Friday, June 2, 2017, Paul Coulter

Title: It's all backasswards!

4 in the language two-word phrases have the words reversed and are then re-clued to match the new phrase. This is the third Friday from Paul this year and each have featured a a combination of two words. It is also the first time HG did not blog one of these in my stead but I have enjoyed all of them. Thank you HG, and I return with lots of short fill that is not easy. There are some nice 7 and longer fill such as BEAN BAG,  FOX NEWS,  ALSO RAN,  IDEA MEN,  LIGATES,  ELUSIVE, KLEENEX,  CABINET,  ELASTIN,  OGREISH but some of the shorter fill are very challenging. MOAS, KIRS, MILOS, SPRIT and GIGUE - I look forward to the crowd response.

19A. *Idle : NOTHING DOING (12). Doing Nothing is what makes one idle.

27A. *Athlete's time-out on a hot day : BREAK WATER (10). A Water Break feels good these days here in sunny South Florida.

34A. *Maestro's signals : BEATS DOWN (9). Down Beat is the downward stroke of a conductor's arm or baton indicating the first or accented beat of a measure. Various.

44A. *Returned : BACK HANDED (10). Handed Back is how you return things.

The reveal:

51A. "Nice" expression ... and a hint to the answers to starred clues : TURN OF PHRASE (12).
I do love a reveal that brings what seems like a meaningless bunch of fill together in a sensible fashion.

Across:

1. Prickly case : BUR. I learned this word from the old westerns on TV where the bad guy would put a BUR under the saddle of the good guy.

4. Retired flier : SST.

7. Wombat relatives : KOALAS. Not sure why but I knew this.

13. Pittsburgh-to-Scranton dir. : ENE.

14. School gp. : PTA. Parent  Teacher Association.

15. "Hannity" airer : FOX NEWS.

16. Loser : ALSO RAN.

18. Thoughtful guys? : IDEA MEN. Mad Men?

21. Crow : BOAST.

22. Protein producer : RNA.

23. "Eldorado" rockers : ELO. Electric Light Orchestra.

26. Communiqué segue : AS TO.

31. "Holy cow" : GEE.

32. Extinct New Zealanders : MOAS. The fooled me for a while making me think of people not the BIRDS.

33. Court call : ORDER.

37. "Amadeus" director Forman : MILOS. An amazing man who directed 8 different actors who were nominated for best actor, three won.  BIO.

40. Sushi kitchen supply : EELS.

41. Albanian coin : LEK. I think I have a few in my pocket.

47. See 20-Down : KILL. 20D. With 47-Across, in a drop-dead gorgeous outfit : DRESSED TO. DRESSED TO KILL.

48. "Go on ... " : AND.

49. In shape : FIT.

50. Lively French dance : GIGUE. I am part French but did not know this DANCE.
.
55. Group that's mostly secretaries : CABINET. The best clue of the puzzle.

58. Protein that allows skin to stretch or contract : ELASTIN. If you know elastic....

59. Monstrous : OGREISH.

60. Get into : DON.

61. Time to prepare : EVE.

62. Scarcity : DEARTH. Nice $5.00 word.

63. Marienbad, for one : SPA. I think only Tinman knew this RESORT.

64. Census datum : SEX.

Down:

1. Dorm room seat : BEAN BAG. We all had them, mine was red vinyl.

2. Let free : UNLOOSE.

3. Put another way : RESTATE.

4. Nautical pole : SPRIT. (nautical) a light spar pivoted at the mast and crossing a fore-and-aft quadrilateral sail diagonally to the peak.

5. "South Park" boy : STAN.

6. Pungency : TANG.

7. Big bear : KODIAK.

8. Big bovines : OXEN. Back again.

9. Course for Crusoe?: Abbr. : ANAGram.

10. The Eagle, briefly : LEM(onade?) Nope, Lunar Excursion Module.

11. Amazement : AWE.

12. 81-yr.-old ID : SSN. Social Security Number.

15. Musical Apple : FIONA.

17. Quite : OH SO.

23. LAX posting : ETD. ETA ETD, flip a coin or wait.

24. "Malcolm X" director : LEE. Spike.

25. "Catch-22" pilot : ORR. A very good read.

27. Fluffy accessory : BOA.

28. Double-crosser : RAT. The best...WATCH

29. Blows away : WOWS.

30. Prince Valiant's son : ARN. A puzzle favorite for many years and last week.

32. Dovetail : MESH.

34. __ choy : BOK.   Bok choy or pak choi is a type of Chinese cabbage. Chinensis varieties do not form heads and have smooth, dark green leaf blades instead, forming a cluster reminiscent of mustard greens or celery

35. Sandra who was the first to play "Gidget" : DEE.

36. Dated : OLD. Some date young.

37. CEO's degree : MBA.

38. McKellen of "X-Men" : IAN. And Harry Potter , the Hobbit, and Beauty and  they Beast and more.

39. TV screen type : LCD.

41. Ties surgically : LIGATES. The root word for ligature.

42. Hard to pin down : ELUSIVE.

43. Soft tissue : KLEENEX.

45. From the top : AFRESH. An A word.

46. Beethoven's __ : NINTH.

47. White wine apéritifs : KIRS. This is a drink made from dry white wine and crème de cassis.

50. Ivory Coast neighbor : GHANA.

51. Bleacher feature : TIER.

52. Ton, for one : UNIT.

53. Govt. enforcers : FEDS.

54. Fall, as into a chair : PLOP.

55. Whiting cousin : COD. The fish of fish and chips.

56. Sensitive subject, to some : AGE.

57. Source of support : BRA. Nice clue. And time to go.

I enjoyed this work out, but it has left me drained, so I bid you adieu. Lemonade out. Thanks Paul.

Thursday June 1st 2017 Agnes Davidson & C.C. Burnikel

Theme: Hide from GOgres: Three kinds of bedding, three little words hiding beneath them.

As  you can see in the grid, the word "GO" is found beneath three sets of covers as the reveal explains:

62A. What narcs may do ... or what can literally be found in three pairs of puzzle answers : GO UNDER COVER

Agnes, AKA Irish Miss here on the blog and C.C. back with another joint effort. Neat theme and smooth fill. I did look a little askance at "EMB" but it's not an uncommon entry, so no harm, no foul. What else? Let's hide and go seek:

Across:

1. Wines that can be white or red : PINOTS. Pinot Noir and Pinot Grigio, for example. Some of the best Pinot Noirs come from the Santa Ynez Valley here in California. I go up there wine tasting two or three times a year. I've got a couple of 2010's in magnum that I should be thinking about drinking soon. Here's one signed by the winemaker, Kathy Joseph.

7. Greetings : HI'S

10. Lighthouse view : SEA

13. Widely recognized : ICONIC. Nice word, nice letter progression for a crossword.

14. Sleep on it : SERTA. Mattress brand.

16. Immediate caregiver, briefly : EMT

17. Highlighted publication part : CENTER SPREAD. Fresh entry, never before seen in the LAT, and a themer to boot.

19. "All Things Considered" airer : NPR

20. Mongrel : CUR

21. Brest bestie : AMIE. Brittany port city. It's really an effort to go to Brest, it's on the west coast of France and not on the way to anywhere else. Any further and you'll fall into the Atlantic Ocean.

22. Howe of hockey : GORDIE. GO Gordie!

24. Singer DiFranco : ANI

25. Halves of some master-servant relationships : GENII. If I tell you that my first try for 6D was SCRAP, then you'll understand why I was a little surprised when a different word appeared here.

27. Little pitchers have big ones, per an old maxim : EARS

28. Pioneering computer : ENIAC. A few computer throwback entries today. All a stroll in the park for me.

30. Stick-in-the-mud : WET BLANKET

33. Cabbage : MOOLAH

35. Insect stage : IMAGO. GO insect emerging from your pupa!

36. Quarterback Roethlisberger : BEN. Pittsburgh Steelers' signal-caller.

37. Nice and easy : NO HASSLE

40. Degree for Dr. Oz : MBA, And an MD. He obtained both degrees when he graduated from Penn in 1984. That's quite some achievement.

43. Southwestern lizards : GILAS

44. Traveling from gig to gig : ON TOUR. I saw U2 on their "Joshua Tree" tour at the Rose Bowl the weekend before last. That's quite a tour, I lost count of the number of big rigs that trucked in the staging and lighting and were parked outside the bowl.

46. Score keeper? : SHEET MUSIC. Nice clue.

51. Takes care of : TENDS

52. Boss of fashion : HUGO. GO suit designer!

53. Procedures involving suction, familiarly : LIPOS

55. FDR agency : NRA

56. "How nice!" : I'M GLAD

59. Bridge, e.g. : GAME. Took a while for the penny to drop on this one.

60. Dandy : FOP

61. Sought office : RAN

66. "Microsoft sound" composer : ENO. Brian, co-producer of  "The Joshua Tree" album. Here's the opening track.

67. Meanies : OGRES

68. Result of a big hit : BRUISE

69. Circle div. : SEG.

70. Vicious of the Sex Pistols : SID. The various "Sid and Nancy" documentaries were fascinating and depressing all at the same time.

71. Levels of society : STRATA

Down:

1. Short movie? : PIC

2. Quebec Winter Carnival race vehicle : ICE CANOE. Total guess. Never heard of one. Looks like hard work!

3. Like some workers in an open shop : NON-UNION. Was thinking along the "suntanned" or "frostbitten" lines at first.

4. Seeking exoneration, in a way : ON TRIAL

5. Deadlock : TIE

6. Skinny sort : SCRAG

7. "I found the place!" : HERE IT IS!

8. Wrath : IRE

9. Deer fellow : STAG

10. "Where the Wild Things Are" author : SENDAK

11. Rome, once : EMPIRE

12. Not moving : AT REST

14. Chiropractor's concern : SPINE

15. Bother : ADO

18. Fish-eating duck : SMEW. Pretty-looking thing, unless you're a fish.

23. Truckee Meadows city : RENO. I thought it was a city in its own right, but nope, it's part of Reno.

26. Pioneering PCs : IBMS. They set the standard for commercially-available personal computers. We got one of the first when I worked at a bank in London. We found we had to go buy the operating system DOS which didn't come in the box and the computer didn't have a hard drive, just two floppy drives. Ever wondered why your hard drive is drive C? That's because the two floppies were A and B.

28. Diplomatic HQ : EMB.

29. "Oh, be quiet!" : CAN IT!

31. Composer Schifrin : LALO. Thank you, crosses.

32. Secret Service title : AGENT. I think there was a chance to cross-reference this with the puzzle reveal; perhaps Agnes and C.C. decided against it.

34. Fighter Holly who ended Ronda Rousey's undefeated streak : HOLM. I wouldn't want to run into either of them in a bad mood in a dark alley.

38. Schlep : HAUL

39. Given as homework : ASSIGNED

40. African capital named for an American president : MONROVIA. Learning moment. The capital of Liberia and one of only two national capitals to be named for a U.S. president. Hmm, I wonder which is the other?

41. Capital on the Danube : BUDAPEST. Two cities, Buda and Pest as we've explored before.

42. Horace's "__ Poetica" : ARS

43. Natural sci. : GEOL

45. "Copy that" : TEN-FOUR

46. British counties : SHIRES. A lot of them, but not all. Devon, Cornwall, Avon, Essex, Norfolk are some non-conformists that spring to mind. And remember the lesson I taught you about how to pronounce Worcestershire? You can apply the same principals to Leicestershire. Now Hertfordshire, Herefordshire and Hampshire? A dearth of hurricanes. Also, a dearth of enunciating "shire" in the first two counties. Good luck trying to figure out.

47. Compassionate : HUMANE

48. Creamy quaff : EGG NOG. Staple of the holiday season.

49. Popular tablets : IPADS

50. Show up : COME

54. Some Croatians : SERBS

57. In the past : AGO

58. Ballpark fare : DOGS. GO Dodgers! Or should that be OG Dodgers?!

63. The Rams of the Atlantic 10 Conf. : URI. University of Rhode Island.

64. Old PC component : CRT. Cathode Ray Tube display.

65. Blues-rocker Chris : REA. Let's play out with one of his hits.

That was a fun ride, definitely not a "Road to Hell" - here's the grid!

Steve

Wednesday, May 31, 2017 Samuel A. Donaldson

Theme: here is it is in full.

Amendment I. Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.

20. 2010 Best Picture Oscar winner : THE KING'S SPEECH.

27. Become born-again, perhaps : GET RELIGION.

37. United Nations gathering : GENERAL ASSEMBLY.

44. Self-publishing option : VANITY PRESS.

The theme fill contain some of the key words of the specified rights, and the unifier seals the deal.

52. Source of the freedoms found at the ends of this puzzle's four other longest answers : FIRST AMENDMENT.  Of the Constitution of the United States of America.

Well, here we have the two things that we do not discuss here - politics and religion. We do need to report on and discuss the content of the puzzle - and most particularly the theme - but let's all please respect the spirit of the ground rules.  The theme is well timed, coming during the week of Memorial Day.

So, let us ASSEMBLE our wits, PRESS on, and SPEAK FREELY about the rest of this puzzle.

Across

1. Resorts with body wraps : SPAS.  Saunas, towels and robes.

5. Hook-shaped ski lift : J-BAR.  

9. Canon setting : F STOP.  The ratio of a camera's focal length to the diameter of its aperture, hence a dimensionless number relating to lens speed.

14. Formal agreement : PACT.  Treaty, deal, settlement.

15. Deep sea predator : ORCA.  AKA killer whale

16. PEN/Faulkner, for one : AWARD.   Recognition for achievement.

17. Wastes away : ATROPHIES.  Withers, shrives, shrinks.

19. Beantown team : CELTS.  Pro basketball.

22. Env. insert : ENClosure.

23. Former Mississippi senator Trent : LOTT.  Was in the House of Representatives from 1972 to 1988, then in the Senate from 1989 to 2007.  In 2008, opened a lobbying firm with former Senator John Breaux.  Careful, now.  More politics.

24. Post-J.D. degree : LLM.  Legum Magister, Latin for Master of Laws.  [In Latin the plural of a word is abbreviated by repeating the initial.]

33. Ready for a kick, with "up" : TEED.  In football, a kick off is generally executed with the ball placed on a kicking tee.

35. Society page word : NEE.   From the French word for "born," generally referring to a married woman's maiden name.

36. City bonds, for short : MUNIS.  Municipal Bonds are securities issued by a local authority to finance a capital project.  The are frequently exempt from federal taxation.

41. Layer with a hole : OZONE.  An upper atmospheric layer. 

42. Pocatello sch. : ISU.  Idaho State University.  Their mascot is Benny the Bengal.

43. "The Da Vinci Code" priory : SION.  Well - this is confusing.

48. Health products chain : GNC.  General Nutrition Center.

49. One who may converse in Erse : GAEL. Gaelic person from Ireland or Scotland. 

50. Top bond rating : AAA.  Indicating the highest degree of credit worthiness.

59. Argue with : JAW AT.  

60. One selling wheels : CAR DEALER.   "Wheels" being vernacular for a vehicle.

61. Online party notice : E-VITE.  A portmanteau of electronic and invitation.

62. Pelee Island's lake : ERIE.  Located in Canadian waters, but for me, this hits close to home.

63. Zilch : ZERO.  Nada, nuthin'.

64. Decreases in strength : WANES.   Or any other measurable characteristic.

65. Phone-answering asst. : SEC'Y.  Administrative Assistant.

66. Social sci. major : ECONomics.  The flip side of the political coin.

Down

1. Cross words : SPAT.  An argument.

2. Way to go : PATH.  A route from point A to point B.

3. Farm fraction : ACRE.  Land area measure.

4. Feed with fuel : STOKE.  Specifically, solid fuel, as coal.

5. WWE wrestler in the film "Trainwreck" : JOHN CENA.  No idea.

6. Naval lockup : BRIG.   Jail on a ship.

7. Pocket rockets, at the poker table : ACES.  A holding of pocket aces in the game of Hold 'em.

8. Fight, in the sticks : RASSLE.  Wrestle, in the city.

9. Video chat option : FACE TIME.  Proprietary Apple app.

10. Trees with fragrant sap : SWEET GUMS.

11. Gymnast's powder : TALC.   Used to absorb moisture and as a dry lubricant.

12. Straight: Pref. : ORTH.  From the Greek.

13. Troopers' gps. : PDs.  Police Departments.

18. Troubling engine sound : PING.

21. D.C. figure : POLitician.

24. No. 2 at the statehouse : LT. GOV.  Lieutenant Governor.

25. Talk show host who won "The Celebrity Apprentice" in 2015, familiarly : LEEZA.  Gibbons.

26. Runners occupying bases : MEN ON.  They want to go home, but often do not get there.

28. No. in a contacts list : TELephone.

29. Broadcast again : REAIR.

30. With a lot at stake : IN BIG.   As a wager or financed deal.

31. Rub __: lubricate : OIL ON.

32. "Bye Bye Bye" boy band : NSYNC.  Mainly popular in the late 90's

34. Bad-mouth : DENIGRATE.  Disparage, belittle, denigrate.

38. Samples again, during cooking : RETASTES.  This entry feels awfully strained, and not especially in the language.

39. Memphis-to-Mobile dir. : SSE.   Tennessee to Alabama.

40. "The Partridge Family" actress : SUSAN DEY.  [b 1952]

Stock photo

45. To date : YET.  Up to now.

46. Pre-curtain call : PLACES.  Everyone get into position.

47. "Smooth Operator" singer : SADE.

51. Floor : AMAZE.  Frex: I was floored by that revelation.

52. Broad bean : FAVA.  Pairs well with a nice Chianti.

53. Triumphant shout : I WIN.

54. Stable mother : MARE.  Just horsing around.

55. Old Norse explorer : ERIC.  When you get exiled for being too obnoxious even for the Vikings to put up with, you might as well go sight seeing.

56. Util. bill : ELECtricity.

57. Detective Wolfe : NERO.  Created by Rex Stout.

58. 1982 sci-fi film with a 2010 sequel : TRON.

59. Passover observer : JEW.  Start with politics, end with religion.  Passover commemorates the Israelites departure from ancient Egypt.

Well, folks, that wraps up another Wednesday.  Hope you were able to exercise your freedoms and still get through the puzzle without too many arguments.

Cool Regards!
JzB

Tuesday, May 30, 2017 Alex Eaton-Salners

Theme" You Can Take That To The Bank - You have a nice selection of banks to choose from.

17A. Mike and Carol's blended TV family: BRADY BUNCH. Branch Bank.

27A. Musical group with conga drums: SALSA BAND. Sandbank, of Provincial Park Ontario.

32A. Had a religious awakening: FOUND GOD. Food Bank.

45A. Lost it all: WENT BUST. West Bank, Paris. Palestine/Israel West Bank. Thank you, CanadianEh!

53A. Where to learn to crawl?: SWIM CLASS. Swiss Bank, where you're a number, not a name.

61A. Kitty Hawk locale ... and what the circled letters graphically represent: OUTER BANKS. Off the coast of North Carolina and Virginia.

Argyle here. If you don't have the circles, the outer letters of the themes form a type of bank.

Across:

1. Lather on lattes: FOAM

5. Stage performer: ACTOR

10. Tag sale tag words: AS IS

14. A6 automaker: AUDI

15. Prepare (oneself), as for a shock: BRACE

16. Gridiron strategy: PUNT

19. __ Major: URSA. The Big Dipper.

20. "Mamma __!": 5-Down musical: MIA. Abba.

21. Chinese currency: YUAN. Wiki.

23. Season ticket holder, probably: FAN

24. Willem of "American Psycho": DAFOE.  Spider-Man's "Green Goblin".

29. Share parts with: OVERLAP

31. HBO's "Game of __": THRONES

34. Fish-and-chips fish: COD

35. Start of some email subj. lines: FWD. (forward)

36. Military day's march: ETAPE. Hello old friend.

39. __ jar: TIP

42. Upper limb: ARM

48. In any case: AT LEAST

52. Sticks (to): ADHEREs

55. Hungry, probably: UNFED

56. "For __ a jolly ... ": HE'S

57. Japanese noodle: SOBA

58. Texter's "Yikes!": "OMG!"

59. Folk singer Seeger: PETE

66. "Got it, man": "I DIG". Hippy talk.

67. Dinner holder: PLATE

68. "Star Wars" princess: LEIA

69. Tickle Me Elmo toy company: TYCO

70. Clout: SAY SO

71. Risqué message: SEXT. A text message of a suggestive nature.

Down:

1. Adjective for a British Invasion foursome: FAB. The Beatles!

2. Couple's possessive: OUR

3. Oral health org.: ADA. (American Dental Association)

4. Around 10:00 a.m.: MIDMORN

5. "Dancing Queen" pop group: ABBA

6. Grand __: wine label words: CRU. A wine that displays this label is supposed to exhibit (translated into English) Great Growth.

7. Country singer Tucker: TANYA

8. Paranormal: OCCULT

9. Discuss to death: REHASH

10. "The Simpsons" shop owner: APU

11. Steak-lobster combo, on menus: SURF AND TURF

12. Off the wall: INSANE

13. Where season ticket holders sit: STANDS

18. Triangular road sign: YIELD

22. Drug cop: NARC

24. Remove respectfully, as a hat: DOFF

25. Say openly: AVOW

26. Like medieval Europe's social structure: FEUDALISTIC

27. Catch sight of: SPOT

28. Heckler's cry: BOO

30. Grow old: AGE

33. Margery of kids' rhyme: DAW

Seesaw Margery Daw

Johnny shall have a new master

He shall earn but a penny a day

Because he can't work any faster

37. Pod veggies: PEAs

38. Cease: END

40. "Oh, of course!": "I SEE!". Echo of 66-Across.

41. Combat vet's affliction, briefly: PTSD. (Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder)

43. Dream letters: REM. (rapid eye movement)

44. Apple computers: MACs

46. Hitchhiker's digit: THUMB

47. Cincinnati NFL team: BENGALS

48. Chimney receptacle: ASH PIT

49. Like some hunting jackets: TWEEDY

50. Single-masted ships: SLOOPS. Remember, "We come on the Sloop John B".

51. __ rasa: clean slate: TABULA

54. Skewered Indonesian dish: SATAY.  Various sauces but mainly peanut sauce.

58. Twistable cookie: OREO

60. Self-worth: EGO

62. UFO crew, supposedly: ETs. (extraterrestrials)

63. Alumna bio word: NEE

64. "Kid Tested" cereal: KIX

65. Minded the kids: SAT

Argyle