Saturday, September, 26, 2020 by Craig Stowe

Saturday Themeless by Craig Stowe

Today's constructor is Canadian Craig Stowe who lives in Toronto. Here is what he has said of himself:

As always, thanks to Rich et al. for accepting my work and improving on it. I am always amazed when a puzzle is published. I'm a little puzzled about having 20 crosswords in the LA Times however. My information suggests this is lucky number thirteen but I am notoriously bad at keeping records.  

I've posted a bit about myself before but in case you missed it... I was born and raised in a small town in Newfoundland, Canada (you'll find two Newfoundland references in Craig's puzzle) but have lived in Toronto, Ontario since 2000 (you are all welcome to visit anytime; shout out to all my Canadian neighbours!) I work as a kitchen porter in a rather large hotel, which is even less exciting than it sounds. I solve and construct crosswords in my spare time.  

Cheers!

I do have to call Craig to account for using DERAT on 9/14/20 but otherwise I enjoy his puzzles and this one took some real effort but that is why we do these!

Across:

1. It's often served in a narrow dish: OLEO - Yeah, I thought of a banana split first too

5. 1996 romcom titled after a 1963 hit song: ONE FINE DAY - This got a meh rating on Rotten Tomatoes. I'd much prefer to let you listen to the great 1963 song co-wrote by Carole King and sung by the Chiffons

15. Spots: LOCI.

16. Briefly: FOR A MINUTE.

17. River near Rugby: AVON - The Avon River wends its way from Rugby to another city upon the Avon

18. Elemental measurement: ATOMIC MASS - The average weight of the protons and neutrons in the nucleus of an atom

19. Gossips: YENTAS 

21. House VIP: SEN - Hmmm... Isn't a House VIP a REP? A SEN could be called Congressional VIP

22. Thought from Descartes: IDEE - Descartes avait beaucoup de bonnes IDÉES (DESCARTES had many good ideas)

23. Hand-played drum: TOM-TOM.

25. Steps in for: ACTS AS - I'm waiting to sub again for a few weeks 

27. Post-9/11 musical about the diversion of flights to Newfoundland: COME FROM AWAY - A wonderful musical about an event in Craig's home province

30. Comparable (to): AKIN.

31. Joe, commercially: TRADER - This one in Lincoln is frequented by both my daughters 

32. Partner of to: FRO.

35. Linguine sauce: PESTO.

37. Old California fort: ORD - It is now inactive after training thousands of soldiers on Monterrey Bay

38. Small shoot: SPRIG and 56. Shoot: STEM.

40. Fantasy creature from the Old English for "giant": ENT - A familiar crossword creature

41. Turn out to be: WIND UP - Harry Truman often wondered, "How did I WIND UP being president?"

44. Single: LONE.

45. "Blue Sky" Best Actress Oscar winner: JESSICA LANGE.

47. He debuted at La Scala 12/26/1900: CARUSO - One of the first singing voices to be recorded. This one was recorded in 1895. You gotta search to find Enrico's name on the label

50. Puts up: ERECTS.

51. With 52-Across, type of barbecue: OPEN 52. See 51-Across: PIT - This one is the famous Salt Lick in Driftwood, TX just south of Dripping Springs

55. Crackerjacks: ADEPTS - The BBQ above has many ADEPTS working with it

57. Keeping tabs on: MONITORING - Do you remember the movie where we were MONITORING Soviet activities but got fooled by a computer? (*Answer below)

60. Store: MART.

61. Witness to Padmé and Anakin's wedding: AR TOO DE TOO - Can you find him in this picture of the Star Wars nuptials?

62. Fever with chills: AGUE - A vowel-rich malady

63. Intimidates: STARES DOWN - Larry David's main "lie detector" move

64. Swarm: TEEM.

Down:

1. Skin care brand: OLAY - Aveo didn't work out

2. Romantic keepsake: LOVE TOKEN.

3. Janet Yellen, e.g.: ECONOMIST - Here 'ya go

4. Soothing compound: OINTMENT.

5. In certain respects: OF A SORT - I'm a golfer OF A SORT

6. With 59-Down, later: NOT and 59. See 6- Down: NOW.

7. Piccadilly Circus statue: EROS - The Shaftesbury Memorial Fountain, popularly but incorrectly known as "Eros", is a fountain surmounted by a winged statue of Anteros, located at the southeastern side of Piccadilly Circus (square) in London, England.

8. 1980 teen musical: FAME - My first thought is of Irene Cara singing the fabulous theme

9. "That. Is. Amazing.": I'M IN AWE.

10. Peabody Award-winning Robertson: NIC - Here 'ya go

11. Mutual ill will: ENMITY - A painting by Pitton where 9-year-old Hannibal swears eternal ENMITY for Rome

12. Couples: DUADS - A rare word for a group of two.

13. Discombobulated: AT SEA - I try to remain combobulated and gruntled 

14. Those in favor: YESES.

20. Org. involved in the Waco Siege: ATF - A sad event for everyone

24. Turkeys: MORONS.

26. Lot fillers: CARS.

27. __ Spear, easternmost point in Canada: CAPE - It's a 52-hour drive from my house and includes toll roads and a ferry boat to get to CAPE Spear in Craig's home province of Newfoundland

28. Mercredi preceder: MARDI - MARDI Gras (Fat Tuesday) is followed by Mercredi des Cendres (Ash Wednesday) in French

29. Cite as proof: ADDUCE.

32. Place for big news: FRONT PAGE - 1948 Chicago Daily Tribune FRONT PAGE headline: DEWEY DEFEATS TRUMAN! Oops.

33. Sounds about right: RINGS TRUE - The Dewey headline probably did RING TRUE but...

34. Arch with a point: OGEE - All those delicious vowels make this a common entree here

36. Needs to remit: OWES - If you OWE many parking fines, you may find a Denver boot on your car like this one in Chicago

39. Menu venue, perhaps: PLACEMAT.

42. Woodlice, e.g.: ISOPODS - From the Greek for ISO (equal) and POD (foot)

43. Best thing since sliced bread, so to speak: PARAGON - A perfect example of something

45. Lower in rank: JUNIOR.

46. Wasn't behind anyone: LED - Can you tell which horse has LED in the race?

47. Medical events in a 1977 thriller: COMAS.

48. Captain's direction: APORT - When the Titanic crew finally saw the iceberg, the order "Hard APORT" was given which meant turn left away from the mammoth iceberg 

49. Last name in fashion?: RENTA - How much would you pay for a fancy label?

53. Hardly happy: IRED.

54. One of the Jacksons: TITO.

58. Big __: TOE - Probably the only hilarious film scene about a BIG TOE

(*We were MONITORING the Soviets in the movie War Games)

Comment below for Craig:

Notes from C.C.:

Happy Birthday to Dennis, who successfully fought a major health battle last year.  His attitude through the ordeals is awe-inspiring. He fears nothing. He's relentlessly optimistic.

 

Friday, September 25, 2020, Jeffrey Wechsler

 Title: Having an anagram old time!

Hi, I have donned my plus-fours to caddie once again for JW, and will provide the tour for another Friday effort. This one is a true anagram puzzle, nothing but. Or is it? In the words of Ron Popeil - wait- there's more! All of the anagrams are accomplished by switching only the last two letters of an expression. And! Each is an ST becoming a TS!  And what he conjures with this simple plan is very amusing and laughable or at least grinnable. I am not sure it is anything but coincidental the puzzle is running on Shabbat Shuvua- "Sabbath [of] Return" שבת שובה. But the puzzle is rife with religious rites, no lefts invited. This is another example of the skills JW has and his approach to creating a puzzle. I never know for sure which clues are his, but I know the theme was pure Jeffrey. I spoke with him and he was proud of the many layers in the simplicity of reversing ST to a TS. He also managed to include some great fill and very few 3 and 4 letter answers. ENAMELER, IDOLIZED, LITERATI, YALE BLUE,  SEMESTERS, and SPARE TIRE. 

On to the theme.

18A. Frenetic drummer's output?: SAVAGE BEATS (12). Is there a savage BEAST in all great drummers?

25A. Like a professional gambler's life?: ALL FOR THE BETS (13). Is gambling reall for the BEST?

39A. Consistently wins prizes for carrots, turnips, etc.?: RULES THE ROOTS (13). A CSO to all who rule their own ROOST.

50A. Specially designed Valentine's Day burgers?:  PATTY HEARTS (12). Patty HEARST is no longer famous, but the sentiment is sweet. Oo serves me heart shaped rice often.

Across:

1. Word with a wave: BYE. Bye Miss American Pie. A Boomer favorite song. 

4. Table __: SCRAPS. This was hard for an easy one. 

10. Big name in Norwegian history: OLAV. OLA_ wait for the perp.

14. Political scientist Bremmer: IAN.  Ian Bremmer 

15. Undermines: ERODES. A more dramatic word than I initially thought.

16. Fountain with a wind: PETE. A CSO to our Louisiana group.  Pete Lafontaine. 

17. According to: À LA

20. Literally, half-year periods: SEMESTERS. From sex ‘six’ + mensis ‘month’, Latin. 

22. Hawaii, on many maps: INSET. Most islands appear as insets. 

23. Cast doubt upon: BELIE.

24. They're not from around here: ALIENS. Cute way to phrase this clue/fill. 

29. Expected: DUE IN. My arrival in the office gets later and later as I age.

30. Theme park array: RIDES.

31. Marine bird: TERN. Not related to this song. 

32. Stinky: FETID. Back so soon?

33. Legislative creation: BILL. Is that true Bill G., were you part of a legislative decision?

37. "Wonderful!": GREAT.

38. Debate fixtures: PODIA. The Latin plural for words ending -ium.

42. Butter source: PEANUT. There are so many non-dairy kinds of butter in your Whole Foods aisles.

44. Row divider: AISLE. Did I see that coming? 

45. Golf nickname: ARNIE. Now tied with Tiger for most PGA titles.

46. Flat out?: SPARE TIRE. Whimsical, but tricky. My spare tires go with me everywhere.

52. Veer sharply: ZAG. Add a ZIG and you have some rolling papers.

53. Like Magellan, for long periods: ASEA.

54. Correctly, old-style: ARIGHT??????

55. ORD posting: ETA. Estimated Time of Arrival.

56. Jumbotron displays, briefly: LEDS.  The Orthodox Rabbi's Union has approved them for SHABBAT.

57. "Good riddance": NO LOSS.

58. Worked on: DID.

Down:

1. Prejudice: BIAS. No prejudice here at the Corner; all are welcome.

2. Official school color since 1894: YALE BLUE. HISTORY.

3. Jewelry artisan: ENAMELER. A ten-dollar word. 

4. Stretch in therapy, say: SESSION. Why aren't they called visits?

5. Evidence of a large impact: CRATER. The Dinosaur killers?

6. Wander: ROVE. Have not heard from Karl for a while.

7. Month between Shevat and Nisan: ADAR. It also can have a twin, ADAR II for the 7 years that need a leap month on the Hebrew calendar.

8. Hat-hanging aids: PEGS. 

9. Montpelier-to-Providence dir.: SSE.

10. Christmas morning cry: OPEN IT. Really?

11. Auto options: LEASES.

12. When some local news is broadcast: AT TEN.

13. Road workers' garb: VESTS. Generally reflective.

19. "Greatest gymnast ever," per Retton: BILES.

21. Like storied North Pole workers: ELFIN.

24. Not up: ABED.

25. Home security giant: ADT. It all started on April 5, 1874, with a nighttime break-in. American District Telegraph (ADT) Founder Edward Callahan created a telegraph-based "call-box" to signal for assistance to a central office. He quickly connected 50 other homes in the neighborhood, creating the first residential security system network.

26. Tundra's lack, usually: TREES. Not always. LINK.

27. Try to strike: HIT AT. Try to? 

28. Bunker of note: EDITH. She was the star of the show for me. 

32. Stew: FRET.

33. Helping hand: BOOST. Also a cell phone company and a protein shake.

34. Worshipped: IDOLIZED. Jews do not believe in idols no matter what Simon Cowell says. Did anyone watch the finale of AGT?

35. Ones who do things by the book?: LITERATI. Cute clue, but not the whole story as Literati were scholars in China and Japan whose poetry, calligraphy, and paintings were supposed primarily to reveal their cultivation and express their personal feelings rather than demonstrate professional skill. It has been coopted in the English speaking world for the Literate.

36. __ Cruces: LAS. New Mexico. 

37. Sticky: GLUEY. Like many crossword clue/fill choices. 

38. Aaron and Eli, in the Old Testament: PRIESTS. Many may not know but Moses' brother Aaron (my oldest boy's name) was the high priest of JUDAISM. The Egyptians also had priests and priestesses. LINK.

39. Carried on: RANTED. Enough religion for one puzzle; on to a different Sunday hero. 

40. "The Golden Arm" of the Baltimore Colts: UNITAS. An outcast from Pittsburgh, who became an all-time great in Baltimore. 

41. "At the __ Core": Burroughs novel: EARTH'S. One in a series Edgar Rice wrote about the hollow center of our planet.

42. Authoritative type of bull: PAPAL. These are written edicts from the sitting Pope of the Catholic Church and derive their name from the leaden seal on the document- BULLA. I was wrong, more religion.

43. Wipe out: ERASE. Or rub out. 

46. Hematology prefix: SERO. From serology, the study of SERUM. 

47. Traditional dairy farm item: PAIL. As a child living in a farming area with endless milk cows, my image of Mrs. O'Leary's cow knocking over the lantern while being milked seemed very real. Now I know it was unlikely to be true. The LEGEND. As we near the anniversary (October 8) I just learned it was not even the worst fire that night as PESHTIGO WISCONSIN had a fire that night that killed over 1,000 people.

48. Ship that sailed from Iolcus: ARGO. A CSO to me. MYTH

49. "Zounds!": EGAD.

51. Luke's pilot pal: HAN. Another SOLO write-up effort from me ending with a STAR WARS reference.

That was exhausting. I had mucho fun and I hope you all are well and join in our prayers for ABEJO, BOOMER, and all who are ailing. Thank you, Jeffrey. Lemonade out.

Thursday, September 24, 2020, Debbie Ellerin

Good morning, once again, cruciverbalists.  Apparently,  this mephitic marine mammal did not stink things up too badly on the first go around.  As a result, he has been invited back.  As it is physically impossible for a Manatee to "phone it in" and as the Little Ben clock says a quarter to eight, he had best go now and take his shift at the mine.  A little background music, please, Jerry.

THEME:  RAPID FISSION / SLOW FUSION

First, synonyms for FAST (as in swift) are split apart by the constructor.  Then, the two sequential answers on the same row are smashed into each other by the solvers.  Where they fuse can be found the reconstituted synonym for FAST that was "BREAK-ed" before being put together.

17 Across  Ado:  KERFUFFLE and 19 Across:  Hunt in "Mission: Impossible" films:  ETHAN form FLEET.

KERFUFFLEETHAN

25 Across  Unit in an improvisational parlor game:  MAD LIB and 27 Across:  Word in a con man's pitch:  RISK FREE form BRISK.

MADLIBRISKFREE

37 Across:  Former Postal Service mascot: MR ZIP and 38 Across:  Ones drawn to flames, briefly: PYROS form ZIPPY.

MRZIPPYROS

Zippy is the snide nickname that Conchata Ferrell's character uses for Jon Cryer's character in Two and a Half Men.  See also Zippy the Pinhead.

48.  Across Dryer component: LINT TRAP and  50 Across:  Brainstorm: IDEATE form RAPID.

LINTTRAPIDEATE

58 Across.  The Reveal.  Basketball tactic ... and a hint to four puzzle rows: FAST BREAK.  In a FAST BREAK a team attempts to quickly move the ball up the court before the defensive team has a chance to get into position. In this puzzle, I did not figure out the theme prior to the reveal.  Even after that, I had to first hunt for the proper rows and then spend some time looking for what it was that I was supposed to be seeing.  For this solver, it was something of a slow process. 

And now, it's either time for BREAKFAST or it's time to take a look at the rest of the puzzle.

 Across:

1.  Espionage name: MATA.  MATA Hari was the stage name of Margaretha MacLeod.  She was a Dutch-born exotic dancer and, some would say, courtesan who was convicted of spying for the Germans during World War One.  On October 15, 1917 she was executed by a French Army firing squad.  The 1931 movie, Mata Hari starring Greta Garbo, made her even more (in)famous.

5.  Not at all rainy: ARID.  Sometimes the answer to clues similar to this one is SERE.

9.  Old Faithful output: STEAM.  Words would be superfluous.

14.  Got down: ALIT.

15.  Virologist Yvonne who worked with Epstein: BARR.  The eponymic Epstein BARR virus causes mononucleosis.

16.  Serving tool: LADLE.  Does it end in E L or L E?  I forget.

20.  H, to Hercules: ETA.  In the Greek alphabet the letter ETA is drawn in the same manner as we would write our letter H.

21.  NE player, to fans:  PAT   The New England Patriots.  From 1959 through 1970 the team was known as the Boston Patriots.

Larry Eisenhauer played for the Boston Patriots from 1961 - 1969.  Once, in Kansas City, he took to a snow-covered football field wearing only his helmet and a jockstrap.

22.  Very start?: VEE.  There must be a name for this type of extremely literal clue.  If there is, I am unaware of it.  Often, a "gotcha" moment after wasting time on what should have been a quick response.

24.  Trial fig.: ATT.  Oh, an attorney.  Not the phone company.

29.  Foil alternative: EPEE.  In this instance FOIL refers to a fencing weapon and fencing refers to the dueling sport and not to what you might install on your property line.  Besides, Waxed Paper would not fit.  EPEE is definitely in the Crosswordese dictionary. 

30.  Goofy images?: CELS.   In the days before CGI, animation had to be hand drawn a single frame at a time.  The drawings were done on transparent celluloid and came to be referred to as CELS.  Each cel would show a slight bit of movement and it took roughly 500 cels for each minute of animation.  This topic leads us to the deep philosophical inquiry:  If Pluto is a dog then what is Goofy?

31.  Fig or olive: TREE.  Fortunately, FRUIT has five letters so no time was lost heading down that particular dead end.

32.  Subtle vibes: AURAS.  Sometimes the plural turns out to be AURAS and sometimes it's AURAE.  I prefer the original Latin as in alga and algae.

35.  Cookbook instruction: ADDIN.  ADD IN  As opposed, I suppose, to STIR IN, MIX IN, FOLD IN, CUT IN, etc.  

39.  Indira's son: RAJIV.   RAJIV Gandhi took over the office of Prime Minister of India after the assassination of his mother Indira.

40.  Thought about it: MUSED.  In this case, the clue is the definition.

41.  British general at the Battle of Bunker Hill: GAGE.  General Gage, along with General Meade, General Omar Bradley and Field Marshall Ney make frequent visits to our puzzles.

42.  Obi-Wan portrayer: EWAN.  EWAN McGregor.  A Stars Wars reference.

44.  "Get a __!": GRIP.   "Get a GRIP" is most often used idiomatically (as in "Get a grip on yourself") rather than literally (as in "hold on to this").  Alternatively, you could actually get a (new) grip.

52.  "Double Fantasy" artist: ONO.  Another frequent visitor to crossword puzzles, Yoko ONO's controversial relationship with John Lenon, and with The Beatles, has been well chronicled.

53.  Klutz: OAF.

54.  California's Santa __ River: ANA.  Humans have lived along the Santa ANA River for at least 9,000 years.  ANA is more often clued in reference to the Santa Ana winds.   

55.  PreCheck org.: TSA.  Transportation Security Administration

        Why was the vulture stopped by TSA?

        Because carrion wasn't allowed on the plane.

56.  More adept: ABLER.

61.  Works hard: TOILS.

62.  Dieter's buzzword: LITE.  What started out as a marketing gimmick has, apparently, (d)evolved into being the modern, phonetic way to spell LIGHT when referring to foods that are low in fat and/or sugar and/or alcohol.

63.  Beat by a nose: EDGE.  

64.  Hindu sage: SWAMI.  A male Hindu religious teacher.  If Wikipedia is correct, a woman would be called a Swamini.

65.  First Best Actor Jannings: EMIL   In 1929, Theodor Friedrich Emil Janenz, stage name EMIL Jannings, was awarded the very first Best Actor Oscar.  I know of EMIL only from solving crossword puzzles.

66.  More than coax: PROD.

Down:

1.  "You and what army?!": MAKEME.  "MAKE ME" is, apparently, also the title of a Britney Spears song.  I would not recognize it.  Or her.

2.  Bartender's device: ALETAP.  I have never heard the words ALE TAP employed as used here.  Perhaps I need to drink more.

3.  Rant: TIRADE.

4.  DOJ branch: ATF.  The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco. Firearms and Explosives.  The ATF traces its roots back to when Congress established a tax on imported spirits to help pay for the Revolutionary War.

5.  BBC sitcom: ABFAB.  Short for Absolutely Fabulous, ABFAB was a British sitcom that also aired on American television.  It was very popular.

6.  River transport: RAFT.    

7.  Offline, briefly: IRL.  In Real Life.   It is a shorthand term used when people want to distinguish reality from something that happens, for example, on TV,  online in social media, or in games.  I do realize that the lines of demarcation are blurring but having to point out this distinction seems a bit odd to me.  Or, maybe not.

8.  Austin Powers' nemesis: DREVIL.  DR EVIL is a parody of the villains found in the James Bond novels and motion pictures.

9.  Aerodynamic: SLEEK.  In 2019, Jessi Combs was killed while trying to set a new land speed record in her SLEEK, jet-powered car.

10.  Skin pic: TAT.  TAT, short for tattoo, is a staple not only of Crosswordese but IRL as well.

11.  "Pollock" star: EDHARRIS.  ED HARRIS  Although I do know who Jackson Pollock was, I was barely aware of, and never saw, the movie.  I would not recognize Mr. Harris if I bumped into him on the street.  Perps to the rescue.

12.  Adolescent support group: ALATEEN.  A sub group within the Al-Anon (Alcoholics Anonymous) family that focuses on teenagers. 

13.  Protégé: MENTEE.  A MENTEE is a person who is advised, not by a Manatee but, rather, by a Mentor.

18.  News initials: UPI.  United Press International is an international news agency formed in 1907 by combining three other then-existing news agencies.

23.  Bacon products: ESSAYS.  This bit of cluing was similar to last Thursday's "More Work" clue.  This time the misdirection is designed to lead us away from Francis Bacon (credited with popularizing the scientific method) who is the actual gist of the clue.  Once again, I was briefly fooled and at first thought about something cured, smoked and pan fried.

26.  VIP travel option: LEARJET.   LEAR JET 

27.  Legal thing: RES.  In law, RES is a thing, as opposed to a person, that is the object of rights.

28.  IA city on U.S. 20: FTDODGE.  FORT DODGE, Iowa.  Situated on the Des Moines River, Fort Dodge is the county seat of Webster County.

30.  Limit: CAP.  

33.  Action film weapon: UZI.  The first UZI was designed by Uziel Gal in the late 1940s.  He gave the production rights to the Israli Ministry of Defense.  It is now manufactured by IWI (Israeli Weapons Industries).  In another context, UZI can mean Upheaval-Zombie Infestation.  Quick, grab the Uzi!

34.  Only unanimous Baseball Hall of Fame electee: RIVERA.  George Will, the political pundit and student of baseball, was once asked what his reaction would be if, during an extra-inning Allstar Game where all other available pitchers had already been used, Mariano RIVERA of the New York Yankees were to be injured due to his having to pitch four or five innings.  Without missing a beat, Will replied, "I would say, Go O's !"

36.  Dr. of rap: DRE.

37.  Official flower of two Southern states: MAGNOLIA.

38.  "Cherry Garcia" is one: PUN.  The PUN, here, is on Jerry Garcia the lead guitarist for The Grateful Dead.  Oddly, I had put the "Cumberland Blues" music link, above, in the initial draft of this post before I'd even had a look at the puzzle.  Serendipity.

39.  Path to the gold, so they say: RAINBOW.  An old saying has it that there is a pot of gold at the end of the RAINBOW.

40.  Waze feature: MAP.  After years of using GPS devices made by Garmin and TomTom it took a while to get used to WAZE.   WAZE turns out to be very good for navigating within cities. . . . if you do not mind occasionally being directed to cross eight lanes of rush hour traffic at an uncontrolled intersection. 

41.  Wins in an ugly way?: GLOATS.

43.  Equivocate: WAFFLE.   Vacillate.

45.  Not for kids: RATEDR.  RATED R  We never know, do we, if it going to turn out to be RATED R or R RATED?

46.  "Let's do this": ITSAGO.  IT'S A GO  When a constructor uses quotation marks in the clue, to indicate that the answer is something that someone might say,  then the answer can be almost anything.

47.  Reached a max: PEAKED.

49.  Upper bodies: TORSI.  A correct plural of TORSO.  Has anyone actually used the word?

50.  Recon mission goal: INTEL.  Short for INTELligence.  Also,  the name of a major producer of computer chips.  Is there anyone who has not seen their logo?

51.  Put gently (on): DAB.

54.  Vino venue: ASTI.  Ah, another wine-related clue and answer.  ASTI is a commune (township) in the Piedmont region of Italy.  Most Americans know the name from Asti-Spumante which is a sparkling white wine.

57.  Street in a horror series: ELM.  There have been several Nightmare on Elm Street movies.  They have, so far, grossed over $750 million.

59.  Archer's skill: AIM.  AIM was also an answer in my last (first) write-up so I had to  find a different graphic.

60.  Gym unit: REP.  REP is short for repetition.  Your trainer might tell you to do three sets of ten REPs each of a given exercise.

___________________________________

_________________________________

In parting today, a story:

A team of archaeologists were working in Jerusalem a few years ago when they unearthed a slab of rock into which five images had been carved.

                                    

It was taken back to the university where a team of archaeologists intensely studied the petroglyph and interpreted it.  Eventually, the leader of the team took the stone and went on a lecture tour. In his lecture, the archaeologist  explained that the carvings were several thousands of years old and that they revealed a lot about the people of that time.  The woman, having been placed first in the line of figures, he said, indicated that women were held in very high esteem.  The society that produced the petroglyph was most likely a matriarchy.  The donkey, he further explained, indicated they used domesticated animals.  The shovel revealed that they were highly intelligent and knew how to make tools.  The fish indicated that they knew enough to augment the crops they raised by also reaping sustenance from the sea.  The Star of David, of course, showed they were a very religious group of people.

After trying to interrupt the presentation for quite a few minutes, a little old Jewish man in the front row finally got the attention of the speaker.   When acknowledged, he rose and said "Idiot.  You were reading it left to right.  In Hebrew we read from right to left.  That way, it reads 'Holy Mackerel Dig The Ass On That Chick!' "

I promise to atone for that one in just a few days.  For now, a belated Happy New Year One and All !  That's a wrap for today.  Thank you all for your kind comments after the maiden voyage. 

 MM OUT

Wednesday, September 23, 2020 Joe Deeney

Theme:  YOU'RE CONFUSED.  The letters of the contraction YOU'RE are scrambled in the theme entries. Or, as the unifier has it --

55 A. Judge's words ... and a hint to this puzzle's circles: YOU'RE OUT OF ORDER.  This indicates the mixing up of the letters.  Outside of the puzzle, the sentence indicates that YOU'RE not following the prescribed or established procedures for a meeting, legislative assembly, debate, or - in this case - a court of law.

Let's see how it works.

17 A. University offerings: FOUR YEAR DEGREES.  Typically, it takes FOUR YEARS as a full time student to earn a bachelor's degree in most fields of study.  Here the subject letters are scattered over the first two words of the fill.  

26 A. Bob Dylan title lyrics that follow "in my heart you'll always stay": FOREVER YOUNG.  Here, the letters span both words.

x

42 A. "The Wrestler" Oscar nominee: MICKEY ROURKE.  Again the letters span both words of his name.

Hi Gang.  JazzBumba here.  The theme, though mixed up, is pretty straight forward.   Let's unravel the rest of today's puzzle. 

Across:

1. Bits of trash often swept up with popcorn: STUBS.  Ticket scraps in movie theaters.  Ahh - the nostalgia.

6. Outdoor party rental: TENT.  Protects the guests from direct sunlight, but - we hops - not from rain.

10. Creek croaker: TOAD.  Could have been a FROG.  Needed some perps to hop into place.

14. Like much beer: ON TAP.  Draft beer.  In a tavern.  Sadly, these location are primary virus spread hazards.

15. "Dude!": BRAH.  Probably derived from "bro," which is probably derived from brother.

16. Nashville highlight: OPRY.  It's grand, and it's old.

20. Open patio: ATRIUM.  An open-roofed hall or court.

21. Original angel on "Charlie's Angels": SABRINA. played by Kate Jackson.

Sabrina Duncan

22. Driver's role in "Star Wars" sequels: REN.  Adam Driver played Kylo Ren, the dark side son of Han Solo and princess Leia.

23. Easiness exemplar: PIE.  Figuring out why is not as easy.  

25. Johns in Scotland: IANS.  The name "John" in Scottish dialect.  It has nothing to do with the loo.

31. Hopeless, as a situation: NO WIN.  When all the alternatives are bad.

34. Tears to shreds: RENDS.

35. Cause of some royal insomnia: PEA.  For a fairy tale princess on a stack of mattresses.

36. Leave out: OMIT.

37. Ties together: BINDS.

38. Go no further: STOP.  Hatl!

39. Hill worker: ANT.  Not a congress critter.

40. Works in Silverstein's "Where the Sidewalk Ends": POEMS.

Ask not for whom the sidewalk ends.  It ends for thee.

41. Provided light: SHONE.  A word rarely seen in the past tense.

45. Gets moving: HIES.  Goes quickly.  A good old Anglo-Saxon word seldom seen in any tense.

46. Luau finger food: POI. Made from the tuber of the taro plant.

47. Lead-in to a texter's afterthought: BTW.  By The Way - now that I have your attention.

50. Words said in disbelief: WHAT THE  .  .  .  The next word in the sequence is open to considerable variation.

53. Canadian metropolis: OTTAWA.  Ottawa is Canada’s capital, in the east of southern Ontario, near the city of Montréal and the U.S. border.

57. MM and MMXX, for two: ANNI.  The years Y2K and 2020, respectively, in Roman numerals.  Let's face it: MMXX has not been a good year; but it is nothing compared to DXXXVI. 

58. Tire (out): WEAR.  This word has a variety of meanings; here it is to diminish by use, as happens when on tires.  Not also that tires wear from use, which is also the same meaning.

59. Beat, with "out": WIPED.  Another word with many possible interpretations.  Here it is WIPING out an opponent.

60. Enzo's eight: OTTO.   The number, in Italian.

61. Where Southwest Airlines is LUV: NYSE  The company's symbol on the New York Stock Exchange.

62. Puts in like piles: SORTS.  Arranges by type or some characteristic.

Down:

1. Words often suggesting unmet goals: SO FAR.  We have a way to go, but we're on our way.

2. Fed. security: T-NOTE.  Treasury NOTE, a marketable U.S. government debt security with a fixed interest rate and a maturity between one and 10 years. 

3. One-eighty: U-TURN.  A rapid turn to go back into the opposite direction.  We seldom see it spelt out completely

4. Port on Italy's "heel": BARI.  Located near the top of the heel, BARI is a port city on the Adriatic Sea, and the capital of southern Italy’s Puglia region.

5. Watch surreptitiously: SPY UPON.  I see what you are doing!

6. Sched. uncertainty: TBA.  Something To Be Announced.

7. Shows one's humanity?: ERRS.  To ERR is human.

8. Zip: NADA.  Nothing.

9. Hitchcock thriller set in Bodega Bay: THE BIRDS.

10. Piemonte city: TORINO.  More commonly known to us as Turin.

11. Confides in: OPENS UP TO.  Shares personal information.

12. Region: AREA. Location.

13. Start to function?: DYS-.  This prefix indicates abnormality or impairment.  

18. Bahrain bigwig: EMIR.  A tittle applied to various Muslim rulers.

19. Charcoal pencil shades: GRAYS.  Available in a set of 50, I suppose.

24. Like "Halloween," and then some: EERIER.  Feast your eyes upon the comparative degree of a word meaning weird and frightening, because you're unlikely to be seeing it again any time soon - or possibly ever.  If I ever see: "More like a Great Lake: Erier," I'm just going to give up.

26. In good shape: FIT.  In good health, especially when due to physical exercise.  One can get fitter.

27. Mobile payments app owned by PayPal: VENMO.  An easy way to electronically transfer funds.

28. Finally arrives (at): ENDS UP.  Reaches some sort of conclusion.

29. Second-lightest noble gas: NEON.  The lightest is helium.  The lightest ignoble gas is hydrogen.

30. Stare slack-jawed: GAPE.  Wide open as, in this case, the jaws.

31. Linguist Chomsky: NOAM. [b 1928] Linguist - sure; but so much more.

32. Luxury hotel name: OMNI.  Omni Hotels & Resorts is an American privately held, international luxury hotel company based in Dallas, Texas. The company operates 60 properties in the United States, Canada, and Mexico,

33. Prejudiced investigation and harassment: WITCH HUNT.  A search for something to prosecute.

37. Father Flanagan's orphanage: BOY'S TOWN.  An organization dedicated to the care, treatment, and education of at-risk children.

38. "__ sells seashells ... ": SHE.  

40. Actress/author Holly Robinson __: PEETE. [b 1964]  She is known for her roles as Judy Hoffs on the Fox TV police drama 21 Jump Street, Vanessa Russell on the ABC sitcom Hangin' with Mr. Cooper, and Dr. Malena Ellis on the NBC/WB sitcom For Your Love.

Care giving

41. Mountain resort aids: SKI TOWS. Various types of ski lifts, each having a moving rope or bars suspended from a moving overhead cable.  This gets you up the hill, so you can slide back down again.

43. South Korean subcompact: KIA RIO.  A subcompact car produced by the South Korean manufacturer Kia Motors since November 1999 and now in its fourth generation. Body styles have included a three and five-door hatchback and four-door sedan, equipped with inline-four gasoline and diesel engines, and front-wheel drive.

44. Solar panel spot: ROOF.  Because that's where the sunlight is.

47. Reason for spin, briefly: BAD PR.  Some problem with Public Relations and the resulting projected image, perhaps caused by foot-in-mouth disease.

48. Limited message: TWEET.  A post on Twitter.  I do that. Does it make me a twit?

49. Hospital sections: WARDS.   Separate rooms or designated areas in a hospital, typically allocated to a particular type of patient.

50. Refuses to: WON'T.  A contraction of "will not," indicating unwillingness or inability to do something.

51. Newsman Lewis?: HUEY.   Hugh Anthony Cregg III (b.1950) known professionally as Huey Lewis, is an American singer, songwriter, and actor.  He was frontman for the pop/rock group Huey Lewis and the News.  And so much more.  He now suffers from Ménière's disease, which is tragic for a musician.

 

 52. LAX postings: ETAS. Estimated Time of -- Arrival or Departure.  Always needs a perp.

54. Rock's Ben Folds Five, surprisingly: TRIO.  Maybe Ben folds something 5 times?  Or maybe two other guys quickly quit?  Anyway, this group was active from 1993 to 2000; and again erratically from 2008 to 2013.

55. NBA great Ming: YAO.  [b1980]  After playing in China, he was the first overall pick by the Houston Rockets in the 2002 NBA draft.  His successful career was cut short by injuries, and he retired in 2011 after several years of foot and ankle problems.

56. Minecraft material: ORE.  Clever clue for this mundane fill.  Minecraft is the best selling video game ever.  Players explore a blocky, procedurally-generated 3D world with infinite terrain, and may discover and extract raw materials, craft tools and items, and build structures or earthworks. 

That wraps up another Wednesday.  Hope you made it through in an orderly fashion.

Cool regards!

JzB