Friday, January 14, 2022, Gary Larson

 Title: Let's go to the movies and talk about the plot!

One of our regular Friday Fixtures, Gary Larson has presented a moviecentric puzzle which requires some thought and some cinema knowledge. It is a bit heavy on the 3 and 4 letter fill with 42 of the 77 words offset only by the 4 themers and AU NATUREL, CLEAN IT UP, MARIO KART and ORATORIES each 9 letters. What brought this effort to Friday is the very tricky but enjoyable theme where part of the clue (in BLUE) is a synonym for a movie and part (in PINK) suggests the plot. I liked that very much. We will begin with the themers...

17A. "Back to the Future"?: TIME RELEASE (11). The movie is a TIME travel variation which mirrors much of what H.G. Wells brought us. 

29A. "March of the Penguins"?: WALKIE TALKIE (12). The Talkie revolutionized movies and not only tell made up stories but can show remarkable documentaries like this where the 'stars' walk.

46A. "Titanic"?: WATER FEATURE (12). This movie is the now very popular retelling of actual events but in a mostly fictional account which does spend its time on the water as the feature film.

60A. "Star Wars"?: SHOW OF FORCE (11). Here the SHOW comes first and the plot last but even if you have avoided seeing the movie the Force has become a force in the modern world. I love it and am caught up on the Mandelorian and the Book of Boba Fett.

So much excitement, but now to the rest...

Across:

1. Name in Cold War news: TASS. We baby boomers knew them well but I will let Wiki EXPLAIN.

5. Lampoon: SATIRE. A big part of puzzles and blogs. 

11. Ones presenting acts: MCS. Master of Ceremonies.

14. "Hard __!": captain's order: ALEE. The command used in coming about to inform the crew that the helm is being pushed hard to leeward, turning the boat into the wind, LA Times.

15. Ended an engagement, in a way: ELOPED. Funny, as getting married does end it.

16. Larter of "Resident Evil" films: ALI. You can decide if she is EVIL.

19. Gym unit: REPititon.

20. What a choir may sing in: UNISON. The chancel? A church, opera house, or school hall? Nope.

21. Bhopal locale: INDIA. Most famous for this horrible TRAGEDY. Some pictures may be upsetting.

23. Tablelands: MESAS. We have had pictures recently showing how flat they are.

24. Tacks on: ADDS. Like that hidden tip on your bill in the restaurant.

27. The last Mrs. Chaplin: OONA. 

32. Brazil map word: SAO. Saint in Portugese and part of the name of many city, just as saint is here in the US.

35. Butler's last word: DAMN. He kept it and did not give it to Scarlett.

36. "Groovy!": NEATO. 50s beatnik talk.

37. Some pitches: CURVES. Sliders, sinkers, cutters...

40. Evasive tactic: END RUN. Both in American football and politics.

41. "We're live!" studio sign: ON AIR. 

                            

42. Limo destination: PROM. Two abbreviations.

45. Performs a Halloween prank, briefly: TPS. Toilet Papers.

50. Warehouse: STOW. The American desire to make every noun a verb.

51. Sleep and Comfort: INNS. Two national chains.

52. Spiral-horned antelope: ELAND. 

56. Bear genus: URSUS.

58. "Out of Africa," for one: MEMOIR. A book and a movie.

59. Vince's agent in "Entourage": ARI. A TV show and a movie.

64. Prepare to drive, with "up": TEE. HG is perhaps our most dedicated golfer considering the Nebraska weather.

65. "Gracias" reply: DE NADA. It means “you have nothing to thank me for” (that full phrase being “no tienes nada [de] qué agradecerme”).  Spanish lesson

66. 66 and others: Abbr.: RTES. Cute the route and the clue number.

67. Pair of gallons?: ELS. There are two "l"s in gallon.

68. Play areas: ARENAS. For sports and entertainment not your back yard.

69. Listening devices: EARS. Very simple and cute.

Down:

1. Stride pianist Art: TATUM. You want to learn HOW?

2. Classic Dior style: A LINE.

3. Weigh station line-up: SEMIS. As a kid I never understood the weigh stations and why all the big trucks pulled off the highway.

4. Vacillate: SEESAW. We know a seesaw goes up and down...

5. Gone out with: SEEN. Many were and are arranged just for the publicity.

6. "__ in": "Jeopardy James" bet: ALL.

                                

7. Pirouette pivot point: TOE. Some ballet...

8. Draft choice: IPA. Not for a sports team but for a beverage from a tap.

9. Stand up to: RESIST.

10. Prime real estate?: EDEN. Another fun clue.

11. Racing game with Yoshi and Bowser: MARIO KART. I played this with my boys and their friends for many hours. I was better at some of the other NES games. 

12. "Don't leave a mess": CLEAN IT UP. Sounds bossy.

13. Modest intake: SIP. My first thought was nip.

18. Actress Salazar of "Maze Runner" movies: ROSA. An obscure clus for me but I have seen this ACTRESS.

22. Allotted: DOLED.

24. Abbr. between names, perhaps: A/K/A.

25. Lower: DIM. The lights, no one else is home!

26. Pride's place: DEN. Seems a bit homphobic...

28. Very long time: AEONS.

30. Mormon letters: LDS. Latter Day Saints.

31. Gothic fiction pioneer Radcliffe: ANN. Ann Radcliffe, née Ann Ward, (born July 9, 1764, London, England—died February 7, 1823, London), the most representative of English Gothic novelists. She was a pioneer in developing a literature of terror, and her influential novels stand apart in their ability to infuse scenes of terror and suspense with Romantic sensibility. Britannica.

32. Barges and such: SCOWS. These are examples of a flat-bottomed boat with sloping ends used as a lighter and in dredging and other harbor services. Dictionary

33. In the buff: AU NATUREL. Our titillating French lesson. Dressed as you were born.

34. Private chapels: ORATORIES. I am not familiar with this as a small chapel, especially for private worship. Waseely?

38. Lookout offerings: VIEWS. You can try this location. LOOKOUT MOUNTAIN. 

39. Blunder: ERR.

40. Ostrich relative: EMU. Don't hate the bird just Liberty Mutual.

42. Write: PEN.

43. Commanded: RAN.

44. NHL tiebreakers: OTS. Overtimes. 

47. Price partner: FISHER. Before Legos...

48. Coral __: REEF.

49. "Get Shorty" novelist __ Leonard: ELMORE.

53. Blood line: AORTA. It is the most important of them all.

54. Like sunny weather, vis-à-vis rainy: NICER. Silly.

55. Toggery: DRESS.

57. Food stamp?: USDA. 

                                    

58. Degs. for playwrights: MFAS.

59. Eroded, with "into": ATE. Particularly nest eggs.

61. Low digit: ONE.

62. Pallid: WAN. 

63. "Ghost" psychic __ Mae Brown: ODA. The renowned psychic...

My first 2022 write-up is now finished , and as is the new norm, done in a rushed fashion but I really liked the puzzle and the struggle. Thank you Gary and all who read these words and especially all who comment pro and anti. Lemonade out.

Notes from C.C.:

 

Happy Birthday to dear JD, an avid traveler and a terrific grandma. JD still has trouble signing into Blogger. Hope she solves the glitch soon.

 

JD and Bob, Switzerland, 2017

JD and Bob

Friday, December 24, 2021, Jeffrey Wechsler

Title: Merry Christmas from a Beautiful Mind

Moe is back from visiting his adorable grandbaby, yet here I am doing a back to back for Christmas. First, I want to wish you all the best of holidays this year, be it Christmas, Festivus, Kwanzaa or those holidays that have already passed. I also want to wish the world better health for the rest of this year and all of next. I especially want to bring a year of good tidings to all the Cornerites starting with C.C. and Boomer. I won't be back here to blog until January 14, 2022. I also want to wish myself less dyslexia and other typing issues. 

On with the show. As is often a hallmark of JW's puzzles this has much going on with some diabolic cluing and a visual theme wrapped inside a word theme. All of this in his not uncommon 16 x 15 grid to allow room for all that is going on. And surprise, it all relates to Christmas.  The first level is the yuletime classic:

3D. Start of a seasonal title: THE TWELVE. 6D. Title, part 2: DAYS OF. 9D. End of the title: CHRISTMAS.

39D. With the contents of this grid's circles, part of the refrain in 3-/6-/9-Down: PARTRIDGE.

                     THE TWELVE DAYS OF CHRISTMAS

I really love this innovative interpretation by PENTATONIX. We also have the first verse PARTRIDGE IN A PEAR TREE which becomes the visual theme of the Christmas Tree (O Tannenbaum) come to life by joining the circles with the central clues/fill like this:

That is brilliant work which he augments with some new and fun fill  BIG MOMENT,  INLAND SEA, I'VE SEEN IT, MADE A RULE and PAPERLESS none of which have ever been in the LAT and the only one to appear in the NYT was in 1971 INLAND SEA. I hope he tells us how long this construction took.

Across:

1. Tbsp., for example: AMT. Abbreviation begets abbreviation.

4. Touchy monarch?: MIDAS. Touchy feely, watch out for the Me Too movement, gold or no gold. 

9. "United States of Al" network: CBS. Unless you knew the show, it is all perps.

12. "Very droll": HA HA. Ho ho!

14. Representation: IMAGE. Or perhaps ICON?

15. Edible seed: CHIA. Chia seeds contain quercetin, an antioxidant that can reduce your risk of developing several health conditions, including heart disease. But, they may cause an increased risk of choking

16. Port near the Red Sea: ADEN.  It is a city of Yemen and its temporary capital. It is situated along the north coast of the Gulf of Aden and lies on a peninsula enclosing the eastern side of Al-Tawāhī Harbour. This area is beset by pirates.

17. To date: AS YET.

18. Wild party: ORGY. This was wilder than the rave I began with.

19. Near-EGOT winner Midler (she's missing the O): BETTE. The O is for Oscar but she is special.

21. Org. with admirals: USN. United States Navy.

22. Reviews briefly: SKIMS. Or a politician's retirement plan.

23. Gets gasps from: AWES. 

24. Bit of rebar: ROD. I thought of him as a douche bag not a rebar.

25. Philippine currency: PESO. The long term influence of the Spanish in the Philippines. Remember, one L two Ps.

26. Word often contracted: ARE.  We're challenged here. 

27. Text lead-in: PREFACE. A literal clue/fill.

30. "Oversharing!": TMI. Too Much Information.

32. Home of the Green Wave: TULANE. I began my days as a poster at the Corner because someone suggested all college sports team mascots were plural.

34. Shrewdness: ACUMEN. Business skills which is guess why it was used to name this COMPANY.

36. Inventing middle name: ALVA. I doubt his middle name invented anything. 

37. Short two-pointer: TIP IN. This was a stumbling block as I wanted LAY UP. The crossing letters just would not work.

41. "Critique of Judgment" author: KANT. This was his third "Critique" and in it he distinguishes the beautiful from the sublime. Paraphrasing, the appeal of beautiful objects is immediately apparent, while the sublime holds an air of mystery and ineffability. A  statue or a pretty flower is beautiful, the movement of storm clouds or a massive building is sublime: they are, in a sense, too great to get our heads around. 

42. Animals drawn in the Lascaux caves: DEER. This fits the fill but I believe they were ancestors. 

43. Opposite of après: AVANT. Simple after and before en francais.

44. Madrid pronoun: ESTO. On to some masculine Spanish.

45. Like email notifications: PAPERLESS. I get some free stuff for going paperless.

48. 33-Down members: Abbr.: SRS. 33S. Organization for 48-Across: AARP. I was disappointed during my time as a member.

51. Update follower, perhaps: RESTART. Yes, the plight of modern technology; they keep updating which makes your restart your computer which requires that you forget what you know how to do. This blog is a perfect example.

52. "'And when I __ my lips let no dog bark!'": "The Merchant of Venice": OPE. It is a trademark of Jeffrey's to include some Shakespeare but now it seems all the Friday constructors do it. And joy, it intersects with 52D. Puck handler?: OBERON. Ooo ooo a second Shakespeare but hidden so well; not from hockey but from Will's  A Midsummer's Night Dream!

55. Old TWA competitor: PAN AM. Who cares?

57. Coastal raptor: ERN. Birds and dinosaurs.

58. Shady place: ARBOR. You can ask Ann.

60. Signs: OMENS. Do you take them seriously?

61. __ al-Fitr: end-of-Ramadan feast: EID. Eid is an Arabic word meaning "festivity", while Fiṭr means "to break fast"; and so the holiday symbolizes the breaking of the fasting period, after the end of the Islamic month of Ramadan, on the first day of Shawwal.

62. Greek letter: THETA. Why not?

63. Apple product: i-PAD. Of course you can also use it to add to your resume.

64. "Therefore ... ": AND SO.

66. Natural resources: ORES. When is an ore a rock? The BBC says an ore is a rock that contains enough of a metal or a metal compound to make extracting the metal worthwhile: low-grade ores contain a small percentage of the metal or its compound. high-grade ores contain a larger percentage.

67. "Star Wars" role: LUKE. If you do not know Skywalker you probably do not know...

68. Star in Orion: RIGEL. This is a big boy Star

69. "That's that!": DONE. Not quite.

70. 1974 CIA spoof: S*P*Y*S. This was a failed attempt to capitalize on the popularity of Gould and Sutherland in M*A*S*H.

71. Word with home or bed: STEAD. Homestead I know not beadstead:the framework of a bed on which the mattress is placed.

72. Tiny crawlers: ANTS.

Down:

1. Obsessed mariner: AHAB. Poor guy, they never leave him alone.

2. Added to the official playbook: MADE A RULE. This was vey hard to parse but the perps were fair.

4. Fla. NBA team, on scoreboards: MIAmi. A gimme for which...

5. "Not a doubt in my mind": I'M SURE.

7. Chair's prep job: AGENDA. The Chairman of the Board has his/her/their staff prepare it, let's be honest.

8. Wimbledon division: SET. Tennis anyone? I do worry about Peng Shuai.

10. Drumroll follower: BIG MOMENT. 

11. Comments: SAYS. Says you...

13. Part of a pot: ANTE. Followed by ...

15. Smelting fuel: COKE. Hmm.

20. "Around the Horn" airer: ESPN. 

22. It's risky to work on it: SPECulation.

26. Slightly: A TAD. A day late for the Abe Lincoln References.

28. Fix a messy package, say: RETAPE. An appropriate clue/fill for gluey time.

29. Certain rider's pace: CANTER.  I hope you are into this video...
31. Grooving on: INTO.

35. Short strings?: UKES.  

           

38. Comment about a familiar film: I'VE SEEN IT.  A rather killjoy comment. I liked Lovejoy better.

40. Salton, for one: INLAND SEA. There are a number of landlocked seas...how many can you name?

46. __ control: ARMS. Was it only me who went here?

47. RBI, e.g.: STAT.

48. Booty: SPOILS. So then a booty call would be the reward...

49. Increase: RAMP UP. See above, he may need a ramp one day.

50. Not at all up-front: SNEAKY. This is from 1550s (implied in sneakish), perhaps from some dialectal survival of Middle English sniken "to creep, crawl" (c. 1200), related to Old English snican "to sneak along, creep, crawl," from Proto-Germanic. Of feelings, suspicions, etc., from 1748. Transitive sense, "to partake of surreptitiously" is from 1883.

53. Strong: POTENT. With so many older solvers this might be considered cruel and unusal fill.

54. Gets rid of: ERASES. Those wrinkles around your eyes and crepe legs...

56. Long range: ANDES. A long mountain range.

59. Mary's upstairs neighbor: RHODA. Being a specialist in all things trivial, this was easy as I knew Mary Richards and Rhoda Morgenstern when they were young. I do find it odd since Mary lived on the top floor where Rhoda actually lived.

64. MGM motto word: ARS. Art for art's sake.

65. Stale: OLD. I hope this week's review was not too stale, but I did leave it out on the counter last night and forgot. Presumably this wonderful crowd will get us back to where we need to be. Have a spectacular Christmas and a better New Year.  Lemonade out for 2021.

 

Notes from C.C.:

 

Boomer was out of the recovery room yesterday. Now he's back to his old room. I'll update you when I have more info. Thanks for the thoughts and prayers!

Friday, December 17, 2021, Gary Larson

Title: Cinderella, what are you wearing to the ball? (See later inspiration)

Today our constructing phenom, Gary don't call me Far Side Larson,  presents me with his 6th Friday that I have blogged in 2021 (along with 2 for Moe) to go with his 7 Sundays. We have slang for 'clothing' which are the second word in a two-word in the language expression as the theme. I would say this is a whimsical effort overall. I am sure you missed Gary since his most recent LAT was all the way back on Sunday. In keeping with modern Fridays, this has more words and fewer empty spaces but the theme is tight and the amusement factor high. The longish non-themers BETRAYS,  BLAME ME, CALYPSO, CAPSULE, DINGBAT. DOGBANE,  ECOCIDE, ENDRUNS, FASTENS. FLAILED, LABORED, MADISON,  RISES UP  and TEHRANI are quite a diverse field. They are each 7 letters long. So we start:

15A. Outfits for a climber?: HIGH GEAR (8). A climber goes up wearing his climbing gear and his friend cruises in his car in high gear. LINK

18A. His-and-her outfits?: BINARY NUMBERS (13). The binary numbers (0 and 1) are how computers work. Per the Oxford English Dictionary, “number” has been used to mean “an article of clothing." gender specific clothing is binary. LINK

35A. Outfits for tourist town natives?: LOCAL  RAGS (9). When I was in boarding school the locals were the "townies." I think of our hometown newspaper as the local rag, but it can also be a worthless piece of cloth, especially one that is torn or worn. rags, ragged or tattered clothing.

56A. Outfits for the masses?: COMMON THREADS (13). Know your threads will not help you here. This is the simplest of the fill.

62A. Outfits for dairy farmers?: MILK DUDS (8). My favorite and the silliest. Duds as clothing comes from Middle English dudde, originally meaning worn-out or ragged clothing. Dairy farmers milk their cows and we all know

MILK DUDS Candies were introduced by F. Hoffman & Co. of         Chicago in 1928. The Candiesgot their name because their maker     found it impossible to get the chocolate-covered caramels to form perfectly round balls, so he called them “duds.” He wanted candy     symmetry but failed. Gary did not. This very symmetrical set of five themers has 51 spaces of the 225 in this 15x15 with no reveal. 

Across:

1. Follower of Jefferson: MADISON. President number 4 followed number 3.

8. Turn on: START. This works well for machines, but is more complicated with humans.

13. Polluter's crime: ECOCIDE. I put in ___CIDE  and ruminated for a while. (Cow sub-theme?)

14. Mountaintop home: AERIE. This variant of eyrie is the bird nest of an eagle, falcon, hawk, or other bird of prey.

17. Refuse: TRASH. I refused to be tricked.

21. The first "A" in A.A. Milne: ALAN. Alan Alexander was more than the creator of Winnie the pu pu platter (oops)...anyway, he studied under H.G. Wells and played cricket with J.M. Barrie, A.C. Doyle, and P.G.Wodehouse.

23. Fictional 1847 autobiographer: EYRE. Oh Jane you fictional woman.

24. __ Paulo: SAO. Brazil. 

25. Typographical ornament: DINGBAT. No this is not ...

but in the computer industry, a Dingbat font is a font that has symbols and shapes in the positions designated for alphabetical or numeric. Wingding is very popular.

29. Evasive tactics: END RUNS. To circumvent from the Football play.

31. Spot: SEE.  I got this right away.

32. Infuriates: IRES. I am irked.

34. Polynesian capital: APIA. Apia, town, port, and capital (since 1959) of Samoa. It is located on the northern coast of Upolu Island, in the South Pacific Ocean. Many famous athletes and actors come from Samoa. 

39. Jessica of "Dark Angel": ALBA. She played a genetically enhanced government superhuman prototype, Max Guevera who teamed with a journalist, played by Michael Weatherly (NCIS and BULL) in a post-apocalyptic Seattle to right wrongs. Seattle also was the home of iZombie another SciFi series. 

42. Long-gone time: YORE.

43. Tiger, e.g.: CAT. Deceptively simple.

46. Belafonte #1 album on which "Day-O" was the first track: CALYPSO. The Banana Boat Song.

50. Turns on: BETRAYS.

52. Corp. alias letters: DBA. Doing business as.

53. Subway fare?: HERO. Not the price of travel...

55. Sword with a three-sided blade: EPEE.

61. They hold your horses: REINS. Literal but amusing.

65. Deejay, at times: EMCEE. DJ MC ...

66. Swung wildly: FLAILED. Facing a famed Twins pitcher...

67. Transfers, as a house: DEEDS. My bread and butter.

68. Secures: FASTENS.

Down:

1. Not so hot: MEH. The bloggers' safe word.

2. Handel's "__, Galatea e Polifemo": ACI. A most emotional TALE from the mists of myth. I will await comments from all of our musically educated posters.

3. Poisonous plant reputed to repel canines: DOGBANE. It is poisonous to dogs and looks like milkweed to which I am extremely allergic. It  does feel like a CSO to John Lampkin.

4. Chinese book of divination: I-CHING. My late brother David studied these rituals.

5. Register, with "up": SIGN. Be cause you ...

6. Music halls of old: ODEA. If you look up ODEA in the dictionary it tells you "noun:the plural of odeum." Helpful.

7. Close: NEAR.
 
8. Ring bearer?: SATURN. A debut for this clue/fill combo. Very clever.

9. Called: TERMED.

10. Many an Omani: ARAB. And 12D. Like many "Argo" militants: TEHRANI. The capital of Iran.

11. Revolts: RISESUP. They have had their share in that part of the world.

16. White alternative: RYE. Just bread but it does rhyme with...

19. Emmy-winning scientist: NYE.

20. '90s-'00s Cubs star: SOSA. No indication of his being one of many being blackballed by the Hall of Fame voters. This ARTICLE is very long but should be of interest to our dedicated baseball fans.

21. GEICO highlights: ADS. Most of their's are funny. I see you LIMU!

22. Tell tales, maybe: LIE. Maybe, baby?

26. Book jacket text, often: BIO.

27. Semicircle, say: ARC. 

28. Leaves for a spot: TEA. A CSO to many at the Corner who enjoy a spot of tea, but not a cup. It is a more confusing IDIOM.

30. Student housing VIPs: RAS. Resident Assistants.

33. Wily: SLY. Sly E Coyote just didn't work.
 
35. Set down: LAY. Two versions: I set down the book on the desk. Or, I laid down stricter rules for my...

36. Take badly?: ROB. A now common clue/fill to deceive the audience.

37. "__ you done?": ARE. No, we have many clues left.

38. Perceive: GET. I perceived Gary's meaning.

39. Like some appliances: AC/DC.

40. Worked: LABORED.

41. Words of confession: BLAME ME. Meh. That is not a confession.

43. Tablet alternative: CAPSULE. Not computer but pills.

44. Supportive response: AYE. Nay!

45. "The Waste Land" monogram: TSE. The best link I could find for those interested in THOMAS STEARNS ELIOT.

47. Called: PHONED. Someday this to will be gone from the lexicon.

48. It's sometimes necessary to come to them: SENSES.

49. Food bit: ORT.

51. Website with "Ask Me Anything" interviews: REDDIT. Reddit AMAs (which stands for “Ask Me Anything”)—whether they're timed around the news cycle or simply focused on a topic of great general interest—are Q&As designed to bring an authority on a subject to a community of interested people.

54. Unit of resistance: OHM.

57. Laptop navigation aids: MICE. 

58. Jazz phrase: RIFF.

59. "Enchanted" movie girl: ELLA. Recently this version

60. Aliases: AKAS. Also Known As.

63. Thieves' place: DEN. A concept from the Christian Bible.

64. Radical '60s org.: SDS. Students for a Democratic Society. Very active at my college alma mater while I was there 1965-1969.

Gee, I am done and now it is your turn. It has been a hectic time in my life but what good is life without stuff happening. Be well all; thank GL and thank all who read and/or write. Lemonade out.

Friday, December 3, 2021, Jeffrey Diton

 Title: A timely tribute to Broadway.

We all know (or should know) that puzzles are scheduled long before publication. However with the recent death of Broadway ICON Steven Sondheim, it seems some outside influence created this time slot for our entertainment and reflection. And dramatically none of the eight (8) huge hits were created by Sondheim. I am however, foreshadowing the write-up, so it is time to get to work.

My internet sleuthing located Jeffrey Diton both at the Crossword Collaboration Directory* and on Facebook.  It seems he is "retired and living the dream in Cary, North Carolina" though I know not his vocation.  This is his world wide debut puzzle so let's give him a round of applause. (too much foreshadowing)? Not unexpectedly this puzzle does not check all the usual Friday difficulty boxes - too many words, word lengths too short - but he does bring some pizzaz.  PET MD, ICEMAN,  KRAUSS, LOW-RES, MIDORI , YASGUR, ALL YEAR,  MISTRIAL and SLEEPERS are all solid fill. The ones in red are new. If you did not trek to Western NY on August 19, 1969, you probably don't know Max Yasgur and his farm in Bethel. N. Y. but those are stories for a different day. What he does do is include in each theme answer 2 one-word Broadway musicals. I find no commonality within the selection that determines which he chose, I hope he comes by and explains. 

16A. Nightclub for seasonal workers?: ELF CABARET (10). Malls hire elves to accompany Santa and we all enjoy a night out at a cabaret, old chum. LINK 1 and LINK 2

22A. Reaction to opening a can of Whiskas?: CATS APPLAUSE 

(12). I do not know any kitties who applaud but maybe you all have videos. LINK 1 and LINK 2

47. Like the Charles River in February, to a local?: WICKED FROZEN (12). You need to know the Charles flows through Boston where wicked is a catch all adjective and its does get f.... I mean wicked cold. Watching WICKED  on Broadway starring Idina Menzel with my two sons is a great memory for me. This group also is the only one of the themers I know of in which a star (IM, not ours) stars in both. I have not seen the  FROZEN musical.

56A. Styling gel for a '50's teenager?: HAIR GREASE (10). HAIR with it's nudity was very bold for Broadway and GREASE  a wonderful tribute to WEST SIDE STORY a Stephen Sondheim musical.

And the unusual Friday reveal:

34. Hit shows, and a hint to four puzzle answers: BROADWAY SMASHES. I am not sure if this was Jeffrey's intention, but I parse the clue for the show with individual names as Broadway Smashes, but for the entire answer Broadway's Mashes. YMMV.

Across:

1. Some model home residents: DOLLS. A very cute beginning.

6. Wrinkle, as one's brow: KNIT. HISTORY.

10. Rocky greetings: YOS. From the movie, not a bad romance. 

13. '40s-'50s "Giant Brain": ENIAC. This is the 48th appearance of this fill in the LAT.

14. Streaming biggie: ROKU.  Read all about IT.

15. Gas station convenience: MART. This one was slow in coming for me. 

18. Capital on a fjord: OSLO. Norway here we come.

19. Easter supply: DYE. Of course EGG fits also.

20. Watson portrayer opposite Jonny Lee Miller's Holmes: LIU.

21. California athlete: ANGEL. Baseball in Anaheim.

26. Hardly well: RARE. Very nice Friday deception, not ill but not cooked much.

29. Surprise hits: SLEEPERS. This sense of the word may have originated in the world of gambling in the nineteenth century. When a card player unexpectedly drew a winning card, the card was called "a sleeper."

30. Pontificates: OPINES. C.C. has mostly eliminated that from this blog's posts.

33. Narrow strip of wood: LATH. The name derived from the spreading action, which is like pulling an accordion open. wiki

40. Top-notch: A-ONE. From astronauts HG? I know they own A-OK.

41. Note in the key of B major: D-SHARP. I know nothing but B major (or the key of B) is a major scale based on B. The pitches B, C♯, D♯, E, F♯, G♯, and A♯ are all part of the B major scale. more wiki

42. Hung jury result: MISTRIAL. A victory for a criminal defendant.

46. Pop of pop music: IGGY. An 80's phenomenon.
                             

50. Nice thoughts?: IDEES. The French Connection.

51. What "W" may mean: WIN. L loss.

52. Pilot or Explorer: SUV. The world has been overrun by this vehicle choice. The fact that they now can get 30 to 50 mpg or are electric has helped.

55. Gold rush town where Wyatt Earp ran the Dexter Saloon: 

NOME.  LINK.

60. "Dagnabbit!": DRAT.

61. Wind from the French for "high wood": OBOE. The name oboe was originally hautbois, or "high, loud wood" in French, also sometimes spelled hoboy in English. The Italians transliterated the French name to oboè, and the English followed around 1770 with oboe. Oo has friends called Bo which leads me to many bad musical puns.

62. Baseball VIP: OWNER.

63. Half of a Chinese pair: YIN. I wouldn't YANG your chain about that.

64. Conference giveaways: PENS. I have so many free pens in my house but they do not last long as they are very...

65. Demanding attention: NEEDY.

Down:

1. Act: DEED. Do a good one. It...

2. Just: ONLY. Takes a moment and can improve someone's

3. Long sentence: LIFE. A strained bit of incarceration humor.

4. Lakers rivals, on NBA scoreboards: LAC. The Clippers

5. Milan's La __: SCALA. Charlotte has her Ballet debut this coming Sunday.

6. Alison of bluegrass: KRAUSS. An intersting Duet.
                                        
7. Scand. land: NORway. It's back.

8. Prez after Harry: IKE. Nicknames not initials.

9. Tsk relative: TUT. King?

10. Max who owned the Woodstock farmland: YASGUR. An interesting HISTORY.

11. Discount phrase: OR LESS. Is it ever less?

12. Pinched: STOLE. This is a fun word which has so many meanings including stealing and being arrested; rather a broad spectrum. See 26D. Hold up: ROB. Not Reiner.

15. "Hidden Figures" actress Janelle __: MONAE. This MOVIE

17. Tiny amount: BIT.

21. Top dogs: ALPHAS. They no longer are just males.

22. Wrestler-turned-actor John: CENA. Thank you all for last week, as I was unsure if "S" or "C."

23. Not seasonal: ALL YEAR. As a condo dweller this is a very familiar concept.

24. Pod residents?: PEAS. But do they pay rent or taxes?

25. Website for animal owners: PETMD. This is an awesome tool for anyone who has and/or loves animals. LINK.

27. Fig. in lending: APR. All you never asked about but should know about the difference between APR and INTEREST RATE.

28. 2016 Olympics city: RIO. Too soon to forget.

31. Tinder outings: E-DATES. Never tried it. Are they E-xciting?

32. There's a point to it: SWORD. Very fun, unless it is being stuck into you.

35. "It's not __, it's a when": AN IF. An old fahioned threat!

36. __ guard: SHIN. Football (soccer) players unite.

37. Crone: HAG.

38. Unit of energy: ERG.

39. Bond, for one: SPY. Excited about the new movie or the Rock wanting to be the new Bond?

42. Olympic skater Ito: MIDORI. Which came first, the skater or the

DRINK.

43. Certain clutch player, in sports parlance: ICEMAN. I think of
                        
44. Shooting competition: SKEET. Good for hand to eye coordination and to keep the skeet population under control.

45. A bit fuzzy, as an image: LOW RES. Not Hi-res.

47. Blowing a lot: WINDY. Chicago, chicago, my kind of town.

48. Evasive maneuver: ZIG. Or do you need to zag also?

49. 2001 scandal subject: ENRON. Greed games.
                

52. Sound: SANE. Which they were not as they decided  to go after the new ones not the...

53. Secondhand: USED. In the land of Rolls Royces, designer dresses and Rolexes used stuff is very popular for the almost and the wannabe.

54. To a high degree: VERY. There is little chance I will dance this dance.

56. Bunny __: HOP.             

57. White House nickname: ABE. He has been linked to the Civil War.

58. Charged particle: ION. Why don't they just pay cash?

59. Farm mom: EWE. Not me !

Gee, I am worn out and it is only 7:00PM. I was fascinated by MalMan's write-up today going back to the old minimalist ways of the early blogs, but I also really enjoy all that Hahtoolah, Waseely, Chairman Moe and the rest find and link. Ah, decisions. Welcome Jeffrey D. come see us and thank you and the readers and posters

First the grid:

Next,

Four ballerinas in rehearsal:

I am out

Friday, November 19, 2021, Jeffrey Wechsler

  Title: F as in Factor

As luck would have it, by switching with Moe to blog a JW puzzle, I am blogging another of his Friday frolics. One of his classic styles is an add a letter to create many punny places. Today is a simple exercise in adding an "F" to the beginning of an in the language phrase. The result is some serious frivolity, he said ironically. There may be more to it, but I have had an incredibly hectic week. The puzzle is sprinkled with so much yummy fill DIG THIS, LATERAL, PC DESKS, UNLINED, ADRIAN II, CEREMONY, DARKSIDE, DOG BRUSH, MEANNESS, PREPARED, RED NOSED and  STEMWARE. If you do not like the introduction of PC Desks it generates about 244,000,000 results (1.29 seconds) on google.The feel is much more of a traditional Friday with fewer words and more open spaces and no abstruse gimmick. I am not suggesting it is an easy puzzle, certainly 1A was not a gimme but it is a Friday crossword.

19A. Like one hiding contraband on his person?: FRISK AVERSE.(11). Perhaps some LSD? You can't be risk averse if you are carrying.

24A. First-time hot-dog griller?: FRANK AMATEUR (12). By far my favorite of the themers, as I picture someone who keeps losing the dogs between the grill parts. The phrase “rank amateur” employed this sense to mean, as the Oxford English Dictionary puts it, “a person who is completely inexperienced or inept at a particular activity” 

44A. Like designers of Halloween costumes?: FRIGHT MINDED.(12). Right minded is probably too political and Fright minded missed the deadline. 

55A. Campus anti-hazing policy, basically?: FRAT CONTROL (11).

Some might say RATs and FRAT boys are hard to tell apart.

On to the rest

Across:

1. Takes over: CO-OPTS. One meaning is to assimilate, take, or win over into a larger or established group: The fledgling Labor party was co-opted by the Socialist party.

7. Set: PREPARED. Are you ready? I am all set.

15. Mendeleev's homeland: RUSSIA. This clue is used periodically.

16. Nobel Prize presentation, say: CEREMONY. More 8 letter fill  COURTESY, EXERCISE, FUNCTION, HOLY RITE,  OCCASION, PRACTICE, PRIMNESS and PROTOCOL that are synonyms. 

17. Fix: ATTACH. Really?

18. Vader's choice: DARKSIDE. Actually it was Ani's choice for love.

21. "Dropped" drug: LSD. Why is LSD the only drug that is dropped?

22. Texas __: oil: TEA. 

23. Notable times: ERAS.

32. Aqua relative: TEAL. 

35. Flutes, for example: STEMWARE. Drinking glasses

36. Notepad option: UNLINED. 

40. Gridiron maneuver: LATERAL. 

41. Like some allergy sufferers: RED NOSED. No reindeer here.

43. __ Stone, co-star of the "Jacques Brel" musicals: ELLY. 
LINK

48. Scout in "To Kill a Mockingbird," e.g.: GIRL.

49. Peninsular U.S. st.: FLA. CSO to all of us Flo-ridians

52. Org. with briefs: ABA. A CSO to all of us with law backgrounds
 
59. Lab neatener: DOG BRUSH. Not the laboratory but the puppies.

61. Face: VISAGE.

62. Ninth-century pope: ADRIAN II. You might not think this would be hard but there were twenty-one, yes 21 9th Century Popes!

63. Fill with love: ENAMOR.

64. Bully's trait: MEANNESS. Too many in the world.

65. Supremely irked: SOREST. It makes me sore.

Down:

1. Boats: CRAFT.

2. Quite odd: OUTRÉ. I always liked this word.

3. Harbor city of ancient Rome: OSTIA.

4. Useful TV spots: Abbr.: PSAS. Public Service Announcements

5. Wall Street crawl: TICKER. When I began watching the stock market with my father when I was 12, that was literally how the prices came into the Hempill Noyes office.

6. Much of Algeria: SAHARA. Are desert their just desserts?

7. Modern office furniture: PC DESKS. This has billions of hits

8. With 13-Down, has a fender bender with: REAR. 13D. See 8-Down: ENDS. 

9. Isn't correct: ERRS.

10. Toy since ancient times: PEKE. More very difficult cluing, as we are looking for a toy dog!

11. KLM hub letters: AMS. Amsterdam Airport Schiphol (IATA: AMS), known informally as Schiphol Airport is the, myself. main international airport of the Netherlands. If you know where KLM is based this is inferable. I like to call the airline Koninklijke Luchtvaartmaatschappij. 

12. Agitate: ROIL. The word roil is often confused with rile, which has a slightly different meaning. If you roil someone you're stirring them up but not necessarily annoying them. To rile someone is to deliberately provoke or antagonize them. Dictionary.

14. Like gumdrops: DYED. Gumdrops are notoriously unhealthy, but I never thought about the food colorings being dyes.

20. Ute relative: VAN. I do not equate the colloquialism for a utility vehicle for a van which is an abbreviation of caravan.

24. It often includes trysts: FLING. Not on the football field.

25. Falcons' home: Abbr.: ATL. American Football.

26. "Give __ break!": ME A.  

27. Qty.: AMT. Amount.

28. Wool fabric: TWEED. All you need to KNOW.

29. "Downton Abbey" title: EARL. 

30. Long border range: URAL.

31. Bank (on): RELY.

32. Gang land: TURF. Slang; the neighborhood over which a street gang asserts its authority.
                                       
33. Dept. formed under Carter: ENERgy.

34. German family-owned discount market: ALDI. There is so much more to this STORY than just cheap prices. TRADER JOE'S anyone?

37. Kabuki relative: NOH. Japanese theater alternatives.

38. Nov. NJ setting: EST.

39. Rep. foe: DEM.

42. "Oh, man, check it out!": DIG THIS. Another flashback Jeffrey?

45. Actor Cage, casually: NIC. Is he ever casual?

46. Large numbers: DROVES. They will come in droves comes from cattle drives. Makes you think.

47. Climate-disrupting phenomenon: EL NINO.

49. Home-building stage: FRAME.

50. Colonel Sanders' head, and its ilk: LOGOS. I like this.

51. Watchful: ALERT. 

52. Driver with lines: ADAM. Have you seen his sex scenes with Lady Gaga?

53. "This was my dream. What it doth __, God knows": "Henry VI, Part 2": BODE. Jeffrey will always include some Will in his puzzles, it just depends if Rich leaves it in.

54. India tourist city: AGRA.

55. Writer Lebowitz: FRAN. Xtra, xtra, read all about it.
HER UPDATE. 

56. Early writing symbol: RUNE. Maybe that is what ruined my handwriting.

57. Sale condition: AS IS. That is how you have to take me.

58. Past 15-Across leader: TSAR.

60. Receptacle: BIN. Laden?

And so we continue our trek toward so many holidays for so many, one for everyone; and we received an early present from our own Jeffrey W. I was too busy, but I had fun. Love to hear from you. Lemonade out.

Friday, November 5, 2021, Gary Larson

Title: Furniture for a $1,000.00 please, Mayim.

I had to resist my inclination to be sad when I finished solving this Friday from Gary "Taking over the World" Larson because for me it is a take off on JEOPARDY . Naturally I do not relish missing the incomparable Alex Trebek but we soldier on.

Gary creates every kind of puzzle and this one is Friday hard based on (1) no reveal; and (b) some very thoughtful but deceptive cluing. I still enjoy the aha moment when I find a theme without having to call any of my co-bloggers and this was one of such puzzles. I also have the advantage of having written-up 400+ puzzles so I should be pretty good. For example, we know that the convention is to not have non-theme fill longer than the theme fill. We find the four longest and BINGO, we have a place to begin. More solving tips next week. 

The themers:

18A. Furniture for an angler?: WATER TABLE (10). This puzzle is so apt after Joseph discussion on polysemous words, which are the key to today's puns. Table is the furniture but when you add water it doesn't grow it becomes the level below which the ground is saturated with water. Very important in South Florida construction. 

22A. Furniture for an efficiency expert?: SNAPPY DRESSER (13). Dresser can be both a bureau/armoire and someone with clothes on. Snappy is an old fashioned compliment.

49A. Furniture for a military officer?: SERVICE BUREAU (13). Back to putting away clothes, this time in the miltary.

56A. Furniture for an event planner?: PARTY CHAIR (10). Chair may be the most common piece of furniture but  it first developed as early as 3100-2500 B.C. The first items created for household use were made of stone, as wood was not readily available during the Neolithic time period. Dressers, cupboards and beds were amongst the first forms of furniture.

Now that we know all that...

With only 46 spaces of theme there is plenty of room for longer fill: AIR BASE, CLOAKED, IKETTES, LIE IDLE, NOT WITH, OPEN PIT, SECULAR, SHAPERS, SWEEP UP, PRESORTS, and REBIRTHS are all interesting. Let us see how he weaved his web.

Across:

1. Simple starts: ABCS. A fun misdirection and not a simple fill. 

5. Move unsteadily: LURCH. My favorite will always be TED CASSIDY .  

10. Mex. title: SRTA. Senorita. 

14. Yawn-inducing: SLOW. Like my write-up this week.

15. "That's __": 1953 Top 10 hit: AMORE.

16. Close relative, often: HEIR.  Or legatee, or beneficiary?

17. Stuffing ingredient: SAGE. Poor parsley, rosemary and thyme.

20. German article: EINE. Drei?

21. Kind of barbecue: OPEN PIT. Great in our non-winter cool nights. 

26. Worldly: SECULAR. Hmm, I know it refers to attitudes, activities, or other things that have no religious or spiritual basis. But do you have to be worldly?

27. Highways: Abbr.: RTES. Routes.

30. Small game pieces: PAWNS. In our game. 

32. Alphabetically fifth of Santa's reindeer: DASHER. Blitzen, 

Comet, Cupid, Dancer, Dasher, Donner, Prancer, Rudolph, and 

Vixen. The naughty one.

34. Phone download: APP. I need two hands to carry my phone these days. 

37. Hidden: CLOAKED.

39. One attached to a binding, perhaps: SKI. Stand height influences leverage on the ski as well as the ski's feedback on your body parts ...so bindings definitely make a difference.

40. Organized set: SERIES. Many different variations of the same meaning.

42. Family group: MAFIA. Not mine.

44. Cheat, in a way: PEEK. People did like sitting near me on test day.

45. Gather dust: LIE IDLE. A wonderful mash-up of vowels.

54. Against: NOT WITH. Sorry, I am not with your program. 

55. Anna Pigeon mystery series writer Nevada __: BARR.  She is a very open book. BIOGRAPHY.

59. Plus: ALSO.

60. You won't get cards without it: ANTE. Noy xmas, but playing cards for poker etc.

61. Actress Knightley: KEIRA. A puzzle favorite.

62. Barely go (through): SEEP.

63. Red ink: LOSS.

64. Touch, say: SENSE. One of many. 

65. White-tailed shore bird: ERNE. Now you know why they call them sea eagles.

Down:

1. Weigh: ASSESS. Important in assaying ores.

2. Illusionist David known for death-defying stunts: BLAINE.

3. Hennessy product: COGNAC. Very big seller at the liquor store accross the street. Also voted the MOST POPULAR

4. Remove with a broom: SWEEP UP. 

5. __ of diminishing returns: LAW. One of the first things I learned in law school is that you could study too much...

6. First name in "Pulp Fiction" credits: UMA. We have seen her so often.

7. Turbine part: ROTOR. Part of the spinning process. 

8. __ paper: CREPE. Not to be confused with Suzette'

9. "__ a bottle and an honest friend!": HERE'S.

Here's A Bottle And An Honest Friend!

Here's a bottle and an honest friend!

What wad you wish for mair, man?

Wha kens before his life may end,

What his share may be o' care, man?

Then catch the moments as they fly,

And use them as ye ought, man?

Believe me, happiness is shy,

And comes not ay when sought, man.

Robert Burns

10. Woodworking tools: SHAPERS. A machine for woodworking.

11. New beginnings: REBIRTHS. An oversued term

12. List: TILT. A boat will list/tilt.

13. Equals: ARE.

19. Heavy wts.: TNS. Tons.

23. Word after fire or first: PLACE. You have others?

24. Two-masters: YAWLS. Sailing craft. 

25. 1962 villain played by Joseph Wiseman: DR NO.

28. Startled cry: EEK. Not eke.

29. Hindu title: SRI.

31. Short beer order: SAM. Adams. Meh.

32. Emergency room treatment, for short: DEFIB. Defibrillator. 

33. Parting word: ADIEU. Buh bye.

34. Hieroglyphics creature: ASP. The snake made famous by Cleopatra, but was Cleopatra killed by an asp? LINK?

35. One of a peppery trio?: PEE. I never tasted mine.

36. Does a laundry task: PRESORTS. A weird answer never used before. 

38. Mustard family member: KALE.  They are characterized by herbaceous plants having alternate leaves, acrid or pungent juice, clusters of four-petaled flowers, and fruit in the form of a two-parted capsule, and including broccoli, cabbage, candytuft, cauliflower, cress, mustard, radish, sweet alyssum, turnip, and wallflower.

41. Aptly named backing group for the Turners: IKETTES. 

43. Flight center: AIRBASE.

46. Place to get wheels: DEALER. I only heard they sold eightballs, dime bags, or keys.

47. Yankee Don who pitched the only no-hitter (a perfect game) in World Series history: LARSEN. A fun self reference (spelling be damned) to the rarest feat in baseball. 

48. Iceland is in it: EUROPE. I am seriously thinking about going after talking to two of Devin's friends who go often.

50. Letters after either Cowboy St. senator's name: R-WY. Republican from Wyoming. Tricky.

51. Maker of NyQuil and DayQuil: VICKS. VaPoRub

52. "... __ wed": I THEE.

53. Mountain __: CHAIN. I see many mountains, lions and peaks and passes.

54. Technology start: NANO. Not nanu.

56. Amigo: PAL. No hint of language change.

57. Org. that takes many forms: IRS. Very amusing clue.

58. Issa of "Awkward Black Girl": RAE.

So now November is here with many events ahead from Veteran's Day, Thanksgiving still to come. In order to relax from all the stress remember do a puzzle and you won't need a muzzle, and your SO will want to nuzzle as you both guzzle your holiday spirits.  As I mentioned a challenging but great puzzle; thank you Gary, and thank you all who voted for me to stay in office.

lemonade out.

Friday, October 15, 2021, Jeffrey Wechsler

 Title: Jeffrey was playing with a Yo-Yo again!

Welcome to a double dose of me. Chris (MOE) thought it would be fun if I deciphered another JW puzzle and the request really fit into my near future as I will be busy on the 22nd and 29th out of town. I was tasked with one of Mr. Wechsler's visual themes, which without the circles would have been a near impossible challenge, but we have them so here we go. 

 25A. With 38-Across, what the highlighted squares suggest: AROUND THE (9). 38A See 25-Across: WORLD (5).

47A. With 49-Across, author of the novel suggested by this puzzle's theme; the movie debuted 10/17/1956: JULES (5). 49A. See 47-Across: VERNE (5). 80 days anyone?

Oh and the circled squares (doesn't that remind you of HOLLYWOOD SQUARES?

 
Back to the puzzle...the circles spell the magic magellan word CIRCUMNAVIGATION! Nifty!

Of course now you have to solve the entire grid to fill in the circles so that leaves work to do and a grid to examine. This one is chockful of longer words AFFIRMS, CURE ALL, NAILS IT (a C.C. favorite) RUNAWAY, SNIDELY, SONATAS (for Waseely and JzB)  SWOLLEN, TAURINE (we all need vitamins and supplements) ADHERENTS, and MISJUDGED which has appeared only once before in puzzledom. HERE in one of Splynter's first blogs.  Also, DREFT making its LAT debut though we have seen it in reader comments HERE which includes one of Boomer's first blogs. We continue our trend of non-traditional Fridays, and I look forward to reading your thoughts.

Off to the races.

Across:

1. "More matter, with __ art": "Hamlet": LESS. This is obvious unless it isn't. Not one of Will's more famous quotations which some may find IRING at 1 Across.

5. Early music label: RCA. Radio Corporation of America.

8. Indulgent places: SPAS.

12. Playwright Chekhov: ANTON. He only lived to be 44 but he also was a well respected short story writer.

14. See 15-Across: OUT. I do not favor these reverse referentials.

15. With 14-Across, deal-breaking words: I WANT. Take your cup and clang it on the bars, works everytime.

16. Combined: IN ONE.

17. Play area: SET. Play as in production, not where you children go.

18. Partially, informally: SORTA.

19. Take off: RUN AWAY. A human would run away, and an airplane would just use the RUNWAY.

21. Gets an A+, say: NAILS IT. Yes, that is doing pretty well.

23. Cut back, in a way: DIETED. So much talk about diets... what did people do before influencers. 

24. Spite: MALICE. 

29. Added things: SUMS. A really simple clue/fill.

32. Brief alarm: SOS. Save Our Ship.

33. Parents can relax during them: NAPS. Anyone can.

37.  "Enough!": TMI. Too Much Information.

40.   Joanne of film: DRU. She was another Howard Hughes discovery.

41.  Daytona Beach-based sports org.: NASCAR. National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing.

44.  Bacon serving: RASHER. Oxford defines it as “a thin slice or strip of bacon, or (less commonly) of other meat,” either cooked or intended to be cooked “by grilling, broiling, or frying.”

50.  Bullish?: TAURINE. We all know TAURUS the bull, so...

52.  Validates: AFFIRMS. A favorite word for lawyers.

55.  Quaint store sign word: OLDE.

56.  Tapir feature: SNOUT.

58.   Campus figure: DEAN. John was very big when I was in college.

59.   Try to expose: DIG AT. Another Watergate reference?

61.   Sick: ILL. I am a bit under the weather.

62.   Prefix with meter: PENTA. PENTAMETER. Iambic OKL or Moe?

63.   Dagger-shapedsymbols: OBELI. 

64.   Bran type: OAT.

65.   Vary: ALTER.

66.   Sneak, maybe: SIDLE.

67.   Natl. park sights: RVS.

68. Disinfectant brand: LYSOL. Kills Covid, but please do not drink.

Down:

1. Scottish estate holder: LAIRD. Macbeth was such a Lord.

      
2. Been-there-done-that feeling: ENNUI. I like this definition.

3. Pit: STONE. Peach ayone.

4. Brahms piano trio: SONATAS. This is more for Bill and Ron.

5. Optimistic: ROSY.

6. Prompt: CUE.

7. Routing abbr.: ATTN.

8. In danger of flooding, as a river: SWOLLEN. Be careful all cornerites.

9. Indian follower of Zoroastrianism: PARSI.  A very old Religion which some consider the precursor of Judaism.

10. Bit of silliness: ANTIC. This word goes all the way back to 1520s.

11. City-__: STATE. Not as common as in history but we still have three - Singapore, Monaco, and the Vatican - the modern independent city-states.

13. More of a surprise: NEWER. A completely original clue for a common fill that does not make sense to me, nor sound like JW.

15. NBA legend Thomas: ISIAH. Do not be confused.

20. Disturbance: ADO. It is, or forget it.

22. Receipt fig.: AMT. 

26. It offered soldiers Hope: Abbr.: USO. The capital H tells us it means Bob's TOURS 

27. Fish-fowl link: NOR.  This has a long HISTORY. 

28. Web transmission technology: abr.: DSL. Digital Subscriber Line.

29. An express might skip yours: Abbr.: STN. Different abbreviations for abbreviation.

30. Thurman on screen: UMA. Constructors love her letters, movie goers love her...

31. Didn't read right: MISJUDGED.

34. Followers: ADHERENTS. They stick to their guns.

35. Face front?: PRE. PREFACE.

36. Face front?: SUR. SURFACE. Nice misdirection for a clecho.

38. Small songbirds: WRENS.

39. P&G detergent brand: DREFT. It is interesting as we have had two references to this old-timey detergent recently but it never appeared as fill before.

42. Snake oil, purportedly: CURE ALL. Also an old-timey product that was marketed as a panacea. When I was very little I wondered where they found the "cea" to put in the pan. 

43. __ Ewoldt, first Asian-American to play Christine in Broadway's "Phantom": ALI. Not Muhammed nor his daughter.

45. Boxer's speech?: ARF. Three letters, it can't be woof. 54D. Cur's warning: SNARL.

46. Dudley's toon foe: SNIDELY. Mr. Whiplash.

48. __ moment: SENIOR. When I was young, I would...ah...anyway.

49. Events for Biles: VAULTS.

50. Chore list items: TO DOS. Or they can be honey dos.

51. Criminal defense: ALIBI. I was in Boston having lunch with the Bishop.

53. San __, Northern California city: MATEO. We have one in Florida. LINK  

57. Name of five Norwegian kings: OLAV. Olav is the modern equivalent in Norwegian, formerly often spelt Olaf. His name in Icelandic is Ólafur, in Faroese Ólavur, in Danish Olav, in Swedish Olof, in Finnish Olavi. Olave was the traditional spelling in England, preserved in the name of medieval churches dedicated to him.

60. Secure (to): TIE. 

62. Sidekick: PAL. Nobody I kicked in the side ever became my pal.

Fun puzzle to write-up with a variety of topics and a task to keep even the best solvers by collecting the letters to find the theme. Since many do not care about finding one, this should be a bit of a walk in the park. Enjoy Moe and his ebullient write-ups and I will see you in November.

Lemonade out.