Tuesday, July 1, 2025 Robin Stears

A Riot a Minute:  The first word of each theme answer, including the unifier, is a description of a type laughter.  Several of these terms seemed a bit antiquated to me.

17-Across. Canned responses featured on many classic sitcoms: LAUGH TRACKS.

. 

28-Across. Alcohol, in 1920s speakeasy slang: GIGGLE WATER.  I was not familiar with this term.  It even predates my parents.

46-Across. Egg, in diner slang: CACKLEBERRY.  I was not familiar with this term, either.  Apparently, Cackleberry is a slang term for a hen's egg because it is a combination of the word "cackle" (the sound a hen makes), and "berry", which is roughly the shape of an egg.

And the unifier:

59-Across. Bozo, and a feature of 17-, 28-, and 46-Across: CHUCKLEHEAD.  Also known as a blockhead.

Any other laughs?

Across:

1. Curved segments: ARCS.

5. Happy shout: HOORAH!

11. Scoreboard figs.: PTS.  As in Points.

14. Actress Petty: LORI.  Lori Petty (b. October. 14, 1963) was in many films in the 1990s.

Then and now.

15. Saint of Ávila: TERESA.

16. Nev. neighbor: ARI.  Arizona is the neighbor of Nevada.  The Hoover dam is on the border of these two states.  Hi, Lucina!

19. Bled, as dyed fabric: RAN.

20. Fix a sloppy cartographer's work: REMAP.

21. Generic painkiller: ASPIRIN.  The active ingredient of aspirin is acetylsalicylic acid.  It is derived from willow bark and has been known to relieve pain for over 3,500 years.  Aspirin, that we purchase from the drug store was developed in the late 1890s by chemist Felix Hoffmann (Jan. 21, 1868 ~ Feb. 8, 1946) at Bayer.  Aspirin taken in large quantities, however, can cause gastric bleeding.

23. Fictional lion whose name is Turkish for "lion": ASLAN.  Aslan is a major character in The Chronicles of Narnia, by C. S. Lewis (né Clive Staples Lewis; Nov. 29, 1898 ~ Nov. 22, 1963).

24. Course for intl. students: ESL.  As in English as a Second Language.  This has become a crossword staple.

26. Shape of a tornado: CONE.

27. Cowboys, on scoreboards: DAL.  Think football and the Dallas Cowboys.

32. Attempt: STAB.

34. "__ too shabby!": NOT.

35. Rather thick: DENSE.

36. Share a border with: ABUT.

38. Needs one more candle on one's cake: AGES.

39. Jackrabbits, e.g.: HARES.  Jackrabbits are hares, but are not rabbits.

41. Peach or coral: HUE.

42. Milky gemstone: OPAL.  Everything you ever wanted to know about opals.

49. Quaint "Hurry up!": HIE.

50. Rich person's suffix: -AIRE.  Hand up if you are a Billionaire.

51. Stat that may increase with a homer: ERA.  As in Earned Run Average.

52. Love, in Torino: AMORE.  Today's Italian lesson.

54. Before daybreak: PRE-DAWN.

57. Striped African antelope: ELAND.

58. Touchdown hr.: ETA.  Not football, but flying in a plane.  Estimated Time of Arrival.

63. Oil field structure: RIG.

64. Force: COMPEL.

65. Buy in, in poker: ANTE.  //  And 66-Across. Call, in poker: SEE.  //  And 1-Down.  Winner takes __: ALL.

67. __ rasa: blank slate: TABULA.  Today's Latin lesson.

68. "Stay" singer Lisa: LOEB.  Stay is career-making song Lisa Anne Loeb (b. Mar. 11, 1968).  The song was from the movie Reality Bites, and was the first number-one single on the Billboard Hot 100 for an artist without a recording contract.

Down:

2. Greets like a tiger: ROARS AT.

3. Villain de Vil of "101 Dalmatians": CRUELLA.

4. Greek letter on the AutoSum button in Excel: SIGMA.

5. URL intro: HTTP.  We had this recently.  HTTP stands for Hypertext Transfer Protocol.

6. Poetic "above": O'ER.

7. Pop star Rita: ORA.  Rita Sahatçiu Ora makes frequent guest appearances in the puzzle.  She is a British singer, actress, television personality, and fashion icon.  She was born in Kosovo in 1990.

8. Think back to: RECALL.  Do you have total recall?

9. Gives a proper "Jeopardy!" response: ASKS.

10. Locking device: HASP.

11. Colorful, chatty birds: PARROTS.

12. Company noob: TRAINEE.

13. One seeking redemption: SINNER.

18. Put up, as art: HANG.

22. "Just watch me!": I CAN SO!

23. Some Super Bowl highlights: ADs.

24. Awards "quadruple crown": EGOT.  The EGOT (Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony) Awards is often seen in the puzzles. 

25. PD rank: SGT.  As in Sergeant in the Police Department.

29. Occupied: IN USE.

30. Groundskeeper's tool: EDGER.

31. Tiny: WEE.

33. Spoke in a husky voice?: BARKED.

37. "The Fresh Prince of __-Air": BEL.  A Will Smith sit-com that ran in the 1990s.

38. Subtle glow: AURA.

39. Scrunchie, for one: HAIR TIE.

40. Farm measure: ACREAGE.

41. Feminine pronoun: HER.

43. Bus. card info: PHONE NO.

44. Broadcast time: AIR DATE.

45. Gymnast Suni: LEE.  Suni Lee (née Sunisa Phabsomphou Lee; b. Mar. 9, 2003) is an American artistic gymnast.  In the 2020 and 2024 Olympics, she was the all-around gold medalist and won the bronze medal on the uneven bars bronze medalist.

46. Tangy buds in chicken piccata: CAPERS.  Everything you ever wanted to know about capers.

47. Deaden: BE NUMB.

48. Ivy university featured on "Gilmore Girls": YALE.  I never watched Gilmore Girls, but Yale was an obvious fit.

53. Taj __: Indian tourist site: MAHAL.

55. Bank holding: Abbr.: ACCT.  As in Account.

56. "OMG!" kin: WHOA.  Really?

57. Purnell of "Yellowjackets": ELLA.  Ella Summer Reed Purnell (b. September 17, 1996) is a British actress who began her career as a child model.

60. PC core: CPU.  As in Central Processing Unit.

61. Kenan's former comedy partner: KEL.  Kenan and Kel was a sit-com from the late 1990s that starred Kenan Thompson (b. May 10, 1978) and Kel Mitchell (né Kel Johari Rice Mitchell; b. Aug. 25, 1978).  Kenan later went on to star on Saturday Night Live.

62. "Smitten Kitchen Every Day" cookbook writer Perelman: DEB.  I am not familiar with Smitten Kitchen Every Day.  Apparently, the Smitten Kitchen began as a cooking blog.

Here's the Grid:

חתולה

White Rabbit on this First Day of July.

Monday June 30, 2025 Amie Walker and Darby Ratliff

  

Happy Monday, everyone! sumdaze here. Today's theme is:  

not that this is a test or anything....

20 Across. Place to see some spectacles?: GLASSES CASE.  A bit of misdirection is always fun. Perhaps you were thinking of a spectacular display?  

25 Across. "Abbott Elementary" star: QUINTA BRUNSON.  Congratulations to you if this one was a gimme. It was ESP for me. I checked our archives. Quinta's full name was a themed answer on 10/22/24;  she appeared in a clue on 5/29/25;  and she was mentioned in the write-ups on 10/25/23 and 10/29/24. It is time for me to remember her name. 

42 Across. Coach at a health club: PERSONAL TRAINER.  

You could say that Mr. Miyagi was a
PERSONAL TRAINER for the Karate Kid (1984).

52 Across. Manager who opens up a shop, or an apt description of 20-, 25-, or 42-Across: KEY HOLDER.  I was not familiar with this title. As the clue indicates, it is an employee with added responsibilities, such as arriving early to unlock a business.

Also, the circles spotlight three KEYs of another variety -- computer KEYs. Furthermore, the KEYs are held within the themed answers:  ESC, TAB, and ALT. I liked how our puzzle setter placed all the KEYs so that they span the two word answers. I noticed that these three keys are in the top-to-bottom order that matches my keyboard. I wonder if that was intentional.

Next, we will enter the other clues & answers:

Across:

1. Fashion mag known for quizzes: COSMO.  Magazine is shortened, so is COSMOpolitan. 

6. Dog's foot: PAW.

9. Fan out, as toes: SPLAY.  When dogs lay with their legs SPLAYed, it is called splooting.  

14. Proprietor: OWNER.  OWNERs are usually KEY HOLDERs.

15. Prefix with system: ECO-.

16. Self-assurance: POISE.

17. Media watchdog org. that focuses on queer inclusivity: GLAAD.  This organization was founded on November 14, 1985.  website

18. Big boat that held animal pairs: ARK.  

19. Answers an invite, briefly: RSVPS.

23. Korean car company: KIA.

24. Pizzeria order: PIE.  Dean Martin sang about one in 1953.

When the moon hits your eye like a big pizza PIE, that's amore.  ♪♪

32. Mom's sister: AUNT.

33. Neckwear worn by Mickey Mouse at Aulani Resort: LEI.  This is a Disney resort on the island of Oahu's leeward side. Their website says aulani means "messenger of a chief".  

34. Ladybug feature: SPOT.  Cute clue! A ladybug's spots are not random. They serve as a deterrent to predators.  more about ladybug's spots

36. Laser tag sound: PEW.

37. Runs at full speed: GALLOPS.  It is surprising how smooth it feels on a horse's back at full gallop.

41. "__ bit confused": I'M A.

45. Digital counterpart: ANALOG.

46. Beat in a hot dog contest, e.g.: OUT EAT.  This answer has four vowels and two T's.

47. Spots for facials: SPAS.

48. Tax season helper: Abbr.: CPA.

51. "__ la vie!": C'EST.  That's life! (French)

55. Opposite of 39-Down: ANTI.     and     39 Down. In favor of: PRO.

58. Major fad: MANIA.  

Beetlemania came to mind.

59. "I so agree with you": AMEN.

63. Vanilla __: BEAN.  It takes 9 months from pollination to bean; 9 months to cure the bean; and 9 months to enhance the flavor in a humidor.

64. Humidor item: CIGAR.  "Vanilla BEAN" did not fit.

65. __ sago: tapioca dessert served hot or cold: TARO.  Google says this is a Cantonese dessert.

66. Karaoke selection: SONG.  Karaoke translates to "empty orchestra" in Japanese.  

67. Came to the surface: AROSE.

68. Dutch semisoft cheese: EDAM.  made in the Netherlands

Down:

1. Gear tooth: COG.

2. Hooting bird: OWL.  I have always been fond of burrowing OWLs. They are less than 10 in. (25.4 cm.) tall and are active during the day. This video was made by someone with a trail camera.  Burrowing Owl Facts

3. Catch (on): SNAG.  It took me a bit to catch on that this was like when your sweater catches on a bench splinter.

4. HelloFresh product: MEAL KIT.  HelloFresh delivers meal components to your house.

5. Confer holy orders upon: ORDAIN.

6. Samosa vegetables: PEAS.  During the fall I stock up on Trader Joe's mini spicy pumpkin samosas; however, those do not have PEAS in them.

7. Land measure: ACRE.

8. Pans that might require special burners: WOKS.

9. Wrist injury: SPRAIN.

10. To have or to hold: POSSESS.  I like this allusion to wedding vows.

11. "I will never __ this down!": LIVE.

12. Nile snake: ASP.

13. "I accept!": YES.

21. Stayed put: SAT.

22. Apple core, for short: CPU.  This apple is a computer with a Central Processing Unit.

25. Largest borough of New York City: QUEENS.  I just needed one perp to guess at this one.  

26. Open, as a present: UNWRAP.

27. Penne __ vodka: ALLA.

28. Bike signal: BELL. I have a bell on all of my bikes. I use them to notify other Rec Trail users that I am about to pass but they are usually too busy looking at their phones to hear me.

29. Barrel of laughs: RIOT.

30. Weighs in: OPINES.

31. Vegetarian restriction: NO MEAT.

32. Dad, in Korean: APPA.  

35. Like sourballs: TART.

37. Canadian honker: GOOSE.  I recently learned about how the Artic Barnacle GOOSE builds its nest on a high cliff then the goslings do a freefall to meet their parents at the bottom. Apparently their bones are soft enough to survive the fall during a 36-72 hour window. This video is bananas!  

Spoiler alert: the chick survives!

38. "Life of Pi" director Lee: ANG.

40. Sriracha, for one: SAUCE.  

43. Satisfying, as thirst: SLAKING.  Def. (verb) (1.) <archaic> Subside; abate.  (2.) crumble.

44. Say over and over: ITERATE.  Is "reiterate" redundant?

48. Seat at the table: CHAIR.  Literally.

49. Father of many, many puppies in "101 Dalmatians": PONGO.  I pulled this one out of the punchbowl!

50. Ms. Marvel, for Kamala Khan: ALIAS.  

Canadian actress Iman Vellani played Kamala Khan/Ms. Marvel
 in the 2022 Disney+ series.

53. Org. with a pool, often: YMCA.

54. Truth alternative in a party game: DARE.

55. Crunch muscles: ABS.

56. Prefix with classical: NEO-.

57. Beach vacation souvenir: TAN.  My old boss used to say that a vacation's good vibes fade at the same rate as the TAN.

60. Steamed: MAD.  

61. Notable span: ERA.

62. Snack, cutesily: NOM.  

Here's the grid. We do not usually see vertical symmetry on Mondays.

Two notes before I close:

1. Thanks to RustyBrain for covering for me last week!
2. Please join me in wishing our blogmistress C.C. a very happy birthday!  🎂