Today's puzzle is very similar to the one I guest blogged last Tuesday - the first word of the theme answers 'rephrased' as a noun and not an adjective, creating a punny money theme. Two 15-letter spanners and three more themers, generating a fair number of three-letter words as a consequence. A good challenge for a Tuesday, a few unknown proper names, and I did have to cheat to figure out why I did not get my "ta-DA~!"; see below. The theme answers;
16. The landscaping startup was financed via ...: HEDGE FUND - maybe money does grow on trees
21. The extreme tourism startup was financed via ...: VENTURE CAPITAL
31. The shrink-ray startup was financed via ...: MICROLOANS - according the spell-check, this is not a two-word phrase, making it the outlier in the group
41. The religious iconography startup was financed via ...: ANGEL INVESTORS
49. The agriculture startup was financed via ...: SEED MONEY
And Away We Go~!
ACROSS:
1. Like a final exam in a language class, typically: ORAL
5. Religious offshoot: SECT
9. Nile reptile: ASP - No more Indiana Jones clip; every time I guest-blog....so I PASS on the "ASP"
12. Michael who plays Allan in "Barbie": CERA - filled via perps
13. Physics and chemistry Nobelist Marie: CURIE - and - 19A. Gas observed by 13-Across: RADON
14. __ date: deadline: DUE
15. Direct-hire alternative: TEMP
18. Boxer Muhammad: ALI
20. "Things I Overheard While Talking to Myself" memoirist Alan: ALDA - educated WAG
24. "You're important to me": "I CARE"
25. Conditional programming word: ELSE
26. Gillette brand: ATRA
27. Clicking sound?: SHORT i - C-L-i-C-K; I know there are some here at the
corner that are not too fond of this type of clue, but I find them
a clever challenge to suss out
34. Wasn't straight: LEANED - Here's the architectural countermeasures taken to save the most famous "LEAN"
35. Desert in northern China: GOBI
38. Social satirist Mort: SAHL - DAH! I typed SAUL; if you look at my grid image, this is the one "cell" I had wrong
40. "The West Wing" creator Sorkin: AARON - Ooops, not AlleN
46. "Buona __": Italian "Good evening": SERA
47. West Yorkshire home of Kirkstall Abbey: LEEDS - I thought maybe this was a fictional reference, such as one from a popular TV series....but it's a spectacular set of ruins
1. "Parable of the Talents" author Butler: OCTAVIA - another WAG
2. Word on an incumbent's campaign poster: RE-ELECT
RE-ELECT MAYOR GOLDIE WILSON - "I like the sound of that";
He gets my vote for best fictional mayor
3. Joined at the elbows: ARM-IN-ARM
4. Spot for a needy pet: LAP
5. Soft glove material: SUEDE
6. Hosp. trauma pro: ER DOC
7. Health insurance giant: CIGNA
8. Football kicker's aid: TEE
9. Accomplishes mundane tasks, facetiously: ADULTS - My friend
Mark introduced me to this "21st century" term; we were discussing
something like home-ownership responsibility, and he said he was
stressed about all this "adulting" - I thought it was hysterical, and still do
10. Dessert with toppings: SUNDAE
11. Graduate from a balance bike: PEDAL - Never heard of a balance bike; in my day, you fell off, got hurt, and got back on again....
13. Blacken: CHAR
17. Unable to be successful with: FAILING AT
19. Bemoan: RUE - Bzzzt~! I had CRY to start
22. Spot to begin a hike: TRAILHEAD - I knew it was trail something
23. Org. with a white rabbit in its logo: PETA
27. Mme., across the Pyrenees: SRA
28. Dearie: HON
29. La Liga chant: OLÉ
30. Word after hot or lightning: ROD - my CT home has several
lightning rods - the LI house, not a one
32. Spreadsheet unit: CELL - I have a spreadsheet at work that
calculates the ƒ(n) for determining organ pipe dimensions - something like the logarithm something of its wavelength, but it goes down the PETA hole quickly....
33. Part of campus Greek life: SORORITY
36. Nothing-to-do feeling: BOREDOM - Thought I had mono....
Wayne's World
37. Shoe parts: INSTEPS - I had shoe LAST last week
38. Sinister smiles: SNEERS
39. Gives a thumbs up: AGREES
40. Burro: ASS - followed by....
41. Breakfast tea variety: ASSAM - so the next answer should be ASS AM / FM ~?
42. "Guess you beat me": I LOSE - Nope. I guess I lose....
43. Babies, in Spanish: NENES - I thought it was a Hawaiian bird....
I've Got My I's on You! In today's puzzle, each theme word is a two-word phrase where the
first word ends in the letter "i" and the next word begins with the letter
"i", giving the phrase "i" [eye] contact.
16-Across. Denomination of most of the world's Muslims: SUNNI ISLAM.
25-Across. Spiced cold drink made with sweetened condensed milk: THAI ICED TEA. How to make Thai Tea: Thai Tea is a strongly black tea that is spiced with star anise, cloves,
crushed tamarind, cardamom, or a combination of any of those spices. It
is sweetened with sweetened condensed milk.
37-Across. Pro on the slopes: SKI INSTRUCTOR.
49-Across. Coastal resort town southeast of Naples: AMALFI ITALY.
And the unifier:
60. Nonverbal communication concern, and a phonetic hint to a feature of 16-,
25-, 37-, and 49-Across: EYE CONTACT.
Across:
1. Spelman or Morehouse, for short: HBCU. HBCU = Historically Black Colleges and Universities. Historically Black Colleges and Universities are those
institutions of higher education that were established before Civil Rights Act
of 1964 that were designed to serve African-American students.
5. Fluffy scarves: BOAS.
9. "Surely, you __!": JEST.
13. List-ending abbr.: ET AL. Today's Latin lesson and
crossword staple. Et al. is an abbreviation of the Latin term et alia, which translates as and others. Note that in the
term, Et is a word in and of itself, thus there is no period
after this word, only Al, which is the abbreviated word.
14. Texter's "What's up?": HOW R U.
15. Black-and-white cookie: OREO. A crossword staple.
These are the REAL Black and White cookies.
18. Genesis twin: ESAU. Jacob and Esau make frequent
appearances in the puzzles. They were the sons of Isaac and Rebecca.
[Name # 1.]
19. Zesty flavor: TANG. Also the Orange drink made from a powder, as we learned from yesterday. It was made famous as being the drink of astronauts.
20. Saloon: BAR. // And 58-Across. Brewpub
options: ALES.
22. "GMA" TV network: ABC. GMA = Good Morning America.
23. Teacup pig, e.g.: PET. Everything you wanted to know
about a Teacup Pig but didn't know to ask.
29. "Dracula" novelist Stoker: BRAM. Bram Stoker (né Abraham
Stoker; Nov. 8, 1847 ~ Apr. 20, 1912) was an Irish writer who never even set
foot in Transylvania, the home of Dracula. [Name # 2.]
32. Eggs purchase: DOZEN. Eggs were rather expensive earlier
this year.
33. Spicy pizza topping: JALAPENO. Not my first choice as a
topping.
36. Clumsy oaf: LUG.
41. __-mo replay: SLO.
42. Host, as guests: HAVE OVER.
44. Divided Asian peninsula: KOREA.
47. Nape tickler: TAG. Cute clue. Lots of shirts now
print their label on the cloth instead of attaching a tag.
48. Sharp cry: YELP.
53. __ de plume: NOM. Today's French lesson. Also
known as a pen name.
54. TiVo button: REC. TiVo is (was?) a video recorder with
a Record button.
55. Normal: Abbr.: STD. As in Standard.
56. "Silly me!": OOPS!
65. U. of Maryland athlete: TERP.
Looks mean.
66. Disney warrior played by Liu Yifei: MULAN. The movie
Mulan is about a young girl who disguises herself as a man who takes the place
of her elderly and ailing father who had been conscripted into the army.
Liu Yifei (née An Feng; b. Aug. 25, 1987) portrayed Mulan in the 2020
film version. [Name # 3.]
67. Some: A FEW.
68. Online artisan marketplace: ETSY. Etsy is an e-commerce
company that specializes in handmade or vintage items.
69. Dalmatian mark: SPOT.
70. Actress Ward: SELA. Sela Ward (née Sela Ann Ward; b.
July 11, 1956) is probably best known for her role as Theodora "Teddy" Reed on
the television drama Sisters. The show ran in the 1990s.
[Name # 4.]
Sela Ward is in the lower right corner.
Down:
1. "__ So Shy": HE'S. And now for a musical interlude.
2. AC meas.: BTU. BTU = British Thermal Unit. From the US Energy Information Administration webpage: "A British Thermal Unit is a measure of the heat content of
fuels or energy sources. One Btu is the quantity of heat required to raise the
temperature of one pound of liquid water by 1° Fahrenheit (F) at the
temperature that water has its greatest density (approximately 39° F)."
Perfectly clear, right?
3. "No time to chat!": CAN'T TALK.
4. Forearm bone: ULNA.
5. Fenway team: Abbr.: BOS. As in the Boston Red Sox.
Years ago, I lived just a few blocks from Fenway. That was back in
the day when bleacher seats were only $3.
6. Duo, the Duolingo mascot, for one: OWL. I wasn't familiar
with Duolingo, but the perps helped finding the Owl. Apparently, Doulingo is an app designed to help you learn another language. Cute
little owl.
7. Saudi __: ARABIA. Another country on a peninsula.
8. Poison shrub: SUMAC. Everything you wanted to know about
the poison sumac bush but didn't know to ask.
9. Actor Pesci: JOE. Although Joe Pesci (né Joseph Frank
Pesci; b. Feb. 9, 1943) has been in many films, he is often cited in the
puzzles for his role as Vinny Gambini in My Cousin Vinny.
[Name # 5.]
10. Not genuine: ERSATZ. Derived from old German
meaning replacement.
11. "We build, we fight" military member: SEABEE.
12. Big-billed bird: TOUCAN. Toucan Sam is the mascot for
Froot Loops.
14. Low's opposite: HIGH.
17. Loan payment pt.: INT. As in Interest.
21. Decrease: REDUCE.
23. Kid-friendly sandwich, informally: PBJ. As in A Peanut Butter and Jelly sandwich. Yummers! I still like a PB&J sandwich every
now and then.
24. History chapters: ERAs.
26. Actresses Sothern and Jillian: ANNS. Only one of the
Ann's was always an Ann. Ann Sothern (née Harriette Arlene Lake; Jan.
22, 1909 ~ Mar. 15, 2001) starred in numerous films in the 1930s. Ann
Jillian (née Ann Jura Nausea; b. Jan. 29, 1950) was a television star in the
1980s. [Names # 6 and 7.]
Ann Sothern
Ann Jillian
27. "Very relatable": I DO THAT.
28. Nylabone, e.g.: DOG TOY. I don't have dogs, so am not
familiar with the manufacturer of these toys. But are they safe for dogs?
30. "The Marvelous Mrs. __": MAISEL. The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel is a comedy-drama television series set in the 1950s. It got rave
reviews. [Name # 8]
34. Rice dishes: PILAFs. Yummers!
35. Experimental musician Brian: ENO. Brian Eno (né Brian
Peter George Eno; b. May 15, 1948) makes so many guest appearances in the
puzzles that he must have a permanent home here. [Name # 9.] //
Not to be confused with 61-Down. Jeff Lynne's band,
informally: ELO. Jeffrey Lynn (b. Dec. 30, 1947) is also an
English musician who co-founded the band Electric Light Orchestra, affectionally known as ELO. [Name # 10]
Brian Eno, then and now.
36. Hon: LUV.
38. Music featuring sitars: RAGA.
39. Like Pyrex: OVEN SAFE. Everything you wanted to know
about Pyrex but didn't know to ask.
40. Work-related move, for short: RE-LO. As in Re-Locate.
43. LP's 33 1/3: RPM. RPM = Revolutions Per Minute.
44. Discipline taught by a sensei: KARATE.
45. Filled and folded brunch order: OMELET. Yummers!
46. Indy 500 entrants: RACERS.
47. Prepare for company, in a way: TIDY UP.
50. Things: ITEMS.
51. Minnesota's state bird: LOON. Hi, C.C.!
Other Minnesota State Symbols. Louisiana and Minnesota share the same state beverage.
52. Hither and __: YON.
57. School support orgs.: PTAs. PTA = Parent Teacher Association.
59. Undercover agent: SPY.
62. Feline: CAT.
63. Cartoon frame: CEL. A crossword staple.
64. Defunct airline: TWA. My first plane trip was on
a TransWorld Airline flight. The company was founded in July 1930 and ceased to exist
in December 2001. You can visit the TWA Museum in Kansas City, Missouri.
This seems like one of those days where if you spotted me the "C" and the "A", I couldn't spell "CAT"
Puzzling thoughts:
As a blogger for the Crossword Corner for some three years now, I thought I had developed some sort of "sixth sense" that allows me to solve the puzzle, and then come up with a witty review to explain how everything meshed. Perhaps it is fitting, then, that today's puzzle marks my last blog/recap until mid-August. Don't panic. Moe will be back . . . But honestly? I need a break. I had no clue what this puzzle was trying to describe/define/make fun of/etc
Normally in a situation like this, I would accede to one of my other blogger peers and ask for some help. But you know what? I am going to try to figure this out as I ramble along in my blog ... so let's take these five "across" answers - one at a time - and see if I/we can solve this. And if not? I will look forward to hearing from my LAT Crossword Community in the comments section below ... I did manage to fill in the grid with correct letters and no cheats, if that's any consolation ... ;^)
18-across. Middle, approximately?: FUZZY NAVEL. So the word "approximately" shows up in each of the clues for the five longest answers (entries). By definition, "approximately" means: "imprecise but fairly close to correct". Would that imply - in this example - that the word "FUZZY" means imprecise, and NAVEL means in the middle? As in, your NAVEL is about in the middle of your body? IIRC, a drink called a FUZZY NAVEL was pretty popular back in the '60's and '70's ... maybe the next entry won't be quite so FUZZY ...
27-across. Sequence, approximately?: GENERAL ORDER. GENERAL = approximately? As an adjective, I found this word to mean "indefinite". ORDER - yeah, I can see that relating to sequence - as in, putting things in ORDER ... which of course immediately caused my brain to go into full Moe-l'ick (limerick) mode:
I like putting my blog into sequence, Every two weeks; which is my frequence. Sometimes I'm prepared; But I never get scared: Doing so would just give a false pretense
35-across. Straight, approximately?: BALLPARK FRANK. Hmm ... I may be solving this as I continue ... 'cause, guess what? The word "BALLPARK" means approximate; as in a "ballpark" figure. And the word "FRANK" (again, as an adjective) means: "characterized by directness in manner or speech; without subtlety or evasion". [dictionary dot com] Could it be this simple? As an aside, FRANK is also a man's nickname (Francis). Just as Shirley is a woman's name. Which, or course, made Moe think of this classic clip:
I bet you thought I was going to show one of these, instead ...
44-across. Right, approximately?: LOOSE FITTING. LOOSE = approximately (adjective, meaning not officially recognized or controlled); right (adjective, meaning being precisely fitting and right). This prompted a Moe-ku:
Clever tailor gave An underweight customer A LOOSE FITTING
57-across. Quarters, approximately?: ROUGHHOUSE. OK, I think I've got it!! ROUGH = approximate - similar to BALLPARK - as in a ROUGH estimate. HOUSE = quarters (a noun) as in "housing" - he found quarters for his family to live in, or something like that. Monetarily, a quarter = "two bits", so "four-bits" would = 50 cents - as in this old Roger Miller classic:
Well damn! All I had to do was talk it out, and voila! The puzzle now makes sense ... Joe Deeney, a frequent contributor to published crossword puzzles, gave us a Friday-worthy puzzle after all. And all of the punned phrases are common language! Which of course led to me thinking of yet another one that may or may not have been in contention: "Tryst, approximately?:" CLOSE ENCOUNTER
Here is the grid, completely, not approximately, filled in:
Across:
1. Shea successor: CITI. As in the ballfield in the Queens, NY; home of the Mets
5. Requirements for some new jobs, briefly: RELO'S. How about another Moe-ku?
When picked-up autos Are shipped for auction, are these RELO'S for repo's?
10. Bunch: SLEW. No one ever has said the words, "Don't get your panties in a SLEW!"
14. Soba alternative: UDON. This clue would also work if SOBA was the answer; "UDON alternative: SOBA"
15. Facetious target of a series of guides: IDIOT. Are you calling me an IDIOT??!! Well, maybe as it applied to me with today's puzzle. But this clue is meant for one of two series of guide books, entitled The Complete IDIOT'S Guide ... The other being, ... for Dummies. I wonder if there is a Crossword Puzzles for Dummies book I could purchase ... oh, wait a second, there is!!
16. Film princess who says, "You came in that thing? You're braver than I thought": LEIA. As said to Han Solo before escaping to the Millennium Falcon
17. Chap, in British slang: BRUV. I am seeing this word more often; it's a common term of expression in the Apple TV+ series, Ted Lasso
20. Start of an old boast: "I CAME ... ". My "boast" du jour is: "I CAME, I saw, I finally figured it out ..."
24. Slushy drinks: ICEES. ICEES, only because Margaritas didn't fit
26. Cartoonist Chast: ROZ. This lady
30. Middle of a valley?: ELS. Not ELS like the golfer, Ernie; ELS like the two letters in the middle of the word, "valley"
31. Abbey area: APSE. A bit of a stretch, maybe? An abbey refers to the entire building "footprint" of a monestery. I usually think of APSE as a recess in a church or chapel ... but regardless, it is crossword-ese, IMO
32. Prefix with male or female: CIS. As in "cis-gender". A “cis” person is a person who was assigned a gender and sex at birth that they feel comfortable with. Typically, cis men are men who were assigned male at birth and feel that the words "man" and "male" accurately describe who they are. I guess that I should add the words "HE/HIM" to my blogger profile ... CIS, boom, bah
40. French chum: AMI. My daughter's name is AMY, but she speaks little, if no, French
41. Heart: CORE. "Coeur" is the French word for heart. If I had to guess, the word "CORE" probably comes from the French language
42. Enthusiasm: VIM.
49. Oakland-to-Palo Alto dir.: SSE. Palo Alto is also the home to Stanford University
52. Fantasy author Canavan: TRUDI.
53. Goes to press?: IRONS. Ha Ha!
54. Place with crude buildings?: OIL TOWN. Interesting play-on-words ... the answer could've been this had it been clued differently
56. Hockey Hall of Famer Cam: NEELY. An old Boston Bruin methinks. Perhaps Wilbur Charles can provide us with a few Cam NEELY stories?
60. Whipped up: MADE. "whipped up" is an expression I use for when I make/MADE drinks (frozen Margaritas, perhaps?)
62. Back talk, in slang: 'TUDE. Note the apostrophe I put into the answer ... short for attiTUDE
63. Land parcels: ACRES. I think that Friday puzzles should have fewer than 8 clues that lead you to a logical and/or easy answer
64. "Inspiration Information" musician Shuggie: OTIS. I guess that OTIS Redding and OTIS the elevator guy are passe ... See 63-across comment ... here is a snapshot of Shuggie OTIS:
65. Salchow kin: AXEL. An ice-skating term for a type of jump/spin
66. Hues: TONES. See 63-across comment
67. Set components: REP'S. As in, how many REPitionS one can do during a workout, perhaps?
Down:
1. Little lion: CUB. I've blogged a puzzle that featured baby animal names ... here are a few of the adult animals who raise cubs: Lions, tigers, and bears (oh my!); plus leopards, jaguars, raccoons, and badgers. Badgers? We don't need no stinking badgers!! [with apologies to Mel Brooks and the hombres from Blazing Saddles]
2. Voice of Chief Bogo in "Zootopia": IDRIS ELBA.
3. Colorful cereal mascot: TOUCAN SAM. Quite the parallel partner to 2-down; TOUCAN SAM was featured on the box of Froot Loops. Here is an older pic:
4. Enter aggressively: INVADE. As opposed to "enter approximately, perhaps? (the answer to 34-down: SKINNY DIP)
5. Teeming (with): RIFE. What would a Moe-blog be without a visit from our Thesaurusaurus?
6. End of an academic address: EDU. If there were a school of higher learning called "Eastern Delaware University", might their url be "www.edu.edu"?
7. Truss who was very briefly U.K. prime minister in 2022: LIZ.
8. Like molasses, vis-à-vis water: OOZIER.
9. Straightened, say: STYLED.
10. Pole, e.g.: SLAV.
11. Fixture in some voting booths: LEVER. "More viscous" didn't fit
12. Singalong quintet: EIEIO. "Old MacDonald had a farm, ...."
13. Ballroom dance: WALTZ. Samba, rumba, mambo, and tango also fit
19. Snout: NOSE. Yet, another Moe-ku:
An inquisitive Aardvark, turned carnivore, Had a NOSE for gnus
21. Upstanding: MORAL.
23. Spend time in a cellar, perhaps: AGE. Once upon a time, Moe had a 600+ bottle wine cellar. Many of these wines needed a bit or a lot of AGE to improve. Now, Moe doesn't buy green bananas ...
24. "Casablanca" role: ILSA. RICK fit; SAM didn't
25. Put the squeeze on: COERCED. A "softened" clue for a forceful word
28. Google Play purchase: APP. Apple phone purchase would've been an acceptable clue, too
29. LG rival: RCA. For as old as this brand is, RCA seems to find its way into the modern x-word puzzles; a lot
33. Sacrosanct: INVIOLATE. Another Thesaurussaurus visit?
34. Barely get wet?: SKINNY DIP. Cute! And for those who enjoy a good Florida-based mystery novel, try reading this book, by Carl Hiaasen
36. One of the "Rugrats" twins: LIL. Can you tell them apart?
37. U.N. head between Boutros and Ban: KOFI. "KOFI Atta Annan was a Ghanaian diplomat who served as the seventh secretary-general of the United Nations from 1997 to 2006. Annan and the UN were the co-recipients of the 2001 Nobel Peace Prize". [wikipedia] Moe's "alter ego" used his entire name in an x-word puzzle entitled "Parking Spaces" - see 19-across
38. Planner abbr.: FRI. MON, TUE, WED, THU, SAT, and SUN also fit
39. Adjust an ascot: RETIE. How to tie an ascot? View below:
43. Booker T.'s band: MGS. My favorite; "Green Onions". Enjoy!
45. Letters before a fresh take: OTOH. Interesting clue for this - "on the other hand" is sometimes said (or texted) when someone wants to offer a "fresh take" on a topic
59. Date: SEE. Are you SEEing anyone? Not I. Margaret and I are past our "dating" period, although we do still enjoy occasional "date" nights
61. Double curve: ESS.
Well, that's it folks ... for awhile anyway ... to whomever is going to pinch-hit for C-Moe, "tag, you're it!!" I know you'll be equally entertained with their recaps. See you in approximately two months ...
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