Sunday December 22, 2019 Peter Koetters

Theme:  "At the Helm" - The first word in each theme entry is a captain.

23A. *Without hesitation: HOOK LINE AND SINKER. Captain Hook.

32A *Opponent of the U.S. entry into WWII: AMERICA FIRSTER. Captain America. I only know Trump's "America First".

48A. *"Sheik of ... burning sand" in a Ray Stevens hit: AHAB THE ARAB. Captain Ahab.

67A. *Back-to-basics food regimen: CAVEMAN DIET. Captain Caveman. Also new to me.

84A. *Moments requiring decisive action: CRUNCH TIMES. Captain Crunch.

100A. *Groups that pervert justice: KANGAROO COURTS. Captain Kangaroo.

16D. *Food chain with a roundheaded spokesman: JACK IN THE BOX. Captain Jack.

61D. *1990 Paul Simon song, with "The": OBVIOUS CHILD. Captain Obvious.

112. 1865 classic not written for the characters that start the answers to starred clues: O CAPTAIN MY CAPTAIN.

Good to see Peter back for a Sunday puzzle. He gave us that fantastic "Smile" puzzle earlier this year.

This puzzle is very heavy in themage. Total 119 squares (Rich's minimum is 84). But the fill is still quite smooth.

Across:
 
1. Glimpse: ESPY.

5. Way up: ASCENT.

11. "Modern Family" network: ABC TV. We also have 26. "Young Sheldon" network: CBS.

16. Bush found in Florida: JEB.

19. Taiwanese superstar Jay: CHOU. He was Kato in "The Green Hornet". His Chou is the same as my Zhou.

20. Indiana Big Ten school: PURDUE.

21. Anne of comedy: MEARA.

22. Kerfuffle: ADO.

27. Big-eyed bird: OWL.

28. Johns in Scotland: IANS.

29. Thought of Monet: IDEE.

30. Farm team links: YOKES. Real farm team.

38. Poop out: TIRE.

39. Certain noble's domain: BARONY.

41. "Speed-the-Plow" playwright: MAMET (David)

42. Broadcasts: AIRINGS.

44. Underway, in a way: ASEA.

45. Upbraids: SCOLDS.

47. Bear witness: ATTEST.

51. Michelangelo work: PIETA.

52. Curable aliment: HAM. Looks like "Curable ailment".

55. "Death, be not proud" poet: DONNE.

56. Stylish Christian: DIOR.

57. Espresso foam: CREMA.

59. "Death Wish" star Charles: BRONSON.

63. Tire material: STEEL.

65. Unkempt: SHABBY.

66. Automation prefix: ROBO.

71. "J'Accuse...!" author: ZOLA.

72. Middle-earth tongue: ELVISH.

74. Modeling agent?: EPOXY. Plane/train model.

75. Rubber glove materials: LATEXES. Did not know this is plurable.

77. Kavanaugh colleague: ALITO.

78. Awestruck: AGOG.

79. Chile con __: cheesy Tex-Mex sauce: QUESO. I had my first bite of cheese at the age of 24. McDonald's.

81. Brit. medal: DSO. Distinguished Service Order.

82. Fountain choices: COLAS.

90. Wasatch dweller, perhaps: UTAHAN.

92. Believer: THEIST.

93. Zilch: NADA.

94. Greek letter that inspired the euro symbol: EPSILON. Unaware of the connection.

96. "__ you done?": AREN'T.

97. Aptly named Vt. ski resort: MT SNOW.

99. Small indentation: POCK.

104. Beatnik's "Got it!": I'M HIP.

106. Oscilloscope knob: DIAL.

107. Twice tetra-: OCTA.

108. PC brain: CPU.

111. Rock and Roll Hall of Fame architect: PEI. Born in Guangzhou.

118. Annex: ELL.

119. Action star Lundgren: DOLPH.

120. Bawl out: RAIL AT.

121. Mirrored: APED.

122. Silent consent: NOD.

123. "Hasta la vista!": SEE YA.

124. Digestion aid: ENZYME.

125. Tender in Havana: PESO.

Down:

1. Smart speaker brand: ECHO.

2. Display: SHOW.

3. Lifeguard's domain: POOL AREA.

4. Goofy laugh: YUK.

5. Drone shelter: APIARY. Not the flying drone.

6. Largest division of Islam: SUNNI.

7. Dramatic mus. marking: CRESC.

8. Writer LeShan: EDA.

9. Vow taker: NUN.

10. Youngest of nine Kennedy siblings: TED.

11. In the thick of: AMIDST.

12. "John Brown's Body" poet: BENET.

13. Self-indulgent sort: CAKE EATER. New phrase to me.

14. Numero di colori on the Italian flag: TRE.

15. Verb associated with mileage: VARY.

17. Stefan of tennis: EDBERG.

18. Heads: BOSSES.

24. Legal encumbrance: LIEN.

25. Horse fathers: SIRES.

31. Elevator guy: OTIS.

33. Ancient Dead Sea kingdom: MOAB.

34. Dino's love: AMORE.

35. FDR's dog: FALA.

36. Cinephile's website: IMDB.

37. "Hud" director Martin: RITT

39. Barnyard bleat: BAA.

40. Tray filler: ASH.

43. Come to, as an agreement: REACH.

45. Medicinal shrub: SENNA.

46. Spam holder: CAN.  Spam Musubi. I'll probably still dip this in the wasabi & soy sauce mixture. I'm going to try this one after my current tube runs out.

47. Garlicky sauce: AIOLI.

49. NFL stats: TDS.

50. Bootlegger's haul: HOOCH.

51. Variegated: PIED.

53. Mosey: AMBLE.

54. Chichén Itzá builders: MAYAS.

56. Overrule: DENY.

58. Bulldoze: RAZE.

59. Basketful on the table: BREAD. And 60. Basketful on the table: ROLLS. And 115. Indian 59-Down: NAN. Here are some Chinese Man Tou. We just steam.

62. "__ isn't!": emphatic rebuttal: NO IT.

63. Industrial settler?: SMOG.

64. Duty: TAX.

65. Tuck away: STASH.

68. Like the Impossible Burger: VEGAN.

69. Heroic poem: EPOS.

70. Pick: ELECT.

73. San Bernardino Co. is part of it: SOCAL.

76. Tater __: TOT.

78. Bing Crosby's role in "Robin and the 7 Hoods": ALAN ADALE. Learning moment for me also.

79. Westernmost South American capital: QUITO.

80. Young __: UNS.

83. Reluctant assent: OH OK.

84. One-named singer: CHER.

85. Vegas rival: RENO.

86. Caltech, e.g.: Abbr.: INST.

87. Guy's grooming portmanteau: MANSCAPE.

88. Pre-1868 Tokyo: EDO.

89. Jug band instrument: SAW.

91. __ bar: TIKI.

92. Cheery refrain: TRA LA.

94. Auto-injector brand: EPIPEN.

95. Big citrus fruit: POMELO. Thick-skinned.

96. __ Raisin, British whodunit sleuth named for a British writer: AGATHA. Helpful clue.

97. Change in form: MUTATE.

98. Something under the sink: TRAP.

101. Chilly: NIPPY.

102. With feigned shyness: COYLY.

103. Logical "razor" creator: OCCAM.

105. Bean bags?: PODS.

109. Bakery array: PIES.

110. Reverse: UNDO.

113. Iowa college: COE.

114. Spleen: IRE.

116. "Les __": MIZ.

117. Stout source: TAP.

C.C.

Saturday, December 21, 2019, Brian E. Paquin

Saturday Themeless by Brian E. Paquin

Happy Winter Solstice! Today at 10:19 p.m. CST, the Sun will be directly over the Tropic of Capricorn and therefore those of us north of the equator will have our fewest hours of daylight. It is called the first day of winter for us and  the first day of summer for our friends south of the equator. 

Brian Paquin presents us a puzzle (with parallel vertical grid spanners) that you may have to finish in a hurry as there will be a minimum of daylight to guide your solve. 

Let's see what we have on this auspicious astronomical day:


Across:

1. Swagger: BRAVADO shown by someone who 1. Crows: BRAGS - An interesting cross

8. Elite list: WHO'S WHO - As a high school senior I remember getting a flattering letter that I had been chosen to be in the WHO'S WHO book for outstanding students. My balloon burst when I saw that I had to send them $50 to see my name in print.

15. Tent event: REVIVAL - Elmer Gantry's REVIVAL tent was home to a charlatan hustler 

16. "Get going!": HOP TO IT 

17. No longer happening: AT AN END - Today? Autumn!

18. Its namesake, a former Surveyor General of India, objected to having it named for him: EVEREST - The world's highest peak is called Chomolungma by the Tibetans and Sagarmatha by the Nepalese 

19. Hip-hop subgenre: GANGSTA - Google if you must

20. '20s tennis star Lacoste: RENE - How his shirt with the crocodile came to be

21. Convene: SIT.

22. De bene __: literally, of well-being: ESSE - In law

24. Exchanges: SWAPS - Judge James H. Wilkerson SWAPPED juries for Al Capone after he found out the original panel had been bribed

28. Old Messina money: LIRA.

31. __ operandi: MODI - Plural of Modus Operandi (M.O.)

33. Aromatic garland: LEI - I wonder if ONO ever wore a LEI and shared an OREO with an EMU at a game where 14. Giants legend: OTT was playing in Crosswordland

34. More than is tolerable: ONCE TOO OFTEN 

38. Charles, until he's in charge: HEIR TO THE THRONE - Prince Andrew was 8th in line for being HEIR TO THE THRONE but now it seems his mother has "fired" him

41. Doesn't evolve: STAYS THE SAME - Like these guys

The Luddites

42. Area of interest: BAG - Papa's got a "brand new one" according to the "hardest working man in show business"

43. Cold War leader Andropov: YURI - YURI was head of the KGB for fifteen years before being the head of the Soviet state for fifteen months 

44. Longbow wood sources: YEWS.

47. Lumps: CLODS - Breaking them up to make a seed bed

50. Places where shooting occurs: SETS - They can be deceptive 

52. Like aspirin, briefly: OTC - Certain meds like these are not Over The Counter any more

54. Sermon ender?: ETTE.

56. Spot for a bowler: HAT TREE - Not where you would find our blogging, bowling friends 

59. Kerosene cousin: COAL OIL - The difference 

62. Like some light, fruity wines: UNOAKED  - American Chardonnays are almost always oaked, which is why they're known for that buttery creaminess, and European Chardonnays are steel-aged and tend towards those bright apple and citrus flavors. A new word for me and my spell checker

63. Annual February race site: DAYTONA 500

64. Croc or cobra: REPTILE.

65. Cat's asset: STEALTH - My first thought

66. Like some lumber: TREATED - Our deck made of pressure TREATED lumber lasted ten years and now we have a composite deck




Down:

2. Sell at the mall, say: RETAIL - Less and less so

3. Italian "forward": AVANTI - The 1963 Studebaker AVANTI. If you thought the Edsel looked odd... How the AVANTI came to be

4. "Pulp Fiction" actor Rhames: VING - Theories abound about why Ving had a band-aid on his neck

5. City rtes.: AVES.

6. Boccaccio added "Divina" to the title of his masterpiece: DANTE Alighieri originally called his work simply Commedia 

7. Ancient: OLD AS METHUSELAH - it took a lot of crosses to get the spelling correct

8. Response to a wince: WHERE DOES IT HURT?

9. __ to: halted, nautically: HOVE - He HOVE to when the pirate told him to

10. Debuts: OPENS - Phantom Of The Opera OPENED at The Majestic Theater of Broadway January 26, 1988 and has been playing there ever since 

11. Scatter: STREW.

12. Anguish: WOE.

13. Part of HMS, at times: HIS - His/Her Majesty's Ship and 61. Word of obedience: AYE - A word often heard on board

23. "Told you!": SO THERE.

25. Glee club voice: ALTO.

26. Rounded tool part: PEEN - Claw and ball PEEN hammers

27. Trig function: SINE.

29. Rival of Tiger: RORY - McIlroy today. The golf media actually tried to make Phil Mickelson his rival but Tiger in his prime had no peer

30. Giants in the 1954 horror film "Them!": ANTS - None named OTT

32. Smidgen: IOTA.

35. Owner of Clairol and CoverGirl: COTY.

36. "Goodness!": OH MY - Look at the size of those ANTS!

37. Let out: FREE.

38. London-based financial corp. founded in Hong Kong: HSBC - Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corporation

39. Short space saver: ET AL.

40. "It is the green-eyed monster ... " speaker: IAGO - The passage in original and modern text

45. Exercise prompt: WORK IT.

46. Brosnan role in '80s TV: STEELE - We had his co-star in the Friday the 13th puzzle this month

48. Yazoo region: DELTA.

49. One without arms: STOOL.

51. More lucid: SANER.

53. Turned over: CEDED.

55. Decorator's subtlety: TINT - Quick, what is the color of your living room wall? I have no idea about ours.

57. Drink copiously: TOPE - From French toper to keep an agreement, from Spanish topar to take a bet; probably because a wager was generally followed by a drink. You're welcome

58. "Ciao!": TATA.

59. Streaming alternatives: CD'S - Our Mannheim Steamroller and Trans Siberia Orchestra CD'S get a workout this time of year

60. Meal starter?: OAT - A cheap ($0.98) and convenient version of a childhood favorite of mine

Go ahead and comment with a light heart as our darkest days will now start to get longer      and Spring is coming. Calculate the time until spring

Notes from C.C.:

Happy fifth wedding annversary to Oo and Lemonade. How time flies!

Friday, December 20, 2019, David Alfred Bywaters

Title: LET IT BE CHRISTMAS

It is not often I am inspired to begin a puzzle write-up with a musical link but 'tis the season. Chanukah (Hannukah or however you want to spell it in Roman letters) begins this year on Sunday at sundown and Christmas is next Wednesday. The world is loaded with HOLIDAYS and I hope you all enjoy yours. I don't want to forget Festivus or Kwanzaa.

On to our delightful puzzle from DAB. When I started blogging here more than a decade ago, the first thing I learned was to look at 17 Across for a hint to the theme.  This week that is SAYCHEESE. If that is a themer then HAIRSALON also has to be part of the theme. That left me a BIGMESS. The second thing I learned from C.C. was "don't panic", so next is to look around the edges or at the Down fill. TA DAH! I found the rare Friday reveal: 26D. Disappointment ... and a hint to four puzzle answers: LET DOWN (7). So we need four fill with the trigram LET heading down from L-T.  The rest was interesting mental pictures.

3D. That one curl that makes the whole hairdo work?: KEY RINGLET (10). A Key Ring...

9D. Perfectionist butcher's pride?: CUTLET CORNERS (13).
The meat man does not Cut Corners.

18D. Breakfast theater offering?: HAMLET AND EGGS (13). Our Shakespeare fill, Ham and Eggs.

30D. Hollywood's latest canine discovery?: DOG STARLET (10).
Dog Star following in Lassie's paw steps.

There was one serious Friday clue/fill difficulty - ALBEDO - I am looking at you

Across:

1. Work with dough: BAKE. We kneaded to start with a pun.

5. Cylindrical granary: SILO. Hmm, silo (n.) 1835, from Spanish silo, traditionally derived from Latin sirum (nominative sirus), from Greek siros "a pit to keep corn in." It sounds like some Asian influence.

9. City in Illinois' Little Egypt region: CAIRO. I did not know the current status of the Southernmost CITY in Illinois.

14. Blessing ender: AMEN.

15. Letter-shaped auto feature: T-TOP. I like it near 19A. Chophouse choice: T-BONE.

16. Stomach trouble: ULCER. Stomach ulcers, which are also known as gastric ulcers, are painful sores in the stomach lining. ... This allows the digestive acids to eat away at the tissues that line the stomach, causing an ulcer. Stomach ulcers may be easily cured, but they can become severe without proper treatment. I will not post pictures.

17. Words before snapping: SAY CHEESE. Pictures not tempers. It perhaps comes from former Ambassador Joseph E. Davies and is guaranteed to make you look pleasant no matter what you’re thinking. Mr. Davies disclosed the formula while having his own picture taken on the set of his “Mission to Moscow.” It’s simple. Just say “Cheese,” It’s an automatic smile. “I learned that from a politician,”

20. Estonia, once: Abbr.: SSR. Soviet Socialist Republic.

21. Inlet: ARM. Meh.

22. Eases up: RELENTS.

24. Self-conscious question: IS IT ME? Yes, it is!

26. Performed eye surgery on, maybe: LASED. A mini-CSO to me as I have had YAG Laser surgery - not the popular one.

27. Win-win: NO LOSE. A partial?

29. Not getting along: AT ODDS.

33. Troll's cousin: OGRE. Are they REALLY related?

34. Code of conduct: ETHIC.

36. "Wow!": OOH. It needs an "AAH" to make sense to me. It has a clecho - 39A. "Wow!": OH GEE.

37. Dark: UNLIT.

38. Stir: ADO.

41. Really dug, with "up": ATE.

42. Hard wear: ARMOR. Very funny clue.

44. Antarctic explorer James: ROSS.
This famous MAN.

45. Spiral pasta: ROTINI.

47. Tree used for furniture and food: WALNUT. In case you want some nuts or syrup HOW TO RECOGNIZE a Black Walnut Tree.

49. Jingle-writing guy: ADMAN. Don Draper.

51. Render fizzy: AERATE. Like some others, I think of golf courses and greens.

54. Difficult and confusing situation: BIG MESS. I told you NO POLITICS!

57. Source of animal protection: FUR.

58. Sushi garnish: ROE. I am not caviar or other fish egg lover.

59. Script you can eat: ICING. We can't write in script here but Happy Birthday.

60. Permanent purveyor: HAIR SALON. Nice alliteration.

63. Obscure: BEFOG.

64. Magazine with a pronoun for a title: ELLE. A French pronoun.

65. Baseball team whose original full name is rarely used: METS. They were officially named the New York Metropolitans, after an 1883 short-lived team.

66. Outplays: BESTS. Like Dan Ackroyd and Eddie Murphy.

67. Speculator's panicky cry: SELL.

68. 53-Down synonym: ITSY. Teeny weeny? 53D. 68-Across synonym: EENSY.

Down:

1. Low voices: BASSI.

2. Gather: AMASS. Like Uncle Scrooge- a fortune.

4. Letter abbr.: ENClosure.

5. Man cave setup: STEREO. Surround sound?

6. Bag of chips at checkout, say: ITEM. Random.

7. __ Altos, California: LOS. They have many very pretty and very expensive houses there.

8. __ house: OPERA. It was the only five letter fill that came to mind.

10. Planetary reflected-light ratio: ALBEDO. After reflecting on this clue, I realized I did not know it was the proportion of the incident light or radiation that is reflected by a surface, typically that of a planet or moon. The word comes from the Latin  ALBUS.

11. One who is more than just famous: ICON. Same start and length as IDOL.

12. Monthly check: RENT. Somewhat random.

13. Mine products: ORES. No, they are mine!

23. Actor Morales: ESAI. The first crosswordese fill I learned.

25. Bagels and donuts, shapewise: TORI. I like bagels and donuts, but I feel like some music with my coffee.

28. Tailor's task: SEAM. This seems incomplete.

31. "That __ it!": DOES. See, I told you so!

32. That girl: SHE. This show predated the Mary Tyler Moore Show

Now I get mail from her and St. Jude's weekly.

33. Not taken by: ON TO.

35. Group dance with hand-holding: HORA.

37. Nasser's org.: UAR. The United Arab Republic was a state formed by the union of the republics of Egypt and Syria in 1958. The juxtaposition is fun!

40. Happy __: HOUR. Are you aware of Sober Curious? Or do you get buzzed and dance the Hora by the Hour?

43. Lens holders: RIMS. Meh.

46. "You're wrong about me!": I AM NOT. Not a chance.

48. Poet's honor: LAUREL. These days you get a hardy handshake and no wreath on your head.

50. Hearth sweepings: ASHES.

52. Sweetie: TOOTS. This term is no longer pc to call a female. Spenser still calls Dr. Silverman "toots" at times.

54. Lettuce type: BIBB. Bibb lettuce is smaller butterhead lettuce with soft leaves used primarily as a salad green but also works well as a wrapper for foods.

55. Frozen drink brand: ICEE.

56. Computer images, briefly: GIFS. Graphics Interchange Format is a bitmap image format that was developed by a team at the online services provider CompuServe.

57. Sate: FILL.

61. Tankard contents: ALE. Arrgh.

62. Athos, vis-à-vis Aramis: AMI. They were French after all, just like M. Dumas.

We made it to the end of the puzzle and what appears to be my last puzzle blog of 2019. Thank you all for all the kind words and happy thoughts during the 11th year of C.C.'s creation. Thank you, DAB for being one of our regular Friday warriors. Also kudos to everyone who has created for our enjoyment. C.C. what a nice place you have here. Until next year GWATCDR, Lemonade out.

Thursday December 19th 2019 Gary Larson

Theme B-ing - punning on the B-present participle riff:

18A. Flashy accessories for a vagabond?: BUM BLING

37A. Barn extension where pack animals sleep?: BURRO WING. This was the one that set me on the theme path.

61A. Heckle musician Gordon Sumner?: BOO STING. A lot of musical references from my youth today. Sting was a substitute teacher before the Police broke, my sister worked with him at a comprehensive school in South London.

3D. Owner of the most pubs in town?: BAR KING

45D. Warning at a spelling contest?: BEE PING. That reminds me, I must change the batteries in my smoke detectors.

When I collected the theme entries together, I just wanted a "BI-" to complete the vowel set, but it was not to be. Understandable, the only candidate I could find was replacing "BUMBLING" with "BIASSING" and I'm not sure how to clue that one. So fair enough, Gary, a good puzzle with a nice theme.

Let's tread the boards:

Across:

1. Troubleshoots, as programs: DEBUGS. Been there, done that. Back in the day, it was also known as "dump cracking" which involved going though a two-foot pile of fan-fold paper with a highlighter and a ruler looking through the memory dump of the mainframe. I got pretty good at it. Probably because I was pretty good at putting the bugs in there in the first place. The very first program I wrote had an infinite loop, but I still managed to make a career out of IT. I laughed when I first went to present at Apple HQ, their address was "One Infinite Loop", I felt they'd named the campus for me.

7. Sharp humor: WIT

10. Rain protection: TARP

14. Marked by twinkling: STARRY

15. Brian of ambient music: ENO. U2 producer of note, and elevator music king. He was a founder member of Roxy Music, here playing synth in spangly gloves with a youthful Bryan Ferry. Talented chap.

16. Diaper cream ingredient: ALOE

17. Like nickels, to dimes: LARGER. Yes, why is that? I want my currency to get heftier the more valuable it is.

20. Swedish retail giant: IKEA. I went to my local IKEA a couple of weeks ago. It's legendary that the store is impossible to find your way out of, but on the way back to my car a lady asked me how to get out of the parking lot. I tried to explain, but realized I had no idea either. I did help her figure out which of her stop lights was out though, so something good came of it.

21. Runs of luck: STREAKS. Good or bad.

22. "Moonlight" Oscar winner Mahershala: ALI. Thank you, crosses.

23. Most smooth: SUAVEST. Nice word.

25. Put to use: TAP. As "tap into".

28. Most likely to snap: TENSEST. Two "mostests" within a couple of entries.

30. One-named singer with 15 Grammys: ADELE. She helped fix my ALL-STAR/A-LISTER mess at 11D

32. "By that logic ... ": ERGO ...

33. Wrongdoing: SINS

36. Ventricular outlet: AORTA

40. Martin Van __: BUREN

43. "Heavens to Murgatroyd!": EGAD!

44. Trails off: EBBS

48. Astrologer to the rich and famous: O'MARR. Known to me only from crosswords.

49. Tasty bites: MORSELS

51. Boston's Back __: BAY

52. French chef's "Ta-da!": ET VOILA!

56. Years on end: EON

57. Potato gadgets: MASHERS. I use a ricer, a little more effort but a lot smoother result. If I want chunky mash I use the old fork technique.

59. Crunch at breakfast: CAP'N

63. Sex therapy subject: LIBIDO. Rich is getting racier in his editing.

65. Mom's sister: AUNT

66. Greek letter: ETA

67. Close soccer score: ONE NIL To the Arsenal. Last week's "Man. U." rivals reappear. If you want to know what Arsenal, One-Nil, the USSR and the Pet Shop Boys have in common, then you either have too much time on your hands, or you will Google "One-Nil to the Arsenal" as I did.

I'm usually judicious with my links, but this week there's too much good music, or weirdly awesome music, to ignore.

Producer: What effects do you want in this video?

Pet Shop Boys: Yes!

68. Calf-length skirt: MIDI

69. French film ending word: FIN

70. Packed (in): WEDGED

Down:

1. Broadband initials: DSL. Digital Subscriber Line. It seems a little old-fashioned, but I still have DSL broadband.

2. Online seller: E-TAILER

4. Impel: URGE

5. Musical set at Rydell High: GREASE. Los Angeles does have some wonderful Art Deco public buildings, this is Venice High School, one of the locations used in the movie to represent Rydell High.

This is my local power distribution station built in 1949 on Cahuenga Avenue in North Hollywood. We don't build 'em like that any more, more's the pity. I admire it every time I drive past.

6. Turk. neighbor: SYR, Syria, to Turkey.

7. Streaming services, e.g.: WEB TV

8. Accustom (to): INURE

9. Some library volumes: TOMES

10. Chitchat: TALK

11. Big-time celeb: A-LISTER. I went with "ALL STAR" first, then gradually backed off as it slowly didn't work with anything else.

12. Youngest Weasley brother: RON. I didn't know he had brothers. Not a problem, I doubt any of the siblings are well-known enough to make the crossword.

13. Mastermind game piece: PEG

19. WWII Philippine battleground: BATAAN

21. Genre with bite: SATIRE

22. Had a bite: ATE

24. KGB country: USSR. "Go West! (with the Pet Shop Boys), Go West!"

26. Bottom-row PC key: ALT

27. Samosa veggie: PEA

29. Like a designated driver: SOBER

31. Venetian magistrates of yore: DOGES. Nice living quarters, too.

34. Holiday quaff: NOG

35. Hindu masters: SWAMIS

38. Turmoil: UNREST

39. Show that launched Clay Aiken's singing career, familiarly: IDOL. The "American Idol" talent show. I'm sure that I must have heard some of Mr. Aiken's output, but I couldn't name a song from him if my life depended on it.

40. Move up and down: BOB

41. Actress Thurman: UMA. One of those entries you might as well just print in the grid and have done with it.

42. Novelist Chandler: RAYMOND

46. Deborah Harry's band: BLONDIE. I saw Blondie live at Hammersmith Odeon in 1978. I was quite taken with Ms. Harry. I think it's OK to confess at this temporal distance that I was smoking weed before the gig which might have something to do with me thinking they were the best band I'd ever seen. I was distressed to discover later that she was dating the guitarist. Oh, the innocence of youth.

47. Tax form ID: SSN

50. Wisconsin city north of Chicago: RACINE. Aren't all Wisconsin cities north of Chicago? Just wondering ... I suppose north and north-west.

53. Fence supplier: THIEF. Nice clue. A fence traffics stolen goods, hence "thief".

54. Starbucks size: VENTI. I always forget the sizes in Starbucks, or maybe never bothered to remember them. "Small", "Medium" and "Large" work just fine.

55. "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida" instrument: ORGAN.

Producer: How many solos do you want on the track? 

Iron Butterfly: Yes!

58. Spot of wine?: ASTI. Nice clue for an old crossword staple.

60. Under the covers: A-BED. Best use of the word comes in the eponymous monologue in Shakespeare's "Henry V"

We few, we happy few, we band of brothers;

For he to-day that sheds his blood with me

Shall be my brother; be he ne'er so vile,

This day shall gentle his condition:

And gentlemen in England now a-bed

Shall think themselves accursed they were not here,

And hold their manhoods cheap whiles any speaks

That fought with us upon Saint Crispin's day.

61. Collision sound: BAM

62. Arles assent: OUI

63. Almost empty: LOW

64. Ancient: OLD

And with that, I think I'll disappear down the YouTube rabbit hole for a while and re-live the 70's and 80's.

Here's the grid! Et Fin

Steve