Monday, May 11, 2026, Chloe Revery

Theme:  GOSSIP GIRL.

Today's constructor, Chloe Revery, has been published in a number of newspapers, including the New York Times and Boston Globe.  Today's puzzle is her debut in the Los Angeles Times.  Congratulations!  RUMOR has it that Chloe is a software engineer from Los Angeles.  Of course, that's just HEARSAY.  I don't pretend to have INSIDE INFORMATION, but this is the SCUTTLEBUTT.

Today's theme is revealed at 63-Across:

63-Across. Trendy jargon, or what can be found at the starts of 17-, 25-, 38-, and 53-Across: BUZZ WORDS.  The starts, or beginnings, of the answers listed are WORDS for BUZZ in the sense of a story that is circulating.

The rest of the theme clues are:

17-Across. Very inexpensive: DIRT CHEAP.  DIRT can mean damaging gossip.

25-Across. Pants one may have to wriggle into: SKINNY JEANS.  "The SKINNY" suggests "the naked truth," and refers to inside information or the lowdown.

 38-Across. Kitchen cloth: DISH TOWEL.  DISH can be a verb ("dish the dirt") or a noun ("the latest dish").  It refers to scandalous gossip.

53-Across. Traditional Chinese wedding ritual: TEA CEREMONY.  "Spill the TEA" means to share juicy news.  It comes from "T" for "truth" and is more recent slang than the others.  

Well, that's enough idle chitchat from me.  Time to get serious about the rest of the puzzle! 

Across:

1. Body art, slangily: TATS.

5. Turn into baby food: MASH.  I do this for the grandbaby, but his mother insists the new best practice is to give the baby huge hunks of whatever food and let him go at it until he chokes, which he is supposed to learn to manage.

9. "I am half __, half hope": "Persuasion": AGONY.  The iconic line, "You pierce my soul. I am half agony, half hope," comes from Captain Frederick Wentworth’s letter to Anne Elliot in Chapter 23 of Jane Austen’s Persuasion.  DNK but I like it. 

14. La __ Tar Pits: BREA.  Ice Age animals approached the Tar Pits hoping for a drink of water and became trapped in the sticky goo, leaving behind a trove of fossils of saber-toothed cats, dire wolves, mammoths, and giant ground sloths.

La Brea Tar Pits in Los Angeles

15. Comic-Con, e.g.: EXPO.  An expo, or exposition, is a large event where organizations showcase their products and services.  Comic-Con is one such event, focusing on comics, gaming, cosplay, anime, and pop culture.  Don't believe me?  Check it out Oct. 30 - Nov. 1, 2026 at the Los Angeles Convention Center.  I won't be there, though.  Not my thing.

Someone else at Comic-Con

16. Engaged for a job: HIRED.

17. [Theme clue]

19. South American mountain range: ANDES.

20. Neck of the woods: AREA.

21. Drag show accessory: WIG.  RuPaul's Drag Race is sometimes credited with popularizing "tea" as a word for "gossip."

23. HS diploma equivalent: GED.  Didn't finish High School?  You can earn a GED (General Educational Development) equivalency credential instead.

24. Subway smooch, e.g.: Abbr.: PDA.  Public displays of affection (PDA) are acts of physical intimacy in the view of others.

25. [Theme clue]

30. Stirred up: INCITED.  Perhaps with rumors, hearsay, and innuendo?

32. Red wine grape: MERLOT.  Everyone's favorite scene from the movie Sideways, 2004:

33. Many a TikToker: TEEN.

34. Orange tubers: YAMS.

37. Delicious: TASTY.

38. [Theme clue]

41. Great Lakes mnemonic: HOMES.

YooperPhil, how do you remember the lakes?

44. Hippocratic __: OATH.

45. Jittery: EDGY.

49. Very tops: APEXES.  The formal plural of APEX is APICES (AY-puh-seez), but for the hoi polloi, it's OK to say APEXES (AY-pek-siz).  It's Latin, doncha know.

51. Like elastic material: TENSILE.  Tensile refers to a material's capacity to be stretched, drawn out, or subjected to tension.

53. [Theme clue]

56. Industrial tub: VAT.

57. Secrecy contract, for short: NDA.  Non-Disclosure Agreement.

58. Pie __ mode: À LA.  Pie à la mode is a classic American dessert featuring a slice of pie (typically apple) served with a scoop of ice cream on top. "À la mode" is French for "in fashion."

59. Skedaddled: FLED.

61. Selling point?: STORE.

63. [Theme clue]

67. Cowpoke's hello: HOWDY.

68. __ Day vitamins: ONE A.  Popular brand of multivitamins.

69. Out on the water: ASEA.

70. "Siddhartha" novelist Hermann: HESSE.  Siddhartha: An Indian novel is a 1922 novel by Hermann Hesse about the spiritual journey of a man named Siddhartha during the time of the Gautama Buddha. The book was written in German, and later published in the United States in 1951. In the book, Siddhartha attained enlightenment, which Hesse was also seeking.  The book sparked a lot of interest in Buddhism in the 1960s and 70s.

71. Designer Vera known for bridal gowns: WANG.  Vera Wang also has a line of casual clothing for sale at Kohl's, which is very much the other end of the spectrum.  This wedding gown is not my favorite of the many designs on her website, but it is called Noemi, so I had to choose it for today's illustration.

Noemi gown by Vera Wang

72. Refuse to allow: DENY.  I deny all those rumors and gossip!  Or at least some of them.

Down:

1. Brief "More info soon": TBD.  To Be Determined.

2. Daughter of King Minos who helped Theseus escape the labyrinth: ARIADNE.  Ariadne, daughter of King Minos of Crete, fell in love with the Athenian hero Theseus and helped him kill the Minotaur by providing a sword and a ball of thread to navigate the Labyrinth.  After fleeing with Theseus, Ariadne was abandoned on the island of Naxos.  My father always said Theseus was a jerk.  No, wait -- that was Jason of the Argonauts.  Maybe all the Greek heroes were jerks.

Theseus and the Minotaur

3. Feature of many a rice paddy: TERRACE.  A paddy is a flooded field used for growing semiaquatic crops like rice and taro.  Paddies are often built into steep hillsides as terraces.

Rice paddy terraces

4. Fill up: SATE.

5. Verbal shrug: MEH.

6. Log chopper: AXE.

7. Offspring: SPAWN.

8. Pickup line?: HOP IN.

9. "I've got it!": AHA.

10. Sodas in Shirley Temples: GINGER ALES.  A Shirley Temple is a mixed drink made with ginger ale, a splash of grenadine, and a maraschino cherry.  It was invented by a restaurant in Hollywood so that the child actress, Shirley Temple, could have a fancy beverage that looked like the old-fashioneds her parents were enjoying.

Shirley Temple drink

11. Major trials: ORDEALS.

12. "I __ remind you ... ": NEED NOT.  And yet you do ...

13. Ribbon purchase qty.: YDS.  Ribbons are purchased by the yard.

18. Playbill list: CAST.

22. Place to raise the bar?: GYM.

Raise that bar!

24. Cherry discard: PIT.  Maraschino cherries, like the ones in Shirley Temples, begin as light colored cherries which sit in a chemical soup for 4-6 weeks, erasing their color and flavor, and are then soaked in a solution of sugar syrup, red dye, and almond flavoring for another month.  Finally, they are pitted -- but do watch out for the occasional pit or portion thereof that is missed by the fast moving machines.

26. Cipher breakers: KEYS.  A cipher is a system of encrypting information, perhaps substituting one letter for another consistently, or rearranging the letters of a text.  A key unlocks the encrytped information.

27. State with a potato museum: IDAHO.

28. Ballet leap: JETÉ.  A jeté is a ballet leap where a dancer throws one leg into the air and lands on it, transferring weight from one foot to the other.

A grand jeté

29. Farm pen: STY.

31. Items in recipe boxes: INDEX CARDS.  DH's mother kept such a file.

35. NYC subway org.: MTA.  The Metropolitan Transportation Authority provides bus, subway, and commuter rail service in Greater New York, and operates multiple toll bridges and tunnels.

36. __ voce: SOTTO.  Sotto voce is an Italian phrase meaning "under the voice" or "soft voice," used to describe speaking or singing quietly.

39. "Understood": I SEE.

40. "At what time?": WHEN.

41. Fedora, for one: HAT.

42. Like shoes that show off a pedicure: OPEN TOE.

43. Spots for sheep to sleep: MEADOWS.

46. Not all the same: DIVERSE.

47. Cheer up: GLADDEN.

48. "Are we there __?": YET.

50. Mrs., in Madrid: SRA.  Short for señora.

52. Manhattan event with many designers and runway models, for short: NYFW.  New York Fashion Week.

54. Arm joint: ELBOW.  My mother intended to sit on a bench in my grandchildren's school yard, missed it, landed rather well (all things considered), but fractured her ELBOW.  She's staying at my house while adjusting to this situation.  When the splint from the ER is upgraded to a longer term solution this afternoon, we'll get a sense of how long this will go on.  We've got a rather full house at the moment.

55. __ Loa: world's largest active volcano: MAUNA.  On the Big Island of Hawaii.  Or rather, half of the Big Island of Hawaii!  The islands are formed by volcanoes rising from the ocean floor.

Mauna Loa eruption

60. Laundry batch: LOAD.

61. Finger-on-lips sound: SHH.  I was a librarian for many years.  SHH is part of the professional lexicon.

Shh!

62. Hurricane center: EYE.

64. Super chill: ZEN.

65. Zig and __: ZAG.

66. "You can __ that again!": SAY.

Here's the grid:

HOWDY, Solvers! 

Did this gossipy puzzle cause you AGONY through a series of solving ORDEALS?

Or did it GLADDEN your spirit with DIVERSE delights?

You NEED NOT tell us, but we still wish you would, in the comments below.

-- NaomiZ

Monday, May 4, 2026, Janice Luttrell

Theme:  Fast and FURIOUS!

Did you move through this puzzle too quickly to become enraged, infuriated, indignant, or irritable?

I'm sure our experienced constructor, Janice Luttrell, didn't mean to make you angry, but she might have hoped you would notice the testy, ill-humored, and dyspeptic beginnings of the theme answers, which are:

17-Across. Cactus with showy flowers: PRICKLY PEAR.

28-Across. Like some Winter Olympics skiing: CROSS COUNTRY.

45-Across. Tummy trouble: UPSET STOMACH.

61-Across. Satirical periodical featuring Alfred E. Neuman: MAD MAGAZINE.

Don't be sullen if you missed it.  Yours truly had to look for it after solving.  I'm not bitter, but I'd better get on with the rest of it!

Across:

1. Airtight excuse for a defendant: ALIBI.

6. Pool floats: RAFTS.

11. Moroccan cap with a tassel: FEZ.

14. Add to the conversation: PUT IN.  We don't talk politics here, but I think we can PUT IN something about PUTIN.

15. Snowboarding jump: OLLIE.  The ollie is a skateboarding trick where the rider and board leap into the air without the use of the rider's hands.  It is a combination of stomping the tail of the skateboard off the ground to get the board mostly vertical, jumping, and sliding the front foot forward to level out the skateboard at the peak of the jump.  The ollie is a fundamental skill in skateboarding and has crossed over to snowboarding.

Skateboard ollie

Snowboard ollie

16. Big name in jarred tomato sauce: RAO.  

Rao's was purchased by Campbell Soup in 2024.

17. [Theme clue]

19. Self-serve coffee server: URN.

20. Sn, to a chemist: TIN.  Did you study chemistry?  If so, do you remember most of these?

21. "Do __ favor?": ME A.  PUT IN a good word for me, perhaps?

22. Extremely absurd: ASININE.

24. Fish-eating bird: SEA EAGLE.

27. Not at home: OUT.

28. [Theme clue]

33. Kindle download: EBOOK.  Electronic book.  Kindle is Amazon's eBook reading device.

36. Gramps: POPS.  We never called Grandpa "Pops," but his sons called him that.

Pops at work

37. "Christopher Robin" joey: ROO.  A "joey" is a young kangaroo or other marsupial.  In A.A. Milne's books about Christopher Robin and Winnie-the-Pooh, the smallest character is Roo, the energetic son of kindhearted Kanga.

"Kanga and Roo were spending a quiet afternoon in a sandy part of the Forest. Baby Roo was practising very small jumps in the sand, and falling down mouse-holes and climbing out of them, and Kanga was fidgeting about and saying "Just one more jump, dear, and then we must go home." And at that moment who should come stumping up the hill but Pooh." -- Winnie-The-Pooh chapter VII

38. Dollywood's st.: TENN.  Dolly Parton's theme park, Dollywood, is in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, near Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

39. Studies all night: CRAMS.

41. Lettuce unit: HEAD.

42. Lipton product: TEA.

43. Stratford-upon-__: AVON.  Stratford-upon-Avon is famous as the birthplace of William Shakespeare. 

44. Tuscan cathedral city south of Florence: SIENA.

45. [Theme clue]

49. Body art, briefly: TAT.  Short for tattoo.

50. Playground structures that challenge balance and coordination: LOG ROLLS.  I have never encountered one of these in a playground, so I was a little surprised by the answer.

Log roll

54. OPEC units: BARRELS.

58. Fish eggs: ROE.

59. "You've got mail" ISP: AOL.  Dial-up Internet Service Provider America OnLine used to announce new email with a voice greeting, “You've got mail!”  The dial-up service and greeting were discontinued in September 2025, although AOL still provides email service.

60. Stack starter in solitaire: ACE.  Never learned to play.  You?

61. [Theme clue]

64. Lingerie top: BRA.  Baby boomers like myself learned from our mothers to keep our bras hidden, and never to mention them in mixed company.  But what was once hidden has gradually been revealed, and it's hard to say whether the change started as a popular movement or was dictated by designers.

Miu Miu Fall 2025

65. British baby buggies: PRAMS.

66. Free-for-all: MELEE.

67. Shrill shriek: EEK.

68. Grabs: TAKES.

69. Sarcastic commentary: SNARK.  DH says that snark is my most endearing quality.  That's good, as it seems to be here to stay.

Down:

1. Daily planner entries: Abbr.: APPTS.  Appointments.

2. San Francisco mayor Daniel: LURIE.  Daniel Lurie was born and raised in San Francisco, where he serves as mayor.  He is an heir to the Levi Strauss fortune through his stepfather.  Mr. Lurie earned a Master of Public Policy degree from UC Berkeley, and prior to becoming mayor, organized private philanthropic organizations.  He takes only $1 per year in mayoral salary, and focuses his efforts on affordable housing, a larger and more responsive police force, clean streets, and government accountability.

Daniel Lurie

3. Singer Turner's rock memoir: I, TINA.  Published in 1986, I, Tina: My Life Story became a worldwide best-seller and led to the 1993 film adaptation What's Love Got to Do with It, starring Angela Bassett as Turner.

4. Clic Stic pen brand: BIC.

5. Result of a leaking 4-Down, perhaps: INK MARK.

Put a rag under the stain and spray or blot it with rubbing alcohol.
If it doesn't disappear, apply Amodex and launder as usual.

6. Kansas City baseball team: ROYALS.

7. Swiss peak: ALP.

8. Pest on a pet: FLEA.  Did you know that a flea circus was a circus sideshow in which fleas were attached to miniature carts and other items, and made to perform within a enclosure?

9. Aunts, in 26-Down: TIAS.

10. Humorless: SERIOUS.

11. Orchard growth: FRUIT TREE.

12. Be worthy of: EARN.

13. The "Z" of ZIP code: ZONE.  The United States Postal Service introduced the Zone Improvement Plan (ZIP) code system in 1963.

18. Brick that's painful to step on: LEGO.

Notoriously painful experience.

23. Convent figure: NUN.

25. Supply-and-demand subj.: ECON.  Economics.  An abbreviation in the clue calls for an abbreviation in the answer.

26. Bad Bunny's native language, in his native language: ESPAÑOL.  Español is the Spanish word for Spanish, which is Bad Bunny's native language.

In case you couldn't follow his lyrics en Español,
Bad Bunny put a message in English on the board at the Super Bowl.

29. URL ending: COM.  A URL (Uniform Resource Locator) is a web address.  The letters after the final period are a "domain suffix," commonly .com for commercial websites, .org for organizations, and .edu for colleges or universities.

30. Photo __: some PR events: OPS.  Photo opportunities are often Public Relations events.

31. Reddish speckled horse: ROAN.

32. Green Jedi Master: YODA.

33. "__, Brute?": ET TU.  Shakespeare's play The Tragedy of Julius Caesar depicts Caesar's last words as "Et tu, Brute?" which translates to "You too, Brutus?"  Today, a person might say "Et tu, Brute?" after realizing a close friend or ally has betrayed them.

Et tu, Brute?

34. Microwave sound: BEEP.

35. Racking up victories: ON A STREAK.

39. MinuteClinic drugstore chain: CVS.  CVS is the dominant drugstore chain in Los Angeles.

40. Biodegrade: ROT.

41. Kermit's greeting: HI HO.

43. Have a go at: ATTEMPT.

44. Hollers with fright or delight: SCREAMS.

46. AirPod holder: EAR.

47. Swampy area: MORASS.

48. Awestruck: AGOG.

51. Undefeated boxer Ali: LAILA.

Laila with her famous father, Muhammad Ali

52. Solitary sort: LONER.

53. Smooth and shiny: SLEEK.

54. Sweetie: BABE.

55. 43,560 square feet: ACRE.

56. "__ Croft: Tomb Raider": LARA.

57. Mt. Rushmore's st.: S. DAK.  Some folks defaced a mountain in South Dakota and got away with it.  Oh, wait.  They didn't DEface it.  There doesn't seem to be a verb for putting faces on it.

It looks dramatic in this photo, but quite silly from a distance.

62. Marseille Mrs.: MME.  Stands for "Madame."

63. School of Buddhism: ZEN.

Here's the grid:

Solvers, how was your first ATTEMPT at solving the LA Times crossword this week?

Think you're ON A STREAK for the week?  Or did you suffer an UPSET already?

Either way, don't be a LONER!  Join us in the comments and PUT IN your two cents!

-- NaomiZ

Monday, April 27, 2026, Patti Varol

Theme:  OVERJOYED!

Today's puzzle comes to us from Patti Varol, who is not only the editor of the Los Angeles Times Crossword, but whose puzzles have appeared in many other publications, and have been the challenges presented in many crossword tournaments. 

Each of today's long entries begins with a synonym for "happy" -- a very nice way to start Monday morning.

20-Across. Carnival ride with seats shaped like animals: MERRY-GO-ROUND.

33-Across. Hard candies with blue raspberry and green apple flavors: JOLLY RANCHERS.

43-Across. Brand of heavy-duty trash bags: GLAD FORCEFLEX.

59-Across. Golfer played by Adam Sandler: HAPPY GILMORE.

I wanted to echo Patti's theme by using another familiar phrase that starts with a synonym for "happy" -- and does not re-use one of Patti's synonyms -- and I could not do it.  The fact that Patti found these four phrases and fit them into symmetrical spots in the grid is impressive.  The whole thing left me delighted, joyful, thrilled, and ecstatic.

Let's see what other cheerful things show up in the grid.

Across:

1. Allure of a coffee shop: AROMA.

Sometimes the aroma is the best part.

6. Private convos: DMS.  Direct messages are private conversations, usually on social media sites.

9. Initial phase: ONSET.  It has been over a year since the ONSET of my daughter's dog Charlie's crippling disability.  Five veterinarians and thousands of dollars later, we may have a diagnosis.

Our dearly departed terriers at left; Charlie (a European village dog) on the right.

14. Student: PUPIL.

15. Snakelike fish: EEL.

16. "And there you have it!": VOILÀ.  "See there!" in French.  Adopted into English to call attention to something, or to suggest an appearance as if by magic (like "ta-da").

17. Flower part: PETAL.

18. D-backs, on scoreboards: ARI.  The Arizona Diamondbacks (or D-backs) are a professional baseball team based in Phoenix, Arizona.

Arizona Diamondbacks logo

19. ATM key: ENTER.

20. [Theme clue]

23. Strong urge: DESIRE.

26. Earsplitting: LOUD.

27. Pick up the tab: PAY.

28. Before, poetically: ERE.

     Maid of Athens, ere we part,

     Give, oh, give me back my heart!

     Or, since that has left my breast,

     Keep it now, and take the rest!

          -- Lord Byron, 1810

29. Frustrated cry: GAH.  An interjection used to express disappointment, frustration, or dismay.

Gah!

31. Recipe amount: CUP.

33. [Theme clue]

38. Tibet's continent: ASIA.

39. Sign before Virgo: LEO.

40. Dinghy pair: OARS.

43. [Theme clue]

48. One who may have a platonic partner, for short: ARO.  Aromantic -- a person who does not experience romantic attraction.

49. Flesh and blood: KIN.

50. Photo __: OPS.  Photo opportunities.  Occasions or settings that lend themselves to, or are deliberately arranged for, taking photographs, especially for favorable publicity of the subjects.

51. Delivery room docs: OBS.  Obstetricians.

54. Backless shoe: MULE.  Mules can be flat, or on wedges or block heels, or even high-heeled.  Many slippers are mules.  Toes can be open, as shown below, or closed.

Mule with block heel.

57. "This sale ends soon!": ACT NOW.  Pressure tactics sometimes lead to poor decisions.

59. [Theme clue]

62. "Rashomon" director Kurosawa: AKIRA.  Akira Kurosawa (1910-1998) was a Japanese filmmaker who directed 30 feature films over six decades.  Rashomon (1950) was the surprise winner of the Golden Lion at the 1951 Venice Film Festival, opening Western markets to Japanese films for the first time.  You may remember Seven Samurai (1954).

Akira Kurosawa

63. Actress Goth of Guillermo del Toro's "Frankenstein": MIA.  Mia Goth is a British actress and model.  She has a fitting surname for the genre.

She's too old for her mother to prevent her going out like this.

64. "I'm the best!": YAY ME.

68. Intel job: RECON.  Intel is intelligence, or information concerning a subject of interest, especially an enemy; recon is reconnaissance, or an exploratory military survey of enemy territory.

69. K-pop band who began their Arirang World Tour in 2026: BTS.  BTS (which stands for the Korean words for "Bulletproof Boy Scouts"), also known as the Bangtan Boys, is a South Korean boy band formed in 2010.  In 2020, BTS became the fastest group since the Beatles to chart four US number-one albums in less than two years.  They are the best-selling musical act in South Korean history.

70. __ to: before: PRIOR.

71. Very skilled: ADEPT.

72. Dead __ Scrolls: SEA.

73. Categories: TYPES.

Down:

1. Program opened with a tap: APP.  An app, which is short for "application," is a type of software that can be installed and run on a computer, tablet, smartphone or other electronic devices.  Most apps have a specific and narrow function.

Apps on a smartphone.

2. Truly regret: RUE.

3. Choose: OPT.

4. Metropolis east of the Everglades: MIAMI.

5. Hypersensitivity that may be diagnosed with a scratch test: ALLERGY.

6. Precious: DEAR.

7. Actress Streep: MERYL.  Meryl Streep is an American actress who has had success with critically acclaimed dramas and mainstream silliness alike.  Over her long career, she has earned three Academy Awards:  Best Actress in a Supporting Role for Kramer vs Kramer (1979), and Best Actress in a Leading Role for Sophie's Choice (1982) and for The Iron Lady (2011).  She is the most Academy Award-nominated performer in history.

Meryl Streep in 1977

8. Irish county next to Mayo: SLIGO.  County Sligo is a county in the Northern and Western Region of Ireland.  W. B. Yeats grew up there and its landscapes inspired his poetry.  Obscure for a Monday puzzle.

The dark green area is County Sligo; the pink is Northern Ireland, which is part of the UK.

9. Like a library book one has to pay for: OVERDUE.  My long career as a librarian was partly inspired by my childhood fascination with date due cards and the machine that captured an image of each card alongside my library card.

Alas, I never got to use the photocharger.  I mostly worked in computerizing catalogs.

10. Off-limits move: NO NO.

11. "Quit slouching!": SIT UP.

12. Supreme Court justice Kagan: ELENA.  Elena Kagan is an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. She was appointed in 2010 by President Obama and is the fourth woman to serve on the Court.  PRIOR to her service on the Supreme Court, she was a clerk for Justice Thurgood Marshall; a lawyer in private practice; a professor at the University of Chicago Law School; a special counsel for the Senate Judiciary Commmittee; Associate White House Counsel for President Clinton; professor and then Dean of Harvard Law School; and then Solicitor General for President Obama. 

The first four female U.S. Supreme Court justices:
 Sandra Day O'Connor, Sonia Sotomayor, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, and Elena Kagan.

13. Not on time: TARDY.

21. Tail end: REAR.

22. Cry of pain: OUCH.

23. __ vu: familiar feeling: DÉJÀ.  Déjà vu is French for "already seen."  In English, it refers to the illusion of remembering scenes and events when experienced for the first time, that is, a feeling that one has seen or heard something before.

24. God with a bow and arrow: EROS.

25. Former baseball commissioner Bud: SELIG.  "Bud" Selig is the commissioner emeritus of baseball.  He was de facto acting commissioner beginning in 1992 in his capacity as chairman of the Major League Baseball (MLB) Executive Committee before being named the official commissioner in 1998.  He served as the ninth commissioner of baseball from 1998 to 2015.  He is credited with the financial turnaround of baseball, with a 400 percent increase in the revenue of MLB during his tenure.

Bud Selig

30. Grapefruit serving, often: HALF.

32. Univ. teacher: PROF.  A university teacher is often a professor.

34. Singsong syllables: LA LA.

35. Opposite of paleo-: NEO.

36. Wine stopper: CORK.

37. Cut-and-dry spot: SALON.

41. Seized auto: REPO.  Repossessed (usually for failure to make payments).

42. Annual festival in Austin, TX: SXSW.  South by Southwest (SXSW) is an annual conglomeration of film, interactive media, and music festivals that take place in mid-March in Austin, Texas.

44. Insect that forages in large raids: ARMY ANT.

45. Heisman winner Flutie: DOUG.  Doug Flutie is a former professional football quarterback.  In a 21-year career, Flutie played 12 seasons in the National Football League (NFL), eight seasons in the Canadian Football League (CFL), and one season in the United States Football League (USFL).  He played college football for the Boston College Eagles, winning the Heisman Trophy in 1984.

46. Italian farewell: CIAO.  Or, as DH likes to say:  "Ciao for now!"

47. Put into code: ENCRYPT.

51. Catherine of "The Studio": O'HARA.  Catherine O'Hara (1954-2026) was a Canadian-American actress and comedian. She began in improvisational and sketch comedy before expanding her career with dramatic roles. She has a long list of film credits, but may be best known for her roles in Beetlejuice, Home Alone, and Schitt's Creek. 

Catherine O'Hara in 2005

52. Made cookies, say: BAKED.

53. Jazz (up): SPICE.

55. Arms and legs: LIMBS.

56. Crème de la crème: ELITE.  More French!  "Crème de la crème" is literally "cream of the cream" and is used to mean "best of the best." 

58. In need of tissues: TEARY.

60. Actor's accessory: PROP.

61. Tortilla dough: MASA.  Masa is dough made from ground corn that has been softened by soaking in alkali. 

65. Shrill bark: YIP.

66. Fellow Stooge of Larry and Curly: MOE.  We have a Chairman by that name in our Corner.

67. Hosp. triage areas: ERS.  Hospital triage areas are Emergency Rooms.

Here's the grid:

Solvers, did you RUE attempting this puzzle, and cry "GAH" HALFway into it?

Or are you an ELITE solver, so ADEPT at crosswords that you yelled "YAY ME!"?

All TYPES of solvers are welcome in the Comments.  We DESIRE your input.

-- NaomiZ