Sunday, August 11, 2019 John Lampkin

Theme:  "Poetry Slam" -  Part of each theme entry is replaced by a sound-like poetry term.

23A. Shakespeare's ghostwriters?: SONNET COMMITTEE. Senate committee.

45A. "Another day, another $%&! Grecian urn"?: SAME ODE SAME ODE. Same old same old. Double ode action.

68A. "Religious Poetry Writing for Dummies" reminder?: PSALM ASSEMBLY REQUIRED. Some Assembly Required. Biblical poem.

94A. Love song written while playing hooky?: ABSENTEE BALLAD. Absentee ballot.

121A. Chaucer's workflow?: FROM BARD TO VERSE. From bad to worse. Another double word replacements.

16D Poet known for her footwork?: IAMB WOMAN. I'm Woman. (Edited: I Am Woman. Thanks, D-Otto.)

81D Tennyson lecture?: IDYLL TALK. Idle talk.

So nice to see John back. He never fails to deliver much-needed humor and fun into our Sunday grids. I'd never dreamed of FROM BARD TO VERSE. Such an imaginative brain.

John put two of this shortest theme entries in Down slots and made sure that the longest non-theme fill are 8-letter long. This way the theme entries clearly stood out.

Across:

1. Wacky: MADCAP.

7. Subterranean queen: ANT. And 12D. 7-Across, to an aardvark: PREY. John sent us below pic with this caption: "Carpenter Ant chowing down on a caddisfly. Since the wings are hairy, the ant will spit them out. I mean, would YOU eat them?"

10. Reaction to a trip: OOPS. Stumble "trip". Not a trip to China.

14. Throw out: EVICT.

19. Eight-time Best Actor Oscar nominee: O'TOOLE (Peter). And 118. How many Oscars 19-Across won: NONE. He did receive an Honorary Oscar.

20. Cloud content: MOISTURE. Not Pictures and files.

22. Queen topper: TIARA.

25. Let in: ADMIT.

26. Neither surfeit nor dearth, informally: ENUF.

27. Lie about one's age?: FAKE ID. Great clue/answer.

28. Heavenly harp: LYRA.

30. Decreases: EBBS.

31. Go after: SET UPON.

33. Aspiring singer's aid: DEMO.

35. Flexible joint: ELBOW.

37. What a ritardando gradually gets: SLOWER.

40. Very likely will, after "is": BOUND TO.

42. Be beholden (to): OWE.

49. Short notes: MEMOS.

51. Pete's wife on "Mad Men": TRUDY. Played by Alison Brie.

52. Fits: SUITS.

53. Places for drinks on tracks: CLUB CARS.

56. Pacino and Roker: ALS.

57. Florida horse country city: OCALA.

59. Streaker's covering: SKIN. This clue makes me smile.

60. __ account: ON NO.

61. Faced: MET.

62. Cloudy: GRAY.

63. Assist in the gym: SPOT.

66. Landscaper's truckload: FILL. 

75. All of Sartre's "No Exit"?: ACT I. "No Exit" is an one-act play.

76. Cut with light: LASE.

77. "... bug in __": A RUG.

78. Giant Manning: ELI.

79. Omit: SKIP.

82. Env. fattener: ENCL.

84. Smarts measured by the ounce?: SENSE. I don't get this clue.

86. Muscle that sounds like a kiss: PEC. Peck.

87. "Me too": AND SO DO I.

89. One way to run: ALONG. And 7. One way to run: AMOK. Clue echoes.

91. Play division: SCENE.

93. Excited, with "up": KEYED.

98. Cooked sushi fish: EEL. Yep. Always cooked. Eel blood is highly toxic.

99. "My goose is cooked!": I'M TOAST.

102. Baroque: ORNATE.

103. Like some rovers: LUNAR.

105. Buzz: STIR.

107. Really feared: DREADED.

111. Panthers' school: PITT.  Pittsburgh Panthers.

113. Dessert options: PIES.

115. Enter, as data: TYPE IN.

119. Be of help: AVAIL.

124. Many a quartet's bottom line: CELLO.

125. Relaxed: LOOSENED.

126. Produce visibly, as a sweat: WORK UP.

127. Young ones: TYKES.

128. Great times: EONS.

129. Bond, for one: SPY. James Bond.

130. Burns subjects: LASSES. This refers to Robert Burns, right?

Down:

1. Legendary mountain climber: MOSES.

2. Even things: ATONE.

3. Toroid treat: DONUT.

4. Addlepated: CONFUSED.

5. Pub patron's pint: ALE.

6. Bowser's bagful: PET FOOD.

8. Destination of the 1925 diphtheria serum run: NOME. More details here.

9. Bashful: TIMID.

10. Baseball's "Little Giant": OTT.

11. Audibly: OUTLOUD.

13. Get sore: SEE RED.

14. Sorority vowel: ETA.

15. YouTube upload: VIDEO. In case you missed, here is our blogging team again. Almost viral, as Lemonade said.

17. Wah-wah source?: CRIB.

18. Pix from needles: TATS.

21. Subsidiary wager: SIDE BET.

24. Enthusiastic kids' plea: CAN WE.

29. Music genre prefix: ALT. Alt-rock, e.g.

32. Bit of subterfuge: PLOY.

34. Bucolic outbursts: MOOS.

36. Tank: BOMB.

38. Lamb literature: ESSAYS. Charles Lamb.

39. Castro of Cuba: RAUL.

41. Smooch and stuff: NECK.

43. Frayed: WORN.

44. Canadian gas: ESSO.

45. Item sold in sheets: STAMP.

46. Van Gogh milieu: ARLES.

47. "How many roads __ man walk down ... ": Dylan: MUST A.

48. Swamp gas: MIASMA.

50. Intestinal bacterium: E COLI.

54. Career military members: LIFERS.

55. Matchless: UNIQUE.

57. Elocuted: ORATED.

58. Vegas attraction: CASINO.

59. Oinker's digs: STY.

62. Yukon or Denali: GMC.

64. "NewsHour" airer: PBS.

65. "Little House" family name: OLESON. "Little House" antagonist Nellie Oleson.

67. Schlep: LUG. We schlepped lots of cards to the card show yesterday. The show continues today.

Boomer, 8/10/2019

69. Interruption: LAPSE.

70. Plumber's piece: ELL.

71. Forest __: RANGER.

72. Drive away: REPEL.

73. Colleague of Ruth and Sonia: ELENA.

74. Chopped into cubes: DICED.

79. Asian libation: SAKE. I love both Sushi and Sashimi. But only drink sake with Sashimi.

80. __ pants: KNEE.

83. "Bye!": CIAO.

85. Prefix with dermal: ENTO.

88. One-eyed Norse deity: ODIN. He sacrifed his eye for wisdom. Here played by Anthony Hopkins.

89. No. 2: ASST.

90. The Beatles' "words of wisdom": LET IT BE.

91. Asian appetizer: SATE.

92. Soaps and vacuums: CLEANERS.

95. Oboe kin: BASSOON.

96. Stop seeing someone: END IT.

97. Unintentional rat poison victim: BARN OWL.

100. Trailhead handout: MAP.

101. Minor matter: TRIFLE.

104. Handy: UTILE. Not a word I use.

106. "__ Hope": '70s-'80s soap: RYAN'S.

108. Nerds: DORKS.

109. Follow: ENSUE.

110. Oceanic abysses: DEEPS.

111. Concord: PACT.

112. 2017 Poker Hall of Fame inductee Phil __: IVEY.

114. Suffix with buck: EROO.

116. Job in a kitchen: PREP.

117. Whitewater challenge: EDDY.

120. Alhambra article: LOS.

122. Ed.'s stack: MSS.

123. U.S. govt. broadcaster: VOA. They broadcast in Mandarin Chinese & Cantonese.

 C.C.