Saturday, Jul 25th, 2015, Gail Grabowski

Theme: GG~!!

Words: 72 (missing K,Q,Z)

Blocks: 30

 Gail Grabowski is back for another LAT Saturday - her last one was March of this year.  I was able to work out the bottom half of this one no problem, but the NE corner was slow to concede, so I did a "half" cheat and looked up the river near Aberdeen (half because it was 3-letters, OK~?).  After that went in, the rest seemed obvious.  I closed out in good time, and so I consider this one a success; I reviewed that puzzle from March and it was a "fail".   Gail's constructions are pretty fair - no fun sponge clues, and some clever ones, to boot.  A not so intimidating grid with triple 9- and 10-letter corners, plus another pair of nines in the across as well.  In the corners;

2d. WWII fighter : AXIS POWER- I was looking for something like P51 MUSTANG

that's me at MacArthur airport

16a. Wedding to-do list item : ORDER A LIMO - INVITATION fit, too

56a. Place for good dishes : CHINA HUTCH

33d. Added up : MADE SENSE - not TABULATED

DE-LI on ward~!

ACROSS:

1. WWII support gp. : WAAC - Women's Army Auxiliary Corps

5. Driving hazard : ROAD DEBRIS - I did not see any road debris on my trip back from Delaware Thu morning, but I did hit the drawbridge on the Belt Parkway with my rental car so hard the wipers got knocked on - the roads around NYC are brutal....

15. Linchpin location : AXLE - ....had I been driving my Dodge, I would have sheared an axle, I am sure; the rental car was a 2014 Hyundai Elantra GT - it had its flaws, but when I got back in the Dodge, I realized how badly I need a new car

17. 2007 Country Music Hall of Fame inductee : GILL - Vince; not a country fan - link away~!

18. Grand : MAJESTICAL

19. Jargon ending : ESE - e.g. if you're a lawyer, it's legalese

20. Buffs : FANS

21. Complicated account : SAGA

22. Group that might bug you : SPY RING - har-har;  eavesdropping bug

24. Actor/director with two Emmys and two Razzies : SHATNER - William; I was just watching Airplane 2 - the sequel in DE

"No tower~?"

27. Winter warmers : COCOAS

28. Thirteenth Amendment beneficiary : SLAVE

29. Be ready for : AWAIT

30. 1935 FDR dedication : HOOVER DAM

34. Net grazer : LET - tennis

35. Body style : COUPE - SEDAN fit, too - 20% correct-ish; another 'ansecho' with
49. Overthrow : COUP - meh.  I think of this as the group, not the act

36. Raised-barn connection : IN A - Were you raised in a barn or what~?

37. Former : ERSTWHILE

40. Member of a strict Jewish sect : HASID

42. "Not interested" : I PASS - the trip to DE was so much faster with EZ Pass

43. Give up : VACATE

44. Grotte de Cussac attraction : CAVE ART - Frawnche art; reminds me of this Steely Dan song

Caves of Altamira

 47. Xenon, e.g. : RARE GAS - well, I knew it was "a" gas, but NOBLE and INERT did not fit

48. Urgent letters : A.S.A.P.

50. Scoreboard letters : R H E - baseball for C.C.; Runs, Hits, Errors - I had the "H", thought it might be CHI for the white sox or cubs

51. Anticipatory reaction : SALIVATING

55. It pulls a bit : REIN - literally; very clever

57. They're trapped in pots : EELS

58. Endurance event facility : AID STATION

59. Unoccupied : IDLE

DOWN:

1. Union concern : WAGE SCALE - the UPS union is giving me grief right now

3. Some strays : ALLEY CATS

4. "Snow White" collectible : CEL

5. Many Shakespearean characters : ROMANS

6. Malaysian native : ORANG

7. Short and sweet, e.g.: Abbr. : ADJectiveS

8. River to Aberdeen : DEE - cheeeeted~!

9. Their offices often have small rms. : DRs

10. Down : EAT - ah, not the "SAD" kind

11. Marathoner's misfortune : BLISTER - I get blisters raking in the fall

12. Costa __ : RICAN - nice misdirection with the "N"

13. Picture : IMAGE - wouldn't be Saturday without a gratuitous image

 14. __ year : SOLAR

20. Royal decree : FIAT

23. French royal : ROI - dammit~! can't escape the Frawnche

24. Skiing need : SLOPE

25. Give birth to : HAVE

26. Boston's Mass __ : AVE

28. People : SOULS

30. Lift up : HOIST

31. Differed : DISAGREED

32. Witness in 1991 Senate hearings : ANITA HILL

35. Burn slightly : CHAR

38. Haberdashery supply : TIEPINS

39. Employment org. created in 1935 : WPA

40. Dwell (on) : HARP

41. It's not returned : ACE - more net sport 'jargon'

43. Orchestra leader Billy : VAUGHN

44. "Speak, hands, for me!" speaker : CASCA - Et tu, Brute~? is the "next" line in Shakespeare's Julius Caesar

45. Japanese beer brand : ASAHI - got it because it was in a recent puzzle

46. Legitimate : VALID

47. "But wait! There's more!" company : RONCO - the Wiki

49. Bank opening? : CITI - Citibank - in the news this week; ordered to pay out $700mil

52. Storage unit : VAT

53. Triumphant reaction : "A-HA~!"

54. Mild rebuke : TUT

55. "Get outside yourself" company : REI - had this some Saturdays ago - not that I remembered this outdoor company

Splynter

Saturday, Jul 18th, 2015, Roland Huget

Theme: None

Words: 72 (missing J,Q,W,X,Z)

Blocks: 32

  Ta-DA~!!!  I can once again claim success on a Saturday, with no cheating, no Googling, and no red-letters~!  It was not looking that way to start, though, and then I hit the center, with the triple-stack spanners, and thought - ugh.  However, triple-stacks usually mean shorter crossings, and so I was hoping to catch a break there [not].  Way too many proper names*, and one or two fun-sponges, but ultimately a satisfying solve - even if I'm biased just for finishing it~!  The triple stack spanners;

33. Best Picture of 1965 : THE SOUND OF MUSIC - the hills are alive....

40*. Mario Lanza classic : ARRIVEDERCI ROMA - with about half the perps, this made as much sense as anything else - despite not knowing the artist nor the song

41. Winner : LAST ONE STANDING

Aaaaaahn - ward~!

ACROSS:

1. Hot tub feature : EDDY - I can personally verify this, because I'm in my hot tub right now~!  Having this as the first clue of the day - on my vacation - seemed so appropriate~!

5. Air carrier : DUCT - I was thinking airplanes first

9. Bargain : STEAL

14. Clamors : BROUHAHAS

16*. Eponymous WWII flying ace Edward : O'HARE - more airplanes

17. High muck-a-muck : BIG KAHUNA - I'll refrain from a video clip; just an image

18*. One of Johnny's two final "Tonight Show" guests : BETTE - Midler; his other guest was the late Robin Williams

19. Reel kin : SPOOL - think movies, not fishing

20. Garden grower : HERB - we made an herb garden at the front of restaurant aMano

22. In the thick of : AMID - my first fill, 10 clues in

23. Spoiler of a perfect GPA : ONE B - I got "one B" in manual drafting, which annoyed me

25. Military group with an insect in its logo : SEABEES - "CBs"; Construction Battalions

27. Swing voter: Abbr. : INDependent - eh

29. Pacific landing handout : LEI

32. Mag wheels? : EDs - I was going to throw this in - editors - because we've seen it before; but I was thinking it might be something a little more clever

42. Familia member : TIO - OK, no immediate ta-DA~!, because I had tiA

43. Disdainful click : TSK

44. Golf club part : TOE

45. "Yup, sorry to say" : " 'FRAID SO" - did you hear the one about the rope that went into the bar~?

49. Some Ivy Leaguers : ELIs

52. "... where was __ Urania / When Adonais died?": Shelley : LORN - perps & WAG

53. Additions, perhaps : ELLS - elis and ells

56. __ directed : USE AS

59. As much as you like, '60s-style : A GO-GO

61*. Augustine St. Clare's daughter, in an 1852 classic : LITTLE EVA - not that I knew this proper noun, but it has appeared in a Saturday puzzle before

63*. Prince Ramiro in Rossini's "La Cenerentola," e.g. : TENOR - um, OK

64. Volunteer's declaration : "I'M YOUR MAN~!"

65*. "Goosebumps" series author : STINE - hey, I knew this name~!

66*. Irving Bacheller's "__ Holden" : EBEN - but not this one

67. Latin 101 verb : ESSE - dah~! not AMAS

DOWN:

1. Subsides : EBBS - crossing EDDY is quaint

2. __-dry : DRIP

3. Many social reformers : DO-GOODERS

4. 3,185-kilometer river : YUKON - no guess until --K-N

5. Code word : DAH - I filled in the "D", and waited; this is MY code word for the head-slap V-8 can moment

6. "No way!" : "UH-UH~!"

7. Raspberry stem : CANE - new one to me

8. Medieval Bulgarian rulers : TSARs

9. Blubber : SOB - dah - not "FAT"

10*. Theater for Beckett? : "THE ABSURD" - "The Wiki"

11. Invitation Alice accepted : EAT ME

12*. Wheelchair-bound "Glee" character : ARTIE - never seen it

13. West Yorkshire city : LEEDS

15. Sound : HALE

21. Some pinups : BEEFCAKE - one for the ladies; or is this more to your liking~?

24. Prude : BLUENOSE - I knew it was BLUE - something

26. Running group, informally : ADMINistration

27. Underlining alternative: Abbr. : ITALics; don't know why I was thinking underWIRE

28. Funny Car org. : NHRA - Hot Rods ; I'm starting the NHTA - the National HOT TUB Association

30*. "The Neverending Story" author : ENDE

31. Words usually abbreviated : ID EST - that is, i.e.

34. Withholding : SITTING ON

35. Roundish : OVOID

36. Remnants : ORTS - ah, not LEES

37. "By all appearances" : "SO IT SEEMS"

38. Mae West's "__ Angel" : I'M NO

39. Imprison : CAGE - nailed it

45. Broken glass dangers : FLATS - meh.  I wanted SHARDS, but not enough space.  Glass doesn't threaten my tires, nails and screws are the real problem

46. Wordsmith's reference : ROGET - his thesaurus, that is

47. "The San Francisco Treat" suffix : A-RONI

48. One-toothed dragon of '50s TV : OLLIE - I thought it was this guy

Gumby & Prickle

50. Beaut : LULU

51. Grenoble's river : ISERE

54. Danger metaphor : LIMB - as in "out on one"

55. Bump on a lid : STYE - dah~! I went with SEAL; hey, it's the bump on a lid of jelly

57. Audio/visual production awards : AVAs - BTW, not the Adult Video Awards

58. Levelheaded : SANE - made me change my "AMAS" @ 67a.

60. Celestite, e.g. : ORE

62. Workload hyperbole : TON - these days, it's a s**t-load

Splynter

Saturday, Jul 11th, 2015, Barry C. Silk

Theme: Saturday Silkie~!

Words: 70 (missing Q,X,Z)

Blocks: 26

Dammit~!  I can't remember the last time I solved a Saturday puzzle without red-letters, and it's starting to annoy me.  I got stumped in the NE corner this time, with bad fills on my part.  Ugh - oh well.   I was really looking forward to finishing this Silkie unassisted - it did have some great fills.  Triple 10-letter corners, with triple 7-letter corners in the down paired to a pair of 11-letter climbers;

24. Cutting, as a thick steak : SLICING INTO

11. Dynamic : HIGH VOLTAGE

onweirrrrrrd....

ACROSS:

1. Band conductor? : COPPER WIRE - I got it, but it's not Mr. Silk's most wittiest; since most electric guitar, mic cables, etc., are copper wire....

11. Burlap source : HEMP

15. Kindle owner, often : AVID READER

16. Logical introduction : IDEO - ideological

17. Shipped out : SENT ABROAD

18. Beaufort scale word : GALE - here's my first cheat; I Googled the scale; could have been "CALM" as well, with 50% still correct

19. Half of sei : TRE

20. Briefly, with "in" : SUM - "in sum"

21. Drying convenience : BATH MAT - ah.  All I could think of was "towel rack"

23. Proposal figs. : ESTs

25. Head makeup : SUDS - Beer heads, that is

27. Grand Prince of Moscow, 1328-1340 : IVAN I - I tried "PETR I", figuring it would be Russian and Latin combined

28. Sphere : REALM - ah, not ARENA

30. Harpo Marx or Carrot Top : PROP COMIC - was pondering something about red-heads

32. Soap, e.g. : SERIAL - the TV soaps, that is

34. Cen. parts : YRs - centuries and years

35. River through Yakutsk : LENA - perps

36. Eye-catching link designed to generate ad revenue : CLICK BAIT

39. Sith foe : JEDI - Star Wars

42. Thanksgiving follower: Abbr. : FRI - true; it is always followed by Friday, and a Black one at that

43. Rogues : SCAMPS

47. "Beats me" : I CAN'T TELL

50. The same, in Sauternes : EGALE - our weekly dose of Frawnche

51. "In the Summertime" rock group __ Jerry : MUNGO

52. Biol. branch : ANATomy

54. Company name based on a passage from Hosea : EL AL - learning moment; Saturday cluing for "Israel airline" - Wiki says it's Hebrew for "To the Skies"

55. Most suggestive : RACIEST

57. 21st Greek letter : PHI - yeah.  I had to wait on perps

59. "Rugrats" infant : DIL - OK, cheated here, too; didn't know the last letter

60. God in both Eddas : ODIN

61. Doesn't wait one's turn : CUTS IN LINE - gives me a chance to link this Paul Simon song, third verse

The Afterlife - "no one here likes a sneak"

64. __-Tremblant, Quebec : MONT - Frawnche, deux

65. Unauthorized underground city explorer : URBAN CAVER - there was a Law & Order: Criminal Intent episode that opened with a young man into something similar

66. "And so ..." : ERGO

67. Deli counter customers, as a rule : MEAT EATERS

DOWN:   

1. Moving aids : CASTERS - I stripped off the casters an old BBQ last week to mount them on a refrigerator at one of the restaurants.  Also building a new 'side stand' for water and a computer terminal - I hope to get done before vacation next week; off to Delaware to scout out UPS, the tech school, and apartments - my friend Mike is officially a Delawarian.

2. Supervise : OVERSEE - too bad the supervisor at my UPS is a micro-managing moron; maybe they're better in Dover (actually, Harrington - hey, Bluehen, where are the other terminals~?)

3. Subject of a 1983 incident in which a George Brett homer was originally nullified : PINE TAR - ah yes, I recall this incident, and Brett thundering out of the dugout

4. L.A. summer setting : PDT

5. Big times : ERAs

6. "Concentration" feature : REBUS

7. Throw in a pen : WARM UP - ah, more baseball

8. ''Yes'' : I DO - [sigh] some day

9. Take in again : REABSORB

10. Mother of the Valkyries : ERDA

12. Sushi bar appetizer : EDAMAME

13. Albino's lack : MELANIN - argh~!  Not PIGMENT

14. Horace's "Ars __" : POETICA - all I could think of was 'ars gratia artis'

22. Mannerism : TIC

26. Lumber processing equipment : DRY KILN - meh.  dryING kiln works better for me

29. __ du pays: homesickness : MAL - trois Frawnche

31. Free spots, briefly : PSAs

33. Pick up : LIFT

37. Animal : CREATURE

38. It may be shaved : ICE - Run away, Tin~!

39. CBS Sports Radio host : JIM ROME - his show was called "Jim Rome is Burning" - har-har

40. Gran Colombia successor state : ECUADOR - half perps

41. Like the queen in a 1977 #1 hit : DANCING - ABBA

44. __ Islands: former name of an Indian Ocean republic : MALDIVE

45. Less pretentious : PLAINER

46. Bears, often : SELLERS - Stock Exchange lingo

48. Nail holder : TOE

49. Washes against : LAPS AT

53. Biblical possessive : THINE

56. Pond problem : SCUM

58. Pachacuti, for one : INCA - perps; didn't see this until I was working on the write-up

62. TV Guide abbr. : TBA

63. Small muscle? : LAT - dah! Not PEC

One for the ladies

Self portrait ( NOT~!!)

Splynter

Saturday, July 4th, 2015, Alan Olschwang

Theme: Star-spangled Saturday

Words: 68 (missing J,V,W,Z)

Blocks: 27

  The fireworks have started already - I bombed on this one.  Alan's last Saturday slog was over a year ago, and I got just as beaten up then as I did today - but for some reason, this one seemed to be a complete fun-sponge instead of a chance to enjoy myself by learning some new things.  Oh well.  Way over my personal time, and yes, I caved in to red-letters.  Triple 9-letter corners with two 11-letter spanners and another pair of 9-letter climbers on the inside;

30a. Miner matters : ORE DEPOSITS - my cousin Carole, who lives in England, was just here for 10 days - her brother Trevor was a miner

40a. Traveler's alternative : HILTON HOTEL - alternative~? pretty specific if you ask me; I'm taking a vacation in two weeks and staying in a hotel in Dover - with a JACUZZI~!  :7))

 (OK, I'm exaggerating)

7d. Fungus usually considered poisonous : TOADSTOOL

 33a. Words before taking off : I GOTTA RUN - BBQ and bonfire - right after I'm done here~!

NO ReWArD....

ACROSS:

1. Washington music festival named for a legend : SASQUATCH - Alan had this fill in that last Saturday puzzle, too - I wonder if he knows something....

10. Prima __ case : FACIE - hear this all the time on Law & Order, but I went with an "A" at the end; later it dawned on me that I might not have it right

15. Apprehended : IN CUSTODY

16. Old Bristol-Myers dental product : IPANA - put it in, took it out....do the hokey-pokey...

17. Hot spot : FIREPLACE - the house I like in Dover has a real fireplace - love them

18. __ panel : SOLAR - dah~!  This took W-a-a-a-a-y too long to come to me

19. Autocrats of old : TSARS

20. Sports radio host Patrick : DAN - can never remember his name

21. Meteorological conditions : CLIME - I always think of Monty Python & The Holy Grail when I hear this word

@0:54, regarding swallows....

22. Finalist-to-be's hurdle : SEMI

23. Indian silk-producing region : ASSAM

25. Biting : ACID - meh.  I prefer acidIC

26. Remove chemically : ELUTE - a Natick for me; I did the alphabet run for the "L", as it crossed the unknown "LETHE"

28. __ rod : AARON'S - ah.  Biblical. The Wiki.  It suggests that the rod may be in the Ark of the Covenant

34. Slamming door, perhaps : CUE - do you think they're angry~?

35. Bouvier __ Flandres: herding dog : DES - Frawnche - just can't get away from it

36. Way of the East : TAO - or ZEN~?  which one, which one....

37. 1998 title role for Angelina : GIA - Don't recall this one; sounds racy.  IMDb

38. __ loss : AT A

39. Code word : DIT - or DAH~? which one, which one....

43. Unsettling sort : STARER

(I pondered this one, as well)

45. Ordered room service, e.g. : ATE IN

46. Dispense, with "out" : METE  - Dah~!  Not DOLE; 25% right

47. "A Town Like Alice" novelist : SHUTE - Perps

49. Title VII enforcer: Abbr. : EEOC - Equal Employment Opportunity Commission - I looked up "VII" because it was enacted before my time

53. Where the action is : ARENA

55. Altar on high : ARA - the constellation

 

(in keeping with my comment last week, I also like the name Andromeda)

56. Chevy Corvair option, briefly : TURBO - I pondered T-TOPS first; I did not know this was a rear-engine car; more here

57. __ Stone, winningest woman coach in college hockey : KATEY - never heard of her, but if she coaches hockey, that's cool with me~!

58. Unsportsmanlike conduct : DIRTY POOL

60. Eiffel Tower level : ÉTAGE - more Frawnche, but this was in last week's puzzle, too

61. Like some pliers : SNUB-NOSED - or dogs and revolvers

62. Curly-coated cats : REXES - got it via perps, but had to Google after to see

63. Masseur's concern : TENSENESS - God, I need a massage~!

DOWN:   

1. Scrutinizes : SIFTS

2. Absinthe flavoring : ANISE

3. "Git!" : "SCRAM~!"

4. Asked : QUERIED

5. Carrier's org. : USPS - oh, those carriers - Pbbbbt~!!!

6. A&P part: Abbr. : ATLantic & Pacific

8. Holders for holders? : CD CASES - mostly perps; the clue doesn't jibe for me

9. Shenzi, Banzai or Ed, in "The Lion King" : HYENA

10. Kind of yr. : FISCal

11. Like some nerve cells : APOLAR

12. Multicolored pet : CALICO CAT

13. Words betraying lack of readiness : IN A MINUTE

14. Sea lion, for one : EARED SEAL

23. Some domestic workers : AU PAIRS

24. Broadway offering : MATINEE

27. Infernal flower? : LETHE - well, I was not fooled by flow-ers - I knew we wanted a river in Hell (Hades); just didn't know there were FIVE

29. Kirin competitor : ASAHI - I knew Kirin was Japanese beer, but none of its competitors

30. One working on lines : ODDS MAKER

31. Continue to stress : REITERATE - ah. stress as in insist, not 'pace'

32. Heir's headache, maybe : ESTATE TAX

41. Bullish : TAURINE

42. Slightly ahead of : ONE UP ON

44. Back out : RENEGE

48. "... tell'st me where thou __ this ring": Shak. : HADST

50. Irregularly notched : EROSE - remembered from doing crosswords

51. Mellow winds : OBOES

52. They're easily caught : COLDS

54. All those in favor : AYES

56. Newcastle's river : TYNE - toyed with AVON at first

59. Current "American Dad!" airer : TBS - have to close on the Fourth of July with this

Good Morning U.S.A.~!!!

Splynter