Sunday March 23, 2025 Gary Larson & Doug Peterson

Theme: "World Series" - Each theme entry contains a popular TV series and the show is re-imagined at a different setting.

23. A spunky teenage girl works as an intern in Silicon Valley?: APPLE BLOSSOM.

29. A forensic anthropologist investigates crime at a topless beach on the French Riviera?: BARE BONES.

42. Hugh Laurie's character practices medicine in Tokyo?: HOUSE OF THE RISING SUN.

68. The bar where "everybody knows your name" opens a franchise in a New York borough?: BRONX CHEERS.

93. Rachel, Ross, and the gang climb the Himalayas?: FRIENDS IN HIGH PLACES.

109. A navy lawyer visits the Wailing Wall in Jerusalem?: CRYING JAG.

116. High-powered attorneys vacation at the Yellowstone Hot Springs?: BATHING SUITS.

The new settings are all over the place, hence "World Series".

Gary and Doug have collaborated quite a few Sunday puzzles. From the byline we can see that this is Gary's initial idea. Doug helped him find more theme entries.

Across:

1. Fashion brand that makes Luna Rossa Ocean fragrances: PRADA. For man. This is Jake Gyllenhaal.

6. Web crawler?: SPIDER. Not the website.

12. "The Big Bang Theory" character: RAJ.

15. Sale caveat: AS IS.

19. Narrow: TAPER.

20. "Sweet": OH NICE.

21. Big bird: EMU.

22. Fill a hold: LADE.

25. Home of the Lili'uokalani Botanical Garden: HONOLULU. Streams and waterfalls. I want to be there.

27. "Goosebumps" series writer: STINE (R.L.)

28. Bard's nightfall: EEN.

30. Bach work: CANTATA.

33. Center of activity: HUB.

34. Blue-white twinklers: B STARS.

35. Actress Gilbert: SARA.

38. Tic-__-toe: TAC.

39. Shadowbox: SPAR.

41. Basketball great Bird: SUE.

48. Yosemite photographer Adams: ANSEL.

49. Tabasco kin: TIO.

50. Arabian Peninsula citizen: OMANI.

51. Sugar __ peas: SNAP. You can just pop them into your mouth.

53. [Yawn]: MEH.

54. Tasteless: INSIPID. My taste buds have changed. The COVID I got last spring changed everything.

57. "Sick!": RAD.

58. Saint __ fire: ELMO'S.

60. Actress Rae: ISSA.

62. Major obligation: ONUS.

64. Most in need of a trim: WEEDIEST.

66. Is not misused?: AIN'T.

72. "California Gurls" singer Perry: KATY. I like her "Teenage Dream".

73. Plan for: FIGURE ON.

75. Gobsmack: STUN.

76. Get ready: PREP.

78. Familiar theme: TROPE.

79. Wearable souvenir: TEE.

81. Resembling the king of the jungle: LEONINE.

84. Crater's edge: RIM.

87. Budget execs: CFOS.

88. Eel, to a sushi chef: UNAGI. Mouth-watering. Eels boost your stamina.

90. "Lost" actor Daniel Dae __: KIM.

91. Stand for: ABIDE.

97. Pops: DAD. Ba ba.

98. Nodder's phrase: I SEE.

99. Shake a leg, quaintly: HIE.

100. Salty expanses: SEAS.

101. More glum: SADDER.

105. Explosive block in Minecraft: TNT.

106. Nursery noisemakers: RATTLES.

111. Former Interior Secretary Haaland: DEB. Not many way to clue this word.

112. Wonderland cake words: EAT ME.

115. Spot of Texas tea: OIL STAIN.

120. Not very convincing: WEAK.

121. Wily: SLY.

122. Camden Yards player: ORIOLE.

123. "Sneak Previews" co-host Roger: EBERT.

124. HR dept. data: SSNS.

125. NYC subway org.: MTA.

126. Formal announcement: DECREE.

127. Bowling alley lineup: LANES. Just had this last week. 

Down:

1. Fundraising org.: PTA.

2. Knocks: RAPS.

3. Calendar entry: Abbr.: APPT.

4. One might be full of baloney: DELI CASE. Fun clue.

5. Big game venue: ARENA.

6. Fa follower: SOL.

7. Vietnamese soup: PHO. They use thin rice noodles. I like wide noodles.

8. Map feature: INSET.

9. Pathologists' focus: DISEASE.

10. Sci. of money: ECON.

11. Sleep acronym: REM.

12. Post-surgery therapy, for short: REHAB.

13. Spanish "love": AMOR.

14. Insect similar to a figeater beetle: JUNE BUG.  Not familiar with the figeater beetle. But I like fresh figs also.

  

15. Parcel out: ALLOT.

16. Hot spot: SAUNA.

17. One whiling away the time: IDLER.

18. Sam-I-am's creator: SEUSS.

24. Square meal?: BENTO. Some squares inside, but bento boxes are often rectangular.

26. Preoccupied (with): OBSESSED.

29. Tuition collector: BURSAR. Learning moment for me.

31. White House family of the early 1910s: TAFTS.

32. Popcorn brand: ACT II.

33. One of "The Two Coreys": HAIM. Corey Haim and Corey Feldman.

35. Bogus: SHAM.

36. First-class: A ONE.

37. Heading out in a hurry: RUSHING OFF.

40. Collection of a brand's goods: PRODUCT LINE. Aritzia stopped their Go-to T-shirts. Drive me crazy.

41. Dee of heavy metal: SNIDER. Lead singer of Twisted Sister.

43. Yale grads: ELIS.

44. "I'll give you a lift!": HOP ON.

45. Not just impressed: IN AWE.

46. Not similar to: UNLIKE.

47. Prepare to haggle, perhaps: NAME A PRICE. I'm not good at haggling. You?

52. Fence upright: POST.

55. Part of town, for short: NABE.

56. "Devil Inside" band: INXS.

59. Pen for a pig: STY.

61. Daze: STUPOR.

63. Elisabeth of "The Boys": SHUE.

65. "NBA Today" airer: ESPN.

66. Toward the stern: AFT.

67. Texter's "Unless my memory deceives me": IIRC. If I Recall Correctly.

69. Portly: ROTUND.

70. Upright: ON END.

71. Long, thin mushroom: ENOKI. Essential in hot pot dishes.

74. Junk mail addressee: RESIDENT.

77. Not made up: REAL.

80. Softening: EASING.

82. __-light: NIGHT.

83. Battle cry: I'M HIT.

85. Notion: IDEA.

86. Total jumble: MESS. I'm slowly starting to understand this medical insurance thing. Scary.

89. Point: GIST.

92. Low-pitched wind in a marching band: BASS TUBA.

94. Auditory ecstasy: EARGASM.

95. Religious dissident: HERETIC.

96. "Moby-Dick" figure: PELEG.

101. Freight tubs: SCOWS.

102. Sign of spring: ARIES. Can't wait for dandelions to pop up everywhere.

103. "The Practice" actor McDermott: DYLAN.

104. Floppy __: DISKS.

105. Tucker of country: TANYA.

107. Detest: ABHOR.

108. Meeting room stand: EASEL.

110. Stand up: JILT.

111. "I double-dog __ you!": DARE.

113. Personal bearing: MIEN.

114. Basic French verb: ETRE.  And 117. __ de la Cité: Notre-Dame locale: ILE.

116. Physique, for short: BOD.

118. Once called: NEE.

119. Ave. crossers: STS.

Dear Irish Miss (Agnes) shared with me this sweet picture of her and her siblings at the first Christmas cocktail party in her new home in 2004. She and Eileen hardly aged.

Left to Right: 

 

Seated: Bud, Agnes, Anne, Mary and Eileen

 

Standing: Jack, Peggy, Bill

Anne, Bud, Mary, and Jack now deceased.

Tuesday March 11, 2025 Doug Peterson

Name that Dog!

21-Across. *  Tennis racket's optimal impact point: SWEET SPOT.

58-Across. *  Explorer on the red planet: MARS ROVER.

3-Down. *  Sophocles tragedy: OEDIPUS REX.

29-Down. *  Athletic shoe introduced in 1987: NIKE AIR MAX.

And the unifier:

39-Across. Military IDs on chains, and what can be found at the ends of the answers to the starred clues?: DOG TAGS.  The last word of each theme answer is a stereotypical name, or Tag, for a Dog.

Across:

1. Unemotional: STOIC.

6. "Buzz off!": SCAT.

10. Football penalty indicator: FLAG.

14. Concert setting: ARENA.

15. Animal's den: LAIR.

16. Daughter of Darth Vader: LEIA.  A Star Wars reference.

17. In the __ of: MIDST.

18. Foam darts, for a Nerf Blaster: AMMO.

19. Quaint quarters: INNS.

20. Angler's supply: BAIT.

23. Llama's cousin: ALPACA.  Alpacas and llamas are both domesticated camelids from the Andes Mountains of South America.  They have several differences in size and face shape.

25. Stop holding on: LET GO.

26. Mom's brother: UNCLE.

28. Apple Music predecessor: iTUNES.

32. Sense of style: TASTE.

34. "__ Yankees": DAMN.  The only thing I know about this 1958 movie is this silly song.

37. Clock display: TIME.

38. Mo. with the signs Aries and Taurus: APR.  Aries is in March and the beginning of April and Taurus is in the end of April and beginning of May. 

42. Cereal with Honey and Berry Berry varieties: KIX.

43. Applications: USES.

45. Turn off course: VEER.

46. "__ Rose Has Its Thorn": Poison hit: EVERY.

48. "You have my cell number": TEXT ME.

50. Salami type: GENOA.  Did you know the word Salami is derived from Latin meaning Salt?  Genoa salami is a dry-cured salami made from pork and seasoned with garlic, salt, and pepper. The name refers to the preparation style, and is commonly attributed to the Italian port city of Genoa. 

52. Dos + tres: CINCO.  Today's Spanish and Math lesson.

55. Forms a line?: AD LIBS.

61. Canadian First Nations people: CREE.

62. Literary detective Wolfe: NERO.  Nero Wolfe,  the brilliant, obese and eccentric fictional armchair detective, first appeared in 1934 in the novel Fer-de-Lance, by Rex Stout.

63. Scored 100% on: ACED.

64. World-renowned: FAMED.

65. Sleeveless top, for short: CAMI.  Short for Camisole.  They even come in camouflage.

66. Feature of a landline: CORD.

67. Ludicrous: INANE.

68. Black gem: ONYX.  Everything you wanted to know about Onyx but didn't know to ask.

69. "Swish Swish" singer Perry: KATY.  Katy Perry (née Katheryn Elizabeth Hudson; b. Oct. 25, 1984) Perry started singing in church as a child.

70. Athlete in a weight class: BOXER.

Down:

1. Brazilian dance: SAMBA.  You, too, can learn the Samba in just 5 minutes!

2. "Law & Order" proceeding: TRIAL.

4. __ coffee: INSTANT.

5. Friskies muncher: CAT.

6. Shredded side dish: SLAW.

7. Caravan animal: CAMEL.

8. "Lucifer" actress Garcia: AIMEE.  I am not familiar with Aimee Garcia (née Aimee Sandimés Garcia López de Ordóñez; b. Nov. 28, 1978), nor am I familiar with Lucifer.

9. Moving briskly: TROTTING.

10. Fly off the handle: FLIP OUT.

11. Television Hall of Famer Jay: LENO.  Jay Leno (né James Douglas Muir Leno; b. Apr. 28, 1950) is known for his observational and deadpan comedy.

12. Informal contraction: AIN'T.  When I was a kid, we used to say "Ain't ain't in the dictionary."  Kids can't say that now because Ain't is in the dictionary.

13. Furnace fuel: GAS.

21. ESPN football reporter Paolantonio: SAL.  Since I don't generally watch ESPN, I was not familiar with Sal Paolantonio (né Salvatore Anthony Nicholas Paolantonio; b. June 13, 1956).

22. USMC rank: SGT.  As in Sergeant.  //  And 62-Down. 22-Down, e.g.: Abbr.: NCO.  As in Non-Commissioned Officer.

24. Looped in via email: CC'ED.

27. Outer rim: EDGE.

30. Dubai dignitary: EMIR.  Dubai is a city in the United Arab Emirates.  The word Emir (أمير) comes from an Arabic word for "commander."

31. Alluring: SEXY.

32. Pulled tight: TAUT.

33. Chapel recess: APSE.

35. Devoured: ATE.

36. Actress Helgenberger: MARG.  Marg Helgenberger (née Mary Margaret Helgenberger; b. Nov. 16, 1958) portrayed Catherine Willows on CSI: Crime Scene Investigation.

40. Cookie sheet holder: OVEN RACK.

41. Place in the outgoing mail: SEND.

44. Largest of the U.S. Virgin Islands: ST. CROIX.

47. Mount St. Helens, for one: VOLCANO.  Mount St. Helens last had a major eruption in May 1980.

49. Scale notes after res: MIs.

51. Organ with a drum: EAR.

53. Tiramisu topper: COCOA.  Yummers!  The name of this delicious Italian dessert from the Italian phrase tirami su, which literally means: pick me up/cheer me up.

54. Plain to see: OVERT.

56. Geoffrey of fashion: BEENE.  Geoffrey Beene (né Samuel Albert Bozeman Jr.; Aug. 30, 1924 ~ Sept. 28, 2004) was born in Louisiana and studied medicine at Tulane University, but dropped out to study fashion design.

57. Ceremonial Passover meal: SEDER.  Passover is an 8-day holiday the commemorates the exodus from Egypt.  This year, Passover begins at sunset on Saturday April 12 and runs through Sunday April 20.

Seder Plate

58. Lean and __: MEAN.

59. Group of troops: ARMY.

60. Swirling current: EDDY.

64. Minor untruth: FIB.

Here's the Grid:

חתולה