There are spoilers ahead. You might want to solvetoday's puzzlebefore reading further!Tall Tale Constructor:Noelle Griskey Editor:Anna Gundlach OCT (16A: Month when people often break out the viral "Pumpkin Dance" video (Abbr.)) Although this answer was easy for me to deduce – I correctly guessed that the word pumpkin was pointing to October (OCT), Halloween's month – I have somehow missed seeing the"Pumpkin Dance"video ... until now, that is. The "Pumpkin Dance" video is a clip of a man dressed in a black leotard and wearing a jack-o-lantern mask, dancing in a graveyard to theGhostbusterstheme song. The video was originally taped in 2006 for a Halloween segment on an Omaha, Nebraska TV station. Three years later, the Internet noticed and the video went viral. EWE (14A: Lamb's mom) and RAM (70A: Lamb's dad) Nice to see this pair together in the grid. THEME (20A: Unifying topic) It feels like a bonus to have the word THEME in a puzzle that has a THEME. IBMS (47A: Certain PCs) IBMS are having a moment, as we saw the singular IBM inyesterday's puzzleclued as ["Big Blue" tech company]. NELSON (52A: Country singer Willie) Perhaps like me, this clue has made you wonder how old Willie NELSON is. He's had an active music career that spans eight decades, and he celebrated his 92nd birthday last month. Willie NELSON was honored with a Grammy Legend Award in 1990, and the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2000. The song that comes to my mind when I think of Willie NELSON is"On the Road Again"(1991). I often sing it when my husband and I are starting off on a road trip. (My husband loves that.) SLAM (65A: Grand ___ (baseball feat)) I'm always delighted to come across a sports clue that I know the answer to. A grand SLAM is a home run hit with the bases loaded, resulting in four runs. Here are some fun grand SLAM stats: The first Major League Baseball (MLB) player to hit a grand SLAM was Roger Connor, playing for the now-defunct Troy Trojans, in 1881. Alex Rodriguez (aka A-Rod) has 25 career grand SLAMs, an MLB record. Only one MLB player has hit two grand SLAMs in a single inning, and that was Fernando Tatís of theSt. Louis Cardinalsin 1999. (That was not a good inning for their opponents, the Los Angeles Dodgers.) TEAMS (6D: Blue Jays and White Sox) Speaking of baseball, theToronto Blue Jaysand theChicago White Soxare MLB TEAMS. TOTAL ECLIPSE (9D: Astronomical event that can be seen with solar viewers) A TOTAL ECLIPSE occurs when the Moon passes between the Earth and the Sun and fully obscures the Sun. Although a TOTAL ECLIPSE occurs approximately every 18 months, it is only able to be viewed from certain places on Earth each time, referred to as the path of totality. LION (11D: Animal in a pride) My cat, Willow, is always proud to see her big cat cousin, the LION, in the puzzle. Willow is glad she doesn't have to live in the wild, though, as there are no laps or fleece blankets, two of her favorite things. LIA (27D: NCAA champion swimmer Thomas) In 2022, when she was a student athlete at the University of Pennsylvania, LIA Thomas won the NCAA Division I Championship in the women's 500-yard freestyle event. She is the first openly transgender athlete to win an NCAA Division I national championship. LIA Thomas has been the center of a lot of media attention. She has said, "I just want to show trans kids and younger trans athletes that they're not alone." TBS (29D: "Wipeout" cable channel)Wipeoutis a TV game show that was rebooted on TBS in 2021. The original game show aired from 2008-2014 on ABC. The TBS version of the show is hosted by John Cena, Nicole Byer, and Camille Kostek. Contestants onWipeoutcompete on an extreme obstacle course. BACH (34D: "Toccata and Fugue in D minor" composer) Even if you don't recognize the title of this organ composition by Johann Sebastian BACH (1685-1750), it's possible you might have heard"Toccata and Fugue in D minor"before. OREO (35D: Cakesters cookie brand)I have previously written about OREO Cakestersbeing introduced in 2007, discontinued in 2012, and then brought back in 2022 in response to requests from fans. Our crossword friend OREO is making its first appearance this month and its twelfth appearance this year. PSA (42D: Ad Council ad, e.g.) The Ad Council, founded in 1942, is a nonprofit organization that produces public service announcements (PSAs) on behalf of various organizations. The Ad Council has produced PSAs for a variety of campaigns, including the COVID-19 Vaccine Education Initiative, Love Has No Labels, and Autism Awareness. NO LIE (53D: "For real!") "NO LIE!" is a fun bonus in a TALL TALE-themed puzzle. CAIRO (55D: Capital on the Nile) 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. OSCAR (56D: Muppet from Grouchland) OSCAR the Grouch is one of my favorite Muppets. (Honestly, I'm a fan of all the Muppets!) OSCAR lives in a trash can on Sesame Street, which is bigger on the inside that it appears to be from the outside. Inside OSCAR's trash can there's a backdoor that leads to his hometown, Grouchland, USA. THYME (57D: Herbes de Provence herb) Herbes de Provence is a dried herb mixture containing herbs considered to be typical of the Provence region of France. Herbes de Provence mixes generally include THYME, savory, marjoram, rosemary, and oregano, though other herbs may also be included. ALIA (59D: "Search Party" star Shawkat)Search Partyis a dark comedy that premiered in 2016 and ran for five seasons. The TV series follows the life of Dory Sief, portrayed by ALIA Shawkat. In the first season, Dory begins searching for a college acquaintance whom she believes to be in danger. TEA (64D: Rooibos or oolong) Rooibos is a red TEA made from the leaves of the rooibos plant; it is naturally caffeine-free. Oolong is a TEA made from semi-oxidized TEA leaves, and can be made from a variety of TEA plant cultivars. Oolong is similar to black TEA. A few other clues I especially enjoyed: TATTOO (19A: Stick-and-poke body art) LOAD (43A: Unit of dishes for the dishwasher) ET TU (10D: "You're double-crossing me too?!") TOTAL ECLIPSE (9D: Astronomical event that can be seen with solar viewers) FATAL ERRORS (18D: Severely costly mistakes) MENTAL ENERGY (21D: Resources available for cognitive efforts) TALL TALE: The word TALE is found standing TALL in each vertical theme answer: TOTAL ECLIPSE, FATAL ERRORS, and MENTAL ENERGY. The word TALL in today's title tipped me off to look for the theme in the Down answers. As soon as I filled in TOTAL ECLIPSE, I knew I was on the right track. Thank you, Noelle, for this enjoyable puzzle. USA TODAY's Daily Crossword Puzzles Sudoku & Crossword Puzzle Answers This article originally appeared on USA TODAY:Crossword Blog & Answers for May 15, 2025 by Sally Hoelscher
