36. Furniture designed for portability ... or, what are found in this puzzle's circles : FOLDING CHAIRS.
We have a LAWN, SEDAN, DECK, BARBER, WINDSOR and ROCKING chair in the grid. All of them appear in an "L" shape, simulating a folded chair. Although LAWN, DECK and BARBER chairs can literally "fold," the reveal is only a figurative description of the folded chairs in our grid.
Jeff Wechsler's grids always seem to grab my eye, so it seems he has accomplished his goal with at least one solver. Here is what he said when I asked him about the inspiration for this one:
"As happens with many puzzle themes, I don't really know where that "creative spark" comes from. Often, the concept is simply derived from a word or phrase that suddenly strikes me as potential theme material. I have recently been interested in themes with a visual element (such as the smiling face in my January 1 puzzle). When the term "folding chairs" appeared, the thematic light bulb went off, and I started to compile types of chairs. I then determined which were generally amenable to a puzzle grid, where it would be most practical to "fold" them, and where to position them in the grid. "
Way to go, Jeff!
Across
1. Determination : WILL. I WILL finish Jeff's puzzle, I WILL finish Jeff's puzzle, I WILL finish...
5. One often schmeared : BAGEL.
10. Get entangled (with) : MESS.
14. "It depends" : I MAY...hate myself in the morning.
15. Have __ for news : A NOSE.
16. Ended a flight : ALIT. I read this as "Ended a fight" at first. (Note to self: Make appt w. eye doctor...)
17. Blue : DOWN.
18. Suppress : SIT ON.
19. George Lucas group : JEDI.
20. Semiprecious stone : ONYX.
21. Sends out : EMITS.
22. Roast's roost : OVEN.
23. 2014 U.S. Women's Open champ : WIE. Michelle. Not only can she play golf, she's gorgeous.
...(I hate her.)
24. Hamlet, for one : DANE.
25. Succumb to pressure : CRACK.
26. Choose not to pick? : STRUM. Guitar. Fun clue.
29. Bit of cheering : RAH.
31. __ kwon do : TAE.
32. Tiff : ROW.
34. Computer outlet supply : MICE. And a clecho at 28-Down. Computer outlet supplies : MODEMS. I wonder why MICE wasn't clued in the plural as well?
35. Bruin legend : ORR.
40. Swung thing : BAT.
41. Winged god : EROS.
42. Alf and Mork, briefly : ETs.
43. Aegean Airlines hub, on itineraries : ATH.ens.
44. Dauphins' play area : MER. The answer is the French word for "sea." I was thinking of the French "heir-apparent" when I saw "dauphin." But the clue actually refers to the French word for "dolphin," and, as it turns out, showed that I was on the right track.
45. Really beat : STOMP. Hands up for "tromp" at first?
49. Relatives of emus : RHEAS. Emus are native to Australia, while RHEAS are from South America.
51. Exchange : SWAP.
55. Frito go-with? : LAY. My first thought. But..nah, that can't be right? But, yeah - it was!
56. Muppet with a unibrow : BERT.
57. Hosiery shade : BEIGE. [sigh] For Splynter.
58. Unusual : RARE.
59. "__ la Douce" : IRMA.
60. Playground denial : AM NOT! ("You are too a booger-face!!")
61. "Metamorphoses" poet : OVID.
62. Operation Solomon carrier : EL AL. It was a covert Israeli military operation to airlift Ethiopian Jews to Israel during the destabilizing issues surrounding Ethiopia in 1991.
63. Symbol of authority : BADGE.
64. "See you around!" : CIAO.
65. Word sung on New Year's Day : SYNE.
66. Belgian expressionist James : ENSOR. I needed the ENS** to remember this one.
67. 46-Down, for one : KING. And 46-Down. Eleventh-century Scandinavian leader : OLAV II.
Down
1. Isolated lines, in typesetting : WIDOWS. And orphans. Paragraph-ending or -beginning lines that appear at the top or bottom of a page.
2. Go-getter's phrase : I'M ON IT.
3. Many a character on "The Good Wife" : LAWYER.
4. Web browser since 1992 : LYNX. Developed at the University of Kansas, and still in use.
5. Derived from, with "on" : BASED.
6. Jungian concept : ANIMA. The personification of feminine psychological tendencies within a man. (The animus is the personification of masculine psychological tendencies within a woman.)
7. Was accepted as a member : GOT IN.
8. Abstruse : ESOTERIC.
9. Eye part : LENS.
10. Significant : MAJOR.
11. Vertical shuttle : ELEVATOR. Not invented by Otis - he simply invented the braking system that made them safe. They have been used for thousands of years.
12. Auxiliary seating units : SIDE CARS. SIDE CARS are also drinks made with Cognac, Cointreau and lemon juice.
13. Really tough puzzle, say : STINKER. Surely not this one!
25. Has an ace up one's sleeve : CHEATS. I think of it as simply having an advantage!
27. Healthcare.gov, for one : URL.
30. Workout woe : ACHE. Yep, been there, done that!
33. Telegram : WIRE.
34. British sports cars : MGs.
36. Like some advice : FATHERLY.
37. 2008 love triangle film, with "The" : OTHER MAN.
38. Viking : NORSEMAN.
39. Follower's suffix : IST.
40. The first ones were introduced in blonde and brunette in 1959 : BARBIES. Mine was blonde. Yours?
47. Contralto Anderson : MARIAN. She was the Rosa Parks of the concert world.
48. Half-wild Asian canine : PYE-DOG. I dredged this answer up from who knows where!
50. "And thereby hangs __": Shak. : A TALE. Fool's words in "As You Like It."
52. They may be measured in knots : WINDS. I thought it was very interesting that WINDS formed the vertical back of the WINDSOR chair, which can also be a knot!
53. Disco era term : A-GO-GO.
54. Pan on Broadway : PETER. Nice misdirection! Were you thinking of a bad review?
57. Immortal Yankee, with "The" : BABE. Ruth.
58. Sway : ROCK. on!!
Marti, out.
