Thursday February 9, 2012, Don Gagliardo and C.C. Burnikel

Theme: Four Star Puzzle. You have to love a puzzle that gives you a bonus, in addition to the main theme!

I’m going to go about this bass-ackwards, and give the reveal first, because the entire theme makes more sense that way.

57A. Night sky feature, and a hint to a four-letter sequence hidden in 17-Across and 10- and 25-Down : STAR CLUSTER

So, we have anagrams of “STAR” in each of the other three long theme entries:

17A. Where pros play : SPORTS ARENA

10D. Like most valentines : HEART SHAPED (thanks for the shout-out, Don and C.C. !!)

25D. Ammo for a simple cannon : MORTAR SHELL

BUT WAIT!! There’s more!!! In addition to the main theme entries, we have a bonus entry that crosses each one, and is a word that goes with the anagram:

6D. Word with the 57-Across [star cluster] in 17-Across : RUSSIAN (tsar)
21A. Word with the 57-Across [star cluster] in 10-Down : LIBERAL (arts)

41A. Word with the 57-Across [star cluster] in 25-Down : COAL (tars)

How brilliant is that?

Marti (HeartRx) here, with my humble explanation of the other entries:

Across:

1. Honda Insight, e.g. : ECOCAR. Did you know, that your mood can affect your gas mileage?

7. Like some mus. keys : MAJ. or min.

10. Bale filler : HAY. Hey! Windhover, where you been?

13. 2000s New Hampshire John : SUNUNU. Great crossword name! But wait! There's more!! We have John Henry Sununu, who was governor for NH from '83-'89. He was the father of John Edward Sununu, who was NH Senator and later US Representative. But it was the father who was chairman of the NH Republican party 2009-2011. So I guess the vote on this clue entry goes to John H.?

14. Be up against : ABUT. I just love this word. Sounds like someone who gets up your butt, doesn't it?

16. Roth of "Inglorious Bastards" : ELI. Also starring Brad Pitt, in one of his better roles.

19. Vital statistic : AGE. I'll never tell!

20. Actress Kudrow : LISA. I just loved her in "Friends".

23. Woolen caps : TAMS.

26. "This American Life" host Glass : IRA. This guy.

28. Like some silverware : PLATED. I have a silver-plated tea set. It just collects dust...

29. Prefix with meter : ODO-

30. Lists of priors : RAP SHEETS.

32. Man of the cloth : PARSON. This was my major stumbling block in the puzzle. I wanted "pastor", and stubbornly refused to give it up until I came to 33D...

34. Mean mutt : CUR. Shortened from kurdogge; probably related to Old Norse kurra, to growl. Jerome?

35. She, at sea : SHIP. Aye, and she's yare !!

38. En route to the mechanic : IN TOW

39. Permit : LET

40. Twangy guitarist Eddy : DUANE. "The Master of Twang", as noted below this clip (sans "twang"). (1:19)

42. In great shape : FIT. As long as my skinny jeans fit...

43. Spot on a horse : DAPPLE.

44. Signed up : RECRUITED. Not the person who signed up, but the person who signed him up.

47. Hear here : EAR. Where do you hear? Here, in your ear!

48. Wish : DESIRE

50. Cleveland pro, for short : CAV.aliers. Basketball.

51. Dreyer's brand, east of the Rockies : EDYS. Ice cream brand.

52. Olympics participant : ATHLETE.

54. Far from fatty : LEAN. Maybe our 67A Stout: PORTLY. entry could use some lean cuisine?

56. Actress Charlotte : RAE. I remember her from "The Facts of Life".

62. Short, for short : L'IL. Little...or a short form of Elizabeth?

63. Dry run : TEST

64. Peter of "My Favorite Year" : O'TOOLE. As the drunkard Alan Swann. One of my all-time "favorite" movies!

65. 100% : ALL

66. Dallas opening? : DEE, the letter "d" at the start of "Dallas", cleverly abutting directly on 1D. Dallas closing? : ESS, the letter "s"

Down:

2. Trophy, often : CUP

3. "Dear Yoko" dedicatee : ONO. Do you know anyone else named "Yoko"?

4. Home perm features : CURLS. I wanted "frizz" here, as that is how most of my home perms turned out...

5. One opposed : ANTI

7. Scratch : MAR. I parked my car at the mall the other day and came out to find a 3 foot MAR on the drivers side. grrrrr....

8. Ill-fated brother : ABEL. Go read the story. It's in the bible.

9. Gin flavoring : JUNIPER. I always knew there was a reason I didn't like gin. I don't like chewing on pine needles!

11. Aquarium gunk : ALGAE. ewwww...

12. Right-of-way sign : YIELD. But, does that sign mean anything to Massholes?

15. Put on ice : TABLE. I bet Tinbeni never tables his drinks!

18. Org. promoted by Betty White : AARP. But I love it when she promotes Snickers, instead. (0:31)

22. Relishes, as gossip : EATS UP

23. Talking point : TOPIC

24. Hersey's bell town : ADANO. John Hersey's 1944 novel "A Bell for Adano" won the 1945 Pulitzer Prize. It is so realistic, because he was a war correspondent in Italy during the war.

27. Buddhist monk, e.g. : ASCETIC

30. Steinbeck's "Cannery ___" : ROW. The street in Monterey, CA. was renamed in honor of the book.

31. Marching syllable : HUT. I bet Dennis and Spitzboov filled this in without blinking an eye...(I had "HUp" at first...)

33. It shines on the Seine : SOLEIL. French for "sun". This is the word that finally made me give up "pastor" and write in PARSON at 32A.

36. Cabinet design feature : INLAY. Some inlay designs are quite ornate:

37. ___ of the realm: noblemen : PEERS. Not much chance to link music in this puzzle, is there?? So, I will take advantage of a slight crack, to introduce a favorite from Grieg's "Peer Gynt Suite". (4:19)...(Let it play while you read the rest of this blog.)

39. Lucy of "Ally McBeal" : LIU

40. Pa : DAD

42. Stewed : FRETTED. I almost wanted to put "tomatoes" in there...

43. Work on film : DEVELOP. Great misdirection!

45. Aquafresh rival : CREST

46. Locker room supply : TALC. um, powder?

48. Alfalfa's sweetie : DARLA. Oh, man. That goes waaaay back! (2:42)

49. Net sales? : E-TAIL. Although I don't normally like "e-" words, this one was really cleverly clued!!

51. Belgian avant-garde painter James : ENSOR. His paintings are often described as "nightmarish". I dunno, they kinda look like they're just having fun. What do you think?

53. Facility : EASE.

55. Mercury or Saturn, e.g. : AUTO.

58. GPS offering : RTE

59. One of the small fry : TOT...or, a certain 'tater.

60. Bent piece : ELL

61. Juan Carlos, to his subjects : REY. He is the reigning King of Spain, pictured here with his reina.

Answer grid.
That's all I have for tonight...I'll catch you on the "other side" in the morning!

Hugs,
Marti

1) Constructors' notes:

Don wanted to create a puzzle where the middle embeds are anagrams of a word. We brainstormed and came up with ARTS, TARS, TSAR and STAR. Then we decided to further enhance the theme by crossing each anagram with a word that can precede the key word.

2) Marti's note:

I just submitted an embedded anagram theme to Rich last week, and I really hope he rejects it. After seeing this one, I don't think I will ever find a better anagram puzzle!!!

3) Happy 41st Birthday to our Man Saturday Splynter. Hope 2012 is a very special year to you and the long-legged dream girl comes to you soon.

Wednesday Feb 8, 2012 Jack McInturff

theme: back seat driver

17A. *Vaudeville headliner : TOP BANANA. from wikipedia: Originally, the phrase "Top Banana" was coined by comedian and Vaudeville Performer Harry Steppe" banana seat.

24A. *Count Basie's theme song : ONE O'CLOCK JUMP. basie used it as his closing song for over fifty years. a jump seat is a seat in a vehicle or aircraft that can fold up out of the way.

39A. *Too-small quantity : DROP IN THE BUCKET. an idiom meaning a small, insufficient amount. a bucket seat is contoured to hold one person.

50A. *1959 Monroe classic : SOME LIKE IT HOT. classic billy wilder film. the only seat here that is not an actual seat - an expression meaning a high-pressure situation.

63A. What many sports cars lack, and, in a way, what the ends of the starred answers are: REAR SEATS

melissa here.

pretty straightforward theme, but i needed the unifier to figure it out, as i was trying to connect the first words instead of the last. i thought this puzzle had a pretty broad range of obscure and gimme clues - but maybe it's just me, i'm a little rusty.

let's see how this goes, i've been suffering the animosity of inanimate objects, and the internet connection at the new digs is a tad unstable. i'm just gonna type reeeeeeeeeeeelllly fast and see what happens. fortunately, i can type faster than i can think.

Across:

1. Organic fuel : PEAT. decomposed plant material, also used as fertilizer. environmentally controversial. interesting wiki page.

5. Beggar's returns : ALMS. money or charity given to the poor.

9. Out-and-out : TOTAL. "that movie was an out-and-out flop."

14. Soprano Gluck : ALMA. okay well that is out-and-out obscure. my first thought was it must be some character from the soprano's ... except gluck doesn't sound very italian, does it? turns out alma gluck was a soprano recording artist, who died in 1938. oh, that alma gluck. her second husband was violin virtuoso efrem zimbalist, father of actor efrem zimalist, jr. (77 sunset strip), who was the father of stephanie zimbalist.

15. Tree nursery? : NEST. cute.

16. Winnebagos' kin : IOWAS. again, a little obscure. indian tribes.

19. Actress Kelly : MOIRA

20. Anaheim team, to fans : HALOS. baseball. see the halo?

21. Splotch : BLOB. "it creeps, it crawls, it eats you alive! the splotch! somehow just doesn't sound as frightening.

23. Fishing gear : NET

28. Garment border : HEM

29. Michael of "Caddyshack" : O'KEEFE. he played caddy danny noonan.

32. Marbles competition : MIBS. i think you might have to own a hobby shop to know this. what i found online was that a mib is the target in a marble game, and a mibster is a person who plays marbles.

36. Get out in the open : AIR. air that dirty laundry.

38. Singsong syllables : TRA LA

43. Open mic performer, often : COMIC. my favorite comic.

44. Bruins legend : ORR. bobby. hockey.

45. "My love __ a fever, longing still": Shakespeare : IS AS.

46. Deeply rooted : INBRED

48. Gandalf portrayer McKellen : IAN. lord of the rings.

57. "Go team!" : RAH

59. Well out of range : AFAR

60. It may be captioned : PHOTO

61. Hoover rival : ORECK

66. Bench clearer : MELEE. visually evocative clue.

67. Pitcher Pettitte with a record 19 post-season wins : ANDY. yankees / astros.

68. Out of the cage : FREE

69. Less hardy-looking : PALER

70. Early Iranian : MEDE. finally remembered this.

71. "America's Next Top Model" host Banks : TYRA

Down:

1. Logical start? : PATHO. pathological.

2. Online mortgage broker : E-LOAN

3. More than enough : AMPLE.

4. It's not done : TABOO. it's done, it's just not supposed to be done.

5. "State of Wonder" novelist Patchett : ANN. author of bel canto.

6. Country expanse : LEA

7. "A Fuller Spectrum of News" network : MSNBC. never heard of it.

8. Bit of rhubarb : STALK

9. Middle of nowhere, metaphorically : TIMBUKTU. great album.

10. Hugs, symbolically : OOO

11. Cult classic of 1990s TV : TWIN PEAKS

12. It passes between Swiss banks : AARE. it's a river, love this clue.

13. Would-be One L's hurdle : LSAT. one l is a first year law student, lsat is the law school admission test.

18. Author Sholem : ASCH. controversial, polish-born, jewish-american writer, 1880-1957.

22. Eye of el tigre : OJO. spanish for eye.

25. Tilt : LEAN

26. Fail to mention : OMIT.

27. Overseas thanks : MERCI. french.

30. Lab coat speck? : FLEA. labrador, another great clue.

31. Chow : EATS

32. Year Elizabeth I delivered her "Golden Speech" : MDCI. 1601. sure, i knew that, didn't have to look it up or anything. "The Golden Speech has been taken to mark a symbolic end of Elizabeth's reign, one which is widely considered one of the Golden Eras of England's history."

33. Caddie's suggestion : IRON. i work with a lot of caddies. that's all i'm going to say about that.

34. Jaw-dropping news : BOMBSHELL

35. Veep before Gerald : SPIRO. agnew.

37. Letter after pi : RHO

40. Motel convenience : ICE MAKER

41. "Gymnopédies" composer Satie : ERIK

42. Scot's bluff : BRAE

47. Dict. offering : DEF

49. Small bites : NIPS

51. NFLer until 1994 : LA RAM. los angeles rams.

52. Castle with many steps? : IRENE. dance steps. early 20th century ballroom dancer.

53. Museum concern : THEFT

54. White with age : HOARY. hoarfrost = white ice or snow crystals.

55. Weasel-like swimmer : OTTER

56. Where captains go : TO SEA

57. Frolic : ROMP

58. Field of expertise : AREA

62. GPA reducer, usually : CEE. grade point average.

64. Put in : ADD

65. Deli choice : RYE

Answer grid.

melissa

Tuesday, February 7, 2012 Bruce Venzke and Gail Grabowski

Theme: Article 17 of the Geneva Convention - The first words of the theme entries are the three things(split into four parts) that the unifier(in the center) is required to give interrogators.

20A. *Reason consumers purchase certain brands : NAME RECOGNITION

28A. *Bumbling beginner : RANK AMATEUR

39A. Mil. detainee who may reveal only the starts of the answers to starred clues : POW

48A. *Hookups for computer peripherals : SERIAL PORTS

54A. *Financial analysts : NUMBER CRUNCHERS

Argyle, corporal, 2083472. OK, I'll talk. I liked this one better than yesterday's, as one might expect from Bruce and Gail. Tight theme, minimum crosswordese, strong corners, classic grid. Two grid spanners.

Across:

1. Hook or Cook: Abbr. : CAPT. Spelling it Cap'n reflects sailors' pronunciation, as in Cap'n Horatio Magellan Crunch.

5. For the calorie-conscious : LITE

9. Purse handle : STRAP

14. Fairy tale baddie : OGRE

15. Ugandan baddie : AMIN. Idi

16. Remove pencil marks : ERASE

17. Completely destroy : RUIN

18. Rikki-Tikki-__: Kipling critter : TAVI. A story from the Jungle Book describing the mongoose's, Rikki-Tikki-Tavi, fight with Nag, the big black cobra.

19. __ Carlo: Grand Prix setting : MONTE. It is part of Monaco, the sovereign city state on the French Riviera.

23. Ankle artwork, briefly : TAT

24. Fathers and grandfathers : MEN

25. Bks.-to-be : MSs. (manuscripts)

35. Historic WWII bomber : ENOLA GAY. Always good to see both names.

37. Threat punctuator : OR ELSE. Yes, punctuator is in the dictionary, as a related noun form.

38. Timber wolf : LOBO

41. Paper purchase : REAM. International standards organizations define the ream as 500 identical sheets.

42. Poll findings : TRENDS

45. Island state of Australia : TASMANIA

50. Dadaist Jean : ARP. When Arp spoke in German he referred to himself as "Hans", and when he spoke in French he referred to himself as "Jean".

51. Wish undone : RUE

52. Opposite of 'neath : O'ER

63. Inventor Howe : ELIAS. American inventor and sewing machine pioneer.

64. Winslet of "Titanic" : KATE. At age 11. Image.

65. "The rest __ to you" : IS UP

66. Insurance giant : AETNA

67. "Did You __ See a Dream Walking?" : EVER. Clip(6:43) but you might want to stop when Ginger Rogers starts singing at 1:03.

68. Int'l alliance : NATO

69. "Our Gang" dog : PETEY

70. Ph.D. hurdle : DISS. (dissertation)

71. Remove from power : OUST

Down:

1. Ear on your plate : CORN

2. Isla surrounder : AGUA. Spanish island/water.

3. Stiffly neat : PRIM

4. Religious belief : TENET

5. Infielder's untimely move : LATE TAG

6. 1998 Apple debut : IMAC

7. DVR pioneer : TIVO. Digital Video Recorder (DVR).

8. Tough nut to crack : ENIGMA

9. Advanced study group : SEMINAR

10. Relaxed pace : TROT

11. Hindu princess : RANI

12. Regarding : AS TO

13. Rounded end of a hammer : PEEN

21. Uncommon, avis-wise : RARA. Latin: rara avis - rare bird

22. Much sought-after clownfish of film : NEMO

25. Gets all gooey : MELTS. Tinbeni doesn't want his avatar gooey so he stays away from ice.

26. Nocturnal noise : SNORE

27. Clearheaded : SOBER

29. Brit : lie-down :: Yank : __ : NAP

30. Former Japanese capital : KYOTO. Some say that Tokyo and Kyoto are simultaneously capitals of Japan. Not me, I only know what I read in Wikipedia.

31. Trillion: Pref. : TERA

32. Kagan of the Supreme Court : ELENA

33. TWA competitor : USAIR

34. Plot a new route : REMAP

36. Actress Anderson : LONI

40. Serious conflict : WAR

43. Assume as probable : DARESAY

44. Disparaging remark : SLUR

46. Habitual pot smokers : STONERS. "Dudes!"

47. Fraction of a min. : MSEC (millisecond)

49. Ate like a bird : PECKED

53. Thick-skinned beast : RHINO

54. Kind of tide : NEAP

55. Fonda's beekeeper : ULEE. From the movie, "Ulee's Gold".(1997)

56. Oven user's accessory : MITT

57. Thorn in one's side : BANE

58. Shankar with a sitar : RAVI. Strangely alliterated clue.

59. Western natives : UTEs

60. Biblical twin : ESAU

61. Grooves in the road : RUTS

62. Carpet cleaner's concern : SPOT

Answer grid.

Argyle

Monday, February 6, 2012 Carl Esposito

Theme: puzzle² - 1 through 4 squared and the unifier.

16A. *Start of a Jackie Gleason "Honeymooners" catchphrase : ONE OF THESE DAYS (1²)

29A. *Vivaldi classic, with "The" : FOUR SEASONS (2²)

36A. *Cat's blessing, so it's said : NINE LIVES (3²)

46A. *Tennessee Ernie Ford hit about coal mining : "SIXTEEN TONS" (4²)

59A. What the starred answers start with : PERFECT SQUARES

Argyle here with PSD - post-Superbowl Depression. Sorry to say but this puzzle doesn't lift my spirits. It is an ambitious debut but the theme seems like it's been done before and there are too many abbreviations.

Across:

1. PC screens : CRTs. Can you even buy a cathode ray tube(CRT) anymore?

5. Bumbling types : OAFS

9. Washer or dryer: Abbr. : APPL. (appliance)

13. Banister : RAIL

14. "Deck the Halls" syllables : FA LA

15. Cuba, to Castro : ISLA. Spanish for island.

19. Capone associate Frank : NITTI. "The Enforcer" was in charge of all strong-arm and 'muscle' operations.

20. Political satirist Mort : SAHL

21. Pale : WAN

23. "Be right with you!" : "IN A SEC!"

25. Moe, Curly or Larry : STOOGE

28. Space-saving abbr. : ETC.

33. Pot-scrubbing brand : S.O.S. An abrasive cleaning pad made from steel wool saturated with soap.

34. Fencing sword : EPEE

35. King with a golden touch : MIDAS

39. Brainstorms : IDEAs

42. Company with a "swoosh" logo : NIKE

43. "The Racer's Edge" : STP

49. Musician's asset : EAR

50. Big name in tea : TETLEY

51. New Orleans university : TULANE. The nickname of sports teams at Tulane University is the Green Wave.

53. Orch. section : STR. (strings)

54. Coarse file : RASP

58. Pantyhose that came in a shell : L'EGGS

63. Upscale hotel chain : OMNI

64. Potatoes' partner : MEAT

65. Post-Christmas retail event : SALE

66. Bog fuel : PEAT

67. Hwy. accident respondents : EMTs. (Emergency Medical Technicians)

68. Managed care gps. : HMOs. (Health Maintenance Organization)

Down:

1. Chums : CRONIES. You don't hear CRONIES that much and when you do, it often has an unsavory connotation.

2. Met by chance : RAN INTO

3. Men's wear accessories : TIE TACs

4. Bandits in Vegas? : SLOTS. One-armed bandits.

5. More than occasionally, to a bard : OFT

6. Oohs' partners : AAHs

7. Circus insect : FLEA

8. Scout uniform component : SASH

9. Help : AID

10. Free TV ad : PSA

11. Layered building material : PLYWOOD

12. Layered ristorante offering : LASAGNA. Interesting clecho.

17. Feudal estate : FIEF. The property granted to a vassal in return for service

18. "Do it, or __!" : ELSE. Something you might hear on a fief.

22. Loch of legend : NESS. Scottish legend.

24. Filmmaker Ethan or Joel : COEN

26. Domesticated : TAME

27. Suffix with psych : OSIS

30. Ivy League sch. in Philly : UPENN. (University of Pennsylvania)

31. Got going again, as a fire : RELIT

32. Fancy watch : SEIKO

36. NHL part: Abbr. : NATL. (National Hockey League)

37. "Understood" : "I SEE"

38. Dryer outlet : VENT

39. Followers: Suf. : ISTs

40. Low-cal soda : DIET POP

41. Radical : EXTREME

43. Company associated with the alcoholic "7" in a "7 and 7" : SEAGRAM. An extensive but interesting history of Seagrams. site I am still searching for the reason it's called 7 Crown.

44. Citrus hybrid : TANGELO

45. Gets the creases out of : PRESSES

47. Brontë's "Jane __" : EYRE

48. "Star Trek" helmsman : SULU. George Takei has been receiving a lot of press lately.

52. Dog restraint : LEASH

55. Zenith : ACME. I tried APEX first.

56. Goblet feature : STEM

57. Jr.'s exam : PSAT

60. Cell "messenger," briefly : RNA

61. Tailor's concern : FIT

62. Fourths of gals. : QTs. (quarts)

Answer grid.

Argyle

Sunday Feb 5, 2012 Mark Bickham

Theme: Undercover Copse - Different tree spans each theme entry.

26A. *Supercorporation's revenues : GLOBAL SALES. Balsa.

32A. *Lithium or sodium, e.g. : ALKALI METAL. Lime.

45A. *House arrestee's device : ANKLE MONITOR. Lemon.

55A. *One blowing off steam : TEA KETTLE. Teak. Great clue. Vivid image.

69A. Different ones are hidden in 12 starred answers : TREES. Dead center in the middle of the grid.

79A. *Having one Corkonian parent, maybe : HALF-IRISH. Fir. Any Irish blood in your vein, Steve?

90A. *Liable to spontaneously combust : SELF IGNITING. Fig. Trader Joe's Fig Butter is so good.

101A. *"Gypsy" star : ETHEL MERMAN. Elm.

108A. *Freud essay based on a mythical monster : MEDUSA'S HEAD. Ash.

3D. *Cereal pitched by a trio : COCOA KRISPIES. Oak.

16D. *Popular music magazine VIP : SPIN EDITOR. Pine. The Spin magazine. This answer, or Vogue/Elle/People editor for that matter, does not feel solid to me. Tough to come up with a PINE span though.

60D. *Place to go to launch in Florida : CAPE CANAVERAL. Pecan.

74D. *"Dallas" character who died in Pam's season-long dream : BOBBY EWING. Yew.

Love the title. Love the variety of trees. Much more interesting than the old style all ELM-hidden puzzle.

Of the 12 trees, quite a few are short 3-letter trees, some can actually be tougher to span than the longer trees.

Across:

1. Voice of Mr. Magoo : BACKUS (Jim). I drew a blank.

7. Eponymous German aeronaut : ZEPPELIN

15. "Baloney!" : PSHAW

20. Immediately : AT ONCE

21. __ Fagan, Billie Holiday's birth name : ELEANORA. Used this in one of our published puzzles.

22. Left on board : APORT

23. San __: holiday VIP, in Italy : NICOLA. Italian for St Nickolas.

24. Pudding starches : TAPIOCAS. Spell Check does not like the pluralized form.

25. Stuns at the altar : JILTS

28. Ladd and Freed : ALANs

30. Shot : STAB

31. Hi-__ monitor : RES

38. Singer Minogue : KYLIE. She dated the "Unfaithful" Olivier Martinez for a few years. Now, look at her legs, don't google, can you guess how tall she is?

40. Clever comeback : BON MOT

42. Villain's demise, usually : BAD END

43. Water filter brand : PUR

48. Pupil's place : IRIS. Not the classroom.

49. Final words : EPILOG

51. 1997 U.S. Open champ : ELS (Ernie)

52. Latin clarifier : ID EST. ie.

54. Music symbols : RESTS

59. Half of a rhyming incantation : HOCUS. Hocus-pocus.

63. Stadium souvenirs : CAPS. LaLaLinda, do you also stand in line for hours just get a stadium giveaway bobblehead?

64. Taipan's frypan : WOK. Taipan = "Big Boss" in Cantonese. Tai = Big. Pan = Boss. In Mandarin, it's Da Ban. Quite different.

65. ''Star Wars'' royalty : LEIA

66. "The Story of Civilization" co-author Ariel or Will : DURANT

67. Verdi's "__ tu" : ERI

68. Boomer's kid, probably : XER

71. Cacophony : DIN

72. Prefix with perfect : PLU. Pluperfect.

73. Military school freshmen : PLEBES

75. Hammer end : PEEN

76. Chicken __ : POX

77. Near-eternity : AEON. I finally got my Lady Gaga pink lipstick.

78. Chicken supplier to much of the fast-food industry : TYSON

82. Record holder? : EX-CON. Oh, criminal record.

83. Eddie of men's clothing : BAUER

85. Battleship letters : USS

86. Butterflies : UNEASE

87. Ruiner of a perfect report card : ONE B

95. Springfield's Flanders : NED. "The Simpsons".

96. Draft again : RE-TYPE

98. Some navels : OUTIES

99. Narrow groove : STRIA. So, what's its plural? Strias? Striae?

103. NBA position : CTR

104. "South Park" rating : TV-MA

107. Every seven days : A WEEK

112. Frenzy : MANIA

114. Alcohol, vis-à-vis driving ability : IMPAIRER. Not a welcome ER word.

118. Unpolished : COARSE

119. Clubs for pros : IRONS. Golf pros.

120. Little biters : NIBBLERS

121. Protect in glass, say : ENCASE

122. Hogwash : BILGE

123. It may be regular : GASOLINE

124. Vegas job : DEALER.

Down:

1. Beatles hair style : BANGS. I've been wearing blunt bangs forever.

2. Not straight up : ATILT

4. Like some knees : KNOBBY

5. Bruins' sch. : UCLA

6. Signet-bearing jewelry : SEAL RING

7. Zorba's snore? : ZETAS. "Zzzzz ..." in Greek. I don't think Zorba himself could get this answer.

8. Skyward, in Hebrew : EL AL

9. Toon Le Pew : PEPE

10. Buddy : PAISANO. Close to "peasant" in French.

11. Ambient music pioneer : ENO (Brian)

12. Opp. of express : LOC

13. "Deathtrap" dramatist Levin : IRA

14. Twangy : NASAL

15. __ bottoms : PAJAMA. Do you all wear pajamas to sleep? I can't stand them.

17. Piece keeper : HOLSTER. Nice clue.

18. "All __ is but imitation of nature": Seneca : ART

19. Mg. and kg. : WTs

27. Go after : SEEK

29. Free, in France : LIBRE

33. K-O connection : LMN

34. Japanese carp : KOI. Here is a quiet koi pond. Do you like Zen-feel, Creature?

35. Fifth-century scourge : ATTILA. The Hun.

36. Songwriter DiFranco : ANI

37. Mormons, initially : LDS

39. Landlocked Asian country : LAOS

40. Composer Bartók : BELA

41. Siberian city : OMSK. Over a million people there.

43. Mental impression : PERCEPT. More familiar with perception.

44. Catching the worm? : UP EARLY. I'm an early riser. Dennis also. Marti too. I think. Argyle is a saint. He does not sleep.

46. Onion relative : LEEK

47. Lyrical tribute : ODE

50. Sgt.'s superiors : LTs

53. Duck : SHUN

55. Craggy crest : TOR. Here is all you need to know about TOR. Click Archive, you'll find all the little words in alphabetical order. Don't forget the Clever Clue of the Month. Lots of gems in Paul's website.

56. 1985 Kate Nelligan title role : ELENI. The Nicholas Gage memoir. I don't know the actress.

57. Athletic supporter? : TEE. Why question mark?

58. It's in an old way : 'TIS

61. Set free : UNLOOSE

62. In awe : STUNNED

64. Guitar great Montgomery : WES. Splynter can tell you more about him.

66. Twice cinq : DIX. Ten in French.

68. TV princess : XENA

69. Business card no. : TEL

70. Foul caller : REF

71. "Stupid me!" : DOH

75. Bingo setting : PARLOR

76. Soft attention-getter : PSST

77. Can : AXE

79. Bit of a giggle : HEE

80. Mysterious character : RUNE. I was picturing a person.

81. Fertility goddess : ISIS

82. M.I.T. grad, often : ENGR

84. "I'm here to help" : USE ME

86. Like calls whose source isn't determined : UNTRACED

87. Rush find : ORE. Gold rush.

88. Pay in your pocket : NET

89. Still product : ETHANOL. Tricky "Still".

91. Giant sound : FUM. "Fee, fi, fo, fum".

92. Call-day link : IT A

93. Cheap saloon : GIN MILL

94. Adherents' suffix : ISTs

97. "The magic word" : PLEASE

100. Cornell University city : ITHACA. Bill G's alma mater. Argyle went there too.

102. Squeezing (out) : EKING

103. Hex : CURSE

105. Tricky billiards shot : MASSE. Also CAROM.

106. Run like __ : A DEER

109. "... kissed thee __ killed thee": Othello : ERE I

110. "Jurassic Park" co-star : DERN (Laura)

111. Acoustical unit : SONE. Learned from doing Xword.

112. Marble not used as a shooter : MIB. Shooting marble clues/answers always drive me bananas. TAW is another one.

113. Jackie's "O" : ARI

115. "Mamma __!" : MIA

116. "Nova" network : PBS

117. Blood system letters : ABO

Answer grid.

Sad news about our LAT constructor Gary Steinmehl, who passed away last Tuesday after a long battle with cancer. Gary had over 200 crosswords puzzles published by LA Times, NY Times, NY Sun, USA Today, etc. Read my interview with him here. Thanks for the puzzles and inspiration, Gary!

C.C.