Thursday August 20, 2026 Jeffrey Wechsler

Jeffrey Wechsler, my old friend, we meet again. His puzzles always land on Thursdays, once a month like clockwork. This is his fourth since April! I don't know why, but I suspect he likes my reviews. 😍

No reveal today, just a bunch of hard clues.

17. Hard stuff in rings: NATURAL DIAMONDS. Not just "hard stuff", but the hardest stuff!

26. Hard stuff in school: ROCKET SCIENCE. Just as hard as brain surgery, apparently.

40. Hard stuff in a bar: ALCOHOLIC DRINKS. Made from hard liquor.

60. Hard stuff for a sweet tooth: JAWBREAKER CANDY. They're hard as a rock. I haven't had one in years, but my jaw aches just thinking about them.

Jeffrey knows how to make a puzzle. He often creates unique grid designs, like this one, with mirror symmetry and multiple grid-spanners. And some of the best cluing this side of LA.

I hope the rest aren't as hard, but I doubt it.

Across:

1. Error: MISSTEP. I wrote MISTEAK, but that was a mistake.

8. Radio static sound: CRACKLE. Occasionally, you'll also hear a Snap or Pop.

Rice Krispies Treats radio!

15. Do the same as: IMITATE.

16. Peaceful getaway spot: RETREAT.

17. [theme]

19. "You said it!": AMEN.

20. Ignited: LIT.

21. Small floral bundle: POSY.

22. Robin Hood foe: SHERIFF. As a royal officer, the SHERIFF of Nottingham viewed Robin as a threat to his authority. Robin interfered with tax collection and outwitted his attempts to capture him.

26. [theme]

32. Gets even with: REPAYS. The SHERIFF of Nottingham was frequently embarrassed by Robin's exploits, so vowed to get even with him.

33. Relativity, for one: THEORY. That's one THEORY, anyway.

35. Bucks and does: DEER. 

36. Org. that oversees food recalls: FDA. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

39. Half a sextet: TRIO. 

40. [theme]

45. Utterly exhausted: BONE-TIRED. As if your fatigue has seeped deep into your skeleton, reaching your core.

46. "How amusing": HEH. A sarcastic response to something mildly interesting. Like my review.

49. __ culpa: MEA. MEA culpa is "my fault" in Latin. 

50. Marina __ Rey, California: DEL. As the name implies, much of this town near Los Angeles is a marina.

51. Proper: APT.

54. Fuming: IRATE.

56. Nocturnal flapper: BAT. Could've been an OWL.

58. Word with circle and tube: INNER. An INNER tube is the INNER circle of a tire.

60. [theme]

63. Doesn't just assume: ASKS.

64. Licoricelike herb: ANISE. It is used in cooking and in health remedies, and may be distilled with natural spirits and sugar to produce Anisette.

65. Ore-rich vein: SEAM.

66. Appliance alert: BEEP.

67. Numbers for letters: RENTS. Great clue. Letters are renters, people who let an apartment.

68. Tollbooth pricing unit: AXLE. 

Down:

1. Sports analyst Kimes: MINA. MINA is an award-winning journalist, NFL analyst, and senior writer for ESPN.

2. Mosque leader: IMAM.

3. Place: SITE.

4. Leave speechless: STUN.

5. Fossil-preserving gunk: TAR. 

6. Unreliable stat from the fashionably late: ETA. Estimated Time of Arrival. I've instructed RightBrain to wheel my coffin in a few minutes late at my funeral. Aside from that, I have no last wishes.

7. Bit of hamster food: PELLET.

8. One who always gives star treatment?: CRITIC. Another great clue.

9. Belfast-born actor Stephen: REA. The Irish Times ranked REA the 13th greatest Irish film actor of all time.

10. Bread machine: ATM. Fun clue for an Automated Teller machine...or a toaster.

11. Trim, as a photo: CROP.

12. Casino game: KENO.

13. Boyos: LADS. Oh, boyos. I take back what I said about great cluing.

14. Marketplace with personalized gifts: ETSY.

18. NNE, SSW, etc.: DIRS. This clue is asking for DIRections.

22. Contrail location: SKY. A contrail (short for condensation trail) is a line-shaped ice cloud that forms behind jet aircraft flying at high altitudes.

Busy day near an airport with planes flying in different DIRS.

23. Bucks, but not does: HES. A pseudo-clecho of 35A.

24. In shape: FIT.

25. Dismissive syllable: FEH. FEH is a Yiddish interjection used to express disgust, contempt, disapproval, or dismissive annoyance, similar to "yuck" or "bah", which is my reaction to this answer.

26. Bit of fishing gear: REEL.

27. Well-financed gp.?: OPEC. The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries is financed by oil wells.

28. Chocolate substitute: CAROB.

29. Online access username within universities, briefly: NETID. This shouldn't say "briefly." NetID is the full name of this service that provides a unique digital identity to students, faculty and staff for all their campus systems.

30. Grain ground to make masa: CORN. Since masa is a dough used in Latin America, I thought this should be MAÍZ, which is Spanish for CORN.

31. "The Devil in the White City" writer Larson: ERIK. Larson's book The Devil in the White City won the 2004 Edgar Award in the Best Fact Crime category, among other awards.

32. Nutritional amt.: RDA. Recommended Dietary Allowance.

34. Casual hellos: YOS. If you meet two people, it's a YOYO.

36. Flowering plant once believed to repel pests: FLEABANE. FLEABANE is a large group of native wildflowers in the aster family. Turns out that contrary to folklore, it doesn't repel insects but actually attracts beneficial pollinators like bees and butterflies. Be gentle when you break this news to your grandma.

37. E, in Morse code: DIT. The sound of a DOT. 

38. Rigorous evaluation: ACID TEST. Ken Kesey’s psychedelic bus, immortalized in The Electric Kool-Aid ACID TEST, was in the news recently. It will be on display for the first time since the '60s as part of a Grateful Dead show at Golden Gate Park in San Francisco.

Furthur [sic] and the Merry Pranksters

41. Big hit at the ballpark: HOMER.

Homer Simpson

42. Unspecified person: ONE.

43. Hip-hop pioneer Dr. __: DRE. Andre Romell Young, known professionally as Dr. DRE, is a legendary producer, billionaire entrepreneur, and cultural force in hip-hop.

44. Thing of the past: RELIC.

46. Muslim headscarf: HIJAB.

47. Create a clean slate?: ERASE. Anyone remember clapping erasers after class?

48. Ethan of the "Before" trilogy: HAWKE. Ethan is an American actor, director, and writer who has worked across film, stage, and independent productions.

He's been at this for a looong time.

51. Secondary structure: ANNEX.

52. "Bike faster!": PEDAL. 

Are you pedaling back there?

53. Defiant response to a threat: TRY ME.

55. Ingredient meas.: TBSP. Tablespoon measure.

57. Similar (to): AKIN.

59. Mars rover org.: NASA. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration. 

61. "My conscience whispers in your __": "King John": EAR.

62. High or low follower, in graphics: RES.

Now, that wasn't so hard, was it?

Be good. RB

Thursday August 13, 2026 Desirée Penner & Jeff Sinnock

When Desirée Penner and Jeff Sinnock were standing at the altar, the minister asked them, "What's an oath of acceptance? Three letters." She immediately said, "YES," and he said, "VOW." The minister shook his head. "Try again." They eventually came up with, "I DO," and the Crossword Couple was born.

All these answers are answers...to questions from celebrities. The resulting common phrases end with a pun using the celebs first names. 

18. Reply when Mr. Nicholson asks, "How do you like your coffee?": BLACK, JACK. JACK Nicholson. Like most of today's celebs, he needs no introduction. Yay!

24. Reply when Mr. Garfunkel asks how everyone is doing?: FINE, ART. ART Garfunkel. My favorite reply of the bunch.

39. Reply when Mr. Nye asks why there are so many wind turbines?: ELECTRICITY, BILL. BILL Nye, the Science Guy. Perhaps this phrase is more commonly known as an ELECRTIC BILL.

51. Reply when Ms. Deeley mentions her new TV gig?: COOL, CAT. CAT Deeley is a British television presenter? This is the only person I didn't know, but was very inferable. So, it's COOL. 

60. Reply when Mr. Hamill says, "May the Force be with you"?: DITTO, MARK. MARK Hamill, AKA Luke Skywalker from Star Wars. A DITTO MARK looks like a double quote symbol " or " " under a word or words you want to repeat.

I liked the execution of this puzzle better than some punster themes we see. No awkward spellings or twisted phrases made to fit. And, with the possible exception of CAT, all the celebrities are well known. Good, clean fun all around!

And now, on with the show:

Across:

1. Biblical queen's land: SHEBA.

6. "Hurry!" letters: ASAP. As Soon As Possible. I can hear the groans already, and I mostly agree. So, I wrote STAT.

10. Mojito garnish: MINT. I wrote LIME and voilà! I had two of the first three answers wrong!

14. Cultured sort?: PEARL.

15. Interpretation: TAKE. What's your TAKE on this clue?

16. Chimps and gorillas: APES.

17. Like 11-Down and 27-Across, often: ON TAP. It's a "pony keg"-sized mini-theme!

18. [theme]

20. Lode load: ORE. 

21. Bam Adebayo's team: HEAT. Bam Adebayo plays on the Miami HEAT basketball team. In March, he scored 83 points against the Washington Wizards (I guess they left their wands at home). That is the second-highest single-game scoring performance in NBA history!

23. Merchant stalls: KIOSKS. In related news, music KIOSKS are bandstands like the one in Henri Rousseau's painting at 2-Down.

24. [theme]

26. Beloved: DEAR.

27. Beer with a Grillo's Pickles flavor, briefly: PBR. Pabst Blue Ribbon. I've heard of people putting a pickle spear in their beer mug, but this concoction seems like a bad idea. 

28. Short clip?: VID. Short for VIDeo. 

29. Warbled: SANG. 

33. Bicycle spokes, essentially: RADII. A single spoke is a radio. Or maybe I'm thinking of an antenna.

36. Grand-scale tales: SAGAS. Anyone seen The Odyssey yet?

38. Battle (for): VIE. Like Matt Damon as Odysseus, taking on giants.

Except this pic shows his stunt-double, Devyn Dalton, a woman!

39. [theme]

42. Yahoo! alternative: AOL. So last century...although my brother still uses LOL AOL.

43. Midsize car: SEDAN. 

44. Great Grandma?: MOSES. I grew up with a Grandma MOSES print hanging by our dining table. I always thought it was just a winter scene of people playing in the snow. It wasn't until returning home as an adult that I really looked at it and noticed everyone was working, making maple syrup.

"Sugaring Off" 1955

45. Lat neighbor: DELT. Lats (Latissimus Dorsi) and DELTs (Deltoids) are upper body muscle groups.

47. "Mean Girls" screenwriter Tina: FEY. She of SNL fame, among other things.

48. Center prefix: EPI. EPIcenter - the exact spot on the ground above where an earthquake starts. Being at the epicenter was disastrous for the poor souls of Venezuela and Columbia recently.

49. Big bustles: ADOS. In the late 1800's, women with big ADOS were all the rage.

51. [theme]

55. One with an eye for dotting i's: EDITOR. EDITORs and proofreaders may correct a missing dot (called a tittle) on a lowercase "i", although in modern digital text it's usually caused by a font glitch rather than forgetfulness.

58. Downsides: CONS.

59. Director DuVernay: AVA. AVA is an award-winning director of TV and movies, including a Best Picture nod for Selma.

60. [theme]

62. Along for the ride, say: IN TOW. Kinda sorta.

64. Nerve: GALL.

65. Lake at the Detroit River's end: ERIE. 

66. Track star Bolt: USAIN. He's just the fastest man alive. 

67. Fashion monthly: ELLE. Unfortunately, my subscription ran out, so I'm left wearing t-shirts like this.

68. Informal claim: DIBS. 

69. Moore of "This Is Us": MANDY. MANDY made a successful pivot from teenage pop star to Emmy-nominated actress. 

Then and now.

Down:

1. "Weird Al" specialty: SPOOF. "Weird Al" Yankovic has four gold records and six platinum ones, and has won five Grammy's. "I Love Rocky Road!"

2. Postimpressionist painter Rousseau: HENRI. HENRI paints in a Naive or Primitive manner. He's like the Grandma Moses of France! They also have something else in common - they both started painting late in life.

"View of Montsouris Park, the Kiosk" 1910

3. All finished, say: EATEN.

4. Wacoal garment: BRA. Wacoal is a major international manufacturer of women's lingerie and intimate apparel from Japan. But I didn't know this as my subscription to ELLE expired as noted earlier.

5. Cereal that once featured a crossword puzzle in magazine ads: ALPHA-BITS. This one came out in 1959. I'm still working on it because I can't find a Q.

799 boxes later...

6. Currently hitting: AT BAT.

7. Curing agent: SALT.

8. Otherwise called: AKA. Also Known As the answer to this clue.

9. Like a bird feeder: PECKED AT. 

10. College paths: MAJORS. College paths: DESIRE. Desire to graduate and get a good job? Maybe, but desire paths are unofficial trails leading more directly to a destination, as often seen on campuses.

11. Some craft pours, for short: IPAS. India Pale Ales.

12. Make out: NECK. This is canoodling, but if you crane your NECK, you can make out a couple in the back row.

13. Tuts: TSKS.

19. Korean automaker: KIA. "Who makes that new KN car?" KIA's redesigned logo created quite a controversy when it was unveiled in 2021. But all publicity is good publicity, and the confusion generated millions of free internet searches.

22. Go amiss: ERR.

25. Grand-scale tale: EPIC. A clecho of 36A, but singular. 

26. "Bon appetit!": DIG IN. French cuisine vs. American in a nutshell.

28. Short trip?: VACAY. A little vacation.

30. Rental car giant: AVIS. This may be needed on one's VACAY.

31. River near the Great Pyramid: NILE. Looks more like a pool to me...wait, that's the Luxor in Las Vegas.

32. Meshes well: GELS.

33. Interpretation: READ. It's cleco day. What's your READ on this?

34. Spiky succulent: ALOE. 

35. "Hi-ho, the derry-o" locale: DELL. From "The Farmer in the DELL".

36. Heads and tails: SIDES. Although there's a small chance a coin will land on its EDGE.

37. Academic gathering: SYMPOSIUM.

40. Back on the straight and narrow: REFORMED.

41. Fume: BOIL.

46. Be a rat: TATTLE. I didn't know rats could sing.

48. One billion years: EON. However, in formal Earth geology, an eon is a variable block of time lasting hundreds of millions to billions of years rather than an exact number. 

50. "Yabba-dabba-__!": DOO. People from Dubai don't watch the Flintstones, but people from Abu Dhabi do! I'll be here all weekend.

51. Classic colas: COKES. In another case of all publicity is good, Coca-Cola's' failed introduction of New COKE in 1985 created a backlash that propelled sales of the original "Classic" COKE. Conspiracy theorists have suggested they did this on purpose to revitalized sales. 

52. Board game with settlers: CATAN. Back when my boys lived closer to home, they'd come by on Sundays and we'd play board games. We liked CATAN, and apparently so did everyone else - it has sold over 45 million copies worldwide and is available in more than 40 languages.

53. Dance around: AVOID. I learned to play the guitar so I could AVOID dancing around at school hops.

54. Like some port: TAWNY. TAWNY port gets its name from its warm, amber-brown color, which develops from long aging in oak barrels.

55. Perimeter: EDGE. Heads or tails? I call EDGE!

56. Body wash brand: DIAL.

57. "C'mon, __ be fun": IT'LL.

58. Spot for a tot: CRIB. Some are nice than others.

61. Cal. neighbor: ARI. California and Arizona.

63. Codebreaker Challenge org.: NSA. The National Security Agency. The Codebreaker Challenge is an annual, cybersecurity competition offered to high school and college students who try to solve realistic threat scenarios.

Be good. RB

Thursday August 6, 2026 Mark Axel

Mark Axel commented on his last crossword here (a challenging Saturday grid in January) that his next puzzle would be "themed and much easier." Well, here we are, and he's delivered on his promise. Has the pendulum swung too far?

Starting with the reveal:

56. Wildly successful, or what three black squares in this puzzle literally are: GANGBUSTERS. Each of the following pairs contains a "hidden" synonym for GANG, busted apart by a black square:

17. "I want all the juicy details!": SPILL THE TEA + 19. Was introduced to: MET = TEAM.

27. Features of some old socks: HOLES + 29. Figure skating jump that has only been landed in competition by Ilia Malinin: QUAD AXEL = SQUAD.

43. Makes a clutch putt, perhaps: SAVES PAR + 46. Key mistakes?: TYPOS = PARTY.

As Mark alluded to earlier, this is about as straightforward as it gets. A very easy puzzle for a Thursday made even easier by circles. As I worked my way down, I saw TEAM and SQUAD (and REF) and thought "sports". Then PARTY struck rather jarringly, as I was expecting something like CLUB to keep the sports theme going.

Let's see the rest of the line-up:

Across:
1. "To __ their own": EACH. 💁

5. One with a supporting role?: PILLAR. 🗑

11. Giggle syllable: HEE. 🤭

14. Potatoes, in Indian dishes: ALOO. 🥔

15. Nutty Italian cheese: ASIAGO. 🧀

16. Verbal fillers: UMS. 🤔

17. [theme]

19. [theme]

20. Tightens (up): TENSES. 🥨

21. "If I had to bet ... ": ODDS ARE. 🎲

23. "Use your umbrella!": STAY DRY. ☔

26. "Aladdin" figure: GENIE. 🧞‍♂️

27. [theme]

29. [theme]

31. Feature of some old socks: ODOR. 🤢

32. Replay reviewer: REF. Referee. 🦓

33. First aid pro: EMT. Emergency Medical Technician.🚑

34. With 37-Across, place for a pawdicure: PET. A PET SPA. 🐾

35. Emoji from one who's down: SAD FACE. It's "Emoji Day" at the Corner! I remember when it was just :(  Now it's fancy: 😢 What an age we live in!

37. See 34-Across: SPA. ⬆️

40. Fitting: APT. 🧩

41. "Gross!": ICK. 🤮

42. Inner workings: GUTS. 🌣🌣

43. [theme]

46. [theme]

47. Heart chambers: ATRIA. 🫀

48. "Want to play again?": ONE MORE. ☝️

50. Global spirits giant that began as a rum maker in Cuba: BACARDI. BACARDI USA built two iconic office buildings for their headquarters in Miami: a tower (1963) and an adjoining annex (1973). The annex is covered with hammered-glass mosaics.

The landmark Bacardi "Jewel Box"

52. Oscars, e.g.: AWARDS. Because GROUCHS didn't fit.

55. Pretend: ACT. 🎭

56. [theme]

59. __ lodge: SKI. ⛷️

60. Like loose laces: UNTIED. 👞

61. Pulitzer-winning novelist Jennifer: EGAN. Her novel, A Visit from the Goon Squad, won the 2011 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction and National Book Critics Circle Award for fiction. I haven't read it, but judging a book by it's cover, it looks award-winning to me!

62. "Exit full screen" key: ESC. Escape. ⌨️

63. Get cozy: NESTLE. 🧸

64. Cries noisily: SOBS. 😭

Down:
1. Direction that plays first in mahjong: EAST. East is a player, not a compass position.🀄

2. Mont Blanc, par exemple: ALPE. As Splynter would say, "From the Frawnche" (apologies for copying from your paper). 😂

3. Place that welcomes change?: COIN SLOT. Winner: Best Clue. 🏆

4. Wild West costume accessory: HOLSTER. 🔫

5. Easy mark: PATSY. 🐐

6. Kinda sorta: ISH.  ≈

7. Falsehood: LIE. 🤥

8. "Stay the Night" singer Jackson: LA TOYA. This 1980 single from La Toya's poorly received second album peaked at #31, and was soon forgotten. Why we should know about it 46 years later is anyone's guess.

9. Like 15-Across: AGED. ⌛

10. Occasion to wear away uniforms: ROAD GAME. 🎽

11. Compassionate: HUMANE. 🫶

12. Celebrity chef with a flagship restaurant in New Orleans: EMERIL. In 2022, EMERIL Lagasse was named as the Chief Culinary Officer for Carnival Cruise Lines. So, now he's made a mess on a new flagship!

13. Cosmetician Lauder: ESTEE. 💄

18. Grassy expanses: LEAS. 🖼️

22. Message one may wish to open in private: SEXT. 🫣

24. Kicked out of a competition, briefly: DQED. Disqualified, because they liked Carvel better.

25. Scoundrel: RUFFIAN. 🦹🏻‍♂️

27. Word with bell or bar: HOP. 🦘

28. Lines of praise: ODE. 🪶

30. Dealer's handful: DECK. 🃏

32. "Aw, shoot!": RATS. 🐀

35. Free diver's weapon: SPEAR GUN. 🦯(this is a blind man's cane, but it kinda looks right)

36. Unit of farmland: ACRE. 🚜

37. Id counterpart: SUPEREGO. For more, talk to you therapist. I'd tell you, but then Id have to charge by the hour.

38. Vacation hrs.: PTO. Paid Time Off. As a small business owner, I've never had this. 🗓️

39. Pack animal: ASS. 🫏

40. Nike rival: AVIA. 👟

42. Takes turns?: GYRATES. 💫

43. Library area: STACKS. 📚

44. Powerfully cold: ARCTIC. 🥶

45. Score units: POINTS. 🎯

46. AAA offerings: TOWS. American Automobile Association.🪝

47. Take down a peg: ABASE. 👎

49. Apatow of "Euphoria": MAUDE. MAUDE struggled to find roles until she remembered that she has famous showbiz parents.

51. Copenhagen native: DANE.

53. Lacking pizzazz: DRAB. 🫒

54. Form W-2 digits: SSNS.  Social Security Numbers. 💸

57. "Scram!": GIT. 👉

58. __ canto: BEL. Italian for "beautiful singing." 𝄟⃝💞

Be good. RB 😎