Crossword

Note: This puzzle is part of Merl’s best-of series.

Knowing the Angles... Nothing straightforward about this puzzle

ACROSS

1 He’s a sheep date 4 Look into 9 Plutocrat’s pocketful 12 Proceeds undaunted 17 ___ tailspin 18 The ___ of possibility 19 When it lays an egg, it’s a big one 20 In need of B12 22 See 1 Down 25 Turn on an old pilot? 27 Hula Hoop company 28 “Original Broadway ___” 29 Jazz group?: abbr. 30 Van Gogh’s bro 31 Molnar play 33 Being supportive 37 Pull-loop 38 Gin fruit 40 Gold coins of old Rome 41 Summit outcome 43 High finance of a sort 48 Japanese drama 49 A woodwind 50 Shade tree 51 Occupy an ottoman 52 “___ that remark!” 56 A little nutty 60 Out-of-___ 62 Joining word 63 Leone and Mendes 64 Type of lit. 66 A Khan 67 Praising works 68 Drink or rink stuff 69 Poitier cop 72 PTA person 74 Squirting “weapon” 77 ___ precaution 79 Bud’s bud 80 Vilifies 84 Objector’s word 85 Three-part vacuum tube 88 See 70 Down 90 Rich-voiced 92 RN concerns 94 Noted Dwarf 95 Buoy attachment? 96 Course average 97 See 78 Down 102 Sausage coat 105 Places in the heart 106 1492 ship 107 Inclined 108 See 85 Down 110 Hot food in a husk 114 Vegas dealer’s aid 116 Awed reactions 117 Give out your cards? 120 Boston airport 121 Broadcast beginning 123 Like this puzzle, I hope 127 ___ the water (kaputski) 128 “Way to go!”, in Oaxaca 129 Sports spot 130 Oxy ending 131 See 76 Down 132 Inspectors’ marks 133 Home of the beast in TV’s Beauty and the Beast 134 OAS or OPEC

DOWN

1 Love on the rebound 2 Wise as ___ 3 The speed of sound 4 Hypothesis 5 Upgrades, as machinery 6 Prop for Hemingway’s “Old Man” 7 League of nations, perhaps 8 Actress Samms 9 Flipped out 10 Classic-film televiser, familiarly 11 Directly 12 Getups 13 Theater quickie 14 Lamprey 15 Struck, old-style 16 See 12 Across 21 Peek performer? 23 Actor Holbrook 24 One from Annam or Assam, e.g. 26 Mug shaped like a fat man with a three-cornered hat 29 Nietzsche negative 32 Respites with rates 34 In ___ (where Ralph sometimes wants to put Alice) 35 Kin of “wow” 36 See 33 Across 39 Girl in David Copperfield 42 Goddess of wake-up calls? 43 Gull’s tail? 44 Roulette couleur 45 The V of V-8, familiarly 46 Grate glower 47 See 43 Across 49 CIA forebear 53 Cleaned, as a pipe 54 A heading that’s a headless queen? 55 SMU scores 57 Popular fruit drink brand 58 “I’m just trying ___ an honest living” 59 See 56 Across 61 Past tense verb 65 Good name for a fisherman 67 Plains Indians 69 Nixon met with him in 1972 70 Insufficient-funds result 71 Cake with a hole in it 73 The O of GAO: abbr. 74 Movie-making cable channel 75 Start of the Lord’s Prayer 76 Smells the roses, maybe 78 Avoids taking a stand 80 Fraud 81 A la carte chart 82 Behold, to Brutus 83 Pilot’s milieu 85 Decisive event 86 The same 87 “If ___ Would Leave You” 89 One time Columbia Pictures head Harry 91 Babilonia of skating 93 Thread holders 98 Enfeebles 99 Overfilled 100 Straight 101 What’s a Russian urn? 102 Spanish-style home? 103 Garden pest 104 Of little men 109 41 Across city of Belgium 111 Tree-ring indication 112 Slow, in music 113 Parking lot sign 115 Latin abbr. 118 Unfortunately 119 Old stringed instrument 122 Ox add-on 123 Jersey remark? 124 Type 125 Dawn lawn phenomenawn? 126 See 123 Across