High-Scoring Scrabble Words
For 23 points, it's the day on which the sun crosses the celestial equator
equinox
Paul Milgrom shared a Nobel Economics Prize for inventions of new formats for these events; $200, $200, $200... who'll ring in?
Auctions
The marshmallow pieces in this cereal are called marbits, & the pink heart is the only original shape still used today
Lucky Charms
"Hail to thee, monarch of African mountains", begins Bayard Taylor's verse about this peak
Kilimanjaro
Barry Gordon provided the voice of Donatello in nearly 200 episodes of this "reptilian" cartoon, dude
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
This anime show didn't start on TV; its characters were first part of Nintendo's "Pocket Monsters"
Pokémon
45 rpm records are still made for this coin-operated machine, but CDs are now standard (27 points)
jukebox
The Federal Reserve's target rate for this is 2%, but that was majorly exceeded in the late months of 2021
inflation
In 1939 Paul & Betty Pink began selling soda & these from a cart on La Brea & Melrose in L.A. & the rest is history
hot dogs
Bessie Rayner Parkes described this Scottish region as "hills that were born of ages... like monuments to mighty gods"
the Highlands
Title type of animal in a 2005 "Chronicles of Narnia" movie
lion
This classic 5-letter anime film isn't named for film director Kurosawa but rather a boy who destroys Tokyo
Akira
This synonym for a pancake earns you 26 points
flapjack
Chris Rock on this economic rule: it's your boss saying ,"If I could pay you less, I would, but it's against the law
minimum wage
This title object of a 1963 film doesn't refer to a large feline but to a large gem targeted by a thief
the Pink Panther
Longfellow's line "On the shores of Gitche Gumee" from "The Song of Hiawatha" refers to this Great Lake
Lake Superior
A lesson on sharing: "The Rainbow ____"
Fish
In this anime TV series, Bumblebee turned into a VW Beetle; in the 2007 live-action movie, he got upgraded to a Camaro
Transformers
As a slang term, it can refer to your sweetheart; as a verb, it means to press together (25 points)
squeeze
In 1821 Great Britain instituted this system in which a metal provides the reference point for currency
the gold standard
It's the common name of conjunctivitis
pink eye
Carl Sandburg's poem about this city declares it "Hog Butcher for the World"
Chicago
Book 4 of "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" series is titled "So Long, and Thanks for All" these
the Fish
This "lunar" Naoko Takeuchi creation is an example of a "magical girl" given powers to save the world
Sailor Moon
Like a bold, impulsive quest or a man of La Mancha (26 points)
quixotic
In 1936 this British economist said the way to beat a recession was a government-sponsored policy of full employment
John Maynard Keynes
Syd Barrett was the founder & namer of this psychedelic British rock band
Pink Floyd
"Harlem", sometimes called "A Dream Deferred", is probably the most famous poem by this man
Langston Hughes
As Rufus T. Firefly in 1933, Groucho Marx doled out this avian potage
Duck Soup
One of the highest-grossing films in Japanese history is the anime film about this title 14th c. princess
Princess Mononoke