Tuesday, September 14, 2010 Dan Naddor

Theme: Take Your Medicine - Three phrases that end with a medicine delivery system followed by the provider of said systems.

18A. Historic cache for future millennia: TIME CAPSULE

25A. Investing largely in money markets, say: STAYING LIQUID

42A. Item for doodling or note-taking: WRITING TABLET

55A. Dispensers of the ends of 18-, 25- and 42-Across: PHARMACISTS

Argyle here.

Dan provided a test for a Tuesday. Interesting but not sparkling. We've been spoiled by Dan's heavy theme material. Three theme entries plus an unifier is pretty thin in his standard.

It's worth to note that the total word/square count are both quite low for an early week puzzle, and Dan gives us 16 entries of 6 letters or more non-theme fill.

Across:

1. Hydroelectric project : DAM

4. Makes improvements to : EMENDS. Although EMENDS and amends have similar meanings, EMENDS indicates improving text only.

10. California wine valley : NAPA

14. Ipanema's city : RIO. Ipanema is a neighborhood located in the southern region of the city of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

15. "Anything you want" : "NAME IT"

16. Petri dish gel : AGAR

17. Geological span : EON

20. Take turns : ALTERNATE

22. Name of two presidents : ADAMS. The first father and son Presidents, number two and number six.

23. Fuel for big rigs : DIESEL

24. Geological span : ERA

32. Money market fund, e.g. : ASSET. A clecho of 25A.

34. Follows a recipe : COOKS

35. ___ Championship: August golf tournament : PGA. Martin Kaymer won the US PGA Championship in a play-off after Bubba Watson and Dustin Johnson both suffered penalty strokes on the final hole, creating a three-way tie.

36. Jordanian queen dowager : NOOR. Such intrigue in her life! As a dowager(widow of a king), she remains royalty but isn't a ruler. Image.

37. Negative quality : MINUS

38. Beginning on : AS OF

39. Canal site : EAR

40. Ate sumptuously : DINED

41. Heads-up : ALERT

45. "Mighty" tree : OAK. "Mighty oaks from little acorns grow."

46. Power failure : OUTAGE

49. Really bad : AWFUL

52. "No way, José" : "NOT ON A BET!"

57. Lennon's widow : ONO

58. Emerald Isle : EIRE

59. Supplanter of the silent movie : TALKIE

60. Coffee holder : URN

61. Attracted a trooper, maybe : SPED

62. Mary Hartman portrayer Louise : LASSER. "Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman", was a soap opera parody that aired in syndication from 1976 to 77. Produced by Norman Lear, the show's title was the eponymous character's name stated twice, because Lear and the writers believed that everything that was said on a soap opera was said twice. Promo clip, Lasser is the one in pig-tails.

63. Your, in Tours : TES. Tours, France

Down:

1. Live in fear of : DREAD

2. Garlicky sauce : AIOLI

3. Education pioneer Maria : MONTESSORI. A gimme for a lot of you.

4. Ask on bended knee : ENTREAT. Propose just didn't work.

5. For the most part : MAINLY

6. John's partner in "The Avengers" : EMMA. John Steed and Mrs. Emma Peel.

7. Nair competitor : NEET. Hair removers

8. Cubes that are rolled : DICE

9. Where many commuters wait: Abbr. : STA.

10. Tech-heavy stock exchange : NASDAQ

11. Contents of un lago : AGUA. A lake & water, in Spanish.

12. Arboreal Miami sight : PALM. Trees.

13. Greek god of war : ARES

19. Louvre location : PARIS. Louvre Museum, Paris, France.

21. Fragrant compound : ESTER

24. BPO __ : ELKS. The Benevolent & Protective Order of Elks.

26. Cupcake topper : ICING

27. Nine-piece combo : NONET

28. Mild Dutch cheese : GOUDA

29. Distraught over : UPSET ABOUT

30. Composer Stravinsky : IGOR. Tango for Piano.

31. Off one's rocker : DAFT

32. All over again : ANEW

33. Attract upward-looking onlookers : SOAR

37. Stole fur : MINK

38. Prince Valiant's wife : ALETA. From the comic strip; their son is Prince Arn. Note: While she is Queen of the Misty Isles, Valiant is only a prince.

40. Hitchcock's "__ for Murder" : DIAL "M"

41. Oldest driver to win the Indy 500 : AL UNSER. From the Unser family.

43. Went on the road : TOURED

44. Baby's footwear : BOOTIE

47. Country or folk : GENRE. Type of music or art, etc.

48. Preppy collars : ETONS

49. Mimics : APES

50. Lion tamer's handful : WHIP

51. Taxi rider or payment : FARE

52. March Madness org. : NCAA. College basketball.

53. Makes less squeaky, perhaps : OILS

54. Sounds of disapproval : TSKS

56. Part of NATO: Abbr. : ATL. North Atlantic Treaty Organization

Answer grid.

Argyle

Monday, September 13, 2010 Jeff Chen

Theme: B and B - Besides the obvious 53 Across, there are three other grid-spanning B and B's, plus the easy to miss but dead center, 35 Across.

17A. Consequences of a minor accident, perhaps : BUMPS AND BRUISES

22A. "The Greatest Show on Earth" promoters : BARNUM AND BAILEY

35A. Before long : BY AND BY

46A. Product improvement slogan : BIGGER AND BETTER

53A. Cozy inn whose abbreviation is a hint to this puzzle's theme : BED AND BREAKFAST

And the fill BBs (31. Air gun ammo) has to be intentional. FYI, total 14B's in the puzzle.

Argyle here.

Four grid spanners. Total 67 theme squares. Heavy themage. Good job, Jeff.

The theme gimmick is similar to Jeff's last C.C. puzzle where the initialism of the last theme entry is the hint to the other theme answers, but with an extra central answer this time.

Across:

1. Green gem : JADE

5. Runs easily : TROTS

10. Ruler marking : INCH

14. High spot : APEX

15. Baton-passing event : RELAY

16. Delhi dress : SARI

20. Less than 90 degrees, anglewise : ACUTE. If greater than 90 degrees but less than 180, the angle is obtuse.

21. Baseball card data : STATS

27. Totally dreadful : ABYSMAL. One B.

28. Place for cookies : JAR

29. Like EEE shoes : WIDE

30. Skin: Suff. : DERM. As in dermatology, the branch of medicine dealing with the skin and its diseases. Update: I gave a prefix, Kazie reminded me it called for a suffix. Same meaning but different word; à la pachyderm, someone (or something) with thick skin. It is used for animals such as an elephant or a hippopotamus

34. '50s political monogram : DDE. Dwight D. Eisenhower, our 34th President.

38. Span of history : ERA

39. "So's __ old man!" : YER

40. "¿Cómo __ usted?" : ESTÁ. It means "how are you" singular formal. I await confirmation.

41. Horse's stride : GAIT

42. Adjust to the desired wake-up time, as an alarm : SET

43. Gently slips past : EASES BY. One B. Regrettable duplication of BY with 35A BY.

51. Be __ model: exemplify grace in success : A ROLE

52. Hideous sorts : OGRES

59. Grandson of Adam : ENOS

60. Celtic priest of old : DRUID

61. Basis of an invention : IDEA

62. Tennis do-overs : LETS

63. 1,000 kilograms : TONNE. Metric ton, 2204.6 pounds.

64. Word with ghost or boom : TOWN

Down:

1. Sharp punch : JAB. One B.

2. "The Simpsons" storekeeper : APU. We will never see his full name, Apu Nahasapeemapetilon.

3. FDR or JFK, politically : DEM. Democrats, both.

4. Wide-open space : EXPANSE

5. Emotional shock : TRAUMA

6. Hertz auto, e.g. : RENTAL

7. Of days gone by : OLDEN

8. Bar bill : TAB. One B, but double B alliteration.

9. Damascus' land: Abbr. : SYR. Damascus is the capital of Syria.

10. "Lord, __?": Last Supper question : "IS IT I?"

11. __ decongestant : NASAL

12. Greek island where Minos ruled : CRETE. Minos was the mythical king of Crete. The island is not mythical.

13. __ fit: tantrum : HISSY

18. Pond gunk : SCUM

19. G.I.'s group : US ARMY

22. Off-color : BAWDY. One B.

23. Tolerate : ABIDE. One B.

24. Winona of "Edward Scissorhands" : RYDER. Her straps are twisted. I would volunteer to straighten them for her.

25. Spun CDs at a party : DJ'ED

26. Caustic remark : BARB. Two B's

30. Crime lab evidence, briefly : DNA

31. Beauty's beloved : BEAST. One B, but triple B alliteration.

32. Payola, e.g. : BRIBE. Two B's

33. Mythical man-goat : SATYR

35. Get noticed : BE SEEN. One B.

36. River of Flanders : YSER

37. Lead-in to girl or boy : ATTA. Tried "It's a" first

41. Tones one's body : GETS FIT

43. Enter stealthily : EDGE IN

44. Use emery on : ABRADE. One B.

45. Hide's partner : SEEK

46. Genesis tower locale : BABEL. Two B's.

47. Dancer Castle : IRENE. She was the wife half of Vernon and Irene Castle, a team of ballroom dancers of the early 20th century.

48. No-show in a Beckett play : GODOT. Waiting for Godot is an absurdist play by Samuel Beckett, in which two characters, Vladimir and Estragon, wait for someone named Godot.

49. Half-full or half-empty item : GLASS

50. Smudge-proof, like mascara : NO RUN

54. Banned bug spray : DDT

55. Certain sib : BRO. One B.

56. Commotion : ADO

57. Use a Singer : SEW

58. Beachgoer's shade : TAN. Tricky clue.

Answer grid.

Argyle

Sunday September 12, 2010 Scott Atkinson

Theme: The Long and Short of It - Long E sound in EE/EA + LL(s) combination in the last word of each familiar phrase is changed into short I.

25A. Wiring woes? : ELECTRIC ILLS. Electric eels.

30A. Pickle processor's invitation? : LET'S MAKE A DILL. Let's make a deal. Awesome entry.

49A. Fruity medication? : BANANA PILL. Banana peels.

61A. Black, gooey knolls near Charlotte? : NORTH CAROLINA TAR HILLS. North Carolina Tar Heels. Nice grid-spanner. But clue/answer duplication with BRAGG (100A. North Carolina fort). I guess there's no other easy way to clue the latter. Still, very bad.

78A. Factories with good morale? : HAPPY MILLS. Happy Meals.

94A. Moonshine equipment that's frozen solid? : COLD HARD STILL. Cold Hard Steel.

103A. Documents bequeathing tiny exercise devices? : HAMSTER WILLS. Hamster Wheels.

Very consistent theme pattern. All the last words have one syllable. I can't think of a good phrase with possible feel/fill & keel/kill transformation. You?

This might be Scott's first Sunday puzzle. If so, congratulations! Fun theme and plenty of entertaining clues. One X away from a pangram.

Across:

1. Cuba libre ingredient : COLA. Lime too.

5. Grocery unit : BAG

8. Govt. securities : T-BONDS. Could be T-BILLS also.

14. Pester : NAG AT

19. Former Israeli president Weizman : EZER. Wanted EZRA.

20. Flabbergast : AWE

21. Greek sun god : HELIOS. S ending in Greek always suggests a male figure. As in Zeus.

22. Steer clear of : AVOID

23. Place to park a parka : COAT TREE. Didn't come to me readily.

27. Like Humpty Dumpty, ultimately : IN PIECES. He fell to pieces.

28. Places to go in Gloucester? : LOOS. Gloucester is for alliteration purpose. Great clue.

29. Ballot fallout : CHADS

33. British pop singer Lewis : LEONA. No idea. Looks pretty.

34. Spring mo. : APR

35. Constitutional aid? : CANE. Was thinking of US Constitution rather than physical health.

36. Holiday veggies : YAMS

37. Denali et al.: Abbr. : MTS

40. Disguise for illegal activities : FRONT. Mostly. The ones for FBI/CIA are legal, aren't they?

43. Eponymous dish inventor : PETRI

45. Hi from a float : WAVE. Nice clue.

46. Duff : SEAT

47. Common Market inits. : EEC (European Economic Community)

48. Bobby Orr, once : BRUIN. Boston Bruins.

51. Uneasy desire : ITCH

53. 1953 Leslie Caron film : LILI. Gigi is 1958.

54. Malarkey : BUNK

55. Prefix with trafficker : NARCO. Drew a blank. Narco-trafficker.

56. Hideous : GRUESOME

58. Foot specialist? : BARD. Metrical foot.

59. Toll rd. : TPK (Turnpike)

68. Nonverbal syst. : ASL (American Sign Language)

69. Christmas setups : FIRS

70. "Émile, or On Education" author : ROUSSEAU (Jean-Jacques). Not familiar with the book.

71. Lieu : STEAD

75. Cap'n's crew member : BO'S'N

76. "You're So __": Carly Simon hit : VAIN. Whom is it about again?

77. Ten percenters: Abbr. : AGTS

81. __ State Broncos: Western Athletic Conf. team : BOISE. I know nothing about college sports.

82. "__ du lieber!" : ACH

83. 1975 Pure Prairie League hit : AMIE. First encounter with the band, and the song.

84. Apple with tunes : IPOD. Mine is full of podcast.

85. Soldier, in slang : GRUNT

86. Site of India's Red Fort : DELHI. Pure guess.

88. Math proof letters : Q.E.D.

89. Sweat spot : BROW

90. Support gp. created in 1942 : WAAC (Women's Army Auxiliary Corps)

91. RVer's refuge : KOA

92. Disney's middle name : ELIAS. I forgot.

101. Doughnut shapes : TORI. Plural of torus. Stumped many last time. It looks like this.

102. Chosen one : SELECTEE

106. Rocky address : YO ADRIAN. Great entry.

107. Justice since 2006 : ALITO (Samuel)

108. "Mas Que Nada" bandleader : MENDES. Peeked at the answer sheet.

109. Vietnam Veterans Memorial architect : LIN (Maya)

110. One way to store data : ON CD

111. Eponymous scout Chisholm : JESSE. No idea. Wikipedia says the Chisholm Trail is named after him.

112. Elusive big Scot? : NESSIE. Lock Ness Monster.

113. Calculus prereq. : ALG

114. Ken of "Wiseguy" : WAHL. Nope. He looks familiar though.

Down:

1. Mining magnate Rhodes : CECIL. Of Rhodes Scholar fame.

2. Triatomic pollutant : OZONE

3. Bounded : LEAPT

4. Old guild member : ARTISAN

5. Rail amenity : BAR CAR. Have never been to one.

6. "Eight Days __" : A WEEK

7. Skein fliers : GEESE

8. It's usually disregarded when alphabetizing : THE. Fresh clue.

9. "I puritani" composer : BELLINI. Gimme for Jayce.

10. Fútbol shout : OLE OLE. Fútbol is Spanish for football.

11. Williamson of "Excalibur" : NICOL. About King Arthur I presume.

12. Things to connect : DOTS. Connect the dots.

13. Kazakhstan, once: Abbr. : SSR

14. Football party munchies : NACHOS. So messy.

15. Winged, perhaps : AVIAN

16. Yitzhak Rabin's predecessor : GOLDA MEIR. Full name in clue. Full name in answer.

17. Has a cold : AILS

18. Jerry Rice's 208, briefly : TDS. Is that a record?

24. Offer chocolates to, as a dieter : TEMPT

26. Bygone deliverers : ICEMEN

31. In "Rent," it starts with "Seasons of Love" : ACT II. Needed crossing help.

32. "Aw, phooey!" : DARN

33. Hot flower : LAVA. Flower = Thing that flows. Can't fool me.

36. Tug : YANK

38. Rash protection : TALC

39. D-Day target city : ST LO. Also CAEN.

40. Simulate : FEIGN

41. Rocket opening : RETRO. Retrorocket.

42. Come to pass : OCCUR

43. Original : PRIMAL

44. Basel-born mathematician : EULER. OK, Bill G, tell us the highlight of this guy's career.

45. Movie fish : WANDA

46. New Age music player, often : SPA. I've never heard of New Age Health Spa. So the cleverness of the clue is lost on me.

48. Voting groups : BLOCS

49. "I'd go out with women my age, but there are no women my age" speaker : BURNS (George). So he kept dating younger women?

50. Egyptian crosses : ANKHS. Always have trouble remembering the spelling.

52. Riled (up) : HET. Het up.

54. Scot's tot : BAIRN. Literally "child".

57. Like groves : SHADY

58. Euphoria : BLISS

59. One looking for the way? : TAOIST. Tao = Way (in Chinese).

60. Compote fruit : PRUNE

62. From way back when : OF OLD

63. Prepare for a run : TRAIN. I find running makes my legs thick.

64. Metaphor words : IS A

65. By the book : LEGAL

66. Gate fastener : LATCH

67. It's often served with ginger and wasabi : SUSHI. Wasbi is really hot!

71. Celt since 8/4/2010 : SHAQ. Man, I thought he's still in Cleveland.

72. Lacking spice : TAME. Does this refer to food?

73. Skin graft material : EPIDERMIS. such a sophisticated word.

74. Galoot : APE

75. Karate chop, e.g. : BLOW

76. Speak (for) : VOUCH

79. Desert illusion : MIRAGE. Loved "The English Patient".

80. NYSE events : IPOS

81. Thin nail : BRAD. Learned from doing Xword.

85. Pisa airport name : GALILEI. Named after Galileo Galilei.

86. Took two pills, say : DOSED

87. Have humble pie : EAT CROW. Worse than EAT DIRT.

89. Hallux : BIG TOE. Did not know the meaning of hallux.

90. __ Fair : WORLD'S

91. "Constant Craving" vocalist : K. D. LANG. Lois loves her.

93. Endures : LASTS

94. Fountain contents, often : COINS

95. Sanctuaries : ASYLA. Plural for asylum I infer.

96. Try to quiet, as a persistent squeak : REOIL

97. Turner memoir : I, TINA. We had this clue before.

98. Percolate : LEACH

99. 1985-'87 U.S. Open champ : LENDL (Ivan). Nadal today.

100. Loft bundle : BALE. Hi, there, Windhover!

101. Hardly macho, in Manchester : TWEE. Another alliteration.

103. Pilgrimage to Mecca : HAJ

104. LBJ successor : RMN. Can never remember Nixon's middle name. Milhous.

105. Bakersfield-to-L.A. heading : SSE. Educated guess.

Answer grid.

C.C.

Saturday September 11, 2010 Mike Nothnagel

Theme: None

Total words: 68

Total blocks: 29

Average Word Length: 5.76

Amazing 20 multi-word entries in the grid, all solid. Several made their first time appearance in major newspaper puzzle. Gorgeous! I just mentioned to our blogging team a few days ago about how constructors pride themselves in debuting a new word/phrase.

I like the two Across 12s a lot. I suspect one of them is Nothnagal's seed entry. The two Down 10s and four 9s are all quite sparkling.

Scrabbly puzzle too. Two X, Y, Z, V each.

Across:

1. Clear skies : AZURES. I normally struggle with the first entry. Not today.

7. Adequately suited to : FINE FOR

14. Stop browsing : LOG OFF

15. Curling-up site : FIRESIDE. Cozy.

16. Shared with : TOLD TO. Sure was not thinking of a story.

17. Too much : IN EXCESS

18. Vision blurrers, at times : STYES

19. Nikon F, e.g., briefly : SLR

20. Death is part of it : TAROT. The fortunetelling deck. Got me.

21. Common California map word : SAN. Fresh clue.

22. Item for the Windsor knot-challenged? : BOLO. Maybe they simply love bolo ties.

23. Woods set : IRONS. Tiger Woods. Nailed it.

24. Monopoly phrase : JUST VISITING. Did you get this immediately?

27. Clinker in a Glas : EIS. German for "ice", which clinks in Glas (glass). Not sure even our German speaking Spitzboov and Kazie penned in the right answer on their first try. Way too tricky a clue.

28. Richard of "A Summer Place" : EGAN. Just watched "A Summer Place" this summer. Sweet movie. But I sure can't remember Egan's name. Handsome guy.

29. Winter vacation destination : SLOPES

33. Calmed : STILLED

35. Censor : EDIT OUT

36. Men-on-base gp.? : US NAVY. I don't get this clue. Why Navy? Shouldn't it apply to Army/Air force also? MLB too.

37. Cell projection insulated by a myelin sheath : AXON. The impulse carrier. The clue means nothing to me.

38. Nickname of 1950s Reds slugger Ted : KLU. Gimme for our Seen. He can tell you all about the Big Klu.

39. Watches : KEEPS AN EYE ON. Awsome!

42. Caucasus native : OSSET. New word to me.

45. Cruise itinerary listing : ISLE

46. Indoor rowing machine, briefly, in rowers' jargon : ERG. No idea. Short for ergometer. I was so amused yesterday when Jazzbumpa said an ERG is "roughly equivalent to one fly doing one push-up."

47. Take the cuffs off? : ALTER. Nice clue as well.

48. Boss's domain, perhaps : PIT. What boss? Gambling?

49. Enchanting, but not in a big way? : ELFIN. Because elves are small I suppose.

51. Fragrant Cloud and Crimson Glory : TEA ROSES. Tough clue.

53. Roaring : ABLAZE. How can fire roar?

54. Place to see a pilot light? : HELIPORT. Well, I have no doubt our pilot Dudley saw it. I saw kitchen.

55. Disarming events? : TRUCES. Don't feel the question mark is needed.

56. Blood reservoirs : SPLEENS. Man, I didn't know this trivia.

57. Island vacation rentals : MOPEDS

Down:

1. In-flight announcement nos. : ALTS (Altitudes).

2. Flashy 1940s outfits : ZOOT SUITS. Got it rather quickly.

3. Not easy on the eyes : UGLY AS SIN. Eye duplication with 39A. Not good.

4. Capybara or cavy : RODENT. Unfamiliar with either of the two referenced in the clue.

5. Some former tadpoles : EFTS. Young newts.

6. UAL western hub : SFO

7. Fish malady : FIN ROT. Mystery to me. The malady rot the fish's fin? We also have BIG EYE (22. Nocturnal fish). Nice clecho (clue echo) of fish.

8. Cause of a duel, maybe : IRE

9. On deck : NEXT IN LINE. Another great fill.

10. Food eaten with tongs and a fork : ESCARGOT. Have any of you eaten escargot?

11. Sporty '80s Pontiac : FIERO. Literally "proud" in Italian.

12. Can't stop eating : OD'S ON

13. Notes aren't written during them : RESTS. Musical notes I suppose.

15. Temp : FILL-IN. Timely fill for our Husker Gary.

19. "I feel for you" : SO SAD

24. "Pie __": Mass motet : JESU. No idea. Literally "Jesus".

25. Line outside a nightclub : VELVET ROPE. Such a refreshing answer. Repeat of line with the answer in 9D though.

26. Day follower, in "Taps" : IS DONE. I peeked at the answer sheet.

30. Feature of some bluffs : POKER FACE. Nice one also.

31. Praised : EULOGIZED

32. Take by surprise : STUN

34. One end of Ontario's Welland Canal : LAKE ERIE. Much better than ERIE alone.

35. Praise : EXALT

37. Rink statistic : ASSIST. Hockey.

40. Military band members : PIPERS

41. Call to the attic : YELL UP. Alas, no old baseball cards in our attic.

42. Swear words : OATHS

43. A buzzer may end it : SLEEP

44. Flea market booth : STALL. Not much luck in flea market this year. No good finds.

49. River past Logroño : EBRO. Was ignorant of the Spanish city Logroño. Obviously it's on the Ebro River.

50. Notable Volstead Act enforcer : NESS (Eliot). I forgot what Volstead Act is about.

52. Will party : SON. Party to a person's last will.

53. Source of emergency funds : ATM. It has become a common word that no "briefly" or "for short" is needed in the clue.

Answer grid.

Please visit Urban Dictionary and vote for clecho (clue echo). Thanks.

C.C.

Friday September 10, 2010 Jack McInturff

Theme: EY DROPS - The letters EY are dropped from the end of the first word of easily recognizable phrases, to yield a new phrase with a comical twist.

20A. Faultfinding brother?: MONK ON ONE'S BACK. Monkey on one's back. This expression goes back to ancient Egypt, originally meaning a guiding spirit or source of inspiration. More recently, it's some sort of burden, affliction, or addiction. I wanted a sibling brother, but a MONK will do just fine.

29A. Debris in the hayloft? : BARN RUBBLE. Barney Rubble, Fred Flintstone's pal.

38A. Impervious to chutzpah? : GALL PROOF. This one's my favorite. Galley proof: the final proof copy of a page being typeset for printing, before it is set as a page of a book or booklet.

50A. What Michelle Kwan might do in a financial emergency? : HOCK SKATES. Hockey skates: essential hardware for the Buffalo Sabres. Somehow, I don't think Michelle will ever be in that position.

59A. Haystack-hiding Ottoman? : TURK IN THE STRAW. Turkey In The Straw. Musical Americana.

No unifier, but five brilliant theme entries, two of them almost grid-spanning, along with ten 7-letter answers. Wow!

Hi gang, Jazzbumpa here, aka JzB, more formally, Mr. Bumpa, or just plain Bumpa to my 11 favorite youngsters. But you can call me Ron.

This is a hard puzzle, and I never got on John McInturff's wave length. Even after I sussed the theme, I couldn't get TURK IN THE STRAW, due to errors in the perps. So, I was reduced to technical assistance for many requested answers.

Across :

1. Spread __ : EAGLE. An unincorporated community in Wisconsin. Or this pose. You can search Google images for many interesting variations.

6. Rises to great heights : SOARS. Like an EAGLE.

11. Short nightwear? : PJS. "Short" indicating an abbreviation. Here is one of the more demurre images.

14. Series : ARRAY. Each is a systematic arrangement of things.

15. Speedpass brand : EXXON. I don't use a gas station Speedpass, so the scrabbly answer had to slowly reveal itself.

16. Space in time : LAG. Clever, and it left me behind. Here is my favorite example.

17. "Big Girl in the Middle" co-author Gabrielle : REECE. American professional volleyball player, sports announcer, fashion model and actress.

18. Longtime DieHard rival : DELCO. Car batteries. Any reference to yesterday's reversals?

19. Fake it : ACT. and 54. Pretense : POSE. Which do you think is pretending?

23. Spat end : ULA. End to the word spatula. You all know how I love this kind of clue for an affix. It's my affixiation.

24. Carmelite, e.g. : NUN. Very easy for a simple Catholic boy from Toledo. Clearly, a fun-loving bunch.

25. Daughter of Laban : LEAH. Jacob loved Rachel, but on the wedding day, sneaky Laban substituted her older sister, LEAH. Jacob coped as best he could, and LEAH bore him six sons.

27. Lighten up : FADE. Nice misdirection here. I was expecting frivolity, and instead got bleach.

34. Shivering causes : FEARS. Aha - this is what made the Shakers shake! But what were they afraid of?

36. Each : A POP. I never care much for this equivalence. But the free dictionary includes it waaaaayyy down the page..

37. WWII intelligence gp. : OSS. Office of Strategic Services - precursor of the CIA. Abrv in cl & ans.

42. Jordan was part of it: Abbr. : NBA. Aha! Michael Jordan, former star in the National Basketball Association.

45. Dreamcast maker : SEGA. Now, John is just playing with us.

46. Dona __ pacem: grant us peace : NOBIS. (Lord) grant us peace, in Latin. Very easy for a simple boomer Catholic boy from Toledo. But, alas, this often-uttered prayer seldom yields the requested answers.

55. First daughter of the '60s : LUCI. Lucy (later LUCI) Baines Johnson, one of several LBJ's in the late 60's first family. Born after me with a LAG of about 28 weeks and raised Episcopalian, she converted to Catholicism at age 18. Since I had not yet given it up, we had something in common for awhile.

56. Boomer's kid : XER. For us, X = 4.

58. Basso Berberian : ARA. An opera singer born in Detroit in 1930. Way too early to be a boomer.

65. MGM motto word : ARS. The MGM motto is "Ars Gratia Artis," meaning "Art for Art's sake." They lifted it from France's 19th-century bohemians, who inexplicably spoke Latin.

66. D-Day beach : OMAHA. From WWII, and a puzzle echo from earlier in the week. "Pzzecho" anyone?

67. Wedding memento : VIDEO. Like anyone is EVER going to watch it again.

68. Blow without distinction? : JOE. This baffled me completely. Has John McInturff ever heard me play? But JOE Blow is just an ordinary guy.

69. Not fresh : BANAL. Not much that's BANAL in this fresh puzzle.

70. Green shampoo : PRELL. It's been around for a long time. Anybody remember White Rain?

71. Balaam's beast : ASS. Balaam and his ass didn't get along very well. This was one of the rare (at the time) talking asses.

72. Radiate : EXUDE. Only sort of. More of an oozing kind of radiation.

73. Finishing stroke : SERIF. A short line at the end of a main stroke of a character.

Down:

1. Canal protector : EARMUFF. I see. Ear canal. If anyone tries to put a bug in your ear, use protection. Or ear drops.

2. Colorful rings : AREOLAE. A Crossword Corner Classic.

3. Caribbean island nation : GRENADA. In the Caribbean - wow. I had not idea atoll.

4. Dearth : LACK. No lack of EY drops today.

5. "__ America Tour": 2006 CBS News event : EYE ON. EYE ON America. I've never eyed it. But in keeping with the theme, it should be aired for an EON.

6. Arizona's "Red Rocks Country" : SEDONA. I'll let one of our travelers fill us in.

7. Team members : OXEN. Not the smart team.

8. Wheelset component : AXLE.

9. Mythical birds : ROCS. Big and powerful.

10. Arty type, maybe : SNOB. We have art SNOBs, wine SNOBs, and just plain SNOBs.

11. Controversial testing component : PLACEBO. A fake pill POSing as medication, either to fool the patient into feeling better or to ACT as a control in an experimental trial. I guess the controversy comes from not giving the control group anything that will actually help them.

12. Nocturnal scavengers : JACKALS. Wild African canines. Not to be confused with these.

13. Friday was one: Abbr. : SGT. Police Sgt. Friday from the old Dragnet TV show, or the 1987 movie.

21. Heart : NUB. Besides heart, NUB can also mean a protuberance, small lump, or remnant. My favorite William Gass Story is "In the Nub of the Nub of the Country."

22. Tirana is its cap. : ALB. Tirana, ALBANIA. N.B. use of Abbrv. And -- 39. Coin in Tirana : LEK. The other Albanian Capital, Legal tender for all debts public and private, I assume, and a clecho (clue echo).

26. Stars of "Two and a Half Men," e.g. : HES. Just a couple of Joe Blows, I guess.

28. Work unit : ERG. This is the work done by a force of one dyne acting over a distance of one centimeter, roughly equivalent to one fly doing one push-up..

30. Knock on : RAP AT. Knock knock. Who's there? Friend of Pooh. Friend of Pooh who? Hey - don't poo-hoo me!

31. "Fresh Air" airer : NPR. National Public Radio.

32. Friend of Pooh : ROO. ROO, that's who! (And Tigger, too.)

33. Knowledgeable about : UP ON.

35. Reason for grounding, perhaps : SASS. But, maybe children who are well grounded are less likely to SASS. Or as Shreck said, "SASS, my ASS!"

40. Airport near Citi Field, briefly : LGA. Laguardia, airport near the home of the N.Y. Mets. I can't keep track of the commercial names for stadia. "Briefly" again indicates an Abbrv.

41. Dandy : FOP. Overdressed, not an ordinary guy. Also not like the ones in the previous link.

42. Sabres' org. : NHL. Buffalo Sabres of the National Hockey League. 'Nother Abrv.

43. Former U.N. secretary-general __-Ghali : BOUTROS. Golly - I knew his name, but had to guess at how it was spelt.

44. Charges : ACCUSES. In a legal sense. Otherwise, I'd run up too many ACCUSES on my credit card.

47. One taken in : BOARDER. I was not taken in by this tricky clue. Were you?

48. Sharon, notably : ISRAELI. Ariel Sharon was in the Israeli army from 1948 on, served in various government positions in the 70's and 90's and served as Prime Minister from 2001 to 2006. Not a BANAL life, by any means.

49. London classic, with "The" : SEAWOLF. A Jack London story, about which I know notihng.

51. Cassis apéritif : KIR. Creme de Cassis is a blackcurrant liqueur. For a KIR, take a measure of C de C, and top it off with white wine.

52. Yoga command : EXHALE. Don't forget to breath!

53. Date : SEE. This evidently does not apply to blind dates.

57. Requested answers : RSVPS. Répondez s'il vous plaît, French for "Please respond." We should add this to "Dona NOBIS Pacem!"

60. Eastern beef city : KOBE. Far East. KOBE is a city in Japan, noted for its beef.

61. It gives you the big picture : IMAX. A motion picture and projection format using a big, big screen, from the Canadian Company IMAX Corp..

62. Half a sitcom signoff : NANU. From the TV show Mork and Mindy, featuring Robin Williams and the ever-cute Pam Dawber. Shazbots! My love for "Half a" clues is right up there with affixes. The perfect one would be "Half a' affix."

63. Ohio State basketball coach Matta : THAD. Ohio State plays basketball? Who knew? Not me. I tried CHAD.

64. Flag : TIRE. This is one of the less common meanings of flag. It is now 1:20 a.m. EST, and I am flagging. Do you think TIRE football will ever catch on?

65. Grammy-winning Steely Dan album : AJA. Aha! It's pronounced "Asia!" Sophisticated pop from Becker and Fagan. I'd play it for you, but Ricky lost that number.

Answer grid.

Cheers!

JzB

Thursday September 9, 2010 John "Doppler" Schiff

Theme: AUTO REVERSE (61A. Cassette deck feature, and a hint to this puzzle's theme) - Two-word car parts are reversed in order and clued to have wacky backwards meanings, indicated with a "?".

17A. Excessive pride in one's china?: PLATE VANITY. Vanity Plate examples.

26A. Brawl during a game of musical chairs?: SEAT RUMBLE. Last built in 1939. Decapitation, really? I wonder why they're no longer an option.

36A. What Winfrey couldn't do during a noted couch-jumping episode?: CONTROL CRUISE. If you like Tom Cruise, who jumped at Oprah's couch to professed his love for his then girlfriend Katie Holmes, don't watch this...

51A. Zorro's chamois?: BLADE WIPER. Poor choice IMO. Ever try to get blood stains out of suede leather?

Al here.

Definitely a step up with tricky cluing today. Another puzzle that you look back at after solving and think, why did this take me so long? I think because of all the wrong words I put in at first.

The puzzle is noticeable for the paralleled long Downs in each quadrant, esp the two 8s in the upper right and lower left corners.

Across:

1. "__ the Line": Johnny Cash hit: I WALK. A modernized version. Definitely not traditional.

6. Beatles beat provider: STARR. I confidently put Ringo in there first.

11. "Gosh!": GEE.

14. Trailer follower: MOVIE. Kind of clever, you see the trailer first before the movie comes out, or before the movie starts. They are called trailers though, because they used to show them at the end of movies. Not marketing genius at the time.

15. She played Adrian in "Rocky": TALIA. Shire.

16. Cellular transmitter: RNA. and 52D. Cellular transmitter: PHONE. Clue echo, or clecho a la Dennis.

19. A storm might delay it: Abbr.: ARR. Arrival.

20. Sailor's rear: AFT.

21. Sorrowful comment: PITY. I took this in the sense of showing pity, not actually using the word in a sentence.

22. Congo neighbor: GABON.

24. Coveted role: LEAD. Wanted to think of some specific play or movie instead of just a general term.

29. Relevant, in law: AD REM. To the matter. Get to the point, no digression.

31. Tuxedos, often: RENTALS. I wore one once, at my brother's wedding. I don't even own a suit, myself.

32. Power source size: AAA. Battery.

34. Bolt, e.g.: EAT. And 2D. Gobbled: WOLFED. Swallow hurriedly, with little or no chewing.

35. Acquire: GET.

41. Case, for instance: Abbr.: SYN. Case and instance are synonyms: In this case; in this instance.

42. Apt. ad spec: RMS. Apartment, rooms, abbreviations.

43. Middle-earth monster: ORC. From JRR Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings novels.

44. Followed, as an impulse: ACTED ON.

47. Respectful refusal: NO SIR.

55. Chihuahua child: NINO. Spanish.

56. B on a table: BORON. A chemical symbol on the table of elements.

57. High, to Henri: HAUT. French

59. Sheet with beats, for short: EKG. A chart of heart electrical activity. From German: Elektrokardiogramm

60. Filmmaker Lee: ANG. Sense and Sensibility, Crouching Tiger, The Hulk, Brokeback Mountain. Can't pigeonhole him.

65. Ball-bearing device: TEE. Golf. I was looking for something automotive here instead.

66. Queen's mate: DRONE. Bees. Hi Melissa!

67. Reason for a raise: MERIT. I make money the old-fashioned way. I earn it. There are older professions though, and I should stop short of the obvious here.

68. Marshall Plan pres.: HST. Harry S Truman. His middle initial didn't actually stand for anything, but it was given to him in an attempt to please both grandfathers: Anderson Shipp Truman and Solomon Young. Barely born and already a politician.

69. Sighted: AIMED.

70. Thicke and Rickman: ALANS.

Down:

1. Savanna leaper: IMPALA. Or a model of Chevy to go along with the car theme.

3. 2009 James Cameron blockbuster: AVATAR.

4. Burning: LIT.

5. Medieval castle tower: KEEP. Used as a dungeon or a stronghold.

6. Clinton's department: STATE. Hillary.

7. Tucker of country: TANYA.

8. "Float like a butterfly" boxer: ALI.

9. Accel.'s opposite, in music: RIT. Accelerando, ritardando. Tempo change terms.

10. Flash Gordon weapon: RAY GUN. This is probably the inspiration for the SDI program (Reagan/Star Wars). OK, I'm so not funny.

11. Random assortments: GRAB BAGS.

12. Course taker: ENROLLEE.

13. Not kidding: EARNEST. It's important to be this.

18. It drops with fog: Abbr.: VIS. Visibility. Might have been temperature: TMP.

23. Tsp. or tbsp.: AMT. Amount measurements.

25. Jerry's comedy partner: DEAN. Martin and Lewis. And 63D. Jerry's partner: TOM. Another clecho.

27. __ II razor: TRAC.

28. Fashionably dated: RETRO.

30. Gym safety item: MAT. I had PAD here first.

33. Feathered flier: ARROW. I put AVIAN in after getting the leading A.

34. Trains overhead: ELS.

36. Twisters: CYCLONES. Greek kyklon "moving in a circle, whirling around"

37. In line with the goal: ON TARGET.

38. Defunct sci-fi magazine: OMNI. Why we're alone in the universe. A short story that appeared in the magazine. I used to subscribe...

39. Vase relative: URN.

40. Clickable pic: ICON. Greek: eikon "likeness, image, portrait"

41. Day of rest: SABBATH.

45. Fishing village that became Tokyo: EDO. Picture from 1865-66

46. "Gracias" response: DE NADA. Spanish: thank you; it's nothing.

48. High chain: SIERRA. Mountain chain.

49. Finalizes, as a cel: INKS IN. Hand-colors one frame of animation, (of which you need anywhere from 10-30 for just one second of film).

50. Word-for-word reference?: ROGETS. Thesaurus. Used to substitute words, as in a homework assignment.

53. Like cornstalks: EARED. Seemed too obvious to be correct.

54. Wish one hadn't: RUE.

58. Adult cable rating: TV-MA. The following program is intended for mature audiences. Viewer discretion advised.

62. Alleged spoon-bender Geller: URI.

64. Sushi fish: EEL. Unagi.

Answer Grid.

Al

Wednesday September 7, 2010 Mangesh Sakharam Ghogre

Theme: Easy as A-B-C - All the theme answers are phrases that begin with a single letter followed by a single word. And all in alphabetical order.

20A. Elite socialite : A-LISTER

22A. Place for a finance major : B-SCHOOL (Business School)

27A. Delivery method : C-SECTION. Caesarean section - surgical procedure to deliver a baby.

37A. Planned attack times : D-DAYS. From Wikipedia: "D-Day is a term often used to denote the day on which a combat attack or operation is to be initiated. The best known D-Day is June 6, 1944 — the day of the Normandy landings — initiating the Western Allied effort to liberate mainland Europe from Nazi occupation during World War II. However, many other invasions and operations had a designated D-Day, both before and after that operation."

48A. Online investing : E-TRADING. Electronic trading of securities, such as stocks and bonds.

54A. Camera lens ratio : F-NUMBER. Often called f-stop -f is for focal length, it is a measure of lens speed.

56. Bare wear : G-STRING. If i must. Wiki says "the origin of the term 'g-string' is obscure."

What else …? H- or I-Beam. O-Ring. U-Turn. X-Factor.

Great to see another puzzle by Mangesh. His second byline in LA Times. He was a commenter here for a time, and you can re-read C.C.'s interview with him here.

Mangesh also just had two puzzle accepted by the Games magazine (December issue). Congratulations, Mangesh! Do tell us how you developed today's Letter Openers theme.

Across:

1. Bit of cat chat : MEOW.

5. Phobia : DREAD

10. Cell signal strength indicators : BARS. A beautiful sight.

14. __ mater : ALMA. Latin for "nourishing mother.'

15. Unconventional : OUTRE. The Free Dictionary defines outre as Out of the common course or limits; extravagant.

16. Atty.-to-be's challenge : LSAT. Law School Admission Test.

17. Indian princess : RANI

18. Flightless birds : RHEAS. Similar to ostrich.

19. Where some descents start : ACME

24. Dick and Harry's leader? : TOM. Leader to the phrase "Tom, Dick and Harry".

25. __ name: computer ID : USER

26. "__ size fits all" : ONE

31. Russian coins : RUBLES. 1 Russian ruble = 0.0324 US dollars.

33. Grinders : HEROS. Sandwiches. Also called hoagie or sub.

34. 1960s Canadian prime minister Pearson : LESTER. Awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1957. Quote: "The grim fact is that we prepare for war like precocious giants, and for peace like retarded pygmies."

36. Pound of poetry : EZRA

38. Middle __ : EAST

42. Ironic tales' tails : TWISTS

44. Sharapova of tennis : MARIA. Russian.

45. Low parts : BASSES

50. Bambi's aunt : ENA

51. "Baseball Tonight" channel : ESPN

53. Like some stocks, for short : OTC. The phrase "over-the-counter" can be used to refer to stocks that trade via a dealer network as opposed to on a centralized exchange.

60. Wasatch Mountains ski resort : ALTA. In Utah.

61. Body-care brand named from the Latin for "snow-white" : NIVEA

63. Sch. with Riverside and Irvine campuses : UCAL. University of California.

64. Soup vegetable : LEEK

65. Stunning weapon : TASER. Great clue. Don't tase me, bro!

66. Tableland : MESA

67. __ majesty : LESE. The crime of violating majesty. No idea. Check out the picture.

68. Like some bars : SMOKY

69. Pitt in films : BRAD. Sigh.

Down:

1. Kate of "We Are Marshall" : MARA. Had no idea.

2. Airline to Ben-Gurion : EL AL

3. Prefix with bus : OMNI. Omnibus. Several meanings.

4. Oxford vests : WAISTCOATS. Crossing two theme answers.

5. Moola : DOREMI. Both are slang terms for money.

6. German coal valley : RUHR

7. Riviera season : ETE. French summer. Should be a gimme by now.

8. Emirate natives, mostly : ARABS

9. Menu heading : DESSERTS. Nailed it. I don't have much of a sweet tooth - for dessert i just want more dinner.

10. Not at all scintillating : BLAH

11. Comparable to a cucumber : AS COOL. Cool as a cucumber.

12. Punk rock icon Joey : RAMONE. Died of lymphoma in 2001.

13. Inscribed slabs : STELES. Like this.

21. Young 'uns : TOTS. Curtain climbers. Ankle biters.

23. Rock's Mötley __ : CRUE

25. Yet to be had : UNEATEN. Seems sad.

27. Revolutionary Guevara : CHE. Funny.

28. "Oh yeah? __ who?" : SEZ

29. Misjudge : ERR. I suppose.

30. Auto pioneer : OLDS

32. Bit of a fairy tale trail : BREAD CRUMB. Cute.

35. Process: Abbr. : SYST

37. Begs to differ : DISSENTS

39. Jackie's "O" : ARI. Aristotle Onassis, Jacquelyn Kennedy's second husband.

40. Sloth, for one : SIN. Seven deadly sins: wrath, greed, sloth, pride, lust, envy and gluttony. Anyone else have a favorite?

41. Price indicator : TAG

43. Hall of Fame NFL coach Ewbank : WEEB. Weeb was short for Wilbur.

44. Dillon of "There's Something About Mary" : MATT

45. Happen to : BEFALL

46. Shakers founder : ANN LEE. Had no idea, but she looks exactly like one would expect.

47. Pan-fries : SAUTES

49. Prayer beads : ROSARY

52. Trojan War king : PRIAM. Mythology, I never remember any of it.

55. Brand : MAKE

56. Computer nerd : GEEK

57. "Happy birthday" writer, perhaps : ICER. One who ices a cake.

58. Org. that reaches for the stars? : NASA

59. "I'm __ it's over" : GLAD. Almost.

62. Brandy letters : VSO. Very Superior Old.

Answer grid.

Melissa

Tuesday, September 7, 2010 Donna S. Levin

Theme: Am I Blue? - A timely question, now that summer is over. The first word of the four common phrases is a shade of blue, followed by the unifier in the SE.

20A. 1978 movie set in a Turkish prison : MIDNIGHT EXPRESS. It is based on Billy Hayes' book. Hayes was a young American student sent to a Turkish prison for trying to smuggle hashish out of Turkey. Midnight blue is a dark shade of blue, close to black.

35A. Volatile situation : POWDER KEG. Powder blue may refer to two different colors. Originally, it referred to a dark blue color, but it has since come to refer to a pale blue color. The original color is now called dark powder blue, also called smalt.

46A. White legumes : NAVY BEANS. Navy blue is a very dark shade of the color blue which almost appears as black and got its name from the dark blue worn by officers in the British Royal Navy since 1748.

57A. Big name in Danish porcelain : ROYAL COPENHAGEN Founded in 1775; its mark. Royal blue is traditionally defined as a deep to dark blue, often with a purple or faint reddish tinge.

70A. Shades of it begin this puzzle's four longest answers : BLUE. Did you consider placing BLUE as the last Across entry in 73A, Donna?

Argyle here.

I hope you all had a nice Labor Day. Now you can have a nice Tuesday puzzle. (After my write-up, I notice the hardest part is the language in the clues.)

Across:

1. Stinging flier : WASP

5. Unifying idea : THEME

10. Let the cat out of the bag : BLAB

14. Seed cover : HULL. The outer cover, the chaff.

15. "Bolero" composer : RAVEL

16. Monetary unit of Cyprus : EURO. Straight forward clue; no bread today.

17. Notion : IDEA

18. Repeated question in Matthew : IS IT I

19. Dollar dispensers, briefly : ATMS

23. Part of ESL: Abbr. : ENG. English as a second language

24. One of a "Great" quintet : ERIE. The Great Lakes.

25. Evian, e.g. : SPA. Evian-les-Bains is a lovely mountain city on the French-Swiss border.

28. Hotpoint appliances, familiarly : GES. Owned by General Electric. There is also Hotpoint appliance manufacturer in Britain but not related.

30. Peppery root veggie : RADISH

39. Because : SINCE

40. Island feast : LUAU

41. Peaceful protest : SIT IN

43. Sgts. and cpls. : NCOS

44. Real estate units : ACRES

48. Escaping, with "on" : THE LAM

50. Observe narrowly : EYE. "Narrowly" because you often squint your eyes to get a better look. The famous Eastwood squint.

51. Observe : SEE

52. "Gilligan's Island" shelters : HUTS

55. E. Coast border : ATL Atlantic Ocean.

65. Early sibling rivalry victim : ABEL

66. Mall booth : KIOSK

67. Cass's title : MAMA. Cass Elliot, of "The Mamas and Papas".

68. Scintilla : IOTA

69. Run off to get hitched : ELOPE

71. Island garlands : LEIS

72. "Robinson Crusoe" author : DEFOE. Daniel Defoe (ca. 1659-1661 – 1731)

73. Back talk : SASS

Down:

1. Caprice : WHIM

2. Car company whose name is Latin for "Hark!" : AUDI. Sona is Latin for "Honk!"

3. Winter ride : SLED

4. Carpentry smoother : PLANE. Image.

5. Gun activators : TRIGGERS

6. Diner hodgepodge dish : HASH

7. Online party notice : E-VITE. I can just imagine the groans going up when this answer was revealed.

8. Curbside payment collector : METER

9. Cure-all mixture : ELIXIR

10. Yogi or Boo-Boo : BEAR. Cartoon bears.

11. Mandolin relative : LUTE. Short clip.

12. Second Amendment subject : ARMS. Guns.

13. Chief : BOSS

21. "Bus Stop" playwright : INGE

22. They may be split in soup : PEAS

25. Water balloon sound : SPLAT

26. Marsupial's pocket : POUCH

27. Cognizant : AWARE

29. Dermatologist's concern : SKIN

31. Eat in style : DINE

32. Machu Picchu architects : INCAS

33. Pastry at a Devonshire tea : SCONE

34. "Siddhartha" author Hermann : HESSE

36. Hamilton-Burr engagement : DUEL. Hamilton lost.

37. Greek "H" : ETA

38. Rhett's last verb : GIVE

42. Pinstriped ALer : NY YANKEE. Often paired with Rhett's last noun.

45. Humorist Mort : SAHL

47. "Little Women" woman : BETH

49. Folded (one's hand), in poker slang : MUCKED. Not a term I'm familiar with.

53. Patterned fabric : TOILE. Toile, which is a French word, translates literally to 'cloth'. Its origins can be traced to Jouy-en-Josas, France, where the first commercial plant to mass produce it started production in 1760. Despite its very proper reputation, toile had a decidedly illicit beginning.

54. "SNL" staple : SPOOF. Saturday Night Live (SNL)

56. Symbols of gentleness : LAMBS

57. Pool table border : RAIL

58. Bassoon cousin : OBOE

59. Legendary Himalayan : YETI

60. Sighed word : ALAS

61. Hockey Hall of Famer Phil, to his fans : ESPO. Philip Anthony Esposito(born February 20, 1942 in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario) is a former Canadian professional ice hockey center.

62. Festive party : GALA

63. Avian Aussies : EMUS

64. Hamish's refusals : NAES. Scottish.

Answer grid.

Argyle