Friday, May 24, 2013, James Sajdak

Theme: Deal me in.

Each of the five theme answers are phrases with the last word of the phrase being a type of card game, clued in a modified clecho fashion. This is our 26th puzzle from James, and the first in 2013. I had the pleasure of blogging two earlier Friday efforts, one of which was a similarly themed puzzle relating to farms.

He does use the 15 x 16 grid to get his grid spanner in. He does it so seamlessly, you might not have noticed.

All our puzzles are available in the archives, as is the wonderful INTERVIEW done by C.C. I saw the theme when I got  LONELY HEARTS, and without it I would have been dead in the water as there were many clues which strained my fading memory. I am not sure all of his cluing was according to Hoyle, but we must persevere. See if you agree with my favorites as we go through the solving.

18A. Card game horn music? : WINDS OF WAR.(10) A wonderful book by Herman Wouk; I was surprised that the simplest of card games WAR is now played for money by many at casinos.

25A. Card game where one person plays all the hands? : LONELY HEARTS.(12) Like many other trick taking games, HEARTS is best played with 4 people, who should be listening to this SONG.(2:02). Before we had dating sites we had Lonely Hearts ads.

40A. Card game played in dugouts? : DIAMOND SOLITAIRE.(16) Tiffany's in New York is credited with introducing the ring with just one lone stone. Baseball is played on a diamond, where the teams wait in dugouts.

55A. Card game by the Thames? : LONDON BRIDGE.(12) The most widely played and competitive of the bidding games. Bridge columns still run on the crossword page in the few newspapers left. My favorite memory (other than my father throwing cards in frustration when Aunt Dora trumped his Ace) LINK.(2:04). The 1831 bridge was moved to Lake Havasu City Arizona. A shout out to all our Arizona posters. (Where did you go Frenchie and Robin?)

66A. Card game requiring waterproof cards? : BATH TUB GIN.(10) Gin describes a number of games in the Gin/Rummy family. Knock Gin is a big money game in the northeast. Prohibition gave us the vile homemade SPIRITS,

Across:

1. This and that : BOTH. Simple, but I did not see it.

5. Cries : SOBS. Okay, now we are off. and the almost clecho 1D. Cried : BAWLED..

9. Open the door for : ADMIT. But not the big bad wolf.

14. Met moment : ARIA. The Metropolitan Opera House in Manhattan at Lincoln Center.

15. Water-based paint : LATEX.

17. Mary ___: ship in a Hammond Innes novel : DEARE. It was titled The Wreck of the Mary Deare. He wrote 30 or so thrillers LINK.

20. Cub of comics : OLSEN (Jimmy). Reading all the old Superman comic books paid off.

21. Big backup : LOG JAM. From the problems caused by the logs sent downstream.

22. Fight in Dogpatch : RASSLE, Deserves at least one picture of the style inspired by Daisy Mae

24. 90-degree fitting : ELL.

30. 25% of Off Deep Woods : DEET. N,N-Diethyl-meta-toluamide, abbreviated DEET,

32. "Am not!" retort : ARE SO.

33. Sushi shop offering : AHI. Fancy.

34. Crop up : ARISE.

37. ___ noodles: Chinese dish : WONTON. Not to be confused with wanton as in women.

45. Dream up : INVENT. Like the process of these puzzles.

46. City south of Metz : NANCY. Site of WWII BATTLE. also, 70A. WWII beachhead near Rome : ANZIO.

47. Carrying-on : ADO.

48. Consumed : EATEN. Food, jealousy?

51. Mail folder : SENT.

60. "Don't think so" : NAH.

61. "Ed Wood" Oscar winner : LANDAU. Martin Landau has been in many films and TV shows but his turn as Bela Lugosi in Plan 9 from Outer Space won him the award. LINK

62. Unlike couch potatoes : ACTIVE.

64. Pong developer : ATARI. The first.

69. Contact, in a way : RADIO. Before cell phones, we radioed for help.

71. Portly pirate : SMEE. Is Hook's man the only fat pirate?

72. Last name of Phineas in Disney's "Phineas and Ferb" : FLYNN. This with TAL almost did me in but only an L made sense. Never heard of the show/movie?

73. Tablet named for an organ : TUMS. For the tummy (an organ?)

74. Gone : PAST. Well the Acrosses are done.

Down:

2. Brightly plumed songbird : ORIOLE. They beat the Yankees yesterday.

3. Bit of excitement : TINGLE. Movie scared the crap out of me when I was little.

4. One of Islam's five pillars : HADJ.

5. Ref's aid : SLOMO. Slow motion replay.

6. Lout : OAF.

7. Texter's "Meant to tell you" : BTW. By The Way.

8. Celebrex developer : SEARLE. They were bought by Pfizer which dispense their products by prescribing....

9. ___ of reality : A DOSE.

10. Huey, Dewey and Louie's mom, in early comics : DELLA. Nope, nothing registered.

11. 1993 Fiat acquisition : MASERATI. vroom.

12. Hostility : IRE.

13. Decimal base : TEN. Our number system is a base ten but I will let Fermat and Bill G. do their mathematical thing.

16. Looks into? : X-RAYS. Love this clue as well, really sneaking and yet literally true.

19. "Do the Right Thing" pizzeria owner : SAL. This MOVIE.(4:22).

23. Do Jeeves's job : SHOW IN. Hey Vidwan, did you know P.G. Wodehouse was coming up, you had two references to him in the last week (one makes me blush)? I had a very hard time with this as Jeeves's job was to save Bertie from himself, played so well by Dr. House.

26. Old 38-Down overseer : NASD. National Association of Security Dealers.

27. "___ Tu": 1974 hit : ERES. You are so beautiful, to me. LISTEN.(3:04)

28. Wielder of a hammer called Mjölnir : THOR. I love the comic, hated the movie.

29. Trig function : SINE.

31. Hardly exciting : TAME. Lame, what's your game?

35. Popeil of infomercials : RON. One spring while in LA on business, my brother and I spend an afternoon with a Realtor touting houses for sale, and one was Ron Popeil's house, and sure enough every closet was stuffed with things he sold. Sadly no cell phone cameras in those days.

36. Mean : INTEND. Sometimes people intend to be mean.

38. Like some stocks : OTC. Over The Counter.

39. Thumbs-down votes : NAYS.

40. Retro phone feature : DIAL. Why was it called dial tone and is it now called digital tone?

41. China lead-in : INDO.

42. Iconic sales rep : AVON LADY. Who's calling?

43. "Dedicated to the ___ Love": '50s-'60s hit : ONE I.  Made more famous by the Mama's and the Papas and the Shirelles.

44. Touch down : LAND.

49. Addis ___ : ABABA. This capital was in the first puzzle I blogged at the Corner.

50. Out of one's class? : TRUANT. Great clue, the word comes from the French for vagabond.

52. Conundrum : ENIGMA. This had me puzzled.

53. Armadas : NAVIES. 1588?

54. Large search area : THE NET. This had me fooled for a while thinking outside.

56. "Splish Splash" singer : DARIN. More 50's music. I love Kevin Spacey in the movie Beyond the Sea, worth watching, but he was not the ORIGINAL.(2:18).

57. Stew veggie : ONION. Did you stew on this clue for long?

58. Perros may chase them : GATOS. Spanish dogs apparently chase Spanish cats, and the beginning of our canine corner.

59. Old French coin : ECU. Pure crosswordese.

63. Recipe amt. : TBSP. Tablespoon of sugar? Too much, eh Mary?

64. "Can I go out?" : ARF. I LOVE this clue.

65. 1960-'61 chess champ : TAL. I have no memory of this CHAMP. Bobby Fischer is my first chess master. I never knew we had a Latvian on top of the chess world. This with FLYNN, almost did me in, but the L gave the ta da.

67. Shih ___ : TZU. Woof, woof. More puppies. A breed originating from China with a name sure to make the little ones giggle. My ex has two.

68. One of LBJ's beagles : HIM. The other was HER and there was quite the scandal when he picked on up by the ears.

Well this puzzle has gone to the dogs, so I guess it is time for me to get my pooper scooper and get out of here, leaving you all to your memories.

Until next time, L out.

Thursday, May 23, 2013 David Poole

Theme: "Call Me Madam." (Harking back to a common thread lately!)

Let's start with the reveal today:

60D. Title for the starts of 20-, 25-, 37-, 46- and 55-Across: MRS.

20A. Showy bit of plumage : PEACOCK FEATHER. Mrs. Peacock is one of the suspects in the game of Cluedo. (Called "Clue" in North America.)

25A. Mae West's request to Beulah in "I'm No Angel" : PEEL ME A GRAPE. Mrs Peel is every guy's heartthrob from the show "The Avengers."

37A. N, in Morse code : DASH-DOT. Mrs. Dash is the brand name for a line of seasonings. Developed by a real-life Mrs. named Carol Bernick. Before settling on the name "Mrs Dash," the company also considered the name "Mrs. Pinch."

46A. Quadrennial mathematics awards : FIELDS MEDALS. Another real-life lady who started a cookie company with her own secret recipe.

55A. His work was done by Friday : ROBINSON CRUSOE. One of my favorite movies is "The Graduate." I will never forget this famous film cougar!

Just missing a "J" for a pangram. Did this seem like a Monday puzzle to you? I have to admit, I wondered what the connection was for the themers, and had an "Aha!" moment when I read the reveal.  Trivia for today: "MRS" is the abbreviation for "mistress," which is the feminine form of "Master" or "mister."  It originally applied to both married and unmarried women. Around the 17th century, the word "mistress" was divided differently to designate a married (Mrs) or unmarried (Miss) woman.

Across:

1. Bigger than big : EPIC.

5. Spender of rials : OMANI. I always have to wait for perps before entering OMANI or Irani. Yemeni can be determined by the number of spaces. They all spend rials.

10. It makes cents : ZINC. This was my last fill, and a real "D'OH" when I finally figured it out. (It makes sense, now!)

14. Hawaiian girl who adopted Stitch : LILO. A 2002 Disney film that was made into  a TV show, airing for only two seasons that ended in 2006.

15. Assume : POSIT. I just love that word!

16. Fishing, maybe : ASEA. Obligatory "A" word.

17. Bulky bovids : OXEN. Nice alliterative clue.

18. Oscar-winning composer Korngold : ERICH. Won for his 1938 score of the love theme of Robin and Marian in "The Adventures of Robin Hood."

19. Family : CLAN.

23. First name in talk shows : ELLEN. DeGeneres. She also played Dory in "Finding Nemo." Fun clip. 4:58

24. Big Ten or Big East org. : NCAA. National Collegiate Athletic Association.

32. Place for stop-and-go traffic? : REST AREA. Funny clue!

35. Asian currency name meaning "round" : YUAN. Looks pretty rectangular to me... (From C.C.: The coins used before paper currency were all "round".)

36. Plains native : OTO.

41. Box set component : DVD.

42. Selene's Roman counterpart : LUNA. Moon goddesses.

44. Blue moons and hen's teeth : RARITIES.

50. Traveling : AWAY.

51. Splenda rival : EQUAL.

60. Home of H. Matisse's "The Dance" : MOMA. Museum of Modern Art.

61. Scarlet fever cause : STREP.

62. Ambiance : AURA.

63. Leeway : ROOM.

64. Refrain from singing about a farm? : E-I-E-I-O. (Mr. McDonald's farm, that is!)

65. "Phooey!" : RATS.

66. Plato's promenade : STOA.

67. iPad pictures : ICONS.

68. David and Goliath's battlefield : ELAH.

Down:

1. Surprise your friends, wedding-wise : ELOPE. Fresh clue.

2. Point of resolution : PIXEL. I wonder if that is where the film studio Pixar got its name?

3. Intestine-related : ILEAL.

4. Notion : CONCEPT.

5. Vienna-based commercial gp. : OPEC. Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries. Originally based in Geneva, Switzerland.

6. '70s-'80s TV attic-dweller : MORK. from Ork.

7. "Fat chance!" : AS IF.

8. ___ Creed : NICENE. A profession of faith in Christianity, it was adopted by the first Ecumenical Council in Nicaea.

9. Cornell's city : ITHACA. In the Finger Lakes of New York.

10. Millard was his vice president : ZACHARY. Millard Fillmore and Zachary Taylor. Millard went on to become POTUS when Zachary died of cholera. There were suspicions that he was assassinated with poison, but that was disproved. His doctors probably had more to do with his death by treating him with ipecac, calomel, opium and quinine, bleeding him, and blistering him. Nice.

11. Man, for one : ISLE. This one threw me for a bit.

12. Almost : NEAR.

13. Slammer : CAN. Hands up for "pen" at first? If I had figured out that tricky ZINC clue, I might not have gotten hung up in this corner.

21. Early Christian year : ONE A.D. Very early.

22. ___ sale : TAG.

26. Stat for Justin Verlander : ERA. Earned Run Average. I feel lost when trying to decide between RBI or ERA.

27. Bandleader Brown : LES...and his "Band of Renown." 2:43

28. 1984 Olympic slalom champion : MAHRE. Phil Mahre and Bode Miller were my heroes when I was growing up.

29. "Truth in Engineering" automaker : AUDI.

30. Smooth, in a way : PAVE.

31. They may be tight or right : ENDS.

32. Massage deeply : ROLF. Learned this from crosswords.

33. Sewer's case : ETUI.

34. Unit of loudness : SONE.

38. Martin Sheen, to Emilio Estevez : DAD.

39. ___ pro nobis : ORA. "Pray for us."

40. Bathroom renovator : TILER.

43. Country band named for their home : ALABAMA. "Tennessee River" was their first #1 hit. 2:55

45. Drafting implement : T-SQUARE.

47. SADD concern : D.W.I. Driving While Intoxicated, refers to being inebriated on alcohol. DUI is another common term meaning "Driving Under the Influence" (of either drugs or booze.)

48. Japanese immigrant's grandchild : SANSEI. Issei, Nisei and Sansei are names used in Australia and North America to refer to first generation immigrants from Japan, their children, and their grandchildren, respectively

49. Sufi, e.g. : MYSTIC.

52. Garden variety : USUAL.

53. Corpuscle's passageway : AORTA. Because "artery" was too long and "vein" was too short. AORTA was juuuuust right!

54. Boxer's restraint : LEASH. Anyone get pulled into the boxing ring misdirection?

55. Origin : ROOT.

56. "Typee" sequel : OMOO. I'm going to read that one some day...

57. Three-layer treat : OREO.

58. Dusseldorf denial : NEIN.

59. USN noncoms : CPOs. Chief Petty Officer. What do you get when you have three CPOs? ;-D

Signing off, until next week!

Hugs,

Marti

Note from C.C.:

Here is a sweet photo of Max, 8-year-old grandson of our dear Spitzboov (Al). Max lost his mother Gretchen in January. Al told me they just held a memorial service for Gretchen last weekend.

Wednesday, May 23, 2013 Doug Peterson

Theme: Mental Wealth - each of the theme entries begins and ends with MI-ND as the unifier explains

 17A *Tiny time unit: MILLISECOND When I was younger it bothered me that there weren't a million milliseconds in a second. Now I've got better things to worry about.

 

 24A *Compromising position: MIDDLE GROUND I was nicely misdirected here - I wasn't thinking "a position of compromise" but something a little racier.

 39A *Prop for an emcee: MICROPHONE STAND A prop in the sense of something to lean on?

 

 51A *Loitered: MILLED AROUND Plenty of that going on at the conference/expo I'm at today.

 63A Mood, and a literal feature of the answer to each starred clue: FRAME OF MIND Ahh - the answers are "framed" by MI-ND. I'm in New Orleans this week, and in the "Big Easy" frame of mind.

Happy Wednesday everyone - Steve here with Doug Peterson's latest offering, a solo outing this time. Purists might quibble about one single-word and three two-word theme entries, but I'm fine with it. Let's see what else we've got.

Across:

1 Short sermon: HOMILY

7 Barrier along a bank: DIKE

11 Breakfast meat: HAM. Food!

14 Easy-entry baby outfit: ONESIE

15 “Happy Days” actress Moran : ERIN There's been some unflattering photos of Erin in recent years, but let's stick with the happier days

16 Skater Midori: ITO Famous for having jumped completely out of the rink at the 1991 World Championships and carried on still smiling.

19 “Brave __ World”: NEW. Aldous Huxley's best known opus.

20 Blues legend James: ETTA

21 Words with instant and hour: IN AN

22 Four Tops tune, e.g.: OLDIE. Crosses helped me out here.

27 “Sesame Street” music teacher since the show’s inception: BOB Crosses helped me out here too! Can I call a repeated blog comment a blecho?

 

30 Negative replies: NOS

31 Start a bridge hand: DEAL. Don't you shuffle before you deal?

32 Standoffish: ALOOF

34 Grifter’s game: CON

35 It’s all in your head: IDEA Sometimes it feels like all I've got in my head are dim, distant recesses and voices.

43 “Times of Your Life” singer Paul: ANKA

44 Popular Calif. destination: LAX. I'm not sure I'd call Los Angeles International Airport a popular destination for me - I'm in and out of that place far too often - I'll be back there on Thursday.

45 Buzzy instrument: KAZOO. Annoying instrument might be better!

46 Clump of dirt: CLOD. I like this word.

48 Tiki bar accessory: LEI

50 Capital of Saskatchewan?: ESS Because Canadian Dollar doesn't fit. Capital letter.

56 Coastal recess: INLET

57 Show willingness to compromise: BEND

58 Director Kazan: ELIA

62 Steeped brew: TEA

66 Turntable letters: R.P.M. I wonder how long it will be before we need the "archaic" convention for this?

67 Musical syllables: LA LA

68 “The Wrestler” star Mickey: ROURKE

69 Seventh Greek letter: ETA. ETTA, ELIA and ETA. Not quite a mini-theme, but I'll call these a grouping.

70 Bark excitedly: YELP

71 Orderly arrangements: ARRAYS

Down

1 Spot for an office: HOME. My office is at home so I didn't hesitate with this one.

2 Handling the job: ON IT

3 Hot sandwich: MELT Food! I've been moderating my diet since January, Currently I can only eat a melt vicariously though pictures.

4 Muhammad Ali’s faith: ISLAM

5 XXVI doubled: LII It amazes me how the Romans managed to do math - did they invent the abacus or was that the Greeks?

6 Unequivocal agreement: YES I DO. I had YES SIR at first which slowed things up a little.

7 Transferrable image: DECAL

8 Like a 7-Down, perhaps: IRONED ON Nice run-on!

9 Many holiday guests: KIN I was thinking along the "houseful" lines at first.

10 “Bewitched” mother: ENDORA. Crosses all the way for me with this one. I had not even a vague, dim-and-distant idea here.

11 Many a Mumbai man: HINDU. And there are many Mumbai men - the first time I stepped outside the airport there I couldn't believe the bedlam.

12 Picked up pizza, say: ATE IN Took me quite a while to see this

13 Tended the turf: MOWED

18 Phases out: ENDS

23 Nabokov title girl: LOLITA

25 A gumshoe often pays for it: INFO

26 Trait transmitter: GENE

27 The Crimson Tide: BAMA. I think this a great example of clue/answer symmetry - in this case both are nicknames.

28 Swedish actress Lena: OLIN Who is she? I need to bone up on my actors and actresses, they've caused me nothing but trouble today.

29 Strong lager: BOCK Ah - now we're back in my comfort zone. Originally German, now many varieties brewed around the world Prost!

33 Mythical source of wisdom: ORACLE. With a shameless plug for my employer, check out this clip of the Oracle Team USA America's Cup catamaran in San Francisco Bay - I've been playing this on a loop all day at the Oracle booth at the conference.

34 Longtime Aniston co-star: COX Jennifer's friend Courtney. Also Bruce Springsteen's friend in the Dancing in the Dark video.

36 Throw for a loop: DAZE

37 Grandson of Eve: ENOS Officially clueless. Me that is, not him.

38 Kerfuffles: ADOS. "Kerfuffle" is one of my favorite words.

40 Walk heavily: PLOD

41 Really enjoyed oneself: HAD A BALL

42 Shallot covering: SKIN I overlooked the blindingly obvious here and was trying to remember what the Lady of Shallott was covered with in Tennyson's ballad. When I dug up "robed in snowy white" from the inner memory recesses I was stumped. Then the penny dropped.

47 Threw: LET FLY

48 Unique: LONE

49 Writer Welty: EUDORA. ENDORA/EUDORA

51 British bishop’s topper: MITRE I didn't know these were unique to bishops from my homeland. That's one big hat though.

52 Hardly handy: INEPT

53 Peruvian grazer: LLAMA Twinned with BAMA. Lots of these today.

54 Update to reflect new roads, say: REMAP. It's a lot easier nowadays with satellites. It took 50 years to produce the first complete maps of the UK - they pretty much had to go right back again and start over.

55 Voice an objection: DEMUR

59 Pre-euro currency: LIRA. I need to wait now to see if this is LIRA or LIRE.

60 Dark and murky: INKY

61 Sugary drinks: ADES

64 “Norma __” : RAE. JEA - oops, not enough room for Marilyn.

65 On behalf of: FOR

That about wraps it up for today. Time to go and find something to eat - of course, that's not exactly difficult in NOLA!

Steve

Tuesday, May 21, 2013 Gareth Bain

Theme: Olive Garden - because they have the Never Ending Pasta Bowl. The endings of the themes are types of pasta, as the unifier in the SE reveals.

18A. *Sculling competition craft : RACING SHELL

28A. *"Support our troops" symbol : YELLOW RIBBON

47A. *Convenient neckwear : CLIP-ON BOWTIE

62A. *Disorder on the court : TENNIS ELBOW

55D. Food found in the shapes at the ends of the answers to starred clues : PASTA

A hungry Argyle here. I'll cut my comments short so I can get to breakfast. Eggs and spaghetti.

Across:

1. Co. with brown trucks : UPS. A Splynter shout out, first thing.

4. Eat with relish : SAVOR. Savor the flavor.

9. Brand-new barker : PUPPY. Aah!

14. Vietnamese holiday : TET

15. Yale or Root : ELIHU. Elihu Root was Secretary of State, 1905 – 1909.

16. Be in harmony : AGREE

17. Fiancé's last words? : "I DO"

20. "Toreador Song" opera : "CARMEN". 22. Cheers for Escamillo in 20-Across : OLÉs The glamorous toreador.

23. Zing : PEP

24. Annual fact book : ALMANAC

26. __ of office : OATH

33. Singer Guthrie : ARLO

36. Historic women's gp. : DAR. (Daughters of the American Revolution)

37. Comic actor Dudley : MOORE

38. Middling mark : CEE

39. New Jersey port with a bridge to Staten Island : BAYONNE

 

42. Slipshod : LAX

43. "Speak of the __!" : DEVIL

45. Prefix with -lithic : NEO. Neolithic, the last phase of the Stone Age.

46. Liquefy : MELT

51. Without repetition : ONCE

52. Develop stage fright, say : TENSE UP

56. "Me time" resort : SPA

59. Lady of Lisbon : DONA

61. Freeport's "Grand" island : BAHAMA

65. "Pygmalion" playwright's initials : GBS. George Bernard Shaw (1856–1950)

66. Els with tees : ERNIE. Bert is his caddie.

67. Big name in metal wrap : ALCOA

68. Permit : LET

69. Buddies, in slang : PEEPS. Your people, your posse.

70. British comedian Gervais : RICKY

71. History chapter : ERA

Down:

1. Seat of New York's Oneida County : UTICA. An area well known to some of our solvers.

2. Sewing machine lever : PEDAL

3. Thunder source : STORM

4. Cool and collected : SERENE

5. Hawkeye Pierce portrayer : ALAN ALDA. M*A*S*H

6. London's Old __ : VIC. (theatre)

7. Buckeye State : OHIO

8. Get close to "Empty" : RUN LOW

9. Fritter away the hours : PASS TIME

10. "Blech!" : "UGH!"

11. GRE practice : PREP. (Graduate Record Examinations)

12. One-named soccer immortal : PELE

13. Website with restaurant reviews : YELP. And more. LINK

19. Transmission choice : GEAR. This had me looking for a type of transmission, not just one gear.

21. BLT dressing : MAYO

25. Medium for some animators : CLAY. Claymation they call it.

27. "Game of Thrones" network : HBO

29. Maine campus town : ORONO

30. Tree trunk : BOLE

31. Like Sabin's polio vaccine : ORAL

32. Bank teller's cry : "NEXT!"

33. Outlet letters : AC/DC. Not both on the same outlet, I hope.

34. Lively dance : REEL

35. First name in jeans : LEVI

39. Brownies with brown sugar in place of chocolate : BLONDIES. Guess what? It's safe to google 'blondies image'.

40. Pond critter : NEWT. Needed perps to decide which critter it would be.

41. Small laptop : NOTEBOOK

44. Much-hyped NASDAQ event for Facebook : IPO. (initial public offering)

46. Fry basket material : MESH

48. Cpls. and sgts. : NCO's

49. Remain close to : BE NEAR

50. Sort of : IN A WAY

53. Soaring hunter : EAGLE

54. "Raw" pigment : UMBER. As opposed to 'burnt'?

56. Staircase part : STEP

57. Famille patriarch : PÈRE. in France.

58. Writing sister of Emily and Charlotte : ANNE

60. "That's __ need!" : ALL I

63. __ in the bud : NIP

64. Send covertly, as a dupe email : BCC. The original recipient won't see a copy has been sent.

Argyle

Monday, May 20, 2013 C.C. Burnikel

Theme: Fore! - Actually, it is right in the fairway. The three most common scores you can make on a hole of golf start the first three of four grid-spanning entries; the unifier being the last one.

17A. 1978 hit for the Commodores : "THREE TIMES A LADY". LINK (3:39)

23A. Safety feature at a dangerous intersection : FOUR-WAY STOP SIGN. Example, also called ALL WAY.

50A. False start punishment, in football : FIVE-YARD PENALTY

58A. As expected, or, golfwise, a hint to numbers found in 17-, 23- and 50-Across : PAR FOR THE COURSE

Argyle all teed up and ready to let'er rip. Starting a Monday with grid-spans is impressive and a good drive, unlike some of my real first tee drives. The fill is on par with a Monday; a couple of crunchy nuggets but no Naticks. Personally, I like the look of the two cheaters in the corners.

Across:

1. Finders' shouts : A-HAs

5. Maternity ward event : BIRTH

10. Formal title : SIR

13. Destroy : RUIN

14. Legend automaker : ACURA. This is the luxury vehicle division of Honda.

15. 1988 Cy Young winner Hershiser : OREL. You're not surprised to see baseball clues, are you?

20. Microbe : GERM

21. Minnesota Wild's org. : NHL. (National Hockey League)

22. Status __ : QUO

28. Boxer played by Will Smith : ALI

29. __ the finish : IN AT. (but not Orb)

30. Give one's word : VOW

31. Business bigwig : TITAN. The first gods in Greek mythology. Real biggies. (LINK)

33. Olympics sled : LUGE. Rosebud!

 

 

35. Mideast sultanate : OMAN

39. English : John :: Welsh : __ : EVAN. It is of Welsh and Hebrew origin. (seems an odd combo)

40. High male voice : TENOR

41. Pro __: in proportion : RATA

42. Like the night : DARK

43. Seek prey : HUNT

44. Agriculture goddess on the New Jersey state seal : CERES. Roman goddess. Yellowrocks can link this.

45. Bigger than med. : LGE.

47. Multinational coin : EURO

49. Scintilla : BIT

55. Hush-hush maritime org. : ONI. (Office of Naval Intelligence)(that's all I can tell you. Shh!)

56. AAA suggestion : RTE

57. Just hanging out : IDLE

64. Work on the deck : SWAB. Mopping.

65. Steamed : IRATE

66. The stuff of legends : MYTH

67. 25-Down student : ELI. 25D. New Haven sch. : YALE U.

68. Shows up : COMES

69. Gets the picture : SEES

Down:

1. Museum display : ART

2. "How's that again?" : "HUH?"

3. Instrument "played" for a hairbrush microphone user : AIR GUITAR. Ad for the microphone. LINK Order your's NOW!

4. Scornful look : SNEER

5. Role for Keaton and Kilmer : BATMAN

6. "Here," on Metro maps : [ICI] In France.

7. Mojito liquor : RUM. Dennis, are you drinking mojitos?

8. Former Senator Lott : TRENT. Mississippi Republican Senator, 1989 – 2007.

9. Discuss in detail : HASH OVER. I prefer my hash with eggs.

10. Note after fa : SOL

11. Kirkuk native : IRAQI
 

12. Excavated anew : REDUG

16. France's third most populous cité : LYON

18. "Desert Fox" Rommel : ERWIN. WW II tank commander in Africa.

19. Dog food brand : ALPO

23. Meant to happen : FATED

24. Tony whose #6 was retired by the Twins : OLIVA

26. Dumbfounded : STUNNED

27. Gave one's word : SWORE

32. Oft-sprained joint : ANKLE

34. Hopped out of bed : GOT UP

36. Bread with swirls stolen by Jerry in a classic "Seinfeld" episode : MARBLE RYE

37. What the dog did with the homework? : ATE IT

38. Foul, as weather : NASTY

40. Showy : THEATRIC

44. Time-share unit : CONDO

46. Greek street food : GYRO

48. Treats again, as a sprain : RE-ICES

50. Dandy fellows : FOPS. Are you a Dapper Dan man?

51. Blown away : IN AWE

52. Like YouTube videos gone wild : VIRAL. I'm in awe of some of them but always with a grain of salt.

53. Nostalgia-inducing : RETRO

54. Homecoming group : ALUMS

59. "Fidelity, Bravery, Integrity" org. : FBI

60. Nonkosher meat : HAM

61. Printemps follower : ÉTÉ. We're back in France...

62. Holy mlle. : STE.. ...again.

63. Puzzled comments : EH's I hope you are no longer puzzled.

 

 

Argyle

Boomer (C.C.'s husband)  and #6 Oliva

Oliva looking at Boomer's Hartland statues. The big guy on the left is former Twin Juan Berenguer. The background picture is Hall-of-Famer Bert Blyleven.

Sunday May 19, 2013 Alan Arbesfeld

Theme: "PG-13" - 13 entries all start with letters P & G.

23A. It's designed not to be noticeable : PLATE GLASS. Windows. Pretty little corner.

25A. Lawman who killed Billy the Kid : PAT GARRETT. The Sheriff.

30A. Ibsen play with music by Grieg : PEER GYNT. Hey, I even know his mother's name: ASE.

37A. Subject with no depth? : PLANE GEOMETRY. Fun clue.

50A. Former park near the Harlem River : POLO GROUNDS. NY Giants.

53A. Fun-loving female : PARTY GIRL. One of Boomer's favorite bowling centers was closed. They held a fun funeral yesterday.

68A. Where to see an inflation index? : PRESSURE GAUGE. Nothing economy related.

85A. Co-chair of John McCain's 2007-'08 presidential campaign : PHIL GRAMM. I missed him up with Bob Graham.

88A. View from Kuwait City : PERSIAN GULF.  Hi there, Doha Doc!

96A. Hardly luxury boxes : PEANUT GALLERY. This always reminds me of Dan Naddor.

102A. Military monetary scale : PAY GRADE

115A. Court quarterback : POINT GUARD. Basketball.

119A. Fictionary, e.g. : PARLOR GAME. Never played Fictionary.

You grokked the theme immediately, right? The title is so self-explanatory.

Despite the fact that there are no tricky to place letters (Q, Z, X or K) in the theme set, 13 entries take up huge space in the grid. Once you construct puzzles yourself, you'll know that this grid is for no rookies & weak entries like IERE (91A. French suffix with jardin) are needed to make the grid work. Jardinière (Gardener). Love Jardin du Luxembourg. Nice picnic spot.

 

Across:

1. Within : AMID

5. Earthy tone : OCHRE. Or Ocher.

10. In the neighborhood : LOCAL

15. Riot control weapon : MACE

19. Grabber's cry : MINE

20. Kansas City athlete : ROYAL. For Husker Gary.

21. Cole Porter classic from "Can-Can" : I LOVE PARIS. I really do.

26. Single : UNWED

27. Significant ones? : OTHERS

29. Bad-mouthed : DISSED

32. Rulers in a line : DYNASTS

36. -y plus -y? : IES. Just Y pluralized.

43. Dewlapped critter : IGUANA

47. Grafton's "__ for Alibi" : A IS

48. Bistro : CAFE

49. Battery that's 8.3 millimeters in diameter : AAAA

56. Env. directive : ATTN

57. Wise : SAGE

58. "Angela's Ashes" sequel : 'TIS. I bet Irish Miss & Lucina read both.

60. Jewish campus organization : HILLEL. What does this word mean?

61. Begets : SIRES. This is the year for O* horses. Orb, Oxbow.

63. Swollen : TURGID

65. Dummy : STUPE

67. Union in D.C., e.g. : STA

71. Support : AID

74. Vex : HAUNT

75. Political theorist Hannah : ARENDT. Forgot. We had her before.

76. Have a feeling : SENSE

78. Actress Dahl : ARLENE

81. School in Big D : SMU

82. River isles : AITS

84. "Don't look at me!" : NOT I

92. Scottish turndowns : NAES

94. PC key : ALT

95. Dud : TURKEY

100. Ticked off : MAD

101. Toledo time-outs : SIESTAS

107. Petulance : SPLEEN

111. More cool, man : NEATER

114. Caught congers : EELED

121. "You had your chance" : IT'S TOO LATE. Great entry.

122. Leadoff hitter's asset : SPEED. So, who do you think is MLB's best leadoff hitter right now?

123. Egyptian deity : AMON

124. Winter Palace resident : TSAR

125. Bold type : DARER. No BOLD for this answer!

126. Mitigated : EASED

127. Insurance policy contingency : LOSS

Down:

1. Energize : AMP UP

2. Pooh penner : MILNE

3. Amazed : IN AWE. I'm in awe of this guy's humor & curiosity.

Who Am I? Ask Manac!

4. Block : DETER

5. Web address ending : ORG

6. Ratio indicators : COLONS. I remember someone talked about Golden Ratio on the blog sometime ago. Forgot what it's about. Something to do with hourglass figures.

7. __ Regency : HYATT

8. Not at all patient : RASH

9. Ultimatum ending : ELSE

10. Fake it, in a way : LIP SYNC

11. Motor add-on? : OLA. Motorola.

12. Crash site? : COT

13. Part of DJIA: Abbr. : AVG

14. Result in : LEAD TO

15. Romans' 16-Down : MARS. And 16. Greeks' 15-Down : ARES. Skillful placement.

17. Ticket : CITE

18. Founded, on signs : ESTD (Established)

22. Rainbow maker : PRISM

24. Trim : EDGING

28. Nutrition letters : RDA. Old. Now it's RDI.

31. Quite a spell : YEARS

33. They follow springs by about seven days : NEAPS. Happy to learn it.

34. Former Belgian camera brand : AGFA

35. One looking ahead : SEER

37. Yearning ones : PINERS. 69. One wishing for a real-life "undo" button? : RUER. And 90. Poker? : NUDGER. Two ER is enough.

38. Cause of some '60s trips : LSD. So glad I did not get into drugs.

39. Giant rival : EAGLE. Man, football!

40. Follow : TAIL

41. Outback order : RARE. This is the only beefsteak I like.

42. Dixie group? : Y'ALL

43. "No thanks" : I PASS

44. "I follow" : GOT IT

45. Extreme : ULTRA

46. Exceptional : A-ONE

47. What "8" may stand for : AUGUST. So simple. 8 is a lucky number in China/Japan.

51. Like granola : OATEN

52. Mounting aid : STIRRUP

54. Hood with a rod : THUG

55. "Egad!" : YIPES

59. Auteur's starting point : IDEE. But "Auteur" is an English word, despite its French root.

62. Smack-dab : SPANG. Wow, never heard of this word before.

64. Largest of the Mariana Islands : GUAM

65. Cruel type : SADIST

66. All, in scores : TUTTI. Gimme for Pas de chat & Jazzbumpa.

70. Really cool : GNARLY

71. Actress Aimée : ANOUK

72. Agave fiber : ISTLE. Learned from doing Xword.

73. Respect and then some : DEIFY

74. Oscar winner Mirren : HELEN. Truly beautiful. Witty too.

77. Ga. Tech grad : ENGR

78. "Edith, you're __": Archie Bunker : A PIP

79. South Korea's first president : RHEE. Same character as Chinese Lee/Li, as in Ang Lee/Jet Li.

80. Former capital of Italy : LIRA. I bet this clue would stump the Pope (Call me, maybe?). Capital refers to "money" here. Euro now.

81. Process, as ore : SMELT

83. Skewered Thai dish : SATAY. Do you like peanut sauce?

86. Auréole wearer : ANGE. Angel. Auréole is French for "halo" I suppose. What's their AURA then?

87. "The Valachi Papers" author Peter : MAAS. Vaguely familiar. He  also wrote the biography Frank Serpico.

89. Hammer home? : EAR. Hammer bone.

93. Bad-mouth : SLANDER

97. Be of __: help : USE TO

98. Self-important authority figure : TIN GOD

99. Computer terminal? : ESE. Computerese.

100. 1986 Best Actress Matlin : MARLEE. No idea. For Children of a Lesser God. She's deaf.

102. One of three 1994 Peace Nobelists : PERES (Shimon). The other two are Rabin and Arafat.

103. Fit for a king : REGAL

104. It shares its airport shuttle with National : ALAMO. Oh, car rental.

105. Distributions to DJs : DEMOs

106. Idyllic places : EDENS

107. Jutting shoreline formation : SPIT

108. Kitchenware : POTS

109. Alaska senator Murkowski : LISA. Won via write-in votes.

110. __'acte : ENTR

112. Recess near an altar : APSE

113. Spanish snack : TAPA

116. Form follower : ULA

117. Rhine tributary : AAR

118. Way to get there: Abbr. : RTE

120. Perplexing : ODD

Happy Birthday to dear Grumpy, who was once very active on the blog. Grumpy's posts were always cheerful & funny. Click here to see more of Grumpy, Sallie & Spitzboov.

Grumpy & his lovely wife Wilda

Also want to share with you this wonderful link Bob sent to me. Be sure to watch in full screen. Bob has also been with the blog for a long long time. He rarely comments, but he reads our posts/comments and writes to me at times.

C.C.