The New York Times crossword puzzle
Across
1 Evidence of merit
6 With 38-Across, this whole time
9 Country singer with a cityish name
14 “___ in English is, in the main, just about as sensible as baseball in Italian”: H. L. Mencken
15 Cocktail with vodka, cranberry juice and grapefruit juice
17 Doesn’t look so well?
18 Carrier with a yin/yang symbol in its logo
19 Lustrous material
21 ___ Drago, opponent of Rocky in “Rocky IV”
22 Actress Aduba of “Orange Is the New Black”
23 Where one might go out to get a bite?
26 Bhagavad-___ (Sanskrit text)
27 Nonsense
31 Extension
34 Collection of superstars
37 Good name for a gardener
38 See 6-Across
39 One of five in “La Bohème”
40 Fairy tale villain
42 U people?
43 Kind of strip
44 Wrinkly fruit
46 Supreme Court nickname, with “the”
52 Cause to groan, maybe
55 Sparks can be seen at its edge
56 Way that someone might get out
57 Make the grade
60 Off-the-wall
61 Pastrami and corned beef
62 Some Deco collectibles
63 “God ___”
64 Hula hoop?
65 Little brats
Down
1 Extra help
2 Kind of test for a baby
3 Symbol of change
4 Spider-Man’s archenemy
5 Starts something slowly
6 Say “what?,” say
7 Pope during the Battle of Ostia
8 Creepy-crawly
9 Stockpile that may be subject to inspection
10 Rapper MC ___ of N.W.A
11 Suitor
12 Former Iraqi V.I.P. Tariq ___
13 Ancient Rome’s Circus of ___
16 Piece of equipment in the game cornhole
20 Big Apple media inits.
24 Soup kitchen sight
25 2018 Oscarnominated picture whose soundtrack sold over one million copies
28 Subway fare?
29 Oliver Twist, for example
30 Part of a Latin trio
31 [I’m still here, you know]
32 Band with the 1980 hit album “Freedom of Choice”
33 Minute amount
35 Sushi bar topping
36 Opposite of excitement
38 No-frills
41 Requirements for voting
42 Nosedives
45 Result of a meltdown?
47 Jermaine who was a six-time N.B.A. All-Star
48 Driver’s assignment
49 Totaled
50 Georges of the Romantic era
51 Luster
52 Film site
53 Film site
54 Long green
58 Household name?
59 Auto inspection no.