12.31.11 — Happy New Year!

Saturday, December 31, 2011

Puzzle by Joe Krozel / Edited by Will Shortz

Four 15-letter across answers are the main feature of this pleasant end-of-the-year crossword. Incidentally, check out Will Shortz on The Year in Puzzles.

REAL ESTATE TAXES (31. They’re often placed on parcels)
PRIVATE PRACTICE (39. Lawyer’s setup?)
MADE RESTITUTION (40. Righted wrongs)
STARTS SOMETHING (41. Picks a fight)

Other — AT THAT RATE (35D. “If things were to continue thus …“), BRIDE TO BE and MISS (61A. Shower head?; 6A. What a 61-Across will be called for only a little while longer), BUDGET CUTS (16D. Belt tightening), HEART SHAPE (28D. Feature of many a box of chocolates), IT’S A BLAST (15A. “This shindig rocks!“), KINGSOLVER (4D. Novelist whose character Adah speaks in palindromes), NEW GUINEA (18A. Part of Melanesia), TOGA PARTY (57A. Occasion to put on sheets).

The Return of the Prodigal Son (1773) by Pompeo Batoni

Mid-size — ADAPTORS, ADVERB, AEGIS, AMEND, AS YET, ATONE (62A. Right wrongs),  BET ON, CIVIL, ICONS, LATEX, MICRO (2D. Start that conveys very little?), MINIM (6D. Half note, in Britain), MOISTEST, NEATEN UP, OLIVE, ONE-CAR, ORIGAMI (19A. Subject for a folder), OVOID, PANEL, RETRIM, REXES (52A. Curly-furred cats), SCADS, SCION, SENDS, SNORE, SMOKE, SPARE ME, TESSIE, USERS manual.

Short stuff — AIDA, ALAS, DENE (29A. Sandy tract by the sea, to a Brit), ECON, ELSA, “Hoc ERAT in votis“, ESAU, GELS, ITE, NODS, NSA, “OH I dunno …”, OMAR, OPUS (10A. One on a Liszt list), OTBS, RATS, ROT, RPMS, SAGA, SASH, SENG, SESS, SSW, STAB and STAT, STIR, TBA and TBAR, XIII.

Happy New Year!

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Puzzle available on the internet at

THE NEW YORK TIMES — Crossword Puzzles and Games.

Remaining clues — ACROSS: 1. Sign of engine trouble; 14. Like some suits; 17. Computer screen; 21. Always or sometimes, say; 22. Approvals; 23. “The thoughtful soul to solitude retires” poet; 26. Gets set; 42. Rustle; 43. Wiretapping grp.; 44. Accessory that may have a state name on it; 47. Old Testament “man of the field”; 49. Lift, of a sort; 53 Like many garages; 55. Excuse-interrupting comment; 60. Primer option; 63. Psychiatrist’s appt.; 64. Turnovers, e.g.; 65. Posts. — DOWN: 1. Offshoot; 3. Like prickly pears; 5. Four-footed orphan of literature; 7. -nik kin; 8. Yemen-to-Zimbabwe dir.; 9. Continuing drama; 10. Food item often cut into rings; 11. Setting for instruments; 13. Skewer; 20. Like the best chicken or turkey, say; 24. Electrical accessories; 25. Crop further; 30. Unclutter; 31. CD rate?; 33. Slave singing several solos; 34. Red Sox anthem; 36. Number of one of the Olympics canceled due to W.W. II; 37. Study of some bubbles?: Abbr.; 38. Hong Kong’s Hang ___ index; 44. Large bore; 45. Umbrella; 46. Oodles; 48. Heretofore; 50. Back with bread; 51. Improve; 53. Parlors with TV screens: Abbr.; 54. Experiment runners?; 56. “Oh, cruel world …”; 58. Bushwa; 59. Sched. Letters.

12.30.11 — Up the Wazoo

Coat Miner at the Port, 1930, Valentin Thibon de Libian

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Friday, December 30, 2011

Puzzle by Mike Nothnagel / Edited by Will Shortz

Across — 1. Forcefulness, PUNCH; 6. Is a true believer in, SWEARS BY; 14. Moss source, SPORE; 15. Deposit remover?, COAL MINER; 16. Holder of legends, ATLAS; 17. What you might reach for after hearing “Don’t go anywhere!”, RADIO DIAL; 18. Drug distributors?, SHOTS; 19. Entertainment at a luau, UKES; 20. Look too closely, PRY; 21. Preparatory time, EVE; 22. Titled lady, PEERESS; 25. By area, the third-largest country in the E.U., SWED; 26. Some attorneys’ degs., LLDS; 27. Money in Manila, PESOS; 31. Some to hang with, PAL; 32. Primitive coat, PELT; 33. Show for which Jim Dale won the 1980 Tony for Best Actor in a Musical, BARNUM; 34. Kind of compound in chemistry, AZO; 35. Time in an airport, LAY-OVER; 37. Hearing opening?, OTO; 38. Landscaping plants, HOSTAS; 40. Big to-do?, TASK; 41. Shout with cupped hands, maybe, BOO; 42. Untagged, NOT IT; 43. “That’s so sad!”, OH NO; 44. Foil part, HAFT; 45. Most chic, TONIEST; 47. Auto loan fig., APR; 48. Drug sold under the brand name Retrovir, AZT; 51. Site of an 1815 escape, ELBA; 52. Almost catch, NIP AT; 54. Shoots at, FIRES UPON; 57. Coeur d’ALENE, Idaho; 58. Going around in circles?, ITINERANT; 59. Restricted parties, STAGS; 60. Alaska or Hawaii, TIME ZONE; 61. Problems with an argument, HOLES.

Down — 1. Some health warnings: Abbr., PSAS; 2. Plentifully, in slang, UP THE WAZOO; 3. Enmity, NO LOVE LOST; 4. In a box, CRATED; 5. Russian chemist with a law of thermodynamics, HESS; 6. Saturated, SOAKED TO THE BONE; 7. High boots for fishermen, WADERS; 8. One of Beethoven’s bagatelles is dedicated to her, ELISE; 9. Latin 101 word, AMO; 10. RID-X (septic treatment brand); 11. Impertinent one, SNIP; 12. Arduous challenge, BEAR; 13. Annual: Abbr., YRLY; 15. How Simon Cowell often critiques, CRUELLY; 22. Hearing responses, PLEAS; 23. Little starter, SPARK; 24. Spanish 101 verb, SER; 25. 1957 Cy Young Award winner, SPAHN; 28. What luxury goods have, SNOB APPEAL; 29. Nowhere close, OUT OF RANGE; 30. SMOOT-Hawley Tariff Act of 1930; 32. Academy head, PLATO; 33. Cloud the judgment of with alcohol, BESOT; 36. “Good Will Hunting” director, 1997, VAN SANT; 39. Small bird, TIT; 43. Bottom of a crankcase, OIL PAN; 44. Start of a presidential march, HAIL TO; 46 Prefix with chemical, NEURO; 48. Throw A FIT; 49. Tubular past, ZITI; 50. Edging, TRIM; 52. Humorist who wrote “Progress might have been all right once, but it has gone on too long”, NASH; 53. One of the Durbeyfields, TESS; 55. Memphis-to-Nashville dir., ENE; 56. Expresses, informally, SEZ.

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Puzzle available on the internet at

THE NEW YORK TIMES — Crossword Puzzles and Games.

　

　

　

　

12.29.11 — Short on Zs

Thursday, December 29, 2011

Puzzle by David Steinberg / Edited by Will Shortz

PIZZAZZ in circled letters, along with NAME THE ONE / SEVEN-LETTER WORD / IN ENGLISH THAT CANNOT BE PUT DOWN IN SCRABBLE (17-Across. Start of a brainteaser whose answer appears in order, from top to bottom, in this puzzle’s circled squares) constitutes the interrelated group of this fun instruction-as-answer Thursday crossword.

Other — ANTILOG (14D. 10,000, for 4, in base 10, e.g.), EL MONTE (19A. City in the San Gabriel Valley), ETAILER (23D. Online merchant), HAUNTED (36D. Like a house that’s of interest to ghosts hunters), HEAD / TO TOE (15A. With 37-Down, complete), ITEMIZE (52A. Inventory).

Mid-size — ABOVE, ALOHA, ASIMOV (3D. “The End of Eternity“ author), BUSBOY, DEMOS, ENGELS, I HEART (6D. Start of many a bumper sticker), LEO VII, NINON, NO EXIT, N TESTS, OXIDES, Peppermint PATTIE, TO DATE, TOYED, VALLEE (2D. Rudy with a megaphone), WIZARD.

Short stuff — ADZ, ALAE, ARIZ, ATIP, A TO Z (21A. Complete), Sea of AZOV, BRIT, BYE, CHEZ, Street CRED, DDE, DOUR, EAN, ENL, ERIE, ERN, EVA, EYES, GLIB, HOER, IDA, ILES, I NA sense, IPAD, LIAO, NANA and NASA, NEAT, NEZ, ODAS, ODOR, OONA, REO, SAO Tomé, SCI, SCTV, SDS, SERT, SIP, SODS, SPAR, TBA, TOM, TORA, WAH.

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Puzzle available on the internet at

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Remaining clues — ACROSS: 1. Wagner heroine; 4. Eagerly expectant; 12. Opportunity maker?; 14. Hello and farewell; 16. Facile; 22. John XI’s successor; 23. War of a 1812 battle site; 24. Schedule abbr.; 27. Part two of the brainteaser; 30. One of the Chaplins; 31. Home state of the 1964 and 2008 Rep. presidential candidates; 32 Part three of the brainteaser; 38. Debate (with); 39. 10^th- to 12^th-century Chinese dynasty; 40. Part four of the brainteaser; 48. Muckraker Tarbell; 49. Harsh; 50. 1944 Sartre play; 51. Lays the groundwork for?; 53. End of the brainteaser; 57. Harem rooms; 58. Nifty; 59. Trifled (with); 60. Spanish muralist; 61. Russia/Ukraine’s Sea of ___; 62. They can be batted and rolled; 63. ‘60s radical grp. — DOWN: 1. Communist Friedrich; 4. Zoological wings; 5. Certain cat; 8. At the home of; 9. Old bus maker; 10. Suffix with Euclid; 11. W.W. II gen.; 13. Greater than; 18. Person who’s groundbreaking?; 20. Curtain fabric; 24. When tripled, a 1970 war movie; 25. One who may say “I say” a lot; 26. Woodworker’s tool; 28. Blowup: Abbr.; 29. Cry from a crib; 32. Popular tablet; 33. Zola best seller; 34. Coastal flier; 35. Half a strawful, say; 38. Subj. of three of the six Nobel Prizes; 41. Aerosol target; 42. As yet; 43. Restaurant gofer; 44. “How to” explanations; 45. Rust and quartz; 46. Person with a conical hat, maybe; 47. Bikini explosions; 51. Onetime show for John Candy; 52. Composition of Polynésie; 54. Part of a French face; 56. “g2g” follower.

12.28.11 — Who?

Kilroy Was Here - Washington DC WWII Memorial - Jason Coyne

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Wednesday, December 28, 2011

Puzzle by Louis Zulli / Edited by Will Shortz

ID THEFT (54A. Modern crime, briefly … or a hint to 17-, 36- and 59-Across), along with three words seemingly missing the letters ID (president, accidents and divide), resulting in LAME DUCK PRESENT (17A. Gift to an outgoing member of Congress?), ACCENTS HAPPEN (36A. Dialect coach’s slogan) and CONTINENTAL DIVE (59A. European gin mill?) constitute the interrelated group of this witty Wednesday crossword.

Other — APOSTOLIC (34D. Pontifical), BAD ANSWER (5D. “You shouldn’t have said that!”), SEWANEE (22A. The University of the South, familiarly).

Six-letter — AGENTS, AUNTIE (25A. Em, to Dorothy), BRONTE, ENCORE, JUICES, KILROY (57A. He “was here”), LATKES (20A Hanukkah pancakes), LENTIL, SPREAD (27A. Rancher’s land), TETHER, UNRIPE (51A. Too firm, perhaps).

Five — ADELA, ASIAN, COHAB, COOED, EASES, HYDRO, ICONS, INTER, IRWIN, MASON, MONTH, ORDER, PRADA, RESOW, TRIKE.

Short stuff — ADIA, AGEE, ALAR, Mountain ASH, CPL, EDIE, ELI, ELEA, ELKE, EMU, END, ERGO, ERTE, HAM, HERO, INGE, IRA, IWO, JEB, KERR, MALT, NERF, NEW, NICE, NPR, OCT, ODRA, ORA and ORR, PSI, RAPS, RAT, SEER, SER and SLR, TKO, VIEW, WISC, WREN.

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Puzzle available on the internet at

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Remaining clues — ACROSS: 1. Roommate, informally; 6. Parade honoree, perhaps; 10. Brewer’s need; 14. Big name in handbags; 15. Withdrawn apple spray; 16. James who won a posthumous Pulitzer; 21. Billing cycle, often; 26. Y sporter; 30. Camera type, for short; 31. Plant anew; 33. Like some elephants; 41. Tot’s wheels; 42. “The usual,” say; 44. A Bush; 47. Carl Sagan book; 50. “Michael Collins” org.; 56. Computer screen lineup; 64. Romain de Tirtoff’s alias; 65. Hence; 66. Hale who won three U.S. Opens; 67. Nostradamus, e.g.; 68. Small songster; 69. Spoke sweet nothings. — DOWN: 1. Radar’s rank on “M*A*S*H”: Abbr.; 2. “… Mac ___ PC?”; 3. Cured fare; 4. Miss Quested of “A Passage to India”; 6. Cyber-nuisance; 7. Sommer on screen; 8. Speaks ill of; 9. Notable #4 on the ice; 10. Grand Lodge member; 11. Most major-leaguers have them; 12. Campbell’s variety; 13. Restrain, in a way; 18. Sun Bowl Stadium sch.; 19. Grounded avian; 22. Sun. talk; 23 Zeno’s home; 24. Cheesehead’s state: Abbr.; 1998 Sarah McLachlan hit; 28. Moves carefully; 32. Leaf-turning time: Abbr.; 35. D.C.-based media giant; 37. Riviera city; 38. Bout ender, briefly; 39. Pop singer Brickell; 40. Soft ball material; 43. Wharf pest; 44. Breakfast offerings; 45. Shout at a concert; 46. Literary family name; 48. Poet who wrote “They also serve who only stand and wait”; 49. Wroclaw’s river, to Poles; 52. The “I” of ICBM; 53. Tire letters; 55. Prefix with foil or phobia; 57. Deborah of “Tea and Sympathy”; 58. “Bus Stop” playwright; 60. Just out; 61. 1945 battle site, briefly; 62. Go head to head; 63. What this is, fittingly.

12.27.11 — Water Colors

Rowing Home, 1890, Winslow Homer

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Tuesday, December 27, 2011

Puzzle by John Dunn / Edited by Will Shortz

WATER COLORS (61A. Some Winslow Homer art … or what five answers in this puzzle are?), BLACK LAGOON (16A. 1954 monster film setting), RED RIVER (22A. 1948 John Wayne western), GREEN BAY (50A. City that’s home to the winner of the first two Super Bowls), YELLOW SEA (10D. It’s between Korea and China) and BLUE BAYOU (32D. Linda Ronstadt hit co-written by Roy Orbison) constitute the interrelated group of this fresh Tuesday crossword.

Other — CREATOR (45A. Brahma, in Hinduism), DOORWAY (27A. It may have an arch or a lintel), GOES APE (25D Loses it altogether), I WANT TO (23D. “Count me in!“), NEMESES (38A. Formidable opponents).

Mid-size — AERIE, AMBER, ANISE, ANITA, ANODE, ASHES, AVERT, BROTH, EASYA, ECARD, ENORM, ETC ETC, GUESS, LEVINE, LITRE, MACES, OKSANA Baiul, O ROMEO (8D. Start of a cry by Juliet), RECORD, RETIE, RIGOR, SAULT Ste. Marie, SQUAT, UNCLES, VALUE, YESES.

Short stuff — AGA, ALLY, ARAL, ASK, AYES, BOB, BOOK, BOSC, CPU, CREE, DEN, DESI, DWI, EEN, EGGO, ERA, EURO, EVEN, GAPS, GNU, “Like IT OR not …”, IVY, LANE, LAOS, LAX, NEO, OMAN, ORA pro nobis, Man O’WAR, OWL, PEAS, PING, QTIP, RARE, RIOT, TEN, TSK, WAG, WAXY, YANK, YAW.

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Puzzle available on the internet at

THE NEW YORK TIMES — Crossword Puzzles and Games.

Remaining clues — ACROSS: 1. Head off; 6. See 13-Across; 10. Deviate from a course; 13. Sprays, as a crowd in a 6-Across; 14. Petrol amount; 15. A pitcher should have a low one, in brief; 18. Busiest airport on the West Coast, informally; 19. Franc replacement; 20. Immense, in poetry; 21. Friend in war; 24. Frozen waffle brand; 26. Drinker’s road offense, for short; 27. It may have an arch or a lintel; 30. What buoys do 33. Battery terminal; 36. Course that you waltz through; 37. It gives a hoot; 40. Nightfall, in poetry; 43. Baker who sang “Giving You the Best That I Got”; 44. “___ not what your country …”; 47. PC’s brain; 49. The Bible, e.g.; 55. Pod contents; 57. Catcher’s position; 59. Ontario tribe; 63. Prefix with natal; 64. Sambuca flavoring; 65 Tighten, as laces; 66. Wildebeest; 67. Reasons for braces; 68. Hearth waste. — DOWN: 1. Color of honey; 2. Cherish; 3. Virtual holiday greeting; 4. 3 minutes 43 seconds for running a mile, e.g.; 5. “Baa-a-ad!”; 6. Harshness; 9. Start of the end of a countdown; 11. Name on a map of Uzbekistan or Kazakhstan; 12 Like some crayons; 14. Swim meet assignment; 17. James of the Met; 21. Taj Mahal site; 23. “Count me in!”; 25. Loses it altogether; 27. Arnaz of “I Love Lucy”; 28. Affirmatives; 29. Bronx Bomber; 30. Pear variety; 31. Man ___ (A.P.’s Horse of the Century); 34. “ER” actor Epps; 35. Room with few or no windows; 39. “Blah, blah, blah …”; 42. Neighbor of Thailand; 46. ___ Baiul, 1994 Winte Olympics gold medalist; 48. Fester and Remus; 50. Take stab; 51. Hard to come by; 52. Very thin soup; 53. Eagle’s nest; 54. Affirmatives; 55. Radar sound; 56. Deadlocked; 58. Stick in a medicine cabinet; 61. Joker; 62. ___ pro nobis (pray for us: Lat.)

12.26.11 — 'Tis the Season

Four Seasons by Alfonse Mucha, circa 1895

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Monday, December 26, 2011

Puzzle by Gary Cee / Edited by Will Shortz

SEASON FINALE (39A: With 41-Across, good time for a cliffhanger ... or what each of 17-, 24-, 50- and 63-Across has) along with four two-word phrases where second word is a season constitutes the interrelated group of this fine Monday crossword:

NASTY FALL (17A. What a slippery sidewalk might cause)
DONNA SUMMER (24A. “Last Dance” singer, 1978)
EDGAR WINTER (50A. Albino rocker with a 1973 #1 hit)
HOT SPRING (63A. Spa locale)

Other — BRIGHTS (43D. High beams), IN NAME ONLY (10D. Titularly), LUGGAGE (32A. It’s found on an airport carousel), MELANGE (7D. Olio), MOSEY ALONG (31D. Amble), RENT OUT (44D. Lease), SALVAGE (8D. Rescue), YEAR END (47A. December, say).

Five-letter — ANNIE, DELLA, DENIM, EDDIE, ELENA, ELIDE, Saint ELMO’S fire, EPEES, EXPAT, GAMER, KNELT, LOCAL, SARGE, SIDES, STEER, TAPED.

Short stuff — ACHE and ACNE, AKA and ASA and AVA, ALAN, AREA, AWW, La BREA Tar Pits, CASE, COAT and COAX, DAMS, “What’s the DIF?”, DIRE, DROZ, EGAL, ENT, ETTA, FADE, HARM, HASP, HOST, INCA, IKEA, ISEE, LETS, LSAT, NUS, ODER, OLIN, ORCA, OREO, PEAL, REAP, REP, SAE, SHY, SKA, STAY, TSA, TUSH, UGLI, WGT, YENS, YTD, ZEAL.

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Puzzle available on the internet at

THE NEW YORK TIMES — Crossword Puzzles and Games.

Remaining clues — ACROSS: 1. Longing; 5. Beaver constructions; 9. Entrée add-ons; 14. Jacket; 15. Household goods retail chain founded in Sweden; 16. Prepared to be knighted; 19. Woody Allen’s “___ Hall”; 20. National who lives overseas, informally; 21. Actress Gardner; 23. Deputy;28. Injury; 33. Double-disc cookie; 34. “Hmm, yes …”; 35. Train that doesn’t skip a stop; 42. Not live, as on TV; 46. Future atty.’s exam; 49. Longings; 54. Ring, as bells; 55. Lb. or oz.; 56. Jockey Arcaro; 66. Kagan of the Supreme Court; 67. Backside; 68. Killer whale; 69. “Beetle Bailey” character; 70. “Don’t go!”; 71. Fervor. — DOWN: 1. Reason to use Clearasil; 2. Wheedle; 3. Lock securer; 4. 1964 album “___ James Rocks the House”; 6. Letters before an alias; 9. Some Caribbean music; 11. Clothing material that may have rivets; 12. Skip over in pronouncing; 13. Have the wheel; 18. Stock listings abbr.; 22. Drunk ___ skunk; 25. Actress Lena; 26. Letters before xis; 27. Furrowed fruit; 28. Party thrower; 29. Word after rest or gray; 30. Harvest; 36. Detective’s assignment; 37. One of the men on “Two and a Half Men”; 38. “___ Make a Deal”; 40. Baltic Sea feeder; 41. What colors do over time; 45. M.D. who may examine the sinuses; 48. “So-o-o cute!”; 50. Fencing swords; 51. Actress Reese; 52. World of Warcraft fan, e.g.; 53. Not Dem.; 57. Physician with a daily talk show; 58. In ___ straits; 59. Ancient Peruvian; 60. Alike: Fr.; 62. Letter encl. to facilitate a reply; 64. Grp. Doing pat-downs; 65. Reticent.

12.25.11 — Ain't He Sweet?

Sunday, December 25, 2011 — Christmas

AIN’T HE SWEET, Puzzle by Elizabeth C. Gorski / Edited by Will Shortz

GINGERBREAD / MAN (91A. With 100-Across, image revealed by connecting the circled letters alphabetically), along with the circled letters running from A through Z to form a gingerbread man is the main feature of this delicious Christmas Day crossword puzzle. A fair sprinkling of clues and answers relating to Christmas throughout the crossword present a wonderful holiday spirit.

Across — 1. Arthur Honegger’s “A Christmas CANTATA”; 13. “Scrooged” actor Robert MITCHUM; 58. “Unto us A SON is given”; 76. Decoration on a 91-/100-Across, ICING; 96. “Miracle on 34^th Street,” e.g., MOVIE; 102. 2001 film in which 91-/100-Across is a character, SHREK; 133. Partridge’s preferred tree, PEAR.

Down — 4. 91-/100-Across, often, TREE ORNAMENT; 16. Aid for making a 91-/100-Across, COOKIE CUTTER; 32. Elves, to Santa: Abbr., ASSTS; 42. “Santa Baby” singer, KITT; 83. How Santa’s reindeer are harnessed, IN PAIRS; 105. 16^th-century monarch credited with presenting 91-/100-Acrosses to guests, ELIZABETH; 110. “The 91-/100-Across,” for one, FAIRY TALE; 114. Plopped down on Santa’s lap, e.g., SAT; 117. Relaxer for Santa, HOT MILK.

Other — AGITATE, ALL SMILES (38A. Clearly happy), AUTOMAT, BABY FAT, BARE ALL, BY THE BY, CAPTIVE (68A. Getaway planner?), CHEESE DIP, CORN CHIP, DEMEANS, DO IT NOW, EFFECTS, FACTORS, GRIMSBY, IN A CAST and IN RUINS, LEE TIDE, Actress Andie MACDOWELL, NEW MOMS, NO SUGAR, OVERDUB, RED MEAT, STAR MAP, STILTON (154A. Eponymic town of Cambridgeshire), SWOOP IN, TRIPOLI, TROTTED, YOKO ONO, ZINCITE (11D. Mineral in healing crystals).

Mid-size — ABATE, ABUSE, ACING, AGAZE, AGENTS, Journalist Joseph ALSOP, AVAIL, BADGE (79D. Star of “Gunsmoke”?), BENTS, BYTES, CHIANG, COBRA, DOESN’T, DOTTED, ERNST, GASPS, HOP ON, IN A FIX, LANAI, MCRIB, MIDIS, MINSK, MODERN, MONGO (136A. Fictional planet in “Flash Gordon”), MONOS, NEGRI (74A. Pola of the silents), NERTS, ODORS, RACKS, RAGES, SIXTE, TARIQ, TASTY, TIMBRE, UNITE, XANADU.

Short stuff (and lots of it!) — AAS, ABLE, ADA, ADIN, ALS, ANO, ASIN, ASL, ATIT, AUS, B’NAI B‘rith, BSMT, CAT, CDC, CIA, CML, CORM, DAP, DO A good turn, EATA, EDNA, EFOR, EMIT, ESP and EST, ETA and ETAT, FIB, GOR, GRE, HBO, HES, HIRT, HOTE, IDOL, IFS, IOWA, IROC, IRR, ISIS, ITSO, Cousin ITT, “I WAS framed!”, JONI, KITT, KOTO (33A. Japanese stringed instrument), LBO, LEGO, “LES Misérables”, MIG, MOC and MOP, MYST (13D. Video game island), NARC, NOVO, Friend OF A friend, OLEA and OLEO, Carry ONS, ORY, OWN, PHI and PHS, POSE, PUP, RAT, RAVE, REDD, REQ, RITE, SFAX (102D. Tunisian seaport), SFO, SHED, SPA, SSS, STIR, SUET, SWEE, TAL, TKO and TKT, TOI, TSKS, Rock’s Jethro TULL, TWI, UTAH, WIZ, ZOOS.

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Or check out Patrick Merrell’s rendition, HERE.

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Remaining clues — ACROSS: 8. Staring intently; 20. Add a musical track to, e.g.; w21. Destroyed; 23. Noted bride of 1969; 24. Model for an art class, say; 25. “Stop stalling!”; 26. Approach like an eagle; 27. Baptism, e.g.; 28. Kid’s block; 30. Cozy footwear; 31. “I could ___ horse!”; 39. Goes for the gold?; 40. Spice organizers; 43. Lose intensity; 44. Fencing position; 47. Crunchy snack bit; 50. Storage units; 51. Piccadilly movers; 55. Roman “olive”; 56. “Make ___!”; 59. Salt flats locale; 60. Carnivore’s love; 62. Components; 70. Newfangled; 73. Like some lines; 77. Mistreat; 79. Predispositions; 82. Score after deuce; 84. “Hairspray” role; 86. Young business partner?; 90. Bay area airport, in shorthand; 95. Mozart’s birthplace: Abbr.; 98. Medium skill; 101. Cold war fighter; 104. Horsed around?; 106. Shake up; 109. Special ___; 111. Chess champ Mikhail; 112. “Honey in the Horn” trumpeter; 115. Some toy batteries; 116. Beta preceder; 119. Tone quality, in music; 121. Stuck; 123. Wall St. deal; 126. Singer Mitchell; 128. Bronx and Central Park attractions; 132. Prepare, as eggnog; 133. Partridge’s preferred tree; 134 Navigational aid; 138. “Incidentally …”; 140. Drive-thru sandwich order; 141. Crudités platter centerpiece; 145. Delicious; 145. Org. in Tom Clancy novels; 147. Maternity ward figures; 149. Coffee order; 151. Stipulations; 153. Pacino and Bundy; 155. Mediterranean capital; 156. Skip across the water’s surface; 157. Certain pass: Abbr.; 158. Radio abbr.; 159. Guiness suffix; 161. Mandatory coll. Course. — DOWN: 1. Hooded menace; 2. Benefit; 3. “Drat!”; 5. Nabokov novel; 7. Proficient; 87. Year in San Juan; 9. “The Little Mermaid” fellow; 10. Cafeteria variety; 12. Rocker Brian; 14. W.W. II battleship; 15. Ref’s decision; 17. Cyclist’s offer; 18. Merge; 19. Vintage records; 21. Fan’s fixation; 22. Popeye’s ___’ Pea; 29. Fun house sounds; 35. ___-12; 37. Part of many a science course; 39. ‘70s TV production co.; 41. Mao contemporary; 45. Camaro ___-Z; 46. Paradise; 47. Bulbous plant part; 48. Butter alternative; 49. Actor Foxx; 52. Bickering; 53. High praise; 54. Storage unit; 58. Deaf talk: Abbr.; 61. You are: Sp.; 63. Serving well?; 64. Public health agcy.; 65. French pronoun; 66. Have; 67. Composer Max; 69. Sit still?; 71 Calf-length dresses; 72. Hawaiian porch; 75. Stormed; 79. Cellar, in classifieds; 80. Get an ___ effort; 81. De ___ (anew); 85. Slights, say; 87. Buster?; 88. Winter bird feeder food; 89. Terse reproofs; 92. Radiate; 93. Mob turncoat; 98. Californie, e.g.; 103. Males; 107. Sr.’s test; 108. Light head?; 112. “John Adams” airer; 116. Slumber party togs; 118. Recovering after injury, say; 120. Swab; 122. White lie; 123. Small boat danger; 124. Some pudginess; 125. Arm extension?; 127. Sale item abbr.; 129. Fails to; 131. Spies, e.g.; 133. Chem. Class measures; 135. Capital of Belarus; 136. Boss’s notes; 137. Bouquets; 139. Iraq’s Aziz; 141. Roman 950; 142. Table d’___; 143. Nile deity; 144. Baby boxer, e.g.; 146. Bopper; 148. Maven; 150. Brit’s oath; 152. Masseur employer.

12.24.11 — Bah, Humbug!

Saturday, December 24, 2011 — Christmas Eve

Puzzle by Ned White / Edited by Will Shortz

With cruel useless clues, this joyless Christmas Eve Saturday crossword does as proud as the Grinch.

Across — 1. X-ed out?, SPREAD EAGLE; 12. Something turned under, HEM; 15. What may be visualized via bumper sticker?, WHIRLED PEAS; 16. Is for a few?, ARE; 17. Supplement that might cause a stink, OIL OF GARLIC; 18. “When 2 R IN Love” (1988 Prince song); 19. Motivator for Manolete, OLE; 20. Things you can bear, ARMS; 21. Suppressed, DAMPED; 23. Mexican cacti, PEYOTES; 25. Dessert served in a bowl, TAPIOCA; 26. 2006 Newberry winner Lynne RAE Perkins; 27. It replace Apple’s Quadra line, POWERMAC; 28. Problem with tight shoes, PINCH; 31. Tennis’s Zvonareva and others, VERAS; 32. Spaghetti end?, AN I; 33. Old Testament shepherd, AMOS; 34. Magnate who wrote “How to Be Rich”, GETTY; 35. Angel’s antithesis, BRAT; 36. Shouts in the ‘hood, YOS; 37. Mrs. Rajiv Gandhi, SONIA; 38. Without circumspection, LAXLY; 39. Steal away, SNEAK OUT; 41. Ox, LUG; 42. It’s metered, CAB RIDE; 43. Where rails come together, MARSHES; 47. Many stand-up lines, AD LIBS; 48. Drainer of most of Switzerland, AARE; 49. Shrinks’ grp., APA; 50. Piece of fiction, LIE; 51. Cry over spilled milk?, OOPSIE DAISY; 54. Loafer letters, EEE; 55. Neurologist, BRAIN DOCTOR; 56. Not automatic: Abbr., STD; 57. Doesn’t run over, STOPS ON TIME.

Down — 1. What hawks do, SWOOP; 2. Follower of Franco?, PHILE; 3. “My Philosofy” poet, RILEY; 4. Ranch extension?, ERO; 5. Palestinian group, AL FATAH; 6. Extent, DEGREE; 7. Some Dutch wheels, EDAMS; 8. Truth-in-lending figs., APRS; 9. Come together, GEL; 10. Stored, LAID AWAY; 11. Illusionist’s repertoire, in part, ESCAPES; 12. He “spoke” with horns and whistles, HARPO MARX; 13. The Seneca Chief was the first to travel its full length, ERIE CANAL; 14. Untruthfulness, MENDACITY; 22. Onetime Soyuz destination, MIR; 24. Foes of Frodo, ORCS; 25. Cake, in Cali, TORTA; 27. Little, in Lille, PETIT; 28. They’re often sliding for workers, PAY SCALES; 29. Party comment after “No thanks”, I’M ON A DIET; 30. Common sock damage, NOSE BLEED; 31. Where the show must go on?, VENUE; 34. Mensch, GOOD SORT; 35. First, second and third, but not fourth, BAGS; 37. Winter sport vehicles, SKIBOBS; 38. Tempted, LURED ON; 40. Cal-Nev-ARI; 41. Annual Jalapeño Festival site, LAREDO; 43. Sewer parts, MAINS; 44. Modern-day locale of the place where the Santa Maria ran aground in 1492, HAITI; 45 Oaks Stakes setting, EPSOM; 46. SAYRE fire (destructive 2008 blaze in Los Angeles); 48. Take A SIP (sample some); 52. Kung PAO chicken; 53. Be part of the picture, ACT.

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12.23.11 — What's Today?

Voyager 2 photomosaic of Triton's sub-Neptunian hemisphere. The bright, slightly pinkish, south polar cap at bottom is composed of nitrogen and methane ice and is streaked by dust deposits left by nitrogen gas geysers. The mostly darker region above it includes Triton's "cantaloupe terrain" and cryovolcanic and tectonic features. Near the lower right limb are several dark maculae ("strange spots"). ~ Wikipedia

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Friday, December 23, 2011

Puzzle by Patrick Berry / Edited by Will Shortz

The holiday season continues to be snubbed in this week’s Times crosswords with today’s generic offering of wordplay.

The Bulgarian martyresses by Konstantin Makovsky, 1877 Atrocities of bashibazouks in Bulgarian Orthodox Church  ~ Sacrilege, Wikipedia

Across — 1. Couldn’t stop obsessing about, GOT HUNG UPON; 12. Bolted, MADE A RUN FOR IT; 14. Nehru jackets have them, MANDARIN COLLARS; 16. Decides to try, INDICTS; 17. Branch of mathematics, LOGIC; 18. Man of steel?, STATUE; 19. Add numbers to, say, PAGINATE; 22. Flower named for its resemblance to a turban, TULIP; 23. Typesetting no-no, WIDOW; 24. Paul in politics, RON; 25. Bread box?, SAFE; 26. Renaissance painter Botticelli, SANDRO; 27. Member of a caste system, ANT; 28. Stealing from the collection plate, e.g., SACRILEGE; 31. Org. whose roots go back to the Civil War, IRS; 34. Violent upheaval, THROES; 35. Maintain, AVER; 39. “Evita” narrator, CHE; 40. Change for the better, AMEND; 41. “I’m very impressed!”, BRAVO; 42. Insects, HEXAPODS; 44. Trees sought by leaf peepers, MAPLES; 45. Twig used in wickerwork, OSIER; 46. Murderer in P.D.Q. Bach’s spoof opera “A Little Nightmare Music”, SALIERI; 47. Game you can’t lose twice, RUSSIAN ROULETTE; 51. Nationwide Series events, STOCK CAR RACES; 52. Initiated, as an undertaking, SPEARHEADED.

A Rhesus monkey: Full of hate, a monkey's most powerful emotion. (photograph by OskarN on flickr.com)

Down — 1. Visitor at the beginning of “The Hobbit”, GANDALF; 2. Material for the Guinness Book, ODDITIES; 3. Part of a service, TEA CUP; 4. “The Luck of Roaring Camp” writer. HARTE; 5. “Trinity” novelist, URIS; 6. Poor Clares member, NUN; 7. Seller of supplements, GNC; 8. Overhead light, perhaps, UFO; 9. It grows older and then croaks, POLLIWOG; 10. Woollike acrylic fiber, ORLON; 11. River flowing between two Great Lakes, NIAGARA; 12. Birthplace of Virgil, MANTUA; 13. Largest moon in the solar system with a retrograde orbit, TRITON; 14. Morning weather phenomena, MISTS; 15. Trail, SCENT; 19. Steering system components, PINIONS; 20. Slaphappy, say, ADDLED; 21. Sticks, GORES; 23. Battled, WARRED; 26. Nobody, SCHMO; 29. How pyrrhic victories are won, AT A PRICE; 31. Blood shed on Mount Olympus, ICHOR; 32. Popular test animal in medical research, RHESUS; 33. They put half the world down, SEXISTS; 36. Did Jeeves’s job, VALETED; 37. Turns out, EVERTS; 38. Albert’s love in “Bye Bye Birdie”, ROSIE; 41. Irving Berlin’s “Always,” e.g., BALLAD; 43. Creator of many talking animals, AESOP; 44. Actress Tierney, MAURA; 46. Cross, SORE; 48. Rap sheet abbr., AKA; 49. Manufacturer ofr bar code scanners, NCR; 50. Stadium shout, RAH.

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"What's to-day?" cried Scrooge, calling downward to a boy in Sunday clothes, who perhaps had loitered in to look about him.

"Eh?" returned the boy, with all his might of wonder.

"What's to-day, my fine fellow?" said Scrooge.

"To-day?" replied the boy. "Why, Christmas Day."

"It's Christmas Day!" said Scrooge to himself. "I haven't missed it.

~ A Chistmas Carol by Charles Dickens

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