Theme: "SEE ZEE SIGHTS!" - See/Zee sound is added to each common phrase, changing spelling as needed.
23. Place to learn about chili peppers?: SPICY MUSEUM. Spy museum.
32. Shearing event held under the big top?: FLEECY CIRCUS. Flea circus.
47. Root for a Calgary franchise?: FANCY THE FLAMES. Fan the flame.
63. Event for people who won't drink Coca-Cola?: PEPSI RALLY. Pep rally.
66. "Gangster Malone takes the bait!"?: BUGSY BITES. Bug bites.
83. Coffee table item in a dollhouse?: TEENSY MAGAZINE. Teen magazine.
95. Where it's hard to keep a secret?: NOSY MAN'S LAND. No man's Island.
109. "Yes, I'll invest in beachfront property in Arizona!"?: PATSY ANSWER. Pat answer.
I've mentioned before how much I admire this type of letter addition theme where spelling changes are involved. These are much harder to construct than straightforward insertions, It requires creativity.
There are also quite a bit of clue echos in this grid. I love these three:
5. "Don't sweat the small stuff": WHY WORRY. 44. "Don't sweat the small stuff": LET IT SLIDE. And 106. Sweat the small stuff, say: FRET. I love these clue echos.
Across:
1. Scattered: STREWN.
7. Georgetown athlete: HOYA.
11. Baking amts.: TSPS.
15. Labor agcy.: OSHA.
19. "Weekend Edition Sunday" host Rascoe: AYESHA. Here she's playing Ping Pong with the Puzzlemaster Will Shortz. We also have 29. "Weekend Edition Sunday" airer: NPR.
20. Smell: ODOR.
21. Neutral color lighter than greige: ECRU. Greige is a blend of gray & beige.
22. To-do: STIR.
25. Shimmery gem: MOONSTONE.
27. Egg maker: HEN. 35. Egg maker: FABERGE.
28. Telegrams: WIRES.
30. Lake near Syracuse, New York: ONEIDA. The largest lake entirely within New York State.
31. Salad bar accessory: TONGS.
38. Tara of "Sharknado": REID.
39. Earring option: HOOP.
40. "Unfortunately ... ": I FEAR.
41. Lucy Van __: "Peanuts" kid: PELT.
42. First number in many countdowns: TEN.
43. Envelope part: FLAP.
51. Unflinching: STEELY. 16. Unflappable: STOIC.
53. Part of a foot: INCH.
54. Countless lifetimes: EON.
55. "The Menu" star Taylor-Joy: ANYA. Super friendly letter combo.
56. More to the point: BLUNTER.
57. Colorful method of data visualization: HEAT MAP.
60. __ Kippur: YOM.
61. Rowing implement: OAR.
62. Secret suffix: IVE.
69. Above, poetically: O'ER.
70. Former U.N. head Hammarskjöld: DAG. Swedish diplomat who died in a plane crash.
71. Listening device?: EAR.
73. Small gears: PINIONS.
74. Assembled in advance: PRE-MADE.
76. Chicken cordon __: BLEU.
78. California wine grape, for short: ZIN. Zinfandel.
79. Bunches (of): A LOT.
82. Triple-A squad in Buffalo: BISONS. Buffalo Bisons are the Triple-A affiliate of the Blue Jays.
86. Folksy assent: YES M.
87. Square root of cuatro: DOS.
88. Dayton's state: OHIO.
89. Connection points: NODES.
90. Picture of health?: X-RAY.
92. Stefani of No Doubt: GWEN.
93. Most cruel: MEANEST.
100. Game similar to pétanque: BOCCE. Pétanque is a French lawn game. Learning moment for me.
101. "Cool beans!": OH NEAT.
102. Pointer: TIP.
103. "Love Will Find a Way" band __ Cruise: PABLO.
104. Letters on some makeup bottles: SPF.
107. Chaotic swirl: MAELSTROM. Dutch origin.
112. North __ Sea: Central Asian lake: ARAL.
113. Stuff of legend: LORE.
114. Tiff: SPAT.
115. Look for solutions: IDEATE.
116. __ Fifth Avenue: SAKS.
117. Farm females: EWES.
118. Abbey recess: APSE.
119. Din: RACKET.
Down:
1. Window part: SASH.
2. Use keys to enter: TYPE. And 4. F1 neighbor: ESC.
3. Horse rider's strap: REIN.
6. __ rights: sponsorship option: NAMING.
7. Garden coils: HOSES.
8. Poems of 49-Down: ODES. 49. Tribute: HOMAGE.
9. "If I were __ ... ": YOU.
10. Triceps locale: ARM.
11. Home of Arizona State: TEMPE. They have a great swimming program.
12. Leaves char marks on: SCORCHES.
13. Maven: PRO.
14. "Performance is what we do" gas brand: SUNOCO. No Sunoco near me.
15. Air fryer brand: OSTER.
17. Dharma follower: HINDU.
18. Zones: AREAS.
24. Hankering: URGE.
26. Quick cut: SNIP.
29. Composer Rorem: NED.
31. Shows some class, maybe?: TEACHES. Great clue.
32. Mac: FELLA.
33. Resonant chant: LITANY.
34. That way, quaintly: YON.
35. Stereotypical name for a poodle: FIFI.
36. Secret admirer's sign-off: A FAN.
37. Weight training exercise: BENCH PRESS.
38. Slo-mo reviewer: REF.
41. Punishment-related: PENAL.
42. Work together: TEAM UP.
43. Bog: FEN.
45. Advil alternative: ALEVE.
46. Combustible heaps: PYRES.
48. Foursomes: TETRADS.
50. "Butt out!" initials: MYOB. Mind Your Own Business.
51. Bringing down the house: SLAYING.
52. Auto engine booster: TURBO.
56. Part of the former Yugoslavia: BOSNIA.
58. Quinn of "Practical Magic": AIDAN. He was in "Blink" also. Scary movie.
59. Academy newbies: PLEBES.
63. Stop in: POP BY.
64. Spooky: EERIE.
65. Connecticut Ivy: YALE.
67. Thingamajig: GIZMO.
68. Hyper-focused: IN A ZONE.
72. Fame: RENOWN.
75. May honoree: MOM.
77. Led into a theater, slangily: USHED.
80. Change machine inserts: ONES.
81. End-of-unit check: TEST.
83. Place that's all fun and games: TOY STORE.
84. __ and yang: YIN.
85. South American behemoth: ANACONDA.
87. Karate skill level: DAN. Literally "stage". We call it "Duan" in Chinese.
90. Dec. 25: XMAS.
91. Shake up: RATTLE.
92. Word with age or wage: GAP.
93. "__-Dick": MOBY.
94. Cream-filled choux pastry: ECLAIR.
95. "Uncle!," in Spanish: NO MAS.
96. Catherine of "Beetlejuice": O'HARA.
97. Act clandestinely: SNEAK.
98. Whoops: YELLS.
99. Guacamole ingredients: LIMES.
100. Verb in a roast recipe: BASTE.
103. School gps.: PTAS.
104. Letters on an envelope: SWAK. I''ve never actually received an envelope with SWAK written on it.
105. Tennis great Sampras: PETE.
108. Fracas: ROW.
109. Infotainment spot: PSA.
110. Tablet download: APP.
111. Brief moment?: SEC.
C.C.
16 comments:
The title of this puzzle
fooled me. I thought we were going to have a bunch of “z’s.” But I quickly caught on to what the actual gimmick was.
And it wasn’t too tough, in spite of the plethora of obscure names.
FIR, so I’m happy.
Good morning!
Got 'er done in under 20 this morning -- that's a really good time pour moi. Caught the theme early, but it didn't really help much with the solve. AYESHA and Will will be together presenting The Puzzle on Sunday Edition in just a couple hours. Thanx, Matt and C.C. (No Man's Land -- typo.)
FIW, missing with wee worry x spice museum, which also made sense to me. No idea for AYESeA or Weekend Edition. Also, dozs->TSPS, sill->SASH, anon->A FAN, cadets->PLEBES, doodad->GIZMO, and ado->ROW.
Nice to STEELY and DAN together. Loves me some Aja.
Funny that a person that is more to the point is BLUNTER, but a BLUNTER weapon has less to the point.
Les Brown and the Band of RENOWN played Les's Sentimental Journey in the early 1840s, and a few years later, recorded the song with Doris Day. It was Day's first big hit.
Brian Hyland had a big hit with SWAK. It has been covered by musicians from Bobby V to Gary and the Playboys.
Thanks to Matt for the enjoyable Sunday workout, and to CC for another informative tour.
FIR. Helpful perps for the usual United Nations mix of proper names.
I’m waiting for the day when I will be meeting with my accountant and the administrative assistant says to me “In a sec, I will ush you in and the sesh will start VS." I will then look for a new accountant.
FIR. Nice and easy Sunday romp. I loved the clue for egg maker. After hen coming first, Faberge was inspired.
I got the theme early on, although I'm unfamiliar with spy museum. But all the others were quite clever.
Overall an enjoyable puzzle.
FFF disease. 1940s, not 1840s.
My favorite answer was "Nosy Man's Land."
There's a Spy Museum?? I'll have to go some day.
And now humming the song Sealed with a Kiss.
It's in D.C. -- Here's a link.
Spy museum is in Washington, DC
Musings
-Having to do some scrambling in some places made this a real treat. Gimmick was fun and helpful.
-Salad bars are much rarer these days. Our favorite and very expensive restaurant still has one.
-BTW, expensive to us is over $100 with no drinks, appetizers or dessert.
-PATSY ANSWER: Lucy asks, “May I hold the football while you kick it?” Charlie replies, “Sure!”
-I’ve been known to be BLUNTER when I see a discussion is going in circles. In one conference a dad slapped the table after my comment and said, “There, someone finally said it!”
-A local lumber yard could not compete with the big box stores in town and so they went into the PRE-MADE joist, rafters
and other structures and are doing great business.
-I often wonder how doctors diagnosed problems before X-RAYS, MRI’s, CAT scans, etc.
-BOCCE is curling but not on ice
-Two more graduates this year are joining the large group of our family who have become TEACHERS
-POP BY: DW is not a fan of being either the pop byer or pop byee
-I did spy with my little eye: RACKET/PETE
Took 14:26 today to say, "si, si."
Weirdly didn't catch the theme until the last one or two themers. Also weirdly, I knew the Actresses of the Day (Ohara & Anya). I didn't know: Ayesha, the French lawn game, the Karate level, or Dag.
I've went to the Spy Museum in D.C. about two years ago. It's an amusing way to spend 1-1.5 hours, although there's certainly no shortage of places to visit in D.C.
Fun puzzle! Fun themers! Yes - love the clue echos! And “egg maker”-s! Thanks for a great start to my day!
Hola! I did not need the theme to solve this Sunday puzzle. Thank you, Matt Revis (new constructor?) And in spite of some unknown terms (greige, pinions, choux, Love will find a way, petanque) I managed to chug to the finish line. There's even a CSO at TEMPE, my near neighbor and where I went to grad school at ASU.
I liked HEN and FABERGE as egg makers.
Thank you, C.C., for explaining "greige"; I can't say I've ever heard that.
USHED is just ugly, IMO! And though I never use LIMES in guacamole, I know others do. Have a lovely day, everyone!
The challenging but amusing themers made for an enjoyable solve. On another subject, did anyone see CC's WSJ puzzles yesterday? If you missed it you might want to track it down.
Overall a doable puzzle, just not on my wavelength...
Learning moment: Dan (Natick)
Whoops = yells is not something I do...
SWAK was a total head scratcher until I saw CC's image. I don't think I have ever seen a letter with SWAK in it. Maybe some lipstick lips, but SWAK, never...
I found the theme to be very confusing. I really don't care for sounds like stuff that requires heavy handed letter manipulation. The C Z Sites reveal had me looking at the CY combos in the themers https://share.google/Te4LhmZpjxYEFTf3b">like this...
The failed link is just another Thumper blinking image...
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