Friday, February 15, 2019, Winston Emmons

Title: Winston, I C what you did here.

We have a Friday add a letter theme presented in a pinwheel grid. This is our fourth puzzle from Winston (the name of my grandpuppy who turned 10 years old yesterday-picture below) and his second already this year. Today's feature is different than his earlier Friday, and I found pretty doable. I never heard of the Fugard play, but the rest filled in with just a few perps. I did learn a bit and enjoyed some of the longer fill like DELISTS,  EMANUEL, ANDRETTI,  SEAHORSE, ASSERTIVE, and STENCILED. So we are off...

16A. Social media buzz about Alfred E. Neuman?: MAD CHATTER (10). I have never been to a chat room. Mad HATTER is an Alice in Wonderland reference.

62A. Jalopy that still works?: GOING CRATE (10). Going RATE is an in the language phrase and CRATE is ok.

9D. Vegan regimen for a willowy look?: CATKINS DIET (11). The controversial ATKINS diet morphs into a flowering spike of trees such as willow and hazel.

22D. Trysting place?: CHEATING PAD (11). A simple HEATING pad becomes a den of iniquity.
With a reveal:

67A. Grade describing the four longest puzzle answers?: C PLUS (5).

Across:

1. Dip with a kick: SALSA. Not if you live with a Thai chef.

6. Highest: NTH.

9. Video segment: CLIP.

13. "A Lesson From __": Fugard play: ALOES.  New York Drama Critics' Circle Award, Best Play of the Year, in 1980, I think.  FUGARD was a South African and outspoken critic of Apartheid.

14. Electronic music effect: WAWA. My son, Devin. uses his wah-wah pedal (or simply wah pedal) which is a type of electric guitar effects pedal that alters the tone and frequencies of the guitar signal to create a distinctive sound, mimicking the human voice saying the onomatopoeic name "wah-wah".

15. Helper: AIDE. Even if you are not in the Senate.

18. Labor: TOIL.

19. Montgomery-to-Macon dir.: ENE. I have made this drive.

20. Founded: BASED. The theory was founded on the assumption...

21. Tie feature: KNOT. Silly; they do not come with knots. Oh, I guess if you are wearing one.

22. Fiscal exec: CFO.

24. Removes from the exchange: DELISTS. Delisting occurs when listed security is removed from the exchange on which it trades. A stock may be removed from an exchange if the company for which the stock is issued is not in compliance with the listing requirements of the exchange. The criteria to remain listed on an exchange differs from one exchange to another. On the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), for instance, if a security's price closed below $1.00 for 30 consecutive trading days then the exchange would initiate the delisting process.

26. It's not an equine: SEAHORSE.

31. Directed: RAN.

32. Forceful: ASSERTIVE.

34. "There's many __ 'twixt the cup and the lip": old proverb: A SLIP. The origin  STORY. It is cool in a semi-sad way.



38. About one-third of Earth's land area: ASIA. This is where the above story comes from, as well as my beautiful wife.

39. Slyly disparaging: SNIDE. My favorite.

41. Monopoly pieces: DICE. Who thinks of the dice as a piece?

42. Tops: BESTS.

44. Like some posters: STENCILED. This took many perps.

46. Windows competitor: iOS. iOS (formerly iPhone OS ) is a mobile operating system created and developed by Apple Inc. exclusively for its hardware. It is the second most popular mobile operating system globally after Android.

48. Big name in auto racing: ANDRETTI. Mario and his sons.

49. Chicago mayor since 2011: EMANUEL.  This MAN.

53. Addams cousin: ITT. A Hairy clue.

54. Actress Helgenberger: MARG. From China Beach to CSI.

55. Case, often: DOZEN. Beer, soda and a clecho with 69A. Case, for example: Abbr.: SYNtax is the arrangement of words and phrases to create well-formed sentences in a language. Nothing to do with 29 Down. Or as the majority has voted, it was a little play on words using the "for" to tell you that CASE is a SYNONYM for example. I am tired and like the old Burger King Commercial - you can have it your way.

58. Hanoi holiday: TET.

61. Radar readout feature: BLIP.

65. "Frozen" princess: ELSA.

66. Grandson of 33-Down exiles: ENOS. do we all know this biblical figure now?

68. Marsh plant: REED. I think of them from the Bible and Moses. The clecho. 47D. Marsh plants: SEDGES.

70. Permissible: LICIT. For once not illicit.

Down:

1. Matching: SAME.

2. Jackson of country: ALAN. My Thai wife listens.

3. Pay dirt: LODE.

4. Holding-on period?: SEC.

5. 49-Down remnant: ASH.

6. Expos, now: NATS. The Washington Nationals.

7. Rough material: TWEED.

8. Taking more time, probably, as a test: HARDER.

10. Ford Field team: LIONS. Sorry to all their fans, but DETROIT is not a successful team.

11. Nitwit: IDIOT.

12. Trapper's collection: PELTS.

14. Athletic org. founded by Billie Jean King: WTA. Women's Tennis Association. LINK.

17. Ends prematurely: ABORTS.

23. Pro: FOR.

25. Mike Trout's team, on scoreboards: LAA. Los Angeles Angels. The angels angels.

26. Swedish auto: SAAB. The car is now GONE.

27. Latin I verb: ESSE. To be or not to be, that is the question.

28. Craigslist caveat: AS IS. Also very important in Real Estate purchases and law.

29. Sloth and the like: SINS. Some say there are 7 deadly ones, but that would be religion.

30. Musical narrated by Che: EVITA. Hard to beleive this is more than 20 years ago.

33. Paradise: EDEN. More Bible.

35. Rhythmic cadence: LILT.

36. Tracy Marrow's stage name: ICE-T.

37. Salon offering: PEDI. How many of the men out there have had one or more? I have taken the cure.

40. Outcome: ENDING.

43. Trifling amount: SOU. French penny, basically.

45. Old PC monitor: CRT. Cathode Ray Tube.

49. Eventual 5-Down: EMBER.

50. "Atlantic City" director Louis: MALLE.  A very famous and controversial film DIRECTOR who went from shooting underwater with Jacques Cousteau to many sexually themed movies like Pretty Baby. He was married to Candice Bergen.

51. Stand: ARISE.

52. More than a little silly: LOONY. Etymology: also loonie, looney, luny, "crazy; silly and eccentric," 1853, American English, short for lunatic, but also influenced by loon (n.2) and perhaps loon (n.1), the bird is noted for its wild cry and method of escaping from danger. As a noun by 1884, from the adjective. Slang loony bin "insane asylum" is by 1909. Looney left in reference to holders of political views felt to be left-wing in the extreme is from 1977. Looney Tunes, Warner Bros. studios' animated cartoon series, dates from 1930.

56. Angels Landing's national park: ZION. The angels are obviously a hearty group. MORE.

57. Nation borders?: ENS. Nation. The absence of the 's was the giveaway.

58. Soothing application: TALC. Unless you use it on your body in a personal way. LINK.

59. Notions case: ETUI. This has become quite popular again.

60. Acid __: TEST.

63. Half of D: CCL. Roman numeral math...glue.

64. Hudson Riv. engineering school: RPI. We end with a common CSO to our Corner friends. Cool.

My Winston as a puppy and then him now He is a boxer black lab mix













I think I did it again; hope you enjoyed my tour and Winston's creation. I  await your comments. Lemonade out.

Thursday, February 14 2019 Bruce Haight

Theme: Tool Box - all the answers around the edge of the puzzle are tools, as the reveal explains:

35A. Takes a casual drive ... and a literal description of 10 puzzle answers: TOOLS AROUND

In clockwise order, starting from the top left:

1A. Queen, e.g.: RULER. Measure twice, cut once.

6A. Fell for the joke: BIT.

9A. Put away for future reference: FILE. I'm terrible at filing; if I file something away I'm almost guaranteed to forget about it.

16D. Work (out) with effort, as an agreement: HAMMER ... closely followed by ..

45D. Swindle: CHISEL

63A. Fire __: DRILL

62A. Spied: SAW

61A. Laryngitis symptom: RASP

37D. Polo need: MALLET

1D. Wi-Fi conduit: ROUTER. Any network, as a matter of fact, not just a wireless one.

Nice theme from Bruce today. Even with the puzzle completed it took me a few beats to notice all the tools around the edge of the puzzle, I was looking for entries with a tool wrapped "around" the word at first. The trick of this theme is to clue the entries other than referencing the tool itself. The only one which comes close to breaking this rule is the MALLET entry - a polo mallet is very close to the tool.

Some fresh entries in the fill including TURNOVERS, USB DRIVES, CK ONE and UPRATE. Let's see what else we've got to discuss:

Across:

13. ArkivMusic.com purchase: OPERA. "The source for classical music" according to their website.

14. Sch. with a Tempe campus: A.S.U. Arizona State.

15. Flooded: AWASH

17. "Little Book of Mind-Power" author: URI GELLER. Didn't take long to guess this one once the UR was in place. Huckster of the highest order, this chap. Pretended to bend spoons all with the power of his mind.

19. Battery inventor Alessandro: VOLTA. I wonder why "volt" dropped the final "a"? After all, Ohm and Ampère kept their last letters. We should be told.

20. Stand food: TACO

21. Danish city named for a Norse god: ODENSE. Not ODESSA then, as I confused myself.

23. Place for a shot: ARM

24. Gate info: E.T.A. Estimated Time of Arrival. An aircraft arriving at the gate within 15 minutes of the scheduled arrival time is considered to be "on time". Incidentally, departure time is when you push back from the gate, so as long as you're off the gate, you've departed on time, even if you then spend an hour getting de-iced and another hour waiting in line to take off.

25. Conversation stumbles: ERS, along with ahs, ums and fillers "you know", "kind of" and all the other irritants.

26. Gives the nod: OK'S

27. Hasty escape: LAM. Interesting, I'd not seen the verb form like this before, I was more familiar with "on the lam".

28. Superman specialty: RESCUE

30. Wrigley Field feature: IVY. Baseball's famous Chicago landmark. If a ball gets stuck in the ivy, it's ruled a double; a runner at first can't advance beyond third base.

31. Like beds in cleaned hotel rooms: MADE

32. Peter of "9-1-1": KRAUSE. Crosses all the way. He's been seen a lot on TV, but I don't think he ever crossed my path of consciousness:

34. Tunisian currency: DINAR

37. Bearings: MIENS

39. Casual eatery: BISTRO

40. Ending to avoid?: -ANCE. I'm not a big fan of these types of fill, neither the suffix nor the prefix variants. There's a prefix example at 59A also.

41. Interject: ADD

42. Touchdown site: TARMAC

46. "Well, __-di-dah!": LAH

47. Shooting initials: SLR

48. "Jeopardy!" record-setter Jennings: KEN

49. Spa emanation: AAH

50. Source of some '60s trips: LSD

51. 1840s-'50s home to Liszt: WEIMAR

53. End of an old boast: VICI

54. Military camp: ÉTAPE. Specifially, a place to camp after a day's march. Étape is also used to describe a day's stage in a cycle race, particularly le Tour de France.

56. Luxury accommodations for bigwigs: VIP SUITES

58. Church offering: TITHE

59. Prefix with warrior: ECO-

60. 1960 Wimbledon champ Fraser: NEALE. More crosses. I'd never heard of this chap, but he's got a very impressive grand slam tournament record, not just at Wimbledon. He won the men's singles at Wimbledon and the U.S. Open, doubles at all four majors, and mixed doubles at Wimbledon, the U.S. Open and the Australian Open. Not bad for an amateur!

Down:

2. Raise from three to four stars, as a hotel: UPRATE. I like the word. I've seen it used more in a performance-improvement context, but it works for me here too.

3. Classic cameras: LEICAS

4. So: ERGO. Cogito, Ergo sum. I think, therefore (so) I am.

5. Singer Carly __ Jepsen: RAE. I know her from the crosswords now. Her music isn't really to my taste, but I'm sure Carly Rae doesn't care.

6. Gets thinner on top: BALDS. Balds? Nope, doesn't work for me. "He is balding" sure. "He balds?" Not likely.

7. "So THAT's what's going on here!": I SEE

8. Hoops goofs: TURNOVERS. I was trying to make AIR BALLS work somehow.

9. BFFs: FAVES

10. __ Jima: IWO

11. Space cadet's world: LA LA LAND. "And the Oscar goes to ......" Ooops!

12. Erik of "CHiPs": ESTRADA

18. Cosmetics giant: L'OREAL

22. What's up?: SKY. Cloudy skies here today.

25. Pierre's bills: EUROS

29. Designer fragrance: CK ONE. Calvin Klein cologne.

30. "To repeat ... ": I SAID ...

31. Trivial: MINOR

33. PC storage options: USB DRIVES. I tried "STICKS" first, that didn't work out so well.

34. "Hands of Stone" boxer Roberto: DURAN

35. Fortune 500 IT company: TECH DATA. I know I should have, but oddly I've never heard of this outfit. For a company with revenues last year of $37bn, that's quite a surprise.

36. Frisky whiskered critters: OTTERS. Clever, too. They've been seen to use stones as tools to open shellfish.

38. Excited: IN A STIR

41. Tap outflow: ALE

43. Tiki bar cocktail: MAI TAI. Second Thursday in a row that we're drinking mai tais.

44. Small battery: AA CELL

47. Win the first four World Series games: SWEEP. The last time it happened was 2012 when the Giants swept the Tigers.

48. "Whammo!": KAPOW!

52. Flaky mineral: MICA

53. Contender: VIER. "She is vying for the title".

55. Acidity nos.: PHS

57. German conjunction: UND. "Donner und blitz", thunder and lightning.

Here's the grid, colorfully identifying the theme entries around the edge, and with that I'm done.

Steve

Wednesday, February 13, 2019, Blake Slonecker

Theme: Losing Sleep

18. Cook's reply to 37-Across?: HAVE A SNACK.

23. Librarian's reply to 37-Across?: READ A BOOK.

48. Trainer's reply to 37-Across?: TAKE A WALK.

57. Auditor's reply to 37-Across?: COUNT SHEEP.

37. Insomniac's lament: I CAN'T GET TO SLEEP.

 

Across:

1. Lamb bearers: EWES.

5. Common Vegas hotel room amenities: SAFES.

10. Tea holders: TINS. The librarian in 23A would like these:

14. Herod sent them to Bethlehem: MAGI.

15. Full of energy: ALIVE.

16. __ Day: Bayer vitamin brand: ONE A.

17. Faction: BLOC.

20. Nightmarish street of film: ELM.

21. Gimlet garnish: LIME.

22. Dr. Reid in "Criminal Minds," familiarly: SPENCE.

26. Double Stuf treats: OREOS. Who knew there were so many Oreo flavors?

27. "That's __ to me": NEWS. Like the Oreos.

28. "__ and the Real Girl": 2007 film: LARS.

30. Operatic solos: ARIAS.

32. Spook: HAUNT.

34. Animal house: ZOO.

40. Canadian singer DeMarco: MAC.

41. Of help: UTILE. Tricky.

42. Slugger Barry: BONDS.

43. Big fusses: ADOS.

44. Remnant: DREG.

45. Buffalo NHL player: SABRE.

53. Photographer Alda married to Alan: ARLENE. Sweet article.

55. Prefix with pit or pool: CESS. Never heard cesspit before.

56. Classic auto: REO.

59. Flamboyant Dame: EDNA.

60. Word spoken con affetto: CARA. Italian. Merriam Webster: "with feeling and tenderness — used as a direction in music." Cara means "dear one" in Italian, "friend" in Irish, or "beloved" in Latin - and is also used as a girl's name.

61. Arroz con __: chicken dish: POLLO.

62. Horseback rider's control: REIN.

63. Globes: ORBS.

64. Cake raiser: YEAST.

65. Wilson of Heart et al.: ANNS.

Down:

1. Arson evidence, perhaps: EMBER.

2. Pixar film robot who falls in love with 8-Down: WALL-E. Wall-e meets Eve:

3. Vanity case?: EGOMANIAC. Love it.

4. [Not my bad]: SIC. An adverb denoting that something is quoted as is, including mistakes.

5. Misters, in old India: SAHIBS.

6. Texas tourist spot: ALAMO.

7. The cops: FIVE-O. Originated from the 1970's TV cop show Hawaii 5-0. Hawaii is the 50th state, hence the nickname.

8. Robot who falls in love with 2-Down: EVE.

9. Old salts' haunts: SEAS.

10. Complexion aids: TONERS.

11. Ridiculous: INANE.

12. Wafer maker: NECCO.

13. Sushi bar brews: SAKES.

19. Some exercise tops: SPORTS BRAS. Iconic image - maybe the most famous sports bra in history "was almost never taken."

21. Torts enrollee: LAW STUDENT.

24. Actor James or singer Jimmy: DEAN.

25. 1971 Sutherland title role: KLUTE.

29. Chilean year: ANO.

30. Intent or intend: AIM.

31. Nipper's label: RCA.

32. Bank job: HEIST.

33. NHL's Thrashers: ATL.

34. Meditation setting with rocks and gravel: ZEN GARDEN. So pretty and serene.

35. Exhaustive ref.: OED. Oxford English Dictionary. Dictionaries are among the most requested books by American prisoners.

36. Black __: OPS. A covert operation or clandestine operation by a government agency, a military unit or a paramilitary organization. This can include activities by private companies or groups. Also a "first person shooter" video game.

38. Sporty '60s Pontiac: GTO.

39. MGM mogul Marcus: LOEW. Wikipedia. Not to be confused with Frederick Loewe, half of Lerner and Loewe.

43. Stadiums: ARENAS.

44. Totalitarian leader: DESPOT.

45. Vanzetti's partner: SACCO. Did not know their story.

46. Like Times Square on New Year's Eve: AROAR.

47. Book jacket entry: BLURB.

49. Swift Northeast train: ACELA. Amtrak route.

50. Ship stabilizers: KEELS.

51. Red Square honoree: LENIN.

52. 34-Down teaching aids: KOANS. How to practice zen koans.

54. Athlete's award: ESPY.

58. Row maker: HOE.

59. Pitcher's stat: ERA.

Tuesday, February 12, 2019 Roland Huget

Standard Operating Procedures 

20. 100-mile-an-hour fastball, often: STRIKE OUT PITCH.

25. Classy neckwear: STRING OF PEARLS.

42. Bike storage bags, e.g.: STRAP ON POUCHES.

47. What a plus sign indicates on a golf match scoreboard: STROKES OVER PAR.

 A reveal hidden in plain sight.  See the answer to 1 Down.   Clever.

I first noticed the STR starts to the answers.  Then saw the O P and thought STROP ? As in a sharpening strop ?   Bzzt. 

Across:

1. Enjoys Breckenridge, say: SKIS.  Breckenridge, Colorado in the Rocky Mountains.  Never been there, but I have skied at Seven Springs in the Laurel Highlands of the Allegheny Mountains.  

5. Cries out loud: SOBS.

9. "If I Had a Hammer" singer Lopez: TRINI.  This Pete Seeger song and covers of it by Peter Paul and Mary, Trini Lopez and others got old after the 3 gazillionth play on the radio.  It was inescapable. "Why didn't he just go to the hardware store and buy a hammer ?"

14. In the past: ONCE.

15. Geometry calculation: AREA.   A surveyor needs to understand geometry.   Calculating Surface Areas Of Irregular Shaped Fields

16. Pay by mail: REMIT.   We probably average a roll a year now, and most of those are at Christmas.

17. Metered work, usually: POEM.

18. Duck that lends its name to a color: TEAL.

19. Word from the wise: ADAGE.   'If you can't take it, don't dish it out."   "People who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones."   OKAY, OKAY, alright already.  I take it back.  If I Had a Hammer is a fine song.

23. Vent opening?: PRE.

24. Stein filler: ALE.

33. Total confusion: CHAOS. 

34. Made public: AIRED.

35. Summer Games org.: IOC.  International Olympic Committee

36. Admission of fault: OOPS.   Mea culpa. 

37. Less clumsy: ABLER.

38. Back up a step, as in an app: UNDO. 

39. "__ is me!": WOE.

40. For all to hear: ALOUD.  

41. Good feature: ASSET.

45. Partner of to: FRO.

46. 22.5 deg.: NNE.

55. Pick up gradually: GLEAN.   Over time I gleaned that arguing with a woman is like reading a software license agreement.   In the end you just click "I Agree"

56. Crafted, as a tale: WOVE.

57. Keep for later: SAVE. 

58. Wonderland cake message: EAT ME.  Alice's Adventures in Wonderland

59. Morales of "NYPD Blue": ESAI.

60. Express line unit: ITEM.   Grammarians note when the sign reads, "10 items or less"  but it doesn't peeve me.    A full shopping cart in that line might.  

61. Jacket material: TWEED.

62. Bakery product: ROLL.

63. Fiddling emperor: NERO.   An awful man on all accounts.    As despicable as he was, he couldn't have played a fiddle because it wasn't invented yet.  Perhaps a lute ?

Down:

1. Soaks (up): SOPS.    

Chicken Paprikash

2. Wood imperfection: KNOT.

3. Cake finisher: ICER. 

4. Part-time players: SEMIPROS.

5. Glossy fabric: SATEEN.

6. Layered Nabisco treat: OREO.

7. Belle's counterpart: BEAU. 

8. Basic food preservative: SALT.

9. Was behind in the match: TRAILED.  Golf, tennis, chess

10. Herbal brew: RED TEA.

11. Apple since 1998: IMAC.   IMAC is also an IT term for Installs, Moves, Adds and Changes.

12. Soon to happen: NIGH.   As quaint as anon. 

13. Suffix with urban: ITE.

21. Songwriter Kristofferson: KRIS.   He's in the Songwriters Hall of Fame and the Nashville Songwriters Hall of fame.     The opening lyrics from one of his most famous songs:

Busted flat in Baton Rouge, waiting for a train
When I was feeling nearly faded as my jeans
Bobby thumbed a diesel down, just before it rained
And rode us all the way to New Orleans

22. School research assignment: PAPER.

25. Slap the puck toward the goal: SHOOT.    Patrick Sharp demonstrates.

26. Get to the point?: TAPER.

27. Cameroon neighbor: GABON.  Two of the thirty-seven errors I made on Husker Gary's countries of Africa geography quiz last week. 

28. Prepare for a bodybuilding competition: OIL UP.

29. Middle Corleone brother: FREDO.   Fredo is the younger brother of Sonny, and the older brother of Michael in Mario Puzo's The Godfather, portrayed by John Cazale in the movie.

30. Salon procedure: RINSE.

31. Rich ore deposits: LODES.

32. Many a clan member: SCOT.

33. Farm moms: COWS.  They are heifers until they become moms.

37. "Take __ at this!": A LOOK.  Take a look at this school mural.  That's a real fire extinguisher.

38. Signals the arrival of, as a new era: USHERS IN.

40. Dressed like a chef: APRONED.

41. Embarrassing spots: ACNE.

43. Typical chalet: A-FRAME.

44. Launch, as a new product: UNVEIL.

47. Side with a sandwich: SLAW.

48. Head of Haiti: TETE.    Président Jovenel Moïse since the Nov 2016 elections.    Protestors stoned his house and called for his resignation Saturday.  

49. Vessel with a spout: EWER.

50. Ho-hum: SO SO.

51. Avocado shape: OVAL. 

52. Canapé spread: PATE.

53. Say with certainty: AVER.

54. San __, Italy: REMO. Zoom in, Zoom out


55. "__ it?": "Comprende?": GET.

Note from C.C.:

Happy Birthday to our sweet LaLaLinda. Linda does not post these days, but she still reads our posts and comments every day.   We miss your presence, Linda!

Monday February 11, 2019 Joe Deeney

Theme: DOWN PAYMENT (25D. Typical mortgage requirement, and what ends each answer to a starred clue)

3D. *Grade-boosting option: EXTRA CREDIT.

8D. *Singer's spouse who co-wrote "Ring of Fire": JUNE CARTER CASH.

14D. *Chess situation that forces a draw: PERPETUAL CHECK.

Boomer here.  

Good morning or afternoon as the case may be. Last week was fairly uneventful.  Lots and lots of snow.  I had a VA appointment last Wednesday. Only took about 25 minutes for the trip West at 7:30 AM, but leave the clinic and head back toward Minneapolis while many were on their way to work, was a solid hour.  Free snow for everyone! Just bring an ice chest or a trailer and a shovel and take as much as you want off my yard!

Across:

1. Org. whose product is measured in barrels: OPEC.  Gas prices are still affordable here, about $2.00 per gallon of 87 regular.  I have heard the federal government is considering a small gas tax to fix roads and bridges. 

5. Pillar of Islam involving travel: HAJJ.

9. School near Windsor Castle: ETON.

13. Hugs-and-kisses symbols: XO XO.  My sister signs cards this way sometimes.

14. Pacific island host of two "Survivor" seasons: PALAU.

15. Medical image: X-RAY.  This must then be a kiss by the sun.

16. Analogy words: IS TO.  IS NOT!

17. Modern John Hancock: E SIGNATURE. Mr. Hancock is very famous for signing the Declaration of Independence so that King George can read it without his spectacles.

19. Epithet never actually used by Jimmy Cagney: DIRTY RAT.  Rumor has it that he said "You Dirty Mouse."

21. Angsty music genre: EMO.

22. LAX posting: ETA. MSP posting is indeed "estimated" depending on when they get the snow cleared from the landing runway.

23. Elect (to): OPT.

24. Dressed down: SCOLDED.

28. Songwriter Porter: COLE. Yes, but my favorite Cole is Mr. Nat King.

30. Frightening: FEARSOME.  This could be the "Fearsome Foursome" defensive linemen of the Minnesota Vikings in the 1970s.  Honored on the "Ring of Honor" at U.S. Bank Stadium.  Includes Notre Dame Grad Alan Page who went on to become a judge.  What is interesting, Alan was born in 1945 in Canton, Ohio.  His Hall of Fame honor will be there forever.

31. Red wine choice: MERLOT.

33. Fairy tale baddie: OGRE.  My fairy tales only had Big Bad Wolves.

34. Be victorious: WIN.

35. Was in debt to: OWED. "I owe, I owe, so off to work I go."

36. WWII naval threat: U-BOAT.  This was a Nazi submarine.  Abbreviation "Underwater boat."

38. Picnic invaders: ANTS.  Also pants invaders.

39. Grass roll: SOD. These things are heavy and hard to work with. Seed takes longer but it is light and easy to apply.

40. Shopping complex: MALL.  Of course, on the old site of Metropolitan Stadium, 60s and 70s home of the Vikings and Twins, now stands the Mall of America.  It's huge with many stores but it's a bit of a tourist trap.  C.C. and I have been there a number of times. It's a nice place to visit, but I wouldn't want to spend there.

41. Go by, as time: ELAPSE.

43. They're planted in snow while skiing: SKI POLES.  Oh, I thought they were people from Poland who like to ski.

45. Civil rights icon Parks: ROSA.  Highly respected!

46. Largest living bird: OSTRICH.  True, and also lays the largest eggs.

47. Emails a dupe to: CCS.  Not to be confused with C.C.'S

48. Couture initials: YSL.

51. Tapped-off cigar remnant: ASH.  I mentioned my friend George Ash last week.

52. Hours for cuppas: TEA TIMES.  I am a golfer.  I suppose the leaders get the later ones?  Just kidding.

54. Cord cutters' reception aids: TV ANTENNAS.  I think you need to be my age to remember these.  We have a dish on our roof right now,  Many people have their shows delivered by cable. 

58. Air filter acronym: HEPA. High Efficiency Particulate Air.

59. __ hop: gym dance: SOCK.  We had Sock hops in High School.  The idea was to take off your shoes so you would not scar the gym floor. (Most left their shoes on however.)

60. Infatuation: CRUSH.  Orange soda, yum.

61. "I'll take care of that": ON IT.

62. Log splitters: AXES.  Paul Bunyan was not an Axe.  But I have heard that he split a few logs in his day.

63. Spade of handbags: KATE.  I am not a handbag expert, but I have heard Kate Smith sing the National Anthem once or twice.

64. Education support gps.: PTAS.  Let me tell you of the story of a Harper Valley's widowed wife.

Down:

1. Nitrous __: OXIDE.  Sounds like the name of a laundry detergent.

2. Theorize: POSIT.  I remember a German toast "Prosit" I think.

4. Crotchety oldster: COOT.  That's me!!!

5. Attacks: HAS AT.

6. Got off a horse: ALIT.

7. XKE, for short: JAG.  "I was cruisin' in my sting ray late one night, when an XKE pulled up on the right.  Won't come back from Dead Man's Curve."  Jan and Dean.

9. Raves about: EXTOLS. Many EXTOL their work on crosswords!

10. Play about Capote: TRU.  Stock ticker symbol for TransUnion.

11. Rowing tool: OAR.  "Merrily, Merrily, Merrily, Merrily, Life is but a dream."

12. TV scientist whose show has won 19 Emmys: NYE. Bill.

18. Love, to Luigi: AMORE. "When the moon hits your eye like a big pizza pie" Deano

20. "Carpe diem" initials: YOLO. You Only Live Once.

24. Game Gear creator: SEGA.  I never got past Nintendo.

26. Gives off: EMITS.

27. Closely packed: DENSE.

29. Out-of-date: OLD.  Here I am again!!

30. Deceives: FOOLS.  If you bluff in a poker game and get called, the fool could be you.

31. Meno __: not as fast, in music: MOSSO.

32. Furry C-3PO worshipers: EWOKS.  I never was one of those Star Wars fanatics.

37. "Eww!": BLEH.

38. Small batteries: AAS.  AAAs are smaller. An Ass is much larger.

40. Somewhat wet: MOIST.  Yup, we have moist snow on the ground.

42. Nowhere to be found: LOST.

44. Practical jokes: PRANKS.  April 1st is sooner than you think.

47. __ and desist: CEASE.

49. Vintage photo tone: SEPIA.

50. Exams for aspiring judges, briefly: LSATS.  I took an SAT test in High school.  I think it is an acronym for Standard Aptitude Test, but we did not have to stand when we took it.

52. Item listed above "u-bolt" in a hardware glossary?: T NUT.  Sometimes called a TEE NUT.  That's what I am, waiting for the snow to melt -- "FORE".

53. Blue-roofed eatery: IHOP.  International House of Pancakes.  Delicious, but they sell flavored pancakes for about a buck apiece, and a 25 cent cup of coffee for about $2.00.  Maybe the owner will be running for president soon.

54. Airport safety org.: TSA.  I am very happy that they are back to work and getting paid.

55. __ populi: popular opinion: VOX.

56. Blackjack half: ACE.  Ace is the place with the helpful hardware man.

57. Gun lobby org.: NRA.

Boomer

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.