Sunday December 8, 2013 Jean O'Conor

 Theme: "Drollery" - ERY sound is added to each familiar phrase, resulting spelling changes in a few theme entries.

 23A. Rush hour traffic reporters? : ARTERY CRITICS. Art critics.

 36A. List that includes "full," "round" and "wide"? : LIP GLOSSARY. Lip gloss.

 

 56A. Foes with bows? : ARCHERY ENEMIES. Arch-enemies.

 77A. Reason for a strange smell coming from the trunk of the car? : GROCERY NEGLECT. Gross neglect.

95A. "Chantilly Lace" and "Blue Velvet"? : FINERY TUNES. Fine-tunes.

114A. Group of sweet-talking experts? : FLATTERY PANEL. Flat panel.

3D. Hasty remark? : CURSORY WORD. Curse word.

69D. Food for thought? : BRAIN CELERY. Brain cell.

Two of the theme entries have second word altered. Two of the theme entries are in plural form. So no odd man out in the theme set. Consistency is very important in theme entry selection.

This puzzle only has 138 words. 144 is always the magic number to me.

Across:

1. Tex-Mex casserole : TACO PIE. Has anyone tried Korean taco?

8. Woodworking tool : LATHE

13. Where tie-dyeing may be done : AT CAMP

19. Came to : EQUALED

20. Phylicia of "The Cosby Show" : RASHAD. Won Tony for "A Raisin in the Sun".

21. Muse of comedy : THALIA. We often see her sister ERATO.

22. Foster : NURTURE

25. Confrontation-ending device : TASER

26. What the Tin Man had : NO HEART. He thought he didn't have.

28. Krypton, for one : RARE GAS

29. Like some contracts : ORAL

31. More than cool : RAD

32. Diplomatic office : EMBASSY

34. Like auxiliary vbs. : IRR.  Like "Be", in many languages. Chinese "Be" is the same for  you, I, we, etc. All Chinese verbs are.

39. Hardly rah-rah : TEPID

43. One-named "I Do!" singer named for a Jackson : TOYA. OK, named after La Toya  Jackson.

45. National No Socks Day month : MAY. May 8. New trivia to me.

46. 13 for Al, e.g. : AT NO. Aluminum.

47. Music genre heard in the film "The Big Easy" : ZYDECO

48. Ticket seller's query : HOW MANY

50. Happy : GAY

52. Rival of 56-Down : DDE. 56. Rival of 52-Across : AES. No-clue clues. I like when one of the cross-referenced entries is clued. The other can be "Rival of ? -Across/Down".

54. H.S. offering : DEG

55. Makes up (for) : ATONES

61. Kitchen gadget : CORER

62. Activity center : BEEHIVE

63. Lacquered metalware : TOLE

64. "Then ..." : AND SO

65. Tony's portrayer on "NYPD Blue" : ESAI. Very irrational when it came to his ex-wife.

66. Adjective for a 93-Across : OLDE. And 93. Quaintly named lodging : INNE.

68. Ready to bloom : IN BUD

72. Certain girder : I-BAR

74. More like a mountain road : SNAKIER. And 85. Like a dirt road vis-à-vis pavement : DUSTIER

76. MLB exec Joe : TORRE

81. Commercially, it started in the U.S. around the time of the Boeing 707 launch : JET AGE. Never heard of this term. Are we still in this age?

82. Pal of Harry and Hermione : RON. Just for Jazzbumpa!

83. Second-century date : CLI. 151.

84. NFL scores : TDs

86. Exceedingly : EVER SO

89. Pentagonal plate : HOME. Home plate.

92. Fr. neighbor : BEL (Belgium)

94. "__ the Beat": 1982 hit for The Go-Go's : WE GOT

99. No. after a dot : CTS. Oh, money.

100. Divulged : SPILLED

102. Hockey legend : ORR

103. Love-crazy Le Pew : PEPE

105. Go along with : AGREE TO

108. Make an error on, as a check : MIS-DATE

111. Early 20th-century Oklahoma boom town : TULSA

116. Pittsburgh skyscraper builder : US STEEL

118. Baseball's Posey : BUSTER. 2012 National League  MVP. For our River Doc. Hondo follows the Giants also.

119. Hun king: ATTILA

120. Pension collector : RETIREE

121. Guides : STEERS

122. Nos from Nikita : NYETS

123. Jules Léotard and Amelia Bloomer, for two : EPONYMS. It can refer to people after whom things are named or  things that derived from people.

 

Down:

 

1. It's pitched : TENT

2. Blue shade : AQUA

4. Genre featuring big hats : OATER

5. Deer or elk, sometimes : PLURAL. So irrational. They can be counted, why can't they take plural forms?

6. Court suffix : IER. Courtier.

7. Adam's first home : EDEN

8. Texas border city : LAREDO

9. Hollywood canine : ASTA

10. What's left : THE REST

11. Clinton imitator on "SNL" : HARTMAN (Phil)

12. Big name in ice cream : EDY

13. Gillette razors : ATRAS

14. Dry : THIRSTY

15. Having good night vision : CAT-EYED

16. Sacha Baron Cohen alter ego : ALI G

17. Flaky mineral : MICA

18. Hand at dinner : PASS. Please hand/PASS me the wild rice.

20. 1986 Indy champ : RAHAL (Bobby). I don't follow racing. Is the Letterman/Rahl team good?

24. Supercomputer maker : CRAY. Drew a blank, TTP!

27. Wild revelry : ORGY

30. Depicts in words : LIMNS

33. "Homeland" terrorist Nick : BRODY. JD likes the show. Read more here. Fascinating series.

34. Ivy League city : ITHACA

35. Encourage with cheers : ROOT ON

37. Fork over : PAY

38. Greet with two letters? : SAY HI. Great clue.

40. Cab starter : PEDI. Pedicab.

41. Slush Puppie maker : ICEE

42. Shepherds, perhaps : DOGS

44. Inclined to forget : AMNESIC

47. Greek known for paradoxes : ZENO.  The guy from Elea.

49. Oxygen-dependent organism : AEROBE

50. Stubborn stain : GREASE

51. Sore : ACHING

53. Thwart : DETER

 

57. Called forth : EVOKED

58. Bits of antiquity : RELICS

59. Privileged classes : ELITES

60. "Amahl and the Night Visitors" composer : MENOTTI

62. New Hampshire state mineral : BERYL. Minnesota does not have one. See here. Just learned from D-Otto's comment last week that we don't have State dog either. What's wrong with us? So cold here right now. I thought of Dr. Zhivago & Lara while walking through the thick snow & biting wind last Thursday night to attend a party.

67. Lt. Columbo, e.g. : DET

70. Pressing : URGENT

71. Some farm machinery : DEERES

73. Gas station acronym : ARCO

75. Trim to fit : ALTER

77. Sprouted : GREW

78. Travel randomly : ROVE

79. 10 C-notes : ONE G

80. It's nothing to Nero : NIHIL

81. Cocktail with a sprig of green : JULEP

85. Scout group : DEN

87. Prize ribbon feature : ROSETTE

88. Noted gatekeeper : ST. PETER

90. Almost out of gas : ON EMPTY

91. Try to make peace : MEDIATE

92. Actor Reynolds : BURT. Of course I thought of RYAN first.

95. Señorita's blossom : FLOR (Flower)

96. Alpine tunes : YODELS

97. Merry refrain : TRA LA

98. Gets busy with : SETS TO

101. Anatomical canals : ITERS. Learned from doing xwords.

104. Applied (for) : PUT IN. Tricky clue for me. Tricky tense too.

105. Homes for B-52s, briefly : AFBs

106. Superfluity : GLUT

107. Demolish, in Dorset : RASE

109. Bad mood : SNIT

110. __-et-Loir: French department : EURE. According to Wiki, Eure-et-Loir is named after the Eure and Loir rivers.

112. Come across as : SEEM

113. Many microbrews : ALES

115. TV chef Martin : YAN. He was born in Guangzhou also. The real Cantonese food is very light. Fresh veggie, fresh seafood, lightly steamed or sauteed. Most restaurants have live fish, snakes, etc. You pick what you want, the chef will then cook for you..

117. Pennant race mo. : SEP

Today we celebrate the birthday of Jazzbumpa (Ron),  who always gives us all he has every time he blogs. Click here for more pictures of his talented grandchildren. Amanda the ballet dancer spent a week with the Rockettes this past summer. Nate is a great baseball player.

(Updated later. Click here for 3 updated pictures Ron just sent to me.)
 

Gloria & Ron

In the yard: Gloria, Lauren, Josh, Me, Abby.

Happy 80th Birthday to Misty's husband Rowland as well! Hope it's an extra sweet day for both of you.

C.C.

Saturday, Dec 7th, 2013, Bruce Venzke

Theme: None

Words: 68 (missing Q,X,Y,Z)

Blocks: 34

   This is my third Saturday LAT from Bruce, and I think it's a spectacular looking puzzle with nearly perfect symmetry (From C.C.: This puzzle has the normal 180 symmetry. And the Left to Right symmetry. And the Top to Bottom symmetry.) and a very solvable puzzle at that~!  Not much to start with, but the solitary fill I had in each corner was just enough to work out some of the common language spanners - we have six today (and two 11-letter climbers);

17. Emergency strategies : EVACUATION PLANS - there was a HazMat fire at the UPS terminal in Uniondale, NY, in Nassau County; my center is in Suffolk; they had to call in FIVE fire deparments, plus a spill team.  That closed the operation for most of the morning sort - not a pretty scene.  No one hurt.

20. Mattered : MADE A DIFFERENCE

23. Post-election governmental meeting, perhaps : LAME DUCK SESSION - when the president knows he's not coming back in January - Wiki

42. Number? : LOCAL ANESTHESIA - Didn't fool me~!  Numb-ers, so I was looking for Novocaine, etc

47. Takes an opposite position : CHANGES ONE'S TUNE

56. Alters some game parameters : RAISES THE STAKES

ON WA RD~!

ACROSS:

1. Overseas county : SHIRE - anyone else read this as countRy?  I had CHINA to start

6. Zurich highlight : ALP - was looking for the German word for song/solo, "ARIA"

9. Golden Gate element : CABLE - tried TOWER first

 14. Saved for later, in a way : TAPED - not much these days; everything I watch is digitally recorded on the cable company DVR

15. Architectural prefix : NEO - nice alternative to "Matrix" character and "opposite paleo-"

16. Providers of added light : ATRIA

 21. NBA great : Dr. J - Not a basketball fan, but I DID know it was not "OTT" nor "ORR"

22. Bush led it for about a yr. in the '70s : CIA

32. March middle : IDES

33. They may lead to risky moves : DARES

34. Many a reference book : TOME

35. Like some tempers : BAD - had it in, took it out; I had the wrong idea for the crossing "suit" (23D)

36. "Reversal of Fortune" Oscar winner : IRONS - Jeremy

37. Brimless hat : TAM - Took a gamble and tried FEZ; BZZ

38. Home of Phillips University : ENID - Oklahoma

40. Secretary of State after Colin, familiarly : CONDI - Condoleezza Rice

41. Candy __ : CANE - anyone try "GRAM" here?

45. Seinfeld specialty : WIT - meh

46. Electrical particle : ION

57. Great enthusiasm : ARDOR

58. Classified abbr. : EOE - Equal Opportunity Employer

59. Part of a meet : EVENT

60. Disengages, as from a habit : WEANS

61. High degree : Ph.D - not "Nth"

62. Comes up short : LOSES

DOWN:

1. Arise (from) : STEM

2. "__ Nagila" : HAVA

3. Jobs news of 2010 : iPAD - Steve Jobs, of Apple

4. Moves back : RECEDES

5. Former Georgian president Shevardnadze : EDUARD - mostly perps

6. Freeze beginning : ANTI - Antifreeze; my water pump went on the Dodge this past Wednesday - it's still sitting in the parking lot at UPS.  The car owes me nothing - it's got 242,000 miles, and it's 14 yrs old - I am seriously considering the Dodge Dart come January

7. Hero in Treece's "Vinland the Good" : LEIF - Henry Treece, who wrote this juvenile historical account of Leif Ericsson

8. Magic word : "POOF"

9. Mid-calf pants : CAPRIs

 10. That much or more : AT LEAST

11. Grain layer : BRAN

12. Omar's role in "The Mod Squad" : LINC

13. No effort : EASE

18. Settles : ADJUDICATES - healthy $2 word

19. Bare things : NECESSITIES - the 'bare necessities' - OR - Bear?

23. Suit material : LIBEL - ah, THAT kind of (law) suit

24. Hersey's bell town : ADANO

25. Front VIP : MEDIC - my first thought was front office, but this is the battlefield front

26. Leslie of "Fanny" : CARON - stuck on Nielsen

27. Danish capital : KRONE - capital as in money

28. Enthralls : SENDS

29. Whits : IOTAs - not a whit (iota) of truth

30. Arabian peninsula native : OMANI

31. Mythical lion's home : NEMEA - I tried ASLAN, but that's THE lion (and the wrong one)

39. Suddenly occurs to : DAWNS ON

41. 1/100 of a Brazilian real : CENTAVO - more money

43. Hybrid cats : LIGERS - LIons/tiGERs - oh MY~!

44. Low-cost stopover : HOSTEL

47. Sticking place : CRAW

48. Memorable napper : HARE - Aesop fable where the slow and steady tortoise wins - I did not know there was some 'controversy' over its interpretation

49. Radamès' love : AIDA

50. Flight feature : STEP - A flight of stairs

51. "We're in trouble!" : OH-OH

52. Call for : NEED

53. They usually have four strings : UKES

54. Birds seen by players of 53-Down : NE-NE

55. Body shop figs. : ESTimateS - I fiugre the water pump on the old Dodge is going to cost me $300-400, and that sounds like a new car payment to me....

Splynter

Another two-letter word game;

What are these lists which use one letter from the first pair to the next?

AL LA AR RI IN NM MN NY

GW WW WH HT TJ JB BO

NA AS SI IR RN NE

Note from C.C.:

Happy Birthday to Larry, our philosopher/farmer Windhover, who's been with the blog for a long time. Windhover met with Lucina last year too. Can you imagine life without TV or computers? That's how Windhover and his wife Irish live their life. Click here for a few pictures of young Larry. 

 
 

Friday, December 6, 2013, Marti DuGuay-Carpenter

Theme: Turn the puzzle upside down, by Warti.

As I heard the story, this was inspired by the divine one's childhood, when she was little she was called Warti, which made her embarrassed, so she changed her name to Marti, and this puzzle ensued. (I hope she does not sue me for libel!). Or maybe Ian Fleming changed his mind about the name of James Bond's boss? Fun, simple theme presented in a pinwheel (2 across, 2 down) with a very cute but too late to be helpful reveal. The 'in the language' phrases are tweaked with the simple W to M change to create new and amusing phrases. So much fun in marti's puzzles, I am going to shut up and let her entertain you.

20A. Odd way to check for ore? : M(W)INE TASTING. (11). We know our resident oenophile may have started with this seed entry. Licking rocks does not sound appealing.

57A. What you need when your car is stuck in the mud? : M(W)IRE SERVICE. (11). Nice convoluted clue, which I hope did not bog you down.

11D. Summons from the cosmetician? : M(W)AKEUP CALL. (10). Really great visual of the beautician calling and saying, "Quick get in here now, your mascara ran!"

29D. Fix potatoes the hard way? : M(W)ASH BY HAND. (10). Another great transition to a visual.

and the reveal, in the center of the grid...

37D. Audi rival, and, when spoken as a command, a hint to this puzzle's theme : BMW. "Be M, W." Maybe this was the seed....Gather up all of the Ws and make them M, that will turn the Morld on its ear.

Across:

1. Some arm bands : TATS. Fun clue and the perfect counterpart for the last Across clue. 71A. "Toodles!" : TATA. A repeat from yesterday.

5. Work on the web : SPIN. I am sure marti planned this is a misdirection involving spiders and not the internet, but with the spin doctors out there, it works both ways.

9. Grant access : ADMIT.

14. Earthy hue : ECRU.

15. "That can't be!" : OH NO.

16. Heat energy source? : MIAMI. Cute since So'Fla. is often the only place in the US where the sun is warm this time of year. The the team seems bored, waiting to see of Greg Oden is healthy.

17. On the roof of : ATOP.

18. __ accompli : FAIT. A French expression clearly in the language in the US meaning already done. You can see where our word accomplished comes from.

19. Seeing red : IRKED.

23. Dreyer's partner in ice cream : EDY.

24. Blooms with hips : ROSES. Did you know roses bore FRUIT ? Many health benefits.

25. Waimea Bay locale : OAHU. Supposed great surfing, too bad all of our Hawaii posters are not active.

27. Uncomfortable place to be in : LIMBO. Initially a religious concept.

30. Friendly response to a knock : IT'S OPEN.

33. Atty.'s group : ABA. American Bar Association.

34. Letter before mu : LAMBDA. Do you know your Greek ALPHABET? (2:19) Sing it!

38. It may be a lot : ACRE. Wonderful play on words.

39. '50s sitcom name : DESI. Mr. Arnaz, or Mr. Lucille Ball?

41. Pyle of Mayberry : GOMER. More tv, Jim Nabors, the loveable marine from Mayberry, who Rock Hudson found so fetching; maybe it was the music.

42. Mumbai music : RAGA. My learning moment. Obviously you need to know Bombay is now Mumbai, and then know about Indian music. LEARN. Think of it as the beginning of Reggae.

43. 1939 Garland co-star : LAHR. Bert, and I am not Lion.

44. Without exception : ALWAYS.

46. Remove : LOP. We will lop off a few inches.

47. Attaché's place : EMBASSY. Not the case, the diplomat.

49. Is inclined : TILTS. Another clever use of words, taking the literal meaning of an incline.

51. Shows of support : YEAS. Raise your hands if you like this clue?

52. Bit of a scrap : RUN IN. Not iron, confrontation.

55. Dash no. : MPH. My "eh" of the puzzle. Dash = dashboard?  Sure, but only in context, or maybe this is just too clever for me. 100 yards was my first thought.

62. Muse for Millay : ERATO. What kind of middle name is VINCENT for a woman?

64. Culture medium : AGAR.

65. Scraped together, with "out" : EKED. I think this may be the most used fill of all.

66. Maker of the Mighty Dump : TONKA. Oh, the toy....my first thought did not pass the breakfast test.

67. Pace : GAIT.

68. Texter's button : SEND.

69. Optional component : ADD ON.

70. Some shooters, briefly : SLRS. A single-lens reflex (SLR) camera is a camera that typically uses a mirror and prism system (hence "reflex", from the mirror's reflection) that permits the photographer to view through the lens and see exactly what will be captured, contrary to viewfinder cameras where the image could be significantly different from what will be captured. (Wikipedia).

Down:

1. One in the standings : TEAM.

2. Opening on Broadway : ACT I. They all have to start somewhere.

3. "__: Uprising": Disney sci-fi series : TRON.

4. A-one : SUPERB. The exact reverse from yesterday.

5. Remote hiding places? : SOFAS. More cute misdirection, marti is really in control today.

6. Introduce gradually, with "in" : PHASE.

7. DDE and JFK, e.g. : INITS. My initial nit of the day.

8. Words of denial : NOT I?  At least by an English teacher.

9. Pamplona pals : AMIGAS. The female friends from Spain.

10. E, but not A, I, O or U : DIRection. Actually more misDIRection.

12. Contacted, in a way, briefly : IM-ED.

13. Neat : TIDY.

21. Trade item? : TOOL. Not trade like an exchange, but a career.

22. Official with a seal : NOTARY. Every office needs a few.

26. Winter coat : HOAR. The sliver of silver coating the ground.

27. Serve from a pot : LADLE.

28. Steel girder : I-BEAM. You knew she would get one of these in the puzzle.

30. Bean sprout? : IDEA. Oh such wit! Hers is obviously in full bloom.

31. Rye fungus : ERGOT. Home for LSD.

32. Some tides : NEAPS.

35. "Open" autobiographer : AGASSI. I am so bad with with book titles, I read it and did not know it was his until I had the AG. Did you know you cannot copyright a Title? Want to do your own Gone with the Wind?

36. Herb that protected Odysseus from Circe's magic : MOLY. All perps, never knew of this HERB, which once again is Greek in origin.

40. "Dies __" : IRAE.

45. Move a little : STIR.

48. South Pacific islander : SAMOAN.

50. Use money to make money : INVEST.

52. Majestic : REGAL.

53. Allegheny, as of 1979 : USAIR. From a regional to a huge international, to swallowed up by American....

54. "Darn!" : NERTS. An old variation of NUTS, probably from the regional dialect of the northeast.

55. Self-referential prefix, in modern lingo : META. Metadata, data about data is the only example I can think of, but it is more of our recent clue fascination with all that is Greek.

56. Impel : PROD.

58. Tabloids, to some : RAGS. Riches to others.

59. Flat pack furniture seller : IKEA.

60. One seen in a store dish : CENT. Take a penny, leave a penny.

61. Icelandic literary work : EDDA. A word I know only from crosswords, but I have seen it for so many years.

63. Ref's ruling : TKO. Technical Knock Out.

Speaking of Out, I am out of material, so it is time to hit the road. Thanks marti, I got dizzy doing this while standing on my head. I hope you all have the blood rushing to all the right places. Have a great week end. Lemonade out.

Notes from C.C.:

1) Here is a picture JD took on her first trip to South Africa. She said "The children created this likeness of their hero on a wall in Cape Town, Nelson Mandela, using hand prints."

2) Happy Birthday to dear Lucina, the only regular I've met in person. She's just as cheerful and fun as she is on the blog.

(L-R back row: Chickie, Clear Ayes, Garlic Gal; Front: JD, Lucina, Dodo. 

Picture taken on June 23, 2011

Thursday, December 5, 2013 Steve Blais

Theme: Clueless

20-Across. " " : I'M DRAWING A BLANK.

36-Across. " " : HOW WOULD I KNOW?

53-Across. " " : I HAVEN'T GOT A CLUE.

I don't know if your paper had a blank for the clue, a dash, or just empty quote marks (as my Across Lite version did.) I remember seeing a similar theme from Daniel Finan, where "CLUELESS" was the revealing entry, and each theme entry described some sort of airhead.  It was a few years ago, so many solvers likely would not remember it. But when I saw it I was blown away by the cleverness, so it stuck in my mind.

In this one, I thought 20 and 53-Across were spot on, since they refer to a blank or not having a clue. But 36-Across didn't quite hit the same note.  Maybe I'm picking a nit here? Or maybe I'm just crabby and frazzled from dealing with contractors who never show up when they are supposed to.

Let's move on...

Across:

1. Rewards for waiting : TIPS. Simple words today, but some devilish clueing had me scratching my head.

5. Sauce finisher, often : CREAM.

10. Bit of Halloween makeup : SCAR.

14. Gray subj. : ANAT. "Gray's Anatomy" was my bible in pre-med. The TV popular show was spelled "Grey's Anatomy."

15. Expansive : LARGE.

16. Parting words : TA-TA.

17. Family nickname : NANA. Funny to see nana after tata...

18. Parting word : ADIOS. Clecho of 16-Across.

19. Erelong : ANON.

23. Presidential nickname : ABE.

24. Inflationary fig.? : PSI. Pounds / Square Inch. It's the number on your driver's door telling you how much to inflate the tires.

25. Drive off : REPEL.

26. Language of Pakistan : URDU.

28. Peak on the 1,000-yen note : FUJI. Yen = Japanese. What other mountain would it be?

31. Language suffix : ESE. JapanESE, ChinESE, JavanESE, etc.

32. __-Julie, Quebec : STE.

33. Nail-biting way to win : BY A NOSE.

40. Jerks : YANKS ON.

41. Morse code letter after dit-dit-dit : DAH. (Or, last syllable after ZIP-A-DEE-DOO...)

42. Outlaw Clanton : IKE.

45. Get rid of : LOSE.

46. Gorilla trained to use sign language : KOKO. "Supposedly" trained...

47. Holiday air : CAROL.

49. Mao __-tung : TSE.

51. Ten-cent pres. : FDR.

58. Designer Schiaparelli : ELSA.

59. The Joe in Detroit, for one : ARENA. Joe Louis Arena.

60. Superb : A-ONE.

61. Tallow source : SUET.

62. Huge : GIANT.

63. Earthworm habitat : SOIL.

64. Stun, in a way : TASE.

65. Bout of retail "therapy" : SPREE.

66. Fine subject? : ARTS. Kind of a mini-clecho with 14-Across.

Down:

1. "Lost" actress Raymonde : TANIA. No clue.

2. How soldiers may lie : IN AMBUSH.

3. Gratify the baser side of : PANDER TO.

4. Have the lead : STAR.

5. Shellfish morsels : CLAWS. Mmmm, we just had crab that our buddy in New Orleans shipped to us the other night.

6. Lines from the center : RADII.

7. 33-Down's homeland : ERIN.

8. Open-mouthed : AGOG.

9. Western landform : MESA.

10. Clichéd : STALE.

11. Happy hour morsel : CANAPE.

12. Makes amends : ATONES.

13. Rub the wrong way : RANKLE.

21. Manjula's husband on "The Simpsons" : APU.

22. Like autumn mornings : BRISK.

27. Like morning grass : DEWY.

28. Made-up : FALSE.

29. Loosen, as laces : UNDO.

30. Enroll : JOIN.

33. U2 frontman : BONO.

34. Belly laughs : YUKS.

35. Prefix with morph : ENDO.

37. Pixar title robot : WALL-E.

38. Hardwood option : OAK FLOOR. I'm leaning toward an engineered oak floor for the living room next door. Any thoughts on durability, Splynter?

39. Mystery : WHODUNIT.

42. Most distant : ICIEST.

43. Black Russian component : KAHLUA. I had the "K" so it was a gimme.

44. Fulfills a takeout order? : ERASES.

46. Alpine parrot : KEA.

48. Roundish : OVATE.

49. 1,000 kilograms : TONNE. Metric ton. Not to be confused with the short ton or long ton.

50. Kerry's department : STATE. John Kerry, current Secretary of State.

52. Projection room stack : REELS.

54. Badgers : NAGS.

55. It may be round : TRIP.

56. Stuff in a backpack : GEAR. GORP was my first thought...

57. José's home : CASA. His casa is su casa.

That's it for me. Gotta run!

Marti

Wednesday, December 4th 2013 Ed Sessa

Theme: Simple 1040 - All the theme answers contain "EZ"

18A. Plate ump's purview : STRIKE ZONE

ESPN and Fox baseball coverage can now paint a virtual strike zone above the plate. I like it - some baseball purists don't.

25A. Soda for dieters : COKE ZERO. Zero calories, but a whole bunch of caffeine. It is nicknamed "Bloke Coke" in the UK as the target demographic is young males.

49A. Blush wine, for short : WHITE ZIN. Wine! Not my favorite zinfandel, I prefer the bold red zins.

60A. "She's Not There" rock group : THE ZOMBIES. Catchy song from 1964 paired here with a very dramatic "Outer Limits" episode.

3D. Citrus shavings : ORANGE ZEST. The Microplane brand of graters and zesters are wonderful - stocking stuffer idea alert!

- and the hint ...

31D. This crossword, literally for some, phonetically for all : EASY PUZZLE. Which wouldn't work in the UK. Huh? E-ZED what?

Good morning everyone - Steve here and a very z-filled Wednesday from Ed Sessa. You may or may not have gotten the circles indicating the location of the "EZ" letter pairings from your puzzle source - mine had them and after the first couple of theme answers were completed it was all plain sailing.

I thought it was pretty impressive to fit that number of z's in the grid and still provide some slick fill.

What else caught my eye?

Across:

1. Caesar's love : AMOR

5. Signal to an on-call doctor : BEEP

9. Omits : SKIPS

14. Chowhound's request : MORE

15. Sharif who played Zhivago : OMAR. Many dramatic one-sheets for this David Lean epic. Sharif won the Golden Globe for Best Actor for his performance.

16. World Court site, with "The" : HAGUE. Located in the South Holland province of the Netherlands.

17. Shepard in space : ALAN. The Apollo 14 lunar golfer. He's not to be held responsible for the nails-on-a-chalkboard common misspelling of "German Shepherd" by an amazingly large number of dog owners.

20. Brand for heartburn : ZANTAC

22. Providence-to-Boston dir. : N.N.E.

23. Scraps for Rover : ORTS

24. Unit of work : ERG

28. French season : ÉTÉ. Summer in the land of the Marseillaise.

30. Thin pancake : CRÊPE. Diacriticals galore! And Food! Strictly speaking, a crêpe has a sweet filling; the savory-filled variety is called a galette.

31. Violinist's gift : EAR

34. Move very slowly : OOZE

36. Suffers from : HAS. I have a cold at the moment. Two long flights back and forward to Rio over the last couple of weeks pretty much guaranteed I'd be picking up some kind of sniffle. To London next week, so hopefully I'll be over it before I spread misery around the LAX to Heathrow flight.

37. In recent times : OF LATE

39. Mechanic, at times : GREASER. Popular sub-culture in the 1950's - motorcycles, leather and slicked-back hair.

41. "That works!" : SUITS ME

42. 4-Down collector : LESSOR

43. Boy king : TUT

44. Made a hue turn? : DYED. Fun clue.

45. Suffix for records : EST. "Highest, Fastest, Strongest" - the original Latin motto of the Olympic Games.

46. Oater group bent on justice : POSSE

48. Nile biter : ASP. It's been a while since we saw this clue - it seemed to be getting overused a while back, but Rich gave it a well-deserved rest.

51. Short market lines? : UPC. The short lines that make up a Universal Product Code, usually rendered as a barcode.

The first five digits identify the manufacturer, the second five digits the product. The one above is for Kimberly Clark's (36000) Huggies Wipes (29145)

54. Piedmont wine region : ASTI. More wine! Best known for the sweet, sparkling Asti Spumante.

57. Erie Canal mule : SAL "I've got a mule, Her name is Sal, Fifteen years on the Erie Canal..."

58. __ Pipeline, Oahu surfing attraction : BANZAI. Eek! That's a big wave!

63. "Ripostes" poet Pound : EZRA

64. Overnight refuge : MOTEL

65. Theater part : LOGE

66. Choir part : ALTO

67. Blow some dough : SPEND

68. __ collar : ETON

69. Stonewall's soldiers : REBS. The nickname for General Thomas Jackson clues the nickname for his troops.

Down:

1. Shock : AMAZE

2. Large grinder : MOLAR

4. Payment to 42-Across : RENT

5. "Thick and Rich" chocolate syrup : BOSCO. Food! (Possibly?) I've never tried this stuff - reading the label, I'm not sure I've missed much - there's more "High Fructose Corn Syrup" and "Corn Syrup" in there than anything else.

6. Rescue pro : E.M.T.

7. Ones on the payroll : EARNERS

8. Freddie __ Jr. of "Scooby-Doo" films : PRINZE

9. Ship reference : SHE. Try explaining to someone the logic of a ship always being a "she" even when "she" may be named for a "he". How can the USS Ronald Reagan be a girl?

10. Musical buzzer : KAZOO. I'm not sure this should be described as "musical" - "thoroughly annoying" would be more accurate, in my humble opinion.

11. Composer Stravinsky : IGOR

12. Fourth-down play : PUNT. I love the fake punts. Here is a great example from the Texas Tech-Texas game on Thanksgiving evening.

13. Dates : SEES

19. Property border warning : KEEP OUT

21. The Red Sox' Jon Lester, e.g. : ACE

26. 1980s Chrysler product : K-CAR. Not the best-looking design I've ever seen.

27. Altered mtge. : RE-FI. This clue seemed really clumsy to me - the abbreviation for "mortgage" is a little contrived?

29. Social cupfuls : TEAS

32. "Please don't yell __" : AT ME

33. Oboe, e.g. : REED

34. Eye rudely : OGLE

35. They're found in lodes : ORES

36. Reason for a medal : HEROISM

38. Classic Fords : LTDs. Marginally better design than the Plymouth, but certainly from the "Big-Ass Detroit" school.

40. Last year's frosh : SOPH

41. 1956 Mideast dispute area : SUEZ

43. J. Alfred Prufrock creator : T. S. ELIOT

47. Straw-strewn shelter : STABLE. Nice alliteration - clue and answer!

48. Santa __ winds : ANA

49. Shrivel : WIZEN. I'd never thought of this as a verb before - I've only used it in the adjectival form - "a wizened old man". Nice learning moment.

50. "A Doll's House" playwright : IBSEN

52. Medicare section : PART B

53. Informal byes : CIAOS

54. Dollar dispensers, for short : A.T.M.S

55. Hit a Target? : SHOP. Pronounced "Tar-jhay" by those who would prefer to be shopping at Nordstrom, but can't pass up the value-for-money in these stores.

56. Head of Paris? : TÊTE. It's where a Frenchman wears his beret. Cue national caricature:

Ooh La La!

59. Close by : NEAR

61. Getting on in years : OLD

62. Big one on the set, perhaps : EGO. Ready for my close-up, Mr. De Ville!

That's it from me - I'm off to dose myself up with DayQuil. I'll give myself a belt of cold remedy Tinbeni-style later, but there's still work to be done. Ciao!

Steve

Tuesday, December 3, 2013 Mike Peluso

Theme: Tree - Last word is parts of a tree.

18A. Thin, decorative metal : SILVER LEAF

23A. Gets married : TIES THE KNOT

37A. Dangerous things to risk : LIFE AND LIMB

48A. Equestrian's supply box : SADDLE TRUNK

56A. One, to one, e.g. : SQUARE ROOT

Argyle here. No unifier but you shouldn't have needed it. The entries run top to bottom of a tree, more or less. A few extra black squares gives a unique look to the grid but nothing special that I can see. Cruciverb is back up(I hope) but everything Google is messed up.

Across:

1. Cathedral area : APSE

5. Tons : SCADS

10. Reps: Abbr. : AGTs

14. Garden center supply : SEED

15. Dot in the ocean : ISLET. Did you know ait or eyot is an islet, esp in a river . (British dialect)

16. Circus performer? : FLEA

17. Tune : SONG

20. What a 63-Across may speak : ERSE. 63A. Hebrides native : GAEL. Off the west coast of Scotland.

21. The last Mrs. Chaplin : OONA. Daughter of Eugene O'Neill.

22. Grand Rapids-to-Detroit dir. : ESE

27. This, to Michelle : CET. For a masculine word beginning with a vowel, right?

28. Morose : SAD

29. Geometric suffix : GON

30. Like potato chips : SALTY

32. Lulus : DILLIES

36. Mass transit carrier : BUS

39. Retirement destination? : BED

40. Wimps : SISSIES

41. Underworld group : MAFIA

43. Printer's widths : EMs. The "em" value is based on the width of the uppercase M. We've had a better explanation before but the blog search is on the fritz.

44. Cookie container : JAR

47. Renoir output : ART

53. Spoil : ROT

54. Alabama, but not Kansas? : TRIO. Alabama, Kansas, The Doors (crossing word)

55. "Picnic" playwright : INGE. Labor Day picnic in Kansas, 1953.

60. "Ain't Misbehavin'" Tony winner Carter : NELL. Clip from the musical. (Catch a small shout out to Erie, PA)

61. Throw hard : HURL

62. Hero's quality : NERVE

64. Desires : YENS

65. Burning desire? : ARSON. Mini-clecho.

66. Chop __: Chinese American dish : SUEY

Down:

1. Valuables : ASSETS

2. Illinois city that symbolizes Middle America : PEORIA

3. Had a hunch : SENSED

4. Barely beats : EDGES

5. Member of the fam : SIS

6. CBS drama with two spin-offs : CSI. (Crime Scene Investigation)

7. "Everything's fine" : "ALL OK"

8. Exeter's county : DEVON

9. Dictation whiz : STENO

10. The K.C. Chiefs represented it in Super Bowl I : AFL. American Football League, operated from 1960 until 1969.

11. High school choral group : GLEE CLUB

12. Dollhouse cups, saucers, etc. : TEA SETS

13. Protected condition : SAFETY. Clue seemed awkward to me but valid.

19. Pied Piper followers : RATS

24. End-of-the-workweek cry : TGIF

25. Pebble Beach's 18 : HOLEs. Par 72 (blue tees)

26. China's Zhou __ : ENLAI

31. SALT concerns : ABMs. (Anti-ballistic missile)(Strategic Arms Limitation Talks)

32. "__ say something wrong?" : DID I

33. Elected ones : INs

34. '50s automotive failure : EDSEL

35. Goo : SLIME

37. There's a lane for one at many intersections : LEFT TURN

38. Superlative suffix : IEST

39. Like Bach's music : BAROQUE. Bach

41. Boggy : MARSHY

42. Solar system sci. : ASTRonomy

44. Alaskan capital : JUNEAU

45. "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" director : ANG LEE

46. "I Believe I Can Fly" singer : R. KELLY.  Video It starts out so lovely then the boom box comes in...ugh!

49. Stadium : ARENA

50. More desperate, as circumstances : DIRER

51. Some portals : DOORS. And a trio.

52. Adornments for noses and toes : RINGS

57. Gore and Green : ALs

58. Lacto-__ vegetarian : OVO. They do eat eggs and dairy products.

59. Years in a decade : TEN

Argyle

Monday, December 2, 2013 C.C. Burnikel

Theme: A Girl's Best Friend - The theme entries' first word can be ahead of the unifier.

17A. Illegal activity admitted by Lance Armstrong in January 2013 : BLOOD DOPING. Blood diamonds are used to fuel violent conflict and human rights abuses. Also, a 2006 film.

24A. Singer with Crosby, Stills & Nash : NEIL YOUNG. Neil Diamond (plus a little something for Bill G)

                             LINK

37A. ESPN show with an "Inside Pitch" segment : BASEBALL TONIGHT

                                   LINK

50A. Trousseau holder : HOPE CHEST. Hope Diamond

61A. Volcanic Hawaiian landmark, and a hint to the first word of 17-, 24-, 37- and 50-Across : DIAMOND HEAD

Argyle here. Another C.C. offering with long entries, including a spanner, but a little tougher than the NW indicated. At this point, Cruciverb is still down but there aren't any circles anyway. YouTube isn't co-operating either.

Across:

1. Mooing critter : COW

4. Ancient region surrounding Athens : ATTICA

10. Reagan era mil. program : SDI. (Strategic Defense Initiative)

13. Disgusted grunts : UGHs

15. Resident of Tibet's capital : LHASAN

16. Muscle spasm : TIC

19. Writer for whom the Edgar award is named : POE

20. Not sacred : SECULAR

21. Secret matters : ARCANA

23. Baba who stole from thieves : ALI

27. Glass container : JAR

29. Actress Cannon : DYAN

30. Peter Fonda's title beekeeper : ULEE

31. Opposed (to) : AVERSE

34. Hurts with a tusk : GORES

42. Willem of "Platoon" : DAFOE

43. 100-lawmakers group : SENATE

44. "Peter Pan" pirate : SMEE

47. Hang around : STAY

49. Pretoria's land: Abbr. : RSA. (Republic of South Africa) (City)

53. Stomach-punch response : [OOF!]

55. Start of the line that includes "wherefore art thou" : "O, ROMEO"

56. Female star : HEROINE. Juliet

60. Comfy room : DEN

64. Night's opposite : DAY

65. __ Pie: ice cream treat : ESKIMO

66. Reached base in a cloud of dust : SLID

67. "Tasty!" : "YUM!"

68. Unsettling looks : STAREs. could be 2D. Look at lasciviously : OGLE

69. Arid : DRY

Down:

1. Baby bears : CUBS

3. "So what?" : "WHO CARES?"

4. Alan of "M*A*S*H" : ALDA

5. Like rosebushes : THORNY. "Don't let the fear of the thorn keep you from the rose." - Groucho Marx

6. Pub spigot : TAP

7. "Woe __": Patricia T. O'Conner grammar book : IS I

8. Gondolier's "street" : CANAL

9. Hopping mad : ANGRY

10. One of Minn.'s Twin Cities : ST. PAUL. Adjoins Minneapolis.

11. Singer Warwick : DIONNE

12. Frigid historic period : ICE AGE

14. Aretha's genre : SOUL

18. 551, at the Forum : DLI. 500+50+1

22. Dad's nephew : COUSIN

25. Aerie hatchlings : EAGLETS

26. Playing an extra NBA period, say : IN OT. (overtime)

27. Quick blow : JAB

28. Gardner once married to Sinatra : AVA

29. Refusing to listen : DEAF

32. Use, as a coupon : REDEEM

33. Entrepreneur-aiding org. : SBA. (Small Business Administration)

35. Optimistic : ROSY

36. Opposite of WSW : ENE

38. Come in last : LOSE

39. Lasagna-loving cat : GARFIELD

40. Growth chart nos. : HTs

41. Brewed drink : TEA

44. Poorly made : SHODDY

45. Wells' "The Island of Dr. __" : MOREAU

46. Arnold Palmer or Shirley Temple, drinkwise : EPONYM

48. Where charity begins : AT HOME

51. Formally gives up : CEDES

52. Raise, as a sail : HOIST

53. Old fort near Monterey : ORD

54. Sounds of wonder : OOHs

57. Grandson of Adam : ENOS

58. Depilatory brand : NAIR

59. Hot tub swirl : EDDY

62. Alias letters : AKA

63. Former Russian space station : MIR

Argyle