03.11 Fri

F R I D A Y
March 11, 2011
Donna S. Levin

Theme: Game show puns — Puns based on the titles of old game shows

Theme answers:

• 17A: Game show about bribery at a checkpoint? (SALE OF THE SENTRY).
• 27A: Game show about an Algerian governor's search for his spouse? (QUEEN FOR A DEY).
• 48A: Game show in which "Stuttering pig" might be a clue? (NAME THAT TOON).
• 63A: Game show in which couples confess indiscretions? (TWO TELL THE TRUTH).

A couple quick announcements before we get to the puzzle. First, a puzzle Rex Parker and I constructed is available today over at Brendan Emmett Quigley's excellent blog. BEQ also interviewed us, so I'm really eager to see if he was able to edit my part down enough to make me sound interesting. Head on over there and find out for yourself!

Second, will I be seeing you in Brooklyn next week? It's not too late to sign up for the big puzzle tournament, you know. It's also pretty much the perfect time to sign up for the other big puzzle tournament, in L.A. on May 1. Oh man, I just realized we're moving that weekend. I hope I can get away. We had a blast at the L.A. tournament last year!

And finally, I've received quite a few personal messages over the last several weeks and I have been unbelievably rude by not responding to them yet. Please know that I appreciate hearing from you (so much!) and I will definitely get back to you in the next couple days. It's just been crazy over here at the PuzzleHouse lately.

Okay, today's puzzle. I like this theme. The game shows are all pretty old, but I think they're well-known enough that you shouldn't have had any trouble coming up with them. SALE OF THE CENTURY and QUEEN FOR A DAY were both before my time. I do remember watching NAME THAT TUNE and TO TELL THE TRUTH as a child. I'll be interested to hear from some younger people though: Are you familiar with these shows? As far as the puns go … well, they're puns. I like that they're all clued as if they're still game shows. My least favorite is QUEEN FOR A DEY. I had QUEEN FOR A in place but wasn't sure what an "Algerian governor" might be called. Maybe that's common knowledge, but it wasn't for me. Wasn't there an actual show where "couples confessed indiscretions"? I remember seeing ads for it and being completely nauseated. I can't imagine it lasted very long, but it's hard to keep up with all the stupid shows out there these days, so maybe it's still around.

So. Okay. That's the theme. As for the fill, it seemed really uneven to me. First of all, there was just a ton of crosswordese:

• 16A: Turow memoir (ONE-L).
• 31A: Muse who inspires poets (ERATO).
• 42A: "Exodus" hero (ARI).
• 67A: Slobbering canine (ODIE).
• 24D: Slaughter on a diamond (ENOS).
• 35D: Woodstock singer before Joan (ARLO).
• 39D: "__ la Douce" (IRMA).
• 51D: Church area (APSE).
• 61D: Italian volcano (ETNA).

[Note: Each word in the above list is a link to the post where we first covered it in our Crosswordese 101 feature.]

To me, that seems like it would be an awful lot of crosswordese even for a Monday, much less for a Friday. On the opposite side of the spectrum, this puzzle also contains some super obtuse cluing. So it felt weird to swing back and forth between entries like ODIE and clues like "Out."

Then there was the stuff I just flat-out didn't know (which I'm not complaining about — that's what I expect on a Friday):

• 33A: One-time neighbor of French Indochina (SIAM).
• 68A: Mobile one of song (DONNA). I like how DONNA snuck her name into the grid! (Even though I don't get the song reference. I mean I get that there's a song where a girl named DONNA either gets around or, I don't know, travels a lot or something. But I don't know the song.)
• 5D: "In __ Speramus": Brown U. motto (DEO).
• 44D: Napoleon vessel? (SNIFTER). I don't know what this means.

Looking at the grid as a whole, well, it definitely has some sparkle (e.g., FINESSE, DELILAH, TREE FARM), and I think if it wasn't for the crosswordese I might have really enjoyed the challenge. But the unevenness just made the whole solving experience feel awkward to me. I'll be interested to hear your thoughts.

Bullets:

• 1A: Equipped with 6-Across (ARMED) and 6A: See 1-Across (GATS). Whenever we have a pair of answers clued like this someone complains about it, and I think that complaint is totally valid. But late in the week, I don't think this kind of challenge is necessarily unfair. It's called a crossword after all. Sometimes (often!) it's the crossing part that's key.
• 14A: Permission (LEAVE). One-word clues are inherently tricky and this one is no exception. I like the aura of formality around this answer: "By your leave …."
• 22A: Elite octet (IVIES). We were just talking about the NCAA basketball tournament "Elite Eight" yesterday, but today the "Elite octet" refers to the eight Ivy League schools.
• 59A: Stage group (CREW). I tried CAST first.
• 71A: Worry about (SWEAT). My favorite clue in the puzzle. "Dont' sweat it!"
• 53D: His Super Bowl MVP performance was his last NFL game (ELWAY). Not a huge football fan so I didn't know this bit of trivia, but am glad to know it now.

• 52D: Out (DATED) and 54D: Out (LOOSE). As I mentioned earlier, one-word clues are inherently tricky. And even more so when you have a particular definition in your head and need to come up with another one! (I like this kind of trickiness.)
• 62D: Comedy routine infielder ... (WHAT) 64D: ... and Bud's partner in the routine (LOU). A reference to the famous "Who's On First?" comedy skit. But you knew that.

Crosswordese 101: In German, the word for the article "a" is EINE. Sometimes EINE will be clued simply as "German article." Other times, the word "article" will appear in the clue, but there will only be a hint that the answer you need is German (e.g., "Aachen article," "Berlin article," "Article in Der Spiegel.") EINE is most often clued using Mozart's well-known piece "EINE kleine Nachtmusik," but today — probably because it's Friday — we get the less-well-known 19D: Strauss's "EINE Nacht in Venedig."

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Everything Else — 10A: May or Ann (CAPE); 15A: Natural shade (ECRU); 20A: Warning (OMEN); 21A: Understanding words (I SEE); 23A: Paragon of redness (BEET); 25A: Maneuver (FINESSE); 32A: 1,000-yr. realm (HRE); 37A: Arabic is one of its two official langs. (ISR.); 38A: Surfer's guide (SITE MAP); 43A: Suffix with grammar (-IANS); 45A: Nonsense (ROT); 46A: Links coup (EAGLE); 52A: Biblical betrayer (DELILAH); 55A: __ dixit (IPSE); 56A: Up in the air (ALOFT); 57A: They may be wild (OATS); 66A: Relax (EASE); 69A: Batik artist (DYER); 70A: Tech support caller (USER); 1D: As well (ALSO); 2D: Chew (out) (REAM); 3D: Gander, e.g. (MALE); 4D: It's as likely as not (EVEN BET); 6D: Bothers (GETS TO); 7D: Dull discomfort (ACHE); 8D: Timber producer (TREE FARM); 9D: Pension start? (SUS-); 10D: Transmits (CONVEYS); 11D: They're not pros (ANTIS); 12D: Famille members (P`ERES); 13D: "Family Ties" mom (ELYSE); 18D: Feudal holding (FIEF); 26D: Notion (IDEA); 27D: Former Cunard fleet member, for short (Q.E. II); 28D: Starry-eyed bear? (URSA); 29D: Make (EARN); 30D: Bonnie Blue's daddy (RHETT); 34D: "I hate the Moor" speaker (IAGO); 36D: Manner (MIEN); 40D: Points of initial progress (TOEHOLDS); 41D: Some motel guests (PETS); 47D: Recanted in embarrassment (ATE CROW); 49D: Der __: Adenauer epithet (ALTE); 50D: "That sly come __ stare": "Witchcraft" lyric (HITHER); 58D: Play to __ (A TIE); 60D: Cryptic character (RUNE); 65D: QB's scores (TD'S).

03.01 Tue

T U E S D A Y
March 1, 2011
Donna S. Levin

Theme: Incognito — The first word of each theme answer is a synonym for "unidentified."

Theme answers:

• 20A: Cop's often-unreliable lead (ANONYMOUS TIP).
• 28A: Retailer's private label (NO-NAME BRAND).
• 50A: Facetious name for a school cafeteria staple (MYSTERY MEAT).
• 56A: "The Gong Show" regular with a paper bag on his head, with "the" (UNKNOWN COMIC).

Happy March, everybody. Seems like there's been a streak of puzzles that — despite their good points — didn't really sit well with me for one reason or another. Thank goodness Donna's here! This was a very smooth puzzle to me. The theme answers are all (every single one of them!) lively and they hang together well as a theme. There's some crosswordese and some fill that's kinda blah, but that's okay on Tuesday, especially if they're offset by sparkly entries like:

• 52A: Checkers demand (KING ME).
• 5D: West Coast ocean concern (TSUNAMI).
• 6D: Mingle (with) (HOBNOB).

All that with the added bonus of a grammar/punctuation lesson — 23A: Apostropheless possessive (ITS) — and I can consider this a solid puzzle all the way around.

Bullets:

• 10A: The man's partner, in a Shaw title (ARMS). The play is called "Arms and the Man." Personally, I've never heard of it. All I could think of was THE SEA. Okay, I admit it. My first thought was actually CHICO.
• 16A: "Trés __!" (BIEN). French!
• 17A: Screw-up (SNAFU). Seems like every time this shows up, someone has never heard of it. It stands for Situation Normal All Fouled Up. There is at least one other F-word that can be used in place of "Fouled."

• 42A: Martial arts-influenced workout (TAE BO). Yep, I bought the videotapes. Pretty sure they're stuffed back in a corner in the basement right now.
• 60A: March Madness org. (NCAA). March Madness refers, of course, to the annual college basketball championship tournaments. As Joon mentioned in the comments yesterday, the phrase "Midnight Madness" also has a connection to college basketball.
• 67A: Row of waiters (LINE). Did you picture a row of aloof-looking, bow-tied men, each with a cloth napkin draped over one forearm? I know I did.
• 68A: Dweebish (NERDY). I resemble that remark!
• 4D: Davenport, e.g. (SOFA). Because TOWN IN IOWA didn't fit.
• 9D: Jane Eyre, e.g. (HEROINE). Struggled mightily to put my finger on the word GOVERNESS, only to find it didn't fit.
• 22D: Reverse (UNDO). Do any of you remember a TV ad from a while back (I think it was for IBM) where a bunch of co-workers are huddled around a computer laughing because they're composing some kind of smart-ass email to their boss (or maybe a client)? The email ends up getting sent, even though that wasn't the intention, and they're all "Unsend! Unsend!" That's the catchphrase we use in the PuzzleHouse whenever we need a do-over.

• 35D: Performed in an aquacade (SWAM). I do not believe I've ever come across the word "aquacade" before, but it was pretty easy to piece together what the answer might be.
• 44D: Cyclone's most dangerous part (EYEWALL). I also don't believe I've ever heard of EYEWALL before. Then again, I've always thought tornados and cyclones were the same thing. (They're not!)
59D: "Moonstruck" Oscar winner (CHER). Oh good. An opportunity to post one of my favorite video clips.

Crosswordese 101 Round-up:

• 36A: Clerical robes (ALBS).
• 47A: RR stop (STA.).
• 70A: WWII carriers (LST'S).

[Follow PuzzleGirl on Twitter.]

Everything Else — 1A: Rollicking good time (BLAST); 6A: "Pipe down!" ("HUSH!"); 14A: Western neckwear (BOLOS); 15A: Leer at (OGLE); 18A: Fuzzy image (BLUR); 19A: Jedi guru (YODA); 26A: Start of a Latin I conjugation (AMO); 27A: Snack for a gecko (INSECT); 32A: Milne hopper (ROO); 33A: Caroline Kennedy, to Maria Shriver (COUSIN); 34A: Three-layer snacks (OREOS); 37A: "The Bachelor" network (ABC); 38A: Laundry (WASH); 45A: Chewed like a beaver (GNAWED); 47A: RR stop (STA.); 54A: Glutton (PIG); 55A: Lic.-issuing bureau (DMV); 61A: Passed with flying colors (ACED); 62A: Up front (AHEAD); 66A: Former U.N. leader Waldheim (KURT); 69A: Evian et al. (SPAS); 71A: Swap (TRADE); 1D: Air gun pellets (BB'S); 2D: Chaney of horror (LON); 3D: Chicken-king link (ALA); 7D: Like an extremely unpleasant situation (UGLY); 8D: Inner city blight (SLUM); 10D: Deep fissure (ABYSS); 11D: Tear gas target (RIOTER); 12D: Sawbones (MEDICO); 13D: Shape up (SNAP TO); 21D: Harbinger (OMEN); 23D: Machu Picchu architect (INCA); 24D: Home Depot buy (TOOL); 25D: Cold shoulder (SNUB); 29D: Right hand: Abbr. (ASST.); 30D: Mechanical worker (ROBOT); 31D: Circumference part (ARC); 37D: "Washboard" muscles (ABS); 39D: Astounded (AWED); 40D: Fabric joint (SEAM); 41D: Rec room centerpiece (HD TV); 43D: 1-Down, e.g. (AMMO); 44D: Cyclone's most dangerous part (EYEWALL); 45D: Harsh (GRIM); 46D: NFLer who used to play in Yankee Stadium (N.Y. GIANT); 47D: Striped stinkers (SKUNKS); 48D: Costner/Russo golf flick (TIN CUP); 49D: Anatolian Peninsula capital (ANKARA); 51D: Some Horace poems (EPODES); 53D: Pesky fliers (GNATS); 57D: "JAG" spin-off (NCIS); 58D: Penny (CENT); 63D: Memorable time (ERA); 64D: Total (ADD); 65D: Color, in a way (DYE).

02.16 Wed

W E D N E S D A Y February 16, 2011
Donna S. Levin


Theme: Executive Animals — A quartet of well-known White House pets.

Theme answers:

• 17A: Game played on a six-pointed star (CHINESE CHECKERS).
• 25A: 1964 Beatles hit (AND I LOVE HER).
• 37A: Trendy aerobics regimen (TAE BO).
• 44A: Diamond-patterned attire (ARGYLE SOCKS).
• 57A: Companion at the end of 17-, 25-, 37- and 44-Across (PRESIDENTIAL PET).

PuzzleGirl is at a John Cougar Mellencamp concert tonight, so this is Doug, holding down the puzzle fort. Wait, I should say she's at a John Mellencamp concert. I think he dropped the "Cougar" part, but I haven't kept up with his career. I remember when he was plain old John Cougar. And if my name was as cool as John Cougar, I wouldn't change it. It's like The Rock wanting people to call him Dwayne Johnson. What's up with that?

"No comment."

Fun theme today from Donna Levin. Did you recognize all the pets? Checkers was Nixon's cocker spaniel, immortalized in the "Checkers Speech." Her was one of LBJ's beagles. The other was named Him. Bo is Obama's Portuguese Water Dog. And Socks was Clinton's cat. At first, I didn't notice BO hiding at the end of the "trendy" TAE BO, so that was a nice post-solve bonus. If you want to read more about the various White House pets, you should pay a visit to the Presidential Pet Museum. The sorriest "pets" belonged to Andrew Johnson. He took care of a family of mice he found living in his bedroom. He placed fresh water next to the fireplace and kept a basket of flour on the floor for them. And he referred to the mice as his "little fellows." I refer to mice as "cat food."

Bullets:

• 5A: Antony listener (ROMAN). The Romans lent Antony their ears.
• 21A: Smart club (MENSA). One of my favorite Columbo episodes, "The Bye-Bye Sky High IQ Murder Case," features a Mensa-like group called the Sigma Society. I have no idea what made me think of that.
• 34A: Peddle (VEND). And who hasn't gotten their hand stuck inside a vending machine?

• 6D: 1991 movie sequel subtitled "The Awakening" (OMEN IV). I don't remember this movie (I tried "Omen II" initially), but it was easy enough to figure out. There's a reason I, and probably you, don't remember it. "Omen IV: The Awakening" was a made-for-TV movie starring...some actors you've never heard of. "Omen V: Hitting Satan's Snooze Button" was a much better film.
• 23D: Coors malt beverage (ZIMA). They stopped selling this stuff in the U.S. in 2008. The wimpy drink mantle has been passed to Smirnoff Ice.

• 31D: "Old" chip producer? (BLOCK). A chip off the old block. Clever.
• 46D: Twinkler in a Paris sky (ÉTOILE). French word for star. And when I say it, it rhymes with "foil."
• 59D: 33 1/3 rpm spinners (LPS). I'm old enough to have owned LPs, and I even remember seeing some old 8-tracks in our garage. But now I've officially joined the 21st century. One of my favorite groups released an album yesterday, and I didn't buy the physical CD. I downloaded it from iTunes. *gasp* I've bought a couple of songs on iTunes in the past, but this was my first full CD. The excitement never stops at my house.

Thanks to Donna for a fun solve and to PuzzleGirl for letting me play in her sandbox. She'll be back tomorrow. I hope she's not too tired after a long night of R.O.C.K.ing in the U.S.A.

Crosswordese 101 Round-up:

• 24A: She played WKRP's Jennifer (LONI).
• 60A: Jai __ (ALAI).
• 8D: Turkish honorific (AGHA).
• 9D: At birth (NÉE).
• 51D: He sang about Alice (ARLO).

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Everything Else -- 1A: Classifies, in a way (PEGS); 10A: Envelope abbr. (ATTN); 14A: Beige-like shade (ECRU); 15A: Representation (IMAGE); 16A: Dealer's dispenser (SHOE); 20A: Keystone lawman (KOP); 22A: Cry to strike up the band (HIT IT); 23A: Penne relative (ZITI); 24A: She played WKRP's Jennifer (LONI); 30A: Time Warner "Superstation" (TBS); 33A: Capacious (ROOMY); 35A: The tan in a Black and Tan (ALE); 36A: One of five states in which same-sex marriage is legal (IOWA); 39A: Fort with many bars (KNOX); 40A: Apparel retailer Taylor (ANN); 41A: Legatee (HEIR); 42A: In abeyance (ON ICE); 43A: La + la, in Lille (LES); 47A: Volunteer st. (TENN.); 49A: "Let's leave __ that" (IT AT); 50A: Producer Ponti (CARLO); 52A: "My Name Is Asher Lev" author Chaim (POTOK); 54A: Restorative place (SPA); 60A: Jai __ (ALAI); 61A: Pentium producer (INTEL); 62A: Brand with a pony in its logo (POLO); 63A: A few (SOME); 64A: Seacoast (SHORE); 65A: Stern's counterpart (STEM); 1D: Chaste kiss (PECK); 2D: Reverberate (ECHO); 3D: Stagehand (GRIP); 4D: Heliocentric universe center (SUN); 5D: __ the occasion (RISE TO); 7D: Apple products (MACS); 8D: Turkish honorific (AGHA); 9D: At birth (NEE); 10D: Be hospitable to (ASK IN); 11D: White Star Line's ill-fated steamer (THE TITANIC); 12D: Actress Spelling (TORI); 13D: Place to brood (NEST); 18D: Agent Prentiss on "Criminal Minds" (EMILY); 19D: Bit of guitar music (CHORD); 24D: His show has a "Jaywalking" segment (LENO); 25D: Serif-free font (ARIAL); 26D: Nary a soul (NO ONE); 27D: How things flow (DOWNSTREAM); 28D: Each partner (EVERY); 29D: Right-to-left lang. (HEB.); 32D: Proverbial battlers (SEXES); 37D: Gull relative (TERN); 38D: 2008 govt. bailout recipient (AIG); 39D: Granny, for one (KNOT); 41D: Red River capital (HANOI); 42D: Honshu metropolis (OSAKA); 45D: Roadside trash (LITTER); 48D: Borden's spokescow (ELSIE); 50D: Pros who work on schedules, for short (CPA'S); 51D: He sang about Alice (ARLO); 52D: Phnom __ (PENH); 53D: Suspicious of (ONTO); 54D: Catch a glimpse of (SPOT); 55D: Soccer great (PELE); 56D: Elemental unit (ATOM); 58D: Put down, slangily (DIS).

01.31 Mon

M O N D A Y January 31, 2011
Donna S. Levin

Theme: Hot Hot Hot — The last word of each theme phrase can precede the word "alarm" in a familiar phrase.

Theme answers:

• 17A: Exec's perk (COMPANY CAR).
• 23A: Tempts fate, in a way (PLAYS WITH FIRE).
• 50A: Second in a Sue Grafton series (B IS FOR BURGLAR).
• 61A: Fairly spicy, as chili (and like this puzzle, literally, based on the ends of 17-, 23- and 50-Across) (THREE-ALARM).

Really smooth Monday puzzle today. Highlights for me include: FALAFEL, AT FIRST, and TAILBACK. Cute theme. It's unfortunate that you can't really do much with the word "alarm." I mean, an alarm is pretty much just one thing, so we're not gonna see three different types of alarms in the theme phrases. But I've always found chili's "three-alarm" designation pretty humorous and it is, in fact, how I prefer my chili, so overall I'm gonna give this one a thumbs up.

Bullets:

• 10A: Dog bugger (FLEA). I thought for a minute there might be a word for "dog boogers." But that would be gross.
• 16A: Bee, to Andy (AUNT). Before anyone says it: Yes, that is how Aunt Bee spells her name.
• 19A: Adriatic resort (LIDO).



• 29A: Actor Diggs (TAYE). I've seen the name, but I don't know who this is. Let me look it up. … Hm. Okay, he played the young stud in "How Stella Got Her Groove Back." I read the book, but didn't see the movie. Now he's on TV in a show called "Private Practice" that's apparently a spin-off of "Gray's Anatomy." So now you know.
• 33A: Actress Cheryl (LADD). Cheryl LADD, on the other hand, I knew right off the bat. "Good morning, angels!"
• 38A: One in an extra-large baby carriage, perhaps (TRIPLET). Yikes. There's a set of first-grade triplets at PuzzleDaughter's school. That just seems insane to me.
• 57A: Horn for a Muppet named Zoot (SAX). For some reason, I read this as "Mom for a Muppet named Zoot." I'm not familiar with this particular Muppet. Does he wear a zoot suit?
• 7D: Avian chatterbox (MACAW). I tried MYNAH first.

• 12D: Biblical witch's home (ENDOR). I thought the phrase "The Witches of Endor" was something, but I think I'm getting that confused with "The Witches of Eastwick." ENDOR is only known to me in the context of Star Wars. And using the word known might be a slight exaggeration. Is it a forest? Is it where the ewoks live? I feel like that girl on that video.
• 18D: R&B artist with the 2006 #1 hit "So Sick" (NE-YO). CAn't say I'm familiar with this particular artist. Seems quite un-Monday-ish, but the crosses are all solid.
• 35D: Perpetrator (DOER). I can't really picture anyone using the word DOER besides Andy Sipowicz.
• 63D: '70s TV boss of Mary, Ted and Murray (LOU). More TV right in my sweet spot. The Mary Tyler Moore show.

Crosswordese 101 Round-up:

• 15A: Pastry served au rhum (BABA).
• 68A: Eyelid woe (STYE).
• 27D: Score after deuce (AD IN).
• 58D: Jason's vessel (ARGO).

[Follow PuzzleGirl on Twitter.]

Everything Else — 1A: Dissolves into a puddle (MELTS); 6A: Firing range rounds (AMMO); 14A: Audibly astonished (AGASP); 20A: Sixth sense letters (ESP); 21A: Tableland (MESA); 22A: Conestoga, e.g. (WAGON); 27A: God of manly beauty (APOLLO); 30A: "Saturday Night Fever" dance genre (DISCO); 31A: Bogus plan (SCAM); 37A: Acolyte's suffix (-IST); 41A: Angus's greeting (MOO); 42A: Space Shuttle gp. (NASA); 44A: Feb. 14 (V-DAY); 45A: Colorado resort (ASPEN); 47A: "Of __ I Sing" (THEE); 49A: Mideast fleet (OILERS); 55A: One more time (AGAIN); 56A: "Trick" or "treat" (VERB); 60A: Defame (SLUR); 64A: Charged particles (IONS); 65A: Feathery wraps (BOAS); 66A: Dance in a line (CONGA); 67A: Layer of paint (COAT); 69A: Praise (KUDOS); 1D: Nutmeg spice (MACE); 2D: Boardroom clashers (EGOS); 3D: Streetlight supports (LAMP POSTS); 4D: 1/6 fl. oz. (TSP.); 5D: Musical with the song "The Holy Grail" (SPAMALOT); 6D: Bottomless pit (ABYSS); 8D: Wharton deg. (MBA); 9D: Galley mover (OAR); 10D: Pita filling (FALAFEL); 11D: "Super Mario" brother (LUIGI); 13D: Do penance (ATONE); 22D: "For what reason?" ("WHY?"); 24D: Partnership letters (LLC); 25D: Country with a da Vinci drawing on its one-euro coin (ITALY); 26D: Docile (TAME); 28D: Galileo's birthplace (PISA); 31D: Flip of a hit single (SIDE B); 32D: IRS audit rep (CPA); 34D: Barnes & Noble link? (AMPERSAND); 36D: Crime bosses (DONS); 39D: Winnebago owner, briefly (RV'ER); 40D: NFL ball carrier, often (TAILBACK); 43D: In the beginning (AT FIRST); 46D: Gp. that abducted Patty Hearst (SLA); 48D: Sweetie (HON); 49D: Meanie (OGRE); 50D: Rudimentary (BASIC); 51D: Inuit home (IGLOO); 52D: Sweat box? (SAUNA); 53D: Sun danger (UV RAY); 54D: Witherspoon of "Walk the Line" (REESE); 59D: Dec. holiday (XMAS); 61D: "Very funny" TV station (TBS); 62D: In vogue (HOT).

01.17 Mon

M O N D A Y

January 17, 2011
Donna S. Levin

Hi, everybody, and welcome to the new L.A. Crossword Confidential. I felt like we needed a little remodeling around here, so I hope you like the new look! I can't help but notice that this blog is getting an awful lot of traffic these days and I assume that means many of you find it entertaining or enlightening or … something. I don't know. Maybe you just can't help from coming back to see what kind of stupid mistakes I make on a daily basis. But whatever your reason, I truly appreciate you all stopping by so often. I write this blog because I love solving puzzles and I love writing about puzzles — but mostly I love hearing from other Puzzle People. Putting this blog together every day obviously takes time and if it's something that has become important to you — for whatever reason and to whatever degree — I hope you'll consider donating a few dollars if you have it to spare. I know it's a bad economy and people are stretched thin these days, so if it's not something you can do, please know that I appreciate the fact that you're here whether or not you're able to contribute. I added the donation button (over there on the sidebar!) because I was asked more than once if I had one. I've never made a big deal out of it and I don't plan to mention it again for at least another year. But I didn't think you all would be too offended if I just pointed it out this week in case you're interested. And now let's get back to the PuzzleTalk!

Theme: Tennis Anyone? — Last words of the theme answers can be tennis-related.

Theme answers:

• 17A: Does some Web browsing (SURFS THE NET).
• 24A: Coming-out gala (DEBUTANTE BALL).
• 37A: Demand accompanied by a banging gavel (ORDER IN THE COURT).
• 47A: Illegal lottery (NUMBERS RACKET).
• 58A: Lateral epicondylitis (and a possible injury hinted at by the ends of 17-, 24-, 37- and 47-Across) (TENNIS ELBOW).

Another smooth solve from Donna today. Theme is cute, with theme answers a couple notches above what you might expect to see on a Monday. I don't really get the ELBOW part of the theme reveal. I mean, I get the TENNIS part, but I don't really get how thinking about TENNIS "hints at" TENNIS ELBOW. I think I would have preferred a clue like "Injury you might get if you play the sport hinted at by the ends of …." Except, ya know, phrased better than that. But it's fine. The only thing in the grid that I really didn't like was 6A: "Let IT RIP!" In my head, that phrase sounds more like "Let 'er rip" so it just seemed a little off to me. Other than that, I sort of scooted my way around the grid without too much trouble.

Bullets:

• If you squint, it kinda looks like we have a mini-Hawaiian theme going on with the second row of acrosses: ALOHA / HULA / LEI. (14A: Honolulu hello (ALOHA) / 15A: NFL's winningest coach Don (SHULA) / 16A: Below-the-belt (LOW)).
• 28A: Forever and ever (ALWAYS).



• 34A: NFL six-pointers (TD'S). I'm pretty sure even the sports-challenged among us was able to get this one, right?
• 42A: La Virginie et la Caroline du Sud (ÉTATS). That's a pretty long way to go for ÉTATS. The clue says "Virginia and South Carolina" only in French. You know who loved this clue? SethG.
• 65A: Family Stone frontman (SLY).
• 6D: Enjoys faddish popularity (IS HOT). When I was looking back through the grid, I parsed this as "I shot," which can only mean one thing.



• 34D: Phonograph component (TURNTABLE). All you whippersnappers out there probably don't even know what this means!

Crosswordese 101 Round-up:

• 1D: Submission encl. (SASE).
• 33D: Baseball great Mel (OTT).
• 40D: Big Apple theater award (OBIE).
• 45D: Some TVs (RCA'S).
• 47D: Cards and Phils (NL'ERS).

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Everything Else — 1A: Finalize, as a deal (SEW UP); 6A: "Let __!": "Start the ball rolling!" (IT RIP); 11A: Sleep attire, briefly (PJ'S); 19A: "The Kids __ All Right": 2010 film (ARE); 20A: Building wing (ELL); 21A: Photographed (SHOT); 22A: Brownish-green eye color (HAZEL); 30A: Rolled grain (OATS); 31A: Clark's love (LOIS); 32A: "Me, too!" ("SO AM I!"); 41A: Casual shirt (TEE); 43A: La __ Tar Pits (BREA); 44A: Karate blow (CHOP); 45A: Restrain (REIN IN); 52A: Tibetan capital (LHASA); 53A: Bedouin, ethnically (ARAB); 54A: Eyjafjallajökull residue (ASH); 57A: Get stuck for, as a cost (EAT); 62A: Regret (RUE); 63A: Furry "Star Wars" creatures (EWOKS); 64A: Track event (RELAY); 66A: Thick (DENSE); 67A: Nerdy types (GEEKS); 2D: 12th Hebrew month (ELUL); 3D: Global (WORLDWIDE); 4D: 300 to 3,000 MHz (UHF); 5D: Elapse (PASS BY); 7D: It precedes iota (THETA); 8D: Pantyhose woe (RUN); 9D: Sight in the Seine (ILE); 10D: Pitiful (PATHETIC); 11D: Eloise's hotel, with "the" (PLAZA); 12D: Superman's birth father (JOR-EL); 13D: Peachy (SWELL); 18D: Ergo (THUS); 23D: Crunch targets (ABS); 25D: Relax, as restrictions (EASE); 26D: __ Ark (NOAH'S); 27D: Like most pets (TAME); 28D: Scads (A LOT); 29D: Wisdom of the elders (LORE); 32D: Clothes fasteners (SNAPS); 35D: Eins und zwei (DREI); 36D: Ollie's partner (STAN); 38D: Readied the leftovers, say (REHEATED); 39D: "... believe __ not!" (IT OR); 44D: "Survivor" network (CBS); 46D: Anita of "La Dolce Vita" (EKBERG); 48D: Amateur mover's rental (U-HAUL); 49D: Sailor's sobriquet (MATEY); 50D: Military levels (RANKS); 51D: Get up (ARISE); 55D: Hose down for a while (SOAK); 56D: Major rtes. (HWYS.); 59D: Woolly farm female (EWE); 60D: Rouen refusal (NON); 61D: Important name in Virginia history (LEE).

01.05 Wed

W E D N E S D A Y

January 5, 2011
Donna S. Levin


Theme: Horse Sense — It's a quote by the talking horse, Mr. Ed!

Theme answers:

• 18A: Start of a quote (TIME TO).
• 27A: More of the quote (HIT THE HAY).
• 46A: More of the quote (OH I FORGOT).
• 61A: End of the quote (I ATE IT).
• 63A: Speaker of the quote, whose show premiered in syndication 1/5/1961 (MISTER ED).
• 7A: 63-Across, for one (PALOMINO).

Good morning, everybody, and happy anniversary to Mr. Ed! I'm not going to be able to talk about this puzzle without also talking about today's New York Times puzzle, so if you plan to solve the NY Times and haven't done so yet, you should think about doing that now. In fact, let me see if I can find Rex's spoiler kitty just to give us some extra room before the spoiling begins.

Whoa. Did that freak you out? No, not the spoiler kitty — the puzzles! I solved the LAT puzzle first and started putting this write-up together, then decided I needed to get to bed and would finish in the morning. So I printed out the NYT and took it to bed with me. When I looked at the NYT constructor's name, it said "Mr. Ed Sessa." I thought, "Well, that's odd. They don't usually use courtesy titles in the… heeeeey, wait a minute!" And sure enough. Same theme. I find that bizarre. I wonder if it's happened before. I haven't been doing both puzzles long enough to know. I mean, I'm sure they've both run Valentine's Day puzzles or Thanksgiving puzzles or whatever, but Mr. Ed?!? That's pretty random. And then to use the exact same quote. I tell you one thing, it made solving the NYT quite a bit easier.

But I don't want to take anything away from Donna's puzzle. Both Donna and Ed treated the theme differently and I think they both did a very good job with it. For more details about Ed's version of the theme, you should check out Rex's blog. Over here, we're gonna get right to the bullets.

Bullets:

• 8A: "Casablanca" star (BOGART). The typical "Casablanca" answer is ILSA, so it was kinda fun to see Bogey here today.
• 16A: 2009 sci-fi movie that is the highest-grossing film in history (AVATAR). I find this sad.

• 19A: Biblical queen's land (SHEBA). I can't see the word SHEBA without thinking about the Bonnie Raitt song where she rhymes SHEBA with AMOEBA. That's some great songwriting there, is what that is.
• 23A: __Kosh B'Gosh (OSH). Also a clue/answer in the NYT puzzle today. It just keeps getting weirder.
• 25A: Swipe (STEAL). Familiar to Dora the Explorer fans.
• 38A: Make damp (MOISTEN). I can't remember who it is, but one of my friends really hates this word. Say it out loud. It's kind of icky, right?
• 57A: Dispatch boat (AVISO). And this is one of those words that seems like it should mean something altogether different than what it actually means. Shouldn't this mean, like, "written warning"?
• 66A: Intimate confidante (ALTER EGO). Can't say I've ever thought of an ALTER EGO as an "intimate confidante," but okay.
• 67A: Three sheets to the wind (STINKO). Out in the real world, drunks are trashed, loaded, and shit-faced. In CrossWorld, SOTS are STINKO and SOZZLED.

• 33D: Hawaiian crooner (DON HO). Love it that we get two people entries where both names are used. See also ….
• 39D: 2008 Harvey Milk portrayer (SEAN PENN).
• 46D: Buckeyes' sch. (OSU). I guess they won last night. Ugh. I tell you one thing, Coach Brands would never put up with that mess from his wrestlers. (I actually asked PuzzleHusband last night, "What do you think Coach Brands would do if his wrestlers did that stuff?" and he said, "Probably make them run the stairs at Carver-Hawkeye Arena a couple times. I think a lot of time wrestlers get punished with extra workouts." But my point is, they wouldn't be playing in a Bowl game that's for sure. If wrestling had Bowl games. You know what I mean!)
• 50D: Dustin's "Midnight Cowboy" role (RATSO). RATSO Rizzo. One of the greatest character names of all time.
• 59D: Super Monkey Ball publisher (SEGA). Crosswordese 101 to the rescue!

Crosswordese 101: I ROBOT is the name of a 1950 classic collection of short stories in the science-fiction genre written by Isaac Asimov. One of the stories is titled "Robbie." (I haven't read the book, but I think I get it — Robbie? Get it?) The book was made into a movie starring Will Smith in 2004.

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

• 69A: Villagers' tormentor in "Fiddler on the Roof" (TSAR).
• 36D: Hugely successful, in Variety (BOFFO).
• 41D: NY campus that's home to the Engineers (RPI).
• 54D: Yours, in Tours (À TOI).
• 59D: Super Monkey Ball publisher (SEGA).
• 64D: RR depot (STA.).

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Everything Else — 1A: "Truth in Engineering" automaker (AUDI); 5A: Low-risk fin. investments (CD'S); 14A: Kirk's Enterprise, for one (STARSHIP); 20A: Enthuse (GUSH); 22A: Red root veggie (BEET); 31A: More than salty (LEWD); 34A: Game with Skip cards (UNO); 35A: Actor Gibson (MEL); 36A: Workman's wheeled cart (BARROW); 41A: "William Tell" composer (ROSSINI); 42A: Load up with, as work (PILE ON); 43A: Coppertone letters (SPF); 44A: Org. with Ducks and Penguins (NHL); 45A: Bit of foliage (LEAF); 49A: Sip slowly (NURSE); 51A: Vein find (ORE); 52A: Trade (SWAP); 55A: Luminous glow (AURA); 65A: Bucking beasts (BRONCS); 68A: Super-secret intelligence gp. (NSA); 1D: Nile slitherers (ASPS); 2D: Six-sided state (UTAH); 3D: Chip's buddy (DALE); 5D: Scoreboard letters for "Da Bears" (CHI); 6D: Parking lot mishap (DING); 7D: __ support: alimony (SPOUSAL); 8D: Enjoy a soak (BATHE); 9D: Prefix with duct (OVI-); 10D: Risk takers (GAMBLERS); 11D: Fits to __ (A TEE); 12D: Distance ÷ time (RATE); 13D: Harness race pace (TROT); 15D: Shatter (SMASH); 21D: Place to wallow (STY); 24D: Macho guys (HE-MEN); 26D: "Sorry to say ..." ("ALAS …"); 27D: A dromedary has one (HUMP); 28D: Packed like sardines (IN OIL); 29D: Patterned fabric (TOILE); 30D: Cooped-up layer (HEN); 32D: Clasp tightly in distress, as one's hands (WRING); 37D: Droop (WILT); 40D: Bean curd (TOFU); 43D: Civil War general who captured Atlanta (SHERMAN); 47D: Emulate Cicero (ORATE); 48D: Go back (REVERT); 52D: A boy and his sis (SIBS); 53D: Witch blemish (WART); 56D: Troubles (AILS); 58D: Infuriates (IRES); 60D: Olfactory stimulus (ODOR); 62D: "Ugh" relative (ICK).

M O N D A Y December 6, 2010 Donna S. Levin

Theme: This is a hold-up! — Each theme answer is a familiar phrase that ends with a word for something you might use to hold something up.

Theme answers:

• 20A: Sidewalk periodical vendor (NEWSPAPER STAND).
• 25A: Edwards or Langley, e.g. (AIR FORCE BASE).
• 42A: Court-ordered parental obligation (CHILD SUPPORT).
• 48A: Philanthropic group chartered by auto execs (FORD FOUNDATION).

Always a pleasure to see Donna's name at the top of the puzzle. I absolutely flew through this one. The theme is great for Monday, but it's the fill that really impressed me. Not much in the way of crosswordese, and there were several entries that really sparkled to me, like PARRY, COWED and SHOWOFFS. Just good stuff all the way around.

Bullets:

• 1A: Try to obtain sensitive info using an Internet scam (PHISH). Are Dead Heads now Phish Heads these days? Way back when, I thought Little Feat would be the Dead's successors and we could call their fans Feat Heads.
• 17A: Specialized jargon (ARGOT). This is one of those words that sounds like it should mean something totally different. Also "bucolic."

• 24A: Gut courses (EASY A'S). I learned the phrase "gut course" from crossword puzzles.
• 38A: Nothing, in tennis (LOVE). Great clue.
• 55A: Univ. sports group (NCAA). How well do you know your NCAA Division I schools? Find out.
• 59A: Tiger Woods's ex (ELIN). It's interesting how ELIN is a Monday name now. I guess that goes to show you how a major personal scandal can up a person's crossword cred.
• 6D: Thompson of "Family" (SADA). When I see four-letter Thompson, I think Leah and Emma. I always forget about SADA.
• 10D: Taoism founder (LAO TSE). This was probably the trickiest thing in the grid for me. His name is also sometimes spelled TZU. (Also TSU, but that entry is always clued as an abbreviation for Tennessee State University.)
• 38D: Pencil for one's kisser (LIPLINER). Because proper lip coverage is extremely important.
• 57D: Sight organ (EYE). I think I would have preferred a clue a little less … clinical.

Crosswordese 101: AGRA is the Indian city where you'll find the Taj Mahal. Clues for AGRA will most likely include one or more of the following words: Taj Mahal, New Delhi, Mogul (or Mughal) capital, tourist, mecca, mausoleum, and tomb.



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

• 16A: Towards the sheltered side, at sea (ALEE).
• 3D: "Picnic" dramatist (INGE).

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Everything Else — 6A: Chase down, as a fly ball (SHAG); 10A: Falls behind (LAGS); 14A: "Tiny Bubbles" singer (DON HO); 15A: Tip-top (A-ONE); 18A: "__ call us, we'll ..." (DON'T); 19A: Red sky, to a sailor (OMEN); 23A: __-Locka, Florida (OPA); 31A: Political corruption (GRAFT); 32A: Police busts (RAIDS); 33A: Revolutionary statesman Franklin (BEN); 36A: Knocks on the door (RAPS); 37A: Response to a fencing lunge (PARRY); 39A: Picnic invader (ANT); 40A: Intimidated (COWED); 41A: Tendon (SINEW); 44A: Show hosts (EMCEES); 47A: Actor Mineo (SAL); 54A: Notion (IDEA); 56A: Liberate from the hitching post (UNTIE); 58A: Shakespearean king (LEAR); 60A: Allow to pass (LET BY); 61A: Benevolent order (ELKS); 62A: Cowgirl Evans (DALE); 63A: Cropped up (AROSE); 1D: High-tech organizer, briefly (PDA); 2D: English or French instrument (HORN); 4D: Braggarts (SHOWOFFS); 5D: Lively nightclub (HOT SPOT); 7D: Hula __ (HOOP); 8D: Green Gables girl (ANNE); 9D: Prepare (GET READY); 11D: Hypoallergenic skin care brand (ALMAY); 12D: Davis who played Thelma (GEENA); 13D: Transmits (SENDS); 21D: Bogey beater (PAR); 22D: Impertinence (SASS); 26D: Pakistan neighbor (IRAN); 27D: Engrossed (RAPT); 28D: Move like a baby (CRAWL); 29D: Like some seals (EARED); 30D: Feathered friends (BIRDS); 33D: Sonny of Sonny and Cher (BONO); 34D: Happily __ after (EVER); 35D: Eft, when mature (NEWT); 37D: Like the victims in "Arsenic and Old Lace" (POISONED); 40D: Kitchen VIP (CHEF); 41D: Pancake flipper (SPATULA); 42D: Coniferous trees (CEDARS); 43D: Mex. neighbor (USA); 44D: Submit a tax return over the Internet (E-FILE); 45D: Hobbyist's plane, e.g. (MODEL); 46D: Old floorboard sound (CREAK); 49D: Golden State sch. (UCLA); 50D: Carpentry fastener (NAIL); 51D: Certain Scandinavian (DANE); 52D: Filmdom's Preminger (OTTO); 53D: Penpoints (NIBS).

M O N D A Y November 22, 2010 Donna S. Levin

Theme: Want! — Theme answers are familiar phrases that end with words synonymous with desire.

Theme answers:

• 21A: Tokyo monetary unit (JAPANESE YEN).
• 26A: 1983 Lionel Richie #1 song (ALL NIGHT LONG).
• 43A: Desolate title tree in a 1936 Fonda/MacMurray western (LONESOME PINE).
• 50A: TUMS target (STOMACHACHE).
• 65A: Hanker, and a synonym for the ends of 21-, 26-, 43- and 50-Across (YEARN).

Well this is just what we need on a Monday, right? A super smooth solve — not too hard but not boring either. This grid is filled with words that I think of as one level above the typical Monday: BAD EGG, CONJOIN, LAMENT, TENACITY, QUOI. Nothing particularly awesome about those words, but they add a little pizzazz to an easy puzzle. We're off to a good start this week.

Bullets:

• 31A: French city where Joan of Arc died (ROUEN). This was probably the trickiest thing in the grid. I didn't know it off the top of my head, but with a few crosses it came back to me.
• 33A: Milk units: Abbr. (QTS.). I tried "pts." first.
• 46A: It's north of the border (CANADA). Can't wait to hear from our Canadian friends about this one.
• 49A: Cle. hoopsters (CAVS). I was flying through this puzzle pretty fast and wrote in "Mavs" thinking "Somehow that doesn't seem quite right."
• 7D: "March Madness" org. (NCAA). Seems like "March Madness" is right around the corner. How the hell did it get to be Thanksgiving week already?!?

Crosswordese 101 Round-up:

• 10A: Narrow-necked pear (BOSC).
• 16A: Figure skating jump (AXEL).
• 36A: Old Italian money (LIRE).
• 1D: Copied (APED).
• 26D: Woody's son (ARLO).
• 29D: Ivan the Terrible et al. (TSARS).
• 59D: Abu Dhabi's fed. (UAE).

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Everything Else — 1A: Like some short-term committees (AD HOC); 6A: How a lot of music is recorded (ON CD); 14A: Museum with many Spanish masterpieces (PRADO); 15A: Eight, in Spain (OCHO); 17A: Consumed (EATEN); 18A: Postal delivery (MAIL); 19A: Knish seller (DELI); 20A: Henna, for one (DYE); 24A: Hawaii's coffee capital (KONA); 25A: Reader's __: magazine (DIGEST); 32A: Wooden nickel, e.g. (SLUG); 37A: Parcel of land (TRACT); 39A: New Age-y emanation (AURA); 40A: Single (ONE); 41A: Wine vintage (YEAR); 42A: Thread holder (SPOOL); 53A: Long sandwich (SUB); 56A: Vaulter's need (POLE); 57A: "Today __ man": stereotypical bar mitzvah announcement (I AM A); 58A: Hospital staffer (NURSE); 60A: __ even keel (ON AN); 61A: Shoemaker McAn (THOM); 62A: Spud (TATER); 63A: Camping shelter (TENT); 64A: Talks and talks (YAKS); 2D: Open-sided cart (DRAY); 3D: Loathe (HATE); 4D: "__ on a Grecian Urn" (ODE); 5D: Unite (CONJOIN); 6D: Tuba sound (OOMPAH); 8D: Facial feature with a cleft, perhaps (CHIN); 9D: Distributed sparingly (DOLED OUT); 10D: No-goodnik (BAD EGG); 11D: Daisy variety (OXEYE); 12D: Tennis great Monica (SELES); 13D: Eastwood of Dirty Harry films (CLINT); 22D: Namibia neighbor: Abbr. (ANG.); 23D: Perform with the choir (SING); 24D: Kid's scrape site (KNEE); 27D: Butcher's cut (LOIN); 28D: Entice (LURE); 30D: Partners' legal entity: Abbr. (LLC); 33D: "Je ne sais __" (QUOI); 34D: Cyclo- ending (TRON); 35D: Shopper's delight (SALE); 37D: Persistence (TENACITY); 38D: "Norma __" (RAE); 39D: iPhone downloads (APPS); 41D: Wizened "Star Wars" guru (YODA); 42D: Interstate speed limit, often (SEVENTY); 43D: Bemoan (LAMENT); 44D: __ razor: logical simplicity rule (OCCAM'S); 45D: __-jongg (MAH); 46D: A hundred bucks (C-SPOT); 47D: Make amends (for) (ATONE); 48D: Texas Rangers president Ryan (NOLAN); 51D: Often sarcastic joke response (HA HA); 52D: In a frenzy (AMOK); 53D: Mlle., in Madrid (SRTA.); 54D: Exploitative type (USER); 55D: Swiss capital (BERN).

T H U R S D A Y October 7, 2010 Donna S. Levin

Theme: On the Puzzle Page — Theme answers are familiar phrases that end with words related to crossword puzzles.


Theme answers:

• 17A: *Stand firm (PUT ONE'S FOOT DOWN).
• 29A: *Find by chance (COME ACROSS).
• 37A: *Utility company network (POWER GRID).
• 49A: *1990s-2000s kids' show starring a pooch named for its color (BLUE'S CLUES).
• 64A: Where this grid's starred answers' ends have particular relevance (ON THE PUZZLE PAGE).

Hey, everybody! It's me, PuzzleGirl! Did you miss me? Well, I know I missed you. I hope to be here every day for the foreseeable future so you might as well just get used to it. Thanks again, though, to Amy, SethG, and Doug P. for filling in. I couldn't ask for better crossword buddies. And I mean that sincerely.

So let's talk about the puzzle, shall we? Over the last couple of days I've decided to try the method of looking for the reveal clue after I get the first theme answer and then seeing if I can figure out the rest. I've only been slightly successful with this strategy. Today I had to get two theme answers (the DOWN and ACROSS ones) before I knew what was going on and even then, I slapped CROSSWORD PUZZLE in where ON THE PUZZLE PAGE was supposed to go. Knowing what the theme was about did help me get POWER GRID, but I'm ashamed to admit that I totally blanked on BLUE'S CLUES. The pooch and the color? That's got Clifford the Big Red Dog written all over it for me. And my brain wouldn't budge until I had a bunch of crosses. Argh.

Bullets:

• 7A: Privately, to a lawyer (IN CAMERA). I don't know if I picked this up through osmosis from working for lawyers for so many years or if I learned it from a crime fiction book. Either way, I'll take it.
• 15A: Like some Egyptian churches (COPTIC). No idea.

• 35A: Pierre's peeper (OEIL). Have I ever told you about the print I have that's called "Trompe L'oeil"? Maybe I'll take a picture of it and post it here. It's pretty cool. And PuzzleKids and their friends love to snicker at it.
• 41A: Fig leaf's outer edges? (EFS). Two letter Fs are on the outer edges of the phrase "fig leaf."
• 45A: Surprise at the door (POP IN). This is one of two clues that totally tripped me up because I thought the answer would be a different part of speech. This one I thought was a noun. See also 69A: Tied (EVENED), which I thought would be an adjective.
• 54A: Gets free, as a smoke (BUMS). Had No Idea what this was getting at until I had half the letters in place. (It's about borrowing, i.e., bumming, a cigarette.)
• 62A: Conceive (IDEATE). Oh hey, there's our favorite word again.
• 71A: Ritual repasts (SEDERS). This also caused me a bit of trouble in the bottom of the grid. I tried FEASTS first.
• 7D: "This tape will self-destruct in five seconds" fictional spy org. (IMF). I assume this is from the "Mission: Impossible" television show/movies. … Yep, Impossible Missions Force. I vaguely remember the TV show from when I was a kid and I have seen the movies but I guess I didn't pay that much attention. Click the play button. You know you want to.



• 9D: Gloat (CROW). Oh yeah, I tried BRAG first.
• 13D: VCR's "Go back" (REW). Not, as the PuzzleKids like to say, "fast backward."

• 14D: Abby's twin (ANN). Ann Landers and Dear Abby. Have they been showing up in puzzles a lot lately? I've been chipping away at my backlog of puzzles so maybe it hasn't actually been recently.
• 40D: Follow closely (DOG). What an awesome clue for this common word!
• 46D: Compound used as a lab solvent (PENTANE). No idea.
• 64D: CIA predecessor (OSS). Yesterday at work we had a presentation by an FBI agent on the topic of "Economic Espionage." It was really cool. But there was one point where he was rattling off a string of acronyms and I so wanted him to say OSS. Since the specific case he was talking about was just prosecuted a couple years ago, I guess the OSS wasn't involved.

• 66D: The London Zoo has one (ZED). The phrase "The London Zoo" includes one letter Z which, in London, is pronounced zed.
• 67D: Ms. evaluators (EDS.). I'm used to seeing the abbreviation for manuscript as MS (both uppercase letters), but I must have seen it this way too because I got it pretty quickly.

Crosswordese 101: There are a couple GINAs it's good to know (the actresses Lollobrigida and Gershon) and one GEENA (Davis most notably of "Thelma & Louise" and "Commander in Chief") but there's only one GENA and that's GENA 53A: Rowlands of "Gloria." If she is clued in relation to one of her other movies, the most likely candidates are "The Notebook," "Another Woman," "Hope Floats," and "A Woman Under the Influence."

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

• 24A: 1871 Cairo premiere (AIDA).
• 18D: Bell-shaped lily (SEGO).
• 25D: British mil. honor (DSO).
• 30D: Data for a neurologist, briefly (EEG).
• 60D: Official gem of South Australia (OPAL).

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Everything Else — 1A: The Bob Hope Classic component and others (PRO-AMS); 16A: Robin's band (MERRY MEN); 19A: Writer de Beauvoir (SIMONE); 20A: Amiable (SWEET); 21A: PIN requester (ATM); 22A: European capital (RIGA); 27A: Latin god (DEUS); 33A: Own up to (ADMIT); 36A: Eastern theater genre (NOH); 44A: iPod model (NANO); 55A: Flub (SLIP); 57A: Highest power? (NTH); 58A: One in a cast (ACTOR); 68A: Woo, in a way (SERENADE); 70A: Snuck up on, perhaps (STARTLED); 1D: Angel dust, briefly (PCP); 2D: Caused to get up (ROUSTED); 3D: Best (OPTIMUM); 4D: Unit quantified in a subscript (ATOM); 5D: Secondary (MINOR); 6D: Having lovely panoramas (SCENIC); 8D: Modernists (NEOS); 10D: Johnson of "Laugh-In" (ARTE); 11D: "Frankly, __ ..." (MY DEAR); 12D: Poker face's lack (EMOTION); 21D: Oklahoma city (ADA); 23D: Lovey-dovey (AMOROUS); 26D: Resilient wood (ASH); 28D: Nurse (SIP); 31D: Broadcast (AIR); 32D: Hair holder (CLIP); 34D: Loads (TONS); 38D: WWII female (WAC); 39D: It usually shows more detail: Abbr. (ENL.); 41D: Wane (EBB); 42D: Swine __ (FLU); 43D: Indonesian island (SUMATRA); 47D: Two, for one (INTEGER); 48D: "Never mind" ("NAH"); 50D: Artist known for spatial impossibilities (ESCHER); 51D: Part of QE2: Abbr. (ELIZ.); 52D: Walks like a crab (SIDLES); 56D: Irk (PEEVE); 59D: Big top, for one (TENT); 61D: Brusque (RUDE); 63D: Mimicked (APED); 65D: Safety device (NET).

T U E S D A Y September 7, 2010 Donna S. Levin

Theme: Bluer Than Blue — Each theme answer starts with a word that can describe a shade of blue.


Theme answers:

• 20A: 1978 movie set in a Turkish prison (MIDNIGHT EXPRESS).
• 35A: Volatile situation (POWDER KEG).
• 46A: White legumes (NAVY BEANS).
• 57A: Big name in Danish porcelain (ROYAL COPENHAGEN).
• 70A: Shades of it begin this puzzle's four longest answers (BLUE).

I have a hard time believing this theme hasn't been done before, but I don't feel like looking it up so I won't. But even if a theme has been done before, it never hurts to see what Donna can do with it. Today, she made it into a smooth, solid Tuesday puzzle. Just as I suspected she would.

I had the worst time getting started though! I threw WASP in off the bat (1A: Stinging flier) and then started to go backwards through the downs. I blanked on 4D: Carpentry smoother (PLANE), so moved right on to SLED (3D: Winter ride), but when I hit 2D: Car company whose name is Latin for "Hark!" I immediately thought AVIS instead of AUDI. I could see something was wrong, so I looked at the clue for 14A: Seed cover and knew it had to be the crosswordese ARIL. Which didn't work at all. Because it was, ya know, wrong. At that point I glanced down at the first theme answer (MIDNIGHT EXPRESS), which was a total gimme, so I didn't have too much trouble deciding to abandon that corner and come back to it later. The rest of the puzzle was pretty smooth and when I got back up to the northwest, it all became clear.

Misc.:

• 16A: Monetary unit of Cyprus (EURO). I still have to think a minute sometimes to remember the EURO. I still want those European countries to have their own currency for some reason.
• 18A: Repeated question in Matthew (IS IT I). Ooh, this could have been CW101 today. We'll definitely cover it at some point.
• 23A: Part of ESL: Abbr. (ENG.). ENGlish as a Second Language.
• 25A: Evian, e.g. (SPA). Anyone else try "eau" first?
• 39A: Because (SINCE). One of my pet peeves is the use of "since" to mean "because." Hey, we all have 'em, right? Well, that one's mine.

• 52A: "Gilligan's Island" shelters (HUTS). I totally cracked up the other night when a friend of mine posted something about "Gilligan's Island" on his Facebook status and the very next thing on my wall was a message from my aunt, whose profile picture looks like this:
• 67A: Cass's title (MAMA).



• 42D: Pinstriped ALer (N.Y. YANKEE).

• 47D: "Little Women" woman (BETH). Also a cheesy KISS song.
• 49D: Folded (one's hand), in poker slang (MUCKED). I don't play poker enough to have remembered this off the top of my head.
• 61D: Hockey Hall of Famer Phil, to his fans (ESPO). That would be Phil ESPOsito.
• 64D: Hamish's refusals (NAES). Hamish is apparently a common Scottish (first) name, which reminds me of when my friend Sharon was pregnant. They knew they were going to give the baby an Irish name, and Sharon's husband, Patrick, lobbied hard for Seamus for quite a while. It was only later he admitted that the only reason he brought up Seamus was so that anything else would sound good in comparison. Sneaky!

Crosswordese 101: Daniel DEFOE is, just like the clue says, the 72A: "Robinson Crusoe" author. He's almost always clued with a reference to "Robinson Crusoe," although sometimes or one of its characters, "Friday." You might also see a reference to "Moll Flanders." Now, the problem that I have with DEFOE is that I get the spelling confused with Willem DAFOE, an actor who appeared in the Spider-Man movies, "Clear and Present Danger," "The Last Temptation of Christ," and "Platoon." Anyone have a mnemonic to remember which spelling is which? I'm thinking "Crusoe" ends with an E, so maybe that'll trigger the E spelling. Got anything better?

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

• 24A: One of a "Great" quintet (ERIE).
• 71A: Island garlands (LEIS).
• 21D: "Bus Stop" playwright (INGE).
• 37D: Greek "H" (ETA).
• 58D: Bassoon cousin (OBOE).
• 59D: Legendary Himalayan (YETI).

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Everything Else — 5A: Unifying idea (THEME); 10A: Let the cat out of the bag (BLAB); 15A: "Bolero" composer (RAVEL); 17A: Notion (IDEA); 19A: Dollar dispensers, briefly (ATM'S); 28A: Hotpoint appliances, familiarly (GE'S); 30A: Peppery root veggie (RADISH); 40A: Island feast (LUAU); 41A: Peaceful protest (SIT-IN); 43A: Sgts. and cpls. (NCO'S); 44A: Real estate units (ACRES); 48A: Escaping, with "on" (THE LAM); 50A: Observe narrowly (EYE); 51A: Observe (SEE); 55A: E. Coast border (ATL.); 65A: Early sibling rivalry victim (ABEL); 66A: Mall booth (KIOSK); 68A: Scintilla (IOTA); 69A: Run off to get hitched (ELOPE); 73A: Back talk (SASS); 1D: Caprice (WHIM); 5D: Gun activators (TRIGGERS); 6D: Diner hodgepodge dish (HASH); 7D: Online party notice (EVITE); 8D: Curbside payment collector (METER); 9D: Cure-all mixture (ELIXIR); 10D: Yogi or Boo-Boo (BEAR); 11D: Mandolin relative (LUTE); 12D: Second Amendment subject (ARMS); 13D: Chief (BOSS); 22D: They may be split in soup (PEAS); 25D: Water balloon sound (SPLAT); 26D: Marsupial's pocket (POUCH); 27D: Cognizant (AWARE); 29D: Dermatologist's concern (SKIN); 31D: Eat in style (DINE); 32D: Machu Picchu architects (INCAS); 33D: Pastry at a Devonshire tea (SCONE); 34D: "Siddhartha" author Hermann (HESSE); 36D: Hamilton-Burr engagement (DUEL); 38D: Rhett's last verb (GIVE); 45D: Humorist Mort (SAHL); 53D: Patterned fabric (TOILE); 54D: "SNL" staple (SPOOF); 56D: Symbols of gentleness (LAMBS); 57D: Pool table border (RAIL); 60D: Sighed word (ALAS); 62D: Festive party (GALA); 63D: Avian Aussies (EMUS).