Theme: Take Actions
18A: Take on: GO UP AGAINST
23A: Takeoff: AIR DEPARTURE
32A: Take up: BEGIN LEARNING
41A: Takedown: WRESTLING MOVE
48A: Take in: PUT ONE OVER ON
57A: Takeout: HOT FOOD TO GO
Dictionary defines "Takedown" as "a move or series of maneuvers that succeeds in bringing a standing opponent down onto the mat." New word to me. I also did not know the idiom PUT ONE OVER ON.
I am often taken aback by Dan Naddor's productivity. I wonder how much time he commits to constructing puzzles every day. He is so thorough and ambitious in theme answer researches/designs. Six-theme entries seem to be very common for his 15*15 grids. On/off, up/down & in/out are all paired up nicely.
I really felt dumb this morning. Could not even parse A.F. OF L (62A: Union founded by Samuel Gompers, for short). I am more used to the AFL abbreviation. A.F. OF L is American Federation OF Labor.
Across:
1A: Spill catcher: BIB. Spilled some cherry juice on my white tank top the other day. So surprised that the stains came off rather easily.
4A: Cornered: AT BAY
9A: A pump lacks one: STRAP. Cameron Diaz' "In Her Shoes" is pretty funny.
14A: Sun Devils' sch.: ASU (Arizona State University)
16A: Hogwash: TRIPE
17A: Strauss's "__ Rosenkavalier": DER. German "the". DER Rosenkavalier = The Knight of the Rose. Have never heard of this opera.
20A: __artery, which supplies the kidneys: RENAL. Guessed, since RENAL is often clued as "Kidney-related".
22A: Tee-hee: SNICKER
27A: Expectoration sound: PTUI. The spitting sound. Expectoration/Expectorate (verb) is a new word to me.
28A: River inlet: RIA. Last time Dan Naddor clued it as "Esturary". I always want BAY.
29A: Bando of the 1960s-70s: SAL. Got his name from the Down fills.
38A: Like some auto engine: REBUILT. Did not come to me immediately.
40A: Daughter of King Minos: ARIADNE. She helped Theseus escaped the Labyrinth, but he deserted her. She later married Dionysus, God of fertility/wine.
43A: Place for a stud: EAR. Stud earrings. I like how it crosses the anagrammed baseball ERA (39D: Diamond stat).
44A: DUI's excess: ALC
45A: "Make __ Away": Sheryl Crow song: IT GO. What does IT refer to? Love?
53A: Big name in art glass: STEUBEN. I could only think of Tiffany.
61A: Windy City transportation grp.: CTA (Chicago Transit Authority).
63A: Y, sometimes: VOWEL. My favorite clue. Sometimes Y is a consonant, as in "Yes".
64A: Kenan's TV pal: KEL. Nickelodeon's "Kenan & KEL". I simply forgot.
65A: Kirsten of "Spider-Man": DUNST. I liked her in "Marie Antoniette". So innocent.
66A: Land formation named for its usual shape: DELTA
67A: Cannes condiment: SEL. French for salt. Last time "Poivre's partner" stumped many. Poivre is French for pepper.
Down:
1D: Unfair judgment, slangily: BAD RAP. Silly that some people eschew potatoes because of the carbs. Carbs are not fattening. Excess calories are.
2D: "Thar she blows!": I SEE IT
3D: Peel out: BURN RUBBER. "Peel out" is a new slang to me.
4D: Perspective: ANGLE
6D: HVAC measure: BTU
7D: Band aid?: AMP. Nice play on Band-Aid.
9D: Flight segment: STAIR
10D: Very short time: TRICE. I used to confuse TRICE with THRICE.
11D: Lemieux's milieu: RINK. Mario Lemieux. The only person to win the Stanley Cup as both a player and an owner (Penguins).
12D: It adjoins the altar: APSE. APSE & NAVE often confuse me.
13D: Rock: Pref.: PETR. As in petrify.
19D: Bearded grazer: GNU. Ah, OK, this wildebeest (GNU) does have beard.
21D: Parting words: ADIEUS
24D: Dry residue from molten liquid: PRILL. Like this? I've never heard of this word before.
25D: "__ a stinker?": Bugs Bunny line: AIN'T I
26D: N.C.'s capital: RAL. Raleigh.
29D: Gets off the point: SIDETRACKS
30D: First name in advice: ANN. ANN Landers.
33D: "Skedaddle!": GIT. Variant of get.
34D: Birdie beater: EAGLE. Golf term. Birdie is 1 under par. Eagle is 2 under par. I don't like "beater". Hate the image it conjures up.
35D: AK Steel Holding Corp. formerly: ARMCO. No idea. ARMCO stands for American Rolling Mills Corporation.
36D: __ Grande: RIO. Just saw "Blame It on RIO" the other day. Demi Moore seems to get more beautiful as she ages. She only eats raw food.
37D: Marine combatants: NAVIES. The warships? I was picturing those tough Marines fighting in Iraq/Afghanistan.
38D: "Nature" author's monogram: RWE. Ralph Waldo Emerson. I was stumped. Did not know Emerson's full name.
42D: Indian bread: NAN. Chinese Muslims call the bread NAN too.
46D: Colonel Sanders trademark: GOATEE
47D: Prepared to be summoned: ON CALL
48D: Light, filled pastries: PUFFS. Croissants are PUFFS pastries, right? They are heavy though.
49D: Letter-shaped fastener: U-BOLT
50D: Fabi of racing: TEO. Total stranger to me. Wikipedia says he participated in 71 Formula One Grands Prix.
51D: Available from Netflix, say: ON DVD
52D: String quartet member: VIOLA
53D: River herring: SHAD. Had no idea that SHAD is a kind of "River herring". Pickled herrings are delicious.
54D: Vegan staple: TOFU. TO is literally 'bean". FU means "ferment".
55D: Orwell's alma mater: ETON. "James Bond's alma mater" too.
58D: Water tester: TOE. Nice clue.
59D: Barn bird: OWL. Thought of HEN first.
Answer grid.
C.C.
18A: Take on: GO UP AGAINST
23A: Takeoff: AIR DEPARTURE
32A: Take up: BEGIN LEARNING
41A: Takedown: WRESTLING MOVE
48A: Take in: PUT ONE OVER ON
57A: Takeout: HOT FOOD TO GO
Dictionary defines "Takedown" as "a move or series of maneuvers that succeeds in bringing a standing opponent down onto the mat." New word to me. I also did not know the idiom PUT ONE OVER ON.
I am often taken aback by Dan Naddor's productivity. I wonder how much time he commits to constructing puzzles every day. He is so thorough and ambitious in theme answer researches/designs. Six-theme entries seem to be very common for his 15*15 grids. On/off, up/down & in/out are all paired up nicely.
I really felt dumb this morning. Could not even parse A.F. OF L (62A: Union founded by Samuel Gompers, for short). I am more used to the AFL abbreviation. A.F. OF L is American Federation OF Labor.
Across:
1A: Spill catcher: BIB. Spilled some cherry juice on my white tank top the other day. So surprised that the stains came off rather easily.
4A: Cornered: AT BAY
9A: A pump lacks one: STRAP. Cameron Diaz' "In Her Shoes" is pretty funny.
14A: Sun Devils' sch.: ASU (Arizona State University)
16A: Hogwash: TRIPE
17A: Strauss's "__ Rosenkavalier": DER. German "the". DER Rosenkavalier = The Knight of the Rose. Have never heard of this opera.
20A: __artery, which supplies the kidneys: RENAL. Guessed, since RENAL is often clued as "Kidney-related".
22A: Tee-hee: SNICKER
27A: Expectoration sound: PTUI. The spitting sound. Expectoration/Expectorate (verb) is a new word to me.
28A: River inlet: RIA. Last time Dan Naddor clued it as "Esturary". I always want BAY.
29A: Bando of the 1960s-70s: SAL. Got his name from the Down fills.
38A: Like some auto engine: REBUILT. Did not come to me immediately.
40A: Daughter of King Minos: ARIADNE. She helped Theseus escaped the Labyrinth, but he deserted her. She later married Dionysus, God of fertility/wine.
43A: Place for a stud: EAR. Stud earrings. I like how it crosses the anagrammed baseball ERA (39D: Diamond stat).
44A: DUI's excess: ALC
45A: "Make __ Away": Sheryl Crow song: IT GO. What does IT refer to? Love?
53A: Big name in art glass: STEUBEN. I could only think of Tiffany.
61A: Windy City transportation grp.: CTA (Chicago Transit Authority).
63A: Y, sometimes: VOWEL. My favorite clue. Sometimes Y is a consonant, as in "Yes".
64A: Kenan's TV pal: KEL. Nickelodeon's "Kenan & KEL". I simply forgot.
65A: Kirsten of "Spider-Man": DUNST. I liked her in "Marie Antoniette". So innocent.
66A: Land formation named for its usual shape: DELTA
67A: Cannes condiment: SEL. French for salt. Last time "Poivre's partner" stumped many. Poivre is French for pepper.
Down:
1D: Unfair judgment, slangily: BAD RAP. Silly that some people eschew potatoes because of the carbs. Carbs are not fattening. Excess calories are.
2D: "Thar she blows!": I SEE IT
3D: Peel out: BURN RUBBER. "Peel out" is a new slang to me.
4D: Perspective: ANGLE
6D: HVAC measure: BTU
7D: Band aid?: AMP. Nice play on Band-Aid.
9D: Flight segment: STAIR
10D: Very short time: TRICE. I used to confuse TRICE with THRICE.
11D: Lemieux's milieu: RINK. Mario Lemieux. The only person to win the Stanley Cup as both a player and an owner (Penguins).
12D: It adjoins the altar: APSE. APSE & NAVE often confuse me.
13D: Rock: Pref.: PETR. As in petrify.
19D: Bearded grazer: GNU. Ah, OK, this wildebeest (GNU) does have beard.
21D: Parting words: ADIEUS
24D: Dry residue from molten liquid: PRILL. Like this? I've never heard of this word before.
25D: "__ a stinker?": Bugs Bunny line: AIN'T I
26D: N.C.'s capital: RAL. Raleigh.
29D: Gets off the point: SIDETRACKS
30D: First name in advice: ANN. ANN Landers.
33D: "Skedaddle!": GIT. Variant of get.
34D: Birdie beater: EAGLE. Golf term. Birdie is 1 under par. Eagle is 2 under par. I don't like "beater". Hate the image it conjures up.
35D: AK Steel Holding Corp. formerly: ARMCO. No idea. ARMCO stands for American Rolling Mills Corporation.
36D: __ Grande: RIO. Just saw "Blame It on RIO" the other day. Demi Moore seems to get more beautiful as she ages. She only eats raw food.
37D: Marine combatants: NAVIES. The warships? I was picturing those tough Marines fighting in Iraq/Afghanistan.
38D: "Nature" author's monogram: RWE. Ralph Waldo Emerson. I was stumped. Did not know Emerson's full name.
42D: Indian bread: NAN. Chinese Muslims call the bread NAN too.
46D: Colonel Sanders trademark: GOATEE
47D: Prepared to be summoned: ON CALL
48D: Light, filled pastries: PUFFS. Croissants are PUFFS pastries, right? They are heavy though.
49D: Letter-shaped fastener: U-BOLT
50D: Fabi of racing: TEO. Total stranger to me. Wikipedia says he participated in 71 Formula One Grands Prix.
51D: Available from Netflix, say: ON DVD
52D: String quartet member: VIOLA
53D: River herring: SHAD. Had no idea that SHAD is a kind of "River herring". Pickled herrings are delicious.
54D: Vegan staple: TOFU. TO is literally 'bean". FU means "ferment".
55D: Orwell's alma mater: ETON. "James Bond's alma mater" too.
58D: Water tester: TOE. Nice clue.
59D: Barn bird: OWL. Thought of HEN first.
Answer grid.
C.C.
