Good morning, Cruciverbalists. Malodorous Manatee here with a recap of today's puzzle by Michael Torch. The theme of the puzzle is based on the placement of words within four of the responses. In those places, Michael has taken common expressions that include the word BEFORE and omitted the word BEFORE thereby allowing the order of of the words to speak for itself. He has "literally" placed certain words before (in front of) others. Let's take a look at the first example:
17 Across: Give unappreciated gifts, literally: CAST PEARLS SWINE.
The expression is, of course, "cast pearls before swine" and it has come to mean to not present a thing of value to those who will fail to understand or appreciate it. Here, our constructor has physically CAST (placed) the word PEARLS in front of (before) the word SWINE. As a result we can read the answer as CAST PEARLS (BEFORE) SWINE. Michael has, literally, cast pearls before swine.
Here is how the gimmick is applied at the other themed clues and answers.
25. Pre-chaos moment, literally: THE CALM (BEFORE) THE STORM. In the answer, THE CALM, literally, comes before THE STORM.
43. 48 hours ago, literally: THE DAY (BEFORE) YESTERDAY. You get the idea.
57. Overconfidence is dangerous, literally: PRIDE COMES (BEFORE) A FALL. Cometh, goeth, who's quibbling!?
Here is the completed grid:
.... and here are the rest of the clues and answers:
Across:
1. Radio format: TALK. Hand up for first thinking AM FM. TALK radio as opposed, say, to Top 40 radio or All News radio.
5. Johnny Chase's nickname on "Entourage": DRAMA. Unknown to this solver. Thanks, perps.
10. Hunk: SLAB. Not as in Adonis. A hunk, for example, of meat or concrete.
14. Land east of the Urals: ASIA. I sometimes wonder whether we would consider Europe and Asia to be separate continents if the map makers who had the greatest influence were not, themselves, European.
15. Scout's task, briefly: RECON. Not a reference involving Tonto's horse. RECONnaisance.
16. Choice: A-ONE. Used as an adjective.
20. Unsubscribe, with "out": OPT. Why did the Maharishi Yogi OPT out of Novocaine during his root canal? Because he wanted to transcend dental medication.
21. Boot: EXPEL. Not a shoe reference. Perhaps a shoo reference.
22. Took the top prize for: WON AT.
23. Drink suffix: ADE. As in lemonade. Or Gatorade.
24. Emmy nominee Lucy: LIU. A frequent visitor.
34. "Boléro" composer: RAVEL.
35. Fields: AREAS. As in AREAS of expertise. Not as in comedienne Totie.
36. Highlands refusal: NAE. Scottish. "No more Glenmorangie for me, thanks" would not fit in the allowable space.
37. Cupid counterpart: EROS.
38. Snide remarks: SNARK. An answer that did not end with an S.
39. Orchid garlands: LEIS. An answer that did end with an S.
40. Set as a price: ASK.
41. Cozy inn, informally: B AND B. Bed ANDBreakfast.
42. Modest hits?: BUNTS. Not a musical or theatrical reference. A baseball reference.
46. Scrubs ctrs.: ORS. Medica personnel wear scrubs in Operating RoomS. With the leading cap it could be a reference to the TV show.
47. Consumed: ATE.
48. Enjoy every bite of: SAVOR.
51. Leading the league: FIRST. A possible baseball reference.
54. Place for a mud bath: SPA. STYE was too long.
60. Middle East capital: RIAL. Capital in the financial sense.
61. Trim: PRUNE. What did the gum trees say after I PRUNEd them? Eu-clipped-us!
62. Alien conveyances: UFOS.
63. Bulldog's home: YALE.
64. Turn off: REPEL. What did the male magnet say to the female magnet? He said : When I saw your backside I was repelled....However, after seeing you from the front, I now find you very attractive.
65. Many a tow job: REPO. REPOsession.
Down:
1. Birria option: TACO. A Mexican food reference, Birria is a flavorful stew that originated in Jalisco.
2. Letters of urgency: ASAP. What do you call very short proverbs? ASAPs fables.
3. Enumerate: LIST.
4. Dennings of the MCU's "Thor" films: KAT.
5. School that's home to the Dragons: DREXEL. Known for their women's basketball program.
6. Harvest: REAP. As ye sow . . .
7. Plot piece: ACRE. Not a literary reference. A bit misleading as an ACRE, by itself, can be a fair sized plot.
8. Defoe's "__ Flanders": MOLL. A literary reference.
9. Y or N, possibly: ANS. Punt. Yes No ANSwer
10. Showed the door: SAW OUT.
11. Pork cut: LOIN. CHOP would have fit.
12. Golfer Nordqvist: ANNA. Winner of the 2009 LPGA Championship and the 2021 Women's British Open.
13. __ red: BEET. ERIK THE was too long (and red was not capitalized).
18. Elliptical part: PEDAL. An exercise machine reference.
19. Reuben cheese: SWISS. A sandwich reference. For a number of years, the Yamaha FJR motorcycle community put together a Ruben Run to La Pine, OR.
23. Las Vegas team: ACES. A basketball reference.
24. Security concern: LEAK. Call the White House Plumbers.
25. Halloween option: TREAT. TRICK was also five letters. Fill in the T and the R and find a perp.
26. Rather severe: HARSH.
27. Call to mind: EVOKE.
28. Third baseman Machado with two Gold Gloves: MANNY. Obviously, a baseball reference.
29. Vocation: TRADE.
30. Parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme: HERBS. Once again, Patti and the puzzle setter have teed it up.
31. Upright: ON END.
32. Condiment in Indian cuisine: RAITA. A creamy yogurt-based sauce.
33. Tough to resolve: MESSY. As in a MESSY situation.
38. Word with you or who: SAYS. Before and after. SAYS you and who SAYS. Or, Simon.
39. Bass player?: LURE. Not a music reference. A fishing reference.
41. Fitness program that incorporates ballet, yoga, and Pilates: BARRE. Another unknown for this solver.
42. Siamese fighting fish: BETTA. ... and yet another unknown to this solver. Thanks, perps.
44. Marginal drawing: DOODLE.
45. Shoe decor: TASSEL.
48. Nimble: SPRY.
49. Covent Garden solo: ARIA. Covent Garden is a London, England venue used for operas.
50. Glass vessel: VIAL. I once made the mistake of drinking the liquid from a scientist’s test tube. It was a VIAL substance.
51. Anterior: FORE. Most often seen as a golf reference.
52. "My turn!": I'M UP. Another possible baseball reference.
53. Artist Magritte: RENE. Another frequent visitor.
54. Jewel box?: SAFE. A place to store your jewelry. Jewel box is often used as a CD case reference.
55. Tiny splash: PLOP.
56. Plus: ALSO.
58. Lifeguard skill: Abbr.: CPR. An abbreviated answer to a non abbreviate clue.
59. Lab coat?: FUR. Not a reference to what might be worn in a facility used to conduct experiments.
Not too far from my home they have torn down a small retail strip mall and are constructing a medical complex. Out in front is a sign that reads:
This one is between
Chef
and his wife Janice over the price of turkeys ...
Today veteran constructor Alan Levin dishes up four cooking
contests with in the language clues that bake into 4 punny game shows by changing just a single ingredient ...
17A. Contestants must perfect a ras el hanout today on ...:
THE SPICE IS RIGHT.
The Price is Right. And to spice things up a bit Alan gives us today's Arabic
lesson:
رأس الحانوت = ras el hanout, a Middle Eastern spice blend. When I attempted to save the logo that follows I got a prompt that it existed
already. Then I recalled that the watchword for
The Price is Right -- "COME ON DOWN" was used as the reveal in
Trent Evan's April 6, 2023
puzzle.
25A. Contestants flatten a confit de canard today on ...:
PRESS YOUR DUCK.
Press Your Luck.
If you should happen to have a duck handy, here's a recipe for
Confit de Canard (confit is French for candied). As it turns out pressedduck is actually a different dish, an Asian
specialty. Here's the Bald chef's recipe for
Chinese Pressed Duck.
424. Contestants work in teams to create a Michelin star-worthy dinner today on
...: LETS MAKE A MEAL.
Let's Make a Deal
is still going strong The fill for this actually makes some sense.
56A. Contestants race to prepare baby's first bottle on ...:
THE NEWLY FED GAME.
The Newly Wed Game was an American television game show that put newly married couples against each
other in a series of revealing question rounds to determine how well the spouses
know or do not know each other (e.g. when the crying baby wakes up at 2 AM, who
handles the bottle?).
10. Damsonlike fruit: SLOE. SLOE (Prunus spinosa)
is a species of flowering plant in the rose family native to Europe,
western Asia, and regionally in northwest Africa. The fruits are used
to make sloe gin in Britain and patxaran in Basque Country. The wood is used to make walking sticks, including the Irish shillelagh.
Sloe berries a.k.a. "Blackthorn"
14. Commands a crew, informally: COXES. A COXSWAIN is in charge of a crew, especially of rowing teams.
20. Appointed: ORDAINED. In most Christian churches people are ordained
to one of three positions: bishops, priests, and
deacons. In the Catholic church the first two require
celibacy. Deacons may be either permanent or
transitional. Permanent deacons may marry, whereas a transitional
deacon is temporary position for a seminarian during the last year of their
formation. The following year they are ordained to the
priesthood. Ordinations are performed with the
Sacrament of Holy Orders. One of the many actions that take place during this rite is the
laying on of hands ...
The Laying on of Hands
21. Come next: ENSUE. Clue 21A will ENSUE .
22. Patient care pros: RNS. Registered nurses are on the front
lines of medical care. This is what it takes to become one.
23. Brit's pal: MATE.
25. [Theme clue]
31. No longer listening, say: BORED.
33. Type of 32-Down: ALTO. Also called the English Horn. Here is a solo featuring this instrument from the second movement of Dvořák's Symphony No. 9, "New World", played by Vivian Kong ... 34. Ground-breaking tool: HOE.
35. Bibliography space saver: IBID. Today's Latin lesson: ibidem; "in the same place" -- used to indicate that a reference is from the same source as a previous reference.
36. Jet off for: FLY TO. Don't know where I'm going and when I'll get back again ... 38. River's edge: BANK.
47. Ocasek of the Cars: RIC. The Cars were an American rock band formed in Boston in 1976. Emerging from the new wave scene in the late 1970s, they consisted of Ric Ocasek (rhythm guitar), Benjamin Orr (bass guitar), Elliot Easton (lead guitar), Greg Hawkes (keyboards), and David Robinson (drums). Ocasek and Orr shared lead vocals, and Ocasek was the band's principal songwriter and leader. Here's Just what I needed ...
48. "Being the Ricardos" role for Bardem: ARNAZ. Being the Ricardos
is a 2021 American biographical drama film written and directed by
Aaron Sorkin, about the relationship between I Love Lucy stars Lucille
Ball and Desi Arnaz. Nicole Kidman and Javier Bardem star as Ball and
Arnaz. Kidman received an Oscar for Best Actress that year. Hand up if you've seen it?
51. Locals at the 2016 Summer Olympics: CARIOCAS. A Saturday
level clue that you could only hope to get with perps. I didn't. The
term is a demonym used to refer to anything related to the City of Rio de Janeiro, in Brazil. The original meaning of the term is controversial.
56. [Theme clue]
59. Yacht wood: TEAK.
60. Sammy with 609 homers: SOSA.
61. Bert's bestie: ERNIE. Bert and Ernie go fishing ... 62. __ a one: NARY.
63. Power unit: WATT.
64. Title pages?: DEEDS.
Down:
1. Pod prefix: OCTO. More Latin (or Ancient Greek: "ὀκτώ • (oktṓ)"): EIGHT.
One of the many definitions for the clue "pod" is "foot", so that in
this case it refers to that remarkable, highly intelligent creature, the
octopus, a soft-bodied, eight-limbed mollusc of the order Octopoda. 2. Physicist played by Branagh in "Oppenheimer":
BOHR. Shakespearean actor Kenneth Branagh's
casting in this role was criticized by some Danes, as Niels BOHR was
Danish -- but
director Christopher Nolan defended it on personal grounds.
4. Flat-topped hill: MESA. Today's Spanish lesson: "mesa" = table. A mesa is a flat-topped mountain or hill.
It is a wide, flat, elevated landform with steep sides. Spanish
explorers of the American southwest, where many mesas are found, used
the word because the tops of mesas look like the tops of tables. Not to
be confused with buttes and plateaus ...
Plateau, butte, and Mesa
5. Aimed high: ASPIRED.
6. Playground time: RECESS.
7. Like some tea: ICED.
8. Greek letter that sounds like "fie": PHI. Among the many uses for this letter, it represents the
wave function
in quantum mechanics which was developed by
Erwin Schrödinger,
a colleague of Niels Bohr (see 2D).
13. Pal follower: ETTE. This can be either a flat surface that
an artist uses to mix paints, or the range of colors in a painting, e.g.
Some believe that Vincent van Gogh was the greatest artist who ever
lived, and I definitely believe that Vincent and the Doctor was the
greatest episode of the time traveler series Dr. Who that was ever
produced (you can stream the whole episode on Amazon
Prime for a
nominal amount) ...
18. Stagecoach stopovers: INNS.
19. Evocative of the past: RETRO.
23. Lose a layer: MOLT. As they get bigger, 38Ds do
this
24. Self-: AUTO.
25. Museum gift shop purchase: PRINT. Like this one ...
Irises Vincent van Gogh May 1889
26. Flushed: RED.
27. "I'm the best!": YAY ME. The crossword antonym to
I TRY.
28. Relocation rental: UHAUL.
U-Haul Holding Company
is an American moving truck, trailer, and self-storage rental company, based
in Phoenix, Arizona, that has been in operation since 1945. The company was
founded by Leonard Shoen and Anna Mary Carty in Ridgefield, Washington, who
began it in a garage owned by Carty's family, and expanded it through
franchising with gas stations.
29. Scams: CONS.
30. Palmer of "Nope": KEKE. NOPE (stylized in all caps) is a 2022 American neo-Western science fiction horror film written, directed, and produced by Jordan Peele. It stars Daniel Kaluuya and Keke Palmer as horse-wrangling siblings attempting to capture evidence of an unidentified flying object in Agua Dulce, California. Hand up if you've ever been there? Two hands up if you saw any UFOs? 😀
31. Tab: BILL. For some reason people always expect me to pick this
up. 😀
32. Bassoon cousin: OBOE. Here is Valerie Xu playing an excerpt from the OBOE solo in Richard Strauss's tone poem Don Juan ...
36. Dessert made in a ramekin: FLAN. Here's a recipe for an
easy to make
Spanish Flan.
37. Gospel that includes the parable of the Prodigal Son: LUKE.
Two sons figure in this parable:
the prodigal son and the faithful son. When we visited Lourdes in 1999 there were giant posters of this
famous painting by Rembrandt all around the grotto, inviting people back to
the Church. I accepted the invitation.
Return of the Prodigal Son The faithful son can be seen in the background, just above
the father's left shoulder. He is not happy about the
prodigal son's return.
38. Pet snake, perhaps: BOA. Eventually they get very big ...
Pet boa
40. Outstrip expectations: AMAZE.
41. Returned a verdict: DECIDED.
43. Like a penthouse: SWANKY.
44. Palestinian leader who shared the 1994 Nobel Peace Prize:
ARAFAT. The Nobel Peace Prize 1994 was awarded jointly to Yasser Arafat, Shimon Peres and Yitzhak Rabin "for their efforts to create peace in the Middle East". Here's the Nobel Prize Committee press release.
Rabin was assassinated by an Israeli extremist the following year.
57. OH-to-OK heading: WSW. Oklahoma is West South West of Ohio.
14 hr 27 min (972.5 mi) via I-70 W and I-44 W
58. Mauna __: LOA. Not KEA. You have to wait for perps on this. MAUNA LOA
is Earth's largest active volcano by both mass and volume. Its last
eruption was in 2022, lasting from November 27 to December 13. Here's
some news footage of the event ...
Cheers, Bill
And as always, thanks to Teri for proof reading and for her constructive criticism.
Theme: It all works out in the end, if you have the right beginning. Is that too enigmatic? All will become clear, I hope. Lets have a look at the theme fill, and hope for a silver lining.
20. Broadway contender's number: AUDITION SONG. A short performance to test the talents of a musician, singer, dancer, or actor.
31. Item that may spruce up empty floor space: ACCENT RUG. A small rug that can be placed in areas where larger rugs wouldn't fit. They're generally 4'x6′ or smaller.
38. Check for immunity: ANTIBODY TESTING. Antibody tests (serology tests) look for antibodies in your blood. Antibodies are proteins your immune system makes to fight infection. These tests help your provider confirm a diagnosis of a wide range of diseases, disorders and infections,
45. Last part of a relay: ANCHOR LEG. The final position in a relay race. Typically, the anchor leg of a relay is given to the fastest or most experienced competitor on a team. The athlete completing the anchor leg of a relay is responsible for making up ground on the race-leader or preserving the lead already secured by their teammates.
56. Positive spin on a bad situation, or a feature of 20-, 31-, 38-, and 45-Across: SILVERLINING. An advantage that comes from a difficult or unpleasant situation: When things look black, there's always a silver lining.
The only thing I can find in common among these theme fill is the first and last letters of each entry. These are AG, the chemical symbol for the precious metal SILVER. This symbol derives from the Latin argentum and Sanskrit argunas from "bright." So, between these letters, the rest of the fill becomes the lining. To pick a nit, the lining should be on the inside, while the AG is on the outside, and this did throw me off for a while. But, I guess, you can't have everything.
Here's today's theme song.
Hi, Gang, JazzBumpa here to lead this mining expedition. Let's see what other precious items we can find.
Across
1. __ Romeo: motorsport brand: ALFA. Alfa Romeo Automobiles S.p.A. is an Italian luxury car manufacturer and a subsidiary of Stellantis Europe. It was founded on 24 June 1910 in Milan, Italy, as A.L.F.A., an acronym for Anonima Lombarda Fabbrica Automobili. The brand is known for sport-oriented vehicles and has been involved in car racing since 1911
5. Soccer goal material: MESH. Material made from a network of wire or thread.
9. Congressional hearings airer: C-SPAN. The Cable-Satellite Public Affairs Network. C-SPAN is a private, nonprofit organization funded by its cable and satellite affiliates. It televises proceedings of the United States federal government and other public affairs programming.
14. Momentarily: SOON. A short period of time.
15. Hybrid or coupe: AUTO. Types of motortcars.
16. In the know: AWARE. Having knowledge or perception of a situation or fact.
17. App store image: ICON. A symbol or graphic representation on a screen of a program, option, or window, especially one of several for selection.
18. 47-Down woman: FRAU. The German word for woman.
19. Gave an identity: NAMED. As defined.
23. Presidential advisory gp.: NSC. National Security Council. The President's principal forum for considering national security and foreign policy matters with his or her senior advisors and cabinet officials. N.B. the abbrv in clue and ans,
24. Dachshund's bark: YAP. A high pitched canine utterance.
25. U2 collaborator Brian: ENO. Brian Peter George Eno [b. 1948] also mononymously known as Eno, is an English musician, songwriter, record producer and visual artist. He is best known for his pioneering contributions to ambient music and electronica, and for producing, recording, and writing works in rock and pop music.
26. Roman time unit: ORA. An hour, mis-splt. S/b HORA.
29. Amoxicillin target: STREP. Short for streptococcus, a bacterium of a genus that includes the agents of souring of milk and dental decay, and hemolytic pathogens causing various infections such as scarlet fever and pneumonia..
34. Caesar's final day: IDES. He was murdered on the IDES of March. The IDES was a day falling roughly in the middle of each month (the 15th day of March, May, July, and October, and the 13th of other months) from which other dates were calculated.
36. __ Vegas: LAS. A municipality in Nevada, aka Sin City. It is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and the county seat of Clark County. The Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area is the largest within the greater Mojave Desert, and second-largest in the Southwestern United States.
37. Prefix with -syncrasy: IDIO-. An idiosyncracy is a mode of behavior or way of thought peculiar to an individual.
42. "Not so fast": WAIT. Hold on a sec.
43. Rust color: RED. A color at the end of the spectrum next to orange and opposite violet, as of blood, fire, or rubies.
44. Filmmaker Ethan or Joel: COEN. An American filmmaking duo. Their films span many genres and styles, which they frequently subvert or parody.
48. Netflix genre: DRAMA. A written work that tells a story through action and speech and is meant to be acted on a stage
51. "__ queen!": YAS. A term you say in response to someone fabulous. It's the equivalent of saying, “fierce,” “YES” or “you do you!” You're practically celebrating someone for what they're doing, how they look, or for what they've said.
52. Luau garland: LEI. A garland or wreath common in Hawaii, across Polynesia, and the Philippines.
53. Teamwork impediment: EGO. The part of the mind that mediates between the conscious and the unconscious and is responsible for reality testing and a sense of personal identity. If not controlled, it can lead to an elevated sense of self-importance.
55. Woodsman material, in Oz: TIN. Tin is a chemical element; it has the symbol Sn and atomic number 50. A silvery-colored metal, tin is soft enough to be cut with little force, and a bar of tin can be bent by hand with little effort.
59. Course for a class pres., maybe: AP GOV. Advanced Placement is a program in the United States and Canada created by the College Board. AP offers undergraduate university-level curricula and examinations to high school students. In a Government course, students learn about the structure of government and how it shares power at the local, state and federal levels.
62. "Sesame Street" toddler: ELMO.
63. Ice cream parlor option: CONE. An ice cream cone or poke is a brittle, cone-shaped pastry, usually made of a wafer similar in texture to a waffle, made so ice cream can be carried and eaten without a bowl or spoon.
64. __ dog: CHILI. A hot dog served in a bun and topped with a meat sauce, such as chili con carne. Additional toppings may include cheese, onions, and mustard.
65. Coastal inlets: RIAS. A ria is a coastal inlet formed by the partial submergence of an unglaciated river valley. It is a drowned river valley that remains open to the sea.
66. Indigo shrub: ANIL. Indigofera suffruticosa, commonly known as Guatemalan indigo, small-leaved indigo (Sierra Leone), West Indian indigo, wild indigo, and anil, is a flowering plant in the pea family, Fabaceae. Anil is native to the subtropical and tropical Americas, including the Southern United States, the Caribbean, Mexico, Central America, and South America as far south as northern Argentina. This species has been widely introduced to other parts of the world and today has a pantropical distribution.
67. -Ish: KINDA. A suffix indicating near similarity.
68. Longings: YENS. Strong feelings of wanting or wishing for something. I thought about going to Japan, but didn't have the yen to travel. [This is literally true. Our oldest granddaughter, Amanda, is dancing at Tokyo Disney. We considered gong to see her perform, but decided the 14 hour plane trip was more than we could endure.]
69. On a ferry, perhaps: ASEA. At sea. Or maybe confused while on a boat.
Down:
1. Sri Lankans, e.g.: ASIANS. Any inhabitant of a country located in the Asian continent.
2. Swarming insect: LOCUST. Locusts are various species of short-horned grasshoppers in the family Acrididae that have a swarming phase. These insects are usually solitary, but under certain circumstances they become more abundant and change their behaviour and habits, becoming gregarious.
3. Writers with good taste, hopefully: FOOD CRITICS. A food critic, food writer, or restaurant critic is a writer who analyzes food or restaurants and then publishes the results of their findings to the public. Although these terms are not strictly synonymous, they are often used interchangeably.
4. Roman time units: ANNI. Years. Unus annus est VMMMDCCLX horis.
5. Party game also known as "Werewolf": MAFIA. Mafia, also known as Werewolf, is a Russian social deduction game created by Dimitry Davidoff in 1986. The game models a conflict between two groups: an informed minority (the mafiosi or the werewolves) and an uninformed majority (the villagers). At the start of the game, each player is secretly assigned a role affiliated with one of these teams.
6. Icy moon of Jupiter: EUROPA. Europa, or Jupiter II, is the smallest of the four Galilean moons orbiting Jupiter, and the sixth-closest to the planet of all the 95 known moons of Jupiter. It is also the sixth-largest moon in the Solar System.
7. Swiftie or Belieber: STAN. An extremely or excessively enthusiastic and devoted fan.
8. Feline friend: HOUSE CAT. A domestic cat, especially one kept as an indoor household pet.
9. Unusual instrument in the "1812 Overture": CANNON. Here is arelevant excerpt.
I've played this, but not with real canons.
10. College tour giveaways: SWAG. SWAG is free promotional merchandise such as branded apparel, drinkware, stationary, accessories, or any memorable gift item given to clients, employees, or meeting attendees for marketing, awareness, and branding purposes.
11. Conagra cooking spray brand: PAM. PAM is a cooking spray currently owned and distributed by ConAgra Foods. Its main ingredient is canola oil. PAM was introduced in 1959 by Leon Rubin who, with Arthur Meyerhoff, started PAM Products, Inc. to market the spray. The name PAM is an acronym for Product of Arthur Meyerhoff.
12. "My lips __ sealed": ARE. All your secrets are safe with me.
13. Flanders of Springfield: NED. Nedward "Ned" Flanders Jr., commonly referred to by his surname, is a fictional character in the animated television series The Simpsons, voiced by Harry Shearer and first appearing in the series premiere episode "Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire." He is the good-natured, cheery next-door neighbor to the Simpson family and is generally loathed by Homer Simpson, though there are numerous instances where the two are portrayed as good friends.
21. One with an easygoing personality: TYPE B. Type A and Type B personality hypothesis describes two contrasting personality types. In this hypothesis, personalities that are more competitive, highly organized, ambitious, impatient, highly aware of time management, or aggressive are labeled Type A, while more relaxed, "receptive", less "neurotic" and "frantic" personalities are labeled Type B.
22. "Nearly done ... ": ONE SEC. Wait.
26. Rabbinical students' goals: ORDINATIONS. Ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized to perform various religious rites and ceremonies.
27. Tulum attraction: RUIN. Tulum is a resort town on Mexico’s Caribbean coast, around 130 km south of Cancún. The 13th-century, walled Mayan archaeological site at Tulum National Park overlooks the sea. It incorporates the clifftop Castillo, built as a watchtower, and the Templo de las Pinturas, with a partially restored mural. Inland, the Cobá archaeological site has pyramid-shaped temples with views over the surrounding jungle.
28. Waiting eagerly: AGOG. Very eager or curious to hear or see something.
30. Wharton who was the first woman to win the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction: EDITH. Edith Wharton 1832 - 1937] was an American writer and designer. Wharton drew upon her insider's knowledge of the upper-class New York "aristocracy" to portray realistically the lives and morals of the Gilded Age. In 1921, she became the first woman to win the Pulitzer Prize in Fiction, for her novel The Age of Innocence.
32. Drexler who was part of Houston's Phi Slama Jama in the early 1980s: CLYDE. Clyde Austin Drexler (b.1962) is an American former professional basketball player who currently works as the commissioner of the Big3 3-on-3 basketball league. Nicknamed "Clyde the Glide", he played 15 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA), spending a majority of his career with the Portland Trail Blazers before finishing with the Houston Rockets. He was a ten-time NBA All-Star and named to the NBA's 50th and 75th anniversary teams. Drexler won an NBA championship with Houston in 1995, and earned a gold medal on the 1992 United States Olympic team known as "The Dream Team".
33. Chemical concentration measurement: TITER. Titer or titre is a way of expressing concentration. Titer testing employs serial dilution to obtain approximate quantitative information from an analytical procedure that inherently only evaluates as positive or negative. The titer corresponds to the highest dilution factor that still yields a positive reading.
35. Sour salad green: SORREL. A perennial herbaceous plant in the family Polygonaceae. Other names for sorrel include spinach dock and narrow-leaved dock. Sorrel is native to Eurasia and a common plant in grassland habitats. It is often cultivated as a leaf vegetable or herb.
38. Not sporting home colors: AWAY. Said of a team playing at the opponents' field, court, or arena
39. Granny: NANA. Familiar terms for a grandmother.
40. Amazon drop-off: DELIVERY. The process of transporting goods from a source location to a predefined destination.
41. "Likewise!": SO DO I. Me, too!
46. "Drivers License" singer Rodrigo: OLIVIA. Olivia Isabel Rodrigo [b. 2003] is an American singer-songwriter and actress. She first rose to prominence for starring on the Disney Channel series Bizaardvark and the Disney+ series High School Musical:
47. Austria's language: GERMAN. German language, official language of both Germany and Austria and one of the official languages of Switzerland. German belongs to the West Germanic group of the Indo-European language family, along with English, Frisian, and Dutch.
49. Mouse with a polka-dotted dress: MINNIE. Minerva "Minnie" Mouse is an American cartoon character created by the Walt Disney Company. As the longtime sweetheart of Mickey Mouse, she is an anthropomorphic mouse with white gloves, a red or pink bow, polka-dotted dress, white bloomers and low-heeled shoes occasionally with ribbons on them.
50. Actress Lansbury: ANGELA. Dame Angela Brigid Lansbury DBE [1925 - 2022] was a British and American actress. In a career spanning 80 years, she played various roles across film, stage, and television. Although based for much of her life in the United States, her work attracted international attention.
54. Lip __: GLOSS. Lip gloss is a cosmetic used primarily to give lips a glossy luster, and sometimes to add a subtle color. It is distributed as a fluid or a soft solid The product is available in ranges of opacity from translucent to solid and can have variously frosted, glittery, glossy, and metallic finishes.
56. Auctioneer's cry: SOLD. An auctioneer is a person who conducts auctions by accepting bids and declaring goods sold.
57. Nobelist Wiesel: ELIE. Eliezer "Elie" Wiesel [1928 - 2016] was a Romanian-born American writer, professor, political activist, Nobel laureate, and Holocaust survivor. He authored 57 books, written mostly in French and English, including Night, a work based on his experiences as a Jewish prisoner in the Auschwitz and Buchenwald concentration camps.
58. Sweet Sixteen org.: NCAA. National Collegiate Athletic Association.
59. "Gah!": ACK. Expressions of dismay or disgust.
60. Upsilon neighbor: PHI. Greek Letters.
61. Negroni liquor: GIN. The Negroni is made with 1 oz gin, 1 oz Campari an 1 oz sweet vermouth, garnished with an orange peel.
I had fun with this puzzle and I hope you did, too. Did it test your mettle? Would you give it a medal for it's SILVER metal?
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