Tuesday, May 21, 2024

QOD:  All looks yellow to the jaundiced eye.  ~  Alexander Pope (May 21, 1688 ~ May 30, 1744), English poet

Standing Ovations:  Notice that each theme clue is a two word phrase where each word contains two double O.  Also the theme clues are Down, so that the double Os are "standing".

3-Down. *  Pasta-shaped colorful foam float: POOL NOODLE.

9-Down. *  Totally chill: LOOSEY GOOSEY.

21-Down. *  Celebratory search engine logo: GOOGLE DOODLE.  Here's a Google Doodle from last week:

25-Down. *  "So awesome!": TOO COOL.

And the unifier:

31. Enthusiastic audience reactions, and a feature of the answers to the starred clues: STANDING O'S.  Sadly, I am not as clever as my fellow commentators, so I do not know how to add color to highlight the grid to accent the double Os, so I'll insert the grid here so you can see the four theme answers.

Across:

1. Deeply engrossed: RAPT.

5. Played music at a dance club, say: DJ'ED.

9. Led Zeppelin's "Whole __ Love": LOTTA.  [Name # 1.]

14. "The Time Machine" race: ELOI.  These fictional post-human beings from the 1895 novel, The Time Machine, by H G Wells (né Herbert George Wells; Sept. 21, 1866 ~ Aug. 13, 1946) used to make frequent appearances in the puzzles.  We haven't seen them in a while.

15. Slippery: EELY.

16. "Please specify" list option: OTHER.

17. Many many: A TON.

18. Call on the carpet: TAKE TO TASK.

20. Triangle or quadrilateral: POLYGON.  A Polygon is a plane figure with at least three straight sides and angles, and typically five or more.

22. Holds a grudge against: RESENTS.

23. Fed. ID fig.: SSN.  As in Social Security Number.

24. Give the boot: OUST.

26. Boomer's kid, perhaps: XER.  Generation X (1965 ~ 1980) is the demographic between the Boomers (1946 ~ 1964) and the Millennials (1981 ~ 1996).  

27. Sty emanation: ODOR.  //  And 45-Across. Sty emanations: OINKS.

29. Maker of Regenerist products: OLAY.

31. Bath tourist spot: SPA.

The Ein Gedi spa on the Dead Sea.

34. First __ equals: AMONG.  Also the name of a 1984 political novel by Jeffrey Archer (b. Apr. 15, 1940).

36. Pogo stick sound: BOING.

37. Toy that resembles a gyroscope: TOP.

38. Rafael who is one of tennis's "Big Three": NADAL.  The Big Three in tennis refers to Novak Đoković (b. May 22, 1987), Roger Federer (b. Aug. 8, 1981) and Rafael Nadal (né Rafael Nadal Parera; b. June 3, 1986), each of whom is considered to be among the greatest players.  [Name # 2.]

39. Healthcare.gov law, for short: ACA.  As in the Affordable Care Act.

40. Chi-town airport: O'HARE.  Ever wonder why the airport code for Chicago's O'Hare International Airport is ORD?  It was originally named Orchard Field Airport for the neighborhood in which it was located.  It was renamed in 1949, in honor of aviator Edward "Butch" O'Hare (Mar. 13, 1914 ~ Nov. 26, 1943) who went missing in World War II. 

42. Nothing to do with soccer?: NIL.

43. Boo-boo: ERROR.

46. World Cup cheer: OLÉ.  A crossword staple.

47. Wonderland bird: DODO.  Think of Alice.

48. Abbr. on a company sign: ESTD.  As in Established.

49. Promissory note: IOU.

50. "My only __ sprung from my only hate!": Juliet: LOVE.  A reference to a play by Willie the Shakes.  [Name adjacent.]

52. "To a degree": -ISH.

55. Church deliveries: SERMONS.

59. Artist with the 2024 album "Cowboy Carter": BEYONCÉ.  Beyoncé Giselle Knowles (b. Sept. 4, 1981) is married to Jay-Z (b. Dec. 4, 1969), whose given name is Shawn Corey Carter, but is that why she had Carter in the name of the album?  [Name # 3.]

61. Slowpoke's opposite: SPEED DEMON.

63. Petri dish gelatin: AGAR.

64. Ebbing and flowing: TIDAL.

65. Old movie spool: REEL.

66. Answering system limbo: HOLD.

67. Clotted cream accompaniment: SCONE.  Yummers!

68. Site for selling personalized gifts: ETSY.

69. Multitool's multiplicity: USES.

Down:

1. Cuts with a sickle: REAPS.  Sometime it can be pretty grim.

2. Singers between sopranos and tenors: ALTOS.

4. Itsy: TINY.

5. Route around a construction area, say: DETOUR.  There is some major road construction on the interstate in my city for the next [fill in the blank] years.

6. Denim pants: JEANS.

7. Rocky Mountain National Park grazer: ELK.

8. One who adds a little color: DYER.

10. Aquatic mammal: OTTER.

11. Better __ ever: THAN.

12. Try out: TEST.

13. Boats like Noah's: ARKS.

19. Austinite, e.g.: TEXAN.

28. Personal code?: DNA.  Cute clue.

30. Story teller?: LIAR.

32. Chorizo meat: PORK.

33. "Planet of the __": APES.

34. __ Domini: ANNO.  Today's Latin lesson.

35. Pigeonhole filler: MAIL.

36. Storyteller: BARD.  The Bard is Willie the Shakes.

41. Double or triple, maybe: HIT.  Think baseball.

44. 18 holes of golf, typically: ROUND.

48. In equal amounts: EVENLY.

49. "To be clear ... ": I MEAN.

51. Double-reed woodwinds: OBOES.  A crossword staple.

53. Ascend, as a peak: SCALE.

54. Giraffe groups: HERDS.

55. Phased-out jets: SSTs.  These jets used to be a crossword staple.

56. __ fail: EPIC.

57. Upgrade, as decor: REDO.

58. Parched: SERE.

60. Banzai Pipeline island: OAHU.  I am not a surfer, so was not familiar with the term Banzai Pipeline.  Apparently it is a famous surfing spot.

62. Rendezvoused: MET.

חתולה

I will be taking a brief hiatus for the next few weeks.  Fear not, Tuesdays will not be blank.  You will be in good hands.  See you in July.

Monday May 20, 2024

QOD:  Hatred is the vice of narrow souls; they feed it with all their littleness, and make it the pretext of base tyrannies.  ~  Honoré de Balzac (May 20, 1799 ~ Aug. 18, 1850), French novelist

Wednesday, May15, 2024

QOD:  The dead leave clues, and life is a puzzle of trying to read and understand these mysterious hints before the game is over.  ~  Samantha Hunt (b. May 15, 1971), American novelist

Tuesday, May 14, 2024

QOD:  Sometimes it's a form of love just to talk to somebody that you have nothing in common with and still be fascinated by their presence.  ~  David Byrne (b. May 14, 1952), Scottish-American musician

Stick(y) Figures:

20-Across. Specialized curriculum in a public school: MAGNET PROGRAM.  Technically a magnet is anything that carries a static magnetic field around with it.  Here's a scientific definition of why things STICK to a magnet.

35-Across. Expand one's horizons: BRANCH OUT.  Why is this clue/answer different from the other theme clues/answers?

40-Across. Pet with separation anxiety, perhaps: VELCRO DOG.  I had never heard the phrase Velcro Dog, but apparently it's a thing.  Here's the history of Velcro.

And the unifier:

52. Complicated discussion topic, and an apt description of the start of 20-, 35-, or 40-Across?: STICKY SUBJECT.

Across:

1. Joni Mitchell's "Both __ Now": SIDES.  [Name # 1.]

6. Dano of "The Fabelmans": PAUL.  I wasn't familiar with the 2022 film, The Fablemans, which is apparently a coming-of-age film, which stars Paul Dano (né Paul Franklin Dano; b. June 19, 1984) as Burt Fableman.  I was also not familiar with the actor's name, however, I do recognize his photo.  [Name # 2.]

10. Performances: ACTS.

14. Buzzing: ALIVE.

15. Cuatro y cuatro: OCHO.  //  And 49-Across. Uno y uno: DOS.  A double dose of today's math and Spanish lesson.

16. Pad see ew cuisine: THAI.  Yummers!  Pad see ew is a stir-fried noodle dish that is commonly eaten in Thailand.

17. Breathable fabric: LINEN.

18. Wharton biz school home: PENN.  The Wharton Business School is at the University of Pennsylvania.   [Name adjacent.]

19. Nightstand light: LAMP.

23. YouTube spots: ADs.

24. Merry: GAY.

25. Mahalia Jackson's genre: GOSPEL.  Mahalia Jackson (née Mahala Jackson; Oct. 26, 1911 ~ Jan. 27, 1972) was born in New Orleans.  There is a beautiful theater in New Orleans that is named after her: The Mahalia Jackson Theater for the Performing Arts.  [Name # 3.]

28. Yoga surface: MAT.

29. Bouncy gait: TROT.

31. Quartz suffix: -ITE.  More than you will ever want to know about Quartzite.

32. Conspiring clique: CABAL.

37. Mining yields: ORES.  A crossword staple.

38. Sir Michael of acting: CAINE.  Michael Caine (né Maurice Joseph Micklewhite; b. Mar. 14, 1933) appeared in over 160 films during his acting years.  He became Sir Michael in 2000.  [Name # 4.]

39. Overturn: UNDO.

42. "A Doll's House" playwright Henrik: IBSEN.  A Doll's House is a 1879 play by Henrik Johan Ibsen (Mar. 20, 1828 ~ May 23, 1906).  It was quite radical for its time.  It's about the fate of a married woman, who lacked reasonable opportunities for self-fulfillment in a male-dominated world.  One could argue that not that much has changed in the ensuing 150 years.  [Name # 5.]

43. Class for some immigrants: Abbr.: ESL.  As in English as a Second Language.

44. Masterpiece: OPUS.

45. Coast Guard rank: Abbr.: ENS.  As in Ensign.  In case you have ever wondered about the ranks in the Coast Guard, check out this site.

46. Comfy cozy: TOASTY.

48. Texter's "No idea": IDK.  I Don't Know what this means.

56. Fuzzy fruit: KIWI.  Also a flightless bird found in New Zealand.

58. AFB truant: AWOL.  As in Absent WithOut Leave.

59. Bass of 'N Sync: LANCE.  Lance James Bass (b. May 4, 1979) was one of the 5 members of the boy band 'N Sync.   [Name # 6.]

Lance Bass is on the far left.

60. "As far as __ tell ... ": I CAN.

61. Snatch: TAKE.

62. Like draft beer: ON TAP.

63. NBA two-pointer: DUNK.

64. SimCity console, in brief: SNES.  As in Super Nintendo Entertainment System.  Hand up if you knew this.

65. Overflows (with): TEEMS.

Down:

1. Actress Hayek Pinault: SALMA.  She is best known as Salma Hayek (née Salma Valgarma Hayek Jiménez; b. Sept. 2, 1966).  [Name # 7.]

2. Trojan War epic by Homer: ILIAD.  Homer was an ancient Greek poet.  Two of his epic poems are known today: the Iliad and the Odyssey.  He didn't have a surname, so shouldn't be confused with Homer Simpson.  [Name # 8.]

3. Demerits: DINGS.

4. Not odd: EVEN.

5. Westernmost country of continental Africa: SENEGAL.  The official name of Senegal, is the Republic of Senegal.  The country was in the news last week when a plane in Dakar skidded off the runway and caught fire.

6. California's state flower: POPPY.  The state flower of Louisiana is legally the Magnolia (see La. R.S. 49:154).  What is your state's flower?

7. Dell competitor: ACER.

8. "Never gonna happen": UH, NO.

9. Of the distant past: LONG GONE.

10. Geography book: ATLAS.

11. Victors: CHAMPIONS.

12. Scottish cap: TAM.

13. Small drink: SIP.

21. Tit for __: TAT.

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

26. Piano exercise: ÉTUDE.  Today's French lesson.

27. Disclose: LET ON.

28. Not fem. or neut.: MASC.  Masculine is neither Feminine nor Neutral.

29. Some jazz groups: TRIOS.

30. Pealed: RANG.

32. Really, really want: COVET.

33. "You __ busted!": ARE SO.

34. Edward Cullen's love interest in the "Twilight" series: BELLA SWAN.  [Names # 9 and 10, fictional.]

35. "Queen of Neo Soul" Erykah: BADU.  Her given name is Erica Abi Wright (b. Feb. 26, 1971).  [Name # 11.]

36. Centers of activity: HUBS.

38. Mimics: COPY CATS.

41. Round flatbread: ROTI.  A flatbread found in Indian cuisine.

42. Rorschach pattern: INK BLOT.

45. School URL ending: EDU.

47. Big to-do: STINK.

48. Tahiti and Bora Bora: ISLES.

49. Al __: firm, as pasta: DENTE.  Today's Italian lesson.  The phrase Al Dente literally means to the tooth.  Pasta cooked al dente is firm when bitten without being hard.

50. Philosopher who espoused simple explanations: OCCAM.  William of Ockham (1287 ~ 1347) wasn't a barber, but he does have a razor named in his honor.  Occam’s Razor is the principle that says that if you have two competing ideas to explain the same phenomenon, you should prefer the simpler one.  [Name # 12.]

51. Fitness tracker units: STEPS.

53. "Rich People Problems" novelist Kevin: KWAN.  Kevin Kwan (b. Nov. 8, 1973) is a Singapore-born American novelist. He wrote a trilogy of satirical novels Crazy Rich Asians, China Rich Girlfriend, and Rich People Problems.  Crazy Rich Asians was also made into a movie.  [Name # 13.]

54. Oxen harness: YOKE.

55. Actress Fonda: JANE.  In addition to being an actress, Jane Seymour Fonda (b. Dec. 21, 1937), is the daughter of actor Henry Fonda (May 16, 1905 ~ Aug. 12, 1982), and sister to Peter Fonda (Feb. 23, 1940 ~ Aug. 16, 2019).  [Name # 14.]

The family Fonda.

56. Young goat: KID.

57. Hospital dept.: ICU.  As in Intensive Care Unit.

Here's the Grid.

חתולה