Theme: I'VE GOT A SECRET (59. Long-running game show, and a hint to the starts of 20-, 28-, 37- and 51-Across :) - Secret can precede the first word of each common phrase.
20A. Add-on for a large party's tab : SERVICE CHARGE. Secret Service.
28A. Even thieves have one, it's said : CODE OF HONOR. Secret code.
37A. Largest city in California's wine country : SANTA ROSA. Secret Santa.
51A. Nickname seen on a Northeast license plate : GARDEN STATE. Secret Garden.
As Alan Sues once started his weekly quips on Laugh-In, "Boomer Here".
Keeping in mind that I am not the super solver that some of you are, this puzzle challenged me a bit, but I thought it was pretty workable. At first I wanted to put something like twenty per cent for 20A, guilty conscience for the thieves. I have a sister in Santa Rosa, and I've seen NJ Garden State plates. Once I got to Garry Moore's "I've Got a Secret" after a few down clues, things fell into place. Then I spent ten minutes trying to remember who was on the panel of "I've got a secret". I remembered Bill Cullen and deadpan Henry Morgan. I think a lot of other guest stars rotated.
Across:
1. Black Panthers co-founder : SEALE (Bobby) - The other guy was Malcolm X?
6. Sprightly dances : JIGS
10. What race winners break : TAPE - They also break ribbons, records, and sometimes a foot.
14. Flip chart stand : EASEL - A frequent crossword entry
15. "Typee" continuation : OMOO - I believe this was the sorority in "Revenge of the Nerds"
16. Fancy molding : OGEE - Another frequent crossword. I sometimes say "O Gee" when I leave a ten pin. Sometimes I use four different letters.
17. First name in British sports cars : ASTON - James Caan drives an Aston Martin in "Las Vegas".
18. Freshness : SASS
19. River to the Caspian : URAL
23. Deposed Amin : IDI - Many changes going on in the world
24. Siesta : NAP
25. In the lead : AHEAD - Sometimes by a head, other times just a nose
33. No-win situation : TIE
34. Banjo's place : KNEE - Oh Susanna! Don't you cry for me
35. Age-old stories : LORE - The thing I like best about folklore is all the BS that gets added to it as it is passed down through the ages.
36. Sphere : ORB
42. Classic Capek play : RUR - I'm not so sure about Classic. I've never heard of it
45. In fighting trim : LEAN - mean machine
46. Chachi's mother-in-law, to Fonzie : MRS. C - Who would have thought Henry Winkler would come up with a crossword. AAYYYYYYY!
50. Outback runner : EMU - A member of the sorority in "Revenge of the Nerds".
55. Fruity soda brand : FANTA - I had Crush in there for a while.
57. King at Versailles : ROI - Is this RO the first?
58. Down-for-the-count count : TEN - Lots of ways to clue 10. I like number of pins to knock over for a strike
64. Cures : TANS - Sorry, I didn't get this one
66. Rugged vehicles : UTES - Or this one. I thought Utes were a nomadic tribe. Maybe they drove Humvees?
67. Writer Zora __ Hurston : NEALE
68. Sweeten the pot a little? : ANTE - Well, the pot starts with ante. The sweetening doesn't start till you see the twenty and raise fifty.
69. One and only : LONE - How about Ranger with a mask. Clayton Moore - Could have been on opposite Garry Moore, and his identity was secret. Hi Ho Silver!
70. More pleasant : NICER
71. Axe : BOOT - Donald Trump's Apprentice, or what the Vikings need to do with McNabb.
72. Hang in the balance : PEND
73. Jays and O's : ALers - ALers and NLers Series starts tonight. Good luck Albert!
Down:
1. Wishing one hadn't rocked the boat? : SEASICK
2. Entered carefully, as a highway : EASED ON - I had eased in. Then I eased on some Wite-Out to fix.
3. With a leg on each side of : ASTRIDE
4. Pope of 903 : LEO V - At first I thought Love was spelled wrong. In spite of popular opinion, I was not alive when Leo the fifth was pope.
5. Periodic weather disruption : EL NINO - I own an El Nino, Storm bowling ball from the late nineties, and a darn good one.
6. Crèche figure : JOSEPH - Didn't know Creche was the Nativity scene. Had to Google it. Is that Cheating??
7. Apple for the teacher? : iMAC - I get it, My first computer was an Apple IIe. Technology has passed me by now.
8. Mild oath : GOSH - Left another ten pin
9. Wrigley slugger : SOSA - I'm pretty good at baseball clues. Got Sammy right away.
10. "Not my problem" : TOUGH
11. Go along with : AGREE TO
12. Whistle bead : PEA - I think they just put little round plastic things in now
13. Fish lacking pelvic fins : EEL - not sure an eel is a fish.
21. Half-__: coffee order : CAF - And not too good. I like full strength
22. Some steak orders : RARES - Rare is an adjective. Don't like to see it plural, but I'll let it go this time. Don't let it happen again.
26. Go public with : AIR - or Bill Cosby's famous skit - "Why is there air?"
27. New girl in gown? : DEB
29. Some Caltech grads : EEs - Electrical Engineers? or just erstwhile eggheads?
30. "__ of Our Birth": Isle of Man national anthem : O LAND. Here.
31. Negative conjunction : NOR
32. Some Spanish escudos were made of it : ORO - We used to use this as an acronym for Our records only. Now it probably is a hashtag on Twittter.
38. Pond accumulation : ALGAE - AKA Scum
39. PBS benefactor : NEA
40. Blacktop material : TAR
41. Tbsp. or tsp. : AMT
42. Yellow-flag carrier : REF - I'm so old I remember when they used bright pinkish red.
43. Emma's portrayer in "The Avengers" : UMA - Another sorority sister in "Revenge of the Nerds."
44. Chance upon : RUN INTO
47. Wearying grind : RAT RACE - Until one breaks the Tape, or the other breaks a foot.
48. Joe Greene or Lynn Swann, notably : STEELER - Another easy clue for me.
49. Focal points : CENTERS - or the guys in front of Bradshaw. Hut hut
52. Wiped clean : ERASED
53. Calculator figs. : NOs.
54. Crayola's "burnt" color : SIENNA - Orange didn't fit.
56. Soap box? : TV SET - Soaps aren't doing so hot any more. I think they were originally called soap operas because the sponsors were soaps. (DUZ duz everything). Now I guess most daytime shows are car insurance operas.
60. Chug-a-lug : GULP - A big one at 7 - 11
61. Platte River tribe : OTOE
62. Grand Ole Opry st. : TENN - Good Grief, I've been to the Opry. I was trying to remember what STREET ! it was on. Duh. Even a caveman knows it's in Tennessee.
63. Put a roof on : CEIL
64. Key below the tilde : TAB
65. Diciembre ends it : ANO - This is either Spanish or something is spelled wrong.
Answer grid.
Have a great day!
Boomer - Hmmmmm
"When I get older, losing my hair, just a few days from now
Will you still be sending me a Valentine, Birthday greetings, bottle of wine.
If I had been out till quarter of three, Will you lock the door.
Will you still need me, will you still feed me, when I'm 64".
Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band - Sometime in the 60's
20A. Add-on for a large party's tab : SERVICE CHARGE. Secret Service.
28A. Even thieves have one, it's said : CODE OF HONOR. Secret code.
37A. Largest city in California's wine country : SANTA ROSA. Secret Santa.
51A. Nickname seen on a Northeast license plate : GARDEN STATE. Secret Garden.
As Alan Sues once started his weekly quips on Laugh-In, "Boomer Here".
Keeping in mind that I am not the super solver that some of you are, this puzzle challenged me a bit, but I thought it was pretty workable. At first I wanted to put something like twenty per cent for 20A, guilty conscience for the thieves. I have a sister in Santa Rosa, and I've seen NJ Garden State plates. Once I got to Garry Moore's "I've Got a Secret" after a few down clues, things fell into place. Then I spent ten minutes trying to remember who was on the panel of "I've got a secret". I remembered Bill Cullen and deadpan Henry Morgan. I think a lot of other guest stars rotated.
Across:
1. Black Panthers co-founder : SEALE (Bobby) - The other guy was Malcolm X?
6. Sprightly dances : JIGS
10. What race winners break : TAPE - They also break ribbons, records, and sometimes a foot.
14. Flip chart stand : EASEL - A frequent crossword entry
15. "Typee" continuation : OMOO - I believe this was the sorority in "Revenge of the Nerds"
16. Fancy molding : OGEE - Another frequent crossword. I sometimes say "O Gee" when I leave a ten pin. Sometimes I use four different letters.
17. First name in British sports cars : ASTON - James Caan drives an Aston Martin in "Las Vegas".
18. Freshness : SASS
19. River to the Caspian : URAL
23. Deposed Amin : IDI - Many changes going on in the world
24. Siesta : NAP
25. In the lead : AHEAD - Sometimes by a head, other times just a nose
33. No-win situation : TIE
34. Banjo's place : KNEE - Oh Susanna! Don't you cry for me
35. Age-old stories : LORE - The thing I like best about folklore is all the BS that gets added to it as it is passed down through the ages.
36. Sphere : ORB
42. Classic Capek play : RUR - I'm not so sure about Classic. I've never heard of it
45. In fighting trim : LEAN - mean machine
46. Chachi's mother-in-law, to Fonzie : MRS. C - Who would have thought Henry Winkler would come up with a crossword. AAYYYYYYY!
50. Outback runner : EMU - A member of the sorority in "Revenge of the Nerds".
55. Fruity soda brand : FANTA - I had Crush in there for a while.
57. King at Versailles : ROI - Is this RO the first?
58. Down-for-the-count count : TEN - Lots of ways to clue 10. I like number of pins to knock over for a strike
64. Cures : TANS - Sorry, I didn't get this one
66. Rugged vehicles : UTES - Or this one. I thought Utes were a nomadic tribe. Maybe they drove Humvees?
67. Writer Zora __ Hurston : NEALE
68. Sweeten the pot a little? : ANTE - Well, the pot starts with ante. The sweetening doesn't start till you see the twenty and raise fifty.
69. One and only : LONE - How about Ranger with a mask. Clayton Moore - Could have been on opposite Garry Moore, and his identity was secret. Hi Ho Silver!
70. More pleasant : NICER
71. Axe : BOOT - Donald Trump's Apprentice, or what the Vikings need to do with McNabb.
72. Hang in the balance : PEND
73. Jays and O's : ALers - ALers and NLers Series starts tonight. Good luck Albert!
Down:
1. Wishing one hadn't rocked the boat? : SEASICK
2. Entered carefully, as a highway : EASED ON - I had eased in. Then I eased on some Wite-Out to fix.
3. With a leg on each side of : ASTRIDE
4. Pope of 903 : LEO V - At first I thought Love was spelled wrong. In spite of popular opinion, I was not alive when Leo the fifth was pope.
5. Periodic weather disruption : EL NINO - I own an El Nino, Storm bowling ball from the late nineties, and a darn good one.
6. Crèche figure : JOSEPH - Didn't know Creche was the Nativity scene. Had to Google it. Is that Cheating??
7. Apple for the teacher? : iMAC - I get it, My first computer was an Apple IIe. Technology has passed me by now.
8. Mild oath : GOSH - Left another ten pin
9. Wrigley slugger : SOSA - I'm pretty good at baseball clues. Got Sammy right away.
10. "Not my problem" : TOUGH
11. Go along with : AGREE TO
12. Whistle bead : PEA - I think they just put little round plastic things in now
13. Fish lacking pelvic fins : EEL - not sure an eel is a fish.
21. Half-__: coffee order : CAF - And not too good. I like full strength
22. Some steak orders : RARES - Rare is an adjective. Don't like to see it plural, but I'll let it go this time. Don't let it happen again.
26. Go public with : AIR - or Bill Cosby's famous skit - "Why is there air?"
27. New girl in gown? : DEB
29. Some Caltech grads : EEs - Electrical Engineers? or just erstwhile eggheads?
30. "__ of Our Birth": Isle of Man national anthem : O LAND. Here.
31. Negative conjunction : NOR
32. Some Spanish escudos were made of it : ORO - We used to use this as an acronym for Our records only. Now it probably is a hashtag on Twittter.
38. Pond accumulation : ALGAE - AKA Scum
39. PBS benefactor : NEA
40. Blacktop material : TAR
41. Tbsp. or tsp. : AMT
42. Yellow-flag carrier : REF - I'm so old I remember when they used bright pinkish red.
43. Emma's portrayer in "The Avengers" : UMA - Another sorority sister in "Revenge of the Nerds."
44. Chance upon : RUN INTO
47. Wearying grind : RAT RACE - Until one breaks the Tape, or the other breaks a foot.
48. Joe Greene or Lynn Swann, notably : STEELER - Another easy clue for me.
49. Focal points : CENTERS - or the guys in front of Bradshaw. Hut hut
52. Wiped clean : ERASED
53. Calculator figs. : NOs.
54. Crayola's "burnt" color : SIENNA - Orange didn't fit.
56. Soap box? : TV SET - Soaps aren't doing so hot any more. I think they were originally called soap operas because the sponsors were soaps. (DUZ duz everything). Now I guess most daytime shows are car insurance operas.
60. Chug-a-lug : GULP - A big one at 7 - 11
61. Platte River tribe : OTOE
62. Grand Ole Opry st. : TENN - Good Grief, I've been to the Opry. I was trying to remember what STREET ! it was on. Duh. Even a caveman knows it's in Tennessee.
63. Put a roof on : CEIL
64. Key below the tilde : TAB
65. Diciembre ends it : ANO - This is either Spanish or something is spelled wrong.
Answer grid.
Have a great day!
Boomer - Hmmmmm
"When I get older, losing my hair, just a few days from now
Will you still be sending me a Valentine, Birthday greetings, bottle of wine.
If I had been out till quarter of three, Will you lock the door.
Will you still need me, will you still feed me, when I'm 64".
Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band - Sometime in the 60's
