Tag: Fill-in-the-blanks diversion crossword clue

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Constructed by: Sean Ziebarth
Edited by: Patti Varol

Today’s Reveal Answer: Closing Sale

Themed answers each include the letter pairings “SA” and “LE”. Those pairings get CLOSER as we descend the grid:

• 56A Going-out-of-business bargain event, and an apt description of this puzzle’s circles : CLOSING SALE

• 20A Muppet with blue feathers and a black unibrow : SAM THE EAGLE
• 34A Ceramic piece in a kitchen backsplash, say : MOSAIC TILE
• 40A Laryngeal projection : ADAM’S APPLE
• 56A Going-out-of-business bargain event, and an apt description of this puzzle’s circles : CLOSING SALE

Read on, or jump to …
… a complete list of answers

Bill’s time: 6m 10s

Bill’s errors: 0

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

5 Hairstyle with upturned ends : FLIP

The flip hairstyle was popular with women in the sixties, and was characterized by an upward curl in the ends of the hair (a “flip”). The list of famous people who sported the flip includes Jackie Kennedy, Mary Tyler Moore, and Twiggy.

9 Neckwear worn by Fred in “Scooby-Doo” : ASCOT

An ascot is a wide tie that narrows at the neck, which these days is only really worn at weddings or part of a dress uniform. The tie takes its name from the Royal Ascot horse race at which punters still turn up in formal wear at Ascot Racecourse in England.

“Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!” is a series of cartoons produced for Hanna-Barbera Productions, first broadcast in 1969. The title character is a great Dane dog owned by a young male called Shaggy Rogers. The character’s name was inspired by the famous “doo-be-doo-be-doo” refrain in the Frank Sinatra hit “Strangers in the Night”. Shaggy was voiced by famed disk jockey Casey Kasem. Shaggy and Scooby’s friends are Velma, Fred and Daphne.

16 “The Mary Tyler Moore Show” spinoff : RHODA

The seventies sitcom “Rhoda” was a spinoff of “The Mary Tyler Moore Show” that starred Valerie Harper. The eighth episode of the show was an hour-long special in which Rhoda married her fiance Joe (played by David Groh). At the time of airing it was the second-most watched television episode in history, second only to the 1953 birth of Little Ricky on “I Love Lucy”.

20 Muppet with blue feathers and a black unibrow : SAM THE EAGLE

The most overtly patriotic Muppet, by far, is Sam Eagle. In “The Muppet Christmas Carol”, he has a line spoken to Ebeneezer Scrooge explaining why the young Scrooge will enjoy business: “It is the American Way”. San is corrected by Gonzo, who points out that “It is the British Way”, given that the movie is set in England.

27 “No seats” sign : SRO

Standing room only (SRO)

34 Ceramic piece in a kitchen backsplash, say : MOSAIC TILE

In the Middle Ages, mosaics were often dedicated to the Muses. The term “mosaic” translates as “of the Muses”.

38 “Parlez-vous français?” reply : OUI

In French, “Parlez-vous français?” means “Do you speak French?”

39 Cabbage dish : SLAW

The term “coleslaw” is an Anglicized version of the Dutch term “koolsla”, which in itself is a shortened form of “Koolsalade” meaning “cabbage salad”.

40 Laryngeal projection : ADAM’S APPLE

The voice box or larynx is where pitch and volume of sound are manipulated when we talk. The structure called the Adam’s apple that protrudes from the human neck is formed by the thyroid cartilage that surrounds the larynx. The Adam’s apple of males tends to increase in size during puberty, so the feature tended to be associated more with males in days gone by, perhaps leading to the name “Adam’s” apple. A doctor specializing in treating the larynx is a laryngologist.

45 Fill-in-the-blanks diversion : MAD LIBS

Mad Libs is a word game, one mostly played by children in America. The idea is that one player provides a list of words which are then inserted into blank spots in a story, usually with hilarious results (they say!).

46 Dudes : MEN

Our term “dude” arose as slang in New York City in the 1880s, when it was used to describe a fastidious man. In the early 1900s, the term was extended to mean “city slickers”, easterners who vacationed in the West. The first use of the term “dude ranch” was recorded in 1921.

48 Memory unit : BYTE

In the world of computing, a bit is the basic unit of information. It has a value of 0 or 1. A “byte” is a small collection of “bits” (usually 8), the number of bits needed to uniquely identify a character of text. The term “byte” is an abbreviation for “binary digit”.

49 Naval lockup : BRIG

A brig is a two-masted sailing vessel, with the name “brig” coming from the related vessel known as a brigantine. Brigs and brigantines are both two-masted, but there is a difference in the sails used. It was the use of retired brigs as prison ships that led to the use of “brig” as the word for a jail or prison cell on a seagoing vessel.

51 Journalist Koppel : TED

Broadcast journalist Ted Koppel is most associated with his long run as anchor for the “Nightline” program on ABC. Koppel was actually born in England, to a Jewish family that had fled from Germany. He emigrated with his family to the US when he was 13 years old. Koppel is great friends with former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger who was a frequent guest on his television show.

59 Vinegary stew of Filipino cuisine : ADOBO

Philippine adobo is a dish that is sometimes cited as the national dish of the Philippines. The term “adobo” comes from the Spanish “adobar” meaning “marinade, sauce” The marinade used for the dish comprises vinegar, soy sauce, garlic, bay leaves and black peppercorns.

62 “Attack!” : SIC ‘EM!

To sic on is to let at or set on. The verb “to sic on” comes from the attack command given to a dog “sic ‘em”.

63 Genesis garden : EDEN

“Genesis” is a Greek word meaning “origin, creation” that was absorbed into Latin, and then into English. We use the Latin plural “geneses”.

Down

1 Sound of a clean jump shot : SWISH

A swish shot is a basketball shot that goes through the hoop without touching the rim or the backboard, and you can hear that “swish” as it just passes through the net, so they tell me …

2 Crème de __: sweet liqueur : CACAO

A “cream liqueur” is one that includes dairy cream. The most famous example is probably Baileys Irish Cream, which is made from cream and Irish whiskey. A “crème liqueur”, on the other hand, is one that includes a lot of added sugar, but no dairy cream. Examples are crème de cacao (chocolate-flavored), crème de menthe (mint-flavored) and crème de cassis (blackcurrant-flavored).

6 Structure with high-water marks : LEVEE

A levee is an artificial bank, usually made of earth, that runs along the length of a river. It is designed to hold back river water at a time of potential flooding. “Levée” is the French word for “raised” and is an American term that originated in French-speaking New Orleans around 1720.

8 Early Atari release : PONG

Do you remember the arcade video game that is like a game of tennis, with paddles moving up and down to hit what looks like a ball, over what looks like a net? Well, that is Pong. The arcade version of Pong was introduced in 1972, with Atari selling a home version through Sears for the Christmas market in 1975.

9 “__ and Old Lace” : ARSENIC

“Arsenic and Old Lace” is a Frank Capra film released in 1944. The movie is based on a 1939 stage play by Joseph Kesselring. The film stars Cary Grant as a completely madcap and frantic Mortimer Brewster. Grant was only the fourth choice for the role, after Bob Hope, Jack Benny and Ronald Reagan. That’s quite an eclectic mix of actors …

11 Air lines? : CONTRAILS

We talk so often about global warming these days but there is another fascinating phenomenon that is related, and known as “global dimming”. Global dimming is the reduction in the amount of heat that radiates daily from the planet due to the insulating effect of pollution and vapor trails (contrails) from aircraft that are present in the atmosphere. The effect has been touted as a theory for decades but dramatic empirical data became available in the wake of the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. Planes were grounded and the skies over America were clear for three days. There was a stark change in the temperature range measured across the US for these three days, demonstrating the impact that air travel has on our climate.

12 Skunkiness : ODOR

Skunks have anal scent glands that can be used as defensive weapons. The glands produce sulfur-containing chemicals that have a really awful smell and that can irritate the eyes and skin.

13 Stanford basketball coach VanDerveer : TARA

Tara VanDerveer is the only coach in NCAA history to win 1,000 games. She is also the all-time winningest coach in women’s college basketball, with 1,157 wins. Tara’s sister Heidi is also a very successful college and professional basketball coach.

18 God of Thunder : THOR

In Norse mythology, Thor was the son of Odin. Thor wielded a mighty hammer and was the god of thunder, lightning and storms. Our contemporary word “Thursday” comes from “Thor’s Day”.

21 God of Mischief : LOKI

Loki is a trickster god in Norse mythology known for continually creating chaos. Loki is the father of sons with his wife Sigyn. Because Loki is also a shape-shifter, and gave birth to children “himself” by assuming the shape of the opposite sex.

29 Grand __: bases-loaded homer : SLAM

That would be baseball.

32 Actor Alan honored with a SAG Life Achievement Award in 2019 : ALDA

Alan Alda is the only person to win acting, directing, and writing Emmys for the same comedy program. He won five Emmys for his work on “M*A*S*H”, three for acting, one for writing and one for directing.

42 Cain’s brother : ABEL

The story of Cain and Abel not only appears in the Christian and Hebrew Bibles, it also features in the Qur’an. In the Muslim account the brothers are named Qabil and Habil.

47 Waffle-maker : EGGO

Eggo is a brand of frozen waffles that was introduced by Kellogg in 1953. The brand experienced a surge in popularity in the 1980s due to a successful ad campaign featuring a family sitting down to breakfast together and enjoying Eggo waffles. The tagline of the commercials, “Leggo my Eggo”, is still recognized today.

50 Harley outings : RIDES

The Harley-Davidson motorcycle company was founded in the very early 1900s by two childhood friends, William Harley and Arthur Davidson, . Their first design was in effect an engine hooked up to a pedal bicycle, but the 116 cc cylinder capacity simply couldn’t generate enough power to get up the hills of their native city of Milwaukee. The pair came up with a redesigned model that had a cylinder capacity of 405 cc, which the partners built in a shed at the back of Davidson’s house. In 1906, the partners built their first factory, located where the company’s headquarters is to this day, on Juneau Avenue in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Famously, Harley motorcycles are nicknamed “hogs”.

51 Chevrolet SUV model : TAHOE

The Chevrolet Tahoe SUV was introduced in 1994. It is based on the same platform as the Chevrolet Silverado pickup truck, and it shares many of its components. It is actually sold under the Silverado badge in Mexico.

55 Sarah McLachlan ballad : ADIA

Sarah McLachlan is a singer/songwriter from Halifax, Nova Scotia who lives in Vancouver. In 1997, McLachlan married Ashwin Sood, the drummer in her band. The 1998 hit song “Adia”, which she co-wrote and recorded, was intended as an apology to her best friend … for stealing her ex-boyfriend and then marrying him!

58 “SNL”-like show filmed in Canada : SCTV

“Second City Television” (SCTV) is a sketch show that was produced in Canada from 1976 to 1984. SCTV was very successful with audiences all over North America, and in effect launched the careers of several comedy greats. The list of SCTV alumni includes John Candy, Eugene Levy, Rick Moranis, Catherine O’Hara, Harold Ramis and Martin Short.

60 Spelling contest : BEE

The National Spelling Bee was started in 1925 by the Louisville Courier-Journal. The first winning word was “gladiolus.”