Wednesday, May 14, 2014 C. C. Burnikel

Theme: We all have our ups and downs; even the center of our solar system. I hope you got to see the circles in the puzzle, since they are crucial to discovering the placement and meaning of this clever and original theme. The word SUN is contained in four symmetrically-placed, multiple-word vertical theme answers, alternating in retrograde and prograde arrangement, giving us two each of  SUN RISE and SUN SET.  I guess that makes this some sort of a concealed rebus, but I'll set aside my usual disdain in deference to this beautiful construction by someone we all know, love and revolve around.

Here are the theme entries, presented from left to right in the grid, rather than numerical order, to preserve the rise and fall.

3D. Pageant for under-20s : MISS TEEN USA.   This year's pageant will be at 8:00 p.m. on August 2nd at the Atlantis Paradise Island Resort in Nassau, Bahamas, many hours after SUNrise.  

 Cassidy Wolfe - 2013 Miss Teen USA

32D. Admits defeat : SAYS UNCLE.  Otherwise the victim's arm could get twisted until SUNset.  This expression might go all the way back to ancient Rome.

9D. Like our secret : BETWEEN US.  Shhhh! Don't tell anyone. At least not before SUNrise.

25D. Cheating victim's cry : THAT'S UNFAIR.  A fair person would never let the SUN set on such an outrage.

And the centrally placed unifier, 14D. "Fiddler on the Roof" song suggested twice by this puzzle's circles : SUNRISE, SUNSET, which then naturally becomes today's theme song.

A nice, elegant touch is that at each rotation of the SUN, the word is broken at the first letter encountered in reading, N for the rises and S for the sets.  Looks like North and South, rather than East and West.

This is not a startlingly unusual grid, but, upon closer inspection, it does seem a bit out of the ordinary.  The symmetrically placed horizontal 6 and 8 stacks near the top and bottom don't leave room for a more typical theme placement.  The 13-letter vertical unifier is not an axis of symmetry.  The only symmetry in the grid is 180 degree rotational, around the center square.  Let's see what else is in orbit.

Across:

1. Downfall : DEMISE.  From Late Middle English via Old French, and ultimately Latin.

7. Msg. to squad cars : APB.  All Points Bulletin.  Note Abrv. in Cl. & Ans.

10. Luxury resort amenity : SPA.

13. "Savages" director Stone : OLIVER.  Not my kind of movie, but here is the trailer.

14. Unsportsmanlike sort : SOREHEAD.  Bad loser.

16. Egyptian president during the Suez Crisis : NASSER.  Gamal Abdal, Jan 15, 1918 - Sep 28, 1970.  He died of a heart attack shortly after the conclusion of the Arab League Summit Conference.

17. One-piece garments : UNITARDS.  Leotards with legs.

Source

18. Golf Hall of Famer Ernie : ELS.   He is one of six golfers to twice win both the U.S. Open and The Open Championship.

 Source

19. "Death in Venice" author : MANN.  Thomas.

21. Bugs on a highway : VWs.  Beetles.  In August you might see monarch butterflies.

Source

22. Wobble : TEETER.  Weebles TEETER, but they don't fall down.

Source

24. Gossip : YENTA.  Yiddish.

27. See 26-Down : SEA.   Plus:  26D. With 27-Across, one end of the Dardanelles : AEGEAN.  The Dardanelles is a narrow strait in northwestern Turkey connecting the AEGEAN SEA to the Sea of Marmara.

28. Bird: Pref. : AVI-. So why isn't AVI-brained a common expression?

29. Tie up : TETHER.

31. Still-life pitchers : EWERS.

33. __ Martin: Bond's car : ASTON.

35. Dating service datum : AGE.

36. Summer of songs : DONNA.  Summer is hot.

37. Narc's org. : DEA.  Drug Enforcement Agency.

38. Peso spender's pronoun : USTED.  You, nominative case, formal.

40. __-turn : NO U.  Ixnay on the ooeyay.

41. Brewery supply : YEAST.   Hops, barley, malt.

43. "What a shame!" : SO SAD.

44. Size up : ASSESS.  Want to ASSESS these asses?

They're wild

46. Beehive State college player : UTE.

48. Attila follower : HUN.  Attila ruled the Huns from 434 until his death in 453.  This great warrior died of a nose bleed on his wedding night.  The recent report that his grave had been found turned out to be a hoax.

49. Overact : HAM UP.  And 45D. Overact : EMOTE.  Crossing clechos share the M.

50. Big name in antivirus software : NORTON.

52. "Dear Yoko" subject : ONO.  Song from the Double Fantasy album.

53. Rise precipitously : SOAR. 

54. Coat lining : FUR.  Silver is for clouds

57. Treatment for burnout : REST CURE. 

61. "Confidence in Motion" car : SUBARU.  

63. Has a knack for : EXCELS AT

64. Online order confirmations : E-MAILS. 

65. Designer of Hong Kong's Bank of China Tower : PEI.   Ieoh Ming Pei (born April 26, 1917) is a Chinese born American architect who likes sweeping lines and cantilevered structures.

66. Brain scan letters : EEG. ElectroEncepheloGraph

67. Far from abundant : SPARSE.   I had SCARCE.

Down:

1. "Ta-da!" : DONE.  Did you get the Ta-da?

2. Airline to Tel Aviv : EL AL.

4. Drips in the ICU : IVs. Intensive Care Unit and  Intra-Venous.  Note Abrvs.

5. Terse meeting request : SEE ME.  Usually not good news.

6. Editorial slips : ERRATA.  Mistakes in copy.

7. Chicago Loop's __ Center : AON.  Skyscraper completed in 1974, originally the Standard Oil Building

8. In on : PRIVY TO.

10. Inspiring lesson, perhaps: Abbr. : SER.  Sermon.

11. Spot for notes : PAD.  Is your iPad a note pad?

12. Website clutter : ADs.

15. "It __ hit me yet" : HASN'T.  And maybe it won't

20. Place name meaning "snow-covered" : NEVADA.  Spanish.

23. Draw wages : EARN.  I'm very disappointed that I couldn't find a picture of a cartoonist literally drawing wages.

27. Logo on some sports bras : SWOOSH.

Nike

30. Funny Foxx : REDD.  Of Sanford and Son fame.

He's not the son

31. Writer Ferber : EDNA.  August 18, 1885, July 16, 1968.  She wrote Giant, So Big, Showboat and Cimarron.

34. Skin picture : TATTOO.

 Dwayne Johnson - The Rock

39. NYC gallery district : SOHO.  South of Houston Street.

42. Champion, as a cause : ESPOUSE.

47. Deletes : ERASES.

51. "You're fired!" speaker : TRUMP.  The Donald.

55. Bing results, briefly : URLs.  Internet search engine.

56. Stratagem : RUSE. 

57. GOP member : REPublican.  No politics.

58. Program file suffix : EXEcutable.

59. "Nova" subj. : SCIence.

60. Tattered tee, maybe : RAG.  Re-use for old clothes.

62. Pipe up in the pasture : BAA.  "Is it ewe?" Tom asked, sheepishly.

An excellent puzzle by our own fearless leader.  Hope you all enjoyed this cirque du soleil.

Jazzbumpa

Tuesday, May 13, 2014 Gail Grabowski and Bruce Venzke

Theme: Double Trouble - Towns whose name can mean something else.

20A. Agreement in a Massachusetts city? : CONCORD CONCORD

26A. Adobe dwelling in a Colorado city? : PUEBLO PUEBLO

49A. Hanging sculpture in an Alabama city? : MOBILE MOBILE

58A. Bovine in a New York city? : BUFFALO BUFFALO

Argyle here. A simple theme yet hard to think of additional cities. Two of the cities/items do not change their pronunciations while the other two may. Straightforward with a few exceptions.

Across:

1. Carve in stone : ETCH

5. "Nana" novelist Émile : ZOLA. "...he is used enough in crosswords to be a considered a Monday entry." Nana, on the other hand, clued as the novel/movie, is Thursday fare.

9. Diagnostic aids : TESTS

14. Scott of "Happy Days" : BAIO

15. Red-wrapped cheese : EDAM

16. One of the archangels : URIEL. All perps for me.

17. State secrets? : BLAB. State is used as a verb here.

18. Disreputable guy : ROUE

19. Capone cohort Frank : NITTI. An entry that caused problems a while ago; a test of your memory.

23. "That's awesome!" : "OOH!"

24. Charlemagne's realm: Abbr. : HRE. (Holy Roman Empire)

25. Highland refusal : NAE

32. Wanted poster abbr. : AKA. (also known as)

33. Go right or left : TURN

34. Do figure eights, say : SKATE

38. Likely to mouth off : PERT

40. Slap a sale price on : RETAG

43. Go bonkers : SNAP

44. Gelatin garnish : ASPIC

46. Attention-calling type: Abbr. : ITAL

48. See 60-Down : TIE

53. 1977 Steely Dan album : AJA. The complete album, if you have the time.(39:19)

56. "Scream" director Craven : WES

57. Noise detector : EAR

64. Take up a hem, say : ALTER

65. __ fide : BONA

66. NATO alphabet ender : ZULU

68. Pasture : FIELD

69. Baldwin or Guinness : ALEC

70. Earns with difficulty, with "out" : EKEs

71. Bakery pastries : TARTS

72. Thorny bloom : ROSE. by any other name...

73. Light-tube gas : NEON

Down:

1. Recede : EBB

2. Bath powder mineral : TALC

3. Italian "Toodle-oo!" : "CIAO!"

4. Rub elbows (with) : HOBNOB. "Prison gave Martha Stewart the opportunity to hobnob with the hoi polloi"

5. Moment of attack : ZERO HOUR

6. Sign to take out the trash : ODOR

7. Praise highly : LAUD

8. Don of "Cocoon" : AMECHE. Here in his younger days.

9. Roads under rivers : TUNNELS. Under the channel, the Chunnel.

10. Songwriter Clapton : ERIC

11. Use, as a chair : SIT ON

12. Tri- plus one : TETRA

13. Lose traction : SLIDE

21. Stable youngster : COLT

22. Sun or moon, to a poet : ORB

26. Dada : PAPA

27. They're played at luaus : UKEs

28. Wyatt of the Wild West : EARP

29. Post- opposite : PRE

30. Up to : UNTIL

31. Signs off on : OKs

35. Not a supporter : ANTI

36. Cow's fly swatter : TAIL

37. Swordplay sword : ÉPÉE

39. Boy in "A Christmas Carol" : TIM

41. Devoured : ATE

42. Competitive look : GAME FACE

45. Fraidy-cats : COWARDS

47. Rye buy : LOAF

50. Ger. neighbor : BEL. (Belgium)

51. Atmospheric pressure line : ISOBAR

52. Impudent : BRAZEN

53. Sternward : ABAFT

54. Roberts of "Pretty Woman" : JULIA

55. On the trail of : AFTER

59. Traditional Stetson material : FELT

60. With 48-Across, Western neckwear : BOLO

61. Quelques-__: a few, in French : UNES

62. Gospel writer : LUKE

63. Butter look-alike : OLEO

67. Org. with SEALs : USN. (United States Navy) They know what ABAFT means.

Argyle

Monday, May 12, 2014 Jennifer Nutt

Theme: Bye Bye - The unifying word follows just the first word today; like yet unlike Sunday.

18A. *Pre-performance audio test : SOUND CHECK. Sound waves.

25A. *Area marked with police tape : CRIME SCENE. Crime waves.

50A. *Disturbing potential, as of a gory film scene : SHOCK VALUE. Shock waves.

61A. *Best possible poker hand : ROYAL FLUSH. Royal waves.

3D. *Lasers at a rock concert, e.g. : LIGHT SHOW. Light waves.

36D. Cause a sensation, or what the first words of the answers to starred entries may do : MAKE WAVES

Argyle here.  A real quick Monday despite six theme entries. Not much to trip up on.

Across:

1. Big-eyed birds : OWLS

5. Spanish house : CASA

9. Witchy woman : CRONE

14. Toy in the sand : PAIL

15. For whom the memo is intended: Abbr. : ATTN. (attention)

16. Window sticker : DECAL

17. Frozen breakfast brand : EGGO

20. Zap, as leftovers : REHEAT

22. Carnival city : RIO de Janeiro

23. Bunny features : EARS

24. Gallery display : ART

28. New England whitefish : SCROD

30. Pipe joint : ELL

31. "Huzzah!" : "YAHOO!"

33. Singer Ronstadt : LINDA. She is one of my favorites.

 

36. Puddle-bottom earth : MUD. Great clue.

39. Objects of worship : ICONS

40. Historic timespan : ERA

41. Theater platform : STAGE

43. Bench for flock members : PEW

44. Zapped while resisting arrest, say : TASED

46. Turbaned Punjabis : SIKHS. Punjabis - Natives or inhabitants of the Punjab.

47. Quick hellos : HIs

48. Concur : AGREE

54. Lbs. and ozs. : WTs

57. "All __ Jazz" : THAT

58. Crew blade : OAR

59. Spread out ungracefully : SPRAWL

64. Athletic shoe brand : AVIA

65. Many a low-budget flick : INDIE. A film from an independent production company..

66. Bassoon cousin : OBOE

67. Steam outlet : VENT

68. Horror or romance, e.g. : GENRE

69. Sunbeams : RAYS

70. "Understood" : "I SEE"

Down:

1. La Scala production : OPERA

2. Put money (on) : WAGER

4. Gin flavoring : SLOE

5. Fidel or Raúl of Cuba : CASTRO

6. From __ Z : A TO

7. __ und Drang : STURM

8. Sharpshooter Oakley : ANNIE

9. Atlanta-based health org. : CDC. (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) (CDC)

10. Fix, as a shoe : REHEEL

11. Humpback whale's home : OCEAN

12. Mother-of-pearl : NACRE

13. Lodge fellows : ELKS

19. Supplied medicine to : DOSED

21. Word puzzle that involves a quotation : ACROSTIC

26. Waits at a light, say : IDLES

27. School reunion organizer : CLASS REP. If you say so.

29. Swindle : CON

31. Shrill bark : YIP

32. Star pitcher : ACE

34. Wrath : IRE

35. Eight-time French Open champ Rafael : NADAL

37. "Blech!" : "UGH!"

38. __ Moines : DES

42. Bit of business attire : TIE

45. Demand from : ASK OF. Not quite the same, eh?

47. Windbag's bagful? : HOT AIR

49. Overdoes the praise : GUSHES

50. Glistened : SHONE

51. "Surprise Symphony" composer : HAYDN

52. Heroic behavior : VALOR

53. Vacation island off Venezuela : ARUBA

55. Package-fastening rope : TWINE

56. Fine-grained rock : SLATE

57. Math course with sines and tans : TRIGonometry

60. Sitarist Shankar : RAVI

62. "Do the Right Thing" director Spike : LEE

63. __ milk : SOY

Argyle

Sunday May 11, 2014 Robin Stears

Theme: "Body Language"-  Both word can precede "Body" in each theme entry.

23A. Bit of roomy footwear? : FAT STOCKING. Body fat. Bodystocking.

28A. Iron Man's coat? : ARMOR PAINT. Body armor. Body paint. Reminds me of the "This is not a parrot" picture Hahoola linked last time.

42A. Shrill morning awakener? : PIERCING CLOCK. Body piercing. Body clock.

 59A. AutoZone inventory? : PARTS COUNT. Body parts. Body count. A bit of a downer.

65A. Hawaii museum section? : SURFING ART. Bodysurfing. Body art. How many people can you see?

  

86A. Clothing store shoplifters? : SUIT SNATCHERS. Bodysuit. What are "body snatchers"?

97A. The old one-two? : DOUBLE BLOW. Body double. Body blow.

105A. Put down a high school subject? : SLAM ENGLISH. Body slam. Body English.

Did you get the theme easily? It stumped our own Steve.

Robin has a knack for this type of both words can follow/precede theme type. See her last LAT puzzle.  "Dance Partners", also a Sunday.

Across:

1. Cold mold : ASPIC. The ones in Xi'An often contain bits of fried tofu.

6. Remove pieces from? : UNARM. Use DISARM more often.

11. Stay-at-home ones, perhaps : DADS

15. Disappearing slope apparatus : T-BAR. I don't get the "Disappearing" part.

19. Isabella, por ejemplo : REINA. Spanish queen.

20. Largest of the Cyclades : NAXOS

21. Peace Nobelist Wiesel : ELIE

22. Poker chip collector : RAKE. If my brain works as fast as Ben Affleck's, I'll count cards too.

25. Fresh, in a way : RUDE

26. Tiger's ex : ELIN. So pretty.

27. Puts away, as a dagger : SHEATHES

30. Escalator feature : TREAD

31. Sour notes : CLINKERS. I only know clunkers.

32. "The Racer's Edge" : STP

35. Phoenix team, on scoreboards : ARI. D-backs.

36. Home to one billion : AFRICA. 4.3 billion people in Asia.

38. One vis-à-vis three, at times : SOONER. Simple in retrospect.

45. Ring of Fire danger : TSUNAMI. Love this picture Dave linked a few days ago.

46. Divvy up : ALLOT

47. Jack up : RAISE

48. Got ready to drive : TEED. Unlike Marti, Laura Davies never uses tees. She just kicks up a bit of sod and uses it as a tee.

49. 45, e.g. : RPM

50. Dole (out) : METE

51. Bits of holly : SPRIGS

53. Influence unfairly : BIAS

54. Opposite of ecto- : ENTO. Inner.

55. Boat-steering tool : OAR

56. Wood stove, for one : HEATER

58. Grade school quintet : A E I O U

67. Say "y'all," say : ELIDE

68. Acapulco beaches : PLAYAS. Had no idea that "Playa" means "Beach" in Spanish.

70. Charlottesville sch. : UVA (University of Virginia)

71. Gym series : REPs

72. Instrument played with a mallet : GONG. Also the surname of the most famous Chinese actress Gong Li.

73. Follow orders : COMPLY

76. Quipsters : WITS

80. Brown, in old ads : UPS. Sorry about my umlaut mess-up yesterday, Splynter. No Blue-Eyed Girl yesterday?

81. 1998 N.L. MVP : SOSA

82. Paroxysm : THROE

83. Pago Pago's nation : SAMOA

84. Airport arrival : SHUTTLE

89. Spotted : ESPIED

90. Least significant : MEREST

91. Fed. auditing agency : GAO (Government Accountability Office)

92. Talk trash to : DIS. Don't you ever talk about me like that! I'm the best Chinese crossword blogger in the game.

93. Deportment : DEMEANOR

95. Connection : NEXUS

100. It joined the Union in 1876 : COLORADO

103. Jamaican tangelo : UGLI. Most grocery stores carry UGLIs nowadays.

104. Sliding __ : DOOR

108. Bed board : SLAT

109. Oscar winner Hathaway : ANNE

110. Spanish bar servings : TAPAS

111. Chew the scenery : EMOTE

112. Now Look dolls, e.g. : KENs. Not familar with the "Now Look".

113. Drain cleaners : LYES

114. Oodles : SCADS

115. Less cracked? : SANER. Nice clue.

Down:

1. Chihuahua greeting : ARF

2. Seven __ : SEAS

3. Essence : PITH

4. Map of Hawaii, often : INSET. Indeed.

5. Falls : CATARACT. Plural-like singular, like Niagara Falls, I guess.

6. Release : UNCHAIN

7. Au naturel : NAKED

8. Line in math class : AXIS

9. Burgundy of film : RON. Hi there, Ron!

10. Controversial flavor enhancer : MSG

11. Lifting device : DERRICK

12. Smith graduate : ALUMNA

13. Got a C-plus, say : DID OK

14. Sibyls : SEERESSES

15. High-level disloyalty : TREASON

16. 2008 Asian Beach Games host : BALI. Have no memory of the games.

17. Similar (to) : AKIN

18. "Seasons of Love" musical : RENT

24. Cheri of "SNL" : OTERI

28. "... a grin without a cat!" thinker : ALICE

29. Self-important : PROUD

31. Stick with a net : CROSSE. In Lacrosse, right?

32. Annoying messages : SPAM

33. Domino, for one : TILE

34. Pound repeatedly : PELT

36. Berry rich in antioxidants : ACAI. See lots of Acai bowls on Pinterest.

37. Capricious : FLIGHTY

39. Country by the River Shribble : NARNIA. Got via crosses.

40. Caveat __ : EMPTOR

41. Curl around the hole's edge without going in, in golf lingo : RIM OUT. The clue describes the entry accurately.

43. School of the future? : ROE. Another great clue.

44. "Stay off my turf!" : GRR

45. Sad : TEARFUL

48. Bit of ticket info : TIER

51. Pouch : SAC

52. Ask for a hand? : PROPOSE

53. A/C unit : BTU. So pricey to ask those guys for a check up. Often they don't have the correct parts in their car, and they have to come again. I often wonder if they're telling the truth.

54. Neurofeedback readout : EEG

55. Sugar suffix : OSE

57. Pigeonholes : ASSORTS

58. Gasteyer of "Suburgatory" : ANA

59. Wade through : PERUSE

60. Hebrew leaders? : ALEPHS. Just first letter of the Hebrew alphabet.

61. Turns to confetti : RIPS UP

62. Some ESPN highlights : TDs

63. It parallels the radius : ULNA

64. Unlikely derby winner : NAG

66. Wrigley Field feature : IVY

69. Increasingly sore : ACHIER

72. Cherished prize : GOLD MEDAL. I'll always remember the 15 gold medals China won in 1984. That's the first Olympics to many Chinese (China had been boycotting Olympics prior to that).

74. More than half : MOST

75. Memento from a bill-signing ceremony : PEN

76. ''Do __ Diddy Diddy'': 1964 hit : WAH

77. Pinged, in a way : IM'ED. "Pinged" made me think of the Malaysia Airlines Flight 370.

78. Famous Amos : TORI

79. Get smart with : SASS

81. Shade of gray : STEEL

82. "Presumed Innocent" author : TUROW (Scott)

83. Calamity causes : SCOURGES

85. Choice morsels : TIDBITS. So I made Granola with Argyle's maple syrup a la this recipe. Skipped coconut flakes & used slivered almonds. I must have done something wrong, the taste was a bit bitter.

86. Men of La Mancha : SENORES

87. Eternal : AGELESS

88. Phylum or genus, e.g. : TAXON. New word to me. The plural is TAXA.

90. Sam who worked with Coach and Woody : MALONE. In "Cheers!" Never watched it.

94. Key material : EBONY. Piano key.

95. Itinerant : NOMAD

96. Hayek of "Frida" : SALMA. Saw a Frida Kahlo exhibit a few years ago. She sure knew pain &  passion.

97. Evenfall : DUSK

98. Look like a wolf? : OGLE. Lovely clue.

99. __ Bator : ULAN

100. Corrida cloak : CAPA

101. "Runaround Sue" singer : DION

102. Prefix meaning "bone" : OSTE

105. Bernard and Bonaventure: Abbr. : STs

106. Varnish ingredient : LAC

107. "__ Town Too": 1981 hit : HER. James Taylor.

The third Minnesota Crossword Tournament will be held on June 22 at The Landmark Center in Saint Paul. Please click here for more information. The puzzles are all made by our local constructors or constructors with MN ties (Andrea Carla Michaels, e.g.).  The local constructors include Tom Pepper, George Barany, David Hanson, David Liben-Nowell, Dan Kantor, Jay Kaskel & Victor Barocas (also our editor). Don G and Andy Kravis also took part in the effort. A few are our LA Times constructors. All have been published by the NY Times.

C.C.

 

Saturday, May 10th, 2014, Mitch Komro

Theme: None

Words: 64 (missing J,Q,Z)

Blocks: 25

 YES~!!!  This one looked daunting, to say the least, but I did manage to solve it - though I have to admit to two red-letter checks. :>(  I did some research, and it looks like Mitch is new to the LAT scene - he has had 6 NYT puzzles, the last one dating back to 2004.  His grid today has a truly symmetrical pinwheel design which boasts the lowest block count I can recall, and I think the fewest words, too.  This led to monster 8 X 6 chunks in the corners, plus 4 crossing 11-letter words on the inside;

24a. Opportunity seeker's words : GIVE ME A SHOT - that's all I'm asking....

42a. Began chastising : STARTED IN ON

22d. Gulf War code name : DESERT STORM

9d. Visibly awestruck : OPEN-MOUTHED - if certain events played out smoothly last night, I invited someone to stop here at the blog and take a peek at what I do; I am 'visibly awestruck' when I see her....

ONWAAARD~!!!
 

ACROSS:

 1. Name : ACCUSE - Dah~!! Went with HANDLE first - I did know the "E" was correct

7. On-again, off-again : SPORADIC

15. Allure maker : CHANEL - ah, I was thinking cars; so, Toyota does not make the Allure....my friend Adam owns a restaurant out here on L.I. called "A lure", which is a pretty clever name for its location on the Sound and the Bay

16. First of August? : CAPITAL A - It's the first letter of a name, too....I knew that the last letter of the answer would be an "A" from the question mark, but I wondered if there was another word to describe double vowels because "diphthong" wouldn't fit

17. Soup choice : TOMATO - Dah~! I had the "O", but stared at this one way too long

18. Metal seeker : ORE MINER - DETECTOR fit, too

19. 1936 Olympics standout : OWENS - had to wait on a few perps to recall this name
                                                                                                         ..
20. Band with an umlaut on the "n" in its name : SPINAL TAP - Oh, I am all over this clue - so many umlauts to choose from....  (Note from C.C.: I screwed up Splynter's N mark earlier. Click  here see how it's stylized. If you know how to put the umlaut above capital letter N, please let me know.)

21. Aggressively promote : FLOG

22. It's all in your head : DREAM - technically speaking, so is your BRAIN

23. "Jabberwocky" creature : TOVE - complete W.A.G. - the Wiki on the poem

27. Lifesaver, at times : NET

28. Not quite as many : ONE LESS - How ironic that I had "CALAMITY" at 1d, and so I tried TWO LESS at first, and thought "there's no way that got in the puzzle"

29. "You betcha!" : "SURE~!"

31. Sneer at : DERIDE

32. Conducted a trial : TESTED

36. Like some U.S. mail : CERTified - the only thing certified at UPS is the insanity

38. With a quiver : SHAKILY - because 'crossbow' didn't fit (Har-har~!)

39. Taft became its president after his term as U.S. president : ABA

44. __ salad : COBB

46. Scandinavian bard of yore : SKALD - the straight up word for "poet" in the language

47. __ Harker, heroine in Stoker's "Dracula" : MINA - I just saw this for the first time about a month ago - not that great, seemed to drag on a bit, but - Gary Oldman is one of my favorite actors; Commissioner Gordon, Sirius Black, and "Zorg"; what movie is this last character from?

48. Heading for : EN ROUTE TO

50. Big Ben sounds : BONGS

51. It's unpleasant to end on one : SOUR NOTE - This clip contains one of the best sour notes I can recall - and it set the tone for the movie

52. Word often seen after rinse : REPEAT- and preceded by "Lather" on your shampoo bottle

53. Not 100 per cent : IMPAIRED

54. She beat Midori for the 1992 Olympic gold medal : KRISTI - Yamaguchi

55. Without holding back : TO THE MAX

56. "Wait a minute" : "ONE SEC"

DOWN:

1. Unforeseeable event : ACT OF GOD - the one NOT covered by your insurance

2. Order at a mess : CHOW LINE

3. Dropped by : CAME OVER

4. Devilish : UNANGELIC - I had the "U", "A" and "L", so this was a complete W.A.G. - it's only when I came to do the write-up that I said "Hey, that was right?!?"

5. Gig arrangements : SETS - Musical gigs, and what the band plays in between drinking binges

6. "Don't Bring Me Down" gp. : ELO

7. Checks (out) : SCOPES

8. Outcasts : PARIAHS

10. Device for un poeta : RIMA - I'm guessing this is Spanish (or Italian?) for poetry and rhyme

11. Leaning : ATILT

12. Robespierre foe : DANTON - Notables from the Frawnche Revolution

13. Start of a bequest : I LEAVE - "to my son, I LEAVE the Porsche 918..."

14. Shag, e.g. : CARPET - Yeah, baby, Yeah~!

20. Mmes., in Mexico : SRAs

25. Ancient Iranians : MEDEs

26. __ water : TREAD

30. Treat once known as an I-Scream Bar : ESKIMO PIE - Nailed it

33. Lilliputian quality : TININESS

34. String out : ELONGATE - a bit 'meh' for me; I wouldn't say addicts get "elongated"....

35. Like the New York Yankees, historically : DYNASTIC - Screw the Yankees - and I'm from NY

37. Break, in Bath : TAKE TEA - Bath, the city in England

38. WWII battle site : St.LO - more Frawnche

39. Nails the exam : ACES IT

40. Turkish Taffy maker : BONOMO - the "B" was my last fill, and it was a W.A.G.

41. Short : ABRUPT

43. Like "Midnight Cowboy," originally : RATED X - I remembered this, and went with "X-RATED" first, but the letter combinations weren't working

45. __ Peak, highest mountain in Idaho : BORAH

49. Combined, in Chartres : UNIE -  more Frawnche

50. Swiss capital : BERN

52. "The Body Snatcher" studio : RKO - Here's the Wiki on this one; not to be confused with "Invasion of the Body Snatchers", which terrorized me as a child....I didn't sleep comfortably for a year - that's when they come and GET you~!

Splynter

Friday May 9, 2014 Jeffrey Wechsler

Theme: Run on thoughts.


JW makes the move from Thursday to Friday this week with a complicated and ingenious (not igneous, see below) group of phrases clued with Canadian cities (EH!) mashed together with a word or phrase to create a new phrase that almost makes sense. Doing this all from Canadian cities is great, and gives you some idea how puzzles are born. I would guess at some point the sound of  HALI FAX MACHINE popped in his head and he was off to the creative races. The rest of the puzzle has some difficult clues, but with the longest non-theme answers 7 letters (many of which were fun- DIORITE, ECHELON, FANTAIL, IN LIMBO, ROAD TAX, TELECOM,  WEIRDOS and  WIMPISH) I found this to be a very doable puzzle. I would think Mr. Wechsler, who I have blogged before,  must have strong ties to Canada as I do not know many USA citizens who can name the Canadian provinces and major cities; I just learned he published his first NY Times in 1969, his second in 2009 - 40 years later. I would love to hear the story of the delay. So here we go...thanks for lending me JW, marti.

17A. TV fare in Quebec? : MONTREALITY SHOW. (15). Reality TV has taken over the world because they can pay so much less, even in Canada. I enjoy Montreal both from my family history and the people. They do however drive even worse than Floridians. This is the odd one as the REAL changes sound.

31A. Communication device in Nova Scotia? : HALIFAX MACHINE. (14).  My favorite and what I guess is the seed answer. Are fax machines going the way of beepers?

39A. Tool storage convenience in Manitoba? : WINNIPEG BOARDS..(14). All I really know is that the Blue Bombers play there in the CFL and the Jets in the NHL. Who doesn't hang tools on a pegboard in the garage?

60A. Throat ailment in Alberta? : EDMONTONSILITIS.(15). The most impressive run on. Wayne Gretzky taught me all I know about Edmonton.

Across:

1. Kate, to Petruchio : WIFE. The Taming of the Shrew. Loves me some Shakespeare.

5. Works on walls : ART. Cute, hard to be too tricky with a three letter fill. CLECHO! 50D. Works on walls : OILS. Hanging on them, in museums etc. Tricky 2.

8. Apportioned, with "out" : METED. A favorite of judges meting out justice.

13. Prayer leader : IMAM.

14. Sandwich staple : RYE. I thought of ham first, go figure. And, 6D. Thick-pile rug : RYA. This traditional Scandinavian rug was an unknown.

15. Bring forth : ELICIT.

20. Contributes : PUTS IN. His two-cents worth.

21. Spacewalk initials : EVA. Extra-vehicular activity.

22. See 2-Down : HERE. A backwards cross-reference. 2D. With 22-Across, "See ya!" : I'M OUTTA.

23. Marseilles : -euse :: Madrid : __ : ITA. Feminine endings in French and Spanish.

24. "Pensées" author : PASCAL.  This is a really interesting LINK.

26. "... if I tell thee __, spit in my face": Falstaff : A LIE. More Will.
FALSTAFF

Nay, that’s past praying for. I have peppered two of them. Two I am sure I have paid, 

two rogues in buckram suits. I tell thee what, Hal, if I tell thee a lie, spit in my face, 

call me horse. Thou knowest my old ward. Here I lay, and thus I bore my point. 

Four rogues in buckram let drive at me.

27. Move a bit : STIR.

29. Very long time : EON.

30. Teammate of Hubbell : OTT. A new clue for Hall of Famer Mel.

37. Friend of Huck : JIM. Not Tom....

38. One working at home : UMP. A baseball reference for C.C. Tricky 1.

47. Psychotic Chihuahua : REN. A mini-theme? 52A. Reprimand often given while pointing down : BAD DOG.

48. Theban queen of myth : INO. Goody, some MYTHOLOGY. Really, all perps.

49. Boss's command : DO IT.

55. Thin-rail bridge : AS A.

56. "Get a __!" : GRIP.

57. Sea urchin roe, in sushi bars : UNI.  Time to learn. LINK.

58. Without restraint : WILDLY.

63. Additionally : TO BOOT. Weird sounding phrase. Per wiktionary:

Etymology

From Middle English to bote (“something added to, addition”), from Old English tō bōte (“to boot, besides, moreover”). More at boot.

(idiomatic) moreover, on top of that, besides, also.

My boyfriend is funny, and a pretty good cook, to boot.

64. DDE, e.g. : GENeral. Eisenhower.

65. Speedy shark : MAKO. Want to know WHY?

66. Get to the bottom of : SOLVE.

67. Weaken : SAG.

68. Powerful team : OXEN.

Down:

 1. Like some chickens : WIMPISH. People not farm animals. Tricky 3.

3. Split and flattened, as shrimp : FANTAIL. Want to know HOW?

4. Personnel providing CPR : EMTS. Emergency medical technicians

5. Olympic venue : ARENA.

7. Vonage, for one : TELECOM. Better answer than Phone Co.

8. Osmium or rhodium : METAL.

9. English cathedral city : ELY. I am sure Steve can tell you all about this PLACE.

10. Actress Campbell of TV's "Martin" : TISHA. Need a pic?

11. Rank : ECHELON. Really fun word, but not my first or second thought.

12. Igneous rock on which the Code of Hammurabi is inscribed : DIORITE. Like Sheldon, I know no GEOLOGY.

16. Brief statement, by necessity : TWEET. I do not tweet and based on their stock performance I am not alone.

18. Grave statement, briefly? : RIP. Funny? Rest In Peace. Tricky 4.

19. The Donald's first ex : IVANA. How cool she is next to...need a pic?

25. Questionnaire datum : SEX. In taking the PSAT a classmate answered, "I wish!"

28. Rembrandt van __ : RIJN. Need a pic?

32. Fiver : FIN. Old timey slang like sawbuck.

33. "Who, me?" : AM I? Not sure I understand completely...

34. Furry youngster : CUB. Maybe.

35. Gp. for GPs : HMO. Health Maintenance Organization.

36. Apple product : iPAD.

39. Eccentric types : WEIRDOS. Who does not love a puzzle with wimps and weirdos.

40. Undetermined : IN LIMBO.

41. Liszt's instrument : PIANO. Want to LISZTEN? (9:46).

42. Some games have multiple ones : ENDINGS. Are we talking  marriage here?

43. Neptune, e.g. : GOD. Semi-clecho 62D. Neptune's realm : SEA.

44. Toll, basically : ROAD TAX. They put tolls on the Florida Turnpike to pay for the construction, now 50 years later they are just taxing drivers, especially all you lovely tourists.

45. Take a dim view of : DISLIKE.

46. Doesn't quit : STAYS ON. After the merger....

47. Synonym eponym : ROGET. Really cute clue.

51. Wire holder : SPOOL.

52. Monument Valley sight : BUTTE. Not a shout out to dear Montana, but to the formation on the Utah-Arizona border. LINK.

53. Short : OWING. I was short on my rent, not just vertically challenged.

54. Original boss of Sara and Nick on "CSI" : GIL Grissom. need a pic?

59. Long ride? : LIMO. Tricky 5.

61. Four-day weekend time, for many: Abbr. : NOV. Thanksgiving.

As with all of Mr. Wechsler's puzzles there were lots of fun clue/fill combinations and just enough spice to name it a Friday. I want to wish all a very Happy Mother's Day and off to golf in a charity tournament. Lemonade out.