Theme: OOHS (67. Cries of delight, and what each of the answers to the starred clues literally are?)
17. *"Drinks are on the house!": FREE BOOZE.
25. *"Just what I wanted to hear!": GREAT NEWS.
36. *"Eyes like Paul Newman!": BABY BLUES.
51. *"Check out those Outback hoppers!": KANGAROOS.
60. *"There's the star of 'Top Gun'!": TOM CRUISE.
Boomer here.
Make a CHOOSE -You'll never LOSE. I usually stop for a SNOOZE after I watch the NEWS.
Happy November one and all. Of course Thanksgiving is on the calendar and coming soon.
Across:
5. Taj Mahal city: AGRA. Farming business is AGRI.
9. Burdened (with): LADEN. Potatoes LADEN with turkey gravy.
14. Horn-shaped flower: LILY.
15. "Get a __ of this!": LOAD.
16. Large stadium: ARENA. They keep getting bigger and bigger. And the NFL football seems to be sold out every game.
19. A- or B+: GRADE. Sometimes mine was a 75.
20. "Beauty and the Beast" heroine: BELLE.
21. Out of style: OLD. That's me at 75.
23. Big fuss: ADO.
24. Outdoor dining area: PATIO. We had a deck, but we never eat out there.
28. Autotrader offering: USED CAR. Our Santa Fe turned two years old last month.
30. Refrigerator art holder: MAGNET.
31. Place for pillow talk: BED.
32. __ and carrots: PEAS. Not my favorite.
35. Toy bear: TEDDY. Mr. Roosevelt.
39. Fall-blooming plant: ASTER.
42. Glasgow resident: SCOT.
43. To the __ degree: NTH.
46. Cheap cigar: STOGIE. I cannot remember smoking a cigar. I think I received one when someone had a baby,
48. Fist pump or fist bump: GESTURE. Fist bumps are frequent in bowling.
54. Actor Capaldi: PETER. Pumpkin eater. Many of Halloween pumpkins were fed to animals.
55. Genetic letters: RNA. Some kind of acid that I can't spell.
56. NATO HQ locale: EUR.
57. Mom's sisters: AUNTS. I had 6 nice ladies.
58. Unblinking look: STARE.
63. Racing sleds: LUGES. Popular when the snow falls here.
64. Pesky insect: GNAT.
65. Really stink: REEK. Take the garbage out every week.
66. Opinion pieces: OP-EDS. I seldom read them. Just someone else's opinion.
68. Gaelic language: ERSE.
Down:
2. Post for military pilots: AIRBASE. We had a huge one at Fort Campbell, KY.
3. Rained ice: SLEETED. Nope, we get the real snow - coming soon to a state near you.
4. Body part with lashes: EYELID.
5. __ vera: ALOE. Never used it.
6. Sticky substance: GOO. Never used this either.
7. Stubble remover: RAZOR. I've used this now and then.
8. "Someone Like You" singer: ADELE. Not ah-dell, but uh-dale.
9. Internet connectivity annoyance: LAG.
10. Sets up, as flowers in a vase: ARRANGES. I could not believe when I was told how much funeral flowers cost!!
11. Like many paths in a maze: DEAD END.
12. Funded on an ongoing basis: ENDOWED. Like Social Security - going up next year.
13. "Sorry, laddie": NAE.
18. Voting alliance: BLOC.
22. Flood-control structure: DAM. We have a huge one on the Mississippi. That's where we get our electricity
24. Tavern: PUB. There is one in your town.
25. "__ Anatomy": Ellen Pompeo series: GREY'S.
26. London art gallery: TATE.
27. Spot that's rarely spotless: STY. A home for your pigs.
29. PD alert: APB. All Points Bulletin
33. Kindergarten letters: ABC. A TV station as well.
34. Plods (through): SLOGS.
36. Defied, as belief: BEGGARED. ??
37. Opera solo: ARIA.
38. Beehive State native: UTE.
39. "__ me no questions ... ": ASK. I'll tell you no lies.
40. Fledgling company: STARTUP.
41. Shipping weight allowance: TONNAGE. I think the US raised the limit on highways.
43. Like Almond Joy, compared to Mounds: NUTTIER. Than a fruitcake.
44. Long locks of hair: TRESSES.
45. That girl: HER.
47. "... __ he drove out of sight": ERE. And all a good night.
49. San Antonio NBAer: SPUR. Also a place to buy gas.
50. Academic security: TENURE.
52. Expenditure: OUTGO. Everything is UP. Thanks to inflation.
53. Maine college town: ORONO. Also a Minnesota city
57. Plays a part: ACTS.
58. __-mo video: SLO.
59. Sinuous letter: ESS.
61. __-jongg: MAH. Never played it.
62. Scratch (out), as a living: EKE. Yikes!
Boomer