Wednesday, June 24, 2026, Sala Wanetick & Dena R. Verkuil

 

Good Morning, Cruciverblists.  Malodorous Manatee here with a recap of a puzzle co-authored by Sala Wanetick and Dena R. Verkuil.  I recently (May 27th of this year) blogged one of Sala's puzzles.  Dena made her L. A. Times crossword debut in September, 2025 and has also had puzzles published in the N.Y. Times.

Today, they team up in the hope that we will all have a blast working out the answers.  Let's start with the unifier:

64 Across:  Finish dramatically, or what the answers to the starred clues do: END WITH A BANG.

Each of the answers to the four starred clues are comprised of two words.  In each case, the second word is, more or less a description of, well, as the clue put it, something dramatic.  Some are more dramatic than others but we surely get the gist of it.

Here are the four starred clues and answers:

18 Across:  *Time of financial growth: ECONOMIC BOOM.  

26 Across:  *What may follow kids in a candy store?: SUGAR CRASH.  . . . after the sugar high.  This one might have been linked to 18 Across.

40 Across:  *Handshake alternative: FIST BUMP.

Nares Bump

54 Across: . *Stressful contest?: POETRY SLAM.  In this case, stress refers to how poets create meaningful experiences for readers.  A SLAM is a competitive art event in which poets perform spoken word poetry before a live audience and a panel of judges.

This is how everything appears in the completed grid:

Here are the rest of the clues and their answers:

Across:

1. Getting off the fence: OPTING.  Someone who is undecided as to how to proceed is said to be sitting on the fence.

7. Indian state known for silk and tea: ASSAM.  A place frequently visited in our puzzles.  Five letters and four of those are A and S.

12. Nothing special: MEH.  We can take it or leave it.

15. Subdued: LOW KEY.

16. High wispy clouds: CIRRI.  Plural of CIRRUS

17. 'Twas the night before Christmas?: EVE.  Not sure about that question mark.  The preceding night really is the EVE.

20. Antidiscrimination HR initiative: DEI.  Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

21. Replace with a grawlix, say: CENSOR.  This solver had never come across the word grawlix although I was certainly familiar with the c0ncept.

22. Helping: AIDING.

24. Gush: SPEW.

29. Elixirs: TONICS.  What is a Genie's favorite drink?  A Djinn and TONIC.

32. "To __ is human ... ": ERR.

Paul Ehrlich

33. Past regulation, briefly: IN OT.  Regulation, in this case, refers to the normal length of a sporting contest (e.g. four quarters, three periods, sixty minutes).  It the score is tied at the end of regulation it goes INto OverTime.

34. Blooper reel bit: OUTTAKE.

36. Sounding shocked: AGASP.

39. TD's six: PTS.  A  football reference.  A TouchDown scores six PoinTS

42. Knight's title: SIR.

45. Italian scooter: VESPA.

46. Try to be like: EMULATE.

48. Eye ailment: STYE.

51. Puppy's bark: YIP.  Have you heard about the zoo where the only animal is a single dog?  It's a Shih Tzu.

53. Speechified: ORATED.

58. Antacid brand: TUMS.

 

59. "Let me check": I'LL SEE.

60. Someone who has a trying job?: TESTER.  One who tries things out.

63. Manicure choice: GEL.  More often clued with a reference to hair.

69. Andrea Gibson's "__ to the Public Panic Attack": ODE.  Unknown to this solver.  Thanks, perps.  If you wish to listen to this ODE, here it is:

70. Oktoberfest mug: STEIN.  What's the smallest amount of beer you can order at an Oktoberfest gathering?  Ein STEIN.

71. Soul legend Franklin: ARETHA.

72. Craggy hill: TOR.

73. Kagan of the Supreme Court: ELENA.  Supreme Court Justices often visit our puzzles.   We know many of them by their first names.  Samuel and Ruth and ELENA come to mind.

74. "Let's hear it!": DO TELL.  Gossip.

Down:

1. Fútbol chant: OLE.  Often heard at the FIFA World Cup games.

2. Abbr. that includes many racial identities: POC.  Person Of Color

3. Opinion: TWO CENTS.  There are several theories as to the origin of this expression.

4. "Didn't fool me!": I KNEW IT.   Yes, we did.

5. Gas in bright signs: NEON.

6. Fitness centers: GYMS.

7. Accumulate, as sick time: ACCRUE.

8. Sis or bro: SIB.  Abbreviations.  Sister.  Brother.  SIBlings.

9. "No seats" sign: SRO.  Standing Room Only

10. Like fans after great plays: AROAR.

11. Mirror: MIMIC.  Used as a verb.

12. Freeway divider: MEDIAN.

13. "And yet ... ": EVEN SO.

14. Progress that may be measured on a doorframe: HEIGHT.

19. Siri platform: IOS.  An Apple reference.

23. Coffee option: DRIP.   

24. "Quit it!": STOP.

25. Sulky look: POUT.  Y0u better watch out, you better not cry . . .

27. Snatch quickly: GRAB.  Trying to GRAB some toilet paper at Costco during the pandemic was quite traumatic.  I came away with TPSD.

28. Exchange words: ARGUE.

30. Bistro: CAFE.

31. Hits the slopes: SKIS.

35. Awards such as Best Play and Best Team: ESPYS.  The ESPY Awards (short for Excellence in Sports Performance Yearly Awards, and often referred to as the ESPYs) is an annual American awards show produced by ESPN since 1993, recognizing individual and team athletic achievement and other sports-related performance during the calendar year preceding a given annual ceremony.

37. Paintballs, e.g.: AMMO.

38. Egg (on): SPUR.  The clue makes use of the idiom.

41. Long part of a comet: TAIL.

42. Drench: SATURATE.

43. Article: ITEM.

44. Cincinnati MLBers: REDS.

45. Doberman docs: VETS.  VETerinarianS

Not this Doberman

This Doberman

47. Dishonorable wager: LATE BET.  Considered to be dishonorable because the outcome may have been discernible before the wager was placed.

48. Faucet: SPIGOT.

49. Ohio city on Lake Erie: TOLEDO.

50. Loud person: YELLER.  Also the Labrador of movie renown.

52. Green film on copper: PATINA.

55. Actress Witherspoon: REESE.

56. Film starring Barbra Streisand as a woman who pretends to be a yeshiva boy: YENTL.

57. "Have we __?": MET.

61. Herring kin: SHAD.

62. Dim sum root vegetable: TARO.  If your book is made of root vegetables...You’re doing a taro reading!

65. Department head?: DEE.  The first letter of the word Department.

66. Finish first: WIN.

67. Org. emulated in "Heated Rivalry": NHL.  National Hockey League

68. Lass: GAL.  This one reminded yours truly of one of his favorite limericks:

There once was a GAL from Kilglass
Who had a magnificent ass
Not round and pink as you probably think
It was brown, had long ears and ate grass

On that note, it's probably time to haul outta here.  Everyone have a great rest of the week . . . and beyond.

___________________________________________________________

M M OUT
With A Bang

Tuesday, June 23, 2026 ~ Adam Shapiro

Games' Afoot

Hi All!

Adam Shapiro delivers a cute Tuesday puzzle which I find impressive since his 1st LAT was ~6mo ago (17 DEC 2025). I enjoyed the fresh clues for pedestrian fill and the new fill I've not seen before. Well done Adam.
Point of order - I can't figure out if Adam is related to NPR's Ari or not. If anyone knows better...

16. Disc-tossing team sport: ULTIMATE FRISBEE.

  

Ultimate Frisbee

The Game of Life

23. Contest played on a star-shaped board: CHINESE CHECKERS.

Chinese Checkers

Chess

41. Pool hall activity: POCKET BILLIARDS.

Pocket Billiards Table

Poker

54. Nintendo player's side quest, or what the circled letters of 16-, 23-, and 41-Across create: GAME WITHIN A GAME. All I can come up w/ in the reveal is the NAME Game.

So, if you're not pickin' up what Adam's putting down... A side quest is a mini-adventure for your avatar to gain coin, information, or skills within the wider scope of the game #DnD. Ergo, a game within a game - exactly what Adam found in the spanners. Let's explore the rest of the grid.

Across:

1. Voting faction: BLOC.

5. Botanical transplant: GRAFT. All you wanted to know.

10. Post that's bigger than a gig: JOB. I saw "bigger" and "gig." My first two thoughts, "Tera" & "Peta," were too long.

13. Like chocolate lava cake: RICH.

14. "Folklore" music artist Swift: TAYLOR.

15. "__ seen worse": I'VE.

I've had worse...

16. [See: Theme]

19. "Aw, so sweet!": TOO CUTE.

20. Like elevator music: AMBIENT.

21. Chicken __ king: ALA.

22. Actor Cariou: LEN.

Len's Wikipedia Page

23. [See: Theme]

32. Ascends: RISES.

33. South African language with click consonants: XHOSA. I knew the answer but not the spelling.

Trevor Noah

34. Tuna roll topper: ROE.

35. Some hazy brews, for short: IPAS.

36. Piano pieces for four hands: DUETS.

37. "You're not wrong": TRUE.

38. 28-Down amenity, maybe: SPA.

39. Ballet class rail: BARRE.

Degas' Dancers Practicing at the Barre

40. Plump pet, slangily: CHONK. Chonk: adj. fat in a pleasant way.

41. [See: Theme]

44. __ de la Cit : Notre-Dame home: ILE.

45. Coffee container: URN.

46. Not much: A LITTLE.

50. Spine-tingling artwork?: BACK TAT. Cute. A tattoo on the back would tingle the spine.

54. [See: Theme]

56. Cenozoic __: ERA. The last 66 million years and our current era.

57. Like alpacas: ANDEAN.

58. A bird flying into the house, say: OMEN. So I Googled this... Some say it's good luck others say death soon. I think it means your screen door is broken.

59. Cold War operative: SPY.

Spy Vs Spy

60. Agreements: YESES.

61. Bit of headway: DENT. I've made a DENT in this expo - I'm done w/ the acrosses.

Down:

1. Like dry champagne: BRUT.

2. Disney girl who teaches Stitch the meaning of ohana: LILO. Ohana is Hawaiian for family.  I saw this movie w/ the Girls when they were so little. It's kinda hard to believe they're both in grad school now.
 

3. Prefix meaning "eight": OCTO.

4. Sequences of tight turns on racecourses: CHICANES. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ A few Googles latter... A chicane is an "S" bend in the road that forces drivers to slow down. They're also used in urban settings to not only slow traffic but also increase the amount of public space. Seems like CHICANEry to me.

A chicane in Orlando

5. Frontier departure point?: GATE. Ha! The airline Frontier.

6. Marbled bread: RYE.

7. Italian sports car, briefly: ALFA.

'86 Alfa Spider

8. Unshaped: FORMLESS.

9. NYC nabe south of SoHo: TRIBECA. SoHo is SOuth of HOuston Street.

Yep, there's Tribeca South of SoHo.

10. Align (with): JIBE. Nice.

11. Roasting appliance: OVEN.

12. Red root vegetable used in some dyes: BEET.

14. Breezy goodbyes: TATAS.

17. Cocktails made with lime, vodka, and ginger beer: MULES.

18. Dishwasher's station: SINK.

23. Like tempura: CRISP.

Yummers!

24. River-dwelling mammal that can't swim: HIPPO.

25. Sci-fi writer Asimov: ISAAC.

26. Area far from downtown: EXURB.

27. French darling: CHERI.

Pepé Le Pew

28. Tourist's base: HOTEL.

29. __ in judgment: ERROR.

30. Tournament division: ROUND.

31. Tries to find: SEEKS.

36. NBC news show since 1992: DATE LINE.

37. "What a relief!": THANK GOD.

39. I-495 in Washington, D.C., e.g.: BELTWAY.

40. About, in dates: CIRCA.

42. Toy that may get stuck in a tree: KITE.

The Kite Eating Tree

43. Greg Evans comic strip: LUANN.

A Comic Strip since '85

46. Grows older: AGES.

47. In-person fantasy event, casually: LARP. Live Action Role-Playing GAME.

48. "Thinking about it": I MAY.

49. LAX projections: ETDS. Estimated Times of Departure.

50. Lack of objectivity: BIAS.

51. Unlikely to get out of hand: TAME.

52. "Darn straight": AMEN.

53. Sleeping bag spot: TENT.

55. "__ Haw": HEE.

The Grid:

The Grid

WO: FRIzBEE
ESPs: Spelling of XHOSA, CHONK
Fav:  It's a toss-up - my fav SciFi writer, ISAAC Asimov, or XHOSA just  'cuz I've never seen it in a puzzle before.

Well, do tell - how'd you enjoy Adam's little GAME?  RISES to your definition of fun or you just gonna BLOC it out of your mind 'cuz #circles?  :-)

Cheers, -T
T-7 days 'till RUSH!

Monday, June 22, 2026, Robbie Cottom

Theme:  Avian journeys

We are just at the tail end of spring migration for birds.  How nice for constructor Robbie Cottom to remind us of it.  His birds, however, are rather down-to-earth.

16-Across. Flightless migration on a farm?: CHICKEN RUN.  A chicken run is an enclosed outdoor space where chickens can safely roam and forage.

Chicken run

35-Across. Flightless migration on a pond?: DUCK TOUR.  A duck tour uses amphibious buses to take visitors on land and sea.

It only *looks* like a disaster.

60-Across. Flightless migration on Thanksgiving?: TURKEY TROT.  A turkey trot is a short race held around Thanksgiving Day in the United States.

Macabre costumes optional

10-Down. Flightless migration in Toronto?: JAY WALK.  Jaywalking refers to a pedestrian crossing a street unlawfully.  Toronto because of the Toronto Blue Jays, a baseball team.  In Toronto, the most common jay bird is the Blue Jay (Cyanocitta cristata).

Blue Jay

40-Down. Flightless migration in a cornfield?: CROW HOP.  A crow hop can be a short, quick jump -- or, if you are sports minded, it can be a footwork technique used by baseball outfielders.

Crow hop

WALK with me now -- or HOP, RUN, or TROT -- on a TOUR of the rest of the clues and answers.

Across:

1. Channel that brings tears to one's eyes?: DUCT.  There are two sets of tear ducts in each eye.  On the upper outer side of each eye is a lacrimal gland producing tears, which flow through ducts and over the eye.  Excess tears drain into lacrimal ducts in the inner corner of each eye, flowing thence into the nose.  That's why your nose runs when you cry.

Note the ducts at left and right.

5. Grow frantic: PANIC.

10. "__ my memory": "Remind me": JOG.

13. Worker protection org.: OSHA.  Occupational Safety and Health Administration.

14. Unavailable: IN USE.

Do not enter!

15. Serving success: ACE.  In tennis, an ace is a legal serve that is not touched by the receiver, winning the point for the server.

16. [Theme clue]

18. "Despite that ... ": YET.  I took you on that fabulous bus tour of the pond, and yet ...

19. Tempts: ENTICES.

20. Nobel Peace Prize winner Sadat: ANWAR.  Anwar Sadat (1918-1981) was an Egyptian military officer who served as the third president of Egypt from 1970 until his assassination in 1981.  In 1978, Sadat and Menachem Begin, Prime Minister of Israel, signed a peace treaty in cooperation with U.S. President Jimmy Carter, for which they were awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

Anwar Sadat

22. "Who even __ you?": ARE.

23. "Where babies come from" class, briefly: SEX ED.

25. The __ of one's existence: BANE.  A source of misery; a curse.

26. On a smaller scale: LESS SO.  I thought this was going to be LESSer, and was excited to tell you about one of my backyard birds.  But it was LESS SO ...

Lesser Goldfinch in my garden

28. Sicilia's country: ITALIA.  This is how Italians say Sicily and Italy.  Isn't it funny how they don't know the real names?

30. Thought: IDEA.

31. Animal life of a region: FAUNA.  Birds are fauna, too.  Even TURKEYs.

34. Penn of "Harold & Kumar" films: KAL.  Kalpen Modi, known professionally as Kal Penn, is an American actor, author, and former White House staff member in the Obama administration.  He is known for his portrayals of Kumar Patel in the Harold & Kumar film series, Lawrence Kutner on the television program House, White House staffer Seth Wright on Designated Survivor, and Kevin, a psychologist and boyfriend to Robin in How I Met Your Mother.

Kal Penn

35. [Theme clue]

38. __ and cheese: MAC.

41. Tempos: PACES.

42. Letters not found on a 24-hour clock: AM PM.

46. Under threat: AT RISK.

48. Also: AS WELL.

50. Clump of earth: CLOD.

51. "Your food is getting cold!": EAT UP.

54. Puffin kin: AUK.

55. Maya of "Stranger Things": HAWKE.  The daughter of actors Ethan Hawke and Uma Thurman, Maya Hawke made her screen debut as Jo March in the 2017 BBC adaptation of Little Women. She starred as Robin Buckley in the Netflix series Stranger Things (2019–2025).  She has also recorded three musical albums.

Maya Hawke

57. Bugs Bunny fare: CARROTS.

59. "Kinda like that": ISH.

60. [Theme clue]

63. "New" prefix: NEO.

64. Nordic noir novelist Larsson: STIEG.  Karl Stig-Erland "Stieg" Larsson (1954-2004) was a Swedish writer, best known for The Girl with the Dragon Tatooo, The Girl Who Played with Fire, and The Girl Who Kicked the Hornets' Nest, all of which were published posthumously, starting in 2005, after he died of a heart attack.  

Stieg Larsson

65. Some poke fish: TUNA.  Poke (POH-kay) is a dish of raw fish cubes tossed with soy sauce, sesame oil, and green onions.

Tuna poke

66. Telepathy, e.g.: ESP.  Extrasensory Perception.

67. "Got it?," slangily: YA DIG?

68. Do as one's told: OBEY.

Down:

1. Rx writer: DOC.

2. Guided (in): USHERED.  Better than the "ushed" we sometimes see in these pages.

3. Like dim sum and bao buns: CHINESE.  Perhaps nostalgic items for our blogmistress.

4. Diplomatic skill: TACT.

5. "Easy-peasy-lemon-squeezy!": PIECE OF CAKE.

6. Granny flat, maybe: ANNEX.

7. Breastfeed: NURSE.

8. The Cyclones of the NCAA: ISU.  The Iowa State Cyclones are the NCAA Division I collegiate athletic teams representing Iowa State University.

And YET Iowa's state bird is not the Northern Cardinal (depicted)
but the American Goldfinch.

9. Wrestler/actor John: CENA.  John Cena was a professional wrestler with the WWE for 24 years, and a 17-time world champion, before becoming an actor.  Cena is also known for his charity work, granting more than 650 wishes for the Make-A-Wish Foundation, the most in the organization's history.

10. [Theme clue]

11. Australasia's region: OCEANIA.  Oceania inlcudes Australia, Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia.

12. "Be reasonable": GET REAL.

17. O : hug :: X : __: KISS.  XOXO means hugs and kisses -- even though the X for kisses comes first.

21. Org. with Cavs and Mavs: NBA.  The Cleveland Cavaliers and Dallas Mavericks are teams in the professional National Basketball Association.

22. Boxer Muhammad: ALI.  

Muhammad Ali

24. Paleontologist's prize find: DINOSAUR EGG.

The small feathered dinosaurs with beaks designed to crack seeds
survived the famine when an asteroid collision killed most plant life on Earth
and gave rise to today's birds.

27. Unhappy: SAD.

29. Greek "T": TAU.

32. Org. that oversees NYC's Museum of the Dog: AKC.  American Kennel Club.

33. Sport-__: auto for rugged terrain: UTE.

36. Delivery company with brown trucks: UPS.

37. Like some poke fish: RAW.  See 65-Across.

38. The "M" of ATM: MACHINE.  Automated Teller Machine.

39. Geography texts: ATLASES.

40. [Theme entry]

43. Barbecue chef's coat?: MEAT RUB.  The coat goes on the meat, not the chef.

44. Wedding guest's date: PLUS ONE.

45. Civil rights leader honored in Jan.: MLK.  Martin Luther King.

47. Brief "No clue": IDK.  I don't know.  Here in the Crossword Corner, we often write "DNK" for "did not know."

49. Light on one's feet: SPRY.

52. Bitter-smelling: ACRID.

53. "Star Trek" legend George: TAKEI.

George Takei as Sulu on Star Trek

56. "Keep commerce human" website: ETSY.

58. Director Preminger: OTTO.  Otto Preminger (1905-1986) was an Austrian-American film and theatre director, producer and actor. He directed more than 35 feature films, and was one of the most influential directors in Hollywood during the 1940s and 1950s.

Otto Preminger

61. The Jazz, on scoreboards: UTA.  The Utah Jazz compete in the NBA.

62. Swift, to Swifties, when doubled: TAY.  Taylor Swift fans ("Swifties") call her Tay Tay.

Here's the grid:

Solvers,

Did you need perps (perpendicular entries) to JOG your memory regarding the celebrities named in this puzzle?  Did you PANIC at any point?

Or was the whole thing a PIECE OF CAKE?

We want to hear from you in the comments.  YA DIG?

-- NaomiZ