Saturday, October, 24, 2020, Madeline Kaplan and Erik Agard

 Saturday Themeless by Madeline Kaplan and Erik Agard

Today's puzzle is another collaboration featuring our friend, Jeopardy winner and USA Today Crossword puzzle editor Eric Agard. This time his partner is Madeline Kaplan. She was kind enough to write this about their entertaining creation:

Hi Gary,

I just saw your message on Twitter -- happy to share a little bit about this puzzle.

I was relatively new to constructing when Erik reached out and asked if I wanted to collaborate on a themeless. That was about a year ago, I think. At the time, I had just discovered the Fill function in Crossfire which made my constructing process about 100x faster...

I started with ZAZIEBEETZ in the NW corner and AMERICANAH in the SE, then finished the rest of those stacks through a lot of trial and error. Hammering out the clues was a lot of fun -- I think my favorites are 15-A and 47-D. 

I learned a whole lot about good construction and clue-writing from Erik throughout this process. I'm very grateful to him, and to Patti and Rich for publishing this puzzle. And psyched for it to be out in the world!

Enjoy the rest of your weekend,

Madeline

Erik added: The gratitude is mutual! Madeline is a brilliant, vital constructor, and I'm thankful she took the time to collaborate with me. Very proud of the result - hope you enjoy!

Across:

1. Not fresh anymore: GETTING OLD.

11. Sixth Greek letter: ZETA - Alpha, beta, gamma, delta, epsilon, ZETA...

15. To a ridiculous extent: AD ABSURDUM (with Italian subtitles)

16. Decamp, e.g.: EXIT.

17. Emmy nominee who plays Van on "Atlanta": ZAZIE BEETZ - One of Madeline's seed entries. I needed letter-by-letter help. 

18. Give a "G," say: RATE.

19. "When the moon hits your eye like a big pizza pie" emotion: AMORE  - Start of the second verse of this Dean Martin hit - "When the stars make you drool just like a pasta e fasul, That's AMORE

20. Apple co-founder's nickname: WOZ.

21. Olympic city whose opening ceremony included a "Swan Lake" performance: SOCHI - The 2014 Olympics there cost $51B after being budgeted for $39B. Corruption and waste led to a very shoddy Olympics 

22. Heaven-sent: DIVINE.

24. Sometimes controversial message: TWEET - I found Madeline on Twitter with no controversy  

25. "The Alienist" network: TNT - Here 'ya go

28. Small container: TIN 

29. Pickle serving: SPEAR.

31. "Where __ you?": WERE - Right at the top of this poster for a great movie (Rotten Tomatoes - 96%)

33. __ loss: AT A.

35. Sappho's island: LESBOS and 49. Tyrrhenian Sea resort: CAPRI - An ~7 hr flight between these islands

38. One concerned with appearances: IMAGE CONSULTANT - "One who puts lipstick on a pig?"

41. Organic food label term: NON-GMO - Genetically Modified Organisms are made with DNA from organisms that normally don't breed. Hybrid seed companies have made corn from different varieties by simply removing tassels from certain plants and leaving others to shed pollen to make a better variety much like has been done for centuries.

42. Hoover, for one: DAM - Author Michael Hiltzik speculated that without the Hoover Dam, Seattle and San Francisco might the only big cities west of the Rockies.

43. Stage accusation: ET TU.

44. Trickster: SCAMP.

46. Pro __: TEM - Chuck Grassley is the current President Pro TEMpore of the Senate and third in line for presidential succession behind Pence and Pelosi.

48. Hyperbolic wait time: EON - I haven't seen you in EONS!

51. Responds to, as intelligence: ACTS ON or 40. Did nothing: SAT THERE 

54. Agrarian: RURAL.

55. Masked drama: NOH.

 

56. __ Macedonia: NORTH - A fascinating story

60. Polish, in a way: EDIT.

61. June 11 Hawaiian honoree: KAMEHAMEHA - On that day his statue in Honolulu is adorned with leis

63. Rugby team: SIDE - You can tell them apart in this scrum

64. Adichie novel that won the 2013 National Book Critics Circle Award: AMERICANAH - A story of a Nigerian woman who comes to college in the U.S.

65. Ring sites: TOES.

66. Most-visited British art museum: TATE MODERN - In London

Down:

1. Disputed Mideast strip: GAZA.

2. Cheese named for a Netherlands town: EDAM - A cheese market in our favorite crossword cheese town of EDAM, Netherlands 

3. Former Starbucks tea: TAZO - Starbucks sold that brand to Unilever for $383M

4. Classic Ford: T-BIRD.

5. "They DO look alike": I SEE IT and 25. Matching: TWIN - Steve Bridges is on the right

6. Pencil, barely: NUB.

7. Caught up with, sizewise: GREW INTO - Didn't your mother do this to test for growth allowance?

8. Ancient theater: ODEON - I've posted images of ancient open-air ODEONS. Here's a modern one in London

9. Skating jumps: LUTZES.

10. Boundary at the 38th parallel, for short: DMZ - The division between North and South Korea at the 38th parallel is very obvious from space at night

11. Garbage disposal goal: ZERO WASTE.

12. Compound: EXACERBATE.

13. Charitable gift: TITHE.

14. Took the loss: ATE IT - What a sacked quarterback is said to do to the football 

Aaron Rodgers taking a loss

21. Big name in romance fiction: STEEL.

23. Nickelodeon parent: VIACOM - Not a character on a kid's program but the owners

26. Captain or a fish: NEMO.

27. It's celebrated with a blue-, pink- and white-striped flag: TRANS PRIDE - Blue (male) and pink (female) stripes with white in the middle that represents gender neutral. Here the flag flies at the Philadelphia City Hall on Trans Pride Day.

30. Feathers: PLUMES.

32. Containers for some fragile goods: EGG CRATES.

34. "Yes?": AND - The first rule of improv is "you have to keep it going"

36. Cognizant of: ONTO.

37. Floor: STUN.

39. Inbox pileup: E-MAIL.

45. Site of a historic 1914 waterway opening: PANAMA - 28 years later my dad started his WWII duty there 

47. Country with a 26-year Grace period?: MONACO - This is a fabulous clue/fill!

Princess Grace of Monaco

49. Pinnacle: CREST.

50. Sound: AUDIO.

52. Threat in 1998's "Deep Impact": COMET - Meh...

53. Wayfarer: NOMAD.

57. Actress Russo: RENE - She is a really good actress but she played a very weak woman in this horrible movie that lost $15M. I shoulda walked out.

58. Whaler's direction: THAR.

59. "Transparent" actress Kathryn: HAHN - Where she played Rabbi Raquel 

61. Kit __: KAT - One of our Halloween handouts

62. Word for a guy: HIM - Professor Higgins Hymn To HIM. He soon realized he had Grown Accustomed To Her Face.

\

Friday, October 23, 2020, Gary Larson

Title: Where are they from?

Gary brings us a variation of a pinwheel grid with a central theme fill and 2 across and 2 down themers. It takes advantage of a very limited field of possible fill because it involves 5 countries which when paired with a defined phrase created a variation of the occupant(s) of the country. Which sounds a bit convoluted, but hey it is Friday. Gary has his third October here at the LAT this year along with his publications all over the place. 

In addition to the 5 theme fill - 47 squares, he dazzles with 11 seven letter fill. ATM FEES,  BISQUES, EMERITI, EYE EXAM, GRAFTON, GRETZKY,  GROUPIE,  HAT SIZE, SIERRAS, SKI PASS, and UNMEANT.

The theme:
17A. Grasslands around Dakar?: SENEGAL LEAS (11). And the people are SENEGALESE. A lea is an open area of grassy land. DAKAR is the capital city; here are some FAMOUS people associated with the country.

36A. Feature of a map of Baghdad?: IRAQ KEY (7). The IRAQI people are actually Mesopotamian in heritage. Maps have keys to understand them. Here is a wonderful ESSAY on Daniel Patrick Moynihan’s “On the Law of Nations.” 

57A. Laid-back attitude in Hanoi?: VIETNAM EASE (11). Both Vietnam and Iraq were very changed by European interference which is politics, so I will stop. 

11D. Longing in São Paulo?: BRAZIL YEN (9). Brazilian now has many meanings including those that I cannot link. Sorry, Moe. This combination was very creative.

32D. Hot spot in Al Ahmadi?: KUWAIT TEA (9). You had to know where that city is located, but the perps had given it away. 

On to the rest.

Across:

1. Ancient wizard: MAGE. Game of Thrones MARWYN.

5. Serbian-born NBA center __ Jokic: NIKOLA. He led the Denver Nuggets to upset the LA Clippers in the NBA playoffs this year with a triple-double in game 7, for those who care.

11. Fella: BRO. My son started using that in high school and I had to put my foot down. 

14. Speck: ATOM.  So many choices even yesterday's IOTA.

15. Bordeaux wine: CLARET. The wine from Bordeaux was a dark rosé spiced drink in the Middle Ages. That's why it was called "claret", from the French clairet. It changed to the present dry dark red in the 18th century

16. Narrow inlet: RIA.

19. Petition: ASK. "Petition" seems so formal, especially in my world.

20. High ranges: SIERRAS. A Spanish word; they are all over the WORLD.

21. Holder of 61 NHL records: GRETZKY. The great one, 

23. Chamber group: TRIO. Or not, as I learned reading this ARTICLE.

24. Comet relative: BON AMI. The cleaning agent, not the celestial flyer.

25. Retire: TURN IN. Not from working, merely from the day.

28. Jessica of "Dark Angel": ALBA. Now a mom.
                                    
31. Winter vacation purchase: SKI PASS. My son is leaving Denver after an 8-year run there with ski passes galore.

33. Part of a late 1900s demographic: GEN-Y-ER. Gen Y: Gen Y, or Millennials, were born between 1981 and 1994, including Jessica born in 1981!

35. "The Simpsons" storekeeper: APU.

38. MD treating canals: ENT. Sinus canals. 

39. Oklahoma tribe: PAWNEE. How many remember Pahoo-Ka-Ta-Wah? Your hint Jock Mahoney.

41. Accidental: UNMEANT. My clanker of the day.

43. Genesis twin: ESAU. 

44. Middle of a three-part start: GET SET. On your mark ...

45. Subtly points out: INFERS. Oh, this is so wrong. Rex Stout is rolling over in his grave.

48. Present time?: X-MAS. Very witty.

51. Uniform concern, maybe: HAT SIZE. 

53. Late author whose daughter wrote, "As far as we in the family are concerned, the alphabet now ends in Y": GRAFTON. Kinsey Millhone's creator left us before "Z as in..."

56. Behave: ACT.

59. Charlotte of "The Facts of Life": RAE.  Her OBIT.

60. Bivouac: ENCAMP. I learned this from watching Phil Silvers as Sgt. Bilko. 

61. Times past: ERAS.

62. Uma's "Pulp Fiction" role: MIA. MIA WALLACE .

63. Perceived to be: SEEN AS.

64. Caesar and others: SIDS. Nice misdirection. 

Down:

1. One side of a physics equivalence principle: MASS. You think it is this LINK?

2. Bit the dust: ATE IT. Meh.

3. One with no hope: GONER. Depressing. 

4. Honored retirees: EMERITI. Latin.

5. Indiana-based sports org.: NCAA. Located in Indianapolis.

6. Troubles: ILLS.

7. Penn of "House": KAL. He is all over the place. His IMDB

8. Crater Lake locale: OREGON.
                                                    

9. Hear (of): LEARN.

10. Without a clue: AT SEA.

12. Take a shot at: RISK. Life requires risks.

13. Wine nuance word: OAKY. The ultimate CSO to our resident sommelier MOE. A LIST?

18. Exuberant fan: GROUPIE. Exuberant, hmm. They were omnipresent during my touring days.

22. IRS agent: T-MAN.

24. Fish restaurant offerings: BISQUES.

26. Unusual: RARE.

27. Eavesdropping org.: NSA.

29. Twisted: BENT.

30. Focus for some collectors: ART.

31. Watering holes: SPAS.

33. Masterpieces: GEMS.

34. Test involving gradually longer lines: EYE EXAM. A wonderful clue as each successive line is longer.
EYE CHART 

35. Mimic: APE.

37. Round Table VIP: KNT. Knight abbreviation? 

40. Creatures of habit?: NUNS. Hah, hah. 

42. Some bank acct. charges: ATM FEES. This has appeared in the LAT only once before. 

44. Homer's home: GREECE. D'oh! Not Springfield.

46. Fins: FIVES. Money not diving equipment.

47. Slate, for one: E-ZINE.

49. Original  console designer: ATARI.  The SKINNY.

50. "What a pity": SO SAD.

51. Wrong: HARM.

52. Smoothie fruit: ACAI.

53. Fed. lending agency: GNMA. Government National Mortgage Association. They guarantee mortgages.

54. Criticizes: RAPS.

55. Storied loch: NESS.

58. Brown shade: TAN. Boring, which means it is time for me to depart. I hope you had fun. Thank you Gary and all of you readers and posters.

Thursday, October 22, 2020, Ed Sessa

 

Good morning, cruciverbalists.  Ed Sessa follows up his Wednesday October 7th puzzle with a Thursday offering featuring some challenging clues/answers and an interesting grid.  The entries at 55 and 58 Across combine to reveal the theme.  Candidly, even with the reveal, it took this mulling marine mammal many more moments to make sense out of Ed's machinations.  By that time, the theme answers were all in place but I had not the slightest idea that that had already occurred.

THEME:   JUMPING JACK FLASH  

55. With 58-Across, cardio exercise ... and what's hidden in three puzzle rows?:  JUMPING.

58. See 55-Across:  JACKS.

Okay, so JUMPING JACKS is the theme.  Now, just what the heck does that mean?  Ed has a reputation for presenting solvers with challenging (puzzling?) themes and today is no exception.

There are several possible ways to begin to interpret the theme.  Jack B. Nimble leaping over candlesticks would certainly be a Jumping Jack.  Jumping Jack Flash would be a gas.  Jack Rabbits could provide some hip-hop fun.  Perhaps, though, it is a reference meant to be taken at face value.  Jacks who jump.

On three puzzle rows, JACKS are JUMPING across the black squares to combine the final letters in the first answer with the opening letters in the second answers.  The results form the JACKS' surnames and all, of course, share the same first name, JACK.

It is probably a good idea today to start off with a look at the grid rather than waiting until the end of the write-up.  Ed elected not to add circles to the grid and this early look will make the theme's mechanics easier to see.

As can be seen, in red above and below, these are the JUMPING JACKS :

20. Across - Showing shock: A GASP and

21. Across  - Squalid quarters: RAT HOLE.

AGASPRATHOLE  - SPRAT, Jack Sprat

THE SPRATS

35. Across - Like a pendulum's motion: TO AND FRO and
37.  Across - Light at some roller rinks: STROBE.

TOANDFROSTROBE - FROST, Jack Frost

JACK FROST

42. Across - One of the Magi: CASPAR and

45. Across - Sidewall-sharing abode: ROW HOUSE.

CASPARROWHOUSE - SPARROW, Jack Sparrow

CAPTAIN JACK SPARROW

 

Across:

1. Radio toggle: AM FM.  As Chairman Moe rightly pointed out last Friday, AM FM  radios have become a bit archaic in our digital world.

5. A minor, for one: CHORD.  A bit of misdirection.   A person less than eighteen years old?  Something of lesser importance?  No, and no.  A musical triad.  A CHORD in  the key of A Minor.  No sharps, no flats.  The relative minor of C Major.

10. Animal shelter sight: CAGE.  Clear The Shelters is a nationwide ongoing campaign to reduce the number of animals in CAGEs.

14. Big do: GALA. In this case "do" means a social event.  A  GALA, or a Fete, or a Ball.  These choices have been offered to us many times before.  AFRO would have fit, and been fitting, but it would not  have worked out.

15. Place where fast bucks are made: RODEO.  Here, fast bucks is not a slang term for easy money.  At a RODEO you might see a bucking bronco, or a bucking bull, or ....  a bucking tortoise?

16. Team that pulls for its driver: OXEN.

OXEN PUT BEFORE THE CART

         
17. Delivery made by mouth: ORAL REPORT.

19. Tear apart: REND.  To REND means to tear something into two or more pieces.

23. Surrealist Tanguy: YVES.  YVES Tanguy (1900 - 1955) was a French surrealist painter.

REPLY TO RED - YVES TANGUY - 1943

25. Color in four-color printing: CYAN.  The four colors are CYAN, Magenta, Yellow and Black.  The inks can be combined in various proportions to form a vast array of colors.

26. Open, in a way: UNCAP.

29. Fraternal order member since 1868: ELK. The Benevolent and Protective Order of ELKs (BPOE).

31. Blocks that lock: LEGOS  LEGOS are plastic toy building blocks but they have been used to build some amazing things.  It's difficult to say how these particular buildings will hold up in the next big earthquake.

38. Critical hosp. area: ICU.  The Intensive Care Unit.

39. Going up in smoke: AFIRE.  On fire or burning.  Or, as Ray might put it:

41. Ref. whose first edition took decades to complete: OED.  Volume One of the Oxford English Dictionary, covering only A and B, was published in 1888.  Volume 10/2 which covered V to Z was not published until 1928!  The OED started an online version in 2000.  A completely revised Third Edition is expected to be completed in 2037.  

48. Warn: ALERT.

49. Business VIP: CEO.  Chief Executive Officer.

50. Engrave?: INTER.  The answer is not meant to be the prefix meaning among or within.  This time, taken as the clue's bad pun intends, INTER, with the accent on the second syllable, is used to mean to place in a grave or in a tomb.

51. Scintilla: IOTA.  How did the ninth letter of the Greek alphabet come to represent a very small amount?  Some etymologists say that it came about because IOTA is the smallest letter of that alphabet.

53. Carry-on item: TOTE.  As with OREO, ACAI, APSE, EURO, ASTA, ODIE, AGUE, ELAN, etc., etc., etc.,  TOTE is a short, vowel-rich word that can be a big help to constructors.  TOTE also features constructor-friendly consonants.

61. Court loser, maybe: PERP.  Short for PERPetrator.

62. "You had your chance": TOO LATE NOW.   I will pass on the possible Carole King link and go with the Chuck Willis song from 1956.

65. What a slight favorite has: EDGE. 

66. Satchel Paige's first name: LEROY. LEROY Robert Satchel Paige was a baseball player who pitched in the Negro Leagues and in the Major Leagues.  He began his career in 1924 with the Mobile Tigers.  In 1965, the then 59 year old Paige pitched three innings of one-hit ball for the Kansas City Athletics.

SATCHEL PAIGE

 

67. The Big Easy, informally: NOLA. New Orleans, LouisianA.  This clue/answer likely put a smile on the face of one of our Cornerites.

68. Motley: PIED.  In this case, both the clue and the answer are synonyms for varied in color.  The Motley Piper?  Pied Crue?

69. Shangri-las: EDENS.  EDENS are (mythical) delightful places where one dwells in a state of happiness and contentment. We are stardust, we are golden, and we've got to get ourselves back to the Garrrrrrdennnnn.

THE GARDEN OF EDEN   

70. Pairs: TWOS.

Down:

1. In the past: AGO.  One of the most well-remembered uses of AGO was employed by the gentleman referenced at 47 Down.  Bill & Ted's ORAL REPORT was far better than Bart Simpson's.

FOUR SCORE AND SEVEN...

2. "Mary Magdalene" star Rooney __: MARA.  You'd think that MM would be familiar with a 2018 movie called "Mary Magdalene" but that is not the case.

3. Symbol on a pole: FLAG.  Fun With FLAGs was a recurring bit on The Big Bang Theory.

4. Kuala Lumpur native: MALAYAN.  Kuala Lumpur is the capital city of Malaysia.  In graduate school, the MALAYAN students would casually refer to "K.L." in conversation the way I would refer to "L.A."  It was a good lesson in the shortcomings of parochialism.  

KUALA LUMPUR

5. Thin pancake: CREPE.  Oh to be in Paris snacking on a CREPE with Nutella and bananas.

6. Old school dance: HOP.  A perfect fit for today's theme.  Is this Ed sharing a little joke with us?

AT THE HOP

7. Sign of some gas leaks: ODOR.  The natural gas that we use has no ODOR.  Mercaptan, which does have a distinctive, rotten egg ODOR is added to the gas to make leaks easier to detect.

8. Set up again, as pool balls: RE - RACK.  The RACK is the frame that holds the balls before they are broken up to start the game.

A NICE RACK   

9. Slightly touched: DOTTY.  Slang for somewhat mad or eccentric.

10. Forensic team member: CORONER.  A CORONER is the public official who investigates violent, sudden, or suspicious deaths.  Here, a CROSSWORD CORONER.

11. Feat on ice: AXEL.  Another bit of whimsy from our constructor?  An ice skating JUMP, the AXEL is named for it's creator, Norwegian figure skater Axel Paulsen.

TANYA HARDING

12. Code carrier: GENE.

       What did the DNA strand say to the other DNA strand?

       Do my GENEs make me look fat?

13. Close: END.  If you look up the difference between Close and END, both as nouns and as verbs, you might encounter the word "ergative".

Sorry, but I could not resist this bit of plagiarism.

18. Got back to, in a way: RSVPD.  It is a bit odd to see the way that "Respondez S'il Vous Plait" has morphed into a verb.  The "D" stuck on the end is something that Ed is probably still trying to figure out how to tweak.

22. Stop: HALT.

24. Feudal laborer: SERF.  A SERF was an agricultural laborer bound under the feudal system to work on his lord's estate.

26. Erie Canal city: UTICA.  Due to high levels of both political corruption and organized crime in the city, UTICA was, at one time, known as "The City That God Forgot".

27. Diet drink spec: NOCAL.  I first put LO CAL into the grid but UNCAP made it clear that I needed to cut out even more calories.  NO CALories. 

28. Something to believe in: CAUSE.  St. Jude is referred to as the Patron Saint of Lost CAUSEs.

ST. JUDE

30. Longest river in France: LOIRE.  The LOIRE River is the longest river in France but, at a length of approximately 1,000 kilometres, it is only the 171st longest river in the world.

32. Date, with "with": GO OUT.

33. More than a little plump: OBESE.

34. Meal with matzo: SEDER.  At the traditional SEDER meal, the story of the Jewish People's miraculous Exodus from slavery in Egypt is retold so that it will be remembered from generation to generation.  Matzo, AKA "the bread of affliction" is the unleavened bread served as a reminder that in their hasty departure there was insufficient time to allow bread to rise.

MOSES PARTING THE RED SEA    

36. A long way: FAR.

37. Verb that becomes its homophone by changing its vowel: SEW.  So, is it going to be Sow or Sew?  It could have been Sow and, if so, it could have been clued with wild oats.  It turned out to be SEW.  Sew what?

40. Trunk supporter: ROOT.  Oh, a tree reference. 

43. Groomed oneself fastidiously: PRIMPED.

44. At the pinnacle of: ATOP.

46. Try to belt: HIT AT. 

47. Words engraved under the Lincoln Memorial?: ONE CENT.  I first tried to think of a quotation etched into the Memorial, itself.  The question mark at the end of the clue should have alerted me to skip that thought.

49. Paddled, perhaps: CANOED.

52. Book list listing: TITLE.  I went to a book store for their sale which was "One Third Off On All TITLEs".  I picked up a nice copy of  The Lion, The Witch.

       

54. "Love Train" singers, with "The": OJAYS.  Released in 1972, Love Train reached Number One on the Billboard Hot 100.

55. Sci-fi good guys: JEDI.  A Star Wars reference.  The JEDI Knights were the guardians of peace and justice in the Galactic Empire.  Dark Helmet, from Space Balls, is not a JEDI.

MAY THE SCHWARTZ BE WITH YOU

56. Encourage: URGE. 

57. "It's My Party" singer Lesley: GORE.  This one was a gimme.  So was the choice of the audio/video clip.

LESLEY GORE - 1964 

59. Recognize: KNOW.

60. Without help: SOLO.   ALONE would not fit.  We'll save the "Han Solo crashes his airplane" jokes for another time.

61. Word with rally or talk: PEP.   A  PEP Rally is sometimes held before a big game.  A PEP Talk is sometimes given to the team by a coach at halftime.

63. Actor Chaney: LON.  LON Chaney, Jr. appeared in many movies and television shows.  His most famous role was as Larry Talbot, Wolf Man.

64. "Where __ I?": WAS.  Honestly, at this point, I really cannot remember.

Have a great Thursday, everyone, and let's stay safe out there.

 

MM OUT

Wednesday, October 21 Mike Peluso

Theme - The unifier says it all, so let's start there.

38. Cautionary workplace axiom ... or a hint to the starts of the answers to starred clues: SAFETY FIRST.  A statement advising caution to prevent accidents and injuries.  The word SAFETY combines with the beginning of each theme answer to yield an in-the-language phrase.

16. *Old bowling alley employee: PIN SETTER.  Before there were automatic pin setting machines,  this job was done by hand, and it was dangerous.  A SAFETY PIN is a pin with a point that is bent back to the head and is held in a guard when closed.

23. *Pass prevention strategy: ZONE DEFENSE.  In football, a strategy in which defensive players are responsible for certain areas of the field to deter passing into that area.  A SAFETY ZONE is a marked area at or near a roadway for pedestrians, such as a bus stop.

50. *Bad homes for critics?: GLASS HOUSES.  Figuratively, a position in which one's vulnerabilities with regard to a certain issue are exposed, used as an admonition to avoid hypocrisy.  SAFETY GLASS is a type of product designed to resist breakage, or be less likely to cause serious injury when broken.  I spent the majority of my professional life dealing with it, and could go on at great length, but will spare you all of that

61. *One-on-one golf competition: MATCH PLAY.  A type of play in which the score is determined by the number of holes won rather than the total number of strokes.  A SAFETY MATCH is one that will only light when struck against a specific surface.

Hi Gang, JazzBumpa on duty to keep up all safe today.  Let's see what hazards this puzzle presents.

Across:

1. "... where the sun / Came peeping in at __": Thomas Hood: MORN.  That's starting the day off right.

5. Willie Mays, twice: MVP.  Most Valuable Player - an honor bestowed upon an individual for outstanding performance.  

8. Bowler's test: SPLIT. A situation where the first ball of a frame knocks down the head pin, but leaves standing two or more non-adjacent pins.

13. Carpet calculation: AREA.  Total amount of floor to be covered.

14. China setting: ASIA.  The continent.

15. Soccer star Rossi: PAOLO. [b 1956] His career spanned from 1973 to 1987. He is regarded as one of the best Italian players of all time. 

18. Cry of dismay: OY VEY.  From German, via Yiddish.  The English equivalent is "Woe is me."

19. Country singer Womack: LEE ANN. [b1966] 

 

20. Even things: ATONE.  Make amends or reparation.

22. Part of ESL: Abbr.: ENGlish as a second language.

28. Editor's change of heart: STET.  Indication that a correction or alteration should be ignored.

30. "I agree!": AMEN.  An utterance meaning "So be it."

31. It's north of Afr.: EUR.  The continents of Africa and Europe.

32. Not very exciting: HO-HUM.  Boring.

35. Seasickness symptom: NAUSEA.  Stomach upset with an inclination to vomit.

40. Elk: WAPITI.  From the Shawnee language.

42. Pre-discount prices: LISTS.  Manufacturers' suggested retail prices

43. Not well: ILL.  Sick

44. Dollop: GLOB. A lump of a semi-liquid substance.

46. Pacino's voice, at times: RASP.  Rough talk, talked roughly.

55. Golf standard: PAR.  The number of strokes a first-class played is expected to require to complete a hole.

56. Deal with: SEE TO.

57. Capitol feature: CUPOLA.  A dome.

59. Like four Sandy Koufax games: NO HIT.  A complete game in which the pitcher give up no hits to the opposing team.

64. It's good in Chile: BUENO.  Translation into Spanish

65. Agree with: ECHO.  Repeat the same thing.

66. Shoppe modifier: OLDE.

67. Shakespearean forest: ARDEN.  A wooded area in Warwickshire, Eng.

68. 2000s TV forensic technician, to pals: DEX. A show set in Miami in which Dexter, the eponymous hero, is a forensic specialist by day who by night hunts down and murders murderers who have escaped the law.

69. Fly high: SOAR.  Flew so high my arms are sore

Down:

1. Breakfast condiment sources: MAPLES.  Syrup suppliers.

2. Get one's bearings: ORIENT.  Align or position something relative to defined reference points.

3. Go back on a promise: RENEGE.  From medieval Latin meaning to deny. 

4. Org. in the biodrama "Hidden Figures": NASA. National Aeronautic and Space Administration. Tells the story of the African-American women who made outstanding contributions to the space program, while dealing with oppressive sex and race discrimination.

5. WY winter hrs.: MST. Mountain Standard Time.

6. Compete: VIE. Strive for victory or superiority.

7. Pre-Rose Bowl tradition: PARADE.

8. Many an "SNL" skit: SPOOF.  satirical skit

9. Two-time U.S. Open winner Stewart: PAYNE.

10. Illicit rendezvous site: LOVE NEST.

 

Close enough

11. La Corse, par exemple: ILE.  The Island of Corsica, in French.

12. Play (with): TOY.  A verb that looks like a noun.  You can TOY with a TOY.

14. 53 for I, e.g.: AT. NO. The Atomic Number for Iodine.

17. Split __: New Zealand band: ENZ

 

 From 1980

21. Court sport: TENNIS.  It's a racket.

24. Astro's finish?: NAUT.   They didn't quite get to the World Series, so, yeah - they're finished  But, sorry, this is a really ugly clue for an affix.

25. Harris of country: EMMY LOU.

 

26. Take to court: SUE.  Institute legal proceedings against (a person or institution), typically for redress.

27. Stat for Justin Verlander: ERA.  Earned Run Average.  JV had a series of injuries this year,  the most recent requiring Tommy John surgery, which he had about 3 weeks ago.  He only pitched 6 innings this year, and will miss the 2021 season.

29. Spicy cuisine: THAI.  Available in a variety of heat levels.  I like to get something made with coconut milk.

33. Time and again, to Yeats: OFT.  Often, to me.

34. Driver's license datum: HEIGHT.  Not my first thought, but there it is.

36. Poetic verb: ART.  [archaic] As in thou ART . . . [fill in the blank.]

37. Cold War letters: USSR.  Union of Soviet Socialist Republics.  Our foes in those days, and the Russians still to this day. 

38. Made waves?: SPLASHED.  Moved water with your hands or feet.

39. Slight fabrications: FIBS.  At what point does a FIB become a lie?

40. Freak (out): WIG.  Go ape.

41. Every bit: ALL.  The whole enchilada.

45. Rose ominously: LOOMED.  Appeared in an impressively great form as an impending occurrence, usually in a dangerous or threatening manner.

47. Swing era Harlem hot spot: APOLLO.  Read about it here.

48. Tea since 1892: SALADA.  An innovation in foil packaging preserved freshness and a more uniform flavor.  This lead to great commercial success in the early 1900's.

49. Supplication: PRAYER.  Petition or entreaty from a position of humility.

51. River to the English Channel: SEINE.  It is 482 miles long and drains most of northern France.

52. Resolute about: SET ON.  Bound and determined, as the old phrase had it.

53. Danish shoe brand: ECCO.  It was founded in 1963, and now produces other leather goods.

54. NFL defensive end Ndamukong __: SUH. [b 1987] He has played for the Lions, Dolphins and Rams, and is currently with the Buccaneers.

58. Med. plan options: PPOS. Preferred Provider Organizations.  A PPO is a type of managed care program of medical service providers that offers reduced rates to clients.

59. Home to Kings: Abbr.: NBA. In the National Basketball Association, the Sacramento Kings finished 12th in the Western Division

60. "__ Gang": OUR.

62. Versatile card: ACE.  Can be the highest or lowest card in various games.

63. "Much appreciated," in texts: THX. Thank you!

That completes another Wednesday.  Stay SAFE out there - wear a mask, keep you social distance, and wash your hands

Cool regards!

JzB