Saturday, July 5, 2025, David P. Williams

 Saturday Themeless by David P. Williams

This is my fourth puzzle from Dave and it was very entertaining, eventually. I've got to learn that PEAL, not peel, is the sound of a ringing bell! 

Across:

1. Gets in over one's head?: SCUBAS.

       

7. Italian sports cars, colloquially: LAMBOS - Lamborghini prices range from $200,00 - $600,000

13. Vancouver team: CANUCKS.

15. Globe direction?: EXEUNT- Nope, Dave, you didn't get me on this one! I thought of the Globe Theater right away. EXEUNT is a stage direction where a group leaves the stage together and EXEUNT Omnes means everyone leaves the stage.

This iteration of The Globe Theater 
was reconstructed in 1997 
and is near the original 1599 site  
in London's West End 

16. Hand in the kitchen: OVEN MITT 😀

18. Flip (between): TOGGLE.

19. Duane __: NYC drugstore chain: READE.

20. Dynasty: REIGN.

22. Comb builder: BEE.

23. Jet stream heading: EAST.

24. Gambling swindle: BUNCO The radio dramatization of Joe Friday working BUNCO (29:00)

25. Ring: PEAL.

26. Dump: STY.

27. Word on some diplomas: MAGNA - MAGNA Cum Laude 

28. Bob and __: WEAVE - Nobody did it better

29. "Don't give up!": HANG IN THERE.

31. Means of improving airflow: NASAL STRIPS - They didn't work for me. The next step was a CPAP machine

32. Professional writing?: LOVE LETTERS 😀 One who professes love might certainly write professional LOVE LETTERS. It was an easy fill but parsing it took me some time. 

I wrote to Dave asking for help and he then confirmed what I thought was right:

Hi Gary,

The clue is a play on the phrase “to profess (one’s) love” — a ? was probably warranted to indicate the stretch.

Thanks for solving,

DW

33. Part of a skin care regimen: TONER and 40. Target of a skin care regimen: PORE.

34. Displays obvious pride: BEAMS.

35. Global revolution?: DAY 😀 Oops, a nitpicky science teacher would say a DAY on Earth is because of a global rotation. A revolution is a year.

38. "Bonanza" brother: HOSS - I'll bet you can name all four of these members of the Cartwright family. If you can't, I have the names at the bottom of the write-up. *

39. Tremble: QUAKE - Hmmm... with_ _ A K E something else came to my mind.

41. Guitar kin, informally: UKE. 

42. Caller ID?: IT'S ME - Much better than the recent IT ME.

43. Espagnole, for one: SAUCE - Espagnole is French for Spanish but this is a French SAUCE. Explanation of the name.

44. Words before a French kiss?: MON AMI 😀 - A French person might say MON AMI (my friend) to  another French person before any kind of a kiss including an, uh, "French kiss". 

My friend, my lover,
my soulmate

46. "Wait a sec": SIT TIGHT.

48. Double over laughing: BUST UP 😀

49. Hard nut to crack: TOUGHIE  and 35. Like undercooked pizza: DOUGHY - These two fills have "G's" that pronounce as an /f/near each other.

50. Gets in hot water?: STEEPS.

51. Toed the line: OBEYED.

Down:

1. Makes a good point: SCORES.

2. Warning: CAVEAT.

3. Worried: UNEASY.

4. Trademarked pan: BUNDT.

5. Maker of jet-propelled transport: ACME.

6. Carving implement: SKI.

7. "Drop it!": LET GO.

8. Nerve fiber: AXON.

9. Gig part: MEG - There are 1,024 MEGabytes in a GIGabyte

10. Pet peeves: BUG BEARS ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

11. Fresh off the boat, perhaps: ON LEAVE - Honolulu had thousands of sailors ON LEAVE in the 1940's while just days away from combat.

12. Wrestler George "The Animal" __: STEELE.

14. Bumpy ride, metaphorically: STRUGGLE BUS.

17. Couples in love?: TENNIS TEAMS 😀 - All tennis matches start at love - love (0 - 0)

21. "This is killing me!": I CAN'T TAKE IT - If you haven't seen the movie Network, you need to find it!

24. Tired: BANAL - A teacher's meeting at 4 pm after teaching all day.

25. Buds: PEEPS.

27. Atomic clock part: MASER - Wanna know more?

28. Sounds from fans: WHIRS.

29. Moneyed ones: HAVES.

30. Area adjacent to the French Quarter: TREME.

31. Baloney: NONSENSE.

32. One in the watch business: LOOKOUT  - The result of a bad 1912 LOOKOUT job (2:49)

33. Digits on scales, maybe: THUMBS - Nobody did it better than Norman Rockwell

36. "Riverdale" redhead: ARCHIE - Here he is proudly wearing his Riverdale letter sweater

37. Tossed, slangily: YEETED.

39. Ear pieces?: Q-TIPS.

40. Wade Trophy winner Bueckers on the Dallas Wings: PAIGE - She won the trophy for being the best collegiate women's basketball player at U Conn and now plays pro ball in Dallas

 

42. Morning mumble: I'M UP.

43. Toe-tap?: STUB - Oh the language it generates...

45. Chowed down or chewed up: ATE.

47. Extra: TOO.

* The Cartwrights are Adam, Little Joe, Ben and HOSS

Friday, July 4, 2025 - Zachary David Levy

 

 Theme: "Oh Where, Oh Where Has My Little Dog Gone"?

[only because she (Lisa LOEB) showed up at 68-across this past Tuesday]

Puzzling thoughts:

I will admit that after solving today's Zachary David Levy puzzle, I was a bit perplexed.  I kept looking and looking for some unifier that brought this puzzle's reveal (64-across. Goldarn, or a hint to making the starred clues match their answers: DOGGONE.) to an "aha" moment.  Maybe the reveal should be DOG GONE.  And then, like the proverbial can of V8 Juice, it hit me:  the "key" is to look at each of the four starred clues, find the canine (i.e., "dog"), get rid of the pooch, and then re-read the clue

Still stumped?  Let's look at all four individually and see where the little dog has gone

3-down. *Jet setter: PITCH BLACK.  In the clue, eliminate the word "setter" (a name of a dog breed) from "jet" and then match the phrase "pitch black" to the clue "jet".  Best thing I could find that ties the word "jet" to Pitch Black is shown in the video below

7-down. *Puget sound: PHONE HOME.  In the clue, remove the letters "p.u.g." (pug, another dog breed) from the word Puget, and you're left with the clue: "ET sound".  And for those who watched the eponymous movie, "E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial", the "phone home" line is well-known.  For those who haven't (or those who forgot) I've linked a short video clip below

Note:  for those who thought this clue and answer might refer to the body of water in Washington state, the word "sound" in the clue is not capitalized.  Additionally, this clue/answer was the one that gave it away for Chairman Moe.  I kept thinking, "phone home" is an E.T. catchphrase and sure enough ...

11-down. *Boxer brief: SHORT-LIVED. Once again, once the "dog word" boxer is gone from the word brief the clue/answer makes sense.  Something that is "brief" is definitely short-lived.  

53-across. *Labatt offerings: WIRELESS ROUTERS.  Similar to 7-down, the dog that disappears is in the first word of the clue, Lab.  And what is left behind is another abbreviation ATT, a communications company that also specializes in the sale of (offers) wireless routers

Like this one

So, there you have it.  Not so tough once you examine the clues closely.  I came "this close" to asking my fellow bloggers for assistance, but once I got the reveal it all made sense.  I'll comment further about some specific areas in the rest of the puzzle in the section below

The grid symmetry is somewhat unusual.  The blocks (black squares) in the center of the grid almost appear to be a smiley face with its tongue sticking out!  Not sure if this was Zachary's intention, but the grid pattern certainly allowed him to include all of the entries 

Here are a couple of clues/entries that ended up in the editor's waste basket:

Clue:  Rock hound: OUTCROPPING

Clue:  Joe Cocker: CUP OF COFFEE

For what it's worth, I was kind of hoping for an Independence Day themed puzzle, but no fireworks. So in lieu of none in the puzzle, I'll add this to the recap:

One year shy of 250 ...

I also thought about using "Who Let the Dogs Out" for my theme title.  For those who wanted that one instead, here is a brief clip:

The Grid

On to the rest ... 

Across:
1. "That's on me": OOPS.  In the words of my Crossword Corner buddy, desper-otto, "have I ever told you how frustrating it is not to solve 1-across?" This remained unsolved until perps came to the rescue

5. Ready for bed, briefly: IN PJS.  Not often seen (the answer, that is) in crossword puzzles but I like it. If I had to answer this personally, the answer would be IN MBS.  TMI??  Wait until you see 43- and 44-across ...

10. Invitation abbreviation: RSVP.  No RSVP needed to visit the Crossword Corner; just show up!

14. Ballet move: PLIE. I had so much trouble with the NW corner of this puzzle that I entered this word and erased it four times.  Should've trusted my instincts

15. Like seven Nolan Ryan games: NO HIT.  Ryan is #1 all-time in throwing the most no hitters

16. River that ends in Cairo: OHIO.  A very clever and misdirecting clue.  Cairo, IL is the general place where the OHIO river merges with the Mississippi River.  You think this is false?  Please don't be in denile [sic]

Technically, just south of Cairo

17. Some FD members: EMTS.  FD = Fire Department

18. Walk heavily: TROMP.  I'm sure that some folks breathed a sigh of relief when they saw an "O" as the vowel in this word entry ... 

19. Not all: MOST.  SOME also fits

20. Latte order: DECAF.  MOCHA was fitting this spot for way too long; hence my troubles in the NW corner

22. Demo letters: TNT.  Demo as in "demolition"; but my puzzle grid was far from being blown up

23. "No one __": CARES.  The phrase "Gives a $hit" had too many letters 😜

24. Average joe: SCHMO.  Average "Moe" would have given us Stooge 😀

25. "Good one": HEH.  "Hah" also fit

26. Unable to sit still: ANTSY.  This describes me at times

27. Name that also means "son of" in Hebrew: BEN.  I had to cheat to get this answer; my lack of Hebrew knowledge leaves me verklempt und verstumpft - does Yiddish count?

28. "Billions" network, for short: SHO.  I tried HBO to no avail

29. Nada: NIL. "Zip" fit

30. Ga. capital: ATL.  Also, the airport code for Hartsfield-Jackson Intl 

32. Got ready for school?: TUTORED.  This wasn't as hard to figure out as the clue might have suggested

35. Sort: ILK. Crossword-ese

38. Spot for rumination: LEA.  A bit of a stretch, IMO but I get it.  I don't know if I ever meditated in a LEA; maybe a wooded spot, though and certainly at the beach

39. Salon step: SHAMPOO.  Speaking of shampoo ... why do some (fill in the blank) exhaust an entire bottle of it while showering?  Because they take the directions on the bottle too literally.  It reads: "lather, rinse, repeat ..."

40. Vehicle on the move?: VAN.  Were you "moved" by this clue/answer?? 

41. Creatures that make Frodo's sword glow blue: ORCS. Thanks to Ms. Margaret (my partner) for helping me with this one

43. Liberates: FREES.  The Naturist Society celebrates two International "naked" days:  The first Saturday in May is World Naked Gardening Day;  the 21st of June is Naked Hiking Day.  Nothing FREES you like doing these activities in your birthday suit - but apply plenty of sunscreen and stay hydrated if you choose to participate in these events (next year)

[the links above do NOT show anyone naked; in case you were wondering ...]

44. Low-carb diet: KETO.  After this past hiatus I took (and certainly after the one coming up in July and August) the Chairman will need to adopt this diet (or one similar) to shed a few unwanted #s - so I continue to look good in mbs

45. Some Polynesian carvings: TIKIS.  This filled with perps and seemed appropriate

47. __ finger: INDEX.  "Ring" was too short; "middle" was too long; PINKY, also fit

48. Rattle off: NAME.  Great clue

51. Word on a cornerstone: ANNO.  ESTD fit until it didn't

[theme entry]

60. Drink suffix: ADE.  I also struggled a bit in the SW corner, but ADE was the logical answer.  A CSO to our former Friday Sherpa LemonADE714

61. Figure on the red carpet: A-LISTER.  Several hyphenated answers in today's puzzle

62. "This is the life": AAH.  What I as a retired person says quite often

63. Serene: ZEN.  The feeling after ruminating in a LEA perhaps?

[reveal / theme unifier] 

65. Hydrotherapy spot: SPA.  Doggone it!  If you insert a letter "C" into this answer you'd have SPCA 

66. Use up: EAT.  This consumed more time (to solve) than necessary

67. Gregory Peck's co-star in "The Paradine Case": ANN TODD.  A 1947 film with an actor most folks would not recall.  This one definitely took a Google search to confirm

68. Atty.'s title: ESQ.  Short for ESQuire

Down:
1. News stands?: OP-EDS.  In the words of my Crossword Corner buddy, desper-otto, "have I ever told you how frustrating it is not to solve 1-down?"

2. Native of Tabasco: OLMEC.  MAYAN fits, too, and that mistake made the NW corner nearly impossible to solve without a few "cheats"

[theme entry]

4. Word in a magical phrase: SESAME.  PRESTO fit, too

5. QB mishap: INT.  Short for "INTerception" - often thrown by QuarterBacks

6. Guiding principle, metaphorically: NORTH STAR.  Another great clue

[theme entry]

8. First Native American to win Olympic gold: JIM THORPE.  Now we know why Zachary used IN PJS for 5-across.  Needed the "J" to begin Jim.  BTW, I do like it when a constructor uses the full name of a person rather than just their first or last name

9. Gas additive brand: STP.  Question:  when was the last time anyone used STP as a gasoline additive? Not I.  Not since the 1970's for me.  Corner Quiz:  Who was the spokesman for STP back in the day? 

[Answer:  this guy]

10. Itinerant people whose flag depicts a wagon wheel: ROMANI.  All perps

[theme entry]

12. Shop clamps: VISES.  Using these when I was in shop class (woodworking) was one of my strengths; one of my devices I guess ... 

13. Hopscotch, in New York slang: POTSY.  Filled with perps.  My knowledge of New York slang is slightly less than my knowledge of Hebrew.  I guess that a clue that referred to a character on "Happy Days" would've been too easy for Friday

21. Text formatting array: FONTS.  I think the default text FONT for the blog is Georgia

23. "Count on me": CAN DO.  I tried "I AM IN" first

30. Tons: A LOT.  This is not one of my favorite entries, but it seems to show up a lot in crossword puzzles

31. Actress Polo: TERI.  Another word that filled with perps [from the Internet]: "Theresa Elizabeth Polo is an American actress. She starred as Pamela Martha Focker (née Byrnes) in the Meet the Parents trilogy, Helen Santos in The West Wing, and played the role of police officer Stef Adams Foster in the Freeform series"

Polo, c. 2012

33. Old TV dial letters: UHF.  I tried VHF first - a coin toss for sure

34. Dawn goddess: EOS.  Anyone ever wonder if there is a Palmolive goddess?  Oh!  There is!! Her name is Madge, and she's a manicurist

36. Past due: LATE.  Term used for library books and expectant mothers

37. Fort south of Indianapolis: KNOX.  Ft. KNOX is in Kentucky, but it is almost due south of Indianapolis if you check a map

42. Trig ratio: SINE. Moe-ku #1:

        Astrophysicist

        Used trigonometrics. They

        Were called "Old Lange SINEs"

44. Tangle: KNOT.

46. Canadian tea brand: SALADA.  I recall this tea brand, but it isn't a name I hear often; a mini CSO to Canadian Eh!  And of course, worthy of another commercial from the archives:

47. Toughened: INURED.  Did anyone else find this one too hard?

49. Noggin: MELON.  I put BRAIN in first 

50. Endorse remotely: E-SIGN.  My e-signature looks nothing like my written one

51. Nickname in "Star Wars": AR-TOO.  Cee Three Pee Oh didn't fit

52. Seemingly forever: NO END.  Not today's blog; finished it in record time

53. Google Maps alternative: WAZE.  Lots of tough entries today, including this one.  Definitely a Friday puzzle, finally!! Lucina must be pleased! 😉

54. Inkling: IDEA.  What I had for less than 1/2 of the answers

55. Studio figure: RENT.  Great clue - a "studio" is another name for an apartment for which one pays RENT

56. NCO rank: SSGT.  No problem

57. Facility: EASE. No problem

58. Uses a gavel: RAPS. Moe-ku #2:

        Musician Ice-T

        Decides to become a judge;

        He enjoys his RAPS (with his gavel)

59. Former NBAer known as "The Big Cactus": SHAQ.  His nickname when he played for the Arizona Suns.  Here are some of his other nicknames beginning with "The Big"

 

 

My "dogs" are tired.  Please add your comments and thoughts in the section below ... 

Thursday, July 3, 2025, Jake Halperin

 Theme:  Domain of science

Experienced constructor Jake Halperin defines three scientific domains in grid-spanning theme answers, each of which uses a different word for "domain" taken from an example of the science.  The theme clues and answers are:

19. Forensics?: CRIME SCENE SCENE.  Forensics is the application of scientific techniques to matters of law, especially the investigation of crimes.  A forensic scientist often finds himself at a crime scene.  That's his "scene," or domain of expertise.

36. Geometry?: SURFACE AREA AREA.  Geometry is a branch of mathematics concerned with shapes and dimensions of objects.  A geometrician may be asked to determine the surface area of an object.  That's his "area," or domain of expertise.

49. Physics?: FORCE FIELD FIELD.  Physics is the study of matter, energy and force.  If you're dealing with a force field, you'll want a physicist.  That's his "field," or domain of expertise.

Hopefully these domains were in your wheelhouse!  Let's investigate the rest of the clues and answers.

Across:

1. Petty quarrel: SPAT.

5. Chesapeake and Delaware: BAYS.  The Chesapeake and Delaware Bays are two distinct bodies of water on the east coast, connected by the 12-mile Chesapeake and Delaware Canal.

9. Outstanding papers?: IOUs.  Unpaid debts.

13. "That's a nauseating thought!": YECH.  A little less popular than "yuck"?

14. "We can ride together!": HOP ON.  I tried HOP iN first.

15. In-between dress length: MIDI.  Mini, midi, maxi.  When I was in elementary school, all skirts fell just below the knee.  In middle school, the hemlines climbed as high as possible without revealing all.  Then suddenly, ankle length "granny gowns" were a thing ... and the whole idea of gradually changing styles went out the window.  You can wear whatever you want.

16. Nick Mohammed's "Ted Lasso" role: NATE.

Nick Mohammed as Nathan "Nate" Shelley on "Ted Lasso"

17. Comic installment: ISSUE.  Comic books come out in issues.

18. Piles (of): A LOT.  Bunches and bunches.

19. [Theme clue]

22. "I need help!": SOS.  SOS originated as a Morse code sequence (...---...) specifically chosen for its simplicity and ease of recognition as a universal distress signal.  Backronyms like "Save Our Souls" and "Save Our Ship" were later invented as mnemonic phrases for the signal.

23. Maintain a lab coat?: GROOM.  Maintain a *labrador retriever's* coat!

Bathe and brush your dog!

24. Ghostly pale: ASHEN.

27. Grade below 70%: DEE.

29. Tip-to-frog violin motion: UPBOW.  In violin playing, an upbow is moving the bow across the strings from the tip of the bow towards the frog (the end held by the player).  This contrasts with a downbow, where the bow moves from frog to tip.  An upbow makes a lighter sound than a downbow.

32. Novelist Bellow: SAUL.

33. Orderly groupings in computer science: ARRAYS.  Wikipedia says:  "In computer science, an array is a data structure consisting of a collection of elements (values or variables), of same memory size, each identified by at least one array index or key, a collection of which may be a tuple, known as an index tuple. An array is stored such that the position (memory address) of each element can be computed from its index tuple by a mathematical formula."  What say our computer scientists?  Whose bailiwick is this?

35. "What __ the odds?": ARE.

36. [Theme clue]

39. Postscript's place: END.

40. Fierce fauna: BEASTS.

41. Frankenstein's helper: IGOR.

42. Nachos topping: SALSA.

44. "I'd call it average": MEH.

45. Not very poetic: PROSY.  Prosy means dull or unimaginative, very much like the word "prosaic," but can also mean resembling prose. 

46. Made less severe: EASED.

48. Co. with a SoSecure mobile safety app: ADT.  ADT's alarm services date back to the 1870's, when telegraph technology was used to alert homeowners to burglaries.  Hence, American District Telegraph.

49. [Theme clue]

56. "Funny Girl" co-star Sharif: OMAR.

Barbra Streisand won the Oscar for Best Actress in her film debut, 1968.

57. Elbow-to-wrist bones: RADII.  Plural for radius.  One in each arm.

I know you find this humerus.

58. __ of honor: MAID.

59. Formerly: ONCE.

60. Instrument for many Bach compositions: ORGAN.

61. Writer Bombeck: ERMA.  Erma Bombeck achieved great popularity for her newspaper humor column describing suburban life, syndicated from 1965 to 1996.

62. Knotted up: TIED.

63. Empire State resident, for short: NYer.  New Yorker.

64. "Work it!": SLAY.

Be excellent in a particular scene, area, field, domain, wheelhouse, bailiwick ...

Down:

1. Lip-__: SYNC.

2. Crumble fruit: PEAR.  I've had berry crumbles and peach crumbles, but the concept of pear crumble is new to me.  I am not opposed!

3. Ballet opener: ACT I.

4. Gender-neutral pronoun: THEMSELF.

5. Type of 2-Down: BOSC.  A type of pear.

6. Architectural recess: APSE.  A projecting part of a building (such as a church) that is usually semicircular in plan and vaulted.

7. Branch of creationism: YOUNG EARTH.  Young Earth creationism is a belief that Earth was created by God within a short period of time, perhaps 6,000 to 10,000 years ago. This anti-scientific view is based on a literal reading of the Book of Genesis.  By contrast, Old Earth creationism accepts most modern science regarding the history of the earth, but rejects the theory of evolution.  A third option for adherents to the biblical tradition is theistic evolution, which suggests that God created the world through the laws of nature, which are discoverable through science.  Evolution is real, and was set in motion by God.

8. Snide smile: SNEER.

9. Sgt. Friday's declaration on "Dragnet": I'M A COP.  Joe Friday was a character created and portrayed by Jack Webb for his series Dragnet (on radio 1949-1957, and on TV 1951-1959, 1967-1970).

Jack Webb as Joe Friday in "Dragnet"

10. Petroleum trade ban: OIL EMBARGO.

11. Japanese food staple: UDON.  Thick noodles made from wheat flour, served in hot broth or stir-fried.

12. Wikipedia, e.g.: SITE.  A web site.

14. Ostrich warning sound: HISS.  I have not experienced this defensive behavior, but I did see this ostrich lift its skirt!

Out of all the possible ostrich illustrations,
I chose this one from my files for Splynter.

20. The Proterozoic, e.g.: EON.  The Proterozoic Eon, from 2.5 billion to 541 million years ago, was the third of Earth's four eons. It was marked by the formation of stable continents, the rise of oxygen in the atmosphere, and the evolution of early life forms.  Even though we're only in the fourth eon now, the Proterozoic feels like eons ago.

21. Composer born in Washington, D.C.: SOUSA.  John Philip Sousa (1854-1932) was an American composer and conductor known primarily for marches.

John Philip Sousa

24. Burros: ASSES.

25. Cold plunge partner: SAUNA.  Finland is home to the tradition of a hot sauna followed by a cold plunge into icy water.  The sauna has documented health benefits.  The cold plunge may be all right if it doesn't kill you.

sauna and cold plunge

26. Where athletes kick up their heels?: HURDLE RACE.

27. Record best updated first thing in the morning: DREAM DIARY.  I had a psychology class in college where we were encouraged to write down everything we could remember about our dreams before getting out of bed in the morning.  It was interesting to review the diary after a few weeks and to discover recurring themes.  

28. Draw a blank on?: ERASE.

30. Twistable treats: OREOS.  Crossword's favorite cookie.

31. Dog-tired: WEARY.

33. Opening day pitcher, typically: ACE.

34. "Mm-hmm": YES.

37. Denigrate: ABASE.

38. Opportunities for watch parties: AIR TIMES.

43. Holy: SACRED.

45. "Save as" option: PDF.  PDF, which stands for Portable Document Format, is a file format developed by Adobe to present documents in a manner independent of application software, hardware, and operating systems.  It preserves the original formatting and images across various devices.

47. Zac of "The Greatest Showman": EFRON.  Zachary Efron rose to prominence for his leading role in the High School Musical film series (2006–2008). During this time, he also starred in the musical film Hairspray (2007) and the comedy film 17 Again (2009).  He continues to appear in films and on TV.

Zac Efron

48. Tennis score after deuce: AD IN.  In tennis, "ad" is short for advantage. It refers to the score after deuce (40-40). If the server wins the point after deuce, it's called "ad-in." If the receiver wins the point after deuce, it's called "ad-out". If the player with the advantage wins the next point, they win the game. If the player without the advantage wins the next point, the score goes back to deuce. 

49. Height unit: FOOT.

50. Ritz-Carlton alternative: OMNI.

51. Microsoft browser: EDGE.

52. Untrustworthy sort: LIAR.

53. Noble rank below marquess: EARL.

54. Peruvian city with a San Isidro district: LIMA.

55. WWII turning point: D-DAY.  D-Day, June 6, 1944, was the day the Allied forces launched a massive invasion of Normandy, France, leading to the liberation of Western Europe from Nazi control.

I took this photo of DH in front of a German bunker on the beach in Normandy.

Here's the grid:

It took me a while to get a toehold on Jake's puzzle, but then everything fell into place.

What about you?  Was this your SCENE?  Were you in SYNC with Jake?  Did you ACE it?

Or did you ERASE a lot of entries and finally say YECH?

-- NaomiZ

Wednesday, Jul 2nd, 2025 ~ John Kugelman

 YOU ARE WHAT YOU EAT

This is John Kugelman's debut puzzle for the LA Times, but HE ( I checked, just to be sure this time ) has had several published in other places - from what I can see, he has constructed mostly Sunday grids - today's puzzle is 15 x 16, with mirror symmetry; somewhat Saturday in nature, and all we are missing is the "Z" for a pangram~!  No circles, a fair number of names, 30 TLWs, and a geometrical theme of  'boxy' morsels for the three meals of the day - breakfast, lunch and dinner, in order.  Well done~!  The three polygonal treats and the reveal;

19. Breakfast: cereal: RICE CHEX

31. Lunch: fast-food sandwich: WENDY'S BURGER

52. Dinner: seafood pasta: LOBSTER RAVIOLI

Mmm-Mmm good~!

My plates are square, too - but don't rotate in the microwave :7((

63. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner, or what 19-, 31-, and 52-Across literally are:
        THREE SQUARE MEALS

Now that's my idea of a "Square Meal", but my trainer keeps telling me

I have to stop hanging with the baron - the Red Baron, that is

And Away We Go~!

ACROSS:

1. Makeshift instrument: JUG - I had "JIG" to start, thinking of a woodworking instument - and they're usually makeshift

4. Chess champion Garry: KASPAROV - name #1 - I do the DOWN clues first, so half of this was already filled in

12. First down yardage amount: TEN - we're in July - just two months to football season~!

15. "Float like a butterfly" boxer: ALI - name #2, but a crossword staple

16. Forget to set the oven timer, maybe: OVERBAKE - surprised to find out this is a unique fill

17. Wrath: IRE

18. "Headbangers Ball" airer: MTV - I want my MTV~! This was about the only segment I could watch

Most of the intro clips were S.O.D. songs - I'd link "What's That Noise" - but NSFW

20. Gaping opening: MAW - ooops - I put in GAP, but those three letters start the clue

21. Made, as beer: BREWED

23. Reader's __: DIGEST

25. Malia's sister: SASHA - name(s) #3 - the Obama kids

26. "A Fine Romance" composer Jerome: KERN - name #4 - I have heard of this guy, despite never seeing/hearing anything from him - but I now know he wrote some classic musical pieces 

30. "No __": "Perfect!": NOTES - this is new for me; any review or evaluation with "no notes" is a good thing - e.g., a script

Autumn At Apple Hill - The Hallmark Channel

34. Gravitate (toward): LEAN

36. Camry competitor: ALTIMA - Japanese automakers Toyota and Nissan

I am partial to Toyota - I drive a Prius "C" 2, and I would definitely get THIS

37. Seemingly never-ending story: SAGA - I love Star Wars, but even I am getting overwhelmed with the amount of "universe" that is presented to us

40. Poison __: IVY - either this or OAK - I guessed correctly

41. Letter between pi and sigma: RHO

42. Cyclops feature: EYE

44. Sacred oath: VOW

45. Curriculum __: VITAE - Latin for 'course of life', it's a detailed resume, essentially

47. Backside: REAR

50. First-year cadet: PLEBE

55. "That's my experience too": "I CAN RELATE."

56. Like windshields on winter mornings: ICED UP - God bless the fact that I can NOT relate to this - my Prius and Dodge Grand Caravan ( I call them Pixie and Daphne ) are both parked in my garage; they no longer "ICE UP", and in the winter, get COLDER as I drive to work~!  I had one of the guys at the pipe organ place suggest leaving the van out for a bigger workshop - I never had a garage growing up, so I am using it for its intended purpose.

59. Like 1% milk: LOW-FAT

68. Org. chasing Jason Bourne: CIA - I have seen the movies, and I think they have the best edited fight scenes of any movie out there - this one from the Bourne Supremacy; I need to read the books now

WARNING~! - Some violence

69. Opening stage: ROUND ONE

70. Letters on Megan Rapinoe's jersey: USA - name(ish) - I had  _ S A, so . . . .

71. Contains: HAS

72. Heard things?: NOISES

73. Neither partner: NOR - or SWEdish partner~?

DOWN:

1. Places for mezuzahs: JAMBS - I learned this from working on a movie set back in 1997; I was tasked with making one that would crumble, indicating a "bad sign" to our Rabbi; a girl named Susan May came up with one she "OVER BAKED", the director loved it, and used hers instead; I was very jealous . . . .

The meaning/use of a mezuzah

2. Extreme: ULTRA

3. Steps aside for: GIVES WAY TO - $2 fill, but not a unique one

4. The "K" of K-drama: KOREAN - Figured it was the same as "K-POP"

5. Eager: AVID

6. "Wait just a __": "SEC~!"

7. Beginning of history?: PRE - PREhistory

8. Kimmel's network: ABC - Dah~!  I thought he was N - b - c

9. Rally cry: RAH~!

10. Approved: OKed

11. Like some brain teasers: VEXING - also a unique fill; huh.

12. Leap years?: TIME TRAVEL - yes, very clever

13. Rub out: ERASE

14. Stream skitterers: NEWTS - I tried ROCKS, as in skipping

22. Line on an invite: WHEN - my brother's wedding is when~?  The Saturday after next

24. "Who __ there?": GOES - "It is I, Arthur..."

"No, they'd have to have it on a line..."

26. Son of Han Solo and Princess Leia: KYLO REN - name #5, from the Star Wars sequels

27. Approximate fig.: ESTimate

28. Hitter's stat: RBI

29. Digit: NUMERAL - Ah.  I could not get NUMBER to fit

32. "Well, lah-di-__!": DAH~! - not the same as my "Dah~!" of poorly chosen fill . . . .

33. Cartilaginous fish that may have a whiplike tail: RAY - Dah~!  Not EEL

34. Tyler of "The Leftovers": LIV - name #6 - I figured it was HER, but waited on crossings

35. Really bad: EVIL

38. Mongolian desert: GOBI - name(ish)

39. Wonderment: AWE

41. One running toward disaster, presumably: RESCUER

43. Embodiment: EPITOME - the embodiment of beauty, IMHO

It's EPIc TO ME~!

46. Put up with: ABIDE

48. Goof up: ERR

49. "__ you sure?": "ARE~?"

51. Lerner's partner on Broadway: LOEWE - name(s) #7 - more here

53. Tests, as a microphone: TAPS ON - not CHECKS

54. "La Bamba" singer Ritchie: VALENS - name #8, but this one I knew

56. Hydrocortisone cream target: ITCH - oh, right, that's not for an ACHE

57. Kombucha seeds: CHIA - filled via perps

58. Presidential spans: ERAS

60. Half-man, half-goat: FAUN - I wanted Satyr, but this works too - the Wiki

61. "Plus ... ": ALSO...

62. Russian monarch: TSAR

64. Status __: QUO

65. Oxford, e.g., to locals: UNIversity - British, as opposed to American "college"

66. Podcast interrupters: ADS

67. Tobiko or masago: ROE - again, filled via perps; sort of Saturday cluing, IMO

Splynter