Theme: Spooked: Two government agencies facing off across the great idealogical crossword divide.
As the reveal, diplomatically placed in the center tells us:
23D. Long-running Mad feature suggested by this puzzle's circled letters: SPY VS. SPY
A great theme from David, the circles reveal CIA, appropriately on the West side of the puzzle, and KGB, aptly, on the East.
There's a lot to like about this theme, simple on the surface, but a little more when you dig down. The theme entries are placed pleasingly symmetrically, the letters for the agencies aren't just the first or last letter in the theme entries, they stand alone in each name or phrase, and the placement of the reveal dead center between the two is very neat. Good job.
Let's see what the fill holds for us:
Across:
1. Indian food option: MILD. I lean towards the more hot/spicy dishes, but there are many Indian dishes which are spiced, but not with chili or cayenne, the spices are there for aroma and flavor. Two classic examples are the korma, which is a mild, creamy curry, and the biryani, which is Indian cuisine's one-pot rice dish, a relative of paella, jambalaya and others. Here's my chicken biryani with coconut and yoghurt green raita.
5. "4x2=8" rapper from Korea: PSY. The "Gangnam Style" dude. I'm not sure any of us would be able to name any other Korean rapper.
8. Blood component: PLASMA
14. Et __: and others: ALII
15. Troy, N.Y., school: R.P.I. I tried to guess this, I got the "Institute" part, I could have guessed "Polytechnic", but there was no guessing "Rensselaer".
16. Trojan War hero: AENEAS
17. Delivery method: C-SECTION
19. Duke's Mike Krzyzewski, familiarly: COACH K
20. Fall: AUTUMN
21. Boats and gravy boats: VESSELS
22. Stockpiled: AMASSED
24. Tigers, on scoreboards: DET.
25. "Miracle on Ice" winners: Abbr.: U.S.A. One of the most famous moments in sports, and that goes for non-US fans - I remember this from the 1980 Winter Olympics long before I moved to the States and before I knew much at all about hockey. "Do you believe in miracles? YES!"
28. Pours carelessly: SLOPS
29. Start of el año: ENERO
31. Quick bite: NOSH
33. Chef's collection: FRY PANS. I've literally worn out a couple of my Cuisinart skillets, I'm thinking about replacing them with cast iron.
35. Siri device: IPHONE
37. Pointed facial features: VAN DYKES. This dude rocks a great Van Dyke.
41. Morris Buttermaker's "bad news" team: THE BEARS
43. Big name in smooth jazz: KENNY G
44. Spray can output: AEROSOL. I thought the aerosol WAS the can. The output is deodorant, paint, olive oil, you name it.
46. Like some U.S. mail: CERT. ified.
47. African antelope: ELAND
50. Binge: SPREE
52. Montgomery of jazz: WES
53. Part of UCLA: LOS
54. Due: PAYABLE
56. Easy marks: PATSIES
59. __ del Fuego: TIERRA. I met a bartender in New Orleans who was from Tierra del Fuego; she said when she was a kid, her mom would point at the moon and tell her that was the closest place to where they lived.
62. Angular abode: A-FRAME
63. Complex containing thiamine and niacin: VITAMIN B. My Doc told me to take B3 supplements, apparently I'm not getting enough sun, that seems difficult to pull off in Southern California. (Edit - he told me to take D3! - Steve]
65. Close tightly: SEAL UP
66. Half of eleven?: ONE. Nice clue. Double-1 makes 11.
67. Spots at the prom?: ACNE. Sad, but true.
68. Discount phrase: OR LESS
69. Farm sci.: AGR.iculture. Seems hard to imagine studying farming without it.
70. Mower holder: SHED. If you're mowing the grass for silage on the farm, your agriculture class probably tells you the size of shed you need for the mower.
Down:
1. Brit's raincoat: MAC. Have you seen the ad currently running for the Microsoft Surface? It features a real Brit called Mackenzie "Mac" Book who points out the differences between the Surface and the Mac Book. It made me laugh, very clever.
2. Rick's love in "Casablanca": ILSA
3. In __ of: LIEU
4. Decrees: DICTA
5. 1996 Richard Gere/Edward Norton thriller: PRIMAL FEAR
6. Spot buyer: SPONSOR
7. Half a cosmic whole: YIN
8. Walked nervously: PACED
9. Some summer babies: LEOS
10. Santa __: dry winds: ANAS. Fierce debate in my neck of the woods as to whether they are called "Santa Anas" or "Santanas". I'm firmly with the latter. "Santa Ana" is a corruption of the original name perpetrated by out-of-state weather forecasters. In Richard Dana's "Two Years Before the Mast" he references "the devil wind Santana", well known to sailors in these parts. Santa Ana is a small city in Riverside County, and the winds neither originate from there or are funneled through there. OK, got that off my chest!
11. Withdraw formally: SECEDE
12. "Resurrection Symphony" composer: MAHLER
13. Invites for: ASKS TO. Invites for lunch/asks to lunch.
18. Antacid brand: TUMS
21. Italian scooter: VESPA. Here's a young Sting riding a Vespa GS in the Who's "Quadrophenia" movie. Goodness knows what that scooter would be worth now, they're getting very hard to find.
25. Yard, say: UNIT
26. Junior-to-be: SOPH. Shouldn't it be "Jnr." in the clue? Last time I looked, you were properly a sophomore.
27. Tennis immortal: ASHE. Arthur. The stadium in Flushing Meadows, home of the U.S. Open is named for him. The Australian open has the Rod Laver Arena, The French Open has "Stade Roland Garros" and Wimbledon has - Wimbledon. I rather like that. You're pretty much one and done with naming. Imagine the uproar if the French decided to replace Roland with Yannick Noah or Suzanne Lenglen.
29. "The Neverending Story" author: ENDE. A German novel, originally.
30. Acronymically named boy band: 'N SYNC. The last letters of the first names of the band members. Who knew? I think it's just a happy coincidence.
32. White House architect James: HOBAN
34. Rug rat: ANKLE BITER
36. More than want: NEED
38. Had down cold: KNEW
39. Thornfield Hall governess: EYRE
40. Capt.'s subordinates: SGTS.
42. Bouquet for a señorita: ROSAS. Second Spanish class of the day. Roses in January?
45. On the soapbox: ORATING
47. West Texas city: EL PASO. According to TripAdvisor, the best restaurant in El Paso serves Greek and Mediterranean food. Somehow I'm a little unsure about that.
48. Preppy shoe: LOAFER
49. Celestial: ASTRAL
51. Zeno's home: ELEA
54. Coterie members, in slang: PEEPS
55. "Aunt __ Cope Book": ERMA'S
57. Black Friday event: SALE
58. Controversial radio host: IMUS. It's difficult to have any kind of respect for this man, I'll leave it at that.
60. Like chocolate cheesecake: RICH
61. Actress Hathaway: ANNE
63. Intl. news broadcaster: V.O.A. Voice of America. A shadow of its former self. The BBC's World Service is now the largest international broadcaster.
64. Rest area?: BED
That about does it for me. Here's the grid, and it's time for 64D!
Steve
Note from C.C.:
Happy Birthday to Dennis, who helped me greatly in the first few years of this blog. Dennis (the Marine) is now fighting another major battle. He'll probably let you know more later. Please keep him in your thoughts and prayers.
As the reveal, diplomatically placed in the center tells us:
23D. Long-running Mad feature suggested by this puzzle's circled letters: SPY VS. SPY
A great theme from David, the circles reveal CIA, appropriately on the West side of the puzzle, and KGB, aptly, on the East.
There's a lot to like about this theme, simple on the surface, but a little more when you dig down. The theme entries are placed pleasingly symmetrically, the letters for the agencies aren't just the first or last letter in the theme entries, they stand alone in each name or phrase, and the placement of the reveal dead center between the two is very neat. Good job.
Let's see what the fill holds for us:
Across:
1. Indian food option: MILD. I lean towards the more hot/spicy dishes, but there are many Indian dishes which are spiced, but not with chili or cayenne, the spices are there for aroma and flavor. Two classic examples are the korma, which is a mild, creamy curry, and the biryani, which is Indian cuisine's one-pot rice dish, a relative of paella, jambalaya and others. Here's my chicken biryani with coconut and yoghurt green raita.
5. "4x2=8" rapper from Korea: PSY. The "Gangnam Style" dude. I'm not sure any of us would be able to name any other Korean rapper.
8. Blood component: PLASMA
14. Et __: and others: ALII
15. Troy, N.Y., school: R.P.I. I tried to guess this, I got the "Institute" part, I could have guessed "Polytechnic", but there was no guessing "Rensselaer".
16. Trojan War hero: AENEAS
17. Delivery method: C-SECTION
19. Duke's Mike Krzyzewski, familiarly: COACH K
20. Fall: AUTUMN
21. Boats and gravy boats: VESSELS
22. Stockpiled: AMASSED
24. Tigers, on scoreboards: DET.
25. "Miracle on Ice" winners: Abbr.: U.S.A. One of the most famous moments in sports, and that goes for non-US fans - I remember this from the 1980 Winter Olympics long before I moved to the States and before I knew much at all about hockey. "Do you believe in miracles? YES!"
28. Pours carelessly: SLOPS
29. Start of el año: ENERO
31. Quick bite: NOSH
33. Chef's collection: FRY PANS. I've literally worn out a couple of my Cuisinart skillets, I'm thinking about replacing them with cast iron.
35. Siri device: IPHONE
37. Pointed facial features: VAN DYKES. This dude rocks a great Van Dyke.
41. Morris Buttermaker's "bad news" team: THE BEARS
43. Big name in smooth jazz: KENNY G
44. Spray can output: AEROSOL. I thought the aerosol WAS the can. The output is deodorant, paint, olive oil, you name it.
46. Like some U.S. mail: CERT. ified.
47. African antelope: ELAND
50. Binge: SPREE
52. Montgomery of jazz: WES
53. Part of UCLA: LOS
54. Due: PAYABLE
56. Easy marks: PATSIES
59. __ del Fuego: TIERRA. I met a bartender in New Orleans who was from Tierra del Fuego; she said when she was a kid, her mom would point at the moon and tell her that was the closest place to where they lived.
62. Angular abode: A-FRAME
63. Complex containing thiamine and niacin: VITAMIN B. My Doc told me to take B3 supplements, apparently I'm not getting enough sun, that seems difficult to pull off in Southern California. (Edit - he told me to take D3! - Steve]
65. Close tightly: SEAL UP
66. Half of eleven?: ONE. Nice clue. Double-1 makes 11.
67. Spots at the prom?: ACNE. Sad, but true.
68. Discount phrase: OR LESS
69. Farm sci.: AGR.iculture. Seems hard to imagine studying farming without it.
70. Mower holder: SHED. If you're mowing the grass for silage on the farm, your agriculture class probably tells you the size of shed you need for the mower.
Down:
1. Brit's raincoat: MAC. Have you seen the ad currently running for the Microsoft Surface? It features a real Brit called Mackenzie "Mac" Book who points out the differences between the Surface and the Mac Book. It made me laugh, very clever.
2. Rick's love in "Casablanca": ILSA
3. In __ of: LIEU
4. Decrees: DICTA
5. 1996 Richard Gere/Edward Norton thriller: PRIMAL FEAR
6. Spot buyer: SPONSOR
7. Half a cosmic whole: YIN
8. Walked nervously: PACED
9. Some summer babies: LEOS
10. Santa __: dry winds: ANAS. Fierce debate in my neck of the woods as to whether they are called "Santa Anas" or "Santanas". I'm firmly with the latter. "Santa Ana" is a corruption of the original name perpetrated by out-of-state weather forecasters. In Richard Dana's "Two Years Before the Mast" he references "the devil wind Santana", well known to sailors in these parts. Santa Ana is a small city in Riverside County, and the winds neither originate from there or are funneled through there. OK, got that off my chest!
11. Withdraw formally: SECEDE
12. "Resurrection Symphony" composer: MAHLER
13. Invites for: ASKS TO. Invites for lunch/asks to lunch.
18. Antacid brand: TUMS
21. Italian scooter: VESPA. Here's a young Sting riding a Vespa GS in the Who's "Quadrophenia" movie. Goodness knows what that scooter would be worth now, they're getting very hard to find.
25. Yard, say: UNIT
26. Junior-to-be: SOPH. Shouldn't it be "Jnr." in the clue? Last time I looked, you were properly a sophomore.
27. Tennis immortal: ASHE. Arthur. The stadium in Flushing Meadows, home of the U.S. Open is named for him. The Australian open has the Rod Laver Arena, The French Open has "Stade Roland Garros" and Wimbledon has - Wimbledon. I rather like that. You're pretty much one and done with naming. Imagine the uproar if the French decided to replace Roland with Yannick Noah or Suzanne Lenglen.
29. "The Neverending Story" author: ENDE. A German novel, originally.
30. Acronymically named boy band: 'N SYNC. The last letters of the first names of the band members. Who knew? I think it's just a happy coincidence.
32. White House architect James: HOBAN
34. Rug rat: ANKLE BITER
36. More than want: NEED
38. Had down cold: KNEW
39. Thornfield Hall governess: EYRE
40. Capt.'s subordinates: SGTS.
42. Bouquet for a señorita: ROSAS. Second Spanish class of the day. Roses in January?
45. On the soapbox: ORATING
47. West Texas city: EL PASO. According to TripAdvisor, the best restaurant in El Paso serves Greek and Mediterranean food. Somehow I'm a little unsure about that.
48. Preppy shoe: LOAFER
49. Celestial: ASTRAL
51. Zeno's home: ELEA
54. Coterie members, in slang: PEEPS
55. "Aunt __ Cope Book": ERMA'S
57. Black Friday event: SALE
58. Controversial radio host: IMUS. It's difficult to have any kind of respect for this man, I'll leave it at that.
60. Like chocolate cheesecake: RICH
61. Actress Hathaway: ANNE
63. Intl. news broadcaster: V.O.A. Voice of America. A shadow of its former self. The BBC's World Service is now the largest international broadcaster.
64. Rest area?: BED
That about does it for me. Here's the grid, and it's time for 64D!
Steve
Note from C.C.:
Happy Birthday to Dennis, who helped me greatly in the first few years of this blog. Dennis (the Marine) is now fighting another major battle. He'll probably let you know more later. Please keep him in your thoughts and prayers.
