Friday, Jan 16th, 2026 ~ Alex Rohrer

 MANOR, CHATEAU, PALACE, [ CASTLE ]*

Gilette Castle, right here in my home state of Connecticut

This was a great crossword puzzle theme - a clever use of ordinal numbers and homonyms ( I also found the term "polysemy" - bank & run, e.g. ), words that sound and spell the same, but have two totally different definitions.  My research into constructor Alex Rohrer led me to some other pages of crosswords ( click the green "read" button ) but I cannot be sure who "they" are - if they be man or woman  - and I am not going to assume, as I made that 'foe pah' last year with "Dana" Edwards - sorry, man.  Anyway, this was Friday-level difficulty in a standard grid, no circles, just twelve 3LWs, but a tad too many names & abbrs ( at least in the clues; I'm looking at you 58D. ).  The themers;

17. [Math], science, gym, English: FIRST CLASS - the [ brackets ] are a hint as to the "position" required to finish the fill; here, "math" is the opening, or first, instance of four school "classes" listed - not the combination of the two words being 'posh section of an airplane'.  The "M" is capitalized just because it's the opening letter of the clue - which threw me at first.

30. Allegory, [fable], anecdote, parable: SECOND STORY - the word in brackets is now found in the 'second' place, one of four synonyms for "story" - not the 'level of a house'

46. Walkout, slowdown, [picketing], sit-in: THIRD STRIKE - the third word, in brackets, is a synonym for strike, in the 'union' sense, not the "yer out~!" of baseball, or say, convictions; ya know what they call manners in prison~?  Con etiquette, get it~?

62. Safari lodge, island property, destination spa, [all-inclusive beach hotel]: LAST RESORT - finally, we have four examples, or definitions, of places, as opposed to the ultimate act of extreme decisiveness, like nulcear war

* FOURTH ESTATE - known collectively as 'the press' - I did not know about the first three estates

Let's keep this theme going~!

sodium, carbon, lead, tin, [ iron ] - Fifth Element

Great movie, 1997 - about "love", not atomic structures on the periodic chart

But

Wait

There's

More

ACROSS:

1. Lemon piece: WEDGE - I do the Downs first, had SOAR at 1D., so I filled in SLICE;  Bzzzt~!

6. Shoe with a "Sport Mode": CROC - don't own, don't care

'dad mode', 'marriage material', uh, OK, kinda funny

10. Sunscreen ingredient: ZINC - I had - IN -, thought TINT at first 😜

14. Far from familiar: ALIEN - I knew this was the answer, but my NW corner was a jumbled mess

15. Off-white hue: ECRU - Ah. The Monday dupe.  On Tuesday.

16. "Pick me!": "OH, OH~!"

19. Simplicity: EASE

20. Start of a long drive, perhaps: TEE SHOT - the "H" my last letter to fill, highlighted red in the grid below; I was trying to parse this as TEES OFF, which the crossings denied

21. Available sans Rx: OTC - Over-The-Counter, Frawnche "without" prescription, but only avec argent

23. Craps cube: DIE

24. Journalist Katie: COURIC - name #1, knew this one

26. Formal expulsion: OUSTER

28. Well-suited: APT

32. Tasks: CHORES

34. Doja Cat's signature song: SAY SO - not my thing, but I listened and liked it - has a 70's disco vibe, and the video does, too; * warning *- the rap in the middle contains foul language, of course - name(ish)

35. Zipped, or ripped: TORE

36. "Love & Hip Hop: Atlanta" airer: Mtv - the channel ran its last actual music video in 2025, sorta

37. Kardashian matriarch: KRIS - name #2, no clue, tried "I-ris"

41. Sailor Moon headpiece: TIARA - Anime / Manga; it's her weapon - name(ish)

44. Benoit Blanc, e.g.: SLEUTH - name(ish)- more here; I have the DVD, haven't watched it yet . . . 

50. Pigpen: STY

51. Tried to improve one's score on, perhaps: RETOOK - think 'test'

52. Rat: SNITCH - I had PARIAH, as the "H" was in place

54. "__ longa, vita brevis": ARS - this helped me get a foothold in the SW; thanks to four years of Latin in high school~!

55. Cat seat: LAP - Here's my buddy from LI, now living in CT as well, at home New Year's Day

Matt "The Hat" and cat

57. Some bagels: SESAMES - I like mine Everything Egg - which a friend suggested were the bagels that got dropped on the floor in the kitchen . . . 

60. Masjid prayer leader: IMAM

64. "Bob's Burgers" girl: TINA - Watched the show for a while; I like Louise more - name #3

65. Redhead of classic TV: OPIE - I had LUCY, of course, but how can you tell hair color in Black & White~?  Name #4

66. Features of some lobbies: ATRIA - I would fly into Singapore just to see this one

More here

67. "Quit it!": "STOP~!"

68. Rain delay sight: TARP - a C.C. baseball clue - what, two months to Spring Training~?

69. Small: TEENY

DOWN:

1. Travel by air: WAFT - Dah~! Not SOAR; think of aromas

2. Lebanese fashion designer Saab: ELIE - Friday-cluing for name #5 - not the usual culprit, Mr. Weisel

3. Chloé Zhao, for one: DIRECTOR - name #6 - her IMDb, as I do not know any of her movies

4. Bas-relief medium: GESSO - Argh~!  My first thought, hesitated; learned about gesso from Bob Ross

I love Bob - I bought his paints and did this

5. Gush: ENTHUSE - Ah; think emotionally

6. Boston player: CELTIC - All I could think of were Red Sox and Bruins - I am no basketball fan

7. TV producer: RCA - a company that produced the actual appliances; who else remembers the TV repair guy using a mirror to see the screen while he adjusted the settings~?

I do remember the hardboard back panel with the holes in it, too~!

8. Ish: OR SO

9. Guardianship: CUSTODY - I was on the wavelength with "parentage"

10. Elmo's orange friend: ZOE - name #7 - Never heard of her

11. "Couldn't resist!": "I HAD TO." - due to inflation and the rising cost of crossword fill, there will be an upcharge for "Thwurds"; we also have  - 43D. Have high expectations: ASK A LOT - AND - 48D. "I'll have to pass": "IT'S A NO."

12. More likely to pry: NOSIER

13. Chipper: CHEERY - alliteration

18. Targets of some workouts: CORES - my "core" has gone south on me; I slacked off during the holidays.  But I did some fasting, and gotta get to trying those new dishes~!

22. Swear: CUSS - Ah.  CURSE didn't fit, but I was "correct"

25. People who get half the credit: CO-STARS

27. Stir up: STOKE

28. Do one's part: ACT

29. Soup with rice noodles: PHO - I pondered NAM, like we had last Friday

31. Pt. of USNA: NAV - meh.  U. S. Naval Academy

33. In vogue again: RETRO - I'm "retro" simply because I'm old, and never changed . . . 

36. B.A. Baracus player: Mr. T - from "The A-Team", 80s TV; name #8

38. Mount with southeast-facing faces: RUSHMORE - name(ish), but a gimme

What's the price of admission to this park, CandianEh!~?

39. Addams cousin: ITT - name #9

40. Reserved: SHY

42. Object of admiration: IDOL

44. One with two poles: SKIER - and here I thought I was clever filling in "EARTH"

45. Cry of hunger?: "LET'S EAT~!"

46. Qualities: TRAITS

47. __ crab: HERMIT

49. Foot part: INSTEP

Foot parts ON steps

53. Isabel Wilkerson's "__: The Origins of Our Discontents": CASTE - more here, name(ish) 

56. Dada: PAPA - a bit meh for Friday, IMHO

58. Former "DWTS" co-host Andrews: ERIN - I had no idea what DWTS is - Dancing With The Stars.  She & partner came in third, then she was one of the 25D. until 2020; name #10

59. Hotel visit: STAY

61. World view?: MAP

63. "Aaron Burr, __": "Hamilton" song: SIR - name(ish), and not needed for this 3LW

Splynter

Grid Flow 32.2