Saturday, July 31, 2010 - All Bases Covered

Introduction

Today's puzzle by Cox and Rathvon definitely covers all the bases.

Commentary on Today's Puzzle

23d Bum ride in a city park (5)

My first attempt here was SLIDE, which I eventually had to delete.

Solution to Today's Puzzle

Legend:	"CD" Cryptic Definition; "DD" Double Definition
	"*" anagram; "~" sounds like; "<" letters reversed
	"( )" letters inserted; "_" letters deleted

Across

1a FIRS|T (L)IGHT - FIRS (evergreens) + {TIGHT (crowded) containing (around) L (lake)}

6a W|HAM - W (with) + HAM (meat)

9a R(EVER)ED - EVER (always) contained in (dressed in) RED (scarlet)

10a R(WAND)AN - RAN (sprinted) containing (carrying) WAND (stick)

12a WOO_ - WOOD (forest) with final letter deleted (endlessly)

13a SECOND S|TORY - TORY (Conservative) following (going after) SECONDS (ticks)

14a LEIFMOTIF* - anagram (renovated) of MOTEL IF IT

17a ROS(I)E - ROSE (got up) containing (around) I (one); Rosie O'Donnell: a former American talk show host

19a SERAC< - reversal (returning) of CARES (worries) 21a DO|S PAS|SOS - DO (make) + SPAS (health resorts) + SOS (help); John Dos Passos: American novelist

23a THIRD PERSON - anagram (stranger) of DROPS HINT RE

26a _LIE_ - hidden in (essential to) aLIEn; essential = core

27a AN(TEN)NA - ANNA (Russian professional tennis player Anna Kournikova) containing (keeps) TEN

28a A|C|CRETE - A + C (hundred bucks; i.e., hundred dollars) + (on) CRETE (Greek island)

29a PARE~ - sounds like (audibly) PEAR (fruit)

30a HOMECOMING - a Spoonerism for "comb humming"

Down

1d {FARE|WELLS}~ - sounds like (said) FAIR (visually appealing) WELLES (American actor Orson Welles)

2d _R|A|VIOLI_ - hidden in (in) baR A VIOLInist

3d TIRES - double definition; "wears out" and "important parts of a car"

4d INDIC(A)TED - INDICTED (charged) containing (outside) A (article); [Note: the setters have inverted the structure of the clue]

5d HER|ON - HER (that woman's) + ON (riding)

7d HIDE(O)US - O (ring) contained in (stuck in) {HIDE (skin) + (by) US}

8d M(ONE)Y - ONE (single) contained in (among) MY

11d AUSTR__IA - AL deleted from (leaves) AUSTRALIA (one country)

15d MACE|DON - MACE (club) + DON (professor); Alexander the Great: a Greek king of Macedon

16d {FISH SCALE}* - anagram (improved) of FLIES CHAS

18d {EASTER EGG}* - anagram (abstract) of SEGREGATE

20d RO(I)STER - ROSTER (lineup) contains (maintains) I

22d SALIERI* - anagram (new) of ISRAELI; Venetian composer Antonio Salieri

23d TRAM|P - TRAM (ride in a city) + P (park)

24d ERA|TO - ERA (period of time) + TO (for)

25d _NA|CHO_ - hidden in (some) banaNA CHOcolate

Signing off for today - Falcon