Theme: Vowel Movement B*TT.
17. One of two rectangles next to home plate: BATTERS BOX.
25. Cartoon flapper: BETTY BOOP.
37. Last step, however difficult: BITTER END.
52. "Cheers!": BOTTOMS UP.
63. Called from the rear?: BUTT-DIALED.
Boomer here.
Do not put too much BUTTER on your popcorn. Bowling season is in full swing and my games leave a little to hope for and I have returned to coaching High School bowling for my alma mater. The high schoolers are fun to work with and the head coach appreciates my help and so do the parents of the kids. Makes me feel good.
Across:
1. Fried __, popular Chinese food order: RICE. I am a bigger fan of Minnesota wild rice. I think C.C. is also.
5. Coffee that probably won't keep you up: DECAF. No thank you. I need caffeine to bowl.
10. Engrossed: RAPT.
14. Tehran's land: IRAN. Many times when I hit a baseball, I RAN to first.
15. Norwegian king, 995-1000: OLAF I. In Northfield, Minnesota stands St. Olaf College. Very elite.
16. Other, in Oaxaca: OTRO.
19. New Mexico art community: TAOS.
20. Move like Miley: TWERK.
21. Butcher's cut: LOIN. Sir or Tender??
23. CD predecessors: LPS. I still have some of my old albums.
Chad Mitchell, Simon and Garfunkel and the Beatles. But nothing to play
them on anymore.
24. Absorb the lesson: LEARN. I am giving the High School kids a lesson in bowling.
27. Sick: ILL.
28. Corn serving: EAR. I thought it came in a can.
30. Dogie catcher: LASSO.
31. Youngster: TYKE.
33. Boxing match venue: RING. Around the Rosie. Please do not put one in your nosey.
36. First stage, as of an illness: ONSET. There still seems to be a lot of this Delta variant going around. C.C. and I wear masks whenever we go out.
40. Tut-tutted: TSKED.
43. ER doc's "Now!": STAT. Also the press keeping track of home runs or yards gained.
44. Glasses, in adspeak: SPEX.
48. Arcade pioneer: ATARI. Yup, I had a few games years ago. They were kind of primitive to what is out there today.
49. "Casablanca" pianist: SAM. Play it again. See also 68. "Casablanca" heroine: ILSA. 1942 - before my time. Humphrey Bogart.
51. NYC's Madison or Fifth: AVE. Grant AVE, San Francisco, California USA.
56. Fall flower: ASTER. John Jacob.
58. Divided Asian country: Abbr.: KOR. They make cars in the South.
59. Not worth debating: MOOT.
60. Prefix with face or faith: INTER. Or state or fere or change, or a lot more.
61. Falco of "The Sopranos": EDIE.
66. Egg foo __: YUNG. I always thought it was Egg foo YOUNG.
67. River to the Rhone: ISERE.
69. Fix, vet-style: SPAY.
70. Calif. NFLer: LA RAM. Curly horns on their helmets.
71. "Phooey!": RATS.
Down:
2. With extreme anger: IRATELY. Sometimes the puzzle may do it to you.
3. Fashion runway: CATWALK.
4. "Come in!": ENTER.
5. Nerdy type: DORK. Now there's a word I have not heard six sixth grade.
6. Raised city trains: ELS. Senior PGA pro Ernie.
7. Computer cord: CABLE. We quit our CABLE TV long ago and went to the Satellite dish.
8. In progress, as Sherlock's "game": AFOOT. In an old game of poker now and then I would get a hand like A FOOT.
9. Handy "Mr.": FIX-IT.
10. "Hogwash!": ROT. Poor hogs. They cannot take a bath without a nasty remark.
11. With "for," unable to think of, as words: AT A LOSS. Within the Sounds of Silence. Paul Simon.
12. Say, "Will you marry me?": PROPOSE.
13. Drunkard: TOSS-POT. I believe this is when you are stopped for drunk driving so you toss your marijuana out the window.
18. Sea eagle: ERNE.
22. Hosiery material: NYLON. Made of synthetic plastic and ladies wear them as socks.
24. Illuminated: LIT.
25. Telly watchers: BRITS.
26. Styx and Stones: BANDS. The Rolling Stones are coming to
Minneapolis this fall. I am not a big fan anyway, but it seems like it
could be a Covid event waiting to happen.
29. Paintings on a wall, for instance: ART. Paul Simon's buddy. Not anymore.
32. Film critic Roger: EBERT. Not anymore. He left us in 2013 - cancer.
34. Ping-Pong table divider: NET. It's only about 4 inches high but caught a lot of balls.
35. Comprehend: GRASP.
38. "Eat crow" or "talk turkey": IDIOM.
39. Expected-in hr.: ETA.
40. Indent producers, on a PC: TAB KEYS.
41. Got to one's feet: STOOD UP. Difficult for me in low chairs at bowling centers.
42. Catastrophic New Orleans hurricane: KATRINA. Too many letters for IDA.
45. Kneecap: PATELLA.
46. World's highest mountain: EVEREST. I wonder if mountain climbers EVER REST while climbing it.
47. Child of a boomer: XER.
50. Pedi partner: MANI.
53. Shell competitor: MOBIL.
54. "Stars and Stripes Forever" composer: SOUSA. "Hurrah for our flag of the free, May it wave as our standard forever."
55. Give voice to: UTTER.
57. Word with case or way: STAIR. I just call them STAIRS.
60. Footnote word: IDEM.
62. IOC country code between ECU and ERI: EGY. Egypt.
64. __-la-la: TRA.
65. Prosecutors, for short: DAS. District Attorneys.
Boomer
