Theme: None
Words: 70
Blocks: 34
I am very disappointed with my performance on this puzzle - I had to cheat and look up four answers, all proper names, so I could give myself a fighting chance on any solution at all; even then I was not thrilled with my lack of ability - I was just not on Mr. Farmer's wavelength. I looked, and his only blogged puzzle was back in 2009 - that one had lots of full-length proper names, too; today we have:
16. The Bucharest Buffoon of '70s-'80s tennis : ILIE NĂSTASE - which I had to look up, along with 24A, 45A and 9D
Triple 11's(!) and triple 8's, which deceived me into thinking I would get a hold early with the resulting series of 3-letter words, but NOPE (BTW, I had this for UH-UH, 50A) - I have added a "*" to the clues where I smacked myself for missing the point; e.g.;
8. Made 60-Across for technocrats? : ANAGRAMMED - * "technocrats" threw me, since I did not know this was a group of people, but all we needed was the 10 letters rearranged into "trench coats" - which I nailed, and thought I was doing pretty good - I had the whole SW corner done....
Oh well, Happy "STPAT" day - On-ward~!
ACROSS:
1. Outlying expanse : LEA
4. Fay Wray in "King Kong," to movie buffs : SCREAM QUEEN
15. The Giants retired his #4 : OTT - standard CW, and
17. Unit whose symbol is an omega : OHM - heck "OH" is part of the word "OH-mega"
18. Military communications branch : SIGNAL CORPS
19. Site of Cretan ruins : KNOSSOS
21. Shine, in ads : GLO - Like "Mop N Glo"
22. Blofeld's constant companion, in Bond films : CAT - * I was looking for a proper name here, like "Mr. E", or something like that
23. Goes unhurriedly : MOSEYS - * spelled it wrong, MOSIES
24. Joel Chandler Harris's brother? : B'RER - * didn't recognize the name, and so this was harder than it had to be
25. Tennis score word : ALL - not ACE, LET, ADN (yeah, I know, ADIN)
26. Take __ at : A STAB - not "A LOOK"
27. Dock bloc, briefly : ILA - International Longshoreman Association
28. Ford from Tennessee : ERNIE - before my time; someone can link "16 tons"
30. Big party bottles : MAGNUMS - Champagne size
33. River through Hesse : EDER - Not RUHR, SAAR, etc. - Map; high in the middle
34. Calls the game : UMPIRES - Did you nail this, C.C.?
37. Some saints : MARTYRS
39. Mates : PALS
40. Doesn't come through : RENEGES
42. Glide : SKATE
44. Proof abbr. : QED
45. El __: Peruvian volcano : MISTI - * Had to Google
49. Ahem relative : HEY
50. Curt turndown : UH-UH
52. "You've done enough" : NO NEED
53. Bar order, initally : IPA - Beer? I guess....take a look
54. Cologne "never" : NIE
55. Took a vacation : GOT AWAY
56. Colonialism : FOREIGN RULE
59. Manual transmissions?: Abbr. : ASL - * D'oh~! American Sign Language
60. Garb for Columbo and Clouseau : TRENCH COATS
61. Coalesce : GEL
62. It's highly classified : STATE SECRET
63. Sounds omitted in transcription : ERs...
DOWN:
1. Showing-off expression : LOOK MA~!! "No hands~! - OW ~!!!"
2. Cultural group : ETHNOS
3. Tops : AT MOST
4. Bike passenger's support, facetiously : SISSY BAR - growing up, we had a different meaning for "sissy bar" - this is what you'll find at Google
5. Campaign rewards : CLIOS - * Ad campaigns, ugh - not "SEATS", as in politics
6. Fixes : RIGS
7. Gloaming, in verse : EEN - Evening, as the word is not so much a verb as a noun; = twilight
9. "Atlantic City" director : MALLE - * Googled, this movie
10. Familiarity/appeal measurement used in marketing : Q-SCORE - never heard of it
11. __-Aztecan languages : UTO - The Wiki
12. Sweet pop music : EAR CANDY
13. Trellis for training fruit trees : ESPALIER
14. Sleeping kittens, e.g. : NESTLERS
20. Marine layer : SEA MIST
24. __-ray Discs : BLU
27. Ordered : IN SEQUENCE - * UGH~!, not insisted, or something like that
29. Wine flavored by pine resin-sealed barrels : RETSINA
31. North Sea country: Abbr. : GER.many
32. Give a little : SAG
34. Goes from second to third, say : UPSHIFTS
35. Arrive after a long sail : MAKE PORT
36. Tot lot : PLAY AREA
38. Most aloof : REMOTEST
41. Bk. after Ezra : NEH
43. Joseph Kennedy's middle daughter : EUNICE
46. Underground waste : SEWAGE
47. News opening, often : TEASER
48. Rustic poems : IDYLLS
51. Weather forecast components : HIGHS
52. "Tropic Thunder" actor : NOLTE - Nick, played the "fake" veteran who lost his hands - Robert Downey Jr. as a "brother" steals this show
55. __ gum: food thickener : GUAR
57. Tolkien creature : ENT
58. Bird in a fable : ROC
Splynter, who will not be consuming any green IPA today....
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