Samuel A. Donaldson

Title- Do not pass over this puzzle.

A bit early but still a timely reference to the story told in Exodus of Moses leading the Israelites from Egypt, and the reveal - parting the RED SEA. In Samuel's version, the parting is done by a black square. In each paired across theme fill the first ends with RED, black square, then SEA.



ESSENCE, PERIDOT,  POACHED,  PREYS ON, ASPIRE TO, CLEAVAGE, MAMMA MIA,  PAUL RYAN, ENCROACHED,  MERIT BADGE


1A. Flintstones Vitamins option: FRED (4). 5A. Chicago Eight defendant: SEALE (5).

20A. Turned tail: RAN SCARED (9). 22A. Like some underbellies: SEAMY (5).

51A. Needed an eraser: ERRED (5). 52A. Herbs and spices: SEASONING (9).

62A. Ready to drop: TIRED (5). 63A. Burn a little: SEAR.

and the reveal

35A. Emulate Moses ... and what four black squares do in this puzzle: PART THE RED SEA (13).

Across:

10. B.C. law enforcers: RCMP. Royal Canadin Mounted Police. LINK.

14. Big name in denim: LEVI. Strauss, and a bonus fill as this is one of the 12 tribes of Israel.

15. Dental restoration: ONLAY. Your Dentistry 101 LESSON.

16. Cause of some bad apples?: ALAR.

17. Has to pay: OWES.

18. Part of a script: SCENE.

19. Cyber phenomenon: MEME.

23. Memphis-to-Atlanta dir. : ESE.

24. Big fuss: ADO.

25. With "the," what a boxer doesn't want to hit?: CANVAS.

26. Pulse:THROB.

28. High points: ACMES.

31. Latin I word: AMO amas, amat.

32. Prepared, as eggs for eggs Benedict: POACHED.

34. Votin' nay: AGIN.

38. Like a breeze? : EASY.

39. August birthstone: PERIDOT.

40. "How you doin'?" : SUP.

41. Lost patience: HAD IT.

42. "The Beauty Myth" author Wolf: NAOMI. Naomi R. Wolf is a liberal progressive American author, journalist, feminist, and former political advisor to Al Gore and Bill Clinton. Wolf first came to prominence in 1991 as the author of The Beauty Myth. Wikipedia. No politics.

46. Chip off the old block? : SLIVER.

48. Annoyed exclamation: BAH.

50. Greek god of the wild: PAN. This DEITY, but no religion.

55. Bill __ Climate Lab: former exhibit at Oakland's Chabot Space & Science Center: NYES. The Science Guy.

56. Awaits decision: PENDS.

57. Brief refusal to "Are you hungry?": I ATE.

58. Nineteenth Amendment campaigner: CATT. The Amendment that gave women the right to VOTE.

59. Rolex rival: OMEGA.

60. Gillette offering: ATRA.

61. Book of Mormon prophet: ENOS. No religion.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=65y9YU1jUNA

Down:

1. Daisy component: FLORET. Tricked me with Flower at first.

2. Clean some more: REWASH.

3. Plane, for one: EVENER. The meh of the day.

4. Ph.D. hurdle: DISSertation.

5. "I feel your pain": SO SAD.

6. Went too far: ENCROACHED. That is why you need to get a survey before you buy Property.

7. Protected, in a way: ALEE.

8. Succeed in getting: LAND.

9. Word with private or public: EYE.

10. Collegian's diet staple: RAMEN.

11. Rift: CLEAVAGE. Not the first definition I think of for cleavage. This COLLECTION is for all.

12. "Money, Money, Money" musical: MAMMA MIA.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JbdHevSRWJE

13. Exploits: PREYS ON. This fooled me for minute, reading it as one word.

21. Henry __ Lodge: WWI senator: CABOT. I grew up in the sphere of these Boston Brahmin families who itermarried to consolidate power. However, it was not the Lodges in a famous quote, "Here's to dear old Boston, The home of the bean and the cod, Where Lowells speak only to Cabots, And Cabots speak only to god."

22. Swedish carrier: SAS. Scandinavian Airlines.

25. Surrendered: CEDED.

27. Nashville highlight: OPRY. As in Grand Old.

29. "SNL" alumna Oteri: CHERI. Classic corssword fill.

30. Scout's honor? : MERIT BADGE. Cute.

33. How some bonds are purchased: AT PAR.

34. Movie role for Skippy: ASTA. Skippy has his own IMDB PAGE.

35. Speaker after John Boehner: PAUL RYAN. So much politics to avoid.

36. Shoot for: ASPIRE TO.

37. Air Force pilot who became a pop star: DON HO. His BIO.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mlCiDEXuxxA

38. True nature: ESSENCE.

41. "__ give you the shirt off his back": HE'D. Give anything and everything one possesses. For example, Tom is truly generous-he'll give you the shirt off his back. This hyperbolic idiom was first recorded in 1771.

43. Morphine, e.g.: OPIATE.

44. It's repeated a lot: MANTRA. Om, om, om.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PWYwLA3PJrg

45. Ready to go: IN GEAR.

47. Kevlar products: VESTS.

49. Mideast ruling family name: ASSAD. The FAMILY.

52. Rest area heavyweight: SEMI. For those who did not like MACK.

53. Cabinet dept. : ENERgy.

54. Long and Vardalos: NIAS.













56. Winner's gathering: POT. Well, maybe now that they have legalized marijuana- oh, you mean a poker pot, Never mind.

Samuel A. Donaldson

Title: Give them the finger!  Link.

Sam (not from TV) Donaldson is back for my third time to blog his work. A really creative grid with only 32 blocks and the likely controversial theme content 11-4-9-4-11. The unwritten rule about theme fill being the longest fill...well I bet some would object. For me, the central fill make that rule seem silly for this puzzle.

Mr. D. also worked a bunch of fun stuff into his grid like OX TEAM, SIN TAX,  OLD VIC, KAVNER, SAL SODA, TABULAR,  ACREAGE, DESK SET, OPEN TOE,  ALTIMAS,  PLATYPI, KEPT FIT,  ODDBALL, REISSUED, VAN DAMME...this puzzle is a keeper.

17A. Prioritizes self-interest : LOOKS OUT FOR (11). Looks out for number one is a very popular phrase, both by those in favor and opposed.

34A. Championship team cheer : WE'RE (4). We're number one! The puzzle blogging family!!!

35A. Words needed to complete four puzzle answers : NUMBER ONE (9). The oddly placed reveal that made this an awfully easy Friday.

38A. "Let's Make a Deal" choice : DOOR (4). Being home 24/7 I managed to see a few minutes of Wayne Brady as Monty Hall....I quickly closed doo number one.

58A. Object of a serious hunt : PUBLIC ENEMY (11). Is is me, or have they stopped publicizing the FBI 10 most wanted list (and the public enemy number one)?

Across: 

1. Smelling __ : SALTS.

6. Olympic racers : LUGES. This was made tricky by the author.

11. Paving goo : TAR.

14. Dispatch boat : AVISO.  Here is the HISTORY.

15. Unpleasant chores : SLOGS. Vague.

16. Missile from Venus? : ACE. Nice deception- Venus Williams, a tennis service.

19. Sports __ : BRA. More Venus?

20. Levy on liquor : SIN TAX.

21. Printed again : REISSUED.

23. Dedicated works : ODES.

24. Nicholas and Peter : TSARS.


26. Buck : CLAM. Old fashioned words for money.

27. Matched office accessories : DESK SET.

29. Alternative to throwing out : STORAGE.

31. Spots : ADS.

32. Treat roughly : MAUL.

40. Square placed on a square board : TILE. Scrabble anyone?

41. Scaled diagram : MAP.

44. Stayed in shape : KEPT FIT. Venus?

47. Eccentric : ODD BALL.

49. Not free, with "for" : A FEE.

50. Bygone "SNL" rival : MAD TV. Not a real rival.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cwcfcEOdC7g

52. "At Last" singer James : ETTA. A classic.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9YryQTTQMXQ
+
53. "Timecop" star : VAN DAMME. He is still working. LINK.

55. Diamond mine? : I GOT IT. Great baseball misdirection. When I was 6 or 7, in a family game a pop-up was hit my way. I yelled, " I got it, I got it, I think I got it!" Family was in stitches.

57. Fanatic : NUT.

60. "Evil Woman" band : ELO.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jU314nyMKWE

61. __ Gay : ENOLA. Isn't time to put this trivia out to pasture?

62. "It's __!": "We've been tricked" : A TRAP.

63. Numbered rd. : RTE.

64. Aired anew : RERAN.

65. Vermouth bottle name : ROSSI. The bottle I remember.

Down:

1. Grill-cleaning solution : SAL SODA. Not to be confused with Baking soda.

2. Ducked : AVOIDED.

3. Nala, notably : LIONESS. Lion King.

4. "Shame!" : TSK TSK.

5. McGwire's 1998 rival : SOSA. Mark and Sammy - baseball, number 3.

6. Team with a live tiger mascot : LSU. A gimme for Susan, Big Easy, Boo and others.

7. UHF component : ULTRA. Ultra High Frequency.

8. Fetching employees? : GOFERS. Those who fetch.

9. Altruist's opposite : EGOIST. Deducible.

10. Ukr. and Lith., formerly : SSRS. The U made them united.

11. Like spreadsheets : TABULAR. Reminded me of  these BELLS.

12. Plot : ACREAGE. Easy if you do real estate.

13. Name for a help file : READ ME.

18. Ones working together on a farm : OX TEAM. Sorry Sam, but my meh of this puzzle.

22. Slope of loose stones : SCREE. Similar to talus...yeah that helps. My unknown even after filling with perps.

25. Concert souvenir : STUB. I used to save my backstage passes.

28. Blue character : SMURF.

30. Possessed : OWNED. No exorcist needed.

33. Umpire's call : LET. Tennis.

35. Famous : NOTED.

36. Laugh-a-minute sort : RIOT.

37. It was originally established as the Royal Coburg Theatre : OLD VIC. The HISTORY.

38. Fallback provision : DEFAULT.

39. Showing off a pedi, perhaps : OPEN TOE.  You think SPLYNTER?

41. Shouldn't be ignored : MATTERS. It.

42. Nissan models : ALTIMAS.

43. Duck-billed mammals : PLATYPI.

44. Julie who voices Marge Simpson : KAVNER. Rhoda's little sister.

45. Not susceptible : IMMUNE.

46. Emmy winner Jeffrey of "Transparent" : TAMBOR. I loved him as Hank.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PN9tCQsWkdY

48. Suspect : BE ONTO.

51. Street of mystery : DELLA. She worked for Perry.

54. Mimic : APER.

56. Reverse, e.g. : GEAR.

59. Creator of Q and M : IAN. Fleming and he also created Bond, James Bond.

Sam Donaldson

Title: Gunther Toody, where are YOU.

This Samuel A. Donaldson, has been with us since 2009 .  It is time for his annual LAT Friday, with his last one being a sound alike as well. He is on a roll with 3 NYT and a WSJ all recently.  With a background in tax law, you know he has a great sense of humor and this offering, where we replace the o͞o  sound with the ē sound does require imagination. The theme jumped out at me with the Tina Fey and knowing the T from ARTTEST, which I used to love doing, was correct. I love getting into the mind of our constructors and picture how a phrase like TEA FOR TWO (Tē for To͞o ) becomes a perfect reveal for this puzzle. As I have said often, for sound puzzles, the reveal is the 13D, and I loved this one.

There are also is much sparkle to the fill such as ART TEST,  THIS ONE,  VENTNOR,  ENSLAVE, ECHELON,  DUST RAG,  SET DATE,  KNEE PAD,  LAERTES,  I KNEW IT, COUNTS ON and IMPLANTS.  Let go to work.

17A. What Fey does in a mushy moment? : TINA MELTS (9). I eat lots of tuna melts.

24A. Ornamental ducks? : GARDEN TEALS (11). Garden tools are more needed than the gnomes.

36A. Model high schoolers? : FINE TEENS (9). Fine tunes has many meanings.

51A. Park statue that might have the real things perched on it? : STEEL PIGEON (11). Stool pigeons are very important to the police.
And the reveal:

60A. "No, No, Nanette" song, and a homophonic hint to 17-, 24-, 36- and 51-Across : TEA FOR TWO (9).

Across:

1. Quads with wheels : ATVS. Four wheelers.

5. Perry of pop : KATY. So did I.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tAp9BKosZXs

9. Two-iron, before golf club numbering : CLEEK. The whole SET.

14. Orator's prowess: Abbr. : RHEToric.

15. Der Spiegel article : EINE. And 65A. Der Spiegel rejection : NEIN.

16. Modicum : OUNCE. THis was difficult for me.

19. Forward : UNSHY. "I saw them come out and I saw that they were naked, unshy, beautiful, and full of grace, and I watched the naked women walk out of the sea.”― John Cheever, The Stories of John Cheever

20. Sandal feature : T-STRAP. Jimmy Choo.

21. Work the room : MINGLE.

23. Long time : EON.

28. Blanket in a belt : SNOW. Another hard to decipher for me.

30. Beefcake subjects : HUNKS. Familiar?

31. One given at a wedding : VOW. One or two.

32. Polo of "The Fosters" : TERI. Don't know the Fosters, only the Fokkers.

33. Provençal possessive : SES. No grammar error this time.

34. 1974 #1 country hit for Dolly Parton : JOLENE.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b9re90HG2dw

39. __ Pie : ESKIMO.

42. Slowing, on scores: Abbr. : RIT. Ritardando (or rit.) is an indication to gradually decrease the tempo of the music (opposite of accelerando). Wiki,

43. Sacha Baron Cohen alter ego : ALI G.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aUTnu1MaeX0

47. Home office, maybe : DEN. Do people have dens anymore?

48. Quite cold : POLAR. Vortex anyone?

50. Number on a clapperboard : TAKE. The name of this device used in filming movies etc.

55. Sylvan Tolkien creature : ENT.

56. Airport snags : DELAYS.

57. Dreaded : FEARED.

59. Hit lightly : TAP ON.

63. Sudden jerk : START.

64. Way off the highway : EXIT.

66. Second chances : REDOS. Do  over did not fit.

67. "__ arigato": Japanese "thank you very much" : DOMO.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3cShYbLkhBc

68. Where el sol rises : ESTE.

Down:


1. "Draw me" challenge : ART TEST. Two words.













2. Selective words : THIS ONE.I really overthought this one. Many two word fill in the downs.

3. Avenue next to Monopoly's Water Works : VENTNOR. Anyone still playing Monopoly?

4. Headliner : STAR.

5. __ straight face : KEEP A. Two words.

6. Come down with a bug : AIL.

7. Big blowup cause : TNT. Cute cluing.

8. Sycophants : YES MEN.  Again.

9. Has faith in : COUNTS ON. Again.

10. Sudden movement : LUNGE.

11. Subjugate : ENSLAVE.

12. Command level : ECHELON. "the upper echelons of the business world"

13. Exam marking aid : KEY. I remember working as a TA using these on those pre-printed multiple choice test papers.

18. GQ or SI : MAG.

22. HP product : INKJET.

25. South Korea's first president : RHEE. Or was it RYU? This MAN.

26. Cleaning aid : DUST RAG. Again.

27. Baltic Sea country: Abbr. : SWEden.

29. Airport connection : WIFI. Really tricky but simple once you see it.

33. Joe Cool, sans shades : SNOOPY. Hmm, this should be SNEEPY?

35. Exam for a would-be atty. : LSAT.

37. Surgical installations : IMPLANTS. I could not resist a LINK.

38. The Emerald Isle : EIRE.

39. Text tweakers, briefly : EDS. Editors can be tweakers, but in the puzzle world they do much more. If you think a clue is bad, it may not be the original thought of the constructor.

40. Appointment : SET DATE. Again.

41. Patella protector : KNEE PAD. We wore them back in my wrestling days.

44. Ophelia's avenger : LAERTES. How cool, some Shakespeare. Also his father...
“I dare damnation: to this point I stand, / That both the worlds I give to negligence, / Let come what comes; only I’ll be revenged / Most thoroughly for my father.”

45. "Aha!" : I KNEW IT. I knee it?

46. Finish : GET DONE. Again.

49. Being handled by a broker : LISTED. Real estate broker; our closing business is doing very well as Florida real estate has recovered.

52. What Spanish Olympians go for : EL ORO. The gold.

53. Heading for : OFF TO. Off tee? Again.

54. Con beginning : NEO.

58. Former Education secretary Duncan : ARNE. No politics but a CONTROVERSIAL person.

59. Original D&D co. : TSR. Dungeons and Dragons

61. Outer: Pref. : EXO.

62. Intent : AIM.

Well I know Sam aimed to please with this effort and I thought the theme was really tight with two "OO" and two "U" all transferring to well clued EEs. There were many not overused fill. I had fun, and I hope you all did. Stop and say hello Mr. D. Lemonade out.

Friday, April 17, 2015, Samuel A. Donaldson

Theme: Add a letter, add a pun and stir..

Four in the language phrases which have a word beginning with "W" are re-imagined by adding a "T" before the "E" and creating a sound alike, but differently spelled word. So we have a bit of add a letter and a bit of a punfest. This is our 10th LAT from the mind of Mr. Donaldson, who is a law professor with a fondness for tax law (coincidence this is tax week and his 2014 was published in April?) as well as a frequent visitor to other crossword blogs. His last effort here was a really fun letter substitution where we changed X to G and the meaning changed from prurient to pure. He was first published in the  NYT in 2008, with 16 under his belt there. You can read all about him in the 2009 interview which is linked to the right.

The puzzle sets up as more conventional Friday based on word length and blocks, with some nice non-theme fill like FELT HAT,  SEASIDE, LAKE ERIE,  ONE FIFTH,  PEDIGREE,  TEA LEONI, CREAM SODAS, ERIC KARROS. He had told C.C. he like compound answers. let's take a ride together.The combination with two gridspanners and humor and as well as picking the right words is hard to flesh out, so let me know what you think.

16A. Nail the Miley Cyrus impression? : TWERK LIKE A CHARM.(15). WORK like a charm mean it does well (like magic?) and we all know twerking. right? PG13 (2:18)

24A. Permanently deleted electronic message? : SHREDDED TWEET. (13) Shredded WHEAT.

41A. Minor trade adjustment? : BUSINESS TWEAK.(13)Business WEEK magazine..

55A. "The spasm preceded the other symptoms, Doc"? : TWITCH CAME FIRST. (15). WHICH came first, the chicken or the egg?


ACROSS:

1. Year in which Salieri was born : MDCCL.

6. Spunkmeyer of cookie fame : OTIS. No elevator here, this sweet clue.

10. Sports __ : BRA. Any more famous than this picture?

13. Key artery : AORTA.

14. Seattle's __ Place Market : PIKE.. A little home field clue for Sam who lives there..

15. Hazmat suit hazard : TEAR. Tear not tear; defeats the whole purpose.

19. "Madam Secretary" star : TEA LEONI. She has many failed tv shows.

20. "Family Feud" source : SURVEY. "Survey says...."

21. Stately tree : ELM.Stately Elm by Robert Hinshaw

Elm once clad in gold
   Has shed its colorful cloak
       Awaits winter storms
         Bare limbs lifted heavenward
            As if in supplication.

22. "... __ the set of sun": "Macbeth" : ERE. Shakespeare or not, three letters it is going to be ere.

23. Disney title girl from Hawaii : LILO.
LINKKKK

30. Cinch : SHOO IN. Nice fill.

32. "Ah, broken is the golden bowl! the spirit flown forever!" poet : POE. Lenore. LINK.

33. GPS suggestion : RTE. Route.

34. Prod : NUDGE.

35. Michaels et al. : ALS. The sports announcer from the 1980 miracle Olympic Hockey broadcast and now voice of MNF.

36. End notes? : OBITS. Like this clue/fill as well.

38. Pay extension? : OLA. Radio scandal from my childhood.

39. It goes around in winter : FLU. Sad but true.

40. Antarctic transport : SNOCAT. Logical if unknown.

45. Majestic quality : HALO.  Angelic?

46. Playboy nickname : HEF.

47. Kentucky Colonels' org. : ABA. About the fifth time I have gotten the old American Basketball Association.

50. "The Caine Mutiny" Oscar nominee : BOGART. Wonderfully acted movie.

53. Genealogical record : PEDIGREE.

57. Used to be : WERE.

58. Hendrix hairdo : AFRO.

59. Royal __: scheduled 2016 British Open site : TROON. St. Andrews this year. LINK.

60. Unmatched : ODD. Fooled me.

61. The Taj Mahal, e.g. : TOMB. I was taught it was man's greatest erection for woman.

62. Garden plant that thrives in shade : HOSTA.

Down:

1. Lackluster finish : MATTE
2. Wooden pin : DOWEL
3. Vanilla treats : CREAMSODAS
4. Key not used alone : CTRL
5. Bass Islands locale : LAKEERIE
6. Wrote an essay, maybe : OPINED
7. Polynesian carving : TIKI
8. Turner of entertainment : IKE
9. Vacation area : SEASIDE
10. Oregon State athlete, for short : BEAV
11. Rather red : RARE
12. Legion : ARMY
15. Lose illegally : THROW
17. Winner of six David di Donatello acting awards : LOREN
18. __ film : CULT
23. Some August babies : LEOS
25. Be selfish about, in a way : HOG
26. Low grade : DPLUS
27. Fox commentator who was the 1992 N.L. Rookie of the Year : ERICKARROS
28. Singer James : ETTA
29. Try : TEST
30. Self-appointed expert : SNOB
31. Online TV giant : HULU
35. Moreover : ALSO
36. Common liquor purchase, once : ONEFIFTH
37. Scary squeezer : BOA
39. Homburg, for one : FELTHAT
40. Nobel, for one : SWEDE
42. "__ when that happens" : IHATE
43. Buster? : NARC
44. Tough syndicate : THEMOB
48. Get drunk : BESOT
49. Insurance giant : AETNA
50. USAF stealth plane : BTWO
51. Due : OWED
52. Prepare, as for action : GIRD
53. Chicken __ : PARM
54. Early copter : GIRO
56. One may be a CPA : CFO