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NY Times, Sun, Aug 30, 2009 LITERALLY SO

Author: Ashish Vengsarkar and Narayan Venkatasubramanyan / Will Shortz
Wordplay crossword blog commentary | Analyze | Turn on Clue Tracker
Rows: 21, Columns: 21, Words: 140, Blocks: 80, Avg Word Len: 5.16, Missing: { J Q }, Scrabble score: 563 (avg 1.56)
Open squares: 108, Cheater squares: 4, Freshness Factor™: 55.3, New York Times Across Lite file
This is puzzle 11 of 12 for Mr. Vengsarkar — solos: 9, collaborations: 3, Sundays: 6
This is puzzle 2 of 2 for Mr. Venkatasubramanyan — solos: 0, collaborations: 2, Sundays: 1

JimH notes: CUT removed from CIRCUMSTANCES = take out of context, GORE removed from GOVERNMENT UNREST = bloodless revolution, TIE removed from ARTICLE describes "the" (the article) missing "tie" (the link), RIMS removed from PRIMARY CARE PHYSICIANS = doctors without borders, FEE removed from FIFTH WHEEL means a spare (tire) but with no expense, WHAT A PANDA DOES IN LEISURELY FASHION minus PLUS means "eats shoots" (what the panda does) but "and" (that is, PLUS) leaves or is taken out, WORTHLESS ROADSTER is a lemon so with OREO cut out it's lemon, drop cookies. See blog commentary for more discussion.
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© 2009, The New York Times
Across Down
1. Singer Lambert, runner-up on the 2009 "American Idol" : ADAM
5. Talk to shrilly : YAPAT
10. Four-sided figure : RHOMB
15. Halloween purchase : EGGS
19. "___ by me" : FINE
20. Slangy commercial suffix : ORAMA
21. Shelter org. : ASPCA
22. Scuba diver's worry : LEAK
23. -IRC-MS-ANCES : TAKEOUTOFCONTEXT
26. Be a couch potato : LAZE
27. Mystery writers' awards : AGATHAS
28. Person with few possessions : MONK
29. Hymn whose second line is "Solvet saeclum in favilla" : DIESIRAE
31. Breeze : SNAP
33. Pay stub? : OLA
35. Ninny : ASS
36. ANTI--VERNMENT UN--ST : BLOODLESSREVOLUTION
45. Urge : GOAD
46. Maker of Fosamax and Zocor : MERCK
47. Moscow's home: Abbr. : IDA
48. Covered walkway : STOA
50. It's music to a musician's ears : ENCORE
52. AR--CL- : THEMISSINGLINK
57. Size unit of an English soda bottle : LITRE
58. Like 11-Down: Abbr. : DEM
59. Soon : INASEC
60. "Is ___?" : ITI
61. Underground network : ROOTS
66. Shoe brand reputedly named after a Scottish golfer : THOMMCAN
70. P---ARY CARE PHY-ICIANS : DOCTORSWITHOUTBORDERS
76. Currency union since 1999 : EUROAREA
77. Together : INALL
78. PBS benefactor : NEA
79. Low clouds : STRATI
82. Stranded messenger? : RNA
84. 1991 Tony winner Daisy : EAGAN
86. FI-TH WH--L : SPARENOEXPENSE
92. Tips, e.g. : ADVICE
93. Heart lines: Abbr. : EKGS
94. Where some people get tips: Abbr. : OTB
95. Like the Vietnamese language : TONAL
97. Like some verbs: Abbr. : INTR
98. WHAT A -ANDA DOES IN -EIS-RELY FA-HION : EATSSHOOTSANDLEAVES
104. Tiny tunneler : ANT
105. Tic-tac-toe loser : XOO
106. Box lightly : SPAR
107. Hawaiian massage : LOMILOMI
112. Met, for one : NLER
115. Home of the N.H.L.'s Thrashers : ATLANTA
120. Modern home of the biblical Elam : IRAN
121. W--THL-SS R-AD-TER : LEMONDROPCOOKIES
124. Stun : DAZE
125. Take out : ERASE
126. 8 1/2-pound statue : OSCAR
127. Regarding : INRE
128. Bob in the Olympics : SLED
129. Connection : NEXUS
130. Fresh : SASSY
131. Favorite baby sitter, maybe : NANA
 1. Brut rival : AFTA
2. TV screen meas. : DIAG
3. "It's Time to Cry" singer, 1959 : ANKA
4. Hook up : MEET
5. Us : YOUANDME
6. Gallery event : ARTSALE
7. Kung ___ chicken : PAO
8. Alternative to satellite : AMFM
9. Kind of shell : TACO
10. Stick in one's craw : RANKLE
11. Pres. when the C.I.A. was created : HST
12. Piece of a newspaper? : OPED
13. 1,111 : MCXI
14. French river craft : BATEAU
15. National monument site since 1965 : ELLISISLAND
16. Skis, boots, masks, etc. : GEAR
17. Mideast tinderbox : GAZA
18. ___-Ball : SKEE
24. Very : OHSO
25. "___ off?" : ONOR
30. Bygone flier : SST
32. Fresh : PERT
34. Company name that becomes another company name if you move its first letter to the end : AVIS
36. Mackerellike fish : BONITO
37. Kind of acid : LACTIC
38. Effluvium : ODOR
39. Principal location?: Abbr. : SCH
40. TV exec's concern : SKED
41. Some E.R. cases : ODS
42. Chou En-___ : LAI
43. ___ Chandler, longtime publisher of the Los Angeles Times : OTIS
44. All's opposite : NONE
45. Icy : GELID
49. Dog breeders' org. : AKC
51. Send another way : REROUTE
53. Dangerous buildup in a mine : METHANE
54. Preface online : IMHO
55. "Excalibur" star Williamson : NICOL
56. Knotted up : GNARLED
62. Senator Hatch : ORRIN
63. Spanish bear : OSO
64. Bygone flier : TWA
65. Word often following yes or no : SIR
67. Agreement abroad : OUI
68. Atlas abbr. : MTN
69. Wharton deg. : MBA
71. Like the face after a good bawl : TEARSTAINED
72. A.C.C. athlete : TERP
73. It typically has lots of horses : ENGINE
74. Isn't inert : REACTS
75. Less bananas : SANER
79. Toledo-to-Columbus dir. : SSE
80. N.J. or Pa. route : TPKE
81. Music in Mysore : RAGA
83. Architectural pier : ANTA
85. Tel ___ : AVIV
87. Cry at a circus : OOH
88. W.W. II arena : ETO
89. Wii alternative : XBOX
90. Male delivery : SON
91. Some receivers : ENDS
92. Dependent on chance : ALEATORY
96. Sources of fleece : ALPACAS
99. NBC inits. since 1975 : SNL
100. Pirated : STOLEN
101. British weights : TONNES
102. Cry after the rap of a hammer : SOLD
103. Man's name that's an anagram of 108-Down : ARLO
107. Caps : LIDS
108. Exam format : ORAL
109. Something to be threaded : MAZE
110. Pure : MERE
111. Kind of screen : IMAX
113. Psyche's love : EROS
114. Sub ___ (confidentially) : ROSA
116. Similar : AKIN
117. Ship that sailed "the ocean blue" : NINA
118. Shore flier : TERN
119. On the ocean : ASEA
122. The Cowboys of the Big 12 Conference : OSU
123. They may be cloned : PCS
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