20. Public transit commuter's nightmare: BUS LINE STRIKE.
32. Access point indicator on many streets: MANHOLE COVER.
43. Have fun on a diamond: PLAY BASEBALL.
58. Acting affectedly ... and, based on what can go with the three parts of 20-, 32- and 43-Across, this puzzle's title: PUTTING ON AIRS.
Wow, that's a lot of airs.
20A: Airbus: an aircraft designed to carry a large number of passengers economically, especially over relatively short routes. Airline: an organization providing a regular public service of air transportation on one or more routes. Air strike: an attack made by aircraft.
32A: Airman: a pilot or member of the crew of an aircraft, especially in an air force. Air hole: a hole or passage that allows air to pass through. Air cover: protection from aircraft for land-based or naval operations in war situations.
43A: Airplay: broadcasting time devoted to a particular record, performer, or musical genre. Airbase - a base for the operation of military aircraft. Air ball - in basketball, a shot that misses the backboard, rim, and net entirely.
Melissa here.
Across:
1. Kid around: JEST.
5. Abacus unit: BEAD.
13. Fever with chills: AGUE.
14. "I do" site: ALTAR. Aw.
16. "A Death in the Family" Pulitzer winner: AGEE.
17. Word with head or meal: BONE. I think we all know what a bonehead is. Bonemeal is an organic fertilizer for plants made from animal bones and slaughterhouse waste products.
18. Supply chain intermediary: WHOLESALER.
22. Blow up: ERUPT.
24. "¿Cรณmo __?": ESTA. Spanish for "How are you?"
25. Some systems pros: Abbr.: EES. Not 100% sure, but I'm thinking this refers to Electrical Engineers.
26. Mal de __: MER. Seasickness. In French, mal means "bad" or "sick" and mer means "sea."
27. Beaujolais, e.g.: RED. Wine.
30. Bird on a court: LARRY. Larry Bird, basketball player, coach and executive in the National Basketball Association. Widely regarded as one of the greatest basketball players of all time.
37. Pretentious with a paintbrush, say: ARTY.
38. Hindu teacher: SWAMI.
39. "Mamma Mia!" group: ABBA.
46. Shopping __: SPREE.
49. High-__ monitor: RES. Resolution.
50. Meadowland: LEA.
51. Arg. neighbor: URU. Argentina vs. Uruguay.
52. Withdraw by degrees: WEAN.
56. Make sense: ADD UP.
62. Kind of fortitude: INTESTINAL.
63. Copied: APED.
66. __-do-well: NEER.
67. Arduous jobs: SLOGS.
68. "La maja desnuda" artist: GOYA. Oil on canvas painting that portrays a nude woman reclining on a bed of pillows. Goya created a pendant of the same woman identically posed, but clothed, known today as La maja vestida (The Clothed Maja).
69. Old Norse poetic work: EDDA. Body of ancient Icelandic literature contained in two 13th-century books commonly distinguished as the Prose, or Younger, Edda and the Poetic, or Elder.
70. Canadian gas: ESSO. Stands for the S and O of Standard Oil
71. Plant support: STEM.
Down:
1. Poke: JAB.
2. Alter __: EGO.
3. Like one who got careless at the beach: SUNBURNT.
4. Get set to drive: TEE UP. Golf.
5. Scold, with "out": BAWL.
6. K-12, for short: ELHI. Elementary through high school.
7. Make amends: ATONE.
8. Lowlands: DALES. LEA and DALE today.
9. Late-night TV pioneer: PAAR. Jack. Second host of The Tonight Show from 1957 to 1962. Johnny Carson took over after him.
10. Harder to watch: UGLIER.
11. Catcher of the Golden Snitch, in Quidditch: SEEKER. Harry Potter.
12. Rejection of religious dogma: HERESY.
15. Remainder: REST.
19. Like an old joke: STALE.
21. Houston MLBer: STRO. Short for Astro.
22. Stone or Watson: EMMA. Actresses.
23. Raise: REAR.
28. "Frozen" snow queen: ELSA.
29. Like morning grass: DEWY.
31. Many an Omani: ARAB. Oman is a country occupying the southeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula at the confluence of the Persian Gulf and Arabian Sea.
33. Pre-release buzz: HYPE.
34. Dry 27-Across, briefly: CAB.
35. Minnesota congresswoman Ilhan __: OMAR.
36. Gripping device: VISE.
40. Hairless area: BALD SPOT.
41. Veal cordon __: BLEU. The truth is, while chicken cordon bleu gets its name from the French term for blue ribbon (denoting excellence), this dish actually stems from Switzerland. The base of this dish, the breaded chicken is commonly known around the world as schnitzel.
42. Swim __: do one full pool circuit: A LAP.
44. Lamb Chop creator Shari: LEWIS. Now I'm hungry.
45. Actor Morales: ESAI.
46. Lying face-up: SUPINE. Opposite of prone.
47. Spruced up, as a spruce: PRUNED.
48. Groovy?: RUTTED. Cute.
53. Middle-earth tree creatures: ENTS. Ents are a species of beings in J. R. R. Tolkien's fantasy world Middle-earth who closely resemble trees.
54. Deft: AGILE.
55. They're forbidden: NO-NOS.
57. They're boring: DRAGS.
59. Trillion: Pref.: TERA.
60. Scolds to death: NAGS. That sounds severe.
61. Too: ALSO.
64. Set one's sights on: EYE.
65. Beaver's project: DAM.
