Saturday May 29, 2010 Fred Jackson III

Theme: None

Total words: 72

Total blocks: 34

I think this is Fred's first Saturday. He now needs a Sunday to complete his LAT "hitting for the cycle".

Fred places triple stacks of 10's Across on the upper right and lower left corners. Then triple stacks of 9's Down on the upper left and lower right. He has a total of 13 multi-word entries in the grid. My favorite clues today are:

9D. Cell dweller: INMATE. Prison "Cell".

27D. Record holder?: FELON. Criminal record. Got me.

Across:

1. Powder holders: KEGS. Gunpowder?

5. Movie warning: PG-THIRTEEN. PG-13. Weird to see the rating spelled out.

15. Elision from Eliza: 'ENRY. Henry Higgins. "My Fair Lady".

16. Unequaled: ONE AND ONLY. Awesome entry.

17. Times when the French fry?: ETES. French for summer. Rich used this clue before.

18. Stern boss: TASK MASTER. Might be Fred's seed entry. I was thinking of Howard Stern and his boss the Sirius Radio.

19. Orphaned author raised by the Allans: POE. Did not know Poe was an orphan.

20. Winter warmer: HOT TEA. And PARKA (49. Winter warmer).

21. __'clock scholar: TEN O'. Ten O'clock scholar is "schoolboy who habitually arrives late". New expression to me.

22. Incomplete rainbow: SUN DOG. Hmm, this is the image of a sun dog to me. The "incomplete rainbow" definition is also new to me.

24. It may be fit for a queen: TIARA. Sweet clue.

26. Dry gulch: ARROYO. Nailed it.

27. Buff: FIEND. Enthusiast.

29. Kit Carson House site: TAOS. Not aware of this trivia.

30. They may come in a pack: LIES. Of course I was thinking of wolves.

32. Verbal flourishes: TADAS

36. "Here __ Again" (Whitesnake #1 hit): I GO

37. Start of a religious title: DALAI. Dalai Lama. Dalai is literally "ocean" in Mongolian. Lama is "guru". The current exile Dalai Lama is the 14th one.

39. Amphibian youngster: EFT

40. Score markings: TEMPI. Plural of tempo. Musical score.

43. When both hands are up: NOON. Oh, clock.

44. Some bank holdings: DATA

45. Club newsletter: ORGAN. No idea. Why? (From Dennis: "Organ'" can be used in describing newsletters from different clubs, a "periodical".)

47. Like some kisses: STOLEN. Sweet clue.

51. "Let's keep moving!": ONWARD

52. Champagne designation: BRUT. Very dry.

53. Tangles, or disentangles: RAVELS. Unravel has the same meaning, right?

57. Year before Columbus's fourth voyage: MDI. 1501. Who knows?

58. California shopping mecca: RODEO DRIVE. Expensive stuff.

60. Penn name: SEAN. Sean Penn. Nice play on "Pen name".

61. "It doesn't get any better than this": I'M IN HEAVEN. Another awesome entry.

62. Pioneering puppeteer Tony: SARG. How quickly have I forgotten his name!

63. Alabama and Mississippi are in it: COTTON BELT. Felt very clever getting one, Rose!

64. Large order: ELKS. The fraternal order. I was thinking of the large manufacturing order.

Down:

1. Doesn't quit: KEEPS AT IT. Superb!

2. Posse: ENTOURAGE. Great to see "Posse" used as a clue once.

3. Where one might anticipate being introduced: GREEN ROOM.

4. M.O. : SYS (Sytems). M. O. = Modus Operandi. I got the answer via crosses.

5. Vernacular jackpot: POT O' GOLD. Vernacular because "F" is dropped?

6. No-see-um, e.g.: GNAT. Was stumped last time by the clue.

7. Mike holder's opening, often: TEST. Indeed.

8. Cod cousin: HAKE. Have never heard of the hake fish.

10. Dietary no.: RDA. Recommended Daily or Dietary Allowance. I don't know which one.

11. Fiesta fare: TOSTADA. Looks delicious!

12. Decide to compete: ENTER

13. "Uncle Vanya" role: ELENA. No idea. Only spotted Yelena in this Wikipedia character entry. Are they the same?

14. "Stoned Soul Picnic" songwriter: NYRO (Laura). Can never remember her name.

20. Today, in Tijuana: HOY

23. List of acceptable behavior: DO'S. Do's and Don'ts.

25. 1099-__: bank-issued tax form: INT

28. Five-time Japan Senior Open winner Aoki: ISAO. Ao repetition in both his names.

31. Ending for Louis: IANA. Louisiana. The clue fails to amuse me.

33. Richard Simmons weight-loss program with color-coded cards: DEAL-A-MEAL. Not on my radar.

34. At night: AFTER DARK

35. Sports page feature: STANDINGS. Solid fill!

38. Cheeky: INSOLENT

41. Sign to heed: PORTENT

42. Nettle: IRK

44. Average fellow?: DOW. Dow Jones Average I suppose? Why "fellow"?

46. Party locale: GARDEN

48. Shipping wts.: TNS (Tons)

49. Ad: PROMO

50. Review of books?: AUDIT. Accounting book. Loved the clue.

52. __-a-brac: BRIC

54. __ League: ARAB. Did not come to me immediately.

55. On the qui __: alert: VIVE

56. Big name in jumping: EVEL (Knievel). The daredevil.

59. "Well, well!": OHO

60. 157.5 degrees from N: SSE

Answer grid.

C.C.

Friday May 28, 2010 David Poole

Theme: H(ead) Off - The H sound of the first word of a familiar phrase is dropped. The resulting phrases are gridded in their A, E, I, O, U vowel-starting order.

20A. Works in Satan's Museum?: ART OF DARKNESS. "Heart of Darkness". Joseph Conrad novel.

27A. "Tell Senator Bayh to take a number"?: EVAN CAN WAIT. "Heaven Can Wait". The Warren Beatty movie? Evan Bayh, Senator from Indiana.

38A. Egotism?: I ESTEEM. High Esteem. I was confused by the IE combination at first.

47A. Resistance quashers?: OHM WRECKERS. Home Wreckers. We often see OHM clued as "Resistance unit".

55A. Evidence of a love-hate relationship? UGHS AND KISSES. Hugs and Kisses. I don't get the UGHS here. Why? I love the other four question-marked clues. Very entertaining.

I like the orderly vowel progression in the H-off phrases. Neat! The sound-dropping scheme is very Dan Naddor-like. No single black square in this grid. Mostly 3-block clusters.

Several fun clues. My favorite "ones" are:

36A. One objecting to a called strike: SCAB. Of course I was picturing baseball players.

50D. One carrying a bag: CADDIE. Golf. I wanted PORTER.

Across:

1. Willy Loman's favorite son: BIFF. From Arthur Miller's "Death of a Salesman". Immediate stumper for me.

5. Clothes lines: SEAMS

10. Sweet Sixteen initials: NCAA. And UCLA (55D. The Bruins of the 10-Across).

14. Like some history: ORAL

15. Ballade's closing stanza: ENVOI. Or ENVOY. The poetic coda. We had this clue before.

16. Aloe, for one: BALM. Nice to see ALOE as a clue.

17. Fictional princess: XENA. Did you want AIDA also, Hahtool?

18. Pretense: GUISE

19. First Nations tribe: CREE

23. More felicitous: APTER

25. "Dies __": IRAE. Day of Wrath. We also have IRE (2D. More than annoyance). Same Latin root.

26. Hugh Capet, par exemple: ROI. Have never heard of this dude. He reigned France from 987 to 996.

34. List of chaps.: TOC. Man, it's Table of Contents. Who knows?

35. Amarone or Barolo: VINO

37. Where, to Brutus: UBI. Well, maybe Bob knows it. I've got no idea.

42. __ Friday's: restaurant: TGI

43. Tabula __ : RASA. Several Latin references today.

45. Cousin of hibiscus: OKRA. Really? One is flower, one is veggie, and they are cousins? Maybe Warren will find an article confirming this relationship.

46. Three-time NHL MVP: ORR (Bobby). The Bruins legend.

51. Beatty of "Network": NED. All the name clues today are Wednesday-ish. Rich always gives the one part of the name for actor/actress on Wednesdays.

52. Andean nation: Abbr.: ECUA. The answer for abbreviated "Andean nation" clue is often Ecuador.

53. Patella sites: KNEES

61. 1934 role for Claudette, briefly: CLEO. I only know Elizabeth Taylor's CLEO. Who is the guy on her right? Quite handsome.

62. Birth cert., e.g.: IDENT. Not familiar with this ID abbr.

63. Casualty of German reunification: WALL. Berlin Wall.

66. "Kinsey" star Neeson: LIAM

67. Olds Cutlass model: CIERA. I peeked at the answer sheet. Olds 1980s-'90s.

68. Syrup brand: EGGO

69. Cutting the mustard: ABLE. Just learned the idiom "cut the mustard" not long ago.

70. Moray catcher: EELER

71. Out of concern that: LEST

Down:

1. Place for letters: BOX. So simple in retrospect.

3. Santayana defines it as "redoubling your effort when you have forgotten your aim": FANATICISM. Was ignorant of this quote.

4. Common skirt feature: FLARE. Not my type.

5. Utah state flower: SEGO. Wanted LILY.

6. Adequate, slangily: ENUF

7. Gung-ho: AVID

8. Alhambra wall artwork: MOSAIC. Alhambra is literally "the red one" in Arabic. Kazie and her husband met there.

9. Saw-toothed ridge: SIERRA. Kept thinking of ARETE, Clear Ayes.

10. "The Chris Matthews Show" producer: NBC NEWS. MSNBC to be exact.

11. __ package: CARE. Thought of Gunghy & Jazzbumpa whose son/stepson is/will be in danger's way.

12. Pub quaffs: ALES

13. Central Iowa city: AMES

21. Rome's Fontana di __ : TREVI

22. Central U.S. state: KAN. I've been to only a few states in America. Kansas is not one of them.

23. Conductor Toscanini: ARTURO

24. Authority: POOBAH. Great entry.

28. Contest: VIE

29. Yvette's years: ANS. An is year in French.

30. Far from fine: NOT OK. I don't answers with NOT.

31. Be mature: ACT ONE'S AGE. Fantastic entry. Crossing two theme answers. There is a little girl in every grow-up women, longing to be spoiled.

32. "Hear, hear!": I AGREE. I agree with myself on the above comment.

33. Cars designed to compete with Corvettes: T-BIRDS. The answer emerged itself.

39. Scrape together, with "out": EKE

40. Stray: ERR

41. Hides: MASKS

44. "Totally rad!": AWESOME

48. "His Master's Voice" co.: RCA

49. Carol Burnett persona: EUNICE. I guessed.

54. Banister post: NEWEL

56. Like con artists: GLIB

57. Make sound: HEAL

58. Stem-to-stern part: KEEL. Sailing sounds exciting.

59. Memo words: IN RE

60. High light: STAR. Got me. Nice assonance.

64. Some HDTVs: LG'S

65. Developer's unit: LOT. Or acre.

Answer grid.

C.C.

Thursday May 27, 2010 Nathan Miller

Theme: Fish Tale - An extra syllable is added to the monosyllable first word of a common phrase to form a fish pun.

17A. Price decrease for a stout-bodied fish?: GROUPER DISCOUNT. Group Discount.

25A. Habitat for orange fish?: ROUGHY HOUSING. Roughhousing. The only theme entry whose base phrase is one word. I've never heard of roughy fish, What a strange orange color!

45A. Road for Minnesota's state fish?: WALLEYE STREET. Wall Street. Minnesota has the best walleye. Delicious!

57A. Verdict for a tropical fish?: SNAPPER JUDGMENT. Snap Judgment.

We also have a bit of a Greek myth undertone:

44A. Ship of Greek myth: ARGO. "Jason and the Argonauts".

38D. Greek sea god: POSEIDON. The guy with a trident. What's that stuff under his right foot? The Roman equivalent is Neptune. He'd probably eat up this fish puzzle.

44D. Huntress daughter of Zeus and Leto: ARTEMIS. The Greek goddess of the moon. Diana for the Romans.

Must be Nathan Miller's debut. I don't remember seeing his name before. Lovely theme. I liked the two 8-letter & six 7-letter non-theme entries too. Several outstanding clues. My favorite is NOUN (11D. Pencil, pen, or quill). Tricky!

Across:

1. Cooling units, briefly: BTUS

5. Center of Cleveland?: O'NEAL (Shaq). Cleveland Cavaliers' center. Got me. I only saw letter E in the very center of Cleveland.

10. Tolstoy's Karenina: ANNA

14. Musical with the song "Another Pyramid": AIDA. Well, four letter musical with "pyramid" as hint, what else could be?

15. Pat's partner: VANNA (White). "Wheel of Fortune".

16. Somber film genre: NOIR

20. Part of ESP: SENSORY

21. 2000 Olympics city: SYDNEY. Kazie should arrive there tomorrow.

22. A smoker may flick it off: ASH. Nice "it".

23. Black wood: EBONY

30. Skunk moniker: PEPE. Pepe Le Pew.

31. Manhattan's __ Station: PENN

32. Text receivers: CELLS

35. 1997 Smith/Jones film, briefly: MIB (Men in Black)

36. __ Lingus: AER

37. TomTom or Magellan unit, for short: GPS

39. ISP featuring CBS Radio stations: AOL

40. Oscar Madison et al.: SLOBS

42. Muffin topper: OLEO. Al will never put oleo on top of his muffin. Real butter!

48. "Enough!": CEASE

49. Put away the groceries?: EAT. Nice clue. We also have BAGS (1D. "Paper or plastic?" items).

50. CNBC weekday crawl: TICKER

53. Movie venues: CINEMAS

60. Boy leader? ATTA. Attaboy!

61. On account of: DUE TO

62. Minuscule bit: IOTA

63. Promising: ROSY

64. First name in humorous poetry: OGDEN (Nash)

65. Big gulp: SWIG. "Candy is dandy but liquor is quicker".

Down:

2. Spare for a change: TIRE. I just could not keep coin out of my mind.

3. Japanese noodle: UDON. Love seafood udon.

4. McMuffin meat, maybe: SAUSAGE. Oh, did not know this.

5. Promote to excess: OVERHYPE

6. Not any: NARY

7. Means justifier: END. The end justifies the means.

8. Feminist musician DiFranco: ANI. Learned her name from doing Xword.

9. Lariats: LASSOS

10. Pain reliever: ANODYNE. New word to me.

12. Whom "seven ate," in a joke: NINE. "Why is number six afraid of seven?" Because "Seven eight (ate) nine.

13. Like some museumgoers: ARTY

18. Luxurious: POSH

19. Disbelievers: CYNICS

23. About 525 trillion minutes, in astronomy: EON. Barry G/Jerome can confirm the exact minutes.

24. Jumper cable?: BUNGEE. Awesome clue.

25. 45 and 78, e.g.: Abbr.: RPMS

26. Versailles eye: OEIL. As in the art illusion "Trompe L'oeil", literally "fool the eye".

27. Violin stroke: UP-BOW. Guitar stroke also, Al/Jazzbumpa?

28. Medal recipients: HEROES. Dennis has a Purple Heart. Jeannie too, since she loves the Vikings.

29. Downside of sailing off into the sunset?: GLARE

33. Mezzanine cousin: LOGE. Mezzanine is another new word to me.

34. Coin collector?: SLOT. Can't fool me. Nailed it.

36. Zonked: ASLEEP

41. Past due wages: BACKPAY. With the B already in place, I carelessly penned in BONUSES.

43. Drano ingredient: LYE

46. Texas border city: LAREDO. The U.S./Mexico border city

47. Citrus drink used by NASA: TANG

50. Bygone ruler: TSAR

51. "__ the Woods": INTO. Sondheim's musical.

52. Broadway's second-longest-running show: CATS. And MEOW (54D. Call from 52-Down MEOW). A bit of musical undercurrent in this puzzle also.

53. Darling: CUTE

55. Opposition member: ANTI

56. All-male party: STAG. Is there a word for "All-female party"?

58. Hairpiece: RUG

59. Martin's role in "The West Wing": JED

Answer grid.

C.C.

Wednesday May 26, 2010 Dan Naddor

Theme: WORLD LEADERS or TAKE ME TO YOUR LEADER, since the world leader is always who the little green man wants to meet. The first part of each theme entry can also precede "WORLD" to give a different slice of a real or imagined universe.

17A. *Happy-go-lucky: FREE AND EASY - not a care in the world - any of the worlds. FREE WORLD - a cold war era term for every place outside the iron and bamboo curtains, i.e. non-communist countries.

26A. *Scandal involving plumbers: WATERGATE - I had forgotten that the Watergate crew was called the plumbers. Their original assignment was to stop leaks to the media during the Nixon administration, but they branched into illegal activities. WATER WORLD - a Kevin Costner movie I never bothered to see. I think it had bad revues.

45A. *Something to touch before getting home?: THIRD BASE - this home is home plate, in baseball. Or is this totally DF? THIRD WORLD - Here's a learning moment. I always thought this was a label generally applied to developing (read poor) nations. Actually, it is a cold war term for those nations who did not align with either the First World of NATO, etc. (aka the FREE WORLD) or the Second World of the SOVIET BLOCK.

5D. *Genuine article: REAL McCOY - does anybody know where this comes from? Could it be the Hatfields and the McCoys? REAL WORLD - what can you say about the real world? It is what it is. Nice pairing with -

11D. *Baseball fan's dream come true: FANTASY CAMP - an opportunity to go through training and play a game with the big leaguers. It's not limited to baseball. One of my friends went to the Red Wings fantasy camp a few years ago. FANTASY WORLD - a place where delights are only limited by your imagination.

25D. *Letter writer, formally: UNDERSIGNED - Formal, indeed: I, the undersigned, do solemnly attest that this is one fine puzzle. UNDERWORLD - this can mean several things: the mythological land of the dead; the criminal sphere of activity from gangster film noir; an actual place, like the London Underground; or a FANTASY WORLD, like the imagined London Underground of Neil Gaiman's novel NEVERWHERE.

35D. *Veterans: OLD TIMERS - they've been there and done that. Maybe even a long time ago. OLD WORLD - regions of the globe known to European and Asian civilizations of the 15 Century, as distinct from the New World revealed by the next century's (give or take a decade) voyages of discovery.

And the unifier:

54A. Summit attendee, and what the first word can be in each answer to a starred clue: WORLD LEADERS. And each theme "leader" can also a world "leader." Pretty tidy.

Hi, gang. It's Jazzbumpa, and I'm delighted to participate in a stellar week of puzzling: wonderful entries by John and Jerome, and now one from our gone, but not forgotten friend Dan. With Dan's puzzles you can count on an outstanding theme, clever clues, lots of long fill, and more names than some of us like. I count 13 entries of 6 or more letters, but you might want to double check me. Also, several fives. Quite a few threes, as well - but that's geometry for you.

Let's embark on a voyage of Dan's WORLDS.

Across:

1. Hook-and-loop fastener: VELCRO. Velcro is made up of tiny fiber hooks and loops that give you something to latch onto.

7. Masterpieces: GEMS. Top notch stuff, like this week's puzzles, or Pictures at an Exhibition.

11. Lucrative: FAT. A highly profitable venture - not including Ponzi schemes, I assume. Yesterday we had FATTEST and OVEREAT.

14. Marvin of boxing: HAGLER. Not a boxing fan, but I came up with his name, eventually. What is he famous for?

15. Carbon compound: ENOL. If it's carbon compound, 4 letters, enter ENOL and move on.

16. Priest's robe: ALB. As an erstwhile Catholic, I knew this one.

19. Sgt., for one: NCO. A non-commissioned officer in the military. Any veterans care to elaborate?

20. Natural emollient: ALOE. The plant based lotion frequently used to smooth out difficult puzzle sections.

21. Use a crib for: CHEAT ON. Ah, back to school days. A "crib" sheet was a piece of paper with the answers to anticipated test question, that could be used for cheating. Alternatively, you could write the answers on your hand. Tattooing on the inside of the eyelids is quite impractical. No DF thoughts, please.

23. __ und Drang: STURM. STURM UND DRANG is German for Storm and Stress (or impulse) - a descriptor for a period of German literature, about 1760 through the 1780's, when subjectivity and emotionalism played a prominent role. This was a reaction (or over-reaction) to rationalism and the enlightenment.

28. Part of BYOB: OWN. Included in an invitation to the kind of party where you Bring Your OWN Booze. More on this later. Yesterday, we needed a deed to OWN something. With booze, I think possesion is adequate. Though you may be asked to pass the bottle.

29. Controversial 2000 election issue: CHADS. These were those little hanging paper thingies on ballots in Florida that prevented the tabulating machines from getting an accurate vote count. Or not. Let us leave this one be.

31. WWII transport: LST. Landing Ship Tank. An amphibious vehicle for depositing GI's, vehicles and supplies onto the shore duirng WWII. Again, our veterans can fill in the blanks.

32. Brandy cocktails: SIDECARS. As the story goes, it was developed for a patron of Harry's bar in Paris, who would arrive in a motorcycle sidecar. A bit inconvenient for a BYOB event, don't you think? Read more.

34. Koala kid: JOEY. Really? Kangaroo kid, sure. Koala kid, too?

36. Oppressive: ONEROUS. For some reason, I really like this word. It feels so heavy on the tongue. or, if someone asks you about a deed held in common you can say:" The owner? Us!"

37. Tightened, as shoes: RELACED. It took me a long time to figure this one out. And I have to do it all the time.

40. Actor John __-Davies: RHYS. Gimli, my favorite non-tossable dwarf.

41. It's undeliverable and unreturnable: DEAD MAIL. I've heard of dead letter. Dead mail is a reasonable extension, but it it in the language?

42. Civil War letters: CSA. Confederate States of America. More about this I shall not say.

43. "I __ born yesterday!": WASN'T. In fact, my half birthday is two Tuesdays hence. I think that's TerraJo's BD. Hi TJ - you out there?

44. Radiology staple, for short: MRI. Magnetic resonance imaging. The LW had an echocardiogram today, which revealed what I always knew - she has a good heart!

48. Louvre Pyramid architect: I.M. PEI. He did a lot in glass besides the Pyramid. I actually walked around on the roof of a structure of his, much like this one. I was not a happy camper.

50. #1 hit for the 4 Seasons: RAG DOLL. Big Girls Don't Cry was more famous. Vivaldi was totally uninvolved.

51. Appoint: NAME. Some appointments have to be confirmed. More than that I shall not say.

53. Bed-and-breakfast: INN. Frequent stop-over for puzzlers, too.

59. Some people lie about theirs: AGE. Not this OLD TIMER.

60. Theater souvenir: STUB. This search for pix came up with "drive in" and "the violent femmes." Make of it what you will.

61. Directions from the brass: ORDERS. Military brass, I'm sure. Orders TO the brass are to not play so damned loud.

62. Directed: LED. The conductor led us with orders to not play so damned loud.

63. Exxon, once: ESSO. Many mergers ago, there was a bee flying around the gas pump . . .

64. Home to online newsgroups: USE NET. Does anyone use USE NET anymore?

Down:

1. TV channels 2-13: VHF. Very high frequencies, the only channels we had when I was a JOEY. UHF is ultra-high frequency. BYOB, and you can get even higher.

2. Pencil holder?: EAR. This got a grin.

3. Bigger than med.: LGE. Abbr fr. large. Nt: Abbrv in Cl and ans. Small, Medium, Large. Who says size doesn't matter?

4. Exonerate: CLEAR. A legality, I presume. Let our legal eagles speak.

6. "Yes __?": OR NO. It that right? I can't decide . . .

7. "How about that!": GEE. Or something to say to THE WIZ.

8. Passes: ENACTS. A law is enacted when it is passed and signed by the Prez.

9. Israel's Dayan: MOSHE. Famous military leader, Foreign Minister and eye-patch wearer.

10. More devious: SLYER. Does sly imply devious? Hmmmm . . .

12. "Little Women" author: ALCOTT. Louisa May Alcott's famous novel was more or less autobiographical.

13. Steakhouse order: T-BONE. Alternatives are Porterhouse, Sirloin, and Rib Eye. Or this.

18. J&B alternative: DEWARS. A couple of rather pedestrian blended Scotches. It's J&B for JzB, if those are the choices. I have a snifter of Lagavulin at my elbow as I write this.

22. Shining: AGLEAM. Like my eyes after a large snifter of Lagavulin. I heard about a guy who was a careless tooth brusher and had that Gleam in his eye. You can't make bad jokes like that about Ipana. Right, Bucky?

23. Ho-hum: SOSO. Bland, second rate. Not like this week's puzzles.

24. Bed in old sitcoms: TWIN. Married couples had to sleep in separate beds in the old days of TV - even if nobody snored. Not exactly REAL WORLD.

27. Much spam: ADS. Yeah. Or notices that I've won a million pounds. Don't open a message that looks like spam. Just delete - it's a lot safer.

30. Fräulein's residence: HAUS. A Fräulein is an unmarried German woman or girl. In German, "house" is HAUS, and "mouse" is MAUSE. I don't know about "grouse" and "louse."

33. Est founder Werner __ : ERHARD. I guess this stood for Erhard Standard Training, a method of empowerment and personal transformation. Or a scam. Not a veteran, so I couldn't say.

34. Composer Sibelius: JEAN. He is most famous for Finlandia, which I have performed a few times. His symphonies are GEMS.

37. React to an e-mail error message, maybe: RESEND. Send it again, please. If you do not resend, I will rescind.

38. The Auld Sod: EIRE. Ireland, briefly. Will it be EIRE or ERIN? Perp help is always required.

39. XCII x VI: DLII. I refuse to do Roman numeral math, and hit the "reveal word" key, which still works, even when the answer isn't a word.

41. Perp prosecutors: DA'S. District Attorneys are prosecutors. If they get their way, I'm stuck with EIRE - ERIN. Very inconvenient.

42. Adapt: CHANGE. Just this morning I adapted my socks.

43. Critter in a John Lennon title: WALRUS. You all know the Beatles.

45. Dry run: TRIAL. Checking something out to see if it will work, before putting it to serious use. Why is it called a dry run? Is the real thing a WET RUN? Why doesn't this TRIAL involve any DA'S? I'm getting confused.

46. Look for water: DOWSE. This involves antics with a forked stick, that presumably leads an adept to UNDERGROUND water. But a Google search gave me this.

47. Dries gently: BLOTS. to pat gently with a towel. Was 45D to 47D a dry run?

49. Gettysburg general: MEADE. Two coordinated Civil War entries are just a coincidence, not a sub-theme.

52. Baseball's Moises: ALOU. A baseball great, along with his brothers. I linked them the last time, I think. Is there a baseball subtheme? I haven't kept count.

55. Wall St. deal: LBO. Leveraged Buyout. Somebody borrows a bunch of money, buys a company on credit, raids the companies cash reserves, bankrupts the company, and relocates to the tax-free Cayman Islands. Not to be confused with a Ponzi Scheme.

56. Barcalounger site: DEN. Barcalounger is a chair that looks like a La-Z-Boy, but isn't. Remember the story of Goldilocks? Papa Bear's Barcalounger was too hard . .. .

57. Prepositional palindrome: ERE. This is good. "ERE" is the central palindrome of the greater palindrome, "Able was I ere I saw Elba." Elba is the den where Napoleon sat on his Barcalounger.

58. Queue after Q: RST. A letter string. A SO-SO finish to an otherwise GEM of a puzzle.

Hope you had as much fun as I did - and in a lot less time. Puzzle - 18 minutes; blog - a little over three hours.

Answer grid.

Cheers!

JzB

Tuesday May 25, 2010 Jerome Gunderson

Theme: Name That Phrase - Common phrases are humorously reinterpreted and clued as if the last word were two people who share the first name.

20A. Robinson and Thomas?: BALLPARK FRANKS. A pair of Major League Baseball players. Frank Robinson is a former player and manager in the 60's and 70's. He was an outfielder, most notably with the Cincinnati Reds and the Baltimore Orioles. He served as the first African-American manager in Major League history and is in the Baseball Hall of Fame.

Recently retired designated hitter and first baseman, Frank Thomas became one of baseball's biggest stars in the 1990s, playing for the Chicago White Sox. Nicknamed "The Big Hurt".

37A. Owens and Henry?: COUPLE OF BUCKS. Buck Owens (1929-2006), was an American singer and guitarist and is a member of the Country Music Hall of Fame and the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame. Owens called Bakersfield, CA, home and pioneered what came to be called the Bakersfield sound.

Buck Henry is an American actor, writer, film director, and television director. Noted for his dry sense of humor, Henry hosted NBC's Saturday Night Live ten times.

54A. Garfunkel and Tatum?: PERFORMING ARTS. "Art" Garfunkel is an American singer, poet, and actor, best known as half of the folk duo Simon & Garfunkel. In particular, he is remembered for being the lead singer on the #1 hit single, "Bridge Over Troubled Water".

"Art" Tatum Jr. (1909 – 1956) was an American jazz pianist and virtuoso and is widely acknowledged as one of the greatest jazz pianists of all time. He was nearly blind. (He also had an encyclopedic memory for Major League Baseball statistics.)

Argyle here.

I had fun doing this puzzle but I had trouble deciding what to call the theme. The first and third phrases can be said to describe the people associated with them but what to do with a COUPLE OF BUCKS. Won't buy ya' much. Maybe I'll let C.C. decide.

A lot of alliteration today. No links today, but feel free to put in your own links. As a group, we have gotten real good at it and always interesting.

Across:

1A. Indiana senator Evan: BAYH.

5A. Half a '60s pop group: MAMAS. And the Papas

10A. News article: ITEM.

14A. Start of a crystal ball user's prediction: "I SEE".

15A. Dedicatee of Beethoven's "Bagatelle in A Minor": ELISE.

16A. Haydn sobriquet: PAPA. "Father of the Symphony" and "Father of the String Quartet", Joseph Haydn (1732 – 1809) was an Austrian composer.

17A. __ monster: lizard: GILA. Poisonous.

18A. Patty Hearst's SLA alias: TANIA. She was abducted by the Symbionese Liberation Army in the 70's.

19A. Landed: ALIT.

23A. Sense of self: EGO.

24A. Poor offering: ALMS.

25A. Skewered fare: KABOB.

27A. "Impossible!": "NO WAY!".

29A. Where the buffalo roam: LEA.

31A. Fruity refreshment: ADE.

32A. Argue: QUARREL.

36A. Passed with flying colors: ACED.

40A. PBS science series: NOVA.

41A. Most corpulent: FATTEST.

42A. Do an impression of: APE.

43A. Jay-Z's genre: RAP.

44A. Point of contention: ISSUE.

48A. City of Light, to Cole Porter: PAREE. Paris.

50A. Memphis middle name: ARON. Memphis was the home of Elvis ARON Presley.

53A. Cease: END.

58A. Lively style: ELAN.

59A. Sylvan setting: WOODS.

60A. Muddy area: MIRE.

61A. Legendary Asian beast: YETI.

62A. Sweden neighbor, to a Swede: NORGE.

63A. Heavy hammer: MAUL.

64A. Let up: EASE.

65A. Marksman's game: SKEET.

66A. Corrida encouragements: OLÉs.

Down:

1D. Nickname of London's Great Bell: BIG BEN. In the clock tower at the north end of the Palace of Westminster in London, England.

2D. Italian region known for its cheese: ASIAGO. We haven't discussed cheese lately.

3D. Brick road color: YELLOW. Some cheese color, too.

4D. Cure: HEAL.

5D. Heavy rock?: METAL. Another musical genre.

6D. Frighten: ALARM.

7D. Weasel cousins: MINKS.

8D. "Yeah, right!": "AS IF!".

9D. Char: SEAR.

10D. Bucky Beaver's toothpaste: IPANA.

11D. Sass, with "to": TALK BACK.

12D. 45-Down parts: EPISODES.

13D. Wrestling surface: MAT.

21D. Settle a debt: PAY UP.

22D. Wanted poster letters: AKA.

26D. Garden plot: BED.

28D. Color similar to robin egg blue: AQUA.

29D. Baseball field?: LEFT. Center and right would be the other two fields.

30D. Hamburg's river: ELBE.

33D. A, in communications: ALFA. Alfa, Bravo, Charlie, etc.

34D. Gather: REAP.

35D. Balderdash: ROT.

36D. Play segments: ACTS.

37D. Bargain for reduced charges: COP A PLEA. In a judicial court. And 43D. Court arbiter: REF. On a sports court.

38D. Pigs out: OVER EATS.

39D. Taking advantage of: USING.

40D. Doze: NAP.

45D. Story published in installments: SERIAL.

46D. Like lies: UNTRUE.

47D. Ford failures: EDSELS.

49D. Ford from Tennessee: ERNIE. But he was a success.

50D. Luigi's love: AMORE. Italian

51D. Mountain feature: RIDGE.

52D. Start: ONSET.

55D. Holds the deed to: OWNS.

56D. Rank-and-file chess piece: ROOK. But it can't move on a diagonal.

57D. Firearm filler: AMMO.

58D. CBS symbol: EYE.

Answer grid.

Argyle

Monday May 24, 2010 John Lampkin

Theme: M & M's - Letters Ms are initials of each two-word theme entry, the first word being a term of address.

20A. Etiquette authority: MISS MANNERS. A syndicated advice column written by Judith Martin. Since 1978, she has answered etiquette questions contributed by her readers and writes short essays on problems of manners, or clarifies the essential qualities of politeness.

38A. Cantankerous toon: MISTER MAGOO. Quincy (who knew?) Magoo is a cartoon character created at United Productions of America (UPA) in 1949. His stubborn refusal to admit his nearsightedness puts him into a series of sticky situations which he is quick to blame on other people.

57A. Sheridan's misuser of words: MRS. MALAPROP. Richard Sheridan (1751 – 1816) produced his play, The Rivals, a comedy of manners in five acts, in 1775. Mrs. Malaprop is the chief comic figure of the play, thanks to her continual misuse of words that sound like the words she intends but mean something completely different. (The term malapropism was coined in reference to the character.) Examples.

45D. Mars mouthful; also, a hint to this puzzle's theme: M AND M's. The Mars confectionery company produces, besides M&M's, the eponymous Mars bar, Milky Way, Twix, Skittles and Snickers.

Lots of long words in this 74-entry puzzle. Total 18 six-letter words.

Argyle here.

A great Monday. Perhaps a few too many proper names. Notice the themes go from MISS to MISTER to MRS.

Across:

1A. Criminal group: GANG.

5A. What a judge sets: BAIL.

9A. Modify, as a motion: AMEND.

14A. Suit to __: A TEE.

15A. Gillette's __ Plus razor: ATRA.

16A. City chief: MAYOR. "Mayor McCheese". Alliteration.

17A. Basted, but not with butter: SEWN. To sew loosely with large running stitches so as to hold together temporarily.

18A. Charge with a crime: BOOK. "Book 'em, Danno!". Alliteration.

19A. Cheri who impersonated Judge Judy on "Saturday Night Live": OTERI. I finally fill her name in without a second thought.

23A. Fiver: FIN. Five dollar bill.

24A. Critter that can carry many times its own weight: ANT.

25A. Forty-niner's find: ORE.

26A. Just after sunset: AT DUSK. Gloaming, in Scotland.

28A. Take the wheel: STEER.

30A. Bridge distance: SPAN.

33A. Antlered grazers: ELKS.

34A. Arboreal Australian critters: KOALAs. Easy after yesterday's discussion. Partly alliteration.

36A. Upper-story storage: ATTIC.

41A. Strikes through, as text: X's OUT.

42A. Seek aid from: TURN TO.

45A. Early 15th-century year: MCDI. 1401

48A. Actor Kristofferson: KRIS.

50A. '90s Defense secretary Les: ASPIN.

51A. "... my kingdom for __!": A HORSE. from Richard III by William Shakespeare: Act 5. Scene IV

53A. Bad review: PAN.

55A. Jungle swinger: APE.

56A. Prefix with conservative: NEO.

61A. Friend of Eminem: DR. DRE. Rap stars.

63A. Injured: HURT.

64A. Sitar master Shankar: RAVI.

65A. Mazda roadster: MIATA.

66A. Last word in a threat: ELSE.

67A. Serpent's home in Genesis: EDEN.

68A. Jewish feast: SEDER.

69. Bambi, for one: DEER.

70A. Flippant: PERT.

Down:

1D. Riot squad gear: GAS MASK.

2D. Corroded: ATE INTO.

3D. Group that breaks breaking stories: NEWS TEAM.

4D. Mil. leaders: GENS.. Generals.

5D. Picture book elephant: BABAR. Image. A French children's fictional character who first appeared in Histoire de Babar by Jean de Brunhoff in 1931.

6D. Does penance (for): ATONES.

7D. Gadget that gets out the creases: IRON. A gadget?!?

8D. Boating spot: LAKE.

9D. "It's __ Unusual Day": 1948 song: A MOST. Here sung by a most unusual trio. Clip.

10D. Doorway welcomer: MAT.

11D. Good-looker: EYEFUL. YES!. Maybe.

12D. Perfectly safe, as an investment: NO RISK.

13D. Bar buys: DRINKS.

21D. Marshy tract: MORASS.

22D. Beat up on verbally: RANT AT. Clunky.

27D. Room treatments: DECORS.

29D. Cure-all potion: ELIXIR.

31D. Miniseries' first section: PART I.

32D. Deposit or withdrawal gizmo, briefly: ATM.

35D. "Dracula" author Bram: STOKER.

37D. Big lizard: IGUANA.

39D. The Continent: Abbr.: EUR.. Europe.

40D. Displayed in a public procession: ON PARADE.

43D. Cause to topple: TIP OVER.

44D. Eighth of a gallon: ONE PINT.

46D. Paris sweetie: CHERIE.

47D. Thingy: DOODAD.

49D. Thinly populated: SPARSE. Sparse, that is what my comments are today.

52D. Blur, as wet ink: SMEAR.

54D. Change: ALTER.

58D. Backyard storage: SHED.

59D. Stubborn beast: MULE.

60D. Get ready, for short: PREP.

62D. Hwy.: RTE..

Answer grid.

Argyle

Sunday May 23, 2010 Pamela Amick Klawitter

Theme: They're Beside Themselves - The embedded three-letter common names that end the first words of all two-word theme entry are the same as the ones that start the second word.

22A. Introductory assortment of wreckage?: FLOTSAM SAMPLER. Flotsam. Jetsam.

40A. One-of-a-kind book? CUSTOM TOME

65A. Place to leave the flock during vacation?: CHICKEN KENNEL. Chicken want to live in the coop.

92A. Try to get tallow?: PURSUE SUET. My first theme answer.

114A.Music for painters?: ENAMEL MELODIES

15D. Scallions for an anniversary party?: JUBILEE LEEKS. To me, scallions are just green onions.

59D. Short treatise on junk e-mail? SPAM PAMPHLET. Fun clue/answer.

I only realized all the embeds are common names after I typed in & green-highlighted all the the letter string repetitions. Great theme title. Nice play on "beside oneself".

The puzzle is one Q away from a pangram. As the norm with our Sunday puzzles, quite a few entertaining clues. My favorite is FEET (109D. Pump inserts). D'oh, pump shoes.

I still don't like the clue for PEDAL (105D. Step on it). The "it" grammar confused me last time. I just don't feel the clue and answer fully correspond to each other, unlike the clear "them" reference in LEADS (97D. Reporters chase them).

Across:

1. Garfield's middle name: ABRAM. Can never commit his name into my memory. Did get KENNEDY (49D. President under whom the Peace Corps was formed).

6. Tiptop: ACME

10. Timber shaper: ADZ. Or adze.

13. Big Indians: RAJAS. Thought of Native American Indians.

18. At large: LOOSE

19. Property claim: LIEN. And DEED (11. Safe document).

20. Scripps competition: BEE. Spelling Bee.

21. Disqualify (oneself), in court: RECUSE

25. Protozoan: AMEBIC. Or ameobic.

26. Swears to: ATTESTS

27. Home of Texas A&M International University: LAREDO. U.S./Mexico border city.

28. Pooh-pooh: DERIDE

29. Manhattan component: RYE. Rye is an affluent suburb of NY City, a la Wikipedia.

30. Boris Godunov, e.g.: TSAR. Don't know Boris Godunov.

31. Lost the point: RAMBLED

32. Vardon Trophy org.: PGA. Gimme. Vardon Trophy is awarded to PGA player who leads in scoring average. Named after British golfer Harry Vardon.

35. Be of service to: ASSIST

38. Pointed remark: BARB

39. Legal conclusion?: ESE. Legalese.

43. Exercised in a lane: SWAM. Can't jam in BIKED.

45. Barely earn, with "out": EKE

47. Online bulletin board mgr. : SYSOP (System Operator)

48. Pub staple: ALE

49. It isn't really a bear: KOALA. What is it then, Kazie? Sure looks like bear though.

50. Vestige: RELIC

53. Put in the warehouse: STORE

55. Cut down: FELLED

56. One who follows the news?: LENO. Because Leno's show is after the evening news?

57. Cinnamon tree: CASSIA. Wow, it's Chinese cinnamon. No idea.

60. IV to III?: SON. Nailed it.

61. River duck: TEAL

63. Writers: PENS. Did not know "pen" can refer to a person who writes.

64. Marching start?: HUP. "Hup, two, three, four". The military march. Got me again.

70. Hobby shop buy: KIT

71. Significant times: ERAS

73. Hard on the eyes: UGLY. No, I will not link anything hard on the eyes. Al's Hart.

74. Thing to bend or lend: EAR. Nice rhyming clue.

75. Speaks disrespectfully to: SASSES

77. "If it's all the __ to you ...": SAME

78. Star's opposite: NOBODY

80. Bow ties and elbows: PASTA. Nice "bow" echo.

82. Early mobile home: TEPEE. Yurt too.

84. Soap whose first slogan was "It floats": IVORY

85. Scroogean word: BAH

86. Uses a keyboard: TYPES. And ENTER (120. Put in)

90. Rule of crime writing: ANN. I've never heard of Ann Rule. Good clue though.

91. BlackBerry message: TEXT

94. Fire or side attachment: ARM. Excellent play on fireside.

96. Secluded lowland: GLEN

98. Continued: GONE ON

99. Practice, as a trade: PLY

100.Comebacks: REPLIES

102.Like some telegrams: SUNG. I don't get this clue. How can telegrams be sung?

103.Dosage amt.: TSP

106.Goddess of wisdom: ATHENA

107.Noisy summer bug: CICADA. Ear-splitting!

109.Artful handling: FINESSE

113.Lost some locks: BALDED. Locks always refer to hair in Xword.

116.Feudal lords: LIEGES. Another hard to remember word.

117.He played Quasimodo in 1923: LON (Chaney). Easy guess.

118.Justice's garb: ROBE

119.Dylan Thomas's home: WALES

121.Explosive letters: TNT

122.Whack: SWAT

123.Skiing locale: SLOPE. Didn't jump to me immediately.

Down:

1. __ Romeo: ALFA. The sport car.

2. Cloth quantity: BOLT

3. Cheer: ROOT

4. Sunflower relative: ASTER. Oh, OK.

5. Like Oscar Madison's room: MESSY. And STY (89. 5-Down place).

6. Charity: ALMS

7. Grafton's "__ for Corpse": C IS

8. When many a bell is rung: MEAL TIME. Where?

9. As a group: EN MASSE

10. More competent: ABLER

12. Nonentity: ZERO

13. Common word in rallying slogans: REMEMBER. I peeked at the answer sheet.

14. Biting: ACERB

16. Parenthetical comments: ASIDES

17. Withdraw: SECEDE

21. Hawkeye associate: RADAR (O'Reilly). Both M*A*S*H characters. And WALTER (44. 21-Down's real first name, on TV). Unknown to me.

23. Starting squad: A-TEAM

24. Duff: PRAT

31. Islamic holy month: RAMADAN

32. Modern office staples: PCS

33. Chap: GUY

34. Mule's papa: ASS

36. Antares, for one: STAR

37. Something to walk on: SOLE. Indeed.

38. Whalebone: BALEEN. New word to me.

41. Chuck: TOSS

42. __ nerve: OPTIC. Also new to me.

43. Sun, in Spain: SOL. Alliteration.

46. Food for sea urchins: KELP. I use kelp for miso soup base sometimes.

51. Navel phenomenon: INNIE

52. Expenditures: COSTS

54. Hawaii's "Gathering Place": OAHU. "Gathering Place" is its nickname.

55. Other side: FOE

57. Pirate booty holder: CHEST

58. Halos: AURAE. Or auras.

60. Luxury seating: SKYBOX

62. Discounted: LESS

66. Fires up: IGNITES

67. Split, as some hoofs: CLOVEN. Past participle of "cleave".

68. Round Table knight: KAY. Not familiar with Sir Kay. Another lady sounding name.

69. Starbucks buy: LATTE

72. As __ on TV: SEEN

76. Indicates: SAYS

79. Fido's dinnertime extra: ORT. Classic crosswordese.

80. Trim, as apples: PARE

81. Semi-serious "I understand": AH SO

83. Casey Jones, e.g.: ENGINEER. Have never heard of Casey Jones. He must be very famous to be honored with a stamp.

85. Cottage: BUNGALOW

87. Lassie, once: PUP. The answer surfaced itself.

88. Slender swimmer: EEL. Slender indeed.

92. Thinks over: PONDERS

93. Up to: UNTIL

94. Like productive land: ARABLE

95. Hang on to: RETAIN

98. Largest of the Marianas: GUAM

101.Outcropping: LEDGE. Like this protruding part.

102.Meager: SCANT

104.Hoodwinks: SNOWS. Learned this slang meaning of snow a few weeks ago.

107.Breton, e.g.: CELT

108.Privy to: IN ON

110.Storage cylinder: SILO

111.Trickle: SEEP

112.Start of North Carolina's motto: ESSE "Esse quam videri" (to be rather than to see). Another learning moment for me.

115.Many a Wharton grad: MBA

Answer grid.

C.C.

Saturday May 22, 2010 Victor Fleming

Theme: None

Total words: 66 (Four intersecting grid-spanners)

Total blocks: 30

No theme today, Saturdays are themeless, although I think the answer for 8D. Educated Guesses was a good name for this puzzle. There were a lot of initial fill-ins that I wasn't entirely sure of, but they just felt right somehow.

Al here today, killing time while waiting for some off-hours processing to finish for work.

Across:

1. McCarthy era phenomenon: RED SCARE. Technically, the second one, from 1947-1957 in which the Cincinnati Reds temporarily renamed themselves the “Cincinnati Redlegs” to avoid the money-losing and career-ruining connotations inherent in being ball-playing “Reds”. The first Red Scare was from 1917-1920.

9. Trysting relationship: AFFAIR. What one "has to do" from Old French à faire "to do".

15. Flattered, in a way: IMITATED. Imitation is the sincerest of flattery -- Charles Caleb Colton.

16. Grand Canal span: RIALTO. Contracted from Rivoalto and named for the canal (Latin rivus altus "deep stream") which it crosses.

17. 1985 John Irving best-seller: CIDERHOUSE RULES. Made into a movie starring Spiderman (Tobey Maguire) and the latest Alfred (Batman's butler) Michael Caine, who also was the lead in a movie called Alfie.

19. Architect Saarinen: ELIEL. And his son EERO (who designed the Gateway Arch among other structures). If you don't know these two names by now, just resolve to commit them to memory if you're planning on doing more crosswords.

20. Baby's asset: CUTENESS.

21. Goes back: RETROGRADES. Straight from the Latin: retro- backwards, Gradus: steps.

24. "Shucks!": RATS. An interjection. Remember Schoolhouse Rock?

25. Displays, with "out": TROTS. Originally connected with showing off horses in 1838, it was recorded as slang later by 1845. A recorded connection with "the runs" precedes both of those by 30 years.

30. Rested: TOOK FIVE. Roughly the amount of time it takes to smoke a cigarette. Here's a better use of your five minutes.

35. Frequent saver: GOALIE. Hurling, association football, Gaelic football, International Rules Football, handball, ice hockey, field hockey, netball, water polo, bandy, lacrosse, floorball.

36. Medical malpractice issue: INFORMED CONSENT. For instance, if someone says OK to having a procedure done, but only because they felt intimidated, whether by the influence of the practitioner's strong expression of convictions, or they were cowed by the perceived difference in education on the subject, then it's an issue.

38. Naval construction worker: SEABEE. CB, Construction Battalions.

39. Garden entrance component, perhaps: GATEPOST.

40. Beefy-T maker: HANES. Tee shirt manufacturer.

41. A psychic may see one: AURA. When there is "a certain air" around someone. From Greek aura: gentle breeze

42. It's right before the end: HOME STRETCH. The straightaway from the last turn to the finish line on a horse racetrack.

49. Goes before: PRECEDES.

53. "Corporations have been enthroned and ___ of corruption in high places will follow": Lincoln: AN ERA.

54. Cryptozoologist's subject: LOCH NESS MONSTER. Crypto: hidden. Zoology: animal studies. (Zoo from Greek zoion, a living being)

57. Celebrate a promotion, maybe: EAT OUT. There was probably a raise involved as well...

58. Grin measure?: EAR TO EAR. A creepy Cheshire cat.

59. Shows exhaustion: DROOPS.

60. Aviation pioneer: SIKORSKY. Igor. A Russian immigrant, he designed the first multi-engine fixed-wing aircraft, the first airliner, Pan-am flying boats, and the first viable American helicopter.

Down:

1. Sous chef's gadget: RICER.

2. '60s boxing champ Griffith: EMILE. Not a boxing fan, unknown to me.

3. Finished the job: DID IT.

4. Guide: STEER. The verb, not a Sherpa.

5. Swindler Ponzi, at birth: CARLO. The Ponzi Scheme.

6. Sports fig.: ATH. Figure and Athlete, both abbr.

7. Popular '20s auto: REO. Educated Guess, three letters, old car, that had to be it.

8. They're not wild: EDUCATED GUESSES. Intuition isn't entirely psychic...

9. Narrow ridge: ARETE. From Latin "arista": ear of grain. OK, that's what it says, but I don't see the connection.

10. Early Ford supplier: FIRESTONE.

11. Woodland spirit: FAUN. Latin Faunus, Greek Pan. A goat-man/god similar to a satyr. A faun is man still in intimate communion with Nature, a satyr is a man still swayed by bestial passions.

12. Everyone, in Essen: ALLE. alles alles auch sind frei.

13. Suburban followers?: ITES. Suburbanites. A suffix clue made a bit trickier by the plural phrasing, so the sense of individual letters, not the whole syllable.

14. 18th-century sewer: ROSS. Betsy Ross. Sewer = One who sews. Not something with a manhole cover... There is some debate about the story of the flag origin, but the lack of actual records either way makes it difficult or even impossible to prove or disprove.

18. Brewski: SUDS. Beer slang. Using compressed nitrogen instead of carbon dioxide makes the "SUDS" richer, and more aromatic.

22. Ugly buildup: GRIME. from Middle English "grim": dirt, filth.

23. Show approval, or disapproval: RAVE. A rave review, or to show signs of delirium, i.e. rant.

26. Grating sound: RASP. Wolfman Jack comes to mind.

27. It's sold in bars: OLEO. Sticks, maybe. I've never heard of them as bars... Unless maybe as the contents in baked goods...

28. Pie containers: TINS. The origin of the frisbee.

29. Paving stone: SETT. Quarried or shaped to have square edges, cobblestones are natural shapes.

30. Mrs. Addams, to Gomez: TISH. He became especially amorous whenever she spoke French. I wonder if that wasn't put in there to slip something past the censors.

31. Service rank: ONE-A.

32. "Confessions __ English Opium-Eater": 1821 De Quincey work: OF AN.

33. Capital of Hyogo Prefecture: KOBE. Or a dishonored Basketball player. Settled out of court, and is playing again.

34. Shower and change, say: FRESHEN UP.

35. Touched: GOT AT. I thought maybe got "to", got at sounds like more than just touching.

37. Traffic units: CARS. Could have been vans.

41. "Life With Father" co-star Leon: AMES. Before my time.

43. "Night Music" playwright: ODETS. Also before my time.

44. Sought aid from: RAN TO. Frankly Scarlett...

45. "Christ's Entry Into Brussels in 1889" artist: ENSOR. James. Lots of names today, it seems.

46. Beans of Paris?: TETES. French for "heads".

47. Reason to lubricate: CREAK. I'll put oil on my floor then?

48. Potter of fiction: HARRY.

49. Asked in earnest: PLED.

50. Jungle warning: ROAR.

51. Plasm lead-in: ECTO. Prefix, ectoplasm. Also called the cortex, the outer smooth part of a cell's cytoplasm. Unless you're one of the ghostbusters, that is, then it's just slime from paranormal activity.

52. Half a track sound: CHOO. And the other half is AH. (Correction: The track sound is choo-choo. Thanks, Anonymous @6:54am.)

55. It follows April in Paris: MAI. French for May.

56. Where "Shazbot!" is a curse: ORK. From Mork and Mindy, an alien who reported back to Ork how badly we humans treat each other for very silly reasons. The show jumped the shark when they added Jonathan Winters as a very large baby. Because that just wasn't believable.

Answer grid.

Al

Friday May 21, 2010 Mike Peluso

Theme: PLANE TALK ( 63A. This puzzle's title?) - Part of a plane related two-word common phrase is substituted by a homonym, and the resulting punny phrase is humorously clued.

17A. Capri beach chairs?: ISLE SEATS. Aisle Seats. Isle of Capri.

25A. Quiz a Roman judge?: TEST PILATE. Test Pilot. Pilate is the Roman judge who ordered the crucifixion of Jesus.

38A. Affable terriers?: FRIENDLY SKYES. Friendly Skies. Skye terriers.

51A. Really dark beers?: BLACK BOCKS. Black Box. I am not familiar with the Bock beer.

Nice theme. I like the pun on "plain talk" too, though I do feel the resulting phrases are just the opposite of the tie-in PLANE TALK.

Quite a few creative clues today. My favorite is ALTAR (60A. Where to see an approaching train?). D'oh, the wedding gown "train".

Across:

1. Like a javelin's path: ARCED

6. Balancing pro?: CPA. Nailed it.

9. 2.3, roughly: C-PLUS. Oh, I don't know this equivalent.

14. "The Wreck of the Mary __": DEARE. Have never heard of this film (1959). Starring Gary Cooper.

15. Steak seasoning: RUB. Alliteration.

16. Picked up: HEARD. Did not come to me immediately.

19. Rhythmic feet?: IAMBS. Poetic feet.

20. Faint: DIM

21. "The Metaphysics of Ethics" author: KANT

22. Camera type, briefly: SLR (Single-Lens Reflex)

23. Sailing, say: ASEA. Alliteration.

30. Play with a brushing motion: STRUM. I see, play with musical instrument.

32. Fights in the sticks: RASSLES. Hillbilly for "wrestles".

33. Idealist: DREAMER

37. Post-WWII alliance: OAS

42. "Who, me?": MOI. Who will educate us about French when Kazie leaves for Oz next Wednesday? She'll be gone for a whole month!

43. They're not content to see you: RAISERS. Poker term "see", to match (a bet). Got me.

44. Stays in memory: LIVES ON

47. Greek fabulist: AESOP

55. See 54-Down: REMO. And SAN (54D. With 55-Across, Italian site of a post-WWI Allied conference). I only know it as a resort.

56. Golfer's concern: LIE. The position of the golf ball. We also have PUTTS ( 7D. Uses the "flat stick," in golf). "Flat stick" is slang for putter, which is flat comparing with other clubs.

57. Many a Middle Easterner: ARAB

59. Tokyo-based chip maker: NEC. Was unaware that NEC makes chips.

65. Like a game in baseball's record books: NO HIT. And MLB (42D. Bud Selig's org.). Selig is the current commissioner.

66. Sitcom E.T.: ALF

67. Coco rival: ESTEE (Lauder). Cosmetics.

68. Traveling options: TOURS

69. Pin site: MAT

70. "Grace Under Fire" star Butler: BRETT. Total stranger to me. A male sounding name.

Down:

1. Puma competitor: ADIDAS

2. Put up a fight: RESIST. I've learned to yield.

3. Less windy, say: CALMER

4. Bard's preposition: ERE. Before.

5. Certain sergeant's post: DESK

6. Rail relative: CRANE

8. Workout targets. ABS. This is for Jeannie. Clear Ayes likes Ryan Reynolds too.

9. Tex-Mex restaurant chain: CHILI'S. Headquartered in Texas.

10. Bits of wisdom?: PEARLS. Pearls of wisdom.

11. Flight: LAM

12. Suffix with sub- URB. Suburb.

13. 1968 Columbia U. protesters: SDS (Students for a Democratic Society). Why Columbia U in particular?

18. Put away: EAT. Not the "put away" I have in mind.

22. Hardly dense: SPARSE

24. BMW competitor: AUDI

26. Small diamonds: TREYS. Of course, I was picturing real diamonds, not playing cards.

27. Soothing lotion: ALOE

28. Chai and oolong: TEAS

29. Mountain road feature: ESS

31. Desert Storm mess, briefly?: MRE (Meal Ready to Eat). Again, I was in real snafu mess direction. Not military meal mess.

34. Prepare for court, perhaps: ENROBE. OK, for the judge.

35. Town in a 1945 Pulitzer-winning novel: ADANO. Hersey's "A Bell for Adano".

36. 11th-century year: MLI. 1,051.

38. Prevent: FOIL

39. 1972 Kentucky Derby winner __ Ridge: RIVA. Mike used the identical clue in a Sunday puzzle last year. I simply forgot. The horse won 1972 Belmont Stakes as well.

40. Malay Peninsula's Isthmus of __: KRA. See this map. Stumper for me.

41. Belgian river: YSER

45. Iced pastry: ECLAIR

46. Sidesteps: SKIRTS

48. Legislative century: SENATE. Senate has 100 members.

49. It's folded and filled: OMELET. Nailed it.

50. Sink, as a billiard ball: POCKET

52. __ lily: CALLA

53. "Make today delicious" food giant: KRAFT

58. U.K. network, with "the": BEEB. Nickname for BBC I suppose.

60. Hill dweller: ANT

61. Manchester head?: LOO. Ha ha, toilet "head". I was tricked again. I thought of MAN, since MAN starts the word Manchester.

62. Cal. column: THU

63. Robin's "Mork & Mindy" co-star: PAM (Dawber). Easy guess.

64. Dungeons & Dragons co.: TSR (Tactical Studies Rules). No idea. Wikipedia says TSR was purchased in 1997 by Wizards of the Coast, which no longer uses the TSR name for its product.

Answer grid.

C.C.