Theme: Outer Clothes - The first word of the first four themes and the last word of the unifier are articles of outerwear. If you experienced déjà vu, it's because of this, just two weeks ago.
17A. Southernmost tip of South America : CAPE HORN. The Cape of Good Hope is the southern tip of Africa.
21A. Smacked someone when they least expected it? : STOLE A KISS
40A. Deadly squeezers : BOA CONSTRICTORS. No image, I know how some feel about snakes.
57A. Family crest : COAT OF ARMS . (28D __ of arms : COAT: just yesterday)
66A. Director's shout, and hint to the starts of 17-, 21-, 40- and 57-Across : "IT'S A WRAP!"
Argyle here.
Déjà boo, not nearly as tight as Harvey Estes' 27 July offering but it does have a grid spanner in the middle. (Our local paper had a story about the big snake but called it a boa restricter. A neighbor herpetologist wrote a scathing letter to the paper, upset that they could make such a basic mistake.)
Across:
1. Box-office smash : HIT
4. Hug and smooch : NECK
8. Robbins's partner : BASKIN. Baskin-Robbins premium ice cream. With more than 6,000 retail shops in 35 countries, they’re now the world’s largest chain of ice cream specialty shops.
14. Wrigley Field feature : IVY . Go Cubbies! Image
15. "No lie!" : TRUE
16. It can be formal or informal : ATTIRE. Or outerwear.
19. Jolly-good mates : BLOKES
20. Fort with billions in bullion : KNOX. Located in Kentucky, the United States Bullion Depository, commonly called Fort Knox, is a fortified vault building located adjacent to Fort Knox. It holds about 4,603 tons of gold bullion. It is second in the United States only to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York's underground vault in Manhattan, which holds about 5,000 metric tonnes of gold in trust for many foreign nations, central banks and official international organizations.
23. Gender-neutral possessive : ONE'S
25. Besides : ELSE
26. Sew with loose stitches : BASTE
29. Thanksgiving veggie : YAM
31. It's plighted in marriage : TROTH . Old English trēowth ; related to Old High German gitriuwida, meaning loyalty, truth
35. Mid-size Nissan : ALTIMA . Automobile.
37. Have dinner : SUP
39. Arthur of "The Golden Girls" : BEA . Passed away last year.
44. Young newt : EFT
45. La Brea goo : TAR
46. Like many CIA ops : COVERT
47. Dance components : STEPS
50. Building site : LOT
52. Actor Davis : OSSIE
53. Edible Andean tubers : OCAS . Has anyone tried one?
55. Reason to swear : OATH
61. Track figures : ODDS. Racing track. Number figure.
65. Pressing : URGENT
68. Ghostly gathering : SEANCE . A ghostly gathering only if the seance is successful.
69. Like some dorms : CO-ED
70. Gold, south of the border : ORO . Spanish
71. Luggage lugger : PORTER
72. CPR experts : EMTS
73. Stroke lovingly, or the object of a loving stroke : PET
Down:
1. Hayseed : HICK
2. "Terrible" 16th-century leader : IVAN
3. Goof for good, e.g.? : TYPO. Letters DF are together in the keyboard.
4. Utmost degree : NTH
5. Jagged, as a leaf's edge : EROSE
6. Respectful bow : CURTSY
7. Numbers game : KENO
8. Biblical tower site : BABEL
9. Finally : AT LAST
10. Furnace room worker : STOKER . I don't believe they exist anymore. Their job was to shovel coal or coke into the furnace.
11. Singer __ Dee : KIKI . And now, a musical interlude.
12. Tees off : IRES
13. Suffix with kind or fond : NESS
18. Like some dancers : EXOTIC
22. King Julien XIII in "Madagascar" : LEMUR . Madagascar is a 2005 computer-animated film produced by DreamWorks Animation. Sacha Baron Cohen is the voice of the king. What a lemur looks like.
24. Verne captain : NEMO
26. Innocents : BABES
27. Floating on high : ALOFT
28. Country division : STATE
30. N.L. Central player : ASTRO . Baseball's Houston Astros.
32. Bassoon relatives : OBOES
33. Country singer Gibbs : TERRI . No relation of Special Agent Gibbs. "Somebody's Knockin'"
34. Impulsiveness : HASTE
36. Critter on a hill : ANT
38. Snapshot, briefly : PIC
41. Lively Cuban dance : SALSA
42. Old geezer : COOT
43. NBC offering : TV SHOW
48. Strong : POTENT
49. Decorative wall light fixture : SCONCE
51. Source of oater drumming : TOM-TOM . Not only in Westerns but in jungle movies, too.
54. Later than : AFTER
56. Liability offset : ASSET
57. Zodiacal border : CUSP
58. One may be dipped in milk : OREO
59. Lab gel : AGAR
60. Paddy product : RICE
62. Lead-in for cloth or kick : DROP . Drop cloth - to catch paint spatter. Drop kick - to catch the offense off guard (football).
63. Challenge : DARE
64. Brit's bit of tea : SPOT
67. Super Bowl highlights? : ADS
Answer grid.
17A. Southernmost tip of South America : CAPE HORN. The Cape of Good Hope is the southern tip of Africa.
21A. Smacked someone when they least expected it? : STOLE A KISS
40A. Deadly squeezers : BOA CONSTRICTORS. No image, I know how some feel about snakes.
57A. Family crest : COAT OF ARMS . (28D __ of arms : COAT: just yesterday)
66A. Director's shout, and hint to the starts of 17-, 21-, 40- and 57-Across : "IT'S A WRAP!"
Argyle here.
Déjà boo, not nearly as tight as Harvey Estes' 27 July offering but it does have a grid spanner in the middle. (Our local paper had a story about the big snake but called it a boa restricter. A neighbor herpetologist wrote a scathing letter to the paper, upset that they could make such a basic mistake.)
Across:
1. Box-office smash : HIT
4. Hug and smooch : NECK
8. Robbins's partner : BASKIN. Baskin-Robbins premium ice cream. With more than 6,000 retail shops in 35 countries, they’re now the world’s largest chain of ice cream specialty shops.
14. Wrigley Field feature : IVY . Go Cubbies! Image
15. "No lie!" : TRUE
16. It can be formal or informal : ATTIRE. Or outerwear.
19. Jolly-good mates : BLOKES
20. Fort with billions in bullion : KNOX. Located in Kentucky, the United States Bullion Depository, commonly called Fort Knox, is a fortified vault building located adjacent to Fort Knox. It holds about 4,603 tons of gold bullion. It is second in the United States only to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York's underground vault in Manhattan, which holds about 5,000 metric tonnes of gold in trust for many foreign nations, central banks and official international organizations.
23. Gender-neutral possessive : ONE'S
25. Besides : ELSE
26. Sew with loose stitches : BASTE
29. Thanksgiving veggie : YAM
31. It's plighted in marriage : TROTH . Old English trēowth ; related to Old High German gitriuwida, meaning loyalty, truth
35. Mid-size Nissan : ALTIMA . Automobile.
37. Have dinner : SUP
39. Arthur of "The Golden Girls" : BEA . Passed away last year.
44. Young newt : EFT
45. La Brea goo : TAR
46. Like many CIA ops : COVERT
47. Dance components : STEPS
50. Building site : LOT
52. Actor Davis : OSSIE
53. Edible Andean tubers : OCAS . Has anyone tried one?
55. Reason to swear : OATH
61. Track figures : ODDS. Racing track. Number figure.
65. Pressing : URGENT
68. Ghostly gathering : SEANCE . A ghostly gathering only if the seance is successful.
69. Like some dorms : CO-ED
70. Gold, south of the border : ORO . Spanish
71. Luggage lugger : PORTER
72. CPR experts : EMTS
73. Stroke lovingly, or the object of a loving stroke : PET
Down:
1. Hayseed : HICK
2. "Terrible" 16th-century leader : IVAN
3. Goof for good, e.g.? : TYPO. Letters DF are together in the keyboard.
4. Utmost degree : NTH
5. Jagged, as a leaf's edge : EROSE
6. Respectful bow : CURTSY
7. Numbers game : KENO
8. Biblical tower site : BABEL
9. Finally : AT LAST
10. Furnace room worker : STOKER . I don't believe they exist anymore. Their job was to shovel coal or coke into the furnace.
11. Singer __ Dee : KIKI . And now, a musical interlude.
12. Tees off : IRES
13. Suffix with kind or fond : NESS
18. Like some dancers : EXOTIC
22. King Julien XIII in "Madagascar" : LEMUR . Madagascar is a 2005 computer-animated film produced by DreamWorks Animation. Sacha Baron Cohen is the voice of the king. What a lemur looks like.
24. Verne captain : NEMO
26. Innocents : BABES
27. Floating on high : ALOFT
28. Country division : STATE
30. N.L. Central player : ASTRO . Baseball's Houston Astros.
32. Bassoon relatives : OBOES
33. Country singer Gibbs : TERRI . No relation of Special Agent Gibbs. "Somebody's Knockin'"
34. Impulsiveness : HASTE
36. Critter on a hill : ANT
38. Snapshot, briefly : PIC
41. Lively Cuban dance : SALSA
42. Old geezer : COOT
43. NBC offering : TV SHOW
48. Strong : POTENT
49. Decorative wall light fixture : SCONCE
51. Source of oater drumming : TOM-TOM . Not only in Westerns but in jungle movies, too.
54. Later than : AFTER
56. Liability offset : ASSET
57. Zodiacal border : CUSP
58. One may be dipped in milk : OREO
59. Lab gel : AGAR
60. Paddy product : RICE
62. Lead-in for cloth or kick : DROP . Drop cloth - to catch paint spatter. Drop kick - to catch the offense off guard (football).
63. Challenge : DARE
64. Brit's bit of tea : SPOT
67. Super Bowl highlights? : ADS
Answer grid.
Argyle