14. Corner: TREE. I first read the clue as a noun, but had to read it as a verb for it to make sense.
15. First-rate: A-ONE.
16. Hardly in the dark: AWARE. Andre Ware (A Ware ?) would be known to longtime college football fans. He was the 1989 Heisman Trophy winning quarterback who played for the University of Houston Cougars. He was the first African American quarterback to win the honor.
20. Master's degree seeker's assignment: THESIS. Thesis title: “Membership of Subculture as Made Evident Through Referential Verbal Cues” Translated title: "Nerds say nerd things to other nerds."
34. Beethoven wrote just one: OPERA. My eyes deceived me. I read "Beethoven just wrote one" and thought, "What ? That can't be right!"
35. Academic growth: IVY.
36. Indian silk region: ASSAM.
40. Trumpet sound: BLARE. To "blow one's own trumpet" is to talk openly and boastfully about one's achievements.
42. Mrs. King on "Scarecrow and Mrs. King": AMANDA. Kate Jackson starred as a divorced mother of two opposite Bruce Boxheimer as a spy. "Goodbye, PTA...hello, foreign intrigue!"
43. HUD financing gp.: GNMA. Ginnie Mae. The Government National Mortgage Association in the Department of Housing and Urban Development.
48. Tanning line: RAY.
49. Mag. listing: EDs.
50. Some PCs: HPs.
51. Kitty alternative: KAY. Both can be short forms of Katherine.
52. Pertaining to a heart chamber: ATRIAL.
54. Facial feature named after an animal: GOATEE.
60. Location: PLACE.
61. Innocent, for one: PLEA.
62. Keypad predecessor, in some cases: DIAL.
63. Rent-a-car choice: SEDAN. Alamo ? No. Hertz ? No. Aha, now I see !
64. Cabs and the like: REDs. Wines. Other reds might be Medoc and Merlot. I learned they were reds in a USA Today puzzle last week. Wine Folly
65. Multinational range: ALPs. Eight Alpine countries: France, Switzerland, Monaco, Italy, Liechtenstein, Austria, Germany, and Slovenia.
Down:
1. A/C measure: BTU. Air Conditioning. British Thermal Unit.
2. Caterer's item: URN.
3. 35 to 5, say: SEPTUPLE. You know. Single, double, triple, quadruple etc. Do the math. This may be a debut for septuple. Crossword history ?
4. Slangy assent: YEAH.
5. "Teen Angel" or "Leader of the Pack": SAD SONG. Teenage tragedy songs of the early 60s era. Here's another:
48. One in a line of frolicking sea creatures?: CONGA EEL. Conger eel.
56. Wedding reception highlight ... and a feature of four puzzle answers: FIRST DANCE.
Common phrases change meanings to well known dances by replacing the "r" sound of the last syllable of the first word to a short "a" sound. Reminds me of talking with some folks from New England. I can hear Wilba dropping the R sounds as I read his words.
This is Steve's debut on the grand stage of the LA Times crossword. Great job, Steve !
Across:
1. Pretend to be: ACT. Or, do something. Don't just sit there. Get moving. It's good for your metabolism and general health.
4. Center: MIDST.
9. Foot, in zoology: PES. Latin.
12. "Isn't __ Lovely": Stevie Wonder hit: SHE. Great musician, songwriter and singer.
13. Toyota until 2006: CELICA. In 1979, Toyota introduced the Celica Supra.
Here's the 2020 Supra, minus the Celica:
14. Posted: SENT.
17. Erase: UNDO. The electronic version, as compared to using that little piece of rubber on the top end of your #2 Ticonderoga.
18. Deplorable sort: LOUSE. A parasitic insect too !
19. Where to find letters on tracks: MAIL CAR.
21. Medical events in a 1977 Robin Cook thriller: COMAS. "...Susan researches what happened to her date and discovers Boston Memorial’s dirty secret: their rates for patients lapsing into coma during surgery are above the norm." Forgotten Bestsellers - Review at tor.com
24. Celebrity chef Garten: INA. The self-taught chef of "The Barefoot Contessa" fame.
25. Set of values: ETHOS. Beliefs.
28. Thinks intently (over): MULLS. Ponders.
29. Impedes, with "up": GUMS. Gear driven machinery needs oil and lubricants to run smoothly. Dust, dirt and debris can turn the lubricant into a heavy viscous sludge that prevents smooth operation. It was from the industrial age that we got the expression, "Gums up the works".
31. Paramedic letters: EMT. Emergency Medical Technician. Lifesaver.
32. Old brew revived in the 2000s: PBR. Pabst Blue Ribbon. Husker Gary had "Pabst dispenser" on Saturday.
38. Rapper will.__: i am. will.i.am is the singer / songwriter / frontman and more for the Hip Hop group Black Eyed Peas. If you are not otherwise familiar with them, you may have heard part of the lyrics from their song "Let's Get it Started" in the Walmart back to school commercials.
39. Stick in a lock: OAR. Interestingly enough, the u or o shaped devices attached to the gunwales* of a rowing boat that secure the oars are called oarlocks. Sometimes this language makes complete sense.
* sides, for you other landlubbers.
40. Jazz vocalist Laine: CLEO. Didn't know, but perpable:
42. See 14-Down: ACIDS.
45. Charged: RAN AT. Possibly ran up, if you charged too much on your credit card.
47. Reservoir creator: DAM.
50. Increases, with "up": RAMPS. Drop the R and you get the same effect.
52. Creator of a sci-fi "Traveller": HG WELLS. HG Wells is credited with creating the sci-fi concept of time travel. The character in The Time Machine is known only as the Time Traveller. He meets Eloi and Morlocks in the future.
53. Schroeder's toy: PIANO. Good grief ! A love triangle. Lucy is in love with Schroeder, but the prodigy's true love is the classical compositions of Ludwig van Beethoven. Name that toon.
55. Getting __ years: ON IN.
60. Rolled __: OATS.
61. Conceptualize: IDEATE. In a sense, incubate.
62. One may be bruised: EGO. One may be interlocked: Lego.
63. MIT, for one: SCH.
64. "Cool!": NEATO. Rad. Phat. Awesome. More ?
65. Yang's opposite: YIN.
Down:
1. Nile danger: ASP.
2. John of "Star Trek" (2009): CHO. Also of "Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle" fame.
3. 1967 Etta James hit: TELL MAMA. I don't remember this song:
4. Target section: MENS.
5. Nastase on the court: ILIE.
6. Archaeological site: DIG.
7. Jerks: SCHMOS.
8. Member of Genghis Khan's horde: TATAR.
9. Write (in) tentatively: PENCIL. Perhaps with a #2 Ticonderoga.
10. Ultimate objective: END-ALL.
11. Weather headliners: STORMS. Dorian dominated the news for a couple of weeks. Terrible tragedy in the Bahamas.
13. Reason: CAUSE.
14. With 42-Across, corrosive substances: SULFURIC.
16. Camping letters: KOA. The world's largest system of privately held campgrounds. New 2019 Campgrounds Jinx can tell us more, perhaps about best and worst experiences.
20. Shakespeare's plays are full of them: IAMBS.
Well la di da !
21. Slangy smoke: CIG.arette.
22. Heavy weight: ONUS.
23. Glowing barbecue bit: HOT COAL. Do you start your grilling with Kingsford, Royal Oak or chunks of hardwoods, known as lump charcoal ?
26. Orioles, e.g.: TEAM. MLB AL East cellar dwellers of late for this once perennial powerhouse.
27. Medical care gp.: HMO.
30. Bits: SMIDGENS.
32. Prefix with sail: PARA.
34. __ metabolism: BASAL. Just read base metabolism. The minimum body processes needed to keep you alive without using artificial means.
35. Recyclable item: CAN.
36. Source of status: OLD MONEY. Old money as with the Vanderbilts. As compared to new money like the Gates.
37. Tide table term: NEAP. Spitzboov nailed this with the N.
41. Sounds heard at an ashram: OMs. A monastery in Indian religions.
42. Blessing evokers: ACHOOs. Bless you.
43. Colombard grapes product: COGNAC. Had a cognac exactly once in my lifetime. Not my cuppa, but it was at once the best and worst cognac I've ever had.
44. Part of, as a gang: IN WITH. I'm in with the in crowd. I go where the in crowd goes.
45. Live: RESIDE. Got the answer quickly after changing the vowel in the clue from a long i to a short i.
46. Sports news: TRADE.
49. Like the Hollow Tree Factory bakers: ELFIN. You can get Uncommonly Good cookies made by elves using magic ovens from the Hollow Tree Bakery.
51. Santa __: ANA. He ordered the attack on the Alamo, and then later ceded Texas. Wait, no, that was two n Anna.
53. Exam for jrs.: PSAT. Juniors / Preliminary SAT. Rick Singer and Mark Riddell can get your scholastically challenged girls into USC with a high SAT or ACT score and an athletic scholarship to the water polo or crew teams.
54. "Leave __ me": IT TO. I'm leaving it all up to you. You decide what you're gonna do. Or are we through ?
57. Stephen of "The Crying Game": REA. He was nominated for an Academy Award in this movie. This three letter answer should be a gimme for any LA Times solver, as it seems to be Rich's go to clue for this answer.
58. Movie SFX: CGI. Special effects / computer generated imagery
59. DMV wait time, seemingly: EON. Hyperbole for the time spent at the Department of Motor Vehicles. Illinois residents know that they will have to get a Real ID if they want to take a domestic flight or enter any federal facilities starting Oct 1, 2020. The current drivers license does not meet federally mandated requirements. I've read some of the stories and talked to some people who have waited for hours at the DMV only to be rejected because they didn't have the required documentation. Here's a link to what is required: Real ID Documentation Checklist
A round robin is a tournament format in which every player (or team) plays every other player (or team) in order.
26. Frozen flier?: COLD TURKEY.
Cold turkey has come to mean to suddenly stop doing something. Often associated with quitting smoking.
40. Feeble flier?: LAME DUCK.
Referring to an elected official who is nearly powerless because they are only holding the position until the end of the current term.
53. Funny flier?: SILLY GOOSE.
I think the meaning of silly goose has to be taken in context. It can be playful and it can be insulting.
64. Frugal flier?: BUDGET HAWK.
One who trains the focus of a keen eye and a sharp pencil on a spending plan, looking for opportunities to pare spending.
Each theme "flier" clue was described with an adjective that began with the letter F. 5 theme clues that used only 6 different words. Pretty neat. Definitely consistent.
I enjoyed solving this puzzle and spotting the birds hidden in the clues. I had no idea where we were going until I got one. I hope you did not find this puzzle "for the birds."
3. Group with an extremely high population?: BHUTANESE. The people of Bhutan. The country's landscape ranges from lush subtropical plains in the south to the sub-alpine Himalayan mountains in the north, where there are peaks in excess of 7,000 metres (23,000 ft). - Wikipedia
4. Sn, on a table: TIN. And 27. Pb, on a table: LEAD. Elements in the Periodic Table, in Group 14 (the Carbon Group), Periods 5 and 6 respectively.
5. Cowpoke's pal: PARD.
6. Not easily moved: STOIC.
7. Fraternize: HOBNOB.
8. Team's lack?: AN I.
9. Harmless cyst: WEN.
10. Carry on: ACT OUT.
11. Flush: TURN RED.
12. Precipice: BRINK.
13. "Mental Illness" Grammy winner Mann: AIMEE.
14. Cross: TESTY.
19. "How about that": DO TELL.
23. Politician's positions: STANCES.
25. One sometimes accused of being blind: REF (eree).
28. Stop producing opportunities, as a financial market: DRY UP.
30. Adjust, as wheels: REALIGN.
32. Brief while?: THO (ugh). While I tend to agree that two wrongs don't make a right, sometimes tit for tat feels good. Though I don't think it's always the best reaction.
50. "12 Years a Slave" Oscar winner Lupita __: NYONG'O. "12 Years a Slave is a 2013 biographical period drama film and an adaptation of the 1853 slave memoir Twelve Years a Slave by Solomon Northup, a New York State-born free African-American man who was kidnapped in Washington, D.C. by two con men in 1841 and sold into slavery."
Nyong'o played the role of Patsey, a slave who works alongside Northup at a Louisiana cotton plantation.
51. Thought-revealing drama techniques: ASIDES.
53. Geena's "Thelma & Louise" co-star: SUSAN. "It stars Geena Davis as Thelma and Susan Sarandon as Louise, two friends who embark on a road trip with unforeseen consequences."
56. Onetime Rolex rival: ELGIN. "Elgin was founded in 1864, right as the civil war was coming to an end. The first watch Elgin made, an 18 sized B W Raymond railroad grade watch, was finished in 1867 and over the next 100 years, they went on to produce about 60 million watches. Elgin produced their first wristwatch around 1910." - The Elgin Watch Collectors Site
Bruce suggests seemingly appropriate pieces of attire for various occupations. Funny. I got them all easily enough, but I don't know what deck pants are, and never heard the term before. Regardless, solving the puzzle was good Friday fun, and I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did.
Across:
1. Congress, with "the": HILL. Because of Capitol Hill of course. Like saying the Oval Office or the White House when figuratively referring to the executive office / presidency.
5. Bashes: GALAS. The fun kind of bashes, rather than verbal or physical attacks.
10. Whistle blower: COP. Not ref(eree).
13. Burden: ONUS.
14. It often follows an overture: OPERA. For example, the overture from the Barber of Seville.
15. "That's not good": OH NO. If you concatenate those two little words you get OHNO, the last name of Winter Olympics great Apolo. He was good !
16. Help during spelling: WAND. Saurcerus. Soarcirrus. Sorersirus. Sorceress.
19. 60 minuti: ORA. Minuti definitely sounded Italian. Rossini would have got that ORA quicker than I did. Maybe not though, because he was too busy writing operas to do crossword puzzles. I read he was prolific.
20. Oodles: A TON.
21. San Jose skaters: SHARKS. My nephew is a huge fan. Huge I tell you. He gets season tickets and walks to the SAP Center for games. He took us to a nearby restaurant that had great steaks and ribs. For you locals, I think it was Henry's World Famous Hi-Life.
25. With 18-Down, '30s-'40s band leader: ARTIE, and 18. See 25-Across: SHAW. ARTIE SHAW.
27. Writer born Herbert George: HG WELLS. Did not know his first and middle names, but had H-W--L- at the time, and the answer popped out. HG is a seen here at the Crossword Corner as an abbreviation of Husker Gary, our Saturday sherpa.
29. Floor support?: YEA.
31. Leader who was painted by Warhol: MAO.
"In this example from his Mao series, Warhol melded his signature style with the scale of totalitarian propaganda to address the cult of personality surrounding the Chinese ruler Mao Zedong (1893–1976). Nearly fifteen feet tall, this towering work mimics the representations of the political figure that were ubiquitously displayed throughout China. Warhol’s looming portrait impresses us with the duality of its realistic qualities and its plastic artificiality." Mao - The Art Institute of Chicago
32. Canon model: EOS.
You would probably have to be a serious shutterbug or a professional to shell out the dinero to purchase one of these jewels. For instance, the EOS 5D Mark IV DSLR Camera (body only) would set you back ~ $2800. Add a lens such as the EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS III USM for ~ $2100, a memory card ~ $65, and a few other accessories, and you've spent some serious coin.
37. Disneyland's Main Street, __: USA. I've never been to Disneyland, but I've been to Disneyworld a couple of times. Disneyworld also has a Main Street, USA.
39. Lead-in to X, Y or Z: GEN. List Of Generations Millenials seem to be the subject of so much flak. It seems to me that members of every generation bash subsequent generations, as their generation was bashed by those prior. "What's the matter with kids these days ?!?"
40. West Bank gp.: PLO.
41. Word with jam or joint: SESSION. Or when plural, with Jeff.
44. Wipe off: ERASE.
48. Equalizes: EVENS.
53. Crude, as humor: RIBALD.
55. Deduce, with "out": SUSS. A skill used by solvers.
56. Sea-__: TAC. I believe that if Sea-Tac is hyphenated, it is a reference to the airport, which has been around since the 1940s. If it is not hyphenated, it is a reference to the city, which has only been around since 1990.
59. Don Corleone: VITO.
60. W competitor: ELLE. Did not know of W magazine.
61. Gloss over: ELIDE.
transitive verb
If you elide something, especially a distinction, you leave it out or ignore it.
[formal]
63. You might be shocked to meet one: EEL. Never had eel. C.C. taught me last Sunday that it must be cooked and never eaten raw as the blood is highly toxic. I don't think I was the only one. Hi Lucina !
64. Things to avoid: DON'TS.
65. __ Point: WEST.
Down:
1. "Strange ... ": HOW ODD.
2. Measured two-dimensionally: IN AREA.
3. Madness: LUNACY.
4. Trip provider: LSD.
And there ain't no road just like it
Anywhere I found
Running south on Lake Shore Drive heading into town
Just slippin' on by on LSD, Friday night trouble bound
I know, but I like the song...
5. Must, informally: GOTTA. On another day or in other parts of the country, hafta or havta.
6. It has strings attached: APRON.
7. Relied (on) for support, to a Brit: LEANT. Someone should create a puzzle with these American English and British English variants, a la "Relieved wheat ?" with Spelled Spelt as the answer. Or not.
8. Basketball's three-point line, for one: ARC.
9. Nordstrom competitor: SAKS. Had a card for shopping at Saks in the Galleria Houston. Bought a few suits and ties there. Have never been in a Nordstrom.
10. Laughs gleefully: CHORTLES. A word that seems to be gaining in popularity.
11. About 2.2 lbs.: ONE KILO.
12. Do demons' work: POSSESS.
15. Midwestern hub: O'HARE. The primary hub for United Airlines, and the third largest hub for American Airlines.
20. Sleep disorder: APNEA.
23. Floor: KAYO. Knock Out to K.O. to kayo. That's my guess.
24. Bygone Mideast sovereign: SHAH.
28. Sticky stuff: GOOP.
30. Ship that survived the Clashing Rocks: ARGO. From the 1963 Movie. Hey ! There's Jason ! CSO ! And Triton to save the Argo.
According to someone named Datsmaharse who posted at Funtrivia.com:
The original Argonautica passage by Apollonius Rhodius:
"Then a vaulted billow rushed upon them, and the ship like
a cylinder ran on the furious wave plunging through the hollow sea. And the eddying current held her between the clashing rocks; and on each side they shook and thundered; and the ship's timbers were held fast.
Then Athena with her left hand thrust back one mighty rock and with her right pushed the ship through"
31. AOL rival: MSN. Two of the web's oldest content providers with AOL in 1989 and MSN in 1995. CompuServe and Prodigy were a couple of others.
33. Game involved in several Costner films: BASEBALL. Field of Dreams, Bull Durham, For Love of the Game.
34. Bad impression: DENT. Chicago Bear HOF'er Richard Dent made a great impression in that magical 1985 season and in Super Bowl XX. Longtime Bears fan Madame Defarge had season tickets for years and years. Through thick and thin. No fair weather fan, she.
35. Like four midyear months: R LESS. You are supposed to do something with oysters in these months. Or maybe not do something. Anyway, May, June, July and August.
36. Snapper rival: TORO. Lawn products companies named after animals. No thanks. I'll stick to my Deere and Scag which were named after people. OK, people are animals too.
37. Access charge: USER FEE.
38. Figaro's hometown: SEVILLE. Wow ! Small world. We were just discussing Rossini's "Il barbiere di Siviglia" above at Overture / Opera.
42. Capture: SNARE.
43. Man, for one: ISLE.
45. Like some volcanoes and military personnel: ACTIVE.
46. Hockey gear: SKATES.
47. Go along with: ESCORT.
50. Bolt with great speed: USAIN. He's fast at ~ 28 mph.
51. __ cake: BUNDT. DW used to make the best rum cakes.
52. Word containing three of itself: ESSES.
54. Worked a party, briefly: DJ'ed. Disc Jockeyed. Part of desper-otto's past. At a radio station. Maybe spun a platter at a party or two... Who knows ? Maybe he'll tell us.
58. "Xanadu" rock gp.: ELO. Electric Light Orchestra. Here's a version of the song from the soundtrack of the movie:
1. Center of the Milky Way?: CARAMEL. Thought this might be about the candy bar and not the galaxy, but the use of THE Milky Way, rather than A Milky Way made me wait for a couple of perps.
8. Calder creation: STABILE. Alexander Calder. Here's a pic of his 53' Flamingo 50 ton stabile in front of the Miles Van Der Rohe designed Federal Building in downtown Chicago.
15. First state, in a way: ALABAMA. If the states are listed in alphabetical order. That wasn't my first thought when reading the clue.
16. Journey's end: ARRIVAL.
19. Once, in olden days: ERST.
20. 2000 Bell Atlantic acquisition: GTE. The birth of Verizon.
21. Slashed pronoun: HE / SHE. I struggled with this one. I had the ending HE, and so I tried a beginning SHE, then a nonsensical HER and a HIM. Not surprisingly nothing fit until, as Steve says, "The penny dropped". D'OH !
22. Suspect: PRESUME.
33. Seed-to-be: OVULE.
34. LAX calculation: ETA. Los Angeles Airport / Estimated Time of Arrival. Not that you needed me to spell it out... Oh, by the way, the X means nothing. It's just a filler so the airport code has three letters.
35. Energy source: ATOM. Incredible reactions when harnessed. Atom Ant was a mid '60s Hanna Barbera cartoon. He was incredibly strong. Of course, so was Mighty Mouse and Underdog.
36. They might help you change your position: WANT ADS. One place you might visit if you are looking for a job.
39. Prepare for coating, as aluminum: ANODIZE.
41. Within: Pref.: ENTO. ENdO wouldn't work this time. You must rely on the perp to get the third letter correct.
42. Land of Freud: Abbr.: AUS. I completed a puzzle the other day and the clue was, 'Birthplace of Freud". It needed 7 letters and I confidently entered Austria. The perps didn't support that, and it soon worked out that the answer was Moravia. That answer sent me to the internet.
Both are correct. Moravia was part of the Austrian Empire in the year of his birth, 1856. The area of Moravia became part of Czechoslovakia in 1918 with the breakup of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. When Czechoslovakia broke up in 1993 to become the Czech Republic and Slovakia, the Moravia region became part of the Czech Republic.
44. Scrooge: MISER.
49. Beat by a hair: NOSE OUT. Edge. Made me think of a photo finish horse race.
50. Wheat species that's also a British past tense: SPELT. Not fooled. Wheat belt farmers like PK would know this.
54. Article in Bonn: DER. All nouns in German are either masculine, feminine or neuter. The little word in front, the article, will tell you the gender. Another tidbit ? As you know, in English, only proper nouns are capitalized, but in German, ALL nouns are capitalized.
Here are the German definite and indefinite articles:
der - the (masculine)
die - the (feminine)
das - the (neuter)
ein - a (masculine and neuter)
eine - a (feminine)
Your challenge when solving a crossword is to recognize the gender, but like a number of Spanish clues that don't give you a hint (compare the clue "Other, in Spanish" to the clues, "Juan's other" or "Juanita's other") you are going to have to get the perp to be correct. Or get lucky.
55. Fraternity activity: RUSH. "He doesn't always listen to RUSH, but when he does, the whole neighborhood does too".
63. Like answers that lower test scores: IN ERROR.
64. Pre-owned item: USED CAR. A specific answer to a general clue. Friday worthy.
65. Top-rated TV show of 1984-'85: DYNASTY. Who shot JR ? Oh wait, that was Dallas. This was prime time show designed to be competition to Dallas, and it eventually worked.
66. WWII vessels: PT BOATS. Patrol Torpedo. Saw my first one watching McHale's Navy.
Down:
1. Source of tweets ... or growls: CAGE. Another very good Friday clue that required creative thinking.
2. Defunct fruit coating: ALAR. The FDA approved the spray that was used on apple trees (and cherries) to regulate growth so the apples didn't ripen and fall to the ground too early. A few years later, questionable EPA testing and a questionable 60 Minutes feature story incorrectly terming it a pesticide raised significant public awareness that it was a carcinogenic. Public concern (deemed "hysteria" by many, but especially the apple growers) created the "Alar Scare" that caused the manufacturer to withdraw the product.
3. Barrels into: RAMS.
4. Help the bad guys: ABET.
5. Big mouth: MAW.
6. Political refugee: EMIGRE.
7. Barista's output: LATTES. Didn't we have LATTE ART recently as the answer ?
8. Understood: SAW. Tried got first. No bueno.
9. Start to cycle?: TRI. I had to go from one wheel to three wheels to complete this answer.
10. Many a Middle-earth combatant: ARCHER. When I see Middle-earth, I think of J.R.R Tolkein. You ?
11. Eco-friendly carrier: BIKE. Clever. Bicycle, and arguably, motorcycle when compared other motorized vehicles.
12. Composer Charles: IVES.
13. Plastering strip: LATH.
14. Other than this: ELSE.
18. 1946 Literature Nobelist: HESSE. Perps. Don't know how a person could answer this based on the clue alone, unless they were were a literature expert. It is Friday.
22. __ bargain: PLEA.
23. Sports gp. that originally had "Lawn" in its name: USTA. I usta play tennis. Got smoked in the very first tournament I entered. It was a small town contest run by the parks department. Still have the Wilson T2000.
24. Nasty: MEAN. Ilie Nastase's nickname was Nasty, but I think that was a bit unfair. He was no shrinking violet. That's for sure. But he wasn't nasty.
25. Knocked the socks off: WOWED.
26. Grand Prince of Moscow, 1328-'40: IVAN I.
27. Litters' littlest: RUNTS. Easy to think the response would be singular.
28. John of music: ELTON. Sir Elton.
29. "Barbarella" director Roger: VADIM. I saw the movie but didn't think much of it. Kinda goofy. Would never have got this without the M in JIMINY. And four others.
30. Formal identification: IT IS I. Formal, in the sense that it is the grammatically correct response. Nice clue.
31. Deceive: COZEN. To trick or cheat, or obtain by deception. There's a large law firm in Philly called Cozen O'Connor that has probably had to bear the brunt of many jokes.
32. Board at one's fingertips: EMERY.
37. How "The Banana Boat Song" begins: DAY O. Why was this song popular ?
38. Fills in: SUBS. Substitutes. Husker Gary is apt to fill the void when a teacher needs time off.
40. Drop: OMIT.
43. Soft leather: SUEDE.
46. Takes the stage: ENTERS. Thespians, musicians, emcees, comics, public speakers etc. They all strive to take the stage.
47. Becomes harder to afford: GOES UP. What goes up, must come down. Spinning wheel, got to go 'round.
48. Legal scholar: JURIST.
50. Came out with: SAID.
51. Inconsequential: PUNY. Not of significant concern. Mere.
52. Early banishment site: EDEN.
53. Pre-Euro currency: LIRA.
55. Start from scratch: REDO.
56. Donald, to Huey, Dewey and Louie: UNCA. Comic strip vocalization of uncle. The characters are a Walt Disney production.
57. "Get lost!": SCAT.
58. "... nor shall ever see that face of __ again": Lear: HERS.
Jeffrey mates a leading B to the first word of common phrases that start with an R... to a homophone R word... and creates new life with these phrases and definitions. Breed 'em and weep. Or laugh, as I did.
17. That necessary morning cup of coffee?: BREWED AWAKENING. Rude Awakening.
24. Prepare some fish for frying?: BREAD HERRINGS. Red Herrings.
44. Good nickname for Stephen King?: BRAIN OF TERROR. Reign of terror.
58. Part of the Hulk's healthy diet?: BRUTE VEGETABLES. Root vegetables.
I first tried my hand at it with "rags to riches" and came up with "Boasts about personal wealth" for "brags to riches" but the spelling doesn't change, so although it rhymes it's not a homophone and not consistent with Jeffrey's lead.
How about "Crumple new bills ? for "Break in the money ?" That might work. How about "Male chauvinist's belittling comment about a confident, busty woman ?" Rest assured that I could never make it as a constructor. Hats off to those with the wordsmith skills.
Let's examine some of the other clues and answers.
Across:
1. Martial arts move: CHOP. First thought was kick.
14. Dynamic opening: AERO. The top 10 most aerodynamic production cars. I guessed the Teslas and the Prius, but not the Alfa that Dash - T's wife drives. Top aerodynamic production cars.
15. British Columbia neighbor: IDAHO.
16. Court contemporary of Bjorn: ILIE. First name in the clue, first name in the answer. Tennis courts. Borg and Nastase. Borg beat Nastase in the 1976 Wimbledon men's final. In more recent news, Novak Djokovic beat Roger Federer in this year's men's final.
20. Persevere, with "on": SOLDIER. Having the tenacity to keep going despite the obstacles.
21. Great Society era, with "the": SIXTIES.
22. [There's another doc]: ENC. Enclosure. A reference, often in the footer area of an introductory page, that alerts you that there are more documents in the mailer or folder. There were tons of enclosures in the mailer when I did a ReFi mortgage by mail with Norwest Bank in the mid 90's. Plus a lot of sticky note arrows telling us where to sign and date.
23. "The X-Files" subjects: ETs. Extra-Terrestrials. I learned from crosswords that they eat Reese's Pieces.
31. Nashville awards org.: CMA. Country Music Association.
33. Very: REAL.
34. Baku native: AZERI. Baku is the capital city of Azerbaijan. "The modern ethnonym "Azerbaijani" or "Azeri" refers to the Turkic peoples of Iranian Azerbaijan and Republic of Azerbaijan. They historically called themselves or were referred to by others as Muslims, Turks, Turkmens, Persians, or Ajams" - Wikipedia.
"Local scientists consider the Abseron Yasaqligi (Apsheron Peninsula) (including Baku and Sumqayit) and the Caspian Sea to be the ecologically most devastated area in the world because of severe air, soil, and water pollution; soil pollution results from oil spills, from the use of DDT pesticide, and from toxic defoliants used in the production of cotton; surface and underground water are polluted by untreated municipal and industrial wastewater and agricultural run-off" - CIA World Factbook.
Not in our travel plans.
35. Decided in court: RULED.
38. Show set in Vegas: CSI. Crime Scene Investigation. There's a long-running German crime / drama series I enjoy that runs on the MHz channel. It's called Tatort, which translates to Crime Scene. I have to read the subtitles to understand most of it. There's a lot of $10 words in German, like Tatortermittlung, which translates to Crime Scene Investigation.
39. Discontinue: SEVER.
40. Theater area with no seats: AISLE. Freshness in the clue for a common crossword fill.
41. Work with an Ethiopian princess: AIDA. Verdi's opera.
43. Lea feeder: EWE.
48. Cedar Rapids campus: COE. A liberal arts college named for one of the early donors. Wikipedia tells me that the man that invented CorningWare, S. Donald Stookey was an alumni of Coe College.
49. __ canto: BEL. Italian for beautiful singing or beautiful song. Various definitions.
50. Truly enjoy something: EAT IT UP.
54. Most beneficent: KINDEST. Like L. Frank Baum's Glinda.
60. Lot measure: ACRE. There are 640 of them in a Section. A quarter-quarter section is 40 acres. 640/4 and the resulting 160/4 = 40, which is how far it was from our house to the next neighbor when I was growing up. Well, except for the high school vice principal. She lived directly across the street. I had to mind my P's and Q's.
61. See some sorority sisters, say: REUNE. I've seen this word most often in crosswords.
62. One of Chekhov's "Three Sisters": OLGA.
Oh, this is the Chekhov. Sounds the same, but spelled differently than the Star Trek character.
63. "__ Cassius has a lean and hungry look": YOND.
64. Belgian expressionist James: ENSOR. Last Friday, I got the answer ENSOR ("Former CNN journalist David") because of the 5 perps. This time I had 4 of the 5 perps and I missed it. Didn't get the S in GUS. D'oh !
65. Oenology datum: YEAR. Wine related. As in Boone's Farm Strawberry Hill, 1973.
Down:
1. Many have meters: CABS. Taxicabs.
2. Sub: HERO. Grinder, hoagie.
3. Russian city: OREL. Did not know, but as Abejo would say, "Four perps and I got it". This city is also spelled Oryol in English.
4. Ground material: POWDER. In spices like chili and cinnamon powder, talcum in baby and cosmetic powders, in fireworks and ammunition as gunpowder, et alia.
5. Cognac cocktail: SIDECAR. Never had one, but recognized the drink name with a few perps.
6. Month after Shevat: ADAR. Guessed ADAR and built around it. It's the one month on the Hebrew calendar that comes immediately to mind. Elul if pressed for another. IDAHO gave me the needed confidence.
7. Cold and damp: RAW. Similar to dank and clammy, but more bitter due to the cold. Unlike the Arizona weather in the summer. Hi, Lucina ! Hello, Yuma ! You too, CartBoy ! It's pretty warm right now in much of the rest of the country.
8. Signs of solutions: AHAs. Or TADAs.
9. Apt to use more corn?: HOKIER. I used to be addicted to the hokey-pokey. But then I turned myself around. Hey, that was almost Boomer-esque !
10. Wee: PINT SIZE.
11. Et __: ALII. "Et alii (masculine), et aliae (feminine) or et alia (neuter), in all cases meaning and others. Mixed-gender groups would use et alii". - Wiktionary
12. Black Friday likelihood: LINE.
13. Durability metaphor: LEGS. Usually with has, as in "That story has legs and we're going to be hearing about it for a long time". You have to be on your toes and knuckle down as you solve Jeffrey's puzzles, or he'll make your head swim and pull the wool over your eyes. But if you keep a stiff upper lip and your nose to the grindstone, you can get the upper hand.
18. German article: EINE. A.
19. Epic film budget line: EXTRAS. Along the lines of Ben-Hur, with a cast of thousands.
24. Model material: BALSA. A very light, yet strong, hardwood. It was an answer on Jeopardy! last week.
25. Dunkin' Donuts option: DECAF. Coffee flavor without the caffeine. Not my cup of tea.
45. Haydn's includes 106 symphonies: OEUVRE. Complete body of work.
46. "General Hospital" Emmy winner Sofer: RENA. Don't remember her, but I remember Luke and Laura. Yeah, I watched it for the better part of one year during college. It was a girlfriend thing.
47. Member of an exclusive network: OLD BOY. In England. Not to be confused with a Good Old Boy network in the southern US. Both can loosely be defined as "who you know and have ins with" but the Old Boy network in England largely stems from relationships and ties to prestigious universities, such as ETON and Oxford. A new learning for me.
50. Major success of the dot-com bubble: EBAY. ebay
51. Oil acronym: ARCO. Atlantic Richfield Company. We had the Atlantic gas stations here and there when I was growing up in the Youngstown Pittsburgh area. Then they became ARCOs, and soon thereafter were retrofitted as other gas station chains.
56. Phantasy Star Online publisher: SEGA. An online Role Playing Game (RPG).
57. Bygone dynast: TSAR. In my mind, the spelling for the hereditary Russian rulers should be TSARs. The spelling for business leaders and heads of departments should be czars, such as "Energy Czar William Simon". When solving crosswords, I follow that self-created rule unless the perps force a change. Rich seems to have the same proclivity.
59. Mouse in Disney's "Cinderella": GUS. The intersection of Gus and Ensor did me in today. If I ever knew of this little fellow, I forgot.
Three grid spanners in the middle give us a thoroughbred racing mini-theme. Nothing else that I could see.
32. New York city with a historic race course: SARATOGA SPRINGS.
37. 2015 Triple Crown winner: AMERICAN PHAROAH.
38. California race that's a stepping-stone to Kentucky: SANTA ANITA DERBY.
As a 3 year old, American Pharoah won the Kentucky, Derby, then the Preakness and Belmont to become the 12th horse to win the Triple Crown. He ended his career with a 9-1 record and became the only horse in history to win the "Grand Slam" of thoroughbred racing when he won the Breeders Cup Classic.
He also won at Santa Anita as a 2 year old in the FrontRunner Stakes, but didn't he didn't run in the Santa Anita Derby. The FrontRunner Stakes has been renamed the American Pharoah Stakes in the horses's honor.
His only loss came in Saratoga Springs at the Travers Stakes.
Across:
1. Jimmy Choo shoe brand co-founder Mellon: TAMARA. No idea, but it is Friday. Thank you perps.
7. Athlete's feint: HEAD FAKE.
15. Cast out: EXILED.
16. Dander, e.g.: ALLERGEN.
17. "Sadly, that's not the case": ALAS, NO.
18. Not just requested: IMPLORED. Beseeched. To my ears, implored sounds more modern than beseeched.
19. Duff Beer server: MOE. The Simpsons
20. Gives the go-ahead: OKs.
21. Sources of renewed energy: NAPS. Our friend WikWak must have a lot of energy. I think I'm going to follow his model and see if it works for me.
22. "Who, me?": MOI. Miss Piggy was famous for asking, "Moi ?"
24. Wise teacher: GURU.
26. Pull (out): OPT.
28. Historic time: ERA.
29. Unified: ONE.
30. Muse with a lyre: ERATO.
39. Minute Maid Park player: ASTRO. Astro Alex Bregman was MVP in last year's All Star game. His 10th inning home run put the AL'ers ahead of the NL'ers 7 to 6. His Astro teammate George Springer followed with another round tripper as an insurance run. and the AL won the game 8-6. In 89 games, the AL leads the summer classic 44-43-2. That's pretty even. Also pretty even ? Runs scored in the All Star games. The AL leads 769 to 767. Tuesday, July 9th will be the 90th game. It would be neat if the NL won by 2 runs.
40. Denver-to-Omaha dir.: ENE.
41. Completely: ALL.
42. Talks acronym: TED. Technology, Entertainment and Design.
43. Country in a Beatles title: USSR. It's where I learned B.O.A.C.
45. 1992-2001 Expos manager Felipe: ALOU.
48. Boom source: TNT.
49. "__ Baby Baby": 1965 Miracles hit: OOO. Smokey Robinson will be playing in Temecula tonight at the Pechanga Summit. Tickets for the 8 PM concert are $39, but you might do better if you Shop Around.
51. Has a revelatory experience: FINDS GOD.
54. Many city workers live in one: SUBURB.
57. Like Greenpeace, e.g.: ANTI NUKE.
58. 2017 biopic about a figure skater: I TONYA. Tonya Harding.
60. Called for: NEEDED. Despite the fact that the Rum Swizzle called for crushed or pebble ice, Tinbeni ordered it straight.
Down:
1. Spot to drink: TEA.
2. Rose of rock: AXL.
3. '80s-'90s Heat home: MIAMI ARENA.
4. Additionally: ALSO.
5. Go back to the table: RENEGOTIATE.
6. Hubbub: ADO.
7. Very short poem: HAIKU. CSO to our occasional visitor Haiku Harry.
8. Stately trees: ELMS.
9. The Zugspitze, e.g.: ALP. Been there. You can not only see Austria from it, you can straddle both countries while doing it. It is the tallest of the Alps in Germany. The Zugspitze is not the tallest in Austria though. That claim belongs to the Grossglockner, which is the second highest of all the Alps, trailing only Mont Blanc. Just as the Zugspitze shares two countries, so does Mont Blanc, with France and Italy sharing the mountain.
10. With 44-Across, "Summertime Sadness" singer Lana: DEL. And 44. See 10-Down: REY. Never heard it before, but the video has 185M views, so either it's popular or there have been some bots at work.
11. It's off the ground during a wheelie: FRONT TIRE.
I would guess circa 1967.
12. Asian shrine city: AGRA.
13. Word with watch or time: KEEP. Also for quiet and still.
14. Stops: ENDS.
20. Pizza seasoning: OREGANO.
22. Flat-topped lands: MESAS. Buttes, plateaus...
23. Slangy event suffix: ORAMA.
25. Reverse, for one: UNO CARD. One of the action cards, of which there are 5 or 7, depending on your game deck. There are 4 reverse cards. You can only use the reverse card if you are playing it on a card of the same color, or on another reverse card.
