Saturday, October 19, 2024, Erica Hsiung Wojcik

 Saturday Themeless by Erica Hsiung

Erica is an Assistant Professor in the Psychology Department at Skidmore College.

Erica wrote the championship puzzle for 2023 Lollapuzzola Tournament in NYC.

The upper right quadrant was a slog for this solver; more for the cluing than the fill.

Across:

1. Portmanteau for Disney World's wintery mix: SNOAP - Yup, even when it's very hot in Florida, Disney has a machine that converts soap into artificial snow.

6. Puts on screen, perhaps: DEPICTS - Directs was not to be at D _ _ _ C T S. Similar but not matching. 

13. Swinton of "Asteroid City": TILDA.

14. Power plays?: EGO TRIPS 😀

16. They're not basic: ACIDS.

17. Many a Maine newborn: MOOSE CALF - Awww...

19. Changes for the better: REVISES.

21. Get way ahead of, in a way: LAP - If you get LAPPED it's an unwritten rule that you have to get out of the way and let the faster runners by.

22. Copacabana city, casually: RIO - The Copacabana is a 2.5 white sand. beach in RIO de Janeiro 

23. Frank: WIENER 😀 The noun not the adjective!

24. One who shows up in court with bells on: JESTER - A 1955 movie for Danny Kaye

26. Key compound in a cell's energy cycle: Abbr.: ADP - Something from college biology stuck

27. First roomie, for some: SIB - My wife and her twin sister were wombmates

29. Product with a Frosted Chocolatey Chip Pancake variety: POP TART.

30. Animal control?: REIN. 😀

32. Place to buy a screwdriver: CASH BAR.

34. Full up: SATED.

36. Allen who was part of the Celtics "New Big Three": RAY.

37. Rover: NOMAD.

41. Treadmill-like playground structure: LOG ROLL.

44. Purple-brown: PUCE.

45. Scapegoat: FALL GUY - Some historians have made Admiral Kimmel the FALL GUY for Pearl Harbor.

48. Feel unwell: AIL.

50. Cell service letters: LTE - Long-Term Evolution 

51. Miembro de la familia: ABUELA - Grandma in Español 

52. Shiner accompanier, maybe: FAT LIP.

54. "__ so fast!": NOT - This became Lee Corso's "go-to" phrase when he disagreed with another football announcer

55. Catcher's asset: ARM - Even from his knees, KC Royal's Salvador Perez had a great arm 

57. Renaissance Tour attendees, collectively: BEYHIVE.

58. Marmaduke, for one: GREAT DANE.

61. Airport on Boston Harbor: LOGAN - Named for Lt. General Edward Lawrence Logan, a hero of the Spanish American War from South Boston. 64. Comes to: LANDS AT. I never have landed at LOGAN.

62. Frank Lloyd Wright estate in Wisconsin: TALIESIN - His home, studio and school

63. Go on the stump: ORATE.

65. Ebbed: WANED.

Down:

1. Epic based in part on Kurosawa's "The Hidden Fortress": STAR WARS - Another famous Kurosawa remake 

2. Feedback sometimes followed by "but": NICE IDEA - New Coke?

3. Kalamata center: OLIVE PIT - Kalamata is an olive that is named for the city of Kalamata in southern Greece.

 

4. Contribute: ADD IN.

5. Goes by: PASSES.

6. Some pols: DEMS - Not REPS, SENS or GOVS

7. Nwodim of "SNL": EGO - ¯\_(ツ)_/¯  Talk about your Saturday obscure cluing for a common fill

8. Combine: POOL.

9. "Pays the rent": IT'S A JOB - I had MAIN JOB for quite a while 

10. Low-rimmed skillet: CREPE PAN.

11. First of three O's: TIC - The second is TAC and the third is TOE

12. Region near Kalamata: SPARTA - They are 61 miles apart but not as the crow flies 😀

15. More conniving: SLIER.

18. Pillow construction: FORT.

20. "The __ Andre Show": ERIC ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ - See reference to EGO above

25. Traditional shaving tool: STROP.

28. HBO series about a hitman who joins an acting class: BARRY - ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

29. Kingdom divisions: PHYLA - The plural of phylum 

31. Harper Lee's given name: NELLE.

33. __ Paulo: SAO.

35. Bit of literary contrivance: DOG LATIN - ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ Dog Latin or cod Latin is a phrase or jargon that imitates Latin, often by what is referred to as "translating" English words into Latin by conjugating or declining them, as if they were Latin words. 

Example: Illegitimi non carborundum (Don't let the bastards wear you down) has no meaning in Latin

38. Do-over: MULLIGAN - Very familiar to golfers 

39. Start up: ACTIVATE.

40. Got more real: DEEPENED - Act 3 in this form

42. Withholding: GUARDED.

43. What happens to you while you're busy making other plans, per "Beautiful Boy": LIFE - John Lennon borrowed this line from a 1957 Allen Saunders quote in his song Beautiful Boy.

45. Viper tooth: FANG.

46. End abruptly: ABORT.

47. __ phase: post-ovulation stage: LUTEAL.

49. Hide: LAY LOW - Reminds me of lyrics from Simon and Garfunkel

When I left my home and my family
I was no more than a boy
In the company of strangers
In the quiet of the railway station
Runnin' scared, LAYING LOW
Seeking out the poorer quarters, where the ragged people go
Looking for the places only they would know

53. Actress Birch: THORA.

56. The Bay State, for short: MASS.

57. Like elements of pipe cleaner art: BENT.

59. Styled after: ALA.

60. "The Marvels" director DaCosta: NIA ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ The more familiar NIA Vardalos would have fit right in with our other Greek entries today.

Tuesday, February 21, 2023 Erica Hsiung Wojcik

Instant Messaging:  I caught the I / M connection early on, but thought the unifier would refer to Instant Messaging.  Still, I'M DOWN with this puzzle, since all the theme clues are in the down position and are two-word phases where the first word begins with I and the second word begins with M.

3-Down. *   "A Matter of Life and Death" heavy metal band: IRON MAIDEN.  [Name adjacent.]

9-Down. *   Ralph Ellison novel about the Black American experience: INVISIBLE MAN.  Invisible Man was first published in 1952.  It was a debut novel for Ralph Ellison (Mar. 1, 1914 ~ Apr. 16, 1994), for which he won the United States National Book Award for Fiction in 1953.  Ellison was the first African-American writer to win this award.  [Name # 1.]

22-Down. *   Fencer seeking revenge in "The Princess Bride": INIGO MONTOYA.  Mandy Patinkin (né Mandel Bruce Patinkin; b. Nov. 30, 1952) portrayed Inigo Montoya in the 1987 movie The Princess Bride.  [Name # 2.]

32-Down. *   Noisy amenity in a motel hallway: ICE MACHINE.  If you're in the market for one, you can learn about someone's list of top 10 commercial ice machines in the below.

And the unifier:

53-Down. "Count me in!," or an apt description of the answers to the starred clues: I'M DOWN!  

Before we go any further, it's Mardi Gras, y'all!  Catch the excitement of the day and party down with this puzzle.

Across:

1. Opera solos: ARIAS.

6. Afrobeat pioneer Fela __: KUTI.   Fela Aníkúlápó Kuti (né Olufela Olusegun Oludotun Ransome-Kuti; Oct. 15, 1938 ~ Aug. 2, 1997) was a Nigerian musician and political activist.  He is considered the Father of Afrobeat, which is a combination of West African music with American funk and jazz.  Probably not a Tuesday name.  [Name # 3.]

10. Atlas pages: MAPS.

14. Birdcage feature: PERCH.

15. Part of, as a plan: IN ON.

16. __ vera: ALOE.  This is the Tuesday word.  It has now appeared in the last consecutive Tuesdays.

17. Creamy dip for French fries: AIOLI.  This is a good crossword word due to all the vowels.  Everything you wanted to know about Aioli, but didn't know to ask.

18. Attractive person with gray hair: SILVER FOX.  This probably applies to many of us on the blog, although I added a touch of pink to my hair.

20. Anderson Cooper's channel: CNN.  Anderson Hays Cooper (b. June 3, 1967) is the son of the late Gloria Vanderbilt (Feb.. 20, 1924 ~ June 17, 2019).  His book, Vanderbilt: The Rise and Fall of an American Dynasty, was actually quite good.   [Name #4.]

21. Female sib: SIS.  I have one.

23. Like some restrictions: DIETARY.  If you are going to serve alligator to your guests, you might want to ask if anyone has any dietary restrictions first.

24. Pea soup flavorer: HAM BONE. This answer took me a while to figure out.  It's not kosher.

26. Hit the slopes: SKI.

27. Genesis twin: ESAU.  The two brothers had a disagreement of 37-Down proportions.

28. Many a Farsi speaker: IRANI.  The Farsi, or Persian, alphabet is based on the Arabic script.

31. Singer Simone: NINA.  Nina Simone (née Eunice Kathleen Waymon; Feb. 21, 1933 ~ Apr. 21, 2003) makes occasional guest appearances in the crossword puzzles.  [Name # 5.]

35. Hep "Gotcha": I DIG.

37. Scripture-related: BIBLICAL.

39. Perform a simple operation?: ADD.

41. Safe to drink: POTABLE.  //  And 43-Across. Org. that ensures water is 41-Across: EPA.  As in the Environmental Protection Agency.

44. No-win situations?: TIE GAMES.

46. Medical checkup: EXAM.

48. Singer Del Rey: LANA.  I am not familiar with Lana Del Rey (née Elizabeth Woolridge Grant; b. June 21, 1985).  [Name # 6.]

49. Greek theater: ODEUM.  Today's lesson in Ancient Greek.

51. Scandinavian people: SAMI.  Everything you wanted to know about the Sami people, but didn't know to ask.  [Name adjacent.]

54. "Encanto" songwriter __-Manuel Miranda: LIN.  Encanto is an animated Disney film.   Lin-Manuel Miranda (b. Jan. 16, 1980) is best known for Hamilton. [Name # 7.]

56. Recorder mounted to a windshield: DASH CAM.

58. Dawn on: OCCUR TO.

62. Political org. with a donkey symbol: DNC.  As in the Democratic National Committee.  Enough said.

63. Stashed: HID.

64. "I can be better": SHAME ON ME.

66. __ acid: AMINO.

68. Speech therapy subject: LISP.

69. Average gestation period for a dolphin: YEAR.  Animals with long gestation periods.

70. Button on a library app: RENEW.

71. Vow: OATH.

72. "This might be broken" shorthand: AS IS.

73. No-nonsense: STERN.

Down:

1. People of the southern Great Plains: APACHE.  [Name adjacent.]

2. Spanish queens: REINAs.  Today's Spanish lesson.  Hi, Lucina!  Can you name the top 10 most famous Spanish Queens?

4. Knee part, for short: ACL.  As in the Anterior Cruciate Ligament.  Definitely not a Tuesday clue and answer.  Apparently, it is easily injured.

5. Mint leaf used as a sushi garnish: SHISO.  Hand up if you knew about Shiso.  We eat a lot of sushi, but I am not familiar with this mint leaf.

6. Mouth, slangily: KISSER.

7. Prefix with cycle: UNI-.

8. Ratted (on): TOLD.

10. "Dirty" cocktail: MARTINI.

11. Automaker __ Romeo: ALFA.  Alfa Romeo is an Italian luxury car maker, known for sports-oriented vehicles and car racing.  The company was founded in June 1910 and the name is an acronym for Anonima Lombardi Fabbrica Automobili, which means Lombardian Car Factory.  Romeo was added to the name in 1915 after Nicola Romero (Apr. 28, 1879 ~ Aug. 15, 1938) took control of the company in 1915.  [Name adjacent.]

12. Shoddy: POOR.

13. Erotic: SEXY.

19. Shriek of fear: EEK!

25. Future flower: BUD.

29. Demean: ABASE.

30. Quill tip: NIB.

33. Siesta: NAP.

34. In the style of: À LA.

36. Bitter brew, briefly: IPA.  As in India Pale Ale.

38. Supervillain Luthor: LEX.  The supervillain in the comics.  [Name # 8.]

39. Georgia airport: Abbr.: ATL.  Formally known as the Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport.  It is named after two former Atlanta mayors: William Berry Hartsfield (Mar. 1, 1890 ~ Feb. 22, 1971) and Maynard Holbrook Jackson, Jr. (1938 ~ 2003).  The former was a six-term mayor and was in office in the  late 1930s to the 1960s.  The latter served three terms in the 1970 and 1990s.  [Name adjacent.]

40. Part of una semana: DIA.  More of today's Spanish lesson.  A day makes up a part of the week.

42. Actor Danson: TED.  Ted Danson (né Edward Bridge Danson, III; b. Dec. 29, 1947) is probably best known for portraying Sam Malone on Cheers, but did you known he was a model before he got into acting?  [Name # 9.]

45. Walk oafishly, like the Jabberwock slayer: GALUMPH.  Jabberwocky is a nonsense poem by Lewis Carroll (né Charles Lutwidge Dodgson; Jan. 27, 1832 ~ Jan. 14, 1898).  You can read it here.

47. Campfire residue: ASH.

50. Calf feeders: UDDERS.

52. Pine Tree State resident: MAINER.  I thought we were called Mainiacs.

55. Burning anger: IRE.  A crossword staple.

57. Surgery marks: SCARS.

58. Norway's capital: OSLO.

59. __ seeds: smoothie choice: CHIA.  Although they are edible seeds, they also make good pets.

60. Assign to a role: CAST.

61. Small bills: ONES.

65. __ tai: cocktail: MAI.  It's a cocktail made of rum, Curçaco, orgeat syrup and lime juice.  Here's one origin story.

67. Came together: MET.

Here's the Grid:

חתולה