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.

Saturday, Jun 11th, 2016, Mark Bickham

Theme: None

Words: 72 (missing Q)

Blocks: 28

I had to cave in to red-letters to solve the NE corner, and even then I was not able to come up with any logical answers, so I resorted to alphabet runs, and once the ta-DA~! came, I was really disappointed with the results.  I don't care if they are acceptable answers, even for a Saturday.  A couple were just too much of a s-t-r-e-t-c-h, and therefore "fun-sponge" gets called on this puzzle.  Too bad, really; other than in the NE, I did well (OK, there were some groaners in other places, too) and I am usually not very successful with Mark's constructions.  Oh, and did I mention the circumreferential clues~?  Triple 10s and paired 10s in the corners, with two 9s and four 8s;

17a. Where the Walking Piano scene in "Big" was filmed : FAO SCHWARZ - Nailed it; great scene, fun movie, can always watch it when it's on regular TV - from 1988, same as 12d.

12d. "The Accidental Tourist" Oscar winner : GEENA DAVIS - IMDb

64a. Wait follower : "...THERE'S MORE~!"

27d. Classic film words of self-revelation : I'M A REAL BOY

NO WRD Answer

ACROSS:

1. "Star Wars" High Council member : JEDI MASTER

11. Co. leaders : MGTS - ???  What~? Say again~?  Managements~?  Really~?  NOT.

15. Writing desk : ESCRITOIRE - Le Frawnche

16. Realize : REAP - Argh~!  Too much of a s-t-r-e-t-c-h

18. Toy since ancient times : PEKE - ugh.  The Dog, not YO-YO or KITE

19. Laughs : FUN

20. Text giggle : HEE - ugh, not LOL

21. ZzzQuil competitor : SOMINEX

23. Military actions : RAIDS - police actions, too

25. Spanish uncle? : NO MAS - cry uncle~!  No more~! Leave out the fun-sponge answers~!

26. Toys since 1964 : G.I. JOEs - I have part of the 80's collection of "action figures" that were about 4" tall; including the Hovercraft and a few other vehicles

29. Discombobulated : ASEA

31. Single dose? : DAT - ugh.  Not HIT

33. It's often made at parties : SMALL TALK - I'd like to talk with this girl at a party

35. Part of a suit : SPADE - not PANTS

37. Unlikely to bite : TAME

38. Join for a session : SIT IN - musical jam session

40. Base path? : EVIL

41. Proper 53-Down : AREN'T - circumreferential with; 53. Improper 41-Across : AIN'T - if you Ain't got a clue, you Aren't solving this without perps

43. Many a single : LINE DRIVE - baseball, not lonely guys/girls

45. Ds, in the key of C : REs - the key of C is C - D - E - f - G - A - b, so "D" corresponds to the Re of Do - Re - Mi....I play guitar, so I got it, but I can see this one being a fun-sponge, too

46. Sum is a form of it : ESSE - similar to "SERA" being part of ÊTRE from a few weeks ago, "I am" in Latin from the verb "To be"

48. Like many salons : UNISEX

49. Chance to hit : AT BAT - ah.  baseball, not blackjack

51. Country : RURAL - dah~!  Totally in "REALM", not "bumpkin/backwoods" mode

53. Chemical bases : ALKALIS - for some reason I kept telling myself this is the answer, but swore it wouldn't fit, even with --K-LI- filled....I can't explain it

55. Word with wire or water : HOT - you get caught doing a hot wire, you'd be in hot water

56. Gambling initials : OTB - Off-Track Betting

59. Once-venerated bird : IBIS - popular with the Egyptians

60. Homeric island dweller : LOTUS EATER - not the one I was thinking of; couldn't get SIRENS to fill in all spaces

63. Agreement with a refusal : NOR I

65. Kid : TYKE - oops, not JOke

66. No longer fashionable : "SO LAST YEAR"

DOWN:

1. Buckley who covered Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah" : JEFF - WAG

2. Son of Rebecca : ESAU

3. Anti-rodent brand : d-CON

4. Return letters : IRS - tax return, that is

5. Most popular boy's name in 44 of the last 100 years : MICHAEL - mine was 11th in NJ for the year I was born - the site

6. Foxhole absentees, so it's said : ATHEISTS - as a "Friend of Bill W.", I am familiar with "foxhole prayers"

7. Scattered : SOWED - STREWN and SOWN were not working

8. __ Maria : TIA

9. Goes thataway instead of thisaway : ERRS

10. Do a city planner's job : RE-ZONE

11. Absent-minded A.A. Milne title character : Mr. PIM - Don't know this character, so I was totally "ASEA"

13. Goes down as planned : TAKES A DIVE

14. Informal glasses : SPEX - meh.

22. Extinct birds : MOAs

23. Seven-time All-Star third baseman Scott __ : ROLEN - more baseball

24. More thirst-inducing : SALTIER

26. The sun, for one : G-STAR

28. TV hero who famously kissed 52-Down : JAMES T. KIRK - paired to; 52. See 28-Down : UHURA - if you didn't know it, this was fun-sponge, too.  I am a big fan of the "Next Generation" version; the original was too boring for me, but I did like the movies - I liked Shatner; can't get into the "latest" re-re-version.

30. Bones' partner : SKIN - Ironic that this should follow Kirk - Dr. McCoy "Bones", also from Star Trek

32. Bygone messager : TELEX

34. Feels off : AILS

36. "__ at End House": Christie mystery : PERIL - perps

39. Complex parts : NEUROSES

42. Color on San Jose Shark uniforms : TEAL - San Jose lives~!  At least one more game, tho I'd like to see them go two more and take it all

44. Evidence provider : DNA TEST

47. Circus equipment : STILTS - drywall mudding, too

50. Musical count : BASIE - ah.  That kind of Count

54. NYC gallery district : SOHO - SOuth of HOuston Street; the Wiki

56. Plains tribe : OTOE

57. Trillion: Pref. : TERA

58. Fictional rabbit's title : BR'ER

61. Address bk. info : TELephone

62. Pulitzer poet Lowell : AMY

Splynter

Friday, June 10, 2016, Mike Buckley

Title: Where are the Property Brothers when you need them? At my HOUSE.

Our first Mike Buckley of the year, the last being a wonderful sound alike PUN puzzle which I blogged last July. Today the reveal tells us that we have to add the word "HOUSE" to the end of the theme fill. But this must be in our heads as there are no spaces. The clue makes no sense  without the added HOUSE. In the CW world of rebus and meta puzzles, this is a simple version. Long before the reveal, starting with 1A, you know something is up when you cannot make sense of the clues. I got the idea with GLASS, from the old story about people who live in glass houses should not throw stones. That made Bird and Club fit. I had a hell of a time finding twelve after reading the reveal: 41A. See 30-Down : BOUND. 30D. With 41-Across, quarantined, and a hint to completing 12 puzzle answers : HOUSE. My hang up was 1D, which is symmetrical with 54D and must be the 12th, but I was unfamiliar with barrelhouse jazz...anyway there some interesting long fill such as GROANER,  CAGIEST,  ALL AT SEA,  SEPARATE,  RINGLING, FELL INTO, RED PLANET and a personal favorite  AD HOMINEM. Sometimes the added house stands alone sometimes it just makes a single word. Okay, the realtor is here to take us on a tour.

1A. Frequent flier's respite : BIRD (HOUSE). Birdies fly too you know.

5A. Dressing room of a sort : CLUB(HOUSE). Where HG goes to put on his spikes.

9A. Proverbially exposed place : GLASS (HOUSE). The pun version is about the tribal king who lived in a lavish two story grass hut in the jungle. He got in a competition with another tribal leader and they started having fancy thrones made to out do the other. Sadly the first chief had his thrones in the second floor and they crashed down killing him. Moral: People who live in grass houses should not store thrones.

71A. Coastal attraction : LIGHT (HOUSE). We have a little one we go to at the Hillsboro inlet.

72A. Kids' hideout : TREE (HOUSE). Another giveaway to the theme.

73A. Where an inch may represent a foot : DOLL (HOUSE). Really cute clue.

1D. Uninhibited jazz style : BARREL(HOUSE).  I just did not know THIS.

13D. Place of refuge : SAFE (HOUSE).  Will we watch NCIS with DiNozzo gone?

33D. The Twinings shop at 216 Strand in London, e.g. : TEA  (HOUSE). CSO to Nice Cuppa and Steve. This SHOP is over 300 years in business.

38D. Zoo : MAD(HOUSE). Where human are treated like lower ANIMALS.

54D. 1978 comedy classic : ANIMAL (HOUSE). 

60D. Theater with no seats? : FULL (HOUSE).

And the already revealed reveal
41A. See 30-Down : BOUND. 30D. With 41-Across, quarantined, and a hint to completing 12 puzzle answers : HOUSE.

Across:

14. Trendy berry : ACAI. You know it as LINK.

15. Bausch + Lomb brand : RENU. Clean your contacts.

16. Missouri campus town : ROLLA. Talk about stuff I do not know,you can start HERE.

17. 38-Across nickname : RED PLANET. 38A. Fourth of eight : MARS. Did you watch Matt Damon in the MARTIAN? Thoughts?

19. __ Olay : OIL OF.

20. Bread flavoring : RAISIN. Flavoring?

21. Stand between : SEPARATE.  Always dangerous.

23. Strait's "All My __ Live in Texas" : EXS.  LINK.

24. Kindle downloads: Abbr. : BKS. Books.

26. Multipart opus : NONET. Nine.

27. "The Merry Widow" composer : LEHAR.  Hungarian Composer FRANZ.

29. Leitmotif : THEME. Fancy.

31. Park it : SIT.

34. Author of epistolas : PAOLO. Epistles: Paul.

36. Girlfriend of Garfield : ARLENE.

43. End for Louis : IANA. I hope Hahtoolah is doing well, along with our other Lousiana peeps, Boo abd BE.

44. Singly : APIECE. Did you KNOW?

46. Percolates : SEEPS.

48. Home in the woods : DEN. Or the jungle.

49. First of 12 : ARIES. Houses of the Zodiac. And, 18. First sign of fall : LIBRA. Hmm, fall starts September 21 which is in Virgo....

51. "__ español?" : HABLA. No intiendo.

55. Be unable to swallow : GAG ON.

57. Summer shade : TAN.

59. Hermione's love : RON. When you saw the first movie, or read the first book, weren't you sure she would end up with Harry?

60. Chanced on : FELL INTO.

63. Michener's "The Bridges at __" : TOKO-RI. His books were always so detailed.

65. Worth keeping : UTILE. Not a useful word for me.

66. Appealing to prejudice rather than intellect, as an argument : AD HOMINEM.
"Ad hominem, which stands for the Latin term argumentum ad hominem, is a response to a person's argument by attacking the person's character rather than the logic or content of the argument. Ad hominem remarks are often an example of fallacy, because they are irrelevant to the overall argument. " Also known as politics.

68. Large green moths : LUNAS.  I always think of John Lampkin.

69. Masked critter : COON.

70. March Madness initials : NCAA.

Down:

2. Climber's tool : ICE AXE.

3. Salad slice : RADISH.

4. Tango moves : DIPS.

5. Original Model T need : CRANK.

6. Writer Deighton : LEN.

7. Arles articles : UNES. French.

8. Hydrocarbon obtained from crude oil : BUTENE.

9. "Does the name Pavlov ring a bell?," e.g. : GROANER. It describes my earlier story.

10. French wine valley : LOIRE.

11. Totally confused : ALL AT SEA.

12. ATM feature : SLOT. There are lots of them.

22. Hair-styling stuff : POMADE. I will always remember Dapper Dan.

25. 1944 French battle site : STLO.

28. Choir recess : APSE.

32. B&B, maybe : INN.

35. Titania's husband : OBERON. Our Friday Shakespeare; A Midsummer Night's Dream.

37. Sax-playing Simpson : LISA.

39. Tailless simian : APE.

40. Big name in traveling shows : RINGLING.

42. Branch structure : NEST. This took awhile; a nest built on a branch?

45. Most foxy : CAGIEST.

47. __ Penh : PHNOM. Cambodia.

50. Undamaged : INTACT.

52. Super Bowl 50 champ : BRONCO. Good luck Peyton.

53. "Because you're worth it" brand : L'OREAL. This may be the first ad.

56. Islamic deity : ALLAH.

58. Make amends : ATONE.

61. Case for notions : ETUI.

62. Follower of Pepé Le Pew? : ODOR.

64. Big-hearted : KIND.

67. Weed tackler : HOE.

Well I hope you did not find too many weeds in this Friday frolic. Thank you Mr. Buckley and all of you who read.  Lemonade out.

Note from C.C.:

The fifth Minnesota Crossword Tournament will be held at the Landmark Center in St. Paul on June 12th, 2016 Sunday. Please click here for more details. Here is the direct registration link.

Jeffrey Wechsler will arrive here today. Welcome to Minnesota, Jeffrey!

Thursday, June 9th, 2016 Matt Skoczen

Theme: Mega Mix - Word scrambles

17A. Get-even competition : GRUDGE MATCH. The rematches between Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier fit nicely into this category. After Ali's sad passing last Friday, George Foreman related that Ali wanted George to come out of retirement so he could beat up Ken Norton for him. Fun stuff. And a great excuse for an iconic photograph taken by Neil Liefer:

24A. Kunta Kinte's country : THE GAMBIA. I confess I've never seen "Roots", so I needed crosses here. I'm looking forward to the new remake.

38A. They're often seen under hoods : GARAGE MECHANICS. I just got shot of my old car, my mechanic was spending more time with it that I was. I leased a "for fun" sports coupe that allegedly has a top speed of 160MPH. I need to take it to Germany to figure out if that's true.

50A. "I didn't get that" : COME AGAIN?

62A. Last-minute interception, say, and a hint to this puzzle's circles : GAME CHANGER. The famous last-second interception in Superbowl XLIX was an all-time doozy. I don't think Pete Carroll can still believe it happened.

Nice theme from Matt, and the themers all split the GAME scramble across two words. Nothing at all clunky in the fill, I thought this was very nice and smooth. A grid-spanner across the middle and a couple of long downs filled things out nicely. Let's take a look at what else jumps out.

Across:

1. Two cents : SAY. I had the S and decided on a whim that a SOU was a French coin worth two cents. I couldn't have been more 66% wrong.

4. Place for pews : SANCTUM. Nice! I'd never thought of a sanctum being anything other than an inner one, with secrets I'd never be privy to. NAVE is often the answer for this clue.

11. Hubcap holder : RIM

14. NASDAQ news : I.P.O. Initial Public Offering. Usually followed by Immediate Profit Offloading.

15. Awabi sushi mollusk : ABALONE. Food! Abalone in California are caught by hand, and there's a guy who fishes the Farallon Islands off San Francisco who shares the waters with between 30 and 100 Great White sharks depending on the time of year. He admits to being nervous at times.

16. Actress Brenneman : AMY

19. "Tell Me More" broadcaster : NPR

20. __ de Cervantes : MIGUEL. Of Don Quixote fame.

21. El stop: Abbr. : STA. Tried STN first. Got it wrong.

22. City SSE of Sana'a : ADEN

23. Bath oil additive : ALOE

26. Traffic slower : GLARE

29. Suffix in skin product names : DERM

30. Pressure letters : PSI Pounds per Square Inch.

32. Usual : NORM. Check out Norm drinking his usual in "Cheers".

34. Tests using mice : MAZES

42. "It's __ simple" : ALL SO

43. The other side of midnight? : NOON. Didn't think twice about this. I was on Matt's wavelength today.

44. __ reaction : GUT

45. Skated : SLID

48. Crammer's tablet : NO-DOZ. Last fill; I couldn't shake the "iPad" tablet thinking and then rumbled the pill angle. Too much caffeine gives me a migraine, not what you want when you're cramming.

54. One of a Social Security card pair : DASH 999-99-9999

57. Problem for Lady Macbeth : SPOT. She needed better detergent. What was that stuff we had on here last week - Soil-be-gone or something?

58. Unwritten parts of some addresses : UMS. We've all sat through extremes of the "Ladies and, um, gentlemen, um, thanks for um, coming today and um, um ....". Makes your toes curl.

59. Scarlet letter, e.g. : STIGMA. Had -IGMA so didn't stop to read the clue and just threw ENIGMA in. Went back and fixed that about a minute later.

61. Babe's environs : PEN. No crosses at the time, so impetuously STY went in.

64. Torah holder : ARK

65. Fallacious : IN ERROR

66. Cauliflower __ : EAR. Ali avoided these, as do many boxers nowadays. I think the referees are much more on guard for nefarious ear-abuse.

67. "Street Dreams" rapper : NAS

68. Droopy face feature : SAD EYES

69. Like about half the counties in Arkansas : DRY. Not going there on vacation, right, Tinbeni?

Down:

1. 18th Greek letter : SIGMA

2. 4, at times : APRIL. This clued me into the fact that SOU was a rather idiotic attempt to solve 1A.

3. Cry of support : YOU GO GIRL!

4. Herb in a ballad : SAGE. Food! Along with parsley, rosemary and thyme in "Scarborough Fair". Simon and Garfunkel got the pronunciation of the town mostly correct.

5. Genesis brother : ABEL

6. "We Were Soldiers" setting : NAM. From the book "We were soldiers once, and young" written by Harold Moore, the officer portrayed in the movie, and the amazing Vietnam news reporter Joe Galloway. Intense reading.

7. What stripes and polka dots do : CLASH. I think the yellow Bug clashes more with the pink purse, to be honest.

8. Added (up) : TOTTED. Is this British English? I've not heard it for a while.

9. Free, as a bird : UNCAGE. Love the clue.

10. "Does nothing for me" : MEH.

11. Anita Baker genre : R AND B. Rhythm and Blues. I always put an extra "y" in rhythm and then wonder why it looks wrong.

12. 1983 Pritzker prize recipient : I.M. PEI. Solid crosses.

13. Loy of "Thin Man" films : MYRNA Solid crosses!

18. Fight with rules : DUEL. Gadzoiks, ye bounder! Pistols at twenty paces!

22. Mideast capital : AMMAN

24. __ paper : TERM

25. Tycoon Hammer : ARMAND. Hall-of-fame name.

27. Its capital is Luanda : ANGOLA

28. Sushi topper : ROE. Food! Remind me to go get sushi this week, it's been way too long. I roll my own sometimes for parties:

30. Sports org. founded in 1916 : P.G.A.

31. Co-star of James and Natalie in "Rebel Without a Cause" : SAL. Mineo.

33. Wise __ : MEN ".. say, only fools rush in"

35. Went like lightning : ZIG-ZAGGED

36. Former French coin : ECU

37. 2003 retiree, briefly : SST. Supersonic Transports. It's a shame they retired the Concorde, but I lived under the Heathrow flight path in London for a few years and those things rattled the windows. They were LOUD.

39. Positive point : ASSET

40. Fifth state: Abbr. : CONN. Oh, so not COLOrado then? I guess not. Zero marks for history.

41. Half a beverage : HOO. Maybe this one might raise some eyebrows. Yoo-hoo is the beverage.

46. Reptile with a "third eye" : IGUANA. Wikipedia notes:

"A parietal eye, also known as a third eye or pineal eye, is a part of the epithalamus present in some animal species. The eye is photoreceptive and is associated with the pineal gland, regulating circadian rhythmicity and hormone production for thermoregulation.".

So there we have it. Now repeat back to me. "A parietal .....".

47. Blocked, beaver-style : DAMMED

49. God in both Eddas : ODIN. There are two Eddas? There I was, all smug because I knew there was (were)? an edda (eddas?) and now I find there are two varieties - the prose and the poetic. Cross "smug" off my list of boasts today.

50. Where to see the House : C-SPAN. Capital "H" warning - it's not what you think.

51. Dvorák's "Rusalka," for one : OPERA

52. Some ascetics : MONKS

53. Rhone tributary : ISÈRE. I skied many times in Val D'Isère, site of the 1992 Winter Olympics downhill races, so this came relatively easy (unlike the skiing). The river in the village was about <- yay -> wide and mostly frozen; I've jumped across it in ski boots. In spring with the snowmelt at the bottom of the valley in Moutiers, it was usually <^^^^^^^^^^^^^ YAY ^^^^^^^^^^^^> wide and happy to turn tour buses into cruise ships.

55. Sully : SMEAR. What you'd be if you missed a turn on the Val D'Isère Olympic course.

56. Bother no end : HARRY.

59. It's about a foot : SHOE

60. Works on roads : TARS. The Black Stuff.

62. PX patrons : GI'S

63. Blubber : CRY

And ... here's the grid. Time to finish off some chicken thighs braising on the cooktop. Food!

Steve

Wednesday, June 8, 2016 C.C. Burnikel

Title - HARPER VALLEY HYPOCRITES - The Harper Valley P.T.A. didn't dig Jeannie's mini-skirt and so she musically pulled all the skeletons out of their closets.

Our brilliant house mother has spun a wonderful web of words with a theme that was very skillfully constructed and  fiendishly clued. She has the letters "PTA" intersecting/meeting vertically and horizontally in three separate part of the puzzle, e.g.

 P

PTA

A

Having the circles greatly facilitated seeing C.C.'s elegant scheme and so I present them here with the grid at the top of the write-up instead of at the bottom.

Theme Reveal: 63. After-school event ... and, literally, what takes place at this puzzle's circles : PTA-MEETING       

Husker Gary here with my list of NOES - Was this puzzle a snap? NO Did I see the theme early? NO But, did I have a great time? YES, YES, YES! Wow!
         
Theme Entries:

18. Highway beautification program : ADOPT A ROAD (going across)

CROSSING

9. Understanding : UPTAKE (going down) - Which describes me today

32. Toaster Strudel kin : POP-TARTS (going across) Not exactly the breakfast of champions

CROSSING

4. Seafood in a shell : SHRIMP TACO (going down). Not merely a tiny taco

50. Motivating halftime speech : PEP TALK (going across). Motivating "up close and personal"

CROSSING

31. Watch closely : KEEP TABS ON (going down). 21st century style!

The meeting will now come to order as we explore the rest of our Wednesday curriculum:

Across

1. Oodles : GOBS

5. Language group that includes Swahili : BANTU - Here ya go, the BANTU languages are in orange

10. Enormous : VAST

14. "Forget it" : UH UH

15. Single-master : SLOOP - I first thought baseball loving C.C. might be going for Pete Rose who has hit 3,215 singles and not the boat celebrated in The SLOOP JOHN B

16. Funny Dame : EDNA

17. NYC-to-Suffolk County line : LIRR - 1882 map of the Long Island RailRoad

20. Put forward : POSIT

22. Middle East carrier : AIR ARABIA

23. Counterfeiter catcher : T-MAN - The most famous one's credentials

25. Mischievous god : LOKI - The wily trickster of Norse mythology

26. 2015 Payne Stewart Award honoree Ernie : ELS

27. "Enough already!" : STOP NOW

30. Common pay period : WEEK - My first teaching contract amounted to $111/WEEK

34. Unhand, in a toaster brand slogan : LEGGO - LEGGO my EGGO!

38. Nevada's __ 51 : AREA - From space. Uh, I think we took the picture.

39. Like most chopsticks users : ASIAN - I'd starve if I had to use them

42. Estrada of "CHiPs" : ERIK

43. Lip-__: mouths the words : SYNCS

45. "The Tempest" hero : PROSPERO and 19. Servant of 45-Across : ARIEL Needed lotsa help!

47. Musical work : OPUS

51. Obstinate beast : ASS

54. MSN and AOL : ISPS - Our Internet Service Provider is Time Warner

56. "Beat it!" : SCAT

57. Crunchy snacks sometimes dipped in baba ghanouj : PITA CHIPS - How 'bout those chips and baba ganoush?

60. "Idol" judge replaced by DeGeneres : ABDUL -Working drunk doesn't help

65. H.H. Munro's pen name : SAKI

66. Checkout hassle : LINE

67. Indian royals : RANIS

68. Small bills : ONES - A "Tijuana Wad" is a big bill on the outside and mostly ONES on the inside

69. Brings to a close : ENDS

70. First instruction : STEP A 

71. Robin's house : NEST - The babies at our house are finally flying and are safe from our kitty

Down

1. Large swallow : GULP - Can anyone really drink one of these?

2. University about an hour from Columbus : OHIO

3. Break forcefully, as an inflated bag : BURST OPEN - Australian dog going for the Guinness Record

5. Merit badge gp. : BSA

6. "The Blacklist" actor Alan : ALDA - He has many roles and vowels that can be used for cluing

7. Salad restriction : NO OIL

8. Stadium high spot : TOP ROW - A $17 view from the TOP ROW of Kaufman Stadium

10. Wang with a Hippie Princess fragrance line : VERA - Wang, of course

11. Acrobat maker : ADOBE

12. Escargot : SNAIL

13. Triumphant shouts : TA-DAS - What we aim for here!

21. Lake __: Blue Nile source : TANA - The Blue Nile Hotel on its south shore is $33/night

24. Screenwriter Ephron : NORA

27. Golf resort amenities : SPAS - Will that fix your putting?

28. Conservative Brit : TORY 

29. Lb. and kg. : WTS

33. Small swallow : SIP - Far different from The Big Gulp

35. One of dogdom's "gentle giants" : GREAT DANE

36. Cover __ : GIRL

37. "I get it, I get it!" : OK OK

40. Dadaist Jean : ARP - In case you were thinking of buying his Demeter's Doll, it's $138,176.78.

41. Poll responses : NOES

44. Part of little girls' makeup? : SPICE - Along with Sugar and Everything Nice

46. Animal rights org. : SPCA

48. Theater group? : USHERS - Pity the poor USHER that has to take people up to those seats in the TOP ROW shown in 8 Down

49. Show disdain for, figuratively : SPIT AT

51. Big name in smartwatches : APPLE

52. Peaceful protest : SIT IN - Woolworth's in Greensboro, N.C. Sadly, not that long ago

53. Put up with : STAND - These men above definitely took a STAND by taking a seat

55. Moral fiber : SPINE

58. College town north of Des Moines : AMES

59. Short cut : SNIP - Can you say vasectomy?

61. Lanai strings : UKES

62. BuzzFeed article, often : LIST - Here are some of them

64. Fed. property manager : GSA

The meeting has been adjourned and so let's move to the cafeteria for punch, cookies and comments:

Tuesday, June 7 2016, Gail Gabrowski & Bruce Venzke

Theme: Full Speed Ahead. The second word of each theme answer is a synonym for speed.

17. Fastener secured in concrete : ANCHOR BOLT

41. "The salt-free flavor statement" brand : MRS. DASH

64. Unpredictably nasty quality : MEAN STREAK

11. Seriously endangered group in Mary Shelley's "The Last Man" : HUMAN RACE

35. '60s-'70s Chrysler compact : DODGE DART

Melissa here. At first I thought the theme would be something about lightning,when I saw  BOLT and STREAK, but that thought was dashed when DASH and STREAK appeared.

Across 

1. Hoopla : ADO

4. Device for a selfie video : WEBCAM. I totally blew this whole section by entering TRIPOD here, which created an impossible mess. This section was the last to fall.

10. Poker pot disk : CHIP

14. Under the __: pressured : GUN

15. Brightly plumed songbird : ORIOLE

16. Subtle glow : AURA

19. "You're not serious!" : C'MON

20. Typical film festival entry : INDIE

21. Chocolate-and-toffee bar : SKOR

22. Loiter, with "out" : HANG

23. Cosa __ : NOSTRA. Literally translates to "Our thing," or "This thing of ours." Term used for the Sicilian Mafia.

25. Wyoming voters since 1869 : WOMEN

27. "Morning Joe" airer : MSNBC

30. Central courtyards : ATRIA

33. Ore-rich vein : LODE

36. Bumbling sort : DOOFUS 

39. __ nouveau : ART. A style of decorative art, architecture, and design prominent in western Europe and the US from about 1890 until World War I and characterized by intricate linear designs and flowing curves based on natural forms. Know Your Arts:
"Art Nouveau is Paris. Art Nouveau is the Moulin Rouge. It’s Absinthe, Can-Can, the Orient. Art Nouveau is decadence."

40. Angst-filled music genre : EMO

42. Iams eater : CAT

43. Football lineman : END

44. Withdraw officially : SECEDE

45. Refuse to confess to, as charges : DENY

46. Severity : RIGOR

48. Tennis tie : DEUCE. Game tied 40-all and any tie thereafter:

50. Kick out of school : EXPEL

53. Sound of little feet : PATTER

57. Murder mystery staple : BODY

59. Oscar winner Sorvino : MIRA

62. __ cotta : TERRA. Unglazed earthenware. Click here if you'll be in Chicago now through January 8, 2017.

63. Digital reading, for short : E-MAG

66. Firestone product : TIRE

67. Involve : ENTAIL

68. Holy mlle. : STE. Sainte = French for holy, or saint.

69. Mail-routing abbr. : ATTN

70. Dangerous tropical fly : TSE-TSE

71. Distress letters : SOS
 
Down

1. From the top : AGAIN

2. "I'm stumped!" : DUNNO

3. How music may be sold : ON CDS

4. Some wine-and-dine sorts : WOOERS

5. Misspell or misspeak : ERR

6. Spatter catchers : BIBS. Tried LIDS first, making more of a mess in that section.

7. Concoct, with "up" : COOK

8. Give the go-ahead : ALLOW

9. L.A. rail and bus service : METRO

10. Official seal : CACHET

12. It's pumped in gyms : IRON

13. Hint of hunger : PANG

18. "Another card, please" : HIT ME

24. Tennis great Agassi : ANDRE

26. Sitcom set in Korea : MASH. Bummed it disappeared from Netflix so quickly.

28. Pear variety : BOSC

29. Like a cryptogram : CODED

31. Pakistan neighbor : IRAN

32. Justice Dept. employee : ATTY

33. Creepy look : LEER

34. Upscale hotel chain : OMNI

37. Lose strength over time : FADE

38. Go through entirely : USE UP

41. Auto ad no. : MSRP

45. Ward off : DETER

47. Space station supply : OXYGEN

49. Dairy farm animals : CATTLE

51. Irish nationalist Robert : EMMET. Unknown to me.  

52. Creditors' claims : LIENS

54. Rapunzel feature : TRESS

55. Muse of poetry : ERATO

56. Furrow-making tools : RAKES

57. Software prototype : BETA

58. Leave off the list : OMIT

60. Rank according to ability, say : RATE

61. Pre-med subj. : ANAT

65. Family nickname : SIS