Hello Cornerites!
sumdaze here. Today's 43 Across is: Keep On Keeping On
Curtis Mayfield performs Keep on Keeping On (1971)
It might be best to begin with the reveal today:
56 Across. Happy cry on a fishing trip, and what can be said about the end of the answer to each starred clue?: THAT'S A KEEPER.
All of the starred clues end in a word which is a type of KEEPER. Let's see if that works.
20 Across. *Vegetable tops used in soups and stews: TURNIP GREENS.
A GREENSKEEPER is a specialized gardener who is in charge of maintaining landscaping on golf courses and country clubs.
Is anyone else thinking of Carl, the GREENSKEEPER from Caddyshack (1980)
played by Bill Murray? (1:26 min.)
28 Across. *Comedian who hosted "Full Frontal": SAMANTHA BEE.
Full Frontal was a late-night talk and news satire TV program which aired on TBS from 2016 to 2022. In this case, the constructor needed to use a proper name, as opposed to something like a solitary bee (same number of letters and vowels), so that "BEE" did not share the same meaning in both the fill and the theme.
A BEEKEEPER, also called an 'apiarist', tends honey bee hives.
49 Across. *"Quite the slump there, huh?": OFF YOUR GAME.
One definition of a GAMEKEEPER is a person in charge of the breeding and protection of game animals or birds on a private preserve.
In keeping with Crossword Corner tradition, we will now look at the other clues.
Across:1. Deep fissure: CHASM.
6. "Permission to Dance" K-pop band: BTS. I use ATLGranny's memory trick: Boys That Sing.
9. Tiny bit of matter: ATOM. Why should you never trust ATOMs? Because they make everything up.
13. Baffling question: POSER. You might guess that its etymology is connected to questions being posed. Right...and that person asking the test questions was called an apposer. source
14. Tear to bits: REND. Def: to tear (the hair or clothing) as a sign of anger, grief, or despair.
16. Gift wrapper's adhesive: TAPE.
 |
| prom dress & tux made out of duct TAPE |
18. Opera solo: ARIA.
Cecilia Bartoli sings Se Tu M'ami (If You Love Me) by composer Alessandro Parisotti
19. Hits the slopes: SKIS.
23. Promos: ADS. "Promotions" is abbreviated, so is "ADvertisementS".
26. Skin care brand with a Retinol Correxion line: ROC.
26. Skin care brand with a Retinol Correxion line: ROC.
 |
| I have my doubts about a product that does not spell "correction" correctly. |
27. Chin beard: GOATEE.
 |
| Dwane The Rock Johnson, rocking his GOATEE We've seen several GOATEEs in puzzles lately, as well as on some bloggers' faces. |
32. Strange: ODD.
33. Door openers: KNOBS.
34. Pop, as a bubble: BURST.
36. Stuffing herb: SAGE. My grandmother used to make a SAGE stuffing for her Thanksgiving turkey.
37. Outstanding bills: DEBTS.
39. "Pronto!" letters: ASAP.
43. Motif: THEME.
45. Dried chili in mole sauces: ANCHO. ¡Delicioso! I would guess that there are as many mole recipes as there are Mexican grandmothers. Not all recipes use ANCHO chilies (dried poblano peppers) but here is a recipe that does.
33. Door openers: KNOBS.
Angela Lansbury sings The Age of Not Believing
in BedKNOBS and Broomsticks (1971).
34. Pop, as a bubble: BURST.
37. Outstanding bills: DEBTS.
39. "Pronto!" letters: ASAP.
43. Motif: THEME.
45. Dried chili in mole sauces: ANCHO. ¡Delicioso! I would guess that there are as many mole recipes as there are Mexican grandmothers. Not all recipes use ANCHO chilies (dried poblano peppers) but here is a recipe that does.
46. Lively Irish dance: JIG.
52. Infuriate: ENRAGE. Def: to make (someone) extremely angry and impatient; exasperate.
 |
| People who talk loudly on their cell phones in a public space can be infuriating. |
54. Inn divs.: RMS. Inns are divided into RooMS.
55. Got together: MET.
55. Got together: MET.
60. News story intro, in journalism jargon: LEDE. Def: the opening sentence or paragraph of a news article, summarizing the most important aspects of the story.
If that's all you read, then that's all you know.
61. Hailed vehicle: TAXI.
62. "Swell!": NIFTY.
66. __ of expertise: AREA.
67. Skidded: SLID.
61. Hailed vehicle: TAXI.
 |
| These car lot Jeeps were damaged by a hailstorm, making them hailed vehicles. |
62. "Swell!": NIFTY.
66. __ of expertise: AREA.
67. Skidded: SLID.
68. Typical film festival entry: INDIE. Movies not produced by a major studio are called INDIEs. Theoretically, they have the freedom to be edgier than the standard fare.
69. Disinfectant target: GERM.
70. Uber driver's guess, for short: ETA. Estimated Time of Arrival, for long
71. Folklore brutes: OGRES.
Down:
1. Lifeguard's lifesaving skill: Abbr.: CPR. True story: My dad once did CPR on a guy at a bar. He never took a class but had seen it done on TV. The paramedics told him he saved the guy's life.
2. Long-handled garden tool: HOE. an uncomfortable history of the short-handled HOE
3. Marshmallow roast residue: ASH.
4. Stock exchange membership: SEAT. That is not what immediately comes to mind on a Monday but OK....
5. Owner of the Springfield Nuclear Power Plant on "The Simpsons": MR. BURNS.
69. Disinfectant target: GERM.
70. Uber driver's guess, for short: ETA. Estimated Time of Arrival, for long
71. Folklore brutes: OGRES.
Down:
1. Lifeguard's lifesaving skill: Abbr.: CPR. True story: My dad once did CPR on a guy at a bar. He never took a class but had seen it done on TV. The paramedics told him he saved the guy's life.
2. Long-handled garden tool: HOE. an uncomfortable history of the short-handled HOE
3. Marshmallow roast residue: ASH.
4. Stock exchange membership: SEAT. That is not what immediately comes to mind on a Monday but OK....
5. Owner of the Springfield Nuclear Power Plant on "The Simpsons": MR. BURNS.
6. Tree limb: BRANCH. 
7. Hatcher of "Desperate Housewives": TERI.
8. Scissors sound: SNIP. For some people, this sound triggers ASMR (Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response).
9. Hopelessly lost: AT SEA. Sextants were one way early sailors avoided being hopelessly lost while AT SEA.
10. Develop a fondness for: TAKE TO.
11. Expressed a view: OPINED.
12. Fiddled (with): MESSED. In this video, the musician is fiddling with the sound that his house's water pipe is making while playing his fiddle to its beat.
15. Sharp knives: DAGGERS.
21. Decompose: ROT. Every 1-2 weeks, I enjoy turning my compost pile and observing the various stages of decomposing material.
22. Some reddish deer: ROES. Just remember the song. ♪♪♪ ROE, a deer, a reddish deer. ♪♪♪
7. Hatcher of "Desperate Housewives": TERI.
 |
| TERI won a Golden Globe award in 2005 for her Susan Mayer role. |
8. Scissors sound: SNIP. For some people, this sound triggers ASMR (Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response).
9. Hopelessly lost: AT SEA. Sextants were one way early sailors avoided being hopelessly lost while AT SEA.
10. Develop a fondness for: TAKE TO.
11. Expressed a view: OPINED.
12. Fiddled (with): MESSED. In this video, the musician is fiddling with the sound that his house's water pipe is making while playing his fiddle to its beat.
15. Sharp knives: DAGGERS.
21. Decompose: ROT. Every 1-2 weeks, I enjoy turning my compost pile and observing the various stages of decomposing material.
24. "SNL" alum Carvey: DANA. This is DANA Carvey impersonating Bob Dylan on SNL's Weekend Update in 1991 (with anchor Dennis Miller and David Spade as Tom Petty).
25. Air quality concern: SMOG. Everything seems to be turned into a portmanteau now-a-days, but SMoke + fOG = SMOG was a portmanteau pioneer.
29. Aid and __: ABET.
30. Monastic headquarters: ABBEY.
31. "However ... ": BUT.
35. Zest: TANG.
a TV commercial from 1966 for TANG (1 min.)
38. "Unbelievable" rock band: EMF. their website
 |
| EMF is an initialism for Epsom Mad Funkers. |
41. World-weary sigh: AH ME.
42. Ada Limón, e.g.: POET. Born 28 March 1976, Ms. Limón is the author of six books of poetry. In 2022, she became the first Latina to be name POET Laureate of the U.S.
44. Monopolizes: HOGS.
45. Hall of "Coming 2 America": ARSENIO.
 |
| Arsenio Hall co-starred with Eddie Murphy in Coming to America (1988). Coming 2 America (2021) is the sequel. |
46. Fatigue after a long flight: JET LAG.
47. Vague reply to "Where are you?": IN HERE. I liked this one.
48. Teacher, during exam week: GRADER. CSO to the Cornerites who have been there and done that!
50. Tater Tots maker: OREIDA.
51. MLB official: UMP. According to the Grammar Girl Podcast Episode 919, a language phenomenon called "rebracketing" is why we no longer say numpire. That word came to English from an Old French word nonpeer which means "not peer" or "peerless", essentially an arbiter of higher status than the participants. Eventually, [a] [numpire] became [an] [umpire]. Another example of rebracketing is [a] [napron] morphed into [an] [apron].
53. Starting squad: A-TEAM. Are there any other (besides me) Le Tour fans here on The Corner? This link goes to the website where you can click on "TEAMS" then click on any of the 22 teams to see some serious A-TEAM members. Each team starts the race with 8 members but it is a long, grueling, 23-day race so many strong riders will drop out due to injuries or time cut-offs.
59. Circle: RING.
63. POTUS on a dime: FDR. "President Of The United States" is abbreviated, so is Franklin Delano Roosevelt.
64. Attach (to): TIE.
65. "Count me in!": YES. We'll conclude on this positive note!
 |
| the grid |
I hope I did not keep you too long. Enjoy your week, everyone!
Notes from C.C.:
Happy birthday to my incomparable mentor and friend Don "Hard G"! Without him, my puzzle book would not have been possible. Thanks for everything, Don!
 |
| Don & his wife Barbie |
