QOD: Jeff Chen

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Tuesday, 26 July 2022

Tuesday, July 26, 2022, Mary Lou Guizzo and Jeff Chen

QOD: Facts do not cease to exist because they are ignored. ~ Aldous Huxley (né Aldous Leonard Huxley; July 26, 1894 ~ Nov. 22, 1963), English writer and philosopher

Game Night. The END word of each theme answer is a board GAME.

16-Across. * "Now you see what I deal with every day": WELCOME TO MY LIFE.

26-Across. * "Our goose is cooked": WE'RE IN TROUBLE.

40-Across. * Tools that may make one say, "Damn you, autocorrect!": SPELL CHECKERS.

54-Across. * "No idea": I HAVEN'T GOT A CLUE.

And the unifier:

62-Across. Last stage of a chess match, and what each answer to a starred clue literally has: ENDGAME. Everything you wanted to know about the Endgame, but didn't know to ask.

Across:

1. Rental for some exercise classes: YOGA MAT. Yuck! Sorry, but I would never rent a Yoga Mat.

8. Vice President Harris: KAMALA.

Kamala Devi Harris (b. Oct. 20, 1964)

14. Make move, as a cartoon: ANIMATE.

15. Grapefruit kin: POMELOS. The Pomelo is native to Southeast Asia.

18. Clandestine org.: NSA. As in the National Security Agency.

19. Shortfin shark: MAKO.

20. Facts and figures: DATA. Hi, Picard!

21. EMT's skill: CPR. The Emergency Medical Technician better know how to perform CardioPulmonary Resuscitation.

24. More than fix up: REDO.

32. Color selection tools: PALETTES. One of Van Gogh's palettes as seen in the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam.

33. Defeat badly: TROMP.

35. Extended a performance, in a way: ENCORED.

36. "The Good Doctor" actress Thomas: ANTONIA. I have never seen The Good Doctor, so was not familiar with Antonia Thomas (née Antonia Laura Thomas; b. Nov. 3, 1986).

38. "Their Eyes Were Watching God" novelist Zora __ Hurston: NEALE. Zora Neale Hurston (Jan. 7, 1891 ~ Jan. 28, 1960) makes frequent guest appearances in the puzzles.

39. Stereo components: SPEAKERS.

43. Fly high: SOAR.

44. "Jeopardy!" co-host Jennings: KEN. Ken Jennings (né Kenneth Wayne Jennings, III; b. May 23, 1974) has made a pretty good living with his trivia knowledge. Not only was Jeopardy! good to him, both as a contestant and a host, but he has appeared on other trivia game shows, such as Masterminds and The Chase.

45. Regarding: AS TO.

49. Heavy burden: ONUS.

51. Cake mix need: EGG.

59. Desert illusions: MIRAGES.

60. Source of pint-sized beverages?: MINI-BAR.

61. Use: EMPLOY.

Down:

1. Show sleepiness: YAWN.

2. Tip jar bills: ONES.

3. __ monster: lizard: GILA. // And 8-Diwn. __ dragon: lizard: KOMODO. What is the difference between a Gila Monster and a Komodo Dragon?

4. Theater chain initials: AMC. As in American Multi-Cinema.

5. Chairman who led China's Cultural Revolution: MAO.

6. Bank drive-thru device: ATM. The Automated Teller Machine is a crossword staple.

7. Swarm (with): TEEM.

9. "Vice" Oscar nominee Adams: AMY. Amy Lou Adams (b. Aug. 20, 1974) portrayed Lynne Chaney in the movie Vice.

10. Blend: MELD.

11. "Search Party" actress Shawkat: ALIA. Alia Martine Shawkat (b. Apr. 18, 1989) also portrayed Maeby Fünke on Arrested Development.

12. Hay storage area: LOFT.

13. Drifting aimlessly: ASEA.

15. "__ Face": Lady Gaga hit: POKER.

17. Small fruit pastries: TARTS.

21. New Orleans cuisine: CREOLE. Creole versus Cajun cuisine.

22. Seabirds that often follow ships: PETRELS. Everything you wanted to know about Petrels, but didn't know to ask.

23. Solemn ceremony: RITE.

25. Scene not meant to be seen: OUTTAKE.

26. Decreases in strength: WANES.

27. Yosemite peak, familiarly: EL CAP. El Capitan, affectionally known as El Cap, is more than just a big rock.

28. "The Simpsons" neighbor Flanders: NED.

29. Kaput: BROKEN.

30. Solitary sort: LONER.

31. Kuwaiti rulers: EMIRS.

32. Ballpoint, e.g.: PEN. A brief history of the Ballpoint Pen.

34. Faux __: PAS. Today's French lesson.

36. Tailless primate: APE.

37. Bottle part: NECK.

39. "So what" shoulder gesture: SHRUG.

41. __ Tunes: LOONEY.

42. Leans to one side: CANTS. Probably the most famous CANTer in the world ...

45. Je t'__: French "I love you": AIME. More of today's French lesson.

46. Leveling device: SHIM.

47. Canvas cover: TARP.

Blue tarps after a hurricane

48. Avocado shape: OVAL.

50. A few: SOME.

51. Idris of "Luther": ELBA. Idris Elba (né Idrissa Akuna Elba;b. Sept. 6, 1972) also played Stringer Bell on The Wire.

52. "Where America's Day Begins": GUAM. According to this article, Guam is not technically where America's Day Begins.

53. "Chicago" star Richard: GERE. Richard Tiffany Gere (b. Aug. 31, 1949) starred in many, many movies.

55. Sense of self: EGO.

56. Metal container: TIN.

57. Plus: AND.

58. Smoke, briefly: CIG.

Here's the Grid:

חתולה

Today would have been my mother's 92nd birthday. Sadly, it is also the day that I lost my grandmother, who died 20 years ago today, just 1 week shy of her 96th birthday.

Tuesday, 22 June 2021

Tuesday, June 22, 2021

QOD: It’s amazing what you can get if you quietly, clearly, and authoritatively demand it. ~ Meryl Streep (née Mary Louise Streep; b. June 22, 1949), American actress

Vowels on Parade.

17-Across. Arrest: TAKE INTO CUSTODY.

33-Across. Kind of in jest, kind of not: HALF SERIOUSLY.

39-Across. Vintage Burger King slogan: HAVE IT YOUR WAY.

60-Across. Mixed drink recipe directive: SHAKE VIGOROUSLY.

and the unifier:

45-Down. Sextet featured in order in this puzzle's theme answers: A E I O U Y.

Across:

1. Sunbather's goal: TAN.

4. Beach dwelling support: STILT. Many houses in Grand Isle, Louisiana are built up on stilts. Appropriate for today's puzzle since Tropical Storm Claudette just swept through the area.

9. Move in the breeze: SWAY.

13. Somber notice: OBIT. This is not the kind of obituary you want.

15. "War and Peace" and "Gone with the Wind": SAGAS. Guess which of one of these sagas I have read.

16. It has a same-named river on its southern border: OHIO.

20. Squirrel morsel: ACORN.

21. "__ you special!": AREN'T.

22. GM's Mary Barra, e.g.: CEO. Mary Barra (née Mary Teresa Makes; b. Dec. 24, 1961) has been the Chief Executive Officer of General Motors since 2014.

23. Type of equation: LINEAR.

25. WWII conference site: YALTA. It is also known as the Crimea Conference. The meeting of Churchill, Roosevelt and Stalin took place in February 1945

27. "Soft embalmer of the still midnight": Keats: SLEEP. A poem by John Keats (Oct. 31, 1795 ~ Feb. 23, 1821).

30. Bully: MEANIE. Was George Meany (Aug. 16, 1894 ~ Jan. 10, 1980) a Meanie?

35. Comic Margaret: CHO.

Margaret Moran Cho (b. Dec. 5, 1968)

37. __ shop: golf course store: PRO.

38. Brown bar order: ALE.

46. Show one's face: EMERGE.

47. Dwelling that sounds like two letters: TEPEE. TP has other meanings, too.

48. Ship deck guards: RAILS.

Not the intended use for ship rails.

50. Nonliteral language features: IDIOMS.

54. "The __ of the moral universe ... bends toward justice": MLK Jr.: ARC.

56. Parking employee: VALET.

59. Temple text: TORAH.

Torah scrolls at my synagogue.

63. "This is for you": HERE.

64. PR pro's concern: IMAGE.

65. "Carpe diem" acronym: YOLO. You Only Live Once. // Not to be confused with 12-Down. Toy similar to a spool: YO-YO. National Yo-Yo Day was Sunday, June 6, 2021.

66. Like a one-star sudoku: EASY. I would still find this a challenge.

67. May 8, 1945, briefly: V-E DAY. Also known as Victory in Europe Day.

68. Fed. research org.: NSF. Non-Sufficient Funds for some research projects funded through the National Science Foundation.

Down:

1. Utter: TOTAL. This clue and answer will rile some people up. Think of: That is an Utter mess and That is a Total mess.

2. Beaded calculators: ABACI.

3. Coolpix digital camera maker: NIKON.

4. Fig. whose last four digits are often requested: SSN. As in the ubiquitous Social Security Number.

5. "See ya!": TA-TA!

6. Horror film aide: IGOR.

7. Cagney's TV partner: LACEY. Cagney and Lacey was a television show that ran in the 1980s.

8. Word from the Japanese for "harbor wave": TSUNAMI. Also the name of a sushi restaurant in southern Louisiana.

9. Inebriate: SOT.

10. "Your guess is as good as mine": WHO CAN SAY?

11. West Wing worker: AIDE. As in an Aide in the White House's West Wing.

14. Mother with a Nobel Prize: TERESA. As in Mother Teresa (née Anjezë Gonxhe Bojaxhiu; Aug. 26, 1910 ~ Sept. 5, 1997). She was born in what is present-day Madeconia, but is best known for her work in India. She was made a Saint in the Catholic Church in 2016 and is now known as Saint Teresa of Calcutta.

18. Collectively: IN ALL.

19. Canonized fifth-cen. pope: ST. LEO. Pope Leo I, also known as Leo the Great, was Pope from September 440 until his death in 461.

24. Game official: REF. As in a Referee.

26. Upsilon preceder: TAU. It's Greek to me.

28. Notice: ESPY.

29. 1995 Reform Party founder: PEROT. H. Ross Perot (né Henry Ross Perot; June 27, 1930 ~ July 9, 2019) was a billionaire businessman who ran as an independent presidential campaign in 1992 and a 3rd party candidate in the 1996 presidential race.

31. Unwell: ILL.

32. Pupil's place: EYE.

33. Futuristic sci-fi vehicles: HOVER CARS.

34. Bounder: ROUÉ.

35. "Evita" narrator: CHE. Che Guevara (né Ernesto Guevara; June 14, 1928 ~ Oct. 9, 1967) was a physician who turned Marxist Revolutionary.

36. Easter entrée: HAM. Here is one theory of why Ham is eaten on Easter.

40. Memorable period: ERA.

41. "Enough already!": I GIVE.

42. City that merged with Jaffa in 1950: TEL AVIV.

43. Troy, N.Y., campus: RPI. As in the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. Some in our crossword family are graduates of this institute of higher learning.

44. Joined with: WED TO.

49. Gooey gunk: SLIME.

51. Welles of "War of the Worlds": ORSON. Orson Wells (né George Orson Wells; May 6, 1915 ~ Oct. 10, 1985) was an American film director, but also a radio host. In 1938, he narrated a radio adaption of H.G Wells' novel The War of the Worlds about an alien invasion. Many people believed that the Earth was being invaded by extraterrestrials. Interesting to have two Wells (different spellings) involved in this tale.