Friday's New York Times crossword puzzle solved: October 5, 2018

My time: 10:31, very speedy!

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Robyn Weintraub is responsible for this themeless Friday.  AND WE'RE OFF, with a fun meta clue to start ("exclamation appropriate for 1 Across").  I didn't SET A RECORD today, but I'm proud of my effort.   Great fill, including the modern and unusual entries like OPEN-SOURCE, FLASH MOB, PERIWINKLE, MIND MELD, and COLD ONE ("brewski").

"Place for a shrine" is APSE, like a recessed niche in architecture.  Usually they have domed roofs or have an archway entrance.  Sometimes I forget that this isn't the nave, or the central part of a church, rectangular with aisles.

For "perfumery measure" I put *GRAMS but it's DRAMS.  A dram in perfumery, unlike in the alcohol business, is about 1/8 of an ounce.

The cheese Pecorino Romano, if genuine, comes from sheep, specifically a EWE.

Roger TANEY (pronounced Tawny) was the fifth Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, 1836 to 1864. He delivered the majority opinion in the Dred Scott v. Sandford case, that ruled, among other things, that African Americans could not be considered citizens, whether free or slave.  The reasoning was that since they were considered inferior at the time the United States Constitution was drafted, they could not ex post facto be granted citizenship.

The ankle bone is called the talus, part of the tarsus group which has appeared a few times.  The plural of talus is TALI.

"Family Ties" mom ELYSE Keaton last appeared on March 27.

I learned that Verizon acquired AOL in 2015 on April 12.

Clever clues: "Series finale" is ET AL.  "You might use it in dressing" is STALE BREAD.  "Props for a Broadway play?" is TONY.   "VIP section?" is PERSON --- that word is a section of the abbreviation.  "King maker" is SERTA --- now that's a funny one.  "Military leader known for being chicken?" is GENERAL TSO. "Honey bunch?" is WORKER BEES.  "One who's got game... but shouldn't" is POACHER.  "Like a kid in a candy store, e.g." is CLICHE.

This was a terrific puzzle.  I loved the funny clues and the fresh fill.  There was nothing in it to ENRAGE the solver, even a SCHMO like me.