Puzzle 3

I'm here with Tom Gazzola from Portland, OR, who is definitely going to win his state (unopposed), like my classmate Chris Dudley (running for governor there). We are eating wraps at Tony's Famous--it's lunch break. Tom finished 35th last year, which makes him a target of opportunity. He recommends the gingko biloba--it's good for the memory. I recommend grinding up No-Doz and huffing it like Michael Phelps on a bender. (I hope Tom takes my advice.)

Puzzle 3 had absolutely nothing remarkable. I am bereft of comments. It was 19x19, which is a big puzzle (the Sunday NYT is 21x21, for comparison), and I cracked it in 11 minutes.

So one I got without any letters was "1979 Peter Falk comedy," which was... The In-laws. I believe Alan Arkin was in it, but I don't really remember, as I was 14 when the movie came out. I think that's the one where Peter Falk yells "serpentine, serpentine!" as Alan Arkin is avoiding bullets in the desert... or maybe I am having a flashback to recess at Carderock Springs Elementary.

66-down was "activity for those who lack intelligence" (9 letters), starting with ES. 34-down was "Half-___ (skateboarding site)," (4 letters) which I thought was a missed opportunity for a Winter Olympics reference. Poor form, Will.

There is another talent show (reprise of the one in Word Play) on Sunday after puzzle 7. The cruciverbalists are invited to show off their diverse talents; sadly I will be driving to White Plains to pick up Alison and the kids from the airport at that time, so I will miss what promises to be a mashup of Fellini, Greenwich Village vaudeville, and Joseph Conrad ("the horror, the horror").

Answers:
ESPIONAGE
PIPE