LAT Thu. 9/13 Gary Lowe

[magus]

Possible Title: “Toying With Us”

Theme: two-word phrases the first word of which can follow POP and the second word of which can follow GUN, and together the two words make POP GUN.

Good Ones:
With 40-Across, kids toy {theme}    POP and, adjacent in the grid, GUN
Shark attack victim?   JET [Sharks and Jets were warring gangs in West Side Story]
Birds do it   LAYEGGS [from the Cole Porter song, “Let’s Do It,” which if you don’t know, Google it and laugh] 
(I also enjoyed the interesting cluing throughout.)

By the Way:
Gary must be a baseball fan; there are five references to the game.

“Deadwood” channel   HBO [an apt name for most of the offerings on the channel, including that show]

RATING:    Three grins = Loved it; Two grins = Enjoyed it; One grin = A bit bland for my taste; One teardrop = Not much fun

[phil_m99]

Possible Title: “Toying With Us”

Theme: two-word phrases the first word of which can follow POP and the second word of which can follow GUN, and together the two words make POP GUN.

Good Ones:
With 40-Across, kids toy {theme}    POP and, adjacent in the grid, GUN
Shark attack victim?   JET [Sharks and Jets were warring gangs in West Side Story]
Birds do it   LAYEGGS [from the Cole Porter song, “Let’s Do It,” which if you don’t know, Google it and laugh] 
(I also enjoyed the interesting cluing throughout.)

By the Way:
Gary must be a baseball fan; there are five references to the game.

“Deadwood” channel   HBO [an apt name for most of the offerings on the channel, including that show]

RATING:    Three grins = Loved it; Two grins = Enjoyed it; One grin = A bit bland for my taste; One teardrop = Not much fun

Thanks ,magus - no I'm not so much a baseball fan, I really didn't notice how much was in the puzzle until I read comments.   BTW pop single is not a basball term, it's music industry (this from another board).  Keep up the good work.

[magus]

For what it's worth, "pop single" is a baseball term as well as a music term.  A softly hit ball that lands between the infielders and outfielders is often referred to as a pop single.  It's also at times called a Texas League single.