Saturday July 23 2011 Barry Silk

Saturday Silkie

THEME: NONE

WORDS: 72

BLOCKS: 28

Well, now, what a stark change from last week's offering - IMHO. I seemed to sail through this one, with a LOT of WAGs, and just a few gaffes. Yet another Barry Silk Saturday - I think he might have more than any other constructor. Triple stacks in a pinwheel fashion again, with a grouping of unique answers in the NE corner -

5. They're waved : MAGIC WANDS - I am in no hurry to see the final installment of Harry Potter, despite having read all the books, and being a huge fan

16. Much of it is shipped via the Strait of Hormuz : IRANIAN OIL - map, here - top right

18. Critical period : CRUNCH TIME - the Eleventh hour, the Two-minute warning, etc.; for me, Crunch Time is 9am, trying to get 30+ trucks rolling for "timely" parcel delivery

ACROSS:

1. "Cup: Canadian football trophy : GREY - I prefer the Stanley Cup

15. Sound detected with a stethoscope : RALE - BEAT, no, RASP, no....

17. What injured parties may try to get : EVEN

19. Gumshoe : TEC - DeTECtive

20. Walked : TROD

21. "It will be fair weather: for the sky": Matthew : IS RED

22. Gallery event : ART SHOW - nailed it

24. Like some candle scents : PINY - looks funny, to me

26. Bach, e.g. : GERMAN

27. Reasonable : SANE - I had FINE first, as in "Gimme 10 for it? - that's FINE"

28. Dave Matthews Band label : RCA

31. Lander at Orly : AVION - French for aeroplane, found this in my search

32. Library supporter? : BOOKSHELF - nailed it, great clue/ans

34. "Little Caesar" gangster : RICO - been in a few puzzles recently, right?

35. They extract oxygen from water : GILLS

36. With 40-Across, nocturnal noisemaker : HOOT ; 40. See 36-Across : OWL - can't help it - I'll take #3, keep the beer....

37. "Help!" predecessor : BEATLES VI - Contained "Eight Days a Week", the only song I recognize

39. Viking language : NORSE

41. Fleshy-leaved plant : ALOE - WAG, but a four-letter plant in a CW?

42. Blackmailer : GOUGER

43. Part of NBA: Abbr. : ASSN - had NAT'L to start

44. Bridge units : TETRADS - group of four, not necessarily in bridge

45. Unalaska denizen : ALEUT - WAG - map - bottom left

48. See : DATE

49. Govt.'s Laboratory of Hygiene, now : NIH - National Institute of Health - also been popular lately

50. Ancient rock engraving : PETROGLYPH - nailed it, but I am a big fan of "Ancient Aliens" on the History Channel, and they talk about these all the time

53. Gershon of film : GINA - this fine lady

54. City near Randolph Air Force Base : SAN ANTONIO, Texas

55. Sea "shallowest in the world : AZOV - still, at 46ft, it's pretty deep - map

56. Colorful : OPALESCENT

57. Pool member : GENE

DOWN:

1. "Ninotchka" star : GRETA GARBO - All "guy" links today, so I will add some balance

2. Pan's opposite : RAVE REVIEW - how does my hunk pic do?

3. Outlet type : ELECTRICAL

4. Itch : YEN

5..000001 meters : MICRON

6. Mall map symbol : ARROW - as in "You Are Here"

7. Showy trinket : GAUD - and hence, "GAUDy"

8. Place to retire : INN

9. Title spelled out in Art. 2 of the U.S. Constitution : C.I.C. - Commander In Chief, the POTUS - President of the United States

10. Surfer girls : WAHINES - pronounced "wah-hee-nee", it's a Hawaiian boy or girl; slang it's a surfer girl - I would guess the equivalent of a "Tom Boy"

11. Restless : ANTSY

12. "NOIR

13. Olive branch site : DIME - Drinks are 1.10 in the vending machines as UPS, so I bring a pocketful of dimes with me to work

14. Winter scene staple : SLED

20. Comparison word : THAN

23. 1930 tariff act co-sponsor : SMOOT - and some interesting history here

24. Philadelphia suburb : PAOLI - Pennsylvania - map

25. Pens' contents : INKS - had the K from "Bookshelf", so it wasn't "PIGS"

27. Unravel : SOLVE - the 'good' kind of unravel - this puzzle, not your sweater

28. Overhaul : REORGANIZE

29. Got ready to trap : CLOSED IN ON

30. Occasional stinger : AFTERSHAVE - not gonna link it....

32. Nomadic grazers : BISON

33. Time to attack : H-HOUR - like D-Day

35. Stylist's stock : GELS

38. Warning to an overindulgent bar customer : LAST ONE - or it can lead to drunken bar brawls

39. Bank robber's aid : NOTE - a.45 comes in handy, too

42. Break 90, say : GET HOT - despite hitting 100^0 here yesterday, I was thinking about a low golf score, aided by 44D

43. Acoustic : AURAL - I have an article that describes Blue "Oyster Cult as "Aural Liquid Plumbr"

44. Green stroke : TAP-IN - Putting green

45. "APSO - cute

46. Spring : LEAP

47. 1928 destroyer of the village of Mascali : ETNA - WAG

48. Physics unit : DYNE

51. Sporty cars : GTS

52. "cit. : LOC - Legal term; I defer to the Legal Firm of "Dewey, Cheatem ">Answer grid.

Splynter

Note from C.C.:

Here is another mysterious "Hard to Believe" picture from a blog regular. One hint: Egypt 1993.