Off the Grid: Sally breaks down USA TODAY's daily crossword puzzle, Shakedown

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24-05-2025

There are spoilers ahead. You might want to solve today's puzzle before reading further! Shakedown
Constructor: Larry Snyder
Editor: Jared Goudsmit
CAT SPA (1A: Place where toygers are pampered) A toyger is a breed of CAT with a striped coat similar to a tiger. My CAT, Willow, who is a calico, not a toyger, would likely not be a fan of a trip to a CAT SPA. To be fair, she's pretty pampered at home. In this photo she's sitting on my lap demanding a cuddle, even though I am supposed to be working.
NO BUENO (14A: Faux Spanish for "Not good") In Spanish, one would say "NO está BUENO," or "NO es BUENO," to indicate something is not good.
RECIPE (15A: "Jump to ___" (food blog button)) Having perused a number of food blogs, I am grateful for the "Jump to RECIPE" button that allows me to start cooking when I'm not in the mood to read all of the backstory.
LAKES (17A: Como and Ontario, for two) LAKE Como is located in Lombardy, Italy at the foot of the Alps. LAKE Ontario is the easternmost of the Great LAKES, located on the Canada - United States border.
CARLE (18A: "The Grouchy Ladybug" author Eric) The Grouchy Ladybug is a 1977 children's book by Eric CARLE. The story follows the titular character's search for an animal large enough to be worth fighting. The size of the book's pages increase as the ladybug encounters bigger animals. Eric CARLE also wrote The Very Hungry Caterpillar.
NIGERIA (20A: Benin's neighbor) NIGERIA and Benin are countries in West Africa. NIGERIA is located east of Benin. The capital of NIGERIA is Abuja, and the capital of Benin is Porto-Novo.
ROOFS (36A: They cover top stories?) If this clue did not have a question mark, the answer might be journalists. The question mark, however, indicates there is an element of (possibly tricky) wordplay happening. The answer is ROOFS, which literally cover the top stories of buildings.
PETER (39A: "Wicked" actor Dinklage) In the movie Wicked (2024), PETER Dinklage voices Dr. Dillamond, a talking goat who teaches history at Shiz University.
EVA (53A: Broadway star Noblezada) EVA Noblezada's Broadway roles have included Kim in Miss Saigon, Daisy Buchanan in The Great Gatsby, and Eurydice in Hadestown. As I mentioned the other day, EVA Noblezada is currently playing Sally Bowles in Cabaret on Broadway.
O'HARA (58A: Actress Catherine) Catherine O'HARA is known for her portrayal of Moira Rose in the sitcom Schitt's Creek (2015-2020). She won an Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series for that role.
UNICORN (62A: National animal of Scotland) It's true, the national animal of Scotland is the legendary UNICORN. The UNICORN has been a heraldic symbol of the country since the 12th century.
OBOE (8D: Orchestra-tuning instrument) I have previously written about the OBOE being the instrument used to tune orchestras. My husband and I attended an orchestra concert last weekend, and I made a point of listening for the OBOE's tuning pitch.
MERCI (10D: "Arigato" in French) "Arigatō" is a Japanese word meaning "thank you." In French, the word for "thank you" is "MERCI." Many people are familiar with the phrase, "Dōmo arigatō, Mr. Roboto" ("Thank you very much, Mr. Roboto"), from the 1983 Styx song "Mr. Roboto."
HARVEY MILK (16D: Politician and LGBTQ+ activist who said "Hope will never be silent") HARVEY MILK was California's first openly gay elected official. He was elected to the San Francisco Board of Supervisors in 1977. Eleven months into his term, HARVEY MILK and Mayor George Moscone were assassinated by a disgruntled city supervisor.
CETERA (18D: The "c" in etc.) The abbreviation "etc." stands for the two-word Latin expression "et CETERA," which means "and other things."
ALOO (24D: ___ chokha (potato dish)) ALOO chokha is a potato dish in Indian cuisine. It consists of mashed potatoes mixed with chopped chilies, onion, salt, and mustard oil.
REDS (34D: Sangiovese, merlot, etc.) Sangiovese and merlot are two varieties of grapes used to make RED wine. The word "Sangiovese" is derived from the Latin phrase for "blood of Jupiter." The name "Merlot" is derived from the French name for "blackbird," thought to be a reference to the color of Merlot grapes.
SZA (37D: "Saturn" singer) "Saturn" is the lead single from SZA's 2024 album Lana. "Saturn" won a Grammy Award for Best R&B song.
EGOT (57D: Award quartet for John Legend) EGOT is an acronym for Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony Awards. John Legend achieved EGOT status in 2018 when he won an Emmy Award (his first; he now has six) for Outstanding Variety Special (Live) for Jesus Christ Superstar Live in Concert. John Legend also has 13 Grammy Awards, an Oscar (Academy Award) for Best Original Song (2015) for "Glory" from Selma, and a Tony Award for Best Revival of a Play (2017) for Jitney.
ONO (65D: "Starpeace" singer Yoko) Starpeace is a concept album by Yoko ONO. It was released in 1985 as a message of peace in opposition to Ronald Reagan's "Star Wars" missile defense system.
A few other clues I especially enjoyed:
HOLOGRAM (16A: 3D image in many a sci-fi film)
TREE (35D: Word after word"family" or "Christmas")
IDIOM (50D: "Cut corners," e.g.)
SCIENCE FAIR (4D: School exhibition with experiments)
HARVEY MILK (16D: Politician and LGBTQ+ activist who said "Hope will never be silent")
GIVE ME A HAND (22D: "Little help, please")
SHAKEDOWN: The last word of each vertical (DOWN) answer can be paired with the word SHAKE: FAIR SHAKE, MILKSHAKE, and HANDSHAKE.
I'm going to be honest; I'm a fan of any puzzle that makes me think I might need to have a MILKSHAKE. I also enjoy seeing SCIENCE FAIR as a theme answer. Hooray for SCIENCE (literally) in the crossword! Thank you, Larry, for this excellent puzzle.
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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Crossword Blog & Answers for May 24, 2025 by Sally Hoelscher