Monday October 7, 2019 Jeff Stillman

Theme: Letter Openers - The first word in each person is also a letter spelled out.

20. Diane Keaton's role in "The Godfather" films: KAY CORLEONE.

33. "Maude" star: BEA ARTHUR.

39. Fitzgerald's "Great" title character: JAY GATSBY.

50. "Maleficent" actress: ELLE FANNING.

Boomer here.  OH GEE, I hope YOU ARE able to figure it out and have a cup of TEA. 

Up here in the Northland, we continue to set records for annual rainfall.  Sooo you know where it goes.. to a bunch of Minnesota streams and tributary rivers to the Mississippi. So If you are near Davenport Iowa or St. Louis Missouri and points further south.  Get ready, high water may be coming your way.  Worse than 1993.

Across:

1. Only president who was also chief justice: TAFT.  He was also the largest president, tipping the scales at over 330 lbs.

5. Storage structure for 30-Across: SHED. 30. Lawn cutters: MOWERS.  My family had no money for a shed.  We kept the mower in our garage.  Now our homeowners association hires a lawn service to cut the grass.  I am sure this year they are tired of the deluge of rain we have had all summer.  As for me, I can hardly get a dry day to play golf.  P.S. My golf clubs are in the garage.  We don't have a shed.

9. Hindu social division: CASTE.

14. Go back, on a PC: UNDO.  This must be a trick.  I don't see an UNDO key on our PC.

15. Arizona tribe: HOPI.

16. A, in Greece: ALPHA.

17. Match audio and video: SYNC.  If you do this in your bathroom, is it a bathroom sync?

18. Frat Pack actor Wilson: OWEN.

19. Fish stories: TALES.  Fish have tails.

23. Embitterment: IRE.

24. Raid targets: ANTS. Ants are interesting. I have never seen them in our home, but it is unbelievable how they can work right through our asphalt driveway and make a hill.

25. Gave speeches: ORATED.  We'll be hearing a lot of this up until November 2020.

27. Desert plant: CACTUS.

32. Southwestern crocks: OLLAS.

36. Boston Celtics' org.: NBA.  Notice the clue does not say "Timberwolves' org."  We have a lowly bunch of underperformers here in the Midwest.

37. Harness racing vehicle: SULKY.  We do have harness racing here after the regular season closes.  I never have been to one however.

38. Nest egg letters: IRA.  Yeah, I have an Individual Retirement Account.  But I never called it a nest egg.

 

42. Until now: SO FAR.

44. Jai alai ball: PELOTA.  It's a bit of a funny name, but I cannot talk.  Seems that bowling balls have funny names also.  I have a Virtual Gravity, an Asylum, a Combat Zone, A Lucid, and a Daredevil Trick.

45. Soft-hearted: GENTLE.  "Gentle On My Mind" (Glen Campbell)

46. Japanese religion: SHINTO.

48. Sheltered, at sea: ALEE.

49. Halloween headgear: WIG.  Speaking of odd names, I also have socks called WIGWAM.

56. On __: going wild: A TEAR.

58. Miniature image to click on: ICON.

59. Symphonic wind: OBOE.  "Oh Boy, Igor Stravinski, Oh Boy Bo Belinsky".  Allan Sherman.

60. Bond portrayer Roger: MOORE.  I liked Sean Connery.  The original is always the best.

61. Fitted with footwear: SHOD.  If you happen to be a horse. I don't think Thom McAn calls it that.

62. Final or midterm: TEST.

63. Private, as thoughts: INNER.

64. Stew cookers: POTS.  I don't use a pot.  I use one of those slow cookers. Works great.

65. Former spouses: EXES.  I suppose that this could be part of the theme, although it is plural.

Down:

1. Elephant tooth: TUSK.  Not sure if this is a tooth.  I thought that these were those things that protrude from the elephant's face and they are made of ivory.  It is illegal to harvest them.  They have to make piano keys out of plastic now. 

2. Author Seton: ANYA.

3. Gp. responding to Big Apple blazes: FDNY.  Many victims from 9/11.

4. Bach's "__ and Fugue in D Minor": TOCCATA.

5. 15-minute films, say: SHORTS.  What I wear to play golf.  Maybe not tomorrow though, forecast is pleasant, but a little chilly.  I am amazed that PGA players are NEVER allowed to wear shorts in tournaments.

6. Coyote cries: HOWLS.  I expect there might be some HOWLS at Target Field tonight.

7. Blunt sword: EPEE.

8. "The Flintstones" pet: DINO.  "Yabba Dabba Dooo".

9. Wedding hire: CATERER.

10. Pie-mode link: ALA.  Also sometimes it is in the path of a hurricane; or maybe not.

11. Workday with a longer-than-typical break: SPLIT SHIFT.

12. Over yonder: THERE.  Over there, Over there, Send the Word to Target Field Over there. That the Yanks are coming, The Yanks are coming !

13. Let up: EASED. " You fill my heart with gladness, take away all my sadness, EASE my troubles That's what you do."(Rod Stewart)

21. Heavy burden: ONUS.

22. "You gotta be kidding!": NO WAY.

26. Humanities major: ART.  Mr. Garfunkel

27. "Nor" or "or," in a dict.: CONJ. Conjunction.

28. "Sin City" actress Jessica: ALBA.

29. Trapshooter's target: CLAY PIGEON.  Interesting, these are round and I guess some are clay, but they look nothing like a pigeon.

30. Word before toast or after peach: MELBA.  I have heard of melba toast but never Peach Melba. Should I know her? Is she a folk singer?

31. Like wines aged in certain barrels: OAKY. From Muskogee.

33. Head-and-shoulders sculpture: BUST.  22 at the black jack table.

34. Eurasian border river: URAL.

35. Red in the middle, as steak: RARE.  21 at the black jack table.

37. Seat at the bar: STOOL.  I like these at bowling centers.  The last one I visited was a "Bowlero", the seating was about 18 inches from the floor.  Tough on an old guy but the kids didn't seem to mind.

40. Pentagon VIP: GEN.

41. Editor or tailor, e.g.: ALTERER.  I get it but I think it's a "Made up" word.

42. Perceived: SEEN.

43. Lacking variety, musically: ONE NOTE. "SKOL, SKOL".

45. Pituitary and thyroid: GLANDS.

46. Hindu guru: SWAMI.  This guy makes the Liberty Mutual commercial a candidate for worst ad of the decade.

47. Discover, as a solution: HIT ON.  Romeo to a pretty girl in a bar.

48. In progress, as Sherlock's "game": AFOOT.  12 inches.

51. Speech problem: LISP.

52. Repeat: ECHO.  A bit of a flop for Toyota, I don't think they have made them for 10 or more years.

53. Curly-horned goat: IBEX.

54. Sniffer: NOSE.  Your NOSE Knows.

55. Acquires: GETS.

57. "How __ you doing?": ARE.

Boomer

Note from C.C.:

Boomer finally got his Twins Homer Hanky yesterday. He said "No Hanky Panky here. Twins need to sweep the Hanky Yankees."

Sunday October 6, 2019 David Alfred Bywaters

Theme: Time for "A" Change - Words with long A sound are replaced by their homophone.

20. Sumo wrestler's asset?: HAZARDOUS WAIST. Hazardous waste.

30. Consequence of overtweezing?: RAZED EYEBROWS.  Raised eyebrows.

 

49. Hawaiian tour company specialist?: LEI PERSON. Lay person.

58. Common sight on "L.A. Law"?: DEY IN COURT. Day in court.

80. Mid-morning coffee, say?: BREAK FLUID. Brake fluid.

89. Problem for Roman Britain?: GAEL FORCE. Gale force.

104. Said goodbye, dog-style?: BAYED FAREWELL. Bade farewell.

 

121. Low-voiced choir member's goal?: GET TO FIRST BASS. Get to first base.

This is a very tight theme set. All homophones. All go through spelling changes of course.

David is a linguistic genius. He has found so many ways to play with the addition/deletion/replacement themes. All of his themes are very tight. Always an extra layer.

Across:

1. Followers who may be friendly or hostile: POSSE. We don't often see a black square at the starting corner. It makes clean fill possible.

6. Word of Gallic gratitude: MERCI. A few more French: 54. Him, to Henri: LUI. 55. Cannes concept: IDEE. And 81. French article: UNE.

11. Voltaire's faith: DEISM.

16. Bring up to date: CLUE IN.

17. "Am I awake?": PINCH ME. Great fill. And 25. Source of ignition: MATCH.

19. Game for two or four: TENNIS. And 25. Source of ignition: MATCH.

22. Car starter: ENGINE.

23. Agenda entry: ITEM.

24. Avid: EAGER.

27. Altered by time: AGED. Our crossword regular ALBA. No aging at all.

28. Skunk cousin: POLECAT.

33. Halloween follower: Abbr.: NOV.

34. Gutenberg's movable invention: TYPE.

35. Comic-Con attendee: NERD.

36. Met acquisition: ART.

39. Revolver, maybe: DOOR. Revolving door.

41. Rent what you've rented: SUBLET.

45. Dizzy's jazz genre: BEBOP.

52. Greeted, with "to": SAID HI.

56. Locations: SITES.

61. Disproportionate reactions: TO-DOS.

63. Disgraced: SHAMED. Public shaming in China. The placards have their names & the word "robber".

65. Three-syllable limerick foot: ANAPEST.

66. Like much testimony: ORAL.

68. Restorative: TONIC.

70. Social climber: SNOB.

71. Current site of ancient Carthage: TUNISIA.

74. Gazed lasciviously: LEERED.

77. Go wild on Twitter: TREND.

83. Presidents' Day phenomena: SALES. We'll probably get our Santa Fe at Veterans Day next year.
Hyundai gives veterans a nice discount.

85. Crosby, Stills & Nash, e.g.: TRIO.

86. Previously: AGO.

87. Problem for a claustrophobic driver: TUNNEL. Tough when you need a MRI.

91. Kidney-related: RENAL.

94. Standard of measurement: METRIC.

96. Loyal: TRUE.

97. "__ Blues": Beatles song with the line "Even hate my rock and roll": YER.

98. Help to withdraw: WEAN.

100. Confront: FACE.

102. Natter: GAB.

110. Some chalets: A-FRAMES.

114. ET vehicles, in theory: UFOS.

115. Lariat: REATA.

116. Overhang: LEDGE.

118. Main squeeze: BEAU.

119. Hired escort: GIGOLO.

124. Tony winner Tammy: GRIMES. Won a Tony for "The Unsinkable Molly Brown". Unknown to me.

125. Do: EXECUTE.

126. Niños' needs?: TILDES. The squiggles.

127. Affirmatives: YESES.

128. Support framework: TRUSS.

129. Base stealer's asset: SPEED.

Down:

1. Socrates' pupil: PLATO.

2. Eurasian blackbird: OUZEL. Learning moment for me also.

3. Many mariners: SEAMEN.

4. Word of respect: SIR.

5. Attempts: ENDEAVORS.

6. King novel that shared the first Bram Stoker Award (1987): MISERY.

7. Covers completely: ENWRAPS.

8. 1929 purchaser of Victor: RCA.

9. Wind instrument?: CHIME. Sweet clue.

10. :-(: I'M SAD. One day my brother closed his WeChat with me with "🥣安 ". I had to ask him what it meant. Turns out 🥣 is a bowl. So " 🥣安" means "good night".  "Bowl" and "evening" are pronounced the same but they're two different characters. Jayce probably would get it. I just sighed.

11. Lair: DEN.

12. Sword-wielder's cry: EN GARDE.

13. Architect Jones: INIGO. Wiki says "Jones was the first person to introduce the classical architecture of Rome and the Italian Renaissance to Britain."

14. Tendon: SINEW.

15. Advanced teaching degrees: Abbr.: MS EDs.

16. Dip holder: CHIP.

17. Wrinkly little dog: PUG.

18. Suffix with kitchen: ETTE.

19. Tiny chuckle: TEHEE.

21. Nose bag particle: OAT.

26. Nixon of "Sex and the City": CYNTHIA. Also ran for governor last year.

29. Encrypt: CODE.

31. Consort of Hera: ZEUS.

32. Texter's "I will return shortly": BRB.

34. What a plighter plights: TROTH.

36. Landed: ALIT.

37. Try again: REDO.

38. Had a few: TIED ONE ON.

40. Medical suffix: OSIS.

42. No-goodniks: BADDIES.

43. Make up a story, maybe: LIE.

44. Eponymous ice cream maker: EDY.

46. Muffin fruit: BLUEBERRY. Our state muffin.

47. Hers and mine: OURS.

48. Surname of father-and-son British prime ministers: PITT. William Pitt & William Pitt the Younger. Read more here.

50. Geographical symbol of Middle America: PEORIA.

51. Cool: NEAT.

53. Hostelries: INNS.

57. Burn without flames: SMOLDER.

59. Tilt: CANT.

60. Iberian wine city: OPORTO. North of Lisbon.

62. Regina's prov.: SASK.

64. KC-to-NYC dir.: ENE.

67. Hoist: LIFT.

69. Outcropping: CRAG.

71. Vanishing ski lift: T BAR.

72. Hankering: URGE.

73. Bryn Mawr graduates: ALUMNAE.

75. Induce euphoria in: ELATE. And 78. Pleasant: NICE. 92. Fab equivalent: AWESOME.

76. Road sign ruminant: DEER.

79. One who doesn't just think about it: DOER. That's D-Otto! Just dug out this pic from my Ginger Roots blog. D-Otto mentioned said then: "A 1970 snapshot at the control console of the shipboard radio station during the final cruise of the carrier Bon Homme Richard. I stumbled across that one in an online copy of the ship's cruise book."
 


82. Pass gone seriously astray: Abbr.: INT.

84. Hard-hitting contests: SLUGFESTS.

88. __ insurance: LIFE.

90. Cause of tremors, at times: FEAR. He also wrote "Miracle of Mindfulness".

93. Conducted: LED.

95. Insensitive: CALLOUS.

99. Locks that are picked: AFROS.

101. Chin indentations: CLEFTS.

103. Blather on: BABBLE.

104. Full of glitches, as programs: BUGGY.

105. Flaming: AFIRE.

106. Hindu mystics: YOGIS.

107. Steamed state: RAGE.

108. Kindle reading, e.g.: E-TEXT.

109. Do a gardening task: WATER. We're having the wettest year in Minnesota history. 

110. Growth-oriented field?: Abbr.: AGR.

111. Civil War general: MEADE.

112. Abated: EASED.

113. Figure (out): SUSS.

117. Cease to function: DIE.

120. "__ Misérables": LES.

122. Big 12 rival of Baylor: Abbr.: TCU.

123. Bit of inside information: TIP.

C.C.

Saturday, October 5, 2019, Gail Grabowski

Saturday Themeless by Gail Grabowski

Probably somewhat dated info

Today I had a nice Easter Egg hunt with Gail's offering. I found my basketful in the SE corner and then had to work my way back up for a very satisfying "got 'er done!" That made my time a little higher than usual but did not diminish my pleasure in doing one of Gail's always fun offerings.

Any lady who authors such fun puzzles and likes Siamese cats is a friend of mine. Plus, the second smartest woman I have ever known (C.C. is tops) was also a JH English teacher.

Across:

1. Mirage sights?: CARD GAMES - I'll bet you could find CARD GAMES at this Las Vegas hotel/casino but no oasis

10. Hint: WHIFF - Yeah, this WHIFF is giving her a hint

15. Puccini's Rodolfo, for one: OPERA ROLE - Spoiler alert! Mimi dies of consumption in Rodolfo's arms in the final scene of La Boheme 

16. Word with society or system: HONOR - People who violate the HONOR system should not get into the HONOR society

17. Parties like there's no tomorrow: LETS LOOSE.

18. Singular: OUTRE.

19. Recipe word: ADD.

20. Utter: PURE - Triskaidekaphobia is utter nonsense to us science peeps

21. Serves, with "out": DISHES.

22. Considerable number: MASS.

23. Implore: BESEECH - Reminds me of this wonderful Godspell song - We BESEECH Thee

24. Traditional Mesoamerican fare: TAMALE.

27. Name on the 1969 album "Clouds": JONI - Ms. Mitchell's wonderful song and album.

28. One may be purposely broken: LAW which might cause the police to 51. Pick up: NAB the offender

29. Program access aids: ICONS - These are the ones we bloggers use here

30. Pop-up fare: TOAST - I TOAST my English muffins twice for extra crispness

31. Former NHL forward Tikkanen: ESA - Here 'ya go

32. Nothing more than: MERE.

33. City ordinance subject: NOISE - Around the 4th of July these ordinances are not 41. Require compliance with: ENFORCEd quite to the letter of the law

34. Bit of power: WATT.


35. Green of "Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children": EVA - EVA Green as Miss Peregrine appears to be armed with a crossbow

36. Contaminate: TAINT - One bad apple...

37. Word in a marriage metaphor: AISLE - Marriage is a "Walk down the AISLE"

38. __ Aviv: TEL - "Hill of Spring" founded in 1909

39. Restraining order: HALT.

40. __ storm: WINTER - It can increase traffic to web sites to check for school closings. I think kids go there too.

43. Woven line: CORD.

44. Provoke: STIR UP and 6. Turn on: AROUSE - Is it getting warm in here?

45. Oregon's highest mountain: HOOD - Mt. HOOD from the International Rose Garden in Portland is an awesome sight!

46. Org. with Eagles: BSA - Now both boys and girls can make Eagle Scout

49. Squeezable holders: TUBES.

50. Listen: LEND AN EAR - Shakespeare put similar words in Mark Antony's mouth

52. Upstanding: ERECT.

53. Regular beach walker's resource: TIDE TABLE - The TIDE TABLES if I were taking a group to Cocoa Beach today

54. Load with jeans, say: DARKS - Every student should have to cut out the lower squares and sort them correctly

55. They don't sting: DRONE BEES - The DRONES only job is to mate with an unfertilized queen

Down:

1. Cuba libre ingredient: COLA.

2. Behaved like: APED.

3. Like many Fla. residents: RETD 

4. Ones often working in small rms.: DRS.

5. Thelma and Louise, e.g.: GAL PALS - To the end

7. "Wuthering Heights" scenery: MOORS - It was hard for Catherine and Heathcliffe to 9. Make out: SEE each other in the MOORS. Yeah, I know there's a second way to construe "make out" but...

8. Apart from this: ELSE.

10. Response to a bell: WHO IS IT - Needed one more cell to enter SALIVATE

11. __ wine: HOUSE - A usual order for a wine know-nothing like yours truly

12. At all: IN THE LEAST - "That joke was not funny IN THE LEAST"

13. Ship's deck sometimes reduced to six letters: FORECASTLE - The F'O'CSLE of the Queen Mary is behind the bow and in front of the first stack

14. It's in ice caps and ice sheets: FRESH WATER - Where over 68% of FRESH WATER is found

21. Like urban population: DENSE - Exhibit A: Hong Kong

22. Giraffe feature: MANE - _ A _ E made me think NAPE but...

23. Talk a good game: BOAST- Joe Namath shocked the sports world when he made good on his 1969 BOAST

24. Borne out long-term: TIME TESTED.

25. Fictional detective often seen wearing an open aloha shirt: ACE VENTURA - You either like Jim Carrey's brand of humor or you don't

26. Strength of character: MORAL FIBER - See Gandhi above

27. Cooler: JOINT - Also jail, gray bar hotel, hoosegow, club fed, gaol, et al

30. Decorative fabric: TOILE - Here 'ya go


33. Rights org. since 1909: NAACP.

34. Leaf blower: WIND - I am very aware of WIND in my two avocations - biking and golf

36. Fencing maneuvers: THRUSTS.

37. Show time: AIR DATE - Usually there is a three month gap between when a Jeopardy game is taped and that show's AIR DATE

40. Stiff: WOODEN - Some pols just aren't good "on the stump"

42. Eponymous vacuum brand: ORECK.

43. Many a time-share: CONDO - This company specializes in getting people OUT OF time-shares

45. Next in line: HEIR.

46. Tiny tot, in Toledo: BEBE - When Michael Buble sings Melancholy Baby in Spanish, the first line is "Ven a Mi BEBE Melancolico" (Come to my my melancholy baby)

47. Commission source: SALE - Their commission rate is why we chose this company to list MIL's house

48. Combative deity: ARES - Gods of war can be that way

50. Part of LLC: Abbr.: LTD - LIMITED Liability Company

Comment away. I'm sure Gail will overlook grammar errors:

Friday, October 4, 2019, Mark MClain

Title:  Injured Reserve.

What a prescient title to our latest puzzle from a friend of the blog - Mark McClain. Mark is one of the many champions of those who want to create crossword puzzles, like our own C.C. and Jeff Chen. He publishes(d?) a blog discussing puzzling - Mark's Blog. As you can see he refers people to facebook collaborative group Crossword Puzzle Collaboration Directory I applaud this effort and all the help the community gives newcomers.

I, meanwhile, have been off the team all week as I recover from a health issue which when I finally sat down to solve and write this blog did not slow me down. As you see, the letters IR are inserted into various phrases to create new an entertaining fill (the IRs). This is not a typical Friday with no long fill outside of the theme which allowed me to complete in a very reasonable time. The sparkliest others are DAPPER, OTTAWA, PRONTO,  WEEDED, MILDEST and the fun NICE DOG. But the theme fits nicely.

20A. Deity worshiped by backyard chefs?: BARBECUE SPIRIT (13). BARBECUE SPIT. Not to be religious, but ancient cultures probably did.

36A. 7-10 split, to a bowler?: IRKING PINS (10). KING PINS. This is all Boomer and TTP.

44A. Distiller Walker's treatise about a whisky grain?: HIRAM ON RYE (10). HAM ON RYE. This may be the hardest of the theme fill as I am not sure how many know HIRAM WALKER the Massachusetts born founder of Canadian whisky brand Canadian Club and so much more. I am sure this was a gimme for Canadian Eh! and our Michigan solvers. It is also the most fun for me.

54A. Hester Prynne's trademark milk-producing farm?: RED LETTER DAIRY (13). RED LETTER DAY. The heroine (?) of the SCARLET LETTER bought a dairy farm- maybe? I reread the book a few years ago, meh.
The reveal:
65D. April 15 org., or, as a plural, a hint to four long puzzle answers: IRS (3).The puzzle would have especially great on 4-15.

On to the rest...

Across:

1. Crossed the mob, in a way: SANG. Sammy "the Bull" Gravano? BETRAY

5. Insignificant points: NITS. A Crossword Shout Out to all the commenters who focus on the minutiae.

9. When repeated, Second British Invasion band: DURAN. Their most famous song...

14. Second person of old?: THOU. Cute.

15. "No problems here": I'M OK. Or at least getting there.

16. "... the __ of defeat": "Wide World of Sports" phrase: AGONY. The skier's name is Vinko Bogataj.

17. Steaming flow: LAVA. Sadly my first thought was completely inappropriate.

18. Casual eatery: CAFE. A quick reappearance.

19. One spun by a juggler: PLATE. Apparently, it is an ART.

23. July 4th show failure: DUD. The term descends from the Middle English dudde, originally meaning worn-out or ragged clothing, and is a cognate of duds (i.e., "clothing") and dowdy. Eventually dud became a general pejorative for something useless, including ammunition or firecrackers. Wiki.

24. Attach, in a way: TIE.

25. NFL scores: FGS. Field Goals.

28. Underground support: ROOT. Not politics, trees.

31. "ASAP!": PRONTO. Italian pronto means ready; Spanish pronto means soon.

39. Exploring toon: DORA. The Nickelodeon cartoon is now a live-action MOVIE.

40. Conceals: VEILS. Such as threats from mob bosses.

41. Support for driving and kicking: TEE. Golf and football in one clue.

42. Flying toys: KITES. Do you think of them as toys?

43. Dumbo's flying aids: EARS. Another live-action version of a famous cartoon character. LINK.

46. Home of the Senators: OTTAWA. A red-letter day for our Canadian players and a hockey reference.

48. Ruckus: STIR.

49. Double curve: ESS. Sounds like golfer Ernie...

50. Two-time U.S. Open champ: ELS.

52. Played the first card: LED.

62. So it could be heard: ALOUD.

63. Where I-90 and I-79 meet: ERIE. How many CSOs do they get?

64. Rock's Bon __: JOVI. The New Jersey band fronted by JON BON JOVI. All you need to know. LINK.

66. Fire sign: SMOKE. Where there is...

67. With 68-Across, words before "easy": EGGS. So much cutesy cross-referencing coming up.

68. See 67- or 69-Across: OVER.

69. With 68-Across, studied: PORED.

70. Army installation: POST.

71. Loch with a legend: NESS.


Down:

1. Baseball Cards: Abbr.: STL.

2. Melville captain: AHAB. Arrgh, ahoy Moby Dick is back.

3. 1960s-'80s Chevy: NOVA. MYTH busted.

4. Bank employee: GUARD.

5. Words to a growler: NICE DOG. I usually make it doggie.

6. Apple on a desk: iMAC.

7. Vegan staple: TOFU. Not for me.

8. Sport with disks: SKEET. Shoot, I should have thought of that.

9. Togged out: DAPPER. So cute next to...

10. Not-cute fruit: UGLI.

11. Large chorus of cheers: ROAR. This reminds me of a very famous PLAY on words.

12. Opposition prefix: ANTI.

13. Duma "Don't think so!": NYET. This is a legislative body in the ruling assembly of Russia and of some other republics of the former Soviet Union.

21. Uses for warmth, as wood: BURNS.

22. Dainty drinks: SIPS.

25. Cops as a unit: FIVE-O. It is actually 5-0 which comes from the TV show Hawaii 5-0 which was a cop show in the 1970s brought back to life and just started its 10th season.

26. Marvelous: GREAT.

27. Get around: SKIRT.

29. Eye-related prefix: OPTI. Did I mention my recent sub-conjunctival hemorrhage?

30. Layers: TIERS.

32. Father of Thor: ODIN.

33. French possessive: NOTRE. Damn, that was easy.

34. Low cards: TREYS. Threes.

35. Relief providers: OASES. Not just Tug McGraw

37. To whom Rick says, "We'll always have Paris": ILSA. Or a lion.

38. Orderly: NEAT.

42. Divided land: KOREA.

44. Put a stop to: HALT.

45. Least spicy: MILDEST. The version Oo prepares for me. Not mild, just in comparison to the 5 alarm version she eats.

47. Tidied the garden: WEEDED. What a sweet image.

51. A lot to pay: STEEP.

53. Tangy mustard: DIJON.

54. Filing tool: RASP.

55. Dagwood neighbor: ELMO.

56. Saloon __: DOOR. This is really random, though it is a type of Door. But WHY?

57. Third of four canonical gospels: LUKE. You can read about Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John HERE but discuss them and all serious religious topics elsewhere according to the Canon of Zhouqin. Odd to see it so soon after the Coptic Gospels.

58. Thus: ERGO.

59. Fixes on the sly: RIGS. On the sly?

60. Wander: ROVE. I will not fall into the Karl trap.

61. Part of YSL: YVES. Saint-Laurent.

It is really cool to blog a puzzle by Mark as I had the pleasure of his first published PUZZLE which was exactly 5 years and one day ago. He ingratiated himself immediately with me by stopping by and telling us about himself. I always have fun and he is a good guy as well. Lemonade out.

Thursday, October 3rd 2019 Jeff Stillman

Theme: Black Thursday - today's puzzle features some deep-discount bargains:

17A. Feature of an American flag purchased with 58-Across?: TWENTY-FIVE STARS. The Stars and Stripes as it would have appeared today if Arkansas was the last state to join the union back in 1836.

29A. Sidney Lumet film purchased with 58-Across?: SIX ANGRY MEN. If there were only six angry men, the verdict would have been "Guilty" - Henry Fonda, who cast the initial 'not guilty" vote was Juror #8. A great movie.

44A. Freight vehicle purchased with 58-Across?: NINE-WHEELER. That would make things a little lop-sided. An eighteen-wheeler actually has ten wheels, but eighteen rims and tires, just to keep things interesting. Here's two wheels, but four rims and tires:

and the unifier:

58A. Sales incentive: FIFTY PERCENT OFF. Here's a patriotic sign with 13 stars - let's call it the "Rhode Island" sales event:

Fun theme from Jeff, I got the themers before the reveal, so that's always nice. Good, solid fill too. Let's see what pops out:

Across:

1. Collect: AMASS. I've amassed quite a collection of cooking equipment over the years. I do follow the advice of Alton Brown and avoid any "single use" gadget, they take up too much space for their one function. Do you really need a garlic press, something to chop herbs with that isn't a knife or a melon baller when you already have measuring spoon the same size?

6. Stag: HART. Many pubs in England are called "The White Hart". The most common pub name in the UK is "The Red Lion". I've been to this "White Hart" in Overton, Hampshire:

10. Diminished gradually, with "off": WORE

14. Lake between the Silver State and Golden State: TAHOE. Gambling on the east side, weed on the west side. Pick your poison.

15. Promise, for one: OLEO. This confused me for a few moments, but remembered "Promise" is a brand of margarine.

16. Operation Solomon airline: EL AL. I didn't know the back story, but not hard to guess.

20. Raina Telgemeier graphic novel about a girl with braces: SMILE. Stab in the dark here, but when a couple of letters were provided by crosses, it wasn't hard to fill in the blanks.

21. Breeder's income source: STUD FEE

22. Names as a source: CITES. It's nice to receive a citation as a source, less pleasant to receive one for a traffic violation (or so I hear, I've never had one myself .... he lied).

25. Fizzy prefix: AER-

26. Decryption org.: N.S.A. National Security Agency, I always want to call it the National Spy Agency, but the CIA has dibs on that one.

34. Regatta racer: YACHT. I'm not sure when it was when I stopped trying to spell "yacht" with a "g' in there somewhere, but it was a happy day.

36. Paint store selections: HUES. I need to check out the hues at my local hardware store, I need to repaint my "hobby" room, I managed to overspray weathering paint onto the walls, not smart. They need a refresh anyway, so a good time.

37. Ristorante bottle: VINO. "In vino, veritas" according to the Romans. "In wine, truth". A poetic way to describe drunk texting, which rarely has a positive outcome.

38. Mandolin kin: LUTES

39. Loved, with "up": ATE

40. Dasani product: WATER. Dasani makes water? I doubt it. I think they bottle and sell it.

41. Carbon monoxide's lack: ODOR

42. Iditarod racer: SLED. Not for much longer if the planet keeps warming. It'll be a water-skier pulled by knee-deep huskies before too long.

43. Capital of Ghana: ACCRA

47. Coal scuttle: HOD. I'm more familiar with a hod being used to carry bricks to a bricklayer during construction of a wall. Same concept though.

48. "I have an idea!": AHA! It better be a good one.

49. Silas of the Continental Congress: DEANE. A little obscure, this one. The representatives of the original thirteen colonies (with the exception of Georgia) during the Revolutionary War formed the Continental Congress. Deane was one of the representatives from Connecticut, and is the only Silas I've heard of other than the Silas Marner of literature.

51. Deals with freebies: TWO-FERS. Same as 50% off! My local Ralph's market, part of the Kroger empire, have regular BOGO offers (Buy One, Get One) in the meat and seafood department. I can never resist those deals.

55. Museo Leonardiano city: VINCI. It would be odd if Vinci had a museum dedicated to any other Italian.

62. Everyone, in Essen: ALLE.

63. Mideast bigwig: EMIR

64. Mill input: GRIST. Grist for the mill - flour comes out, the chaff is blown away. I think.

65. "All in the Family" producer Norman: LEAR. If you say so, thank you, crosses.

66. Donnybrook: RIOT. From the Donnybrook Fair, first held 1204 in Dublin. It is sometimes described as "notoriously disorderly", but we're talking Irish, beer and fourteen days of festivities. It's small wonder that things occasionally got a little out of hand. I'm of Irish descent, so I can say that. The phrase "I went to a fight, but a wake broke out" is not spoken without a certain basis in fact. Donnybrook Fair can sound quite pleasant, according to an 18th century poem penned by that bard of prolific output, "Anon".

To Donnybrook steer, all you sons of Parnassus

Poor painters, poor poets, poor newsmen, poor knaves

To see what the fun is that all fun surpasses

The sorrow and sadness of green Erin's slaves

O Donnybrook, jewel, full of mirth is your quiver

Where all flock from Dublin to gape and to stare

At two elegant bridges, without e'er a river

So success to the humours of Donnybrook Fair

67. Church council: SYNOD

Down:

1. QB's stat: ATT. Pass attempts in American Football.

2. Big mouths: MAWS

3. Word of disapproval: AHEM

4. Sega's hedgehog: SONIC. Video game character of legend.

5. Band concert guides: SET LISTS. People collect them. Here's a "Joshua Tree" tour set list from U2 when I saw them at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena:

6. Cooperstown inst.: H.O.F. Hall Of Fame. Baseball, in Cooperstown's case.

7. "Rope-a-dope" boxer: ALI. He was "roping" Joe Frazier.

8. Races: REVS as in one's engine.

9. "CSI" IDs: TOE TAGS

10. Multi-use workshop tool: WET-DRY VAC. I'm not sure it's "multi-use" - it's a vacuum, it just vacuums a lot of different stuff.

11. Elsa and Anna's snowman pal: OLAF. From the "Frozen" movie, I never saw it, but I hear it's good.

12. Medium __: RARE. The "gold standard" for steak done-ness.

13. Besides that: ELSE

18. Mysterious Himalayan: YETI

19. Litigious type: SUER. Is that a word?

23. Yoga instruction: EXHALE

24. Cooked in a skillet: SAUTÉED

26. Guitar string option: NYLON. Steel guitar strings for me. Don't nylon ones go out of tune all the time?

27. King Salman, for one: SAUDI. Thank you, crosses.

28. Do something in response to: ACT ON

30. Tease: NEEDLE

31. Deadpan comic Hedberg: MITCH. More crosses.

32. Summer month in South America: ENERO. January

33. Annual Santa tracker: NORAD. North American Aerospace Defense Command. Super nice folks at Christmas.

35. From now on: HEREAFTER. I tried EVER AFTER, but that obviously didn't work out too well.

40. Alarms: WARNINGS

42. More on the ball: SHARPER

45. Miss Muffet fare: WHEY. I prefer curds, myself.

46. Outer wall protector: EAVE

50. Vestibule, e.g.: ENTRY

51. Nonstick kitchen brand: T-FAL

52. Sly trick: WILE

53. "Man __ Mancha": OF LA

54. Frozen Four game: SEMI. Final Four too, and every other sport in a knockout format.

56. Invent, in a way: COIN. To coin a phrase ...

57. "That being the case ... ": IF SO ...

59. Brazilian hot spot: RIO. I've been lucky enough to have had a few trips to Rio, a city of contrasts and some quite wonderful sights, sounds and food!

60. Old PC monitor: CRT. The old Cathode Ray Tube. Poor Cathode and Ray, they were the darlings of the tech business for so long, now long consigned to recycle (hopefully) or landfull (less pleasant).

61. Co. with a bouquet in its logo: FTD. "Florists's Transworld Delivery" to be posh. The UK branding was "Interflora". Same logo though.

And with the winged feet of Eros [edit - sorry, Mercury] and a bunch of flowers, I'll leave you with the grid.

Steve