Theme: "Neon Lightness" - NE (chemical symbol for Neon) is inserted into each theme entry.
27A. Moniker on a box of pasta? : PENNE NAME. Pen name. I like Irish Miss & Blue Iris, so poetic.
29A. Gala for players of small pianos? : SPINET BALL. Spitball. Banned in 1920s. Very dangerous.
48A. Kangaroo from a lab? : CLONED HOPPER. Clodhopper.
65A. IQ psychologist in the crib? : TINY BINET. Tiny bit.
82A. Player asleep on the sidelines? : PRONE ATHLETE. Pro athlete.
101A. Dollhouse wicker chair craftsman? : MODEL CANER. Model car.
104A. Reality show judge in a pouch? : PANEL JOEY. Pal Joey.
36D. Cops' disagreement? : FINEST FIGHT. Fistfight.
40D. "No military bigwigs allowed"? : BRASS BANNED. Brass band. "No military bigwigs allowed" might be a mantra for any party Jill Kelley holds now.
I just learned the Neon's atomic number is 10. It would be fun to have 10 theme entries today. But 9 is already a lot to deal with.
Gail started her theme entries in Row 4 rather than the usual Row 3, mainly because she wanted to put a 9 and a 10 in one row, and she'd have a 2-letter entry in 18-Down had she started in Row 3.
Grid design is very subjective, it often reflects the constructors' personal preferences. Long time Gail fans might have noticed that she likes to put a couple theme entries in Down in her grids, whether a 15*15 or a 21*21.
1. Show appreciation, in a way : CLAP
5. Slanted column : OP-ED. Per Wiki: abbreviated from opposite the editorial page (though often mistaken for opinion-editorial). PK groans!
9. Show biz type : CELEB
14. Greeting not needing a stamp : E-CARD
19. Inaugural ritual : OATH
20. Links shirt : POLO. Golf.
21. "Wouldn't It Be Loverly?" singer : ELIZA."My Fair Lady". Here.
22. Leafy recess : ARBOR
23. 1847 novel with the chapter "Life at Loohooloo" : OMOO. Hey, new clue! So many O's.
24. Hgt. : ELEV
25. Like some suspicious contracts : NO BID
26. Is knocked for a loop : REELS
31. Carafe kin : EWER
32. Material that might need waterproofing : SUEDE
33. Track : RUT
34. Picked up : LIFTED. I can't remember who (Bill G, maybe?) linked this picture to the blog before. An Australian photographer turns her 5-year-old daughter into classic works of art.
I like this one too.
37. Strange duck : WEIRDO
39. Bench conference : SIDE BAR. Court room.
43. Alter ego? : ALIAS
44. Hard stuff : BOOZE
45. Attack word : SIC
46. GPS option : RTE
47. Time-consuming : LONG
52. Big name in shipping : ARI (Onassis). Long time ago.
53. Suffix with polymer : ASE
54. Ear-splitting : LOUD
55. Notable time : ERA
56. Stomach creation : PEPSIN. Enzyme.
58. Film with stage scenes : WESTERN
60. ___ clock : ATOMIC
63. Cantina condiments : SALSAS. I like Trade Joe's salsas.
64. Trike rider : TOT
68. Court tactic : LOB
69. True __: exactly as expected : TO FORM. 6-letter partial is allowed in LAT.
72. Weathering the storm : COPING
73. Barricade : RAMPART
77. Iago kills her in Act V : EMILIA. No idea. She's Iago's wife in "Othello". We also had 3 cases of missing women this past winter. One was murdered by her husband.
78. Poem of praise : ODE
79. Darts : ZIPS
80. "The Matrix" hero : NEO
81. Mind reader? : EEG. Brain scan. I sure need an Abbr. hint.
87. Do-others link : UNTO
88. "That's awful!" : UGH
89. Common refund source: Abbr. : IRS
90. Eccentric : OUTRE. This stumped some last time.
91. Had leftovers, say : ATE IN
92. Inventor's safeguards : PATENTS
95. Ravel work originally composed as a ballet : BOLERO. She looks so sweet.
97. Transcript letters : GRADES
98. Museum funder: Abbr. : NEA
99. Modern communicators : CELLS
100. Former Mideast despot : SHAH. Oh no, Abejo does not like "despot" for the SHAH. Did you work or just travel in Iran in the 1970's, Abejo?
109. Did a car wash job : WAXED
110. Cold explosion? : ACHOO. And 6. Extremely cold : POLAR.
111. Heaps : A LOT
112. 1968 self-titled folk album : ARLO
113. Flawless : IDEAL
114. "Idol" judge replaced by Ellen : PAULA (Abdul)
115. Plant anchor : ROOT
116. Passion : ZEAL
117. Rock or metal : GENRE. Music.
118. Studied, with "over" : PORED
119. Forfeited wheels : REPO
120. Nod off, with "out" : ZONK
1. Fowl house : COOP
2. Chanteuse's fabric : LAME. Rich color.
3. Heaps : A TON
4. Series of misses : PHONE TAG. Missed calls.
5. Bet first : OPENED
7. Pre-jr. high : ELEM
8. One seeking justice for the peace? : DOVE. As to Hawk.
9. Harshly rebuked : CENSURED
10. Took off to team up : ELOPED. Marriage.
11. Important drive in Freudian theory : LIBIDO. Wow!
12. Newsweek Global, e.g. : E-ZINE. I thought the on-line version is just called Newsweek.
13. Commanded : BADE
14. Hearing aid of a sort : EARBUD
15. Get started : CREATE
16. Biblical shepherd : ABEL
17. Tape unit : ROLL
18. Their offices often have small rms. : DRs
28. Members of the flock : EWES
30. Bench press beneficiary : TRICEPS. Bench dips as well.
34. Emmy-winning legal drama : LA LAW
35. Brief concession : I LOSE. I LOST fits better, right?
37. Logs : WOOD
38. It's quite a stretch : EON
39. Drink daintily : SIP
41. Sunlit courts : ATRIA
42. Curbs, with "in" : REINS
44. Straightforward : BLUNT
45. Curiosity's milieu : SPACE. Oh, the Mars rover Curiosity.
48. One of two N.T. books : COR. No idea. Corinthians?
49. Surround : HEM IN
50. Round gasket : O-RING
51. Bailiwicks : REALMS
54. Activate without restraint : LET RIP
57. Sit heavily : PLOP
59. Level or bevel : TOOL
60. Battery end : ANODE
61. Competitive by nature : TYPE A
62. "Madama Butterfly" accessory : OBI
66. Desktop array : ICONS
67. Humdrum : TRITE
69. Start a round : TEE UP
70. Movado competitor : OMEGA. Expensive watches.
71. __ status : MARITAL
74. Wild way to go? : APE. Go ape.
75. Do over, as a bow : RE-TIE
76. Popeye and Porky, e.g. : TOONS
79. Round number? : ZERO. Nice clue.
83. Work areas with long tables, briefly : ORs. I was thinking of Splynter's tool room. Not surgical room with "long tables".
84. Where to see rows of booths : TOLL ROAD
85. Color chart components : HUES
86. Copier tray abbr. : LTR
87. Hoops franchise born in New Orleans : UTAH JAZZ. Originally New Orleans Jazz. They moved to Utah in 1979.
91. Inland Asian sea : ARAL
93. Make beloved : ENDEAR
94. You might get stuck with it : NEEDLE
95. Heston title role : BEN-HUR
96. Chant in a ring : OLE OLE
97. Depressed area : GHETTO
99. Butter-yielding bean : CACAO. Had hot cocoa yesterday. Cold and chilly here. But we're going to be in 90's next Tuesday.
100. One poking around : SNOOP
101. Cooked up : MADE
102. Pullers of heavy loads : OXEN
103. Yokum drawer : CAPP (Al)
104. Catherine who outlived Henry VIII : PARR
105. Soap additive : ALOE
106. Snack brand with a 2012 centennial : OREO
107. Joie de vivre : ELAN. Marti has plenty. I think it's inborn.
108. Potato salad ingredient, perhaps : YOLK
109. Bogus locks : WIG
Happy Mother's Day to all the mothers on our blog!