0828-22 NY Times Crossword 28 Aug 22, Sunday

Constructed by: Ori Brian
Edited by: Will Shortz

Today’s Theme: Animal Hybrids

Themed answers are anagrams of the three ANIMALS cited in the clue:

  • 108A Mixes animal species … as eight answers in this puzzle do? : CROSSBREEDS
  • 22A Get a party started? [bee, hare, tick] : BREAK THE ICE
  • 28A Buzzkill [bat, elk, newt] : WET BLANKET
  • 34A A little of a lot? [carp, pig, snake] : PARKING SPACE
  • 47A Locale of many vines [cat, elephant, worm] : WATERMELON PATCH
  • 62A Something you might step on by the shower [cobra, moth, seal] : BATHROOM SCALE
  • 78A Long-running soap opera that debuted in 1963 [ant, gorilla, sheep] : GENERAL HOSPITAL
  • 91A London landmark [beetle, hog, rat] : GLOBE THEATRE
  • 98A Bridge that’s painted International Orange [dog, eel, gnat] : GOLDEN GATE

Bill’s time: 15m 01s

Bill’s errors: 0

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

1 Gaelic garment : TARTAN

“Tartan” is sometimes called “plaid” over here in the US, and is a word not used in the same sense outside of this country. In Scotland, a plaid is a blanket or a tartan cloth slung over the shoulder.

A Gael is anyone of a race that speaks or spoke one of the Erse tongues. There are actually three Erse languages. Irish, Manx (spoken on the Isle of Man) and Scots Gaelic. In their own tongues, these would be “Gaeilge” (in Ireland), “Gaelg” (on the Isle of Man) and “Gaidhlig” (in Scotland).

11 Like Antarctica : ARID

On average, Antarctica is the coldest, driest and windiest of all seven continents. Although Antarctica is very cold, it is essentially a desert, receiving only 8 inches of precipitation annually at the coasts and even less inland.

18 Granada grandpa : ABUELO

Granada is a city and province in Andalusia in the south of Spain. Granada should not be confused with Grenada (note the different spelling), an island nation in the Caribbean that was invaded by the US in 1983.

24 Morning TV host Kotb : HODA

Hoda Kotb is an Egyptian-American television journalist who is perhaps best known as a co-host of the NBC morning show “Today”. She is also the author of the bestselling autobiography “Hoda: How I Survived War Zones, Bad Hair, Cancer, and Kathie Lee”.

25 “Potent Potables for $1,000, ___” (onetime TV request) : ALEX

Alex Trebek was the host of “Jeopardy!” from the launch of the syndicated version of the game show in 1984 until his passing in 2020. Trebek missed just one episode during that time, when he and host of “Wheel of Fortune” Pat Sajak swapped roles in 1997 as an April Fool’s joke. In 2014, Trebek picked up the Guinness World Record for hosting the most episodes of a game show.

27 Actress Seyfried of “The Dropout” : AMANDA

Actress Amanda Seyfried’s first film role was in the 2004 teen comedy “Mean Girls”, supporting Lindsay Lohan. Seyfried has quite the voice too, using it to good effect in her leading roles in 2008’s “Mamma Mia!” and 2012’s “Les Misérables”. Seyfried married fellow actor Thomas Sadoski (from “Life in Pieces”) in 2017.

28 Buzzkill [bat, elk, newt] : WET BLANKET

A wet blanket might be used to extinguish a fire. We use the phrase “wet blanket” figuratively to describe someone who tends to dampen enthusiasm or enjoyment.

31 Subjects of some promotions : PAWNS

In the game of chess, the pawns are the weakest pieces on the board. A pawn that can make it to the opposite side of the board can be promoted to a piece of choice, usually a queen. Using promotion of pawns, it is possible for a player to have two or more queens on the board at one time. However, standard chess sets come with only one queen per side, so a captured rook is often used as the second queen by placing it on the board upside down.

33 Natural source of glitter : MICA

Mica is a silicate mineral. Thin sheets of mica are transparent and are used in place of glass in certain applications. This form of mica is called isinglass, and as it has a better thermal performance than glass it is a great choice for “peepholes” in boilers and lanterns. Mica is also used in the electronics industry, making use of its unique electrical and thermal insulating properties.

44 Best-selling author Hoag : TAMI

Tami Hoag is a novelist best known for writing romances and thrillers. She is a prolific writer and once had five consecutive titles on the New York Times bestsellers list, all in a 20-month period.

46 Pennsylvania school, for short : PITT

The University of Pittsburgh (Pitt) was founded back in 1787 as the Pittsburgh Academy. Pitt was a private school until 1966, but is now one of four Pennsylvania universities receiving state funding.

47 Locale of many vines [cat, elephant, worm] : WATERMELON PATCH

The watermelon that we find in the grocery store is actually a berry produced by the flowering, vine-like watermelon plant. Seedless watermelons were developed by Japanese scientists in 1939, and now seedless varieties account for over 80% of watermelon sales in the US.

51 Opposite of une adversaire : AMIE

In French, an “ami” (friend) is the opposite of an “adversaire” (adversary).

53 Life preserver? : ARK

The term “ark”, when used with reference to Noah, is a translation of the Hebrew word “tebah”. The word “tebah” is also used in the Bible for the basket in which Moses was placed by his mother when she floated him down the Nile. It seems that the word “tebah” doesn’t mean “boat” and nor does it mean “basket”. Rather, a more appropriate translation is “life-preserver” or “life-saver”. So, Noah’s ark was Noah’s life-preserver during the flood.

54 Al-___, family of Syrian leaders : ASSAD

Dr. Bashar al-Assad is the son of the former President Hafez al-Assad, whom he replaced as President of the Syrian Arab Republic in 2001. President Bashar al-Assad is a medical doctor, and speaks fluent English and conversational French. Assad was studying ophthalmology in London when he met his wife, who is an Englishwoman by birth.

55 Goes wild : RUNS AMOK

The phrase “to run amok” (sometimes “to run amuck”) has been around since the 1670s and is derived from the Malay word for “attacking furiously”, “amuk”. The word “amok” was also used as a noun to describe Malay natives who were “frenzied”. Given Malaya’s troubled history, the natives probably had a good reason for that frenzy …

57 Glitzy, informally : GLAM

Our word “glitz”, meaning “showiness”, is the Yiddish word for “glitter”.

61 Nonmedical org. that uses X-rays : TSA

The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) is the agency that employs the good folks who check passengers and baggage at airports.

65 Inits. in biotech : GMO

A genetically modified organism (GMO) is one with genetic material that has been altered by genetic engineering. One might argue that the oldest form of genetic engineering is selective breeding, the use of animals or plants with desired traits for the creation of the next generation.

68 Legal contract phrase : IN RE

The term “in re” is Latin, and is derived from “in” (in) and “res” (thing, matter). “In re” literally means “in the matter”, and is used to mean “in regard to” or “in the matter of”.

72 Pain relief pill : ALEVE

“Aleve” is a brand name used for the anti-inflammatory drug Naproxen sodium.

75 Placeholder inits. : TBD

To be determined (TBD)

78 Long-running soap opera that debuted in 1963 [ant, gorilla, sheep] : GENERAL HOSPITAL

The daytime soap opera “General Hospital” is the longest-running such drama still in production in the US, and is the second-longest running soap in the world. The first episode of “General Hospital” aired on April 1, 1963. The UK soap “Coronation Street” has been on TV since 9 December 1960.

83 One might be accessed by a QR code, nowadays : MENU

A QR Code (for “Quick Response Code”) is a two-dimensional barcode that is favored over UPC barcodes as it can read more quickly and can store much more information. The QR Code comprises black squares within a square grid on a white background.

85 Guard seen around a castle : MOAT

A moat is a protective trench that surrounds a castle, say, or an exhibit in a zoo. A moat may or may not be filled with water.

86 401(k) alternative, in brief : IRA

A 401(k) account resembles an IRA in that contributions can be made from a paycheck prior to the deduction of income taxes. A 401(k) differs from an IRA in that it is an employer-sponsored plan, with payments taken by the employer directly from an employee’s paycheck. Additionally, contributions can be fully or partially matched by an employer.

91 London landmark [beetle, hog, rat] : GLOBE THEATRE

The Globe Theatre was built in London in 1599, and was used mainly for staging works by William Shakespeare and his theater company called the Lord Chamberlain’s Men. The theater was destroyed by fire in 1613. A second Globe was built on the site a year later, and it remained open until 1642. The original theater was reconstructed on a nearby site by the Thames and opened in 1997. I had the privilege of seeing a fabulous performance of “As You Like It” in Shakespeare’s Globe (as the new theater is called) about a decade ago. Seeing a play in that remarkable theater is tremendous entertainment, much recommended for anyone visiting London.

95 ___ song : SIREN

In Greek mythology, the Sirens were seductive bird-women who lured men to their deaths with their song. When Odysseus sailed close to the island home of the Sirens he wanted to hear their voices, but in safety. He had his men plug their ears with beeswax and then ordered them to tie him to the mast and not to free him until they were safe. On hearing their song Odysseus begged to be let loose, but the sailors just tightened his bonds and the whole crew sailed away unharmed. We sometimes use the term “siren” today to describe a seductively charming woman.

98 Bridge that’s painted International Orange [dog, eel, gnat] : GOLDEN GATE

The Golden Gate is the opening of San Francisco Bay into the Pacific Ocean. The bridge that spans the Golden Gate is called the Golden Gate “Bridge”, and was opened in 1937. At that time it was the longest suspension bridge in the world. One of the most eerie things about the Golden Gate Bridge is that is the second most popular place in the whole world to commit suicide (after the Nanjing Yangtze River Bridge). Steps have been taken to reduce the number of suicides, including suicide hotline telephones placed along the walkway, but still there is one suicide every two weeks on average throughout the year. There are plans to place a purpose-built net below the bridge as a deterrent, at a cost of tens of millions of dollars.

101 Devilish look? : GOATEE

A goatee is a beard formed by hair on a man’s chin. The name probably comes from the tuft of hair seen on an adult goat.

110 Actress Perlman : RHEA

Rhea Perlman’s most famous role has to be Carla Tortelli, the irascible waitress in the long-running sitcom “Cheers”. Perlman is also a successful children’s author, and has published a series of six books called “Otto Undercover”. She married Hollywood actor Danny DeVito in 1982.

112 Wave to one’s math professor? : SINE

A sine wave is a mathematical function that describes a simple, smooth, repetitive oscillation. The sine wave is found right throughout the natural world. Ocean waves, light waves and sound waves all have a sine wave pattern.

114 Part of U.C.L.A. : LOS

The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) gets more applications from potential students than any other university in the country. UCLA also has more students enrolled than any other university in the state.

116 Fire tablet competitor : IPAD

Amazon’s Kindle line of e-book readers was introduced in 2007. The name “kindle” was chosen to evoke images of “lighting a fire” through reading and intellectual stimulation. I bought myself a Kindle Fire HD several years ago. I started reading e-books for the first time in my life, as well as enjoying other computing options available with the tablet device …

117 One of the Williamses : SERENA

Serena Williams is the younger of the two Williams sisters playing professional tennis. Serena has won more prize money in her career than any other female athlete.

Down

2 Magic trick starter : ABRA-

The incantation “abracadabra” has a long history. It was used as far back as the 2nd century AD in ancient Rome when the word was prescribed by a physician to be worn on an amulet to help his emperor recover from disease. “Abracadabra” is Aramaic, and roughly translates as “I will create as I speak”.

5 Lime and soda, e.g. : ALKALIS

The “opposite” of an acid is a base. Acids turn litmus paper red, and bases turn it blue. Acids and bases react with each other to form salts. An important subset of the chemicals called bases are alkalis, hydroxides of the alkali metals and of ammonium. The term “alkali” is sometimes used interchangeably with “base”, especially if that base is readily soluble in water.

Lime is a mineral comprising mainly calcium oxide and/or calcium hydroxide. Calcium oxide is known as quicklime, and calcium hydroxide as slaked lime.

Soda lime is a mixture of chemicals that is commonly used to remove carbon dioxide from air that has to be rebreathed. The mixture comprises sodium hydroxide (NaOH) and calcium oxide (CaO).

9 Bit of tomfoolery : ESCAPADE

In Middle English, in the mid-14th century, a mentally deficient man might be referred to as a “Thom Foole”. We retain the old pejorative term in our contemporary word “tomfoolery” meaning “clowning around”.

10 With 47-Down, “That’s all” follower : … SHE …
[47D See 10-Down : … WROTE]

No one seems to be very certain of the origin of “that’s all she wrote”, meaning “there’s nothing more to be said”. One popular story is that it stems from the unfortunate “Dear John” letters that some soldiers received during WWII.

13 Site to flick through flicks : IMDB

The Internet Movie Database (IMDb) website was launched in 1990, and is now owned by Amazon.com. It’s a great site for answering questions one has about movies and actors.

15 Fashionable spots : POLKA DOTS

A polka dot pattern is one featuring an array of filled circles, usually of the same size and color. There doesn’t seem to be any connection between the name of the pattern and the polka dance, other than both the dance and the pattern gaining popularity around the same time, in the late nineteenth century.

21 ‘N Sync member who later became a gay rights activist : LANCE BASS

Lance Bass sang with the very successful boy band NSYNC. As luck would have it, Bass’s voice type is a bass.

28 “SmackDown” org. : WWE

World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) is a company promoting professional wrestling as a form of entertainment.

32 Maker of Chromebooks : ACER

A netbook is in effect a stripped-down laptop. It is a small machine without a hard drive that is intended for use with an Internet connection. Netbooks were largely pushed out of the market by tablet computers. Google’s Chromebooks have really taken over the netbook concept, and have proved to be very successful in recent years. I love my Chromebooks …

34 Warhol’s “Marilyn Diptych,” e.g. : POP ART

The “Marilyn Diptych” is a 1962 work by pop artist Andy Warhol. It features 50 images of actress Marilyn Monroe taken from a publicity photograph used to market the 1953 thriller film “Niagara”. Warhol created the painting by silkscreening 25 of the images in color on one side of the canvas, and 25 of the images in balck and white on the other side. The color and black-and-white images are said to represent Monroe’s life and death. Warhol created the “Marilyn Diptych” just weeks after the actress died from a barbiturate overdose.

36 Target of a modern scan : RETINA

The retina is the tissue that lines the inside of the eye, and is the tissue that is light-sensitive. There are (mainly) two types of cells in the retina that are sensitive to light, namely rods and cones. Rods are cells that best function in very dim light and only provide black-and-white vision. Cones on the other hand function in brighter light and can perceive color.

39 Medical plan inits. : HMO

Health Maintenance Organization (HMO)

40 Sapa ___ (ancient emperor’s title) : INCA

“Sapa Inca” was the name given to the ruler of the Kingdom of Cusco and then the Emperor of the Inca Empire. The last in the Sapa Inca line was Atahualpa, who was executed by the Spanish conquistador Francisco Pizarro.

41 Common cause of some impulsive behavior, in brief : ADHD

The “official” name for the condition we sometimes still refer to as “attention deficit disorder” (ADD) is “attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder” (ADHD).

48 Sacred hieroglyph : ANKH

The ankh was the ancient Egyptian hieroglyphic character for “eternal life”. The ankh wasn’t just used in inscriptions but was often fashioned into amulets and as surrounds for mirrors (perhaps symbolizing a view into another world). The ankh is also known as “the key of the Nile” and “crux ansata” (Latin for “cross with a handle”).

52 Second caliph of Sunni Islam : UMAR

“Caliph” is an Arabic word meaning “successor”. In the Islamic tradition, a caliph is a leader who is deemed to be a successor of Muhammad.

The Islamic sects of Sunni and Shia Muslims differ in the belief of who should have taken over leadership of the Muslim faithful after the death of the Prophet Muhammad. Followers of the Sunni tradition agree with the decision that the Prophet Muhammad’s confidante Abu Bakr was the right choice to become the first Caliph of the Islamic nation. Followers of the Shia tradition believe that leadership should have stayed within the Prophet Muhammad’s own family, and favored the Prophet’s son-in-law Ali.

56 Doubleday who is miscredited with inventing baseball : ABNER

Abner Doubleday was a general in the Union Army during the Civil War. Some say that Doubleday fired the first shot in defense of Fort Sumter in the first battle of the war. After the Civil War, while stationed in San Francisco, Doubleday took out a patent for the cable car system that still runs in the city. Claims have been made that Doubleday also invented baseball, with the first game being played in Elihu Phinney’s cow pasture in Cooperstown, New York.

59 Auctioneer’s aid : GAVEL

The small hammer that one raps on a table or desk to call a meeting to order, or perhaps to signify a sale at an auction, is called a gavel. The term “gavel” is actually American English, and is a word that emerged in the early 19th century.

63 One might develop consciousness in a sci-fi story : ROBOT

Science fiction author Isaac Asimov wrote a marvelous collection of short stories titled “I, Robot” that were first published together in 1950. In the stories, he makes repeated reference to the Three Laws of Robotics, which he introduced in the story “Runaround”, first published in 1942. The three laws are:

  1. A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm.
  2. A robot must obey the orders given it by human beings, except where such orders would conflict with the First Law.
  3. A robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Law.

64 Nightspot in a Manilow hit, in brief : COPA

The Copacabana of the 1978 Barry Manilow song is the Copacabana nightclub in New York City (which is also the subject of the Frank Sinatra song “Meet Me at the Copa”). The Copa opened in 1940 and is still going today, although it is struggling. The club had to move due to impending construction and is now “sharing” a location with the Columbus 72 nightclub.

Her name was Lola, she was a showgirl
With yellow feathers in her hair and a dress cut down to there
She would merengue and do the cha-cha
And while she tried to be a star
Tony always tended bar
Across the crowded floor, they worked from 8 ’til 4
They were young and they had each other
Who could ask for more?

65 What you can rarely do at a red light : GO LEFT

The first traffic lights date back to 1868 when they were installed outside the Houses of Parliament in London. They resembled the signals already in use for trains, with semaphore arms and red and green gas lamps for nighttime use. That first system was operated manually, by a policeman at the base. Sadly, one police officer was killed just one year after the light’s installation, when the gas system exploded.

66 Kvetch : MOANER

The first traffic lights date back to 1868 when they were installed outside the Houses of Parliament in London. They resembled the signals already in use for trains, with semaphore arms and red and green gas lamps for nighttime use. That first system was operated manually, by a policeman at the base. Sadly, one police officer was killed just one year after the light’s installation, when the gas system exploded.

73 Genesis matriarch : LEAH

According to the Bible, Leah was one of the two wives of Jacob, the other being Leah’s sister Rachel. Jacob’s intention had been to marry Rachel, but Leah and Rachel’s father “switched” his daughters and provided Leah as the veiled bride. Jacob married Rachel a week later, and lived with the two wives concurrently.

74 Matriculation group : ENROLLEES

The literal meaning of “matriculate” is “to be added to a list”, and it comes from the Latin word “matrix”, meaning “list”. Matriculate has been used to describe the enrollment of a student in a college since the late 1500s.

87 Gray-brown flycatchers : PHOEBES

The phoebe is a small, insect-eating bird that is native to North and South America.

91 Test for future Ph.D.s : GRE

Passing the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) is usually a requirement for entry into graduate school here in the US.

96 Agenda topics : ITEMS

“Agenda” is a Latin word that translates as “things to be done”, coming from the verb “agere” meaning “to do”.

100 Fasten with a belt : GIRD

The phrase “gird your loins” dates back to ancient Rome. The expression describes the action of lifting “one’s skirts” and tying them between the legs to allow more freedom of movement before going into battle. Nowadays, “gird your loins” (or sometimes just “gird yourself”) is a metaphor for “prepare yourself for the worst”.

102 Chaplin of “Game of Thrones” : OONA

Oona Chaplin is an actress from Madrid in Spain. Chaplin is getting a lot of airtime these days as she plays Talisa Maegyr on HBO’s hit fantasy series “Game of Thrones”. Oona is the granddaughter of Charlie Chaplin, and is named for her maternal grandmother Oona O’Neill, the daughter of playwright Eugene O’Neill.

104 Summit of Mount Purgatory, in Dante’s “Divine Comedy” : EDEN

Dante Alighieri’s “Divine Comedy” is an epic poem dating back to the 14th century. The first part of that epic is “Inferno”, which is the Italian word for “Hell”. In the poem, Dante is led on a journey by the poet Virgil, starting at the gates of Hell on which are written the famous words “Abandon all hope, ye who enter here”.

105 Mount in Greek myth : OSSA

Mount Ossa in Greece is located between Mount Pelion in the south, and the famed Mount Olympus in the north. Mount Ossa is also known as Kissavos.

108 Show with a Miami spinoff : CSI

I quite enjoy the “CSI” franchise of television shows, all except “CSI: Miami”. I find the character played by David Caruso to be extremely annoying. “CSI: Miami” was cancelled in 2012. No loss …

Complete List of Clues/Answers

Across

1 Gaelic garment : TARTAN
7 Creatures described as catarrhine, from the Latin for “downward-nosed” : APES
11 Like Antarctica : ARID
15 Spare part? : PIN
18 Granada grandpa : ABUELO
19 Cut deeply : GASH
20 “Ugh, ___ people!” : SOME
21 Go down, in a way : LOSE
22 Get a party started? [bee, hare, tick] : BREAK THE ICE
24 Morning TV host Kotb : HODA
25 “Potent Potables for $1,000, ___” (onetime TV request) : ALEX
26 Crestfallen : SAD
27 Actress Seyfried of “The Dropout” : AMANDA
28 Buzzkill [bat, elk, newt] : WET BLANKET
30 Bias : SLANT
31 Subjects of some promotions : PAWNS
33 Natural source of glitter : MICA
34 A little of a lot? [carp, pig, snake] : PARKING SPACE
38 TV, newspapers, streaming services, etc. : THE MEDIA
42 How a video game might be played by beginners : ON EASY
43 Ending with orange : -ADE
44 Best-selling author Hoag : TAMI
45 Strong connection : BOND
46 Pennsylvania school, for short : PITT
47 Locale of many vines [cat, elephant, worm] : WATERMELON PATCH
51 Opposite of une adversaire : AMIE
52 Fancy flower holders : URNS
53 Life preserver? : ARK
54 Al-___, family of Syrian leaders : ASSAD
55 Goes wild : RUNS AMOK
57 Glitzy, informally : GLAM
59 Prankster’s offerings : GAGS
61 Nonmedical org. that uses X-rays : TSA
62 Something you might step on by the shower [cobra, moth, seal] : BATHROOM SCALE
65 Inits. in biotech : GMO
68 Legal contract phrase : IN RE
69 “My bad!” : OOPS!
70 Make dry, as salmon : OVERCOOK
72 Pain relief pill : ALEVE
75 Placeholder inits. : TBD
76 3 ft. x 5 ft., e.g. : SPEC
77 “So it goes” : ALAS
78 Long-running soap opera that debuted in 1963 [ant, gorilla, sheep] : GENERAL HOSPITAL
83 One might be accessed by a QR code, nowadays : MENU
84 Warrant : EARN
85 Guard seen around a castle : MOAT
86 401(k) alternative, in brief : IRA
87 Lean toward : PREFER
89 Certain sports tiebreaker : SHOOT-OUT
91 London landmark [beetle, hog, rat] : GLOBE THEATRE
94 Place : LIEU
95 ___ song : SIREN
97 Overnight perch : ROOST
98 Bridge that’s painted International Orange [dog, eel, gnat] : GOLDEN GATE
101 Devilish look? : GOATEE
103 Boardroom V.I.P. : CEO
106 Drink with a spoon-straw : ICEE
107 Floor square : TILE
108 Mixes animal species … as eight answers in this puzzle do? : CROSSBREEDS
110 Actress Perlman : RHEA
111 In good condition : TRIM
112 Wave to one’s math professor? : SINE
113 Gets around : EVADES
114 Part of U.C.L.A. : LOS
115 Poetic tributes : ODES
116 Fire tablet competitor : IPAD
117 One of the Williamses : SERENA

Down

1 Things seen in a window : TABS
2 Magic trick starter : ABRA-
3 Felt bad about : RUED
4 Word with garden or party : TEA
5 Lime and soda, e.g. : ALKALIS
6 A handful : NOT MANY
7 Pros with negotiations : AGENTS
8 Was worthwhile, with “off” : PAID …
9 Bit of tomfoolery : ESCAPADE
10 With 47-Down, “That’s all” follower : … SHE …
11 Like a vampire’s face, stereotypically : ASHEN
12 Rhizome, to a botanist : ROOTSTALK
13 Site to flick through flicks : IMDB
14 Request for a hand : DEAL ME IN
15 Fashionable spots : POLKA DOTS
16 “Oh, gotcha” : I SEE
17 Immediately following : NEXT
21 ‘N Sync member who later became a gay rights activist : LANCE BASS
23 Spend time together, in slang : HANG
28 “SmackDown” org. : WWE
29 Goal : AIM
30 Pair in the Winter Olympics : SKATES
32 Maker of Chromebooks : ACER
34 Warhol’s “Marilyn Diptych,” e.g. : POP ART
35 Antagonism : ANIMUS
36 Target of a modern scan : RETINA
37 Light touches : PATS
39 Medical plan inits. : HMO
40 Sapa ___ (ancient emperor’s title) : INCA
41 Common cause of some impulsive behavior, in brief : ADHD
44 Details to be negotiated : TERMS
47 See 10-Down : … WROTE
48 Sacred hieroglyph : ANKH
49 Sirs’ counterparts : MA’AMS
50 “Beep!” source : PAGER
52 Second caliph of Sunni Islam : UMAR
56 Doubleday who is miscredited with inventing baseball : ABNER
57 Merchant’s stock : GOODS
58 Cut (off) : LOP
59 Auctioneer’s aid : GAVEL
60 Name that’s a letter off from 25-Across : ALEC
63 One might develop consciousness in a sci-fi story : ROBOT
64 Nightspot in a Manilow hit, in brief : COPA
65 What you can rarely do at a red light : GO LEFT
66 Kvetch : MOANER
67 “Yeah, whatever you say” : OK, SURE
68 “Beats me” : I’VE NO IDEA
71 Tried to fight : CAME AT
72 A long, long time : AGES
73 Genesis matriarch : LEAH
74 Matriculation group : ENROLLEES
75 “No! Not true!” : THAT’S A LIE
76 Wild guess : STAB
79 End up being : AMOUNT TO
80 ___ Malnati’s, Chicago-style pizza chain : LOU
81 Rug thickness : PILE
82 Strong hold : IRON GRIP
87 Gray-brown flycatchers : PHOEBES
88 Book : RESERVE
90 Summer top : TEE
91 Test for future Ph.D.s : GRE
92 Wiped out : ERASED
93 Sippy cup users : TOTS
96 Agenda topics : ITEMS
98 Word with power, talk or band : GIRL …
99 Number of planetas en el sistema solar : OCHO
100 Fasten with a belt : GIRD
102 Chaplin of “Game of Thrones” : OONA
103 Surrender : CEDE
104 Summit of Mount Purgatory, in Dante’s “Divine Comedy” : EDEN
105 Mount in Greek myth : OSSA
108 Show with a Miami spinoff : CSI
109 Symbol for an audio device : EAR