Tuesday, July 13, 2021 Matt Skoczen

Musical Cities:

16-Across. 1994 Collin Raye song (AR): LITTLE ROCK.

65-Across. 1959 Wilbert Harrison song (MO): KANSAS CITY.

10-Down. 1969 Glen Campbell song (TX): GALVESTON.  I went to Galveston.  Once.  For a fascinating look at the city, its the devastating 1900 hurricane, and the early politics of the Nation's Weather Bureau, read Erik Larson's book, Isaac's Storm: A Man, a Time, and the Deadliest Hurricane in History.

32-Down. 1982 Billy Joel song (PA): ALLENTOWN.

There is more music as we take our journey into this Tuesday puzzle.

Across:

1. They're what really happened: FACTS.

6. Garfield, e.g.: CAT.  Garfield the Cat is a comic strip, created by Jim Davis (b. July 28, 1945) that has been published since the late 1970s.  

9. Eye wolfishly: OGLE.

13. Nunavut native: INUIT.  Hi, CanadianEh!  Nuavat is a sparsely populated territory of northern Canada.  It forms much of the Canadian arctic archipelago.

14. Kid's comeback: AM SO!

15. Sit tight: WAIT.

18. Sommer of "The Prize": ELKE.  Elke Sommer (b. Nov. 5, 1940), is a German actress.  The Prize was a 1963 movie that also starred Paul Newman (Jan. 26, 1925 ~ Sept. 26, 2008).

19. Pianist Gilels: EMIL.  Emil Grigoryevich Gilels (Oct. 19, 1916 ~ Oct. 14, 1985) was a Ukranian pianist.

20. __ Army: golfer Palmer's fans: ARNIES.

22. Gall: VEX.

23. For all ages, filmwise: RATED G.

25. Most trifling: MINUTEST.

27. Spicy dip for chips: SALSA.  Yummers!

29. Pulpit talks: Abbr.: SERS.  As in Sermons.

30. Cry of illumination: AHA!

33. Wee: TEENY.

35. Songwriter Redding: OTIS.  Otis Ray Redding, Jr. (Sept. 9, 1941 ~ Dec. 10, 1967) was tragically killed in a plane crash at just age 26.

38. Throb: PULSATE.

40. Sunny-side-up feature: EGG YOLK.

43. Accessory put through loops: BELT.

44. Historic Jordanian city: PETRA.  I have yet to visit this beautiful city.

46. Opposing vote: NAY.

47. Key of Vivaldi's "Spring Concerto": Abbr.: E MAJ.  As in E Major.  Not a city, but still some beautiful music.

50. Mazda MX-5, familiarly: MIATA.

52. "The Sound of Music" family name: VON TRAPP.

55. Wild clashes: MELEES.

59. Pick, to a QB: INT.  Interception in football.

60. Stage lighting hardware: C CLAMP.

62. Smithsonian, e.g.: Abbr.: INST.  The Smithsonian is an Institution with many museums on the Washington Mall.

63. MGM mascot: LION.

67. Premier League soccer anchor Rebecca: LOWE.  Rebecca Lowe (b. Nov. 11, 1980) is a British sportscaster.  Rather obscure to those who don't follow soccer, I would presume.

68. French articles: UNEs.  Today's French lesson

69. Scary kind of wave: TIDAL.  Terrifying!

70. Gunn of "Breaking Bad": ANNA.

71. Old televangelist org.: PTL.  As in Praise The Lord.  A program hosted by Jim (b. Jan. 2, 1940) and Tammy Faye Bakker (Mar. 7, 1942 ~ July 20, 2007).

72. Behind the times: PASSÉ.

Down:

1. Taxpayer, e.g.: FILER.

2. Jungian concept: ANIMA.  Anima explained.

3. Make the grade: CUT IT.

4. Library names: TITLES.

5. Cards' cap letters: STL.  The Saint Louis Cardinals.

6. "Don't mess with me, bro!": C'MON MAN.

7. Computer acronym: ASCII.  An abbreviation for American Standard Code for Information Interchange.

8. Arcade coins: TOKENS.

9. Be indebted to: OWE.

11. Enjoys: LIKES.

12. Digital book format: E-TEXT.

14. Part of ETA: Abbr.: ARR.  Estimated Time of Arrival.

17. Aerie hatchling: EAGLET.

21. Curt legal advice: SUE.

24. Almanac info: DATA.

26. "Iliad" setting: TROY.  Everything you wanted to know about the ancient poem Iliad, but didn't know to ask.

28. Ooze: SEEP.

30. PD alert: APB.  Police Departments may issue an All Points Bulletin.

31. Color gradation: HUE.

34. Himalayan legend: YETI.

36. Waterfront org.: ILA.  As in the International Longshoremen Association.

37. Wild blue yonder: SKY.

39. Monthly acct. summary: STMT.  Think of your monthly bank Statement.

41. Family nickname: GRAMPA.  Mine were called Grandpa and Gramp.

42. Flight board info: GATE.  I will be going through a boarding gate tomorrow.

45. Select, as a jury: EMPANEL.

48. Ongoing story line: ARC.

49. Prepare for changing a flat tire: JACK UP.

51. Keys on a piano?: ALICIA.  Clever clue.

52. Luxurious residence: VILLA.  A trip to Sicily is not complete unless you visit the Villa Romana del Casale.   It is was ancient Roman villa that has some of the most beautiful, intact mosaics that I have ever seen.

53. Gibson garnish: ONION.

54. Garden growth: PLANT.

56. Authors Blyton and Bagnold: ENIDs.  I am not familiar with Enid Blyton (Aug. 11, 1897 ~ Nov. 28, 1968), but Edna Bagnold (Oct. 27, 1889 ~ Mar. 31, 1981) makes frequent guest appearances in the puzzles.  Both were British authors.

57. These, to Tomás: ESTAS.  Today's Spanish lesson.  Hi, Lucina!

58. Hairdresser's concern: STYLE.

61. Ed.'s backlog: MSS.  As in Manuscripts.

64. PBS funder: NEA.  As in the National Endowment for the Arts.

66. Longtime NASCAR sponsor: STP.  Short for Scientifically Treated Petroleum.

Here's the Grid

חתולה

Monday July 12, 2021 George Jasper

Theme: ESPYS (69. Annual athletic achievement awards, and a phonetic hint to 17-, 27-, 47- and 61-Across) - Each theme answer has a S* P* pattern.

17. The orange one is often called a yam: SWEET POTATO.

27. Hidden Hogwarts corridor: SECRET PASSAGE.

47. Behind-the-scenes investor: SILENT PARTNER.

61. Group looking for a missing person: SEARCH PARTY.

Boomer here.  This looks like a Swell Puzzle.  I am sure that our neighbors in Saint Paul will like it.

Across:

1. Jigsaw puzzle unit: PIECE.  Sorry to admit how many hours I spent putting these things together. 

6. Rome's Fontana di __: TREVI.

11. Baseball's Ripken: CAL.  I have dozens and dozens of his baseball cards.  I put together a stack of ten for eBay.

14. Fizzy mixers: SODAS.  I am sold on Diet Pepsi and Canada Dry Ginger ale.  But I do not mix it with anything anymore.

15. Whirlybird part: ROTOR.

16. Ike's WWII arena: ETO.  Yup, the European Theater of Operations - Dwight Eisenhower's command.  He did so well we elected him President for eight years.

19. Court of __: LAW.  Where Jack McCoy takes over.  I watch too much TV.

20. Beach souvenirs: TANS.  We used to get these on the golf course.

21. Golf ball position: LIE.  Also a way to lower your golf score.

22. Complete: ENTIRE.

24. Words with mode or carte: A LA.  Southern state with a low percentage of vaccinations.

26. Stylish suits: ARMANIS.

32. Many a stray pooch: CUR.

33. Nonetheless: STILL.  "Though you broke my heart, STILL, though we're far apart." Bill Anderson.

34. Art class subjects: NUDES.

37. "T" on a test: TRUE.  Some of my tests were "F".

39. Blunted fencing blades: EPEES.

41. Carpet thickness: PILE.  I have been going through PILES of Baseball cards.

42. "There you have it!": VOILA.  Always reminds me of Frank Viola of the Twins.  I think I have some of his cards.

44. "Fame" singer Cara: IRENE.  "Good night IRENE, Good night IRENE, I'll see you in my dreams." 

46. World Cup cheer: OLE.  Sven's buddy and boy do I have those jokes.

50. Business event using Zoom, perhaps: MEETING.  I had a lot of MEETINGS, but never on ZOOM.

52. La Brea goo: TAR.  We had a MEETING with the Association last month and it sounds like we may be getting a new driveway soon, also a big bill.

53. Trouser measure: INSEAM.  I think I am still a 34.  I've been wearing shorts all summer.

54. D.C. fundraising group: PAC.

56. Like much tea in summer: ICED.  It's pretty good but I'll stick with Diet Pepsi for now.

60. Cry from Homer: DOH.  I never got into the Simpsons.

64. MSNBC co-anchor __ Velshi: ALI.  I cannot know if he shaved his head or just lost his hair.

65. German industrial city: ESSEN.

66. Words of defeat: I LOSE.

67. Syrup source: SAP.

68. Tremble: SHAKE.  Rattle and Roll!

Down:

1. Attention-getting hiss: PSST.  Do you want to know a secret.

2. Des Moines' state: IOWA.  Our neighbor to the south.  C.C. and I traveled there while I was working as I had to visit Graybar in Des Moines. 

3. Starter home for Adam and Eve?: EDEN.  Minnesota has an EDEN Prairie.  Adam and Eve never lived there but Vikings' Bud Grant does. 

4. Salad variety: CAESAR.  "How many eggs did you have for breakfast CAESAR ??"
"Et Tu Brute"

5. Superlative ending: EST.

6. Picard's counselor: TROI.

7. Mechanical learning method: ROTE.  I remember we used to learn music by ROTE.

8. LAX posting: ETA.  Estimated Time of Arrival, and they do mean Estimated.

9. People filling out ballots: VOTERS.  C.C. and I voted by mail last year. It seemed better than standing in line for two hours at a local church.

10. Ripken nickname based on his durability: IRON MAN.  He played in 2632 games in a row.  The previous record was held by Lou Gehrig at 2130.  I have many Cal Ripken baseball cards but only one of Lou Gehrig, and it's not an original.

 

11. Canadian-born singer with the 2019 album "Courage": CELINE DION.

12. Gaming pioneer: ATARI.  Played these games many times.

13. The Home Depot competitor: LOWE'S.  We have both stores in our area.  I have to admit that Home Depot has gotten more money from us than Lowe's.

18. Nebraska river: PLATTE.

23. Prepare to score from third, say: TAG UP.  Only on a long fly ball.

25. French article: LES.

26. Out for the night: ASLEEP.  Happens every night.

27. Old Canadian skit show: SCTV.

28. Italian money: EURO.  I purchased some EUROs on eBay once but I think I sold them at a flea market for a loss.

29. Vacation vessel: CRUISESHIP.  We have never taken a cruise on one of these monsters.  It seems they were Covid carriers a couple of years ago.  

30. __ hot: steaming: PIPING.

31. On the lookout: ALERT.

35. Fashion monthly: ELLE.

36. Visionary: SEER.

38. Cream of the crop: ELITE.  I used to be an ELITE bowler, Now I am only LITE.

40. Grab quickly: SNATCH.

43. Assumed names: ALIASES.  Smith and Jones?

45. Pitcher's stat: ERA.  Most of our Twins are over 6.00.

48. Catch in a net: ENMESH.

49. "All Rise" procedures: TRIALS.  "All my TRIALS Lord, Soon be over".  Peter, Paul, and Mary and others. 

50. Golden-touch king: MIDAS.  I went there once for a brake job.  Never again. 

51. __ Gay: WWII bomber: ENOLA.  A famous WWII bomber.  The name came from the pilot's Mother.

54. Educ. for tots: PRE-K.

55. Teen's bane: ACNE.

57. Field yield: CROP.  We have some beans and cucumbers planted.  I guess we might get what the squirrels did not ruin.

58. Craftsy etailer: ETSY.

59. Hair salon colors: DYES.  I am a natural Minnesota Swede Blonde.  Maybe it has a little gray mixed in but I'll never tell.

62. Clean __ whistle: AS A.  My Great, Great grandfather is ASA Hutchinson of the Hutchinson family singers.  They founded Hutchinson Minnesota about 150 years ago.  I once wrote to ASA Hutchinson, the governor of Arkansas with the story.  I thought we might be related but he said no.  However he once visited Minnesota and Congressman Eric Paulsen took him out to Hutchinson.  ASA wrote me a nice letter in response.  

63. Dessert pastry: PIE.

Boomer

Sunday July 11, 2021 Margaret Woodruff

Theme: "It Takes Two" - Theme entries are phrases that can follow the clues once you repeat them.

22A. *Extra: READ ALL ABOUT IT. "Extra! Extra! Read All About it."

32A. *Bad: LEROY BROWN. "Bad, Bad Leroy Brown"  Jim Croce song.

40A. *Liar: PANTS ON FIRE. "Liar, Liar, pants on fire".

65A. *Hail: THE GANGS ALL HERE. "Hail, Hail, the Gang's All Here"

88A. *Ladybird: FLY AWAY HOME. "Ladybird, ladybird fly away home". Boomer thought it's "ladybug".

97A. *Wait: DON'T TELL ME. "Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me". Hahtoolah likes the show.

112A. *Hush: SWEET CHARLOTTE. "Hush... Hush, Sweet Charlotte" 1964 movie. New to me.

 

Looks like another crossword debut. And a Sunday. Amazing. Sunday puzzles are much harder to design and fill, even for a veteran constructors. Congrats, Margaret!

I don't see any extra layer in this theme. You?

Across:

1. Daffy Duck feature: LISP.

5. Throws, as the shot: PUTS. Shot put.

9. Real grind: SLOG.

13. Second most populous city in the Dakotas: FARGO. Sioux Falls has more people. Boomer took me to Corn Palace on our honeymoon.

18. Chip in a chip: ANTE.

19. Brand with a wasabi-flavored variety in China: OREO. Gimme!

20. Necklace-fastening site: NAPE.

21. Most of the Earth's surface: OCEAN.

25. Brought up: REARED.

27. Paint fight sounds: SPLATS.

28. Corned beef concoction: REUBEN. You can spread a tiny bit of wasabi on your bread.

29. Latte maker: BARISTA.

30. 31-Across prefix: TELE. 31. Cruise stopover: PORT.

34. Since: AS OF.

36. Small island: CAY.

38. Afore: ERE.

39. Make out, in Manchester: SNOG.

45. Attends to: MINDS.

47. In an absurd fashion: INANELY.

48. Popular roller coaster name: CYCLONE.

50. Squatters build them: QUADS. This kind of squatter.

55. Saucy: PERT.

56. Big Apple designer initials: DKNY.

58. Choice words?: ORS.

59. Some campus coaches: TUTORS. Hi there, Bill, are you still reading us?

60. Messy room metaphor: STY.

61. Bakery output: PIES.

62. Plot size: ACRE.

64. Intellectual: THINKER. The one.

68. Apollo and Artemis: ARCHERS. Not SIBLINGS.

71. System developed at Bell Labs: UNIX. Does anyone still use Unix?

72. Get rid of: OUST.

73. Banned pesticide: DDT.

76. Whizzes: MAVENS.

77. Waze option: Abbr.: RTE.

78. Ostentation: POMP.

79. Toon explorer with a talking purple backpack: DORA.

80. Like 20 Questions questions: YES-NO.

81. More irritable: FUSSIER.

84. Like a probability distribution with two peaks: BIMODAL. New word to me.

86. Say "I do," maybe: MARRY.

90. Suit in a Spanish deck of cards: OROS. We had this before.

94. Madre's sister: TIA.

95. Mois après avril: MAI. Month after April.

96. "The Big __ Theory": BANG.

100. Burn slightly: CHAR.

102. Air 2 or Pro: iPAD.

106. In general: OVERALL.

107. They're sometimes goodies: OLDIES.

109. Expert advice: PRO TIP.

111. Sympathize: RELATE. Painful reading Picard's post. Boomer did not want a surgery. VA gave Boomer a hernia belt like this one. Tight and uncomfortable to wear, but it eases the pain.

114. Fed settings: RATES.

115. Second half of a children's game: SEEK.

116. Olympian queen: HERA.

117. __ mad: to the max: LIKE.

118. Practices in a ring: SPARS. Boxing ring.

119. Language that gave us "plaid": ERSE.

120. Boundary-pushing: EDGY.

121. Villain in "The Lion King": SCAR.

Down:

1. "Dancer in the Dark" Palme d'Or winner von Trier: LARS. Learning moment for me.

 

2. Clumsy: INEPT.

3. Hardly new: STALE.

4. Item common to bikes and pianos: PEDAL.

5. D.C. bigwigs: POLS.

6. Address without lat. or long.: URL. Web address.

7. Detachable strip: TEAR OFF.

8. Serious: SOBER.

9. Ignore pointedly: SNUB.

10. In recent history: LATELY. Still no police report on our neighbor. We saw a U-Haul truck in front of the house last week.

11. Offer a view: OPINE.

12. "__ Out": 2017 Jordan Peele film: GET.

13. Made inroads: FORAYED.

14. Biting, as wit: ACERB.

15. Shows over: RE-AIRS.

16. Actress Greer with the longest-ever Oscar acceptance speech: GARSON. Google shows that the speech lasted seven minutes.

17. Kind of punch: ONE TWO.

23. Order to relax: AT EASE.

24. Verbal protest: OUTCRY.

26. Freaking: DANG. OK, like "dang cute".

29. Carried: BORNE.

31. Quarter barrels for a beer bash: PONY KEGS. Wiki info: "A quarter barrel, more commonly known as pony keg, is a beer vessel containing approximately 7.75 gallons of fluid. It is half the size of the standard beer keg and equivalent to a quarter of a barrel."

33. Controlling power: REINS.

35. Perseveres, with "on": SOLDIERS.

37. Old nuclear agcy.: AEC. Atomic Energy Commission.

40. Dicey spots?: PIPS. Dice-y. Spots on  dice.

41. Working without __: A NET.

42. Not, quaintly: NARY.

43. Explosive stuff: TNT.

44. Like some roads and receptions: ICY.

45. Gourmet mushroom: MOREL. Never saw fresh morels in our store. Always dried.

46. Pipsqueak: SQUIRT.

49. Seuss character who "speaks for the trees": LORAX.

51. Alternative media namesake: UTNE.

52. Perfectly fine: A-OK.

53. __ Johnson, Anthony Anderson's "Black-ish" role: DRE.

54. Pre-1991 Georgia, e.g.: Abbr.: SSR.

57. DOD intel arm: NSA.

59. Dramatic artist: THESPIAN.

61. Whiz kid: PHENOM.

62. Choreographer de Mille: AGNES. And our sweet Irish Miss.

63. TV franchise with a Vegas spin-off: CSI.

64. Digital conflict?: THUMB WAR. That digit.

65. Before ... or after: THEN.

66. Wacko: NUTSY.

67. Head of MI6?: LOO. Good old clue.

68. Senator Klobuchar: AMY. Our senator.

69. Issa of "Insecure": RAE.

70. Papers in a job recruiter's office, briefly: CVS.

73. Bird last seen in 1662: DODO. Here's our Dodo.

L to R: Chickie, Lucina, Garlic Gal, JD, and Dodo 2014

74. Apothecary's weight: DRAM.

75. Story: TALE.

77. Urban opposite: RURAL.

78. Nose (into): PRY.

79. "I'm so dense!": DOH.  If you cut the top of your chicken package off too deep, you'll never find out the Tyson chicken establishment code. I was focusing on the bottom UPC and later the USDA mark at Spitzboov's suggestion.

81. Purely decorative detail: FRILL.

82. "__ body meet ... ": IF A. Unfamiliar with this reference.

83. Bring forth: ELICIT.

85. The Temptations' first #1 single: MY GIRL.

87. Dieted: ATE LESS. Boomer eats super light these days. Here's his Friday dinner: raw cauliflower & watermelon. Odd combo, but that's what he wanted. No minis for us, Agnes, Boomer only likes big watermelons.

89. Embarrassed: ABASHED.

90. Reason for shoe inserts: ODOR.

91. Perseverance and Curiosity: ROVERS.

92. Track's 400 meters: ONE LAP.

93. Layers: STRATA.

95. Free-for-alls: MELEES.

98. Where a tot might come from?: TATER. Another cute clue.

99. Grass accessory: MOWER.

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

103. Aquatic arenas: POOLS.

104. Bertha was locked in one in "Jane Eyre": ATTIC. Bertha is the mad wife of Mr Rochester.

105. Chicago Bears' Super Bowl XX winning coach: DITKA (Mike)

108. Denzel's role in "The Little Things" (2021): DEKE. Nope. No idea.

109. Beseech: PRAY.

110. __ pressure: PEER.

112. Dir. the Kings travel to play the Lakers: SSE.

113. Tango's co-birthplace: Abbr.: ARG. Argentina.

 

Happy birthday to CanadianEh!, who joined our corner in 2012. I always enjoy her insightful puzzle observations and other life-related comments.

C.C.