I would like to thank Matt Mitchell for stepping forward and providing the solution to last week's puzzle. It was very much appreciated.
Solution to Today's Puzzle
| Legend: | "*" anagram; "~" sounds like; "<" letters reversed |
| "( )" letters inserted; "_" letters deleted; "†" explicit in the clue |
Across
8a PITCHBLENDE* - anagram (off) of BELT PINCHED
9a _BA|T_ - hidden in (going through) scuBA Tanks
10a LEE|RING - LEE {Hollywood's Spike; American director Spike Lee[7]) + RING (gang)
11a AI(RHEA)D - AID (help) containing (catching) RHEA (flightless bird)
12a THE|R|MOSES - THE (†) + R (right) + MOSES (prophet)
14a HOT|EL - HOT (overheated) + EL (the Spanish; Spanish word for 'the')
16a {BALLROOM DANCING}* - anagram (exercising) of NORMAL LOGIC BAND
19a _E|QUIP - E (Mochrie's ultimate; final (ultimate) letter of MochriE) + QUIP (joke)
Colin Mochrie[7] is a Scottish Canadian actor and improvisational comedian, most famous for his appearances on the British and U.S. versions of television improvisation show Whose Line Is It Anyway?.21a ENTRANCES - double definition; "big moments for actors" & "charms" (the later in the sense of 'fills with wonder and delight')
23a P(A|ROD)IC - PIC (picture) containing (about) {A (†) + ROD (gun)}
24a C(A|RA M)IA - CIA (U.S. spy group) containing (adopts) {A (†) + RAM (sheep)}
25a _UM|P_ - hidden in (collared by) bUM Phillips
"Cara Mia"[7] is a popular song published in 1954 and became a hit for English singer David Whitfield in 1954 and a #4 hit by the American pop group Jay and the Americans in 1965. The title means "my beloved" in Italian.
Bum Phillips[7] is a retired American football coach who coached the Houston Oilers from 1975-1980 and the New Orleans Saints from 1981-1985.26a {STRIKE FORCE}* - anagram (wildly) of FIRES ROCKET
Down
2d ET|HE|REAL - ET (alien) + HE (male) + REAL (very)
E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial[7] (often referred to simply as E.T.) is a 1982 American science fiction film co-produced and directed by Steven Spielberg that tells the story of Elliott, a lonely boy who befriends an extraterrestrial, dubbed "E.T.", who is stranded on Earth. Elliott and his siblings help the extraterrestrial return home while attempting to keep it hidden from their mother and the government.3d SLUG - double definition; "wallop" & "garden pest"
4d AN|WAR SAD|AT - {SAD (unhappy) + AT (†)} following (pursuing) {AN (†) + WAR (armed struggle)}
5d W(EAR TH)IN - EARTH (ground) contained in (in) WIN (victory)
6d OBJECT - double definition; "kick" & "something" (the former in the sense of 'complain')
7d STUD_ - STUD[Y] (examination) with the final letter deleted (not completed)
8d PAL|A|TABLE - PAL (friend) + (with) A (†) + TABLE (spread of food)
13d {STOLEN CARS}* - anagram (affected) of CORN TASSEL
15d LEG|IS|LATE - LEG (supporting member) + IS (†) + LATE (tardy)
17d RAP|ID|EST - RAP (musical genre) + ID EST ([Latin for] that is)
18d {IN CAMERA}* - anagram (renovated) of CINERAMA
20d UNRIPE* - anagram (stewed) of PRUNE I
22d AD|RIFT - AD (notice) + RIFT (narrow gap)
23d PLUM_ - PLUM[P] (fat) with the last letter deleted (almost)
24d CO|KE_ - CO (company) + KE[PT] with the last half deleted (half-finished)
Key to Reference Sources:Signing off for today - Falcon
[1] - The Chambers Dictionary, 11th Edition
[2] - Search Chambers - (Chambers 21st Century Dictionary)
[3] - TheFreeDictionary.com (American Heritage Dictionary)
[4] - TheFreeDictionary.com (Collins English Dictionary)
[5] - Oxford Dictionaries (Oxford Dictionary of English)
[6] - Oxford Dictionaries (Oxford American Dictionary)
[7] - Wikipedia
[8] - Reverso Online Dictionary (Collins French-English Dictionary)
[9] - Infoplease (Random House Unabridged Dictionary)
[10] - CollinsDictionary.com (Collins English Dictionary)
Falcon, are you working on a playoff beard?
ReplyDeleteNo, but I've been pulling my hair out!
ReplyDelete