QOD: 13/08/2023 - 20/08/2023

Friday 18 August 2023

Friday, August 18, 2023

QOD: I think onstage nudity is disgusting, shameful, and damaging to all things American. But if I were 22 with a great body, it would be artistic, tasteful, patriotic, and a progressive religious experience. ~ Shelley Winters (née Shirley Schrift; Aug. 18, 1920 ~ Jan. 14, 2006), American actress

Thursday, August, 17, 2023

QOD: To err is human ~ but it feels divine. ~ Mae West (née Mary Jane West; Aug. 17, 1893 ~ Nov. 22, 1980), American actress

Wednesday 16 August 2023

Wednesday, August 16, 2023

QOD: Children enjoy the present because they have neither a past nor a future. ~ Jean de la Bruyère (Aug. 16, 1645 ~ May 11, 1696), French philosopher and writer

Tuesday 15 August 2023

Tuesday, August 15, 2023

QOD: The only time to eat diet food is while you’re waiting for the steak to cook. ~ Julia Child (née Julie Carolyn McWilliams; Aug. 15, 1912 ~ Aug. 13, 2004), American cook

My Treat. I'll PAY the BILL. Give me the CHECK and put it on my TAB, then you can CHARGE my card.

17-Across. Wild West stage name of William Cody: BUFFALO BILL. Buffalo Bill (né William Frederick Cody; Feb. 26, 1846 ~ Jan. 10, 1917) was a soldier, bison hunter, and showman. At age 15, he became a Pony Express rider. In 1883, he founded his famous Buffalo Bill's Wild West, a touring company that traveled through out the United States and Europe putting on shows that romanticized the American West. [Name #1.]

29-Across. Word processor error finder: SPELL CHECK. I had a boss named Darryl. I had to be careful when I sent him emails, because spell check always wanted to change his name to Diarrhea.

43-Across. Something opened while on Safari?: BROWSER TAB.

It's been discontinued.

59. Underwater explosive: DEPTH CHARGE.

And the unifier:

34-Across. Vow made while shaking one's fist or when referring to the ends of 17-, 29-, 43-, and 59-Across?: YOU'LL PAY FOR THIS.

Across:

1. Language also known as Persian: FARSI. Farsi is the official language of Iran. It is also spoken in parts of Afghanistan, Bahrain, Iraq, Oman, Yemen, and the United Arab Emirates. It is written in the Arabic alphabet.

6. "In memory of ... " poem, e.g.: ELEGY. Elegy or Eulogy?

11. Past the "sell by" date, perhaps: BAD. But is it still safe to eat?

14. __-proof: easy to operate: IDIOT.

15. Double agents: MOLES.

16. Sporty truck, briefly: UTE. UTE is short for Utility Vehicle.

19. Stubbing victim: TOE.

20. Early residents: SETTLERS.

21. Inclined walkway: RAMP.

22. __ fide: BONA.

23. South Pacific island region: OCEANIA. There are 14 countries in Oceania.

26. "Les Misérables" novelist Victor: HUGO. Victor-Marie Hugo (Feb. 26, 1802 ~ May 22, 1885) wrote many books in addition to Les Misérables. I had to read Les Misérables and The Hunchback of Notre Dame when I was in High [Name # 2.]

Victor Hugo

31. "The Shipping News" novelist Proulx: ANNIE. Annie Proulx (née Edna Ann Proulx; b. Aug. 22, 1935) will celebrate her 88th birthday next Tuesday. She also wrote Brokeback Mountain, which was made into a movie. [Name # 3.]

33. Earth goddess: GAIA. It's Greek to me. [Name # 4.]

41. "You crack __!": ME UP.

42. Birthing coach: DOULA. Today's Greek lesson. The word originally referred to a female slave, however.

49. With skill: ABLY.

50. __ Stone: software for language learners: ROSETTA. The original Egyptian Rosetta Stone was found in July 1799. The original stone is now housed in the British Museum in London.

51. Shortening: LARD.

53. Enclosed by: AMID.

54. TV 64-Across from the planet Remulak (or France): CONE HEAD. // And 64-Across Extraterrestrial: ALIEN. A blast from the past!

58. __ for the course: PAR. // Not to be confused with 61-Down: Each: PER.

62. Singer DiFranco: ANI. Fall 2023 dates for Ani DiFranco's (née Angela Maria DiFranco; b. Sept. 23, 1970) Righteous Babe consort tour. [Name # 5.]

63. "Carmen" or "Elektra": OPERA. Have I ever mentioned that Carmen is one of my favorite operas?

65. Spanish two: DOS. Hi, Lucina!

66. British nobles: EARLS.

67. Consecrate: BLESS. I misread this clue as Concrete, so confidently wrote in SOLID.

Down:

1. Little lies: FIBS.

2. Together, in music: A DUE. Today's French and music lesson. We have occasionally seen this phrase in the puzzles.

3. Break in relations: RIFT.

Great Rift Valley

4. Cook for three minutes, as an egg: SOFT BOIL.

5. Writer Calvino: ITALO. I am familiar with the name of Italo Calvino (né Italo Giovanni Calvino Mameli; Oct. 15, 1923 ~ Sept. 19, 1985), but have never read any of his works. [Name # 6.]

6. Genre for Lil Uzi Vert: EMO RAP. Emo Rap is a fusion of Hip Hop and Emo music. Lil Uzi Vert (né Semer Bysil Woods; b. July 31, 1995) is probably not a household name to most of us. [Name # 7.]

7. Tosses gently: LOBS.

8. One of the "Manningcast" brothers: ELI. Manningcast is a football broadcast hosted by the two Manning brothers ~ Payton (né Payton Williams Manning; b. Mar. 24, 1976) and Eli (né Elisha Nelson Manning; Jan. 3, 1981). The Manning brothers were both born in New Orleans. [Name # 8.]

9. Hair goo: GEL.

10. Couture initials: YSL. Yves Saint Laurent (né Yves Henri Donat Mathieu-Saint-Laurent; Aug. 1, 1936 ~ June 1, 2008) makes frequent appearances in the puzzles. [Name # 9.]

11. Lighter filler: BUTANE.

12. Super hot, as wing sauce: ATOMIC.

13. New Age writer Chopra: DEEPAK. Deepak Chopra (b. Oct. 22, 1946) is an Indian-American author and advocate of alternative medicine. [Name # 9.]

18. Telescope part: LENS.

21. "Go team!": RAH.

23. "Frozen" snowman: OLAF. [Name # 10.]

24. Advertising award: CLIO. The Clio Awards are named after the Greek goddess Clio, the mythological muse known for celebrating great deeds and accomplishments. [Name # 11.]

25. Stampless greeting: E-CARD.

26. Foal food: HAY.

27. Spanish one: UNO. Also the name of a card game.

28. Wildebeest: GNU. What's gnu with you?

30. Land of pharaohs and pyramids: EGYPT. // And 45-Down. God of the dead, in ancient 30-Down: OSIRIS. Everything you wanted to know about Osiris but didn't know to ask. [Name # 12.]

32. Horror film loc.: ELM ST.

35. Amanda of "Brockmire": PEET. Brockmire is a sit-com about Jim Brockmire major league baseball announcer who suffers an embarrassing on-air meltdown, then tries to reconstruct his career several years later. I am not familiar with the show, but am familiar with the actress Amanda Peet (b. Jan. 11, 1972)[Name # 13.]

36. Mystical glow: AURA.

37. "The Wind in the Willows" residence: TOAD HALL. The Wind in the Willows is a children's book that was first published in 1908. I wonder if children still read this book or whether it seems too antiquated.

38. Center: HUB. In case you are wondering, Boston, Massachusetts is the Hub of the Universe.

39. Under the weather: ILL.

40. Remark: SAY.

43. Undergarment insert: BRA PAD.

44. Pecorino __ cheese: ROMANO. This is a hard, salty Italian cheese. It is often used as a grating cheese. Pecorino means ovine, thus, the cheese is made of sheep's milk.

46. Become one: WED.

47. Hawaiian greetings: ALOHAS.

48. Judicial seat: BANC.

52. Postop regimen: REHAB. Well wishes to our friend Vidwan. We have missed you.

54. Bottom-row PC key: CTRL.

55. Keystone State port: ERIE. Pennsylvania is the Keystone State. It got its nickname because of its essential role in the founding of the United States.