01.12 Wed

W E D N E S D A Y

January 12, 2011
Ken Bessette


Theme: Circle the Wagons — First and last two letters of each theme answer (which are circled) spell out a type of wagon.

Theme answers:

• 17A: When some suits don't wear suits (DRESS-DOWN FRIDAY).
• 23A: The Pawtucket Red Sox, e.g. (TRIPLE-A FARM TEAM).
• 52A: Sandals in Jamaica, e.g. (CARIBBEAN RESORT).
• 60A: Assume a defensive position (and what we did to highlight this puzzle's theme) (CIRCLE THE WAGONS).

I really, really want to love this puzzle. Seeing circles in my puzzle always make me a little skeptical, but this theme? This is why God invented circles in puzzles. The phrase is CIRCLE THE WAGONS. The circled letters are types of wagons. It's an idiomatic phrase with a literal interpretation. It's perfect. Exactly the kind of wordplay that makes me happy I'm a crossword freak. And yet …. DRESS-DOWN FRIDAY? I'm pretty sure I've never heard Casual Friday referred to that way. DRESS-DOWN FRIDAY makes it sound more like everyone's gonna get yelled at. And you definitely don't want to be restricted by a necktie when you're getting yelled at? Sorry, but that theme answer just doesn't work for me. TRIPLE-A FARM TEAM is probably okay, but it's not a phrase I would use. Not that I talk about minor league baseball that much, but when I do I'm more likely to say "triple-A club" or, simply, "farm team." CARIBBEAN RESORT is fine. The only problem I had with that is having to think about how to spell CARIBBEAN, but that's not the puzzle's fault.

I smiled when I unerstood what was going on with the theme. But that's before I really looked at the theme answers. And please don't get me started on the crosswordese. (Hint: Too much for Wednesday!) I crossed my fingers that just because the first two across answers were LE CAR and ENYA that didn't mean we were in for a Crosswordese Fest, but no such luck.

Best entries in the grid? EBBETS and OYE COMO VA (48D: Brooklyn's __ Field / 36D: Santana hit also covered by Tito Puente). Remember how the other day I wanted OYE COMO VA in the grid and it wasn't there and I posted the video anyway? Oh wait, that was over at Rex's. Here ya go.

Well, there's snow on the ground here in the Washington, DC, area, so I need to go take care of my legal obligation to spend some time freaking out this morning. Y'all enjoy your Wednesday and I'll see you back here tomorrow. Also, I have a feeling something pretty cool might happen next Wednesday, so be sure to come back.

Crosswordese 101: Occasionally, AVA is clued as simply a "Palindromic girl's name," but it's most often clued as AVA Gardner. Sometimes her last name is in the clue (e.g., "Gardner of Hollywood," "Gardner of film," "Actress Gardner"), but other times the clue will signal that the answer you're looking for is a first name by including a different person's first name — either an ex-husband (Mickey, Artie or Frank) or a co-star:

• Movie: "The Barefoot Contessa"
  
• Co-star: Humphrey (Bogart)

• Movie: "On the Beach"
  
• Co-star: Gregory (Peck)

• Movie: "Mogambo"
  
• Co-star: Clark (Gable)

• Movie: "The Killers"
  
• Co-star: Burt (Lancaster)

Other crosswordese in the puzzle that we've already covered:

• 1A: The Renault 5, in North America (LE CAR).
• 6A: One-named New Ager (ENYA).
• 21A: Frat "T" (TAU).
• 42A: River to the North Sea (TYNE).
• 46A: "Sonic the Hedgehog" developer (SEGA).
• 59A: Cheese or its town (EDAM).
• 8D: Gossipmonger (YENTA).
• 63D: Bambi's aunt (ENA).

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Everything Else — 10A: Lake plant (ALGA); 14A: Street of San José (CALLE); 15A: Ending with play or party (GOER); 16A: Rosemary, for one (HERB); 20A: Sound from Simba (ROAR); 22A: Fords with racing stripes (GT'S); 28A: Nuclear org. created under HST (AEC); 29A: __ Grey tea (EARL); 30A: Deep Throat's org. (FBI); 31A: Bamboozle (SCAM); 33A: Christian surname? (DIOR); 35A: How oaths are taken (ALOUD); 39A: __ de espera: waiting room (SALA); 40A: She played Buffy (SARAH); 43A: Derby town (EPSOM); 45A: Trig ratio (SINE); 49A: Schoolyard claim (DIBS); 51A: Frame for Roger Rabbit (CEL); 58A: Mideast "son of" (IBN); 66A: Hard downpour (HAIL); 67A: Music biz sensation, perhaps (TEEN); 68A: "If I Were a Rich Man" singer (TEVYE); 69A: Feminine suffix (-ENNE); 70A: Mex. miss (SRTA.); 71A: Clear (ERASE); 1D: Elec. readout (LCD); 2D: Field unit (EAR); 3D: Some temps (CLERICALS); 4D: Journalist Stewart or Joseph (ALSOP); 5D: Consignment shop transaction (RESALE); 6D: Swelled head (EGO); 7D: Word of urgency (NOW); 9D: Kennel double talk? (ARF ARF); 10D: Tuna at a luau (AHI); 11D: Building shelf (LEDGE); 12D: Persona non __ (GRATA); 13D: Wide gulf (ABYSM); 18D: Bob Marley feature (DREADS); 19D: Cuban dance (RUMBA); 23D: Café cup (TASSE); 24D: Roundup (RECAP); 25D: Met favorites (ARIAS); 26D: Where to see a lot of keys (FLORIDA); 27D: Knight games (TILTS); 32D: Haka dancers of New Zealand (MAORI); 34D: Made a quick stop (RAN IN); 37D: Madison's foil (UNGER); 38D: Passed out in Vegas? (DEALT); 41D: Sharon's language (HEBREW); 44D: Company that uses Pegasus as a symbol (MOBIL); 50D: Get under control, in a way (SEDATE); 52D: Buried supply (CACHE); 53D: Like most cardinals (AVIAN); 54D: __ to go (RARIN'); 55D: Pencil maze word (ENTER); 56D: More wise (SAGER); 61D: Cavs, on scoreboards (CLE); 62D: Worked (up) (HET); 64D: Where Rockefeller was gov. (NYS); 65D: Match, as a raise (SEE).

WEDNESDAY, March 3, 2010—Ken Bessette

THEME: "The Ayes Have It"—The ends of four answers rhyme with "ayes," using four different spellings for the long "I" sound

Theme entries:

• 17A: [Fibs] (LITTLE WHITE LIES).
  
• 25A: [Seductive peepers] (BEDROOM EYES).
  
• 45A: [Like large cereal boxes] (ECONOMY SIZE).
  
• 57A: [1963 Elvis hit with the lyrics "You look like an angel...but I got wise"] ("DEVIL IN DISGUISE"). Never heard of it. You suppose it's on YouTube?
  

Yeah, that doesn't sound remotely familiar to me. Never was much of an Elvis fan. If you're around my age, though, the juxtaposition of WHITE LIES and BEDROOM EYES reminds you that talk is cheap when the story is good:



I could not find the groove in Ken Bessette's clues. The puzzle took me 4:11, which corresponds to a Thursday NYT level of difficulty and is not what I expect from a Wednesday LAT. Am I just off-kilter today, or is this puzzle harder than you expected it to be? I think it's the puzzle, because there was some oddball fill. There were also a number of clues that slowed me down, but these answers did not come easy:

• 32A: [A car with this is often easier to resell] clues ONE OWNER. Feels on the border between a solid crossword entry and an arbitrary combination of words. Maybe if it were clued as a car's status or provenance that can increase resale value rather than with the awkward "a car with this" phrasing?
• 50A: IN A PILE is clued as [Like some test papers awaiting grading]. (Ish. 34D: AMASS is clued with [Pile up], reusing the key word in 50A.)
• 5D: [Easily heard herd leader] is a BELL COW?!? What on earth is a BELL COW? I have never encountered this term before. I'm all about "more cowbell," sure, but definitely less bell cow.
• 38D: [No different from, with "the"] clues SAME AS. Wait. Is this really a 6-leter partial entry?
• 43D: BY NIGHT is clued as [When "They Drive," in a 1940 Raft/Bogart film]. Wait, hang on. A 7-letter partial clued by way of a movie I've never heard of from 70 years ago? Do not like.

Clues of note:

• 1A: [Hit bottom?] (SIDE B). I started with SPANK, considered past-tense HIDED, and waited for the crossings to rescue me—side B of a hit record.
  
• 24A: [Inauguration Day events] (GALAS). Raise your hand if you had OATHS.
  
• 36A: [Deadens] (DAMPS). Raise your hand if you had NUMBS.
  
• Language lesson time! 39A: [Spanish hand] (MANO); 44A: [His, to Henri] (SES); 2D: [Term paper abbr.] (IBID.); 4D: [Part of i.e.] (EST); 7D: [German "I"] (ICH); 28D: [___ culpa] (MEA); 54D: [Done, to Dumas] (FINI); 58D: [___ gratia: by the grace of God] (DEI). That's one Spanish, one German, two French, and four Latin words. But who's counting?
  
• 12D: [Suffix with four, six, seven and nine] (TEEN). Love this clue.
  

Crosswordese 101: MAA—I know what you're saying. 29A: [Barnyard sound], 3 letters...could go in a couple directions. Starts with an M? Must be that dang bell cow's MOO. Ends with AA? Must be the sheep's BAA. But every so often, the crossword throws you MAA. You don't have to like it, but you do have to accept that you'll run into it from time to time. The most common clues reach absolutely no consensus as to which barnyard animal says MAA. It could be a calf's cry, a goat's bleat, or a ram, lamb, or ewe's sound. If you're lucky, the constructor goes with the goat because then you won't be swayed by the MOO and BAA options.

Everything Else — 1A: Hit bottom? (SIDE B); 6A: Irritate (MIFF); 10A: Excessive elbow-benders (SOTS); 14A: Put down (ABASE); 15A: Sandy color (ECRU); 16A: World's largest furniture retailer (IKEA); 17A: Fibs (LITTLE WHITE LIES); 20A: Author LeShan (EDA); 21A: "Bad" cholesterol letters (LDL); 22A: Scrooge creator (DICKENS); 23A: The first film it aired was "Gone with the Wind" (TCM); 24A: Inauguration Day events (GALAS); 25A: Seductive peepers (BEDROOM EYES); 29A: Barnyard sound (MAA); 32A: A car with this is often easier to resell (ONE OWNER); 33A: What quibblers split (HAIRS); 35A: Asian on the Enterprise bridge (SULU); 36A: Deadens (DAMPS); 39A: Spanish hand (MANO); 40A: Seagoing mil. training group (NROTC); 42A: Montgomery native (ALABAMAN); 44A: His, to Henri (SES); 45A: Like large cereal boxes (ECONOMY-SIZE); 48A: Online suffix with Net (SCAPE); 49A: Some dashes (ENS); 50A: Like test papers awaiting grading (IN A PILE); 53A: __ chi ch'uan (TAI); 54A: Swell, slangily (FAB); 57A: 1963 Elvis hit with the lyrics "You look like an angel ... but I got wise" (DEVIL IN DISGUISE); 60A: Leave out (OMIT); 61A: Signaled backstage, perhaps (CUED); 62A: "The Da Vinci Code" star (HANKS); 63A: Shake, as a police tail (LOSE); 64A: TV's tiny Taylor (OPIE); 65A: Typical O. Henry ending (TWIST); 1D: Black Friday store event (SALE); 2D: Term paper abbr. (IBID.); 3D: Excel input (DATA); 4D: Part of i.e. (EST); 5D: Easily heard herd leader (BELLCOW); 6D: Feeble cry (MEWL); 7D: German "I" (ICH); 8D: "Dragnet" sergeant (FRIDAY); 9D: Useless (FUTILE); 10D: Jockey's wear (SILKS); 11D: Steinbeck migrant (OKIE); 12D: Suffix with four, six, seven and nine (TEEN); 13D: Say freshly (SASS); 18D: __ Dantés, the Count of Monte Cristo (EDMOND); 19D: PayPal "currency" (E-CASH); 23D: Brook fish (TROUT); 24D: On point (GERMANE); 25D: Cap'ns' subordinates (BOS'NS); 26D: Make used (to) (ENURE); 27D: Apollo's birthplace, in Greek myth (DELOS); 28D: __ culpa (MEA); 29D: Home of the Hurricanes (MIAMI); 30D: Cuban-born TV producer (ARNAZ); 31D: United (AS ONE); 34D: Pile up (AMASS); 37D: Mideast political gp. (PLO); 38D: No different from, with "the" (SAME AS); 41D: De Beers founder Rhodes (CECIL); 43D: When "They Drive," in a 1940 Raft/Bogart film (BY NIGHT); 46D: Cat of many colors (CALICO); 47D: Demand from a door pounder (OPEN UP); 48D: Vindictiveness (SPITE); 50D: Superstar (IDOL); 51D: Pixar clownfish (NEMO); 52D: Alamo competitor (AVIS); 53D: Ocean motion (TIDE); 54D: Done, to Dumas (FINI); 55D: Questions (ASKS); 56D: "__ in Show" (BEST); 58D: __ gratia: by the grace of God (DEI); 59D: Mich.-based labor group (UAW).

SUNDAY, November 22, 2009Ken Bessette (syndicated)

Theme: "Literal Translations" — Some familiar phrases are rendered literally with anagrams.

[Note: This is the syndicated L.A. Times puzzle. It does not appear in the actual newspaper, but is available for free at cruciverb.com.]

Theme answers:

• 23A: TOG? (GOT TURNED AROUND). Tog is the word got literally turned around (read backward).
• 38A: GLIBNESS? (MIXED BLESSING). If you "mix" the letters in the word blessing, you might end up with the word glibness.
• 51A: FELT? (LEFT IN DISARRAY). Left is the result of the letters in the word felt "in disarray."
• 66A: GOES? (ALTER EGOS). "Alter" the letters in the word egos and you end up with goes.
• 69A: RAGE? (GEAR SHIFT). Rage is the word gear with its letters "shifted."
• 89A: SING? (OUT OF ORDER SIGN). Take the word sign, put the letters "out of order" and you'll end up with sing.
• 97A: EARTH? (CHANGE OF HEART). "Change" the letters of the word heart to get earth.
• 118A: STOP? (POST REFORMATION). A new formation of the letters in post might result in the word stop. (Also tops, pots, and opts!)

Lovely theme today. I'm guessing a lot of you enjoyed it. Just tough enough to make you think, but gettable enough to help fill in the theme answers that you might struggle with. The only real problem I had was down in the SE corner where I entered melted for MOLTEN (102D: Liquefied by heat). That mistake, added to the oddly pluralized CROCI (108D: Spring bloomers) and the word that just would not come to the front of my brain, HONOR (109D: Accept, as a coupon), made OPEN AIR (128A: Like some markets) invisible, even though I was pretty sure that had to be the answer. I kept thinking "It must be OPEN AIR. But the D and the S ...." Ah well, it worked itself out eventually.

Couple other things:

• 15A: Get ready to eat? (RIPEN). One of several tricky clues in this puzzle. Love it.
• 22A: Overcome glossophobia (ORATE). I never knew the fear of public speaking was called glossophobia. Probably because I'm pretty much the opposite of a glossophobe. Put me in front of a bunch of people, preferably with a microphone, and I'm in heaven.
• 30A: Country's Acuff et al. (ROYS). That would be "country" as in "country music." And Roy Acuff, wow. Old Skool.

• 35A: Like the vb. "be," e.g. (IRR.). The verb "be" (isn't it "to be"?) is IRRegular.
• 47A: Multicolored (PIED). I smiled when I saw this because we were just talking about it the other day!

• 58A: Mecca for N.Y.C. art lovers (MOMA). At first I entered Soho, thinking it's kind of an arty neighborhood, right?
• 59A: Penguin on skates, for short (NHLER). That would be the National Hockey League's Pittsburgh Penguins.
• 6D: Text-interpreting technology, briefly (OCR). Optical Character ... something. Hold on. Optical Character Recognition.
• 9D: Poet John who translated Dante's "Divine Comedy" (CIARDI). Never heard of him. I bet Rex has.
• 39D: Indiana senator (BAYH). I've been called a "political geek" in the recent past. Hey, sometimes it comes in handy.

• 48D: Yankees' #5, familiarly (DIMAG). Joltin' Joe DiMaggio!
• 54D: Iowa State home (AMES). Not to be confused with Iowa City, home of the University of Iowa and their NCAA Division I National Champion wrestling team. Go, Hawks!
• 67D: Ticker tapes, briefly? (EKGS). Awesome, awesome clue. (Ticker = heart.)
• 70D: Pollster Roper (ELMO). I laughed at this one. If you pay attention to CW101, you definitely should have gotten it no problem!
• 114D: Disney duck princess (OONA). Okay, this is funny. We've covered OONA in Crosswordese 101, but didn't mention a Disney duck princess. Why? Because (hyperbole alert!) nobody's actually heard of Princess Oona. She's a cave woman, er ... cave duck. Whatever.
  

Crosswordese 101: Today's puzzle provides a great opportunity to review some past CW101 lessons. If you had trouble with any of these answers take a look back to help you cement them in your mind for next time they pop up. And they will pop up again!

• 44A: H, as in "Hera" (ETA).
• 62A: 1968 self-titled folk album (ARLO).
• 74A: Squeezes (out) (EKES).
• 76A: Island accessories (LEIS).
• 92A: Old Roman road (ITER).
• 1D: Olive Oyl's creator (SEGAR).
• 12D: Letter before upsilon (TAU).
• 18D: Rebuke before the senate (ET TU).
• 44D: Film feline (ELSA).
• 45D: Aquarium swimmer (TETRA).
• 70D: Pollster Roper (ELMO).
• 88D: Seaside raptor (ERN).
• 105D: Rock music genre (EMO).
• 121D: Stephen of "Interview With the Vampire" (REA).

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Everything Else — 1A: Soft drink option (SODA POP); 8A: Regal rod (SCEPTER); 20A: Blue books? (EROTICA); 21A: Way over the ocean (AIRLANE); 25A: Law school subject (TORTS); 26A: Pot creators (ANTES); 27A: NASA rank (CMDR.); 28A: One of Jason's men (ARGONAUT); 31A: Annual parade city since 1890 (PASADENA); 36A: Shipbuilding wood (TEAK); 44A: H, as in "Hera" (ETA); 49A: Cantina fare (TAMALE); 50A: Symphonic wind (OBOE); 55A: Song on the Beatles' "Revolver" album (TAXMAN); 57A: Political position (STANCE); 61A: Nautical pronoun (SHE); 62A: 1968 self-titled folk album (ARLO); 63A: Cock and bull (MALES); 64A: Pieces of 8? (ARCS); 74A: Squeezes (out) (EKES); 75A: Cancels (NULLS); 76A: Island accessories (LEIS); 78A: Monk's address (FRA); 81A: Shocked intakes (GASPS); 84A: "All __": 1984 film featuring an old song of the same name (OF ME); 85A: Overly affected (TOO TOO); 87A: Confessions may be given under it (DURESS); 92A: Old Roman road (ITER); 93A: Picked (CHOSEN); 95A: Silverware point (TINE); 96A: Light period (DAY); 101A: Micro ending (-COSM); 103A: Mortgage pmt. component (INT.); 104A: Canal locale (INNER EAR); 106A: B'way ticket abbr. (ORCH.); 110A: "Says who?" ("IS THAT SO?"); 115A: Nitwit (SIMP); 116A: Mild cigar (CLARO); 117A: It's traditionally placed to the right of the knife (SPOON); 123A: "Not possible" ("I CAN'T"); 124A: 12:30, on a ship (ONE BELL); 125A: Beckett contemporary (IONESCO); 126A: Stuffs (SATES); 127A: Bargain hunter's stop (TAG SALE); 2D: Maine town named for a Penobscot chief (ORONO); 3D: Eccentric (DOTTY); 4D: Bear witness (ATTEST); 5D: __ XII, WWII pope (PIUS); 7D: Flattened (PANCAKED); 8D: Gulf War foe (SADDAM); 10D: Stumble (ERR); 11D: Mideast political gp. (PLO); 12D: Letter before upsilon (TAU); 13D: Sicilian resort (ENNA); 14D: Put through one's paces again (REDRILL); 15D: Copter blades (ROTORS); 16D: Curling gadget (IRON); 17D: Legal opening? (PARA-); 18D: Rebuke before the senate (ET TU); 19D: Cheep place to stay? (NEST); 24D: Ambulance letters (EMS); 29D: Welcoming ones (GREETERS); 31D: Revolutionary pamphleteer (PAINE); 32D: Crowd seen at a film festival? (EXTRAS); 33D: Around the corner (NEAR); 34D: Marketing pro (ADMAN); 37D: "Beowulf," for one (EPIC); 40D: Beantown team, casually (SOX); 41D: Certain PCs (IBMS); 42D: Early matchmaker (NOAH); 43D: Type of therapy (GENE); 44D: Film feline (ELSA); 45D: Aquarium swimmer (TETRA); 46D: Riding for __: acting overconfidently (A FALL); 52D: Govt. security (T-NOTE); 53D: Flight training milestone (SOLO); 56D: Classy entranceway (ARCH); 60D: Metallica drummer Ulrich (LARS); 63D: Slob's creation (MESS); 65D: Farm storage spots (SILOS); 68D: Second time to the top (REASCENT); 69D: Sass (GUFF); 71D: Warning (ALERT); 72D: Far from fragrant (FETID); 73D: New York town on the Susquehanna (TIOGA); 75D: Reagan biographer Peggy (NOONAN); 77D: Discman maker (SONY); 78D: S&L protector (FDIC); 79D: Dr. who wrote "Sex for Dummies" (RUTH); 80D: Word after Bay, gray or play (AREA); 82D: Magic word (POOF); 83D: Bite-sized food (SUSHI); 85D: Pavarotti, e.g. (TENOR); 86D: Metal containers (ORES); 88D: Seaside raptor (ERN); 90D: Member of many an idol's fan base (TEEN); 91D: "Catch Me If You Can" star (DICAPRIO); 94D: Trendy club (HOT SPOT); 98D: Super Bowl XLII champs (GIANTS); 99D: Act as middleman, perhaps (RESELL); 100D: It's not important (TRIFLE); 105D: Rock music genre (EMO); 107D: Mrs. Gorbachev (RAISA); (HONOR); 110D: Egyptian fertility goddess (ISIS); 111D: Shelter org. (SPCA); 112D: Exactly (TO A T); 113D: Give an edge to (HONE); 116D: Support staff? (CANE); 119D: Geom. class line part (SEG.); 120D: Airer of baseball's Division Series (TBS); 121D: Stephen of "Interview With the Vampire" (REA); 122D: Swab (MOP).

FRIDAY, Jul. 10, 2009 — Ken Bessette

THEME: STOUT (64A: Heavy brew, and a clue to this puzzle's theme) — "ST" has been taken "OUT" of familiar phrases, resulting in wacky new phrases, which are clued "?"-style.

This is a variety of theme that you will see every so often, maybe several times a year — constructors make use of words that have letter strings"OUT" or "IN" inside them by asking us to imagine said words as directions. I'm waiting for my GOUT puzzle. [Presidential pooch?] => ROVER CLEVELAND. I'm actually finishing up a puzzle built around this same basic concept. I conceived it, and constructed it, and then found that it had been done before ... but my theme answers were completely different, so I went ahead and clued it anyway. PuzzleGirl helped with the cluing. Maybe we'll release it for free of this site in the near future. Anyway, back to today's puzzle. As I said, the concept is not original, but as with any "wacky phrases" puzzle, the only thing that matters is the punch of the wackiness. No one's going to care about concept originality if you can make your theme answers sing and dance. I'd give today's answers a B overall, with the first one, RANGE BEDFELLOWS, getting a flat A (and if you've ever had a class with me, you know I don't give flat As very often). The rest of them are fine, but after RANGE BEDFELLOWS, there's really nowhere to go but down.

Theme answers:

• 17A: Ennis and Jack in "Brokeback Mountain"? (RANGE BEDFELLOWS)
• 25A: Etchings? (ART FROM SCRATCH)
• 42A: Gerontologists? (AGE TECHNICIANS)
• 56A: Tried to get into Guinness by gobbling hot dogs? (ATE FOR THE RECORD)

This is a very chopped-up grid, resulting in lots of little 3x4 and 4x4 sections, which in turn results in a lot of not terribly interesting fill. 6+letter fill is pretty nice. Especially like the full title on "THE BIRDS" (9D: 1963 thriller set in Bodega Bay), and the colorful words EYEFUL (43D: As much as one cares to see) and SKEWER (5D: Barbecuing aid). There's at least a dozen good contenders for today's Crosswordese 101 segment, but I'm going to have to go with the old-fashioned, but persistent and versatile ... ABIE!

["Emancimotherf@#$inpator of the slaves!"]

Crosswordese 101: ABIE (10A: "_____ Baby": "Hair" song) — I learned ABIE a long, long time ago under the harsh tutelage of one Eugene T. Maleska, who edited the NYT crossword until his death in the early '90s. When I learned it, however, it was not typically clued via "Hair" (at least not that I remember) but through another famous Broadway production: "ABIE's Irish Rose." Maybe the profanity and the general naked hippie freak-outedness of "Hair" didn't suit the sensibilities of the notoriously pedantic Maleska. Or maybe he used "Hair" clues for ABIE and I just forgot. All I know is that I learned (permanently) the "Hair" song "ABIE Baby" in the Will Shortz era.

What else?:

• 6A: Map showing easements (PLAT) — you're welcome.
• 15A: Doth own (HATH) — stupidly had HAST here for a while.
• 32A: NE New Jersey city (LODI) — also a wine ctr in central CA.
• 13D: Lanchester of "Bride of Frankenstein" (ELSA) — haven't seen this ELSA in a long time. Usually it's the lion.
• 45D: Robert of "The Sopranos" (ILER) — crosswordtastic. We'll get to him eventually.
• 50D: Sewing case (ETUI) — classic
• 55D: Ore seeker's entrance (ADIT) — classicker. Where's ASTA? This really feels like a crowd he'd hang out with.

See you Monday.

~RP

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Everything Else — 1A: Helps a certain hacker, say (ABETS); 6A: Map showing easements (PLAT); 10A: "__ Baby": "Hair" song (ABIE); 14A: Raven's sound (CROAK); 15A: Doth own (HATH); 16A: Item in a belt (TOOL); 17A: Ennis and Jack in "Brokeback Mountain"? (RANGE BEDFELLOWS); 20A: Inning trio? (ENS); 21A: Magic prop (WAND); 22A: Sheepish response? (BAA BAA); 23A: Plane starter? (AERO); 24A: "Sometimes __ a pleasure": Byron (SINS); 25A: Etchings? (ART FROM SCRATCH); 31A: Baba __: Gilda Radner persona (WAWA); 32A: NE New Jersey city (LODI); 33A: Big ref. (OED); 35A: Prevaricator (LIAR); 36A: Puts away (STOWS); 38A: Magazine contents (AMMO); 39A: Job application no. (SSN); 40A: "Let it be" (STET); 41A: Pirate of fiction (SMEE); 42A: Gerontologists? (AGE TECHNICIANS); 47A: Landscaping shrubs (YEWS); 48A: Minnesota's St. __ College (OLAF); 49A: Sister of Venus (SERENA); 52A: "The Witches of Eastwick" actress (CHER); 53A: Musician's deg. (MFA); 56A: Tried to get into Guinness by gobbling hot dogs? (ATE FOR THE RECORD); 59A: Outdoor feast (LUAU); 60A: Old timepiece (DIAL); 61A: Peninsula bordering Israel (SINAI); 62A: Ones place (TILL); 63A: Short cut (SNIP); 64A: Heavy brew, and a clue to this puzzle's theme (STOUT); 1D: Lot, sometimes (ACRE); 2D: Wheat husk (BRAN); 3D: Big times (EONS); 4D: Phone __ (TAG); 5D: Barbecuing aid (SKEWER); 6D: Prodigy (PHENOM); 7D: Fawcett's "Charlie's Angels" successor (LADD); 8D: DOJ bureau (ATF); 9D: 1963 thriller set in Bodega Bay (THE BIRDS); 10D: Words after a holdup (AT LAST); 11D: Knucklehead (BOOB); 12D: Major caucus site (IOWA); 13D: Lanchester of "Bride of Frankenstein" (ELSA); 18D: Prefix with meter (BARO-); 19D: It's part of Maui County (LANAI); 23D: Yonder (AFAR); 24D: Tub (SCOW); 25D: Punching gadgets (AWLS); 26D: Mrs. Gorbachev (RAISA); 27D: Country sound (TWANG); 28D: Animal that sleeps upside down (SLOTH); 29D: One might appear many times in a long list (COMMA); 30D: Studs (HE-MEN); 34D: Stag mates (DOES); 36D: Wine openers (STEWARDS); 37D: Private eyes (TECS); 38D: "That's not happening!" ("AS IF!"); 40D: Pool worker (STENO); 43D: As much as one cares to see (EYEFUL); 44D: Of little use (NO HELP); 45D: Robert of "The Sopranos" (ILER); 46D: Gentle touch (CARESS); 49D: Store (away) (SALT); 50D: Sewing case (ETUI); 51D: Unlike a figment (REAL); 52D: Trendy tea (CHAI); 53D: Like 45s (MONO); 54D: Lady of the Haus (FRAU); 55D: Ore seeker's entrance (ADIT); 57D: Cookie container (TIN); 58D: Loc. __ (CIT.).