Happy New Year, everyone!
Today's theme is:
Our constructor, Jeff Stillman, gives us three sets of circles, highlighting the fact that the letters Y, E, A, and R have been scrambled. Eventually, he puts them in order at ...
51 Across. Celebratory shout heard before "Auld Lang Syne" is played, and an apt title for this puzzle?: HAPPY NEW YEAR.
I put up the Rolling in the New Year image because it sort of feels like the letters in the circles are rolling into their proper place. I really cannot say if that is what Jeff had in mind. Perhaps he is simply saying that 51-A was a "new" way to arrange the letters from the circles. If there is another layer, I missed it. Whoosh!
Nonetheless, I am a fan of holiday-themed puzzles so I am giving Jeff's puzzle a thumbs up. 👍 Notice that his circles always span two words. Additionally, it is nice to see two 15-letter answers on a Monday puzzle. Here's the grid:
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| There are 4! = 4 x 3 x 2 x 1 = 24 ways to arrange the letters Y, E, A, and R. |
Let's keep on rollin' with the other clues:
1. Underground areas explored by spelunkers: CAVES. A spelunker is someone who makes a hobby of exploring CAVES.
trailer for Ancient Caves, a 2020 IMAX documentary
6. Car-buying necessity, for many: LOAN.
10. Degs. for some entrepreneurs: MBAS. Master of Business Administration degrees
14. Stuffy "Me too": AS AM I. I started with AS do I, but perps told me that choice was an outlier.
15. Competent: ABLE.
16. Noble rank above viscount: EARL.
17. Stuck in the muck: MIRED.
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| That poor duck had bad luck! |
18. French champagne brand: MOET. a nice fit for a New Year's grid
19. "Well, would you look at that!": MY MY.
20. Make a polite visit: PAY RESPECT TO.
24. Runs easily with long strides: LOPES.
Watch as British equestrian Ben Maher keeps his horse, Explosion W, in an smooth LOPE
between jumps to win a gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics.
27. False start punishment, in football: FIVE YARD PENALTY. False start is when an offensive player does it. Offsides is when a defensive player does it. Do the players get fined?
34. County Clare's nat.: IRE. I did not know this one but "County Clare" just sounds like it lies in the nation of IREland. (Hi Irish Miss! ☘)
35. Internet letters: EMAILS. This was my favorite clue because I fell for the "letters" misdirection and was trying to think of an initialism.
36. "The Banana Boat Song" opener: DAY-O. as in "It's New Year's DAY-O"
This one never gets old.
Harry Belafonte released Day-O (The Banana Boat Song) in 1956.
37. Trails behind: LAGS. To LAG behind is to fail to keep pace with one's peers.
39. Color TV pioneer: RCA. I think of Misty when I see RCA in a puzzle because she has such fond memories of her father. I can feel her smile through the internet.
40. "Barbie" actor Liu: SIMU. He is a Canadian actor born in Harbin, China on April 19, 1989. Last week CanadianEh! reminded us about his book, We Were Dreamers: An Immigrant Superhero Origin Story. It's on my library queue.
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| Simu Liu rocks the Ken hair. |
41. La __: Real Madrid's division: LIGA. European fútbol
42. Frank on the grill: WEENIE.
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| the Oscar Mayer wienermobile |
45. Naught: NIL. Those on Santa's naughty list get NIL for Christmas.
46. Incredibly hard to hold: SLIPPERY AS AN EEL.
Wow, this one took me on a trip down memory lane to Bozo Under the Sea, a 78 RPM record I used to listen to at my grandmother's house while reading its accompanying book. I remember this picture of him touching an electric EEL.
49. Photo app filter shade: SEPIA. Last Friday, ZDL's puzzle had a good clue for this word -- Retro tone.
50. Time period often named for a monarch: ERA.
58. Crèche trio: MAGI. Most western Christian churches celebrate Three Kings' Day on January 6.
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| Click to expand. |
61. Moisturizer brand: OLAY.
62. Missouri River tributary: OSAGE.
63. Minnesota representative Ilhan: OMAR. Minnesota has eight congressional districts. Rep. Ilhan Omar's district is #5 (Minneapolis). 
64. Junction point: NODE. I knowed this one. Did you knowed it, too?
65. Spoke wildly: RAVED. I was trying to make ranted fit.
66. Sheepherding pig in a 1995 film: BABE.
67. Smack: SWAT.
68. Austin Powers player Mike: MYERS. Canadian-American actor Mike Myers made three Austin Powers movies. They were released in 1997, 1999, and 2002. Here's the trailer from the first one, Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery.
Down:
1. Training __: NFL preseason practice time: CAMP. This link goes to the 2023 training CAMP details for every NFL team. Scroll through it to get a feel for the whens & wheres.
2. Tibet's continent: ASIA. This 3:22 min. video lists four reasons to visit Tibet. You might also find these 2024 Tibet travel restrictions interesting.
3. "Your mileage may __": VARY. In other words, you might have a different experience in a particular situation.
The Proclaimers I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles) (1988)
Yes, they're twins.
But I would walk 500 milesAnd I would walk 500 moreJust to be the man who walks a thousand milesTo fall down at your door
4. Come to light: EMERGE.
5. Judgmental glance: SIDE-EYE. The term is about a physical act that communicates any number of things (e.g., suspicion, scorn, annoyance, jealousy, and veiled curiosity).
Here is some serious 17th century SIDE-EYE.
6. Bedside light: LAMP.
7. Double-reed woodwind: OBOE.
8. Actor Guinness: ALEC. (1914-2000) his IMDb page
9. Invasive plants with stinging hairs: NETTLES. description & uses
10. Note-worthy purchases?: MEMO PADS. "Note-worthy". Good one!
11. Green __, Wisconsin: BAY. IIRC, unclefred is a Packers fan.
12. Escort's offering: ARM.
13. Devious: SLY.
21. Tailor's line of stitches: SEAM.
22. Freight weight: TON.
25. "Seinfeld" character who worked for Pendant Publishing: ELAINE. and 53 Down. When tripled, phrase spoken by 25-Down: YADA.
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| Detail from The Fortune Teller French artist Georges de La Tour (circa 1630) |
6. Bedside light: LAMP.
7. Double-reed woodwind: OBOE.
8. Actor Guinness: ALEC. (1914-2000) his IMDb page
9. Invasive plants with stinging hairs: NETTLES. description & uses
10. Note-worthy purchases?: MEMO PADS. "Note-worthy". Good one!
11. Green __, Wisconsin: BAY. IIRC, unclefred is a Packers fan.
12. Escort's offering: ARM.
21. Tailor's line of stitches: SEAM.
22. Freight weight: TON.
25. "Seinfeld" character who worked for Pendant Publishing: ELAINE. and 53 Down. When tripled, phrase spoken by 25-Down: YADA.
This is the clip (1 min.):
"No, I mentioned the bisque."
26. Really frustrate: STYMIE. Def.: (verb) to prevent or hinder the progress of.
27. Jam-packs: FILLS. This reminded me of the well-known story about the jar with rocks. Here is a 2 min. version:
28. Vowel-shaped track segments: I-RAILS.
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| Is this an I-RAIL? The cross section of the rail resembles a letter "I". |
29. Carrot or celery, informally: VEGGIE.
30. Not so common: RARER.
31. Hazardous: DICEY.
32. Initial strategy: PLAN A.
33. "__ be sorry!": YOU'LL.
38. Blue gem: SAPPHIRE. Note to self: 2P's
42. Some cards in the board game Clue: WEAPONS. Can you name all six? (*answers below)
43. "Now it's clear!": I SEE.
44. Overly catchy song: EARWORM. Here is an aptly named EARWORM:
Kylie Minogue Can't Get You Out of My Head (2001)
La-la-la, la-la-la-la-la
47. Actress Zadora: PIA.
48. Come out against: NAYSAY.
52. Furrow former: PLOW.
54. No, in Russian: NYET.
55. Icicle site: EAVE.
56. Ripening agent: AGER. When used on some apples, the result is a Golden AGER. 😜
57. Cincinnati MLB team: REDS. The team name originated from the high red socks or stockings the team wore with its knee-length pants.
58. Unruly crowd: MOB.
59. GP's gp.: AMA. General Practitioner and American Medical Association
60. Chitchat: GAB.
59. GP's gp.: AMA. General Practitioner and American Medical Association
60. Chitchat: GAB.
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| my friend Julie & me at lunch yesterday 😀 |
*The six CLUE weapons are: wrench, lead pipe, rope, knife, revolver, and candlestick.
That's all for today. Wishing everyone health & happiness in the new year!
