Thursday, April 9, 2015, Marti Duguay-Carpenter

Theme: Now where did I hide my dope?

Another treat for me as marti and I have switched so I can blog her Thursday effort. It seems particularly timely as I have recently returned from visiting my son who lives in Denver. Denver has now added a new dimension to its nickname of mile high city. As a child of the sixties, it is very strange to walk around and see the marijuana shops. Anyway, on to the puzzle. It involves hiding a word (DOPE) which spans two-word fill. In the first three the break is D OPE, with the last DO PE. Not an expert on Thursday word length, but we do have a less than 5 letter average. Aside from theme answers, the longest fill is 6 letters, featuring DROWSE,  ENGULF,  HOODOO, NOVELS,  OBJECT,  OWED ON,  SEVERE,  SPIRAL,  SPONGE,  TAIPAN,  TENONS and ZEALOT. She was nice enough to include a J. So let us dance....

18A. Genre that often includes a ballet : GRAND OPERA. m familiar with the TERM generally but I am not as high brow as miss m.

23A. TV teaser before the first commercial : COLD OPENING. Another TERM I do not know, but it was easily inferred.

37A. James Bond and others : FIELD OPERATIVES. Wiki prefers the TERM Field Agents.

52A. "Great" 1975 Redford role : WALDO PEPPER. I actually was glancing through the various clues when I saw this one, immediately put in the answer and saw the Theme and went back to fill the rest. This MOVIE character may have been based on a real pilot who died flying in a movie.
And the reveal:

58A. Skinny, so to speak, or what's hidden in 18-, 23-, 37- and 52-Across : INSIDE DOPE (10)  A perfect reveal, as the DOPE is on the inside of the theme answers. An interesting slang word, the SKINNY on skinny.

Now for the skinny on the rest....

Across:

1. "That's terrible!" : OH NO.

5. Like some stockings : MESH. Oh my, Splinter?

9. Guck : SLIME.It reminds me of this scene from a slime MOVIE.

14. Windfall : BOON.

15. "The Salt-N-__ Show" : PEPA. The answer was easily inferable as I know the group but never heard of the SHOW.

16. Trojan War figure : PARIS. Now a name for the ladies, but this was a ladies man who stole away Helen from her Greek husband leading to war and the great measure of female beauty- the milihelen.

17. Roman god of the sky : JOVE. By Jove, I knew it was not Jupiter.

20. Utopias : EDENS.

22. Excited, with "up" : WOUND. Picture children with too much candy in them .

26. Côte d'Azur sight : MER. The sea in French. Not to be confused with 12D. Orbiter for 15 years : MIR. It seemed that it lasted longer. LINK.

29. Lean-__ : TOS.

30. Nasser's confed. : UAR. United Arab Republics. marti likes her initialisms.(#1).

31. Harsh : SEVERE. Winter 2014-5 in NE?

33. Swamp : ENGULF. I was thinking like the Evergaldes, not being swamped.

36. Bone-dry : ARID. I like the clue.

42. Open org. : USGA. United States Golf Association. (#2) See, I told you.

43. Second book in Clavell's "Asian Saga" : TAI-PAN. Not be confused with 61D. One might keep you from seeing the show : PAN. Of the SERIES of Books, I think SHOGUN is the most famous.

44. Fanatic : ZEALOT.Another interesting WORD which is appropriate for the season.

47. One-up : TOP.

48. Time zone word: Abbr. : STD. Standard as opposed to daylight.

51. Buddhist branch : ZEN.

56. Free-for-all : MELEE.A fun word

57. Savanna heavyweight : RHINO.

63. Lined up, with "in" : A ROW.

64. Movers' challenge : PIANO.

65. Degree holder : GRADuate.

66. Without : SANS.

67. Choose to join : OPT IN.

68. Ages and ages : EONS.

69. Choice word : ELSE.


Down:

1. Protest : OBJECT.

2. Jinx : HOODOO. Again? Who cursed me?

3. King output : NOVELS. Probably she means Stephen, not Don or Martin Luther nor Elvis.

4. Upright : ON END.

5. EPA sticker stat : MPG. Miles Per Gallon (#3).

6. Adverb in odes : E'ER.

7. Produce : SPAWN.

8. Capital NE of Vientiane : HANOI.

9. Quick learner : SPONGE.

10. "Dragnet" force, briefly : LAPD. Los Angeles Police Department (#4).

11. Rage : IRE.

13. Spanish "that" : ESA.

19. Pressures for payment : DUNS.

21. Ting or ping : SOUND. Ting?

24. When doubled, a South Pacific capital : PAGO. The capital of American Samoa, PAGO PAGO has nothing to with a volcano in Papua, New Guinea named Pago, which may or may not...

25. Blow : ERUPT.

26. First name in game shows : MERV. Griffin, responsible for both Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy.

27. Iroquoian people : ERIE. Do we have any Native Americans reading this?

28. Cabs and syrahs : REDS. No Cincinnati to commemorate the baseball season? Oops, marti does not like baseball.

32. "You're So ___": 1973 #1 hit : VAIN.

33a. Carrier that doesn't fly on the Sabbath : ELAL.

34. Where to hear maas and baas : LEA. Paa!

35. Popular chip : FRITO. Corn chips which led to nacho chips.

37. __ bass : FUZZ. A musical interlude; the effect can be from the amp or a pedal.
xxxx

38. Words of understanding : I SEE.

39. Eddie __, detective involved in the actual "French Connection" : EGAN.

40. Each : A POP.

41. Slender candle : TAPER. Finally, the TAPER from BG's April Fool's Day post.

45. Was in debt regarding : OWED ON.

46. Yarn : TALE. You may spin one but it will not make a scarf.

48. Fusilli shape : SPIRAL. A fun pasta.

49. Mortise partners : TENONS.

50. Nod : DROWSE.

53. Pigeon's place : LEDGE.

54. Golden, in Guadalajara : DE ORO.

55. Full moon, e.g. : PHASE.

56. Thigh-high attire : MINI.

58. 2010 GM financial event : IPO. Initial Public Offering (#5).

59. Little bite : NIP.

60. Did nothing : SAT.

62. Magazine VIPs : EDS. Editors.

Friday, March 13, 2015, Marti DuGuay Carpenter

Theme: "Scooby Doo, where are you?"  "He is over here,  suffering from Rhotic Replacement."

A whimsical marti Friday offering, where the single letter R is added to the beginning of a phrase and hilarity ensues. As soon as I solved 17A, I could hear Scooby in my head, and wondered if Scooby and Rover were the inspiration. Another Friday from a Corner denizen, another Friday the 13th puzzle blogged by Jason, and much fun for me, though it is hard to concentrate as I am thinking with Scooby in my head. Unlike Steve's effort last week, we have many 3,4 and 5 letter fill and average word length only 4.79. We do have some sixes and sevens APHIDS, BESTOW, DIET R C, ENGAGE, MEANIE, UGANDA, CORRUPT, FOLIAGE, ITERATE, WENT APE  but the cluing is fair with little obscurity. We have the use of initilaisms rather than an overrun of abbreviations, and no need for a reveal. let's take a peek.


17A. Allowance for food, vet visits, etc.? : ROVER BUDGET(11). This quickly revealed the theme, though I wonder if younger people relate to Rover as typical dog name? I have seen overbudget as one word, a hyphenated word and two words. For symmetry sake I am going with two words.

23A. Bedtime for bats? : RAFTER HOURS (11). Even with the theme, this took many perps before I got to the bats sleeping in the rafters. After hours also seems can be one word. I like the wordplay as the image of a rafter hours club for bats cmoes to mind.

40A. Threw a tantrum at ballet school? : RAGED GRACEFULLY (15). Well I do think all of the senior crowd here are aging well, but I had this IMAGE  (6:17) brought to mind.

50A. Decisive "Star Wars" victory? : ROUT IN SPACE (11). The outlier, with a three word phrase used. Somehow Pigs in Space came to mind.

63A. Answer to "What did people listen to during the Depression, señor?"? : RADIOS AMIGO (11).
This is such an interesting fill, as we not only change the pronunciation of the word, but the language. I would imagine radios were a luxury back in the 30s. I guess my friends it is time to say good bye to the theme and dissect the rest of miss m's masterpiece.

Across:

1. Principal introduction? : VICE. Do they really need to have a principal in charge of Vice?

5. Ladybug lunches : APHIDS. I remember growing up with all the different flowers my father had in our yard, and the battle against the aphids, and the fun ladybugs who always had to be sent flying home.

11. Handle for a chef? : STU. This actually took me a bit as I started with sou, even though I know it is SOUS Chef.

14. "Yikes!" : EGAD. marti works this owrd into many of her puzzles.

15. Bully : MEANIE.

16. '60s-'70s news focus, informally : NAM.

19. Old sports org. using colorful balls : ABA. American Basketball Association. When the NBA merged them out of existence they did not keep the red, white and blue ball, but they did keep the three point basket. I did not remember that former Knick great David Albert DeBusschere was one time commissioner of the ABA. He also pitched a shut out for the Chicago White Sox.

20. Place to play : ARENA. For ABA and NBA teams. The Heat play at American Airlines Arena, and what an odd year this post Lebron year has been.

21. PC key : ALT.

22. Some execs : CFOS. Chief Financial Officer.

27. Annual New England attraction : FOLIAGE. For me this was the beginning of a mini-theme. 36A. First Poet Laureate of Vermont : FROST. Robert Frost was still alive and active in my youth, appearing at the JFK inaugaration. The Road Not Taken well worth a read. 13D. It has a med school in Worcester : UMASS. "Wooster" is right up the road from Southbridge. I think marti has been snowed in too long this winter. 27D. Maine forest sights : FIRS. At least she did not link Joyce Kilmer again.


31. Mutt : CUR.

32. "__ a traveler ...": "Ozymandias" : I MET. More POETRY, but NIT alert!! in the poem it is spelled traveller by Shelley.
.
33. Dolts : OAFS.

43. You might wake up to one : SNORE. This was hard to follow.

44. Satirist once dubbed "Will Rogers with fangs" : SAHL. He was the voice of the 60's.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h5yd3Nqp19s

45. Heavily sit (down) : PLOP.

46. Draft choice : ALE. Not a selection in the upcoming NFL draft, but what is on tap, which looks like....

48. Lost it : WENT APE.

55. Eclectic online reader : UTNE. Do any of you all go to this oft referenced site?

56. Slime : GOO.

57. Treacherous type : VIPER. Some alliteration.

62. Beads on blades : DEW. Some alliteration.

66. Poetic preposition : ERE. Some alliteration.

67. Landlocked African country : UGANDA. In South America it is Bolivia.

68. When some ties are broken, briefly : IN O.T. (OverTime) I not understand at first.

69. Clear : RID. And its opposite....

70. Grant : BESTOW.

71. Part of CSNY : NASH. Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EaBJPgKsiDY

Down:

1. "Up in the Air" Oscar nominee Farmiga : VERA. Her videos are just do not pass the breakfast test.

2. Aircraft pioneer Sikorsky : IGOR. He pioneered many aircraft and is especially known for his work perfecting the rotary helicopter. He spent most of his adult life in Connecticut, where I had the pleasure of meeting him when I was a child.

3. Give in : CAVE. Such a tricky little clue/fill but I did not.

4. Ideal world : EDEN.

5. Diplomatic VIP : AMBassador?

6. Little, in Lille : PEU. Frawnche.

7. Went after : HAD AT.

8. Hastings hearth : INGLE. Friday fireplace words.

9. Tab alternative : DIET R C. R C Cola, the other cola.

10. Play area : SET. Not where children play, but where one puts on a play.

11. Muddled situation : SNAFU. Situation Normal, All F****** Up.

12. Fife-and-drum corps instrument : TABOR. We just had this in marti's January 29, 2015, Thursday puzzle which I blogged for her.

18. Avis adjective : RARA. This bird is not so rare in crossword puzzles.

22D. Crooked : CORRUPT. Perhaps this is a New England reference as well?

24. Awestruck : AGOG.

25. They might cause jitters : FEARS.

26. Snit : HUFF. For tv trivia nuts, LINK (1:58) for football fans LINK (2:08)

28. Arabian sultanate : OMAN.

29. Toy for an aspiring architect : LEGO.

30. Repeat : ITERATE. So reiterate is rerepeating.

34. DOT agcy. : FAA. Federal Aviation Administration is now faced with regulating drones.

35. The "e" sound in "tandem" : SCHWA. Have we discussed this enough?

37. Ceramic pot : OLLA.

38. Dinner on the farm, maybe : SLOP.

39. Enter, in a way : TYPE.

41. Where to nosh on a knish : DELIcatessen.

42. Wire service?: Abbr. : ELECtricity. My favorite fill.

47. Captivate : ENGAGE. Her smile was....

49. St. Petersburg's river : NEVA.

50. More boorish : RUDER.

51. Comic Cheri : OTERI. An SNL graduate who did not appear on the 40th reunion.

52. Single : UNWED. I often have lots of unweds in my wallet.

53. Some floats : SODAS. Root beer anyone?

54. Essence : POINT.

58. "Let's do it!" : I'M IN.

59. Cóctel fruit : PINA. Pineapple.

60. They may be inflated : EGOS. Not around here.

61. Author who created Zuckerman : ROTH. This alter-ego for the the author appears in many of Roth's novels really epitomizing what I learned in college that myth is reality and relaity is myth.

63. Barbecue seasoning : RUB. The simplest, pepper for steak au poivre.

64. Prefix with meter : ODO.

65. Carpenter's tool : SAW. How is the work coming Splynter?

Well I am out of words, so it is time for me to shuffle off; thanks marti. Lemonade out.

Thursday, January 29, 2015

Theme: Can you saw a sawbuck for me?

For the younger generation, a sawbuck is a ten dollar bill. This derived from the Roman Numeral X meaning ten, which looks like one end of a sawhorse. C-note meaning a hundred is also from the Latin. Anyway, marti has taken the word TEN and broken between two adjacent fill which are all clued by the first clue, cross-referentially. There is a double symmetry of 1/3 having t/en and 2/4 te/n. with 1/4 10 letters and 2/3 9 letters. The reveal is a central gridspanning 15. The fill is heavy on 5 letter words, some of which are tough like ERISA, ICAHN and TABOR and there are some nice 7-8 letter fill such as AMNESIA, CD RATES, EERIEST, HASTIER, NICE DOG, ROB ROYS, BREAD BIN, STAY HERE, many of which required work. Pinch hitting for marti, so let's get to work.

14A. With 15-Across, accounting unit : DEBIT. 15A. See 14-Across : ENTRY. Our system of mathematics, and accounting are based on the base 10. (10 in the theme).

29A. With 31-Across, anathema : BETE. 31A. See 29-Across : NOIRE. We have had bete noire before clued before as bete___?(8/12/14) and _____noire?(9/30/14). (9 in the theme). Aren't you all glad we had this word Tuesday?

44A. With 47-Across, some receivers : TIGHT. 47A. See 44-Across : ENDS. Rob Gronkowski is the New England Patriots star receiver. LINK. (0:29)(9 in the theme).

65A. With 66-Across, National Book Award-winning novel by Don DeLillo : WHITE. 66A. See 65-Across : NOISE. I did not know the book, but I knew the theme. (10 in the theme).
and the reveal
37A. Question about change, which hints at the hidden feature of four two-part puzzle answers : CAN YOU BREAK A TEN? (15).

Across:

1. Some portrait frames : OVALS. I had some trouble with this bginning even though I have a big oval frame of my mother with her brothers when she was little in my living room.

6. Noble __ : GASES. Back on track.

11. Singsong syllable : TRA. Well, Lah di dah!

16. Like some aces : RED. Some?

17. Manage : SEE TO. I always think of,,,
xxxxx
18. Walking __ : ON AIR.

19. Sound after a satisfying swig : AAH. How cool that this is next to...

20. Scotch cocktails : ROB ROYS. The Scotch version od a Manhattan, it was named by a bartendere at the Waldorf for a p[lay about the Scottish hero, RECIPE.

22. Zenith : ACME.

23. "I won't hurt you" : NICE DOG. This was all perps,

26. Not as deliberate : HASTIER.

28. Toothbrush-endorsing org. : ADA.

32. Worlds : REALMS.

35. __ legend : URBAN. We have urban legends, dictionaries, even cowboys; where is the love for suburbia?

42. Blue Grotto locale : CAPRI.

43. "Ramona and Beezus" co-star Gomez : SELENA.

49. Set-__ : TOS.
50. Malady in the 2000 film "Memento" : AMNESIA. I could not remember what this movie was about.
XXXX

52. Like the best occult films : EERIEST.

55. It's about a foot : SHOE. Sock fits this misdirection as well.

56. Yield figures : CD RATES.

58. Figure under a line : SUM.

59. Fife-and-drum drum : TABOR. From the same Latin root where we get Tambourine.

60. Two cents : IN PUT. Cute clue/fill.

64. Bardic before : ERE. The Bard?

67. "M*A*S*H" titles : LTS. Lieutenants. Actually they had lots of majors and captains there.

68. Private : INNER.

69. Mount : STEED.

Down:

1. Pigs out (on) : OD'S.

2. Center of gravity? : VEE.  Tricky.

3. Presidential nickname : ABE.

4. Petrol unit : LITRE. You see, they do not say gasoline, so...

5. Gave up a seat : STOOD. So simple, but the political aspect slowed me. In the UK, the stand for Parliament, I think, even more confusing.

6. One of six British kings : GEORGE. I am still waiting for King Ringo.

7. Year in Tuscany : ANNO. Year in Italian, the same word as Latin.

8. "Wait for me" : STAY HERE.

9. Pension law signed by Ford, briefly : ERISA.

10. Jordan neighbor: Abbr. : SYRia.

11. Gillette razor : TRAC II.

12. Hole enlarger : REAMER. hard to remain pc with this clue/fill.

13. Cleave : ADHERE.

21. Comes to the surface : BOBS UP.

22. Harsh-sounding, to some : ATONAL.

23. Traffic stopper? : NARC. Drug traffic.

24. Notion : IDEA.

25. "Elf" actor : CAAN. ACTOR James, not to be confused with 51D. Corporate raider Carl : ICAHN. This was easy for me, but this MAN may not be as well known unless you have worked in the investment world. Both names are variations of the Hebrew family name Cohen.

27. Shoshone Falls river : SNAKE.

30. Shroud city : TURIN.

33. Chinese evergreen : LYCHEE. Nuts ot these obscure clues.

34. Zoo security features : MOATS.

36. Droopy-eared hound : BASSET. Do you all remember this early TV star?
XXXX
38. Wonderful container? : BREAD BIN.

39. Bordeaux bean? : TETE. A french reminder, but still no answer to why the head /brain is called 'bean.'

40. "The Dukes of Hazzard" officer : ENOS. A break from the biblical reference, played by Sonny Shroyer, a former FSU football player like Burt Reynolds. His character became so popular they had a spin-off called Enos.

41. Tammany Hall caricaturist : NAST. Perhaps the most famous political cartoonist in America.

44. Mortarboard frill : TASSEL.

45. "That upset me!" : I'M HURT.

46. Speakers of Tolkien's Noldorin language : GNOMES. I very much enjoed both the Hobbit and the The Lord of the Rings Trilogy, but was completely unaware that the Noldorin Elves were orignally called Gnomes, but what elese starts GN? READ?

48. Costing more : DEARER. "Oh, dear, that's too dear, dear."

53. Jockey's handful : REINS. Cute, evocative clue.

54. "This __ a drill!" : IS NOT. A scary set of words.

57. Mechanical repetition : ROTE.

59. Prefix with light or night : TWI. Rhymes with...

61. "Easy as __!" : PIE. No, but a doable Thursday, don't you think?

62. Wear and tear : USE.

63. Former Ohio governor Strickland : TED. I am not sure what is special about this one term GOVERNOR, but it is time to go anyway.

As always it is great to blog a marti puzzle and once I remembered to not write Friday in the title, it all went well. Thanks for  reading and enjoy a mareti Friday tomorrow. Lemonade out.

Friday, December 5, 2014, marti DuGuay Carpenter

Theme: There is no "I" in Team unless you put it there.

A variety of in the language phrases where the first word ends in "ER" but is not a comparative word, have an "I" added to make each a new phrase comparing things. Finding words ending in "ER" that are not descriptive like STRONGER or FATTER was the key to set up this return to Friday from our old friend marti.


AIRSEA APOLLO CAMERA CCLAMP DERIDE ENTIRE ICEAGE KIGALI NUTMEG SHABBY
ELECTEES PORTABLE


17A. Baseball, vis-à-vis jai alai? : POKIER GAME (10). (POKER GAME) I guess the word relates to slow poke, where someone or something moves slowly. I guess I learned this word HERE.

27A. GE range, vis-à-vis an Easy-Bake toy? : TOASTIER OVEN (12). (TOASTER OVEN).

44A. SpongeBob's underwear, vis-à-vis Mickey's? : BOXIER BRIEFS (12). (BOXER BRIEFS) Since Bob is square, this makes perfect sense. I changed to this style 15 years ago.

59A. Jeep, vis-à-vis a Cadillac? : BUMPIER CAR (10). (BUMPER CAR). The suspension certainly is not intended for a smooth ride in a Jeep.

Across:

1. SEC nickname : BAMA. Nick and his Crimson Tide need only to survive a mediocre Missouri team to make it to the first final four.

5. Seating choice : AISLE.  Yes, now that I am no longer young.

10. Skills : ARTS. A practitioner of the secret ways.

14. Islamic leader : IMAM.

15. What recon may provide : INTEL. Cyberspeak for intelligence data; not related to 26A. "Hooked on Bach" company : KTEL.

16. Famille member : PERE. Father in French, only tangentially related to 39A. Hemingway and others : PAPAS.

19. Award for Jessica Tandy : OBIE. The theater award for Off-Broadway (OB=obie) performances, I think started by the Village Voice.

20. Poetic preposition : ERE. I hope you did not err here.

21. Short time, shortly : NSEC. Now if you had not read the author, the next two fill would tell you this is created by our marti who loves these type words. I cannot find any support for this abbreviation, which I assume is for nanosecond. Wiki and the dictionaries say it is ns. But I understood.

22. Wood shop tool : CCLAMP.

24. Scoff at : DERIDE. Hmmm.....

33. Spread : STREW.

36. "A Challenge for the Actor" author : HAGEN. We usually get UTA.

37. Commercial ending? : IZE. Something Ms. Hagen did not so with her craft.

38. Appear dramatically : LOOM. Though she often did this.

40. Letters on a cross : INRI.  Iesus Nazarenus Rex Iudaeorum. Like this puzzle, there is no letter "J" in Latin, so this phrase translates to Jesus of Nazarene King of the Jews. Pontious Pilate is credited with attaching this name.

41. Tulsa sch. : ORU. Oral Roberts University.

42. Shell rival : MOBIL.

43. Ryan of "Bones" : O'NEAL. Ryan as a fun ex-con.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
47. __ block : CITY. Luckily the perps were solid because my mind went to LEGO.

48. Certain evergreen seed : NUTMEG. Coming from Connecticut helped here.

52. One taking a shot : CAMERA. Really clever cluing.

55. Grub : EATS.

57. One or more : ANY.

58. "Sin City" actress : ALBA. She is always worth a look. LINK. (1:49)

62. Buck : STAG. The message learned in this AD.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=902pOWgwH_I

63. Its second movement translates to "Play of the Waves" : LA MER ('The Sea' in French). This orchestral WORK from Debussy was hidden from me for a long while, each answer I had was lamer than the first.

64. First name in design : COCO. Chanel.

65. Socks : HOSE.

66. Delight : ELATE.

67. Hill workers : ANTS.

Down:

1. Human, e.g. : BIPED. Walking on two legs.

2. Love abroad : AMORE.

3. Auto attachment? : MAKER.

4. "__ being unreasonable?" : AM I.

5. Like some rescues : AIR SEA.

6. "Picnic" playwright : INGE. He wrote many PLAYS.

7. Mus. direction : STACcato. JzB?

8. 10-Down vehicle : LEM. Thanks for the CSO, from this Lunar Excursion Module. Excursion on the Moon is such a cool concept.

9. Ins : ELECTEES. Not the outs.

10. Mission program : APOLLO.

11. Self-named sitcom : REBA. Gone but not FORGOTTEN. (6:10)

12. Cut : TRIM.

13. Percolate : SEEP.

18. Fund : ENDOW. The lifeblood of private universities and schools come from alumni endowments.

23. Large Hadron Collider acronym : CERN. This may be Friday, but this clue is too misleading, as the home of the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) CERN is the European Organization for Nuclear Research. The name CERN is derived from the acronym for the French Conseil Européen pour la Recherche Nucléaire. The combination of the secondary nature of the relationship and it being a French acronym seem very unfair, but I confess I had it filled before I saw the clue. I had to google to get the information. How many of you knew CERN? I like learning new things, but one level at a time.

25. It's checked when it's done : ITEM.

26. Capital of Rwanda : KIGALI.  I did not recall this. MAP.

28. Inferior : SHABBY. A Friday answer for sure.

29. Piglike animal : TAPIR.

30. Grape site : VINE. This clue/answer grew on me.

31. Poet friend of T.S. : EZRA. Pound, not a friend of mine.

32. 10-Down first name : NEIL. Armstrong.

33. Challenging roommate : SLOB.

34. 1989 Lawn-Boy acquirer : TORO.

35. Gravy base : ROUX. I regret that my mother did not teach me her gravy secrets.

39. Easily moved : PORTABLE.

40. Part of MIT: Abbr. : INSTitute.

42. Yom Kippur War prime minister : MEIR. Golda, her HISTORY.

43. Helpful : OF USE.

45. Film with Manny the Mammoth : ICE AGE.

46. Complete : ENTIRE.

49. "Heart of Georgia" : MACON.

50. Sign into law : ENACT.

51. Wrap relatives : GYROS.

52. Get money for : CASH.

53. "__ Rhapsody": Brahms vocal work : ALTO.

54. Many CEOs have them : MBAS.

55. Stone of "The Help" : EMMA. Is she a redhead?

56. Miffed, with "in" : A PET. Never heard of this IDIOM.

60. Flier with Chicago H.Q. : UAL. United Airlines

61. Kelly Clarkson label : RCA. Radio