Peat and Repeat and Repeat and Repeat and Repeat.
20-Across. Marshy source of organic fuel: PEAT BOG. In Europe, archeologist have often found mummified bodies in peat bogs.
22-Across. Attempt to hit: SWIPE AT.
31-Across. Budget-friendly fare: CHEAPE ATS.
41-Across. Slip by unnoticed: ESCAPE ATTENTION.
And the unifier:
52-Across. Rare championship sequences, or what can be found in this puzzle's circles: FOUR PEATS. One of the four Peats is not like the other Peats.
Here's the Grid:
This was a very name-heavy puzzle. It didn't bother me, but I know many people don't like seeing so many names in a puzzle. The names here covered several generations, so there is probably at least one name for everyone to recognize.
Across:
1. Open-handed hit: SLAP.
5. Saudi neighbor: OMANI.
10. Reasons to cry "April Fools!": GAGS. // And 18-Across. "April Fools!": GOT YA!
14. Bull, in Spanish: TORO. Today's Spanish lesson.
15. Former One Direction member Niall: HORAN. Niall James Horan (b. Sept. 13, 1993) is an Irish singer and musician. His band, One Direction, was apparently one of the best-selling boy bands. [Name # 1.]
16. Actor Morales: ESAI. We haven't seen Esai Manuel Morales Jr. (b. Oct. 1, 1962) in a while. He used to appear in the puzzles with alarming frequency. Maybe he has aged out of the current demographics. [Name # 2.]
17. Upper limbs: ARMS.
 |
| When Octopus arms become Upper Limbs. |
19. Epistles: Abbr.: LTRS. Today's Greek lesson. Epistles is a Greek word meaning Letters. Typically, when this word is used, it refers to a number of letters in the New Testament.
24. Touched down on a runway: LANDED. It's going to be a bumpy ride.
25. Come out: EMERGE.
26. "Middlemarch" novelist George: ELIOT. The given name of George Eliot (Nov. 22, 1819 ~ Dec. 22, 1880) was Mary Ann Evans. She was one of the leading writers of the Victorian era. In addition to Middlemarch, she wrote several other novels, including The Mill on the Floss and Silas Marner. She was well known and led a rather scandalous life. [Name # 3.]
27. Unfortunate: SAD.
30. Word before beauty or peace: INNER. As in Inner Beauty or Inner Peace.
34. __ tai: cocktail: MAI. Yummers!
37. Squeeze water from: WRING.
38. Show hosts, for short: MCs. As in the Master of Ceremonies.
46. Eighth Greek letter: THETA. It's all Greek to me.
47. "Science Guy" Bill: NYE. Bill Nye (né William Sanford Nye; b. Nov. 27, 1955) is a science "communicator." He is best known for being the host of the science education television show Bill Nye the Science Guy. His life has not been without controversy. [Name # 4.]
48. "Live at the Acropolis" musician: YANNI. Yanni (né Yiannis Chryssomallis; b. Sept. 14, 1954), is a Greek composer, hence the "Acropolis" in the clue. [Name # 5.]
49. Appear that way: SEEM SO.
51. Pass along, as an unwanted present: REGIFT.
56. Acid counterpart: BASE. Today's Chemistry lesson.
59. Auction warning: GOING.
60. Somewhat open: AJAR. When is a door not a door ...
64. Run in place: IDLE.
65. Opposite of double: HALVE. Today's Math lesson.
66. Zero, in tennis: LOVE. We've discussed the rational for Love meaning Zero in tennis in the past.
67. Planner pages: DAYS.
68. Long shots, in hoops lingo: TREYS. A reference to the game of basketball.
69. Black-__ Susan: EYED. How the flower got its name.
Down:
1. Paper clip alternative: STAPLE.
2. "Because you're worth it" cosmetics brand: L'OREAL. This tagline made its debut in the 1970s, although the company claims's it a mission and not a tagline.
3. Italian fashion house: ARMANI. The luxury fashion house was named after Giorgio Armani (July 11, 1934 ~ Sept. 4, 2025). [Name # 6.]
4. Scholar pursuing an advanced deg.: POST-DOC. As in Post Doctorate degree.
5. "Good Lord!": OH, G'D.
6. Big name in synthesizers: MOOG. The Moog Synthesizer was named after Robert Arthur Moog (May 23, 1934 ~ August. 21, 2005), who was an American electronics engineer and electronic music pioneer. In 1964, he founder the Moog synthesizer. [Name # 7.]
7. Museum display: ART. I recently visited the Detroit Institute of the Arts. It was an amazing museum.
8. Votes against: NAYS. Today is Election Day. Please exercise your rights and vote.
9. At a loss for words, perhaps: IN AWE.
10. Felt-tip alternatives: GEL PENS.
11. Toward the back of a boat: ASTERN.
 |
| Anatomy of a boat. |
12. Parking structure: GARAGE.
13. Sorority member: SISTER.
21. Word in many temple names: BETH. The word Beth is a transliteration of the Hebrew word בית, which, in Hebrew is pronounced more like Beit, or Bayet. The word means House. I used to attend a synagogue called Beth Shalom, which means House of Peace.
23. "You found the one and only": I'M IT.
27. Kitchen wrap brand: SARAN.
28. Unfortunate: A PITY.
29. Al __: pasta specification: DENTE. Today's Italian lesson. The phrase al dente means to the tooth.
32. Female sheep: EWE.
33. Mature: AGE.
34. Queens baseball players: METS.
35. Queens tennis stadium namesake: ASHE. Arthur Robert Ashe Jr. (July 10, 1943 ~ Feb. 6, 1993) was an American professional tennis player. He won three Grand Slam singles titles in singles and two in doubles, [Name # 8.]
36. Slushy drink: ICEE. They can come on lots of different flavors.
38. Pocket-size: MINI.
39. NCAA div.: CONF. LSU, which frequently appears in the puzzles, is in the Southeastern Conference (SEC) and competes in NCAA Division I.
40. Irritable state: SNIT.
42. Some convenience store inconveniences: ATM FEES.
43. El __, Texas: PASO.
44. Russian denial: NYET. Today's Russian lesson. And NO, I won't tell you what it means.
45. Neighborhood event with good deals: TAG SALE.
50. "This __ to be good": OUGHT.
51. Rants and raves: RAGES.
53. Lion's sound: ROAR.
54. Mound that grows until laundry day: PILE.
55. "Inside Out 2" emotion voiced by Ayo Edebiri: ENVY. [Name # 9.] // And 61-Down. "Inside Out 2" emotion voiced by Amy Poehler: JOY. [Name # 10.] Both Aye Edebiri (née Funmilayo Edebiri; b. Oct. 3, 1995) and Amy Poehler (née Amy Meredith Poehler; b. Sept. 15, 1971) are American comedians and actresses.
56. Auction action: BID.
57. Tooth care org.: ADA. As in the American Dental Association.
58. __ as a fox: SLY.
62. "__ Maria": AVE.
63. Like Clifford of kid lit: RED.
חתולה
Easier than
ReplyDeleteyesterday’s puzzle, I would say, and that one was pretty easy.
FIR, so I’m happy.
FIR without erasure.
ReplyDeleteThanks to author and editor for putting “Science Guy” in quotes. Kinda made up for using the epitome of twurd fill, “A PITY,” and for using PEAT in a stand-alone sense in PEAT BOG.
CSO to Bayou Tony at “I’M I.T.”
Thanks to Kevin for the fun romp, even though there were way too many A&E references for my taste. I actually knew a few of them. I also knew that MOOG rhymes with BOG, and not the sound a cow makes. And thanks to Ha2la for another chuckle-filled tour.
Good morning!
ReplyDeleteI beg to differ. Even with all the PEATs in place, this one took longer than a typical Tuesday. ADA reminds me that I've got a dental appt this Thursday for an implant crown replacement. Yay, I'll be able to chew again. Driving I-10 across Texas to EL PASO is an 880-mile trip -- once past San Antonio the speed limit'll be 75 MPH the rest of the way. I've driven it many boring times. Interesting puzzle, Kevin. Cute cartoons today (as usual), Hahtoolah. (Wow, Yanni is much older than I would've guessed!)
The old saying goes "the sun has riz, the sun has set, and here we is in Texas yet."
DeleteWhen you are in El Paso, you are closer to the Pacific Ocean than you are to Texarkana. When you are in Texarkana, you are closer to the Atlantic Ocean than you are to El Paso.
I agree with desper-otto. Thought this was a tough Tuesday with all of the A&E references. I was thankful for the circles or I might not have completed the puzzle. I did FIR, but as I said, took a while.
ReplyDeleteTook 5:51 today to take a swiPE AT it.
ReplyDeleteI knew both voice Actresses of the Day and their emotions (envy & joy), didn't know "beth", hesitated at toro, and wrinkled my nose at "postdoc" & "got ya".
As already stated, too many names for my liking. And, speaking of my dislikes...
Oh joy, circles!
This puzzle was super easy for me, me who doesn’t like names. I got them all except HORAN. I also didn’t know the voice actresses but the emotions were easy to fill.
ReplyDeleteI somehow caught on to the theme right away, assuming it would be a ThreePEAT reveal, but FOUR PEATS, I had never heard of. Nevertheless it all worked out.
Thank you Hahtoolah for the nice review. Good info and chuckles.
FIR. This had everything in it that I very much dislike. Circles, which of course I ignored, rare proper names which many would not know, and on top of that a vertical puzzle to boot.
ReplyDeleteAlright, there was a theme, but it was of no help to the solve. It was just extra icing on a cake.
Overall not an enjoyable puzzle.
Tricky Tuesday. Thanks for the fun, Kevin and Hahtoolah.
ReplyDeleteI required one Google visit to give LTRS and open up that NE corner. Otherwise I FIRed and saw the FOUR PEATS (meh theme IMHO).
The N in HORAN perped and I WAGged correctly the N in YANNI (both names unknown to me). CONF was an aha moment.
SEEM tO changed to SEEM SO with El PASO.
APITY and INAWE required parsing to make sense.
Wishing you all a great day.
Musings
ReplyDelete-My uncle Bob (Bob’s your uncle) loved this riddle: “Pete and Repeat were in a boat, Pete fell out, Who was left?” “Repeat.” “Pete and Repeat…” We played along every time.
-It seemed odd that Patti would allow one word to not only be used four times but in order and with circles (totally unnecessary today).
-HORAN is definitely in the Cwd Hall Of Obscurity
-Your status can determine if your punishment is only a SLAP on the wrist or jail time
-I learned of another TORO doing puzzles
-Bill Nye’s wonderful science videos were a staple of my classroom. These days he specializes in advancing his advocacy of climate change and agnosticism.
-Basketball has become a game of TREYS and dunks. I’d rather watch Perry Mason reruns from 1964.
-A great Beatle song featuring a MOOG synthesizer
-I have neighbors on both sides of me that keep cars outside year round because their GARAGES are so full of junk.
-The expansion team NY Mets chose team colors that evoked the blue and of the recently departed Dodgers and the orange of the also recently departed Giants
-Popular songs no longer tell a story like, “Out in west Texas town of EL PASO, I fell in love with a Mexican girl”
An artsy fartsy Tuesday offering from Kevin Shustack on this dreary Tuesday.
ReplyDeleteI liked it.
An original theme with the 4 peat.
Nice to see Niall Horan make a re(peat) cameo appearance today.
He is a talented musician from One Direction but was vastly overlooked during their popular years as Harry Styles got all the paparazzi attention.
He has recently been a judge on The Voice.
A thorough recap today . Thanks
One tiny nit to pick: a postdoc isn't pursuing a degree, they are POST doctoral degree. I still got the fill but it rankles.
ReplyDeleteCouldn't agree more. Bugged me way more than it should.
DeleteFOUR-PEATS is a rarely used term for a rarely occurring event. Looking it up, it's only happened a few times in pro sports: NBA Boston Celtics from 1959-1966 (an eight-peat!); WNBA Houston Comets 1997-2000; NHL Montreal Canadiens 1956-1960 (a five-peat) and again in 1976-1979; and NHL New York Islanders 1980-1983. Probably a few more but rare enough that making a theme around it seems far fetched, although obvious to discern.
ReplyDeleteBudget-friendly fare was initially COACH SEAT, but soon changed to CHEAP SEAT before the final correction.
A good friend has a MiniMOOG synth from the '70s. Like everything that becomes "vintage" if you hold onto it long enough, it's now worth beaucoup bucks.
Good times as always Hahtoolah. ATM FEES toon is so true.
”Four PEAT’s sake”, I can hear the circulophobes moaning 😉 … but a gettable Tuesday and obvious theme. (Are three, 3 pointers a TREYPEAT in B-Ball?) One Inkover: SEEMS to/SO. Then ran out of squares filling PEATmoss. GELPENS?
ReplyDeleteScratched my head at “sad”
APITY. Oh .. as in A PITY it’s not CHEAP air “fare”. IMIT sounds
like the typical CW “heard on the playground” clue.
As a lector at Mass reading St. Paul’s“ Epistles”. …. He woulda failed Language Arts class, such striking examples of interminable run on sentences. While we’re in the NT: Beth lehem “house of bread” Beta the second letter in the Greek aphabet (alpha beta) means “house” the symbol B s’posed to look like one (two story?)
The Slap Heard Round the World
Gentry with acreage ____ LANDED
“Paper clips” are ____ at “____ “ STAPLES
His synthesizer plays only ____ music … MOOG 🙄
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