Well, now, this one was right up my allez~! I loves to poke fun at the French additions to English crosswords more than any other language crossover. Today we have a collaboration between two constructors who have contributed to the LA Times in the past - Jess's last puzzle was a Saturday in September 2025, and the one from Andrew was in 2023 with co-author Marin Wells. A clever interpretation theme of French words in English context, but I thought one did land a bit flat. Yet another oversized 15x16 grid, 22 3LWs, just a couple of names, no Twurds, but two Naticks - ah, Friday. The themers and the reveal, once again in the center;
18. "You can't be serious!": EAUBROTHER - "O" brother~!, how 'eau' sounds in Frawnche, the word for water, as in, e.g., eau de parfum or, cologne ( see yesterday - and I think the LAT editor needed to pay attention to an answer that was a theme answer in the next puzzle ) - and an argument that "odor" is not a synonym for "fragrance"
26. Chant from a giant: FILLE-FI-FO-FUM - the "correct" pronunciation of Fille, "Fee" = girl
Ma chérie, mon amour~!
55. First words of the Constitution: OUITHEPEOPLE - "Wee" - back in college, when any of my friends "ass.u.me'd" I was joining them ( meaning 'we' ) in some escapade, the go-to catch-phrase was "when did you start speaking Frawnche~?"
65. "RuPaul's Drag Race" catchphrase: SACHETAWAY - "say-shay", which is 'bag' in Frawnche; FWiW, I listened to the pronunciation, per Google's translator, and it does not sound like the "leitmotif" RuPaul speaks, which is based on another Frawnche word, chasse . . . here's a YouTube collection video, with a poorly spelled title 😒
38. "Please excuse the bad language," and what can be said about 18-, 26-, 55-, and 65-Across: PARDONMYFRENCH
pardon MY Frawnche~!
Mais Attendez, Il y a Plus~!
ACROSS:
1. Antlered animal: STAG - I do the Downs first, which messed up this corner
5. Chews like a beaver: GNAWS - I found this story to be fascinating, and promising, too
Geronimo, literally
10. Verbal digs: BARBS
15. Super Monkey Ball company: SEGA - filled via perps - the Wiki
16. Dulce de __: LECHE
Sounds good; I have added my chocolate recipe * at the bottom
17. Native Alaskan: ALEUT - learned by doing crosswords
20. Undersea data carrier: CABLE
21. Flight segment: RISER - AND - 30. Flight segment: STEP - Clecho; flight as in stairs, not SSTs
22. Chance: RISK
24. Bulldogs sch.: UGA - The "G" was Natick #1, University of Georgia
Lucky Dawg . . .
25. Up to, informally: 'TIL
32. Be sick: AIL
33. Wok dish: STIR FRY
34. Untainted: PURE
35. Barrel wood: OAK
37. Cal. neighbor: ARIzona, so ARIZ is not the answer to 62D. - and a Thursday dupe
44. Pilates surface: MAT
45. 56-Down pioneer: AOL - early provider of "electronic", not "snail" mail
46. Glitz and __: GLAM - I grew up in the 1980s, so I was into all the "GLAM" bands of the era; Mötley Crüe, Poison, Cinderella, 27D., and these guys🠟 - can you name the band~?
Here's a hint - their "anti-Satanic" hit from the 80s
48. Lends a hand: ASSISTS - not ass.u.me-s🙄
52. Indent key: TAB
54. __ ayam: Indonesian chicken noodle soup: SOTO - Natick #2, the "T" was a WAG . . . [sigh] Friday
58. Novel: NEW
59. Patient care pros: RNs - Registered Nurses - another Thurs dupe
60. Quick study?: CRAM
61. Glowing coal: EMBER
63. Pageant topper: TIARA
69. Religion with a call to prayer five times a day: ISLAM
70. Let one's actions speak for themselves: MIMED - har-har
Here's unreleased behind-the-scenes footage of the "mime caterers" from Spinal Tap
71. Imperial gem of ancient China: JADE
72. Flings: CASTS
73. Kills it on the runway: SLAYS - ask RuPaul
74. Mars counterpart: ARES - Gods of War, Roman & Greek respectively
DOWN:
1. GPS heading: SSE - Dah~! Not RTE, but 1/3 correct
2. Go wild on the dance floor: TEAR IT UP - I pondered CUT A RUG, too short
3. Christina of "Burlesque": AGUILERA - not that I've seen this, but I put Christina and dance together, and . . . name #1
Cher, too~!
4. Talks and talks: GABS - Dah~! Not YAKS, 1/2 correct
5. "I Will Survive" singer Gaynor: GLORIA - I knew this one, name #2
. . . Frank~!
6. Catch: NET - Dah~! Not NAB, 1/3 correct
7. German cry: ACH - Hey, I got the Deutsch word 100% correct, go figure . . .
8. "__ were we?": WHERE - alliteration, like the world wide web
9. Ornamental lines: SERIFS - Ha. I tried "SHRUBS" - hey, it is 1/2 correct . . .
10. Go the wrong way?: BACKFIRE - I have been rewatching YouTube and Amazon clips of Top Gear and The Grand Tour
11. Gulf st.: ALA - Alabama abbr; I tried FLA, was 2/3 correct
12. Brush off: REBUFF
13. Tabbouleh grain: BULGUR - Ugh. The other half of Natick #1 - the "G" was a total WAG
14. Like some "Heated Rivalry" scenes: STEAMY - I didn't know of this Canadian TV series about bromance and hockey, more here - I had ST _ _ _ Y on my second pass
19. "What game are you watching!?" target: REF - Ah. Shouting at the TV during a bad hockey, NFL, soccer, etc., official's call
23. Raga instrument: SITAR
25. Baking soda amt.: tsp - Funny story - I was shopping for spice at my Big Y supermarket when an older guy in the aisle asked me what I was looking for; I said "bagel everything" seasoning; he said "Huh, I'm looking for "bagel salt" . . . so I offered him several choices I had found, and he walked off in disgust; then he came back and showed me what he really needed - baking soda . . . Ah. Guess I need to clean my ears 😜
27. Pride member: LION
Glam metal artist White Lion, When the Children Cry
great guitar solo @ 2:36
28. Quechua pack animal: LLAMA
29. Rubber gaskets: O-RINGS - the part that failed tragically on the Space Shuttle Challenger
31. Allow: PERMIT
36. Capital in Honshu's Kansai region: KYOTO - My first thought, hesitated; Geo name #3
39. Producers of road movies?: DASHCAMS - I have one, need to install it before I drive down to Long Island next week to house-, dog-, cat- and fish-sit for my brother and his wife on their one-year anniversary vacation. I'm hangin' with Cooper~!
40. Abalone eater: OTTER - I tried SEALS
41. To-do: FLAP - A bit if Brit slang, refers to a state of panic, agitated fuss, or noisy tumult
42. Backdrop of an animated series in a Lucasfilm franchise: CLONE WAR - the IMDb
43. Harsh negativity, in slang: HATERADE - A mockery of "Gatorade", and Natick #2, part 2
. . . only when I'm driving
47. Take the field?: MOW - I had to replace the flat 10x8 Four-ply tire on my tractor, which I could not get fixed at six locations - had to go back to the place that sold me the machine, and it cost $210 - I can get two tires with change replaced on my car for that money . . .
I cringe to think what a BACK tire goes for . . .
48. Like some heart valves: AORTIC - nailed it
49. Gymnast Lee who won the Best Comeback Athlete ESPY Award in 2025: SUNISA - Ah. I knew it was Suni, I did NOT know it was SuniSA - her Wiki; - name #4
50. Natural rug fibers: SISALS - nailed it, number two - Monday dupe
51. Little jerks: SPASMS - nailed this, number three - it's not the pain-in-the-a$$ type of jerk . . . 🙄
53. Runs, in a way: BLEEDS - Missed this one on the first pass
56. Username, often: EMAIL
57. CPR expert: EMT
62. Cal. neighbor, informally: BAJA - I was thinking ARIZ~? OREG~?
64. "I smell a __!": "RAT~!"
66. Nashville honor, for short: CMA - Counrty Music Award
67. "Psst!": "HEY~!"
68. "You rang?": "YES~?"
Splynter
* Made my own chocolate this weekend - 1/2cup cocoa powder, 1/2cup coconut oil, which is all saturated fat - and all the calories, 2tsps organic honey, 1/2tsp vanilla extract and salt - so, so good, but I'm going to try and swap out half the oil with unsweetened applesauce to reduce the calories
I also use a similar silicone tray in my air-fryer to make breakfast "stacks"
Kathy Lowden is becoming a regular here, her last puzzle was just back in April.
Ashes to ashes...
16. Evil actions of a cartoon villain, e.g.: DASTARDLY DEEDS. Like those of Dick DASTARDLY, as he twirled his mustache.
23. Having no chance of success: DESTINED TO FAIL. Like the plots of Dick DASTARDLY.
35. Forty-second cousin: DISTANT RELATIVE. A 42nd cousin is commonly known as "no relation."
50. Alyosha Karamazov, for one: DOSTOEVSKY HERO. From his Russian novel, The Brothers Karamazov.
56. Final touch for some desserts: DUSTING OF SUGAR. It's the icing on the cake! Sorta.
And sometimes why? The vowels appearing in alphabetical order make sense, but I'm not sure why they're buried in D_ST- at the beginning of each phrase. I'm sure it was difficult to find four-letter starters that only varied by their vowel, but by themselves, only DUST- is a word. DAST-, DEST-, DIST- and DOST- seem kinda random. I would've preferred some phases that began with last, lest, list, lost and lust, for example.
The number of proper nouns today was kept to a minimum, so that helped make it a pleasant solve. Only half of them were peoples' names, and they all were very famous. Yay!
Across:
1. Millennial follower, briefly: GEN Z. Generation Z, sometimes called Zoomers, followed GEN Y who didn't like that name so they changed it to Millennial. Sounds like something they'd do.
5. Grass unit: BLADE. Grass unit: OUNCE. I went to college in the 70's and was on double secret probation!
Prof. Jennings and Pinto in Animal House
10. Sobriquet letters: AKA. A sobriquet is Also Known As a nickname, such as Pinto.
13. Plains people: OTOE.
14. Tulip : bulb :: oak : __: ACORN. Remember that the mighty oak was once a nut like you!
15. "__ betcha": YOU. Frances McDormand did a great job in Fargo.
16. [theme]
19. __ de cologne: EAU. EAU de cologne translates from French as "water from Cologne." Historically, it refers to a light, refreshing citrus fragrance created in Cologne, Germany, in 1709.
20. Tune: AIR. An AIR (or ayre) is a song-like, melodic tune, typically for a solo instrument or voice. I learn something new everyday! It basically replaces what I forget everyday.
21. Prefix with -metric: ISO. ISOmetric.
23. [theme]
28. Greek letter that represents torque in equations: TAU. TAU is used for torque in physics and engineering. In mathematics, τ represents one full rotation around a circle.
29. Gold medalist at the 1936 Summer Olympics: OWENS. Jesse OWENS was an American track and field athlete who made history by winning four gold medals at the Berlin games, setting Olympic records in each event.
30. Got on the nerves of: IRKED.
31. __ mater: ALMA.
33. Grain in many a Quaker product: OAT. This is the first of three cereal-related clues today, part of a "complete" breakfast.
34. Card in an around-the-corner straight: ACE. AKA a wrap-around straight, it's a poker hand where the sequential card values "wrap around" the ACE, such as Q-K-A-2-3. It is not valid in most standard poker games.
35. [theme]
41. Little newt: EFT.
42. Feel icky: AIL.
43. One of a cereal trio: SNAP. SNAP, Crackle and Pop have been mascots for Rice Krispies for nearly 100 years!
44. Thrash about: FLAIL.
47. Cause of interrupted sleep, perhaps: APNEA. CPAP machines are a common method to treat APNEA, so common that there are occasional shortages of the distilled water they use. Don't ask me how I know.
49. Ávila aunt: TIA. Ávila, Spain is is famous for it's Walls of Ávila, built between the 11th and 14th centuries.
50. [theme]
53. OR workers: RNS. Registered Nurses may work in Operating Rooms.
54. Viking weapon: AXE.
55. D-backs, in box scores: ARI. The ARIzona Diamondbacks change their logos as often as Rice Krispies.
56. [theme]
63. Metallurgist's material: ORE.
64. Private pupil: TUTEE.
65. Ivory soap ad word: PURE. Ivory is 99.44% PURE soap, but it only stayed AFLOAT because Procter & Gamble used to whip air into it. The current bar doesn't float in your sink.
66. Word in four state names: NEW. NEW Hampshire, NEW Jersey, NEW Mexico and NEW York.
67. Down-at-the-heels: SEEDY.
68. Elevated on the course: TEED. Also elevated is one's blood pressure when TEED off.
Down:
1. Mars or Mercury: GOD. The Roman GODs of war and swiftness.
2. Pilot's approx.: ETA. Estimated Time of Arrival.
3. Tiny biters: NO-SEE-UMS. One of our favorite getaways from the rat race in South Florida is Sanibel Island on the Gulf Coast, which sadly was heavily damaged in 2022 by Hurricane Ian. We used to rent a little cottage (now destroyed) and stroll along the beach. At certain times of day, our legs would itch from nearly invisible pests, the infamous NO-SEE-UMS.
4. Followers of epsilons: ZETAS.
5. Where to find a priest, a minister, and a rabbi?: BAR. Is this some kind of joke? Ha ha!
6. "American Dream" band __ Soundsystem: LCD. An odd band name (aren't they all?) that originated as Liquid Christmas Display after performing at a holiday party.
7. Early ISP: AOL. You've got mail! America OnLine used to be an Internet Service Provider. Now it's just a brand name bandied about by various corporations.
8. Forest nymphs: DRYADS. Almost wrote DRUIDS.
9. Break off a romance: END IT.
10. Vote in favor: AYE.
11. Frazer Lake bear: KODIAK. Frazer Lake is on KODIAK Island in Alaska.
12. One who may say "G'day": AUSSIE. Australian greeting.
17. Motor vehicle: AUTO. Nowadays, some vehicles drive on AUTO.
18. Beethoven's Third: EROICA. Ludwig van Beethoven’s Symphony No. 3 in E-flat major, Op. 55, pushed the boundaries of harmony, motivic development, and expression. AKA the EROICA (Italian for "Heroic") it was dedicated to Napoleon.
22. Vintage: OLD. I collect vintage guitars; RightBrain calls them OLD. They probably fall somewhere in between.
23. "Meditative Rose" artist: DALI. Salvador DALI was a Spanish surrealist artist renowned for his technical skill, precise draftsmanship, and the striking and bizarre images in his work.
Dali's striking and bizarre visage
24. Terse refusal: I WONT.
25. Clutter-free: NEAT. Some people like their whiskey clutter-free.
26. Sets up: ENTRAPS.
27. Guitar bars: FRETS. The frets on the necks of my vintage guitars.
28. Tiny bit: TAD.
32. Wiped out: ATE IT.
34. Strike zone?: ALLEY. A bowling ALLEY.
36. Not having that sinking feeling?: AFLOAT. Unlike modern Ivory soap bars.
37. Kindle display: E-INK. Just add an E to anything!
38. Secret plans: INTRIGUE.
39. Japanese laptop maker: VAIO.
40. Safe Drinking Water Act org.: EPA. The Environmental Protection Agency.
44. New Deal pres.: FDR. Franklin Delano Roosevelt was the 32nd president of the U.S. The New Deal was a series of economic, social, and political reforms in response to the Great Depression.
45. "Sweeney Todd" setting: LONDON. Also where Tina FEY appeared recently. "Live from LONDON, it's Saturday Night!"
46. Make certain: ASSURE.
47. City grid feature: AVENUE. Here's another city grid:
48. "Eureka!" cries: AHAS.
51. Goes out: EXITS.
52. Go off: ERUPT.
57. Hem, but not haw: SEW. SEW what?
58. Former telecom co.: GTE. General Telephone & Electronics Corp. was the largest independent phone company in the U.S. In 2000, it merged with Bell Atlantic and became Verizon.
59. 20-volume ref. work: OED. Oxford English Dictionary.
60. First host of "Saturday Night Live UK": FEY. Tina FEY led the charge across the pond to appear on the telly.
61. "__ you decent?": ARE. "Yes, but I'm not wearing any clothes."
62. Color of Lucky Charms balloons: RED. There have been over 30 marshmallow shapes over the years, each with a special "power." The RED balloons give the power to float - or stay AFLOAT in a bowl of OAT cereal with a DUSTING OF SUGAR.
Theme: "Attention K-Mart Shoppers: Clean-up on aisles 3, 6, and 10 [sic]"
Puzzling thoughts:
Chairman
Moe here. It's the first Wednesday of June and my turn to blog. What a
fun puzzle to recap today! It's got circles (CSO to Anonymous),
it's got word play, it's got an African Nation AND its capital city,
it's got only a handful of three-letter words, each of its entries are
completely unrelated which leads to a surprising reveal as I honestly
didn't try to unscramble the circled letters before solving 61 across
Today's constructor, Shmuel Schmell,
appears to have had a handful of published puzzles, dating back to
2021. I was unable to find any biographical information for him, and I
am guessing that this puzzle is his LAT debut. Job well done, sir
The wordplay begins with the first entry:
17 across. One skilled in routine deliveries?: STAND UP COMEDIAN. Love this clue! Finding the first of the anagrams for the reveal (STAND UP = DUST PAN)
was not readily seen by me. Well-hidden in the circles. And did I
mention how much I loved this clue??!! Not sure that I could choose
among all of the stand-up comedians who is my favorite. But this guy is
pretty creative:
The second entry involves a throwback to my youth:
26 across. San Francisco counterculture center of the 1960s: HAIGHT-ASHBURY. As
a child and teenager during the 1960's the San Francisco hippie scene
was frequently featured in both newspapers and TV news programs. Second
of the circled anagrams for the reveal (ASHBURY contains the word BRUSH).
As I am sure many of you are aware, the name HAIGHT-ASHBURY is taken
from a pair of intersecting streets in San Francisco as well as its
neighborhood. Lots of famous folks lived there:
The
third entry is a CSO to my fellow Wednesday blogger, Jazz Bumpa, aka
JzB, aka Ron. His prowess as a SLIDE TROMBONE player only further
defines his varied skills. One of my earlier memories of a JzB post was
around Christmas time - he shared a video of a guy who played Christmas
and other holiday tunes on his trombone. IIRC, the guy played all of
the harmonies and spliced them together
46 across. Instrument that makes the sound of adults talking in "Peanuts" cartoons: SLIDE TROMBONE. Here is a "tutorial"
As you see, within the word TROMBONE is also the word BROOM. And now, we have the trio of utensils that can be used to perform a clean-up: BRUSH - BROOM - DUST PAN. And this supports the reveal:
61. Overhauls that have lasting effects, or what can be found in this puzzle's circled letters: SWEEPING CHANGES. I am not sure if this puzzle solves easily without the circles; the "sweeping" devices are very well-hidden
Here is the grid. My only error was in the crossing of HARARE and REACHER
Across:
1. Will beneficiary: HEIR. Nice, easy start to the solve
5. Thick-furred dog whose tail curls over its back: SPITZ. For some unknown reason, I chose AKITA before changing to SPITZ
10. "hahahahahaha": ROFL. Texting shortcut = Roll On Floor Laughing
14. Gillette razor: ATRA. Rumor has it that Gillette named the razor ATRA because their CEO was big into crossword puzzles ...
20. Many a Sunday talk show panelist: PUNDIT. [AI overview] defines it as: A pundit is an expert who frequently shares their opinions with the public through mass media.
Commonly referred to as "talking heads" or commentators, they are
highly prominent in political, financial, and sports journalism
21. "Today" producer: NBC NEWS.
I have never been a fan of morning news programs, regardless of the
network airing. "The Today Show" debuted on January 14, 1952 and is the
first of its kind. Several other morning news programs followed but
"Today" is the most-watched
22. Foal's father: SIRE. Here is a video that was made before
the last Triple Crown champion. Of these horses Seattle Slew topped all
Triple Crown winners as a sire; producing 8 champions, including Horse
of the Year A.P. Indy, Swale (Kentucky Derby and Belmont Stakes winner),
and Slew o’ Gold.
25. "Rules __ rules": ARE.
[entry word]
32. Love, in Verona: AMORE.
33. Cabbage side: SLAW. One of my favorite slaw mixes is called "Tri-Color" and contains both green and red (purple) cabbage as well as chopped carrots
34. Fig. in a QB's completion percentage: ATT. Attempts
(actual passes thrown) divided by completions = the completion
percentage. One of the leading quarterbacks in winning Super Bowls,
Terry Bradshaw, had a completion percentage of 51.9 - that is mediocre
as far as statistics goes, but his 4 Super Bowl wins (no losses) is the
highest winning percentage (based on total wins), tied with Joe
Montana. Tom Brady has 7 Super Bowl wins but has also had 3 Super Bowl
losses
37. Second chances for students: RE-TESTS. I can't recall ever having had a re-test when I was in school. But this young woman did [Moe-ku]
Cosmetic student
Was absent; had to make-up
Her Makeup exam
39. Lee Child protagonist: REACHER. Jack Reacher is a large,
nomadic man with a military police background who wanders the country,
taking odd jobs and stumbling into trouble
42. Genetic material: DNA. Comparing the structure of DNA vs RNA: DNA
is typically double-stranded, forming a twisted double helix. RNA is
usually single-stranded and shorter, allowing it to easily interact with
other molecules
43. Gymnast Korbut: OLGA. Fun fact: Olga Korbut never scored a perfect "10" in any of her Olympic events
45. TV executive Arledge: ROONE. The man who brought ABC's "Wide World of Sports" and "Monday Night Football" to the TV Sports lineup
[entry word]
50. Smug cry: OHO.
51. Blood bank fluids: SERA.
52. Kylo Ren's father in "Star Wars": HAN SOLO. For those who
are unfamiliar with some of the genealogy in "Star Wars": Kylo Ren
(born Ben Solo) is the biological child of Han Solo and Leia
Organa. Because Leia is the daughter of Darth Vader (Anakin Skywalker),
Darth Vader is Kylo Ren's grandfather
56. Jewel box: CD CASE. Clever clue. Fun Fact: [according to
AI] CD case inventor, Peter Doodson christened the name "jewel case" in
1982 when he was working for Philips. He named the case "jewel" because
he considered its structure "virtually perfect" and specifically
designed its polished ribs to catch the light, giving it a shining,
gem-like appearance
[reveal]
64. Paddington, but not Waterloo: BEAR. This clue refers also to
a pair of stations in the London Underground (Tube). According to AI:
the fastest way to travel between them is by taking the direct Bakerloo
line on the London Underground, which takes around 10–15 minutes.
Alternatively, a taxi ride takes 15–20 minutes
65. Grey Goose rival: STOLI. Vodka rivals. As an imbiber of
various adult beverages, vodka is my least favorite. I keep a bottle
strictly for any guest who requests. My "go-to's" include (in no
particular favorite order): Single Malt Scotch (Highland and Islay),
Bourbon and Rye whiskey, Gin, and Tequila/Mezcal
66. History book sections: ERAS. Moe-ku #2:
Baseball history book
Has section for great pitchers:
E.R.A. eras
67. USN officers: CDRS. I tried ADMS first before doing the down words
68. Schlepped: TOTED. I have received many tote bags at various trade shows I've attended, but never one called a "schlepp bag"
69. Starchy root in poi: TARO. I am trying to cut back on starches ...
Down:
1. Strongbox fastener: HASP. Another word for "lock"
2. Words said to Marcus Junius Brutus: ET TU. Does the "Marcus Junius" preface to Brutus make this a harder clue? Any time I see the name "Brutus" I think of "et tu?"
3. Modern Persia: IRAN. Modern Mesopotamia: IRAQ
4. Pretoria currency: RAND. As of the day I wrote this blog, the value of a ZAR (also known as the South African Rand) is R1.00 = $0.06 USD
5. "Quit yapping!": SHUT IT.
6. Cheer team feeling: PEP.
7. Company abbr.: INC. LLC also fits
8. Jumbo suffix: TRON. Fun Fact: Jumbotron, although
originally a registered trademark by Sony in 1985, has become a generic
term for any oversized stadium screen [Wikipedia]
9. Country between the Zambezi and Limpopo rivers: ZIMBABWE. Zimbabwe info And, we have as a supporting clue/answer: 30 down. Capital of 9-Down: HARARE.
12. Fault: FLAW. If grammar and spelling errors in my blog are considered flaws, well, there could be a few
13. Camera part: LENS. Also a part of the eye. I now have two artificial lenses as a result of cataract surgery last year. Never have I ever seen better
18. Sink accumulation: DISHES. Guilty as charged! When I was a
single man I always left the dirty dishes in the sink until enough were
ready for transfer to the dishwasher. Same now; however, Miss Margaret
transfers to the dishwasher immediately OR washes them by hand
19. Sandy shade: ECRU.
23. Do a bit of grapplin': RASSLE. Grapplin' (missing the last letter "G") indicated to me that this was going to be an abbreviated form of the word WRESTLE
24. Night school subj.: ESL. English as Second Language
26. Like some cider: HARD. Not one of Moe's preferred "adult" beverages
27. Blessing response: AMEN.
28. Bitty bits: IOTAS.
29. Pre-MBA hurdle: GRE. Graduate Record Examination
[re-pasted with 9 down]
31. "Hot diggity dog!": YAHOO. Another clue could have been: "alternate to Hotmail"
35. Miss. neighbor: TENN. Considering that Mississippi has four
neighbors, the only one of those that I think can be expressed in a
four-letter abbr. is TENNessee - Louisiana, Alabama, and Arkansas are its other neighboring states
36. Cypress or cedar: TREE.
38. Task manager?: TO DO LIST. I use one; on a piece of paper, as opposed to having something entered on my cellphone, e.g.
40. Ocean fleet: ARMADA. For a "fleeting" moment, the Chairman and Miss M owned an Armada, which we "lovingly" called "The Beast". This:
41. Corn core: COB.
44. Some classic muscle cars: GTS. This GT was hardly a muscle car but it did have bucket seats and only two doors - more like a "mush muscle" car ...
47. Total failures: LOSERS.
48. Waffle House rival: IHOP. I would hardly compare iHOP to Waffle House. IYKYK
49. Dragon's mouth, e.g.: ORCHID. Learning "moe-ment". I never heard of this example until today
52. U.K.-based bank: HSBC. HBSC (Hongkong and Shanghai
Banking Corporation) is one of the world's largest banking and financial
services organizations, serving approximately 41 million customers
across 56 countries and territories. Founded in Hong Kong in 1865, the
institution is headquartered in London and acts as a major global bridge
for trade corridors between Asia, Europe, and the Americas [from their
website]
53. Wowed: AWED.
54. Close by: NEAR.
55. "I think you're __ something": ON TO.
57. Tech trends site: CNET. I've used this site occasionally to read reviews about cellphones, computers, and even headphones
58. Indian tourist city with a mausoleum: AGRA. Home to the Taj Mahal
63. Guardians, on a scoreboard: CLE. Fun Fact: I have been a CLEveland
baseball fan since the late 1950's. And while I "GOT" (see 62 down
clue) that their team's mascot (Chief Wahoo) was a bad choice, the
elimination of the name Indians was not one I supported. The Cleveland
Baseball Franchise was the first to have a native American player (Louis Sockalexis), as well as the first black player (in the American League) Larry Doby. At the time Sockalexis played for them (late 1890's) the team was known as the Spiders; Sockalexis was
the inspiration to rename the team the Indians in 1915 after he was
through playing, and many a Cleveland fan called the team the Indians
while he was playing
The "Guardians" reference is to a pair of "Guardians
of Traffic" statues located on the Hope Memorial Bridge, which stands
near the team's ballpark (see image below). The interesting thing is
that until this "logo/image/name" was chosen, most Clevelanders were
unfamiliar with the statues or never paid much attention to them as they
drove across the bridge
Summary:
Great puzzle; I give this ⭐⭐⭐⭐'s
(one of my highest rankings, IIRC). As a side note, the Chairman's
alter ego (Chris Gross) will have a puzzle published @ Newsday tomorrow, June 4. If you would like to solve it, please save this link-
I think it will refresh to the correct date so you can fill it in on-line. You can also change it
from the drop down icon on its task bar. Or, perhaps this link will provide you a copy to print and solve This is my first published puzzle in quite a
while. Hope you enjoy!
