20A. *Company that maintains network messages : E-MAIL HOST
30A. *Apple music player : I-POD NANO
36A. *Springsteen's ensemble : E-STREET BAND
46A. *"My stars!" : I DECLARE
52A. *Willa Cather novel set in Nebraska : O PIONEERS
1A. Place that can precede the starts of 20-, 30-, 36-, 46- and 52-Across : FARM
69A. Bird that can precede the starts of 20-, 30-, 36-, 46- and 52-Across : DUCK
13D. Animal that can precede the starts of 20-, 30-, 36-, 46- and 52-Across : PIG
57D. Animal that can precede the starts of 20-, 30-, 36-, 46- and 52-Across : COW
Get it? E-I-E-I-O?
Melissa here. I DECLARE, this was new and different - not to mention a tricky theme. Above a Tuesday level I thought, all the way around.
Across:
5. Spanish red wine : RIOJA
10. Office fill-in : TEMP
14. Yours, in Tours : ATOI. French.
15. Sign up, in Sussex : ENROL. According to the Grammarist, enrol is the preferred spelling outside of North America.
16. Jai __ : ALAI
17. The Volunteer St. : TENN. Ah. State, not Street. The nickname originated during the War of 1812, in which the volunteer soldiers from Tennessee, serving under Gen. Andrew Jackson, displayed marked valor in the Battle of New Orleans. Tennesee was named after Cherokee Indian villages called Tanasi.
18. Putting the squeeze on : PRESSURING
22. Bygone Toyotas : SUPRAS. On a personal note - another bygone Toyota is their FJ Cruiser - my brother's car that was declared a total loss a few months ago. So sad. That thing was a tank and probably saved my life.
25. Lets up : EASES
29. '60s United Nations secretary general : UTHANT. Who??
33. Beauty at a ball : BELLE
34. Ivan the Terrible, e.g. : TSAR
35. Crime family leader : DON
40. "Mazel __!" : TOV
42. Take a chance : DARE
43. Soft leather : SUEDE
49. Counterbalance : OFFSET
50. Instruments for Yo-Yo Ma : CELLI
51. Traveled like Huck Finn : RAFTED
57. Arms-around-knees swimming pool jump : CANNONBALL
60. Gillette brand : ATRA
64. Curved molding : OGEE
65. Written reminders : NOTES
66. Worker finishing an éclair : ICER
67. Invasive plant : WEED
68. Terse summons from the boss : SEE ME
Down:
1. __ Tuesday: Mardi Gras : FAT. What is Fat Tuesday?
2. Chowed down : ATE
3. Potter pal Weasley : RON
4. Necessary nutrients : MINERALS
5. Meal : REPAST
6. Cross inscription : INRI
7. Baseball analyst Hershiser : OREL
8. Kid around : JOSH
9. "Not to mention ... " : ALSO
10. Kilt pattern : TARTAN
11. Inventor Whitney : ELI
12. Superhero suffix : MAN
19. Employed : USED
21. Painter Édouard : MANET
22. Long sandwich : SUB
23. Versatile vehicle, for short : UTE
24. Soil acidity measure : PH LEVEL
26. Most mournful : SADDEST
27. Eclectic musician Brian : ENO
28. Prince, to a king : SON
30. Grenoble's river : ISERE. In southeastern France.
31. Liver spread : PATE
32. Heavenly body : ORB
34. Drop of sadness : TEAR
37. Old cereal box no. : RDA. Recommended Daily Allowance. Interesting history.
38. To the same extent : AS FAR
39. Informal "No more talk" : 'NUFF SAID
40. Twitch : TIC
41. Poetic tribute : ODE
44. Low grade : DEE
45. Itinerary approx. : ETD
47. Copied genetically : CLONED
48. Fat-reducing procedure, briefly : LIPO
49. Words ending a threat : OR ELSE
53. Quaint lodgings : INNS
54. Bassoon kin : OBOE
55. Basketball Hall of Famer Archibald : NATE. Maybe a gimme to basketball fans?
56. Grade sch. level : ELEM
58. Single-malt datum : AGE
59. Family tree word : NEE
61. Longhorn State sch. : TCU. Texas Christian University - in Ft. Worth.
62. DVR button : REC
63. Genesis craft : ARK
E-I-E-I-O.
