google.com, pub-2774194725043577, DIRECT, f08c47fec0942fa0 L.A.Times Crossword Corner

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Feb 19, 2011

Saturday February 19. 2011 Bruce Venzke

Theme: None

Total words: 70

Total blocks: 32

Amazing symmetry in this puzzle: the normal 180-degree rotation; left to right; and top to bottom.

As usual, Bruce likes to have grid-spanning answers anchor his puzzle. Today, we have six:

15A. TV host's segue : BE BACK IN A MINUTE. Reminds me of Don's ABOUT TO GO LIVE answer.

17A. Sources of track reports : STARTER'S PISTOLS. Report = Gunshot sound. Had to ask Dennis for help.

34. Lonely guy in old 60-Down : MAYTAG REPAIRMAN. And ADS ( 60D. Some pitches). Sales pitches.

41A. Fighting words : LET'S STEP OUTSIDE

58A. Creed foe, with "The" : ITALIAN STALLION. Nickname for Rocky. Apollo Creed, an unfamiliar character to me.

63A. Maneuver through a tight opening : THREAD THE NEEDLE

Quite a few abbreviations in this puzzle, the by-product of a very demanding grid structure.

Across:

1. Set off, as an alarm : TRIPPED. Tripped an alarm.

8. Elko native : NEVADAN. We've seen ELKO clued as "Nevada city" a few times.

18. Certain border, to a philatelist : PERF. OK, perforated.

19. Menlo Park wizard, initially : TAE (Thomas Alva Edison)

20. Egyptian fertility deity : ISIS

21. It might be req. for some new furniture : ASSY (Assembly). This abbreviation stumped me also.

24. Eject : SPEW

27. Velvet's older sister in "National Velvet" : EDWINA. Hard for me, since I don't know the crossing 27D & 29D.

30. Sends, in a way : EMAILS. I wanted ELATES.

38. Author Levin : IRA

39. Kind of blouse : PEASANT. Looks pretty on this model.

40. Shade : HUE

44. Impressive property : ESTATE

45. Filled in : TEMPED. Don't know temp can be a verb.

46. Travel about : ROAM

48. Fed. inspection group : USDA. Food inspection.

49. Letter on a sweater : ZETA. Oh, the fraternity letter.

52. Defense gp. formed in Bogotá : OAS (Organization of American States). In 1948.

54. Shortfall : LACK

64. High-powered : INTENSE. I associate "intense" with feelings, not "high-powered" though.

65. Lower : DEGRADE. Verb "lower".

Down:

1. Medicinal amt. : TBSP

2. Anatomical network : RETE. Neural network. Learned from doing Xword.

3. Support beam : I-BAR

4. Layered dessert : PARFAIT. Not to my taste.

5. Election night fig. : PCT (Percent)

6. Just make, with "out" : EKE. This little three word is constructor's best friend, same as OREO.

7. Bad way to play : DIRTY. Play dirty.

8. Collars can hide them : NAPES. Neck backs.

9. Former Radiohead label : EMI. Guessed. English band, what label could it be?

10. As far as the eye can see: Abbr. : VIS. Vision? (Correction: It's visibility.)

11. Dovelike : ANTIWAR

12. Batman and Robin et al. : DUOS

13. King of the Huns, in Norse myth : ATLI. Same as Attila the Hun.

14. Loch seen from Urquhart Castle : NESS. Loch brought me the answer. Don't know the castle.

16. Secretive org. : NSA

22. Shapes up : SNAPS TO. New phrase to me.

23. Smart-sounding brew : SAGE TEA. Have never had this tea.

25. Very little money : PEANUTS. Work for peanuts.

26. Gave off : EMITTED

27. '60s boxing champ Griffith : EMILE. Sigh! I googled this guy before, then promptly forgot all about him.

28. Braves : DARES

29. Peter's "Easy Rider" role : WYATT. Had ??ATT there for some time.

31. "You dig?" response : I'M HIP

32. Cum __ : LAUDE

33. Ed __, runner-up in the first Masters sudden death playoff : SNEED. Not a familiar name to me. 1979 Masters. Lost to Fuzzy Zoeller, according to Wikipedia. Fuzzy is one noisy guy.

35. "The Facts of Life" actress : RAE (Charlotte)

36. Debatable "ability" : ESP

37. Kung __ chicken : PAO

42. Illinois-based food giant : SARA LEE

43. Compressed : SMALLER. Tricky part of speech.

47. __ Cristo: fried sandwich : MONTE. First encounter with this sandwich. Does it taste good, Bill?

48. Peruvian pronoun : USTED. Just "you".

49. Rigatoni relative : ZITI

50. Race: Pref. : ETHN. ETHNO is more common. 

51. Sharp : TART

53. Butt end : ASH. Nice clue.

55. Musical with the song "Radames' Letter" : AIDA. Radames is her love.

56. Under 20, to most : COLD. Was thinking of age, not temperature.

57. Joint for guitarists? : KNEE. Don't get this clue, Al/Splynter!

59. Golfer Woosnam : IAN. Very hot-tempered guy. I used to follow European Tour fervently.

61. Chemical suffix : ANE

62. It may be pulled : LEG. I wanted TAB.


C.C.