Monday November 24, 2025 Joseph A. Ganji

  

Happy Monday-before-Thanksgiving, everyone! sumdaze here with a puzzle to whet your appetite. Theme:  

I had intended to insert the Norman Rockwell painting but this one caught my eye.

Constructor Joseph A. Gangi serves up these five themed answers:

17 Across. "Gee willikers!": GOOD GRAVY.  Both of these expressions of astonishment are generally associated with older generations and regional dialects.

25 Across. Lists of top students: HONOR ROLLS.

37 Across. Folks who do a lot of binge-watching: COUCH POTATOES.

48 Across. Get down to brass tacks: TALK TURKEY.  another idiom clued with an idiom

60 Across. Extremely simple: EASY AS PIE.

GRAVY, ROLLS, POTATOES, TURKEY, and PIE are all parts of a traditional Thanksgiving holiday feast. However, instead of merely listing  menu items, the foods are plated in our grid via non-food, in-the-language phrases. Bonus points for ending with dessert!

Next we will partake of the remaining clues & answers:

Across:

1. Music genre known for four-on-the-floor beats: DISCO.  Good start! I like a 1-A clue that takes a little sussing -- but not in a discouraging way.

Four-on-the-floor is drummer lingo for using a foot pedal to hit the bass drum on each of the four quarter beats in 4/4 timing. In other words, the drum just thuds 1-2-3-4. It is commonly used in dance music genres.  Example:  Dancing Queen by ABBA (released 1976)  

6. "__ we there yet?": ARE.  

9. Double-reed woodwinds: OBOES.  "Double-read" means an oboe uses a single, double-reed -- not two reeds.

14. Rack up, as expenses: INCUR.  

15. Young chap: LAD.  Both chap and LAD are more commonly used in British English.

16. All smiles: HAPPY.     and     22 Down. Flash a smile toward: GRIN AT.  😀

19. Pet pests: FLEAS.     and     23 Across. Pet pest: TICK.  

20. Road trip option: INN.

21. "I'm totally with you": SAME.

22. "Keep talking": GO ON.

29. Prepare, as bao buns: STEAM.  

They can be made with a variety of sweet or savory fillings.
A pork mixture is a common choice.

31. Sizable: BIG.

32. Tire filler: AIR.  Unlike bao buns, one should refrain from filling tires with a pork mixture.

33. Insta post: PIC.  Instagram is a PICure-sharing app.

35. Kitchen nooks: DINETTES.

40. Food storage rooms: PANTRIES.  I love an organized pantry. Today I found a can of olives in my pantry that expired two years ago.  

This is not my pantry ... but wouldn't it be nice?

41. Meadows of "Peacemaker": TIM.  his IMDb page

42. Land between Can. and Mex.: USA.

43. Zero's counterpart, in binary code: ONE.  It is time for today's math lesson. Binary code uses two digits, 0 and 1. This is handy for situations with only two states, such as ON or OFF with electricity. Another code with which you might be familiar is hexadecimal code. Hex gives us 6 and decimal gives us 10 so this code requires 6+10=16 digits. We have to be creative because we normally only have ten digits, 0-9. The solution is to use letters as digits. A hexadecimal code uses 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, a, b, c, d, e, and f. So a=10, b=11, c=12, d=13, e=14, and f=15. This saves a lot of space when dealing with really large numbers. One place you might have seen this is in Box d. Control number on a Form W-2. Here is an example:  

A1B2 is (2X16⁰) + (11X16¹) + (1X16²) + (10X16³) = 2+ 176 + 256 + 40,960 = 41,394

44. Give height to, as hair: TEASE.  This is a method of backcombing hair to make it puffier. It can also make knots that are difficult to comb out later.

53. Clever notion: IDEA.  

Rock the Boat    ~    The Hues Corporation    ~    1973

"So I'd like to know, where you got the notion"  🎵🎵

54. Wyatt of the Old West: EARP.  

Earp's tombstone -- not the movie, Tombstone

55. Bread often brushed with ghee: NAAN.  Ghee is clarified butter and is often used in Indian cooking. In this clue, ghee is a hint that we are looking for a food in Indian cuisine.

57. Class that may send one back to the drawing board: ART.     and     51-Down. Support for a drawing board: EASEL.

58. Lose strength: ABATE.

62. Washroom fixture: BASIN.  We do not see this answer in XWDs as much as we see its semi-synonym:  nsync.

63. The Wednesday before Thanksgiving Day, e.g.: EVE.  an apt Easter egg

64. Actor Dinklage: PETER.  [b. June 11, 1969] He has won four Primetime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series for his work in Game of Thrones.  

65. Oohed and __: AAHED.

66. "Kenan & __": former Nickelodeon sitcom: KEL.  IMDb link

67. Full of attitude: SASSY.

Down:

1. Fingers and toes: DIGITS.

2. Party to the conspiracy: IN ON IT.  Here we have an example of solver-friendly clue writing/editing.  IN ON = "Party to" but the "IT" was aided by a noun object in the clue.

3. Wall-mounted light: SCONCE.  

Pro tip:  They can sometimes be used to open a secret door.

4. Cow's chew: CUD.  If you have ever observed the contented faces of cows chewing their CUD, you would be like me and wish humans could do that, too. Alas, we only have one stomach.

5. Assns.: ORGS.  Associations and ORGanizationS

6. San Antonio mission: ALAMO.

7. Bird in a Poe poem: RAVEN.  Precisely:

8. Name in the ice cream aisle: EDY.  

9. "Ugh, never mind!": OH FORGET IT.

10. "The Jungle Book" bear: BALOO.  

11. Welcome sign for a hungry night owl: OPEN LATE.  In this case, the night owl is not a bird but a person who often stays up late. Do we have any night owls on The Corner? 

12. Ecol. monitor: EPA.  Ecology and Environmental Protection Agency

13. Method: Abbr.: SYS.  SYStem

18. Pep squad cheer: RAH.  

24. Out of order: KAPUT.  This is a fun word. It comes to us from the French word capot, via the German word kaputt. I was surprised to see that Merriam-Webster does not classify it as a slang term.

26. Somber bio: OBIT.  biography and OBITuary

27. Falsehoods: LIES.  When I Googled "OBIT" and "LIES" I learned about hoaxer Alan Abel who died for real in 2018 but in 1980 he persuaded the New York Times to report his death.

28. Former jrs.: SRS.  juniors and SenioRS

30. Fleeting fad: MICROTREND.  I could not find this word in Crossword Tracker. It might be a first-time use.

A MICROTREND is "a niche or industry specific consumer behavioral trend which is mass market ready and actionable." Some attribute the rise in MICROTRENDs to social media and especially, to influencer marketing posts. Another article said this has led to overconsuming in order to "keep up".  

Tomato Girl Summer is now oh, so last season. 😀

34. Body-lifting exercise that may be done in a doorway: CHIN-UP.  

35. Buns, bobs, and beehives: DOS.  I am pretty sure you have to 44-Across your hair to make a beehive hairDO.

36. "My Cousin Vinny" Oscar winner Marisa: TOMEI.

37. Spanish house: CASA.  Casa translates to "house" in Spanish. Also, kasa translates to "umbrella" in Japanese. My memory trick for this was that they both provided a 'roof' over one's head.  You can see it in the kanji.  

There is no "c" in Romanji (English letters for Japanese words).

38. Tethered: ON A LEASH.  

Resident Alien fans will recognize this from the handbook.

39. __ pressure: PEER.  This happens when a group hug is too tight.

40. "To __ it mildly": PUT.  The mechanic said, "To PUT it mildly, your engine is KAPUT."

45. Changes with the times: ADAPTS.

46. Story told in installments: SERIES.  For example, David Copperfield was published as a serial from May 1849 through November 1850. Then it was published in book format in 1850.

47. Bistro, e.g.: EATERY.

49. Olympic swimmer Ledecky: KATIE.  [b. March 17, 1997]

There just are not enough superlatives for this athlete.

50. Ye olde rascal: KNAVE.

52. "Huzzah!": YAY.  Merriam-Webster lists huzzah as a noun that is often used interjectionally to express joy or approval.

56. Short snoozes: NAPS.  

Scott Metzger creates the best pet comics.

58. Old hoops gp.: ABA.  The American Basketball Association was a major professional basketball league that operated for nine seasons from 1967 to 1976. more about the relaunch

59. "Hello, ewe!": BAA.  Cute clue.  

Translation:  Hi mom!

60. Startled cry: EEK.

61. Watery expanse: SEA.  About 71% of the Earth's surface is water-covered. That's quite expansive!

The grid:  

Joseph did not have a lot of wiggle room constructing this grid.
Ending with PIE meant the only two themers
he could switch around were the two 10-letter answers. Well done!

Now it is time to clean up the dishes. Have a great-ful week, everyone!

Monday November 17, 2025 Enrique Henestroza Anguiano

  

Happy Monday, everyone! sumdaze here with a puzzle from seasoned constructor, Enrique Henestroza Anguiano. Enrique's puzzles are known for their sparkly fill. We have some fun examples of that today. Let's get into it!

Theme:        Geological Time Scales  

The circles in each of today's themers alerted solvers that a three-letter word for a geological unit of TIME could be found twice in the full answer.

20 Across. *Overseer of a theatrical production: STAGE MANAGER.  

26 Across. *Law that governs interstate electricity transmission: FEDERAL POWER ACT.

45 Across. *Little Free Library instruction: TAKE ONE LEAVE ONE.  

As an added bit of fun, notice that AGE, ERA, and EON are in order from shortest to longest.  

Sussing 20-Across meant that I had six gimmes waiting. That helped to make for a smooth solving experience. No complaints from me. This is a Monday, puzzle, after all.

I won't waste any more time. Here is the reveal:

51 Across. Repeatedly, or what's found in the answers to the starred clues: TIME AND AGAIN.  I smiled a smile of recognition and quickly typed in "TIME After time" but ran out of boxes -- which momentarily perplexed me. Nevertheless, I found Enrique's reveal to be equally delightful. Well done!

Now that we know the gimmick, it's about TIME we look at the other clues and answers:

Across:

1. Tea infuser material: MESH.  I am a tea drinker so I have a few of these. (I am sure I would find more if I opened more drawers.) I bought the top, right one at Sally Lunn's in Bath, UK. It has a metal MESH. The green one has a plastic MESH. The other one just has little holes, no MESH. 

5. Give a poke: PROD.  

9. __ and pains: ACHES.  

14. Inkling: IDEA.

15. Like some overcooked meat: ROPY.  The more I tried to find a fitting definition, the more grossed out I got. "Viscous" is pretty close.

16. Accessory used by Woody in "Toy Story": LASSO.  

Riders in the Sky     ~     Woody's Roundup

album:  Toy Story 2 (Original Soundtrack) (1999)

17. Indication: SIGN.     and     18 Across. Portentous 17-Across: OMEN.  

19. Very much so: TRULY.  

Also, Truly Scrumptious was the name of the lead female character in the 1968 movie Chitty Chitty Bang Bang played by Sally Ann Howes. I think you already know that the movie was based on the book by Ian Fleming of James Bond fame.

23. Little bit: TAD.

24. Part of a good story?: MORAL.  Good one! We are not talking about any old above-average story. We are talking about a story that promotes making good (MORAL) choices. Such stories usually end with, "And the MORAL of this story is...."

33. Come to deserve: EARN.  

34. Knotted accessory: TIE.  Here's a 2:28 min. video on how to TIE a Windsor knot. I like the camera angle.  

35. Croc kin: GATOR.  Crocodile and alliGATOR are both shortened.

36. "Just __ thought!": AS I.  

Honest John from Pinocchio

37. Declared for the NBA draft, e.g.: WENT PRO.  National Basketball Association is shortened, so is PROfessional. "Going pro" or "turn pro" refers to when an athlete relinquishes their amateur status, as would be the case when being drafted to a PROfessional team.

40. Yale student: ELI. Yale University students are nicknamed ELI after benefactor Elihu Yale.

41. Techno keyboard: SYNTH.  A SYNTHesizer is an electronic musical instrument. They are typically played with keyboards.

43. "__ you decent?": ARE.  Translation:  Do you have clothes on?

44. "Don't come any closer!": STOP.  

The Supremes     ~     Stop! In the Name of Love     ~     1965

49. Enjoy thoroughly: SAVOR.  

50. "Eternals" actress McHugh: LIA.  Lia will celebrate her 20th birthday tomorrow. 🎂 Eternals was a 2021 movie that was external to my radar. Lia played the character Sprite.

57. Gem that may be natural or cultured: PEARL.  What's the difference?

60. First Nations people: CREE.

61. Pakistani language: URDU.

62. Spur into action: IMPEL.  

63. Prong: TINE.  Def.:  (noun) a slender pointed projecting part.

64. Melodic vocal quality: LILT.

65. Blender setting for baby food: PUREE.

66. Ooze: SEEP.

67. Big name in potato chips: LAY'S.  As it turns out, just last month Lay's announced it's biggest rebranding in nearly a century. In its news release, Lay's said that 42% of people who eat Lay's potato chips do not realize they are made with real potatoes (I am not making that up.) so they want to show more potatoes on the bag. Read all about the big changes and see the new bag design here.  

Lay's bags 1944-2025 (but not the new one)

Down:

1. Fail to notice: MISS.

2. Revise, as prose: EDIT.  EDIT's etymology says that it is a back-formation from editor, meaning that the word editor predates the word EDIT. I found that surprising.

3. Sonic the Hedgehog game company: SEGA.  Sonic the Hedgehog started out as a video game. It was later made into a TV series and a movie.

4. Surf with one's toes off the board: HANG TEN.  Fifty years ago, this surfing maneuver was a symbol of West Coast lifestyle. It requires a longer board than surfers use nowadays.

On a related note, in 1960 the Hang Ten clothing company was launched in Seal Beach, CA. Their merchandise featured the bare feet logo. In my neck of the woods, it was the Izod crocodile of the 1970's. more Hang Ten company history  

5. One sharing a limo ride to a formal dance: PROM DATE.  This is the "ride to the prom" scene from Napoleon Dynamite (2004). It's 4 min. long. Be patient or fast-forward.  

6. Slender tomato: ROMA.

7. Up for new experiences: OPEN.

8. Bundle of energy: DYNAMO.

9. Catwoman, for Selina Kyle: ALTER EGO.  While you might not know who Selina Kyle is, pouncing from "Catwoman" to "super hero" to the answer was not too much of a stretch.

10. Italian city known for marble: CARRARA.  Do you want to know what a Carrara marble mountain looks like? Or perhaps you want to know how to pronounce this word? Watch this 2-min. video.  

11. "The Wild Robot" voice actress Stephanie: HSU.  Stephanie will celebrate her 25th birthday a week from tomorrow. 🎂  The Wild Robot is a movie that came out last year.

12. Night school subj.: ESL.  subject and English as a Second Language

When I lived in Japan, I was grateful for the city-sponsored Japanese language classes. My fellow students represented many countries.

13. Source of tofu and tempeh: SOY.  I have both in my refrigerator. If you are OPEN to learning more, read this article.  

tofu (l.) & tempeh (r.)

21. Unit of corn: EAR.

22. Pai __: casino game with tiles: GOW.  wikiHow says that this "is a Chinese betting game that uses tiles instead of cards."

25. Not punctual for: LATE TO.  

White Rabbit from Alice in Wonderland

26. Decadent meal: FEAST.  In WHOVILLE, their FEAST was "Who-pudding and rare Who-roast-beast, which was something the Grinch couldn't stand in the least!"  

27. Course that should boost a GPA: EASY A.

28. Beverages: DRINKS.

29. Songwriter/actor __-Manuel Miranda: LIN.  Can you believe it's been 10 years since Hamilton opened on Broadway?

30. Poppy part: PETAL.  This is California's state flower. Each flower has four PETALs. I took this picture last May.  

31. Double-dot symbol: COLON.  

32. Menudo ingredient: TRIPE.  TRIPE is stomach tissue used for food. Menudo is a traditional Mexican soup made with TRIPE. 

37. "How the Grinch Stole Christmas!" town: WHOVILLE.  In this clip the Whos sing their joyous Christmas song even though the grinch took all of their presents.

38. Not post-: PRE-.

39. Oh-so-profound: REAL DEEP.  

Keanu Reeves in Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure (1989)

42. Source of a medicinal oil: TEA TREE.  A tree that is a member of the myrtle family. Oil from the tea tree is used in shampoos and skin care products and to treat skin infections. It has been used in some cultures to treat other skin conditions, including acne, burns, and insect bites. The scientific name is Melaleuca alternifolia.  source

44. Beach bird: SEAGULL.  

46. __ de plume: NOM.  This is a name a writer uses instead of their legal name.

47. Raises, as a monument: ERECTS.

48. Routing word: VIA.

52. Grammy winner India.__: ARIE.  [b. Oct. 3, 1975]  This singer/songwriter performs in our puzzles often. I wonder if she has ever sung an ARIA.

53. State bird of Hawaii: NENE.  The NENE is exclusively found in the wild on the islands of Maui, Kauai, Molokai, and the Big Island, but you can also see these beautiful birds at the zoo in Waikiki on Oahu.

54. Opera highlight: ARIA.

55. With no particular purpose: IDLY.

56. Trail mix ingredients: NUTS.

57. Dice-y spot?: PIP.  The dots on dice are called PIPs.  

Also, Gladys Night hung out with three cool Pips.

58. Source of green eggs: EMU. ... but not ham.

When I was teaching at a one-room school, I made green eggs and ham with my students on Dr. Seuss' birthday. I had Araucana hens at the time so I brought in a few of their green eggs. When the kids were not looking, I put a drop of green food coloring in a bowl. Then I let the kids crack the eggs into the bowl which was just above their eye level. When they whisked it together they oohed over the green mixture. Next we cooked it up with some ham cubes. So fun!

59. Boston Marathon mo.: APR.  It is traditionally held on the third Monday in the month of April. Cruciverbalists will be interested to know that the race course includes four miles through Natick, MA.  details here

The grid:  

Enrique's grid has two 12-letter and two 15-letter themed answers.

That's all for today. See you next time!

 

 Notes from C.C.:

Our dear blog friend Inanehiker (Nina) lost her mother last Tuesday. You can read Jorae's obituary here. Please keep Nina and her family in your thoughts during this difficult time. 

Monday November 10, 2025 Michael Hobin

  

Happy Monday, everyone! sumdaze here with Michael Hobin's second LAT puzzle. His first one was published on Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024. 

Theme:                   

Here are today's themed clues and answers:

17 Across. Superhero nemesis, often: EVIL GENIUS.  

I thought of Gru from the Despicable Me movies.
He is a supervillain. Is that the same thing?

24 Across. Massive dark spots in outer space: BLACK HOLES.  NASA's Black Hole Basics

38 Across. Place for a "No Trespassing" sign: PRIVATE PROPERTY.  

49 Across. William S. Burroughs work: NAKED LUNCH.  goodreads link

The reveal:  

62 Across. Unexpectedly enlightening, and what can be found at the starts of 17-, 24-, 38-, and 49-Across: EYE-OPENING.

Each of the OPENING (first) words of the themed answers can be placed in front of the word EYE to create an in-the-language phrase. In doing so we now have:  EVIL EYE, BLACK EYE, PRIVATE EYE and NAKED EYE. (For the last one, think, "Visible to the NAKED EYE".) 

Works for me!

Let's take a look at what else Michael has for us:

Across:

1. __ rug: small carpet: AREA.  Two weeks ago I posted a Dear Modern video about Feng Shui. This time he teaches us about AREA rugs (2:48 min.):  

5. "Cool!": NIFTY.  Nifty is an informal word that means "very good". Merriam-Webster says it was first used as an adjective in 1865.  

10. St. Louis landmark: ARCH.

14. Player's set of cards: HAND.  I liked this less-common definition of HAND.

15. Peter of "The Maltese Falcon": LORRE.  [1904 - 1964]

(l. to r.)  Humphrey Bogart, Peter Lorre, Mary Astor, and Sydney Greenstreet

16. Spotlight moment in a concert: SOLO.

19. Antlered deer: STAG.

20. Radio, TV, newspapers, etc.: MEDIA.

21. RR stops: STNS.  Railroad and Stations

23. Passports, e.g.: IDs.

28. Tapioca source: CASSAVA.  

Tapioca comes from the roots.

31. Brewery kilns: OASTS.  They are buildings used for drying the hops. They have cone-shaped tops.  

34. Athletic gp. for the Blue Devils: ACC.  Duke University is one of a group of schools in the Atlantic Coast Conference.

35. Egg cells: OVA.

37. "That is perfect!": LOVE IT.  

If we change the I to a T, we'd have Lovett, as in Lyle. Here is his 1988 song, Give Back My Heart. 

42. Move to a different folder, e.g.: REFILE.

43. Schoolyard game: TAG.  I recently learned that "Touch And Go" is a backronym. 

44. Suffix with percent: -ILE.  Percent and percentile are easily confused. In the example below, Sam's test scores earn him a 70%. Because his scores are better than most of his classmates, he ranks in the 82nd percentile of his class.  

45. Last Supper question from Judas: IS IT I.

46. Beards similar to Vandykes: GOATEES.  Sometimes people confuse a GOATEE with a Vandyke beard. A Vandyke includes a mustache that is not connected to the chin beard. A true GOATEE is just the hair on the chin, with no mustache at all.  

Uncle Sam sported a GOATEE but Dick Van Dyke did not.

53. Number of players in Connect Four: TWO.  It is an elaborate tic-tac-toe-ish game.  

55. New York canal: ERIE.

56. Virtuous: MORAL.

60. Partake of: HAVE.  Think "food".

65. Celebrates birthdays: AGES.     and     63-Down. Having celebrated many birthdays: OLD.    

Today is the Marine Corps' 250th birthday.
Happy Birthday, Marines!

66. Large member of the violin family: CELLO.  Are you curious what modern day cello music sounds like? This song is off of Clarice Jensen's new album released last month. Clarice also collaborated with Taylor Swift on two of Taylor's albums.  her website 

Unity     ~     Clarice Jensen     ~     2025

67. Dollop: GLOB.

68. Swollen mark: WELT.

69. Swap: TRADE.

70. Email folder: SENT.  

Down:

1. Throat-clearing sound: AHEM.  

2. Glowing review: RAVE.

3. Oklahoma home of Vance Air Force Base: ENID.  

4. Goes off script: AD-LIBS.

5. Div. for the Phillies: NLE.  The Phillies won the National League East division this year.  

6. Lithium-__ battery: ION.

7. Pat down at a security checkpoint: FRISK.  

"down pat"  LOVE IT!

8. Verified fact: TRUTH.

9. Binary type of question: YES/NO.

10. Donkey: ASS.

11. One that takes turns making dinner?: ROTISSERIE.  This clue had a little misdirection with the meaning of turns.  

12. Dressed (in): CLAD.

13. Leaves none for others: HOGS.  

18. Fundraising fete: GALA.

22. Sailboat with one mast: SLOOP.  

Sloop John B     ~     The Beach Boys     ~     1966

This song was adapted from an old Bahamian folk song.

25. "Let's put it to __": "Show of hands": A VOTE.  Speaking of 32-Down TITLE, this answer reminds me of Charles Grodin's memoir, It Would Be So Nice If You Weren't Here. In this case, the "you" is the indefinite article. Oh, well, sometimes that is what it takes to make a grid work.

26. Spelunking site: CAVE.  

27. Roof projection: EAVE.  

28. __ pants: calf-length garment: CAPRI.

29. Agricultural measures: ACRES.

30. Work of fiction considered for a Hugo or Nebula Award: SCI-FI NOVEL.  Stellar fill!

The Hugo Awards are annual literary awards for the best science fiction or fantasy works of the previous year. They are voted on by fans. The Nebula Awards recognize the best works of science fiction or fantasy published in the U.S. They are voted on by writers. The 1965 book Dune is an example of a book that won both awards.

32. Book name: TITLE.  25 Beautiful Unique Book Titles  What would you add to this list?

33. Eyelid sores: STYES.  Easter Egg Alert!

36. Tending (to): APT.  

37. Enter one's user name and password: LOG ON.

39. "La Dolce __": VITA.  Translation:  The Sweet Life. The quotation marks indicate it is a title. Wiki says it is a 1960 film by Federico Fellini. Here is the trailer. It looks like a wild ride!  

40. Similar: ALIKE.

41. Prego competitor: RAGU.  Both are spaghetti sauces.  

47. Maker of rocket-powered roller skates, in cartoons: ACME.  

48. Suits found on many a beach bum?: THONGS.  

50. Not hunched over: ERECT.

51. Renovation project enthusiast, casually: DIYer.

52. "Futurama" captain with one eye and purple hair: LEELA.  The first L could be troublesome here for solvers unfamiliar with both this character and the W. S. Burroughs book. The show's title tells us to expect nontraditional names so any guess from A to Z is possible for _EELA. Fortunately, the book title narrows it down a bit. The letters B, H, L, and P all had potential for _UNCH.   

Leela of Futurama

53. Spring melt: THAW.

54. Salary: WAGE.

57. Agitate: RILE.

58. Short story writer?: ANON.  The question mark indicates wordplay. On the surface, it looks like the clue is asking for the author of a short story. However, in this case short refers to a shortened form of the word ANONymous. Fun! 

59. Pride parade inits.: LGBT.

61. Ballpark fig.: EST.  figure and ESTimate ... not umpire

64. American writer Edgar Allan __: POE.  

The grid:  

👁 cannot believe we are finished. Looking forward to reading your comments below!

Notes from C.C.:

 

Happy 79th birthday to Husker Gary's loving wife Joann and her twin sister Joyce. Here they're with their mom Martha, who passed away in 2023 at the age of 100.