Theme: None
Total words: 70
Total blocks: 32
Amazing symmetry in this puzzle: the normal 180-degree rotation; left to right; and top to bottom.
As usual, Bruce likes to have grid-spanning answers anchor his puzzle. Today, we have six:
15A. TV host's segue : BE BACK IN A MINUTE. Reminds me of Don's ABOUT TO GO LIVE answer.
17A. Sources of track reports : STARTER'S PISTOLS. Report = Gunshot sound. Had to ask Dennis for help.
34. Lonely guy in old 60-Down : MAYTAG REPAIRMAN. And ADS ( 60D. Some pitches). Sales pitches.
41A. Fighting words : LET'S STEP OUTSIDE
58A. Creed foe, with "The" : ITALIAN STALLION. Nickname for Rocky. Apollo Creed, an unfamiliar character to me.
63A. Maneuver through a tight opening : THREAD THE NEEDLE
Quite a few abbreviations in this puzzle, the by-product of a very demanding grid structure.
Across:
1. Set off, as an alarm : TRIPPED. Tripped an alarm.
8. Elko native : NEVADAN. We've seen ELKO clued as "Nevada city" a few times.
18. Certain border, to a philatelist : PERF. OK, perforated.
19. Menlo Park wizard, initially : TAE (Thomas Alva Edison)
20. Egyptian fertility deity : ISIS
21. It might be req. for some new furniture : ASSY (Assembly). This abbreviation stumped me also.
24. Eject : SPEW
27. Velvet's older sister in "National Velvet" : EDWINA. Hard for me, since I don't know the crossing 27D & 29D.
30. Sends, in a way : EMAILS. I wanted ELATES.
38. Author Levin : IRA
39. Kind of blouse : PEASANT. Looks pretty on this model.
40. Shade : HUE
44. Impressive property : ESTATE
45. Filled in : TEMPED. Don't know temp can be a verb.
46. Travel about : ROAM
48. Fed. inspection group : USDA. Food inspection.
49. Letter on a sweater : ZETA. Oh, the fraternity letter.
52. Defense gp. formed in Bogotá : OAS (Organization of American States). In 1948.
54. Shortfall : LACK
64. High-powered : INTENSE. I associate "intense" with feelings, not "high-powered" though.
65. Lower : DEGRADE. Verb "lower".
Down:
1. Medicinal amt. : TBSP
2. Anatomical network : RETE. Neural network. Learned from doing Xword.
3. Support beam : I-BAR
4. Layered dessert : PARFAIT. Not to my taste.
5. Election night fig. : PCT (Percent)
6. Just make, with "out" : EKE. This little three word is constructor's best friend, same as OREO.
7. Bad way to play : DIRTY. Play dirty.
8. Collars can hide them : NAPES. Neck backs.
9. Former Radiohead label : EMI. Guessed. English band, what label could it be?
10. As far as the eye can see: Abbr. : VIS. Vision? (Correction: It's visibility.)
11. Dovelike : ANTIWAR
12. Batman and Robin et al. : DUOS
13. King of the Huns, in Norse myth : ATLI. Same as Attila the Hun.
14. Loch seen from Urquhart Castle : NESS. Loch brought me the answer. Don't know the castle.
16. Secretive org. : NSA
22. Shapes up : SNAPS TO. New phrase to me.
23. Smart-sounding brew : SAGE TEA. Have never had this tea.
25. Very little money : PEANUTS. Work for peanuts.
26. Gave off : EMITTED
27. '60s boxing champ Griffith : EMILE. Sigh! I googled this guy before, then promptly forgot all about him.
28. Braves : DARES
29. Peter's "Easy Rider" role : WYATT. Had ??ATT there for some time.
31. "You dig?" response : I'M HIP
32. Cum __ : LAUDE
33. Ed __, runner-up in the first Masters sudden death playoff : SNEED. Not a familiar name to me. 1979 Masters. Lost to Fuzzy Zoeller, according to Wikipedia. Fuzzy is one noisy guy.
35. "The Facts of Life" actress : RAE (Charlotte)
36. Debatable "ability" : ESP
37. Kung __ chicken : PAO
42. Illinois-based food giant : SARA LEE
43. Compressed : SMALLER. Tricky part of speech.
47. __ Cristo: fried sandwich : MONTE. First encounter with this sandwich. Does it taste good, Bill?
48. Peruvian pronoun : USTED. Just "you".
49. Rigatoni relative : ZITI
50. Race: Pref. : ETHN. ETHNO is more common.
51. Sharp : TART
53. Butt end : ASH. Nice clue.
55. Musical with the song "Radames' Letter" : AIDA. Radames is her love.
56. Under 20, to most : COLD. Was thinking of age, not temperature.
57. Joint for guitarists? : KNEE. Don't get this clue, Al/Splynter!
59. Golfer Woosnam : IAN. Very hot-tempered guy. I used to follow European Tour fervently.
61. Chemical suffix : ANE
62. It may be pulled : LEG. I wanted TAB.
C.C.
