Saturday, May 20th, 2017, Erik Agard

Theme: None

Words: 66 (missing J,Q,Z)

Blocks: 35

Well I just smoked through this puzzle today - we've had one other Saturday LA Times from Mr. Agard, and with a similar "blocked" corner grid.  It helped tremendously that I nailed the first two across answers, but got stumped on the third one due to my consideration that "Brown" meant the affectionate nick-name for UPS.  Also did not get my "ta-DA~!" due to an overlooked misspelling, but otherwise, I was definitely on this construction's wavelength.  Even the proper names filled in on their own.  Some of the longer fills, two with "THE" as part of the answers;

15a. Brown nemesis? : KITE-EATING TREE - ah, Charlie Brown

61a. Dialogue box? : TELEVISION SET - around here, it's the IDIOT box, or the boob tube

 4d. Clotho, Lachesis and Atropos : THE FATES - the Wiki

  

38d. Title role for Roger Moore and Val Kilmer : THE SAINT - one from TV, the other, film

THE onward~!

ACROSS:

1. Canine cleaners : TOOTHBRUSHES - and a semi-clecho;

13. Canine fixers : ORTHODONTISTS - dentist humor;

Or how about these~?  #2, and #3

17. Be unproductive : LOAF

18. But : YET

19. __ wage : HOURLY

21. 24/7 : ALWAYS

23. Movie makeup dept. creations : ETs

25. Small group : TRIO

26. Capacity count : SEATS

27. French physician Paul for whom an area of the brain is named : BROCA - his Wiki

29. Rose on the charts : AXL - ah, not the verb "rise", but Guns N' Roses frontman

30. Idris of "Zootopia" : ELBA - via perps

32. Small part of a big machine : COG

33. Neat wrap-up? : NIK - neatnik

34. Milky Way cousin : MARS BAR

37. JFK skill : ORATORY - I was thinking it would be something like "oratION"

39. 2010 role for Denzel : ELI - great movie - if you don't know the "twist"

40. Mus. version : ARRangement

41. Go together well : MESH - like smoothly fitting "COGs"

42. Gun : REV

43. Skein makeup : GEESE

45. "Later" : "SEE YA~!"

49. PC components : CPUs

51. Vowel-free lunch : BLT

52. Baited with a red herring : MISLED

53. Violinist Mintz mentored by Isaac Stern : SHLOMO - via perps

55. Ipanema greeting : OLA

57. Recess in church : APSE

58. Winner of the most Grand Slam singles titles in the Open Era : SERENA WILLIAMS

62. Company known for programming languages : ROSETTA STONE

DOWN:

1. Stein's partner : TOKLAS

2. Maryland state bird, e.g. : ORIOLE - and the baseball team that plays in Baltimore

3. National capital from the Algonquin for "to trade" : OTTAWA - and the hockey team that's kicking the Penguin's a** in the NHL playoffs right now

5. Commonly long-handled tool : HOE

6. E-card occasions : B-DAYS

7. __ learning : ROTE

8. Divider's opposite : UNITER

9. Metro abbr. : STN - not STA, which slowed down my 15a.

10. Slugfest feature : HIGH SCORE

11. "¿Qué es __?": "What's this?" : ESTO

12. Confident walk : STRUT - in a skirt this short, you'd have to be confident

14. Pico de gallo pepper : SERRANO

16. Cure-all : ELIXIR

20. Having an unusually large yellow part : YOLKY

22. High-end fashion accessory, briefly : YSL BAG - I threw in "--- BRA", and it helped

24. On tap : TO COME

27. Run with abandon : BARREL

28. Sampras rival : AGASSI - more tennis

31. Essentials : BARE BONES

34. Monterey and Montclair, for short : MERCs - the cars, from Ford's Mercury division

35. A's in Hebrew school? : ALEPHs

36. Small stream : RIVULET

44. "That's enough outta you!" : "STOW IT~!" - I filled in stoP it, and that is 5/6 100% correct

46. Texas city near Juárez : EL PASO

47. Toadies : YES MEN

48. "__ Fideles" : ADESTE

50. More angry : SORER

52. Former White House daughter : MALIA - put in SASHA, and then for some reason changed the name to the Obamas' other daughter MILIA....

54. Prefix with drama : MELO - melodrama

56. Reel off : LIST

59. "__ Maria" : AVE

60. __ dos: both : LOS

Splynter

Note from C.C.:

The Indie Spotlight on Crossword Fiend's blog this week featured today's constructor Erik Agard. You can read it here. Erik is also one of the founders of the Indie 500 Crossword Tournament, which will take place this year on June 3, 2017. 

Friday, May 19, 2017, Jeffrey Wechsler

Title: Bart is a brat!

An ambitious Friday from JW that is the second step in my returning to my post as Friday sherpa. It took solving a couple of the theme fill that made the theme obvious. The first word of a known expression becomes an anagram to provide a different and witty definition. All begin with a four letter word with the central AR reversed into RA to create a new phrase. It is most impressive that JW found 5 sets where the first word is a four letter word that works with his theme; they are:

17A. Aging hero Jones, in his latest film? : GRAY (GARY) INDIANA (11). Poor Harrison Ford, killed in Star Wars, dissed in Supergirl by his wife, Calista Flockhart and then he crashes a plane.

24A. Pitt portraying Shakespeare? : BRAD (BARD) OF AVON. (10). I can't picture this.

33A. Skill displayed at the gift counter? : WRAP (WARP) SPEED (9). A fun substitution.

45A. Times when hokey humor prevailed? : ERAS (EARS) OF CORN (10). Or when C. Moe appeared.

54A. Early stage of muffin production? : BRAN (BARN) RAISING (11). My favorite of the theme fill, but I grew up in New England farm country and know barn raising.

Jeffrey also provides a wonderful panoply of non-theme fill...BIG NEWS,  ACROBAT,  DIAMOND, STRASSE,  TEL AVIV,  IN A HOLE,  CABANAS, POINT AT,  WANGLES,  OVERALL,  SARA LEE,  PLANETS,  CRANIAL,  AIRINGS,  DAMAGED, AUSTRIA,  BONKERS,  LESSEES, RIDERS UP,  PEAR TREE

Let us see where else we went.

Across:

1. 1987 Michael Jackson album : BAD. his eventual follow up ALBUM to Thriller.

4. Road where Mozart was born : STRASSE. Street in German and probably Austrian. Research reveals Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was born on 27 January 1756 to Leopold Mozart (1719–1787) and Anna Maria, née Pertl (1720–1778), at 9 Getreidegasse in Salzburg. Clecho: 43A. Where Mozart was born : AUSTRIA.

11. Recurrent behavior : TIC. Hard for me because tics are involuntary.

14. Henri's here : ICI.    Just French.

15. Identify : POINT AT. Dramatic at a trial, but silly if the defendant is sitting at a table with his/her attorney.

16. "Bambi" doe : ENA. Auntie to Bambi.

19. Sci-fi setting : LAB.

20. "... let __ put asunder": Matthew : NO MAN.

21. Send out : EMIT.

22. Island band The __ Men : BAHA. The Baha Men are a Bahamian band playing a modernized style of Bahamian music called junkanoo. They are best remembered for their Grammy Award-winning hit song Who Let the Dogs Out? wiki.

23. Shakespeare's jet? : EBON. Both jet and ebon are fancy ways to say black.

26. Acquires through cunning : WANGLES. I love this word because it does not sound real.

28. Undefeated Ali : LAILA. Cute; his daughter was undefeated as a boxer.

29. Norm: Abbr. : STD. Standard.

30. His, to Henri : A LUI. More French.

32. "John Wick" star : REEVES. KEANU not GEORGE.

35. Fish-eating raptor : OSPREY. These BIRDS OF PREY are the logical descendant of the dinosaurs.

38. Sassy : PERT. And if you become too sassy, you will be a....

39. Boorish sort : CAD.

42. Sound : VALID. Argument.

49. Loosen (up) : WARM. Is this from muscles or people?

50. Storm : RANT.

51. Settled on a branch : ALIT.

52. Beatle ending : MANIA.

53. Cakes go-with : ALE. Oh how many recall this from a recent JW puzzle?

56. Decide not to stop : LET.

57. Off one's rocker : BONKERS.

58. Vital statistic : AGE.

59. Paul with guitars : LES. He built the first successful electric guitars and his name leads into....

60. Landlord's customers : LESSEES.

61. Ergotamine derivative popular in the '60s : LSD. More of LES. It is my excuse for being crazy. LINK.


Down:

1. Front page material : BIG NEWS.

2. One seen in a ring : ACROBAT. Pretty vague for me, but I understand the clecho.

3. One seen in a ring : DIAMOND. This made it easier.

4. Short drive : SPIN. Never understood this expression, spinning is not what I have in mind when I drive.

5. Lading measure : TON. We all remember our lesson on bills of lading.

6. Kentucky Derby call : RIDERS UP.  LINK.

7. Jungian concept : ANIMA. He had to have his own words, not Freud's  ego, super-ego and id.

8. Solemn : STAID.

9. Introduction to Domingo? : SANTO. Well done, geography.

10. Greek letter : ETA.

11. Mediterranean metropolis : TEL AVIV.

12. Saddled with debt : IN A HOLE.

13. Seaside resort array : CABANAS. VIEW.

18. Half a philosophical duality : YANG. Where is YIN?

22. Called from the field : BAAED. So cute, lamby pie.

24. Fasten, at sea : BELAY. Cute also because of the two definitions. verb
1.(a running rope) around a cleat, pin, rock, or other object, to secure it.
2. nautical slang: stop; enough! "“Belay that, mister. Man your post.”"

25. Groups at sea : FLEETS. More at sea.

27. City on the Rio Grande : LAREDO.  LISTEN. or READ.

31. Net neutrality beneficiary: Abbr. : ISP.

32. Any "Twilight Zone" episode, now : RERUN.

33. Omega holder : WRIST. The watch.

34. Part of a traditional holiday gift : PEAR TREE.

35. From one extreme to the other : OVERALL.

36. Frozen dessert brand : SARA LEE. Nobody does not love Sara Lee.

37. Seven-movement Holst work that omits Earth, with "The" : PLANETS.

39. Like the olfactory nerve, e.g. : CRANIAL.

40. Television fare : AIRINGS.

41. Flawed : DAMAGED.

44. "__ brillig ... " : TWAS. `Twas brillig, and the slithy toves
                                               Did gyre and gimble in the wabe
I had a roommate who was a C student, but could recite the entire poem as well as PI to the 50th place. A little bird told me JW also can recite this poem.

46. Denmark's __ Islands : FAROE. I had no idea. LINK.

47. Highland groups : CLANS.

48. Sounds from pens : OINKS. This little piggy...

52. Pine for : MISS.

54. OPEC unit : BBL. Barrel.

55. "... such stuff / As dreams __ made on": Prospero : ARE. JW squeezes his Friday Shakespeare in at the end.

Well I have stumbled to the finish line once again, hopefully having managed to unravel all of JW's tricks. Great fun...hope you had a good time, Lemonade out.

Thursday May 18 2017 C.C.Burnikel

Theme: Passing Lines - five different homonyms in the clues:

17A. Words requesting a pass : OPEN SESAME! The response hopefully is not a Lord of the Rings-style "Thou shalt not pass!"

21A. Words indicating a pass : NO THANKS. I'll pass.

39A. Words constituting a pass : SO, WHATS YOUR SIGN? Not a chat-up line I've ever used. I like to think the passes I've made were subtle.

55A. Words printed on a pass : ADMIT ONE. My Universal Studios annual pass just expired. I got pretty good use out of it though.

61A. Words seen in a pass : SHARP CURVE. Your Thai language lesson for the day:

Wow. This one gave me conniptions. I can't remember the last time a Thursday puzzle took me more than half an hour to git 'er done, but this one did. I had acres of white space after my first pass through.

Well now. A real challenge from C.C. but finally it all came together. The northwest was the most problematic for me, not helped by filling in DEMON at 1A . I finally saw the folly of my ways and eventually everything fell (no, was dragged (or drug)) into place. Very solid theme and some devious fill and cluing What a good crossword is all about.

Across:

1. Halloween costume that may involve a red cape and tail : SATAN. DEVIL and DEMON were my first tries. Wildly incorrect.

6. Respected men : SIRS. Yessir!

10. Banana Boat initials : SPF. Sun Protection Factor.

13. "I Fall to Pieces" singer : CLINE. Patsy. I love her voice.

14. "America's FLAVORite Frozen Beverage since 1967" : ICEE. I don't believe I've ever tried one of these. Should I put it on the bucket list?

15. Considerable age : AEON. Handy vowel sequence for constructors.

19. Apple choice : GALA. My first thought was to choose between iPad and iPod, but I held off, thankfully.

20. "Phooey!" : OH RATS!

23. Prof's aides : TA'S. Now known as Paraprofessionals.

24. Cardio chart : ECG

26. Overly : TOO

27. Team with 121 medals at the Rio Olympics : USA. Surprisingly, Great Britain came second with 67. China came in third with 70, which seems odd accounting, but GBR had more golds.

28. Throw water on : DOUSE

30. Put the kibosh on : VETO

32. Before, once : ERST. From whence "erstwhile."

36. Genetic material : RNA. _NA and wait for the crosses.

37. Cantaloupe and honeydew : MELONS

42. Infomercial staples : SPIELS

43. Tack on : ADD

44. "I almost forgot ... " : ALSO ...

45. "I'm extremely interested in squalor" speaker of literature : ESMÉ. Crosses got this for me. From a J. D. Salinger short story.

46. Ripoff : THEFT

48. "Viva __ Vegas" : LAS

49. Homer stat : RBI. C.C.'s first baseball reference for the day.

51. Camera inits. : S.L.R. Single Lens Reflex. When introduced, this type of camera allowed the photographer to see the exact same framing as would be captured on film, removing the parallax issue arising from having a separate viewfinder. I bought my first SLR many years ago, hence the research notes. I sold it when I was dead broke trying to make a living when I first left home.

52. Hrs. at Coors Field games : MDT. Denver's ballpark.

58. Childcare worker : AU PAIR. Took a while to get this. I dated a Danish au pair when I lived in London. She smoked a pipe and drank Tuborg beer in 20oz pints, which attracted a few funny looks.

60. Nullify : VOID

63. View from a pew : APSE. Nice clue for an old staple.

64. Dalí house : CASA. Spanish lesson for the day. There's a pub in north London called the "Case is Altered" which is (allegedly) a corruption of "Casa Alta", the "High House". It is on a hill, so I'm buying it.

65. Great Lakes natives : ERIES

66. That, in Tijuana : ESA

67. URL starter : HTTP. Hypertext Transfer Protocol, as we nerds all know.

68. Holding corporation that owns Kmart : SEARS

Down:

1. Get moving : SCOOT. "Scoot your buns!"

2. Dominant : ALPHA. TYPE-A got in the way of progress in this area.

3. Levels in a park : TIERS. Four tiers at Dodger Stadium. I'm going to the Rose Bowl on Sunday to see U2 playing the "Joshua Tree" tour. I bought the album when it was released 30 years ago, so I'm a tad excited. I've still got the vinyl; it's hanging on my wall next to my guitars.

4. Gunn of "Sully" : ANNA. Thank you, crosses. Enjoyed the movie.

5. Like matryoshka dolls : NESTED

6. Kim, to Khloé Kardashian : SIS

7. Offer of help : I CAN. Who can handle this for me?

8. Faraway : REMOTE

9. Take care of : SEE TO

10. It often spans decades : SAGA

11. Egg roll cooking medium : PEANUT OIL. I generally use mustard oil. Technically, you are not meant to cook with it in the US due to the fact that it contains levels of erucic acid that the powers-that-be suggest are not healthy. I'm still going strong and my doctor tells me I'm heart-healthy so ....

12. Pete Seeger's forte : FOLK SONGS

16. Rocket launcher : NASA.

18. Chaperones : ESCORTS

22. Emulate a news helicopter : HOVER. I live close to the 101 freeway, and one morning I was awoken by the sound of the hovering of two or three news helicopters. I went out on my bedroom  balcony and couldn't figure out why the morning smelt of margaritas. I turned on the news and saw that a truckload of limes had spilled on the freeway and been turned into juice as the traffic ran over them. Fun, except not so much for the commuters backed up behind the clearance crew.

25. Tries hard (for) : GUNS

29. Doctor's request : SAY AH!

31. Disney character who sings "Let It Go" : ELSA "Frozen".

32. Curved letter : ESS

33. Ali ring trademark : ROPE-A-DOPE. His technique of laying on the ropes absorbing punches to tire out the opponent, then coming at him late in the bout when tiredness set in.

34. Simply Cocoa maker : SWISS MISS

35. Other people : THEM

37. Splash guard : MUDFLAP

38. __-Cat : SNO

40. Frost advisory, e.g. : ALERT

41. Poetic paeans : ODES

46. Doughboy's helmet : TIN HAT. Actually made of steel. "Hat" is a delicate term too.

47. Peace offerings : TRUCES. The act, not the olive branch.

48. Soap brand with volcanic pumice : LAVA. Thank you, crosses.

50. Big name in kitchen appliances : BOSCH. I've got a couple of their grinders, one for coffee and the other for spices. They're great. Why two? So that my ground spices don't taste of coffee, and my morning coffee doesn't make me bust out in a sweat due to raw ground Scorpion chili contamination. Smart.

52. Two-time French Open winner Sharapova : MARIA

53. Sunken ship explorer : DIVER

54. Long lock : TRESS

56. Creative flash : IDEA

57. __ China Sea : EAST. I've sailed on the South China Sea out of Hong Kong Island. I met a Cathay Pacific airline pilot in the bar at my Kowloon hotel and he took me and a couple of colleagues out on the company yacht. Great fun. We didn't make it far enough to cross into the East China Sea though. Great lunch at a tiny seafood shack on a little isle just off Hong Kong. Four of us, a local dog, two fisherman and a cook. I really have enjoyed a lucky life. He also explained to me the 12-hour rule "Booze to Cruise" or "Bottle to Throttle" for pilots.

59. Untainted : PURE

62. Genre using speakers? : RAP. Nice clue. I like Eminem; some other hip-hop artists don't work so well for me.

Well, that's about it for me. I just need to post the grid and it's over and out! I hope you enjoyed the ride!

Steve

Wednesday, May 17, 2017 Alex Eaton-Salners

Theme - LET"S ALL TAKE A BOUGH.  Vertical theme entries all start with, and are therefore TOPPED by letters that spell the name of a TREE.  Let's start with the unifier.

55 A. Canopy creators ... or what can literally be found in 6-, 10-, 24- and 34-Down : TREE TOPS.

Coming back down to earth we have the theme entries.

6 D. Brain part that produces melatonin : PINEAL GLAND.  It is tucked into the groove between the two halves of the thalmus, near the center of the brain.  It is so-named because its shape resembles that of a pine cone.  Topped by a PINE, an evergreen, and the first of our TREEs.

I'm just needling you.

10 D. Cartographer's table : MAP LEGEND.  An inset that explains the meanings of symbols and other features used on the map.  The maple tree is prized for its lumber, used for furniture and decorative purposes.

Syrup source.

24. Reason for a parking restriction : FIRE HYDRANT.  FIR trees are can be distinguished from other members of the pine family by their needle attachments and cone shapes.

Reason enough

Not actually furry.

34 D. "Wascally wabbit" hunter : ELMER FUDD.  Something we all knew.  But it gives me an excuse to post this --.



ELM TREES were used along streets all over America as decoration and to provide shade.  Most of these were lost to Dutch elm disease, caused by a microfungus carried by bark beetles.  Disease resistant varieties have since been developed.

Disease resistant American variety.

Look for a clue gimmick when the theme arrangement is vertical.  This one is clever, with the tree names topping the theme fill entries.  Two of the four trees are hard woods, and two are conifers.   The conifers are adjacent to the vertical center line, and the hard woods farther toward the edges.

Hi, Gang, Jazzbumpa on duty, lumbering through this puzzle.  Let's see what we can saw.

Across

1. Produced, biblically speaking : BEGAT.  Was the father of.

6. Racetrack stops : PITS.  For fuel and quick tire changes.

10. Finance majors' degs. : MBAS.  Master of Business Administration.  I have one.

14. Kagan associate : ALITO.  Supreme Court Justices.

15. Not yet out of the running : IN IT.  To win it, no doubt.

16. Strong lobby for seniors : AARP.  America Association of Retired Persons.  I belong.

17. One who wants to come home? : BASE RUNNER.  Baseball reference.  Most do not make it, though.

19. Insanity, in court : PLEA.  A formal statement in response to a charge, not [necessarily] a description of behavior.

20. Makes eligible for, with "to" : ENTITLES.  Supplies a legal or just right to something.

21. Sign up : ENLIST.  Or enroll, which sadly has the same number of letters.

23. Albacore, e.g. : TUNA.  Something fishy here.

24. Price of a crosstown ride : FARE.  In a bus or cab.  

25. 19th Greek letter : TAU.  

Don't say I never TAUght you anything.

28. Eight pts. : GAL.  Pints and gallons, guys and gals.

29. "Just think!" : IMAGINE.

33. In unfamiliar territory : AT SEA.  Without a paddle.

35. "An Officer and a Gentleman" star : GERE.

His middle name is Tifffany

37. Black, in poetry : EBON.

38. Castro of Cuba : RAUL.  Fidel's brother.

39. Adjust to fit : ALTER.  As clothing.

40. Statistician Silver of ESPN's FiveThirtyEight : NATE.  

41. British baby buggy : PRAM.  Short for perambulator.

42. "The cow is of the bovine ilk / One end is moo, the other, milk" poet : NASH.  Ogden.

To keep your marriage brimming
With love in the loving cup,
Whenever you’re wrong, admit it;
Whenever you’re right, shut up.

-  Ogden Nash

43. Floppy disk successor : CD-ROM.  Data storage media.

44. Solemn ending? : SILENT N.  Holy N, Batmen.

46. Vote in favor : YEA.  parliamentary procedure.

48. What's up to you? : SKY.  Sometimes hidden by clouds.

49. Cheese coat : RIND.  More than you want to know.  

50. TiVo products : DVRS.  Digital Video Reordings.  Nobody tapes any more.

52. Confuse : BAFFLE.  Wait . . . what?!?

59. Free speech org. : ACLU.  American Civil Liberties Union.  We won't talk about it here.

60. Three, to nine : SQUARE ROOT.  A number that when multiplied by itself yields another specified number.  Round roots are things like carrots.

62. Get rid of : SHED. Discard, as leaves, skin, hair or clothing.

63. Change directions : TURN.  Don't get steered the wrong way

64. Box cutter insert : RAZOR.  Actually a blade.

65. Top dog : HEAD.  Of an organization.

66. Not hard : SOFT.  Pretty straight forward.

67. Prefix with foam : STYRO-.  Expanded polystyrene.  I worked with it on my first job.

Down

1. Innocent one : BABE.  One who is at a severe disadvantage in the woods.

2. Panache : ELAN.  Confidence, flair, style, enthusiasm.

3. Heart of the matter : GIST.  Get the point?

4. Absorbed the loss : ATE IT.  Financial indigestion.

5. Haitian island whose name is Spanish for "turtle" : TORTUGA.  Located north of the north-west arm of the main island.

7. Overnight stops : INNS.

8. 50-50, e.g. : TIE.  Even score in a sport or game, usually settled by some sort of overtime play.

9. Party decoration : STREAMER.  Colorful ribbons used for ornamentation.

10. Cartographer's table : MAP LEGEND.  An inset that explains the meanings of symbols and other features used on the map.

11. Indonesian island : BALI.  Immediately to the east of Java, it is home to most of Indonesia's Hindu minority.

12. "Iliad" war god : ARES.  Greek.  Mars to the Romans.

13. Petty argument : SPAT. It caused a SPAT what he spat on my spats.

18. Forearm part : ULNA.  The longer of two forearm bones, extending from the elbow to the little finger.  The radius extends from the elbow to the thumb side of the hand.

22. New Deal prog. : NRA.  The National Recovery Administration was created in 1933, under the National Industrial Recovery Act.  It had a two year charter and expired in 1935.  At that time the Supreme Court also determined that it infringed on separation of powers and was therefore unconstitutional.  Many of its provisions reappeared under the National Labor Relations Act that same year.

25. Camping cover-ups : TARPS.  Baseball diamonds, too.

26. Centipede creator : ATARI.  Electronic game company.

27. Garden-variety : USUAL.  Typical

30. Bridge beams : I-BARS.  Structural elements named for their cross-sectional profile, which resemble the letter I.

Not to be confused with this guy.

31. Against the rules : NOT OK.  Let the OK - Okay battle begin.

32. Redcoat, to a Minuteman : ENEMY.  American revolutionary war.

36. Sci-fi visitors : ETS. Extra-Terrestrials - off world entities, who sometimes claim to be friendly.

39. Colonies crawling with critters : ANT NESTS.

43. Board game with an "Unemployment Office" corner : CAREERS.

Fame, happiness and money

45. Zip : NIL.  Zilch.  Nada

47. Penultimate word of many fairy tales : EVER.  Penultimate -- hmmmm.  I wonder what comes after?

51. Classic guitar, briefly : STRAT.  Fender Stratocaster.  Costing $600, and up.  Buddy Holly's were stolen twice in April, 1958.

52. Shindig : BASH.  Spree, blow out.  Have fun, but make good choices.

53. Bruise symptom : ACHE.  Owie!

54. One in the doghouse? : FLEA.  One hopes not

55. Gang land : TURF.  Claimed territory.

56. Like slime : OOZY.  Moving like this?



57. Substandard : POOR.  Like certain movies from 1958.

58. Houston athlete, for short : 'STRO.  ASTRO evidently has too many syllable to be spoken conveniently.  The STROs are currently atop the A. L. Western division.  Let's give them a bough.

61. Status __ : QUO.  The current state of things.

That wraps up another Woden's Tag.  Hope you got through it without feeling board.  But now I have a strange desire branch out - maybe even join a splinter group.  Perhaps I should just go with the phloem.  Now it's time to leaf.

Cool regards!
JzB

Tuesday, May 16 2017, Debbie Ellerin

Theme: Retro TV. The circled letters, when read backwards, spell out a network.

17. Two-time Emmy winner for "30 Rock" : ALEC BALDWIN. ABC.

 39. San Francisco neighborhood : NOB HILL. HBO.

11. Umami detectors : TASTE BUDS. BET. Umami is one of the five basic tastes (together with sweetness, sourness, bitterness, and saltiness). It has been described as brothy or meaty.

34. Where to pick up "will call" tickets : BOX OFFICE. FOX.

62. Unofficial means of communication, and a hint to each set of circled letters : BACK CHANNEL

Across       
 

1. Latvian capital : RIGA
 

5. Sites for vows : ALTARS. (There's one in my near future 💘.)
 

11. Blues great __ Mahal : TAJ
 

14. Turow book set at Harvard : ONE L

15. __ pork: Chinese dish with pancakes : MOOSHU
 

16. Yellowfin tuna : AHI

19. Bart, to Homer : SON
 

20. Vixen teammate : DASHER
 

21. '80s Indiana senator Quayle : DAN
 

22. Underworld river : STYX. Greek mythology.
 

23. Dug up dandelions, say : WEEDED
 

25. Like some bank accounts : NO FEE
 

27. Doles (out) : METES
 

29. Place for bottom feeders : SEA BED
 

32. Red gemstone : RUBY
 

35. Walked (on) : TROD
 

37. Avoid capture by : ELUDE
 

38. Artist Yoko : ONO

41. Poorly lit : DIM
 

42. The South : DIXIE
 

44. Boo Boo's pal : YOGI
 

45. Analogy words : IS TO
 

46. Squirreled away : STORED
 

48. Records for later watching : TIVOS
 

50. Castro of Cuba : FIDEL
 

52. Electric cars named for a physicist : TESLAS
 

55. Sports officials : REFS. No indication of shortened word.
 

57. Chinese chairman : MAO
 

59. Monopoly square with a question mark : CHANCE

 

61. Former White House Press Secretary Fleischer : ARI

64. Attack, to Fido : SIC
 

65. Five Nations tribe : ONEIDA
 

66. Tennis drop shot : DINK. New to me. From tennis.com: "When the dink is used correctly it’s an important addition to any passing-shot arsenal. Unlike a drive, a well-placed dink forces the volleyer to hit up while creating his own pace, and only the most solid volleyers will be able to strike a forcing shot from this position."
 

67. Text giggle : HEE
 

68. Most weird : ODDEST
 

69. Catches sight of : SEES

Down
 

1. "Rocky __ to Dublin": Irish tune : ROAD

 

2. Kin by marriage : IN LAW
 

3. Sixth-day-of-Christmas gift : GEESE
 

4. Lead-to-gold pseudoscience : ALCHEMY
 

5. Almond-flavored liqueur : AMARETTO
 

6. Tweeter's titter : LOL
 

7. Broadway barber Sweeney __ : TODD
 

8. Dam on the Nile : ASWAN
 

9. Safari herbivores : RHINOS
 

10. Word with screen or block : SUN

12. Nautical cry : AHOY
 

13. Bring bad luck : JINX
 

18. George Eliot's "Adam __" : BEDE

 

22. Navy commando : SEAL
 

24. Annual Kentucky event : DERBY
 

26. Intuit : FEEL
 

28. Really sexy : SO HOT
 

30. Clean up Time? : EDIT
 

31. Trade show model : DEMO
 

32. Anglers' gear : RODS
 

33. Textbook division : UNIT

36. Entry in a sudoku square : DIGIT
 

39. "All You __ Is Love" : NEED

 

40. Online customer service option : LIVE CHAT
 

43. Eye part : IRIS
 

45. Cruise stops : ISLANDS
 

47. Insist on : DEMAND
 

49. Labor Dept. arm : OSHA
 

51. Tied, as skates : LACED
 

53. "Tomorrow" musical : ANNIE
 

54. Movie trailer segment : SCENE
 

55. Itchy red area : RASH
 

56. Buffalo's Great Lake : ERIE
 

58. Sooner migrant : OKIE
 

60. Part of BPOE : ELKS. Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks.

62. Ghostly greeting : BOO
 

63. Fixed-term investments, briefly : CDS

Monday, May 15, 2017 Mark McClain

Theme: A Twofer - Two answers for one reveal.

17A. *Handyman's forte: REPAIR WORK. Home repair, homework.

22A. *Sports industry mogul: TEAM OWNER. Home team, home owner.

37A. *Frolic unrestrained: RUN FREE. Home run, home free.

50A. *Where the biggest headlines are: FRONT PAGE. Home front, home page.

60A. Game one for season ticket holders ... or, literally, what each word in the answers to starred clues can have: HOME OPENER

Argyle here. Simple yet elegant Monday. A simple solve with no need for the reveal but so much more with the reveal.

Across:

1. Beach sidler: CRAB. I started out slow because I couldn't picture a sidler.

5. Heroic exploit: GEST

9. Donald Duck, to his nephews: "UNCA"

13. Prefix for an intoxicating weed: LOCO

14. "Republic" philosopher: PLATO. Start with the Classic and follow-up with ....

15. Modernists, informally: NEOs

16. Part of NYSE: Abbr.: EXCH. (New York Stock Exchange)

19. Rich person's suffix: AIRE. Millionaire, for starters.

20. __ about: circa: ON OR

21. Sty calls: OINKS. Helps to be a farm boy today.

24. Kitchen invader: ANT

25. Youthful bar patrons are usually asked for them: IDs "Let's see some identification"

26. Cows' milk glands: UDDERS. It is what IDs them as cows.

29. Whence chocolate: CACAO. Not brown cows?!

32. Has lunch, say: EATS

35. Organ knob: STOP. No snickering, please.

36. Gray hue: ASH

40. Mandela's land: Abbr.: RSA. (Republic of South Africa)

41. Old Italian coin: LIRA

43. Jazz singer James: ETTA

44. Arthritis detectors: X-RAYS

46. For the most part: MAINLY

48. Soul automaker: KIA. Straight forward clue today.

49. Phys. or entom.: SCI. Physics or Entomology, Sciences.

56. "__ we meet again": UNTIL

58. Gambling city near Tahoe: RENO

59. Trampled (on): TROD

62. Responsibility: ONUS

63. Algerian seaport: ORAN. Lots of info here.

64. Bleak, in verse: DREAR

65. Take the bus: RIDE

66. "... why __ thou forsaken me?": Matthew: HAST

67. Experience, as emotions: FEEL

68. Ball-balancing circus animal: SEAL

Down:

1. Soccer shoe's turf grabber: CLEAT

2. 51-Down's "Chicago" role: ROXIE. 51-Down. "Chicago" co-star Zellweger: RENEE

3. Capital of Ghana: ACCRA

4. Czech Republic region: BOHEMIA. Regions of the Czech Republic

5. Mercury Seven astronaut John: GLENN

6. How "The Raven" poet signed some of his letters: EAPOE. Edgar Allan Poe knew DREAR.

7. Drummer Ringo: STARR

8. You, in French: TOI

9. Kicks back: UNWINDS

10. Colorful aquarium fish: NEON TETRA

11. Wine stopper: CORK

12. Questions: ASKS

14. Ship fronts: PROWS but 33-Down. Back at sea?: AFT

18. "__ trip!": "Let's travel!": ROAD

23. Smell: ODOR

26. Take advantage of: USE

27. Optimistic: ROSY

28. Restful resorts: SPAs

29. Not windy: CALM

30. Tibet's continent: ASIA

31. "Holiday Inn" holiday: CHRISTMAS. White Christmas (1954) was an extremely loose remake of Holiday Inn (1942).

32. Tolkien tree creature: ENT

34. __-la-la: TRA

38. Driver's one-eighty: U-EY

39. Leave the stage: EXIT. "Stage left even."

42. Really old: ANCIENT

45. Hawks and eagles: RAPTORS

47. Stitch's movie pal: LILO

48. Big name in packaged soup: KNORR

50. French brother: FRÈRE

52. Shaq of the NBA: O'NEAL

53. Golf great with an "army": ARNIE. Palmer.

54. Mild Dutch cheese: GOUDA

55. Ford flop: EDSEL

56. "Here comes trouble!": "UH-OH!"

57. Romance novelist Roberts: NORA

61. Adobe file format: PDF. (Portable Document Format)

Argyle

Sunday May 14, 2017 Bruce Haight

Theme: "For Mom" - Each theme entry is in the pattern of M* O* M*.

22A. Tycoon, e.g. : MAN OF MEANS

27A. Euterpe : MUSE OF MUSIC. Often as a clue for EUTERPE.

44A. Antacid name since 1872 : MILK OF MAGNESIA

63A. Takes action : MAKES ONE'S MOVE. Surprised to see MADE OF MONEY (111A. Rich, and then some). Same verb: Makes/Made.

72A. Encounter stiff competition : MEET ONE'S MATCH. ONE, THE and OF dupes are generally OK.

95A. Willpower : MIND OVER MATTER


Reveal:

122A. Apt time to recognize this puzzle's honoree : MONTH OF MAY. Very nice. Double duty.

Happy Mother's Day to all the moms on our blog!

MOON OVER MIAMI is missing. Otherwise, Bruce gives us a near complete set of M* O* M* entries. Perfect partner puzzle to Ed Sessa's POP we had a while ago.

We often see two-word initial grids. Three words are much tougher to pull off even for a weekday.
 
Across:

1. Sharp group : MENSA. Nailed it.

6. Stage award : OBIE

10. "Kisses, dahling" : MWAH. Air kiss sound.

14. NASA nods : A-OKs

18. Beatles' "White Album" song whose title follows "If you want me to" : I WILL. Got via crosses.

19. Cost of living? : RENT. Nice clue.

20. "Yikes!" : OH NO

21. Beatnik's "Gotcha" : I'M HIP


24. Biblical verb : DOTH

25. Bete __ : NOIRE

26. On one's game : IN A GROOVE. Bruce is on top of his game.


29. Unyielding : SET

30. Map feature : SCALE. And 39. Map abbr. : AVE. Map clue echo.


32. Crux : HEART

33. Resort of a sort : SPA

36. One brought to a potluck : DISH. So what's your signature dish?
 
40. Drubbing : ROUT

41. Boater or bowler : HAT

48. Remove : DETACH

50. Con : ANTI

51. K.T. of country music : OSLIN. Not many ways to clue her.

52. Offer to pay : BID

54. Venezia casino winner : SETTE. Seven. Venice. Anyone been to The Venetian in Vegas?

55. Fill with merchandise : STOCK

57. Transcript info : GPA
 
58. One digging hard rock? : MINER. Gimme for regulars.

60. Just like that : AS IS

61. Greet with a beep : HONK AT

67. Metro barrier : STILE

70. Title of honor : SIR

71. Russian refusals : NYETs. Also 53. Reject : DENY

77. Toy, perhaps : LAP DOG

81. Novelist Seton : ANYA. Learned from doing crosswords.

82. Invite to one's loft, say : ASK UP

83. Jones many keep up with? : DOW. Great clue. Not the "Joneses."

86. Blush relative : ROUGE Also 74. Compact supplies : EYE SHADOWS

87. Dummy Mortimer : SNERD. I used to confuse him with SNERT.


89. Do wrong : SIN

90. One way to split : IN TWO

92. Move, at Coldwell Banker : RELO

93. Heave-ho : OUSTER

99. Medical research org. : NIH

100. Comics resident of the Okefenokee Swamp : POGO

102. NATO founding member : USA. And 104. Part of NATO: Abbr. : ORG

103. Jimmy on sausage labels : DEAN
 
105. Brass, e.g. : ALLOY

107. Prayer leaders : IMAMs

109. 76-Down brand : RCA.76. Best Buy buy : HDTV. Triple alliteration. Agnes' forte.

 

114. Land : TOUCH DOWN

120. Major pain : AGONY

121. Becloud : BLUR


123. Pond denizens : NEWTS

124. Indian tourist city : AGRA. Taj Mahal. Xi'an is popular with tourists also.

125. Bind, in a way : GLUE

126. Swerves : VEERS

127. Gas across the border : ESSO. Northern border.


128. Highlander : GAEL

129. Clutter : MESS

130. "Fiddler" meddler : YENTE. My high-school best friend was introduced to her husband by a matchmaker. They're still together.
 
Down:
 
1. "La Bohème" role : MIMI

2. McGregor of "Trainspotting" : EWAN

3. Familia girl : NINA

4. Trudges : SLOGS

5. Creamy sauce : ALFREDO. Are those basil?

6. __ Biscuit, product debut of 1912 : OREO. New trivia to me. Biscuit sounds salty.
 
7. '50s-'60s sitcom nickname : BEAV

8. "The Wreck of the Mary Deare" author Hammond __ : INNES. Stranger to me.

9. "MIB" characters : ETs. Men in Black.


10. Construction units : MODULES

11. Word of possession : WHOSE

12. Mandatory bet : ANTE

13. Words after "jolly" in an iconic ad : HO HO HO. The Jolly Green Giant.

14. Affaire de coeur : AMOUR

15. "Really?!" : OH IS THAT SO. Sparkly fill.

16. Diva Te Kanawa : KIRI

17. Something to build on : SPEC. On spec.


21. Cons : INMATES. The facial place I used to visit  in Guangzhou was next to the police station. I could hear cops yelling and beating. In those days, I just thought bad guys deserved it.


23. Theme : MOTIF

27. Whiz : MAVEN

28. Big beef : FEUD. Not KOBE.


31. Kid's plea : CAN I

33. Ping-Pong shot : SMASH

34. __ bean : PINTO. I think these are the beans Boomer uses in his Chili.

35. "Good Eats" host Brown : ALTON

37. Sun blocker : SMOG

38. Briefcase fastener : HASP

40. Ruin, weatherwise : RAIN ON

42. "Double, double toil and trouble" time : ACT IV

43. This and this : THESE

45. Energize : KICK-START. Another great fill.

46. Rock genre : GLAM

47. Heron cousin : IBIS

49. Baseball or football : TEAM SPORT
 
56. Simpson trial figure Kaelin : KATO. Forgot. We had him before.

58. Chicago exchange, briefly, with "the" : MERC. Oh, Chicago Mercantile Exchange.

59. Stagger : REEL

62. Fey in American Express ads : TINA

64. "Pronto!" : ASAP

65. Do-it-yourselfer's buy : KIT. TTP almost DIYs everything. From computers to water leaks. What a guy.

66. Hollywood Walk of Fame symbol : STAR

68. Not as much : LESS

69. __ Pie : ESKIMO. Never had it.

72. Wall builder : MASON

73. Boredom : ENNUI 

75. Certain bond, briefly : MUNI. Boring but safe.

78. Caused by : DUE TO

79. Rubberneck : OGLER

80. Maestro Solti : GEORG. One more name 91. Author Chomsky : NOAM

84. Outstanding : OWED

85. Modeled, say : WORE

88. Arranges strategically : DEPLOYS

90. "In my opinion ... " : I'D SAY

94. It's on the house : ROOF. Literal. Not FREE,

96. X, at times : NUMERAL. Got via crosses.

97. Progressive movement : MARCH. I like this new clue angle.

98. Antipasto fish : ANCHOVY

101. Exerciser's accessory : GYM BAG. Nice.

106. Slowly, in music : LENTO

107. Toughen : INURE. Or ENURE.

108. Ripped off : STOLE

110. Website charge : AD FEE

111. Locks in a barn? : MANE. Another great clue.

112. What seems like forever : AGES

113. One of Chekhov's "Three Sisters" : OLGA

115. Duty : ONUS

116. Pac-12 team : UTES. Utah Utes.

117. Harbinger : OMEN

118. Imperfection : WART. Do you know Wabi-sabi? There's beauty in imperfection.

119. Where Anheuser-Busch is BUD : NYSE

122. "Ben-Hur" studio : MGM