Theme: Cheers! - A take on how you take your brewski.
17A. Window material : PANE GLASS
28A. "The Autobiography of Alice B. Toklas" author : GERTRUDE STEIN
47A. One coming in from the bullpen : RELIEF PITCHER
64A. Explosive situation : POWDER KEG
71A. Brew found in increasing quantities in the ends of 17-, 28-, 47- and 64-Across : BEER
Argyle here...under the table. I don't know this constructor but I like him already. Great debut but forgot the ultimate beer container. "NORM!!"
Across:
1. Story : TALE
5. Gauge on a dash : TACH. Shortened tachometer.
9. Lowest opera voice : BASSO. With just *S*SO in place, I briefly thought FATSO.
14. Landed on the runway : ALIT
15. Sunburn soother : ALOE
16. Starting squad : A TEAM
19. Beauty at the ball : BELLE
20. French friend : AMI
21. Rapture : ECSTASY
23. Marshland : FEN
24. Legendary skater Henie : SONJA. Three-time Ladies' Singles Olympic Champion and ten-time World Champion.
26. "If it only could be" : "I WISH..."
34. Indian or Chinese, e.g. : ASIAN
35. Nametag greeting : HELLO
36. Harbinger : SIGN
39. Hindu guru : SWAMI
42. Imitated : APED
43. Images on a desktop : ICONS
45. Bride's beloved : GROOM
51. Thigh bone : FEMUR
52. Feel around in the dark : GROPE
55. N.C. State's conference : ACC. (Atlantic Coast Conference)
57. Early metalworking period : IRON AGE
61. Hush-hush fed. org. : CIA. Shh, that's all I can tell you.
62. Centrally managed store group : CHAIN. That's why the IGA is an alliance; no central management.
66. Metamorphosis stage : LARVA. Metamorphosis - a profound change in form from one stage to the next.
67. Scat legend Fitzgerald : ELLA
68. "__ upon a time ..." : ONCE
69. Speak : UTTER
70. Optimistic : ROSY
Down:
1. Spanish appetizers : TAPAS
2. Texas mission : ALAMO
3. Every cloud's silver feature? : LINING
4. Somme summer : ÉTÉ. French summer.
5. Soft mineral : TALC
6. "Ah, me!" : "ALAS!"
7. What you pay : COST
8. Half a guy-gal argument : HE SAID. Other half, SHE SAID.
9. Infantile : BABYISH. The above argument, often.
10. Had dinner : ATE
11. "For Dummies" bookstore section : SELF-HELP
12. Reduced-price event : SALE
13. Harbinger : OMEN
18. Drive and reverse : GEARS
22. Stockholm's land: Abbr. : SWE. (Sweden)
25. Lady in the 1965 sitcom pilot episode "The Lady in the Bottle" : JEANNIE
27. Pot for clams : STEAMER
29. "__ better to have loved ...": Tennyson : 'TIS
30. How half-shell clams are eaten : RAW
31. Eel, at sushi bars : UNAGI
32. Land in la mer : ÎLE
33. Silent agreement : NOD
36. Knight's title : SIR
37. Cubes in a bucket : ICE
38. Wheels on the links : GOLF CART
40. Mohawk-sporting actor : MR. T
41. Biennial games gp. : IOC. (International Olympic Committee)
44. Advanced college course : SEMINAR
46. "Golly" : "OH GEE"
48. Cat's coat : FUR and on your coat, too.
49. Like capitalized nouns : PROPER
50. Legendary football coach Knute : ROCKNE. Knute Rockne (1888 – 1931) was a football player and coach, both at the University of Notre Dame.
53. Cake serving : PIECE
54. Like the idiomatic beaver : EAGER
55. Civil rights org. : ACLU. (American Civil Liberties Union)
56. Online dialogue : CHAT
58. __ contendere: court plea : NOLO. Doesn't admit guilt but doesn't fight it either.
59. Leatherworking tools : AWLS
60. Down Under greeting : G'DAY
63. "__ got it!" : I'VE
65. Director Reiner : ROB
Argyle
