Monday, December 25, 2017 ~ Peter Koetters

Theme: Just another Monday - A non-Christmas theme.

1. Babysitting nightmares ... or relatives of the ends of the four longest puzzle answers: BRATS. Yeah, don't have nightmares about sausages.

20. Piltdown Man, purportedly: THE MISSING LINK

26. Really skimpy, like the polka-dot bikini of song: TEENIE WEENIE

42. Hangover remedy, so they say: HAIR OF THE DOG

50. "Honestly speaking ... ": "TO BE QUITE FRANK ..."

Argyle here. I suppose a lot of people won't get a paper today so they wouldn't have a puzzle to do. Many others may skip today's puzzle so I understand giving us this rather generic piece. It's not a ruiner of your celebrations, I hope.  Ol' Man Keith gets a present today.

Across:

1. "See ya": "BYE"

4. Kennedy assassin Lee Harvey __: OSWALD

10. Mediterranean exile isle: ELBA. The houses look fake.

14. Managed: RAN

15. Rain, to a picnic: RUINER. A bit strong; it's more like: Barbarian. to Rome.

16. Stereotypical techie: NERD. Once uncool sort who's now sort of cool. (Sunday)

17. Play part: ACT

18. Innermost foot digit: BIG TOE

19. New Mexico art community: TAOS. Historic Ledoux Street.

23. Vain gaits: STRUTS

24. Less hospitable: ICIER

31. River rollicker: OTTER

34. Finance guru Suze: ORMAN

35. Bearded Serengeti critter: GNU

36. Word after milk or meter: MAID

37. Confederacy foe: UNION

38. Stock holders?: POTS

39. Biblical craft: ARK

40. Where the heart is: CHEST

41. Dugout craft: CANOE

45. Playwright Chekhov: ANTON. "... considered to be among the greatest writers of short fiction in history." Wiki. quote: "Don't tell me the moon is shining; show me the glint of light on broken glass."

46. What drinks like Jolt provide: ENERGY. "All the sugar, twice the caffeine!"

55. Birth announcement word: GIRL

56. Like the bed of someone rushing out: UNMADE. Were you made to make your bed before presents?

57. Cell occupant: CON

58. A single time: ONCE

59. Big app for Apple: iTUNES

60. Angsty rock genre: EMO

61. Amazed sounds: OOHs

62. Deputized bands: POSSEs. They went thataway!

63. Lawn coating: DEW

Down:

2. Luxury boat: YACHT

3. Go in: ENTER

4. Moon, e.g.: ORBITER

5. Credit __: Zurich bank: SUISSE. Yes, I tried a W before changing to a U.

6. Powdered headwear: WIGS

7. Naysayer: ANTI

8. Writer Uris: LEON. "Exodus"

9. Bit of wine sediment: DREG. Usually plural.

10. Lure: ENTICE

11. Using for support: LEANING ON

12. Forcefully entered: BROKE INTO. Santa never did!

13. Website pop-ups: ADs

21. Muffled, as a trumpet: MUTED

22. Bank's claim: LIEN

25. Employ again: REUSE

27. Nine-piece combo: NONET

28. "When __ Eyes Are Smiling": IRISH. CSO to Troy Miss.

29. Overact: EMOTE

30. Pale: WAN

31. Nebraska city: OMAHA

“The Beautiful Old Market Entry to V. Mertz (in back to the right)”

32. "Pulp Fiction" writer/director Quentin: TARANTINO

33. Luau lamp: TIKI TORCH

37. TV dial letters: UHF. (Ultra high frequency), back in the days of tubes.

38. "Your table's ready" signaler: PAGER

40. Ice cream holder: CONE

41. Come clean: CONFESS

43. Paso __: California wine city: ROBLES

44. Political pundit Myers: DEE DEE

47. Sped: RACED

48. Garden-guarding figurine: GNOME

49. Informal "Catch my drift?": Y'KNOW?"

51. Witticism: QUIP

52. Golden rule preposition: UNTO

53. Irreverent radio host Don: IMUS. Still around.

54. Sunbathers' goals: TANs

55. Sticky stuff: GOO

Since the lyricist has a local connection to my area, I'll leave you with this song.

Argyle

C.C.: Here is Argyle Our Dear Santa

Notes from C.C.:
  

Happy Birthday to our Yellowrocks (Kathy), who's celebrating today with her son David and their family in New York. I thought of her every time I see a picture of vichyssoise or sand tarts or hear Butterfly Lovers, the classic Chinese music inspired by a great love story. Sending our best wishes to David as well.

Yellowrocks and son David, Sept 2016

Happy Birthday also to Lorraine (Fermatprime), who's been with the blog since Nov 2009.  Lorraine is an accomplished math professor and does many puzzles every day.

Thanksgiving, 2015

Snipped this great picture from Chairman Moe's Facebook. The Chairman (Chris) is a wine connoisseur.

Tuesday, December 19, 2017 ~ Grant Boroughs

                          Theme: Musical Ascension - 

17A. Music medium that succeeded the cassette tape: COMPACT DISC

24A. Music legend known as the First Lady of Song: ELLA FITZGERALD

38A. Equipment for rock bands: GUITAR AMPLIFIER

48A. Lennon-McCartney collection whose publishing rights were once owned by Michael Jackson: BEATLES' CATALOG

58A. When strung together, musical sequence represented by the initials of 17-, 24-, 38- and 48-Across: C MAJOR SCALE

Argyle here. It's been over a year since Grant's debut, a Monday. Quite a different follow-up, I'd say. Ol' Man Keith has his diagonal solve but from right to left, bottom to top, aptly for this puzzle, eh. It certainly had me wondering until the reveal. The entries are all somewhat musically connected.

Across:

1. Fire remnants: ASHES

6-Across is at the end.

11. Dazzle: AWE

14. Companion of reduce and recycle: REUSE

15. Log dwelling: CABIN

16. Composer Rorem: NED. Amazingly prolific. Selected works

19. Martini liquor: GIN

20. Confer knighthood on: DUB

21. Camping gear retailer: REI. (Recreational Equipment, Inc) We've had it often enough that I remembered the letters if not the exact order.

22. Verdi creation: OPERA. Ned Rorem has a few.

29. Yale grads: ELIs

30. State strongly: AVER

31. Gelatin dish: ASPIC

33. Lucy's old sitcom partner: DESI. Desi Arnaz, Sr.

35. 42-Across doubled: TWO

42. 35-Across halved: ONE

43. Grandson of Adam: ENOS

44. Formally gives up: CEDEs

45. Test for an aspiring atty.: LSAT.(Law School Admission Test)

47. Anti-fur-farming org.: PETA. (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals)

54. South Beach city: MIAMI. Life's a beach.

55. __ Baba: ALI

56. Michelle of the LPGA: WIE

57. Bath's land: Abbr.: ENG. (England)

63. Birthday count: AGE

64. Gold purity unit: KARAT

65. Lives like a nomad: ROVES

66. Partner of neither: NOR

67. Searches for: SEEKS

68. Stockholm native: SWEDE

Down:

1. Paris' __ Triomphe: ARC DE

2. South Korean capital: SEOUL

3. Comeuppance that's "eaten": HUMBLE PIE

4. Seer's claim: ESP. Not 'every single perp' like some claim.

5. Watery expanse: SEA

6. Group of eight: OCTET

7. Spanish port city: CADIZ. And this concludes today's travelogue.

8. __-Wan Kenobi: OBI. Star Wars. Has anybody seen The Last Jedi yet?

9. Prefix with spell: MIS

10. "Play more music!": "ENCORE!"

11-Down is at the end.

12. Really out there: WEIRD. 13. Flamboyant Dame: EDNA. 12-, and 13-Down, now there's a pairing!

18. NFL sportscaster Collinsworth: CRIS

23. Golf course standard: PAR

25. Came down to earth: ALIT

26. Pay stub acronym: FICA. (Federal Insurance Contributions Act)

27. Surprised sounds: GASPS. Kids with their first pay check and discover FICA.

28. Rotten to the core: EVIL

31. Before now: AGO

32. Daylight provider: SUN

33. "Divine Comedy" poet: DANTE

34. Revealing rock genre: EMO

35. Coastal flooding cause: TIDAL WAVE

36. Tiny: WEE

37. Surgery ctrs.: ORs. (operating room)

39. Genuine: REAL

40. "Law & Order: SVU" actor: ICE T

41. Greek cheese: FETA

45. Go on the __: skip town: LAM

46. Hangs (around): STICKS

47. Au __: live-in nanny: PAIR. Originally, French for ‘on equal terms’ but now a young foreign person, typically a girl, who helps with housework or child care in exchange for room and board.

48. "You got it!": "BINGO!"

49. Raring to go: EAGER

50. "Wheel of Fortune" host: SAJAK. Pat.

51. Coagulates: CLOTS

52. Quieted, as noisy hinges: OILED

53. Birds in a gaggle: GEESE

54. Not at all nice: MEAN

59. Sassy West: MAE

60. "Roses __ red": ARE

61. H.S. grads-to-be: SRs. (seniors)

62. Dairy farm animal: COW

6. "__, all ye faithful ... ": O, COME. 11D. Heavenly being: ANGEL

Argyle

Monday, December 18, 2017 ~ Brock Wilson

Theme: This - What we have here is...what we have here.

17A. Shunning public utilities and such: GOING OFF THE GRID

22A. Even-steven: ALL SQUARE

39A. Respond to cries of "Encore!": DO ANOTHER NUMBER

51A. Is totally in the dark: HAS NO CLUE

60A. Where to find the last words of 17-, 22-, 39- and 51-Across: CROSSWORD PUZZLE

Argyle here. Three spanners and a pangram; what a way to start the week. Ya' can't say this isn't in your wheelhouse.

Across:

1. Trains with a view of the street below: ELs

4. Second-string squad: B TEAM

9. Cherokee and Wrangler: JEEPs

14. VCR go-back button: REW. (rewind)

15. 1945 "Big Three" conference city: YALTA. A resort city on the south coast of the Crimean Peninsula surrounded by the Black Sea.

16. "Snowy" bird: EGRET

20. "Blame It __": Caine film: ON RIO

21. Continental coin: EURO

26. Twelfths of yrs.: MOs. (months)

29. "Say what?" responses: "HUH?"s

30. Horror film reaction: SCREAM

33. __ fatso: bit of Archie Bunker language-mangling: IPSO. (ipso facto)

37. World games org.: IOC. (International Olympic Committee)

38. Oktoberfest dance: POLKA

43. Delivery doc: OBGYN. (Obstetrics and gynecology) Don't most people pronounce this by the letters, oh-be-gee-why-en?

44. Prefix with natal: NEO. Neonatal: Pertaining to the newborn.

45. Breathe like a hot dog: PANT

46. "You can't leave this way" sign: [NO EXIT]

48. Soprano superstar: DIVA

50. Notepad file extension: TXT. (text file)

56. Classic 900 automaker: SAAB

                            prototype Saab 92.001

58. No-brainer: CINCH

66. Cry of dismay from Charlie Brown: "AAUGH!"

67. Grape holders: VINES

68. McKellen of "X-Men": IAN

69. Minor, as a complaint: PETTY

70. Online social appointment: eDATE

71. Z's 10, in Scrabble: Abbr.: PTs. (points)

Down:

1. Therefore: ERGO

2. British pop singer Lewis: LEONA. I linked it but couldn't watch it.

3. Ice cream pattern: SWIRL

4. "Golly!": "BY GOSH!"

5. Lao Tzu principle: TAO

6. Helper in Santa's workshop: ELF. Couldn't do it without them (but don't say I said that).

7. Justice Dept. arm: ATF. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

8. Mom in Middlesex: MATER. Steve, help!

9. Sound of bleachers discontent: JEER

10. Toaster waffle choice: EGGO

11. Goof: ERR

12. Architect I.M. __: PEI

13. Par for the course: Abbr.: STD. (standard)

18. Zero, in soccer: NIL

19. Color variations: HUES

23. Storm out of work for good: QUIT

24. "Oops!": "UH-OH!"

25. Climbs: ASCENDS

26. Word before toast or after peach: MELBA

27. Like the old bucket of song: OAKEN. If you watch it on YouTube, the whole poem is listed below it.

28. Intelligent: SMART

31. PC brain: CPU. (central processing unit)

32. Easy victory: ROMP

33. "__ get it": I DON'T

34. Mail dely. compartment: PO BOX

35. Bob of "Fuller House": SAGET

36. Black gem: ONYX

40. Covert maritime org.: ONI. (Office of Naval Intelligence)

41. Equestrian strap: REIN

42. De __: again: NOVO. “from the new.”

47. Melt: THAW

49. Point a finger at: ACCUSE

52. Below's opposite: ABOVE

53. Actress Taylor, familiarly: LIZ. Oh, those eyes!

54. Open, as a ski suit: UNZIP

55. Brilliant display: ECLAT

56. NCO rank: SSGT. (Staff Sergeant)

57. Like used fireplaces: ASHY

59. Coop layers: HENS

60. Baseball hat: CAP

61. Charlotte of "The Facts of Life": RAE. (Mrs Garrett)

62. On a date, say: OUT

63. Unburdened (of): RID

64. "CSI" evidence: DNA

65. Family dog, e.g.: PET

Argyle

Tuesday, December 12, 2017 ~ Bruce Haight

Theme: Special - Festival of Lights.

17A. Potato __: 61-Across dish: PANCAKES

19A. Items in a 59-Across lit for 61-Across: CANDLES

37A. Traditional 61-Across surprise, aptly boxed, and spelled with the only four letters of the alphabet that don't appear elsewhere in this grid: GIFT

59A. 61-Across centerpiece: MENORAH

61A. Two-millennia-old tradition that begins at sunset tonight: HANUKKAH

and an added hint to the center answer. 36A. Pack in cartons: BOX UP

Argyle here. 15x16 pangram. Visual grid.

Across:

1. 1960s presidential monogram: LBJ

4. Gremlins and Pacers: AMCs. (American Motors Corporation) Cars from the seventies.

8. Lands' End rival: L.L.BEAN

14. World Cup cry: OLÉ

15. Naked: BARE

16. Cross-referencing phrase: SEE ALSO. Very apt for today's puzzle.

20. Novelist Ferber: EDNA

21. Key with four sharps: E MAJOR

23. Wife of Jacob: LEAH

24. Fervor: ZEAL

25. Rebecca of "Risky Business": DE MORNAY

27. Relaxed condition: LOOSENESS

29. "¿__ pasa?": QUE. "What's up?"

32. One lacking manners: BOOR, not 32D. Dutch South African: BOER

34. Cowboy boot attachments: SPURS

38. Range dividing Europe and Asia: URALS

39. "You gotta be kidding": "YEESH!"

40. Rx items: MEDS

41. Coffee server: URN

42. Long-finned tunas: ALBACOREs

49. Nash priest, not beast: ONE 'L' LAMA

50. Roughly: OR SO

54. Make __ dash for: A MAD

57. Expired: LAPSED

58. Contented sounds: AAHs

63. Football rushing plays: END RUNS. Offense.

64. Greek love god: EROS

65. December 24, e.g.: EVE

66. Figured (out): SUSSED

67. Suffix with ransom: WARE

68. Org. with narcs: DEA. (Drug Enforcement Administration)

Down:

1. Pop icon Jennifer: LOPEZ. J.Lo

2. Razor insert: BLADE. I barely remember.

3. Barbara Bush's twin sister: JENNA. On left.

4. Legal org.: ABA. (American Bar Association)

5. Manage somehow: MAKE DO

6. Sweet liqueurs: CRÈMES

7. Bagel seed: SESAME

8. Finds out: LEARNS

9. Actor Cariou: LEN. Wiki. Canadian actor currently playing Henry Reagan the TV series Blue Bloods.

10. In a shoddy way: BADLY

11. She, in Paree: ELLE

12. On an ocean liner: ASEA

13. Quick snack: NOSH

16. Music for a film: SCORE

18. Hardhearted: CALLOUS

22. Actor Voight: JON

26. Take for granted: ASSUME

28. Annie, notably: ORPHAN

29. Campus hangout: QUAD

30. Addresses beginning with "http://": URLs. (Uniform Resource Locator)

31. Letter before tee: ESS

33. Plow-pulling team: OXEN

35. Washing machine cycle: PRESOAK

36. Mormon sch.: BYU. (Brigham Young University)

43. University founder Stanford: LELAND. Father of Stanford University in in Stanford, CA.

44. Malaise, with "the": BLAHS

45. Swiss peak: ALP

46. Kidney-shaped nut: CASHEW

47. 1998 Masters champ Mark: O'MEARA

48. Philadelphia suburb: RADNOR. An unincorporated community I've never heard of.

49. Smells: ODORS

51. Gathered leaves: RAKED

52. Trim whiskers: SHAVE

53. Actor Milo: O'SHEA

Milo O'Shea in Ulysses in 1967

54. Home of Iowa State: AMES

55. Diner handout: MENU

56. Added stipulations: ANDs

60. Regret: RUE

62. "__ as directed": USE

Argyle

Monday, December 11, 2017 ~ C.C. Burnikel

Theme: Cover Up - No conspiracy, just items you can wear over your regular clothes, even shorts.

16A. Gift-wrapping need: CLEAR TAPE. CAPE

37A. Hipster: COOL CAT. COAT

56A. Garment fittingly represented by this puzzle's circles: OUTERWEAR

10D. Outdoor lot for cars: PARKING AREA. PARKA

23D. "Blurred Lines" singer: ROBIN THICKE. ROBE (He is a son of actor Alan Thicke)

Argyle here, and C.C. doing back-to-back puzzles.

Across:

1. Cushions for gymnasts: MATS

5. Guard's shout: HALT

9. Rectangular Apple: iPAD

13. Tons: A LOT

14. Student's repetitive cry with a raised hand: "OH! OH!"

15. Sports page news: TRADE

18. Country singer Steve: EARLE

19. Rowdy crowds: MOBS

20. "Mr. November," for Derek Jeter, e.g.: MONIKER

22. Put pen to paper: WRITE

24. Rep.'s campaign rival: DEM.

25. Title for a knight: SIR

26. Home for a pride: LIONS' DEN

28. Genesis paradise: EDEN

30. Exile island for Napoleon: ELBA

31. Dance for which "it takes two": TANGO

33. JPEG relative: GIF. (Graphics Interchange Format)

36. Quotable boxer: ALI. Muhammad Ali

39. Duffer's dream: ACE. Hole-in-one in golf.

40. Air circulator: FAN

41. Capital of Yemen: SANA'A

42. Large First Nations tribe: CREE

43. "__ does it!": THAT

45. Meddling type of "driver" who's not actually driving: BACKSEAT

48. "Never heard of them": "WHO?"

49. Golf great Ernie: ELS

51. "Don't sweat it!": "RELAX!". "Chill!"

52. "Is that really your opinion?": "THINK SO?". Truncated "Ya think so?"

54. Not wavering in the least: SURE

55. TV host Lake: RICKI. I don't believe she has a show currently.

61. Signed in pen: INKED

62. Leisurely gait: TROT

63. Doing nothing: IDLE

64. Bird's snack: SEED

65. Drinks slowly: SIPS

66. Dragged to court: SUED

Down:

1. Apple computer: MAC

2. Every bit: ALL

3. Little piggy: TOE

4. Staying power: STAMINA

5. Place of rapid growth: HOTBED

6. Light-bulb moments: A-HA's

7. Prune, as a branch: LOP

8. Unifying idea: THEME

9. Aggressive poker table words: "I RAISE" but they could be bluffing.

11. "Inferiority complex" coiner Alfred: ADLER. (1870-1937) A bit tough for a Monday.

12. Doe or stag: DEER

15. Half a score: TEN. Didn't fool me; a score is twenty. (Counting on your fingers and toes then making a mark. My thoughts.)

17. Goes bad: ROTS

21. Last Greek letter: OMEGA

22. "O Pioneers!" author Cather: WILLA. Recent visitors here, both the book and the author.

24. Paternity test sites: DNA LABS

26. One of many that fall in the fall: LEAF

27. School near Windsor: ETON

29. Tiny speck: DOT

32. Final Four org.: NCAA. National Collegiate Athletic Association basketball play-offs.

34. Mountaineer's tool: ICE AX. Tinbeni axes the ice.

35. Thirds of a yard: FEET

37. Civil War side: Abbr.: CSA. (Confederate States of America)

38. Hall's pop music partner: OATES. We mentioned this "Sara" song recently.

42. Narnia creator: C.S. LEWIS. He is best known for the seven novels in The Chronicles of Narnia series.

44. Tooted one's horn: HONKED. Misdirected?

46. Salad oil bottles: CRUETS

47. Deborah of "The King and I": KERR. No tango here.

48. Complain with self-pity: WHINE

50. Ransacks: LOOTS

52. "Divergent" films heroine: TRIS. Tris Prior, Wiki "Divergent".

53. Baby goat: KID

54. "Enough!": "STOP!". Nope, four more.

57. School in the smallest U.S. state: URI. (University of Rhode Island)

58. End of a school address: .EDU

59. Malt beverage: ALE

60. Color of most pomegranate seeds: RED

Argyle

Monday, December 4, 2017 ~ Jeff Stillman

Theme: Seeing Double - Heteronyms, the last word and the last syllable of the preceding word are spelled the same but sound different.

17A. Devotee of singer Gloria: ESTEFAN FAN

24A. Precise price: ACCURATE RATE

39A. Mata Hari story, e.g.: FEMME FATALE TALE

51A. Garden purchase from a Lowe's rival: HOME DEPOT POT

63A. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, it's 63 for retirement: AVERAGE AGE

Argyle here. No reveal and five entries yet still an easy Monday.

Across:

1. Knight's "shining" protection: ARMOR

6. Elegant: POSH

10. WWII servicewomen: WACs. (Women's Army Corps)

14. Car body style: COUPE. 45D. Family car: SEDAN

15. Mennen shaving lotion: AFTA

16. Get one's ducks in __: A ROW

19. Heavy book: TOME

20. Buck or doe: DEER

21. Beluga yield: ROE. The Beluga sturgeon, not Beluga whale.

22. Viewed to be: DEEMED

27. Mineral springs: SPA

30. Believer's suffix: IST

31. Five-time Wimbledon champ Bjorn: BORG. "Resistance is futile."

32. Portion out: ALLOT

34. "Westworld" network: HBO. (Home Box Office)

35. Bon Ami alternative: AJAX

43. Simplicity: EASE

44. The "I" in TGIF: IT'S

46. Disney's "__ & Stitch": LILO. (2002)

48. Above-the-street trains: ELs

50. Chapter in history: ERA

56. Truck capacity: ONE TON

57. Coffee order: Abbr.: REG. (regular) Does that mean with cream and sugar to you?

58. Image to click on: ICON

62. Gadget's rank: Abbr.: INSP. (Inspector) Animated TV series.

66. Slugger Sammy: SOSA. Baseball.

67. Earth orbiter: MOON

68. Wafer brand: NILLA by Nabisco.

69. Jacob or Esau: TWIN

70. Choice word: ELSE

71. Not reached, as a goal: UNMET. Like most fund drives, right down to the wire.

Down:

1. Scored 100 on: ACED

2. Went up: ROSE

3. Sound-off button: MUTE

4. Wagner work: OPERA

5. Striped-shirt wearer: REF

6. Happen as expected: PAN OUT

7. Buyer's proposal: OFFER

8. BART stop: STA. (Bay Area Rapid Transit)

9. Hammer or screwdriver: HAND TOOL

10. Nixon Era scandal: WATERGATE

11. Pleasing smell: AROMA

12. Tailed celestial body: COMET

13. 31-Across, by birth: SWEDE. "Resistance is futile."

18. Rainbow shapes: ARCs

23. Poetic "always": E'ER

25. Credit in a footnote: CITE

26. "Dancing Queen" group: ABBA

27. Place for valuables: SAFE

28. Not guilty, for one: PLEA

29. Gift for the poor: ALMS

33. Skillet for folded egg dishes: OMELET PAN

34. Growth chart nos.: HTs. (height)

36. Green stone: JADE

37. Banned apple spray: ALAR

38. TV warrior princess: XENA

40. It's often followed by .pdf: FILE NAME

41. On the summit of: ATOP

42. Old U.S. gas brand: ESSO

47. Swearing-in words: I DO

48. Timeless, in verse: ETERNE

49. Women's links gp.: LPGA.(Ladies Professional Golf Association)

51. Lift up: HOIST

52. Televised as we speak: ON NOW

53. Soccer great Lionel: MESSI. I still haven't learned his name.

54. Black-and-white cookies: OREOs

55. Marketing gimmick: TIE-IN

59. Period "before the storm": CALM

60. Look at lasciviously: OGLE

61. Without ice, at the bar: NEAT

64. TV loud-soft control: Abbr.: VOL. (volume)

65. Bearded antelope: GNU. Available in the gift shop.

Argyle