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I Read the News Today, Oh Boy: Melanie Makes Me Smile

We had two hints for last week's theme: (1) "[W]e'll guess that the musician Morrissey would probably have a pretty easy time with this one," and (2) "There's a character in The Matrix who would get it instantly. Or is he several characters? Several hundred? Several thousand?" And here is the solution, courtesy of reader M.H. in Ottawa, ON, Canada:

The theme this week: famous people with the surname Smith!

TrumpWatch: Palm Beach International Airport Will Apparently Be Renamed—Will Smith, American rapper and actor

Humor Hath Charms: I Stopped Calling the Toilet "John" and Named It "Jim" Instead—John Smith, English explorer

I Read the News Today, Oh Boy: The Southside, aka Al Capone's Cocktail—Al Smith, former governor of New York

This Week in Schadenfreude: I Wouldn't Know Him from Adam—Adam Smith, Scottish economist and philosopher

This Week in Freudenfreude: Jumpin' Jack Flash, It Was a Gas, Gas, Gas (Redux)—Jack Smith, American attorney

And as for your hint, while Morrissey doesn't have the surname Smith (and hence isn't himself a valid answer), he was the frontman for the Smiths.

Precisely. The Saturday hint referred to Agent Smith, the law enforcement officer from The Matrix, and this headline adds Melanie Smith, who isn't as famous as the others, but is fairly well remembered for a memorable guest turn on Seinfeld.

Here are the first 60 readers to get it right:

K.R. in Austin, TX
M.M. in Dunellen, NJ
R.H.O. in Portland, ME
P.H. in Fort Lauderdale, FL
T.K. in Manchester, MO
J.N. in Zionsville, IN
A.S. in Fairfax, VA
S.K. in Ardmore, PA
M.C. in Falls Church, VA
J.E. in Gilbertsville, PA
K.F. in Berea, KY
R.E. in Birmingham, AL
P.R. in Kirksville, MO
S.R. in Robbinsville, NJ
S.F. in Pemberton Borough, NJ
P.A. in Redwood City, CA
S.G. in Durham, NC
K.M. in Ypsilanti, MI
Z.K. in Albany, NY
N.H. in London, England, UK
M.T. in Wheat Ridge, CO
G.W. in Avon, CT
S.T. in Asbury Park, NJ
K.H. in Maryville, TN
R.N. in Cleveland, OH
D.S. in Layton, UT
S.L. in St. Louis, MO
D.D. in Bucks County, PA
A.E. in Cleveland, OH
M.S. in Canton, NY

M.J. in Oakdale, MN
B.U. in St. Louis, MO
R.S. in Milan, OH
J.F. in Fayetteville, NC
M.W. in Altea, Spain
M.K. in Seattle, WA
J.M. in Eagle Mills, NY
D.L. in Uslar, Germany
D.M. in Oakland, CA
N.S. in Los Angeles, CA
T.C. in Kirkwood, MO
J.E. in San Jose, CA
B.F. in Nashville, TN
G.G. in Nicholasville, KY
E.S. in Providence, RI
M.H. in Ottawa
M.R. in West Hartford, CT
M.L. in West Hartford, CT
B.B. in Avon, CT
T.P. in Kings Park, NY
J.S. in Huntington Station, NY
J.P. in Fredericksburg, VA
T.T. in Conway, AR
G.M. in Arlington, VA
D.O. in Brookline, MA
A.S. in Santa Monica, CA
J.K. in Chicago, IL
Y.T. in Jacksonville, FL
T.T. in Seattle, WA
S.A. in Downey, CA

The 60th correct response was received at 12:06 p.m. PT on Sunday.

As we sometimes do, we've decided to go with song titles this week. That puts us in the category of Music, perhaps, or maybe Language. It also means that every word in each headline counts. For a hint, we'll offer the heads up that for one of the songs, it is NOT the Michael Jackson version we have in mind. We will also add that you have to tolerate one "alternate" spelling to make the theme work. It should be obvious what we mean if you figure the theme out.

If you have a guess, send it to comments@electoral-vote.com with subject line February 27 Headlines. (Z)

This item appeared on www.electoral-vote.com. Read it Monday through Friday for political and election news, Saturday for answers to reader's questions, and Sunday for letters from readers.

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