Wednesday, July 3rd, 2024, Michael B. Berg

 ALL IN THE FAMILY

 I never knew the first line....

Splynter reporting for duty - another quick solve this Wednesday, albeit containing circles, but with very few names, a small number of 3LWs, and a theme that, while I don't use the term, was understandable - synonyms for family, "found" across two words in the theme answers.  I suppose AA would be my version of a 'found family', and certainly the 20 employees at the Pipe Organ company.  Some alliteration going on, as well - CLAN, KIN, CREW, KITH.  One eleven-, two thirteen-letter, and one spanner for the theme answers, and an 11-letter reveal;

16. Road division: TRAFFIC LANE - Keep your LaSalle between the lines~!

A GM/Cadillac Concept Car - very cool, and clearly where the Corvette came from

23. Task that's a piece of cake: WALK IN THE PARK

36. Home of Christopher Robin's friends: HUNDRED ACRE WOOD

46. Japanese dramatic form with elaborate costumes: KABUKI THEATER

Gene Simmons, before KISS

58. Closely knit community that provides social support, or what 16-, 23-, 36-, and 46-Across contain?: FOUND FAMILY

And Away We Go~!

ACROSS:

1. Adele's "Water __ the Bridge": UNDER

6. Salsa choice: MILD - AND - 6D. Salsa choice: MELON - never heard of this variation

A recipe for you

10. Covertly include on an email: BCC - I get this a lot in crosswords

13. "Nope" and "Get Out" director Jordan: PEELE - filled via perps; his IMDb

14. Mountaintop nest: AERIE

15. Sound from a warm tub: AHH - I seriously want to swap my cast iron bathtub to a Jacuzzi

18. Reed of the Velvet Underground: LOU - before my time, but I know of him

19. Like most prime numbers: ODD

20. Thai neighbor: LAO

21. Band output: MUSIC - this is a song about "family", right~?

I crossed my old man. . . .Don't Take Me Alive, Steely Dan

28. Accurate: TRUE

29. Burgundies: REDS - quit wining - get it~?

30. Dough: MOOLA - bread, cheese, cash, fundage~!

31. Open a tad: AJAR

33. Fundraiser for STEM programs: PTA - STEM is "new" for me in crosswords; I don't recall seeing it during my last blogging stint - Science, Technology, Engineering, Math

40. Gp.: ORG

41. Walkman maker: SONY - the original iPod

I still have one

42. Quite a distance: MILES

43. "Stat!": ASAP

45. AirPlay tablet: iPAD - I'm a PC

52. Soccer Hall of Famer Lalas: ALEXI - More here

53. Aardvark's snack: ANT

54. Vegan milk choice: OAT - I make my mac N cheese with Soy Milk

57. Streamlet: RIA - learned by doing crosswords

63. Apple on a teacher's desk, perhaps: MAC - clever - could be both computer AND fruit

64. Simmers with rage: FUMES - >😡<

65. Low point: NADIR

66. Pokémon trainer Ketchum: ASH - no idea, but glad to see a non-tree/bat clue for "ASH"

67. Small samples: SIPS

68. Pic-sharing app: INSTAgram - I am still planning to do a better Organ blog, and an Instagram page, too - here's the latest from The National Cathedral organ renovation

DOWN:

1. As many as: UP TO

2. One with deep knowledge of a subject: NERD - of what subject can you say you're proud to be a NERD~?

3. Completely mistaken: DEAD WRONG - I thought I was wrong once, but I was mistaken

4. "The best way to spread Christmas cheer is singing loud for all to hear" film: ELF - sorry, but I simply cannot stand this "holiday classic".  At All.  Period.  End of Comment.

5. NBA official: REFeree - also hockey, football, etc.

7. 401(k) alternative: IRA

8. Songwriter/actor __-Manuel Miranda: LIN - Filled via perps

9. Considered: DEEMED

10. Model material: BALSA - oh, those models . . . .

11. Gospel singers: CHOIR - CHOIR is also a division/chamber of some pipe organs; the main divisions are Great, Swell, Pedal; and additionally, Choir, Solo, Positiv & Antiphonal

12. Toss away: CHUCK

14. Fruit from a Brazilian palm: ACAI

17. Sort: ILK

22. FedEx rival: UPS - UPS wins~!

Sumo Delivery vans

24. "__ Lang Syne": AULD

25. TV producer Norman: LEAR - Creator of "All in the FOUND Family"~?

26. "Fast Car" singer Chapman: TRACY

27. Munich mister: HERR - and the funny female equivalent. . . .

Blücher~!

28. Series of gigs: TOUR

30. Old electrical unit: MHO - learning moment for me - the Wiki

31. Bring home from the pound: ADOPT - I would SO love to adopt a dog - but if I am in the field for work, I'd need to find a dog-sitter, and I'm not a big fan of that idea

This would be my pick - a Schnauzer

32. Abbr. at the start of a day planner: JANuary

33. Pictures that don't need to be shaken: POLAROIDS - Ah.  This is true - the "instant" photos of old did NOT need to be shaken - more info here

34. Pigeon-__: TOED - I went with HOLE first; pigeon-TOED, like last week's "TOE-IN" of a car's alignment, describes someone who walks with their toes pointing "in"

35. Spots that may be classified: ADs - and advertisement is referred to as a "spot"

37. "Titans" actor Morales: ESAI - something something crossword Morales = ESAI

38. Radiate: EMIT

39. Diaper bag cloth: WIPE - oh, duh; I parsed it differently, and was trying to think of the fabric a diaper bag is made from

43. Stereo input letters: AUX

44. Flat-bottomed boats: SKIFFS

46. Cosmic fate: KARMA

47. Name on a false document: ALIAS

48. Sandy spot: BEACH - I am not a summer person, and having lived in a place made of, and surrounded by sand, desperately needed to move north - the irony is that I USED TO live in Connecticut, because Long Island was made by a glacier scraping off the surface of CT.

49. Jockey rival: HANES - possibly Splynter's most beloved product~?

I couldn't decide - but the center image includes a crossword reference

50. Loose __: ENDS

51. DOJ branch: ATF - Department of Justice, and the bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco & Firearms now includes Explosives in their wheelhouse - should they change the name to "FETA, FEAT"~? Or better yet, "FATE"!?

55. Touched down: ALIT

56. Supermodel Banks: TYRA

59. Yes, from Yves: OUI - Frawnche

60. Strike caller?: UMPire - Baseball for C.C.

61. Vader, as a boy: ANIkin - Skywalker, the father of the Star Wars "family"

62. Guy: MAN - and one last family "guy"

 Be safe and enjoy being with your family this Fourth of July~! 

Since I can rarely get to read the comments on the day, I decided to add a "FLW" to the end of my blog. . . .

 

From Last Week - CED, I loved your "Laser Bird"~!  TTP - I watched the clip, but that's not the quite it; it really does sound like "pew-pew" - I have been waiting to capture a sound bite from my window, so I can add it here, but I think "mating season" may be over.  zzzzzzz - send me an email.

Splynter

Tuesday, July 2, 2024 ~ Susan Gelfand

The Perfect Gift

G'Day!, Cornerites.

Today, Susan offers us jewelry apropos to one's occupation. Each phrase is "in the language" with the first word describing the position and the second a bit of bling. Let's take a look:

20. Custom timepiece for a meteorologist?: STORM WATCH.

33. Custom necklace for a chef?: FOOD CHAIN.

41. Custom brooch for a defensive back in the NFL?: SAFETY PIN.

Johnny can make a brooch out of it.

52. Custom band for a barista?: COFFEE RING.
I once had the idea that, if I ever went out on my own consulting, I'd call it "Coffee Ring Consultants" 'cuz every document I pre-produced for draft editing ended up with a coffee stain in the upper left corner.
//I always wore a mocha button-down when I did presetations for clients - that way spilt coffee wouldn't show. #ProTip

Cute theme, eh? Nicely done Susan. Thanks.

Across:
1. Passionate enthusiasm: ZEAL.

5. College concentration: MAJOR. Mine was Double-E w/ a Masters granted in CS. In my young ZEAL I thought I could build AI robots but, instead, I landed at DOD protecting networks which took all my hackin' skilz to the other side of the fence.
Tell us your major and why.

10. Dazzling figure skating feat: QUAD. Quadruple (14a) AXLE.

Ilia Malinin

14. Car bar: AXLE. Not a cocktail-box in the back, Double-O-7. Sorry to disappoint you, sir.
//I rewatched a few James Bond flicks while DW was in Japan :-)

15. Run off to wed: ELOPE.

16. "Do __ others ... ": UNTO...as you would have them do unto you - The Golden Rule.

17. Falafel wrapper: PITA.

Yummers!

18. Greased: OILED.

19. Fan favorite: IDOL. Billy is one of them.

Dancing With Myself

20. [See: theme]

22. Word on a door: PULL.

The Far Side

23. Agreeable answer: YES.
 

Roundabout - YES (a big influence on RUSH*)

24. Art studio stands: EASELS.

26. "Let's keep going!": ONWARD.

30. Spill the beans: BLAB.

32. Jeweled topper: TIARA.

33. [See: theme]

38. Still a contender: IN IT.

39. Robes at the Roman Forum: TOGAS.

Obligatory Animal House clip.
(It's in my contract)

40. Plot parcel: ACRE.

41. [See: theme]

43. Mountain lions: PUMAS.

44. Cathedral alcove: APSE.

45. Scout's discovery: TALENT. Talent scout not a Boy Scout.

46. Push and shove: JOSTLE.

50. Pointy leatherworking tool: AWL. Funny, I call my awl "pointy tool."

51. No more than: UP TO.

52. [See: theme]

59. Statistical average: MEAN.

60. Naturally bright courtyards: ATRIA.

61. Double-reed woodwind: OBOE.

62. Soft French cheese: BRIE.

63. Bird associated with babies: STORK.

64. Air conditioning outlet: VENT.

65. Rowboat pair: OARS.

66. Hefty books: TOMES. Asmov's Foundation Trillogy was one. It filled 80% of my backpack (sorry, history book). #Priorities

67. Previous partners: EXES.

Down:
1. Heats up in the microwave: ZAPS.

Percy Spencer accidentally discovered it.

2. Highway off-ramp: EXIT.

That's not real. This one is.
 

3. Silicon Valley city Palo __: ALTO. I think I mentioned they (the eponymous company) make pretty good firewalls.

4. Shakespearean ruler who divides his kingdom between two of his daughters: LEAR.

5. Cried like a calico: MEOWED.

6. Pseudonym: ALIAS.

7. Caffeine rush: JOLT.

8. Crude cartel: OPEC.

9. Conan O'Brien and Prince Harry: RED HEADS.

10. Witticisms: QUIPS.

11. Disproportionate, as influence: UNDUE.

12. Coral island that surrounds a lagoon: ATOLL.

How they're formed

13. Barbie and Skipper: DOLLS.

Barbie and kid-sister Skipper

21. British pianist Hess: MYRA.

25. "Abbott Elementary" network: ABC.

26. Redding of R&B: OTIS.

27. Simone of R&B: NINA.

28. Ragamuffin: WAIF.

29. Prado paintings: ARTE.

30. "Casablanca" star, familiarly: BOGIE.

Humphrey Bogart

31. Library offering: LOAN.

33. Fancy dressers: FOPS.

34. Transport: HAUL.

35. Pinnacle: ACME.

Wile E. Looking for the Perfect Gift.

36. Country on the Persian Gulf: IRAN.

37. Hummingbird's home: NEST. I remember the night before DW's water broke for Eldest. She was in fast-mode getting things in order and I was tidying up the garage. We fell asleep for about 20 minutes on the couch and spent the next morning in the Delivery Room.

Nesting Urge.

39. Stuck playing the same roles again and again: TYPECAST.

42. " Qu __?": Spanish "What's up?": TAL.

43. Muted, as colors: PALE.

45. Makes minor adjustments: TWEAKS.

46. Extra-large: JUMBO.

47. Met performance: OPERA.

48. One step: STAIR.

49. Earth __: natural shades: TONES.

50. Blazing: AFIRE. Hand-up if you thought Saddles immediately.

53. Nove minus uno: OTTO.

54. Email heading word: FROM.

55. Wander about: ROVE.

56. Mountain goat: IBEX.

57. Zilch: NONE.

58. Comprehends: GETS.

The Grid:

The Grid

WOs: AXIL [sic] -> QUAD
ESPs: MYRA, TAL
Fav: JOSTLE is such a fun word.

There you have it folks. Next week we'll be back to our regularly scheduled Hahtoolah. It was fun (for me anyways) filling in.
Cheers,
-T

*I think it's also in my contract to include RUSH. DW got home Sunday to IAH from NRT but didn't go through

YYZed

Monday July 1, 2024 Doug Peterson

  

Happy Monday, everyone and welcome to the start of July! sumdaze here with a puzzle I'm calling  

No, not the Disney theme park ride. Instead, puzzle setter extraordinaire Doug Peterson takes us on a tour of where we can see various types of stars.

We have four themed entries with no reveal. All are clued with the initial phrase, "Where to see stars".

17 Across. Where to see stars on an app: YELP REVIEW.  

Click to enlarge.

30 Across. Where to see stars after a blow: BOXING MATCH.  

I always thought this was a cartoon thing but it is real. About 20 years ago I fell and hit the back of my head while ice-skating. I literally saw stars.

47 Across. Where to see stars under a dome: PLANETARIUM.  

65 Across. Where to see stars in Hollywood: WALK OF FAME.  

Coincidentally, they just announced the Class of 2025 inductees last Monday.

Apparently I took this pic back in '06.

Thanks for the fun, Doug! You have earned a gold star!

Across:
1. "__ Lisa": Louvre highlight: MONA.  Highlight is an understatement. Leonardo da Vinci's masterpiece attracts approximately 30,000 visitors each day to the Louvre.

5. Highly capable: ADEPT.

10. Squad car alerts, for short: APBS.  All-points bulletins

14. Unaccounted-for GI: AWOL.  GI is an abbreviation for an American soldier. Likewise, AWOL is an abbreviation for Absent Without Leave. This can land you in the brig.

15. "American Top 40" medium: RADIO. What a blast from the past! This radio program was co-created by its first host, Casey Kasem, in 1970. The program is currently hosted by Ryan Seacrest. How to Listen

16. Peek: LOOK.  

19. Assistant on Apple devices: SIRI.

20. New Year's Eve Potato Drop state: IDAHO.  Potato ... state ... has to be IDAHO. Here is a video for the 2024 drop:  

They drop it like a hot potato! <groan>

21. Mythical Himalayan beast: YETI.

22. Smart __: frozen food brand: ONES.  

I have not tried these. Are they good?

23. "The Golden Bachelor" network: ABC.  ABC has aired 28 seasons of The Bachelor and 20 seasons of The Bachelorette. These ten couples are still living happily ever after.

25. Motionless: INERT.

27. Carpentry tool: SAW.

35. "Frankly," in a text: TBH.  To Be Honest, my texts contain more semi-colons than periods.

36. Female pheasant: HEN.  Hunters in the area where I grew up called a male pheasant a rooster but I see now that some people say cock. Males establish a harem of as many as a dozen HENs.

The HEN is on the left.

37. Laughably silly: INANE.  Humor is in the mind of the beholder.

38. Org. that encourages flossing: ADA.  Four out of five dentists will tell you that "Organization" is abbreviated, so is the "American Dental Association".

39. Quick to prepare, like pudding or coffee: INSTANT.  I used to put these in DH's care packages when he was deployed.  

42. Ornamental pond fish: KOI.  KOI fish are a colorful version of the common carp. They have an average lifespan of 25-30 years.

43. Toned down: MUTED.  One way to tone down a color is to add gray to the color.

45. Moody genre: EMO.

46. Beings on UFOs: ETS.  The U.S. government now uses the initialism UAP (Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena). ETS are still extraterrestrials.  

51. Earn after taxes: NET.

52. Neckwear worn with mittens: SCARF.  

53. Threaded fastener: NUT.  Threaded misdirected me into thinking about clothing fasteners but it refers to those inside ridges.  

55. Effect in a tunnel: ECHO. 

57. Brutish Tolkien characters: ORCS.  I know this one from doing XWDs.

60. "__ Attraction": Glenn Close thriller: FATAL.  It was impossible to ignore the moral of this 1987 movie.  

64. Hamperful of laundry: LOAD. Nice!

67. Equivalent: SAME.

68. Paperless message: EMAIL.

69. Not occupied: FREE.  

70. Wood choppers: AXES.

71. "I wanna have a turn!": LEMME.  A phonetic spelling representing the pronunciation of let me in continuous rapid speech.

72. Pull hard: YANK.

Down:

1. "Please allow me": MAY I?.

2. Carried a balance: OWED.  Did you think of Lady Justice?  

Court of Final Appeal, Hong Kong

3. Mardi Gras city, informally: NOLA.  CSO to our New Orleans, Louisiana Cornerites!

4. First Greek letter: ALPHA.  

5. "__ we good?": ARE.  Yep. I think so.  

6. Folk hero Crockett: DAVY.  In 1827 he became a U.S. Congressman representing Tennessee.

7. Emmy winner Falco: EDIE.  She won three Emmy Awards for Outstanding Actress in a Drama Series during her time on The Sopranos. 

8. Cobbler container: PIE TIN.  Cobblers come in various shapes and sizes. My recipe uses a 9X13 Pyrex.

9. Service provided by a wrecker: TOWING.

10. Unsuccessful candidate: ALSO RAN.

11. "I see where you're coming from": POINT TAKEN.  Excellent bonus word!

12. Real snooze: BORE.

13. Winter resort rentals: SKIS.

18. AnnaSophia of "Bridge to Terabithia": ROBB.  AnnaSophia Robb played Leslie Burke in this 2007 movie, based on the 1977 Young Adult novel by Katherine Paterson.

24. "SportsCenter" anchor Linda: COHN.  Linda has anchored ESPN's SportsCenter since 1992.  

26. Issue forth: EMIT.

27. Notary public's mark: STAMP.  Notaries can act as impartial witnesses to various legal documents.  more info.

a notary public with her STAMP

28. "Opposites Attract" singer Paula: ABDUL.  The video for this 1989 song surprised me. I think you might like it!  

more info. from Paula's website  

29. "Ah, too bad": WHAT A SHAME.

31. "Hollywood Squares" symbols: XES.  

32. Prefix with face or lace: INTER-.  INTERlace and INTERface

33. 100 bucks: C-NOTE.  C is the Roman number for 100.

American paper currency comes in seven denominations:  $1, $2, $5, $10, $20, $50, and $100.

On July 14, 1969, the Department of the Treasury announced that currency notes in denominations of $500, $1,000, $5,000, and $10,000 would be discontinued immediately due to lack of use.

Which bill do you think was printed most in 2023?  Go here to find out.

34. Major caper: HEIST.  HEIST is a fun word. Let's listen to some groovy HEIST music:  

The Pink Panther Theme by Henry Mancini  (1963)

featuring Plas John Johnson Jr. on saxophone

39. Concept: IDEA.

40. Calais chum: AMI.  Calais is a city in France, where your male friend is your AMI and your female friend is your amie.

41. Word such as "word": NOUN.  

44. Converts into a secret message: ENCODES.  

I learned a lot of interesting history from this book.

48. Small spade: TROWEL.

49. House with a sharply sloping roof: A-FRAME.  Apparently, A-FRAME also acts as an apt and appropriate adjective. Awesome!

50. Bungle: MUFF.  

54. Stretchy candy: TAFFY.

55. "Frozen" sister with a French braid: ELSA. When I see the movie Frozen, I try Anna and ELSA ... or OLAF (if I think it is the snowman).

56. Gently persuade: COAX.  

COAXing us to try Cokes?

58. Seafood in a shell: CLAM.  Approximately 2% of the U.S. population is allergic to shellfish.  9 Most Common Food Allergies

59. __ milk: SKIM.  Cow's milk is #1 on the above list, affecting 2-3% of babies and toddlers.

61. "Teen Titans Go!" voice actress Strong: TARA.  her IMDb page

62. "So true!": AMEN.

63. Scallion relative: LEEK.  Try substituting LEEKs for the onions in your soup recipes for a flavorful change.

66. La Liga cheer: OLE.  This sounded like a European sports clue so ¡OLE! immediately came to mind.  La Liga website

The last stop on this star tour is the grid:

Hmmm..., this puzzle has me thinking about a hot cuppa at STARbucks. See you there!