Wednesday, May 27, 2026, Sala Wanetick

 

Good Morning, Cruciverbalists.  Malodorous Manatee here with the recap of a Wednesday puzzle by Sala Wanetick.  Here is a link to an article published about Sala when she had her NY Times Crossword debut in 2024:  Southfield Native Makes NYT Crossword Debut

For today's offering (and this is not her LAT debut) Sala shakes up seismic matters by turning faults into, well, faults.  Let us start with the reveal:

56 Across:  Fractured spots in the earth's crust, or what 17-, 23-, and 49-Across are: FAULT LINES.

As in earthquake faults.  However, in this case FAULT LINES become what one might say when they are at fault as in being guilty of a misdeed or a mistake.  All are self-explanatory.  The mea culpas (culpae ?) appear at these three places within the grid:

17 Across:  "I messed up": THAT'S MY BAD.  

23 Across:  First words in a confession booth, often: FORGIVE ME FATHER.

49 Across:  "I totally did that, yep": GUILTY AS CHARGED.

Here is the completed grid:

... and below are the other clues and answers:

Across:

1. Measuring device: GAUGE.  Apropos of 42 Across, what was Patrick Stewart's favorite scale of train?  N-gauge.

6. Shred the __: crush a black diamond run, say: GNAR.  Derived from "That's gnarly", dude."

10. Bikini tops: BRAS.  We'll skip fleshing this one out.

14. Stoneworker: MASON.  Apropos of nothing to do with stone work, Dave MASON left us last month.

15. Roof overhang: EAVE.  These hang out frequently in our puzzles.

16. Sound off: RANT.  After he went on a RANT about certain track and field events I asked my dad "Why don't you like the field events ?"  He replied, "I don't want to discus it."

19. Writer Wiesel: ELIE.  Perhaps best known for the book Night, which was based on his experiences as a Jewish prisoner at Auschwitz and Buchenwald during the Holocaust.

20. Half-inning trio: OUTS.  A baseball reference.

21. Go by: ELAPSE.

28. Electric kettle part: SPOUT.

29. Oft-pickled taco topper: RADISH.  I had never come across this until about ten days ago when the accomplished-chef son of a friend served this at his mother's birthday dinner.

30. "Fiddler on the Roof" milkman: TEVYE.

31. Kylo of "Star Wars": REN.  This time, the clue let's us know up front that it's a Star Wars reference.

32. Flows back: EBBS.

36. Mined find: ORE.

37. Piper Cub, e.g.: PLANE.

39. Gloss target: LIP.

40. Pasta topper, for short: PARM.  Parmesan cheese.

Photo by MM

42. "Star Trek" captain Jean-__ Picard: LUC.

43. "Alfie" star Michael: CAINE.  What's it all about?

45. Poses such as happy baby and humble warrior: ASANAS.  Stances frequently assumed in our puzzles.

48. Hardware not found on a sliding door: HINGE.

53. Historic Harlem theater: APOLLO.

54. Put an end to: HALT.

55. Muscle quality: TONE.

62. Currently working the problem: ON IT.

63. Military flute: FIFE.

64. __-bouche: bite-size freebie: AMUSE.  A complimentary, bite-sized portion of food served before a meal or between courses in a restaurant

65. Critics' picks, informally: RECS.  RECommendationS

66. Meal for a pig: SLOP.

67. Consequently: HENCE.

Down:

1. Clock-setting std.: GMT.  Abbreviated clue (std for standard) . . . . abbreviated answer.   Greenwich Mean Time

2. Relaxing sound?: AAH.  "Why the question mark?", I hear you ask.   A sound you might make when relaxing as opposed to a sound that you find relaxing.

3. Olympic ice hockey gold medalists: Abbr.: USA.  1960, 1980 and 2026.  Here, because nothing in the clue is abbreviated Sala alerts us the the answer will be an abbreviation.

4. Right-hand man: GO TO GUY.

5. Like a Jack and Jill bathroom: EN SUITE.  An EN SUITE is a bathroom that can only be accessed from within the bedroom. A Jack and Jill bathroom is a bathroom with two doors, usually accessible from two bedrooms.  There is no door to the hallway.

6. Old Faithful, e.g.: GEYSER.

7. Scoop up: NAB.

8. Director DuVernay: AVA.  A frequent visitor.

9. Change the meaning of: REDEFINE.

10. Get some air?: BREATHE.  A clue to be taken literally (despite the ?)
"
11. Actor Fiennes: RALPH.   He is known for his roles in Schindler's List, The English Patient, Harry Potter, James Bond, and more.

12. Sambuca flavor: ANISE.  Sambuca is an ANISE-flavored liqueur.

13. Turn a corner, perhaps: STEER.

18. "RuPaul's Drag Race" network: MTV.

A Real Drag Racer

22. __ Vegas Aces: LAS.  A WNBA reference.

23. Camera setting that affects depth: F-STOP.  All you might wish to know:  F-STOP Explained

24. Rossini work: OPERA.

25. App that connects pet sitters and pet owners: ROVER.

26. Musical rattles: MARACAS.

27. Old Testament garden: EDEN.

33. Flashy accessories: BLING.

34. Watch episode after episode of: BINGE.

35. Floor it: SPEED.  A reference to pressing an automobile's gas pedal to the floor

37. Some postseason games: PLAYOFFS.

38. Moon goddess: LUNA.  In the future, will LUNA be clued with something along these lines:

41. Whac-a-Mole whackers: MALLETS.

43. Rosh Hashanah bread: CHALLAH.  It's not just for Rosh Hashanah.

44. Broadcast slot: AIRTIME.

46. Letters on a Cardinal: STL.  Not a religious prelate reference.  A baseball reference.

47. Inconvenient trip: SCHLEP.  Today's Yiddish lesson.  Used here as a noun although it is also employed as a verb.

49. Croc kin: GATOR.

50. Holding a small lead: UP ONE.  

51. Like some chemical bonds: IONIC.

52. Lid: HAT.  Slang.

57. Feel crummy: AIL.

58. Blurry craft in tabloid pics: UFO.  Now "re-branded" as UAP - Unidentified aerial Phenomena.

59. Religious sister: NUN.  A member of an order.  Not your sister, Hannah, who keeps kosher.

60. Corner PC key: ESC.

61. Match, in poker: SEE.  When a poker player says “I’ll SEE your bet”, they are choosing to match the current wager and stay in the hand rather than fold or raise.

_________________________________

Well, that will wrap things up for today.  Any errors or omissions were definitely my fault.

MM OUT