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Yahoo
13-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Off the Grid: Sally breaks down USA TODAY's daily crossword puzzle, Pick Apart
There are spoilers ahead. You might want to solve today's puzzle before reading further! Pick Apart Constructor: Jared Goudsmit Editor: Jared Goudsmit Jared: I'm so stoked to see this puzzle run! Constructing today's grid was an especially ambitious challenge for me because of those 15-letter bonus entries at 3- and 10-Down. One of my favorite aspects of USA Today puzzles is that grid designs don't have to follow rotational symmetry, giving constructors the flexibility to make more creative choices. I'd also like to give a shout-out to 33-Down, a resource I often use when hunting for fresh new clues! MARCH (9D: Hinamatsuri's month) Hinamatsuri is a Japanese holiday that is also known as Doll's Day or Girls' Day. It is celebrated each year on March 3 and celebrates the health and happiness of young girls and women. The observance of Hinamatsuri includes a display of dolls on a multitiered, red-carpeted platform. TARYN (27D: Body positivity activist Brumfitt) TARYN Brumfitt is a writer, speaker, filmmaker, and body positivity advocate. She is the founder of Body Image Movement, an organization that teaches people to love and appreciate their bodies. In 2023, TARYN Brumfitt was named Australian of the Year. COCA (30D: Mate de ___ (herbal tea)) Mate de COCA, also known as COCA tea, is an herbal drink made using the leaves of the COCA plant. The COCA plant contains alkaloids from which cocaine is derived. Although a cup of mate de COCA contains a low amount of the alkaloid, it is enough to cause a positive result on a drug test for cocaine. Mate de COCA is currently illegal in the United States unless it has been decocainized. KFC (1A: Raising Cane's competitor) Like its competitor KFC, Raising Cane is a restaurant specializing in chicken. Raising Cane's specific specialty is chicken fingers. The company was founded in 1996 in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. It is named after the dog of one of the founders. RHEA (15A: Actress Seehorn) RHEA Seehorn played the role of attorney Kim Wexler on the TV Series, Better Call Saul (2015-2022), a spin-off of and prequel to Breaking Bad (2008-2013). ROMAN (42A: Like Augustus) Augustus (63 BCE-14 CE), also known as Gaius Julius Caesar Augustus was the founder of the ROMAN Empire. He was the first ROMAN emperor, serving from 27 BCE until his death. AYE (46A: Blackbeard's "Yes!") AYE, Blackbeard was the nickname of Edward Teach/Thatch (c 1680-1718), who was a pirate in the West Indies and off the eastern coast of North America. Blackbeard has been the inspiration for many fictional pirates. PICTURE BOOK (58A: "Boys Don't Fry" or "Pete's a Pizza") Boys Don't Fry is a PICTURE BOOK by Kimberly Lee, illustrated by Charlene Chua. It tells the story of a Malaysian boy who wants to help prepare the Lunar New Year feast. Pete's a Pizza is a PICTURE BOOK written and illustrated by William Stieg. It tells about a boy (named Pete, of course) whose father "turns him into a pizza" to help him overcome the disappointment of cancelled plans. I'm a fan of PICTURE BOOKs and I appreciate the use of specific examples in this clue. EAR (64A: Body part with a tragus) The tragus is part of the external EAR. It is a small pointed prominence that projects backward, helping to collect sounds from behind. If you put your finger on your cheek and let it travel back towards your ear, you will discover your tragus; the little part that sticks up slightly and is located above your earlobe. TESLA (66A: Inventor Nikola) Nikola TESLA (1856-1943) was an inventor and engineer known for his contributions to the design of modern electricity supply systems and alternating current. One of Nikola TESLA's inventions was the TESLA coil, an electrical resonant transformer circuit. TESLA invented the coil in 1891. Although they've been used in a variety of applications, today the main use of TESLA coils are for entertainment and educational purposes. Tesla coils can even be used to play music. KAPPA (1D: Letter after iota) KAPPA is making back-to-back crossword appearances, as we saw it yesterday clued as [Sorority's K]. EMU (11D: Liberty Mutual bird) The Liberty Mutual insurance company has used LiMu EMU as its mascot since 2019. ABC (29D: "The Golden Bachelorette" channel) The Golden Bachelorette is a dating reality TV series that premiered last year, joining ABC's offerings of dating reality shows. The Golden Bachelorette features a bachelorette and contestants who are older than those seen on its counterpart The Bachelorette. WIKIPEDIA (33D: Web resource with a "List of lists of lists" page) I'm always happy to see WIKIPEDIA highlighted, as it's a resource I, like Jared, am extremely grateful for. WIKIPEDIA's "List of lists of lists" page is a fun one to check out. As the name suggests, the page is a list of other WIKIPEDIA pages that contain lists of other lists. One could spend a lot of time digging into the links on this WIKIPEDIA page. (I don't have any personal experience of that, of course...) BDAY (38D: NYE, for Bebe Neuwirth) Bebe Neuwirth has won two Tony Awards for her work on Broadway and two Emmy Awards for her portrayal of Lilith Sternin on the sitcom Cheers (1982-1993). And her birthday is on New Year's Eve. The abbreviation NYE in the clue alerts solvers that the answer will be BDAY. ORE (43D: Mined resource in the game Deep Rock Galactic) Deep Rock Galactic is a cooperative video game released in 2020. The game is set on an alien planet, Hoxxes IV. There are a number of different OREs on the planet that are mineable resources. IKEA (56D: Seller of SKOGSTA tables) SKOGSTA tables sold by IKEA are made of acacia wood. IN A (59D: "Genie ___ Bottle" (Christina Aguilera hit)) Christine Aguilera's song, "Genie IN A Bottle" is from her self-titled debut studio album. "Genie IN A Bottle" was the biggest summer hit of 1999, spending five weeks at the top of Billboard's Hot 100 chart. Some other clues I especially enjoyed: ALOE (13A: Succulent that kind of sounds like a greeting) WAITER (50A: "___, there's a fly in my soup!") TRUNK (22D: Part of a car or tree) HATE WATCH (35D: Enjoy some trash TV, perhaps) POPSICLE STICK (20A: Part of a frozen treat that may have a joke printed on it) PITCH BLACK (37A: Totally dark) PICTURE BOOK (58A: "Boys Don't Fry" or "Pete's a Pizza") PICK APART: The word PICK is split APART and found at the ends of each theme answer: POPSICLE STICK, PITCH BLACK, and PICTURE BOOK. The theme answers here represent each possible split of the word PICK: P/ICK, PI/CK, and PIC/K. I'm glad that Jared persevered and came up with a grid that included the grid-spanning Down answers CORPORATE LADDER (3D: Something an office worker may climb) and SMOKE AND MIRRORS (10D: Magician's trickery), as those two answers are quite nice. Thank you, Jared, for this excellent puzzle. USA TODAY's Daily Crossword Puzzles Sudoku & Crossword Puzzle Answers This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Crossword Blog & Answers for June 13, 2025 by Sally Hoelscher
Yahoo
04-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Off the Grid: Sally breaks down USA TODAY's daily crossword puzzle, Special Delivery
There are spoilers ahead. You might want to solve today's puzzle before reading further! Special Delivery Constructor: Marc Raila Editor: Jared Goudsmit TUSH (15A: ___ push (rhyming football play)) The TUSH push is a variation of the football play known as the quarterback sneak. The quarterback sneak involves a quarterback running or diving forward after receiving the football, while the offensive line also surges forward. It is sometimes used when only a short gain is needed. In the TUSH Push, two players push the quarterback from behind as he surges forward. Add this to the list of sports knowledge I've gained from crosswords. TWEAK (1A. Teeny adjustment) TWEAK is such a fun word. That's all. OREO (16A: Cookie akin to Hydrox) Although OREO currently has a larger share of the cookie market than Hydrox, it was Hydrox that appeared on the market first, in 1908. An imitation of Hydrox, named OREO, was introduced in 1912. CHUCK E. CHEESE (20A: Rodent mascot whose middle initial stands for "Entertainment") CHUCK E. CHEESE is the mouse mascot of the entertainment restaurant chain of the same name. CHUCK E. CHEESE features arcade games and musical shows in addition to serving pizza. CHUCK E. CHEESE is a popular spot for kids' birthday parties. RHO (26A: Letter after pi) RHO is making back-to-back puzzle appearances. We saw it yesterday clued as [Greek letter that looks like a "p"]. ONE (41A: "The loneliest number") This is true according to singer-songwriter Harry Nilsson, anyway. His 1968 song, "ONE," begins with the line, "ONE is the loneliest number that you'll ever do." TIC-TAC-DOUGH (55A: Game show with X's and O's) The game show TIC-TAC-DOUGH was first produced in 1956, with Jack Barry as host. There have been three versions of the show (so far) - from 1956-1959, from 1978 to 1986, and in 1990. During the game show, contestants would answer questions in a variety of categories to put an X or O on the board, attempting to win a game of tic-tac-toe. MAINE (67A: The Pine Tree State) MAINE has the largest forest cover of any state, with over 80% of its total area being forest. Much of that forest is pine trees, making it easy to understand why MAINE is called the Pine Tree State. BENTO (70A: Japanese-style packed meal) BENTO is, as the clue describes, a Japanese-style packed meal. It is often served in a partitioned container that allows different parts of the meal to be placed in different sections. ELM (3D: North Dakota state tree) In addition to being the state tree of North Dakota, the ELM is also the state tree of Massachusetts. KATHY (5D: "Hocus Pocus" actress Najimy) The 1993 movie Hocus Pocus features a trio of witches named the Sanderson sisters, portrayed by Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker, and KATHY Najimy. The three reprised their roles for Hocus Pocus 2, released in 2022. A third Hocus Pocus movie is in the works, but no release date has been set. When I first wrote about Hocus Pocus in May 2022, I admitted I had never seen this movie. I was admonished for this by both my daughter and editor Amanda Rafkin! I have now seen both Hocus Pocus and Hocus Pocus 2. STACCATO (6D: Like music with short, sharp notes) Thank you to my childhood piano teachers for teaching me about STACCATO, enabling me to fill in this answer with confidence. In musical notation, the opposite of STACCATO is legato. ASTERS (8D: Daisylike flowers) The daisylike flowers, ASTERS, are having a crossword moment, as we saw the single ASTER yesterday and a few weeks ago, both times clued as [Daisy relative]. ROSE (10D: "Damask" flower) The Damask ROSE is a ROSE hybrid known for its fragrance. It is often used to make rose oil. The quotation marks around "Damask" in the clue indicate that the word is paired with the answer as a name. ARLENE (11D: Garfield's love interest) In the Garfield comics by Jim Davis, ARLENE is a pink cat who is Garfield's girlfriend. She made her first appearance in 1980, two years after the comic began. My cat, Willow, is peeking out from under a blanket to say that she's a fan of Garfield and ARLENE. HOSTA (22D: Plant that's an anagram of "oaths") A HOSTA is a shade-tolerant perennial with many varieties. I did not know what a HOSTA was until I moved to the Iowa City area. All over town I noticed similar-looking plants around the bases of trees. I learned they were called HOSTAs. They are popular because they thrive in the shade and because deer don't particularly like them. We currently have two varieties of HOSTAs growing in our yard. ICE (24D: Crushed halo-halo ingredient) Halo-halo is the unofficial national dessert of the Philippines. The cold treat is made from crushed ICE and coconut milk or evaporated milk. Various ingredients, such as ube jam, garbanzo beans, or coconut strips may be added. PETA (25D: Org. with a "Global Beauty Without Bunnies" program) PETA stands for People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals. Their "Beauty Without Bunnies" program is a certification the organization provides to beauty and cosmetic companies that do not do animal testing on their products. TAMIA (30D: "A Nu Day" singer) TAMIA is a Canadian R&B artist. A Nu Day is her second studio album, released in 2000. HBO (44D: "Succession" channel) Succession is an HBO TV series that focuses on the Roy family, the owners of a global media and entertainment conglomerate, Waystar RoyCo. The show originally aired from 2018 to 2023. TRES (56D: Numero despues de dos) " Numero después de dos" is Spanish for "number after two." RAE (61D: Singer Corinne Bailey ___) Corrine Bailey RAE is a singer and songwriter from Leeds, England. Her first global hits were "Like a Star," released in 2005, and "Put Your Records On," released in 2006. Her fourth studio album, Black Rainbows, was released in 2023. NEO (64D: Keanu's role in "The Matrix") In The Matrix movies - of which there have been four to date - Keanu Reeves portrays computer programmer Thomas Anderson, who operates as a hacker using the name NEO. The name NEO is an anagram of "one." In The Matrix, "The One" refers to a randomly selected human that carries a special code. CHUCK E. CHEESE (20A: Rodent mascot whose middle initial stands for "Entertainment") AWESOME SAUCE (37A: "So cool!") TIC TAC DOUGH (55A: Game show with X's and O's) SPECIAL DELIVERY: If we look at the last words of the theme answers – CHEESE, SAUCE, and DOUGH – we see that the SPECIAL DELIVERY is a pizza. Pizza is one of my favorite foods, so you know I'm a fan of this theme. I also like that it took a bit of an extra step to piece together what the SPECIAL DELIVERY is, making for a nice "Aha!" moment. Thank you, Marc, for this excellent puzzle. One more thing today: The annual American Crossword Puzzle Tournament is this weekend in Stamford, Connecticut. I'll be there! If you happen to be attending also, please find me and say hello. I'd love to connect with you. USA TODAY's Daily Crossword Puzzles Sudoku & Crossword Puzzle Answers This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Crossword Blog & Answers for April 4, 2025 by Sally Hoelscher
