Wednesday June 29, 2022 Tracy Gray

 Theme: "Spa Menu" 

Tracy Gray is no stranger to the crosswording world. Her puzzles have appeared frequently in "that other newspaper." But, as near as I can tell, this is only her second LAT entry. The first was a 2021 collaboration with Jeff Chen. For those of you who've been asking for fewer proper names, fewer pop culture references, and fewer "cute" clue/answers, today is your day. The majority of this puzzle consists of straight-forward clue definitions/synonyms. Enjoy. I finished this puzzle and had no idea what the theme might be. Wednesday themeless? Probably not. It finally dawned on me that perhaps there was a reveal clue that I'd somehow failed to read. Yup. Tucked in at 63d was SPA. -- "Place to enjoy the kinds of pampering found at the starts of the answers to the starred clues." Hmmmm, so there were starred clues as well. Hadn't noticed that. 

18a. *Operating room assistants. SCRUB NURSES. A spa SCRUB could be an exfoliating, exhilarating, moisturizing experience. In any case, it usually involves being rubbed with an abrasive product like coffee, salt, or nutshell husks. Sounds like fun. [Not!]

28a. *Employ flowery language. WAX POETIC, à la Chairman Moe or OwenKL. According to Merriam-Webster, one definition of "WAX" is "to assume a (specified) characteristic, quality, or state : BECOME." At the spa it's more likely to involve a bikini wax -- liquid wax applied, allowed to dry, and then ripped off like a band-aid. Sounds like fun. [Not!]

36. *Indulgent request made by Mae West in "I'm No Angel": PEEL ME A GRAPE. A facial PEEL involves having caustic goop smeared on your face...allowing it to "set a spell"...and then wiping it off. This kills off the top layer of skin which you can rip off in a day or two, like a sunburn. Sounds like fun. [Not!]

52a. #Cast celebration. WRAP PARTY. The WRAP party is held after major movie shooting has been completed. At the spa, a WRAP is often liquid mud which is applied, allowed to dry, and then ripped off like a band-aid. Sounds like fun. [Not!] Have you noticed that the spa is beginning to sound like a rip-off joint?

61a. *Retail event with deep discounts. BLOW OUT SALE. When it comes to the spa...hmmmm...don't think I want to go there.

Across:

1. Boarding area: GATE. At the airport.

5. Sugar substitute: STEVIA.

11. Liberal group?: ARTS. Where I fearlessly sifted and winnowed, that part of the university was the College of Letters and Science.

15. Strait-laced: PRIM. And proper.

16. How stir-fry is often served: ON RICE. Rice is that fine Houston institution where Uncle Ben was converted.

17. Vichyssoise need: LEEK. Learning moment. Did not know that LEEKs were an essential ingredient. On the other hand, I've never had vichyssoise, so how would I know? I tend to avoid foods I can't spell.

20. Hathaway of "Ocean's 8": ANNE.

21. "__ as directed": USE.

22. "Dig in!": EAT. Grace ender.

23. __ Pueblo, New Mexico: TAOS. When we visited, dw was taken with some pottery with a silvery-charcoal appearance. We were told that horse manure was involved. Maybe Waseeley can elaborate.

25. Aardvark snack: ANT.

26. Dog in RCA Victor ads: NIPPER. Here he is atop the old RCA Building in Albany, just for Irish Miss.

30. Native peoples of the Arctic: INUIT. Will it be ALEUT, INUIT, or YUPIK? Only the perps know for certain.

31. React to yeast: RISE.

32. Lightning burst: FLASH.

 33. Number in a 10-day forecast, for short: TEMP. Around here the TEMPs have been scary-high all month, and it's only June. I dread the next electric bill. 

34. Connecticut WNBA team: SUN.

35. "Argo" org.: CIA. In this 2012 movie a CIA operative attempts to rescue six Americans detained in Tehran during the '79 hostage crisis. Received 96% on the Tomatometer at Rotten Tomatoes.

41. Utter: SAY.

42. Route: WAY. As seen on your 1d.

43. Hissy fit: SNIT. 

 

46. Come to pass: OCCUR.

49. For you and me: OURS.

51. Brief tussle: SET-TO. Without the hyphen it just means "to begin."

54. Early '90s pres., familiarly: BUSH SR. When I ventured into the awl patch in the early '80s, I joined a company that he'd started. Never met him; he was no longer affiliated with it.

55. Hasty escape: LAM. Have you everr heard anybody say it...except Mary, of course?

56. Education acronym: STEM. I've also seen it as STEAM -- the A is for Arts.

57. Plot device?: HOE. Har-de-har-har. A little attempt at humor...very little.

58. Grammy category since 1989: RAP. Have never been a fan.

59. Black-__ Susan: EYED. Hahtoolah is a Susan, but she's not black-eyed.

 64. "To Venus and Back" singer Amos: TORI. This was TORI's fifth album, a two-disc affair. It has no title track.

 

 65. Categorize: ASSORT. Assorted chocolates does sound more appetizing than categorized chocolates, but "chocolates" never sounds bad.

66. Walk heavily: PLOD.

67. Hidden obstacle: SNAG.

68. Jackson Hole backdrop: TETONS. Visited there in the mid '60s on a summer college road trip with a buddy. We also stayed one night at the Broadmoor and took in a Smothers Brothers show on that trip.

69. Sax type: ALTO. Invented by Belgian Adolphe Sax back in the mid-1800s. There are at least 14 different types. You can check 'em out HERE.

Down:

1. Garmin device: GPS UNIT. No Garmin for me, mine is a TomTom, naturally.

2. Inverse trig function: ARCSINE. Arcsine(theta) is the angle whose sine is theta. This c/a is a tad arcane for the non-math-oriented. See what I did there?

3. Cyclist's accessory: TIRE PUMP. Won't do you much good, unless you also carry a tube patching kit.

4. Ostrich kin: EMU.

5. Underwater detector: SONAR. Evokes memories of a sonar lesson for Seaman Beaumont in The Hunt For Red October. Lucky for you, I couldn't find a clip.

6. Bolt holder: T-NUT.

7. Throw wide of the cutoff man, say: ERR. Sports clue, I'm guessin'.

8. Panoramic views: VISTAS. Like this one. 

9. Mountaineering tool: ICE AXE. Six letters, four vowels, what's not to like if you're a crossword constructor?

10. Greek fabulist: AESOP. There's some question whether he actually existed.

11. Taking after: À LA. In the fashion of, or somesuch.

12. First name of Italian sopranos Tebaldi and Scotto: RENATA. Some might consider this an obscure proper name.

13. Wimbledon sport: TENNIS.

14. Quick drawing: SKETCH.

19. Vegetable that may stain a cutting board: BEET. You either love 'em or hate 'em.

24. Bulgaria's capital: SOFIA.

27. Joins the conversation: PIPES UP.

28. Viognier or Vouvray: WINE. I've never had either. Have I mentioned that I tend to avoid foods (and drinks) that I can't spell?

29. Ticks by: ELAPSES.

31. Mojito liquor: RUM. Brunchy. GIN or RYE could also fit...but would be wrong.

34. Shifty: SLY.

35. Shed tears: CRY.

37. O.K. Corral brothers: EARPS. Wyatt, Virgil, and Morgan all made an appearance that day. We visited Tombstone and watched the re-enactment.

38. Askew: AWRY.

39. Neon or freon: GAS.

40. Captivate: ENTHRALL. Tried ENTRANCE first. Wite-Out, please.

44. "This is all more than I can handle": IT'S A LOT.

45. Ruin, as plans: TORPEDO. In my ute these frozen summer treats were called "Torpedoes."

46. Nocturnal nestlings: OWLETS. "Nocturnal" gives it away.

47. Medium for most refrigerator art: CRAYON.

48. Shape outlined in Instagram's logo: CAMERA.

49. Vague threat: OR ELSE.

50. Absolute: UTMOST.

51. Haggis ingredient: SUET. Never had it. Have I mentioned that I also tend to avoid some foods that I can spell?

53. Baseball stat: AT BAT.

54. Matches: BOUTS.

57. Rhinoceros feature: HORN. The horn is made of keratin, the same material as fingernails. Some folks mistakenly believe the horn has magical/medicinal properties. Rhinos are endangered, due to poaching and habitat loss. 

 

60. Use a spade: DIG.

62. Court: WOO.

63. Place to enjoy the kinds of pampering found at the starts of the answers to the starred clues: SPA. This is a perfectly good "reveal" clue. If only folks would take the time to read them. D'oh.

Here's the grid courtesy of C.C. Desper-otto out. 

 

Notes from C.C.:

1) Thank you so much for filling in the two Wednesdays in June, D-Otto! Thanks for always coming to my rescue.

2) Happy 56th birthday to Barry G, a regular in our blog in the earlier days. Barry, the other day Janice, a long-time reader who never commented on our blog, mentioned you in her letter to Boomer. It made me smile. You're still remembered and missed by many.

Tuesday, June 28, 2022, Taylor Johnson

 

Younger Cornerites, those of you who get your tunes from Spotify, Apple Music, or the ever edgy Pandora (I wouldn't open it if I were you!)  may not have heard of the hipster who is the subject of today's theme.  Those of us of a certain age may remember musician Spike Jones, who here reminds us of a time when music was streamed over the radio or at a sock hop by an R&R impresario known as the

Disc Jockey ...

 

 ... aka the "Dee Jay" or simply "DJ".  Our Dee Jay today is constructor Taylor Johnson, who first appeared in this venue on May 22, 2022, and who has arranged for us a revealing

40A. Dance club compilation, and what the answers to the starred clues literally are: DJ MIX.

He accomplishes this through 2 pairs of two-word themers.  The first pair consists of an Across and a Down clue, each word beginning with the letters D and J respectively:

17A. *"Let me enjoy my guilty pleasures!": DON'T JUDGE.  I'm sure many of our parents heard words to that effect from us when we were listening to rock and roll.

30D. *Move that captures two checkers: DOUBLE JUMP.  As the Spotify generation may not have ever played this game, here are the rules.

... and just to mix things up, the second pair of themers consists of an Across and a Down clue, each word beginning with the letters J and D respectively:

63A. *"Feelin' fine!": JUST DANDY.  "Candy's dandy, but liquor's quicker!".  Another phrase often heard during the DJ era.

11D. *Fruity treat often dusted with powdered sugar: JELLY DO-NUT.  A favorite food of the "Boys in Blue" and maybe a clecho to 43A?

To make this all work you might have to turn the puzzle upside-down for the vertical clues, much easier to do if you're solving on paper. 🙄

Here's the grid:
 

Here's the rest of the word mix ...

Across:

1. "Nope": UH UH.

5. Pointers: TIPS.  I wanted dogs.

9. City in northwest Missouri, informally: ST JOE.  St. Joseph, Missouri was named after the town's founder Joseph Robidoux and the biblical Saint Joseph.  St. Joseph is home to Missouri Western State University. It is the birthplace of 20th-century rapper and songwriter Eminem, but who grew up in and has made his career in Detroit, Michigan. In the nineteenth century, it was the death place of American hero Jesse James (a "dirty little coward" didn't quite see him quite that way). It was also the starting point of the Pony Express serving the West.

14. Kind: SORT.  Oh, THAT kinda SORT.

15. Words after count or sleep: ON IT.  After plugging away at a Saturday crossword early in the morning, sometimes I have to SLEEP ON IT before I can finish, but I can't always COUNT ON IT, because the puzzle's usually pretty wrinkly by the time I get up.

16. Sports complex: ARENA.

19. Shouts: YELLS.

20. Website revenue source: AD SPACE.   Space on a web page reserved for ads.  Somebody has to pay for all of those web developers and it turns out to be us..

21. Director Craven: WES.  Wesley Earl Craven (August 2, 1939 – August 30, 2015) was an American film director, screenwriter, producer, actor, and editor. Due to the cultural impact and influence of his work, Craven has commonly been recognized as one of the greatest masters of the horror genre.  I have not seen any of his films, but I understand that he's a scary guy.  He doesn't look very scary here though:
 

Wes Craven 2010

23. Chemical in potent drain cleaners: LYE.  Sodium Hydroxide (NaOH), used not only for cleaning drains but for soap making.  My plumber tells me that LYE based drain cleaners corrode not only the goop in your drains, but also the pipes themselves, both metal and PVC.  He recommends an enzymatic cleaner, however it's a lot more expensive.

24. Ankle-length skirt: MAXI.  It turns out that the selection, care, and filling out of MAXI dresses can be very confusing.  Here's some help.
 

Maxi Dress

26. PlayStation maker: SONY.

28. Contributes: ADDS IN.

32. Ready to go trick-or-treating, say: MASKED UP.   Or ready for a Masquerade Ball, say.  Here's a mask our son brought us back from a trip to Venice, Italy after college:
 

And here is The Vision Dance Co. performing a Masquerade Ball years later in that same city:

36. Figure of speech: TROPE.  Isn't this what constructors do?  Is this really a Tropeword Puzzle?
 

Oxford Languages Dictionary

37. Ginger __: ALE.  There is also Ginger BEER.  What's the difference?

38. Love who co-hosted "The Real": LONI.  Loni Love (born July 14, 1971) is an American comedian, television host, actress, author, and former electrical engineer.  Here's the real deal on The Real.   And here's LONI:

Loni Love

39. Pixar film about a jazz pianist: SOUL.  Soul is a 2020 American computer-animated comedy-drama film produced by Pixar Animation Studios and distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures.  In this clip jazz pianist Joe Gardner (Jamie Foxx) zones out during a pickup jam session, and leaves it to quickly find himself in an even stranger zone, where people go to get their personalities before birth:

42. Little cut: SNIP.  The above grid, as well as some of the other images were created with the utility SNIP and SKETCH.

43. Idris of "The Wire": ELBA.  This award winning series, starring English actor Idris Elba, was filmed in my hometown.  I've never seen it because we don't subscribe to HBO, but more importantly because it has contributed to making Baltimore THE icon for THE dysfunctional American city.  As if it doesn't have plenty of competition.  Here are some zingers from the series (trigger warning - life is not pretty out on the streets):

44. "Insecure" star Issa: RAE.  Jo-Issa Rae Diop (born January 12, 1985), credited professionally as Issa Rae, is an American actress, writer, producer, and comedian.  Rae first garnered attention for her work on the YouTube web series Awkward Black Girl. Since 2011, Rae has continued to develop her YouTube channel, which features various short films, web series, and other content created by black people.  She was married just last year to Louis Diame in the South of France:

Issa Rae 2021

45. GPS suggestion: ROUTE.

46. Elite athletes: ALL STARS.

48. Moderate gallop: CANTER.  Here's a short video of my granddaughter learning how to CANTER on a horse.

49. Website with tutorials: EHOW.  See 24A for an EHOW on MAXI dresses.

50. Overly confident: SMUG.

52. JFK successor: LBJ.  Lyndon Baines Johnson (August 27, 1908 – January 22, 1973), often referred to by his initials LBJ, was an Texas politician who served as the 36th president of the United States from 1963 to 1969, assuming that position after the assassination of John F. Kennedy on November 22nd, 1963.

Lyndon Baines Johnson

54. Chicken __ king: ALA.

56. "Suppose so": I RECKON.  What LBJ said to JFK when the latter asked the former to to be his running mate.

61. Minestrone and chowder: SOUPS.

65. Allow to enter: ADMIT.

66. Italian bubbly: ASTI.

67. Apollo project destination: MOON.  On May 25, 1961, President John F. Kennedy announced to a special joint session of Congress the goal of sending a man to the Moon before the end of the decade, thus launching the Apollo Program.  LBJ is on the left behind JFK.  I'm not sure but I believe the fellow to the right is John W. McCormick, then Speaker of the House.

The Decision to Go to the Moon

68. Uses a keyboard: TYPES.

69. Sunbeams: RAYS.  A CSO to Ray - O. 

70. Humble reply to a compliment: I TRY. And a lot of my friends agree that "I'm very TRYING!"

Down:

1. Organic certifying gp.: USDA.  Growing organic food is no longer a niche industry, but one that is rapidly growing.  Here's a place to start if you're considering becoming an organic grower.

2. Parka feature: HOOD.

3. Footed vases: URNS.  The most storied of these is the Sosibios Vase, the subject of poet John Keats' famous ODE.  Looks a little wobbly to me:

Sosibios Vase

Keats' actual sketch of the vase.  Ideals are always more beautiful than reality:

4. URL intro: HTTP.  As I blogged the same clue and fill less than a week ago,  I refer you to clue 61A of my June 23rd review.

5. Bird on Froot Loops boxes: TOUCAN.  Kellogg Company recently announced that it will split into three companies, thus anything I say about FROOT (sic) LOOPS may quickly become obsolete.  But it sounds like the TOUCAN, the product's iconic logo, will almost certainly survive its adoptive company.  Its conservation status of Least Concern is actually benefiting from the ongoing deforestation of the Amazon basin, due to the bird's preference for open areas.

Toucan

6. Handy list in the back of a book: INDEX.  Works of fiction seldom have one, and not all non-fiction books have one.  Without an index the latter are not very handy.  After the Table of Contents, I usually read the Index next, before starting the main text.

7. Swine: PIG.  After the Three Little Pigs, the second most favorite swine is Babe, the sheep herder.

8. Hearty bowlful: STEW.  I think maybe the Goose in Babe might have ended up in one.

9. Gives permission: SAYS OK.

10. Three, in Italian: TRE.

12. "This is __ a test": ONLY.  They used to say that to us in the 6th Grade when we had to duck under our desks.  Too many times of late, it has not been a test.

13. Loosen (up): EASE.

18. Foxx who voices the pianist in 39-Across: JAMIE.  He plays Joe Gardner.

22. English county on the North Sea: ESSEX.  Essex is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and Greater London to the south and south-west.  Sounds like it's surrounded.

Essex County, England

25. 11-Down eater's dismayed cry: IM A MESS.  DO NOT eat JELLY DO-NUTS without a NAPKIN!

27. Country singer Willie: NELSON.  Willie Hugh Nelson (born April 29, 1933) is an American musician, actor, and activist.  He is considered by many to be the greatest Country singer of all time:

Willie Nelson

Here he is, On the Road Again at the Grand Ole Opry (lyrics)

28. Gone fishing, say: AT SEA.

29. Dryly humorous: DROLL.

31. Frolic in the pool: SPLASH.  Or a 1984 movie about a Mermaid:

33. "Always Be My Maybe" actress/writer Wong: ALI.  Alexandra Dawn "Ali" Wong (born April 19, 1982) is an American comedian, actress, and writer. She is best known for her Netflix stand-up specials Baby Cobra (2016), Hard Knock Wife (2018), and Don Wong (2022).  She starred in the film Always Be My Maybe (2019), on which she also served as a writer and producer.  I reviewed several of her videos, and if you want to see one they can be had on YouTube; but I'm sorry to say that none passed Margaret Farrar's Sunday morning breakfast test.  The preceding link, by Maestro Will Shortz, may also be relevant to other discussions recently heard on the Corner.

Ali Wong

34. Bring together: UNITE.

35. Peter, the pickled-pepper picker: PIPER.

40. Feature of some Southern accents: DRAWL.  The Deacon at my Church tells a story about when he was practicing Homiletics (sermonizing) in Seminary.  His instructor had placed a 10 minute limit on the sermons, but Steve kept running over, and finally he was called out for it.  "But professor", Steve said, "it really is a ten minute sermon, but I'm from Hopewell, Virginia and we just talk slower down there".

41. Pickle container: JAR.  Where Peter kept his pickled-peppers.

45. Threw a tantrum: RAGED.

47. Browns lightly: TOASTS.

48. Mayfield of R&B: CURTIS.  Curtis Lee Mayfield (3 June 1942 – 26 December 1999) was an American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and record producer, and one of the most influential musicians behind soul and politically conscious African-American music.  He first achieved success and recognition with the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame-inducted group The Impressions during the civil rights movement of the late 1950s and the 1960s, and later worked as a solo artist.
 

Curtis Mayfield

Here's his Move on Up from his debut album Curtis (8:49 min) (lyrics):

Here's a shorter version released on a single (2:46 min) (no lyrics)

51. A bit foggy: MISTY.  A not at all foggy CSO to our Misty.

52. Future atty.'s exam: LSAT.

53. __ language: BODY.  Body language is a type of communication in which physical behaviors, as opposed to words, are used to express or convey the information. Such behavior includes facial expressions, body posture, gestures, eye movement, touch, and the use of space.  Strictly speaking it is not really a language, as it doesn't have a formal grammar, and it is subject to interpretation.  The "language" suffix is modern, having been added by popular culture.  But body language has been around for a long time:

The Tiff
Frances Carlyle, 1902

55. Slightly open: AJAR.  "When is a door not a door"?  "When it's a pickle container!"

57. Sleeveless top, for short: CAMI.  We had this last Wednesday and it's back by popular demand.

OOPS!  I almost completely forgot!  Today is Tuesday and Hahtoolah will be back soon.  What will she ever think!?

58. Pretzel shape: KNOT. 
 

59. Stench: ODOR.

60. Pt. of a B'way address: NY NY.

62. __ chart: PIE.

64. Mex. neighbor: USA.   Sorry, I couldn't find any cartoons on Mexico and its neighbor to the North sans politics.

waseeley

And as always my thanks to Teri for proofreading and for her constructive criticism.

And finally my thanks to our constructor for his puzzle mix:

 

Taylor Johnson, you are invited to post anything you'd like to share about this puzzle, its evolution, the theme, or whatever, in the Comments section.  We'd love to hear from you.

Monday June 27, 2022 Will Pfadenhauer

Theme: HOLY TRINITY (59. Christian doctrine of divinity, and the starts of the answers to 18-, 29-, and 45-Across?) - Holy can precede the first word of each theme answer.

18. Age-old method of long-distance communication: SMOKE SIGNAL. Holy smoke!

29. Triple-A baseball team based in Ohio: TOLEDO MUD HENS. Holy Toledo!

45. Atmospheric patterns that resemble fish scales: MACKEREL SKIES. Holy mackerel!

Boomer here. Congrats on Will Pfadenhauer's LA Times debut!

Another week of healthcare appointments coming up.  Our round trip to the VA medical center is about 60 miles.  The Hyundai is fairly frugal on gas, and our price at the pump is around $4.70.  This week will be 5 trips but I'll deal with it.  Maybe grab lunch at the cafeteria again.

Across:

1. Sandwich made with Peter Pan and Welch's, for short: PBJ. No Welch's for me.  I use strawberry J. 

4. Like an unruly kid: BRATTY. My son's name is Bret, not Brat.

10. Open-handed hit: SLAP.  A hockey player may use both hands.

14. Flamenco shout: OLE.

15. Nanny who may live in an in-law suite: AU PAIR.

16. "Field of Dreams" state: IOWA.  I visited there once.  Kevin Costner is one of my favorites.

17. Macadamia __: NUT.  Sometimes you feel like a NUT.  Sometimes you don't. Almond Joy.

20. Bus terminal: DEPOT.  We have made a number of purchases at Home DEPOT.

22. Each: PER.

23. "Been __, done that": THERE.  Here THERE and everywhere.

24. Computer that generates Bitcoin, e.g.: MINER.  Bitcoin drives me nuts.  Every time I go to CNBC they are constantly showing changes.

26. Younger of the NBA's Curry brothers: SETH.

28. 45-Down, e.g.: RED.   45. Dry wine choice: MERLOT.  I do not care for wine.

32. __ goo gai pan: MOO.

33. Mont Blanc, e.g.: ALP. Never been there.

34. Director Roth: ELI.

35. Some summer workers: INTERNS.  Quite a few at the VA.

38. Find My iPhone logon need: APPLE ID.

42. Kanga's joey: ROO.

43. Dean's list no.: GPA.  Grade Point Average.  I was never smart enough to figure mine out.

44. DVR forerunner: VCR.  Obsolete.

49. Female sheep: EWE.

51. Lotto variant: KENO.  About ten legal casinos in MN. Most do not have keno. Las Vegas seems to have deleted the game also.

52. Sends with a stamp: MAILS.  We finally used up our Yogi Berra stamps.

53. Midafternoon: THREE.  Blind Mice.

55. "Dear old" parent: DAD. 43. Reacted to a joke told by 55-Across, probably: GROANED. Hope all DADs had their day last Sunday.

57. Pulls hard: YANKS.  I heard that Aaron Judge settled last week.

62. Grab a bite: EAT. If you grab it, it may not be edible.

63. __ vera: ALOE.

64. Route: AVENUE.  We live on a street.

65. Pigpen: STY.  But not in a sty.

66. Lacrosse targets: NETS.

67. Pie servings: WEDGES.  Also for a shot less than 100 yards.

68. Netflix's "__ Education": SEX.

Down:

1. "On Golden __": Hepburn film: POND.  A wedge can get you over it.

2. Brewer known for its Belgian White ale: BLUE MOON.

3. Many a "Top Gun" aviator: JET PILOT.  I heard that Airlines are having trouble staffing pilots.  Many cancellations at MSP airport recently.

4. Kept moist, as a roast turkey: BASTED.

5. __ and Coke: RUM.  Away, Away with rum by gum ...

6. Each, informally: A POP.

7. Starts, as a new hobby: TAKES UP.  Try baseball cards, rewarding!

8. Like tall wedding cakes: TIERED.  Most baseball parks.

9. 12-mo. periods: YRS.

10. Weary sound: SIGH.  I do this sometimes working a crossword.

11. Folks who keep to themselves: LONERS. Add an A and its a bank.

12. Cognizant (of): AWARE.

13. Lost some color: PALED.

19. Service provided by the Geek Squad: IT HELP.  Best Buy.

21. Unspecified person: ONE. For the money, two for the show.

25. Southwest Virginia city: ROANOKE.  Interesting name for a city.

27. Steakhouse chain with a skinny tree in its logo: THE PALM.

29. Texter's "Sorry, did I overshare?": TMI.

30. L.A. Galaxy's org.: MLS. Major League Soccer

31. Nada: NIL.  Nothing

36. Timeline stretch: ERA.  Earned Run Average.

37. Simple firework: ROCKET.  Red glare, bombs bursting in air.

38. __ Escape: PlayStation game featuring monkeys: APE.

39. Depravity: EVILNESS.  Losing 1-0.

40. Item of equipment for the NCAA's Frozen Four: ICE SKATE.  I think every kid in Minnesota had a pair.  I had mine.

41. ER staffers: DRS. Seen many. VA ER found my cancer in 2018.

46. Curly salad green: ENDIVE.

47. Verbally approve: SAY YES. Or just nod your head.

48. Korean automaker: KIA.  A brother of Hyundai.

49. Actor Hawke: ETHAN.

50. Complete: WHOLE.  She's got the whole world, in her hands!

54. Looks over: EYES.

56. Minor dent: DING.  Minor dents are no longer cheap to fix.

58. River of Hades: STYX.

60. Like sashimi: RAW.

61. Election time: Abbr.: TUE.  Coming soon for governors.

Boomer