Saturday, August 8, 2026, Kyle Dolan

 Saturday Themeless by Kyle Dolan

Today, Kyle and I celebrate our silver anniversary, as this is the 25th puzzle of his that I've blogged. As I looked for a good entry point, the southeast corner filled in quickly, and I thought I was headed for an easy solve. Not so fast, I did enjoy Kyle's clever puzzle but the word easy does not describe the required effort! 😊

Kyle's quirky cluing kept the left side full of holes until, on my way to a haircut, the fill GREET came to me for the clue "Receive," and everything fell into place. The fabulous word SENTIENCE completed my Saturday assignment! As you will see in by blog I did contact Kyle to be reassured about some of this clue/fills and he kindly let me in on what he was thinking.

A note from Kyle which included this picture taken at Chicago’s Field Museum of Natural History.:

Hi Gary,

I hope you are doing well. My inspiration for the puzzle came from eminent themeless constructor Robyn Weintraub, whose crosswords I admire. She has often used a design similar to the one seen here, and I wanted to see how I could fill such a grid. I began with ANY QUESTIONS, which is a lively conversational entry that is making its LAT debut (unless I am scooped in the next two weeks :-D). 

Thanks as always for your kind words and interesting reviews of my work.

Best regards,

Kyle

Across:

1. Kitchen drawer?: AROMA - 😀 Kyle went pretty far down the list of definitions for this use of drawer! 

6. Follow: OBEY.

10. NYC venue whose final show featured Patti Smith: CBGB - The Country Blue Grass Blues club shut down after 33 years.

14. Economic justice topic: LIVING WAGE.

16. Willie who broke the NHL's color barrier: OREE.

17. Forest formations with mythological associations: FAIRY RINGS - What they are and what causes them

18. Crux: MEAT 

19. Useful element in making connections: AND 😀

20. Group in Mercury's orbit?: QUEEN - Oh, that QUEEN and that Mercury

21. Causes of spiraling, at times: FEARS.

22. Their feet may have claws: TUBS. 😀

23. Writers commissioned for tributes: ODISTS.

25. Tightens, perhaps: RETIES.

28. Down for drama?: FOURTH - 😳 Wow, what a Kyle special!

29. Stuff: ITEMS.

30. Chrysler that won the 1978 Motor Trend Car of the Year Award: DODGE OMNI.

33. Receive: GREET - My key to completing the left side

34. Offline: IRL - In Real Life

35. Threw a pity party, perhaps: CRIED.

36. Feature of HAL 9000 in "2001: A Space Odyssey": SENTIENCE - A sentient being doesn’t just detect stimuli and react automatically. Sentient means having the capacity for subjective experience, particularly the ability to feel sensations like pleasure and pain. Here is HAL showing a sign of SENTIENCE.

38. Nephric: RENAL.

39. Coin bearing a bear: TOONIE - A C$2.00 coin whose name is a portmanteau for two and the loonie Canada's C$1.oo coin

40. Bear claw, e.g.: PASTRY.

41. Volunteer: SIGN ON.

42. Result of productive talks: PACT.

43. Some bookmarks: SITES.

44. "Find out": GO ASK.

46. Mercury, for one: GOD - Not Freddie this time.

49. Nursing spot: TEAT.

50. "Perfectly reasonable": I CAN SEE WHY - I CAN SEE WHY Kyle's choices might ruffle a few feathers. 😀

52. Some Indigenous Canadians: INNU - We very recently had the CREES.

 

53. Clue in evolutionary history: MARKER GENE.

54. Cobbler's tool: RASP.

55. Around: OR SO.

56. Maker of the One SL speaker: SONOS.

Down:

1. __ Romeo: ALFA.
 
2. Filmmaker Johnson: RIAN - This was the third film in RIAN'S Knives Out series.

3. Poet frequently referenced in "Don Quixote": OVID - ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ Cervantes refers to himself as “nuestro español Ovidio” (Our Spanish OVID) in a sonnet addressed to Sancho Panza 

4. Bygone orbiter: MIR.

5. "All clear?": ANY QUESTIONS - Kyle's seed entry

6. Boo-boos: OWIES.

7. Curse: BANE.

8. Spaetzle, e.g.: EGG NOODLE - Made in southern Germany and Alsace

9. "Uh-huh!": YES.

10. Settles: COMES TO REST - No matter how hard you yeet throw something, it will COME TO REST

11. One may be taken on a date: BREATH MINT 😀

12. Shift workers?: GEARS.

13. Kalshi actions: BETS - 90% of its BETS are placed on sporting events but it also takes BETS on politics, finance and about anything else. It has made its 29-year-old founder the youngest female billionaire in history, passing even Taylor Swift.

15. Some bait: GRUBS.

21. Party poppers: FIRECRACKERS.

22. "Cock-a-doodle-doo!": TIME TO GET UP.

24. Vibed on: DUG.

25. Fixes: RIGS - Perhaps the most famous example

26. Peut-__: French "perhaps": ETRE - Peut-ÈTRE qu’elle a oublié la fête. (Perhaps she forgot about the party)

27. Animated superhero series featuring the voice of Tara Strong: TEEN TITANS ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ 

28. Word in Beaufort readings: FORCE.

30. Setting for some on-line orders?: DINING CAR - 😀 I had to ask Kyle about this one. He said:

DINING CAR should be interpreted as a generic name for a place to eat on a train, not a specific restaurant. The clue is a pun on the idea that you go to the dining car to order food on a (rail) line.

31. Close: NEAR.

32. How much scrolling is done: IDLY - I'm approaching an addiction

37. Producer on seven U2 albums: ENO - The only British record producer I know

40. Dated: PASSE - Is opening a door for a woman now PASSÉ

41. Italian home of the world's oldest bank: SIENA - It appears they might have been able to loan Columbus a few lira.

42. Coat put on in the kitchen?: PANKO.

43. Verb in a polenta recipe: STIR - The spoon is still in the bowl

45. Sticks in the water: OARS.

46. Longtime "PBS News Hour" anchor Ifill: GWEN. 

47. "Gah!": OH NO.

48. Top jobs?: DYES 😀

50. Letters expressing personal thoughts: IMO.

51. Team challenge: EGO.

Friday, Aug 7th, 2026 ~ Gali Ellenblum & Tal Wagner

"Park Drive is always jammed"

"I said THROUGH the park"

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;

17. "Our previous recommendation stands"?: STILL ADVISED

25. "My peacock's tail is the best!," e.g.?: FEATHER BOAST

49. Record of one's attempts to enter a hedge maze?: START HISTORY

60. Promise made by a serial dater who aspires to commit?: ONE MORE TRYST - "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: "OH MY~!" - 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'M SAD - 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

A video about "Pitching" in nautical terms

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: EASY A - 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: GIVE OUT - 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"

36. Cybersecurity exec: CTO - Chief Technology Officer

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: SALT MINE - 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: CAR CARE - 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": LADY DI - killed in a car crash, Paris, 29yrs ago this month - no one was wearing a seat belt; name #5, Frawnche #5

50. Show respect for: HONOR - nailed it

51. Signs: OMENS - and again

52. Shakespeare lover: ROMEO - name #6 -  Stelvio lover - ALFA Romeo

The 33 Stradale

53. Former NBA star Ming: YAO - at 7ft6, basketball was a good choice . . . name #7

57. Jewish rite: BRIS

59. Hwys.: RDs - It couldn't be "STs"

61. Born abroad: NÉE - the Frawnche 'definition', not the "act" - #6

62. CPR expert: EMT - pray you don't need one if you make an "error" or "transgression" on that road🠉

Splynter

Uhhh . . . 

Thursday August 6, 2026 Mark Axel

Mark Axel commented on his last crossword here (a challenging Saturday grid in January) that his next puzzle would be "themed and much easier." Well, here we are, and he's delivered on his promise. Has the pendulum swung too far?

Starting with the reveal:

56. Wildly successful, or what three black squares in this puzzle literally are: GANGBUSTERS. Each of the following pairs contains a "hidden" synonym for GANG, busted apart by a black square:

17. "I want all the juicy details!": SPILL THE TEA + 19. Was introduced to: MET = TEAM.

27. Features of some old socks: HOLES + 29. Figure skating jump that has only been landed in competition by Ilia Malinin: QUAD AXEL = SQUAD.

43. Makes a clutch putt, perhaps: SAVES PAR + 46. Key mistakes?: TYPOS = PARTY.

As Mark alluded to earlier, this is about as straightforward as it gets. A very easy puzzle for a Thursday made even easier by circles. As I worked my way down, I saw TEAM and SQUAD (and REF) and thought "sports". Then PARTY struck rather jarringly, as I was expecting something like CLUB to keep the sports theme going.

Let's see the rest of the line-up:

Across:
1. "To __ their own": EACH. 💁

5. One with a supporting role?: PILLAR. 🗑

11. Giggle syllable: HEE. 🤭

14. Potatoes, in Indian dishes: ALOO. 🥔

15. Nutty Italian cheese: ASIAGO. 🧀

16. Verbal fillers: UMS. 🤔

17. [theme]

19. [theme]

20. Tightens (up): TENSES. 🥨

21. "If I had to bet ... ": ODDS ARE. 🎲

23. "Use your umbrella!": STAY DRY. ☔

26. "Aladdin" figure: GENIE. 🧞‍♂️

27. [theme]

29. [theme]

31. Feature of some old socks: ODOR. 🤢

32. Replay reviewer: REF. Referee. 🦓

33. First aid pro: EMT. Emergency Medical Technician.🚑

34. With 37-Across, place for a pawdicure: PET. A PET SPA. 🐾

35. Emoji from one who's down: SAD FACE. It's "Emoji Day" at the Corner! I remember when it was just :(  Now it's fancy: 😢 What an age we live in!

37. See 34-Across: SPA. ⬆️

40. Fitting: APT. 🧩

41. "Gross!": ICK. 🤮

42. Inner workings: GUTS. 🌣🌣

43. [theme]

46. [theme]

47. Heart chambers: ATRIA. 🫀

48. "Want to play again?": ONE MORE. ☝️

50. Global spirits giant that began as a rum maker in Cuba: BACARDI. BACARDI USA built two iconic office buildings for their headquarters in Miami: a tower (1963) and an adjoining annex (1973). The annex is covered with hammered-glass mosaics.

The landmark Bacardi "Jewel Box"

52. Oscars, e.g.: AWARDS. Because GROUCHS didn't fit.

55. Pretend: ACT. 🎭

56. [theme]

59. __ lodge: SKI. ⛷️

60. Like loose laces: UNTIED. 👞

61. Pulitzer-winning novelist Jennifer: EGAN. Her novel, A Visit from the Goon Squad, won the 2011 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction and National Book Critics Circle Award for fiction. I haven't read it, but judging a book by it's cover, it looks award-winning to me!

62. "Exit full screen" key: ESC. Escape. ⌨️

63. Get cozy: NESTLE. 🧸

64. Cries noisily: SOBS. 😭

Down:
1. Direction that plays first in mahjong: EAST. East is a player, not a compass position.🀄

2. Mont Blanc, par exemple: ALPE. As Splynter would say, "From the Frawnche" (apologies for copying from your paper). 😂

3. Place that welcomes change?: COIN SLOT. Winner: Best Clue. 🏆

4. Wild West costume accessory: HOLSTER. 🔫

5. Easy mark: PATSY. 🐐

6. Kinda sorta: ISH.  ≈

7. Falsehood: LIE. 🤥

8. "Stay the Night" singer Jackson: LA TOYA. This 1980 single from La Toya's poorly received second album peaked at #31, and was soon forgotten. Why we should know about it 46 years later is anyone's guess.

9. Like 15-Across: AGED. ⌛

10. Occasion to wear away uniforms: ROAD GAME. 🎽

11. Compassionate: HUMANE. 🫶

12. Celebrity chef with a flagship restaurant in New Orleans: EMERIL. In 2022, EMERIL Lagasse was named as the Chief Culinary Officer for Carnival Cruise Lines. So, now he's made a mess on a new flagship!

13. Cosmetician Lauder: ESTEE. 💄

18. Grassy expanses: LEAS. 🖼️

22. Message one may wish to open in private: SEXT. 🫣

24. Kicked out of a competition, briefly: DQED. Disqualified, because they liked Carvel better.

25. Scoundrel: RUFFIAN. 🦹🏻‍♂️

27. Word with bell or bar: HOP. 🦘

28. Lines of praise: ODE. 🪶

30. Dealer's handful: DECK. 🃏

32. "Aw, shoot!": RATS. 🐀

35. Free diver's weapon: SPEAR GUN. 🦯(this is a blind man's cane, but it kinda looks right)

36. Unit of farmland: ACRE. 🚜

37. Id counterpart: SUPEREGO. For more, talk to you therapist. I'd tell you, but then Id have to charge by the hour.

38. Vacation hrs.: PTO. Paid Time Off. As a small business owner, I've never had this. 🗓️

39. Pack animal: ASS. 🫏

40. Nike rival: AVIA. 👟

42. Takes turns?: GYRATES. 💫

43. Library area: STACKS. 📚

44. Powerfully cold: ARCTIC. 🥶

45. Score units: POINTS. 🎯

46. AAA offerings: TOWS. American Automobile Association.🪝

47. Take down a peg: ABASE. 👎

49. Apatow of "Euphoria": MAUDE. MAUDE struggled to find roles until she remembered that she has famous showbiz parents.

51. Copenhagen native: DANE.

53. Lacking pizzazz: DRAB. 🫒

54. Form W-2 digits: SSNS.  Social Security Numbers. 💸

57. "Scram!": GIT. 👉

58. __ canto: BEL. Italian for "beautiful singing." 𝄟⃝💞

Be good. RB 😎