In 2005 this baseball team won a championship; in 2024, they lost 121 games, the most in MLB history
Chicago White Sox
The New York Times' 2026 obit said this 2-time pres. candidate had "picked up the mantle" after MLK's death in 1968
Jesse Jackson
Kindergarten teacher Mrs. Howard on this series is based on show creator Quinta Brunson's mom, who was a teacher
Abbott Elementary
Spanish pronoun
(2 letters)
yo
Before getting an Oscar, Mo'Nique hosted "Charm School", a spin-off of this Flavor Flav dating show
Flavor of Love
Oil on water spreads into a smooth, slippery surface called this, which means smooth & slippery
slick
Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones team up to fight aliens in this movie series
Men in Black
Nicknamed "America's Team" in the 1970s, this franchise has won 5 Super Bowls
The Cowboys
Leonard Riggio, who died in 2024, was both praised & reviled for leading this bookselling chain that's doubly not named after him
Barnes & Noble
Jake & Amy, Andy Samberg & Melissa Fumero, were married cops on this sitcom
Brooklyn Nine-Nine
Christmas season
(8 letters)
yuletide
On Britain's "I'd Do Anything", a young, no Oscar'd Jessie Buckley failed to score the Nancy role in this Dickensian musical!
Oliver!
Despite shoes called grippers & sliders, Health Canada reports that 90% of injuries in this sport are from falls on ice
curling
Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker are the famous duo in what 1998 movie
Rush Hour
Mark Messier, a former Oiler, helped lead this NHL team to a Stanley Cup in the 1993-94 season
the Rangers
Mattel confirmed the 2026 death of Roger Sweet, designer of the beefy action figure of this "Masters of the Universe" hero
He-Man
Blessed to have played two different roles on "Seinfeld", her second appearance helped her land the role of Kate O'Brien on this sitcom where Cleveland most definitely rocked
The Drew Carey Show
A large, luxurious sailing or motor boat.
(5 letters)
a yacht
Before being a multi-Oscar winner, Emma Stone was on VH1 trying out for a role in "The New" this David Cassidy-led sitcom family
the (New) Partridge Family
Remember that these creatures are proverbially slippery if you're using them as bait for striped bass
eels
Owen Wilson and Vince Vaughn as the characters John Beckwith and Jeremy Grey
Wedding Crashers
In 2016, she was the WNBA Finals MVP & helped the Los Angeles Sparks come out on top over the Minnesota Lynx

Candace Parker
Canadian and American game show host and television personality. Regarded as a pop culture icon, he was best known for hosting the syndicated quiz show Jeopardy!
Alex Trebek
Created by Glen Charles & Les Charles and James Burrows, aired on NBC for eleven seasons from 1982, to 1993, set in a bar in Boston, where a group of locals meet to drink, relax, socialize, and escape from their day-to-day issues.
Cheers
Used to show agreement or a positive response
(3 letters)
Yes
Tom Hardy won a modeling contest on "The Big Breakfast" but didn't look very modelesque when he got a nom as a fur trapperin this epic
The Revenant
If the slimy texture isn't your favorite part of this seed pod veggie from genus Abel moschus, try roasting it

okra
Disney movie do Johnny Depp and Orlando Bloom team up
Pirates of the Caribbean
In 2024 Jude Bellingham did a (world) capital job of leading this Spanish team to a UEFA Champions League title
Real Madrid
professional basketball player. Nicknamed "the Black Mamba", he played his entire 20-year career with the Los Angeles Lakers
Kobe Bryant
The color opening credits of this series showed what was actually Hawaii's Coconut Island as the title locale
Gilligan's Island
Tip of a spar on a square-rigged ship
(7 letters)
yardarm
This woman, who got a nom as Perfidia Beverly Hills, crowned herself the Queen of New York on MTV's "My Super Sweet 16"
Teyanna Taylor
Used in fairground climbing contests, this slippery item is metaphorically what you hope to reach the top of in politics or business
a greasy pole
Paul Walker and Vin Diesel are the duo in what racing movie
the Fast and the Furious