Theme: Three's a ..., you know.
59A. Conforms, or what each last word of 16-, 27- and 44-Across literally does : FOLLOWS THE CROWD
27A. Automatic setting for highway driving : CRUISE CONTROL. Crowd Control. "Turn on the water hoses, boys." ~ Chief Wiggum.
16A. Unnamed news supplier : ANONYMOUS SOURCE. Crowdsource. A rather new term for gathering information from social media. The idea is as old as thumbs up/thumbs down in the Colosseum.
44A. Christmas display : NATIVITY SCENE. Crowd Scene. Time was the movies used tons of extras for crowd scenes; it is done (might say overdone) by CGI now.
Argyle here with our hostess with the mostess. Two grid spanners plus two other long theme entries, plus two longish columns.
Across:
1. Hackneyed : TRITE
6. Work out ahead of time : PLAN
10. Lily of France garment : BRA. Founded in 1915 and now part of Fruit of the Loom. Today's website.
13. Prepared potatoes, as for hash browns : RICED
14. Boxcar hopper : HOBO. Are they still around?
15. Campus courtyard : QUAD. Shortened quadrangle.
19. ID theft target : SSN. (Social Security number)
20. Used a bench : SAT
21. Injector for severe allergic reactions : EPIPEN. Yup, the bees and wasps are waking up.
22. Slice opposite, in golf : HOOK
24. Snappy dresser : FOP
26. Actress Aniston, in tabloids : JEN
33. Nabokov nymphet : LOLITA
35. Cold draft server : PUB
36. Weed whacker : HOE
37. Wipe off the board : ERASE
38. Tidal retreat : EBB
39. Take control of : SEIZE
41. Rm. coolers : ACs
42. Lao Tzu's "path" : TAO
43. Puts a gloss on, as shoes : SHINES
48. Country singer McGraw : TIM
49. Jamaican music : SKA
50. Annual spelling bee airer : ESPN
53. Understood by only a few : ARCANE
56. Portfolio part, briefly : IRA
58. Exceedingly : TOO
63. Seatback airline feature : TRAY
64. Otherworldly glow : AURA
65. Actress Zellweger : RENEE
66. "The Fountainhead" author Rand : AYN
67. Blue books? : SMUT
68. Pretty pitchers : EWERS
Down:
1. Dumpster fill : TRASH
2. Classic Unilever laundry soap : RINSO
3. Religious rebel : ICONOCLAST
4. Bowling pin count : TEN
5. Frozen custard brand : EDY'S
6. Instagram uploads : PHOTOS
7. Soul singer Rawls : LOU
8. Crunched muscles : ABs
9. Bit of cosmetic surgery : NOSE JOB. Rhinoplasty.
10. Dinner table faux pas : BURP
11. Kentucky Derby, e.g. : RACE. 141th Kentucky Derby is on May 2, 2015.
12. Yemen's Gulf of __ : ADEN
15. One of five in a maternity ward delivery : QUINT. One of a quintuplet.
17. Criminal group : MAFIA
18. Ready for business : OPEN
23. Singer Kristofferson : KRIS
25. Auto parts chain : PEP BOYS
28. Sport-__: off-road vehicle : UTE. "utility"
29. Chicago ballplayer : CUB
30. Fake diamond : RHINESTONE. Neither Tim nor Kris sang "Rhinestone Cowboy". Aren't you lucky?
31. Move like honey : OOZE
32. Dregs : LEES
33. Low in fat : LEAN
34. Aquatic predator : ORCA
38. Grab a bite : EAT
39. "__ Loves You": Beatles : SHE
40. One, in Dresden : EINE
42. "Used to be ... " : "TIME WAS .."
43. Frighten : SCARE
45. Sicily's country : ITALY
46. Sicily's wine : VINO
47. Headgear on the slopes : SKI HAT. This brings up the question; Did Marti ever ski in Sicily?
51. Strength : POWER
52. Botanical connecting points : NODES
53. Mennen lotion : AFTA
54. One of the Gilmore girls : RORY. No idea.
55. Kilted family : CLAN
57. Land measure : ACRE
60. Total amount : SUM
61. Capote nickname : TRU. Short for Truman.
62. Opposite of fast fwd. : REW. "TIME WAS .."
Argyle
