Today's theme is SELF-EVIDENT.
Gary Larson and Amy Ensz have placed five OBVIOUS theme clues symmetrically throughout the grid. The first word of each answer is a synonym for OBVIOUS.
The theme clues and answers (all Across) are:
15. Casino employee, obviously?: PLAIN DEALER. PLAIN is a synonym for OBVIOUS, as in, "It is PLAIN to me that the readers of this blog enjoy crossword puzzles." A DEALER is a casino employee who runs games by distributing cards and managing chips. A PLAIN DEALER is a person who interacts with others honestly and openly.
23. Natural pillow stuffing, obviously?: MARKED DOWN. MARKED is a synonym for OBVIOUS, as in, "There is a MARKED difference between summer and winter temperatures." DOWN is a layer of fine feathers found under the exterior feathers of birds, often used as pillow stuffing. MARKED DOWN is a phrase that means reduced in price.
34. Actor Jude's offspring, obviously?: PATENT LAW. PATENT is a synonym for OBVIOUS, as in, "He told a PATENT lie." LAW is the surname of actor Jude Law. PATENT LAW is a legal framework providing exclusive rights to inventors.
48. Honorific, obviously?: CLEAR TITLE. CLEAR is a synonym for OBVIOUS, as in, "It is CLEAR to me that the theme answers are humorous double entendres." TITLE can refer to an honoric, like "Mr.," "Ms.," or "Dr." CLEAR TITLE is a phrase that means undisputed ownership.
58. Convenient excuse, obviously?: STRIKING OUT. STRIKING is a synonym for OBVIOUS, as in, "The younger Law bore a STRIKING resemblance to his father, Jude." OUT can be used to mean an excuse, as in, "I didn't want to attend the party, and my sniffles gave me an OUT." STRIKING OUT has a number of meanings -- setting out on a course of action, having three unsuccessful swings in baseball, failing at something, or in this case, a spectacular excuse!
And now, it is obviously time to review the remaining clues and answers!
Across:1. Made-up band: KISS. The American rock band KISS has been made up of various members over the years. They are known for being MADE-UP with lots of makeup.
9. "Rules __ rules": ARE.
12. Native of Pre-Columbian Peru: INCA.
13. Gaze: STARE.
14. T. follower: REX. T. rex is short for Tyrannosaurus rex, a large, carnivorous dinosaur that lived in western North America during the Late Cretaceous period.
15. [Theme clue]
17. Red block in Minecraft: TNT. Minecraft is the best-selling video game of all-time, with over 300 million copies sold and nearly 170 million monthly active players as of 2024. The game world is composed of cubes (or "blocks") representing materials such as ores, water, and lava. And TNT!
19. Hair-raising: EERIE.
20. Manitoba people: CREE. The Cree are a North American Indigenous people. They live primarily in Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, and the Northwest Territories of Canada.
21. "Plus some other folks" abbr.: ET AL. Short for "et alia," a Latin phrase meaning "and others."
26. Leave the band, perhaps: GO SOLO.
28. Rejected: VETOED.
29. Pirouetting, perhaps: ON TOE. A ballet dancer supporting their weight on the tips of their toes is said to be en pointe.
30. Call on: VISIT.
33. Physicians, briefly: MDs. Medical doctors.
34. [Theme clue]
37. Coolers, briefly: ACs. Air conditioners.
40. A mile a minute: SIXTY. If you're going a mile a minute, that's sixty miles per hour.
41. "Up in Smoke" co-star: CHONG. "Up in Smoke" is a 1978 comedy film starring Cheech Marin and Tommy Chong.
45. New Jersey city: CAMDEN.
47. Black eye: SHINER.
48. [Theme clue]
52. Cacio e __ pasta: PEPE. "Cacio e pepe" is Italian for "cheese and pepper." The classic dish is made with just pecorino romano cheese, black pepper and pasta. Some folks consider this a good dish to order to test the quality of the kitchen in an Italian restaurant. If they offer pizza, try margherita, topped with crushed peeled tomatoes, mozzarella cheese, and fresh basil leaves.
53. Not pretty: UGLY.
54. Plays: DRAMA.
56. GPS display: RTE. A Global Positioning System app (like Google Maps or Waze) displays a "route" to follow.
57. Was on the bottom?: SAT. Oh, *that* bottom!
61. Before, before: ERE. Ere used to mean before, well before our time.
62. Filch: SWIPE.
63. Nature or nurture: NOUN. Nature and nurture are both nouns.
64. Leb. neighbor: SYR. Lebanon and Syria.
66. Ill at __: EASE.
Down:
1. Unit of explosive force: KILOTON. A unit of explosive power equivalent to 1,000 tons of TNT.
2. Plastered?: IN A CAST. Plaster casts are used to treat bone fractures.
3. __-fi: SCI.
4. Sensible: SANE.
5. Step: STAIR.
6. "Bohemian Rhapsody" Best Actor Oscar winner: MALEK. Rami Malek portrayed Queen lead singer Freddie Mercury in the 2018 biographical film "Bohemian Rhapsody."
 |
| Rami Malek as Freddie Mercury |
7. Lode load: ORE.
8. Neighbor of Aus.: GER. Austria and Germany.
9. Creative venue: ART ROOM.
10. Like some library books or contracts: RENEWED.
11. Stretches out: EXTENDS.
13. "Buona __": SERA. "Good evening" in Italian.
15. Barilla rival: PREGO. Competing brands of bottled marinara sauce, made with tomatoes, onions, garlic and herbs.
16. Expo presentation: DEMO. At an exposition, exhibitors offer demonstrations of their products.
20. Chi. summer setting: CDT. Chicago is on Central Daylight Time in the summer.
22. Aerial maneuver: LOOP. A loop maneuver is an aerial stunt performed by airplane pilots. The loop is achieved by diving and pulling back sharply. In every loop, the pilot has to navigate through a force of gravity nine times the normal. It's dangerous!
24. Malicious: EVIL.
25. Rip off: DETACH.
27. Landlord: LEASER.
30. Bother: VEX.
31. Abbr. on a bank statement: INT. With any luck, your bank statement shows interest.
32. Mud hole: STY. A sty is a pig pen, which is often muddy.
35. Shade: TINT.
36. Blender setting: WHIP.
37. Charges: ACCUSES.
38. Home of the Stampede: CALGARY. The Calgary Stampede is an annual rodeo, exhibition, and festival held every July in Calgary, Alberta, Canada.
39. Place of refinement?: SMELTER. A smelter is a machine or factory that heats ore to high temperatures to separate metal from other elements.
42. Burdensome: ONEROUS.
43. Planet with the Great Dark Spot: NEPTUNE. The Great Dark Spot was observed by NASA's Voyager 2 space probe in 1989, and later by the Hubble Space Telescope. It is a large storm.
44. Welcome: GREET.
46. Same-__ delivery: DAY.
47. Formal introduction?: SEMI. Semi-formal is a dress code: more polished than work wear, but less formal than black-tie. For men, a suit is in order. For women, who the heck knows?
49. Actor Elba: IDRIS. Idris Elba is an award-winning English actor and singer. He is OBVIOUSLY sexy, having been named Essence's annual Sexiest Man of the Year in 2013 and People's Sexiest Man Alive in 2018.
50. Drivel: TRIPE. Drivel is nonsense. Tripe is slang for nonsense. The first meaning of tripe is the edible lining of a cow, pig, or sheep's stomach. The edible tripe looks like rubbish, which led to the secondary meaning of rubbish or nonsense.
51. Camp sight: LAKE.
55. Celebrity chef Burrell: ANNE. Anne Burrell is an American chef and television personality She hosts the Food Network show Secrets of a Restaurant Chef and co-hosts Worst Cooks in America.
58. Digits from the government: SSN. Social Security Number.
59. Wee hour: TWO. The wee hours are the first few hours after midnight, so called because they have wee (or small) numbers. TWO o'clock AM is a wee hour -- but not the only one.
60. Indian state whose capital is Panaji: GOA. Goa is a state on the southwestern coast of India. It is India's smallest state by area and fourth-smallest by population. India rates Goa as having the best quality of life in the country. The state capital, Panaji, retains cultural influences from its 456 years as a territory of Portugal. The beaches of Goa appear to be popular tourist destinations.
