Saturday, November 2, 2024, Evan Mulvihill

  Saturday Themeless by Evan Mulvihil

Evan and I must be of similar minds because I got this one done in 17 minutes and had fun in the process!

Evan told me, "I am a­ clinical pharmacist at Zuckerberg, San Francisco General, a crossword constructor and lover or all things word-play related."  

Across:

1. Fold: ACCEDE.

7. Pen: ENCAGE.

13. Polo player?: LAUREN.

14. Opposite of "Nothin' but net": AIRBALL - When shooters miss everything. 

16. Words of resignation: I TRIED.

17. "Elmo's World" character played by Bill Irwin: MR NOODLE. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

18. Quaint contraction: SHANT.

19. Comedian Wyatt: CENAC - Wyatt worked with Jon Stewart on The Daily Show until they had a falling out

20. Cab alternative: ZIN - You might have a ZINfandel rather than a CABernet

21. Tic-__-toe: TAC - We had this in a Saturday puzzle two weeks ago.

22. Have in common: SHARE.

24. Slams the door on: STOPS.

26. India's neighbor on a Risk board: SIAM - SIAM on this board game encompasses several modern countries. 

28. Just __ by: EKED.

29. Went up: ROSE.

30. Abundance during amateur hour?: ROOKIE MISTAKES.

34. Orchestra known for an annual Fourth of July concert: BOSTON POPS.

35. Some unicorns: TECH STARTUPS - Unicorn companies are those that reach a valuation of $1 billion without being listed on the stock market and are the dream of any tech startup.

38. Fruit with wrinkled skin: UGLI.

39. Court pro: STENO - Old and new machines  

 

40. Intel org.: NSA.

43. Breaks open chests in Fortnite: LOOTS ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

45. Pitch: TAR.

46. Baby: SPOIL - A verb

48. Oft-mispunctuated word: ITS - IT'S (contraction) very common to misuse the word ITS (possessive)

49. One hoping for a refund from an online return: E-FILER - I'm one of those hoping 

52. Crime novelist Buchanan: EDNA. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

53. "Elsbeth" star Carrie: PRESTON. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

55. Good standing with sailors?: SEALEGS 😀

57. Idle: SITTING.

58. Sir Ken Robinson's "Do Schools Kill Creativity?," notably: TED TALK.

59. Hammers: POUNDS.

60. "Heather Has Two Mommies" writer Newman: LESLEA ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Down:

 
1. Groups of celebs who might bypass the line: A-LISTS.

2. Persian rugs?: CAT HAIR 😀

3. Place to enjoy krioyo cuisine: CURACAO.

 
 

4. Moriarty of "The Boys": ERIN - I read that she plays Starlight, a superhero that takes on "toxic masculinity" ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

5. 411: DEETS - I need the details 

6. Demise: END.

7. Got a bit extra, in a way: EARNED INTEREST 😀

8. "High Priestess of Soul" Simone: NINA.

9. Some restaurant clogs: CROCS - I've never owned or worn this footwear.

10. Typing letters?: ABO.

11. "Zounds!": GADZOOKS.

12. Figure in Kepler's first law: ELLIPSE - Piece 'o cake for me.

No where near being TO SCALE.

15. Concave or convex things: LENSES 

17. One unsuited to battle a god?: MERE MORTAL.

19. Pre-wedding trials: CAKE TASTINGS.

23. Job at a bank: HEIST 😀

25. Yappers: TRAPS - Rude

27. Finale of "The Sopranos," maybe: MOB HIT - Creator David Chase's decision to fade to black rather than show what did or didn't happen was brilliant. He compared it to Schrödinger's cat. Tony is both alive and dead.

31. Heavy socks?: KO'S 😀

32. Did some politicking, say: SPUN - "Oh no, that is NOT what the candidate meant."

33. Traditional literary motif: TOPOS - TOPOS are stories from classical tradition weaved into modern American drama. Eugene O'Neill's Desire Under The Elms has been referred to as a modern retelling of Euripides' myth of Hippolytus  and Phaedra. (Raise your hand if you thought I already knew that!)

35. Bulbs that may not need to be replaced: TULIPS 😀

36. Delusion of grandeur: EGO TRIP

37. Friendly with: CLOSE TO.

40. "Your terms are a joke": NO DEAL 

41. Individual: SINGLE.

42. "The Great North" setting: ALASKA.

44. Become real: SET IN - It has finally SET IN that Husker FB has come to be mediocre at best.

47. Attacks, as with questions: PELTS - Despite the less than optimal video quality, this is a fabulous example:

50. Residue used to make pan sauces: FOND - I love these little "leftovers" but never knew there was a name for them

51. Instagram video: REEL - Make your own series of videos

54. "The Simpsons" disco guy: STU.

56. Slangy ending with hater: ADE 😀 

Saturday December 31, 2022, Evan Mulvihill

 Saturday Themeless by Evan Mulvihil

This is Evan's first solo Saturday puzzle for me. He and Adam Simpson co-authored one on November 5 of this year. I told Evan we must be of similar minds because I got this one done in 17 minutes and had fun in the process!

Evan told me, "I am a­ clinical pharmacist at Zuckerberg, San Francisco General, a crossword constructor and lover or all things word-play related."

Across:

1. Accessory that may be paired with a smoking jacket: ASCOT.

6. "Euphoria" network: HBO.

9. Okra or orca unit: POD - Orca/Okra similarity did not get me

12. Like pins and needles: PLURAL.

14. "I cleaned my plate!": ALL DONE.

16. Largest moon of Uranus: TITANIA.

18. Many of the "GoodFellas" main characters: MADE MEN - In the American and Sicilian Mafia, a MADE MAN is a fully initiated member of the Mafia. To become "made", an associate first must be Italian or of Italian descent and sponsored by another made man. An inductee will be required to take the oath of omertà, the Mafia code of silence and code of honor. 

19. Behavioral psychologist's concern: PATTERN.

21. Squash: STEP ON.

22. Account statement?: SWORN TESTIMONY - Your account of what happened while under oath is SWORN TESTIMONY but still...

24. Maureen presented with an Honorary Academy Award in 2014: O'HARA - Presented by Clint Eastwood and Liam Neeson

25. Buff: FAN - I am a Husker buff. 

26. Kermit sipping tea and Keanu playing with puppies: MEMES.

27. Clothing store department: BOYS.

28. Turn in: GO TO BED.

30. Psyche segments: IDS.

31. Border dispute: TURF WAR - The most famous one in the movies was the Sharks vs Jets

32. Corp. execs: VPS.

35. Puzzle that uses every letter: PANGRAM.

36. Athlete who wrote the memoir "My Life and the Beautiful Game": PELE.

37. Drained of color: ASHEN.

40. Poetic dusk: EEN.

41. "Being the Ricardos" role: ARNAZ - The actual 1940 marriage license for Desiderio Alberto ARNAZ and Lucille Desiree Ball

42. Robin DiAngelo book about race relations: WHITE FRAGILITY.

45. "Very funny": HA HA HA.

46. Shut up: KEPT MUM - A requirement of all who worked on The Manhattan Project

47. "Did not expect to survive that": I'M ALIVE.

49. Like some passes: LATERAL - Here is a forward pass and two LATERAL passes (passes that do not travel toward the opponent's goal line)

51. "Hm ... ": LET'S SEE.

52. Have the gumption: DARE TO.

53. Mag wheels?: EDS - EDitorS are big wheels at MAGazines 

54. Archipelago part: Abbr.: ISL - Here in The Marianas Archipelago you will find the ISLand of Tinian from which the Enola Gay took off on August 6, 1945

55. Portends: BODES.

Down:

1. Apropos: APT.

2. Careless: SLIPSHOD.

3. Film flashbacks, essentially: CUTAWAYS - Titanic starts with Rose in modern times with the crew searching for the diamond called The Heart Of The Ocean. The bulk of the movie is a flashback to her time on the doomed ocean liner.

4. Figures of speech: ORATORS.

5. Mystical text in Sanskrit: TANTRA - Here ya go

6. Scenery chewer: HAM - I nominate Jim Carrey 

7. Heck of a party: BLAST.

8. Honoree who might wear a vintage uniform: OLD TIMER - Do you know these old Yankees? (* Answer at the bottom of the write-up)

9. Santa hat feature: POM POM.

10. Impossible NFL score: ONE ONE.

11. Chain with "all day diner deals": DENNYS.

13. Property claim for outstanding debt: LIEN.

15. Held: DEEMED.

17. Master of disguise?: ART FORGER - I'd bet our art curator/puzzle constructor, Jeffrey Wechsler, could spot the work of this person

20. One whose priorities are in order?: NEAT FREAK.

23. Winter figure: SNOW ANGEL.

24. Sash tied with a butterfly knot: OBI.

28. Staple __: GUN.

29. "Just like that!": BAM.

31. "Between the World and Me" writer Coates: TANEHISI.

32. Hazarded, as a guess: VENTURED.

33. Schoolyard friend: PLAYMATE.

34. "__ who?": SEZ - Mike wrote thousands of columns for the Chicago Tribune and always wrote exactly what he thought.

35. Potpourri pieces: PETALS.

36. First, in Spanish: PRIMERO - PRIMERO, segundo y tercero (First, second and third. masc.)

37. For a spell: AWHILE.

38. Brought low: SHAMED.

39. Kit parts with pedals: HIHATS - I'll bet you can pick out this part

41. Window-switching shortcut: ALT TAB.

43. Top picks, slangily: FAVES.

44. Apple TV+ device: IPAD.

48. Unadon fish: EEL.

50. "__ Espookys": 6-Across comedy series: LOS - Variety confirmed that on December 2, HBO canceled Los Espookys, the spookiest, weirdest, and most original comedy on television. Here is the weirdest 2 minute trailer you will ever see.

* Those Old Timer Yankees are Mickey Mantle, Yogi Berra, Whitey Ford, Joe DiMaggio and Casey Stengel.