Theme: Densmore, Krieger, Manzarek and Morrison - Better known as "The Doors" and whose song, Love Me Two Times(3:20) is appropriate because each theme is a pair of doors.
17A. *Where some carry keys : FRONT POCKET. FRONT door needs no explanation but POCKET door may, except for Splynter. A POCKET door is the type that slides into the wall. I hope you can look at this video(0:26) and not think the Starship Enterprise; I couldn't.
26A. *Behind-the-scenes area : BACKSTAGE. BACK door, STAGE door
37A. *Peugeot or Renault, e.g. : FRENCH CAR. FRENCH doors, may be exterior or interior. Who remembers CARs with suicide doors?
51A. *Campaign in rural areas : BARN STORM. BARN door, STORM door
60A. School entrances, or, in a way, what each answer to a starred clue has : DOUBLE DOORS
Argyle here. I hope Pam will forgive my facetious theme interpretation. I doubt The Doors ever crossed her mind. I'm always impressed by these doubled theme entries. Throw in some decent fill, no Naticks that I could see and you have a very good Tuesday puzzle.
Across:
1. Stove fuel : GAS. "Now we're cooking with GAS." Things in the kitchen became much easier once the wood/coal stoves were replaced by GAS.
4. Consent (to) : ACCEDE
10. Sauna sounds : AHs
13. Tiny troublemaker : IMP
14. Drink ordered dry or dirty : MARTINI. A dirty martini contains a splash of olive brine or olive juice.
16. Cheer word : "RAH!"
19. Pie __ mode : À LA. The Cambridge Hotel(NY), said to be the birth place of this dessert is to appear on Chef Ramsay's "Hotel Hell" later this spring.
20. New Mexico art colony : TAOS
21. Volcano output : ASH
22. Flavor : SAPOR
24. Author Ferber and actress Best : EDNAs
29. Reno roller : DIE. Nice alliteration.
30. "Now I __ me down ..." : LAY
32. One more : ANOTHER
33. Two-time N.L. batting champ Lefty : O'DOUL. He started as a pitcher, left because of a sore arm and came back as a power hitter. Won the batting title in 1929 and 1932.
35. The Beatles' "__ Love You" : PS I. This version(2:08) has Andy White on drums. Trivia runs on the screen during the song. Andy White now lives in New Jersey. link.
36. Physics particle : ION
40. Coppertone letters : SPF. (sun protection factor)
42. Remote batteries : AA's
43. Krispy __ doughnuts : KREME. Mmmmmm, donuts.
46. Nonbeliever : ATHEIST
48. "This __ ripoff!" : IS A
49. Farm worker? : ANT. Did anyone actually have an ant farm?
53. Slow, to Schumann : LENTO. Schumann was a German composer.
55. Brazilian writer Jorge : AMADO. Took all the perps to bring him in.
56. Velvet finish? : EEN. Velveteen.
58. "Gypsys, Tramps & Thieves" singer : CHER. This clip was the most visually interesting that I found.
59. Grafton's "__ for Corpse" : C IS
64. One for Monet : UNE. French.
65. Evaporated : DRIED UP
66. MGM mascot : LEO. The lion.
67. Airline to Stockholm : SAS. Scandinavian Airlines or SAS, previously Scandinavian Airlines System.
68. Trattoria desserts : GELATI. Well! It appears it is both singular and plural. Help?
69. Time workers: Abbr. : EDs (Editors). The magazine.
Down:
1. Like geniuses : GIFTED
2. Medium with a lot of talk : AM RADIO
3. Ate, as soup : SPOONED
4. Price to pay: Abbr. : AMT. (amount)
5. Bullfighter's cloak : CAPA. Spanish for cape.
6. "Road" film co-star : CROSBY. "On the Road to..." pictures starred Bing Crosby, Bob Hope, and Dorothy Lamour.
7. __ Sketch: drawing toy : ETCH A
8. Hägar creator Browne : DIK. His son, Chris Browne, continues the strip.
9. Suffix with benz- : ENE
10. Wind River Reservation tribe : ARAPAHO. In the heart of Wyoming. Map.
11. Kind of lamp with a tungsten filament : HALOGEN
12. One who doesn't hog : SHARER
15. "__ Easy": Ronstadt hit : IT'S SO. Clip.(2:41)
18. Decoding org. : NSA. (National Security Agency)
23. Something to wear : ATTIRE
25. Sot's speech problem : SLUR
27. Money : CASH
28. Atlantic Division NBA team : KNICKS. The New York Knickerbockers, commonly known as the Knicks, are a professional basketball team based in New York City.
31. Balt. Orioles' div. : AL EAST. The Baltimore Orioles are a professional baseball team based in Baltimore, Maryland.
34. Step on someone's toes, so to speak : OFFEND
35. Mac alternatives : PCs. (personal computer)
38. Brussels-based defense gp. : NATO
39. Shrinking sea : ARAL
40. Marathoner's need : STAMINA
41. They may be coined : PHRASES
44. Street opening : MANHOLE
45. Became a contestant : ENTERED
46. Gadget you can count on? : ABACUS
47. "This ___": "How strange" : IS ODD
48. Well-heeled Marcos : IMELDA. She is an elected Congresswoman - in the Philippines.
50. Sculptors' subjects : TORSOs
52. Resist authority : REBEL
54. Earth-friendly prefix : ECO
57. Neither an ally nor an enemy: Abbr. : NEUTral. Only three more letters, seems unnecessary to abbreviate. Fixed: with a tip of the hat to D-otto.
61. Common URL ender : .ORG
62. Slangy about-face : UIE
63. Printer resolution meas. : DPI. (dots per inch)
Argyle
Note from C.C.:
Happy Birthday to Spitzboov (Al), who sent me this beautiful Annin flag when I became a US citizen in 2010. Spitzboov often finds delightful clips for us to enjoy. Off the blog, he always gives me wise advice and solid feedback on various crossword ideas.
Note from C.C.:
Happy Birthday to Spitzboov (Al), who sent me this beautiful Annin flag when I became a US citizen in 2010. Spitzboov often finds delightful clips for us to enjoy. Off the blog, he always gives me wise advice and solid feedback on various crossword ideas.
