David Alfred Bywaters

Title: HBDTMe

David (DAB) exploded on the 15x15 puzzle scene in December 2016 with a publication in both the NYT and the LAT. I count this to be his 120th puzzle in the major venues NYT, LAT, UC and UCS but my eyes started to cross trying to count them all so YMMV. Add to that all of his work on his own website A little DAB'll Do you and you a creative and dedicated man making his mark. I blogged his initial PUZZLE HERE .   

This theme to me is one of the trickier as it has both verbal and visual aspects. But is Friday so we must work a little harder. This is especially so since all of my fellow bloggers have upped their game so much. 

I wonder if Mr. Bywaters planned this as a Friday, as there are not his usual amount of sparkly non-theme fill with DIADEMS, DINETTE,  MAHALIA and  GIVE OVER the lot. We also have 52 of the 74 words at 5 letters or less and 40 blocks which are many for a 15 x 15. But I liked it and did not find it easy which is my favorite combination for a Friday. Off we go...

7A. Hi?: THIN SKINNED (11). If you take the word THIN and skin it, which is taking its outside layer off, it become HI.

24A. A?: REDUCED FAT (10). This time if you reduce the word FAT, all that is left is A. Again, the outside layer is removed. 

36A. In?: CLIPPED WING (11). Now picture clipping the word WING and remove the ends...

51A. Lower?: CUT FLOWERS (10). If you take away the F and the S... This is consistent, but for me CUT is not as precise as the others.  

58A. Lea?: CLEAN SHAVEN (11). Also clearly part of the theme, and the perfect compliment to 7A, with the work being done to the first word. The 11/10/11/10/11 symmetry also is preserved. 

I also spent some time trying to find a meta from the remaining parts of the butchered words, but nothing came to mind. I hope David stops by again as he often does.       

Across:

1. Ending of a Greek story?: OMEGA. The final letter of the Greek alphabet which we are seeing often.

6. Not just bad: AWFUL. When I was in high school we used to go Friendly's a New England specialty restaurant and order the AWFUL AWFUL. Since fall is approaching it seems a good time to see this drink's HISTORY.

11. Italian word that becomes its English synonym when "h" and "e" are added: TRE. THREE.

14. May and others: CAPES. Using the first letter capital trick made this a very Friday clue/fill. I liked it.

15. Way to go: ROUTE. A literal one to follow just to throw us off.

16. Veer off course: YAW. Didn't we recently discuss THIS?

19. Org. that began as the National Congress of Mothers: PTA. History LESSON. 

20. Head turner: ADONIS. 

Obviously not Jewish.

21. Ways to go: GAITS. Another tricky one as your gait is how you move.

23. Guilty, at times: PLEA. Not guilty, nolo contendre or guilty are the only choics in criminal courts.

28. Purpose: AIM.  

29. Jewish deli specialty: KNISH. An eastern european jewish, or yiddish, snack food consisting of a dumpling stuffed with potato, kasha or other delights.

30. Bit of force: DYNE. This is a unit of force that, acting on a mass of one gram, increases its velocity by one centimeter per second every second along the direction that it acts. Also great for dine puns.

31. Dickensian objects of pity: WAIFS. Meaning "person (especially a child) without home or friends" first attested 1784, from legal phrase waif and stray (1620s), from the adjective in the sense "lost, strayed, homeless."

34. "Fab!": NEATO. Very 60s. 

40. Common bike-lock design: U-BOLT. No, not Usain; or is it?

41. Brief digression: ASIDE. But I digress...

44. "Not likely!": AS IF. Also a popular valley girl phrase of the 80s.

47. Annie who voiced Bo Peep in "Toy Story 4": POTTS. The former Designing Woman, Ghostbusters' receptionist is now:

50. Word on Italian street signs: VIA.

53. Stuff: GEAR. Random.

54. Low bones: TARSI. I always loved when Bones would play with the baby's phlanges.

55. Barefoot: UNSHOD. A hint to the feet?

57. "The Blacklist" agcy.: FBI. What next for Red Reddington?

63. Cheering word: OLE.

64. Mall booth: KIOSK.

65. One can be public or sworn: ENEMY. Or a frenemy.

66. Cabernet or merlot: RED. Quit whining, some have it too easy.

67. Process parts: STEPS.

68. Analyze, in a way: PARSE. My life's work.

Down:

1. It was eighth in old Rome: Abbr.: OCTober. 

2. First name in gospel: MAHALIA.

3. Happening all over: EPIDEMIC. An all too timely clue/fill.

4. Ligurian Sea city: GENOA.

5. Pt. of 19-Across: ASSN.

6. Come up: ARISEN.

7. Captured: WON.

8. Amusement: FUN.

9. Eponymous people of the Southwestern U.S.: UTE.

10. Pigeon's perch: LEDGE.

11. Be exemplary of: TYPIFY.

12. Wicker material: RATTAN. In case you wondered, the word rattan is derived from the Malay "rotan", the local name for climbing palms.

13. Old computers and cellphones, say: EWASTE. Like this fill.

18. Michael Douglas' middle name: KIRK. That makes sense since his father, Issur Danielovitch, had taken the name to become Kirk Douglas.

22. Extras: ADD ONS. Crossing ADONIS.

23. "Give me your __": PAW. How sweet, but I don't know you well enough.

25. Kitchen set: DINETTE.

26. Sold for less, as a rule: USED.

27. Tobacco wad: CHAW.

32. Blown lines, say: FLUFFS.

33. Bro, e.g.: SIB.

35. Hermana de la madre: TIA. Sister of your mother in Spanish.

37. Cops, in slang: POPO. Originally from Southern California, where bicycle police, beginning in the 1980s, wore T-shirts marked 'PO', for 'police officer', in block letters. As these officers rode in pairs, their shirts would read 'POPO' when side by side. 

38. Furrow maker: PLOW.

39. Abandon: GIVEOVER.

42. Glittering headgear: DIADEMS.

43. Musical skill: EAR.

44. Represent: ACT FOR.

45. Subject to litigation: SUABLE.

46. Consolatory post-failure reflection: I TRIED.

48. Swimming __: TRUNKS.

49. "Last four digits" IDs: SSNS.

52. The home team gets the last ones: LICKS.

53. Togo neighbor: GHANA.

56. Apt collie name: SHEP.

59. On fire: LIT.

60. Fair-hiring abbr.: EOE.

61. Deadly viper: ASP.

62. Bill promoting science?: NYE.