Tuesday November 26, Geoffrey Brown

Don't You Forget About Me.  Each theme answer is what one might say upon leaving a friend.

20-Across. Parting words from a hide-and-seek player?: CATCH YOU LATER.

31-Across. Parting words from a masseuse?: KEEP IN TOUCH.

40-Across. Parting words from an escape room participant?: I'M OUTTA HERE.

53-Across. Parting words from a magazine vendor?: UNTIL NEXT TIME.

Across:

1. Unit of cilantro: SPRIG.  Some people find that cilantro tastes like soap.  It's due to a genetic variation in their olfactory receptor gene.

6. Sasquatch kin: YETI.  The Yeti is a mythical creature rumored to inhabit the Himalayan mountains of Asia.  It's also the name of a company that makes high-end coolers.

10. Nursery school song subject: ABCs.

14. Massey of old films: ILONA.  Ilona Massey (née Ilona Hajmássy; June 16, 1910 ~ Aug. 20, 1974) was a Hungarian-American film, stage and radio actress.  She was a born in Budapest, Hungary.

15. Bring in: EARN.

16. "Don't rock the __": BOAT.

17. Unfounded stories: MYTHS.

18. Outlet store warning: AS IS.

19. City with a country within its borders: ROME.  The Vatican is within the city limits of Rome.  Vatican City became an independent state in 1929 when when the Lateran Treaty was signed by the Holy See and Italy.  It was the result of negotiations between the Italian government and the Holy See that began in 1926.  The Vatican is the smallest country in the world.

23. Country between Thailand and Vietnam: LAOS.

24. Teacher's session: LESSON.

25. Deeply devoted: ARDENT.

28. Hugo Award genre: SCI-FI.  The Hugo Award is considered the most prestigious award in science fiction.  It's presented at the World Science Fiction Convention.  The award is named after Hugo Gernsback (Aug. 16, 1884 ~ Aug. 19, 1967).  Gernsback is known as the Father of Science Fiction.

30. Filmmaker Ang: LEE.  Ang Lee (b. Oct. 23, 1954) is a Taiwanese filmmaker.  The first film that I saw of his was the 1994 movie Eat Drink Man Woman.  

36. Wee woolly one: LAMB.

38. Took a load off: SAT.

39. City on Alaska's Seward Peninsula: NOME.

45. In favor of: FOR.

46. Any "Cheers" episode, now: RERUN.

47. "Sorry, pass": IT'S A NO.

49. Rice dish seasoned with saffron: PAELLA.  Paella is a Spanish dish of rice cooked with seafood, meat, and vegetables, and flavored with saffron.

52. Nabe in London and NYC: SOHO.  SOHO is short for South of Houston Street.  It is a neighborhood in Lower Manhattan, New York City.  Soho is also a neighborhood in London's West End.

 

57. Schlep: TOTE.

58. Wrestling form with a salt purification ritual: SUMO.  In sumo wrestling, the act of throwing salt into the ring before a match is a purification ritual.  The salt is used to cleanse the area and ward off evil spirits.  It is a practice deeply rooted in Shinto beliefs; this practice is called "shio-maki" in Japanese, and is considered a key part of the pre-match ceremony before wrestlers enter the ring.

59. Inner circle: CADRE.

62. Poetic tributes: ODEs.  A crossword staple.

63. __ code: AREA.  Area code by state

64. Church platform: ALTAR.

65. Egg container: NEST.

66. Billings' st.: MONT.  You will find the town of Billings in Montana.

67. Heaviest internal organ: LIVER.

Down:

1. __ card: cellphone chip holder: SIM.  SIM = Subscriber Identity Module.

2. Tissue thickness: PLY.

3. Campus military org.: ROTC.  ROTC = Reserve Officers' Training Corps.

4. Take a breath: INHALE

5. Car part missing on a Tesla: GAS TANK.

6. Informal assents: YEAHs.

7. "__ peasy lemon squeezy!": EASY.

8. The Powerpuff Girls, e.g.: TRIO.  The Powerpuff Girls was a cartoon series that featured three kindergarten-age girls with superpowers.

9. Hormone that regulates blood sugar: INSULIN.  The history of Insulin.  The importance of insulin was discovered in 1921 by Sir Frederick G Banting (Nov. 14, 1891 ~ Feb. 21, 1941), Charles H Best (Feb. 27, 1899 ~ 1979) and JJR Macleod (né John James Rickard Macleod; Sept. 6, 1876 ~ Mar. 16, 1935) at the University of Toronto.  In 1923, Banting and Macleod were awarded the Nobel Prize for their discovery.  Because Charles Best was a graduate student, the Nobel Committee ignored his contribution and he was not acknowledged for his contribution.  Best was Banting's graduate student, so Banting shared his Nobel Prize money with him.

10. Scrape: ABRASION.

11. Wellingtons, e.g.: BOOTS.

12. Brief appearance in a film: CAMEO.  Also a method of carving an object such as an engraved gem, item of jewelry.

13. Unlikely to approve of horseplay: STERN.

21. Dove's home: COTE.

22. Opposite of right: LEFT.

25. "__ Want for Christmas Is You": ALL I.  A Christmas song made famous by Mariah Carey (b. Mar. 27, 1969).

26. 20 quires: REAM.  Webster's defines a Quire as "a collection of 24 or sometimes 25 sheets of paper of the same size and quality : one twentieth of a ream."

27. Floor model: DEMO.

28. Hall of Fame pitcher Warren who holds the record for most wins by a southpaw: SPAHN.  Warren Edward Spahn (Apr. 23, 1921 ~ Nov. 24, 2003) played for 21 years in the major league, much of that time with the Boston Braves.

29. Quote: CITE.

32. Genesis twin: ESAU.  Esau was the hairy twin brother of Jacob.

33. Tucson school, for short: U OF A.  As in the University of Arizona.

34. "That can't be right!?": C'MON.

35. Villain's adversary: HERO.

Baby Hero pose in yoga.

37. Beefy to the max: BURLIEST.

41. Poker player's giveaway: TELL.

42. Classic Pontiac muscle car: TRANS AM.

43. Barrel of laughs: RIOT.

44. Principled: ETHICAL.

48. Mogadishu resident: SOMALI.

49. Slip into: PUT ON.

50. Battery terminal: ANODE.

 

51. Plural diminutive suffix: -ETTES.

52. Summer ermine: STOAT.  In the summer, the animal's back is cinnamon-colored and the stomach is white.  During the winter, the stoat's fur molts to completely white, and the animal is then called “ermine”.

54. Continental capital: EURO.  Did you know that each country in the eurozone has its own design on the obverse side of the euro coin?

55. Marvel Comics mutants: X-MEN.

56. 1999 satire about a reality show: ED TV.

60. Issa of "Barbie": RAE.  Issa Rae (né Jo-Issa Rae Diop; b. Jan. 12, 1985) makes frequent guest appearances in the crossword puzzles.  She also starred in a television comedy called Insecure.

61. Make a mistake: ERR.

Here's the Grid:

חתולה

Tuesday November 19, 2024 C W Stewart

On the Home Stretch.  The circles are needed for today's puzzle.  A circle is progressively added to each theme answer to slowly spell out the word HOME.

17-Across. Big spender in Vegas: HIGH ROLLER.

25-Across. Extremely volatile situation: HORNETS NEST.

44-Across. Southern breakfast side dish: HOMINY GRITS.  I think Grits are an acquired taste.

60-Across. Sigh from a weary traveler, and an apt title for this puzzle: HOME AT LAST.

Across:

1. Tenant's payment: RENT.

5. "F" on a test, often: FALSE.  Not a failing mark, but a mark on a True/False test.

10. One-named "Believe" diva: CHER.  Cher (b. May 20, 1946), whose given name is Cherilyn Sarkisian,  is a singer and actress.  She is also known for her outlandish outfits.

14. "A Streetcar Named Desire" director Kazan: ELIA.  Elia Kazan (né Elias Kazantzoglou; Sept. 7, 1909 ~ Sept. 28, 2003) makes frequent guest appearances in the puzzles.  He was born in what was then known as Constantinople (now Istanbul), Turkey.  He is also known for naming names before the House Un-American Committee in the 1950s.

15. Like days of yore: OLDEN.

16. In robust health: HALE.

19. Land in a lake: ISLE.  I don't associate an isle being in a lake.  I think of an Isle being situated in a larger body of water.

20. Had a dinner date: ATE OUT.

21. TV cooking competition hosted by Kristen Kish: TOP CHEF.  Kristen Kish (b. Dec. 1, 1983) is an American chef known for winning the tenth season of Top Chef. She became the host of Top Chef:Wisconsin earlier this year.

23. Flat French hats: BERETS.

24. Loafer, for one: SHOE.

31. "You go, __!": GIRL.

35. Kanga's son: ROO.

36. Running total: TALLY.

37. Like two jacks in a deck of cards: ONE-EYED.

39. Drool: SLOBBER.

41. Ward (off): STAVE.

42. "I Like __": 1950s political slogan: IKE.  Dwight David Eisenhower (Oct. 14, 1890 ~ Mar. 28, 1969) was the 34th President of the United States.

43. "No Ordinary Love" singer: SADE.  Sade (née Helen Folasade Adu; b. Jan. 16, 1965), is a Nigerian-born British singer.  Her parents began calling her Sade, a shortened form of her Yoruba middle name, Folasade, hence, that is how she is known.

48. Art hub in New Mexico: TAOS.

49. Desert that covers most of North Africa: SAHARA.

54. Item in a makeup bag: COMPACT.  Some are very expensive.

58. Connect to a power supply: PLUG IN.

59. __ the hump: OVER.

63. Musical Auntie played by Angela Lansbury: MAME.  Dame Angela Brigid Lansbury (Oct. 16, 1925 ~ Oct. 11, 2022) was a British actress.  She played Mame on Broadway in 1966 and was awarded a Tony for her portrayal.  She is probably best known to younger audiences as portraying Jessica Fletcher on the television series Murder, She Wrote.

64. Levels in some subscription plans: TIERS.  A tiered subscription provides different levels of services or products at different price levels.  For example, some magazine subscriptions have one price for on-line issues, but a different price for on-line and hard copy issues.

65. To __: perfectly: A TEE.

66. Sound of a stone skimming failure: PLOP.  We had a nearly identical clue in last Thursday's puzzle.

67. Celebrities: STARS.

68. Email button: SEND.

Down:

1. Post-surgery regimen: REHAB.

2. Crème de la crème: ELITE.

3. Chad neighbor: NIGER.  Niger is a landlocked country in West Africa.  Chad is not its only neighbor.  It is bordered by Libya to the northeast, Chad to the east, Nigeria to the south, Benin and Burkina Faso to the southwest, Mali to the west, and Algeria to the northwest.  Its official name is the Republic of Niger.

4. Lake between the Silver State and the Golden State: TAHOE.  Lake Tahoe is a large freshwater lake in the Sierra Nevada Mountains, on the border of California and Nevada.

5. Tender after too much walking: FOOT SORE.

6. __-purpose flour: ALL.  Everything you ever wanted to know about All-Purpose Flour.

7. "Bad" cholesterol, for short: LDL.  Low-Density lipoprotein cholesterol, is the "bad" cholesterol.  It is the type of cholesterol that can build up in your arteries and increase your risk of heart disease and stroke.  High-Density Lipoprotein cholesterol is the "good" cholesterol.  HDL helps remove excess cholesterol from your body and lowers your risk of heart disease and stroke.  Everything you ever wanted to know about your body's cholesterol.

8. Get hot under the collar: SEETHE.

9. Plant securely: ENROOT.

10. Hip and stylish: CHIC.

11. Corned beef __: HASH.

12. Fashion magazine with a French name: ELLE.  Elle means She in French.

13. Big name in flip-flops and surfing apparel: REEF.  I was not familiar with this company.

18. The "R" of the Supreme Court's RBG: RUTH.  As in Ruth Bader Ginsberg (née Joan Ruth Bader; Mar. 15, 1933 ~ Sept. 18, 2020).  She joined the United States Supreme Court in 1993.

22. Green sauce: PESTO.  Yummers!

24. __-cone: icy treat: SNO.

26. Curtain holder: ROD.

27. Grabs: NABS.

28. Actor Idris: ELBA.  In 2016, Idris Elba (né Idrissa Akuna Elba; b. Sept. 6, 1973) mad Time magazine's list of 100 most influential people.

29. Winter coaster: SLED.

30. One of four on a British car: TYRE.

31. Gentle expression of surprise: GOSH.

32. Division word: INTO.

33. Printer's package: REAM.

34. Strauss of jeans: LEVI.  This is the third week in a row that jeans have appeared in a Tuesday puzzle.

38. Blabbermouth: YENTA.

39. Compete in a slalom: SKI.

40. "I don't think we want any!": LET'S PASS.

42. April 15 agcy.: IRS.  As in the Internal Revenue Service.

45. America's Cup vessels: YACHTS.

46. "Get cracking!": GO TO IT.

47. Basic food preservative: SALT.  Everything you ever wanted to know about salt as a preservative.  Twenty-four years ago tomorrow (Nov. 20, 1980), an oil drilling company punctured a salt dome in Lake Peigneur in south Louisiana creating a massive sinkhole.  The salt dome was being mined by the Diamond Salt company.  Amazingly, all the workers in the salt mine survived.

50. Oahu dances: HULAs

51. Marble material: AGATE.

52. Out of the sack: RISEN.

53. Added a chip, say: ANTED.

54. Free ticket, casually: COMP.

55. Elongated circle: OVAL.

56. Note from the boss: MEMO.

57. Get ready, briefly: PREP.

61. __ culpa: MEA.  Today's Latin lesson.

62. Make a mistake: ERR.

Here's the Grid:

חתולה