Thursday, March 10, 2011 Pamela Amick Klawitter

Theme:  Blade anagrams (shown in GREEN below), revealed in 59 Across: Street weapon, and a hint to the hidden theme in 17-, 23- and 48-Across: SWITCH BLADE. The word "switch" being a cryptic, or English crossword tip-off that an anagram is in play.

17A. Negotiation obstacle: DEAL BREAKER.

23A. Recovery sites: HOSPITAL BEDS.

48A. Most agree it should be reduced: NATIONAL DEBT.

Al here, with a fairly easy Thursday puzzle, I thought.  A few tricky clues, worthy of the day, and some fresh non-theme answers: Take that you canaries. A lot of the downs seemed pretty straightforward though. The theme was an interesting exercise for me today. It was once again something I had to ferret out after the puzzle was completed, and not so easy to see without the circles provided in the Across Lite puz file.

ACROSS:

1. Calrissian of "Star Wars" films: LANDO. Played by Billy Dee Williams.  A scoundrel.  Not really evil, but not to be trusted.

6. Playground rejoinder: AM TOO.

11. Down: SAD. In Old English, this meant sated, or satiated, which passed through heavy with fullness and thus tired, finally emerging as unhappy.

14. Center of Florida?: EPCOT. Center as a building, not as a geography.

15. Pageant prop: TIARA.

16. __ mater: PIA. Perhaps a bit obscure: from Latin "tender mother" is the delicate innermost layer of the meninges, the membranes surrounding the brain and spinal cord.

19. Gallery opening?: ART.

20. PDQ relative: ASAP. Get 'er done Pretty Damn Quick, As Soon As Possible, STAT (Latin statim, immediately).

21. Palindromic fashion model: EMME. I'll just quote Wiki here to see if you spot the problem: "is largely recognized as the leading model in the profession"

22. Surgeon's patient, perhaps: TREE. Not just a chainsaw wielder, tree surgeons need to know local laws and regulations against removing certain species in the area, and be able to read survey maps in the case of legal neighboring boundary disputes over who "owns" the tree in question.

27. Chip away at: EAT INTO.

30. Paint choices: HUES. I was sure this would be OILS...

31. A and B, at times: PLANS. Drawings, schematics or charts on a flat surface (mathematically, a flat surface is a plane).

32. Holdup note?: LATE PASS. School permission slip.

36. 70s-'80s televangelist show "The __ Club": PTL. Praise the Lord (and pass the ammunition).

37. Vinegary prefix: ACETO. Latin vinum acetum "wine turned sour"

39. Be in the running: VIE. A form of Middle English envie "make a challenge," from Old French envier, from L. invitare (invite).

40. State capital component, often: SALES TAX. Capital as in money.

43. Old fallout source: A TEST. Video from 1953.

45. Apollo 11 destination: MOON. Go back far enough and the same word is used for moon and month.

46. Trading places: EMPORIA. Places for buying and selling, not a scene from the Prince and the Pauper.

52. Skunk's weapon: ODOR.

53. "Children of the Poor" author: RIIS. Jacob. I remember now looking him up previously, but forgot again. Muckraking journalist and photographer trying to help the impoverished in New York over 100 years ago.

54. Reason for the downfall of many kings?: ACES. Oh, playing cards.

58. __-secret: TOP.

62. Rollover subj.: IRA. Individual Retirement account.

63. Turn away: AVERT.

64. Kitchen tubes: PENNE. Hollow pasta.

65. Turk's topper: FEZ. Fezzes are cool if you're a Doctor Who fan...

66. Fills (up): GASES. Going up to $4 a gallon this summer?  What, are we living in Europe now?

67. Germs may lead to them: IDEAS.

DOWN:

1. Yeats's "__ and the Swan": LEDA. The swan was Zeus in disguise, who seduced Leda, and in turn bore Helen (of troy) and Polydeuces (Pollux, twin of Castor) about which an opera was written.

2. Copies: APES.

3. Sweet Sixteen initials: NCAA. National Collegiate Athletic Association. Yes, it's time for March Madness (basketball) again.

4. 7-Down athlete: DOLPHIN. with 7D. Home of a 4-Down: MIAMI.

5. Place to play favorites, briefly: OTB. Off-Track Betting.

6. Score direction after accelerando, perhaps: A TEMPO. Return to the original speed.

8. Words of aggression: TAKE THAT!

9. Rush find: ORE. Gold rush, not the radio personality.

10. Galley tool: OAR.

11. Fifth wheel: SPARE.

12. Broadcast: AIRED.

13. Some are blind: DATES.

18. Doctor's suggestion: REST.

22. Kitchen meas.: TBSP.

24. Come-__: lures.: ONS.

25. Bronco or Charger: AUTO. Looking for a football word, but no, Ford and Dodge vehicles.

26. "Taking Woodstock" director: LEE. Ang.

27. "House" actor Omar: EPPS.

28. Wasatch Mountains resort: ALTA.

29. One way to stand: TALL.

32. First name in comics villains: LEX. Luthor. One of the many LL initialed characters in Superman's life.

33. Say and mean: AVER. From Old French averer "verify from Latin ad- "to" + verus "true". Related word very, which also meant true.  Verily so, sire.

34. Speedy Gonzales assent: SI SI. Spanish.

35. __ precedent: SET A. What goes before (precedes) may be taken as a rule for later cases.

37. Loads: A TON.

38. Cops' favorite birds?: CANARIES. Canaries sing (tell all, confess).

41. Dubai big shot: EMIR.

42. Jack of "Barney Miller": SOO. Detective Nick Yemana, who made very bad coffee. Characters galore in this show, Barney Miller in his NY precinct was the updated Andy Taylor from Mayberry RFD.

43. NYPD broadcast: APB. All Points Bulletin

44. Beyond repair: TOTALED. There are no auto "accidents" anymore, they are now termed crashes.

46. Orders from above: EDICTS. Proclamations having the force of law.

47. Screen door material: MESH.

48. "__ you paid me!": NOT IF.

49. Hold precious: ADORE. To speak (and think) highly of, Latin ad + orare (root of orate)

50. Birthstone after opal: TOPAZ. A Hitchcock movie, A B52's song.

51. Petrol unit: LITRE. "English" spelling. Hopefully, I used the correct term, because the language is English. Cuppa? But if you want to be confused, or perhaps enlightened, have a look at this chart of how to refer to our cousins from across the pond.

55. Mr. Peanut prop: CANE. And a top hat.

56. Tracy Turnblad's mom in "Hairspray": EDNA. Played by John Travolta in the 2007 John Waters remake.

57. Gets it: SEES.

59. Show age, in a way: SAG.

60. Sen. Byrd's state: WVA. West Virginia.

61. Electronic storage density meas.: BPI. Bits Per Inch. A bit being the smallest datum, on/off, a 1 or a zero.  8 bits make a byte, the standard for grouping.  Each letter you read on a computer takes up 8 bits to store, except for some of the Asian character set, which are termed multi-byte characters.

Answer Grid.

Al

Wednesday, March 9, 2011 Gareth Bain

Theme: O, MG! Each theme answer is a two word name, with the initial letters M and G.

17A. *Moscow park eponym : MAXIM GORKY.  Gorky Park is an amusement park in Moscow, named after the Russian/Soviet author born Aleksey Maksimovich Peshkov. The bitterness of his early experiences in Russia led him to choose the name Maxim Gorky (which means "the bitter one") as his pseudonym. 

61A. *"What's Going On" singer : MARVIN GAYE. LOVE any excuse to see his name. What a genius, and like many other brilliant artists, awash in drama and gone too soon. This tune seems appropriate, as tax filing time nears.

10D. *20th-century cartoonist who wrote "He Done Her Wrong," a 300-page pantomime tale : MILT GROSS. Billed as one of the greatest cartoonists of the 20th century. Complete title: He Done Her Wrong: The Great American Novel and Not a Word in It — No Music, Too. It's the story of a young man from out of the wilderness, coonskin cap and all, who falls in love with a fair maiden. 

32D. *"Mad Max" star : MEL GIBSON. Still in the doghouse.

61D. With "the," 48-Down's band (which sounds as if it could have included the answers to starred clues) : MG'S

48D. Leader of the band with the 1962 hit "Green Onions" : BOOKER T. I know this song because it is on the soundtrack of one of my favorite movies, Get Shorty. Look at me.

Melissa here. This seemed to be on the easy side for a wednesday, very few pauses or unknowns. Not a terribly exciting theme (MG), although i loved the trivia associated with all the above answers, and found lots excuses for musical tie-ins. 

Across

1. Doughnut shape : TORUS

6. Doofus : CLOD. Tried putz first.

10. Hi sign nicknames : MOMS. Hi, Mom!

14. Furniture wood : EBONY. 

15. Circle dance : HORA

16. Does a bakery job : ICES. Aced it.

19. "__ we forget" : LEST

20. Palm Treos, e.g., briefly : PDA'S. Personal Digital Assistant.

21. Tailless primate : APE

22. School orgs. : PTA'S. Parent Teacher Association.

23. Article for Adenauer : EIN. German, translates to a, an, one, on, or any. Konrad Adenauer was the first chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany. Following WWII, he brought Germany prosperity, democracy, stability and respect. To a large extent Adenauer's policies still dominate Germany.

24. Upside-down frown : SMILE

26. __ Dei : AGNUS. Latin term meaning "Lamb of God." Rufus's take.

28. __ Andreas Fault : SAN. In my backyard. For now.

29. Bit of dogma : TENET

30. Poppycock : TRIPE

31. Opera setting, for short : THE MET. The Metropolitan Opera, in New York City's Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts. Reminded me of Moonstruck, which just came up on the blog.

33. Outs partners : IN'S. In's and out's.

35. Hops-drying oven : OAST

36. Animals who often bear twins : EWES. Windhover!

38. Evokes wonder in : AWES

40. Asian sea : ARAL

43. It's not known for MPG efficiency : SUV. Sport Untility Vehicle - gas guzzler.

45. Soak up : ABSORB

49. Din in the library? : GUNGA. Gunga Din, one of Rudyard Kipling's most famous poems, from the point of view of a British soldier, about a native water-bearer (a "bhisti") who saves the soldier's life but dies himself. Jim Croce adapted the poem into a song for his album Facets.

51. One of Chekhov's "Three Sisters" : MASHA. Olga, Maria (Masha) and Irina.

53. Big suit, briefly : CEO. "Suit" is slang for executive.

54. About the eye : OPTIC

55. Elect to take part : OPT IN

56. Hoo-ha : ADO

57. Option for Hamlet : TO BE. Or not to be.

58. Exxon Valdez cargo : OIL. Very moving documentary about the spill, Black Wave.

59. Short run, for short : ONE K. 1 mile = 1.609344 kilometers.

60. Wimple wearers : NUNS. Medieval garment worn by women around the head.

64. Élan : BRIO. Enthusiastic vigor. Hm ... i need to start using this word.

65. Kindergarten staple : GLUE. And sometime snack.

66. Courtroom demand : ORDER. Order in the court!

67. Quite a long time : AEON

68. Pair in bunk beds, perhaps : SIBS. Siblings.

69. Burden bearer : BEAST

Down

1. Violent storm : TEMPEST

2. Shortest book in the Hebrew Bible : OBADIAH. After Amos, and before Jonah. I had to memorize all the books of the bible in order as a child. One of those things that sticks.

3. Steve Martin film based on "Cyrano de Bergerac" : ROXANNE. Mildly amusing movie. Better tune.

4. Colleges, to Aussies : UNI'S

5. Mozart's "Jupiter," e.g.: Abbr. : SYM. Symphony.

6. Noted composer of études : CHOPIN

7. Rhine siren : LORELEI. A rock on the eastern bank of the Rhine near St. Goarshausen, Germany, which soars some 120 metres above the waterline. 

8. Mork's planet : ORK

9. "And God called the light __": Genesis : DAY

11. "1984" setting : OCEANIA. From Wikipedia: George Orwell's Nineteen Eighty-Four takes place in Oceania, one of three intercontinental super-states who divided the world among themselves after a global war. 

12. Goofs : MESSUPS

13. Old JFK arrival : SST

18. Spermatozoa, e.g. : GAMETES. A cell that fuses with another cell during fertilization.

22. Frisk, with "down" : PAT. Pat-down.

24. Crock-Pot potful : STEW. Crock-Pot weather lately.

25. Sicilian mount : ETNA

27. Collector's goal : SET. 

34. East African language : SWAHILI

37. Sport for heavyweights : SUMO. Sumo wrestling.

39. Israeli diplomat Abba : EBAN

40. In days past : AGO

41. Burst : RUPTURE

42. Actor Banderas : ANTONIO

44. Vicks ointment : VAPORUB

46. Anthem for "eh" sayers : O CANADA. Canadians end a lot of their sentences with the confirming, "eh?" like Americans ask, "right?" or "you know?" at the end of sentences to make sure they are understood clearly or to verify that the other party agrees. Nice puzzle today, eh?

47. Overnight flights : RED EYES

50. Impeccable service : ACE. Tennis. Great clue.

52. "As I was going to __ ..." : ST. IVES. English nursery rhyme: 

         As I was going to St Ives

I met a man with seven wives

Each wife had seven sacks

Each sack had seven cats

Each cat had seven kits

Kits, cats, sacks, wives

How many were going to St Ives?

59. Fairy tale baddie : OGRE

60. Hoops org. : NBA. Basketball.

62. Poetic boxer : ALI

63. San Francisco's __ Hill : NOB. Also Telegraph Hill and Russian Hill.

Answer grid.

Melissa