The New York Times Crossword Puzzle: Rise To The Challenge

ACROSS

1 Like the protagonist at the start of “28 Days Later”

8 –

14 Lady Macduff, e.g. 18 Group of fighters 19 One way to recoil 21 Male deer

22 “My ____” (No. 1 hit

for the Knack) 23 One of the two main branches of Buddhism 24 N.B.A. All-star Gobert

25 *Worker with a brush [three rungs] 27 Fuel option 29 “Ciao!” 32 Completely pooped 33 –

38 A.C.C. school 39 Place with counselors

40 Maker of Pilots and

Passports

41 Team ____

42 “____ Canto” (2001 Ann Patchett novel) 43 Structure resembling a pergola

45 –

47 Airport with a BART station

50 Mail, e.g.

52 Otis who founded the Otis Elevator Company 54 Expelled from the body 56 *Captain with a periscope [four rungs]

58 Some military wear, informally

60 Carpet specification 61 Former make of Ford 62 [I’m frustrated!] 63 Lab eggs 64 Animation and sculpting, for two 65 Advances through corporate ranks

... and what the answer to each starred clue in this puzzle does 71 “Mon ____!” 74 Singer Grande, to fans

75 Center 76 Celebrity gossip show with an exclamation point in its title

79 Map inits. until 1991

80 Pest control brand 81 –

84 “Really good work!” 86 Sung by a group 87 Writer known for his anthropomorphic animal characters 89 “When r u coming?” 90 *Seasonal orchard worker [eight rungs]

93 Staple of Dutch Golden Age art

95 Feeling while watching a volcanic eruption, perhaps 96 According to 98 Narwhal’s tusk, actually 99 Pleasant speech cadence

100 Pen that aptly rhymes with “click” 101 *Worker for AT&T or Verizon [four rungs] 103 Common wall mirror shape

104 Sound on Old Macdonald’s farm 105 Chicken scratch

106 –

109 Worker who probably isn’t paid enough 110 Really, really spicy 115 1/100 of a franc 119 Dirt clump 120 Googles, e.g.

121 Like people in crowds, whether intentionally or not 122 Donations for the needy

123 *One putting a coat on outside [three rungs] 124 Surreptitious assents

DOWN

1 Communications on Slack, e.g.

2 Org. funding Covid19 research

3 In the manner of

4 Roughly

5 “Then again ... ,” in a tweet 6 Upscale-hotel-room fixture

7 One calling for a tow, maybe

8 Visual depiction of the apparatus used by the starred professionals 9 “____ wise guy, eh?” 10 Like some humor 11 Important stretch 12 Stretch longer than an 11-Across 13 Mario who founded a fashion empire 14 Snowboards well, informally 15 Rabble-rouse 16 Something taken by a waiter 17 “Cya!”

19 “How ____ Your Mother”

20 Con’s vote 26 Mafia : Sicilia :: Camorra : ____ 28 Harden

29 Latin for “trumpet” 30 Disinclined 31 Temple text 34 Beach in Rio de Janeiro, informally 35 “From now ____ won’t be hanging around” (bluegrass lyric)

36 1600, in ancient Rome

37 Tick off 39 ____-by-the-sea, Calif. 44 Welcomes, as the new year 46 Narcissist’s treasure 48 Perceived 49 Output from Sappho 51 Cloud 53 Adjustable bike part 55 “I don’t wanna hear it”

57 Boxer Laila 58 Stephen who said: “Think books aren’t scary? Well, think about this: You can’t spell ‘Book’ without ‘Boo!”’ 59 Director Duvernay 66 Play title that superstitious actors avoid saying aloud in theaters 67 Certain sib 68 Currency to which the Maltese scudo is pegged

69 Opus ____ 70 Hypnotized, say 71 Sci-fi novel made into films in 1984 and 2021 72 Skeptical reply to “That’s true” 73 Activity one tries to get out of? 77 Sushi condiment 78 Strand, perhaps 80 “Silly me!”

82 Pope of 1963-78

83 Government bonds? 85 Preppy clothing brand

86 Ending with leuko- or oo88 Quick kiss

91 One with a marsupium, affectionately 92 Bacardi, e.g., in México

94 Threat from a squealer 97 Antelopes with twisty horns 101 Immune system agent

102 Like luxurious pillows 103 Breakfast that may be prepared overnight 104 Former N.F.L. QB Kyle

105 Pet rescue org. 107 “The Black Cat” author 108 Genderqueer identity 111 Soccer star Messi, familiarly

112 Delta ____ Chi, house in “Animal House” 113 B&O and Reading: Abbr.

114 Either half of pocket rockets, in poker slang

116 ____ Jima

117 Rx from a doc, e.g. 118 Newsroom heads, for short