Sunday February 10, 2019 David Poole

Theme: "Not Again"- RE is removed from each theme entry.

23A. Chef's directives involving sieves?: STRAINING ORDERS. Restraining orders.

34A. One splitting firewood?: CORD BREAKER. Record breaker.

43A. Chance for Obi-Wan to play?: TURN OF THE JEDI. Return of the Jedi.

69A. Therapist's technique using poetry?: VERSE PSYCHOLOGY. Reverse psychology.

101A. Social event for British tavern keepers?: PUBLICAN PARTY. Republican party.

111A. Dusting goal?: MOTE CONTROL. Remote control.

125A. License to search for the Holy Grail?: QUEST PERMISSION. Request permission.

Such an apt title from David. It summarizes up the gimmick nicely and does not give away the theme.

Very consistent approach too. Super tight entries.

Across:

1. Pen pals?: CONS. Fun clue.

5. Complexion enhancement: ROUGE. I just call it BLUSH.

10. Email subject abbr.: FWD.

13. Get to smile: AMUSE.

18. From square one: ANEW.

19. Steam up: ENRAGE.

21. John, to Paul, George and Ringo: LOO. And 22. John, Paul, George and Ringo: NAMES. Fantastic clues.

26. Travis of country: TRITT.

27. Tennis' Goolagong: EVONNE.

28. Kia HQ city: SEOUL. But HQ is asking for an abbreviated answer.

29. Widen: DILATE.

30. Old pool people: STENOS.

36. Violin stroke: UP BOW.

39. Big chamber group: OCTET.

41. Candidate's aim: SEAT. Our senator Amy Klobuchar is running.

42. Yearbook sect.: SRS.

47. Quaint oath: EGAD.

49. Bar quaff, briefly: IPA.

50. YOLO, in ancient Rome: CARPE DIEM. YOLO = You Only Living Once. This clue made me smile.

52. Actress Staunton of Harry Potter movies: IMELDA. Learning moment for me.

56. Lemony, say: CITRIC. Charlotte disagrees.

59. PC bailout key: ESC.

60. 113-Down's last words: A DAMN. And 113. "I never give anything without expecting something in return" speaker: RHETT.

62. Placed: LAID.

63. Take in or let out: ALTER.

64. Broadway's Hagen: UTA.

66. Hirsute Himalayan humanoid of myth: YETI. Triple alliteration. Agnes' forte.

68. Crossed (out): XED.

76. Compress, as a file: ZIP.

79. Resist: DEFY.

80. Pop duo __ & Him: SHE. Wiki says the duo consisting of Zooey Deschanel and M. Ward.

81. Signs of shock: GASPS.

85. Currier's partner: IVES.

87. Andrea __: ill-fated ship: DORIA.

90. City, informally: URB.

92. Magoo's malady: MYOPIA.

93. Cooperstown charter member: TY COBB. And Babe Ruth, Honus Wagner, Christy Mathewson and Walter Johnson.

95. Abash: EMBARRASS.

98. Prov. at one end of the Ambassador Bridge: ONT. Here is the bridge. Our constructor is a Canadian.

99. Dental image: X RAY.

104. Latin art: ARS.

107. Triangle product: AREA.

109. Tot's rebuttal: IS NOT.

110. Role for Liam: OSKAR. Oskar Schindler. He's in trouble.

115. Banded metamorphic rock: GNEISS.

117. Big Sur institute: ESALEN. Read here for details. I learned it from doing crosswords.

118. Cambodians' neighbors: THAIS. Oo!

120. Film frames: STILLS.

124. Knighted British actor Hawthorne: NIGEL. Learning moment as well.

129. "The Canterbury Tales" pilgrim: REEVE.

130. Blast cause: TNT.

131. Washington city: YAKIMA. Not TACOMA.

132. Enterprise counselor: TROI.

133. Portfolio part: ASSET.

134. Collecting Soc. Sec.: RET.

135. Enlighten: TEACH. I just send opaque things to Roman Forest. They often come back clear.

136. Virgo/Libra mo.: SEPT.

Down:

1. Project for Poirot: CASE.

2. Airing: ON TV.

3. Student of Seneca: NERO.

4. TV dinner brand: SWANSON.

5. "Xena" actress O'Connor: RENEE. Also new to me.

6. Hush-hush maritime org.: ONI. Office of Naval Intelligence.

7. Java holder: URN.

8. Witty bit: GAG.

9. Sensitive issues for directors: EGOS.

10. __-de-lis: FLEUR.

11. Wells title foes: WORLDS.  "The War of the Worlds". H. G. Wells.

12. Bobs and buns: DOS.

13. Bloody Civil War battle site: ANTIETAM. Wiki says "it was the bloodiest day in United States history, with a combined tally of 22,717 dead, wounded, or missing."

14. Actress Maples: MARLA.

15. Inuit boats: UMIAKS. This looks cold.

16. Volleyball position: SETTER.

17. Fragrant compounds: ESTERS.

20. Put up: ERECTED.

24. Bisected: IN TWO.

25. Rooster's last word?: DOO. Oh, cock-a-doodle-doo.

29. Involve with reluctantly, as a tough situation: DRAG INTO.

31. __ bene: NOTA.

32. Yellowish tone: OCHRE.

33. Answers the call: STEPS UP.

35. Pollen carrier: BEE.

36. Erie Canal city: UTICA.

37. One who has class?: PUPIL. And 112. Parisian 37-Down: ELEVE.

38. Benjamin of "Law & Order": BRATT. Here with Lannie!

40. Kicks out: EJECTS.

44. Govt. org. with a Media Bureau: FCC.

45. Calendario square: DIA.

46. Mil. roadside danger: IED.

48. 2017 Best Director Oscar winner Guillermo __ Toro: DEL. "The Shape of Water".

51. It may be held in a deli: MAYO.

53. Southern Calif. airport: LAX.  And 71. Northern Calif. airport: SFO.

54. Roller in Vegas: DIE.

55. Put in: ADD.

57. MLK's title: REV.

58. Miffed: IRED. Spell check does not like this form.

61. Voice artist Blanc: MEL.

65. Shakespearean cries: AYS.

67. Pop of punk: IGGY.

70. Snoopy's nemesis: RED BARON. Great fill.

72. Jane Rochester, née __: EYRE.

73. Uncouth types: CHURLS.

74. It's misleading when it's red: HERRING.

75. Ming most look up to: YAO. Very tall. He now owns Shanghai Sharks.

76. Spot at the prom?: ZIT. Bad pot.

77. Climbing greenery: IVY.

78. Iron pumper's pride: PEC.

82. Versatile utensil: SPORK.

83. Historic nautical trio member: PINTA.

84. Dionysus devotee: SATYR.

86. Red or White: SOX.

88. Little trickster: IMP. That's our Spitzboov!

89. "Aladdin" monkey: ABU.

91. Club component: BACON. Sandwich.

92. AOL alternative: MSN.

94. Patient's ID: BRACELET.

96. Knack: ABILITY.

97. Fill to the max: SATE.

100. Nikkei index currency: YEN.

102. Blog updates: POSTS. From our blogging team.

103. Gretzky's NHL record 1,963: ASSISTS.

104. Supreme Egyptian deity: AMEN RA.

105. Bar in TV's "M*A*S*H": ROSIE'S. Unknown to me. Never watched "M*A*S*H".

106. Play grounds?: STAGES. Nice clue.

108. Bring into harmony: ATTUNE.

114. Western treaty gp.: OAS. Organization of American States. And a blog regular.

116. NBA legend Thomas: ISIAH.

119. Little fight: SPAT.

121. Euro forerunners: LIRE.

122. Programmer's "endless" problem: LOOP.

123. Peevish state: SNIT.

125. Game div.: QTR.

126. Barely make, with "out": EKE.

127. Fjord kin: RIA.

128. CXL x XV: MMC. I dread this kind of clue.

I spoke with Dave 2 last Monday. He coughed constantly. Both he and his roommate had flu. They could not leave their room for fear that they might spread the flu to to other patients in the rehab place. He felt quite isolated.

C.C.

Saturday, February 9, 2019, Greg Johnson

Saturday Themeless by Greg Johnson


Here we are five days prior to Valentine's Day and we celebrate my wife's favorite food group - Chocolate. Therefore I got a jump on St. Valentine and combined my lovely wife's favorite confection with a sentiment I have maintained through 52 years of marriage.

Our constructor, Greg Johnson may have had some premonition about this as he had this clue today:

9. Flavor that pairs well with chocolate: MINT - I remember when these wonderful treats were 2 cents at the pay station in a restaurant or were free in an upscale eatery. 

Greg Johnson

44. Unchallenging: EASY - While not real EASY, today's puzzle, gave up the ghost faster than most Saturdays for me. Now let's see what else Greg, with his [insert adjective] expression, has for us today:


Across:

1. In honor of: AFTER - The VFW in my hometown is now named AFTER my friend who died in Vietnam and not the heroic WWI man who no one could remember

6. Site with a Pill Identification Tool: WEB MD - I wonder what this thing is...

11. Tried hard: STROVE.

12. More substantial: MEATIER.

14. Sea of Azov peninsula: CRIMEA - A war described as "notoriously incompetent international butchery"

15. When many photos are taken: AT SUNSET 

17. Some therapeutic applications: OILS - A graphic Web Md warning 

18. Didn't get in the way of: LET BE 

20. Brand with an orange-and-yellow bull's-eye trademark: TIDE and 35. Fan: ROOTER - This fan must have felt horrible when the TIDE (Baman) got routed in the National Championship Game this year

21. Conversation on the go: WALK AND TALK - One of many TV and movie 51. Metaphors, e.g.: TROPES - commonly used TV/movie devices

24. X or Z preceder: GEN.

25. Stella Artois product: LAGER - Their Super Bowl ad got good reviews. Sara Jessica Parker pronounced it "Stella Artwah" and Jeff Bridges said "Stella Artoes" 

26. Waiters stand in them: LINES - We waited in line for Ubers not taxis

28. Product of sugar and heat: CARAMEL - People sometimes disregard the middle A like the middle T in dentist

31. Real go-getter: DYNAMO - The motor below is really a electricity generating DYNAMO and could keep my laptop 36. Energized: AMPED up in a storm

32. Retrieved at an airport carousel: CLAIMED - I put a big pink strap around my black bag

33. Pet holdable in one hand: HAMSTER.

34. Critical sounds: HISSES - Appropriate melodrama response when villain appears

35. Took turns: ROTATED - Super Bowl sites are rotated among NFL cities. Next: Miami, Tampa Bay, Los Angeles

37. Cleanser compound: BORAX - Here's a pre-presidential pitchman

38. Saint, in Brazil: SAO.

39. What you'd better have if you miss work: A GOOD EXCUSE 

45. Highest Italian peak south of the Alps: ETNA - This map shows it as a lone white dot on the East end of Sicily 

47. Like yummy desserts, sooner or later: EATEN.

48. Fit to serve: ONE-A - I don't know if the Babe was ever ONE-A but he did register in 1917

49. Separate: DISCRETE = Brown and White rice are DISCRETE varieties 

53. Homicide official: CORONER - 85-yr-old David McCallum still plays the CORONER on NCIS 

54. Event associated with a blue moon: RARITY.

55. Concrete-reinforcing rod: REBAR - REROD works too

56. Kind of question: YES/NO - Yeah, I sent one as a 13-yr-old. She marked Yes!!

Down:

1. Heart chambers: ATRIA - The educated peeps here can find them below

2. Nonessential decoration: FRILL - Lipstick on a pig?

3. Siberian industrial center: TOMSK.

4. Big event lead-in: EVE

5. What John Wayne and Cary Grant weren't: REAL NAMES - Birthplace of Marion Morrison in Winterset, Iowa

6. Dinner party amenity: WET BAR - I'd prefer a taco BAR

7. Painter's aid: EASEL.

8. A/C letters: BTU - Our old HVAC cwd friend

10. Appoint: DESIGNATE 

11. Harbor hauler: SCOW - A garbage SCOW in NYC Harbor

12. Brand on Barbie boxes: MATTEL.

13. Cashed in: REDEEMED - Like Green Stamps

16. Stretching muscle: TENSOR - The TENSOR of the fascia lata in red

19. Trimmed, in a way: EDGED.

22. Bay Area city: ALAMEDA - The San Francisco Warriors play in the Oracle or Oakland/ALAMEDA Arena which is the oldest NBA venue.

23. Female R&B group with the '80s hit "I Miss You": KLYMAXX - A lovely song

27. MIT part: Abbr.: INST- Hmmm... MASS or INST or TECH

28. Of concern to the Weather Channel: CLIMATIC - Our recent departure from CLIMATIC norms has been dramatic 

29. Twelve-step helper: AA SPONSOR.

30. Start the day: RISE.

31. Requirement for statistical analysis: DATA ENTRY - Not my dream job

32. Tried to catch: CHASED - She was CHASED but remained chaste

33. Massive group: HORDE.

37. Flat-topped straw hat: BOATER - Nobody wore one better than this guy

40. Davis with a recurring role on "Grey's Anatomy": GEENA - She was really hard-nosed in Grey's Anatomy but GEENA and baseball, gotta love it!

41. Denver's __ Field: COORS - Playing at an elevation of 5,280 ft. can have its issues

42. Remove from the bulletin board: UNPIN

43. Take care of: SEE TO 

46. A football field is about 32% larger than one: ACRE.

50. Not take well: ROB - An oft-seen fun fill for larceny 

52. Female name that's a body part backwards: RAE - Here's both in this picture 

Now put down that Snickers and comment away:

Note from C.C.:

Happy 48th  birthday to dear Splynter (Richard), our faithful Saturday Sherpa for a long time. Life has not been easy for Splynter the past year, but he's a tough guy. Hope you got that job you wanted, Splynter!

Friday, February 8, 2019, Andy Morrison

Title: Have you ever met a meta?

Along with REBUS CROSSWORD PUZZLES, I do not believe Rich accepts META PUZZLES. But if you like this concept, you will like this debut puzzle from Andy Morrison. The META is revealed at 37A. Literal and figurative hint to four puzzle answers: MISSING LINK (11) which defeats the meta aspect but gives you a taste of the challenge. We get there with:

18A. Boxing academy?: FLIGHT SCHOOL (11). FIGHT CLUB was a successful movie, but FLIGHT School is where you go to learn to fly an airplane. Here we remove the "L".

30. Optimist's hopeful list?: GREAT PLAINS. We have many here who live in the GREAT PLAINS, but how many make Great PLANS? The "I".

48A. Wild party in Dallas?: TEXAS RANGER. We may be too old to know the Urban Dictionary Definition of RAGER : A larger gathering usually of high school or college students where massive amounts of alcohol are consumed, but with many in the Corner from Texas, we know about all kinds of TEXAS RANGERS.

58A. Literary alliance?: WRITER'S BLOCK (11). A BLOC is defined as a combination of countries, parties, or groups sharing a common purpose.

A Writer's Block is the bane of all authors.

And there you have the four letters which make up the MISSING LINK. But you will not be missing any links here. You also were treated lots of sparkle with ARSENIO, GARBAGE, GENUINE, IN A SPIN, MACABRE, MIDWEEK, EPHESIAN, ICE WATER, CHAMBERMAID and  PACKAGE DEAL

Very impressive Andy.


Across:

1. Yukon supplier: GMC. General Motors makes this full-sized or bigger SUV.

4. __ pants: HAREM. Didn't every one of my age think of this image?

9. Scorned lover of Jason: MEDEA. Thank you
for the shout out Andy, but she was my wife and
killed our children just because I was dumping
her for a Corinthian princess.
If you believe Euripides.

14. Aptly, it rhymes with "spa": AAH. Feels so goood.

15. CNN correspondent Hill: ERICA. never watched her. She is on the right.


16. Big period: EPOCH. Is a period of time in history or a person's life, typically one marked by notable events or particular characteristics. Often the backdrop of 43A. Sword-and-sandal feature, e.g.: EPIC.

17. TV trailblazer: RCA.

20. Loud noises: BAMS.

22. "There, there," e.g.: SOLACE. A Quantum?

23. One at the top of the order: ABBESS.  This is a woman who is the head of an abbey of nuns. They are an order.



26. Whirling: IN A SPIN. Perhaps this MUSIC. My granddaughter and her class sang this along with a Christmas carol at her winter show.

33. "Othello" role: IAGO. The epitome of a bad man.

34. Pamphlet ending: EER.

35. Have __ for: A YEN.

36. Colorful bird: MACAW.

41. Field supervisor: COACH.

44. Turkish title: AGA.

47. Award using spelled-out initials: OBIE. Off Broadway.

51. Wednesday, to be exact: MIDWEEK. In German it is Mittwoch.

53. Souvenirs: TOKENS.

54. Plays ball: AGREES.

57. Musical collaboration instruction: A DUE. An Italian misdirection. LINK.

63. A, in Aachen: EIN. I knew there was German coming.

64. Senate staffers: AIDES. No politics, but a quick look at Senate staff JOBS.

65. Coke or Pepsi: BRAND. I stopped drinking soda long ago but was always a Coke person.

66. Young Darth's nickname: ANI. Anakin Skywalker became Darth Vader when he gave in to the dark side, but he was a nice boy.

67. Bright: SMART.

68. Hindu mystics: YOGIS. My most recent Lyft driver was a self-proclaimed "Yogi Guru."

69. Ballet composer Delibes: LEO. I had never heard this NAME. Of course, he died 128 years ago so he has not been in the news much. Maybe he was very good.

Down:

1. Refuse: GARBAGE. The classic refuse/refuse heteronym clue.

2. Poe genre: MACABRE.

3. Title servant in a 1946 Paulette Goddard film: CHAMBERMAID. This screenplay was written by the incomparable BURGESS MEREDITH who later married Paulette.

4. Mag mogul: HEF. The late Hugh Hefner, the ultimate playboy.

5. Home of the 2001 World Series champs, on scoreboards: ARIzona. The SERIES.

6. Eighteen-wheelers: RIGS. My brother-in-law was a truck driver for years following in his father's footsteps.

7. Call back?: ECHO. Nice clue.

8. Only deaf performer to win an Oscar: MATLIN.

9. Waikiki, to surfers: MECCA.

10. Recipient of a New Testament epistle attributed to Saint Paul: EPHESIAN.

11. __-wop: DOO. Two songs in particular may lay claim to being the "first" to contain the syllables "doo wop" in the refrain: the 1955 hit, "When You Dance" by The Turbans, in which the chant "doo wop" can be plainly heard; and the 1956 classic "In the Still of the Night" by The Five Satins, with the plaintive "doo wop, doo wah" refrain in the bridge.

12. Prefix with conscious: ECO.

13. Calder Cup org.: AHL.  It is Hockey, Eh! LINK.

19. Without: SANS. This is one of the French words we have taken over.

21. Vast expanse: SEA.

24. Tuck away: STASH.

25. 1974 CIA spoof: S*P*Y*S. I have had this Donald Sutherland - Eliot Gould attempt to capitalize and the success of M*A*S*H.

27. Discounted combo: PACKAGE DEAL.

28. Supermarket chain: IGA.

29. "__ is the winter of our discontent": Shak.: NOW. Our Friday Will quote, this one from Richard III, Act I, Scene 1.
Now is the winter of our discontent
Made glorious summer by this sun of York;
And all the clouds that lour'd upon our house
In the deep bosom of the ocean buried.

31. Luau ring: LEI.

32. Architect's addition: ANNEX. Why an architect?

36. Start to manage?: MICRO.

38. Summer refresher: ICE WATER. Sorry Tin.

39. College admissions fig.: GPA. Grade Point Average.

40. Document with bullets: LIST. My boss loves bullets in lists, me- not so much.

41. Cousin of org: COM.

42. Band of Tokyo?: OBI. Obi-Wan Kenobi?

45. Sincere: GENUINE.

46. Hall of fame: ARSENIO. He faded since he took on Johnny.

48. Puerto Rico, e.g.: Abbr.: TERRitory.

49. Barely makes it: EKES BY.

50. Handle preceder: AKA. "Also known as," usually listed as a/k/a.

52. Discharge: EGEST. An obvious anytonym of INGEST if you know Latin, but still an unpleasnat wor.

55. Iberian river: EBRO. Memorize the European rivers!

56. Metallic waste: SLAG.

58. Lived: WAS.

59. Basket border: RIM. Why a basket?

60. Early civil rights activist __ B. Wells: IDA. It is a sad statement for the US that she is known for opposing lynching of black men in the 1890's. LINK.

61. Covert maritime gp.: ONI. Office of Naval Intelligence.

62. Cred. union offerings: CDS.

I thought this was a really fine debut puzzle with some challenge, some fun and some learning experience for both solver and constructor. Thank you Andy and all of you who read and especially those who comment. Lemonade out.

Thursday February 7th 2019 Paul Coulter

Theme: Minor to Major - The nouns at the start of the theme entries age gracefully:

16A. Mature gentle treatment?: GOAT GLOVES. Kid Gloves

26A. Mature sprightly piano classic?: CAT ON THE KEYS. Kitten on the Keys. This was new to me. I discover it's a ragtime piece by the splendidly-named Zez Confrey.

35A. Mature young infatuation?: DOG LOVE. Puppy Love. Then-teenybopper Donny Osmond broke into the UK pop charts with this Paul Anka song which reached number 1 in 1972, much to my disgust. I was growing my hair and putting my head between the speakers listening to rock, much to the disgust of my father. Happy days!

45A. Mature news newbie?: BEAR REPORTER. Cub Reporter. I like that old reporters are sometimes described as "grizzly" which aligns nicely with this theme entry.

59A. Mature "Agnus Dei" translation?: SHEEP OF GOD. Lamb of God. Food! Wait, no, sorry.

Nicely done by Paul. It was the newshound entry that tipped me off as to the theme, so a quick job was made of the blanks in the themers to that point. Plenty of sparkly fill to keep us happy too.

Across:

1. Correspondence sign-off: BEST. "Best wishes, Steve". What happened to worst and average wishes?

5. Musical series set at McKinley High: GLEE. Didn't see the show, but it pretty much filled itself in.

9. "Wealth of Nations" author Smith: ADAM. The father of economic theory. Published in 1776 this was required reading in my Economics class. We all read the Cliff's Notes version, naturally.

13. Pot for paella: OLLA. Crying foul here. Nothing wrong with the word, but the clue. Paella is made in a pan, not a pot which is more for casseroles.

14. Speaks up?: PRAYS

15. Bit of folklore: TALE

18. B'way hit signs: SROS. What? Is this a thing? "Standing Room Only" in the singular. As an aside, do they still have standing areas in Broadway theaters? I guess it depends on the production.

19. News letters: UPI. Our old (or new friend from last week) United Press International.

20. "Have some": EAT!

21. Decides not to dele: STETS. Used as a verb - I stet, you stet, he/she/it stets.

22. Bodega miss: SENORITA

25. Roe-producing fish: SHAD

30. Canaanite deity: BAAL

32. Half a cocktail: TAI. The Tai-mai. Lime juice, pineapple, orgeat syrup, curaçao, rum. You mix the ingredients in the reverse order for a Mai-tai. Just kidding.

33. Handler of "Sex and the City": EVAN

34. Costa del __: SOL

39. Taking a sick day, presumably: ILL. Because "ditching work to go to the beach" doesn't fit.

40. Trivial, as talk: IDLE

42. Versailles ruler: ROI

43. Mouselike animal: VOLE

49. Salty margarita glass spots: RIMS

50. Low-alcohol beverage: NEAR-BEER. Beer-flavored soda in other words. Sounds very appetizing.

54. Dries gently: BLOTS. Here's an great example of how crossword clues make you re-adjust your thinking. "Dries" in the passive voice leads you to the likes of "evaporates". In the active voice you find yourself blotting a spill. Little clue, small word, great stuff.

56. French menu word: JUS. One of my pet peeves is hearing someone saying "with au jus". Steak au jus already means "with the juice". You don't say "steak with au poivre" so quit with the with. So to speak. Grumble over.

57. Singer Grande's perfume brand: ARI. Ariana was in the news last week showing off her new tattoo, which was intended to be "7 Rings", the title of one of her hits, in Japanese. Unfortunately, the tattoo artist missed out a character, with the result that she was sporting something that read "Small charcoal grill". She tried to fix it, and today now reads "Small charcoal grill finger ♡". She's getting tired of people laughing about it.

58. "__ move": YOUR

63. Air: TUNE Another echo from last week. Do you think you don't know "Londonderry Air"? Yes you do.

64. Word with offering or officer: PEACE

65. "Who __ knows?": ELSE. If more than one person knows, it's no longer a secret.

66. Scandinavian literary work: EDDA

67. Lie next to: ABUT

68. Wedding couple?: DEES. Double-D. Nice clue.

Down:

1. Phony: BOGUS

2. Run secretly to the chapel: ELOPE

3. Dispatched, as a dragon: SLAIN. Or a Jabberwock:

And hast thou slain the Jabberwock? 

      Come to my arms, my beamish boy! 

O frabjous day! Callooh! Callay!” 

      He chortled in his joy. 

Lewis Carroll, "Jabberwocky"

4. Ankle pic: TAT. Painful spot for a tattoo, I'm told.

5. Cavern: GROTTO

6. Brit's facilities: LAV. Tried LOO, was wrong.

7. Bud on a spud: EYE. The start of a new potato plant.

8. Snaky curve: ESS

9. On the line: AT STAKE

10. Stunt performer, say: DAREDEVIL. I get queasy watching people do things at a height, just watching gives me vertigo.

11. Boatloads: A LOT

12. Food in a hall: MESS

14. Braid: PLAIT

17. Notable Ford of the '70s: GERALD. Of course, I was on the Mustang muse at first. Nice clue.

21. "__ Persisted": children's book about inspirational women: SHE

23. Andean tuber: OCA

24. Pit-digging insect: ANTLION. I've never come across this little beastie before. The larva are the pit-diggers to trap their prey. The adults are pretty lacewing types.

25. Handmade blade: SHIV. Especially one made in prison.

27. Eastern "way": TAO

28. Second-oldest Ivy: YALE. Here's another one you might just pre-print in the grid with a clue like this. How many Ivies have four letters? Just one.

29. NBC show since 1975: SNL

30. Portend: BODE

31. Versatile: ALL-AROUND. To me, this has one specific use - it relates to the gymnastic competition. I'd call someone versatile as an "all-rounder". Slightly different.

34. Bro or sis: SIB.

36. Rich rocks: ORES

37. Political initials since 1884: GOP. I started toying with presidents' initials, then the penny dropped with a clang.

38. Exceedingly: EVER SO

41. Asmara's nation: ERITREA. Asmara is the capital. Did I know that? No, nary a clue. Thank you, crosses. I'll try and remember for next time. I won't though.

44. Poetic sphere: ORB

46. Rental ad abbr.: RMS. Rooms.

47. Veto: REJECT

48. Brownish gray: TAUPE

51. Birdie topper: EAGLE. In the golf world, a birdie is one under par, an eagle is two under on a hole.

52. Jagged, as a leaf's edge: EROSE. My word of the day, I think. File under "new vocabulary".

53. Carnival attractions: RIDES. 

54. Data unit: BYTE. I like to think the Apple logo has a "byte" taken out of it. I know, I'm a geek.

55. Musician's forte?: LOUD. The pianoforte, to give it its "grand" name, is literally a soft-loud.

59. Place for a chemical peel: SPA. It sounds so brutal. A peel is horrible enough thought, then you add chemicals to the process. No thank you.

60. Lang. of the Torah: HEB. 

61. __ minérale: French spring supply: EAU. Mineral water to the non-francophones.

62. Gratified: FED. I can see this being a trap word for an ESL speaker - being "fed up" doesn't mean you're full of gratification.

And on that note, I'm fed by this puzzle. Here's the grid, and here's me saying toodle-pip.

Steve