Friday, June 12, 2020

QOD:  Any definition of a successful life must include service to others.  ~  George H.W. Bush (né George Herbert Walker Bush; June 12, 1924 ~ Nov. 30, 2018), 41st President of the United States

Thursday, June 11, 2020

QOD:  Utopianism is a necessity of the moral imagination.  ~  Irving Howe (né Irving Horenstein; June 11, 1920 ~ May 5, 1923), American author and literary critic

Wednesday, June 10, 2020

QOD:  Public virtue is a kind of ghost town into which anyone can move and declare himself sheriff.  ~  Saul Bellow (né Solomon Bellows; June 10, 1915 ~ Apr. 5, 2005), Canadian-born novelist and recipient of the 1976 Nobel Prize in Literature

Tuesday, June 9, 2020

QOD:  I’ve always believed human blood is red because it really needs to draw attention to itself.  ~  Patricia Cornwell (née Patricia Carroll Daniels; June 9, 1956), American crime writer

Don't Talk with Your Mouth Full:  The first word of each 3-word phrase pertains to the act of eating.

18-Across. Chat leisurely: CHEW THE FAT.

28-Across. Refrain from saying something unpleasant: BITE YOUR TONGUE.

46-Across. Fall into a trap: SWALLOW THE BAIT.

61. Have some humble pie: EAT YOUR HAT.

Today's puzzles had lots of names, which will probably make some solvers unhappy.  But, let's just carry on and see if we can find some new friends we may meet again in the puzzles.

Across:

1. "Funny!": HA HA!

5. Sea of Cortez peninsula, informally: BAJA.  The Sea of Cortez is also known as the Gulf of California.

9. Some Apples: iMACS.

14. Very much: A LOT.

15. Employs: USES.

16. Carne para un taco: POLLO.  Today's Spanish lesson.  I prefer fish tacos, but Chicken is good, too.

17. Worshipped object: IDOL.

20. Suffer a power outage: GO DARK.  I hope Cristobal didn't cause a lot of people to Go Dark this week.

22. Greek known for paradoxes: ZENO.  Zeno of Elea (495 BCE ~ 430 BCE) is the first of our many names in today's puzzle.  He is also the earliest, time-wise in our collection of names.  He was a pre-Socratic Greek philosopher best known for paradoxes.

23. They often pop up in windows: ADs.  Adverts.

24. Appear to be: SEEM.

26. Hagen of Broadway: UTA.  Uta Hagen (née Uta Thyra Hagen; June 12, 1919 ~ Jan. 14, 2004) has become a crossword staple.  In fact, I "met" her doing the puzzles.  She was born in Göttingen, Germany.  Her family emigrated to the United States when she was 5.  She also became a well-known acting teacher.

35. Tennis replay: LET.

36. Hotelier Helmsley and singer Lewis: LEONAs.  Leona Helmsley (née Leona Mindy Roberts; July 4, 1930, Aug. 20, 2007) was known as the Queen of Mean.  Leona Lewis (née Leona Louise Lewis; b. Apr. 3, 1985) is a British singer.

Leona Helmsley

Leona Lewis

37. Start of Hamlet's question: TO BE.

38. Works at, as a trade: PLIES.

It's advertised as 3-ply.

40. Is able to: CAN.

41. Fur tycoon: ASTOR.  A reference to John Jacob Astor (né JOhann Jakob Astor; July 17, 1763 ~ Mar. 29, 1848), the German-born American businessman who made is fortune in gaining a monopoly in the fur trade.  He was the first multi-millionaire in the United States.

42. Second to __: unbeatable: NONE.

43. Patrol vehicle: COP CAR.

45. Lao Tzu's "way": TAO.

49. Prefix with plus or pass: SUR-.  As in Surplus or Surpass.

50. African antelope: ORYX.  They are beautiful animals.

51. One more than bi-: TRI-.

54. U.S. Army E-3s: PFCs.  As in Private First Class.

57. Words spoken laterally?: ASIDES.  My favorite clue of the puzzle.

64. Seep: OOZE.

65. "Goldengirl" star Susan: ANTON.

Susan Ellen Anton (b. Oct. 12, 1950)

66. First-rate: A-ONE.

67. "Look, amigo!": MIRA.  More of today's Spanish lesson.

68. Broadway composer Jule: STYNE.  Jule Styne (né Julius Kerwin Stein; Dec. 31, 1905 ~ Sept. 20, 1994), was a British-American songwriter and composer best known for writing  the music for such musicals as Funny Girl, Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, and Gypsy.

69. Lads: BOYS.

70. ER "Hurry up!": STAT.  Stat is a medical abbreviation for the Latin word Status for Immediate.

Down:

1. Reagan secretary of state Alexander __: HAIG.  General Alexander Meigs Haig, Jr.; Dec. 2, 1924 ~ Feb. 20, 2010), held many positions in the Federal Government.  As the clue tells us, he served as the 59th United States Secretary of State during the Reagan administration.  During the Nixon and Ford administrations, he served as White House Chief of Staff.

2. Designer Gucci: ALDO.  Aldo Gucci (May 26, 1905 ~ Jan. 19, 1990) was the eldest son of Guccio Gucci (Mar. 26, 1881 ~ Jan. 2, 1953), who was the founder of the fashion House of Gucci.

3. Car engine cover: HOOD.

4. Finally: AT LAST.

5. Ohio State athlete: BUCKEYE.  It doesn't look overly intimidating.

6. Bat wood: ASH.  Think baseball.

7. "Oh, man!": JEEZ.

8. "Even __ speak ... ": AS WE.

9. Old Apple app for pics: iPHOTO.  Apparently the iPhoto was discontinued in 2015 and was replaced with the Appel Photos app.

10. Homer's bartender: MOE.  A reference to The Simpsons.

11. NATO alphabet "A": ALFA.  This appears with some frequency in the puzzles.

12. Dressed: CLAD.

13. Boozers: SOTS.

19. Letter-shaped fasteners: T-NUTS.

21. Film units: REELS.

25. Milk giver, in totspeak: MOO-COW.

27. Busy crawlers: ANTS.

28. "Look out __!": "Heads up!": BELOW.

29. Memoir featuring Ike Turner: I, TINA.  Tina Turner (née Anna Mae Bullock; b. Nov. 26, 1939) is 80!

30. Not appropriate: UNAPT.

31. __ Cucamonga, California: RANCHO.  A city probably known to our California contingent.

32. Gangster dubbed "The Teflon Don": GOTTI.  Crime finally caught up with John Joseph Gotti, Jr. (Oct. 27, 1940 ~ June 10, 2002).  He ultimately died in federal prison.

33. German WWII sub: U-BOAT.  Short for Unterseeboot, which translates as Undersea boat.

34. Gateway Arch designer Saarinen: EERO.  Our old friend Eero Saarinen (Aug. 20, 1910 ~ Sept. 1, 1961) is back.  He was born on the 37th birthday of his father Eliel Saarinen (Aug. 20, 1873 ~ July 1, 1950), who was also an architect.  Eero designed many iconic buildings, including the beautiful chapel on the MIT campus.

35. ICU caregivers: LPNs.  As in Licensed Practical Nurses, who may be found in the Intensive Care Unit.

39. Slender fish: EELS.  A crossword staple.

41. Chain known for roast beef: ARBY'S.

43. Greek isle: CORFU.

44. Fizzes up: AERATES.

47. Patti who won a Tony as Evita: LUPONE.  Patti Ann LuPone (b. Apr. 21, 1949) make occasional guest appearances in the crossword puzzles.  I saw her perform in Evita years ago.

48. Math postulates: AXIOMS.

51. Afternoon socials: TEAS.

52. Go ballistic: RANT.

53. __-bitty: ITTY.

55. Complain like a shellfish?: CRAB.

56. "Begone!": SHOO!

58. "Stop wasting time!": DO IT!

59. "Fantastic Beasts" actor Miller: EZRA.  I am familiar with neither Fantastic Beasts nor Ezra Matthew Miller (b. Sept. 30, 1992).

60. Chair or sofa: SEAT.

62. Partner of hither: YON.

63. "__ questions?": ANY.  Great last clue for the puzzle!

Here's the Grid:

Monday, June 8, 2020

QOD:  Half of all marriages end in divorce ~ and then there are the really unhappy ones.  ~  Joan Rivers (né Joan Alexandra Molinksy; June 8, 1933 ~ Sept. 4, 2014), American comedian

Sunday, June 7, 2020

QOD:  The charm, one might say the genius, of memory is that it is choosy, chancy, and temperamental: It rejects the edifying cathedral and indelibly photographs the small boy outside, chewing a hunk of melon in the dust.  ~  Elizabeth Bowen (née Elizabeth Dorothea Cole Bowen; June 7, 1899 ~ Feb. 22, 1973), Irish novelist