Friday, December 5, 2008

Title: Weekend Warrior
Author: Karen M. Tracey
Theme: None

This one went fairly smoothly for me, with a couple of exceptions. The last section to fall was the NW, where a misguess of FUJI for 1d: Kodak rival (AGFA) got me off to a rocky start. And the ADASTRA/DERN crossing was a guess. My other problem was in not figuring out who or what a Scarlet Knight was, which made the HOYA/HOLM crossing a tough guess.

Sunny Spots:

• 17a: Blended quaffs (FROZEN DAIQUIRIS). Let's get that booze tag on here right away.



• 33a: Oil Can ___ ('80s Red Sox pitcher) (BOYD). Probably pretty obscure for non-Red Sox fans, but this was a gimme for me. His real name is Dennis.


• 54a: "Deadliest Catch" catch (ALASKAN KING CRAB). Tasty fill.


• 56a: Love all around? (NO SCORE). Very nice clue.

Sundries:

• 15a: Goodly amount (GENEROUS MEASURE). As 15-letter phrases go, this one's just okay.


• 21a: Put a bottom on (SOLED). Put is one of those could-be-past-or-present verbs you have to watch out for.


• 22a: Right triangle parts (LEGS). The two parts that aren't the hypotenuse, which is a much cooler word than LEGS.



• 23a: Hornet, e.g. (VESPID). From the Latin, vespa = wasp.


• 26a: Company acquired by Alcoa in 2000 (REYNOLDS). Usually it's ALCOA in the fill.


• 31a: "The Bastard" author John (JAKES). I remember this from when I worked a paperback bookstore as a teenager, so this book has been around a while. Let's see... yep, 1974.


• 35a: Scarlet Knight rival (HOYA). The Scarlet Knights are the athletic teams from Rutgers, who play the Georgetown Hoyas. Sounds like it could be a comic book hero, though. Doesn't it? In which case the crossing at the H with 35d: Oak variety (HOLM) is a real bear. I've never heard of a Holm oak.


• 39a: Manta (SEA DEVIL). Think Tampa Bay (formerly Devil) Rays.


• 41a: Boston-based department store founder (FILENE). Another gimme for a New Englander. Is Filene's a national chain? That I don't know, but I think they were acquired by Macy's.


• 42a: They're contraindicated for people with certain metal implants (MRIS). Because the high magnetic field could pull them right through your flesh, which generally wouldn't be good.


• 43a: Onetime Coliseum pro (L.A. RAM).


• 45a: Admit politely (SEE IN). Nice clue.



• 47a: Boardwalk buy (HOTEL). Need a crossing to tell if it's going to be HOUSE or HOTEL.


• 51a: 1957 film narrated by Alistair Cooke, with "The" (THREE FACES OF EVE). Never saw it, but I'm familiar with the title.


• 4d: Casual states? (SEZ). Tricky. "He sez..." is a casual way of saying "He states...".


• 5d: Girl Scout cookie (TREFOIL). These are the shortbread cookies. Mmmmm.


• 6d: One of the R's in J.R.R. Tolkien (RONALD). The easier of the Rs. The other is a much more crossword-likely REUEL.


• 11d: Cheese named after an Italian town in the Vicenza province (ASIAGO). Once I had the starting A, this was a gimme.



• 16d: She played Harper Lee in "Infamous" (SANDRA BULLOCK).


• 25d: Surveilling devices (SPY CAMERAS).


• 28d: Ranking member (DOYEN). Great late-week fill.


• 31d: Lifetime Grammy winner Mitchell (JONI). No, I haven't won any Grammys, so PETE is going to be wrong.


• 34d: Preaches (REVS). Huh? To preach is to REV? Oh wait, I get it: Preach is short for preacher and Rev is short for reverend. All right. I guess.


• 44d: Cooked one's own goose? (ATE IN). Easy, but I love the clue.


• 48d: Black, to Botticelli (NERO).


• 50d: Women's apparel brand (BEBE).

Suns of Bitches:

• 1a: Annual science fiction convention held in Toronto (AD ASTRA). Literally "to the stars". What a nasty start to the puzzle.


• 18a: "The Mysteries of Udolpho" author Radcliffe (ANN). I had IAN when I thought 1d was FUJI.


• 2d: Actor with the memoir "Things I've Said, But Probably Shouldn't Have" (DERN).


• 13d: Miami Heat head coach Spoelstra (ERIK).


• 46d: Jennifer of "Pride and Prejudice" (EHLE).


• 47d: Painter Holbein (HANS).


• 49d: Norwegian opera singer Andresen (IVAR).

Not the hardest Weekend Warrior, nor the hardest KMT by a long shot, but still plenty challenging in spots. I could do without so many four-letter names, but still enjoyed the puzzle overall.

Thanks for listening.

- Pete M.