Theme: Get Off the Fence - If you make the last word of the theme entries, you can get off the fence.
20A. Noncash executive compensation : STOCK OPTION
27A. Close boxing match outcome : SPLIT DECISION
50A. Folgers competitor : TASTER'S CHOICE
58A. Randomly determined NBA draft choice : LOTTERY PICK
Argyle here. I'm ambivalent about today's offering. Well done certainly with a couple of good columns but still left me feeling flat. I hope it's only me.
Across:
1. Business attire : SUIT
5. Somewhat : A BIT
9. Punches hard : SOCKS
14. Tolstoy's "__ Karenina" : ANNA
15. Jazz singer Horne : LENA
16. Packing rope : TWINE
17. Hot spot connection : WI-FI
18. What gears do : MESH
19. Addition to a school, say : ANNEX
23. Siamese or Abyssinian : CAT
24. Solo in "Star Wars" : HAN
25. Seminary deg. : TH.D. Doctor of Theology
26. Dog tags, for instance : IDs
33. Part of a foot : TOE
34. Norway's capital : OSLO. You know, the city in Czechoslovakia.
35. Low soccer score : ONE/NIL
38. Aquatic plant : ALGA
40. Work wk. end for many : FRI.
42. "__ Lama Ding Dong": doo-wop hit : RAMA. Still rockin'.
43. Enter : GO INTO
46. Hurricane rescue op : EVAC. operation/evacuation.
49. Omnivorous Looney Tunes devil, familiarly : TAZ
53. Greek letter between phi and psi : CHI
55. Airline approx. : ETA
56. Tee or blouse : TOP
57. Sandwich meat : HAM
64. "Me, too" : "AS AM I"
66. Use a piggy bank : SAVE
67. Overflow with, as charm : OOZE
68. Prelude, for short : INTRO
69. Hawaiian strings : UKEs
70. Thief's haul : SWAG
71. Explosive experiment : N-TEST
72. Felt tips and ballpoints : PENS
73. Dumbo's wings : EARS
Down:
1. Log cutters : SAWs. The tool, not the person.
2. Condo division : UNIT
3. "Inside" facts, briefly : INFO
4. Meditative exercise regimen : TAI CHI
5. Teardrop-shaped nutlike snacks : ALMONDS. Oh, what I misread this clue as.
6. Answering machine cue : BEEP
7. Part of MIT: Abbr. : INST. (Massachusetts INSTitute of Technology)
8. South Seas getaway : TAHITI
9. Substitute (for) : STAND-IN
10. "To thine __ self be true" : OWN. Hamlet Act 1, Scene 3.
11. Ohio city : CINCINNATI. Home of WKRP. Short snippet(1:31)
12. Work on dough : KNEAD
13. Titillating cellphone messages : SEXTs
21. Green Hornet's sidekick : KATO
22. Extremely : "OH SO". "too too"
27. Male deer : STAG
28. Game on horseback : POLO
29. Valid : LEGITIMATE
30. Christmas toymaker : ELF
31. Gadget used on an apple : CORER
32. "__ the fields we go" : O'ER
36. PC alternative : iMAC
37. Relax in a hammock : LAZE
39. California's Santa __ : ANA
41. ICU drips : IVs
44. Poet whose work inspired "Cats" : T.S. ELIOT
45. Director Preminger : OTTO
47. Woman on stage : ACTRESS
48. Bok __: Chinese cabbage : CHOY
51. Consumes avidly : EATS UP
52. Take a stand against : OPPOSE
53. Series of links : CHAIN
54. Lacks : HASN'T
59. Word before five or ten : TAKE. How long a break should be.
60. __-steven : EVEN. Just a rhyming phrase.
61. State known for its caucuses : IOWA. The Iowa caucuses have been the first major electoral event of the nominating process for President. New Hampshire is the earliest primary.
62. Business bigwig : CZAR
63. Gunpowder holders : KEGS. A favorite of early Westerns and cartoons.
65. "__ Doubtfire" : MRS. How is your sense of humor today? Mrs. Doubtfire recut as a horror movie.
Argyle
