Saturday, May 26 - Puzzling Dilemma

Introduction

Deciphering the theme of today's puzzle from Cox and Rathvon should not pose a dilemma - but, then again, it might.













Solution to Today's Puzzle

Legend:	"*" anagram; "~" sounds like; "<" letters reversed
	"( )" letters inserted; "_" letters deleted; "†" explicit in the clue

Across

1a   F(LOTS)AM - FAM (sis, bro, et al.) containing (collecting) LOTS (quite a few)

5a   PITCHER - double definition; "someone who tosses" & "ewer"

9a   STAMINA - double definition; "pollen producers" & "endurance"

Note: the plural of stamen^[3,4] may be either stamens or stamina

10a   RE(WAR)DS - WAR (conflict) contained in (in) REDS (Warren Beatty epic)

Reds^[7] is a 1981 American epic film that was co-written, produced, directed by and starred Warren Beatty^[7].

11a   L|{OGOG(RIP)H}* - L ([Roman numeral for] fifty) + {an anagram (wild) of GO HOG containing (about) RIP (split)}

12a   LO-CAL - cryptic definition; based on "homegrown" (local) & "diet" (lo-cal)

I don't think that this can be called a double definition as the first part does not satisfy the numeration (2-3). Therefore, I would say that this clue must be considered to be a cryptic definition.

13a   {GORDIAN KNOT}* - anagram (changing) of TANK OR DOING

18a   {BRAIN TEASER}* - anagram (ordered) of ARTISAN BEER

21a   HELL|O - HELL (torment) + (with) O (love; score of 0 in tennis)

22a   CON|UND|RUM - {UND (Hamburg and; German word meaning 'and') + RUM (booze)} following (behind) CON (prisoner)

25a   DO|U|BLE U - DO (make) + U (up) + BLEU (Roquefort relative)

Roquefort^[4] is a blue-veined cheese with a strong flavour, made from ewe's and goat's milk and matured in caves. It is named after Roquefort, a village in southern France. Bleu (the French word for 'blue') is a cheese containing a blue mold.

26a   INTEGER - anagram (rent) of ENTIRE containing (divided by) G (grand; 1000)

27a   W|A|SHOUT - W (with) + A (†) + SHOUT (cry)

28a   S(WORN) IN - SIN (wrong) containing (about) WORN (showing age)

Down
1d   F(USE|LAG)E - FE ([chemical symbol for] iron) containing (clad) {USE (function) + LAG (delay)}

2d   ORANGERY* - anagram (busted up) of GREY ROAN

3d   S(W)ING - SING (vocalize) containing (around) W (George Bush)

George Walker Bush^[7] is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States from 2001 to 2009 and the 46th Governor of Texas from 1995 to 2000. He is often referred to as Dubya or W, in part to distinguish him from his father, George Herbert Walker Bush^[7] who served as the 41st President of the United States (1989–93).

4d   {MIAM|I}< - reversal (going the wrong way) of {I ([Roman numeral for] one) + MAIM (hurt)}

5d   PART|HEN|ON - PART (leave) + HEN (chicken) + ON (atop)

6d   TO(WE|LET)TE - {WE (†) + LET (permitted)} contained in (in) TOTE (handbag)

7d   HORACE* - anagram (unraveling) of A CHORE

Quintus Horatius Flaccus^[7] (65 BC – 8 BC), known in the English-speaking world as Horace, was the leading Roman lyric poet during the time of Augustus.

8d   RU(ST)LE - ST (street) contained in (breaking) RULE (law)

Cop^[3,4] means to steal.

14d   {IMBROG(L|I)O}* - {L (left) + I ([Roman numeral for] one)} contained in (in) an anagram (scattering) of BIG ROOM

15d   N|{O-ACCOUNT}* - N (knight) + an anagram (cracked) of A COCONUT

16d   _ESTRAGON_ - hidden in (obscured by) orchESTRA GONg

Estragon^[7] (affectionately Gogo; he tells Pozzo his name is Adam) is one of the two main characters from Irish playwright Samuel Beckett's Waiting for Godot. His name is the French word for tarragon.

17d   TRIM(A)RAN - {TRIM (ornament) + RAN (extended)} containing (around) A (†)

Usage example: From behind the barn, the orchard ran (extended) as far as the river.

19d   SHADOW - SOW (plant) containing (outside) HAD (†)

20d   AL|BUMS - AL (Alan) + BUMS (mooches)

23d   N(A)ILS - A (article) contained in (penned by) NILS (guitarist Lofgren)

Nils Lofgren^[7] is an American rock music recording artist, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist. Along with his work as a solo artist, he has marked over 25 years as a member of Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band as well as a former member of Crazy Horse and Grin.

24d   NITRO< - reversal (returned) of {OR (alternative + TIN (container)}

Key to Reference Sources: 

^[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)

Signing off for today - Falcon