Wednesday, December 16, 2015, Craig Stowe

Theme: Five Easy Pieces

Craig's just right Wednesday puzzle reminded me instantly of this movie below. Taking literary license to count the theme reveal as a piece, our midweek exercise literally had Five Easy Pieces of a Piano. In the movie the five easy pieces represent tortured Bobby Dupea's first book of PIANO PIECES/exercises.

All right, it took me three clues to get the gimmick since HAMMER and KEY were not enough but PEDAL cinched it. DUH! My sympathy goes out to piano teachers who have to listen to Twinkle, Twinkle being pecked out laboriously as their student's first Easy Piece!

Theme answers

18. Olympic event featuring a 16-pound ball : HAMMER THROW - Felt covered string striker or a ball and chain Olympic Event

24. Major court rulings : KEY DECISIONS - Those 88 ebony and ivory pieces or certainly this KEY DECISION

39. Speedster's motto : PEDAL TO THE METAL  - Foot operated levers to modify a piano's sound or leave it to Steven to have a twist on PEDAL-initiated acceleration 

50. Particle physics concept : STRING THEORY - What actually vibrates in the piano or???

...and the Theme Reveal

60. Gershwin's preludes, e.g. ... and the starts of 18-, 24-, 39- and 50-Across : PIANO PIECES - Compositions for the PIANO or its parts (HAMMERS, KEYS, STRINGS and PEDALS, etc. all shown here). Hey, a harp really is a naked piano!

Now let's examine the other PIECES of Craig's fine entry -

Across   

    
1. Pal to text "<3" symbols to : BFF - Man, I thought I was so clever when I put in LES as < is the symbol for less than. I thought I was in for a puzzle full of such math symbolism

4. __ Road: WWII supply route to China : BURMA - Allies flew over "The Hump" (Himalayas) in Japanese-controlled Burma to supply Chiang with material in China so they could keep fighting Japan 

9. Michael of Monty Python : PALIN - Michael, no relation to the former Alaska governor 

14. Bud's partner : LOU - "Who's on first?"  "Of course he is!"

15. Best of the best : A-TEAM

16. Stop on Chicago's Blue Line : O'HARE - Cubs game from O'HARE? Blue Line to Addison station and then the #152 East Bus to Wrigley

17. Coastal bird : ERN

20. Skin blemish : ACNE

22. Medicinal houseplant : ALOE

23. __ farm : ANT - $19.99 with 25 live ANTS from Amazon.com 

29. Beehive State college squad : UTES 

30. Clad : ATTIRED 

34. Selective way to order : ALA CARTE - I'll just take a #2 with a Sprite (skip this Steve!)

38. "Make it happen" : DO SO - Picard's line has elements of the clue and fill

43. Part of JFK: Abbr. : INIT

44. Emerges : COMES OUT - Like the Sun for Annie Tomorrow!

45. Vouches for : ATTESTS

49. Meat : GIST

55. Irritate : IRK - What the waitress did to Bobby Dupea in the iconic diner scene in Five Easy Pieces

58. Coleridge work : RIME - A statue honoring Coleridge in Somerset, England where the Ancient Mariner bears his famous winged burden from The RIME

59. Adjuration : PLEA

65. "You don't say!" : DUH

66. When a "Macbeth" witch says, "Something wicked this way comes" : ACT IV - Says Witch 2

67. Idolize : ADORE

68. Spanish pronoun : ESO

69. Moriarty's creator : DOYLE - Sherlock always BESTS (49 Down yesterday) him

70. 2015 World Series player, for short : NY MET -  I remember that series a little differently 

71. Classic car : REO
 
Down
 
1. Not promising : BLEAK

2. "Star Wars" power, with "the" : FORCE - I'm NOT  lining up for tickets for the next movie in this franchise that starts Friday 

3. Comical : FUNNY

4. Scrooge interjection : BAH - There's not a ghost of a chance that he keeps that perspective

5. "Respect for Acting" author Hagen : UTA

6. Sleep stage : REM

7. Half a pop quartet : MAMAS - This group will perform in our town on January 22, 2016 covering The Mamas and Papas and other 60's groups. It's already sold out

8. Bedelia of kiddie lit : AMELIA - "No, Amelia! When I said make us a chicken dinner, I didn't mean serve us cracked corn!"

9. Strong : POTENT

10. Contented sound : AHH

11. Croft of video games : LARA - Well, what would you wear to raid a tomb?

12. Word before man or maiden : IRON

13. Eye source for a dramatic cauldron : NEWT - Clever!

19. Plant part : ROOT

21. Schools : EDUCATES

25. Short list shortener : ET AL

26. Marriage doc. : CERT - ...or do you remember the ad slogan that went with these CERTS?

27. What a colon means, in analogies : IS TO - Guitar : (IS TO) Cello as Segovia: (IS TO) _____

28. Avoid : SIDE STEP - "No one wants to hear about my tax evasion, let's talk about Syria!"

31. __-Rooter : ROTO

32. Old Testament twin : ESAU

33. Nitwit : DOLT

34. Capital of Samoa : APIA - Yep, even in APIA, Samoa "You deserve a break today"

35. Mardi Gras follower : LENT

36. Mine entrance : ADIT

37. Short list shortener : ETC 

40. Boss on "The Dukes of Hazzard" : HOGG - Ah, ya cain't beat the classics! 

41. Exude : EMIT

42. Screen door stuff : MESH - We had to retrofit our screen door to kitty-proof mesh. 

46. Tried hard : STROVE

47. Vacation plan : TRIP

48. Apelike : SIMIAN

51. Down-and-out : NEEDY - NEEDY people aren't necessarily down-and-out

52. More mature : OLDER

53. Reduce, __, Recycle : REUSE - What you can do with old milk cartons

54. Bumpkin : YAHOO

55. Microsoft Surface alternative : I PAD

56. Puerto __ : RICO

57. "Teenage Dream" singer Perry : KATY - She hasn't spoken to her husband of 14 months, Russell Brand, after he texted her on New Year's Eve 2011 that he was divorcing her 

61. Nothing : NIL

62. Site attachment? : COM

63. Afore : ERE

64. Firmed up, as plans : SET

Now you can enter any comments you have on PIANO PIECES, Chess Pieces, Reese's Pieces, et al, etc...

Husker Gary 

Tuesday, December 15, 2015 C.W. Stewart

Theme: Where's my cape? - Actually, it's PACE that has been changed up and hidden in the middle of the theme entries.

20A. Madison or Jackson, e.g. : STATE CAPITAL. Wisconsin/Mississippi

32A. Workplace social event : OFFICE PARTY. 'Tis the season.

41A. Camper's gift from home : CARE PACKAGE

53A. Deviation from a normal routine, and a hint to this puzzle's circles : CHANGE OF PACE

Argyle here. We've gone from C.C. to C.W. There are circles and they help but the jumbled letters are easy to spot if you sussed the reveal.

Across:

1. Big name in designer bags : PRADA

6. Wild guess : STAB

10. "Oh, darn!" : "DRAT!"

14. Edmonton NHL player : OILER. (hockey)

15. Caen's river : ORNE. In Normandy, northwestern France.

16. World's longest river : NILE. The Orne, 110 mi; the Nile, 4,258 mi; both 4 letters.

17. Gets dirty : SOILS

18. Facts and figures : DATA

19. "My life. My card" co. : AMEX

23. Start of something? : ESS

24. Figs. : NOs. (numbers)

25. Golf lesson subject : STANCE

29. Little taste : SIP. Neat!

30. Illegal diamond pitch : SPITBALL

36. MADD concern : DUI

37. Scottish denials : NAEs

38. Many a Monopoly rd. : AVE.

39. "__ No Sunshine": Bill Withers hit : AIN'T

40. Emancipation Proclamation first name : ABE

45. Like the Titanic : ILL-FATED

47. Monk's title : FRA

48. Put up a fight : RESIST

49. Bikini part : BRA

50. Float up and down : BOB. Must Resist Mental Picture. gave in(1:29)

57. Traffic complaint : [HONK!]

60. Prejudicial view : BIAS

61. Churchgoer's donation : TITHE

62. Figure skating leap : AXEL

63. Tackling a problem : ON IT

64. Bygone anesthetic : ETHER

65. Shopping bag : TOTE

66. Cravings : YENS

67. Salon employees : DYERS

Down:

1. Wild West law group : POSSE

2. Laugh-a-minute types : RIOTS

3. Name after 39-Down : ALIAS. 39D. Police blotter letters : AKA. "Also Known As"

4. Shoulder muscle, informally : DELT. (Deltoid)

5. Pesticide poison : ARSENIC

6. Coke and Pepsi : SODAs

7. Catch : TRAP

8. Voting against : ANTI

9. Skedaddles : BEATS IT

10. "CSI" facility : DNA LAB

11. Canyon edge : RIM

12. Pub choice : ALE. and 52D. Pub choices : BEERS

13. Apt name for a Dallas cowboy? : TEX

21. Deal with it : COPE

22. Divorce proceeding rep. : ATTY. (attorney)

26. Gymnast Comaneci : NADIA

27. Stuck : CLUNG

28. A-list group : ELITE

29. Sally, to Charlie Brown : SIS. (little sister)

30. Fed the piggy bank : SAVED

31. Word in some private school names : PREP. Preparatory school for further education.

32. Broadcasting : ON AIR

33. Story with a lesson : FABLE

34. Senses : FEELS

35. Remove, as a rind : PARE

41. Payment option : CASH

42. "Way to go, kid!" : "ATTA BOY!"

43. Hardly a buzz cut : AFRO

44. Skillfully made : CRAFTED

46. Prone to flip-flopping : FICKLE. Remember the Flying Fickle Finger of Fate?

49. Triumphs over : BESTs

50. Get clean : BATHE

51. Earth pigment : OCHER

54. Four and five, but not six and seven : NINE. 9, not 13.

55. Dieter's setback : GAIN

56. "That's a shame" : PITY

57. Bowler or boater : HAT

58. Kitchen gadgets brand : OXO

59. Common URL ending : .NET

Argyle

Monday, December 14, 2015 C.C. Burnikel

Theme: Bird Vocalization

18. Cares : GIVES A HOOT. Owl.

28. Girl who lost her sheep : LITTLE BO PEEP. Chicken et al.

48. Short online message visible only to approved followers : PRIVATE TWEET. Cartoon canary.

62. Get lovey-dovey : BILL AND COO. Pigeon.

No reveal.

Argyle here. I have to admit I made the classic mistake of overthinking this one. I couldn't see what gimmick C.C. was using. Ha! I didn't see the birds for the trees. But finally I heard them.

Across:

1. Main idea : GIST

5. Seniors, to juniors : DADS. Like Dr. Jones to Dr. Jones.

9. Pizza party drinks : SODAS

14. A whole bunch : LOTS

15. Skip past : OMIT

16. __ Jeane Mortenson: Marilyn Monroe's birth name : NORMA

17. Six-sided state : UTAH

20. Superfan to the max : MANIAC

22. For each one : A POP

23. Org. that created American Hunter magazine : NRA. (National Rifle Association of America) C.C. goes bird hunting?

24. BBC time traveler : DR. WHO. The early bird gets the earworm.

26. Ginormous amount : UMPTEEN

31. Lawyer's org. : ABA. (American Bar Association)

32. Enjoy the pool : SWIM

33. Narnia lion : ASLAN. (The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe)

37. Beauty goop : GEL

38. Get cracking : START

41. Cubes in a tray : ICE

42. Canonized fifth-cen. pope : ST. LEO

45. "Very funny!" : HA HA!":

47. VCR format : VHS. (videocassette recorder/Video Home System)

52. Important Colonial cash crop : TOBACCO

55. Carrying a gun : ARMED

56. "The Simpsons" Squishee seller : APU who might have this sign: 51D. "This convenience store checks IDs" : "WE CARD"

57. Parka part : HOOD

59. Awards for Helen Hunt and Holly Hunter : OSCARS. Hunt for As Good as It Gets(1997), Hunter for The Piano(1993).

65. Sunburn soother : ALOE

66. German pistol : LUGER. You have to be real good to hunt birds with a pistol.

67. Expel : OUST

68. Really anger : RILE

69. Revise, as text : EMEND

70. Makes a choice : OPTS

71. __-dish pizza : DEEP

Down:

1. Wearing a long face : GLUM

2. Greek letter before kappa : IOTA

3. Display confidence and pride : STAND TALL

4. Top with a slogan : T-SHIRT. Up in Lake George, they're fighting again about some of those slogans on display in the store fronts.

5. Canine gnawing toys : DOG CHEWS

6. "__ hearing you right?" : AM I

7. Prima donna : DIVA

8. Answer the call : STEP UP

9. Salad veggie with an edible pod : SNAP PEA

10. Fireworks reaction : "OOH!"

11. Stingless bee : DRONE

12. Valentino's valentine : AMORE

13. The devil : SATAN

19. Vague amount : SOME

21. Beltmaking tools : AWLS

25. Memorial news item, briefly : OBIT

27. Adorns with Cottonelle, informally : TPs. (toilet paper)

28. Falls behind : LAGS

29. "Yeah, whatever" : "I BET"

30. Nebraska city associated with steaks : OMAHA

34. Pretended to be what one isn't : LIVED A LIE

35. Tooth woe : ACHE

36. Home in a tree : NEST. Source of today's emanations?

39. Pro __: in proportion : RATA

40. Jimmy Fallon's longtime house band : THE ROOTS

43. Org. concerned with pesticides : EPA.(Environmental Protection Agency)

44. Apple tree grouping : ORCHARD

46. Emer. money sources : ATMs

49. Desktop image : ICON

50. Ritualistic kind of doll : VOODOO

52. Blackjack surface : TABLE

53. Poppy narcotic : OPIUM

54. Jut out : BULGE

58. Bra spec : D-CUP

60. Audition goal : ROLE

61. Ooze : SEEP

63. Quarterback Dawson : LEN. Played for three professional teams, most notably the Dallas Texans/Kansas City Chiefs.

64. East, in Essen : OST. German, adjective.

Argyle

Sunday Dec 13, 2015 Matt McKinley

Theme: - "Morning Addition" - AM is added into each theme answer.

23A. Harsh criticism of an old Pontiac? : GRAND AM SLAM. Grand slam. All but this AM addition is part of another word.

27A. Unprincipled operator? : AMORAL SURGEON. Oral surgeon. "Unprincipled operator?" describes Dave's doctor so well. 

57A. Salesperson who doesn't take your offer seriously? : AMUSED CAR DEALER. Used car dealer.

66A. Mexican dish you were warned not to eat? : CAUTIONARY TAMALES. Cautionary tales.

76A. "Missionary squad loses big in softball game"? : APOSTLES CREAMED. Apostles' Creed. The answer cracked me up.

107A. Memoirs of a penitent bookie? : ODDS AND AMENDS. Odds and ends.

117A. Really large items thrown overboard? : JUMBO JETSAM. Jumbo jets.

Funny, I solved the whole puzzle thinking "Morning Edition" is the title. It aptly sums up the gimmick, though not as perfectly as "Morning Addition".

Seven entries with a total 95 theme squares is very manageable amount of theme material. Matt went low on word count, only 138 entries today. I've yet to explore that territory. 144 and I are just so inseparable.

Across:

1. Opinionated assortment : BIASES. Skipped to next entry right away.

7. Biblical shepherd : ABEL. Not Jesus.

11. Polaris Rangers, e.g., briefly : ATVs

15. Asian cookware : WOKs. I've collected a few recipes you guys put on the Comments section occasionally. Click here if you're interested.

19. Start a bulleted list, perhaps : INDENT

20. Forecast : BODE

21. Painful, in a way : TRAUMATIC

 

25. Superman or Spider-Man : TITLE ROLE. We also have 66D. First name in superhero lore : CLARK

26. Unavoidable end : DESTINY. Got via crosses.

29. "__, I'm flying in my taxi": Harry Chapin lyric : AND ME. Never heard of the song.

31. Table salt, in chem class : NACL

32. Pool stroke : MASSÉ

33. Therapists' org. : APA

36. Corporate rule : BY-LAW

39. Something for a fan to support : THE TEAM. And 42. Fan appreciation event : BAT DAY. I like Bobblehead Days.

45. Personal: Pref. : IDIO. I put in IDEO.

47. Pleads not guilty : DENIES IT. Just could not parse my own answer.

51. Soviet cooperative : ARTEL. We had this concept in China also. Not surprising. We copied lots of things from Soviet in those earlier years.

52. Loud salutes : SALVOS

55. Type of cell or cent : RED

56. "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine" constable : ODO. Learning moment to me.

61. [Uh-oh!] : GULP. [ ] hints that the answer is a sound.

62. Annual August golf tournaments, familiarly : PGAs

63. Classic theaters : RKOs. Not ODEON.

64. Aiming devices : SCOPES

71. Current king of Spain __ VI : FELIPE. His Australian wife is a fashion icon.

73. Silents star Negri : POLA. Just like TTP, I learned her name from doing crosswords.

74. Time to beware : IDES

75. Truth stretcher : LIAR

83. Rink legend : ORR

84. Tee sizes: Abbr. : SMs. OK, smalls

86. Done like Donne : POETIC. Simple in retrospect.

87. Rancor : SPITE

88. If it's orange, it's really black : PEKOE TEA. Read here. I never heard of Pekoe until I came to the US.

91. Physics unit : DYNE

92. Strengthen : BEEF UP. I'm a kind of Beef.

 

93. Race on the water : REGATTA. Also 114D. Zip (through) : SAIL

96. Kidney-related : RENAL

98. Match in size : FIT

99. Doo-wop band instruments : SAXES

102. After-hours : LATE

104. Hoods : THUGS

112. WWII bond designation : SERIES E. Unknown to me.

116. Carefree : FOOTLOOSE

119. Life partners : TRUE LOVES. Terrific stacks in this corner. I really hope Splynter finds his in 2016.

120. Snack in a stack : OREO

121. Nails the test : ACES IT

122. Doesn't have to ask about : GETS

123. Egg holder : NEST. Lovely clue.

124. Sign of boredom : YAWN

125. Techniques involving falsetto : YODELS

Down:

1. Texas city nickname : BIG D

2. About : IN RE

3. Some govt. lawyers : ADAs

4. "The Flying Dutchman" soprano : SENTA. Foreign to me.

5. Conclude with : END IN. I had END ON first.

6. One awaiting a cancellation : STAND-BY. Great clue.

7. Six-pack set : ABS

8. Two-balled weapon : BOLA

9. European cheese town : EDAM

10. Bar fruit : LEMON. D-Otto (Tom) also lost his brother John earlier this month. I can't picture a life without my brother.  

11. Hook on : ATTACH

12. Warbled : TRILLED

13. Winery fixtures : VATS

14. Course-plotting "Star Trek" crewman : SULU

15. Simulated military exercise : WAR GAME

16. Chiwere speakers : OTOES

17. Bust measurements? : KILOS. Oh, I finally got it. Narc's bust.

18. Not a good thing to make : SCENE

22. Marine myth : MERMAID. Cute, isn't it?

24. "Goodness!" : MY MY

28. Traitor : RAT

30. Woman in a "Paint Your Wagon" song : ELISA. This girl always stumps me.

33. Simple rhyme scheme : ABAA

34. Veal __ : PARM. Never had it.

35. Largest of the Near Islands : ATTU. Gimme for Spitzboov. I drew a blank.

37. Purim month : ADAR

38. Like most zoo animals : WILD

40. La., once : TERR

41. Lincoln-to-Des Moines dir. : ENE

43. Give up : DESPAIR

44. Advantage to get : A LEG UP

46. Like talent, in a Geoff Colvin best-seller : OVER-RATED. Have any of you read the book?

48. Liquid courses : SOUPS

49. Not working : IDLE. Also 65. Monty Python co-founder : CLEESE

50. Beats : TOPS

53. Vanilla-flavored, as wine : OAKY

54. Machine displaying fruit symbols : SLOT. Rigged. You just can't win.

58. Go out with : DATE

59. CBS drama since 2000 : CSI

60. Spanish "that" : ESA. Our Korean vet neighbor Andy moved away to a nursing home. A Spanish-speaking family moved in.

61. Throws a fit : GOES APE

64. Iraq's __ City : SADR

67. W, vis-à-vis E : OPP

68. Don Knotts denial : NOOP

69. Too : ALSO

70. Open __ night : MIC

71. Disaster : FLOP

72. Where the Shannon flows : EIRE

76. Fishing, perhaps : ASEA

77. Interstellar dist. : LTYR (Light-year)

78. Berlin article : EINE

79. Canine attraction : SCENT

80. Annoy : MIFF

81. Decorative sewing case : ETUI. Long time no see!

82. Cabinet part: Abbr. : DEPT.

84. Phrase on a fortuneteller's business card : SEES ALL

85. Office conf. : MTG

89. Son of Agamemnon : ORESTES. Electra's brother.

90. Travelers' references : ATLASES

92. Rogers Centre player : BLUE JAY. Only one Hall-of-Famer in Blue Jay uniform.

94. Least likely to bite : TAMEST

95. Downed : ATE

97. "Sure, I get it" : AH SO. Yellowrocks knows Japanese. In Chinese, we tend to say "Ah, it is because of so" for the "Doh moment".

99. Magic center? : SOFT G. I figured it's G, but did not think of SOFT G.

100. Be gaga over : ADORE

101. Marked for deletion : X'D OUT

103. Relish : ENJOY

105. Artist El __ : GRECO

106. Located : SITED

108. Classic showdown time : NOON. "High Noon".

109. Went off the deep end : DOVE

110. Commercial prefix with "cell" : DURA. Duracell. Gluey entry.

111. Fish-eating duck : SMEW

113. Forum infinitive : ESSE

115. First responders, for short : EMTs

118. __ mot : BON

C.C.

Saturday, Dec 12th, 2015, Jeffrey Wechsler

Theme: "Ol' Blue Eyes"

Words: 71 (missing J,Q,X,Z)

Blocks: 32

  Well, our Mr. Friday puzzle-constructor makes a rare appearance on Saturday, and carries on with a theme, too~!  A left-right symmetrical grid, with triple 7-letter corners and two "spanners" of 9-letters that are part of the theme.  I wonder if Jeffrey originally tried to work "blue eyes" into the lower left corner at 64a....A few proper names slowed me down, and some misdirection had me off to a slow start, but I did get the "ta-DA~!" - only after I went back and corrected one bad cell.  So, the theme answers;

1. 8-Across member born 12/12/1915 : SINATRA - Frank - his Wiki - I was born in NJ, too~!

Frankie calls the shots

8. Group formed in the '50s : RAT PACK

26. 1-Across hit : THAT'S LIFE

52. 1-Across hit : HIGH HOPES
 

Carry - on - ward ~!

ACROSS:

15. Threatening : OMINOUS

16. Friendly : AMIABLE

17. Super Bowl XXXIII team : FALCONS - I can never remember, and the Roman numerals don't help; waited on perps - I can hardly remember who played in last year's Stanley Cup, once the Rangers were eliminated....

18. New Amsterdam landowner : PATROON - ah, like those who once owned a part of upstate NY that Spitz and I know well....

19. 1958 Pulitzer-winning author : AGEE

20. Moves slowly : SEEPS - or OOZES~?  Had to wait, but the last "S" went in

22. Youngest of the musical Gibb brothers : ANDY - WAG; the others are Barry, Robin and Maurice - these three known together as the "Bee Gees" - the Wiki

23. Antarctica's __ Sea : ROSS - I knew this, but it took R--S for it to come to me

24. Popular side : FRIES - ah, side dish, got it

25. Road Runner cartoon background element : MESA

29. Keep down : OPPRESS - dah~!  Not SUpress or REpress

32. Show of condescension : SNICKER

36. Longtime CBS journalist Charles : KURALT - my one bad cell; don't know how I thought OCAY was OKAY

37. Lament : GRIEVE

38. Part of the Maldives : ATOLL - um, yeah, part....

39. AAA TripTik alternative : GPS - I don't care which one you use, just try not to be "lost" in front of me when driving....

42. Ameliorates : EASES

43. Diner's exclamation : YUM - had no clue at first; then I tried M M M - that's a mere 33%

44. Quick drink : SHOOTER - she didn't bartend where I used to drink....

47. "I feel thee __ I see thy face": Keats : ERE

48. Notice : SPOT

50. Vent emanations : ODORS - not GASES

51. Game in which the player is called the Stranger : MYST - I made it through some of the first game, but it takes a lot of mental concentration to figure it out - there's also a sequel, Riven

55. Woman's name meaning "heavenly" : CELESTE - pretty; I have three names I'd like to give my girls - if I ever have kids....

58. "Garbage in, garbage out" subject : BAD DATA

62. Rainy U.S. capital : OLYMPIA - Washington state - and a place I'd like to live, because it rains a lot

63. Equipped : ENDOWED

64. Innocent-looking : DOE-EYED

65. Dusk : DAY'S END - not EVENING....and not DAY SEND, as I first read it

DOWN:

1. Until now : SO FAR - argh~! Not AS YET

2. Insect stage : IMAGO - DaH~! Not LARVA

3. Longtime radio/TV announcer Wendell __ : NILES - perps and WAG

4. Inherited, perhaps : ANCESTRAL

5. Overly : TOO

6. Malfunctions, as a watch : RUNS FAST - I had GOES FAST, but I was fairly certain the theme was SINATRA

7. Makes a case for : ASSERTS

8. Alpine rescue maneuvers : RAPPELS

9. Getting together : AMASSING

10. Small songbird : TIT

11. Slide subjects : PARAMECIA

12. Have __ to pick : A BONE

13. Oafs : CLODS

14. One of its official languages is Swahili : KENYA

21. Bordeaux : glace :: Berlin : __ : EIS :: London : ice  (look away Tin~!)

27. "__ Kitchen": Gordon Ramsay show : HELL'S - I did watch it for the first season or two

28. Personnel manager, at times : FIRER

29. Approves of : OKAYS

30. Something to do with dukes? : PUT UP - "put up yer dukes~!"

31. PSA, say : PROMO

33. Nurse Ratched creator : KESEY - One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest - which swept the "big five" Oscars - there were only two other movies to do so, and I was shocked to find out about the 1991 winner

34. Activist Medgar : EVERS - perps and WAG

35. Go back to zero : RESET

39. Divinity : GODHEAD

40. "Oh, bother" speaker : POOH

41. Pulsed, as light show effects : STROBED

45. Restrict : HOGTIE

46. Miró's birthplace, to Miró : ESPAÑA - Spain, to us locals....is it me, or has the Frawnche dropped off~?

49. Motif : THEME - rarely found in a Saturday puzzle

51. Early PC system : MS-DOS

53. Traveling game : I SPY

54. Rapids feature : EDDY

55. Marine oil source : COD

56. Symphonic rock gp. : ELO

57. Pipe cleaner : LYE

59. Knock the socks off : AWE - this style knocks MY socks off

60. X, sometimes : TEN

61. Say further : ADD

Spot on yesterday, Lemonade - my condolences to you as well

Splynter

Friday, December 11, 2015, Kristian House

Theme: Hats off to Mr. Kristian.

Mr. House returns after a five year absence from the LAT during which he  has 14 or so NYT publications. The theme is rather simple with the second word of each theme fill being a form of 'headgear' but resulting in a phrase that has a very different meaning. No reveal needed. Only 8 three letter fill and some sparkle with  CRATERS,  LESSONS,  ORINOCO,  REDOUBT, AD BLOCKER, NAME DROPS. Overall not as hard as I expected when I saw the byline.

17A. Headgear not for amateurs? : PRO BOWLER (9). A CSO to Boomer.

27A. Headgear for a certain batting champ? : TRIPLE CROWN (11). The man with the most three base hits and a term for someone who leads the league in batting average, home runs and runs batted in. Also a horse racing goal accomplished this year for the first time in 29 years.

47A. Headgear for some skaters? : ROLLER DERBY (11).

64A. Headgear for contract negotiations? : SALARY CAP (9).

Across:

1. Two of its members wrote the music for "Chess" : ABBA. Once again...this MUSICAL has not been a success in the US.

5. Angling trophy : BASS. Is the fish the trophy?

9. Not sour : ON KEY. Friday cluing.

14. Chillax : LOLL.

15. Horn accessory : MUTE. JzB?

16. Kitchen feature : RANGE.

19. Qualifying words : I MEAN. Say what you mean and mean what you say.

20. Bunk : HOKUM. Two made up words.

21. License-issuing org. : DMV. Department of Motor Vehicles. Driver's licenses.

22. They're not optional : NEEDS.

23. Weak : ANEMIC.

25. Career grand slam leader : AROD. His batting coach last year was Barry Bonds.

33. Princess friend of Dorothy : OZMA. In every book but the first one and in Baum's words, "Her eyes sparkled as two diamonds, and her lips were tinted like a tourmaline. All adown her back floated tresses of ruddy gold, with a slender jeweled circlet confining them at the brow."

37. Gibbon, for one : APE.

38. Dr. Howser of '80s-'90s TV : DOOGIE. I bet  most do not associate this series with others created by Bochco and Kelley 

39. Done __ : DEED. Deal seemed so right.

40. Sierra follower, in the NATO alphabet : TANGO.

42. Stiff : PRIM.

43. Facilitate : ENABLE.

45. Torque symbol, in mechanics : TAU. Please Fermat and Bill G, tell us more.

46. Utah state flower : SEGO.

50. Bologna bone : OSSO. Just the Italian word.

51. Work together : TEAM UP.

56. Spy plane acronym : AWACS. Airborne Warning and Control System,

59. Tolkien race member : ELF.

62. Poor treatment : ABUSE.

63. Breadcrumbs used in Asian cuisine : PANKO. Per wiki  Panko is made from bread baked by electrical current, which yields a bread without a crust, and then grinding the bread to create fine slivers of crumb. Come from Japan which learned about bread from Europeans.

66. A lot : OFTEN.

67. Camera that uses 70mm film : IMAX. Where I watched Avatar.

68. Junk, say : SHIP. Asian again, tricky. What you need to KNOW.

69. Shows signs of life : STIRS.

70. A mullet covers it : NAPE. Name the movie?

71. Xperia manufacturer : SONY. They make smart phones and tablets.

Down:

1. __-Bits : ALPHA. A crossword puzzle dream.

2. Element between beryllium and carbon on the periodic table : BORON.
Boring.

3. Chap : BLOKE. Nice Cuppa, Steve...

4. "Help!" is one : ALBUM. Beatles album and movie.

5. German import : BMW. Bayerische Motoren Werke AG  English: Bavarian Motor Works.

6. Word sung in early January : AULD.

7. Watch part : STEM.

8. Spotted wildcat : SERVAL. To me it looks like a leopard mated with a bunny  and then....

9. River under the Angostura Bridge : ORINOCO. Interesting. LINK.

10. Tries to impress, in a way : NAME DROPS. Like knowing someone famous makes you better; so silly. I remember saying that when I was in the elevator with John Lennon at the Continental Hyatt House...

11. Dummy's place : KNEE. So many come to mind

12. "Good heavens!" : EGAD.

13. Hankerings : YENS.

18. Insult in an Oscar acceptance speech, perhaps : OMIT. Don't forget the make up girl.

24. Significant depressions : CRATERS. Not mood swings.

26. Defensive fortification : REDOUBT. This was NEW to me, the perps brought it home.

28. Bar brew, briefly : IPA. India Pale Ale.

29. Board game using stones : PENTE. Sounds like a derivative GAME.

30. Fiend : OGRE.

31. "SNL" alum with Hader and Samberg : WIIG. Does she pass the Splynter test?

32. Fictional captain : NEMO. 20,000 reasons to remember.

33. River through Frankfurt : ODER. On my list of 4 letter European rivers to remember.

34. Philosopher known for his "Achilles and the Tortoise" paradox : ZENO. It is mostly speculation but he did influence Plato and Aristotle. LINK.

35. Ground grain : MEAL.

36. Pop-up prevention : AD BLOCKER. Nice new fill.

41. Sharp-toothed fish : GAR.

44. Course components : LESSONS. Sorry HG and BE, not a golf course.

48. Rubs out : DOES IN.

49. Oenophile's concern : YEAR.

52. Deep space : ABYSS.

53. Oodles of, in slang : MUCHO. Usually with dinero.

54. Bolt like lightning? : USAIN.

55. Raring to go : PEPPY.

56. Mil. mail drops : APOS. Army Post Office

57. Drift, as smoke : WAFT.

58. Fighting : ANTI.

60. Dharma teacher : LAMA.

61. Door in the woods : FLAP.

65. Tin Man's tool : AXE. An ending toast to our own de-icer and my favorite unknown band. LISTEN.

On that musical note, lemonade out. I hope you all have a great party weekend, our office starts today with the ugly sweater contest, problem, nobody owns sweaters here.

ah well.

Note from C.C.: 

I'm sad to let you know that Lemonade's brother passed away yesterday. Lemonade was very close to his two brothers, now both have left this world. Here is a "Hard to Believe" childhood photo Lemonade shared with our blog regulars in 2011. Lemonade is the one in the middle.

Thursday, December 10th 2015 Jerome Gunderson

Theme: Steve! This blogger's initials are added to the start of each theme entry to create a wacky new phrase.

17A. Airline seating for Mensa members? : SMART CLASS. I just took this online IQ Test out of curiosity. I'm not sure how accurate these things are, but I think I came out about where I expected.

65A. Mickey Rooney and Danny DeVito? : SMALL STARS. At 5'2", Rooney towered over DeVito by a mighty two inches. Danny's portrayal of Louie on "Taxi" is one of my favorites.

10D. Overly ingratiating little devils? : SMARMY BRATS

25D. "Hee-Haw" humor, but just a touch? : SMEAR OF CORN. And possibly an apt way to describe the theme entries?

Howdy, folks! Of course Jerome didn't construct this puzzle with me in mind, but I wasn't quite sure how to describe the theme so this seemed as good an explanation as any. Two theme entries across-wise and two downwards for a total of 42 squares leaves a lot of room for some nice fill, which is what we get. Very little in the way of crossword-ese makes for a smooth solve.

Across:

1. Mennonite sect : AMISH

6. Nasty bit of trickery : SCAM

10. Chopped side : SLAW. Food! I made some just the other day - both white and red cabbage and carrots.

14. Trunk full of organs? : TORSO. Fun clue.

15. "Casablanca" heroine : ILSA. Played by the wonderful Ingrid Bergman.

16. Speck : MOTE

19. Milne's Hundred __ Wood : ACRE. Based on the beautiful landscape of the Ashdown Forest in Sussex, England. Milne lived on the northern edge of the forest in a house subsequently owned by the Rolling Stones' ill-starred guitarist Brian Jones.

20. Fire dept. employee : E.M.T.

21. Many ages : AEON. Four of these in the Earth's geological history - Hadean, Archean, Proterozoic and Phanerozoic. We all knew that, right?

22. Out of the country : ABROAD

24. Subordinate's yes : AYE SIR

26. Jewish folklore creature : GOLEM. Nailed it! Cropped up enough times in crosswords to finally stick in my brain.

28. He's a horse, of course : MR. ED. I'll go right to the source.

30. Watched for the evening, say : BABYSAT

34. Bar in a shower : CAKE. SOAP went in, SOAP came out.

37. Mark of approval : SEAL

39. Justice Kagan appointer : OBAMA

40. WWII threat : U-BOAT. I caused myself a couple of do-overs in this area when I had *BO** and immediately saw "H-BOMB". Wrong.

42. Andy Capp's spouse : FLO

43. Preen : PRIMP

44. Mulligan, for one : RETRY. Named for golfer David Mulligan, a member of Winged Foot golf club in the 1920's.

45. Counting-out word : EENY

47. Natural balm : ALOE

48. Embarrassing mistake : BLOOPER

50. Antihero? : GOAT

52. Big spread : FEAST

54. Like Yogi or Smokey : URSINE

58. One of the haves : FAT CAT

61. Prefix with port : HELI-. Here's a particularly vertigo-inducing example at the top of the Burj al Arab hotel in Dubai.

63. Constrictive creature : BOA

64. Empty auditorium effect : ECHO

68. Management level : TIER

69. Electrified atoms : IONS

70. Like some reprimands : TERSE

71. Shangri-la : EDEN

72. Goddess of victory : NIKE. Adidas is the German god of victory, or did I make that up?

73. Resting places : OASES

Down:

1. On the main : AT SEA

2. Toddler's gleeful shout : MOMMY!

3. More than just annoyed : IRATE

4. Abbr. on old Eurasian maps : S.S.R. Plenty of these in this example:

5. Windbag's output : HOT AIR

6. Grain holder : SILO

7. Metallic sound : CLANG

8. Donkey : ASS

9. Tandoori __: South Asian spice mix : MASALA. Food! This is my tin - I go through  a lot of this stuff, so I get three or four at a time when I go to the Indian market. The tins are vacuum-sealed, so keep pretty well in the pantry.

11. Daft : LOCO

12. Gillette razor : ATRA

13. Location-dependent plant designation : WEED

18. First known asteroid : CERES. Discovered by one Guiseppe Piazzi in 1801, it was first considered a planet, then suffered a Pluto-style downgrade in the 1850's.

23. Coltrane genre : BEBOP

27. Billiard table shape : OBLONG. A hockey rink is an oblong also. Oblongs can have rounded or square ends.

29. Postpones : DEFERS

31. Advance using wind : SAIL

32. Big bang cause, sometimes : AMMO

33. Sticky stuff : TAPE

34. Street border : CURB

35. Explorer Tasman : ABEL. Whence Tasmania and the Tasman Straits.

36. Japanese relative of the zither : KOTO. The immensely-talented June Kuramoto appeared with her band Hiroshima at my local music venue earlier this year. She described her koto as "a surfboard with strings".

38. Sierra Nevada product : ALE. The brewing company, not the mountain range.

41. Very ambitious sort : TYPE A. I'm more of a "B".

46. "__ be sorry!" : YOU'LL

49. Cancels the reservation, maybe : EATS IN

51. Blue blood, for short : ARISTO. My last fill. Nice word! The letter sequence doesn't immediately give the game away, especially with the final "O".

53. Express gratitude to : THANK

55. Structural beams : I-BARS

56. Old language that gives us "berserk" : NORSE. Coming up against a berserker or two bent on marauding mayhem was pretty much guaranteed to ruin your day.

57. Moves with care : EASES

58. Big bash : FÊTE

59. Battery fluid : ACID

60. Passé pronoun : THEE

62. Otherwise : ELSE

66. Miss Piggy tagline : MOI

67. Bigelow's Sweet Dreams, e.g. : TEA

Here's the grid, and that's all from me!

Steve