Mark McClain

Title:  Injured Reserve.

What a prescient title to our latest puzzle from a friend of the blog - Mark McClain. Mark is one of the many champions of those who want to create crossword puzzles, like our own C.C. and Jeff Chen. He publishes(d?) a blog discussing puzzling Mark's Blog. As you can see he refers people to facebook collaborative group Crossword Puzzle Collaboration Directory I applaud this effort and all the help the community gives newcomers.

I meanwhile have been off the team all week as I recover from a health issue which when I finally sat down to solve and write this blog did not slow me down. As you see, the letters IR are inserted into various phrases to create new an entertaining fill (the IRs). This is not a typical Friday with no long fill outside of the theme which allowed to complete in a very reasonable time. The sparkliest others are DAPPER, OTTAWA, PRONTO,  WEEDED, MILDEST and the fun NICE DOG.


20A. Deity worshiped by backyard chefs?: BARBECUE SPIRIT (13). BARBECUE SPIT. Not to be religious, but ancient cultures probably did.

36A. 7-10 split, to a bowler?: IRKING PINS(10). KING PINS. This is all Boomer and TTP.

44A. Distiller Walker's treatise about a whisky grain?: HIRAM ON RYE (10). HAM ON RYE. This may be the hardest of the theme fill as I am not sure how many know HIRAM WALKER the Massachusetts born founder of Canadian whisky brand Canadian Club and so much more. I am sure this was a gimme for Canadian Eh! and our Michigan solvers. It is also the most fun for me.

54A. Hester Prynne's trademark milk-producing farm?: RED LETTER DAIRY (13). RED LETTER DAY. The heroine (?) of the SCARLET LETTER bought a dairy farm- maybe? I reread the book a few years ago, meh.
The reveal:
65D. April 15 org., or, as a plural, a hint to four long puzzle answers: IRS. The puzzle would have especially great on 4-15.

On to the rest...

Across:

1. Crossed the mob, in a way: SANG. Sammy "the Bull" Gravano? BETRAY

5. Insignificant points: NITS. A Crossword Shout Out to all the commenters who focus on the minutiae.

9. When repeated, Second British Invasion band: DURAN. Their most famous https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oJL-lCzEXgI

14. Second person of old?: THOU. Cute.

15. "No problems here": I'M OK. Or at least getting there.

16. "... the __ of defeat": "Wide World of Sports" phrase: AGONY. The skier's name is Vinko Bogataj.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P2AZH4FeGsc

17. Steaming flow: LAVA. Sadly my first thought was completely inappropriate.

18. Casual eatery: CAFE. A quick reappearance.

19. One spun by a juggler: PLATE. Apparently, it is an ART.

23. July 4th show failure: DUD. The term descends from the Middle English dudde, originally meaning worn-out or ragged clothing, and is a cognate of duds (i.e., "clothing") and dowdy. Eventually dud became a general pejorative for something useless, including ammunition or firecrackers. Wiki.

24. Attach, in a way: TIE.

25. NFL scores: FGS. Field Goals.

28. Underground support: ROOT. Not politics, trees.

31. "ASAP!": PRONTO. Italian pronto means ready; Spanish pronto means soon.

39. Exploring toon: DORA. The Nickelodeon cartoon is not a live-action MOVIE.

40. Conceals: VEILS. Such as threats from mob bosses.

41. Support for driving and kicking: TEE. Golf and football in one clue.

42. Flying toys: KITES. Do you think of them as toys?

43. Dumbo's flying aids: EARS. Another live-action version of a famous cartoon character. LINK.

46. Home of the Senators: OTTAWA. A red-letter day for our Canadian players and a hockey reference.

48. Ruckus: STIR.

49. Double curve: ESS. Sounds like golfer Ernie...

50. Two-time U.S. Open champ: ELS.

52. Played the first card: LED.

62. So it could be heard: ALOUD.

63. Where I-90 and I-79 meet: ERIE. How many CSOs do they get?

64. Rock's Bon __: JOVI. The New Jersey band fronted by JON BON JOVI. All you need to know. LINK.

66. Fire sign: SMOKE. Where there is...

67. With 68-Across, words before "easy": EGGS. So much cutesy cross-referencing coming up.

68. See 67- or 69-Across: OVER.

69. With 68-Across, studied: PORED.

70. Army installation: POST.

71. Loch with a legend: NESS.


Down:

1. Baseball Cards: Abbr.: STL.

2. Melville captain: AHAB. Arrgh, ahoy Moby Dick is back.

3. 1960s-'80s Chevy: NOVA. MYTH busted.

4. Bank employee: GUARD.

5. Words to a growler: NICE DOG. I usually make it doggie.

6. Apple on a desk: iMAC.

7. Vegan staple: TOFU. Not for me.

8. Sport with disks: SKEET. Shoot, I should have thought of that/

9. Togged out: DAPPER. So cute next to...

10. Not-cute fruit: UGLI.

11. Large chorus of cheers: ROAR. This reminds me of a very famous PLAY on words.

12. Opposition prefix: ANTI.

13. Duma "Don't think so!": NYET. This is a legislative body in the ruling assembly of Russia and of some other republics of the former Soviet Union.

21. Uses for warmth, as wood: BURNS.

22. Dainty drinks: SIPS.

25. Cops as a unit: FIVE-O. It is actually 5-0 which comes from the TV show Hawaii 5-0 which was a cop show in the 1970s brought back to life and just started its 10th season.

26. Marvelous: GREAT.

27. Get around: SKIRT.

29. Eye-related prefix: OPTI. Did I mention my recent sub-conjunctival hemorrhage?

30. Layers: TIERS.

32. Father of Thor: ODIN.

33. French possessive: NOTRE. Damn, that was easy.

34. Low cards: TREYS. Threes.

35. Relief providers: OASES. Not just Tug McGraw

37. To whom Rick says, "We'll always have Paris": ILSA. Or a lion.

38. Orderly: NEAT.

42. Divided land: KOREA.

44. Put a stop to: HALT.

45. Least spicy: MILDEST. The version Oo prepares for me. Not mild, just in comparison to the 5 alarm version she eats.

47. Tidied the garden: WEEDED. What a sweet image.

51. A lot to pay: STEEP.

53. Tangy mustard: DIJON.

54. Filing tool: RASP.

55. Dagwood neighbor: ELMO.

56. Saloon __: DOOR. This is really random, though it is a type of Door. But WHY?

57. Third of four canonical gospels: LUKE. You can read about Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John HERE but discuss them and all serious religious topics elsewhere according to the Canon of Zhooqin.

58. Thus: ERGO.

59. Fixes on the sly: RIGS. On the sly?

60. Wander: ROVE.

61. Part of YSL: YVES. Saint Laurent.

Mark McClain

Title: Am I coming or going?

After more than 7 years of blogging puzzles, I do not often need the reveal to understand the theme. Mark got me, even though I knew the likely theme fill made no sense, I did not get what they had in common until the reveal. Telling us to break 58A into three words gave me DRAW TO WARD, and after a slow brain moment the light bulb went on - DRAW backwards is WARD. GAB becomes BAG and the rest fell into place. To maintain consistency, Mark has the second word reverse in the first two themers and and the first word reverses in the next two. The grid with many three and four letter fill makes this a fair test for Friday even before you deduce the reversal. Also it features many witty clue/fill combinations. Ringing organ? : EAR; Taking something badly? : THEFT come to mind. That did not leave much room for other sparkle, but Mark did include SAPPORO, SATISFY, DYSTOPIAN and RAISE CAIN.


18A. Chat at the supermarket checkout? : GROCERY GAB (10). Grocery Bag jumped out at me as soon as I had the reveal.

24A. Marsh bird with uncontrollable urges? : COMPULSIVE RAIL (14). Compulsive is a word most often seen with Liar and Gambler.

38A. Way into Wayne Manor? : BAT KEYS (7). Tab Keys are very important when typing. The shortest fill, BAT to TAB.

51A. Work of a major opera house villain? : EVIL FROM THE MET (14).

58A. Attract ... or, as three words, sequence change with a hint about 18-, 24-, 38- and 51-Across : DRAW TOWARD (10). If you suss this as DRAW to WARD, you see that this is a word reversal puzzle.



Across:

1. Alan of "Tower Heist" : ALDA. It is amazing how well he has played smarmy bad people in this and other projects.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PMmd7xD_oLg

5. Partridge family tree? : PEAR. Not sure which family this refers to, the TV series or the Christmas chant.

9. Eliot's Bede : ADAM. This was the first novel published by George Eliot (Mary Ann Evans). Silas Marner and Middlemarch were her best.

13. He shared the AP Driver of the Century award with Andretti : FOYT. A. J. was a major STAR. when I was growing up.

14. Consumed : EATEN.

16. Con __: tempo marking : MOTO. The word has the same stem as motion but what does it mean in MUSIC?

17. Museum figure : BUST. Tempting...

20. Bigelow offering : TEA.

22. "Utopia" author : MORE. Is this the first fantasy novel? Was his Utopia appealing?  What about 3 Down?

23. Request on "ER" : MRI.

28. Oldest Japanese beer brand : SAPPORO.

29. Discounted by : LESS.

30. Cut out : OMIT.

31. Trivial amount : SOU. Although the French sou as a coin disappeared more than two centuries ago, it is still used to mean of little value. (various).

33. __ science : EARTH. Needed perps.

37. Paella veggie : PEA. Not a dish I cook, but here is a RECIPE.

41. "Eureka!" : AHA. Another made up word, but I guess they all are.

42. Legendary first name in skating : SONJA.  The second name was HENIE. A reminder to some of us of Clear Ayes. 48D. 42-Across' homeland : NORWAY.

44. Northwest Passage explorer : RAE. A true PIONEER.

45. Cinco times dos : DIEZ. Purists would prefer "cinco veces dos."

46. Noodle bar order : UDON.

49. Fulfill : SATISFY.

55. Animal house : DEN.

56. Pertaining to : IN RE.

57. SHO-owned cinematic channel : TMC. The Movie Channel, not TCM or AMC.

62. Not at all tough : EASY.

65. Skye, for one : ISLE.

66. Card worth a fortune? : TAROT.

67. Stir up : RILE.

68. Slender swimmers : EELS.

69. Sweet tubers : YAMS.  Can you pass the QUIZ?

70. Winter coat : SNOW. Another nice one.

Down:

1. Laughlin in Tex., e.g. : AFB. Air Force Base.

2. He often batted after Babe : LOU. Gehrig.

3. Like "The Hunger Games" society : DYSTOPIAN. Should this be included when you have 22A?

4. Tackle : ATTEMPT.

5. Wood fastener : PEG.

6. Ringing organ? : EAR. I like this clue, not the phenomenon.

7. Physics class topic : ATOMS.

8. Cringe : RECOIL.

9. Youngest of the "Little Women" : AMY. Meg. Margaret is the oldest of the March sisters, Jo. Josephine is the second oldest March sister, Beth. Elizabeth is the third eldest sister, Amy. The youngest, Amy is the pet of the family.

10. Article of faith : DOGMA. I liked the movie.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0xgsvnOrlyk

11. Arcade giant : ATARI.

12. Exxon follower? : MOBIL.

15. Guts : NERVE.

19. Giant in little candy : REESES.  Pieces. Phone home.

21. GI's address : APO.

24. Typical Hitchcock role : CAMEO. Stan Lee has taken over as king of the Cameos.

25. Celestial bear : URSA.

26. Take from a job : LOOT. Oh, that kind of job.

27. Johannesburg's land: Abbr. : RSA. Republic of South Africa, home to constructor and blogger Gareth Bain.

28. Finishes (up) the gravy : SOPS.

32. Former SSR : UKRaine.

34. Go ballistic : RAISE CAIN. A THEORY.

35. Taking something badly? : THEFT. Not new but still witty.

36. Unclear : HAZY.

38. Mismatch : BAD FIT.

39. __ Coast : EAST. WEST?

40. Repeated word in the Beatles' "She Loves You" : YEAH. yeah, yeah.

43. National Ice Cream mo. : JULy. Y abbreviate?

45. Aids for romantic evenings : DIMMERS.

47. Hedger's last words : OR NOT. This fill is absolutely correct, or not.

50. Vietnamese holiday : TET.

51. __ Bauer : EDDIE. The STORY.

52. Part of a song : VERSE.

53. Collectively : IN ALL.

54. Anne of comedy : MEARA. Wife of Jerry, mother of Ben; sadly she died in 2015.

59. Director Craven : WES. Unlike  Hitchcock and Stan Lee, Craven (who also died in 2015) often played himself in movies.

60. Danube Delta country: Abbr. : ROMania.

61. Drying-out hurdle : DTS. Delirium Tremens. I had a math teacher, first period, my junior year in high school who brought his coffee to class in a cup and saucer and the sound of his shaking was unnerving before 8 AM.

63. __-mo replay : SLO.

64. Taxus shrub : YEW. They look like junipers but the yew berry has a poisonous seed instead of the base for gin.

Mark McClain,

Title: NOPE!

Our new friend Mark McClain delivers a fun comparatively easy Friday. The letters "PE" are removed from common phrases to reveal a new entertaining phrase. What makes the puzzle elegant is the first two relate to bad people and the next two are golf related. I am not sure I have seen a "remove letters" that was so precise. CAD CRUSADER required perps but that opened the rest. There were few 3/4 letter fill and some glitz with 6/7 fill.  I liked TUMTUM,  MIRREN,  TRISTE ERRATIC,  RETINAS  and TRUISMS. He does this all in a nice pinwheel. Well lets get to it.

17A. Insensitive zealot? : CAPED CRUSADER (11). Batman (a good guy) is replaced with a CAD (a bad guy). Nice.

56A. Reprobate's regular expense? : SINNER'S REPENT (11). Yes sinners must find a place to live.

10D. Golf course equipment of the future? : FLYING CARPETS (11). Having both seen and done bad driving on the golf course, the thought of crazy golf throwing clubs also in the sky woth a golf cart is frightening.

25D. What many golfers regularly engage in? : THE PAPER CHASE (11). Par Chase is not a phrase I am familiar with, but it does accurately describe what most golfers seek. Birdies and eagles are icing on the cake
And the reveal:

66A. Casual refusal ... and, another way, a hint to this puzzle's four longest answers : NOPE. Puzzle falls into place with the correct parsing of this word.

on to the rest.


Across:

1. Tablet input : DATA. Your handy I- or Samsung product.

5. Stick (on) : PASTE.

10. Groovy : FAB. Properly cluing this out of use with a passe clue.

13. "The Quiet Man" co-star : O'HARA. Maureen. LINK.

15. Take in, maybe : ALTER. I was thinking duping someone ar first.

16. Mauna __ : LOA. 120 feet lower than one of the other volcanoes that are the creation  of Hawaii.

19. Wine bottle figs. : YRS. A CSO to our wine peddler Chairman Moe, who can discuss vintages as long as you listen.

20. Asian capital : HANOI.

21. Where Gauguin painted "Woman With a Flower" : TAHITI.

23. Lays to rest : INTERS.

26. Eye parts : RETINAS.

27. Gung-ho : RAHRAH.

28. Concurrent with : DURING.

29. Poetic praise : ODE.

30. Like Mandarin Chinese, linguistically : TONAL.

32. '80s-'90s slugger Fielder : CECIL.

35. Popular wine region : NAPA.

37. Summer Triangle twinkler : DENEB.

39. All there : SANE.

40. View : SLANT.

42. Get rid of : SCRAP.

44. Rotation meas. : RPM.

45. Downgrade, maybe : RERATE.

47. Tot's indigestion area : TUMTUM.

49. Grows periodically : ACCRUES.

51. Sad, on the Seine : TRISTE.

52. Sweater wool : MOHAIR.

53. Rodeo critter : STEER.

55. Item under a top : BRA.

61. Funny pair? : ENS.

62. Like Mexico's Pyramid of the Magician : MAYAN.

63. Part of UTEP : TEXAS.

64. Whiskey option : RYE.

65. Rested : SLEPT. A word we have discussed at length.

Down:

1. Bashful comrade? : DOC.

2. "I thought so!" : AHA.

3. 1860s White House boy : TAD.

4. Tell, memorably : ARCHER.

5. Part of UTEP : PASO.

6. Fronton game word : ALAI.

7. Kind of deviation: Abbr. : STD.

8. Wobble : TEETER.

9. Unpredictable : ERRATIC.

11. Big artery : AORTA.

12. Rationale : BASIS.

14. Genesis mount : ARARAT.

18. Like wild horses : UNSHOD.

22. Duncan of baking fame : HINES.

23. Shackles : IRONS.

24. Clay-court legend : NADAL.

26. Yardstick : RULER.

28. Reel, for one : DANCE.

31. Fledgling launching spots : NESTS.

33. Feedback : INPUT.

34. "I wanna try!" : LEMME.

36. End of __ : AN ERA.

38. Frying preparation : BATTER.

41. Self-evident actualities : TRUISMS.

43. Least spoiled : PUREST.

46. Ham's accessory : AERIAL.

48. "The Queen" (2006) star : MIRREN.

49. Color in "America the Beautiful" : AMBER.

50. Like many bar jokes : CORNY.

53. Blow a fuse : SNAP.

54. Canvas shelter : TENT.

57. Actress Carrie who was married to Dick Cavett : NYE.

58. Skeletal opening? : EXO.

59. Toddler's downtime : NAP.

60. Japanese market letters : TSE.

Mark McClain

Title: Has anybody seen my T?

Mark is back for his eighth LAT of the year and second this month. I have not had him on a Friday since August 2015. This time we have four starter words in phrases all containing the sound o͞ot derived from the letters "UTE" and Mark then removes the "T" and uses the resulting o͞o sound to find words which combine with the rest of the phrase are clued wackily. Easier to see than explain. Two are the first word, two are the last word' the only outlier is MAGIC LUTE which maintains the spelling "ute"unlike the other three. We also have no hint or reveal, so you have see the gimmick. We do have some new fill like BLOW BY,  SAY BOO (BUTE?),  RED CAP,  DEUCES, DAYTONA, WHITNEY,  ORCHARD and TIDIEST. On with the show...

20A. Number on some beer bottles? : BREW STRENGTH (12). Brute strength. Craft beer tends to be very strong.

35A. Washateria wear? : LAUNDRY SHOE (11). Laundry chute. We have garbage chutes here.

42A. Musical work played where Brits go? : LOO CONCERTO (11). Lute concerto.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u9m3ghjN0RE

59A. Smokeless chimney duct? : THE MAGIC FLUE (12). The magic flute.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vwub-9dZLFU


Across:

1. Shot in the dark : STAB. My favorite Shot In The Dark

5. Mild expletive : DANG.

9. Contraction used with "up" : WHAT'S. Doc.

14. Confining room : CELL.

15. River originating in Manchuria : AMUR. I wonder how many remember this river from the Wednesday the 7th puzzle.

16. Assails : HAS AT.

17. Woodstock performer before Joan : ARLO. I will not repeat my comments about this performance. Joan Baez was awesome.

18. Sci-fi guru : YODA.

19. Rodeo maker : ISUZU.

23. Make even the slightest comment : SAY BOO. I do not want to hear a word, not even Boo!

24. Hall of Famer Musial : STAN. Stan the man; I was lucky enough to have watched him and Ted Williams, Mickey Mantle and so many more.

25. Some suits, briefly : VPS.

28. Egg foo __ : YUNG. Some HISTORY.

30. Depot worker : REDCAP. Train depot; bus depot?

32. Flight regulatory org. : FAA.

38. "__ turca: allegretto": Mozart rondo : ALLA. A second helping of Mozart.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=geER3iQDO5k

40. "Is that __?" : A NO. Yes.

41. Floor option : TILE.

47. Sci-fi craft : POD.

48. Exotic journey : SAFARI.

49. Kennel calls : YIPS.

51. Terrestrial wiggler : EFT.

52. Storm sound : CLAP.

55. Jefferson bills, slangily : DEUCES. LINK.

61. Courts in some hotels : ATRIA.

64. Bend for a swan, maybe : PLIE.

65. Woodworking tool : FILE. Last week I had rasp.

66. Contemporary of Beethoven : WEBER. This MAN.

67. Trouser parts : LEGS.

68. Chatted with online : IM-ED.

69. Quirky : WEIRD.

70. 2015 World Series-winning manager Ned : YOST.

71. Much of the MTV generation : XERS.

Down:

1. Natural skin protection : SCABS.

2. __ firma : TERRA.

3. Way in the back, often : ALLEY.

4. Pass easily : BLOW BY.

5. Prestigious NASCAR venue : DAYTONA.

6. Lima love : AMOR.

7. Many Renoirs : NUDES.

8. Foster __: sunglasses brand : GRANT.

9. Self-titled 1987 pop album : WHITNEY.

10. Diner concoction : HASH.

11. Phil Mickelson's alma mater: Abbr. : ASU. Arizona State University. Phil won a PGA tournament while still a student. The STORY. 25 years ago.

12. Toon devil : TAZ.

13. "The Simpsons" disco guy : STU.

21. Subject of an evil negotiation : SOUL.

22. "Dumb and Dumber" actress : GARR.

25. Parental control device : V-CHIP.

26. Italian soccer great Rossi : PAOLO. This football STAR.

27. Dash datum : SPEED.

29. Tortilla chip topper, informally : GUACamole.

31. It's not observed in P.R. : DST.

32. Pseudo : FALSE.

33. "Half __ is ... " : A LOAF.

34. On high : ALOFT.

36. San Antonio-to-Dallas dir. : NNE.

37. Small craft : DORY.

39. Picasso's here : ACA.

43. Picking site : ORCHARD.

44. Giza's river : NILE.

45. Like the maximum sum : TIDIEST.

46. Multinational energy gp. : OPEC. Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries

50. Less, when added? : SUFFIX.

53. To an adequate degree : AMPLY.

54. __ diet : PALEO.

56. Versifier's weather : CLIME.

57. Calculus pioneer : EULER.

58. Origins : SEEDS.

59. Echelon : TIER.

60. Touring jobs : GIGS.

61. "What a darling baby!" : AWW.

62. Golfer's support : TEE.

63. Cred for bringing someone home : RBI.

Mark McClain

Theme: Is this the Gamblers Anonymous meeting? I bet it isn't! How much?

GA, which is better known as the two letter abbreviation for Georgia is added into three thirteen letter phrases to create a new and whimsically clued phrase for which another 15 letter reveal is presented. . With four grid spanning answers, Mark needed lots of short fill to make the grid work, primarily using four letter words, but not THE four letter words. This is the third of Mark's LAT publications that I have had the pleasure of blogging and so far the easiest. The sparkly 6 letter fill came easily and while the gimmick hid for a while, once you see the added letters the long ones were done. This made the rest of the solve go quickly. I enjoyed seeing AMORAL,  BORING,  DADDY-O,  EPONYM,  MITTEN,  RICOHS in the grid. There were some Friday clues/fill and some use of cheater squares to make it all fit. My unknown was COTE, which comes from the same strain as COTTAGE and the vaguely recalled CAEN and LALO. Well let's look it over.

17A. Missed the bird's nest under the eaves? : FLEW INTO A GARAGE (14). I try not to rage.

26A. Red army unit? : BLUSHING BRIGADE (15). Do brides blush anymore?

44A. Druid baker's recipe? : PAGAN CAKE BATTER (15). Since I knew Druids were pagans, and pancake batter popped out, this is where I got the theme.

57A. Carmichael/Gorrell classic, and a hint to this puzzle's theme : GEORGIA ON MY MIND (15). my favorite version. LINK.

Across:

1. Goof : SLIP. Betwixt the cup and the lip.

5. Barnyard cries : MAAS. I think of this defunct retailer.

9. Cook, in a way : BOIL.

13. Scheduled 2022 FIFA World Cup host : QATAR. More scandal there.

15. "As Time Goes By" requester : ILSA.

16. Procter & Gamble cosmetics brand : OLAY.

20. Toon cat : TOM.

21. Farm shelter : COTE.

22. Records, nowadays : TIVOS.

23. Study intently, with "over" : PORE.

24. City SW of Le Havre : CAEN.

33. Thirsts : LUSTS.

34. Bit attachment : REIN.

35. Luau dish : POI.

36. Here, in 24-Across : ICI.

37. Barber's "Vanessa," for one : OPERA.

39. Throw in : ADD.

40. Time meas. : MIN.

41. Drive : URGE.

42. Musical lament : DIRGE

48. Future execs, perhaps : MBAS.

49. They're full of beans : PODS.

50. It was removed from the Dow 30 the same year Nike was added : ALCOA.

53. Protective cover : HOOD.

54. Court : WOO

61. Nike competitor : AVIA.

62. Art medium : CLAY.

63. Shred : OUNCE.

64. Tiny stream : RILL.

65. Damage : HARM.

66. Hits the road : GOES.

Down:

1. Real estate ad no. : SQFT.  SQuare FeeT. Any Q without a U is tricky.

2. "Symphonie espagnole" composer : LALO. Compose yourself then read. LINK.

3. Couple in the news : ITEM. Another celebrity and a nanny?

4. Dog's dog : PAW. Do young people remember feet are called  dogs, and the old 'my dogs are barking complaint? Is it true they name Hush Puppies because of that?

5. Winter warmer : MITTEN.
When I was first smitten
With a perfect white mitten
It wasn't my true love
With her leather glove
But a purrfect little kitten.

6. Natural soother : ALOE.

7. "__ rule ..." : AS A.  Was it Groucho who said, " As a rule I do not smoke.  As a habit I do."

8. Subside : SAG.

9. Likely to elicit a nod? : BORING.

10. Norwegian saint : OLAV.

11. "It is the green-eyed monster ..." speaker : IAGO.
12. Strong cleaners : LYES.

14. Some copiers : RICOHS.

18. "Me neither" : NOR I.

19. Canceled a reservation, maybe : ATE IN.

23. Ore. setting : PST. Pacific Standard Time.

24. Speaker of words like alpha and bravo : CBER. Semi clecho: 29D. Like alpha, but not bravo : GREEK.

25. It's frequently in Italian : ARIA.

26. Aerial view provider : BLIMP.

27. Saint __: Caribbean island nation : LUCIA.

28. Via : USING. I go to work by I-95.

30. Split : APART. Ben-Jen.

31. Sidestep : DODGE. Impossible to not get into politics with this fill.

32. Where to get down : EIDER. My favorite clue, as the misdirection really works. My mindwent to this SONG (3:03)with the rare female lead guitar.

37. Ocean predator : ORCA.
38. Two of Rory McIlroy's major wins, familiarly : PGAS. A record breaking  performance last week by Jason Day and Jordan Speith knocked Rory out of world number 1.

41. Put away, as groceries : UNBAG.

42. Beat address : DADDY-O. I think of Maynard G. Krebs but see
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ehtEFCuBD_8

43. "__ a trick!" : IT'S.

45. Unscrupulous : AMORAL.

46. Sousaphone, for one : EPONYM. The instrument is names after the inventor.

47. Loud noise : BOOM.

50. Food thickener : AGAR, Cool to this so soon on its own again.

51. Son of Jacob : LEVI. One of 12 sons, Reuben · Simeon · Levi · Judah · Dan · Naphtali · Gad · Asher · Issachar · Zebulun · Joseph · Benjamin.

52. Stamp purchase : COIL. The hardest clue for an easy fill.

53. Icy coating : HOAR. This and rime must be known.

54. Lush : WINO.
55. "The Sea of Faith / Was __, too, at the full ... ": "Dover Beach" : ONCE. All perps.

56. Laudatory verses : ODES.

58. Berlin pronoun : ICH. Wer ist da? — Ich bins! Who's there? — It's me!

59. In the fashion of : À LA.  A little French.

60. Actor's exaggeration : MUG. For the camera dear...

Mark McClain

THEME: This is one of those times where the reveal is better than anything I can think of to describe this letter replacement puzzle, which only requires remembering how to parse reveal clues.
63A. Modernize, in a way ... and when divided into three parts, a hint to the answers to starred clues : RE TO OL (6).

This is Mark's second puzzle for me to blog; his first puiblication was an LAT I wrote about on October 3, 2014 which involved adding DD into phrases. He since has had other publications, and while he stopped by to introduce himself, he did so a week after the puzzle, so in case you missed it,  here are his words. About myself? I've enjoyed xwords for many years, but just started tinkering around with constructing late in 2013 and started submitting puzzles early this year. This puzzle was actually made in March 2013, but went through a revision with Rich and was finally approved in June. I've had 8 puzzles approved for publication, including one in collaboration with Brad Wilber, who has been a great source of encouragement and knowledge. We started our dialog a few months ago when he approved one of my puzzles (scheduled for December). I live in Salem, Virginia, in the mountains near the Appalachian Trail and Blue Ridge Parkway. Both my long-time partner Diana Christopulos and I and do volunteer work for a number of local organizations. He has a website: LINK.

In every theme answer an 'in the language' phrase which includes the letters RE together in that order, are replaced with OL, in that order- RE to OL. The placement of the RE/OL is different in each of the theme answer; some of the fill is humorous, some functional. The puzzle also scrupulously avoids having any other words containing RE. The inclusion of the asterisks and the reveal made this one of my faster Friday solves, but then again, I am not a very fast solver, so....Many three and four letter fill for a Friday, with some nice medium fill like AIR RAID, ‘FRAID SO, IRIDIUM, MIRAMAR, SEE THRU, SORRIER, LHASA APSO, OUT SHOOTS.  let's see the theme and more....

19A. *Site of preserved ancient gaucho weapons? :LA BOLA TAR PITS (13). La BREA Tar Pits
are in one form or another very common in crosswords. The BOLAS is a nasty weapon; I am not sure if the singular is a legitimate word.

32A. *Hip curriculum? : COOL COURSES (11). CORE Courses are the basic ones you need for your degree.

41A. *Second-hand seat? : THRIFT STOOL  (11). TheThrift STORE has become  big business in the US. They used to be second hand stores when I was a kid.

54A. *Heroine in a reprised fairy tale? : OLD RIDING HOOD (13). My favorite of the theme, and I am sure by now she is the one in bed waiting for her granddaughter.

We revealed the reveal above...

Across:

1. Word with cake or meal : OAT.

4. Doctrinal suffix : ISM.

7. Pat Nixon's real first name : THELMA. I guess she liked the name because like most named Thelma, she hated her name. LINK. My ex-mil Sue is also a Thelma.

13. Classic sci-fi play : RUR.

14. Tres equivalent : DREI. French to German number 3.

15. Clinton's birth name : RODHAM. A little knowledge is a dangerous thing, did others recall that Bill was born William BLYTHE, also 6 letters?

16. Bush spokesman Fleischer : ARI. Staying with politics, Alex....

17. Part of DAR: Abbr. : AMERican. Daughters of the American Revolution. My third and fourth grade teacher, Mrs. Sochor was a member; she was in 80's and as a very small child I thought the name was literal.

18. Busy enterprise? : APIARY. It be where they have bees. Leading to...

22. Grouse : BEEF. Can't complain about this clue/fill.

23. Humana option : HMO. Health Maintenance Organization; I just joined their gold plus plan.

24. Cut (it) : HACK. He just couldn't hack it as a salesman.

27. Blitz : AIR RAID.

31. MLB "minors" : AAA. Triple A baseball is the highest of the minor leagues which now go from rookie to A, AA and AAA; no more D leagues.

36. Banned chem. pollutant : PCB. PolyChlorinated Biphenyl; the initialism adding up.

37. Protective bauble : AMULET.

38. Capital SE of Tallahassee : NASSAU. Capital of the Bahamas.

40. GPS datum : LATitude. Not a CSO to the LA Times.

45. Canadian sentence enders? : EHS. But a CSO to our own resident Canadian.

46. Worse : SORRIER.

47. __ Men: "Who Let the Dogs Out" band : BAHA.

49. Andalusian aunt : TIA. Spanish.

50. Emerald City princess : OZMA. The dedicated fans of L. Frank know this half-human, half fairy GIRL.

59. "Ditto" : I DO TOO.

61. Thought : IDEA. Not to be parsed I, DEA.

62. French handle? : NOM. Just  French meaning "name." 21D. Versailles rulers of old : ROIS. French for kings. And42D. Roast, in Rouen : ROTI. This is one time where the accent would help. Rôti.We all remember that the accent is replaced with an "s" in many americanized versions of French words as explained by Kazie..

64. Functions : USES.

65. One of quarterback Archie's boys : ELI. With Peyton, the fading Manning brothers.

66. Lover's request : KISS ME. Often followed by, "you fool."

67. Stylish, once : MOD. Ah, the days of the mods and rockers.

68. Symbiont on "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine" : DAX. probably the most interesting and complicated CHARACTER(s) in the Star Trek universe. Realy only one DAX but two hosts....And the similar 14D. Indian lentil stew : DAL. A much harder clue than Delta. All perps. A CSO to my twin Vidwan and Mangesh Sakharam Ghogre.

Down:

 1. Colgate competitor : ORAL B. Even with the O from OAT, my inclination was CREST.

2. Halos : AURAE.

4. Culinary author Rombauer : IRMA. So many to chose from.

5. Sexy, in some ads : SEE THRU. Click if you want to see an EXAMPLE. (for the guys)

6. San Diego Marine Corps station whose name means "sea view" : MIRAMAR. Living in So.FLa. this is a gimme (a) we have a city with the name (b) you hear "mira" a billion times when people want you to look at something or understand something.

7. Trick : TRAP. Not synonymous for me, but it was easy fill.

8. Arizona natives : HOPI. We studied this tribe extensively in my undergraduate sociology classes. And a token cross reference. 3D. 8-Down, e.g. : TRIBE.

9. Archie's wife : EDITH.

10. Himalayan canine : LHASA APSO. This breeed's HISTORY is interesting.

11. Spoil : MAR. Mira! Another one.

12. '70s White House daughter : AMY. Where is she NOW?

20. Taking everything into account : OF ALL. Huh?

25. Evergreen bean : CACAO. Of course we love chocolate, and especially the fine aroma beans from Ecuador.

26. Capital where Pashto is spoken : KABUL.With all the years of war, this should be easy.

28. Rhyme $yndicate Records founder : ICE-T. Not to be confused with ICE CUBE; sorry Tin.

29. Certain IRAs : ROTHS. Names for Senator William from Delaware, also home to Joe Biden.

30. Driller's prefix? : DENTI.

32. Biblical spy : CALEB. Interesting and CONFUSING part of the story of Moses, which happens to be where the cycleof reading the Torah is now. Caleb (dog) was perhaps one of the 12 spies.

33. Home of the Beef, an indoor football team : OMAHA. How perfect; I must get an email per week from Omaha Steaks. Now we would know how to answer when Clara Peller asked her famous question.

34. Makes more baskets than : OUTSHOOTS.

35. Fund drive appeal encl. : SASE. Self Addressed Stamped Envelope.

39. Eponymous brewer Bernhard : STROH.

43. Atomic number 77 : IRIDIUM. Was that easy for you science guys? Not the part of the periodic table that I remember.

44. "'Tis true, sorry to say" : FRAID SO.

48. Certain choristers : ALTOS. Why not chorusters?

51. Subdivided : ZONED. Zoning is part of the process, but a previously zoned property can be subdivided.

52. Scratch : MOOLA. Another interesting word, and one of questionable HERITAGE.

53. Blend : ADMIX. This is a real word, on its own, why I do not know.

55. Not a happy fate : DOOM. Doctor, doctor...

56. Function : ROLE. Super-villain.

57. Mandatory item : NEED. The Avengers? Fantastic Four?

58. It can be natural : GAS. Crepitation? LISTEN? (15:17).

59. Vex : IRK. Yes, vexsome.

60. Agnus __ : DEI.  Ah, we finish with classic crosswordese.


Well this was a really admix of information which brought out the linker in me; thanks Mark and I hope you all aol golat. Lemonade, out.