Wednesday, December 14, 2016, Alex Eaton-Salners

TITLE: LET THE CIRCLE BE UNBROKEN. The last time we saw Alex was a 11/16/16 puzzle blogged by Melissa who indicated that that puzzle appeared to be Alex's LA Times debut.

Let's start with Alex's reveal in this fabulous midweek puzzle:

61. *As sequenced in this grid, what the answers to starred clues form : WORD CHAIN

Exposing Alex's devious theme required me to put the grid upfront and then color code the WORD CHAIN he formed. The matching colors below tie the last word in one fill to the first word in a succeeding fill with a starred clue and that action generates yet another word or phrase. The pièce de résistance is that the last fill with a starred clue circles back to link to the first one and, as my title suggests, keeps the circle/chain unbroken. WOW!! 

Husker Gary today showing you Alex's WORD CHAINS:

17. *TV screen film format : LETTERBOX and 24. *At-your-desk assignment : SEATWORK that chain together to make BOXSEAT. These BOXSEATS behind the Cubs dugout for Game 7 of the World Series went for $15,000 each.

24. *At-your-desk assignment : SEATWORK now chains with 37. *Summertime destination for kids : DAYCAMP to make WORKDAY whose hours were the title of this movie

37. *Summertime destination for kids : DAYCAMP now chains with 50. *Building inspector's concern : FIRECODE to make CAMPFIRE - Everybody know the words to Kumbaya? 

50. *Building inspector's concern : FIRECODE now chains with the reveal 61. *As sequenced in this grid, what the answers to starred clues form : WORDCHAIN - to make CODEWORD - which is what Tom Hanks was seeking in The Da Vinci Code to open this cryptex. Do you remember what the CODE WORD was?

61. *As sequenced in this grid, what the answers to starred clues form : WORD CHAIN now links up with the first starred fill of 17. *TV screen film format : LETTERBOX to complete our chain and form the phrase CHAIN LETTER  - A 21st century annoyance

The puzzle and the theme made for a very pleasant solving experience. 

Across

1. Host who says, "Solve or spin" : SAJAK - A game show success and talk show failure

6. Possibilities : IF'S - If IF'S and but's were candy and nuts...

9. Apple remains : CORES - This gets right to the CORE of the matter

14. The Quakers of the Ivy League, briefly : U PENN

15. __-mo replay : SLO - Accuracy and game times both increase

16. Hairbrush target : SNARL

19. Biology dish eponym : PETRI - The PETRI dish in which Sir Alex Fleming saw bacteria being killed near a penicillium mold that grows on bread which of course led to the most used antibiotic in the world

20. __ Enterprise : USS

21. Very long periods : EONS

22. It may be carried in a boardroom : MOTION  - I move we order doughnuts!

23. Sit-up targets : ABS

26. Out : ASLEEP - The definitive book about last week's memorial whose 6. Card catalog ID : ISBN  is 13: 978-0140157345

29. Any'tizers Boneless Chicken Wyngz maker : TYSON 

30. Ben who plays an economics teacher in "Ferris Bueller's Day Off" : STEIN

31. Mata __ : HARI

33. Put on the cloud, say : SAVE

36. Luv : HON

40. Cut of lamb : LEG

41. Redheaded sitcom kid : OPIE - Ronnie Howard found more success behind the camera - including aforementioned The Da Vinci Code

43. Pre-owned : USED

44. Have credit from : OWE TO - "I OWE my soul TO the Company Store"

46. Shaped like a kiwi : OVATE

48. Sun Bowl city : EL PASO

53. Braz. neighbor : ARG

54. Says "Hi, sailor" to, say : FLIRTS - Get ready...

55. One-named Irish singer : BONO

57. Canonized Fr. female : STE - Catholic Online lists STE Joan of Arc as #23

60. Lo-cal brews : LITES

63. Japanese dog : AKITA

64. Plot device? : HOE 

65. Hard-to-understand "South Park" character : KENNY

66. Exams : TESTS

67. Gives the nod : OK'S

68. "Later!" : SEE YA - "Wouldn't wanna BE YA!"

Down

1. "Star Trek" role for Cho : SULU

2. Mirrors : APES - Remember this scene?

3. New York team that plays home games in New Jersey : JETS

4. Carpenter __ : ANT

5. Plié, for one : KNEE BEND

7. Oral-B Glide, e.g. : FLOSS

8. Name on a Chicago cap : SOX

9. Big bills, slangily : C-SPOTS - With many security features

10. Boxing combos : ONE TWOS

11. Bases : RATIONALES

12. "Oops!" inciter : ERROR - Personal advice - "Don't keep your throat spray next to your computer screen cleaner spray"

13. Sneak (away), as in shame : SLINK

18. Wine choice : ROSE'

22. Actress __ Bialik of "The Big Bang Theory" : MAYIM - She plays brilliant and plain Amy Farah Fowler 

23. "Aladdin" hero : ALI

25. Online investment service : E-TRADE

26. At the summit : ATOP

27. Ailment similar to spring fever : SENIORITIS  - Hey, they're 18 and know everything!

28. Course of action? : PHYS ED - Clever

30. "Shameless" airer, briefly : SHO

32. Versatile blackjack card : ACE

34. Presidential no : VETO 

35. Swelled head : EGO

38. VW and BMW : AUTOS

39. Fizzy candy : POP ROCKS

42. '50s-'60s Illinois senator Dirksen : EVERETT - It's easy to spend other people's money 

45. Tail movement : WAG

47. Steps in for : ACTS AS

49. Touch down : LAND

50. E equivalent, in music : F FLAT 

51. "Looking good!" : I LIKE

52. Reader's download : E-BOOK - Here's Julius Caesar in said format

56. Mined finds : ORES

57. Of sound mind : SANE

58. Teensy-weensy : TINY

59. One-named Irish singer : ENYA

61. "__ cares?" : WHO 

62. Half a giggle : HEE

There are no CHAIN OF FOOLS here and so I look forward to their comments:

Tuesday, December 13, 2016 C. C. Burnikel

Theme:

17. Of the poorest quality : THIRD CLASS. Skip class.

35. Novel or short story, say : LITERARY WORK. Skip work.

43. Fashionable dude : MAN ABOUT TOWN. Skip town. I saw the M and thought METRO SEXUAL. Nope.

62. Well-hit line drive, in baseball jargon : FROZEN ROPE. Skip rope.

50. "Never mind" ... or what one might do with the last word of 17-, 35-, 43- and 62-Across : SKIP IT

Melissa here. Another stellar offering from our C.C., with a clever theme. A mostly smooth ride, save for a few wrong turns that sorted out pretty easily.
 

Across

1. "And another thing ... " : ALSO

5. Up on the latest info : AWARE

10. Not yet paid : OWED

14. California wine valley : NAPA

15. Gathered, as autumn leaves : RAKED

16. Tree fruit : PEAR

19. The "I" in MIT: Abbr. : INST

20. Long stretch : EON

21. Communication syst. for the hearing-impaired : ASL

22. Jury __ : DUTY

23. Southern speech quality : DRAWL

25. Heart exam: Abbr. : ECG

28. One of the five basic tastes : UMAMI. From Wikipedia: a savory taste, is one of the five basic tastes (together with sweetness, sourness, bitterness, and saltiness). A loanword from the Japanese (うま味 ?), umami can be translated as "pleasant savory taste."

30. Inventor Howe : ELIAS

32. River through southern Russia : URAL

34. Armed conflict : WAR

38. "If I may cut in ... " : AHEM. First snag, needed perps.

41. Typically reddish-brown ape : ORANG

42. Varieties : ILKS

46. "The A-Team" muscleman : MR. T. Without the period, it doesn't make much sense does it? Our new kitten is responsible for the missing period key on my keyboard - now all my sentences will be run on sentences I mean I could just use other punctuation but I'll be questioning everything or exclaiming it, my posts will all become inquisitive and philosophical or just very exciting or I could play the semicolon game; but honestly who uses it like what does that even do you can't just end a sentence with a semicolon that's it I'm screwed;

47. Pet food brand : ALPO

48. Bottle parts : NECKS

51. "Waiting for Lefty" playwright Clifford : ODETS. Wikipedia.

  

53. Capote nickname : TRU

55. Calendar periods : WEEKS

57. Canadian tribe : CREE

58. Sgt., e.g. : NCO

60. Zero : NIL

61. Dog treat : BONE

66. Choice on the fairway : IRON

67. Ruined : DID IN

68. Big Apple stage award : OBIE. Honoring excellence in off-Broadway and off-off Broadway theatre.

69. Like morning grass : DEWY

70. Well-practiced : ADEPT

71. Politician Romney : MITT

Down

1. Fed the pot : ANTED

2. Pakistani city : LAHORE

Second largest city in Pakistan, and home of the famous Liberty Market:

 3. Kind of column or cord : SPINAL. Or tap.

4. Dinghy blade : OAR

5. Fly ball paths : ARCS

6. 2008 Pixar robot : WALLE

7. Letters before an alias : AKA

8. Hi-__ graphics : RES. Tripped up here with DEF first.

9. Magazine VIPs : EDs

10. Poppy narcotic : OPIUM

11. Left the 44-Down sans permission : WENT AWOL

12. Patsy : EASY MARK

13. Richard Gere title role : DR. T

18. __ Lama : DALAI

 22. Fittingly : DULY

24. The name Fred yells at the end of "The Flintstones" closing theme song : WILMA

26. Museum manager : CURATOR

27. Research funding : GRANT

29. Bugs : IRKS. Nice crossing of ILKS and IRKS.

31. Happy hour perch : STOOL

33. Noble gas : ARGON

36. Blow up : ERUPT

37. Pained reaction : WINCE

38. Rifle range rounds : AMMO

39. Dyed-in-the-wool : HARDCORE

40. Words to click on at a sweepstakes website : ENTER NOW

44. Army outpost : BASE. Not FORT.

45. Cry of victory : WE WON

49. Jedi Master Obi-Wan __ : KENOBI

52. Itsy-bitsy : TEENY. W or T?

54. Open, as a parka : UNZIP

56. Icy precipitation : SLEET

59. Small change : CENT

61. eBay action : BID

62. Big Pharma watchdog: Abbr. : FDA

63. Cleared (of) : RID

64. Poem of praise : ODE

65. CD-__ : ROM

Monday, December 12, 2016 Michael Dewey

Theme: TWEET! - Those aren't birds tweeting.

20A. Locomotive operators: TRAIN ENGINEERS

25A. Singer for the cops?: POLICE INFORMANT

47A. Gridiron adjudicator: FOOTBALL REFEREE

52A. What 20-, 25- and 47-Across all are, in one way or another: WHISTLE BLOWERS

Argyle here. Unusual; the first three are needed to reveal the fourth, the unifier of the theme. I do like Michael's puzzles. I like the whole answer being theme, not just a part of it.

Across:

1. On the __: broken: FRITZ. Now there's a word to start the week on.

6. Dressed (in): CLAD

10. Quail or turkey, e.g.: FOWL. Ok, there are birds tweeting, sort of.

14. Prefix with economics: MACRO

15. Impulse: URGE

16. "Yeah, sure": "I BET"

17. Do over 60 in Hawaii, say: SPEED. Vermont, too. Any others?

18. Upsurge: BOOM

19. Null and __: VOID

23. Lao Tzu's "way": TAO

24. Republican org.: GOP

34. Flower painted by van Gogh: IRIS

35. Burns with hot liquid: SCALDS

36. Mai __: TAI

37. One who shuns company: LONER. Prefers solitude.

39. Many a Monopoly prop.: AVEnue

40. Kick out: EJECT

42. "Brokeback Mountain" director Lee: ANG. Ang Lee

43. Snoozing: ASLEEP

46. Rank between viscount and marquis: EARL

50. Motor City labor gp.: UAW. (United Automobile Workers)

51. Preacher's msg.: SERmon

60. Billiards triangle: RACK

61. "Garfield" pooch: ODIE

62. Paradises: EDENS

64. Lotion additive: ALOE

65. __ monster: lizard: GILA

66. "Rabbit food" course: SALAD

67. Remain undecided: PEND

68. Staircase part: STEP

69. Sporty sunroofs: T-TOPS

Down:

1. Radio choices: FMs. (frequency modulation)

2. Completely engrossed: RAPT

3. Bakery employee: ICER

4. Dissertation: TREATISE

5. It has a dozen signs: ZODIAC

6. Ice tray unit: CUBE

7. Scientologist Hubbard: L. RON

8. Intensely eager: AGOG

9. Divine-human hybrid: DEMIGOD. List of demigods, if you care to see if your name is there.

10. Quitting hr. for many: FIVE PM

11. Double-reed instrument: OBOE

12. Flow-altering dam: WEIR

13. Former Ford models: LTDs

21. Thumbs-down votes: NOes

22. Like Eric or Leif: NORSE

25. Rice dish: PILAF

26. Home of the University of Maine: ORONO

27. Jargon: LINGO

28. Poker wager-matching response: "I CALL"

29. Bellybutton: NAVEL

30. Baseball card rival of Topps: FLEER

31. On __: rampaging: A TEAR

32. Mother-of-pearl: NACRE

33. Owner's document: TITLE

38. Morocco's capital: RABAT

41. Made heckling remarks to: JEERED AT

44. Snooze loudly: SAW LOGS

45. Mexicali money: PESO

48. Like warthogs and walruses: TUSKED

49. Smallest number: FEWEST

52. Rolled-up sandwich: WRAP

53. In good health: HALE

54. Venerated image: ICON. A religious work of art.

55. Proofreader's change: EDIT

56. Irascibility: BILE

57. Jump: LEAP

58. Move, in Realtor-speak: RELO. (relocation)

59. Go off the deep end: SNAP

63. Vietnam War protest gp.: SDS. (Students for a Democratic Society)

Argyle

Sunday December 11, 2016 Jeffrey Wechsler

Theme: "Lend Me Your Ears" - EAR is added to each theme entry.

22A. Candy served on a corporate blimp? : GOODYEAR GUMDROPS. Goody gumdrops. We also have Goodyear's headquarters AKRON (45. City on the Ohio and Erie Canal).

36A. Often censored musical groups? : SWEARING BANDS. Swing bands.

67A. Rather uninspired cocktail? : DREARY MARTINI. Dry martini.

95A. What happens at the southern terminus of Interstate 65? : MOBILE APPEARS. Mobile app.

115A. Pair of lustrous Kleenex? : TWO PEARLY TISSUES. Two-ply tissues.

 

15D. First asp most likely to bite when the group is disturbed? : NEAREST OF VIPERS. Nest of vipers is a new phrase to me.

42D. How sundaes are often served? : BEARING CHERRIES. Bing cherries. I would not know how to clue the entry to give it surface sense.

Jeffrey has been raising the bar on letter addition gimmick. No one-letter for him. Most of his puzzles has 3 or more letter strings. Very hard to pull off. He's a master. 

The ten 8-letter fill really shine in this grid. Eight of them are stacked in a 140-word grid. Stunning.

Across:   

1. "That's a __" : SHAME. Tricky clue, as the answer could be BIG IF, FIRST, GIVEN, etc.  

6. Brie-ripening agent : BACTERIA

14. SASEs, e.g. : ENCs

18. Skulking milieu, with "the" : SHADOWS. This is a new expression for me.

20. Considering identical : EQUATING

21. Aviation prefix : AERO

24. "Better Call ___" : SAUL. "Breaking Bad" spinoff.

25. Fine netting : TULLE. Named after the French city where it's first made.

26. Discipline that often emphasizes breathing : YOGA

27. LAX report : ETA

28. "Rigoletto" composer : VERDI

29. Uses a rudder : STEERS

31. "Say it soft and it's almost like praying" song : MARIA. "West Side Story".

34. "Success!" : I MADE IT. Sparkling fill.

40. Former NBA exec Jackson : STU. Don't know him.

41. Network with its HQ in Ottawa : CBC

44. Very long time : EON

46. Put into words : STATED

48. Harvest units : SHEAVES

50. Airline with blue-striped jets : EL AL. What's the best airline you've flown?

52. Get bluffed out, say : LOSE

53. Biblical landing site : ARARAT

54. __ agent : SECRET

58. Disengaged : ALOOF

61. Element #5 : BORON

62. Quotable late athlete : BERRA

63. "In spades!" : IS IT EVER. Another great fill.

66. Label for the Swedish duo Roxette : EMI. Guessed.

71. Suffix with concert : INO. Not INA.

72. Prom limo, e.g. : RENT A CAR

74. Alberto VO5 competitor : BRECK. I use neither.

75. Barcelona bar fare : TAPAS

77. Fancy dos : GALAS. Not hairdos. Look at her braids. Lovely.

78. Rusty nail liquor : SCOTCH. Here is the recipe. With Drambuie.

80. Ancient warship with two decks of oars : BIREME. Learned from doing crosswords.

81. Connect with the space station : DOCK

83. Eucalyptus, for one : TREE

85. Bucket list list : DESIRES. They're indeed all desires.

86. Ready to mate : IN HEAT

89. 2005 "Survivor" island : PALAU

92. Nemo's realm : SEA

93. High-speed letters : DSL. I'm jealous of TTP's high speed.

94. Stroke from Venus? : ACE. Venus Williams.

99. Relevant : GERMANE

101. Iraqi port : BASRA

102. Fluid transfer tool : SIPHON

107. Jones with nine Grammys : NORAH

108. Ring legend : ALI

111. Italian man : UOMO. I know it simply because of Giovanna, who used to be the editor of L'Uomo Vogue. Leggy, but she just got married, Splynter!

113. Sycophant : TOADY

114. "Amores" author : OVID. Also 23. Like 114-Across : ROMAN

119. Oracle : SEER

120. Thwart bigtime : SABOTAGE. Another great fill.

121. Take umbrage : BRISTLE. Ditto.

122. Celtic language : ERSE

123. Landscape ruiners : EYESORES. Ditto.

124. Prepare for a dubbing : KNEEL

Down:

 1. Make oneself heard : SHOUT

2. Oahu outsider : HAOLE. Cantonese call foreigners "Gweilo", literally "Ghost". Derogatory in its origin, but no negative tone these days.  

3. Confuse : ADDLE

4. Press secretary under LBJ : MOYERS (Bill). We also have 43. LBJ biographer Robert __ : CARO. I learned quite a bit about LBJ from Caro's "Fresh Air" interview.

5. Pastoral parent : EWE

6. Nonchooser? : BEGGAR. Saw similar clue before. So no problem.

7. Some tanks : AQUARIA. Spell check needs to recognize that this is a word.

8. Magna __ laude : CUM

9. Little bit : TAD

10. French 101 infinitive : ETRE

11. Card relative? : RIOT. This "Card" clue gets me all the time.  

12. Hurting : IN PAIN

13. Power players in state law: Abbr. : AGs

14. Brought slowly (into) : EASED

16. Bite-size veggies : CRUDITES. Great use of the bell pepper.

17. What loners seek : SOLITUDE

18. Snorkel and his peers: Abbr. : SGTs

19. "As I'm thinking about it ... " : SAY

28. Sprawling : VAST

30. "I like that!" : SWEET!

32. It's held in a pen : INK. Not PIG.

33. Share an opinion : AGREE. Boomer unfriended a friend because of political differences.

35. OR personnel : MDs

37. Dawn goddess : EOS

38. Head for the hills : BOLT

39. Tokyo-based airline : ANA (All Nippon Airways)

41. Auto design element : CHROME

47. Natural emollient : ALOE

48. Napoleonic Wars weapon : SABER

49. Property destroyer : VANDAL

51. Ophthalmologist's procedure : LASIK. Any of you had LASIK surgery?

54. Cook, as scallops : SEAR

55. Make the wrong move : ERR

56. Overreact to spilt milk : CRY

57. Film series Vietnam veteran : RAMBO. Also 59. Vietnam Veterans Memorial designer : LIN

60. Canal problem? : OTITIS. Ear canal.

62. Creature : BEAST

63. Bite result, often : ITCH. Our Saturday flea market is located in a big plot of farmland full of trees and weeds. Man, the mosquitoes are wild.

64. Cookware coating : ENAMEL

65. Gift from a lover : ROSES

68. 45 rpm record pioneer : RCA

69. Busts and such : ART. Also 85. Busting org. : DEA

70. __ room : REC

73. Receipts : TAKE

76. Parched : ARID

78. Salmon predator : SEAL. 80. Salmon predators : BEARS. Another clue echo.

79. "E! News" subject : CELEB

81. Evaluate symptoms : DIAGNOSE

82. Superficial look : ONCE-OVER

84. Venerable N.Y. tech school : RPI. Alma mater for Spitzboov.

87. Eastern nursemaid : AMAH. We just had this last Sunday.

88. Cargo measure : TON

90. Gp. following gas prices : AAA

91. Rapid increase : UPSURGE

92. Of ill repute : SEAMY

96. Leave town for a bit : BE AWAY. Not fond of this BE AWAY or IS BAD type of answer.

97. "1984" working class : PROLES. We just had the singular PROLE last month.

98. Audits a course, say : SITS IN

100. Familia member : MADRE

103. Western sheriff's aid : POSSE

104. __ cuisine : HAUTE

105. 1961 Newbery Medal winner Scott __ : O'DELL. For this book.

106. Where KO means Coca-Cola : NYSE. 110. 106-Down debuts : IPOs

109. Brain segment : LOBE

112. Gambling option in many sts. : OTB

115. "The Waste Land" monogram : TSE (T. S. Eliot)

116. DDE's command : ETO

117. River within Switzerland : AAR

118. Drive up the wall : IRK. Our "Hot Cooktop" (GE smoothtop range) light stays on hours after we're done cooking. Very annoying. YouTube has a solution. But too complicated. I think we'll wait until the light burns out.  

C.C.