SUNDAY, May 16, 2010 — Sylvia Bursztyn

Theme: "Almost Painless" — The letters OW are removed from familiar phrases.

[Note: This is the puzzle that appears in the Sunday L.A. Times newspaper. If you don't get the paper, you can find the puzzle here. Scroll down to see today's syndicated puzzle.]


Theme answers:

• 23A: Call from Tweety? (CANARY YELL).
• 25A: Boggy gallerias? (MARSH MALLS).
• 44A: Shakespeare in tears? (WEEPING WILL).
• 61A: Knock down tourists? (FELL TRAVELERS).
• 80A: Visualize a gale? (PICTURE WIND).
• 99A: Launch capsules? (THROW PILLS).
• 101A: Crystal gestures? (BILLY WAVES).
• 36D: Night of Arsenio's family reunion? (ALL HALLS EVE).
• 40D: Suspicious fish? (SHAD OF DOUBT).

Everything Else — 1A: It's game (TAG); 4A: Cooking up (MAKING); 10A: They've got the beat (COPS); 14A: Esau's twin (JACOB); 19A: Bristol brew (ALE); 20A: Pamplona's peninsula (IBERIA); 21A: "Typee" sequel (OMOO); 22A: Plato's marketplace (AGORA); 27A: Cuts out (EXCISES); 28A: "Escales" composer Jacques (IBERT); 30A: "Jaws" island (AMITY); 31A: --- in cat (C AS); 32A: Conspire (PLOT); 33A: Poe's midnight visitor (RAVEN); 35A: Oz creator (BAUM); 37A: More faithful (TRUER); 39A: Took a toll (TAXED); 40A: Retired flier (SST); 43A: Cartoon collectibles (CELS); 46A: "That was close!" ("PHEW!"); 47A: Pepper with missiles (PELT); 48A: Christie or Karenina (ANNA); 49A: Solemn ceremony (RITE); 50A: "Family Circus" cartoonist (KEANE); 51A: Sayings sayer (APHORIST); 53A: Shows a seat? (MOONS); 55A: One under par (BIRDIE); 56A: First name in aviation (AMELIA); 57A: Slip --- (blunder) (A COG); 58A: Conductor Stokowski (LEOPOLD); 59A: Gallaudet U. dept. (ASL); 64A: Tina of "30 Rock" (FEY); 65A: Carrion consumer (VULTURE); 67A: Noah of "ER" (WYLE); 68A: Spoke from a sty (OINKED); 70A: Bean and Welles (ORSONS); 71A: Eliot's Marner (SILAS); 72A: Gorbachev policy (GLASNOST); 75A: Drift (TREND); 76A: Word before Robles or doble (PASO); 77A: Gelatin kin (AGAR); 78A: Enterprise officer (SULU); 79A: Dream, to Vadim (REVE); 83A: Blake's black (EBON); 84A: Check out (EYE); 85A: Active sorts (DOERS); 86A: China's Zhou (ENLAI); 87A: Stake on the table (ANTE); 88A: Bogus (FALSE); 89A: Some evergreens (FIRS); 90A: Langley-based org. (CIA); 91A: British stage great Dame Ellen (TERRY); 93A: Good, to Gomez (BUENO); 95A: Rooming house guest (BOARDER); 104A: Spyri's Swiss miss (HEIDI); 105A: Gist (MEAT); 106A: Beethoven opus (EROICA); 107A: Words before wink (IN A); 108A: Atomic number 54 (XENON); 109A: Paronomasia samples (PUNS); 110A: Coleman of "Nine to Five" (DABNEY); 111A: Fish for a bagel (LOX); 1D: Tic-toe connector (TAC); 2D: Mercury's wings (ALAE); 3D: Boomers' kids (GEN X); 4D: Singer Makeba (MIRIAM); 5D: Vast chasm (ABYSS); 6D: Luke of "Kung Fu" (KEYE); 7D: Ticks off (IRES); 8D: Zip (NIL); 9D: Science legend's last name (GALILEI); 10D: Dancer's teammate (COMET); 11D: Sharif who played Zhivago (OMAR); 12D: Gilbert Stuart specialties (PORTRAITS); 13D: Letters seeking aid (SOS); 14D: In a crush (JAMMED); 15D: From the top (AGAIN); 16D: Stable boy? (COLT); 17D: French hub (ORLY); 18D: Kind of relief (BAS); 24D: Habituate (ACCUSTOM); 26D: Czech Republic's Vaclav (HAVEL); 29D: Leader preceder (BORN); 32D: Insect stage (PUPA); 34D: Auto bar (AXLE); 35D: Pager sound (BEEP); 37D: Pliable (TENSILE); 38D: Enterprise offering (RENTAL); 39D: Sharp pain (TWINGE); 41D: In one's dotage (SENILE); 42D: Collegiately attired (TWEEDY); 43D: Nos. pro (CPA); 44D: Bob Marley's band (WAILERS); 45D: They're on the record (GROOVES); 46D: "Law & Order" quarry (PERP); 50D: Newsstands (KIOSKS); 52D: Pay back (REFUND); 53D: Olympian Retton (MARY LOU); 54D: Sunshine State city (OCALA); 55D: Novelist Malamud (BERNARD); 58D: Crosby hit "Sweet ---" (LEILANI); 59D: " --- "sante"!" (AVOTRE); 60D: "Oklahoma!" carriage (SURREY); 62D: Surprise developments (TWISTS); 63D: Hanks' "Big" keyboard dance partner (LOGGIA); 66D: Firm up (TONE); 69D: Baja port (ENSENADA); 71D: Poirot's exclamation (SACRE BLEU); 73D: Blackthorn fruit (SLOE); 74D: Wine cask (TUN); 76D: Slapstick projectiles (PIES); 77D: Punching tools (AWLS); 80D: Hydra, for one (POLYP); 81D: Horse halter (REIN); 82D: Coated with chocolate (ENROBED); 85D: Natural selection theorist (DARWIN); 87D: Vent (AIRWAY); 88D: Tolkien protagonist (FRODO); 89D: Song and slug enders (FESTS); 90D: "Sleeping Prophet" Edgar (CAYCE); 91D: "America" pronoun (THEE); 92D: One of the Waltons (ERIN); 94D: --- Bator (ULAN); 95D: Steve McQueen movie menace (BLOB); 96D: Ken of "thirtysomething" (OLIN); 97D: Dastardly (EVIL); 98D: Sparks neighbor (RENO); 99D: Letters in a Lucas title (THX); 100D: Little rascal (IMP); 102D: Novelist Levin (IRA); 103D: Woody Herman's woodwind (SAX).