Sunday, August 2, 2020 Dan Schoenholz

Theme: "Double Features" - Movie hidden in another movie.

 

23A. Two that received Oscar nods in all four acting categories: A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE. Reds.

39A. Duo from the Deep South: STEEL MAGNOLIAS. Selma.

53A. Pair for the holidays: IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE. Elf.

74A. Couple in the 21st century with Best Director Oscar winners: BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN. Roma.

 91A. Two period pieces from across the pond: THE KING'S SPEECH. Tess.

107A. Pair of divergent tales of the paranormal: A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET. Tiny dupe with the street in 23A. Ghost.
 
 Movie within a movie. Such a super tight set.

Great to see Dan Schoenholz back. Seems like a long time since we saw his last byline.

  

Across:

1. Defeat big-time: STOMP.

6. Food chain with a smiley face in its logo: IHOP. Not fond of their P/B flip a while ago.

10. Oma's "Oh, my!": ACH.

13. Car company that owns SolarCity: TESLA. I'm pretty lousy with cars. I don't think I can recognize a Tesla car. Also 98. Bygone Swedish car company: SAAB.

18. __ eclipse: LUNAR.

19. Super stars?: NOVAE.

21. Wish to do over, perhaps: RUE.

22. Get on the wagon: HOP UP.

27. Vietnamese soup: PHO. The broth is flavored with star anise.

28. Chocolate choice: DARK.

29. Nile danger: ASP.

30. Meet activity: SWAP.

31. Homer's TV neighbor: NED.

32. Samoa's largest export before the blight: TARO. Wiki shows the Taro Leaf Blight epidemic of Samoa happened in 1993.

33. Lurid material: SMUT.

34. "Just to clarify ... ": I MEAN.

36. Fancy neckwear: ASCOTS.

44. Reinforce, with "up": SHORE.

45. "Come again?": WHAT.

46. Kisser: YAP.

47. One soaking things up: SPONGE.

48. Word with up, mid or down: TOWN.

49. Feudal lord: LIEGE.

50. Orca group: POD.

52. Olympic sledder: LUGER.

58. Versailles VIP: ROI.

59. Coolidge's VP: DAWES. No idea. Charles Dawes.

60. Iris ring: AREOLA. Vowel-rich. So grid-friendly.

61. Retina part: CONE.

62. Gathers in a condensed layer: ADSORBS.

65. Disrespects: SNUBS.

67. Big game centers: ARCADES.

69. Supply orders: Abbr.: REQS.

70. Big name in pain relief: ANACIN.  We have all kinds of pain pills/gels/creams at home.

72. Weasel relative: STOAT. Cute.

73. Sigma follower: TAU.

80. More than annoyed: IRATE.

82. Recycle container: BIN.

83. Band led by the Wilson sisters: HEART.

84. Mystical old letter: RUNE.

85. Soda shop freebies: STRAWS.

87. Game console letters: NES.

89. "Relax": EASY.

90. Category: GENRE.

94. Went sailing, say: BOATED.

95. Have confidence in: BET ON.

96. Go for the passer: RUSH.

97. Innate talent: GIFT.

98. Insignificant amount: SOU.  Not worth a SOU.

100. Bird one hates to eat?: CROW. Ha.

102. Before, to Byron: ERE.

103. Second: AIDE.

104. Bounty title: HMS.

112. Tree-lined walkway: ALLEE. Grande Allee, Quebec City.

113. Actress Longoria: EVA.

114. "Attack, Rover!": SIC 'EM.

115. Date component, often: COMMA.

116. Digital units: BYTES.

117. Work with thread: SEW.

118. Model: POSE.

119. Bouncing off the walls: HYPER.

Down:

1. Hockey's __ shot: SLAP.

2. Heinie: TUSH.

3. Not fooled by: ONTO.

4. Scrape, say: MAR.

5. Happen before: PREDATE.

6. "101" course title word: INTRO.

7. Pawn at a shop: HOCK.

8. In vitro supply: OVA.

9. Defining characteristic: PARAMETER.

10. Escort's offering: ARM.

11. Sticks maintained with chalk: CUES.

12. Harry Potter's owl: HEDWIG.

13. Whom prosecutors represent: THE PEOPLE.

14. Canon camera line: EOS.

15. Equipment shunned by fly fishers: SPINNING ROD. Because?

16. Entice: LURE.

17. Mimicked: APED.

20. Happen next: ENSUE.

24. Pair with drums: EARS.

25. In a relevant way: APTLY.

26. Puts a curse on: DAMNS. Amazed that Rich allowed it.

32. Fujita scale subjects: TORNADOS.

33. __ fright: STAGE. Finally went to my dentist's office on Friday. Felt like I had a fever on  Friday night. Thankfully I was fine yesterday. Mental thing.

35. Jesus of baseball: ALOU.

36. Italian bubbly: ASTI.

37. Tequila order: SHOT.

38. Jerseys, e.g.: COWS. Jersey cows.

39. Gets rid of: SHEDS.

40. Sources of fall colors: MAPLES.

41. Olympics speed skater Ohno: APOLO.

42. When many walk: AGE ONE.

43. Set of TV programs: SERIES.

45. One trashing a cab, maybe?: WINE SNOB. Cabernet.

49. Type of weightlifting squat: LOW BAR. Look similar to me.

51. Tending to procrastinate: DILATORY. Not related to "dilate".

54. High-card-wins game: WAR.

55. Zoologist's subject: FAUNA.

56. Metro area, informally: URB.

57. '60s "Sweet!": FAR OUT.

61. Snack for Tabby: CAT TREAT. And 90. Lab order?: GO FETCH.

62. Hopper or Whistler: ARTIST.

63. Serious shortage: DEARTH.

64. Broad and solidly constructed, in Sussex: SQUARE-BUILT.

65. Act parts: SCENES.

66. Writing tip: NIB.

68. Fire at work: CAN.

71. Pulitzer playwright Zoë: AKINS.

72. Big shot in tennis: SMASH.

74. Entrances: BEWITCHES.

75. Nabisco cracker made with cheddar: CHEESE NIP.

76. Stacy who played TV's Mike Hammer: KEACH.

77. Rosemary Clooney, to George: AUNT.

78. Subject opener: INRE.

79. "__ I say more?": NEED.

81. Grab: TAKE.

86. Stable sound: SNORT.

88. Buying time big-time?: SPREE.

92. Fabled underground treasure guardians: GNOMES.

93. Capital of France: EUROS. Not PARIS.

94. Auction actions: BIDS.

97. The Stones' "__ Shelter": GIMME.

99. No more than: ONLY.

101. Permanent __: WAVE.

103. Sierra Nevada products: ALES.

104. Rope source: HEMP. Any of you tried hemp seeds/hearts?

105. Internet __: viral item: MEME.

106. Headliner: STAR.

108. "No kidding": GEE.

109. Not even rare: RAW.

110. Green opening: ECO.

111. Pop artist Lichtenstein: ROY.

C.C.

 

Saturday, August 1, 2020, Kevin Salat

Saturday Themeless by Kevin Salat

Today Kevin Salat enters the world of themeless Saturday puzzles at the LA Times. As you can see by the picture, he joins our list of constructors who are
Jeopardy alums. 

Here is his gracious note to us:

Hey everybody! Thanks to Gary for the invitation to introduce myself in this wonderful community. 

I'm originally from Winfield, IL where I started solving these puzzles in the Chicago Tribune with my grandma Natalie. Now I reside in Seattle, WA working in product marketing and spending leisure time on long bike rides or at the movies (when they're open). Some favorite first-time watches I've had during quarantine have been In a Lonely Place (1950), The Apartment (1960), Paper Moon (1973), Something Wild (1986), and in terms of new 2020 releases, First Cow (2020). All are highly recommended!

Delighted to have my first Saturday in the LAT, which along with my first Friday on 7/10 completes my "cycle" of having a puzzle run each day of the week! This is one of the first themeless puzzles I had ever created, and while I think my game has improved since this one I'm relatively pleased with how it turned out. I like entries with 3+ words, so I started with stair-stacking 34A and 37A and the puzzle came together from there. And while I didn't have "in England" in my clue for 38A I think it makes it more accurate. 

Not much else to say about the rest of the puzzle, but I just want to say thanks to Rich/Patti & the editorial team and also reinforce how wonderful this community is. It's such a joy knowing that so many are not only enjoying something you've created, but also using it as a springboard to connect with others and provide laughter and support in such trying times. And I've heard Alex Trebek say that he solves the LAT every day, so it's also nice to know icons like him are potentially enjoying my work too (FYI, he smells great). 

Have a good Saturday -- see you next time!

Kevin

I navigated around Kevin's fun puzzle but hit a single roadblock at the bottom where this physics teacher had no idea on YLEM or on matador art called TAUROMACHY (Kevin explains below). See my "angry" red square in the grid 😤! Okay, Kevin seems to be a great guy, I had fun and am not really angry but still...

Across:

1. Cajun staple: OKRA.

5. Rhyme $yndicate Records founder: ICE-T - Here 'ya go

9. Pooch living in 2062: ASTRO - George Jetson's pooch

14. Fast-food option: DRIVE THRU - Very popular these days

16. Fine fiddle: STRAD - As opposed to "fine fettle"

17. Asian cooking ingredient: SESAME OIL.

18. Sad: TEARY.

19. Red state verb: OWE and 26. Blue side: Abbr.: DEMS - The former represents being in debt and the latter refers to DEMOCRATS being referred to the blue side of politics

20. Boston song whose title lyric precedes "We're cookin' tonight": SMOKIN - The 1976 "B-side" of More Than A Feelin'. Here ya go

22. Preceding periods: EVES.

23. Goose that may nest on volcanic ash: NENE - Our fine-feathered Hawaiian crossword friend 

25. Donkey Kong or King Kong: APE.

27. Sound that gets an exam proctor's attention: PSST 

31. Jan. honoree: MLK.

33. Pop singer Brenda: LEE - She went on my turntable right after Roy Orbison and The Everly Brothers! Here she shows that 59. Moody genre: EMO music is nothing new

34. "Nevertheless ... ": BE THAT AS IT MAY 

37. Dealer's question: ARE YOU IN OR OUT

38. Teaching where to go in England?: Puppy HOUSE TRAINING is preferred in England whereas HOUSE BREAKING is used more often on this side of the Atlantic. Fun clue, Kevin!

39. Wine label abbr.: ALC - The ALC(ohol) content of champagne is around 12.2% for example. SEC hung on a long time 

40. Airport near OAK: SFO - A half-hour drive 

41. "This comes __ surprise": AS NO.

42. De Matteo of "The Sopranos": DREA - Here, as Andrea La Cevera, she is being "taken for a ride" on The Sopranos 44. "!!!": OMG - They're going to kill me!

46. Judicial order: WRIT.

50. Bubble Up sister brand: DADS.

51. Wyndham-owned chain: RAMADA.

55. Kerfuffle: ADO.

56. "Don't get any __": IDEAS.

58. Spam-revealing aid?: CAN OPENER - Here you can see the key that served as the can opener for the metal strip around the can of Spam for K-Rations in WWII

60. Hitchcock menace: BIRDS - One reviewer said it shows that nature can dominate man despite all his technology. Sound familiar?

61. Erratic: HIT OR MISS.

62. Toothed whale's technique: SONAR - Echolocation also used by dolphins

63. Proto-matter of the universe: YLEM - New to me. Definition, pronunciation and etymology

64. Wary of: ONTO.


Down:

1. Indulges in to an extreme degree: OD'S ON - OverDoseS ON

2. Mardi Gras parade-organizing group: KREWE - The invitation to form the first KREWE - The Mystick KREWE of Comus in New Orleans 163 yrs ago

3. Up and at 'em: RISEN.

4. "Selma" director DuVernay: AVA - Has the crossword torch been passed from AVA Gardner?

5. Thing: ITEM.

6. End of an allergic reaction: CHOO - AH, I get it!

7. Alexander of "Living Single": ERIKA - ERIKA maintained that Living Single supplied the template for Friends which first aired a year later

8. 17th-century craze involving bulbs: TULIP MANIA - Often called the first investment "bubble". Prices for Dutch bulbs soared and then collapsed in 1637

9. Puerto Rico hrs.: AST - Atlantic Standard Time. They welcome in the new year two hours before I do

10. Medieval Times ride: STEED.

11. Commuter's convenience: TRAVEL MUG.

12. What's just not done, to some diners?: RARE MEAT - RARE MEAT would mean "not done" to me. You? Loved the clue, uh, eventually.

13. Quite a journey: ODYSSEY.

15. Mushroom ends?: EMS - MushrooM. Last week Joe Deeney gave us 53. Neon tips?: ENS - NeoN

21. '50s-'60s TV family: NELSON'S - My daughter's former mother-in-law calls us Ozzie and Harriet because her family was/is so dysfunctional 

24. Pentathlon equipment: EPEES - I leave it to you to ascertain the five events where athletes have 29. Strove to achieve: SHOT FOR the gold medal

28. Lid problems: STYES.

30. Matador's art: TAUROMACHY - Kevin told me, "Hah, it happened to be in my word list because it was once used back in 1996. Definitely a unique word but glad that it's somewhat inferable with the Greek roots."

32. Beer order at a sushi bar: KIRIN - Here ya go!

34. "Nebraska" Best Actor nominee: BRUCE DERN - A bittersweet movie where I saw a lot of characters I recognized.

35. Padre's hermana: TIA - Dad's sister: Aunt in Spanish (correction)

36. Thus far: TO NOW.

37. Music service pioneer that merged with Slacker in 2017: AOL RADIO Here 'ya go

38. Staked a claim (on): HAD DIBS - These words left my lips often in my yute!

43. Adjective on taco truck menus: ASADA - Carne ASADA (meat grilled)

45. Outlook alternative: GMAIL - Write to me at gschlapfer@gmail.com if you want to add to/subtract from our map

47. Arrested: RAN IN 48. Latin clarifier: ID EST - i.e. got put in jail

49. Where the heart is: TORSO.

52. Penultimate prefix: ANTE - The ANTEchamber before you enter Tut's tomb

53. Dire prophecy: DOOM - If you disturb Tut's tomb...

54. National Poetry Mo.: APR.

57. Ukr. or Est., once: SSR.

Kevin emailed me this great link to the Chicago Tribune review of Alex Trebek's new book The Answer Is... 

I found the article to be a fascinating story about a man whose show is mentioned often here. The book includes info on his health issues and repeats the fact that he attempts the LA Times Crossword everyday.


I'll take Comments For Kevin for $800 Alex!

Friday, July 31, 2020 David Alfred Bywaters

"P END"


17. Really cool traffic sound?: KILLER BEEP.

29. Reaction to an impressive flower?: GREENHOUSE GASP.

37. Summer getaway for a young Peter Parker?: WEBCAMP.

45. Waterproofer's guarantee?: LONG TIME NO SEEP.

60. Part of a bad restaurant review on Yelp?: DINING CARP.

68. Remain unsettled, or, read as two words, what five of this puzzle's long answers have: P END.

How fun was that ?  The theme answers, esp. Dining Carp, made me laugh.

You probably got an idea of what to look for after seeing the ending P in a couple of those answers, didn't you ?   Knowing that the P was coming helped me with the others.   I really liked the way David tied them all together with PEND as the reveal.

It was interesting to see consecutive answers at 29 and 30 Down both end with the ING suffix.   David handled the consecutive letters in the crossing answers skillfully.  

BTW,  David offers both old novels and crosswords for you to download at his blog.    In the "About" tab,  David writes, "You can find reviews and All the crosswords here have themes involving modifications either in language or its interpretation.  Their purpose is rather to amuse than to baffle.  I care nothing for hipness; I make no effort to include the latest neologism, celebrity, or TV series."

Sounds to me like that would be a great source of crosswords for the solvers who don't care for all of the pop culture clues and answers.   And as you'll notice when you review the clues and answers for  today's crossword, there's a scarcity of them.  For the few that do exist, I wonder if they are David's clues or the editor's clues.

Moving on.  Let's check it out:

Across:

1. Thing with three feet: YARD.   First thought was tripod.  Too many letters.

5. Mucho: LOTSA.   As in the expression, lotsa gusto. 

10. Life __ know it: AS WE.   has changed for most of us.   Mind your three W's. 

14. On the quiet side: ALEE.

15. Has a go: TRIES.

16. Steady guy: BEAU.

19. __'acte: ENTR'.   "Between the acts".   Last Saturday, the clue was    52. Entr'__: ACTE.

20. Hardy: STOUT.

21. Makes blue, maybe: DYEs.   Dye, Green and Brown were cousin's surnames in my family. No Blues.

23. Friendly opening?: ECO.

24. Literary count, familiarly: DRAC.  ula

27. Up in the air: ON HIGH.  

33. Feat: DEED.

34. Large cask: TUN.

35. Mediterranean island nation: MALTA.

36. "__ not over": IT'S.    Yes it is.   Roy said so.


Shankars is a big fan of Roy Orbison.  

40. Go awry: ERR.

41. Kitchen magnet?: AROMA. 

43. Game with a "Moo!" version for preschoolers: UNO.   U no I didn't know, but it was an easy guess.

44. Future atty.'s hurdle: LSAT.

49. Rio Grande city: LAREDO.  About a 300 mile drive for Dash T.   We normally get Marty Robbins singing Streets of Laredo, but how about some Jim Reeves this time ?



50. Env. directive: ATTN.   Envelope / Attention

51. Short-order order: BLT.   Abejo would order his BLT sans mayo.   Abejo,  I hope you are able to harvest some home grown tomatoes.  We did not plant any this year.  My error.

52. Ceremony: RITE.

54. Beasts of burden: ASSES. 

58. "How the Other Half Lives" author Jacob: RIIS.   "...a pioneering work of photojournalism by Jacob Riis, documenting the squalid living conditions in New York City slums in the 1880s" - Amazon Book review.

63. Cornerstone word: ANNO.   Latin for year.

64. In need of a sweep: SOOTY.  Like the chimney or hearth of a wood burning fireplace.

65. French friend: AMIE.  Vince Gill, with long hair in 1979: 

That guy can hit some high notes.  Shades of Roy Orbison.

66. Like custard: EGGY.

67. Beginning: ONSET.   From the get go.  Jump street.   Square one.
This song has an instantaneously recognizable beginning:


Down:

1. Shaggy beasts: YAKs.  Goes on and on.

2. Came to rest: ALIT.

3. Pull up stakes for one's co.: RELO. cate.   Happened to me.   Houston to Chicago.  From the 5th largest city in North America to the 3rd largest. 

4. Played for a chump: DELUDED.

5. Env. insert: LTR.   Envelope / Letter

6. Eye, to a bard: ORB.

"Cold-hearted orb that rules the night

Removes the colours from our sight
Red is grey is yellow white
But we decide which is right
And which is an illusion"

Graham Edge of  The Moody Blues - A modern bard.

7. Headed for extra innings: TIED.   Major League Baseball is back !

Did you hear about the lineup that Toronto (North America's 4th largest city) had in their opening game of the season ?

The Blue Jays had Bo Bichette, Cavan Biggio, Vlad Guerrero, Jr. and Travis Shaw batting one through four.   Those first four batters are all sons of retired MLB players.  A first in ML history.

8. "Bye now": SEE YOU.  Later, alligator.  After while, crocodile.

9. Shivering trees: ASPENs.   Quakers.

10. Japanese prime minister since 2012: ABE.   Two syllables in Abe.   Shinzō Abe.

11. Dakar residents: SENEGALESE.  Immediately keyed in Sengallis and almost just as quickly corrected it.  Why in the world I tried Sengallis or where it came from is unknown.

12. What prevents time from slipping away?: WATCH STRAP.  Loved the clue.

13. German capital: EURO.  Gee. 

18. Raison d'__: ETRE.   The most important reason.  

22. One of the Stooges: SHEMP.    Chairman Moe is a fan, as his avatar of Larry, Moe and Curly would suggest.   Shemp was an original stooge but went solo, and was replaced by Curly.   Curly had a stroke in 1946.    Shemp returned to make the trio of stooges complete again.

25. Penny-__: ANTE.   Often meaning petty.   At other times, a poker game that won't break the bank.

26. Fish used for bait: CHUB.   Now this was tricky for me, because chum is fish parts and blood used to attract other fish, typically predator fish like sharks (as in that scene from Jaws).   Chub are freshwater fish, and are commonly used as bait for other larger fish such as bass and catfish.   SansBeach, and other fishing aficionados, please chime in.

28. Supermarket franchise initials: IGA.   Independent  Grocers Alliance.  With the slogan, "Hometown proud."    Not International Grocers Association, even though they are also in Canada, Australia and the Philippines.

29. Initiate: GET ROLLING.  Rock.  Get it ?  You know, Rolling Rock Beer, the beer that made Latrobe famous ?    Or was it Arnold Palmer that made Latrobe famous ?    Do you know who else was from Latrobe ?   Fred Rogers.  Yes, Mr. Rogers !    Plus, there was an apprentice pharmacist from Latrobe that is credited as the inventor of the banana split.    Now where was I ?    Oh, the review.   Time to get rolling. 

30. Striking a chord (with): RESONATING.   My first thought.  Funny how some word associations are so strong.  Like Rolling Rock, and the Laurel Highlands.  It just seems to resonate.

You don't usually see words like resonating in crosswords.  Surely someone somewhere has used it, but I've never seen it.  (I think Lemonade has some tools to check these kind of things.)   But having only about eight years of solving history, I don't have a great purview. 

31. As prompted: ON CUE.

32. Hair line: PART.   Two words in the clue.  Cute word play by David.   Hairline (one word) would be the edge of one's hair, or a very thin or fine line.

33. Old TV control: DIAL.  They used to have these on old phones, too.  Most readers here should have a good visual image of both of those dials.

37. Word with buffalo or wings: WATER.

38. "Frozen" sister: ANNA.   Knew it had to be Elsa or Anna, so I looked to confirm with a perp.  The first one I got was the last A.  

39. Academic: MOOT.
"Whatever was done is done
I just can't recall
It doesn't matter at all" - Greg Lake.

42. Dept. head: MGR. 

44. Shot spoiler: LENS CAP.

46. "You couldn't have!" retort: I DID SO.

47. Security lighting trigger: MOTION.  

48. Deer sir: STAG.

51. Highlands hillside: BRAE.

53. Short-lived spinoff of "The Dukes of Hazzard": ENOS.   I wonder if this was David's clue ?   Doubtful, given his predisposition to "...make no effort to include the latest neologism, celebrity, or TV series."   He probably had something like "Grandson of Eve".

55. Identical: SAME.

56. Sportscaster Andrews: ERIN.   I wonder if this was David's clue ?   Doubtful, given his predisposition to "...make no effort to include the latest neologism, celebrity, or TV series."   He probably had something like "Welsh name for Ireland".

57. Went fast: SPED.    Answers flowed today.  Got the scheme early.   Never saw the reveal until starting the write up.  Shame on me.  Then realized how clever it was.

59. __ sauce: SOY.

61. Mineral suffix: ITE.  A few examples would be  jerrygibbsite, jimthompsonite and joesmithite.

62. Paper read on the LIRR or Metro-North, perhaps: NYT.   Long Island RR, and the common abbr for the New York Times.

Thursday, July 30th 2020 Roland Huget

Theme: Planetary Craft - the puzzle is crafted so that four planets - aka worlds - are split across two theme entries. To wit:

17A. Flirts with: MAKES EYES AT and 19A. Coffee server: URN.  Saturn. I've made eyes at a coffee urn in early-morning meetings when the coffee has just arrived and I've not had my morning caffeine fix.

23A. All thumbs: INEPT and 24A. Nefarious: UNETHICAL. Neptune.

36A. Square things: GET EVEN and 38A. Put many miles on: USE A LOT. Venus. My car came to end-of-lease last week and is going up for auction next month. Whoever gets that car is going to be happy - it's three years old with less than 15,000 miles on it and looks brand-new. So I didn't use it a lot.

51A. Where to find a hammer and anvil: MIDDLE EAR. and 53A. Unifying idea: THEME. Earth.

and the reveal:

59A. Not remotely on the same page ... and what can literally be found in four puzzle rows: WORLDS APART.

A "bridge the gap" theme from Roland - a clue to these themes is where the reveal mentions "puzzle rows" rather than "puzzle entries".  I filled in "MIDDLE EAR" and "THEME" and "Middle Earth" jumped out at me - then I got to the reveal itself and all became clear. I liked a lot that "THEME" was part of the theme; I'm sure that wasn't just a happy coincidence.

Good job all round from Roland - there's some great fill around the theme entries, and a couple of new ones too, which helps to keep things fresh. Let's take a look:

Across:

1. Vitamin amts.: RDA'S. The clue implies an abbreviation, it appears that "RDA" without the periods is now accepted usage. Makes punctuating this entry a lot simpler!

5. Come by: OBTAIN.

11. Pancake syrup source: SAP. The sap of the maple tree. I don't eat breakfast pancakes so I'd never eaten maple syrup until recently where a recipe I was using called for it. I was surprised it wasn't just sweet, it had a depth of flavor that I didn't expect.

14. Isn't informal?: AIN'T. I like these clues.

15. Southwestern community: PUEBLO.

16. __ Fáil: Irish coronation stone: LIA. The Stone of Destiny. Last used for a coronation around 500AD.

20. Picks up gradually: GLEANS.

21. Type of wave or spree: CRIME.

28. Web address feature: DOT.

29. Enliven, with "up": SPICE.

30. Parker and Waterman: PENS. I used Parker fountain pens at school - we had to write with pen and ink, woe betide you if you tried to sneak a ballpoint in there. Consequently all our fingers were ink-stained from refilling the darn things.

31. Sanford of "The Jeffersons": ISABEL.

34. Amusement park shuttles: TRAMS.

42. Catch on: SEE IT.

44. Lily's role in "All of Me": EDWINA. Lily Tomlin co-starred with Steve Martin in this 1984 comedy.

45. Smoothie berry: ACAI. Goji or Acai? Wait for the crosses - the "I" doesn't help you.

48. YouTube journals: VLOGS. Video Logs, formally. I subscribe to quite a few YouTube channels, you can lose yourself down some very quirky rabbit holes very quickly!

50. Water source: TAP.

55. "Caveman" diet: PALEO.

56. Chicago suburb: AURORA. It seems mean to describe it as a suburb, it's a city in its own right and in the top 115 most populous in the country. Here's the William B. Green residence. Familiar-looking architecture? Yes indeed, it was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright.

58. New Haven Ivy Leaguer: ELI.

64. Barbecue piece: RIB.

65. Surpass: EXCEED.

66. Allergic reaction: ITCH.

67. Slalom shape: ESS.

68. Speech platforms: ROSTRA. Thank you, Latin lessons of yore. Nouns ending in "-UM" are generally neuter, and pluralized with "-A".

69. Radar's favorite soda: NEHI. You can still get this stuff. Anyone know what it tastes like?

Down:

1. The one for ewe?: RAM.

2. Figure out: DIAGNOSE.

3. Art that may be covered by a sock: ANKLE TAT. This is new fill. It appears that no-one gets a tattoo any more, they get "ink" or a tat. On one of our trips to England not so long ago, we stopped off in Blackpool, an old resort town on the Irish Sea. We parked across the street from a place which proudly had "TATTOO'S" writ large on the storefront. I don't think I'd trust them with punctuating my tat.

4. Allow to soak, as tea: STEEP.

5. Conducting business: OPEN.

6. Purchases all of: BUYS UP.

7. Informal top: TEE.

8. Crunch targets: ABS.

9. Dockworkers' org.: I.L.A. The International Longshoremen's Association.

10. V-shaped slit: NOTCH.

11. Gold miner's water trough: SLUICE.

12. Lindbergh, e.g.: AIRMAN. Amongst many things. This one wins Obscure Random Clue of the Day award, very Thursday-like.

13. Discussion groups: PANELS.

18. Perched: SAT.

22. Tool for cutting with the grain: RIPSAW.

23. "Gotcha, man": I DIG. I doubt either have been heard in daily life since ... oh ... the jazz era? Woodstock? A while ago, anyway.

25. Small point: NIT.

26. Neutral shade: ECRU.

27. Pokes fun at: TEASES.

29. Record holder: SLEEVE. With vinyl making a mini-comeback, record sleeve printing firms are back in business!

32. Next to: BESIDE.

33. Night before: EVE.

35. __ school: MED.

37. Khartoum's river: NILE. You can't argue with that. Khartoum is at the confluence of the Blue Nile and the White Nile, which together form the Nile.

39. Knowledgeable, as in a particular field: LITERATE.

40. Protesting, maybe: ON A MARCH.

41. Sticky stuff: TAPE.

43. Ode title words: TO A. Keat's "Ode to a Nightingale" is a little long to post here in full, but the first verse is well known (or at least, the first few lines):

My heart aches, and a drowsy numbness pains

         My sense, as though of hemlock I had drunk,

Or emptied some dull opiate to the drains

         One minute past, and Lethe-wards had sunk:

'Tis not through envy of thy happy lot,

         But being too happy in thine happiness,—

                That thou, light-winged Dryad of the trees

                        In some melodious plot

         Of beechen green, and shadows numberless,

                Singest of summer in full-throated ease.

45. Current unit: AMPERE.

46. Viagra competitor: CIALIS.

47. Deviates from the script: AD LIBS.

49. Landscaping equipment: GRADER.

52. Farther down: LOWER.

53. Singing syllable: TRA. la la.

54. Hitchhiker's welcome: HOP IN. Do people still hitchhike? My buddy and I took a trip when we were 17 from the UK to the south of France and Spain and back in the days when it was still a thing.

57. Food safety org.: USDA.

60. Good Grips utensil brand: OXO.

61. Coke alternatives: RCS. RC Cola. I suppose you can pluralize it, you can have Cokes and Pepsis, so why not (although "pepsis" sounds like a some kind of infection!)

62. Court call: LET. "Let the Prisoner Go"? Nah, tennis. I don't watch a lot of tennis, but the last tournament I saw there were no net-cord judges anymore. When did those folk get phased out? They were a fixure at Wimbledon.

63. How-hot-it-feels stat.: T.H.I. The Temperature Humidity Index. I like LA's dry heat, I get grumpy in humid places unless I'm on vacation in a pair of beach shorts.

And I think that's about it. Here's the grid with the theme entries highlighted in what my MacBook paint tool calls "Banana".

Steve