Tuesday, February 21, 2023

QOD:  Seize the moment.  Remember all those women on the Titanic who waved off the dessert cart.  ~  Erma Bombeck (née Erma Louise Bombeck; Feb. 21, 1927 ~ Apr. 22, 1996), American humorist

Instant Messaging:  I caught the I / M connection early on, but thought the unifier would refer to Instant Messaging.  Still, I'M DOWN with this puzzle, since all the theme clues are in the down position and are two-word phases where the first word begins with I and the second word begins with M.

3-Down. *   "A Matter of Life and Death" heavy metal band: IRON MAIDEN.  [Name adjacent.]

9-Down. *   Ralph Ellison novel about the Black American experience: INVISIBLE MAN.  The Invisible Man was first published in 1952.  It was a debut novel for Ralph Ellison (Mar. 1, 1914 ~ Apr. 16, 1994), for which he won the United States National Book Award for Fiction in 1953.  Ellison was the first African-American writer to win this award.  [Name # 1.]

22-Down. *   Fencer seeking revenge in "The Princess Bride": INIGO MONTOYA.  Mandy Patinkin (né Mandel Bruce Patinkin; b. Nov. 30, 1952) portrayed Inigo Montoya in the 1987 movie The Princess Bride.  [Name # 2.]

32-Down. *   Noisy amenity in a motel hallway: ICE MACHINE.  If your in the market, you can learn about someone's list of top 10 commercial ice machines in the video below.

And the unifier:

53-Down. "Count me in!," or an apt description of the answers to the starred clues: I'M DOWN!  

Across:

1. Opera solos: ARIAS.

6. Afrobeat pioneer Fela __: KUTI.  [Name # 3.]  Fela Aníkúlápó Kuti (né Olufela Olusegun Oludotun Ransome-Kuti; Oct. 15, 1938 ~ Aug. 2, 1997) was a Nigerian musician and political activist.  He is considered the Father of Afrobeat, which is a combination of West African music with American funk and jazz.

10. Atlas pages: MAPS.

14. Birdcage feature: PERCH.

15. Part of, as a plan: IN ON.

16. __ vera: ALOE.  This is the Tuesday word.  It has now appeared in the last consecutive Tuesdays.

17. Creamy dip for French fries: AIOLI.  This is a good crossword word due to all the vowels.  Everything you wanted to know about Aioli, but didn't know to ask.

18. Attractive person with gray hair: SILVER FOX.  This probably applies to many of us on the blog, although I added a touch of pink to my hair.

20. Anderson Cooper's channel: CNN.  Anderson Hays Cooper (b. June 3, 1967) is the son of the late Gloria Vanderbilt (Feb.. 20, 1924 ~ June 17, 2019).  His book, Vanderbilt: The Rise and Fall of an American Dynasty, was actually quite good.   [Name #4.]

21. Female sib: SIS.  I have one.

23. Like some restrictions: DIETARY.  If you are going to serve alligator to your guests, you might want to ask if anyone has any dietary restrictions first.

24. Pea soup flavorer: HAM BONE. This answer took me a while to figure out.  It's not kosher.

26. Hit the slopes: SKI.

27. Genesis twin: ESAU.  The two brothers had a disagreement of 37-Down proportions.

28. Many a Farsi speaker: IRANI.  The Farsi, or Persian, alphabet is based on the Arabic script.

31. Singer Simone: NINA.  Nina Simone (née Eunice Kathleen Waymon; Feb. 21, 1933 ~ Apr. 21, 2003) makes occasional guest appearances in the crossword puzzles.  [Name # 5.]

35. Hep "Gotcha": I DIG.

37. Scripture-related: BIBLICAL.

39. Perform a simple operation?: ADD.

41. Safe to drink: POTABLE.  //  And 43-Across. Org. that ensures water is 41-Across: EPA.  As in the Environmental Protection Agency.

44. No-win situations?: TIE GAMES.

46. Medical checkup: EXAM.

48. Singer Del Rey: LANA.  I am not familiar with Lana Del Rey (née Elizabeth Woolridge Grant; b. June 21, 1985).  [Name # 6.]

49. Greek theater: ODEUM.  Today's lesson in Ancient Greek.

51. Scandinavian people: SAMI.  Everything you wanted to know about the Sami people, but didn't know to ask.  [Name adjacent.]

54. "Encanto" songwriter __-Manuel Miranda: LIN.  Encanto is an animated Disney film.   Lin-Manuel Miranda (b. Jan. 16, 1980) is best known for Hamilton. [Name # 7.]

56. Recorder mounted to a windshield: DASH CAM.

58. Dawn on: OCCUR TO.

62. Political org. with a donkey symbol: DNC.  As in the Democratic National Committee.  Enough said.

63. Stashed: HID.

64. "I can be better": SHAME ON ME.

66. __ acid: AMINO.

68. Speech therapy subject: LISP.

69. Average gestation period for a dolphin: YEAR.  Animals with long gestation periods.

70. Button on a library app: RENEW.

71. Vow: OATH.

72. "This might be broken" shorthand: AS IS.

73. No-nonsense: STERN.

Down:

1. People of the southern Great Plains: APACHE.  [Name adjacent.]

2. Spanish queens: REINAs.  Today's Spanish lesson.  Hi, Lucina!  Can you name the top 10 most famous Spanish Queens?

4. Knee part, for short: ACL.  As in the Anterior Cruciate Ligament.  Definitely not a Tuesday clue and answer.  Apparently, it is easily injured.

5. Mint leaf used as a sushi garnish: SHISO.  Hand up if you knew about Shiso.  We eat a lot of sushi, but I am not familiar with this mint leaf.

6. Mouth, slangily: KISSER.

7. Prefix with cycle: UNI-.

8. Ratted (on): TOLD.

10. "Dirty" cocktail: MARTINI.

11. Automaker __ Romeo: ALFA.  Alfa Romeo is an Italian luxury car maker, known for sports-oriented vehicles and car racing.  The company was founded in June 1910 and the name is an acronym for Anonima Lombardi Fabbrica Automobili, which means Lombardian Car Factory.  Romeo was added to the name in 1915 after Nicola Romero (Apr. 28, 1879 ~ Aug. 15, 1938) took control of the company in 1915.  [Name adjacent.]

12. Shoddy: POOR.

13. Erotic: SEXY.

19. Shriek of fear: EEK!

25. Future flower: BUD.

29. Demean: ABASE.

30. Quill tip: NIB.

33. Siesta: NAP.

34. In the style of: À LA.

36. Bitter brew, briefly: IPA.  As in India Pale Ale.

38. Supervillain Luthor: LEX.  The supervillain in the comics.  [Name # 8.]

39. Georgia airport: Abbr.: ATL.  Formally known as the Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport.  It is named after two former Atlanta mayors: William Berry Hartsfield (Mar. 1, 1890 ~ Feb. 22, 1971) and Maynard Holbrook Jackson, Jr. (1938 ~ 2003).  The former was a six-term mayor and was in office in the  late 1930s to the 1960s.  The latter served three terms in the 1970 and 1990s.  [Name adjacent.]

40. Part of una semana: DIA.  More of today's Spanish lesson.  A day makes up a part of the week.

42. Actor Danson: TED.  Ted Danson (né Edward Bridge Danson, III; b. Dec. 29, 1947) is probably best known for portraying Sam Malone on Cheers, but did you known he was a model before he got into acting?  [Name # 9.]

45. Walk oafishly, like the Jabberwock slayer: GALUMPH.  Jabberwocky is a nonsense poem by Lewis Carroll.  If you don't believe me, you can read it here.

47. Campfire residue: ASH.

50. Calf feeders: UDDERS.

52. Pine Tree State resident: MAINER.  I thought we were called Mainiacs.

55. Burning anger: IRE.  A crossword staple.

57. Surgery marks: SCARS.

58. Norway's capital: OSLO.

59. __ seeds: smoothie choice: CHIA.  Although they are edible seeds, they also make good pets.

60. Assign to a role: CAST.

61. Small bills: ONES.

65. __ tai: cocktail: MAI.  It's a cocktail made of rum, Curçaco, orgeat syrup and lime juice.  Here's one origin story.

67. Came together: MET.

Here's the Grid:

חתולה