Saturday, Mar 23rd, 2013 Joe DiPietro

Theme: None

Words: 70 (missing J,X,Z)

Blocks: 32

  Well I feel better about my Saturday solving for the first time in a few weeks.  I got through this one with a handful of W.A.G.s and a little crossword ingenuity.  The last puzzle I had from Mr. DiPietro was Aug 2012, and my grid was accidentally blacked out in two squares.  I thought we had 'orphaned' letters in that one.  I think this one is OK~!  9/5 triples on the across, and 8/6 triples on the downs.  Some French, and some long fill:

11D. Counter order : HOLD THE MAYO - Did anyone else think of this clip?

23D. Inclined to believe : OF THE NOTION - I had a hard time parsing this one; AFTER NOTION? AFOREMENTIONED?  oh, duh

33A. High-scoring ball games : SLUG-FESTS - C.C., do you prefer a high scoring baseball game?  I like a good 6-3 hockey game myself - not good for goalie averages, and I'm not particularly fond of high scoring games when I play (From C.C.: High-scoring for me also. Great hitting is always more exciting than great pitching.)

37A. Like most light bulbs : SCREWED IN - one would be, too, "in" the MOTEL ROOM, when you're IN THE MOOD....where's lois?

 Um, ONward~!

 ACROSS:

1. Brought to ruin : SABOTAGED

10. "Appointment in Samarra" novelist : O'HARA - Wiki

15. "Is this being broadcast?" : "ARE WE LIVE?" - "Is this thing on?"

16. Baking apples : ROMES

17. Succeeded, in a way : MADE MONEY - by this definition, I have not succeeded, yet

18. Hands it to the performer? : CLAPS

19. Award estab. by King George V : OBE - Order of the British Empire

20. Jeu de mots : PUN - Frawnch

21. Water wheel component : PADDLE

 

22. Subterranean storage units, perhaps : SILOS - I tried CAVES first

24. "It's __ turn" : YOUR

27. Toot : TEAR - hmmm....humor, or alcoholic benders?

28. "Keep dreaming" : "AS IF~!"

29. Kin of -ian : ITE - I read this as KIND first; kind of -ian? Like Flemming?

30. Quest : HUNT

31. Sports figures : STATS - I had STARS, and it was 80% right

35. Trysting place : HOTEL ROOM - my Motel Room gave my 23D. "notion" fits

40. Brewer Frederick : PABST

44. Ending with tele- : THON - teleTHON

45. Slammer : PEN

46. Car registration datum : YEAR

47. Dallas quarterback after Bledsoe : ROMO - D-otto, are you a Cowboys fan, or a Titans (nee Oilers) fan?

48. Spitting nails, so to speak : IRED

50. "__ chance!" : BONNE - I had TAKE A---, at first; this made no sense to me; Frawnch phrase, here

51. Stumped : ORATED - Not the kind of stumped I usually get on a Saturday

53. Scent word : EAU - like De Toilette, a weak Frawnch perfume; "aromatic water"

55. Org. with many schedules : IRS

56. "Born Yesterday" playwright : KANIN - the Wiki

57. Contests with no ultimate winner, hopefully : ARMS RACES - Like "War Games", one learns 'futility' in a race where world wide casualties result in what is essentially a Pyrrhic victory

60. Spitzer who succeeded Pataki as New York governor : ELIOT - Tsk, tsk, got caught in the HOTEL ROOM, didn't he? 

61. Mac-based multimedia player : QUICKTIME - Meh, I am PC

62. __ list : DEAN'S

63. Up for it : IN THE MOOD - "I'm in the mood for love, simply because we've got one~!" - what movie, HUH?

DOWN:

1. Filled Asian appetizers : SAMOSAS

 

2. Foreign Service Officer to the Middle East, say : ARABIST

3. Fictional Amelia who turns 50 in 2013 : BEDELIA - heard OF her; the Wiki

4. Be light : OWE - yeah, I'm short this week; can I get you next Saturday?

5. Fills in : TEMPS

6. Bonds manager after Baker : ALOU - Felipe Alou (crossword staple) who managed Barry Bonds of the SF Giants; more baseball - I was thinking who ran  the division of government bonds at first

7. Weasley with a crush on Harry Potter : GINNY - Ron's little sister, who was  attacked by 'he who must not be named" in Chamber of Secrets; I will not spoil what happens to her in the last book....I like red-heads~! 

8. Big night : EVE

9. Actress Susan : DEY

10. Seal threat : ORCA - ain't Bin Laden....

12. Play about rival composers : AMADEUS

13. Tuck into a new bed : REPLANT - AH~!  THAT kind of bed~!

14. Sets forth : ASSERTS

21. Topping whose name means "please" : PREGO

25. Engine hose : OIL LINE - had to go "shopping" to figure this one out

26. Reversal of policy : U-TURN

32. Promulgate : SOW

33. Haggadah-reading ritual : SEDER - Timely clue/answer - What's your plans, Lemonade?

34. Metrosexual : FOP - a man devoted to or vain about his appearance; I believe there was some discussion about male manicures not too long ago....

36. Hardly enthusiastic : TEPID 

37. Buttered up : STROKED

38. Luther's "A Mighty Fortress," e.g. : CHORALE - I'll skip the musical link for this interesting bit

39. Cluj is its second-most populous city : ROMANIA - Cluj-Napoca, actually - map

41. Del Toro of "Che" : BENICIO - I liked him in "The Usual Suspects" - IMDb

42. Riviera city with an annual music festival : SAN REMO

43. Plaited : TRESSED

49. Step down : DEMIT - new word for me - straight up, it means to resign

50. "Designing Women" actress : BURKE - Delta

52. Strep throat-treating docs : ENTS - again this week - no elves this time

54. Moe who founded Folkways Records : ASCH - again this week

57. EPA measure of concern to asthma sufferers : AQI - Air Quality Index

58. Head up : RUN

59. Source of rectangular lettuce? : ATM - we're always looking for a new way to clue this standard; lettuce being slang for money

Splynter

Friday, March 22, 2013, David Poole

Theme: Shake 'em up baby, twist and shout. MUSIC.(2:47).

The last word in each theme answer has a vowel switch to create a new and whimsical answer clued appropriately. This is another gem from the multi-talented Mr. POOLE. He and I have been together many times, and my first Friday puzzle BLOG was one of his back in 2010.  Some fun and some challenge, with long fill like RARA AVIS, MUENSTER and TATAMI.  And like Jerome, I do love me an anagram. We don't need no stinkin' reveal.

17A. Army mints? : MILITARY TICTACS.(15). TACTICS. Wow, turning war into candy!

29A. Temperamental Midler impersonators? : BETTE DIVAS. (10) DAVIS. We get the two most famous Bettes.

37A. Penalize a Russian leader? : FINE LENIN.(9). LINEN. I cotton to this image of the old despot.

49A. Poll on where to sink the eight ball? : POCKET VOTE. (10). VETO. I love how the non-anagram word changes meaning so much in this and the previous answer.

64A. Seasonal shade of pink? : A CHRISTMAS CORAL. (15). CAROL. Perfect for your nails, my dears.

Across:

1. Circa : AROUND. A Latin word which has come into the language.

7. Snack brand with a monocled mascot : PLANTERS.

15. Retire : TURN  IN. I am ready for bed.

16. One of a kind : RARA AVIS. We have this rare bird in pieces often. More Latin.

19. Bug : NETTLE.

20. Plural Spanish pronoun : ELLAS. Feminine. 60D. José's this : ESTO. Masculine.

21. Emu's extinct kin : MOA. Another extinct flightless bird; if you want information click and learn MOA.

22. Fleming and crime writer Rankin : IANS. I first learned of Scottish writer Rankin on this blog from Wolf Mom. A real anti-hero policeman, Inspector Rebus.

24. Smidgen : MITE.

27. Endow : FUND. Funny, when I think of a well endowed woman, I never think of money.

33. Estate item : ASSET. You need to prepare an inventory of assets in every estate.

35. "Got it!" : I SEE. Mira!

36. Student of Elves, in Tolkien : ENT. A tricky Hobbit reference.

41. Blast : GAS. I will pass on this one.

44. Shrimp : RUNT. I learned I really am shrinking.

45. ___ Galilee : SEA OF. Actually a lake in Israel.

53. Down : BLUE. I think this comes from the sailors flying a blue flag when a Captain died in days of yore.

54. Inner Hebrides isle : SKYE. Did anyone else think of this PERFORMER?

55. "Cheers" accountant : NORM. A favorite character. LINK.(3:47).

57. Texter's afterthought lead-in : BTW. By The Way.

58. Accounts : TALES. This one fooled me.

62. More than just calls : RAISES. Poker for example.

68. Semisoft cheese with an orange rind : MUENSTER.  Along with Havarti, my favorite soft cheese.

69. Titillating : EROTIC. Such an individual concept, but perhaps some HISTORY. (2:59)

70. Recordings are made in them : SESSIONS. Hence studio musicians are also known as session musicians. Also, see jam sessions.

71. Jimmy follower : RONALD. Carter: Reagan.

Down:

1. Provider of bucks : ATM. Yes, those bucks, Automated Teller Machine.

2. Catastrophic : RUINOUS.

3. City saved by Joan of Arc : ORLEANS. On the Loire.

4. Troop group : UNIT. Actual military terms.

5. 1930s-'40s Chicago Outfit "enforcer" : NITTI. Frank, and the 2nd in command to Al Capone, who took over. Some wonderful books written including the historical mysteries of MAX ALLAN COLLINS I have been reading lots of his books, including ones with Nitti, who is presented as a somewhat sympathetic bad guy. Of course I loved the character on the old Untouchables.

6. Crime-solving locale : DNA LAB. CSI here we come.

7. Pull with effort : PRY.

8. Behind : LATE. I never heard a woman say she was behind.

9. Seed cover : ARIL. This is classic crosswordese.

10. Chemist's salt : NACL. NA-Sodium, CL-Chloride. Table variety as well.

11. Teahouse floor covering : TATAMI. Traditional Japanese MATS.

12. Not forthcoming : EVASIVE. This answer was elusive while it was evasive.

13. Rocker Ocasek : RIC. The lead singer of the CARS (4:18) (not yummy) and he is married to Paulina (yummy).

14. Old draft org. : SSS. Selective Service System

18. Pierce's co-star in "The Thomas Crown Affair" : RENE. Russo.

21. Museum curator's deg. : MFA. Master of Fine Arts.

23. Cheese with which port is traditionally served : STILTON. I will let our Anglo readers comment on this fine cheese.

25. Salon offering : TAN.

26. Setting for Columbus: Abbr. : EST. Ohio or Georgia, oh it does not matter they are both in Eastern Standard Time. Clock setting, good clue.

28. OED entry : DEFinition.

30. Grizabella creator's monogram : TSE. T.S. Eliot.

31. Bard's adverb : E'EN.

32. Agnus ___: Mass prayers : DEIS. Another crossword staple.

34. Flag : TIRE. This would have been hard but for the perps already there.

38. Aficionado : NUT.

39. P.O. purchase : ENVelope

40. Neighbor of Colo. : NEB. Hey Husker G!

41. SUV option : GPS.

42. Hunky-dory : A-OK. Pioneered by NASA to mean all okay.

43. Bush hooks, e.g. : SCYTHES. Nice clue.

46. Banff National Park locale : ALBERTA. A pretty and cold part of Canada.

47. Defeat in the regatta : OUTSAIL. NIT alert, while regattas are always boats, the races can be rowing ones like Henley.

48. Hardly hordes : FEW. Alliteration always!

50. "Team of Rivals" author Doris ___ Goodwin : KEARNS. Never heard of the AUTHOR or the book. The only Goodwin I know is Archie.

51. One-third of a WWII film : TORA. I believe it was a Pearl Harbor movie, Tora (Tiger) being the Japanese code word for the secret attack.

52. Backspace key, at times : ERASER.

56. Miniscule : MICRO. Yay, we get our O!

59. Actress Virna : LISI. One of the many Italian beauties.

61. Acronymous submachine gun : STEN. Reginald V. Shepherd and Harold Turpin, and EN for Enfield.

63. Procrastinator's word : SOON.

64. Trans ___ : AMS. The cars.

65. Stick around a pool hall? : CUE. Tightly phrased, stick (space).

66. Union title, often : MRS. Nice misdirection, nothing to do with workers or Civil War.

67. Calculator display, for short : LCD. Liquid Crystal Display.

Well the end came soon enough, and another Friday frolic finished. Going to visit my son in Denver for the first seder, and my best to those who celebrate Passover. A blessed day to all and a healthy happy Palm Sunday.

Lemonade out.

Note from C.C.:

Happy Birthday to dear PK, who thinks pizza is the perfect food but can't have it due to food allergy. Spoil yourself today, PK!