Friday July 6, 2012, Erik Wennstrom

Theme: A becomes Z.

The "A" in a familiar word or phrase in the 4 theme answers, becomes a "Z" creating a new word or phrase which is clued in a witty fashion, with a unifier to help if you get lost. I almost got lost with the days of the week, the holiday confusing me on the day of the week. But here we are, with a debut LA Times puzzle from a young Indiana college student who already has NY Times published. He used two across and two down for this theme fill and hides his unifier in the corner. There is more to it than that including a pangram and lots of other Zs.

18A. *Serious problem when planning an air force? : ZERO (AERO) PLANES (10). My first thought was we going for some complicated theme involving the Japanese air force.

62A. *Alluring Piccadilly hotel? : LOVELY RITZ (RITA) (10). The hotel born out of The Meter Maid.(2:43).

4D. *Malfunctioning candy dispensers? : PEZ (PEA) SHOOTERS(11). My favorite visual, with the candy flying everywhere

27D. *Game of nothing but pop flies and walks? : ZZZ (AAA)BASEBALL(11). This was my sticking point until I realized he was referencing minor league (AAA) baseball.

the unifier

65A. The whole nine yards, or a hint about how the starred answers were formed : A TO Z.

I like seeing ARIZ and ANTZ also in the grid.

Across:

1. Short distance : STEP. Just a step away.

5. Corsica neighbor : ELBA. I am sure you all were ABLE to get this word clued in a fresh fashion.

9. Den purchase : LCD TV. All perps, so many kinds of TVs.

14. Soccer legend : PELE. We keep kicking around this famous footballer.

15. Conan of NPR : NEAL. The award winning JOURNALIST who host TALK OF THE NATION for NPR.

16. 1939 Leigh role : O'HARA. Scarlett of course. She has been in many of the Fir-days this year.

17. MLB spring training locale : ARIZona. The first of three four- letter fill beginning in A and ending in Z; this one is the mirror fill with the reveal. We also have 26A. Film in which Woody Allen voices Z : ANTZ.

20. Inferior : TRASHY. And its companion 41D. Foul : SKANKY. Any thoughts Lois, Carol?

22. Feng ___ : SHUI. A shout out to our fearless leader who I am sure understands the dynamics of this ancient system of organization and design. Literally Wind and Water.

23. Unilever men's brand : AXE. My favorite never successful BAND.(4:57) This was put together by the drummer Teddy Mueller, after a tour with Cheap Trick. Sadly, Teddy just died in an accident.

24. Raw fish dish : SASHIMI. This gives me the SASHAKES.

28. Printer's extras : OVERS. Overruns, when too many are printed.

30. Stoked : JAZZED. The only J and more Z's.

34. It might be hooked to an outrigger : CANOE.

37. "Manhattan Murder Mystery" actor : ALDA. More Woody Allen, the TRAILER.(1:54)

39. Writer ___ Neale Hurston : ZORA. I was introduced to this AUTHOR by my son's 11th grade English teacher.Her books are well written and insightful.

40. Piles : A LOT.

41. Avian delicacy : SQUAB. UNDER GLASS this was considered a delicacy by many who did not know it is just a pigeon. Not much meat on those bones.

42. Bubble, perhaps : BOIL. Toil and trouble?

43. Piece of glass : PANE.

44. Diamondbacks manager Gibson : KIRK. An old Detroit Tiger who reemerged as a HERO (1:54) in LA.

45. Kosher deli offering : LATKE. Makes me feel at home, even if it is only a pancake or a troubled MIND (1:32).

46. Mountain chain : SIERRA.

48. Haydn and : PAPAS. Papa Hemingway was also in Midnight in Paris, to keep our Woody Allen sub plot going.

50. Grains at the shore : SAND. Oats and corn do not grow well at the beach.

52. Roller on a track : RACE CAR.

56. MLB spring training locale : FLA. Though no longer any teams in South Florida.

59. "___ You Not": Jack Paar book : I KID. You can buy it cheap at ALIBRIS.

61. Space cloud : NEBULA.

66. Too honorable for : ABOVE. Suspicion.

67. Lap edge : KNEE. I really like this clue/fill even if mine are shot.

68. Finish finish? : LINE. Or MAALIN?

69. Played, as a cello : BOWED.

70. Mariner's guide : STAR. Star light, star bright; first star I see tonight; I wish I may, I wish I might, have the wish I wish tonight.

71. Ability to last : LEGS. Man this puzzle has lots of them, but I am suffering from double Monday disease.

Down:

1. Fancy footwear : SPATS. I always think of George Raft. And then of ZOOT SUITS like Carrey wore in Mask. Which fits with 31D. Muppet sax player : ZOOT.

2. Land at the Forum? : TERRA. Latin for land.

3. St. ___ Mountains: Alaska/Canada range : ELIAS. This PARK.

5. It often ends in "ase" : ENZYME. Another Z word.

6. Jamie or Kathie follower : LEE. CURTIS and GIFFORD.










7. Prevents : BARS.

8. Hana airport hello : ALOHA. How you land in Maui.

9. Nabokov classic : LOLITA. Jeannie, where are you?

10. Chinese tea : CHA. More HISTORY from China. Coincidence?

11. Fox's partner on "The X-Files" : DANA. Fox Mulder and Dana Scully were the two FBI agents. Remember who was the sceptic?

12. Creature that fought King Kong, familiarly : T-REX. Tyrannosaurus Rex. The ORIGINAL(2:57).

13. Centerpiece piece : VASE.

19. Kashmir neighbor : PUNJAB. Not far from Left.

21. Bee complex : HIVE. Nice vitamin pun.

25. President Jalal Talabani, for one : IRAQI. This MAN.

29. Sucking sound : SLURP.

32. Actor Estrada : ERIK. Any of the ladies hungry for some chips?

33. Low-lying area : DALE, not to be confused with Chip 'n Dale.

34. They may be locked on a computer : CAPS. Don't you yell at me!

35. Jai ___ : ALAI.

36. Less than slim, chancewise : NONE.

38. Senegal's capital : DAKAR. West African nation.

45. Tie, in a way : LACE. Your shoes.

47. Complained bitterly : RAILED.

49. German for "armor" : PANZER. Not related to Saul from Nero Wolfe books.

51. Highlands daggers : DIRKS. Not related to Mav Nowitski.

53. Doll : CUTIE. Pie.

54. Go-with go-between : ALONG. I do not go along with these connector clues.

55. Levels : RAZES. Ironic when it goes up it raises and then when it comes down....

56. Middle management problem : FLAB. Really excellent clue, except as a reminder of the the ongoing battle.

57. University of New Mexico mascot : LOBO. Wolf, but not Nero.

58. Admit openly : AVOW. Finally snuck in a legal one.

60. By ___ of: due to : DINT.

63. Three-faced woman of film : EVE. Based on a true psychology write up of a victim of DID, brilliantly played by Joanne Woodward, Paul Newman's wife.

64D. Spot in a pot : TEA. Well with 10D, Chinese TEA, this seems wrong, but it ends my run anyway, so you all decide. I am out of here for now.

Answer grid.

Lemonade out.

From C.C.:

Happy Birthday to dear Clear Ayes! Your fighting spirit and optimism are truly inspiring. And your presence and warmth are sorely missed on the blog.

Thursday, July 5, 2012 Ed Sessa

Theme: Love letters. Ya gotta love a theme with letter strings!

20A. Travels far and wide? : SAILS THE CCCCCCC (seven "c"s)

40A. Makes U-turns? : DOES ONE EEEEEEEE (eight "e"s)

55A. Era referred to in the United Kingdom as "naughty"? : THE GAY TTTTTTTTT (nine "t"s)

Marti here, listening to the Boston Pops while I blog this.

Across:

1. Power a bike : PEDAL

6. Tuscaloosa team, briefly : BAMA. Big-time Auburn rival (football, baseball, spittin' - you name it, they are rivals!)

10. Offers : BIDS

14. Make euphoric : ELATE

15. Peer, to Pierre : EGAL. French for "equal".

16. "You've come to the right person!" : I'M IT.

17. Delta worker : PILOT. Delta airlines, that is. Could also be a tugboat pilot on the Mississippi delta??

18. She plays Susan on "Desperate Housewives" : TERI. Hatcher. Snubbed by her co-stars.

19. Tabula ___ : RASA. "Blank slate" in Latin.

23. Queens landing place: Abbr. : LGA. La Guardia airport in Queens, NY.

24. Casual assent : YEAH

25. ___ Moines : DES

28. Automaker until 2004 : OLDS

31. Impreza automaker : SUBARU

35. "___ up!": "Pay your share!" : ANTE

37. Scoreboard record : OUTS

39. Graf rival : SELES. Steffi Graf and Monica Seles, tennis rivals.

43. Smart fellows? : ALECS

44. Graceful bird : SWAN

45. Reddish brown : RUST

46. Low bow : SALAAM

48. Slugger Musial : STAN. AKA, "Stan the Man".

50. Racer Fabi : TEO. You either know him, or you don't...

51. Some old theaters : RKOS. From "Radio-Keith-Orpheum" pictures.

53. NYSE listings : COS. Companies.

63. Rescuer, often : HERO. Like Dudley. (No, not my blogger neighbor...THIS one!)

64. Port on its own lake : ERIE

65. "The View" co-host : BEHAR. Joy Behar, this lovely lady.

66. Send out : EMIT

67. One may be hitched : RIDE. Does anyone dare hitchhike, or pick up a hitchhiker nowadays??

68. Liqueur herb : ANISE

69. Titles for attys. : ESQS. Lemony!

70. Zoomed : SPED

71. They may be measured in capsules : DOSES

Down:

1. Invigorates, with "up" : PEPS

2. Essayist's pen name : ELIA. Charles Lamb's "Essays of Elia"

3. Mustachioed surrealist : DALI. Yes, indeed - the original "flower child"...

4. Coral ring : ATOLL. I didn't mind this clue at all...

5. "Shake a leg!" : LET'S GO

6. Letter before gimel : BETH. If you look at the list in wiki, it comes "after". But the Hebrew alphabet is read from right to left, so it really is "before" gimel.

7. '40s film critic James : AGEE

8. Mount ___, highest Adirondack peak : MARCY. Highest point in New York state. (Not to be confused with Mount WTF...)

9. Restaurant in a 1969 film title : ALICE'S. We play this at noon, every Thanksgiving... (22:31)

10. Soda containing a bark extract : BIRCH BEER. One of Polar Beverage's favorites in New England.

11. Apple product : iMAC. I am typing this on an iMac...

12. Apple insert : DISC. No, I didn't have to insert a disc to do the blog...

13. Like a dotted note, in mus. : STAC.cato

21. Raptor's claw : TALON

22. It may be lost or just : CAUSE

25. Words from cribs : DADAS. Or, certain artists...

26. ___ Gay: hostoric bomber : ENOLA

27. Paradigm of strength : STEEL

29. Some annual bills : DUES

30. Simmers : STEWS

32. Inuit relative : ALEUT

33. Hall of Fame Dodgers shortstop : REESE. Pee Wee. I actually remembered him!

34. Of ___: helpful for : USE TO

36. Edilble snails : ESCARGOTS

38. Place for a cushion : SEAT

41. Port near Kobe : OSAKA. Yes, that would be true...

42. Make into law : ENACT

47. Journalist Bill with a Lifetime Achievement Emmy Award : MOYERS

49. "Pretty good" : NOT BAD

52. ___ poker : STRIP. Oooohhh, so much I could link here...

54. Short shorthand writer? : STENO.grapher

55. "Get ___ to a nunnery": Hamlet : THEE

56. Skirt boundaries : HEMS

57. La Salle of "ER" : ERIQ. This guy.

58. 6-Across nickname, with "the" : TIDE. Alabama Crimson Tide.

59. Fuming, with "off" : TEED. Or, if you are Husker Gary, "Started a round..."

60. Not that : THIS

61. Stun, in a way : TASE

62. Muy, across the Pyrenees : TRES. Not in Spain, but "very", in France.

Answer grid.

No chance to link music for this puzzle, but I leave you with this. (3:21) I hope you all had a happy 4th!!

Hugs,
Marti

Note from C.C.:

Happy Birthday to dear Linda. Your presence is always felt. Thanks for being there.

Wednesday, July 4 2012, Mike Peluso

theme: DIRTY WORDS (12) - Click here to see the full effect. Each theme answer can be preceded by dirty to form a common phrase. All the dirty words are placed symmetrically.

5A. *Stand-up's delivery : (dirty) JOKE. classic (not dirty).

12A. *Bygone magazine known for its photography : (dirty) LOOK. fashion magazine, final issue october 1971.

14A. *2012 presidential campaign issue : (dirty) JOBS

17A. *Office betting group : (dirty) POOL. dirty pool is a phrase meaning unfair or unsportsmanlike conduct. also a great stevie ray tune.

61A. *Failure : (dirty) BOMB

65A. *Pay attention to : (dirty) MIND. i always pay attention to a dirty mind.

67A. *Function as promised : (dirty) WORK

69A. *Give everyone a hand : (dirty) DEAL. tried clap first.

1D. *Hemingway title character : the (dirty) OLD MAN and the sea.

19D. *Most famous Hogwarts pupil : (dirty) HARRY potter.

42D. *Documents often stored in a safe : (dirty) DEEDS

50D. *Bamboozles : (dirty) TRICKS

and the unifier, right in the middle:

39. 1967 war film, and an apt description for this puzzle's starred answers : THE DIRTY DOZEN
melissa here.

wow! 13 theme entries, what's not to love about that? clever theme, and interesting grid pattern, with the blocks in the northeast and southwest corners. a few obscure unknowns, but doable.

across:

1. Nobel Institute site : OSLO.

9. Stat for Randy Johnson : ERA. baseball pitching statistic, earned run average.

13. Dip __ in: test : A TOE

16. Early eighth-century year : DCCI. 701.

18. Novelist Wharton : EDITH

20. Folk singer Miriam known as "Mama Africa" : MAKEBA

22. __-Man : PAC

24. Narc's agcy. : DEA. drug enforcement administration.

25. Darth, at one time : ANI. too obscure for me, perps to the rescue. i found this from wikipedia: A character named "Anikin Starkiller" also appears in an early draft of Star Wars, playing a role similar to Luke Skywalker's. is there a better explanation?

26. Final : END MOST

29. __ Lingus : AER. Irish airline.

30. Front and back, at Pebble Beach : NINES, and and 42. Starts a hole, at Pebble Beach : DRIVES

32. Pop flies, usually : OUTS

33. "Car Talk" airer : NPR. click and clack recently announced their retirement. no new episodes as of september of this year.

34. Preferences : LIKES

36. Ullman of comedy : TRACEY. go home!

43. "__ Teenage Werewolf" : I WAS A. 1957 teenage horror film, starring the late michael landon.

44. __ in echo : EAS. maybe i'll understand this in the morning ....

45. Project particular : SPEC. specification.

47. Hardly suitable : INAPT. inappropriate.

51. Cog attachment? : ENT. cogent. i hear groaning.

52. Contest in the sky : AIR RACE

54. Peace, to Pasternak : MIR. boris pasternak was the russian, nobel prize-winning author of dr. zhivago. mir was the name given to the russian space station, meaning both peace and world.

55. Brit. medal : DSO. distinguished service order.

56. Yucatán year : ANO. spanish.

57. Powerful Roman Church family name : ORSINI. had no idea.

59. It's seen around leftovers : SARAN. cute.

64. 20 fins : ONE C. fin is slang for a five dollar bill, and a c-note is slang for $100 - c being the roman numeral for 100.

66. Pamplona pronoun : ESTO. spanish for this.

68. Limit : CAP

70. Slow-leak sound : SSSS

down:

2. Boaster's reply to a boast : SO CAN I. so there.

3. Finalize, as a Final Jeopardy! wager : LOCK IN

4. Dust Bowl migrant : OKIE

5. Mount Fuji's nation : JAPAN. pretty.

6. Missouri River people : OTO. native american tribe.

7. Kitchy-__ : KOO. baby talk, more often gitchy-goo.

8. Sniggler's trap : EEL POT

9. DVD button : EJECT

10. Thing to spare, in an adage : ROD. spare the rod and spoil the child. i'll disagree.

11. Conformity : ABIDANCE. perfectly valid word, though not often heard.

15. Go uphill fast? : STEEPEN. ditto.

21. Next to : BESIDE

23. Subordinate in the prosecutor's off. : ASST DA. assistant district attorney.

27. Hardly a couch potato : DOER

28. More attic-like : MUSTIER. nailed it.

31. Map abbr. : ELEV. elevation.

35. "__ Cousins": 1964 Presley film : KISSIN'. have not seen it.

37. Not as gloomy : ROSIER

38. Islamic call to prayer : AZAN. did not know this either.

39. "Knight Rider" car : TRANS AM

40. Like one for the books : HISTORIC

41. Girls' rec. center : YWCA. young women's christian association.

46. Looked into deeply : PROBED

48. Essential acids : AMINOS

49. Sad souls : PINERS. interesting sculpture, called pining.

52. U.S. food retailer that reached its peak in the mid-1900s : A AND P

53. Early computer language : COBOL

58. Plants : SOWS. anyone growing a garden this summer?

60. Prefix with baptist : ANA. anabaptist.

62. Sweet ending : OSE. as in dextrose, sucrose, fructose, glucose.

63. NYC subway overseer : MTA. metropolitan transportation authority.

Answer grid.

melissa

Tuesday, July 3, 2012 Gareth Bain

Theme: We're not going to the mountains this year. - Three words, hidden in the themes, that indicate a vacation at the shore this year.

20A. Cultivated area with sloped sides : SUNKEN GARDEN

28A. Planet size calculation : SURFACE AREA. Odd clue.

44A. Birkenstock fastener : SANDAL STRAP. Some difference from the wing tips mentioned later.

52A. Summer getaway that characteristically has the three components hidden at the beginnings of 20-, 28- and 44-Across : BEACH HOLIDAY

Argyle here. Gareth did a good job following a tough act. Tough little boxes on either side with only one square entrances. 25 five letter words, 24 four letter words. Letter runs in the NW corner surprised me. The middle top and bottom have possible naticks.

Across:

1. Datebook sequence : MTWTF. Days of the week.

6. "__ left his home in Tucson, Arizona": Beatles lyric : JOJO. From the song, "Get Back", released in 1969 as a single. Info.

10. Bartender's measure : SHOT

14. Vowel sequence : AEIOU

15. "__ Ben Adhem" : ABOU. A link to the poem.

16. Way up there : HIGH

17. Basic principle : TENET

18. Nail polish layer : COAT

19. Prefix with China : INDO

23. Psychic's supposed skill : ESP

26. Stat for A-Rod : RBI

27. Number of stars, perhaps : RATING

32. Iron output : STEAM. For removing wrinkles.

33. Chuck wagon grub : CHOW

34. Aloe __ : VERA

38. See 56-Across : ARENA and 56-Across. With 38-Across, former name of the Sacramento Kings' home : ARCO. (Now known as the Power Balance Pavilion) (manufacturer of sports wristbands).

39. Ad __: for this special purpose : HOC

40. Traded punches : BOXED

41. Counterpart of 61-Down : YANG and 61-Down. Feminine force : YIN

42. Polio vaccine pioneer : SALK

43. Radical : ULTRA

46. Early Tenochtitlán citizens : AZTECS. Who? you might ask. Located on an island in Lake Texcoco, in the Valley of Mexico. map.

50. Minuscule amount : BIT

51. Critter in a colony : ANT

57. Object of worship : IDOL

58. Survive : GET BY

62. Any minute now : SOON

63. "Momma" cartoonist Lazarus : MELL. I recall someone linked Momma for us once.

64. Gestation sites : UTERI. Plural of uterus.

65. Standard Oil brand : ESSO. Exxon in the USA.

66. "My word!" : "I SAY!"

67. Tennessee footballer : TITAN. They are based in Nashville, LP Field. Name source.

Down:

1. Welcomer on the floor : MAT. Yeah, the floor of the porch, maybe.

2. Ball supporter : TEE. If you thought cup, get help. If you don't get my comment, bless you.

3. Break the tape : WIN

4. Wing tips' tips : TOEs. Wing tips are a fancy pair of men's shoes.

5. Space cartoon set in the year 3000 : FUTURAMA. Very strange characters.

6. "Rush Hour" co-star : JACKIE CHAN. Famous for doing his own stunts.

7. Orchestral reed : OBOE

8. "Blue Nights" writer Didion : JOAN. A memoir of the death of her daughter.

9. Got too big for : OUTGREW

10. Reckless gambler's loss? : SHIRT

11. Language of India : HINDI

12. Utah city : OGDEN. Wikipedia entry.

13. Skimpy swimwear : THONG

21. Network with a peacock : NBC

22. Motorists' org. : AAA. American Automobile Association

23. History test component : ESSAY

24. Kama __ : SUTRA

25. Get gussied up : PREEN

29. Tooth tended to by a vet, perhaps : FANG

30. "Get __ of yourself!" : A HOLD

31. Hybrid '50s musical genre : ROCKABILLY. Rockabilly Hall of Fame.

34. Bit of a shock? : VOLT

35. Like charges for new car options : EXTRA

36. Showed over : RERAN

37. Go with the flow : ADAPT

40. Laugh till it hurts : BUST A GUT

42. Sushi bar order : SASHIMI. but not sushi. Link.

44. MIT or NYU : SCH.

45. Tupperware topper : LID

46. Lower in esteem : ABASE

47. Goose eggs : ZEROs

48. Cantina order : TACOs

49. Cheap, in commercialese : ECONO

53. Laudatory poems : ODEs

54. Whatever she wants, she gets : LOLA

55. Himalayan legend : YETI

59. Asian New Year : TET

60. Cause of a tan line, perhaps : BRA. A final strange ?

Answer grid.

Argyle

Monday, July 2, 2012 Jeff Chen

Theme: Various Women - Four women with the same initials, as indicated by the unifier.

20A. Venerable woman of literature : VIRGINIA WOOLF

23A. With 24-Across, voguish woman of bridal fashion : VERA and 24A. See 23-Across : WANG

44A. Jettas and Beetles, or an apt title for this puzzle : VW's

49A. With 51-Across, vivacious woman of game show fame : VANNA and 51A. See 49-Across : WHITE

59A. Voluptuous woman of stage and screen : VANESSA WILLIAMS

Argyle here. The puzzle has MIRROR (left to right) crossword symmetry. Normally we have DIAGONAL symmetry. It is impossible with the four ladies having different length names. I don't see a relevant pattern to the black squares other than a vee in the center. Oh wait, all four are described with a VEE adjective. Duh!

Across:

1. Nile slitherers : ASPS

5. Melodies featuring sitars : RAGAs

10. "Git!" : "SCAT!". "Shoo!", "Beat it!" Ok, stay at your own risk!

14. Enjoy some gum : CHEW

15. Disappear slowly but surely : ERODE

16. Soft throw : TOSS

17. Ocean motion : TIDE and 38A. Minimum-range 17-Across : NEAP

18. Winger of "Black Widow" : DEBRA. IMDb.

19. Bumped knee, to a tot : OWIE

25. Supermodel Bündchen : GISELE

28. Flirty giggle : TEE-HEE

32. Coffee vessel : URN

33. Hatches evil plans : SCHEMES

37. Networking connections : INS. Sometimes related to 33-Across?

40. Eiffel creation : TOWER

41. A/C units : BTU's. (British thermal unit)

42. Finalize, as a tattoo : INK UP. A common term in printing but I failed to find how it is used to mean finalizing a tattoo. It is used similarly to tat up, to get a tat. I googled for over a half-hour.

45. More than eccentric : OUTRE

46. Tribal tent : TEEPEE. A Lakota name for a conical tent.

48. Gets unruly in a crowd, say : PUSHES

52. Bar order : ALE

54. "SNL" alum Cheri : OTERI

56. Once existed : WAS

64. Call to mind : EVOKE

65. Problem in old wood : ROT

66. Do-or-die poker bet : ALL IN

67. College dinner staple : RAMEN

68. '50s presidential nickname : IKE. Dwight D. Eisenhower, our 34th President.

69. Joins with a torch : WELDS

Down:

1. Perform on stage : ACT

2. Hood's blade : SHIV. I think it came from skive, meaning to use a very sharp thin knife to thin leather. "Skiving" is a word I learned from "Harry Potter".

3. Feet pampering, briefly : PEDI

4. Sudden turn : SWERVE

5. Forward, as to an updated website : REDIRECT. I'm always leery of redirects.

6. Gladiator's realm : ARENA

7. Asian desert : GOBI

8. Play to __: tie : A DRAW

9. Ocean makeup : SEAWATER

10. Larry, Curly or Moe : STOOGE

11. Monastic hood : COWL

12. "Ain't gonna happen!" : "AS IF!"

13. "The Waste Land" poet's initials : TSE. (Thomas Stearns Eliot)

21. Hair tamers : GELs

22. Bills not found in ATMs : ONEs

25. Put the pedal to the metal : GUN IT

26. "Fame" star Cara : IRENE

27. Cobra's weapon : SNAKE VENOM. Cobras never signed the Geneva Convention concerning chemical weapons.

29. Reach one's endurance limit, in a marathon : HIT THE WALL

30. Accustom (to) : ENURE

31. Slalom curves : ESSES

34. Carpool lane letters : HOV. (high-occupancy vehicle)

35. "Yuck!" : "EWW!"

36. Enero o febrero, por ejemplo : MES. January or February, for example : MONTH

39. Stage in a bug's life : PUPA

41. Head-and-shoulders sculpture : BUST

43. Ink-filled tool : PEN

45. Yvette's yes : OUI

47. Grandson of Adam : ENOS

48. Rizzuto of the Yankees : PHIL

50. Video game pioneer : ATARI

51. Drop a line : WRITE

52. Affirm as true : AVER

53. Molten rock : LAVA

55. "Star Wars" furball : EWOK. Crazy party animals.

57. Within : AMID

58. IDs with two hyphens : SSN's

60. __ out: barely manage : EKE

61. Six-yr.-term holder : SEN.

62. Barrister's field : LAW

63. Suffix with project : ILE (projectile)

Answer grid.

Argyle

Sunday July 1, 2012 John Lieb

Theme: When Worlds Collide - The "World" in each theme entry is replaced by another word. (Correction: World can precede and follow the below green-highlighted word in each theme entry.)

24A. View from much of the Oregon coast? : WATER WITHOUT END. Water world. World Without End, the Ken Follett novel JD/Lemonade loves. I think Haltool is a fan too.

36A. What Ceylon, Siam and Upper Volta are nowadays? : DEAD TO THE ATLAS. Dead to the World. World Atlas.Irish Miss/Lucina might know this book.

51A. List of The Duke's films? : WAYNE'S HISTORY. Wayne's World. World history.

68A. Double eagle in a PGA event? : SHOT HEARD 'ROUND THE TOUR. Shot heard 'round the world. Bobby Thomson's home run. "The Giants win the pennant! The Giants win the pennant!". World tour.

89A. Battleship game setting? : SEA OF WARCRAFT. SeaWorld. World of Warcraft.

101A. Hank Aaron's 715th home run, at the time? : BRAVE NEW RECORD. Brave New World. Aaron was with the Braves at the time (1974). Plus, it's indeed a brave record, as he received lots of hate mail and even death threats. I like this clue a lot. World record.

119A. Pneumatic tube in a drive-thru? : WONDER OF THE BANK. Wonder of the World. World bank.

I think this is John Lieb's LA Times debut. And a Sunday. Congratulations! What a wonderful achievement.

Love the fill today. Lively and clean. The clues are entertaining too, esp these few:

106A. Character in "Scooby-Doo"? : HYPHEN. Got me.

11D. Lemon aids? : TOWS. Not something eye-related to aid our Lemonade.

44D. Runner down under? : STYX. River of Hades.

Across:

1. Spruce (up) : SPIFF. And 101D. Strengthened, with "up" : BEEFED

6. Employees with many perks? : BARISTAS. I sure was not thinking of coffee when I read "perks".

14. 45 holder : SLEEVE

20. Mother-of-pearl : NACRE. This and ETUI are two crossword words I learned very early on.

21. Intimate : ONE TO ONE

22. Really well-off : LOADED. So shocked Katie Holmes is divorcing Tom Cruise. They were such a happy couple.

23. "You __ big trouble, mister!" : ARE IN

26. Kid-friendly, in a way : RATED G

28. Country singer who was an 8-year-old "Star Search" contestant : RIMES (LeAnn). Did not know this trivia.

29. Yank : TUG

30. Delight at the comedy club : SLAY. Who doesn't like Louis C.K.?

31. Site of the first cover-up? : EDEN. Nice clue. Fig leaf cover-up.

32. Rise: Abbr. : INCR

34. He appointed Sandra to the Supreme Court : RONALD (Reagan)

41. Racetrack sounds : NEIGHS

45. Comic Amsterdam : MOREY. Of "The Dick Van Dyke Show".

46. Board-certified talk show host : DR. OZ. Google shows he's certified by the American Board of Surgery and the American Board of Thoracic Surgery.

47. Attribute : TRAIT

48. Pop-up ads, e.g. : COME-ONS

55. Do impressions of : APE

56. Wrong : NOT SO

58. 2002 Streisand album : DUETS. See the cover. Another unknown to me.

59. Latin law : LEX

60. "Bohemian Rhapsody" addressee : MAMA. Not my favorite Queen's song.

62. Browning and more : POETS

66. Carp cousins : DACES. Carp is a popular food fish in China.

76. Tall, dark and handsome : MANLY.What? I always associate MANLY with just masculine. Macho guy, not necessary "Tall, dark and handsome".

77. Actress Zellweger : RENEE

78. Sheet of stamps : PANE

79. Subside : EBB

82. Petal picker's word : LOVES

84. "It follows that ..." : AND SO

88. With it : HIP

94. Spicy stews : RAGOUTS

96. "Fun, Fun, Fun" car : T-BIRD. The Beach Boys.

97. Savvy about : ONTO

98. Possessive in many church names : PAUL'S. St. Paul's, right?

99. Triangular soil deposits : DELTAS

108. __ Domini : ANNO

109. Samoa's largest city : APIA. And capital.

110. "The Cosby Show" son : THEO

113. U.K. award : OBE. Order of the British Empire.

114. Oro y __: Montana's motto : PLATA

117. Alaska's __ Sound : NORTON. Never heard of it before, Spitzboov!

123. Intertwines yarn : KNITS

124. "Later, dude" : I'M GONE

125. High standing : EMINENCE

126. "Star-cross'd" lover : ROMEO. Why Star-cross'd rather than "Star-crossed"?

127. Battle of Thermopylae victor, 480 B.C. : XERXES. I bet Jayce nailed this one. The Persian king in "300". He creeps me out.

128. Utter failure : DISASTER

129. Trim : ADORN

Down:

1. Trapped : SNARED

2. Float site : PARADE

3. Lipton product : ICE TEA. Now I'm used to its D-less form.

4. Facebook request : FRIEND ME. Man, you can waste lots of time there.

5. Repel, with "off" : FEND

6. Katniss's weapon in "The Hunger Games" : BOW. Has any of you read or watched "The Hunger Games"?

7. Lawless state : ANARCHY

8. Hang up the spikes : RETIRE

9. Paparazzi's target : ITEM

10. Ticked off : SORE

12. Singer DiFranco : ANI

13. Scrapes : SET-TOS

14. The 1973 Mets' "Ya Gotta Believe!," e.g. : SLOGAN. Coined by Tug McGraw, father of Tim
McGraw.

15. Hoover's wife : LOU. I don't know. But isn't LOU a man's name?

16. Humbly apologizes : EATS DIRT

17. Pulitzer-winning biographer Leon : EDEL. This entry appeared a lot a lot in the old Wayne R. Williams puzzle. Always clued as "Henry James biographer".

18. __ cava : VENA

19. Vortex : EDDY. Hi there hockey nut Vortex!

25. Barbarian : HUN

27. "Buon __": Italian greeting : GIORNO. Italians are so passionate. Asians are rather reserved.

33. Explosive trial : N-TEST

34. Flattened : RAZED

35. "Decisions, decisions ..." : LET'S SEE

37. Homer, for one : TOON

38. Oral health org. : ADA

39. "__ and stop me!" : TRY

40. Horror star Chaney : LON

42. London lockup : GAOL. I often wonder if Splynter's English has a slight British accent.

43. Bring aboard : HIRE

48. "Overhead" engine parts : CAMS

49. Moonfish : OPAH

50. It might be cc'd : MEMO. I don't like G-mail. It doesn't show clearly whether an email is CC'ed to others.

51. Cord under a tarp : WOOD. I don't get this clue. (Added later: firewood. Thanks for the answer, everyone.)

52. Abrupt : SUDDEN

53. Word with gas or oil : HEAT

54. Dry skin tip-off : ITCH

57. More agile : SPRYER. Sprier feels more right to me.

61. Dough-dispensing convenience, briefly : ATM

63. Overcharge, say : ERR. I wonder what makes a Tom Ford lipstick so expensive. It doesn't feel special to me, except the package.

64. Turf __: common football injury : TOE

65. Important star : SUN

67. Gas additive brand : STP

69. Like some kindergarten programs : HALF-DAY

70. Plenty, in verse : ENOW

71. Menlo Park middle name : ALVA. Thomas Alva Edison.

72. Clutter-free : NEAT

73. Iolani Palace site : OAHU. JD visited the Palace before.

74. Condo, e.g. : UNIT

75. Set components : REPS

79. Cornerstone abbr. : ESTD

80. Nixon confidant Rebozo : BEBE

81. Judge's setting : BAIL

83. Disdain : SCORN

85. Haggard : DRAWN

86. The lord in "The Lord of the Rings" : SAURON. For Jazzbumpa.

87. Stare at rudely : OGLE

90. Like many faithful adherents : ORTHODOX

91. Genetic material : RNA

92. Off-rd. ride : ATV

93. One who isn't with us : FOE

95. Movie props? : OSCAR NOD. Great answer.

98. Hail Marys, often : PENANCE

100. Future ferns : SPORES

102. Floating : NATANT. New word to me. Natant

103. Cigar brand that comes in grape and peach flavors : OPTIMO. Did not know this. But I was shocked to find an cigarette ad in our Sunday's Parade magazine a few weeks ago.

104. Violent protester : RIOTER

105. Ted of "CSI" : DANSON

107. "Game of Thrones" airer : HBO

110. Chocolate caramel bar : TWIX

111. Parcheesi destination : HOME. Never played Parcheesi.

112. Rocket scientist, e.g.: Abbr. : ENGR

114. Frat letters : PHIS

115. Jazzy Horne : LENA

116. Fivers : ABES

118. Cajun staple : OKRA. I saw Okra chips in our local grocery store the other day. Looks tasty.

120. Topeka-to-Peoria dir. : ENE

121. "Ew, I didn't need that mental picture!" : TMI

122. Plunk preceder : KER

Answer grid.

Thanks for the nice birthday wishes yesterday! I won't be here next weekend due to a big family reunion out of the town. Steve will guide you through next Sunday's puzzle.

C.C.

Interview with John Farmer

I love John Farmer's puzzles. They're always an adventure.

John's "Say the magic word" NY Times (March 11, 2010, click here.) is one of my all-time favorites. He has all the magic word phrases HOCUS POCUS, ABRACADABRA & OPEN SESAME as 3 long theme entries, then SAY THE MAGIC WORD runs diagonally from the first square to the last square in the grid. Letters P, L, E, A, S & E are circled to add the final touch to the puzzle. Just beautiful.

His subsequent "Take a steep nose dive" (NY Times, June 24, 2010) is equally fresh & inventive, as are most of his themed puzzles.

I'm so pleased that John took the time and answered my questions in detail. Enjoy the interview. This is certainly one of the most informative and educating ones we've had on the blog.

What are the seed entries for this puzzle? And which part gave you the most trouble during the construction?

Best I can recall (it's been about a year since I made this one), ZOMBIE LIES was the first seed, though in a different spot and in a slightly different grid. In what passes for political discourse in this land of ours, truth often takes a beating. ZOMBIE LIES is a pretty useful term to describe the kind of false claims that are often and easily refuted, yet never eliminated. Killed one day, stalking victims the next. I first met the phrase in reading about politics, but I've heard it in other contexts as well. WAKE THE DEAD seemed like an apt complement, another answer I don't recall seeing in a crossword before -- always a plus.

I'm not sure where any trouble may have been. At 72 words, it makes the cut for a themeless but it's not the most ambitious of grids. I may have started with more white space in the NE and SW, then added a couple of solitary black squares to make those corners workable. That probably preserved GET SHORTY, a book and a movie I enjoyed, and an answer I like. MORISSETTE, iirc, was a late fill-in for "marionette," which had good cluing potential but in the end didn't fit. Otherwise, I'm not sure what I thought about PANEL SAW, but it does have a certain "cutting-edge" appeal to it.

What's your background? And how did you get into crossword construction?

I've read of many people who picked up the crossword habit from their parents and have been solving puzzles since they could read and write. That is not my story.

I grew up on Long Island, the youngest of four kids. I was into sports, rock 'n' roll, and a million other things, but I don't remember touching a crossword in those days. Maybe I did and I was so overmatched I blocked any remnant of the memory. Or maybe I was just underwhelmed. Anyway, my mom enjoyed word puzzles, and my dad, though not a regular solver, had a good mind for that sort of thing, and whatever seed they might have planted was dormant for many years. I was into my forties before I "discovered" crosswords. Still a beginner, I remember struggling one day with a puzzle in the paper and finding certain squares required multiple letters. That intrigued me. Around that time, I stumbled upon the old crossword forum at the N.Y. Times site, and that got me hooked as much as anything. At first I may have been looking for answers, but mostly I came back for the conversation, and with a number of constructors part of the discussion I learned a lot about how puzzles are put together. Before long, I made a few myself. At the start I used pencil and paper and a word list at an Internet site. Not exactly state of the art, but eventually I got a few puzzles published. I did finally upgrade my tools.

Puzzle-making is strictly a sideline for me. My day job is in the telecom biz. Today I live in L.A., with my wife, Sylvie, a teacher, and our son, Donovan, who just completed kindergarten.

How would you describe your style? What kind of theme/fill fascinate you the most and what kind do you try to avoid in your grids?

Style is not anything I ever think about. If I thought my style could be defined, I'd probably try something different next time out.

What I look for in making a puzzle -- whether it's a theme idea, seeds for a themeless, fill for a section, or clues -- is something I haven't seen before. I'm fond of tricky themes, anything with an extra level for the solver to unravel, so my puzzles tend to run middle of the week or later. (My only Monday was a Tonight Show-themed crossword that ran in the N.Y. Times on the day of Conan's debut -- a puzzle with a surprisingly short shelf life.)

Crosswords are a pastiche of language and culture. Anything appealing in the language and culture will likely be appealing in a puzzle. The 23-word title of Fiona Apple's new album will be hard to fit, but you get the idea. Find things that are relevant to people, find things that reflect the way we use words to communicate, mix it up with a bit of wordplay, and you have the makings of a good crossword puzzle.

For a few of my do's, don'ts, and other musings, let's go to bullets:

· Idioms and neologisms are good. Unusual words can be colorful and worth using. Save the obscurities for Scrabble. ("Metapneustic," anyone?)

· Crosswordese. It's a term I don't use. It once meant something, but people use it now to mean different things and it's lost its value. I've seen words like ERIE, ALI, and OREO labeled crosswordese because they're common answers, but they're all legit. On the other hand, ANOA, once the poster child for crosswordese, is so rarely seen in puzzles these days that it's a stretch to call it crosswordese anymore. (Maybe "old chestnut" would be a better term.)

·An answer ought to stand on its own in a grid. If it's a partial phrase, the answer is missing something. It's entirely an aesthetic thing, but I don't like partials and I try to use them no more than once in a puzzle. Maybe that's even too much. I try to avoid prefixes and suffixes for similar reasons.

·On a related note, full names are a plus, but there's nothing wrong with first names or surnames. Singular, that is.

·Abbreviations are fine as long as they're common (etc.), especially ones spoken as written (FBI, PhD). Just don't push it (Asst. D.A., Rt. Rev.).

·A single Roman numeral doesn't bother me. Shorter is better.

·Most "rules" about crosswords can be ignored if you have a good reason. Just make sure it's a good reason.

What's the puzzle you're most proud of and why? I just adored your SAY THE MAGIC WORD puzzle. So many layers of magic and so many lively entries, despite the incredible diagonal restriction you had.

Thanks, C.C. The idea for the MAGIC WORD puzzle came while working on a themeless. I had to rip out one section including a 15, and the only substitute I could find was SAY THE MAGIC WORD. The double meaning of the phrase screamed "Theme!" to me and I immediately abandoned that puzzle to make the other. The diagonal answer was a matter of necessity; same for the scrambled letters in circles that spelled PLEASE. I was lucky to squeeze in what I could without too much collateral damage. In any event, I'm glad you liked it.

The puzzle that I'm probably happiest about is an early one of mine that ran in the N.Y. Times. (http://www.xwordinfo.com/Crossword?date=3/9/2006) It had three main theme entries, all 16 letters -- SQUARE DANCE CLUBS, THREE SQUARE MEALS, WASHINGTON SQUARE -- and the gimmick was that each answer was placed in the grid not just Across, and not just Down, but in the form of a square. It was a puzzle that played with solvers' expectations. I like that element of novelty, and it got a terrific response. It had taken a long time to make the puzzle finally work, and I got the sense then a good idea is worth pursuing if you stick with it.

You're one of the few constructors who bring us both themed and themeless puzzles. Which ones do you enjoy more and what are the major differences in your constructing approach?

I'll take a fresh theme with a twist to it, if you've got one. It's hard to find something truly original (most themes tend to be variations on themes done before), but if the stars are aligned, that's where you find the gold -- something memorable. People still talk about the Election Day puzzle of 1996 but may not remember the crossword in yesterday's paper.

My approach on themes, I suppose, is something like this: groundbreaking is good, but not necessary; always look for some element that has not been done before; consistency is important, but if you need to mix it up don't leave one entry the odd man out; simple is good, and intricate is good, but convoluted is not; what matters is not how you get there but does the final result "work."

A themeless is simpler in one respect -- right, no theme -- but the bar is raised for everything else. Quality fill is critical; fresh, tricky cluing is key; a minimum of crud is essential. What that means is that the grid may need to be worked and reworked to get it ready for primetime. (Actually good advice for any puzzle.) I tend to spend a lot more time on cluing, too. Clue databases are helpful resources, but they really should post this notice: "These are clues that have been used in other crosswords. Now find something else." A good themeless should be a challenge, and about the best way to get that is with misdirection and wordplay. A clue like "Battle fatigue?" will stump solvers until they have a few crossers, then they'll get a payoff and get to feel smart about it too. (That clue was Rich's, btw, and the answer is RUN ON EMPTY.)

I enjoy making both types of puzzles, themed and themeless. In either case, I try to stay flexible. I was working on a coffee-themed puzzle, then discovered something similar had been done before. One of my answers was BAZOOKA JOE, which I liked a lot, so I kept that and started a themeless. (Sort of the reverse of the MAGIC WORD experience.) Making a puzzle is a bit like solving one. You never know what you're going to get.

What puzzles do you solve every day and which constructors constantly inspire you?

I solve the N.Y. Times every day, the L.A. Times most days, the Fireball each week. In a typical week I'll solve a handful of other puzzles, and how many all depends on how busy I am. Among the others are the Chronicle of Higher Education, the Onion, Ink Well, Jonesin', Post Puzzler, Sunday Challenge, and any of a half-dozen others. I'm a big fan of Matt Gaffney's weekly contest, though it's been off my rotation lately.

There are tons of puzzle constructors whose work I enjoy. It would be a long list, if I made one, and for the most part you already know the names. (Check the column on the right for the "Interviews" roll. Not a bad start, though hardly complete.)

The most enjoyable puzzles don't all come from the usual suspects. Hardly. Let me name a few constructors who have hit it out of the park in recent memory: Jeff Chen (U-TURN palindromes), Caleb Rasmussen (NO U-TURN), Tracy Gray (keeping with the flow of traffic, RIGHT ON RED); George Barany (ALAN TURING tribute, in the CHE), Xan Vongsathorn ("Getting Around"), Josh Knapp (themeless), and hot off the press as I write this, Mike Buckley (PENTOMINOES). None of them has a ton of credits (yet), but they all can make one helluva crossword. The next great puzzle may be the debut in tomorrow's paper.

If you want inspiration, think about the constructors who worked before the technology revolution came along. How many of us could do what they did?

Besides crosswords, what are your other interests?

You're saying there's more to life than crossword puzzles? Well, yes there is.

My time off work, when it comes, is usually family time. T-ball practice, soccer games, teaching my son how to beat me at chess (then he can teach me). If there's a 6-year-old having a birthday party in our corner of town, half a chance I'll be there.

I'm a huge movie fan and was writing regularly about films at my website (http://minaday.com), though not so much in the past year. I also had posted crosswords there every month, and you can find them at the puzzle archive.

I follow baseball. I enjoy reading. I run every day and get in a few 5Ks or 10Ks during the year, or sometimes a marathon. In my otherwise free time, I continue to make notes for a novel, a work I promise myself that I will actually write sometime before the end of the millennium (yes, this millennium).