Man what more could a guy ask for, marti, followed by C.C. followed by a John Lampkin special. I am in blogger heaven. Good thing this is not November 19. Letter removal puzzles require the result to be entertaining and John does not disappoint. CRIER PIGEON, MINAMALIST T, BROOM BRAWL (featuring witches) and PILL TO POST all evoke (see 49A) very funny images to me. The rest of the fill is loaded with stuff like CAPITOL, ECLIPSE, EXPORTS, ONE EYED, OOMPAHS, ORIGAMI, SPARE ME, TOENAIL, HOOFED IT, I’M NO FOOL.
20A. Easy mark with a sob story? : C
54A. Shirt that hardly covers anything? : MINIMALIST
10D. Ruckus at a coven? : B
28D. Very small pharmaceutical mail order? : PILL
And the hint
67A. Noble gas, and a homophonic hint to how this puzzle's four longest answers are formed : ARGON (5). AR is GONE from each phrase. Regional accents may make this more difficult.
Across:
1. What Rudolph used to be called : NAMES. A semi clecho. 41. 1960 Olympic gold medalist Rudolph : WILMA.
All of the other reindeer
Used to laugh and call him names
They never let poor Rudolph
Join in any reindeer games
6. One in a wild bunch? : OAT. Sowing anyone?
9. Beatles song syllables : OBLA. Does this parse OHHB LAHH, or OOOO BLAH?
13. Pilot : AVIATE. JL, really?
15. Baseball letters : RHE. Runs Hits and Errors on the scoreboard. JL is the undipsuted King of Clechos, as is seen here.
16. Baseball's Hershiser : OREL. He works in the booth now.
17. Baseball champs of 2013 : RED SOX. So many years of futility followed by such success, I wonder if Joe Maddon can do that for the Cubs?
18. "What do you take me for?" : I'M NO FOOL. I/ME today, a minI theme? 31A. Part of a team observation : NO I. Just two weeks after I used this as part of my name for marti's Friday puzzle. 7D. Woeful words : AH ME. 32D. "I've heard enough" : SPARE ME. (Also, s CSO to Boomer).
38D. "No real damage" : I'M OK.
22. Trail terminus: Abbr. : OREgon. Sounds like ARGON? I wonder if terminus refers to the fact the Oregon Trail ends in Oregon, or that Trail is added to the end of Oregon?
23. British pop singer Lewis : LEONA. She won X-Factor.
24. Expressionist painter LeRoy : NEIMAN. I think football made him famous. See the SITE.
26. Habitat for some ibexes : ALPS. You run into many, marti?
29. Coke go-with : RUM.
30. Balkan native : SERB. I wonder if they serve rum and coke in Serbia?
32. Fine groove : STRIA.
34. Salt's output : YARNS. Sailors love to spin them.
37. It's seldom total : ECLIPSE. Unless is it of the HEART.
39. Digital filer's target : TOE NAIL. Devlish misdirection with digital referencing the 'digit" i.e. toe, for all you pedicure experts.
42. Cape Cod catch : SCROD. It is baaack!
44. Intl. commerce group : WTO.
45. One-third of a WWII film : TORA.
47. Wind often affects it : AIM. Yes, in shooting, golf etc.
48. Joy : GLEE. Nene Leakes is/was on Glee.
49. Calls to mind : EVOKES.
51. Some future fliers : PUPAE. larvae, pupae, John loves dem bugs, see below for more.
53. Hint : TIP. Do not try giving your server a hint.
59. Didn't ride : HOOFED IT. Archie Goodwin was always hoofing it from the old brownstone and leaving the Heron in the garage.
61. Hamper : HOGTIE.
62. "... we fat all / creatures __ to fat us": Hamlet : ELSE. I love this scene where the King asks Hamlet where Polonious is, and is told he is at supper, the king asks where Polonious is eating his supper and Hamlet replies:
Not where he eats, but where he is eaten. A certain convocation of politic worms are e'en at him. Your worm is your only emperor for diet. We fat all creatures else to fat us, and we fat ourselves for maggots. Your fat king and your lean beggar is but variable service—two dishes, but to one table. That’s the end.
63. Roger or Brian of music : ENO. There will alway be music in John's puzzles as there is in his soul.
64. Bundle up on the farm : SHEAVE. A perfect winter misdirection.
65. Speedometer reading, e.g. : RATE.
66. Margarita condimento : SAL. salt in Spanish.
Down:
1. Buster? : NARC. The question mark is your clue to the clu, as it means one who busts.
2. Affirm as true : AVER.
3. Noon in Paris : MIDI. Time for a Midi? Mini or maxi? Skirted that issue.
4. Stands by an artist : EASELS. Only thing I think of
5. Put away : STORE.
6. Folding craft : ORIGAMI.
8. Dovetail sections : TENONS. Spynter, hope you get some rest.
9. Punch line? : OOF. See cartoon.
11. The first Mrs. Arrowsmith : LEORA.
12. Kind of wrench : ALLEN. Actually it is a Hex Key, but Allen manufacturing from Hartford seems to have cornered the market.
14. International commerce components : EXPORTS.
19. Like some picture cards : ONE EYED. I think we had Jacks recently.
21. Gets used (to) : INURES.
25. Land with a red, white and green flag : IRAN. Man there are a lot of them. LINK. I should have paid more attention when watching...
26. Over : ANEW. Starting over- starting anew? Not easy JL.
27. Point sets, in math : LOCI. Bill G., this is all yours.
33. Court : ATRIUM.
35. Time in ads : NITE.
36. Sour fruit : SLOE. Not in a Singapore Sling.
40. Marching band lows : OOMPAHS. Oh those TUBAE! 50D. String quartet part : VIOLA. two Violins, one cello and a viola. John, an accolpished piano player, teacher and composer always has music.
43. Hill building : CAPITOL.
46. Dramatic devices : ASIDES.
48. Counter man : GEIGER. Har har. It actually is the Geiger–Müller counter. LINK.
49. It's a real knockout : ETHER. Har har, though knockout drops were Chloral hydrate (please insert intelligent comment scientists).
52. Wahine's greeting : ALOHA.
55. Two-time Atlantic crosser of 1493 : NINA. I did not know this tidbit.
56. __ party : STAG. Most bachelor parties are stag; my first wedding had one but it was boooring.
57. DVR option : TIVO. How are they doing now that cable, dish people provide the DVRs?
58. Adult, at one time : TEEN. Being a teen is 7 years for each of us on the calendar, a lifetime for most males.
60. Commission : FEE. FIE FO FUM. I finish with an introduction to some of the photography of our multitalented constructor John Lampkin, who takes the best bug pictures even if bugs are yucky. He also offers his commentary. See you after Christmas, Happy Chanukah to those who light the candles. Lemonade out. Here are pictures and words from JL. Thanks for the puzzle and more.
For 51 Across – PUPAE
This Armyworm caterpillar (seen head downwards) had been parasitized by a very tiny braconid wasp. She had stung the caterpillar laying dozens of eggs. The eggs hatched and the wasp larvae ate the caterpillar from the inside out avoiding all vital organs toward the head end. The wasp larvae then crawled out through the caterpillar’s skin and formed the white fuzzy pupae sticking out of the caterpillar. The caterpillar was still alive when I shot the pic. My Florida naturalist friend Karen Finch, bless her, took everything home in a jar and hatched out the wasps to confirm our ID. Since parasitized larvae like this Armyworm nearly always die, braconid wasps can be an eco-friendly control of garden pests like Tomato Hornworms.
Total lunar eclipse I shot as a time-lapse from my yard at 3:33 am, December 21, 2010.
From Wikipedia: The eclipse was the first total lunar eclipse to occur on the day of the Northern Winter Solstice (Southern Summer Solstice) since 1638, and only the second in the Common Era. I could have slept in if I had just photographed an orange.
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