Tuesday, July 28, 2015 George Simpson & C.C. Burnikel

Theme: It's an ill wind that blows nobody any good - Not an ill wind in the bunch.

17A. "American Gothic" artist : GRANT WOOD. You might find an off-key (ill) WOODWIND, I suppose.

21A. Equitable transaction : EVEN TRADE. Winds that trade or tread in one uniform track. (Anglo Saxon, tredde-wind, a treading wind—i.e. wind of a specific “beat” or tread; tredan, to tread.) While a steady wind in one direction may be good for commercial maritime venture it was not the meaning of the TRADE WINDS.

38A. "Now!" : RIGHT THIS SECOND. A SECOND WIND is an exercise phenomenon that has also developed into a metaphor for finding the strength to go on after initial struggles.

55A. Award for seagoing heroes : NAVY CROSS. A CROSS WIND blows across one's direction of travel. Not so good for a sailing ship following the TRADES.

61A. Flying speed boosters ... or, literally, what the ends of 17-, 21-, 38- and 55-Across can have : TAILWINDS

Argyle here. C.C. has company today and I sure she'll tell us about him. Very nice puzzle to debut with. Full spanner and reveal at the bottom, the way it should be, right?

Across:

1. Ways to go: Abbr. : RDs. Roads, not routes.

4. Ltr. addenda : PSS. Is it P.P.S or P.S.S? Well, since addenda is the plural of addendum then this should be considered as the plural of POST SCRIPT, or PSs.

7. None too bright : DENSE. (or am I dense.)

12. Obama's birthplace : OAHU

14. Somewhat surprised greeting : "OH, HI!"

16. Nebraska city : OMAHA

19. Golf course halves : NINES. Front and back or out and in, on a link course.

20. Causing goose bumps : EERIE

23. Scolding sound : [TSK!]

24. Belted weapons : SIDE ARMS. Pistols or swords.

26. Camp beds : COTS

28. Poet __-tzu : LAO

29. Strong coffee : MUD

32. NCAA's __-12 conference : PAC. (The Pacific-12)

33. Italian sparkling wine : ASTI

36. One of two in a typical string octet : VIOLA

41. Beyond rotund : OBESE

42. Round in a pistol : AMMO. For your side arm.

43. Writer LeShan : EDA

44. Conan O'Brien's network : TBS. (Turner Broadcasting System)

45. Org. with Raiders and Vikings : NFL. (National Football League)

47. Folk singer Burl : IVES

49. Retired boxer with a perfect 24-0-0 record : LAILA ALI. Daughter of Muhammad Ali.

52. Serious hostilities : WAR

58. Say "cap'n," e.g. : ELIDE

60. Cheri of "SNL" : OTERI. Still around.

63. Shirk work : DOG IT

64. Easy thing to do : SNAP

65. Wrinkled tangelo : UGLI

66. In la-la land : SPACY

67. __ Arbor, Michigan : ANN

68. One of a D.C. 100 : SENator

Down:

1. Man of many words : ROGET. Roget's Thesaurus was created in 1805 but not released to the public until 1852.

2. Shows some backbone : DARES

3. Protective enclosures for divers : SHARK CAGES. 18 footer.

4. "Bang!" : "POW!"

5. Did a blacksmith's job : SHOED

6. Push rudely : SHOVE

7. "Keep still!" : "DON'T MOVE!"

8. Mideast dignitaries : EMIRs

9. Mom's mom's nickname : NANA

10. Place for a lawn mower : SHED

11. Alleviate : EASE

13. Prefix with lateral : UNI

15. High-mindedness : IDEALISM

18. Word after screen or scratch : TEST

22. Agency under FDR : NRA. (National Recovery Administration)

25. "The wolf __ the door" : IS AT

27. Folk legend Phil : OCHS

29. Sudden changes in disposition : MOOD SWINGS

30. Wrist-to-elbow bone : ULNA

31. Mom's guy : DAD

32. Mr. __: Dr Pepper rival : PIBB

34. Kitchen bulbs : SHALLOTS

35. Tiny Dickens boy : TIM. A Christmas Carol.

37. Java Freeze maker : ICEE

38. Poppycock : ROT

39. Stick-to-it-iveness : TENACITY. There were a lot of nice down words today.

40. Flowerpot filler : SOIL

46. Christmas tree choice : FIR

48. Seaside home selling point : VIEW

49. Like some poetry : LYRIC

50. Yoga pose : ASANA

51. Japanese, e.g. : ASIAN

53. Fluster : ADDLE

54. Lacquer ingredient : RESIN

55. Wordless okays : NODS

56. On the roof of : ATOP

57. 1970s Chevy subcompact : VEGA. Extreme!

59. Sch. with a Brooklyn campus : LIU. (Long Island University)

62. Hosp. worker : LPN. (licensed practical nurse)

Argyle

Note from C.C.:

George Simpson is the Big Easy on our blog. This is his LA Times debut. George came up with this theme and was super fun to work with. He has one more puzzle in Rich's queue. Congratulations, George!

Big Easy and his wife Diane