Thursday August 27, 2026 Rebecca Goldstein & Matthew Stock

Rebecca Goldstein and Matthew Stock have gotten together and bought stakes in a new steakhouse! 

3. Card game that's really taking off?: STRIP POKER. STRIP POKER is a card game where players forfeit clothing instead of chips...unless you call their buff. 

8. Namesake of Converse's All Star sneaker: CHUCK TAYLOR. Charles Hollis "CHUCK" TAYLOR (1901–1969) was an American semi-professional basketball player and an all-star shoe salesman. 

15. Dance around what's really important: SKIRT THE ISSUE. To SKIRT THE ISSUE means to avoid talking about a complex or awkward topic. As in, "Does this skirt make me look fat?" Umm...

23. Links activity: ROUND OF GOLF. A standard ROUND OF GOLF consists of playing 18 holes in sequential order, though a shorter 9-hole round is also common. It's also a drink order at the 19th hole!

And what do these seemingly unrelated answers have in common? I needed the revealer for this one:

31. With a lot on the line, or a phonetic hint to 3-, 8-, 15-, and 23-Down: HIGH STAKES. Even with the revealer, it still took me a moment to figure out that STAKES becomes STEAKS. Each of the four vertical themers begin (in the HIGH position) with a different cut of steak: STRIP steak; CHUCK steak; SKIRT steak; and ROUND steak.

Our two chefs have cooked up a meaty one today. Vertical themes are rare, and always seem a little tougher, but the rest of the fill was easy to cut through. Over all, I think it was well done.

Let's see what sides they're serving with this:

Across:

1. "Mister Rogers' Neighborhood" network: PBS. Fred Roger's show ran from 1968 to 2001 on the Public Broadcasting Service.

4. Collision sound: BAM. Also the sound when seasoning hits the steak!

7. Hill partner, in textbook publishing and country music: MCGRAW. Interesting parallel. Educational publisher MCGRAW Hill vis-à-vis Tim MCGRAW and his wife Faith Hill.

13. Big sellers: HOTCAKES. People scooped up pancakes quickly while they were still warm.

16. "That's old news": I HEARD. 

17. "Could there possibly be a good explanation for this?": DARE I ASK. 

18. Skating jumps similar to toe loops: LUTZES. Rightbrain grew up in her uncle's roller rink. The first time I met her family was at the rink, and they suggested she take her fiancé for a spin. Being my first time on skates, I'm sure they weren't thinking LUTZES but KLUTZES. That was 45 years ago, and I still appreciate that they somehow kept a straight face.

19. Ruckus: STIR. 

20. Motorcycle attachments: SIDECARS. SIDECARS are also cocktails containing brandy, orange liqueur and lemon juice. But best not to mix the two.

22. Hair line?: PART. My favorite PART was when they sang the Hair line, "This is the dawning of the age of Aquarius."

25. Dangers: RISKS.

26. Disconnect: GAP.

28. "Get __ town!": OUTTA. No way!

30. Ski area near Reno: TAHOE.

34. Gold at the Milano Cortina Olympics?: ORO. Italian for gold.

35. Second, but not first: UNIT. A second is a unit of time. 

36. Getting the check: PAYING. ON ME per 57D

37. __ choy: BOK. Florida is so flat, that various entrepreneurs have erected towers (there are three of them) in the middle of nowhere to attract tourists. The most famous is the 205' BOK Tower built in 1920's during the state's land boom. The National Historic Landmark features a 60-bell carillon that plays a concert twice daily to visitors of the surrounding 250-acre gardens.

38. Every evening: NIGHTLY.

40. Prefix with political: GEO. GEOpolitical relates to how a country's physical location, size, and resources affect its politics, power, and relationships with other nations.

41. Revises: AMENDS.

43. Assessment, briefly: EVAL. A quick EVALuation.

44. Boater or bowler: HAT. In my business, a wear a lot of HATs, but neither of these.

45. Greta of classic Hollywood: GARBO. The great Swedish/American actress often just went by GARBO. In 1954, she was awarded an Academy Honorary Award "for her luminous and unforgettable screen performances."

46. Hustle genre: DISCO. Did you do the Hustle?

47. Texting tech: SMS. Short Message Service.

48. Some natural hairstyles: AFROS.

50. Part of QED: ERAT. "Quod ERAT Demonstrandum," said Pliny the Elder in Latin class. "It is proven. Any questions?"

52. Trench coat, wig, and big sunglasses, maybe: DISGUISE. 

Yep, she'd blend in anywhere.

55. Sando spread: MAYO. A sando is a Japanese-style sandwich. The word comes from a shortened form of sandoitchi, the Japanese loanword for sandwich. 

58. Patchy-patterned horses: PINTOS. This patchy PINTO only had 54 horses. On a quiet night, you can hear it rusting.

59. Tacit: UNSPOKEN.

62. Certain spot: LOCALE. 

63. Application that combats dark circles: EYE CREAM. I scream, you scream, we all scream for EYE CREAM?

64. Gobbles (down): SNARFS.

65. Some GEs: ACS. General Electric Air Conditioners.

66. __/her/hers: SHE.

Down:

1. Degs. conferred after defenses: PHDS. Knowing me as you do, can you believe I have a brother with Doctor of Philosophy degree?

2. Large sushi order: BOAT. 

Yum! Hand me the chopsticks!

3. [theme]

4. "WonderWater" brand: BAI. So many brands to keep track of...

5. Alias letters: AKA. Also Known As.

6. "Cleanup on aisle five" impetus: MESS. It's always aisle five. If I ran a store, I'd skip 5 like they skip the 13th floor in tall buildings. 

7. Half marathon's 13.1: MILES. Athens to Marathon is 26.2 MILES.

8. [theme]

9. Participate in decision-making: GET A SAY.

10. Motorola phone: RAZR. Cell phones kept getting smaller, and my RAZR was the smallest one I owned. Then screen size became a thing and now they are bigger than ever.

11. Combative Olympian?: ARES.

12. Dict. entries: WDS. Dictionary entries are words.

14. Michael of "Juno": CERA. I think he'll still look like a young boy when he's an old man.

15. [theme]

21. Opposite of noite: DIA. It's the difference between night and day! In Portuguese, that is.

23. [theme]

24. North African capital: TUNIS. 

26. Emergency kit: GO BAG. It usually contains enough basic supplies to sustain you for three days after a disaster.

27. Sweet smell: AROMA.

29. Comedian Notaro: TIG. TIG Notaro is an Emmy, Grammy, and Oscar-nominated comedian, actor, writer, producer, and podcaster. She's gotten the nod for 75% of an EGOT! 

31. [theme]

32. Wee hour: ONE AM. Two am is the wee wee hour. 

33. Showbiz quartets: EGOTS. The grand slam of winning Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony Awards.

36. Come in second: PLACE. Win, PLACE, and Show are bets in horse racing. A Win bet wins only if your selection finishes 1st. A Place bet wins if it finishes 1st or 2nd (so not just "come in second"). A Show bet wins if it finishes 1st, 2nd, or 3rd. 

39. Sports bar sets: TVS. You can sometimes watch horse racing on sports bar Televisions.

42. Supreme court presence?: NBA STAR. Fun clue...and holding court on TVS in another sports bar.

46. Eager agreement: DO I.

49. Tricks: RUSES.

51. "Te quiero, __ mio": AMOR. "I love you, my love," in español. Sounds a bit redundant.

52. Singer Celine: DION. Her heart will go on and on and....

53. Empire also known as the "Realm of the Four Parts": INCA. The INCA Empire was a vast pre-Columbian state in South America divided into four administrative regions.

54. New Age singer who speaks Irish: ENYA. Everyone's favorite New Ager in crosswords.

56. "Totes": YEAH. "Totes" is slang for "totally", so YEAH seems like a weak equivalent.

57. "I'll get the check": ON ME. PAYING like 36A.

58. [Praying emoji]: PLS. Please! 🙏🏻Some people use this as a "high five" emoji...don't get me started! 😂

60. Org. with LSU Tigers, Auburn Tigers, and Missouri Tigers: SEC. All these college teams are copy cats, and are members of the the Southeastern Conference of the NCAA.

61. WFH devices: PCS. People who Work From Home often use Personal Computers.

Okay, I'm done grilling these guys.

Be good. RB

 

Notes from C.C.

Happy Birthday to Lemonade, our Friday sherpa for a long long time. Hope all is well with you and Oo!

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