get this clue.

23. Potato choice : BAKED

24. Onetime Coleco competitor : ATARI. Needed crossing help also.

26. One might be dedicated to Mom, briefly : TAT (Tattoo)

27. Go after : CHASE

28. Burning up : IRATE

29. Dressed for court : ROBED. For judges.

34. Holey footwear : CROCS

35. One might be picked up in a storm : SOS. Should have nailed it.

37. Stress : ACCENT

38. Slightly : LITTLE

40. Mechanic's offer : TUNEUP

41. Bird's song : WARBLE

43. Sirens : VAMPS

44. Scratch : CLAW. What's the first word that came to your mind?

45. Chihuahua howdy : HOLA. Chickie's hallmark greeting.

47. Pod opening? : DECA. Prefix for "ten". Decapod (literally "ten footed) has 10 legs. Got me.

48. Dutch export : EDAM

49. Salt, perhaps : CURE. I suppose you can clue it "Smoke, perhaps" also.

50. Gets off the fence : OPTS

53. Gp. co-founded by publisher E.W. Scripps : UPI. Not in my knowledge zone. Makes sense though.

Answer grid.

C.C.