MONDAY, June 21, 2010 — Gareth Bain

Theme: Laundry Day — Theme answers are familiar phrases that start with a word that can mean a laundry day mishap.


Theme answers:

• 17A: *Losing ground quickly (FADING FAST).
• 25A: *Seeking a municipal office (RUNNING FOR MAYOR).
• 46A: *Extreme introvert (SHRINKING VIOLET).
• 59A: When the accidents at the starts of the answers to starred clues are apt to occur (LAUNDRY DAY).

Pretty good Monday puzzle, right? Simple theme with sparkly theme answers, fill ranges from adequate to interesting, good cluing — this puzzle's got what I'm looking for on Monday. PA KETTLE is an awesome entry that took me every cross to get (19A: Farmer in a '40s-'50s film series). With the PAK in place, I thought it was going to be an Asian name that I'd never heard before. Definite "D'oh!" moment there.

I liked the tricky OSLO / RIAL one-two punch down in the southeast corner (56D: Norwegian capital / 57D: Iranian capital). Have you seen "capital" used in clues to mean "money/currency" enough that you weren't fooled? Speaking of geography-based trickery, I had no idea Dalmatia was a place (65A: Dalmatian, e.g. (SLAV)). I mean, it makes perfect sense, but it has Never occurred to me.

Your mission is to use both "blockhead" and "bumpkin" in everyday conversation today. (15A: Blockhead (FOOL) / 29D: Bumpkin (YOKEL).)

Stuff:

• 16A: Jagger of the Stones (MICK). Oh thaaat Jagger.
• 32A: Disney toon who traded her voice for legs (ARIEL). Don't know my toons all that well, but this one wasn't too difficulty to figure out. (She's a mermaid.)

• 34A: TV's kid explorer (DORA). Heart-breaking parental moment: in the pediatricians office, three-year-old PuzzleSon is informed by another child that Dora is "for girls." ::sigh::
• 41A: Poker "bullets" (ACES). ACES are "bullets" and kings are "cowboys." I like to call queens "the girls," but I don't think it's actually caught on.
• 68A: Inedible doughnut part? (HOLE). Mmmm … doughnuts.
• 20D: Coloratura's vocal effect (TRILL). Seems like "coloratura" should mean something related to painting, but no.
• 26D: Robert of "Spenser: For Hire" (URICH). Ya know how sometimes famous people change their names? I think if my name sounded a lot like "urine," I would consider it.
• 37D: "(You're) Having My Baby" songwriter (ANKA). Soooo many things wrong with this song. Probably best not to get me started.

• 42D: "Happy Days" catchphrase (SIT ON IT). Was this phrase primarily directed at Potsy? In my head, I always hear it as "Sit on it, Potsy."
• 55D: Pierre's home: Abbr. (S. DAK.). Not a French person's name in this case, but the capital of South Dakota.
• 58D: "I'm sorry, __": "2001: A Space Odyssey" line (DAVE). Awesome, awesome clue.

Crosswordese 101: The word COSÌ is Italian for "so" or "thus." According to Wikipedia, "COSì fan tutte," literally means "Thus do all [women]" but it is often simplified to "Women are like that." It is the title of an Italian comedic opera by Mozart. And that's pretty much the only way the word is ever clued in crossword puzzles.

Other crosswordese in the puzzle that we've already covered:

• 9A: Attacker of seals (ORCA).
• 24D: Seaside flier (ERNE).
• 25D: Indian princes (RAJAS).
• 37D: "(You're) Having My Baby" songwriter (ANKA).
• 56D: Norwegian capital (OSLO).
• 61D: Singer Sumac (YMA).

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Everything Else — 1A: Lost in a good book, say (RAPT); 5A: __ prof. (ASST.); 13A: Length times width (AREA); 14A: In the freezer (ON ICE); 21A: Golfer Els (ERNIE); 22A: Nabisco cookie (OREO); 23A: None (ZERO); 33A: Astronomical time span (EON); 35A: "The __ is up!" (JIG); 36A: Southern Calif. daily (L.A. TIMES); 40A: The Sunflower St. (KAN.); 43A: Hearty holiday quaff (NOG); 44A: Letter before iota (THETA); 50A: Color akin to aqua (TEAL); 51A: "Auld __ Syne" (LANG); 52A: Knock out (FLOOR); 55A: Notified (SENT WORD); 62A: Atlas section (ASIA); 63A: __-skid brakes (ANTI); 64A: Whirlpool brand (AMANA); 66A: Gone by (PAST); 67A: Shaggy Tibetan beasts (YAKS); 1D: Knievel prop (RAMP); 2D: Diva's solo (ARIA); 3D: Chaste kiss (PECK); 4D: Offer from a flier distributor (TAKE ONE); 5D: Like old television signals (ANALOG); 6D: Fries, e.g. (SIDE); 7D: __-fi (SCI); 8D: Hamilton is on it (TEN); 9D: Designed for rough terrain (OFF-ROAD); 10D: Palomino's stablemate, perhaps (ROAN); 14D: Time and again (OFTEN); 18D: Idea's start (GERM); 23D: Camera function (ZOOM); 27D: African river or country (NIGER); 28D: Pretend (FEIGN); 30D: Spout speeches (ORATE); 31D: Charged (RAN AT); 38D: Hard work (TOIL); 39D: Time in the Army, e.g. (STINT); 45D: Bunk (HOGWASH); 47D: Jock's antithesis (NERD); 48D: Learns bit by bit (GLEANS); 49D: Chekhov title uncle (VANYA); 52D: Exercise, as wings (FLAP); 53D: Turner of "Ziegfeld Girl" (LANA); 54D: Exposes (OUTS); 60D: Flat fish (RAY).