Saturday August 9, 2008 Matthew Higgins

Theme: None

Total block: 27

Sigh...another Matthew Higgins, what can I say?

Annoying amount of affixes and obscure words. Maybe Mr. Higgins should give up this ambitious themeless idea and plunge into themed puzzles for some badly needed batting practice and minor league training. Amazing how he can come up with 27 blocks every Saturday.

Look at how many ER, RE, ED he employed to create this grid, not to mention those pesky S'es:

15A: Puts back: REPLACES

61A: Raised letter designer: EMBOSSER

62A: More compressed: DENSER

1D: Gave a big hand to: PRAISED

45D: Those relaxing: RESTERS

37D: Populated: PEOPLED

And the irksome RENCOUNTER (27D: Hostile contest). Have you ever heard of it before? I have not. What a desperate a 10-letter word for a desperate constructor who desperately needs RE & ER affixes.

Sloppy editing job from our editor too:

6D: Frozen fruity treats: ICES

50D: Unfreeze: DEICE

58A: Wheel-driving channel: MILLRACE. Completely unkown to me.

29D: Garden tractor brand: WHEEL HORSE. Another unknown.

I had to flirt with Mr. google a few times, and I don't think I enjoyed the experience at all.

Have to share with you this interesting piece on Matthew Higgins.

Across:

1A: Perfect maker?: PRACTICE. PRACTICE makes perfect.

9A: Chucklehead: STUPES

16A: Sword of Damocles, e.g.: THREAT. This is Richard Westall's "The Sword of Damocles", the symbol of hidden perils of power.

17A: Cause supporter: ADHERENT

18A: Speakers' platforms: ROSTRA. Singular is ROSTRUM.

20A: Bony-plated dinosaurs: STEGOSAURS. I googled this one. Could not get the letter G and O. See this picture. Why is it called STEGOSAURUS? Needs some polishing with the clue. Terrible repetition of "saurs". Can you come up with a better clue?

22A: Rope fiber: SISAL. Named for SISAL, Yucatán.

24A: Worsted fabric: SERGE. Yawner. It's time to recognize the genius in SERGE Gainsbourg. No other song is more exotic and erotic than "Je T'aime... Moi No Plus": "Je vais et je viens, entre tes reins..." What other words do you need?

25A: U.S. Medical grp.: NIH (National Institutes of Health). I would not have got this one without the down clues.

26A: Splicing device: EDITOR. New to me. I always thought EDITOR is a person.

28A: Extinct bird: MOA

30A: Expression wish: DESIRE. I DESIRE U2.

37A: Lay down asphalt: PAVE. Now we are on PAVE binge. I kind of miss ET AL now.

46A: Narrative poetry: EPOS. Epic poetry. Also new word to me.

48A: Sleekly graceful: FELINE. Dictionary has another definition for FELINE: "Sly, stealthy, or treacherous".

52A: __ the ticket!: THAT'S. I don't understand this one. Is it a slang?

53A: Fitted for grasping: PREHENSILE. New to me also. So close to COMPREHENSIBLE.

57A: Blow a gasket: LOSE IT. SEE RED is clued as "Blue a gasket" last time.

60A: Make manifest: EVINCE. No need to "Make". "Manifest" is sufficient.

63A: Wakame and kelp: SEAWEEDS. I like wakame. Kelp is too coarse for me. My favorite SEAWEED is nori. Delicious!

Down:

2D: Beach close cause: RED TIDE

3D: Especial to special, e.g.: APHESIS. I've never heard of this term before. Was it a gimme to you?

4D: Some flowering vines: CLEMATISES. CLEMATIS the "Virgin's Bower".

9D: Russian count's wish: STROGANOFF. Or STROGNOV. Vaguely heard of it before. It's named after Russian diplomat Paul Stroganov. It's "a dish of tender beef strips, mushrooms, and onions cooked in a sour-cream sauce and served with noodles or rice." Russians put sour-cream in everything.

10D: Porky's sweetheart: PETUNIA. Learned this from doing Xword. PETUNIA was always a flower to me before.

21D: Fourpence piece, once: GROAT. Ha, I wonder if Mark (Buenos Aires) knows this English silver. I had on idea.

23D: Tribal knowledge: LORE

38D: Judge favorably: APPROVE. Are you happy with the "Judge" clue?

39D: Elects: VOTES IN

43D: Dark igneous rock: DIABASE. Another unknown. Here is a picture. Amazing how those yellow flowers can survive and bloom there.

44D: Inveigled: ENTICED. I did not know the meaning of "Inveigle". I only knew "Inveigh".

51D: Slug trail: SLIME. Icky!

C.C.

Friday August 8, 2008 Allan E. Parrish

Theme: Vowel Progression

17A: "Living the Bill of Rights" writer: NAT HENTOFF

25A: Outcome: NET RESULT

37A: Quibbled: NITPICKED

53A: Ain't gonna happen!: NOT ON A BET

63A: Reason to eschew cashews: NUT ALLERGY

Ha, back to the familiar cluing. I had the suspiction that yesterday's puzzle was guest-edited by someone else. Some of the clues just felt so unusual, esp MALE. Or it could be that our editor decided not to tinker too much with the constructor's initial submission, so some of the clues came to us unfiltered and with originality.

This is a rather unusual Allan E. Parrish puzzle. I cannot find any Z, or Q. Good puzzle though, there is no forced fill or strained clue. I solved the bottom part of the puzzle first. Got the theme, then moved upwards and quickly filled in all the N?T theme entry words. Did flaunder at the upper right corner. Had problem obtaining SHEL, esp the last letter, as I did not know the crossing LANGTRY.

I so look forward to a L?ST vowel movement puzzle. LAST, LEST, LIST, LOST & LUST all sound more dynamic, don't you think so? I am so curious to see how the constructor clue those vibrant words.

My labels show that this is the 17th Allan E. Parrish puzzle we've done since Jan 21, 2008. By contrast, we have been offered 29 puzzles from Alan P. Olschwang.

Across:

1A: Straddle: SPAN. I wonder why our editor dislikes getting "handy" with SPAN. Mine is about 7", how about yours?

5A: Speak in Spanish: HABLA. Several Spanish words today: ENERO (32D: January in Oaxaca). EL NINO (60A: Current phenomenon).

10A: Cartoonist Silverstein: SHEL. No idea. I like the cover of "The Giving Tree".

14A: Der __ (Adenauer): ALTE. Konrad Adenauer.

16A: Disaster relief agcy.: FEMA. This remind me of somone's cub scout indiscretion "Brownie". You did a "heck of a job" Dennis!

19A: Greenish-blue: CYAN. I can never remember how to spell this CYAN blue.

21A: Neet rival: NAIR. As I mentioned yesterday, I dislike the repetition of letter(s) in both the clue and answer. "Hair removal product" is sufficient here.

30A: "The X-Files" character: MULDER (Fox). Is he romantically involved with Scully? I've only seen a few episodes. Not my cup of tea.

31A: Alternative to "ah": I SEE. Ha, not an easy "I SEE" for me.

33A: One-named supermodel: EMME. The plus sized model. She is pretty. (Addendum: The picture was actually Velvet D'Amour. Sorry for the mistake.)

36A: Like a run-down walk-up: SEEDY. "Walk-up" is a new phrase to me.

40A: Craps number: SEVEN. This is my favorite No. SEVEN. That's Mantle's 1952 Topps rookie card, the holy grail of baseball card collecting. I've only seen one in person at a card show.

44A: Long yarn: SAGA. Good clue.

61A: Australia lake: EYRE. Lake EYRE, the lowest point in Australia. Unknown to me. I got it from the perps. I like this clue better than the stale "Bronte heroine".

65A: Kodak brand: T-MAX

69A: Hawk's home: AERIE. Interesting pose. What is he looking for?

Down:

1D: Duvall title role: SANTINI. The Great SANTINI. Is this a well-known film? I vaguely remember seeing this title somewhere before.

2D: Lamentations: PLAINTS

3D: Case handled by a lawyer?: ATTACHE. Great clue.

4D: India's first P.M.: NEHRU. In Chinese translation, "H" is pronounced. NEHRU is 尼赫魯 in Chinese characters.

5D: Fictional Brinker: HANS. Unknown to me. I only knew HANS Christian Andersen. Sweet story.

7D: Trailblazin' Dan'l: BOONE. Another unknown to me. Is there any special reason why the clue is spelled that way?

10D: U.S. Army rank: SFC (Sergeant First Class)

11D: Beatles hit: HEY JUDE. Here is the song.

13D: The Jersey Lily: LANGTRY. Foreign to me. Wikipedia says she was the mistress of the future King Edward VII for sometime. Edward once complained to her, "I've spent enough on you to build a battleship," whereupon she tartly replied, "And you've spent enough in me to float one."

25D: Maiden of myth: NYMPH

35D: Big success: ECLAT. Some of the words just sound so brilliant when you pronounce them, ELCAT, bravura, virtuosity, etc.

39D: Plunk starter?: KER. Kerplunk.

41D: Names turned into words: EPONYMS. I like how the Mae West life vest got its name.

42D: Ex-solider: VETERAN. Dislike the clue due to EXS (62D).

47D: Dry gulches: ARROYOS

49D: Largest city on Lake Huron: SARNIA. New to me. See this map.

51D: Take a trip?: FALL. Does it really need a question mark?

57D: 1983 Indy 500 winner: SNEVA (Tom). Uncompletely unknown to me. Wikipedia says he was inducted into Motorsports HOF in 2005. Nice vintage button.

62D: "All my __ Live in Texas": EX'S. OK, 2 questions: Why the apostrophe in the song? And Why not EXES?

C.C.

Thursday August 7, 2008 Robert H. Wolfe

Theme: Bad Hare Day

18A: Start of a quip: A GROUP OF

23A: Part 2 of a quip: RABBITS MARCHING

38A: Part 3 of quip: BACKWARDS IS

50A: Part 4 of quip: CALLED A RECEDING

57A: End of quip: HARE LINE

Funny quip, but "OUCH", hard puzzle. I had to google. Too many entertainment names for my taste. Too concentrated. There really should be a limit on how many actor names/sports terms/operas can appear in one puzzle. I suggest a maximum of 3.

Some of today's clues are very tricky and unfamiliar to me, for example: 66A: Tony who played Wally Cleaver (DOW), Why not clue it as " __ Jones" or simply "Market indicator"? And the clue for MALE (10A: Maldives capital) is just diabolical. I wonder how many people have ever heard of this smallest Asian country, nor to mention its tiny MALE capital. The clue for I DO I DO (47D) could have been easily phrased as "Emphatic yes" or something to that effect.

Anyway, I experienced an epiphnay this morning. I suddenly realized that a puzzle is indeed made tough by the cluing, not by the employment of long & obscure words. Eureka! And I was so ELATED (70A: In high spirit) by the IRONS (47A) clue. Thank you so much for the attention, Mr. Wolf Wolfe, thank you for reading my blog. I am keenly aware that you are in sheep's clothing today, I still like EWE (60D).

Across:

1A: Horsedrawn carriage: HANSOM. Big stumper. I could only think of troika and it did not fit. HANSOM is a one-horse, two-wheeled carriage for two passengers. See this HANSOM cab.

2A: Time-line segment: ERA

14A: Take in liquid: IMBIBE

15A: Greek letter: TAU. The Greek cross.

16A: Big name in Norway: OLAF. Very nice clue.

17A: "Wall Street" co-star James: SPADER. I don't remember seeing him in "Wall Street". He is often clued as James of "Boston Legal".

20A: Whence Zeno: ELEA. Zeno of ELEA.

31A: Stewart of "Swing Shift": ALANA. I simply forgot her name. Danielle should be happy with this answer.

33A: Be much concerned: CARE A LOT

41A: Hagar's dog: SNERT. From the comic strip "Hagar the Horrible". Unknown to me. What's so fun about this one? I don't get it.

43A: Heavy winter fall: DEEP SNOW

47A: Jeremy of "Damage": IRONS. With Juliette Binoche & Miranda Richardson. Very erotic and disturbing. The movie is based on Josephine Hart's novel. So good.

55A: "The Time Machine" race: ELOI. Learned from doing Xwords. I've never read the book.

61A: Ice houses?: IGLOOS. No need for the "?".

67A: Bell tower: BELFRY. I think this is the first time I saw BELFRY clued this way.

Down:

4D: Back of a tape: SIDE B

5D: Marks on old manuscripts: OBELI. Singular is OBELUS. It's "a mark (− or ÷) used in ancient manuscripts to point out spurious, corrupt, doubtful, or superfluous words or passages". Unknown to me also. This word reminds me of "Obelisk", which has the same root as OBELUS (obelós spit, pointed pillar). Do you still remember the magical LIA Fail (Irish crowning stone)?

6D: Lip service: MERE TALK

8D: Scrap collector: RAG MAN. I don't understand this answer. Is "RAG Man" a common phrase?

9D: Goddess of dawn: AURORA. The Roman goddess. The Greek equivalent is EOS.

11D: Yodeler's peak: ALP. Refreshing clue.

13D: Studio apt. EFF. GEE next time?

21D: Equally sad: AS LOW

23D: Singer Ocasek: RIC. Unknown to me. Obtainable though. His wife is so beautiful.

25D: Gym weight: BARBELL. I've never even touched a BARBELL.

26D: Bullfighter: MATADOR

27D: Not me!: IT ISN'T I. Does the clue/answer feel OK to you?

28D: Some TV sets: GES. I hate Jeff Immelt. Under his management, GE is not GE any more. Sigh... But Pluto is not a planet any more either.

37D: Primitive Pluto: DIS. I don't understand the clue, what does "Primitive" here refer to? Indian primitive religion or what?

40D: Paint a word picture: DESCRIBE

45D: Witty one: WAG. New to me also.

47D: 1966 musical: I DO I DO. I just DON'T know.

48D: Pour down upon: RAIN ON. I don't like the "upon" in the clue.

51D: Wary: LEERY. I don't like the clue either. "Distrustful" would be perfect. I really don't like the repetition of certain letter(s) in the clue and answers, esp when it's easily avoidable.

53D: Actress Georgia: ENGEL. She was in "The Mary Tyler Moore Show". A stranger to me also.

54D: Perry's secretary: DELLA (Street). No idea. I've never heard of her name before.

59D: Silver or Glass: RON. No. Pure guess. RON Howard, yes.

63D: Klondike find: ORE. Another educated guess. I don't know where Klondike is.

C.C.

Wednesday August 6, 2008 Stanley B. Whitten

Theme: Watered Down

17A: 1970 Bobby Bloom hit: MONTEGO BAY

52A: Thoreau's cabin site: WALDEN POND

11D: View from Cornell: CAYUGA LAKE

27D: Shields film: BLUE LAGOON

Out of the 4 theme answers, WALDEN POND was the only gimme for me, but the other 3 were easily obtainable.

I like this puzzle, great theme. No frustratingly ungettable words. Simple & smooth. ILLER (35A: More poorly) did raise my eyebrow a bit, but technically it's a legit word.

In the past several days, I've been pondering on how these constructors come up with certain themes. In today's case, why did this constructor pick up lakes rather than rivers (brook, creek, stream, etc)?

I still can't figure it out. But I know that all of those guys have done an exhaustive amount of work to come up with a solvable and entertaining puzzle. I wonder how long it takes them to complete a grid, hours? or Days?

Just to want to say a "Thank you" to them here. I know I can be a poor critic to their work sometimes, but I am an equal opportunity critic and I truly appreciate their effort.

Across:

10A: Gent from Aberdeen: SCOT. See this map for Aberdeen.

16A: Cover a lot of ground?: PAVE. Great clue.

21A: Show off: FLAUNT. So easy to get confused with FLOUT.

25A: Gelcap alternative: TABLET

28A: Wander about: DIVAGATE. Unknown to me. I got it from the down fills. This is a very interesting word. I wonder if any constructor has ever thought of constructing a GATE rebus puzzle, you know, with Watergate, Monicagate/Zippergate, Plamegate, Rathergate, etc.

37A: "The Three Faces of ___": EVE. I am not familiar with this film. Easily gettable though. How would you clue EVE if you were the constructor? I like "First offender?".

39A: Tightwad: PIKER. Another new word to me. I penned in MISER first. Google researched showed that PIKERS were the "1849 Gold Rush equivalents of 1930s Okies. A piker was literally someone from Pike County, Missouri. Large numbers of Pike County residents rushed to California to seek their fortunes".

40A: Olios: MELANGES

45A: Smooth, in music: LEGATO. This reminds of the TENUTO (Sustained note) we had a while ago. KittyB explained TENUTO as "similar to "LEGATO," in that the music is very smooth, and the notes connect to each other, no spaces between them. The opposite of tenuto would be "staccato," where the note is very short and articulated hard."

47A: Touched tenderly: CARESSED

56A: "The Four Seasons" star: ALDA. The answer revealed itself after I filled in the down clues. I've never seen the movie. Alan ALDA's name is so crossword friendly.

58A: Robust: HEFTY. What kind of HEFTY fish is that?

Down:

1D: Cell body: SOMA. New to me. Dictionary says it's also an "intoxicating drink of the Hindu gods". And in "Brave New World", SOMA is "the name of a state-dispensed narcotic producing euphoria and hallucination".

4D: One of eight: OCTUPLET. Another new word to me. It's built up upon TRIPLET or QUADRUPLET I suppose. Here is a picture of the famous Dionne QUINTUPLETS.

6D: Athol Fugard play, "A Lesson from ___": ALOES. Not familiar with this book. It's about apartheid in the early 1960s. Interesting book title. I know ALOES are healing. I've never thought of them as ugly though.

9D: Seasonal rhinitis: HAY FEVER

10D: Rose with a bound: SPRANG. I like the clue and the answer.

35D: Toenail, sometimes: INGROWTH. Only knew INGROW.

36D: Life on earth: LIFE SPAN

39D: Sacramental disk: PATEN. Disk?

42D: Something beyond doubt: SURETY

46D: Dresden's waterway: ELBE. Have not seen its tributary EGER for a long time. This is the ELBE watershed.

C.C.

Tuesday August 5, 2008 Verna Suit

Theme: That Is (i.e) Extra

17A: Part-time girlfriend?: SEMI SWEETIE

27A: ID a gastronome?: FINGER FOODIE

44A: Assault tour crew member?: HIT THE ROADIE

60A: Early bird warm-up wear?: ROBIN HOODIE

I've never heard of ROADIE. I like the other 3, esp FINGER FOODIE, deliciously clued.

This is a very creative theme idea. I wonder what other similar words this constructor pondered while creating her grid. If she is a real gastronomist, COOKIE & BEANIE might be in her thinking process.

Or if she is into sports, she could be be musing on ROOKIE, BOOKIE, GOALIE and BIRDIE. I also thought of COOLIE, SORTIE, STOOLIE and WEENIE (?). OKIE might not be OK.

And of course the sweet words like CUTIE, DEARIE & CHERIE.

What else can you think of?

I struggled with puzzle. Got mired in the N crossing beween ANETO and ANEMO and could not get the letter R between NORNS and SIDRA. And encountered pockets of problems here and there.

Across:

1A: "Politically incorrect" host: MAHER (Bill). A stupid "not cowardly"mistake. He is funny though.

2A: Envelop closer: CLASP. I don't like the repetition of "CL" both in the clue and in the answer.

14A: Wind: pref.: ANEMO. As in "Anemometer". ANEMO came from Greek "anemos", meaning wind. Too obscure to me.

15A: Errs on esses: LISPS

21A: Line from Mork: NANU NANU. Often see NANU clued as "Half of Mork's sign-off".

33A: Kind of metabolism: BASAL

36A: Steffi of tennis: GRAF. Amazing career wins, they are perfect together.

37A: Kid's punishment: NO TV

38A: Dilly: LULU. Here is LULU's "To SIR (49A: Galahad's title) With Love". I liked the movie.

41A: Fusses: ADOS. OK, let's talk about Shakespear's "Much ADO about Nothing" today. Is "Nothing" really "Nothing"?

42A: Riga resident: LETT

43A: Collar inserts: STAYS. What is exactly a STAY?

47A: Labor grp.: UAW (United Automobile Workers)

48A: Touch of frost: NIP. I like this clue.

52A: Relies on: TRUSTS IN

63A:Beethoven dedicatee: ELISE. "Für ELISE".

64A: Norse goddesses: NORNS. Goddesses of Fate: Here is a painting of the famous 3 NORNS: Urðr (Past Fate), Verdandi (Present Fate) & Skuld (Future Fate). I know none of them. I am not familiar with Norse mythology, or any mythology.

66A: "101 Dalmatians" author: DODIE (Smith). I got her name from the down fills. I did not know her. I like her bangs. Is the haircut suitable to her oblong face shape, Katherine?

Down:

1D: Billiard stroke: MASSE. I like "The Hustler", don't you?

2D: Pico de __ (Pyreness peak): ANETO. Really tough crossing beween ANETO & ANEEMO. Why is the guy on the left wearing shorts? It feels cold.

3D: Macho types: HE-MEN. Oh, I see, maybe this is the reason why: He wants to be a "HE-MAN". Then catches a cold/bug on the way back home and sleeps for days.

5D: Perfume ingredient: ROSE OIL

6D: French key: CLE. Or CLEF (nf). The calculator key is TOUCHE. She is wearing the "CLE de Peau" enhancer.

8D: Tec's terrier: ASTA. "The Thin Man" dog. I don't like the clue. Isn't "Tec" a shortened form of "Detective"? Or is it a widely accepted word just like "info"?

9D: Son-of sit-comes: SPIN-OFFS. I dislike this clue. It does not sound cute to me at all.

10D: Phony: PSEUDO

22D: Newborn: NEONATE. And 61D: Born in Bordeaux: NEE.

27D: Marlowe's Doctor: FAUSTUS. "The Tragical History of Doctor Faustus". I've never heard of this novel or Christopher Marlowe. I only knew FAUST and the "Faustian bargain".

30D: Lady of Lisbon: DONA

35D: Assigned time: SLOT

28D: Thalia's sister: ERATO. Muse of love poetry. Thalia is the muse of "comedy and idyllic poetry". Several words have ERATO hidden in them: accelerator, generator, adulterator, exaggerators, etc. Someone ought to make a rebus puzzle out these words and credit me as his MUSE.

29D: Cane palm: RATTAN

39D: Emulated Lindbergh: FLEW SOLO

43D: Drinking straws: SIPHONS. Ha, I even had difficulty obtaining this word, mainly due to STAY & NORNS.

49D: Libyan gulf: SIDRA. This is a map for Gulf of SIDRA. Unknown to me also.

50D: One way to do crossword: IN INK. I cannot do mine without "Wite-Out".

55D: Footnote carrier: IBID

56D: Unless, in law: NISI. Add an E, we've got a word for Japanese American NISEI.

C.C.

Monday, August 4, 2008 Norma Steinberg

Theme: Switch Positions

20A: Contradictory testimony: HE SAID SHE SAID

40A: Competitor's realistic expectation: WIN SOME LOSE SOME

57A: Interrogation ploy: GOOD COP BAD COP

Before I forget, I would like you to see this hillarious Crossword Inker (about 7 minutes), what a spoof! I also want to share with you this fascinating Oprah interview (about 10 minutes) with Will Shortz (NY Times crossword editor) and Merl Reagle (the genius crossword constructor).

OK, back to the puzzle. I was really disappointed at the clue for LEVEL (68A: Relative rank) because RANKS is the answer for 27D: Puts in order. I don't believe this is Ms. Steinberg's original clue.

Other than that, it's just an ordinary Monday puzzle, nothing to RAVE (16A: Great review) about. This exact theme has been tried several TIMES (33D: Multiplication word) in NY Times before, with the omission of theme entry ON AGAIN OFF AGAIN.

Across:

1A: Group of zealots: CULT. The CULT of iPod and Mac.

14A: Paducah's river: OHIO. Not familiar with Paducah. Wikipedia says MLB player Steve Finley grew up here and PGA golfer Kenny Perry graduated from a school just outside Paducah.

15A: "Rosemary's Baby" author: LEVIN (Ira). Have you seen the Roman Polanski/Mia Farrow movie? It does not sound appealing to me at all.

17A: Classic Chevy model: NOVA. Unknown to me.

23A: Outward pose, slangily: 'TUDE (Attitude). Also new to me.

25A: ___ on the side of caution: ERRED. I don't like this fill-the-blank clue, which should have some past tense hint.

28A: Old towel, perhaps: RAG

35A: Snooknums: DEARIE. I've never heard of "snooknums". Just learned "sweetums" a short while ago. What's root for this"nums"?

37A: Spanish couple?: DOS. In Chinese, one is "一", two is " 二", three is " 三". So simple, isn't it? Even a caveman can write them.

45A: Springsteen's birthplace?: USA. Here is his "Born in the USA". This is probably the most sought-after Time magazine with Springsteen on the cover. This issue of Newsweek (Nov 1975) is also highly collectible, tough to find one in good condition and with no musty smell.

46A: Word on a poster: WANTED

63A: Oz man: BAUM (L. Frank). He has such a creative mind. Nice Set of Ashton Drake dolls, Dorothy looks so cute. I like these Munchkins barbies too. This is a Franklin Mint's "Wicked Witch of the West" porcelain doll. Almost impossible to find one with the original Certificate of Authenticity. I almost broke her broomstick.

Down:

4D: Speakers before drinks: TOASTERS

5D: Flowing: FLUID. Not fond of the clue. I dislike the letter "F' repetion.

7D: No. 2 in rentals: AVIS. Have not seen Alamo for a long time.

22D: Hero to some: SUB. I like this clue.

25D: "The Mystery of __ Drood": EDWIN. It's not a familar Dickens book to me.

26D: Marie Antoinett, e.g.: REINE. French for queen. Spanish is REINA.

43D: Tattle-tails: SNITCHES

48D: Skeptical disciple: THOMAS. Doubting THOMAS.

66D: Stripling: LAD. This young LAD looks very pensive.

C.C.

Sunday August 3, 2008 Norma Steinberg

Theme: Drop Me a Letter

23A: One way to look at dieting?: AS A MATTER OF FA(C)T

61A: Let them be so-so?: LAISSEZ - FAIR(E)

98A: Connected to nature?: (G)ONE WITH THE WIND

16D: PETA's position?: DOWN ON ALL F(O)URS

38D: Bribes?: GREASE MON(K)EY

51D: Kooky wish granter? (F)AIRY GODMOTHER

Great puzzle! Much more interesting than the "Exed Out" puzzle we had in June.

I like this kind of "word transformation" themed crossword - adding a letter or dropping a letter. I think I can handle changing- a- letter too. Not sure I am up to the word reversal or anagram, but I am game. Try me!

This morning I kept thinking why the constructor decided to drop C, E, G, O, K and F. Without the F, we could have had a "GECKO". I guess there is no hidden meaning behind her drops, she simply just needs those random drops for her grid. Sometimes a cigar is a just a cigar.

Structurally, this grid looks very appealing to me. I don't think I've seen an Across theme entry intersects a Down theme entry so perfectly, right in the middle and with the identical 11-letter word count. Very beautiful.

The only flaw is the clue for GOLLY (33A: Gee whiz! ). GEE WHIZ is the answer for (33D: Yipes). I can assure you that the constructor's original clue for GOLLY is not "Gee whiz".

I had some trouble with FAIRY GODMOTHER (51D: Kooky wish granter). I misread the clue as "Kooky fish granter", and I had the following silly intersecting fills:

68A: Scott Joplin's genre: RAG. I filled in RAP. Had never heard of Joplin before.

92A: Command to Fido: SIT. I had SIC.

77D: Dishes with chips: DIPS. Really struggled with this one. My final answer was RIMS, ridiculous, I know, but I filled in the M with a sound reason, as my answer for 65D: Covered with bubbles was FOAMY instead of SOAPY. I was thinking of dish plates with chips along the RIMS.

So I was staring at AIRYPORMOCHER for eons and could not make any sense of it. I still don't grok how "Kooky" and "AIRY" are connected. Kooky means eccentric, and AIRY means lofty or snobbish, how can they be synonymous?

Across:

13A: Miss Muffet's surprise: SPIDER. Ha, pure guess. Nursery rhymes stump me all the time.

19A: North star: POLARIS

22A: Gangster Al: CAPONE 50D: Writer Capote: TRUMAN. I always confuse CAPONE with CAPOTE.

25A: Frank admission: AVOWAL

31A: Winchester rival: ETON. Not familiar with Winchester college. ETON's rival is always "Harrow" to me. Wikipedia says ETON is modeled on Winchester.

32A: Wing movements: FLAPS

36A: Dancing Buttons: RED. I've never heard of him. Got his name from the down clues. For a long time I could not understand why RED is the "Dancing Buttons", so confused by the plural form "Buttons". Then I realized the B is in capital letter. Excellent clue. Who is that lady in the middle?

37A: Christie of "Don't Look Now": JULIE. I still think she should have won Oscar for "Away From Her", brilliant performance. I've never seen "Don't Look Now" before. Is it good?

38A: Cosmetic product: GELEE. Ah, irresistible lip gloss, tasty too.

43A: Byron poem: LARA. I don't know this poem. Only know LARA as "Dr. Zhivago's love", also played by the beautiful Julie Christie.

44A: Over in Ulm: UBER

49A: Put on: STAGED. Does this refer to "STAGED a play"?

53A: Pop preference: FAVE. Should have added "slangily' in the clue.

55A: Pavarotti performances: ARIAS

57A: Saw-tooth ranges: SIERRAS

59A: E-I connection: FGH. I think I like the "I follows them" clue better.

69A: Antique shop's affectation: OLDE. OK, this "Ye OLDE Shoppe" has been bothering me for a long time. What does "Ye" mean? Why "Shoppe" instead of "Shope"?

72A: Creamy dessert: MOUSSE. I want a slice of this berry MOUSSE.

73A: Deviation from the norm: ANOMALY

79A: Turning muscle: ROTATOR

82A: Prone to overacting: HAMMY

86A: ___, right in the kisser!: POW. I've never heard of this phrase before.

90A: Cardiff's country: WALES. Cardiff the capital of Wales. Here is Tom Jones, the best WALES has offered to us.

96A: Division in a group: SCHISM

102A: Person with a financial burden: LIENEE

107A: Moocher: CADGER. I would not have got HIC (101D: __ jacet) without this CADGER.

Down:

2D: Suggested: POSITED

3D: With ice cream: A LA MODE

4D: Asian noodles: RAMEN. I like udon, soba is good too. Lots of food in today's puzzle. Xchefwalt would have enjoyed it.

6D: Unit of Morse code: DIT. What's the difference between DIT and DOT? Someone mentioned last time that DOT and DASH are the codes, DIT & DAH are how those codes sound like aurally. Is that true?

12D: Accepted second best: SETTLED. Under certain circumstance, yes.

37D: Is in accord: JIBES

41D: Bandleader Xavier: CUGAT. Have difficulty committing his name into my memory.

43D: Burton of "Roots": LEVAR. I've seen "Roots", but I did not pay attention to his real name.

56D: Pitcher Koufax: SANDY. Gimme gimme. He is a HOFer. This is his 1955 Topps rookie card. Feels like PSA 8 rather than 5.

58D: Key of Beethoven's "Eroica": E FLAT. Learned from doing Xword. I've got no understanding of Beethoven's music. This is for you!

62D: Like speedy service: SAME DAY

63D: Throw out of bed: ROUST

76D: Tree colonies: FOREST. I just learned a new woody word today - sylvan.

78D: Cowboy bars: SALOONS. It indeed looks like a wonderful to eat, drink and have fun. Interesting photo above the bartender's head.

79D: Alice Kramden's hubby: RALPH. I don't know this RALPH. But I know this clue will someone very happy today.

80D: First part: OPENING. See, Sallyjane, here is another example where you do not need an *ING clue for an *ING answer.

81D: Love affair: ROMANCE. I think Oscar Wilde was wrong in saying "Nothing spoils a ROMANCE so much as a sense of humor in the woman."

82D: Bothersome situation: HASSLE

83D: Soul singer Keys: ALICIA. I like this photo, with her talent & passion in full display.

87D: "Our Town" playwright: WILDER (Thornton). I googled the book.

90D: Chess side: WHITE

95D: Fleck or Bartok: BELA. Know the composer Bartok, not Fleck.

To steal a line from Buckeye, I must be off. Make exciting comments today, and turn me on.

C.C.

Saturday, August 2, 2008 Michael T. Williams

Theme: None

Total blocks: 30

I am sorry for the troubles many of you (mainly Internet Explorer users) went through last night accessing to the blog. The SNAFU was caused by the Site Meter, which brought down every blog/website with its tracking code. I removed it as soon as I discovered the problem earlier this morning. This was the first time I encountered such a glitch in the 6 months since I installed it.

Everything should be fine now. However, I do suggest you to download Firefox, which is much better than IE. And it allows you to do automatic spelling check when you comment. It's the best browser in my view.

OK, back to puzzle. I had a very tough round. Sliced my opening tee shot immediately. Did not know how to HOOK (1D: Peter Pan" pirate). I filled in SMEE. Then I could not see clearly where the fairways went in the next couple of holes. Too many unfamiliar names. Some of the clues were purposely made tough and I could not correctly read the breaks. Felt like I had to putt 3, or 4 times to sink that damned ball.

I was very, very flattered that Mr. Michael T. William thought I was capable of solving his puzzle.

Front Nine:

1A: Takes by force: HIJACKS

8A: Going one better than: BESTING. Are you OK with this clue?

15A: Prize presenter: AWARDER. I've never heard of "presenter" being called an "AWARDER" before.

13A: Catalog customer: ORDERER.

18A: Soprano Renata: TEBALDI. Foreign to me. Wikipedia says TEBALDI "is famous for being Maria Callas' rival and for her large, voluminous soprano that was widely admired for its tonal beauty and evenness of vocal line.

19A: Short-lived 1920s car: KESSLER. Completely unknown to me. I googled, and still could not find anything about this car.

20A: Indisposition: ILLNESS

23A: In an early stage of development: INCHOATE. Another new word to me. Only knew "incipient".

31A: Despotic: TYRANNICAL. Again, only knew "tyranny".

35A: Zest: ELAN. It reminds me of "pizazz", a word that confused me for a long long time. I never knew how to spell it correctly.

37A: Future rock: LAVA

38A: Jazz pianist Thelonious: MONK. Another unknown to me. Very strange given name. Here is his "Round About Midnight".

39A: Figwort family member: SNAPDRAGON. So delicate!

41A: Slammin' Sammy: SNEAD. Ben Hogan seems to have a more proununced hip move than SNEAD.

43A: Chatoyand gemstone: TIGER EYE. Interesting brown TIGER EYE.

44A: Sealed like flies: ZIPPERED. I did not know that "ZIPPER" is a verb also.

47A: Boris Badenov's cartoon partner: NATASHA. No idea. Pure guess.

50A: Pertinent: APROPOS

55A: Like bogeys: OVER PAR. "Below Par" is such a fascinating self-contradicting word. This puzzle has a slight golf theme. With SNEAD, TORSO (36A: Trunk of the body), HOOK (though it's clued differently) & TIGER.

56A: Ryder painting, "___ of the Sea": TOILERS. Here is the painting. I see no romance or mystic in that picture. Have never heard of Ryder before.

57A: Most in the pink?: ROSIEST. "In the pink" is a new phrase to me. The clue feels a bit strained to me.

60A: Puts to sleep: SEDATES

Back Nine:

3D: Clampett and others: JEDS

5D: Gordon Jump on "WKRP...": CARLSON. No idea. I googled the show.

6D: Short trousers: KNEE PANTS. I don't like the side slit, the color is OK.

7D: Saw-toothed edge: SERRATION. I only knew the adjective SERRATE.

8D: Hand-dyed fabric: BATIK. Another new word. Dictionary says it's also "a technique of hand-dyeing fabrics by using wax as a dye repellent to cover parts of a design, dyeing the uncovered fabric with a color or colors, and dissolving the wax in boiling water."

9D: "The Seven Year Itch": co-star Tom: EWELL. Unknow to me. I've never seen the movie. Knew this Marilyn Monroe picture though.

10D: Natural Paintbrushes: SABLES. I was in the ART direction. Why avoiding "Fine Fur", just to be politically correct? (Addendum: It's clued as "Paintbrush display" on line).

11D: Crossing the Arctic Circle: TRANSPOLAR. Another new word.

14D: Spanish cubist: GRIS (Juan). This is his "Portrait of Picasso".

22D: Repack for reshipping: RECRATE. This actually is a very accurate clue.

25D: Hart or Stephen: CRANE. Know Stephen, not Hart

26D: "The Simpsons" voice: HANK AZARIA. He was married to Helen Hunt for a short period of time.

32D: Pronounces an initial H: ASPIRATES. New term to me.

33D: Northwestern pine: LODGEPOLE. Odd red-colored pines. New to me.

42D: Scatter: DISPEL

47D: Sushi wrapping: NORI. Yes, this is the only seaweed you use to wrap sushi or rice ball.

48D: Bath's river: AVON. I've never heard of this city "Bath" before. AVON is easily inferable though.

49D: New Age pianist John: TESH. Got his name from the across clues. I think I saw his mug before. Who is that girl on his left?

52D: Partially carbonized moss: PEAT. Every clue seems to be very complicated today.

53D: Caen's river: ORNE. Learned from doing Xword of course. Have not seen ST. LO (Town near Caen) for quite some time.

C.C.

Limit on Comments

I would like to keep the comments around 100 per day. I've been having great difficulty managing the posts in the past 2 weeks.

Please write fewer but longer posts. They can be equally as enjoyable as the back-and-forth banters if you stretch your imagination and get creative in your wording.

Posts after #100 should be exclusively for the further discussion of that specific day's crossword.

Thank you for the understanding.

C.C.

Friday August 1, 2008 Verna Suit

Theme: "See 'n Say"

17A: Lunch combo: SOUP AND SANDWICH

23A: Footwear combo: SHOES AND SOCKS

38A: Flag combo: STARS AND STRIPES

49A: Little girl combo: SUGAR AND SPICE

60A: Bonebreaking combo: STICKS AND STONES

I don't like seeing 5 repetitive "combo" in the above clues, very lazy. Given the creativity shown by the constructor on the theme entries, I suspect our editor might have tinkered with the constructor's original submission. Anyway, a "duet" sounds more appealing to me than a "combo".

This is a beautiful grid. I am so impressed with those S* & S* phrases. I was thinking of a similar T* & T* puzzle, but I could only think of "Thick and Thin" & "Toss and Turn". What other T*& T* phrases can you think of? They have to be 10-letter long I suppose, 15- letter will be ideal of course.

Several clever clues in today's puzzle, and several eyebrow-raising abbreviated answers too.

Across:

1A: Profundity: DEPTH. Wish the clue were "The third D (3-D)" to pair up with CCL (20A: Half of D). I've never realized that there is a "C C" in every "half of D".

6A: Erect: RAISE. Would have had a nice little sub-theme if RAISE were clued as "Worker's demand" since we have 56A: Workplace safety grp. (OSHA) & 30D: Work Station (DESK).

11A: VW predecessors: STU. Great clue. STUVW, in alphabetic order.

15A: Former defense secretary Les: ASPIN. "LES" was clued as "Aspin from Wisconsin" on July 8.

22A: Plumps (for): OPTS. I've never heard of "Plumps for" before. Dictionary defines the phrase as "Supports enthusiastically", but that would be "ROOTS for", how could it be "OPTS for"?

28A: Potato style: MASHED. The green pieces on top are chives, aren't they?

34A: Race of Norse gods: AESIR. I forgot. Had AESI? for a long time. AESIR is "the principal race of gods, led by Odin and living at Asgard." Very interesting root: "Old Norse, pl. of āss, god), no wonder they live in Asgard.

43A: Gov't security: T NOTE

45A: Annie or Harry Potter: ORPHAN

67A: Bit of binary code: ONE. This ONE is for you, xchefwalt.

68A: "The Highwayman poet": NOYES (Alfred). What a confusing name: NO YES. Thomas probably will "NOYER" into this name again.

69A: Dashing Flynn: ERROL. Know him, have never seen any of his movies though. Interesting book title - "My Wicked, Wicked Ways".

Down:

2D: Son of Cain: ENOCH

4D: County div., often: TWP (Township)

5D: San Simeon castle builder: HEARST. Got it from the cross fills. "San Simeon castle" is not a familiar name to me.

6D: Hazardous gas: RADON

7D: Varied: abbr: ASSTD (Assorted). What do you think of this clue?

8D: None for me, thanks: I PASS

11D: In good order: SHIPSHAPE

26D: Vocalist Vikki: CARR. Unknown to me. I googled her name. Here is her "It Must Be Him" & "All The Time".

33D: New state name: HAMPSHIRE. Another clever clue. New HAMPSHIRE.

41D: Title for M. Clouseau: INSP (Inspector). I have no idea who M. Clouseau is. I've never heard of "Pink Panther" before. This picture popped up when I googled "Inspector Clouseau".

46D: Anti-Red grp.: HUAC (House Un-American Activities Committee). I pieced the answer together from the perps. Vaguely remember seeing this word in someone's comment before. Wait....OK, it's from Melissa. She mentioned HUAC when she remarked on Zero MOSTEL a few weeks ago.

48D: African menace: TSETSE. Good to see a full fly. Here is a female TSETSE. How sad, this deadly fly kills 3 millions livestock in this region every year.

50D: Prepared for action: READY. See, here is good example of how a constructor/editor can make a clue more interesting, tricking people to think of a past tense verb. A present tense "Prepare for action" is also a valid clue since READY can also be a verb.

55D: Stand for something?: EASEL. I like the question mark in the clue.

C.C.

Thursday July 31, 2008 Alan P. Olschwang

Theme: In Praise of Flattery

18A: Start of Samuel Johnson quote: JUST PRAISE

28A: Part 2 of quote: IS ONLY A DEBT

49A: Part 3 of quote: BUT FLATTERY

64A: End of quote: IS A PRESENT

From "The Rambler" # 155.

I have difficulty grokking this rambling quote. Samuel Johnson did think FLATTERY was more superior than PRAISE, right? I am simply so confused by the weird grammatical structure of "JUST PRAISE IS ONLY A DEBT". It sounds so wrong.

Not a bad puzzle, I like the lower middle part: SURGE, TEASER, GAZA, ZETA & GALLANTS, all quality fills.

I suspect our editor changed the EASING/SOFTENING corner of the grid, just as he did to Barry Silk's puzzle yesterday. This Olschwang might be a boring QUIP/QUOTE guy, but he is too professional to clue 2 ING's fills with 2 ING's clues: EASING (34A: Palliating) & SOFTENING (35D: Toning down). Very unpleasant eyesores.

Across:

5A: Banned orchard spray: ALAR. Wikiepedia says it's banned in 1989.

9A: Woo: COURT. Here is "How to Woo a Girl".

16A: "Lou Grant" star: ASNER (Ed). Learned his name from doing Xword. Have never seen "Lou Grant".

20A: Waste maker?: HASTE. And 52D: SWIFT (Speedy)

23A: Attends: GOES. Is "Attends" a good clue to you? I don't like seeing 2 GO'es in the puzzle. See 38D: Elapse: GO BY

24A: Model Macpherson: ELLE. She is beautiful. FLAB-u-less! (48A: Love handle).

33A: Hot time in Le Havre: ETE. Le Havre is here.

41A: Hosp. readout: ECG (Electrocardiogram). What's the difference between ECG & EKG?

43A: Cowboy's showcase: RODEO. What a daring RODEO Girl!

44A: People with pad: STENOS. Very interesting anagram: NOTES.

56A: Draw breath: LIVE. I had difficulty breathing seeing this clue.

58A: "Eyeless in ___": GAZA. Not familiar with this novel. GAZA strip yes, and the Golen Heights. I used to vodka him.

70A: Back of the neck: NAPE

Down:

4D: Eavesdrops: LISTENS IN

6D: Honored poet: LAUREATE. Who is your favoirte poet?

10D: Missouri feeder: OSAGE

19D: West point beginner: PLEBE. Also the first-year student at Navy Academy/Marine Military Academy. How come they named those freshmen as PLEBES?

42D: Gents: GALLANTS. Always thought GALLANT was an adjective only. Dictionary explains that GALLANT can also be a verb, meaning "To woo or pay COURT (to a lady)".

45D: Puzzling problem: TEASER

51D: Dam-building grp: TVA (Tennessee Valley Authority). Learned this acronym from doing Xword also. I have no idea what their responsibilites were/are.

53D: Desert greenery: OASIS. Plural is OASES.

54D: Refrain syllables: TRA LA. Crossword fills can be so whimsical, TRA, TRA LA, TRA LA LA.

55D: Too high-strung: HYPER. Here is the entrance to the French HYPERmarket Carrefour in Beijing.

59D: Greek letter: ZETA. This ZETA is Gorgeous.

C.C.

Wednesday July 30, 2008 Barry Silk

Theme: Equines

17A: Root of bitterness?: HORSERADISH

24A: 1966 Wilson Pickett hit: MUSTANG SALLY

36A: Sobriquet for Stallone: ITALIAN STALLION

48A: Colorado pro: DENVER BRONCO

58A: Mail system. 1860-61: PONY EXPRESS

Hmm, where are the MOUNT, STEED, COLT, FILLY & STUD?

I should not NAG.

This is a beautiful puzzle. The first pangram grid I've ever solved - all letters of the alphabets are used. I wonder if anyone has constructed an "HORSE" rebus puzzle before. Wouldn't that be interesting to decode?

The only flaw I saw is the clue for ROAN (29D: Motley horse), since HORSE is part of the theme answer (17A).

Figured out the theme very earlier on, which helped me fill in several otherwise unobtainable fills.

Had a few absent-minded flirting with Google. I still can not believe SCHISGAL (10D) is an actual name.

Across:

1A: Woody Allen movie: ZELIG. Not familiar with this mockumentary. I had ZEL?G for a long time. I like Woody Allan's "Annie Hall" & "Hannah and Her Sisters".

11A: Parts of gals: QTS

15A: Swiss canton: URI. Have not seen the "Mentalist Geller" clue for a long time.

21A: Laptop surfer's connection: WIFI. I've never used WIFI connection. Is it very quick?

22A: "The White Album" track: I WILL. Here is Paul McCartney's "I WILL". Not a familiar song to me.

27A: Color bands: STRIPES. This word and the EQUINES theme brings a Zebra to my mind.

30A: Safecracker: YEGG. Where did we get this strange word "YEGG" for a burglar?

32A: Elizabeth of "Lone Star": PENA. I don't know her. I do know this PENA. I own this card.

33A: Sch. in Lexington: VMI (Virginia Military Institute). Unknown to me. My answer was VMU until the very end.

43A: __ de vie (clear brandies): EAUX. An educated guess. I had EAU? in place, and letter "X" is the only choice since the clue is in plural form (EAUX is the plural of EAU).

45A: Steals, as livestock: RUSTLES. I like this answer and the clue. Could picture someone stealing a HORSE in the middle of the night.

53A: Exchange fee: AGIO. It appeared on last Sunday's puzzle.

67A: Nixon's Agnew: SPIRO. He got a good speech writer in William Safire. I don't think he himself would have come up with this alliterative term "Nattering nabobs of negativism".

Down:

1D: TV journalist Paula: ZAHN. I kind of like her replacement Campbell Brown at CNN. Paula ZAHN is also a great cellist (played at Carnegie Hall before.)

2D: Smack addition: EROO. or "Switch addtion". AROO is "Buck addition".

3D: Front-runners: LDRS (Leaders). Still have difficulty accepting this abbreviation.

4D: Island near Naxos: IOS. Big stumper for me. Wikipedia says Homer is said to be buried on IOS Island.

10D: "Luv" dramatist: SCHISGAL (Murray). Unknown to me. Wikipedia says Mike Nichols directed the Broadway play and ALAN Arkin & ELI Wallach were in the original cast.

11D: Chickenlike bird: QUAIL. This California QUAIL looks fearless.

12D: Fairy-tale toll collector: TROLL. Why "toll collector"? Wow, look at this amazing TROLL Doll collection. Some of the original Norweigian TROLLS are so beautifully ugly, with real wood.

13D: Half-baked: SILLY. New to me. I always thought of "Half-baked" as in "Not well cooked".

24D: Pepper grinder: MILL. See this antique MILL machinery, very different from my childhood MILL memory.

25D: Putin's refusal: NYET. DADA means "Yes, yes" in Russian. "Ya tebya lyublyu" is "I love you". So complicated. Vodka sounds much better. I vodka you.

26D: Actress Rowlands: GENA. I've never heard of her before.

32D: Ltr. addenda: PSS. Quite a few abbreviations in today's grid.

33D: Perfume holder: VIAL. Beautiful enamelled perfume VIALS. In great condition. I like the rosebuds & the butterfly in the middle. Very pretty.

34D: Pouting face: MOUE. Clear Ayes' "Self-depreciating/deprecating MOUE" really made me laugh last time.

35D: "Devil Inside" group: INXS (pronounced as In Excess). Had never heard of them before.

37D: Worldwide police grp.: INTERPOL. It's headquartered in Lyon, France. I feel sad for their finanical woes.

38D: Violinist Leopold: AUER. The Hungarian violinist. Have seen this clue 2 times before.

39D: Plane-crash grp.: NTSB (National Transportation Safety Board). Here is what Dennis said last time: "The FAA establishes the safety guidelines/rules, and the NTSB comes into play when something goes wrong. If you're a pilot, you never wanna hear from the NTSB."

40D: Apollo's mother: LETO. Gimme!

46D: Trademark DOS: UNIX. Developed by the Bell Labs.

48D: French mustard: DIJON. Here is a jar of HORSERADISH DIJON for you. Sounds good for potato salad.

51D: Spoked: RAYED. Had no idea that "spoke" can also be a verb.

54D: Lucie's dad: DESI (Arnaz). This "Job Switching"(Chocolate factory) Barbie is a probably one of the most sought-after Mattel dolls.

C.C.

PS: Barry Silk's original clue for ROAN is "Multicolored equine". Our editor also made 2 big changes on the grid: the upper middle part and the lower right. See here for the grid and the clues.

Tuesday July 29, 2008 Edgar Fontaine

Theme: HUH (2D: Whazzat?)

17A: At all: WHATSOEVER

26A: "Twelfth Night": WHAT YOU WILL

39A: Thingamabob: WHATCHAMACALLIT

50A: Alfred E. Neuman line: WHAT, ME WORRY

61A: Streisand film: WHAT'S UP, DOC

Sub-theme: "The Sound of Music"

15A: Opera star: DIVA

22A: Prima donna's number: ARIA

23A: Notes of scales: FAS

31A: Refrain syllable: TRA

68A: Yamaha product: PIANO

3D: Lyrical Gershwin: IRA

6D: Lyric poem: ODE

30D: NYC opera house: MET. Techinically it's "The MET", isn't it?

Great puzzle. I like the grid. I simply adore puzzles with a running-through theme answer (39A). They fit my eyes. I also like how the constructor tied in the theme title HUH (2D) to the grid. Very clever, awesome "Whazzat"? clue.

Many WHAT* phrases can fit in a 15*15 grid, for example:

WHAT a cry baby!

WHAT a drag!

WHAT's the problem?

WHAT's the point?

WHAT's the meaning of this?

WHAT did you think I meant?

WHAT else?

It's a pity that MAD (46A: Insane) was not clued as the "Humor Magazine". It would have been a wonderful parallel to 50A: WHAT, ME WORRY. Maybe our editor changed the constructor's original clue. Who knows?

Across:

19A: Get-up: TOGS. Why is TOGS always in plural form? I am very confused by these clothing words: get-up, attire, apparel, dress, outfit, duds and clothes. I can never tell which one is plural and which is singular.

21A: "The Lord of Rings" baddie: ORC. Are you a Tolkien fan?

33A: Delhi attire: SARIS. Three ways to wear a SARI. The spelling of "Delhi" is very baffling to me, so is Gandhi and Lhasa, very whimsical silent "h" position.

44A: "Easy ___": RIDER. I enjoyed this clip last week.

45A: Irish Republic: EIRE

55A: Ipanema locale: RIO. Very interesting "The Girl from Ipanema"clip. Who is your favorite Bond girl?

57A: Rhine tributary: AAR. Or AARE, the Swiss river.

66A: Mark ___ -Baker: LINN. No idea. Obtained his name from the down clues.

69A: Sundance's girlfriend: ETTA. Great movie. I like Robert Redford. He is "The Natural" and he always lives what he has dreamed.

Down:

4D: Charlie Brown's exclamation: RATS. I have this bobblehead.

7D: Swivel: PIVOT

11D: New Zealand Polynesian: MAORI. Only learned this morning that the word MAORI means "ordinary people" in the native language.

12D: Potter's clay: ARGIL. No idea. Dictionary says it's mostly "a white clay used by potters". ARG(os) is a Latin prefix meaning "white". "ARG" means "angry" in Swedish/Norwegian languages, very interesting.

23D: Islamic ruling: FATWA

24D: Hi, on HI: ALOHA. "on HI"? Not "in HI"?

25D: Twilled silk fabric: SURAH. Or SURAT. New word to me. I found out that SURAH is also an alternative spelling of SURA (the Koran chapter). Odd!

28D: Major in astronomy?: URSA. I like this clue.

34D: French soul: AME. Anima/Animus in Latin.

37D: Wispy clouds: CIRRI. Singualr is CIRRUS (Latin for "a lock, curl, tendril"). Saw this clue somewhere before.

41D: Retreat: HIDEAWAY. Indeed, a beautiful place for a HIDEAWAY.

42D: Do-over service: LET. The tennis call.

46D: Sicilian spouter: MT ETNA. Ha, this one had me confused for quite sometime. Shouldn't the clue has some hint to indicate an abbreviated MT?

48D: Bellicose deity: ARES. Mars for the Romans.

50D: Marine mammal: WHALE. Thar she blows!

51D: Daily routine: HABIT. "...You could have a big dipper. Going up and down, all around the bends...I've kicked the HABIT....I've been feeding the rhythm. It's what we're doing, doing, all day and night". For Melissa.

53D: Large mackerel: WAHOO. Also called Peto. New to me. Pretty big.

54D: Borneo ape, briefly: ORANG. What are you thinking?

62D: Crumpet complement: TEA. I have not eaten CRUMPETS for ages.

65D: Kind of lettuce: COS. Romaine lettuce. My favorite.

C.C.