Monday October 2, 2023 Katherine Baicker and Laura Dershewitz

  

Hello Cornerites!

Theme:            Fire Drill

sumdaze here. I cannot believe we are already in October! We are entering the time of year when a cozy chair, an afghan, a good book, a cup of hot cocoa, and a pumpkin-flavored biscotti are all we need for a satisfying afternoon. Did I forget anything? Oh, yes, you might want a warming fire. To do that, you will need three things:  oxygen, heat, and fuel.  

This is the "fire triangle". The fourth element is a chemical reaction.
If you take any of these four things away, you will not have a fire or the fire will be extinguished.

Katherine Baicker and Laura Dershewitz have built a snug puzzle for us based on this fire triangle. If these constructors' names sound familiar, that is probably because you remember their Herding Cats puzzle from Friday, September 22, 2023 -- which was expertly blogged by the charming Chairman Moe.

Let's look at the three themed clues, followed by the reveal:

20 Across. Talks things out to resolve tension: CLEARS THE AIR.  Oxygen

28 Across. Slumbers soundly: SLEEPS LIKE A LOG.  Fuel

47 Across. Applies more pressure: TURNS UP THE HEAT.  Heat

54. Jack London short story set in harsh winter conditions, and what the ends of 20-, 28-, and 47-Across can be used for: TO BUILD A FIRE.

I had to rework the South a couple of times while I was trying to recall the title. TO light A FIRE?  bzzt. TO start A FIRE?  bzzt. The third time was a charm.  

This short story was first published in Century Magazine in 1908.
Read the full PDF here.
Or read the Cliffs Notes version here.

Let's pause for a bit of silliness before we move on to the other 74 clues:  

Tompall Glaser sings Put Another Log on the Fire (1974)

Across:
1. Symbol on the Texas state flag: STAR.  Do we have any vexillologists on The Corner?

5. Central point: GIST.  My brain searched for a more precise, mathematical answer. Sometimes perfect is the enemy of good enough.  

9. Sailboat poles: MASTS.

14. Muted, as colors: PALE.

15. Cuatro y cuatro: OCHO.  4 and 4 = 8

Yesterday's clue for OCHO was much more difficult.

16. To no __: without success: AVAIL.  As a noun, AVAIL means "an advantage toward attainment of a goal or purpose".

17. North Carolina university: ELON.  ELON University is a private school. It was founded in 1889.

18. Clothing part that might split: SEAM.  That seems likely.

19. As of late: NEWLY.

23. Miss Piggy's favorite pronoun: MOI.  

24. Spice amt.: TSP.  "Amount" is abbreviated, so is "teaspoon".  "Five" would not fit.

The (5) Spice Girls performed at the 2012 London Olympics Closing Ceremony.

25. Post for an MBA, maybe: CFO.  Master of Business Administration and Chief Financial Officer

33. Ecol. or geol.: SCI.  Ecology, Geology, and SCIence

34. Catch a glimpse of: SEE.

35. Digital camera insert, briefly: SD CARD.  and  26 Down. Word processing menu heading: FORMAT.  and  54 Down. Cassette: TAPE.

We're going old school technology today!

These 50 old school tech products changed industries, improved lives, set trends, connected people, and eventually got passed over for newer products.

36. "Good Lord!": OH GOD.

39. Food drive donation: CAN.  

Also ... you can drive around CANada and eat these delicious foods.

41. Familiar "Who's there?" reply: IT'S ME. "Familiar" in the clue refers to a dictionary's explanatory notes. It indicates that the words are suitable for informal contexts but would not normally be used in formal writing or speaking. In this case, the formal reply would be, "It is I," or, preferably, "It is <name>."

42. Arrived by air: FLEW IN.  The past tense in the clue required an answer in the past tense.

Brown Pelicans might seem like awkward birds but they are adept flyers.

I never tire of watching them glide along the breakers. They FLY IN like a squadron of F-18s in a

V formation and know exactly how the air moves over the waves.

44. Push-up bra feature: PAD.  Were you hoping for a pic? Will this one do?  

46. __ Diego Padres: SAN.  As of this writing, they are standing 3rd in the NL West with 19.5 games back.  How They Came to be Called the Padres

51. Paramount channel: CBS.  and  52. Paramount channel: TMC.

ESP...TV channel clues are not my strong point.

53. Web pioneer: AOL.

60. Green energy category: SOLAR.  CSO to unclefred!  

63. Tend the soup: STIR.  This is me. I make big pots of soups, stews, and beans.

64. Big celebrity: IDOL.

65. Learn to fit in: ADAPT.  

66. "__, Brute?": ET TU.  

67. Sizable bodies of water: SEAS.  We often hear about the "Seven SEAS", but according to National Geographic, there are about 50 SEAS on Earth.

68. Formally hands over: CEDES.  Russia CEDEd Alaska to the U.S. on October 18, 1867. This ended Russia's presence in North America and gave the U.S. access to the Pacific northern rim.

69. Amy of "The Wire": RYAN.  I have not seen this show.

Amy as Beadie Russel (lt.) and as herself.

70. Rabbit kin: HARE.  

HAREs are distinguished from rabbits by their larger size, longer ears, and longer hind legs.
Both have cute whiskers.

Down:
1. On __: how much freelance work is done: SPEC.  "On SPEC" means "without having a definite buyer or customer but with the hope or expectation of finding one when work is completed". This describes crossword puzzle construction, no?

2. Like many supermodels: TALL.  I asked Splynter for his expertise with this one. He sent me three pics and one is from me. Can you guess which are his?

4 TALL models

3. Sunburn soother: ALOE.  I need to repot my ALOE plant. It has grown so big that it tips over its current pot.

4. Change the title of: RENAME.  

5. Deals in dirt: GOSSIPS.  "Dirt" is slang for GOSSIP -- usually of a scandalous nature.  

6. Rapper who plays Fin on "Law & Order: SVU": ICE-T.

7. Toppled Iranian leader: SHAH.

8. Black Lives Matter co-founder Ayo __: TOMETI.

9. Nail treatment at a salon, informally: MANI-PEDI.  I looked up the trendy colors for this Fall (so you don't have to). One expert recommended deep browns, regal blues, and rusty orange polishes. Another recommended earth tones and all shades of greens from bamboo to dark olive.

10. State definitively: AVER.

11. Toothed tool: SAW.

12. Up to, briefly: 'TIL.  unTIL

13. Underhanded: SLY.

21. Fish eggs: ROE.

22. Inquires: ASKS.

25. Top-grade: CLASS A.

27. "Happiness is having a scratch for every itch" poet Nash: OGDEN.  

Paul the Cow* gets his itches scratched (36 sec.)

*"Cow" is a female bovine who has had a calf, but I looked past this egregious error because the video is pretty cute.

You can see Paul's happiness at having his itches scratched.

28. Disheveled clod: SCHLUB.  Def.:  (slang) a stupid, worthless, or unattractive person. >>> Ouch!

29. Crossbred big cats: LIGERS.  and  58 Down. Stadium sound: ROAR.

For the most part, big cats (lions, tigers, leopards, and jaguars) can ROAR but they cannot purr. Cougars and smaller cats (bobcats, ocelots, lynxes, and house cats) can purr, but they cannot roar. I asked Google if LIGERS can roar. It said, "The faintly striped, shaggy-maned creatures are the offspring of male lions and female tigers, which gives them the ability to both roar like lions and chuff like tigers -- a supposedly affectionate sound that falls somewhere between a purr and a raspberry."  

LIGERs average 1,000 lbs. (463.6 kg.).

30. Brief time, briefly: SEC. kinda fun clue

31. Cleared a hurdle: LEAPT.  and  45 Down. All-out sprint: DEAD RUN.

In this video Sydney McLaughlin gets a world record and a gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics in the 400m. hurdles.  Wow!  (NBC will let me link the video but not embed it.)

32. Take steps: ACT.

33. Component of cider but not cola?: SOFT C.  Meta clue. "Cider" begins with an /s/ (SOFT C) and "cola" begins with a /k/ "hard C".

37. Hold the deed to: OWN.

38. Twists, as data: DISTORTS.  When looking at a graph, always look to see if it starts at zero.

At first look, it appears the percent of Democrats 'who agree with court' is three times that of the other two parties.
Look closer. This graph does not start at zero!
The difference is between 62% and 54%. Not quite so shocking now, is it?

40. "Nope": NAH.  Both are slang for "no".

43. Pink Floyd's "Comfortably __": NUMB.  Here's the song.  It was released in 1979 on their 11th studio album, The Wall. David Gilmour's guitar solo is legendary.

48. Many a laptop owner: PC USER.  Hand up for this one.

49. Condo management gp.: HOA.  "Group" is abbreviated, so is "Home Owners Association".

Each is different, but basically, HOAs maintain building exteriors, landscape common areas, establish rules, and provide amenities, e.g., a swimming pool. The average HOA fee in the U.S. in 2021 was $286 a month. Hawaii came in with the most expensive at $762 a month. West Virginia was the least expensive state at $37 per month.

50. Mischievous: ELFISH.  Def.:  relating to or characteristic of an elf or elves; lively and slightly mischievous; impish.  

Will Ferrell was hilarious in Elf (2003). One gets the feeling that James Caan was thinking this crazy movie was going to ruin his career -- but now it is one of the top 10 Christmas movies of all time.

55. Teeny: ITTY.

56. "Close My Eyes Forever" singer Ford: LITA.  IMDb page

57. Brain wave: IDEA.

59. "Who __ knows?": ELSE.  I am wondering the same thing.

60. Cul-de-__: SAC.

61. Rhyming tribute: ODE.

62. Young fellow: LAD.  

We're burning daylight. I better get on with it and post the grid.

Two things before I go:

1. Thanks to Splynter for collaborating with me on 2 Down!!
2. I blogged a Rebecca Goldstein puzzle on March 13, 2023 with this same reveal. It is impressive how different constructors see new ways to use solid themes.

Thursday, January 26, 2023, Katherine Baicker & Ross Trudeau

 

Katherine Baicker has had 3 LAT outings and Ross Trudeau has had 10, plus 54 with the NYT, including a collaboration with his Dad, whom you may recognize.  I think this is the first time Katherine and Ross have teamed together for the LAT and for today's theme they present us with 4 iconic mascots on a

FAST TRACK
TO THE TOP

But let's begin at the bottom:

58A. Marketing strategies, and what the mascots in this puzzle have all been given?: SALES PROMOTIONS.

17A. Mascot who pursued the Hamburglar: DETECTIVE BIG MAC.  He started out as a beat cop who  always got his HAM and was eventually promoted to the rank of

Detective Big Mac

23A. Mascot with a goatee and a string tie: GENERAL SANDERS.  This humble COLONEL leveraged his good looks and Southern charm to get promoted to the rank of

 

General Sanders

36A. Mascot "born in the Sea of Milk": ADMIRAL CRUNCH.  He started as CAPTAIN CRUNCH and his gimmick was a free whistle in every box.   He was quickly promoted to the rank of

Admiral Crunch

 ... because the box also included free, unlimited long distance phone calls!

50A. Mascot who says, "I want to eat your cereal!": MARQUIS CHOCULA.  He started out as a lowly COUNT but was promoted to royalty because he was willing to work night shifts and he really sank his teeth into his job:
 

Marquis Chocula

Here's the grid:

Here's the rest:

Across:

1. Intro courses?: APPS.  APPetizers?

5. Female turkeys: HENS. Their mates are called TOMS.

9. Features of some islands: SINKS.  These islands are not in el Océano (see 45A), but in the middle of your kitchen:

14. Attract: DRAW.

15. Lotion ingredient: ALOE.  SNORE.  Oops, next clue!

16. Sleeper's rumble: SNORE.  May be a sign of sleep APNEA.  A sleep study can confirm whether you have it, but in my experience they are elaborate affairs.  Basically they bundle you up in a cocoon of wires and sleep sensors and expect you to sleep comfortably while they monitor you overnight.  Somebody could make a bundle if they invented reusable, wireless sensors, e.g. bluetooth enabled.

[Theme clue]

20. Dutch cheese: EDAM.  Crosswordcheese.

21. Right at sea?: AYE.  Whatever you say Admiral!  See also 57A.

22. So last year: OUT. "Fashion is a form of ugliness so intolerable that we have to alter it every six months" - Oscar Wilde.

[Theme clue]

28. Flying fig.: ALT.  ALTitude.

29. Carve up a black diamond?: SKI.  A former haunt for Malodorous Manatee.  These days he likes to lounge in the lodge sipping hot toddies. 😁

30. Currier and __: IVES.  Currier and Ives was a New York City printmaking business that operated between 1835 and 1907. Founded by Nathaniel Currier, the company designed and sold inexpensive, hand painted lithographic works based on news events, views of popular culture and Americana.  The corporate name was changed in 1857 to "Currier and Ives" with the addition of James Merritt Ives.

A Brush for the Lead

31. Entreaty: PLEA.

33. Shade tree: ELM.

35. Service charge: FEE.

[Theme clue]

41. Choice indicators: ORS.  RNS and MDS are not options.

42. English pronoun: SHE.  See 24D.

43. Excursion: TRIP.

45. Océano contents: AGUA.  WATER.  Spanish lesson #1.

47. "Sorta": ISH.

49. Estadio cheer: OLE. 

[Theme clue]

55. Samantha Bee's former network: TBS.  Samantha Anne Bee (born in Toronto, Ontario on October 25, 1969) is a Canadian-American comedian, writer, producer, political commentator, actress, and television host. A CSO to CanadianEh!

Samantha Bee

56. Calgary summer hrs.: MDT.  Hi again CanadianEh!  The Mountain Time Zone of North America keeps time by subtracting seven hours from Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) when standard time (UTC−07:00) is in effect, and by subtracting six hours during daylight saving time (UTC−06:00).  Calgary, Alberta is due South of Edmonton on this map:

Mountain Time Zone

57. Left at sea?: PORT.  See 21A.

[Theme reveal]

64. With 40-Down, legal scholar played by Kerry Washington in HBO's "Confirmation": ANITA.  and 40-Down HILL.  Confirmation is a 2016 American television political thriller film, directed by Rick Famuyiwa and written by Susannah Grant.  The YouTube trailers were way too political, so you'll have to settle for this:

  BUT IN THIS  CASE IT DIDN'T!

65. Past regulation, briefly: IN OT.  Over Time.

66. Smooch in a lift: SNOG.  LIFT is Brit for elevator.  As long as the two of you are alone it's not a PDA.

67. Cat collar dangler: ID TAG.   If you're really attached to your pet you can have them micro-chipped in case they get lost and lose their ID TAG.   We're next!

68. Affixes a patch, say: SEWS.

69. Hushed "Hey!": PSST.

Down:

1. Verb on a dipstick: ADD.   But not too much.  You might blow a gasket.

2. Paid intro?: PRE.

3. Protected, in a way: PATENTED.  Both PATENTS and TRADE MARKS are protected by the USPTO in Alexandria, VA, where I worked for a couple of years.  They are one of the few government agencies that pays for itself through the fees it collects for research and licensing.

4. Greta Thunberg, notably: SWEDE.  The day before this was written she was arrested for a protest at a German coal mine. 

Greta Thunberg

5. Ones who work with bowlers and boaters: HAT MAKERS.

Bowler               Boater

 
6. Yalie: ELI.  Nicknamed for this guy:

Elihu Yale

7. Super stars: NOVAS. A supernova is the biggest explosion that humans have ever seen. Each blast is the extremely bright, super-powerful explosion of a star.  During the lifetime of stars their primary constituent hydrogen is fused into heavier elements.  The debris from supernovae explosions are captured during planetary formation and many of these elements are the basis for the creation and maintenance of life.

Artist rendering of a Supernova
Image credit: NASA/CXC/M.Weiss

8. "Buh-bye!": SEE YA.

9. Govt. stipend: SSI.  Supplemental Security Income.  A tip 'o the hat to TTP for pointing out my confusion between SSI and Social Security benefits.  Here's the difference.  Both are administered at the SSA Headquarters in Woodlawn, MD, about 2 miles from our house ...

Social Security Headquarters

10. Dutch banking giant with an orange lion logo: ING.  The ING Group is a Dutch multinational banking and financial services corporation headquartered in Amsterdam. Its primary businesses are retail banking, direct banking, commercial banking, investment banking, wholesale banking, private banking, asset management, and insurance services. With total assets of US $1.1 trillion, it is one of the biggest banks in the world, and consistently ranks among the top 30 largest banks globally.  Here's their logo:

I was happy to find that ING is also a major charitable organization, a supporter of the arts, and they happen to be sponsors of the world renowned Royal Concertgebouw  Orchestra, which performed this brass chorale from Mahler's 2nd Symphony ("The Resurrection")

11. "I give!": NO MORE.
 
12. Alison in the Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame: KRAUSS.  Alison Maria Krauss (born July 23, 1971) is an American bluegrass-country singer and musician. She entered the music industry at an early age, competing in local contests by the age of eight and recording for the first time at 14.  Here's her song Down To The River To Pray used in the soundtrack to the 2000 Joel and Ethan Coen film O Brother, Where Art Thou?

13. Chip off the old flock?: SECT.  Clever clue.

18. Sonata and Cadenza: CARS. This one really had me stumped for a while.  Sonatas are solo pieces, e.g. for piano or violin, whereas a cadenza is usually a virtuoso solo interlude within a larger orchestral work, such as a piano concerto.  But the second movement of Beethoven's Sonata 32 published in 1822 has an incredibly virtuosic passage that I think qualifies as a cadenza.  It was almost 70 years ahead of its time and is reminiscent of ragtime piano.   This 2 minute interlude is popularly known as the "boogie-woogie" variation.  Take it for a test drive and see if you don't agree:

19. "__-Hur": BEN.  Ben-Hur is a 1959 American religious epic film directed by William Wyler, produced by Sam Zimbalist, and starring Charlton Heston as the title character.  It was adapted from Lew Wallace's 1880 novel Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ.  It won 11 Academy awards and it even has an EPIC trailer ...

23. Missing segment: GAP.

24. Spanish pronoun: ELLA.  SHE.  Spanish lesson #2.  A bi-lingual dupe with 43A?

25. Singer/activist Downs: LILA.  Spanish lesson #3.  Ana Lila Downs Sánchez (born 9 September 1968) is a Mexican singer-songwriter/activist. She performs her own compositions and the works of others in multiple genres, as well as tapping into Mexican traditional and popular music.  Here's her Zapata Se Queda

26. French Lord: DIEU.  Not the aristocrat, the poor guy.  French lesson #1.

27. __ planner: EVENT.

32. Affaire de coeur: AMOUR.  LOVE. French lesson #2.

34. NYC FC's org.: MLS.  The New York City Football Club is an American professional soccer club based in New York City that competes in Major League Soccer (MLS), the highest level of American soccer, as a member of the league's Eastern Conference.

35. Just-brewed carafes of coffee, e.g.: FRESH POTS. 

37. Kirkuk's country: IRAQ.  Kirkuk (Arabic: كركوك, Kurdish: کەرکووک) is a city in Iraq, serving as the capital of the Kirkuk Governorate, located 238 kilometres (148 miles) north of Baghdad. The city is home to a diverse population of Turkmens, Arabs, Kurds, and Assyrians.

Iraq

38. Smart: CHIC.  See 22A.

39. Salad topping: CROUTONS.  CROÛTONS.  French lesson #3 (you get extra points for the ^)

40. See 64-Across: HILL.

44. Storied cause of royal insomnia: PEA.  In case you slept through it ...

45. Radio setting: AM BAND.  AM FM and ALARM were too short.

46. Like the streets in some period pieces: GAS LIT.

48. Nocturnal call: HOOT.  Another CSO to Ray - O.  This makes two weeks in a row.

51. Strike caller: UMP.

52. Elba of "The Suicide Squad": IDRIS.  Elba is definitely not risk aversive.  The Suicide Squad is a 2021 American superhero film based on the DC Comics team Suicide Squad.  Imagine that.

53. Curling target: STONE.  Also called "Chess on ice", curling is a sport in which players slide stones on a sheet of ice toward a target area which is segmented into four concentric circles.  Oh and BTW, according to this article, the Olympic rules actually call the target area a house.

US Olympic Curler Vicky Persinger

54. Brittle: CRISP.

55. Taiwan's first female president: TSAI.  Tsai Ing-wen grew up in Taipei and studied law and international trade.  She later studied law at the London School of Economics and Political Science, with her thesis titled "Unfair trade practices and safeguard actions", and was awarded a Ph.D. in law from the University of London.

Tsai Ing-wen

59. "When do u get in?": ETA.

60. Old futon problem: SAG.  A new clue for old crosswordese?

61. Lower a pitch?: MOW.  "Pitch" is a term used by the groundsmen for the NYC FC (see 34D)

62. Figs.: NOS.
 
63. "__ Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band": SGT.   The clue didn't indicate if it was just for the first track or the eponymous album.  This link will take you to the play list and you can click   Play all   to cycle through the whole album (with 1 sec ad blips) or you can pick and choose what you like.  Enjoy!

Cheers,
Bill

As always, thanks to Teri for proof reading and for her constructive criticism.  

 

waseeley

 

Thursday, July 7, 2022 Laura Dershewitz, Katherine Baicker

 

 

What the Hack?

 

Today's constructors are Laura Dershewitz and her partner in crime Katherine Baicker.  This is Laura's first visit to the LAT, and Katherine first appeared here on May 19, 2022, reviewed by my partner in crime Malodorous Manatee. Laura's and Katherine's theme is all about HACKS.  But what exactly is a HACK?  It turns out to be quite a mercurial term with a least a dozen different meanings, many with no apparent connections to the others.  Today we tend to associate "hacking" with computers, but the term apparently predates modern computers by many years.  In their reveal for the themers our constructors seem to be exploring two usages of the word HACK, separated below by  the conjunction AND ...

58A. Tricks to improve productivity, and the tricks used to form the answers to the starred clues?: LIFE HACKS.  (my italics).  The first usage, "Tricks to improve productivity", can be illustrated by this popular O'Reilly Book on Microsoft Word:

The second usage is, "the tricks used to form the answers to the starred clues": LIFE HACKS.  This commonly implies "tricks to improve the productivity of one's life" but then riffs on that phrase with the "black hacker" meaning of surreptitiously altering a program or program data.  Our constructors effect a hidden insertion of the word LIFE in the middle of each two word themer to transform it from a funny clue into a commonly used phrase.  Here are the themers with the [LIFE HACKS]: 

17A. *Paperwork for a UFO pilot?: ALIEN [LIFE] FORM.  The subject of much debate this days.  It seems to be commonly believed that they're "out there", but highly unlikely that they could be "down here".

23A. *Fast fashion?: ACTIVE [LIFE] STYLE.   I've never been much of a fashion plate, but this is one STYLE I need to wear more of.

36A. *House of worship known for raucous parties?: WILD [LIFE] SANCTUARY.  These seem to be shrinking world wide, especially in the Amazon rain forest (scroll down or hover over the menu on the left to navigate;  also the sound track takes a few seconds to load).

47A. *Office scale?: WORK [LIFE] BALANCE.  Something that even us retirees can use more of.

Here's the grid, with the themers before the [LIFE HACKS]
 

Across:

1. Catch a glimpse of: SPOT.  Or a SPOT of TEA, a popular drink on the Corner. Just last week, in a visit to one of our old neighborhoods, Teri and I discovered a new tea room called Emma's Tea Spot.  Amid the British themed decor, I encountered the slogans below popularized by Queen Elizabeth II during WWII.  At this writing she is still "Carrying On" at age 96!

5. "__ Great Heights": single by The Postal Service: SUCH.  The Postal Service was an American indie pop supergroup from Seattle, Washington, consisting of singer Ben Gibbard, producer Jimmy Tamborello, and Jenny Lewis on background vocals.  They were active on and off from 2001 to 2014.  Here's  "Such Great Heights" from their album Give Up (lyrics)

9. Shelter org.: ASPCA.  This dog Bennie has been following me around YouTube for months and I thought it was time that we got acquainted (a CSO to PAT):

 14. "Take it!": HERE.

15. Wind with a range of roughly three octaves: OBOE.  Here's the 2nd of Robert Schumann's Three Romances for Oboe and Piano:

16. Pulse: THROB.

19. Emotional states: MOODS.

20. Mobile game?: PHONE TAG.  I recently spent 4 days playing telephone tag with a technician to schedule the installation of a new CPAP machine.  I can breath much easier now.

21. Sauce thickener: ROUX.  A ROUX is flour and fat cooked together and used to thicken sauces. A roux is typically made from equal parts of flour and fat by weight.  The flour is added to the melted fat or oil on the stove top, blended until smooth.   Here's Teri's recipe for Velouté Sauce from the Fanny Farmer Cookbook.  This cookbook makes a great wedding gift.  Plus it has hard to spell recipes like Vichyssoise and Bouillabaisse!

22. Suffix with ether: EAL.  Ethereal is an a word with a least three meanings.  Here are the first two, courtesy of the Oxford Languages Dictionary:

ETHEREAL was also the original name of a free software product (now called Wireshark) generically known as a "packet sniffer", a device that enables techs to decode network traffic to troubleshoot problems or to monitor and detect intrusions by HACKERS (was this a themer I missed?). The name probably derives from the root ETHERNET, a low level network service that most software "sniffers" can decode. 

27. Drag through the mud: SMEAR.  As in SLANDER.

29. CPR provider: EMT.  Emergency Medical Technicians perform Cardio Pulmonary Resuscitation, among other services.

30. Manner: WAY.

31. Snap at, say: REACT TO.

35. Mug: FACE.  The association of the words MUG and FACE, probably derives from the Scandinavian word MUGG, a "drinking vessel".  In the 18th and 19th centuries, mugs produced in Staffordshire, England were often decorated with caricatures on the face of ceramic jugs. This may have led to the term MUG as a synonym for an ugly face and where we get our term MUG SHOT. Here is a typical 19th Century MUG, alias a TOBY JUG.  Looks SUSPICIOUS doesn't he?

39. Tech leader?: NANO.

40. Country songs: ANTHEMS.  Before the Star Spangled Banner was officially declared our National Anthem in 1931, our anthem was considered by many to be America the Beautiful  (lyrics):

41. Go (for): OPT.

42. Wonkette founding editor __ Marie Cox: ANA.Ana Marie Cox (born September 23, 1972) is an American author, blogger, political columnist, and critic. The founding editor of the political blog Wonkette, she was also the Senior Political Correspondent for MTV News, and conducted the "Talk" interviews featured in The New York Times Magazine from 2015 to 2017.
 

Ana Marie Cox

43. "__ welcome": YOU'RE.  An archaic phrase meaning "NO PROBLEM".

52. Pester: NAG.  A terrible instance of Equine appropriation!

53. Booker Prize-winning author Murdoch: IRIS.  Dame Jean Iris Murdoch DBE (15 July 1919 – 8 February 1999) was an Irish and British novelist and philosopher. Murdoch is best known for her novels about good and evil, sexual relationships, morality, and the power of the unconscious. 
 

Dame Iris Murdoch, DBE

54. Really cheap: FOR A SONG.   Among many other works, composer Franz Schubert  (1797-1828) wrote over 600 SONGS in his all too short life of 31 years.  Despite the fact that they are considered masterpieces of German art song, it's doubtful that he was ever paid more than a pittance for any of them.   Here's his hauntingly beautiful Gretchen am Spinnrade, written when Schubert was only 17 and set to a poem from Goethe's play Faust.  Gretchen is sitting at her spinning wheel pouring her heart out for her lover Faust, who has abandoned her. Notice how the piano accompaniment evokes the sound of the spinning wheel's treadle:

56. Inelastic: RIGID.

59. "Yay me!": I RULE.

60. "Can't argue with that": TRUE.

61. The Met __: annual NYC fundraising event: GALA.  Sorry, but all the hits on this topic wanted me to pay them money to see their advertising.  As Bloggers don't have an expense account, I swiped left.

62. Some spa treatments: PEELS.  I think we were treated to one of these recently.  It doesn't sound very APPEELING to me.

63. Tear to bits: REND.

64. Actor Mapa of "Ugly Betty" and "Doom Patrol":  Alejandro "Alec" Mapa (born July 10, 1965) is an American actor, comedian and writer. 
 

Alec Mapa

Down:

1. Board book subject: SHAPES.  Despite having dozens of these around the house for the grandbabies, I didn't know they had a formal name.  I guess being made of boards, the pages are hard to REND.  Here's Harper Collins Publishers re The Best Baby Board Books of 2022.

2. New York suburb near New Rochelle: PELHAM.

3. Camden Yards [sic] player: ORIOLE.   As of  this writing the O's are at the bottom of the AL East ladder.  However my cardiologist, who is one of the team's cardiologists, and who is an expert in these matters, informs me that they will be really AFIRE in 2 or 3 years.  To think that I'm just 2 degrees of separation from all of the Orioles!  Unfortunately I don't know any of their names this season.  A hand up from anyone who does?  Oriole Park at Camden Yards (the correct name) is celebrating its 30th Anniversary this year (but I doubt seriously that that picture was taken in 2022)
 

Oriole Park at Camden Yards

4. __ Choice Awards: TEEN.

5. Icy center?: SOFT C.  Not ICKY.

6. WWII sub: U BOAT.  "Unterseeboot", auf Englisch "under-sea-boat", today's German lesson.  The occasional capture of U-BOATS by Allied warships was extremely helpful in the breaking of the ENIGMA machines used by the Germans to encrypt their communications.  This article tells part of that story.

7. Short-legged dog: CORGI.  One of my sisters has a CORGI, a rescue dog named Deidre.  She was probably abused by a previous owner and she doesn't like men.  So I don't get to pet her.

8. Clothing line?: HEM.  Ho, hum, hem.

9. Not more than: AT MOST.

10. Stain-removal brand: SHOUT.  It's triple acting!

11. Armed conflict waged on behalf of superpowers: PROXY WAR.  If they're so "super" why can't they fight their own wars?

12. Fish sticks fish: COD.  Much better baked in EVOO with tomatoes, peppers, onions, and fresh Italian herbs, served over rice.

13. Core muscles: ABS.

18. Closed in on: NEARED.

21. Off the beaten path: REMOTE.  Is REMOTED the opposite of 18D?

24. Forage plant: VETCH.  VETCH is a well known legume also known as "common vetch" or "tares". Its scrambling, smothering growth habit and frost tolerance make it a very useful winter cover crop or green manure.  It is one of many types of forage crops.

25. Like some lingerie: LACY.  Some of the CAMIS we've seen for the past two weeks were LACY.

26. Retina locale: EYE. 

28. "Collapsed in Sunbeams" singer Parks: ARLO.  Another ARLO!  Anaïs Oluwatoyin Estelle Marinho (born 9 August 2000), known professionally as Arlo Parks, is a British singer-songwriter and poet. Her debut studio album, Collapsed in Sunbeams, was released in 2021 to critical acclaim and peaked at number three on the UK Albums Chart.  Here's the song Hope from that album (lyrics):

32. Yoga postures: ASANAS.  Here are explanations and familiar names for the 7 poses shown below:
 

33. Waterway with locks: CANAL.  Canals or artificial waterways are waterways or engineered channels built for drainage management (e.g. flood control and irrigation) or for conveying water transport vehicles (e.g. water taxis). They can be thought of as artificial rivers.  A lock is a device used for raising and lowering boats, ships and other watercraft between stretches of water of different levels on river and canal waterways.

34. Explosive letters: TNT.

35. Burkina __: FASO.  We saw this in Pam Klawitter's puzzle just this past Sunday.  Burkina Faso is a landlocked country in West Africa with an area of 274,200 km² (105,900 sq mi), bordered by Mali to the northwest, Niger to the northeast, Benin to the southeast, Togo and Ghana to the south, and the Ivory Coast to the southwest. Note that MALI and NIGER are also landlocked (and sure to be fills in a future puzzle):

West Africa

36. D.C. daily: WAPO.  If you can't get your LA Times puzzle fix from your usual pusher, the Washington Post gives it away for free.  Unlike their news.

37. Fascinate: INTRIGUE.  Teri and I are armchair detectives and are INTRIGUED by British murder mysteries.

38. "Sure, I guess": UM YEAH.  "Well you don't sound sure!"

39. "I don't have all day!": NOW.   The MD's on the corner don't say that.  They say STAT!

42. Stomachs: ABIDES.

44. West Coast petroleum giant that merged with Chevron in 2005: UNOCAL.  Union Oil Company of California, known as Unocal was a major petroleum explorer and marketer in the late 19th century, through the 20th century, and into the early 21st century.

45. Really get to: RANKLE.

46. Arachnid incubator: EGG SAC.  When I'm tilling in the garden and see a Wolf Spider with an EGG SAC, I do my best to avoid killing them.  All those eggs will hatch and grow up to be natural enemies of the various pests in the garden.
 

Wolf Spider with Egg Sac

48. Whale fare: KRILL.  Krill are small crustaceans of the order Euphausiacea, and are found in all the world's oceans. The name "krill" comes from the Norwegian word krill, meaning "small fry of fish".

Northern Krill

49. Pumped up: AFIRE.  A stoneware kiln is really "pumped up" when it reaches WHITE HEAT, approximately 2380 degrees Fahrenheit.

50. Devoid of joy: NO FUN.

51. 2015 boxing film directed by Ryan Coogler: CREED.  Creed is a 2015 American sports drama film directed by Ryan Coogler from a screenplay by Coogler, Aaron Covington, and contributions by Sylvester Stallone.  This is a film about people who really BELIEVE in boxing.  I'm not really qualified to say more, as I've not seen any of the Rocky films. However I have climbed the steps of the Philadelphia Museum of Art several times over the years and have great respect for anyone who can run up and down them.  Creed is the 7th film, but not last, in the Rocky franchise (see next clue for details).

55. Multigenerational tale: SAGA.  For example, the Rocky franchise. 

56. __ tide: RIP.  Here's how to escape from a RIP TIDE ...

57. Hot temper: IRE.  Anger.

58. USPS unit: LTR.  Letter.

As always, thanks to Teri for proofreading and for constructive criticism (and for the Velouté Sauce recipe).

waseeley

Cheers,

Bill

Laura Dershewitz and Katherine Baicker, you both are invited to post anything you'd like to share about this puzzle, its evolution, the theme, or whatever, in the Comments section below.  We'd love to hear from you.  Oh and Laura, I'm curious as to whether you are one of the authors of this book?