Friday, October 26, 2012, Marti Duguay-Carpenter

Theme: Daffynitions from marti's dictionary:

Each of the four grid-spanning theme answers are definitions of very silly clues, which are puns, soundalikes and all together rib-tickling clue/fill pairs. Between her puzzles and her write-ups, you all should be familiar with the divine miss m's style which favors a heavy dose of humor. There are some bonuses, and the fill is not always easy, nor always hard, but it is Friday, so let us attack this feast of punnery and chowdah.

17A. Buccaneer?(BUCK AN EAR): TOP PRICE FOR CORN (15). This is the oldest joke among marti's theme, usually punchlined as "a helluva price for corn", but that is not pc for cwd. My guess, this was her seed entry, not that corn comes from seeds.

25A. Pasteurize? (PAST YOUR EYES): TOO FAR TO OBSERVE (15). One you might have to think about quite a bit, it took me the longest of the theme to grok.

42A, Propaganda?(PROPER GANDER): RESPECTFUL GOOSE (15). For all of the New England members of the Corner with ties to BAHSTON this was easy, for the rest I am sure it was very hard.

54A. Melancholy? (MELON COLLIE): PINKISH SHEEP DOG (15). Another thought provoking one, first you have to know that the color melon is pinkish.

and then you have to realize Collies were bred to herd sheep, so it is SHEEP DOG, not sheepdog.  Of course melons make me think of this classic

and of course for Dennis and the rest, it is the season for WATERMELONS.

Across:

1. Emulate a sous chef : PREP.  Well, gee. I can start with a nit, as the SOUS (from the French meaning UNDER, you can always remember from French 101, La plume de ma tante est sur la table, La maîtresse de mon oncle est sous la table)  is 2nd in command and does more bossing than prepping.

5. Alcohol awareness-raising org. : MADD. Mothers Against Drunk Driving.

9. Lands by the sea : CAPES. Like Cape Cod, Cape Horn etc.

14. Facetious "I see" : AH SO. Perhaps a bit un-PC in this modern world.

15. Farm fraction : ACRE.

16. Troop formation : ARRAY. Oldtime word of the MILITARY.

20. IRS info : SSN.

21. Jackie's designer : OLEG.  Cassini, who created and perfected the Jackie look.

22. Wikipedia policy : NO ADS.

23. Part of a flight : STEP. Of stairs.

24. Vendetta : FEUD. Another nit, to me Vendetta go only one way, feuds are equal opportunity destruction.

32. SASE inserts, sometimes : RSVPS.

33. "Sweet!" : NICE. My kids use both.

34. Feel poorly : AIL. A wish of good health for our legion and their families.

35. Like many college texts : USED. ironically many of the used texts never were used.

36. MapQuest owner : AOL. Rival to google maps.

37. "So Big" author Ferber : EDNA. A strong and inspiring  WOMAN along with being entertaining.

38. A, in Austria : EIN.

39. Fishing hook : GAFF. Not a fish hook at the end of your line but

41. Hilarious : A RIOT.

46. Donald, to Dewey : UNCA. We called my uncle, UNC.

47. Masters statistics : PARS. Ahh, but we roar for the eagles.

48. Coffee go-with : DONUT. Especially if you like Dunkin'

50. Right on el mapa : ESTE. East in Spanish, el mapa sounds like Three Stooges' Spanish.

51. IV-covered areas : ERS. A bonus pun IV (IVY) covered Emergency Rooms.

57. Consumed : EATEN.

58. Wall St. debuts : IPOS. Initial Public Offerings.

59. Reject, in a way : JILT. In a way, wow.

60. It's "when the moon hits your eye like a big pizza pie" : AMORE.  DEAN (2:12) . For marti

61. Suffragist Lucretia : MOTT. Another strong WOMAN.

62. Catches on : SEES. Halfway done, everyone see where she went?

Down:

1. Tom Brady's team, to fans : PATS. Another New England reference from Massachusetts' own.

2. Frat letters : RHOS. Not to be confused with ROW, ROW your boat.

3. Place to watch the 1-Down : ESPN. Entertainment and Sports Programming Network.

4. Break noisily : POP. goes the weasel.

5. "Marilyn: A Biography" author : MAILER. Norman is back.

6. Say yes : ACCEPT.

7. Barrel-bottom bit : DREG. Never thought of this as a singular word, I wonder if it is related to DRECK?.

8. Hi-__ : DEF.inition. (semi theme hint).

9. Party hearty : CAROUSE.

10. Skee-Ball spot : ARCADE. Ah, those were the days.

11. Cow poke : PROD.  Cute, just reminds me of the Mentalist episode where Patrick was held by the DAUGHTER  (2:36) of a man he sent to jail.

12. Big-grin borders : EARS. Conflict with the theme entry?

13. Thesaurus entry: Abbr. : SYN. onym.

18. Rosters : ROTAS. Latin meaning wheel.

19. Year in Augustus' reign : ONE BC. This reminded me of the One BC I loved, and a hint to her mind..

23. "Monk" org. : SFPD. San Fransisco Police Department. The show starring Tony SHALHOUB (1:42).

24. Frustrate : FOIL. What did the leftover meatloaf say to the baked potato? Curses, foiled again!

25. More faithful : TRUER.

26. "Do the Right Thing" actor Davis : OSSIE. Da MAYOR(0:24).

27. Hot spots : OVENS. Not WIFI, but literal.

28. Switch type : ON/OFF. This clue really clicked with me, especially followed by...

29. A ham might be on one : RADIO.

30. Chiantis, e.g. : VINOS. Italian for wine.

31. Cheer : ELATE. Not related to etrade.

36. Colgate-Palmolive shaving lotion : AFTA. Which is AFTER (unless in BAHSTON) shave lotion.

37. Cupid's counterpart : EROS.

39. Suitable for a serious collector : GENUINE. hey Dennis, did all the collectibles survive the move?

40. S&L units : ACCTS. Accounts.

41. Bury the hatchet : AGREE. Which you do at the end of a feud.

43. Sex Pistols fan, e.g. : PUNKER. meh.

44. Outcome : UPSHOT.

45. Up-to-date : LATEST. These days you get to have the latest for about two months and something newer and better is out.

48. Geom. figure : DIAMeter.

49. Aware of : ON TO.

50. Beantown hockey nickname : ESPOsito. Back in Massachusetts with Phil, his brother Tony was the Chicago Blackhawks goalie.

51. Actress Falco : EDIE. She went from the Soprano to NURSE JACKIE (2:40).

52. It's assumed : ROLE. Wanted name, but...

53. Pvt. instructors : SGTS. A little military misdirection.

54. Space cadet's brain size? : PEA. Generous.

55. Pronoun that's a homonym of a song : HIM. Hmm, hymn.

56. Under-cover duds? : PJS. It is just about time for me to slip into mine (or someone's), and off to sleep, so I hope you have had a good journey, for those of us perhaps in the path of the hurricane, be safe. I hear it is headed to New England this week, so all of you be careful. It is time for marti and I to say bye for now, but first here is her constructor comment:

This puzzle was inspired by a comment that Grumpy1 made several months ago. You can find his comment at 10:41 on March 31:

"...I always liked Wiley's Dictionary in the BC comic strip. Hmmmmm, a crossword theme of clues according to Wiley? That could be fun."

Yes it was!

Notes from C.C.: Part III (Venice) of JD's trip.

Bob (JD's wonderful husband) & Dick (an old blog regular)

She said: 

"We stayed in Venice for 3 days, and I had no idea that there were 119 islands. We went to the village of Burano on one of them where lace is made. Their houses were  brightly painted, so in the past,  men coming home from the seas could find their home. If there were 2 families living in a house, it would be 2 colors. Some were 4 colors- unique!

Here is Bob and Dick in our gondola ride. It was not as smooth as I thought it would be, especially when a water ambulance went by and made waves. St. Mark's Square is VERY crowded,and the Doge's Palace is huge... filled with beautiful paintings, statues, architecture, and lots of stairs. As you can see their buildings are constantly being restored. 

Click here for more pictures. The first picture there is Bob & JD.

Thursday, October 25, 2012 Elizabeth A. Long

Theme: Two Step. Each theme entry is a combination of two common lady's shoe types, clued in a goofy new way:

20A. Question cads in their cups? : PUMP / HIGH HEELS

28A. Burden beasts of burden? : SADDLE / MULES

47A. Stumble over plumbing gunk? : SLIP ON / CLOGS

58. Proper sort ... or a cry upon solving each of this puzzle's theme answers? : GOODY! TWO SHOES...

(Or, as I would say when I see a certain designer...GOODY, JIMMY CHOO SHOES !!)

Marti here for your Thursday clearance. Let's see what else is in this one...

Across:

1. The grand concert one has 47 strings : HARP

5. Teen hangout : MALL

9. __ poll : STRAW. Ugh, I have had enough polls to last me another 4 years...

14. French possessive : A TOI

15. Chills and fever : AGUE

16. "The Voice" judge Green : CEE LO. Never heard of him...

17. Holdup device? : PROP. Fun clue, had me distracted for a moment.

18. Party person : HOST

19. Communications device : RADIO

23. Response to "Are you serious?" : YES I AM

24. Gardner of old films : AVA.  (Are those Jimmy Choo shoes?)

25. Wow : AWE

32. Western landscape feature : MESA

36. Vessel designation : HER. Ship, that is - they are always female.

37. Weigh station visitors : SEMIS

38. New Testament book : ACTS

39. Variable-yield investment option : I-BOND

42. Passed-down tales : LORE

43. CBS newswoman O'Donnell : NORAH. This lady.

45. Summer baby : LEO

46. Termini : ENDS

51. Brahms's A? : EIN. "German article"

52. View from Marseille : MER. "Sea" in French

53. To-do : HOOPLA

62. Canceled a reservation, maybe : ATE IN

64. Waikiki's whereabouts : OAHU

65. Yankee great, familiarly, with "The" : MICK. AKA, Mickey Mantle. Geez, even I knew this one!

66. Window box bloom : PANSY

67. "Exodus" novelist : URIS. Leon.

68. US Open stadium : ASHE. Named after Arthur, the great tennis player.

69. Post with carvings : TOTEM

70. Passé demo item : TAPE. Now on CD?

71. Scholarship factor : NEED

Down:

1. "Satisfied now?" : HAPPY?

2. "__ friend unbosoms freely ...": Penn : A TRUE. Sounds like a friend of Dennis...

3. Innkeeper's offerings : ROOMS

4. Longstocking of kiddie lit : PIPPI

5. Hawaiian for "very strong" : MAHI MAHI. One of my favorites, grilled.

6. All atwitter : AGOG

7. Thick with vegetation : LUSH

8. Super-harmful : LETHAL

9. Serious argument components : SCREAMS

10. Colorful duck : TEAL. Mmmm...duck again!

11. North Pacific sockeye : RED SALMON. This puzzle is making me hungry...

12. Woodcutter Baba : ALI

13. Seek favor with : WOO...hoo!

21. Feasts on : HAS. (for dinner)...more food!

22. Garden outcast : EVE

26. Strange and then some : WEIRD

27. Pluralizers : ESSES

29. Society honoree : DEB

30. Waggish : DROLL

31. Ubangi tributary : UELE. So-named tribe that lived along the Uele river.

32. Minister's quarters : MANSE

33. Culprit in some food recalls : E. COLI. I just lost my appetite...

34. Severe : STRINGENT

35. "Without delay!" : ASAP. "As soon as possible!"

40. "The Matrix" hero : NEO. Do you know him?

41. Spot for one in disfavor : DOG HOUSE

44. Rebus puzzle staple : HOMONYM

48. Outlaw Kelly : NED

49. Shriek : CRY OUT

50. Brillo alternative : SOS

54. "You've got to be kidding" : OH, MAN

55. Grace : POISE

56. Nourishment for un bebé : LECHE. Milk, in Spanish. I knew it from "La Leche League" of women who breast-feed...

57. Put in a request : ASKED

59. Department of northern France : OISE. Map, in green.

60. Lipinski with a gold medal : TARA. At 15 years old, she won the gold for figure skating.

61. Beat : WHIP

62. Well-put : APT

63. Confucian path : TAO

Until next week, see you!

Hugs,

Marti

Notes from C.C.:

Part II of JD's Italy trip: Verona. JD said:

"On our way to the Dolomite Mts., we stopped in Verona. Shakespeare never went there, so the balcony of Romeo and Juliette is just a balcony... so crowded that I did not take a photo. Verona has white marble sidewalks, many cypress trees and a smaller colosseum, (similar to Rome's arena), and several arched bridges. So pretty!

The Dolomites are spectacular. We had 31 hairpin turns while traveling through the passes."

Click here for more pictures.

Wednesday, October 24, 2012 Gareth Bain

Theme ALL ABOUT A's.   I sometimes worry that constructors might someday use up all the theme ideas, but perhaps there is no bottom to that well.  Today, Gareth came up with a new twist - each theme entry, indicated with a starred clue, has two or more words, and contains exactly three vowels - all of which are A's.  A bit on the abstract side perhaps, but as far as I know, it's quite original.

17 A. *"Ditto!" : BACK AT YA.   A slangy response.

19 A. *1955 Communist defense treaty : WARSAW PACT.  Back in 1955, at the height of the cold war, this was a Russian organized and dominated military alliance involving the Soviet Union, Albania (withdrew in 1968), Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, East Germany (withdrew in 1990), Hungary, Poland, and Romania.

 37 A. *"I can answer your questions" : ASK AWAY.  Would you like to debate me?

 58 A. *Momentarily forget : DRAW A BLANK.  Maybe I shouldn't have had this debate.

But wait, there's more:

 10 D. *"Wheel of Fortune" host : PAT SAJAK.  He loves baseball.  Who knew?

 36 D. *Space cadet's home? : LALA LAND.  Someone who's "out there" and the place he might be from.  I always wondered if this was a reference to Los Angeles.

 And the unifier --  60 A. Like the best bonds, and a hint to the answers to starred clues : AAA RATED.   From the world of high finance.  Or were you thinking of Barry, James, and Ward?

Wow - 6 stacked or crossing theme entries, plus a unifier in an unusual, rather open grid with horizontal and vertical 6-stacks in two corners.  Hi Ho, gang, JazzBumpa here.  Let's see if Gareth's effort is AAA RATED.

Across:

1. Brains : SMARTS.  If I had more, I wouldn't have drawn that blank.

7. Like many a reply env. : PPD.  Pre-paid.  (Let me get back to you on that  .  .  .)

10. Low-tech missile : PEA.  Just like the Warsaw Pact, this takes me back to to 50's.  A soda straw makes a decent launcher. 

13. New Age physician : HOLIST.  Holistic medicine.  No half-way measures here.

14. Zeno's home : ELEA.  This town, now called Velia, is in Italy, but Zeno was a Greek philosopher famous for his paradoxes.  He also might have invented the method of proof called reductio ad absurdum.

15. Namibia neighbor: Abbr. : ANGola. Map.  To the best of my knowledge, there is no Namibia, Indiana.

16. Florida export : ORANGE.   A citrus fruit, and eponym for the color.  They ship them out like clock work.

21. Old Russian dynast : TSAR. 

22. Pulitzer playwright Rice : ELMER.  Awarded for his 1929 play, "Street Scene."

23. The tiniest bit : ONE IOTA.  Used for measuring SMARTS.

25. __ Moines : DES. The capital of Iowa, and home of the caucus, is 487 miles (784 Km) from Angola.

26. Sink, as a snooker ball : POT.  My last fill.  Gareth snookered me with this one.  It is more commonly used in England, perhaps. 

28. Flattering deception : SNOW JOB.   The referent is probably overcoming resistance by burying someone with flattery or false arguments, as they would be buried in a snow drift.

31. Daddy-o : POP.  The paternal parent?  Back in the 50's this was an informal form of address. From the Urban Dictionary we get: "Somewhat equivalent to today's "dude" or "man" but with a much cooler zen-bohemian and/or streetwise hipster attitude."  Also a 1958 (back to the cold war era again) B-movie, accompanied by John Williams' first film score.

33. Marsupial sometimes called a bear : KOALA.  Cute, with a cool zen-bohemian hipster attitude.

34. Friction reducer : OIL.   When it's not on fire.  (Cf 41A.)

40. Map reader's aid : KEY.   Like this.

41. Firefighter Red : ADAIR.  From Wikipedia:  "Paul Neal 'Red' Adair (June 18, 1915 – August 7, 2004) was an American oil well firefighter. He became world notable as an innovator in the highly specialized and extremely hazardous profession of extinguishing and capping blazing, erupting oil well blowouts, both land-based and offshore."

43. Gaming console with a fitness component : WII.  From Nintendo.

44. County in eastern Ireland : KILDARE.  Just to the West of Dublin.

47. R&B's __ Hill : DRU.  Beats me.

49. Peoria hrs. : CST.  Central Standard Time.  Peoria is 218 miles (351 Km) from Des Moines.  Don't you wish you were there?

52. Score tempo : ALLEGRO.  Like the previous link.

54. Opposite of neo- : PALEO.  From a Greek root, meaning "long ago."

56. Fr. miss : MLLE.  Mademoiselle.

62. Dumpster fill : REFUSE.  Nasty, evil smelling stuff, which is why I would refuse to go there.

63. Reunion attendees : KIN.  Nothing could be stated for certain at my last reunion.  It was all relative.

64. Goes down in the west : SETS.  This is referring to the sun.  Now, shall I turn this over to Tinbeni, or the DFers?  Vexing problem.

65. Done for the first time : MAIDEN.   Oh, DF .  .  .  or maybe not.

66. Sew up : END.  Nope - I have all these downs ahead of me.

67. __ de deux : PAS.  A dance for two.

68. Trusty mounts : STEEDS.  Horses.

Down:

1. Made an appearance : SHOWED up.

2. Team captain's concern : MORALE.   Keep those spirits high.

3. Morning janglers : ALARMS.  Oh, boy, am I dreading that,

4. Teeth-cleaning step : RINSE. 

5. Title writer in a John Irving novel : T S GARP.   From "The World According to Garp," John Irving's 4th novel.  I read this many years ago, and still have some vivid memories of certain details, some of which I would like very much to forget.

6. Hasenpfeffer, for one : STEW.  Rabbit stew.  I've never had it.

7. Director's cry : PLACES, everyone.

8. Jam thickener : PECTIN.  Any of a group of water soluble high molecular weight carbohydrates found in ripe fruits that forms a gel with sugar.  Remember that if you're ever in a jam.

9. Black Hills terr. : DAKota.  Also a Dodge pickup truck.

11. "A Day Without Rain" New Ager : ENYA.  Seems as if Eithne Ní Bhraonáin SHOWED up just about every time I blogged.

12. Culture medium : AGAR.  Another vegetable based gel, this time extracted from red algae, and used to grow bacteria.

14. Israeli diplomat Abba : EBAN.  An Israeli diplomat and politician who was born in So. Africa.

18. When one might have a late lunch : AT TWO.  That's just about when we had our lunch on Tues. after running a bunch of errands.

20. "The Chosen" novelist Chaim : POTOK.  That was the first novel of this American  author and rabbi.

24. "The Addams Family" adjective : OOKY.   This stumped me until I got it from perps, but now I think I remember that they're all together OOKY.

27. Special __: military force : OPS.  Operations.  My older step son in in A. F. Special Ops.  I have no idea what he does.

29. Flamenco shout : OLE. 

30. Shoreline indentation : BAY.  More than an indentation, I'd say.

32. Print maker : PAW.  Not like a back-woods Daddy-o, like that thing at the end of a dog leg.

34. Wine barrel wood : OAK.

35. Dictator Amin : IDI. Nasty fellow.

37. Inland Asian sea : ARAL.   Is it still shrinking?

38. Lehár operetta "The Merry __" : WIDOW.  Lehar's first big success.

39. Breathable gases : AIR.  78% nitrogen, 21% oxygen, 1% argon, and smaller amounts of lots of other vapors. (Cf 62 A.)

42. Car at a long light, say : IDLER.  The longest minute of your life.

45. Herbal brew : RED TEA.  Never heard of it, but it's caffeine free, high in antioxidents, and kosher. 

46. Everglades birds : EGRETS.   Do egrets have regrets?

48. Cheerful : UPBEAT.  Like allegro music.

49. Painter Monet : CLAUDE.  Here is a gallery.

50. Had an inkling : SENSED.  I had a feeling this would SHOW.

51. Small gifts : TOKENS.

53. Extremists, for short : RADS.  Radicals.

55. 2004 remake starring Jude Law : ALFIE.  What's it all about?

56. Fabricate : MAKE. 

57. Rested : LAIN.

59. Venus de Milo's lack : ARMS.  Other than that, she seems to be in pretty good shape.  She is a Greek statue from about 130 B.C. and at 6'8' is as tall as Doug Fister, who has an excellent ARM. 

61. Egyptian snake : ASP.  In PALEO times this referred to varieties of venomous snakes in the Nile region.  Traditionally, it was believed that Cleopatra committed suicide by ASP bite.   German researchers have recently concluded that she did herself in with a mixture of hemlock, wolfsbane and opium.

Well -quite a meaty puzzle with rich themeage, lots of learning opportunities and high quality fill.  I'll rate it AAA, and that's no SNOW JOB.  How about you?

Jazzbumpa

Notes from C.C.:

Here is a beautiful street scene JD took during her visit to Italy. Click here to see the big lake. 

JD said: " This was where we were the 1st 3 days of our tour, Lake Como. We stayed in Como, but water taxied over to the beautiful village of Bellagio, probably the most tranquil and dramatic place on the lake.  (George Clooney lives in another area on the lake... He has 4 homes.) We also took a day trip to Lake Lugano in the Swiss alps. This area did not look at all like I thought Switzerland would look like."

Tuesday, October 23, 2012 Steven J. St. John

Theme: Best Sellers - Best selling books by a doctor-turned-novelist that became successful films.

17A. 57-Across best-seller made into a 1971 film, with "The" : "ANDROMEDA STRAIN". Discretion is advised.

26A. 57-Across best-seller made into a 1993 film : "JURASSIC PARK"

37A. 57-Across best-seller made into a 1995 film : "CONGO"

43A. 57-Across best-seller made into a 1997 film : "THE LOST WORLD"

57A. Doctor-turned-novelist born 10/23/1942 : MICHAEL CRICHTON

Argyle here. For some, this was a walk in the park and others, it was fill in the slats in the picket fence until you get the "A-Ha!". Thick corners and two spanners make for a good looking grid. A pangram.

Let the discussion begin.

Across:

1. Athenian with harsh laws : DRACO. The way I read the Wiki article, he instituted a better system but went overboard with the punishments.

6. Sink-cleaning brand : AJAX. Originally an abrasive scouring powder.

10. Greenish-blue : AQUA

14. Put one's feet up : RELAX

15. Olympics sled : LUGE. Ahh, relaxing with her feet up.

16. Expressions of disapproval : TUTs. and tsks.

20. Golf club now made of metal : WOOD. The long distance clubs.

21. Line on a graph : AXIS

22. Move crab-style : SIDLE

23. Heredity unit : GENE

25. Lake formed by the Aswan Dam : NASSER. The lake is named after Gamal Abdel Nasser, one of the leaders of the Egyptian Revolution of 1952, and the second President of Egypt, who initiated the High Dam project. (Wiki)

31. Japanese cartoon art : ANIME. The kids can tell you about it.

32. Exposes : OUTS

33. Shortest mo. : FEB.

36. Despicable : VILE

39. Tear go-with : WEAR

40. Chopper : AXE

41. Head of the manor : LORD

42. Windy City airport : O'HARE. Chicago. The airport took the name Orchard Field Airport, the source of its three-letter code ORD.

46. Across the sea : ABROAD

49. Accessories for a "Just Married" sign : CANS. To make as much noise as possible. (plastic containers won't work)

50. Plumbing woes : DRIPS

51. Not real : FAUX

53. Ref's call : "TIME!"

60. Concept : IDEA

61. Turn sharply : VEER

62. Stunned : DAZED. After taking the below, perhaps.

63. It may be standardized : TEST

64. "Don't get excited" : "EASY"

65. Sports page figures : STATS

Down:

1. Deadlock : DRAW

2. Gambling mecca near Carson City : RENO. You know, the city west of Los Angeles.

3. Fashion's Gucci : ALDO. Quite a few people's names in the Down section.

4. Bridge, e.g. : CARD GAME

5. Tic-tac-toe dud : O X O

6. Former Soviet premier Kosygin : ALEXEI. In office October 1964 – October 1980.

7. Dench of "Iris" : JUDI. I'm not familiar with "Iris"(2001) but, oh, the other roles she's had. IMDb.

8. "Jumpin' Jack Flash, it's __ ...": Rolling Stones lyric : A GAS. Clip.(3:35) I love the scene in the movie, "Jack Flash", where Whoopi is listening to this song and yelling, "Speak English, Mick".

9. Symbolic signatures : XES

10. Vulnerable : AT RISK

11. Campus courtyards : QUADS. Because the housing is laid out in quadrangles.

12. Practical : UTILE

13. Ed of "Lou Grant" : ASNER

18. Controls, as a helm : MANS

19. Nicholas and Peter : TSARS

24. Houston-to-Miami dir. : ESE

25. Bosnia peacekeeping gp. : NATO

26. Mud in a cup : JAVA. Add it to my collection from October 2, battery acid, brew, caffeine, café, café au lait, café noir, cappuccino, decaf, decoction, demitasse, espresso, forty weight, hot stuff, ink, jamocha, java, joe, mocha, mud, mud in a cup, perk, varnish remover.

27. Operating system on many Internet servers : UNIX. (from Wiki) In 1970, Peter Neumann coined the project name Unics (UNiplexed Information and Computing Service) as a pun on Multics, (Multiplexed Information and Computer Services). Unics could eventually support multiple simultaneous users, and it was renamed Unix. (Gee, I love a pun but...)

28. Agitate : RILE

29. Time-share unit : CONDO

30. Flat-nosed dog : PUG. "I'm ready for my close-up."

33. Dread : FEAR

34. Banjoist Scruggs : EARL. Unreal! Clip.(2:45)

35. Reared : BRED

37. Not just for males : COED

38. Basketball's Magic, on scoreboards : ORL. (Orlando Magic)

39. Question of identity : "WHO'S THAT?". "I Tawt I Taw a Puddy Tat."

41. Tibetan capital : LHASA

42. MYOB part : OWN

43. Astaire/Rogers musical : "TOP HAT". From RKO.

44. Flee, mouse-style : SCURRY

45. Curbside call : TAXI

46. Ticket word : ADMIT

47. Bouquet tosser : BRIDE

48. Reduces to small pieces, as potatoes : RICES. Pieces the size of a grain of rice, hence the name.

51. __ circus : FLEA

52. Hard-to-hit pitchers : ACES

54. Chichén __: Mayan ruins : ITZÁ

55. Champagne brand : MOET. "She keeps Moët et Chandon in a pretty cabinet..."

56. Finishes : ENDS

58. Holiday lead-in : EVE

59. DJ's assortment : CD's

Argyle

Notes from C.C.:

Here is a beautiful photo of JD's happy family. They celebrated Truman's 5th birthday on August 29. 
 

Front Row (Left to Right: JD is holding grandsons Cameron (son of Shelby & Joe) & Grady (Son of Corie & Derek); Bob (JD's husband) is holding grandson Truman (big brother to Grady). 

Back Row (Left to Right: Joe (Shelby's husband); Shelby (JD's oldest daughter); Corie (JD's youngest daughter) & Derek (Corie's husband)

Click here, you'll see most of the family photos JD has kindly shared with us.

Monday, October 22, 2012 David Steinberg

Theme: Melt in your Mouth - Perennial Halloween favorites are the unifier and four long theme entries plus a spanner follow the M and M lead.

17A. Versatile, as clothes outfits : MIX AND MATCH

24A. Auto title data : MAKE AND MODEL

38A. Toon mouse couple : MICKEY AND MINNIE

49A. All one's strength : MIGHT AND MAIN

60A. Gentle : MEEK AND MILD

69A. Colorful candy purchase, or what 17-, 24-, 38-, 49- and 60-Across all are : M AND M's

Argyle here. Trick or Treat! I think we got a treat for our Monday puzzle. We have had a similar one before, Link but this might be a tad harder.

Across:

1. Capt. Kirk's Asian lieutenant : MR. SULU. Star Trek.

7. Big name in elevators : OTIS

11. Eng. majors' degrees : BAS. (Bachelor of Arts and Science)(assuming it's English and not Engineering.) No wait, I messed up. I should have parsed that as BA's, Bachelor of Arts, plural.

14. Aid from a road travel org. : AAA MAP

15. Calamine mineral : ZINC

16. Make a decision : OPT

19. N.Y. engineering sch. : RPI. (Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute(over by Irish Miss in Troy), where BAS can mean Bachelor of Applied Science)

20. Stein filler : ALE

21. Hawkeye State : IOWA

22. Tom of "The Seven Year Itch" : EWELL. IMDb.

27. Represent as identical : EQUATE

30. Wine: Pref. : OENO

31. Actress Rene : RUSSO

32. Way in or out : DOOR

35. Iraq War concern: Abbr. : WMD. (weapons of mass destruction)

42. __ dye: chemical colorant : AZO. A little tough for a Monday.

43. High-pitched woodwind : OBOE

44. Breakfast corners : NOOKS. Read your Nooks in your nooks?

45. Old OTC watchdog : NASD. (Financial Industry Regulatory Authority) Over-the-counter (OTC), in this case, off-exchange trading is to trade financial instruments such as stocks, bonds, commodities or derivatives directly between two parties and not drugs.

48. Borneo sultanate : BRUNEI. Perps and a WAG.

54. Skylit rooms : ATRIA

55. Wedding cake layer : TIER

56. Dean's list no. : GPA. (Grade Point Average)

59. Highland refusal : NAE

64. Chicago transports : ELs. (elevated trains)

65. End of a threat : ELSE

66. Like many rumors : UNTRUE

67. Baseball's Cobb et al. : TYs

68. Small complaints that are "picked" : NITS

Down:

1. Papa's mate : MAMA. Clip.(3:19)

2. Skateboard park fixture : RAIL

3. __-Coburg: former German duchy : SAXE. Map. The city.

4. Actress Thurman : UMA

5. PC-to-PC system : LAN. (local area network)

6. "Rabbit at Rest" author : UPDIKE. John Updike

7. Conductor Seiji : OZAWA. Seiji Ozawa - Short Biography.

8. Giant : TITAN

9. Business name abbr. : INC.

10. Connive : SCHEME. 29D. Amer. lawmaking group : U.S. CONGRESS. (Sorry, couldn't help myself.)

11. Approached rapidly : BORE DOWN ON

12. iLife producer : APPLE

13. Not moving a muscle : STILL

18. "The Simpsons" bartender : MOE

23. Came out ahead : WON

24. Face hider : MASK

25. Stub __ : A TOE

26. College housing : DORM

27. Humorist Bombeck : ERMA

28. Quick classroom test : QUIZ

32. Gently applied amount : DAB

33. Yoko from Tokyo : ONO

34. Dedicatory poem : ODE

36. Voice amplifier : MIKE

37. Arnaz who played Ricky : DESI

39. Luke Skywalker's mentor : YODA

40. Cross inscription : INRI. translation, "Jesus the Nazarene, King of the Jews".

41. Subject of a sentence, typically : NOUN

46. Yellowfin tuna : AHI. Not a sushi clue today.

47. Pollen-producing flower part : STAMEN

48. Showman who teamed with Bailey : BARNUM

49. Painter Édouard : MANET. For Tinbeni. Cheers!

50. Peninsular Mediterranean country : ITALY

51. H-bomb trial, e.g. : N-TEST

52. Flood stoppers : DIKES

53. __ culpa : MEA. Just a thought; I haven't seen or heard, "my bad", lately, and that's a good thing.

56. Encircle : GIRD

57. Prune, before drying : PLUM

58. Fruity beverages : ADEs. Time to put the ades away and bring on the toddies and nogs.

61. New Haven Ivy Leaguer : ELI. Yale.

62. Genetic material : DNA

63. Rainier, e.g.: Abbr. : MTN. Southeast of Seattle in the state of Washington.

Argyle

Notes from C.C.:

Here is a fruit-laden lemon tree from Dennis' new home. He's been enjoying fresh lemonade. Click here for more pictures. I've never seen those tropical trees in person (probably never will) and thought the last one was mango tree.

Sunday October 21, 2012 Alan Arbesfeld

Theme: Alphabetical Pairings - AB, CD, EF, GH, IJ, KL, MN, OP, QR, ST, UV, WX & YZ are the initials of each theme entry.

 23A. Catherine of Aragon's successor, marriagewise : ANNE BOLEYN

 24A. High-volume pesticide deliverer : CROP DUSTER. Do you use this in your farm, Windhover?

 34A. "Cimarron" novelist : EDNA FERBER

41A. Best Picture of 1932 : GRAND HOTEL

 55A. Lively folk dances : IRISH JIGS. Is Jig part of your family reunion activities, Irish Miss? We had Polka dance last time. Boomer's mother was of Polish/German roots, mostly Norwegian on his father's side.

58A. Citrusy pie flavor : KEY LIME. Have some!

67A. Attempts to smooth ruffled feathers : MAKES NICE. I wonder if TTP likes Adele's "Skyfall". Amazing voice.

74A. Crankcase components : OIL PANS

77A. Page-turner : QUICK READ. I'm not sure if "Red Sorghum" by Mo Yan (the new Nobelist) is available in English. But it's a beautiful book. Definitely not a quick read.

86A. Cardiologist's exam : STRESS TEST

92A. Burkina Faso, once : UPPER VOLTA. Not familiar with Burkina Faso.

113A. Procedures for detecting carpal fractures : WRIST X-RAYS

115A. Restricted parking area, in some cases : YELLOW ZONE

Some key points in this theme:

1) Orderly letter progression;

2) Each symmetrically placed pair must have the same number of letters (AB= YZ letter count wise)

3) All the theme entries should be placed Across for visual effect

4) Most of the theme entries will be on the short side, as there are 12 theme entries (13, Dummy! Thanks, John Lampkin) and it's challenging to put them all Across. More often we see 7 to 9 on Sundays.

When I first started, I thought CREDIT LINE and LOSING TIME are parts of the theme due to their grid placements. But the gimmick quickly revealed itself. 

Across:

1. Dominant theme : MOTIF

6. "... __ a puddy tat!" : I TAW

10. Collectible game system : ATARI. I bet its collectible value is not as high as those old baseball cards in Dennis' boxes. He's currently unpacking and just discovered that he had a few 1908 tobacco cards.

15. Confident words : I CAN

19. MasterCard offering : CREDIT LINE

21. Beset by delays : LOSING TIME

25. They could go either way : TOSS-UPS.  And 32. Ratio for 25-Across : EVEN ODDS

26. When many lunch : AT NOON. Mine is 11:00am. Yours?

28. Plan : INTEND

29. "Stay" singer Lisa : LOEB. Haven't seen her for some time.

31. PBS benefactor : NEA (National Endowment for the Arts)
  

38. Physician's gp. : AMA. Boomer's VA doctor said that he could take a handful of Aleve next time his arthritis flared up. The bottle said you should not take no more than 3 per day. Whom to trust?

39. Brush fire op : EVAC (Evacuation)

40. Latin king : REX

48. Fronton balls : PELOTAS. Jai alai balls. Costs over $100/each? Wow! Fronton is Jai alai court. Cesta is the basket. I learned from doing Xword. 

52. Lenin's successor : STALIN. This picture (Marx, Engels, Lenin, Stalin & Mao) was in all our classroom walls.

54. Entertain with extravagance : REGALE

57. Classical lead-in : NEO. Neo-classical.

59. Rival of Cassio : IAGO. "Othello".

60. Oil used in paint : LINSEED

62. "Lordy!" : EGAD

63. Units in nutrition : GRAMS
 

69. __ fatty acid : TRANS
 

70. Russian wheels : LADA. Stumped me last time. Again today.

71. Emit : RADIATE

72. Tach measures: Abbr. : RPMs 

76. "Dude!" : BRO

82. Belgian lager, familiarly : STELLA. Stella Artois.

83. Browning's "How Do I Love Thee?" e.g. : SONNET. Have you dated anyone who never said "I love you" to you?

85. In a stuffed-up way : NASALLY
  

88. It fell after about 15 years : MIR. Hard clue. 1986 to 2001.

90. Pet food brand : IAMS. I also think Marti should keep the new cat. It looks so pert.

91. Landlocked Afr. land : ETH (Ethiopia)
 

96. Adds moisture to : HYDRATES. I'm a firm believer in moisturizers.

102. Batman after Michael : VAL (Kilmer). Michael Keaton.

103. Sweetheart : BEAU

104. Gold compound : AURATE. Makes sense, AU.

105. Civil War battle site : SHILOH

108. Took in, say : ALTERED

117. Avoids a confrontation : STEPS ASIDE

118. Go through : EXPERIENCE

119. Swedish actress Persson : ESSY. I belong to those 47% who don't know this lady.

120. Marketing data : SALES
 

121. Brown and Patrick : DANs.

122. Took a shot : TRIED

Down:

1. Hurdle for a would-be doc : MCAT

2. "Just answer yes __!" : OR NO

3. Place in math class? : TENS. Clever clue.

4. "Et tu, Brute?" day : IDES

5. Bone below the femur : FIBULA

6. "Let me get back to you" : I'LL SEE

7. Reason for sudden death : TIE. I hope you thought of sports immediately, otherwise, the clue is pretty heavy.

8. "Dragonwyck" author Seton : ANYA

9. Followed : WENT NEXT 

10. Metal giant : ALCOA. Always the first to report quarterly earnings, among the Dow components.

11. Picador's target : TORO

12. Without dissent : AS ONE MAN
 

13. Mending target : RIP

14. Non-studio pic : INDIE

 15. "__ die for!" : IT'S TO.  Must be Lucina's homemade tamales! I bought a block of taro cake yesterday and fried some for lunch. Too much rice flour and not enough taro flour, Jayce.

 

16. Credited in a note : CITED

17. Improve : AMEND

18. Unhip types : NERDS

20. Riding, with "on" : TOP OF

22. "Project Runway" mentor Tim : GUNN. "Make it work!". Like Emeril's "Bam!"

27. __ Tamid: synagogue lamp : NER. Gimme for Lemonade/Hahtool. Completely unknown to me.

30. "Crank up the heat!" : BRR

33. Carpooling convenience : VAN

34. At all : EVER
 

35. Catalan surrealist : DALI

36. Sgts., e.g. : NCOs

37. First lady before Mamie : BESS

38. Melodic segments : ARIOSI. Plural of Arioso.

39. Dermal opening : EPI. Epidermal. 

41. Headly of "Dick Tracy" : GLENNE. No idea.

42. Stowe novel : DRED

43. "Ahem" relative : HEY

44. Lustful looker : OGLER. Here is the most famous Chinese actress: Gong Li. I think she's more beautiful than Bill G's girlfriend Sofia Vergara. Gong Li's debut film is Mo Yan's "Red Sorghum".

45. Subarctic forest : TAIGA

46. Jazz trumpeter Ziggy : ELMAN. Gimme for Pas de chat, or her husband.

47. British city whose natives are called Loiners : LEEDS. Loiners? What does it mean?

49. "I'm holding it!" : THIS

50. Multi-platinum Steely Dan album : AJA

51. Odysseus trio, to Homer : SIGMAS. The three S in Odysseus, I suppose.

53. "The Good Girl" star : ANISTON (Jennifer). I've watched almost all of Aniston's movies. "The Good Girl" is so so. Did you see "Derailed"? It's terrifying.

56. Use spurs on : GOAD

58. Not cut : KEEP IN

60. Picked up : LEARNT

61. Beige shade : ECRU

63. Lip protection : GLOSS

64. "Nick of Time" singer : RAITT (Bonnie)

65. Freud contemporary : ADLER

66. Colorful autumn tree : MAPLE

68. Put the __ on: squelch : KIBOSH. Spitzboov used this phrase at times.

69. Impatient sounds : TSKS

71. Genetic chains : RNAS

73. '70s Lynyrd Skynyrd label : MCA

75. Racing's Unsers : ALs

77. Canal-cleaning device : Q-TIP

78. Way to travel : RAIL
 

79. Israeli port city : ELAT. It appeared often in the old Wayne R. Willams' puzzles.

80. __ mater : ALMA

81. Peptic opening? : DYS. Dyspeptic. 

83. Leaves the harbor : SETS SAIL

84. Working : EMPLOYED

87. Shirt prohibited at most golf courses, ironically : TEE.

89. Yank's foe : REB

92. Initials at O'Hare : UAL

93. Old Spanish coins : REALES. I belong to those 47% who don't know these coins.

 

94. Knight's quality : VALOR

95. Stay one step ahead of : OUTWIT

96. Anchor cable opening : HAWSE. Forgot. We had this before. CCnesia.

97. Mongolian tents : YURTS

98. Hangs on a line : DRIES

99. Rough, in a way : RASPY

100. Court figs. : ATTs

101. State with a panhandle : TEXAS

102. Shop class holders : VISES

106. __ Park: FDR home site : HYDE

107. Twice tri- : HEXA. "Six" prefix.

109. Israeli statesman Weizman : EZER

110. Package word with a cable car in its "o" : RONI

111. Suffix with defer : ENCE

112. Monopoly card : DEED

114. Pretoria's land: Abbr. : RSA (Republic of South Africa)

116. Hosp. staffer : LPN. Hi there, Blue Iris.

C.C.