Monday, November 8, 2010 Neville L. Fogarty

Theme: *Astic - The first word in the four longest entries have identical ending letters.

17A. Last resort actions: DRASTIC MEASURES

27A. 2009 Clooney/Streep film based on a Roald Dahl book: FANTASTIC MR. FOX. A stop-motion animated film.

44A. Scrunchie, e.g.: ELASTIC HAIR TIE. Image.

55A. Kitschy lawn ornament: PLASTIC FLAMINGO. We had one of these that would move on to a new lawn in the middle of the night.

Argyle here.

Even with the grid-spanning entries, I still found this puzzle IFFY. I don't want to KVETCH but a few duds dull the KARMA of the whole, starting with 1A. The total word & block count are quite low for a Monday.

Across:

1. Like 20 Questions questions : YES/NO. Where is the OR? It is like saying a True/False quiz.

6. Put together, as a book : BIND

10. Ratchets (up) : AMPS. Explanation from Spinal Tap.

14. Halloween option : TREAT. Belated entry.

15. Over, in Germany : ÜBER

16. Loughlin of "90210" : LORI. Image. This TV series premiered on The CW in 2008.

20. Celery pieces : STALKS

21. Icy space streakers : COMETS. The comets are made of dirty ice.

22. "The way I see it," in online shorthand : IMO. "...in my opinion..."

24. Sorrow : WOE

25. __ moment: sudden realization : AHA

26. Vote against : NAY

31. Display ostentatiously : FLAUNT. Ostentatious - adj. - characterized by pretentious, showy, or vulgar display.

32. Landlord's contract : LEASE

33. Holler : YELL

34. "__ the season to be jolly ..." : 'TIS. Ho, ho, ho!

35. Soccer moms' transports : VANS

39. Malia Obama's sister : SASHA. Number two First Daughter.

42. Gripe and grouse : KVETCH

47. "One Day __ Time" : AT A. TV show, opening theme. Video

48. Pull a scam on : CON

49. Dali display, say : ART

50. Biblical beast : ASS

51. Abandon on an island : MAROON

53. Giorgio known for snazzy suits : ARMANI. And something to go with that suit: 40D. Fancy scarf : ASCOT

59. Peru's capital : LIMA

60. Message passed in class : NOTE

61. Like some gases : INERT

62. Posing no challenge : EASY

63. Glittery rock style typified by David Bowie : GLAM. Short for glamorous.

64. Lymphatic tissue masses : NODES

Down:

1. Since Jan. 1, on a financial report : YTD. Year To Date.

2. Botch something up : ERR

3. Like corn and apples : SEASONAL

4. Condé __ Publications : NAST. Condé Nast (1873 – 1942) was the founder of Condé Nast Publications, a leading American magazine publisher known for publications such as Vanity Fair and Vogue.

5. From Canada's capital : OTTAWAN

6. Water carrier : BUCKET

7. PCs from Big Blue : IBMs. International Business Machines (IBM) headquartered in Armonk, NY.The Big Blue nickname, substantiated by people who worked for IBM at the time, is the term coined by field representatives in the 1960s, and referred to the color of the mainframes IBM installed in the 1960s and early 1970s.

8. Maiden name lead-in : NÉE

9. Old Greek coin : DRACHMA. It was still in use until replaced by the Euro.

10. Former student : ALUM

11. Rita who shouted "Hey you guys!" on "The Electric Company" : MORENO. Here's the famous "Hey you guys!" sketch with Bill Cosby. Clip. (2:16)

12. Before the state's cut, as income : PRETAX

13. Actress Spacek : SISSY

18. Words of defeat : "I LOST"

19. Flies in the clouds : SOARS

22. Uncertain : IFFY

23. Masculine : MALE

25. Top poker pair : ACES

28. Oklahoma oil city : TULSA

29. Hipbone-related : ILIAC

30. Flu symptom : FEVER

34. Like a fine line : THIN

36. Reached, as goals : ATTAINED

37. Mark Harmon military TV drama : NCIS. Naval Criminal Investigative Service.

38. Women : SHEs

41. Saint Stephen's punishment for blasphemy : STONING. I had no idea there were so many depictions of this event. Painting.

42. Destiny : KARMA

43. A, B, C, D, E, or K : VITAMIN

44. And others: Latin : ET ALIA

45. '80s-'90s Anaheim Stadium NFL team : LA RAMS. Football.

46. Apollo Theater site : HARLEM. New York City.

47. More than enough : AMPLE

52. "The Star-Spangled Banner" start : "O SAY"

53. Mennen shaving lotion : AFTA

54. El __: climate pattern : NINO

56. KFC's Sanders, e.g. : COL. That finger-lickin' Colonel.

57. Univ. sr.'s exam : GRE. Graduate Record Examination (GRE), a commercially run standardized test that is an admission requirement for many graduate schools in the United States.

58. NBA tiebreakers : OTs. National Basketball Association/OverTimes.

Answer grid.

Argyle

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.