The New York Times Crossword

Answers below

ACROSS 1 Game pieces in Othello and Connect Four 6 Provocative … like this answer’s position in the grid? 10 Q: What happens when the ___ clears over Los Angeles? A: UCLA! 14 Beer brand whose name translates to “morning sun” 15 Looney Tunes bunny 16 Cézanne or Gauguin 17 “You cooked this? It’s disgusting!” said Tom ___ 20 Gumbo, e.g. 21 One foot in “the grave,” poetically speaking 22 Festoon 23 Bugle call at lights out 25 Support group associated with the Twelve Steps 26 “What do you mean there are no Playstations left in stock?” asked Tom ___ 31 “Peace out” 32 “Well, ___ be!” 33 Lip 37 Spot for a sojourn 38 Charge for tardiness 42 Grief-stricken state 43 Scorch on a stovetop 45 Brewery vessel 46 Pastry dough used in crullers and beignets 48 “I’m worried I may have anemia,” said Tom ___ 52 Had an inclination 55 Kind of column 56 Specialty of clerics, druids and paladins, in Dungeons & Dragons 57 Flat, for short 59 Assistant 63 “You guys are supposed to be ‘Wise Men’ and these are the gifts you bring a newborn?!” asked Tom, ___ 66 With 54-Down, back to fighting 67 Gumbo ingredient 68 Het (up) 69 “That’s terrible!” 70 Hammer’s end 71 ___ of the state

DOWN 1 Spot for a speech 2 “Who ___?!” (“That’s true of everyone!”) 3 Relief pitcher’s success 4 Target of a canine’s canines, maybe 5 Ben Kingsley or Ian Mckellen, e.g. 6 “West Texas town” in a classic country song 7 Gloom’s partner 8 Formless mass 9 Common word in pirate-speak 10 Outings devoted to relaxation and self-care 11 Employee at a brick-andmortar business 12 Musical bit that slowly fades 13 Close in many close-ups 18 Coyote calls 19 Seven-foot, say 24 Particularly particular 25 Competent 26 Goddess with a reduplicative name 27 Bird with a reduplicative name 28 John of “The Suicide Squad” 29 Not be straight with 30 TV ET 34 Nowhere to be found, say 35 Genre for Luther Vandross 36 “___ and I Know It” (2012 #1 hit for 52- Down) 39 Fervent 40 Sailor, in slang 41 Behold: Lat. 44 Encounter unexpectedly 47 Is connected 49 Prominent part of an apatosaurus 50 Pulitzer-winning columnist Peggy 51 Visiting the Natl. Museum of African American History and Culture, say 52 Electronic dance music duo that performed at the 2012 Super Bowl halftime show 53 Home to over seven billion people 54 See 66-Across 57 Rug rat 58 ___ transfer 60 Man, for one 61 Consider 62 Swirl in a stream 64 Hack (off) 65 Before, to Byron