Theme: "Made From Scratch" - Each common phrase is rephrased as if it's money-related.
24A. Celebrity wealth?: STARBUCKS.
49A. Bocce tournament winnings?: BOWLING GREEN.
65A. Written request for financial aid?: CAPITAL LETTER.
88A. Means for Bambi's friend Flower?: SKUNK CABBAGE.
111A. Family fortune?: BLOOD BANK.
4D. Petty cash at a national newsmagazine?: TIME CHANGE.
16D. Rent money?: FLATBREAD.
74D. Gillette company revenue?: RAZOR CLAMS.
77D. Gala fundraiser?: DOUGH BALL.
I learned that "scratch" is a slang for money from Boomer. Otherwise, I would not have appreciated the cleverness of the puzzle title.
We often see two theme entries in Down slots. Not four. Loved how four of the theme entries intersect one another.
Across:
5. __ mater: ALMA.
9. Tablet that uses AirPlay: IPAD.
13. Mine corridors: SHAFTS.
19. Hybrid tangelo: UGLI. Very juicy. Always reminds me of the ugly pears in Lai Yang, Shandong. So juicy.
20. Page: BEEP.
21. Part of TLC: CARE.
22. Jean of "Bombshell": HARLOW.
23. "Ozma of Oz" novelist L. Frank __: BAUM.
26. Lavish home: ESTATE.
27. Add to an email, as a screenshot: EMBED.
29. Sour fruit: SLOE.
30. Winter gear with lots of buckles: SKI BOOT. Looks heavy.
32. Save: RESCUE. 56. Day saver: HERO.
34. Joints with caps: KNEES.
37. Minuscule machine: NANOBOT.
40. Presidential candidate Kamala: HARRIS.
42. Ang Lee's birthplace: TAIWAN. Mandatory military service there.
45. Nutritional amt.: RDA.
46. Going according to plan: ON TARGET.
52. Ramshackle shelters: LEAN-TOS.
53. "Tell the truth now!": DON'T LIE.
54. Tehran currency: RIALS.
55. Barracks boss: SARGE.
58. Home of the NCAA's Buckeyes: OSU.
59. Nada: DIDDLY. Always with "squat".
60. Kin of -ule: ETTE.
61. Fruit in a tropical smoothie: PAPAYA. Papaya milk is very popular in Taiwan and Guangzhou.
63. College town north of Des Moines: AMES. And 93. Baptist university in Waco, Texas: BAYLOR.
64. "__ too shabby!": NOT. Got some nice figs and made wild rice & fig salad yesterday. So good.
69. Supervillain Luthor: LEX.
72. __-dieu: PRIE. The prayer bench.
73. Made curly: PERMED.
74. Behind: REAR.
75. Like corduroy: RIDGED.
78. Mumbai honorific: SRI.
81. __-Cola: COCA.
82. Comics read from right to left: MANGA. Same with old Chinese comics, or newspapers.
83. Battery terminal: ANODE.
84. Shouts of triumph: HOORAHS.
86. In a fog: WOOZILY.
90. Slick tricks: FAST ONES.
91. Brain scan letters: EEG.
92. Carol opening: ADESTE. "Adeste Fideles"
94. Hugh Laurie TV role: DR HOUSE.
97. "The Mystery of __ Drood": Dickens novel: EDWIN.
99. Hothouse flower: ORCHID.
103. Breaks apart: BUSTS UP.
106. Reps: AGTS.
108. Schussing spot: SLOPE.
109. Scorch: SCATHE. I only know "scathing".
116. More unctuous: OILIER.
117. Pull down: EARN.
118. Morales of "La Bamba": ESAI. And
122. "Blue Bloods" org.: NYPD. I liked him in "NYPD Blue".
119. Common gum flavor: MINT.
120. Recycling bundlers: BALERS.
121. Loaves that may be seeded: RYES.
123. Salty bodies of water: SEAS.
Down:
2. Best effort: A GAME.
3. Caddie's bagful: CLUBS.
5. Core muscles: ABS.
6. "Sure, why not": LET'S.
7. Hello Fresh offering: MEAL KIT. Healthy choice.
8. Home Depot work apparel: APRONS.
9. Post-OR area: ICU. Please keep my sister-in-law Connie in your thoughts and prayers. Her neck just refuses to heal. Now she's going to have the surgery on Tuesday.
10. __-Man: PAC.
11. Sacred synagogue cabinets: ARKS.
12. Pigeonhole's place: DESK.
13. The whole __: SHEBANG.
14. Sports: HAS ON.
15. "Star Wars" droid nickname: ARTOO.
17. Small fry: TOT.
18. Scand. land: SWE.
25. Wax producer: BEE.
28. Argentine icon María Eva __ de Perón: DUARTE. Only know her as Eva Peron.
31. Idiotic: INANE.
33. "By that logic ... ": ERGO.
35. Town across the Thames from Windsor: ETON. And 93. Thames landmark: BIG BEN.
36. Handled: SAW TO.
38. "The Black Pearl" novelist Scott: O'DELL. Unknown to me. I thought the book might be about Pele. Nope. Real pearl dealer.
39. Flowering plant also known as bitter buttons: TANSY. Those buttons must be bitter then.
41. Mold into a new form: RESHAPE.
43. Woes: ILLS.
44. Super Smash Bros. console: WII U.
46. "WandaVision" star Elizabeth: OLSEN.
47. "Cool beans": NEATO. Spitzboov used to say "Cool beans!"
48. "The Goldfinch" writer Donna: TARTT.
49. "Heck yeah!": BOO YA.
50. Rosey of football's "Fearsome Foursome": GRIER. Hmm, quite a few "Fearsome Foursome". No Vikings, but these guys were also fearsome.
51. Purges (of): RIDS.
53. "Rats": DRAT.
57. Prefix with dermal: EPI.
59. Contacted privately, briefly: DM'ED.
61. Shelled out: PAID.
62. Yodeler's peak: ALP.
63. Eroded: ATE AWAY.
65. Annie Dillard's "Pilgrim at Tinker __": CREEK.
66. Café con __: LECHE.
67. God with wings: EROS.
68. Premium film network: TMC.
69. First Soviet leader: LENIN.
70. Birdie topper: EAGLE.
71. Pictures of health?: X-RAYS. Great clue.
72. PC scrolling key: PG DN.
75. Leveled, in London: RASED.
76. Graphic novel role: INKER.
78. Fruit-flavored juice brand: SOBE.
79. Steals from: ROBS.
80. Choleric: IRATE. Never used "choleric".
82. Takes a drive: MOTORS.
84. God of the underworld: HADES.
85. Got older: AGED. When I left Guangzhou, Xiao Pan, step-daughter of Carmen, was just a little girl. Now she has own her little girl.
 |
| Carmen, 10/2/2024 |
87. Norway's most populous city: OSLO.
89. Chair wheels: CASTERS.
90. Genre associated with science fiction: FANTASY.
95. Many a navel: OUTIE.
96. Theater employee: USHER.
98. Blob of gum: WAD.
100. Dawg: HOMIE.
101. Bucky Beaver's toothpaste: IPANA. Have not seen this entry for a while.
102. Shoulder muscles, briefly: DELTS.
104. Lyft rival: UBER.
105. Latitude: PLAY. I don't get this clue.
107. Lose one's cool: SNAP.
109. Blubber: SOB.
110. Spy-fi org.: CIA.
112. Rocks that need refinement: ORE.
113. Add-__: extras: ONS.
114. Rib: KID.
C.C.
