Sunday April 19, 2026 Adam Landau

 Theme: "SUPERMARKET SWEEP" - Each theme entry strings together three familiar product brands  in the aisle named in the clue.

23. Brief but strong infatuation in the beverage aisle?: BRISK MONSTER CRUSH.

38. Sly campaign to keep white birds out of the deodorant aisle?: SECRET DOVE BAN.

51. Huge supply of sled dogs in the household goods aisle?: HEFTY HUSKY BOUNTY.

66. Improve Alabama school spirit in the laundry aisle?: GAIN TIDE CHEER.

84. Ms. Witherspoon's Peruvian friends in the candy aisle?: REESE'S ANDES PEEPS.

92. Full commitment to benevolence in the cereal aisle?: TOTAL KIND LIFE.

114. Exclusive gathering around a cauldron in the snack aisle?: PREMIUM KETTLE CLUB.

In the old Tribune Media Daily days, we would have "three types of candy" or "three types of cereal" clues.

Adam elevates the concept beyond simple mashups. It takes real creativity to craft a coherent surface for each trio so that the brands read naturally when placed side by side.

Across:

1. Scary story emotion: FEAR.

5. Corrida star: TORERO. Spanish for "bullfighter".

11. Yogi's pose: ASANA.

16. "__ Is a Woman": Ariana Grande song: GOD.

19. Shakespearean villain: IAGO.

20. Putting in some miles, say: ON A RUN.

21. Trig function: COSEC.

22. Impersonate: APE.

26. __ of attrition: LAW.

27. Daytime show until 2022: ELLEN. "Call Me Maybe" era memories. Blurry images though.

28. Sundaes, e.g.: DESSERTS.

29. 2026 Olympics host country: ITALY.

31. Whiskey choice: RYE.

32. Spanish river to the Mediterranean: EBRO.

35. Evian, par exemple: EAU.

36. Sacramento daily: BEE.

37. French father: PERE. et Mere.

45. Opera solo: ARIA.

48. Ordinary: USUAL.

50. Financial: MONETARY.

56. Toledo's lake: ERIE.

57. Pitcher's rate?: AD FEE. Sales pitch. 

58. Cell service letters: LTE.

59. Check no.: ACCT.

60. Take by force: WREST. Not our normal USURP or SEIZE.

61. Vegan cafe order: SOY LATTE.

63. Farm insects: ANTS.

64. Bridal party attire: DRESSES.

69. Finalize, as a house purchase: CLOSE ON.

73. Exclude: OMIT.

74. Obscene: INDECENT.

79. Show runner?: AIRER. Literally. 

80. Borscht base: BEET.

81. "Here Comes the Hotstepper" singer Kamoze: INI. Learning moment for me. 

82. Radii neighbors: ULNAE.

83. Nota __: BENE.

88. Tool for an ENT: OTOSCOPE.

90. Have faith in: TRUST.

91. Campus group: FRAT.

96. Pet brand since 1946: IAMS.

98. Figure skater Alysa: LIU. She's stunning. 

99. Landlocked Eur. country: AUS.

100. Ocular issue: STYE.

101. Light-years away: FAR.

104. Dry shampoo target: SCALP. Not a fan of dry shampoo. 

107. Unleash: LET LOOSE.

111. Corn: MAIZE.

113. Sin City airport code: LAS.

118. Alias letters: AKA.

119. Consumed: EATEN.

120. City near Hueco Tanks: EL PASO. Hueco Tanks is a Texas state park. Unfamiliar to me. 

121. Neutral shade: ECRU.

122. __ in one's step: PEP.

123. Corp. shuffle: REORG.

124. Woven furniture material: RATTAN.

125. Ewes and does: SHES.

Down:

1. Nutrient found in most fruit: FIBER. I'm so looking forward to the peach season. 

2. At 4 a.m., say: EARLY.

3. Limber: AGILE.

4. "Titanic" heroine: ROSE.

5. __ yum: Thai soup: TOM. Tom means "boiling". Hot. 

6. Peace activist Yoko: ONO.

7. Stranger, in slang: RANDO.

8. Gaelic language: ERSE.

9. Tedious routines: RUTS.

10. "Be right back ... ": ONE SEC.

11. Build over time: ACCRUE.

12. Spreadsheet action: SORT.

13. Taiwanese tech giant: ASUS. Named after Pegasus, the winged horse.

14. Console known as Famicom in Japan: NES. Famicom stands for Family Computer.

15. Realize: ACHIEVE.

16. Big do: GALA.

17. Fall birthstone: OPAL.

18. Damp in the morning: DEWY.

24. Leg joint: KNEE.

25. Foster: REAR.

30. Wobbles: TEETERS.

33. "Dude, are you serious?": BRUH.

34. Bring about: RESULT IN.

36. Like hard-to-eat fish: BONY.

37. Dev of "Monkey Man": PATEL. Made his breakthrough  in "Slumdog Millionaire"

38. Quaff with sushi: SAKE.

39. "Tarzan" actor Ron: ELY.

40. Cartoon quartet named for Renaissance artists, for short: TMNT. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Leonardo, Michelangelo, Donatello, and Raphael

41. Half of a colon: DOT.

42. Exposes: BARES.

43. Pop up: ARISE.

44. Russian denials: NYETS.

45. Clicking sounds?: AHAS. Good old clue.

46. Second chance: REDO.

47. Not certain: IFFY.

49. Route that includes a ferry between Wisc. and Mich.: US TEN.

52. Record-setting pilot Chuck: YEAGER.

53. Wild West robbers: BANDITS.

54. One set of pawns, in chess: OCTET.

55. Sch. whose mascot is Sammy the Banana Slug: UCSC. University of California, Santa Cruz.

60. "It's our turn!": WE'RE UP.

62. Eastern philosophy: TAO. Dao in China. 

63. Mann of alt-rock: AIMEE.

64. Fights an allegation: DENIES IT.

65. Like half of Indonesia's flag: RED.

67. Pedicure targets: TOES.

68. One performing puja: HINDU. Puja is Hindu worship ritual. 

69. American statesman Henry __ Lodge: CABOT.

70. Mislead: LIE TO.

71. "... but maybe I'm off base?": OR NOT.

72. Has a panoramic view, say: SEES ALL.

75. Staff figures: CLEFS.

76. Fed. power dept.: ENER.

77. __ cabbage: NAPA. We ate napa cabbage and daikon every day during winter when I was a kid.  Popular ingredients in Chinese paocai, our version of kimchi. 

78. Sample: TEST.

80. "It's __ a minute!": BEEN.

81. Memo starter: IN RE.

84. Smart TV option: ROKU.

85. Prefix with dermal: EPI.

86. DOJ bureau: ATF.

87. Lisa Loeb hit single: STAY.

89. Intuit Dome player: CLIPPER. NBA's newest arena in Inglewood, CA.

93. Seeing romantically: DATING.

94. Doozy: LULU.

95. Chemical cousin: ISOMER.

97. Viral post: MEME.

100. Adjust to: SET AT.

101. Pilfer: FILCH.

102. Bright blue hue: AZURE.

103. Picture puzzle: REBUS.

104. Smack: SLAP.

105. Birthday order: CAKE. I want this. 

106. "Stat!": ASAP.

107. Sister of Asteria in Greek mythology: LETO.

108. Pt. of EMT: EMER.

109. St. with a panhandle: OKLA.

110. Mo. in a Green Day title: SEPT.

112. Vegas team: ACES.

115. Issa of "American Fiction": RAE.

116. Screening org.: TSA.

117. Silent film star Chaney: LON.

On a sad note, I'm sharing that Bill G, who used to comment regularly on our blog, passed away in February 2025. I had emailed him a "Happy Birthday" message, his daughter Bonnie let me know the  news. Bill was a warm and thoughtful presence here, and he will be missed. 

Barbara, Bill & their grandchildren

Happy Birthday to to dear Kelly Clark, a regular and a terrific crossword constructor! Happy Birthday also to Anonymous PVX!

And a belated Happy Birthday to our Thursday Sherpa Rusty Brain. Hope you had a great celebration yesterday, Brian! Here's to continuing to age like a fine cheese!

 

Saturday, April 18, 2026, Enrique Henestroza Anguiano

 Themeless by Enrique Henestroza Anguiano

I’m a data scientist from Oakland, CA, with a background in computational linguistics. In this picture I am eating a Voodoo Donut in Portland, OR. 

I had a very pleasant solving experience and here is what Enrique was kind enough to share with us when I asked him about the genesis of this puzzle:

Hey Gary,

Sure thing! Here are the notes:

This puzzle was seeded with the pair DRAG QUEEN and SHORT KING to bookend the grid. I love going to see drag cabaret shows at the Oasis in San Francisco, and I’m right on the cusp of short king status at 5’8”! 

Across:

1. Performer often found with big wigs: DRAG QUEEN and 60. Cute nickname for a dachshund: SHORT KING - Enrique's two "royal" seed entries. (FWIW, my sister-in-law has had doxies for decades and has never hear that phrase). 

10. Golf kin: JETTA - The VW models came to my mind very quickly.

15. Soft rock duo from Australia: AIR SUPPLY - A wonderful song

16. Oohed and __: AAHED.

17. Like a watered-down event?: RAINED OUT 😀

18. Dough, or what dough becomes: BREAD 😀 and 44. Campus figure: BURSAR - Almost one year ago today, Enrique partnered with Erik Agard and came up with this clue/fill:

36. Brown bread specialist: BURSAR. 

Brown was a college and BREAD is slang for money. I might blame Erik for that one.

19. Wrap up: END.

20. Some ink vessels: SACS.

21. Trust subject: ESTATE.

22. In the tub: BATHING.

24. Minorly: A TAD.

25. Tone: SHADE.

27. Trips: VOYAGES.

29. Crepes eaten during Maslenitsa: BLINI - A thin, golden crusted pancake eaten during this Salvic festival

30. Linda Cohn's network: ESPN. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ 

31. Rec from GPS: RTE - If I want to visit C.C. in Minneapolis again, my GPS will give me a very nice RTE Rec(ommendation).

33. Lists on Poshmark, say: RESELLS ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ 

36. Scannable pass: E-TICKET - All concessions are also digital at Husker events.

38. One curl, e.g.: REP.

39. Midsummer arrivals: LEOS.

41. "Schitt's Creek" character with an impressive wig collection: MOIRA.

42. Flatbread cooked on a tawa: PARATHA  - ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ Plain Tawa Paratha is a popular, flaky North Indian flatbread made from whole wheat flour (atta) cooked in ghee or oil on a hot skillet called a tawa. 

44. The Black Keys and the White Stripes: BANDS - BANDS made quick sense to me although I had no idea they were duos like Air Supply above at 15 Across.

              

45. Goose named for its call: NENE.

46. Total anarchy: MOB RULE.

48. Bird that weaves pouchlike hanging nests: ORIOLE - They are our favorite backyard visitors

50. Sound from a peat bog: BURP ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ 

A "peat bog BURP" is a natural phenomenon where methane or other gases, trapped by decomposing organic matter, are released in a sudden, loud bubble

. 

51. Car sticker stat: MPG.

54. "From your lips to God's ears": I HOPE - An idiom saying you hope something comes true

Person A: "I hope the weather is good for the wedding." 

Person B: "From your lips to God's ears"

.

55. Blast that's often annoying: MASS E-MAIL - Every few days I get a message from my governor, senator or representative. 

57. Gets worked up: RILES.

58. "I can't take any credit": IT'S ALL YOU.

59. Members of the BTS ARMY, e.g.: STANS -  ¯\_(ツ)_/¯  The dedicated fans of the Korean Group BTS are called STANS.

Down:

1. Find the courage: DARE.

2. "Wake Up Dead Man" filmmaker Johnson: RIAN ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ 

3. Saharan: ARID.

4. "The $100,000 Pyramid" airer: GSN.

5. Snack that may be made with Oaxaca cheese: QUESADILLA.

6. Keep current: UPDATE.

7. Geologic time: EPOCH.

8. Hard to pin down: ELUSIVE.

9. Crossplay owner, familiarly: NYT ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

10. Some low blows: JABS - Some can take place in a boxing ring and some in a political campaign 

11. Wildlife tracker: EAR TAG.

12. Minor character in a musical, say?: THEATER KID. - My first thought was of Ronnie Howard in The Music Man.

13. Experts who use cupping sets: TEA TASTERS.

 

14. Tacked on: ADDED.

21. Mo Salah's home country: EGYPT - ¯\_(ツ)_/¯  Soccer player

22. Curse: BANE.

23. Pore strip target: NOSE.

25. Box office surprise: SLEEPER HIT - One of the biggest of all time 

26. Most populous island in the West Indies: HISPANIOLA.

28. Hide outside: ANIMAL PELT 😀

29. Sound that may accompany goosebumps: BRR.

32. "What's the GPS telling you?": ETA.

34. Offer of assistance: LET ME.

35. Carnaby Street's neighborhood: SO HO - In NYC, SOHO means South of Houston St. but in London, it's named after an old hunting cry in the 17th century. 

37. Convalescent wear for some pets: CONE.

40. Day of rest: SABBATH.

43. Investigate anew: REOPEN.

44. [BURSAR - See explanation at 18 Across above]

45. "The Third Man" and others: NOIRS.

47. Shared surname in Marvel films: RUSSO ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Directors and brothers Joe and Anthony Russo

49. What's more?: LESS.

51. Offer of assistance: MAY I - True or sexist?

52. Subatomic particle: PION - If you'd like to get into the physics weeds

53. Pouring sound: GLUG 😀

55. Start to trial or fire: MIS.

56. Jan. honoree: MLK.