Saturday, July 28, 2018, Craig Stowe

Themeless Saturday Puzzle By Craig Stowe

What can be more American than celebrating National Day Of The Cowboy? Cowboys drove many herds up to the U.P. railhead at Ogallala, Nebraska from where they were shipped back east. Ogallala has maintained that identity even today as it claims to be the Cowboy Capital of Nebraska although the nickname of their hight school teams are the Ogallala Indians.

While the eastern part of my state became engaged in commerce and farming, the Cowboy Life has persisted out west  but some modern vehicles have replaced some of the horses although it is said some herding can only be done by men and women on horseback.

I have searched in vain for info on today's constructor but he seems to be holed up in some box canyon somewhere perhaps looking for some little dogies.. 😙

Now let's see what cluing and fill Craig has rounded up for us in what appears to be his 20th LA Times puzzle.  This one took quite a bit of time for me and it seemed like the puzzle pattern offered very few ways in or out in places

Across:

1. Torn: IN A DILEMMA - Unlike his predecessors, U.S. Grant was less torn about sacrificing men to win a battle

11. __ drop: MIC - What you do after you've said it all →

14. Shakes on it: MAKES A DEAL - Judge Judy usually requires a lot more proof than that

15. Andean cash crop: COCA - COCA is not the problem, it's the demand in the U.S. for the cocaine it produces

16. Parents often limit it: SCREEN TIME - SCREEN TIME is great for substitute teachers 

17. GPS displays: AVES - AVES, STS and RTES

18. Worn: ERODED.

19. Dog in the Reagan White House: REX - A Cavalier King Spaniel

20. Try: TEST - Testing the waters

21. __ strength: TENSILE - The resistance to being pulled or stretched in Mega Pascals

23. Northern cruise destination: ALASKA and 47. Coastal feature: INLET - Do cruise ships sail into the Cook INLET to get to Anchorage?

25. Yeshiva reference: TORAH  - A Yeshiva is an Orthodox Jewish School

28. Works like Beethoven's "Ah! perfido": ARIAS - "Ah! Deceiver!" Sure, I knew that...



29. Lean, to sailors: LIST - The Italian cruise ship Costa Concordia is shown LISTING 80 degrees in 2012. 32 were killed and the captain and his girlfriend definitely did not go down with his ship. He received a 16 year jail sentence for manslaughter, causing a shipwreck and abandoning ship 

34. "Wanna bet?": CANT I  - "Captain, you can't sail that close to the island of Giglio!" Oh, CAN'T I?"

35. "My mistake": I STAND CORRECTED  - "Oops, you're right. I CAN'T'"

39. Cheek, in slang: TUDE  - This captain had a real (atti)TUDE!



33. 1988 self-titled album: REBA - REBA McIntire attended Southeastern Oklahoma State University and got a degree in elementary education to teach

38. Mark: GRADE - How many papers have I marked/GRADED in 42 years in the classroom?

40. Zipped (through): TORE  - Danny Thomas gets fined when he TORE through Mayberry, N.C. and ran a stop sign. This was also a pilot for Andy Griffin's new TV show.

41. Comedic honker: HARPO  - Here he is with his all his brothers before their only televised appearance in 1957

HARPO, Zeppo, Chico, Groucho and Gummo

42. Jam: STUFF - Even at 5' 7" tall, Spud Webb could Jam/dunk/STUFF a basketball (SPUD was also in Thursday's puzzle)

44. Western range: TETONS - We have previously discussed the 45. Off-color: SALTY origin of this range's name  

46. Uncompromising types: PURISTS - Baseball PURISTS hate the designated hitter and wild card games

51. Mideast carrier: EL AL - Israeli airline

52. Took in: ATE.

55. Written creation of Michelangelo: SONNET - A genius in many mediums!

56. __ lives: NINE - Our kitty has used up a few

57. Unlikely to inherit the crown soon: LAST IN LINE - That appears to be Prince George here at the bottom of the purple line on the left-hand side of the diagram

59. 1860s-'70s Black Hawk War combatants: UTES - A prolonged war in Utah, not to be confused with the Black Hawk War of 1832 in Illinois in which Abe Lincoln served 

60. Station: TRAIN DEPOT

61. Basilica bench: PEW - The ones in the basilica have the same name as the ones in the chapel

62. Some squirts: YOUNGSTERS  - "You young squirts stay off my lawn!." 😡


Down:

1. "Ready?" response: I'M SET - When my lovely bride responds like this, it will still be 5 minutes before we are out the door

2. Mother-of-pearl: NACRE  - Instead of being used in jewelry, here is a dragon carved in mollusk NACRE

3. Ohio university: AKRON - The AKRON Zips start their FB season this year in Lincoln. They will get a big loss and a big check

4. Exploits: DEEDS.

5. "Over there!": I SEE IT.

6. Super superior: LANDLORD - The building's Superintendent works for the LANDLORD

7. WV summer hours: EDT - Daylight savings is a waste of time and money

8. '70s Mideast prime minister: MEIR - In a Seinfeld discussion of homliest world leader, Elaine opined, "Golda MEIR would make 'em all run up a tree!"

9. Jerry Herman musical: MAME - Not my cup of musical tea

10. Amazon assistant: ALEXA - Very cool and/or very creepy

11. Makes one's residence: MOVES INTO - Several college grads have MOVED back INTO mom and dad's house around here because their lousy degrees or lack of ambition made them 27. Strapped: HARD UP for cash

12. Rockefeller Center holiday visitor: ICE SKATER - Once she gets up, ya gotta admire how she keeps from falling again before she reaches the rail.

15. Large falls: CATARACT - Cataract Waterfalls occur when large amounts of fast moving water fall over a cliff as seen here at the Iguazo Cataract Falls  on the border of Brazil and Argentina. The list of waterfall types.

22. Raises: ERECTS.

24. Spike: LACE  - Frankenstien spiking/lacing the Halloween punch (some of you know why I did not include the spiking scene from Hollywood Knights) and 26. Roughly: ABOUT  - ABOUT one bottle seemed to be enough for Frank 

29. "Chill out!": LIGHTEN UP - Sgt. Hulka delivers this advice at the end of this hilarious scene

30. Ancient Semitic language speaker: ISRAELITE - Semitic language distribution in late antiquity 

31. Begin again: START ANEW.

32. Polliwogs: TADPOLES.

36. Vegas' __ Museum: NEON - Where old Vegas signs go to retire. Recognize any of the old standards that have been 13. Discard: CAST ASIDE?

37. Declining: REFUSING - Our Visa Card was declined in D.C. when they thought 10 Uber trips 1,500 miles from home was suspect. A very nice young man fixed us up in 2 minutes 

43. Palm parts: FRONDS.

48. Wading bird: SNIPE - The SNIPE is an actual bird but bamboozling people into "hunting SNIPE" with silly instructions and equipment like this has become a camp staple

49. Purport: TENOR - I leave it as an exercise to the class to find TENOR among these synonyms and related words

50. Marks in margins: STETS - Ah, change it back to "Fourscore and Seven" instead of 87

53. Leaf used in the dish laulau: TARO - C'mon, with laulau, what else could it have been?

54. Genesis character: ESAU

58. Begin to type?: TIN - A TINTYPE is very early photograph where the image is formed on a thin tin plate. However its common use has become part of a phrase for "never" as shown in this dialogue from my favorite musical The Music Man (obviously community theater here).

Charlie Cowell: I gotta leave a message about that fellow Hill

Marian the Librarian: Leave word with me!

Charlie Cowell: Not on your TINTYPE! How'd I'd even know you'd deliver these letters?

Marian the Librarian: Try me!

I gotta leave word about that fellow Hill!
Leave word with me.
Not on your tintype.
How do I know you'd even deliver these letters?
Try me.

Read more: https://www.springfieldspringfield.co.uk/movie_script.php?movie=the-music-manI gotta leave word about that fellow Hill!

Leave word with me.
Not on your tintype.
How do I know you'd even deliver these letters?
Try me.

Read more: https://www.springfieldspringfield.co.uk/movie_script.php?movie=the-music-man

I gotta leave word about that fellow Hill!
Leave word with me.
Not on your tintype.
How do I know you'd even deliver these letters?
Try me.

Read more: https://www.springfieldspringfield.co.uk/movie_script.php?movie=the-music-manI gotta leave word about that fellow Hill!

Leave word with me.
Not on your tintype.
How do I know you'd even deliver these letters?
Try me.

Read more: https://www.springfieldspringfield.co.uk/movie_script.php?movie=the-m

Well, I gotta check on my cayuse out in the corral and then be moseyin' back to the bunk house. Feel free to comment in the meantime, Pard! (Did I just type Pard?)

DA GRID:

Friday, July 27, 2018, Jeffrey Wechsler

Title: Hide a noun, hide a verb.

Jeffrey uses the contrasting meanings of the verb -  to put out of sight, and the noun - the skin of an animal, to create a puzzle where synonyms of the noun are hidden in the theme fill. To accomplish this we once again are presented with a 15x16 puzzle. It all is tied up with a ribbon with a wonderful reveal in another classic 3/5/8/11/13 placement of themers. The bigger size allows for additional wonderful sparkly answers such as INCLINE, IT SEEMS, LATCHES, ORDERED, BEDSPREAD, MERCURIAL, NON-PUBLIC, and SPRING DAY. As always with Jeffrey on Friday, there are very difficult sections, but the overall puzzle, the wit and the head slap moments are a joy.

18A. "Bummer!": THAT'S KIND OF A DRAG (16). SKIN gets right to the heart of the animal hide.

24A. An unquestionable fact: THE GOSPEL TRUTH (14). The trading in pelts was very important for the trek west in our nation's history. A pelt is a skin and fur together. 

39A. Hershey's collectible: COCOA TIN (8). We associate coat with domesticated animals like horses and dogs, and generally not removed. 

53A. Pressing feeling: SENSE OF URGENCY (14). Fur can be either be still attached or removed and made into an article of clothing. 

And the reveal, 

62. What words concealed by the other four longest Across answers do ... and also, what each of them is: HIDE IN PLAIN SIGHT (16). Hide is usually cured skin and hide and go seek is a game we all have played.  The clue is perfect. 

Across:

1. Bar rooms?: JAILS. BY making this two words, we get this punny clue.

6. Organic jewelry source: AMBER. Made most famous by Jurassic Park.

11. Nation west of Mumbai: OMAN. There are many countries west of Mumbai but Oman is directly across the Arabian Sea.  I do not know my geography but I can now find Thailand.

15. Part of a John Williams quintet: OSCAR. A most amazing COMPOSER.

16. High-end German appliance brand: MIELE. I never heard of this COMPANY.

17. Overhaul: REDO.

21. Harmony: SYNC. You want some?

22. Odds partner: ENDS. This expression may have originated as odd ends in the mid-1500s, meaning “short leftovers of some material” (such as lumber or cloth) (dictionary).

23. Bench press target: PECtoral. Your chest muscle.

30. In the past, once: ERST. We just had this archaic word on July 2, 2018.

31. Nutritional abbr.: RDA. Recommended Daily Allowance.

32. Northern terminus of I-79: ERIE. Yeah guys, a big CSO.

33. Operatic villains, often: BASSI. More than one bass voice.

36. Veto, in Vienna: NEIN.

37. Actress Meyer of "Johnny Mnemonic": DINA. I remember this ACTRESS first from an early superhero show BIRDS OF PREY  but she has worked steadily the last 25 years. For whatever reason, two roles I recall were as a Dominatrix on CASTLE and a Madam interested in Gibbs on NCIS.

38. Matterhorn, e.g.: ALP. Wheel of Fortune had their Switzerland trip this week.

43. Field concerned with fields: Abbr.: AGRiculture. I think this is a debut for this witty clue.

44. Alexa counterpart: SIRI.

46. Fishing hole site: POND.

47. Kept from squeaking: OILED.

49. Sweater fabric: KNIT. Is this a fabric? Oh, damn that was a nit!

50. What may come to those who wait: TIP. Another example of a creative wit.

51. "... that struts and frets his hour __ the stage": Macbeth: UPON. I look forward to JW's quotes from Shakespeare. This quote was very inferrable but the passage is wonderful. Act V, Scene V.
"The way to dusty death. Out, out, brief candle!
Life's but a walking shadow, a poor player
That struts and frets his hour upon the stage
And then is heard no more: it is a tale
Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury,
Signifying nothing."

57. Salon application: GEL. Did you know that it was in 1929 a British company invented Brylcreem  This became the market leader in hair styling products in both the U.K. and the U.S. during the following decades. In the 1960s, modern hair gel was invented in the United States, by what would later be renamed the Dep Corporation. (wiki)

58. Rancor: BILE.

59. Get rid of: LOSE.

67. West of Gotham City?: ADAM. Gotham City was/is the fictional home of Batman, played in the 60s camp version by the late Adam West.

68. Privileged group: ELITE.

69. Western __: UNION.

70. Giant great: MAYS. The say hey kid!
Baseball legend.

71. How many commute: BY CAR.

72. What Italians may use to commute: VESPA. A little clecho especially if the car is a Fiat.


Down:

1. Notes: JOTS. Another unexpected verb - synonym.

2. Grayish: ASHY. Defined as of a pale grayish color; ashen. "the ashy shadows of the mountains"

3. "__ even!": I CAN'T. I can’t even is an emotional exclamation in response to an event. Its abrupt ending implies something is too amazing, frustrating, surprising, exciting (or any other adjective imaginable) to handle, which renders a person speechless because they’re so incredulous

4. Gate closers: LATCHES.

5. Yearbook gp.: SRS. Seniors.

6. Self-affirming query: AM I NOT. The expression “aren’t I” is often used in place of “am I not”, particularly in conversational speech. Example 1 (incorrect usage): “I’m going with you on vacation, aren’t I?”
Although the use of this phrase is widespread, it is atrocious English that could be considered equivalent to “you is”, a phrase which most educated people abhor (although for some reason, these same people have no qualms about saying “aren’t I”). The correct form of the sentence in Example 1 is as follows:  Example 2 (correct usage): “I’m going with you on vacation, am I not?”

7. Watches: MINDS. The young-uns.

8. Something fit for a king?: BEDSPREAD. King sized bed, very cute.

9. Symphonic rock gp.: ELO. Electric Light Orchestra.

10. Call the game: REF.

11. Called for takeout, say: ORDERED.

12. Fickle: MERCURIAL. Mercury went retrograde Wednesday, for those who care.

13. Org. promoting fluoridation: ADA. American Dental Association.

14. Rich quaff: NOG.

19. Pub inventory items: KEGS.

20. Proper: APT.

25. "South Park" kid: ERIC.

26. Find better words, say: EDIT.

27. Civil rights theorist Guinier: LANI. A most accomplished Yale Law graduate working at HARVARD.

28. Trace amount: TINGE.

29. Got wind (of): HEARD.

33. Luxuriates: BASKS.

34. Dior dress: A-LINE.

35. Amy Lowell poem of a "fresh-washed and fair" time: SPRING DAY. The poem is made up of 5 parts of the day, with Bath first, and opening line, " The day is fresh-washed and fair, and there is a smell of tulips and narcissus in the air."

36. Private: NON-PUBLIC.

40. Eye-related prefix: OPTO. For example, the optometrist.

41. Salon product: COIF.

42. Common lunch hour: NOON.

45. "Indications are ... ": IT SEEMS.

48. Lean: INCLINE.

51. More nasty, as weather: UGLIER.

52. Hammer part: PEEN. 
54. Yale figure: ELI.

55. Gear for a gaucho: RIATA.



56. Meditative ones: YOGIS.

60. Small business: SHOP.

61. Mediterranean mount: ETNA. The Sicilian mountain.

62. Baked __: HAM. Very random.

63. Director Lupino: IDA. This actress became a pioneer for female DIRECTORS.

64. S.D. neighbor: NEBraska. CSO to HG.

65. Work at: PLY. Like a trade.

66. Cherokee, e.g.: SUV. Jeep.

Wow, July is almost over and August is on the horizon. Always fun to finish Friday with Jeffrey. Thank you all.

Thursday, July 26th 2018 Paul Coulter

Theme: Can you spare some speared pears to pare? Scrambles on the theme of "pears".

17A. Led: SPEARHEADED. Here's the Kovel spearhead (or at least a reproduction of it) excavated in the Ukraine in 1858. The original was looted and lost during WWII.

31A. Barbecue favorite: SPARE RIBS. Food! I tried "SHORT RIBS" first for absolutely no good reason. I sous-vide my spare ribs with a dry rub for 36 hours before painting them with sauce and finishing them off in a searing hot oven. Purists tell me that's not barbecue. Taste Buds don't object.

38A. Reduces, as spending: PARES DOWN. Usually only by a few slivers, but a reduction nonetheless.

51A. Cooked fruit dessert ... and a cryptic hint to the start of 17-, 31- and 38-Across: STEWED PEARS. More food! I'm a happy camper today.

Solid Thursday-level puzzle from Paul. There is a reveal entry, and so you can dispense with circles to alert the unwary to the presence of the theme scrambles. The fill is smooth, and the long downs give some pleasing cohesion to the whole. Let's see what jumps out:

Across:

1. Org. that awards the Spingarn Medal: N.A.A.C.P.  Awarded annually for outstanding achievement by an African-American.

6. Bochco series: LA LAW

11. Peter, Paul and Mary: Abbr.: STS. Nice clue! Saints, not states and nothing whatever to do with the folk trio. Here's Seal singing Peter Yarrow's Puff the Magic Dragon in my submission for the "Tenuous Link Of The Week" competition.

14. Counterpart of "a": ALPHA. I suppose it is a counterpart, never thought of it that way before.

15. Bacteria in undercooked meat: E.COLI. Let's be clear, the bacteria is present in contaminated meat and if that meat is undercooked can present a health risk. No need to swear off your medium-rare hamburger or your kibbeh nayyeh if you source your meat carefully.

16. Not just "a": THE

19. Bonanza contents: ORE

20. Many a Bon Appétit subscriber: FOODIE. The canny foodie gets Bon Appétit online.

21. Tablet download: E-BOOK

23. Flips, in a way: RE-SELLS

26. Ball beauties: BELLES. Here's a question - can a ball have more than one belle, or do multiple belles have to divvy up the balls between them? We should be told.

27. Hardened: INURED

28. Decline to recline?: STAY UP. Nice!

30. Bursts: POPS

34. Suffix with glob: -ULE

35. Held closely (to): ADHERED

37. "O wad some Pow'r the giftie __ us": Burns: GIE. "Oh, would some power give us the gift ..."

O wad some Pow'r the giftie gie us

To see oursels as ithers see us!

It wad frae mony a blunder free us,

An' foolish notion:

What airs in dress an' gait wad lea'e us,

An' ev'n devotion!

Robert Burns, "To a Louse".

40. Manage (for oneself): FEND

41. Melonlike tropical fruit: PAPAWS. Food aplenty. I know 'em as pawpaws, and long before I'd ever seen one in the flesh, I knew the name from the "Bear Necessities" song from The Jungle Book Disney movie.

42. Slapstick trio member: STOOGE. 

44. Loosey-__: GOOSEY

46. Fishing lure: SPINNER

47. Less experienced: RAWER. or rare, as opposed to medium-rare, to continue my food! theme of the day.

48. Plump: ROTUND

50. Mike and __: fruity candy: IKE

56. Part of mpg: PER

57. Quilt filler: EIDER

58. Latin stars: ASTRA. Should be familiar from many mottoes and a ton of cultural references. I know "Per Ardua ad Astra" as the motto of the Royal Air Force.

59. "Star Trek" rank: Abbr.: ENS. ign.

60. Tea go-with: SCONE. If you're ever in Devon or Cornwall, make sure you get clotted cream on your scone.

61. Bikini blast: N-TEST. Bikini atoll. Contrary to popular opinion, the swimsuit isn't a "bikini" because it's a two-piece, it's because of the alleged explosive effect of wearing one when they were first introduced.

Down:

1. Hip-hop artist who narrates Netflix's "The Get Down": NAS. Knew the artist, but not the show.

2. Hurdle for Hannibal: ALP. Also a hurdle for the riders in the Tour de France which is currently heading for the finish in Paris this weekend.

3. Act like: APE

4. Plant-eating scarab beetles: CHAFERS. Thank you, crosses. I will file this away for future scarab reference.

5. Sentence shortener: PAROLE. Nice one. I was on the ET AL, ETC train for a while.

6. City on the Aire: LEEDS. A given for me. We lived in Leeds when I was a little kid and the city was the site of a lot of firsts for me - riding a bike unaided, kissing a girl (on a dare, naturally!), tearing open an artery falling out of a tree (I still have the scar), breaking a leg. I never fell in the river Aire though, which was just as well. Back then, I wouldn't have drowned, I'd have slowly dissolved in the chemicals.

7. Antioxidant berry in smoothies: ACAI

8. Valuable deposit: LODE. What a lode of ore we have today.

9. Tap output: ALE

10. Innocent-looking: WIDE-EYED

11. Informer: STOOL PIGEON

12. Pang: THROE

13. Goes after: SEEKS

18. You might hear music on it: HOLD. Usually really awful, crackly, repetitive stuff. People who implement on-hold music and announcements should be forced to listen to the tape loop for a full day, then see how they like it.

22. Cloud: BLUR

23. Make confetti of: RIP UP

24. Name on a 1945 bomber: ENOLA

25. Dominant states: SUPERPOWERS. My superpower is my Vitamix blender. It's got so much horsepower that if you leave it running for a minute or so the contents of the jug get hot enough to simmer just from the friction of the blades.

26. Spartan: BARE

28. Expels: SPEWS

29. Mountain lake: TARN

31. Larry McMurtry's "The Last Picture __": SHOW

32. __-watch: BINGE. The nearest I've come to binge-watching was settling down to all six seasons of Downton Abbey over a period of a few weeks.

33. Feast where the Haggadah is read: SEDER

35. Bad-mouths: ASPERSES. What a cracking word! We're all familiar with the noun form, as some of the snarky anons in the comments like to throw aspersions around like confetti, but the verb form is new to me. I resolve to use it. Not in the first person active though.

36. "Saving Private Ryan" event: D-DAY. I saw this in the theater when it was first released. There was a stunned silence for the first 40 minutes or so.

39. Let up: EASE

40. Most affectionate: FONDEST

42. 5'7" Webb, shortest to win the NBA Slam Dunk Contest: "SPUD". All-Name Hall of Fame. Another first-round All-Name Hall-of-Famer is the 5'3" "Muggsy" Bogues who was the shortest player to ever play in the NFL and HE could dunk. Think about that. The hoop is at 10'.

43. __ Alley: TIN PAN

44. Beef: GRIPE

45. Like Cognac casks: OAKEN. Or dwarves' shields, according to The Lord of the Rings.

46. About 1.3 cubic yards: STERE. Or a cubic meter, more simply put. There's some discussion about whether to use the cubic meter for cut wood, and the stere for uncut wood, but frankly I shouldn't lose any sleep over it.

48. Give a makeover: REDO

49. "A Prayer for __ Meany": John Irving novel: OWEN. A fabulous novel in my humble opinion, this had me enthralled from start to finish.

52. Personal quirk: TIC

53. Downed a sub?: ATE

54. Syst. of cars on tracks: R.R.S. Railroads. I'm thinking of building a model railway, but it would have to be the super-tiny "N" scale. Not sure if me old bones and eyesight are up to the task.

55. Convened: SAT

And that should do it. I'm hungry after all this food!

Steve

Wednesday, July 25 2018, C.C. Burnikel

Theme: OH, CRAPS!

17. Terrain feature of permafrost regions: GROUND ICE.

24. Staples competitor: OFFICE DEPOT.

35. Took the risk: CHANCED IT.

49. "Star Wars" ruling body: JEDI COUNCIL.

And the reveal:

58. Casino plays ... and events that occur as you work your way down through the four sets of circles: DICE ROLLS.

Melissa here. Note that ROLLS indicates a circular anagram, where the word DICE is gradually rotated around the grid: DICE / ICED / CEDI / EDIC.  C.C. had to revise her initial grid to satisfy this ROLLing requirement. Impressive. Felt like a Wednesday+ level to me, with a few thorny spots. The circles help to visualize the ROLL, but are not necessary to solve.

Across:

1. Like Joe Cocker's voice: RASPY.

6. Light-rail stop: Abbr.: STA.

9. Assists in arson, say: ABETS.

14. Waldorf salad ingredient: APPLE.

15. Waldorf salad ingredient: NUT. Clecho.

16. Inhumane: CRUEL.

19. Harry who led Wrigley crowds in "Take Me Out to the Ball Game": CARAY. Why Harry Caray was simply the best. (Baseball clues - tell-tale sign of a C.C. puzzle.)

20. Mint containers: TINS.

21. Patriots' gp.: AFC. More baseball sports. AFC = American Football Conference. Its counterpart is NFC - National Football Conference. There are 16 clubs in each conference.

22. "Trading Spaces" topic: DECOR. The show on TLC. First thought of  the 1983 movie Trading Places, with Dan Aykroyd and Eddie Murphy.

23. Units measured in BTUs: ACS. Here is a BTU calculator that will estimate the number of BTUs required to heat or cool a home.

27. Skilled in: GOOD AT.

29. It usually has four strings: UKE. There are other four-stringed instruments, but none have only three letters. UKE is a shortened word for ukulele.

30. Madrid mama bear: OSA. Spanish, feminine. Masculine is OSO.

31. Jogging pace: TROT.

32. Really ticked off: SORE.

34. Builder's guideline: SPEC.

38. Some turkeys: TOMS.

41. Saturated __: FATS.

42. Apply crudely: DAUB.

45. DuVernay who created TV's "Queen Sugar": AVA. For some reason I thought her name was Ana. Nope. Didn't realize how many films she has made.

46. "Time for my walk!": ARF.

47. Pinch, as a pooch: DOGNAP. Tricky. Pinch is informal for steal.

53. Lynx coat: FUR.

54. Flat fees: RENTS. Great clue.

55. Barrel wood: OAK.

56. Asian desert: GOBI.

57. Colleague of Gorsuch: ALITO. The only other U.S. Supreme Court Justice with a five-letter last name is Kagan.

60. Less furnished: BARER.

61. It's tapped into a tray: ASH. My first thought was ice, but that's tapped out of a tray.

62. Long range: ANDES. Mountains, not time.

63. Practices in a ring: SPARS.

64. Spelling event: BEE.

65. Out of order?: MESSY.

Down:

1. Disheveled: RAGTAG. Fun word.

2. Yellow-orange fruit: APRICOT.

3. One paying for a plug: SPONSOR.

4. Positive sign: PLUS.

5. Ginza tender: YEN. Official currency of Japan. Ginza is in Tokyo - looks like New York City.

6. Sound of sadness: SNIFF. Aw.

7. Stanley of "The Lovely Bones": TUCCI. He was nominated for an Academy Award for his role in the film - based on the book by Alice Sebold. He said it was horrible playing such a dark role, and will never do it again.

8. Cleaned one's plate: ATE.

9. Knuckle under: ACCEDE. Two c's. Needed perp help here.

10. Support for an injured knee: BRACE.

11. Ace of Base genre: EUROPOP. Did not know this term. Wikipedia.

12. Prickly hybrid: TEA ROSE. Could have been anything.

13. Cunning: SLY.

18. Inane: DAFT.

22. Faked in the rink: DEKED. Don't remember seeing past tense of this word before.

24. Inauguration Day pledge: OATH.

25. Makes well: CURES.

26. Middle of a winning trio: TAC. Tic tac toe.

28. Dropbox files, casually: DOCS.

32. Complete fiasco: SNAFU.

33. Leaf-peeping mo.: OCT. This clue made me think of Spring, instead of Fall.

34. John Deere logo animal: STAG.

36. High hairstyles: AFROS. Sneaky. Not updOS.

37. Fan club focus: IDOL.

38. __ Mahal: TAJ.

39. Venn diagram feature: OVERLAP.

40. European archipelago known for its wine: MADEIRA.

43. Gradually becomes clear: UNFOLDS.

44. Showy trinkets: BAUBLES.

46. Stage crew: ACTORS.

47. Bank management aid?: DIKE. Another sneaky clue. The question mark indicates the  misdirection, but it still took me a while to grok.

48. Overly proper: PRISSY. Or this PRISSY.

50. Prefix with act and cede: INTER.

51. Invisible urban pollution: NOISE.

52. Hidden trove: CACHE.

56. Out of sight: GONE. Was thinking the slang term, not literally.

57. Core muscles: ABS.

58. Blot gently: DAB. And now we know the difference between DAUB (carelessly) and DAB (gently) - before I thought they were the same.

59. Big name in trucks: RAM.

Tuesday, July 24, 2018 Jeff Eddings

"STUCK IN A RUT"

20A. *Opposes in an election: RUNS AGAINST.

39A. *Welcome news for potential borrowers: RATE CUT.

11D. *Brit's traffic circle: ROUNDABOUT.  One word.  Also, a song by Yes.

29. *"Word on the street is ... ": RUMOR HAS IT.   Also, a movie with Jennifer Anniston, and a song by Adele that you can listen to while reading about the 2017 Westminster Best in Show winner of the same name.  BTW, this busy Edgerton, WI girl won in February, and had a litter of 8 in October, 2017.

Desper-otto reported that this video won't play on Blogger. Channel3000.com  WISC-TV, Madison, has disabled the video from playing on sites other than YouTube.  You can still press the play button, and then click "Watch this video on YouTube"


57A. Trapped by mundanity ... and hint to the answers to starred clues: STUCK IN A RUT.   "You'd like to get your creative juices flowing, but it seems someone left an empty juice bottle in the fridge."

Jeff Eddings gives us a "quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog" type of puzzle today.

Across:

1. River through Kazakhstan: URAL.

 NASA image of the URAL River Delta

5. Brewpub orders: BEERS.

10. Upper limbs: ARMS.

14. Expose: BARE.  A child finally cried out, "But he isn't wearing anything at all!" in Hans Christian Anderson's The Emperor's New Clothes

15. Blue shades: AQUAS.

16. Chess piece that can't move diagonally: ROOK.

17. Big stars often have big ones: EGOS.

18. Apply, as liniment: RUB IN.  Or harp on, as in incessantly.

19. Apple from Japan: FUJI.
The most-purchased fresh apple varieties in the U.S. are:
    1) Gala
    2) Red Delicious
    3) Fuji
    4) Granny Smith
    5) Honeycrisp
    6) Golden Delicious
    7) McIntosh
    8) Pink Lady
    9) Braeburn
    10) Ambrosia

23. Wordless "okay": NOD.

24. Put gas into: FUELED.  Oops, had to correct from FilLED.

25. Assistance: AID.

27. Shabbily dressed: IN RAGS.

30. High behind a cold front, e.g.: AIR MASS.

Air Masses in the U.S.

34. Pan-fry: SAUTE.

35. Boy band *N__: SYNC.

37. Ill-fated Genesis son: ABEL.

38. Point: AIM.

42. Tokyo-born Yoko: ONO.

43. River near the Royal Shakespeare Theatre: AVON.

45. Hockey legend Gordie: HOWE.

 "Mr. Hockey"

46. "It's __-see!": rave review: A MUST.   Abejo's wife made the costumes for the school district's staging of  Les Misèrables  last Thursday through Sunday evenings.

48. Tile type: CERAMIC.

50. Sudden bursts: SPATES.  Think in terms of cluster, outbreak, wave, flurry, rush, deluge and the like.  Contrast to the phrase "In spades" which means having an abundance of, or high quality of.

51. "Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel" network: HBO.

52. Simpson trial witness Kato: KAELIN.

 "An extremely angry Milwaukee Brewers fan"

55. Report card no.: GPA.

62. Take a break: REST.

64. Ladybug food: APHID.

65. Apple discard: CORE.

66. Opera solo: ARIA.

67. Yankees' manager Aaron: BOONE.   Also, the hero of the deciding game 7 in the 2003 ALCS.


68. Olympics sled: LUGE.

69. Fiddle (with): FUTZ.

70. Kisses and cuddles, in British slang: SNOGS. I have difficulty solving British-style crossword puzzles, mainly because of the format, the clues, the words, and the spellings.  

71. Former spouses: EXES.  All of George Strait's live in Texas.  That's why he resides in Tennessee.


Down:

1. App that arranges a lift but not a Lyft: UBER.  Husker Gary is a big fan.

2. Pasta sauce brand: RAGÚ.  Pasta sauce is often called gravy in many Italian homes and some restaurants.  A ragù is a meat based pasta sauce. 

3. Elvis __ Presley: ARON.  Aron on the birth certificate, Aaron in the official Mississippi state records, and also Aaron on his gravestone.

4. Phrase on a heart-healthy food label: LESS FAT.

5. Flat-bottomed boats: BARGES. Or say, ways to enter a room or conversation, uninvited.

6. __ sign: =: EQUAL.

7. Jazz great Blake: EUBIE.

8. Weather-related Native American ceremony: RAIN DANCE.

9. Nine-digit IDs: SSNS.

10. Boxer's sound: ARF.  Whadda ya get when you start cross-breeding Great Danes and Bulldogs ?  My neighbor has one, and I love him. Good boy !


12. Magic charm: MOJO.

13. Icy road risk: SKID.

21. Hole-making tool: AUGER.

22. __ Heels: UNC team: TAR. The University of North Carolina Tar Heels.

26. "__ little teapot ... ": IM A.  short and stout,

27. Soul singer Hayes: ISAAC. Won an Academy Award for the Theme From Shaft.  I found out later that he also wrote Soul Man:


28. Easily duped: NAIVE.

31. Post-op area: ICU.

32. Get a feeling: SENSE.

33. Schedule openings: SLOTS.

35. Order lots of: STOCK UP ON.

36. Source of pliable wood: YEW.

40. Sushi tuna: AHI.

41. Easy putt: TAP IN.  Our golf league rules expressly state that, "You must putt it in"  but it's not unusual to see certain players commonly taking increasingly distant putts as a "gimme." 

44. Slap cuffs on: NAB.

47. Slap cuffs on: MANACLE. Just saw that clue somewhere.  Clecho. 

49. Jun. and Jul.: MOS.

50. Microscope inserts: SLIDES.

53. "Bless you" prompter: ACHOO.

54. Just making, with "out": EKING.

55. Court great Steffi: GRAF.

56. Ecuador neighbor: PERU.

 Peru at Lonely Planet

58. Bar bills: TABS.

59. Gravy thickener: ROUX.

60. Encourage: URGE.

61. Shirts from concerts: TEES.

63. Toon devil: TAZ.  The cartoon Tasmanian Devil:


via GIPHY

and the real Tasmanian devil:


via GIPHY




Here's the grid:

Monday July 23, 2018 Kurt Mengel & Jan-Michele Gianette

Theme: COUNTRY COOKING (52A. Rural cuisine ... and what 20-, 31- and 39-Across are examples of?) - Each theme entry is a food item starting with a country name.

 

20A. Toasted breakfast breads: ENGLISH MUFFINS.

31A. Eggy breakfast dish: SPANISH OMELET.

39A. Ham-like breakfast meat: CANADIAN BACON.

Boomer here.

Happy Monday all. As I mentioned last week, I spent Tuesday evening bowling with the pros in a 9 pin no tap pro am event. Scoring was pretty high for the tournament, but I was in the running until the 8th frame of the third game. Then a big split blew me away, but I had a good time and bowled pretty well. My pro partners were Brian Kretzer, Tom Carter, and Mike Dias. All three cashed in the regular tournament, with Kretzer the best finisher. (Third place behind Michael Haugen and Bob Learn.)  But enough about me - on with the puzzle.  

July 17, 2018

Across:

1. Gelatin garnish: ASPIC.  Not a mountain city in Colorado, but close.

6. Bio course components: LABS. 

10. Blue-roofed eatery: IHOP. Their commercials are now touting beef and changed the name to IHOB last month.

14. Fabric: CLOTH.

15. At rest: IDLE. In the brain it's the devil's workshop.  Professor Harold Hill told me so.

16. Gramma: NANA. I always thought this was French for Grandma.

17. Donald's second ex: MARLA. Ms. Maples and I share the same birthday.  (Not the same year, just the date.)  We don't hear too much about her daughter Tiffany.

18. Highlands native: GAEL.

19. Tiny fraction of a min.: NSEC.  Sounds made-up to me.

23. Pig's home: STY. The big bad wolf could not blow down the one made of bricks.

24. Small songbirds: TITS.  No comment here.

25. Apply more lubrication to: RE-OIL.  Interesting, this is a common bowling center term when the lanes are refreshed for competition.

27. One-thousandth of a gig: MEG.  I believe she was one of the "Little Women"

28. Letters indicating a sellout: SRO.  Standing Room Only.  Not available on flights.

30. Kissing on a busy ave., say: PDA.

35. Lago contents: AGUA. A famous Italian won the British Open yesterday. I did not see too many lagos on the course.

Francesco Molinari

37. Dutch Golden Age artist: STEEN (Jan)

38. Rogues: CADS.  Many are in the parking lot at the Country Club.

42. Bowling initials: AMF.  I believe initially this was an acronym for American Machine and Foundry.  Now the company is dedicated to the bowling business in the U.S. and Mexico.  They have acquired bowling centers throughout and operate them under the name of Bowlero.  We have two in the Twin Cities.  One about a mile from our home.

43. USN rank: ENS.  A naval rank equal to a second lieutenant in the Army.  I believe Tim Conway played an ensign in "McHale's Navy"

44. Chaney of old chillers: LON. Spooky guy

45. American rival: DELTA. Minneapolis used to be the home of Northwest Airlines, until Delta purchased and merged with them a few years ago. Now they are based in Atlanta and that airport is really huge. I was there twice, and both times outbound was delayed because the planes could not get to the gates until others had left.

47. Lord's partner: LADY.  And a Kenny Rogers song.

49. School support org.: PTA.  Parent Teacher's Assn. Harper Valley had one, ask Jeannie Riley or Dolly Parton.

56. Duck or goose: FOWL.

57. "It __ over till it's over": Berra: AIN'T.  Insert your favorite Yogi ism here. "When you get to a fork in the road, take it."  "The restaurant is too busy so nobody goes there anymore."

58. Eagle claw: TALON.

59. Non-returnable serves: ACES.  Top Card, best pitcher, World War I super pilot, a hole in one.

60. __ Reader: UTNE.

61. Overact: EMOTE.

62. Cajun veggie: OKRA.

63. Propped (up), as a golf ball: TEED.

64. Fills completely: SATES.

Down:

1. Pinnacles: ACMES.

2. Journalist's angle: SLANT.

3. Lover of Bess, in Gershwin: PORGY.

4. "__ never work!": IT'LL.  Nothing wrong with a little it'll in a puzzle.

5. Indian spiced drink: CHAI TEA. I only know Jasmine.

6. Illumination: LIGHT.

7. President between Washington and Jefferson: ADAMS.  Poor guy. I don't think his picture is on any money except the run of golden dollars a few years ago.

8. Cheese couleur: BLEU.  Oddly, Bleu cheese is not blue, and why did they spell it wrong anyway.

9. Word before portrait or pity: SELF.  Self-centered people are known to take Selfies.

10. Type of navel: INNIE.  No comment.  Except why is a belly button called a navel??

11. Is unprepared: HAS NO PLAN.  Me when I show up at a golf course.

12. Like a landslide win: ONE-SIDED.

13. __-12 Conference: PAC.

21. Records one's arrival on a register: SIGNS IN. Remember "I've got a Secret" contestants had to sign in.

22. Starting at: FROM.  Rags to Riches

26. Back muscles, briefly: LATS.

27. Film-rating org.: MPAA. Motion Picture something or other.

28. "The Purple People Eater" singer Wooley: SHEB.  One eye and one horn and it flies.  Sort of like a Sun Country jet.

29. Brazilian soccer immortal: RONALDO (Cristiano) (Updated: The second one. Sorry the wrong picture).

31. Bloom with edible seeds: SUNFLOWER.  Sunflower seeds were my favorite snack when I was a kid. Had to be Fisher's.  They were the best.  Golf courses now forbid them because some jerks would spit shells on the greens.

32. "Take __ a challenge": IT AS.

33. One of a D.C. 100: SEN.  Seems like it is only 99 now.  I always respected John McCain but he is fighting the battle of his life right now.

34. Business maj.: ECON.

35. USNA part: Abbr.: ACAD.  Where Ensigns graduate.

36. South Carolina athlete: GAMECOCK. Interesting nickname. I wonder if Gamecocks eat gophers.

40. Jimmy on sausage labels: DEAN.  Yeah, I've heard of him, but Dizzy was always my favorite.

41. Howling canines: COYOTES. A nickname for Arizona Hockey players in the NHL.  They are not Wild though.

46. Oklahoma city: TULSA.

47. Jeff of ELO: LYNNE.

48. Played a part: ACTED.

49. Plane flier: PILOT. These are the Delta guys who have trouble finding a parking space in Atlanta.

50. Fed. security: T NOTE.  I have never seen one. I never had enough money to loan to the U.S.

51. Dancer de Mille: AGNES. Also Crossword Corner regular Irish Miss.

Eileen (sister of Agnes) & Agnes, Nov 22, 2013

53. Pulled tight: TAUT.

54. Bar mitzvah, for one: RITE.

55. __ Sutra: KAMA.

56. Toy store __ Schwarz: FAO.

 

Boomer