Thursday, January 11, 2024 - X marks the spot!

Today's puzzle, by Damon Gulczynski, has an ingenious and well-disguised theme: and thanks to the revealer's position in the bottom-right, we are kept in suspense / befuddlement, until the very end -- just the way we like it!A few clues that didn't make it into the episode but are worthy of note include 26D, Groups of hands, CREWS (brilliant!); 41D, Instrument notary featured in George Michael's 1984 hit, "Careless Whisper", SAX (wait, a SAX can whisper? 😀); some very sage advice, 12D, Good thing to map out before an adventure, ESCSAPEROUTE; and last but not least, 9D, One of three for a grand, PIANOLEG (ha!).A reminder that doing the NYTimes Crossword is a great way to keep those neurons sharp and shiny, so wander over to nytimes.com/crosswords and a subscription/year of merriment can be yours for a very reasonable price. Show note imagery: SO NJA Henie, 10-time world champion skater!We love feedback! Send us a text...Contact Info:We love listener mail! Drop us a line, [email protected], we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there and strike up a conversation!