Theme: "Honoring Our Veterans". An always fitting tribute to our service men and women and the GI BILL in a charming Sunday package by our head Word Warrior C.C. This reenforces our duty to honor these men and women "Lest We Forget". It is still at work today:
As you can see, she built the puzzle around nine two-word phrases in which the first word begins with a G and the second with an I. I had a couple of rough patches but thoroughly enjoyed my odyssey.
23A. High-end bar? : GOLD INGOT - Like these in Fort Knox that Auric Goldfinger tried to steal
25A. IRS Schedule C, line 7 : GROSS INCOME - I totally get having a GROSS INCOME!
39A. Search feature that shows results as you type : GOOGLE INSTANT - Google attempt at 84. Down - Debatable "gift" : ESP?
50A. "Massaging" Dr. Scholl's product : GEL INSOLES - Are you gellin?
67A. Broad appeal : GENERAL INTEREST - Not appealing to colonels and majors?
87A. Popular Aegean vacation spots : GREEK ISLES - Spectacular!
97A. Teacher of the Year awardee, say : GOOD INFLUENCE - Usually
116A. Exodus prohibition : GRAVEN IMAGE - Exodus 20:4, KJV. "Thou shalt not make unto thee any GRAVEN image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heave above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth"
119A. "That could work!" : GREAT IDEA - Hmmm...
And the theme reveal:
101D. Legislation signed 6/22/1944 by FDR ... and, initially, what the nine longest across answers in this puzzle comprise : GI BILL
Hut, two, three, four, let's march on to see what other cleverness C.C. has for us in her salute to our fighting men and women and their well deserved benefits
Across
1. Queens swingers : METS - Swingin' since 1962
5. Like New York's Waldorf Astoria : DECO - More familiar as ART DECO
9. Ball queen : BELLE - This is Disney's Belle in her signature color (all Disney Princesses have a signature color)
14. Sought-after guests : A-LIST
19. "The African Queen" co-screenwriter : AGEE - TOMMY Agee made two spectacular catches in the 1969 Series for those Queens Swingers.
20. Bring in : EARN
21. "The sharpest-sighted Spirit of all in Heaven," in "Paradise Lost" : URIEL - Satan, disguised as a cherub , tricks archangel Uriel into guiding him to Earth
22. Jazzy Jones : NORAH
27. Religion of most Malaysians : ISLAM - 60.4% of 'em
28. Shower sponge : LOOFA - Most here will recognize this LOOFA scene
30. Telecom unit : NSEC - Nanosecond - One billionth of a second
31. Tot perch : KNEE
32. Like some kisses : STOLEN - Most famous in history?
34. Annual theater award : OBIE - Best of off Broadway
36. Bullet point : ITEM
38. Start of an assembly : STEP A - "I don't need no stinkin' instructions"
44. "I knew it!" : AHA - "I should'a read the stinkin' instructions"
45. Frustrating waiting time, facetiously : EON
47. Loads : A TON
48. 21-Across, in Le Havre : ANGE - Our friend Uriel above. Lovely cross reference
49. Marker : IOU
53. Goes (for) : OPTS
55. Polish prose : EDIT
56. Clark Kent's father, in 1950s TV : EBEN - I guess Ma and Pa Kent were called Sarah and EBEN in a 1942 novel and the TV series. Just when I thought I knew everything Superman...
57. Arthur of "Maude" : BEA - BEA Arthur
58. Takes by force : WRESTS
60. Sleekly designed : AERO - prefix
61. By and large : AS A RULE - AS A RULE, I follow Ann Landers' advice, "Is anything any better because I say/do this?"
64. Talk pioneer : PAAR - He told Dick Cavett that leaving The Tonight Show was the biggest mistake of his life
65. Time __ : WARNER - Our cable/phone/internet provider
71. Eastern temple : PAGODA
74. Like-minded group : CULT - Two entrepreneurs outside the Branch Davidian Compound in Waco, TX
75. Bungler : SAD SACK - I'll bet even he could take advantage of the GI Bill
78. Tiger's ex : ELIN - Mother of his children
79. Riles (up) : STEAMS
82. Rescue pro : EMT - They saved a life at our Memorial Day outdoor cemetery
83. Heavy wind : GALE
85. Historian seen in "I, Claudius" : LIVY - Titus Livius Patavinus - 59 BC - 17 AD
86. League, e.g. : UNIT - 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea is 69,000 miles but the title refers to the horizontal distance the Nautilus traveled while under the sea not a vertical depth.
90. Vacation time in Versailles : ETE - We never seem to see the others
91. Pusher's nemesis : NARC
93. Regrets : RUES
95. __ es Salaam : DAR - If you know the name of the country with this city and its 1.4 million people, you're a better geographer than I am. I had to look it up.
96. Edge : LIP - Having a putt stop on the LIP of the cup is heartbreaking!
100. Prepare to surf : LOG IN - All my LOG IN's use my mom's name except for my financial sites
102. Doesn't keep : ROTS
103. Quick kiss : PECK - Definitely not what's going on in 32 Across
104. Roger, for one : RABBIT - Who Framed Roger RABBIT was a 1988 movie that Rotten Tomatoes gave a 98%
106. Maestro Klemperer : OTTO - Sarge's dog or director Preminger work better for me ;-)
108. Milky stone : OPAL
111. Mr. Wrong? : LOSER
113. Let's Move! campaign launcher Michelle : OBAMA - All first ladies seem to initiate programs that get more headlines than results
121. Gives a thumbs-up : LIKES - Was your first thought of Roman Emperors or Siskel and Ebert? BTW, the latter gave Roger Rabbit two thumbs-up.
122. Colorful swimmer : TETRA
123. Shore acquisitions : TANS
124. Wildlife refuge : LAIR
125. Put forth, as effort : EXERT
126. Hook's look : SNEER - Who did it better than Cyril Ritchard?
127. Go ape : SNAP
128. Ancient strings : LYRE
Down
1. Wise guys? : MAGI
2. They may clash on a team : EGOS - How Shaquille O'Neal's, Kobe Bryant's and Phil Jackson's EGOS all fit into the Staples Center ARENA is a mystery to me.
3. Lies : TELLS TALES - I got hung up on Lies being a noun for a while
4. Calm : SEDATE
5. Wildlife refuge : DEN - Did anyone here belong to one of these DENS
6. Duffer's dream : EAGLE - Two under par. Usually only three strokes on a Par 5
7. Sing jazz standards, perhaps : CROON - He couldn't dance but Bing could CROON
8. Aware of : ONTO
9. Cause of fear : BUGABOO - Merriam Webster lists bête noire as a synonym
10. Mess up : ERR
11. Big name in little trains : LIONEL - A set to go with one of my favorite Christmas movies
12. Not as costly : LESS - It costs LESS but would you mistake it for Edy's?
13. Further : ELSE
14. "King Kong" heroine : ANN - Kong had the hots for the only blonde he had ever seen!
15. Picture holder : LOCKET
16. "Brave New World" band : IRON MAIDEN - Their 12th album released in 2000
17. Diner's "I'll have that also" : SAME - What ELSE were Vinnie Gambini and Mona Lisa Vito gonna say?
18. Friend's address : THEE - Ah, your Quaker Friends (Religious Society of Friends)
24. "Nothing planned for that day" : I'M OPEN - What every wide receiver tells the quarterback in the huddle
26. Sweet finish : ICING
29. Pays, as the bill : FOOTS - I had two daughters and had to FOOT the bill for two weddings
33. Asian nation surrounded by five countries : LAOS - Cambodia, Vietnam, Thailand, Myanmar and about 100 miles of border with the home country of our constructor
35. Uninformed : IGNORANT - Will Durant - "Education is the progressive discovery of our IGNORANCE"
37. Mao __-tung : TSE - A founder of the Chinese Communist Party who also invited a man from the biggest capitalistic country in the world to visit
38. Grain-free cat food brand : SHEBA
39. Earth goddess : GAEA
40. Gobbles up : EATS - A baseball manager can say of a durable pitcher, "He EATS innings"
41. Technical sch. : INST
42. Bete __ : NOIRE - That which is very feared or disliked (Black Beast in French)
43. One-on-one helper : TUTOR
44. __ restriction : AGE - There are many PG-13 AGE restricted movies I wouldn't attend with my 13 year old grandson
46. Blue-blooded : NOBLE
51. Really hurting : IN AGONY - Two weeks in a hospital after having innards rearranged for me
52. Look like a wolf : LEER - Looking has a time limit and then it turns into a LEER
54. Impudent : PERT
55. Wildlife markers : EAR TAGS - Seen in cattle feedlots too
58. Knocks 'em dead at the jazz club : WAILS
59. Volvo home: Abbr. : SWED.
62. Light color? : RED - Was the red car driver texting?
63. Some, in Havana : UNAS
64. Damson source : PLUM TREE - A type of plum and learning for me
66. Obstinate beast : ASS - In the movie, Patton had an brutal way to move obstinate asses off a bridge
68. Berry promoted as a superfood : ACAI
69. Salinger character who said, "I prefer stories about squalor" : ESME - From the Crossword Hall Of Fame
70. Wrote customer reviews on, say : RATED
71. Pequod co-owner : PELEG - in 1956 Mervyn Johns played PELEG to Gregory Peck's Ahab in Moby Dick
72. Kennedy associate : ALITO - One of the Supremes. Probably doesn't know the words to Baby Love
73. Approximately : GIVE OR TAKE
76. Retire : CALL IT A DAY
77. Big name in fashion : KLEIN - Do you remember the answer to this question?
80. Territory : TURF - American Pharoah (spellchecker doesn't like this misspelling) is the King of the Turf
81. Env. stuffer : ENCL - Enclosure
82. Celtic language : ERSE - Fáilte is Welcome
87. Spokescritter with a British accent : GECKO
88. Longtime TV journalist Marvin : KALB
89. 1950 sci-fi classic : I ROBOT - Isaac Asimov hated this adaptation of his robot stories
91. Petty peeve : NIT - None here, right?
92. Williams of "Happy Days" : ANSON - Anson and some other cast members sued CBS for millions for the sales of Happy Days items. They each got $65,000 and a promise to honor their contracts henceforth.
94. Ambiguous : UNCLEAR
98. Mulligan : DO OVER - We usually give one per nine holes played. It's often on the first drive of the day
99. Doing some binge-watching, maybe : UP LATE - Dang Godfather trilogy!
104. Played again : RERAN - See above
105. Sports center : ARENA
106. Look like a wolf : OGLE
107. Cheerios shelfmate : TRIX - Yeah, yeah, I know who they're for!!
109. Commodities trading areas : PITS - Like in Trading Places
110. ''You said it!'' : AMEN
112. Pepper et al.: Abbr. : SGTS - Bilko, York, Schultz, Friday, et al
114. '70s Israeli prime minister : MEIR
115. It passes between Swiss banks : AARE - These Swiss banks are holding the River AARE not secret bank accounts. Very cute!
117. Body shop no. : EST - Give or take a grand...
118. Ph.D. hopeful's hurdle : GRE - Graduate Record Exam
120. Once-sacred snake : ASP
Halt, two, three four! Proceed onto the next page for comments. Company, Disssss-missed!
Husker Gary
Note from C.C..:
As I mentioned yesterday, Husker Gary had a relapse last Wednesday
when he returned home from the reversal surgery. He wrote today's post
before the surgery, so there was no mention of his setback.
He told me that "Joann is my angel and taking care of me along with 6 doctors, 10
nurses and various other technicians. My radiologist today was a former
student."
Gary has his laptop with him, but I'm not sure he
has the energy to read us. Thanks for your prayers and good wishes. I
hope he can go back home and resume his golfing & musing routine soon.
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| Joann & Gary |
