Tuesday, November 19, 2013 David Poole

Theme: You're not from around here, are you? - Words that might describe some of your weirdest dates.

20A. State Department's purview : FOREIGN POLICY

26A. Pulp comic that transformed Nick Fury into a super-spy : STRANGE TALES

42A. Entertainer with many fans? : EXOTIC DANCER

50A. "War of the Worlds" attack : ALIEN INVASION

Argyle here. They may have been the most memorable dates, too. The theme isn't particularly as strong as yesterday but the corners are meatier. Bit stronger in the word length, too, but not all that interesting. Acceptable Tuesday.

Across:

1. Trapping device : SNARE

6. Official records : ACTA. Plural noun (often initial capital letter).

10. Got an A on : ACED

14. Restriction at some fitness clubs : [NO MEN]. ARTICLE

15. Mark from a healed wound : SCAR

16. Fancy fabric with metallic threads : LAMÉ

17. Coral ring : ATOLL

18. Metal to melt down : SCRAP IRON. No, you can't have my Troyota.

22. Anxious feeling : UNEASE

23. Olds Cutlass model : CIERA. Model years 1982–1996, Olds Alero was 1999–2004.

31. British noblewomen : DAMES. I'll resist linking "There is Nothing Like a Dame".

34. Soda fountain orders : MALTS

35. Try to win : WOO. Buying her malts at the old canteen won't get it.

                           LINK

36. Happy hour pints : ALES. But a couple of pints might.

37. Sorceress jilted by Jason : MEDEA. He didn't buy her pints or malts so she took it out on their kids.

38. Ireland's Sinn __ : FEIN. Irish republican party seeking to end British rule in Northern Ireland.

39. Dream state letters : REM. (rapid eye movement)

40. Suffix with Beatle : MANIA

41. Theater access : AISLE

45. Cling wrap brand : SARAN

46. "Queen of Soul" Franklin : ARETHA

55. Inning-by-inning runs summary : LINE SCORE. (usually in tabular form)

57. Hedren of "The Birds" : TIPPI. A Hitchcock film.

58. Bldg. annex : ADDN. (addition)

59. Slimmest of margins : HAIR

60. Actress Falco et al. : EDIEs

61. Gravy vessel : BOAT. It's a big Thanksgiving dinner if you have two gravy boats. Yum.

62. Very : OH SO

63. Like some populations : DENSE

Down:

1. Major mix-up : SNAFU. From the military: (situation normal, all f***ed up)

2. "__ your life!" : NOT ON

3. Passion, in Pisa : AMORE

4. Issues : RELEASES

5. Signs up : ENLISTS

6. Part of PGA: Abbr. : ASSN. (Professional Golfers' Association)

7. Letters on a Soviet uniform : CCCP. It is the Russian abbreviation of Союз Советских Социалистических Республик, meaning the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, or USSR.

8. Islands tuber : TARO

9. Kazakhstan border sea : ARAL.In the old CCCP.

10. Keys at the keys : ALICIA. CLIP(3:32)

11. Westley portrayer in "The Princess Bride" : CARY ELWES

                            LINK

12. Punk rock subgenre : EMO

13. Bear lair : DEN. Cute clue.

19. Ancient Britons : PICTS. Literally, painted ones.

21. Belg. neighbor : GER. Belgium / Germany

24. Do more work on, as a persistent squeak : RE-OIL

25. In unison : AS ONE

27. Revise : AMEND

28. Gymnast Comaneci : NADIA. OMG, she's 52 now.

29. Collect bit by bit : GLEAN

30. LAX posting : ETA

31. Has the nerve : DARES

32. Billy Joel's musical daughter : ALEXA. Alexa Ray Joel CLIP(4:42).

                        LINK

33. Reminder notes : MEMORANDA

37. Apple computer : MAC

38. Roosevelt's chat spot : FIRESIDE

40. Short-short skirts : MINIs

41. Like soda water : AERATED

43. Natural ability : TALENT

44. Cleveland NBAer : CAV. Cavalier.

47. Easy basketball score : TIP IN. Or not so easy.

                           LINK

48. Aspirations : HOPES

49. Herb that tastes like licorice : ANISE

51. Reverberation : ECHO

52. Ark helmsman : NOAH

53. Spring flower : IRIS

54. Rex Stout's stout sleuth Wolfe : NERO

55. Chocolate dog : LAB

56. Wedding vow words : "I DO"

Argyle

Note from C.C.:



Happy Birthday to dear Creature! Her kindness & warmth shine through in each of her comments here on the blog. Creature
has been through some difficult times since she lost her husband 2 years ago today. She doesn't post much these days, but she still reads us every day
and cares very much about this blog and our regulars. Dave, please work extra hard and find the sweetest cake for our special Creature.

Monday, November 18, 2013 Erik Agard

Theme: D&D - Sorry boys, not Double D. Phrases that start with D's, more like Dungeons and Dragons except in this case, the first two letters of each D word are duplicated.

16A. First two reindeer named in Rudolph's song : DASHER AND DANCER

25A. Use a mouse to move a file between folders, say : DRAG AND DROP

43A. List of behavioral recommendations : DOs AND DON'Ts

55A. 2003 prequel subtitled "When Harry Met Lloyd" : DUMB AND DUMBERER

Argyle here. I don't know if having the first two letters dupe was intentional but it probably was. Still pretty straight forward for an Eric Agard puzzle. No need for a unifier or reveal. Outstanding long Down fill today plus two grid spanners.

Across:

1. Michael who plays Alfred in many Batman movies : CAINE. Alfred "Pennyworth"(an assumed surname)

6. Mess maker : SLOB. Certainly not Alfred.

10. Remote : FAR

13. Lightweight synthetic : ORLON

14. Nothing, in Nicaragua : NADA

15. Scheme in which three of four lines rhyme : AABA

19. Jai __ : ALAI

20. Fury : IRE

21. Baseball legend Mickey : MANTLE. Do you have a rookie card, C.C.? (From C.C.: Nope. Boomer had the whole set of 1952 Topps, but he sold all in the 1980s. He sold his Mantle card (in perfect mint condition) for $900 and has been regretting every day.)

22. It has a trunk but no wheels : TREE

24. Layered cookie : OREO

30. Queue between Q and U : RST. Unique way to clue an alphabet string.

33. Charged, infantry-style : RAN AT

34. The Beatles' "Abbey __" : ROAD. EMI Studios were on Abbey Road.

35. Administer, as justice, with "out" : METE

36. Eden exile : ADAM. 11D. 36-Across' second son : ABEL

37. Thorax organs : LUNGS. Thorax, the part between the neck and the abdomen.

38. Thor's father : ODIN

39. Book part : PAGE

40. Former Atlanta arena : OMNI

41. Lopsided : ATILT. An "A" word.

42. Make a typo : ERR

45. Cry of dismay : "ALAS!"

47. Ten-speed unit : GEAR

48. Prisoner : INMATE

50. "How can __ sure?" : I BE

                             LINK

51. Ring of light : HALO

58. Many Keats poems : ODEs

59. Stunt rider Knievel : EVEL

60. Sprinkles or drizzles : RAINS

61. Was in first : LED

62. "Don't touch that __!" : DIAL

63. Supplement : ADD TO

Down:

1. Sonata ending : CODA

2. Inland Asian sea : ARAL

3. "Casablanca" heroine : ILSA

4. Diamond gem : NO HIT GAME

5. Santa Barbara-to-Las Vegas dir. : E-N-E

6. Marching band percussion instruments : SNARE DRUMS

7. Freeway division : LANE

8. Unusual : ODD

9. Snits : BAD MOODS

10. Accounted for, as during calculations : FACTORED IN

12. Steak request : RARE

15. Diarist Frank : ANNE

17. Nothing, in Nice : RIEN

18. 50-and-over org. : AARP

23. Critter before or after pack : RAT

25. Fall in folds : DRAPE

26. Plane tracker : RADAR

27. Made "talent" from "latent," e.g. : ANAGRAMMED. Got thrown by the double M.

28. Prima __ : DONNA

29. 1980 De Niro film about a boxer : "RAGING BULL". Filmed in black and white.

31. Clown heightener : STILT. Neat trick, standing on one stilt.

32. Camp shelters : TENTS

35. British heavy metal band with the album "Ace of Spades" : MOTÖRHEAD

                               LINK

37. Not as tight as before : LOOSENED

41. Cavity filler's org. : ADA. (American Dental Association)

43. Census gathering : DATA

44. Regard : DEEM

46. Research sites : LABS

48. Revered entertainer : IDOL

49. Naked : NUDE

50. Inventor's spark : IDEA

52. Bone-dry : ARID

53. Gave for a while : LENT

54. Roughly : OR SO

56. 506, in old Rome : DVI

57. Bikini top : BRA. OK, Double D bra link

Argyle

Sunday November 17, 2013 C.C. Burnikel

 Theme: "Logical Connections" - ERGO is hidden in the middle of each theme entry.

 

24A. Imaginary kids' author : MOTHER GOOSE

31A. NFL commissioner since 2006 : ROGER GOODELL. The most powerful man in sports. 

49A. Zeus or Thor : THUNDER GOD

52A. Job interview subject : CAREER GOAL

 

87A. Sport with orange balls, perhaps : WINTER GOLF. Argyle gave me this clue. Golf is his passion.

89A. Lynne Cheney's predecessor : TIPPER GORE

103A. Hand-crafted belts, e.g. : LEATHER GOODS

114A. Vision-distorting condition caused by a few too many cold ones, slangily : BEER GOGGLES

And reveal entry:

122A. Logical connection hidden in eight puzzle answers : ERGO

C.C. here. 

This puzzle title is Rich's. Most of the clues are his too. You can click here to see my original submitted clues.

I initially had ERGO placed as the last Across entry, but it resulted in a pair of dupes:

1) SEES FIT (35A) &  SEE NO (107D)

2) ELSA (48D) & ELSIE  (113A)

So I moved ERGO one row up. Little 3-word dupes are tricky on Sundays, esp for fill like EAT/ATE.

  

Initial Lower Right Corner

Across:

1. Like Narcissus : VAIN

5. Tiny tiff : SPAT

9. The pyramids, for 28-Across : TOMBS. And 28. Pyramid figures : PHARAOHS. Too close not to be cross-referenced.

14. Yawn : GAPE

18. Two-time Italian prime minister Moro : ALDO.
He stumped me last time. He was kidnapped and killed.  Wiki said this:
When Moro was abducted, the government immediately took a hard line
position: the "State must not bend" on "terrorist demands".

19. Zero __ : HOUR

20. Troubled greatly : ATE AT

21. Affected : ARTSY

22. Rewards for Fido : PATS

23. Kitchen add-on? : ETTE. Kitchenette.

26. Missouri River city : OMAHA

30. Flies into a rage : ERUPTS

33. [Like that!] : SNAP

34. Scrub : SCOUR. I like scouring my pots and pans. Therapeutic.

35. Deems proper : SEES FIT

38. "The Newsroom" channel : HBO. Created by Aaron Sorkin, the guy behind "You can't handle the truth!"

41. "Oh no!" : ACK

44. Miss the mark : ERR

45. Bob and bun : DOs

46. Cold cube in Cologne : EIS. Just ice.

47. Sign of life : PULSE

54. Bausch & Lomb brand : RENU

55. Bitty bites : NIPS

56. End of time? : SILENT E. Rich's clue.

57. Calendar rows: Abbr. : WKS

58. Prank : ANTIC

60. Gave a darn? : SEWED

62. Indulge, with "on" : DOTE

63. Lamb's lament : BAA

64. Bitty bits : ATOMS

67. Utter : SHEER. The sheer meanness of some anonymous posts on our
blog! So glad our regulars don't engage them. They don't deserve our attention.

69. "Toy Story" composer Newman : RANDY. Very impressive career.

71. Water__: dental gadget : PIK

73. Us, in Cannes : NOUS.  Every girl was reading "Entre Nous" a few years ago.

75. Relevant, to lawyers : AD REM

77. Unlit? : SOBER. Also Rich's clue.

80. 1996 Olympic torch lighter : ALI

81. Short-range weapons : MORTARS

83. Too colorful : LOUD

86. Pure delight : GLEE. My feeling after watching Spitzboov's Guangzhou clip last week. Want to see the historical sites in my hometown Xi'An?

91. Kept under wraps : SAT ON

92. U.K. record label : EMI

93. Paper Mate rival : BIC

94. "Eww, spare me the details!" : TMI

95. Panda Express cooker : WOK. Boomer prefers the Super Grand Buffet here in MN.

96. California's Marina __ Rey : DEL. Five miles north of where Bill G lives. This photo is exactly 1-year-old. Jordan is now 9.

Bill G & his grandson Jordan

97. Toaster treat : POP TART

99. Henchmen : THUGS

101. Interpol home, locally : LYON. We add S, we also add S to Marseille. I don't know why.

108. Grocery load : ARMFUL

111. "Carmen" aria : HABANERA

113. Kama __ : SUTRA

116. Close link : BOND

118. Baseball feature : SEAM

119. Small part : CAMEO. I had a trivia for this one.

120. Square one : START

121. Being aired : ON TV

123. Wild plum : SLOE

124. Support staff: Abbr. : ASSTS

125. Unwanted sprout : WEED. And 56D. Sprouts-to-be : SEEDS

126. Slugger who hit his first home run off Clemens : SOSA. Did you know this trivia, TTP & Husker Gary?

Down:

1. Steam, e.g. : VAPOR

2. Texas landmark : ALAMO

3. Luggage clip-on : ID TAG

4. Bites : NOSHES

5. Every other hurricane : SHE

6. Mishmash : POTPOURRI

7. Name on a spine : AUTHOR. Book spine.

8. Tire pattern : TREAD

9. They may be hot : TAMALES. Lucina, do you prepare tamales for Thanksgiving also?

10. "Lawrence of Arabia" star : O'TOOLE

11. John Wesley's relig. : METH

12. Words of disgust : BAHs

13. Holy mlle. : STE

14. Occasionally awkward show of affection : GROUP HUG. I'm sure Dave and Manac will find the awkward ones.

15. Perching on : ATOP

16. Hushed "Hey!" : PSST

17. Spud's buds : EYES

21. Bhopal Shatabdi Express stop : AGRA. Easily guessable, right? It's hard to come up with fresh clues for AGRA or OREO.

25. Flat rate? : RENT

27. Like most golf shots : ARCED

29. Patch, as a lawn : RE-SOD

32. Bridge immortal : GOREN

33. Assent showing respeto : SI, SENOR. Respect.

36. Close tight : SEAL

37. Let go : FIRED

39. Detailed : BLOW BY BLOW

40. Yodo River city : OSAKA. Never head of Yodo River.

41. Razor handle : ATRA

42. "Big Brother" host Julie : CHEN

43. Gambian-born "Roots" character : KUNTA KINTE. I learned about slavery from watching "Roots".

45. Teaspoons, maybe : DOSES

47. Fusses in front of a mirror, say : PREENS

48. Model/actress Pataky : ELSA. She dated Adrien Brody for a few years.

50. Nantes night : NUIT

51. Rte. finder : GPS

52. Apple product : CIDER. Not iSomething. How do you like your Mac so far, D-Otto?

53. Jazz legend James : ETTA

59. Scam artists : CON MEN

61. Berth place : WHARF

65. Keep from drifting away : MOOR

66. Operation VIP : SURGEON

68. Dig find : RELIC

70. Big name in rap : DOGG. Snoop (Lion now) or Nate.

71. Bear hands : PAWS

72. Trojan War epic : ILIAD

74. Jazz dance : STOMP

76. Swabbing need : MOP

78. Gateway Arch designer Saarinen : EERO

79. Smell bad : REEK

82. Made a touchdown : ALIT

84. Play for higher stakes : UP THE ANTE

85. Beg to differ : DEMUR

88. Like most customer support numbers : TOLL-FREE

89. Powerful deity : TITAN

90. Mid-'40s World No. 1 tennis pro Bobby : RIGGS

93. Chicken servings : BREASTS

97. Sport with horses : POLO. I've got to link Nacho Figueras, the face of Polo.

98. Nobelist Camus : ALBERT

99. High chair : THRONE

100. Barflies : SOUSES

102. '80s-'90s Serbian auto import : YUGO

104. Quarterback known for kneeling : TEBOW (Tim). I thought he'd be another Tom Brady.

105. Alamogordo's county : OTERO

106. Party poopers : DRAGS

107. Island group near Fiji : SAMOA

108. Early lessons : ABCs

109. Bona fide : REAL

110. Staff note : MEMO

111. 5'4" and 6'2": Abbr. : HGTS. That's mine and Boomer's.

112. "Poor me!" : ALAS

115. Govt. property agency : GSA

117. Redbox rental : DVD

C.C.

Saturday, Nov 16th, 2013, Barry C. Silk

Theme: Saturday Silkie



Words: 70 (missing K,Q,X)



Blocks: 30

  
Again I sensed we were getting a Silkie....Lots of 'awards'* in this
one. Triple 9's in two corners, and double 10-letter climbers in the
other two; curiously, but probably not unplanned, the first pair both
end in "-DAY", which resulted in baseball related crossings:

2D. Event celebrated in "Through the Looking-Glass" : UNBIRTHDAY



3D. When "you're gonna want me for your girl," in a 1963 hit : "ONE FINE DAY"

30D. Album that includes "Michelle" : RUBBER SOUL - The Beatles

 


31D. Disbeliever's comeuppance : "I TOLD YOU SO~!" - I seem to say this a lot; guess I need to be a little more insistent the first time....

o n w a r d

ACROSS:

1. Elevates : BUOYS
- I was feeling jaunty today, and just went right ahead with whatever
thought came to mind; so this was "LIFTS" at first - hey, I figured the
"S" was right....



6. Nearly : JUST ABOUT - and this went right in as well - and stayed



15. Reaction to flatness : ENNUI - I thought we might be looking for a variation of "PTUI", spitting out flat soda



16. Not predestined : AVOIDABLE
- UPS has a category of accidents they classify as "avoidable" - in
other words, one that they can blame on "ME".  We did get our computers
installed for the new "ORION" system this past week - see D-Otto's
comment from Tuesday



17*. 1975 Pulitzer winner for criticism : EBERT - well, now that I see it, seems pretty obvious



18. Early German fliers : ZEPPELINS



19. Whiskey purchase : FIFTH - not QUART



20. Jolts : ZAPS



21. Substantive part : MEAT



22. Sanskrit term of respect : SRI



23. Old Spanish bread : PESETA - money slang



25. Safe investment choices : T-NOTES - went with T-BONDS, which was 67% right



28. Bad mark : DEMERIT



33*. "Monster" Oscar winner : THERON - Charlize



34. Court service : JURY DUTY



35. Accessory : ADD ON



36. "Shirt Front and Fork" artist : ARP - Image



37. Drum accompanying a fife : TABOR - ah, not snare, but essentially, a portable snare drum; the classic image



38. Team nicknamed the Halos, briefly : L.A. ANGELS



40. Risk : GAMBLE



41*. Five-time 30-game winner of early baseball : CY YOUNG - and the MLB pitcher's award



42. Got tight : TENSED



43. Moisture overload results, in plants : EDEMAS



45. Manhattan part : RYE - the mixed drink, which was popular with my family, but not me



47. Door support : JAMB



51. Source of a cc : ORIGinal - the carbon copy cc, not a "VIAL" cc - and a shout out to our host~!



52. "Lolita" co-star, 1962 : MASON - IMDb



54. Side unit : ONION RING - side DISH would have to be plural



56. One way to think : ALOUD



57. Court expert : TENNIS ACE



58. "The Liberty Bell" composer : SOUSA



59. Made more attractive, as a deal : SWEETENED



60. Serf : HELOT



DOWN:



1. Gripes : BEEFS



4. Mongolian dwelling : YURT - fixed my "LIFTS"



5. Jedi foes : SITH - fear of the "Darths"



6. Spices (up) : JAZZES



7. Eye parts : UVEAs



8. Absorbed : SOPPED UP



9. Adviser of a sort : TIPSTER



10. Cannon attachment : ADE - Cannonade



11. Soother : BALM



12*. Drama Desk relative : OBIE - Broadway Awards



13. Prismatic bone : ULNA - well, you can sort of see it in this image - 

14. Lab work : TEST



23. Parker product : PEN



24. "The Joy Luck Club" author : AMY TAN - won a BAFTA award



26. Campus town near Bangor : ORONO  - Ha HA~! I knew this would come around sooner or later



27. Shoe part : TONGUE

29. Semi-hard cheeses : EDAMS

32. London flat? : TYRE - British spelling for the rubber that meets the road - and sometimes a nail or screw in that same road



33. It's 1 on the Mohs scale : TALC - Hardness - for minerals, that is - see here



34. Some coll. students : JRs



36. Constantine native : ALGERIAN



39. Back : ENDORSE



40. Some microwaves : GEs - I went with LGs first



42. Caught stealing, say : TAGGED - I tried NABBED, but the two crosses ending with "B" seemed a bit too much



44. Chop up : MINCE



46. Stop by : END AT



47. Little bits : JOTS



48. Fresh : ANEW



49. Place for a rock group? : MINE - nice



50. Something to pick? : BONE - "I've got a bone to pick with you~!" - a bit of history

52. Plymouth potato dish : MASH



53. 11-Down substance : ALOE - good way to avoid having to clue this "lotion ingredient"



55. Young louse : NIT - and those little things in crosswords that tend to irk some solvers~!

Splynter

Friday, November 15, 2013, Jerry Edelstein

Theme: I'LL be back.

The sound of "I'LL" is attached to the end of in the language phrases to create a new and entertaining phrase. The second effort in the LAT by JE, who was introduced to us by Argyle back on D-O's birthday. All the words that are added on to are three letters, with only one part of a three word phrase. This type of consistency is part of creating a sound grid, I am told. Structurally, this does not seem like a Friday puzzle, as many of the words are 3 or 4 letters long, but the cluing of many of those requires some patience to find the fill. let's see where he takes us this time.

16A. Porky's jacket and tie? : PIG STYLE. (Pig Sty) (8). Another cartoon reference; I like cartoons.

27A. Prohibition at the Ivory soap factory? : NEVER SAY DIAL. (Never Say Die) (12). My favorite, mental picture, with lots of bars of soap floating in the factory.

44A. Pre-law classroom exercise? : COLLEGE TRIAL. (College Try) (12). Along with Beer a common Friday topic.

60A. Bad place to be shipwrecked? : EVIL ISLE. (Evil Eye) (8). My favorite SCENE. (2:58).

Across:

1. "__ goes!" : HERE. I needed to wait on this simple phrase.

5. Runway model? : JET. Really cute misdirection, and a way to make a three letter answer Friday word.

8. Brewery shipments : CASES. The Friday Beer reference out of the way early.

13. U.S. citizen : AMER. Ooo, a tortured abbreviation.

14. "Come __ the sea, / Maiden with me": Thomas Moore : O'ER. How appropriate here at poetry central that we have this POEM.

15. Area : LOCALE. The what becomes of hicale?

18. Hunter's trophy : ANTLER. Normally we nit about an unnecessary plural, here I wonder how a hunter would get just one.

19. Source of many dialogues : PLATO.

20. Big name in game shows : MERV. Griffin, who brought back Jeopardy and created Wheel of Fortune as well as having his own talk show, years as a band singer and hung out in Manhattan with Eva Gabor.

22. FDR power program : TVA. Tennessee Valley Authority. one of the earliest and most comprehensive of programs in response to the Great Depression.

23. Longing : YEN. Do Japanese people long for money when they are short?

24. Circle : REVOLVE. Revolve the wagons just does not have the same zip.

32. __ ghanouj: eggplant dish : BABA. The dip, quite yummy. Learn HOW.

35. Theoretical foreigners, briefly : ETS. Aliens, Extra Terrestrials

36. Declaim : ORATE.

37. Twist et al. : OLIVERS. I like it better when a second one is added, like Twist and Hardy, but that may be too easy for Friday.

39. Compact containers? : GARAGES. Another simple but effective misdirection.

41. It rarely happens at home : STEAL. A baseball clue, hidden here.

42. Equinox mo. : SEP. Along with MAR.

43. "__ you be my neighbor?": Mister Rogers : WON'T.

48. 1993 Disney acquisition : MIRAMAX. Nobody really knows this, but after a while it emerged.

49. More, in Morelia : MAS. Roberto Duran now denies saying "No mas" in the Leonard fight.

52. Spice : ZIP.

55. Daredevil Knievel : EVEL. More "evil' in our puzzle; where is Mike Myers?

56. "Awake in the Dark" author : EBERT. Movie critic intensive lately. BUY?

58. Waiting to buy tickets, say : IN LINE.

63. Allows : GRANTS.

64. Sermon topic : SIN. Do they sin in Cincinnati?

65. Making waves, perhaps : ASEA. An A word that is very common in puzzles.

66. Excites : SENDS. YOU SEND ME. (4:19).

67. Geometry shortening : TANgent. One way to get a gent in this room.

68. Go down : SINK. Well, I guess it is time to go to the down clues.

Down:

1. __ hour : HAPPY. Are we really limited to 60 minutes of joy per day?

2. Rousseau's "__, or On Education" : EMILE. No clue as to this BOOK.

3. Duke of Cornwall's wife, in Shakespeare : REGAN. In King Lear, who also has been popular lately. Love me the Shakespeare.

4. Back then, back when : ERSTwhile. A real but probably archaic word.

5. Delight : JOY. More than hour.

6. Fish with no pelvic fin : EEL. So that's the difference.

7. Seismograph readings : TREMORS.

8. __ belt : CONVEYOR. This is nice long, original fill, which I had from the perps.

9. Legislative decision : ACT.

10. Season, in a way : SALT.

11. Height meas. : ELEV. Denver really is 5280 feet.

12. Day song word : SERA. We had this song as the basis of a punny theme answer last week.

15. Baby bug : LARVA. Hi John Lampkin.

17. Rent : TORE. Really very difficult clue/fill, as the mind wants to think of a lease payment, not a garment ripped apart. As I said, while the puzzle has lots of short fill, like earlier in the week puzzles, much of the cluing is challenging.

21. Little League starters? : ELS. A nice change from the Golfer Ernie, clue.

25. "Oh, when will they __ learn?": Seeger lyric : EVER. The only song for which I know all the words.  Where have all the flowers, gone. Especially if you live up north.

26. November honorees : VETS. A few days late, but we all should honor our vets every day of the week.

27. Maritime : NAVAL.

28. "Gone With the Wind" feature : DRAWL. The Southern accent affected by the cast.

29. "Aladdin" parrot : IAGO.

30. "... with __-foot pole!" : A TEN. I would not touch that with a ten foot pole...

31. For fear that : LEST. I end up with all those cooties.

32. Bartlett cousin : BOSC. The most famous pear pair.

33. Musical range : ALTO. Another theme word returns.

34. Jessica of "Total Recall" (2012) : BIEL.  The remake of the Arnold movie. Two minutes for the boys. LINK. (2:03).

38. Halogens, e.g. : ELEMENTS. Our periodic LESSON of the day.

39. Lysol target : GERM.

40. Samoan port : APIA. The capital and largest city. I love the Mai Kai restaurant here in Fort Lauderdale and their Polynesian show.

42. Most hackneyed : STALEST. hey I know some of the jokes are old, but...

45. Hosts : GIVES.

46. Poetic preposition : ERE.

47. Dorothy Hamill maneuver : AXEL. Always a shout out to our dear departed Clear Ayes.

49. Soccer star Lionel who won the Ballon d'Or each of the last four years : MESSI. For those who like to shout GOAL. (2:06).

50. "Stormy Weather" composer : ARLEN.  Great song by HAROLD.

51. Salisbury __ : STEAK.

52. Sharp turns : ZIGS. Do not zag.

53. Memo start : IN RE. Latin. 59D. Great Lakes st. : INDiana. 62D. Place to retire : INN. A final misdirection, not where you go when you are through working.

54. Blueprint : PLAN.

57. Decision clouder : BIAS. Oddly phrased clue.

61. Through : VIA. Latin.

I did not struggle too much with this one but it did take work, and I hope you all did not either. Thank you Jerry and see you next time. We begin with Porky and end, that way. BYE. (0:09). Lemonade.

Thursday, November 14, 2013 Mark Bickham

Theme: "Homophonic Letter Strings"



18. *Make it not hurt so much : EASE THE PAIN. "E E E E"



23. *Marching order : EYES FRONT. "I I I I"



36. *Has unfinished business with the IRS : OWES BACK TAXES. "O O O O"



51. *Entice with : USE AS BAIT. "U U U"



58. *Sagacious : WISE AS AN OWL. "Y Y Y Y"



53. MLB team, familiarly (and what's missing from the sequence found in the answers to starred clues?) : THE As.



I can't think of any common phrase that begins with Aze (with the "long A" sound), can you? So the unifier is the perfect cop-out, IMHO.  Lots of fun clues with plenty of misdirection that kept the V8 can busy. Let me show you what I mean...



Across:



1. Moll's leg : GAM. Well, OK. This one was easy, but just wait...



4. Word after fire or power : DRILL.



9. Like some wedding dresses : LACY. Sexy was my go-to choice here.



13. Biblical priest who trained Samuel : ELI.



14. Zellweger et al. : RENEES.



16. Together, in music : A DUE.



17. Architect's add-on : ELL.



20. Tre times due : SEI. Italian "three times two."  Bill G., can you help me with the answer here? (^0^)



21. Bark relative : YIP. Oh man, I was thinking tree bark.



22. IHOP array : SYRUPS. I wanted "stacks."



26. Type of cranial nerve : OPTIC.



28. Role for John Cho in "Star Trek" : SULU.



29. Jets and others : TEAMS. Because NFLers wouldn't fit...



31. __ nutshell : IN A.



32. Mex. neighbor : USA.



34. Motor extension? : OLA.



35. At any time : EVER.



40. Spot on the tube : TV AD.



41. Good buddy : BRO.



42. Play about Capote : TRU.man.



43. Ran across : MET.



44. Film critic Jeffrey : LYONS. Did not know him. All perps.  He agrees with the Tomatometer 0% of the time on "Rotten Tomatoes"?



46. Long haul : TREK.



49. __ de Chine: light fabric : CREPE. This wedding dress doesn't look LACY or sexy!

54. Eggheads : BRAINS.



56. Govt. surveillance group : NSA. National Security Agency.



57. PTA meeting site : SCH.ool. Abbr. in the clue gave me the hint.



60. __ out: barely make : EKE.



61. Aleutian island : ATKA. Population 61 !  Map.



62. Faunae counterparts : FLORAE.



63. Grassy area : LEA.



64. Harness part : REIN.



65. Yeats' "The Wild __ at Coole" : SWANS. I did not know this poem, but it was a WAG…I didn't think Yeats would wax poetic over "geese" or "ducks."



66. Many AARP The Magazine readers: Abbr. : SRS. Seniors.



Down:



1. Silly sorts : GEESE. Ahh…here's our geese!



2. Strike zones? : ALLEYS. Boomer! (Bowling alleys.)



3. Social setting : MILIEU.



4. Mr. Holland portrayer : DREYFUSS. I thought Richard Dreyfuss was brilliant in "Mr. Holland's Opus."



5. Put on again : REAIR. I had "Re-don."  D'oh!! TV, not clothes...



6. Hip joint : IN SPOT. Hip, meaning "cool" or "trendy." Great misdirection!  I really wanted "pelvis" but it just wasn't working...



7. Author Harper : LEE. "To Kill a Mockingbird."



8. Conversation opener : LET'S TALK. "Come here often?" wouldn't fit.



9. Drink à la Fido : LAP UP. Anyone else for "slurp"?  Show of hands?



10. Capable of change : ADAPTIVE.



11. Cookbook categories : CUISINES.



12. Nikkei Index currency : YEN.



15. Lacking the required funds : SHY. Tricky little clue for a three-letter answer.



19. Winged god : EROS.



24. Turned around : SLUED.



25. Opponents of the '60s-'70s New Left : NEOCONS. Neoconservatives. I won't get into politics...



27. Golf, for one : CAR. Another really tricky clue for a three-letter answer. VW model.



30. Simpsons creator Groening : MATT.



33. "Eight Is Enough" wife : ABBY.



35. Bedroom community : EXURB.



36. Orthodontic concern : OVERBITE.



37. Ride the wake, say : WATER SKI. Ya mean, they do it on water, too???



38. Awakenings : AROUSALS.



39. Some auction transactions : ART SALES.



40. "Movies for movie lovers" network : TMC. The Movie Channel. I always get TMC and TCM mixed up, and I watch them both.



44. "Aren't you a little short for a Stormtrooper?" speaker : LEIA. She was talking to Luke, and I think she probably regretted those words… 0:28



45. Isabel Allende title : SENORA.



47. Stands for things : EASELS. See? See?  I told you there was tons of misdirection in the puzzle.



48. Any of the top 25 NFL career scoring leaders : KICKER.



50. Song of praise : PAEAN. Trivia fact: When the USS Pueblo was captured by North Korea in 1968, they forced Captain Bucher to write a confession. He penned, "We paean DPRK, we paean their great leader Kim Il Sung."  What the North Koreans didn't know, was that he was using "Paean" as a homophone of "pee on," instead of singing their praises!



52. Egyptian dam : ASWAN.



55. Bad check letters : NSF.



58. Card game for two, usually : WAR.



59. "What are you waiting for?!" : NOW! I am done…



Til next week!

Marti