| Literature Nobelist Morrison |
TONI |
| Many a cocktail mixer |
SODA |
| Most abundant element in Earth's crust |
OXYGEN |
| MSNBC competitor |
CNN |
| Necklace that can be made with kukui nuts |
LEI |
| Old-fashioned message carriers |
PIGEONS |
| Olympian's sword |
EPEE |
| One might take off a few marks |
ERASER |
| Ones potentially contacted in 'first contact' |
ALIENS |
| Petri dish filler |
AGAR |
| Prefix with liberal or conservative |
NEO |
| Prevailed |
WON |
| Really prosper |
HITITBIG |
| Reddish-purple salad ingredient |
BEET |
| Sch. system with campuses in Buffalo and Binghamton |
SUNY |
| Scruff of the neck |
NAPE |
| Shakespeare villain who says 'I am not what I am' |
IAGO |
| Skunk's defense |
ODOR |
| Slim and trim |
LEAN |
| Small town |
BURG |
| Some lab liquids |
SERA |
| South Asian wrap |
SARONG |
| Spanish for 'foolish' |
TONTO |
| Spiced tea |
CHAI |
| Steffi with seven Wimbledon titles |
GRAF |
| Story of one's life? |
OBIT |
| Temp job? |
METEOROLOGIST |
| They're long for an underdog |
ODDS |
| Union job? |
WEDDINGPLANNER |
| Vowel sound at the end of 15- and 26-Across |
LONGO |
| Watery or papery |
THIN |
| What may be heard in a herd |
MOOING |
| Wonkish sort |
NERD |
| Works in a theater |
PLAYS |
| Yiddish 'Yikes!' |
OYVEY |
| ___ Man, one of the Avengers |
IRON |
| ___/her pronouns |
SHE |