Tuesday, March 24, 2020 Gail Grabowski and Bruce Venzke

We're in the Money!  Slang words for money are "split" in today's theme answers



16-Across. Huff and puff: BREATHE HARD.  Bread.

38-Across. Lawn area where rainwater collects: LOW SPOT.  Loot.

10-Down. Bags for potatoes, say: BURLAP SACKS.  Bucks.

23-Down. Subject to, as the proverbial mud: DRAG THROUGH.  Dough.

And the Unifier:

59-Across. Divvy up poker hand winnings, and a hint to this puzzle's circled letters: SPLIT THE POT.

I hope everyone is safe and Covid-free.  Many of us are now under a Stay-at-Home Order.  Fortunately, we are well and, since the weather is good, I have been able to sit out in the garden with a good book and take walks around our neighborhood.  I do miss getting together with friends and family, but at least there is the phone.  Please take this virus seriously, though.  I have been speaking with nurses who are at the front line in cities around the country.  They are truly frightened by what they are seeing.

Across:

1. Gives up the single life: WEDS.

5. Christina of "Sleepy Hollow": RICCI.  The 1999 movie Sleepy Hollow was loosely based on Washington Irving's short story The Legend of Sleepy Hollow.  Christina Ricci (b. Feb. 12, 1980) played Katrina Van Tassel.

10. Physique, briefly: BOD.

13. Holliday pal: EARP.  Wyatt Berry Stapp Earp (Mar. 19, 1848 ~ Jan. 13, 1929) has been making a lot of guest appearances in the puzzles recently.  He was a close friend and associate of Doc Holliday (né John Henry Holliday; Aug. 14, 1851 ~ Nov. 8, 1887).  Both are best known for their participation in the Gunfight at the OK Corral.

14. Headgear for shading one's face: SUN HAT.

15. Luau strings: UKE.

18. Narrow inlet: RIA.

19. Gland near the larynx: THYROID.

20. Snow glider: SLED.  

21. Bollywood's country: INDIA.

24. "Jeopardy!" material: TRIVIA.

26. Seed in some sauerkraut: CARAWAY.  Everything you wanted to know about Caraway, but were afraid to ask.

29. Brass band sound: OOM-PAH.

32. List-ending abbr.: ET AL.  A crossword staple.

33. Ellipsis trio: DOTS.

36. Cotton thread: LISLE.  More than you ever wanted to know about Cotton Lisle.

37. Programming glitch: BUG.

40. Jurisprudence org.: ABA.  As in the American Bar Association.  The current President of the ABA is Judy Perry Martinez, an attorney from New Orleans.  I had brunch with her shortly before the  self-imposed quarantine began.

41. "Mad TV" alum Lange: ARTIE.  I am familiar with neither Mad TV nor Artie Lange (b. Oct. 11, 1967).

43. Installed, as carpet: LAID.

44. Taiwanese laptop giant: ACER.  I learned of this compter company from doing the crossword puzzles.

45. Lou portrayed in "The Pride of the Yankees": GEHRIG.  Lou Gehrig (né Heinrich Ludwig Gehrig; June 19, 1903 ~ June 2, 1941) played 17 years for the New York Yankees.  He died of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, often referred to as Lou Gehrig disease, at age 37.

47. Do-it-yourself diagnostic tool: TEST KIT.

49. Rolled in the aisles: ROARED.

52. Spur-of-the-moment: HASTY.

53. Animator's output: 'TOON.  As in a cartoon.

55. Egyptian or Ethiopian: AFRICAN.  Ethiopia and Egypt are currently fighting over water from the Nile.

Egypt in Green; Ethiopia in Orange.

58. Letters in an academic address: EDU.  As in the Internet address.

63. Fix, as a fight: RIG.

64. Norelco product: SHAVER.

65. New Balance rival: NIKE.

66. Slangy word of indifference: MEH.  Meh!

67. Fall bloomer: ASTER.

68. Cubicle fixture: DESK.

Anatomy of a Cubicle.

Down:

1. Organic flytrap: WEB.  Cute clue.

2. Piece of corn: EAR.

3. Dr. with Grammys: DRE.

Dr. Dre (né Andre Romelle Young; b. Feb. 18, 1965)

4. Like some relations: SPATIAL. Not Sisters.

5. One with regrets: RUER.

6. __ water: facing trouble: IN HOT.

7. Waiting room seat: CHAIR.  Some of the Most Uncomfortable Chairs.

8. Aerobic regimen, casually: CARDIO.  Some cardio exercises we can do in quarantine.

9. "__ be an honor": IT'D.

11. "The Grapes of Wrath" figure: OKIE.  A reference to John Steinbeck's 1939 novel.

12. Like a useless battery: DEAD.

14. Not prone to mingling: SHY.

17. Defrost: THAW.

20. __ Valley: Reagan Library site: SIMI.

21. Sprain soother: ICE BAG.

22. The great outdoors: NATURE.

25. Chevy needing recharging: VOLT.  Does anyone have one of these vehicles?

27. Commotion: ADO.

28. Cry of distress: YOWL.

30. Even if: ALBEIT.  Fun word.

31. Robust: HEARTY.

34. PreCheck org.: TSA.

35. Hot rod?: SPIT.

38. "Star Wars" twin sister: LEIA.  Princess Leia was played by Carrie Fisher (Oct. 21, 1956 ~ Dec. 27, 2016).  She suffered a heart attack while flying from London to Los Angeles.  Tragically, her mother, Debbie Reynolds (Apr. 1, 1932 ~ Dec. 28, 2016), died the following day.

39. Thomas Gray's "The Bard," e.g.: ODE.  Here is the Poem.

42. Resolve, with "out": IRON.

44. Finally finished: AT AN END.

46. Sales reports diagrams: GRAPHS.

48. Ousted Iranian ruler: SHAH.  The last Shah of Iran was Mohammad Reza Pahlavi (Oct. 26, 1919 ~ July 27, 1980).  He was ousted in February 1979.  He makes frequent guest appearances in the puzzles.

50. D-sharp equivalent: E FLAT.

51. Take the wheel: DRIVE.

53. Political stretch: TERM.

54. Yellow comics dog: ODIE.  A reference to the Garfield comic strip.

56. Road in old Rome: ITER.  Today's Latin lesson.

57. NFL snapper: CTR.  Center.  

59. Org. funded by FICA: SSA.  As in the Social Security Administration.

60. Traditional March 14 dessert: PIE.

61. Thumbs-ups: OKS.

62. Shatner's "__War": TEK.

Here's the Grid:

QOD:  If you have a garden and a library, you have everything you need.  ~  Cicero (né Marcus Tillius Cicero; Jan. 3, 106 BCE ~ Dec. 7, 43 BCE), Roman statesmen and philosopher

Tuesday, March 17, 2020 Winston Emmons

What's your game?  The word Game can go at the End the last word of each theme answer to give us a new concept.

1-Across. *  Ready to set sail, say: ON BOARD.  Board Game.  Professor Plum used a lead pipe in the dining room.

17-Across. *  1950s sitcom co-star: LUCILLE BALL.  Ballgame.

26-Across. *  Hester Prynne's mark of shame: SCARLET A.  A Game.  Working at one's highest level of performance.

49-Across. *  "Which side of the debate will you argue?": PRO OR CON.  Con Game.

60-Across. *  Culpable one: GUILTY PARTY.  Party Game.

And the Unifier: 69-Across. Chess match climax, and what the last word of each answer to a starred clue can have: ENDGAME.

Top o'the mornin' to you on this St. Patrick's Day.  Sadly, parades were cancelled this year due to COVID-19.  Now that bars, restaurants, gyms, museums, and other places where people gather have been closed, and we are under a self-imposed house arrest, may the spread of this virus be slowed down.  We all need to take this virus serious, if not for ourselves, then for those we love.  May all of us here stay healthy and virus-free.  "The life you save may be your own."(Flannery O'Connor).

Across:
8. Diplomatic rep.: AMB.  As in an Ambassador.

11. Machines with Windows, briefly: PCs.  As in Personal Computers.  Not to be confused with Politically Correct.

14. More tired: WEARIER.

15. Foe of Chiang: MAO.  As in Chiang Kai-shek (Oct. 31, 1887 ~ Apr. 5, 1975) and Mao Zedong (Dec. 26, 1893 ~ Sept. 9, 1976)

16. Swing, jazz or rock 'n' roll: ERA.

19. Early internet company: AOL.  Originally known as America OnLine.  //  And 43. 19-Across et al.: ISPs.  As in Internet Service Providers.

20. Investor's purchase: Abbr.: STK.  As in Stocks.

21. Amazement: AWE.

22. German cameras: LEICAS.  Leica, which also makes binoculars, microscopes and other items with lenses, was founded by Ernst Leitz (Apr. 26, 1843 ~ Sept. 12, 1920) in 1914.  The name of the company is derived from the first 3 letters of the founder's name, Leitz and the first 2 letters of the word Camera.

24. Bashful: SHY.  Also the name of 1 of the 7 dwarfs.

28. No-no: TABOO.

31. Continental coins: EUROS.  Each country in the Eurozone has its own design on one side of the euro coin, whereas the reverse side is the same for each country.

1 Euro coin from Italy

32. "Inside the NBA" analyst Shaq: O'NEAL.  Shaquille O'Neal (b. Mar. 6, 1972), just celebrated his 48th birthday.  He graduated from LSU.  His son, Shareef, will be transferring to LSU to play basketball.

33. Returning GI's diagnosis: PTSD.  As in Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.

34. Capitol Hill helper: AIDE.

38. Musically monotonous: ONE NOTE.

40. Collection of sacred songs: PSALTER.

42. Geeky type: NERD.

45. Lazy __: revolving tray: SUSAN.  The origin of the Lazy Susan is not known, but here are some interesting theories.

46. December mall figure: SANTA.  And a tribute to our own dear Santa.

48. Foolish: INANE.

52. June honoree: DAD.

53. Really bothers: EATS AT.

54. Fair-hiring inits.: EEO.  As in Equal Employment Opportunity.

56. Wood for bats: ASH.  What type of wood makes the best Baseball Bats?

59. Home security co.: ADT.  In 1874, company was originally known as American District Telegraph.

64. Fairway position: LIE.

65. Bruins legend: ORR.  Bobby Orr (né Robert Gordon Orr; b. Mar. 20, 1948), makes frequent guest appearances in the crosswords.  He had a long career with the Boston Bruins.  He will turn 72 in just a few days.

66. Answered: REPLIED.

67. Title for Elton: SIR.  Sir Elton John (né Reginald Kenneth Dwight; b. Mar. 25, 1947) is another March Birthday Boy.

68. Once called: NÉE.

Down:
1. Hooting birds: OWLS.  They come in all shapes and sizes.

2. Not masc. or fem.: NEUT.  As in Masculine, Feminine or Gender Neutral.

3. Begin to parallel park, with "in": BACK.  When I lived in Boston, the only parking my appartment had was on the street.  Mandatory parallel parking.  One always "tapped" the car in front and in back when trying to get into the very tight spaces that were barely big enough for the car.

 

4. "... __ quit!": OR I.

5. Feel crummy: AIL.

6. Race with batons: RELAY.

7. Sketched: DREW.

8. Org. with a Health Care Advocacy web page: AMA.  As in the American Medical Association.

9. Ducks whose males have green heads: MALLARDS.

10. Slow-tempo Spanish dance: BOLERO.

 

11. Quiet partner: PEACE.  As Peace and Quiet.  Now that we are in self-quarantine, we should all be experiencing some Peace and Quiet from our usual hectic lives.

12. Zagreb native: CROAT.

13. Taco topper: SALSA.  Yummers!

18. Harass: BESET.

23. "Casablanca" heroine: ILSA LUND.  I never knew her last name.

Ilsa Lund, played by Ingrid Bergman (Aug. 29, 1915 ~ Aug. 29, 1982)

24. Stinkers: SO-AND-SOs.  Calling someone is Stinker is a very New England term.

25. Prefix with gram: HOLO-.  As in a Hologram.

27. Zodiac borders: CUSPS.

28. Bugs Bunny or Bullwinkle: 'TOON.

29. Lestat creator Rice: ANNE.  Anne Rice (b. Oct. 4, 1941) was the author of Interview with the Vampire.  Lestat de Lioncourt was the vampire of this novel.  Anne Rice is from New Orleans.

30. Bar pint contents: BEER.

33. Sauce with basil: PESTO.  Yummers!  I made a wonderful Pesto Chicken Pasta dish last week.

35. "__ miracle!": IT'S A.

36. College faculty head: DEAN.

37. Shore bird: ERNE.  A crossword staple.

39. __ of iodine: antiseptic: TINCTURE.

41. China's continent: ASIA.

44. Group of jurors: PANEL.

47. Ferdinand II's realm: ARAGON.  Ferdinand II, King of Aragon (Mar. 10, 1452 ~ Jan. 23, 1516) was the husband of Queen Isabella of Castile.  They are best known for their roles in the Spanish Inquisition and the issuance of the Alhambra Decree.

49. Rings, as a bell: PEALS. 50. Bike spokes, geometrically: RADII.

51. Furry aquatic mammal: OTTER.  They are such cute critters.  If you go to Ethel, Louisiana, you can even swim with the Otters.

52. Elder statesman: DOYEN.

55. To be, in Tours: ÊTRE.  Today's French lesson.  Conjugated in the present tense:

Je suis  //  Nous sommes

Tu es  //  Vous êtes

Ils / Elles est  //  Ils / Elles sont 

56. Puccini piece: ARIA. 57. Pipe part: STEM.  Anatomy of a pipe:

58. Stevenson's villainous Mr.: HYDE.  A reference to Dr. Jeckyll and Mr. Hyde, the novel by Robert Louis Stevenson (Nov. 13, 1850 ~ Dec. 3, 1894).

61. Wrath: IRE.

62. Scoreboard abbr. for a rainout: PPD.  As in Postponed.  It also refers to the current pandemic.  I had to PPD my father's 90th birthday party, which was scheduled in April.

63. High school subj.: ALG.  As in Algebra.

Here's the Grid:

QOD:  When you want to know how things really work, study them when they’re coming apart.  ~  William Gibson (né William Ford Gibson; b. Mar. 17, 1948), American writer