Wednesday, Mar 20, 2024 Michèle Govier

 TWO DRUMS & A CYMBAL...

I had a feeling this was not a "normal" 3- or 4-word 'theme with reveal' when I scanned the grid before starting and saw two stacks of 8-letter ACROSS fills ( and after-the-fact, I see Monday's puzzle had double Down 9-lettter fills ), but nothing close to grid spanning; I did not see the 13-letter-long DOWN fill at first.  This took me longer than my typical Wednesday solve time, due to the crummy crossing of a proper name and a vague abbreviation.  SIGH; the struggle continues.  I did a search of the blog, and found a puzzle of Michèle's from Nov 7 last year; thanks to her for today's clever construction.  As the clue for 14A states, the perimeter of the puzzle, in both the across and down, are words ( highlighted ) that describe sounds - and the "reveal";

14. Audiophile's setup, and an apt description of the perimeter of this puzzle: SURROUND SOUND

YES~!

And Away We Go~!

ACROSS:

1. Half a sit-up: CRUNCH - I just thought this was a "harder" sit-up; here's a quick reference to what is different

7. Commercial tune: JINGLE - what's your most earworm-worthy ad~?

13. "A Wrinkle in Time" novelist Madeleine: LENGLE - proper name fill #1, and I had no clue; the "G" got me

14. Timekeepers that don't work on a rainy day: SUNDIALS

 

I think the time is "beer-thirty"

16. How baked potatoes may be cooked: IN FOIL - meh, but it is certainly a way to cook a spud

17. Remove, as a seatbelt: UNFASTEN

18. Gina Boswell of Bath & Body Works, e.g.: Abbr.: CEO - I do the DOWNS first, just needed the "O"

19. Sequel to Puzo's "The Last Don": OMERTA

21. "Mean Girls" writer Fey: TINA - this proper name I did know

22. Underwater plant with gas-filled bladders: KELP

24. Wayward: ERRANT

26. Time out?: NAP

27. Playground retort: DID TOO - not the usual ARE too

29. Quirky habit: TIC

31. Cliche: TRITE

33. French noble: DUC - I haven't had Frawnche in a long time

35. Comprehend: GRASP

39. Eurythmics lead singer Lennox: ANNIE - one of my favoritest songs

Here Comes the Rain Again

40. Go from 4x6 to 8x10, say: Abbr.: ENLarge

41. Totaled: RAN TO

42. Busy restaurant's notification device: PAGER

43. JFK predecessor: DDE - Dwight David Eisenhower - IKE - two days in a row; I would have liked to have lived during his presidency, even with the threat of the "reds" and nuclear war.  I have "Ike", his biography, and I do like to read about his role in WWII - and he was the man who enacted the Interstate System; for an interesting take on the pros and cons of that massive national project, I would suggest reading "Divided Highways"

44. Like some purchases: IN APP - and - 62A. Are cast members of: APPEAR IN - sort of palindromic

45. "The __ is calm tonight": "Dover Beach" opening: SEA - with a blank grid, I pondered "AIR", but in retrospect, "Beach" might have been a give-away....

47. Mouths off to: SASSES

49. Amtrak stop: Abbr.: STAtion

52. Silky: SMOOTH

54. Guidelines: Abbr.: STandarDs

57. Ultimate: LAST

59. Creative works: OPUSES

61. Goal: AIM

64. Yukon neighbor: ALASKA - "UCONN" is my neighbor, too~!

Ba - Dum - Tss

66. Prop for a rock singer: MIC STAND - drummers who sing

67. Watering hole in TV's "M*A*S*H": ROSIE'S - ah, yes, now I remember....

68. Unnerve: RATTLE

69. 1984 mermaid movie: SPLASH - Tom Hanks, WAY back in his career


DOWN:

1. Hit it off: CLICK

2. Zellweger of "Judy": RENEE - name #5, but I'm not counting....

3. Developing: UNFOLDING - great clue/answer/fill

4. CARE, e.g.: NGO - I had to look this up after I solved the crossword; DAH~!  I tried "NPO", for a Non-Profit Organization; nope - it's a Non-Governmental Organization; not only that, but I was confusing it with GMO - genetically modified organism, too - hey, it was early in the morning when I did this....

5. Sister of Erato: CLIO - I can never remember my muses....

6. Knight cap: HELMET - punny; that would be an accurate description of such head wear

7. Ruling faction after a coup: JUNTA - I could only think of CADRE or CABAL

8. Baby: INFANT

9. Contract that may prevent bad PR: NDA - Non Disclosure Agreement

10. Crux: GIST

11. Ancestor of the romance languages: LATIN- four years for me in high school, but it does help solving crosswords~!😜

12. Justice Kagan: ELENA

15. Button alternative: SNAP

20. Ate away: ERODED

23. Feels sorry for: PITIES

25. Fertile Crescent river: TIGRIS

28. Some combines: DEERES - John Deere.  I want a tractor like this;  I have 1-1/2 acres in CT to mow, the snow, a creek, and a LOT of big rocks

NOT a combine, NOT a John Deere

30. Origami birds: CRANES - SWANS was too short

31. Stout spout: TAP

32. Messenger molecule: RNA

34. Soccer equipment: CLEATS - SHIN PADS didn't fit

36. Youngest daughter of Nicholas II: ANASTASIA - mostly perps

37. Valvoline rival: STP

38. Dad: POP - we're missing "CRACKLE" for a Rice Crispies trifecta

46. Unscrupulous: AMORAL

48. Woolgathers?: SHEARS - the "?" suggested "DREAMS" was not the answer, but 50% correct

49. Poetry event: SLAM

50. Piglike rhino kin: TAPIR

51. Pet re-homing org.: ASPCA

53. Provide a view: OPINE - ah - that kind of view

55. Sea walls: DIKES

56. Huge success: SMASH

58. Assessment that may end with "Pencils down": TEST - dah~! Not EXAM

60. Unappealing food: SLOP

63. NFL passing stat: ATTempts

65. Communication syst. with hand motions: ASL - American Sign Language

Splynter