Friday, January 22, 2021, Bruce Haight

Theme: Fore! Oops, no, I think I had a five. As in five common GOLF terms used in five OTHER common phrases.

Chairman Moe here, with a CSO to Boomer, Husker Gary, TTP, and yours truly (others, too?), who are admitted golfers who also like to solve (and blog) crossword puzzles. Bruce Haight gave us a semi-themed puzzle today that evoked a plethora of play-on-words, all related to the sport purported to have been invented by the Scots several centuries ago. Most of these were "tap-ins" for this former "scratch" golfer.

And while I found a "fair way" to solve the golf terms, I was hitting "out of the rough" on many of the crossing words. Too many to list here but I suppose others didn't hit all of the "greens in regulation". If I had to (54-Down. Formally record(s),): POST(s) my golf score on this puzzle, I'd say that I "shot over par". But soon after solving, I visited my personal "19th hole" and had a celebritory libation! Let's see if you all found this a fair test, or were always hitting out of a "bunker".

18-Across. Difficult golf shot?: HARD DRIVE. My first HARD DRIVE I can recall was on the hole following the hole on which I had my first hole-in-one. My playing partners offered little pressure, but if I recall, I snap-hooked it and wound up getting a double-bogey.

The play-on-words phrase HARDDRIVE is a reference to the device that operates your computer, which must have pleased the 25-Down. Nerdy type(s): GEEKs.

24-Across. Breakfast spot for golfers?: DOUGHNUT HOLE. Ok, who else among us first entered "SAUSAGE LINKS" as this answer?! I know I did!! Not that DOUGHNUT HOLE isn't a good entry, but I wish Bruce had used the other, as it would've saved me a number of three-putts!!

But for breakfast, I know I've had these before:

38-Across. Low-quality golf equipment?: MICKEY MOUSE CLUB. As the perps emerged, I saw the erstwhile MICKEY MOUSE CLUB come into view. The term "Mickey Mouse" has been used to denote something of lower quality. I have a good friend who used to work for WDW in Orlando, and whenever I visited him he treated me to a round of golf on several of the courses there. We even saw this famous rodent teeing off:

49. Golf simulator shot?: COMPUTER CHIP. Very clever! Golf simulators have been around for several years, and I'm guessing their HARD DRIVES must use a COMPUTER CHIP to capture the images portrayed on the screen.

A CHIP shot is one that is hit from an area close to the putting green, usually with a pitching wedge. But as the video below shows, pro golfer Phil Mickelson has perfected a CHIP shot that no simulator could ever match:

60-Across. Place to meet single golfers?: DATE RANGE. Another clever use of a computer phrase (see image) that is used primarily on Excel Spreadsheets

As well as perhaps where wouldbe lovers might arrange for their first "date", as this clip from one of my favorite golf movies suggests; there were so many to choose from:

As I recall, there are 18 holes in golf, and we've but played 5. Actually there are far more than 13 clues and solves remaining. And since common courtesy among golfers is to complete the round in 4 hours or less, I will do my best to maintain a brisk pace of play!

Across:
1. Hard to rattle: STOIC. Being STOIC is being calm and almost without any emotion. When you're stoic, you don't show what you're feeling and you also accept whatever is happening. This little guy being STOIC with his rattle!

6. Easy-to-read sign: NEON. I'm pretty sure that this purveyor used NEON in his tavern's sign. I can read it just fine!

10. Two-time Cy Young winner Jacob deGrom and teammates: METS. First golf and now baseball?? I bet the solvers of this puzzle who aren't sports fans must be livid right now!!

14. "The Metamorphosis" author: KAFKA. All right! Finally, a clue that is not sports-related, but is all about the fine arts. Franz Kafka (3 July 1883 – 3 June 1924) was a German-speaking Bohemian novelist. "The Metamorphosis" tells the story of salesman Gregor Samsa who wakes one morning to find himself inexplicably transformed into a huge insect. Biographical?

15. Big show: EXPO. EXPO's, aka "trade fairs" are business and industry's means to show off, in a big way, their merchandise and services. This blogger spent many years participating in the PACK EXPO, which was held at the McCormick Place Convention Center in Chicago. With over 2.6 million square feet of exhibit space, McCormick Place is the largest and most flexible use convention center in North America.

16. Miami Heat coach Spoelstra: ERIK. Golf, then baseball, and now basketball, too??! Erik Jon Celino Spoelstra (born November 1, 1970) is an American professional basketball coach who is the head coach for the Miami Heat of the National Basketball Association (NBA). In 2012 and 2013, with star forward LeBron James, the Miami Heat won back-to-back NBA Championships

17. Gather: INFER. Sometimes a picture is worth a 1,000 words

20. Liftoff approx.: ETD. Estimated Time of Departure. My guess, for this clue, is that departure occurred after the countdown reached zero!

21. Approximately: CIRCA. An old word that refers mostly to an old, and approximate date in time. As in this example: c. 1732 – 1799: The beginning year is approximate; the end year is known precisely; where the c. is the abbreviation for CIRCA

23. "__, right?!": I KNOW. The phrase made popular by Jimmy Fallon (c. 2000) and probably attributed to Tina Fey. Or maybe in this song that I randomly found ... "Google" it and you can find it ...

27. Deck chair wood: TEAK. This hard wood comes from a deciduous tree that grows in tropical regions of the world. Known for both its strength, durability, and water resistance

28. Sports standout: ALL PRO. OK, back to the sports clues again ... only this time, the second word, PRO, is what a lot of golfers refer to the head person at a golf course. But in this case, ALL PRO is a reference used to acknowledge a professional athlete who is at the top of their field in any given season. Sports writers, fans, and fellow players all have a vote. And some years they just don't recognize the G.O.A.T. (and trust me, Wilbur Charles, it pains me to say that!)

32. Ophthalmology concerns: STYES. Not this:

34. Dismissive sound: PFFT. For fans of The Office:

37. Tool that only works in water: OAR. Great clue. According to Crossword Tracker, this clue wording has never appeared in a published Crossword puzzle before! Kudos to Bruce (or the Editor) for coming up with this clever cluing

42. Número pequeño: UNO. Literally translated, Número pequeño means a "small number". UNO, Spanish word for "one", is both a small number as well as a lonely number, as the '60's Rock 'n' Roll band "Tres Perro Noche" tells us:

43. WNBA broadcaster: ESPN. Oh dear God, when will these sports clues end??!! Women's National Basketball Association --> Entertainment and Sports Programming Network . . .

44. Fretted fiddles: VIOLS. Once again, Wikipedia to the rescue. The fun of blogging is learning things you thought you knew but didn't

45. Easygoing folks: TYPE B'S. But what if their blood is "A Negative"?!

48. Desk set: PENS. Remember when PENS were something fashionable and had status? I doubt many TYPE B'S owned one of these:

55. State in two time zones: IDAHO. Off the top of my head, I am thinking that TEXAS would've fit as another 5-letter state spanning two time zones. I am seeing IDAHO more and more these days in xword puzzles; it's akin to MAINE and OHIO as being small-letter states with multiple vowels. Always good for a constructor to use in crosses

58. Wide variety: ARRAY. Moe-ku:

The poster with wide
Variety of Dad jokes?
ARRAY-O-Sunshine!

59. Italian diminutive suffix: INO. Wiktionary has a boat load of them

62. Soup veggies: OKRAS. Looks yummy

64. Sporty Camaro: IROC. I had TTOP at first. Hot Rod Dot Com has an interesting opinion about this model of Camaro

65. "That Is NOT a Good __!": Mo Willems children's book: IDEA. How can anything written by a guy named "MO" be bad?!

66. Food pkg. info: NET WT. The net quantity of contents is a statement on the label that shows the net weight (often abbreviated, NET WT.) of food in a package. Only the net weight of the food is included in this statement; the weight of the container, wrapper or packing is not included. However, any water or other liquid added to food, or propellant used in an aerosol, can be included in the net weight. This statement must be distinct and must be placed in the lower 30 percent of the principal display panel.

67. Like dungeons, typically: DANK. Unlike this definition: "The term 'DANK' is often used to describe a meme in which the comedy is excessively overdone and nonsensical, to the point of being comically ironic. I can relate to that!

68. Support at sea: MAST. This is another word that fits into a lot of xword puzzles with its common letters. There are 15 four-letter words that can be made with "__AST"

69. Makes more bearable: EASES. See 68-Across comment, but there are only 11 five-letter words using "__ASES" . . .

OK, on to the back nine!

Down:
1. Made tracks?: SKIED. Cross Country Canada has a tutorial for making snow tracks. They will hopefully look like the picture below afterwards . . .

2. Non __: not so much, in music: TANTO. Learning moment. Defined as an adverb: (especially as a direction after a tempo marking) too much. "allegro non tanto". Hmm ... and I was thinking this Moe-ku instead:

The LR's sidekick
Was excessive. Masked man said:
"You're TANTO, Tonto"

3. One working a security detail, perhaps: OFF DUTY COP. This article offers some insight into OFF DUTY COPS and their moonlighting details . . .

4. Mike and __: candy: IKE. These were Eisenhower's favorites. Notice the "NET WT." on the package

5. "Fast & Furious" staple: CAR CHASE. "Fast and Furious" the movie series. Nine of 'em. And in case you wondered, the correct order to watch them is: 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 3, 7, 8, and, (for now) "Hobbs and Shaw." There are also two official "Fast and Furious" shorts that take place before the second and fourth movies. There's also another film, "Better Luck Tomorrow," which is considered a prequel for franchise character Han. So many clips to choose from:

6. Indira Gandhi's father: NEHRU. He's a fashion designer, no? Fortunately my body size and shape was not a candidate for wearing one ...

7. __ change: EXACT. Most toll roads are going away from booths and collection lanes (EXACT change only) in favor of the E-ZPass or as we had in Florida, SunPass. I'd vote for getting rid of toll roads completely ...

8. Harpo Productions CEO: OPRAH. Harpo is OPRAH spelled backwards

9. Go-ahead: NOD. For the Guardians of the Galaxy fans, "I am Groot":

10. German chancellor since 2005: MERKEL. Angela Dorothea MERKEL (née Kasner; born 17 July 1954) is a German politician who has been Chancellor of Germany since 2005. Lots of info about her if you click on this link

11. "The Night Circus" novelist Morgenstern: ERIN. Erin Morgenstern (born July 8, 1978) is an American multimedia artist and the author of two fantasy novels. Here she is in 2011

12. Record for later: TIVO. Using the word "TIVO" as a verb fits this clue. "TIVO" as a noun is a brand name for a Digital Video Recorder. After a quick read of its history, TIVO seems to have lacked the marketing and/or sales leadership to have captured the digital video recording market when it had the brand recognition

13. Slant: SKEW.

19. Pickle herb: DILL. All you ever wanted to know about DILL

22. HP product: INK. Hewlett-Packard. Printer. INK.

26. Stable supply: OATS. They say that horses are among the smartest animals

29. Top choices: POLO SHIRTS. A Friday clue for sure. "Top" as in what you wear between your waist and your neck. POLO SHIRTS can denote either a generic type of pullover top (usually made of cotton or synthetic fiber) or the specific brand. And since today's puzzle is about golf, why not show an image of a Pro Golfer who's paid by Ralph Lauren to wear their POLO SHIRTS?

30. Fidel's successor: RAUL. The Brothers Castro of Cuba. Since today's puzzle is about golf (and other sports popped up, too) I might've suggested that Bruce use the clue: Madrid footballer

31. Golf balls, e.g.: ORBS.

32. Salacious stuff: SMUT. Hmm. I don't see salacious below . . . must be the "Friday" definition for SMUT!

33. Lilliputian: TINY. The Lilliputians are a society of people around six inches in average height, but with all the arrogance and sense of self-importance associated with full-sized humans. From the book Gulliver's Travels

34. Indian VIPs: PMS. Prime MinisterS. Moe-ku:

She had P.M.S.
Her Doctor said, "It's just an
Ovary action."

35. Clotheshorse: FOP. In the literal sense of the word:

36. First answer in the first-ever published crossword: FUN. The first-ever crossword puzzle ran in the New York World newspaper on December 21, 1913. Looks like FUN!

39. Polite assent: YES'M. Contraction for "yes ma'am". Which is a contraction for "yes madam".

40. All of us: EVERYONE. How's EVERYONE doing today?

41. POTUS, per Article II, Section 2: C IN C. Commander IN Chief. #46 began his 4-year term as CINC on Wednesday

46. Payment option: E-CHECK. Provide the on-line merchant with your bank's routing number and your bank account number, and "voila", you've created an E-CHECK

47. Uncultured one: BOOR. Moe-ku:

Crude South African
And a few ill-mannered Brits
Fought in the BOOR War

48. Soup veggie: PEA. Clecho; didn't we have OKRA as today's soup veggie?

50. __ Express: fast-food chain: PANDA. I've never had PANDA. Does it taste like chicken?

51. Impulses: URGES.

52. Pick up the tab: TREAT. Do you think that Tramp picked up the tab?

53. Dazzled: IN AWE. I'm IN AWE every time I finish a Friday puzzle. You?

55. "Look what __!": I DID. Every kid's favorite saying!

56. Uber CEO Khosrowshahi: DARA. Perps solved this. I had no clue other than what Bruce gave us, and that didn't help. Here is a brief biography

57. Oodles: A TON. 2,000 pounds (A TON) would be oodles, methinks

61. Asset in darts: AIM. This guy's got phenomenal AIM. Amazing

63. Mauna __: KEA. Well, it was going to be either KEA or LOA. And to end the "round", how about one more golf photo with Mauna Kea in the background?

The Grid:

So, how did YOU hit 'em today? See you soon . . .

Thursday, January 21 2021, Bryant White

Why do I always get the fishy puzzles?  And today's is shell fishy to be exact.  Thank you Bryant White for a very clever puzzle with lots of sparkly grist on which to hang internet bling.  The puzzle has two cryptic reveals, pointing to a graphic that only finally emerges in the circles near the very bottom of the grid.

Here are the reveals:

34A. Red variety of this puzzle's circles: MANHATTAN.  RED circles?  My newspaper is B&W, How can this be. Wait and see ...

6D. White variety of this puzzle's circles: NEW ENGLAND.  They were BLACK actually - I can't even HIGHLIGHT WHITE. But it's getting warmer ... 

 3D. With 9-Down, crispy go-with for this puzzle's circles: SALTINE. Or the related OYSTER CRACKERS for us hypertensives.  Fishier still ...

 9D. See 3-Down: CRACKER.  Lots of synonyms for this: YEGG, HACKER, and some that are not so PC.

Here's the grid:

Following the highlighted circles starting in 36A from left to right and down the rows below, a BOWL emerges, which you can use for a serving of either MANHATTAN or NEW ENGLAND CLAM CHOWDER.  Complete with SALTINE CRACKERS at 3D and 9D respectively.  Notice that Bryant tosses in some COD at 9A and AHI tuna at 65A.  Throw these in the bowl and you've got the makings of a SEAFOOD CHOWDER (see C.C.'s Blog Recipes)

Here are the rest of the clues.

Across:

1. MS-__: DOS.  Made Bill Gates a billionaire.  His left hand knew what his right hand was doing when, while IBM was shopping for an OS for their new PERSONAL COMPUTER, Gates was surreptitiously shopping the rights to 86-DOS, an early version of MS-DOS written by Seattle programmer Tim Paterson.  Gates got rich, and Paterson got a footnote in software history.

4. He's Santa in "Elf": ASNER.  Before playing global altruist SAINT NICK, Ed Asner played LOU GRANT, a hard-bitten newspaper man.

9. Fish-and-chips fish: COD.  ENGLISH carry-out, with FRENCH fries not potato chips.  Do you smell something fishy?

12. Andean stew tubers: OCAS.  Speaking of POTATOES, OCAS are their up and up competition.

14. Geoffrey of fashion: BEENE.

15. "You have a point": TRUE. The one at the end of the answer.

16. Hanukkah moolah: GELT.  Money, gold-foil clad chocolate actually, given as presents during the Jewish festival of Hanukkah. It is typically given to children and sometimes teachers, often in conjunction with the game of Dreidel.

17. Cut with sharp teeth: SAW UP.  A tree must be SAWN DOWN before it is can be SAWN UP.  I wonder what Sir Isaac would have thought of that?

18. Greasy spoon sign: EATS.

19. Board game endings: MATES.   Le Roi est mort, vive le Roi!  He lives to play another day!

21. Dudes: MEN.  They don't make very good RANCHERS though.

22. Sonora flora: CACTI.  Prickly subject.

23. Jungian inner self: ANIMA.  Well ... half of the inner self.  Also a Latin noun for BREATH or SOUL.

24. Anti-apartheid org.: ANC.  Founded by Nelson Mandela, a truly remarkable human being.

25. Actor Werner of "Fahrenheit 451": OSKAR.  The film, based on the SF novel by Ray Bradbury, was a vehicle not only for Werner, but for Julie Christie as well.  Werner was also in one of my all time favorite movies, Jules and Jim in1962.  Fahrenheit 451(the ignition temperature of paper),  takes us to a post-literate society in the future where "firefighters" burn books instead of putting out fires.  In 2018 HBO did a new adaptation of the novel , and it seems to have been roundly panned.

26. Element #50: TIN.  The integer indicates "Atomic Number"; TIN is the only 3 letter element name.

27. More squalid: MANGIER.

30. Scrape (out): EKE.

31. Crackerjack: ACE.  A TOY in every box!

32. Restricted road area: BUS LANE.  HOV would fit too, but doesn't perp.

33. High-__ image: RES.  Cyber jargon for the PIXEL DENSITY ("Picture Elements") of an image.

36. Larry __, former Phillies All-Star shortstop who was 2001 N.L. Manager of the Year: BOWA.   Larry has not yet made the trip to Cooperstown.  A CSO to any FANS who might want to hazard a guess on his prospects?

39. Meat-eating aids: TINES.  They put the TEETH in FORKS.

40. River to the Baltic: ODER.   The "River of Peace" marking the border between Poland and Germany, and the only 4 letter river flowing into the Baltic.

44. "Invisible Cities" author Calvino: ITALO.  Marco Polo makes them visible in the mind's eye of Emperor Kublai Khan.

46. Copper orgs.?: PDS.  Police Departments.

47. Happy, but not cheerful or upbeat?: DWARF.

48. Spoonful, say: DOLLOP.

50. Was in the cards: LOOMED.  A tangled NET unfolds ...

51. Group with rackets: MAFIA.  No, not this one ..

 53. Long __: JOHNS.  It's that time of year.  Tell me about it Boomer!

54. Slightly cracked: AJAR.  When a door is not a door it's ...

56. Glass-half-empty sort: CYNIC.  After all of these centuries Diogenes is still looking for an honest man.  As I am only a half-cynic, I still hope he finds one.

58. Computer giant: DELL.  IBM is too short.  ACER didn't perp. Which leaves MICHAEL S. DELL, who revolutionized the PC computer industry in 1984 by allowing customers to buy directly from the manufacturer at considerable cost savings.  He came by his fortune honestly, except for a little tiff with the SEC:  see PENALTY in the Wiki link.

61. "Amen!": WORD.  So be it.

62. Memorable mission: ALAMO.  This is not a big place.  How the Texans held the Mexicans at bay for so long is miraculous.  I have visited San Antonio many times and it's my favorite city in Texas.  So much to see and do there and in the surrounding country side.

63. Director Kazan: ELIA.  Makes frequent appearances in crossword puzzles.  A real cinema giant.

64. "I'm up for it!": LETS.  Let's not and say we did.

65. Sashimi selection: AHI.  My favorite way to eat this is in a dish called TEKKADON.  Yummy!

66. Initial request for an answer?: RSVP.  We'll be taking your comments immediately after this review.

Down:

1. Church doctrines: DOGMATA.  Plural of DOGMA. 

2. Airline on "Lost": OCEANIC.

4. Washboard __: ABS.  The hunks go for 6-pack ABS.  That's nothin' - I've got at least a 12-pack!

5. Sailor's skill: SEAMANSHIP.  Requires strength, courage, a knowledge of how to keep the ship ship-shape, and an in-depth knowledge of the sea.  On the old sailing ships sailors were masters of rope work and specialty knots.  The once popular craft of MACRAMÉ came down from sailors.

7. Doesn't mumble: ENUNCIATES.  Dw says I mumble.  I guess I need to E-NUN-CI-ATE more.

8. Press in a gym, say: REP.  What you do to get 6-pack ABS.  Or maybe someone who is trying to sell you a gym membership.


10. Scene not meant to be seen: OUTTAKE.  "Left on the cutting room floor."  Some of our constructors complain about this too.  Flip the words and you can also get 9A that way.

11. Wish list items, e.g.: DESIRES.  Hmm.  I don't see that in MASLOW's Hierarchy ...

13. Stern's opposite: STEM.  Also "Science Technology English and Math".  Did I get that right?  Apologies to Dash T!

15. They're often in hot water: TEAS.  Don't get me started on this.  It's not HOT water, it's BOILING water!  I've yet to be served a proper cup of tea in the USA.  I take that back.  The old Gypsy's Tea Room in Westminster, MD knew how to do it.

20. Bossa nova ancestor: SAMBA.  Literally Portuguese for "new trend" or "new wave" Someday I'm going to get my TAXONOMY of Latin dances down pat.  Hard to do though when you've got two left feet.

22. Chick of jazz: COREA.  While Corea is primarily thought of as a jazz pianist, like Keith Jarrett he is a pianistic POLYMATH (the GERSHWIN bit is in the second half):

28. Family member: AUNT.

29. Tolkien's Quickbeam et al.: ENTS.  For my money the most endearing creatures in MIDDLE EARTH  But while LOTR takes place in our minds, this takes place on EARTH.

34. Adaptable ducks: MALLARDS.  Mallards are the most adaptable of ducks, perhaps due to their escape and release from captivity, and have moved into habitats that once belonged to other duck species. They aren’t picky about nesting locations and often benefit from a close proximity to people.

35. "I get it now": NO WONDER.  A major problem of our time.

36. Two diamonds, possibly: BID.  Bridge?  Hands up from all you Bridge players.  I was introduced to it too late in life.

37. Ioway relative: OTO.  The state of IOWA derives its name from the former tribe.  The OTOE are from the same language group (Chiwere: Jiwére).  They appear often in crosswords, as their name is very GLUEY.

38. Store whose first three letters come from its founder's name: WALMART.

41. Ones "in distress": DAMSELS.  Not all of them are in distress. If they are young, unmarried, attractive DAMES, they are in high-demand in the novels of Jane Austen and the Bronte sisters.  But beware the ENTAIL!

42. Before, before: ERE.

43. "Mayberry __": '60s sitcom: RFD.  I watched the old "Andy Griffith" show, but don't think I caught this one.

45. Body blow reaction: OOF.

47. Simpson outburst: DOH.

49. 12-point type: PICA.

50. El Pollo __: chain in the U.S. and Mexico: LOCO.  I love TEX-MEX, but there are no "El Pollo Loco" restaurants in Maryland that I know of.  So they specialize in crazy chickens?  A CSO to Cornerites in the SW who would weigh in on this chain.  My grandchildren have a cat they call "POCO LOCO" (more than a little I think).  When we visited last he surprised me when he jumped into the front seat of the car on our arrival.  I think it was the CRAB DIP. 

52. "The Clan of the Cave Bear" heroine: AYLA.  I Wiki-ed the plot summary of this book and it confused me.  In it AYLA, a Cro-magnon has a child (DURC) by BROUD, a Neanderthal.  The ability to produce FERTILE offspring is a defining characteristic of a SPECIES.  Another CSO to anyone who has read this or any of the 5 SEQUELS.  Does DURC ever have any children?  I.e. does AYLA ever become a GRANDMA?

53. Hendrix at Woodstock: JIMI.  One of the greatest guitarists of our time (Andre Segovia, Julian Bream, and Eric Clapton excepted of course).  Here he is playing his "Foxy Lady" at Maui in 1970 (see 59D for the sequel called "Foxy Elf"):

54. Leather-work tool: AWL.  A standard blade on a Swiss Army Knife.

55. Film noir coffee: JOE.  In NORDIC noir it gets ICED.

57. "I'll pass": NAH.  Think I'll pass on this one.

59. Tyler who played Arwen in the "Lord of the Rings" films: LIV.  This puzzle is book-ended by ELVES at the beginning and end, with a DWARF in the MIDDLE.  We're not in Kansas anymore FRODO!

60. Catcher behind the plate?: LAP.  Shouldn't that be BELOW the plate?

 waseeley

Notes from C.C.:

1) Happy 73rd birthday to sweet Madame DeFarge (Janice), who's always been so kind and attentive to regulars on the blog.

 

 

2) As JD mentioned last night, our blog turns 13 today! I'm so grateful to our my team members. Thanks for your hard work week after week.

Wednesday, January 20, 2021, Steve Marron & C.C. Burnikel

Theme: BUNDLE UP

Across:

20. It takes getting used to: ACQUIRED TASTE. A QUIRE of paper is either 25 or 24 sheets. According to Wikipedia: "The usual meaning is 25 sheets of the same size and quality: ​¹⁄₂₀ of a ream of 500 sheets. Quires of 25 sheets are often used for machine-made paper, while quires of 24 sheets are often used for handmade or specialised paper of 480-sheet reams."

27. Native American leaders: TRIBAL ELDERS. A BALE of paper is 5,000 sheets.

43. Exuberant compliment: YOURE AMAZING. A REAM of paper is 500 sheets.

50. Morning news deliverers ... or based on a hidden word in each, what 20-, 27- and 43-Across are?: PAPER CARRIERS.

These are all measure of paper quantity. Most of us know a REAM, some know BALE, and QUIRE seems more obscure. Two REAMS equals one bundle. Five bundles equals one BALE. This looks to be the first team effort from C.C. and Steve. (Note from C.C.: Steve and I have collaborated on a few puzzles before.)

Across:

1. Guthrie's "Today" co-host: KOTB. Savannah and Hoda.

5. Apple tablet: IPAD.

9. Easily bruised Cajun veggie: OKRA. Did not know it was easily bruised. But 4-letter cajun veggie must be OKRA.

13. Collectively: IN ALL.

15. Possessive shout: MINE.

16. Currency with Khomeini's picture: RIAL. Basic monetary unit of Iran and Oman, equal to 100 dinars in Iran and 1,000 baiza in Oman. 0.000024 United States Dollar.

17. "Same here!": ME TOO.

18. Greek salad ingredient: FETA.

19. Out of sight: GONE.

23. Note dispenser: ATM.

25. Large tea dispenser: URN.

26. Geese cries: HONKS.

31. Put a cap on: LIMIT.

32. One of its first customers was a collector of broken laser pointers: EBAY. Still alive and well.

33. IRS forms expert: CPA. Certified Public Accountant.

36. Just slightly: A TAD.

37. Brown ermine: STOAT.

39. Born and __: BRED.

40. Theater backdrop: SET.

41. High time?: NOON.

42. "Shrek" princess: FIONA.

 

46. Some blue jeans: LEVIS.

48. Sea-__ Airport: TAC. Short for SEAttle and TAComa.

49. Observe: SEE.

54. Late notice?: OBIT. Nice.

55. "The __ Report": 1976 bestseller: HITE. The Hite Report, first published in 1976, was a sexual revolution in six hundred pages. Wikipedia.

56. Bangkok natives: THAIS.

59. Ticket stub abbr.: SECT. Section (refers to seating location).

60. Meadow mamas: EWES.

61. Fires off: SENDS.

62. Programmer's alternative to "if": ELSE.

63. Yom Kippur ritual: FAST.

64. Heavy homework amount: A TON. "It hit me like A TON of bricks."

Down:

 1. Most common surname in Korea: KIM.

2. Half of snake eyes: ONE.

3. Ryokan floor cover: TATAMI MAT. Traditional Japanese flooring.

 

4. Political alliance: BLOC.

5. "Everything's OK": I'M FINE.

6. Berth place: PIER. Great clue.

7. Initial poker payment: ANTE.

8. Tie on a track: DEAD HEAT. A rare situation in various racing sports in which the performances of competitors are judged to be so close that no difference between them can be resolved. The result is declared a tie and the competitors are awarded a joint ranking.

9. Instruments with stops: ORGANS. An organ stop utilizes a set (rank) of pipes of graduated lengths to produce the range of notes needed. Stops with pipes tuned to sound the pitch normally associated with the keys (i.e. the pitch of the same keys on a piano) are called "unison stops."

10. Key-cutting site: KIOSK.

11. Raging YouTube posts: RANTS. Opposite of raves.

12. Sheltered from the wind: ALEE.

14. Plumlike Asian fruit: LOQUAT.

21. GoDaddy purchase: URL.

22. Boris Johnson, e.g.: TORY. UK conservative party. As a political term, Tory was an insult (derived from the Middle Irish word tóraidhe, modern Irish tóraí, meaning "outlaw," or "robber," from the Irish word tóir, meaning "pursuit" since outlaws were "pursued men") that entered English politics during the Exclusion Bill crisis of 1678–1681.

23. Book with insets: ATLAS.

24. Clichéd: TRITE. Overused and consequently of little import; lacking originality or freshness.

28. Auction action: BID.

29. Africa's Sierra __: LEONE. Country in West Africa, on the Atlantic Ocean, known for the white-sand beaches lining the Freetown Peninsula.

 30. Trade name letters: DBA.

33. Flaky bakery product: CROISSANT.

34. Tubular pasta: PENNE.

35. "Opposites attract," e.g.: ADAGE. I'll agree.

37. Kitchen bigwig-in-waiting: SOUS CHEF.

38. A.L.'s Blue Jays: TOR. Toronto baseball team.

39. Show __: BIZ. No business like it.

41. Black, in Biarritz: NOIR. French. Biarritz is a seaside town on southwestern France’s Basque coast.

42. Rhinestone surfaces: FACETS.

43. __ Nicole Brown of "Community": YVETTE.

44. Taking a breather: AT REST.

45. Monet's May: MAI. Artist Claude Monet. French painter.

46. Record company imprint: LABEL. Brand or trademark.

47. Heroic tales: EPICS.

50. Sit for a portrait: POSE.

51. Bygone audio brand: AIWA. Sad, I liked that brand.

52. 66 and others: Abbr.: RTES.

53. Flightless bird of the pampas: RHEA.

57. Altar affirmation: I DO.

58. Phishing target, briefly: SSN. Social Security Number.