Thursday, February 16, 2023, Joe Deeney

 

Today marks constructor Joe Deeney's  29th appearance in the LA Times and 15 in the NY Times.  We're winning!  Will Schortz has this to say about him: 'Joe Deeney, of Melrose, Mass., is a supply chain director for Philips, a health technology company based in Amsterdam (the manufacturer of my CPAP machine!). He's been solving crosswords for as long as he can remember.  In 2015 he was solving one he wasn't particularly fond of and thought, "I can do better than that!"'  Three years later he had his first trip to the Corner, blogged by TTP.  Today his theme asks us what we should do about

Loose Change

... a problem that has lessened in recent years due to people's unwillingness to touch the stuff.  But if you think it's going to go away anytime soon, think again.  Anyway, Joe has pondered this question in depth and reveals this answer:

50A *Spot for coins, and what five letters in the answer do in each starred clue: CHANGE PURSE.  Notice is that the embedded string PURSE has been CHANGED (scrambled) in each of the following 4 clues:

16. *Research without direct application: PURE SCIENCE.  Science is not quite as pure as it used to be in the good old days of Galileo and Isaac Newton (17th Century). Things started to get murky with the arrival in the early 20th century of two seismic paradigm shifts: the Theory of Relativity developed by Albert Einstein; and the Theory of Quantum Mechanics (QM) developed by an international team of physicists led by Niels Bohr.  Over one hundred years later there are still unresolved conflicts between these two theories. Efforts to reconcile them have led to a series of what are called Theories of Everything (TOES).  [Geek Alert!] Here is a video by German mathematician and physicist Sabine Hossenfelder on some problems with Relativity (5:27 min).  Here are two more videos with her thoughts on problems with two of the most prominent TOES: the Multiverse theory (7:42 min) and String Theory (7:37 min) [End Geek Alert].  Here is a simplified illustration that attempts to stub the second TOE.

 23. *Czechoslovakian movement of 1968: PRAGUE SPRING  The Prague Spring was a period of political liberalization and mass protest in the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic. It began on 5 January 1968, when reformist Alexander Dubček was elected First Secretary of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia (KSČ), and continued until 21 August 1968, when the Soviet Union and most of Warsaw Pact members invaded the country to suppress the reforms. The Prague Spring inspired many Czech and Slovak artists and musicians to protest the invasion through their work.  Here is Czech composer and guitarist Karel Kryl with his dark song about this period, veiled in cryptic poetry ...

Demonstrations during the Prague Spring

34. *Helpline offering: CUSTOMER SUPPORT.  Customer Support is system of services designed to assist customers in making cost effective and correct use of a product. It includes assistance in planning, installation, training, troubleshooting, maintenance, upgrading, and disposal of a product. Regarding technology products such as mobile phones, televisions, computers, software products or other electronic or mechanical goods, it is termed technical support.  Here are some skills needed by a customer support specialist:

45. *Commerce imbalance: TRADE SURPLUS.  The balance of trade is the difference between the monetary value of a nation's exports and imports over a certain time period.  If a country exports a greater value than it imports, it has a trade surplus or positive trade balance, and conversely, if a country imports a greater value than it exports, it has a trade deficit or negative trade balance.
 

Balance of trade

Here's the grid:

And now it's time to PURSUE a CHANGE of pace ...

Across:

1. Striped pet: TABBY.  Here's one of my grandchildren's cats, a TABBY named Poco Loco, and also today's Spanish lesson, an adjective meaning "a little crazy".  Actually I think he should have been named Mucho Loco.  He and his fellow felines, Rascal, Butterscotch, and Fizzy are all outside cats.  Rascal (also a TABBY) is the oldest and biggest pet, and is a hunter who supplements the food he gets on the porch with various critters he finds in the nearby woods.

Poco Loco

6. "__ chic!": TRES.  "Very stylish".  Today's French lesson.

10. Gear tooth: COG.

13. Sprightly: AGILE.  AGILE is also a software development methodology.

14. Bridge predecessor: WHIST.  WHIST is a classic English trick-taking card game which was widely played in the 18th and 19th centuries. Although the rules are simple, there is scope for strategic play.  Here's an online version you can play if you get bored with this review.

15. Back on a ship:  AFT.  The opposite of ASHORE?

16. [Theme clue]

18. Spending power, for short: CFO.  Chief Financial Officer, the  member of the C Team who can write checks.

19. "No Ordinary Love" singer: SADE.  Helen Folasade Adu CBE (Yoruba: Fọláṣadé Adú [fɔ̄láʃādé ādú]; born 16 January 1959), known professionally as Sade Adu or simply Sade (/ʃɑːˈdeɪ/ shar-DAY), is a Nigerian-born British singer, known as the lead singer of her eponymous band.  Surrealistic.

20. Eleven digits?: ONES.  11.

21. Treadmill setting: PACE. 
.
23A [Theme clue]

27. Yuletide song: NOEL. Even though 'tis not the season, I interpreted this clue like my favorite conductor Arturo Toscanini, who used to exhort his orchestras: "Come scritto!" ("As written!"):

28. 33-Across years: DECADE.  Half a score.

29. Paper or plastic: NOUN.  "A word (other than a pronoun) used to identify any of a class of people, places, or things" - Oxford Languages Dictionary.  E.g. "Materials used to make grocery bags".

30. Father of the Muses: ZEUS.  Their grandfather and grandmother were Uranus and Gaia.  According to ancient Greek mythology, the Muses are the sources of inspiration for all of the arts and of knowledge. The daughters of Zeus and Mnemosyne, they were the romantic companions of Apollo’s entourage of gods.  Their names were Calliope, Clio, Erato, Euterpe, Melpomene, Polyhymnia, Thalia, Terpsichore, and Urania.

Apollo and the Muses
John Singer Sargent

33. Score half: TEN.

34. [Theme clue]

38. "I see," at sea: AYE.

39. Noodle nugget: IDEA.  No doubt an offshoot of the clue "Bean sprout" that we saw recently (e.g. 2/4/23 clue 21A)

40. "Why Mosquitoes Buzz in People's __": Caldecott Medal winner by Verna Aardema: EARS.  Why Mosquitoes Buzz in People's Ears: A West African Tale is a 1975 children's picture book by Verna Aardema and illustrated by Leo and Diane Dillon. It is told in the form of a cumulative tale written for young children, and recounts an African legend.

41. Policy of some restaurants: NO TIPS.  Why Would a Restaurant Refuse To Accept Tips?

44. "An Caighdeán Oifigiúil" language: ERSE.  ERSE is a synonym for the Irish or Gaelic language. And it's today's Irish lesson, i.e. it's an "Official Standard" language in Ireland.  I think Joe may be Irish.

45. [Theme clue]

49. Recycle bin, e.g.: ICON.  As in ...

50. Shades: HUES.

51. Becomes compost: ROTS.  

55. "Gross!": ICK.

[Theme reveal]

56. [Theme reveal]

59. Baseball great Ripken: CAL.  Calvin Edwin Ripken Jr. (born August 24, 1960), nicknamed "The Iron Man", is an American former baseball shortstop and third baseman who played 21 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Baltimore Orioles (1981–2001). One of his position's most offensively productive players, Ripken compiled 3,184 hits, 431 home runs, and 1,695 runs batted in during his career, and he won two Gold Glove Awards for his defense. He was a 19-time All-Star and was twice named American League (AL) Most Valuable Player (MVP). Ripken holds the record for consecutive games played (2,632) on September 6, 1995, having surpassed Lou Gehrig's streak of 2,130 that had stood for 56 years and that many deemed unbreakable.  My son was at that game with 50,000 other fans (and another 150,000 who claim to have been!),  and still has the tickets to prove it:

In 2007, Ripken was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility with 98.53% of votes, the sixth-highest election percentage ever.

60. Comes up against: ABUTS.

61. Isaac of "Moon Knight": OSCAR.  Óscar Isaac Hernández Estrada (born March 9, 1979) is a Guatemalan-born American actor. Known for his versatility, he has been credited with breaking stereotypes about Latino characters in Hollywood. He was named the best actor of his generation by Vanity Fair in 2017 and one of the 25 greatest actors of the 21st century by The New York Times in 2020. "I am Moon Knight. The bearer of the mantle of Khonshu. Khonshu the justice bringer. I am vengeance".  Looks like a pretty nice guy actually ...

Oscar Isaac

62. U-turn from WSW: ENE.

63. Response heard during a pool game: POLO.  Oh "POLO!", as in "MARCO POLO, a game played in swimming pools.  Here are the rules.

Marco Polo

64. Pier: WHARF.  The word "pier" is Klingon singular for an old English name for "Rock". I'm sure you are familiar with this one:

Lieutenant Wharf

Down:

1. Spigots: TAPS.

2. Río flower: AGUA.  A fluid not a flora.

3. __ of paradise: BIRD.   A flora not a fauna.

Bird of Paradise

4. Cover up, in a way: BLEEP OUT.  There are certainly a lot of BLEEP WORTHY videos on the Internet, but initially I was unable to find any examples that were already BLEEPED OUT.  I did discover an entire cottage industry of apps for BLEEPING OUT YouTube videos,  but I really didn't have the time to learn any of them.  However it turns out that television host Jimmy Kimmel has done all the work for me with a video series he calls Unnecessary Censorship.  Here's his bowdlerized version of an underground Star Wars trailer that somehow must have made it past the censors:

5. [Nod]: YES.

6. Org. with 27 member states: THE EU.  The European Union.

7. Salon procedure: RINSE.

8. Key to going back?: ESC.

9. Grassy expanse: STEPPE.  The best description for this clue is musical ...

In the Steppes of Central Asia
Alexander Borodin.

10. Word on an Italian menu that means "hunter": CACCIATORE.  Today's Italian lesson.  Here's a recipe for Chicken Cacciatore.  I'm unclear how this dish got its name, as you don't really have to hunt for chickens. Aren't they usually found in coops?

Chicken Cacciatore

11. Those at fault: OFFENDERS.

12. Classic Pontiac muscle car: GTO.

14. Annex: WING.

17. Anthracite or lignite: COAL.
 
22. __ de Triomphe: ARC.  The Arc de Triomphe was inaugurated in 1836 by French king, Louis-Philippe, who dedicated it to the armies of the Revolution and the Empire. The Unknown Soldier was buried at the base of the arch in 1921. The flame of remembrance is rekindled every day at 18:30.

L'Arc de Triomphe.

24. Nevada city about 100 miles from Burning Man: RENO.  This year this bacchanal  takes place from Sun, Aug 27, 2023 to Mon, Sep 4, 2023.  Mark your calendars!

Burning Man

 
25. The Aztecs of the NCAA's Mountain West Conf.: SDSU.  The Aztecs are the athletic teams that represent San Diego State University (SDSU). San Diego State currently sponsors six men's and eleven women's sports at the varsity level.

26. Bloke: GENT.

27. Center of a 3-4 football defense: NOSE TACKLE.  It takes a whole team to win a football game (even if it's just by a NOSE) ...

If you're still confused, this might help ...

29. Spanish dialect in the Big Apple: NUYORICAN.  A CSO and thanks to Chairman Moe for helping me find a utility showing that this is probably the first crossword to use this fill (and congrats to Joe! (although he probably already knew that)).  NUYORICAN is a portmanteau of the terms New York and Puerto Rican and refers to the members or culture of the Puerto Ricans located in or around New York City, or of their descendants.  An estimated 1,800,000 Nuyoricans are said to live in New York City, the largest Puerto Rican community outside Puerto Rico.  Some prominent Nuyoricans you might recognize are Jennifer Lopez, Lin-Manuel Miranda, and Neil deGrasse Tyson.  And here's the band Nuyorican Soul with their 1996 hit Runaway featuring Nuyorican crossword queen india.arie ...

30. Character debuted by Zadie Smith?: ZED.  Zadie Smith, FRSL* (born Sadie;  Willesden, London, 25 October 1975).  Another CSO for MOE, as this also appears to be the first time ever that this clue was used for crosswordese ZED.   Zadie is British and ZED being the first character in her name thus "debuts" it. [Double groan].  Dr. Smith is an English novelist, essayist, and short-story writer. Her debut novel, White Teeth (2000), immediately became a best-seller and won a number of awards. She has been a tenured professor in the Creative Writing faculty of New York University since September 2010.

Zadie Smith
*Fellow of the
Royal Society of Literature

31. Poetic preposition: ERE.

32. Can. neighbor: USA.

34. "You __ be serious": CAN'T.  I avoid it wherever possible.

35. Leave out: MISS.

36. Home of many Quechua speakers: PERU.  Quechua is an indigenous language family spoken by the Quechua peoples, primarily living in the Peruvian Andes.  Derived from a common ancestral language, it is the most widely spoken pre-Columbian language family of the Americas, with an estimated 8–10 million speakers as of 2004. Approximately 25% (7.7 million) of Peruvians speak a Quechuan language.

The four branches of Quechua:
I (Central),
II-A (North Peruvian),
II-B (Northern),
II-C (Southern)

37. Means to an end?: PASS RUSH.  As the QB is the usual target of a PASS RUSH I was a bit confused by this clue (see also 27D). Or maybe Joe's clever attempt at misdirection was actually a veiled reference to this (Hi Anon -T!):

42. Final words of an engagement: I DO.  Before them you're engaged.  After them you're married!

43. Top removed before dashing off?: PEN CAP.  Precedes "dashing off" a memo.

44. Conditional programming word: ELSE.  One of the three basic structures in programming.

46. Mover's rental: UHAUL.

47. Cost: RUN TO.

48. Identifies (as): PEGS.  Thought this might be a kinky gender reference, but more than likely it's an abbreviation for more than one MARGARET.

52. Largest member of the dolphin family: ORCA.  The OREOS of crossword aquatic mammals.

Orcas

53. Leader in the Bulgarian Empire: TSAR.  The title tsar, the Bulgarian form of the Latin Caesar, was first adopted and used in Bulgaria by Simeon I the Great (son of Knyaz Boris I), following a decisive victory over the Byzantine Empire in 913. It was also used by all of Simeon I's successors until the fall of Bulgaria under Ottoman rule in 1396.

Standard of the Tsar of Bulgaria

54. Feudal laborer: SERF.  Betcha' Simeon I had more than a few Bulgarian SERFS at his beck and call.

55. Diamonds, in slang: ICE.

57. "Last Week Tonight" network: HBO. Last Week Tonight is an American late-night talk and news satire television program hosted by comedian John Oliver. The half-hour-long show premiered in April 2014 on HBO.  Here's the only trailer I could find that didn't need to be BLEEPED OUT ...

58. "Bam!" kin: POW.  We now conclude with a few UNBLEEPABLE words from Batman and Robin ...

Cheers,
Bill

As always, thanks to Teri for proof reading and for her constructive criticism.  

 

waseeley

Monday July 25, 2022 Joe Deeney

Theme: WELL WELL WELL (56. "What have we here?" and 20-, 36-, and 42-Across) - Three definitions of "well".

20. Hale and hearty: IN GOOD HEALTH.

36. "Any time now!": I'M WAITING.

42. Gathering spot for thirsty animals: WATERHOLE.

Boomer here. 

 

Good morning all.  I'M WAITING to see if the new meds are helping with my cancer battle.  I should know in a week or two.  I am sure the WATERHOLE got plenty of business last week with temperatures in the 90s all week up here in the northland.

Across:

1. Lifetime pals, briefly: BFFS.  Best Friends Forever. 

5. Periodontist's concern: GUMS.  Minnesota's Judy Garland's given name was Francis GUMM!

9. Brand of facial tissue: PUFFS. "The Magic Dragons".

14. Sign on for more service: RE-UP.  Not me. I did two years and flew home.  Now I get decent medical care.

15. Indiana neighbor: OHIO.  Home of the Redlegs and Guardians. Shoutout to my penpal Janice!

16. Facing the pitcher: AT BAT.

17. "Brooklyn Nine-Nine" actor Samberg: ANDY.  Sheriff of Mayberry.

18. Decomposes: ROTS.

19. Milk seller: DAIRY.  DAIRY Queen sells great Sundaes.

23. Taken care of: SEEN TO.

24. Play-__: kids' clay: DOH.  It kind of smelled.  I never liked it.

25. That girl: SHE.

28. Pixie: ELF.  Santa's helper.

29. Native of Pre-Columbian Peru: INCA. 

32. Reacted to a surprise, perhaps: GASPED.  Too hot!

34. Muscles worked by crunches: ABS.  Too hot to exercise.

38. __ and for all: ONCE.  And all for one!

40. African country on the Gulf of Guinea: GABON.

41. "If all __ fails ... ": ELSE.

44. NCO below sgt.: CPL.  Two stripes.

45. "You're not alone in that": I DO TOO.

46. Hockey Hall of Famer Phil, familiarly: ESPO.  Career with Boston, Chicago, and New York.

48. Pair: TWO.  What ever happened to the TWO dollar bill?

51. Gift for music: EAR.

52. Hunted for fossils, say: DUG.  I never hunted for fossils and my name is misspelled!

54. Mixed nuts nut: CASHEW. One of my favorites.

59. Strictly forbidden: TABOO. So, don't do it!

62. Very small bit: IOTA.

63. Great Plains natives: OTOE.  My history book did not mention them.

64. Distant and cool: ALOOF.

65. Lacking color: DRAB.  New cars are never DRAB

66. Sit for a spell: REST.  Okay.  Wake me up in a half hour.

67. Employees: STAFF.

68. Long, wriggly swimmers: EELS.  Have you heard about sharks close to shore?  Maybe they have eels for lunch.           

69. Satisfies the munchies: EATS.  Trick or treat.

Down:

1. Slow-cook in a closed pot: BRAISE.  Pressure cooker.

2. Bulb with an aniselike flavor: FENNEL. 

3. Exaggeration allowance in estimates: FUDGE FACTOR.

4. Watch secretly: SPY ON.

5. "If You Could Read My Mind" singer Lightfoot: GORDON.  What a tale my thoughts would tell.

6. "This looks bad!": UH OH.  Here comes more hot weather.

7. Teeny plant pest: MITE.

8. "Such a pity": SO SAD.  This gun violence in Uvalde and shopping malls.

9. Noodle dish topped with crushed peanuts: PAD THAI.

10. Six-sided state: UTAH.  One of three four-letter states.

11. "Fidelity, Bravery, Integrity" org.: FBI.  I thought it was Federal Bureau of Investigation.

12. Distant: FAR.

13. Pen with a trough: STY.  A home for pigs.

21. __ Spunkmeyer: cookie brand: OTIS.  Elevator guy.

22. Boston airport: LOGAN.  Never been there,  I got to New Jersey once.

25. Share juicy gossip: SPILL THE TEA.  Beans.

26. Farm cluckers: HENS.  Uncle Bill had many. Eggs for breakfast every day, then sold the rest.

27. Microsoft's web browser: EDGE.

30. Breezy goodbye: CIAO.  See ya!

31. Stroll along: AMBLE.

33. Escalator part: STEP.  Just stand on it!  You'll get there.

35. Borscht base: BEET.  My mother grew them and we ate them as a vegetable.

37. Nagging troubles: WOES.

38. Cut covered by a Snoopy bandage, e.g.: OWIE.  Only kids under 5 get them.  We older folks call them by a different four letter word.

39. Zilch: NADA.  Not this four letter word either.

40. Grave-robbing demon: GHOUL.

43. Departed into the sunset, say: RODE OFF.  I hate driving into the setting sun.

44. West Virginia natural resource: COAL.  Santa may put it into your stocking.

47. Tech training sites: PC LABS.

49. "The other team clobbered us": WE LOST.  Twins say that a lot.

50. Big-eyed nestlings: OWLETS.

53. Coast: GLIDE.

55. Used cusswords: SWORE.  My language driving into the sunset.

56. Husky's "Hello": WOOF.

57. Had on: WORE.  She WORE a yellow ribbon.

58. "And some other people" abbr.: ET AL.

59. Prof. helpers: TAS.  Teaching Assistants

60. __-country music: ALT.

61. Constricting snake: BOA.  A big BIG snake,  I have never seen one and never hope to see one.

Boomer

 

Wednesday, April 13, 2022, Joe Deeney

Theme: AGAIN AND AGAIN

15. Test format with options: MULTIPLE CHOICE.

21. Dojo move: KARATE CHOP.

47. Nocturnal bird that woke up Vinny in "My Cousin Vinny": SCREECH OWL.

55. Cocoa butter confection: WHITE CHOCOLATE.

33. Bat specialty, and what you need to find in four long answers: ECHO LOCATION.

Melissa here. The word ECHO is split across each two-word phrase, in the same way - E-CHO - thus ECHO LOCATION. This is the final Wednesday puzzle edited by Rich Norris. It has been quite a run, hasn't it?

Across:

1. L.A. Rams' __ McVay, youngest head coach to win the Super Bowl: SEAN.

5. Fly high: SOAR. The clue is making me hear the theme from Rocky, 'Gonna Fly Now,' in my head.

9. Old NCAA football ranking sys.: BCS. Tricky for people who aren't sports fans. The Bowl Championship Series (BCS) system was in place for the 1998 through 2013 seasons and in 2014 was replaced by the College Football Playoff.

12. Regarding: AS TO.

13. Limerick's land: EIRE.

14. Coagulate: CLOT.

18. Grassland: PRAIRIE.

19. Using pointe shoes: ON TOE. Literal translation from French is cutting edge.

20. Didn't stick around: RAN. Great clue, I bet it's Rich's.

24. Card game requirement, maybe: ANTE.

26. __-pitch: SLO. Hm. Well again, not being a sports fan, I'm not sure if this refers to the variety of softball in which the ball is pitched with an underhand motion at moderate speed in an arc that rises at least six feet above the ground, because I don't usually see it spelled without the W, or the Canadian TV Show that IS spelled that way. What do you think?

27. Farm female: HEN. Not ewe!

28. Roman who defeated Hannibal: SCIPIO. Publius Cornelius Scipio Africanus was a Roman general and statesman, most notable as one of the main architects of Rome's victory against Carthage in the Second Punic War. Who knew this? I needed perps.

31. Triage areas: Abbr.: ERS. Emergency Rooms.

38. Name in "Kill Bill" credits: UMA. Uma Thurman.

39. Military jeep successor: HUMVEE. The High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicle (HMMWV; colloquial: Humvee) is a family of light, four-wheel drive, military trucks and utility vehicles.

41. Aid for the lost: MAP. Haha.

44. They're not from around here, briefly: ETS. Extraterrestrials. Originating, existing, or occurring outside the earth or its atmosphere

46. Lowly worker: PEON.

51. Messenger __: RNA. Ribonucleic acid (RNA) is a molecule similar to DNA.

52. As is fitting: APTLY.

53. 41-Across, e.g.: DIAGRAM.

58. Golfer's pocketful: TEES.

59. Sell on the street: HAWK. Hawk vs. hock.

60. Series finale: Abbr.: ET AL. Latin phrase meaning “and others.”

61. "__ the ramparts ... ": O'ER. Contraction of over.

62. Dire March time: IDES. But why?

63. Slithery swimmers: EELS.

Down:

1. Longtime Agassi rival: SAMPRAS. Pete Sampras held the Open Era record of six year-end No. 1 rankings—all earned consecutively, from 1993 to 1998.

2. Online GEICO alternative: ESURANCE.

3. Brit's pond: ATLANTIC. The Atlantic Ocean borders on North America, South America, Europe, and Africa. It is the world's second largest ocean, while the Pacific Ocean is the largest. Interesting facts.

4. "It wasn't me": NOT I.

5. Photo tint: SEPIA. A reddish-brown color, named after the rich brown pigment derived from the ink sac of the common cuttlefish. The word sepia is the Latinized form of the Greek σηπία, sēpía, cuttlefish.

6. Persian Gulf ships: OILERS. In the United States Navy, an Oiler is a Combat Logistics ship that replenishes other ships with fuel and in some cases food, mail, ammunition and other necessities while at sea, in a process called Underway Replenishment or UNREP.

7. Word shortened to its middle letter, in texts: ARE. How r u?

8. "Parks and __": REC. NBC TV series from 2009 - 2015.

9. Devil-may-care: BLITHE.

10. Protective covering: COCOON. Chrysalis vs. cocoon.

11. So inclined?: STEEP. Another great clue.

14. Large sea snail: CONCH.

16. Bug: IRK.

17. Soil-moving implement: HOE.

22. Jack Ryan portrayer before Harrison: ALEC. Alec Baldwin, Harrison Ford - in the Tom Clancy books-turned-movies.

23. Holy scroll: TORAH. First five books of the Hebrew Bible.

25. Book after Galatians: Abbr.: EPH. New Testament, Ephesians.

29. Chit: IOU. Phonetic acronym of the words "I owe you," refers to a document that acknowledges the existence of a debt

30. Ancient Mesoamerican: OLMEC. The Olmecs are best known for the statues they carved: 20 ton stone heads, quarried and carved to commemorate their rulers. The name Olmec is an Aztec word meaning the rubber people; the Olmec made and traded rubber throughout Mesoamerica.

 
32. Guy found running through the alphabet?: STU. The letters S-T-U. Clever clue.

34. Court recitation: "I swear that the evidence that I shall give shall be the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, so help me God."

 35. Little terror: IMP.

36. Give credit where credit isn't due: OVERRATE.

37. Like early childcare: NEONATAL. Newborn.

40. Glossy coats: ENAMELS.

41. "Scorpion" co-star Katharine: MCPHEE. Also, runner-up on the fifth season of American Idol.

 42. More pretentious: ARTIER.

43. Pummels with snowballs: PELTS.

45. "Us, too": SO DO WE.

47. Handled: SAW TO.

48. Watch closely: EYE.

49. Candlemaker's supply: WICKS.

50. Mekong Valley language: LAO. Sometimes referred to as Laotian, it is spoken in Laos, where it is the official language for around 7 million people, as well as in northeast Thailand, where it is used by around 23 million people

54. Musical series set at McKinley High: GLEE.

56. City with two MLB teams: CHI. Cubs and White Sox. Why two?

57. Possessed: HAD.

Thursday, March 24, 2022, Joe Deeney

Good Morning to all of you Cool Cat Cruciverbalists.  Malodorous Manatee here from the town of Mt. Crested Butte, Colorado at an elevation of 9,375 feet above sea level.  That's quite a change from two weeks ago when my review was assembled and posted at sea level.  Literally on the beach (with apologies to Nevil Shute).  Temperatures have dropped from the 80's two weeks ago to highs in the twenties and thirties with lows (at times) below zero.  What has not changed from the prior set of circumstances, however, is that the day's puzzle constructor is, once again, Joe Deeney.

National RADIO Day is still five months away but let's ignore that detail for now, turn up our radios, and get right to it.  Turn on, tune in, unscramble.  At four places in the grid, within answers to starred clues, we find adjacent, but scrambled, letters that spell out the word RADIO:

17 Across:  *Be silly: KID  AROUND.

24 Across:  *Loosen up: LET ONES HAIR DOWN.  Walk right in.  Sit right down.

38 Across:  *Grand Canyon traveler: COLORADO  RIVER.  There were other ways to clue this but Joe and Rich likely wanted something appropriate for  a Thursday.  Therefore the somewhat awkward, IMHO, "traveler".

52 Across:  *Nyctophobic: AFRAID OF THE DARK.  Thanks perps.

The reveal comes at 62 Across:  Shortened version of a pop song ... and a hint to what's hidden in the answers to starred clues: RADIO EDIT.  I was not previously familiar with the term but now, fifty-five years later, I know what to call that shortened (AM RADIO) version of The Doors song "Light My Fire".  Thanks, Mr. Deeney!

Here is how this all looks in the grid . . . .

. . . . and here is the rest of the story:

Across:

1. Tug: YANK.  Not a hard-working harbor boat.  Pull.

Big Toot and Little Toot

5. Grinding away: AT IT.  This might have been clued in a more mammalian manner.

9. Have because of: OWE TO.

14. English horn cousin: OBOE.

An English Horn

15. Hill by a loch: BRAE.  Loch tells us that we're visiting Scotland for this clue/answer.

16. Spacecraft docked at the ISS: SOYUZ.  International Space Station.  Hey, I have a great idea.  Let's outsource our space launch system lifting capabilities to the Russians.

19. Joints often replaced: KNEES.

20. Mag staff: EDS.  EDitorS

21. 12/31, e.g.: EVE.  In this case, Christmas EVE.

22. Exams for aspiring judges, briefly: LSATS.  Law School Admisions TestS

29. Sponge (up): SOP.

30. Student's hurdle: TEST.  EXAM would have fit the space.

31. Universal donor's type, briefly: O NEG.  A blood reference.

32. Recipe word: ADD.  MIX would have fit.

35. "Like, yesterday!": ASAP.

37. "Hunan Report" author: MAO.  Report on an Investigation of the Peasant Movement in Hunan.  1927.

42. Dallas hoopster: MAV.  Hoopster is slang for a basketball player so we have MAV for the answer.

43. Sub: HERO.  The deli sandwich not the underwater war ship.

44. Broadcast from NBC's Studio 8H: SNL.  Saturday Night Live

45. Score symbol: CLEF.  A musical  reference.

Treble and Bass Clefs

47. Tuner toggle: AM FM.  Sometimes constructors enjoy messing with us by referring to a Clock RADIO -  the answer then can turn out to be either AM FM or AM PM.

49. Previously: AGO.

57. __ Challenge: soft drink promotion: PEPSI.

58. Hound: NAG.  Not a dog.  A verb.

59. Affirmative vote: YEA.  Sometimes AYE.

60. Catherine of "A Mighty Wind": O'HARA.  An entertaining mockumentary.

65. Clear: LUCID.

66. First name in stunts: EVEL.   EVEL Knievel

Winter X Games 3 - 1998

67. Put on board: LADE.

68. Feints on the ice: DEKES.  An ice hockey reference

69. Mends, in a way: SEWS.

70. Wear: FRAY.  Like a rug or a pants cuff.

Down:

1. Rustic type: YOKEL.

2. Withstands: ABIDES.

3. Silently acknowledges: NODS TO.

4. Mauna __: KEA.  We had this fill-in-the-blank clue / answer two weeks ago, also.

Muana Kea     13, 803 feet

Mount Crested Butte   12,162 feet

5. Higher than: ABOVE.

6. Most faithful: TRUEST.

7. Novelist McEwan: IAN.

8. 2021 Emmy winner for Outstanding Comedy Series: TED LASSO.  A comedy-drama TV show.

9. Liam's "Schindler's List" role: OSKAR.

10. Is unacceptable: WON'T DO.

11. "Full attention here": EYES ON ME.

12. Day planner abbr.: TUE.  Meh.  Could have been any day of the week, any month, and several other things, too.

13. Birth units: Abbr.: OZS.  Ounces

18. Driver's role in "Star Wars" sequels: REN.

Adam Driver as Kylo Ren

23. Bollywood strings: SITARS.  Bollywood is a portmanteau derived from Bombay (Mumbai) and Hollywood.

25. Iridescent gem: OPAL.

26. Block at a pass?: HEAD OFF.  Not a football reference.  An oater cliche.

27. Put on: WEAR.

28. Gps. like Partners In Health: NGO.  Non-Governmental Organization.

33. "How silly of me!": DOH.

34. Can't stand the idea of: DREADS.

36. Safety __: PIN.  Fill in the blank

38. Whale newborn: CALF.

39. Have trouble closing the suitcase, maybe: OVER PACK.

40. Fancy dressers: ARMOIRES.  Furniture, not fops.

41. Prince who inspired Dracula: VLAD.

Vlad The Impaler 1431 - 1476 (?)

42. Old Elton label: MCA.  Elton John

46. Spenser's "The __ Queene": FAERIE.

48. 57-Across sister brand, on labels: MTN DEW.

The First Mtn Dew Soda Commercial

50. Orientation "sensor": GAYDAR.  GAY raDAR

51. Bagel Bites brand: OREIDA.  Oregon Idaho

53. Modern checkout devices: I PADS.

54. Comes down hard?: HAILS.  Not the idiom for criticizing (to come down hard on someone).  Precipitation.

55. It may be massaged: EGO.

56. "Sons of Anarchy" actress Sagal: KATEY.

60. Corny, maybe: OLD.

61. Colorist's concern: HUE.

63. Hail, in a hymn: AVE.  Not precipitation.

64. Tolkien's Legolas, for one: ELF.  A Lord of the Rings reference.

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Turn It Up

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I apologize in advance for being unable to respond, in a timely manner, to any concerns/comments that you might have.  While you are reading this I will likely be somewhere on the road making the fifteen-hour drive from Colorado back to SoCal.  I will try to catch up on the comments on Friday after trading my snow shovel for a paper shovel and starting to dig out.