Tuesday, July 8, 2014 Gail Grabowski and Bruce Venzke

Theme: y'all - Dixie diversion.

20A. Conflicting goals : CROSS PURPOSES. Southern Cross Song(4:49)

35A. "Bandit Queen" of the Wild West : BELLE STARR. Southern Belle (Our own)

41A. Best Western rival : COMFORT INN. Southern Comfort. CSO Tinbeni

59A. Like dishes with collard greens, and a hint to the starts of 20-, 35- and 41-Across : SOUTHERN STYLE

Argyle here, doing the best I can for a Northerner. Another interesting theme without some of the little nits from Monday. Some entries may be considered a bit stiff for a Tuesday but doable.

Across:

1. Barracks array : BEDS. Hands up for COTS.

5. Highlights segment : RECAP

10. Civil rights icon Parks : ROSA

14. Shepard who walked on the moon : ALAN

15. Get away from : EVADE

16. North Carolina university : ELON

17. Pitchfork point : TINE

18. 1995 Reform Party founder : PEROT. Ross

19. Charging result : DEBT

23. Odin, for one : DEITY. Odin is the major Norse god. Plus 55D. Odin's race : AESIR. The gods under the leadership of Odin in Asgard.

25. Plains native : OTOE

26. __-tip: beef cut : TRI. To go with the mess of collard greens?

27. Dessert table vessel : URN. After-dinner coffee.

28. Disney's "__ & Stitch" : LILO

31. Blender option : PURÉE

33. Sacks : BAGS. The literal, not the figurative sack.

38. Latin 101 verb : AMAS

40. Diva's number : ARIA

45. "Love It or List It" cable channel : HGTV. (initials for Home & Garden Television)

49. Martian, e.g. : ALIEN

50. Not as : LESS

52. Once-sacred snake : ASP

53. Countdown starter : TEN

54. Follow, or the one doing the following : TAIL

57. Tamale wrappers : HUSKS

63. __ dixit: unfounded assertion : IPSE. Latin for "He, himself, said it".

64. Look after : SEE TO

65. Hairdo : COIF

68. Prehistoric predator, for short : T-REX

69. Map in a map : INSET

70. New coin of 2002 : EURO

71. Part of CNS: Abbr. : SYST. (central nervous system)(not a TV channel)

72. Kicks back : RESTS

73. Initials on invitations : RSVP

Down:

1. Cavern critter : BAT. Great alliteration.

2. Manning of the Giants : ELI

3. Martha Graham forte : DANCING

4. Helmet-sporting comics hound : SNERT. Hägar the Horrible's dog.

5. Weightlifter's count : REPs

6. Pre-holiday times : EVES

7. Arrangement among commuters : CARPOOL

8. Score after deuce : AD OUT. (or ad in, depending)

9. Prefix with chemical : PETRO

10. Update, as the bathroom : REDO

11. Fake fat : OLESTRA. Beware the side affects.

12. Less tipsy : SOBERER

13. More prone to fidgeting : ANTSIER

21. Spindly Olive : OYL. Popeye's 'goyl'.

22. Cola choice : PEPSI

23. Name : DUB

24. Period sometimes named for a statesman : ERA

29. Support beam : I-BAR

30. "__ we forget" : LEST

32. Zion National Park state : UTAH

34. Out of danger : SAFE

36. Roped-off pool part : LANE

37. Coastal divers : ERNs

39. One of a dozen : MONTH

41. Watches a pet : CAT-SITS

42. Grand Tennessee entertainment : OLE OPRY

43. Negative aspects : MINUSes

44. Malady : ILLNESS

46. Like neon or nitrogen : GASEOUS

47. "That's a no-no" : "TSK!"

48. Nixon and Ford, once: Abbr. : VPs. (vice-president)

51. Timid : SHY

56. "I'll see you in my dreams" girl of song : IRENE

58. Stomach woe : ULCER

60. Book bag book : TEXT

61. Editor's "leave it in" : STET

62. Preschoolers : TOTS

66. Sportscaster Cross : IRV. Former NFL cornerback, he became the first African-American to work full-time as a sports analyst on national television.(CBS)

67. One dressing to be noticed : FOP. A real dandy.

Argyle

Note from C.C.:

Let's meet Anon-T,  another serious foodie! He went to Egypt last February for a computer project (He actually posted a few comments while frolicking there). As you have glimpsed from his remarks on the blog, Anon-T is a totally devoted family man. He solves LA Times with his mother-in-law at times.

Anon T, Giza, Feb 2014

Monday, July 7, 2014 Jerry Edelstein

Theme: Songs in the key of ME

1A. With 66-Across, 1967 Petula Clark hit, and a hint to the three longest puzzle answers : "THIS IS...

23A. 1927 soft-shoe classic : "ME AND MY SHADOW"

35A. 1971 Janis Joplin chart-topper : "ME AND BOBBY MCGEE"

47A. 1972 Billy Paul #1 hit : "ME AND MRS. JONES"

66A. See 1-Across : ...MY SONG"

Argyle here. Well, it was tough listening to all these songs but I did it for our blog's sake. ;~)

Across:

7. Address book no. : TEL.

10. Bal. sheet expert : CPA

13. Lure : SEDUCE

14. Gas station machine : PUMP

15. Amtrak and B&O, e.g. : RRs

16. Readied for new paint : PRIMED

17. Thing left out : OMISSION

19. __ Paulo, Brazil : SAO

 

20. Web surfing devices : MODEMS

22. Baseball's Rose : PETE

26. Body sci. : ANAT. (anatomy)

27. Charlotte and Norma : RAEs. A character actress and a character.

28. Swear to be true : AVER

31. Singer Ives : BURL. Almost made the cut. For Me And My Gal(2:26)

32. Suitable : APT

40. __ diem : PER. (for each day)

41. Morning brew : JAVA

42. Excellent : A ONE

43. "Pretty Woman" co-star Richard : GERE

44. Med. plan options : PPOs. (preferred provider organization)

52. "The Thin Man" dog : ASTA

53. Andre of tennis : AGASSI

54. Fall back, as a tide : EBB

57. On the floor above : UPSTAIRS

59. Johannesburg section : SOWETO. A bit easier cluing, especially if you remembered it from Saturday.

61. Coloring agent : DYE

62. Pledges exchanged at the altar : "I DO"s

63. "I'm a __, not a divider": Bush : UNITER. Dubya, based on a Texas pronunciation of "W".

64. Spanish "that" : ESA. (feminine)

65. Guidance counselor's deg. : MSW. (Master of Social Work)

Down:

1. Recipe amts. : TSPs

2. Wife of Zeus : HERA

3. "Pound the pavement" or "break the ice" : IDIOM

4. Addition result : SUM

5. O'Neill's "The __ Cometh" : ICEMAN

6. "Red Rocks" resort near Flagstaff : SEDONA. A little confusion here; mixed up with Red Rocks Amphitheater, Colorado. Probably should have been just "Red Rock resort area".

7. Upside-down puppy's massage : TUMMY RUB. OK, let's see your favorite tummy rub video.

8. Diplomatic representative : EMISSARY

9. Hi-fi spinners : LPs. (Long Play) and 36D. Spun 9-Down at a party, say : DJed

10. Sobbed : CRIED

11. Prefix with plasm : PROTO. Famous scene in "Ghost Busters".

12. Good __: fixed : AS NEW

14. Ode, for one : POEM

18. Health resorts : SPAs

21. Banned bug killer : DDT. (dichloro-diphenyl-trichloroethane)(Don't ask again)

24. Make, as money : EARN

25. Ship's wheel : HELM

28. Current unit : AMP

29. Gesture from a winner : VEE

30. Corn serving : EAR

31. Finance major's deg. : BBA. (Bachelor of Business Administration)(If you remembered it from Wednesday, June 25.)

32. In times past : AGO

33. Calligraphy tool : PEN

34. Golf ball raiser : TEE

37. Some tavern workers : BARMAIDS

38. Crowd with foliage : OVERGROW

39. 24 cans of beer, e.g. : CASE

43. Annoying bug : GNAT

44. Nightwear, briefly : PJs

45. Death-feigning critter : POSSUM

46. Like some dips : ONIONY

47. Bea Arthur title role : "MAUDE". "...and then there's Maude."

48. Cable sports awards : ESPYs. (short for Excellence in Sports Performance Yearly Award)(if you remember it from Monday, June 9.)

49. On a freighter : AT SEA

50. Smart-alecky talk : SASS

51. Deal with : SEE TO

55. Bingo call : B TEN

56. Bjorn with five Wimbledon wins : BORG

58. Goal : AIM

60. Green Bay's st. : WIS. (Wisconsin) One for the road. Everybody sing!

Argyle

Sunday July 6, 2014 Frank Virzi

Theme:  "ET Trading" - E is changed into T in each theme entry.

23A. Pair of pooches' synchronized dash? : DOUBLE DOG DART. Double dog dare is a new expression to me.

34A. Boss' personal brewing ingredient? : ALPHA MALT. Alpha male.

50A. Blast off? : START INTO SPACE. Stare into space.

66A. "We're boarding the elevator now, chaps!" : GOT TO GET YOU INTO MY LIFT.

 Got to Get You into My Life

87A. Natural source of a Massachusetts dairy product? : BOSTON CREAM PIT. Boston cream pie.

99A. Result of washing political dirty laundry? : PARTY LINT. Party line.

118A. Course that covers crop circles? : PLANT GEOMETRY. Plane geometry.

Did you grok the gimmick immediately? The puzzle title is quite literal.

I think this is Frank Virzi's first Sunday. Congratulations! The grid has 93 theme squares, but only 138 words & 66 black squares. More often our Sunday grids have 142 or 144 words. Every extra word/black squar is a luxury on Sundays.

Across:

1. Final approvals : SAY-SOS

7. Had to repay for : OWED ON

13. Come into : INHERIT. This is similar to my mom's wedding chest. Hers had pretty bed sheets and quilts she and her mom made.

20. Total : AMOUNT

21. Bread for burritos? : DINERO. Clever clue.

22. Break, as laws : VIOLATE

25. Lee of poetry : ANNABEL. Poe's Annabel Lee.

26. Altar boy : ACOLYTE

27. Broke the tape : WON

28. Language of southern China : CANTONESE. Spoken in Guangdong province & Hong Kong & Macau area.

30. Vegas tip : TOKE

31. Angle iron : L-BAR

33. Cold response : SHIVER. What's your room temperature in the summer? Ours is 74.

38. Malachite and magnetite : MINERALS

43. Shoves off : SETS SAIL

46. "Swans Reflecting Elephants" artist : DALI

48. Dredge, say : DEEPEN

49. Guiding principles : CREEDS

54. Super Bowl XXXIV champs : RAMS. Wish they would stop using Roman numerals.

55. "With a Little Help From My Friends" singer : STARR (Ringo)

57. Utah lily : SEGO

58. Rock follower? : ETTE. Rockette.

59. Molecule that carries energy: Abbr. : ATP (Adenosine triphosphate). Total stranger to me.

60. "Go, team!" : RAH

61. Not to mention : AND

63. Cub Scout leader : AKELA

74. One-celled critter : AMEBA. Amoeba is more common.

75. Rock producer Brian : ENO

76. Temperamental TV pooch : REN Ren and Stimpy.

77. Water, chemically : HOH

78. Old orchard spray : ALAR

81. Gp. led by a Grand Exalted Ruler : BPOE. Gimme for Abejo.

84. Part of a flight : STAIR

86. Scared, maybe : PALE

91. Cry of triumph : I DID IT!

93. Yogurt flavor : BANANA

94. Dutch astronomer who lent his name to a cloud : OORT. Gimme!

95. South American border lake : TITICACA. Peru/Bolivia border lake.

97. Valentine figure : AMORETTO. The plural is Amoretti.

102. They're stuck in corners : STAMPS. I like this clue also.

104. Flying A rival : ESSO. Never saw a Flying A sign.

105. "Breaking __ Hard to Do" : UP IS

109. "0 calories. 0 carbs" drink : DIET PEPSI. They have big presence in China.

113. Prompt : CUE

114. Tramp : VAGRANT

117. Trap : ENSNARE

121. More puffed up : PROUDER

122. Way out : EGRESS

123. Harvey of "The Piano" : KEITEL. With Holly Hunter. I liked the movie.

124. Joan Fontaine and Olivia de Havilland, e.g. : SISTERS

125. Exodus challenge : RED SEA

126. Eventually : IN TIME

Down:

1. 1978 Peace co-Nobelist : SADAT. Still waiting for el-Sisi.

2. Big name in gas : AMOCO

3. Concerned query : YOU OK?

4. Some rental agreements : SUB-LEASES

5. Just : ONLY

6. "Let it be" : STET

7. Prefix with meter : ODO

8. Nipmuc home : WIGWAM. Never heard of Nipmuc. Looks so crude.

9. "Bewitched" witch : ENDORA

10. Faculty boss : DEAN

11. There's a statue of him outside TD Garden : ORR. 

12. V-shaped slit : NOTCH

13. Russian infant emperor, 1740-'41 : IVAN VI. Here is what Wiki says: "... although he never actually reigned. Within less than a year, he was overthrown by the Empress Elizabeth of Russia, Peter I's daughter. Ivan spent the rest of his life as a prisoner and was killed by his guards during an attempt made to free him."

14. Video game giant : NINTENDO

15. They may be roasted : HONOREES

16. Panache : ELAN

17. Broccoli __ : RABE. Not sure our local Cub carries this veggie. Very soon I'm going to enjoy the local water spinach the Hmong farmers here grow.

18. Ending for residents : ITEs. Like Brooklynites.

19. TV segment? : TELE

24. Yamuna River city : DELHI

29. Drawing a bead on : AIMING AT

32. Light wood : BALSA

33. ESPN figures : STATS

35. Dr. Leary's turn-on : LSD

36. Bible reading : PASSAGE

37. CEO, e.g. : LDR (Leader)

39. Formally end : REPEAL

40. Give __ on the back : A PAT

41. Univ. staff title : LECT. Oh, lecturer.

42. Bygone blade : SNEE

43. One who's all skin and bones : SCRAG

44. Pindar's Muse : ERATO

45. Tantalize : TEMPT

47. One in a pack? : LIE. Excellent clue also.

51. Cafeteria carrier : TRAY

52. River of Florence : ARNO

53. Michener's "The Bridges at __" : TOKO-RI. Also unknown to me. I probably should see it just for Grace Kelly. I love her in To Catch a Thief.

56. English channel : THE BBC

60. CD-__ : ROM

62. Bill word : DUE

64. Some retired faculty : EMERITI

65. Reagan adviser Nofziger : LYN. Another unknown. I'm pretty hopeless when it comes to pre-2001 US politics.

67. Sauce with sole : TARTAR

68. Brew servers : TAP ROOMS

69. Dirty Harry's rank: Abbr. : INSP

70. "Don't look at me!" : NOT I

71. "If __ Hammer" : I HAD A

72. Type of acid found in Brussels sprouts : FOLIC. Hard to make Brussels sprouts tasty.

73. Letter after eta : THETA

78. "SOS" singers : ABBA

79. Good earth : LOAM

80. "It will come __ surprise ..." : AS NO

82. War on Poverty org. : OEO. OK, Office of Economic Opportunity. LBJ.

83. O.K. Corral brothers : EARPS

85. Justice Dept. staffers : ATTYS

86. "Just think" : PICTURE IT

88. Bridge opening : ONE SPADE. Same letter count as ONE HEART.

89. One going on and on : NATTERER

90. L.A. bus-and-rail org. : MTA

92. Cacophony : DIN

96. "__ a Rainy Night": 1981 chart-topper : I LOVE

98. Slim candles : TAPERS

100. Catches up with old classmates : REUNES. Only in crosswords.

101. African insect attracted to the color blue : TSETSE

103. Pepper picker : PIPER

106. Page of music : PATTI

107. Against a thing, to a judge : IN REM

108. Panache : STYLE

109. ATM transactions : DEPS (Deposits)

110. Cross inscription : INRI

111. Those caballeros : ESOS.  Caballeros  sound like hot peppers.

112. Hardware item : T-NUT

113. Pick in a trick : CARD

115. Golfer Isao : AOKI. Don't google. Guess how tall he is.

116. FBI agents : G-MEN

119. Soft drink ord. : LGE

120. Govt. property org. : GSA (General Services Administration)

C.C.

Saturday, Jul 5th, 2014, Melanie Miller

Theme: None

Words: 68 (missing B,F,J,Q,X,Y,Z)

Blocks: 25

   We have us a new Saturday constructor~!  Melanie has had 5 LAT puzzles, with the last one coming in Feb on a Monday.  Today's offering had some similar clues/answers to that grid, I noticed.  Chunky corners of 9's and 8's, with two 11-letter fills on the inside.  Fairly difficult for a Saturday, IMHO, but I was able to solve without any look-ups or cheating, and only the SW corner requiring some WAGs to complete.  The two longer answers:

20a. Ranks achieved by Armstrong and Lovell : EAGLE SCOUTS - Two astronauts who reached the highest 'rank' in the Boy Scouts - Wiki

53a. Events after shootings : WRAP PARTIES - Melanie's last puzzle was a "party" theme, and this in not the violent kind of shooting, but the movie set type - I worked on a made-for-TV film way back in '97, and we had us a Wrap Party the following summer with a preview of the finished show.

"OM" ward~! (working my 60a.)

ACROSS:

1. Harassed, in a way : HEN-PECKED

10. Lenox brand : DANSK - their enameled steel cookware looks familar

15. Busy state to go into : OVERDRIVE

16. Boiling : IRATE

17. Made for the tube : TELEGENIC

18. Decalogue delivery site : SINAI

19. They may hook you up, briefly : RNs - Hook you up to IVs, tho I have seen certain movies....

22. Los __, city near San Luis Obispo : OSOS

24. Greenland capital : KRONE - this being the money kind of capital, not the city

25. Flanged bit of hardware : T-NUT

26. Powder holder : DONUT - Cute

28. Added a little to the pot : ANTED

30. Took in takeout : ATE - Nice clue alliteration

31. First lady after Bess : MAMIE - Truman and Eisenhower

33. Kind : MANNER

35. Kind of support : SPOUSAL

38. "Tritsch-Tratsch-Polka" composer : STRAUSS

39. "The Fox and the Hound" hound : COPPER - What does the fox say?

40. Stops running? : CLOTS - Ah, like wounds

41. Beluga output : ROE

42. Arabian capital : SANA'A - Yemen

44. "__ luego" : HASTA

48. Bald eagle cousins : ERNS

50. Settles : CALMS

52. Start of many a prayer : LORD

56. Crib cry : WAH - Two cries, and it's a guitar effects pedal....

57. Gugino of "Night at the Museum" : CARLA - a WAG with the --RL- in place

58. Exterminator's target : CENTIPEDE - among other creepy-crawlies; 'round here, it's ants, crickets and lately, wasps

60. Hindu principle of life : ĀTMAN - this was a WAG for me, too

61. "The Raven" feature : OCTAMETER

62. Pains : PESTS

63. Pump house? : SHOE STORE - Nailed it; I love women in platform pumps - so sexy - and if they zip up at the back....ha-muna ha-muna

DOWN:

1. Zoom : HOT-ROD - the verb, not the noun

2. Yet : EVEN SO

3. Hold on a mat : NELSON - Educated WAG

4. Start to date? : PRE - predate, as in 'comes before'

5. It's uncomfortable to be on it : EDGE

6. Sign of age : CREAK - I had CRACK to start, pretty close; that's 80% right

7. Large, long-billed marsh bird : KING RAIL

8. Satan : EVIL ONE - because MIROSLAV was too long; shoulda played for the NJ Devils....

9. Respectable : DECENT - Are you dressed?

10. Round snow toy : DISC - I had a wood and metal sled as a kid

11. "That's __!": "Funny!" : A RIOT

12. Otherworldly greeting? : NANU-NANU - Mork from Ork's greeting

13. Former bills : STATUTES

14. Bums' American counterparts : KEISTERS - anyone else see this as "B-u-r-n-s" first?  Once I had the K----STER, I figured out my eyes were getting a bit wacky

21. Look that way : SEEM TO

23. Recap : SUM UP

27. Stuns in an arrest : TASEs

29. Sith title : DARTH - Star Wars reference, which I won't miss~! Vader, Maul, and others

32. Rumba shaker : MARACA - shaking like your keister

34. Cavity opening? : NASAL

35. Cork alternative : SCREW-CAP - DAH~! I wanted TWIST-CAP, but I knew ROE was correct

36. Elizabethan property tax to benefit the disadvantaged : POOR RATE - the "T" was my last fill

37. Title words before "Nothing to hide," in a Journey hit : OPEN ARMS - Link away~!

38. Collide with : SLAM INTO

40. MIT rival, despite the distance : CALTECH

43. Some agents : NARCOs

45. Site of a 1976 anti-apartheid uprising : SOWETO - Part of Johannesburg, South Africa

46. Broker's customer : TRADER

47. Hold tight : ADHERE

49. Fall sound : "SPLAT~!"

51. Spiders' sensors, e.g. : SETAE - Latin for bristle, it's the hairs on a spider's legs, e.g.

54. Sweeps the set : PANS - another movie-making term

55. Virtual people, in a popular game series : SIMs - I love Sim City, but couldn't get into the virtual reality of the individual people version of the game (but I do have it).  Here's the crop circles that UFOs left on my farm in my last Sim City game

59. Ferret, for one : PET - My roomie in Cincinnati, OH had one - they bite...literally

Splynter

Friday July 4, 2014 Jeffrey Wechsler

Theme: A Fourth of July tribute to America and to Ralph Ellison and the Invisible (American) Man

Oh, Jeffrey Wechsler, what did you do to me? When a puzzle begins with 1A as part of the theme you know you are going to have to work for your supper. Confidently putting in AMERICAN (the airline of the Admirals Club) and then ATL as 1D and MAD as 2D, I got slapped in the face with 3D which had to be RET(ired). Scuttling along like a beetle, I went to the next starred clue and knew Centurion was one of many AmEx cards, which gave me the theme; revived, I went back and fixed the beginning and had a mostly smooth solve. I loved the theme for this holiday with AMERICAN the unsaid beginning to each starred answer. The thought of the invisible American in each answer brought me to Mr. Ellison. Without any politics or religion subplot, there are so many reasons I am proud to be an American and proud to blog this fun work from JW.  A few unknowns and some  distant memories, but it all filled. Aside from the 9 short theme fill (if you see asterisks you know there are fill longer than the designated theme fill in the grid) there are some crunchy, yummy fill. INGENUE, PUMMELS, SNEERED,  TIEPOLO, UNTAMED, BIO-DOME, LET ME TRY, LUTENIST, TREE BARK all are great. Of course to get this many interesting things in the fill, you are going to need some short fill and JW goes the acronym route, I hope that does not make you acrimonious. So let's get to the fireworks.

1A. *Admirals Club carrier : AIRLINES. (8). American Airlines.

9A. *Rose variety : BEAUTY. (6). American Beauty.

29A. *Centurion card issuer : EXPRESS. (7). American Express. Worked for them for a while.

37A. *Entertainment phenomenon since 2002 : IDOL. (4). American Idol.

38A. *TV show that had a 50th anniversary celebration in 2002 : BANDSTAND. (9). American Bandstand.

41A. *Line of 18-inch dolls : GIRL. (4). American Girl.  This was 4 letters but the one I needed the most help on.

51A. *PBS cultural documentary series : MASTERS. (7). American Masters. I do appreciate PBS.

70A. *Armed forces support group : LEGION. (6). American Legion. Very important in New England where I grew up.

and the reveal

71A. Apt adjective for today that's needed to make sense of eight puzzle answers : AMERICAN. (8).

Across:

15. Cork, essentially : TREE BARK. I bet you did not know all of THIS.

16. "Right away, boss!" : I'M ON IT. An interesting vowel consonant progression, with its partner...

17. "I'd like a shot" : LET ME TRY.

18. Like some windshields : TINTED.

19. Condescends : STOOPS. These are not synonymous for me at all. How could you STOOP so low, does not equate to he CONDESCENDED to speak to the crowd. IMO.

21. __ tide : NEAP.

22. Toot : JAG. A bender.

25. River in Hades : LETHE. For Greek scholars, I guess I forgot about this ONE, not as famous as STYX. (4:28).

27. Stylish '60s Londoner : MOD. The mods and the rockers ruled my teen age years.

33. Beats badly : PUMMELS. Not to be confused with Pommel.

35. Know : BE SURE. My mind went here....

36. Kitchen spray : PAM. Did you this is  an acronym for Product of Arthur Meyerhoff?

44. Word with job or laborer : DAY.

45. Bahamian capital : NASSAU. A real gimme for us here in So.Fla.

49. Showed contempt : SNEERED.

52. Turkish honorific : AGA. Not a British cook stove.

53. Speak : ORATE. Not related to O Ration the favorite food for Orangutans.

55. Woven thing : WEB. Tangled usually...

56. Wax-wrapped import : EDAM. Cheesy. Sub theme? 50D. Parmesan alternative : ROMANO. I get them together.

58. Wiser partner? : SADDER. There are many things we all learn the hard way.

62. The NFL's "Golden Arm" : UNITAS. Loved those high tops.

64. Closed ecosystems : BIODOMES.

68. They're likely to be edited : RUN-ONS.

69. Renaissance musician : LUTENIST. New word for me. Just don't see that many Lutes outside of GOT.

Down:

1. N.L. East team : ATLanta Braves.  Are they and Cleveland next after the Washington Redskins?

2. Choler : IRE.

3. Like Gen. Powell : RETired.

4. NASA moon landers : LEMS. An unintentional SO to this blogger, and a reference to a junked name for the Lunar Excursion Module which is apparently now just LM.

5. "That's doubtful" : I BET. She asked you out?

6. Intl. alliance since 1949 : NATO. North Atlantic Treaty Organization. Acronym time. part II ( I do not count PAM as so few know this is an acronym).

7. Director Morris et al. : ERROLS. Flynn is too easy but is this one too HARD?

8. Video chat choice : SKYPE. Great tool for overseas business. Not an acronym, not a portmanteau, but close.

9. Small amount : BIT.

10. "8 Mile" star : EMINEM. Marshall Bruce Mathers, III is among the top ten in career album sales. He is an twisted acronym.

11. Top-notch : A-ONE. Do you like their steak sauce?

12. Wild : UNTAMED.

13. 18th-century Venetian painter : TIEPOLO. Just as Erroll Morris is arguably the greatest documentary director, this prolific PAINTER may be the best of his time, but is also not a household name.

14. Until now, to CPAs : YTD. Year To Date.

20. Mar. honoree : ST. PATrick.

22. Son and brother of George : JEB. Clearly Bush league cluing here. John Ellis Bush.

23. Tool for fellers? : AXE. More SSO here.

24. Tracking aid: Abbr. : GPS. Global Positioning System.

26. Wellpoint competitor : HUMANA. Health care giants.

28. Broadband letters : DSL. Digital Subscriber Line. Beginning to see red? 48D. PC port : USB. Universal Serial Bus. 62D. High-tech address : URL. Uniform Resource Locator.

30. Belarus currency : RUBLE. A lucky guess.

31. Historical period : ERA.

32. Shipping worker : SENDER.

34. Core : MIDST.

36. Korean musician with the hit "Gangnam Style" : PSY. 15 minutes over? Do you want a Link?

39. Certain parents, to their tots : DADAS.

40. __ in November : N AS.

41. Fed. procurement agency : GSA. General Services Administration.

42. Vamp opposite : INGENUE. Ah, all the poor ingenues who flocked to Hollywood.

43. Grade school focus : READING. 'Riting and 'Rithmatic.

46. Darn, say : SEW. Socks, not curses.

47. "There you __!" : ARE. Yes I am right here.

51. Pizza order : MEDIUM. Not in my house.

54. Drum with a sitar : TABLA. A total learning experience. Join and READ.

57. Yours, in Tours : A TOI.

59. Lavish attention : DOTE.

60. Linda of Broadway's "Jekyll & Hyde" : EDER.

61. Rice-A-__ : RONI. Still a San Francisco treat.

63. Federal ID : SSN. Social Security Number.

65. Karaoke need, briefly : MICrophone. Not always are you told it is an abbreviation.

66. That: Sp. : ESA.

67. Where many stand and wait: Abbr. : STN. Station. A little POETRY dear to me to end the day. MILTON.

A Happy Fourth of July to all of you, happy birthday America and many more; 238 candles! and thank you JW for another challenge which both suits the day but also shows the diversity of clues and life.  Lemonade out.

Thursday, July 3, 2014 Greg Johnson

Theme: Going Postal

Let's begin with the reveal:

36-A. What the answers to starred clues are comprised of : US POSTAL CODES.

The 2-letter postal codes of states are formed into common words and phrases. There are duplicates, but without looking at a map, do you know which ones are missing? (I immediately saw one glaring omission…)

14-A. *Approach : CO/ME NE/AR.  Colorado, Maine, Nebraska, Arkansas

16-A. *Overly ornate : FL/OR/ID. Florida, Oregon, Idaho

24-A. *Messing with one's head : MI/ND GA/ME. Michigan, North Dakota, Georgia, Maine

49-A. *Tom Wolfe coinage for the 1970s : ME DE/CA/DE. Maine, Delaware, California, Delaware

62-A. *Drink of the gods : NE/CT/AR. Nebraska, Connecticut, Arkansas

63-A. *Simple forecasting aid : WI/ND VA/NE. Wisconsin, North Dakota, Virginia, Nebraska

5-D. *Sell weaponry : DE/AL AR/MS. Delaware, Alabama, Arkansas, Mississippi

39-D. *Appalachian resource : CO/AL MI/NE. Colorado, Alabama, Michigan, Nebraska.

I don't think I would have guessed this theme in a million years without the reveal!  But at least I was able to fill the entire thing in without any lookups. From a constructor's viewpoint, this was an especially difficult type of theme to create. Competing 6- and 8-letter entries necessitated asterisks to differentiate the theme entries.

I can understand why TX was omitted...but here's a challenge: Find your state that was omitted, and come up with a valid word or phrase that includes it, along with at least two other postal codes. (***See spoiler at bottom of this post)

Across:

1. Just the right amount of tight : SNUG. (See 61-down)

5. Hip-hop's Run-__ : DMC. From the 80's. Never heard of them, but evidently they were very influential to the genre.

8. Significant : OF NOTE.

17. Beef at the dinner table : RIB ROAST. and 34-Across. Butcher's offering : T-BONE. Are you getting hungry yet?

18. Provoke : FOMENT.

19. Sports drink suffix : ADE.

20. Healing aid, briefly : TLC. Tender loving care.

21. Some August babies : LEOs.

22. Cyrus the Great's domain : PERSIA. Here is an interesting timeline map that goes from 8000 B.C. to modern Iran. 1:10

28. Right in an atlas : EAST.

29. Author Dahl : ROALD. We have had him many times before.

31. Cease, with "off" : LAY.

32. High-tech debut of 1981 : IBM PC.

40. Dressing vessel : CRUET.

41. "Oh, yeah!" : BOO-YA.

42. Minor concern, maybe : AGE. HaHa, "minor" in this case being one who is under-aged.

43. In a way, informally : SORTA.

45. Cries of pain : YOWS.

52. "60 Minutes" first name : LESLEY. Stahl. I like her style.

Lesley Stahl

54. Choice usually made secretly : VOTE.

55. Minute measures: Abbr. : CMs. Centimeters.

56. Rehab concern, familiarly : DTs.

57. Like old videos : GRAINY.

60. Zealous to the extreme : WHITE HOT.

64. Eucharist plates : PATENS.

65. Suffix for Brooklyn or Manhattan : -ITE.

66. "Lemme __!" : AT 'EM.


Down

1. Tough spot : SCRAPE.

2. "I'm stumped" : NO IDEA.

3. Earthy colors : UMBERS. Had to look at perps to decide between ochres and UMBERS.

4. Angela Merkel's country: Abbr. : GER.many. This was a gimme.

6. Like the days of the week, in Span. : MASC.uline. WAG. I know very little Spanish, but with four letters, I guessed it would not be "fem." But now that I think of it, I could have gone with "neut."

7. Old PC component : CRT. Cathode Ray Tube.

8. Transgress : OFFEND.

9. __ insurance : FLOOD.

10. Asian menu assurance : NO MSG.

11. Gold or silver source : ORE.

12. Pie holder : TIN. My pies are baked in a pie plate. I associate a pie TIN with frozen ones.

13. D.C. summer setting : EDT.

15. "The Little Red Hen" denial : NOT I.

21. Short, for short : LI'L.

23. Michael of R.E.M. : STIPE. Should I link? Not a fan, so I'll let someone else who likes them pick their own.

24. Gruesome : MACABRE.

25. Hand lotion ingredient : ALOE.

26. __ best friend : MAN'S.

27. Major TV logo : EYE.

Eye logo

30. Go (for) : OPT.

33. AI game competitor : BOT. Artificial Intelligence. BOTs are considered NPCs (non-player characters.)

34. Play (with) : TOY.

35. Annual celebrations, casually : B-DAYS. Does C.C. know yours? Send her a note - she remembers everything!

36. Impulse : URGE.

37. Took to court : SUED.

38. Housing plan unit : LOT.

40. Rotating piece : CAM.

43. Half-goat creatures of myth : SATYRS.

44. Lines of praise : ODE.

I would write a nice ODE to our Owen,

Perhaps pen a Pindaric type poem.

But alas I cannot.

A limerick’s all I got.

And, besides, I have to get goin’!

46. Dated : OLD HAT.

47. Sloppy kiss : WET ONE. Garfield just really doesn't appreciate them.

48. Nervous __ : SYSTEM.

50. Cybernotice for a party : E-VITE.

51. Late-night host O'Brien : CONAN.

53. Business sign abbr. : EST'D. Established.

55. IOU : CHIT.

57. Econ. yardstick : GNP.

58. "In Dreams" actor Stephen : REA. Did not remember this guy.

59. Fake being : ACT.

60. Doughboy's conflict, briefly : WWI.

61. Actress Mendes : EVA.

I laughed when I read this quote from her:
"I wanted to be a nun when I was very little. Well, that was until my sister told me that they don't get paid. Then I went off that idea quickly."
(Aren't you fellows glad that nuns don't get paid?)

***My missing state was MA.  So, my word was DE/MA/ND.

That about wraps it up for me this week!
Marti

Wednesday, July 2nd 2014 Tracy Bennett

Theme: I yam what I yam! Popeye's fans sign on to Twitter.

Hola all! Steve here - I'm in Mexico for a week, and this time it's vacation, not business, so I can really focus on the World Cup! Olé Olé Olé! Great effort by the USA. Let's look forward to Russia in 2018!

OK, fan-fest over. let's focus on Tracy's puzzle for today. I think it's her LAT debut, but a rummage around the interwebs will reveal she's been concentrating on "themeless" offerings for the Washington Post and the NYT. She might rethink her focus. This theme I  loved. It's a challenge sometimes to come up with a title in the blog for such a great idea, and I'm sure I'm a country mile away from the best offering. So let's move on to the expo instead. Here we have first-name nicknames applied to an occupation, all of which produce .... umm .. things in themselves. Yep, I can't even elegantly describe such an elegant idea! So let's get into the details ...

21A. Apt username for John, the labor organizer? : UNION JACK. The British flag, and John, who became Jack. All my explanations for the evolution of the nicknames are credited. They're certainly not mine! John = Jack

One of the most famous bearers of this name, John F. Kennedy, was known to friends and family as "Jack." But I wonder if he knew how much history that name had? John is a name with history stretching back far into Biblical times. However, during medieval times, the name John was altered slightly in the Germanic tongues to Jankin or Jackin. Out of that, we get the nickname Jack.

OK, July 4th is coming .. I'm slipping this one in early

41A. Apt username for Catherine, the handywoman? : DO-IT-YOURSELF KIT

I've just realized that if I reposted and credited every researcher cited for each nickname you'd have a blog longer than any other. I encourage you all to Google and enjoy the wordplay. Catherine = Kit

56A. Apt username for Margaret, the geometry teacher? : SQUARE PEG. What about an octagonal hole? Dang! Margaret = Peg

4D. Apt username for Dorothy, the Oktoberfest accordionist? : POLKA DOT. "We're not in Kansas anymore!" Toto! We're in Munich! Oh My! Dorothy = Dot

43D. Apt username for William, the rural worker? : FARM BILL Why did I think of apples on heads? William = Bill

So the theme was split between acrosses and downs, and five entries and no asterisks means that there's not a lot of leeway for the fill. No asterisks means no regular entry longer than a theme one. The fill had some sparkles and few, if any, clunkers. Bravo!

Here's Asterix the Gaul to celebrate France's win on Monday in the World Cup and to teach us all how to pronounce and spell "Asterisk".

Across

1. Sprang : LEAPT. Would you ever use "sprang" over "leapt"? Style guide experts, please help ...

6. "Black __": 2010 Natalie Portman film : SWAN. Nothing to see here, move along.

10. Inseam unit : INCH. I've got 32 of 'em. One of the reasons I don't play basketball (the other big reason is a complete lack of talent for the game).

14. Yoke attachment : OXBOW.

15. Tuscan river : ARNO

16. Writer Ephron : NORA

17. Authoritative reference book : BIBLE. Because "OED" or "Roget's Thesaurus" are either lacking or wildly excessive in the letter count department.

18. Protestant denom. : METH. 

19. Don't have to guess : KNOW

20. Gambler's fund : STAKE. I love the proximity to 23A but to me, a gambler's fund is a stash, or a bankroll. The stake is part of the stash.

23. Gambler's payment : ANTE

25. Misery : WOE

26. Fez bearer : HEAD. Great, wanted "Richie's Dad in Happy Days."

Mr. Cunningham didn't fit

29. Chamonix peak : ALPE

The biggest one you can see from Chamonix is called Mont Blanc. The biggest one you can't see is Alpe D'Huez.

32. ESPN data : STATS. Underpinnings of the Entertainment and Sports Programming Network. Thank goodness for ESPN - it was United States 101 when I first moved here. I can parrot those statistics until you all fall asleep. (Anyone awake?)

36. Equanimity : APLOMB. Word of the Day. I always show this when I go through the security checkpoint.

38. "Orinoco Flow" singer : ENYA. Funnily enough, I was debating recently whether "New Age" music is old enough to make the tag a misnomer. No issue with this clue.

40. Gun lobby gp. : NRA

44. False front : ACT

45. Goofball : DORK

46. Aquanaut's station : SEALAB. I wanted all kinds of stuff here - "Stingray", "20.000 Leagues under the Sea" but ahhh well. Here's the amazing Troy Tempest and Princess Maaaaarrrrrinnnnnaaaaa

Sealab? That's too deep. We are mere puppets.

47. "God helps __ ..." : THOSE ... who help themselves? Great, let me go nuts in the buffet line.

49. Rhône city : LYON. If you want to find out how I woke up in a tent in the middle of a roundabout on the outskirts of Lyon on a Thursday morning, let me know. I'll  be happy to tell y'all. It ended well.

51. Fall back (on) : RELY

52. La Brea muck : TAR

54. Ian of "The Hobbit" : HOLM. It's hard to know how you'll be remembered as an actor. Personally, I prefer his role as the "professional" athletic coach in "Chariots of Fire". Now, he's a halfling. Oh well,

61. Honolulu-born president : OBAMA. He really was. 'nuff said.

65. Reunion guest : AUNT

66. Gucci of fashion : ALDO

67. Watchful attention : VIGIL

68. Windy day toy : KITE

69. "Superman" woman : LOIS

70. Escape cleverly : ELUDE

71. Preppy shirt brand : IZOD, That makes me "preppy" - who'd a thunk it?

72. Legend : MYTH

73. Done in : SLAIN. I'm almost "done in" with 73 clue/answers! Girding my loins and off to the downs:

Down:

1. Alternatives to passing shots, in tennis : LOBS. Timely reference to "The Championships, Wimbledon". Note the "d", not a "t". Now you know how to pronounce Wimb-el-Don". Thank you.

2. Walk out : EXIT

3. Agnetha, Benny, Björn, and Anni-Frid, collectively : ABBA. Fresh clue to an old favorite. Lovely.

5. Many a middle schooler : TWEEN

6. With 28-Down, justice since 2006 : SAMUEL

7. Birdhouse warbler : WREN

8. Con : ANTI

9. In any way : NO HOW

10. Canon product : INK-JET. I wanted cameras ... this one look a little while.

11. Actress Gaye of "Ali" : NONA. Crosses all the way. I'll pay attention next time ...

12. Swamp beastie : CROC. I'm not convinced that crocodiles hang around in swamps. Gators, for sure.

13. Peddle : HAWK

22. Old cash register key : NO SALE

24. It's off-limits : TABOO

26. Really dug into : HAD AT

27. Prominent period : EPOCH

28. See 6-Down : ALITO

30. Chipper : PERKY

31. Type widths : ENS. Why do I always put in "ELS" and then go back and change it?

33. Bracelet spot : ANKLE. Funny that the reason for having to wear one is imediately below.

34. Courtroom event : TRIAL

35. Didn't do anything : SAT BY

37. Last thing Rhett called Scarlett : MY DEAR. Rhett's under-his-breath "last thing" might not have been so printable.

39. Kind of question : YES/NO

42. Clickable link : URL. A Uniform Resource Locator on the World Wide Web, as well all know so well.

48. Made explicit : STATED

50. "Gee whillikers!" : OH GOSH!

53. Royal domain : REALM

55. Treasures : LOVES

56. Munro pen name : SAKI

57. One may be popped in class : QUIZ

58. Passé preposition : UNTO 

59. Tricky maneuver : PLOY

60. Make less explicit, perhaps? : EDIT

62. Madrid water : AGUA

63. Skirt length : MIDI Fill  in M__I and wait for the N, D or X.

64. Chrysler Building architect William Van __ : ALEN. I posted a great view of this iconic building one Wednesday that I blogged from NYC in January. I might have to dig the picture out again.

That's about it. No food! and no music links that I can see. HG and Marti can fill in my blanks! I'm wallowing in the land of tequila, huaraches and futbol! I'll be checking in from the pool.

Steve.

Oh - here's the grid!