Monday, April 4, 2016 Mark McClain

Theme: Late - Things after dinner.

58. When one might have a mint ... or where the first words of 18-, 24-, 37- and 48-Across can be found : AFTER DINNER

18. Hotel lobby supervisor : BELL CAPTAIN. Dinner Bell

24. Working the room, as at a banquet : TABLE HOPPING. Dinner Table

37. Time of reckoning : DATE WITH DESTINY. Dinner Date

48. Congressional majority, e.g. : PARTY IN POWER. Dinner Party

Argyle here. Barely awake and no, it wasn't a rough night.

Across:

1. Website pop-ups, e.g. : ADS

4. Brush with liquid while roasting : BASTE

9. Jeweled headwear : TIARA

14. Morse code bit : DAH. Well, no dit.

15. Electric razor brand : BRAUN. What's a razor?

16. Like some short-term committees : AD HOC

17. Make a boo-boo : ERR

20. Bathtub insert : PLUG

22. Texter's "Wish you hadn't said that!" : TMI. (too much information)

23. Practical, as a solution : VIABLE

27. Words before uproar : IN AN

28. Dipstick wiper : RAG

29. Gumshoes: Abbr. : PIs. Private Eye.

32. Madrid museum : PRADO

35. Little kid : TOT

36. Went to the bottom : SANK

41. Is the right size : FITS

42. Yea's opposite : NAY

43. Short, but probably not sweet : TERSE. Like this write-up?

44. Sneaky : SLY

45. Warm lining : FUR

46. Feline king : LION

53. Nielsen of "The Naked Gun" films : LESLIE. And "Airplane!"

56. Canon SLR camera : EOS. Are they all DSLR now?

57. Indian wrap : SARI

61. Santa visitor's seat : LAP. Ho Ho Ho!

62. Fable's lesson : MORAL

63. Rear, to an admiral : STERN

64. Mao __-tung : TSE

65. Unlike poetry : PROSY

66. Blended ice cream drinks : MALTS

67. Buddhist sect : ZEN

Down:

1. Quite competent : ADEPT

2. "Our Gang" girl : DARLA. Never knew this. Not a bad voice.

3. Decorative foundation plant : SHRUB

4. Consumer protection gp. : BBB. (Better Business Bureau)

5. "Respect" singer Franklin : ARETHA

6. Upstream swimmer : SALMON

7. Dutch bulb : TULIP

8. Britannica, e.g.: Abbr. : ENC. (encyclopedia)

9. Wrapping, as an ankle : TAPING

10. Rover's collar attachment : ID TAG

11. Melville's obsessive whaler : AHAB

12. Stir up : ROIL

13. Clearasil target : ACNE

19. Fly : AVIATE

21. Flies like a seagull : GLIDES

25. Sufficient, in poetry : ENOW

26. Cattle poker : PROD

29. Low poker hand : PAIR

30. Quaint lodges : INNS

31. Hebrides isle : SKYE

32. Many emailed image files : PDFs. There are programs to change JPG to PDF or change PDF image to JPG but I have no experience with it.

33. Train wheel guide : RAIL

34. Suit filer: Abbr. : ATTY.

35. " ... hallowed be __ name" : THY

36. Dictation takers : STENOs. (stenographer) It seems STENO is a stand alone word and not an abbreviation.

38. Accustomed (to) : INURED

39. Small fruit pie : TART

40. Four-way __ : STOP

45. Without prejudice : FAIRLY

46. Big name in little trains : LIONEL. Fantastic in full screen!

47. What an editor's caret indicates : INSERT

48. Sincere entreaties : PLEAS

49. Busybody : YENTA

50. Dance in triple meter : WALTZ

51. Wipe out : ERASE

52. Mature, as fruit : RIPEN

53. Desk light : LAMP

54. Get an __ effort : E FOR

55. Houston player, informally : STRO

59. School-of-thought suffix : ISM

60. Hosp. staffers : RNs

Argyle

Sunday April 3, 2016, Gail Grabowski

Title: THIN IS IN

Gail's fun gimmick on this Sunday is right in the title. If you take the TH off THIN, what's left is IN. Gail has removed the TH from common words and left us with nine fun and silly phrases to brighten up our weekend. Seven are across and two are down. C'mon, ya gotta love GAR BROOKS! 

Gail's puzzle didn't really offer a (TH)ROUGH WAY to finish and so now let's look at her handiwork in detail

Theme Answers

27. Bud who's been fired? : CANNED BROTH - A fired friend OR... (Is the phrase CANNED BROTH familiar to you?)

29. Search online about auditory issues? : GOOGLE EARTH - "Would someone please GOOGLE EAR to see why Papa can't hear very well" OR a GOOGLE EARTH shot of my house below

46. GEICO gecko's financial counterpart? : CREDIT CARD THEFT - Changing the TH removal to inside the phrase putting our CWD friend EFT in a VISA promotion OR stealing your CREDIT CARD, e.g. using this "skimmer" inside a gas pump

68. One fastidious about table manners? : THEATER CRITIC - "Get your elbows off the table!" OR Bill and George checking out the reviews for Hamlet and Pygmalion 

90. Editor's marks in the margin? : LATERAL THINKING -"...er, How about 'Listen to me' rather than 'Lend me your ears', Bill?" OR NASA spinoffs such as where wire developed for space is now used to make lower cost MRI's here on Earth

105. Displeased reaction to election turnout? : VOTING BOOTH - "Only 10% showed up for the primary?" OR a structure invented in Crete, Nebraska 105 years ago by my friend's great grandparents 

109. Streams stocked with elongated fish? : GARTH BROOKS - Ugly, long-nosed fish in a small stream OR the performer who added four shows to his scheduled two in Omaha last year after 90,000 tickets were sold

39. Consequence of a heist injury? : THROBBING PAIN - A second-story man falling OR for me, a toothache

42. Part of a project to recycle golf accessories? : TEETH GRINDING - Questionable practice of remaking golf pedestals OR a problem requiring this

Across 
        
1. Let the tears out : BAWL

5. Fast-food pork sandwich : MCRIB - £4.19 in London

10. Oar : SCULL - A boy using two SCULLS (on rope for training/safety)

15. Datebook opening : SLOT - C.C. gives me an occasional SLOT for blogging

19. Ad, basically : LURE

20. "When Lilacs Last in the Dooryard Bloom'd," for one : ELEGY - Typically a lament for the dead

21. Riveting woman? : ROSIE - Lots of ROSIE'S didn't return to their old way of life after WWII and America was changed forever

22. Break-even transaction : WASH - Raise = $100/mo. Insurance increase = $100/mo.

23. Twistable snack : OREO

24. Rock guitarist Eddy : DUANE - 1958's twangy Rebel Rouser is my fav

25. Bungling : INEPT

26. Off-the-wall answer? : ECHO

31. Sources of complaints : ILLS

32. Porch furniture material : RATTAN

36. Breakfast grain : OAT

37. Course accomplishment : BIRDIE - Golf mini-theme with Irons and Tees

40. High-altitude home : AERIE - One at Kennedy Space Center I've been past many times

41. Maine course : LOBSTER - Nice!

45. 1941 FDR creation : USO - First one opened in DeRidder, LA 10 months before Pearl Harbor

50. "Bambi" role : ENA - Bambi's mother's sister. 

51. Talmudic scholar : RABBI

53. Pull-down beneficiaries : LATS

54. Some tech sch. grads : EES - Electrical/Electronic Engineers

55. Spew out : EGEST

57. "Happy to help" : NO BOTHER - I prefer the Aussie version!

59. Trickles : SEEPS

61. Smooth transition : SEGUE - Speaking of thermonuclear war...

62. "Hedda Gabler" playwright : IBSEN

63. Colorado county or its seat : PUEBLO - Just west of Pueblo is...

65. Kept for later : STORED - I STORED my Cheesecake Factory Monte Cristo Sandwich for four days and then, uh, pitched it

66. Reunion attendees : KIN

71. Medit. country : ISR

72. Bing's co-star in "The Bells of St. Mary's" : INGRID

75. Use as support : REST ON

76. Oscar winner Williams : ROBIN - Brilliant comic/actor whose dementia drove him to an untimely end

79. March VIP : ST PAT - Inside our ST PAT'S church here in Fremont

80. "Papa Bear" of football : HALAS - George who founded, owned and coached the Da Bears

81. Chicago's "in the Park" time : SATURDAY - "I think it was the fourth of July"

84. Mazda sports car : MIATA - Bought one and then my midlife crisis passed

85. Rocks in rye : ICE - "Oz never did give ICE to the Tinman"

86. Primatologist Fossey : DIAN

88. Easily deceived : NAIVE

89. One-time Capitol Records parent : EMI

95. "Get it done" : NOW

96. Alley game : TENPINS

98. Moto portrayer : LORRE - Some think Slovokian-born Peter's role as an Asian was racist

99. Evens up : ALIGNS - Keeping ALIGNMENT was very important here

101. High bond rating : AAA

102. Willowy : SVELTE

104. Radio-active sort? : CBER - "Breaker one-nine, ya got your ears on?"

114. Rare cry from the slots : I WON - See 88 Across - NAIVE

115. Come from behind : RALLY

117. Asian capital : HANOI

118. Technology prefix : NANO

119. It may be reserved : SEAT 

120. Guadalajara gal pal : AMIGA

121. "What the Butler Saw" playwright : ORTON - "A risqué British comedy"

122. Chain with stacks : IHOP

123. Puts in : ADDS

124. Polite title : MADAM

125. Picking out, as a perp : IDING - Sometimes from a police lineup

126. Team that's played in the same park for 100 years : CUBS - Last World Series win predates even Wrigley Field


Down

1. Political coalition : BLOC

2. Intangible quality : AURA

3. Little singer : WREN

4. Ex-Soviet leader Brezhnev : LEONID

5. One getting too personal : MEDDLER - Ann Landers - "Is anything better because I do this?" 

6. Caddies carry them : CLUBS

7. Back : REAR

8. "That's not important" : IGNORE IT - "... and it'll go away!"  "Right!"

9. Tournament pass : BYE

10. __ Lanka : SRI

11. Dance in a line : CONGA - Wedding staple!

12. Apply to : USE ON

13. Slimming option, for short : LIPO - I should call today so Dr. Su could USE it ON me!

14. Release : LET GO OF

15. Term of affection : SWEETS

16. Make more potent : LACE

17. Org. with an Anti-Retaliation webpage : OSHA 

18. Red-bearded god : THOR

28. Brings forth : ELICITS

30. Blood work, e.g. : LAB TEST - Even on man's best friend 

33. Cultural pursuits : ARTS

34. It may be a sign of stress : TIC

35. Caddy contents, perhaps : TEA - Here's one for our tea fans

37. Ruin in the kitchen : BURN

38. Golfer Aoki : ISAO

40. Purim month : ADAR

41. Lower in price : LESS

43. Comes after : ENSUES 

44. Like "American Sniper" : RATED-R - Words and sex don't stop us but violence does

47. Supreme Court appointee after Sonia : ELENA

48. Land on the sea? : REEL IN - Cute clue! Who's landing whom?

49. Stop on a line : DEPOT

52. Tiny Tim's dad : BOB - An employee of Scrooge and Marley at 15 bob/week

56. Graphic beginning? : GEO

58. Be mindful of : HEED

59. Breakaway factions : SECTS - Because of limits on SEX?

60. Iberian river to the Mediterranean : EBRO - Also Spain's longest river exclusively in Spain

63. Kitchen gadget : PEELER - Beetle Bailey's gadget on KP (from Mark Skoczen's March 23rd puzzle)

64. __ Minor : URSA - Contains the North Star

65. Conan Doyle, by birth : SCOT

66. Fate : KISMET

67. Eventually : IN TIME

69. Barely detectable amount : TRACE - We and Omaha got a TRACE of snow on 3.22.16 but NW of here...

70. Tabriz native : IRANI

73. State secrets? : RAT

74. Salad bar choice : ITALIAN

77. Criminal likely to get caught : BUNGLER - And maybe get ROBBING PAIN

78. Portfolio holding, for short : IRA

80. Stage successes : HITS - Like Springtime For Hitler in The Producers! :-) 

81. Benefit : SAKE

82. Lady's company? : AVON - We had many bottles of this for the 360 kids on my detasseling buses to repel bugs in the corn fields

83. Trees used for archery bows : YEWS

86. Scuttlebutt : DIRT - What candidates are uncovering on their opponents these days

87. Concerning, with "to" : IN REGARD

91. Parties, to pirates : ANAGRAM 

92. Part of IPA : ALE

93. Bit of cybermirth : LOL

94. Picking up : NABBING - Some wonder why Brussels police weren't NABBING the Paris bomber mastermind sooner

97. Goes over the wall? : PAINTS 

100. Having a twist : IRONIC 

102. Not flimsy : SOLID - Remember the PR  IS  M reveal on 3.25.16 being clued as Solid

103. Europe's longest river : VOLGA

104. Sing like Rudy Vallee : CROON

105. Plastic choice : VISA

106. Had to pay : OWED - At least the minimum on your VISA

107. Despicable sort : TOAD

108. The Tide : BAMA

110. Dead set against : ANTI

111. Island where Bette Midler was born : OAHU 

112. A lock may be in one : KNOB - KNOT was undone by CUBS for my last fill

113. Soaks (up) : SOPS

116. Holiday veggie : YAM

117. __ polloi : HOI - Just us folks or who ALL candidates say they are for until they cross the Potomac

Hanks, Gail, I ink is puzzle's eme was ouroughly enjoyable and not ird-rate to ose of us here! Now let's rill to e  comments of oers!

Saturday, Apr 2nd, 2016, Patti Varol & Doug Peterson

Theme: Two Double Stacks

Words 68 (missing J,Q,X,Z)

Blocks: 27

Phew~!  This one was a toughie, yet upon reviewing it, there really wasn't a lot that couldn't be worked out - but I have to admit to one Google - the crossing of two proper names and some other vagueness in the SW slowed me down tremendously.  Nearly blank on the first passes, but a few educated WAGs at some longer fills gave me some toe-holds, and I was able to hammer out the remainder.  Two double stack spanners, tied to 11-letter fills, and a couple of paired 8's in the Down;

15. Like many a Beverly Hills party-goer :  

FASHIONABLY LATE - I think she's going to be fashionably late

17. Heeds sound advice : LISTENS TO REASON

46. Bird named for its large-scale migrations :  

PASSENGER PIGEON - I was curious, so I looked it up; I did not know they were extinct

49. DVD special feature, perhaps : ALTERNATE ENDING - I wanted alternatIVe, but the double "E" was messing me up; I couldn't see it for a while

~!

ACROSS:

1. Law school accrediting org. : ABA - looking back, this should have been a gimme (American Bar Association)

4. Current information source : TWITTER FEED - I am not on Twitter, nor Facebook - I get my news the old-fashioned way; rumor

18. Former seniors : ALUMS

19. Points for a piano tuner? : TINES - ugh.  The tool, not the person

20. "Murder in the First" airer : TNT

21. Crossword legend Reagle : MERL - should have gotten this on the first pass

22. Primed : READY

23. "Hogan's Heroes" setting, briefly : WWII - the show was before my time; I have been watching some "World War II in color" history on the AHC channel

24. Word with wash or wear : EYE - eyewash, eye wear

25. Zen teaching techniques : KOANS - I WAGed the "K"

26. "Aw, mom!" sound : GROAN

27. Zsa Zsa's older sister : MAGDA

28. "I think you'll like it!" : "TRY ONE~!"

29. Sweat inducer : SCARE

31. Desolate tract : WILDS

32. One good at figures? : SKATER - figure skater; I was on that wavelength

nice figure

33. Sea : BRINY - nope, not OCEAN

35. Mirren of "The Hundred-Foot Journey" : HELEN - this was my only ACROSS fill on the first pass

36. Thugs : GOONS - hockey players, in some instances

37. BART stop : SFO - OK, I took a stab at this one on the first pass, too; San Fransisco Airport on the Bay Area Rapid Transit

40. Hard to grasp : EELY - I went with this, then OILY came to mind

41. Complex : DENSE - I had TENSE; that's 100% 80% correct

42. Dutch word meaning "farmer" : BOER

43. Triple Crown stat : RBI - ooops, I was thinking horse racing, not baseball

44. "Tequila Sunrise" writer/director Robert : TOWNE - no clue, and the "W" was my last fill - but the "ta-DA~!" was there~!

45. Beverly Hills retreat : VILLA

50. Time for fluff pieces : SLOW NEWS DAY - I always find it a little contradictory when the 6 o'clock news spends 22 minutes talking about terrorist attacks, floods, riots, wages going down, taxes and gas prices going up, and then 2 minutes on the cute puppy that chases its own tail....

51. Soapmaker's supply : LYE - OK, I got this one on the first pass, too

DOWN:       

1. Lit : AFLAME

2. Castle wall : BAILEY - So glad I am a huge castle person; I knew this

It's hiding - think courtyard

3. Promise : ASSURE

4. All scores? : TIES

5. Wooed successfully : WON

6. Rather : INSTEAD

7. "Orphan Black" star Maslany : TATIANA - I really wanted to try this show out, but never got a chance to watch

nice figure

8. Govt. obligations : T-BONDS - another good guess

9. __ de los Timbales: Tito Puente's nickname : EL REY - I figured it was "king", but forgot the "El" part

10. Bakery output : RYES

11. Where Hollywood is: Abbr. : FLA - oh, that one - I'm sure a lot of our regulars got it

12. "American Sniper" director : EASTWOOD - I did not remember Clint did this one as well

13. Many British prime ministers : ETONIANS - graduates of Eton school

14. Tooth layer : DENTINE - ENAMEL was too short

16. Web page standard : HTML

22. "I copy" : "ROGER." - we were just talking about "Airplane~!" at the restaurant yesterday

23. Not straight, in a way : WRYLY - like some humor

25. Black on screen : KAREN - Before my time; I would have known Karen ALLEN

"We...are...not...thirsty"

26. They can be silly : GRINS

27. Bristol bro : MATEY - I am reading P.G. Wodehouse, a prolific writer his whole life, with a focus on English life - so this word pops up frequently.  I love his writing.

28. Interlace : TWINE - dah~! Not WEAVE

29. Its first national tournament was held in 1932 in Atlantic City : SKEE-BALL - I did not know this, but I tried "-BALL" at the end, and that helped hugely

30. Nymph who ultimately became the stars of Ursa Major : CALLISTO - I had an A - INSTEAD (6d.) - of O at the end; also a moon of Jupiter

32. Hillary aides : SHERPAS - oh. that Hillary.  The explorer, not the candidate - my housemate is tuned in to CNN 24/7 right now, and it's a bit much

33. Tied hats : BONNETS

34. Snow-White's sister, in Grimm : ROSE RED - found this; Disney making a movie

36. Trifle : GEWGAW - this has appeared in crosswords before, but it was just not coming to me

37. Été blazer : SOLEIL - Le Frawnche sun

38. Grand theft auto, e.g. : FELONY - since it's not capitalized, it's not the video game

39. Santa Ana's county : ORANGE

41. "Holy Sonnets" poet : DONNE - my Google - the Wiki

42. City NNE of San Antone : BIG D - Dallas, TX (colloquial names) Hi there, D-Otto~!

44. Arctic-to-Antarctica migrating bird : TERN - good guess off the "R"

45. Like clematis : VINY - I knew this was going to be something like "VINED"

47. Needle : SEW

48. Gravel designation : PEA - sizing

Splynter