Joseph Knecht

  Choose Your Weapon! Today marks veteran constructor Susan Gelfand's 28th appearance on the Corner.   She challenges us with a simple, playful theme with three clues that hearken back to  a 1950's TV show set in the early 1800 hundreds when Southern California was still a Spanish territory .  It was an era when lawless men roamed the land unopposed by duly appointed law enforcement officers. But there arose a masked swordsman , a fox cunning and free, who swashbuckled his way thru the land righting the injustices of local petty tyrants.  Zorro was a good humored soul and he never seemed to actually skewer anyone, preferring instead to humiliate them by autographing their clothing with his first initial ... So how does this relate to Susan's theme?  Her reveal challenges us to determine his weapon of choice ... 56A. Art of fencing, and a hint to the starts of the answers to the starred...

    Moonlighters Two weeks ago we had a REVEAL without any explicit THEMERS .  This week constructor Susan Gelfand gives us four punny THEMERS with no need for a REVEAL - just four people trying to make ends meet by holding down two jobs (or maybe even three!): 20A. Alternate job title for a locksmith?: HAIRDRESSER . (or a THERAPIST ?  Could be a little s TRESS ful). 55A. Alternate job title for a librarian?: LOAN OFFICER .  (or PC TECH SUPPORT? - part of a librarian's job these days). 11D. Alternate job title for a file clerk?: MANICURIST .     (or a HAND Y MAN ?) 29D. Alternate job title for a chiropractor?: DISC JOCKEY . (or a PRO FRISBEE PLAYER ?) Here's some more work for you ... Across: 1. Assorted mockery: JABS .  Much in the news these days.  I'm not sure mockery is the inducement needed to convince everyone to get the JAB .  But if fear of death doesn't do, I don't know wh...