HEAD to HEAD
This looks to be Zhou Zhang's solo debut for the LA Times - congratulations~! I did some research and found he co-authored a WSJ crossword just last month. We have just five (ish) names, no circles, no expanded grid, and three of his four themers are unique to crosswords. So, too, is 33D - one of two 9-letter non-theme fills, the other being 3D, and that fill has only appeared in one other crossword. Well done, sir. The themers;
18. Chance to have a heart to heart?: ROYAL FLUSH
Suit of hearts
26. Spot to meet face to face?: MAKEUP MIRROR
I love the double image of this Def Leppard album cover
61. Person who will go toe to toe?: PEDICURIST
Better would've been having the answers in "body" order, "head to toe", but still a solid puzzle, IMHO
I also found this
Better would've been having the answers in "body" order, "head to toe", but still a solid puzzle, IMHO
And Away We Go~!
ACROSS:
1. Crystal balls, e.g.: ORBS - ah. I do the downs first, so my 2D. was wrong
5. French cap: BERET - OK, to answer the oft asked question, "Frawnche" comes from this scene from the 80's movie Better Off Dead
And the water is from "Peru"
10. Greek earth goddess: GAIA - Crossword friendly 75% vowels; name #1
14. __ out: sing with gusto: BELT - I have been known to belt out a karaoke song or two
15. Quartz type: AGATE - I did not know this popular crossword fill was quartz ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
16. Branches: ARMS
17. Clever concept: IDEA - I am working diligently to finish one of my board games; I printed a prototype game board and showed it to someone I trust with the idea - and she suggested some clever and well-appreciated corrections for me
21. Cat's warning sound: HISS - Jonesy gave Brett - and the viewers - a heads up HISS that the full-grown "30A." was right behind
22. "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" playwright: ALBEE - name #3, needed some perps
23. Some saxes: ALTOs
25. Rewards for a good dog: TREATS - I am reading a book from Robert Crais called "Suspect" with a traumatized USMC German Shepherd as a character - still no news on my four-legged friend yet 😞
30. Unfamiliar: ALIEN - A what~? A, a Xenomorph~?
James Cameron's 1986 sequel, Aliens
31. New prefix: NEO
32. Trip around the sun: YEAR - yup, that's what it is - and they're going faster, I've noticed
36. Beast of burden: ASS
37. Puts to work: EMPLOYS - AND - 66A. Puts to work: USES
41. Gibbon or gorilla: APE
42. See 43-Down: MOSS -AND- 43. With 42-Across, hanging growth in Louisiana swamps: SPANISH
44. Beverage suffix: ADE - Hi, lemonADE ~!
45. "__ love": "LOTSA"
51. Cocktail party appetizer: CANAPE
54. Dude ranch greeting: HOWDY
55. Solo: ALONE
56. Sound from a fan: WHIR
I'm a "fan"
58. Wax-wrapped Dutch cheese: EDAM
63. Subterfuge: RUSE
64. Parted partners: EXES
65. Scuffle: MELEE
67. Result of a bug bite, perhaps: RASH
68. Pot payments: ANTES - in card games like the hand of poker above
69. School orgs. that may sponsor fundraisers: PTAs - Parent Teacher Associations
DOWN:
1. Somber bio: OBIT - we are getting Spinal Tap II the movie this year; here's a cut from bassist Derek Smalls solo album
"She puts the b***h in obituary"
2. Ctrl+Y action: REDO - ctrl + C is 'copy';....ctrl + Z is 'UNDO' - yet there's a "Y" in copy, but no "Z" in undo and no "Y" in redo. . . . never mind
3. Expressed affection from afar: BLEW A KISS - 😘
4. Marvel Comics legend: STAN LEE - Ah. The "real" side of comics, not the "super" side. Name #4
5. Go around for rounds: BAR HOP - them days are behind me
6. Self-interest doctrine: EGOISM
7. Sunbeams: RAYS
8. Texts from a chronically late friend: ETAs - text implies an abbr. in this clue, at least it's different
9. Contact no.: TELephone
10. Place for portraits and prints: GALLERY
11. Island near Venezuela: ARUBA
12. "No more for me, thanks": "I'M SET"
13. Symbol on the first day of Lent: ASHES
19. Once-popular casino game: FARO - Just watched a clip about the tunnels dug for the Faroe Islands
24. Melody: TUNE
25. "Iliad" city: TROY
26. Counterpart of sir: MA'AM
27. As well: ALSO
28. Small bay: INLET
29. __ Speedwagon: REO
33. "You can't catch me!": "EAT MY DUST~!"
34. Church recess: APSE - I'm in this article from The American Organist magazine for our work on the new pipe organ at a church in Lynchburg, VA - I'm the one with the bald spot in the last image 😜
This is that same console that did not fit through the door 😆
35. __ admiral: REAR - Not just in charge of the "aft" or "stern" of a ship; here's the Wiki
38. Chess ending: MATE
39. Cuddling in the park, for short: PDA - Public Display of Affection
40. Barbecue side option: SLAW - I prefer fries
46. Phrase often heard in a restaurant kitchen: "ORDER UP~!"
48. Oil cartel letters: OPEC - Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries; I just learned that Norway is now at the top of the NON OPEC list; the YouTube clip
49. "That makes sense now": "OH I SEE."
50. Strengths: FORTES - Forte is my accountant's last name; he's good with numbers- it's his "forte"😜
51. Escapade: CAPER
52. Word said with an Echo?: ALEXA - I have to link this again, it was just too good - thanks, MM~!
Uh-huh....uh-huh....
53. Connection points: NODES - get to the point . . . .
56. Small songbird: WREN - not the architect this time
57. Sword handle: HILT
59. Not on solid ground: ASEA
60. What a toddler might leave behind: MESS
62. Actress Thurman: UMA - name #5, crossword staple
Splynter
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