Wednesday, August 5, 2020, Bruce Haight & Blair Bas

Theme: ROUND FIGURES

17. Sitcom pioneer in the first class of inductees to the Television Academy Hall of Fame: LUCILLE BALL. Wikipedia.

25. Grand Ole Opry comedian for more than 50 years: MINNIE PEARL. Wikipedia.

35. #2 on Rolling Stone's 100 Greatest Drummers of All Time: KEITH MOON. Drummer for the Who. Keith Moon's 10 Wildest Pranks.

48. Winner of 18 Grand Slam tennis titles from 1936 to 1940: ALICE MARBLE. Wikipedia.

56. Like 17-, 25-, 35- and 48-Across?: WELL ROUNDED.

Melissa here. Awesome theme. Each of these people were icons in their day and field. All have passed but left their mark. I wonder which was the seed entry. Crossword constructors have 3D vision when they see names and words.

Across:

1. Pitch-altering guitar clamps: CAPOS.

6. Actor Kinnear: GREG. He recently played real life attorney Justin Brooks with the California Innocence Project in the movie The Brian Banks Story.

10. Former Fed chair Bernanke: BEN.

13. Jordanian seaport: AQABA. Tough one - very few words with letter Q that are not paired with U. Crossing the rarely seen plural AQUARIA.

14. Fishing gear: LURES.

16. Texter's "As I see it": IMO. In my opinion.

19. Rte. finder: GPS.

20. Receipts: TAKE. This gave me fits. My eyes first saw "recipients." Then I was looking for a plural word. Third definition: the act of receiving or the state of being received. Alright then.

21. Game with a spinoff called DOS: UNO. I did not know about DOS, but it was an obvious answer.

22. Milo of "Ulysses": O'SHEA. Irish actor, died in 2013. James Joyce's novel Ulysses was the continuation of his first novel, A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man.

24. Poetic before: ERE.

28. Florence and Charlotte: CITIES. Nice misdirection.

30. "Cats" poet: TS ELIOT. Finally remember there's only one L in his name.

31. Lacks: HASN'T. Great clue.

32. Forest floor plant: MOSS.

34. Flub: ERR.

38. Humanities degs.: BAS. Bachelor of Arts.

40. "Pencils down": TIME. Evocative of test-taking in a classroom.

41. Assumed as fact: GIVEN.

45. Assigned a new title: RENAMED.

47. Recess: ALCOVE.

51. __-Mex cuisine: TEX.

52. Mad Dog Radio host Chris: RUSSO. Host of former sports radio show the Mike and the Mad Dog with co-host Mike Francesca.

53. Unfashionable: OUT.

54. "Mary Poppins" chimney sweep: BERT. Played perfectly by Dick Van Dyke.

55. Baltimore winter hrs.: EST. Eastern Standard Time.

60. "Billions" airer, briefly: SHO. Showtime. Too many shows to keep up with anymore.

61. Stainless __: STEEL. What is stainless steel?

62. Mrs. Gorbachev: RAISA. Russian activist who was the wife of Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev.

63. Pewter component: TIN. What is pewter?

64. Hot: SEXY. My husband spells that HOTT.

65. Like a fuzzy navel?: LINTY. Ha.

Down:

1. Pasadena engineering sch.: CAL TECH.

2. Display idea that's a bit fishy?: AQUARIA.

3. Sugar servings at a coffee bar: PACKETS.

4. Kin of a Tony: OBIE. Obies are awarded for theater. This year's were virtual.

5. Muppet chimp __ Minella: SAL.

6. "The Wife" Oscar nominee Close: GLENN. What is The Wife about? Close earned a best actress Oscar for her role.

7. Apply, as lotion: RUB ON.

8. The "E" in BCE: ERA. Before the Common (or Current) Era.

9. Salon goop: GEL.

10. Result of much teasing?: BIG HAIR. Cute.

11. Claudius or Nero: EMPEROR.

12. Margarita preference: NO SALT.

15. Calculus calculation: SLOPE. I was told there would be no math.

18. California's San __ Obispo: LUIS.

23. Of the moon: SELENIC. Same root (selḗnē) as chemical element selenium.

25. Dole (out): METE.

26. "Who's there?" reply: IT'S ME.

27. Pump name: ESSO.

29. Squid organs: INK SACS. Another tough one.

32. Crete peak: Abbr.: MT. IDA.

33. Electrical unit: OHM.

36. One of an express lane's 15 maximum: ITEM.

37. Eye rudely: OGLE.

38. "SNL" legend John: BELUSHI.

39. "Friends" co-star: ANISTON. Jennifer.

42. Elected: VOTED IN.

43. Hillary's conquest: EVEREST. Sir Edmund Hillary. He and his sherpa Tenzing Norgay were the first confirmed to reach the summit in May of 1953. Norgay does not get enough credit for this, IMO.

44. Like fast UPS service: NEXT DAY. Not so much, these days.

45. Least available: RAREST.

46. Siamese sounds: MEOWS. More like MEOWS! Our part-siamese has the loudest howl I have ever heard. Fortunately she saves it for when she's really trying to tell us something.

47. Choir voice: ALTO.

49. Bulova rival: ROLEX.

50. Husky: BURLY.

54. __ B'rith: BNAI. Hebrew for “Sons of the Covenant,” the oldest and largest Jewish service organization in the world, with men's lodges, women's chapters, and youth chapters in countries all over the world.

57. Aliens, briefly: ETS. Extra terrestrials.

58. Jeans brand: LEE.

59. Link letters: URL. Prounounced "earl." Universal Resource Locator, or the long string that appears in your browser address bar.

Tuesday, August 4, 2020 Gary Larson

Double, Double Toil and Trouble; Fire Burn and Cauldron Bubble.  Notice that each of the theme answers is in the Down position.  The word Double can precede both words of each theme answer to give us a new concept.

3-Down. *   Verify using multiple sources:  CROSS CHECK.  Double Cross. Double check.

7-Down. *   Gadget function typical of most similar gadgets:  STANDARD FEATURE.  Double Standard. Double feature.

21-Down. *   Many a Match.com get-together:  BLIND DATE.  Double Blind. Double date.

23-Down. *   Four-dimensional mathematical system:  SPACE TIME.  Double Space. Double time.

And the Unifier:

30-Down. Blackjack bet ... and a hint to the answers to starred clues: DOUBLE DOWN.

Across:

1. Delicate, like curtain fabric: LACY.

5. "Divine" nickname for singer Bette: MISS M.  I think I still have this Bette Midler (b. Dec. 1, 1945) album somewhere.  A friend gave it to me back in my college days.

10. Muslim prayer leader: IMAM.

14. Farmland measure: ACRE.

15. "Star Wars" droid: ARTOO.  R2-D2 is the short one.

16. Flexible mineral sheet: MICA.  More than you ever wanted to know about Mica.

17. Pairs: DUOs.

18. Rings like church bells: PEALS.

19. Actor Baldwin: ALEC.  Alec Baldwin (b. Apr. 3, 1958) played Jack Donaghy on 30 Rock.

20. UFO crew, it's said: ETs.  I saw the movie ET with my sister the day before she went into the Peace Corps.

21. Cap'n's mate: BOS'N.

22. Measure of a celeb's popularity: Q-SCORE.  The Q Score (Quotient Score) is a measurement of the familiarity and appeal of a celebrity (or brand or company).  The higher the score, the more highly regarded the celeb.

24. Arnaz-Ball studio: DESILU.  Portmanteau of Desi Arnez (Mar. 2, 1917 ~ Dec. 2, 1986) and Lucille Ball (Aug. 6, 1911 ~ Apr. 26, 1989).

26. Bikini specs: D CUPS.  This clue and answer should have appeared in last Wednesday's puzzle.

28. Lit __: CRIT.  Short for Literary Criticism.  Meh!

29. Field of knowledge: AREA.

30. Use a shovel: DIG.

33. "Suzanne" songwriter Leonard: COHEN.  Leonard Norman Cohen (Sept. 21, 1934 ~ Nov. 7, 2016) was a Canadian singer-songwriter, poet and novelist.

35. Vein contents: ORE.

36. New York governor Andrew: CUOMO.  //  And 34-Down. Minnesota congresswoman Ilhan __: OMAR.  And that's enough for the politics.

38. Set right: AMEND.

39. Rx writers: MDs.  Medical Doctors write prescriptions.

40. Chopin composition: ÉTUDE.  Frédéric Chopin (Mar. 1, 1810 ~ Oct. 17, 1849)  had an interesting life.  Back when I was learning piano, I had to play some of his études.

41. Tried to outrun: RACED.

42. Away from the bow: AFT.  Think of a boat or ship.

43. Crockett's "Miami Vice" partner: TUBBS.  I never watched Miami Vice, but I knew of the characters.  The show ran from 1984 to January 1990.  Don Johnson (b. Dec. 15, 1949) portrayed Sonny Crocket and Philip Michael Thomas (b. May 26, 1949) portrayed Rico Tubbs.

44. Noah's project: ARK.

45. Top of the line: A-ONE.

47. "The __ From Ipanema": GIRL.

48. Skylit courts: ATRIA.

49. "My turn": I'M NEXT.

52. Den music system: STEREO.

55. Went like the dickens: TORE.  I initially tried Sped.

57. Narc's org.: DEA.  As in the Drug Enforcement Administration.

58. Difficult: HARD.

59. Everest or Rushmore: MOUNT.  I just read Black Hills, by by Dan Simmons.  It is an interesting novel about a young Sioux warrior who fought in the Battle of Little Bighorn, then later was a worker on the creation of the Presidential faces on Mount Rushmore.

Mask Up, All!

61. Rhine city: BONN.

62. Jason's ship: ARGO.  //  Which crosses with 54-Down. Start of a conclusion: ERGO.  The former is a CSO to our very own Lemonade.

63. View from the moon: EARTH.  The blue marble.

64. Furry Endor creature: EWOK.  Creepy little creatures from the Star Wars films.

65. Othello, for one: MOOR.  Othello is a play by Willie the Shakes.  If you don't know the story, here are the CliffNotes.

66. Sandwiches for dessert: OREOs.  They come in all different flavors.

67. Raggedy dolls: ANNs.  I had a Raggedy Andy when I was a child.

Down:

1. Put on, as cargo: LADED.

2. Less than right, angle-wise: ACUTE.

What A Cute Angle!

4. "Absolutely": YES!

5. Plan, as a route: MAP OUT.

6. Infuriates: IRES.

8. Note after fa: SOL.

9. Muslim temple: MOSQUE.  The Hagia Sophia in Istanbul, Turkey, which was originally build in the 500s CE as an Eastern Orthodox Cathedral; became a mosque in the 1450s; and was converted to a museum in the 1934s, became a mosque again, just a few weeks ago.  I hope it will be open to visitors as it is a beautiful building with truly specular art and mosaics.  I was fortunate to have visited it a few years ago.

10. All-in-one Apples: iMACs.  We have a mini mac that is quite old and now needs an update.

11. Venus de __: MILO.

12. Asian laptop brand: ACER.  I learned of this company from doing the crossword puzzles.

13. Riot squad spray: MACE.  Also a medieval weapon of war.

25. Goddess of peace: IRENE.  Good Night, Irene.

27. Top of a wave: CREST.

31. Website with film info: IMDb.  The Internet Movie Database.

32. "And So It __": Billy Joel: GOES.

33. Siena sweetheart: CARA.  Today's Italian lesson.

35. Yemeni neighbor: OMANI.  Both countries are found on the Saudi peninsula.

37. Reversal: U-TURN.  At least it's not a Uie or Uey.

46. Words from Juliet: O! ROMEO.  More from Willie the Shakes.

47. Saddle bands: GIRTHS.

48. Zeal: ARDOR.

50. Gas from the Greek for "strange": XENON.  Xenon (Xe) is an inert gas with the atomic number of 54.

51. Wartime vehicles: TANKS.

52. Fake: SHAM.  Is a pillow sham a fake pillow?

53. Poi root: TARO.  A crossword staple.

56. Aware of: ON TO.

60. Blade in the water: OAR.

61. Actress Arthur: BEA.  Bea Arthur (née Bernice Frankel; May 13, 1922 ~ Apr. 25, 2009) was a stage actress before becoming a television star.

Here's the Grid:

The little quiz I added to last week's puzzle was meant to be a joke because Worcestershire Sauce is  a funny word and a bit hard to say.

Monday August 3, 2020 Gail Grabowski & Bruce Venzke

Theme: BUSINESS LETTERS (40. Company correspondence ... and a hint to the abbreviation hidden in 17-, 24-, 52- and 66-Across) - INC is hidden in each theme entry.

17. High-intensity indoor cycling group: SPIN CLASS.

24. Cinderella's ride: PUMPKIN COACH.

52. Pipe unclogger: DRAIN CLEANER.

 

66. Feature of New York-style pizza: THIN CRUST.

Boomer here.  

I suppose most of you use a pencil when completing a puzzle, but today you might want to use pen and INC.  

Major League Baseball is finally on TV but no fans in the stands. It just doesn't seem right.  However the Miami Marlins lead the league in positive tests, followed by the St. Louis Cardinals.  C.C. and I are still virus-free, but I have to scratch my head and wonder how these organizations of millionaires cannot stay healthy.

Across:

1. Like "le" in Fr. or "el" in Sp.: MASC. Masculine. Maybe they should wear a MASC?  Okay, bad joke.  Minnesota passed a mandate last week. 

5. Scissors sound: SNIP.  Spell it backwards and knock them down.  When we get a vaccine?

9. Stuffed shirts: SNOBS. I don't stuff shirts any more. I lost a few pounds but kept the same wardrobe.

14. Utah ski resort that means "high": ALTA.  I don't ski but I heard it's a nice place if you do.

15. Statistician Silver: NATE.  He wrote a book about "Why so many predictions fail, ...but some don't."

16. __ buddy: BOSOM.

19. Video game name for nearly 50 years: ATARI.  We had a new garage door installed last week so C.C. and  I had to move some stuff (baseball cards) out of the installer's way.  Holy cow!!  I was surprised to find my ATARI games in the garage, and the black and white TV that I used to play them on.  We have a nice two car garage but I can barely fit my van into it.

20. Bar mitzvah scroll: TORAH.

21. __-Cola: COCA.  I prefer Diet Pepsi.

23. Variety show bit: SKIT.

27. Barrio grocery: BODEGA.  You know, I hear this word on "Law & Order" reruns and in Minnesota we certainly have a bunch of corner grocery. Pop, and cigarettes stores, but I have never heard a Minnesotan call them a BODEGA.

30. "Nope": NAH.  Sounds like a Discover Card commercial.

31. Many a Monopoly prop.: AVE.  They also have "Place, Company, Works, Gardens," but none of those words fit.

32. Microwaves: ZAPS.

36. "Agree totally!": SO DO I. -- And I DO TOO !

44. Protein-building acid: AMINO. I watch too much PGA golf but I am no fan of Bryson DeChambeau.  I don't know if he uses amino acid, but it is told that he drinks six or seven protein shakes each day.  He sort of has the body of Hulk Hogan and hits a golf ball over 350 yards, but it is seldom straight.  Plus he wears one of those flat sports car hats which I consider to be an insult to Payne Stewart and especially Ben Hogan.

 

45. Settles a bill: PAYS.  We use our computer to take care of  bills.  Saves on those 55 cent stamps.

46. Epitome of slipperiness: EEL.  Slipperiness??  Describes the lane conditions at the Peterson Classic bowling tournament in Chicago.

47. Bath fixture with claw feet, perhaps: TUB.  Have you seen the walk-in tub advertised on TV.  They tout that the tub empties quickly so you don't have to sit there in the cold.  I wonder what it's like sitting while the tub fills.

49. __ Vision: eye care chain: PEARLE.  They are pretty good.  We have one near our home.

58. 500 sheets of paper: REAM.

59. Scratching post users: CATS. "Oh the CATS in the cradle with a silver spoon." Harry Chapin.

60. Duo Hall & __: OATES.  Mares eat oats and does eat oats and little lambs eat ivy. Bing Crosby and others.

64. Gillette razors: ATRAS.

68. Jotted (down): WROTE.

69. Lamarr of old films: HEDY.  Born in Austria and became famous in the U.S.

70. Mandatory bet: ANTE.

71. Nine-player chamber group: NONET.

72. Part of GE: Abbr.: ELEC.  Also part of Graybar.

73. Overflow (with): TEEM.

Down:

1. Sail holder: MAST.  And maybe you can make many MASKS out of the sail when you're done with it.

2. Friskies sister brand: ALPO.  I am seeing a lot of ads about "Farmers Dog" food.  I don't have a dog.  I wonder if it's any good on pizza.

3. Pudding recipe direction: STIR.  STIR ?? Nope, toss it in the blender and use #4.

4. Cocktail party nibble: CANAPE.  I wonder if they use CANned APE in Farmer's Dog food.

5. NBC skit show: SNL.

6. Rights org. since 1909: NAACP.  I have mentioned that I was in Fort Campbell on the evening that Dr. Martin Luther King was murdered.  The memory came back as I watched some of the memories on John Lewis last week.

7. "Not to worry": IT'S OK.

8. Joe of "Home Alone": PESCI.  My favorite was Nicky in Casino.

9. Agcy. that helps startups: SBA.  Small Business Assn.  Not so sure about startups these days.  They may be trying to help small businesses stay afloat.

10. Just fair: NOT SO HOT.  My bowling is still pretty good, if we ever get a vaccine.  My golf is "NOT SO HOT", but I get by and stay healthy.

11. Japanese port: OSAKA.

12. Antiseptic acid type: BORIC.  BORIC acid comes in powder or tablet form.  I have never used it so I am not sure for what it is used.

13. Worker suffix with black or silver: SMITH.  Paul Revere was a famous silversmith.  I wish I still had all of the silver money I spent as a kid.  It's probably worth as much as the baseball cards I bought.

18. Drink all at once: CHUG.

22. Gothic novelist Radcliffe: ANN.

25. Puzzle with paths: MAZE.  Or at least the silver ball that I needed to guide through the wooden MAZE with two knobs on the sides.

26. Group bowing to a curtain call: CAST.  Been there, done that.  I was Noah.  Benjamin Britten spelled it Noye's Fludde.

27. Ali __: BABA.  And the Forty Thieves.

28. Egg cell: OVUM.

29. Arnaz of early TV: DESI.  Ricky Ricardo.

33. Deadly viper: ASP.  Cleopatra had one.

34. Awareness-raising TV ad: Abbr.: PSA.  I don't know about TV ads.  I get the test in my blood for Prostrate Specific Antigen.  For my age a PSA reading of 1 - 4 is normal.  My last one was 0.89.  Seems okay but previously I was 0.23.  My oncologist checks my blood every 6 weeks to 2 months.  He keeps telling me that my PSA is okay, but C.C. is not too convinced.

35. Devious: SLY.  And the Family Stone.

37. Leaper in a tractor company logo: DEER.  Doe, a DEER, a female DEER.  Ray, a drop of golden sun.  "The hills are alive, with the Sound of Music".

38. Hershiser of baseball: OREL.  Great Dodger pitcher who won over 200 games in about 18 years.

39. Land in the ocean: ISLE.  We have a city of ISLE, in Northern Minnesota.  Sorry, no where near an ocean.

41. Very personal: INTIMATE.

42. Part of speech after "the," often: NOUN.

43. Sports bar channel: ESPN.  They had a lot of reruns there for about 5 months.  Now maybe they have a game to show once in awhile.

48. Discreetly send a dupe email to: BCC.

50. Fair-hiring agcy.: EEOC.

51. Noah's landfall: ARARAT.  Did he really take two mosquitoes on the boat??

52. Sketched: DRAWN.

53. In style again: RETRO.  Maybe bowling will become RETRO next year.

54. Composer Copland: AARON.  Of course - thoughts follow to Hammerin' Hank or maybe even "ALL RISE" Mr. Judge of the Yankees who may be chasing some of Hank's records.

55. Wood shop tool: LATHE.

56. "I Love Lucy" role: ETHEL.  I always wondered how the writers chose the last name of "Mertz".

57. Actor-to-audience remark: ASIDE.

61. Bring into pitch: TUNE.  Or Maybe send the message to the bullpen,

62. 90° from norte: ESTE.

63. Wineglass support: STEM.  Also supporting our cucumber plant crawling up our home.

65. Good to go: SET.

67. Five-bor. city: NYC.  Yup, "ALL RISE" hits HRs there.

Notes from C.C.:

Happy birthday to dear Melissa, who gave up her job and everything to fight for her brother and criminal justice. Melissa founded Adopt an Inmate project and has successfully facilitated over 1,200 adoptions.

Here is a podcast Melissa did with Plague Talk. I teared up listening to some of the ordeals she went through. What a beautiful, compassionate and courageous soul!

I hope you can support Melissa and her mission. Anyone who donated to Adopt an Inmate will receive a never-published puzzle I made with Melissa's talented brother Rick Fisk. We spent lots of time on the puzzle finessing the theme set and clues. It has a fresh & playful theme. You will receive the puzzle and answer grid in puz or pdf format.

Thank you!