Monday, February 23, 2009

Title: Pinstripers in the Hall
Author: Michael T. Williams
Theme: Nicknames of Hall-of-Fame Yankees players

• 18a: Bronx Bomber in Cooperstown (JOLTIN' JOE). Joe DiMaggio.


• 24a: Bronx Bomber in Cooperstown (OLD PROFESSOR). Casey Stengel.


• 38a: Bronx Bomber in Cooperstown (THE SULTAN OF SWAT). Babe Ruth.


• 52a: Bronx Bomber in Cooperstown (THE IRON HORSE). Lou Gehrig.


• 62a: Bronx Bomber in Cooperstown (MR. OCTOBER). Reggie Jackson.

Okay, first things first. It's no secret that I'm a die-hard Red Sox fan, so there's only so much love I can give to a Yankees puzzle. But it's a cool theme, and I knew all but the Casey Stengel one (which I know I've heard, but I couldn't place without looking it up). Minor quibble that two start with THE, which is kind of undesirable in a crossword, but not a huge flaw.

Sundries:

• 17a: Sound of a wet impact (SPLAT). Which might leave a 28a: Irregularly shaped stain (SPLOTCH). I've always been a fan of the onomatopoetic words.


• 37a: 50th state greeting (ALOHA). This is the gimme that corrected my one false step at 10d, where I had CONTAINS for 10d: Holds in check (CONTROLS).


• 45a: Holy Frenchwoman: Abbr. (STE).


• 46a: London cathedral (ST PAULS). Unusual to have two "saint" clues, especially so close together.


• 66a: Arctic coat (PARKA). RIME, my first instinct, didn't fit.



• 1d: Pasta sauce (PESTO). I love PESTO. The only thing we grow consistently in our pitiful garden is basil, so summertime is pesto time. Man, you can almost smell that picture, can't you?


• 5d: Straight (HETERO).


• 8d: Word left behind by the Lorax (UNLESS). I need to go back and read this again, as it seems to get more puzzle action than most Seuss stories.


• 9d: Actor Mahershalalhashbaz ___ of "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" (ALI). This is oddly guessable. I still haven't seen the film. I think I'll wait for it to show up on Netflix.


• 11d: Ramada alternative, informally (HOJO).


• 21d: Factotum (DO ALL). I never heard of a factotum, which is a servant hired to do a wide variety of jobs. I think I need one.


• 26d: Norwegian saint (OLAF). I never know whether this is going to be OLAF or OLAV. I've seen it both ways, and I'm not sure there's a pattern.


• 34d: University of Maryland player, for short (TERP). The Terps get more crossword ink than most college mascots, that's for sure. Although the Georgetown Hoyas get their due as well.


• 39d: Full of electrical interference (STATICKY). Wow, that just looks wrong, doesn't it?



• 41d: Animated clownfish voiced by Alexander Gould (NEMO). You had me at animated fish.


• 48d: One-named comedian in "Jingle All the Way" (SINBAD).


• 59d: David Copperfield's first wife (DORA). Didn't know this, but never saw the clue. This is usually clued via "Dora the Explorer".

Countdown to ACPT. Can't wait! If you're one of the three people who have followed this blog, be sure to introduce yourself and say hello. I'll probably be in the bar. :)

Thanks for listening.

- Pete M.