Theme: That's that - the theme entries are clued literally with a description of each one:
20A. "That's fine": POWDERED SUGAR. Very fine indeed. The Brits call it icing sugar, also known as confectioner's sugar in these parts.
27A. "That's all folks": THE HUMAN RACE. This was my first theme solve which put on the right wavelength. I noticed the missing comma from the Looney Tunes hook line. Very nice cluing.
49A. "That's not the point": PENCIL ERASER. I seem to use all the eraser before I've used all of the pencil which probably says more about my inaccuracy than the design of the pencil. I've got stand-alone backups.
58A. "That's rich": CHOCOLATE CAKE. Chocolate and kale in the same puzzle - as I said last week why do I crave chocolate, and not kale?
So, a nice theme and .... and? The fill is pretty sluggish, there's not a lot to admire. A workmanlike puzzle, but too many obscure names for me and too many throwaway entries to get too much enthusiastic about. It's a shame because there were some great clues for an otherwise dull fill. Let's go explore!
Across:
1. Healthful berry: ACAI. It could be GOJI so wait for a cross to confirm.
5. Sommelier's concern: NOSE. Why don't we just say "this wine has a fine smell?" A sommelier's nose could also be an asset.
9. San Antonio cagers: SPURS
14. Bananas: LOCO. Crazy like a ... chicken? I like El Pollo Loco's grilled chicken.
15. "... the __ blackness of the floors": Poe: EBON
16. "The Fox and the Grapes" storyteller: AESOP
17. Dutch cheese: EDAM
18. Way to go: ROAD
19. Queen's milieu: DRAMA. Drama queen. This one made me smile.
23. Get going: HOP TO
25. "Knives Out" Golden Globe nominee de Armas: ANA. Thank you, crosses. I'm not familiar with the movie and checking her credits on IMDb, I've not seen any of the movies she's appeared in.
26. Lansing-to-Flint dir.: ENE
32. 1960s chess champ Mikhail: TAL. Crosses to the aid again. I'm sure chess enthusiasts will know all about this gentleman, but a little before my chess-conscious time.
33. Mustard family member: KALE
34. They're tapped: KEGS
37. Bundle: PILE
39. On the money: RIGHT
42. Kentucky coach with 876 victories: RUPP. I went with RUUP first for no good reason, which made SUREE look a little strange. Easily fixed. Legendary basketball, fifth on the all-time wins list.
44. Foolhardy: RASH
46. __ avis: RARA. "Rare bird". I learned this from crosswords past, thankfully, as it helped with the crossing proper names.
48. Mex. title: SRA. Señora (from Sonora!)
53. Withdrawal site: ATM
56. Carnival city: RIO
57. Words before "so sue me": I LIED
63. Polynesian language: MAORI
64. Sitar music: RAGA. Here's a raga mix of "Uptown Funk"; you just cannot watch it without smiling!
65. Yemen's Gulf of __: ADEN
68. Conclude with: END ON
69. Indicator: SIGN
70. Feet-first race: LUGE
71. Video chat choice: SKYPE
72. "What __ is new?": ELSE
73. MP3 player: IPOD. Do Apple even make these any more? It seems your phone does everything that an iPod did, with the added bonus of, well, being a phone.
Down:
1. Cream __: ALE
2. Fish that's salted and dried to make bacalao: COD. Originally from the Portuguese, where bacalhau is the name of the fish.The Norwegians have assimilated the dish into their national cuisine where it is now spelled "bakalau". There's more to a bit of dried fish than meets the eye. Here's balalau con tomate.
3. Like Pentatonix numbers: A CAPPELLA
4. Flying insect with prominent eyespots: IO MOTH. Not sure that I knew this. ACAI and LOCO helped me out though.
5. Bookish type: NERD
6. Wind up on stage?: OBOE. Nice clue!
7. Fly like an eagle: SOAR
8. Win over: ENDEAR
9. Hapless sort: SAD SACK
10. Ucayali River country: PERU. The main headstream of the Amazon river, it becomes the Amazon at the confluence with the Marañón.
11. Grammarian's concern: USAGE
12. Type type: ROMAN. Times New Roman, for example, which was commissioned by the London Times newspaper in 1931.
13. Just-in-case item: SPARE
21. "The Caine Mutiny" novelist: WOUK
22. Paternity identifier: DNA
23. Web address letters: HTTP
24. Atheist activist Madalyn: O'HAIR. A new name to me. I'm familiar with the golfer Sean O'Hair, not so much atheist activists.
28. Deface: MAR
29. "When We Were Kings" boxer: ALI. And Joe Frazier; the movie covers the famous "Rumble in the Jungle" heavyweight championship fight from Zaire in 1974.
30. Pola of the silents: NEGRI. Another proper name requiring crossing rescue for me today.
31. Poetic contraction: E'ER
35. Dressed to the nines: GUSSIED UP
36. Wild period: SPREE
38. Uncommon sense: ESP. It looks like it has lost its "abbreviation" status.
40. Actor Holbrook: HAL. Another unknown proper name for me today, hence grateful for the "RARA" cross.
41. Amount past due?: TRE. "Uno, due, tre, quattro ...." Nice cluing again for a little word.
43. Ranch bud: PARD
45. Wonder Woman, for one: HEROINE
47. Plot-driving song, perhaps: ARIA. I assume arias drive the plot lines of operas?
50. Zilch: NIL
51. Rough around the edges: COARSE
52. High-pH compound: ALKALI
53. Summits: ACMES
54. "__ goodness": THANK
55. Temperamental: MOODY
59. Edit for size, as a photo: CROP
60. Follow: TAIL
61. Confident juggler's props: EGGS
62. Candy __: CANE
66. It may need a boost: EGO
67. Flanders who inspired the band Okilly Dokilly: NED of "The Simpsons" fame. There's a band from the UK called "Ned's Atomic Dustbin" who named themselves for a sketch from a BBC radio comedy show which aired in the 60's.
20A. "That's fine": POWDERED SUGAR. Very fine indeed. The Brits call it icing sugar, also known as confectioner's sugar in these parts.
27A. "That's all folks": THE HUMAN RACE. This was my first theme solve which put on the right wavelength. I noticed the missing comma from the Looney Tunes hook line. Very nice cluing.
49A. "That's not the point": PENCIL ERASER. I seem to use all the eraser before I've used all of the pencil which probably says more about my inaccuracy than the design of the pencil. I've got stand-alone backups.
58A. "That's rich": CHOCOLATE CAKE. Chocolate and kale in the same puzzle - as I said last week why do I crave chocolate, and not kale?
So, a nice theme and .... and? The fill is pretty sluggish, there's not a lot to admire. A workmanlike puzzle, but too many obscure names for me and too many throwaway entries to get too much enthusiastic about. It's a shame because there were some great clues for an otherwise dull fill. Let's go explore!
Across:
1. Healthful berry: ACAI. It could be GOJI so wait for a cross to confirm.
5. Sommelier's concern: NOSE. Why don't we just say "this wine has a fine smell?" A sommelier's nose could also be an asset.
9. San Antonio cagers: SPURS
14. Bananas: LOCO. Crazy like a ... chicken? I like El Pollo Loco's grilled chicken.
15. "... the __ blackness of the floors": Poe: EBON
16. "The Fox and the Grapes" storyteller: AESOP
17. Dutch cheese: EDAM
18. Way to go: ROAD
19. Queen's milieu: DRAMA. Drama queen. This one made me smile.
23. Get going: HOP TO
25. "Knives Out" Golden Globe nominee de Armas: ANA. Thank you, crosses. I'm not familiar with the movie and checking her credits on IMDb, I've not seen any of the movies she's appeared in.
26. Lansing-to-Flint dir.: ENE
32. 1960s chess champ Mikhail: TAL. Crosses to the aid again. I'm sure chess enthusiasts will know all about this gentleman, but a little before my chess-conscious time.
33. Mustard family member: KALE
34. They're tapped: KEGS
37. Bundle: PILE
39. On the money: RIGHT
42. Kentucky coach with 876 victories: RUPP. I went with RUUP first for no good reason, which made SUREE look a little strange. Easily fixed. Legendary basketball, fifth on the all-time wins list.
44. Foolhardy: RASH
46. __ avis: RARA. "Rare bird". I learned this from crosswords past, thankfully, as it helped with the crossing proper names.
48. Mex. title: SRA. Señora (from Sonora!)
53. Withdrawal site: ATM
56. Carnival city: RIO
57. Words before "so sue me": I LIED
63. Polynesian language: MAORI
64. Sitar music: RAGA. Here's a raga mix of "Uptown Funk"; you just cannot watch it without smiling!
65. Yemen's Gulf of __: ADEN
68. Conclude with: END ON
69. Indicator: SIGN
70. Feet-first race: LUGE
71. Video chat choice: SKYPE
72. "What __ is new?": ELSE
73. MP3 player: IPOD. Do Apple even make these any more? It seems your phone does everything that an iPod did, with the added bonus of, well, being a phone.
Down:
1. Cream __: ALE
2. Fish that's salted and dried to make bacalao: COD. Originally from the Portuguese, where bacalhau is the name of the fish.The Norwegians have assimilated the dish into their national cuisine where it is now spelled "bakalau". There's more to a bit of dried fish than meets the eye. Here's balalau con tomate.
3. Like Pentatonix numbers: A CAPPELLA
4. Flying insect with prominent eyespots: IO MOTH. Not sure that I knew this. ACAI and LOCO helped me out though.
5. Bookish type: NERD
6. Wind up on stage?: OBOE. Nice clue!
7. Fly like an eagle: SOAR
8. Win over: ENDEAR
9. Hapless sort: SAD SACK
10. Ucayali River country: PERU. The main headstream of the Amazon river, it becomes the Amazon at the confluence with the Marañón.
11. Grammarian's concern: USAGE
12. Type type: ROMAN. Times New Roman, for example, which was commissioned by the London Times newspaper in 1931.
13. Just-in-case item: SPARE
21. "The Caine Mutiny" novelist: WOUK
22. Paternity identifier: DNA
23. Web address letters: HTTP
24. Atheist activist Madalyn: O'HAIR. A new name to me. I'm familiar with the golfer Sean O'Hair, not so much atheist activists.
28. Deface: MAR
29. "When We Were Kings" boxer: ALI. And Joe Frazier; the movie covers the famous "Rumble in the Jungle" heavyweight championship fight from Zaire in 1974.
30. Pola of the silents: NEGRI. Another proper name requiring crossing rescue for me today.
31. Poetic contraction: E'ER
35. Dressed to the nines: GUSSIED UP
36. Wild period: SPREE
38. Uncommon sense: ESP. It looks like it has lost its "abbreviation" status.
40. Actor Holbrook: HAL. Another unknown proper name for me today, hence grateful for the "RARA" cross.
41. Amount past due?: TRE. "Uno, due, tre, quattro ...." Nice cluing again for a little word.
43. Ranch bud: PARD
45. Wonder Woman, for one: HEROINE
47. Plot-driving song, perhaps: ARIA. I assume arias drive the plot lines of operas?
50. Zilch: NIL
51. Rough around the edges: COARSE
52. High-pH compound: ALKALI
53. Summits: ACMES
54. "__ goodness": THANK
55. Temperamental: MOODY
59. Edit for size, as a photo: CROP
60. Follow: TAIL
61. Confident juggler's props: EGGS
62. Candy __: CANE
66. It may need a boost: EGO
67. Flanders who inspired the band Okilly Dokilly: NED of "The Simpsons" fame. There's a band from the UK called "Ned's Atomic Dustbin" who named themselves for a sketch from a BBC radio comedy show which aired in the 60's.
And with that, it's okilly dokilly, here's the grid!
Steve
