Sunday January 26, 2025 Amy Johnson & Katie Hale

Theme: "Quality Time" - Common phrases that start with the synonyms of "top quality" are reinterpreted as "Quality of good ...", matching the second word in each theme answer with the profession in each corresponding clue.

23. Quality of good mediums?: PREMIUM CHANNELS.

33. Quality of good photographers?: PARAMOUNT PICTURES.

53. Quality of good pyrotechnicians?: GREAT BALLS OF FIRE.

70. Quality of good detectives?: BEST-CASE SCENARIOS.

91. Quality of good gourd farmers?: SMASHING PUMPKINS.

108. Quality of good politicians?: FIRST CLASS TICKETS.

124. Quality of good architects?: EPIC PROPORTIONS.

Hmm, I thought the answer for "Quality of ...." would be an abstract noun, no? 

Otherwise, the theme entries are all consistent and sparkling. Notice how few proper names and abbrs in this grid. Not surprising from two of our best Sunday puzzle makers.

Across:

1. Faculty leader: DEAN.

5. "How dull": BLAH.

9. "Hot Shots!" or "Hot Fuzz": SPOOF. "Hot Shots!" is a parody of "Rambo". What about "Hot Fuzz"?

14. Harden of the NBA: JAMES. With the Clippers now.

19. Hankering: URGE.

20. Garter trim: LACE. I've never worn a garter.

21. Amp input: AUDIO.

22. Grove fruit: OLIVE.

26. Lower arm bones: ULNAE.

27. Click a magic link: LOG ON. Magic link is password-less.

28. Seed cover: ARIL. The seeds of a pomegranate are called ARILS.

29. Puts into play: USES.

31. "Curious": ODD.

32. Italian time piece?: ORA. Italian for "hour".

39. Sojutsu weapon: SPEAR.

41. Ten hundos: ONE G.

42. "Stay" singer Lisa: LOEB.

43. Colorful reef fish: WRASSE. We also have 135. Move like a fish: SWIM. And 4. Pixar fish: NEMO. Tom Pepper was just snorkeling at the Great Barrier Reef last week.

47. Tap annoyance: DRIP.

49. Cutoffs material: DENIM.

59. Like some romance novels: RACY.

60. Playroom detritus: TOYS.

61. Grape also known as shiraz: SYRAH. I want to taste them.

62. Is more efficient, in a way: SAVES GAS.

64. Have a bond with?: OWE TO. In the sense of "I owe it all to him", right?

66. "A Dream Within a Dream" poet: POE.

68. Wild house party: RAGER.

69. Formicarium pet: ANT. Formicarium is an ant farm.

76. In the way of?: ALA.

78. Landlord's document: LEASE.

79. Life game piece: CAR.

80. "__ of the Dead": zom-com starring Simon Pegg: SHAUN.

83. Embers: HOT COALS.

85. Warmest temps: HIGHS.

89. Some fried pods: OKRA.

90. Soft repetition: ECHO.

96. Stroll: MOSEY.

98. "Crescent City" novelist Sarah J. __: MAAS. Don't know her. But happy with the new clue angle.

99. Desert north of the Sahel: SAHARA.

100. Innocent one: NAIF.

103. "Modern Family" dad Dunphy: PHIL.

105. Point __: Northern California cape: REYES.

115. Homer's "neighborino": NED.

117. Biomolecule in some vaccines: RNA.

118. Palette shades: HUES.

119. Actor Rickman: ALAN.

120. Talent show host: EMCEE.

122. "They were with me all day," e.g.: ALIBI.

129. Red Sea republic: YEMEN. 34. Many 129-Across residents: ARABS.

130. "The Birds" actress Hedren: TIPPI. Dakota Johnson is her granddaughter.

131. Check, as a cake for doneness, e.g.: POKE.

132. Composer Satie: ERIK.

133. Reek: STINK.

134. Sneer at: SCORN.

136. Volleyball fixtures: NETS.

Down:

1. Lego brand for younger children: DUPLO.

 

2. Typos: ERRORS.

3. Sibling statistic: AGE GAP.

5. __-ray disc: BLU.

6. "Poetic Justice" rapper Kendrick: LAMAR. He won the 2018 Pulitzer Prize for Music.

7. Ghana's capital: ACCRA.

8. Pronoun pair: HE/HIM.

9. __ Marino: SAN.

10. Basis of many a popsicle stick joke: PUN.

11. Reverent poem: ODE.

12. Prepare to shine in a bodybuilding contest?: OIL UP.

13. Mary Anning find: FOSSIL. I don't know this lady. Wikipedia says she's a fossil collector and a paleontologist.

14. Participated in a Renaissance sport: JOUSTED.

15. __ or nothing: ALL.

16. Inconsequential: MINOR.

17. Slip by: EVADE.

18. Crunchy salad toppers: SEEDS. I like macadamia nuts.

24. Not completely: IN PART.

25. __ paratha: Indian flatbread: ALOO. With mashed potatoes,

30. Friendly prefix: ECO.

35. Revert to a previous version: UNDO.

36. Football brand: NERF.

37. Quittin' time letters: TGIF.

38. Taxi alternatives: UBERS.

40. Discarded Apples?: E WASTE. Capitalized Apple.

44. "You can __ that again": SAY.

45. Camera shop purchase, briefly: SLR.

46. Slip by: ELAPSE.

48. Like Galileo and Fibonacci: PISAN.

50. "Madama Butterfly" setting: NAGASAKI. Literally "Long Cape" in Japanese. 

51. "Not if __ help it!": I CAN.

52. PC adventure game: MYST.

53. Old Pontiac model: GTO.

54. Verbal spat: ROW.

55. Optic solutions: EYE BATHS.

56. Pump or clog: SHOE.

57. Framework for Indian classical music: RAGA.

58. On any occasion: EVER.

63. Judgement of Paris pot-stirrer: ERIS. The goddess of discord. She started the Trojan War.

65. Northern European capital: OSLO.

67. "Close this pop-up" key: ESC.

68. Puts a sail back up: RE-RIGS.

71. 73-Down exports: TEAS. 73. Northeast Indian region: ASSAM.

72. Feeling after a deep breath: CALM.

74. "It's Magic" lyricist Sammy: CAHN.

75. "Well then, fine": OH OKAY.

76. "If I may ... ": AHEM.

77. Motion opening?: LOCO. Locomotion.

81. Hot water holder: URN.

82. Grammy winning rapper Lil __ X: NAS. Known for his fashion sense.

84. Joel and Ethan of Hollywood: COENS.

86. Valedictorian stat: GPA.

87. "I didn't catch that": HUH.

88. "I like your thinking!": SMART.  And 97. "Thanks, Captain Obvious!": YA THINK.

92. Suckers: SAPS.

93. Skeptic's laughs: HAHS. And 94. Skeptic's question: IS IT.

95. Activate at a designated time: PRESET.

101. Post-op ward: ICU.

102. Battleship groups: FLEETS.

104. Whopper maker: LIAR.

106. Last song at a concert, often: ENCORE.

107. "I watched that already": SEEN IT.

108. Shreds at the edge: FRAYS.

109. Sound of the sea?: INLET. Not the noise.

110. "Spider-Man" films director Sam: RAIMI.

111. Meaty jelly: ASPIC.

112. Trotting noises: CLOPS.

113. "Smack!": KAPOW.

114. Long mushroom: ENOKI. The Chinese way. Very cheap in China.

 

116. Classroom furniture: DESKS.

121. Outward manner: MIEN.

123. "Paddington" voice actor Whishaw: BEN.

125. Mkt. debut: IPO.

126. First aid training, for short: CPR.

127. Brooch: PIN.

128. Sleep acronym: REM.

 

JD sent me this loving picture of her birthday celebration. Surreal to think that Truman was a only a baby when JD first joined us.

 

A few pictures of the Chinese New Year office lobby decoration and the flower market from my friend Lesley in Guangzhou.

Monday November 18, 2024 Amy Johnson and Katie Hale

  

Happy Monday, everyone! sumdaze here with a theme that seems to have arisen out of nowhere.

Theme:      Ta-da!

18 Across. Long garment with no waistline: TENT DRESS.

A POP-UP TENT is a tent that is ready to use as soon as it is unfolded, without requiring a frame to be assembled first.  

a TENT DRESS and a POP-UP TENT

24 Across. "These aren't the droids we're looking for" speaker: STORM TROOPER.

Our constructors threw us a curve ball with this one. If you read the clue too quickly you might have wanted to answer Ben Obi-Wan Kenobi. However, Ben said "you're" and the STORM TROOPER responded "we're". Here is the scene from the 1977 Star Wars movie. (The STORM TROOPERs are wearing white body armor.) (1:29 min.)  

Read about a POP-UP STORM here.

38 Across. Activity for a green-thumbed apartment dweller: WINDOW GARDENING. 

A POP-UP WINDOW is a small advertisement or banner that appears in the foreground of one's screen while browsing a website.  

a WINDOW GARDEN and a POP-UP WINDOW I often see on Blogger

49 Across. Aftereffects of a great read: BOOK HANGOVER. I do not recall hearing this term before today but I have definitely experienced one. Here is how one blogger describes it:

A “book hangover” is the slangy shortcut for the feeling when a reader finishes a book—usually fiction—and they can’t stop thinking about the fictional world that has run out of pages. The story is over, but the reader misses the characters or the atmosphere of the novel. 

I bought this elaborate POP-UP BOOK for my grandmother when she developed dementia.
It turned out to be a good gift because her visitors enjoyed looking through it with her.

Now for the reveal:

60 Across. Right-click result, often, and where the starts of 18-, 24-, 38-, and 49-Across can be found?: POP-UP MENU.

If you right-click on your PC*, a MENU of options POPs-UP. Here is an example:  

The reveal clue also says that the starts of the themed clues can be found on a POP-UP MENU. I take that to mean that if you were looking at a menu (list) of things that POP-UP, you might see these four items:  TENT, STORM, WINDOW, and BOOK.

Before we POP on over to the rest of the clues, here's a CSO to all the POPS on the Corner.  

Across:

1. Financial liability of concern to creditors: DEBT.     and     6 Down. Have a 1-Across with: OWE TO.  

Investopedia article about Credit Scores

5. "Gilmore Girls" daughter: RORY.  Do we get a lot of Gilmore Girls cast member clues or is it always RORY? I never saw the show so these questions are always ESPs for me.  

9. Lightning streak: BOLT.

13. Dickens villain Heep: URIAH.  Uriah Heep is such a great name! He was the creep in David Copperfield. I chose this book for my senior literature project when I was in high school.

15. Tot's scrape: OWIE.

16. Grammy winner India.__: ARIE.  My trick for remembering this XWD staple fill is she sings an aria, but with an "e" at the end.

17. "So anyway," e.g.: SEGUE.  Def: (noun) a transition made without pause or interruption.

Regardless, this was a fun word to find in the grid.

20. TV channel with a large film library: TCM.  Turner Classic Movies

21. Sidesplitters: RIOTS.  Def:  (noun) an exceedingly funny story or joke.

23. German sub dangerous to Allied ships: U-BOAT.

27. Goat pen noises: MAAS.  

28. Anchorage locale: ALASKA.  Anchorage is ALASKA's most populous city with 286,075 people. ALASKA's capital, Juneau has 31,555 people.  

North to Alaska  ~  Johnny Horton  ~  1960

32. Calvin of fashion: KLEIN.  As it turns out, Calvin Richard Klein celebrates his 82nd birthday tomorrow. He was born in The Bronx, NY. He graduated from the Fashion Institute of Technology in 1962.

34. Anti-inflammatory antioxidant berry: ACAI.  Will the accolades to this berry never cease?

37. Backdrop of many novels set in the 1940s: WAR.  This one took me a bit, but after I got it I thought, "Fair enough."

42. Recipe no.: AMT.     and     55 Down. Report card nos.: GPAS. 

"Number(s)" is abbreviated in these clues, so is "AMounT" and "Grade Point Averages".

43. Top-tier: A-ONE.  Also top-tier is the XWD staple, A-Team.

44. Date opening: MONTH.  In the U.S., dates are usually (but not always) written as MONTH/day/year. Since MONTH comes first, it is the opening.

45. Apple download: IOS APP.  iOS is the iPhone Operating System. iOS APPs are designed to take advantage of an iPhone's built-in features, like its camera, microphone, GPS, etc.

48. Duck, duck, goose shape: RING.  Duck, Duck, Goose is a children's game in which the players sit in a circle.

55. Figure on a wedding cake, maybe: GROOM.  

58. Steel support for concrete: REBAR.  

59. Ida. neighbor: ORE.  There is a movement for some eastern OREgon counties to join IDAho.  GreaterIdaho.org website 

62. "Hakuna Matata" composer John: ELTON.     and     11 Down. WNBA great Leslie: LISA.

We have two double firsties in today's puzzle. Those always throw me off.

64. Hymn finale: AMEN.

65. Give off: EMIT.

66. Shoe material that shouldn't get wet: SUEDE.  You shouldn't step on SUEDE either. Elvis sang a song about that.  

67. "__ my regards": SEND.  not "give"  

68. Loose tops: TEES.

69. Went up a size: GREW.  

The Grinch's heart GREW. (45 sec.)

Down:

1. Does some light housekeeping: DUSTS.  

Treadmills are also good for hanging laundry.

2. Not hunched over: ERECT.

3. Life-changing events: BIG MOMENTS.

4. "T," on sorority row: TAU.  

Greek alphabet

5. Helicopter part: ROTOR.

7. Classic Unilever laundry soap: RINSO.  Unilever is the company that owns the brand name RINSO...among other well-known brands.

8. "So close, __ so far": YET.  

9. Streisand of "Yentl": BARBRA.  The story is that she was born "Barbara" then changed the spelling of her name when she was 18 because she wanted to be unique but did not want to change her name.

10. Cookie with a Coca-Cola variety: OREO.

12. Rorschach __: TEST.  The test consists of a series of 10 symmetrical blots where the subject states what they see. These slides are shown in the same order to align modern observations with historical performance. You can see the 10 cards here.

This is a 22 sec. clip from Batman Forever (1995) with Val Kilmer and Nichole Kidman.

14. Boy of la familia: HERMANO.  Spanish for "brother"

19. "Hamilton" climax: DUEL.  I liked this clue!  The song from that scene is called The World Was Wide Enough. It is a great message for today's quarrels as well! 

22. "__ showtime!": IT'S.

25. Midnight snack expedition: RAID.

26. Reimbursed: PAID.

29. Person who is a big factor in a two-party election: SWING VOTER.

30. Philosopher Immanuel: KANT.  (1724-1804) He was born in Germany and is one of the Enlightenment thinkers. Basically, he believed in humanity's ability to be rational about morality and wrote about categorical imperatives. The internet says Kant was 5'2" (157.5 cm.).

31. "Grr": ARGH.

32. River in an epic film title: KWAI.  The Bridge on the River Kwai was the highest-grossing film of 1957. It won seven Oscars, including Best Picture.

33. Bachelorette party hire, perhaps: LIMO.

34. Before now: AGO.

35. Food drive item: CAN.  a good November reminder to help out

36. "__ you sure?": ARE.  No, I'm sumdaze.

39. D.C. paper: WAPO.  WAshington POst

40. Some asylum seekers: EMIGRES.

41. Improper action: NO-NO.  

46. Teem: ABOUND.

47. Showy splendor: POMP.  I thought of the graduation march POMP and Circumstance by Edward Elgar, a name I've seen in a few puzzles.

48. Biochem molecule: RNA.

50. Krispy __: KREME.  

51. Figure skater Sonja: HENIE.  (1912-1969) Henie won more Olympic and World titles than any other female figure skater. She was born in XWD's favorite capital, Oslo.

52. Shares an edge: ABUTS.

53. Eat away at: ERODE.  During the Ice Age, glaciers ate away at the granite in the Sierra Nevada mountain range, creating Yosemite's Half Dome.  

54. Affirm again, as vows: RENEW.  

56. Italy's capital: ROME.

57. Willing to listen: OPEN.

61. Encountered: MET.

63. Carry with effort: LUG.  

Here's the grid, with a POP of color:

Have a great day! I'll POP by later to read the comments.

*Note to Mac users:  According to the Apple Support website, a right-click on a Mac is called a 'secondary click' or 'Control-click'. To open shortcut menus, Control-click an item using your keyboard and mouse or trackpad.

Monday March 25, 2024 Amy Johnson

  

Happy Monday, everyone! sumdaze here. My calendar is telling me today is a XWD favorite holiday -- Holi. Best wishes to all who celebrate!

Veteran constructor Amy Johnson recently collaborated with Katie Hale on this Sunday puzzle. Today she is back with a solo contribution I am calling: 

Wishful Thinking

All is explained at the reveal:

56 Across. Words said over a lit birthday cake, and upon the start of 17-, 26-, or 42-Across: MAKE A WISH.  

Isn't she fun to watch?!

17 Across. Box office attraction: STAR POWER.  Jiminy Cricket sang about this in Pinocchio (1940).  

(Watch at 1:19 min. there are side-by-side pictures of crooner Cliff Edwards 

next to his animated alter ego.)

26 Across. Ancient vintner's quaff: DANDELION WINE.  

Why People Wish on Dandelions

42 Across. Makeup bag contraption: EYELASH CURLER.  If you see an eyelash on your friend's face, you can put it on the tip of your finger and tell your friend to make a wish then blow it away.

If you didn't know, this is an EYELASH CURLER.
No wonder eyelashes want to flee after being caught in one of these contraptions!  

The three themers give us three things upon which we can make a wish:  STAR, DANDELION, EYELASH. Amy did a fine job of crafting her idea into a 9-13-13-9 pattern grid. Let's see what else she included:

Across:
1. "The __ of the Furious": film sequel also known as "F8": FATE.  Hand up for filling this with FAST then later looking at 1-Down and thinking, "Huh?"

How did I miss the F+8=FATE ? I obviously went too fast. 

5. Orange juice bits: PULP.

9. Former Speaker of the House Pelosi: NANCY.  Nancy Patricia Pelosi (b. March 26, 1940) served as the 52nd Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives from 2007-2011 and 2019-2023.

14. Atmospheric glow: AURA.

15. Teri's "Young Frankenstein" role: INGA.  Here is Teri Garr reminiscing about making the 1974 film with director Mel Brooks and co-stars Gene Wilder, Marty Feldman, and Madeline Kahn.

16. Honolulu hello: ALOHA.  

19. Like an area with many farms: RURAL.

20. Tee or cami: TOP.

21. Suffix with oct-: -ANE.  so much more info.

22. Letters sent by plane: AIRMAIL.  

24. Scott Turow work: ONE L.  

25. Timely blessing: BOON.

31. __ and pestle: MORTAR.  Mine gets a lot of use grinding flax seeds to add to the bread I bake. My tip is to add whatever salt a recipe calls for to the MORTAR at the same time.  

32. Dr. Jekyll creator's monogram: RLS.  Robert Louis Stevenson was born in Edinburgh on November 13, 1850 and died 9,460 miles away in Samoa on December 3, 1894.  

33. Celestial sphere: ORB.

35. Belgium money: EUROS.

36. Heaven knows where, for short: MIA.  Missing In Action  

37. Subway in Washington, D.C.: METRO.  

I rode the Orange line to the Farragut West station for three years.

39. Flight safety org.: TSA.  

40. Casual hellos: HIs.

41. Lox fish: SALMON.  Lox is a fillet (or strip) of brined SALMON. Brining means to cure food with salt.  lox-a more about lox

46. Part of speech: NOUN.

47. Classic TV role for Ron Howard: OPIE.  Ron talks in depth about this period of his life in his book The Boys: A Memoir of Hollywood and Family (2021).

48. Millennium Falcon pilot: HAN SOLO.  Anyone with an iota of Star Wars background knew this one.

Harrison Ford, back in the day
BTW, Harrison Ford and Ron Howard acted together in American Graffiti,
a 1973 George Lucas film about cruising in Modesto, CA.

51. Surgery ctrs.: ORS.  Operating Rooms

52. Gain a lap: SIT.  This was my FAV clue today!  Not a lap on the track!

55. Renowned baseball family: ALOUS.  Here is the story of how three brothers from the Dominican Republic made MLB history by forming the first all-brother outfield back in 1963.  

59. Word after dime or dollar: STORE.

60. Early school yrs.: ELEM.  "Years" is abbrevieated, so is "ELEMentary".

61. __ and hearty: HALE.

62. Game piece: TOKEN.  

63. County fair attraction: RIDE.

64. Sign of the future: OMEN.

Down:

1. "The __ and the Furious": action film franchise: FAST.

2. Car: AUTO.  

AUTOs in The Fast and Furious  (2001)

3. U-shaped part of a drainpipe: TRAP.  

4. Spot for an AirPod: EAR.

5. Trailblazer: PIONEER.

6. Not feeling up to par: UNWELL.

7. Size up from med.: LGE.

8. Curve in algebra class: PARABOLA.  

This diagram shows why we say a PARABOLA is a conic section 
(the curve you get when a plane intersects a cone's surface).

9. Not wide: NARROW.

10. School reunion attendees: ALUMNI.

11. "Julie & Julia" writer/director Ephron: NORA.  

12. Spiced tea brewed in milk: CHAI.

13. Southern collective pronoun: Y'ALL.  I hope Y'ALL got this one correct today.

18. Bamboo-eating bears: PANDAS.  

23. Atomic particles that carry charges: IONS.

24. Hardly fooled by: ONTO.  ONTO is a preposition that can mean on top of or fully aware of.  

26. Drench: DOUSE.  This is that disgusting MAYO video we were talking about last week.  WVU coach gets DOUSEd in MAYO after bowl win

27. Wide variety: ARRAY.

28. From Donegal: IRISH.  CSO to our lovely IM☘

29. "Get anyone else": NOT ME.

30. Infielder's blunder: ERROR.

31. "Have we __?": MET.  

34. "__ voyage!": BON.

36. Inappropriate handle: MISNOMER.  The slang definition of "handle" is a person's name or nickname. We all use one on The Corner.

37. Oscar winner Tomei: MARISA.  She won for My Cousin Vinny in 1993.  

Love this styling!!

38. French feminine pronoun: ELLE.

40. Heist booty: HAUL.

41. Highest in rank: SUPREME.  

Stop! In the Name of Love

The Supremes (1965)

43. Big name in nutritional shakes: ENSURE.  

44. Undo a bit, as a tie: LOOSEN.

45. Not raw: COOKED.

48. Biblical verb: HAST.  archaic second person singular present of "have"

49. Voice range for some boys: ALTO.

50. Cozy reading spot: NOOK.  31 Dreamy Reading Nook Ideas to Curl up with a Book in 2024

52. Thailand, once: SIAM.  CSO to Lily, Husker Gary's SIAMese cat.  

53. Cruise ship stop: ISLE.

54. Back in the day: THEN.

57. "Sting like a bee" boxer: ALI.

58. "Doctor __": BBC series starring Ncuti Gatwa: WHO.  Ncuti was born on October 15, 1992 in Rwanda. He is the 15th incarnation of the Doctor. Here he is with the latest sonic screwdriver.  

Here's today's completed grid:

Thanks in advance for your comments! I'll be off-line this week but I'll see you next Monday. I wish you a good day!