03.05 Sat

S A T U R D A Y
March 5, 2011
Barry C. Silk

Theme: None

I enjoyed this Scrabbly Saturday workout from Barry Silk QUITE A LOT (54A: Very much). Quite a few people in the grid, which is something I always like.

• 17A: Five-time All-Star second baseman (CHASE UTLEY). This was the only person in the grid that I flat-out didn't know. Knowing Barry Silk, though, I don't think I'm going out on a limb to guess that he plays for the Phillies.
• 39A: "Private Benjamin" Oscar nominee Eileen (BRENNAN).
• 41A: First African-American major-league coach Buck (O'NEIL). I had to wait and get that "I" from the cross, which is pretty much what I do every time Mr. O'NEIL is in the puzzle.
• 42A: Clinton Transportation secretary (PEÑA).
• 6D: John of England (ELTON). You thought this might be a bathroom trick clue, didn't you?
• 36D: Singer Williams (ANDY).

One-word clues are much more common late in the week because they really add difficulty to the puzzles.

• 5A: Cloud (BEFOG). My brain instantly thought it was a noun, but it turned out to be a verb.

• 20A: Salt (OLD SAILOR). I considered both noun and verb meanings, but had to stretch a little to remember this meaning of "salt."
• 38D: Rap (BLAME). Rap could mean so many different things! But here it's used as in the phrase, "take the rap."
• 46D: Ally (TEAM UP). Another noun/verb question. And again, "verb" is the correct answer.

Bullets:

• 14A: Geographical border (COUNTY LINE). Makes me think of country music, like maybe "Boot Scootin' Boogie."
• 37A: Classic diner feature (JUKEBOX). Who doesn't love a JUKEBOX? (Also, more country music.)
• 47A: Way to make it? (SNAPPY). It's like my boss says to me every morning "Get me a cup of coffee! And make it snappy!" HAha! My boss would never dare say that to me.

• 61A: Gibberish (MUMBO-JUMBO). Great word.
• 65A: Nice weapon (ARME). Did this clue trick you? Or have you been hanging out at LACC long enough to know that if the clue starts with the word "Nice," you might just need to pronounce it like "niece" and think French?
• 2D: Fish also called a blue jack (COHO). With the C in place I tried CARP first.
• 7D: Some bass pieces (FILLETS). More fish! I was thinking more along the lines of Geddy Lee at first.
• 8D: Linear, for short (ONE-D). As in ONE-Dimensional.
• 13D: Cold drafts (BEERS). I stupidly entered GUSTS here at first, even though my brain was going "Are GUSTS necessarily cold? No. No, they're not."
• 25D: Rabid dog of Castle Rock (CUJO). Stephen King? I had to look it up to confirm, but yes, Stephen King.
• 48D: Common video game fighter (NINJA). They're coming, you know. (Video courtesy of Mrs. Rex Parker's awesome students.)

Crosswordese 101 Round-up:

• 16A: Native Nebraskan (OTOE).
• 30A: Historical Russian region (URAL).
• 31A: 1987 Costner role (NESS).

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Everything Else — 1A: Org. distributing a "Close Guantánamo" handbook (ACLU); 10A: Stupefied (NUMB); 18A: Item used in Wright Brothers experiments (KITE); 19A: Advertises (TOUTS); 22A: How writers often work (ALONE); 24A: Honeysuckle shrubs (ELDERS); 25A: Algerian quarter (CASBAH); 28A: Dragging (TIRED); 33A: Climber's observation (VISTA); 44A: Encircle (GIRD); 45A: Suppressed (SAT ON); 49A: In (AT HOME); 52A: Rhino relative (TAPIR); 56A: Land rover (NOMAD); 60A: Sphere lead-in (ATMO-); 63A: Toon modeled after Clara Bow (BOOP); 64A: One-sided (UNBALANCED); 66A: Edit menu command (PASTE); 67A: Prank (DIDO); 1D: Credit Union holding: Abbr. (ACCT.); 3D: Tiki torch setting (LUAU); 4D: It's radioactive (UNSTABLE ISOTOPE); 5D: Sch. associated with the LDS Business College (BYU); 9D: Jet creator (GEYSER); 10D: "Seriously" ("NO KIDDING AROUND"); 11D: Functional (UTILE); 12D: Drive (MOTOR); 15D: Magnetic induction unit (TESLA); 21D: Pain relief brand (ALEVE); 23D: "This can't be!" ("OH NO!"); 26D: Make __ for it (A RUN); 27D: Interest (SAKE); 29D: Amazon.com ID (ISBN); 32D: Fair (EXPO); 34D: Prune (SNIP); 35D: You might see one on a woodpile (TARP); 40D: Abrasive sound (RASP); 43D: Lays away (ENTOMBS); 49D: Jordan's only port (AQABA); 50D: Personally train (TUTOR); 51D: Bleachers sign (HI MOM); 53D: Up (AT BAT); 55D: Moon goddess (LUNA); 57D: XC years from now (MMCI); 58D: Not up (ABED); 59D: Extinct pigeon relative (DODO); 62D: "__ Buttermilk Sky": 1946 song (OLE).

02.12 Sat

S A T U R D A Y February 12, 2011
Barry C. Silk

Theme: None

Oh man, I flew through this puzzle. I was dropping in answers that were just fleeting glimpses in my brain. But they just seemed right and it turns out they were. It really is fun to have a puzzle like this once in a while that's not, ya know, a Monday. It's kinda giving my confidence a boost which is awesome with the big tournament just a little more than a month away.

Bullets:

• 1A: Breakfast-on-the-run choice for some (COLD PIZZA). This was actually the last section I filled in. And even with the C and the Zs in place, I still couldn't come up with this one. I don't know. I guess I don't think of COLD PIZZA as breakfast "on-the-run" necessarily. More like breakfast "for-the-lazy."
• 22A: Four-time Daytona 500 champ Yarborough (CALE). Learned of his existence from crosswords.
• 23A: Resident on the Arno (PISAN). European rivers have never been my strong suit but it apparently has finally sunk into my hard head that the Arno is in Italy.

• 33A: Parades (SASHAYS). I think I'm going to start SASHAYing around the PuzzleHouse more frequently.
• 39A: Designer of Dulles Airport's main terminal (SAARINEN). This is really the only place I got stuck. I was all, "It's a really, really famous architect. He's in the puzzle all the time! What the f*** is his name?? It's not Frank Lloyd Wright. It's not I.M. Pei." And from I.M. Pei, I actually took a tangent over to Ang Lee. For some reason, they inhabit the same part of my brain. So then I got disgusted with myself, "No, no, no, Ang Lee is the director, not the architect, what is wrong with you?!" I needed see the two As right next to each other before I had my D'OH moment.
• 58A: Colorado's __ Park (ESTES). You might recall that the PuzzleFamily spent their summer vacation in ESTES Park this past summer, so this one came easy.

• 1D: Will supplements (CODICILS). Is this one of those words that everybody knows, or is it just something I've picked up from working around lawyers pretty much my whole life?
• 4D: Titled rapper (DR. DRE). We don't usually see his whole name in the grid, and it looks pretty cool!
• 5D: "El Condor __": Simon & Garfunkel song (PASA).



• 11D: Album before "Help!" (BEATLES VI). It wouldn't be a Barry Silk puzzle without an oldies reference.

• 23D: Clipped style (PONYTAIL). I'm not crazy about this clue. I don't think you need clips for a PONYTAIL. The letters kept filling themselves in and I resisted the whole way.
• 39D: It means "traveling companion" in Russian (SPUTNIK). I did not know that.

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Everything Else — 10A: Put to shame (ABASH); 15A: Work on a table (OPERATION); 16A: Martinique volcano (PELEE); 17A: Driven to have (DEAD SET ON); 18A: Not as bright (PALER); 19A: Structural opening? (INFRA-); 20A: When parents may need to call their kids (MEAL TIME); 25A: Sediment (LEES); 26A: Hot feeling (IRE); 27A: Corporeal (BODILY); 28A: Fluid dynamics phenomenon (EDDY); 29A: Makes privy to (LETS IN ON); 31A: Arcade game nos. (PTS.); 34A: Croat's neighbor (SLOVENE); 38A: München-to-Wien heading (OST); 40A: Service expert (ACER); 43A: Meat garnishes (ASPICS); 45A: GPS determination (LAT.); 46A: Encircled (GIRT); 47A: Busy (IN USE); 48A: Entangle (MIRE); 49A: Knighted son of King Ban (LANCELOT); 51A: Speleologist (CAVER); 52A: Words after follow or blow (A LEAD); 53A: Sitcom array (ONE-LINERS); 56A: Like some investments (RISKY); 57A: Boarded en masse (PILED INTO); 59A: Up-and-down time? (SKI SEASON); 2D: Place to set up camp (OPEN AREA); 3D: Ads, perhaps (LEAFLETS); 6D: Mineral suffix (-ITE); 7D: ZENMED target (ZIT); 8D: Enhances the details (ZOOMS IN); 9D: Temper (ANNEAL); 10D: Range, e.g.: Abbr. (APPL.); 12D: Teamed up (ALLIED); 13D: Looked (SEEMED); 14D: Joan of Arc's crime (HERESY); 21D: Wherever (ANYPLACE); 24D: Lifetime exchange for many (I DO'S); 27D: Fairness obstacle (BIAS); 30D: Strawberry dessert (SHORTCAKE); 32D: Rocky crests (TORS); 34D: Je ne __ quoi (SAIS); 35D: Invigorates (ENLIVENS); 36D: Having a better chance of recognizing (NEARER TO); 37D: Begins (ENTERS ON); 40D: Blazing (AGLARE); 41D: Tadalafil brand (CIALIS); 42D: __ Evans, Chubby Checker's birth name (ERNEST); 44D: Peepers (SNOOPS); 48D: Crosswords in the 1920s, e.g. (MANIA); 50D: Slow Churned ice cream (EDY'S); 51D: Fungi ending (-CIDE); 54D: "The Book of __": 2010 Denzel Washington film (ELI); 55D: "__ Troyens": Berlioz opera (LES).

01.22 Sat

S A T U R D A Y

January 22, 2011
Barry C. Silk

[Note from PuzzleGirl: This is the one week out of the year where I'm going to just mention that there is a donation button over in the sidebar. Please read my pitch for donations at the beginning of Monday's write-up here. And thanks so much for being here and for all the kind notes I've received in the last couple days.]
Theme: None

I solved this puzzle while watching college wrestling on TV, so I didn't give it my full attention and can't really tell how hard it is, but I know I liked it. Lots of good sparkly fill and only a couple groaners. I'm looking at you, DARERS! You too, C-D-E! (33A: Challengers / 22A: Letter run.) I can't decide how I feel about SCRATCH AWL (28D: Point maker). I've never heard of it, but I think it might be kinda cool. With only some of the letters in place (and without looking at the clue), I thought it was going to be SCREECH OWL. Ha! Make sure never to use your SCRATCH AWL on your SCREECH OWL! They hate that! But SCRATCH AWL was an entry in one of the four triple-ten stacks in this grid. And every other entry in those sections is solid, if not awesome. The only one I don't really like is ELECTORATE (67A: Voters), but that's just because it looks too much like EXPECTORATE to me which is obviously a personal problem.

HAha! PuzzleHusband just asked if I needed help with the blog. He told me that he recently won Blogger Magazine's Blogger of the Year Award. Pretty sure he's making that up. Ya know what, though? One day I'm gonna let him write a blog post and then you all will just appreciate me that much more. Now he's watching a show about the Mexican drug trade and says he wants his new nickname to be "El Chapo." And he's going to work on a nickname for me. This is what my life is like, in case you were wondering.

Bullets:

• 15A: Like some avian plumage (IRIDESCENT). I'm sure peacocks aren't the only ones with IRIDESCENT plumage, but that was the first picture that came to my mind.
• 20A: Union requirement (DUES). I had a bad feeling for a minute that the "union" in the clue meant "wedding" and that the answer might be RING, which would be … bad. Since, ya know, a RING isn't actually required. I was ready to get all self-righteous and fire off a snippy email to Rich, but then I decided to just chill and it turned out my first instinct was wrong anyway. Funny how often that happens.

• 23A: Aid for making columns (TABS). Yes, yes, yes, Thank You! TABS are what you should use to make columns. TABS! Not spaces! If you use spaces your columns won't line up properly. And if they're not going to Line Up Properly then why the hell bother having columns? (Maybe you can tell I'm something of a word processing snob.)
• 26A: Flu treatment, at times (INHALER). Huh. I've only heard of INHALERs used for asthma, not for the flu. But hey, if it works, I'm all for it.
• 34A: Three-time Grammy Award winner for comedy (CHRIS ROCK). I can't believe I was able to find this clip. I thought for sure I'd have to send SethG out for it. (And no worries, it's clean.)
• 37A: "Same here" ("ME TOO"). Tried DITTO first.
• 44A: Michigan city where the first Domino's Pizza opened (YPSILANTI). Well, it's got that going for it.

• 57A: Holly portrayer (BUSEY). Did Natalie Wood play Holly Golightly in "Breakfast at Tiffany's"? Nope, that was Audrey Hepburn. Well, that wouldn't have helped me anyway since this clue is referring to Buddy Holly. I once saw a really funny tweet from Gary Busey, but just now when I went back to find it, it turns out it's not really Gary Busey, it's just a fake Gary Busey. Damn.
• 1D/7D: Something read during a lecture? (RIOT ACT). That's all kindsa awesome.

• 9D: Lecture reaction, perhaps (ENNUI). Again! I'm getting really bored with ENNUI showing up in the puzzle every day! (See what I did there?) Also Casey KASEM (36D: 1985 National Association of Broadcasters Hall of Fame inductee). Was he just in yesterday's puzzle? Or is that some other puzzle I'm thinking of? Well, it was recently anyway.
• 29D: "That's news to me!" ("I HAD NO IDEA!"). With some of the crosses in place, I first tried "I DIDN'T KNOW." I like the real answer better.
• 51D: Silvery food fish (SMELT). Wait, does "food fish" mean it's fish that people eat or that it's fish you use to, I don't know, feed animals or something? I'm confused. In any case, SMELT doesn't sound like something a human should eat. But maybe it's not something humans eat, so it's all good.
• 64D: "Lookin' Out My Back Door" band, briefly (CCR). Yessiree.

Crosswordese 101 Round-up:

• 48A: First name in architecture (EERO).
• 61A: Court edge (AD IN).
• 2D: First name in humor (ERMA).
• 11D: Turkish bigwig (AGA).
• 40D: Former Maltese currency (LIRA).
• 60D: River of Flanders (YSER).

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Everything Else — 1A: Vacation destination (RESORT AREA); 11A: Invoice nos. (AMTS.); 16A: Sikh leader (GURU); 17A: Almighty (OMNIPOTENT); 18A: Rush order (ASAP); 19A: Café container (TASSE); 28A: Sample, in a way (SIP); 31A: Flights (LAMS); 38A: 69-Across source (RAIN); 39A: Popular toast (SKOAL); 41A: Morning or evening, e.g. (NOUN); 42A: Let in (ADMIT); 46A: One- to ten-yr. investments (T-NOTES); 49A: Org. that included the Benelux countries (EEC); 50A: Waist management items (CORSETS); 52A: Big mouths (MAWS); 54A: Covered up (HID); 55A: 19-Across prefix (DEMI-); 63A: Special treatments (RED CARPETS); 66A: Sport (WEAR); 68A: Singing syllables (LA LA); 69A: Urban runoff cause (STORM WATER); 3D: Some are deadly (SINS); 4D: Lyric poet (ODIST); 5D: Nullifies (REPEALS); 6D: General on a menu (TSO); 8D: Marsh stalk (REED); 10D: Be present (ATTEND); 12D: It helps maintain posture (MUSCLE TONE); 13D: Silk Road component (TRADE ROUTE); 14D: Like some fast planes (SUPERSONIC); 21D: Bedroom accessory (SHAM); 24D: They need tending (BARS); 25D: Like some 24-Down (SMOKY); 27D: Play area (ARENA); 30D: Existing at the beginning (PRIMORDIAL); 32D: Reach (SCOPE); 35D: FDR, HST, etc. (INITS.); 43D: Miffed, with "off" (TEED); 45D: Uncultivated (LOWBROW); 47D: Roughly 35-cubic-foot measures (STERES); 53D: Old Toyota (SUPRA); 56D: Logical beginning? (IDEO-); 58D: Pants part (SEAT); 59D: Usher ending, once (-ETTE); 60D: River of Flanders (YSER); 62D: Gp. with many pieces (NRA); 65D: Bill source (ATM).

01.01 Sat

S A T U R D A Y

January 1, 2011
Barry C. Silk

Theme: None

Howdy, puzzle fans. PuzzleGirl has been called away to babysit Rex Parker's blog, so you're stuck with me (Doug) today. Yep, we do all the hard work while Rex gets drunk on appletinis on some beach in Florida. That's because he's the King of Crossworld and the rest of us are mere peons.

Happy New Year! Welcome to the first puzzle of Oh-Eleven. I know, I know. I've already been told I shouldn't call it "Oh-Eleven," but I like how it sounds, so I'm going to go with it for a while.

Nice to kick off the year with a Barry Silk puzzle. I met Barry at the 2008 American Crossword Puzzle Tournament, and we've been friends ever since. There are a few things I expect to see in a Silk puzzle: '50s & '60s music, computer & technical terms, Philadelphia Phillies, and scrabbly letters. The only thing missing today is the Phillies entry. That's OK. I can do without thinking about the Phillies and their scary pitching staff right now. For the music, we have ELENORE; for the technical entries, we have ENIAC, MSEC and QUANTUM COMPUTER; and as for scrabbly letters, I see three Q's, two Z's, one J, and one K. Barry also included shout-outs to two crossword luminaries: MERL (55D: Reagle of "Wordplay") and ANGELA (1D: PuzzleGirl's alter ego).

Bullets:

• 8A: Game with beehive-shaped pieces (PACHISI). I know what the beehive pieces look like, but I couldn't find a picture of them anywhere. This section of the puzzle was the hardest for me to finish. I wasn't thinking about MAGGOTS at 18A (thank goodness) and PACHISI wasn't coming to mind either. Eventually I'M OVER IT (12D: "It's okay now") broke it open for me.
• 36A: Experimental processor (QUANTUM COMPUTER). I assume this was the seed entry that Barry built the puzzle around. My favorite model is the "Rare-earth-metal-ion-doped inorganic crystal based quantum computer." Maybe Barry can drop by and explain that one to us.
• 62A: "You're my pride and joy, et cetera" girl in a Turtles hit (ELENORE). Wow, that has got to be one of weirdest love song lyrics I've ever heard. So what's the story? The Turtles' record company had been hounding them for another "Happy Together," their biggest hit. So they quickly wrote this uninspired song ("Gee I think you're swell") and it went on to become a big hit despite their best efforts at sabotage. Howard Kaylan of The Turtles explained: "It was my feeling that they would listen to how strange and stupid the song was and leave us alone. But they didn't get the joke. They thought it sounded good. Truthfully, though, the production on 'Elenore' was so damn good. Lyrically or not, the sound of the thing was so positive that it worked. It certainly surprised me." (Thanks to songfacts.com).

• 4D: Pou __: vantage point (STO). Too French for me. This was the only entry I found to be a complete mystery.
• 24D: Actor __ Ivory Wayans (KEENEN). I couldn't remember whether this was spelled KEENAN or KEENEN. Keenan Wynn has an "a" and Keenen Ivory Wayans has an "e." Who names their kid Keenan/Keenan anyway?
• 35D: "War and Peace," e.g. (EPIC). I plan to read War and Peace someday, just so I can say I've read it. Or I could just say I've read it. That would easier.

• 36D: Fictional harpooner (QUEEQUEG). From Moby-Dick. His harpoon never leaves his side. He even shaves with it. I did read Moby-Dick once. (Really!) The unabridged version with long chapters on whale physiology, blubber harvesting, etc. It was worth reading, but I wouldn't do it again.
• 39D: Tamarin relative (MARMOSET). Cool word. Tamarins and marmosets are both types of little monkeys. They look kinda cute, but you wouldn't want one in your house.
• 44D: One often has a colon in its title (SEQUEL). Excellent clue. A classic example is Breakin' 2: Electric Boogaloo.

Thanks for the fun puzzle today, Barry. See you all tomorrow.

Crosswordese 101 Round-up:

• 19A: Julliet is part of it (ETE).
• 43A: Signs of success (SROS).

Everything Else — 1A: Builds up considerably (AMASSES); 15A: Avian activity (NESTING); 16A: Cruel (INHUMAN); 17A: Start working (GETONIT); 18A: Common bait (MAGGOTS); 20A: Chess stratagem (GAMBIT); 22A: Pop singer/songwriter Sands (EVIE); 23A: Steal (LURK); 25A: Yarborough of NASCAR (CALE); 26A: Fumble (ERR); 27A: It takes your breath away (APNEA); 29A: Normandy beach (JUNO); 31A: One with a spare in his boot (BRIT); 32A: F1 neighbor (ESC); 34A: Put out (ETHERIZE); 40A: Like eagles (UNDERPAR); 41A: Do a typical teenager's job (SIT); 42A: Nobel Prize subj. (ECON); 45A: Some Wi-Fi offerers (CAFES); 49A: Great time (EON); 50A: Processing time meas. (MSEC); 52A: Word with punch or party (LINE); 53A: Bit of wit (QUIP); 55A: Muezzin's temple (MOSQUE); 57A: Keep out (BAR); 58A: Increases (UPSIZES); 60A: Title lost love in a Poe poem (ULALUME); 63A: Fifth Greek letter (EPSILON); 64A: Unified whole (GESTALT); 65A: Expose (LAYBARE); 1D: German chancellor Merkel (ANGELA); 2D: Rendezvous (MEETUP); 3D: Opposite of ahead (ASTERN); 5D: Do a number (SING); 6D: Room-sized computer (ENIAC); 7D: U.S. Army E-9 (SGTMAJ); 8D: Antipasto veggie (PIMIENTO); 9D: It may be gross: Abbr. (ANAT); 10D: Small fee? (CHG); 11D: Quite significant (HUGE); 13D: Mock (SATIRIZE); 14D: Editor, at times (INSERTER); 21D: Early hospital services insurer (BLUECROSS); 28D: Celestial sci. (ASTR); 30D: Units measured by a multimeter (OHMS); 31D: Painful, as honesty (BRUTAL); 33D: Afternoon service items (CUPS); 37D: Separate (UNCOUPLE); 38D: Hunks (ADONISES); 46D: Leg bone (FIBULA); 47D: Bewitch (ENAMOR); 48D: Tranquil (SERENE); 51D: Apology ending (CULPA); 54D: Ice cream purchase (PINT); 56D: Relaxed (EASY); 59D: Suffix with Meso- (ZOA); 61D: Stack site: Abbr. (LIB).

S A T U R D A Y December 11, 2010 Barry C. Silk

Theme: None

This was a nice puzzle to tackle after a long day of shopping. PuzzleHusband's office holiday party is tomorrow night so I needed a new fancy dress. And, oh my God, you wouldn't believe the sparkly shoes I got! I'm not really into dressing up that much, but I'm kinda looking forward to putting this particular outfit on. Sparkly shoes!

Anyway. I had a little trouble in the northeast but everywhere else I was able to piece together from crosses more or less smoothly. The first problem I had was entering "ghosts" where GHOULS was supposed to go (22A: Halloween sightings?). That gave me *AGET for 7D, which obviously didn't work. It also gave me LSSTRE for 20D: Brilliance, in Bristol, a mistake I didn't notice for quite a while and which turned out to be the key to the whole mess. The L finally made BAGEL appear (7D: Follower of everything?) and then ::head-slap:: BEN E. KING! (7A: "Spanish Harlem" singer) That's a really tricky answer, dontcha think?! With the middle initial and all? I kept thinking "Is there someone named Gene King? Is it just a last name I've never heard of? Lenekind? Wenekint?" Yeah, it was ugly.

Highlights of the grid for me include CONCRETE JUNGLE (30A: Dangerous inner city area), PANDORA'S BOX (24D: Repository of Greek mythology), and NANOTECHNOLOGY (38A: Subject of Michael Crichton's "Prey"). Awesome long answers.

Bullets:

• 17A: Dalí had a pet one (OCELOT). I learned this while looking for a picture to post with a Dalí reference recently. I knew it was an unusual animal, but couldn't actually come up with it without crosses though.
• 18A: Sitcom with a robot named Hymie (GET SMART). This show is far enough before my time that I don't know a lot of the details, but I'm nonetheless always happy to see it.

• 48A: Inventor who received a lifetime achievement Grammy in 1970 (MOOG). He died recently. Let me see when … 2005. Man time really flies. Even when you're not having fun.
• 49A: Tarot suit (CUPS). Other tarot suits are swords and … pentacles and, um, some other stuff.
• 1D: Event for 41-Across (PROM).
• 4D: Woody Allen film (ZELIG). I've always had some vague knowledge of this particular movie, but the only reason I came up with it quickly today is because it appeared in a Woody Allen–themed New York Times puzzle recently.
• 12D: "Wicked Game" singer Chris (ISAAK). I prefer this song.
  
• 31D: She "sets my heart awhirl," in a 4 Seasons hit (CANDY GIRL). This answer made me go watch a video of New Edition's 1983 version of "Candy Girl" (totally different song). Wow. There are several points in the video where the boys do some kind of dance move that looks like they're trying to be sexy. I'm sure back in the day I thought that was cool but oh my God! They're like twelve years old! Now that I'm at *ahem* a different period in my life, I see how mismatched tween boys and girls look when it comes to maturity. In one part of the song, they refer to their "old ladies" and when they show the girls I honestly thought for a minute that maybe they were showing their moms. But I'm rambling. I was going to post the video here but I'm going to spare you. If you just can't help yourselves, it's here.
• 37D: Part of MS-DOS: Abbr. (SYS.). I only know what the O and the second S stand for, so I was in luck today.

Crosswordese 101 Round-up:

• 28A: New York and Chicago have the oldest ones in the Americas (ELS).
• 39A: "The Chronic" Dr. (DRE).
• 10D: Cincinnati trio? (ENS).
• 42D: Nice friends (AMIES).
• 46D: Cousins of foils (ÉPÉES).

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Everything Else — 1A: Psychiatrist's recommendation (PROZAC); 15A: NFL team named for a Poe poem (RAVENS); 16A: Male models, often (ADONISES); 19A: Reason for an award (MERIT); 20A: TV host with a substantial car collection (LENO); 21A: Morning choice (JAVA); 24A: __ face (POKER); 25A: Music-licensing org. (BMI); 29A: Circulation aid (FAN); 36A: Munsee-speaking people (DELAWARE INDIANS); 40A: Gas: Pref. (AER-); 41A: 1-Down attendees: Abbr. (SRS.); 42A: Polyester used in casting (ALKYD); 45A: Topsy-turvy state (BEDLAM); 50A: Old Asian title (SAHIB); 54A: Gall (IRRITATE); 56A: Scour, e.g. (ABRADE); 57A: Weaken (ENERVATE); 58A: Easy to handle (DOCILE); 59A: Great Lakes routes (SEA LANES); 60A: O, in many cases (OXYGEN); 2D: Tear (RACE); 3D: Through (OVER); 5D: Synonymous with, with "for" (ANOTHER WORD); 6D: Gary hrs. (CST); 8D: Perfect places (EDENS); 9D: Say __: refuse (NO TO); 11D: Eastern leader since 1994 (KIM JONG-IL); 13D: Courage (NERVE); 14D: The sun is one (G STAR); 23D: Fatty acid ester (OLEATE); 25D: Alphabet trio (BCD); 26D: Big name in faucets (MOEN); 27D: At Dodger Stadium, briefly (IN L.A.); 29D: Pouring aid (FUNNEL); 32D: Continental trade gp. (EEC); 33D: Holy wars (JIHADS); 34D: Vientiane's land (LAOS); 35D: Caltech grad's occ., often (ENGR.); 43D: Greene of "Bonanza" (LORNE); 44D: North __, 11-Down's country (KOREA); 45D: Mesa's cousin (BUTTE); 47D: Mount __, New York's highest peak (MARCY); 49D: "Brian's Song" Emmy nominee (CAAN); 51D: Reagan secretary of state (HAIG); 52D: Not engaged (IDLE); 53D: "It's __ too long" (BEEN); 55D: Knoxville-based agcy. (TVA); 56D: Bother (ADO).

S A T U R D A Y November 20, 2010 Barry C. Silk

Theme: None

This was a really smooth solve for me. Nothing was super easy, but it all fell together nicely with the crosses. The only real trouble I had was up in the Maine area where I threw "Fannie Mae" without really thinking about. Then I couldn't make sense of any of the acrosses up there (obviously). I was pretty sure LOX was right (10D: Deli delicacy). I DON'T CARE and TEN looked good (13D: "Whatever" / 14D: Number of hydrogen atoms in butane). But I didn't have a guess for 11D: Exec. So I did something I always say I'm going to do when I get in a spot like that, but I rarely ever actually do. I just erased everything in that corner and started over. I started with LOX and I DON'T CARE and (ta-da!) without FANNIE in there messing everything up, it all came together swimmingly.

Bullets:

• 1A: "Finding a pencil," to Broadway's Charlie Brown (HAPPINESS). No idea where this clue was going until I had a couple crosses in place.

• 18A: Noble gas (XENON). Are there any noble gasses besides XENON? Not in CrossWorld there aren't.
• 19A: Fashion model Wek (ALEK). Needed every cross on this one.
• 22A: "Parker Spitzer" airer (CNN). I'm kinda surprised that show hasn't been canceled yet.
• 33A: Koala bear, e.g. (MISNOMER). I guess a koala bear isn't really a bear. It looks like a bear but it's … not.
• 54A: Carrier units, briefly (ACS). I don't know what this means.
• 57A: She played Linda in "Arthur" (LIZA). I totally forgot that she was in that movie! I guess Bo Derek was a little distracting. Oh wait that's not even the right movie. Dudley Moore was in more than one movie? Huh.
• 60A: Peru was its leading exporter in 2009 (ASPARAGUS). Yum.

• 64A: __ the hole (ACE IN). I must watch too much golf. The first thing I thought of was GET IN.
• 66A: British satellite entertainment option (SKY TV). Never heard of this, but crosses took care of it.
• 2D: Predecessor of Ginger (ADELE). Adele Astair was Fred Astair's dance partner before Ginger Rogers came along.
• 24D: Hangs around (LINGERS). Tried "loiters" first.
• 26D: 1969 rock opera (TOMMY). How is it possible that TOMMMY was that long ago?!?
• 34D: Early rules for it were developed at McGill University in the 1870s (ICE HOCKEY). I'm not 100% sure where McGill University is, but something tells me it's up north somewhere. Yep, Canada.

• 37D: Makeup option (ROUGE).
• 40D: Phil, say (NL'ER). And there you have it. The Philadelphia reference. Now you know for sure it was really Barry.

Crosswordese 101 Round-up:

• 56A: Formerly (NÉE).
• 25D: Meeting place in 31-Across (STOA).
• 35D: Island near Eigg (SKYE).
• 36D: Rock genre (EMO).

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Everything Else — 10A: Proper (LEGIT); 15A: Like climbing the walls? (IDIOMATIC); 16A: Common compound (OXIDE); 17A: Scoundrel (REPROBATE); 20A: What 'n' may mean (AND); 23A: Recipient of a record 16 acting Oscar nominations (MERYL STREEP); 28A: Roy Orbison's "__ Over" (IT'S); 30A: Robert who played Sam Fujiyama on "Quincy, M.E." (ITO); 31A: Pindus Mountains site (GREECE); 38A: Big name in financial advice (ORMAN); 39A: Playing surface with 24 points (BACKGAMMON BOARD); 41A: Flower also called a marguerite (OXEYE); 42A: Warning words (YOU'LL SEE); 43A: Domain (SPHERE); 45A: "How about that!" ("GEE!"); 46A: Gp. with the 1979 top-10 album "Discovery" (ELO); 47A: It's given for a second (SILVER MEDAL); 58A: It's a joint (ANKLE); 65A: Donut, possibly (SPARE TIRE); 67A: Fare computer (TAXI METER); 1D: Whiskey's Walker (HIRAM); 3D: Proverbial payee (PIPER); 4D: Daffy contemporary (PORKY); 5D: E-mail qualifier (IMO); 6D: Pick up (NAB); 7D: Letter from 31-Across (ETA); 8D: Lute cousin (SITAR); 9D: Vista (SCENE); 11D: Suit (EXEC); 12D: HUD corp. since 1968 (GINNIE MAE); 21D: What a tiny circle may signify: Abbr. (DEG.); 25D: Meeting place in 31-Across (STOA); 27D: Snag (PROBLEM); 29D: Texter's command (SEND); 32D: Desire personified (EROS); 33D: Quantum theory pioneer (MAX PLANCK); 39D: Big name in audio (BOSE); 44D: A, overseas (EIN); 48D: In any case, with "at" (LEAST); 49D: Piaggio transportation line (VESPA); 50D: Delight (ELATE); 51D: One, for one (DIGIT); 52D: Color similar to Brandeis blue (AZURE); 53D: Surgery tool (LASER); 55D: Cut (SLIT); 58D: Digital camera inserts (AA'S); 59D: Letter carrier: Abbr. (ENV.); 61D: Goddess of peace (PAX); 62D: Hebrew name meaning "lion" (ARI); 63D: Stage occurring several times a night, briefly (REM).

S A T U R D A Y October 16, 2010 Barry C. Silk

Theme: None


I enjoyed the struggle of this puzzle today. I had a couple of trouble spots, but managed to piece it all together eventually. Some of the longer fill is just awesome. Look, I'm as tired of hearing about TIGER WOODS as the next person, but seeing him right there next to ZERO MOSTEL is pretty cool (30D: Three-time U.S. Open champ / 31D: He played Max Bialystock in "The Producers"). The trouble down in that corner came when I entered Lao-TZE instead of 30A: Lao-TZU. I felt kind dumb mixing those two guys up when I realized my mistake, but now that I've looked it up I see that both my answer and the correct answer are ways of referring to the same person.

Things that I just flat-out didn't know:

• 17A: USAF plane for limited runways (STOL). Stands for "Short Take-Off and Landing." So it's not one specific type of plane, it's a way of describing the types of planes that are used, as the clue says, for limited runways.
• 12D: Manny with 150 career pinch hits (MOTA). MOTA played for a couple other teams before settling with the L.A. Dodgers in 1969. After he retired from playing, he joined the Dodger coaching staff and is still a coach today.
• 13D: Hungarian wine region (EGER).
• 47D: 1966 U.S. Open champ Fred (STOLLE). After Funk and Couples, I'm out of Freds. And as it turns out, this clue is about tennis, not golf.

And I can't believe how long it took me to get PHILLIES (35A: 2008 World Series champs) considering that I know damn well Barry likes to include both Philadelphia and baseball in his grids!

Bullets:

• 5A: Younger partner (JESSE JAMES). Turns out a guy named Cole Younger ran with the outlaw Jesse James. Who knew? I thought this clue was looking for a phrase like "older and wiser" only "younger and [something]." But I couldn't think of anything.
• 18A: They need to be transcribed (STENO NOTES). The other day at work, my supervisor asked me if I had a recommendation for a book that would teach her shorthand. Hey, I'm old but I'm not that old!
• 23A: Crime show in its 11th season (CSI). Is it possible that this show has been on this long?
• 26A: "Per ardua ad __": RAF motto (ASTRA). "Through adversity to the stars."
• 40A: Fiend (OGRE). Unless it's a crossword fiend. That kind of fiend is definitely not an ogre.
• 41A: Stiff's nickname (EL CHEAPO). I thought "stiff" in this clue meant a dead body. Not sure what that says about me.

• 50A: Result in a roped-off area, briefly (TKO). A TKO (technical knock-out) might be the end result of a boxing match, which takes place in an area surrounded by ropes.
• 56A: Cobra-killing carnivore (MONGOOSE). Were we just talking about "meerkat" the other day? That was the only thing I could think of here. I knew it wasn't right, but for some reason meerkat and mongoose occupy the same part of my brain and I just couldn't distinguish them.
• 58A: Networking asset (SHARED FILE). With the -ILE in place, I thought this would be some kind of SMILE.
• 64A: Agent's accounts (SPY STORIES). I kept parsing this "spy's [something]," which kept me from figuring it out for quite a while.

• 1D: Southwestern national park, or the primary plant that grows there (JOSHUA TREE). JOSHUA TREE National Park is in southern California. Pretty sure they shot an episode of "Entourage" there once.
• 10D: Flower in the amaryllis family (JONQUIL). Can you get more Scrabbly than the JONQUIL?
• 14D: Part of SSS: Abbr. (SYST.). Selective Service SYSTem.
• 25D: Accepted principle (AXIOM). With the -IOM in place I actually wrote in IDIOM. Which makes no sense at all.
• 29D: Disney acronym (EPCOT). "Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow." I always forget this is an acronym and think it's somebody's name.
• 42D: Like wind and surf (ERODENT). This one gave me a lot of trouble. I tried EROSIVE and ERODING before I finally got close to the correct answer but didn't know if it should end in ENT or ANT.
• 60D: French iron (FER). Didn't know this one at all (I bet SethG did though!), but it was pretty easy to infer given that many words related to iron start with FER.

Crosswordese 101 Round-up:

• 63A: Sidewalk sale items (ADES).
• 7D: Proof mark (STET).
• 9D: Expressive rock genre (EMO).

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Everything Else — 1A: Bring together (JOIN); 15A: Bone, to Benito (OSSO); 16A: Field for bug bugs (ENTOMOLOGY); 19A: Surgical instrument that stops bleeding (HEMOSTAT); 21A: Ice cream choice (QUART); 22A: A, in Arles (UNE); 24A: Modem speed unit (BAUD); 28A: Pope before Paul V (LEO XI); 33A: Bitter outburst (TIRADE); 37A: Baseball stats (RBIS); 38A: Small opening? (MICRO-); 43A: Formed from (MADE OF); 45A: Some MIT grads (EES); 46A: Screams (RIOTS); 48A: Manhattan Project notable (FERMI); 49A: Forward (BOLD); 52A: Earned (WON); 53A: Equally hot (AS MAD); 61A: Scribbles (JOTS); 62A: Scotch part? (PINE NEEDLE); 65A: Bikini component (ISLE); 2D: Apparent (OSTENSIBLE); 3D: Strength-training exercises (ISOMETRICS); 4D: Court plea, briefly (NOLO); 5D: Kids (JESTS); 6D: Necessitate (ENTAIL); 8D: Didactic term of address (SON); 11D: Voiced (ALOUD); 20D: Large number (SCAD); 24D: Quantum physics pioneer (BOHR); 27D: Impetuous (RASH); 32D: Act diplomatically (USE FINESSE); 34D: Spam, at times (EMAIL); 36D: Rich supply (LODE); 39D: 2001 high-tech debut (IPOD); 44D: Clueless, after "in" (A FOG); 49D: Discloses (BARES); 51D: Places for pads (KNEES); 53D: Ancient royal symbols (ASPS); 54D: Crow's-nest sighting (SHIP); 55D: Myriad (MANY); 56D: It covers the 51-Down (MIDI); 57D: Resort NNE of Ventura (OJAI); 59D: __ gratias (DEO).

S A T U R D A Y September 25, 2010 Barry C. Silk

Theme: None


I solved this puzzle late last night after I got home from book club ("The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake." General consensus: awesome concept, mediocre execution, unsatisfying ending. I actually liked it more than everybody else.) I really didn't have any trouble with the puzzle at all until I got the southwest corner where I just couldn't figure out what the heck was going on. Doesn't help that I entered SOLAR FLAIR before the spelling part of my brain kicked in. Solar flair! Astronomy based "Project Runway"? I don't know. It made me laugh pretty hard when I discovered my mistake. I'd like to say that the all the trouble was caused by the ugly SNEERY (63A: Derisive), but that's just not the case. The rest of that corner is actually really lovely so, in my mind, SNEERY paid off. The real problem is that I think of JAGS as more of "sprees" than 50D: Flings and don't remember ever hearing of 51D: Novelist EVAN Hunter. Rounding out the problems I had in that corner, GARNET is a 61A: Abrasive mineral? Who knew? (Besides Barry, I mean.) And thinking about the fact that 50A: Sterno, for one is a JELLY is really ooking me out for some reason. (Is "ooking" a word? Maybe not, but it gets the point across, doesn't it?)

As I was solving the puzzle I was thinking "Ooh, I wanna talk about this," and "Ooh, I wanna talk about that," so let's get right to it since it's late and I know you all are probably sitting there refreshing your browser every ten seconds because you just can't wait to see what I have to say.

Bullets:

• 9A: Support base (PLINTH). Needed plenty of crosses to get this awesome word.
• 18A: Screwed up (BLEW IT). For some reason I couldn't read the clue as a verb phrase, I was stuck on thinking it was an adjective.

• 37A: Four-time NBA MVP (WILT CHAMBERLAIN). What a treat to see a grid-spanning basketball player in Barry's grid! He's more of a baseball guy, so I was surprised. Also, got it with only the T in place which, obviously, was a big help in keeping my solving going really smoothly.
• 42A: Cox who played Drew in "Deliverance" (RONNY). No idea. RONNY Cox sounds like a back-up singer from the Motown era.
• 53A: Gee (THOU). Very tricky! (Too tricky?) One gee (G) = one grand = one thousand dollars = a THOU.
• 59A: Party animal? (ELEPHANT). That would be the Republican party.
• 1D: Winston Groom hero (GUMP). I totally forgot that "Forrest Gump" the movie was based on a book. And I'm pretty sure I never knew the author's name.
• 2D: Newton or curie (UNIT). These are units of … I don't know. Something science-y.
• 3D: La __: ocean phenomenon (NIÑA). I would kind of like to know the difference between El Niño and La NIÑA. But not enough to look it up right now.

• 8D: Residential street warning (SPEED BUMPS AHEAD). One of the topics of conversation at the book club last night was the unbelievable fight the neighborhood has been involved in this past year about "traffic calming" measures that about half the neighborhood wanted to put in place and the other half thought was some kind of fascist affront to their very beings. The nastiness that ensured was truly bizarre and discouraging in a faith-in-humanity kind of way.
• 11D: Summer cooler (ICE TEA). Yeah, yeah, yeah. Needs a D. I know, I know.
• 21D: Pass on a ketch (SAIL BY). I read this as "Pass on a kVetch" and couldn't figure out what the heck was going on.
• 23D: Tribal Council prop (TORCH). Is this a reference to "Survivor"? 'Cuz that's where my brain went.

• 54D: Former UN weapons inspector Blix (HANS). Poor HANS Blix. I don't imagine I'm the only one who can't remember whether he's the guy who said there were WMD's in Iraq, or if he's the guy who went in and said there were not WMD's in Iraq. Kind of a big difference there. I think if I were the latter, I'd want to make sure people remembered me for the right thing!

Crosswordese 101 Round-up:

• 30A: Mass garb (ALBS).
• 40A: White, in Waikiki (KEA).
• 43A: Old pol. units (SSR'S).
• 26D: Native New Yorkers (ERIES).

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Everything Else — 1A: Places for pieces (GUN RACKS); 15A: Worker's advocate (UNION REP); 16A: Foe of Mark Antony (CICERO); 17A: Imagination (MIND'S EYE); 19A: NEA supporters (PTA'S); 20A: Third of seven: Abbr. (TUES.); 22A: Quantum mechanics subjects (ATOMS); 23A: "Bojangles" Robinson, for one (TAP DANCER); 25A: El Cid player, 1961 (HESTON); 29A: Life lines? (BIO); 33A: Like an excited World Series crowd (AROAR); 34A: Sign of life (PULSE); 36A: Baseball stat (ERA); 41A: Up (HAPPY); 45A: Substitutes for forgotten words (LAS); 46A: Releases (LETS GO); 47A: It may be essential (FATTY ACID); 52A: Vengeful Quaker of fiction (AHAB); 57A: Profits (AVAILS); 62A: Compact (ALLIANCE); 64A: Can't abide (DESPISES); 4D: Angler's supply (RODS); 5D: Q&A part: Abbr. (ANS.); 6D: Greek islander (CRETAN); 7D: Excite (KEY UP); 9D: Pollutant found in NCR paper (PCB); 10D: Color similar to pale plum (LILAC); 12D: Where to get a muffuletta sandwich (NEW ORLEANS); 13D: Garnish (TRIM); 14D: Red __: candy (HOTS); 24D: Narrow margin (NOSE); 25D: Peddles (HAWKS); 27D: Phenomenon that emits X-rays (SOLAR FLARE); 28D: Work with a shuttle (TAT); 31D: Fetch (BRING); 32D: Maker of eneloop rechargeable batteries (SANYO); 34D: Melonlike fruit (PAPAYA); 35D: Didn't get 100, say (ERRED); 38D: Stop order (HALT); 39D: Large amount (LOT); 44D: Hospital solution (SALINE); 46D: Abuses freedom of the press, perhaps (LIBELS); 48D: Texas city named for a president (TYLER); 49D: Valencia street (CALLE); 53D: Golden Triangle native (THAI); 55D: Formerly (ONCE); 56D: Versatile wheels (UTES); 58D: Dump (STY); 60D: Spot (PIP).

S A T U R D A Y September 4, 2010 Barry C. Silk

Theme: None


Good morning and Happy Labor Day Weekend to y'all! Nice Barry Silk offering today. I'm a little surprised not to see what I usually think of as a tip-off that it's Barry's puzzle: references to (a) Philadelphia or (b) baseball. In any case, late start + busy day ahead = straight to bullets.

Bullets:

• 12A: Water potential symbol (PSI). PSI is a Greek letter that's used to represent water potential which, according to Wikipedia, "quantifies the tendency of water to move from one area to another due to osmosis, gravity, mechanical pressure, or matrix effects such as surface tension." Alright-y then.
• 18A: Manhattan liquor (RYE). Also a town in New York not far from Manhattan.
• 34A: Milk sources (TEATS). Wasn't expecting the answer to be quite so … specific.
• 36A: Stumblebums (LUMMOXES). Great word!
• 40A: Pocono and others (RACEWAYS). Got this one through crosses. I thought it was going to be something more like "resort."

• 43A: Virginie et Floride (ÉTATS). French spelling in the clue indicates French answer. As we learned earlier this week in the New York Times puzzle, ÉTATS is STATES spelled backwards!
• 47A: Sound heard very close to your ear (SNIP). Pair this with 2D: Buzz, e.g. (HAIRCUT) and you've got yourself a mini-theme.
• 51A: Spoke Abyssinian? (MEWED). I always think Abyssinian is referring to an ancient people but it's always referring to a cat.
• 66A: Cologne conjunction (UND). And in German (where Cologne is located).
• 68A: Orgs. with chiefs (PD'S). Police Departments.
• 1D: Item for a camp project (T-SHIRT). This would be an item needed for tie-dye day.

• 5D: Mr. Big's org. on "Get Smart" (KAOS). I guess I'm from a different generation. When I see "Mr. Big," I think "Sex and the City," not "Get Smart." Which is actually kind of bizarre since I've never seen "Sex and the City." I did enjoy Chris Noth on Law and Order though.
• 9D: USSR successor (CIS). The Commonwealth of Independent States was esablished upon dissolution of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics in 1991.
• 12D: Seeming contradiction (PARADOX). My first thought was "oxymoron." At least I got the "ox" part right.
• 14D: Summer refreshers (ICE TEAS). Yes, it should be "iced." No, crossword puzzles don't care.
• 24D: Old-fashioned tightening tool (SKATE KEY).



• 26D: Historical Oder River region (SILESIA). Got this one through crosses. I wish there was room in my brain for more stuff.

• 35D: Places for sweaters? (SPAS). Get ready for three tricky clues in a row. In this one, "sweaters" means "people who sweat," not the item of clothing.
• 37D: Physics leader? (META-). META- is a prefix that can be placed in front of the word "physics," thus "leading" it.
• 39D: Fine and dandy: Abbr. (SYNS.). The N here was the last letter I entered into the grid. The cross was making sense to me with the N, but it took a while before I understood that the words "fine" and "dandy" are SYNonymS.
• 64D: SEAL's org. (USN). United States Navy.

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Everything Else — 1A: Symbol of concentration (THINKING CAP); 15A: Noted pier site (SANTA MONICA); 16A: Org. offering the Canine Good Citizen program (AKC); 17A: Rap sheet notes? (HIP HOP MUSIC); 19A: Vexation-plus (IRE); 20A: Irish __ (SEA); 21A: Make potable, in a way (DESALT); 23A: Some phones (RCA'S); 25A: Emit coherent light (LASE); 28A: "Sexy" Beatles woman (SADIE); 29A: Folded parts (TUCKS); 31A: The south of France (MIDI); 33A: __ fide (BONA); 38A: Clearance level (TOP SECRET); 46A: Out of control (AMOK); 49A: Mexican waters (AGUAS); 53A: "Don't __ word!" (SAY A); 55A: -an counterpart (-ENNE); 56A: Hoped (PRAYED); 58A: Polish, say (RUB); 60A: Memorable time (ERA); 61A: Respectful title (SIR); 62A: Stock, usually (LIQUID ASSET); 67A: Calcium oxide (CAUSTIC LIME); 69A: Accepting personal responsibility (ON ONE'S HONOR); 3D: Good way to go (IN PEACE); 4D: High degree (NTH); 6D: Press forward (IMPEL); 7D: Polite turndown (NO MA'AM); 8D: Savanna sighting (GNU); 10D: Biting (ACID); 11D: Shows impatience, in a way (PACES); 13D: View when landing, perhaps (SKYLINE); 22D: Spy's doing (SABOTAGE); 27D: Cabinet dept. (EDUC.); 30D: Store (STOW); 32D: 2002 Literature Nobelist Kertész (IMRE); 40D: Increases sharply (RAMPS UP); 41D: Portmanteau word for a certain native (AMERIND); 42D: Each of them is "one who, in a perilous emergency, thinks with his legs": Bierce (COWARDS); 44D: Receives on the radio (TUNES IN); 45D: Italian Riviera resort (SAN REMO); 48D: Fool's gold (PYRITE); 50D: Two-__: tandem (SEATER); 52D: Car battery ignition system pioneer (DELCO); 54D: Q5 and Q7 (AUDIS); 57D: Anthropologist Fossey (DIAN); 59D: "The Well-Tempered Clavier" composer (BACH); 63D: Locus in __: the place in which (Lat.) (QUO); 65D: Pitch preceder (SLO-).

S A T U R D A Y August 14, 2010 Barry C. Silk

Theme: None


Remember how PuzzleGirl was traveling yesterday? That was to finish her Colorado vacation and get to her New York one. It's time for Lollapuzzoola, Ryan and Brian's annual crossword tournament, and all your favorite crossword bloggers (PuzzleGirl, Orange, Rex Parker, Ryan and Brian) will be there. So you're left with a non-favorite, me, SethG.

We got off to a promising start with 1A: Year in Pope Innocent III's reign (MCC). And I ended with 43A: Under the decks (ALOW), which I dislike far more. I'd say (and have said) that everyone should stop using the a- prefix, but no one uses the a- prefix. The one that means "on", or "in"—a- for "not, without" is fine, of course. Aperiodic or asexual yes, but alow and abed, no. Unless you want to start allowing acar or abicycle. Finally, you can say ahunting, but only if "Heigh ho, the dairy-o" follows soon thereafter.

I say promising because no constructor wants to start off that way, so I could only assume it was there to support some fantastic stuff I was about to uncover. That stuff? 1D: Sanskrit for "great soul" (MAHATMA), 2D: Work with hooks (CROCHET), and 3D: Main (CENTRAL). Turns out, fine, but not exactly fantastic.

The best part of the puzzle were the NE and SW stacks of 11s. Six answers, all solid, and with solid crosses. Er, mostly solid. Some were just okay, and 11D: Dull ending? (-ARD) is brutal. Still, I mostly liked the puzzle.

Some stuff linked to other stuff:

• Space stuff. 18A: Eagle, notably (LUNAR MODULE) crossed 13D: Surpass (ECLIPSE), and 48A: Salyut successor (MIR) was looking on from, well, afar. Let the eagle soar.
• Ocean stuff. 30A: It covers about 20% of the Earth's surface (ATLANTIC) with the cross-linked 57A: Region of the North 30-Across (SARGASSO SEA). The "It" calls out for a noun, but without a definite article or an "Ocean" ATLANTIC feels like an adjective.

Stuff I've never heard of that I entered immediately:

• 15A: "Memories __ Made Of This": 1956 chart-topper (ARE).
• 27A: "Sex and Temperament in Three Primitive Societies" author (MEAD).
• 54A: Toon, familiarly, who debuted in "Devil May Hare" (1954) (TAZ).

Stuff people will have questions about:

• 12D: Ad follower (NAUSEAM). Latin for "to nauseam".
  
• 24A: Bean named for the Italian word for "bean" (FAVA). You know FAVA beans, you just weren't sure that it's from the Italian word for a bean you eat or from the Italian word for head. It's the seed kind, and is unrelated to CAPO.
• 55A: Error result, often (UNEARNED RUN). It's a baseball thing. If you know it you knew that, and if you didn't you don't care. 32D: Ballpark chorus (BOOS) is also baseball, and 31D: Prudential Center team (NETS) is basketball.
• 25D: Portmanteau drink (ALCOPOP). It's got some dictionary support, and some Urban Dictionary support, but no one in the beverage industry calls it that. Smirnoff Ice is an ALCOPOP.
• 47A: Wall St. hedger (ARB). And arbitrageur purchases securities in one market for immediate resale in another in the hope of profiting from the price differential.
  
• 45D: Espoo natives (FINNS). Espoo is the second largest city in Finland. I learned that playing ultimate frisbee in western Australia.
  
• 53D: Where to see some sleepers: Abbr. (RR'S). The sleepers are sleeper cars. Note that I was completely unbothered by the R being in the same puzzle as 26D: It might be a drag (ROAD RACE).

Crosswordese 101 Round-up:

• 58A: German article (DER). I think PuzzleGirl's got a crush. And why shouldn't she?
  

Everything Else — 4A: Versatile crafts item (PIPE CLEANER); 16A: Decisive stroke (COUP DE GRÂCE); 17A: Sweetie (HON); 19A: Fills in for (ACTS AS); 21A: Much cybercommunication, briefly (IM'S); 22A: One of the fam (SIB); 23A: Beat (THROB); 26A: Default consequence, for short (REPO); 28A: See 51-Down (SALE); 29A: "Find out" ("GO ASK"); 32A: 1970s New York mayor (BEAME); 33A: Dessert shaper (JELLO MOLD); 35A: Have an outstanding loan from (OWE TO); 37A: Lengthen (PROTRACT); 41A: Damage indications (SCARS); 42A: They aren't behind you (FOES); 44A: "Listen!" ("HARK!"); 45A: Swell and dandy (FOPS); 46A: Not a good thing to make in a restaurant (SCENE); 49A: Vehement (FIERCE); 50A: "Mr. Television" (MILTON BERLE); 56A: Threshold (EVE); 4D: Techie training site (PC LAB); 5D: Markers (IOU'S); 6D: "I'd like to study philosophy, but I just Kant," e.g. (PUN); 7D: AQI calculator (EPA); 8D: Windows disk designation (C DRIVE); 9D: Auxiliary proposition (LEMMA); 10D: Strong ones may clash (EGOS); 14D: Adidas subsidiary (REEBOK); 20D: Counterworker? (SODA JERK); 24D: Tank (FAIL); 28D: Battleground of 1944 (ST. LÔ); 29D: Moolah (GELT); 34D: G.I. fare (MRE'S); 35D: Tin whistle relative (OCARINA); 36D: Canary, at times (WARBLER); 38D: Tipped off (ALERTED); 39D: Like band shells (CONCAVE); 40D: Grooming tool (TWEEZER); 41D: Detective, in slang (SHAMUS); 42D: Business issue since 1917 (FORBES); 46D: City S of Florence (SIENA); 48D: New Mexico county or its seat (MORA); 49D: Drawing device (FLUE); 51D: With 28-Across, bargain hunters' mecca (TAG); 52D: Shogun's capital (EDO).