Monday, September 16, 2013 Jerry Edelstein

Theme: You may not like "dis" - Words that start with DIS are clued as if they were two words, starting with the slang for criticizing something.

17A. Criticize gas and electric companies? : DIS SERVICES. (disservices)

27A. Criticize a modeling shoot array? : DIS POSES. (disposes)

46A. Criticize stage shows? : DIS PLAYS. (displays)

60A. Criticize awards? : DIS TRIBUTES. (distributes)

11D. Criticize college subjects? : DIS COURSES. (discourses)

27D. Criticize farmers? : DIS TILLERS. (distillers)

Argyle here. No disrespect intended. This appears to be an ambitious debut by our constructor so a few hard nuggets can be accepted and the high number of "esses".

Across:

1. Manages (for oneself) : FENDS

6. Snuck : CREPT. Sneaked or snuck, ok? See the usage note here.

11. __ Moines, Iowa : DES

14. Native Alaskan : ALEUT

15. Cowboy singer Gene : AUTRY. No discouraging word here(2:43).

16. "That's nasty!" : "ICK!"

19. The Beatles' "__ Loves You" : SHE. Yeah, Yeah.

20. Sunrise direction : EAST

21. One of a D.C. 100 : SEN. (senators)

22. Russian capital : MOSCOW

24. Roy G __: rainbow mnemonic : BIV

26. Piebald horse : PINTO. Like what Little Joe rode on the Ponderosa.

30. It replaced the French franc : EURO

33. Pass out : FAINT

35. Mudville number : NINE. The poem on YouTube LINK

36. Complete, as a scene : WRAP

37. Tropicana and Minute Maid, briefly : OJs

38. Cheesy sandwiches : MELTS

39. Grounded jet : SST

40. Sworn statement : OATH

42. Isaac's eldest : ESAU

43. Wranglers with wheels : JEEPS

45. Folk music's Kingston __ : TRIO

48. Former Bears head coach Smith : LOVIE. Chicago Bears Head coach, 2004–2012

50. Be in debt : OWE

51. Sea near Stockholm : BALTIC

53. Prefix with pass : SUR. (surpass)

55. Become enraged : FUME

59. World Cup cheer : "¡OLÉ!"

63. Gen-__: boomer's kid, probably : Xer

64. Invalidate : ANNUL

65. On one's toes : ALERT

66. Fist pumper's word : "YES!"

67. Trotsky and Uris : LEONs

68. Pack animals : ASSes

Down:

1. Lose color in the wash : FADE

2. "On the Waterfront" director Kazan : ELIA

3. Loch with a monster : NESS

4. Brit's trash can : DUSTBIN

5. Sault __ Marie : STE.

6. Batman's hideout : CAVE. "Quick, to the Batmobile!" 12D. Bounce in a 6-Down : ECHO. "Quick, to the Batmobile!"

7. Wreck completely : RUIN

8. And so on: Abbr. : ETC.

9. Vacate the __: eviction notice phrase : PREMISES

10. Big name in chicken : TYSON. Perdue's competition.

13. Depict unfairly : SKEW

18. Invitation letters : RSVP

23. Bouillabaisse, e.g. : STEW. Traditional fish stew.

25. Practitioner: Suff. : IST

26. Kept in, as hostility : PENT-UP

28. Bodysuit for a tiny tot : ONESIE

29. "__ Marner": Eliot work : SILAS

31. Speak with a grating voice : RASP

32. Chooses : OPTs

33. 12 inches : FOOT

34. Open a bit : AJAR

38. Doctor's profession : MEDICINE

41. Owl's cry : [HOOT!][

43. A boxer may have a glass one : JAW

44. They're attractive to look at : EYEFULs

47. "Footloose" co-star Singer : LORI. Did you catch that Singer was capitalized?

49. "Myra Breckinridge" author Gore : VIDAL

51. Like the Honda Element : BOXY. Probably want to keep it like the following...

52. Away from the wind : ALEE

53. Really surprise : STUN

54. Web addresses, briefly : URLs

56. Beehive State natives : UTEs. Not Utahn today.

57. Little more than : MERE

58. Repair co. proposals : ESTs. (estimates)

61. __-cone : SNO

62. Sheep's call : [BAA]

Argyle

Sunday September 15, 2013 Amy Johnson

Theme: "No-win Situations" - All possible combinations of letters XXO (except XXX & OOO) are hidden in each theme entry.

 

23A. Wonka's starting hockey team? : SIX OOMPA LOOMPAS. Oompa-Loompas work for Willy Wonka's chocolate factory. Six player on ice during a hockey game.

37A. Much "Sanford and Son" banter? : REDD FOXX ONE- LINERS

66A. Rockport knockoffs? : FAUX OXFORDS. Maybe Famous Footwear has Rockport. Never paid attention to that brand before.

96A. Rusty, the Iron Man? : SUPERHERO OXYMORON. Funny clue.

16D. Artistic place for tiny letters? : MAILBOX ORIGAMI

50D. Non-conforming Marvel mutants? : UNORTHODOX X-MEN

Reveal entry:

116A. Three-letter combinations hidden in this puzzle's six other longest answers : TIC TAC TOE LOSERS

Amy covers all the possible 6 arrangements, correct? X'es are tricky to deal with in filling, she had 10 of them!

Across:

1. Casserole holders : MITTS

6. Flood barrier : DIKE

10. Santa __, aka "devil winds" : ANAs

14. Tut's home, now : TOMB

18. Online payment : E-CASH

19. OS X basis : UNIX. Mac OS X.

20. Guns : REVs

21. At full throttle : AMAIN

26. Say "I do" : UNITE

27. 2006 Verizon acquisition : MCI

28. Dutch pottery city : DELFT

29. Nonstick cookware brand : T-FAL.  Great quality.

30. Clown's props : STILTS

31. Early philosophical hot spot : ELEA. I know this place only as  Zeno of Elea. He's a philosopher, so it could be a hot spot. MN is a hot spot for crosswords. George Barany told me that  "...Will said that besides New York and California, there is no other state with such a concentration of constructing talent (maybe he forgot about Maryland?)".

33. Island gift : LEI

34. Home of the Green Wave : TULANE

36. Civil War nickname : ABE

42. Eugene's st. : ORE

44. Cousin of a bald eagle : ERN

45. Bygone TV knob : HOR

46. High points : CLIMAXES

48. Grammy winner Cole : PAULA. "Where Have All the Cowboys Gone?"

51. Alley cries : MEOWs

53. Org. with Pirates and Sharks : AHL. No idea. American Hockey League.

54. Black hues, to Chaucer : EBONs

55. Traditional fourth-anniversary gift : LINEN. See here. Boomer and I will celebrate our 13th year next May.

56. Fed. workplace monitor : OSHA

57. Hot state : IRE

58. Bob or bowl : HAIRDO

59. Game with Skip cards : UNO

60. Hawaii's coffee capital : KONA

62. Half the taijitu symbol : YANG

64. "__ Went Mad": Riley poem : ERE I

65. Cellists' sect. : STR (String)

70. Styling stuff : GEL

73. Us opponents : THEM

76. Certain slip-on : MULE. Shoes.

77. Catch some rays : BASK

79. Crest letters : ADA

80. Like sailors on leave : ASHORE. I wanted something drunk related. Sorry, Spitzboov/D-Otto!

82. Lucrative : FAT. OK, a fat year.

83. Epitome of thinness : RAIL

85. High points : ACMES

87. Polynesian language : MAORI. I think Steve used this image last time. Stick your tongue out. How low can you go?

88. ABO designation : POS (Positive)

89. High : TIPSY

90. Venerated one : SAINT

91. Skating on thin ice : IN DANGER

93. Holiday chuckles : HOs. Santa!

94. 21st, e.g.: Abbr. : CEN

95. Tokugawa shogunate seat of power : EDO

104. Scripts that may be hard to read : RXS

106. Part of ASAP : AS SOON. One 6-letter partial is OK.

107. Old-fashioned show of affection: Abbr. : LTR. My sister-in-law Barbara always writes us letters.

108. Project Mercury org. : NASA

109. Actress Meredith __-Birney : BAXTER

111. Coll. major involving an observatory : ASTR (Astronomy)

112. Calligrapher's line : SERIF

114. Rotation meas. : RPS (Revolutions per Second)

115. Skilled pitchers : ADMEN. Not baseball.

119. Hardly certain : LEERY

120. Natural soother : ALOE

121. Bengay, e.g. : BALM. This might work if you have mild arthritis pain or muscle pain. You local Asian store should have them. The stuff stinks though.

122. "Have a look!" : GO SEE

123. Lombardy Castle city : ENNA. In Sicily. Splynter might know Lombardy Castle. Not me.

124. Surfer, perhaps : USER. Internet surfer.

125. Old dagger : SNEE

126. Mythical lover of wine and women : SATYR

Down:

1. "Animal magnetism" coiner : MESMER. He gave us "Mesmerize".

2. Frozen drip : ICICLE

3. Rolled on a runway : TAXIED

4. Menu general : TSO. Chicken.

5. Sporting heels : SHOD

6. Two-floor apartment : DUPLEX

7. Up the creek : IN A FIX

8. Highland wear : KILT

9. Skeletal prefix : EXO. "Outer".

10. Carrying limit : ARMFUL

11. Himalayan native : NEPALI. Sherpa's life is actually very hard.

12. Ski area concern : AVALANCHE. Sherpas encounter this often.

13. Snake's "Back off!" : SSS

14. Ready to snap : TAUT

15. __ vincit amor : OMNIA. Do you believe in "Love conquers all"?

17. What some fight to, with "the" : BITTER END

22. Video game console : NES

24. Cantaloupe, e.g. : MELON

25. Aquatic rompers : OTTERS

30. Pak of the LPGA : SE RI. She opened the door for all those Korean LPGA players. 

32. Mr. Rochester's ward : ADELE. Jane Eyre.

35. "Gimme a Break!" star Carter : NELL. And 49. "__ Misbehavin'" : AIN'T

38. Ballpark buy : FRANK

39. "This could be a problem" : OH OH

40. Trouble for the hopelessly trapped : NO WAY OUT

41. Nasty race tactic : SMEAR

43. Manitoba pump sign : ESSO

47. Irish Rose's guy : ABIE. Learned from doing Xwords.

48. Grade refinement : PLUS

51. "__ Lisa" : MONA

52. Biblical barterer : ESAU

53. Ship protected by Hera : ARGO. Otherwise, no woman on that ship.

57. Lower-ranking : INFERIOR

58. Company with toy trucks : HESS

61. "All __": 1984 film : OF ME

63. Rocker Rose : AXL

67. Adman's yuletide : XMAS

68. Aaron's MLB record 2,297 : RBIs

69. Longtime "What's My Line?" host : DALY (John). I should borrow Splynter's BMT (Before My Time).

71. Original sin site : EDEN

72. __ resort : LAST

74. Israeli folk dance : HORA

75. Actress Moran et al. : ERINs

78. "Casey's Top 40" host : KASEM

80. French girlfriend : AMIE

81. 1959 Gidget player : SANDRA DEE. Hey, a full name.

82. Jibs, e.g. : FORESAILS

84. Lhasa __ : APSO

86. Church law : CANON

88. Spices (up) : PEPS

89. Powerful D.C. lobby : THE NRA

92. __ gum: thickening agent : GUAR

94. Ritchard who played Hook on Broadway : CYRIL. Stranger to me. Captain Hook. Wiki said he was born in Australia. Not Russia as I thought.

97. Gun, in old slang : ROSCOE. I forgot. But we had this clue before.

98. More spicy : HOTTER

99. Soccer stadium shout : OLE OLE

100. Limit-pushing, in adspeak : XTREME. The bowling center in Treasure Island is called Island Xtreme Bowl.

101. Most limited : RAREST

102. Fish-eating hawk : OSPREY

103. 1952 Egyptian Revolution leader : NASSER. The guy who's in control now is General Sisi. No government can survive in Egypt without the military backing. Morsi is a good example.

105. Tough : STERN

109. Statement no. : BAL (Balance)

110. Mononymous New Ager : ENYA

112. Asian country suffix : STAN. Meaning "Land".

113. London forecasts : FOGS

116. Sigma follower : TAU

117. Letters next to an eye : CBS. Great clue.

118. "__ man walks into ..." : SO A

I mentioned last week that George Barany (The genius behind the Alan Turing tribute puzzle)  & Friends made the fun puzzle inside the program for "An Evening with the Puzzle Master". Everyone was busy solving the grid while waiting for Will to start the presentation.

George kindly provided me with the puz file. I thought you might enjoy it. You don't have to be an Minnesotan to solve the grid. 

Click here for the PDF file. Click here for the puz file. 

 

Spoiler alert:

Click here to read how the puzzle was created & George's thoughts on several entries. I bet TTP & PA Don enjoyed reading his remark on 51-Down. There is also a great picture of the MN constructors with Will Shortz at the bottom. 

C.C.