Monday, September 14, 2015 Janice Luttrell

Theme: More than upset - Star answers begin with synonyms of irate

20A. *Publication featuring Alfred E. Neuman : MAD MAGAZINE

57A. *Chinese food staple : STEAMED RICE

11D. *Cold symptom : SORE THROAT

29D. *Lines that help you 9-Down : CROSSHAIRS

41D. Personal source of annoyance ... which might make one feel the first word of the answers to starred clues : PET PEEVE

Argyle here. The reveal isn't in the middle this time but still a nice pin wheel grid. Fill is on the easy side, as it should be, but still lively.

Across:

1. Cabbage side dish : SLAW

5. Costume shop supply : WIGS

9. Croatian-born physicist Nikola : TESLA

14. Spanish appetizer : TAPA

15. In couch-potato mode : IDLE

16. Like a cheering capacity crowd : AROAR

17. Happily __ after : EVER

18. Tidy : NEAT

19. Destiny : KARMA

23. Tidal retreat : EBB

24. The ones right in front of us : THESE

25. Lt.'s superior : CAPT. lieutenant / captain

27. Engraved with acid : ETCHED

30. "The Firm" author John : GRISHAM

33. Sea, to Cousteau : MER. Both French.

34. Worker in a shaft : MINER

37. __ Gras : MARDI

38. Coll. hot shot : BMOC. (Big Man on Campus)

40. Garden bulb : TULIP

42. Tugboat sound : TOOT

43. WF-3640 printer maker : EPSON. Model # was of no help.(to me)

45. Traveler's stop : MOTEL

47. "__ you happy now?" : ARE

48. "Do not" follower, on a closed-door sign : DISTURB

50. Ride a seesaw : TEETER

52. Roll call reply : HERE

53. Channel covering Capitol Hill : C-SPAN. acronym for Cable-Satellite Public Affairs Network.

55. Cute __ button : AS A

62. Light brown : BEIGE

64. Beech or birch : TREE

65. Many Keats poems : ODEs

66. Flub by a fielder : ERROR

67. Balkan native : SLAV

68. Cowpoke's footwear : BOOT

69. "Yum!" : "TASTY!"

70. Knight times : YORE

71. "Born Free" lioness : ELSA

Down:

1. Wineglass part : STEM

2. Volcanic output : LAVA

3. Did an impression of : APED

4. Fireside feeling : WARMTH

5. Didn't follow a script, say : WINGED IT. Ad libs. Improv.

6. Brainstorms : IDEAs

7. Classic Krispy Kreme coating : GLAZE

8. "The X-Files" org. : SETI. (Search for ExtraTerrestrial Intelligence )

9. Get ready to shoot : TAKE AIM

10. Open __: tennis period since 1968 : ERA. When the professional players first competed with amateurs.

12. Rack of __ : LAMB

13. Many an Iraqi : ARAB

21. "Excuse me ... " : "AHEM ... "

22. Big name in ATMs : NCR. The NCR Corporation was formerly National Cash Register.

26. Exam for H.S. jrs. : PSAT. Preliminary Scholastic Aptitude Test, formerly.

27. Nestle snugly : EMBED

28. Allegro, scherzo, andante, etc. : TEMPI. Plural of tempo.

30. Sandpaper feature : GRIT

31. Worship : ADORE

32. Bishop's headdress : MITER. Make your own. Origami.

35. Unfeeling : NUMB

36. Symphonic rock gp. : ELO. (Electric Light Orchestra)

39. Sheep shelter : COTE

44. Room with a crib : NURSERY

46. Starring role : LEAD. Often 59D. Big screen star : IDOL

49. On a pension: Abbr. : RET. (retired)

51. Dress for the choir : ENROBE

53. Monte __: gambling mecca : CARLO

54. Ink mishap : SMEAR

55. Aid in wrongdoing : ABET

56. Doris Day song word : SERA

58. Online handicraft market : ETSY. Have we learned it yet?

60. Corp. heads : CEOs. (Chief Executive Officer)

61. "¿Cómo __ usted?" : ESTÁ. "How are you?"

63. Understood, as a joke : GOT

Argyle

Sunday, September 13, 2015 Anton Shurpik

Theme: - "Dual Personalities" - Each noun phrase is punnily re-interpreted as if it's the surname combo of two famous people.

23A. Builder hired by Sharon and James? : STONEMASON. Sharon Stone. James Mason.

25A. Tender reminiscence for Donna and Courtney? : SUMMER LOVE. Donna Summer. Courtney Love.

36A. European destination for James and Jill? : GALWAY, IRELAND. James Galway. Jill Ireland.

 

56A. Play area for Lucille and Sally? : BALL FIELD. Lucille Ball. Sally Field.

58A. Favorite island for Eva Marie and Ricky? : SAINT MARTIN. Eva Marie Saint. Ricky Martin.

75A. Brand for Carrie and Vincent? : FISHER PRICE. Carrie Fisher. Vincent Price.

77A. Roadside accumulations for Hank and Tyra? : SNOW BANKS. Hank Snow. Tyra Banks. Noticed there are two plural theme entries? Rich does not like odd man out.

91A. Vacation for Billie and Tom? : HOLIDAY CRUISE. Billie Holiday. Tom Cruise.

111A. Financial strategy for Martin and Soupy? : SHORT SALES. Martin Short. Soupy Sales. Too bad MARTIN is also in the answer for 58A. Is there other famous SHORT?

113A. Book for Ellen and Ted? : PAGE TURNER. Ellen Page. Ted Turner.

 

Another fantastic debut. I think this professor might be our Anton Shurpik.

Heavy themage. Total 106 squares, which does not leave room for long fill. Only two 8-letter non-theme entries. But the grid is solidly built & filled. No weird words/names.

 
I  still don't get the AULD clue (38D. Nae like a bairn). How can "Nae" be old? (Edited later: Got it. Thanks, everyone. I did not know know "Nae" can mean "Not" as well.)

 

Across:

    

1. Homer, usually : BLAST. I love easy upper left corner.

6. Dermatologist's concern : WART

10. Short copy? : REPRO. Got me.  

15. Considerable account : SAGA. I read it as "Considerable amount".

19. Home with a view : AERIE. Fun clue.

20. One-on-one sport : EPEE

21. Zebra genus : EQUUS. Rare Double U.

22. Passing remarks? : OBIT. Nailed it of course.

27. Aquiline facial features : HOOK NOSES. Same as Roman noses, right?

28. Imprint : STAMP

29. Helpers : AIDES

30. Having both oars in the water : SANE. New saying to me. All crosses.

31. Sneaky guy? : PETE. And 6D. Sneaky one : WEASEL

32. Clarifying Latin phrase : ID EST

33. Friend of Frodo : SAM. Here they are.

42. Some chalcedonies : AGATES

44. Offended : HURT

45. Spanish article : LOS

46. "Wow!" : BOY!

49. "Brava!" elicitor : ARIA. My favorite Aria. I think of Steve every time I walk by the hotel, which has a nice Greek restaurant he likes.  

50. Chisels, e.g. : TOOLS

52. Rap sheet listing : PRIOR

55. Roof edge : EAVE

60. It could be a lot : ACRE. I've come such a long way in crossword solving. This would stump me a few years ago.

61. Television news staples : CLIPS

62. Lacking : ABSENT

63. Winter air : CAROL

67. Good ones have straight faces : LIARS. Got via crosses. I did think of poker faces, but not LIARS.

68. Flummoxed : AT SEA

69. Melodious : ARIOSE.  And 101. Melody : TUNE

71. Sailing vessels : BARKS. Plural, so no BARGE.

72. Peak in Thessaly : OSSA. Also, 89. It's about 200 mi. S of Vesuvius : MT ETNA. Gimmes for veteran solvers.

82. Shoe widths : EEES. And 9D. Shoe length : TEN

 

83. Blood line : AORTA

84. Pens and needles : STYLI

85. __-down: post-exercise activity : COOL

86. 35mm camera option : SLR

87. Sporty Pontiac : GTO

88. "Charles in Charge" star Scott : BAIO

96. __ roll : EGG. Good egg rolls always have taro root as an ingredient.

97. Cut partner : PASTE. Cut and paste.

102. Ammunition storage site : DUMP. New meaning to me.

104. Follow, as advice : ACT ON

105. Ruth chaser of 1961 : MARIS (Roger). #9. I loved the movie 61*.

106. Landing areas for some fliers : HELIPORTS

114. Spot on a board : SEAT

115. Für whom Beethoven wrote his "Bagatelle in A Minor" : ELISE.  What else goes with Für?

116. Norse thunder god : THOR

117. Vaquero's need : REATA

118. To be, in old Rome : ESSE

119. Part of a calm-ocean simile : GLASS. I know "smooth as glass", not the calm ocean connection. Makes sense.

120. Cheek : SASS

121. Onagers, e.g. : ASSES. Onager is Asian wild ass.

Down:

1. Big party : BASH

2. Mother of Apollo and Artemis : LETO

3. Buck's rear? : AROO. Buckaroo. Or EROO.

4. Scuttles : SINKS

5. Adolescent : TEENAGE. Still remember Teenage Dream? Can't believe it's been five years.

7. Vaulted recess : APSE

8. Classic autos : REOs

10. One on a break : RESTER. Every Sunday puzzle has a few wobbly fill. 

11. More than liken : EQUATE

12. Beat soundly : PUMMEL

13. Butcher's cut : RUMP

14. Verb ending : OSE. Verbose. Not IZE.

15. Dependable : SOLID

 

16. Domicile : ABODE

17. Yields to pressure : GIVES

18. Nuke trial : A-TEST

24. Like some vows : MONASTIC

26. Evidence may be seized during them : RAIDS. I was in quite a few.

28. Rotisserie component : SPIT

33. Automaker that filed for bankruptcy in 2011 : SAAB

34. Indian tourist city : AGRA. Marc Maron raved about a pumpkin curry dish he had in London. I just could not get into curry.

35. Send : MAIL

37. __ milk : WHOLE. Time for steaming hot soy milk in the morning.

 

39. Jr. and sr. : YRS

40. Quite often : A LOT

41. Old-time actress Shearer : NORMA

43. Youngest world chess champion before Kasparov : TAL. Three-letter chess answer is always TAL.

46. "America the Beautiful" lyricist Katharine Lee __ : BATES. All crosses.

47. Like Bo-Peep's charges : OVINE

48. Busybody : YENTA

51. Anthem preposition : O'ER

52. Event in a rink : PAIRS. All crosses. I did not expect a S ending answer.

53. Saws with the grain : RIPS

54. Connections : INs

55. In the past, in the past : ERST

57. Bogus : FALSE

58. Satisfy : SLAKE

59. Rhyme scheme for Frost's "The Road Not Taken" : ABAAB. All crosses.

61. Approximately : CIRCA

63. Trysting places, perhaps : CAFES. Or BARS. Steve Kroft knows it well.

64. Prospero's servant : ARIEL

65. Staircase part : RISER

66. Sounds of amazement : OOHS

67. French dairy product : LAIT.  I bought some fresh dates on Friday. Should I wait until they're red to eat? They taste very different from the fresh red dates I had in Paris.

70. Poetic Muse : ERATO

71. Cold response : BRR

72. "I've Got a Crush __" : ON YOU. My teenage dream.

73. La preceder : SOL

74. Summer clothing catalog item : SWIMSUIT. And 76. Summer cooler : POOL

77. Place up the river? : STIR

78. Big club : ACE. I had A?E, and thought of AXE first.

79. Mark down : NOTE

80. Big ape : KONG

81. Smelting waste : SLAG

84. Fluid-containing pouch : SAC

87. Belgian port city : GHENT. Nailed it.

88. Common call enders : BYEs

90. Deep-fried Japanese dish : TEMPURA. So tasty.

92. Napoli's home : ITALIA

93. Browbeating : DURESS

94. Absinthe flavorings : ANISES

95. Time killers : IDLERS

97. No longer stylish : PASSE. That's our bags in early 1980s. The five red characters say "Serve the People".

98. Flu symptoms : ACHES

99. Protective Greek structures : STOAS

100. Sacher dessert : TORTE. Lucky Marti!

103. Looks carefully (over) : PORES

105. Strip __ : MALL

106. Droll acknowledgment of a weak joke : HA HA

107. Group therapy challenges : EGOS

108. Genetic strands : RNAS

109. Rodin's thinker? : TETE. Gimme.

110. Mmes., in Málaga : SRAS

112. Circ. part : SEG

113. Liq. units : PTS. The last row in crossword grids are often S-heavy.

C.C.

Saturday, Sep 12th, 2015, Barry C. Silk

Theme: Saturday Silkie~!

Words: 70 (missing J,Q,Z)

Blocks: 30

I figured it was Silkie time, and there you have it~!  This one started off well, went blank, then with just the minimum of crossings (perps) it filled in nicely, and well inside my personal time allotment.  No fun-sponge proper names, vague references or any other clues that would normally force me into cheating, red-letters and Google.  Makes for a pleasant start to the weekend~!  Triple 10-letter corners across, and almost triple 9's in the down, with one spanner;

35. With "The," Massachusetts license plate slogan :  
SPIRIT OF AMERICA - I can think of a couple of blog members who knew this one outright; I had no clue

~!

ACROSS:

1. Game with a Bad Piggies spin-off : ANGRY BIRDS - can you believe I have never played this~?

11. Pi preceder? : OCTO - octopi, more than one octoPUS

15. Modem interface : SERIAL PORT

16. Fizzle : FLOP

17. Westminster attraction : CLOCK TOWER - "Save the clock tower~!"

18. 17-Across display : TIME

19. Plant with tubular flowers : ALOE - always looking for a fresh way to clue this age-old crossword answer

20. Inside job : DECOR

22. "Willy and the Poor Boys" band, familiarly : CCR - Creedence Clearwater Revival

Down On The Corner

23. Poe title stowaway : PYM

24. Grain beard : AWN - could not remember this; the "W" was my second-to-last fill

26. Type of sandwich? : KNUCKLE

28. 2009 Emmy co-winner for Outstanding Talk Show Host : BEHAR - not ELLEN or OPRAH

30. Try to get : GRAB AT

31. Gateway Arch architect : SAARINEN - had it, spelled it correctly, took it out; I should trust my architectural instincts

34. Puff : PANT

38. Neophyte : TYRO

39. Calm : SERENITY - my mantra -

40. Key of Grieg's Piano Concerto : A MINOR - as always, start with - M - - OR, and go from there

43. Sturdy carts : DRAYS

44. Cork's province : MUNSTER - mostly perps, and the "U" was a WAG

46. Menu term : A LA

47. Consumer protection org. : BBB - Better Business Bureau

50. Calif. setting : PST

51. Described in letters : SPELT - Massachusetts; how do you spell it~?   " I - T "

53. Wells creation : ELOI - H.G., the author, and one the Time Machine races

54. Play group : TEAM - oh, OK.  I was thinking "play" as in actors on stage; ergo, troupe was not going to work

56. Cell warning : EMAIL ALERT - was not sure on the first pass if this was "cellular" or cell like those found in prison

59. Arctic fliers : AUKS - huh, I filled this in and forgot about it

60. Like some protests : NON-VIOLENT - I could have sworn we just had this clue/answer

61. Marvel Comics superheroes : X-MEN

62. "Through the Looking-Glass" brother : TWEEDLE DEE - I'm sure you're familiar with his twin, Tweedledum

DOWN:

1. Recording acronym : ASCAP

2. "M.O." rapper : NELLY - a WAG off the "N"

3. Stable employee : GROOM - women would like their GROOM to be STABLE, I would think

4. 2003 College World Series winner : RICE - all perps

5. Jaw : YAK

6. Short order? : BLT - Bacon, Lettuce & Tomato sa'mich order

7. Apple products : iPOD NANOS - did you hear that Apple is now coming out with sound-proof drywall panels~?  It's called "iRock"

8. 1930s-'40s pitcher "Schoolboy" __ : ROWE - again, all perps

9. Worthless trash : DRECK

10. Solid : STRONG - I pondered STURDY, but that appears at 43a.

11. "... the apparel __ proclaims the man": "Hamlet" : OFT

12. Provocative and frequently misleading link : CLICKBAIT - we had this last month (36-Across)

13. "The Sum of All Fears" author : TOM CLANCY - I knew this one, so it made me change my " - - - STATE" pre-answer for 35a.

14. Victor Herbert work : OPERETTA - if Mr. Silk says so.  Again, mostly perps

21. Influential sci-fi drama : R.U.R.- which added "robot" to the English language

24. Atmosphere: Pref. : AERI

25. Scintilla : WHIT - not IOTA

27. Warm-weather pants : CAPRIs

28. Industrial bigwigs : BARONS

29. Put another quarter in, as a parking meter : RE-FED

31. "Trust No One" Washington attraction : SPY MUSEUM - The X-Files; I own the DVD set

32. Internal combustion engine system : AIR INTAKE - I have to remove the air intake plenum on my Dodge Stratus in order to change out three of my six spark plugs.  I had a frozen brake caliper, and this week I finally wore off the pad and got down to raw metal, so I changed it today, along with the pads and rotor.  I figure I better do the other side before I grind those pads down to raw steel, too

33. Tale : NARRATIVE

35. 1765 levy repealed in 1766 : STAMP TAX

36. Board part : MEAL - as in Room & Board

37. New Age superstar : ENYA - new age~? Four letters~? = ENYA

41. Causes of "60 Minutes" delays, briefly : OTs - my mother hates it when Sunday football throws the TV sked off

42. Feel sorry for : REPENT

45. Do more lawn work : REMOW

47. Run : BLEED - ah, that "RUN".  My dictionary has 15 (subdivided) definitions of the verb run, 15 for the verb transitive, and 12 for the noun; 11a is this kind;

48. Supported : BORNE

49. Polite word, in Potsdam : BITTE - "Thanks", if I'm not mistaken

52. Pool division : LANE

53. Women's issue : ELLE - magazine issue

55. ISP choice : MSN - and a genuine clecho; 58. ISP choice : AOL

57. Top : LID - CAP~? HAT~? decisions, decisions....

Splynter

Note from C.C.:

Today we celebrate the birthday of our quick-witted friend & foodie Steve, who has traveled around the word to taste every global cuisine. How many people on our blog knows Shamoji? Amazing. Steve hikes to the Hollywood sign regularly and he's an avid runner as well.

Friday, September 11, 2015, Patti Varol

Theme: A pass/fail puzzle, unless you understand  all the variations of pass, you fail.

A new puzzle from Patti Varol, who is Rich Norris' assistant at the LAT. C.C. did a nice INTERVIEW back in 2013. This style of cross-referential cluing is reminiscent of a 2012 Friday presentation which I believe was the first of her puzzles that I blogged. In this case the single word which is the clue for the four long answers is PASS which appears as the last Across clue, but has no clue.  There is room for a lot of fun fill like ANTHEM, BUTTES, (which reappears immediately after last week's duty in the theme) CONFAB,  DENOTE, LOUISA,  MOREAU,  ONIONY, ENTHUSE, NUANCES,  RAN AMOK,  UTENSIL, BROWBEAT and TIRAMISU. As someone who gets to read all of the submissions to the LAT Ms. Varol has a sense of what is fresh. I know many do not like cross-references, but I think you will like this Friday frolic.

20A. See 69-Across : FOOTBALL THROW (13). The forward PASS changed football forever.

34A. See 69-Across : MAKE THE GRADE (12). Important both in school and in life. Does pass/fail stunt learning? With all of our teachers out there, does competing for a grade improve performance?

41A. See 69-Across : SKIP ONE'S TURN (12). A term familiar to all who play bridge or any other bidding game; can you skip your turn in Monopoly?

56A. See 69-Across : MOUNTAIN ROUTE (13). There are so many famous mountain passes, but did you know the TOPOGRAPHY?

And the common clue

69A. Clue for four puzzle answers : PASS.

Across:

1. Some UPS deliveries : CODS. No, Splynter is not bringing fish to your home, or an outdated male garment.  Historically, the term was Cash On Delivery, but UPS has repurposed it as Collect On Delivery, getting the payment and forwarding to its customers.

5. First Homeland Security secretary : RIDGE. It is impossible to not think of this MAN on this anniversary of the 9/11 tragedy, and equally impossible to discuss without venturing into politics.

10. Help badly? : ABET.

14. Scott Turow title : ONE L.

15. "I don't give __" : A DARN. Even Rhett was more emphatic than that.

16. It may be hard to resist : URGE. So, why resist?

17. One in una escuela primaria : NINO. Spanish for boy or child in primary school.

18. Like two Tim Lincecum games : NO HIT. There have been six in June, July and August this year. A complete LIST.

19. Senate garment : TOGA. Fun misdirection did not fool me.

23. Country song : ANTHEM.

24. __ generis : SUI. Latin for 'of its own kind.' In the law, it is used to identify a specific party in litigation.

25. Word with band or toy : BOY. N'sync or Backstreet Boys?

28. "Peace out" : BYE.

29. Struggling with a choice : TORN.

32. Hardly friendly looks : SNEERS.

36. Idaho motto word : ESTO. Really needed perps to get this. Esto perpetua is Latin for 'let it be forever.'

39. Theater funding gp. : NEA. This time it is the National Endowment for the Arts. LINK.

40. "... like __ not" : IT OR.

46. Doctor with an island of Beast Folk : MOREAU. The wonderful mind of H.G. Wells.

47. Idée source : TETE. Did anyone do David Steinberg's puzzle last week about heads? Awesome.

48. Butcher's units: Abbr. : LBS.

51. Progressive __ : ERA.

52. Gives birth to : HAS. On alert for the birth of my second grandchild. Trying hard to keep up with Kazie.

54. Enjoy the bistro : EAT OUT.

60. Home to many Indians : ASIA.

62. Indianapolis pros : COLTS.

63. Wrap alternative : PITA.

64. Staff at sea : MAST. Not much sailing talk these days, Spitzboov?

65. Food inspector's concern : E. COLI.

66. Showing wear : USED.

67. And : PLUS.

68. "Hamlet" prop : SKULL. Alas, poor Yorick...


Down:

1. Informal chat : CONFAB. A really fun word; from the Latin root that gives us fable.

2. Like some dips : ONIONY.  Just an adjective.

3. Symbolize : DENOTE. A five dollar word.

4. Critter that sleeps upside down : SLOTH. Kinda cute sleeping.

5. Went berserk : RAN AMOK. Amok comes from a Malay word; this is the national language of Brunei, Malaysia, Indonesia and Singapore. It is spoken by 270 million people, per wiki.

6. Screen VIP : IDOL.

7. "Fantastic Mr. Fox" author : DAHL. Roald wrote so many twisted tales.

8. Breakfast side : GRITS. learned to enjoy them at Skeeter's in Gainesville.

9. Speak with passion : ENTHUSE.

10. Start to focus? : AUTO. Autofocus.

11. Bully : BROWBEAT. An interesting word around since the 1500s.

12. Frittata base : EGG.

13. Leaves in a bag : TEA. In the bag, not left in the bag.

21. Interim software phase : BETA. There really is alpha TESTING.

22. Digital band : RING. Not music but on a finger.

26. Great Seal word : ORDO. Novus ordo seclorum ( "New order of the ages") appears on the back of every one dollar bill so you should recognize the term. If you want more READ.

27. Strategic European river of 1914 : YSER. The BATTLE.

30. Former Quebec premier Lévesque : RENE.  This MAN died 28 years ago.

31. Arms control subj. : N-TEST. I wonder why I get so many bomb related fill.

33. Land with "her back towards Britain, her face to the West," in a William Drennan poem : ERIN. Not familiar  with Poem but it was an easy guess.

34. Brood : MOPE. Most teenagers do lots of this.

35. Not fancy at all : HATE. In the British sense....

36. Miss Megley's charge, in a Salinger story : ESME.

37. Chocolate-and-toffee bar : SKOR. I have seen it but never bought it and I love chocolate.

38. Layered dessert : TIRAMISU. Only the GARNISH is chocolate for this classic.

42. Waimea Bay locale : OAHU.

43. Easy things to overlook : NUANCES. Very subtle.

44. Diner's need : UTENSIL.

45. Slowpoke's place : REAR.

48. Creator of Meg, Jo, Beth and Amy : LOUISA. May Alcott's Little Women.

49. Flat-topped formations : BUTTES. A gimme if you paid attention last week.

50. Places : STEADS.

53. Seller's supply : STOCK.

55. Freshen, as a drink : TOP UP. Never top off.

57. Stable diet : OATS.

58. Giants manager before Bochy : ALOU. Felipe, the oldest brother.

59. "__ be all right" : IT'LL. Do you prefer ROCK or POP ?

60. Juice unit : AMP. Juice as electricity.

61. ESPN reporter Paolantonio : SAL. I am glad I did not have to spell his last name.

Well on that embarrassing note, I wish you all a good week end and remember all the brave people who came to the fore in 9/11 and let them inspire us all to be better people. For those who celebrate the New Year, L' shana Tovah. Lemonade 714 out.

We had dinner last night with Chairman Moe at a local French restaurant, merveilleux!

Notes from C.C.:

1) I'm so pleased to see you guys meet again, Chairman Moe and Lemonade!

2) Happy Birthday to Husker Gary, my tenacious & always eager-to-learn friend and puzzle collaborator. I never heard him complain about life or anything during his three stays at the hospital a few months ago. He's a fighter.

Left to Right: Boomer, Gary, C.C. & Joann, August 22, 2014

Thursday September 10, 2015 Mary Lou Guizzo

Theme: A LOW KEY Thursday, like this hilarious LOW KEY Comedian

Mary Lou's lovely Thursday exercise got me with LACT_/SAM_. I didn't know SAMI but had a good feeling about LACTO. Her LOW KEY theme used the gimmick that the word KEY could be appended to the last word in the  four down fills with asterisks to form a common phrase. The first word of the amended phrase was also LOW on the  vertical fill and so LOW KEY!

3. *Event for A-listers, say : PRIVATE FUNCTION - Where the elite meet and FUNCTION KEY on my MacBook Pro. Any of the 11 on the top row

11. *The Hagia Sophia, for nearly a millennium : BYZANTINE CHURCH - Constantinople CHURCH and CHURCH KEY - puncture or cap removal type

27. *Sirius' constellation : CANIS MAJOR - The winter constellation and MAJOR KEY signatures in music

29. *Space to maneuver : WIGGLE ROOM - Plausible denial or ROOM KEY (modern version) that all my Florida kids got and half managed to lose at one time or another

58. With 59-Down, subdued, and a hint to the answers to starred clues : LOW. 59. See 58. Down - KEY and there you have the reveal: LOW KEY

Marti is off in Europe sightseeing, staying with friends and helping to kick off Oktoberfest in Bavaria. I am her envious and barely adequate pinch hitter.

Across   
     
1. Oz. sextet : TSPS - 6 TSPS per oz. abbr/abbr. Not Kazie's Oz.

5. Hamlet's foppish courtier : OSRIC - Yeah, I knew that!

10. Abba not known for singing : EBAN - ABBA Eban who held many posts in Israeli government 

14. Other, in Orizaba : OTRO - Español - "On the other hand" becomes "pro OTRO lado"

15. __ Park: Knott's Berry Farm city : BUENA

16. Connecticut town for which a disease is named : LYME - Less favorable notoriety than Buena Park

17. Sinn __ : FEIN - An Irish political party. Name means "Ourselves"

18. 100-eyed guardian of Io : ARGUS - Yikes! I'm pretty sure we wouldn't see eye to eye to eye to eye... 

19. Weizman of Israel : EZER - Seventh president of Israel

20. Bean used in falafel : FAVA - They were also a side dish in a grotesque meal in Silence Of The Lambs.

21. Half a comedy duo : MEARA - Part of Stiller and Meara and mother to Ben Stiller

22. Two-time MLB all-star Ron : GANT - Now host of Good Morning Atlanta, a city where he once played

23. Three-handed game : SKAT - Aggressive SKAT play

24. Wrench handle? : ALLEN - I loved this clue. My bike requires ALLEN wrenches on most bolts

25. Stats for QBs : INTS - When your number of INTerceptionS exceed your number of COMPletionS, you will probably have to seek other employment

26. "Clueless" co-star __ Dash : STACEY - I know it's lame, but I was CLUELESS about Stacey

28. Johannesburg section : SOWETO - SOWEstern Townships. 

30. Salad option : CAESAR - Et tu?

31. Social calls : VISITS 

33. "__ Wiedersehen" : AUF - Literally means "until we see again". AUF Wiedersehen, Marti!

34. It often says "Hello" : NAME TAG

38. FDR loan org. : NHA - National Housing Agency was part of FDR's alphabet soup

39. "Pardon me, Giuseppe" : SCUSI - Dean Martin sang "Grazie, Grazie, SCUSI, Prego"

41. CPR provider : EMT - First responders run TO danger

42. Something in your eye : GLEAM

44. Wires, e.g. : SENDS - Used mainly to transfer money today

45. Mr. Rogers : ROY

46. Dairy prefix : LACTI - LACTOse occurred to me first 

47. Brown shade : CAMEL

49. "He that __ down with dogs shall rise up with fleas": Franklin : LIETH - Birds of a feather...

51. Bar made by Hershey's : KIT KAT 

53. Enterprise bridge regular : MR SULU

56. "Vous êtes __": Paris map words : ICI - You are here!

57. Dog days mo. : JUL - A fairly cool July on the prairie this year

59. Kitchy-__ : KOO

60. Cartoonist Chast : ROZ - Clueless redux

61. Disney's Bob Iger, e.g. : CEO

62. Dash prefix : ODO - The ODOmeter on your car's dashboard. Can they still be turned back?

63. Frequent co-producer of U2 albums : ENO - A frequent cwd commodity

64. "__: Miami" : CSI

65. 54-year-old doll : KEN - Middle-aged KEN and Barbie

66. VCR button : REW

67. Sweet tuber : YAM - YAMS with brown sugar, marshmallows and football. Now that's Thanksgiving!

68. Bulls and bucks : HE'S - Both male

 Down:

1. Farnham Fops - TOFFS - A gaggle of TOFFS

2. Outback condiment : STEAK SAUCE

4. Piano pieces : SONATAS

5. Period since 2009 : OBAMA ERA

6. Without a doubt : SURELY - From my "funniest movie ever"

7. Courtly : REGAL

8. Hardens : INURES

9. 18th-century Italian adventurer : CASANOVA - Oh, it's called adventuring 

10. Poetic laments : ELEGIES - Was I the only one who read this in high school?

12. "I'll say!" : AMEN TO THAT - Right on, brother!

13. "Darn it!" : NERTS

30. Mama known for singing : CASS - "...and everyone's getting' fat 'cept Mama CASS"

32. Scandinavian native : SAMI- Not a clue, er no idea. These are Indigenous people living in the very north of Sweden, Finland and Norway. Tundra is a SAMI word used in many other languages. 

35. Jazzman Saunders : MERL - SF jazz organist/keyboard player

36. Expressive music genre : EMO

37. Texter's sign-off : TTYL - Talk To You L8r

40. Home to Pierre: Abbr. : S DAK - Where Lewis and Clark encountered Teton Sioux or Lakota tribes

43. Back muscles, briefly : LATS - Latissimus Dorsi

48. Czerny piano piece : ETUDE

50. "__ roll!" : I'M ON A

51. Bit of excitement : KICK 

52. Frozen treat : ICEE

54. Shed : LOSE

55. Strong arms? : UZIS - I'll bet EZER Weizman knew his way around one

C.C. was very LOW KEY when we visited with her and Boomer but I wonder how many of my other crossword friends here. There are a lotta hot buttons out there! Who knew a comma could raise IRE?

Husker Gary