MOSCOW - strelka, 2nd bretskaya & kamergersky pereulok, 05/24-25/11

Wednesday, May 25, 2011 Don Gagliardo and C.C. Burnikel

Theme: A New Dimension in Crossword Entertainment ! - The theme entries all have the word SOUND surrounding the phrases front and back, with the unifier at 50A: Home theater feature, and a hint to the puzzle theme in 19-, 22-, 32-, 46-Across, and the first (sic) word of this answer : SURROUND SOUND. At first, I thought that was a typo, until I realized that it was a hint that the first word of the unifier also contains "sound" surrounding it...great stuff!

19A. "Afraid you can't have your money back" : SORRY NO REFUND. I wonder why they wouldn't take back the thong I bought last month?

22A. Progresso or Lipton : SOUP BRAND. Would you believe, I was looking for types of tea??

32A. Refuse to budge : STAND ONES GROUND. A grid-spanning anchor in the center of the Home Entertainment System!

46A. Home of Notre Dame : SOUTH BEND. Alma Mater.

You got me, C.C. !

Marti here, and she didn't tell me it was her puzzle when she asked me to fill in today. How great to blog one of our dynamic duo's puzzles!! (See notes from C.C. and Don at the end.)

Across:

1. Winter break? : THAW. We really needed one this past winter. Didn't happen until, oh, about three days ago...

5. Drink noisily : SLURP.

10. Agcy. that established rules for kite flying : FAA. Go fly a kite! (But not near the airport...)

13. Poet known for inventing words : NASH.

"Reflection on Babies"

A bit of talcum

Is always walcum.

14. Prairie home : TEPEE

15. "__ la Douce" : IRMA. Great 1963 flick with Jack Lemmon and Shirley MacLaine.

16. The Dixie Chicks, e.g. : TRIO. Aww, do I have to? (link)

17. "__ of robins in her hair": Kilmer : A NEST. Help, Clear Ayes!

18. Strip light : NEON. Dennis, are there strip lights on South Beach?

24. Climber's toehold : LEDGE. Yes, and pitons, cables or anything else I could get my big toe into...

25. Fertile desert spot : OASIS

26. New Deal inits. : FDR. Franklin Delano Roosevelt.

27. Sch. with a Spokane campus : WSU. Washington State University. Top 10 in the country for using clean technology on campus.

28. Like the Parthenon : ANCIENT. No, like me.

38. Young in films : LORETTA. Is she ancient now?

39. Sushi topping : ROE. Roe, roe, roe your boat...Oh, oops - I did that last time... (This is really hard, guys!)

40. Lincoln or Ford : CAR. Ha Ha. You didn't fool me. I knew right away that "prez" wouldn't fit!

41. Rapids transit : CANOE. Great pun on Rapid Transit. But I confidently filled in "kayak".

43. Chinese, e.g. : ASIAN. Do you think of yourself as "Asian" or "Chinese", C.C.? I think of myself as "American", not "USA'an".

52. Cement piece : SLAB

53. Auto buyer's choice : SEDAN

54. Ages and ages : EONS. I just keep aging and aging...

57. Hgts. : ALTS. "Alps" would fit, but I don't think the Down would fit the "breakfast test"...

58. Rag� rival : PREGO

59. Hurry : RUSH. We all know Hurry Limbaugh, right?

60. Food additive : DYE. Ewwww, and we got a lesson the other day about what exactly is in those dyes.

61. Scatter : STREW

62. Hang around : STAY. I can't STAY. I have to go DOWN...

Down:

1. "We know drama" channel : TNT. Turner Network Television.

2. Guffaw syllable : HAR. Haw, haw, hee hee, ho ho!

3. Customarily : AS IS USUAL. Great phrase. As is usual, our constructors brought out their "A" game today!

4. Moderator of a panel including Joy, Elisabeth and Sherri : WHOOPI. Goldberg.

5. Best successor of 1962 : STARR. Pete Best, Ringo Starr. If this were Monday, they would never get away with this clue - great misdirection!

6. Actress Lotte : LENYA. OK, maybe you don't remember her. But do you remember "Mack the Knife", written for her by her husband Kurt Weill? Ok, so it's in German, and not the Louis Armstrong-famous version, but it is Lotte Lenya, which is probably why you don't remember her...

7. Wharton's sch. : UPENN. Wharton School of Business, University of Pennsylvania.

8. Fix, as a green : RESOD. They need to RESOD the greens at my local course. Terrible shape! None of my putts would go in today...

9. Sykora of the NHL : PETR. Now playing in Russia, he played around with the Devils, Ducks, Rangers, Oilers, Penguins and Wild before finally saying sayonara to the USA. I bet Eddy B. and JD know him.

10. "The Ego and the Id" author : FREUD.

11. Included in : AMONG

12. "Dog the Bounty Hunter" airer : A AND E. Whew! This one threw me for a while. Finally parsed it.

15. Oven, so to speak : INFERNO. Does anyone remember the movie?

20. NFL ball carriers : RBS. National Football league, Running Backs.

21. Revered figure : ELDER. Oh, so I should be revered, right?

22. Plants : SOWS

23. Hops drier : OAST

26. Newton fruit : FIG. Not an apple?

28. Farm denizen : ANT

29. Bottom line : NET

30. Rebs' gp. : CSA. Confederate States of America.

31. Ended up : TURNED OUT. Turned out, I didn't have to worry about another blitch...so far, so good.

33. Feature of some extreme diets : NO CARBS

34. Pipe cleaner : DRANO. I wonder if Drano would take care of ear wax?

35. Atop, poetically : O'ER.

36. High time? : NOON. Already? I just got started...

37. Safe document : DEED. Nope, don't have one in my safe. Only a huge mortgage note from the bank. Oh, maybe they have the deed in their safe?

41. Obama's secretary of energy : CHU. Chattanooga Chu? (Sorry - it's Steven.)

42. Doubleday and Yokum : ABNERS

43. Syrian president : ASSAD. Bashar al-Assad wanted to be an opthamologist, until his older brother died in a car accident. So he became heir apparent and was elected president in 2000 when his father died.

44. Tarnish : SULLY

45. Steaming : IRATE. My veggies were really irate while I was cooking them tonight. (Well, wouldn't you be?)

46. H�gar's dog : SNERT. Love him in the comic strip!

47. More eccentric : ODDER

48. Linguist's concern : USAGE

49. Thus far : TO NOW. To now, I don't think I've made any boo-boos, have I?

51. Mail letters : USPS. United States Postal Service. Did you know? The USPS does not have a motto. The saying "Neither rain, nor sleet, etc." is simply an inscription on a Post Office in NYC.

55. Gp. whose insignia consists of a bald eagle holding a key : NSA. National Security Agency.

56. Bashful : SHY. Not elf? Oh, that's a dwarf...sorry, I'm getting Sleepy. Er, no, I'm not "getting" Sleepy tonight. At least, he hasn't called yet...

Answer grid.

Good night, Marti.

Note from C.C. & Don:

Don came up with this nifty idea while we were brain storming a "* AROUND" theme where the * bookends each theme entry. We tried to even it out with different SO* *UND pattern. SOUTHERLY WIND and SOUVENIR STAND ended up on the cutting room floor. Did you all notice that the unifier word SURROUND is also surrounded by SOUND?

Tuesday, May 24, 2011 Gareth Bain

Theme: Sherwood is getting crowded - Four actors who portrayed 64A in the movies at various times.

18A. "Kiss the Girls" actor (1993) : CARY ELWES. Image.

25A. "Gladiator" Oscar winner (2010) : RUSSELL CROWE. Image.

38A. "Captain Blood" star (1938) : ERROL FLYNN. Image.

53A. "Field of Dreams" star (1991) : KEVIN COSTNER. Image.

64A. Role played by each of four actors in the year indicated in their clues : ROBIN HOOD. Image.

Argyle here. Interesting theme and some good fill. Maybe a little flat but that might be just me. There are a few more Robin Hoods out there. Who's your favorite?

Across:

1. iPhone add-ons : APPs. Is there a crossword APPlication?

5. Big name in kibbles : ALPO. Dry dog food.

9. Perturb : DISMAY

15. Quantum __ : LEAP. Atomic electron transition that turned into an NBC sci-fi series in the early '90s.

16. Ponce de __ : LE�N. Reputedly explored Florida searching for the fabled Fountain of Youth. (Hello, Dennis.)

17. Speak liturgically, perhaps : INTONE. A form of public worship.

20. Leads off : STARTS

21. Thanksgiving mo. in Canada : OCT.

22. Slightly : A BIT

23. Look peaked : AIL

24. Ne'ertheless : THO. Although.

31. Lease signatory : TENANT. Signing a lease doesn't necessarily make you a TENANT.

33. "Go ahead!" : "DO IT!". Reminds me of schoolyard dares.

34. Barracks bed : COT

35. Golf's Ballesteros : SEVE. Ballesteros died of brain cancer on 7 May 2011, aged 54. Sad.

36. Potted plant spot : SILL

37. Furniture company named partly for its founder Ingvar Kamprad : IKEA

42. Plumbing joints : ELLs

45. Skin cream brand : OLAY

46. Items included in envs. : ENCS. Enclosures in envelopes.

49. Island gift : LEI

50. Tabloid twosome : ITEM

51. Agricultural measure : BUSHEL. Derived from a need to have a standard to measure wheat.

57. 67.5 deg. : ENE. East North East.

58. PC's top-left key : ESC

59. Prefix with gram : HOLO. The famous scene from Star Wars. Clip.(0:57)

60. "Because" evoker : "WHY?"

61. Player in front of a net : GOALIE

66. Take flight? : AVIATE

67. Foxx who sang "Mockingbird" : INEZ. With her brother, Charlie. Clip.(2:31)

68. Unadulterated : PURE

69. Lunatics : MADMEN. Mad Dogs and Englishmen is a song by Noel Coward; I never knew. Video.(2:50)

70. Keep on looking at, and not in a nice way : OGLE

71. Ollie's sidekick : STAN. Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy.

Down:

1. "Little Men" novelist : ALCOTT. Louisa May's follow-up to "Little Women".

2. Often flamb�ed fruit : PEACHES

3. Start of a saga, maybe : PART ONE

4. Le Carr� hero, e.g. : SPY. John le Carr� is an English author of espionage novels. And he should know; he worked for MI5 and MI6.

5. Very nearly : ALL BUT

6. "Surprised By Joy" autobiographer C.S. : LEWIS. Author of "The Chronicles of Narnia".

7. Ode writers : POETS and 63D. Dusk, to 7-Down : E'EN

8. Put-__: pranks : ONs

9. Talk smack to : DIS. To disrespect some one, not give them their props("proper respect").

10. Not broken : INTACT

11. Step in a flight : STAIR

12. Eloi predator : MORLOCK. From "The Time Machine"

13. Colony dweller : ANT

14. "It is so" : "YES"

19. Breadwinner : EARNER

26. Build up spiritually : EDIFY. But it comes from to build up, literally. Think edifice.

27. Lounge, as on a chaise : LOLL. (Hello, Dennis.)

28. Easter bloom : LILY

29. "__ is me!" : WOE

30. Greek vowel : ETA

32. Birds' biological class : AVES

36. Condemns verbally : SLAMS. Really dis.

37. Quaint lodgings : INNS

39. Univ. recruiter : ROTC

40. Marg : Brits :: __ : Americans : OLEO. I can believe it's not butter here or over there.

41. Cell with an axon : NEURON

42. Antlered critter : ELK

43. Sheltered side : LEE

44. 1985 multi-venue charity concert for Ethiopian famine : LIVE AID. Live Aid was a dual-venue concert held simultaneously in Wembley Stadium in London and John F. Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia.

47. Read the riot act : CHEW OUT

48. Portuguese lady : SENHORA

50. Stir up : INCITE

51. British Honduras, now : BELIZE. Map.

52. __ jar: static electricity storage device : LEYDEN. Did your science lab have one?

54. Imam's faith : ISLAM

55. Beach footwear : THONG

56. Prize name : NOBEL

61. Pinup's leg : GAM. Probably from the Italian word gamba.

62. Egg cells : OVA

64. Brazilian hot spot : RIO. Rio de Janeiro.

65. Some inkjets : HPs. Hewlett-Packard Brand.

Answer grid.

Argyle

ZAGREB - dreft fashion week, day 3, 05/21/11

Monday, May 23, 2011 Victor Barocas

Theme: Colorful Language - A color idiom morphed with a phrase to give us three new comical idioms with criminal evidence.

20A. Evidence against an aristocrat? : BLUE BLOOD STAIN. Blue blood. Blood stain.

40A. Evidence against a gardener? : GREEN THUMB PRINT. Green thumb. Thumb print.

56A. Evidence against an Oscar attendee? : RED CARPET FIBER. Red carpet. Carpet fiber.

Argyle here on a colorful, musical Monday, a tick harder than usual. Victor's January offering was colorful, too. 2011/1/3

Across:

1. In the heavens : ABOVE

6. McCartney's instrument : BASS. and 18A. "All you need," in a Beatles song : LOVE. From Yellow Submarine. (2:59)

10. Predecessor of surrealism : DADA

14. Seedless type of orange : NAVEL

15. "There oughta be ___!" : A LAW

16. Password enterer : USER

17. Like the more serious larceny : GRAND

19. Farm structure : SILO

23. Immigrant's subj. : ESL. English as a Second Language.

24. Guitar neck features : FRETS. The ridges set across the fingerboard which help the fingers to shorten the strings at the correct points.

25. "Private Practice" network : ABC. A spin-off of Grey's Anatomy, it is a medical drama show.

28. Bluesman Mahal : TAJ. Henry Saint Clair Fredericks has two Grammy Awards. Fishing Blues clip.(1:03)

30. Resident since birth : NATIVE

34. Tombstone lawman : EARP. Wyatt.

36. Common mixer : SODA

39. Styles : MODES

43. To whom "I'll see you in my dreams" is sung : IRENE. Sung here by 69A. Seeger of the Weavers : PETE

44. Singer Diamond : NEIL. Singin' about that Kentucky Woman.(2:26)

45. Pout : MOUE. This little guy is quite expressive.

46. Opening word for Ali Baba : SESAME. Closing word, also. "Close Sesame" sealed the treasure cave back up.

48. Long sandwich : SUB

50. Ed.'s workload items : MSS. Manuscripts.

51. Smallest : LEAST

54. Enemy : FOE

62. Black-and-white treat : OREO

63. Suffix with soft or flat : WARE

64. Seuss environmentalist : LORAX. The good Doctor's tree defender. Image

66. Matter topper? : MIND. Mind over matter.

67. Part of NRA: Abbr. : ASSN.

68. Hardly hoi polloi : ELITE. This term is of Greek origin and a literal translation  is 'the many'.

70. Marvel Comics heroes : X-MEN

71. Hamlet's countrymen : DANES

Down:

1. Director Lee : ANG

2. Harpoon point : BARB

3. Racetrack shape : OVAL

4. Legal site : VENUE

5. Firstborn sibling : ELDEST

6. Fun time : BALL

7. Distant : ALOOF

8. Relish : SAVOR

9. "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo" setting : SWEDEN

10. Wind-related desert event : DUST STORM

11. Where Siberia is : ASIA

12. Corned beef seller : DELI

13. Elvis's middle name : ARON

21. Fun time : BLAST

22. "Forever" post office product : STAMP

25. Sponsorship : AEGIS

26. Ballet rail : BARRE

27. Some Saskatchewanians : CREEs

29. Elton of England : JOHN

31. "Eat crow," e.g. : IDIOM

32. Evening star : VENUS

33. Politician Kefauver : ESTES. The Senator from 59D. TENN. Nashville's st.

35. Crime laws, as a unit : PENAL CODE

37. Scheduled to arrive : DUE

38. French friends : AMIS

41. Where Hercules slew a lion : NEMEA

42. Poker ploy : BLUFF

47. Q-Tip target : EARWAX

49. Didn't just simmer : BOILED

52. Cramp or twitch : SPASM

53. Of few words : TERSE

55. Deadly virus : EBOLA

56. Play boisterously : ROMP

57. Toledo's lake : ERIE

58. Minor collision damage : DENT

60. The Auld Sod : ERIN

61. Do a film critic's job : RATE

65. Crosses (out) : Xes

Answer grid.

Argyle

Note from C.C.:

Here is a great photo of 15-year-old Argyle in 1960. He's a Freshman. Class of '63. Look at his socks!

ZAGREB - dreft fashion week, day 2, 05/20/11

Sunday May 22, 2011 Verge

Theme: And/or - OR is added to common phrases.

23A. Important meeting for Domingo and colleagues? : THE BIG TENOR CONFERENCE. The Big Ten Conference.

33A. Pulpit tirade? : BLAST FROM THE PASTOR. Blast from the past.

50A. Sale of swampland? : MORASS MARKETING. Mass marketing.

63A. Disloyal union member? : LABOR RAT. Lab rat.

69A. "Babe," e.g.? : PIG STORY. Pig sty.

83A. Really conservative Conservatives? : OLD SCHOOL TORIES. Old school tie.

92A. Comment about a recently razed vacation complex? : THE RESORT IS HISTORY. The rest is history.

114A. Maine travel agency's come-on? : MORE BANGOR FOR YOUR BUCK. More bang for your buck.

Some ORs are inserted to the end of the word, some in the middle. Can you think of one with OR attached to the beginning?

Did the theme clues make you laugh? One of the challenges in letter addition/deletion/substitution theme is to come up with entertaining clues.

I still don't know who Verge is. Alias name, perhaps. I feel it's a he.

Across:

1. Missouri range : OZARKS. Scrabbly start.

7. Very friendly with : CLOSE TO

14. Legitimate : LAWFUL

20. Incisor neighbor : CANINE. Tooth.

21. Lost it : HAD A COW. "Don't have a cow, man!"

22. His team has an orange-and-black logo : ORIOLE. Baltimore Orioles.

26. Cabin fever, e.g. : ANGST

27. Salon supply : HAIR GEL

28. "Hmm ..." : I WONDER. And 115D. "Hmm ..." : GEE

29. Glom : COP. Did not know "glom" can mean "steal".

30. Hesitant sounds : UMs

32. A long time : YEARS

43. Like a hawk's perspective : AERIAL

44. __ agreement : ORAL

45. Recipe amount : CUP

46. Carides of "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" : GIA. No idea. The movie is good. I like her hair.

49. Scottish psychiatrist R.D. __ : LAING. Another no idea. I bet Lois knows him.

55. Windows predecessor : MS-DOS

56. Sharp sensation : PANG

57. Transfix : AWE

58. "... __ mention ..." : NOT TO

59. Ornamented, as curtains : TASSELED

62. Sharpness : ACUMEN

68. Half of vingt : DIX. Dix = Ten. Vingt = Twenty. You won't see Splynter clue his DIX this way.

71. "Anchorman" producer Judd : APATOW

72. Place for a large E : EYE CHART

74. Wine grape : PINOT

75. Tournament break : BYE

77. Part of a roof : EAVE

78. Boundary : AMBIT

87. Welsh breed : CORGI

88. 2010 Mark Twain Prize winner : FEY (Tina). So talented.

89. Diving seabird : AUK. What is he doing?

90. Didn't spoil : KEPT

91. Meaningful interval : PERIOD

97. Region on the South China Sea : MACAO. Gambling mecca in Asia. They speak Cantonese there also.

100. Lunch letters : BLT

101. Looney Tunes animator Avery : TEX. Got via crosses.

102. Might well : IS APT TO

104. Plymouth passenger carrier : RAILCAR.

109. Self-congratulatory cries : TA-DAs

117. Online memos : E-NOTEs. Dennis likes to title his email subject line as "Note".

118. Microsoft reference : ENCARTA. No new updates.

119. Italian desserts : GELATI

120. Out of fashion : DEMODE

121. Tough teammate to handle : EGOTIST. Randy Moss, e.g.

122. Obeyed a canine command : HEELED

Down:

1. Prefix with -hedron : OCTA. Prefix for "eight".

2. Journalist Paula : ZAHN

3. Rare blood type: Abbr. : A NEG

4. Cage components : RIBS

5. Work with needles : KNIT

6. Circ. part : SEG

7. Hardly top-of-the-line : CHEAPO

8. Legal scholar Guinier : LANI. I can never remember her name.

9. Stimulus used in aversion therapy : ODOR. 

10. Puppeteer Tony : SARG. Know this guy only from doing Xword.

11. Behold, to Brutus : ECCE

12. Prepare the factory : TOOL UP

13. Hold one's __ : OWN

14. Early movie mogul : LOEW (Marus). Founder of MGM.

15. Gully : ARROYO

16. Cybernetics pioneer Norbert : WIENER. Maybe Bill G knows him. I've got no idea.

17. 1981 Hepburn co-star : FONDA. "On Golden Pond". Henry Fonda. Also Jane Fonda.

18. Gastric woe : ULCER

19. Rude looks : LEERS

24. God in a chariot : THOR. Thunder god.

25. Rift : FISSURE

29. Grey Cup sports org. : CFL (Canadian Football League)

31. Large-beaked talker : MACAW. Melissa style picture. Lovely.

33. Soothing application : BALM

34. Green spans : LEAs. Nice clue. Would be even better if the answer is singular. It's hard to be Greenspan.

35. Requiring irrigation : ARID

36. Chinese: Pref. : SINO. Sino-US relationship.

37. They may put players out : TAGs

38. Poetic times : MORNs

39. Play genre : TRAGEDY

40. Suffers from : HAS

41. Some city lines : ELs

42. Toll rd. : TPK

46. Cuban base, familiarly : GITMO. "You can't handle the truth!".

47. Bury : INTER

48. Torment : AGONY

50. Movie-rating org. : MPAA (Motion Picture Association of America)

51. Beer-making aid : OAST

52. Magazine that began as a comic book : MAD

53. Some refs. : ENCs

54. Build up : TOUT

59. Experian, formerly : TRW. Forgot also.

60. It's made up : LIE. Quite true.

61. Passage : EXCERPT

62. Player rep. : AGT

63. __ luxury : LAP OF

64. Make __ of money : A PILE

65. Exchange, as words : BANDY

66. Onetime Siouan natives : OTOs

67. Campus military prog. : ROTC

69. Smooth, in a way : PAVE

70. Ticks off : IRES

72. Sniggler's target : EEL

73. 2010 earthquake site : HAITI

75. Historic Kentucky county : BOURBON. Whiskey.

76. Simple country type : YOKEL

78. Scores 90+ on : ACEs

79. Satirist Sahl : MORT

80. Liveliness : BRIO

81. Borodin prince : IGOR

82. Uncluttered : TIDY

84. Possess, to a Scot : HAE

85. Ring ruling : TKO (Techinical knockout)

86. Poetic contraction : O'ER

91. Photos : PIX

92. __-CD conversion: music collection updating system : TAPE TO

93. Breeding ground : HOT BED

94. Bad way to come on : STRONG

95. Visit overnight : STAY AT

96. Legend subject : HERO. Made me think of Killebrew. Nicest player I've ever met. TwinsFest wouldn't be the same without him.

97. Acted quietly? : MIMED

98. "... world will live __": "Imagine" : AS ONE

99. Bank : CAROM. Pool.

103. Facilitate an arrest, in a way : TASE

105. Oil acronym : ARCO (Atlantic Richfield Company). I just thought it's a name, Argyle!

106. "__ first ..." : IF AT

107. Actress Singer : LORI. She's famous for?

108. LCD flat panel displays have replaced many of them : CRTs

109. Bush overshadower : TREE. Oh, not President Bush.

110. Up to it : ABLE

111. Like a Jekyll and Hyde personality : DUAL

112. Com�die part : ACTE

113. Slide wildly : SKID

116. Word of disgust : UGH

Answer grid.

Hope Barry G comes back to us. All too sudden yesterday.

C.C.