In comedy circles the pairing of a handsome Italian singer and a clownish Jewish comedian is common practice, and while Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis may be the gold standard, Allen and Rossi worked together for many years with this catch phrase.
I found the puzzle a great example of a Monday, with a very gettable theme with a good reveal and many easy fill. But there are also many middling length words like DEPART, NESTLE, SPARSE, STALLS, STEAKS, UNREST, ALL THAT, SITS PAT, PASSOVER, BE MY GUEST, SO IT SEEMS which like their earlier efforts in 2012 and 2013, make you work a little bit for your porridge. After Steve blogged the first one, and Argyle his own, Scott was looking for a pinch hitter, so here I (we) am (are).
17A. Nautically themed boy's outfit : SAILOR SUIT. Hello Sailor is a classic line from a working girl. Speaking of girls and sailor suits..this was very popular when my boys were little. LINK. (1:32)
25A. "9 to 5" singer : DOLLY PARTON. Hello Dolly the very successful stage play and movie about the matchmaker.
47A. Filler for Tabby's box : KITTY LITTER. The ridiculously successful FRANCHISE.
58A. Friendly greeting, and a hint to the starts of 17-, 25- and 47-Across : HELLO THERE..
1. Electrical pioneer Nikola : TESLA. With Tesla Motors I am sure everyone knows something of this highly charged scientist.
6. __ and bolts : NUTS.
10. Take the chance : DARE. Of course this fill is what brought Marty Allen back to mind.
14. Not whispered : ALOUD.
15. Morales of "NYPD Blue" : ESAI. Classic beginner crosswordese for a minor character on a show off the air for a very long time.
16. Charles Lamb pseudonym : ELIA.
19. Repressed, with "up" : PENT.
20. Caesar's rebuke to Brutus : ET TU. Brute. And you Brutus?
21. JFK prediction : ETA. Estimated Time of Arrival.
22. Thinly distributed : SPARSE. Like the beards on many young men, which you can see clearly in...
24. Hi-__ image : RES. My write over, as I had hi-def. Any comments on HI in an Hello puzzle?
27. Beethoven's "Für __" : ELISE. Another very common fill in early week puzzles.
29. Direction after Near, Far or Middle : EAST.
30. Three-layer cookies : OREOS. A fresh clue for another old favorite.
32. Greasy spoon orders, briefly : BLTS. Bacon Lettuce Tomato(s).
33. Green __, Wisc. : BAY. Training camp has started. Interesting that there are two Bays in the NFL.
36. Overplay on stage : HAM UP. Would like an "IT" somewhere there.
37. Nil : ZIP. So many ways to say nothing.
38. More than chubby : OBESE. Based on height and weight I am obese.
40. NBA tiebreakers : OTS. OverTimes.
41. Put down, as linoleum : LAID. Yeah, I had a girl friend like that once, but she was not one of those...
43. Femmes fatales : VAMPS.
44. Pretzel topping : SALT. At my \Auntie Annies there is so much more.
45. Far from posh : SEEDY. Like many places with linoleum floors.
51. Space between things : GAP. Am I the only one who thought of Michael Strahan's teeth?
54. Pre-riot state : UNREST. Newspeak.
55. Dinghy propeller : OAR.
56. Aww-inspiring? : CUTE. Really cute clue.
57. March Madness org. : NCAA. National Collegiate Athletic Association.
61. Poster-hanging hardware : TACK. I bet you all nailed that one.
62. Jump on the ice : AXEL. Always a nice SO to dear Clear Ayes.
63. Eye surgery tool : LASER. Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation. Had mine in 2011, did not go well. Not related to 1D. Stun gun kin : TASER. The one used by the police according to wiki was invented by a man who named it after his childhood favorite Thomas A. Swift and His Electric Rifle.
64. Picnic spoilers : ANTS. And cousins...
65. Wobbly walkers : TOTS. Alliteration and a cute mental picture.
66. Credits as a source : CITES.
Down:
2. Lift the spirits of : ELATE. Euphoria here I come.
3. "Evidently" : SO IT SEEMS. Multiple word fill can be tricky.But this one was not a...
4. Doozie : LULU. Causing no...
5. Commotion : ADO. Allowing me to ...
6. Get snuggly : NESTLE. In my...
7. Bar regular's order, with "the" : USUAL. Place next to the lamp.
8. "__-Pan": Clavell novel : TAI. An interesting book about some Hong Kong BIG SHOTS.
9. Refuses to make changes : SITS PAT. From poker?
10. Leave : DEPART.
11. Like a sentry : ALERT. We all hope....
12. Classic laundry detergent : RINSO. To me it was RINSO BLUE. Recognize the pitchman? (1:55).
13. All finished, as dinner : EATEN.
18. Antique autos : REOS. Mr. Olds old car.
23. Holiday with a Seder : PASSOVER. Or two....
25. Showroom exhibitions : DISPLAYS.
26. Website providing restaurant reviews : YELP.
28. Reed of The Velvet Underground : LOU. Lou who died this year, is the favorite of Melrose Plant; perhaps you will like his SONG.(4:32).
30. "Now I get it!" : OHO. Meh.
31. Lab rodent : RAT. Dawn of the Planet of the Rats?
32. Bridge player's call : BID.
33. "Help yourself" : BE MY GUEST. I had the B and the rest came easily; of course my youngest performed in Beauty and the Beast. SONG. (3:30)
34. Snake on a pharaoh's crown : ASP.
35. Thumbs-up : YES. Tempted to link more music. SONG.(6:06).
37. Pasta tubes : ZITI. I make a nice baked ziti.
39. Like stormy weather : BAD. Maybe some Bad Company too. SONG. (6:16)
42. "It's __ and a bag of chips" : ALL THAT. My research suggests this 90's phrase which I learned from my kids originated in a Busta Rhymes (love that name) lyric. Anyone?
44. Outback specialties : STEAKS. The restaurant chain with the bloomin' onion and Paul Hogan who just divorced Linda after 17 years.
45. Delays on purpose : STALLS.
46. Designer Saarinen : EERO. On to the weird first name part of the fill, with this famous architect and...
47. Kinte of "Roots" : KUNTA. Alex Haley's great, great, great, great, grandfather is back.
48. Peruvian native : INCAN.
49. Parcel of land : TRACT.
50. Apartment vacancy sign : TO LET.
52. "... poem lovely as __": Kilmer : A TREE. I hope neither Owen or Chairman Moe are threatened but...LINK.
53. Social equals : PEERS. In Britain, the Lords and Ladies.
56. Indian spiced tea : CHAI. I like one now and then.
59. Prefix with thermal : EXO. I never saw it so it eiminated the GEO EXO conflict.
60. Compassionate handling, briefly : TLC. Tender Loving Care, which I tried to bring to this blog, sitting in for Argyle. It is my maiden Monday effort, and I now have all five days of the week done.Well enjoy the last week in July, NFL training camps open (!) sun shining and the puzzles keep on flowing from the Corner and its friends. Thanks guys , a fun ride. See you all next time,
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