Good Morning, Cruciverbalists. Malodorous Manatee here with the recap of a Friday Puzzle by Joe Rodini. Unlike the puzzle of two weeks ago, the theme of this one is quite straightforward. Let's start with the reveal (and the clue even uses that word - nice touch):
38 Across . Revealing garment, or how to make 17-, 23-, 49-, and 53-Across match their clues: CROP TOP.
A CROP TOP is a sleeveless or short-sleeved garment that is cut short to show the midriff. However, in the case of todays puzzle we are required to crop, as in to cut or remove, the letters T O P (or the word TOP, if you prefer) from four filled-in answers in order to make that fill properly answer its respective clue.
17 Across. Can't and won't: CONTRACTOPTIONS. Contract Options being an acceptable term for choices in an agreement. However, crop the top, and we are left with CONTRACTIONS. Can't, of course being a contraction for can not and won't being a colloquial contraction for will not.
23 Across. Respectful title in "Bridgerton": TOPHERGRACE. Topher Grace is an actor who was in That 70's Show (among other gigs). Crop the top and we are left with the title HER GRACE - a form of address for royalty.
49 Across. Tribute band's set list: COVERTOPS. Covert Ops (operations) are a form of intel gathering. Crop the top and we are left with COVERS. When a band plays a song that was popularized by another band it is called a COVER of that song. Below, the Grateful Dead at Woodstock performing a COVER of Merle Haggard's song "Momma Tried".
53 Across. Decorator'ssamples: STOPWATCHES. SWATCHES A stop watch is a timer. Crop the top and pieces of cloth, or SWATCHES, appear.
This is how things appear in the grid:
Here are the rest of the clues and answers:
Across:
1. Personal space, perhaps: BLOG. A BLOG is a website that allows users to reflect, share opinions, and discuss various topics in the form of an online journal where readers may comment on posts. Does this sound familiar?
5. 1950s politico Stevenson: ADLAI.
10. Wax-coated cheese: EDAM. Often eaten in our puzzles.
14. All that's left of a spent apple: CORE. Spent as is used up. Apple, Inc (the giant tech company paid Apple, Corps (the Beatles company) over $600,000,000 to settle a trademark dispute.
15. Rings up: DIALS. A reference to the days when telephones looked like this:
16. Chianti o pinot grigio: VINO. Lezione di italiano di oggi. Chianti and Pinot grigio are both wines. VINO in Italian.
20. Absolut rival: STOLI. A vodka reference.
21. Actor Watanabe: KEN. Ken Watanabe's Wiki page
22. Call off a romance: END IT. Weird Al said it best:
26. Oracle: SEER. A man goes to consult a SEER. He knocks on the door and from the inside the seer shouts "Who is it?" Disillusioned, the man walks away.
27. "__ all adults here": WE'RE. We are?
28. Jelly bean dispenser opening: SLOT. Remember these?
31. Reiteration opening: I SAID. Anything I say here will be redundant.
33. Take off politely: DOFF.
37. Babe: HON. Terms of endearment.
40. __ culpa: MEA. Literally, my fault or my mistake.
41. Eco-friendly beauty brand: AVEDA. Known to this solver only through crosswords.
43. To the __ degree: NTH.
44. "Army of Darkness" director Sam: RAIMI.
46. Insulation resistance tester's unit: MEGOHM. MEG - is a slightly shortened prefix for mega, which is 1x10 6; - OHM is the basic unit of resistance, which is represented by the Greek letter omega (Ω). A megohm, therefore, is an impedance measurement that represents one million OHMs.
48. Doorway: PORTAL. To another dimension?
55. Photo session: SHOOT. A bit of slang derived from "to shoot a photograph".
57. Half and half?: ONE. Basic math
58. Put into effect: ENACT. As, for example, a law.
61. Sliced fruit in some salads: PEARS.
62. Metric weights, casually: KGS. Kilograms. Kilo, or sometimes "ki" (pronounced key), was a word commonly heard in the '60s.
63. Florida city that hosts an annual Pirate Festival: TAMPA.
64. Shows curiosity: ASKS. Why didn’t 4 ASK out 5? Because he was 2²
65. Match component: SET. A tennis reference - game, SET, match.
66. Sudden and jarring transition: LEAP. As in "a LEAP of faith".
Down:
1. Covertly includes on an email: BCCS. Blind Carbon Copy. Remember carbon paper?
2. Booty: LOOT. Buttocks would not fit.
3. "Welp, never mind": OR NOT.
4. "Amscray!": GET LOST.
5. Orthodontist's org.: ADA.
6. Hall of Famer Eric who was NFL rushing yards leader four times in the 1980s: DICKERSON. A football reference.
7. "Peace": LATER. Both are slang for "goodbye".
8. Accompanied by: ALONG WITH.
9. Web gateway co.: ISP. Internet Service Provider
10. Made plain to see: EVINCED.
11. Part of LED: DIODE. Light Emmitting DIODE. As in LED lamps.
12. Years of Caesar's reign: ANNI. Latin for years.
13. Guinness superlative: MOST. A reference not to the stout (beer) but to:
18. Stinky: RIPE. Slang
19. Wardrobe malfunction: TEAR. Wardrobe malfunction is a term (and a bit of a euphemism) popularized by an incident involving Janet Jackson.
NSFW ?
24. Beneficiary: HEIR.
25. Mulligan: REDO.
28. Ersatz: SHAM. Which alcoholic drink can give you the illusion that you're hurt? Sham-pain.
29. Not just fancy: LOVE. Fancy as in the British English sense - to like something.
30. Universal donor's type, briefly: O-NEG. A reference to blood typing.
32. Germane: APT.
34. Leave out: OMIT.
35. Disaster relief org.: FEMA.
36. Come to nothing: FAIL. What is it called when your knee transplant FAILs? Irony.
38. Partnership, informally: CAHOOTS. As in "to be in CAHOOTS with someone".
39. Oracle: PROPHET. ‘Atheism is a non-prophet organization.’ - George Carlin
39. Oracle: PROPHET. ‘Atheism is a non-prophet organization.’ - George Carlin
42. __ Without Borders: DOCTORS. A reference to the group providing charity medical care around the world.
45. Tottenham's opponent in the North London derby: ARSENAL. A soccer reference.
47. Letters for a GOAT, perhap: MVP. Goat, in this case does not refer to an animal. Greased Of All Time = Most Valuable Player
48. Abbreviation that refers to many racial identities: POC. Person Of Color
50. Tree hut dwellers on Endor: EWOKS. A "Star Wars" reference.
51. Kitchen fixture: RANGE. Something you might use to provide the heat for cooking.
53. Water down, say: SOAK.
54. "Me too": SAME.
55. Self-care destination: SPA.
56. Chaps: HES. Not what a cowgirl might wear. Chaps being slang for men.
59. Busy bee in Apr.: CPA. Certified Public Accountant
60. Draft source: TAP. In this clue it is a reference to beer as in "cold beer on TAP"
Well, that will wrap things up for this Friday and, for yours truly, for Fridays in general. Starting next month I will no longer be blogging two Friday puzzles each month. In something of a shift towards semi-retirement (after approximately 125 recaps here), I will henceforth be blogging one puzzle each month and that will be on the final Wednesday of each month. Hope to see all y'all on January 28th!
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