Jacob has always puzzled me with his puzzles like his Wednesday NYT, and while the solve was okay and I am not a great solver, I am having difficulty with the explanation. The basic theme has TANG inside the fill, and I now understand why after consulting with the Corner guru. The first four themers are:
14A. *1952 #1 hit for Leroy Anderson : BLUE TANGO (9), Do not know the SONG or the artist, but the perps and the theme gave me this answer quickly.
17A. *Math reciprocal : COTANGENT(9). This was easy, but I will defer to our math experts to discuss.
61A. *"Atomic" Crayola color : TANGERINE (9). I am not sure why but I remember this color.
66A. *Bogged down : ENTANGLED (9). Not pefect fit for me.
Then we have the supplemental variation of the old joke about a fly in the soup:
30A. With 35-Across, question the starred clues might ask : WHAT IS THIS FLY (13).
35A. See 30-Across : DOING IN MY ANSWER (15).
44. Response to 30-/35-Across, and a hint to a hidden word in 14-, 17-, 61- and 66-Across : THE BACK STROKE (13).
I was struggling to make sense of the back stroke reference when I was made aware that TANG backwards spells GNAT, which makes it all fit together as the GNAT in each theme answer is backwards leaving a FLY doing a backstroke. Really inventive combination of words and visual.
Again we have a Friday with almost 60 fiveletter or shorter words, 42 blocks and only a few non theme related sparkly fill such as ANCHOR, BEATER, EERILY, IT WAS I, KEITEL, OUTLAW, SHIRTS, SO THAT, AT STAKE, ESSENCE
Across:
1. Long __ : AGO. We begin like STAR WARS Episode IV only it is our constructor who has a mind from a different galaxy.
4. Spartan colonnades : STOAS. You see many of these on college campuses as well.
9. Belief of more than a billion : ISLAM.
16. "Done!" : THERE.
18. Expand : WIDEN.
19. Numskull : DOLT.
20. Start of a rumor : I HEAR...that Rich does not like partials, is this one?
22. Fuel economy testing org. : EPA. Environemental Protection Agency.
23. Business card word : FAX.
26. On the table : AT STAKE.
33. Zhou __ : EN LAI. This Chinese POLITICIAN and cohort of Mao actually died a few month before Mao's death.
34. Wide size : EEE.
42. Boston Coll. is in it : ACC. Atlantic Coast Conference.
43. '90s runner : PEROT. For president, not for distance, Ross.
50. Pith : ESSENCE.
51. Medit. land : ISRael.
52. Revised versions: Abbr. : EDS. Editions.
55. Sharp : ACRID. I think of smells.
57. Stop on Amtrak's Lake Shore Limited route : ERIE. CSO.
58. Theodore's first lady : EDITH. This LADY. She was however, his second wife.
65. Event with pole bending : RODEO. Like slalom for cowboys? No idea.
68. Holds up : LASTS.
69. Sch. units : YRS.
Down:
1. Start of a children's song : ABCDE.
2. Gluttonous Augustus in "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" : GLOOP. I did not remember his NAME.(2:39)
3. Posse target : OUTLAW.
4. Stop: Abbr. : STN.
5. __ sale : TAG. We have yard sales, garage sales, moving sales as well as THESE. My grandmother manufactured tags in Southbridge.
6. Word with man or horse : ONE. ReallY?
7. Latin lambs : AGNI. A variation from our normal reference.
8. To make sure : SO THAT.
9. Confessor's words : IT WAS I. I started with I DID IT which also fit.
10. Haberdashery stock : SHIRTS.
11. Directed : LED.
12. Exist : ARE.
13. Sign on a door : MEN.
15. Put away : EAT.
21. Djibouti neighbor: Abbr. : ETHiopia.
23. Canine : FANG. Rhymes with TANG.
24. Hun king, in Norse legend : ATLI.
25. Capital of Shaanxi Province : XIAN. CSO to our own.
27. Several : A FEW.
28. "Twittering Machine" artist : KLEE.
29. Observer : EYER.
31. Mother __ : HEN.
32. Fools : SIMPS. Really?
35. 2/3, say : DATE. This partial clue fooled me for a while.
36. Big name in publishing : OCHS. Really, really BIG for the NY Times, not so much our journal.
37. Decorates, in a way : ICES. Tin, it is okay to ice a cake.
38. Mountain sighting : YETI. Ridiculous.
39. JFK list : ARRS.
40. Queen dowager of Jordan : NOOR. Our American export.
41. Wall St. purchase : STK.
45. Rattletrap : BEATER. I know the term from reading old books,, but I have never heard anyone actually use the term.
46. Hold : ANCHOR.
47. "Born on the Bayou" band, briefly : CCR. Credence Clearwater Revival, a Woodstock band.
48. "Mean Streets" co-star : KEITEL. Harvey.
49. How ghost stories are told : EERILY.
53. "2 Broke Girls" setting : DINER.
54. Origins : SEEDS.
56. Actress Delany : DANA. I have watched her since China Beach.
57. Bit of work : ERG. Followed by....
58. Triage ctrs. : ERS. Emergency Rooms.
59. Finish, as a letter, perhaps : DOT. Finish writing the letter, not the letter! Ah ha, I get it.
60. Wyo. neighbor : IDAho.
62. Some Windows systems : NTS.
63. Hood's gun : GAT.
64. U.S. Army rank abolished in 1815 : ENS. A WAG that was easier than I expected.
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