Tag: Skeptical scoff crossword clue

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Constructed by: Christina Bodensiek, Lydia Roth, & Geoffrey Schorkopf
Edited by: Patti Varol

Today’s Reveal Answer: Progressive Rock

Themed answers each include the word “ORE” hidden within. This “ROCK” PROGRESSES from left to right as we descend the grid:

• 37A Experimental music genre, and what can be found in this puzzle’s circled letters? : PROGRESSIVE ROCK

• 17A Defiant retort to a vague threat : OR ELSE WHAT?
• 23A Compilations of acting clips : DEMO REELS
• 49A “Out of the office” email message, often : AUTO-REPLY
• 59A Quality-over-quantity axiom : LESS IS MORE

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

Bill’s time: 5m 51s

Bill’s errors: 0

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

1 U.K. TV network : BBC

The marvelous British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is mainly funded by the UK government through a television “licence” (British spelling, as opposed to “license”!) fee that is levied annually on all households watching TV transmissions.

27 Costco rival, familiarly : SAM’S

Sam’s Club is a warehouse club that is owned and operated by Walmart. It is named after the company’s founder Sam Walton. Walton opened the first Sam’s Club in 1983 in Midwest City, Oklahoma.

28 Many a business on a Napa Valley tour : WINERY

The first commercial winery in Napa Valley, California was established way back in 1858. However, premium wine production only dates back to the 1960s, with the region really hitting the big time after its success at the Paris Wine Tasting of 1976. The story of that famous blind wine tasting is told in the entertaining 2008 film “Bottle Shock”.

36 Pilot Earhart : AMELIA

Amelia Earhart is as famous today as she was during her lifetime. When she became the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic she was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross by Congress, and the Cross of Knight of the Legion of Honor by the French government. She made two attempts to circumnavigate the globe by air (not solo). Her first attempt in March 1937 had to be abandoned when her aircraft was damaged during takeoff. The second attempt in June/July of the same year ended when Earhart and her navigator disappeared flying from Lae, New Guinea to Howland Island in the Central Pacific.

41 Country singer Underwood : CARRIE

Carrie Underwood is a country singer, and the winner of the fourth season of “American Idol”. Underwood is the most successful “Idol” winner to date, in terms of music sales.

42 16th pres. : ABE

Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the US, elected in 1860 as the first president from the Republican Party. Lincoln’s electoral support came almost exclusively from the north and west of the country, winning only 2 out of 996 counties in the Southern slave states. Lincoln led the country through the Civil War, and then was assassinated in 1865 just a few days after Robert E. Lee surrendered his army of Northern Virginia. President Lincoln was succeeded in office by Vice President Andrew Johnson.

44 Nondairy milk source : ALMOND

I’m a big fan of plain, unsweetened almond milk. Basic almond milk is made by combining almonds and water in a blender, and then straining out the almond pulp.

45 Coup d’__ : ETAT

A coup d’état (often just “coup”) is the sudden overthrow of a government, and comes from the French for “stroke of state”. The Swiss-German word “putsch” is sometimes used instead of “coup”, with “Putsch” translating literally as “sudden blow”. We also use the abbreviated “coup” to mean “sudden, brilliant and successful act”.

54 Attention-grabbing advertisement : NEON SIGN

The basic design of neon lighting was first demonstrated at the Paris Motor Show in 1910. Such lighting is made up of glass tubes containing a vacuum into which has been introduced a small amount of neon gas. When a voltage is applied between two electrodes inside the tube, the neon gas “glows” and gives off the familiar light.

57 Chaotic struggle : MELEE

Our term “melee” comes from the French “mêlée”, and in both languages the word means “confused fight”.

58 New Haven Ivy : YALE

Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut was founded in 1701, making it the third-oldest university in the US. Originally called the Collegiate School, it was renamed to Yale University in honor of retired merchant Elihu Yale, who made generous contributions to the institution. Yale University’s nickname is “Old Eli”, in a nod to the benefactor.

59 Quality-over-quantity axiom : LESS IS MORE

In the world of mathematics, an axiom is a proposition, one that is taken as basic and self-evident. The term “axiom” extends beyond mathematics with a similar meaning, an established or self-evident truth.

62 Billie Eilish’s “Happier Than __” : EVER

Billie Eilish describes the inspiration for her 2021 studio album “Happier Than Ever” as “self-reflection” during the COVID pandemic. She also points out that despite the album’ title, “almost none of the songs on this album are joyful”. Eilish co-wrote the album with her brother, singer-songwriter Finneas O’Connell.

64 Mark on a dalmatian’s coat : SPOT

The Dalmatian breed of dog originated in Dalmatia, in the Republic of Croatia. Here in the US, Dalmatians are known as “firehouse dogs”. This association dates back to the use of Dalmatians in firehouses to guard the valuable horses that pulled the fire engines.

65 Detective Monaghan in Laura Lippman novels : TESS

Journalist and author Laura Lippman is perhaps best known for her series of detective novels featuring reporter turned private investigator Tess Monaghan. In 2006, Lippman married David Simon, the creator of the hit show “The Wire”, in a ceremony officiated by filmmaker John Waters.

66 T-bone, for one : STEAK

The T-bone and porterhouse are related cuts of meat, with the latter being a larger version of the former, and both being cut from the short loin.

67 Pt. of GPS : SYS

The modern Global Positioning System (GPS) system that we use today was built by the US military who received the massive funding needed because of fears during the Cold War of the use of Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles. We civilians, all round the world, owe a lot to President Ronald Reagan because he directed the military to make GPS technology available to the public for the common good. President Reagan was moved to do so after the Soviet Union shot down KAL flight 007 carrying 269 people, just because the plane strayed accidentally into Soviet airspace.

Down

3 Alfredo sauce ingredient : CREAM

Alfredo sauce is usually associated with the Italian dish called fettuccine Alfredo. The sauce is made from Parmesan cheese and butter, and is named for the Italian restaurant owner Alfredo Di Lelio. Di Lelio’s nephews still own and run a restaurant in Rome called “Il Vero Alfredo”. Here in the US, we often add other ingredients to the basic cheese and butter recipe. The name “fettuccine Alfredo” won’t be found on a menu in Italy today, and instead one can order “fettuccine al burro”.

6 Neighbor of Lucy and Ricky : ETHEL

In the hit television show “I Love Lucy”, Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz play Lucy and Ricky Ricardo. The Ricardos’ best friends are also their landlords, Fred and Ethel Mertz. The Mertzes are played by William Frawley and Vivian Vance.

7 Performs salah, e.g. : PRAYS

Salah (also “salat”) are daily prayers performed by the faithful in the Islamic tradition. Collectively, the prayers form the second of the Five Pillars of Islam.

8 Canvas bag : TOTE

Canvas is a heavy cloth that is traditionally woven from hemp, cotton or flax. The term “canvas” comes into English via Old French, and ultimately derives from the Greek “kannabis” meaning “hemp”. Yep … “canvas” and “cannabis” are etymological cousins.

9 Kitchen colander : STRAINER

A colander is a bowl-shaped utensil with holes in it that is used for draining liquid from food. The term “colander” comes from the Latin word “colum” meaning “sieve”.

14 “__ World”: “Sesame Street” segment : ELMO’S

The last 15 minutes of the children’s show “Sesame Street” is called “Elmo’s World”. This ending segment is directed towards younger viewers, those around 3 years old.

18 Repeated word in a Doris Day hit : SERA

The 1956 song “Que Será, Será (Whatever Will Be, Will Be)” was first performed by Doris Day in the Hitchcock film “The Man Who Knew Too Much”. Day later used the same tune as the theme song for the sitcom “The Doris Day Show” that aired in the late sixties and early seventies.

24 Roasted, hosted, or toasted : EMCEED

The term “emcee” comes from “MC”, an initialism used for a Master or Mistress of Ceremonies.

The tradition of toasting someone probably dates back to the reign of Charles II, when the practice was to drink a glass of wine to the health of a beautiful or favored woman. In those days, spiced toast was added to beverages to add flavor, so the use of the word “toast” was an indicator that the lady’s beauty would enhance the wine. Very charming, I must say …

31 “Adopt, don’t shop” org. : SPCA

Unlike most developed countries, the US has no umbrella organization with the goal of preventing cruelty to animals. Instead there are independent organizations set up all over the nation using the name SPCA. Having said that, there is an organization called the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) that was originally intended to operate across the country, but really it now focuses its efforts in New York City.

32 Like some thermometers : ORAL

When Gabriel Fahrenheit first defined his temperature scale he set 0 degrees as the temperature of a mixture of ice, water and salt. He defined 100 degrees as the temperature under his wife’s armpit! Using this scale he determined that water boiled at 210 degrees. Later refinements moved the boiling point of water up to 212 degrees, and as a result “body temperature” was shifted downwards to 98.6 degrees Fahrenheit.

33 Hypothetical space-time shortcuts : WORMHOLES

A wormhole is a theoretical shortcut that connects two points in the space-time continuum. Got that …?

35 Org. that oversees a cryptologic museum : NSA

The National Cryptologic Museum (NSM) is located just outside Fort Meade in Maryland, home to the National Security Agency (NSA) headquarters. The NSM is open to the public, and was established in 1993. The museum’s building was once the Colony Seven Motel.

38 Dad jokes, often : GROANERS

I tell dad jokes all the time, just to annoy the kids …

• I’m reading a book about anti-gravity. It’s impossible to put down!
• If you see a robbery at an Apple Store, does that make you an iWitness?
• A termite walks into a bar and asks, “Is the bar tender here?”
• Two guys walk into a bar, the third one ducks.
• What’s the best part about living in Switzerland? I don’t know, but the flag is a big plus.

39 Melon discards : RINDS

Melons are plants with edible, fleshy fruits that are usually sweet. The fruit of a melon is actually a berry.

52 “Sleigh Ride” composer Anderson : LEROY

Leroy Anderson was a composer of light orchestral music, a lot of which was first recorded by the Boston Pops Orchestra. His “Blue Tango” topped the charts in 1951, and became the first instrumental ever to sell over a million copies. Anderson also wrote “Sleigh Ride”, which is a signature piece for the Boston Pops.

53 Throws away, slangily : YEETS

In contemporary slang, to yeet is to throw away, discard. “To yeet” usually implies the use of force and a general disregard for what is being discarded. As in, “I really want to yeet the word ‘yeet’ …”

54 Russian refusal : NYET

“Nyet” is Russian for “no”, and “da” is Russian for “yes”.

60 Poseidon’s realm : SEA

Poseidon was the god of the sea in Greek mythology as well as the Earthshaker, the god responsible for earthquakes.

61 “No clue,” for short : IDK

I don’t know (IDK)