Monday, June 13, 2016 Lila Cherry

Theme: D/J - Phrases starting with D and J.

17A. Hardcover protector : DUST JACKET

25A. Improvisational music style developed in 14-Across : DIXIELAND JAZZ

43A. Local jurist : DISTRICT JUDGE

58A. Maneuver that captures two checkers : DOUBLE JUMP

10D. Guy's breakup letter : DEAR JANE

37D. Clerical office positions : DESK JOBS

47D. Wedding music provider ... and a homophonic hint to six puzzle answers : DEEJAY

Argyle here with Lila Cherry(Really Rich). It seems a simple theme is acceptable if there is enough of it. All the J's are accounted for but there are some free-range D's out there. Tom Joad is a T/J. A nice mix of new and old with even a unique three-letter entry, TCB.

Across:

1. "Pardon me ... " : "AHEM ... "

5. __ Madness: fruity Snapple flavor : MANGO

10. Info that isn't as dumb as it sounds : DOPE

14. Mardi Gras city acronym : NOLA. (New Orleans, Louisiana)

15. University founder Yale : ELIHU

16. Quaint "Yikes!" : "EGAD!"

19. One on your side : ALLY

20. Old show showings : RERUNS

21. Josephine, for one : EMPRESS. Josephine Bonaparte wearing her signature gown.

23. Dictator Amin : IDI. Third President of Uganda, ruling from 1971 to 1979.

24. Noun following a vb., usually : OBJect

32. Cat covering : FUR

33. East, to Eduardo : ESTE

34. Orderly : NEAT plus 7D. Suffix with 34-Across : NIK

36. Apple tablet : iPAD

38. Handled things somehow : COPED

39. Stonestreet of "Modern Family" : ERIC. Cam on the show.

40. Heredity unit : GENE

41. x or y, in plane geometry : AXIS

42. Planet, in verse : ORB

48. Divided Asian country: Abbr. : KORea

49. Miner's objective : ORE

50. "The Grapes of Wrath" protagonist : TOM JOAD

54. Boring tools : AUGERS

57. Small Chevy model : AVEO

61. Low-__ diet : CARB

62. Outie's opposite : INNIE. Belly buttons.

63. Natural skin soother : ALOE

64. Bullfight cheers : OLÉs

65. Brewery kilns : OASTS

66. Thief who doesn't need the combination : YEGG. Safecracker.

Down:

1. Also : AND

2. Time of day : HOUR

3. "Anything __?" : ELSE

4. Dot-__ printer : MATRIX

5. Malicious one : MEANIE

6. Oct. baseball semifinal : ALCS. (American League Championship Series)

8. Indian butter : GHEE

9. No longer in style : OUTMODED

11. Gawk at : OGLE

12. Buddies : PALS

13. "Grand" ice cream brand : EDYS

18. Dame Dench : JUDI

22. Sandwich with Jif and Welch's, for short : PBJ. (peanut butter and jelly)

25. Fooled : DUPED

26. Pakistani neighbor : IRANI

27. Eleventh of 13 popes : LEO XI

28. Savory gelatin : ASPIC

29. H-bomb trial, e.g. : N-TEST

30. Weightlessness cause, briefly : ZERO G

31. Congo, formerly : ZAIRE

32. Newton fruit : FIG

35. Getting it done, initially : TCB. "Taking Care of Business"

 

 

38. Music provider on the road : CAR RADIO

44. Also : TOO

45. Units of energy : JOULES. Previous expo, 8-Across

46. Strongly suggest : URGE

50. Mexican snack in a shell : TACO

51. Track shape : OVAL

52. Nothing but : MERE

53. Spanish lady : DONA

54. Not much : A BIT

55. __ of thumb : RULE

56. City skyline obscurer : SMOG

59. Young __: tots, in dialect : 'UNS. Often spelt as one word, young'uns.

60. Tent stake : PEG

Argyle

Note from C.C.:

I finally met with Jeffrey Wechsler yesterday at the Fifth MN Crossword Tournament. As Gary said  in a Facebook comment "Fiendish Jeff Wechsler even looks human!" Jeffrey flew in from New Jersey to volunteer for the event. Jeffrey was also a judge for the ACPT the past few years. We managed to talk a little shop while he was busy working for the tournament.

David Liben-Nowell, Tom Pepper, Jeffrey Wechsler, David Hanson & C.C. 

It was also fun discussing crosswords with the brilliant local constructors: Tom Pepper (Mr. Minnesota Nice), Marcia Brott (We had her puzzle three months ago), Victor Barocas (our hard-working editor), David Hanson (He used to comment on our blog with the handle Rosebud), Andrew J. Ries (so incredibly talented. Click here to subscribe to his weekly puzzle) & David Liben-Nowell (He has a LAT themeless coming up).

Don Gagliardo, Andrea Carla Michaels & David Steinberg all contributed puzzles but could not make the trip. George Barany was traveling in CA. You were all missed.

Mike Weepie won the tournament. Eric Maddy came in second. Carl Voss third. Below are a few pictures. You can click here for more.

David Hanson,Victor Barocas, C.C. & Andrew J. Ries

 

Victor & Eric Maddy

David Bael, Marcia and Tom

Sunday, June 12, 2016, Ron Toth and C.C. Burnikel

Title: GOING TO SCHOOL

A lesser man would say there is something fishy about this puzzle but not I. Wait a minute... 

Our friends Ron (Jazzbumpa) and C.C. used nine fish names as clues to which most of the answers were in-the-language phrases far afield from their piscatorial prompts.

Here's the type of SCHOOL referenced by Ron and C.C.'s title being broken up by the neighborhood bully.

Theme Entries: I thought the fill was pretty straight forward and so I opted to show each type of fish prepared for consumption after, uh, school was out

23. SOLE : ONE AND ONLY - Unique OR Dover SOLE with leeks and shrimp

25. SKATE : GLIDE ON ICE - Sonja Heine specialty OR SKATE with chicory and anchovies

41. FLUKE : STROKE OF LUCK - Winning the lottery OR Pan Seared FLUKE with Warm Wild Mushroom & Lentil Salad, Sunchoke Smear & Lardon

45. BASS : LOW VOICE - Requirement to sing Old Man River OR whole roasted BASS with lemon salt and potatoes

68. RAY : BEAM OF LIGHT - Flashlight emanation OR Stir-fried Stingray With Fermented Black Bean And Chinese Celery

92. PIKE : TOLLROAD - A pay-to-drive thoroughfare OR, while not gourmet, PIKE shore lunch  by a lake is incredible!

94. CARP : MOAN AND GROAN - Complaining OR how CARP is prepared and served around here in every small town restaurant 

115. SHARK : CARD EXPERT - Also card sharp OR Grilled Shark with Pebre sauce

117. SNAPPER : MOWER BRAND - My mower OR a pan-fried Red Snapper filet served with a basil cream sauce

Let's cast out a line and see what else we can reel in:

Across

1. Space exploration vehicle : PROBE

6. Power couple : ITEM

10. Bowled over : AWED

14. Key holders : MAPS - Keys for two MAPS

18. Regatta entrant : RACER

19. __ noho: dance performed while seated or kneeling : HULA

20. Holder of 14 Grand Slam titles : NADAL

22. Sheltered at sea : ALEE

27. Majors won five times by Jack Nicklaus, familiarly : PGAS - Also six Masters, four U.S. Opens and three British Opens. It once looked inevitable that Tiger would catch him...

28. Weapon with a three-sided blade : EPEE

29. Map unit : MILE

30. Words after "If mom finds out" : I'M DEAD

31. Menu list : ENTREES - See theme entries

33. Drive to the airport, say : SEE OFF - Remember when you used to walk clear out to the boarding gate to SEE them OFF?

35. Tot tender : NANNY

36. Investment vehicle, briefly : IRA

37. Horace's "__ Poetica" : ARS - Even I figured out that means The Art Of Poetry

38. Blue Devils' conference : ACC

39. "Have a seat!" : PARK IT

49. Employee's hope : RAISE - Teachers all get RAISES based on experience and advanced hours. Not a nickel for excellence.

50. Book with a year on its cover : ALMANAC - You can buy this Back To The Future 2 prop replica on eBay 

52. Interrupt : HORN IN

53. Java neighbor : BALI - The 1.5 mile wide BALI Strait separates BALI on the right and Java on the left

54. Bargain : BUY

55. Grandson of Adam : ENOS - Also known as ENOSH and must have had descendants that could swim

57. U-Haul rival : RYDER

58. How many autographs are signed : IN PEN - Hating fame, he became a recluse and his autograph is now worth $7,500

60. Put a stop to : HALT

62. Actor's aid : CUE

64. U.N. workers' agcy. : ILO

65. Amaze : STUN

71. Singer Redbone : LEON

72. Fire : CAN

73. Cheese companion : MAC - Mark's Bistro in Omaha was judged Omaha's best MAC and Cheese. Where is it in your town?

74. Woes : ILLS

75. Watch company logo : OMEGA - Is any watch worth $5,000?

77. "I'm __ here!" : OUTTA

79. Back : HIND

81. Mop partner? : GLO

82. Within : AMID

85. System based on urgency : TRIAGE - Where I first heard this word

87. Annoyed : NEEDLED

90. Five-time presidential candidate : NADER

97. The Brits call it an identity parade : LINEUP -Kramer stylin' in a LINEUP

99. Recipient of Bart's prank calls : MOE

100. Wide shoe size : EEE - The president got one of Shaq's size 23's. Width? Not listed.

101. Org. that promotes hunter safety : NRA

102. In __: trapped : A SPOT

105. Works one's fingers to the bone : SLAVES

107. Spells during a vacation, perhaps : CAT SITS

109. Old Athens enemy : SPARTA

111. Coll. seniors' tests : GRES

112. Oral history : LORE

113. Org. that fills bowls? : NCAA

119. "I'll buy" : ON ME

120. Cap : LIMIT

121. "Rock of __" : AGES

122. "Counting Sheep" company : SERTA

123. Many an Ivan : TSAR

124. Zaire's Mobutu __ Seko : SESE - The archetypical African dictator that amassed billions for himself in an oppressive reign in the Congo

125. Legal wrong : TORT

126. Defame : SMEAR

Down

1. Actor's aid : PROP - Like Yorick's skull 

2. Infantry combat school decoration : RANGER TAB

3. Saltwater aquariums : OCEANARIA - Oceanarium seems more common

4. Wild thing : BEAST

5. Marine eagle : ERN

6. Wishful words : I HOPE SO

7. Works for a pianist : TUNES - This pianist's guy TUNES with a wrench and a electronic tuner in the middle of the picture

8. Fashion monthly : ELLE

9. Is allowed to : MAY - C'mon, we all played "Mother MAY I", didn't we?

10. Rolling Stones title woman : ANGIE

11. It might be packed : WALLOP - The late Muhammad Ali certainly packed one

12. She played Carmela Soprano : EDIE FALCO

13. Pop : DAD

14. Imperative : MANDATORY 

15. Sci-fi staple : ALIEN - I wonder if Sigourney still has nightmares

16. Pie nut : PECAN

17. Run-down : SEEDY

21. Welcoming symbol : LEI

24. "Nothing runs like" it : DEERE

26. Hardly a picky eater : OMNIVORE

29. Popular place to visit : MECCA

32. Acquire abundantly : RAKE IN - After he RAKED IN his chips, Rick asked him to leave

33. Pond gunk : SCUM - The fate of our golf course ponds once the spring runoff ends

34. Back again : FRO

36. State since 1948: Abbr. : ISR - May, 1948 headline

38. Partner : ALLY

40. Elec. bill unit : KWH - Our rate here is 6.7¢/KWH. So I can run my 1,500 Watt heater for 10 hrs for 67¢

42. Singer K.T. : OSLIN - Not k.d. LANGE 

43. Animals : FAUNA

44. Ominous peals : KNELLS

46. Small studio production : INDIE - This biggest grossing INDIE netted $51M in 2015

47. Spanish sky : CIELO - I'll bet you can translate "El cielo es azul en España"

48. Company infamous for shredding : ENRON

51. Arguing against : ANTI

54. Tree with delicate bark : BEECH

56. Hard-to-like person : SCHMO

59. Strikers' org.? : PBA

60. Game that reportedly originated in Texas : HOLD 'EM - 2-7 off suit is considered the worst starting hand in this game

61. Indoor gridiron org. : AFL

63. Colorado native : UTE

65. Great guy? : SCOTT - Clever!

66. Prefix meaning "bull" : TAURO

67. Up to : UNTIL

69. Valuable tunnel : MINE

70. Prime minister before Yitzhak : GOLDA - Kiev-born GOLDA became Israel's Prime Minister in the country's 21st year

71. Texas university in Beaumont : LAMAR

73. Belgian surrealist : MAGRITTE - Rene's depiction of a decision we make everyday

76. Sacred Indian river : GANGES

78. Challenge : TALL ORDER

80. "Let’s do it my way" : INDULGE ME

81. Inheritance factor : GENE

83. "Whatever" : I DON'T CARE

84. Heading for an annual list : DEAR SANTA - Asking for world peace AND a Barbie Doll doesn't fool the big guy!

86. Many millennia : EON

88. Capitol tops : DOMES - We will definitely have some here who will know the only U.S. Capitol without a DOME.

89. Land along the Mekong : LAOS

91. Strand under a microscope : RNA

93. DDE rival : AES - Adlai got the silver medal in '52 and '56

95. Least remote : NEAREST

96. Dissuade : DETER

98. __ Island: South Carolina training base : PARRIS

102. Accessory named for a racetrack : ASCOT - Do you remember when Liza shocked the highbrows at ASCOT by yelling, "C'mon Dover, move your bloomin' arse!"

103. Intervals : SPANS

104. Cleveland suburb named for an Italian city : PARMA 

106. Iconic sportster : VETTE

107. Quail : COWER

108. Against a thing, legally : IN REM

110. Rose of Guns N' Roses : AXL - AXLE and AXEL also available in our gift shop

112. Target's target, e.g. : LOGO

114. Month before Nisan : ADAR

116. Circle ratios : PI'S

117. Yoga accessory : MAT

118. Some coll. degrees : BS'S 

Well, we didn't find NEMO but the ones we did were wonderful. Now observe the daily limit at our own Lake Comment:

GRID

Notes from C.C.:

1) You seriously rock, Gary! Amazing visuals.

2) The fifth Minnesota Crossword Tournament will be held at the Landmark Center in St. Paul today. You can click here for more details. I just learned that the incredible Eric Maddy is flying in from California to compete. Eric sat in the same table as our own Steve at Crosswords LA a couple of years ago and won the title. He's won many crossword tournaments.