Friday, January 27, 2012, Marti Duguay-Carpenter

THEME: Let's all meet at the BAR. Each of the six theme answers abuts the three square bars which are joined in the middle of the puzzle, adding the word BAR to the beginning or end of the fill. We had a wonderful Don Hard-G's L-Bar themed puzzle, LINK last January and this puzzle goes another step in integrating visual as well as verbal clues. Really creative, as we have become accustomed with our second double dose of Marti, blog Thursday, construct Friday. I have added her note at the end. This seems a departure for M., with some very hard fill and the focus not on puns and giggles. Well let us see if the prayers for Friday clarity were answered. The SIX (6) theme answers plus unifier:

30A. Hiker's chewy snack: GRANOLA (BAR). I keep them in my desk drawer, not much hiking going on.

32A. Chart used for comparisons: (BAR) GRAPH. I like Pie charts better, especially Cherry.

41A. Steakhouse section: SALAD (BAR). They were introduced in steak places but abound now.

43A. Coming-of-age ritual (BAR) MITZVAH. This is where I got the theme, as I knew M. knew what the ritual name was. We all live by Mitzvah but that is another story.

7D. Trendy place to get gas?: OXYGEN (BAR). We have had reference to these places before, though I never been to one, unless you count my time in ICU. LINK. Dennis, you going to take a drive down there?

48D. Maine resort: (BAR) HARBOR. I will see if our Mainiac will tell you all about the place. I love it there, in August.

And the unifier,

62D. Row of black squares preceding or following six puzzle answers, thereby completing them: BAR.

Across:

1. More than irk: ENRAGE. I am always very pleased to blog Marti's efforts, but they also take me so much longer because I become so distracted with tangents from her cluing. Ah well, let us see how you all do.

7. Ending with neur-: OSES. Better than Psych-----

11. Ring leader?: REF. Boxing ring, my first thought was the old EAR Ring. Thought too much, nice clue.

14. "Take it easy!": COOL IT. Easy there pardner,

15. Bonus, in adspeak: XTRA. read all about it.

16. Actress Lupino: IDA. Was she married to Howard Duff?

17. Wichita-based aircraft company: CESSNA. But now they build planes all over the world to save money.

18. Accordion-playing satirist: YANKOVIC. Weird AL.

20. Soft spreads: OLEOS.

21. Pact: AGREEMENT.

22. Idaho crop: RUSSETS. I bet you did not KNOW.

24. Santa __: West Coast winds: ANAS. Anyone watching the golf fro Torrey Pines?

25. "Sonic the Hedgehog" developer: SEGA. They fizzled when Dreamcast was blown away by X-Box, Wii and PS2.

28. Western symbol: TIN STAR. Were you Marshall Dillon or Wyatt Earp fans?

36. "I didn't need to know that!": TMI. Too Much Information, not to be confused with its cousin TMJ, or its step sister TMZ.

37. Family leader?: DON. Knotts? Adams? Rickles? Oh. Don Corleone!

38. Early Beatle Sutcliffe: STU. Fifth Beatle, quit to be an artist, but died young mysteriously. Rumor is Sir Paul was jealous.

40. Lower land?: LEA. Where the lower lows? (Parse "Lower" as Low-er.)

45. Medium: PSYCHIC. No, but I wear a large now.

49. Grub: EATS. Gabby Hayes anyone?

50. Italian bubbly source: ASTI. They have given up the SPUMANTE.

53. The Dike Kokaral divides its two sections: ARAL SEA. More learning.

55. Earth's life zone: BIOSPHERE. SCIENCE. (2:28) Also a movie so bad, it has no trailer on You Tube.

57. Float __: A LOAN. Be careful.

61. Where many shop: ON THE WEB. Be careful.

62. One making big bucks?: BRONCO. Not Tebow? I kept trying to think of the name for a female moose.

63. Payable: DUE.

64. Default consequence, for short: REPO.-session.

65. They're often distinguished by degrees: ALUMNI. E.G., BA, MA and JD.

66. Slalom curve: ESS. I knew she would sneak in a skiing reference.

67. God of lightning: THOR. Ladies?

68. Fix, in a way, as a lawn RESEED. It is sodding easier to sod, right Steve, Nice Cuppa?

Really behind schedule, so we must pick up the pace:

Down:

1. Danish shoe brand: ECCO. Latin for behold, who knew about this SHOE?

2. Seasonal number: NOEL. No not FOUR, the singing kind.

3. Obeyed a court order: ROSE. All rise, and give a shout out to our ARBAON.

4. One who didn't get in: ALSO RAN. E.g. Rick Perry.

5. Infomercial knife: GINSU. "But wait, there's more!" The precursor to all infomercials. LINK.

6. LAX listing: ETA. Estimated Time of Arrival.

8. Kicks off: STARTS. You think from Bicycles, or Motorcycles?

9. One of the Gallos: ERNEST. With brother Julio the purveyors of lots of wine, some very good, some very cheap.

10. Drink with sushi: SAKE. Cold or hot?

11. Torn asunder: RIVEN. A nice $10.00 word from the Old Norse.

12. Minneapolis suburb: EDINA. Fancy part of town? C.C.? Jeannie? (C.C.: Some rich folks like Twins' owner live in that area. Quite a few nice golf courses as well, including Interlachen, which hosted US Women's Open a few years ago. Also Solheim Cup in 2002.)

13. Things to face: FACTS. What does this mean, and why do I hear the theme to The Facts of Life in my head now?

19. "My World of Astrology" author: OMARR. Grew up reading the newspaper horoscopes of Sydney.

21. Turkey diner, probably?: ASIAN. Not nibbling a leg, but the country. Nice clue.

23. WWII invasion city: ST LO. Is there a ST. Hi anywhere in France?

25. Certain NCOs: SGTS. Many served at St. Lo.

26. "Forever, __": 1996 humor collection: ERMA. Bombeck, a CW staple, and a funny lady.

27. Author Sheehy: GAIL. I have heard of but not read her BOOKS.

29. Bust __: A GUT. Laugh very heartily so the jelly belly gets rolling; you will not bust a gut reading Gail Sheehy.

31. Ironically, they might be even : ODDS. Cute clue/fill. Loves irony.

33. Inventing middle name: ALVA. Finally an easy one; thanks Mr. Edison.

34. Three-__: sports portmanteau: PEAT. Winning an event three years in a row. Never in Super Bowl History.

35. Derisive cries: HAHS. Dangerous habit.

38. Prepare to be shot: SMILE. What happens to you after the derisive laughs. Be careful.

39. Some twitches: TICS. Well I already used up my Clouseau and Dreyfus clip. How many recall Herbert Lom did not appear in the original Pink Panther movie?

42. Like copycats: APISH. Free pass.

44. Enthusiastic: ZEALOUS. When his girlfriend kissed another girl, he did not get jealous, he got zealous.

46. G-d, in Judaism: YAHWEH. Boy is this a complicated topic, but yes and no.

47. Sleazeball: CREEPO. Nice Webster's word.

50. Humble place: ABODE. Welcome to my....

51. Skull cavity: SINUS. I guess it really is a Friday.

52. Popular rubbers: TOTES. Not Trojan, but she must know DUREX fits in this space? Oh, that kind, I have not worn rubbers in a long time. I SEE.

54. Canadian poet Birney: EARLE. Egads, they know how to rhyme in Canada? My learning moment. All perps. LINK.

56. Saucy: PERT. When I see these words, I now think of two things; shampoo and our own Heart Rx.

58. Pub offer: ON ME. Okay, a Beer reference, sort of. I tried that line in a BAR, but she did not get on.

59. Trouble spots for teens: ACNE. How many proactiv users are there? And are they all pretty women?

60. Reason for being denied a drink NO ID. My first thought was this old Domino's AD. (0:32). Anyone else? Well don't get annoid with me, trivia does stick to my brain.

Answer grid.

Well another Friday puzzle in the record book, another wonderful time with one of our own, and time for me to go back to reading the Game of Thrones books; halfway through the 1125 page book 3. Enjoy all, and here is Marti.

"I was playing around with grid designs, trying to make a puzzle theme from the different shapes. I thought of crosses, x's, squares, and finally came up with this one, with "bars". I thought it would be fun to incorporate the bar shapes into the theme answers. I hope you enjoy the result!"

Thursday, January 26, 2012 Billie Truitt

Theme: Ham and Jeez. Four cross-referential answers that hinge on the unifier for definition.

17A. See 38-Across : RADIO ENTHUSIAST. Ham radio operators are amateurs without any monetary interest, as opposed to commercial broadcasters.

26A. See 38-Across : SCENERY CHEWER. A ham is one who acts melodramatically. They "chew up the scenery" by focusing all attention on themselves, rather than the stage set or other actors.

43A. See 38-Across : HOLIDAY ENTREE. Most popular entrées for Christmas are ham or turkey. For Hanukkah (or Chanukah), I think it would be brisket? But I defer to Hahtool for that one.

57A. See 38-Across : NOAH'S WAYWARD SON. Noah begat Ham, Shem and Japheth when he was 500 years old. Wow! I want to know where he got his Cialis?

And the unifier:

38A. Clue for 17-, 26-, 43- and 57-Across : HAM. Jeez, how simple!

How about "GREEN EGGS SIDE"? Can you think of others to fit this theme?

Marti here, signing in for this Thursday's theatrics.

Across:

1. Utah's state gem : TOPAZ. November birthstone, and also a symbol of friendship. So gals, if he gives you a topaz ring instead of a diamond...better start looking elsewhere.

6. Stable newborn : FOAL

10. Emblem : ICON

14. "Don't try to be ___" : A HERO. "Billy, don't be...". That song was released by Paper Lace in 1974, so many thought it referred to the Vietnam war. It was actually a reference to the Civil War.

15. ___ jure : IPSO. "By the law itself"

16. Slicer's warning : FORE. Does a hooker also yell this?

20. Passed down, as folk mus. : TRAD itional. Abbr. of "music" suggests the correct answer.

21. Shop gripper : VISE. Workshop. Not a security guard in a store.

22. Four Holy Roman emproers : OTTOS. Starting with Otto I who died in 973, and ending with Otto IV who died in 1218.

23. '40s-'50s pitcher Maglie : SAL. He was known as "Sal the Barber" because he gave close shaves: i.e., he pitched inside to hitters. So, another baseball name to add to my ever-growing list!

24. Tangle of hair : MAT. Sometimes found on the bath mat.

25. P.D. alert : APB. "Police Department" All Points Bulletin.

33. Silver and gold : METALS. Anyone else fill in "medals"?

35. Absorb, as a loss : EAT. Eat it. Just too "Weird" for me to link...

36. Via, à la Burns : THRO. "Comin' thro the rye...". Did you know that the book by J.D. Salinger was named after this poem?

37. "___ you clever!" : AREN'T. Me? No. Jerome? Definitely, yes!

39. Intersect : CROSS. Like "perps".

40. Unlike Wellesley College : CO-ED. One of the "Seven Sisters" colleges in the Northeast. Without looking on Wiki, can you name any of the other six?

41. Board partner : BED. I usually think of "room and board", so this one eluded me for a while.

42. Downloadable media player : I-TUNES

46. Clunker : DUD

47. Cruet fluid : OIL. "Vinegar" wouldn't fit...

48. Corn serving : EAR

51. That and that : THOSE. Clever clue!

54. Proverbial equine escape site : BARN. To "close the barn door after the horse has bolted" means doing too little, too late.

56. Sharp part : EDGE. Like a knife edge.

60. Plotting : UP TO. Whenever we were quiet, my mother would always yell from the other room, "What are you kids up to?"

61. Head start? : IDEA.

62. Neutral shade : BEIGE

63. Dry run : TEST

64. No sweat : EASY...peasy lemon squeezy.

65. Being pulled : IN TOW

Down

1. Knave of Heart's loot : TARTS.

"...The Knave of Hearts

He stole those tarts,

And took them clean away..."

2. Fictional plantation owner : O'HARA. Frankly, I don't give a damn...

3. Guitar played with hands and feet : PEDAL STEEL. This was a total unknown for me. Maybe Jazzbumpa knows?

4. Dry : ARID.

5. San Diego attraction : ZOO. J.D. just visited it with her grandsons last week on her birthday visit. How was it?

6. Having limits : FINITE

7. Makes a choice : OPTS

8. U.S. Open stadium : ASHE. Arthur Ashe Stadium in Queens, NY.

9. Rickey broke his stolen base record in 1991 : LOU. Lou Brock was outdone by Rickey Henley Henderson, known as "The Man of Steal". His 1,406 career steals record is 50% higher than the previous record of 938 by Lou. (Did I get it right, C.C.??) (From C.C.: Just one short of 50% more than Brock's. Rickey Henderson holds quite a few MLB records, including leadoff home runs, stolen bases in a single season.)

10. "Assuming that's accurate," biblically :IF IT BE TRUE.

11. Winter garb : COAT. We don't need them so often this year, but I can live with that!

12. Guesstimate words : OR SO.

13. Takes home : NETS

18. Rogers's partner : EVANS. Roy Rogers and Dale Evans. "Hammerstein" wouldn't fit...

19. Last year's frosh : SOPH

24. Hot sandwich : MELT. Yummm, tuna melt!

25. Sequence of scenes : ACT

27. It's not posed : CANDID SHOT. Like this?

28. Aptly named author : READE. Charles, best known for "The Cloister and the Hearth". Has anyone reade it?

29. Holiday tuber : YAM. To go with the ham?

30. Dismissive bit of rhetoric : WHO NEEDS IT?

31. Highland tongue : ERSE

32. Legendary seamstress : ROSS. Betsy, famous flag seamstress.

33. Eponymous physicist Ernst ___ : MACH. Austrian physicist who studied shock waves. You wanna mach something of it?

34. Switch add-on : EROO. Ah yes, the old switch-eroo.

38. "I'm talking to you!" : HEY! (Yes, you!)

39. PC key below Shift : CTRL. On my Macbook, it's "Fn"

41. Wicked : BAD. Not the play...

42. Turner memoir : I, TINA

44. Member's payment : DUES

45. Where kroner are spent : NORWAY

49. Disco era term : A-GO-GO

50. Sign up for more : RENEW

51. Letter-shaped fastener : T-NUT. C-clamp, U-bolt, L-bar, S-hook, I-beam...???

52. Optimism : HOPE

53. Granola grain : OATS

54. ___ Bing!: "The Sopranos" nightclub : BA-DA

55. Some votes : AYES

56. First lady's garden site? : EDEN. Not this "rose" garden.

58. Golfer Michelle : WIE

59. Hitter's stat : RBI. Ha! Nailed this one. Hitter = Runs, ergo: Runs Batted In.

Answer grid.

So, I hope this puzzle was a home run for you solvers? Friday is coming, and may not be so easy peasy lemon squeezy.!

Hugs,

Marti

Note from C.C.:

Re: Marti's comment on 5-Down: Here is wonderful picture from JD's visit to Safari Park on Jan 14. She said "The baby gorilla is playing with some kind of rodent who keeps coming out of his little hole. The baby touched him several times...no fear with either of them."

Here is a picture of the cute little Cameron looking at a sea turtle.