Friday, December 15, 2023, John Andrew Agpalo

 

Good Morning, Cruciverbalists.  Malodorous Manatee here with today's recap.  Our puzzle setter, John Andrew Agpalo (who presented us with a Sunday puzzle back in July of this year) has constructed a grid with ten, count 'em ten, theme-related answers.  Let's start with the unifier:

36 Across:  Exciting but dangerous way to live, and a hint to making the starred clues match their answers: ON THE EDGE.

There are two components to "making the starred clues match their answers".  First, the theme-related answers all "reside" on the perimeter or, if you will, ON THE EDGE of the puzzle.  Second, the prepositional phrase "ON THE" has been omitted from each entry and we have been asked to supply that in our heads as we suss out the appropriate fill.  When we add ON THE ahead of each entry then that clue is appropriately answered.  Initially, attempting to figure out the answers left this solver scratching his head but, once the "AHA" moment occurred, the (mostly idiomatic) answers flowed smoothly.

Here are the themers (all marked with asterisks for our convenience):

1 Across:  *Kerouac novel: ROAD.  We had ON THE ROAD as an answer two weeks ago and, at that time, I stuck to the literary reference and resisted using the following.  I have taken this second reference as a sign that I should yield:

On The Road Again

5 Across:  *Free: HOUSE.  If something is ON THE HOUSE then it is, at least when the phrase used idiomatically, free of charge (but not unlike an ion).  This would not apply e,g, to a rooftop antenna.

10 Across: *Alert: BALL.  ON THE BALL

1 Down:  *Officially: RECORD.  ON THE RECORD.   We might hear also  hear OFF THE RECORD but we don't hear OFF THE HOUSE or OFF THE BALL.

13 Down:  *Keeping watch: LOOKOUT.  ON THE LOOKOUT

39 Down:  *Imminent: HORIZON.  ON THE HORIZON  Looming

50 Down:  *Available for purchase: MARKET.  ON THE MARKET

67 Across:  *Precisely: NOSE.  ON THE NOSE  Exactly

68 Across: *Undecided: FENCE.  ON THE FENCE

69 Across:  *Then and there: SPOT.  ON THE SPOT

This is how all of this appears in the completed grid . . .

. . . .  and here are the rest of the clues and answers:

Across:

14. Sea eagle: ERNE.  This type of bird is a frequent visitor.

15. The Ivies, e.g.: OCTAD.   In this case the reference is to the eight universities in the Ivy League.  When solving, we initially do not know if the answer is going to be OCTAD or OCTET but we can go ahead and fill in the first three letters in either case. 

16. Palm smartphone: TREO.  Now discontinued.

Palm Treo 755 P

17. John of "The Suicide Squad": CENA.

18. Running start?: READY SET GO.  Said before a race.  Often, On Your Mark, Get Set, Go.

20. Anthem with English and French lyrics: O CANADA.  Canadian, EH!

22. Eye surgery acronym: LASIK.  Laser-Assissted In SItu Keratomileusis

23. Univ. dorm figures: RAS.  Resident AdvisorS appear often in our puzzles.

24. Jonathan Larson musical: RENT.  Loosely based on La Boheme

26. Powerful Chevy: CAMARO.  Certainly the IROC version but my mom drove a CAMARO with a quite-under-powered straight six.

27. Celtic priest: DRUID.  How did they create the first diagram of Stonehenge?  They DRUID.

29. Skewered snack in peanut sauce: SATAY.

31. __ Malnati's: chain known for Chicago-style pizza: LOU.  Operating mostly in Illinois with a smattering of locations in Arizona, Wisconsin and Indiana.  So, if you had not heard of LOU, you were not alone.

32. King and queen: SIZES.  A reference to mattresses.  Just like two weeks ago only then it was twins.

34. Cassis cocktail: KIR.  Creme de Cassis and white wine.

35. Safari shelter: TENT.  Not a reference to an Apple browser.   A clue that takes advantage of the leading-cap convention to try to fool us.

39. Tough: HARD.  As in difficult.

42. In medias __: RES.

43. Snapped out of a daydream, perhaps: SAT UP.  A bit of a stretch but not too much.

46. Latin for "eggs": OVA.

47. Special talent: FORTE.   I cannot play loud music.  It's just not my FORTE.

49. Jeans fabric: DENIM.

51. Curiosity and Opportunity: ROVERS.  A reference to NASA's Mars exploration devices.
 
53. Scandinavian capital: OSLO.  A frequent destination for solvers.

55. Nashville awards org.: CMA.

56. Words of empathy: I CARE.

57. Rat: TATTLER.  Has anyone actually hear this word used?  Tattle or tattletale, yes.  

59. Boast in a restaurant window: ZAGAT RATED.

63. File's partner: RANK.  RANK and File

64. Poetic paeans: ODES.

65. TikTok aesthetic: E-GIRL.  Outside of this solver's ken.

66. Spanish "east": ESTE.

Down:

2. Vehicles of mine?: ORE CARS.  As in extracting minerals from the earth.  Not possessive. Hand up for first muttering that ORE CARTS would not fit and the clue is plural, dammit.  

3. Fashion icon with a Fantasia fragrance line: ANNA SUI.  Unknown to this solver.  Thanks, perps.

 

4. Campus official: DEAN.  As in DEAN Martin in the movie "Back to School".

5. Throng: HORDE.

6. Scads: OCEANS.

7. "Respect for Acting" writer Hagen: UTA.  A frequent visitor.

8. Teary, maybe: SAD.  Whenever I am sad my friend says "Cheer up man. It could be worse.  You could be stuck underground in a hole filled with water."  I know he means well.

9. Dreyer's partner in ice cream: EDY.  William Dreyer and Joseph EDY.

10. Benchwarmers: B-TEAM.

11. Place to check for prints: ART SALE.  Not fingerprints.

12. Shackle: LEG IRON.

19. Perform amazingly, informally: SLAY.

Stan Freberg -  Saint George and the Dragonet

21. Elizabeth who founded the Red Door salon: ARDEN.

25. Grows fond of: TAKES TO.  Like a duck to water

26. What casino workers are always dealing with: CARDS.  Nice word play.

28. Active wear brand: IZOD.  There is one brand of active wear clothing that I cannot stand.  I guess that I am Lacoste intolerant.

30. Even numbers?: TIE.  The score is even.

33. Houston squad, casually: STROS.  The Houston Asterisks baseball club.  Sorry, Texans, but it is going to take a while longer for this Los Angeles-born son of a Brooklyn-ite to forgive and forget.

35. Head of Québec: TETE.  Québec signals to us that the answer will be en français.

37. R&B singer whose stage name is pronounced like a pronoun: HER.

38. Gal of "Red Notice": GADOT.  Not just any gal, but Gal GADOT, the actress.  Another one of those clues that takes advantage of the leading-cap convention to try to fool us.

40. California roll ingredient: AVOCADO.

41. Wreaks havoc on: RAVAGES.

44. Prepare for take-off?: UNCLASP.   As in prepare to remove an article of clothing.

45. __ cheese: Southern spread: PIMENTO.  Often clued with a reference to olives.

47. Stew (over): FRET.

48. Brand that boasts 24-hour immunity support: ESTER C.

52. Shake an Etch A Sketch, say: ERASE.

54. Stock holder?: LADLE.  Stock, in this case, as in soup.

58. "__ chic!": TRES.  Very stylish.  Not:

60. Call, as a game: REF.  Abbreviated answer but NOT an abbreviated clue.  Odd.

61. Grow old: AGE.

62. __ ear: TIN.  As in tone deaf.  Fitting that we wrap things up with an idiom.

___________________________________________________________________

Thursday, December 14, 2023, Catherine Cetta

 Tall Tales

Tall tales are often based on real people and real events, but those who tell them reveal a tendency to ...

62A. Embellish the truth, and what the sets of circled letters do?: SPIN A TALE.  

Yes, this puzzle has CIRCLES!  I know that some of you are not big fans of circles (and you know who you are 😁), but try to imagine how you would have described this puzzle's theme without them.  You may  recall today's constructor Catherine Cetta's last puzzle in which she used the phrase CHANGE AGENT to reveal what was obvious to all (but regrettably not to this reviewer 🙁), that the word AGENT had been scrambled into each of the theme fills.  In today's puzzle she has packaged the word TALE in 4 pairs of 2x2 boxes across 2 consecutive fill lines and then SPUN it by a single letter for each successive pair.  IMHO that arrangement wasn't easy to construct. Please post any suggestions in the comments as to how this theme could be described without circles!  Here's the grid ...

Here's the rest ...

Across:

1. Have a ball?: DANCE.  A CSO to Yellowrocks ...

6. Part of the fam: SIB.

9. Parking unit: SPACE.

14. Some foreign language exams: ORALS.

15. "The View" co-host Navarro: ANA.  ANA Violeta Navarro-Cárdenas (née Navarro Flores; born December 28, 1971) is a Nicaraguan-American political strategist and commentator. She appears on various television programs and news outlets, including CNN, CNN en Español, ABC News, and Telemundo. She is also a co-host of the daytime talk show The View, garnering Emmy Award nominations for her work. 

Ana Navarro

16. Super-duper: ULTRA.

17. Fashionable sort?: LATECOMER.

19. Reflexology targets: SOLES.  It sounds like acupuncture without the pins.  Here's what a doctor has to say about it.

20. The "you" of "Do You Want To Build a Snowman?": ELSA.

21. Trumpet, e.g.: HORN.  Will a French HORN do?  Here's the 3rd Movement Rondo - allegro from Mozart's Horn Concerto No. 2 in E-flat major, K. 417 ...

22. One of Australia's six: STATE.  Here are Australia's six STATES, two Territories and capital cities.

23. Crow bar?: ROOST. 😀

25. Ship: VESSEL.

26. Store: STASH.

29. Lined up for a cornhole toss: AIMED.

31. Strikes and rebounds: CAROMS.  This guy could teach Isaac Newton a few things about ORB dynamics.  Note that the 8 ball goes in last, as it should.  And get a load of the stunned look on his opponent's face! ...

33. Copy: APE.

34. Moore of "G.I. Jane": DEMI.   Here's what Ebert had to say.  Here's the trailer ...

38. Pointed a finger at: ACCUSED.

40. Welcoming presence: GREETER.

42. "That's the __ ridiculous thing I've ever heard!": MOST.

43. Rowing need: OAR.

45. Deli slice: SALAMI.

46. Penne, essentially: TUBES.  Here's a recipe for PENNE Alla Vodka.

Penne Alla Vodka

48. Stirs up: RILES.

49. Attack: ASSAIL.

53. Emmy-winning journalist Connie: CHUNG.   Constance Yu-Hwa Chung (born August 20, 1946) is an American journalist who has been a news anchor and reporter for the U.S. television news networks ABC, CBS, NBC, CNN, and MSNBC. Some of her more famous interview subjects include Claus von Bülow and U.S. representative Gary Condit, whom Chung interviewed first after the Chandra Levy disappearance, and basketball legend Magic Johnson after he went public about being HIV-positive. In 1993, she became the second woman to co-anchor a network newscast as part of CBS Evening News.

Connie Chung

55. Begin: START.

56. Televises: AIRS.  AIR May also be a noun like this one -- originally from Bach's Orchestral Suite No. 3 D major, BWV 1068.  It was transcribed from the latter by August Wilhelm to the famous Air on a G String, here performed by Rusanda Panfili ...
 

57. Test the weight of: HEFT.

61. Alabama city in civil rights history: SELMA.  While some of the major battles of the Civil Rights Movement were fought here, the modern city of SELMA has made major strides in equal rights for minorities.  Start for example with the fact that the city's current Mayor, James Perkins, is an African American ...

James Perkins
Mayor of Selma, Alabama

62. [Theme reveal]

64. HP rival: EPSON. IMHO,  EPSON's printers might rival HP's, but the former is not a major player in the development and marketing of server farms and enterprise management systems like Hewlett-Packard (full disclosure: I was an HP subcontractor for several years ).

65. Garment edge: HEM.

66. Even: LEVEL.

67. Romanov rulers: TSARS.

68. Mind reader's claim: ESP.  Extra Sensory Perception.  Scientist J.B. Rhine (September 29, 1895 – February 20, 1980), who coined the term ESP, claimed to have demonstrated it experimentally, but, other scientists were skeptical.

69. Optimal: IDEAL.

Down:

1. Agricultural giant whose mascot is Bobby Banana: DOLE.  He looks like a slippery character to me ...

2. __ Sea: lake documented in UNESCO's Memory of the World Register: ARAL.  Instead of the usual bird's eye view, how about a camel's eye view? ...

Aral Sea

3. 2019 World Series champs: NATS.  The Washington Nationals.  Here's the story.

4. Takes it on the lam: CLEARS OUT.

5. Keyboard panic button: ESC.

6. Potatoes-and-peas pastry: SAMOSA.  Here's a recipe.

Samosas

7. Obstacle to progress: INERTIA.

8. Rural sight: BARN.  Here's a BARN with another crossword favorite, a SILO ..

Silo and Barn

9. Doped (out): SUSSED. 

10. Tracts: PLOTS.

11. Map lover's book: ATLAS.  An ATLAS is typically a bundle of maps of the Earth or of a region of Earth.  Atlases have traditionally been bound into book form, but today many atlases are in multimedia formats. In addition to presenting geographic features and political boundaries, many atlases often feature geopolitical, social, religious and economic statistics. They also have information about the map and places in it.  The origin of the term dates to 1595, and interestingly has ties to clue 46D.

12. Island with the ancient Minoan palace at Knossos: CRETE.  Knossos is a Bronze Age archaeological site in Crete. The site was a major center of the Minoan civilization and is known for its association with the Greek myth of Theseus and the minotaur. It is located on the outskirts of Heraklion.

Here is the partially reconstructed palace ...

Palace of Minos

13. Artist's support: EASEL.

18. "Why, what's this!?": OHO.  Meh.

24. Units of resistance: OHMS. 

25. Zigs or zags: VEERS.

26. Con: SCAM.

27. Chipotle order: TACO.

28. Lines on a flight-tracker map: ARCS.  Here's a realtime flight-tracker map.  It doesn't show you any ARCS, but it sure shows a lot of planes in the air.

30. EPA concern: MPG.

32. Gangnam District city: SEOUL.  Gangnam (lit. South of the Han River), sometimes referred to as the Greater Gangnam Area, is a geographic and cultural region in SEOUL. The region is generally defined as including the city's affluent Gangnam, Seocho districts, and Songpa district which is separated by Tancheon, a tributary of the Han River.  Gangnam Style is also the title of a K-POP song satirizing the affluent lifestyle of the area's populace.  It's sung in Korean and fortunately I couldn't find a translation.😀

Gangnam skyline

34. On cloud nine: DELIGHTED.  How about a little faintly cute D(isney)-POP instead ...

35. Latin abbreviation in a bibliography: ET AL.

36. Spider-Man pointing, e.g.: MEME.  All of my researches point to this 1967 episode as the origin of this MEME ...

37. Spring perennial: IRIS.

39. Smack-__ in the middle: DAB.  And smack DAB in this middle of this puzzle is a DAB puzzle called Fed Up. And here's what David has to say about it ...

"That’s right—I’m fed up!  I’m fed up, for example, with politics, which is actually just an effect of tribalism, which is in turn just an effect of human nature, which is itself just an effect of nature in general, which is after all just an effect of whatever mysterious process created everything for whatever mysterious purpose.  So I’ll just do a crossword." 

I think we all have days like that sometimes. 😀.  Spoiler alert: I've posted David's theme at the end of this review, so don't read past my sign off if you intend to do his puzzle.*

41. Merit: EARN.

44. America's Test Kitchen output: RECIPES.  Like the NYT you need a subscription to get these RECIPES.

46. Giants: TITANS.  ATLAS was a TITAN.

47. __ cocktail: SHRIMP.   Judy Kim is giving away this RECIPE for free.
 

Shrimp  Cocktail

49. Selling point: ASSET.

50. Choreography units: STEPS.

51. Topping for a 27-Down: SALSA.  Here's a recipe for SALSA.  I think Catherine just might  be a foodie!

Salsa

52. Knight's protection: ARMOR.

54. SEAL's org.: USN.  The United States Navy Sea, Air, and Land (SEAL) Teams, commonly known as Navy SEALs, are the U.S. Navy's primary special operations force and a component of the Naval Special Warfare Command. Among the SEALs' main functions are conducting small-unit special operation missions in maritime, jungle, urban, arctic, mountainous, and desert environments. SEALs are typically ordered to capture or kill high level targets, or to gather intelligence behind enemy lines.  Probably their most famous operation was bringing down the leader of the 911 attacks.  See also 34A.

The Navy SEAL Trident

56. Tennis icon Arthur: ASHE.

58. Roof projection: EAVE.

59. Pest that pesters pets: FLEA.

60. "__ me about it!": TELL.  E.g. TELL me if you have a winning hand? 😁

63. Soccer star Krieger: ALI.  Alexandra Blaire Krieger (born July 28, 1984) has represented the United States at three FIFA Women's World Cups: 2011 in Germany, 2015 in Canada, and 2019 in France. She was part of the defense that held opponents scoreless for a record 540 minutes and helped lead the United States to become 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup champions.

Ali Krieger

Cheers,
Bill

And as always, thanks to Teri for proof reading and for her constructive criticism.

waseeley 

* All of DAB's theme clues are DOWNS starting with DEF, which when spelled UPwards is FED.

 

Wednesday, December 13, 2023 ~ Erik Agard

Minced Metaphors

21. Get what's really going on: KNOW THE SCORE.

53. Avoid elimination: MAKE THE CUT.

29. Rhyming slogan opposing a Kansas City Chiefs fan gesture: STOP THE CHOP.

30. Take a gamble: ROLL THE DICE.

Hi All! Anon -T reporting for duty.
And what a privilege it is to review one of Erik's puzzles. For those who don't know, Erik is a Jeopardy! champion, ACPT winner (2018), and, when he was Editor of the USA Today crossword, really up'd the game and modernized the puzzle's inclusivity and current pop-culture references.

Today, Erik offers four (semi-sport related) metaphors ending in the kitchen sous'ing: Score, Cut, Chop, Dice #YesChef!

Fun, no? I enjoyed it. Let's check out the fill and see if Erik butchered that too :-)

Across:
1. Fuzzy fruit: KIWI.

5. Nails-on-a-chalkboard sound: SCRAPE.

11. Heart of the matter: CRUX.

15. Very dry: ARID.

16. __ network: NEURAL. A neural network is a group of interconnected nodes that enables computers to "learn" by example (ie. recognize patterns in data). When I studied AI, we liked the idea of neural-nets but didn't have 1) sufficient sample sizes nor 2) the storage. Our nets were dinky and the idea was mostly shelved. The internet fixed #1 and cheap storage fixed #2. Now we have NNets like ChatGPT.

17. Public prank: HOAX.

18. Taper off: WANE.

19. Not remote: ON-SITE. Post-Covid, our office is remote M,F and ON-SITE T,W,Th.

20. Highest point: APEX.
 

21. [See: Theme]

24. Abbr. in recipes: TSP. Teaspoons.

25. Prefix meaning "three": TRI. TRI-pod, TRI-cycle, TRI-dent.
 

For people with only three teeth?

26. Seconds, but for drinks: REFILLS. My buddy from Algiers said one of his first impressions of America was "Land of Free Refills!"

30. Lasagna ingredient: RICOTTA.

34. A third of a yard: ONE FOOT.

35. Standing __: OVATION. Bravo, Ole, Whoot!

36. Time for presents, for short: B-DAY. X-MAS fit too.

37. Need a shim, perhaps: WOBBLE.

40. Stitched: SEWN.

41. Your and my: OUR.

42. Warlock's repertoire: SPELLS.

43. Steamed bun: BAO.

Yum!

44. Get hot, in a way: TREND.

47. Lacking slack: TAUT.

48. Terrifying: SCARY.

50. Passover feast: SEDER.

51. "Oh, be quiet!": HUSH.

52. Poutine pieces: CURDS.

53. [See: Theme]

56. Hereditary: GENETIC.

59. "If Beale Street Could Talk" actor Colman: DOMINGO. I know Beale Street in Memphis is Home of the Blues but I didn't know of Colman Domingo [WikiP].

Colman Domingo

63. Line on a graph: AXIS.

3D Euclidian Space with x, y, and z axes.  

64. "Oh, be quiet!": SHUT IT.

67. In a slump: COLD.

68. Not full-size: MINI.

69. Former name of the NBA's Thunder, informally: SONICS. Oklahoma City Thunder nee Seatle SuperSonics. The Sonics were sold, renamed, and relocated circa 2007.

70. Burden: LOAD. ONUS fit but I perp-checked b/f fill :-)

71. In-transit figs.: ETAS.

72. "Scandal" crisis manager Olivia: POPE. Olivia Pope is a fictional character played by Kerry Washington.

Kerry Washington

73. Burnt __: barbecue delicacy: ENDS.

Corkscrew BBQ (aka Saturday's lunch w/ DW) in Old Town Spring, TX

Down:
1. Midwestern people: KAW. Tribe from Oklahoma and parts of Kansas.

2. 401(k) alternative: IRA. An Individual Retirement Account is an alternative to a 401(k) which is a bla bla something paragraph in the tax code bla bla. D-O can explain in more detail.

3. Knowing gesture: WINK. I. Can't. Resist...

A nod's as good as a WINK to a blind bat.

4. Name: IDENTIFY.

5. Vehicles for cold times: SNOW PLOWS.

6. Little bit of change: CENT. I had COIN.

7. Not take one's time: RUSH. Could be clued as "The greatest band ever."

8. "Video" singer India.__: ARIE.

9. Touches lightly: PATS.

10. Optional courses: ELECTIVES. Who elected for the easy-A v. something more interesting? Who even had electives (my EE curriculum was pretty rigid)?

11. Vehicles from old times: CHARIOTS. I was thinking Model-Ts but Erik was thinking "further back."

12. Ladder material: ROPE. We made these in Boy Scouts.

Rope Ladder

13. Dubai's fed.: UAE. United Arab Emirates.

14. Spy-fi film series starring Vin Diesel: XXX.
 

I don't think I've seen a movie w/ Vin Diesel in it.

22. Capital of Norway: OSLO.

23. Largest member of the dolphin family: ORCA.

I wasted three rolls of film at Sea World trying to get a shot this cool

26. Many sci-fi characters: ROBOTS. Automatons.

27. Go on: ENDURE.

28. Was terrified of: FEARED.

29. [See: Theme]

30. [See: Theme] I wanted to fill ROLL THE BONES which is RUSH's 14th studio album and the first (and only time) RUSH tried to rap -- One could hear the collective WTF? scream of fans everywhere. Then we all had fun with it (see how many Canadians / Canadian acts you recognize during the "rap").

I won't fault you if you don't click :-)

31. Dressy accessory: TIE BAR.

32. In the direction of: TOWARD.

33. Rubs the wrong way: ANNOYS.

38. Fine specimen: BEAUT.

39. Cheek cosmetic: BLUSH.

45. Bitter enemy: NEMESIS.

46. "Curses!": DRAT.

48. Layer on a stagnant pond: SCUM.

49. Fingernail part: CUTICLE.

54. Touch lightly: KISS. In their early touring year(s), RUSH opened for Kiss.

55. Portable beds: COTS.

56. Willing: GAME. Q:"You in?" A:"I'm GAME" or "I'm willing."

57. Press Esc, perhaps: EXIT. Exit Stage Left is Rush's second live album.

58. "I Put a Spell on You" singer Simone: NINA. Nina Simone nee Eunice Kathleen Waymon (2/21/1933 - 4/21/2003) was a multi-genre musician. WikiP for more.
 

A Tribute Video

60. Halfway between midnights: NOON. Cute clue.

61. Pleased: GLAD.

62. Numbers with a colon: ODDS. Another reference to RUSH's Roll the Bones? In the song, "You Bet Your Life" the refrain contains "The Odds get Even / We play the game ..."

65. Word shouted while putting a card down: UNO. UNO or Gin; wait for perps.

66. Bit of advice: TIP. "Here's a TIP, lose the shirt." -Rodney Dangerfield, Caddyshack.

Wow, I think Erik is a RUSH fan - what, with all the references to Rush in the downs. ;-)

The Grid:

The Grid

WO: Coin->CENT
ESPs: KAW, XXX, NINA
Fav: The entire puzzle was lively & fresh so I'll just go with RUSH :-)

11 days left to shop for Christmas -- no need to panic (yet)...

Cheers, -T

Tuesday, December 12th, 2023, Kelly Richardson

Speed needed to reach your gate~?

 A clever, double-depth theme of not just words, but 'concluding' adjectives rephrased as nouns into a 'punny' answer; I missed the 'resulting' part until I went to use the word 'final' in one of my comments, and thought "I'd rather use 'last' here", and the "A-ha~!" moment occurred: see below.  I'm impressed, so I had to find an appropriate theme title, and I think I succeeded - the answer, if you haven't guessed, is below.  Several answers brought music to my mind, and I will now share those thoughts with you.  Two  ten-letter and two fourteen-letter theme answers; odd-numbered answers always seem to be more difficult to get into a grid, at least in my constructing experience.   Here they are; 

17. Spa for out-of-shape shoe forms?: LAST RESORT

33. Marking off the hours left to cram before the big exam?: FINAL COUNTDOWN - the first musical interlude

 

Europe - Ear-worm~!

41. Home-buyer's day-of-sale demand for a single window dressing?: CLOSING CURTAIN - I asked for nothing when I closed on my home here in CT

60. Effects of months of glute workouts?: END RESULTS - oh, so easy for me to add a raunchy photo here, but I will refrain....

And Away We Go~!

ACROSS:

1. Sitcom pioneer Lucille: BALL

5. Taken __: startled: ABACK - can you be taken "A-forward~?"

10. Arthur __ Stadium: world's largest tennis venue: ASHE - crossword staple

14. "Titans" actor Morales: ESAI - crossword staple

15. __ Lama: DALAI

16. Great Basin people: UTES

19. Coffee brewing choice: DRIP - my preferred method, but I do have a one-cup K-cup coffee maker, and since I am hosting Christmas this year, I will suggest to my brother to bring his choice of coffee K-cups, just to be considerate.

20. French farewell: ADIEU

"Indiana Jones, Adieu" - @ 1:18

21. __ decorator: INTERIOR - I used to put in my dating app profile that I was looking for an interior decorator, but now that I am the sole owner of my home, it's a total man-cave...

23. Himalayan bovine: YAK - an oldie, 1958, before my time....

 

Yakety -Yak, The Coasters

24. Word with stone or marker: MILE

26. "Right now," in texts: ATM - Hey~!  A new clue for a crossword cliche - "at the moment"

27. Sit-up muscles: ABS - yesterday's theme

28. Ceiling metal: TIN - as interior decorating goes, I like the look, with the right tiles; might do this in my home - I plan on a pool table in the basement, and I like At Deco

30. Identity statement, briefly: BIO

38. Clenched hand: FIST

39. Major artery: AORTA

40. Writer Wiesel: ELIE - crossword staple

44. Animation frame: CEL

45. Commercials: ADs

46. Boat blade: OAR

47. Uru. neighbor: ARGentina

49. Spielberg film featuring a shark: JAWS

I SAID JAWS~!

51. Answer to an addition problem: SUM

54. Wore red at a wedding, say: STOOD OUT - if it ever happens for me again, I am totally hip to a red wedding dress ( my first marriage was a "medieval" one - in more ways than one.... )

57. Fluffy-eared marsupial: KOALA

59. Cancel, as a check: VOID

62. __ vera: ALOE -   ah, just for Hahtoolah....

63. Inbox message: EMAIL

64. Binary digit: ZERO - and - 32D. Binary digit: ONE

 65. Running with scissors, e.g.: NO-NO

66. Southwestern plateaus: MESAS - another Spielberg movie

 

It's not a MESA, but it's a "BUTTE"

67. Muscat's country: OMAN

DOWN:

1. Secure, as a ship's line: BELAY - as I've said in the past, I start with the DOWN clues, and I didn't know this answer, so not a good start

2. Carne __: steak dish: ASADA - but I knew this one, and we were on our way~!

3. Sharper image innovation?: LASIK - and then we weren't

4. Lo-cal: LITE - and I dropped in DIET here....sigh

5. Fruit drink suffix: ADE

6. Pesto herb: BASIL

7. Independently: ALONE

8. E-commerce icon: CART

9. Toy with a string and a tail: KITE

10. Sit in on, as a class: AUDIT

11. Calzone cousin: STROMBOLI

12. Beneficiary: HEIR

13. Telepathic letters: ESP

18. Afro-Cuban dance: RUMBA

22. Tirade: RANT

25. Manhattan, e.g.: ISLAND - cocktail wouldn't fit

27. CGI creatures in a superhero film series starring Paul Rudd: ANTS

28. Tulle skirt: TU-TU

29. Lined up: IN A ROW

31. Victorious cry: "I WIN~!"

33. Nail salon tool: FILE

34. Quarantine: ISOLATION

35. Gear teeth: COGS

36. Tolkien monster: ORC

37. Beloved: DEAR

38. Media-monitoring org.: FCC - I would link Eminem here for a musical interlude, since "the FCC" is mentioned in his rap "Without Me", but Google for yourself....

42. Shakespearean betrayer: IAGO

43. Assignments: TASKS

48. "This isn't my first __": RODEO

49. Biblical betrayer: JUDAS - another musical interlude, this time, JUDAS Priest

 

Judas Priest, Invincible Shield, 2024

50. Naturally lit courtyards: ATRIA

51. Capital of Oregon: SALEM

52. Extreme: ULTRA

53. Lawyer Perry of classic TV: MASON - another musical interlude:

 

Ozzy~! Perry Mason

54. Without help: SOLO

55. Judge to be: DEEM

56. "Lunch is __": "I'm buying": ON ME

58. Anise-flavored Greek liquor: OUZO - the "penultimate" musical interlude...

 

"I'd Like to See You in Black" - Blue Öyster Cult - ouzo @ 2:39

59. Vehicle with sliding side doors: VAN - I have a Dodge CaraVAN, and here's my LAST musical interlude, VAN Halen~!

 

Stay Frosty

61. Raised trains: ELs - <-- train, train ^

 Answer: TERMINAL VELOCITY 😁

Splynter