Wednesday, June 29, 2011 Jack McInturff

Theme: G-Rated (do they even make those kind of movies anymore??)  The first words of the theme entries could follow the letter "G", thusly:

17A. *Fit perfectly : SUIT TO A TEE. A "G-suit" (or more correctly, an anti-G suit) helps pilots who fly at high speeds to prevent blackouts by inflating air bladders around the legs, thus stopping blood from draining from the brain. Aren't you glad you don't need to know this?

23A. *Sexy beachwear : STRING BIKINI. And very closely related to "G-string", no? Now this is more in line with our DF group. But, my eyes are still hurting from some of the photos that came up when I looked for a link!!  (Just use your imagination here, guys!)

50A. *Behavior made automatic from frequent repetition : FORCE OF HABIT. "G-Force" is what a "G-Suit" is designed to overcome...

62A. *Superhero nickname : MAN OF STEEL.  A "G-Man" is slang for a government man, or FBI agent.

and the unifier:

39. "Gosh!" (or, based on the starts of starred answers, one who is expert at solving this puzzle's theme?) : GEE WHIZ. Hah! I must be a G-reat solver to figure this one out. 

Marti here to help you over the hump day...

ACROSS:

1. Sea of __: Black Sea arm : AZOV. GEE WHIZ, don't you hate it when the first word of the puzzle is one you don't know?

5. Parisian pals : AMIS. Ah yes, we are back to yesterday's French lesson.

9. Light bite : NOSH. Yiddish nashn, from Middle High German naschen "to eat on the sly".

13. In-box note, perhaps : MEMO

14. Like candy near the register, maybe : MINTY. Wanted "impulse buy", but wouldn't fit.

16. Hostile to : ANTI

19. Veggie that may be black : BEAN

20. Bone: Pref. : OSTEO

21. Golda of Israel : MEIR.  She was known as the "Iron Lady" years before Margaret Thatcher was labeled with that nickname.

22. "The Wizard __": comic strip : OF ID. Irreverent, often insightful humor by Parker and Hart.

26. White Sox star who played in five decades (1949-1980) : MINOSO. Oh no, not baseball! And more than thirty years ago?

29. Shortly : ANON. Also, what some bloggers are called.

30. Graceland middle name : ARON. Ah yes, interesting story about ARON - Aaron. But we all know that already, don't we?

31. "A horse is a horse" horse : MR ED. From 60's TV comedy.

35. Partner of each : EVERY

38. Seaman's "Help!" : SOS

41. __ volente: God willing : DEO

42. Prepare to be knighted : KNEEL.  Great visual from "Le Morte D'Arthur".

44. Composer Bart�k : BELA. Along with Liszt, considered Hungary's greatest composer, and well-known for his "Night music" style, wherein he imitated the sounds of nature at night in his compositions.  Like this.

45. German coal region : SAAR. Mosel-Saar-Ruhr is also one of the leading wine regions of Germany.  Really, coal??

46. Once again : ANEW

48. Literary alter ego : MR HYDE. "Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde", by Robert Louis Stevenson.

55. Buck suffix : AROO. I guess "kang" wouldn't be a great clue, huh?

56. Way to go : ROAD

57. Rosary units : BEADS

61. Unfocused photo, e.g. : BLUR. Or, crossword clues when blogging at midnight...

64. Single : LONE. Hands up for "stag"?

65. Hill on Vail : SLOPE. Vail, Colorado. And they are usually slippery!

66. Gal who gets what she wants : LOLA.  Barry Manilow, anyone?

67. Loose things to tie up : ENDS. Or strings on a bikini...

68. Location : SITE

69. Barbershop sound : SNIP. Huh. "Harmony" doesn't fit.

DOWN:

1. Schoolyard retort : AM SO. Can we quit this schoolyard argument, already??

2. Olympian bigwig : ZEUS

3. Cut out : OMIT

4. Decides via ballot : VOTES ON

5. Latin lover's word : AMO. Love my Latin! (Or, is it "my Latin lover"...)

6. Home of the Heat : MIAMI. Basketball. Will they settle before their potential lockout on Thursday?

7. One __: unlikely chance : IN TEN. If it were the lotto, more like one in one in 593,775, according to my calculations.

8. "Shrek!" author William : STEIG. Unknown.

9. "Lolita" author : NABOKOV. Known.

10. Clooney/Pfeiffer comedy : ONE FINE DAY. Got meh reviews.

11. Washday challenge : STAIN. No, my washday challenge is just getting all the stuff from the bedroom down to the basement laundry room.

12. Delhi language : HINDI

15. __ Buena, town that became San Francisco : YERBA. Total WAG.

18. Little tykes : TOTS

24. "City of Seven Hills" : ROME. Nailed it. Been there, seen them.

25. Don Juan's mother : INEZ. In Lord Byron's poem, Don Juan is not a womanizer, but one who is easily seduced by women.

26. Halloween cover-up : MASK

27. Press : IRON. Who thought of gym, and "pump"?

28. Act like a snoop : NOSE AROUND. Fun clue, great fill!

32. Confederate : REB

33. Lady in the flock : EWE. Hah, didn't fool me. I knewe it wasn't you!

34. UPS rival : DHL

36. Enjoy the library : READ. Well, I think most of us here enjoy reading. But, between the Nook, Kindle, iBooks etc., are we in danger of losing this sacrosanct institution of our youth? 

37. Time past : YORE. As in, "yore late"?

39. Elated feeling : GLEE. Or, a wildly popular (with "Gleeks", anyway) TV show.

40. Foot in a poem : IAMB. I amb what I amb...or, the "beat" to a poem. Like ka-BOOM,  where the accent is stressed on the second syllable. Thus, iambic dimeter (two iambic "feet", or measures) would sound like:

the WAY / a CROW

shook DOWN / on ME...

-Frost
I'll leave the rest to CA.

43. Extras for a cheering crowd : ENCORES. Loved this clue/answer!

45. Former Jewish settlements : SHTETLS. Hated this clue/answer!

47. Squirmy bait : WORMS. eeewwwww....

49. Barbecue fare : RIBS. OK, now you're talkin' DH's language!

50. Aesop work : FABLE

51. Sweater synthetic : ORLON. I never know if it's going to be nylon, rayon, or orlon! So, let's move...ON

52. Stable newborns : FOALS

53. Vietnam's capital : HANOI. Map, for anyone who wasn't around in the 50's-60's-70's.

54. Take as one's own : ADOPT

58. Long, long time : AEON. Ages, anyone?

59. Bagels and lox seller : DELI. Mmmm...I could go for some right now.  Maybe I'll ask the guys in the SHTETL if they want some, too...

60. Blow with a palm : SLAP. V8 can on this one when it finally emerged. Or, a slap upside my head.

63. ATM charge : FEE. No charge for this blog. But you can contribute to my amusement fund by using PayPal at www.skigolfkayakhikecampreadgardenwino.com

Answer grid.

Thanks for letting me share this one with all y'all!

Marti

Notes from C.C.

1) Here are two lovely pictures of MJ's grandson Drake. She said "These photos of Drake are very telling about why I am not posting daily on the blog, although I still read the blog most mornings, and  very much appreciate all those who parse the daily LAT puzzles for your site." Here is her family picture we showed last August when Drake was 5-month old.

As some of you are aware, our local paper doesn't carry LAT crossword,  so MJ mailed me the precious first one Don and I collaborated, the whole LA Times Calendar section carefully padded between stiff boards. And  a few more later. Thanks, MJ.

2) Happy Birthday to Barry G!

Monday, June 6, 2011, Jack McInturff

Theme: Stop stuttering and spit it out! Each of the four theme answers are combined with a double version of the three letters which begin the answer. To introduce this puzzle, I want you to listen to this SONG. Happy Mon Mon Monday all, Lemonade stepping in for Argyle to kick off your week. Too bad it is not 2006, then the puzzle would be 06-06-06. Let us see how a Monday feels;

17A. Mechanic's excessively affected gadget box?: TOO TOO TOOLCHEST. Gadget box? I was puzzled, but got the theme for certain with the next one.

26A. Fashionable farm nestling?: CHI CHI CHICK. CHICHI is actually one word, but nestling I knew and worked backwards.

47A. Dance contest winner?: CHA CHA CHAMP. Time to SHAKE.

61A. High-kicking dancer at an audition?: CAN CAN CANDIDATE. I guess we really are the Dancing with the Stars generation, I hope you get a KICK out of this link. Okay, now to a really fun bunch of clues, with a lot going on for a Monday.

Across:

1. "Gone With the Wind" plantation: TARA. Frankly, I don't give a damn.

5. Interactive Facebook feature: WALL. I do facebook so I can see pictures of my kids, but I have reconnected to some old friends.

9. Prefix with sonic or violet: ULTRA. And violence too, if you like Kubrick.

14. Press, as pants: IRON. Why not shirts? I hate ironing shirts!

15. Most fit to serve: ONE-A. Draft status, military service.

16. Sodas for Radar O'Reilly: NEHIS. They have to be Grape for Radar.

20. Ready to be drawn from a keg: ON TAP. Oh, goody a beer reference.

21. First Japanese golfer to win a PGA Tour event: ISAO AOKI. Nice to see his entire name, with all those vowels; I will never forget how he tilted his putter. No comments Lois, Carol.

22. Rajah's wife: RANI.

25. Damaged, as mdse.: IRR. Irregular.

31. Gallantry-in-combat mil. award: DSC. Distinguished Service Cross.

34. Dryer screen target: LINT. Yes, mother it is really lint and can be thrown away.

35. Collaborating group: TEAM. There is no I in team, but one in collaborating.

36. Blacksmith, at times: SHOER. I am sure you all found this easy and nailed it.

38. "The King __" : AND I. I had the pleasure of seeing Yul Brynner perform the part on Broadway, as well as shaving his head as he drove into the city. Sadly, he smoked and died of lung cancer.

39. Take everything off: STRIP. Okay, I saw that show too, but not on Browadway.

41. Letters on a cross: INRI. Iesus Nazerenus Rex Iudeaorem. No J in Latin, so this Jesus, King of the Jews.

42. City near Syracuse: UTICA. It is in between Syracuse and Schenectady.

44. Blade's sharp side: EDGE.

45. Wildebeests: GNUS. You all knew this right?

46. Govt. ID issuer: SSA. Social Security Administration.

50. Revival prefix: NEO. Latin for new.

51. Easy gait: TROT. If the horse is well shod.

52. "They'll ambush you if you go in there!": IT'S A TRAP. I love this clearly complicated clue. A Dan Naddor type of multi-word fill.

57. Agreed (with): SIDED. From debate, where you picked one side of the aisle or the other.

64. Reveal impulsively: BLURT. As in "it out."

65. Cafeteria carrier: TRAY. Are there many left, Morrison's, Picadilly?

66. Tar Heel State university: ELON. This NC college was the alma mater of our senior partner who died last year. It also is crosswordese.

67. Fibber of old radio: MCGEE. Don't forget Molly and the closet. We did not have a TV until was 7, so I listened to many radio plays.

68. Terrier variety: SKYE. Named for the island in the North Sea.

69. Emailed or faxed: SENT. I have a friend who does not email, so I get lots of faxes.

Down:

1. Former Yugoslav leader: TITO. Like Spain's Franco, he is still dead.

2. Presley's middle name: ARON. Too bad they could not spell.

3. Cheer (for): ROOT.

4. South Pole continent, with "the": ANTARCTIC. One of two continents with Australia which was the Final Jeopardy answer last week.

5. Seek as a spouse: WOO.

6. Tiny hill crawler: ANT. Oops there goes another rubber tree.

7. Sainted fifth-century pope: LEO I. A very influential LEADER .

8. Cambodia neighbor: LAOS.

9. Opens, as wine: UNCORKS. Good, this balanced the earlier beer reference.

10. "The Merry Widow" composer: LEHAR. The opera by FRANZ

11. "The Cosby Show" boy: THEO. malcolm jamal warner.

12. Insurer's exposure: RISK. So simple, it fooled me for a second.

13. Italian wine city: ASTI. Spumante to you.

18. Colorful fish: OPAH. Do you think it is PRETTY.

19. Of the flock: LAIC. As opposed to cleric.

23. "Picked" complaints: NITS. My favorite clue of all, especially having had my nit picked by many anons.

24. Summer drink: ICE TEA. I know you want ICED, sue them.

26. Santa __: CLAUS. Our special Argyle shout out for Monday, that I am usurping.

27. Clues: HINTS. Sometimes, that is all they are a hint.

28. Taj Mahal home: INDIA.

29. Cola's first consonant: HARD C. Not to be confused with HARD G., coming to a theater or puzzle near you.

30. "Put me down as a maybe": I MIGHT. I might not.

31. Designer Karan: DONNA. DKNY.

32. Inoculated fluid: SERUM. This is a Latin word that refers to the "whey", the watery liquid that separates from the curds in the process of cheese making.

33. Like well-cooked bacon: CRISP. How many like it really crisp?

37. Times when sand castles are destroyed: HIGH TIDES. Another great fill.

40. Tree fruit: PEAR. Home to partridges.

43. Film material: ACETATE. Actually, it is Cellulose acetate.

48. Traffic jam honker: HORN. In Florida it is against the law unless it is an emergency. Nobody pays attention to the law.

49. Mozart's "__ fan tutte": COSI. Thus do they all; Mozart's take on women.

50. Mother-of-pearl: NACRE.

52. Long-range warhead carrier, briefly: ICBM. Another acronym, InterContinental Ballistic Missile.

53. Soft mineral: TALC. Talcum powder anyone?

54. Like a bug in a rug: SNUG. My mother used to say that when she ticked me in.

55. Play divisions: ACTS.

56. Amusement __: PARK. Did you know the Ferris Wheel was invented specifically for the 1893 World's Fair in Chicago, to out do the Eiffel Tower?

58. Carnegie or Evans: DALE. Don't forget Chip's buddy either.

59. Thames school: ETON. ELON, we love these schools.

60. Fender damage: DENT. Ding, ah well.

62. Rejecting vote: NAY.

63. Blonde's secret, maybe : DYE. Seldom a secret, but my exit line. My first Monday, and one I really enjoyed, now to try and keep from being confused about the day of the week. Argyle is fine, but his computer is not so bear with us as we soldier on. A different experience, enjoy the week.

Answer grid.

Lemonade

Note from C.C.:

Here are three pictures of JD's grandsons. Click on each one for enlargement. They'll brighten your morning.

Thursday, May 26, 2011, Jack McIntruff

Theme: Whee! Fun homonyms. I might have gone with the five (three sir!) little piggies, but that's spelled the same as one of the clues.

17. We: PERSONAL PRONOUN.

23. Wie: GOLFER MICHELLE.

33. Oui: FRENCH YES.

50. Wee: EXTREMELY SMALL.

57. Wii: NINTENDO CONSOLE.

Hi all, another Thursday, and another puzzle with the clues carrying the theme instead of the answers. A good mix, all different spellings and meanings. For a while there, I thought I wasn't going to be able to think of another one to to tie them together.

ACROSS:

1. Bass-baritone Simon: ESTES. A late week, more obscure clue than Colorado Park.

6. Second-century date: CXIX.

10. Welding sparks: ARCS.

14. Hard to stir: STOIC. Stir, as in the emotional sense.

15. Old __, Connecticut: LYME. Historical district, artist's colony, and summer resort. Pop. 7500.

16. Half a fictional detecting pair: NORA. Nick and Nora Charles (with Asta the crossword puzzle terrier).

20. Prov. bordering four Great Lakes: ONTario, Canada.

21. Limoges liver: FOIE. French  Foie gras is "fatty" liver.

22. Saltpeter: NITER. Puts the bang in gunpowder and takes it away from something else.

27. Maroon: ENISLE. I had the "LE" at first and was thinking PURPLE? That can't be right.

28. Cycle start: TRI.

29. Common street name: ELM.

30. Amateur golfer's score, perhaps: LIE.  If you lie about your lie, you won't lie easy.

31. Lasting impression: SCAR.  From Old French escare "scab," from Greek eskhara "scab formed after a burn," lit. "hearth, fireplace,"

32. Confucian path: TAO. Literally "the way", path.

38. First woman to land a triple axel in competition: ITO. Midori.

41. Nyctophobic fictional race: ELOI. Afraid of the dark because the Morlocks lived below and hunted at night.

42. Fed. fiscal agency: OMB. Office of Management and Budget.

45. Cheese partner: MAC. We just call it "glop".

46. Moving aid: VAN. Shortening of caravan.

47. "Obviously": SO I SEE.

53. Win by __: A HAIR.  Anyone for a nose or a mile first?

54. Words before many words?: IN SO.  Idiom: In so many words.

55. Canadian attorney's deg.: LLB. Bachelor of Laws.  The double L is a plural form abbreviation, like pp for pages or bbl for barrels.

61. Seller of F�RNUFT flatware: IKEA. Swedish uses umlauts, too.

62. Phnom __: PENH. Capitol of Cambodia, today's geography lesson.

63. Corn Belt native: IOWAN.

64. Tracy's Trueheart: TESS. The Dick Tracy comic strip that went 18 years before they finally married on Christmas, in 1949.

65. Chipmunks creator Bagdasarian: ROSS. (Rostom) The real name of David Seville, the original voice of Alvin, Simon and Theodore.  Later he employed female vocal artists, recorded at 33, and played back at 45 rpm.

66. Recipe amts.: TBSPS. Equal to half a fluid ounce, one-sixteenth of a cup.

DOWN:

1. Five-time Art Ross Trophy winner, for short: ESPO. Phil Esposito, hockey.

2. Baseball's "Old Perfessor": STENGEL. Casey.  "They told me my services were no longer desired because they wanted to put in a youth program as an advance way of keeping the club going. I'll never make the mistake of being seventy again."

3. Ristorante dessert: TORTONI. Ice cream made with heavy cream, minced almonds, chopped maraschino cherries, flavored with rum. How have I never had this?

4. Frozen Wasser: EIS. German: water, ice.

5. Mocks: SCOFFS.

6. Eau __, Wisconsin: CLAIRE. "Clear waters".

7. Water-carrying plant tissue: XYLEM. A picture is worth a thousand words.

8. Sitter's handful: IMP. Old English impe, impa "young shoot, graft," from impian "to graft," sense of "child, offspring" came from transfer of the word from plants to people. "Suche appereth as aungelles, but in very dede they be ymps of serpentes."

9. Thirtysomething, e.g.: X-ER.

10. Hall of fame: ANNIE. My best guess is referring to the Woody Allen movie with Diane Keaton,since  fame is in lower-case, so not part of a title.

11. Small plant support: ROOTLET.

12. Fur-loving villain de Vil: CRUELLA.

13. Riviera resort: SAN REMO.

18. Carol: NOEL.

19. Available for service: ON HIRE. Again? This still sounds odd to me. On call, now that I understand all too well..

24. Gladly: LIEF. Etymology gives this as "dear" or "love" as with German lieb.

25. Burning desire: ITCH. Um... not really the kind of burning you want to associate with desire.

26. Supercomputer name: CRAY.

31. Fi front: SCI. Science Fiction.

34. Admire greatly: REVERE. From revereri to stand in awe of, to fear, to be wary of.

35. Ancient rival of Assyria: ELAM. Now part of southwest Iran.

36. Zilch: NONE.

37. Slugger Sammy: SOSA.

38. Mom's tough emphasis: I MEAN IT.

39. It makes one's net smaller: TAX HIKE.

40. Pump ratings: OCTANES.

43. Veges (out): MELLOWS.

44. Last track circuit: BELL LAP.

47. Meshes: SYNCHS.

48. __ buco: OSSO. Italian: bone with a hole, a marrow bone of veal with vegetables and wine.

49. Music to the boss's ears: I'M ON IT.

51. Coolidge and Moreno: RITAS.

52. Ford Field team: LIONS. Football, Detroit.

56. Uncle __: BEN'S. Competitor for Minute Rice.

58. "Fresh Air" airer: NPR. A talk show hosted by Terry Gross for over 30 years.

59. __ gratias: DEO. Latin: Thanks be to God.

60. Sound after a breakup, maybe: SOB. Hmmm, that could be what was done, or what was said...

Answer grid.

Al

Note from C.C.:

Here is a beautiful picture of Linda & her husband cutting their 50th wedding anniversary cake last Saturday. She said: "Being a non-traditionalist, I chose lavender, pink and white as my color theme. Those were our wedding colors. The cake topper is the original one.  Note the photo at lower left of us cutting the first cake".