I could not find any online links to our crossword constructor, Megan Heneke, so I do believe this is her debut puzzle - congratulations~! While I enjoyed solving this one, I am still kinda stumped; did I miss a layer~? Is there something about the theme that I am not seeing~? I can see the correlation between the "scientist" ( or mathematician ) and the 'object' of the clue, but I'm baffled that both LATTE an LATKE were acceptable - but that's not on the author, that's shame on the editor for not sending it back for revision; YMMV. I even tried a different parsing - as in LA WAND OR DER, since the themers all have their objects starting with "LA"; perhaps Ms. Heneke will pop by our Crossword Corner and give us some insight. I would not rate this as Friday-level, though the prevalence of single-word cluing/answers does give it that feel. Standard grid, no circles, a handful of names, a mere ten 3LWs, and no Twurds. The themers and the reveal;
21. "A bottle where the rapid decrease in pressure upon opening creates foam, please" request?: BOYLE'SLAGER - Robert Boyle is credited with discovering the inverse relationship between pressure & volume; the Wiki
26. "A light coffee, and do not drop it, please" request?: NEWTON'SLATTE - Sir Isaac Newton and his "discovery" of gravity - his Wiki
43. "I'll take my potato as a pancake (but you'll probably bring fries)" request?: MURPHY'SLATKE - Murphy's Law, which in general states that if something can go wrong, it will - I did not know he was a 'real' person - more here
50. Strict enforcement of the rules for a civil society, or how to process the requests in 21-, 26-, and 43-Across?: LAWANDORDER - the "law" man and his "order" at a bar, restaurant, and diner/cafe
1. Graduate from a balance bike: PEDAL - T.I.L. that a balance bike lacks pedals, ergo one would have to learn the skill of pedalling to 'graduate' - and a Thursday dupe
6. "Zounds!": "EGAD~!"
10. "Not only that ... ": "PLUS . . ."
14. Sauce for chipotles: ADOBO - I always thought of adobo as a marinade or rub, not a 'sauce'
15. German automaker: AUDI
16. Nana's daughter: AUNT
17. Collar clip-on: IDTAG - Think "dog" - still no canine companion, Irish Miss, struggling with establishing a set schedule, but I am visiting Cooper for the extended Columbus Day weekend in October~!
My S-I-L had their patio enclosed - Cooper approves~!
18. Hard punch: SLUG
19. Big name in morning TV: RIPA - Kelly, name #1
20. Get the gray out, say: DYE - Since changing my diet, I have noticed my hair is "less grey" than it used to be . . .
24. Caitlin Clark's home state: IOWA - Sheesh. This WNBA Indiana Fever basketball player is so unknown to me, it's practically asking me where does John Doe live~? Filled via perps, name #2
25. Topical antiseptic: IODINE
31. Small flower?: CREEK - the "flow-er", 'long O' version we see towards the end of the week
My creek, shot in January 2023
32. Raw minerals: ORES
33. "Nature" airer: PBS
36. Biblical name of ancient Syria: ARAM - Geo name #3
37. Wolverines and Badgers: TEAMS - NOUNS would have worked, too - I looked at what is most likely the "relationhip" of wolverines to badgers, came across Michigan & Wisconsin, at the extreme opposite ends of - 26D. Bracket org.: NCAA - the National Collegiate Athletics Association - more basketball, which is not my thing, and yes, I live 5mins from UCONN and their famous B-ball teams . . .
39. Canada Goose garment: COAT - filled via perps; the website
40. Inquire: ASK
41. Head of a museum?: BUST - Har-har
The Bat Bust
42. Full of passion: FIERY
46. Future resident: INTERN - Think doctors, not neighbors -I caught my new neighbor stealing soil from my creek; I hope I put an end to that~!
49. Cringeworthy, in Gen Alpha slang: OHIO - Gen X here, so this one is new to me; I not only lived in Ohio, but it's where The Golem movie was shot - so I guess it really is "weird" in Ohio . . .
53. Greek T: TAU
56. Tofu nutrient: IRON
57. Drama honor: OBIE - the Off-Broadway Theatre Award
58. Feature of some accents: TWANG
60. Smoothie berry: ACAI
61. Merino, e.g.: WOOL
62. "Pale Blue Dot" subject: EARTH - Carl Sagan, who had a "law" of his own, ( a standard ); "Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence"
63. Top of many an indoor stadium: DOME
64. Trawling equipment: NETS
65. Clothe: DRESS
DOWN:
1. Took care of, say: PAID - like "the bill"
2. Circular current: EDDY - NOT a name
3. Shower with love, with "on": DOTE
4. Old hoops gp.: ABA - American Basketball Association; more basketball
5. Daily record: LOGBOOK - I have kept an 'electronic' journal since January 2005
6. Causes of some grade inflation: EASYAs
7. Beach party?: GULL
The gulls in "Finding Nemo" were hysterical
8. For two voices, in music: ADUE - Dah~! Not DUET
9. Archaeologists' workplaces: DIGSITES - Nailed it
10. Mardi Gras event: PARADE
11. Video game brother: LUIGI - MARIO fit, but wasn't playing nice with others; name #3
12. Let out, as pigs: UNPEN - I really hoped this was not going to be "UNSTY"
13. Try to decipher a stereogram, perhaps: STARE - try to find the objects in the 3D images here
22. Have: OWN
23. Auction units: LOTS - better than defined as "A TON"
24. Bullet point: ITEM
27. Messes up: ERRS
28. Ineffective: WEAK
29. Unwilling (to): LOATH
30. Branch: ARM - Trunk: Leg~?
Maybe not a tree pattern, but the tights are "dee-vine" 🙄
33. Ballad writer: POET
34. Oak exterior: BARK
35. Ocular woe: STYE - how does one get an eye "UNSTYED"~?
37. __ service: TURN-DOWN - A luxury hotel amenity, where you get the mint on the pillow
38. Medium ability: ESP
39. "Ta-ta!": CIAO
41. Cutting comeback: BURN - I tried BARB, 50% correct
42. Toyed (with): FLIRTED
43. "Stop being such a jerk!": "MEANIE~!" - my mother's old email was mrsmeanie
44. Singing in some Ricola ads: YODELS
Riiiii - co - laaaaa~!
45. Shakira's "__ Wolf": SHE - More like "She-esh"; name(ish)
46. "Odyssey" prelude: ILIAD - It's all Greek to me . . . 🙄
47. Many a "Breaking Bad" figure: NARCO - I had NARCS
48. Clock-changing hr.: TWOAM - you have 71 days until Nov 1st, 2026
LA Times assistant editor Katie Hale is back - her last crossword offering was a month ago, on a Monday, here. The last one I blogged was a co-authored puzzle that had too much of a cringe factor ( for me ) to be enjoyable. Today, however, was a pleasant, and partially humorous construction, with four themers, including two grid-spanners, that added our star, the three-letter word SUN, to common phrases, giving them 'solar' power. There were maybe a few too many 2-word entries, especially in the Downs, but it was Friday-level, if not easier. Standard grid, no "outlier add-ons" this week, with 10 names, no circles, and a near-perfect balance of 3-, 4-. and 5-letter words. The themers and reveal;
18. *Action figure at the bottom of a pool?: SUNKENDOLL - I first thought maybe G.I. Joe~?
I had the 80's "action figures" the same size as the Star Wars ones
23. *Naval officer's very quiet "ahoy there"?: LITTLEBOSUNPEEP - Bosun, how one pronounces "boatswain"
35. *Jokes about miscellaneous items?: SUNDRYHUMOR
48. *Essential for authors who work at the beach?: WRITER'SSUNBLOCK
56. Clean energy option, or a hint to what the answers to the starred clues have?: SOLARPOWER
But Wait There's More~!
ACROSS:
1. "Cor, blimey!": "ISAY~!" - Brit-speak
5. Oxygen co-creator: OPRAH - Oxygen, the network, not the element from THE Creator - name #1
10. Mascaron image: FACE - filled via perps, WAGed the "C" - this architectural detail
14. Drive-__: THRU
15. Tricky tennis serve: SLICE - meh. It's called an "ace" where I play tennis
16. Traffic-dependent figs.: ETAs
17. Azaria of "Brockmire": HANK - I know him from the Simpsons; name #2
20. WSW reversal: ENE
21. Virtual citizenry: SIMS - Another good guess on my part - but I have played Sim City & The Sims
22. Dad's sister: AUNT
28. Outdoor dining spot: PATIO
29. "Oh, now I see": "A-HA~!"
30. TV controller?: FCC - The Federal Communications Commission - I cound not recall what the second "C" stood for
31. 19th Greek letter: TAU
33. Cryptography org.: NSA - Thursday dupe
34. Mineralogist who created a scale: MOHS - this puzzle's themers gave me a laugh, so I'm giving it the "other" kind of star, a 4 / 5⭐ from on the "other" Moe's Scale - name(ish)
38. 2025 WNBA champions: ACES - I follow no basketball at all, tried the SUNS - but knowing the theme after the fact meant it could not be - plus I missed the "W" part of the clue as well . . . 😜
40. Solstice mo.: DECember - Monday, the 21st of this year, 12:50pm on the LA Times coast
41. Live and __ live: LET - in 1973, Wings "used to say . . ."
Live & Let DIE~!, Mr. Bond - James Bond
42. "Starship Troopers" backdrop: WAR - had it, filled it in, then took it out . . . an overdone movie with egregious graphic violence - I loved it. The IMDb
43. Zing: PEP
44. Gives, but not forever: LENDS - I had perps from doing the Downs first, so it was not LOANS
53. Olympic swimmer Torres: DARA - name #3 - her website
54. Cruising: ASEA
55. __ leaf: stew herb: BAY - why you shouldn't eat one~!?
A knock-off of Robert Palmer's video, which has more leg in it
3. "Is This Thing On?" star Will: ARNETT - name #6
4. Big laugh: YUK
5. Activist/actor Davis: OSSIE - learned by doing crosswords, name #7
6. Straight up: PLUMB - the same client with the pantry doors just got a new pocket door installed
7. Classic laundry soap: RINSO - I have heard of this brand, but I used Tide, then switched to soap flakes as suggested by the book "Laundry Love" which I learned of from sumdaze - name(ish)
8. "Jeepers!": "ACK~!" - Dah~! Not "EEK~!"
9. Little laugh: HEE - waited on perps; HEE, HAW or TEE~?
10. Beyond irritated: FEDUP - the name chosen for the new merger of Federal Express and UPS 😜
11. Try to make right: ATONEFOR - 2-word #2
12. Pasadena research univ.: CALTECH - 2-word #3
13. Pre-naturalization test course, for short: ESL - "English as Second Language" - Do you have to take the test/course these days~?
19. Meemaw alternative: NANA - no one in my family has ever used either term for "Granny"
21. "McSorley's Bar" painter: SLOAN - John, name #8
24. "__ Andronicus": TITUS - T.I.L. this is a Shakespeare play, name #9
25. Ceremonial accessory: SASH - I tried VEIL first
26. Rental after closing, maybe: U-HAUL - I was thinking a place to sleep after closing on the sale of a house, but you haven't bought a new one, like "HOTEL"
27. Hardware for Xbox: PCs
32. Cow's milk source: UDDER - this is udderly true . . . 🙄
33. US Open locale: NYC - I figured it was the tennis Open
34. Interstate stopover: MOTEL - so my HOTEL was looking wrong now . . .
35. Fig. for ordering replacement parts: SERIALNo. - 2-words, yeah, but I like this fill, #4
36. Set pieces: REPS - at the gym. I am now 193.0lbs - I took a pic of the scale last Saturday; my trainer allows 3lbs for sneakers and clothes - when I picked up the phone for the image, it added .5lbs~!
Now my trainer thinks I can get down to 160lbs - Yikes~!
37. Peach __: MELBA - Pie & Cobbler didn't fit the dish
38. "So sweet!": "Aww. . ."
39. Side mirror spot: CARDOOR - I clipped the one on the passenger side on my Dodge Grand Caravan, bought a replacement unit, but to get to the screws I have to strip out half the dashboard - I'm in no hurry, and the mirror isn't actually broken - it's the remote motor that doesn't work - 2-word #5
43. Cider source: PEAR - never heard of cider from pears - it's called Perry; a recipe here
45. Like some cheesecake: NO-BAKE - technically, there's a hyphen, so not a 2-word answer
46. Region with many Nats fans, briefly: D.C. AREA - 2-word(ish)
47. Overview producer?: SKYCAM - Big Brother is watching . . . 😶
49. Canteen stack: TRAYS
50. Perceived to be: SAWAS - aaaand Twurd~!
52. Uncool: NERDY
56. Auto care brand: STP - Crossword staple
57. Actress Grier: PAM - two mentions in three weeks for me, name #10
58. Come up short, maybe: OWE
59. Minor quibble: NIT - "can't you see that man is a nit~!"
No, dagnubbit~!
Splynter
Grid Flow an even 30.0 - and it was the Katie puzzle I blogged
We're taking the scenic route today, a walk in, uh, drive through the park for yours truly. I do believe this is a debut construction for both authors - I did a Google search of the names, and the one thing I found they had in common ( if I picked the correct people ) is a "machine learning" education/understanding. We'd love to get some feedback from you - drop in & visit our Crossword Corner~! ( merge left here ) There were no delays today, just a cruise through the clues & answers, including several one-word types - twenty-one, in fact, which I like; that's how Fridays should be. Yet another "expanded" grid for your Friday host, two in a row now. The "ST" abbr. for 'street', tacked on to four in-language phrases, outside the box, on the "side", with humorous cluing - sounds like a coffee or restaurant order. Standard grid initially, a few names, no Twurds, a balance of 3-, 4-, and 5-letter words, with several car clues & Frawnche fill. The four themers and reveal;
25. "My peacock's tail is the best!," e.g.?: FEATHERBOAST
49. Record of one's attempts to enter a hedge maze?: STARTHISTORY
60. Promise made by a serial dater who aspires to commit?: ONEMORETRYST- "One More Try" is a unique fill
38. Features of some detours, or what four answers in this puzzle need in order to match their clues?: SIDE STREETS - and a unique fill, too~!
Grid Flow a low 24.9
🚧But Wait, ⛔There's More~!🏁
ACROSS:
1. Sheer: UTTER - One-word clue, one-word answer; letting me start with SHEER~? Priceless~!
Utterly beautiful
6. Walrus kin: SEAL
10. Waffle over in the freezer aisle: EGGO - Too easy for Friday
14. Bête __: NOIRE -Frawnche #1, "black beast"
15. Shoestring: LACE - Sunday dupe
16. Infuriate: ROIL
19. Explore Mars, perhaps: ROVE - As Spirit & Opportunity did for NASA; I love the science success stories these two travelers gave us
20. Ninth letter of the Hebrew alphabet: TET - new clue for this old answer; learning moment for me
21. Reaction to lions and tigers and bears: "OHMY~!" - never gets old - 😁
22. Vein of ore: LODE
23. Genesis locale: EDEN - AND - . . .
29. Genesis locale: SODOM - straight clecho
31. Accessory often tipped or used for tips: HAT
32. "Dee-lish!": "YUM~!"
33. French bean: HARICOT - straight Frawnche translation, #2, not a "?" clue for "tête"
37. "We are not alone" subj.: SETI - Search for ExtraTerrestrial Intelligence
40. "Shoo!": "SCAT~!"
42. "Call Me" band: BLONDIE - name(ish) - they were just a hint before my time
Oui amie - more Frawnche, #3~!
43. Bud: PAL
44. Refuse to settle, perhaps: SUE - Last week, it was a "boy named SUE" . . .
45. Sticker: DECAL - Ah. There's where it goes - I had it here - 26D. Sticker: THORN. . . 😜
54. Mountain lion: PUMA
55. "Yer killin' me!": "C'MON..."
56. Utah city near two national parks: MOAB - mostly perps, I just had to fill in the "B"; geo-name #1
Click to enlarge and read the description
58. Fishing pole: ROD
59. Drops from above: RAIN - not the "bomb" kind of drop . . . 😏
63. Early Bond foe: DR. NO - The earliest, in movies, name #2
64. Actor Auberjonois: RENÉ - name #3, knew him from "Benson"
65. :-( : I'MSAD - The "original" way of using typed characters for emotions, a Thursday dupe, and plain sad is actually not available through the blogger, as R-Brain showed . . . now we're "égaliser" 😁
66. Fortuneteller: SEER - AND - 60D. Sphere consulted by a 66-Across: ORB
67. Spanish kiss: BESO
68. Touchscreen tappers: STYLI - FINGER was a 'digit' too much . . . 🙄
DOWN:
1. Marries: UNITES
2. Home of the El Greco Museum: TOLEDO - Spain, geo name #4, more here
3. Pitching: TILTED - Dah~! Not the SELLING, HAWKING or VENDING kind of pitching
4. Pitching stat: ERA- aaaand yet another definition of pitching - baseball
5. Make over: RE-DO - thanks for the Sunday shout-out, C.C. - I have finally gotten below 200lbs~!
6. Substance celebrated by the Sloomoo Institute: SLIME - Learning moment for me - more here
7. Smooth course: EASYA - crossword staple
8. Best club in Vegas?: ACE - But the best Ace is of Spades . . .
Motörhead - another "umlaut" band
9. Was up: LED - think sports, not out-of-bed
10. Bad move: ERROR
11. Peace offerings?: GOOD-BYES - I, and a couple of friends, usually sign off with "Peace."
12. Buckle: GIVEOUT - Like this bridge did - the verb, not the noun
give IN works, too, but doesn't fit
13. The Grand __ Opry: OLE
18. TV broadcast band: VHF - sssss, close, I tried UHF
22. Allow: LET
24. Like a 2024 Blake Snell game: NO-HIT - the only name I had no clue about, but in retrospect, the answer couldn't be much else, really. More baseball, name(ish)
27. Despised: HATED
28. French friend: AMI - Frawnche #4, the masculine friend
30. Steamed: MAD - Dah~! Not HOT
34. Symbolic puzzle that dates to the Middle Ages: REBUS - good WAG on my part
35. Key: ISLET - Didn't fool me this time - I count about two dozen definitions of the word "key"
37. Very much inclined: STEEP - I am one house, or about 500ft, from CT rte. 195, and I can tell when a semi is either lumbering up the 6% incline, or jake-braking on the down-side
Burrrr-bur-bur-bur-bu-bu-bur . . . .
38. Source of some pink seasoning: SALTMINE - I knew we were looking for "SALT", but "SEA" was not going to work . . .
39. Ramadan-ending holiday, informally: EID - filled via perps
40. Cocoa scrub venue: SPA - it's a "thing" - more on the benefits here
41. Auto maintenance: CARCARE - TUNE-UP was too short, OIL CHANGE too long
44. Transgression: SIN
46. Respectful dip: CURTSY
47. Virtually indifferent?: AMORAL - clever
48. "The People's Princess": LADYDI - killed in a car crash, Paris, 29yrs ago this month - no one was wearing a seat belt; name #5, Frawnche #5
I do like an "outside the box" kind of puzzle - we had a similar Friday with "Sides Add LE" on April 24th this year from James Mattina. Today we have a crossword from constructors Betsy O and Andrew G - this is their third LA Times collaboration; the others were (1) on Thursday, and (2) on Monday, both with Naomi at the helm to guide us. Today's themers can be resolved by adding corner "around" the corner(s) of the grid, and Bob (Feller)'s Your Uncle. Standard size, no Twurds, typical run of proper names, with TWO Leslies & Penguins today. The themers, reveal, and an expanded graphic of the grid:
1A. *Executive space with great views: [ corner ]OFFICE - Here's a "great view" of my executive blogging command center, taken from the corner at the ceiling 😜
I'm not done with the space yet - still working on the closet area
and a cool set of shelves for the opposite wall
7A. *Area in Westminster Abbey where Chaucer is buried: POETS[ corner ] - More from their website
65A. *Place to find a date?: [ corner ] STONE - ah. That kind of 'date'
12D. *Scoring opportunity in soccer: [ corner ] KICK
14D. *Defensive player who's often the fastest on the football field: [ corner ] BACK - The NY Jets used to have ESPN's #9 choice, Ahmad "Sauce" Gardner, but he's with the Colts now
53D. *Challenging stretch at Augusta National: AMEN[ corner ] - more from the PGA Masters, here
37. Not far off, or where to look to make this puzzle's starred clues match their answers?:
AROUND THE CORNER
And a shout-out to the all the Crossword CORNERITES~!
Grid Flow 34.5
W a i But There's M o r e(s)~!
ACROSS:
-
-
12. Quaint term for "patella": KNEEPAN - Google says it's one word, and a learning moment for me
13. Supporting Mideast unity: PAN-ARAB - I got stuck on NON-arab, which cost me 2 minutes of looking for my mistake; the Wiki
15. Björk's country: ICELAND - sssss, close - I know of her, went with FIN-land; name #1
16. Ferrera of "Ugly Betty": AMERICA - name #2 - I do the Sunday puzzle on Friday, since I had solved today's puzzle back on Sunday - here's a "slit" for Anon-T's write up 😁
59. Wedding crasher's destination, perhaps: OPEN BAR - Crossing - 31D. College with an alcohol ban: DRYCAMPUS (a unique fill ) - how's that for a "mixer"~?
61. Pen pal's signoff: "WRITEME." - Penguin's (#1) sign off - "White Me"
63. "House __": longtime HGTV series: HUNTERS - Here's an episode about a village near my old stomping ground of Long Island - about 20mins south of where I lived
Setauket to Patchogue
64. "Airplane!" star Leslie: NIELSEN - A gimme Leslie #1, name #5 - "I just want to tell you both good luck, we're all counting on you . . ."
DOWN:
1. At just the right moment: ONCUE
2. Senses: FEELS
3. Hall of Fame pitcher Bob who won the World Series in 1948 with Cleveland: FELLER - also no clue, name #6, more from the Hall of Fame here
4. Bitter brew, briefly: IPA - was not working with my FINLAND
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