DAILY CROSSWORD PUZZLE
ACROSS
1 Half-__: coffee with a little less kick 4 Chocolatemaking bean 9 Polynesian people 14 Darth, as a youth 15 Suspect’s excuse 16 Muslim religion 17 Single-digit temps, for most 19 Exams for would-be attys. 20 Try to whack 21 Jazz great Blake 23 Cabinet dept. concerned with nukes 24 1984 Prince hit 29 Picket line participant 31 Fierce public protest 32 Jot down 35 Napkin’s place 36 Body of water between Connecticut and southeastern New York 42 Skater Midori 43 Muscle injury 44 Small river 48 Tribulations 52 At close range 55 Bushels 56 Ponzi scheme, e.g. 57 Ann __, Michigan 58 California/Nevada resort lake 61 Grandmaster’s last word ... and what the last word in 17-, 24-, 36- and 52-Across can be 64 Milky gemstones 65 Breed that’s Welsh for “dwarf dog” 66 Fresh 67 George of “Cheers” 68 Trap during a winter storm, say 69 Dozens of mos.
DOWN
1 Secret supplies 2 Bless using oil 3 Color-altering camera lens accessory 4 Actors in a show 5 European mountain 6 Paris corp. 7 More adept 8 Prepare to shine in a bodybuilding contest? 9 Cultural setting 10 State with conviction 11 Suffix with pay 12 Templeton in “Charlotte’s Web,” e.g. 13 Cyberchats, briefly 18 Adventurous 22 Rain-__ bubble gum 24 Animals at home 25 Eurasian border mountains 26 Rights advocacy org. 27 “Reading Lolita in Tehran” setting 28 Big Apple law gp. 30 Japanese carp 33 Skin pic 34 Noted 2001 bankruptcy 36 Talk like Daffy 37 Director Preminger 38 More formal “Me neither!” 39 Lacking light 40 Bully in the “Toy Story” films 41 Like challenging push-ups 45 Surround 46 Taking a break 47 Management deg. 49 Capital on the Hudson 50 Thief during a riot 51 Scatters, as seeds 53 Soap star Susan 54 For a specific purpose, as a committee 57 Comparable (to) 58 Aid for a disabled auto 59 Big lug 60 Solo of “Star Wars” 62 Before, in verse 63 Cinematic FX