Sunday January 1, 2012 Gia Christian

Theme: January First - J sound (first letter in January) is inserted into familiar phrases, resulting in spelling changes in four theme entries, which are symmetrically placed.

23A. Advice to a nervous skier? : KILL THE JUMP. Kill the ump.

25A. Hot air in the conference room? : JARGON GAS. Argon gas.

43A. "Eat my wake!" e.g.? : SWIMMER'S JEER. Swimmer's ear.

69A. "Ode on a Grecian Urn" genre? : JARS POETICA. Ars Poetica.

94A. Halloween carving of a Yankee hero? : PUMPKIN JETER. Pumpkin eater. This answer made me laugh. Jeter, Jeter, Pumpkin eater.

117A. First punch of an old Roman bout? : JAB INITIO. Ab initio. "From the beginning" in Latin.

120A. Northern African quip? : BARBARY JAPE. Barbary ape.

39D. Multitalented court clown? : POLY JESTER. Polyester. This is the only one-word base phrase.

48D. Nattily dressed Broadway character? : JAUNTY MAME. Auntie Mame.

We also have JAY (121D. Loud bird), which could be used as a unifier. The J in JAM UP (1A. Office malfunction) and JOKE (1D. Monologue bit) is the only straying non-theme J in the whole grid, but they're excellent entries.

Gia Christian is an alias name of LA Times crossword editor Rich Norris, anagram of "Again, it's Rich". We haven't seen Rich's byline in quite some time, though every day he's challenging and entertaining us with his clues. Some solvers may not be aware that very often half of the clues we tackle every day are Rich's creation.

Across:

6. Empty the Recycle Bin, e.g. : ERASE. Your computer Recycle Bin.

11. Hit the snooze button too many times : OVERSLEPT

20. Campus town near Bangor : ORONO (Maine)

21. "The Bells of St. __" : MARY'S

22. Persona non grata : BETE NOIRE. I always associate "bete noire" with things, not person.

26. "Don't let it get cold!" : EAT. Yes, Bill G, I cook savoy cabbage occasionally. Their texture is tougher than our normal cabbage. Different taste also.

27. Hi-fi component : PREAMP

28. Where a herd is heard : LEA. Nice clue.

29. H.S. proficiency tests : GEDs

30. Fashion giant : DIOR. And 18D. Big name in fashion : PRADA. The Devil wears them.

31. Prepares, as mussels : STEAMS

35. Crewmate of Spock and Sulu : UHURA. On "Star Trek".

37. Cheats on a test, in a way : COPIES

40. R.E.M.'s "The __ Love" : ONE I

41. Flu 9-Down : AGUE. 9D. Indication : SYMPTOM.

42. Mil. mail drops : APOs

48. Gravy, on menus : JUS. Au jus.

51. High-pitched barks : YELPS

53. Hosp. drama locale, usually : ICU. Reminds me of Buckeye and his Picabo ICU center.

54. Japanese golfer Aoki : ISAO

55. Something in the oven : ROAST. No BREAD.

57. Comparatively crafty : SLYER

58. Bath salt fragrance : LILAC

61. Small-scale : MINIATURE

63. Spokesceleb for Fiat : J LO. Good match?

64. Post-WWI Treasury secretary : MELLON (Andrew). Drew a blank.

66. Girl in a Beach Boys hit : RHONDA. Beach Boys is Dummy Dennis' favorite band.

67. Menlo Park wizard, initially : TAE (Thomas Alva Edison)

73. Wee lad : TAD

74. Not hoodwinked by : WISE TO

77. Big name in little suits : SPEEDO. Look, my favorite! All right, this one for our Saturday guy Splynter.

78. Singer Winehouse : AMY

80. No longer on speaking terms : ESTRANGED

84. Remove paint from : STRIP. Oh, paint.

85. D'Artagnan's chronicler : DUMAS. I only read his "The Count of Monte Cristo".

88. Nicholas Gage bestseller : ELENI. I used to think the book was written by actor Nicolas Cage.

89. "I __ a loss for words!" : AM AT. No Amo, amas, AMAT today.

91. Urgent offshore signal : SOS

92. Barrel support : STAVE

93. "__ Rosenkavalier": Strauss opera : DER

99. "Sounds good to me!" : I'M IN

100. Reject as false : DENY

101. Geometry class calculation : AREA

102. Trojan War warrior : AENEAS. He abandoned poor Dido.

104. "Try to __ my way": Beatles lyric : SEE IT

106. Like some braids : FRENCH. Very pretty.

108. Melbourne greeting : G' DAY. 112A. Eucalyptus lovers : KOALAS. For Kazie, who's probably still in Germany.

109. Resistance units : OHMs

110. Serious conflict : WAR

114. Place to hoist a pint : PUB

122. Covent Garden notable : OPERA STAR. Covent Garden is where the Royal Opera House is. Unknown to me.

123. Concrete hunks : SLABS

124. "Storage Wars" network : A AND E. Got me. "Storage Wars" is a reality show about auctions.

125. Like a couch potato : SEDENTARY

126. Long-eared critters : ASSES

127. Online VIP : SYSOP

Down:

2. Bizet's "Toreador Song," e.g. : ARIA

3. Snakes' renewal process : MOLT. Man, I wish I could renew my skin also.

4. Like some phone nos. : UNL, Alright, unlisted.

5. Comfort food in a deep dish : POT PIE. For me, comfort food is rice congee & freshly steamed bread. How about you?

6. Arabian chief : EMEER. AMEER also, though we see EMIR more often.

7. Rani's spouse : RAJA

8. Skunk cabbage and philodendron : ARUMS

10. Eerie ability, for short : ESP

11. Transitive vb. follower : OBJ (Object)

12. Meat-yielding calves : VEALS

13. To be, in Arles : ETRE. Not to be confused with the Art Deco guy ERTE.

14. Measure again : RE-GAUGE

15. Nestlé's __-Caps : SNO

16. Chaise __ : LONGUE

17. Peak in the 59-Down : EIGER. 59D. European peaks : ALPS

19. Hardy heroine : TESS. Thomas Hardy.

24. Reform Party founder Perot : H ROSS

30. Put to rest, as rumors : DISPEL

32. Ship's hdg. : ENE

33. Atmospheric prefix : AERI

34. "Divine" showbiz nickname : MISS M. Bette Midler.

36. "Yay!" : HURRAH. The feeling I had when Lemonade was back to his blogging seat. Hopefully Melissa will be back in Feb.

37. Low isles : CAYS

38. European automaker : OPEL

41. Quite a long stretch : AEON

44. Fictional Stone Age redhead : WILMA. In "The Flintstones".

45. Not as friendly : ICIER

46. Considers carefully, with "over" : MULLS

47. __ alai : JAI

49. Dietary std. : US RDA

50. Stand in good __ : STEAD

52. "No more seats" sign : SRO (Standing Room Only)

56. Plains Indian : OTO

60. Places for chickens : COOPS. In China, prostitutes are called "wild chickens".

62. Certain tax shelter, for short : IRA

65. Nair rival, once : NEET

67. Rough wool cloth : TWEED

68. Seating request : AISLE

69. Bon Jovi of rock : JON

70. Far from verbose : TERSE. My emails are usually short. Just the way I am. I don't mean to be terse.

71. Village celebrity? : IDIOT. I don't get this clue. Why "celebrity"?

72. Small group of trees : COPSE

75. Bird by the beach : ERN. So what's the difference between ERN and TERN?

76. Eastern island capital : TAIPEI. Where Jayce spent some of his youth. Tasty snacks there.

78. Much junk mail : ADs

79. Kind of conspiracy : MUTINY

81. Like venison : GAMY

82. Ruler of anc. Rome : EMP

83. Port of Senegal : DAKAR. Gimme for Chickie, whose grandson volunteers there for Peace Corps.

86. Saucony rival : AVIA

87. D.C. hundred : SENS

90. Fade : TIRE

95. Work the kinks out of : UNTWIST

96. Former Giants pitcher Robb : NEN. You've got to commit his name into memory. Constructors have no other way to clue NEN but "Pitcher Robb".

97. African scavengers : JACKALS

98. Pitching coach's aid : RADAR

100. Appetite : DESIRE

103. Undemanding classes : EASY A's

104. Mold : SHAPE

105. Nestle securely : EMBED

106. Monastery resident : FRIAR

107. Wedding dances : HORAs. I've never attended a Jewish wedding.

108. "The __ Menagerie" : GLASS

109. Eyes, in Oaxaca : OJOS

111. "__ girl!" : ATTA

113. Songstress Lane : ABBE. Nope. Not familiar with this lady.

114. Two-thumbs-down reviews : PANS

115. Salon style : UPDO

116. Answering machine cue : BEEP

118. Bert Bobbsey's twin : NAN. I like this clue better than "Indian bread", which should be NAAN.

119. Suffix with access : ORY. Accessory.

120. Webelos' org. : BSA

Answer grid.

I wish all of you a happy and healthy 2012!

C.C.

Saturday, Dec 31, 2011, Doug Peterson & Brad Wilber

Theme: None

Words: 68

Blocks: 34

PHEW ~! This offering from two of our regular constructors really forced me to dig down deep, and there was a point when I thought "I'd better give in", but I held my ground and got my "Ta-Da", and under my personal allotted time, too. Doug Peterson has contributed several times to other Saturday 'gridsmiths', and has possibly set a record for having his name associated with 4 (LAT) puzzles in a month - this month. Of course, Brad is no slouch, either, with 8 Saturday puzzles this year, and one other Saturday contribution from both guys, Feb 5th this year.

So we had FIVE (5!) grid spanners in this one:

14A. Flock tender : RELIGIOUS LEADER - Well, I knew it was something like this, but I was also thinking it might just be a reeeeally long version of "shepherd"

17A. Style eschewing heavy sauces : NOUVELLE CUISINE - Never heard of this style, but I do know our group here at the blog has shared many a recipe over the time I have been visiting.

35A. Brain cramp, so to speak : LAPSE IN JUDGMENT - More commonly known around here as a Brain "Fart"

55A. 1926 novel set in Pamplona : THE SUN ALSO RISES - One of those "oh, I know this, I just need some letters to suss it out" - and I think I had T--SU------IS-S, and I ducked before the V-8 can bonked me

57A. 1970s Patrick Duffy title character who can breathe underwater : MAN FROM ATLANTIS - I know who he is, in terms of "Dallas", but never heard of this show - here you go, ladies

Onward ~!

ACROSS:

1. Removes, as a backpack from one's shoulder : UNSLINGS - Well, I figured it was UN-, so I tried SLINGS, and didn't look back

9. Described in letters : SPELT - Shall we start a dispute over SPELLED? I thought it was "written on paper" letters, so I tried WROTE first.

18. Was Grinch-like, in a way : SNEERED - Timely, but I only like the cartoon version of this classic

19. Trattoria offering : RISOTTO - Makes me think of Chef Gordon Ramsay from "Hell's Kitchen"

20. Pros with schedules : CPAs - Certified Public Accountants

22. Assemblage : BODY

26. Pillow stuff : FOAM - Not Down (the other down is further down, uh, lower)

27. Fab : BOFFO

32. 1840s-'50s antislavery party : FREE SOIL - The Wiki, I do not recall discussing this in American History

34. Symbol of Middle America : PEORIA -


37. Like Schoenberg's "Moses und Aron" : ATONAL - Well now, we just talked about this yesterday - and another link - Egad ~!!!

38. Enjoying the mall, say : ON A SPREE - SHOPPING fit, too, but then I knew one "E" was right, so I WAGed this, and ha ~!

39. Wyoming's __ Range : TETON - Again, one of those "oh~! I know this...."

40. Pride of the pumped-up : PECtoralS - and another for the ladies

41. Wagnerian title? : HERR - German title

42. Indiana senator who retired in 2011 : BAYH

43. Do something about : ACT UPON - Funny, this my first thought, and yet I didn't try it

48. Island classic : ALOHA 'OE - Total and undeserved WAG, I stuck the "O" & "E" at the end because I had no clue otherwise

58. Move sneakily : SIDLE - Not SLINK

59. Revealing : TELL-TALE

DOWN:

1. Some museum pieces : URNS - Why not? The "U" of which I was fairly certain

2. Its atomic number is 10 : NEON - Again, the "N" was good, what else could it be~?

3. Turn about : SLUE - OK, now my SLINGS is starting to work....

4. Glowing, as coals : LIVE - Ah, but then again, I could not think of an "L" word that meant 'hot' or 'afire' - LIVE is good, but....

5. Eisner's Disney successor : IGER - Don't know this guy

6. Livingstone explored it : NILE

7. Crown in the Henry VIII era, e.g. : GOLD COIN - Crown as in money

8. Only non-rhyming ghost in Ms. Pac-Man : SUE - Blinky, Pinky, Inky and "Mr." Pac-Man's fourth, do you know~? I do, I do ~!

9. Dos into doce : SEIS - Well my foreign math is completely OFF - I was very proud I got 10 ÷ 2 = 5, and that's CINC, no, SEIS - HA~! I SO know my Italian ~!!!! (Spanish, 12/2=6)

10. __ Robles, California : PASO - Map

11. Drop a line, maybe : EDIT - I had OMIT, and in a play, this is totally reasonable

12. Advanced : LENT

13. Big name in 34-Down : TREO - Have to admit, this cyclic clue actually HELPED me today - I had --EO, and --AS, and I threw in TREO, and the light bulb gave me 34D. Some email receivers : PDAs - Personal Data Assistants, which I think I had last Saturday, too

15. "Bug off!" : SCRAM

16. Aparicio of Cooperstown : LUIS - as always, I defer to our most highly appreciated host (From C.C.: Every year we splurge on Topps Heritage cards. One of our best pulls is an autographed Luis Aparicio card (in limited number).

21. Musical based on an O'Hara novel : PAL JOEY

22. Key of the last Brandenburg concerto : B FLAT - don't be flat, be positive~! - no that's blood type - oh well, if you knew that you would be "A SHARP" person....

23. Declaim : ORATE - nah, I wanted STATE here

24. Stop on a line : DEPOT - a Clecho of 11D, this 'line' is a railroad; took me a while

25. Not open-ended, as a question : YES/NO

26. Flexible weapon : FOIL - the recently in hiding "EPEE" of crossword fame

27. Appeals : BEGS

28. Brio : OOMPH

29. Nice sibling : FRÈRE - Nice the French city. Earworm ~!

30. More luxuriant : FINER

31. Film that often includes drawings : OATER - ugh ~! Drawing, as six-shooters at high noon in a gun-slinging (hey~!) western

33. Dramatist O'Casey : SEAN

36. Opposite of 47-Down : UNCHASTE & 47D. Immaculate : PURE

40. Clipper airlines : PAN AM

42. Pro follower : BONO - Legal Lemonade

43. Casino conveniences : ATMs - an alteration on our CW staple - Casinos love 'em~!

44. Indian tea : CHAI

45. Look after : TEND

46. QB Jim Kelly was its 1984 MVP : USFL - Yeah, I remember this, but at first I thought BOWL, but knew it was an abbr.

49. Use the hammock : LOLL

50. Like some traditions : ORAL

51. Trace : HINT

52. 1930s-'40s mystery film scene stealer : ASTA

53. Part of le visage : OEIL - meh, French

54. To be, to Tiberius : ESSE - I took Latin for four years - helps my English and crossword skills

56. GPS determination : LATitiude

Answer grid.

AND A HAPPY NEW YEAR (earworm)

(OK, one for the guys before the end of the year....)

Splynter