Wednesday, Mar 5th, 2025 ~ Sala Wanetick & Emily Biegas

  COVER GIRLS

Emily and Sala - more here

Today's puzzle, from veteran constructors Sala and Emily, ( they appeared just last month as a duo as well ), failed to hit the mark for me this time.  The theme is kinda weak, and the 20-something names, including a crossing where I had no choice but to do an alphabet run, just sucked the life out of this one.  We have two 8-letter themers, and yet two Down answers are longer; a whopping 28 4LWs, and yet only 9 TLWs.  On top of that, the one musical entry that I can relate to is the first - the others are just not my thing; sorry 'bout that.  On a positive note, 17A., 40A., and the theme answer are unique fills, so there's that.  The themers;

17. Fleetwood Mac hit with the lyric "I'll settle for one day to believe in you": LITTLE LIES - a LIE can cover the truth . . .?

26. Taylor Swift hit that features a sweater metaphor: CARDIGAN - usually covers a shirt/blouse . . .?

40. Elvis Presley hit about someone who only looks like an angel: DEVIL IN DISGUISE - disguise as a cover up . . .?

50. Rihanna hit about friends who stick together rain or shine: UMBRELLA - under cover from the rain . . .~?

63. Musical remakes, and what 17-, 26-, 40-, and 50-Across all are, in a way: COVER SONGS - "songs" that have something that covers; I guess.  As for an actual cover song, if it's a "tribute" band, then all you do is cover songs.  I feel that if an artist is going to cover someone else's song, then it should have some variation on the original, i.e., Run-DMC covering Aerosmith as a rap song - I couldn't narrow it down to one great choice, but here's an example;

Flamenco Led Zeppelin - Rodrigo Y Gabriela

And Away We Go~!

ACROSS:

1. Update a historic home, say: REHAB - I am in the business of updating "historic", and we would never refer to it as a 'rehab' - rehab is where I spent six weeks after detox.  'nuf said.

6. Quick look: PEEP

10. "Dream on": "AS IF."

14. Enlighten: EDIFY

15. Crooner Paul: ANKA - I know him, but name #1

16. Novela introduction?: TELE - Telenovela, a serialized drama in Latin American TV

19. Jai __: ALAI - this used to appear in lots of puzzles "back in the day" - it's only popped up once or twice in a long, long time

20. Pro vote: YEA - My yeS had to change to yeA

21. Ingrid's "Casablanca" role: ILSA - Oops, I thought it was ELSA - that's the "Frozen" girl - name #2

22. Strenuous: TIRING - Crosswords like this are not enjoyable, just TIRING

24. Prefix with tech: NANO - nanotech

28. Milwaukee team: BREWERS - Great logo - I like it when the letters/name is cleverly embedded in the image - here's another great logo

The m and b in the glove~?  That to me is a well-designed logo

31. "The Daily" podcast producer, briefly: NYT - no clue, but I had _YT already; name(ish)

32. Special glow: AURA

33. Paul of "The Batman": DANO - name #3 - I looked it up; he played the Riddler.  I did not see the movie

35. Venomous snake: ADDER

43. Be of __: help: USE TO

44. __ Point, California: DANA - DANO, DANA - Sheesh - name #4

45. Summer getaway: CAMP - I was never 'enrolled' camp, but from what I hear and read, it was not all that fun for many - SEND away, now that's more like it 

46. Govt. intel org.: NSA - I could explain the abbr., but then I'd have to....

48. Gets to giggle: TICKLES - tickles my fancy

55. For fear that: LEST

57. Quite bright: NEON

59. Alley-__: OOP

62. Actor Alda: ALAN - crossword staple, name #5

66. Rare rocks: GEMS

67. Sinister: EVIL

68. Verdi work: OPERA - name(ish)

69. "Gotcha": "I SEE."

Dr. Venkman, @ 0:50

70. "The Voice" host Carson: DALY - name #6

71. Elevates: RISES - meh.  rAises is a better match, e.g. stress from crossword solving RISES blood pressure~? 

DOWN:

1. Depend (on): RELY

2. Actress Falco: EDIE - name #7

3. Touched on something touchy: HIT A NERVE - let me count the (names) ways . . . .9LW

4. Back of the boat: AFT

5. Author credit: BYLINE

6. Buds: PALS

7. Pioneering computer: ENIAC - I had ATARI until that showed up three answers later; name(ish)

8. Scrape (by): EKE

9. Danish, e.g.: PASTRY

10. Pong platform: ATARI

11. Former baseball commissioner Bud: SELIG - I could not recall this name, # 8

12. Glazer of "Broad City": ILANA - name #9

13. Pretend: FEIGN - I think this "crossname" is pretending to be a crossword

18. "Euphoria" actor Jacob: ELORDI - name # 10, 3 of the 4 previous clues - tho a unique fill

23. Pet collar attachment: ID TAG

25. Stand by for: AWAIT

27. Designate as a successor: ANOINT - meh.  aPPoint fits better.  Anoint to me is religious ceremony

28. Grammy winner Erykah: BADU - even if I DO know this one, ugh; name #11

29. Feels remorse: RUES - he rues the day he said he'd blog Wednesdays . . . . 😜

30. Flip-flop, e.g.: SANDAL

34. Confidentiality contract, for short: NDA - Non-Disclosure Agreement - I am seriously considering spending the money to get my board games produced - I need a patent lawyer - anyone at the Corner who can recommend one~?

36. Dodges: DUCKS - these DODGES are not  DUCKS or ADDERS - they're VIPERS

37. Landline sounds: DIAL TONES - the other 9LW, 'longer than theme' fill

38. "Twilight" vampire Cullen: ESME - name #12

39. Gym count: REPS - now this is a good one - the singular count clue and the plural reps answer

41. Not a people person, say: LONER - I am definitely NOT a "people person"

42. Mariner: SAILOR

47. Prepared to serve, as pie: SLICED

49. Black out: CENSOR

50. With 56-Across, grilled eel dish: UNAGI - AND - 56. See 50-Down: NIGIRI - no clue, and when the clues are circumreferential* like this, it's even worse - and name(ish)

51. Odometer units: MILES - my car allows me to track gas prices when I fill up, but every now and then, the same buttons I use to adjust the price end up changing my MPH to KPH; I look down and I am doing "58" in a 30 - Yikes~!

52. Not one's best effort: B-GAME

53. Flush: RINSE

54. Blacksmith's block: ANVIL

58. Wriggly: EELY

60. Fantasy monster: OGRE

61. Unpaid ads: PSAs - Public Service Announcements

64. Egg cells: OVA

65. Maker of Lincoln Park After Dark nail polish: OPI - I've learned that the answer regarding makeup, etc., is either OPI or EOS these days - and name(ish)

* I made this word up, but you get my meaning, yes~?

Splynter

Tuesday, February 11, 2025 Sala Wanetick, and Emily Beigas

A Shave and a Haircut, Two Bits!  The first word of each theme answer describes a style of haircut.

17-Across. *  Vocabulary gone viral: BUZZ WORDS.  We have Nikola Bizumić (1823 ~ 1906) to thank for the buzz cut.  He invented manual hair clippers in the late 1800s.  With the advent of these clippers, barbers could easily chop hair close and fast.

26-Across. *  Tee style: CREW NECK.  What's the difference between a crew cut and a buzz cut?  Buzz cut is the most low maintenance haircut.  Crew cut has a clean fade on the sides.  Crew cut is a grown up buzz cut on top.  Crew cut has just enough length on top for texture.

33-Across. *  "Old Time Rock and Roll" singer: BOB SEGER.  Robert Clark Seger (b. May 6, 1945) is an American singer, songwriter, and musician.  He is best known for his raspy voice.  When I think of Bob Seger, I immediately think of: 35-Across. "Just take those old records off the shelf / I'll sit and listen to 'em by myself," e.g.: LYRICS.

46-Across. *  New Year's Day sporting event: BOWL GAME.  A bowl cut is a hairstyle where the hair is cut to the same length all around the head, giving it the shape of an upside-down bowl.

52-Across. *  Fluffy carpets: SHAG RUGS.  A shag haircut is a layered hairstyle with choppy layers, volume, and wispy bangs.  This style was popular in the 1970s.

And the unifier:

66-Across. Options package for a new car, and what can be found at the start of the answer to each starred clue: TRIM LEVEL.  I am not familiar with the term Trim Level.  Apparently it means a version of a car model with a specific set of features and options. 

And, We start our puzzle with an Easter Egg:

1-Across. Hairless: BALD.

Across:

5. "A Nightmare on __ Street": ELM.

8. Insurance company with a duck mascot: AFLAC.  The name of the insurance company comes from its original name: American Family Life Assurance Company of Columbus.

13. Et __: and others: ALIA.  Today's Latin lesson.

14. French champagne brand: MOËT.  The full name of this champagne is Moët et Chandon, but is generally just called Moët.  The company is one of the world's largest champagne producers and is a prominent champagne house.  The company was established in 1743 by Claude Moët (1683 ~ 1760).

16. Slow-moving tree dweller: SLOTH.

19. Former capital of Japan: KYOTO.

20. Wow: AMAZE.

21. Gabaldon who writes the "Outlander" novels: DIANA.  Diana J. Gabaldon (b. Jan. 1, 1952) is an author and television writer. She is best known for the book series Outlander. This series of book is part historical fiction, part romance, part adventure, part fantasy, and part adventure.  There are about 9 books in the series.  I started to read the first book, but it really isn't my style.

23. [As per the original]: SIC.  We saw Latin abbreviation just last week.  Sic is short for the phrase sic erat scriptum means thus it had been written.  Sic is used in writing to indicate that a quotation is an exact transcription of the original source, including any errors. It's used to show that the author is aware of the errors and is reproducing the quotation as it appears in the original text.

24. __ of luxury: LAP.

28. As thick as __: THIEVES.

32. Exchange: SWAP.

39. Hoppy brew: ALE.  //  And 57-Across. Spot for a pint of 39-Across: PUB.  Ales are becoming a crossword staple.

40. Vulgarly showy: GAUDY.

42. "The Raven" poet: POE.  Edgar Allan Poe (Jan. 19, 1809 ~ Oct. 7, 1849) American writer and poet.   He's best known for his short stories and poems, particularly those involving mystery and the macabre.  His novel The Murders in the Rue Morgue, which was first published in 1841, is considered to be the first modern detective story.

43. Formally adopt, as a treaty: RATIFY.

49. Clown costume part that may honk: NOSE.

51. Oddballs: WEIRDOS.

56. Narc's org.: DEA.  As in the Drug Enforcement Agency.

58. Home city of K-pop's BTS: SEOUL.  K-pop is short for (South) Korean Popular Music.  The band BTS, also known as the Bangtan Boys, is a South Korean, hence the band is from Seoul, South Korea.

60. Played out: STALE.

64. Smell: AROMA.

68. With 31-Down, Great Barrier Reef locale: CORAL.  //  31-Down. See 68-Across: SEA.  I recently went snorkeling in the Coral Sea.  We had to wear stinger suits to protect us from the stinger jelly fish that are prevalent in the waters in the southern hemisphere summer.

69. Smack: SLAP.

70. Farm grunt: OINK.

71. Between, in French: ENTRE.  Today's French lesson.

72. Mos. and mos.: YRS.  Months and Months become Years.

73. Hush-hush docs: NDAs.  As in Non-Disclosure Agreements.

Down:

1. __ ghanoush: BABA.  Smoky Middle Eastern roasted eggplant dip with tahini, garlic, lemon, olive oil and spices.  Yummers!

2. Grad: ALUM.

3. Superstar Minnelli: LIZA.  Liza Mary Minnelli (b. Mar. 12, 1946) is the daughter of Judy Garland (née Frances Ethel Gumm; June 10, 1922 ~ June 22, 1969) and Vincente Minnelli (Feb. 28, 1903 ~ July 25, 1986).

4. Wows: DAZZLES.

5. Dramatically maudlin, slangily: EMO.

6. Title for an earl: LORD.  There are five ranks in British peerage.  In descending order those ranks are:, duke, marquess, earl, viscount, and baron.  Below the peerage are honorary ranks that include baronet and knight.  Technically, in British titles, "Lord" is not a specific rank itself, but rather a courtesy title used to address members of the peerage, generally, barons and below, meaning it falls at the lower end of the British nobility hierarchy.

7. First responder: MEDIC.

8. "No such thing as a stupid question!": ASK AWAY.

9. Go by plane: FLY.

10. Baggy: LOOSE.

11. Story in Architectural Digest?: ATTIC.  Clever!  The attic is the top Story in a house.

12. __-full: at capacity: CHOCK.

15. Old Russian rulers: TSARS.  I discussed Tsars in last week's puzzle.

18. Create a tapestry: WEAVE.  Probably the most famous tapestry is the Bayeux Tapestry, which isn't woven, but rather embroidered.  If you want to see the tapestry, to NOW!  The Bayeux Tapestry Museum will be closed for renovation work beginning this September and will not reopen until October 2027.

22. Many a honeymooner: NEWLYWED.

25. Title gal in a Buddy Holly hit: PEGGY SUE.

27. "Tiny Desk Concerts" producer: NPR.  Tiny Desk Concerts are little musical performances that are done in the National Public Radio offices.

28. Ski lift option: T-BAR.

29. Spanish greeting: HOLA.  Today's Spanish lesson.

30. "Yeah, sure": I BET.

34. __ the wrong way: RUB.

36. Apple tablet: iPAD.

37. "¿__ está usted?": COMO.  More of today's Spanish lesson.  I am fine, thank you very much.

38. Views: SEES.

41. __ Jones: DOW.  The Dow Jones Industrial Average, Dow Jones, or simply the Dow, is a stock market index of 30 prominent companies listed on stock exchanges in the United States.

44. Gerund suffix: -ING.  A gerund is any of various nonfinite verb forms that most often functions as a noun.  

45. Sign of movement?: FOR SALE.  Cute clue.

47. Von Trapp sister: LIESL.  Liesl was a fictional von Trapp sibling created for the movie The Sound of Music.  All the names of the real von Trapp children were changed for the film.

48. Rankle: GRATE ON.

50. Award quartets, for short: EGOTs.  As in the Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony awards.

52. Word separator: SPACE.

53. Lake along Michigan's thumb: HURON.

54. Scrub, as a mission: ABORT.

55. Cantankerous: SURLY.

59. "Nothing you say is true!": LIAR.

61. Voracious: AVID.

62. Headey of "Game of Thrones": LENA.  Lena Headey (née Lena Kathren Headey; b. Oct. 3, 1973) portrayed Cersei Lancaster in Game of Thrones.

63. Lodge group since 1868: ELKS.  Its full name is the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks.  It is an  American fraternal order that was originally formed as a social club in New York City.  It now has more than 750,000+ members at at least 1,920 lodges. 

65. Tarnish: MAR.

67. U.K. lawmakers: MPs.  As in Members of Parliament.

Here's the Grid:

חתולה

Wednesday, Nov 6th, 2024 ~ Sala Wanetick

  CRISS-CROSS-EYED

This appears to be Sala Wanetick's first solo effort for the LA Times - I found three other puzzles with a co-constructor, Emily Biegas.  The grid is size 15 x 16, and the theme is two-word formations known as reduplication.  Some really vague clues/answers today, 18 TLWs, just two less than the number of four letter words, and a handful names, some of them totally obscure.  The themers;

18. Drag one's feet: DILLY-DALLY

27. Idle banter: CHIT-CHAT

40. Indecisive: WISHY-WASHY

57. Mixed bag: MISH-MASH

69. Tchotchke: KNICK-KNACK - I learned the word "tchotchke" ( CHOCH-key) from the terminal manager at Roadway Express - he was referring to the truckload of Home Interiors goods we had to sort every Friday night

And Away We Go~!

ACROSS:

1. Loose-fitting: BAGGY

6. Hiker's snack mix: GORP  - AND -  32A. Tidbit in 6-Across: NUT - Good Ol' Raisins & Peanuts

10. New England fish: SCROD

15. Tunisian couturier Azzedine __: ALAÏA - Wow.  On a Wednesday.  Beyond obscure.  His Wiki.  Name #1

16. Is short: OWES

17. __ Troopa: Mario Bros. turtlelike foe: KOOPA - I grew up with Atari 2600; 

this was the "next generation" of video gaming - Name #2

Sort of theme-ish, too

20. "All good here": "I'M SET."

21. Italian sub slice: SALAMI

22. Unleash (on): SIC

23. Management level: TIER

24. Seeking, in ads: ISO - the old newspaper classified dating section - In Search Of . . . .

25. Organic lip balm brand: EOS

30. Cabinet-level div.: DEPartmenT

34. Drops in on: VISITS

35. Petro-Canada rival: ESSO - Name #3, but a common fill

36. Play areas?: STAGES

39. __ rally: PEP

44. "Silent Sunday Nights" cable network: TCM - filled via perps

47. Hangs loose: CHILLS - how 'bout some Chillaxing music~?

Rapture At Sea

48. Presidential terms, maybe: ERAS - did we go back to another era~?

52. "Got it": "OH, I SEE" - a bit meh.

54. Secret agent: SPY

56. Knitting loop: PURL - I used to watch several women in AA meetings knit, to the point where my curiosity got the better of me, and I asked Carol to teach me. 

60. Slangy greeting: 'SUP

I made my own UPS logos, too

62. NYC bus org.: MTA - the Metropolitan Transit Authority - some history

63. Like those on a world cruise: ASEA - Rapture~?

64. Float filler: AIR - I was not sure what "float" this referred to - I am guessing this . . . .

My brother once participated in the parade, holding on to Garfield

66. Out of this world: COSMIC - AND - 11D. Funny pages: COMICS - same letters

68. Hybrid piece of flatware: SPORK

71. Neutral shade: TAUPE

eBay Vintage

72. Easter haul: EGGS

73. Aerie nester: EAGLE

74. Counterpart of "ser," in Spanish: ESTAR - I had no idea - I used Google translate; both mean "be"

75. "Save me a __!": SEAT

76. Track athlete's asset: SPEED


DOWN:

1. Less photogenic angle: BAD SIDE - my "top side" is bad; the field manager is obsessed with taking pictures of my bald spot

My "bad side" at Washington National Cathedral

2. Names on falsified papers: ALIASES

3. Runs fast: GALLOPS

4. __ monster: GILA

5. Self-congratulatory cheer: "YAY ME~!" - cute, but a bit meh.

6. Smallest state in India: GOA - learned by doing crosswords; name #4

7. Parliament birds: OWLS - a 'parliament' being a group of owls - very clever

8. Piece of history: RELIC - this was my nick-name when I worked at Winn-Dixie; I was 27yrs old, roughly 10 years older than the rest of the stock crew - I was actually enamored of the moniker

9. "Gotcha!": "PSYCH~!"

10. Like some newly rescued dogs: SKITTISH - understandable

12. Fruit from a flowering shrub: ROSE HIP

For more, here's the Wiki

13. Manage: OPERATE - manage/operate is more Saturday clue/answer, IMO

14. Who __ Nation: New Orleans Saints fans: DAT - I have heard of this; it appears from the Corner map that Hahtoolah and Big Easy might be fans of this NFL team . . . .

19. Pop diva Celine: DION - Name #5, but I knew this one

26. Food that may be served via conveyor belt: SUSHI - I did not understand this clue; when I did an internet search, I discovered that there are restaurants that have sushi dishes going around on a belt - fascinating~! 

Here's a site about eating at one

28. St. __ Fresh Skin Apricot Scrub: IVES - fresh cluing for an old fill

29. Seasoning amt.: TSP - teaspoon

31. Auto club service: TOW - I toyed with AAA first, but that would be the club, not the service

33. Texting farewell: TTYL - text-speak, Talk To You Later

37. Knob-handled stickers: AWLS - stickers has different meanings in different places.  I was asked by an associate of the Pipe Organ company to get a couple of "stickers"; growing up on Long Island, "stickers" are the self-adhesive images that went on your books and binders - here in New England, it would seem that they are the "chocks" for under lumber stacks.  Go figure.  In this clue/answer, the term "sticker" is more like "poke-r"

Get it~?

38. Sounds of awe: GASPS - Like your reaction to the above image

41. Spot with falling rocks?: ICEMAKER - very clever clue / answer

42. Former home of the Mets: SHEA - name #6, but I grew up a Mets fan on Long Island, so . . . . 

43. "Reckon so": "YEP."

44. Actor Holland: TOM - name #7; his IMDb

45. Mexican state bordering Guatemala: CHIAPAS - name #8, no clue; tough for a Wednesday

Bottom right-hand corner

46. Lose an opportunity: MISS OUT - YOLO, ICYMO

49. Riffle (through): RUMMAGE

50. Thing: ARTICLE - ITEM was way too short

51. Didn't bring one's A game, say: SLACKED

53. Ethnic group native to Nepal and Tibet: SHERPA

55. "Ew! Gross!": "YUCK~!"

58. Fermented brews often served warm: SAKES - Sock-EEs, to drink with your conveyor belt sushi

59. Shutter hardware: HINGE - Shutters SHUT; I have "fake" shutters that would not come close to protecting the windows on my house

The "shutters" on the picture window are absurd -

they will come off when I do stucco in the future

61. Prods: POKES - you mean, with a sticker~?  Or an awl~?

65. Latvia's capital: RIGA - learned by doing crosswords

67. Onesie feature: SNAP

I just don't know who - yet

68. Sault __ Marie: STE - crossword staple

70. Winter hrs. in Tulsa: CST - the clocks are "normal" again

Splynter