Thursday November 11, 2010 Don Gagliardo

Theme: Childish Behavior - With a HINT (32A) from 56A. Admonition to one acting out the starts of 17-, 23-, 34- and 48-Across: MIND YOUR MANNERS.

17A. Battle of the Bulge air assault division: SCREAMING EAGLES. The Army 101st Airborne Division. Timely clue related to Veterans day, today.

23A. Doppelgänger: SPITTING IMAGE. In fiction and folklore, your evil double. Also considered bad luck, or even an omen of death, to see one.

34A. It's hard to get romantic with one: NAGGING HEADACHE. This is probably worse. One percent of the population, really?

48A. Reason to see a mechanic: WHINING ENGINE.

Al here.

Heavy 71 theme squares. Seven Down fill intersect 3 theme entries. An ambitious grid.

Not a pangram, missing six letters, no helper squares, better than average theme, and a few clever clues. Parts of the theme did help me for once, the "ing" letters filled in a few spots. So, on with the answers. Don included a note to C.C. about the puzzle, which is included at the end of the write-up.

ACROSS

1. U.S. dept. with a Race to the Top reform prog.: EDUC.ation.

5. Iconic rings: HALOS.

10. Lock style: COIF. Lock of hair. Coif from old French for a skull cap worn with headgear, as under a helmet.

14. JV team member, perhaps: SOPH. Junior Varsity, Sophomore. A second year student, literally an "arguer". From sophume, variant of sophism (specious, fallacious argument).

15. Warning: ALERT. From Italian all'erta "to the height," from erta "lookout, high tower".

16. Back in the day: ONCE.

20. Willows for weavers: OSIERS.

21. Cause to suffer: AIL. What ails you? What is causing you to suffer? Never having looked it up before, I never realized the word had this meaning, but just thought that it referred to a state of health not being good. Even knowing that, I still wouldn't ever say "A cold ails me".

22. Word with meal or cake: OAT. I've never heard of oatcakes (similar to pancakes but with a lot of fiber), most references I found seem to be from the UK. Must be more common there?

27. Name on an airport shuttle: AVIS. They try harder.

29. Incarnation of Vishnu: RAMA.

30. Alice's workplace: DINER. Mel's Diner in the TV series, with Alice played by Linda Lavin. There's also Alice's Restaurant, the spoken "song" by Arlo Guthrie, based on a true story and made into a movie.

31. Yang's partner: YIN. Male/female, day/night. The concept of balance in all things. You cannot have a back of your hand without there being a front.

32. Clue: HINT. From old English hentan "to seize", related to hunt.

33. Cul-de-__: SAC.

40. Important no. to most car buyers: MPG. Miles per gallon.

41. Coastal raptor: ERNE. The "sea eagle".

42. It starts with "http": URL. Hyper-Text Transfer Protocol, Uniform Resource Locator.

43. Sheer: STEEP.

46. Desertlike: ARID.

47. Teeny: ITSY. Could have been itty too.

51. Reservoir borders?: ARS. The letter "R" begins and ends the word reservoir.

52. Besides: TOO.

53. __ Tunes: LOONEY. Warner Bros animation.

60. Court entry: PLEA.

61. Shopping list entries: ITEMS.

62. "Woe __!": IS ME.

63. Some shooters, briefly: SLRS. Single Lens Reflex cameras.

64. Mythical animal kingdom ennead: LIVES. Ennead: "group of nine". A reference to cats.

65. Peter or Paul, but not Mary: TSAR. There were tsarinas named Maria, though. A diversion kind of clue to get you thinking MALE, or folk music instead of rulers.

DOWN

1. Gas acronym: ESSO. Standard Oil initials: SO (say it out loud)

2. Holliday and others: DOCS. The two "L"s were a giveaway to look deeper than calendar dates.

3. Revolting situation: UPRISING. Punny.

4. Nest chorus: CHEEPS.

5. Target of pre-race stretching: HAMSTRING.

6. "__ Baba Bunny": classic Bugs cartoon: ALI.

7. Hall of Fame quarterback Dawson: LEN.

8. Leia's last name: ORGANA. One of her last names... The Star Wars universe. Born Leia Amadala Skywalker, daughter of Darth Vader. Hidden and adopted by Bail Organa, a royal family on Alderan. Also Mrs. Solo after being married.

9. "Shrek!" author William: STEIG.

10. Minor player: COG. Just a nameless tooth on a gear that keeps the wheel turning.

11. Checked out, as a book: ON LOAN.

12. Cooling-off period?: ICE AGE.

13. Uncle at 0001 Cemetery Lane, in '60s TV: FESTER. The Addams Family.

18. First name in shipping: ARI. Aristotle Onassis, Greek shipping magnate.

19. Angular measurement device used in surveying: ALIDADE. Many different types.

24. Bite: TANG. "Serpent's tongue" (thought to be a stinging organ), later "sharp extension of a metal blade", then "sharp taste" followed later.

25. "Count me in!": I'M THERE.

26. Mineral with basal cleavage: MICA.

27. Writer Rand: AYN. Atlas Shrugged, The Fountainhead.

28. Routing word: VIA. Latin, by way of.

32. __ Hop: bouncing ball brand: HIPPITY.

33. Time-measuring device: SANDGLASS. During the voyage of Ferdinand Magellan around the globe, his vessels kept 18 hourglasses per ship. It was the job of a ship's page to turn the hourglasses and thus provide the times for the ship's log.

35. Feds: G-MEN.

36. "__ go bragh!": ERIN.

37. Kitten's quality: CUTENESS.

38. Retail posting: Abbr.: HRS. Open hours.

39. Callaway of golf equipment fame: ELY. The founder and also the stock ticker name.

43. Overwhelms: SWAMPS.

44. Rollercoaster ride, e.g.: THRILL.

45. Former Disney chief: EISNER. Michael.

46. Rainforest rodent: AGOUTI.

47. Part of a conspiracy: IN ON IT. From prefix com- (together) + spire (breathe), so, to breathe together.

49. Kind of salad dressing: NO OIL. I may have mentioned before that you need (the right) oil to properly absorb the phytochemicals from plants, like carotene, lutein, and various flavenoids.

50. Charged particle: ION. A Greek word meaning "go" adapted by Michael Faraday to label particles that move towards an electrode of opposite charge.

54. Columnist Bombeck: ERMA.

55. Nieuwpoort's river: YSER. Belgium.

57. Courtroom VIPs: DAS. District Attorneys.

58. Test, as an engine: REV.

59. Sra.'s neighboring counterpart: MME. Senorita, Mademoiselle. Spanish and French for miss.

Answer grid.

Note from Don about today's theme:

"I think secretly that everybody finds a bratty kid more interesting than a thoroughly well-behaved angel. I found some words that describe the bratty behavior, and put them into phrases, wondering when the solver would catch on. It is not the usual kind of puzzle theme, which might make it more of a surprise when the solver comes to the last theme answer. I felt fortunate to find a 15-letter phrase to tidy it up. Next time someone says, “Mind your manners”, you can say “That’s a 15-letter phrase that addresses bratty behavior!"

Al

Wednesday November 10, 2010 Pamela Amick Klawitter

Theme: Barter Town - The first word of each two-word theme answer is a synonym for 'trade.'

18A. Flea market cousin : SWAP MEET. San Jose, Ca hosts "The Original World's Largest Flea Market."

24A. Mickey Mantle or Mark Teixeira, notably : SWITCH HITTER. A player who bats both left- and right-handed.

39A. Fill in at school : SUBSTITUTE TEACH. Nice shout out to several of our regular commenters.

51A. Currency differential : EXCHANGE RATE.

62A. Commercial imbalance : TRADE GAP. The amount by which the value of a country's visible imports exceeds that of visible exports.

Melissa here.

A rare weekday puzzle from our LAT Sunday regular constructor Pamela Amick Klawitter. The grid design resulted in lots of 4-letter (30) & 5-letter (19) entries.

Across:

1. "60 Minutes" correspondent : SAFER. Morley. Did three tours in Vietnam.

6. __ Helens, Wash. : MT. ST. Mount Saint Helens. May 18th of this year marked the 30th anniversary of an eruption there which lasted 9 hours. The result of an earthquake measuring 5.1 on the Richter scale.

10. Setup punch : JAB

13. Pump option : PREPAY. Gas pump.

15. Tad : IOTA

16. L.A.-based oil giant, familiarly : OXY. Occidental Petroleum Corporation.

17. Get there : ARRIVE

20. Soccer VIPs? : MOMS. Haha, nice.

21. Source of low-alcohol wines : ASTI. A white sparkling wine produced in an area to the south of the town of Asti, in Piedmont, Italy.

23. No longer newsworthy : PASSE

27. Diet successfully : LOSE

28. Counsel : ADVISE

32. "__ Gold": Peter Fonda film : ULEE'S

35. Helper: Abbr. : ASST.

38. Lobbying gp. : PAC. Political Action Committee.

43. Modern __ : ERA. Bit of a stretch I thought.

44. Friend's pronoun : THEE. 'All the world is queer save thee and me, and even thou art a little queer'. Robert Owen (1771-1858).

45. "Then ..." : AND SO

46. Karate instructor : SENSEI. Japanese title of respect, used to address teachers and professionals.

49. Glued to the tube, say : RAPT

57. Shoelace protector : AGLET. We all know this by now.

60. Smack back? : EROO. Smackeroo. Also with sock- or stink-. Or more appropriately, switch.

61. It's wet in Oaxaca : AGUA. Spanish for water.

64. "The Sound of Music" quintet : OSCARS. Best director, Best film editing, Best score, Best picture, Best Sound.

66. "Awesome!" : RAD

67. Botanical junction : NODE. The point on a stem where a leaf is attached. Like this.

68. Golf commentator Pepper : DOTTIE. Did not know her.

69. Poet Lowell : AMY. Welcome back, Clear Ayes!

70. Texter's sign-off : TTYL. Talk to you later.

71. Many Miley Cyrus fans : TEENS.

Down:

1. Sends unwanted e-mail : SPAMS

2. Road sign symbol : ARROW

3. Nuclear pioneer Enrico : FERMI. Italian physicist who developed the first nuclear reactor.

4. Bible letters : EPISTLES. Twenty one epistles in the New Testament (not counting Revelation), most believed to be written by Paul.

5. Toyota __4: SUV model : RAV

6. Peruvian volcano El __ : MISTI. Again with a volcano.

7. Namely : TO WIT. "That is to say."

8. Ticketing place: Abbr. : STA. Station.

9. Danced like Bojangles Robinson : TAPPED. Remember this scene?

10. Stereotypical diner name : JOE'S. Eat at Joe's.

11. Forest choppers : AXES

12. Unit of computer memory : BYTE. Eight bits make one byte.

14. Slangy assents : YEAHS

19. Sportscaster Albert : MARV. Broad jumper. I KID!

22. Knife holder : SHEATH

25. Budgetary concern : COST

26. British art institution : TATE. Network of four art galleries in the UK (Tate Britain, Tate Liverpool, Tate Modern, and Tate St. Ives).

29. Apple touchscreen computer : I-PAD

30. Anatomical pouches : SACS

31. Return from a cave? : ECHO. Sneaky, but I nailed it.

32. Finds a purpose for : USES

33. Dangle a carrot in front of, so to speak : LURE

34. "My Country" author : EBAN. Subtitle, "The story of modern Israel." Needed perps.

36. Seek damages : SUE

37. Buffet heater : STERNO.

40. Suffix with meteor : ITIC. Meteoric rise to fame. Sometimes unexplainable.

41. Finish line indicator : TAPE.

42. Play break : ENTR'ACTE. French for "between the acts."

47. Watermelon bit : SEED

48. Magnitude : EXTENT

50. "... 'What __ boy am I!'" : A GOOD. Little Jack Horner nursery rhyme.

52. Exciting : HEADY.

53. Adrien of cosmetics : ARPEL

54. Colorful quartz : AGATE

55. Shroud city : TURIN. Shroud of Turin.

56. Lets up : EASES

57. Name on a razor : ATRA

58. Fat measure : GRAM

59. __ Luck : LADY

63. Understood : GOT

65. Heavy drinker : SOT

Answer grid.
Melissa

Tuesday, November 9, 2010 Julian Lim

Theme: All In - TV poker. The dealer gives two face down cards to each player. They may look at their cards and a round of betting ensues.

17A. High jump technique created by 1968 Olympic gold medalist Dick: FOSBURY FLOP. Dick Fosbury would go over the bar with his back towards it. The standard method at the time was the scissors kick, Clip.(0:22) The FLOP in the poker game is when the dealer turns over three cards at one time in front of himself. All remaining players may use them in figuring their hand and decide on whether to bet or fold(drop out).

27A. K-shaped reversal on the road: THREE POINT TURN. From the left side of the road it may look like a K. Diagram. The TURN, the dealer places one more card face up and another round of betting occurs.

45A. Longest Canadian waterway: MACKENZIE RIVER. It runs north to the Beaufort Sea. Map. The River, sink or swim time, the last card the dealer exposes. One last round of betting before the remaining players show their hand.

60A. World Series of Poker Main Event no-limit game whose 2010 winner will be revealed tonight—the last words of 17-, 27- and 45-Across refer to the cards dealt between rounds of betting: TEXAS HOLD 'EM. I never heard of this game before it appeared on TV. Informal poker games usually do not have a non-playing dealer.

Argyle here.

An interesting puzzle theme. Is our constructor a gambler, I wonder. I'll bet most of us had an easy time with the puzzle with only one or two tricky crosses.

Across:

1. One who's all skin and bones : SCRAG. Not a common word but one we've had recently.

6. Talmudic scholar : RABBI, The Talmud is the primary source of Jewish religious law.

11. Attire in which to retire, briefly : PJs

14. __ donna : PRIMA. Italian: literally, first lady. The principal female singer of an opera company.

15. Startle : ALARM

16. Jay-Z's music genre : RAP

19. December 24th, e.g. : EVE. Ho, ho, ho!

20. String ensemble instrument : CELLO

21. French greeting : 'ALLO. Presumably, an approximation of the French saying the English word, hello.

22. Lumberjack's tool : SAW

23. Street shaders : ELMS

25. Some nest eggs, for short : IRAs

33. Filmdom's Farrow : MIA. Her images.

34. Leftover scraps : ORTS

35. Chilling : EERIE

36. "My Dinner With Andre" director Louis : MALLE. He worked in both French cinema and Hollywood. Passed away in 1995.

39. "__ a done deal" : IT'S

40. Victoria's lasted longer than that of any other British monarch : REIGN

41. Dahl's "Fantastic" title character : MR. FOX. Had this just yesterday; anybody suffer short-term memory loss?

42. Speak highly of : TOUT. In Sunday's puzzle.

44. Saldana of "Avatar" : ZOE. As she appeared in "Avatar". Image.

49. Puerto __ : RICO

50. Matching : SAME

51. Caribbean music : SKA

53. Eye layer : UVEA

56. Sales pitch : SPIEL

59. Candy in a dispenser : PEZ

63. Milne's "Now We __ Six" : ARE

64. Año beginning : ENERO

65. Popeye's creator : SEGAR. The cartoon, not Popeye Doyle.

66. Get __ of: discard : RID

67. Ppd. enclosures : SASEs. Prepaid self-addressed stamped envelope (SASE)

68. Utopias : EDENS

Down:

1. Sunscreen letters : SPF. Sun Protection Factor.

2. Swamp beast : CROC

3. It may be meteoric : RISE

4. Slow walker : AMBLER

5. Charles de __ : GAULLE. French President from 1959 to 1969.

6. Blu-__ Disc : RAY. For recording movies and such, until something new comes along

7. With 18-Down, sporty Italian wheels : ALFA. 18D. See 7-Down : ROMEO

8. Really good time : BALL

9. "W." star Josh : BROLIN, 2008 movie where he portrayed the American President from 2001 to 2009

10. Tariff payer : IMPORTER

11. Prepare, as a bottle launcher : PRESSURIZE

12. Jakarta's island : JAVA. Map. Jakarta is the capital and largest city of Indonesia.

13. Expel with force : SPEW

24. Perfume squirt : SPRITZ

26. Suit to __ : A TEE

27. Pageant crown : TIARA

28. Somewhat unhinged : HALF-CRAZED

29. 10th-century emperor : OTTO I

30. Comic books, e.g. : ISSUEs

31. Hardship : RIGOR

32. Maui goose : NENE

33. "That tastes great!" : "M,M,M,M!"

37. Norse trickster : LOKI. Norse mythology.

38. Does, as a task : EXECUTES

43. Speak ill of : TRASH

46. Nine-day devotion : NOVENA

47. Levy, as a tariff : IMPOSE

48. Like many Muslim women : VEILED

51. Trade easy punches : SPAR

52. Skin lotion brand : KERI

54. Spouses no more : EXes

55. River in the Bernese Alps : AARE

57. On __: nervous : EDGE

58. Far from fatty : LEAN

61. Urgent call at sea : S-O-S

62. __ Fields: cookie brand : MRS.

Answer grid.

Argyle

Monday, November 8, 2010 Neville L. Fogarty

Theme: *Astic - The first word in the four longest entries have identical ending letters.

17A. Last resort actions: DRASTIC MEASURES

27A. 2009 Clooney/Streep film based on a Roald Dahl book: FANTASTIC MR. FOX. A stop-motion animated film.

44A. Scrunchie, e.g.: ELASTIC HAIR TIE. Image.

55A. Kitschy lawn ornament: PLASTIC FLAMINGO. We had one of these that would move on to a new lawn in the middle of the night.

Argyle here.

Even with the grid-spanning entries, I still found this puzzle IFFY. I don't want to KVETCH but a few duds dull the KARMA of the whole, starting with 1A. The total word & block count are quite low for a Monday.

Across:

1. Like 20 Questions questions : YES/NO. Where is the OR? It is like saying a True/False quiz.

6. Put together, as a book : BIND

10. Ratchets (up) : AMPS. Explanation from Spinal Tap.

14. Halloween option : TREAT. Belated entry.

15. Over, in Germany : ÜBER

16. Loughlin of "90210" : LORI. Image. This TV series premiered on The CW in 2008.

20. Celery pieces : STALKS

21. Icy space streakers : COMETS. The comets are made of dirty ice.

22. "The way I see it," in online shorthand : IMO. "...in my opinion..."

24. Sorrow : WOE

25. __ moment: sudden realization : AHA

26. Vote against : NAY

31. Display ostentatiously : FLAUNT. Ostentatious - adj. - characterized by pretentious, showy, or vulgar display.

32. Landlord's contract : LEASE

33. Holler : YELL

34. "__ the season to be jolly ..." : 'TIS. Ho, ho, ho!

35. Soccer moms' transports : VANS

39. Malia Obama's sister : SASHA. Number two First Daughter.

42. Gripe and grouse : KVETCH

47. "One Day __ Time" : AT A. TV show, opening theme. Video

48. Pull a scam on : CON

49. Dali display, say : ART

50. Biblical beast : ASS

51. Abandon on an island : MAROON

53. Giorgio known for snazzy suits : ARMANI. And something to go with that suit: 40D. Fancy scarf : ASCOT

59. Peru's capital : LIMA

60. Message passed in class : NOTE

61. Like some gases : INERT

62. Posing no challenge : EASY

63. Glittery rock style typified by David Bowie : GLAM. Short for glamorous.

64. Lymphatic tissue masses : NODES

Down:

1. Since Jan. 1, on a financial report : YTD. Year To Date.

2. Botch something up : ERR

3. Like corn and apples : SEASONAL

4. Condé __ Publications : NAST. Condé Nast (1873 – 1942) was the founder of Condé Nast Publications, a leading American magazine publisher known for publications such as Vanity Fair and Vogue.

5. From Canada's capital : OTTAWAN

6. Water carrier : BUCKET

7. PCs from Big Blue : IBMs. International Business Machines (IBM) headquartered in Armonk, NY.The Big Blue nickname, substantiated by people who worked for IBM at the time, is the term coined by field representatives in the 1960s, and referred to the color of the mainframes IBM installed in the 1960s and early 1970s.

8. Maiden name lead-in : NÉE

9. Old Greek coin : DRACHMA. It was still in use until replaced by the Euro.

10. Former student : ALUM

11. Rita who shouted "Hey you guys!" on "The Electric Company" : MORENO. Here's the famous "Hey you guys!" sketch with Bill Cosby. Clip. (2:16)

12. Before the state's cut, as income : PRETAX

13. Actress Spacek : SISSY

18. Words of defeat : "I LOST"

19. Flies in the clouds : SOARS

22. Uncertain : IFFY

23. Masculine : MALE

25. Top poker pair : ACES

28. Oklahoma oil city : TULSA

29. Hipbone-related : ILIAC

30. Flu symptom : FEVER

34. Like a fine line : THIN

36. Reached, as goals : ATTAINED

37. Mark Harmon military TV drama : NCIS. Naval Criminal Investigative Service.

38. Women : SHEs

41. Saint Stephen's punishment for blasphemy : STONING. I had no idea there were so many depictions of this event. Painting.

42. Destiny : KARMA

43. A, B, C, D, E, or K : VITAMIN

44. And others: Latin : ET ALIA

45. '80s-'90s Anaheim Stadium NFL team : LA RAMS. Football.

46. Apollo Theater site : HARLEM. New York City.

47. More than enough : AMPLE

52. "The Star-Spangled Banner" start : "O SAY"

53. Mennen shaving lotion : AFTA

54. El __: climate pattern : NINO

56. KFC's Sanders, e.g. : COL. That finger-lickin' Colonel.

57. Univ. sr.'s exam : GRE. Graduate Record Examination (GRE), a commercially run standardized test that is an admission requirement for many graduate schools in the United States.

58. NBA tiebreakers : OTs. National Basketball Association/OverTimes.

Answer grid.

Argyle

Sunday November 7, 2010 Verge

Theme: Placing Changes -Changing Places. Familiar two-word phrases with A-ing B structure are changed into B-ing A.

23A. Discussion about which way to go? : HEADING TALK. The base phrase is Talking Head.

33A. Sunbeam, e.g.? : IRONING BRAND. Branding Iron.

39A. Defensive karate move? : BLOCKING CHOP. Chopping Block.

56A. Identical gift container? : MATCHING BOX. Boxing Match.

64A. Bird dog's rest? : POINTING BREAK. Breaking Point.

78A. Cause of a power tool failure? : BUSHING BURN. Burning Bush. The stuff in his hand is BUSHING?

90A. Ornithologists' bird-tagging outing? : BANDING MARCH. Marching Band.

97A. Stage players taking a nap? : COUCHING CAST. Casting Couch.

114A. Music to pitch hay by? : FORKING TUNE. Tuning Fork.

Who is Verge?

Funny, I actually read the puzzle title as "Changing Places". Grokked the theme after MATCHING BOX emerged.

Quite a struggle for me. The overall cluing is a bit challenging for a Sunday. Did nail all the lovely "It" clues though:

22A. It's a sign : OMEN

109A. It's out on a limb : HAND

4D. It may be muted : AUDIO

Also great to see the full name KIM JONG-IL ( 82D. Asian leader with a degree from a university named for his father") in the grid. The "Dear Leader". Kim = "Gold" in Korean. Same character as Chinese "Gold'.

Across:

1. Mercedes line : E-CLASS. Crossing CIERA (2D. Cutlass model). Tough start for me. We also have FURY (108A. Old Plymouth). Stumper.

7. Go 12-Down : SNAP. And 12D. Wild : BALLISTIC.

11. Turns seaward : EBBS

15. Traffic : CARS. The clue does not feel complete to me. Did like the consecutive clue for TIEUPS ( 19. Jams).

20. Wooden team, once : UCLA. Not familiar with John Wooden Center.

21. Skin : PARE. Tricky verb clue.

25. Part of a shutter : SLAT

26. Galway Bay site : EIRE. Galway Bay is on the west coast of Ireland.

27. Senator Hatch : ORRIN

28. City accessible by ferry from Marseilles : ORAN. Algerian port. Not an easy clue.

29. Many virtuoso performances : SOLI. Plural of solo.

30. Prophet : AUGUR

31. Asian parting : SAYONARA. Japanese. We also have 89D. Carp from Kyoto : KOI.

36. Microbrew, maybe : ALE

37. Turkish leader : AGHA

38. __' Pea : SWEE

44. Actress Bankhead : TALLULAH. Nope. Total stranger.

49. Movement in some Bach suites : GIGUE. New word to me. Dictionary says it derives from "jig".

50. Pickled : LIT. Drunk.

51. Family nickname : SIS

52. Supporting __ : ROLE

53. Judge's decision : OVERRULED. Or "Sustained".

60. Hair removal product : NEET. NAIR too.

61. "The World Factbook" publisher : CIA

62. Spewed magma : LAVA. Hot flow-er.

63. Afternoon rest : SIESTA

68. Pre-tied tie : CLIP-ON

72. Some Spanish medals : OROS. Gold medals.

73. Gardner on screen : AVA. And ERLE (83. Gardner of fiction). Nice Gardner clecho.

74. Japanese noodle : SOBA. Often eaten cold in summer time. Delicious!

81. Had between meals : SNACKED ON

84. Pulldown beneficiary, for short : LAT. Muscles.

85. Pull someone's leg : KID

86. "Victory was not mine" : I LOST

87. Rouse again : REAWAKEN. DF clue.

94. Hit on the head : CONK

95. Ebro and Guadalquivir, por ejemplo : RIOS

96. More or less, e.g.: Abbr. : ADJ (Adjective). Nailed it.

102. Most racers, after the race : ALSO-RANS

107. Bug : ANNOY

111. Bug : NAG AT

112. Installed, as brick : LAID

113. "Dies __" : IRAE

116. Dieter's catchword : LITE

117. Authenticated: Abbr. : CERT (Certified)

118. Skyward, in Hebrew : EL AL

119. Split equally : BISECT

120. Mars, to the Greeks : ARES

121. Stevenson villain : HYDE. Jekyll's alter ego.

122. Tony winner Neuwirth : BEBE

123. Flips the "Open" sign : CLOSES

Down:

1. Group cultural values : ETHOS. Always want ETHIC.

3. "Rescue Me" star Denis : LEARY. This guy looks familiar. Don't recall his name though.

5. Sail for a downwind course : SPINNAKER. Can never remember this name.

6. IRS ID : SSN

7. Hindu spiritual manual : SUTRA. Only know "Kama Sutra". Where are you, Vidwan?

8. Frozen Four org. : NCAA. And UCONN (54. The Huskies of the 8-Down's Big East). College sports never interest me.

9. Like most cramming : ALL NIGHT

10. Bangladesh was once part of it: Abbr. : PAK (Pakistan)

11. Printer maker : EPSON

13. Indoctrinate : BRAINWASH

14. Place : SET. Can you give me a sentence where the two are interchangeable?

15. Affaire de __ : COEUR. Literally "heart" in French. Affaire de coeur = Love affair. So common in France.

16. Pablo's gal pal : AMIGA

17. Syndication staple : RERUN

18. Bergen dummy : SNERD

24. "Contract Bridge Complete" author : GOREN (Charles)

29. Afternoon "opera" : SOAP

30. Cain's victim : ABEL. And 58. Son of Sarah : ISAAC. Two Biblical references.

32. "The Louisville Lip" : ALI

34. Pi-sigma link : RHO

35. Toothpaste option : GEL

37. What lawn liming reduces : ACID. And B GON (39. Weed __: lawn-care product). Lawn clecho.

40. Unexploded : LIVE. I don't get this clue.

41. Graceful molding : OGEE

42. Short : CURT

43. Gather little by little : GLEAN

45. Hankering : URGE. Want some pickled herring.

46. High court returns : LOBS. Tennis court.

47. Very much : A LOT

48. Quadri- plus bi- : HEXA. 4 + 2 = 6.

51. Desperation guess : STAB

55. XIII x IV : LII. 13 x 4 = 52.

56. Massenet opera : MANON. Peeked at the answer sheet.

57. Hits-per-AB stats : AVGs

59. Neat ending? : NIK. Neatnik.

62. Commuter line with a Montauk Branch: Abbr. : LIRR (Long Island Rail Road). Montauk Branch means nothing to me.

64. Taro dish : POI

65. Promote in a big way : TOUT

66. "Amazing" magician : RANDI (James)

67. Actress __ Longoria Parker : EVA. Very pretty.

68. Handle holder : CBER

69. Imitation fish food : LURE. Oh, for fish. I was in the line of limitation crab/fish for people.

70. Land surrounded by agua : ISLA

71. "That was close!" : PHEW

74. Ward of "CSI: NY" : SELA

75. Sensible emanation : ODOR

76. Type of pear : BOSC

77. "Oxford Book of Eng. Verse," e.g. : ANTH (Anthology). Not a familiar reference to me.

79. Co-writer of many Eagles hits : GLENN FREY. Nope. This dude looks cool.

80. Financial security of a kind : BANK GUARD. Security guard.

81. Caesar and others : SIDS

85. Board vacancy? : KNOTHOLE. Was thinking of board of directors. Not lumber.

88. Sore : ACHY

90. Act like an ass : BRAY. Funny clue.

91. "__ for Alibi": Grafton novel : A IS

92. Nita of silents : NALDI. Classic crossword name.

93. Mdse. : GDS. Goods.

97. Lily variety : CALLA

98. Broadcasting : ON AIR

99. Confederate : UNITE

100. Programmers' output : CODES

101. Island WSW of Rhodes : CRETE. In the Aegean Sea.

102. Leg-foot link : ANKLE

103. Dustin's '69 Oscar-nominated role : RATSO. Finally saw the movie. Disturbing.
104. Flu-like symptoms : AGUES

105. 1980s-'90s NBA forward Larry : NANCE. Have never heard of this Larry. Maybe Windhover knows.

106. "The dele is off" notations : STETS

110. Many a Saudi : ARAB

113. German "I" : ICH

114. Time period that isn't always the same: Abbr. : FEB. Different days in Feb.

115. Peacock network : NBC

Answer grid.

C.C.

Saturday November 6, 2010 Timothy L. Meaker

Theme: None

Total words: 72

Total blocks: 34

The themeless design is quite solver-friendly, no grid-spanner or triple/quadruple stacks. The two 10s and six 9s are spread out pretty evenly. All of them lively multi-words:

13A. Positive : ABOVE ZERO. "Positive" temperature-wise.

16A. A great teacher might be one : ROLE MODEL. Most of my teachers were so stern and serious.

52A. In disorder : JUMBLED UP. Quite a scrabbly grid. Only one Q away from a pangram.

55A. Metaphorical victim of an upset : APPLECART. Upset the applecart.

8D. Oscar's covering : GOLD PLATE. The Oscar statuette.

10D. Loses big : TAKES A BATH. Nice fill.

25D. Rolls seen at the beach? : SPARE TIRES. Did not come to me quickly.

31D. Where a small hand might get caught : COOKIE JAR. Sweet clue.

Very few obscure names today. But the overall cluing made this puzzle pretty challenging.

Across:

1. Hawaiian for "strong" : MAHI. I mentioned this on the blog before. Love mahi-mahi. Delicious!

5. In __ : A FOG. I needed a bracketed "befuddled" in the clue.

9. Internet letters : HTTP. "Internet address letters", to be exact.

15. Many are imagined : FEARS. Nailed this one.

17. Libertines : RAKES. Or ROUES.

18. Urban renewal target : EYESORE

19. Proof of ownership? : DNA TEST. Oh, ownership of a baby. Or a crime.

21. Ranch handle : TEX. Cowboy nickname "handle".

22. River through New Mexico : PECOS. No idea. It flows to Rio Grande. What does "Pecos"?

23. Castigates : BASTES. Not familiar with this "baste" meaning, "lambaste", yes.

27. Environmentalist's goal : CLEAN AIR

30. Stock phrase : AT PAR

31. Punched-out pieces : CHADS

32. 'Hood handle : BRO

33. 16-time Gold Glove-winning pitcher Jim : KAAT. Gimme. He's with the Twins for a long time. We also have 36. Commit catcher's interference, e.g. : ERR. Pitcher & Catcher.

34. Layers : COATS. Hens too, lay-ers.

35. Aero-X automaker : SAAB. Drew a blank.

37. Faulkner's "__ for Emily" : A ROSE. What's it about?

38. Old-time soprano Lehmann : LOTTE. Another unknown. She died in 1976. No wonder "Old-time".

39. A lime-flavored version of it came out in 2004 : DIET COKE. Needed crossing help.

41. Acted after a coin toss, maybe : WISHED. Good clue.

42. Stanley of "Julie & Julia" : TUCCI. Loved him in "Big Night".

43. Chocolatier's container : VAT

44. Takeout option : CHINESE. Loved by Jayce. His "Da Fan Tong" (big eater) comment really made me laugh.

46. Style revived in the '60s : ART DECO. Oh, I was not aware of it.

51. 1961 Best Actress : LOREN (Sophia). For "Two Women".

54. Umiak builder : ALEUT. Umiak is literally "women's boat". Kayak = "man's boat".

56. Stinger : WASP

57. Spring (from) : RISE

58. Iowa Straw Poll city : AMES. 4-letter Iowa city is always AMES.

Down:

1. Colt source : MARE. Thought of gun.

2. "About __": Hornby novel : A BOY. Not on my radar. It's made into a movie starring Hugh Grant.

3. Driver's ultimate destination? : HOLE. Question marked "driver" always refers to golf.

4. Noted 19th-century lithographer : IVES. Currier & Ives.

5. São Miguel is the largest of them : AZORES. See this map. Belongs to Portugal.

6. Golf's __ Cup : FEDEX. You wanted RYDER, didn't you?

7. Bauxite, for one : ORE

9. Romano's "Everybody Loves Raymond" co-star : HEATON (Patricia). Here she is. Are those real?

11. Nueve's square root : TRES. Did not know Nueve = 9.

12. Subtle signal : PSST

14. One acting badly? : EMOTER

15. Donnybrook : FRACAS

20. They're not optional : NEEDS. I don't get this clue.

23. Potato choice : BAKED

24. Onetime Coleco competitor : ATARI. Needed crossing help also.

26. One might be dedicated to Mom, briefly : TAT (Tattoo)

27. Go after : CHASE

28. Burning up : IRATE

29. Dressed for court : ROBED. For judges.

34. Holey footwear : CROCS

35. One might be picked up in a storm : SOS. Should have nailed it.

37. Stress : ACCENT

38. Slightly : LITTLE

40. Mechanic's offer : TUNEUP

41. Bird's song : WARBLE

43. Sirens : VAMPS

44. Scratch : CLAW. What's the first word that came to your mind?

45. Chihuahua howdy : HOLA. Chickie's hallmark greeting.

47. Pod opening? : DECA. Prefix for "ten". Decapod (literally "ten footed) has 10 legs. Got me.

48. Dutch export : EDAM

49. Salt, perhaps : CURE. I suppose you can clue it "Smoke, perhaps" also.

50. Gets off the fence : OPTS

53. Gp. co-founded by publisher E.W. Scripps : UPI. Not in my knowledge zone. Makes sense though.

Answer grid.

C.C.

Friday November 5, 2010 David Poole

Theme: Internet Destination, Before and After; each of the four theme answers takes an every day phrase, and by adding a new beginning, creates a humorous phrase which starts a famous internet site.

17A. Favorable time to place an online bid?: EBAY WINDOW. E added to BAY WINDOW, with the meaning a WINDOW of opportunity, and EBAY the auction site.

27A. Online networking site trainee? : MYSPACE CADET. MY added to SPACE CADET, yields MYSPACE and CADET as trainee.

44A. Detective's job concerning a personal online relationship? : FACEBOOK CASE. FACE is added to BOOK CASE, with CASE what detectives investigate.

58A. Spinner seen in an online video?: YOUTUBE TOP. YOU added to TUBE TOP, creates a TOP SPINNING ON YOU TUBE. When my brothers and I were growing up, we used our Dradles for the battles.

Happy Friday, and Happy Guy Fawkes Day, from Lemonade714, which being sentimental, I celebrate every year as the anniversary of the first time I fell in love. Mr. Poole is becoming a more regular contributor, and this puzzle has plenty of misdirection and humor and creative cluing, beyond the theme, which seems like a nice idea, but a bit tortured.

Some fun:

64A. Ones changing locks: DYERS. Dyeing the hair, nice misdirection.

30D. Fly catcher: TOAD. Not the San Francisco outfield.

42D. "Hey, ewe!": BAA. For some reason I like it when certain people get my attention with “hey you”.

46D. Serious depression: CRATER. I hope you all got that and did not get blue, except of course being blue is good here.

52. Cop stopping traffic?: NARC. My favorite, stopping drug traffic.

We continue:

ACROSS:

1. Tic __ :TACS. The first of the strong mints.

5. Travis of country: TRITT. Yes it is a GREAT DAY TO BE ALIVE.

10. Arrange in a tournament: SEED. The use of this term comes from needing to separate seeds to let them grow, just as you separate the very good teams, to allow them to meet later in a tournament.

14. Eliza's greeting: ELLO. Ms. Doolittle has had a strong run this fall.

15. 2009 Man Booker International Prize winner Alice: MUNRO. This Canadian short story writer is a recipient of many fiction awards, including this biennial award for one’s life work, presented by a British investment firm.

16. Poi base: TARO. A tuber, associated with the plant we call Elephant Ears, here in Florida.

19. "__ Almighty": 2007 film: EVAN. Like 56.D. Movies with "II" in their titles: Abbr. : SEQS this movie was a sequel to BRUCE ALMIGHTY which Jim Carrey wisely chose not to star in, Bruce II became EVAN with Steve Carrell, both of which has Morgan Freeman as the Almighty, and no doubt the inspiration of 20A. Sacred scroll: TORAH.

21. Silent: SOUNDLESS.

23. Wellness gp.: HMO.

24. __ de toilette: EAU. Just a touch of French, toilet water sounds so much better in French.

26. Nobelist Bohr: NIELS. Thanks to Martha Grimes, this always reminds me of SCHRÖDINGER'S CAT, or is it dead?

31. What odes do: PRAISE. Before there were scrolls, or other writings, singers toured the land writing and performing songs of praise for the lords in power, and ODE is derived from the Greek word for song.

34. 1987 Costner role: NESS, prohibition policeman Elliot; do we like or dislike Kevin, or was ROBERT STACK the embodiment of the role? What guest stars! Does anyone watch Boardwalk Empire ?

35. Hope-Crosby destination: RIO. One of the many ROAD TO… movies they did with Dorothy Lamour.

36. Pay for periodic use: RENT.

37. Coll. of 12 signs: ZOD. Notice that collection is abbreviated, so the response must be an abbreviation as well. We are deep in Scorpio now.

38. Afghanistan's Tora __ region: BORA. This is the region where the US believed bin Laden was hiding in a cave, and where US troops were sent after 9-11, but despite killing and capturing many al Quaeda, no leader.

39. 2007 honor for Hugh Laurie: Abbr.: OBE. It is easy to forget how British Hugh Laurie is after watching him as House for so many years, so go rent the Bertie Wooster/Jeeves series, or Black Adder and see him in his original incarnation. Of course, Jeeves, loved the poem 40A. "__ Ben Adhem": ABOU, a simple poem which many were forced to memorize.

42. Warned, in a way: BEEPED. In Florida is is against the law to blow your horn except to warn of danger, though it is not enforced that way. We also have, 38.D. Buzzer: BEE.

47. Bottom bits: DREGS. When the grapes were crushed, the remaining skin etc was the dregs.

48. Word before or after pack: RAT. Frank and the boys as the RAT PACK, and my uncle, who kept every bill he ever paid, as a PACK RAT.

49. 27-Down, e.g.: SCH. This leads to 27.D. 49-Across from which Buzz Aldrin turned down a full scholarship: MIT. And, 31.D. 27-Down fig.: PROF.

52. Colorful fish: NEON TETRA. Another fishie clue.

55. Kirin beer rival: ASAHI. The two most popular beers; the brewery where my youngest works, just was signed by a much larger distributor, so the world of ORLANDO BREWING, the only organic brewery in Florida is picking up.

57. Starting stake: ANTE. In card games, for example.

60. Bakery buys: RYES. We go ERGOT, to the bread made from the grain.

61. Seaside flock: ERNES. These birds are our most popular feathery friends.

62. Bit of Marx's legacy: QUIP. Groucho, not Karl, and also 33.D. Toastmasters' stock: ANECDOTES.

63. It may number in the thousands: CAST. Cecil B. DeMille always advertised his movies had them.

65. Agile: SPRY.

DOWN:

1. Effectiveness: TEETH. The NFL needed to put some Teeth into the ban on helmet to helmet hits, by suspending players without pay.

2. "Tuesdays With Morrie" author: ALBOM. Mitch, who is a regular in the Detroit newspaper, as well as on ESPN’s SPORTS REPORTERS ; I read the book. Morrie was smart, but the book seemed just exploitive and without any real insight, but it was a big hit.

3. Light smoke: CLARO. I believe the term is used for certain light tobacco cigars, but I have never been much of a smoker, and only the perps got me there.

4. Milk source: SOYA. It is taking over, and clearly a misnomer, as how can a nut give milk. And in contrast, 18.D. Milk by-products: WHEYS. Little Miss Muffet, sat on her tuffet (and what a fine tuffet it was!) eating her CURDS and….

5. "I didn't need to know that!": TMI. TOO MUCH INFORMATION; hard to keep up with the short cut minds of the young; my latest embarrassment was not deciphering oic, to mean Oh, I see.

6. Accumulates: RUNS UP. Ah yes, Wimpy accumulated quite the tab for Hamburgers.

7. Chinese leader?: INDO. Indochinese, by now we all know leader often is used to mean the beginning of a word.

8. Defeated decisively: TROUNCED.

9. Student resenters, perhaps: TOWNIES. When I was young, I was sent to boarding school, and once a month or so, the school would load up a bus and take some students into the big city (Pittsfield, Massachusetts) and drop them off, to be picked up 5 hours later. Man the townies hated us, except the girls, who were much too nice…It was West Side Story, suburban version.

10. "__ By Starlight": jazz standard: STELLA. So many versions of this SONG .

11. Gather information secretly: EAVESDROP. The drop part comes from the purpose of the eave was to have the water drop (or drip) from the roof, and not into the house.

12. Some are named for music genres: ERAS. We certainly know the BIG BAND era.

13. Slips into: DONS. Clothing.

22. Winter mos.: DECS. Egads, we are almost there again!

25. Suffix with lip-: ASE. ASE is a suffix for enzymes, and LIPASE in humans is created in the pancreas and is is critical in neutralizing triglycerides and other non-soluble fats.

28. Actress Aimée: ANOUK. A very natural BEAUTY .

29. 53-Down's homeland: EIRE. More dual clues, but at least a new one for 53.D. Singer born Eithne Patricia Ní Bhraonáin: ENYA.

32. Sitcom whose theme song was sung by its star: REBA. SURVIVOR .

37. Albee play, with "The": ZOO STORY. An international SUCCESS .

40. Put oneself at risk, in a way: ABET. Ading and abetting a Felon…

41. Messed up a hole, maybe: BOGEYED. No longer a bad score for me.

43. Cornerstone abbr.: ESTAB. Established.

45. He played Marty in "Marty": ERNEST. Ladies, for you Mr. Borgnine .

49. Prepared to take notice?: SAT UP.

50. Church area: CHOIR. Tricky, because of the choir being filled with the choir.

51. Wide-haunched: HIPPY. Not a phrase to be used as a compliment, “ my your wife looks really wide-haunched, “ even though it helps in delivering babies, and we know many men really like a broad beam in more than just their boat.

54. Odd character: RUNE. The old way TO WRITE .

59. Sub letters: USS. Can you imagine being underwater for months on THIS .

Answer grid.

Welcome to my new home as Friday’s child, which in fact I am both literally and figuratively. Keep the cards and letters coming and enjoy.

Lemonade