Sunday Oct 25, 2015 Mike Peluso

Theme: "Now You See It ..." - C is removed from each theme answer.

22A. Coleridge love poem? : RIME OF PASSION. Crime of passion.

34A. Knight's comment when he was mistakenly put in the corner? : I'M NOT A ROOK. I'm not a crook. Nixon.

49A. King of the sea? : LEAR SAILING. Clear sailing. Does this answer sound a bit stretched to you?

68A. North African hops drier? : BARBARY OAST. Barbary Coast.

85A. Citrus high? : ORANGE RUSH. Orange Crush. I grokked the theme gimmick here.

102A. Encouraging simian? : APE OF GOOD HOPE. Cape of Good Hope.

2D. Backtalk in the Everglades? : ALLIGATOR LIP. Alligator clip. New term to me.

 

55D. John and Peter's woodwind? : APOSTLES' REED. Apostles' Creed.

Look, no stray C 's in the theme answers. You know Mike put extra effort in getting us this tight set. Three deletions occur at the first words, five the last words,  but all removed C's are consistently the starts of the key words. Pure letter deletion, no spelling changes involved.

Most of our Sunday grids have 144-words. This one only has 140, with four intimidating corners. Even with cheaters in four corners, those space are very hard to fill cleanly. I'd have chickened out and broken 20D/74D into two.

Across:

1. Varnish resin : MASTIC. New word to me.

7. Online cash-back deal : E-BATE. Never got an e-bate. You? I seldom shop on line.

12. God for whom Wednesday was named : WODEN. I forgot. We had this a while ago.

17. Peru's El Misti, e.g. : VOLCANO. Got via crosses. And 74. 17-Across output : ASH

18. Submit servilely : GROVEL

19. Sounded alike : RHYMED

21. Not kosher : ILLEGAL. I was thinking of TREF.

24. Problems for parades : RAINS

25. Nerds : DWEEBS

27. Quick way to reduce fat? : LIPO. Thought DIET first.

28. N.Y. engineering sch. : RPI. Why did you quit after one year, Splynter?

29. Yen : URGE

30. Form : SHAPE

 

31. NFL great Brown and meteorologist Cantore : JIMs

32. Bern's river : AARE

33. Fed. benefits agency : SSA

 

37. Words after lost or missed : A STEP

38. Hardly laid-back : TYPE A

40. La Corse, par exemple : ILE. La Corse is French for Corsica.

 

41. Early ascetic : ESSENE. Nailed it.

42. "Ain't gonna happen!" : NO SOAP

43. Serious oil problem : SPILL

46. To's partner : FRO

47. Sun. delivery : SER

48. Sides in a Wells—or Welles—war : WORLDS. The War of the Worlds. Orson Welles. H. G. Wells. We also have 77. 1938 broadcaster of Welles radio dramas : CBS

52. Workers' gp. in a 1955 merger : AFL

53. Step : PHASE

54. Easy chore : CAKEWALK

58. Welcoming rings : LEIS. So happy that they're now married.

60. Actor Kinski : KLAUS. Crossing 60. Pink Nintendo icon : KIRBY. The crossing K is knotty. I'd go with this KIRBY, of course!

 61. Sporty Nissans : Z-CARS. Not into sports cars, so draw a blank on this entry.

63. Lodge letters : BPOE

64. Sheriff's assistants : DEPUTIES

66. Sierra __ : LEONE

67. Charity's URL ending : ORG

71. Equilibrium : STASIS

78. "Jersey Boys" role : VALLI

79. Bikini blasts, briefly : N-TESTS

80. Like some protein drinks : CHALKY. All crosses. Never had protein drinks.

82. Vocalized "Psst!" : HEY

83. Ford flop : EDSEL

84. Maguire of "Spider-Man" : TOBEY

90. Waffle center? : EFS. Waffle.

93. Permeate : SOAK. Tried SEEP first.

94. Alternatives to fries : TOTS. I call them full name "Tater tots". You?

96. Ripley's closing words : OR NOT

97. GM sticker datum : MSRP (Manufacturer's Suggested Retail Price).

98. RR stop : STN

99. Celestial sci. : ASTR

100. Little burger : SLIDER

101. Natalie's "West Side Story" role : MARIA

105. How gazelles bound : AGILELY

107. "Dang!" : DARN IT. Same root, no?

108. Put out : DOUSED

109. Mistletoe may hang from them : LINTELS. Also a learning moment to me. The empty spot is called LINTEL?

110. Original environment : ROOTS

111. Energetic mount : STEED

112. Reliable : STEADY

 

Down:

1. Canine cousins : MOLARS. I"m seeing the periodontist on Nov 24. My poor teeth!

3. Crime __ : SCENE

4. Facebook links : TAGS. Photo tagging. I don't associate tags with "links".  They actually are. 

5. Like Beethoven's Symphony No. 7 : IN A. Put in IN?, then waited.

6. Winter time : COLD SNAP

7. Port NE of Canton, OH : ERIE PA

8. B-47, for one : BOMBER

9. Madison et al.: Abbr. : AVEs

10. Racer Fabi : TEO. This has become a gimme.

11. Diminutive : ELFLIKE

12. Deli offerings : WRAPS

13. Very : OH SO. Tricky little words.

14. Start to function? : DYS. Dysfunction.

15. Dubai-based airline : EMIRATES. The answer filled itself.

16. Synthetic used to insulate wet suits : NEOPRENE. Fashion world's new fabric darling.

17. Bug : VIRUS

18. Awe-inspiring : GREAT

20. Kiev's river : DNIEPER. Totally stranger.

23. Absent-minded Milne title character : PIM. Mr. Pim.

26. Immortal first baseman : WHO. "Who's on First?".  I loved this clue so much that I shouted at Boomer who was watching TV downstairs:

Me: Lao Gong, the clue is "Immortal first baseman", three-letter answer,  who's the guy?

Boomer: OTT.

Me: Who?

Boomer: OTT, O-T-T...

31. La __: San Diego resort area : JOLLA

32. Intractable beast : ASS

34. Apple product : IPOD.  The only Apple stuff I have.  

35. Ft. or in. : MEAS (Measurement)

36. Essential __ : OILS

37. In unison : AS ONE

39. Haute couture monogram : YSL

41. Composer Satie et al. : ERIKS. Et this Erik.

Erik Agard

42. Free, as a checking account : NO FEE

43. Hall of Fame linebacker Junior : SEAU

 44. Mountain route : PASS

45. Where Gubbeen Cheese is made: Abbr. : IRE. Never heard of the cheese. I had I?? and figured it might be Italian.

46. Highway warning : FLARE

48. Saxony woodland : WALD. German for "wood". New to me also.

49. High capital : LHASA

50. Risky boot camp response : I CAN'T

51. BHO's predecessor : GWB. Oh, hello, I drew a blank on your initials.

53. Common people : PLEBS

56. Nocturnal Indian primate : LORIS. Oh, hello, I don't know your name.

57. Powder holders : KEGS

59. Hero : SUB

61. Ardor : ZEAL

62. Mozart's "__ fan tutte" : COSI

65. Like paint when it's nearly dry : TACKY. Had STICKY first.

66. Texter's guffaw : LOL

69. KOA users : RVers

70. Sisterhood name in a Rebecca Wells novel : YA-YA

71. Regs. : STDs

72. Radio host John : TESH

73. Enzyme ending : ASE

74. Mopes : ACTS SAD

75. What duffers don't expect to do : SHOOT PAR. True for me.

76. Hot, hot pepper : HABANERO. You'll lose your mind eating these peppers.

79. Gray and tan : NEUTRALS

81. Coin in Tirana : LEK

82. Souped-up cars : HOT RODS

86. Like an ideal negotiation : NO-LOSE

87. Complained : GRIPED

88. Done : ENDED

89. Sturgeon delicacy : ROE

91. Ruffled : FRILLY

92. Renders unproductive? : SPAYS. Nailed it.

94. Some NCOs : TSGTS (Technical Sergeants). SSGTS fit the clue also. So you have to wait.

95. Plains tribe : OTO

97. European island nation : MALTA

99. Have __: lose it : A FIT

100. "Adventures in Babysitting" co-star : SHUE. Again, the answer filled in itself.

101. Cry under a pop-up : MINE

103. Plastic __ Band : ONO

104. Ellipsis element : DOT

106. "Scram, ya varmint!" : GIT

 

So I finally got my enhanced ID yesterday. It looks the same as my last driver's license, but with an American flag to the right of Class D. I needed birth certificate, my citizenship papers and some tax return stuff. All forms have to be original.

Boomer is still waiting for his, after several visits to the place. He lost his SSN card some time ago, and just did not have the correct document.

Do you have enhanced IDs in your state?

C.C.

Saturday, Oct 24th, 2015, Barry C. Silk

Theme: Saturday Silkie~!

Words: 72  (pangram~!)

Blocks: 28

 Still recovering from last week's brutal offering, so I was very happy to see a Saturday Silkie today.  Not that it was any walk in the park, but I did manage to finish in my personal allotted time, tho I have to admit to one Google cheat, and several "type"-overs.  Still, it was very satisfying to get thru a puzzle without feeling totally beaten up.  Triple 10-letter across corners, triple 8-letter down corners, and a bunch of 7-letter fill, too.  

17. Threading tool : SCREW PLATE

37. Aptly named sleep aid : ZzzQUIL - I started with NyQuil, which was too short, so I Googled to see what their 'other' drug was; I loved taking NyQuil, but I'm "not allowed to" anymore

60. Sawdust producer : BELT SANDER - I found this, and thought it was pretty funny - and hey~!  oooh~!  I did not know they had races~!!!

  NWAR~!

(O--------D)

ACROSS:

1. Mystery novel cover-up? : DUST JACKET - the "?" gave it away - but I started with BOOK jacket for some reason

11. Window component : JAMB - ugh, like there's just one 4-letter window part; sash, sill, stop, rail, trim, lock, head....

15. Bad way to leave someone : IN THE LURCH

16. Harpsichordist Kipnis : IGOR - half perps, half WAG

18. Ax : FIRE - I figured it was the verb and not the noun

19. Gets really high : SOARS

20. Reverent : PIOUS

22. Sum (up) : TOT - this is more prevalent in British circles

23. Tahari of fashion : ELIE - I knew this name (and it was a background feature in a Law & Order episode)

24. Slurred pronoun : DAT - "who dat~?!"

25. Game invented at Harrow School around 1830 : SQUASH - and a cross-referenced 57. 25-Across starter : SERVE - my new house-mate Garry plays a game called "pickleball", which is tennis played on a smaller court with a wiffleball - it looks really fun, and you get more volleys going

27. Grandchild of Japanese immigrants : SANSEI - started with NISSEI, and that was enough to work from

29. Amble : SAUNTER - she has permission to saunter thru my new front door

30. Its website includes a Headache Center : ANACIN - Aleve and Advil were just too short; took a while to recall this brand name

33. Mr. Rochester's ward : ADELE - no clue; all perps - from Jane Eyre

34. John of England : LOO - the porcelain perch

39. Case, for example: Abbr. : SYNonym - case = example

40. "No way!" : IXNAY - Pig Latin; the "rules" are here

42. Comparable in quality : AS GOOD

44. Where the Irrawaddy flows : MYANMAR - again, no clue, but once I got "--MAR"....

46. High pitch : TREBLE

50. Netherlands river : AMSTEL

51. "V for Vendetta" actor : REA

53. Blow : TOOT - were you thinking horn, or 'nose candy'~!?

54. Professional runner : POLitician

55. Place to see a hit : SIDE A - music hit, that is

58. Proof word : ERAT - part of "Q.E.D"

62. First name in gossip : RONA - Barrett - her Wiki

63. Musician with the autobiography "My First 79 Years" : ISAAC STERN - I don't know how I knew this, but I got it after just a few crossings

64. "Once more __ the breach": Shak. : UNTO

65. Hunch source : SIXTH SENSE - great movie, too

DOWN:

1. Bad-mouths : DISSES

2. Beverage nickname introduced in 1967 : UNCOLA - 7-up; I liked their more recent promotion

3. Filter : STRAIN

4. Television personality Caputo : THERESA - all but the "A" were perps

5. Yeshiva students : JEWS

6. Sight from the Brenner Pass : ALP - WAG

7. Apology ender : CULPA - mea for starters

8. Venomous Asian snake : KRAIT - for those who are ophidiophobes, I will not post a picture, but offer a link instead

9. Prefix with plasm : ECTO - this made last week's puzzle, too

10. Springsteen's birthplace? : THE USA - sorry, not a big fan of the song, but here's one I do like

The Rising

11. Peter Pan rival : JIF - peanut butters

12. Shakes up : AGITATES

13. In a sullen manner : MOROSELY

14. Fellow members : BRETHREN - nice group of $2 words in this corner

21. Filth : SQUALOR

24. Seven-term Mexican president Porfirio __ : DIAZ - 50% perps, the rest seemed logical

26. Hamburger's link : UND - German "and"

28. Food processors : ENZYMES

29. New Orleans jazz club __ Harbor : SNUG - their website

31. Industry authority : CZAR

32. Brightness measures : IQs - intelligence brightness - I was stuck on lumens for awhile

34. Planned 2019 Pan American Games host : LIMA, PERU - I was reluctant to put UNTO" in at 64a. because of the "U", but then it made sense

35. Open secret, e.g. : OXYMORON - here's a really funny webpage; I consider traffic to be a one word oxymoron; by definition, it's "driving, stopped"

36. Inclined : ON A SLANT

38. Shred : IOTA - dah~! not TEAR

41. Social worker? : ANT

43. Thaw : DETENTE - not DEFROST, but it was enough to get started in this corner

45. Outs : ALIBIS

47. Dairy giant : BORDEN

48. Flames : LOVERS

49. Timeless, in verse : ETERNE

51. Chill : RELAX - ah, the "hip" definition

52. Bother : EAT AT

56. '50s sitcom name : DESI

57. Challenge for a babysitter : SASS

59. Eastern ideal : TAO

61. Auburn, for one: Abbr. : SCHool - took some thought, because I was stuck on hair color

Splynter

Note from C.C.:

Good luck to Kevin and our other readers who take part in today's Crosswords LA Tournaments!

Friday, October 23, 2015, Jeffrey Wechsler

Theme: What is the game, an abbreviated military march? Yes, CPT OBVIOUS! (Drat, HG linked that already this week!)

We return to our prolific Friday phenom, Jeffrey, with a simple-looking theme and tons of fun fill. Each in-the- language phrase is re-imagined "on the base" with the three-letter abbreviation for the military rank replacing the first word of the phrase. The original phrases are all very recognizable and the grid has a fairly standard look. The fill ‒ including long ones like BEGONIA, EMANATE, DOG BITES, ONE IN TWO, POLLSTER, and SWEPT OUT ‒ once again presents JW's affinity for multi-word fill with some of the six-letter answers like AS I CAN, BIG APE, BITMAP, DUCATS, PIMPLE, SEABED, TAKE ME and TIN EAR sparkly. The use of cheater squares to balance the 13-letter fill makes this all come together. Let's feast.

19A. Familiar material, on the base? : GENERAL KNOWLEDGE (12). The clue and fill are straightforward -- only the shortening brings in the military.

26A. Backbone of capitalism, on the base? : PRIVATE ENTERPRISE (13).  LINK.

42A. Disciplinary action, on the base? : CORPORAL PUNISHMENT (13). Remember these? LINK.

48A. Important find, on the base? : MAJOR DISCOVERY (12).

Across:

1. Locale of TV's Krusty Krab restaurant : SEABED. From Sponge Bob to reality...

7. "The Hitch-Hiker" director Lupino : IDA. An all male cast; really easy fill but who remembers this movie?

10. Meatless lasagna ingredient, perhaps : TOFU. Because spinach would not fit. A puzzle rich in INFORMATION.

14. "I wanna go too!" : TAKE ME.

15. Presumed threats to letter carriers : DOG BITES.

17. " ... according to my abilities" : AS I CAN.

18. Half, statistically : ONE IN TWO. You had a one in two chance of getting this right.

21. __ loss : AT A.

22. The Hammer of baseball : AARON. Hmmerin' Hank, yes...

31. Natural mole fur hue : TAUPE. Really? The French word for mole is TAUPE.  The moles we had in Connecticut had darker coats.

33. Balm source : ALOE.

34. Hand analog : PAW.

35. Fruity quaffs : ADES. A mini CSO for moi.

36. "Actions speak louder than words," e.g. : MAXIM. Saying, adage, aphorism, proverb, motto, saw, axiom, dictum, precept, epigram; truism, cliché.

38. Short pooch, for short : PEKE. Pekingese, the Chinese Lion Dog. The look sad to me.

39. It's hardly a smash : LOB. Not a flop or bomb, but a tennis term.

40. Lowlands feature : DALE.

41. __ metabolism : BASAL. Time to fix your BODY.

46. Undemonstrative sort : STOIC.

47. Med. recording : ECG.

56. Cleaned, in a way : SWEPT OUT.

59. Lethargy cause : ANEMIA. The old iron deficiency anemia.

60. One assessing sentiment : POLLSTER. Please no robocalls! Last election is why I gave up my home phone.

61. Digital image format : BITMAP. Not a word I KNEW.

62. It keeps the team together : YOKE.

63. Calculating : SLY.

64. Studio equipment : EASELS. Art studio,  not music.

Down:

1. Companion to Artemis : STAG.  Famous  ART.

2. Simplicity : EASE.

3. Related : AKIN.

4. 2014 Best Rock Album Grammy winner : BECK. This was hard because Led Zepplin won last year.

5. Spring (from) : EMANATE. Nice word.

6. Mean : DENOTE. One of those needless ten dollar words, if you mean mean say mean.

7. Teen __ : IDOL. Wolf anyone? Michael Landon?  Michael J, Fox?

8. "And there you have it!" : DONE. Not even close.

9. Old : AGED.

10. Problem for a conductor wannabe : TIN EAR.

11. 1930s-'40s slugger : OTT. Mel is back.

12. Limited : FEW.

13. Mil. morale booster : USO.

16. Oaf : BIG APE.

20. Lacking color : WAN.

23. Best for consumption, perhaps : RIPEST.

24. Panasonic headquarters city : OSAKA. And why should I know this? Wait for the perps.

25. Staircase support : NEWEL.

26. Southwestern community : PUEBLO.

27. No. twos : VPS. BMS  fit.

28. Perennial political debate subject : TAXES.

29. Priest in 1 Samuel : ELI.

30. N.T. book written by Paul : ROMans.

31. Soothing applications : TALCS.

32. Add to the family : ADOPT.

36. "What a piece of work is a __!": Hamlet : MAN. A very simple Will quote for JW.

37. Legendary fighter : ALI.

38. Broadway flier : PAN.

40. Coins of old Venice : DUCATS. Gold or silver coins used as a trade coin in Europe from the later medieval centuries until as late as the 20th century. Also slang for tickets.

41. Colorful tropical perennial : BEGONIA. Very colorful.

43. Clearasil target : PIMPLE.

44. Guys : HES.

45. Mrs. Miller's partner in a 1971 Altman film : MC CABE.  Wonderful Julie Christie.

49. Scribbles : JOTS. My meh fill.

50. Hamilton's undoing : DUEL. Death more than undoing. HISTORY.

51. Modest sentence : I TRY. Week after week.

52. November honorees : VETS. My in-laws were married on November 8, so we took them to NYC for their anniversary; when there was a huge Veteran's Day parade, my FIL, an ex-Marine from WWII thought we had planned that as well.

53. Rylan of "Guiding Light" : EMME. A complete unknown but sweet looking.

54. Currency of Iran : RIAL. Rially.

55. Doesn't shut up : YAPS.

56. Le Carré figure : SPY. The Spy Who Came In From The Cold was my first real spy novel.

57. Ply with flowers and chocolate : WOO.

58. JFK was one : ELK, I did not know this trivia,  though it looks more like another Kennedy monogram.

Man the weeks are flying by along with the years; my Charlotte turns 3 before next week's blog. And Harper will be one month. Thanks Jeffrey for another fun Friday, I think this is about 30 of your puzzles since I first blogged you back in February 2013. Happy fall all. Lemonade out from here at 

special thanks to a very special John Lampkin.

Note from C.C.: 

Crosswords LA Tournaments will be held tomorrow (Oct 24, 2015, Saturday) at the Fowler Museum at UCLA. You don't need to be a wizard solver to participate. As you can see, they have four brackets for different skill levels. Or you can just be a spectator, solving at the same time with other competitors but your grids won't be scored.

It's an annual charity event Elissa Grossman started in 2009 to raise money for Reading to Kids. I hope our readers in LA area will attend the event and mingle with your favorite constructors, bloggers & fellow solvers.

Thursday, October 22nd, 2015 David Poole

Theme: Feathered Friends. Five people's names who sound like birds replace the birds themselves in the noun. Hilarity ensues.

17A. Ditty from 1970s-'80s NFL wide receiver Lynn? : SWANN SONG. Pittsburgh Steelers Hall-of-Famer.

25A. Unwinding places for actor Russell? : CROWE BARS. The blog "Waiter Rant" revealed that Mr. Crowe, when eating out, doesn't behave like a spoiled brat and tips well. Good to know.

38A. Tough spot for actor Walter? : PIDGEON HOLE. Apparently this is how an urban pigeon adapts to apartment living. Their country cousins may have more space.

49A. Easter adornment made by politician Dan? : QUAYLE EGG. Food! Three of these make a very small omelet.

61A. Facial feature of actor Ethan? : HAWKE EYES. Are they deep and dreamy? I have no idea.

Spot the odd one out in the theme entries - a swan has a song (in legend), a pigeon may perch in a hole, roughly 50% of the adult quail population has the capacity to lay eggs and a hawk certainly has eyes, apparently sharp ones. But a crow? I don't believe a crow has ever had bars. There's some other odd-ones-out too - CROWBAR is one word, the others are two, and QUAYLE needs a letter-change from the bird, the others don't. It feels inconsistent to me.

I confess to being a little underwhelmed with this one - you could play "Word Association" and get three or four of the names without thinking: Actor Russell? CROWE! Actor Ethan? HAWKE! Politico Dan? QUAYLE! You get the idea.

So let's see what else we've got:

Across:

1. Lead-ins to some online games : ADS. I don't play computer games, but I can't see the producers missing the opportunity to push some product before you get the chance to play.

4. Magnetic induction unit : TESLA. I didn't know this usage, but there's been enough of Nikola round recently that it wasn't a problem.

9. Nobelist Curie : MARIE. Husband Pierre also - he didn't fit. She beat him 2-1 in the Nobel Prize throwdown.

14. Petal plucker's word : NOT. Unloved, so sad.

15. Use at the table : EAT ON. Odd - I eat OFF plates and silverware, not on them.

16. Dunderhead : IDIOT

19. Replicate : CLONE

20. Fighting against : ANTI

21. Rarely seen item on casual Friday : TIE

22. Enjoy Whistler : SKI. Nice clue for this little word. Another mention of the artist at 58A.

23. Rule : REIGN

30. Sagittarius, e.g. : ARCHER

32. Sign of hope : RAY

33. See 8-Down : LEE.

34. Mass __ : TRANSIT. Had to wait for a few crosses before I could fill in this one.

37. Wander : ROVE

40. Computer menu heading : FILE

42. Hockey positions : WINGERS. Soccer too. Rugby also. Sports a-plenty.

43. Big club in Atlantic City? : ACE. Four suits to choose from. How about the Ace of Spades? [Rated BG13 (Blog Guidance) for Heavy Metal Content]

44. Neurologist's printout, briefly : E.E.G.

45. Find out about : DETECT

53. Gretzky, during most of the '80s : OILER. Edmonton hockey eh? The Great One.

54. Foreign __ : AID

55. __ Cruces : LAS. Wikipedia says this places is also known as "The City of The Crosses" which is kinda stating the obvious considering "Las Cruces" means "The Crosses".

57. Not : NARY

58. Emulate Whistler : PAINT. Here's his famous and pensive-looking mother. Maybe she's wondering when he's going to stop messing around with oils and look for a proper job.

63. Bike wheel feature : SPOKE

64. "Little Miss Sunshine" Oscar winner : ARKIN. Las Cruces got me most of the way here.

65. Rebellious Turner : NAT

66. Structural support : TRUSS

67. Kids around : JESTS

68. Some municipal trains : ELS

Down:

1. "Broken Arrow" co-star : ANSARA. No idea, so thank you, perps. The late actor Michael.

2. Wet blanket : DOWNER

3. Radio problem : STATIC. I wanted "Running low on Ne-Hi" first.

4. Notable Downing Street number : TEN. The British Prime Minister's residence. You used to be able to walk right up to the door and get your picture taken with the jolly policeman (unarmed, naturally) guarding the place. Times have changed.

5. "__ of Eden" : EAST. I came late to reading Steinbeck and this was my first. I couldn't believe how fresh it seemed.

6. Stiff-upper-lip type : STOIC

7. Hardly a social butterfly : LONER

8. With 33-Across, "Life of Pi" director : ANG. This name has finally sunk into my pea-brain. Nailed it!

9. Pluto's master : MICKEY

10. Improvise in a sketch : AD LIB

11. 2014 World Cup city : RIO. I timed my visit imperfectly last time down there - I arrived exactly a week after the final.

12. Charged particle : ION

13. Printemps follower : ÉTÉ. Summer follows Spring in France, just like here. I ate one of the most memorable meals of my life at Le Manoir aux Quat'Saisons, Raymond Blanc's Michelin-starred restaurant in .... England, oddly enough.

18. Lingerie purchase : NIGHTIE

22. Bundled up : SWATHED

24. Pi Day celebrant, stereotypically : NERD. March 14th.. It doesn't works in in the UK when you have the day before the month. This year was awesome - add the year and a specific time in the morning, and you got:

26. Circular gasket : O-RING. Infamously the culprit of the space shuttle Challenger explosion.

27. Soothing succulent : ALOE

28. Accelerate, with "up" : REV

29. Understand : SEE

31. Common allergen : RAGWEED. I tried RAGWORT first and needed a little unpicking in that area.

35. Mont Blanc covering : NEIGE. Not quite as much neige en été, plenty more en hiver. Thankfully Wiki refrains from informing us that "this alpine feature, also called Mount White ..."

36. Emilio Estevez, to Martin Sheen : SON

37. "Goosebumps" series author : R.L.STINE. More crosses- I've seen this name before, even commented on it in the blog and still couldn't remember it.

38. Court answer : PLEA

39. Twistable treat : OREO

40. Website help sect. : F.A.Q. Frequently Asked Questions. C.C. maintains the "Olio" section (link at the right of the blog) which comprises our FAQ collection.

41. Post-op area : ICU

44. Privileged groups : ELITES

46. Stand-up comic Boosler : ELAYNE. If you say so.

47. Breakfast choice : CEREAL. "Choice" is a stretch here. John Pinette agrees.

48. No-tell motel meetings : TRYSTS

50. Pulls hard : YANKS

51. Intimidating look : GLARE

52. Rubbernecks : GAWKS

56. Monty Python segment : SKIT

58. Vancouver setting: Abbr. : P.S.T. My side of the country, or it will be when I get back there in about four hours time. According the flight tracker, I'm somewhere north of Lake Erie close to the Canadian border at the moment, blogging happily with power and WiFi.

59. 30-day mo. : APR

60. Note from one who's short : IOU Nice cluing again for a short fill.

61. "The __": Uris novel : HAJ

62. "No, No, Nanette" foursome : ENS. Waving at the neighboring ELS. The golfer and the Navy get a cluing rest today. I like this one!

Some nice fill and cluing cheered me up after my "meh" theme-reaction, so fair play to David.

On a crossword note, if you've ever done a puzzle in an in-flight magazine, you'll realize what a quite fantastic job the constructors and editors of the NYT and LAT do (I'm not counting myself in that company). The quality is generally really shabby. The one I did in the United magazine yesterday had at least 10 entries that Rich would have thrown out without a pause. A few months ago I did one where the constructor had obviously reworked a section but forgot to update the clues to match the new answers - that was a challenge!

That's it from me!

Steve

Wednesday, October 21, 2015, John Lieb

Title: CC Rider

We denizens of this site quickly saw our lovely leader C.C. in the gimmick of double C's in each two word phrase where the first word ends in C and the second word begins in C. However, John's fine hump day offering invoked the original use of CC for the Carbon Copy method of producing a messy facsimile as seen in this blurry CC of an interesting 1958 typewritten letter from Eleanor Roosevelt to JFK.

Today, of course it is mainly used as a way to send a duplicate email to another recipient electronically sans the messy paper

Theme answers:

16. Three-time Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee : ERIC CLAPTON - First as a member of this group, then a member of Cream and then as a solo artist

22. Master thespian's skill : DRAMATIC CHOPS -Yeah, I've heard she's got 'em. Do you remember this movie?

49. Brew produced without pesticides : ORGANIC COFFEE - This must be good  because it says so!

58. "One Thousand and One Nights" transport : MAGIC CARPET - Or a ride offered by this group

The theme reveal:

65. Duplicates, briefly ... and a hint to 16-, 22-, 49- and 58-Across : CC'S 

John's fun gimmick could also have referred to CC's of medicine, Closed Captioning  we use for Downton Abbey or, as previously mentioned, the very nice lady in Minneapolis who runs this electronic popsicle stand.

Across  
    
1. Punch kin : ADE - Not a JAB

4. Refuse : TRASH - Turn down garbage - REFUSE REFUSE

9. Debussy's sea : MER - I'll bet you can figure out this 1914 American song lyric here in French "Par la MER, par la MER, par la belle MER" (*answer at the bottom)

12. __ Scotia : NOVA

14. Makes arrangements for : SEES TO - What Joann will do for our kitty when we travel again

15. Chopper : AXE

18. Sleep phase initials : REM

19. 1990s Polish president : WALESA - Lech, the electrician who became president, helped Poland into a post-communist era

20. Ocean State sch. : URI - The Fightin' Rams of the University of Rhode Island

21. California's __ Valley : SIMI

25. Pretentious sort : SNOB - Dontcha just hate 'em?

27. Used Grecian Formula on : DYED - Not enough vanity with me for that

28. Uses for a fee : RENTS

29. Civil War nickname : ABE

30. Artist's shade : HUE

31. "La Bamba" actor Morales : ESAI - A frequent flyer on this airline

33. Burroughs' feral child : TARZAN - I think we know the pithy dialog below

35. Welcomes to one's home : ASKS IN

39. Actress Sommer : ELKE

41. Sets for binge watchers : TVS - Hey, it's a Jetson's marathon!

42. Rapid-fire weapon : UZI

43. Fireplace piece : GRATE

46. Maker of Air Zoom sneakers : NIKE - How would these look on a 69 yr old retired teacher? Yeah, I thought so too.

48. Eyewear, in ads : SPEX

52. Regatta implements : OARS

53. Shout of support : RAH

54. Burglars' concerns : ALARMS

57. Former AT&T rival : GTE

60. See 62-Across : LEE

61. Endless, poetically : ETERNE

62. With 60-Across, big name in desserts : SARA - They had the best jingle with a double negative that was in C.C.'s lovely Monday puzzle.

63. Harris and Asner : EDS - I best remember Ed Harris as Gene Kranz uttering, "Failure is not an option" in Apollo 13

64. Gave the wrong idea : LED ON

Down

1. Once again : ANEW

2. Latina toon explorer : DORA - The Explorer

3. Superhero's nemesis : EVILDOER

4. Long Island Iced __: cocktail : TEA - No Lipton in there!

5. Public stature : REPUTE

6. Not sidesaddle : ASTRIDE - It would never do for Lady Mary of Downton Abbey to sit ASTRIDE

7. Hard to arouse : STOIC - Even sidesaddle, she would look STOIC

8. Sweetie pie : HON

9. Ohio county or its seat : MARION - Named for "The Swamp Fox" Francis Marion. Look who played him on TV

10. Not obliged to pay : EXEMPT - UN envoy and their parking tickets

11. Neglectful : REMISS

13. Harsh : ACERB - ACERBIC is a form more familiar to me

14. Focus of an annual 26-Down contest : SLAM DUNK 

17. Jefferson Davis was its only pres. : CSA - The story of Jeff Davis being captured while disguised in  women's clothes was untrue but gained a life of its own

21. Mideast chieftain : SHEIK - Do you remember Ray Stevens' now VERY un-pc song about the "SHEIK of the burn in' sands"?

23. Reply to Bligh : AYE

24. Ill-mannered : CRASS

25. Convened : SAT

26. Hoops gp. : NBA

30. Drummer Alex Van __ : HALEN

32. Avoid embarrassment : SAVE FACE - Better than this

34. Epsilon followers : ZETAS 

36. Large political spending org. : SUPER PAC - They raised $828,224,700 for the 2012 election 

37. Ending with civil or social : IZE

38. Put the kibosh on : NIX - 1935 Variety headline translated - "Rural people don't like movies about rural people"

40. Behind bars : ENCAGED

41. Ring result, briefly : TKO

43. Help in many a search : GOOGLE

44. Like many violent films : R-RATED - MPAA says "This rating is given for strong and frequent language and violence, nudity for sexual purposes and the abuse of drugs."

45. Goes with the flow : AGREES

47. Asian MLB outfielder with a record 10 consecutive 200-hit seasons : ICHIRO - As a Mariner, Yankee and Marlin (after playing for the Orix Blue Wave in Japan for 9 years)

48. Craftsman retailer : SEARS 

50. Really boiling : IRATE

51. Jeb Bush's st. : FLA

55. Cougar maker, for short : MERC

56. Dots on a subway map: Abbr. : STAS - The Kingston Trio sang "Charlie handed in his dime at the Kendall Square STAtion and he changed for Jamaica Plain"

58. Voice legend Blanc : MEL

59. Channel founded by Turner : CNN

*Song lyric in English was "By the SEA, by the SEA, by the beautiful SEA"

A rerun of a something I have previously posted: If our blog mistress's doctor wanted to sent her med dosage to Walgreens and a copy to her, he would "CC the CC's to C.C." 


Husker Gary

Tuesday, October 20, 2015 Gareth Bain

Theme: Rock On!

17A. *Cardiologically healthy, as a diet : HEART SMART

25A. *Affectionate apron inscription : KISS THE COOK

40A. *Commuter's headache : RUSH HOUR TRAFFIC

50A. *Title for Aretha Franklin : QUEEN OF SOUL

63A. Musical conductor ... and, literally, what the start of each answer to a starred clue is : BANDLEADER

Argyle here. Rock bands with one word names lead off two or three word in language phrases. A grid spanner anchors the middle with solid little blocks all around. A couple of descending strings help tie it all together. Should prove entertaining. I'm not comfortable with the reveal; it seams to be asking for a Shaw or Goodman. The answers lead off with a band, not a bandleader. HEADBAND. My nit.

Feel free to link your favorite song by these groups.

Across:

1. "Goodbye, Columbus" author Philip : ROTH

5. High anxiety : ANGST

10. Me-time resorts : SPAs

14. Fencing choice : EPEE

15. Trip the light fantastic : DANCE

16. Quarterback-turned-congressman Jack : KEMP. NY congressman after QBing for Buffalo Bills. VP candidate with Bob Dole.

19. River of Pisa : ARNO

20. Wide variety : ARRAY

21. Gauge showing rpm : TACH. (tachometer)

23. How Marcie addresses Peppermint Patty : SIR. from Peanuts.

24. Howl at the moon : BAY. Been there, done that.

29. On its way : SENT

30. Handmade scarf stuff : YARN

31. Radar dot : BLIP

34. Chic modifier : TRÈS

37. Pay hike : RAISE

43. See eye to eye : AGREE

44. __ fide: in bad faith : MALA

45. "Teh" for "The," say : TYPO

46. Dry as the Atacama : ARID. Some like it Chile.

48. Omelet necessities : EGGS

54. Fabric flaw : RIP

57. Address bar address : URL

58. Pilot's alphabet ender : ZULU. An alternate ending is Zebra.

59. Wear away gradually : ERODE

61. Long-billed wader : IBIS

66. Charge : RATE

67. "Lucky" aviator, familiarly : LINDY. Charles Lindbergh

68. Stew veggies : PEAS

69. Was sure about : KNEW

70. Crème de la crème : ELITE

71. Footprint part : SOLE

Down:

1. Detox program : REHAB

2. Word before house or after horse : OPERA

3. In need of tissues : TEARY

4. Wife of Zeus : HERA

5. Promos : ADs

6. "China Beach" war zone, for short : NAM

7. Swarming pests : GNATS

8. "Ice Age" saber-toothed squirrel : SCRAT. He managed to get some product endorsements.

9. Easily annoyed : TETCHY. Same as touchy?

10. Caribbean music : SKA

11. Be the epitome of : PERSONIFY

12. Prenatal test, for short : AMNIO. (Amniocentesis)

13. Hybrid utensil : SPORK

18. Kid : TYKE

22. "Do I __ Waltz?": Rodgers/Sondheim musical : HEAR A. 1965 Broadway

26. A big fan of : INTO

27. Doodle on the guitar : STRUM

28. Summer camp activities : CRAFTS

29. Globe : SPHERE

31. Lingerie item : BRA

32. Carry with effort : LUG

33. Descendant of Jacob : ISRAELITE

35. Obama __ : ERA

36. Fifth cen. pope called "The Great" : ST. LEO

38. Small taste : SIP

39. Environmental prefix : ECO

41. "57 Varieties" brand : HEINZ

42. Classico rival : RAGU

47. Look-alike : DOUBLE

49. High spirits : GLEE

50. Peculiarity : QUIRK

51. Living in the city : URBAN

52. Swing wildly : FLAIL

53. Branch of Islam : SUNNI

54. Event with lots of horsing around? : RODEO

55. Flawless : IDEAL

56. Intrinsically : PER SE

60. Emulates Eminem : RAPS

62. Darn things : SEW

64. Prohibited pesticide : DDT. (dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane)

65. Chemical in Drano crystals : LYE

Argyle