Theme: "The Visit" - Hi. Come in. Stay awhile. You have to go? So long.
20A. Taking the top spot : COMING IN FIRST
38A. With 40-Across, remaining focused : STAYING and 40A. See 38-Across : ON POINT
54A. Betting it all : GOING FOR BROKE
53A. Parting words, perhaps after the visit suggested by the starts of 20-, 38-/40- and 54-Across : "SEE YA!"
Argyle here with a new constructor. A good debut puzzle. The reveal may not have been needed but is a nice touch. And that's no lie.
Across:
1. Digital periodical, briefly : eMAG
5. Part of CBS: Abbr. : SYSTem
9. Comics title character who married Irving : CATHY
14. Kitchen floor covering, in Kent : LINO. (short for linoleum)
15. __ Ness monster : LOCH
16. Earth pigment : OCHER
17. Sooner State city : ENID
18. Architectural S-curve : OGEE
19. Rays of light : BEAMS
23. Roman fountain : TREVI
24. Volcano in Sicily : ETNA
25. "What's happenin'?" : "'SUP?"
28. In the least favorable case : AT WORST
31. Brit's "Bye-bye" : "TATA"
32. Cleopatra's undoing : ASP
35. Slim and muscular : WIRY
36. Annie with a gun : OAKLEY
41. Gold purity measures : KARATS
42. Brother of Cain : ABEL
43. Item in a P.O. box : ENVelope
44. This, in Seville : ESTO
45. Fed up with : TIRED OF
48. For what reason : WHY
49. Capricorn's animal : GOAT
50. Creates : MAKES
58. "Hot corner" base : THIRD. (baseball)
60. Cowboys quarterback Tony : ROMO. (football)
61. R&B singer India.__ : ARIE
62. Exposed : BARED
63. Explorer __ the Red : ERIC. Leif's old man.
64. Reject as false : DENY
65. Brass or bronze : ALLOY
66. CPR pros : EMTs
67. It's a long story : SAGA
Down:
1. Put into office : ELECT
2. Insignificant : MINOR
3. Japanese cartoon style : ANIME
4. Premium chocolate brand : GODIVA
5. Walk laboriously, as through mud : SLOG
6. Quotable Berra : YOGI
7. The stuff of many postcard photos : SCENERY
8. Burglaries : THEFTS
9. Hooded snake : COBRA
10. King beaters : ACES
11. "It's not true!" : "THAT'S A LIE!"
12. Pants bottom : HEM
13. Decade tenths: Abbr. : YRs
21. Knucklehead : NITWIT
22. Chanted : INTONED
26. Sch. with a Chattanooga campus : UTENN. University of Tennessee, Knoxville. The picture is of Chattanooga, home to UTC, The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga.
27. Subscription-based home entertainment : PAY TV
29. Churchill of the United Kingdom : WINSTON
30. Charity's URL ending : .ORG
31. Fight stopper, for short : TKO. (Technical KnockOut)
32. Cockeyed : ASKEW
33. Hidden supply : STASH
34. Free-spirited socializer : PARTY GIRL
37. Poise : APLOMB
39. Former NBA center __ Ming : YAO
40. U.K. award : OBE. The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire.
42. Painting or sculpture : ART FORM
46. "No argument from me" : "I AGREE"
47. Electrical capacitance units : FARADs. The farad (symbol: F) is the SI derived unit of electrical capacitance, the ability of a body to store an electrical charge. It is named after the English physicist Michael Faraday. ~ Wiki
49. Dizzy with delight : GIDDY
51. Divided country : KOREA
52. Barely managing, with "out" : EKING
55. Twistable cookie : OREO
56. Fail to mention : OMIT
57. Mythical birds : ROCs
58. TV schedule abbr. : TBA. (to be announced)
59. Actor Holbrook : HAL
Argyle
Notes from C.C.:
1) Happy Birthday to Buckeye Bob, who was very active on the blog until a few months ago. Bob did not reply my last email, so I'm quite concerned. Hope it's not health issue.
2) Happy 68th birthday to Gary's wife Joann & her twin sister as well!
Left to Right: Boomer, Gary, C.C. & Joann