PCC#24 "Phil in the Blank"
◆ · By Philip Chow · Published 2024-01-27T16:06:38.033Z
Meta Prompt
[Level 1.5] Meta prompt: The answer to the meta is a famous Phil (bonus points if you can spell his name without looking it up)
Hint #1: 9 clues have a parenthetical number after it... what do the numbers mean?
Hint #2: Perhaps a more helpful title would be "Phil in(dex) the Blank"
Hint #3: Consider the nth letter of the answer where n = number in parenthesis... For example, Phil ___ (author of this puzzle) (3) would yield the third letter of CHOW = the letter "O"
Hint #4: The famous Phil is not a person... He's also not that great at predicting things and has an overall success rate of about 40%
Hint #5: The famous Phil is associated with a US holiday celebrated on February 2... He hails from a borough in Pennsylvania with a rather difficult name to spell
Checking for previous play data...
1A
Phil ___ (TV host known as Dr. Phil who got his start offering advice on "The Oprah Winfrey Show") (3)
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Across
- 1APhil ___ (TV host known as Dr. Phil who got his start offering advice on "The Oprah Winfrey Show") (3)
- 7APlace to hang your clothes
- 13ASpeedy Gonzales exclamation
- 14APhil ___ (SNL cast member who also voiced Troy McClure on "The Simpsons") (3)
- 16ACombined, as funds
- 17AEmail address component
- 19APhil ___ (Genesis drummer and singer with the song "Against All Odds") (2)
- 21APoker player's declaration
- 22AElectrical units represented by omegas
- 23ACountry with an exclave on the Strait of Hormuz
- 25APartner of Verklärung, in a Strauss opus
- 26AWhen tripled, a nursery rhyme cry by a little piggy
- 27ADeerstalker or fez
- 29APhil ___ (daytime talk show pioneer who was the first host to include audience particiation) (6)
- 32AAirport listing: Abbr.
- 33AGive a speech
- 35AWords after "I need" when I'm tired and cranky
- 36APhil ___ (golf pro nicknamed "Lefty" who is the oldest major winner in history) (9)
- 38AFrees from, with "of"
- 40AEquip with weapons, in the past
- 41ALetters before an alias
- 44APhil ___ (actor nominated for an Emmy for his role of Jamie Tartt in "Ted Lasso") (1)
- 46ARegnal number of Richard in a Shakespeare title
- 47ACarnelian or crimson
- 48AActress Horvath of "The Rings of Power"
- 49AWords before "state of affairs"
- 51ABad button to hit if you didn't mean to "reply all"
- 52A"All that is or ever was or ever will be," per astronomer Carl Sagan
- 55APhil ___ (reality TV host who says "You're the last team to arrive. I'm sorry to tell you that you have been eliminated from the race") (5)
- 58AAuricle and canal extending to the tympanic membrane
- 60ATurkish hospice
- 62APhil ___ (Hall of Fame Yankees shortstop known as "The Scooter") (7)
- 63AAnime series in which the titular character often runs with his hands extended behind his back
- 64AStart doing business again
- 65APhil ___ (Nike co-founder and former CEO with the memoir "Shoe Dog") (4)
Down
- 1DWhere X marks the spot
- 2DStitch with hooked needles
- 3DMade attractive, as dog show competitors
- 4DSmall streams
- 5DGenesis brother
- 6DArabic term for a dry river valley that contains water only when heavy rain occurs
- 7DDeep gorge
- 8DBack muscle, for short
- 9D"Twelfth Night" duke who said "If music be the food of love, play on"
- 10DLeader of the Thenns in "Game of Thrones"
- 11DJane Austen title heroine or crossword constructor Oxford with the podcast "Outside the Blocks"
- 12DSamantha's daughter on "Bewitched"
- 15DStart of an oft-quoted "Seinfeld" catchphrase, used on the show to deny Elaine of her order of mulligatawny
- 18DNews story intro, in journalism jargon
- 20D"Anyone interested? Anyone?... ANYONE?!"
- 22DBe in the hole
- 24DCity northeast of Kangaroo Island
- 27DRaise, as a flag
- 28DPendulum's path
- 30DTennis champ Osaka who beat Serena Williams at the 2018 US Open
- 31DRaggedy red-haired doll
- 34DNumber of rings for Marvel's Shang-Chi
- 36DPhysicians: Abbr.
- 37DLead-in to "Lanka"
- 38DBit of gossip in an Adele song title
- 39DAll worked up
- 41DFloor covering under a coffee table, perhaps
- 42DBranagh who played Niels Bohr in "Oppenheimer"
- 43DDo some basic math
- 44DGeometric art style embodied by the Chrysler Building
- 45DSubside, as rain
- 50DOhio city where Goodyear is headquartered
- 51DLamb Chop puppeteer Lewis
- 53DSelection of small dishes served as appetizers popular in Mediterranean cuisine
- 54DRice-shaped pasta
- 56DSound from a pigpen
- 57DFederal agent, for short (in which the first letter stands for "government")
- 59DSatisfied the munchies
- 61DMany a "Rugrats" character