The New York Times crossword puzzle
Across
1 Cheeky talk 5 Yearbook superlative 9 Sick of, with “with” 14 Luau performance 15 Trade show 16 Chicken ___ (Filipino dish) 17 The H or O in H2O 18 Stereotypical techie or Trekkie 19 Many Michelangelos 20 *Gyrating performers at a nightclub 23 Valuable rock deposit 24 Museum pieces 25 Ready for dental work, say 27 ___ pal (female friend) 30 *2019 Taika Waititi film about a boy with an animal nickname 35 Film’s story line 37 Captain in multiple Jules Verne novels 38 Funny Silverman 40 God, in Islam 42 Tolkien tree creatures 44 Calif. school that’s home to the Aztecs 45 *Walk the Dog and Around the World, e.g. 48 Observe 49 ___ chicken (spicy Jamaican fare) 50 “… sorta” 52 Smallest prime number 54 *Hit 1925 musical that inspired the sequel “Yes, Yes, Yvette” 61 Washing machine cycle 63 “Finished” on a walkietalkie 64 “___ and the Real Girl” (2007 Ryan Gosling film) 65 Lacking skill 66 “It’s a ___!” 67 Summer coolers 68 Flat-topped hills 69 “Frozen” character who says “You can’t marry a man you just met” 70 Affectionate sign-off … or a pattern hinting at the starts of the answers to the six starred clues
Down
1 Layered haircut 2 Kind of insurance 3 Tedious trudge 4 Apia’s country 5 Measure of explosive force that sounds like a weight 6 Plow-pulling animals 7 Blueprint detail 8 Joint hit 9 Foreign films translated and captioned by enthusiasts 10 School email address ender 11 *Extinct creatures of Mauritius 12 Lyft competitor 13 Something a model strikes 21 Nickname for N.B.A. great Erving 22 Genetic messenger 26 Degrees held by many C.E.O.s 27 A 3.0 one is a B 28 Any member of NATO, to another 29 *Olympian who competed as both a hurdler (2008 and 2012) and a bobsledder (2014) 31 Boo loudly 32 Upscale hotel chain 33 Campus military org. 34 Zap with a stun gun 36 Actor Diggs 39 Shade of color 41 Stinging wasps 43 Vail or Aspen 46 Certain boxing win, for short 47 Nine-digit ID 51 Corkscrew shape 52 Quick haircut 53 Rhyming partner of “dine” 55 Lymph ___ 56 Presidential office shape 57 They might be cut down after basketball victories 58 Hand-held TexMex food 59 Fierce, shortarmed dino 60 “Put a tiger in your tank” gas brand 62 Pampering place