Friday, July 8, 2016, C.C. Burnikel

Title: Shhhh the Js are coming!!!

C. C. has returned to the Friday wars with a different type of theme where common phrases which have the second word begin with "SH" it is replaced with a "J" and clued accordingly. I know I often complain that the letter J is left out of so many puzzles so of course I did love this effort, but naming it is was too hard. I loved all the long fill, much of it new and some of it learning moments. For example, we have AUTO PEN, INK SPOT,  COSSETS,  EASY JOB, BRETHREN,  MISNOMER,  IN MOTION, U. N. SPEECH, RED AS A BEET,  BEER O'CLOCK,  BIONIC LEGS,  I SMELL A RAT. What a great mix of cultural stuff. Well, speaking of culture, let's solve the puzzle.

17A. Art-loving athlete? : CULTURE JOCK (11). Going to college in 1965 after four years away at all boys boarding school was a definite culture shock.

31A. What you don't know about audio equipment? : RADIO JACK (9). You don't know Jack unless you go to the Shack.

47A. Difficult situation at Bed Bath  & Beyond? : PILLOW JAM (9). I have pillow shams on my bed and I am not embarrassed by them.

61A. Gem of a night out? : EVENING JADE (11). Evening shade just sort of sits there...I did love the show with BURT.

Across:

1. Wrap alternatives : PITAS.

6. Ill-fated Corleone hoodlum Luca : BRASI. A real mobster? According to wiki, Luca Brasi is a fictional character in Mario Puzo's novel The Godfather, as well as its 1972 film adaptation. In the film, he was portrayed by Lenny Montana, an ex-wrestler and ex-bodyguard for the Colombo crime family.

11. TD scorers : RBS. Running backs.

14. Response to a raise : I'M OUT. Or I fold, or just muck your cards. Sound familiar from Wednesday?

15. Element #86 : RADON. Perp time.

16. Fish whose blood is poisonous to humans : EEL. Of course C.C. would know eel blood is poisonous to humans and other mammals, but both cooking and the digestive process destroy the toxic protein. The toxin derived from eel blood serum was used by Charles Richet in his Nobel winning research which discovered anaphylaxis (by injecting it into dogs and observing the effect). Wiki.

19. "Agnus __" : DEI.

20. Home of the annual Norwegian Wood music festival : OSLO.  Wonderful excuse for

21. Heineken symbol : STAR. . C.C. used this before LINK.  Do you remember the puzzle where all the companies that use a Star in their logo?

22. Quick : SMART. That boy is as quick as a whip!

24. Sign on a door : PUSH. P U then the perps.

26. Texas county bordering New Mexico : EL PASO. Did not know it was a County. Read a Lawrence Block mini-mystery where he was trying to rhyme El Paso.

28. "__ Irish Rose" : ABIE'S. The modern version had a really fun cast. Turns out may have married Bernie, but she loves Batya.

34. Chinese checkers, e.g. : MISNOMER. Really fun word, and again we see C.C. playing with her heritage. It is a German variation of an American game that has nothing to do with checkers.

36. Firm : STABLE.

37. Fruit juice brand : POM. Oo buys this regularly.

38. Break up : END IT. Now done by text, I understand.

40. Goddess sister of Selene : EOS. A few years ago, I has this goddess of the dawn many times. LINK.

41. World Heritage Site org. : UNESCO. United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization...followed by, inexplicably...

44. Ban delivery : U. N. SPEECH.  BAN Ki-moon is secretary general of the UN. (From C.C.: Ban! This is Rich's clue.)

49. Foreigner in "Taxi" : LATKA. The late great Andy Kaufman.

50. Greensboro Grasshoppers' baseball level : CLASS A. Leave it to C.C. to craft a Friday baseball clue. (From C.C.:  Rich's clue as well. Along with many others.)

51. Surprised sounds : OHOS.

53. Appreciative sounds : CLAPS.

54. Wine holders : VATS.

56. "The Ghost of Frankenstein" role : YGOR. Or maybe IGOR?

60. "Away From __": Julie Christie movie : HER. This heart wrenching story of a woman who is institutionalized by her husband due to advanced Alzheimer's disease, is based on a short story by Alice Munro who was in a recent Friday puzzle.

64. Turkish bigwig : AGA.

65. Sculpted trunk : TORSO. The human variety.

66. Chocolate-caramel candies : ROLOS.




I loved the juxtaposition





67. It ends 11/6/2016 in the U.S. : DST. Daylight Savings Time. First Sunday in November.

68. Evil figure : SATAN.

69. "No good movie is too long and no bad movie is short enough" speaker : EBERT.

Down:

1. __ de gallo : PICO. No self-respecting South Floridian could get this wrong. Spanish for "rooster's beak," pico de gallo is a relish made of finely chopped ingredients like jicama, oranges, onions, bell peppers, jalapeño peppers and cucumbers, along with various seasonings. This condiment was so named because it was once purportedly eaten with the thumb and finger, an action that resembles a rooster's pecking beak. Food Network. Unlike salsa nothing is cooked.

2. Stern rival : IMUS.

3. Crossing cost : TOLL.

4. Signing facilitator : AUTOPEN. This 60 year old DEVICE.

5. Poker great Ungar : STU. Another sad STORY.

6. Members of a flock : BRETHREN.

7. Punjabi prince : RAJA. 23D. Woman whom Goya also painted clothed : MAJA. We have seen both versions here.

8. Flipped over : ADORED. Not a pancake, or mattress- a girl/boy?

9. A behavioral sci. : SOCiology.

10. Laundry challenge : INK SPOT. Use an alcohol based product, no longer hairspray.

11. Visibly embarrassed : RED AS A BEET. I love these two next to each other

12. Time for a cold one : BEER O'CLOCK. This is actually in the 2015 Oxford dictionary.

13. Skirt feature : SLIT.

18. Web feed document letters : RSS. RSS (Rich Site Summary; originally RDF Site Summary; often called Really Simple Syndication) uses a family of standard web feed formats to publish frequently updated information: blog entries, news headlines, audio, video. Wiki. Unknown to me.

25. Military support gp. : USO. Think Bob Hope.

27. Memory aids : LISTS.

28. Intensify : AMP UP. C.C. has clearly amp-ed up her game presenting more Friday and Saturday offerings.

29. Brain-controlled transportation devices : BIONIC LEGS. Two more exquisite fill.

30. "Something's fishy" : I SMELL A RAT. So cool.

32. Adversity, in the RAF motto : ARDUA. Per ardua ad astra. From adversity to the stars. Good to know some Latin. This was chosen in 1912 for the first royal flying corps.

33. "We R Who We R" singer : KESHA. I have only heard of her as Ke$ha. The song...

35. Catty remarks : MEOWS.

39. Actively operating : IN MOTION.

42. Hit, in a way : SLAP.

43. Mollycoddles : COSSETS. I only know this word from reading scads of British mysteries.

45. West Bank initials : PLO.

46. Not a hard nut to crack : EASY JOB. Seems like a random phrase and clue.

48. "Les Misérables" inspector : JAVERT. A great J word to finish.

52. EVINE Live competitor : HSN. Home Shopping Network. QVC just would not work.

53. Libya neighbor : CHAD. Think we will ever learn African Geography?

55. Archaeologist's handle : ANSA. My son has been on numerous digs but I have no clue what this means

57. Severe blow : GALE. Refers to winds blowing.

58. Pure propane's lack : ODOR.

59. Come to a halt : REST.

62. Intl. broadcaster since 1942 : VOA. Voice of America.

63. Hurdle for srs. : GRE. So many tests...

What an odd ride for me, so much to love, so much to confuse...maybe C. C. will stop by; if not I gave my best shot....Lemonade out.

Thursday, July 7th 2016 Jeffrey Wechsler

Theme: Snarled up - as the downward-facing reveal explains:

38D. Needing to be bailed out ... or where 20-, 27-, 45- and 51-Across may be found : IN A JAM

The theme entries:

20A. Office supply : PRINTER PAPER. Paper jam. If this happens to my home printer I pretty much have to take the whole thing apart to fix it.

27A. Jaguar, for one : AUTOMOBILE. Traffic jam. A mostly permanent state of affairs for the 101 and 405 freeways in my bailiwick. I try to time my arrivals back at LAX to miss the worst of the parking lot effect.

45A. Malt option : STRAWBERRY. Fruit jam. Jan Hogrewe of Jan's Jam close by in Calabasas makes the best jams and preserves I've ever tasted.

51A. Certain trio member : JAZZ MUSICIAN. Jam session. And a great excuse to link the great Chet Atkins and "Jam Man", brought to a broader audience by a certain insurance company commercial.

Now then, not beating around the bush with this one - I thought the theme entries came across as very uneven. You have a paper in a paper jam, that's fair. but you don't have an automobile jam; you have a traffic jam, and the musical jam session is another step removed from the flow of the theme.

That said, still an entertaining puzzle. I circled right around before coming back to the north west corner to finish. Those three little downs at 1, 2 and 3 make for a tricky trifecta.

 Moving right along, unlike the 405 traffic:

Across:

1. Corner piece : ROOK. Chess. V8 moment after a looooong time. Here's a V8 checkmate:

1. f3 e5

2. g4?? Qh4#

3. Doh!

5. Singer James : ETTA

9. One of more than 21 million Indians : SIKH

13. British nobleman : EARL

14. Composer Janácek : LEOS. Thank you, crosses. Czech composer.

15. Perfect : IDEAL

17. Shot that can't be blocked : FREE THROW. I threw myself for a loop here by happily filling in FOUL THROW.

19. Complaint : PEEVE

22. Elbows, e.g. : PASTA. Food!  A study (of more than 26,000 Italians) widely reported over the last couple of days concluded that those who ate pasta as part of their diet had a lower body mass index. Be warned however - you don't find "unlimited pasta bowl and breadsticks" restaurants in Italy. I use Lidia Bastianich's recipe for marinara sauce. Simple and delicious. Try to get genuine San Marzano tomatoes - the difference in flavor is very apparent.

25. Cause to roll in the aisles : SLAY. Slayed 'em! Knocked 'em dead!

26. Electrolysis particle : ION

30. Queen who succeeded William III : ANNE. Early 1700's baroque architecture in the UK is known as the "Queen Anne style".

31. Ring result : TKO. A Technical Knock-Out in Boxing when the ref stops the fight.

32. Support for many a 29-Down : WIRE. Not an underwire?

33. More degrading : BASER

34. Gucci competitor : PRADA

36. Parade sight : FLOAT

38. "My thoughts are ... " : I'D SAY

40. Economist Smith : ADAM. Author of "The Wealth of Nations". I studied Economics at school and found the whole thing fascinating. You graduated with a BA in Economics, rather than a BSc which I found amusing. It's not an exact science - too many moving parts.

41. Special __ : OPS

44. "The Daily Show" host Trevor __ : NOAH. Thank you, crosses. I haven't watched the show since Jon Stewart left.

48. Queen's subject : ANT. Not Queen Anne.

49. "__ a man who wasn't there" : I MET

"Yesterday, upon the stair,
I met a man who wasn't there.
He wasn't there again today,
I wish, I wish he'd go away..."

From Antigonish by William Hughes Mearns

50. Pug or Peke : BREED

55. Really enjoyed : ATE UP. Food! I made a paella mixta last night which I "ate up". When I see good-looking mussels, shrimp and chicken thighs at my local market, it's time to bust out the rice and saffron and go for broke. It's a sobering thought that a good-looking mussel is a girl with a beard. I also need food photography lessons. Any offers? Food! for instruction.

56. Hard times : LEAN YEARS

60. Haggard of country : MERLE

61. Sets a price of : ASKS. I started pondering whether I'd say "sets the price of" or "sets a price for" before I realized life is too short to waste on such ponderings.

62. Not in the pink : SICK

63. R&B-influenced genre : SOUL

64. Editor's mark : STET.

65. Catering aid : TRAY. "Death Star Canteen", Eddie Izzard, Lego animation. YouTube. Rated R for language.

Down:

1. NBA employee : REF

2. Homonym of 3-Down : OAR

3. Homonym of 2-Down : ORE

4. Habitual booster? : KLEPTO. I guess it's not an abbreviation any more. More properly "kleptomaniac". Fun clue.

5. Pre-coll. : EL-HI

6. Gull relative : TERN

7. Film for which Jessica Lange won her first Oscar : TOOTSIE. Best Supporting Actress for this 1982 movie. Later Best Actress for Blue Sky in 1994.

8. Plus : AS WELL

9. __ cup : SIPPY

10. Inventor's need : IDEA

11. Stock : KEEP IN STORE

12. "Try this" : HAVE ONE

16. "My Fair Lady" lyricist : LERNER

18. People mover : TRAMWAY. There's one in Hartsfield International Airport that amuses me - see 52D below.

21. "Norma __" : RAE. Because "JEAN" doesn't fit.

22. Square on a muffin : PAT. What? Oh! Pat of butter. Or Oleo, if you must.,

23. Relative of a puffin : AUK

24. What many a countdown clock does : STOPS AT ZERO. Or at "007" in James Bond movies. I seem to remember continuity problems in "Goldfinger" when each time the camera cut to the nuclear bomb countdown timer it had moved much more slowly than the time elapsing around it. Probably some physics time-warp weirdness.

28. Suffix denoting resemblance : -OID. Ovoid, spheroid, avoid. No, wait, not that last one.

29. Support garb : BRA

30. Gp. for drivers : AAA

33. Military aircraft hold : BOMB BAY

35. Bit of a cheer : RAH!

36. Org. regulating vaccines : FDA Federal Drug Administration.

37. __ school : LAW

39. Supports a cause : DONATES

40. Most dilettantish : ARTIEST

42. Opposite of post- : PRE- This is one of those clues when you wonder why the grid didn't just come "pre-filled".

43. Qantas hub, in itineraries : SYD. Why no "U" in Qantas? Because it's an acronym of "Queensland And Northern Territories Aerial Services".

45. Site of the George W. Bush presidential library : SMU. Southern Methodist. I hesitate between this and TCU when this clue crops up.

46. Eco-friendly wheels : TESLAS. Not the best news week for Telsa and Elon Musk.

47. Antarctic explorer Shackleton : ERNEST. I just finished reading "Endurance" by Alfred Lansing which tells the amazing story of the Trans-Antarctic expedition which took place 100 years ago. Gripping stuff.

49. Force : IMPEL

52. Pilot's alphabet ender : ZULU. Alpha, Bravo, Charlie, Delta, Echo .... At Atlanta Hartsfield International Airport, the concourses are named A thru F. When you're on the people-mover, the stops  are announced "A - Alpha", "B - Bravo", "C - Charlie" ... then "D - David" so as not to confuse the passengers flying on Delta Airlines, whose flights mostly depart from the A and B concourses.

53. Wedding tradition : CAKE

54. MIT center?: Abbr. : INST. Mass. Inst. Tech. as it is never known.

57. __ bubble : AIR

58. Record label for P!nk : RCA Note the stylized "!" in her name.

59. Something to look up to : SKY

And .. here's the grid. With that, my work here is done.


Steve

Wednesday, July 6, 2016 Vasu Saralathan

Theme: OVEREXPOSURE.  The first word of a two-word phrase is synonymous with the unifier, in each case indicating a person's state of total undress.

18 A. Hairless rodent used in lab experiments : NUDE MOUSE.  This poor critter has a genetic mutation resulting in an ineffective immune system.  This makes it an ideal subject for studying the effects of grafted tumors and other tissues, since it has no power to reject them.  It also has no body hair, which is quite remarkable for a rodent - hence it's name.  To me, the word NUDE, in its human context, connotes a kind of innocence that its synonyms lack.

37 A. Basic needs : BARE NECESSITIES.  This phrase implies a condition of having just enough to get by, eking out a sparse existence with nothing to spare.  It's also the name of a retail outlet selling several brands of clothing, lingerie and swim wear, but most famously, this song.

The word BARE feels neutral to me, not implying much of anything about the circumstances nor attitude of the unclothed person.

51 A. Unaided vision : NAKED EYE.  A mode of observing things without the kind of technical assistance that can be provided by lenses, magnifiers, light filters or other devices.  A NAKED person is likely to either have an agenda, or be thrust into an uncomfortable situation by someone who does.  These are my subjective responses.  YMMV, of course. 

Then, the unifier -- 56 A. In a pure and unembellished state, and a hint to the beginnings of 18-, 20-, 37- and 51- Across : AU NATUREL.  As defined in the clue, but also indicating a person in the buff.  Somehow, the phrase makes me think of Brigitte Bardot.   Maybe it's the French connection.

The natural "au naturel," naturally

Hi gang, JazzBumpa here, trying to make sure we all have a decent time. Let's see what we can cover - or, perhaps, uncover.

Down

1. Stock or bond : ASSET.  Financial ASSETS.

6. Hendrix dos : AFROS.   Hair.

Southpaw

11. Gullible one : SAP.  Somebody easily taken advantage of.  

14. Prophet swallowed by a big fish : JONAH.  Biblical story.

15. Party treat : GOODY.  Candy or other sweets.

16. Show on TV : AIR.  Here, show and AIR are both verbs.

17. Just eat up : ADORE.  I suppose, but am not fond of the clue.

20. Muscleman's display : RAW POWER.  Or oiled flesh.   I'm trying to maintain parity, but am having some difficulty with the photo attachments.  You can find examples here, ladies.

22. In the worst way : BADLY.  Positive form equivalent to superlative?  I don't think so.

23. "I don't have all day!" : NOW.  Stat! ASAP!

24. Online trackers : COOKIES.   A server message message stored as a text file by a browser, and sent back to the server at each browser visit.

26. "The Descent of Man" author : DARWIN.  Charles, [1809-1882] an English naturalist, geologist and pioneer in the field of evolution.

30. Chicken or turkey : FOWL.  And after 7 days in the fridge, foul.

31. Panhandle state : IDAHO.  Along with Oklahoma and Florida.  Did I miss any?

32. Hassan Rouhani's country : IRAN.   [b 1948] Lawmaker, academic, diplomat and, since 2013, the 7th president.

33. Maker of HEMNES furniture : IKEA.  Swedish provider of ready-to-assemble furniture, tasty meat balls and lingonberry jam.  They also serve a pretty darn good cheap breakfast.

40. Fish-eating duck : SMEW.   Males are mostly white with some black accents; females are red heads.

41. NERF missile : DART. Could also have been a BALL.

42. Concert sites : HALLS.   I went with ARENAS first, on a bad count.  

43. Unoccupied : IDLE. As a rest room stall.

44. Site of the first "Occupy" protest: Abbr. : WALL ST.   That den of iniquity.

45. Moral : ETHICAL.  Conforming to accepted standards of conduct.

49. Trending : HOT.   Like the latest whatever.

50. Oldest actor to play Bond : MOORE.  Roger. [b. 1927] 

59. "The Easter Parade" author Richard : YATES. [1926-1992] American novelist who achieved critical acclaim, but little commercial success.  In 2008 the movie version of his novel Revolutionary Road earned an Academy Award nomination for Kate Winslet.

60. Fury : IRE.  Anger.

61. Rub off : ERASE. As chalk.

62. Ready to draw : ON TAP. As ale.

63. "Dropped" drug : LSD.  Known as "acid" back in those hippy-dippy days of yore.

64. On pins and needles : ANTSY.  Or on edge, unsettled.

65. Scheme of high interest? : USURY.  Loans at extremely, sometimes illegally, high interest rates. Clever clue.

Down

1. Cracked open : AJAR.  As a door, but, strangely enough, not a jar.

2. Carbonated drink : SODA.  Or pop, in the midwest.   What about where you live?

3. Cause of a school closing : SNOW.  Bad winter weather.

4. Old West marshal : EARP.  Wyatt [1848-1929] of OK Corral fame. 

5. Satirical publication that claims to be "America's Finest News Source" : THE ONION.  It is a-peeling.

6. '60s-'70s veep : AGNEW.  [1918-1996]  No politics!

7. Calling birds count, in song : FOUR.  From the 12 Days of Christmas.

8. Curtain holder : ROD.  And he never gets tired.

9. Wordsworth work : ODE.

There was a time when meadow, grove, and stream,  

The earth, and every common sight,  

To me did seem  

Apparell'd in celestial light . . .

10. It's just one thing instead of another : SYMBOL.  Representation, often by a solid object for something abstract.

11. Medina native : SAUDI.  Site of a man-made disaster this week.

12. Basilica part : AISLE.  Or theater, or arena.

13. Victimizes, with "on" : PREYS.  As one with an ETHICAL deficiency might do to a SAP.

19. Winery wood : OAK.  Used in making aging barrels.

21. Came out on top : WON.  Emerged victorious.

24. Proceed effortlessly : COAST.  Move without using power, as down hill or via momentum.

25. Completely dominates : OWNS.  Or pwns, as in computer games

26. "Mine!" : DIBS.  I called it!

27. Father of Seth : ADAM.  Genesis family.  No religion!

28. Steak order : RARE.  True - I RARELY order steak.

29. "I was nervous there!" : WHEW.  Sigh of relief.

30. "__ Jacques" : FRERE.   Sleepy brother John, in a song.

32. Poker declaration : I CALL.  Indicates matching a bet or raise.

33. Romance lang. : ITALian.

34. While away, as time : KILL.  No mater how much I kill time, it still marches on.

35. Slithery fish : EELS.   Long, slender fish that are members of the order Anguilliformes, and a few other similarly shaped, but unrelated, fish.

36. Deputy: Abbr. : ASST.  Assistant.

38. Historic Icelandic work : EDDA.  Either of two works, known as the Prose EDDA and the Poetic EDDA, set down in the 13th century, containing material going back several hundred more years. They are the main sources of Norse mythology.

39. Cry from a newly grounded teen : I HATE YOU.   The drama unfolds.

43. Lipton offering : ICE TEA.   Will this bring back the ICE vs ICED controversy?

Iced

Ice

44. Stir-fry pan : WOK.  A round bottomed cooking vessel of Chinese origin.

45. Yahoo! service : E-MAIL.  One of many providers

46. Overseas stints : TOURS.  Deployments.

47. Sharpened : HONED. As on a whetstone.

48. 401(k) kin : IRA.  Individual Retirement Account.

49. Claire and Phil's eldest daughter on "Modern Family" : HALEY.  

Played by Sarah Hyland

51. Untouchables leader : NESS.  Eliot, [1903 - 1957] Prohibition agent, during that dark period of American history.

52. Marino and Patrick : DANS.  Former NFL QB Marino [b 1961,] Sportscaster Patrick [b 1956,] long with my oldest grandson [b 1996.]

53. Rebuke from Caesar : ET TU.  "You too, Brutus?!?", to his erstwhile friend and assassination co-conspirator.

54. Class ring datum : YEAR. As of graduation.

55. Best Female Athlete, e.g. : ESPY.  Excellence in Sports Performance Yearly Award, presented by ABC TV, and formerly by ESPN.   This year's candidates are Breanna Stewart [UConn Basetball,] Elena Delle Donne [Chicago Sky Pro Basketball,] Katey Ledecky [Swimming,] and Simone Biles [Gymnastics.]

57. Java server : URN.  Big pot.

58. Source of a metaphorical smell : RAT.  Indicating that something is not right.

Well, that's it.  Hope you got through without losing your shirt or getting caught with your pants down.  I made it - barely.

Looks as if this might be Vasu's first LAT puzzle.  So - welcome and congrats on your maiden voyage!  This is a fine puzzle and we hope to see more of you [in a manner of speaking.]

Cool regards!
JzB

Tuesday, July 5, 2016 Janice Luttrell

Thene: No Reveal Tuesday - Duties of a prep cook.

10D. Fail to advance to a subsequent round : MISS THE CUT

20A. Martial arts wood-breaking move : KARATE CHOP

29D. Six-faced puzzle : RUBIK'S CUBE

53A. Shady advantage for a craps shooter : LOADED DICE

"Chop" refers to cutting foods into pieces that are not necessarily even, but all about 1/2" in diameter. "Cube" means to cut food into pieces that are even, like a square. "Dice" means to cut food into even, small squares about 1/4" in diameter.

Argyle here with my Ginsu at the ready. I felt this pinwheel was an apt Tuesday.

Across:

1. Like a three-dollar bill : BOGUS. The un-pc word fit also.

6. Schedule opening : SLOT

10. "Welcome" sites : MATS

14. Take over forcibly : USURP

15. Surrounding radiance : AURA

16. One with star power : IDOL

17. __ apso: dog : LHASA

18. Touchpad toucher : USER

19. California's __ Valley : SIMI

22. Plant generator : SEED. How does your garden grow?

23. All-purpose vehicle, for short : UTE

24. Like some angles : OBTUSE. Do NOT call Warden Norton this word~!

26. Marble rye pattern : SWIRLS

30. Rental period : MONTH

32. __ New Guinea : PAPUA. Some difference from Simi Valley.

 

33. Employment agency listing : JOB

34. Barbecue brand : WEBER. So barbecue can mean the grill but if you were wondering....

38. Gulf States native : ARAB. NOT the Gulf of Mexico states.

39. "Wheel of Fortune" purchase : AN I

40. Deep sleep : COMA

41. Newspapers and such : MEDIA

43. "I agree" : "YES"

44. Language of ancient Carthage : PUNIC. Wikipedia

45. Word before Kat or Glue : KRAZY. The Kat came way before the glue.

47. Place to chow down : EATERY

48. Rumormonger's output : GOSSIP

51. Grain bristle : AWN. Wild rye.

52. Price-per-barrel org. : OPEC. (Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries)

60. Prego rival : RAGU

61. Gumbo pod : OKRA

62. Burger and fries, e.g. : ORDER

63. Get a good grip on : GRAB

64. Hurt seriously : MAIM

65. King or tsar : RULER

66. To be, in Versailles : ÊTRE

67. Tournament passes : BYEs

68. Bottomless chasm : ABYSS

Down:

1. Cheapest way to buy, with "in" : BULK

2. Workplace watchdog: Abbr. : OSHA. (Occupational Safety and Health Administration)

3. __ gum: thickening agent : GUAR

4. Bear in two constellations : URSA

5. Kitchen flipper : SPATULA

6. Pasta cook's potful : SAUCE

7. Rife with vegetation : LUSH

8. Three-ply cookie : OREO

9. Silvery game fish : TARPON

11. "Farewell, chérie" : "ADIEU"

12. Dictionaries, encyclopedias, and the like : TOMEs

13. Playground feature : SLIDE

21. X-files subjects, briefly : ETs

25. FYI relative : BTW. "for your information"/"By the way"

26. E-junk : SPAM

27. Hard finish? : WARE

28. Tablet with a Smart Keyboard attachment : iPAD

30. Monopoly game need : MONEY

31. Japanese decorative belts : OBIs

33. Hip-hopper who married Beyoncé : JAY Z. Shawn Corey Carter.

35. Dog biscuit shape : BONE

36. Gulf States leader : EMIR

37. Risqué : RACY

42. Jackie O's second : ARI

44. Box opener of myth : PANDORA

46. Poise : APLOMB

47. Woolly female : EWE

48. Narrow canyon : GORGE

49. Eye-fooling pantings : OP-ART

50. Popeye's creator : SEGAR

51. First one-term president : ADAMS. John.

54. Thumbs-up : OKAY

55. R&B vocalist India.__ : ARIE

56. Beat but good : DRUB

57. Without much thought : IDLY

58. So-so grades : CEEs

59. Transposes digits, say : ERRs

Argyle