QOD: Tuesday, October 5, 2021

Tuesday, 5 October 2021

Tuesday, October 5, 2021

QOD: Work for something because it is good, not just because it stands for a chance to succeed. ~ Václav Havel (Oct. 5, 1936 ~ Dec. 18, 2011), Czech writer and statesman

Shuffle the Word. Rearrange/shuffle the letters of the word Take will give us Alternatives of that word.

16-Across. * Ground-beef-and-gravy dish: SALISBURY STEAK.

25-Across. * Penny-pincher: CHEAPSKATE.

36-Across. * "Ode to a Nightingale" poet: JOHN KEATS. It's a long poem, but you can read it here.

50-Across. * Hung in the balance: WAS AT STAKE.

And the unifier:

59-Across. Different points of view ... and a hint to the ends of the answers to starred clues: ALTERNATE TAKES.

Across:

1. Tie named for an annual race venue: ASCOT. The horse race is also the event where women were very elaborate and outlandish hats.

6. Destroy, as one's hopes: DASH.

10. Spanish hero El __: CID. El Cid (né Rodrigo Díaz de Vivar; 1043 ~ 1099) was a Castilian knight in medieval Spain. The Moors referred to him as El Cid, which is the name that has been passed down in history.

13. Land at the water's edge: SHORE.

14. Look at rudely: OGLE.

15. Genetic messenger: RNA.

19. Out of sorts: ILL.

20. Ginormous: HUGE.

21. Actor Eckhart of "Sully": AARON. Aaron Eckhart (né Aaron Edward Eckhart; b. Mar. 12, 1968) played the First Officer Jeff Skiles in the movie about Sully Sullenberg and the plane rescue on the Hudson.

23. Hefty slice: SLAB.

28. Completely wrecks: TOTALS.

30. Pastry with a crust: PIE. Yummers!

31. Long-jawed fish: GAR. Everything you wanted to know about the Gar, but didn't know to ask. Not to be confused with Picard's crush, Teri.

32. Shorthand crackerjack: STENO. As in a Stenographer.

33. 2019 comedy "__ It Romantic": ISN'T.

35. Cuban coin: PESO.

39. Numbers game: KENO.

42. Where about one-third of Istanbul residents live: ASIA. Cross the Bosphorus going east and you leave Europe and enter Asia, without entering a new country..

43. Yellowjackets, e.g.: WASPS. Are Yellowjackets really Wasps? I was stung twice by a wasp the other day while working in my garden. The creatures had built a nest in one of my shrubs as I was trimming it back. Ouch! Fortunately, I didn't experience an allergic reaction.

47. George Harrison memoir "__ Mine": I ME.

48. Only partner?: ONE. But One is the Lonliest Number!

49. "Border" breed: COLLIE.

54. Cat breed from an Irish Sea isle: MANX.

55. 101 course, typically: INTRO.

56. Commanded: BADE.

58. T'ai __: CHI.

63. NFL receivers: TEs. As in Tight Ends.

64. "Crikey!" is a mild one: OATH.

65. Soccer shoe: CLEAT.

66. Dreyer's partner in ice cream: EDY. Edy's Ice Cream has become a crossword staple. It's slow churned.

67. Miss Muffet fare: WHEY.

68. Flocks' relatives: HERDS.

Down:

1. Basketball stats: ASSISTS. Some of the greatest assists in NBA history? You be the judge.

2. Bulb in a vinaigrette: SHALLOT. Sometime an onion can be substituted for a shallot.

3. Collect and put in order, as document pages: COLLATE.

4. "You do it, __ will!": OR I.

5. Radio host John: TESH. John Frank Tesh (b. July 9, 1952) also tries his hand as singing.

6. Bread-to-be: DOUGH. I am thinking of trying my hand at making sourdough bread.

7. See eye to eye: AGREE.

8. Wily: SLY.

9. Fellows: HEs. Meh!

10. Sound from an old staircase: CREAK.

11. Steamed up: IN A RAGE.

12. Montana neighbors, with "the": DAKOTAs. An interesting history on why there is a North and South Dakota.

17. Tampa NFL team: BUCs. Hi, Tin!

18. Shock, as a perp: TASE.

22. Emperor after Claudius: NERO.

24. Steve Martin's instrument: BANJO.

26. Sleep clinic study: APNEA. People with sleep apnea often use a C-PAP to help them sleep. The new C-PAP model by Philips is being recalled due to the noxious gas that it can produce.

27. Falafel holder: PITA. Yummers!