Monday, September 15, 2008

Title: Totally Slick, It
Author: Ogden Porter (Peter Gordon)
Theme: Rhymes with "icket"

• 20a: Character in "Pinocchio" (JIMINY CRICKET).


• 37a: Unlikely source of wealth (LOTTERY TICKET).


• 52a: Pseudonymous author of "A Series of Unfortunate Events" (LEMONY SNICKET).

A straightforward rhyming scheme today, which is standard Monday fare. Only three theme entries here, but they're all pretty snazzy.

Sunny Spots:

• 10d: 1975 #1 hit for the Bee Gees (JIVE TALKIN'). A great reminder of how terrible music was during the mid-70s.


• 3d: "Bein' Green" singer (KERMIT). Arguably the best Muppet song ever. So simple; so powerful. Love it.




• 29d: Commuting a sentence, e.g. (ACT OF MERCY). Nice fill.

Sundries:

• 1a: Sommer of "Deadlier Than the Male" (ELKE). Isn't it funny how things tie together sometimes. Here's Elke with the above-mentioned Kermit the Frog.


• 5a: ___ and Gomorrah (SODOM).


• 10a: Photo file format (JPEG).



• 14a: Tavern on "The Simpsons" (MOES).


• 18a: Tiger Beat's target audience (TEENS).


• 19a: Spot checkers? (VETS). Spot as in the dog's name. Very cute.


• 25a: Alamogordo event of July 1945 (A-TEST). It's always a guess whether this is going to be A-TEST, H-TEST, or N-TEST.


• 30a: "The Pirates of ___" (PENZANCE). Classic Gilbert and Sullivan.




• 33a: Challenger astronaut McAuliffe (CHRISTA). I watched this tragedy live on TV. It still ranks among the more horrific experiences in my life.


• 40a: One who might hail a cab? (WINO). Does this mean cab as in cabernet? If so, I'm not sure I get the "hail" part. And either way, all I can really say about this is "Ugh!".



• 41a: Brand of rum (BACARDI).


• 42a: Very quickly (IN A FLASH).


• 59a: Interjection of annoyance (BEANS). I've never actually heard anyone use this in this way, that I can recall.


• 63a: Remarkable thing (LULU). Awww... give me a "To Sir With Love" reference anyday!


• 66a: ___ turn (skiing maneuver) (STEP).


• 1d: Key of Anton Bruckner's Symphony No. 7 (E-MAJOR).


• 6d: Dyson rival (ORECK). Both brands of vacuum cleaner.


• 7d: One who commits a crime, in police slang (DOER).


• 8d: Atlanta arena that hosted the 1988 Democratic National Convention, with "the" (OMNI).



• 30d: Shrink (PSYCH). I'm not 100% sure whether this is a noun or a verb here.


• 37d: Bellybutton buildup (LINT). Ewwww.


• 40d: Xbox alternative (WII).


• 43d: Moon vehicle, for short (LEM).


• 45d: Invite to dinner, say (ASK OUT).


• 46d: Tachometer part (NEEDLE).


• 47d: Really enjoys (EATS UP).


• 49d: "First Look" cable channel (MSNBC).



• 54d: 1994 film directed by Michael Apted (NELL). Not terrifically hard to figure, but it still doesn't feel like a Monday clue to me.


• 58d: Murphy Brown's TV show (FYI).

Suns of Bitches:

• 23a: Giants defensive end Umenyiora (OSI). This seems like a stretch for a Monday, but again, this is a New York-centric newspaper.


• 49a: 1978-2002 Kenyan president Daniel arap ___ (MOI). Am I in a time warp here? I could have sworn it was Monday. Excusez-MOI!


• 22d: Second baseman Matsui (KAZ). Okay, no New York excuse here; this guy plays for the Houston Astros.

Well, the theme was certainly Monday-ish, but many of the clues and fill seemed much more mid-to-late-week to me. Not that the puzzle was that hard overall; it really wasn't. It's just that a few of them kind of surprised me. Still, I liked the puzzle just fine.

Thanks for listening.

- Pete M.