L.A. TimesCrossword Puzzle Blogging

Wednesday, January 25, 2012 Nancy Salomon

Theme: SOFT DRINKS.  Three long theme answers each take a common phrase and give it a humorous twist, while ending in a word that signifies a kind of (typically non-alcoholic) beverage.  I loves me this kind of word-play.

19. Outdo other guests seeking a party drink? : BEAT TO THE PUNCH.  Do something before somebody else can, a term probably derived form boxing.  PUNCH: A drink made with fruit juices, soda, other flavorings, and typically served in small cups from a large bowl.

36. Order one so-so ice cream drink? : GET A FAIR SHAKE.  To get a fair or unbiased opportunity for success.  SHAKE:  A cold drink made from milk, ice cream, and fruit or chocolate.   Very amusing clue.

53. Activate a dispenser for a fruit drink? : TURN ON THE JUICE.  Flip the switch to "on".  Activate the energy.  JUICE: Fluid naturally contained in plant or animal tissue.  Emphasis on the plants here, as we don't usually drink animal juices, though some can be quite potable. 

Hi, gang, it's JazzBumpa, noting that any of these drinks could be made alcoholic, if one so chooses.  With that in mind, shall we have a sip, or a big gulp?  Onward!

Across

1. Kid's summer spot : CAMP.  Lots of options: I went to Boy Scout CAMP as a kid, some of the granddaughters have been to Theater CAMP.  Oldest grandson will go to Band Camp this Summer.  What are your experiences?

5. Ain't it the truth : FACT.   No made-up CAMP stories, please.

9. Melville's Billy : BUDD.  A sailor in a story left unfinished when Melville died in 1891.  The story has a confusing history.

13. Craft seen at many a 1-Across : CANOE.  Watercraft, not arts and craft, and only if the camp is on a lake or a river.

14. Banned apple treatment : ALAR. This plant treatment regulated the growth, improved the color, and made the harvest easier.  Per Wikipdia, it was also intended to be used on cherries, peaches, pears, Concord grapes, tomato transplants and peanut vines.  It actually was not banned.  It was withdrawn from the market when the EPA proposed banning it.  Details.

15. Current about : UP ON.  It pays to be UP ON your FACTS.

16. "Family Matters" nerd : URKEL.  Waaay to annoying for a clip.

17. __ dry eye in the house : NOT A.  We were all wailing and gnashing our teeth.

18. Hindu music style : RAGA.  Indian music sometimes uses quartertones - notes between the scale notes we in the West are used to hearing.  This gives it quite an exotic sound.  Here is an example.  It's over 9 minutes, but you can sample less.

22. Hotel annex? : IER.  Typically cliched misdirecting clue for an affix.  We are not amused.

23. Carson's late-night predecessor : PAAR.  Jack.

24. Thurmond who was a senator for 47 years : STROM. 

26. Fancy neckwear : CRAVATS.  Warnings to not tie them too tightly are CRAVATS caveats.


29. Bay Area airport letters : SFO. 

31. Lux. locale : EUR.  Abbrv. for Europe.  Luxembourg is a tiny land-locked country, over there somewhere.  Maybe one of our world travelers can enlighten us.

32. Pitcher of milk? : ELSIE.  Needed lots of perp help, 'til the light came on.  ELSIE was the advertising spokesbovine for Bordon Dairy Products.  Great clue.

34. Size up : ASSESS.  When you ASSESS, you must also mind your spelling.

39. Throw in the direction of : TOSS TO.  As what one might do with a hot potato.

40. __ one's game: performing below par : NOT ON.  As when one drops a hot potato.

41. Bribe : SOP.  More perp help needed.  Couldn't bring this together, but it's legit.  Also, an acronym for Standard Operating Procedure.  Hmmmmm . .

42. Slice of history : ERA.  Frex, Jazz ERA.

44. Hardly silk purse material, in an idiom : SOW'S EAR.  Cute, but obvious clue.

48. Building brick : ADOBE.  A brick of sun or kiln dried clay.  Not this.  Not him.

50. Bearing : MIEN.  Probably from the same root as demeanor.

52. Unnamed degree : NTH.  Specific, but unspecified.  Oh, the uncertainty.

57. Civil rights icon Parks : ROSA.  Perhaps the most famous bus rider, ever.

58. "You bet, señora!" : SI SI.  As we say to our esteemed hostess, SI SI, C.C.  See?

59. Rye fungus : ERGOT.  This fungus renders the grain toxic.  Those who speak of it in arcane terms are using ERGOT argot.

60. A very long time : AGES.  It's been a long, long time.

61. Lobe adornment : HOOP.  Check it out.

62. Slasher's title hangout, in film: Abbr. : ELM ST. The slasher is Freddie Cruger from the Nightmare on ELM ST. Movies

63. Schools of whales : PODS.  Does anyone know why?

64. Pops the question : ASKS.  Put this way, it could be any old question.  Shouldn't it be the specific one for Lida Rose?

65. H.S. junior's exam : PSAT.  Pre-SAT.  Let's not teach to the test, though.

Down

1. Job, and then some : CAREER.  Engineering used to be a a CAREER.  Now, it's just a job.

2. Asian capital on a peninsula : ANKARA. Turkey

3. Champagne brand : MOET.  Now here is some French I can go for.

4. Assail (with), as snowballs : PELT.  Definitely different from TOSS TO.  PELT implies force and/or violence.  We PELTED him with snowballs until his pelt was caked and soggy.

5. Classic film with dancing hippos : FANTASIA.  This is one of the worst pieces of classical music ever, IMNSHO.  I had to play it once.  After Alan Sherman, it's almost impossible to keep a straight face.  Still, here is the clip.

6. Hawaiian hi or bye : ALOHA.  Indicates you have recently or are about to get leied.

7. Works a wedding : CATERS

8. Catch : TRAP

9. Too well-done : BURNT.   This would qualify as well done, but not done well.

10. Where not to be paddleless? : UP A CREEK.  Severity of the dilemma depends on the nature of the creek.   Best not to be in a concrete canoe.

11. Whence a front yard growl : DOG HOUSE.  From yon DOG HOUSE emanateth yon bark.

12. It may be used to ID a perp : DNA.  Not our kind of perp.  Genetic material used to I.D. a criminal

13. Like dice, shape-wise : CUBIC. 

20. Chooses : OPTS FOR

21. G.I. entertainment : USO SHOW.  Bob Hope did these in WW II and for decades after. Here is one example.  We play this song for the 4th of July park concert every Summer, while honoring the service vets.  Even for crusty old me, it is very moving.

25. Robinson of song : MRS.  From the movie, The Graduate.  Still sounds good.

27. November honorees : VETS.  See 21 D.

28. Support group for kids of substance abusers : ALATEEN.  Fortunately, this is outside my experience.

30. Scam that's "pulled" : FAST ONE.

33. Hamburger's article : EIN.  German for "one" or the indefinite article "a."

35. Without : SANS.  I could do SANS the French

36. All set : GOOD TO GO

37. Championed, as a cause : ESPOUSED

38. Fruit used as a vitamin C supplement : ROSE HIPS.  From the same plant that gives us the flower.  Somewhere, there must be a lady named ROSE HIPS.

39. Airport safety org. : TSA  Transportation Safety Administration.

43. Prenatal tests, for short : AMNIOS.  Abbrev. for amniocentesis, a rather dangerous procedure.

45. Baffling problem : ENIGMA.  Speaking of Soviet Communism, Winston Churchill said: "It is a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an ENIGMA."  I hope that is clear.


46. Not marked up : AT COST.  This has to do with selling prices, not graffiti.

47. Classic role for Clark : RHETT.  From Gone With The Wind.  Do you give a damn?

49. Military bigwigs : BRASS.  Looks like this might be a shortened form of "BRASS Hat," so called for the gold braid on the hat.

51. "Everything's fine" : IT'S OK.

54. Worker protection agcy. : O.S.H.A.  Occuptional Safety and Health Administration.  Not the impudent wilding woman who knows that Winter Is Coming, here seen holding her own against Theon Greyjoy.

55. Cherokee maker : JEEP.  The 2012 lineup only has a Grand Cherokee.

56. www addresses : URLS.  Universal Resource Locators on the World Wide Web.

57. 50 Cent's genre : RAP.

Ahhhh!  A fine, refreshing quaff from one of puzzledom's greats.  I'll admit, though, that I did all this with a snifter of Pinch at my elbow.

Cheers!
JzB

Cross-posted at The Corner.