Off the Grid: Sally breaks down Paste BN's daily crossword puzzle, Do to a Tee
There are spoilers ahead. You might want to solve today's puzzle before reading further! Do to a Tee
Constructor: Hannah Slovut
Editor: Amanda Rafkin
What I Learned from Today’s Puzzle
- THAI (18A: Kai jeow cuisine) Kai jeow is a THAI omelet. There are many variations of the dish, most of which start with beating eggs with fish sauce. Kai jeow is usually served with rice.
- LIAM (42A: "3 Body Problem" actor Cunningham) The Netflix sci-fi series, 3 Body Problem, is an adaptation of Liu Cixin's book series, Remembrance of Earth's Past. The show, which is set mainly in the United Kingdom and China, is about a group of scientists who encounter an extraterrestrial civilization. LIAM Cunningham portrays Thomas Wade, the MI6 chief who is the head of the global Strategic Intelligence Agency. The show's title refers to a classic physics conundrum concerning three bodies that exert gravitational forces on each other.
- DOROTHY WEST (55A: Writer of the 1948 novel "The Living is Easy") DOROTHY WEST (1907-1988) was a novelist and short story writer, and an important figure in the Harlem Renaissance. Her book, The Living is Easy, is about the attempts of an upper-class Black family to climb the social ladder. Many of DOROTHY WEST's works challenged stereotypes of race, class, and gender.
- FUNKYTOWN (2D: 1980 hit by Lipps Inc.) "FUNKYTOWN" was the only number one hit for Lipps Inc., a disco funk group from Minneapolis, Minnesota. I'm familiar with "FUNKYTOWN," but couldn't tell you who sang it, so I needed the help of crossing answers to jog my memory here.
Random Thoughts & Interesting Things
- ARK (19A: ___ Nova (zoo-themed board game)) In the board game ARK Nova, players "plan and design a modern, scientifically managed zoo."
- DOUBLE AGENT (20A: Spy on the inside) Although it's not really related to the answer of DOUBLE AGENT, this clue – spy on the inside – reminded me of a new Netflix series called A Man on the Inside. The show stars Ted Danson as a widower and retired professor who is hired by a private detective to work undercover at a retirement community. My daughter recommended this show to my husband and me, and we are thoroughly enjoying it. (In fact, we binge-watched five episodes in our first viewing.)
- CAIRO (1D: City that's the gateway to the Nile Delta) CAIRO is the capital and largest city of Egypt. It is located along the Nile River, at the point where the river spreads out and drains into the Mediterranean Sea.
- ACCUSE (5D: Say "It was Mrs. Peacock in the dining room with the knife") I adore this clue! Clue is my favorite board game of all time; it's such a classic. This was the perfect way to clue the word ACCUSE.
- NAT GEO (9D: Nature-focused mag and TV channel) The abbreviations of magazine (mag) and television (TV) in the clue alert solvers the answer will be the abbreviation for National Geographic (NAT GEO).
- ANN (34D: "The Baby-Sitters Club author ___ M. Martin) The Baby-Sitters Club is a series of books published by Scholastic about a group of friends who run a babysitting service. ANN M. Martin created the series and wrote a number of the books. Some of the later books in the series were ghostwritten. The series is set in the fictional town of Stoneybrook, Connecticut. My daughter was a fan of these books when she was younger, and I believe we still have a number of them. The Baby-Sitters Club has been adapted into graphic novels, TV series, and a movie.
- RAINY DAY (39D: Metaphorical time to save for) This answer made me curious about the origin of the phrase "save for a RAINY DAY." It turns out this idiom can be traced back to the mid-1500s when it appeared in an Italian play by A. F. Grazzini, La Spiritata. When John Lyly translated the play into English – and renamed it The Bugbears – it contained the line, "Wold he haue me kepe nothing against a raynye day?"
- SANTA (53D: Character in the movie "Elf") The 2003 movie Elf stars Will Ferrell as Buddy, a human who grows up as an elf working in SANTA's workshop at the North Pole. Ed Asner portrays SANTA. We have a family story about this movie. For years, my husband and I said we'd never seen Elf, while both of our kids were certain that they had watched the movie with us. My husband and I did (finally) watch Elf last year, so now we all agree that we've seen it.
Crossword Puzzle Theme Synopsis
- DOUBLE AGENT (20A: Spy on the inside)
- DOWN FOR THE COUNT (36A: Totally knocked out)
- DOROTHY WEST (55A: Writer of the 1948 novel "The Living is Easy")
DO TO A TEE: Each theme answer begins with the letters DO- and ends with the letter T: DOUBLE AGENT, DOWN FOR THE COUNT, and DOROTHY WEST.
This is a clever theme. I didn't really have a guess at what the theme would be when I began solving, other than an inkling that the letter T (TEE) would be involved. There was a nice "Aha!" moment as I entered DOUBLE AGENT and realized the theme. Thank you, Hannah, for this delightful puzzle.