Theme: "Division of Labor" - Each "Labor" word is divided into two parts by a black square.
23A. Brown outburst : GOOD GRIEF FORT BENNING (24A. Georgia military post)
40A. '90s three-door SUV : MAZDA NAVAJO BUBBLE GUM (45A. Bazooka output)
61A. High class : UPPER CRUST RAIN BARREL (64A. Runoff collector)
85A. Getaway with horses : DUDE RANCH OREGON DUCKS (87A. Washington Huskies rival)
108A. Frequent button-presser : COUCH POTATO I'LL BE BACK (110A. Arnold's catchphrase)
So these are essentially grid-spanning 21-letter entries broken up by a black square. A perfect 100 theme squares.
I've mentioned this before. Grid spanning 15's often ease up a weekday grid, but 21's are somehow hard. And the constructor has 5 to deal with today.
I think this is Margaret Hannan's LAT debut. Congratulations!
Across:
1. Traveling like Columbus : ASEA
5. Seniors' advocacy org. : AARP. Few like them on our blog.
9. Many a commuter's home : SUBURB
15. Beltmaking tools : AWLS
19. Still at the lost and found : UNCLAIMED
21. One who overdoes a privilege : ABUSER
22. Actress Perlman : RHEA. Back together with Danny DeVito after a short separation.
26. Googling result : URL
27. Defense team: Abbr. : ATTs
28. "Twilight" heroine : BELLA (Swan). Look here. It has no mention of his relationship with Kristen Stewart. How could that be? I like Wiki bio where there's a clear "Personal life" segment.
29. Kook : WEIRDO
30. Space capsule transition : RE-ENTRY
32. It may be a surprise : PARTY
33. Hawker's talk : SPIEL
34. __ moment : AHA
35. Moral misstep : SIN
36. Nobelist Bellow : SAUL. Better call this Saul. Breaking Bad.
37. Airport security requests : IDs
47. Inter __ : ALIA
48. Toledo title : SENOR
49. Action film weapons : UZIs
50. Water container? : DIKE. Nice clue.
51. Good __/bad __: interrogation method : COP
52. Thanks/thanks link : BUT NO.
54. Org. with HQ on Manhattan's East Side : THE UN
56. "Bummer" : AW GEE. Do you guys all like the stupid Gmail new format? I can't even find the CC button.
57. Big name in escapes : HOUDINI. I thought of Alcatraz.
59. Lamb cut : SHANK
60. Glamorous Gardner : AVA
69. Storage media, briefly : CDs
70. Civil rights org. : NAACP
72. Follow : ABIDE BY
73. Groundwork : BASIS
76. Game on skates : DERBY. Roller derby.
77. Windshield sticker : DECAL
79. Head of London? : LOO. Did you want ELL also?
80. "I say!" : EGAD
81. Western landscape feature : MESA
82. Like some luck : TOUGH
84. Zero-spin particle : PION. No idea. What does "Zero-spin" mean?
90. Match, as a bet : SEE
91. Sony co-founder Morita : AKIO. Literally "bright man".
92. Enlistees : GIs
93. Oklahoma resource : OIL
94. Plant tissue : XYLEM. New word to me also.
96. Cover used during zapping : SARAN
99. "Gerontion" poet : T. S. ELIOT
103. Opens, as a beer : UNCAPS
105. Required situation for a two-run homer : ONE ON. Oh, I'd like you to know that I'm now a Pirates fan. Bye, Twins!
106. Roll call replies : AYES
107. Sgt. or cpl. : NCO
112. Verdant : LUSH
113. Decks out : ADORNS
114. Sneak out : STEAL AWAY
115. "I'd hate to break up __" : A SET
116. Accommodate, in a way, as a restaurant patron : RE-SEAT
117. "CSI" actress Helgenberger : MARG. Pronounced with a hard "G". She's wearing nipple concealers, Argyle, in case you wonder.
118. Sticky Note, e.g. : MEMO
Down:
1. Soothsayer : AUGUR
2. Nocturnal noise : SNORE
3. Nice school : ECOLE. French city Nice.
4. City council rep. : ALD
5. Dallas-based budget carrier : AIRTRAN
6. Accord : AMITY
7. Welsh actor Roger : REES
8. Adobe format : PDF
9. More conservative, investment-wise : SAFER
10. Horseshoe-shaped hardware item : U-BOLT
11. Thickset : BURLY
12. Venus's org. : USTA (United States Tennis Association). Venus Williams.
13. Gray : REB. This "Gray" clue gets me all the time.
14. Stout servers : BREW PUBS
15. Onetime rival of Jack and Gary : ARNIE (Palmer). Gary Player.
16. Pinwheel : WHIRLIGIG. Lovely entry.
17. Advance : LEND
18. Palm tree starch : SAGO
20. First name in whodunits : AGATHA
25. Sam who played Merlin in "Merlin" : NEILL
28. It has strings attached : BANJO. The dreaded "Deliverance".
31. Nothin' : NADA
32. Cliburn's instrument : PIANO
33. Oral polio vaccine developer : SABIN
35. Cinematographer Nykvist : SVEN. Known for his for his work with Ingmar Bergman, according to Wiki.
36. Ichiro of baseball : SUZUKI. My very first baseball card is a Ichiro rookie.
38. British nobleman : DUKE
39. Barrie pirate : SMEE. Peter Pan.
40. __ Picchu : MACHU
41. Knock for __ : A LOOP
42. Mom's winter morning reminder : ZIP UP
43. Up and about : ASTIR
44. Surg. specialty : ORTH
45. Lake __ Vista : BUENA
46. __ Bear, original name of Winnie-the-Pooh : EDWARD. Did not know this.
52. Bath visitors : BIRDS. "Visitor" made me think of the British city Bath.
53. Members of the fam : UNCS (Uncles). Meh fill. Unavoidable in a Sunday grid.
55. Source of a Marxian nickname : HARP. This refers to Harpo Marx, right?
56. Be helpful to : AVAIL
58. Rule : DECIDE
59. You might take one before giving up : STAB. Please give Young & Beautiful
a stab. Best song I heard this summer. So haunting.
60. "SOS" singers : ABBA
62. World Heritage Site org. : UNESCO
63. Immortal actress Bernhardt : SARAH. It amuses me every time Rich uses "Immortal" in a clue. Wiki said she's "the most famous actress the world has ever known." Died in March 1923. French.
65. Salsa holder : NACHO
66. Museum item : RELIC
67. Nook download : E-BOOK
68. City north of Marseilles : LYONS. I wonder why English adds S to both Lyon and Marseille.
71. Plasm lead-in : CYTO. "Cell".
73. Hospital count : BEDS
74. Chills and fever : AGUE
75. Lousy example : SAD EXCUSE. Always thought "sad excuse" = "bad explanation".
76. Jean-etic material? : DENIM. Got it.
77. Expected to arrive : DUE IN
78. Breakfast staple : EGGS
81. Matches the scorecard, so to speak : MAKES PAR. I tend to say "I made a par/birdie/bogey" on that hole, with "a".
83. Bach's instrument : ORGAN
84. Clout : PULL
86. Friend of Potsie in "Happy Days" : RALPH
88. Steed feeder : NOSEBAG
89. Semi filler : DIESEL
95. America's Cup entry : YACHT
96. It's a trap : SNARE. Great clue.
97. UnitedHealthcare rival : AETNA
98. High bar : ROOST
99. First president who wasn't elected : TYLER (John). Because of Harrison's death.
100. Amazed : IN AWE
101. Eponymous William's birthplace : OCCAM. William of Occam, known for his razor principle.
102. Capital east of Seoul : TOKYO
103. Campus south of Sunset Blvd. : UCLA
104. We, to Henri : NOUS. Oui!
105. Plains people : OTOS
106. Mont. neighbor : ALTA (Alberta)
109. Wordsworth work : ODE
110. Philosophy : ISM
111. Emeril catchword : BAM. This simple Quinoa salad deserves a "Bam" from Emeril! I always "Kick it up a notch" with a few slices of avocado.
C.C.
