Tuesday December 3, 2024 Zachary David Levy

HAT TRICKS.  Notice that each theme answer is in the DOWN position and the circles all spell a "dropping" HAT.  And, as we move across the grid, the HAT Drops Down until it ends at the bottom of the grid.

3-Down. Rueful words from a guest who can't stay for dessert: HATE TO EAT AND RUN.

5-Down. Contented sigh during a massage, perhaps: AH, THAT'S THE STUFF!

7-Down. Start of many an answer from Siri: HERE'S WHAT I FOUND.

10-Down. 2002 rom-com starring Jennifer Lopez and Ralph Fiennes: MAID IN MANHATTAN.

11. Instantly, or an apt title for this puzzle: AT THE DROP OF A HAT.

Here's the Grid so you can easily see the Dropping Hat.

Across:

1. Rapper/actor __ Jackson Jr.: O'SHEA.  O'Shea Jackson Jr. (b. February 24, 1991), also known by the stage name OMG.  He is the oldest son of actor Ice Cube, aka O'Shea Jackson, Sr. (b. June 15, 1969).

Father and Son.

6. "L'__!": "To life!": CHAIM.  Today's Hebrew lesson.  The word means Life.  It is also a male Hebrew name.  Two famous men named Chaim are Chaim Weizmann (Nov. 27, 1874 ~ Nov. 9, 1952) who was the first President of Israel, and Chaim Potok (b. Feb. 17, 1929 ~ July 23, 2002) a novelist.

11. "Abbott Elementary" TV network: ABC.  If you haven't seen this show, you should.

14. Overflowing (with): AWASH.

15. Natural hair dye: HENNA.  Henna is a reddish dye made from dried and powdered leaves of the henna tree.  It has been used since at least the ancient Egyptian period as a hair and body dye, notably in the temporary body art of mehndi (or "henna tattoo") resulting from the staining of the skin using dyes from the henna plant.  I got a henna tattoo recently.  It wore off after a couple of weeks.

16. Furthermore: TOO.

17. Used, as a desk: SAT AT.

18. Tehran inhabitant: IRANI.  The best book I have read this year is The Lion Women of Tehran, by Marjan Kamali.

19. Not yet scheduled: Abbr.: TBD.  As in To Be Determined.

20. Sleep masks: EYESHADES.

22. Capital of Qatar: DOHA.

24. Old ultrafast plane, for short: SST.  As in the SuperSonic Transport.

25. Long stretches: AGES.

26. Add to the payroll: HIRE.

27. Not fooled by: ON TO.

29. Squeeze out all the water, say: WRING DRY.

33. Sheds tears: WEEPS.

35. Abyss: CHASM.

36. Toyota __4: RAV.

37. Estranged: APART.

38. __ Vegas Aces: LAS.  Everything you wanted to know about Sin City and more.

39. Higher than: ABOVE.

41. Earn after taxes: NET.

42. Toffee bar brand: HEATH.  Yummers!

44. Neck parts supported by travel pillows: NAPES.

45. "Madam Secretary" star: TÉA LEONI.  Téa Pantaleoni (née Elizabeth Téa Pantaleoni; b. Feb. 25, 1966) portrayed Elizabeth McCord on Madam Secretary.  The show ran from 2014 to 2019.

47. "Go on, git!": SHOO!

48. Loch __ Monster: NESS.

49. Pest on a pet: FLEA.

51. Org. with a Most Wanted list: FBI.  Thomas James Holden was the first fugitive on the Federal Bureau of Investigation's Most Wanted List.

54. Polish, as an essay: EDIT.

55. Arthritis symptom: JOINT PAIN.

57. Out of sight?: FAR.

58. Company with orange-and-white trucks: U-HAUL.

60. Lake in the Sierra Nevadas: TAHOE.

61. Baton Rouge sch.: LSU.  As in Louisiana State University.  This school often makes it into the puzzles.  Geaux Tigers!

62. Lightheaded: FAINT.

63. Athlete's peak performance: A-GAME.

64. Tokyo currency: YEN.

65. Does some origami: FOLDS.

66. Famous: NOTED.

Down:

1. Camping spots for desert nomads: OASES.

2. Moves with the breeze: SWAYS.

4. Those, in Spanish: ESAS.  Today's Spanish lesson.

6. Admonish: CHIDE.

8. Santa __: hot California winds: ANAs.  The Santa Ana winds explained.

9. Overnight option: INN.

12. Bubble tea pearls: BOBA.  Everything you wanted to know about Boba tea but didn't know to ask.

13. Cape __, Massachusetts: COD.  Cape Cod got its name in 1602, 18 years before the Pilgrims landed on the Cape.  Today, it is a popular summer vacation destination.

21. Previously: AGO.

23. The "O" of NGO: ORG.  As in a Non-Governmental Organization.

26. That dude's: HIS.

28. "Morning Edition" network: NPR.  As in National Public Radio.  For a donation, you can get your very own NPR Tote Bag.

30. Foolhardy: RASH.

31. Rant and __: RAVE.

32. __ Saint Laurent: YVES.  Yves Saint Laurent (né Yves Henri Donat Mathieu-Saint-Laurent; Aug. 1, 1936 ~ June 1, 2008) was a fashion designed and established the haute couture fashion house bearing his name.  He was born in French Algeria.

33. Covet: WANT.

34. Sword that might have a French grip: ÉPÉE.  A crossword staple.  A French grip refers to a way of holding the fencing blade.   The hand is placed directly on the grip, with the fingers spread out and the thumb positioned on the side of the grip.

35. Extended family: CLAN.

40. Steamed bun in Asian cuisine: BAO.

43. Lip balm brand that shares a name with a dawn goddess: EOS.  Greek mythology.

46. Hawaiian garland: LEI.

47. Capitol Hill VIP: SEN.  As in a Senator.

50. Happy tunes: LILTS.

52. Ecosystem: BIOME.  National Geographic defines a Biome as "an area classified according to the species that live in that location."

53. "Boy, do __ a vacation!": I NEED.

54. Get (into) carefully: EASE.

55. One corner of a Monopoly board: JAIL.  Go directly to Jail.  Do not pass go and do not collect $200.

56. When doubled, largest city in American Samoa: PAGO.

57. Take to the sky: FLY.

59. "Ni __": Chinese "Hello": HAO.  Today's Chinese lesson.

Hat's off to all!

חתולה

Monday December 2, 2024 Janice Luttrell

  

Happy Monday, everyone! sumdaze here with an unambiguous puzzle from constructor Janice Luttrell.

Theme:                

(I hope I get some leeway with this one because we are officially in December now.)

I'll be straight with you. I zipped through this one easy-peasy. My only correction was changing the final letter in PLAIN CLOTHES from a D to an S when I came across the MOOSE.

Here are the themers...

20 Across. Classic Allen Funt series with practical jokes: CANDID CAMERA.  Allen Albert Funt (1914-1999) was an American television producer, director, writer and television personality, best known as the creator and host of Candid Camera from the 1940s to 1980s, as either a regular television show or a television series of specials. Its most notable run was from 1960 to 1967 on CBS. Here is a 1:46 min. clip.

27 Across. Shortest ways to travel: DIRECT ROUTES.  

44. Like detectives sporting civvies: PLAIN CLOTHES.  

...and the reveal:

52 Across. "In all honesty, ... " and what the starts of 20-, 27-, and 44-Across might say?: LET ME BE FRANK.

CANDID, DIRECT, and PLAIN can all be FRANK because they are all synonyms for the word FRANK.  

Across:

1. "Waves of grain" shade: AMBER.  This is a reference to the song America the Beautiful.

I liked this clue. It gets the puzzle off to a great start.

6. Exam: TEST.

10. Spiral: COIL.

14. Musical pace set by a conductor: TEMPO.     and     40-Across. U2 lead singer: BONO.

In the song Vertigo by U2, lead singer BONO sets the TEMPO with "Uno, dos, tres, catorce." (1, 2, 3, 14???)  

15. Cuba, por ejemplo: ISLA.  Translation:  Cuba, for example, is an island. (The official language of Cuba is Spanish.)

16. Maui's scenic __ Highway: HANA.  Sometimes called The Road to HANA, this is a 64.4- mile (103.6-km.) drive from Kahului (location of Maui's main airport) to just beyond HANA. They say it has 600 turns.

17. Proverb: MAXIM.  

18. Stressfully close game: NAIL BITER.  Here's a 1 min. example:  

22. Extraterrestrial of 1980s TV: ALF.

25. Word with a maiden name: NÉE.     and     48-Down. "Judy" star Zellweger: RENÉE.

There is an etymological connection. French née is the feminine of né, which means born, and is the past participle of naître (to be born) from the Latin nasci.

So RENÉE is a feminine name of French origin that means "to be reborn" or "born again".

I was named as an homage to my French grandmother but the accent mark was not included.

26. Takes five: RESTS.  Take five is an idiomatic phrase meaning to take a break (from work). It loosely refers to five minutes, but who's counting?

32. Greek salad fruit: OLIVE.     and     55-Down. Greek salad cheese: FETA.  

Other common ingredients include
cucumbers, tomatoes, red onions, and green bell pepper.

33. Sheep sounds: BAAS.  Here are sheep sounds in other languages (I found these on the internet. Feel free to correct or add to them.):  

34. Beaver creation: DAM.  This is a time lapse video of an industrious beaver family building a DAM at Hallam Lake, Colorado (2:55 min.). Keep an eye on the rocks to the right. They start to disappear as the water rises. The video notes say, "Beavers build dams in order to create more swimmable areas in their environment. This becomes very important during the winter months when surface water freezes, and moving on land becomes more difficult."

Nature and the instinctual behaviors of animals are so amazing!  

37. Assign stars to: RATE.   ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

38. Like pet parakeets: CAGED.

41. Prefix with system: ECO-.  An ecosystem is a geographic area where plants, animals, and other organisms, as well as weather and landscapes, work together to form a bubble of life.  

I used to have one of these self-sustaining EcoSpheres.

42. Greasy: OILY.

43. Tropical fruit: MANGO.  

What's not to love?

47. Sandwich slices: BREAD.     and     61-Down. Type of 47-Across: RYE.

My favorite Stitch character is Reuben, a.k.a. Experiment 625. He is the last failed prototype of Stitch (Experiment 626) and possesses all of Stitch's powers but prefers to make really good sandwiches.  

"Reuben" is a great name for a sandwich aficionado!

50. __ Lingus: AER.  This airline was founded by the Irish government in 1936. It was privatized between 2006 and 2015 and is now wholly owned by International Airlines Group.

51. Spanish "Bravo!": OLE.

57. Received from an estate: INHERITED.

58. Conclude by reasoning: INFER.

62. Banana covering: PEEL.  Apparently monkeys start at the bottom when they PEEL a banana. Does anyone here do it that way?  

63. Opposed to: ANTI.

64. Requiring constant validation, perhaps: NEEDY.  

65. Blood bank fluids: SERA.  SERA and serums are both plural forms of serum.

66. Old car from Sweden: SAAB.  General Motors bought out SAAB Automobile in 2000. It went defunct in 2011. Today the Swedish SAAB company is active in defense and security.

(4 min. read)

67. Honking birds: GEESE.  Here are GEESE sounds in other languages (I found these on the internet. Feel free to correct or add to them.):  

Down:

1. 24/7 money source: ATM.

2. "Give __ break!": ME A.  This one made me think of those old Kit Kat candy bar commercials.  

3. Sport with wheelies, for short: BMX.  bicycle/bike motocross

4. "Awesome, dude!": EPIC.  

I thought IM☘ might like that this guy ran out of superlatives.

5. Genre for novelists Colleen Hoover and Emily Henry: ROMANCE.  I shelve a lot of Colleen Hoover books when I volunteer at my library but I am unfamiliar with the second author.

6. Dating app with a flame logo: TINDER.  

7. Morales of "NYPD Blue": ESAI. As Hahtoolah might say, "ESAI makes frequent guest appearances in the crossword puzzles."

8. Lost traction: SLID.  

9. Mineral no longer used in bath powder: TALC.

10. Wind __: tinklers on porches: CHIMES.  In Japan, the sound of a ふうりん, or "wind-bell" has a cooling effect during the hot Japanese summers. I like that a sound can make one feel cooler.  

The piece of paper ensures is will make a sound in even the slightest breeze.

11. Hall's Rock & Roll Hall of Fame partner: OATES.  Hall & Oates were inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2014. Oates co-wrote this song and is the one playing lead guitar.

Daryl Hall & John Oates  ~  I Can't Go for That (No Can Do)  ~  1981

<complete with an 1980s-style sax solo>

The lyrics are said to be about the music business and being pushed around by big labels.

12. Chemically inactive: INERT.  For example, an INERT gas does not readily undergo chemical reaction with other chemical substances.

13. "__ Theme": "Doctor Zhivago" music: LARAS.  Such gorgeous, stirring music -- and fun instruments, too!

19. Exposes: BARES.

21. Pickleball court divider: NET.

22. Think the world of: ADORE.

23. Shrub with lavender flowers: LILAC.  I cannot remember if I already shared this. I used to live in an old neighborhood in Colorado with a lot of old LILAC shrubs. I was told that the homes in the area used to have outhouses and the spring-blooming LILACs helped offset the smell when 'things' thawed out.

24. __-Lay snacks: FRITO.  Frito-Lay is a subsidiary of PepsiCo. They make all these...and more.  

28. New Year's __: EVE.  

29. Reproductive health doc: OB/GYN.  Doctor is shortened, so is obstetrics/gynecology.

30. Persian Gulf fed.: UAE.  United Arab Emirates

31. Smidgen: TAD.

34. "Tiny Bubbles" singer: DON HO.  (1930-2007)  Né Donald Tai Lloyd Ho was a Hawaiian entertainer best known for this song, written by Massachusetts-born Leon Pober. 

35. __ hair pasta: ANGEL.  Probably not a first choice for people with trichophobia.  

It's fine (like one might imagine an angel's hair to be)
so you only need to boil it for 3-4 minutes.

36. Bullwinkle, e.g.: MOOSE.  

38. Spy org.: CIA.  

39. Boxer Muhammad: ALI.

40. Baseball club: BAT.  Perhaps a bit of misdirection here, sending some solvers toward searching for three-letter abbreviations for names of MBA teams (clubs).  

SLC atop a BAT

42. More mature: OLDER.  For a fruit fly, that would be 40-50 days. Age really is relative.

43. Break of day: MORNING.  Sunrise here today is not until 7:02 a.m. Oof!

44. Anderson of "Baywatch": PAMELA.  

Pamela played C.J. Parker for five seasons (1992-97) 
on the TV series, Baywatch. 

45. "Invasion of Privacy" rapper: CARDI B.  

Cardi B is a 32-year old American rapper.
She is married to Offset. #H-Gary'sShrugEmoticon

46. __ & Perrins steak sauce: LEA.  Lea & Perrins is in Worcester, England and is best known as the producer of Lea & Perrins Worcestershire sauce. It is a United Kingdom-based subsidiary of Kraft Heinz (an American company). 

47. Radar screen flashes: BLIPS.

49. Bygone anesthetic: ETHER.

53. Objectivity spoiler: BIAS.

54. Sicilian volcano: ETNA.  Speaking of Italian volcanos, did you happen to read this recent news story about DNA and Pompeii?

56. Leg joint: KNEE.  We use our KNEEs to kneel.

59. Service charge: FEE.  

This comic isn't that funny because it is probably true....

60. Magazine VIPs: EDS.  Editors are very important people in the magazine world.

I will be forthcoming with today's grid:

All four of the themed entries have 12 letters.

Outspoken readers are welcome to join the comments below...