Tuesday, June 17, 2014 C.C. Burnikel

Theme: Race originally held in Kailua-Kona - The events of the race in the order in which they are held.

19A. Pool session for grown-ups : ADULT SWIM. 2.4-mile

39A. Motorcycle designed for acrobatic maneuvers : STUNT BIKE. 112-mile

58A. Baseball play that may be foiled by a pitchout : HIT AND RUN. 26.2-mile

20D. Ironman event comprised of the last words of 19-, 39- and 58-Across : TRIATHLON. You have to complete the race in 17 hours to be an Ironman.

Argyle here, no Ironman though. We do have a stunning Tuesday puzzle. Certainly a unique grid for any day of the week.

Across:

1. Fish often dipped in wasabi : SASHIMI. "Thin slices of raw fish", from Japanese.

8. Pasadena institute where most of "The Big Bang Theory" characters work : CALTECH. (California Institute of Technology in Pasadena)

15. Meeting expectations : UP TO PAR

16. Late : OVERDUE. A punch line, "And they're all overdue".

17. Florida NASCAR city : DAYTONA

18. "Absolutely!" : "NO DOUBT!"

21. "Well, hello there" : "OH, HI"

24. Land of the Incas : PERU

25. Hoops cable channel : NBA TV

29. Catch on : LEARN

31. Disgusting : VILE. and its anagram, 32D. Wicked : EVIL

33. Aunt Bee's charge : OPIE

34. Dishwasher cycle : DRY. Is "You wash, I'll dry" a thing of the past?

35. Operatic solo : ARIA

37. City with canals : VENICE

41. What flower girls toss : PETALS. For those women followed by a train.

44. In good health : HALE

45. Underwire garment : BRA. Love a healthy bra!

                No wires here.

48. Mounted on : ATOP

49. Post-shower powder : TALC

51. More than just a good buy : STEAL

53. Local news hr. : TEN PM

55. Left dreamland : WOKE

57. Slight advantage : EDGE

61. Double-crosser : TRAITOR

64. Freeway entrances : ON RAMPS

68. Bump from behind : REAR END. What can happen if someone doesn't merge smoothly on the above.

69. Champions : WINNERS. What anybody that can complete a triathlon is, no matter in what time.

70. Sticks : ADHERES

71. Cuddles : NESTLES

Down:

1. South, at the Sorbonne : SUD. French and more French, 42D. Summer, at the Sorbonne : ÉTÉ

2. Org. for shrinks : APA. (American Psychological Association)

3. Barnyard pen : STY

4. Malarkey : HOT AIR

5. Shuffle or nano : iPOD

6. "Don't be a wuss!" : "MAN UP!"

7. "The Stepford Wives" novelist : IRA LEVIN

8. Foreign service officer : CONSUL

9. Declare to be true : AVOW

10. Showed the way : LED IN

11. Glenn Miller's instrument : TROMBONE

12. Prof's email suffix : .EDU

13. Baby bear : CUB

14. Riled (up) : HET

21. Passé : OLD. Yes, you don't hear "het up" much anymore.

22. That woman : HER

23. Stable diet? : HAY. Cute.

26. Bee: Pref. : API

27. Nervous mannerism : TIC

28. Crew neck alternative : VEE

30. Part of NIH: Abbr. : NATL. (National Institutes of Health)

36. Auto body concern : RUST. More so here in the NE. Related 46D. Car-cleaning cloth : RAG

38. Scratches (out) : EKEs

39. Deep blue gem : SAPPHIRE

40. Retreat : BACK DOWN

41. Gentle touch : PAT

43. Huge amount : TON

45. Resting place : BED

47. Bar brew : ALE

50. Medals and trophies : AWARDS

52. Rent payer : TENANT

54. Bishop's hat : MITER

56. "How to Build a Classic Golf Swing" author Els : ERNIE. He tied for 35th in the US Open.

59. Sound of music : TONE. TUNE was close but....

60. Footed vases : URNS

61. __-la-la : TRA

62. Color to stop at : RED

63. "That feels good!" : "AAH!"

65. "Spaceballs" director Brooks : MEL

66. Start to heat? : PRE

67. Cobra's warning : [SSS!]

Argyle

Note from C.C.:

Below is my original skeletal grid. Rich suggested me to intersect theme entries. He made me look clever. Thanks, Rich!

Monday, June 16, 2014 David W. Cromer

Theme: Tempus Fugit - Yes, how time flies...all around this grid, landing in front of the first word of the starred answers.

56A. Store posting, and what the first words of the answers to starred clues could literally be doing : CLOSING TIME. The first word can close a "time" phrase.

18A. *Mood : FRAME OF MIND. Time frame - A period of time during which something has taken or will take place.

37A. *Philatelist's prize possession : STAMP COLLECTION. Time stamp - A device for stamping the date and time of day.

3D. *Like a baseball fouled into the seats : OUT OF PLAY. Time out - Suspension of play, sports or kids.

34D. *Solid baseball hit : LINE DRIVE. Time line - A linear representation of important events in the order in which they occurred, like a baseball scorecard.

Argyle here, for the time being. David has been providing us with early week puzzles for some time now. Had a good time with this one. I looked at an early write-up of David and I mentioned my dial-up was giving me trouble. Boy, was that back in the dark ages.

Across:

1. "Little Red Book" chairman : MAO

4. Hardly enough : SCANT. As in scantily clad.

9. Online memo : E NOTE. or like online Cliff Notes.

14. School URL ending : .EDU

15. Like most white bears : POLAR

16. Bedsheet material : LINEN

17. Body art, briefly : TAT

20. Self-images : EGOs. Interesting, following tat.

22. Scornful look : SNEER

23. One of a Valentine's Day dozen : ROSE. CSO, by any other name.

24. Vandalizes : DEFACES. Graffiti.

26. Made amends : ATONED. They were made to scrub off the graffiti.

28. Map that may show land subdivisions : PLAT

29. Longed (for) : PINED

31. Conger catcher : EELER. No conger picture before breakfast.

33. River through Russia : VOLGA. Volga-Matushka (Mother Volga)

34. Auburn rival in the SEC : LSU. Southeastern Conference(SEC)/Louisiana State University(LSU)

40. Salary : PAY

41. Author Joyce Carol __ : OATES. She was born in Lockport, NY and grew up in Millersport, NY. (Looks like that's as close as we'll get to Erie today.)

42. One of India's official languages : HINDI

43. Hang in midair : HOVER

44. Surrender, as territory : CEDE

45. Words that attract shoppers : *ON SALE*

48. Nothing-to-do feeling : BOREDOM. Two weeks after school gets out.

51. Planted : SOWN. Got your gardens sown?

52. Equip with new weapons : REARM

55. Lass of La Mancha: Abbr. : SRTA. (señorita)

59. "__ now or never" : IT'S

60. Put on the radio : AIRED

61. Waited-for show character who never showed : GODOT. Play by Saturday's Irish playwright, Samuel Beckett. A waste of time?

62. Pet doc : VET

63. Angling gear : REELS

64. Signs of things to come : OMENS

65. EMTs' destinations : ERs

Down:

(I hope this takes less time.)

1. Doled (out) : METED

2. Old saw : ADAGE

4. Tanning lotion letters : SPF. (sun protection factor)

5. Constricting garment : CORSET

6. Greenspan and Ladd : ALANs

7. Title : NAME

8. Genealogical chart : TREE. With lots of names on it.

9. Santa subordinate : ELF. Sorry, it isn't pc to call them that. (subordinate)

10. Idiot : NIMROD

11. Bermuda veggie : ONION

12. On edge : TENSE

13. Concluded : ENDED

19. Southern California county : ORANGE

21. Witch trials setting : SALEM

25. Commuting convenience : CAR POOL. Certainly so when they have their own lanes.

27. One working with pupils : TEACHER. Not Lois anymore.

29. Gondola helmsman : POLER. A pole is used to propel the boat.

30. Pandora's boxful : ILLS

31. So-called sixth sense : ESP

32. Letter after zeta : ETA

33. Go to the polls : VOTE

35. Ready-to-go lawn starter : SOD

36. Prefix with cycle : UNI

38. Spot for spelunkers : CAVERN

39. In-and-out ocean phenomena : TIDES

43. Gretel's brother : HANSEL

44. Ordinary : COMMON

45. Actor's prize : OSCAR

46. "I kid you not!" : "NO LIE!"

47. Took an oath : SWORE. Another interesting follow up.

48. Woman often followed by a train : BRIDE

49. Aquatic frolicker : OTTER

50. Sail supports : MASTS

53. Frozen waffle brand : EGGO

54. Quark locale : ATOM. No images of Quark from Deep Space Nine before breakfast either.

57. SSNs, e.g. : IDs

58. UFO crew, supposedly : ETs

Ahh! My time has ended.

Argyle

Interview with Elizabeth C. Gorski

Since 1995, Elizabeth C. Gorski has 211 puzzles published by the New York Times, making her the second most-published crossword constructor under Will Shortz's editorship. Liz is also a regular contributor to the LA Times & The Wall Street Journal.

Liz is also the Managing Editor of Crossword Nation, which provides quintessential Liz- style puzzle every week: inventive themes, contemporary & adventurous fill & fantastic clues.  It's not unusual to see a 72-worder in her puzzles. See here as an example.

I've said this before: Liz sees what others can't. She does what others can't or won't.

What's your philosophy when it comes to grid design? Those stacked 6's & 7's on the upper right & lower left look daunting to fill, esp when crossed by 9/7/6. I might have also chickened out and broken 18-Across & 126-Across into two. 

My grid design philosophy is: literacy, humor and novelty. Once I position the themed entries and surround them with a good fill, I try to “open” the grid (reduce the word count) and introduce a new-and-better fill. The challenge is: to improve the fill and preserve accessibility. Perhaps the prospect of including WINEGLASS encouraged me to open up the grid!

Writing a puzzle fill takes time and repeated attempts -- lots of them. I keeping trying until the fill fits the bill.  Constructing “by hand” is an invaluable skill and I’ll use that method for tricky grid areas, such as 126-Across. Sometimes I’ll chicken out completely, reposition the themed entries and start over again. Perseverance is key.

Which part do you normally spend the most time on in the construction process: theme brainstorming, grid designing or cluing?

When I was starting out, I spent a lot of time on grid design, but today – the most time-consuming task is theme brainstorming. It takes time to develop themes that haven’t been done before. Since the ‘90s I’ve tried to find puzzle software that eliminates the repetitive drudge work (managing word lists, making grid templates, numbering etc.).  I love Crossword Compiler – it’s the best, in my opinion. I’ve written my own programs to manage word lists and automate uncreative tasks. 

I’m always adding interesting words (BESTIE) and removing terrible words (UNHAT) in an effort to create a “human” vocabulary. I don’t waste time assigning number values to words – that’s where I draw the line with software. By automating essential tasks, there's more time to focus on duties that call for a human brain – theme brainstorming and clue writing.  When used effectively, technology improves the quality of puzzles by freeing up more “think” time. It’s that simple.

Like many other solvers, I love the originality & extra visuals in your puzzles. I also love your clues. What tools do you use to make the clues fresh, creative and fun?

Thank you for the compliment!  After I finish a puzzle, I will revisit it over a period of a few days; that’s when I fold, spindle, mutilate or rewrite the clues.  It helps to let a puzzle breathe for a while. Think of a bottle of wine that needs to breathe.  There’s no secret sauce.  I just write and then rewrite. 

My favorite brain exercise is: thinking of new clues for plain words.  Like … GOTHS (Men and women in black); CHEEK (Moon unit?); SOCIETY (Human body?); POLKA DOTS (They’re spotted on dresses?); OAKS (They were nuts); DINOSAURS (Layer of jumbo eggs?)

One important note: of course, today’s puzzle was greatly improved by Rich Norris’ amazing talents. Rich proposed the puzzle title “Pas de Deux.” What a smashing play on words, with a Father’s Day twist! (Much better than “Pop Duo” – my title). His title is literate, artistic and thoughtful.  I love it.   

What kind of theme and fill excite you and what kind do you try to avoid in your grids? 

Above all, I try to avoid making puzzles with themes that have been done before. Puzzle databases (Jim Horne’s xwordinfo.com and Matt Ginsberg’s puzzledatabase) are enormously helpful; I use them to rule out ideas. I’m surprised to see puzzles with overdone themes these days. Like the MOA, that should be a thing of the past. 

When a constructor is brainstorming themes, it’s just as important to rule out certain themes, as it is to create new ones.  Solvers are smart – they know when a puzzle is old or a re-hash. As editors and constructors, it’s our responsibility to work harder for our customers.

 

When I make the weekly Crossword Nation puzzle, I have an turnaround-time advantage -- the work is published within days of creation.  We use technology to provide a fresh puzzle-solving experience for our subscribers. Puzzles are new and current – never kept on a shelf. This is the future of puzzle distribution and it’s radically different from the traditional model. I like to think of independent crossword providers as mom-and-pop stores that offer a high-quality alternative for to their customers. As a puzzle producer and consumer, I am a proponent of using technology to improve puzzle quality and distribution. We owe our customers – puzzle solvers -- a good product based on fresh content.   

Of all the puzzles you've constructed, which are you most proud of?

Because of its unusual asymmetric design, puzzle solvers often ask about the GuggenheimMuseum puzzle (“Ahead of the Curve”: October 2009, The New York Times). It was architectural – a simple spiral that echoed the shape of Frank Lloyd Wright’s prescient design. And it celebrated the Museum’s 50^th anniversary.  What delighted me most was that, on the Sunday the puzzle was published, visitors to the Museum were seen walking the spiral with the crossword puzzle in hand! A puzzle within a puzzle. That was an unexpected honor.

What puzzles do you solve every day and which constructors constantly inspire you?

I regard “constructing” puzzles as a form of problem solving. You’re creating a problem for yourself (“Gee, I’d like to make a puzzle that looks like Secretariat or a double helix …”), and then you have to make the puzzle. (You’ve created a big problem for yourself!) That keeps my synapses firing.  As for daily puzzles, I try to keep up with Puzzle Social puzzles, if I have the time. 

If I were to choose a constructor who influenced me as a solver, it would be: Maura Jacobson.  Her New York Magazine puzzles were autobiographical – cute, funny, literate and accessible.  She wrote a Sunday-sized masterpiece (without software) every week, for 30 years. I admire her discipline and unique ability to challenge solvers without dumbing-down the puzzle.  Based on her ideas and clues, you sensed that Maura had many interests: books, travel, family, pets, cooking, films, punnery, popular culture, Broadway, classical music.  You came away from her puzzle feeling good and liking the person who made it … and counting the days until her next puzzle appeared. She is one of the most important crossword constructors ever. A true original.    

Besides crosswords, what else do you do for fun?

I am a trained musician (violin and viola) and I love to play chamber music, especially string quintets.  I’ve been a tennis player since high school and I have a passion for exploring New York City on foot. I like the music of Rob Thomas, Ed Sheeran and Frederic Chopin.  Other interests: flamenco dancing, root vegetables, air craft carriers (there’s one in NYC) and crop circles.

Sunday June 15, 2014 Elizabeth C. Gorski

Theme: "Pa de Deux" -  All theme entries are two-word answers in the pattern of PA* PA*.

22A. Van Eyck's "Ghent Altarpiece," for one : PANEL PAINTING

32A. Baking pan liner : PARCHMENT PAPER

49A. Eaten or drunk : PAST PARTICIPLE. Chinese is so simple. No "a", "an", "the", no conjugation for verbs either.

 

66A. Restaurante cookware : PAELLA PANS. Never had paella before.

73A. Comedian the Smothers Brothers convinced to run for President : PAT PAULSEN

90A. Swirly fabric design : PAISLEY PATTERN

104A. Breakdancing garb : PARACHUTE PANTS

120A. Sleepovers with pillow fights : PAJAMA PARTIES

Timely theme from Liz to celebrate Father's Day!  I mentioned in the interview how I love Liz's clues. Look at these few:

55A. Messages from Mozart? : NOTES 

75A. Private organization? : ARMY

1D. Fat head?: LIPO. "Head" because LIPO is a prefix for "fat", correct?

52D. Fowl language? : PEEP

103D. Acts inappropriately? : EMOTES

Across:

1. Judges' concerns : LAWS

5. 2002 Winter Games host, initially : SLC. Mitt Romney was really in his element then.

8. Pyramid, to Tut : TOMB

12. Has because of : OWES TO

18. Ape : IMITATOR

20. Auction site : EBAY. Has any of you tried uBid?

21. More eminent : GREATER

24. Learning experiences : LESSONS

25. "SNL" alum Cheri : OTERI

26. 2001, in letters : MMI. The year I came to the US.

27. Adorable to the max : CUTEST

29. Sugary finish : OSE

30. Mongolian wild ass habitat : GOBI. Onager (Asian wild ass) guess! See, Liz found new angle to clue an old stand-by.

36. Not averse : WILLING

39. "... boy __ girl?" : OR A

40. Classical music hall : ODEON

41. Maestro __-Pekka Salonen : ESA. No idea. Wiki said "He is currently Principal Conductor and Artistic Advisor of the Philharmonia Orchestra in London and Conductor Laureate of the Los Angeles Philharmonic". Finnish.

42. Cork, for one : COUNTY

45. Utterly ridiculous : ASININE

56. Captain's command : TO SEA

57. Buddy : PAL

58. Can refuse to : NEED NOT

61. Airline to Oslo : SAS

62. Showed happiness, with "up" : LIT

64. Easy to like : GENIAL

65. Tightly bound bundle : BALE

76. All-in-one component : COPIER

78. Storm dir. : NNE

79. Lobster eater's protection : BIB. Too bad these four people stole others' hard-earned bib numbers in Boston Marathon.

80. City on Lake Ontario : TORONTO

81. Casual greetings : YOS

84. "Heart Shaped World" singer Chris : ISAAK

88. Infection cause : STAPH

93. Tried to bean : THREW AT

96. Mr. and Mrs. : TITLES

97. 1970s court alias : ROE

98. Cheese-topped chip : NACHO. Never had nachos.

100. No-seats-available shorthand : SRO (Standing Room Only)

101. Cough medicine additive : CODEINE. Addictive drug.

110. Hurricane response org. : FEMA

111. Ipanema locale : RIO

112. 1999 Top 10 hit for Sixpence None the Richer : KISS ME. I know the song, not the singers.

113. Net exchange : IMs

115. Pocahontas' husband John : ROLFE

118. Teach bit by bit : INSTILL

124. In a no-nonsense manner : STERNLY

125. Enterprise counselor : TROI (Deanna)

 

126. Approve of : SAY YES TO

127. Guide the team : MANAGE

128. Belgian river : YSER

129. Otto I's realm: Abbr. : HRE. D-Otto, did your ancestors come from Germany?

130. D.C. Metro stops : STAs

Down:

  

2. Bit of beginning Latin : AMAT. "Amo, amas, amat"

3. Red or white container : WINE GLASS. Oh, red or white wine container.

4. Waxy compound : STEROL

5. Indy additive : STP

6. Fertile soil : LOAM

7. Pinch and press, as pie crust edges : CRIMP. Chinese dumplings also take lots of pinching and pressing along the edges.

8. Lunar Asian holiday : TET. And 9D. Asian sash : OBI

10. La __: Spanish region : MANCHA

11. Old-fashioned oath : BY GUM!

12. Electra's brother : ORESTES

13. Academy since 1802 : WEST POINT. So glad the VA scandal was exposed. The VA here in MN drove me nuts.

14. __ in echo : E AS

15. Urban hangout : STOOP. I was thinking of  mall style "hangout".

16. In a knot : TENSE

17. "Carmen on Ice" Emmy sharer Brian : ORSER. Here is a clip. New to me. 

19. Tall story, often : ALIBI

21. Jackson of "Mary, Queen of Scots" : GLENDA

23. Actress Vardalos : NIA

28. Racecar driver Fabi : TEO

31. Empire that stretched as far south as Chile : INCA

33. School mil. program : ROTC

34. In tears : CRYING. And 36. Was in tears : WEPT

35. A.D. part : ANNO

37. Senior golfer Aoki : ISAO. Champions Tour (Senior PGA) has a stop in MN. They play at a course fairly close to our home. Never saw him.

38. Nutty trail snack : GORP

43. Acting teacher Hagen : UTA

44. None : NIL

46. "__ I said ..." : IT'S AS.  Sunday puzzles will always have a few undesirable entries, even if the constructor is Liz.

47. Hall of Fame football coach Earle "Greasy" __ : NEALE.  Escaped me. We had him before.

48. Ruhr city : ESSEN

50. William and Kate's set : TELLY

51. Water carrier : PAIL

53. Contemporary of Ella : LENA (Horne)

54. Add or delete, say : EDIT

59. Little break : NAP

60. "The Good Earth" wife : O-LAN. Loved the book. Very compassionate portrayal of the China my grandma grew up.

63. Snack in a shell : TACO

65. Favored : BLEST

66. Owner of Lone Star Beer : PABST

67. Grade sch. subject : ARITH

68. Put in prison : EMBAR

69. __ favor : POR

70. Per : APOP

71. Jazz singer Simone : NINA

72. "The X-Files" gp. : SETI

74. Storage __ : UNIT

77. Talking points? : ROSTRA. Nice clue also.

80. What a piñata gets at a kids' party : THWACKING. Cool word.

81. So far : YET

82. Popeye's "goil" Olive : OYL

83. What some build on : SPEC

85. Circus performer : AERIALIST

86. "Moses und __": Schoenberg opera : ARON. Click here. So, is Aaron spelled as Aron in German?

87. Guitar support : KNEE

89. Transportation secretary under Clinton : PENA (Federico)

91. Feline king : LION

92. Since : AS OF

94. __ Lauro: ship in 1985 news : ACHILLE. No memory of the incident at all.

95. Like so : THUSLY

99. Extra NFL periods : OTS

100. Plant shoots : SPEARS

102. Fictional town in Stephen King works : DERRY

104. Spectroscope part : PRISM

105. AC/DC's "Hell __ Bad Place to Be" : AIN'T A

106. Cleveland Indians legend Al : ROSEN. Hondo can recognize the year of this card immediately.

107. Ready for a refill : EMPTY

108. "Make it work" fashion mogul Gunn : TIM. "Make it work" is his signature catchphrase. He has a great column at "StyleWatch". 

109. Big hit : SMASH

114. Practice for a prizefight : SPAR

116. Salad cheese : FETA

117. Those, to Jorge : ESOS

119. Singing syllable : TRA

121. Morning cup : JOE

122. Lung filler : AIR

123. Word a captain likes to hear : AYE

Happy 49th wedding anniversary to Bill G and his wife Barbara! Bill, where are you doing today?

Barbara & Bill

Saturday, June 14th, 2014, Mark Bickham

Theme: None

Words: 70 (missing Q,W,X,Z )

Blocks: 36

    I usually cringe when I see Mark's name on the title of a Saturday LAT puzzle, but my first pass garnered some results, so I was encouraged and kept going.  The SW corner, however, did me in, and I had to use red-letters to find my mistake.  Oh well.  Awkward set of blocks today, left us with a stair pattern in the middle, and the SW and NE corners dangling from just two crossings.  Triple 10's and 9's, and two 10-letter climbers on the inside;

10. High-flying group : JET-SETTERS

27d. Classic spy comedy : MEN IN BLACK - Um, spy comedy?  I guess the comic book might have been more of a spy comedy, but I really love the movies with Tommy Lee Jones & Will Smith.  My personal favoritest scene below; Vincent D'Onofrio should have gotten an Oscar for playing a "bug" wearing an "Edgar suit".  Brilliant.

31d. Early invasion participant : THE STONES - Argh~!  Now I get it - British Invasion; I was thinking it was THISTINES, and was going to Google if there was even a tribe or civilization of that name; PHILIstines, yes, but.... I think I would have tied it to the next clue/answer, too

32d. Dive : HONKY-TONK - Musical interlude - and I am NOT a Stones fan, but I just learned how to play this riff on the guitar while looking for the link; it's a pain because it's open G tuning, not standard

ONWARD~!

ACROSS:

1. Screwdriver parts : VODKA AND O.J. - as a carpenter, I was curious to know if this was going to be the drink or the tool

11. __ Dea: Roman fertility goddess : BONA

15. Like John Cage's music : AVANT GARDE - Don't know John Cage, but I do know what Avant Garde means - Frawnche

16. Numerical column : ONES - tried TENS to start

17. Order with hot milk : CAFE AU LAIT - Straight up Frawnche, "coffee with milk"

18. Off-rd. rides : ATVs

19. Sour fruit : SLOE - LIME, UGLI(?)

20. Eponymous furniture designer : EAMES - Some design and creativity here

21. Cassowary cousin : RHEA

22. Frequent service station attendant? : SELF - there are a few places around here where they pump gas for me, and I actually don't care for it; I like to try for the 'perfect pump'

24. Some council members : ELDERS - WAG

26. South Pacific island nation : SAMOA - another WAG

30. Sweet and sour : TASTES - and yet a third WAG

31. Article in some modern music : THA' - I went with "TRA", and that got me started; can't say I know anything with "Tha" in the song or the group's name

34. 15-Across Irish playwright : BECKETT - the only Beckett I know is Det. Kate Beckett, from "Castle" - love that show

36. Prefix with fauna : AVI

37. Vert. opposite : HORizontal

38. Artless : NAIVE

39. Boy toy? : KEN - HAR-HAR~!!!

40. Student of Elves, in Tolkien : ENT - Three letters?  Tolkien?  Go with ORC or ENT

41. Twins, at times : SISTERS

43. Vocal stumbles : ERs....

44. View from a lodge : SKI RUN - I knew we were looking for some sort of snow reference

46. __ Adams Wilderness: Sierra Nevada region : ANSEL - educated WAG

48. Georgia-born Hall of Famer : TY COBB - the last "B" filled, and that gave it away for me

49. Shooter's ammo : PEAS

52. Emperor before Vitellius : OTHO - Short-lived reign; the Wiki

53. Pliés may precede them : LEAPS - Ballet/dance moves

58. Mountain transport : T-BAR - I tried TRAM, was 50% correct

60. Breakfast __ : NOOK

61. Write tongue twisters, perhaps : ALLITERATE - Owen, if you would, please~!

63. 1980s speed skating gold medalist Karin : ENKE - Link

64. San José resident : COSTA RICAN - took a second to parse this; the capital city of the Meso-American nation, not the city in Cali

65. Tube lineup : SKED - Tube short for television, SKED short for Schedule

66. Rustic building material : KNOTTY PINE - I dig castles and the look of stone; some wood is nice, but overdone it reminds me too much of a coffin

DOWN:

1. Short suckers? : VACs - Vacuums; I tried LOLS for lollipop first

2. Places to run : OVALS

3. "Platoon" Oscar nominee for Best Supporting Actor : DAFOE

4. Prepares for an engagement? : KNEELS

5. One-time bridge : AT A - One AT A time kind of bridge.  V-8 can, duck~!!!

6. Feverish chills : AGUE

7. "The Lion King" character : NALA

8. Nip at a bar : DRAM - A SHOT is a bit more than a 'nip', I guess

9. Dog of comics : ODIE - Garfield's drooling buddy

11. College __ : BOARDS

12. Crooked : ON THE TAKE

13. Not once : NEVER EVER

14. Ninjas, perhaps : ASSASSINS

23. Swell : FAB - I tried FAT first

25. Short muscle? : LATissimus dorsi

28. Tuberous Andean plants : OCAs - Learned from doing crosswords

29. Guard dog breed : AKITA

33. Edible thistle : ARTICHOKE - Did not know it was a "thistle"

35. Not odd : EVEN - gimme

41. Nautilus, e.g. : SUBmarine

42. Michaelmas mo. : SEP

45. Cheated : ROOKED - new to me

47. Deliver a rant : LET RIP

50. Eastern adders? : ABACI - we've seen this before; abacus pluralized, and ADD-ers

51. Black Mass idol : SATAN - I had a package yesterday for one of my UPS trucks, and its shelf No. was 6666 - I told the driver he had to go to hell to deliver it; he said he was already there....

54. North Carolina school : ELON

55. And : ALSO

56. Pennsylvania school : PITT

57. "Now!" : STAT - Dah, not ASAP

59. Peace Nobelist Cassin : RENE - filled in with Perps

62. Brew finish : ERY - BREWery - I went to the Brickhouse Brewery last night with my buddies, and then dinner at Bobbiques

Splynter

 
Note from C.C.:
 
Happy 45th wedding anniversary to dear JD and her husband Bob! I bet a big party is planned for today.

Friday, June 13, 2014, Gareth Bain

Theme: How did the ANT get in here?

A week where ants showed up all over the place, and now they are at the heart of this Friday from Gareth. I am not expert on gridding, but this grid with the five theme answers set up as here, is to me the most common layout, and we all know add a letter, or a few letters or a word is a common theme convention. It is visually very pleasing with three ANTs added to the end of the second word, 2 added to the end of the first word (one at the central row). Overall, with many 3 or 4 letter fill this did not feel like a Friday, though there were some challenges like BELLOWS,  BUGABOO,  MINIBUS, ORIGAMI, SHAKEUP. HOSANNAS and the very difficult for me EUSTACIA. Well let's see the latest from across the Atlantic.

18A. Roadside sign for sticklers? : PEDANT XING. (10). Ped Xing (pedestrian crossing brings out the Pedant who often stops by to correct us all.

30A. Lower-class bovine? : COW PEASANT. (10). Cow PEAS show how much I do not know, as I have learned all about black-eyed peas (married an Alabama girl) and field peas. Anyway, you know GB will get animals in his grids one way or another.

36A. "Tarzan" character at an Imax? : GIANT JANE.(9). The Demi Moore character gets blown up on the big screen. LINK.(1:44). If you have never been to an IMAX theater, you should go, the experience of 3D movies is great.

46A. Coat waterproofing application? : FUR SEALANT.(10). I was a bit reluctant to accept fur seal because to me all seals have fur, but as this LINK shows more of what I do not know;  he is a veterinarian and will know these things.

57A. Spiders' talent show? : WEB PAGEANT. (10). Great visual, Gareth puts a nice spin on this clue; also timely as we have begun Pageant time with the Miss USA last weekend.
And the rather difficult reveal:

56D. Classic 1954 horror film whose title creatures have invaded this puzzle : THEM. I wonder how many of you ever have seen or heard of this movie? I grew up watching these creations. In addition to big stars, James Whitmore, Edmuns Gwenn, and James Arness, pre- Gunsmoke, the movies has Fess Parker and  Leonard Nimoy and William Schallert in uncredited appearances.

Across:

1. Album with the hit "Mamma Mia" : ABBA. I like an easy 1A fill.

5. They won't last : FADS. Nice simple clue.

9. Little bits : ATOMS.

14. Combat with seconds : DUEL. I could not find any good duels on June 13, with the July 11 Burr/Hamilton duel the closest. Maybe there is a crossword puzzle theme buried in there.

15. Sashimi fish : OPAH. Unlike Sushi, Sashimi does refer to the raw fish.

16. Shinto temple gateway : TORII. Along with baseball player Hunter, we see this fill yearly.

17. Look like a wolf : OGLE. I think this one should be "as" a wolf.

20. Bar round : ALES. Yay, Tin, booze clecho. 23A. Bar staple : GIN

22. One may be restricted : AREA. Never a good idea to ignore this sign when you are in a movie. See above.

24. Blood-typing letters : ABO.

25. Priest in 1 Samuel : ELI. This is another biblical story of a barren woman who is blessed with a child (Samuel) and the role of the priest of Shiloh. Meanwhile, the name ELI mean to ascend to G-d, with the Greek equivalent HELI, from which we get helicopter etc.

28. Yacht club hanging : OAR.

29. Homer's father, on "The Simpsons" : ABE.

33. Blue stuff : SMUT. Interesting word BLUE, it can mean off-color, like smut or blue humor, or it can mean rigidly moral as in the Blue Laws of Puritan New England (and my childhood).

34. Church cheers : HOSANNAS. More religious cluing, and a very nice alliterative clue.

35. "Respect" songwriter Redding : OTIS. Really popularized by ARETHA (2:30).

39. Jazzy style : SCAT.

41. "The Return of the Native" heroine __ Vye : EUSTACIA. A book by THOMAS HARDY; the latest Martha Grimes which I am now reading is set in "Hardy" country.

45. Comparative word : THAN.

48. Macklemore's genre : RAP. You all can listen on your own.

49. Bernina Range peak : ALP. marti, tell us more. please.

50. Bojangles' art : TAP. So many great links.

51. Jeanne d'Arc, e.g.: Abbr. : STE. French for Saint.

52. Blotter letters : AKA. Also Known As. The police blotter.

53. Boxy transports : VANS.

55. Fix permanently : ETCH. I know etching is a permanent process, but fix?

61. Mata __ : HARI.

63. Lollapaloozas : LULUS.

64. Present day, for short : XMAS. A cute way to clue the holiday with some misdirection.

65. Land west of Nod, in Genesis : EDEN. Ruled no doubt by Wynken, Blynken. For crossword fans, the poem was written by Eugene Field who perhaps is most famous because his father represented Dred Scott before the Supreme Court, or maybe that is just a law school fact.

66. Tuckered out : SPENT. Such connotations....

67. Vacation sub : TEMP. Temporary employee.

68. Like a doormat : MEEK. Still waiting to inherit the earth.

Down:

1. Fuss : ADO. Along with ALEE, ASEA, APE, EDEN, ATE, ELI, AREA some very common fill used in this effort.

2. Cause of worry : BUGABOO. On the other hand this may the first appearance of this fill in the LAT.

3. Air delivery method? : BELLOWS. Am I the only one thinking about FedEx and Amazon's new drone service? You just don't see many blacksmiths any more.

4. On the quieter side : ALEE.

5. Fashion plate : FOP. Not a compliment,  the dictionary suggests it comes from the German foppen "jeer at, make a fool of." I defer to our many German experts.

6. Mimic : APE.

7. Opening word? : DADA. My first said DADA as his first word, my youngest was 'Pizza Hut'...go figure.

8. Rose of __ : SHARON. A nice CSO to our dear ARBAON. Another biblical reference in the puzzle from the Song of Solomon. The flower is actually an Hibiscus, which are common in So.Fla. Paired with a mini-clecho 9. Rose oil : ATTAR, which I know only from puzzle solving.

10. __ screen: medical test : TOX. Same derivation as inTOXicants and TOXic.

11. Art requiring a folder : ORIGAMI. Oh, one who folds...

12. Airport transport : MINIBUS.

13. Ring seal : SIGNET. Signet rings are not too popular anymore, and I thought the clue would make more sense as Seal ring, but it was still obvious.

19. Unlike Oscar Madison : NEAT. Are you Walter Matthau or Jack Klugman fans?

21. "Already caught that film!" : SEEN IT. Another English teacher's nightmare.

24. Weimar word of woe : ACH. I again defer to our German speakers, I recall there was some controversy.

26. Turner on a screen : LANA. Beautiful girl....

27. "Winning ... __ all-the-time thing": Lombardi : IS AN.Vince of Packer fame

31. Missionary's concern : PAGAN.This clue seems off as well, as Pagan rites, or beliefs might be a concern.

32. Starlike flower : ASTER.

33. Bargain : STEAL. Man, Jimmy Choo's for $500.00. What a steal!

35. Recorded, in a way : ON TAPE. An old way.

37. A moment ago : JUST. We just had that fill...

38. Like Phileas Fogg during much of his journey : ASEA.

39. Overhaul : SHAKE UP. I liked what this SONG (2:47) did.

40. Fit : CAPABLE.

42. Dishwasher brand : CASCADE. I wonder if Gareth gets a placement fee from them. Hmm, maybe we could start a new trend here to get constructors more money for their efforts.

43. Trisected : IN THREE. Often what happens to a pizza at my house.

44. Bolted : ATE. See more food.

45. Fishes, in a way : TRAWLS. I always associate this word with single people...

46. A ref may throw one : FLAG.

47. "Right after this show ..." : UP NEXT.

49. Captain's order : AVAST. A much misunderstood term. So I asked a GEEK.

54. "__ here" : SAME.

58. Many a bon mot : PUN. Where would we be without PUNS! How wonderful for John Lampkin to stop by and say hello.

59. '60s arena : NAM. Abbreviated clue begets abbreviated answer.

60. 1/48 cup: Abbr. : TSP. How many knew that there were 48 TSP in a cup of sugar?

62. Cartridge contents : INK. Well, my brain is running out of INK, so I guess it is time to say, do not be afraid, Friday the 13th is just another Friday of a great week where we had a puzzle from an old friend Jerome, one from our own discovery C.C. and Don G.. George Barany, John Lampkin and Mary Lou Guizzo stopping by and now finishing with GB. Happy Father's Day to all of us.