Wednesday, January 20, 2016 Mark McClain

Theme: Out For Blood

Mark's fun Wednesday offering is a self-defense course for anyone who finds themselves in a bad part of Transylvania. The guy below is equipped with three of Mark's enumerated weapons against Bram Stoker's VAMPIRE. Maybe the MIRROR is in his pocket.

Here are Mark's "instrumente de a utilize" ("tools to use" in Romanian) to "off" a VAMPIRE in these Across theme answers:

17. *Trattoria basket filler : GARLIC BREAD - Slavic countries and Romania have used this vegetable to find and prevent VAMPIRES as late as 1970.

33. *Railroad track piece : CROSS TIE - Thinking they were evil and excluded from God's world, VAMPIRES would feel uneasy seeing a CROSS, seen here wielded by Buffy The Vampire Slayer Sara Michelle Gellar

42. *Police surveillance : STAKE OUT - Buffy's ready to take to heart this method for snuffing out our bloodsucking theme

58. *Reversed counterpart : MIRROR IMAGE - Bram Stoker's VAMPIRE hated MIRRORS because his lack of an image revealed he had no soul.  Buffy gives him a frame of reference?

The theme reveal is a vertical at 39 Down

39. Folklore creature traditionally averse to the starts of the answers to starred clues : VAMPIRE - C'mon, isn't Bela Lugosi the VAMPIRE we all think of?

Mark's Puzzle was a little OATIER than most midweek offerings and I got the theme reveal before I started looking for it because the lower middle took most of my MEASLY (recent puzzle) skills.

Now let's explore the rest of the non-lethal  cluing Mark provided

Across     

1. Yin Yang portrayer in "The Expendables" film series : JET LI - Can you find him in this poster for the film that got none of my Expendable income?

6. Business : TRADE

11. Covers with Quilted Northern, briefly : TPS - I can think of a few  of our cwd family that have probably TP'd a house. Maybe even recently.

14. Shun : AVOID

15. Portend : AUGUR - A definite mini theme with 12 Down - Portend : PRESAGE and 56 Down - Portent : OMEN. Not as creepy as Dracula but... 

16. Christian sch. in Tulsa : ORU - They're the Golden Eagles of Oral Roberts University

19. Cartoon Chihuahua : REN

20. Lad of La Mancha :  NIÑO - We all hope the current El NIÑO will bring relief to our left coasters

21. Union : ONENESS

23. Rural expanse : LEA

25. Make a bet : GAMBLE 

28. "I don't give __!" : A RAP - PresAge tore my original A RIP out of the puzzle. RAP is an old world counterfeit coin, hence this phrase unfamiliar to me was correct

29. Karachi language : URDU 

31. Nursery purchase : SEED - The Burpee SEED Catalog is a harbinger of spring

32. Scrapped, at NASA : NO GO

35. Atlas enlargement : INSET 

36. Deck honcho, informally : BOS'N - BOS'N Mate 3rd class. 

37. Recital highlights : SOLI - Several SOLOS

39. Thomas, Dick and Harry : VEEPS - Not PEEPS - Jefferson, Nixon and Truman -  all who became prez

46. Rations for Rover : ALPO - A famous ALPO pitchman and his "pet"

47. Sealed : SHUT

48. Black Hills st. : S DAK

49. Israel's Golda : MEIR - Seinfeld discussion on ugliest world leader, Elaine says, "I got news for you. Golda MEIR could make 'em all run up a tree!"

50. Unimportant : TWO BIT - "He called me a TWO BIT hustler." "Whadja do?" "I hit him with my bagful of quarters!"

52. __ gratias: thanks to God : DEO

53. Rural expanse : PASTURE - More picturesque in my Grandfather's Switzerland

55. Son of Aphrodite : EROS

57. Diminutive Italian suffix : INO - Does Domino's only serve small pizzas?

63. Towel holder : ROD 

64. No longer dirt : PAVED - After and before

65. Artist's headgear : BERET -  Très chic  or Très idiot

66. Prior to, in verse : ERE

67. Gobs : SLEWS

68. El Día de Los Reyes month : ENERO - Or The Story of the Three Kings - Los Tres Reyes Magos - celebrated on JANUARY 6th in Mexico which is the height of their Christmas season when gifts are exchanged

Down

1. Upscale British wheels : JAG - Me - "Jag Wahr". Our resident Brits and Kiwis - "Jag U Ar"

2. Actress Longoria : EVA - Her series lasted two episodes. Downton breathes a sigh of relief

3. Twister : TORNADO

4. Caron title role : LILI - A 1953 film that gave us Hi Lili, Hi Lo which we sang in Boy's Glee

5. Picking out of an LAPD lineup : ID'ING - IDentifyING

6. Bar charges : TAB

7. Play with robots : RUR - You belong over there with ONO in Crossword Land

8. Ancient : AGE OLD

9. One of the Allman Brothers : DUANE - He formed the band but she married the other one

10. Earth, to Mahler : ERDE

11. Corrida stars : TOREROS

13. *Daytime observatory sighting : SUNSPOT - Earth compared to SUNSPOT 11476

18. Moves effortlessly : COASTS

22. Kid watchers : NANNIES - To travel, we need a NANNY for our Lily

23. Jean-__ Picard: "Star Trek: TNG" captain : LUC - He is Kirk of The Next Generation

24. Make a wrong turn, say : ERR

26. Chow __ : MEIN

27. Quilting gathering : BEE - Lincoln, NE is the home of The International Quilt Museum and Study Center

30. Laptop connection : USB PORT

34. "Mamma Mia!" song : SOS

35. Kind : ILK

37. Incomplete Wikipedia entry : STUB - New to moi!

38. More like Cheerios : OATIER - Any port in a linguistic storm 

40. First lady between Lou and Bess : ELEANOR - She took all the grief her husband and his mother could give her and still turned out to be a real heroine of the 20th century

41. Series installment : EPISODE - Not many left for Downton 

42. "Homeland" sta. : SHO

43. "Most likely ... " : ODDS ARE

44. Dubai's fed. : UAE

45. "Thrilla in Manila" ruling, for short : TKO - Ali got the TKO but his cornerman said Ali told him "Cut off the gloves, I quit!" seconds after Frazier quit so Joe could have gotten the TKO if he had waited

47. Change direction abruptly : SWERVE

50. "The Good Wife" event : TRIAL

51. Extended family : TRIBE - Tribal ties trump country ties in parts of the Mideast

54. Ballpark figures : UMPS

59. Button with left-pointing arrows: Abbr. : REW - "Did he really say that?"

60. Gorges oneself (on) : ODS

61. Belg. neighbor : GER - GER General Schlieffen's WWI plan to invade France took him through tiny, neutral BEL and within 5 miles of Paris

62. Ike's wartime command : ETO - Main stage for WWI and WWII - "When will they ever learn, when will they ever learn?"

Stoker's VAMPIRE, COUNT DRACULA, may have made some people's "blood run cold", but I look forward to your comments which I'm sure will make no one's BLOOD boil.

Tuesday, January 19, 2016 Tom Pepper

Theme: Double Your Fun - The clue is the clue. No reveal needed.

17A. Dickens classic, itemized : A TALE OF CITY CITY. "A Tale of Two Cities".

28A. Smugly prudish sort, itemized : GOODY SHOE SHOE. Goody two-shoes.

47A. Country/western dance, itemized : TEXAS STEP STEP. Texas two step.

63A. Chime in, itemized : ADD ONE'S CENT CENT. Add one's two cents.

Argyle here with the return of Tom to our corner. It's been too long(2013). Two (of course) grid spanners and sparkly fill moves us on to hump day. (From C.C.: No wonder we're out of negative territory this morning in MN. Tom is back! )

 Andrea Carla Michaels,  Tom Pepper, C.C. and Boomer

Across:

1. Wading bird in ancient Egyptian art : IBIS

5. __ of March : IDES

9. Dessert "there's always room for" : JELL-O

14. Like pre-stereo sound : MONO. I understand some albums are more valuable if they are monaural.

15. Geek Squad pro : TECH

16. Stayed home for dinner : ATE IN

20. Attempt to get : GO FOR

21. Natural history museum item : RELIC

22. Type of symbol or appeal : SEX

23. Prefix with skeleton : EXO

24. River inlet : RIA

26. Most fit to be drafted : ONE A

34. One who makes your skin crawl : CREEP

35. At rest : STILL

36. Diner handout : MENU

39. "All in the Family" wife : EDITH

42. Beehive, e.g. : UP-DO. (hair do)

43. St. Teresa's home : ÁVILA. Situated 1132 metres (3714 feet) above sea level on a rocky outcrop on the right bank of the Adaja river, a tributary of the Duero, Ávila is the highest provincial capital in Spain. It is built on the flat summit of a rocky hill, which rises abruptly in the midst of a veritable wilderness; a brown, arid, treeless table-land, strewn with immense grey boulders, and shut in by lofty mountains. ~ per Wiki.

45. Force out of bed : ROUST

51. Chocolate-caramel candy brand : ROLO

52. "__ Blinded Me With Science": 1983 hit : SHE

53. Fury : IRE

56. Pro vote : YEA vs. 65D. Anti vote : NAY

59. Word before or after "coming" : FORTH

61. Sherpas' land : NEPAL

66. Yamaha with a bench : PIANO

67. Syllables before di or da, in a Beatles song : OB LA. (Life Goes On)

68. "Les Misérables" novelist : HUGO. (Victor Hugo)

69. Proverbial backbreaker : STRAW

70. "Ghost Hunters" channel : SYFY

71. Candid : OPEN

Down:

1. Publicist's concern : IMAGE

2. Wrinkle-removing injection : BOTOX

3. Befuddled : IN A FOG

4. Song sung alone : SOLO

5. "Who am __ judge?" : I TO

6. Offset, as costs : DEFRAYED

7. Caesar's "Behold!" : "ECCE!"

8. 1862 Tennessee battleground : SHILOH

9. Leadership training group, familiarly : JAYCEES

10. List-shortening abbr. : ETC.

11. Hawaiian wreaths : LEIs

12. Lo-cal : LITE

13. Black gemstone : ONYX

18. Fielding mishap : ERROR

19. Ex-Yankee Martinez : TINO

25. Tête product : IDÉE. French head/idea.

27. On the ball : ASTUTE

29. Eye-related : OCULAR

30. Steeple top : SPIRE

31. Joint that may be swiveled : HIP

32. Former : OLD

33. "Xanadu" rock gp. : ELO. Electric Light Orchestra)

36. Pilates class need : MAT

37. Grandmother of Enos : EVE

38. Negative word often spoken in pig Latin : NIX.  (ixnay)

40. Of the best quality : TOP SHELF

41. "Quit complaining!" : "HUSH!"

44. So far : AS OF NOW

46. Surgical tube : STENT

48. Wild plum : SLOE

49. Upper bodies : TORSOs

50. Make oneself heard : PIPE UP. Add your two cents.

54. Mountain chain : RANGE

55. John with nine #1 hits in the U.S. : ELTON. (Elton John)

56. Jabbers : YAPS

57. Improve text : EDIT

58. Jewish month before Nisan : ADAR

60. Beriyo smoothie maker : TCBY

62. Repeat : ECHO

64. Put __ show : ON A

Argyle

Monday, January 18, 2016 Kevin Christian

Theme: King Commemorative - Four words exemplifying Dr. King's speech.

17A. 1994-2000 medical drama : "CHICAGO HOPE"

24A. One is made before blowing out candles : BIRTHDAY WISH

48A. Narrow-mindedness : TUNNEL VISION

58A. Historic 1963 civil rights speech words : "I HAVE A DREAM"

62D. 58-Across speaker, initially : MLK. Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Argyle here. I saw one spot that may cause problems but, all-in-all, a nice start to the week.

Across:

1. Labor leader Jimmy who vanished in 1975 : HOFFA

6. Good, in Guadalajara : BUENO

11. Tech co. whose name is its ticker symbol : IBM

14. Sunni's faith : ISLAM

15. Exclamation that's a near-homonym for an Arabian Peninsula country : "OH, MAN!". Down on the toe of the peninsula, Oman.

16. Aye's opposite : NAY

19. 35mm camera type : SLR. (single-lens reflex)

20. Big galoot : APE and 41A. Big galoot : OAF

21. Terre Haute sch. : ISU. (Indiana State University)

22. Fragrant compound : ESTER

28. "Behave yourself!" : "BE GOOD!". "Or else!"

31. Group of ships : FLEET

32. "There's __ Out Tonight": 1961 hit : A MOON

33. Autumn : FALL

35. Network with an eye logo : CBS

38. Ideal "Are you hurt?" reply : "I'M OK"

39. Raid : FORAY

40. Perlman of "Cheers" : RHEA

42. Parkway off-ramp : EXIT

43. Songs for two : DUETS

44. Magnified map detail : INSET

47. Eyeglasses pair : LENSES

52. Make mad : ANGER

53. Sleep phase initials : REM. (Rapid Eye Movement)

54. Top-row PC key : ESC.ape

57. Madre's hermano : TÍO. Your mother's brother, in Guadalajara.

63. Justice Dept. arm : ATF. (The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives)

64. Deodorant brand : ARRID

65. Hearing-related : AURAL

66. NBA official : REF

67. Squiggy's "Laverne & Shirley" pal : LENNY

68. Punish with a swat : SPANK

Down:

1. Hyphenated fruit drink brand : HI-C

2. Worker welfare org. : OSHA. (Occupational Safety and Health Administration)

3. Hairstyle with upturned ends : FLIP

4. Social media website : FACEBOOK

5. Dr.'s group : AMA. (American Medical Association)

6. Elevate : BOOST

7. "Yup" : "UH HUH"

8. Confessional rock genre : EMO

9. Afternoon snooze : NAP

10. Cyclops feature : ONE EYE

11. Laughing uncontrollably : IN STITCHES

12. Hay bundles : BALES

13. Magi's resin : MYRRH

18. Encircle : GIRD

23. Nor. neighbor : SWE. Norway/Sweden

25. Charged particle : ION

26. Black key after C : D FLAT

27. Partner in war : ALLY

28. Scott of "Charles in Charge" : BAIO. He was the younger cousin of Fonzie on Happy Days.

29. Jane Austen heroine : EMMA

30. Messing around : GOOFING OFF

33. "The Simpsons" network : FOX TV

34. Onassis nickname : ARI. Jackie's second.

36. __ noire : BÊTE

37. Smart-alecky talk : SASS

39. Touch : FEEL

40. Second-place finisher : RUNNER-UP

43. __ volente: God willing : DEO

45. Opposite of SSW : NNE

46. Story told in episodes : SERIAL

47. Peruvian capital : LIMA. Funny, I never think of it as being on the ocean.

48. Mongol invader : TATAR

49. Come together : UNITE

50. NFL network analyst Michael __ : IRVIN. This guy.

51. Not at all swank : SEEDY

55. Word repeated in a Doris Day song : SERA

56. James of "The Godfather" : CAAN

59. 1,000-year Eur. realm : HRE. (Holy Roman Empire)

60. Prince Valiant's son : ARN. I see in Wiki that the comic's creator wanted to title it, "Prince Arn", but it was changed to "Prince Valiant". Wiki

61. VIPs at trials : DAs. (district attorney)
 
Argyle

Note from C.C.:

Happy Birthday to Blue Iris (Susan), whose real life love story melted my heart. Maybe she'll share with the newcomers again someday. Are the twins coming home today, Susan?

Sunday, Jan 17, 2016 Joseph Groat

Theme: "Sh!" - TCH is changed into SH.

23A. Score for Hawkeye's team? : MASH POINT. Match point.

25A. With 70-Across, clothing magnate David posing with a bass? : ABERCROMBIE. 70. See 25-Across : AND FISH. Abercrombie  & Fitch. Pricey brand. H&M and Zara are more popular.

39A. Convenient snack? : NOSH IN ONE'S BELT. Notch in one's belt.

 

99A. Money for fast-food fries? : SHOESTRING CASH. Shoestring catch. Never had  Shoestring potatoes.

 

115A. Outback outlaw? : BUSH CASSIDY. Butch Cassidy.

118A. Self-cleaning laundry? : SMART WASH. Smart watch.

 

33D. Avoid diner dishes? : ESCAPE HASH. Escape hatch.

53D. Spell? : WICKED WISH. Wicked witch.

Sunday debut for Joseph Groat. Congratulations! It's an incredible milestone to pull off a 21*21.

I thought it's very clever to break down 25A and 70A, esp since the latter is in the very central row so theme symmetry remains intact.

I was surprised to see these three entries in one grid. A bit overdone.

19A. Apple variety : IMAC. What a nightmare for D-Otto's. His Mac was only 2-year old. 

68A. Samsung Galaxy competitor : IPHONE

122A. Old Apple laptop : IBOOK

Across:

   

1. Wine holders : JUGS. Not VATS.

5. Taxco title: Abbr. : SRTA

9. Beat but bad : WHOMP. Sparkly 5-letter entry.

14. Crib cries : DADAS. I had MAMAS of course.

20. Sleuth with numbered offspring : CHAN. No idea. How many kids did he have?

21. Olympic champion on a 1939 Time cover : HENIE. I needed the extra "Sonja" bit in the clue.

22. Dancer Castle : IRENE

27. Space program event : MOONSHOT

29. Open the door for : LET IN

30. Bowling initials : AMF (American Machine and Foundry). Rival of Brunswick.

31. Address : SPEAK TO

34. Longfellow's bell town : ATRI. "The Bell of Atri".

36. One climbing the walls : IVY

37. Mai __ : TAI

38. Row dividers : AISLES

43. Sales rep's goals: Abbr. : ACCTs.  Tricky area for me. I also forgot PICOT (32D. Crochet loop) and did not know BOAZ (47A. Great-grandfather of David, in the Bible). I could only think of ENOS.

44. __ diem : PER

45. '50s British prime minister : EDEN (Anthony)

46. Regret : RUE

48. Want very much : COVET. Not CRAVE.

50. Funny Bombeck : ERMA

52. Cut : SAWED

56. Octane Booster brand : STP

57. They're often attached : GARAGES. The answer filled itself.

59. Works with a Singer : SEWS. Nailed it.

61. Sushi bar soup : MISO. Have you tried the Korean Doenjang, Steve/Jayce? It's similar to Miso paste. Often comes in a brown jar like this. 

62. Dept. with a sun on its seal : ENER. Nailed it.

64. Bygone birds : DODOS

66. Right-minded : ETHICAL. Oh, not leaning right.

73. Take the chance : RISK IT

74. Many beatniks wore them : GOATEES

76. Mississippi's __ City : YAZOO. The Down gave me the Z.

77. Amateur who won the 1968 US Open : ASHE. Unknown trivia to me. I presume he turned pro immediately.

78. Net __ : LOSS

79. Goes bad : ROTS

82. Puts more film in : RELOADS

84. Like some balances : DUE. Did you fill this immediately?

87. "Yeah, sure" : UH HUH

89. "Not so fast!" : WHOA!

91. Turbaned Punjabis : SIKHS

92. Healthy drink : SWIG

93. Italian counterpart of the BBC : RAI. No idea. Wiki says it stands for  Radiotelevisione Italiana. Italy's national public broadcasting company, owned by the Ministry of Economy and Finance.

95. Mystique : AURA

97. "The Good Wife" figs. : DAs

98. Making fun of : APING

104. Fast movement : PRESTO

105. Kenan's comedy partner : KEL

106. Prussian pronoun : SIE. You.

107. Tragic fate : DOOM

108. Two-time U.S. Women's Open winner Patty : SHEEHAN. The lady holding the Solheim Cup. Interlachen at the ritzy Edina. I was there that day.

109. Therapeutic pack filler : ICE

110. Cold cuts qty. : ONE LB

112. Space cadet's world : LA-LA LAND. Hello Linda!

123. Patronize, in a way : EAT AT. Really eat at.

124. DVR pioneer : TIVO

125. Stage number : ARIA

126. Beatles trademark : BANGS

127. Firewood measure : STERE

128. Meeting of Cong. : SESS

129. Golfer's putting woes, with "the" : YIPS. I finally saw Loren Roberts last year. He used to be the top putter in PGA.

Down:

1. Dandy guy? : JIM

2. Actress Thurman : UMA

3. __-guzzler : GAS

4. Mushy quality : SCHMALTZ. What a great word.

5. Slides (over), as on a bench : SCOOTS

6. Safari park critter : RHINO

7. Summer colors : TANS

8. Lit. compilation : ANTH (Anthology)

9. "Are you kidding me?!" : WHAT THE. Another great entry.

10. Synagogue lang. : HEB

11. Routine components : ONE LINERS

12. Wet tract : MIRE

13. Carbohydrate used in jellies : PECTIN. I've only used gelatin.

14. Bacchus, to the Greeks : DIONYSUS. God of wine.

15. Sea extension : ARM

16. Argue : DEBATE

17. Kingdom member : ANIMAL

18. Deem appropriate : SEE FIT

24. Facebook attention-getters : POKES. Do you still get poked?

26. Mississippi, e.g. : RIVER

28. Western treaty gp. : OAS (Organization of American States)

31. Autos from Trollhättan : SAABS

35. Tease : RIDE

39. 40-Down neighbor : NEVADA. And 40. 39-Down neighbor : OREGON. Nice pair.

41. "That's __": "My bad" : ON ME

42. "'Come to my arms, my __ boy!'": "Jabberwocky" : BEAMISH. Blank spot for me.

44. Spanish preposition : POR

48. Lifetime dedication : CAREER. If you could start your life again, what career would you choose?

49. Lingerie item : TEDDY

51. Stun : AWE

54. Morales of "Caprica" : ESAI. He's never a bad fill for me. I have fond memories of him in "NYPD Blues".

55. Simpleton : DOLT

57. Wilder in films : GENE

58. To this point : SO FAR

60. Treasured strings : STRADS

63. Uncertain : NOT SURE

65. Evaluates, with "up" : SIZES

67. Not a good reception : HISS

68. "House," in Inuit : IGLU. I suppose "in Inuit"  excuses it from having a "Var." mark. Still,  gluey fill.

69. Bear in a red shirt : POOH

71. Cones and spheres : SOLIDS

72. What the Wonderland caterpillar smokes : HOOKAH. Lots of nice Downs in this puzzle.

75. Farm female : SOW

80. Like Singha beer : THAI. I just learned that "Singha" means "Lion". Same root as Singapore. Singapore means "Lion City".

81. Nightly news snippet : SOUNDBITE

83. Sighs of relief : AHS

85. Range that includes Kings Peak : UINTA. Drew a blank as well.

86. Push : EGG ON. No more hard boiled eggs. Now, how do you prepare wild rice? Ours is a 3-hour process. Put two cups of rice in a big pot of salted water. Turn off the heat once it reaches a boil. Cover. Let it rest an hour. Rinse. Start the process again. Repeat. Salt & Pepper.

88. Places to put your feet up : HASSOCKS

90. Ship of Greek myth : ARGO

92. Indy 500 town, aptly : SPEEDWAY

94. Autobiography featuring Ike : I, TINA. This often stumps some.

96. Altar attendant : ACOLYTE

98. "__ you clever!" : AREN'T

99. Overalls on the slopes : SKI BIB

100. Trojan War queen : HECUBA. Mother of Paris and Hector.

101. "Little House" antagonist Nellie __ : OLESON. Forgot. We had this before.

102. Popular pieces : REESE'S

103. Physicians' org. : AMA

104. Alexandria lighthouse that's one of the Seven Wonders : PHAROS. Alexandria is also that blue-eyed girl Splynter has been smitten with.

108. Serbs and Croats : SLAVS

111. Future J.D.'s exam : LSAT

113. D-Day fleet : LSTS. Tough to get Sunday grids filled cleanly.

114. Parisian honey : AMIE

116. Biker's wheels : HOG

117. __ es Salaam : DAR

119. Jackie's second : ARI. I read somewhere that his true love was Maria Callas.

120. Taste : SIP

121. Exhibits, as nerve : HAS

C.C.