Tuesday, March 2, 2021

 QOD:  Nonsense wakes up the brain cells.  ~  Dr. Seuss (né Thedor Seuss Geisel; Mar. 2, 1904 ~ Sept. 24, 1991), American author

Decisions, Decisions:  What type of computer should I use?

19-Across. *   Tour de France participant: BICYCLE RACER.

34-Across. *   Lo-cal tea brand: DIET SNAPPLE.

Evolution of the Apple

41-Across. *   Singer who's the namesake of the high school in "Grease": BOBBY RYDELL.

And the unifier:

54-Across. One who might use one of the ends of the answers to starred clues: COMPUTER NERD.  The last part of the last word in each theme answer is the brand of a computer.

And a bonus clue:  55-Down. Field for this puzzle's theme: TECH.

Across:

1. Arthur with Emmys: BEA.  Bea Arthur (née Bernice Frankel; May 13, 1922 ~ Apr. 25, 2009) won an Emmy for her role as Maude Findlay in Maude and as Dorothy Zbornak in The Golden Girls.  I never watched either show.  She also served in the Marine Corps.

4. DVR copying button: REC.  The Digital Video Recorded had a Record button.

7. Futuristic TV family: JETSONS.  The Jetsons first aired in 1962.

14. Reply to "Excuse me, you're in my seat": I'LL MOVE.  This would be the polite response.

16. Modified to fit: ADAPTED.

17. Reacted to shearing: BLEATED.  This sheep was probably delighted to be shorn of over 75 pounds of wool!

18. Fitness regimen: PILATES.  Pilates is a physical fitness system developed by Joseph Pilates (né Joseph Hubertus Pilates; Dec. 9, 1883 ~ Oct. 9, 1967).  The exercises focuses on the body's core.  

21. Manage moguls: SKI.

22. Rhinitis docs: ENTs.

23. Thumb drive port: USB.  As in Universal Serial Bus.

26. Pinochle combos: MELDS.  Everything you wanted to know about the game of Pinochle, but were afraid to ask.

30. Meticulous to a fault: ANAL.  This is becoming a crossword staple.

31. __ vez: Rosa's "once": UNA.  Today's Spanish lesson.

38. Islamic holy month: RAMADAN.  Ramadan is the 9th month of the Islamic calendar.  It is a month of fasting, pray and reflection.  Because the Islamic calendar is a lunar calendar, there are only 354 days in the year, hence, the holiday of Ramadan falls at different times of year each on the Gregorian calendar.  This year, Ramadan begins on April 12.

40. Scam targets: VICTIMS.

43. Rapper Lil __ X: NAS.  The background story Old Town Road by Lil Nas X (né Montero Lamar Hill; b. Apr. 9, 1999).

44. Poirot's pals: AMIs.  More of today's French lesson.  Hercule Poirot is the fictional French-speaking Belgian detective created by Agatha Christie.

45. "To recap ... ": IN SUM.

47. Small point: NIT.

48. Pedestal or plinth: BASE.

51. Wedding vow: I DO.  For Better or Worse ...

59. SeaWorld tanks: AQUARIA.

62. Collectibles from afar: EXOTICA.

63. Happening now: CURRENT.

64. Med. imaging procedure: CAT SCAN.

65. Bob and weave: HAIR DOs.

66. Medical ins. plan: HMO.  As in Health Maintenance Organization.

67. Denver-to-Wichita dir.: ESE.  East-South-East.  It will take about 7 hours to make this drive.

Down:

1. Lettuce variety: BIBB.  This lettuce is named after its developer, John Bibb (Oct. 27, 1789 ~ Apr. 12, 1840).  The lettuce didn't become commercially available, however, until the 1850s, after Bibb's death.

2. "The Name Game" singer Shirley: ELLIS.  I knew the song, but was not familiar with Shirley Ellis (née Shirley Marie O'Garra; Jan. 19, 1929 ~ Oct. 5, 2005).

3. Smart __: wiseacre: ALECK.

4. Campus mil. group: ROTC.  As in the Reserve Officer Training Corps.

5. First name in stunt driving: EVEL.  Evel Knievel (né Robert Craig Kneivel; Oct. 17, 1938 ~ Nov. 30, 2007) attempted over 75 ramp-to-ramp motorcycle jumps.

6. Formally transfer: CEDE.

7. "Shogun" setting: JAPAN.  Shōgun is the first historical fiction novel in James Clavell's Asian Saga.  It was made into a miniseries, which starred Richard Chamberlain.

8. Decree: EDICT.

9. Stories: TALES.

10. Practice boxing: SPAR.

11. Giants legend Mel: OTT.  Today would have been Mel Ott's (né Melvin Thomas Ott; Mar. 2, 1909 ~ Nov. 21, 1958) 112nd Birthday.  He played baseball for the New York Giants.  He was born in Gretna, Louisiana.  Sadly, he was killed in a car accident at age 49.  He does, however, make frequent guest appearances in the crossword puzzles.

12. Bridal bio word: NÉE.

13. '60s antiwar gp.: SDS. As in Students for a Democratic Society.

15. "The Big Bang Theory" actress __ Bialik who is also a scheduled 2021 "Jeopardy!" guest host: MAYIM.  Mayim Bialik (née Mayim Chaya Bialik; b. Dec. 12, 1975) also earned a Ph.D. in neuroscience from UCLA.

20. Remainder: REST.

23. Remove, as a brooch: UNPIN.  Queen Elizabeth often wears a brooch.  Do you think she unpins it herself?

24. Actress Hayek: SALMA.  Salma Hayek (née Salma Valgarma Hayek Jiménez; b. Sept. 2, 1966) is a Mexican-American actress with a long list of movie credits.

25. Grace verb: BLESS.

27. Stream swirl: EDDY.

28. "You made that up!": LIAR.

29. Claim to be untrue: DENY.

30. Well-suited: APT.

31. Not at all bucolic: URBAN.

32. Judd of country: NAOMI.  Naomi Judd (née Diana Ellen Judd; b. Jan. 11, 1946) is a country music singer.  She is the mother of Wyonna Judd, also a country music singer, and actress Ashley Judd.

33. Scope: AMBIT.

35. "Frozen" reindeer: SVEN.

36. Guitarist Lofgren: NILS.  Nils Lofgren (né Nils Hilmer Lofgren, b. June 21, 1951) is an American guitarist.  In addition to performing solo, he has also been a part of Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band.

37. Org. in many civil rights cases: ACLU.  As in the American Civil Liberties Union.  The ACLU was founded on January 19, 1920

39. Short muscles?: ABs.  Short for the Abdominal muscles.

42. God, in Grenoble: DIEU.  Today's French lesson.

46. Tic Tacs, e.g.: MINTS.  These Tic Tacs are not found in Tins, but they do come in all sorts of flavors.

48. Yawning, perhaps: BORED.

49. Essential acid: AMINO.  Everything you wanted to known about Amino Acids, but were afraid to ask.

50. Minor arguments: SPATS.

52. Prepare for takeoff, as a frosty windshield: DE-ICE.  I am flying next week.  It will be my first flight since the pandemic began.  I hope the plane doesn't need de-icing!  This is how De-icing works.

53. Aquatic predators: ORCAS.

54. "The Alienist" author Caleb: CARR.  Caleb Carr  (b. Aug. 2, 1955) makes frequent guest appearances in the crosswords.  The Alienist was published back in 1994.  I read it when it first came out and remember that I really enjoyed it.  It is a historical mystery that is essentially about the beginning of the modern era of forensic science.

56. Possible cause of student nervousness: EXAM.

57. Revolution prefix: ROTO.

58. Hamlet, by birth: DANE.  To be, or not to be ...  In Willie the Shakes play, Hamlet contemplates suicide in Act 3, Scene 1.

59. Allentown : "Alas!" :: Altenburg : "__!": ACH.  Today's German lesson.

60. Sine __ non: QUA.  Today's Latin lesson.  It literally means "without which, not", but in common usage, it it means something that is absolutely essential.

61. Ocean State sch.: URI.  As in the University of Rhode Island.  My sister is a graduate of URI.  We used to tease her that the full name of the school is University of Rhode Island in New England.

Here's the Grid:

חתולה