Thursday, February 4th, 2016 Roland Huget

Theme: Words to the "wise" - the theme entries all comprise two words (both of three syllables) ending in "Y".

17A. Dishonest memoir, e.g. : LITERARY FORGERY. One of the most famous in my lifetime were the "Hitler Diaries" purchased by the German news magazine Stern which then sold serialization rights to many newspapers, most prominently the Sunday Times in Britain. The (then) respected historian Hugh Trevor-Roper declared them genuine. They weren't.

26A. Place for permanent storage : SECONDARY MEMORY. Permanent as long as the storage device doesn't fail, then it's a place for permanently-lost data. Hard drives, CD-Roms and the like are secondary memory.

46A. Part of West Point's curriculum : MILITARY HISTORY. Seems reasonable. Other parts include marching, being shouted at and hat-wearing.

58A. One of anatomy's great vessels : PULMONARY ARTERY. Carries de-oxygenated blood from the heart to the lungs. Quite important in the grand scheme of things.

Nice, rhythmic, no-reveal theme. My title doesn't really do justice to the -ARY -E/ORY echoes with the theme entries but I couldn't find a snappy way to explain it. My clumsy bad, but the best I could do.

Four grid-spanning 15's and some interesting fill. Quite a few unknown or couldn't-remember proper names for me - SEIJI, ERVIN, EDER, RADNER, BERG, IOLANI and GENA - but the crosses were fair and I managed to WAG the potential natick of RADNER/EDER so no harm, no foul. Let's see what else we've got going on:

Across:

1. It precedes Romans : ACTS. Both clue and answer refer to shortened names of the books in the Bible's New Testament - "Paul's Letters to the Romans" and "Acts of the Apostles". Paul was a prolific letter-writer, sending off his missives to the Romans, the Thessalonians, Corinthians, Galacians, Phillipians and many more. We'd probably call it spam today.

5. Maestro Ozawa : SEIJI. Chinese-born Japanese conductor with hall-of-fame hair:

10. __ de somme: beast of burden : BÊTE. Not the most common French word and only clued this way once before in the LAT.

14. "__ luck!" : WHAT

15. '50s-'70s senator who wrote "Humor of a Country Lawyer" : ERVIN. North Carolina senator Sam.

16. Shuffle, for one : IPOD

20. Ancient amulet : SCARAB. Symbolizing the holy beetle in Egypt.

21. Dark clouds, perhaps : OMENS

22. Pulitzer-winning book critic Richard : EDER

24. Bear's team : BAMA. Paul "Bear" Bryant, legendary head coach of the University of Alabama football team.

33. Dedicatee of an 1810 piano manuscript : ELISE. Beethoven's Für Elise.

34. Brand that includes N-Strike blasters : NERF

35. Sarah McLachlan song : ADIA. Let's have some of Sarah's lovely voice.

36. Gun : REV

37. Genre descended from the cakewalk : RAGTIME

40. Gift subject to skepticism : E.S.P. No abbreviation designation in the clue?

41. Aussie colleges : UNIS. Contraction of Universities. Brits use the same word.

43. "Lulu" composer : BERG

44. "__ Toward Tomorrow": 1996 TV movie with Christopher Reeve : A STEP. Thank you, crosses.

49. Merged news agency : TASS. The Russian news agency. I'm not sure about the "merged" definition here - ITAR-TASS, as the agency was known post-breakup of the Soviet Union is not two organizations, it's two names for the same organization. Wikipedia explains.

50. Convenient carrier : TOTE

51. Garden gadget : EDGER

54. Extent : LENGTH

63. Classical theaters : ODEA. I always want to put "ODEONS", then rapidly run out of room.

64. Southwestern New York city : OLEAN. Has a population of just over 14,000 which seems pretty small in "city" terms.

65. Linear : ONE-D. Took me a second to parse this one out - ONED looked a tad weird.

66. Filter : SEEP

67. "South Pacific" co-star Gaynor : MITZI

68. Bunker tool : RAKE. Here's Sergio Garcia raking his own bunker. Maybe he lost a bet with his caddy: "If I miss this putt I'll carry my own clubs and rake my own bunkers. If I make it, you buy dinner". "Doh!".

Down:

1. Leatherworker's set : AWLS

2. Smart : CHIC

3. Part of TTFN : TA TA. For now.

4. Man cave features : STEREOS. Probably would be a little dated now. If your man cave doesn't boast Dolby 7.1 surround sound connected to a bazillion gigawatt home theater system your friends probably don't want to come over and watch the game.

5. Wreckage resting place : SEA BED

6. Throw the ball away, say : ERR

7. Campus climber : IVY

8. Smucker's spread : JIF. Laura Scudder's Old-Fashioned Nutty for me in the PB stakes. I like the ritual of stirring the oil back in when you open a new jar.

9. Suffix with neutr- : INO

10. "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof" matriarch : BIG MAMA. Thank you, crosses.

11. One-on-one sport : EPÉE. En garde! Touché!

12. Conflicted : TORN

13. Slow Churned ice cream : EDY'S. We call it Dreyer's out here in the west, but it's the same stuff.

18. 1978 "SNL" Emmy winner : RADNER. I always think of Rita Rudner, and forget Glida Radner. I'll try not to next time.

19. European capital : ROME. Not Oslo this time.

23. 1994 Stanley Cup winners : RANGERS. The New York team captained at the time by the legendary Mark Messier.

24. Properly : BY RIGHT

25. Radio toggle switch : AM/FM

26. Hospital supply : SERUM

27. Nicholas Gage memoir : ELENI. Thank you, crosses.

28. __ suit : CIVIL

29. Hear again : RETRY

30. Tribute title words : ODE TO

31. Flight segment : RISER. Part of a staircase. I got rebuked in the comments a little while ago for mentioning that stairs have many interestingly-named parts without naming them all. Oops, I did it again. What a recividist I am.

32. Like some small dogs : YAPPY

38. "__ le roi!": French Revolution cry : À BAS. Down with the King!

39. It's to dye for : EASTER

42. Website directory : SITE MAP

45. Loud speaker : STENTOR. I'd not heard the noun before, but I knew the adjective "stentorian" so it filled in quite easily.

47. Poi source : TARO. Food!

48. Honolulu's __ Palace : IOLANI. Residence of the Hawai'ian kings. Much poi was doubtless consumed here.

51. Long narrative poem : EPOS

52. Dandy : DUDE

53. High spirits : GLEE

55. Rowlands of "The Notebook" : GENA

56. 94-day undertaking in the Cheryl Strayed memoir "Wild" : TREK. Tried HIKE, then WALK and finally TREK. I enjoyed the book and admired the brutal honesty of the author confronting her fears and behaviors.

57. Classic fictional villain : HYDE

59. Nice handle? : NOM. When you see "Nice" at the start of a clue, it's often referring to the french city. Handle = name, thence "nom".

60. "Prince __": "Aladdin" song : ALI

61. U.S. Army rank qualifier : RET.

62. Bosox legend : YAZ. Carl Yastrzemski of the Boston Red Sox. See, that's why "Bosox' Yaz" is much easier.

I think that wraps it up from me. I'll leave you with the grid and my WAG of the "D" to finish off:

Steve

Wednesday, February 3, 2016 C. W. Stewart

Theme:  Something you find on a fish.  No, not FINS or GILLS.  Think more musically - no, not even Vince Gill - and the reveal will make it clear.  So let's start there.

38 A. Musical sequence found at the starts of the answers to the starred clues : SCALE.   This word has many disparate meanings as both a noun and a verb.  Here, we are talking about a set of musical notes, ordered by pitch.  This puzzle has them ordered in ascending sequence, though, of course, you can also go the other way.  We're not told if the quality of the scale is major, minor, nor if it is one of the many modal variants.  But we can sing along anyway.  

The beginnings of the first words of eight in-the-language phrases name the notes of the SCALE.

1 A. *Where deliveries may be left : DOOR STEP.   The spot where mail-order deliveries end up.  DO is the first scale note, and the tonal center, aka tonic, for the SCALE and any music based upon it.

17 A. *Airport pickup : RENT-A-CAR.   The plane does not take you to your final destination.  You usually need to drive there, and you can use a conveniently located vehicle for a price.  RE is the 2nd SCALE step, a whole tone above the tonic.   We won't talk about the Phrygian mode, the comma of Pythagorus, nor vibrational frequencies.

So - who is she?

20 A. *Modest garment : MIDI-SKIRT.  Mid-calf-length to protect delicate legs from winter winds and prying eyes.  Seems a bit awkward.  MI is the third scale step, another whole tone above RE in a major scale, but only a half tone up if the quality of the SCALE is minor.  BTW - the distance from one note to another is called the interval.

Is midi evil?

26 A. *Hiker's pouch : FANNY PACK.  A container on a belt, often perched over a person's back side. [But not in England.]  FA is the fourth scale step above the tonic.  This note does not vary between major and minor scales, and its interval above the tonic is called the perfect fourth. 

Chic accessory?

51 A. *Infant's dietary prohibition : SOLID FOOD.  Mom's milk is best, formula is OK.  Save the bran flakes for when they're a bit older.  SOL is the fifth scale step, always a perfect fifth above the tonic.  

58 A. *Breaking point : LAST STRAW.  An ancient measure of camel capacity being the last straw minus one.   LA is the 6th scale step, a major or minor sixth above the tonic, depending on the quality of the scale.

67 A. *History book chart : TIME LINE.   A graphic representation of what happened when.  TI is the penultimate SCALE step, either a major or minor seventh interval above the tonic.  As you may have gleaned by now, the natural minor SCALE differs from the major by having lowered 3rd, 6th, and 7th SCALE steps.   There are other versions, but we needn't get into that here

72 A. *Words of admonishment : DON’T DO IT.   Have we heard these words?  Have we heeded them?  Probably not.  This brings us to another DO, a perfect octave above where we started.  Despite what I said earlier, I'll point out that the frequency is exactly twice that of the previous DO.

Hi gang.  JazzBumpa conducting for today's thematically rich excursion.  Note that though the spellings are right on for the eight notes, the pronunciations vary a bit.  Rogers and Hammerstein wrote a song, based on a major scale, that illustrates all this, but I hate it and will not link. However, I will wave my arms around - so let's see where the music takes us.

Across

9. Adorn in relief : EMBOSS.  To carve, mold or stamp a design into a surface.

15. First three of ten digits : AREA CODE.  So you can phone home.  

16. Bad guy : MEANIE.  Like Kylo Ren.

A bit off key

18. State with conviction : ASSERT.   Or aver or avow.

19. "It's __ cause" : A LOST.   Words of giving up.

22. Extra-play qtrs. : OTs.  Over Times.

24. Influenced by, in recipes : A LA.  In the style of whoever the influence might be.

25. July baby, maybe : LEO.  Astrology sign usually associated with August, actually running from July 23 to Aug 22.   LEOS are generous, loyal and supportive.

31. Storm winds : GALES.   

33. Have yet to pay : OWE.

34. NFC South team : ATL.  The ATLanta Falcons of the National Football Conference South, a division of the National Football League.

35. Part of rpm : PER.

36. Whipped cream amount : GLOB.  Non-specific quantity, but I'll take two, thank you.

40. Authoritarian figure : CZAR.   Named for Russian despots of a by-gone era.

44. Chair part : ARM.  What - no love for the leg?  Is that why we have the MIDI SKIRT?

46. Balderdash : ROT.  Nonsense.

47. Poetic tribute : ODE.

48. Volunteer's offer : I'LL GO.

54. Buck's mate : DOE.   A deer, my dear, and a thematic homophone.

55. Sun Devils of the Pac-12 : Arizona State Univesity.

57. Afternoon social : TEA.  In which the beverage is accompanied by sandwiches or cakes.

62. Giant : TITAN.   From Greek mythology, the twelve TITANS were gigantic second order deities, six female and six male.   The familiar Greek pantheon of Zeus, Hades, Poseidon, Hestia, Hera and Demeter were the offspring of the Titan Cronus.

66. Where it originally was : IN SITU.  From Latin for "in place."

69. Had to have : NEEDED.  

70. Cordial with a licorice-like flavor : ANISETTE.   Last week we learned that Anise, the flavor element here, is an herb in the carrot family.  So why is there no cordial with a carrot-like flavor?

71. Prone to avarice : GREEDY.

Down

1. Swimmer Torres with 12 Olympic medals : DARA.

In the swim of things

2. Pitcher Hershiser : OREL.   He played in the major leagues for 18 years with 5 different teams, won the Cy Young Award, was a 3-time all star, and World Series MVP.   Not bad.

3. Wine lover's prefix : OENO.  Into English from ancient Greek.

4. Exposes to the cops : RATS ON.   Alternatively, sings like a birdie.

5. Absent-minded, to a Brit : SCATTY.  From scatter-brained, I assume.

6. Front-of-bk. list : TOC.  Table Of Contents.

7. Red-coated cheese : EDAM.   From the eponymous town in The Netherlands.

8. Prefix with scope : PERI-.   The submarines monocular.

9. Text alternative : E-MAIL.  Two forms of communication by device.

10. Many a text : MESSAGE.   I'm trying to imagine a text that is not a MESSAGE, and coming up short.

11. Get some rays : BASK.   In the sun - for pleasure and relaxation.   Don't get burned.

12. "The Hairy Ape" playwright : O'NEILL.  Eugene.  The play is about class struggle and alienation.

13. Yes or no follower : SIRREE.   Colloquial emphasis.

14. Brief arguments : SET TOs.    Or hockey fights - which also generally do not last long.

21. Divided terr. : DAKota.   North and South.

23. Cramp, say : SPASM.  Involuntary muscle contraction.

26. Weather condition in the final scene of "Casablanca" : FOG.   But it's the start of a beautiful friendship

27. Belt maker's tool : AWL.  A pointy tool for poking holes.

28. Opposite of paleo- : NEO.  Modernizing a blast from the past.  Paleo- indicates adhering to old ways as they always were.  Can't quite see these as opposites.

29. Flight coordinators: Abbr. : ATC.   Air Traffic Controllers.

30. Light cigar wrapper : CLARO.  The wrapper is the outer leaf of a cigar, and can influence its characteristics.   CLARO is yellowish or light tan and usually indicates a shade grown tobacco.

32. Part of a ring : ARC.  A ring is shaped like a circle and a circle can be divided into arcs - but does anyone divide a ring this way?  Hmmmm.

35. __ point: embroidery stitch : PETIT.   A very small, fine stitch that allows detail in the design of the article.

37. Groceries quantity : BAG.   Paper or plastic?   

39. "u r a riot!" : LOL.   Laughing Out Loud.  Texter's appreciations for something funny.

41. Menagerie : ZOO.    An exhibit of captive wild animals.

42. Excitement : ADO.   Trouble, difficulty or fuss.

43. Like the bull in the Chicago Bulls' logo : RED.

Energizing?

45. __ peanuts : ROASTED.   Crunchy

48. In neutral : IDLING.   Running, but out of gear.

49. Temporary wheels : LOANER.

50. Tenant : LESSEE.   Renter with a lease agreement.

51. California's Big __ : SUR.  Approximately 90 miles of rugged coastline from the Carmel River in Monterey south to San Carpoforo Creek in San Luis Obispo County.    The name is derived from Spanish for "The Big South" relative to the city of Monterey.

52. Can't stand : DETEST.

53. Didn't hit the books? : FAILED.  Neglected to prepare for a test in school.

56. Hit the books : STUDY.  Prepare for a test in school, and back to back clehos.

59. It has its highs and lows : TIDE.   Ocean levels.

60. Minimally : A TAD.   Possibly derived from tadpole, the larval stage of a frog, transferred thence to a small child, and than representing a small quantity.

61. Skid row regular : WINO.   Wine-addicted alcoholic.

63. Jackson 5 brother : TITO.

Back in the day

64. Voting no : ANTI.

65. Discontinued depilatory : NEET.  Evidently the name was discontinued, but the product wasn't.  It is now sold under the trade name VEET.

68. Part of rpm: Abbr. : MINute.

That's it, folks.  Hope you enjoyed the performance.

Cool regards!

JzB

Tuesday, February 2, 2016 C.C. Burnikel

Theme: Bad Boys, Bad Boys - What'cha gonna do when they come for you?

17. Obeyed the corner traffic sign : CAME TO A FULL STOP

23. Place to buy a Nikon : CAMERA SHOP

39. Conceal, as misdeeds : COVER UP

50. "For Better or for Worse," e.g. : COMIC STRIP

60. Warning about sealed-off escape routes from the police, four of whom are aptly positioned in this puzzle's circles : "YOU'RE SURROUNDED!"

Argyle here. Definitely a sense of déjà vu today. Even split COP; two C+OP, two CO+P. Grid spanners. Two strong climbers. Another fine puzzle by our fearless leader.

Across:

1. Weight-watcher's bane : FLAB

5. Pea jackets? : PODS

9. Little marketgoer of rhyme : PIGGY

14. Winans of gospel : CECE

15. Long-necked pampas bird : RHEA

16. Cheri of "SNL" : OTERI

20. Coach Steve of the NBA champion Golden State Warriors : KERR. Coach Kerr took a leave of absence as he recovered from back surgery and was replaced on an interim basis by Luke Walton.

21. Philosopher Descartes : RENÉ

22. North Carolina university : DUKE

26. Hors d'oeuvres bit : CANAPÉ

29. Capital of Yemen : SANA'A

 

31. Cosmetics giant : AVON

32. Turkey club spread : MAYO

36. Uses Redbox, say : RENTS. Rent movies at over 35,000 automated retail kiosks.

38. Soft pitch : LOB

41. Bank acct. entry : DEPosit

42. Track team member : MILER

44. Stuns : AWEs

45. "I'm ready for the weekend!" : "TGIF!"

46. Ballerina artist Edgar : DEGAS

 

48. Gets weak in the knees : SWOONS

54. Nanny's nightmare : BRAT

56. Message from the teacher : NOTE

57. Swedish furniture retailer : IKEA

64. Cow on a dairy container : ELSIE

 

65. Over and done with : PAST

66. Prayer start : "O GOD"

67. Oozes : SEEPS

68. Meadow moms : EWEs

69. State fair structure : TENT

Down:

1. TV/radio-regulating agcy. : FCC. (Federal Communications Commission)

2. Job for a plumber : LEAK

3. Top spot : ACME

4. Part of many a six-pack : BEER CAN

5. Country club instructor : PRO

6. Windy City hub : O'HARE. Chicago Airport.

7. Put off : DEFER

8. Steamy room : SAUNA

9. D.C. big shot : POL. (a politician)

10. "Dinner's ready" : "IT'S DONE". You know I wanted, "It's soup".

11. Energetic enthusiasm : GET UP AND GO

12. Grasp intuitively, in slang : GROK. This came from the novel, “Stranger in a Strange Land”.

13. "Eek!" : "YIPE!"

18. Ensnare : TRAP

19. Not as costly : LESS

24. Message to employees : MEMO

25. Plucked instrument : HARP

26. Far from rattled : CALM

27. Dodge : AVOID

28. Raising money for a children's hospital, say : NOBLE CAUSE

30. Had food delivered : ATE IN

33. Actress Gardner : AVA

34. Fine-grained wood : YEW

35. Ironworks input : ORE

37. Sunscreen nos. : SPFs. (Sun Protection Factor)

39. Prepare frantically for finals : CRAM

40. Amer. ally in WWII : USSR. (Russia)

43. Self-gratifying pursuit : EGO TRIP

45. Man bun : TOP KNOT

 

47. Greed and pride, for two : SINS

49. Xbox One rival : WII U. Official site.

51. Sporty wheels : COUPE

52. Smoothie insert : STRAW

53. Curt : TERSE

54. What top seeds may get in tournaments : BYEs. The Big Dance Begins March 15-16!

55. Film part : ROLE

58. Perimeter : EDGE

59. Very long time : AEON

61. Some Caltech grads : EEs. (electrical engineer)

62. NHL tiebreakers : OTs. (overtime)

63. Banned pesticide : DDT. (dichloro-diphenyl-trichloroethane)

 

Argyle

Monday, February 1, 2016 Janice Luttrell

 

Theme: Where the little piggy went - The first theme word can come after market.

20A. *Football player using a tee : PLACE KICKER. Marketplace.

11D. *Split the taxi fare : SHARE A CAB. Market share

35D. *Travel website pitched by William Shatner : PRICELINE. Market price

59A. Secondary business venue, as for auto accessories ... and, literally, where the starts of the answers to starred clues can go : AFTERMARKET

White Rabbit, White Rabbit! Argyle here. My market day is Tuesday. Today is pretty straight forward; no tricks or puns. One or two nuts to crack but that's it. Janice is an early week regular.

Across:

1. Get cheeky with : SASS

5. __ and whistles: enhancements : BELLS

10. Vile Nile snakes : ASPs. Cute rhyme.

14. Harbinger : OMEN

15. Chinese or Japanese : ASIAN

16. Great, in '90s slang : PHAT

17. Salon request for prom night : UPDO

 

18. "Abandon all hope, ye who enter here!" poet : DANTE

19. When doubled, American Samoa's capital : PAGO PAGO

 

23. GOP member : REP. (Republican)

24. Woman of la casa : SENORA

25. Wipe clean : ERASE

27. __ Dakota : NORTH

30. Moves furtively : SNEAKS

33. Kitten-lifting spot : NAPE

36. Not worth discussing : MOOT

38. Director DeMille : CECIL. Cecil B. DeMille, the B stood for Blount, his paternal grandmother's middle name.

39. Ventilate : AIR

40. Decorate, as with parsley : GARNISH

42. In the style of : À LA

43. French good-bye : ADIEU

45. It's prohibited : NO NO

46. Rap fan : B-BOY. We had this last month. Here

47. Hummingbird's diet : NECTAR

49. Get more mileage out of : REUSE

51. House overhangs : EAVES

53. Some car deals : LEASES

57. T-shirt sizes, for short : SML. Same answer if it was size?

62. Mini-exam : QUIZ

64. Ancient region of present-day Turkey : IONIA. It was ANATOLIA on the 23rd.

65. Racer Yarborough : CALE

 

66. Speeder's payment : FINE. I'll bet Cale paid a few.

67. Lovers' meeting : TRYST

68. Sch. near the Rio Grande : UTEP. (University of Texas at El Paso)

69. Fir or ash : TREE

70. Enjoy a cigar : SMOKE

71. Places to sleep : BEDS. But don't smoke in bed.

Down:

1. "__ on!": "Dinner!" : SOUP'S

2. More than sufficient : AMPLE. Like my stomach.

3. Family car : SEDAN

4. Ice-cream truck treat : SNO-CONE

5. Consequence of selfish acts, some say : BAD KARMA

6. Actor Morales : ESAI

7. "The Mod Squad" role : LINC. Portrayed by Clarence Williams III on TV; Omar Epps in the movie.

8. Hanukkah pancake : LATKE

 

9. Scornful looks : SNEERS

10. Smartphone download : APP

12. Numbered book part : PAGE

13. Call it a day : STOP

21. Suffix with 22-Down : ERO. Ranchero is the Spanish term for a person working on a ranch.

22. Cowboy's home : RANCH

                Milly's huevos rancheros

26. Witness : SEE

28. Pulled in different directions : TORN

29. Hold in high respect : HONOR

31. Narc's discovery : KILO. Because drugs have gone metric.

32. Do in, as a vampire : SLAY

33. Tandoori flatbread : NAAN

34. White House worker : AIDE

37. Fork feature : TINE

40. Tropical fruit : GUAVA. There are several species but roughly apple sized.

41. Love of one's life : SOULMATE

44. Pilot's prediction: Abbr. : ETA

46. Grizzly youngster : BEARCUB

48. Gets new supplies for : REFITS

50. Salty expanse : SEA

52. Tempest : STORM

54. Slide on ice : SKATE

55. Sought morays : EELED. Morays are eels.

56. Arthur Murray moves : STEPS

57. Floor plan meas. : SQFT. (square feet)

58. Sierra Club founder John : MUIR

60. Greek war goddess : ENYO. Warrior companion of Ares.

61. Take a chance on : RISK

63. New York's Tappan __ Bridge : ZEE

 

 

Argyle