Thursday, March 16 2017 Bruce Haight

Theme: RRepeats - the second letter in each theme entry is doubled and the resulting phrase clued according to the first three-letter part

17A. What Dobermans do for dinner? : GRRAB A BITE. Grr!

24A. Super-cold concoction at Baskin-Robbins? : BRRAIN FREEZE. Brr! Combining the two, here's a cold Doberman:

41A. World's stealthiest detective? : SHHERLOCK HOLMES. Shh!

52A. Cutest Baby contest champion? : AWWARD WINNER. Aww!

65A. Massage epiphany? : AHHA MOMENT. Ahh!

Brruce brrings us a nice Thursday offering. A solid 59 letters of theme entries and a generally pleasing fill around those. I might have tried to not repeat the RR with the first two themers as it could indicate all the following entries will follow the same convention. Not a major nit though, the idea is fun. Let's see what jumps out in the rest of the entries.

Across        

1. The Miners of the Lone Star St. : UTEP. University of Texas, El Paso.

5. Eurasia's __ Mountains : URAL

9. Fundraising gps. : PTAS. I had the P and tried PACS first until nothing would fit around it and forced a change of mind.

13. Caesar's France : GAUL. We studied Caesar's book "Conquest of Gaul" in Latin class at school. Cracking stuff for schoolboys.

14. Marner of fiction : SILAS. Great book. The movie adaptation starring Ben Kingsley as the eponymous weaver was excellent also.

16. Hindustani language : URDU. Hindi has given us quite a few English words, but I can't find any examples from Urdu.

19. Innocent : BABE

20. Retro wall unit : STONE. Retro? Pretty sure we still build with stone.

21. Titanic undoing : BERG. Least accurate damage assessment ever: "We've just stopped for a short time to take on some ice".

23. Not very bright : DIM

28. Yale alum : ELI

31. Longtime Yankees announcer __ Allen : MEL. No clue. Thanks, crosses.

32. First to play James : SEAN. 007-portrayer par excellence Connery. Dr. No was the first movie in the franchise, released in 1962.

33. Tall and lean : LANK

35. "Sadly ... " : ALAS

38. Box : CRATE

44. Got out of bed : AROSE. I arose early this morning to try to shake myself out of time-change clock-lag. I can fly across 11 or 12 time zones and get no jet lag, but that hour in Spring messes me up. It was nice and peaceful at the top of the Hollywood sign though - I'll find out tomorrow if my body clock is reset.

45. "So __ say" : THEY

46. Crowd-sourced review site : YELP. Can be useful if you ignore the obvious outliers (and the reviews obviously written by the buddies of the establishment).

47. Asian takeout option : THAI

49. Little trickster : IMP

51. See 56-Down : SLY. Sylvester Stallone of the movies. I've met him, his brother plays jazz at my local Italian restaurant. He's not as short as people seem to think. However, he's listed at 5'10" on Wikipedia, but I think that might be a little generous.

57. Security briefing org. : CIA

58. Clothing part that might split : SEAM. Especially if you're wearing a size to small or you've eaten a big dinner.

59. Epic tales : SAGAS

63. Singer James : ETTA

68. Agenda detail : ITEM

69. Gets mud on : SOILS

70. Phi __ Kappa : BETA

71. Banks of 2000s TV talk : TYRA

72. Doing business : OPEN

73. "The Osbournes" patriarch : OZZY. Quite the character. I saw Black Sabbath play in London once with Motorhead and Hawkwind. Quite the eardrum assault. Fun through. Here's Hawkwind - imagine this cranked up to 11. Awesome.

Down

1. Brand of sheepskin boots : UGGS. Australia's finest.

2. Biting : TART

3. Italian capital : EURO. No more Lira. It's a shame a lot of the European currencies disappeared with the introduction of the Euro.

4. Fallback option : PLAN B

5. __ Today : USA. Their distribution network is amazing. I'm always astonished how early the paper is delivered to the various hotels I've stayed in across the USA, even in remote locations.

6. Tease : RIB

7. "I was out of town," e.g. : ALIBI

8. Approach midnight : LATEN. Hmmm. I looked sideways at this one when it appeared. I'm still looking askance at it. Not a word I would use.

9. Place to hoist a pint : PUB. I've seen the inside of a couple of these. I pulled pints at the Queen's Arms in Kilburn, north London when I was 19. A lot of Guinness and shots of Bushmills - most of the patrons were Irish demolition workers. Tough crowd.

10. DBA followers : TRADE NAMES. "Doing Business As".

11. Madison Ave. field : AD BIZ

12. In-your-face challenge : SUE ME

15. Feudal laborers : SERFS

18. Protective barrier : BERM. There were a lot of berms bulldozed out of the sand here in Southern California last winter to protect the beach cities with the expectation of major storms. They're very effective.

22. El __ : GRECO. "The Greek". Doménikos Theotokópoulos was born in Crete, but spent most of his life in Toledo in Spain.


25. Authentic : REAL

26. Dole out : ALLOT. If you hand out a large amount you allot a lot.

27. Like birds with worms, so it's said : EARLY. The Early Bird was me this morning. No worms caught though, probably a good thing.

28. Designer Schiaparelli : ELSA

29. Cowardly Lion portrayer : LAHR. Bert in The Wizard of Oz

30. Facing serious trouble : IN HOT WATER

34. Singer who formerly stylized her name with a dollar sign : KESHA, or rather KE$HA

36. "__ du lieber!" : ACH. "Oh, my dear!"

37. Yarn purchase : SKEIN. I misread the clue as "yam" at first which had me puzzled.

39. Squeal : TELL. As in rat someone out.

40. Catch sight of : ESPY. I'd clue this as the sports award, being more "in the language".

42. Raises : REARS

43. Many a gospel song : HYMN

48. Brainstorms : IDEAS

50. Uruguayan money : PESO

52. Nail a test : ACE IT

53. Like Oscar Wilde : WITTY

54. Mackerel relative : WAHOO

55. Beatnik's "With ya" : I'M HIP

56. Repeating movie role for 51-Across : RAMBO. Sly's character.

60. "Sheesh!" : GEEZ

61. Animated bug film : ANTZ

62. Time at a hotel : STAY. I've had quite a few of these in my time.

64. Org. for docs : AMA. American Medical Association.

66. Pint to drink : ALE. In the pub too.

67. AOL alternative : MSN

Short blog today, a lot going on for me. Hopefully no more explications required. The regulars in the comments section can handle any gaps. Here's the grid!

Steve

Wednesday March 15, 2017 Mark McClain

Theme: B MOVIES (38A. Low-budget cinema ... and, literally, the four longest puzzle answers ) - All four moves are in the pattern of B* B*.

 17A. 1980 Clint Eastwood film about a Wild West show : BRONCO BILLY

 23A. 1965 Jerry Lewis/Tony Curtis farce involving flight attendants : BOEING BOEING. Heard of this one.

 51A. 2005 Christian Bale superhero thriller : BATMAN BEGINS. This one was popular.

 62A. 2003 Disney animated feature with talking grizzlies : BROTHER BEAR

Hello Everyone. Boomer here. I am looking forward to March Madness, however I am a terrible fan.  I watched many Minnesota Gopher games on TV this year, some good and some bad.  I don't have much confidence that they will extend their season too far in Milwaukee.  This puzzle was not a big hit either.  I can say that I never attended any of these movies.  Seems as if some were all a Big Box Office Bust.

Across:

     

1. Franklin's faith : DEISM - I suppose this refers to Benjamin but I am not familiar with this faith.

6. Civil rights org. : NAACP -

11. Nursery offering : SOD - Spring is nearly here, nurseries will be buzzing next month.

14. More than just saber-rattling : AT WAR - did not like this clue. 

15. Not as well : ILLER - Another stretch of the English language.  I never heard anyone say they were iller.

16. Numero __ : UNO

19. Elton's title : SIR - I remember when rock was young.  (So was I).

20. Forward : SEND ON

21. "Isn't that something" : GEE - A Whiz of a word.

22. "Hold it right there!" : WHOA - A Roy Rogers command to Trigger.

26. Prey for cheetahs : IMPALAS - We rented an Impala in Las Vegas but we were not Cheetahs.  Vegas frowns on Cheetahs.

29. Little League airer : ESPN - From Williamsport, PA.  But thank you ESPN for hanging in there and televising a bowling tournament once in a while.

30. Fishing spot : PIER

31. GPS suggestion : RTE

33. Milk source : UDDER - Utter nonsense - our milk source is the dairy case at the grocery store.

37. Pro : ACE - Top of a royal flush. a pro is not always an ace. 

41. Program file ending : EXE

42. Two-step, e.g. : DANCE - How about NCAA big March event?

44. College URL ending : EDU

45. Lyra's brightest star : VEGA - This is another Chevrolet in this puzzle.

46. Et __ : ALIA - Stumped me here.

49. Really dull : INSIPID

55. Jackson 5 hairdo : AFRO - I don't remember Afros on the five.  I do remember Dr. J and Oscar Gamble.  Michael Jordan changed all that.

56. Item under many a top : BRA

57. Requiring quarters, briefly : COIN-OP  You don't see many vending machines taking coins any more.  They all ask for your folding money.

61. __ Mini: Nintendo console : WII - Never played WII.  I heard they had bowling though.

64. Hip-hop Dr. : DRE - Sorry, I guess I am not into Hip-Hop.

65. New York mayor before Koch : BEAME (Abe)

66. Top-flight : ELITE 

67. "Of course!" : YES

68. Asp cousin : ADDER - An asp is a snake.  An adder is the guy at the rental car desk, figuring your bill.

69. Robert's "Out of Africa" role : DENYS - Never saw this movie either.

 Down:

1. Puts on gently : DABS - as in make up

2. Basic French verb : ETRE - I took two quarters of French but I only remember French fries and toast.

3. Victor's cry : I WON - Good for you

4. Shallows hazard : SAND BAR - Can be a bummer for a boat.

5. Hip dude : MR COOL - The Fonz???

6. Tip of a Bic : NIB

7. Set straight : ALIGN 

8. Claim : ALLEGE

9. Tabloid subjects : CELEBS -- Tabloids are stupid.  Watch gossip channels

10. Snoop : PRY - I don't know about snoop.  Sometimes you have to pry open your wallet.

11. Rolls with rice : SUSHI - This is a fishy subject,  I have never eaten sushi and I am pretty sure I never will.

12. Salad bar sliver : ONION .

13. Bandanna cousin : DO- RAG - Not sure if you can cover an Afro with one of these.

18. Like challenging push-ups : ONE-ARM - Never could do a one- arm push-up.

22. Go on (one's way) : WEND - I think you have to go crooked to wend.

24. Comparison phrase : IS TO

25. Composer's work : OPUS

26. Tablet with Mini and Pro versions : iPAD - I see a ton of these around - The iToys made Apple rich and famous

27. Flaky mineral : MICA

28. Hammer end : PEEN - Others have a claw

32. Genesis matriarch : EVE - Apple picker.

34. Thought-provoking : DEEP - I have not provoked too many deep thoughts about this puzzle.

35. Army vet : EX-GI

36. Predict using, as tea leaves : READ - and tell a fortune.

38. Banjo legend Fleck : BELA

39. "Gotcha, man" : I DIG - Maynard G. Krebs made this popular

40. Special Olympics founder Shriver : EUNICE - Sorry, never heard of her, but I donated all of my bowling trophies to the special Olympics. They put on new plates and sometimes figures as necessary and give them to smiling kids.

43. Hunter's garb, for short : CAMO - What used to be Vietnam and Iraq attire is now fashionable at home.

45. Easily seen : VISIBLE

47. Deep-seated : INBRED

48. Using one's passport, say : ABROAD - I think you even need a passport now to go to Canada.

50. Didn't sleep quietly : SNORED 

51. Indecent : BAWDY - Some St. Patrick's Day decorations

 52. Burning : AFIRE - Johnny Cash love.

53. Takes a shot at : TRIES

54. Cake words Alice abided by :- EAT ME

58. Düsseldorf denial : NEIN - I wonder how Germans say "Nope" ?

59. Like granola bars : OATY - Mares eat oats and does eat oats but little lambs eat ivy.

60. W. or LBJ : PRES - I was around for both of these guys.  Ike and Truman also.

62. Management major's deg. : BBA - Bachelor of Business Administration.

63. __ Honor : HER

Note from C.C.:

Our Melissa B has redesigned the Adopt an Inmate website. She never mentioned her work in her Crossword Corner blog write-ups, but she has been totally devoted to her "Adopt an Inmate" cause the past few years. Melissa has published many stories and artwork from the inmates. Her site has become a great source of resources for many inmates and their families. So proud of her work!

Tuesday, March 14 2017, Roger & Kathy Wienberg

Theme: Hand in Hand.

17. *Performer's exit direction : STAGE RIGHT. Stagehand. Right hand.

24. *Immediately : FIRST OFF. First hand. Offhand.

30. *High stadium tier : UPPER DECK. Upper hand. Deckhand.

43. *Sports bet based on total points scored : OVER UNDER. Overhand. Underhand.

50. *Like most TV dramas : HOUR LONG. Hour hand. Longhand.

60. In advance, and where you might find both parts of the answers to starred clues : BEFORE HAND

Impressive. That had to have been hard to do. The first AND second words of each theme answer can precede HAND. We've seen Roger Wienberg before, but this appears to the the first collaboration by Roger & Kathy at the Corner.

Melissa here. Although nothing was particularly tough, I made a few W(rong)WAGs that slowed me down.

Across
    
1. Past due : LATE

5. Place for a safe : WALL

9. Connery and McCartney : SIRS. Moving too fast, I tried SEAN first.

13. "Don't rub __" : IT IN

14. Geometry calculations : AREAS

16. Cool one's heels : WAIT

19. Award for "Game of Thrones" : EMMY. Honoring excellence in television.


20. Dangerous Amazon fish : PIRANHA. I need to remember N before H with this word.

21. "Scotch" sealers : TAPES. I don't usually think of that kind of tape as plural.

23. See 47-Down : CARTE

27. Handed out cards : DEALT

29. Oakland Coliseum player : RAIDER

34. Start of a choosing rhyme : EENY

35. Step on it, quaintly : HIE

36. Form 1099 ID : SSN

37. President pro __ : TEM. "For the present time."

40. Stretchy bandage brand : ACE

41. Damage : HARM

46. Vote out of office : UNSEAT

49. Totally thrill : ELATE

52. Speaks, biblically : SAITH. Couldn't make SAYETH fit.

55. Texas shrine : ALAMO

56. Almond or cashew : NUT TREE. Not BUTTER or LEGUME.

58. Luke Skywalker, for one : JEDI

62. "Absolutely!" : AMEN

63. Schussing spot : SLOPE

64. Novelist Ferber : EDNA

65. Starts to blossom : BUDS

66. Watches : SEES. Not SPYS.


67. Paper quantity : REAM

Down

1. Speak like Sylvester : LISP

2. Storage space accessed via the ceiling : ATTIC

3. Pageant accessory : TIARA

4. "Prepare to duel!" : ENGARDE

5. "Sour to the People" extreme candy brand : WARHEADS

6. "Carmen" highlight : ARIA

7. A joker might pull yours : LEG

8. Christine of "The Blacklist" : LAHTI

9. Honey : SWEETIE

10. "My parents are gonna kill me!" : I AM SO DEAD

11. Glass edge : RIM

12. Mess of a room : STY

15. Drummer Ringo : STARR

18. Joins : ENTERS

22. Free TV spot : PSA. Public Service Announcement.


24. Fraud watchdog org. : FTC. Federal Trade Commission.

25. Stolen jewelry seller : FENCE. Didn't know this term - someone who knowingly buys stolen property in order to resell it.

26. Onion ring maker : FRYER

28. Jay with jokes : LENO

30. "Yup" : UH-HUH

31. Steinway, for one : PIANO. This was so obvious it tripped me up.

32. Convinced : PERSUADED

33. "Hooked on Classics" co. : K-TEL

38. Crossword solver's smudges : ERASURES

39. Change genetically : MUTATE

42. Small falcons : MERLINS. Learning moment.

44. Really relax, with "out" : VEG

45. Reply to bad alternatives : NEITHER

47. With 23-Across, priced separately, on menus : ALA

48. Crypts, e.g. : TOMBS

51. December songs : NOELS

53. Swap : TRADE

54. Reddish-orange dye : HENNA

56. "Don't think so" : NOPE

57. Red-coated cheese : EDAM

58. Fast punch : JAB

59. Australian bird : EMU

61. Nemesis : FOE

Notes from C.C.:

Happy 59th Birthday to JJM, who loves hockey and other thrilling activities. Here is a picture of his zip lining in 2010.

Monday, March 13, 2017 C.C. Burnikel

Theme: Easter is April 16, in case you've taken a break from Mass since Christmas.

20. Postgraduate degree: MASTER OF ARTS

36. Mob kingpin: MAFIA BOSS

41. Vase material named for its white color: MILK GLASS

54. Turning point in tennis, and a hint to this puzzle's circled letters: SERVICE BREAK

Argyle here with C.C. back for another puzzle. Back to back can't happen very often. Do note MASS is split three ways: 3/1, 2/2, and 1/3.

Across:

1. Tie up at the pier: DOCK

5. Basics: ABC's

9. Expressive chat image: EMOJI. Emoticon on steroids.

14. "That works for me": "OKAY"

15. "Dang!": "DRAT!". (It didn't work for me!)

16. Cars sold at auctions: REPOS

17. Nabisco chocolate-creme cookie: OREO

18. Vermeer or van Gogh: OIL PAINTER

22. First-class: A-ONE

23. Sailor: TAR

24. Tanning lotion letters: SPF. (Sun Protection Factor)

27. Golf hole benchmark: PAR

29. Snacked (on) to excess, briefly: OD'ed. (overdosed)

32. Pinup queen Page: BETTIE. Don't tell Mrs. Claus.

34. __ buco: veal dish: OSSO

38. PG-13 issuing org.: MPAA. (Motion Picture Association of America)

39. __ vincit amor: OMNIA. (love conquers all)

40. Restful resorts: SPAs

43. Window insert: PANE

44. Wiped off the board: ERASED

45. Genghis __: KHAN

48. '60s tripping drug: LSD. (Lysergic acid diethylamide)

49. Took command of: LED

50. "Morning Edition" airer: NPR. (National Public Radio)

52. Lion's den: LAIR

59. Casino big spender: HIGH ROLLER. Lets me out.

62. Veggie in a green smoothie: KALE

63. Sleep lab study: APNEA

64. Where Norway's Royal Family resides: OSLO

65. Biblical paradise: EDEN

66. L.A.'s region: SOCAL. Southern California

67. Pics on ankles: TATS. (tattoos)

68. Hair-coloring agents: DYES

Down:

1. Gloom partner: DOOM

2. Cajun veggie: OKRA

3. Course including romaine and croutons: CAESAR SALAD

4. Greenhouse gas protocol city: KYOTO

5. Loved to death: ADORED

6. Get-up-and-go: BRIO. 1725-35; < Italian < Spanish brío energy, determination < Celtic *brīgos; compare Old Irish bríg (feminine) power, strength, force, Middle Welsh bri (masculine) honor, dignity, authority

 7. New cow: CALF

8. Mar. 17th honoree: ST. PAT. Timely.

9. Horn of Africa nation: ERITREA

10. Clothing store department: [MENS]

11. Withdraw, with "out": OPT

12. G.I. doll: JOE

13. Dead Sea country: Abbr.: ISR. (Israel)

19. Lawrence's land: ARABIA

21. U2's "The Joshua Tree" co-producer Brian: ENO

24. "Enough!": "STOP ALREADY!"

25. Residents around the Leaning Tower: PISANS

26. __ up: came clean: 'FESSED

27. Saddle knob: POMMEL

28. Aim high: ASPIRE

30. Madame Bovary: EMMA. Debut novel of French writer Gustave Flaubert, published in 1856.

31. Language of Copenhagen, in Copenhagen: DANSK

33. Culinary meas.: TBSP. (tablespoon)

35. Acorn droppers: OAKS

37. Pike or trout: FISH

39. Seasoned expert: OLD PRO

42. Army leader: GENERAL. Usually, an old pro.

46. Last Olds models: ALEROs, but they live on in crosswords.

47. Catch red-handed: NAB

51. Place to keep a camper, for short: RV LOT

53. Irritated: IRKed

54. Mets' old stadium: SHEA

55. "Casablanca" woman: ILSA

56. Boston NBAer: CELT. Boston Celtics, timely also.

57. Protected from the wind: ALEE

58. Some male dolls: KENs

59. Owns: HAS

60. NASDAQ debut: IPO. (initial public offering)

61. Health supplements co.: GNC. Read about a Saint Patrick's Day Link.

Argyle

Sunday March 12, 2017 C.C. Burnikel

Theme: "Peachy" - P is changed into CH in each theme entry.

23A. Large retailer's overexpansion, perhaps? : CHAIN KILLER. Pain killer.

29A. Welcome summer cold snap? : HAPPY CHILL. Happy pill.

36A Measure of stress inflicted by a crowd's roar? : CHEER PRESSURE. Peer pressure.

59A. Storage unit for spray bottles, trowels, etc.? : GARDEN CHEST. Garden pest.

79A. Soup for toddlers? : BABY CHOWDER. Baby powder.

101A. Holiday pantomime game? : EASTER CHARADE. Easter parade.

110A. Necklace for a macho heartthrob? : STUD CHOKER. Stud poker.

119A. Little bird wielding an ax? : GUITAR CHICK. Guitar pick.

C.C. here. 

Rich helped me with the puzzle title. I originally had "Ch-ch-ch-ch-changes", which addressed the new phrases, not the replaced ones.

Rich also added surprise and visuals to the theme entry clues. For example: I had [Joan Jett, for one?] for the GUITAR CHICK entry. 

Additionally, Rich added trivia and tidied up my loose wording (space is always an issue with Sunday puzzles). For example, I had [First African-American to win the Best Actor Oscar] for POITIER [4D. First African-American Best Actor].

   

He does this for every puzzle I've made and makes me look professional. In real life, I often drop "the", forget to pluralize nouns and mess up tense all the time. Not to mention my accent.

Across:

1. Baloney : TRIPE. Very conservative grid design. 5/5/4/4 top/bottom edges.

6. Novelist Evelyn : WAUGH

11. "The Sound of Music" high points : ALPS. Also  20. Press the point : ARGUE. Point clue echo.

15. Risk being burned, in a way : BASK.  Rich's clue. Nice.

19. Impressive dwelling : MANOR

21. One with kids : GOAT. And 27. Watch kids : SIT. Rich changed my SIT clue so we could have kids clue echo. He loves echoes.

22. One-eyed Norse deity : ODIN

25. Georgetown hoopster : HOYA

26. Sign word evoking days of yore : OLDE

 

28. Is too sweet : CLOYS

31. In __ of : LIEU

33. Terrier of old mysteries : ASTA. "The Thin Man".

35. "Oh, sure!" : YEAH, I BET! We also have 3. Post-exam exultation : I NAILED IT

41. GPS displays : RTEs

42. Monster slain by Hercules : HYDRA

43. Printer brand owned by Seiko : EPSON. Did not know this trivia.

44. Black Friday mo. : NOV.

46. Autocrats until 1917 : TSARS. Also 51. Resort in the Caucasian Riviera : SOCHI. Also 118. "Terrible" Russian ruler : IVAN

50. News-selling org. : UPI

53. Stout holder : STEIN

55. Copacabana beach locale : RIO

56. Dole (out) : METE. Not many choices to clue METE/EKE. But they facilitate smoother fill.

58. Sour : TURN

 

62. __-Canada: Esso competitor : PETRO

64. Don Juan : ROUE

65. Bairns : WEE ONES

66. MLBer with 696 home runs : A-ROD. Dating J-Lo now.

68. Subtleties : NUANCES

71. Unbelievable one : LIAR

72. Like some spore reproduction : ASEXUAL

75. Worms, to robins : PREY

76. Deep pit : ABYSS

 

81. Marshland : MIRE

82. Draws off, as maple syrup : TAPS. Dear Santa sent me a bottle of this pure New York maple syrup. I like drizzling it over perfectly ripe bananas and sliced almonds.

86. Outback native : EMU

87. To have, to Henri : AVOIR

88. Grace starter : O LORD

90. Its PAC is the Political Victory Fund : NRA. Learning moment for me. Rich's clue.

91. Campbell-Martin of "Martin" : TISHA

94. "A mouse!" : EEK

95. Hawk's claw : TALON

97. Synthetic silk : RAYON

99. On the road : AWAY

104. Colombian export : EMERALDS. Rich's clue as well.

108. Blockheads : OAFS

109. "My stars!" : EGAD. Quaint.

112. Curly-tailed dog : AKITA

115. MinuteClinic operator : CVS

117. Ceramic piece : TILE. TTP once took out all the tiles off his bathroom wall and re-did everything. I could not imagine the work. Caulking is sophisticated enough for me. 

 

122. Genesis setting : EDEN

123. Like Gen. Shinseki, former Secretary of Veterans Affairs : RET'D

124. Forearm bones : ULNAS

125. Well-timed : ON CUE

126. Pair near your hair : EARS

127. Sailing ropes : TYES. So guilty of putting this in my grid. I just could not get a cleaner fill in that area.

128. Frets : STEWS

129. Requiring a lot of attention : NEEDY

  

Down:

 1. Flix alternative : TMC

2. Sideline shouts : RAHS 

5. Ocean bird : ERN

6. Baby monitor alert : WAIL

7. Folksy Guthrie : ARLO

8. Hard on the eyes : UGLY AS SIN. Have any of you tried Durian? Steve/Jayce? It's not pretty and it stinks (banned in many hotels/airplanes). The smell lingers for days. But so creamy & tasty.

9. "Seems to be the case" : GUESS SO

10. __ Majesty : HER

11. Ottoman honorific : AGHA

12. Not all there : LOOPY

13. Cable option : PAY-PER-VIEW

14. Visit overnight : STAY AT. Every time I pass by Aria, I think of Steve.

 

15. ["That stinks!"] : BOO HISS

16. Go off-line? : AD LIB. Did you nail it?

17. Move crab-style : SIDLE

18. Helped a tot tie a shoelace, say : KNELT

24. Single-serving coffee choice : K-CUP

29. Bit of a belly laugh : HAR

30. Atkins of country : CHET

32. Time line divisions : ERAS

34. Winery cask : TUN

36. Ground-up bait : CHUM. Learning moment for me. 

37. Fanfare and then some : HYPE

38. Come again : RECUR

39. "Julie & Julia" director : EPHRON (Nora)

40. Major course : ENTREE

45. Ref. for wordsmiths : OED

47. Where to find fans : ARENA

48. Stairway piece : RISER

49. They're unlikely to pass the bar : SOTS

52. Slugger Mel : OTT. Big Easy sent me these two pictures long time ago. He said "Next time OTT appears in a puzzle you can insert this. I was passing there today and stopped and took this picture. It is right down the street from ZYDECOs, which occasionally showed up."

53. Fresh : SAUCY

54. Spokane-to-Edmonton dir. : NNE

57. Modeling adhesive : EPOXY

59. Lost cause : GONER

60. Goofy collectibles? : CELs. Disney Goofy.

61. Lift : HOIST

63. Cabinet dept. : EDUC

64. Closer to being raw : RARER

66. "Same for me" : AS AM I

67. Game inside a Narragansett beer bottle cap : REBUS. Rich's clue as well.  Never heard of the beer. 

69. "Rabbit" series author : UPDIKE

70. Starbuck, for one : SAILOR

72. Conspire with : ABET

73. "Got it!" : AHA

74. Demonstratively romantic : LOVEY DOVEY. Asians are reserved.

77. Rodeo mount : BRONC

78. "__ out!" : YER

80. Blue state? : WOE

81. Maker of fancy notebooks : MOLESKINE. I get a red one for Christmas every year.

83. "I'll take all the help I can get" : ANY ADVICE? Rich's clue as well.

84. Urge : PROD

85. Right in the head : SANE

89. Big bore : DRAG

92. Gets tough : HARDENS

93. "Never Wave at __": Rosalind Russell movie : A WAC. Gluey fill.

95. Screening org. : TSA. They pried open my checked baggage a few days ago. Sigh. I've been using that lock for over 25 years.

96. To blame : AT FAULT

98. Spider woman? : ARACHNE

100. "Java" trumpeter : AL HIRT

102. "__ b?": "Which is it?" : A OR. Gluey fill.

103. Pick up : HEAR

104. Name on Re-Nutriv products : ESTEE. Also Rich's clue.

105. Site of the Cave of Zeus, in myth: Abbr. : MT. IDA

106. Calculus pioneer : EULER

107. Glide on blades : SKATE

111. Calls off : ENDS

113. "... __ a puddy tat!" : I TAW. Gluey fill.

114. Merged news agency : TASS

116. Move quickly, as clouds : SCUD

119. "Breaking Bad" baddie Fring : GUS. Gimme for D-Otto. Have you finished the whole series?

120. Nonpro? : CON

121. Very important : KEY

C.C.

Saturday, March 11, 2017 Bruce Haight

Theme: None

Words: 70 (missing J,Q,Z)

Blocks: 27

We are witness to Bruce Haight's hitting for the cycle - this is his first Saturday construction for the LA Times, and has now been published every day of the week. Congratulations to Bruce, but I gotta say, too many proper names(*) in this one made it a fun sponge - can't win them all. 10x6 in two corners and triple 8-letter stacks in the others, with two more 8-letter fills as well. 

15. Fizzled : PETERED OUT - what do you call a guy who tires easily~? Peter; how about the guy who's creative~? Art; The guy who stirs up trouble~? Buck - or - Russell; The wealthy one~? Rich; The one who's brutally honest~? Frank. I can go on....

14. Displaying polish, perhaps : OPEN-TOED

52. Symbol of ancient Egypt : SACRED IBIS - dah~! I had ICON, IDOL, and knew it wasn't correct - took a moment to remember the sacred bird - and also the God Thoth

31. "Brava!" : ATTA GIRL - I had the "G", and the "a" at the end of the clue helped me nail this

atta girl~!

Spring ON forWARD~

ACROSS:

1. Participated in a movie gunfight, say : SHOT BLANKS

11. Symbol of purity : HALO - not DOVE

16. Junket : TRIP

17. Really hot : EXTRA SPICY

18. Bud : MATE

19. Passes : ENACTS

20. Getaway car driver : WHEELMAN

22. Comforter : DUVET - I have such a resentment for this word, only because my friend's wife used it in a Scrabble game, and I challenged - it's Frawnche - and yet it counted.  Ugh, ugh, ugh.

23. Metered lines : POESY

24. Rudder location : AFT

25. "Now!" : STAT - not ASAP

26*. "Buddenbrooks" author : MANN

27. Farm follower? : E-I-E-I-O - not "STEAD"; this was almost funny....

29. Moolah : GELT - not CASH

30. Pop-up producer : ADWARE

31. How many games are won : AS A TEAM - the NY Rangers finally figured out their Power Play, and still managed to lose on Thursday

35. Cuddled : SPOONED - yeah, one of these days I'll get around to this again

36. Wine flavor component : TANNIN

37. Compact __ : DISC

38. Jerks : TWITS - my mother's affectionate name for the NY Rangers

39. "No __!" : DICE

40*. Inventing middle name : ALVA

44. Six-pack to be proud of : ABS - the 'other' six-pack produces the exact opposite

45*. Big name in '50s-'60s civil rights : EVERS

47. Take turns? : STEER - got it, but pondered DRIVE, too

48. Cuts to a roving reporter : GOES LIVE - Ha~! Nailed it

50. Introductory language class : LATIN I

51. Digging : INTO

54. Shipping hazard : REEF

55. Wary : ON THE ALERT

56. Exam for some college srs. : LSAT

57. Tourist attraction : RESORT AREA

DOWN:

1. Radar pickups : SPEEDS

2. Threaded fastener : HEX-NUT - this is the crenellated version

3. Interval for Rossini : OTTAVA - musical reference, octave

4. Three-line stanza : TERCET

5*. Benjamin of "Law & Order" : BRATT - was never a big fan of his character - I think cutting out Chris Noth's "Mike Logan" was not a good move for the show - tho he did return on "Criminal Intent"

6. Frequency modulation word? : LESS - filled via perps; not sure I "get it"

7. Payroll service initials : ADP - I see this on the UPS truck daily

8. "Forget it!" : "NO I WON'T~!" - I had YOU WISH to start, and it was working for a while

9. German coffeecake : KUCHEN - OK, I'll take das word for it....

10. Optical maladies : STYES

11. Webmaster's code : HTML

12. Ancient Syrian : ARAMAEAN

13. Got ready to grill : LIT A FIRE

21. Focus group member, casually? : EYE DOC - ah.  Clever

23. Date provider : PALM - the tree, not the singles website

26. Average : MEAN

28. WWII battle site, for short : IWO - Jima

29*. Theodor whose middle name was Seuss : GEISEL -even guessing this was "Dr Seuss" did not help at all

30. It adjoins the altar : APSE

Awesome

32. Surgeon, slangily : SAWBONES

33. Aromatic brew : ANISE TEA - been popular in crosswords lately

34. Blaster : TNT - oops, not GUN

35. Unleashes : SICS

37. Runs : DIRECTS

39*. William of "24" : DEVANE - I liked him as Carter in "Payback"

40*. Fifth-century invader : ATTILA - just read a true "science fiction" novel from Bradbury and Baxter where Genghis Khan meets Alexander the Great in battle

41*. Elvis Presley lyricist Jerry : LEIBER

42. __ facias: jury pool (from the Latin for "make come") : VENIRE - all my Law & Order watching did not get me this

43. Grain bristle : ARISTA - mostly perps

46. Sun block : VISOR

47*. '70s-'80s Egyptian president : SADAT - an another, but I knew this one

49. Permissive : SOFT

50. Suggestive gander : LEER

53. Letter after pi : RHO

Splynter

Friday, March 10, 2017, Jeffrey Wechsler

Title:

This is another variation on the one clue fits all. There are four very different variations of the letter A. Two are presented with an apostrophe, two with a following s. All lead to grid-spanning fill, which is awesome. To me, the phrasing of OAKLAND BALL CLUB is the only one I see as bit of a stretch as it sounds so outdated, but still the puzzle is really nicely put together. Jeffrey really packs the puzzle with sparkly fill  SNORKEL,  YES DEAR,  PAPYRUS,  PODCAST,  EDUCATE, ENROLLS,  SLUICED, CLOSEST,  OF ONE SIZE and  SWEET DEAL.  Less than thirty-five 3/4 letter fill! What fun.  Okay, off we go- theme:

17A. As : SYMBOL OF ARSENIC (15). Important to know if reading about murder is your thing.

32A. A's : EXCELLENT GRADES. (15). Important to know if you want to read.

41A. As : TO THE SAME DEGREE (15).  Important to know if you want to read what he reads.

60A. A's : OAKLAND BALL CLUB (15). Important to know if baseball is your thing.

The rest...

Across:

1. Early Welsh : CELTS. Not Red Auerbach.

6. Subpar performance ... or not : BOGEY. A very wonderful clue, my nomination for Clue of the month. Subpar means less than average, except in golf where below par (subpar) means you did well.

11. School sweater letters : NUS. 13th letter of the Greek alphabet.

14. Wedding, e.g. : UNION.

15. All small, say : OF ONE SIZE. Fits all....

19. Ancient communication medium : PAPYRUS. love the pairing of clues/fill.

20. Modern communication medium : PODCAST.

21. Parts to put together : KIT. When I was young there many of these to help you build a RADIO.

22. Memphis-to-Nashville dir. : ENE. From Graceland to the Grand Old Opry!

23. Washington portraitist : PEALE. George W, both before and after he was president,  was the SUBJECT for this ARTIST.

27. Bocelli album that includes "Bésame Mucho" : AMORE.

38. __ work: menial labor : SCUT.

39. Venerate : ADORE. So close to amore.

40. 1992 opponent of Bill and George : ROSS. H. Ross Perot. Still the butt of jokes.

44. What a bump may affect : SPEED. My neighborhood is surrounded by speed bumps- they still speed using our street as a shortcut.

45. Sources of peeps : NESTS. Easter is coming.

46. Nation with a pyramid on its currency: Abbr. : USA.

49. Title for actor Gielgud : SIR. He was great in drama or comedy.

51. Channeled, as water : SLUICED.

55. Most trusted : CLOSEST.

62. Real bargain : SWEET DEAL.

63. Quarters in the wild : LAIRS.

64. CIA predecessor : OSS.

65. __ bird : EARLY.

66. Not worth it, perhaps : STEEP.

Down:

1. Point of imminence : CUSP. On the cusp of war.

2. Musician from County Donegal : ENYA. Is it raining there?

3. Sagging : LIMP. Two weeks in a row.

4. Keith of country : TOBY. Urban did not fit. Do you all watch The Voice?

5. Underwater aid : SNORKEL. Sergeant? Why not, we grew up together.

6. Leg up : BOOST.

7. On vacation : OFF.

8. Lose it : GO APE.

9. "The Smartest Guys in the Room" subject : ENRON. It was an interesting BOOK and Documentary.

10. Sighed agreement : YES DEAR. Time for the chore jar.

11. 1493 Lisbon arrival : NINA. The SHIP had a great history.

12. Israeli weapons : UZIS.

13. Mennonites, e.g. : SECT. 16A. "Just a __!" : SEC.

18. Heathrow : his :: Orly : à __ : LUI. French gift for Splynter.

23. Vermin : PESTS.

24. Serpico, for one : EX-COP. And so much MORE.

25. Severe : ACUTE. Chronic is the other choice.

26. River in Hades : LETHE. Their beliefs were FUN.

28. Toon with a blue do : MARGE. More Simpsons.

29. Trails for bloodhounds : ODORS

30. Go back to zero : RESET.

31. Swiss borders? : ESSES. SwiSS.

33. __ Palmas: Gran Canaria capital : LAS. In the Canary Islands.

34. Author LeShan : EDA.

35. __ de famille : NOM. The long way to refer to someone's last name. Lesson two for Splynter.

36. Otto minus cinque : TRE. 8-5 in Italian.

37. H.S. equivalency test : GED.

42. Inform : EDUCATE.

43. Registers : ENROLLS. These three all fit together.

47. "Never __ boy to ... " : SEND A.

48. Dangerous biter : ADDER. Loved Black Adder.

49. Like 48-Down : SCALY.

50. Unlikely to be chipper : ILL.

51. Acceptable : SO SO.

52. They're often broken : LAWS.

53. Luau entertainment : UKES. This took me much longer than it should have.

54. Suffix with percent : ILE.

56. "Get lost!" : SCAT.

57. Nobelist Wiesel : ELIE. He is so popular these days.
Washington Post Sunday Magazine - March 5, 2017
Sheffer - March 1, 2017
USA Today - Feb. 28, 2017
Washington Post - Feb. 14, 2017
LA Times - Feb. 10, 2017
Sheffer - Feb. 4, 2017
Sheffer - Jan. 17, 2017
Washington Post Sunday Magazine - Jan. 8, 2017
Chronicle of Higher Education - Jan. 6, 2017

58. "Glad to help" : SURE.

59. Kitchen meas. : TBSP. Do not know why but I did not hesitate with this fill.

61. Acct. entry : BALance.

Well on balance I got 'er done which is good. I think Jeffrey has plugged into my subconscious because many of my 'guesses' are spot on. I liked the variety of the fill and I am really now very familiar with the repeating clue puzzle. Quite a bit of French and no Shakespeare, what is the world coming to? Thank JW, see you all next time. Lemonade out. Would any regulars like the filled grid printed in a larger font?

Note from C.C.:

The 40th American Crossword Puzzle Tournament (March 24-26, 2017) will be held at the Stamford Marriott in Stamford, Connecticut. For those who attend, I hope you won't miss the Cru Dinner organized by the great Mike Alpern. Lots of fun pictures and FAQ's in that link. 

The Cru Dinner officially kicks off the tournament and is a great opportunity to meet with constructors and fellow solvers. And as a newbie, you'll always get a welcome gift! The space is limited, so be sure to contact with Mike (alpernm@aol.com) as soon as possible. 

Mike just told me that "we've got 65 of the 80 or so slots filled (yes, it's been busy), mostly with veterans. I'd like to encourage rookies to sign up while there's still room". 

I bet our own Jeffrey will be a judge again this year at the ACPT.  Kevin Christian also. Minnesota's Tom Pepper & Marcia will attend the Cru dinner. George Barany might be there also.

Thursday, March 9, 2017 Roland Huget

Theme: Beforehand. The three circled words are clued as "synonym" found in "a thing".

17A. Done in a comprehensive plan? : BLANKET COVERAGE. Done as in finished.

35A. Tied up in a government program? : CRIME PREVENTION. Tied up as in evened the score.

55A. Out in a classic sports car? : FORD THUNDERBIRD. Out as in knocked out by anesthetic.

Hi all! Fun theme from Roland, I like the way the circled words are clued. Three full grid-spanners for the theme entries and a very solid-looking grid.  I don't know if he was connecting the circled letters as being words that can follow "hand"; that's just my theme title.

Definitely some Thursday-level stuff going on today. Let's see what jumps out

Across:

1. Fish feature : GILL. I never thought of a gill in the singular before.

5. Sporty sunroof : T-TOP

9. Impressionist's métier : APERY.I know it's a word, but this and the related "aper" just don't work for me.

14. Mount between Pelion and Olympus : OSSA. Dug this out of the cranial recesses.

15. Bat mitzvah dance : HORA. Didn't dig this out, thank you crosses.

16. "__ Theme": "Doctor Zhivago" song : LARA'S. Let's hear it from The City of Prague Philharmonic.

20. Primed : SET, as a fuse.

21. Duffers' dreams : ACES. A duffer of a golfer can only dream of a hole-in-one. I've got one which I count as "unofficial" because it was on a par-three course, and it doesn't make me any less of a duffer, believe me. One of my friends got a legitimate one with a club I'd given him the week before, so I claimed the assist.

22. Gamer's game face : AVATAR. You choose an avatar to represent you when playing online video games. Apparently. Here's one of mine from Facebook:

23. Criticize harshly : SLAM

24. Emailed a dupe to : CC'ED

25. Darth, before he turned to the Dark Side : ANAKIN.

28. Postgrad challenge : ORAL EXAM

32. Quarrel : RUN-IN

33. Pit-__: heart sound : A-PAT

34. Target of annual shots : FLU

39. Useful Scrabble tile : ESS. Useful because you can add it to pretty much any existing word on the board.

40. Fairy tale heavy : OGRE

41. Suez Canal ship : OILER. Oil tankers are not the only commercial traffic to use the canal, but oil from the Arab countries is carried through the canal bound for nothern Europe and the U.S. East Coast. As the price of oil has fallen, since 2016 some carriers are choosing to take the longer way around the southern tip of Africa to avoid paying the toll charges for passage through the canal.

42. IBM's chess-playing computer : DEEP BLUE. It could beat me blindfold and with one microchip tied behind its back. I'm a lousy chess player.

45. To a greater degree : MORE SO

46. Singer India.__ : ARIE. Note the period after India - it's part of her name. This is a new name for me, but she's won four Grammys. Crosses filled her in for me. Striking-looking woman.

47. Word with candy or sugar : CANE

48. Book with tablets : EXODUS

51. Candle holder : CAKE

52. The White Stripes, e.g. : DUO. Here's "Seven Nation Army" - drums and guitar. Catchy riff on the base notes.

58. Veil material : TULLE

59. Bolivia neighbor : PERU

60. "It follows that ... " : ERGO. Cogito ergo sum - "I'm pink, therefore I'm Spam" - wait, what?

61. Lid woes : STYES

62. Intervene, with "in" : STEP

63. Some game : DEER

Down:

1. Scads : GOBS. Lots, slangily.

2. Part of a chain : ISLE

3. Atty.-to-be's hurdle : LSAT

4. System of connected PCs : LAN. Local Area Network. My home network has a load of things connected to it, most of which are not PC's. The oddest one is probably my sous-vide immersion cooker which talks to the controller app on my iPhone.

5. Lockup, in slang : THE CAN

6. Carved symbol : TOTEM

7. "Warcraft" killers : ORCS. Never played the game, but didn't take a lot of guessing once the "O" appeared.

8. Kung __ chicken : PAO

9. British school test : A-LEVEL. Funny, I was just talking about these to a friend yesterday. Short for "Advanced Level". I've got a couple in Economics and Computer Science.

10. Annual Macy's tradition : PARADE

11. Q.E.D. word : ERAT. Not "Quod" so you need one cross to be sure. It's not "demonstrandum" either, 'cause that doesn't fit.

12. Indian music style : RAGA. Plenty of opportunity for musical links today. Here's the fantastic closing credits/dance scene from "Slumdog Millionaire".

13. North Sea feeder : YSER. Crossword staple. Here it is flowing past the village of Roesbrugge in Belgium.

18. Tigers Hall of Famer Al : KALINE. No clue. Solid crosses to the rescue again.

19. Move out : VACATE

23. 1% alternative : SKIM. I saw "fat-free half-and-half" in the market last week. Doesn't that completely defeat the purpose?

24. Have a jones for : CRAVE

25. Like football passes : ARCED. I tried AIRED first as in the QB "airing out" the ball, but it turned out I was 40% wrong.

26. "Scrubs" extra : NURSE

27. Herbal flavor similar to licorice : ANISE

28. __ citato: in the work cited : OPERE. Usually abbreviates to Op. Cit.

29. Case for Scully : X-FILE. Clever singular form.

30. Leafy healers : ALOES

31. Canadian Alice with a Nobel Prize : MUNRO. Fiction writer. Her Nobel Prize in Literature is as a "master of the contemporary short story".

33. Tell it to the judge : ARGUE. I'm not sure I'd want to be arguing with the judge. I assume you're arguing your case.

36. Refinement : POLISH

37. Lunchtime tryst : NOONER

38. Run out of gas : TIRE. When you run out of tire, you're on your rims.

43. Get the canoe going : PADDLE. I saw a bumper sticker on a truck in northern Georgia near where "Deliverance" was filmed. It read "Paddle faster, I hear banjos".

44. Savages : BRUTES

45. Bury the hatchet : MAKE UP

47. Tight-knit group : CADRE

48. Young newts : EFTS

49. Cross off : X-OUT

50. Alternative to de Gaulle : ORLY. Parisian airports. ORY used to be the main airport until CDG was opened.

51. Tech news site : CNET. The name doesn't seem to be an acronym for anything.

52. Desperate : DIRE

53. Sugar craving, say : URGE

54. Wrinkled-nose cause : ODOR

56. Co. with brown trucks : UPS. My brother drives for UPS in England. Our own Splynter takes the wheel here in the US.

57. Place to plant : BED. Flower bed. Here's a pretty one in the English countryside.

And with that, I think my work here is done. Salut!

Steve