20A. 2002 DiCaprio/Day-Lewis historical drama : GANGS OF NEW YORK
28A. 1968 Davis/Lawford spy spoof : SALT AND PEPPER
45A. 1940 Grant/Russell comedy : HIS GIRL FRIDAY
did anyone get the theme without the unifier?
55. 1962 Rat Pack remake of "Gunga Din" ... or collectively, the ends of 20-, 28- and 45-Across : SERGEANTS THREE
ohhh, i get it. each of the theme answers are movie titles - and the ending words are names of a famous 'sergeant.'
SERGEANT YORK, according to wikipedia, sgt. alvin york was the most-decorated american soldier of WWI - the 1941 film starred gary cooper. SERGEANT PEPPER, title song of 1967 beatle's album. and SERGEANT FRIDAY, one of the lead characters (played by jack webb) in the original tv series dragnet. "just the facts, ma'am."
across:
1. Skiing need : SNOW. i tried boot first. and 62. 1-Across vehicle : SLED
5. Color Me __: 1990s R&B group : BADD
9. Wait for a light, perhaps : IDLE. we do that a lot in california.
13. Debate choice : TOPIC
15. Hardly __: rarely : EVER
16. French company? : DEUX. cute clue. french for two. and 60. German crowd? : DREI. german for three.
17. __ acid : AMINO
18. Lamebrain : DOPE
19. Behold, to 57-Down : ECCE
23. Ending with stamp : EDE. stampede.
24. U.S.'s Ryder Cup foe : EUR. golf competition between the US and Europe.
25. Letters from Greece : NU'S. 13th letter of the greek alphabet.
26. The past, in the past : ELD. new to me. a word, meaning old age, or olden days.
32. "Me __": "My name is," in Spain : LLAMO
33. Mrs. Gorbachev : RAISA
34. Big Island city : HILO. how many times have we seen hilo hello as a clue? this is rainbow falls in hilo. and 59. Island goose : NENE. hawaii's state bird.
37. Aquarium fish : TETRA
40. Fed. crash site investigator : NTSB. national transportation safety board.
41. Assured way to solve a crossword puzzle : IN INK. for me, an assured way to make many mistakes.
43. Moved, as a dinghy : OARED
49. First National Leaguer with eight consecutive 100-RBI seasons : OTT. mel. one of the players portrayed in the movie field of dreams.
50. Society page word : NEE
51. Pier gp. : ILA. international longshoremens association - maritime workers union.
52. Circle segment : ARC
61. Word after dog or lop : EARED
63. Memo words : IN RE. latin for in the matter of.
64. Franklin heater : STOVE. metal-lined fireplace named after its inventor, benjamin franklin.
65. Frizzy do : AFRO
66. General __ chicken : TSO'S
67. Members of the flock : EWES
down:
1. Put on : STAGE
2. Wanderer : NOMAD
3. Adds one's two cents : OPINES
4. Chicken snack : WING
5. A headboard is part of it : BED FRAME. i guess so.
6. Noted bell ringer : AVON. ding-dong, avon calling.
7. Rely : DEPEND
8. Drafted : DREW UP
9. Prefix with graphic or logical : IDEO. ideological.
10. Dilapidated : DECREPIT. it just sounds painful.
11. Like Vegas losers, so they say : LUCKLESS
12. Program file suffix : EXE. computer speak.
14. Sportscaster who wrote "I Never Played the Game" : COSELL. howard.
21. Lash __: attack verbally : OUT AT
22. Belgian river : YSER. could not find a good visual, but wiki says it originates "in the north of France, enters Belgium and flows into the North Sea at the town of Nieuwpoort."
27. Not at all colorful : DRAB
29. As a companion : ALONG. along for the ride.
30. __ this world: alien : NOT OF
31. Bamboo lover : PANDA
34. Onetime Ritz competitor : HI HO
35. Per se : IN ITSELF
36. SiriusXM subscriber, say : LISTENER
38. Once-in-a-blue-moon events : RARITIES. anyone else think of this?
39. Seed covers : ARILS
42. High card : KING
44. Online connections? : E-DATES. rarely satisfying.
46. Change further, as text : RE-EDIT
47. Gets the lesson : LEARNS
48. Peter of Peter, Paul & Mary : YARROW
53. Christopher who played Superman : REEVE. also in a lesser-known, hilarious movie, noises off.
54. Gives up : CEDES
56. Take from the top : RE-DO
57. Fabled fiddler : NERO
58. Can't stand : HATE
59. Secretive org. : NSA. national security agency.
Answer grid.
melissa
