Monday January 20, 2020 MaryEllen Uthlaut

Theme: COFFEE BREAK (36. Midmorning work time-out, and a hint to this puzzle's circles)

1) ESPRESSO: 17. Gets an A on, as a test: ACES. And 18. Bench __: exercise: PRESS And 19. Red sky at morning, to a sailor: OMEN.

2) LATTE:  21. Darjeeling and oolong: TEAS. And 22. Fire stirrers: POKERS.

3) MOCHA: 57. Japanese wrestling: SUMO. And 59. Half a Latin dance: CHA.

4) CAPPUCCINO: 60. Put __ on: limit: A CAP. And 61. Fashion designer Emilio: PUCCI. And 63. Christmas carol: NOEL.

Boomer here. This theme is more complicated than our normal Mondays.

It's a Federal holiday in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.  I don't know if I ever mentioned this, if I did I am sorry to repeat. On April 4, 1968, I was called to emergency duty that evening to the Fort Campbell Army Hospital. There were riots (mostly off post) and bloodied soldiers were delivered by ambulance to the emergency room. I know Memphis must have been worse. Fort Campbell was about 250 miles from Memphis but the pain was felt all over Tennessee.

Across:

1. Drains of strength: SAPS.  Drains from maple trees also. Argyle used to send us a small bottle of maple syrup.

5. Hoops player: CAGER.  Something tells me it's all happening at the zoo.  (Simon and Garfunkel)

10. Immortal Middle-earth dweller: ELF.  Speaking of Argyle, Santa's helper, an elf, maybe helped him with the syrup.

Argyle, 1960,  fifteen year old and a Freshman. Class of '63.

13. Suffix with switch: EROO.  Switcheroo will be made in managers for the Astros and Red Sox.

14. Gladiator's realm: ARENA.

15. Henry __, who had six marriages: VIII.  This guy was terrible, I think he weighed over 400 lbs.  He also got into an argument with the Pope and decided to start his own church.  He beheaded two of his six wives and treated the other four terribly.

20. Long. crosser: LAT.

24. Writer Wharton: EDITH.  Remember Edith Bunker?  Archie kind of treated her like Henry VIII treated his wives, however he did not behead her.

26. "Indubitably!": YES.

28. Hawk's nest: AERIE.

29. Shrinks back: RECOILS.  I remember the first time I fired a 20 gauge shotgun.  I thought my arm was going to fall off. 

31. Like a student arriving ten minutes after the bell, as opposed to five: TARDIER.  Seems like a made-up word for later.

33. "Golly!": GEE.  Whiz

34. Greek cross: TAU.

35. Old PC component: CRT.  Cathode Ray Tube.  I don't know what they use now, but it's faster and better.

40. Santa __ winds: ANA.  "High up Santa Ana we're killing your soldiers below, so the rest of Texas will know, and remember the Alamo."  I remember the Kingston Trio version.

42. Convert (hide) into leather: TAN.

43. Dada pioneer Jean: ARP.  Not to be confused with the old retiree club.  I joined for awhile but it did not seem worth it.

44. Roasted holiday birds: TURKEYS.  We had one at Thanksgiving,  That was enough thank you.

47. Clickbait links, e.g.: TEASERS.  I did not realize they were called clickbait.  I never click on the ads at all.  Lately Subaru is spending their ad budget.

51. Movie critic, when giving stars: RATER.  We are not big movie fans.  Lately C.C. is clicking on raters to see who has the best buffet.

52. As well: TOO.

54. Religious belief: TENET.  Henry VIII created his own.

55. Hider's location-revealing words: IN HERE.

64. Toy building block: LEGO.  These are great.  I have mentioned the monstrosity at our Mall of America.

65. Sir __ Newton: ISAAC.

66. Word-of-mouth: ORAL.

67. Bear's shelter: DEN.  I thought it was a house that Goldilocks ate porridge, tried out the beds and broke a chair. 

68. Chili con __: CARNE.  Reminds me of Jackie Gleason's buddy Art Carney aka Ed Norton who worked in the sewer.

69. Moistens: WETS.

Down:

1. Putty, for example: SEALER.

2. Video game area: ARCADE.  A good Facebook friend of mine in the suburb where I used to live has an arcade business.  I used to visit there frequently when he had pinball games.  Now everything is electronic and I am too old to play.

3. Written in verse: POETIC.

4. Sailor's "Help!": SOS.  Also a steel wool pad.

5. Flowing garb for Batman: CAPE.  To the Batcave, Robin.

6. Orderly arrangements: ARRAYS.  "The Wizard of Oz" was going to cast Mr. Bolger as the Tin Man but when someone found his shoes near the corn field the director must have said "Those are Rays".

7. Sextet after the golden rings: GEESE.  I think you mean golden eggs.  Ask Aesop.

8. USN rank: ENS.  Yes Sir !!

9. Abrasive tool: RASP.  Works better than sandpaper, but do not use it on your bowling ball.

10. Brought to mind: EVOKED.

11. Funny five-line verse: LIMERICK.  There was a young girl from St. Paul.  Who went to a newspaper ball.  Her dress caught on fire ... and burnt her entire -- front page, sports section and all.

12. More passionate: FIERIER.

16. Newspaper leaflet, say: INSERT.  We get them all the time.  Usually the first thing that goes into the recycle bag. Sorry.

21. Porch pirate, for one: THIEF. Our porch pirates are squirrels.  I don't feed them but they use our deck to get to the next door lady, who puts out a buffet

23. Rowboat mover: OAR.  Gently down the stream.

25. Like takeout food: TO GO.

27. Wild guess: STAB.  I usually have to STAB a lot at crosswords.

30. Southpaw: LEFTY.  "Poncho needs your prayers it's true, say a few for LEFTY too.  He only did what he had to do. And now he's growin' old".  Willie Nelson

32. Surrounding glows: AURAE.

34. Decalogue number: TEN.  Number of pins in the deck

36. Rome's Punic Wars foe: CARTHAGE.

37. Toward sunrise: EAST.  East is east, and west is west and the wrong one I have chose.  "Buttons and Bows"  Yes I am old enough to remember Dinah Shore.  "See the USA in your Chevrolet."

38. Muse of poetry: ERATO.

39. Church recess: APSE.  That has something to do with the roof.  My church does not have a recess.  We have to stay for the whole hour.  Doesn't matter though, the playground is full of snow.

40. On __ basis: for testing purposes: A TRIAL.  I am going to try an old plastic ball next Thursday.  Bowling center is too cheap to put much oil on the lanes.  Ball hooks too much - last Thursday I left 9 splits and went away mad.

41. Characterized by subtle distinctions: NUANCED.

45. Not turn off: KEEP ON.  Yes, we are keeping the furnace on this time of year.

46. Be wrong: ERR.  A baseball term.  Check with the Astros or Red Sox.

47. Bird on a Froot Loops box: TOUCAN.  These look great on boxes and ads.  I have never seen a real one.

48. "Sing another one!": ENCORE.  Okay "Lucy Baines, she is no Jackie but then who complains.  She may be tacky but she was the brains behind our foreign policy.  Who else but Lucy could it be."

49. Warm up, as leftovers: REHEAT.  It's never quite as good on the second day.

50. Hems and haws: STALLS.  Rest rooms at the ball park and airports.

53. Grouchy Muppet: OSCAR.

56. Large-scale tale: EPIC.

58. Computer devices bearing little resemblance to their real-life namesakes: MICE.

62. Can. neighbor: USA.  We hear this chant at the Olympics

63. "It's __ or never": NOW.

My best wishes to our friend Irish Miss. Wishing you a quick recovery.



Boomer

Agnes' 11 Rings

Boomer's  8 Rings (300 and 299 Games)

Note from C.C.:

Here is the obit of Agnes' sister Anne. Thanks for the link, Al.

Sunday January 10, 2020 Pam Amick Klawitter

Theme:  "Flight of Fancy" - Part of each familiar phrase is replaced by a sound-alike bird name.

27A. Museum piece depicting a songbird battle?: WREN WAR PAINTING. Renoir painting.

40A. Turkey concerned with the details?: TECHNICAL FOWL. Technical foul.

65A. Supply for a bird-of-prey flu epidemic?: ILL EAGLE DRUGS. Illegal drugs.

84A. Target audience for squawkdates.com?: SINGLE PARROTS. Single parent.

103A. Troupe of pink entertainers?: FLAMINGO DANCERS. Flamenco dancer.
  
16D Where seabirds grab buses?: PETREL STATIONS. Petrol station.

47D. Bird skilled at long hoops shots?: THREE-POINT TERN. Three-point turn.

Hey, I got all the original phrases without asking D-Otto. Success!

This type if theme is the hardest for me as sometimes the replacement is a full homophone, sometimes it's just sound-alike. But they're all so imaginative.

Across:

1. Col. Potter on "M*A*S*H," to pals: SHERM. Sherman T. Potter.

6. Where Biles balances: BEAM. The amazing Simone Biles.

10. GQ stat: CIRC. Circulation.

14. Jokes around: JAPES.

19. Anne of "Psycho" (1998): HECHE.

20. Something up your sleeve: ULNA. Fresh clue angle.

21. Sign of hollowness: ECHO.

22. Idaho's Coeur d'__ River: ALENE.

23. 1944 Italian beachhead: ANZIO. No idea. It's south of Rome.

24. Standing lead-in: LONG. Long-standing.

25. Broadway lighter: NEON.

26. Terra __: COTTA.

30. Tabloid-worthy: LURID.

31. Key fruit: LIME.

32. Grafton of mystery: SUE. And 80. "__ for Innocent": Grafton: I IS.

33. Mexican menu meat: CARNE.

34. Bayou sound: ZYDECO. What does this word mean?

35. Pageant accessories: SASHES.

37. "Hulk" star Eric: BANA.

38. Games go-with: FUN.

39. KFC choice: LEG. KFC entered Xi'an market around 1992. McDonald's a decade later. But Xi'an now has Uniqlo and Muji. I bet most of you still don't have those two in your area.

44. Ed.'s inbox fillers: MSS.

45. Oregon city namesake: ASTOR.

48. Bank acct. item: INT.

49. Reach, finally: END UP AT.

51. "High Hopes" lyricist: CAHN (Sammy)

52. Quietly keeps in the loop: BCCS.

54. Dugout sight: MITT.

56. Khan of Rufus: CHAKA.

59. Item in a Blackpool boot: TYRE. Not familiar with this British city.

60. Massage response: AAH.

61. Spot for an icicle: EAVE.

62. Rockies roamers: WAPITIS.

64. Find a purpose for: USE.

68. Cards with pics: IDS. Star Tribune said only that 10% of the Minnesotans have applied for Real IDs.

69. Like Purell-treated hands: ASEPTIC.

71. "Archie's Pals 'n' __": old comic book series: GALS.

72. El Al's home: Abbr.: ISR.

73. Tip-top: A ONE.

74. World Golf Hall of Famer Nancy: LOPEZ. She used to appear regularly at the 3M Champions Tour event. Annika was there also.


75. Frees (of): RIDS.

76. __ jure: by the law itself: IPSO.

77. Genetic chains: RNAS. Spell check does not like the plural form.

78. Soapbox address: ORATION.

81. Blood pressure raiser: IRE. Not mine. Nothing raises mine. Absurd. I eat pickled stuff almost every day.

82. Talks like Daffy: LISPS.

83. Knight supporter?: PIP. Gladys Knight.

89. __ star: TIN.

90. Is afflicted with: HAS.

91. Those, south of the border: ESOS.

92. Vital lines: AORTAS.

95. Bluff and bluster: HOT AIR.

97. "Now you've done it!": I'M MAD.

99. Lane target: PIN. Bowling.

100. Snack with a Green Tea version in China and Japan: OREO. Nailed it.

102. Fighters: ANTIS.

106. Runs rampant: TEEMS.

107. Panelist Love of "The Real": LONI. Learning moment for me also.

108. It's high in France: ALPE.

109. MGM motto ender: ARTIS.

110. Sleeper's option: SERTA. Hey, we fixed our box spring undercover fiasco with tacks rather than those hard-to-operate staple guns. D-Otto just knows everything. 

111. "More than a beauty company" company: AVON.

112. Gritty film genre: NOIR.

113. Persian faith: BAHAI.

114. Uncertain ending words: OR NOT.

115. Titanic problem: BERG.

116. Virtually never loses to: OWNS. Oh, like owns the game.

117. Well past its prime: STALE.

Down:

1. Prayer garment: SHAWL.

2. Matisse and Rousseau: HENRIS.

3. Aloe target: ECZEMA.

4. Imitation gem: RHINESTONE. Great fill.

5. "Where's my cat treat?": MEOW.

6. Plant associated with the infant Moses: BULRUSH.

7. Tie the knot on the run: ELOPE.

8. "Frozen" princess: ANNA.

9. Performance with tricks: MAGIC ACT.

10. Primary: CENTRAL.

11. Trap during winter: ICE IN. Lots of snow here on Friday/Saturday. 

12. River at Avignon: RHONE.

13. D.C. group: CONG. Just short for "congress".

14. She played Kelly on "Charlie's Angels": JACLYN (Smith)

15. One way to read: ALOUD.

17. Baits: ENTICES.

18. Salty sort: SEA DOG.  Salt-y.  Boomer is jealous of Spitzboov's white uniform.

28. "Just wait __!": A SEC.

29. Baby spoiler, often: NANA.

34. Last letter in radio lingo: ZULU. And 36. That ship: HER. All for Spitzboov, who uses "Brave Zulu" at times.

37. Hoppers: BINS.

38. Email abbr.: FWD.

41. __ market: NICHE.

42. Threw a party for: FETED.

43. N.Y. neighbor: ONT.

44. Half a luau serving?: MAHI. Huge.

45. Real: ACTUAL.

46. Tells it like it is: SAYS SO.

50. HMO doctor designations: PCPS. Primary care physicians.

52. Java neighbor: BALI.

53. H.S. math course: CALC.

54. Etail alternatives: MALLS. I just want Uniqlo to come to Minnesota. This is the best I've worn. So comfy. It's like you're wearing nothing.

55. Currier's partner: IVES.

57. Take badly?: KIDNAP.

58. Take stock of: ASSESS.

61. "Yikes!": EGAD.

62. Gutless one: WUSS.

63. Farming prefix: AGRO.

65. Chichén __: Mayan ruins: ITZA. Hahtoolah was there.

66. Kept in a cask, say: AGING.

67. Not as green: RIPER.

70. APB subject: PERP.

73. Upper crust type: ARISTOCRAT.

75. Hermione's guy: RON. "Harry Potter".

76. Nest egg plans: IRAS.

79. Royal until 1917: TSAR.

81. Music player with many generations: IPOD NANO.

82. Ptr. paper size: LTR.

83. Initiate: PIONEER.

85. Legendary migrator: LEMMING. Forgot. We had him before.

86. "Ozark" actor Morales: ESAI.

87. 2020 Vegas NFLers, if the new stadium is ready: RAIDERS.

88. Chaplin of "Game of Thrones": OONA.

89. "Oh, really?": THAT SO.

90. Warn, feline-style: HISS AT.

93. "Queen of Soul": ARETHA.

94. "To be continued" story: SERIAL.

96. "We __ please": AIM TO.

97. Valentine message words: I LOVE.

98. Estate centerpiece: MANOR.

99. Drop by: POP IN.

101. Actor Davis: OSSIE.

103. Trainer's concern: FLAB.

104. What embers do: GLOW.

105. Arrests: NABS.

C.C.

Dear Agnes lost her older sister Anne on January 11. May you rest in peace, Anne! 

Agnes also developed some eye issues. Constantly tearing. It'll probably take a few more days for the artificial tear to work its magic. Get well soon, Agnes! We need you on the blog.

L-R: Anne, Agnes, Eileen, Mary, and Peggy. March 2019

Saturday, January, 18, 2020, Ed Sessa

Saturday Themeless by Dr. Ed Sessa

So you think doctors won't make a Saturday house call. Well, Dr. Ed Sessa has arrived here at our crossword stand with his little black bag full of cleverness and learning (e.g. 1 Across) to help ease the winter blues for those of us north of the Mason-Dixon Line. Bringing along his faithful companion is a further boost for us!

Just for fun I found out how far it is from my town here on the frozen steppes of eastern Nebraska to Ed's home on Sanibel Island, Florida. BTW, I see they do have three golf courses on the island.

Let's check out what Dr. Ed has for us on his rounds today:

Across

1. Indian anna, e.g.: COIN - An anna (or ānā) was a currency unit formerly used in India and Pakistan, equal to ​¹⁄₁₆ of a rupee. I'm sure the word play similarity to Indiana did not escape Ed.

A 1919 mint condition 8 anna
coin worth $400

5. Baked potato topping: CHIVES.

11. Billy the Kid preceder?: AKA - "Also Known As" is "Better Known As" below

14. It's tossed into a pot: ANTE.

15. Play with Freudian implications: OEDIPUS REX - Freud - "It is the fate of all of us, perhaps, to direct our first sexual impulse towards our mother and our first hatred and our first murderous wish against our father" 18. Freudian component of 15-Across: PRIMAL URGE - You're on your own here

17. Result of spilling the beans: MESS.

19. Catering preparation: PLATTER.

21. Whale fare: KRILL - They can eat millions per day

22. Jam-packed: FILLED - NFL stadiums are not necessarily FILLED anymore 

23. 1989-'90 Broadway one-man show: TRU - Robert Morse as TRUman Capote

26. Gift-wrapping occasions: EVES.

27. Arm of the sea: INLET.

28. Serial standout: SOAP STAR - The longest serving American SOAP STAR 

30. Short rules?: REGS.

31. Enjoyed a parlor game: SHOT POOL - When Fast Eddie SHOT POOL with Minnesota Fats, it was in a pool hall not parlor. "Like he's playing a violin"

32. Stumble: ERR.

33. Market research pioneer: NIELSEN - According to the NIELSEN Ratings, The Bob Hope Vietnam Christmas Show was the highest rated TV show this week 50 years ago

34. Suitable for family viewing: TV-G.

37. Actress who voiced Duchess in "The Aristocats": EVA GABOR - Movie also from 50 years ago

39. Cry over spilt milk?: MEWL - It'll be fine kitty!

40. Contemporary of le Carré: DEIGHTON - Spy novelist Len's first name is standard fare here

41. Movie character who might say 3-Down: ZORBA and 3. "No clue": IT'S ALL GREEK TO ME.

42. Facebook nudge: POKE.

43. Texting nicety: THX - YW seems to be the apt reply

44. Finalized, with "up": FIRMED - We finally FIRMED up the sale of MIL's house last month

45. Join the cast of: ACT IN - I'll bet all of you know what TV show these ladies joined to ACT IN after the previous one moved on

47. Propaganda tactics: BIG LIES - It's been done for centuries 

48. It's usually stuffed on planes: STORAGE BIN 

52. Suspicious of: ONTO.

53. Garden support: TOMATO CAGE - It's hard to see the CAGES that are holding up my wife's lush TOMATO and cucumber plants. Daughter, niece and nephew are harvesting from her bounty!

54. Storm preceder, at times: CALM.

55. "I kissed thee __ I killed thee": Othello: ERE - In English and in, uh, English

56. Govt. savings vehicles discontinued in 1980: E BONDS - Initially offered in 1941 to finance WWII. They became known as "War Bonds"

57. "Red Balloon" painter: KLEE - As it hangs in the Guggenheim 

Down:

1. Hand warmer only used outdoors: CAMP FIRE.

2. Little crack: ONE LINER - The King!

4. Settles softly: NESTLES - So many to choose from online ("from which to choose" for the grammar police 😏)

5. Managed to get by: COPED.

6. German title: HERR.

7. Forest's Oscar role: IDI - A Scottish doctor on a medical mission becomes entangled with this brutal dictator who declared himself to be the title of this movie

8. Drive: VIM.

9. Acid Rain Program org.: EPA.

10. Have a pouty face: SULK.

11. Carousel location: ARRIVAL TERMINAL - Michael Richards hurt himself sliding onto this carousel but finished this Seinfeld scene

12. Seeker of turkeys in alleys?: KEGLER - When a KEGLER (bowler)  gets three strikes in a row 

13. Eponymous jumps: AXELS - Named after its Norwegian creator AXEL Paulsen

16. Gonna: SURE TO.

20. Hanoi holiday: TET.

23. Hobbyist's organizer: TOOL BOX - I'd call this a deluxe model

24. Fingers: RATS ON.

25. __ deck: UPPER - In the UPPER deck at Yankee stadium you are 7 stories up and about 180' from home plate

28. Scabbard: SHEATH.

29. Dad bud, often: SON.

31. Tourist attraction: SIGHT - Old Yankee Stadium was on my bucket list as a SIGHT to see that I checked off

33. Badger or hound: NAG - Yeah right, I was the only one who put DOG first

35. "Punch buggy" in a car trip game: VW BEETLE - We called it "slug bug" and it gave you license to punch a sibling after yelling out "slug bug" upon seeing a VW BEETLE. Hey, we didn't have glowing screens to occupy us!

36. Full of joy: GLADSOME - Makes sense. Use over time:

38. "25 Words or Less" host Meredith: VIEIRA - A play-at-home game published in 1996 and put on the TV in 2018

39. Wells predator: MORLOCK - Here they attack Sheldon in a dream he has while sitting in the prop used in the H.G. Wells movie The Time Machine

40. Who on TV, with "the": DOCTOR - All you wanna know about one of aforementioned Sheldon's favorite TV characters 

41. Turn sharply: ZIG.

42. It holds things together: PASTE - Haute cuisine in Kindergarten 

44. Ticket prices?: FINES.

46. Archibald of the NBA: NATE - NATE is the second from the right standing on this team that split time between the two cities

47. Cowboys' city, familiarly: BIG D - Carol Burnett and Julie Andrews sing this fun song from Most Happy Fella

49. Lump: GOB.

50. Green opening: ECO.

51. Taboo: BAN.

Thanks for the visit, Dr. Ed. Comments?

Friday, January 17, 2020, David Van Houten

Title: A tribute to our own Melissa B. As we hold our noses and hear the sound change.

This is the LAT debut for Mr. Van Houten, who did have a puzzle published in the David Steinberg's Universal crossword October of last year. Here is the LINK to the FIEND write-up. Oddly we have had a spate of "B" puzzles but this one is not intended as a letter substitution but as a sounds-sort of-like puzzle. The rest is not a typical Friday with many 3/4 letter words. and not a great deal of new fill. But it was fun. We do have some longish fill BECAUSE,  LOOSENS,  HEAD COLD,  RAT'S NEST, and TROTTING and some

17A. What dogs do to set a tempo?: BARK TIME (8). I like this visual, with a Boston Terrier leading the band.

24A. Bartender's lager-serving skill?: BUD SLINGING (11). Mudslinging was an old fashioned political strategy.

40A. Convenience for a fish traveling around the city?: BASS TRANSIT PASS (15). Mass transit...

52A. Annoyed answer to "How's your jobless roommate working out?"?: BUMS THE WORD (11). "Mum's the word" means to keep silent or quiet. Mum is a Middle English word meaning 'silent' and may be derived from the mummer who acts without speaking.

And the reveal:

65A. Malady that accounts for four Across puzzle answers: HEAD COLD.

That was the beginning, then came...

Across:

1. "__ Is Betta Than Evvah!": 1976 R&B album: ETTA.

5. "Disgusting!": UGH.

8. "The Real Housewives" series airer: BRAVO. Do you WATCH?

13. Sprat's choice: LEAN. Jack was an early Keto supporter.

14. Slice of pizza?: ZEE. Did you fall for this?

15. Consuming: EATING. True but not my first thought.

19. One making amends: ATONER. Another literally correct fill, but even during Yom Kippur I would not use this word.

20. __ dog: ALPHA. A 2007 movie

21. Uproars: DINS.

23. Miler Sebastian: COE. Sebastian Newbold Coe, Baron Coe, is a British politician and former track and field athlete. As a middle-distance runner, Coe won four Olympic medals, including the 1500 meters gold medal at the Olympic Games in 1980 and 1984. Take that Frank Shorter.

28. "Just __": BECAUSE. Did the quotation marks help you solve?  DO you prefer ELVIS; DIDO; or, JANE's ADDICTION?

32. Creepy glance: LEER.

33. Word said with a sigh: ALAS.

34. School subj.: SCIence.

36. Self-service bar offering: SALAD. That is a cop-out

44. Join: ENTER.

45. Excavation: DIG. My oldest has been on 4 so far, three in Italy and one in Greece.

46. Green subj.: ECOLogy.

47. Barflies: SOTS.

50. Works free: LOOSENS.

56. Beer choice: IPA. India Pale Ale.

57. Prefix with byte: TERA.

58. Name on Re-Nutriv cosmetics: ESTEE. Lauder.

63. Sport played on a variety of surfaces: TENNIS.

68. V-8, for example: ENGINE. Not a canned juice.

69. 1979 Hockey Hall of Fame inductee: ORR.

70. Brest bestie: AMIE. A mixed-language alliteration. Brest is a port city in the Finistère département in Brittany.

71. Mild oaths: DANGS. Perhaps from 1781 (in Sophia Lee's comedy "A Chapter of Accidents," which was acted first in 1780), a minced euphemism for damn.

72. Feed bit: OAT.

73. Coffee __: BEAN.

Down:

1. Italy's Isola d'__: ELBA. On April 11, 1814,  Napoleon Bonaparte, emperor of France and one of the greatest military leaders in history, abdicates the throne, and, in the Treaty of Fontainebleau, is banished to the Mediterranean island of Elba.

2. Blue-green shade: TEAL. Teal is a blue-green color. Its name comes from that of a bird—the common teal —which presents a similarly colored stripe on its head.

3. Cover during a delay: TARP. Baseball.

4. Pharaoh's symbol: ANKH.

5. Gun designer __ Gal: UZI. The Israeli machine gun designer.

6. Beloved person: GEM. A stretch, but the perps were fine.

7. Follows: HEEDS.

8. Babies leader?: BEANIE. Beanie Babies are a line of stuffed toys created by American businessman H. Ty Warner, who founded Ty Inc. in 1986. Notably, the toys are stuffed with plastic pellets rather than conventional soft stuffing, giving Beanie Babies a flexible feel.

9. Total mess: RAT'S NEST. A place of great clutter or disorder. Also, our techies can explain the meaning of this for computer wiring etc.

10. Words on the first of a set, perhaps: A TO-.

11. Leonardo's birthplace: VINCI. That is where the Da Vinci comes from.

12. Situation after a leadoff double: ONE ON. Baseball.

16. One of the Bradys: GREG. Barry William Blekhorn

18. House of Dana fragrance: TABU. It has an interesting history. The first fragrance of the house was Tabu, created by Jean Carles 1932. ... Before creating Tabu, he was instructed to make a fragrance for a whore (‘un parfum de puta’).

22. Down (with): ILL.

25. Old map abbr.: USSR.

26. Octa- plus two: DECA. Silly.

27. Sour __: GRAPES.

28. 1995 Oscar-nominated animatronics film: BABE. I really loved this film. WATCH.

29. Pizazz: ELAN.

30. Credits heading: CAST.

31. Rate: ASSESS.

35. Like Brahms' Symphony No. 2: IN D. Sorry, maybe JzB will explain.

37. Tie (up): LACE. Your shoes, not your significant other.

38. "... __ is given": Isaiah: A SON. We Corner bloggers do not comment on religious issues, but for those who want a different perspective, I will provide this LINK.

39. PC connections: DSLS. Digital Subscriber Lines are a family of technologies that are used to transmit digital data over telephone lines.

41. Palomino pace: TROTTING. I like the alliteration.

42. Missile site: SILO.

43. Hunchbacked assistant: IGOR.

48. Dissertations: THESES. It seems fitting next to...

49. Preacher's msg.: SERmon.

51. Binged (on): ODED.

52. Quick meal: BITE.

53. Capsize: UPEND. Tricky.

54. Japanese comics: MANGA. We have seen this often recently. My favorite.

55. Large mackerel: WAHOO. If I were Boomer, I would say it reminds me of WAHOO MCDANIEL but is just a FISH.

59. Union member's nemesis: SCAB. I thought it was an acronym, but it is from Middle English (as a noun): from Old Norse skabb ; related to dialect shab (compare with shabby). The sense ‘contemptible person’ (dating from the late 16th century) was probably influenced by Middle Dutch schabbe ‘slut’.

60. Great work: TOME.

61. Academy award-winning director Kazan: ELIA. An impressive but controversial DIRECTOR.

62. Fall site: EDEN. The fall of man with snakes and not apples.

64. Diarist Anaïs: NIN.

66. History book chapter: ERA.

67. Fine print, say: ART. A little humor to finish the grid.

I hope you had a fine solve and some hope for the future with MLK day Monday. Welcome DVH and be well all. lemonade out/

Thursday, January 16th 2020 Bruce Haight

Theme Side of Beef - the six theme entries sit on the sides of the plate - as the reveal entries suggest:

41A. With 45-Across, meat cut that suggests six aptly placed puzzle answers: FLANK and 45A. See 41-Across: STEAK

So we go look for the flanks of the puzzle, and sure enough we find:

1D. "Squarely unconventional" Nissan: CUBE. Cube steak isn't steak, cubed - it's the shape of the holes that the tenderizer makes which brings us to ....

13D. __ chocolate: SWISS. Cube steak and Swiss steak are really the same thing - cube steak is put through a tenderizer known as a "swisser", and guess what, so is Swiss steak. The result though, as chicken-fried steak, is rather lovely. My gravy is a basic white sauce, garlic powder, a ton of dried sage and cracked black pepper. I believe KFC stole my recipe :) This is not KFC:

26D. Tavern order: ROUND. The nicest words to hear - "My round!".

38D. Slacks alternative: SKIRT. Ever had steak fajitas? You've had skirt steak. The old "butcher cuts" are the cheapest, and best, you just have to know how to cook them. The Interwebs are your friend.

56D. Vegas __: STRIP. Usually a New York Strip, but here decamped to Las Vegas!

67D. Keister: RUMP.

Another 16x15 grid this week to accommodate the theme, which I liked - Food! But a couple of minor nits for me, the repeat of the SWISS/CUBE themers and, when we get to 17A, the other niggle. All minor though. I like Bruce's puzzles, usually a solid theme, some misdirection, and some entries to discuss (or argue!) about. Let's go and see what's in store:

Across:

1. Barbecue remnants: COBS. This one puzzled me. I know the answer from crosswords past, but I wanted to look up the etymology of the word and I drew a blank. I assumed it had got something to do with coal cobs, but I couldn't find a reference to burned-out barbecue coals - then Lemonade came to the rescue, he pointed out that the clue is referring to corn cobs! Silly me.

5. Personal identification?: ITS ME!

10. Rolaids rival: TUMS. I prefer this clue to last Thursday's.

14. Iris layer: UVEA

15. Part of a "Star Wars" name: DETOO. R2-D2.

16. "__ it first!": I SAW

17. Tower of London guards: BEEFEATERS. It's a nice word, but there's steak in the theme, so I would either have tried to avoid this fill or tried to find a "matching" entry at 69A to complement it.

19. Local bond, briefly: MUNI

20. PC key: ENTER

21. Classic car: REO. Ransom E. Olds' car company, based in Lansing, Michigan.

22. Frozen floaters: BERGS

23. Celebratory smokes: CIGARS

25. 2019 awards for Giannis Antetokounmpo: ESPYS. He won both "Male Athlete of the Year" and "NBA Player of the Year" hence the plural.

26. Elaborate style: ROCOCO. A little over-elaborate for my taste, but you can't deny the artistic brilliance:

29. Checks out: EYES

31. Artist Yoko: ONO. I think YOKO/ONO or ONO/YOKO has rescued more crosswords than can be counted in grains of sand.

32. "Nashville" actress Judith: HOAG. Who she? See 18D.

35. Currently: AS IT IS

39. Vases with feet: URNS

43. Understand, in slang: GROK. Well known in these parts, as we often find people "grok the theme".

44. Kremlin refusal: NYET in denial as is ...

46. "Me? Never!": NOT I! denial again!

47. Original "Star Trek" studio: DESILU

49. Princess from Alderaan: LEIA. One of the few "Star Wars" characters I don't have to think too hard about.

51. Links standard: PAR. Not my standard, that's for sure. Why is it called "golf"? Because all the other four-letter words were already used.

52. Manilow song site: COPA. I'll spare you the earworm.

54. Giants' div.: NL WEST. Baseball's San Francisco Giants

56. Mopes: SULKS

59. __ bag: DOGGIE. Not Doggy?

62. Sporty car features: T-TOPS

63. To's partner: FRO

64. Fitting tool: SIZER. Rings, I think.

68. Lower-APR deal: RE-FI

69. Restaurant list not for everyone: SECRET MENU. Fun, but generally not so secret - pretty much anyone who eats at the In 'N Out burger chain knows about "animal style"; there's a similar secret item at Disneyland's Tomorrowland, the Galactic Burger "alien style".

71. Shiraz's land: IRAN. Nailed it! Not IRAQ! I'm off to do a lap of honor around the FLANKS.

72. Giants and Titans: TEAMS. I'm going to guess the New York Giants in this case, to match the NFL's Tennessee Titans. We've had both GIANTS today.
* So, name the other five pairs of team names across Hockey, Football, Baseball and Basketball. 30 seconds, go!

73. Physics matter: ATOM

74. Nectarine centers: PITS

75. Donkeys: ASSES

76. Filing tool: RASP

Down:

2. Baker: OVEN

3. Vegetable that may stain a cutting board: BEET

4. Seattle-based insurance giant: SAFECO. I had no idea this lot were an insurance company, I've even been to Safeco Field in Seattle and it never crossed my mind to wonder about the company with the naming rights.

5. Mont. neighbor: IDA.

6. Colorful fish: TETRA

7. Range rover: STEER. Home, where the deer and the antelope (and apparently the steer) play. No discouraging words though, to make you feel ...

8. Gloomy: MOROSE

9. Daybreak deity: EOS

10. One involved in multiple problems?: TIMES SIGN. Did you learn your Times Tables by rote? I can still chant "One 12 is 12, two 12's are 24,  .... "

11. Take by force: USURP

12. Shabby: MANGY

18. "The Art of Loving" author Fromm: ERICH. With Judith HOAG at 32A, this was a near-Natick for me, I'm not sure I've heard of either. "H" seemed the best guess, and so it was.

22. Honey bunch: BEES

24. Blunders: GOOFS UP

27. Deli specification: ON RYE. Yes please, I love a deli sandwich on rye, preferably pastrami from Katz's in Manhattan's Lower East Side. What a great Food! puzzle today!

28. Traffic markers: CONES

30. Talking on and on: YAKKING

33. __-rock: ALT

34. Highlander: GAEL

36. Overused theme: TROPE. Nope, a cliche is an overused theme. A trope is the use of figurative language, an image or a figure of speech, which may be commonly recurring.

37. Bits: IOTAS

40. Map markers: STICK PINS. I thought these were called push pins - stick pins are much more decorative and used as costume jewelry or lapel decorations. Would you put these in a map?

42. Scottish rejection: NAE

48. Result of a poor investment: LOSS

50. Crème de la crème: A-LIST

53. Commercial charges: AD FEES

55. German city where the Bauhaus movement began: WEIMAR. And the Weimar Republic.

57. Where embryos grow: UTERI

58. Like much diet food: LO-FAT

60. Black-and-white whales: ORCAS

61. Grammy winner Eydie: GORMÉ. Thank you, crosses.

65. Letter that rhymes with three others: ZETA. Not Catherine Zeta-Jones?

66. Nephew of Cain: ENOS

69. Transit map abbr.: STA.

70. Snaky shape: ESS

Today I learned that Safeco is an insurance company, and I learned the name of a Grammy winner. File away for for future use!

* From 72A earlier, the teams are:

Cardinals - Arizona (NFL) and St. Louis (MLB)
Kings - Sacramento (NBA) and Los Angeles (NHL)
Panthers - Carolina (NFL) and Florida (NHL)
Rangers - Texas (NBA NFL) and New York (NHL)
Jets - New York (NFL) and Winnipeg (NHL)

I hope I got that right, I was testing my own memory!

And hopefully, accurately, the grid:

Steve