Saturday, Dec 17th, 2016, David C. Duncan Dekker

Theme: DCDD

Words: 72 (Pangram~!)

Blocks: 31

  This is the second LA Times contribution from Mr. Dekker, his last being a Saturday grid back in April 2016.  That was also a pangram -  in fact, it was a double pangram, which I did not recognize at the time, but the phenomenon did not occur this time.  It was also April (of this year)  when we last had a pangram puzzle on a Saturday.  I was not hopeful at the start of this construction, but some really healthy WAGs and a few proper names that I knew outright were a big help; the crossings then allowed me to cruise through the second pass in short time.  Pretty pinwheel grid, with nothing longer than 8 letters;

14. Symbol on viola sheet music : ALTO CLEF

11. Quilting technique : APPLIQUE

35. Sleeveless smock : PINAFORE - I know what a pinafore is, since we used to have to wear either a red or blue one when playing team sports in schools and such - but I never really considered one to be a "sleeveless smock".  Then I went looking for an image - I like it, almost as much as a romper

Not the kind I wore

57. Message to a loser : GAME OVER

Help~! I've fallen and can't reach my wallet~!

ON credit W(c)ARD~!

ACROSS:

1. Bud holder : BEER KEG - was not sure which "Bud" we were looking at (see 4d.), but once the "EE" showed up, it became obvious

8. Horrified : AGHAST - threw it right in, and it counted~!

16. One who always finds himself over a barrel? : COOPER - the "avowal" (see 40d.) of one who makes barrels

17. Pessimistic sort : NAYSAYER

18. Take down : TOPPLE

19. Kitchen counter : TIMER

20. Ball : WAD - oops, not "ORB"

22. Guy : FELLA - my first thought, but was not sure if the "slang" was going to fly

23. "The Dukes of Hazzard" deputy : ENOS - I grew up on this show - had to get my weekly dose of the orange Dodge Challenger with the doors welded shut jumping over the inept sheriff's cruiser, or the local ravine with the bridge out, etc.; could have been another "Dukes" reference if 16a. was "COOTER"

24. __ Penh : PHNOM - knew it from reading books, but was not sure of the spelling exactly

26. Disorderly conduct : RIOT

27. Excitable toon canine : REN - I guessed the DOWN crossing ended in "R", and that helped remind me

28. Examines informally : QUIZZES

30. Who, in Quebec : QUI - Frawnche, all perps

31. Product of New Orleans : JAZZ - I was introduced to "rock-fusion jazz" and Mahavishnu Orchestra back when I was 16; here's my favorite song from them - the guitar might be a little harsh for some ears, but the drum intro is awesome....

Vital Transformation

32. Do : EXECUTE - with nothing filled in, "Do" as a clue is extremely vague; "Run" is another one

34. Little squirt : SPRITZ - SHRIMP, no, SPRITE, no SPRITZ - the literal spray of liquid

37. "Sure, why not" : "I GUESS."

38. Parti-colored : PIEBALD

40. Passed perfectly : ACED

41. So-so connection? : AND - so-AND-so

42. Process of elimination : REMOVAL

44. Links org. : PGA

47. Truck parts : CABS

49. "The Martian" star : DAMON

50. Links mounds : TEES - not the little wooden stick kind

51. Option for a return : eFILE - IRS type returns

53. Moses, for one : JEW

54. Reznor of Nine Inch Nails : TRENT - I knew this proper name, which helped

55. Destructive beetles : BORERS

59. Zealous : ARDENT

60. It can help with the healing process : ALOE VERA

61. Concluded one's case : RESTED - dah.  Went with CLOSED

62. Sooner or later : SOMEDAY

DOWN:

1. Kidding : BANTER

2. Seinfeld character who ordered the "big salad" : ELAINE

3. Word origin : ETYMON - doesn't look right, but I knew it was the right word

4. Romantic buds? : ROSES - see~?  Which "bud" is which~?

5. '80s Chrysler : K-CAR - I had one, a Plymouth Reliant, which my dad gave to me when the floor rusted out on my Subaru Brat; I ended up replacing the engine, then the transmission in the thing.  Not good.  Dodge/Chrysler have come a long way since then - I still have my Stratus with 293,640 miles on it, and now the newly purchased Grand Caravan

6. Cambridgeshire cathedral town : ELY

7. "Aw, shucks" : "GEE WHIZ~!"

8. Fake being : ACT - ooh~!  I put this in, and it worked~!  I pondered ETs, or something along the lines of an "alien" being - the noun, not the verb

9. "Oops!" evoker : GOOF

10. Optimistic sort : HOPER - one who "hopes"

12. Smash hits, often : SELLOUTS

13. Pacts : TREATIES

15. __ Ferdinand, whose assassination set off WWI : FRANZ

21. Nod : DOZE

24. At a loss : PUZZLED

25. Salma Hayek, by birth : MEXICAN - did not know this, but the crossings were in place

28. Doha is its capital : QATAR - oops, went with YEMEN - and a shout out to our Doc~!

29. Franklin Mint founder Joseph : SEGEL - only unknown, and the last "L" was an "R" first, so I did not get the 'ta-DA~!' until I reviewed the grid

31. Spinnaker relative : JIB - I knew this was a sail boat reference, but thought a spinnaker was a type of boat; here's a pic of a colorful spinnaker

Learned another new word; TWING

33. Jersey chew : CUD - Jersey as in cow; had the "D" from ACED

34. Elongated key : SPACE BAR 

36. Cards nickname : RED BIRDS - the St Louis Cardinals, if I am not mistaken

39. Key of Beethoven's Violin Concerto: Abbr. : D MAJ - the "A" was already in place, so I went right to "E MAJ", figuring "E" was the most likely of final letters for 38a.

40. Professions : AVOWALS

43. Homer's final character? : OMEGA - Homer the Greek poet, not Mr. Simpson; D'oh~!

44. Mad : PEEVED

45. Family subdivisions : GENERA - Yeah, GENUSI did not seem correct; Kingdom Phylum Class Order Family Genus Species; can you tell me what I'm thinking of~? It's classified as Animalia/Arthropoda/Insecta/Odonata/ Libellulidae/Pachydiplax - phew~!

46. Off the mark : ASTRAY

48. Hard weather to deal with : SLEET - that would be rain in solid form; definitely 'harder'

50. Cache of cash, perhaps : TROVE - I had TR---, tried TRUST

52. Seaside glider : ERNE

54. Brim : TEEM

56. Norm: Abbr. : STD

58. Stock response? : MOO - More cow humor

Splynter