Sunday December 26, 2010 Kathleen Fay O'Brien

Theme: Many Happy Returns - The last word of each common phrase is spelled backward. The resulted phrases are then humorously clued.

23A. "Honest, Professor, I studied very hard for this test"? : ALLEGED PREP. Alleged perp.

25A. Visibly shaken king? : PALE REGAL. Pale lager.

37A. Rejection at McDonald's? : HAMBURGER SNUB. Hamburger buns.

64A. Error that just got bigger? : DILATED SLIP-UP. Dilated pupils.

91A. What Red Riding Hood wisely didn't do? : GO WITH THE WOLF. Go with the flow.

109A. Green poet? : OLIVE BARD. Olive drab.

112A. Effect of Pepé Le Pew battling a romantic rival? : DOUBLE STINK. Double knits.

40D. Quick look across the moat? : CASTLE PEEK. What is "Castle keep"?

45D. Fowl injustice? : TURKEY TORT. Turkey Trot.

I initially thought the last word is only an anagram and couldn't quite grok the "Many Happy Returns" title.

Neat theme. Must have taken the constructor lots of time to find phrases ending in "returnable" words. I like the grid design too. All theme entries (9) are spread out.

Across:

1. Hussein : Obama :: __ : Garfield : ABRAM. Both middle names.

6. Comforter : DUVET

11. Taking badly? : ABDUCTION. Nice clue.

20. Dunces : BOOBS

21. Informal bid : ONE NO. Bridge bid.

22. Zap : MICROWAVE

26. Circus leaper : FLEA. Not real fleas, right?

27. Ad gp. : AGCY

28. U.S. tender : DOLs.

30. Oddly amusing : DROLL

31. It affects your take-home pay : TAX RATE

33. Civil War authority Shelby : FOOTE. Not familiar with this Civil War historian.

35. Per : A POP

40. Things used in semi circles? : CBs. "Semi circles" = Those who drive semis.

43. Bucky, in "Get Fuzzy" : PET CAT. What's your favorite comic strip?

47. Concludes : ENDS

48. Photographing giraffes, perhaps : ON SAFARI

50. Reunion attendees : ALUMS

51. Technology prefix : NANO. Nanotechnology

52. Pico de gallo holders : TACOS. Is pico de gallo similar to salsa?

54. Pronto, to execs : ASAP

55. Scarlett's refuge : TARA. "Gone With the Wind".

56. Like granola : OATY

57. Deck out : ARRAY

58. Bar orders for the calorie-conscious : LITES

59. Laser alternatives : INKJETS.

61. Expected to land : DUE IN

62. Gloomy atmosphere : PALL

63. Dedicated verse : ODE

68. PC panic button : ESC. I wonder if Al uses this button often.

71. The "Y" in YSL : YVES

73. Wise guys : SAGES

74. Detailed : IN DEPTH

76. Unlock the door for : LET IN

78. House reporter? : C-SPAN. House of Representatives.

79. Harlem sch. : CCNY (City College of New York)

81. Princess born on Polis Massa : LEIA. "Star Wars".

82. Love, to Caesar : AMOR. Then we also have 116. All, to Caesar : OMNIA. "Omnia vincit amor" = "Love conquers all".

83. Acts skittish : SHIES

84. Vidal's Breckinridge : MYRA. Second encounter with the book.

85. Lurches : REELS

86. Fighting practice : WAR GAMES. Nice entry.

88. Kemo __ : SABE

89. Like the Finger of Fate on "Laugh-In" : FICKLE. "The flying, fickle finger of fate". Unfamiliar reference to me.

90. Friday, e.g.: Abbr. : SGT. Sgt Joe Friday."Dragnet".

95. Betty Grable's were insured : LEGS. How tall is Grable?

96. Show again : RE-AIR

97. Source of inside info? : CAT SCAN. Saw similar clue before.

102. Suite spot : HOTEL

105. "Mr. Mom" actress : GARR (Teri)

106. Do some bartending : POUR. Hey, Jerome!

108. Wrist-to-elbow bone : ULNA

115. Pretends to be what one isn't : LIVES A LIE. Funny, I couldn't parse my answer earlier.

117. Els on the links : ERNIE

118. Backyard buildings : TOOL SHEDS

119. One you might not want to meet? : MAKER. Meet one's maker = Die.

120. Carried on : WAGED

Down:

1. Sternward : ABAFT

2. Italian vintner : BOLLA. Got me last time with the "125-year-old wine company" clue.

3. Subject of the book "The Best of Time" : ROLEX. Intuitable

4. Tough test metaphor : A BEAR

5. Stir-fry additive : MSG. No one uses it any more.

6. Former bumper car trademark : DODGEM. Learning moment to me.

7. Like "waitress," e.g. : UN-PC

8. "Ha ha" : VERY FUNNY

9. L.A.-to-N.Y. dir. : ENE

10. Champs : TOP DOGS. I always associate this phrase with big potato/cheese, not champ.

11. More copious : AMPLER

12. Preconception : BIAS

13. MCCC halved : DCL. Half of 1,300= 650

14. Cult following? : URE. Culture. Awesome clue.

15. City on the Guadalquivir River : CORDOBA. Capital of Spain under the Moors. South of Madrid. Another learning moment for me.

16. Insignificant one : TWERP

17. Othello's betrayer : IAGO

18. Like many a palette : OVAL

19. "Little" Dickens girl : NELL. Is this from the book "The Old Curiosity Shop"?

24. Bother : EAT AT

29. Suffix with Capri : OTE. Capriote.

32. Cries of clarity : AHAs

34. Novus __ seclorum: Great Seal motto : ORDO. We just had this a few weeks ago. Ordo = Order.

35. Bother : ANNOY

36. Kisser : PUSS

38. Lick : BEAT. Are you familiar with "smear" meaning "decidedly defeat"?

39. "Me too!" : SO CAN I

41. Bluff in Banff : BRAE. Scottish hillside. Banff is a town in SE Scotland. I always connect it with Canada.

42. Small samplings : SIPS

43. House party setting : PATIO

44. Serengeti grazer : ELAND

46. Key of Bizet's most popular sym. : C-MAJ. No idea.

49. Bomb : FAIL

51. Chicago Sting org. : NASL (North American Soccer League, 1968-1984). Chicago Sting was its last champion in 1984. Complete unknown to me.

52. Hair piece : TRESS

53. Seed covering : ARIL. Classic crosswordese.

56. Publisher Chandler : OTIS. Of LA Times.

57. "September 1, 1939" poet : AUDEN. W. H. Auden. Hahtool might have quoted him before.

58. Lt. Columbo's employer : LAPD. Have never seen "Columbo".

60. Starting place? : EDEN

61. Painter of ballerinas : DEGAS

62. Small and weak : PUNY

65. St. Clare's town : ASSISI. St Clare was a follower of St. Francis (of Assisi).

66. Word with deck or drive : TAPE. Got the answer via crosses.

67. __ colada : PINA

69. Unmoving : STILL

70. Scene with stuntmen : CHASE

72. Shenandoah Natl. Park site : VIRG. Was ignorant of the park, Lois!

75. Wire service?: Abbr. : ELEC (Electricity)

76. Code contents, maybe : LAWS

77. Webzine : E-MAG

78. Scolds, with "out" : CHEWS

79. High tech/lowlife sci-fi genre : CYBERPUNK. Just learned this term not long ago.

80. Hands across the water? : CREW. Oh, sailors.

83. Skyline obscurer : SMOG

84. Half a fish : MAHI. Mahi-mahi.

85. Falling-out : RIFT

87. Eternal : AGELESS

88. "Overnight" surprise for some : STARDOM. Overnight success.

89. Turnpike alert : FLARE

92. Sports page deals : TRADES. Shaq seems to have fun in Boston.

93. Ship designation : HER

94. Eye-related : OCULAR

95. Flatten : LEVEL

98. Kama __ : SUTRA. Then you can't kiss in public in India. What a complicated culture!

99. Stick : CLING

100. "Tomorrow" musical : ANNIE

101. Starkers, across the pond : NAKED. Starkers look like a plural noun rather than an adjective, isn't it, Nice Cuppa?

102. Romance novelist Victoria : HOLT. Alien to me. Man, she had so many pen names.

103. Eclectic assortment : OLIO

104. Show recorder : TiVO

105. Crisscross pattern : GRID. Like crossword.

107. Tony's cousin : OBIE. Tony: Broadway award. Obie is for off-Broadway shows.

110. Dissatisfied cry : BAH

111. Bar quaff : ALE

113. Medical suffix : OMA. "Tumor", like lymphoma.

114. Alter, perhaps : SEW

Answer grid.

C.C.

Saturday December 25, 2010 Doug Peterson

Total words: 72

Total blocks: 30

Merry Christmas! Today we've got a symmetrically placed Christmas mini theme:

1A. Noted list keeper : SANTA CLAUS. Ho Ho Ho, lovely entry for our Santa Argyle.

60A. Ad exec's pithy description of 1-Across? : NICK AT NITE. Fun clue/answer.

We also have NOEL (3D. "The First __") and NAST ( 14D. Cartoonist credited with the modern image of 1-Across). Thomas Nast.

Doug placed ten 10s in the grid, triple stacks of Acrosses & pairs of Downs. The puzzle is anchored by a flashy grid spanner OFF-SPEED PITCHES (35A. Surprises for some swingers). Curveballs/Changeups, etc.

Across:

11. Deuce follower, at times : AD IN. Tennis. Ad(vantage) In.

15. Depot : STOREHOUSE. Was picturing a train station.

16. Isle of Mull neighbor : IONA. On the lower left. Hebrides isle.

17. Superhero who had an arch foe named Bull's-Eye : GREEN ARROW. Unknown figure to me.

18. Expeditions, e.g. : SUVs

19. Latvian chess champ of 1960-'61 : TAL (Mikhail)

20. Biblical reformer : EZRA. I can only nail EZRA when it's poet Pound related.

21. "Ri-i-ight" : I'LL BET

23. Not well-defined : HAZY

24. Gets down, in a way : KNEELS. Thought it might be duck down.

25A. They might be stolen : BASES. I sure was not thinking of baseball. GOODS popped up in my mind.

28. __ Bass Fishing: video game : SEGA. Educated guess.

29. And such: Abbr. : ETC

31. "Haven't decided yet" : I MAY

32. Battle of Salamis victors : GREEKS. Battle of Salamis is between Greeks and Persians in 400 BC. Also new to me. Salamis is an island west of Athens.

34. Tenn. awards org. : CMA (Country Music Association)

38. Gallic title: Abbr. : MME (Madame)

39. Take over : INFEST

40. Breakfast item : LINK. Felt silly staring at ???K forever. I just don't eat links.

41. Penn. is on it : EST (Eastern Standard Time)

42. Change one's position : STIR

43. Philippics : RANTS. Dictionary says Philippic comes from the Athenian orator Demosthenes, who delivered several attacks on Philip, king of Macedon.

44. "'Tis he, that villain Romeo" speaker : TYBALT. No idea. From "Romeo and Juliet". Tybalt is Juliet's cousin.

46. Time for action : D-DAY

48. Composed : SERENE. Adjective "composed".

49. A-line designer : DIOR. Christian Dior pioneered A-line.

50. "That's odd ..." : HMM

53. __ Mountains: Mt. Narodnaya's range : URAL. Mt. Narodnaya is the highest peak of the Urals. Not in my radar.

54. Military foothold : BRIDGEHEAD. Also a new word to me.

57. Diamond with records : NEIL. Neil Diamond.

58. Bath additive : EPSOM SALTS. I add three big spoons to my bath every night.

59. Nut for drinks : KOLA. Same as cola, isn't it?

Down:

1. Mil. squad leader, perhaps : SSGT

2. Its Plus version has a lubricating strip :.. Was ignorant of Atra Plus.

4. Roman numeral : TRE. Hmm, not III.

5. Trojan War survivor : AENEAS. Protagonist of Virgil's "Aeneid".

6. Palminteri of "A Bronx Tale" : CHAZZ. Gimme for Melissa/Dennis. Both have seen his performance in person.

7. Hampshire hauler : LORRY. Hampshire England.

8. Subtle quality : AURA

9. Private entertainers, for short? : USO. Nailed it.

10. Place for pins and needles : SEWING KIT. Nice clue.

11. Target area : AISLE. Target store.

12. Chewing gum could help prevent one : DOUBLE CHIN. Great entry.

13. Bond, for one : INVESTMENT. Not James Bond.

22. Numerical extreme : LEAST. Don't get the clue.

23. Cries for attention : HEYs

24. Doesn't go bad : KEEPS

25. Tundra or coral reef, e.g. : BIOME

26. Auto feature : AM/FM STEREO. Lots of nice multi-words in the grid.

27. Toddler's bed attachment : SAFETY RAIL.

28. Meal during Nisan : SEDER

30. Staved containers : CASKS

32. '60s TV role for Bruno the Bear : GENTLE BEN. Blind spot for me.

33. Ready for another voyage : REFIT

36. Fibonacci, by birth : PISAN. Fibonacci is also known Leonardo of Pisa, Italian mathematician. Total foreign to me.

37. Makeup of Martha's Vineyard's Gay Head Cliffs : CLAY. Tough clue for me.

43. Hardest to get hold of : RAREST

45. "Twilight" protagonist : BELLA. Have never seen "Twilight".

46. Got by : DID OK

47. Bane of liberal religion : DOGMA

48. Doomed : SUNK

49. Piece in the game Reversi : DISC. First encounter with Reversi.

50. Pad opener : HELI. Helipad.

51. Simpsons creator Groening : MATT

52. Inventory abbr. : MDSE (Merchandise)

55. Tech sch. overlooking the Hudson : RPI (Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute). OK, another shout-out to Splyinter who graduated from there.

56. Solo in sci-fi : HAN. "Star Wars".

Answer grid.

Safe travels, Dennis. You've made it. Have fun in Florida!

C.C.