The New York Times Crossword in Gothic: 04.15.12 — R and R

Romulus, Remus and Their Nursemaid by Jacques Laurent Agasse

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Sunday, April 15, 2012

DIAGRAMLESS, Puzzle by Paula Gamache / Edited by Will Shortz

R AND R (50A. Time off … ), ROUND AND ROUND, RACK AND RUIN, ROMULUS AND REMUS, RANT AND RAVE, ROUGH AND READY constitute the interrelated group of this Sunday diagramless.

Across, beginning in the fourth square — 1. Fair, EXPO; 5. Like toned abs, TAUT; 9. Suffix with million or billion, AIRE; 10. Shrek or Princess Fiona, OGRE; 11. Refrain syllable, TRA; 14. In circular fashion, ROUND AND ROUND; 19. Roadside bomb, for short, IED; 20. Sun-dried brick, ADOBE; 21. Scintillas, IOTAS; 22. Alarm setter’s toggle, AMPM; 23. Home of Rousseau’s “The Sleeping Gypsy”, MOMA; 24. Cpl.’s inferior, PVT; 25. Virgo follower, LIBRA; 26. They play for pay, PROS; 27. Complete destruction, RACK AND RUIN; 31. Community values, ETHOS; 34. Hooded jackets, ANORAKS; 35. Ad HOC; 36. Dice, e.g., CHOP; 37. GPS display: Abbr., RTE; 38. Sons of Mars, ROMULUS AND REMUS; 43. ORA pro nobis; 44. Bit of rain, DROP; 45. Bit with an electrical charge, ION; 46. French chanteuse Mireille, MATHIEU; 48. Neighbor of a Kazakh, UZBEK; 50. Complain vociferously, RANT AND RAVE; 52. Chair piece, SLAT; 56. Broadway backer, ANGEL; 57. Java, MUD; 58. Roll on a runway, TAXI; 59. December air, NOEL; 60. Toasting word, SKOAL; 63. Prepared to do battle, ARMED; 64. TiVo, for one, DVR; 65. Crude but effective, ROUGH AND READY; 58. Flat fish, RAY; 69. Fling, HURL; 70. Explore the Grand Canyon, say, HIKE; 71. Shoppe description, OLDE; 7. For fear that, LEST.

Down — 1. Hardcore supporters, FAN BASE; 2. Lieutenant, AIDE; 3. Public radio’s Glass, IRA; 4. Cartoon canine, REN; 5. Warning from a driver, TOOT; 9. Water, in Oaxaca, AGUA; 7. Cemetery vessels, URNS; 8. Sen. Kennedy, TED; 11. Faraway place, figuratively, TIMBUKTU; 12. Musical echoes, REPRISES; 13. Saatchi & Saatchi exec, say, ADMAN; 14. Part of a skate park, RAMP; 15. Sign of rot, ODOR; 16. Man of Milano, UOMO; 17. High-maintenance stars, DIVAS; 18. Drilling org., ROTC; 22. Military branch with wings?, AIR ARM; 24. Obtained, PROCURED; 25. President, e.g.: Abbr., LDR; 28. “Blazing Saddles” co-star Madeline KAHN; 29. Coated, in a way, as metal, ANODIZED; 30. “Don’t mention it”, NO PROB; 32. When Thanksgiving falls: Abbr., THU; 33. Constrain, HOLD IN; 36. Spending limit, CAP; 38. Bond girl Tatiana ROMANOVA; 39. Greenhouse for citrus fruit, ORANGERY; 40. Barbie owner, MATTEL; 41. Lip-puckering, SOUR; 42. Dallas-to-Memphis dir., ENE; 47. Henry, to Shakespeare, HAL; 48. Soft palate appendage, UVULA; 49. Washington lobbyists’ location, K STREET; 50. Time off … or a hint to this puzzle’s theme, R AND R; 51. Asian household helper, AMAH; 53. Tibetan monk, LAMA; 54. Given the boot, AXED; 55. Straighten (up), TIDY; 60. Heart’s partner, SOUL; 61. Many a northern Iraqi, KURD; 62. Check out, in a way, OGLE; 63. Torah holders, ARKS; 65. Pi’s follower, RHO; 66. Kings’ org., NHL; 67. Check out, so to speak, DIE.

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