Wednesday August 21, 2013 Paul Hunsberger

Theme: SEVEN (49D. Number of consecutive letters without 2-Down in this puzzle's four longest answers) - A cluster of 7 consecutive non-A E I O U letters span across each theme entry.

18A. "The Meaning of Life" comedy group : MONTY PYTHON. Splynter likes them.

32A. Menace that isn't very menacing : EMPTY THREAT. Like those from Lil' Kim.

40A. Eric Carmen power ballad covered by Celine Dion : ALL BY MYSELF

56A. Title magical caretaker in a 2005 film : NANNY MCPHEE. Never saw it. Starring  Emma Thompson and Colin Firth.

2D. Facetious sequence? : A E I O U. As Spitzboov told us before, A E I O U is sequentially contained in the word Facetious.

49D. Number of consecutive letters without 2-Down in this puzzle's four longest answers : SEVEN

C.C. here. Jazzbumpa was ready to entertain you, but "Cruciverb is STILL out to lunch. That's three days running. Grrrr" (Thanks, Dudley). Jazz will be back next Wednesday.

 

A rather unique theme. We've seen puzzles with orderly AEIOU letter strings. Would be more impressive if there were no Y involved, as all of the 6 Y's in the theme entries are vowels. It might not be doable.

Across:

1. Half-__: 50-50 coffee : CAF

4. Near the back, nautically : ABAFT. Always want STERN. Why does ABAFT exist when AFT already has the same meaning?

9. Flora and fauna : BIOTA

14. Poet's "atop" : O'ER

15. Root vegetable : TUBER. Have you ever seen taro plants in person? Huge.

16. Deck out : ADORN

17. Routing word : VIA

20. Ages and ages : EONS

22. Vote of confidence : YEA

23. Events marked by good-natured insults : ROASTS

24. Occasion to pull together? : TUG O' WAR. Nice clue

26. Backfire noise : BANG

27. Present-day Persia : IRAN

28. Statue of Liberty supporter : PEDESTAL. So literal.

35. Chopper : AXE

36. Open stretches : LEAs. Here is our pretty little one.

Kazie's Granddaughter Lea

37. Gut reaction? : OOF

38. Assemble-it-yourself company : IKEA

39. Hostel : INN

44. Inanimate carousel rider : SUITCASE. And 10D. 44-Across attachments : ID TAGS. I imagine Steve travels light.

46. Traditional Cockney delicacies : EELS. Jellied eels. See here. I only like pickled herrings.

47. St.-John's-__ : WORT. Do you believe in herbal medicine?

48. Stalemate : IMPASSE

51. Aussie gal : SHEILA. Where is our Aussie Dave?

54. Flash drive PC port : USB (Universal Serial Bus). Anon T, is your given name Tom also? We've got two Toms (TTP & D-Otto) with computer background.

55. Tool holder : SHED

59. Hail, to Caesar : AVE

60. Up until now : AS YET

61. Gas leak warnings : ODORS

62. Contract signer's tool : PEN. So I caught Pete Weber smoking outside Treasure Islands (MN) last Sunday. He's so friendly in person. Signed my PBA program and pin. But the happiest moment is to meet with Walter Ray Williams, arguably the greatest bowler of all time.

C.C. & Walter Ray Williams

63. Moon aspect : PHASE

64. Use a divining rod : DOWSE

65. Minnesota twins? : ENS. This self-referential clue tends to bother Jazzbumpa. And Twins beat his Tigers last night.

Down:

1. Really want : COVET

3. Fragrant flower used in leis : FRANGIPANI. Wiktionary said this word is "from an Italian noble family, a sixteenth-century marquess who invented a plumeria-scented perfume. The name comes from frangi "breaking" + pani "bread," a reference to the family's distribution of bread in time of famine." Good to know.

4. 24-hr. cash source : ATM

5. Tending to float : BUOYANT

6. Daisy Mae's guy : ABNER

7. Spanakopita cheese : FETA. Yellowrocks likes Spanakopita.

8. Give it a go : TRY

9. Sharp weapon : BAYONET

11. Sounds of awe : OOHS

12. Word after fox or turkey : TROT

13. Raggedy dolls : ANNs

19. "The Devil Wears __" : PRADA. Loved the movie. Not enough words to describe Meryl Streep. Genius.  

21. Organizes : SORTS

25. "I'm on my __" : WAY

26. Muscular : BEEFY

28. Seriously look into : PROBE

29. Materializes : TAKES SHAPE. Great entry. Lots of nice fill in this grid.

30. Skating jump : AXEL

31. Table extender : LEAF

32. Bulldogs' supporters : ELIs. Yale.

33. Carte du jour : MENU

34. "The Planets" composer : HOLST (Gustav)

38. Mallorca y Cuba : ISLAS. English Majorca.

40. Church candle lighter : ACOLYTE. Needed the crossings.

41. Former Anaheim Stadium NFLer : LA RAM (1946 to 1994). This often stumps non-sports fans. They're now St. Louis Rams.

42. Country club crowd : MEMBERS

43. "Roger that" : YEP

45. Twisted threads : TWINES

48. 1995 R&B hit "This __ We Do It" : IS HOW

50. Blissful environs : EDENS

51. Huddle follower : SNAP

52. Diner breakfast order : HASH

53. Big name in New Age music : ENYA

54. High style : UPDO

57. Grand Banks fish : COD. I wonder if cod tastes great pickled.

58. Legal ending? : ESE. Legalese.

C.C.

Tuesday, August 20, 2013 Steve Blais

Theme: A One and a Two... - Music related terms.

38A. Best Picture of 1965, and a hint to the ends of 18-, 23-, 50- and 59-Across : "THE SOUND OF MUSIC"

18A. Thing to make when a Post-it isn't handy : MENTAL NOTE

23A. Fan magazine for teens : TIGER BEAT. Vintage cover.

50A. Warm, muted color : EARTH TONE

59A. Frenzied state : FEVER PITCH

Maestro Argyle here. OK, I'm not really. If you have questions, save them for Jazzbumpa. I hope he shows up today. I'm glad there wasn't anything about female deer or jam and bread beverage. Nice straightforward Tuesday puzzle, anchored by a grid spanner.

Across:

1. Red planet : MARS

5. Put down stakes, maybe : CAMPED. A cute misdirection.

11. Jack Sprat's no-no : FAT.

"Jack Sprat could eat no fat.

His wife could eat no lean.

And so between them both, you see,

They licked the platter clean."

14. "Yeah, whatever!" : "I BET!"

15. It traditionally translates to "O come" : "ADESTE...". Fideles

16. Elem. school basics : RRR. The three R's: reading, writing, and arithmetic.

17. Facts and figures : DATA

20. Surgeons' tools : SCALPELS

22. Call it a night : TURN IN

25. Exclusive, as communities : GATED

26. Veto vote : NAY

27. "Blessed __ the peacemakers": Matthew : ARE

29. Carrying a weapon : ARMED

32. Clearance event : SALE

34. Enveloping glow : AURA

41. Geologic periods : EONS

42. Any time now : SOON

43. Not up to the task : INEPT

44. Distant : FAR

45. Supermarket chain with a red-and-white logo : IGA. (Independent Grocers Alliance) Not a chain, in the common sense. IGA operates as a franchise through stores that are owned separately from the brand. A lot of small town, Mom and Pop stores.

46. Take off : LEAVE

56. Former Indian prime minister Gandhi : INDIRA

58. College class staples : LECTURES

61. Shabby wear : RAGS. Not newspapers this time.

62. Prefix with cycle : TRI

63. Sprawling property : ESTATE

64. To be, to Berlioz : ÊTRE

65. Scale fifth : SOL

66. Game with falling blocks : TETRIS. (electronic game)

67. Revolutionary Trotsky : LEON

Down:

1. Central position : MIDST

2. Beaded calculators : ABACI

3. Change the price of : RETAG

4. Blah quality : STALENESS

5. Paid a visit : CAME BY

6. Fred's dancing sister : ADELE

7. High-IQ group : MENSA

8. Pasadena winter hrs. : PST. (Pacific Standard Time)

9. Floride, par exemple : ÉTAT. French for Florida indicates French for state.

10. Downpour : DELUGE

11. Forward-facing side : FRONT

12. Clarinetist Shaw : ARTIE

13. The way things are going : TREND

19. Gun lobby org. : NRA. (National Rifle Association of America)

21. Site of much Spanish art : PRADO. The Museo del Prado is the main Spanish national art museum, located in central Madrid.

24. Eagle's picker-upper : TALON. There are some super videos out there of eagles using their talons.

28. Gridiron enforcer : REF

29. Had a bite : ATE

30. Pi follower : RHO. More common Greek letters today.

31. Dudes : MEN

32. Sleep-disturbing sound : SNORE. Hah, not to the snorer.

33. Excitement : ADO

34. In the altogether : AU NATUREL. Or how to use make-up so it looks like you aren't using make-up.

35. Take advantage of : USE

36. Shred : RIP

37. Not just sit by : ACT

39. Springsteen's "Born in the __" : USA

40. Physical strength : MIGHT

44. Polecat relative commonly kept as a pet : FERRET

45. Needs scratching : ITCHES

46. London elevators : LIFTS

47. Month after diciembre : ENERO. Notice the lack of capitals.

48. Aleve competitor : ADVIL

49. Be in the game : VIE

51. Raised church area : ALTAR

52. Prefix with linear : RECTI. Rectilinear - characterized by straight lines.

53. Give a speech : ORATE

54. Part of UNCF : NEGRO. (United Negro College Fund)

55. German steel city : ESSEN

57. Church recess : APSE

60. Former comm. giant : ITT. The company was founded in 1920 as International Telephone and Telegraph.

Argyle

Note from C.C.:

Isn't this picture sweet? Lemonade's granddaughter Charlotte at a Lemonade Stand!