Monday July 26, 2010 John Lampkin

Theme: Visual Arts - Each two-word phrase starts with a form of visual arts.

17A. Bodybuilder's pride : SCULPTED ABS. Here (for the Ladies) / Here (for the Men)

28A. Melted dip for steamed lobster : DRAWN BUTTER. Where the best lobsters are: right, Mainiac?

42A. Table-ready hearty entrée : CARVED ROAST. Medium rare.

54A. Colorful butterfly : PAINTED LADY. Here is a set of five butterfly photographs from constructor John Lampkin. Here is a sound clip of "The Butterfly and the Rose", a movement from John's 8-movement woodwind quintet called "A Walk Through Shaw's Garden", commissioned and performed by the Equinox Chamber Players and recorded on Albany Records.

Argyle here.

Eighteen 3-letter words but also, eighteen 6-letter words. Four pairs of echo clues.

Notice the black square in the very center of the grid? You won't see a non-theme entry in the middle of a John Lampkin puzzle.

Across:

1. Mr. Potato Head maker : HASBRO.

7. Mickey and Minnie : MICE.

11. Calculator display, briefly : LCD.

14. Find not guilty : ACQUIT.

15. "__ in the Morning": talk show : IMUS. Don Imus, shock jock. (I'll spare you any image.)

16. "Caught you red-handed!" : "A-HA!".

19. Plead for a treat, dog-style : BEG.

20. Barely make, with "out" : EKE.

21. FHA loan : MTGE.. Federal Housing Administration, mortgage.

22. Diver Louganis : GREG.

23. "__-doke!" : OKEY.

25. Melville's sequel to "Typee" : "OMOO".

26. Flirtatious one : TEASE.

27. -, on an AA batt. : NEG. Plus, 54D. +, on an AA batt. : POS. Great clue echos.

30. "Wait a moment" : "ONE SEC".

32. "Dagnabbit!" : "NERTS!". Now there is a word I haven't heard in a while.

33. Quaint horse-pulled winter rides : SLEIGHS.

35. Machine gun syllables : RAT-A-TAT.

39. Psychoanalyst Fromm : ERICH.

41. Surgeon's stitch : SUTURE.

46. "Fill 'er up!" filler : GAS.

47. Say "Ditto" : AGREE. And 51. "__ here": "Ditto" : SAME. Another echo.

48. Catch sight of : ESPY.

49. Goes back out, as the tide : EBBS.

50. Gal. or oz. : MEAS.. Measure.

51. Horse trade : SWAP.

52. Mideast political initials : PLO.

53. "The Lord of the Rings" tree being : ENT. If you see any female Ents, please contact Treebeard, care of Fangorn Forest.

58. Poem of tribute : ODE.

59. Seer's sign : OMEN.

60. __ d': headwaiter : MAÎTRE.

61. Blue : SAD.

62. Blood supplies : SERA.

63. Depletes : USES UP.

Down:

1. Possesses : HAS.

2. Gp. with UNC and Duke, among others : ACC. Atlantic Coast Conference (college sports)

3. Windshield-cleaning tool : SQUEEGEE.

4. Like a heavy parka : BULKY.

5. Ready to pick : RIPE.

6. Mel of the Giants : OTT. Baseball.

7. Central area in a big city : MIDTOWN.

8. "There's no hope for me," in oaters : "I'M A GONER".

9. Dice unit : CUBE.

10. Tee preceder : ESS. S, T.

11. Maze runner : LAB RAT. And 12. Maze runner's incentive : CHEESE. Adjacent clue echo.

13. Cloak go-with : DAGGER.

18. Thompson of "Howards End" : EMMA. A story of class struggle in turn-of-the-century England.

22. Suggests indirectly : GETS AT.

23. Yoko's family : ONOs.

24. __ Ration: dog food : KEN-L. The dog must be well fed by now, what with all the Ken-L ration we've had lately.

25. Prom corsage : ORCHID.

26. "My, my, that's a no-no" : TUT, TUT. Four Ts.

28. One of 90 in a right angle : DEGREE.

29. Like band music : BRASSY. All bands, JzB?

31. Flour strainers : SIEVES. Personally, I'd rather sift my flour than strain it.

34. Having fewer marbles? : SCREWIER.

36. Harbor pushers : TUGBOATS.

37. Saudi, usually : ARAB.

38. Thomas Hardy heroine : TESS.

40. Biblical cry of praise : HOSANNA.

42. Stars' brief film appearances : CAMEOS.

43. Meeting to-do list : AGENDA.

44. Not for kids, as films : R-RATED.

45. Pocket PC entry : APPT.. Appointment, which is why they are called: 52. Pocket PCs, e.g. : PDAs. (personal digital assistant). One more echo.

49. "Dallas" matriarch Miss __ : ELLIE. Dallas was a TV prime time soap opera.

55. Ostrich kin : EMU.

56. Joanne of "All the King's Men" : DRU. All the King's Men is a 1949 drama film based on the novel of the same name. It is the story of the rise of politician Willie Stark (Broderick Crawford) from a rural county seat to the governor's mansion. His affair with Anne Stanton (Joanne Dru) would be scandalous because she's the daughter of an ex-Governor. Joanne Dru was the elder sister of Peter Marshall, the original host of the Hollywood Squares.

57. Nope's opposite : YEP.

Answer grid.

Two more notes:

1) This is the first time that our blog presents a puzzle in a unified way. The puzzle itself, key theme photographic art & music are all provided by the constructor. If you are inspired by John's music or want to learn more about his artistic work, please visit his website.

2) Tomorrow's puzzle involves circles, which are unsupported by LA Times website. A pdf file will be released on the blog Comments section around 9:00pm tonight.

Argyle

Sunday July 26, 2010 Nora Pearlstone

Theme: Tee for Two - Letter T is added to the start of the second word of each two-word familiar phrase, which also has letter T as the end of its first word. The resulting phrase with two Ts spanning in the middle is then humorously clued.

23A. Monster affected by a moon phase? : CRESCENT TROLL. The base phrase is crescent roll.

37A. Levy on butchers? : MEAT TAX. Meat ax.

69A. Warren weeping? : RABBIT TEARS. Rabbit ears. Rabbits live in warrens. Bet it brought a smile to our Warren and his lovely wife Ruth.

76A. Japanese chicken snacks? : EAST TENDERS. Not familiar with the base phrase "EastEnders". Does it refer to the BBC show?

106A. Can for old smokes? : BUTT TIN. Butt in.

124A. Attacker's fruity treat? : ASSAULT TRIFLE. Assault rifle.

17D. Small pie à la Pollock? : ABSTRACT TART. Abstract art. Pollock's work is truly hard to understand.

41D. Stuff that sticks for years? : GREAT TAPE. Great ape.

49D. Taunting from the Miami bench? : HEAT TRASH. Heat rash. Miami Heats (NBA).

65A. Bakery supply for wrapping cake boxes? : DESSERT TWINE. Dessert wine.

Fun theme. Fun clues too. I liked that all the theme entries are two-word phrases, which give the theme a narrowed focus.

Some may not pay attention to those transformed second T* word, but none of them has the repeating pattern. Rich Norris (Nora Pearlstone is his alias name, anagram of "not a real person". ) covered a wide range of possible T starting words:

1) T with various vowels/vowel combination: short a, long a, ar, ea, e & i. I suppose Rich found no sparkly To or Ty phrases.

2) T with consonants: TW & TR(A/I/O). TH is missing. Thought it's a good combination to play around. No, Jerome/John?

Total 49 Ts in the grid, eclipsed only by the most used crossword vowel E (53).

My favorite clues today:

122A. Split payment? : ALIMONY

116D. Females with pig tails : SOWS. The clue made me laugh.

Across:

1. Get at : ACCESS

7. Like lambs : GENTLE. I wanted SILENT, thinking "The Silence of the Lambs". We also have TAME (118D. Easy to manage).

13. 1983 invasion site : GRENADA

20. President Ahmadinejad's capital : TEHRAN. Mad man.

21. Pioneer Day celebrant : UTAHAN. Not familiar with Utah's state holiday "Pioneer Day".

22. Dressed : ENROBED

25. Chips Ahoy! maker : NABISCO

26. Filet mignon, e.g. : ENTREE

27. Black Sea country : UKRAINE. Awesome entry.

29. Diglyceride, for one : ESTER. Know the answer, not the clue.

30. Performance rights org. : BMI (Broadcast Music, Inc)

31. Craving : URGE

33. Give a hand : ASSIST

35. Yeats's homeland : ERIN. Poetic name for Ireland.

36. Response to an e-mail wisecrack : LOL

40. "Here's the __ ..." : THING

42. Many a Monopoly sq. : AVE

43. Sole : ONLY

45. Abbot's address: Abbr. : RT. REV. Retired Reverend I suppose. (Correction: It stands for Right Reverend. Thanks, Lemonade.)

46. Spiffed (up) : SPRUCED

48. Illustrator N.C. : WYETH. No idea. He's the father of Andrew Wyeth, known for his "Christina's World".

50. The younger Saarinen : EERO. The older Saarinen is Eliel.

51. Boo follower : HOO. Boohoo.

54. Toon flapper Etta : KETT. Can never remember this old comic figure.

55. __ Plaines, Illinois : DES

57. 1980s South African pres. : P.W. BOTHA. Was confused by the PWB combination. Total stranger.

60. Starts the kitty : ANTES

63. Mouse site : PAD. Computer mouse.

66. College fund-raising targets : ALUMS

71. U.K. award : OBE (Order of the British Empire)

72. Newbie : TYRO

73. Everycowboy : TEX

74. Skip : OMIT

75. Hook (up) : RIG

79. Carrion eater : HYENA

80. Asian holiday : TET. Only in Vietnam.

81. '90s N.Y. Philharmonic conductor Kurt : MASUR. Another stranger.

82. Westernmost of the Sunda Islands : SUMATRA

84. Mean at a univ. : GPA

86. South Dakota, to Pierre : ETAT. Pierre here refers to the typical French name instead of the capital city.

88. Word before and after "vs." in a Mad feature : SPY. Spy vs. Spy.

89. Italian vineyard region : ASTI. Do you like "Stealing Beauty"?

92. Culture: Pref. : ETHNO

96. Read : PERUSED

99. Scrawny : GAUNT

101. Good earth : LOAM. Nice play on "The Good Earth".

102. Co. that spun off the Baby Bells : AT&T

103. Wasteland : HEATH

108. Luau instrument : UKE

109. 19th Amendment proponent : CATT. Carrie Chapman Catt. Suffrage.

111. Tough spot : SCRAPE

113. Saltimbocca herb : SAGE. Was ignorant of the exact family sage belongs to.

114. Seat holder: Abbr. : SEN. Senate.

115. Flightless New Zealanders : KIWIS

117. Ruthless leaders : TYRANTS

120. Rubbed the wrong way : CHAFED

127. Time keeping action? : RENEWAL. Time magazine.

128. Treads heavily : STOMPS

129. List shortener : ET ALIA

130. Women's department array : DRESSES

131. Most balanced : SANEST

132. "Have patience" : NOT YET

Down:

1. LAX tower service : ATC. Air Traffic Control. I forgot.

2. What a stickler may stand on? : CEREMONY. Why? Don't get this clue.

3. Bedspread fabric : CHENILLE. Chenille fabric.

4. While opening : ERST. Erstwhile.

5. Pelvic bone : SACRUM

6. Scornful type : SNEERER

7. Like some instinctive reactions : GUT

8. Caesar's closer : ET TU. "Et tu, Brute?". Caesar's dying words.

9. Sussex stoolie : NARK. Did not know the Brits call informant "nark". Weird, it sounds the cop "narc" to me.

10. Chest : THORAX

11. Singers' refrains : LALAS. One more time for Lucia to think of her mother.

12. Join up : ENLIST

13. Beginning : GENESIS

14. Protein-building polymer : RNA. Only know it as "Genetic letters".

15. Kathryn of "Law & Order: C.I." : ERBE. Her name escaped me. We had this actress before.

16. Uproar : NOISE

18. Trick : DECEIVE

19. Decorated : ADORNED

24. Deny the truth of : NEGATE

28. Med. research org. : NIH (National Institutes of Health)

30. Lose, as a big lead : BLOW

32. To be, in Quebec : ETRE

34. I-90 in Mass., e.g. : TNPK (Turnpike)

38. U. of Maryland team : TERPS

39. Declare : AVOW

44. Financial report hdg. : YTD

47. __ Reader: alternative media anthology : UTNE. Named after its founder.

51. Sting, for instance : HOAX. Sting operation. Not singer Sting.

52. Tout's hangout, for short : OTB (Offtrack Betting)

53. "Yahoo!" : OH BOY

56. Roy Rogers's birth name : SLYE. His real name is Leonard Slye. Might be one of Dennis "Did you know...". I simply forgot.

58. Brittany seaport : BREST

59. Je t'__: French "I love you" : AIME

61. Historic canal : ERIE

62. U.S. Army E-6 : SSGT. Staff Sergeant.

63. Pope creation : POEM. English poet Alexander Pope.

64. Four-line rhyme scheme : ABAA

67. Coffee holders : URNS

68. __ vivendi: lifestyle : MODUS. I only know "joie de vivre".

70. Small bell sound : TING

73. Room service convenience : TRAY

77. Layered skirt : TUTU

78. Old Roman ldr. : EMP. ldr = leader. Meh!

79. Goes after : HAS AT

83. Product with "Robusto!" flavors : RAGU

85. View from Martha's Vineyard, Mass. : ATL. Atlantic ocean.

87. Golf shop bagful : TEES

90. "Tsk" relatives : TUTS

91. Whole : INTACT

93. Indoor buzzer? : HOUSEFLY. Superb clue/answer.

94. Blunt fiction : NAKED LIE. I like this answer too.

95. Rainbow, to some : OMEN

96. Early luxury auto : PACKARD

97. 24/7 business : ETAILER

98. Three-syllable feet : DACTYLS. How I wish dear Clear Ayes were here to give us an example!

100. Secure, in a way : TIGHTEN

104. Give it a go : TRY

105. Bother no end : HARASS

106. Former Mormon leader Ezra Taft __ : BENSON. Peeked at the answer sheet. He has a distinguished look.

107. Almost touching : NEAR TO

110. Airport postings : TIMES

112. Fusilli, e.g. : PASTA

119. Has dinner : SUPS. And EAT (126. Dinner exhortation). Dinner echos.

121. Royal decree : FIAT

123. Tam wearer's turndown : NAE. Scottish for "no".

125. D-Day craft : LST (Landing Ship Tank)

Answer grid.

I have a question: Does Nora Pearlstone sound like a porn star name to you? We continue to get quite a few Japanese porn spams on last Nora "PMS" themed Sunday puzzle, even after we deleted all the possible links in the main write-up and the Comments section. Darling Santa has to delete them nearly every day.

C.C.

Saturday July 24, 2010 Mark Diehl

Theme: None

Total words: 66

Total blocks: 36

Average Word length: 5.73

The total block count is relatively high compared with its word count, but 12 are help squares in each corner, consuming 1/3 of them.

The puzzle is framed by a 11/13/15 on top and a 15/13/11 at the bottom. All of them are multi-word entries:

1A. Co-star of TV's "Chuck" : ADAM BALDWIN. Cross-referenced with MY BODYGUARD (56A. 1980 film debut for 1-Across). Have never heard of this dude. Looks cool. I liked how the cross-referenced pair bookends the grid.

12A. One might raise the roof : CRANE OPERATOR. Was thinking of something temper related.

14A. Situations that aren't clear-cut : BORDERLINE CASES. My favorite entry today. This might be the seed entry.

52A. 1983 ELO hit with the lyric "She loves that drivin' beat" : ROCK 'N' ROLL IS KING. Blind spot for me.

55A. They may be spotted at pet stores : CALICO KITTENS. Not a pet person. So, yeah, another blank stare.

Very difficult solving for me. Unable to sync with the constructor. I seldom do on Saturday, regardless of who constructs the puzzle. The clues are just too tricky & ambiguous.

Across:

16. State with a five-sided flag : OHIO. Unknown trivia to me. Boy, that's strange looking, isn't it?

17. Raccoon kin : COATI. With long & ringed tail.

18. Multipurpose lyrics : LA LA. Because they are often refrained, Santa?

19. Story : LEVEL. Was in the tale "Story" direction.

21. Cat lead-in : SNO. Snowcat.

22. Plush, in a way : PILED. As velvet.

23. Top quality : GRADE A

25. Oregon Trail river : PLATTE. A gimme for our Oregon gang.

26. It's often smoked in Sweden : EEL. I thought it's pickled there.

27. Kind of well : ARTESIAN. Named after the French region Artois. It's "a well that is dug into the ground to the water table and is under pressure and will spray out of the well head like a oil geyser". Who knows?!

31. Some rtes. : RDS

32. Luminescent critter : FIREFLY. Awesome fill. With two Fs.

33. Org. that infiltrated Germany in the '40s : OSS. I am used to the "CIA forerunner" clue.

36. Exude an air of disinterest : BLOW COLD. Also a new phrase to me. Crossing BRISKLY (36D. How a cool wind blows). Blow duplication.

37. Balderdash : PAP. Only familiar with the baby food definition.

38. For only a select few : SECRET

41. Very much : SORELY. For those who have been missing Clear Ayes,, she has a photo for us today.

43. Aquiline nose, e.g. : TRAIT

44. Area between N. and S. Korea : DMZ

47. Capital east of Dhaka : HANOI. Dhaka is the capital of Bangladesh. My brain nerve for directions is damaged. So, no idea, Sir!

48. Goes on to say : ADDS

49. One of the fire signs : ARIES

51. "Let's go!" : C'MON

Down:

1. Airport board heading : ARRIVALS

2. Grooved, in carpentry : DADOED. Here is a dado joint. Did not know it can be a verb, Jerome!

3. Hydrocarbon suffix : ANE. Learned from doing Xword.

4. Hired gun, briefly : MERC (Mercenary)

5. Official ties of New Mexico : BOLOS. Neckties!

6. Like bees : APIAN

7. Tempo marking : LENTO. "Slowly".

8. Bavarian trio : DREI. Three in German. A gimme for Kazie/Spitzboov.

9. Mil. branch from 1943 to 1978 : WAC. Women Army Corps. Stumper.

10. Restaurant guide category : ITALIAN

11. Margarita option : NO SALT. Hmm, that would not be margarita.

12. Stuck : COHERED. Tricky clue.

13. Got a new tenant for : RELET

14. Tony-winning star of "Where's Charley?" (1948) : BOLGER (Ray). Only know him as the scarecrow in "The Wizard of Oz".

15. 1986 Best New Artist Grammy winner : SADE. Had the S in place, so SADE came to me immediately. Love her.

20. Certain handout : LEAFLET

22. Toy in resealable cans : PLAY-DOH. Nice clue/answer.

24. "__ is the language of the unheard": M.L. King Jr. : A RIOT. Have never heard of this quote before. What does it mean? Sounds violent to me.

25. Dispensary stock : PILLS

28. Credit checker Experian, formerly : TRW. No idea.

29. Continental trade org. : EEC (European Economic Community)

30. Virgin America hub: Abbr. : SFO. Peeked at the answer sheet.

33. Negotiating asset : OPEN MIND. Another great entry.

34. Watering holes : SALOONS. Watering hole = bar/saloon.

35. Bond activity? : SPYING. James Bond.

38. Macy's logo : STAR

39. Triage MD : ER DOC. Had ERD?? forever.

40. High-tech engineering acronym : CAD/CAM. Computer-Aided Design/Computer Aided Manufacturing. Got me.

42. Eightball loser, often : RACKER. Don't know any pool terms.

44. Title name in an unfinished Dickens work : DROOD. Dickens's "The Mystery of Edwin Drood".

45. Whitish : MILKY

46. Chameleon-like Woody Allen character : ZELIG. Woody Allen's mockumentary (1983). We had this clue before.

49. String music direction : ARCO. With the bow. I can never remember this term.

50. In __: as found : SITU

53. Tip of a pen : NIB. Neb too, right?

54. RR depot : STA

Answer grid.

Here is a sweet photo of our beloved Clear Ayes & her granddaughter Rachael. she said the picture "was taken on Easter Eve 2010 when my granddaughter and I were making a huge mess dying Easter eggs. They weren't exactly works of art, but we had a great time making them and every one was colored with splashes of laughter". She'll be back with us once her family issue is resolved.

C.C.

Friday July 23, 2010 Donna S. Levin

Theme: Hat Pun - The first word of each two-word familiar phrase is replaced by a type of hat, and the resulting phrase is humorously clued.

20A. Opportunity to examine some headwear? : CLOCHE ENCOUNTER. The base phrase is "close encounter". Cloche hat is bell-shaped & close-fitting, worn by those flappers in 1920s. Last consonant sound change.

33A. Call-in broadcasting for chefs? : TOQUE RADIO. Talk radio. Chefs wear toque. Vowel & last consonant changes.

40A. Northerners who dress with Scottish flair? : TAM YANKEES. "Damn Yankees" the musical. First consonant change.

47A. Hats that are soft and angular? : BOWLER OPPOSITES. Polar opposites. First consonant change also.

Minor inconsistencies. Tough to come up a focused set of theme entries with consistent sound change.

Still a fun theme theme. Wish clues were more consistent though: the first & last theme clues have a direct reference to hat, not the middle two.

Other than one Q, no other expensive letters (J/V/X/Z) today. And plenty of 4-letter words (total 36) in the grid, which always makes the puzzle accessible, to me any way. FYI, the average word length in this puzzle is under 4.97, shorter than our average Fridays.

Across:

1. Stage routines : ACTS. Rare to gain an immediate toehold on Fridays.

5. Full of spunk : SASSY

10. Shenanigan pullers : IMPS

14. Multilayer farm site? : COOP. Hens lays eggs again and again, hence "multilayer"?

15. Twaddle : TRIPE. Twaddle suggests silly talk. Tripe is just rubbish. No equation to my ears.

16. "Ta ta!" : CIAO

17. It's entered and processed : DATA

18. Needle bearers : PINES. Pine needles.

19. Pachacuti, for one : INCA. Have never heard of Pachacuti (literally meant "earth-shaker"), Inca Empire builder.

23. Grub : EATS

24. Recycled T-shirt? : RAG. Not the cryptic signal "recycle".

25. Carol beginning : ADESTE. "Adeste Fideles".

28. Proactiv target : ACNE

30. One of a cup's 48: Abbr. : TSP (Teaspoon). I bet Jazzbumpa saw "... A Cup's...". He's been concerned about the deflation effect on bra size in crossword.

35. Pampas weapon : BOLA

36. "Seinfeld" actress Julia __-Dreyfus : LOUIS. Elaine Benes.

37. Posed : SAT

38. Idol whose fans are known as Claymates : AIKEN

39. Gray area?: Abbr. : ANAT. Gray's Anatomy.

42. Condiment for pommes frites : SEL. French for "salt".

43. Livens (up) : PEPS

44. Delicate : DAINTY

45. Mendicant title : FRA

46. God attended by Valkyries : ODIN. We just had AESIR yesterday.

55. Plant used for first aid : ALOE

56. More than 70% of Earth's surface : OCEAN

57. Stretched just short of the breaking point : TAUT

58. Tidings : NEWS

59. Sudden movement : START. Thought of JERK.

60. Gumbo ingredient : OKRA

61. "Gee willikers!" : GOSH

62. Keep an __ the ground : EAR TO

63. McJob performer : PEON. Did you think of TEMP also?

Down:

1. Versatile, electronically : AC/DC. Didn't emerge easily.

2. Historic Newcastle resource : COAL. Don't know where Newcastle is. Not familiar with the idiom "selling coal to Newcastle" either, a foolhardy or pointless action, a la Wikipedia.

3. Miss Gulch's bête-noire, somewhat literally : TOTO. " The Wizard of Oz" dog, which appears in many of Donna's puzzles.

4. Garb for Apollo : SPACE SUIT. Pictured the Greek god Apollo, not that I know what garb he's wearing.

5. Religious guardian : ST. PETER. For heaven. No abbr. hint in the clue.

6. Astrological ovine : ARIES. Ram sign.

7. __ Fein : SINN

8. Blueprint item, briefly : SPEC

9. "Just give me an answer already!" : YES OR NO. Nice answer/clue.

10. Hockey infraction : ICING. No idea. Don't follow hockey.

11. After-dinner item : MINT

12. Step : PACE

13. Look down on the clouds, perhaps : SOAR. Dudley our pilot guy would love this clue.

21. Can't take : HATES

22. Seven sheikdoms fed. : UAE (United Arab Emirates)

25. Rand's shrugger : ATLAS. "Atlas Shrugged".

26. Shortbread cookie surname : DOONE. Got me. Have never had "Lorna Doone".

27. Peer : EQUAL

28. Apple or ale lead-in : ADAMS. Adam's ale = water.

29. Pierre, e.g. : CITY. I've got to think of South Dakota next time Pierre comes up.

30. Perfunctory : TOKEN

31. Wintry woe : SLEET

32. Flower name derived from the French for "thought" : PANSY. New trivia to me. Pencer is French verb for "to think". Sounds similar. (Correction: It's penser. Thanks, Kazie!)

34. PDQ cousin : ASAP

35. Halter, perhaps : BIKINI TOP. In a way, yes.

38. "Henry & June" role : ANAIS. Stumper. Returned my Netflix on this movie. Could not warm myself to it.

40. Lady Hillingdon is a cultivar of one : TEA ROSE. Yellow and has a tea fragrance. See here.

41. Enlarge, as a house : ADD ONTO

43. Ante- equivalent : PRE

45. Meat : FLESH

46. Victor Vasarely's genre : OP-ART. Victor Vasarely was a Hungarian French artist whose work is generally seen aligned with Op-Art, says Wiki. Total stranger to me.

47. Explosion : BANG

48. It's found in tubs : OLEO. Not bathtub.

49. Awes : WOWS

50. Tetra- times two : OCTA. Prefix for "eight". Tetra, "four".

51. Fruit with a "check the neck" ripeness test : PEAR

52. Steal : TAKE

53. Slovenia capital : EURO. "Capital" always refers to "currency" in late week puzzles.

54. Ollie's sidekick : STAN

Answer grid.

In the next few Fridays, I am going to show a recent photo of our regular blogging contributors. We start today with Darling Santa Argyle. He said: "My cousin took a picture of me saying a prayer before his son attacks my hair and beard. I'm not gonna showing the "after" picture." Argyle's nicknames: Scott, Scotty, Cid/Sid, Skid, Skidney, El Cid and "Hey, you".

C.C.

Thursday July 22, 2010 Pete Muller

Theme: RECYCLED PLASTIC (60A: Useful waste, what's literally hidden in 17-, 25- and 46-Across). - The letters of the word PLASTIC are anagrammed and recycled into a portion of the other three theme answers. In Cryptic crossword, recycled/shuffled signal anagram gimmick.

17A. State of the Union, say: POLITICAL SPEECH. Is this truly informational, or was it ever? Or just another chance to listen to party claims and rhetoric from both sides? As a kid, these always irked me. There were only three channels back then and all of them preempted their regular shows for this. And then just when you thought it was over, the other side got equal air time to rebut. Of course now, with all the cable channel choices, you can just watch something else rather than doing something good, like reading a book instead.

25A. Military tradition: HOSPITAL CORNERS. Tightly tucked sheets for a neat appearance. These make me claustrophobic. I have to have my feet free to move. How about you? Do you prefer being tucked in tight?

46A. Looney Tunes genre: SLAPSTICK COMEDY. Also animation. I guess I always associated slapstick only with live actors, so this threw answer me for awhile.

Al here.

It's kind of a tricky theme, so that's why it is spelled out as one of the answers, you wouldn't get it otherwise. Well, maybe Jerome might... This is the kind of clue you would get for an English Crossword answer, an instruction to rearrange letters. Knowing the theme didn't help me at all, because all the letters I needed were the other ones that weren't part of the word plastic. The last to fall for me today was the middle east, and I had two black marks there. The rest was pretty tough too, more like a Friday, I thought. The jump from Wednesday to Thursday seems to me to be more steep than the one from Thursday to Friday.

Across:

1. NASDAQ debuts: IPOS. Stock market Initial Public Offerings, the first time a stock can be bought.

5. Silly: APISH. The word silly has roots in German: selig "blessed, happy, blissful". It moved from "blessed" to "pious," to "innocent", to "harmless," to "pitiable", to "weak", to "feeble in mind, lacking in reason, foolish". Here it just means acting like a monkey.

10. '60s-'70s pitcher nicknamed Blue Moon: ODOM. John. Supposedly given to him by a schoolmate because his face was so round.

14. Attic-dweller of '70s-'80s TV: MORK. Robin Williams role, a spin-off show from a Happy Days appearance.

15. Home of a mythical lion: NEMEA. A beast eventually killed by Heracles (Hercules). It could not be killed in a usual fashion because its golden fur was impervious to attack. It could only be killed by shooting it or stabbing it in the mouth.

16. Admonition to Nanette?: NO NO. A musical comedy, made into films in 1930 and again in 1940, No No Nanette contains the song Tea for Two, which we just recently had as a puzzle answer.

20. Miniature surveillance gadget: SPYCAM.

21. Rear ends of a sort: CABOOSES. From M.Du. kambuis "ship's galley," from Low Ger. kabhuse "wooden cabin on ship's deck;" probably a compound word whose elements correspond to English cabin and house.

22. What there oughta be: A LAW.

24. Skirmish: ROW. the "ow" here is pronounced like the "ou" in ouch. Of uncertain origin, but perhaps related to rousel "drinking bout", a shortened form of carousal.

33. Sch. with a Narragansett Bay campus: URI. University of Rhode Island.

34. Odin's group: AESIR. Norse gods.

35. Tuned to: SET AT. As with a radio station.

36. Word with mala or bona: FIDE. In bad or good faith.

38. Works in a Catalonian museum: DALIS. Salvadore.

40. Classico competitor: RAGU. Spaghetti sauces.

41. Element 100 eponym: FERMI. Enrico Fermi, who worked on the development of the nuclear reactor, had Fermium named after him. Fermium was discovered in the aftermath dust of the first hydrogen bomb test.

43. Betty Crocker salad topping: BAC-OS.

45. Crosswalk sign word: PED. No abbreviation clue due to common use? Or because that is the way it literally appears, perhaps.

49. Eastern tongue: LAO. Official language of Laos. Also called Laotian or Isan.

50. It might be a close call: SAFE. Baseball.

51. Japanese golfer in the World Golf Hall of Fame: ISAO AOKI. So many vowels...

56. Make a connection (with): LIAISE. Back formation from French liaison (union, binding together). Said to be a coinage of British military men in World War I.

62. Leafy veggie: KALE. Has powerful antioxidant properties, high in beta carotene, vitamin K, vitamin C, lutein, zeaxanthin, and reasonably rich in calcium, kale is considered to be anti-inflammatory. Also contains sulforaphane, a chemical believed to have potent anti-cancer properties. Supposed to taste better after the first frost.

63. Merge: UNITE.

64. Scot's vacation site: LOCH.

65. Insult: SLUR.

66. Try to persuade, with "with": PLEAD.

67. Sean's mom: YOKO. Sean Lennon, Yoko Ono.

Down:

1. Troublemakers: IMPS.

2. Info: POOP. Military slang. The rich fertile result of the brass passing down their wisdom through to the lower echelons.

3. French touchdown site: ORLY. Airport

4. Alpine wear: SKI CAP.

5. Like many short films: ANIMATED.

6. Workout target: PEC. Pectoral muscles. For the ladies.

7. Jobs creation?: IMAC. Steve Jobs, Apple computer.

8. "The Fugitive" actress Ward: SELA.

9. Easy-Bake Oven maker: HASBRO.

10. Used car selling point: ONE OWNER.

11. Performs: DOES.

12. Singly: ONCE.

13. Mineralogist Friedrich: MOHS. Namesake of the Mohs scale, to compare mineral hardness (scratching one with another).

18. Two-time Oscar nominee Shire: TALIA. Adriannn! from Rocky and Connie Corleone in the Godfather.

19. Standard partner: POORS. You rarely see the names for the S&P index spelled out like this.

23. Horseradish relative: WASABI. It's green and hot, a Japanese condiment. A lot of products here that claim to be Wasabi are actually just dyed horseradish. Real wasabi is difficult and expensive to grow and harvest.

25. Blows: HUFFS. And puffs. I wonder why the big bad wolf never enlisted the kool-aid man

26. Cantilevered window: ORIEL.

27. Libya's Gulf of __: SIDRA.

28. Not a deep purple: LILAC. This is Deep Purple.

29. Pains in the neck: CRICKS. I really wanted a different leading consonant here...

30. Bivouac: ETAPE. A military encampment where a day's stores are kept.

31. Wreaked havoc, as a battle: RAGED. In the manner of a Berserker.

32. Prepare, in a way: STUDY. For a test.

37. Strike target: EMPLOYER. Unions, not baseball.

39. Of questionable repute: SO-CALLED.

42. First name in sci-fi: ISAAC. Asimov. Prolific writer, more than 200 books in his lifetime, also wrote mysteries, fantasy, and non-fiction in the form of popular science. Also was a professor of biochemistry at Boston University.

44. Balkan capital: SOFIA. Bulgaria.

47. Install needed equipment: TOOL UP.

48. Like five per cent, to a server: MEASLY. An "insulting" tip amount.

51. Nettles: IRKS.

52. Sea World clapper: SEAL.

53. First Amendment advocacy gp.: ACLU. American Civil Liberties Union.

54. __ Ration: KEN-L. Dog food brand.

55. Romeo's last words: I DIE. O true apothecary! Thy drugs are quick. — Thus with a kiss I die.

57. "Am __ late?": I TOO. Yes, Juliet. Yes you are too late. And now you're late, too.

58. Twisted: SICK.

59. Comeback: ECHO.

61. Harper Valley org.: PTA. Song written by Tom T Hall, performed first by Jeannie C Riley. Made into a movie, and then a TV series starring Barbara Eden, after she lost her magical genie (I dream of Jeannie) powers.

Answer grid.

Al

Wednesday July 21, 2010 Dan Naddor

Theme: OFF TO A FAST START (59A. First out of the gate, and what 17-, 22-, 38- and 51-Across all get) - Each theme begins with a word meaning FAST.

17A. It may be drawn without thinking: HASTY CONCLUSION.

22A. Sylvester Pussycat nemesis: SPEEDY GONZALES. A little undercurrent of cartoons in today's effort, including a second appearance for 60D. Sylvester, to Tweety: TAT.

38A. Dubious diet ad promise: RAPID WEIGHT LOSS. Three grid-spanners, occupying a total of 73 theme squares. Heavy themage!

51A. Mentally agile: QUICK ON THE DRAW. One of my favorites QUICK DRAW .

Happy hump to you all; Lemonade here with my second Dan Naddor.

It has been more than 6 months since his passing, and it does not get easier. His theme answer are all unique and long, while not too difficult, they show his creativity. He also uses most of the tough letters in the alphabet, missing only J, V and X.

Across:

1. Turkish title: AGHA.

5. Kind of appetizer platter: PUPU. I believe this is an Hawaiian word that means appetizer; help me out here our Hawaiian contingent.

9. Refs throw them: FLAGS.

14. Nobleman's mistress: COURTESAN.

16. Artist Neiman: LEROY. The best sports artist ever, you can go and see his work at ORIGINALS .

19. In the know: HIP. With 8D. Not 19-Across: UNCOOL.

20. Buck's partner: DOE. Did you ever think that a Buck is a dollar, and Dough (DOE) is also money? No? Oh well, I did.

21. Emergency PC key: ESC.

27. A/C unit: BTU. British Thermal Units. I know they say Brits are cold, is that why they named the A/C measurer after them?

28. Paul's "Exodus" role: ARI. Paul Newman, and amazing book and MOVIE , which was produced by MGM. which coincidentally (?) is next. 29A. MGM co-founder: LOEW. His story was interesting, MARCUS LOEW . And then we have, 64D. Early MGM rival: RKO.

30. Fridge or freezer: Abbr.: APPL. It is amazing how clues are seen in bunches.

32. Pollution-policing org.: EPA.

34. Fountain orders: SODAS. The days of soda fountains are long gone....

42. Record needles: STYLI. Is your clue "Record players"? Read Rich Norris' note at the end of my write-up. Now we know the rest of the story on Monday 42A D.O.A. boo boo.

43. Response of feigned innocence: MOI. Of course you must think of HER .

44. Spill the beans: SING. Often done by criminals, who are also known as CONS....

45. Con: ANTI.

48. Powder parter: SKI. Alliteration and trickery all wrapped into one clue, wonderful. "Powder snow".

50. Asian occasion: TET. Followed by a wonderful rhyme, even if the reference is offensive to some (Dennis?).

56. Network absorbed by The CW: UPN.

57. Long-jawed fish: GAR.

58. ICU test: EEG.

66. Synagogue scroll: TORAH.

67. First felony conviction, in some states: ONE STRIKE. More alliteration.

68. Poet's Muse: ERATO. A real crosswordese, we all should have this one down.

69. Certain squad member: GEEK. Some say Best Buy has spent all the money on ads, and not training for their MEMBERS , I am prejudiced because my nephew is one.

70. "__ off?": ON OR. Dan really liked the word strings as answers.

Down:

1. German cry: ACH. This is for you Windhover, SING A LONG .

2. ___ few rounds: GO A.

3. Item in a fried side with catfish: HUSH PUPPY. Was the fried necessary?

4. "The Sopranos" chef Bucco: ARTIE. Did anyone remember his last name, which in hindsight sound like OSSO BUCO.

5. Delt neighbor: PEC. Muscles, shoulder and chest...

6. GI entertainers: USO. Gee, we can get Jayne Mansfield again with BOB HOPE .

7. Co. that has sponsored many soaps: P AND G. Proctor and Gamble; I wonder if I will ever do the "AND" words easily.

9. __ shot: FLU.

10. Guitarist Paul: LES. Just BEAUTIFUL .

11. The Little Mermaid: ARIEL. MB, Jeannie, ladies, is she a role model?

12. Ninny: GOOSE. Or just a silly...

13. Matches audio to video, say: SYNCS.

15. Aggressive sort: TYPE A.

18. He preceded and followed O'Brien: LENO.

22. March VIP: ST PAT.

23. Attracted: DREW. This ONE?.

24. "Holy Toledo!": YIPE.

25. Energy: ZEST.

26. Mil. truants: AWOLS.

27. Ivory units?: BARS. Loved this ones, could not figure out how to squeeze tusks in here.

31. The purple one is New Hampshire's state flower: LILAC.

33. Fire preceder?: AIM. Another Naddor left fielder. "Ready, AIM, fire!"

35. "Encore!": DO IT AGAIN.

36. Good __: repaired: AS NEW.

37. USMC rank: SSGT.

39. Drop shot, in tennis: DINK. Like this MEMORY .

40. "No kidding!": GOSH.

41. Increase: HIKE. Another one that took a while to see.

46. Frat party attire: TOGA.

47. Dazed: IN A FOG.

49. Latin clarifier: ID EST.

51. Bit of term paper color: QUOTE. Okay he fooled me again.

52. Enthusiastic about: UP FOR.

53. Prefix with structure: INFRA.

54. Big name in air conditioning: TRANE. They used my friends' SONG .

55. In once more: RETRO.

61. "So that's your game!": O HO.

62. "What'd I tell ya?": SEE.

63. "That wasn't nice!": TSK.

65. Three times, in Rx's: TER. I actually remember TID.

Answer grid.

All in all a fun Wednesday, that perhaps was softened by the editor. Keep the cards and letters coming, especially you newbies, tell us what you think.

Your humble servant Lemonade

Rich Norris' email to C.C. yesterday:

"... and I'm pretty sure I figured out what happened. Tomorrow's 42A clue is supposed to be changed to [Record needles]. I suspect it will show up in the paper as [Record players], which isn't totally wrong, maybe just a bit ambitious, since the answer items need help to play records. Evidently, whoever made clue changes at Tribune changed the 42A clue on the wrong day, resulting in yesterday's error. The online puzzle is handled separately; the error doesn't appear there. My apologies to the confused newspaper solvers. "

Tuesday, July 20, 2010 Fred Piscop

Theme: Musical Numbers - Songs with a number in the title.

17A. Temptations number : "CLOUD NINE". Song

64A. Doris Day number : "TEA FOR TWO". Song.

9D. Josh White number : "ONE MEAT BALL". Song

24D. Tennessee Ernie Ford number : "SIXTEEN TONS". Song

Two Across theme entries with numbers in the back. Two Down entries with numbers in front.

Argyle here.

Fred Piscop is a renowned constructor but this is only the second time we have seen him. The other was a Sunday. He seems to be fond of cross-references too.

There are plenty of songs with a number in the title but if there is a particular reason he chose these four, I don't see it. Do you?

Across:

1. Letters on the Ronald Reagan : USS. Aircraft Carrier CVN-76.

4. Student of Socrates : PLATO. And 29A. 4-Across, to Aristotle : TEACHER. They're all Greeks to me.

9. Travel like Eris or Ceres : ORBIT. Eris is the largest and Ceres is the smallest of the five identified dwarf planets in ORBIT in our Solar System.

14. Zippo : NIL. Nada, zero, nothing.

15. Put to work : HIRED.

16. Source of some urban pollution : NOISE. Tricky, but not as tricky as light pollution.

19. First name in TV talk : ELLEN. Ellen DeGeneres.

20. CIA boss Panetta : LEON. The man doesn't look like a secret agent.

21. Ward, to Beaver : DAD. From the old TV show, "Leave it to Beaver". And 52A. 21-Across, slangily : OLD MAN. Theodore wouldn't call his father that but Wally might.

22. Brunch fare : OMELET.

23. Tell-all news story : EXPOSÉ.

25. Market special : SALE.

27. Guinness serving : PINT.

34. Pre-fax communication : TELEX. Variations called Telecommunications Devices for the Deaf (TDDs) are still used by the hearing impaired for typed communications over ordinary telephone lines.

37. Mob hit victim, often : RAT.

39. Worthless talk : TRIPE.

40. __-garde : AVANT.

41. "Thrilla in Manila" boxer : ALI. The third and final famous boxing match between Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier,

42. School rides : BUSES.

43. Soprano Fleming : RENÉE. At the The Obama Inaugural Celebration Concert: You ll Never Walk Alone

44. Spray graffiti on, say : MAR.

45. Stocks or bonds : ASSET.

46. Swap the old for the new : TRADE UP.

48. First name in scat : ELLA.

50. Legendary loch : NESS.

56. Having just exercised : SWEATY.

60. Returns pro : CPA.

62. Move carefully : EASE.

63. Convention nametag word : HELLO.

66. Poland Spring competitor : EVIAN. (Bottled water)

67. Carriage return, these days : ENTER. Carriage, (the moving part of a typewriter) when it returned at the end of a line, would drop down a line which is what happens when you click on ENTER.

68. Catch some rays : TAN.

69. Campus VIPs : DEANS. And 4D. Deg. for many 69-Across : PHD.

70. Tractor maker John : DEERE.

71. USNA grad : ENS..

Down:

1. "I give!" : "UNCLE!".

2. Proctor __ appliances : SILEX. Frank Wolcott, in 1919, started a company in his own name as a distributor of electric heaters and appliances, using the trade name Torrid. In 1924, he bought from H.M. Bridges, the Silex Co. of Malden, Mass., which had introduced into the U.S., the German vacuum coffee maker. So does SILEX mean something in German?

3. Single -masted ship : SLOOP.

5. Tree also known as basswood : LINDEN.

6. Andrea Bocelli delivery : ARIA. He is a multiple Classical Brit-winning and Grammy and Emmy nominated, Italian pop tenor and crossover artist. Duet with Elmo.

7. Works the bar : TENDS.

8. "To a ..." poem : ODE.

10. Thespian's résumé listing : ROLE.

11. Fin or sawbuck : BILL. Fin is slang for a five-dollar bill and sawbuck is a ten. The term, sawbuck, comes from the Roman numeral for ten, X, and X looks like a sawbuck (for cutting up wood).

12. "Now it's clear!" : "I SEE!".

13. Backpacker's shelter : TENT.

18. Still in the crate : UNOPENED.

22. Soccer shout : "¡Olé!".

26. Things to wear : ATTIRE.

28. Homeless itinerants : TRAMPS.

30. One with a cause : CRUSADER.

31. Greet the villain : "HISS!".

32. Blunted blade : ÉPÉE.

33. Remainder : REST.

34. Like sourballs : TART.

35. "Rarely, if __ ..." : EVER.

36. Lang of Smallville : LANA. From Superman's youth.

38. In the style of : À LA.

47. Slangy reversal of direction : UEY. A U-turn.

49. Work shirker : LOAFER.

51. Movie segment : SCENE.

53. Dull finish : MATTE.

54. Egypt's __ High Dam : ASWAN. The newer Aswan High Dam is located a further 7.3 kilometres upriver from the Aswan Low Dam.

55. Vegas signs : NEONS.

56. Storage building : SHED.

57. "__ Only Just Begun": Carpenters hit : WE'VE. Song

58. Director Kazan : ELIA.

59. Actor Arkin : ALAN.

61. Chopped spread : PÂTÉ.

64. Fenway Park's Williams : TED. Boston Red Sox home park.

65. It usually ends in "ite" : ORE. i.e. Bauxite, Iron Pyrite.

Answer grid.

Argyle

Notes from C.C.:

1) Yesterday's "Record needles" clue for 42A (D.O.A.) in some papers are mysterious errors. Rich Norris (LA Times Crossword Editor) said his final clue was "1988 film noir remake". How the needles dropped into your local paper is still yet to be found.

2) Al solved my Firefox browser gray links problem. Thanks, Al!

Monday, July 19, 2010 Gareth Bain

Theme: Another Year Older - Four things (first word of the theme entries) associated with celebrating surviving another year and a unifier.

18A. Sure thing : CAKEWALK.

23A. Official political philosophy : PARTY LINE.

36A. Now, with "the" : PRESENT MOMENT.

52A. Deck marker, maybe : CARD SHARP.

58A. Event for the first parts of 18-, 23-, 36- and 52-Across : BIRTHDAY.

Argyle here.

CAKEWALK - Something easily accomplished. It appears the term started on the slave plantations as a dance. "Chalk-line dance" was the slaves mocking the formal galas thrown by their masters. Participants followed the chalk with exaggerated made-up dance steps. There may have been a cake as a prize but my feeling is that isn't really the phrase comes from. More likely, to me, is that it comes from "a chalk walk".

CARD SHARP vs card shark - We've had this word before and determined that both terms fill the same bill(a card cheat), they developed from separate sources.

Across:

1. Corrected, as text : EDITED.

7. Hunger symptom : PANG.

11. Taylor Swift received its 2009 Entertainer of the Yr. award : CMA. (Country Music Association)

14. Swiss convention city : GENEVA. The Geneva Conventions are international treaties that contain the most important rules limiting the barbarity of war(1949). Little bit of trickery in the cluing.

15. Emmy winner Falco : EDIE. from The Sopranos.

16. Stimpy's pal : REN. Premiered on Nickelodeon.

17. Won a game without knocking : GINNED. Help!

20. Slim fish : EEL.

21. Salary : WAGE.

22. Devil's work : EVIL.

26. Donald Duck, e.g. : DRAKE. A female duck (Daisy Duck) can be referred to as a Duck or a Hen. A shout-out to MJ's grandson & Crazyhorse's son, both named Drake.

27. Blackjack need : ACE. In the card game, also called "21", an ACE can count as "11" and all face cards are worth "10" as is the ten card. Together they total "21", a winner. In other combinations, the ACE can be counted as one point.

28. Mute assent : NOD.

29. Jeanne d'Arc, par exemple : SAINTE. French for saint.

31. __-purpose: serving two functions : DUAL.

33. Penalty caller : REF.

35. "__, humbug!" : BAH.

41. Energizer size : AAA. (Battery size)

42. 1988 film noir remake : D.O.A.. It starred Dennis Quad and Meg Ryan. (cover image)

43. Civil rights icon Parks : ROSA. In 1955, refused to give up her seat and move to the back of the bus.

45. Use Listerine, e.g. : GARGLE.

48. Nest egg initials : IRA.

50. Highland hat : TAM.

51. Skater Henie : SONJA. Olympic Champion (1928, 1932, 1936). Clear Aye's inspiration when she first learned skating. You are dearly missed, Clear Ayes!

55. Ye __ Shoppe : OLDE.

56. Site of Napoleon's exile : ELBA.

57. Give in to gravity : SAG.

60. Peace, in Arabic : SALAAM.

63. Night before : EVE.

64. Les États-__ : UNIS. French

65. Lubricating : OILING.

66. Tape deck button letters : REW. (rewind)

67. Red planet : MARS.

68. Mixes smoothly : BLENDS.

Down:.

1. Its yolk is used in mayonnaise : EGG.

2. Agnus __ : DEI. Latin term meaning Lamb of God.

3. Cochlea location : INNER EAR.

4. Church doctrine : TENET.

5. Author Waugh : EVELYN. Despite the name, this author was a man. (1903 - 1966)

6. Third-Sunday-in-June honoree : DAD.

7. Pie nut : PECAN.

8. Old saws : ADAGES. Sayings, truisms.

9. Reebok rival : NIKE.

10. "__ whiz!" : GEE.

11. Necktie : CRAVAT.

12. "I approve," Tarzan-style : "ME LIKE".

13. Often twisted body part : ANKLE.

19. Rocket scientist Von Braun : WERNHER.

21. Add lanes to : WIDEN.

23. Note taker's need : PAD.

24. "We'll tak __ o' kindness yet": Burns : A CUP. For auld lang syne.

25. French cosmetics giant : L'OREAL.

26. Circle meas. : DIAM..

30. On deck : ABOARD.

32. VIP's aircraft : LEAR JET.

34. Busy co. on Mother's Day : FTD. Flowers by Wire.

37. Galsworthy's "The Forsyte __" : SAGA. The Forsyte Saga is a series of three novels and two interludes published between 1906 and 1921. They chronicle the vicissitudes of the leading members of an upper-middle-class British family, only a few generations removed from their farmer ancestors. from Wikipedia.

38. Ballerina Shearer : MOIRA. Image, from the lead role in the 1948 film "The Red Shoes".

39. "Why does this keep happening to me?!" : "NOT AGAIN?!".

40. Winter Palace ruler : TSAR.

44. Load for a roadie : AMP.

45. Start using a successfully tested system : GO LIVE.

46. Composer __ Lloyd Webber : ANDREW.

47. Cream-filled treat : ECLAIR. "Uummmm, eclair!"

49. Lay into : ASSAIL.

51. Like a teetotaler : SOBER.

53. Deep chasm : ABYSS.

54. Oscar winner Berry : HALLE. Her birthday is next month.

56. Dame who's a man : EDNA. Comedian?

59. Sing with one's mouth shut : HUM.

60. Cry out loud : SOB.

61. "Then what?" : "AND?".

62. Classic Brit. sports cars : MGs. And avatar.

Answer grid.

Here is part IX of Kazie's Oz series. The final installment. Olio of nuggets. Noticed how high-priced those Pink Lady apples are? Solid reasoning from Kazie, don't you think? Thank you for showing us the beauty of Northern Territory and for allowing us to "vacation" with you again, Kazie!

Argyle