Kathy Lowden is becoming a regular here, her last puzzle was just back in April.
 |
| Ashes to ashes... |
16. Evil actions of a cartoon villain, e.g.: DASTARDLY DEEDS. Like those of Dick DASTARDLY, as he twirled his mustache.
23. Having no chance of success: DESTINED TO FAIL. Like the plots of Dick DASTARDLY.
35. Forty-second cousin: DISTANT RELATIVE. A 42nd cousin is commonly known as "no relation."
50. Alyosha Karamazov, for one: DOSTOEVSKY HERO. From his Russian novel, The Brothers Karamazov.
56. Final touch for some desserts: DUSTING OF SUGAR. It's the icing on the cake! Sorta.
And sometimes why? The vowels appearing in alphabetical order make sense, but I'm not sure why they're buried in D_ST- at the beginning of each phrase. I'm sure it was difficult to find four-letter starters that only varied by their vowel, but by themselves, only DUST- is a word. DAST-, DEST-, DIST- and DOST- seem kinda random. I would've preferred some phases that began with last, lest, list, lost and lust, for example.
The number of proper nouns today was kept to a minimum, so that helped make it a pleasant solve. Only half of them were peoples' names, and they all were very famous. Yay!
1. Millennial follower, briefly: GEN Z. Generation Z, sometimes called Zoomers, followed GEN Y who didn't like that name so they changed it to Millennial. Sounds like something they'd do.
5. Grass unit: BLADE. Grass unit: OUNCE. I went to college in the 70's and was on double secret probation!
 |
| Prof. Jennings and Pinto in Animal House |
10. Sobriquet letters: AKA. A sobriquet is Also Known As a nickname, such as Pinto.
13. Plains people: OTOE.
14. Tulip : bulb :: oak : __: ACORN. Remember that the mighty oak was once a nut like you!
15. "__ betcha": YOU. Frances McDormand did a great job in Fargo.
 |
19. __ de cologne: EAU. EAU de cologne translates from French as "water from Cologne." Historically, it refers to a light, refreshing citrus fragrance created in Cologne, Germany, in 1709.
20. Tune: AIR. An AIR (or ayre) is a song-like, melodic tune, typically for a solo instrument or voice. I learn something new everyday! It basically replaces what I forget everyday.
21. Prefix with -metric: ISO. ISOmetric.
23. [theme]
28. Greek letter that represents torque in equations: TAU. TAU is used for torque in physics and engineering. In mathematics, τ represents one full rotation around a circle.
29. Gold medalist at the 1936 Summer Olympics: OWENS. Jesse OWENS was an American track and field athlete who made history by winning four gold medals at the Berlin games, setting Olympic records in each event.
30. Got on the nerves of: IRKED.
31. __ mater: ALMA.
33. Grain in many a Quaker product: OAT. This is the first of three cereal-related clues today, part of a "complete" breakfast.
34. Card in an around-the-corner straight: ACE. AKA a wrap-around straight, it's a poker hand where the sequential card values "wrap around" the ACE, such as Q-K-A-2-3. It is not valid in most standard poker games.
35. [theme]
41. Little newt: EFT.
42. Feel icky: AIL.
43. One of a cereal trio: SNAP. SNAP, Crackle and Pop have been mascots for Rice Krispies for nearly 100 years!
44. Thrash about: FLAIL.
47. Cause of interrupted sleep, perhaps: APNEA. CPAP machines are a common method to treat APNEA, so common that there are occasional shortages of the distilled water they use. Don't ask me how I know.
49. Ávila aunt: TIA. Ávila, Spain is is famous for it's Walls of Ávila, built between the 11th and 14th centuries.
50. [theme]
53. OR workers: RNS. Registered Nurses may work in Operating Rooms.
54. Viking weapon: AXE.
55. D-backs, in box scores: ARI. The ARIzona Diamondbacks change their logos as often as Rice Krispies.
56. [theme]
63. Metallurgist's material: ORE.
64. Private pupil: TUTEE.
65. Ivory soap ad word: PURE. Ivory is 99.44% PURE soap, but it only stayed AFLOAT because Procter & Gamble used to whip air into it. The current bar doesn't float in your sink.
66. Word in four state names: NEW. NEW Hampshire, NEW Jersey, NEW Mexico and NEW York.
67. Down-at-the-heels: SEEDY.
68. Elevated on the course: TEED. Also elevated is one's blood pressure when TEED off.
Down:
1. Mars or Mercury: GOD. The Roman GODs of war and swiftness.
2. Pilot's approx.: ETA. Estimated Time of Arrival.
3. Tiny biters: NO-SEE-UMS. One of our favorite getaways from the rat race in South Florida is Sanibel Island on the Gulf Coast, which sadly was heavily damaged in 2022 by Hurricane Ian. We used to rent a little cottage (now destroyed) and stroll along the beach. At certain times of day, our legs would itch from nearly invisible pests, the infamous NO-SEE-UMS.
4. Followers of epsilons: ZETAS.
5. Where to find a priest, a minister, and a rabbi?: BAR. Is this some kind of joke? Ha ha!
6. "American Dream" band __ Soundsystem: LCD. An odd band name (aren't they all?) that originated as Liquid Christmas Display after performing at a holiday party.
7. Early ISP: AOL. You've got mail! America OnLine used to be an Internet Service Provider. Now it's just a brand name bandied about by various corporations.
8. Forest nymphs: DRYADS. Almost wrote DRUIDS.
9. Break off a romance: END IT.
10. Vote in favor: AYE.
11. Frazer Lake bear: KODIAK. Frazer Lake is on KODIAK Island in Alaska.
12. One who may say "G'day": AUSSIE. Australian greeting.
17. Motor vehicle: AUTO. Nowadays, some vehicles drive on AUTO.
18. Beethoven's Third: EROICA. Ludwig van Beethoven’s Symphony No. 3 in E-flat major, Op. 55, pushed the boundaries of harmony, motivic development, and expression. AKA the EROICA (Italian for "Heroic") it was dedicated to Napoleon.
22. Vintage: OLD. I collect vintage guitars; RightBrain calls them OLD. They probably fall somewhere in between.
23. "Meditative Rose" artist: DALI. Salvador DALI was a Spanish surrealist artist renowned for his technical skill, precise draftsmanship, and the striking and bizarre images in his work.
 |
| Dali's striking and bizarre visage |
24. Terse refusal: I WONT.
25. Clutter-free: NEAT. Some people like their whiskey clutter-free.
26. Sets up: ENTRAPS.
27. Guitar bars: FRETS. The frets on the necks of my vintage guitars.
28. Tiny bit: TAD.
32. Wiped out: ATE IT.
34. Strike zone?: ALLEY. A bowling ALLEY.
36. Not having that sinking feeling?: AFLOAT. Unlike modern Ivory soap bars.
37. Kindle display: E-INK. Just add an E to anything!
38. Secret plans: INTRIGUE.
39. Japanese laptop maker: VAIO.
40. Safe Drinking Water Act org.: EPA. The Environmental Protection Agency.
44. New Deal pres.: FDR. Franklin Delano Roosevelt was the 32nd president of the U.S. The New Deal was a series of economic, social, and political reforms in response to the Great Depression.
45. "Sweeney Todd" setting: LONDON. Also where Tina FEY appeared recently. "Live from LONDON, it's Saturday Night!"
46. Make certain: ASSURE.
47. City grid feature: AVENUE. Here's another city grid:
48. "Eureka!" cries: AHAS.
51. Goes out: EXITS.
52. Go off: ERUPT.
57. Hem, but not haw: SEW. SEW what?
58. Former telecom co.: GTE. General Telephone & Electronics Corp. was the largest independent phone company in the U.S. In 2000, it merged with Bell Atlantic and became Verizon.
59. 20-volume ref. work: OED. Oxford English Dictionary.
60. First host of "Saturday Night Live UK": FEY. Tina FEY led the charge across the pond to appear on the telly.
61. "__ you decent?": ARE. "Yes, but I'm not wearing any clothes."
62. Color of Lucky Charms balloons: RED. There have been over 30 marshmallow shapes over the years, each with a special "power." The RED balloons give the power to float - or stay AFLOAT in a bowl of OAT cereal with a DUSTING OF SUGAR.
Be good. RB
