Guilherme Gilioli is a Brazilian constructor who mostly creates puzzles in Portuguese. I'm always impressed by people who can do this when English is not their mother tongue (hi CC!). As you know, crosswords involve many idioms and word-play, and that's hard enough to do even when being born here!
16A. *Wham! hit on "Make It Big": CARELESS WHISPER. Written by George Michael, this song sold more than eleven million copies so I've probably heard it.
26A. *No Doubt hit on "Tragic Kingdom": DON'T SPEAK. This one was big in 1996 for the alternative/indie/punk rock band. It didn't sell as well as the Wham song, but at least I recognize the title.
50A. *The Beatles hit on "Please Please Me": TWIST AND SHOUT. The only one of the three that I knew right off the bat. What I didn't know was that it originally was recorded by The Top Notes, and later covered by the Isley Brothers before the Fab Four got a hold of it. It's the only Top Ten Beatles song not written by them.
39D. NBC singing competition that completed its 29th season in 2026, or what appears to get louder at the ends of the answers to the starred clues?: THE VOICE. The theme answers all contain a tone of VOICE that build to a crescendo: WHISPER, SPEAK, then SHOUT. And since THE VOICE is a music competition, song titles are very appropriate.
It's interesting that Guilherme chose left-right symmetry with a downward reveal. And even if you didn't know the songs, this still was a pretty straightforward puzzle. BTW, I rarely include external links to things like these songs because I feel they take you away from the core of what's happening here. I like to pick a fun fact or two, and if that piques your interest, then Google is just a click away.
Let's see what else he's talking about:
Across:
1. "Shoot!": ASK.
4. Greek vowel: ALPHA. Part of a complete breakfast!
9. Watermelon keg need: TAP. I didn't know about watermelon kegs, but they are simply a hollowed out watermelon with the top sliced off to use as a dispenser. You can buy a special TAP made for these.
12. Wander: ROAM. Had to wait to see if it could be ROVE.
14. __ butter: COCOA.
15. Greek vowel: IOTA. They're in that cereal bowl somewhere.
16. [theme]
4. Greek vowel: ALPHA. Part of a complete breakfast!
9. Watermelon keg need: TAP. I didn't know about watermelon kegs, but they are simply a hollowed out watermelon with the top sliced off to use as a dispenser. You can buy a special TAP made for these.
12. Wander: ROAM. Had to wait to see if it could be ROVE.
14. __ butter: COCOA.
15. Greek vowel: IOTA. They're in that cereal bowl somewhere.
16. [theme]
19. Hockey gear: SKATES.
20. Get testy with: SNAP AT.
21. Flute part: STEM. A little misdirect. Not the instrument but a tall, narrow champagne glass.
22. Blue area on a map: SEA. The blue used to go right to the edge where you'd fall off.
25. Go the distance: LAST.
26. [theme]
29. "Shark Tank" airer: ABC. The American Broadcasting Company. Shark Tank is a reality TV series where panelists decide whether to invest in products being pitched by contestant entrepreneurs. It is the American franchise for BBC's Dragons' Den, which itself is a remake of the Japanese television show The Tigers of Money.
32. __ rhyme: NURSERY.
33. __ worker: GIG. Many in the labor force don't work full time, or augment their regular job with a GIG. A GIG economy is a labor market characterized by short-term contracts, freelance work, and independent contracting rather than permanent, traditional employment. Unfortunately, that also means no benefits.
36. Foot-to-thigh yoga pose: TREE. Occasionally, the arms are held upward like branches.
38. Angels and Devils: TEAMS. Baseball's Los Angeles Angels vs. hockey's New Jersey Devils would be an epic battle of biblical proportions!
39. Big addition to a to-be-read pile: TOME. Now that's heavy reading.
40. Food from heaven: MANNA.
42. Potato spot: EYE.
43. Self-storage and self-moving company based in Phoenix, Arizona: UHAUL. I once helped a cousin move from Arkansas to Florida. Our old UHAUL van had an early version of cruise control - a brick on the accelerator. We rarely reached 55 mph. except downhill with a tail wind.
44. Thingamabob: GADGET. I had WIDGET at first, but that was NO HELP.
46. Totally useless: NO HELP. Like a WIDGET.
48. Countdown start: TEN.
49. Spacious ride: SUV. I still prefer a station wagon over a Sport Utility Vehicle, but that class of vehicle has been virtually wiped out by families who also need to traverse a canyon on the way to soccer practice.
50. [theme]
57. Appear to be: SEEM.
58. Smiling face with heart-eyes, for one: EMOJI. This one expresses feelings of love.
59. Fruity frozen treats: ICES.
61. Iron-rich vegetable: KALE.
62. "Judy" star Zellweger: RENEE. She won the 2020 Best Actress Oscar for her portrayal of Judy Garland. RENEE also sang all the songs. Quite a talent!
63. Pat-a-cake motion: CLAP.
64. Part of MMA: ARTS. Mixed Martial Arts is a fighting sport akin to boxing.
65. Glum: SAD.
66. "Child's play!": EASY. This puzzle was EASY peasy.
Down:
1. Story trajectories: ARCS.
2. Long baths: SOAKS.
3. Gold standard: KARAT. A KARAT is a unit used to measure the purity of gold. It is measured on a 24-part scale, meaning 1 karat represents 1/24 of pure gold in alloy. Thus 24 KARAT is 100% pure.
4. High cards in bridge: ACES.
5. __ Angeles Dodgers: LOS. As much as the LOS Angeles Angels love to fight the Devil, it's more likely they will face the Dodgers in a Freeway Series.
6. Some HPs: PCS. Hewlett-Packard was founded in 1939 in a Palo Alto garage. They make Personal Computers, among many other electronics.
7. "By what means?": HOW. HOW did a multi-billion dollar corporation rise from this garage?
8. Satisfied sighs: AAHS.
9. Big name in trading cards: TOPPS.
10. Seriously annoyed: ATE AT. This one ATE AT me.
11. Divide: PART.
13. Dished (out): METED.
15. "Stuck in the Middle" actor Presley: ISAAK. He's no Elvis, apparently, just a Middle-of-the-road actor. If you're his agent, then I meant he's really great. Really.
17. Dish soap scent: LEMON.
18. Dental filling: INLAY. It may be 16 KARAT gold (24 KARAT is too soft).
22. Wall in Manhattan, e.g.: STREET.
23. Writing assignment: ESSAY.
24. Primitive bipeds, informally: APEMEN. Unlike modern humans who are obligate (permanent) bipeds. That's why your mom told you to stand up straight.
27. Snack mix morsel: NUT.
28. Backpedaling sounds: ERS.
29. PIN point?: ATM. Winner: Best Clue. You may enter your Personal Identification Number at an Automate Teller Machine.
30. Toot one's own horn: BRAG.
31. John of "Peacemaker": CENA. I like John CENA because he isn't afraid to poke fun at himself, in spite of all his accomplishments in wrestling and movies.
33. Striker's target: GOAL.
34. "My turn!": I'M UP. Last Thursday, this was the answer to, "Are you awake?" This clue fits better.
35. Product often used to create a wet look: GEL.
37. Meeting scheduler's concerns: END TIMES. In spite of this, meetings always run long.
39. [theme]
41. Matures, as whiskey: AGES.
43. "Forget about it": UH UH.
45. Host's invitation: ENTER. UH OH. This sounds rather ominous.
47. Davis of "Grumpy Old Men": OSSIE. OSSIE Davis was an award-winning actor and activist. He appeared in over 50 movies, 50 TV shows and 30 plays. Quite the career.
50. Sign of sorrow: TEAR.
51. Paintball injury: WELT.
52. Home of Iowa State: AMES. A common crossword town populated with useful letters.
53. Deca- minus one: NONA. Greek numerical prefixes. Deca (10) -1 = NONA (9).
54. Worked a wedding reception, say: DJED. This abbreviation for Disc Jockeyed looks wrong somehow.
55. Campus near Sunset Blvd.: UCLA. The University of California at Los Angeles was originally called the Southern Branch. The first UC campus was in Oakland before moving to Berkeley.
56. Socials with cucumber sandwiches: TEAS.
57. Reggae kin: SKA.
60. Intelligence agent: SPY.
Be good. RB
2. Long baths: SOAKS.
3. Gold standard: KARAT. A KARAT is a unit used to measure the purity of gold. It is measured on a 24-part scale, meaning 1 karat represents 1/24 of pure gold in alloy. Thus 24 KARAT is 100% pure.
4. High cards in bridge: ACES.
5. __ Angeles Dodgers: LOS. As much as the LOS Angeles Angels love to fight the Devil, it's more likely they will face the Dodgers in a Freeway Series.
6. Some HPs: PCS. Hewlett-Packard was founded in 1939 in a Palo Alto garage. They make Personal Computers, among many other electronics.
7. "By what means?": HOW. HOW did a multi-billion dollar corporation rise from this garage?
8. Satisfied sighs: AAHS.
9. Big name in trading cards: TOPPS.
10. Seriously annoyed: ATE AT. This one ATE AT me.
11. Divide: PART.
13. Dished (out): METED.
15. "Stuck in the Middle" actor Presley: ISAAK. He's no Elvis, apparently, just a Middle-of-the-road actor. If you're his agent, then I meant he's really great. Really.
17. Dish soap scent: LEMON.
18. Dental filling: INLAY. It may be 16 KARAT gold (24 KARAT is too soft).
22. Wall in Manhattan, e.g.: STREET.
23. Writing assignment: ESSAY.
24. Primitive bipeds, informally: APEMEN. Unlike modern humans who are obligate (permanent) bipeds. That's why your mom told you to stand up straight.
27. Snack mix morsel: NUT.
28. Backpedaling sounds: ERS.
29. PIN point?: ATM. Winner: Best Clue. You may enter your Personal Identification Number at an Automate Teller Machine.
30. Toot one's own horn: BRAG.
31. John of "Peacemaker": CENA. I like John CENA because he isn't afraid to poke fun at himself, in spite of all his accomplishments in wrestling and movies.
33. Striker's target: GOAL.
34. "My turn!": I'M UP. Last Thursday, this was the answer to, "Are you awake?" This clue fits better.
35. Product often used to create a wet look: GEL.
37. Meeting scheduler's concerns: END TIMES. In spite of this, meetings always run long.
39. [theme]
41. Matures, as whiskey: AGES.
43. "Forget about it": UH UH.
45. Host's invitation: ENTER. UH OH. This sounds rather ominous.
 |
| You may ENTER... |
47. Davis of "Grumpy Old Men": OSSIE. OSSIE Davis was an award-winning actor and activist. He appeared in over 50 movies, 50 TV shows and 30 plays. Quite the career.
50. Sign of sorrow: TEAR.
51. Paintball injury: WELT.
52. Home of Iowa State: AMES. A common crossword town populated with useful letters.
53. Deca- minus one: NONA. Greek numerical prefixes. Deca (10) -1 = NONA (9).
54. Worked a wedding reception, say: DJED. This abbreviation for Disc Jockeyed looks wrong somehow.
55. Campus near Sunset Blvd.: UCLA. The University of California at Los Angeles was originally called the Southern Branch. The first UC campus was in Oakland before moving to Berkeley.
56. Socials with cucumber sandwiches: TEAS.
57. Reggae kin: SKA.
60. Intelligence agent: SPY.
Be good. RB
7 comments:
It didn’t seem too
difficult to me. I was familiar with the “songs” and the talent show, so that made it easier.
FIR, so I’m happy.
Good morning!
The first two bands/hits were unknown to this oldster. I remember Twist and Shout, but it evokes the Isley Brothers. INLAY beside ISAAK called for some perp help, but it filled OK. Thanks Guilherme and Rusty.
FIR, but slap->CLAP, uh no->UHUH, isaac->ISAAK, and nursrey->NURSERY (bad spelars of the world, UNTIE!)
Never heard of No Doubt nor their song, but knew the others.
I would love to see a free-for-all fight between an NHL team and a MLB team. The Dodgers would think that a Hurricane just hit them.
When I decided to move my stuff to Ocala, I originally reserved a UHAUL truck. Then I found out that all the UHAUL trucks are gas-powered, and changed to a diesel Penske. Plenty of torque to get my stuff down I-95 with the cruise control set on 70.
APE MEN, or what sports announcers call "offensive linemen."
Thanks to Guilherme for the fun outing. I'm also in awe of your ability to create a crossword puzzle in other than your native language. My Spanish teacher advised the class to work on Spanish language crosswords to increase our vocabulary. (In our area, you could frequently find free Spanish newspapers in Mexican restaurants.) Creating a crossword must be an order of magnitude better. And thanks to Rusty Brain for another fine narrative, except that you have a typo (UH oH) in your write up.
Took 5:37 today to finish with a Rebel Yell.
I knew the Actress of the Day (Renee), and one of the two actors (Cena, not this Isaak or his show/movie). Wasn't a fan of the clue for "ices".
I wondered while solving how many here would not know the first two songs. I thought "Careless Whisper" would be known by almost all, but I was skeptical of "Don't Speak".
FIR. I'm not fond of vertical puzzles, but this one was not that bad. The first two songs were a mystery to me, but I picked up on the theme from them. I had no problem with the Beatles song as that age-wise is more in my wheelhouse.
As a kid I collected baseball cards but I couldn't remember the company name for the life of me. The perps helped. I can almost taste the bubble gum that came with them. Fond memories!
Overall an enjoyable puzzle.
I knew all three songs, but probably because of my kids. Finished this one (a Thursday, no less!) with no Witeout. This almost never happens on any day.
Songs were no problem. One letter wrong. On 3 down had carat instead of karat. My fault for not checking when I finished as the puzzle seemed pretty easy to me. Me too with the baseball cards and the bubble gum.
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