Wednesday, December 27, 2023 ~ Amanda Cook and Katie Hale

Department of Transportation

Happy Wednesday, Cornerites. Today Amanda and Katie give us some common words/phrases where the last part in each is also a mode of transportation.

17. Transport for loudmouths?: VOCAL COACH. A vocal coach is someone who helps/coaches singers. Eldest, the opera major, had a vocal coach for years; DW & I would to drive her by motor-coach [car] to lessons.

26. Transport for nanobots?: MICROPLANE. A microplane is a grater with finer teeth.
 

Lemon zest for the win!

36. Transport for the army's best poker players?: SHARK TANK. A card sharp or card shark is a deft poker player; a military one would likely motor about in a TANK. //Or, if caught cheating, sleeps with the fishes in the TANK ;-)

51. Transport for rural golf instructors?: PROTRACTOR. This themer made me LOL; the image of the golf Pro out on his Tractor.

Hand-up: You had one in your pencil box.

60. Transport for seminary students?: CROSS-TRAIN. You cross-train staff so they can do each others' major functions. A seminary student probably doesn't need much training with the Cross but, if new to the city, would need commuter-rail train training.

A fun play on transports, I thought. Let's see how Cook & Hale round out the 15x15.

Across:
1. Parakeet's pole: PERCH. Roost fit but perps disagreed. //Perch is better fill anyway.

6. Margarita flavor: LIME. And tequila!

10. Roughly: OR SO.

14. Nebraska city: OMAHA. Hi HG!

15. "Make it snappy" letters: ASAP. As Soon As Possible.

16. 29-Across, for one: JOEY.

Kanga and Roo

17. [See: Theme]

19. Many 4WD autos: SUVS. Sport Utility Vehicles.

20. Fizzy fountain drink: COLA.

C-O-L-A Cola [The Kinks' Lola live]

21. Car loan figs.: APRS. Annual Percentage RateS.

23. Allow: LET.

24. Singer-songwriter Tori: AMOS.

26. [See: Theme]

29. Young character in Milne stories: ROO. The joey in 16a's image.

30. Not pos.: NEG. Negative.

31. Being tracked, in a way: ON RADAR. e.g. Santa by NORAD Sunday night.

32. Little sandwich treat: MINI OREO.

35. Express checkout units: ITEMS.

36. [See: Theme]

39. __-knit sweater: CABLE.

42. "Barefoot __": Ina Garten cooking show: CONTESSA.

46. Overdue debt: ARREARS.

49. QB stats: TDS. Quarterbacks stats: Touchdowns.

50. Beach ball filler: AIR.

51. [See: Theme]

53. Doomed: SUNK.

54. Rocker Vicious portrayed by Gary Oldman: SID.

Sid And Nancy [Trailer]

55. Bygone Russian ruler: TSAR.

56. Has a meal: EATS.

58. Hall of Fame catcher Rodriguez nicknamed "Pudge": IVAN.

60. [See: Theme]

64. Letter after epsilon: ZETA. It's all Greek to me.

65. Overture follower: ACT-I.

66. __ Carta: MAGNA.

67. Utopia: EDEN.

68. For fear that: LEST.

69. Exhausted: SPENT. Not yet, we've the downs to go...

Down:
1. Perspective, for short: POV. Point of View.

2. My Chemical Romance genre: EMO.

Watch 60 seconds and you won't forget MCR is EMO.

3. Critter also called a trash panda: RACCOON.

4. Complete disorder: CHAOS. Not KAOS.

We don't do za Holiday Partiez?

5. Edvard Grieg's "In the __ of the Mountain King": HALL.

6. Asian language: LAO.

7. "Foundation" series writer Asimov: ISAAC. In HS, I read everything I could find from Asimov.

8. Powerful Apple: MAC PRO. Apple Computers.

9. Filmmaker Nora: EPHRON.

10. Citrus drinks, for short: OJS. Orange JuiceS

11. French meat dish: ROULADE. Food. Specifically, rolled food.

Beef Roulade

12. Start time for some morning shows: SEVEN AM.

13. Shellfish served with mignonette sauce: OYSTERS. More Food!

Center red sauce: shallots, red wine vinegar, and pepper pickled for about 2 hours.

18. GoPro product: CAMERA.

22. Legs it: SPRINTS.

24. Common injection site: ARM.

25. Me, in Marseille: MOI.

27. Disney CEO Bob: IGER.

28. Hanukkah pancake: LATKE. Food!

30. Problem for the Tin Man: NO HEART.

Oz never did give nothin' to the Tin Man that he didn't already have.

33. Dot in the ocean: ISLET.

34. Thunder's city, for short: OKC. Oklahoma City Thunder is an NBA team.

37. "Africa" rock band: TOTO. If you listend to Monday's "Straight No Chaser" 12-Days of Christmas that sumdaze linked, you may have noticed at 1:57 they break into Toto's Africa rhythm .

[the "not from Kansas"] Toto - Africa

38. "We Feed People" chef Jose : ANDRES. He's a (burgeoning) Thanksgiving Tradition on Colbert.

A take on [6a's] Margarita

39. Flip over at sea: CAPSIZE. Not to be confused with your head's circumference.

40. Got somewhere: ARRIVED.

41. Night out for straight guys: BRODATE. Since our wives had no interest, BIL & I went on a brodate to see Facing Nolan #Baseball

43. Bangers and mash protein: SAUSAGE. Food!

Traditional(?)

44. Serious misdeed: SIN.

45. Biblical evacuation vessel: ARK.

47. Scamp: RASCAL. Imp.

48. Hardly plentiful: SCARCE.

52. Dressage paces: TROTS.

53. Interchangeable watch component: STRAP.

57. PIN points: ATMS. Personal Identification Number; Automatic Teller Machine.

59. Brit's grandma: NAN.

61. Command to a collie: SIT.

62. Travel stop: INN.

63. __ Geo Wild: NAT.

The Grid:

The Grid

WOs: ade->OJS but not before inking evaS(?) at 19a; ISLan -> ISLET
ESPs: HALL (as clued), ROULADE(sp)
Fav: ISAAC Asimov.

If I don't post before the 1st (we leave for SFO tomorrow), Happy New Year!

Cheers, -T

Wednesday, December 20, 2023 ~ August Miller

Uncanny Valleys

An uncanny valley is a robot eerily too close to human likeness. Masahiro Mori (of Tokyo Institute of Tech) coined the phrase in the early '70's but I think The Twilight Zone (the one w/ a Robot Mom [that's your cue CED - find us the episode if you're over Covid]) beat him to the punch by 20(ish) years.

Todays' offering by August contains three (3) four-letter synonyms for valleys. But, with circles in the grid, they are not terribly hidden. The only thing uncanny is WADI - I don't recall hearing that word [see: 47a - not a good Bible reader, me].

Let's check out the Themers...

19. High price to pay, metaphorically: AN ARM AND A LEG.

29. Star cluster that resembles a bird of prey: EAGLE NEBULA. Messier-16 (who'd love to see crosswords expand to include numbers?) didn't fit.

Looks like a Klingon Bird of Prey decloaking.
Source

47. Health regimen modeled on the cuisine of Japan's Ryukyu Islands: OKINAWA DIET. New to me: "The Okinawa diet gets its name from the traditional eating style of those living on Japan’s Okinawa island. The diet is low-calorie and carb-based typically, but today consists of more protein and fat." Also new to me, WADI: "a valley that is dry except in the rainy season" It's Arabic and (according to the internet) in the Bible 11 times.

A wadi

And the reveal:
53. Salad dressing brand, and a feature of 19-, 29-, and 47-Across?: HIDDEN VALLEY.

Across:
1. Athletic brand that shares its name with a big cat: PUMA. My ankle-socks are Pumas. Get 6 pair for ~25 bucks at Amazon.

Over the ankle socks.

5. Cold desert in Asia: GOBI.

9. "Shucks!": DARN.

13. Asked for proof of age, say: IDED. "Papers Please," said the bouncer.

14. Admissions hurdle: EXAM.

15. "Let's Dance" singer David: BOWIE. Musical interlude.

R.I.P David Bowie

16. Like 9-Downs: TO GO. We'll get to DOGGY BAG in a bit.

17. Semester: TERM.

18. Super cool digs?: IGLOO.

19. [See: Theme]

22. Bell bottoms option: LEES. Lee brand jeans. I think Mom dressed me in bell bottoms when I was 6yrs old #Bicentenial #'76.

23. Pudge on an infant: BABY FAT. I was a little FAT spaghetti eatin' BABY.
//Mom has a picture of me fast asleep in my spaghetti.

27. Eclectic musician Brian: ENO.

29. [See: Theme]

32. Oscar nod, briefly: NOM. NOMination.

33. Key mistake?: TYPO. Cute.

34. "Shucks!": DRAT IT. Um, yeah, not what I exclaim.

35. Letting in a draft, maybe: AJAR.

37. Part of the "Law & Order" franchise, familiarly: SVU. Special Victim's Unit. IIRC, we had this last Wednesday.

39. Blow hard: GUST. Cute.

40. Mediterranean microstate: MONACO.

43. One-named Irish singer: ENYA.

46. Tuna roll topping: ROE. Wait for 55d...

47. [See: Theme]

49. Cease: END.

50. Screamed, perhaps: REACTED. Eek!

51. "One __ at a time": STEP. "Day" was too short.

53. [See: Theme]

58. Guiding belief: CREDO.

61. "Out! Out!": SHOO.

62. Made it: CAME. Do I link Barry Manilow's "Looks Like We Made It"?  Um, no :-)
//Did you know he wrote the "Like a Good Neighbor" jingle for State Farm? I heard that on NPR's Fresh Air last week.

63. "Hadestown" playwright Mitchell: ANAIS.
//Youngest knows the musical.

64. Lawsuit basis: TORT.

65. Cash for cards: ANTE. Deal me in.

66. Bend out of shape: WARP. Or what you have to do to space-time to go WARP Factor 8. #StarTrek

67. Boo-boo: OWIE. A "B" short of 15a.

68. Covert convo start: PSST.

Down:
1. Bread with tzatziki: PITA. Food!

2. Japanese soup noodle: UDON. More food!

3. Grandiose delusions: MEGALOMANIA.

4. Really dig: ADORE.

5. Have one's voice heard: GET A SAY.

6. Beasts that pulled covered wagons: OXEN.

(people of a certain age get it)

7. Avon product?: BARD. Cute Shakespeare reference.

8. Third No. 1 hit for the Black Eyed Peas: IMMA BE. Do I offend your (and my) auditory sense? No, HG did that Saturday with his link when it appeared in Ryan's grid.

9. Stuffed diner's request: DOGGY BAG. 16a - TO GO.

10. Piercing tool: AWL.

Pokie tools

11. Kia model: RIO.

12. Recent prefix: NEO.

15. "Sorry" singer Justin: BIEBER. Oy! I know he's Canadian so probably a nice kid but... #noLink

20. __ and greet: MEET. #CorpHappyHour (I'm awful at these things until a 2nd beer)

21. Get, as a job: LAND. And then you have to go to [see: above]

24. "Where do you see yourself in five years" subject: FUTURE PLANS. Oy! That's an interview question before LANDing a gig. I must be a drifter 'cuz I can mostly plan for ~6 months ahead but life seems to take me where it goes. //Tell God your plans and s/he'll giggle (or something like that).

25. Brie of "Community": ALISON. This fill made me think of The Lemonheads who I saw at Bricktown Brewery in OKC in the '90s .

Alice is Starting to Happen

26. Heavily inked: TATTED. My (Army) Bro is tat'd up chest, shoulders, & back. Peed himself on his first tat, he did :-)

27. Utterly charm: ENAMOR.

28. "I swear!": NO JOKE. Anyone else hear Joe Biden's voice in the fill?... "No joke, folks. This is for real." :-)

30. Apple Maps tech: GPS. Global Positioning System. A group of satellites orbiting in Medium Earth Orbit. Read more.

31. Really dug: LOVED. If you missed last Wednesday (or many of my posts), I really dig RUSH.

36. Party bowlful from 53-Across: RANCH DIP. Hidden Valley makes a decent RANCH DIP but I like my crudités bare or with hummus.

38. College, to Brits: UNI. I learned this from BBC programmes.

41. Open-air enclosures for some pets: CATIOS. Portmanteau of Cat & Patio (I assume(?))

42. Had to pay: OWED. Oy! I just got my Christmas Amex bill. I guess I'll be back in the office come January.

44. Political endorsement: YES VOTE.

45. Poori flour: ATTA. We've had it enough in the fill, I should remember it by now.

48. Lengthens: ADDS TO.

52. Yosemite peak, familiarly: EL CAP. El Capitan - a big rock in Yosemite. I've seen it IRL and have no clue why folks would try to free-solo it.

Totally Mental!

54. DIY site: E-HOW.

55. Tuna roll wrap: NORI. Basically, seaweed. Nori is red alga (green when dried); Wakame (why am I giving constructors ideas?!?)/kelp is brown. Nori provides a wonderful chew in a sushi roll or around unagi (eel).

56. 911 responders: Abbr.: EMTS. Did we need Abbr. after 911? Emergency Medical Technicians.
//Story: In the Army Reserves, I was with a field medical unit. Many of the nurses worked their day-job as EMTs. Being a 92B (medical lab tech), during training exercises, I oft played the victim that needed care. I learned more about first aid than I ever did in Boy Scouts.
Oooh, wait... More story: One of our Scout Masters tried to show us how to fell a tree. We'd already notch'd it pretty good. His first axe swing bounced out of the notch and straight into his ankle; I took a woodchip out of his wound (I knew I really wasn't supposed to do that but it seemed the right thing at the time).
We used our cravats to stop the beading, built a stretcher out of branches and our shirts, and hiked his butt out of the woods. Later that night we had to treat him (again) for shock and send him back to the (remote-a**) hospital.
////Too graphic? -- imagine if you were 11yrs old!

57. Chuck, slangily: YEET. Someone under 30yrs-old, please explain. I only know YEET as excitement or Whoot!
//Youngest (first-read editor) knew this as "to throw." She said it is a thing and then giggled at me.
Then, my Angel Editor let me know that Merriam-Webster added it to the dictionary in 2022 as toss forcefully with the usage: "We just don't yeet it into the dictionary the first time we encounter it." [Cite]

58. Cry from a crow: CAW.

59. Molecule in some vaccines: RNA. mRNA technology is pretty magic, what, with telling your cells how to identify bad proteins. I just hope the tech doesn't go all I Am Legend on us.

Spoiler: a vaccine turns people into night stalking Zombies and Will Smith
hunts for the antidote while trying to stay alive.

60. Unit of corn: EAR.

The Grid:

The Grid

WO: open->AJAR
ESPs: IMMA BE (I did this puzzle b/f Sat's), ANAIS, ALISON, ATTA, and YEET as clued.
Fav: I'll go with David BOWIE and leave you with him & Mick.

Dancing in the Streets

Well, that was fun. You now have 4 days to bake cookies & pour milk for Santa and get some carrots* (with hummus) for the reindeer.

Cheers, -T
*nibble 'em like a squirrel might to mess with your (grand?)children's little brains come Christmas morning :-)

Wednesday, December 13, 2023 ~ Erik Agard

Minced Metaphors

21. Get what's really going on: KNOW THE SCORE.

53. Avoid elimination: MAKE THE CUT.

29. Rhyming slogan opposing a Kansas City Chiefs fan gesture: STOP THE CHOP.

30. Take a gamble: ROLL THE DICE.

Hi All! Anon -T reporting for duty.
And what a privilege it is to review one of Erik's puzzles. For those who don't know, Erik is a Jeopardy! champion, ACPT winner (2018), and, when he was Editor of the USA Today crossword, really up'd the game and modernized the puzzle's inclusivity and current pop-culture references.

Today, Erik offers four (semi-sport related) metaphors ending in the kitchen sous'ing: Score, Cut, Chop, Dice #YesChef!

Fun, no? I enjoyed it. Let's check out the fill and see if Erik butchered that too :-)

Across:
1. Fuzzy fruit: KIWI.

5. Nails-on-a-chalkboard sound: SCRAPE.

11. Heart of the matter: CRUX.

15. Very dry: ARID.

16. __ network: NEURAL. A neural network is a group of interconnected nodes that enables computers to "learn" by example (ie. recognize patterns in data). When I studied AI, we liked the idea of neural-nets but didn't have 1) sufficient sample sizes nor 2) the storage. Our nets were dinky and the idea was mostly shelved. The internet fixed #1 and cheap storage fixed #2. Now we have NNets like ChatGPT.

17. Public prank: HOAX.

18. Taper off: WANE.

19. Not remote: ON-SITE. Post-Covid, our office is remote M,F and ON-SITE T,W,Th.

20. Highest point: APEX.
 

21. [See: Theme]

24. Abbr. in recipes: TSP. Teaspoons.

25. Prefix meaning "three": TRI. TRI-pod, TRI-cycle, TRI-dent.
 

For people with only three teeth?

26. Seconds, but for drinks: REFILLS. My buddy from Algiers said one of his first impressions of America was "Land of Free Refills!"

30. Lasagna ingredient: RICOTTA.

34. A third of a yard: ONE FOOT.

35. Standing __: OVATION. Bravo, Ole, Whoot!

36. Time for presents, for short: B-DAY. X-MAS fit too.

37. Need a shim, perhaps: WOBBLE.

40. Stitched: SEWN.

41. Your and my: OUR.

42. Warlock's repertoire: SPELLS.

43. Steamed bun: BAO.

Yum!

44. Get hot, in a way: TREND.

47. Lacking slack: TAUT.

48. Terrifying: SCARY.

50. Passover feast: SEDER.

51. "Oh, be quiet!": HUSH.

52. Poutine pieces: CURDS.

53. [See: Theme]

56. Hereditary: GENETIC.

59. "If Beale Street Could Talk" actor Colman: DOMINGO. I know Beale Street in Memphis is Home of the Blues but I didn't know of Colman Domingo [WikiP].

Colman Domingo

63. Line on a graph: AXIS.

3D Euclidian Space with x, y, and z axes.  

64. "Oh, be quiet!": SHUT IT.

67. In a slump: COLD.

68. Not full-size: MINI.

69. Former name of the NBA's Thunder, informally: SONICS. Oklahoma City Thunder nee Seatle SuperSonics. The Sonics were sold, renamed, and relocated circa 2007.

70. Burden: LOAD. ONUS fit but I perp-checked b/f fill :-)

71. In-transit figs.: ETAS.

72. "Scandal" crisis manager Olivia: POPE. Olivia Pope is a fictional character played by Kerry Washington.

Kerry Washington

73. Burnt __: barbecue delicacy: ENDS.

Corkscrew BBQ (aka Saturday's lunch w/ DW) in Old Town Spring, TX

Down:
1. Midwestern people: KAW. Tribe from Oklahoma and parts of Kansas.

2. 401(k) alternative: IRA. An Individual Retirement Account is an alternative to a 401(k) which is a bla bla something paragraph in the tax code bla bla. D-O can explain in more detail.

3. Knowing gesture: WINK. I. Can't. Resist...

A nod's as good as a WINK to a blind bat.

4. Name: IDENTIFY.

5. Vehicles for cold times: SNOW PLOWS.

6. Little bit of change: CENT. I had COIN.

7. Not take one's time: RUSH. Could be clued as "The greatest band ever."

8. "Video" singer India.__: ARIE.

9. Touches lightly: PATS.

10. Optional courses: ELECTIVES. Who elected for the easy-A v. something more interesting? Who even had electives (my EE curriculum was pretty rigid)?

11. Vehicles from old times: CHARIOTS. I was thinking Model-Ts but Erik was thinking "further back."

12. Ladder material: ROPE. We made these in Boy Scouts.

Rope Ladder

13. Dubai's fed.: UAE. United Arab Emirates.

14. Spy-fi film series starring Vin Diesel: XXX.
 

I don't think I've seen a movie w/ Vin Diesel in it.

22. Capital of Norway: OSLO.

23. Largest member of the dolphin family: ORCA.

I wasted three rolls of film at Sea World trying to get a shot this cool

26. Many sci-fi characters: ROBOTS. Automatons.

27. Go on: ENDURE.

28. Was terrified of: FEARED.

29. [See: Theme]

30. [See: Theme] I wanted to fill ROLL THE BONES which is RUSH's 14th studio album and the first (and only time) RUSH tried to rap -- One could hear the collective WTF? scream of fans everywhere. Then we all had fun with it (see how many Canadians / Canadian acts you recognize during the "rap").

I won't fault you if you don't click :-)

31. Dressy accessory: TIE BAR.

32. In the direction of: TOWARD.

33. Rubs the wrong way: ANNOYS.

38. Fine specimen: BEAUT.

39. Cheek cosmetic: BLUSH.

45. Bitter enemy: NEMESIS.

46. "Curses!": DRAT.

48. Layer on a stagnant pond: SCUM.

49. Fingernail part: CUTICLE.

54. Touch lightly: KISS. In their early touring year(s), RUSH opened for Kiss.

55. Portable beds: COTS.

56. Willing: GAME. Q:"You in?" A:"I'm GAME" or "I'm willing."

57. Press Esc, perhaps: EXIT. Exit Stage Left is Rush's second live album.

58. "I Put a Spell on You" singer Simone: NINA. Nina Simone nee Eunice Kathleen Waymon (2/21/1933 - 4/21/2003) was a multi-genre musician. WikiP for more.
 

A Tribute Video

60. Halfway between midnights: NOON. Cute clue.

61. Pleased: GLAD.

62. Numbers with a colon: ODDS. Another reference to RUSH's Roll the Bones? In the song, "You Bet Your Life" the refrain contains "The Odds get Even / We play the game ..."

65. Word shouted while putting a card down: UNO. UNO or Gin; wait for perps.

66. Bit of advice: TIP. "Here's a TIP, lose the shirt." -Rodney Dangerfield, Caddyshack.

Wow, I think Erik is a RUSH fan - what, with all the references to Rush in the downs. ;-)

The Grid:

The Grid

WO: Coin->CENT
ESPs: KAW, XXX, NINA
Fav: The entire puzzle was lively & fresh so I'll just go with RUSH :-)

11 days left to shop for Christmas -- no need to panic (yet)...

Cheers, -T

Wednesday December 6, 2023 ~ Wendy L. Brandes & Taylor Johnson

What's My Line?

What's My Line?

(Elizabeth Taylor (1954) [@16:13 of 25:44])

Happy Wednesday, Cornerites. Today, Wendy and Taylor provide us some "folks on a LINE." Let's take a look:

17. Sure-footed circus performer: TIGHT ROPE WALKER. A person who walks the high-wire, er LINE.

26. Gridiron position: DEFENSIVE END. A DEFENSIVE LINEman (in football)

41. Call center worker: TELEMARKETER. Someone on a TELEphone LINE interupting dinner.

54. Web-based group, or a collective descriptor of 17-, 26-, and 41-Across?: ONLINE COMMUNITY. Hey, that's us at The Corner!

Impressive execution with two grid-spanners and some fun fill. Let's let the fill "lay it on the line" to ensure we get a nice Wednesday Puzzle.

Across:
1. Thai cuisine herb: BASIL.

Thai Basil

6. Therefore: THUS. Ergo.

10. Surrounded by: AMID.

14. Beyoncé venue: ARENA.

15. Stockings: HOSE.

16. Mauna Loa flow: LAVA.

Floor is Lava

17. [See: Theme]

20. More intoxicating: HEADIER.

21. Hotel patron: GUEST.

22. Pipe bend: ELL.

23. List of spa services, e.g.: MENU.

25. Tall instrument with strings and pedals: HARP.

26. [Seed: Theme]

30. Fiscal execs: CFOS. Chief Financial Officer(s)

32. Sole: LONE. All by my self.

33. Source of remote power?: AAA. Small batteries for the clicker.

34. Irrelevant: MOOT.

35. Deke: FEINT.

37. Phisher's plan: SCAM.

38. "Law & Order" spinoff, familiarly: SVU. Special Victims Unit. I watched maybe 1/3 of a show before shutting it off 'cuz, "eww yuck."

39. Big pistachio exporter: IRAN. California was too long.

40. Carriage: MIEN. Synonyms.

41. [See: Theme]

45. "It's __ a Minute": NPR podcast hosted by Brittany Luse: BEEN. I listen to this show every week; Brittany took over as host in '22.

Brittany Luse

46. Iditarod racer: SLED. Iditarod is a dog race thorough Alaska (which I'm told is beautiful - but only for the lead dog).

47. Convenience store convenience: ATM.

50. Small crown: TIARA.

52. Ultimate tool?: FRISBEE.

I played it a lot in HS. Fun.

54. [See: Theme]

58. Money drawer: TILL.

Cha-Ching

59. Green sage of film: YODA. Star Wars.

60. Familia member: MADRE. Spanish.

61. Marketplace with handmade gifts: ETSY.

62. Unimprovable place: EDEN.

63. Piece of broccoli or asparagus: SPEAR.

Down:
1. Soak: BATHE.

2. Redheaded Disney princess: ARIEL.

Ariel

3. George of "Just Shoot Me!": SEGAL.

4. Presented with great resolution: IN HD.

5. "Discover the West Coast Perspective" pub.: LA TIMES. I was thinking pub == brew-house for far too long #SierraNavadaBeer ;-)

6. Sportscaster Gary who called Orioles games from 2007 to 2020: THORNE.

7. Compete in a potato sack race, say: HOP.

8. Put to work: USE.

9. Suture, say: SEW.

10. Seductive power: ALLURE.

11. Come to terms (with): MAKE PEACE.

12. Pulitzer-winning composer Charles: IVES. Here's the WikiP.

13. Tavern projectile: DART.

18. Snorkeling site: REEF.

19. Tequila source: AGAVE.

24. Disconnects: UNLINKS.

25. Soupçon: HINT.

26. Half a colon: DOT. Also half a semicolon.

27. Junior: SON.

28. Bread served with saag paneer: NAAN.

Recipe

29. Salmon ladder spot: DAM.

30. Beach recess: COVE.

31. Souvenirs caught at stadiums: FOUL BALLS. In 40 years of going to basaeball games, I've never caught an MLB FOUL.

34. Taos winter hrs.: MST. Taos, New Mexico is in Mountan Standard Time zone during DST (Daylight Standard Time).

35. SAG-AFTRA president Drescher: FRAN. She was oft in the news over the summer.

She played "The Nanny"

36. Maize unit: EAR.

37. Title for Mo Farah: SIR.

39. "Just to clarify ... ": I MEAN. "I mean, I mean, [...] I'm sittin here on the Group W bench 'Cause you want to know if I'm moral enough join the army [...] after bein' a litterbug." -Arlo Guthrie

40. Ouija users: MEDIUMS.

42. In a spooky way: EERILY.

43. Film composer Danny: ELFMAN.

44. Glossary entry: TERM.

47. Tolerate: ABIDE.

48. Aquarium fish: TETRA.

49. "Twilight" author Stephenie: MEYER.

50. Nature Conservancy giveaway: TOTE.

51. Still alive for the semis, say: IN IT.

53. Lose one's cool: SNAP.

55. Look at: EYE.

56. Cape __: COD.

57. O'Shaughnessy poem that begins, "We are the music makers, / And we are the dreamers of dreams": ODE.

Yep, a nice Wednesday puzzle with no intersecting names ;-). Post your puzzling thoughts below.

The Grid:

The Grid

WOs: I ink'd only one M in COMMUNITY for a second
ESP: MIEN, THORNE, ELFMAN, MEYAR
Fav: Ultimate FRISBEE

Cheers, -T

Notes from C.C.:

Happy 86th birthday to Lucina! Here's a 2011 picture of Lucina and our old California blog regulars JD, Chickie, Clear Ayes and Garlic Gal and Dodo. Our deepest condolences for the loss of your niece, Lucina.

L-R back row: Chickie, Clear Ayes, Garlic Gal
   Front: JD, Lucina, Dodo (June 23, 2011)

Wednesday November 29, 2023 ~ Jeanne D. Breen

I'm Joking!

Hi All!

Well, it looks like I'm your Corner host for the next foreseeable Wednesdays as JzB and mb are out of pocket for a spell.
// Yo!, see 22a: BE CALM.  JazzB is probably busy Bumpan' it on the trombone for Christmas shows & mb is fine. Both will be back hosting The Corner in January.

Today's puzzle is a cute/fun pre-Christmas [Advent Box Calendar anyone?] gift from Jeanne. If I'm not mistaken, this is her LAT debut (I found a Dr. Jeanne D. Breen, an infectious disease specialist / internal medicine Dr. in CT, but I donno if she's one & the same*).

I nearly grok'd the "kid" theme but I was missing something. Thanks to the regular bloggers who set me straight and parsed things properly. (I was thinking children, not pranks.)

17. *Collection for an afternoon party: TEA SERVICE. My Girls [kids] would have tea service with me hunched over a little table with an American Girl doll, a teddy bear, and a stuffed Unicorn as one of 'em hosted & poured imaginary tea. It was delicious spiked (I TEASE!)

26. *Subject of many June parades: GAY PRIDE. RIDE.

49. *Bed in a nursery: BABY CRIB. RIB.

59. *Desert plant on the back cover of a U2 album: JOSHUA TREE. JOSH. //great album!

38. "But seriously," and an apt description of the answers to the starred clues: ALL KIDDING ASIDE.

OK, Corner eFriends. Slow down. Pace yourself. 'Cuz here we go...

Across:
1. Primary: CHIEF.

Don Adams & Edward (Chief) Platt

6. Biblical twin: ESAU.

10. New Mexico skiing destination: TAOS.

14. Poet/activist Lorde: AUDRE.

15. Leather stickers: AWLS. Not Hell's Angels' patches but pokie tools.

Awe

16. Stash: STOW. Just wait, CACHE will come later... #Foreshadowing

17. [See: Theme]

19. Sunrise obscurer: HAZE.

20. "Malo" opposite: BUENO.

21. Televised: AIRED.

22. "Don't panic!": BE CALM.

If you've never read Douglas Adams' HHGTTG, make it a point.
You'll laugh your bum off (if you're skew'd a bit).

26. [See: Theme]

28. Disneyland city: ANAHEIM.

30. Unwelcome picnic visitor: ANT.

31. Classic clown name: BOBO. Not BOzO.

BOBO The Clown [WikiP]

32. Ahead by a point: UP ONE.

35. Director Luhrmann: BAZ. No clue - WikiP

38. [See: Theme]

42. Issa of "Insecure": RAE. More ??? - LIU [WikiP again]

43. Runway figure: MODEL.

44. Jerseys and Guernseys: COWS. Moo Milk (not that almond stuff).

45. Greek consonant: TAU.

46. Place to practice asanas: YOGA MAT.

49. [See: Theme]

54. Major route: ARTERY.

55. Grand-scale tales: EPICS. Wait 'till we get to 51d. That is a saga :-)

56. Secret stash: CACHE. And there you are 16a.

58. "Collapsed in Sunbeams" singer Parks: ARLO. Another ARLO singer?

I had to Google after the fill.

59. [See: Theme]

64. AnnaSophia of "Little Fires Everywhere": ROBB. No idea - WikiP

65. Not backing: ANTI.

66. Cussed: SWORE.

67. Stuck-up sort: SNOB.

68. Fraction of a min.: NSEC. Nanosecond.

69. Sing "The Lonely Goatherd," say: YODEL.

This is cute.

Down:
1. Cindy Clawford of "Ted Lasso," for one: CAT. The bassist, Leslie Higgins', cat.  Note the "L" in the cat's name.

2. Color chart element: HUE.

3. Princess in the Monument Valley video game: IDA. My Secret Santa editor looked it up for you.

4. Unsure sounds: ERS. Um, OK.

5. Lacking strength: FEEBLE.

6. Spot for icicles or icicle lights: EAVE. 'Tis the season.

7. Big Band style: SWING.

Squirrel Nut Zippers from the '90's

8. Metal giant: ALCOA.

9. Draw upon: USE.

10. Bit of concert merch: T-SHIRT.
 

Two of mine

11. Arcade pioneer: ATARI.

12. Exuded, as charm: OOZED.

13. Gothenburg native: SWEDE.

18. Persian poet who wrote the "Spiritual Couplets": RUMI. I've seen this before but needed a refresher.

21. Sleep malady: APNEA.

22. Kid-lit elephant: BABAR.

23. Sherlock's sister in a book series by Nancy Springer: ENOLA.

We had (IIRC) ENOLA clued similarly inre: Netflix my last expo.

24. Dish alternative: CABLE. Oy! and now I have 13 streaming channels of s*** to choose from.
//Allusion to Pink Floyd's "Nobody Home" from "The Wall" -- sorry folks, you'll just have to deal with my scattery brain like I have to all the time.

25. "Oh, gotcha": AH OK.

27. Bowen of "SNL": YANG.
 

He's super funny.

29. Emmy-winning journalist Roger: MUDD.

33. Pizzeria order: PIE.

Thatsa Pizza Pie!
//Russo's 28" party goodie.

34. Exclusively: ONLY.

35. Ecosystem: BIOME.

36. Nasty marketing battle: AD WAR.

Cola Wars.

I grew up in a Pepsi household in the Midwest. 

My first taste of Coke was like, "That's a bit bitter; Me like!"

//full-disclosure: I own bits of stock in KO & CCE (now an EU co.)

37. Piquant: ZESTY. [See: Coke above]

39. Apples that come in seven colors: IMACS. Cute - Apple's Computers.

The newer iMacs

40. Unsociably cross: DOUR.

41. Sing like Ella: SCAT.

45. Hall of Famer known as the "Georgia Peach": TY COBB. #Baseball

47. Waimea Bay island: OAHU.

48. __ spoon: GREASY.

Mel's Greasy Spoon Sitcom [Alice] Cast

49. Unwelcome picnic visitors: BEARS. Fun Clecho.

Hey, BooBoo!

50. Garment that may say "World's Okayest Cook": APRON. Mine says "Italia!" DW's says (in Green, White & Red) "IBM" [Italian by Marriage].

51. Baggins of Bag End: BILBO. Lord of the Rings / The Hobbit saga. #CallbackTo55a

52. Desktop array: ICONS. I have minimal (1.2 columns) ICONS on my laptop; DW's is literally covered with 'em -- drives my OCD self nuts.

53. Verb in cooking or sewing instructions: BASTE. Someone will have to fill me in on the sewing part of this clue 'cuz, at this point, I'm too lazy to look it up.

57. Smart: CHIC. Hep.

59. MLK Day's mo.: JAN. Martin Luther King Jr. is celebrated on the 3rd Monday of January.

60. Couple: TWO.

61. Divining tool: ROD. To find water(?) #BS!

62. Afore: ERE.

63. Rainbow roll fish: EEL.
 

OK, true, no Rainbow Roll in this boat -- but! the second one,
[no photo available] for the KID's table, did.

The Grid:

The Grid

WO: BOzO
ESPs: AUDRE | IDA, BUENO (as clued), BAZ, RAE, ARLO (as clued), ROBB
Fav: I'm going w/ 1a's CHIEF 'cuz it made me think of Buck Henry's & Mel Brooks' Get Smart.

No Joke folks, I'll be here for your next four (4) Wednesdays -- be sure to tip the waitstaff.

Cheers, -T
*My Angel Editor / Secret Santa found this about Dr. Breen:
"I’m a physician, piano player, voracious reader, lap swimmer, animal lover, movie buff, student of baseball, and a lifelong resident of the Northeast. I drink my coffee with milk and my gin gimlets straight up and ice-cold. I’ve enjoyed solving crosswords and other word puzzles for years and just started constructing this spring (2023); I’m honored that gin + grapefruit is the site of my debut. The ‘crossworld’ is such a warm, welcoming community and I’m genuinely in awe of how creative puzzlers are with their themes, themeless seed entries, and cluing. My thanks to Taylor for encouraging me to give midi construction a try and to Shannon for editing. I hope you enjoy the solve!" on this site.
Thank you Dr. B.