Monday, November 25, 2013 Matt Skoczen

Theme: Small retail stores - SHOP can be added to the last word of the starred entries.

17. *Fluffy carnival treat : COTTON CANDY. Candy shop.

23. *"West Side Story" film actress : NATALIE WOOD. Her death is still shrouded in controversy. Wood shop.

40. *"You first," facetiously : AGE BEFORE BEAUTY. Source. Beauty shop.

50. *Favorite in the classroom : TEACHER'S PET. Song(2:48). Pet shop.

64. Discussing the job with colleagues, and what the last words of the answers to starred clues seem to be doing : TALKING SHOP

Argyle here. I doubt these stores will be swamped on Black Friday. Four long entries and one grid spanner: good start for the week. Still, there may be some nits.

Across:

1. "Drat!" : "DARN!"

5. On the agenda : SLATED

11. __-at-ease : ILL

14. Melville's "Typee" sequel : "OMOO"

15. Writer de Beauvoir : SIMONE. Ahead of her time and maybe a little early in the week, too.

16. Mop & __: cleaning brand : GLO. (for floors)

19. Restroom, briefly : LAV. Oops, not LOO.

20. "Attack, Rover!" : "SIC 'EM!"

21. Sworn __: given the oath of office for : IN AS

22. First-class : A-ONE

26. Free of charge : GRATIS

30. "Tut!" kin : "TSK!"

31. Puerto __ : RICO. Maria, played by Natalie Wood in West Side Story, was Puerto Rican.

32. Slanted print: Abbr. : ITAL.

36. Mark who created Tom Sawyer : TWAIN

43. '70s-'80s Egyptian president Anwar : SADAT

44. Mideast ruler : EMIR. Also, emeer, amir, ameer.

45. 38-Down and others: Abbr. : RTEs. 38D. Fla.-to-Cal. highway : I TEN

46. "Proud Mary" band, for short : CCR. (Creedence Clearwater Revival)

48. Has had enough : IS DONE

56. Wartime honoree : HERO

57. Spanish painter Francisco : GOYA. Despite La Maja Desnuda and La Maja Vestida, most of his work is dark and somber.

58. First Greek letter : ALPHA

63. Tax-collecting agcy. : IRS

66. __ de Janeiro : RIO. I wonder if they have cotton candy at their carnival?

67. Claim without proof : ALLEGE

68. Floor square : TILE

69. Room for a TV : DEN

70. Ruined, with "up" : MESSED

71. Go in snow : SLED. Time to shine up those runners.

Down:

1. Medical pros : DOCs

2. Mine, to Marcel : À MOI

3. Campus military org. : ROTC. (Reserve Officers' Training Corps)

4. Promissory __ : NOTE. Fancy term for an IOU.

5. Taxpayer ID : SSN

6. On the up and up : LICIT

7. Appliance brand : AMANA

8. Melodious : TONAL

9. Breaks up with a lover : ENDS IT

10. Susan of "The Partridge Family" : DEY

11. Domed Arctic home : IGLOO

12. Southwestern grassy plain : LLANO

13. Thought the world of : LOVED

18. Prefix with present : OMNI

22. Singsongy "This is an uncomfortable moment" : "AWKWARD"

24. "Yeah, right!" : "AS IF"

25. Direction in which el sol rises : ESTE

26. Mardi __ : GRAS

27. Capital of Latvia : RIGA

28. Scored 100 on : ACED

29. Cash crop for the southern American colonies : TOBACCO

33. From head to __ : TOE

34. Elbow's locale : ARM

35. Flower necklace : LEI

37. Car : AUTO

39. Wall St. index : NYSE. (New York Stock Exchange)

41. Engrave on glass, say : ETCH

42. Soft cheese : BRIE

47. Entertain lavishly : REGALE

49. Guys-only party : STAG

50. Word with party or degree : THIRD

51. Willies-inducing : EERIE

52. Pyromaniac's crime : ARSON

53. Diner basketful : ROLLS

54. Comedian Wanda : SYKES. She's not everyone's cup of tea so I won't link her.

55. Baseball Hall of Famer Satchel : PAIGE. He pitched in the Negro leagues and in Major League Baseball. Quite the character.

59. D-Day transports : LSTs. (landing ship, tank)

60. Talk show pioneer Donahue : PHIL. Married to Marlo Thomas as we found out the other day.

61. Golfer's target : HOLE

62. Copied : APED

64. Scottish hat : TAM

65. Beatty of film : NED. "a chubby, cherubic character actor who rarely gets the girl, but almost always has the audience's sympathy, even when he plays bad guys."

Argyle

Sunday November 24, 2013 Mark Feldman

Theme: "Cooked Books" - Each theme entry sounds like a well-known novel. (Added later:  I did not catch the theme fully. Please click here to read Orange's explanation. Two of the words in each book title rhyme with the original words.)

25A. Tolstoy novel about game hunting? : BOAR AND GEESE. "War and Peace".

 

31A. London novel about gentlemen coming to blows? : BRAWL OF THE MILD. "Call of the Wild".

 

52A. Salinger novel about an alien abduction? : SNATCHER IN THE SKY. "Catcher in the Rye"

70A. Dreiser novel about a prominent British prince? : MISTER HARRY. "Sister Carrie".

82A. Brontë novel about the rigors of ballet training? : SMOTHERING TIGHTS.  "Wuthering Heights".

104A. Forster novel about the mysterious death of Tutenkhamen? : A TOMB WITH A CLUE. "A Room with a View". King Tut.

115A. Steinbeck novel about a spiritual vegan? : OF RICE AND ZEN. "Of Mice and Men".

Did I miss any extra layer that further coheres the theme? 

When I read the puzzle title "Cooked Books", I thought it might be an anagram. Consulted with our Oracle Argyle, he said "It doesn't pay to analyze puns too much".

I'm eager to read what you guys have to say.

Across:

1. Skye cap : TAM. Saw this clue before, so an easy start.

4. Long yarn : SAGA. Bob, who reads but not comments on our blog, sent me these pictures last night. It's carved from a single tree trunk.  Total length: 12.286 meters. Click here to for more. 4 years. Talk about patience.

8. Wide open areas? : SPACES

14. Fix after an outage, as a clock : RE-SET

19. Genetics lab study : RNA

20. Yemen neighbor : OMAN

21. Old Spanish sailing force : ARMADA

22. Small egg : OVULE

23. Fingers : IDs. Verb.

24. __ the Merciless: Flash Gordon foe : MING

27. Most texts : MESSAGES. Do you texting  or calling your kids, PK?

29. Informer : RAT

30. Intimidated : DAUNTED

35. Assembled : MET

36. Computer acronym : ASCII

37. Get : SEE

38. DDE rival : AES (Adlai Ewing Stevenson)

40. "__ Miniver" : MRS

43. Murder mystery staple : CORPSE

45. Credit (to) : ASCRIBE

49. Court happening : TRIAL

51. Spot for a pad : KNEE

56. Good, in Hebrew : TOV.  "Mazel tov!"

57. Clear : RID

58. Bygone bringers of blocks : ICEMEN

59. Spanish appetizer : TAPA. I like Korean appetizers (Banchan). I like all pickled stuff.

63. Stir up : WAKEN

65. Tinted : HUED

68. Despicable : BASE

69. "What a shame!" : ALAS

72. Big name in elevators : OTIS

73. Daffy : BATS

74. NFL pick sixes, e.g. : INTS (Interceptions)

75. Red dye : EOSIN. Rooted in Eos, the Greek goddess of the dawn. Hence red, I suppose.

 76. Guy dolls : KENS

77. Check : ARREST. One-word clue can be very tricky.

79. Belief: Suff. : ISM

80. Cleo's undoing : ASP

87. One may overlook a loch : BRAE

91. Perfume with myrrh, say : CENSE. Valid word, as Yellowrocks showed us once. Please ignore those snarky anons, Kathy, do tell you about your visit to Israel. What's their typical breakfast? Do they have bagel shops there?

92. Crowd __ : PLEASER

93. Crowd : THRONG

95. More than feasts (on) : ODs

96. Pancake-making facilitator : MIX

97. Photo __ : OPS

100. Swiss mathematician : EULER

101. Email attachment, briefly : PDF

109. Gulf War missile : PATRIOT

113. Former president of Pakistan : ZIA. Wiki said he's Pakistan's longest-serving head of state, ruling eleven years.

114. Lozenges, e.g. : SOOTHERS

118. "__.0": Comedy Central show : TOSH. Never watched the show. Hosted by Daniel Tosh.

119. Bad opening? : DYS. Like Dysfunctional.

120. Booze : SAUCE. Drunk.

121. R or X : RATING

122. Curved molding : OGEE

123. Not leave, with "up" : USE

124. Corners, in a way : TREES

125. Preoccupy : OBSESS

126. "O, let me not be mad" speaker : LEAR. I bet no Shakespearean clue can stump our Keith. He and Misty are both professors at the University of California, Irvine, though I don't think they've met each other.

127. Times in want ads : PMs

Down:

1. Sculpt, as hedges : TRIM BACK

2. "Winesburg, Ohio" author Sherwood : ANDERSON. Never heard of this guy or the book. 

3. Total drubbing : MASSACRE

4. Horn of Africa natives : SOMALIS

5. Baja buddy : AMIGO

6. Crooks, in slang : GANEFS. Learned from doing xwords.

7. Unsettled feelings, in Frankfurt : ANGSTE. New word to me. Quite close to our Angst.

8. Buffalo hockey player : SABRE.  I don't think I know any player from Buffalo Sabres, Splynter.

9. Tournament kickoff, perhaps : PRO-AM

10. Cremona craftsman : AMATI. Violin.

11. Beetle, for one : CAR.

12. Author LeShan : EDA

13. Bank deposit : SAND. Great clue.

14. Scoundrel : ROGUE

15. Affair : EVENT

16. Haggis ingredient : SUET. Suet is beef fat. Lard is pig fat.

17. "What __ is new?" : ELSE

18. Began a round, with "off" : TEED

26. Farm mom : DAM

28. Lift : SWIPE

32. __ wave : HEAT

33. Den : LAIR

34. Actress Mazar : DEBI

39. House mate?: Abbr. : SEN. Senate. I was stumped.

40. Pair, as two odd socks : MIS-MATE. This is the clue & Answer dupe (mate/MATE) Anon-T referred the other day.

41. Earns copiously : RAKES IN

42. Cunning : SLYNESS

44. Approx. : EST

46. Cliffside debris : SCREE

47. Violin parts : CHIN RESTS

48. Great American Ball Park player : RED

49. Cannabis compound : THC

50. Nike rival : REEBOK. Afrikaans spelling of rhebok, some kind of gazelle.

53. Sure to end badly : NO-WIN

54. "Stop, sailor!" : AVAST

55. Considerable : TIDY

59. Hot stuff : TABASCO. I bet Lucina has a bottle in her fridge.

60. Fearful : ALARMED

61. Arts supporters : PATRONS

62. Furniture and fixtures, say : ASSETS

64. Gold meas. : KTs (Karats)

65. Eats : HAS

66. Dickens' Heep : URIAH

67. "The Hat Makes the Man" artist : ERNST (Max)

70. Wee bit : MITE

71. Pal, slangily : HOMIE

78. Lady, e.g. : SHE

79. Supermarket franchise initials : IGA

81. L.A. hours : PST. I think Rich does read our blog, Bill G, probably not every day, as he's extremely busy with all the puzzle submissions/editing/reader mails and other newspaper stuff we're not aware of.

83. Turning meas. : RPM

84. Hip bones : ILIA

85. Call in a bakery : NEXT

86. Develop : GROW

87. "Scottish Fantasy" composer : BRUCH (Max). Jazzbumap knows him. Not me. German composer. Died in 1920.

 

88. In a ball : ROLLED UP

89. Arterial problem : ANEURYSM

90. Exits : EGRESSES

94. Subtly mottled, as fabric : HEATHER. Oh I know the pattern. Just don't know it has a specific name.

98. Starter's gun : PISTOL

99. Easy mark : STOOGE

101. Damage, so to speak : PRICE. I don't get this one. Can you give me a sentence to show how these two are equivalents?

102. Cubes in the kitchen : DICES. Verb "Cubes"!

103. Antagonist : FOE

105. Harriet's TV spouse : OZZIE

106. Appearances : MIENS. Also learned from doing xwords.

107. Beatle trademark : BANGS

108. Old Testament prophet : HOSEA. Needed crossing help.

109. Put up : POST

110. At a distance : AFAR

111. Faithful : TRUE

112. Poi source : TARO

116. Collar : NAB

117. Sot's problem : DTS

I'm excited to show you a recent picture of Agnes, our loving and witty Irish Miss. She said:

"I am on the right next to my sister, Eileen. This was taken Friday night (Nov 22, 2013)  at my sister Peggy's house, celebrating her 6 year old granddaughter's Luau-themed birthday party."

Notice her rings? Read here for details. She has since added a new ring.

Saturday, Nov 23rd, 2013, John Lieb & David Quarfoot

Theme: None

Words: 72 (missing F,J,Q,Z)

Blocks: 29

     Started out really well, but this one crushed me and good - nothing really difficult word-wise, but the cluing was so vague that red-letters came up early, and even that wasn't good enough. John Lieb has appeared here before; C.C. mentioned David Quarfoot as one of the top themeless constructors. 

John Lieb

David Quarfoot

Pinwheel grid design of 9-letter and 8-letter corners, and nothing longer.  No spanners, and as discussed before, when you get a 15-letter answer, it usually opens the puzzle up a bit.  Some answers of note;

1. Holiday portmanteau : TURDUCKEN - The combination of a turkey, duck and chicken, one stuffed inside the other - have to say I have not tried this dish yet....

13. Kyoto-based entertainment company : NINTENDO - They make the Wii console, too - I tried the golf, and it just frustrated me; bowling was more enjoyable

35. Minor obstacle? : BABY GATE - Oh, so good~! Took a long time for anything in the south to take shape for me....now, if I can just work this thingy here, and then slide that over there....

63. Stud revelations : HOLE CARDS - Poker; oh, THAT kind of stud; it annoys me when I get into a mindset, then stay trapped inside - I was thinking 2x4 framing lumber and males the whole time.  Hole Cards are the two you're ( usually ) dealt face down to start a hand

$F%X&#ONWARD~!

ACROSS:

10. Turned up : ON END - ugh, that kind of turned "up"

15. Hoops situation involving a bonus free throw : ONE AND ONE - Basketball, when a player is fouled (?) - not my game

16. Odds, essentially : RATIO

17. Tennessee's state reptile : BOX TURTLE - Aww

18. Pointless : INANE

19. Mental health org. : APA - well, I figured it was an "A - A" group, the "P" is for Psychological, and here's a music link

20. Longest-serving Dodger coach Manny : MOTA - echo (echo)(echo) "...now batting - Manny (Manny)(Manny) Mota (Mota)(Mota)

21. Puts forth : POSITS

22. Bucks : GELT - Money slang

24. Like some sins : MORTAL - Yay~! I got one~!

26. Holiday serving : LEG - Oh so vague....I can think of a better clue for this;

27. Dental crown alternative : ONLAY

29. People magazine Sexiest Man Alive of 1999 : GERE - I started with gOre - Um, that's not right

30. Harmonia's daughter, in Greek myth : INO

31. Vituperate : CURSE AT

34. Menu option : UNDO - Just had this - SEND, EDIT, VIEW, FILE, etc

35. Program, perhaps : BOOKLET

38. Chaac, to Mayans : RAIN GOD -various spellings

40. Looking frightened : ASHY

41. Pretend, in a way : LIP SYNC

43. NCAA year-end games system : BCS - Bowl Championship Series - the Wiki; My buddy Mike is in Philly this weekend, I worked too late to go; next weekend he starts a whirlwind tour of the East Coast NFL and college games to promote his new "Quarterback Touchdown" game

44. Word with sugar or spice : MILL - Sugar Mill, Spice Mill - took forever to see this; again, I got stuck on Spice GIRL, and Sugar PILL

45. Put in : ELECT - Ugh, that kind of  "PUT"

49. Slangy agreement : YAH - Yea, Yep, just keep at it

50. Common hand span : OCTAVE - I am bruised on the forehead from the V-8 can; the hand can span the keys of a keyboard, which is an octave ( 13 keys )

53. Catch in pots : EELS - DAR~! Seen it before, couldn't remember

54. Receives : GREETS

56. Shakespearean "over there" : YONDer - Poetic

58. Go on : YAK

59. Doddering : ANILE - SEnile, yes, Anile, no.  Denile is not just a river in Egypt

60. Cut : EDITED OUT

62. Sign of emptiness : TO LET - as in apartments for rent; the one at mom's house has finally been filled, and the guy seems OK - let's see what happens Dec 1

64. Toponymic dairy items : EDAMS - toponymic meaning name derived from a place; in this case, the Dutch cheese

65. Summer TV offering with a "Jaws of Steel Collection" DVD : SHARK WEEK - I am pleased to say this one did actually come to me, sort of a logical educated WAG; I do not care for the show; not a big fan of sharks - they are cool, but I like

DOWN:

1. Lesser Antilles island : TOBAGO

2. Sealed : UNOPEN - meh

3. Old drugstore chain : REXALL - I tried READES, and it got me part-way there

4. "Can't Help Lovin' __ Man" : DAT

5. Word on a bill : UNUM - E Pluribus Unum - Latin; 'One from Many'

6. Storage medium : CD-ROM

7. Actor Yaphet __ of "Midnight Run" : KOTTO - also Parker in Alien (on the right in the image) - what was the cat's name?  Anyone?

8. Swell : ENLARGE - I started with ENGORGE - say, where's my mind?

9. Formerly : NEE

10. Yankee foe : ORIOLE - baseball for C.C.

11. Some flatbreads : NANS

12. Selling using servers : ETAILING - "E" word; online shopping, and Cyber Monday happens to be "BLACK MONDAY" at UPS

14. Acts altruistically : DOES GOOD

21. Bash, affectedly : "PAR-TAY~!"

23. Tasteless : TACKY - like the preceeding answer?

25. Rushes : TEARS - tAres, not tEErs

28. Co-star of Steve in "The Magnificent Seven" : YUL

32. They may be dug up : RELICS - had it in, took it out, put it back in

33. Circus elevator : STILT - D-oh~!  Took W-A-A-A-A-Y too long to get

34. Godfather, sometimes : UNCLE

36. Academy affirmation : OSCAR NOD - great clue/answer

37. 1985 #1 hit for Ready for the World : OH SHEILA - I grew up with the song, but didn't recall the artist's name

39. Like Vivaldi's "Spring" : IN E - put in the "IN" and wait....

42. "Imagination Taking Shape" sloganeer : PLAY-DOH - Great slogan, too~!

44. Church compositions : MOTETS

46. Kiddie lit character with a detachable tail : EEYORE - Learning moment; I did not know this

47. Composer Debussy : CLAUDE

48. Reproachful warning : TSK TSK - my biggest "MEH" of the day

51. "There!" : VOILA - I definitely did not get my "Ta-DA~!!" on this puzzle

52. Join : ENTER

55. He or I, e.g. : ELEMent - way cool clue that did not fool me; Helium and Iodine

57. Sea level? : DECK - I had DOCK, which stumped me for the longest time; I was thinking dry land - sailors (tars, etc.,) might have been on the ship's deck wavelength

60. Half-hearted responses : EHs

61. Crow cousin : DAW

Splynter

Friday, November 22, 2013, Steve Blais

Theme: Where did I hide my computer?

Each of the four sets of words has the names of a computer manufacturing companies overlapping the adjacent fill, with a reveal.  The first row and the last row each result in two companies, the middle two rows use all three clues to create a single company.. You have to see a puzzle as row 1 through 15 to understand the reveal. This was one of the hardest themes in a long time for me to suss out even though I said earlier I love run-ons, as well as puns and anagrams. To use up 5 complete rows (1/3 of the grid) for a theme is awesome. I am always surprised when a theme starts with 1A, but Steve has made us work even on his Monday and Tuesday efforts. This is his 11th LAT published in less than 2 years, along with a NYT in April. I missed blogging his only other Friday when our Steve took over while I was out for the New Year holiday a couple of months ago. Lots of nice fill like EL PASO,  EVEN SO, LETHAL,  MINGUS, SESAME, SPOT ON, DAMAGES,  SEE TO IT, HIGHNESS, LEMONADE, DATE STAMP and GENE AUTRY.

1A. Brother of Raúl and Juanita : FIDEL along with 6A. Purple candle scent : LILAC. This gives us DELL computers. Living in So.Fla, Fidel was a gimme. 11A. Poetic time reference : ERE. ACER.

20A. Calendar entry : EVENT and 21A. Kyrgyzstan city : OSH and 22A. Construction beams : I-BARS. TOSHIBA. If you want to know more about OSH, this is a LINK.

58A. Source of much Indian tea : ASSAM. A very productive REGION. 60A. Sky light? : SUN. How cute is this for a three letter fill. 61A. Pumpkin, e.g. : GOURD. SAMSUNG.

69. Diddy ditty : RAP. Another cute three letter one. Has Sean Combs changed his name again, or only P. Diddy? 70A. Arraignment answers : PLEAS. APPLE. Arraignment is the first step of any criminal case where you say guilty or not guilty. 71A. "That's all __, dude": "Not my fault" : ON YOU. SONY.

and the unifier,  which shows you the name of the computer companies are chopped in pieces (hacked)

40A. Web concerns ... and based on six familiar names hidden in rows 1, 4, 12 and 15 of this puzzle grid, what the black squares in those rows symbolize : COMPUTER HACKERS. Interesting theme which certainly did not help solve any of the puzzle.

Across:

14. Tequila source : AGAVE.

15. Month in Madrid : ENERO. Spanish January.

16. Sprinkling on French fries? : SEL. French salt.

17. Uses as a reference : CITES.

18. Many pets : MUTTS. Mongrels, apparently shortened from muttonheads.

19. For example : SAY.

24. Julia's "Ocean's Twelve" role : TESS. 

25. Legend of the links : SNEAD. Slammin' Sammy, still three victories ahead of Tiger.

27. Old __, Connecticut : LYME. Near where I grew up.

28. "They went __ in a Sieve, they did": Lear : TO SEA. A shout out for our own OwenKL, as Mr. Lear was a renowned limercist and poet. UPDATE: It appears Mr. Lear may have started all this Limerick stuff. LINK.

30. Logan of "60 Minutes" : LARA. A South African raised journalist involved in controversy.

32. Words in a dish : À LA. Mode anyone?

34. Relinquish : CEDE.

36. Jazz double bassist Charlie : MINGUS. Fun fill.  I defer to JzB to discuss this ARTIST. (5:03)

43. West Texas city : EL PASO.

44. Approaching : NIGH. Basically near. Did you all watch the Professor Proton, Bill Nye the science guy episode of TBBT?

45. Tiny complaint : NIT. marti?

46. Uno y dos y tres : SEIS. One plus two plus three equals 6, but more Spanish.

48. Migratory birds : GEESE.

50. Oaf : LOUT.

53. Some Staples employees : TECHS.

55. Bear whose bed was too hard :  PAPA. Goldilocks, where are you?

62. Moo __ pork : SHU.

63. Graduated series : SCALE. On a scale of 1 to 10 what did you think?

65. 10th-century Holy Roman emperor : OTTO I. Constructors like his vowels.

66. Mountain end : EER. Mountaineer.

67. Increases, with "up" : RAMPS.

68. "It Wasn't All Velvet" memoirist : TORME. The Velvet Fog. JAZZ.

Down:

1. Aspect : FACET.

2. "Just tell me" : I GIVE. Guess who gave me all the answers to the test? I do not know, just tell me. I give.

3. Librarian's device : DATE STAMP. Nice long fresh fill. Not to be confused with the mark you get put on your hand when you are out at the club getting hammered.

4. Nevertheless : EVEN SO.

5. Out of concern that : LEST.

6. Summer quaff : LEMONADE. Thanks Steve for the major shout out on a Friday. Steve B. comments at puzzle blogs often.

7. Taken : IN USE.

8. More than harmful : LETHAL.

9. Works on walls : ART. Not re-wallpapering.

10. Mozart's "__ fan tutte" : COSI. A tribute (?) to Women? LINK.

11. David Sedaris work : ESSAY.  This GUY.

12. Lack faith in a truce, maybe : RE-ARM.

13. "Family Ties" mother : ELYSE. The lovely Meredith BAXTER.

23. Space on a form : BLANK.

25. "I want results!" : SEE TO IT. My mental PICTURE. (0:15).

26. Lawsuit goal : DAMAGES.

29. "__ Me While I Kiss This Guy": book of misheard lyrics : SCUSE. My unknown of the day; the lyric is from Jimi Hendrix; he was kissing the sky.

31. Loaded, in Limoges : RICHE. French, like our friend the Nouveau riche.

32. Big club : ACE. Or big spade, or big heart or big diamond. I guess this does not conflict with the hidden ACER above.

33. Cyberchuckle : LOL. So many old people thought this meant 'lots of love'.

35. Predatory bird : ERN.

37. Singer and longtime owner of baseball's Angels : GENE AUTRY. My favorite singing COWBOY.

38. Sch. 30 miles south of Providence : URI. University of Rhode Island.

39. Bygone boomer : SST. The Concorde.

41. Elbows to nibble : PASTA.

42. Royal title : HIGHNESS. You think because they sat on thrones?

47. Bagel choice : SESAME. Sez who?

49. Perfect : SPOT ON.

50. __ tag : LASER.  The reigning CHAMPS? (0:35).

51. "Ulysses" actor Milo : O'SHEA. He died this year. LINK.

52. Take by force : USURP.

54. Apology ending : CULPA. Latin: Mea Culpa.

56. Teaser : PROMO.

57. Parting mot : ADIEU. More French.

59. Dealership amt. : MSRP. Manufacturer's Suggested Retail Price.

61. Attend : GO TO. Where did you go to college? Was it in....

64. Western st. : CALifornia?

Nope I am a UConn Husky. And a tired one at that, having conducted 8 real estate closings yesterday. Well we are sneaking up on Thanksgiving and my time to thank C.C., each and everyone of you, and each person who has contributed over the years. It is great fun to do this for those who read and discuss the puzzles and the perspectives. I also want to thank Argyle who is amazing, melissa, Ron and Steve, who are fun and funny,  marti who is divine and Splynter who is incomparable. Also Mr. Blais, thank you also for the puzzle. Finally, 50 years ago, I was coming back to my dorm room after an intramural football game, when I saw the events in Dallas. I remember it like yesterday.

Lemonade

Thursday, November 21, 2013 MaryEllen Uthlaut

Theme: "I Kid You Not!"

The unifier can be found in the middle of the grid today:

40-Across. Troubled youth literally hiding in each answer to a starred clue : CRAZY MIXED UP KID. Today is anagram day, with four of them hidden in common phrases.

18-Across. *Filet mignon dish named for a goddess : STEAK DIANE.

24-Across. *Emergency supplies : FIRST AID KIT. or FIRST AID KIT. It would be better to avoid this type of ambiguity, but there really are no other common 11-letter phrases that use that particular sequence. And you really want to have all the anagram possibilities.

52-Across. *Pipe-smoking royal : OLD KING COLE.

63-Across. *Fictional rank above Padawan : JEDI KNIGHT.

Just missing the "Q" for a pangram. Did it seem especially easy for a Thursday?  Some of the clues were a little tricky, but I found the fill to be very Monday-level, with nary an obscure name in the bunch!

Across:

1. "Are you serious?" : WHAT. (Usually pronounced as WHAAAA??)

5. Handicapper's concern : ODDS.

9. Class __ : CLOWN. I bet CrossEyedDave was the class clown in his school.

14. Doth possess : HATH.

15. Los Angeles, for one : PORT.

16. High nest : AERIE.

17. Opposed party : ANTI.

20. Jet sounds : ROARS.

22. Proactiv target : ACNE.

23. Was in the vanguard : LED.

27. Dog in Baum stories : TOTO.

28. Dangerous fly : TSE TSE.

33. Puffin kin : AUK. Seems they have a playful side, too.

36. Sizable music combo : NONET.

39. Planted : SOWN.

44. Fable : TALE.

45. Makes the scene : COMES.

46. I trouble? : EGO.

47. Slob's napkin : SLEEVE.

50. Spheres studied by Mendel : PEAS. From them, he eventually developed his "Laws of Inheritance."

58. Tailless primate : APE.

61. Explorer on Nick Jr. : DORA. The Explorer.

62. Art support : EASEL.

67. Pro __ : RATA.

68. Where the action is : ARENA.

69. Former Neet rival : NAIR.

70. Similar : AKIN.

71. Face-off locales : RINKS. Hockey face-offs. Hey, Splynter!

72. Low joint : KNEE.

73. Wings, for instance : BAND. Paul McCartney's band on the run...

Down:

1. Marina structure : WHARF.

2. Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum city : HANOI.

3. Rose essence : ATTAR.

4. Need of a 53-Down : THIRST. and 53-Down. Solution for 4-Down : DRINK.

... of 12-Down. Riesling product : WINE? ...or 48-Down. Stoli and SKYY : VODKAS??

5. Brief missions? : OPS. (Operations.)

6. Hi and Lois's daughter : DOT. Her twin brother's name is "Ditto."

7. Foreboding : DREAD.

8. Cupboard arrangement : STACK.

9. Officers-to-be : CADETS.

10. Floral wreath : LEI.

11. Word-of-mouth : ORAL.

13. Aid factor : NEED.

19. Grow together : KNIT...as, a broken bone.

21. Rock-filled : STONY.

25. It can be viewed with a scanning tunneling microscope : ATOM. Invented by Roher and Binnig. Read more about how it works here.

26. Column style : IONIC. I always want to put "doric" first. Hi Dudley!

29. Paranormal ability : ESP.

30. Tip for a croupier : TOKE. We have had this recently, I think.

31. Large gulp : SWIG.

32. Prefix with skeleton : ENDO. And a clecho with 37-Down. Prefix with skeleton : EXO.

33. Book after John : ACTS. (of the Apostles)

34. River through Orsk : URAL.

35. Broccoli relative : KALE.

38. Metronome settings : TEMPI. Plural variant of tempos.

41. Prize component? : ZEE.

42. "The Lady & Sons Savannah Country Cookbook" author Paula : DEEN. Her recipes always seem to begin with "Add two cups of sugar to three pounds of butter..."

43. Stylebook subject : USAGE.

49. Tar Heel State campus : ELON. Just outside Greensboro, N.C.

51. Egyptian amulet : SCARAB.

54. 2010 Supreme Court appointee : KAGAN.

55. Honshu port : OSAKA.

56. Admit to the club : LET IN.

57. Twisty-horned antelope : ELAND.

58. Admitting a breeze, perhaps : AJAR.

59. "Frasier" actress Gilpin : PERI. She played Roz, Frasier's radio producer.

60. Shangri-la : EDEN.

64. Press coverage : INK. OK, I had to think about this. Does the clue literally refer to the ink that covers the printing press roller? Or, does it mean column space in the newspaper ("J-Lo sure gets a lot of ink.") I'll leave it to you to decide.

65. Make haste : HIE.

66. Uno e due : TRE. One + two = three, in Italian.

And that's a wrap for me this week!

Marti

Note from C.C.:

 

Charlotte, Lemonade's beautiful granddaughter, turned one year old. Look how pretty she is. Click on the first picture, you'll see how incredible long her eyelashes are. It's in the genes. Lemonade said he used to have long eyelashes before his corneal transplants. Click here to see all the cute Charlotte pictures in my Ginger Roots archive.

Wednesday November 20, 2013 Victor Barocas

Theme: BACK BUTTON (66A. Browser feature, or what the ends of 17-, 31-, 38- or 50-Across can have) - "Button" can follow the last word of each 2-word theme entry.

7A. Series of "Got milk?" spots, e.g. : AD CAMPAIGN. Campaign button. Some of the rusty looking old JFK buttons at the flea markets are repros.

31A. Snowballing financial crisis : BANK PANIC. Panic button.

38A. It's used to break a habit : WILLPOWER. The only one-word theme answer. Power button.

50A. American bacon source : PORK BELLY. Belly button.

C.C. here, pitch-hitting for Jazzbumpa, who still has no power due to the big storm last weekend. He said "no home phone, TV, or internet... It's taking me back to me early 'ute - the 40's."

Beautiful grid from Victor. Normal word count, but only 34 black squares. Solid 7's in all four corners.  This type of design is often the result of a 9-letter theme entry in the middle row 8 & an adventurous spirit from the constructor, as it's easier to break one edge into two 3's.

I met Victor a few times. He's extremely talented. Very unassuming.

Left to Right: George,  Victor,  Andrea, C.C. & DK

Across:

1. Food at a bar : SALAD

6. 54-Across vaccine developer : SALK (Jonas). And 54A. See 6-Across : POLIO. He chose not to patent his vaccine, while Oprah tried to patent her "Aha moment"!

10. "My stars!" : EGAD

14. Run off, in a way : ELOPE. 29. Ran off with : STOLE. Quite a few clue echos & cross references in this grid.

15. Help in solving : CLUE

16. Age-old stories : LORE

19. Suffragist Lucretia : MOTT. I must have googled her before. I recognize this face.

20. Emmy-winning Arthur : BEA

21. "__ Gang" : OUR

22. Tolstoy work subtitled "The Story of a Horse" : STRIDER. Never heard of it.

24. Queen's subjects : ANTS. Queen ants. I only know Queen bees.

26. Dismissive cry : BAH. My feeling when I clicked on that talk from Jayce's mean boss.

28. Kitchen attraction : AROMA

34. Mexican cover-up : SERAPE. SARAPE is a var.

36. JFK Library architect I.M. : PEI. He was born in Guangzhou.

37. Connecticut hrs. : EST

42. That girl : SHE

45. Garden pond fish : KOI

46. Weather map line : ISOBAR

55. Whirlpool subsidiary : AMANA

56. Sweet tuber : YAM. I just call it sweet potato.

58. MacDonald's home : FARM

59. Ristorante dish : RISOTTO. And 2D. Ristorante request : AL DENTE. 

 

62. Apprehend : NAB

64. Place for some me-time : SPA

65. Make a muffler, perhaps : KNIT

69. Clothing fluff : LINT

70. Actress Elisabeth : SHUE. I only notice now that her name is not Elizabeth.

71. French sweetie : CHERI. Mon chéri/ma chérie.

72. Tense : EDGY

73. Undiluted : PURE

74. Company with "counting sheep" ads : SERTA

Down:

1. Popular food fish : SEA BASS

3. The "L" in URL : LOCATOR. URL= Uniform Resource Locator.

4. Org. for shrinks : APA

5. Showroom model : DEMO

6. Sacred beetle : SCARAB

7. Sacha Baron Cohen's "Da __ G Show" : ALI.  Ali G, Borat & Brüno are 3 of Sacha Baron Cohen's characters.

8. Galoots : LUGS

9. Reporter known for ducking into phone booths : KENT (Clark)

10. New York city near the Pennsylvania border : ELMIRA. I can never remember this name. What's it famous for again?

11. "Well played!" : GOOD ONE!

12. Sister of Apollo : ARTEMIS. Twins.

13. Take away (from) : DETRACT

18. Watering hole : PUB

23. See 68-Down : RAP. And 68. With 23-Down, what an accused thug may beat : THE

25. Fries alternative : SLAW

27. Antepenultimate fairy tale word : HAPPILY.  Antepenultimate is quite a mouthful. Third to last

30. Prefix with center : EPI

32. Not paleo- : NEO

33. New Zealander : KIWI

35. Actress Sommer : ELKE. Learned her name from doing xwords. Very pretty.

39. Typed chuckle : LOL

40. Seer's claim : ESP

41. Sleigh's parking spot : ROOF. Hi there Santa!

42. Vivacity : SPARKLE. Marti! So full of life and love.

43. Neanderthal, for one : HOMINID

44. Frequent schoolroom activity : ERASING

47. Weapon for Han Solo : BLASTER

48. Touchdown site : AIRPORT. Nice clue.

49. Bucharest's country : ROMANIA

51. Difficult : KNOTTY

52. Club on the diamond : BAT. And YANKEE (53. Mariano Rivera, e.g.). He's not going to save the Yankees any more.

57. Fairy queen of English legend : MAB

60. 1/16 of a cup: Abbr. : TBSP

61. Site of the Ko'olau range : OAHU. Easy guess.

63. Tampa NFLers : BUCs

67. Lowlife : CUR

Informal survey: Do you have an Old Country Buffet in your area? Do you like the place?

C.C.