This is my third Saturday themeless by Rafael which have all been in early winter ('23, '24 and '25)
I made great time through Rafael's puzzle because the fill was very "gettable" or had sufficient perp help.
Across:
1. Take credit?: OWE.
4. Kevin's "Bull Durham" role: CRASH.
9. Up: ASTIR.
14. Autoreply sender: BOT.
15. Prefix with -centric: HELIO - Ptolemy's geocentric (Earth-centered) theory was believed to be right for 1,500 years
16. Pressure: FORCE.
17. Device used in some medical and military training, informally: VR HEADSET.
19. Sooty passages: FLUES.
20. Closing statement?: I'M ALL DONE.
21. Mid day?: IDES ๐ It's the mid day of a month
22. Reptile that dominates Taylor Swift's "Reputation" era imagery: SNAKE - Daughter and granddaughters knew this instantly when I sent the clue to them. I, uh, had to wait for the crossings.
23. Punk, grunge, emo, et al.: ALT ROCK.
25. Camper's protection: TARP - Yeah, I put TENT first too.
27. Important figures of preindustrial Japan: SAMURAI.
29. Oktoberfest order: BIER
31. Border: ABUT.
33. Highly intelligent songbirds: TITS - When I searched for a picture of this pretty little bird, I got a lot of NSFW images.
34. All of the Barenaked Ladies, actually: MEN - Their frontman Ed Robertson (far right below) wrote the theme song for The Big Bang Theory in the shower in 15 minutes. The band recorded it and made big bucks.
35. Crรจme de la crรจme: TOP TIER.
38. Not amazing: MEH.
39. Suggestions, informally: RECS.
41. Confer, as authority: VEST.
42. Busy travel days: EVES.
44. Baby, in Irish slang: SNAPPER.
46. Allay: EASE.
48. People with no class?: TRUANTS.
...and FWIW
Wednesday's Rose Parade had a float with scenes from moviedom's most famous TRUANT
50. Apple Watch stat: STEPS.
53. Some beachfront dwellings: HUTS.
54. "I've heard quite enough": OH SPARE ME
57. Deceptive move: FEINT - Gotta love this one! (Explanation at bottom if you don't see it)
58. Follows a boat, in a way: WATER SKIS.
59. Bert's bestie: ERNIE.
60. Put up: ERECT.
61. Furniture wood: ELM.
62. Standing __: DESKS.
63. Some jabs: LEFTS ๐
64. "Called it": SEE.
Down:
1. Curt "Clearly": OBVI.
2. Nematodes, e.g.: WORMS.
3. Hunt in action movies: ETHAN.
4. Works outside?: CHALK ART.
5. More ripe, perhaps: REDDER.
6. To boot: ALSO.
7. Tuscan city that hosts the Palio horse races twice a year: SIENA.
8. Rooms together?: HOTEL SUITE ๐ Rooms as noun not a verb
9. Emotionally encourage: AFFIRM.
10. Was wildly popular, say: SOLD OUT.
11. "Serial" genre: TRUE CRIME.
12. Cutting-edge footwear?: ICE SKATES ๐
13. Hi or low follower: RES.
18. Tickle pink: ELATE.
24. Sugar magnate who established a network of British art galleries: TATE.
26. Over-the-counter option after an accident?: PAPER TOWEL ๐
28. "Sorta": ISH.
29. "Relatable": BEEN THERE.
30. Many tourist sites in Peru: INCA RUINS.
32. Group formed in Seoul in 2010: BTS.
34. __ Puff: SpongeBob's driving teacher: MRS.
36. Oast, for one: OVEN.
37. Takes it from the top: RESTARTS.
40. First artificial satellite: SPUTNIK - As a NASA guy, I would have had to turn in my Official Space Decoder Ring if I missed this one.
43. Swerves: VEERS.
45. Follows up on copying: PASTES.
47. __ ratio: ASPECT.
49. Portion: SHARE.
51. Some toys, for short: PEKES ๐
52. Upside-down frown: SMILE.
55. Australian actress Dawson: STEF
56. Bianco of "The Magicians": ESME - Signing autographs at Comic Con
57. Stoked: FED.
Baseball feint explained: There was a runner on first and the hitter hit a ball out to the center fielder. The shortstop pretended he caught the ball on the fly and the runner thought he would be easily doubled off first base, just gave up and returned to the dugout. The center fielder then fired the ball to the shortstop and the runner was tagged out. ๐
Today's
constructor, Zachary David Levy, selected a few common phrases and adds
a phonetic "long a" syllable to them. By doing so he creates some
interesting play-on-words that also use a couple of homophones
P-O-Ws
have become a common "theme" of Friday puzzles. Some are better than
others, and after my "intro" you'll see how this one from ZDL grades.
We'll see if he brought his "A" game ...
Which segues right to the reveal (found at 37-across, in the center of the grid): Peak performance, and an apt title for this puzzle: A GAME.
The themers:
17-across. Therapist's questionnaire?: SELF SURVEY. This one plays off of the more familiar term "SELF-SERVE" which refers to that which you can help yourself without any assistance. (see image below) In this example, the word "survey" combines the phonetic "serve" with "ey" (which sounds like a "long a"), and completes the idea
I'm sure a lot of salad bars were not in use during COVID
30-across. Paper model of a wrinkly dog?: CARD SHAR-PEI. This entry was a bit more literal than the first as it uses the word "Shar-pei", a wrinkly dog (see image below), without any phonetic or homo-phonic spelling. The term card sharpis the lesser-used term for "card shark", but as you'll see when you open the hyperlink is the original one
This Shar-pei is actually playing cards!
46-across. Empty cup at Starbucks?: VACANT LATTE. I was torn on this one as one of the cup sizes used at Starbucks is called a Grande.
And that word, too has a "long a" sound at its end. But Grande is
six-letters in length and Zachary only needed five. The term "vacant lot" is the p-o-w connector here. I'd show an image of one but it would be "empty", no? ๐
64-across. Celebration that involves rowdy games of Twister, facetiously?: BODY PAR-TAY. This entry resembles CARD SHAR-PEI as it uses the word par-tayliterally. The phrase "body part" connects with the game of Twister as you'll see in the image below:
************
Here is one that I came up with. Perhaps Zachary did, too, and it ended up on the cutting room floor:
"Muscular Asian islander with a dominant personality?" ATHLETIC TAIPEI
Despite this being a clever puzzle, the overall effect (for me) was just OAK - AY
I rate this ⭐⭐ and 3/4⭐
The Grid - just one mistake today for C-Moe
Across:
1. Spielberg thriller based on a Benchley novel: JAWS. "We're gonna need a bigger boat"
10. Pal: CHUM. Another way of cluing this would be to refer chum as a way to attract "Jaws".
14. Snack sometimes referred to as a sandwich: OREO. How do YOU eat an Oreo? I separate the two cookies and scrape the filling off with my teeth
15. Bounded: LEAPT.
16. Mata __: HARI.
19. Homemade website?: ETSY.
20. Peaceful greetings: SALAAMS. Moe-ku #1:
Some peaceful greetings
In an Arab-run deli:
Salami SALAAMS
21. Wide body: SEA. Where "Jaws" lives
23. Father's hermana: TIA. Spanglish? Shouldn't this clue be "Padre's hermana"?
24. Sultanate on Borneo: BRUNEI. Is this pronounced Broon AY or Broon Eye?
26. Keeping in the loop: CCING. This is also how we keep our blog-mistress, Zhoquin Burnikel "in the loop" - Moe-ku #2:
Ms. Burnikel stays
Informed, when she sees that we're
CCING C.C.
28. Loan fig.: APR. This kind of fitting, in a way. Some of us may need a loan in Apr. when it's tax time. The IRS offers these with a low Annual Percentage Rate for taxpayers who can't pony up the full amount owed
33. Smelling a rat, so to speak: LEERY. Moe-ku #3:
Psychedelic guru
Got suspicious, and now's called:
Timothy LEERY
35. Nursery refrain: E-I-E-I-O. Old MacDonald's line
36. Slowly go dark: FADE.
39. Members of Gil Grissom's team, briefly: CSIS. Short for Crime Scene Investigators. I'm not a big fan of this entry; the clue was difficult enough for those who did not know that Gil Grissomwas the night shift supervisor on the CBS hit series, CSI ... it also pluralizes an abbreviation
43. Bygone airline whose first flight was from Key West to Havana: PAN AM. Read all about it here
45. Whisky name: DEWAR. CSO to Irish Miss who likes her Dewar's on the rocks ๐ฅ
53. "The Secret of Monkey Island" figure: PIRATE. This answer
would have come to me if I knew what "The Secret of Monkey Island" is.
Apparently it's a video game ... not a clue for us "Boomers"
55. Tinkering inits.: DIY. Good Friday clue
56. Captured: WON. As in the game of chess; I captured the King and I won
59. Helped a cause, say: DONATED. I usually look at organizations that use at least 90% of the monies donated (to the actual cause or cure) before I do so
62. Caffeine-rich nut: KOLA. I prefer the caffeine-rich berry, also known as coffee
66. Old Testament book: AMOS. RUTH also fits
67. Trial site: VENUE. Never heard a courtroom called a "venue", but whatever
68. Chapeau spot: TETE. Today's Frawnch clue/entry. We already had Spanglish
Down:
1. __ stick: incense: JOSS. Joss stick or incense stick is a substance burned for fragrant scent
2. Floor plan measure: AREA.
3. Brought up with excellent manners, say: WELL BRED. Moe-ku #5:
The Cocker Spaniel
Had excellent manners, and
Is clearly, WELL BRED
4. To this point: SO FAR. AS YET also fits
5. Figure at a reunion dinner: ALUMNA. You'll notice her wearing a dress, skirt, or pants suit, perhaps
6. More succinct: TERSER. Not an attribute of C-Moe's blog,
usually, as they often contain run-on sentences, hyperlinks, YouTube
videos, random images, cartoons, and Moe-ku's
7. Head, to a Brit: LAV. LOO also fits
8. Big lugs: APES. Moe-ku #6:
Gorilla's car's wheels
Have unique fastener bolts:
They are called APE nuts
9. Lid affliction: STYE.
10. "Evita" narrator: CHE.
11. Genteel gesture: HAT TIP. Moe-ku #7:
At the restaurant,
Guest checked his fez, and left a
Generous HAT TIP
12. Bearish: URSINE. This almost became a Major problem for me, but ended up being quite Minor
13. "The Karate Kid" mentor: MIYAGI. I literally forgot the name. Was it Miyaga? Miyago? Miyagu? Perps to the rescue
18. Showing a bit of cheek: SAUCY. I once showed a bit of cheek at a nude beach. I wasn't called "saucy"; it was almost, Gross
22. Palm berry: ACAI. I wonder if the Palm BlackBerry phone ever considered calling itself an acai?
25. Aid for brainstorming: IDEA MAP. Moe's informational video
27. "Bad, Bad Leroy Brown" singer: CROCE. A Barbershop Quartet cover:
28. ET from the planet Melmac: ALF.
29. Pod filler: PEA.
31. City-building game franchise: SIM.
32. Bit of a giggle: HEE. I tried "TEE" first, to no delight of this solver
34. Fulfill a debt: REPAY.
37. Little pest: ANT.
38. 128 oz.: GAL.
40. Southern pitcherful: SWEET TEA. I could've sworn I had this entry once before, recently. As I said then, and will say now, I am not a big fan
41. "Can confirm": I AM. "Sam" confirms this, often
42. "Sold out" sign: SRO. Standing Room, Only
44. Once again: ANEW.
45. Carter of country: DEANA. She could've gotten a wax, instead ... shaving her legs is never mentioned, interestingly
46. Bar shelf assortment: VODKAS. Among all of the alcoholic beverages, vodkas are my least favorite, though they are OK in a Bloody Mary
Today veteran Matthew Stock treats us to an embedded letter theme, and doubles our fun by embedding two consecutive letters, and then doubling them in the fill. And to add to our fun he has at least one Easter Egg, plus some sparkly fill -- and as we'll see very shortly, some of it may be too sparkly!
Here are the themers ...
20A. "Wait for meeeee!": I'M COMING I'M COMING. A preview of coming attractions? ...
25A. Harry and Sally from "When Harry Met Sally ...," e.g.: ROM COM COUPLE. I started with the iconic "I'll have what she's having" clip (just Google that phrase if you don't know what I'm referring to), but then stumbled on this video review, which has much more to say about Harry and Sally's long term relationship than the 3 minute scene in the restaurant. It also has a brief scene about the influence that the movie had on other ROMCOMS,notably Heartburn another NoraEphron film ...
And this is how it all ended ...
49. Oscar-winning song from "Mary Poppins": CHIM CHIM CHEREE. Dick van Dyke at his finest ...
59A. Golden Arches order with two patties, and an apt title for this puzzle: MCDOUBLE. It would be easy to miss this if you mentally parsed the three themers, because the double MCs each span two words, as is the crossword convention. Feast your eyes on this ...
14. __ Bock: dark beer from Texas: SHINER. Bock beer is a dark beer first brewed in the 14th century in the Hanseatic town of Einbeck in Lower Saxony. This one is brewed in Shiner, Texas ...
16. Diecisรฉis dividido por dos: OCHO. Today we get a Spanish lesson and a math lesson all rolled into to one: "16 ÷ 2 = 8"
17. Behind: TUSH. KEISTER or PATOOTIE were too long.
18. Hindu practice: TANTRA. Tantra (Sanskrit: เคคเคจ्เคค्เคฐ, lit. 'expansion-device, salvation-spreader; loom, weave, warp') is an esoteric and quite complex tradition that developed on the Indian subcontinent from the middle of the 1st millennium CE onwards in both Hinduism and Buddhism. The term tantra, in the Indian traditions, also means any systematic broadly applicable "text, theory, system, method, instrument, technique or practice". A key feature of these traditions is the use of mantras, and mandalas. While Tantra is often associated in the West with eroticism, this connotation is not widespread in India.
Sri Yantra mandala
19. Welcome downfall for a gardener: RAIN.
20. [Theme clue].
23. Kindergartener: TOT. A little TATER?
24. RV park chain: KOA. KOA (short for Kampgrounds [sic] of America) is an American franchise of privately owned campgrounds. Having more than 500 locations across the United States and Canada, it is the world's largest system of privately owned campgrounds.
25. [Theme clue]
31. Brewpub offering: ALE. A constructor's favorite brewski, but now it has competition -- see 14A.
33. Big changes: SHAKE UPS. We may be in for a few SHAKE UPS in the coming year.
34. Race unit: LAP.
37. Perjurer: LIAR.
39. Soft mineral: TALC. Number 1 on the Mohs Hardness Scale, talc is a clay mineral composed of hydrated magnesium silicate, with the chemical formula Mg3Si4O10(OH)2. Talc in powdered form, often combined with corn starch, is used as baby powder (⚠). This mineral is used as a thickening agent and lubricant. It is also an ingredient in ceramics (glazes and low-fire clay bodies), paints, and roofing material. It is a main ingredient in many cosmetics.
Talc
40. "Your Majesty": SIRE. If a Brit were to encounter this gentleman on the street, he/she would initially address him as "Your Majesty", and then address him in any further conversation as SIRE. I've never met him, but I hear he's a nice bloke ...
King Charles III United Kingdom
41. Natural hairstyle: AFRO. An AFRO is hairstyle that was popular among some African Americans beginning in the 1960s, including the author of an autobiography I read recently called More Than I Imaginedby CNN journalist John Blake -- about growing up in West Baltimore during that time. It is a remarkable book that was strongly recommended to me by Nina (inanehiker), and I strongly recommend it to you ...
42. Cadence: RHYTHM. While RHYTHM, along with MELODY and HARMONY has always been an essential component of Western music, it wasn't until the advent of Jazz that it moved to the front of American Music ... 44. Bread flour: ATTA. Atta is a type of wheat flour, originated from the Indian subcontinent, used to make local flatbreads. Whole common wheat (Triticum aestivum) is generally used to make atta; it has a high gluten content, which provides elasticity, so the dough made out of atta flour is strong and can be rolled into thin sheets. Some of our favorite Indian dishes with atta flour are parathas (a portmanteau of from the Sanskrit "parat" and "atta" meaning literally "cooked dough"). The easiest to make are Aloo Parathas.
Aloo Parathas
45. Inexperienced sort: NEWBIE.
47. Some field journalists: EMBEDS. Today's constructor EMBEDDED MC into today's crossword fill -- definitely an Easter Egg.
49. [Theme clue]
54. African cackler: HYENA. The "Laughing Hyena" is also known as the "Spotted hyena". Not only are they funny, but they are highly intelligent. Here are a couple of the cacklers having a laugh ...
55. Traveling: AWAY.
56. Rule: REIGN. See also 40A.
58. "Helpful hardware folks" company: ACE. Ace Hardware Corporation is an American hardware retailers' cooperative based in Oak Brook, Illinois, United States. It is the largest non-grocery retail cooperative in the United States.
59. [Theme reveal]
62. Higher ed hurdle: GRE. The Graduate Record Examinations (GRE) is a standardized test that is part of the admissions process for many graduate schools in the United States and Canada and a few other countries. The GRE is owned and administered by Educational Testing Service (ETS). The test was established in 1936 by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching.
63. Not feeling so hot: ILL.
64. Passed (out): HANDED. METED was too short.
65. Put a spell on: HEX. Today's German lesson: "Witch = HEXE". This brings to mind one of my favorite songs by Robert Schumann: Waldesgespräch ("forest conversation") about an encounter in a forest between a hunter and a witch named Loreley -- things do not go well for our hunter. Here it's sung by Welsh mezzo-soprano Angharad Lyddon (with English subtitles) ...
66. In medias __: RES. Today's Latin lesson: "In the middle of things". Also today's literary lesson. This phrase is used to describe a narrative than begins in the middle, rather than beginning at the beginning. Some good examples are Hamlet, The Iliad, and the Odyssey.
67. Comes out with: UTTERS.
68. Vietnamese holiday whose full name translates to "festival of the first day": TET.
3. Shuffleboard piece: DISC. Shuffleboard is a game in which players use cues to push weighted discs, sending them gliding down a narrow court, with the purpose of having them come to rest within a marked scoring area ...
4. Onetime Apple media app: IPHOTO. iPhoto is a discontinued digital photograph manipulation software application developed by Apple Inc. It was included with every Mac computer from 2002 to 2015, when it was replaced with Apple's Photos application.
5. Larger __ life: THAN.
6. Take a toll?: RING.
7. Against: ANTI.
8. Long-lasting do: PERM.
9. Par for the course: NORMAL.
10. __ na tigela: Brazilian dish with berries: ACAI. Today's Portuguese lesson: "CROSSWORDESE = CROSSWORDESE". ๐
11. Like a stick: THIN.
12. Karaoke selection: SONG. I picked this one, but it might not be popular with some of our solvers ... ๐
14. Disney character initially called Experiment 626: STITCH. Experiment 626 was created on another planet and sent to destroy the Earth. After crash landing he is found by orphan girl Lilo, who names him STITCH. Lilo & Stitch have appeared in an animated film, and a TV series and are set to return in a new animated, real life movie scheduled for release in theaters on May 23, 2025 ...
15. Amass: RACK UP.
21. May honorees: MOMS.
22. "Silly me!": OOPS.
25. Rollers that might get stuck in the mud: REAR WHEELS. AKA RWD. There are actually 4 types of drivetrains: FWD, RWD, AWD and 4WD -- what's the difference?
26. Vow: OATH.
27. "Uh-huh ... ": MKAY. If I read this correctly it is a slurring of OKAY and a near clecho to 51D (this one doesn't have a bang (!)). This is supposed to tell us that the person quoted agrees with you. Don't you just love quote clues? ๐
28. Gaelic speaker: CELT. They are not only speakers, but great singers as well ...
29. "Stop poking me!": OUCH.
30. Rare spot for a No. 12 seed: ELITE EIGHT. Like "March Madness," the phrase "Elite Eight" originally referred to the Illinois High School Boys Basketball Championship in 1956, the single-elimination high school basketball tournament run by the Illinois High School Association (IHSA).
31. Astronaut Shepard: ALAN. Alan Bartlett Shepard Jr. (November 18, 1923 – July 21, 1998) was an American astronaut. In 1961, he became the second person and the first American to travel into space and, in 1971, he became the fifth and oldest person to walk on the Moon, at age 47.
Alan Shepard, Jr.
32. Progression from birth to death: LIFE CYCLE. "To everything there is a season '' - Ecclesiastes 3:1-8
35. Creative's credential: ART DEGREE. An artist is not a special person, every person is a special kind of artist -- and we all color outside the lines now and then.
36. Matar paneer vegetables: PEAS. Today's Hindi lesson: "MATAR = PEAS" and "PANEER = CHEESE". Here's Swasthi's recipe.
Matar Paneer
38. Songbird with an orange belly: ROBIN. They used to be a harbinger of Spring, but on the East Coast they seem be around all year ...
American Robin
Not to be confused with the English Robin, which albeit smaller, has been described as "aggressive, vicious, but peculiarly British". Aww, does he look vicious to you?
English Robin
40. Buffalo NHLer: SABRE. The Buffalo Sabres are a professional ice hockey team based in Buffalo, New York. The Sabres compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference.
42. Suggestion, casually: REC. Nina and I strongly REC reading the book highlighted in 41A.
43. Nothing to write home about: MEH. Meh.
46. Prayer leader: IMAM. For Sunni Muslims, Imam is most commonly used as the title of a prayer leader of a mosque. For Shia Muslims an Imam is a rightful descendent of the Prophet Mohammed and exercises not only spiritual power, but political power as well.
48. Trifling: MERE. Or a 21D in France.
50. Tore into: HAD AT.
51. "Uh-uh!": I WON'T. A near clecho to 27D (this one has a bang (!)). This is supposed to tell us the the person quoted doesn't agree with you. Don't you just love quote clues? ๐
52. "Euphoria" actress Apatow: MAUDE. Maude Annabelle Apatow (born December 15, 1997) is an American actress. She is best known for portraying Lexi Howard in the HBO drama series Euphoria (2019–present) -- IMHO an alternate title might be Depression. ๐
Maude Apatow
53. E- kin: CYBER. The prefix E(lectronic) and the prefix CYBER(netic) both connote machines.
54. Small margin of victory: HAIR. A hair can be anywhere between 17 to 181 microns (micrometers), but I don't think the cameras recording race results are that precise. ๐
57. On deck: NEXT. Mr. CHU ensues ...
60. "Wicked" director Jon M. __: CHU. Oz in an alternate universe -- Wicked is a 2024 American musical fantasy film directed by Jon M. Chu and written by Winnie Holzman and Dana Fox, with songs by Stephen Schwartz. It is the first installment of a two-part film adaptation of the stage musical of the same name based on the 1995 novel, which in turn is based on the L. Frank Baum's Oz books and the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz. Here's the trailer ...
Happy New Year~! - Ah, circles - nothing like starting 2025 off with a familiar constructor, but the same old, same old . . . . nine or more names, depending on how you count, twenty more 4LW than TLW, and a reveal that explains how the WATER words are "chopped up". The themers;
20. *Occasion to stay up late: SLUMBER PARTY - I recall playing Atari 2600 all night for my B-day sleep-over in 5th grade - and BAY
29. *Hard wear with links: CHAIN MAIL - I wore chain-mail at my "medieval" wedding - and CANAL
Yes - if you look closely, we had coconuts . . .
38. *Team whose stadium is at the highest elevation in the majors: COLORADO ROCKIES - the NHL's Colorado Rockies became the New Jersey Devils in 1982 - and LAKE
Barry went on to become a NY Ranger
45. *Ford Mustang, for one: MUSCLE CAR - I like the Mustang, but I'm partial to the '67 "10A." Cougar - and SEA
I actually had two, but '69s
53. Rough sailing, and what can be found in the answers to the starred clues: CHOPPY WATERS
And Away We Go~!
ACROSS:
1. "Hurry!" letters: ASAP - I believe most Cornerites are OK with "hurry" to define 'As Soon As Possible' - STAT, not so much
5. Post-marathon feelings: ACHES - post-beach hike, too; sloped sand is a tough surface for walking
I prefer the beach when it's Christmas Day - and the Atlantic was not CHOPPY Splynter with Cooper - there's SNOW on the sand~!
10. 88 Earth days on Mercury: YEAR - the planet "Spirographs" in its orbit
14. Ricky Martin's "Livin' la Vida __": LOCA - not really my thing, but there are some cool guitar licks
Co-written by Desmond Child - who has a long list of hits across several genres
15. Where the heart is: CHEST - Dah~! We had TORSO last week, so I tried it again - Bzzzt~!
16. Like a literary duckling: UGLY
17. Gelcap, e.g.: PILL
18. Rodeo rope: RIATA
19. Spy: MOLE - I am reading the Lance Spector books by Saul Herzog, and guess what~? Book #5 is called - The Spl(y)nter~!
The previous book, "The Sleeper", was a real page-turner
23. Anna's "Frozen" sister: ELSA - name #1
24. Cry of pain: "OUCH~!"
27. Protein source in Greek salad: FETA - AND - 68A. Second Greek letter: BETA; see 48D., too
34. "My gosh, you're right!": "SO IT IS~!"
36. Acr. from: OPP - 'across' , 'opposite' - a bit Meh.
37. Mrs. in Mexico: SRA - abbr.s
42. Actor Mahershala: ALI - not a clue; his Wiki; name #2
43. Head-slapping cry: "D'OH~!"
44. Glistens: SHINES - I guess; I think of it more as "sparkles"
49. Lovers' vows: "I DOs"
50. Branch of Islam: SHIA - name(ish) - and a note to the Noobs
51. Storyteller __ Christian Andersen: HANS - name #3
60. Mexican peninsula, informally: BAJA
63. Alpaca kin: LLAMA
Classic
64. Off-white shade: OPAL
65. Treated, as a sprain: ICED
66. Bamboozles: DUPES
67. Mythical cousin of Bigfoot: YETI
69. Big Broadway hit: SMASH
70. Come off as: SEEM
DOWN:
1. Much of Switzerland: ALPS
2. Gardener's purchase: SOIL - I had SEED, only 25% correct
3. RBG employer in the 1970s: ACLU - RBG = Ruth Bader Ginsburg, and the American Civil Liberties Union - I knew who the "notorious RBG" was, but not her history - the Wiki
4. South Carolina's state tree: PALMETTO
That's the state "shape" and its "flag", with the palmetto tree
5. Tracts of land: ACRES - whenever I hear "tracts of land", it reminds me of this scene
Monty Python @ 1:02 - "huge tracts of land"
6. Former French president Jacques: CHIRAC - no clue; Frawnche name #4
7. Haphazard pile: HEAP
8. "¿Cรณmo __ usted?": ESTA - Spanish lesson; "How are you~?"
9. People person?: STAR - People, the magazine, that is
10. Syllables said while rubbing one's tummy: YUM-YUM
11. Sense of self: EGO
12. Everyone: ALL
13. Sandwich bread: RYE
21. Serena's frenemy on "Gossip Girl": BLAIR - no clue, again; name #5
Methinks I should start watching, tho
22. Cargo weight: TON
25. Reno venue: CASINO - a casino in reno - I'm a poet - and I know it
26. New staff members: HIREES - a good WAG on my part
27. Magic competition hosted by Penn & Teller: FOOL US - on TV, the IMDb, a rhyme you see
but I've never watched
28. "Bad Guy" singer Billie: EILISH - I have heard of her; name #6
30. Hullabaloo: HOO-HA
31. Busy IRS mo.: APRil - I am still waiting for the Internal Revenue Service to resolve a dispute from 2022 . . . April 15th is a Tuesday - there will be no extensions
32. Wall St. debuts: IPOs - Initial Public Offering
33. Girl: LASS - I tried LADY - that's 50% correct
Check out this bagpipe LASS
34. Bogus deal: SCAM
35. "Smooth Operator" singer: SADE - "Smooth Sailing"; name #7
there's a great little guitar solo before the sax solo
39. "What's up, __?": DOC - Bugs Bunny to me - I did not know it was also a movie (BTW, Splynter was born a mere year before its release)
40. Fine dishes: CHINA
41. Playroom detritus: KIDS TOYS
46. Noisy summer bug: CICADA - I'm not a fan of summer, sun, sand, sweating and insects
47. "Well, __-di-dah!": LAH
48. Jay, Kay, and May, say: RHYMES - Ah, clever - the constructor's name is in there, but NAMES didn't fit - he even snuck "say" in there, as well
52. Inundated (with): AWASH
54. Poet Sharon: OLDS - never heard of her, and a departure from the 'car maker'; name #8
55. Purple fruit: PLUM - or sloe~?
56. Smurf with a white beard: PAPA - I guess it's a name, too - #9
He's the one with the, uh, beard . . .
57. Olympian's weapon: รPรE
I just learned there are specific "targets" in fencing
58. Hourly charge: RATE
59. Svelte: SLIM
60. High chair garb: BIB
There are times when I feel like I missed out, not having kids . . . .
61. Opening day pitcher, typically: ACE
62. Jacuzzi feature: JET - I plan to replace my "plain" tub with a Jacuzzi
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